Fate/Kalied Liner Prisma Taylor

Well, things had been weird since Leviathan's attack. Not bad weird, but I was starting to second guess agreeing to Legend's plan. It was so surreal seeing people walking around in T-shirts with me on them. It was only one or two people so far, but still.

The city was mostly rebuilt by now. The damage had mostly been limited to the area near the shore, and Dad had been a bit happier than normal since the Dockworkers Association had gotten a lot of the rebuilding jobs so his boys were back in work.

Of course, the city wasn't fully stable. Oni Lee hadn't been captured, so while the Bad Boyz were on the decline there were still remnants and the Merchants were taking advantage of the Asian gang's weakness and the damages in the dock region to try and gain more territory.

I'd made a habit of patrolling the area for a few hours a day. I was just about to head out when I noticed Dad was getting ready to leave for the day. He was holding this old cane I'd never seen before.

I gestured to it. "What's that?"

He held it up in both hands. "An old family heirloom," he said in explanation. "Been in the family since the 1870s. My father, my grandfather, they used to bring it out when they felt there was likely to be trouble."

That made me a bit nervous. "Are you expecting trouble?"

"Taylor," Dad said solemnly. "On the news this morning, they announced that the dismembered corpse of a black man was found displayed on the premises of that Fortress company that donated the money and equipment to the rebuilding effort. Empire Eighty-Eight released a statement 'emphatically denying' responsibility." He sighed. "They're still investigating, but personally, I can't help but think that someone might be trying to sabotage the rebuilding effort, and since the Dockworker's Association is doing a lot of the work..."

"Do, do you want me to hang out by the dockyard today?" If Dad was worried, I was worried, and…

"I'm probably just being paranoid," Dad tried to reassure me. "I doubt that anything's gonna happen in the middle of the day. I just figured that It'd be better to be safe than sorry. You can probably do more good today than just babysitting your old man."

I didn't say anything as he finished getting ready and left, but…

Opal floated out from behind my hair. "Princess?"

"Yeah, we're spending today babysitting my Dad unless something else comes up." Paranoia or not, if he was worried enough, then I was worried. Better safe than sorry, he'd said so himself.

I waited for fifteen minutes. Enough time for him to get on his way that I could start making my own way to the Dockyard without him noticing that I was following him.

It was a relatively nice day. Not much wind, so flying was smooth. As I soared through the air down to the docks, Opal started buzzing. She'd done that from time to time ever since she decided to take on the role of a cellphone. Unfortunately, she gave her number to several people without telling me, so I wasn't sure who was calling.

"Princess," she said, "Lisa's trying to call you."

"Hang up on her." Tattletale had been trying to get into contact with me ever since I'd left her behind at the hospital. I didn't really want to listen to anything she had to say.

"Princess, I know you're hurt, but—"

"She's a criminal, Opal," I interrupted. "I trusted her, I told her my identity… How do I know she's not using me?"

"Taylor?" Opal began. It wasn't often she used my real name. "What is crime or law, anyway? Just words and ideas that people in power use. So your best friend is a thief, that doesn't mean she was faking anything."

"That outfit she insisted on buying me was probably paid for with dirty money," I dismissed. "And Brian...She set me up with Brian… What if he's..."

I hadn't seen Brian since the attack, either. I didn't want to know if my suspicions about his job or why Tattletale set us up were true.

"Princess, you're being irrational. At the very least, you should give her the chance to explain herself."

"Opal. Do you remember the time you got trapped in a shoebox?"

"Please don't remind me," Opal said with a groan.

"Well, drop it or I'll shove you into one."

"...This isn't over Princess."

After a minute of silent flight, during which I realized that I'd been turned around during my discussion with Opal and course-corrected, I noticed that someone in the streets was waving to me.

I stopped and looked down at the person, seeing a woman who… Who was wearing a Princess t-shirt.

I sighed and came down to greet my fan. Legend's plan was dependant on good public relations, after all.

I made sure to smile as I landed on the sidewalk and got a better look at the woman. She was very pale with offwhite hair and red eyes… Albino? It seemed that she'd pulled the shirt on over an expensive-looking dress and she clearly had money to burn on skin and hair care products.

I hadn't noticed it in the air, but standing off to the side of her was a tall, bulky man in a tailored suit. He had a square jaw, a scowl, and while I couldn't place it there was just something off about his eyes. The woman didn't seem that concerned though.

Instead, she just smiled and said a cheerful "Hello!" She had an accent I couldn't quite place.

"Hi," I greeted back.

"Yes, Hello. My name is Eramana," she said. "I've heard all about you and I'm a big fan, Princess. I'm here in town on business and I was hoping I'd get a chance to meet you." What kind of business could a woman like her have in this part of Brockton Bay? "I'm really happy you came down… Could I trouble you for an autograph?" She said while pulling a pen and an old fashioned autograph book from a pocket she apparently had.

Sure, why not. "Okay." She opened the book to a blank page and handed it and the pen to me. "Do you want a specific message or do you just want me to sign it?"

"Whatever you're comfortable with," she said with an oversized smile. I ended up just signing it 'Princess.'

I handed the book and pen back to her. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No," she said as she pocketed her autograph book, "it was nice meeting you."

"And it was nice meeting you, too," I said as I took back to the air.

I was going to head back in the direction of the Dockyard when Opal buzzed again.

"The Parahuman response team just sent out an emergency alert," she said. "They want all available and willing Parahumans and Parahuman teams to send one or more representatives to Captain's Hill for a meeting. Since they think you're a Parahuman, I think that includes you." That was concerning.

I changed course and made my way to Captain's Hill. I probably could have made it there faster, but I was suddenly coming down with a bad case of nerves. Mysterious murder. Dad thinking that there might be trouble. And now this?

As I approached, I could make out a crowd of people that had gotten there before me… I hadn't expected there to be villains present, but I guess they said "everyone."

I very deliberately landed away from the Undersiders, with my back to them, while waiting for whatever this was about to start. I saw that New Wave was here, but Vicky was the only member of the Dallon Branch here. She saw me and walked over.

"Hey?" She said.

"Hey," I greeted back. "How have you been?"

"I'm coping," she replied. "Been staying busy. Amy hasn't exactly been okay though."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Mom found out about the you-know-what. Said Amy needed to either get counseling or get out. Apparently mom got called in in the first session, something happened, and suddenly they're in therapy together and their relationship is much better. And then Mom… Yeah."

"...Look, I've been there," referring to losing a Mom. "I, uh… I'm a bit reluctant to share this since the last person I told betrayed my trust, but I cried myself to sleep every night when my Mom died. If you need someone to talk to, or… If Amy needs someone to talk to," honestly I was reluctant to spend time with Amy after the fanfics, but…

"Thanks," Vicky replied. "I do have something to ask you… Those magic wards you put up around the house for us. When they drive someone off, is there a way to know who? Because someone tried to get into the house last night but by the time I got out to check the only sign of them was a gash in the lawn and a scorch mark from where the lightning hit them."

Well, didn't that do wonders for my sense of impending doom? "I'll come by later and see if I can't run some tracking spells."

Before Vicky could reply, the sound of a pistol went off, which drew my attention to Miss Militia who was holding a starter's pistol.

"Some of you may be aware," the heroine in the star-spangled scarf began, "about the dismembered body that was found last night. The body has been positively identified as that of former PRT Officer Thomas Calvert."

For whatever reason, this prompted Tattletale to loudly curse, but nobody paid much mind.

"An investigation of Calvert's home revealed footage from his home security system that showed Mannequin of the Slaughterhouse Nine to be the killer."

Vicky pulled her hands to her mouth. "Bonesaw!" She whispered to me. "It must have been Bonesaw trying to get to Amy last night."

"What?" I whispered back.

"I read a lot of cape stuff, okay. The Nine's MO when they're down a member is that they each find a hero or a villain they either like or want to kill and offer them a place in the group if they can pass the tests. Bonesaw usually nominates people she wants to collaborate on Tinker projects with. The attack on the house last night must have been Bonesaw trying to get in to invite Amy."

"Oh."

I turned my attention back to Miss Militia, who was talking about negotiating a cease-fire and possibly an alliance against the Nine when she was interrupted by a loud explosion that sounded like it came from across town.