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Chapter 1
"According as circumstances are favorable, one should modify one's plans."
-Sun Tzu, The Art of War, Chapter 1, Verse 17.
October 8, 2010
I sighed for what was probably the tenth time in the last twenty minutes as I looked out the window of the grey sedan I was riding in. Brockton Bay had a reputation for being a rough town that was down on it's luck and nothing I had seen so far had done anything to make me doubt that. Detroit of the East they called it, except with with less empty automobile factories and more Parahuman crime. Someplace people fled from in droves and someplace no one in their right mind would move to unless they had a very good reason to or didn't have a choice.
Like me. Unfortunately I definitely didn't have much of a choice in moving here. As to having a good reason? Well... I certainly hoped so. But I really didn't want to get my hopes up.
"You see there Shiba-san," said the thirty-something Asian man chauffeuring me in passable Japanese while pointing at something out the window, "the green and red art work on the walls? That marks the edge of our territory. The borders of our turf are always the most contested and where most of the nasty action happens. Further in things tend to be a lot more peaceful, most of the time." "That's nice,"
I shifted uncomfortably, gripping the straps of my backpack in the seat next to me just to have something to do with my hands. I'd intellectually known what he did for years but this was as close as I'd come to seeing any of it up close and personal. I still didn't know what to think even after having had a couple of days with nothing but time to think. Everything had happened and was happening so damn fast. Just five days ago I had been a mostly regular teen living a more or less normal life in Tampa. Now I was a Parahuman who was 'wanted for questioning' by the Protectorate back in Florida. It was dizzying how much my life had been turned on it's head in such a short period of time.
Of course the biggest change was moving here to Brockton Bay. To live with him. I was equal parts nervous and terrified. And Goddamn it I couldn't help but be a bit hopeful too. Maybe there was a silver lining in all of this craziness. Maybe this meant I would actually get to have a relationship with my own father.
"In case you're curious about where you'll be staying, you'll be happy to know I managed to set up a two bedroom apartment just for you," the driver said, "fully furnished and with a new state of the art entertainment system. You'll get to decorate it how you like of course. It's in the same building your father stays in, just a couple of floors below his own apartment."
I felt something odd twist in my chest at hearing that. We weren't going to be living together? No, of course not, a part of me thought bitterly. I honestly hadn't given our living arrangements much thought but I'd just assumed... well, what had I expected? We hadn't seen each other for over three years now and we'd never lived together. Just sticking us together to live in the same place would most likely have been awkward. Besides I'd just turned seventeen. What seventeen year old wouldn't want their own apartment? I'd probably be much happier having my own space and privacy anyway.
It still hurt though. It made me wonder if he didn't really want me around and just forced me to move here because he was looking for a chance to add my new powers to his little gang. I really, really hoped that wasn't the case.
"What was your name again? And how come you're the one who set up an apartment for me?" I asked the man. It occurred to me then that this guy most likely knew the civilian identity of Lung, and if that was true most likely knew that I was a Parahuman as well.
"The name's Yao Lang," said the man cheerfully, thankfully not sounding offended that I'd forgotten his name even though he'd introduced himself when he'd picked me up at the airport. "I'm sort of like your father's non powered right hand man-slash-assistant. I handle all the little details, logistics, troubleshooting, things like that. He looks at the big picture it's my job to ensure everything goes smoothly. If you have any problems you can come to me and I'll take care of it." "Huh. Thanks,"
"Ah, we're here," said Yao as he began to pull up to a building. It was painted a pristine white and was at least five stories tall from where I could see. I couldn't help but notice that a building that nice seemed slightly out of place with the rest of the neighborhood. With the click of a remote a heavy duty metal gate that looked like it could stop a small tank moved aside and let us enter an underground garage. There were some cars down there but overall it was remarkably empty.
"State of the art security. A lot of our higher ups live here, I'd say about half. We own the property too - or rather I should say we own the man who owns the property. There are a lot of people who live here who aren't one of us though so be mindful of that. It makes for good camouflage," Yao said as he pulled into an empty parking spot.
I hesitantly got out of the car once it stopped, taking my backpack with me and putting it on. "Are you sure you should be telling me all this?" I asked Yao. That he was being so free with information set off some alarm bells in my head.
"Yeah it's not problem," he said with an animated grin as he moved to take my suitcases out of the trunk, "you're going to be working with your dad soon. You'll need to know all this stuff anyway."
I turned away from him as he unloaded my bags so he wouldn't see the frown on my face. I'd half wanted - and expected - that I might be like one of those girls in those Aleph gangster movies. The ones where their fathers kept the girls ignorant and far away from the family business while still doing their best to do what they could to be good fathers and family men. However apparently I was already being fitted for a red and green uniform. Part of me felt I should be outraged at that. I was kind of pissed but... I honestly didn't know how I felt about being part of dad's gang one way or the other. Maybe working with him would let us bond or something. As long as he didn't expect me to do something too repulsive or unsavory.
I followed Yao as he carried my two battered suitcases for me... which felt a little silly since I knew I now merited a Brute rating even "untransformed" and he was just a regular guy. He led us to an elevator attached directly to the garage. I was fidgety as I stepped inside and he pushed two different buttons for two different floors.
"The boss wanted to see you as soon as you arrived," my stomach dropped and roiled nervously at his words, "He's got the top floor all to himself so just knock on the door. I'll drop off your bags in your new place and leave the keys on the counter so just come whenever you're done. I'll leave the door unlocked so you can get in. Apartment 404."
I honestly wanted to run away. Maybe hide myself in my new apartment for a while and hope that with enough time I might be more mentally prepared for this. Instead I forced myself to take a deep slow calming breath. I wasn't the type to run from my problems and I didn't like the idea of being the type of person to turn away from a situation just because it was uncomfortable. With a fake smile I nodded to Yao. "Sure. I'll do that."
He got off on the fourth floor and I stayed as the elevator rose to the sixth and final floor. When it dinged that we had arrived I steeled myself as the doors opened. On the other side of the elevator there was a wide hallway with patterned marble flooring that led to a set of double doors. The whole thing reminded me more of a hotel hallway than that of an apartment building.
I walked up to the large set of double doors, my body feeling a bit like it was on autopilot while I did it. The two doors stood large, daunting, intimidating. I closed my eyes and took another deep breath before straightening my spine and knocking sharply on the door three times.
"Come in," came a gruff and booming voice from somewhere inside. After a moment's hesitation I gripped the fancy ornate handle and did just that.
+++The Art of War+++
I couldn't help but feel a bit like a young schoolgirl as I walked in there, wearing my backpack and a pair of converse shoes. My first impression of the place was that it looked a lot more like one of those swanky presidential suites I'd seen in movies than someone's apartment. Everything I could immediately see looked comfortable and expensive. As I walked a little further into the apartment and turned a corner I got my first look at the real meat of the place. The living room-slash-living area was absolutely massive, with enough space on expensive looking leather couches to sit a dozen people. Off to the side I could see a gleaming modern kitchen done in stainless steel and black marble. Dominating the living room was the biggest flat screen TV I had ever seen which was currently turned on to a soccer game.
Sitting on one of the couches with his back turned to me was a man in a white T-shirt with the broadest set of shoulders I had ever seen. As soon as I had cleared the corner he began to stand up in slow and unhurried pace. When he turned to look at me I froze, staring at the same exact pair of perpetually intense eyes I remembered from my childhood. He studied me for a moment before walking over to me in a smooth confident stride, a stride I'd come to recognize as belonging to someone who had trained how to fight and knew how to take care of themselves.
I just stood there until he stopped right in front of me. He was nearly seven feet tall and absolutely towered over my average five foot seven frame. His expression was neutral as his black eyes scanned me over from head to toe. I did my best to put up my own neutral expression, unsure of what emotions would be appropriate or even welcome in this case. We were practically strangers to each other and I couldn't forget that this man was also Lung, gang leader and cape that even other capes were afraid to cross.
"Katsuko-chan," he said in Japanese by way of greeting. His voice was deep and somehow echoed from his massive chest.
I resisted the urge to shift from foot to foot or otherwise fidget as I looked up to him. "Father."
We were quiet for a long moment before he spoke up again. "How was your trip?"
I bit my lip and nodded slightly. "Good. Didn't have any problems or anything."
There was another long silence as I struggled to come up with something to say. Lung - dad - took the initiative by turning and walking back towards the couches. "Come. Let's sit."
I followed him wordlessly feeling a little bit like I was tip toeing though broken glass. Or a minefield. He sat on the edge of one of the couches and I moved to sit on the edge of another, facing him. Glancing at the TV as I sat down my mind finally came up with something to say.
"I didn't know you liked soccer," I said.
"I don't," was his terse reply.
I licked my lips. "Then why do you have it on?"
My dad, Kenta - should I call him Kenta? - shrugged his massive shoulders. "Nothing else was on."
There was another silence before father cleared his throat. "We need to talk about a few things Ketsuko-chan," he said, giving me a significant look to make me understand this conversation was going to be serious.
I swallowed, doing my best to hide my trepidation. "Fine." "First of all, we should talk about school. I won't make you finish high school. It would be best if you did but I won't force the issue."
I blinked and sort of had to take a moment with that. The Fukunagas whom I had been living with for the last five years would never in a million years have considered letting me not finish high school. In fact they had always been pretty strict about me getting good grades. The idea of not going to school was... odd. I mean what else was I going to do?
"I've been going to school since the first grade but none of that will mean anything if I don't get a high school diploma," I said with a shrug, "I've only got a year and a half left. I want to finish school."
My father, Kenta - I was really going to have to decide what I was going to call him in my head - just gave a small nod at that. Frustratingly nothing in his expression told me whether he approved or disapproved of my decision. "That's fine. I'll give you Yao's number later, call him and have him set it up for you. Now the next order of business. You need to be introduced to the gang. Tomorrow evening I set up a little demonstration for you to show off your powers in front of some of the more influential men in my organization. You need to impress them, make sure they know who you are. It's extremely important to make everyone know not to fuck with you."
I was a little startled to hear him curse, since the Fukunagas had been nice conservative older couple who had probably never let a profanity escape their lips at any time during this millennium. The rest of what my father had said however was much more disturbing.
With a frown I said, "I'm not sure I like this. I don't really know the details of what you do other than a lot of it is... less than legal. I came because I wanted to and because I didn't have a lot of choice but that doesn't automatically mean I want to join the Azn Bad Boys."
Kenta - let's go with Kenta for now - grunted at that, somehow making it sound derisive. "There really is no other choice. You're a cape now, and one with Brute powers to boot. I won't accept my own daughter doing anything else with them in this town other than helping me and my organization."
I held back my knee jerk reaction at saying something bratty and rebellious at him for just... assuming he could just force me to join his little gang. Instead I parsed what he said and tried to speak reasonably. "What does it matter that I have powers, Brute powers or not? I could just... not use my powers. Live a normal life. I'd sort of assumed you'd want that for me."
Kenta shook his head. "I've been around a lot of capes Katsuko. Saints and sinners, capes of every stripe, in peaceful cities or in hell. I've never met a cape who could stop themselves from using their powers. Maybe if you were a Thinker you could hide away and pretend to be normal but you're a Brute. Using your powers means getting into fights and pounding things with your fists. Capes all have a stupid urge to put themselves in dangerous situations. When the time comes there are only so many options. For obvious reasons you can't join the Protectorate and I won't allow you to fly solo either as a hero or a criminal. That is simply too dangerous. That just leaves working for me unless you felt like trying your luck with the Nazis or the junkies." Obviously the last two weren't really an option.
I looked away, biting my lip. "I could probably control it," I said, but my protest sounded weak even to my own ears.
"No. You couldn't."
Even though I really hated to admit it, dad had a point. Even through the whirlwind of getting my powers, coming home in bloody rags, frantic phone calls to Brockton Bay, the Tampa Bay Protectorate looking for a 'black armored cape', packing up my life and moving out of state... I'd still felt a burning need to experiment with my powers. I had done so even when I had a thousand other things distracting me and when going out to see just how strong I really was had been a monumentally stupid thing to do when people had been looking for me. What Kenta had said about being unable to stop myself from using my powers had a ring of truth to it. I had to believe my own father wouldn't put my life in danger and make me enter a life of crime if he didn't think it was necessary.
I sighed. In one way or another it seemed that I was going to be part of the Azn Bad Boys. Hopefully we could just keep my involvement to a minimum. Being a known felon would probably hurt my chances of getting a scholarship to get into a good college, just a bit. This sudden move was probably already going to play havoc with my transcripts.
"Fine," I said trying not to sound petulant, "If you think it's important I'll go. It's also good to have the option of having some way to use my powers, I guess." Though how that would work exactly I had no idea.
"Good," said Kenta with a tone of finality to it. "I'll control this entire city eventually. If you hadn't triggered I would have waited until then to send for you when it was safer. As it stands this town is very dangerous. Listen to me and follow my lead. Until you know the full extent of your powers you don't want to take any risks."
I nodded absently at that. I didn't very well feel like I could have just said 'no', especially with how famous this city was for all it's cape violence. "Yes father," I said obediently. I also chose not to think about how he would have 'sent for me' eventually, especially given that if he ever did completely take over the Brockton Bay underworld I would have definitely been an adult by then.
Kenta nodded at that. Even though his face was stoic and hard to read I wanted to think that he was at least somewhat pleased with me for going along with what he wanted. "Be ready to go at eight in the evening tomorrow," Kenta said. "Since I'm assuming you don't have a mask I'll have one for you. Only a very few, very trusted people in the organization are allowed to know the civilian identities of our capes. Don't forget that. Yao knows everything so don't be afraid to let him know if you need anything." "Yes father."
"I'm going to be busy for the rest of the evening," Kenta said. My eyes widened a bit as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick roll of hundred dollar bills. He threw it at me and I had to fumble to catch it. "That's two grand. Use it to buy whatever you need. If you need anymore ask me or Yao."
I stared at the roll of bills in my hands held together by a rubber band. I'd never held that much cash in my life. Not even close. It was strange and felt kind of... dirty, since I vaguely knew the money came from less-than-legal activities. Still I made the effort to look up and give the man a small grateful smile. "I don't really need this much. This should last me for a really long time. Thanks... dad."
He just grunted at that, but this time I'm pretty sure he was actually at least a little bit pleased. "That's just pocket change, don't be afraid to ask for more. Get yourself situated. We'll arrange to have dinner sometime soon."
It seemed a bit odd that we'd have to schedule something like that. I gave him another small, if hesitant, smile. "That would be nice."
Kenta nodded and stood up. "It's better that you're here Katsuko. Now get out of here. I've got a lot of work to do."