Rising Worries 6

February 3, 2011 (6:30 PM) \ Cloudless

Brockton Bay, PRT Headquarters

Director's Office

"The Director will see you now," the PRT secretary announced.

Rosa stood up from her seat, her escort Chiave and Executor following suit. As she entered the office, she noted Mayor Christner was having an animated discussion with Director Piggot and Dragon. "...assured that there was nothing to worry about!" the mayor exclaimed. "And now I'm getting reports stating otherwise?"

"Mr. Christner," Piggot replied in a terse tone. "I understand where you are coming from. From the medical reports and Panacea's review, there was nothing for us to worry about then. If not for Rhodes Island, we wouldn't know what was happening until the patients died."

"If it's any consolation," Rosa added, announcing her presence. "Oripathy takes a few days before the first symptoms begin. You wouldn't be able to discover it until the Infected started scaring."

Surprised, both humans greeted her. "Lady Rosa," Piggot pointed at the chair before her desk. "Please, have a seat."

Smiling, she sat opposite the now-calmed Mayor. "What's the status of the...Infected?" the director asked, checking a report on her desk.

Rosa nodded. "As of now, Folinic has reported 20 confirmed cases in BBGH." she revealed. The medic's last text was a few minutes ago. "Thankfully, all of them are at the Early Stage, easily treatable with the proper care."

Piggot gave her a flat look. "But incurable."

Sighing, the Ursus noble nodded. "Even Panacea couldn't do anything about it," the mayor bemoaned, slumping on his chair. "Has Rhodes Island really found no cure?"

"Make no mistakes, Mr. Mayor, Rhodes Island is dedicated to finding a cure for Oripathy." Rosa promised. "But the path to achieve that goal is a long and tedious process."

Dragon, who had been quiet for the whole time, cleared her throat. "If it's any consolation, Mayor Christner, my factory is already producing the necessary equipment RI needs to treat the Infected."

Mayor Christner waved her off, looking more haggard than ever. "God...what is wrong with this city?"

"At least this ain't Terra." Chiave joked, no doubt trying to lighten up the mood. "This is just one incident, not an everyday occurrence."

Although the analogy wasn't fully understood, it had the intended effect. "At least Rhodes Island would be able to help Vairë get out of her crystal cocoon." the mayor added.

Piggot nodded. "It'd go a long way to calm the populace if they get our rising star out."

Rosa winced, a fact they did not miss. "Lady Rosa, RI would be able to help, right?"

"It's...more complicated than that, sir." Rosa began, trying to find the right words to explain the situation. "Our doctors had a discussion with Panacea and Glory Girl about Vairë."

She recalled the impromptu video conference they had on her way here. The New Wave capes explained that they believe Vairë underwent a second Trigger gone wrong. Apparently, the two knew what her first Trigger was, and although they didn't share the details, the Terrans could guess it was similar to being trapped in a locker.

"Ptilopsis theorized that Vairë's power was some form of Originium Arts. From Glory Girl's description, she would have been considered a Buff Supporter class by RI-standards." Rosa explained, recalling the two's discussion. "After reading the incident report Dragon forwarded, when Vairë was shoved into the locker, her Arts started destabilizing for some reason."

"Because the attack reminded her of her first Trigger." Piggot guessed, growling in frustration. "Goddamn it, Stalker…"

She winced. "However, she must have realized what was going on and sought to control the whole thing, accidentally starting the process of how OPs are made." She paused, trying to choose the right words. "The Winslow Crater was the aftermath of a geological process that should have happened underground."

"But what does this mean for Vairë?" Piggot demanded.

"It means, Director, Mr. Mayor, that Vairë turned herself into a giant Originite Prime crystal." Rosa revealed. "And there's nothing we can do to change her back."

# # # | # # #

February 3, 2011 (11:30 PM) \ Cloudless

Brockton Bay, RI Satellite Office

A Simple Terran Cafe

"Here you go, Louisa," Suzuran handed her a cup of hot chocolate and a plate of Honey Biscuits. "Do you need anything else?"

Folinic shook her head. "I'm good Lisa, thanks." she replied, watching her friend take care of the plates. She sighed, leaning back. "What a day…"

"How bad is it?" Talulah suddenly asked, appearing with a mug of coffee.

"24 confirmed cases, 16 unaccounted for." she revealed, making the two wince. "The mayor pleaded earlier for those unaccounted to visit BBGH immediately. Tomorrow, Hellagur and Weedy will be exhuming those who died in the explosion for proper disposal."

"And here I thought this world would never experience the horrors of Terra." the former terrorist mused, sipping her coffee. "Any good news?"

Folinic ate a biscuit before answering. "All confirmed cases have a low assimilation rate so far. No known side effects have been reported as well. I guess we could take that as a win, I suppose."

"The OP used to be a person right?" Suzuran asked, taking a seat between the two. "Vair-something?"

"Vairë," the medic corrected, tapping the PRT Profile on the dead cape. "AKA Taylor Hebert."

Rosa handed her the file the moment everyone got back to the Satellite Office. According to PRT classification, she was a Trump 10, Versatile Blaster, Combat Thinker, and Magi Tinker. From a quick glance of the file, Dobermann guessed she would have been a Supporter-class operator by RI standards. "If this wasn't a PRT file," Dobermann had stated earlier. "I would have thought she was some comic book heroine."

From what news reports Click and Rosa found, Vairë had endeared herself to the Brockton Bay. Her first outing resulted in her saving 300 people from a collapsing building, then healing everyone injured in the entire block. Her subsequent outings had her helping the BBPD and making rounds in BBGH. There were talks of the city giving her an award when the Winslow Explosion happened.

Talulah arched an eyebrow. "Hebert as in…"

"Danny Hebert?" she nodded. "It's fucked up, I know."

The three fell into silence, with Suzuran munching on a biscuit. Danny Hebert had been a good friend to RI since they arrived, helping them out. In return, RI gave the DWU preferential treatment in job hirings and business ventures. "How are we going to tell him his daughter's dead?" the supporter asked. "Does he even know about Vairë?"

Folinic kept quiet, mulling over the decision. "He knows about his daughter's cape abilities but still hopes she'll come out of her crystal. Unfortunately, we all know that's never going to happen now."

"Are you going to tell him?" Talulah asked.

The medic gave her a nervous laugh. "I was hoping you could do it for us?"

Talulah's status back home was a hot topic for everyone in RI. On one hand, she was a Terrorist Leader who destroyed one Nomadic City and damaged another, almost sparking another war between Ursus and Yen. On the other, she was nothing more than a pawn - figuratively and literally.

(The Feline had shuddered when she read about the Master power classification PRT had, getting a better understanding of what Talulah went through.)

"And why," she drawled, steepling her hands on the table. "Should I do that?"

"Perfumer, Ptilopsis, and I will be going to BBGH tomorrow." Folinic began. "Dobermann, Yato, Noir, Fang, Beagle, Kroos, Exusiai, and Click will be our escorts. Hellagur and Weedy will visit the Brockton Cemetery, while Closure and Chiave are visiting Armsmaster at the Rig."

"I'll be with the Guard shift tomorrow," Suzuran added, glancing at the cafe manager. "Along with Lava, Hibiscus, Cuora, Zima, Gummy, Rosa, Absinthe, and Ifrit."

"That leaves me with Executor, I suppose." Talulah finished, sipping her coffee. "You're not really giving me a choice, are you?"

Folinic gave her a flat look. "Do you want Executor to be the one giving the news?" she asked rhetorically, making Talulah wince. "Besides, you two are friends?"

Talulah rolled her eyes. "We just like talking about community empowerment and social inequality." she grumbled before sighing. "Very well, I'll break the news to him. It's not like I haven't done it before."

Folinic shook her head. "That's the easy part. It's the second request that's the hardest."

"What are we going to request from him?" Suzuran asked, tilting her head in confusion.

Steeling her nerves, Folinic took a deep breath. "We're going to ask him if Rhodes Island can harvest the Originite Prime."

Awesome Notes and Notification:

Yes - The Queen of Escalation is gone.

Before all the Taylor Fans start raising pitchforks at me, just remember that this fic is focused on the RI operators, not Taylor. However, that doesn't mean her presence will no longer be felt throughout the story. Her shadow will loom over the entire story, affecting each Arc indirectly.

After all, things in Earth Bet turned for the worse when Taylor died - and it ain't stopping there!

Also, enjoy the Easter Egg I placed in this chapter. If any of you can guess it correctly, I'll give a PM detailing what's going to happen in the next Arc.

So...comments?