It's 5:30 in the morning and Anna can't get back to sleep no matter how many times she fluffs her pillows. She had a bad dream, not quite a nightmare though, about her parents. They were caught in a fire and she kept trying to save them, but everything she did just made the flames grow bigger. She wishes she still had pictures of them, seeing their smiling faces might help her feel a little better, but they're all gone. Or Sophia has them. Maybe she could…no, Sophia wouldn't do her any favors like that.
With a heavy sigh, she throws back the heavy comforter and climbs out of bed. She pulls some pajamas on and heads to the kitchen. Things are still a mess from last night. They had a movie night with Dakota and Po'boy and there are still pizza boxes, plates, and cups on the various tables. It was the first time the team gathered at their apartment, but it was less of a hassle for them to come here than to get Leopold to their base.
He has an appointment today to check out his progress. With any luck, he can get one of his casts off and start using crutches instead of the wheelchair. It's only been a couple of weeks since…since the accident, but having soothers help speed up his healing almost 24/7 has really been helping. At his last appointment, the doctors were 'astounded' at his progress. Anna personally thinks he would already have one of the casts off if he weren't going out on patrols and fighting in the big vine anyway, but he can make his own choices.
She grabs a glass of water and fills it at the sink, still feeling a little on edge after her dream. After a few sips, she sets the glass down and opens up one of the cupboards. She shoves the chips aside to try and find her chocolate chip cookies, but they're not there. Shutting the door, she looks around and spots the empty bag laying on its side on the coffee table. Dammit! Someone must have eaten them after she went to bed. Jerks. She could really use one right now.
She's been trying, without luck, to find a brand that tastes like her mom's. She even tried a local bakery that smelled absolutely heavenly from the sidewalk, but they didn't quite hit the mark. She was never really interested in learning how to cook or bake before her parents died. It was a special thing Sophia like to do with their mother, just the two of them. After they settled in LA here on Earth Aleph, she had to beg Sophia to actually make their cookies. Sophia always resisted, saying it made her too sad to do it alone. Anna offered to help but was just met with complaints that she didn't know what she was doing and that it wasn't the same.
But maybe she can remember enough to make them herself. How hard can it be? She turns the oven on and grabs the one baking sheet they have. Diving back into the cupboards, she finds the ingredients she needs. Flour, sugar (or was it brown sugar? Well, they only have regular sugar so that works), baking powder, baking soda (maybe. They're both for baking, may as well add both.), vanilla extract, and chocolate chips. Then she grabs two eggs, a stick of butter (can't be more than that, right?), and milk. After a moment's hesitation, she puts the milk back.
With all the ingredients laid out on the table, she grabs a couple of bowls. Wet ingredients go in one bowl, dry ingredients go in the other. She puts the stick of butter in the bowl and pops it in the microwave, melting it all the way. She adds in some sugar and mixes, then two eggs and a splash of vanilla. Ok, now the dry stuff. She dumps some flour into the bowl along with a spoonful each of the baking powder and soda, then mixes it all together. Once everything's combined, she pours the dry into the wet and mixes it, adding in a bunch of chocolate chips.
The oven beeps and she starts plopping spoonfuls of the mixture onto the baking sheet. She puts the sheet in the oven and sets the timer for 10 minutes. While she waits for the cookies to bake, she gets the coffee machine going and grabs a mug from the dish rack. As the machine brews, her phone dings. Picking up the device, she sees a news alert on the screen. But her cookie timer beeps, pulling her attention.
Anna grabs a towel and opens the oven. The cookies look cooked, so she pulls the sheet out and sets it on top of the stove. The cookies are nice and plump and looks a little brown around the edges. Grabbing a plate and a spatula, she lifts the cookies off the tray and piles them on the plate. Quickly, she puts the rest of the dough on the tray in little mounds and shoves it back in the oven. She sets the timer again and sets the empty bowl in the sink.
Turning back to the plate her shoulders slump a little; the cookies have all deflated, leaving the chips protruding from the cookie. Maybe they'll still taste good? She goes to grab one, but they're still really hot. Better let them cool.
The coffee machine beeps and she pours the hot black liquid into the mug. She hears a creak behind her and turns to see Leopold wheeling his way out of his room.
His eyes are a little squinted and his brown hair is sticking up in the back. "You're up early."
She winces a little. "Did I wake you? Sorry. I couldn't sleep."
He rolls over to the table and shrugs. "It's ok. My own fault for staying up so late."
Anna grabs another mug and pours the rest of the coffee into it. She grabs the plate of cookies along with both mugs and brings them over to the table. Setting one mug in front of her and one in front of Leopold, she sits.
Leopold picks up the mug and takes a sip. "Another nightmare?"
She nods. "Kind of. It was about my parents."
He presses his lips together and his eyes are sympathetic. "I'm sorry, those are never fun."
The timer beeps again and she jumps out of her chair. Opening the oven, the cookies are a little darker than the first batch. Whoops. She pulls the sheet out, puts it on top of the stove, and turns off the oven. She heads back to the table and sits again with a sigh.
After a sip of her coffee, Anna grabs one of the cookies. She takes a bite; it's soft and has plenty of chips, but there's no…substance to it. Plus, the flavor is off. But it's better than no cookies. She finishes the morsel and grabs another.
As she chews, her phone dings a couple more times. That's right, the news alert. She picks up the device and swipes open the screen. Headline after headline pop up in her news feed reading the same thing: Jailbreak at Meridian.
She drops her cookie on the plate and opens one of the articles. "Ah shit."
Leopold tilts his head. "What's going on?" She scooches her chair around the table so he can see the screen too. Leopold glances at the headline. "Crap! Do we know who got out?"
She shrugs as she reads as fast as she can. "It doesn't say, just that there was a breakout early this morning that resulted in the ceiling caving in at one of the buildings. Preliminary reports say 5 prisoners are unaccounted for."
His brow furrows. "Unaccounted for? So, they could be d-d-dead or on the loose, they just d-don't know yet." She nods. "What d-d-do we do?"
"Aside from just going out on patrol and keeping an extra eye out, there's nothing we really can do. We don't have any concrete info. Plus, we don't even know where the prison is. Could be out in the middle of the ocean for all we know."
"Fair." He leans away from the device and takes another drink of his coffee. "I guess we just have to wait and see."
She sighs. "Yeah, I suppose." It feels weird to just sit here drinking coffee and eating cookies while this is going on. If they find out more, maybe there's something they can do. But until then, there's not.
~0~0~
Anna hurries down the hall of the office building, trying to beat her next client to Mirror Image. It's a lot later than her usual appointments and she had to fight her way through a gaggle of drunk college kids out on the town to get here. She unlocks the door and shoves her way in, not bothering to prop the door open. She dives behind her desk, grabs her helmet out of the bottom drawer, and shoves it on her head. There's a knock at the door and she stands, smoothing out her blazer as much as possible.
"It's open!"
The door creeks open and Jumble slides into the office, quietly shutting the door behind her. "Hey, Mirage. Thanks for agreeing to see me so late." She stands with her arms behind her back, hunched in on herself. She must be a bundle of nerves.
"Not a problem at all. Want to sit?" Mirage settles in her chair and places her forearms on the desk. Jumble sits in one of the chairs, her metal arm clinking as she lays it on the armrest. "How have you been? You seem…better."
The Beach Bums enforcer chuckles. "I'm sober at least, so I guess that's an improvement." She leans forward, elbows on her knees. "Things are heating up with the Beach Bums and, now that I'm thinking a little clearer, I don't know if I can go along with it."
Well, that's news. She hasn't heard anything about big hits or them trying to expand their territory. "Big how?"
"Dope has been all squirreled away in his lab working on a new drug and told us to start recruiting more enforcers. More powered people. Says now's the right time to 'take what's ours'." She makes quotes with her fingers before looking at the floor. "And I just…I could justify enforcing for this little villain group that were basically glorified drug dealers…but this feels like signing away my soul."
It makes sense that Dope would want to take advantage of what's going on in the city. All the attention is on Monarch and the heroes and Triple Six. Doing something now would mean less attention from everyone. It's a smart move. They certainly don't have the time to put a lot of effort into this, but Jumble's right; a new Dope drug hitting the streets is a big deal.
"So, if you can't go along with it, what do you want to do?" Jumble shrugs and just plays with her fingers a bit. "Well, there's going back to being a vigilante, either on your own or part of a team. It might be a little more dangerous since the Beach Bums may take you leaving a little personally, but you would have the freedom to do what you want. They're not in the greatest of places right now, but there's always the heroes. They'll have better resources to help protect you from any retaliation."
Jumble's leg bounces, making the chair squeak a little. She looks up at Mirage, her eyes shining with tears. "What if I'm no good at it anymore? What if I am a villain now? Why would any of them give me a chance?"
Her heart breaks for the poor woman. The unfortunate reality of the situation is that she is probably going to be met with some disbelief and wariness when she tries to switch sides. Her only reputation in this town is as a villain. A new team may accept her eventually, but it'll take time. She'll have to prove herself to them.
Mirage stands and walks around the desk, leaning on the edge of it in front of Jumble. "You're not a bad person. The fact that you're worried about this proves it. You may have lost your way a little, but you're trying to do the right thing now. And that's what's important." Jumble's mouth curls just the slightest bit. She sniffs as she rubs at her eyes. "But I won't lie, it'll be hard to convince people that you're being honest. Your appearance and your power are both very memorable, you won't be able to just rebrand and start fresh here." The woman looks down at her arm with disdain. "Do you want to stay in San Domenico?"
She nods. "It may be a shit hole, but it's home now. And I have…people here."
"Ok. That's fair." Mirage thinks for a moment. "I think, if you're serious about this, your best course of action is to start separating yourself from the Beach Bums. Get a new phone number and stay out of their territory as much as possible. But keep it low profile, don't go and give the cops a bunch of info or show up on their doorstep to try and take them on yourself; being a snitch or a traitor in their eyes will just make them hunt you down. And start finding opportunities to help people, get back in the swing of good deeds. This isn't all going to happen overnight, it'll take time. But I think you'll be a lot happier for it."
Jumble's head drops, hanging between her arms. After a moment, she takes a deep breath and pushes herself back, sitting straight up. She has determination and resolve in her eyes that Mirage hasn't seen before. "Ok, I can do that." She stands, holding her hand out to her. Mirage takes the metal hand and shakes it. "Thank you, for all of this. It's nice to have someone actually believe in you."
Under the helmet, Mirage smiles as a blush warms her face. "It's my pleasure. And if you need to talk again, my door is always open."
The ex-villain nods and makes her way out of the office with her head held high.
Anna crosses the small office and locks the door before pulling off her reflective helmet. There's a small smile on her face as she takes it back to her desk and deposits it in the bottom drawer. She's really glad that Jumble wants to get back to her roots. It'll be an uphill battle, but she seems ready for it.
Her phone starts buzzing on the desk, dancing along the surface. Picking it up, she sees a castle emoji on the caller ID. She hits accept.
"Sentry, do you just have me on speed dial now?"
His usually light tone is replaced by gravity. "Ha ha very funny." His voice sounds deep and raspy, like he's been up for way too long. "Have you seen the news?"
"Yeah, looks pretty bad. Any leads?"
"That's why I'm calling. Normally I wouldn't just give info out like this, but I know you guys have been working this whole situation for months. Monarch infiltrated the prison and facilitated the breakout."
Anna's mouth drops open and her eyes widen. This is insane. Do the heroes not have any master protocols in place? "The news said that it wasn't clear who had escaped and who was killed."
He grumbles a little. "We're still making our way through the wreckage, trying to get a full count. Apogee is still being detained with questioning, so we're on our own." He sighs heavily and his voice drops even lower. "Crusade, he hit HarleQueen's cell block. If she's on the loose it's bad, but she's not even the worst one we would have to worry about."
"Who else was on that block?"
"People like Rancid, Long John, Glacial, and Oblivion."
She winces a little. Having those people out in the world is not a fun prospect. Rancid was a villain in San Francisco a few years ago that polluted the air to the point that they considered evacuating the city. Long John was the leader of a pirate-themed villain group that plagued the Pacific Ocean. Glacial was an Elemental who nearly froze over the entirety of San Diego. She's heard the name Oblivion before but can't really remember from where.
"Do you want some backup?"
"Not officially. You guys have been tracking him for months, do you have any insight you can share? What he might be doing? Where he might be going?"
She thinks for a second. Even when HarleQueen was gone, he stayed here. Like he wanted to preserve their home. "Regardless of what happened to her, he's coming back here. It's tough to say what his goal is without knowing more about who's on the loose. We've seen him control multiple people at once, so if more escaped it could just make it that much worse."
He heaves a sigh. "Great. Well, thanks. Keep an eye out and let me know if you hear anything. I'll let you know when we know more."
"Appreciate it. And try to get some sleep, you sound like shit."
Sentry chuckles a little. "Pleasure as always, Crusade."
Anna slumps into her chair with a heavy sigh. She was afraid that's what this breakout was about. Monarch's been trying to get back at the people who took HarleQueen from him, now he's trying to actually get her back. She's not sure which scenario would be worse, though; Monarch coming back with HarleQueen, or what he'll do if she's dead.
~0~0~
The steady rhythm of waves crashing against the sand provide a soothing backdrop to an otherwise chaotic scene. It's a beautiful day and the beach is crawling with people. Some lounge on the sand, soaking up the California sun, some play games like frisbee or volleyball, and some splash in the water, kids shrieking as the waves come in and get their feet wet.
Dakota and Anna sit on their towels watching Po'boy surf, carving paths through the water. The board snaps up, going over the top of the wave, before gliding back down. He tries the maneuver again, but he slips or loses his balance and falls off the board and into the water.
Dakota winces. "Doesn't it hurt when you fall?" Her t-shirt billows a little in the breeze, long cargo shorts covering her thighs. Her brown hair is pulled back into a low ponytail, fluttering a little in the breeze. A pair of sneakers sit on the towel behind her.
Anna shrugs. "A little, but it's not that bad."
"Seems dangerous."
She laughs. "Really? We do what we do and this seems dangerous to you?"
Dakota shoots her a look. "One don't preclude the other, ya know. People drown all the time."
Po'boy comes climbing up the beach, surfboard under one arm, with a tired smile on his face. "Man, that was rough." He sticks the nose of the board in the sand and collapses onto his towel. After a minute, he pushes himself up onto his elbows. "Find anything yet?"
Anna shakes her head. For the last few hours they've been taking turns walking along the sand, listening in on conversations, hoping to hear something about this new product Dope is coming out with. With the prison break looming over them, this may be the only time they have to find out anything about it, but Dakota was adamant they at least try. And if it means spending some time at the beach incognito, Anna wasn't about to argue.
Po'boy looks around. "Maybe we picked a bad spot. Not a lot of townies around here. Wanna try somewhere else?"
Dakota stands immediately. "Yeah, let's get outta here. I got sand in places I didn't know I had."
He chuckles as he stands. "For someone who grew up on a ranch, you sure are fussy."
Her mouth drops open, indignation written on her face. "Who you callin' fussy?!" She shoves the surfer as he starts to stand, knocking him back into the sand. "See how you like havin' sand in all your crevices."
Anna chuckles as she stands and wipes the sand from her jean shorts and tank top. She grabs her towel, shaking it out, and her flipflops as Po'boy stands and retrieves his things. They trudge up the beach, weaving in and out of all the other people until they get to the street. They have to stop at Po'boy's place real quick to drop off his surfboard before they go wherever it is he thinks they'll pick up some intel.
They walk a mile or so up from his apartment to a lively restaurant a few blocks back from the shore. It's not a fancy place, but it seems like it's popular anyway. Elbowing their way through the crowd, they make their way to the bar. A couple of people call Po'boy's name as they go, and he acknowledges them with a wave. They grab a high top towards the back of the space, out of the way but still in earshot. A pretty waitress, Sandra, takes their drink orders with a wink at Po'boy before going back to the bar.
Anna turns towards her teammate and hunches closer, keeping her voice quiet. "So, what's the play?"
Po'boy looks around a little. "Sandra's really talkative and we go way back, if she's heard about something happenin' I bet I could get it out of her." He cranes his neck to see the other side of the bar. "Oh, shit. Marty's here. He absolutely knows if there's something going on. But he doesn't like me."
Anna snorts a laugh. "Someone doesn't like you?"
He shrugs as Sandra comes back and delivers their drinks. A whiskey neat for Dakota, a cold beer with a slice of lime in it for Po'boy, and a rum punch for Anna. "I dated his sister in high school. Protective kinda guy." He waits until the waitress leaves and then looks over at Dakota. "But he always spills his guts to girls. Go talk him up, find out if there's anything fun going on soon."
Dakota chokes a little on her drink and her eyes widen. "Me? Why not Anna?"
Po'boy smirks and shakes his head. "Not his type. He'll love your accent."
Her cheeks color and eyes flick away while she takes another sip. "I ain't good at talkin' to strangers. I get all nervous."
He waves her off. "You'll be fine. Here, lemme just…." Po'boy reaches behind Dakota and pulls her hairband out. He puts his fingers in her hair, ignoring her embarrassed sputtering, and fluffs her hair up a little. Pulling his hands away, he nods. "There. Any time you feel nervous you can just play with your hair. It'll earn you bonus points, guys think it's cute."
Dakota's eyes are wide and her blush just keeps getting darker. She looks over at Anna, looking for an out. She shrugs at her teammate. "If you're not up for it it's all good. I can give it a try, but I may strike out. Up to you."
The tinker looks down at the table and Anna can see the wheels turning in her head, her gaze focused. After a moment, she picks up her glass and downs the rest of her drink before getting up and walking across the room without another word.
Po'boy chuckles and watches as she walks away. "I guess she's gonna do it." He picks up his glass as he stands. "Guess I have some snooping to do too." He picks up his beer and swaggers over to the bar, leaning across it to talk to Sandra.
Anna takes a sip of her punch, keeping an eye on her teammates. The place is busy and loud, so she can't hear what either of them are saying, but they seem to be doing ok. Sandra's giggle floats across the bar as she touches Po'boy's arm. Anna wonder's just how far back she and Po'boy go. They seem very familiar with each other.
On the far side of the bar, Dakota looks nervous. Marty looks obviously interested in her, but she does not like having some rando so up in her space. She manages to smile as she twirls her hair around her fingers over and over. She keeps watching them until, about 10 minutes later, Marty hands her a piece of paper with a sly smile and a lingering touch on her hand. Looks like she may have found something out. Dakota nods and hurries away, back over to Anna. She discreetly holds up a small, colorful piece of paper and jerks her head towards the door.
Anna downs the rest of her drink and calls over to Po'boy. He looks over at the pair and she waves him towards the door. He gives Sandra a smiley goodbye and follows them back out through the crowds.
Out on the street, Dakota lets out a long, heavy groan, leaning over. When she stands back up, though, she has a smirk on her face. She holds up the small paper. "I got it."
Po'boy smiles a mile wide. "Really?! That's awesome!" He grabs the paper and examines it. "Bums are having a party next weekend to unveil a new Dope drug."
Anna grabs the paper and looks at the details. It's got the time and the address, everything they need. She looks back up at her teammates. "If we can, this would be the perfect time to try and take out Dope. He's guaranteed to be there."
Dakota's brow furrows for a moment before her face clears again and she nods. "Seems like it's getting' harder and harder to plan things nowadays. But, if we can, we can't let this opportunity pass us by."
She nods in agreement. "C'mon, let's head back to base and fill Leopold in."
They get back to Anna's car and drive back to base, with Dakota and Po'boy playfully bickering the whole way. They get back to the base just as the sun starts to set and find Leopold in the living room, occupying his usual armchair. They fill him in on what they found out.
"D-d-do you think we should give Jenkins' b-b-buddies in narcotics a tip?"
Anna nods. "If we do this with the intention of bringing Dope in, we'll need backup from the PD. I can go talk to him tomorrow." Her phone buzzes in her pocket and she pulls it out to see a castle icon. "Guys, it's Sentry." She hits accept, putting the call on speaker. "Hey Sentry, we're all here. What'd you find out?"
Sentry is breathing heavily into the phone. "She's dead. We just found HarleQueen's body. She was killed when the ceiling caved in."
Shit. If he was unstable before, that probably pushed Monarch over the edge. "We haven't heard anything around here, do you have any idea where Monarch is?"
"He's been spotted just outside of San Domenico. And Glacial is with him." Po'boy groans, running his hand along his buzzed head. "He could already be there. I'm on my way now, but I need help. Augurnaut and Rubberman are still dealing with the other villains that escaped. I'm trying to get Siphon, but the Governor is stalling for some reason. I can't handle him alone."
Anna looks around at the rest of her team. Without hesitation, they all nod. She smirks a little. "We're in, just tell us where you want to meet."
Po'boy's eyes light up like he has an idea. "We can get the Cardinal Alliance on board too; they've all got a bone to pick with Monarch."
"Good, the more we can get the better. I should be in town in a little over an hour. Let me know if you hear anything."
"We'll keep our eyes open."
Sentry ends the call and she taps the side of her device. They're going to have to coordinate people fast. They can't be reactionary on this; once Glacial starts using her power it'll be tough to stop her. And they live in a bay town. She looks over at Leopold. "Call Jenkins, we need as many people looking out for Monarch as possible." He nods and pulls his phone out, rolling down the hall to his room. She shifts her gaze to Po'boy. "Let Lamplighter know what's going on. They need to get geared up." Po'boy gives her a thumbs-up and goes over to the living room.
Dakota leans across the table, hand on the surface. "I ain't familiar with Glacial. What's she do?"
Anna thinks back to the attacks on San Diego she heard about all those years ago. "She uses ice to make armor, kind of like with my power, and then she can just make it grow and grow. Any water she comes in contact with gets frozen and incorporated until she's a giant ice thing."
She can see the wheels turning in her teammate's head, fingers drumming on the wooden surface. "I've got an idea of what could work, but I need to make some adjustments."
Anna nods. "Go get it figured out. We need to be ready to go at the drop of a hat."
The tinker smirks. "I ain't never dropped my hat and I don't intend on startin' now." She stands and hurries to her room.
Anna looks down at the device in her hand. There may be a way to get ahead of this if they can figure it out in time. She scrolls to a name and hits the call button. It picks up in less than two rings.
"Crusade! Is everything ok? Is he onto me?"
"It's all good, Prophet, everything's fine."
"Oh, thank god!"
"I was actually wondering if you could help me with something?"
"Did you find the chip they put in you? I can help you get it out no problem."
She sighs. "No. No chip. I need to find someone. There are two villains, Monarch and Glacial, on their way to town. I need to know where they're going."
"Oh! Uh…hang on." There's silence on the other end for what seems like endless seconds. "Oh, shit! The ice monster!"
"Yes, Glacial."
"Yeah! The ice monster is at the waterfall that's being built." The waterfall that's being built? Who builds a waterfall? San Domenico isn't a particularly hilly area, there aren't any waterfalls in the city that she's aware of. Prophet starts rambling. "You know, the government is always tampering with our water. I bet they're trying to build it so that the water makes us –"
She doesn't have time for a rant like this. "Hey, Prophet? I gotta go. Thanks a lot."
"Oh yeah, no problem!"
Waterfall that's being built. They know that Glacial is going to go for water, and there are lots of sources around here. But which kind has waterfalls?
Po'boy breaks her musing. "Cardinal Alliance is on board. Lamplighter is even gonna call Corona."
Her eyebrows arch in surprise. "Really? Is she…up for that?"
The surfer shrugs. "Don't think it matters, she's not gonna miss out on the payback party."
"Fair." Anna starts to think about what Prophet said again, but something occurs to her. "Hey Po'boy, are there any waterfalls around here?"
He thinks for a moment and then shakes his head. "Not that I've heard of."
Well, there goes that. Maybe it's nothing. "Ok, then what are the sources of water that Glacial could go for? Aside from the ocean and the Gouge?"
"I mean there's, like, ponds and creeks and shit, but nothing huge. The big water fountain thing downtown maybe? The water park's been closed for years, I don't know if there's even still water there. Probably pretty gross if there was."
The waterpark. Where has she heard about that before? A log flume is kind of like a waterfall? Shit, a water park could work. "A waterfall they're building…." Finally, it clicks and she snaps. "Lampoon and Sideshow are fixing the waterpark so they can reopen it!"
Po'boy's eyes widen. "Then there's totally water there. And it's pretty far north, farther than the Gouge. If they're coming from Frisco that might be a good first stop."
Anna grabs her phone again and dials Lampoon. It rings and rings and rings, but then it goes to voicemail. With a curse, she hangs up and tries again. "C'mon Lampoon, pick up." It goes to voicemail again. No way Lampoon will ever check a voicemail, she'll send a text instead. Villain headed to water park. Get eyes on, do not engage! All she can do is hope she listens.
Leopold wheels back out of his room. "The PD are on alert already, b-but they're going to set up checkpoints on all the major roads."
She nods. "Ok. I doubt they'll be driving, but it's something." She starts pacing, twirling her phone in her hand nervously. "I think they're going to go to the water park, but it's not for sure."
Leopold tilts his head, his eyes narrowing. "Why would they go there? There's way more water at the Gouge. Or the ocean."
She chews her lip a little. "I called Prophet."
He rolls his eyes a little while Po'boy looks back and forth between them. "Who's Prophet?"
She waves him off. "Don't worry about it. But it kind of makes sense. It's a good spot for them to start gathering steam if they want to attack the whole city. I'm trying to get Lampoon to check it out, but she's not answering."
Leopold puts a hand up. "There's still time. Sentry's still on his way and the Cardinal Alliance are getting themselves together. If she d-doesn't respond soon may-maybe we can go check it out ourselves."
She huffs. This hurry up and wait crap is the worst. She makes herself stop walking back and forth and takes a deep breath, sighing it out. He's right; they have time.