Keep Calm and Respawn
A Worm Fanfiction
By: Konsaki
22 Apr - Morning
The spoon fell into the bowl of frosted cereal, my numb fingers twitching in the air as I stared at the television in terrible disbelief.
"As you can see, this is live coverage of the carnage happening in the 'Captain's Hill' district. The mayor has declared a state of emergency and the Protectorate has advised all civilians to avoid this area at all costs, an evacuation order having been issued as of six forty-five this morning. If you can not evacuate, barricade your doors, cover your windows and protect yourself."
The news anchor calmly and mostly emotionlessly droned over the live shots of gunfire and explosions below as the drone camera zoomed in on some ABB goons firing out of an alley with uzzis. A moment later, the wall they were hiding behind exploded out, revealing a mass of whirling metal in the grotesque shape of wolf.
The camera feed failed to switch before the blood went flying.
"Again, all civilians are advised to evacuate the 'Captain's Hill' district if able and shelter in place if not. If you do attempt to evacuate, avoid all members of either the E88 or ABB. Reports have been coming in of both gangs indiscriminately attacking anyone they find."
My hand slowly creeped up to cover my mouth in horror as the television showed scenes of bloody bodies laying in the streets, some cradling what could be children in their unmoving arms.
"My god…"
I could only shiver at Dad's dismayed words, tears leaking from my eyes as the television switched over to a buddhist temple on the north end of the Boardwalk district as it still smoked and burned.
It looked like a bomb had gone off and racist graffiti was sprayed along the walls that still stood.
My hand clamped down on my mouth as bile tried crawling up my throat, the picture changing to show the courtyard from above.
"I was just walking down Harvard, heading back to my apartment when all of a sudden, this black van comes screeching to a halt at the temple! Next thing I know, a bunch of guys in black gear and masks jump out and bust down the main gate before all hell breaks loose! Next thing I know, there's a huge explosion blowing off the roof and people shooting and screaming!"
The bodies had mostly been removed but a white sheet could still be seen from the air, along with multiple blood stains where others had fallen.
"The Protectorate is clasifying this as an E88 attack and released that there were seven casualties. They haven't released any names until officials have reached the next of kin but the Asian-American Council has already released a statement of condemnation over the heinous attack against the religious center, calling it senseless violence and calling for peace. The ABB also released a statement not long before the new wave of deadly combat between the E88 and ABB broke out this morning."
The camera feed changed to an enraged man wearing an ABB colored mask of red and green. It looked like a it was recorded using a phone camera or something, shaking around as the masked man shook in rage!
"Those *hiss* Nazis have gone too *hiss* far and we're not going to stop until we kill every last *hiss* one of those *hiss*! Brothers! Sisters! It's kill or be killed and I'm gonna make sure it's those *hiss* bald bastards who's dead! Who's with me!"
A roar broke out as the camera flipped to show the room of armed and riled up ABB goons before the feed cut back to the newsroom where the suited man stoically sat.
"Kaiser, in a written statement, has categorically denied responsibility for the attack on the temple, saying the Empire-88 is an organization devoted to protecting Caucasian rights and safety and they will defend themselves to whatever extent needed. Any further questions weren't answered by the time of this report."
The camera shifted again to another shot from the air, showing a building partially turned to glass before shifting to a crater in a main street which had water from the light rain filling it.
"Again, this is live coverage of the hostilities between the E88 and ABB in the 'Captain's Hill' district. All civilians are advised to evacuate…"
As the anchor started repeating the warning, my eyes hardened as the hand holding my mouth turned to a white knuckled fist before my face.
"Taylor!"
Dad's shout followed me up the stairs as I took them three at a time, slamming open my closet to grab my hero gear.
"Taylor! Don't even think about it!" Dad stormed pounded on my locked bedroom door. "You're not going out there!"
"I'm going!" I yelled back, blinking back the tears as I stripped of my sweats and pulled up my black hero pants. Quickly clasping the belt, I pulled off my t-shirt to start putting on the crimson buttoned shirt.
The handle to my door shook as Dad tried it again in frustration. "Damnit, Taylor! It's a fucking warzone out there!"
I tucked in the shirt and pulled on the vest. "I know! That's why I need to go!"
"Damnit!" I heard him curse before running into his room, probably to get the keys to the door. Shoving my feet into the black boots, I quickly pulled the laces tight before tieing them into knots and reaching back into the closet to pull out the revolver and holster.
I had just finished attaching the last clasp when I heard the key enter the lock. Reaching back into the closet, I grabbed my coat and was pulling it on as he opened the door.
"You're not going to stop me." I told him as I flipped the hood up, covering most of my face in shadows.
"Taylor Anne Hebert… Don't you dare leave this house." He warned, his voice shifting from a bellowing yell to a quiet threatening tone.
Even as he said that, I strapped my knife sheath to my left leg and patted my coat, making sure my pepper spray, tazer and collapsible baton was in their pockets. Pulling up my mask, I looked at my dad, seeing him sort of look at me like I was a different person.
"People are out there dying in the streets and it's my fault. I'm not going to hide in my room when I can fix things!" I told him as I pulled on my gloves, the leather stretching slightly around my fingers as I flexed them to make sure the rain hadn't damaged them.
"Your fault? Fix things?!" Dad stepped up to grab my shoulder. "You're a sixteen year old girl! How could this possibly be your fault?!"
I shrugged his hand off, taking a step back from him, placing a gloved hand to my chest. "I captured Othala and pissed off the E88! They murdered those people because of me!" I had to wipe my eyes but I shot a heated glare at the man who stood before me. "But I can fix this! Before anyone else suffers!"
"Taylor, don't you dare leave!" Dad started back up as I reached over and shoved my window open. "Taylor!"
I'd already jumped out, my boots indenting the small patch of grass that was our front yard.
"Taylor!"
Dad's yell chased me across the street and into the alleyway, echoing in my head as I ran as fast as my legs could take me.
oO0Oo
22 Apr - Early Afternoon
I leapt up and ran across the rooftop, heart pounding in my ears. Underneath me, gunfire ripped out of the alleyway as my targets continued to focus on something down the street. Reaching the edge, I leaped off it, bracing my legs for impact.
"Look out!" A Neo-Nazi cried out, way too late to save his buddy as my boots crashed down onto his shoulders.
"Get her!" Another yelled out, aiming his gun at me before I shot forward, my fist plowing into his armored vest.
There was a split second of silence, where I should have said a witty one-liner or something but it popped like a bubble, his body flying down the alley to explode into a pile of trash bags.
I'd long since ran out of things to say to scum like this.
I stood up from my follow-thru and turned towards the final skinhead.
The twenty something man tried to back up but found an unyielding brick wall to his back. Shaking, he threw the hunting rifle to the concrete and held up his hands. "Don't hurt me!"
"What? You mean like everyone else you've killed today?" I asked, incredulous that he'd try and surrender. I didn't even let he answer, grabbing him by the face and smashing the back of his head into the bricks.
He crumpled like a puppet with its strings cut, unconscious at my feet.
I spent the time to tie the goons up and deposit them onto the rooftop. I wanted them to face justice, not get freed by the E88 or killed by the ABB.
Pulling out my phone I looked at the missed calls list and swiped the notification off the screen. Instead I called the PRT hotline, waiting the two rings it took for it to answer.
"Respawn."
I blinked in shock. I'd been expecting the hotline operator, not the person who actually answered. "Armsmaster… Hi?"
"You are near the intersection of Washington Boulevard and Lincoln Street."
Okay, that was a statement, not a question. Are they tracking me? "I guess… How do you know?"
"I'm watching you on live television."
I blinked at that, looking up to the sky before spotting a couple drones flying around… circling my position. "Oh." I thought about it for a moment and then shrugged. "Well, you know where these guys are then."
"Don't hang up!" The man ordered, some urgency entering his voice. "We need to talk."
"Talk? About what?" I tapped the toe of my boot into the gravel roof in irritation. "I thought we were through talking when you said the PRT wasn't going to do anything!"
"You didn't let me finish." He tried to say.
"You said enough! Even right now, where are you?! Where is the PRT?! Why aren't they doing anything to stop-" The line clicked. I checked and the call was still connected. "Hello!?"
"Respawn."
I knew that voice. This was Director Piggot, director of the Brockton Bay PRT.
And she didn't sound pleased at all.
"Director." I couldn't help the contempt from eeking into my voice.
"You are making my job very difficult right now and I wanted to let you know, personally, that I do not appreciate it." Her tone matched her words, frustrated and on edge. "Now, you will stop making things worse and come down to the tower, do you understand?"
"What I 'understand' is that you still aren't doing anything and I'm trying to clean up this mess. So, no, I won't be coming to the tower. I've got work to do." With that, I moved to end the call.
"Your father wants us to bring you in."
Those words gave me pause, forcing me to bring the phone back to my ear. "What?"
"As we speak, you father is sitting in one of the private waiting rooms, speaking with Miss Militia. As parent, he has asked us to… retrieve you, so this will go one of two ways; you either come to the tower voluntarily and end this foolishness and let us do our jobs or we will be forced to 'retrieve' you."
"You're joking." It sounded way too insane otherwise.
"I assure you, I am completely serious." Indeed, her voice was a solid rock of seriousness, with an annoyed ire core. Hearing my pause, she continued on. "Do you know how close I am right now to signing an order for your arrest?"
"Arrest!?" I cried out, waving an arm at the warzone around me in agitation. "For what?!"
"Excessive force, disobeying an officer's lawful order, jaywalking; take your pick." She growled at me. I could almost hear the phone headset creaking in her hand. "I am so close to issuing it, it's literally sitting on my desk right now waiting for my signature. So get this through your pretty little head, girl, I'm giving you one last chance to return to your father and stop making this mess worse!"
I stood there on that rooftop, the drones still circling around me as I crossed my left arm over my chest. This was big but so was the war going on around me. The question was what should I do.
"I'm waiting for a response, girl." The Director's voice growled out, her ire growing by the word.
Let it not be said that I wasn't my father's daughter.
"Well, I guess if you have to come for me, you'll finally have to deal with this shit." I clicked the end button without further fanfare and pocketed the cellphone.
Then I just stood there, taking deep breaths as I dealt with what I'd just done.
"Too late now."
That was a shitty comfort after just pissing off one of the most powerful people and organizations in the city.
"Fuck."
Taking another breath, I reached a hand under the hood to rub my eyes. It was only after a few more inhales and exhales that I felt a little more centered.
Gunfire rang out in the distance, getting return fire a moment later.
With that, I kicked off into a running leap, crossing the street and dropping into the alley on the other side. "Back to work, Taylor."
I was already in trouble. Might as well make it worth it.
oO0Oo
It was around two more teams of Neo-Nazi and one ABB team taken down before I found myself stopped by a blur of red resolving itself into a Hero. A moment later, a blue costumed woman appeared next to him.
Assault and Battery, Protectorate Capes and here to 'apprehend me'.
I sighed. "Can we not do this? I'm kinda busy."
The man in the red costume gave me a sad smile. "Look, kid, I know how you feel, I really do, but you're going about this the wrong way."
"And what's the right way?" I waved a hand to the five tied up goons, two E88 and three ABB, on the other side of the rooftop. "Letting these asshats kill people until they wipe themselves out? Cause that's the only thing I can think of why the PRT hasn't done anything yet."
"Look, kid-"
"It's Respawn." I cut him off. If I had to listen to this, it wasn't going to be some guy calling me 'kid' over and over again.
"Alright, Respawn." He acquiesced, patting the air with his hands in surrender to that point. "We, I mean the PRT, are not just sitting on our hands or letting the bad guys 'bleed themselves out'."
"Then what exactly are you doing? Cause I'm drawing a blank here." I asked, planting my hands on my hips.
"Did you not even notice the blockade we set up?" The woman of the pair asked, planting her hands on her own hips.
Dammit… why does everyone else have a better figure than me and wear skin tight costumes?!
"You guys actually have a blockade set up?" I quirked an eyebrow. I'd been in 'enemy territory' for so long, they could actually have set one up and I'd wouldn't even know.
"Yeah, one was set up a almost an hour ago to prevent this from spilling over into the rest of the city." Assault confirmed, gesturing off in the distance.
"An hour?!" I couldn't believe it. What were they doing, then? "If you've been set up that long, why haven't you moved in to stop this shit?!"
"Because unlike you, we actually stay dead." Battery curtly replied, jabbing a finger out towards me like it was my fault my powers worked like that. "Do you have any idea how many people would die if we just rushed in unprepared?"
"Do you have any idea how many people have already died out here?!" I asked back, definitely getting irritated with the woman before me.
"Between two hundred and a thousand."
I blinked at her in silent shock before getting my feet back under me. "So, not only is the PRT 'not' doing anything useful, they're also estimating the bodycount like these people don't matter."
"Of course they matter!" The older woman yelled at me, pissed at my words. Good.
"Ladies! Ladies!" Assault stepped between us. "Let's all keep calm and act like adults, yeah?" He took a step back once a moment had passed, so he could see both of us on either side of him but he looked towards me. "Look, I know you're looking to fix things and save the day. I get it, I really do, I feel the same way but you've got to have a plan or else you're just running in place."
"I have a plan!" I said in my own defense.
Of course, Battery cut me off before I could continue. "What? Run around until causing trouble until either the E88 or the ABB send their Capes after you?"
"No! I was-" My body slammed into the metal air conditioning box across the roof, near the tied up goons.
At first, I thought Assault had suckerpunched me but I realised what had happened. Instead of a roof, there was a gaping hole with a very pissed off Hookwolf in full buzzsaw wolf mode. The two other heroes were safe on the next roof over, Assault spending just enough time to send me clear.
It was a nice sentiment but ultimately wasted as I pushed off in a burst of speed, veritably flying at the Nazi Cape.
"Grah!" I burned another charge to slam a power punch right in his wolf face, sending the metal construct of whirling hooks flying into the street. The front of the store was just an unfortunate casualty.
"We'll keep him busy! You get out of here!" The red clad hero yelled at me before he started blurring around the enraged villain.
Instead, I ignored the Protectorate Cape and hopped to the ground, walking straight towards the E88 lieutenant. "Hey, Big Bad Wolf! I hope you're ready cause I'm the Woodsman!"
Hookwolf heard the taunt and locked his blazing red eyes on me, letting out a howl like the beast in human flesh he was.
Then his body was sent flying into a clothes store, courtesy of a blue blur that turned back into Battery. If I remembered right, unlike her partner, she needed to recharge every few seconds but when she moved, she was invulnerable.
"You stupid little girl!" She yelled at me, even as her suit started glowing again. "Just leave already!"
"I refuse!" I yelled out as my battlecry, flying at the wolf once more as it started to extract itself from the store, shreds of cloth falling all around it like confetti.
A gunshot rang out and I fell to roll along the ground to find myself lying on my back beneath Hookwolf. He actually spent a moment to chuckle at me, finding the turn of situation amusing.
"Oh, fuck you."
I respawned a few feet away only to respawn again and again as he chased my reforming body like a cat trying to catch a laser pointer.
After the fifth or so respawn, Battery blurred in to blast Hookwolf backwards with her own punch.
"Thanks." I begrudgingly stated, gathering my wits to charge at the Nazi again.
"Get ou-AHH!" Another gunshot rang out, interrupting the heroine and forcing her to clutch her side. She stumbled to the side before falling over.
"Battery!" Her partner cried out in alarm before clothes-lining Alabaster back into an alley.
Wait, when did Alabaster show up?
I didn't really have time to think about it as Hookwolf shook his head clear and started loping back towards me and the injured PRT Cape.
Instead of meeting his charge, I found myself flung around like a can on a string. Straining my neck up and feeling like my shoulder was about to rip out, I saw Assault swinging me around by my arm before he finally let go.
Wish I could say I enjoyed the flight but tumbling over and over in the air made my stomach rebel. Lucky for me, I had enough hang time to pull my mask down when I emptied what was left of breakfast into the air. Unlucky for me, I slammed down in the middle of the street and rolled for what seemed like miles as my inertia bled off.
Well, that was five respawns worth of damage I just took.
Pushing up off the ground, I looked around to see people gaping at me in shock, some taking phones out to take photos and video.
Wait… This was almost to the Boardwalk.
Turning around, I realised just how far Assault had thrown me and found myself amazed, as I tried to look back to where I was just a minute before.
Shaking my head, I coiled my legs and shot to the rooftops, getting away from the gawking crowds.
It's like they've never seen a Hero before.
Still, this left me with a few problems. First, the PRT was still looking for me because of Dad and me pissing off Piggard. Second, it'll take me way too long to get back to the warzone and I was getting kind of tired and hungry. Third, I needed somewhere to sleep for the night, cause I sure as wasn't going home with Dad getting on my case.
oO0Oo
Dropping down off the rooftop after traveling for a bit, I pulled out my phone and dialed up Vicky.
"Girl, you are certifiably insane."
"Hello to you, too." I wryly replied to the almost immediate answer. Really, it had barely gotten one ring off.
"No, you really are insane. You know that, right?" I could almost see her holding her forehead as she shook her head.
"No, really, I love hearing my best friend question my sanity. Please, continue." I flatly stated, pulling back my hood to let my head cool in the shade.
"Taylor, you went after the Empire 88 'and' the ABB… by yourself! That's insane!" Victoria exclaimed over the phone. "I just saw Assault spin you around like a top and send you flying!"
"Yeah… that was interesting." My stomach lurched a little at the memory but I fought it back down. "Sorta like how they're trying to arrest me."
"Taylor… why is the PRT trying to arrest you?" Vicky whispered, almost like she realised how loud she had gotten.
Rubbing the back of my neck, I cringed slightly. "I kinda pissed off the Director by telling her she sucked at her job."
"You didn't."
"What else was I supposed to think?! No one wanted to do anything to stop it!"
Silence was my only response before my best friend just blew out a breath in frustration. "You know what, fine, whatever. I wanted to do something too, but Aunt Sarah wanted us to work with the PRT."
"But they weren't doing anything!"
"They were waiting on more heroes and troopers from Boston to get here!" Victoria loudly declared before dropping back to a normal level. "Taylor, why didn't you just answer your damn phone so I could have told you this?!"
"I had it on silent because Dad kept blowing it up every time I forced it to voicemail."
"And why didn't you just answer him?"
I couldn't help but let out a sigh. "We got into a fight over me going to stop the fighting."
Victoria just let out a put upon keening noise from her side. "Taylor… I love you as a friend but you're being really stupid… and that's coming from me."
"Like you haven't had any fights with your Mom." I scoffed at the thought, having had to listen to the girl complain about her mother a couple times at least since I became friends with her.
"Not about me rushing to fight two gangs by myself!" Vicky exclaimed. "Seriously! Do your powers drive you to be suicidal or something?!"
"Maybe." I could only shrug. "Is it suicidal if you know you won't die?"
"Gah! You're going to drive 'me' insane!"
I let out a sigh, the day's adrenaline fading away to leave me weary. "Vicky, can I crash at your place tonight?"
"Oh, oh no. Not happening." Vicky immediately replied, emphasising her rejection.
I blinked in shock at the unexpected tone. "What?! Why not?!"
"Because Mom would blast you and then keep blasting you until she figured out how to knock you out and then drag your ass to the PRT! That's why!"
"What."
"Yeah, she's still pissed at you." Vicky replied with a snort of amusement. "Something to do with you calling her out and then you actually capturing Othala. If she knew you were wanted by them, she'd turn you in in a heartbeat."
I worked my mouth as I processed that information. "What? Did she expect me to go fight the gangs and fail?"
"I don't know but news of Othala's capture made her suck lemon and you're pretty much not welcome here because of that. I mean, I'd let you stay but…"
"But your Mom hates me, right." I finished off with a sigh.
"She doesn't hate you but you're definitely not her favorite person right now. She'll get over it eventually, just give her some time to cool down. As for me, I'm really sorry but I'm sorta on thin ice with her as it is, you know?"
"Yeah, I get it." I really did, having my looming 'discussion' with my dad sometime in the future to look forward to. I was going to do my damnedest to not have it happen today, though. "Okay, well… I guess I'll call you later."
"Taylor…" She started up before pausing. I could picture her worrying her lower lip in thought before she let out a sigh. "Give your dad a call. Don't push it off."
I held my words for a moment before letting out a breath. "I'll talk to you later."
I cut the connection before leaning against the alley wall and sinking to the ground. I reached up to grip my head as I let out a keening whine.
All I wanted to do was fix the city. Why was everything going to hell?
Hearing a siren scream by nearby to fade in the distance just served to remind me I was now technically a fugitive from the law.
"God dammit…"
oO0Oo
22 Apr - Evening
Looking out at the sun setting over the mountains overlooking the E88's side of Brockton Bay, I let out a long sigh.
I'd had a couple hours to cool down, grab some food and think over things.
Yeah, I might have been a little rash but I still think I did the right thing. Maybe I could have hashed thing out with Dad instead of running off but I planned on calling him in the morning. We both needed time to cool down, so I thought sleeping on it was the right route to go.
That still left me with a dearth of options, my main choice of sleeping at Vicky's out of the question.
Crashing with the Wards was laughable, as even considering it was sheer stupidity. Yeah, not like I wasn't wanted or anything.
I tried Parian but she wasn't answering her phone. I hoped it was because she was busy or something and not because she'd been caught in this mess.
Looking at my phone, I pondered over my final option and the pros and cons involved. Taking a glance over my shoulder, I saw the storm clouds building out in the bay. "Great. There goes sleeping under the stars."
Not like I'd actually do that, considering it still got into the low 50's at night.
Coming to a decision, I pressed dial and put the phone to my ear.
"Hey, girlfriend! Have fun today?"
Having the villainess so familiar with me still made me feel odd but beggars couldn't be choosers right now.
"Hey… and, it's complicated." I hedged as I rubbed the back of my neck nervously. "Actually, I was wondering if I could crash at your place tonight."
"Sure! My bed's always open for you."
Wait… did I hear that right? "What? Your bed?"
"The spare bed? The one you crashed in already?" Tattletale snorted in amusement. "Sorry but if you think you're sleeping in 'my' bed you're dreaming. You haven't even taken me to dinner and a movie yet."
I just pulled the phone away and looked at it. Was she just screwing with me? Making fun of me, I mean. Gah! Was this worth it?
Hearing the thunder rumbling from the bay, I sighed and put the phone back to my ear.
"You okay?" I was a little surprised to hear the concern in her voice.
"Just tired." I answered wearily, reaching up to rub my forehead. "It's been a long day."
"I can guess. I watched you kick ass on the news for a bit earlier. We can talk about it more when you get there." Tattletale stated easily, rattling off an address for me to head towards. It was appreciated as I'd only been there once before and was unconscious when I arrived. "If I don't answer the door, the code is 91372846."
"All that for your door lock?" I boggled at the long number she wanted me to remember.
"Yup, and that's just this week's code." The villainess laughed at my question. "If you can't remember it, just call me right before you get there."
"Yeah, I'll do that." I stood from the roof edge and figured out what direction I needed to go to get to Tattletale's apartment. I was pretty sure it was more of a safehouse than her actual apartment but it was better than nothing. "Thanks for this."
"No problem, girlfriend! More than happy to help!"
oO0Oo
The sun had finally fallen by the time I arrived, allowing me to move under the cover of darkness. Instead of knocking, I tapped in the code Tattletale had given me, a soft click and a green light allowing admittance to the other girl's apartment safehouse.
"Mi casa, es tu casa."
Tattletale waved at me from where she was seated before the television on a plush couch, her pastel blue sweater hanging off a shoulder while her strawberry blonde hair was tied up in a high ponytail.
On the television, I could see the news going over the day's events. At the moment, it showed a zoomed in view of some E88 goons running through the alleyways before stopping at an intersection.
"Thanks for letting me crash here." I replied to the relaxing girl. She acted like this wasn't even a big thing, a hero walking into a villain's residence.
"This isn't my only safehouse if that's what you're worried about." She said with a grin, looking over her shoulder as the muted television played beyond her. "It's written all over your face. Now, come on and sit down and relax. You look like you could use it."
I took her up on her offer, flopping down into the nearby recliner, sinking into the plush leather slightly.
"Geeze, take off the jacket and relax, will you?" Tattletale rolled her eyes while waving a hand at herself. "Do I look like I'm in 'Cape' mode?"
That's when I realised she wasn't wearing a mask. She just looked like a normal teenage girl watching television. "Wait a second… where's your mask?"
"Ah, ah, ah!" She waved a finger at me in a chiding manner. "No answers until you relax. I'm not saying you've got to unmask yourself but I do mean no coat or equipment. In fact, I've got some spare clothes that should fit you laid out on your bed."
I just stared at her like she'd grown a third eye right there in the center of her forehead. "Are you serious?"
"No, I do this for every hero that crashes at my place." She rolled her eyes before giving me a 'shooing' gesture. "Actually, go take a shower. You could use one."
I just stared at her.
"Shoo!" She waved me away again with a grin.
I just let out a sigh, climbing out of the chair to enter the spare bedroom. True enough, there was a cream colored skirt and cherry red top laid out on the comforter with a pair of house slippers on the floor.
"Fuck it." I surrendered, the lure of a hot shower calling me like a siren's song as I shucked my coat and weapons. It's not like I was defenseless if this turned out to be a trap. Taking the time to stab myself to clean my Cape clothes, I gathered up the borrowed outfit and headed towards the bathroom.
"Enjoy yourself!" Tattletale called from the couch, with a lazy wave over her head.
Damn her... the shower felt amazing.
"Feel better now?"
"Yeah." I had to agree, smoothing out the knee length skirt as I sat in the recliner. It felt a little odd to be wearing my mask while still in 'normal' clothes but I wasn't about to fully unmask in front of Tattletale.
"How do the clothes fit?" She asked, looking me over with an approving eye.
"Not bad, I guess." I answered with a shrug. They weren't my style or exact size but I wasn't preparing for a date or anything.
Yeah, like I'd be worried about going on a date right now. Right now, I actually wanted to have some answers. "Why are you doing this, Tattletale?"
"Call me Lisa out of costume." She corrected me with a smile before leaning back. "As for why, it's cause I want to."
"No, really. Why?" I waved my arms wide to encompass the room. "I mean, I get it. I saved you from Lung but you paid me back by letting me recover. Even with Othala, I would have done it alone but you did it because Coil paid you or something."
I could see her lips thin ever so slightly when I mentioned Coil. It was so minor, I would have missed it if I wasn't suspicious and searching for an answer.
Tattle… Lisa let out a breath before speaking. "When I told you that you had a spot on the Undersiders if you wanted it, it wasn't a one time thing. Even if it's just you being friendly with us so you don't hunt us down anytime we do something, that's still fine."
"So, what? That's all this is? Another recruitment opportunity." I raised an eyebrow at the blonde villainess.
"Partially." She admitted with a shrug. She must of saw my disbelief that she'd just admit that, as she chuckled lightly. "What? You think I'd be an idiot and lie about it? It's pretty obvious."
I had to nod at that. "Okay, sure. But you said 'partially'. What other reasons do you have for helping me out?"
"I'd like to be friendly with you on a personal level." Lisa stated, indicating her and me with a hand. "Not you and the Undersiders but you and me."
"Which is why you unmasked yourself?" Sure I'd seen her without her full costume but she still wore a mask that time. Here, she even gave me her name… if it was her real one.
She nodded to me with a small smile. "Don't expect any of the others to go this far. Grue is interested in you joining the team but don't think the others trust you, especially not Bitch."
"What was her problem anyways?" I had to ask, remembering the warehouse meeting.
Lisa just tapped her head. "She's messed up up here. We just work around it for the most part but she sort of takes the whole 'pack mentality' thing to extremes. You aren't one of us, so you're an outsider and a threat, even if you're not a direct enemy. It's as easy as that."
"Okay, fine, back to us. Why try to be friends with me? I'm still a hero."
"And I'm a thief."
I was going to say villain but whatever. "Exactly! I mean, if I didn't have bigger fish to go after, I'd be trying to arrest you guys."
"No one says you have to."
I just looked at the girl seated on the couch. "What are you getting at?"
"No one's telling you that you have to hunt down the Undersiders. You're not a part of the PRT, they can't order you to do it. You're not part of New Wave or some other hero family, so there's no pressure there."
"Why are you trying so hard to convince me to leave you guys alone when you could just as easily stop being villains?" I questioned, getting a little exacerbated with the line of dialog.
"Because sometimes you don't have a choice."
That made me pause. "You're being forced to this?"
She nodded in response. "Don't get me wrong. Outsmarting everyone and getting away with it feels amazing. The adrenaline rush is almost orgasmic, at times. Being a thief is fun, for the most part. Sure, there are downsides, like pissing off Lung and whatnot, but I wouldn't have even done that job if I didn't have a gun pointed to my head."
"Which is why you're trying to be friends with me." I gave her a mildly accusing look. "You're looking to find a way out."
"More of I'm trying to get my neck out of the noose but still pretty accurate." Lisa admitted with another shrug.
"But why me?"
"Because you, Taylor Hebert, are a wildcard."
I shot out of the recliner to glare down at the unconcerned villain. "How do you know that?!"
"Your name? I've known since Lung." Li- Tattletale waved off my ire. "Since your dad started asking about you on PHO."
That got me to step back in shock as I remembered her powers. She was a Thinker! She'd known for that long and could have done who knows what with that information. She knew who dad was!
But…
"What are you doing? Why all this…"
"Beating around the bush?" I had to nod. "What? It should of gone something like, 'Oh, hey! I know your name, address, Dad and where you go to school! I know I'm a villain but you should really help me break free from another villain! This is totally not a trap!'? I'm not that stupid and neither are you." She sarcastically stated before giving me a look. "I know it's not what you want to hear but I've known for a week and you need to know that I know. I haven't done anything with it but I know."
I just stood there and looked down into her green eyes that looked back unwaveringly.
Slowly, I sat back down on the edge of the recliner, clenching my fists over my knees before letting out a breath.
Okay, I need to think about this. Rushing in has already blown up in my face enough times today alone. What do I need to do about this?
Wait… some neuron seemed to fire just right for a split second.
"You unmasked yourself to me."
"I did." She nodded, a business like look on her face. "I wanted everything on the table, within reason. I didn't want you to think I'm trying to hold anything over you, like he is to me."
"Is it Coil?" It was a guess but with what little clues I had, it made a little sense. She called him boss at the meeting, said it was a villain who was threatening her and now a 'he'.
"Good guess." She grinned at me, confirming my suspicions before scowling. "Yeah, he's the one holding my leash and the gun to my head." Her eyes took a sharp look. "I've been looking for a way out from under him since day one with no luck but then you appeared and I figured, why not now?"
I had a lot of questions on my tongue but I finally settled on, "Why me?"
"Because you're a wildcard. You're unpredictable, at least in some small way." Lisa replied, twirling a finger in the air. "With everything you've been doing, Coil has been forced to work around you, at least a little, and he's annoyed about it."
"What does that even mean?"
Lisa tapped her thigh meaningfully. "That thing with Lung? Coil tipped him off."
I flinched back in surprise. "But don't you work for him?"
"Yeah but if having one or more of us injured or killed serves his plans better, Coil's the kind of snake that will go with it." The girl before me stated. "But he didn't expect you and that threw off his plans. Now he's working working with the cards that he's been dealt but he's also keeping an eye out for the Joker that's moving about the table."
It didn't take a genius to realise I was that 'Joker'. "He's been asking about me."
"He's been asking about you." She confirmed. "And your family and your friends and anything else he can use to pull you into his grasp… or remove you from play."
That sent a chill up my spine.
"His power is some form of future prediction, where he always has a second chance to win. It's kinda hard to explain and it's not really important. What is important is that his 'Snake' motif is perfect in so many ways it's criminal." She continued on, holding up fingers one by one. "He waits for the perfect opportunity to strike. If he doesn't have something over you from the start, he'll sweet talk or offer you something to get you to work for or with him. Once your in his clutches, he won't let go and keeps squeezing you for all your worth. If he can't grab you, he'll find a way to bite you, letting the poison do the work for him."
I could guess that the 'poison' was metaphorical but latched onto something else. "What did he offer you?"
"My life or a bullet. He didn't even have to say it out loud, my powers filled me in almost immediately." Lisa said with a sigh. "I got too cocky and started using my powers too much and he found me." She shook her head. "Can't say I don't enjoy the thrill of the job but having a killer boss isn't my style of living, you know?"
"I can guess." I thought about the villain I'd met at the meeting and how… unconcerned he seemed, as if he owned everyone in the room and was just acting out a scene. The thought that he was asking about Dad… "And you haven't told him anything?"
"Anything worthwhile? No… but Coil's starting to put on the pressure, especially after what you were doing today." I blinked as she waved a hand towards the television, where a still frame of me as Respawn sat in an info box while a woman talked silently. "Remember the meeting? When Coil said this gang war was bad for business?"
I nodded. "Yeah?"
"Like a true snake, that was only barely half true and more of a half lie." She informed me with a sharp look. "Yeah, it's bad for business if you only think about the here and now. It's beyond exceptional for his long term plans, with the E88 and ABB kicking the shit out of each other and us 'minions' even capturing some of their Capes. It all works right into his plan."
"What plan?"
"To become the next Marquis. To become the next King of Brockton Bay."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "That's insane! The PRT wouldn't let him do that!"
"Not if he runs the Brockton Bay PRT." Those eight words shut me down in shock. "He's already on the inside, that's why I can't even 'turn myself in'. He'd have me killed faster than you can blink. I simply know too much."
"So it's either take Coil down or you die." I summed up with a frown.
"No." She rebuked my statement with a shake of her strawberry blond hair. "It's either take Coil down or Brockton Bay burns. Who do you think is hampering the PRT right now? They can't get any reinforcements to stop this war because he's using his influence inside and out of the PRT to cause trouble in the surrounding cities. And!" She cut me off. "And, he's the one keeping the gang war going! Hell, he's adding gasoline to the fire!"
She held up her phone that showed a news post of the buddhist temple massacre. "It wasn't the E88 that did that! It has Coil's fingerprints all over it, if you know what to look for."
"Wait! Wait!" I waved my hands to stop the other girl from talking. "You're telling me, Coil is some supervillain, who no one even really talks about, that has enough power to control gangs in the surrounding cities and connections inside the PRT and his ultimate goal is to take over the city, like some cartoon villain."
"Yes, to everything but the cartoon part. No. Coil is deadly serious, with emphasis on the 'deadly'. If he knew a way to kill you and keep you dead, I wouldn't be talking to you right now."
"Why does he want me dead?" I asked in disbelief. I hadn't actually done anything against him… yet.
"The same reason I'm asking for your help." Lisa leaned forward and looked me in the eye.
"I can't 'see' you."
oO0Oo
End of Chapter - 8
oO0Oo
A/N -
She's John CEEEEENAAA! Doot Doot doot Doot!
Sorry, I just had to do that. XD
For those of you who spot any spelling or grammar errors, send me a PM with the line I screwed up in. I'll fix it but when I'm writing as fast as I am, I'm going to miss things. Sorry.
