When I heard that one of my smelteries was hit, I asked myself what I would do to the idiots that thought they could touch me.

When I learned that it was the dipshit Merchants that did it, I blamed myself for not cleaning up trash.

When I got all of the facts together, I made a decision after three hours of intense discussion and thinking.

I gathered the Dragonteeth together, all those in the city and not essential to any of the security operations. When they were together, I told them what we were to do.

"We end the Merchants within the next three days," I announced without preamble. "The local authorities can't be half-assed and trusted to do anything, so we're going to have to do it ourselves. Ready yourself by tomorrow." I slowly stood up and then deliberately stopped myself halfway through. "Oh, and anyone who gets me the heads of their capes will earn bounty rewards, if not promotions." Then I finished standing and left the auditorium.

No sooner that I left the auditorium, Taylor joined me by my side, walking along but her mind elsewhere and upset. She's taken the death of Arrowfish personally as he was one of the first of my cape recruits who took to her side first.

"When?"

"Tomorrow. I'm sure you want to spend that time looking for the Merchants?"

"... Okay."

With that, she split herself from me, going towards the surface. One of the guards - who was standing at attention and ready with an SMG held in his hands - in the corridor saw her leave, looked at me subtly, and I nodded.

Taylor was sure to want to jump around on her own, but I wasn't going to let her be so … unsafe. A driver would be necessary for her mission.

The guard held up his wrist, activated his wrist-radio, and spoke soft words through it. An equally soft confirmation came from the other side, and he nodded to me as he dropped his hand back to his side.

I watched Taylor leave, knowing that the brutal warlord that she could have become could come out starting now. After all, it was the supposed deaths of the Undersiders that led Skitter into killing Alexandria, the supposed killer.

I'll have to distract her once this debacle with the Merchants was over. I couldn't have her wallow in negative emotions for long.

But I also knew that I would have less and less time once the Merchants were eliminated. Many outsiders would see my removal of the Merchants as the realization of their fears: my march of conquest. Their Coalition would fire, even if the Merchants were never one of them. It was consideration of the Coalition that led me to think for so long instead of lashing out immediately.

I gave myself and the Dragonteeth three days (two days in earnest because we would prepare today) because anymore time and the Coalition would come bearing down on me.

On the other hand, I doubted that the Coalition was networked or administered efficiently enough to assemble a force within two days, and even after two days, they would trickle in rather than come down as one force. The Elite, in particular, made up the biggest portion of the Coalition yet everything I've learned about them told me that they would not come down on me until some other organization struck first and bore the brunt of my wrath.

It didn't mean I was going to give myself the leisure of slowing my response to the Merchants' raid on my facility and the deaths of my people.

No, no, no.

I told myself that this was personal.

I would treat it like it was.

I wasn't going to hesitate because some asshole was looking over my shoulder or that Cauldron could come to mess with me.

I bared my fangs at the thought of killing Skidmark and Squealer.

It was going to be … cathartic.

-VB-

(With Lisa)

Lisa frowned when she heard Alan's announcement and when he walked off stage, she began to wonder if staying here was really in her best interest…

[His announcement will proliferate to the greater world within two days. His action will alert the world before he strikes at the Merchants. There are many spies from the Coalition already in the city.]

Yeah, that was not good.

She heard steps behind her.

[The build and the sound of the steps are very specific to Alan. Alan is coming towards you.]

She looked over her shoulder. He walked towards her but he wasn't focused on her.

[Usually only frowns when something annoys him. Coming to see you to talk about annoyance. The Merchants made him angry but they aren't annoying to him. Only subject that "annoys" him is the Coalition. Coming to talk to you about the Coalition.]

"Lisa," he greeted her even as he looked distracted.

"Let's talk in my office," she told him.

He grunted out an agreement and followed her.

As they walked through the corridor, they made for a stark contrast.

[Followers see Alan as an unbreakable pillar of strength. You are seen as an annoying sidekick when your status as Alan's woman is not brought up.]

Gee, thanks.

When they entered her office, he shut the door behind her and sat down on one of the chairs.

Since Alan's excursion to Boston Endbringer battle, Lisa upgraded her office to be more liveable. There was a golden eagle statuette in one corner, comfy armchairs, expanded the office, got herself a desktop computer with optic fiber internet connection…

Yes, she's been "blinging" her office.

"How many eyes are on us in the city?" he asked her when she sat down.

She hummed. "Probably fifteen, eighteen if you add the local PRT."

"The Coalition?"

"Sixteen."

"Coalition spies in the PRT?"

"No, Coalition sympathizers."

His face darkened.

"Are there any chance that the local PRT or Protectorate will start a fight?"

"Kind of."

"Lisa, I need straightforward answers."

She huffed. "It's not like you're going to go into Boardwalk, right? Then no."

He hummed. "... Anything else?"

"I might have something."

A pause.

"Well?"

"There's another player in the city. I haven't seen much movement from them and they looked like they were going to pass by, but they're staying with this new development."

"... Who?"

"Gesellshaft."

Alan's eyes narrowed. Lisa knew that Alan had dim view of racists, especially dumb racism. "Main branch?"

"Oh no. Just your local dumb dumb blondes…" she stopped and blushed at her own mistake.

Alan smirked. "You're a blonde."

[He likes it when you blush and make mistakes.]

"Shut up," she snipped at him though without much heat. "Anyways, they're just another proxy. They are in one mind with the Coalition but they're the Elite's rival more or less for influence in the East Coast, so they're supplying new capes amenable to their cause."

"And yet you didn't tell me sooner?"

"They were small fries! Like really small."

"The Merchants are small fries."

"That's because you let them be."

He stared at her for a moment before he smirked.

[Wants sex.]

Fuck.

"I think I'm going to need to punish you for leaving something so… important out from our last meeting."

He stood up and walked around her table and leaned down towards her, an arm on each of the arms of her chair.

Not too long after that, her skirt was hitched, her legs over her shoulders, and her vagina was being rammed into by Alan.

Why the hell wasn't she looking for a way out?

Oh yeah, she's pregnant and she loved the sex.