Typhoon of the East

by bubbajack

A mysterious man rides into town on a black steed. He comes for a mission none shall know but is here to cause change. Watch out Brockton Bay a typhoon has come. Outside elements, limited to Warhammer 40k, Type-Moon. and other, mainly caused from trigger events and tinker tech. Rated M for blood, gore and citrus.

2. Chapter 2

Typhoon of the East

By: Bubbajack

Beta/Co-author: Icysnowsage

Disclaimer: We don't own the Worm Web Serial obviously. No seriously we don't Wildbow doesn't get paid enough for us to even try to steal credit from them.

Ch.1.2: Squall.

Jin's eyes snapped open the moment he heard the creek of floorboards above him. He listened intently, as it was a heavy footfall doing its best to walk on catspaws 'Danny,' he decided as he heard the subtle creek of a door shutting moments before the sound of water running through the pipes in the walls could be heard. Taking that as his cue, Jin got up from his place on the couch and crept quiet as a mouse to the kitchen and began to make breakfast.

Taking a quick look through the cupboards and fridge he noted they were a bit bare but had the essentials. 'Enough for a simple fare,' Jin decided before he got to cooking, getting out a skillet and adding some oil before he started making japanese omelets and sausages to go with it. 'The tea can wait till my host gets out of the shower,' So Jin occupied himself with making toast.

The tinker heard his host trying to quietly come down the stairs and failing miserably when he poked his head into the kitchen. "You're spoiling us Jin, first you pay for dinner, and now you're making us breakfast?"

Yet the new dockworker just shook his head, "One must pick up all manner of skills when surviving off the grid Hebert-san, learning to make much with little was one of them," He plated the food then covered two plates in tinfoil saying, "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go shower myself. The last plate is for Taylor, if you'll excuse me."

Recusing himself, Jin made his way towards the stairs stopping only briefly to collect his dufflebag of things he tucked behind the couch, which he carried with him making nary a sound as he ascended the old wooden steps. Once inside the bathroom, he wiped away the remaining fog on the mirror and looked at himself. He was rough from the road, and his stubble was leaning more towards a full beard. 'I could do with a trim,' he thought to himself as he reached a hand into his bag and pulled out some shaving cream and a straight razor.

Lathering his face, with a practiced hand he drew the blade up under his neck, and in three long swipes the worst of it was gone. He quickly cleared away the scruff on his cheeks and his would-be beard, and had just finished when he heard a muttered gasp.

Looking over he found Taylor staring at him. "Um, I'm sorry I didn't realize you were in here."

"It's fine, I was going to take a quick shower did you need to use the bathroom?" Jin asked politely.

"No, I'm fine I was just getting ready for my morning run," Taylor muttered her eyes on the floor, her voice barely above a mutter.

What could be seen of her face was bright red.

"If it's alright with you, may I join you?" Jin inquired.

Taylors head snapped up. "I… sure, I don't mind… Actually, I'd like that."

Jin nodded. "Good. If you go downstairs you'll find breakfast waiting for you," He walked past her, "I'll wait for you to change, and by the time you finish eating, I should be down."

"Oh… Okay… but won't you be late for work if you run with me?" The girl asked, not wanting him to get in trouble with her dad for her sake.

"It will be fine, you'll see," commented Jin with a ghost of a smile on his face in response to the confused look he got.

(...)

Taylor couldn't remember the last time she'd had a home cooked meal in her own house. Since her mother passed, the Heberts had been surviving on microwave dinners and simple fare like toast with jam and cold cut sandwiches. Every now and then, on those rare instances when her dad had a day off and wasn't completely exhausted he made breakfast, which is why they had eggs to begin with but now, here she was eating eggs and toast with green tea of all things in the morning. 'Jin is a really nice guy,' She thought as she finished her meal, just as the man in question came into the kitchen.

He was wearing a bright yellow shirt with black leaf patterns and black pants today, with his sweatband also matching his shirt. 'Is it actually a headband?' Taylor thought to herself as before her gaze was distracted by something else… the fact that his shirt was slightly open showing off his muscled chest. 'Stupid hormomes… stupid Jin being stupidly hot!' She said as she kept her eyes in her lap.

Hearing a chuckling coming from across the table she glanced up, seeing Jin looking at her. He said, "Perhaps it is best I not go with you after all, if you can't bear to look at me without blushing?"

"Gah!" Taylor let out before a grunt of laughter came from her father. She gave him a betrayed look, "Hey, isn't it supposed to be your job as my dad to be beating guys like him off with a stick or something?"

Danny pointed at himself, "Me, beat him with a stick? And be accused of a hate crime? I don't think so," Danny joked back.

"Besides," Jin added, playing along, "Beating people with sticks is an Asian thing. We call it kendo. So not only would your father be accused of a hate crime, but that would also be considered cultural appropriation."

"Yeah, exactly," muttered Danny, holding back his own laughter.

Taylor buried her head in her hands doing her best to hide her laughter, "Terrible, you're both just awful."

"I have finished eating, are you going to be able to pull yourself away from my rugged good looks long enough to watch where you're going?" questioned Jin as he smiled.

This time Taylor did laugh, sadly she actually couldn't remember the last time she did that, "I think I can manage."

"Jin, I'll see you at the Docks, Taylor… be safe," Danny told his daughter earnestly.

Taylor nodded, "I will dad… Jin'll be with me."

"I meant… Yeah, you'll be fine," Danny replied, as he made his way out the door stopping briefly to pet Kage before he left for the Docks.

(...)

As Jin ran along what was known as the Boardwalk according to Taylor as she pointed out random shops and stores, he kept an eye on the girl herself. She was lithe, if a bit gangly in her jogging outfit which consisted of jogging shorts, a t-shirt and well worn sneakers, and a scrunchie to keep her hair out of her face. Occasionally Jin would notice her glancing at him and he would on occasion need to pull her out of the way of some poor lamppost so she didn't run into it.

"Perhaps I shouldn't have come along after all, you almost fell into that trash can just now," Jin joked.

Blushing up a storm Taylor muttered, "I blame you. It should be illegal for a guy to be that hot."

Jin patted her head, "Thank you for the compliment, I find you cute as well."

Taylor let out a 'meep' of embarrassment, "Y-You heard?"

To which Jin replied, "I have good hearing."

"You really think I'm cute…" She asked, feeling pleasantly warm in her chest. She'd never been called that by a boy before, much less an older one like Jin.

"You are, you're dedicated and hard working, it is respectable, and while you're a tad awkward I find it endearing. It is similar to the Japanese idea of Yamato Nadeshiko," was Jin's blunt answer.

"An ideal Japanese woman, me?" Taylor said pointing to herself, "Well, thanks," It was nice to think her shyness was a charm point for some. 'Ugh, does this mean I actually have to thank the Trio for something?' She thought with distaste.

"Is everything alright Taylor?" Jin asked, concerned, "I noticed yesterday you avoided the topic of school."

"Ah," The girl quickly panicked. "It's nothing just teenage bullies… typical stuff," She replied even though she knew what the Trio had done to her was anything but typical.

Sighing, Jin said as he leaned against a concrete barrier leading to the beach, "I owe your father a great debt, I would help you if I could. Barring that, you could at least learn how to lie convincingly so as not to worry me."

Taylor hung her head, "Sorry I just… Don't want anyone else getting involved in it… it's not worth it. They aren't worth it," Taylor assured her friend.

Jin leaned against the barrier, arms folded, "I see… I shall honor your request for the moment, but the second I feel they go too far… I will intervene whether you like it or not. Understood?"

Taylor nodded a flood of relief flowing through her causing her to hiccup against her will. 'Finally,' She thought, 'Someone was in my corner,' "I … thanks Jin, but I hope it won't come to that…" she glanced down at his katana and tanto she thought it was called, "I'm afraid at what you might do with those things."

"They're pinkies," Jin replied.

Taylor blinked uncomprehendingly, "What?"

"I would cut off they're pinky fingers," Jin replied calmly as if he were talking about the weather. "It is a traditional punishment for samurai to lose a part of one's pinkie finger means loss of one's control over their katana, meaning one must depend more on those around them… or depending on the severity of their crime… well it was not unheard of for samurai to test the sharpness of their katana on convicted criminals whether they were alive or dead."

'Jin can never find out about the locker,' Taylor decided in that moment, 'He'd kill them outright,'

"Did you not talk to a person in authority like a teacher or the principal?" Jin asked.

To which Taylor let out a hollow laugh. "They don't care, they've started telling me to go away when I show up to complain a couple weeks ago so I just stopped."

Jin's eyes became flinty, "To fail in one's duty to protect a child… inconceivable… Such dishonor," He said, barely constrained fury in his tone.

Holding out her hands placatingly Taylor said, "Please don't get involved, it's just not worth it, okay?" Seeing his face was still wroth with fury she placed a hand on his shoulder, "Please, if you showed up, it might just make the bullying worse."

Jin gave a jerky nod. "I understand… but know I do not like this Taylor… at all," Sighing through his nose, Jin asked, "Is there anywhere we could get a drink? I could use some tea."

"Starbucks?" Taylor said pointing down the street, "It's expensive though."

Running a hand down his face, Jin replied, "Right now I don't care. Come."

(...)

"They call this swill tea, and have the gall to charge fifteen coins for a cup?" Jin asked as they left the store pouring his drink out on the street before depositing his styrofoam cup in a trash can.

"Thanks for the hot chocolate," Feeling bold, Taylor offered him her straw, "Want a sip?"

Jin shrugged, "It can't be worse than that horse piss they call tea," Jin said, taking the warm drink and taking a small draw from the straw. "Mmm, that was good."

Suddenly, a hand landed on his shoulder and Jin reacted. Grabbing the person in question, flipping them over his shoulder and drawing his katana in one smooth motion aiming for a clean slice through the neck, as his other hand still gripped her twisted wrist like a vice.

"Holy shit," Taylor said, her tone awed especially in the presence of this particular person, "You just attacked Glory Girl."

His tanto out and pressing against her throat drawing a bead of blood, Jin hissed, "Who are you and what do you want?"

"I wanted to know why you were bearing swords on the Boardwalk you ABB thug!" The blonde demanded only for the tanto's point to dig a little deeper, silencing her. Her shield couldn't activate with the blade pressing against her like this.

"And who are you to make demands of me?" Jin asked, his voice whispering in her ear.

"I'm Glory Girl of New Wave," She said glaring at him from the corner of her eye. 'Why isn't my aura working on him he should be terrified,'

"Um excuse me," A voice called, causing Jin and Taylor to look over to see another blonde in a white, red and white striped unitard and a mousy haired brunette wearing a white cloak and red shawl to approach hesitantly. "But could you please let my cousin go, I believe there's been a bit of a misunderstanding."

"What's there to misunderstand?" Glory Girl asked, "He's blatantly wearing weapons on the boardwalk. I was about to arrest him."

"Oh Really?" Jin asked, pressing his tanto a millimeter deeper into the tender flesh of her throat, "That's odd as I was told yesterday by two members of the PRT that carrying my weapons in public was not illegal."

"Yeah right, who?" Glory Girl snapped back only to get a kick to her kidney's for her trouble knocking the air from her lungs.

"I do believe their cape names were Vista, a twelve year old girl and Triumph and older boy with a lion themed costume," was Jin's no nonsense answer.

"Right, do you mind if I verify this real quick?" the girl in the unitard asked, "If what you say is true, this is just all a big misunderstanding and we can all go on our way. No harm no foul."

"Um excuse me, but I'm being held hostage here!" Glory Girl pointed out.

"And you put yourself in that position cuz, now shut up, I'm calling the PRT," she said as she tapped a wireless com device in her ear.

"This is the Youth Guard John Mathers speaking," A slightly elderly man with a British accent replied.

"Hi Grandpa John, it's me Laserdream," She said happily. John was the oldest member of the Youth Guard and was considered to be everyone's grandpa, even those in New Wave had a soft spot for him.

"Hello dear, keeping your nose clean?" He asked kindly.

"Yes, but we have a bit of a situation here… is it possible you could patch me through to Vista and or Triumph please?" asked Crystal with respect and patience never leaving her tone.

"Certainly, just a moment, could I ask what this is about?" John politely inquired. "Should they ask?"

"About a man they might have met yesterday. On the tall side, has a katana, and looks to be of Asian descent but without ABB colors," Crystal rattled away.

"Right I'm patching you through a three-way call dear," John replied.

"This is go for Vista," the youngest member of the Wards but one with the longest tenure on the team replied, all business.

"Triumph here, what's the problem Laserdream?" He asked.

"Hey you two, did you happen to meet a Japanese man with two swords yesterday?" asked Crystal

"Mr. Sakai? Yeah he's great? Why?" Vista asked.

The faint clicking on a keyboard could be heard and Triumph could be heard sighing, "Probably because Panacea just called in an SOS, Glory Girl is being held hostage on the Boardwalk by just such a person."

"What?!" Laserdream rounded on Amy, "What the fuck Panacea? We do not need to turn this into a full blown shit show by involving the PRT like this!"

To which Panacea replied, "He could kill her if his knife slips any deeper, we need to get him away from her now,"

"Fuck!" Triumph replied, "Clockblocker and Gallant incoming! ETA six minutes."

"We'll be there in three," Vista promised, before she hung up the phone.

"Great, just great! Aims Gallant and Clockblocker are coming to help," Laserdream told her cousin.

"Oh no…" Panacea said, rubbing her temples in frustration, "Of all the people to show up, it had to be them?" The group clown and her sister's boyfriend? Yeah she had just turned this into a shitshow.

"I take it things aren't going according to plan?" Jin called over.

"No… it got worse," Laserdream called back "Sorry about this."

"No plan survives contact with the enemy," Jin replied with a shrug. "Should I be worried?" He asked.

"One of them is her boyfriend, I try to keep him from overreacting, just don't do anything alright?" assured Laserdream the best she could.

"As long as he doesn't attack me, all will be well," Jin replied calmly.

"Um, Jin?" Taylor whispered, "Maybe you should just let her go?"

"I would do that, but this one," He gave Glory Girl's arm a twist, causing her to growl in pain, "Is just waiting for the moment to attack me, isn't that right? The moment I let go she intends to assault me."

"How can you tell?" Taylor asked. "Can you read minds? Is that another cape power of yours?"

"Nothing so grand, I just know how to read her body language. The tension in her muscles, how she is constantly trying to squirm to the left so as to strike me with her free arm instead of trying to go straight towards help, safety, she wants to retaliate not de-escalate this situation. In truth, if she weren't trying to do this, I would've let her go already," stated Jin matter of factly.

"Ah… umm Glory Girl maybe you should stop trying to hit him and he'll just let you go?" Taylor advised.

"Like I'm going to listen to his accomplice," The hot blooded blonde snarled.

"Accomplice in what?" Taylor asked, getting annoyed she could put up with the Trio but being called a villain by a hero was a bridge too far. "All I've done is stand here. And you spilled my hot chocolate."

"Hey!" Laserdream called, "What's going on over there?!"

"I-Um, my friend said he'd let her go if she'd just promise not to hit him if he did… she doesn't want to listen… Also she owes me a hot chocolate," Taylor said, pointing to the spilled drink.

Crystal sighed, 'Of all the times for Vicky's ickiness to rear its head it had to be now?' She thought. "Hey Icky with a V did you ever consider he may be telling the truth?"

"Fuck you Crystal!" The other blonde retorted, "He's just an ABB thug!"

"Except he's not affiliated with the ABB," Vista replied as she arrived on the scene with Triumph, "He just got into town yesterday we have video proof."

"Then why the hell did he put me in an arm lock?" Victoria asks.

"Perhaps because sneaking up on a trained fighter is a bad idea?" Jin replied, his tone droll, only to draw his katana and deflect a bullet sized concussive blast aimed at his chest. Jin held his arm firm so as to not have his sword knocked out of his hand.

"Gallant stand down!" Triumph snapped. As he and Clockblocker arrived on the scene.

"He's holding Glory Girl hostage Triumph," Gallant his futuristic armor a gunmetal gray and glowing faintly, with recessed lighting. "Why hasn't he been taken out yet?" He asked, agitated.

"Because Big Vee is having a Dumb Blonde moment right now Gallant," Vista replied, "Mister Sakai knows if he lets her go she's going to hit him, he doesn't want to get hit, so he's not letting her go," Vista shortened the distance between the two of them to just a couple of feet looking in Glory Girl's eyes as she said, "You know, I know I'm the kid here, but your the one making a scene Big Vee. Just relax and Mr. Sakai will let you go?" She looked up at the person in question and asked, "Right?"

"Indeed, I am going to be late for work as it is, I have no desire to stay here any longer than necessary," Jin replied with a nod, before reaching down and taking Glory Girl's coin purse from her costume, "I will be taking this, however?"

"Why? Also doesn't that count as robbery?" Vista asked.

To which Jin shook his head and explained, "No, I defeated her in battle, thus to the victor go the spoils."

"By that logic we could rob villains after we beat them in a fight," Vista said with a grin.

"Yes, and?" Jin asked, not seeing the fault in her logic making Vista almost giggle at the implications.

Vista just shook her head amused. "Okay Mr. Sakai, how about this, you hand Glory Girl over to me, and you and your friend there go on your way? No harm, no foul?"

After a moment Jin nodded pulling his tanto's point out of Victoria's tender flesh, kneeling next to her he said, "You got off lightly today young lady. You lost your money, if I were truly a villain you could've lost much, much more. Think on that the next time you decide to accost someone," He told her before he pushed her into her younger compatriot.

Vista used her power to drag her older sister figure back to the Wards as Jin wiped the blood off his tanto and resheathed it. He then gave a shrill whistle, "Come horse!"

The thunder of hooves on wood could be heard and seconds later Kage leaped over the crowd that had gathered and was recording all of this on their phones, the Wards, and the younger members of New Wave coming to a stop in front of Jin. "Good boy Kage," He said as he mounted up, before offering a hand to Taylor, "Need a lift?" He joked.

Shaking her head, she took his hand and replied, "I think we might make the news tonight," She said looking at all the camera phones and wishing she had one. "Public enemy number one, thy name is Jin Sakai."

"Let them come, if they want me so badly," He replied quietly enough that only she could hear.

Kage reared as he wheeled him around and trotted over to the young heroes. "Let's call it here for today, heroes. Also, let this be a lesson to all of you, not to judge a book by its cover," He spoke to the crowd, before snapping Kage's reins and sending the horse off at a brisk pace.

Suddenly Triumph's bluetooth went off, "Triumph here, yes, yes sir, we'll be right there…" He swallowed, "I'll let them know," He turned to the group. "That was Armsmaster, Piggot wants to see us now," He turned to the kids of New Wave, "He told me your parents are there too."

"Oh fuck!" All three of them swore at the same time as they looked at each other.

"Well," Laserdream jokes, "At least my mom will stop Aunt Carrol for somehow blaming all of this on you Aims."

"Oh don't worry she'll think of a way," Panacea replied, sighing, "C'mon let's go face our execution with dignity."

Clockblocker couldn't help but quip, "You know I always figured I'd see you in a compromising position at one point or another Vicky, I just figured it would be between you and Gallant in the locker room. I had no idea you were an exhibitionist… or a swinger for that matter."

Glaring daggers at him Glory Girl replied, "Fuck you Clockblocker."

(...)

Emily Piggott didn't consider herself approachable by nature. She was the Director of the Parahuman Response Team North-Northeast Branch and honestly? If asked she would say the job as a glorified bureaucratic paper pusher was a pain in the ass and not worth the pay. She much preferred it when she was a grunt before Ellisburg, taking orders and doing something she actually felt was meaningful… Especially when days like this one happened.

It was already all over the internet, and she was willing to bet it would be on the news tonight, 'If it's not, I'll let Panacea heal me,' She fumed silently as she glared at the group of teens in front of her. "Would you all like to explain to me, just what the fuck," She stressed the word even as she felt slightly dizzy, 'Stupid useless kidneys,' she thought, "You were doing attacking some random man on the Boardwalk?"

She didn't expect the youngest Ward with the longest tenure to speak up, "If I may, Director?"

Rubbing her temples, the Director said, "Go ahead Vista,"

"The person in question is known as Jin Sakai. We, that is, Triumph and I met him yesterday. He had just arrived in town looking for work."

"I've noticed pictures posted of him on PHO," Miss Militia pipped up standing next to the Director's desk. "He rides a horse doesn't he?"

"Yeah, he's very nice… But he also doesn't like to be messed with apparently," commented Vista.

"I don't care if he's the second coming of Jesus himself!" Piggott snapped, getting the conversation back on track, "What I want to know is why Glory Girl attacked him, and why she couldn't get out of his hold. Is he a new cape or what? Should we be worried the ABB has a cape on Glory Girl's level of strength. If so, what else can he do?" Her gaze fixed like a laser sight on the cape who caused this mess causing Glory Girl to squirm.

"Now Director," Carol Dallon spoke, standing behind her daughter, putting her hands on her shoulders and squeezing tighter than necessary to show she was not happy with her. "I remind you New Wave is not under your jurisdiction."

"Well la dee daa," The Director shot back, "Guess what Carol, that isn't going to stop my people, be they Wards or Protectorate from having to deal with the blowback from your daughters actions. As far as the public is concerned, all heroes are aligned with the PRT. Meaning we will be taking flack for this regardless. Worst is that your daughter is always seen with either Panacea or a Ward Cape, so they already associate us with New Wave."

On either side of her both Armsmaster and Miss Militia grimaced, because they knew what the Director said was true. Regardless of what happened today, they were likely going to be pulling double or even triple shifts to reassure the public and earn back lost goodwill.

Piggott then fixed her glare on Gallant, "Not that it matters since one of my people decided to attack the person holding a weapon in a hostage situation simply because it was his girlfriend."

"I… I'm sorry, Director…" Gallant replied while looking at the floor.

Running a hand down her face, Emily sighed, doing her best to keep her shit blood pressure under control. "Sorry isn't good enough, you're a Ward Gallant. You've been trained on how to handle hostage situations including negotiations." She took a breath saying nothing when Miss Militia placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Now can anyone tell me exactly what happened?"

Hesitantly raising her hand, another member of New Wave spoke, "I believe I can, Director Piggott?" Laserdream said. "We were doing a patrol, just a quick one when we noticed an asian man and a young girl come out of a Starbucks. The man, Mr. Sakai, poured his tea out on the street, and that's when Victoria attempted to arrest him for wearing a sword and knife on his waist."

"That isn't a crime," Armsmaster spoke up, "The sword law was rescinded with the rise of Capes here in Massachusetts, as were pretty much all gun laws that weren't tinkertech. Honestly it was hard to justify banning a simple pistol when with the right connections you can get a gun that can shoot lasers or a bomb that blows up an entire city. Also when a person can have that 'one bad day' and suddenly be immune to modern munitions entirely it was a moot point.

"I didn't know that," Vicky grumbled embarrassed.

"Victoria, you're a Hero, it's your job to know these things," Her aunt Sarah better known as Lady Photon piped up.

"What happened after she tried to put her hands on him?" Piggott asked.

"He put her in an arm lock, slashed her across the back hard enough to break her shield, and had his knife to her throat faster than any of us could blink," Laserdream continued.

Armsmaster stroked his beard contemplatively, "He struck hard enough to break Glory Girl's shield? He may be a cape afterall, a low brute rating at least."

Piggott waved a hand dismissively, "We'll talk with the Thinker's later, Laserdream, continue."

"Yes ma'am," Laserdream said, "Anyway after that, well, I'm sure you saw the video footage. Need I say anymore? I tried to keep the situation from escalating, but it didn't really work."

"Who called the Wards for assistance instead of the Protectorate?" Armsmaster asked, as Laserdream silently cursed him. "We would've been more able to handle the situation.

Amy sighed thinking, 'Thanks for trying Crystal,' before she said, "That was me, I have a direct line to the Wards as you know, so I contacted them and told them of the situation. Unfortunately the worst pair of people that could've shown up, did," She said looking at Gallant and Clockblocker who refused to meet her gaze.

"Oh, now it all makes sense," Carol groused.

"Here it comes," Amy said, not even bothering to say it under her breath.

"What the fact that as usual Amy you are doing your best to drag New Waves reputation through the mud? Honestly I take you in out of the kindness of my heart and this is how you repay me? By constantly getting Victoria in trouble?" nagged Carol which made Crystal and Sarah uncomfortable at the unnecessary tongue lashing being done to the poor girl.

"Yes, Carol, like me, constantly spending nearly every waking hour at the hospital isn't me doing goodwill in the name of New Wave or anything," Amy drolled trying not to show how her words had hurt her. You'd think after nearly a decade of this she'd be used to it by now but it still stung.

"Watch your tongue young lady," Carol snapped.

"Enough!" Piggott snapped, actually rising out of her chair and leaning over her desk to shout. "Carol, go be a horrible parent on your own time! I'm busy enough as it is!" Slumping down in the chair as pain lanced through her back, the Director grit her teeth as she waited for it to subside. Once it did she spoke in a tone that was firm, but tired, "It seems to me that the problem here is twofold. Firstly, Glory Girl needs to learn some damn restraint," The Director looked at Sarah pointedly ignoring her sister. "Sarah, since you are the leader of New Wave, I expect you to handle it, and by handling it I don't mean ground her after giving her a 'I'm so disappointed in you' speech."

Sarah nodded, it wasn't often Emily used her name even though she knew it, and if she did, it's because she had reached her limit for the day. "I understand Emily, and don't worry we'll have a very long involved family meeting after this, I think the whole family needs to brush up on self defense at this point," Lady Photon said, ignoring the heat coming from the glare her sister was sending her way.

"That leads us to our second problem…" Emily said as she looked between Glory Girl and Gallant, "What to do about the two of you now."

"M-Ma'am?" Gallant said his head looked up from the floor so fast his neck snapped.

Folding her hands in front of her, the Director said, "Normally, I wouldn't give two rat pellets who dated who under me, but today, it affected you out in the field Gallant, thus, this cannot be allowed to happen again."

"Are… are you forcing us to break up?" Victoria asked, stunned for a moment, before levitating several inches off the ground as she raged, "You can't do that!"

A normal person would've been hiding under their desk at feeling the full offensive force of Glory Girl's aura, but this was Emily fucking Piggott, one of two people who surivied Ellisburg. An aura of fear felt like a nice cold shower compared to the sheer terror Emily felt that day watching her comrades get eaten alive while others fled. She coldy stared her down and said, "Glory Girl, if you don't stop that right this instant, I'm going to have my men come in here and seal you in containment foam before arresting you for illegal power use. Do I make myself clear?"

Silent and glaring, Glory Girl did as she was told. Only when the aura had fully dissipated, did she continue, "As I was going to say, Gallant has a choice to make. He can continue on as a Ward, as Gallant, or he can continue to date you as Dean Stansfield. I know it's a hard choice but sometimes heroes are the only ones who can make that choice," She continued after a moment's pause, "Of course, if he chooses to simply be Dean Stansfield his trust fund as a Ward would likely be forfeit, as would any other PRT assistance he'd been granted up to this point. Like his costume, and such."

"That's cruel Emily," Sarah said with a frown at her friend.

"When you're with us you get all the benefits we offer, leave, and all the benefits go too," Piggott said, shrugging uncaringly.

"That's fine!" Vicky snapped, "Dean can just join New Wave," She looked at her mother, "Right mom?"

"I… Victoria… if Dean wanted to Join us he'd have to unmask… that would put not only himself, his mother, but also the other Wards identities in danger by proxy," Carol said, before shaking her head. "I'm sorry, it's just too much of a risk."

"Oh…" She said pouting for a moment, "Well, that's fine, Dean will still have me, Hero or not, right Dean?" She looked over at her boyfriend who was looking down, staring at his hands. "Dean? They have too many stupid rules… and you can just go independant, right?"

'Leave the Wards?' He thought. He thought about all of his friends, Kid Win, Triumph, Vista whose crush on him he was trying desperately to ignore, and even Clockblocker as much as he wanted to kill him half the time. He thought of all the good he's done, and how he still owed those people favors. He then looked at Vicky who he'd had an on again off again relationship with for a long time. Despite how often tumultuous and rocky their relationship was, they did love each other… mainly because they knew their powers couldn't affect the other. Yet now he was being asked to give up everything being a Ward being a Hero just to be with her…

In the end, he knew which choice was more important.

"Vicky I'm sorry but I… I can't," He said sadly. "I can't just stop being a hero, just stop helping people, being a Ward…"

"You're choosing the Wards over me?!" Victoria asked with tears in her eyes.

Before the situation could escalate to violence, the klaxons started blaring. "Would someone like to tell me what the hell is going on?" Emily called into her intercom.

"Ma'am," Her secretary chimed in, "I apologize but there has been a shooting at Winslow Highschool… and apparently Shadow Stalker has been shot."

(...)

Taylor sat huddled in a small pool of soda and cranberry juice. It had been poured on her just moments ago by the trio. She could feel small rivets of liquid pooling into her hair and eyes, staining her, and her clothes sticking to her. Taylor started to feel a faint buzz growing in the back of her head. Her power wanting to lash out, strike at her bullies and punish them. Pushing her anger down and putting the buzzing aside, Taylor reached for her backpack, only to see a small sphere of unknown origin roll out of it. The sphere shook twice, before a small robotic head popped out of the top. Looking at her, seeing her in distress, it said, "Beep boop"

Then it began to unfold, popping in half, revealing small barrels on its body. Before its camera, like head locked on to Sophia who was laughing maliciously at Taylor, and it fired a single round. Taylor did the only thing she could think to do at that moment. She curled up into a ball on the soda and cranberry juice soaked bathroom floor and rolled out over to the side . She waited for the screaming and ringing of the bullet shot to pass.

"Taylors got a gun!" Emma screeched as she ran out of the bathroom and into the hallway.

Keeping her eye on the robot who looked at her, before a pair of wheels popped out of its spherical body and it rolled out into the bathroom proper. It looked around for a moment, before letting out a few shrill beeps, as if trying to prompt her to come out of the bathroom stall.

'Why was that thing in my bag?' She thought to herself seeing the somewhat cute robot get her attention.

"Motherfucker! I can't believe you fucking shot me, Hebert," Sophia yelled in pain as she rolled around on the bathroom floor. "Me, I'm a fucking predator! You're fucking prey you shouldn't have the guts to shoot a predator like me!"

Ignoring Sophie's ranting, Taylor pulled open the door and pulled her jacket off and started putting pressure on the wound. She'd been shot in the stomach, and was bleeding from what seems to be a shallow wound.

"Get the fuck away from me, you crazy bitch," Sophia screeched as she swung at her as she tried to apply pressure to the wound. "First, you fucking shoot me, now you're trying to apply first aid? What are you, bipolar?" She snapped as she rolled in her own blood.

"I didn't shoot you," Taylor said as calmly as she could, trying to help one of the people who had been torturing her for the past year and a half, as if it were second nature to her. "That thing did, and it's not mine," She nodded backwards towards the small, rolling Tinker bot, who was looking back and forth between her and Sophia, who was groaning on the ground.

"Yeah, right. Then how the fuck did it end up in your backpack?" Sophia said weakly as her movements slowed.

Seeing this, Taylor slapped her across the face hard,and she's not going to lie. She kind of enjoyed it just a little bit. "Don't fall asleep or you'll die Sophia. Your thrashing is aggravating the wound and causing more blood to spill out."

"Fuck you Hebert, damn prey," She grunted despite that. She smiled at her a bit. "Now, of all times you decided to grow a pair of tits. I'd say balls, but, not even you're that mannish looking."

"Gee, thanks Sophia," Taylor drolled as she put a little bit more pressure on the wound enough to draw a yelp from the girl.

When the pain passed Sophia just laughed "You're a vindictive bitch, aren't you?"

"Pot, meet kettle," Taylor sighed out as she kept the pressure on her now blood soaked shirt.

Taylor did wonder though why the bot shot Sophia of all people instead of the others. She looked at the tinker bot and noticed it stopped rolling and seemed to be staring at the door out of the bathroom.

Suddenly, Taylor heard a bunch of feet storming up the stairs towards the third story bathroom that she and Sophia were currently in. 'Well, that doesn't sound good,' Taylor thought as she continued keeping pressure on Sophie's bullet wound.

Hearing the stomping footsteps coming, Sophia laughed. "Hope you like orange Hebert," before she called out at the top of her voice, "She's in here and she's got some kind of armed tinkertech bot."

"Sophia, that things not even mine. I don't know where it came from, and I didn't even tell it to shoot you. It did it on its own. Also you forgot something very very important. Why would it only have one bullet?"

"Oh… shit," Sophia muttered under her breath, moments before the bathroom door was kicked in by SWAT.

The bot opened fire, but its rounds were low calibur and just caught on their vests, only for the pointman to give the bot a sharp kick, smashing it against the wall.

"Get down on the ground now!" Another SWAT member ordered her.

"I can't, she's bleeding and might bleed out if I remove pressure from the wound," Taylor yelled back, the buzzing noise had returned full force in the back of her mind.

Before the pointman could yell back an ominous beeping sound came from the small crumpled tinker bot.

"Oh you got to be fucking kidding ….." muttered out Sophia as there was then an explosion.

Again, not needing to think, Taylor threw herself over Sophia not wanting her to get hurt anymore than she already was. She heard a SWAT member yell, "We're clear," even though her ears were ringing.

"Get the fuck off me… Hebert…" Sophia grunted.

"Everyone step back," one member of the SWAT team said who was carrying a medic box on his person. "You can get up now," this person, a woman, said, speaking up so Taylor could hear her.

Doing as she said, the SWAT member proceeded to look at Sophie's wound, ".22 caliber round it looks like. Might have punctured an artery. We're going to need to get her to the hospital, preferably Panacea as quickly as possible."

"Ma'am," The pointman said. "I'm going to need you to get up and come with us."

"Yes, Sir." Taylor said submissively. She knew better than to fight the cops.

The SWAT members formed a circle around Taylor and one of the pointman even put his hand on her shoulder as he led her out of the building. Looking up at the leader of the group, she asked, "Aren't you supposed to put handcuffs on me and read me my Miranda Rights?"

"Usually when school shootings happen around here, the shooter doesn't bother to apply first aid, kid. You're also not flying gang colors, so I don't think you did this. Also the fact is this fits the MO of a certain S-Class Threat famous for assassinations, we are going to say no." commented the SWAT member in charge.

'An S class threat? Whoever it was, put some of his/her tech into my bag? But how? When? What the hell is going on?' Taylor thought to herself as thoughts spun like a spider in her web from one thought to another.

"Form up," The point man shouted," We don't need anyone getting any pictures if we can help it."

In response, the SWAT team members tightened their huddle around Taylor, making her feel oddly safe, safer than she'd ever felt in Winslow than she'd ever felt in the past three years. 'How sad,' she thought to herself. 'That it takes me being escorted out of my school by a group of SWAT members, so I don't get filmed for me to actually feel safe at my school.'

She quickly found herself led to a second ambulance and was escorted into it by the point man. "Here you are, and don't move. An officer will be around shortly to take your statement. Understand?"

Taylor nodded, "Thank you, Mister?"

"Leon," The point man said as he shut the doors behind him to the back of the ambulance.

Just as he did so, he turned around to find himself facing Armsmaster, "Officer, is the perpetrator in that ambulance? I would like to speak with them."

"No need, Armsmaster. We've got this handled, thank you for the prompt response though," the SWAT member replied.

His grip tightening on his Halberd Armsmaster scowled a bit and said, "This was not a request I am going to speak to the shooter,"

In response, the SWAT team member gave a shrill whistle, and made a circular gesture with two fingers. In response, his SWAT team immediately circled the bus. "As I told you, Armsmaster. Thank you for coming down, but you really don't need to interfere."

The police force and the PRT of Brockton Bay did not exactly have a good relationship with the rise of capes, crime using superpowers was on the rise, and the police were at a loss to do their actual jobs. As they were just normal people fighting superpowered criminals, and with the gangs, they were even less likely to be able to do said jobs. So there was a certain amount of friction between the BBPD and the PRT. A majority of the police felt like they were being replaced by the PRT entirely.

As the tension began to rise between Armsmaster and the SWAT team, a sudden voice cried out, "Armsmaster what is going on here?"

"Miss Militia," Armsmaster said, not taking his eyes off the SWAT team. "These officers have the prisoner in custody, but they're refusing to let me speak with them."

"She's not arrested, the Tinkertech bot that did the shooting wasn't hers. It matches the MO of a certain Cape Assassin on the national registry, a dangerous one."

"Then it's even more imperative that I get to speak with her," Armsmaster growled, annoyed that they were getting in his way. "And where is this tinkertech bot now?"

"What's left of it after it exploded, it's on the floor of the third floor bathroom," was the blunt answer Armsmaster was given.

"Thank you for preventing the person in there from getting videotaped. Their life would have been made hell if this if her face had on camera," Miss Militia said kindly. "I don't believe I got your name?"

"SWAT point man Leon S Kennedy," He said, pulling off his helmet, revealing he was a young man of about 26 or so with blonde hair, and steel gray eyes "Figures this would be my first day on the job and there's a school shooting."

"This is Brockton Bay. You're going to have to get used to it. It happens about every two weeks," Armsmaster said bluntly.

"Jesus," Kennedy said, shaking his head, "No wonder the hazard pay was so high."

"Officer Kennedy, would you mind terribly if I spoke to the girl? I'd like to get a statement from her,`` Miss Militia speaking a lot more respectful and kind than her partner had.

"Since you asked nicely, sure, go right ahead. Just try not to rile her up too much. She was literally applying pressure to the other girl's bullet wound when we stormed in there and then the damn thing blew up. Shit if the caliber was just a little higher I wouldn't be here to talk to you damn thing had so much ammo," Leon said, giving her a nod before he sent a subtle glare at Armsmaster.

"Thank you, Officer I'm talking to our witness, how about you go and get what you can from the crime scene Armsmaster?" Miss Militia requested with a smile, but they both knew it wasn't a request.

"I'll do that, excuse me," He said, stomping off in his power armor.

Now that her more abrasive colleague was gone, Miss Militia, approached the ambulance and politely knocked a couple times.

"Yes?" a timid quiet voice called. One that sounded very familiar to Miss Militia.

"Hello. I'm Miss Militia from the PRT? Can I come in and talk to you for a little bit? I'd like to know what's going on," stated Hannah.

"Umh,OK, sure," The voice replied.

Walking into the ambulance, it was exactly who she thought it was going to and Hebert. Annette and Danny's daughter. She looked, drover. She didn't look to be her hands were covered in blood, likely Shadow Stalkers from if what Leon had told her was true.

"Hello, Taylor. It's nice to see you. It's been a very long time."

"M-Miss Militia? You know me?" She asked, shocked.

Miss Militia just smiled. "Yes, your father, mother and I go way back," She said, smiling fondly. "You're not hurt, are you?" She asked, concerned. "Annette would never forgive me if I let something happen to you."

"I-I'm fine," Taylor replied quickly, quietly, timidly, almost shrinking in on herself as she spoke.

Miss Militia didn't say anything, but she recognized the signs. Taylor was being bullied. She didn't let it show on her face less she gave the game away. 'Someones' heads are going to roll,' she promised herself. "Anyway, Taylor. Could you please tell me what happened today in your own words?"

"I was well…. I was in the bathroom. Just after lunch, someone decided to spill some juice on me. Then umm… then that bot that had somehow made its way into my backpack popped up and… it shot, just once though," recalled Taylor.

Hannah nodded… "Taylor, I need you to be honest with me now, okay?" She tipped the girl's chin up so she would be forced to look at her. "Are you being bullied at school?"

"I… yes," Taylor said, it felt so good, so cathartic to finally admit it to someone who might actually do something.

"Were you hiding in the bathroom from your bullies?" questioned Miss Militia.

"I've been hiding in the bathroom for the past three months. It was the only place I could have some peace and quiet," She said, looking away, refusing to meet the hero's eyes as tears started to gather in her own.

Hannah just gently stroked her hair, "Was Sophia Hess one of those bullies?"

"Yes," Taylor replied, hating herself for the hot tears that were making their way out of her eyes and down her cheeks. 'Heroes don't cry, damn it!' she chastised herself.

Hannah pulled the girl into her chest and let her cry. "It'll be OK, Taylor. You'll see. I promise they will not get away with this,"

"T-Thank you," Taylor choked out through the sobs. It took her a moment but she quickly got control of herself.

'Almost too quickly,' Miss Militia noted, 'Are we certain she didn't trigger after that locker incident?' Her blood boiled just thinking about it. It took Danny six hours to talk her down from doing just what happened here at the school today when she heard about it. She'd had words with Shadow Stalker, even asked her to keep an eye on Taylor while in school 'Did I paint a target on her back?' Hannah thought with a grimace.

"Taylor! Taylor! Is my daughter alright?" Danny could be heard yelling from the top of his lungs from here.

"Oh God, dad…" Taylor said, looking down at her juice and soda stained clothes. "If he sees me like this after a school shooting, he might just have a coronary."

"You wait here, I'll deal with your father," Hannah reassured her, "Wouldn't be the first time I've dealt with his temper," She finished as she left with a chuckle.

(...)

Hannah could see Danny from here, his head was blazing like a crimson beacon. 'He's going to die from a heart attack one of these days if he doesn't get his temper under control' she thought as she walked over to him making sure her face was covered by her bandanna. Another person, a cape dressed like a ninja with the lower half of his face covered by a black metal scowling mask, was standing next to Danny with his hand on his shoulder in a calming fashion. He had three swords on his person, a wakizashi on his back and a katana and tanto on his waist. He tapped Danny's shoulder, getting his attention and nodding her way as she approached.

"Han- I mean Miss Militia, have you seen my daughter?" Danny asked, worriedly as he barely reigned in his temper.

She ignored his faux-pas he was a single father worried about his daughter after all. "She's fine Danny… she was somehow involved in the shooting however and the PRT will need to question her."

Danny looked dumbstruck. "Taylor was the shooter? How? We don't even own guns, Miss Militia, we don't even have cell phones. Not… not since Annette…" He petered off into a solemn silence.

"I understand, but something happened in that school and I'd appreciate it if you'd be patient… for once. Please?" Miss Militia almost pleaded.

"No promises… plus I don't recall you complaining during the firefight in '89," Danny joked… "But seriously is Taylor okay?"

Hannah raised a hand, "She wasn't harmed if that's what you're asking… I can't say more simply because I don't have any more information at the moment. Sorry Danny."

The Union rep rubbed the back of his head, "Well that's something at least."

"I do believe," the man in the cape attire spoke up, "I may be able to shed some light on things."

"How so," Miss Militia asked, "And would you mind giving me your name for the record."

"Jin Sakai," He replied evenly, "As for the supposed gun…it was no gun was it?"

Hannah blinked. "How do you know that?"

"I know this because I was the one who built it and put it in Taylor's backpack," Jin replied evenly.

"Jin what the hell?!" Danny raged, his face turning purple.

"You're a Tinker… would you explain why you did this, Mister Sakai?" Hannah asked, taking notes as she recalled what Leon said earlier about a Cape Assassin.

Clearing his throat, Jin continued, "I was talking to Taylor last night when I realized she was lying about being bullied at school. I am a firm believer in peace through superior firepower. As a deterrent and a threat. The thing is though… that karakuri was only programmed to fire if a cape or gangster was acting in a hostile manner. So that begs the question… Why did it shoot in the first place?"

'Because Sophia Hess is a Ward and a bully apparently,' Hannah thought to herself. "I have no idea, is it possible you made a mistake in the programming?"

"Never," Jin said with a bit of force as he narrowed his eyes ever so slightly. "In my… former line of work, one cannot afford to make mistakes," He explained, "My Karakuri was programmed properly… meaning one of them had a weapon… or they were a cape… but you knew that one of them was a cape already, didn't you, Miss Militia?"

'Is he a thinker too?!' she wondered. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Liar," Jin said easily, "But it doesn't matter if we go on the assumption that one of the girls heckling Taylor is indeed a cape… that would make them a Ward, would it not? Also since they brought only one girl out on a gurney… a Sophia Hess I heard some girls calling her that would make her the Ward in question, no?"

'I don't know if he's a Thinker or just really good at deduction,' Hannah reasoned. "I can't comment on that one way or the other, Mister Sakai," Hannah said, doing her best to keep her tone as neutral as possible. "However if by some chance Sophia Hess was a Ward, I assure you, she would be punished severely."

"I would certainly hope so," Jin said calmly, "It would be a failure on the PRT's part to do nothing… especially when they have failed spectacularly thus far at this… hovel they call a school," He leaned in close and continued in a darker tone, "Do feel free to pass this onto your director if you will, if her punishment is not severe enough… I shall be paying your island a little visit and metering out what I consider proper punishment."

"Who are you?" Hannah found herself asking.

The crinkle of Jin's eyes showed he was smiling, "Someone who personally knows Lead Director Costa-Brown…" He held up a finger and reaching into his coin pouch produced a gold coin. "When you next report to your director, give her this and tell her to show it to Lead Director Costa-Brown… tell her to inform Director Costa-Brown she still owes her Sensei a Marker. She'll know what it means."

Hanna caught the coin as he flicked it to her. 'Is that solid gold?' She wondered. "I'll be sure to do that."

"Good, good…" Jin turned to Danny, "If you'll excuse me, I must take care of something."

"What… Jin what was that all about?" Danny's anger had ebbed as he listened to him talk. In his own way, he was trying to look out for Taylor.

"Don't worry about that right now Hebert-san… worry about the enraged superpowered blonde dive bombing our position as we speak," Jin calmly replied as he looked up.

"Wha- oh shit!" Danny said jumping out of the way second before Glory Girl of all people would've landed on top of him.

"YOU!" She yelled her aura going full blast, yet not seeming to phase him in the slightest.

"Me," Jin nodded calmly. "And you as well, what brings you here Glory Girl was it?" He'd heard her name from men working on the Docks when he mentioned fighting her and recalled that was what Taylor called her, "I thought you went to a different school entirely. Surely you aren't thinking of transferring here of all places are you?"

"SHUT UP!" the blonde snapped. "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! I LOST EVERYTHING TODAY THANKS TO YOU!"

"I did not did not assault someone unprovoked, that was all you. By showing up here and acting like this, you've shown you learned nothing, and you haven't even come close to losing everything. You still have your powers, you home, your family… your life," Jin finished darkly as he returned her glare.

Releasing a roar of frustration, Glory Girl swung at Jin, only for him to lean back, avoiding the blow. Her punches were sloppy, her footwork nonexistent, her skill, ephemeral. 'She's a brawler at best. Worse than even one of my old friends,' Jin thought. He faintly heard a female voice yelling 'Victoria Dallon you stop right this instant!' Yet Jin shook his head, 'It is far too late for that,' So thinking he reached into one of the many pouches he kept on his person, and pulled out a small bundle. It was an eggshell with a wick mixed with incense and gunpowder…

A simple smoke bomb. Drawing it roughly across the back of his armguard to light the wick, Jin threw it on the ground, releasing a large plume of smoke. Glory Girl may be invincible but she still needed to breathe. As she choked on the smoke, Jin slipped behind her, readying his tanto…

'Triple accel,' He thought before he struck. His first stab struck hard enough to shatter her shield, his second blow slashed above her C6 vertebrae in her lower back, paralyzing her from the waist down, while his last blow stabbed between her ribs puncturing her left lung. Yet he wasn't done yet. Taking her arm, he broke it over his shoulder at the elbow, before giving a hard kick to her opposite knee shattering it. By the time the smoke cleared, the only thing keeping Glory Girl upright was the tight grip he had on her hair.

Everyone present was silently staring at the broken and bloodied heroine, he glared straight ahead at the group of maskless Heroes in matching outfits which included the girls from earlier today. Dragging the bleeding a wheezing girl by her hair, he casually, callously tossed her at their feet saying. "I broke her right arm, left knee, punctured her right lung and severed her spine above her C6…" He locked eyes with Carol as he said this, his gaze only briefly flicking to Panacea as she wordlessly began to heal her sister. "Twice I have held her life in my hands, and twice I have given it back to her… there will not be a third time," He turned as he began to walk away, only to add. "Three strikes, and she's out."

With his piece said, Jin turned to the ambulance Taylor was being kept in. "May I please speak with Taylor Hebert, Officer?"

Leon blinked, looked at the mess he made of one of the strongest heroes in the area and he was paid to be brave, not stupid. So he stepped aside. "By all means,"

"My thanks," He said as he stepped inside.

(...)

Taylor looked surprised when Jin of all people stepped into the ambulance. "Jin? What're you doing here? Is my dad okay?" Taylor asked worriedly.

"He is fine… I came for moral support initially…" He then bowed, "Now it seems I owe you an apology."

Taylor blinked, "For what? A-Also, I know its cultural and all, but please stop bowing to me, you're so much more amazing than me, so I don't feel I really deserve it."

"You're wrong," Jin said. "You are a good person with a will of iron… you could have joined a gang and put a stop to those girls, but you did not… I… intervened on your behalf… perhaps I should not have as it has only made things more difficult for you, and for that I apologize."

Taylor's eyes widened in understanding, "The robot… he yours! You said you were a Tinker last night!" Taylor said, understanding… "Why guns though… if you're a… ninja themed tinker?" She questioned.

"Gunpowder is an essential part of a ninja's arsenal," Jin commented, "Perhaps I should've used something other than bullets… poison darts, or maybe bombs… no too small wouldn't fit in such a small karakuri unless it was a kamikaze."

Taylor couldn't help herself; she started giggling at the idea of what would've essentially been a Voltorb coming out of her backpack and exploding. 'I miss Pokemon, damn you Levithan,' She thought.

"What's so funny?" Jin asked. When he was let in on the joke he smiled, "I see yes Voltorb would be an interesting concept."

Taylor sighed, "Am I in trouble?"

To which Jin shook his head, "I took the blame, it was my fault after all. My honor would not allow me to do less… again I apologize," Jin attempted to bow again, only to stop when Taylor held out a hand.

"I… how about instead of… that," She pointed at him bowing, "You teach me some moves?"

"Oh, you want to learn from me do you?" Jin asked, amused.

Taylor flushed and looked away, "Well, I mean, if you're okay with it, that is… If not that's fine, I mean, I'm sure you've got more important things to do like working with dad and … ,"

"Taylor," was the calming reassurance she received from Jin while he put a hand on her shoulder gently and calmly.

"And you're a cape too so you probably could be doing other things than teaching me how to fight properly…" She continued,

"Taylor," Jin tried again.

"Besides, I'd probably be a terrible student anyway so you shouldn't even both-"

"Taylor!" Jin said, raising his voice a bit, causing her to stop with her self-depreciation.

"Yes?" She asked.

Putting his palms together he bowed again ever so slightly, "It would be my honor to teach you. We can begin this evening provided your father doesn't kick me out of the house."

"Oh…" Taylor said surprised before she gave a big wide smile. "Great! Thanks Jin…" her smile became smaller and sweeter as she continued, "You know, things have been looking up since you showed up…" She peeked outside to the growing crowd. "Though your problem solving skills could use a bit of work."

"I'm a tad rusty on that front I admit," Jin replied ruefully. Before nodding and pointing, "Who is that girl there?"

"The cutsie looking redhead, that's Emma she's… she was my friend," Taylor said sadly.

Shaking his head he replied, "No, I meant the taller girl next to her,"

"Oh… oh shit it's Anne. Her older sister. Her parents must've told her about the shooting and she rushed down… but it looks like she's yelling at Emma… What's going on?" Taylor wondered.

Pushing the door wider Jin offered her his hand saying, "Shall we go find out, my student?"

Taking his hand made her feel a bit braver. "Yes, sensei."

(...)

Word Count: 10,730 Number of Pages: 24 Date Completed: 7/4/2022

AN: Hello people of the interwebs and welcome to Typhoon of the East chapter two! Snowy and I hope you both enjoyed it as much as the first, and I'd like to wish a happy Independence Day to all of our American Readers.

Hey everyone, it's Snowy here. Thanks for all the love and care you give for us. I am working hard and doing everything I can to help. Stories may be delayed after this with Bubba's health taking a bad turn. Don't worry he is resting well. Anyways enjoy the chapter.

You worry too much Snowy, I'm a stubborn bastard if ever there was one. Nothing has managed to kill me yet and plenty of stuff has tried… the universe needs to try harder if it wants me dead. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed it. Till next time this has been an IcySnowSage and Bubbajack production! Peace!