Remnants
Scatter 1-3
Balm of the Heart
Author's Note:
I haven't explicitly said this, but Taylor is a tad shorter than cannon. About this chapter, I have to admit that I'm not particularly happy with how this chapter starts. The rest of the chapter has elements I think I could have done better, but It's the opening that feels the worst. If you have any ideas on how to improve it, feel free to leave a review.
Uber and Leet had been captured by Assault when I left the crime scene. Honestly, I was kinda surprised that he managed to catch them on his own. They got out of the holding cells, but at least they lost a lot of their tinkertech items. With Leet's limit of only making an item once, it was a significant advantage against him. It made an interesting dilemma, because I'm pretty cure the protectorate wants him to continue to tinker to provide them with ideas.
I felt my eyes drift close as my exhaustion try to win me over. I should not have stayed up all night. I loved my speed, and my tinker abilities were a huge part of me, but they can be so inconvenient at times. By the time I realized that it was morning, I had already completed the frame for another set of weapons.
Of course, this new weapon was completely ridiculous. It was a pair of two shotguns attached end to end to form a staff. Why did I want to make such a weird weapon? Well, supposedly things like this were normal for tinkers. I managed to keep up running as I rounded the final turn of my course. My legs were burning, but it wasn't an overly painful feeling. My endurance had vastly increase over the past couple of months.
I made it home to the smell of burnt toast. Dad probably tried to make french toast again. A quick check showed that the shower was free, so I rushed upstairs and got myself clean. Hot showers were perhaps the most sacred gift of the modern world. I left the bathroom feeling much better. Smoke was actually starting to rise from the kitchen, with all of it's terrible glory.
A skillet on the stove was empty, with a small pile of smoking bread sitting beside it. Dad was there, frantically smothering the burning toast. He went to get a piece of bread, only to stop and stare at me. He gave me a shaky smile, walking away from the pan with his hands up.
"I give up, care to show your old man how to make french toast kiddo?"
"You don't even like french toast." I replied, grabbing a slice of bread and coating it liberally with the egg mixture. The pan didn't have any butter on it, so I used a knife to put a dab in the pan and it melting with a satisfying sizzle. The bread followed soon after.
"But I know you love it." Aw, Dad's been so happy since I agreed to do the online course instead of going back to school.
"How's work been?" His face contorted into a frown. Shit, I didn't want to upset him.
"I've had to cut off a couple of positions due to a lack of funding."
"I'm sure things will look up." I finished the first piece of french toast and began working on the second.
"It's always darkest before the dawn I suppose. How has the online course been?"
"Fine, history is kinda hard, but other than that I'm doing fine. A lot better than Winslow in any case." Another pair of french toast left the pan and joined the first I made.
"I'm glad that it's working out for you. Have you managed to meet up with any of the other students yet?" Man, I wish he didn't ask that. He always so worried about me.
"Not yet, I've been busy with studying." The final piece of french toast came off of the pan and I split them across two plates. Dad was frowning when I gave him his plate.
"I know you're shy, but you have to go and make some friends."
"I will, eventually." My response was weak, but what else could I have said? Thankfully, Dad's watch went off.
"Look, it's Saturday, so I'll probably be home early. Have a good day." Dad took a piece of french toast with him, eating it on the way out of the house. I sighed as I finished my breakfast. I was actually planning on doing some regular patrols this evening, so it would be prudent to get all my equipment up to snuff. As I left my house, I took a deep breath of the chill air.
As I walked down to the boardwalk, with my note book out and was going over my most recent project. Unlike last night's fanatical work, this was something that my power didn't let me do. It was impossible to see the "soul" that powered my abilities, but all living things had it. Not sure how I knew that, but I knew it to be one hundred percent true.
I also knew that my "soul" was what protected me from the bone crushing forces of my speed. So theoretically I could create a device that would "unlock" the "souls" of others. If it worked, I could grant a brute ratings to other people. If I got it to work, it would change Endbringer fights forever. If it worked, it would give me a chance to learn more about my own powers. Sadly, I have no idea how such a thing could even work.
I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings as I walked into a little cafe, so it came as a surprise that I felt my shoulder bump into someone else. My glasses went flying off my face as my forehead smashed into a metal corner. Pain forced me to focus, and I barely managed to get my arms under me to catch my fall.
I heard a grunt behind me as someone, a guy I think, hit the ground. Thankfully, I was pretty much fine. The world span for a couple seconds as I got to my feet, but other than that I was fine. Well, I still couldn't see anything, everything reduced to a blur without my glasses. I should be beside the small table that had held a lamp last time I came here.
"Sorry, my bad. Are you okay?" The voice was gruff, and it had a subtle Korean(?) accent. The speaker was ruffly my height, I think.
"I can't see without my glasses." I carefully bent over, sweeping my arms across the ground, hoping to find them.
"Found them." He said, taking my hand in a soft grip and pressing my glasses into my palm. I took them and put them on before standing up. The boy was likely my age. He had the tawny skin and was wearing oriental themed clothing, though I couldn't tell from which country. The shirt was a longed sleeved black one, with horizontal ties instead of buttons, and his pants were plain black slacks.
"Thanks for the help, I'm Taylor."
"Name's Monty, I am terribly sorry for bumping into you." Monty handed me my notebook with a smile. What a nice smile.
"Don't apologize, I should have looked where I was going." I had to avert my eyes as I felt my cheeks warm up.
"Let's just say we were both at fault? It doesn't look like either of us are willing to accept an apology."
"Okay." Well, this is going to get awkward fast. What was I supposed to say in a situation like this? 'Oh hey I just tripped into you! Okay bye'.
"Well, have a nice day. I'm afraid that I have a meeting to get to." His voice wasn't impatient, but it still sounded like he was in a hurry.
"You too." I said weakly as Monty left. Good job Taylor, just put your foot in your mouth while you're at it. I retreated into the small little cafe. Honestly, there is a reason I'm trying to avoid talking to people.
I ordered my normal tea and hid back in the farthest corner from the door. Flipping to my current page, I began to sketch out the next attempt at my current problem. While to anyone else, the script would look like magical symbols from a typical book or TV show, the diagrams were cleverly ciphered. Small things meant a completely different dust alignment matrix, which would propagate into a skewed energy attribution. Plus, it was kinda fun to pretend I was just a normal artist.
Sometimes, I wonder if it's like this for all tinkers. Does their supernatural grasp of technology leave gaps that taunt them with their inability to complete them? Do they spend entire days wondering if small angular adjustments could create the effect they wanted? Was their entire lives filled with ceaseless discovery as the very gift they were blessed with drove us to understand more?
It was night when I finally managed to set up the next trial. For anyone else, the chalk circles and suspended crystal would give off a weird feel, I'm sure. Perhaps they would think of occult rumours, or maybe those stories with magic that are still popular. On the other hand, I understood what was going on with these measured angles and induced energy levels.
Dust, from what I managed to discover, couldn't do much of anything in it's base state. Early on I had discovered how to align them by growing them near energy sources. From there basic experiments showed how to invert a crystal, causing them to absorb their traditional energy to produce the growth of new crystals. Kinda like a seed.
On it's own, perhaps that would make them powerful tools for me to use in my heroic escapades. However, it was the limitless combinations that consumed my curiosity. Questions filled my mind whenever it wandered. Could dust align to a negative energy value? Dozens of test prove the concept possible, if too unstable for practical uses.
The theory, as of now at least, was that dust operated on a frequency of resonance that allowed separate crystal instances affect "neutral" dust crystals. Trial one-oh-five, Fuck! That was three days worth of dust! Why was I using the cheap rope? Uh, where was I? Oh yes, trial one oh five was based around introducing the third dimension into these alignment trials. It was a pain to get the strings to hand just right, but it should be worth it. It was working, as the white crystal gained a sickly yellow shade at it's very edges.
Based on the size of the crystal, the process would finished by tomorrow. My hands jotted down a few quick notes on my lab book. It was the most tedious part of experimenting with my power, but it helped me keep my thoughts organized and prevented me from going too far off topic. Not that it prevent be from silently rejoicing when I was able to slot the book back into it's proper resting spot.
The broom I liberated from the run down building three blocks over was a little bit thread bare, but it was good enough to help collect the chucks of dusts that had shattered when the estra-magus cluster lost its anchor and fell out of it's cradle. Thankfully, it didn't ruin the entire experiment. The pale red crystal would be removed and probably powdered into charges for ammo.
With a sigh, I replaced the broom into my lab's closet. The clock on the wall showed that it was almost three in the morning. Ah, not wonder I was so tired. Well, I probably had time to sneak in a quick run before I had to head home. I was in my uniform anyway, and with Crescent Rose I was even safer than last week. It would give me time to think anyway.
My hold on my soul was getting more powerful recently. The subject held most of my thoughts recently, yet it was hard to quantify exactly What was changing with it. It was only because my soul had a shimmering red glow now that I even noticed it. Souls had an ethereal feel to them, and English lacked a word to describe how mine was changing. I can't say it was getting more powerful, or that it was expanding. However, those statements were the closest to what it felt like.
Even now, my speed was pulling less on my soul. My foot landed on a shingled roof and a pulse of energy ran down my leg and no doubt causing the signature red glow as the damage was absorbed? Perhaps reflected was a better word to use. That caused more significant damage, damage is the wrong word, to my soul.
Of course, as I pushed off to jump to the next roof my speed gently grasped me as I was whisked to the top of the broken ship. Even as the speed reluctantly let me go, my rose petals continued to drape down my cloak. Landing was something of an art, as my cloak was carried just a touch faster than me.
My right foot held me on the very edge of the mast as my left heel was at the centre. I smiled slightly as my cloak fluttered across my shoulders and into the air. The wind gently swirling my rose petals was all so inviting. From up here, Brockton Bay really was beautiful. Gang signs and rampant crime didn't reach so far up. The only thing remaining was the warm feeling of home.
Adrenaline surged through me as the enticing thought of jumping flooded my brain. My smile grew and twisted into a smirk as I pushed gently off the mast. I twisted my speed around me, and was delighted to find the ground approaching me at even faster speeds. Crescent Rose found her way into my hands as I let the wind unfold her into her scythe form. Faster than most could see, I spun her around my body and slammed her into the mast beside me.
The blade was strong enough that rather than break, it pulled me into a spin around the mast. I didn't let up with my speed even as my motion transferred mostly into horizontal movement. When I was close to the ground, I snapped a foot forward and, with the help of my soul, bounced of it and soared into the air. My giggles were almost uncontrollable after that.
As I reached the peak of my journey, Crescent Rose was folding and latched onto my back. With her out of the way, I was free to contort my body into a spin. This time, I couldn't tell who was more reluctant to let go of the other, my speed or I. Either way, I landed softly on one of the roads near the docks.
With a deep breath, I jumped up onto the flat roof of a nearby office building. Surprisingly, Dad's office was fairly high up for a run down city. Four stories tall, the office boasted a hidden lounge on the top. Dad told me once that before the Endbringers, they were planning on converting the small collection of couches into a proper break room, but without any money there was nothing they could do.
From here, the plan was to do a quick circuit around the bay to blow of steam. Of course, once I saw the smoke coming from a nearby apartment building there was no way I could abandon them. Barely a second went by before I was there, helping evacuate the people still inside. Since I was coming in from the roof, it made sense to start with the pent house apartment.
The trouble began when I reached the door to the stairs. It was locked and a little bit to sturdy to beat down with my lanky frame. Fuck it, not like the rest of the building would survive the fire. Crescent Rose came out and made short work of the steel door. Even three inches of the stuff was no match for my beauty. Done with her, I folding Crescent Rose up and jogged down the stairs.
I paused when the door for the penthouse came into sight. The handle was obliterated with chucks of it as far as the stairwell. With the tight space, I resorted to pulling out the Stormflowers and slowly pushing the doorway open. Inside there was a woman in a metallic gas mask and yellow tinted goggles.
She was crouched over a large, well built Asian man with some sort of mechanical device attached at his neck with three cylinders attached, one of which was burnt black and the other two had a series of glowing yellow LED lights. His body was less burnt that I imagine he should have been. While most of his shirt had been reduced to ash, his skin was only an unhealthy pink.
The woman's head shot up, but with the Stormflowers already up and pointed in her direction, it was trivial to pot three shots into her chest. The bursts of electricity was probably safe, unless she had a heart condition. I bent down and picked up the barely burnt man and began to carry/drag him up to the roof of the building.
Once I was up there, I had the space to use my speed to drop the both of us down to street level. The people surrounding the building were just as surprised as I when I appeared there carrying the man. Why were a bunch of ABB guys surrounding a random apartment? The cape in the building wasn't one of theirs, so it wasn't them attacking the building.
I left quickly afterwards, going to pick up the cape I left behind in the still burning room. This time I made sure to pull my face covering closer so that no trace amounts of smoke could get in my lungs. The journey took a couple of seconds, and I arrived to see the woman still passed out. I felt a pulse in her neck, so I picked her up and once again left to deposit her outside.
I was outside again, and was treated to the comical sight of three men trying to lift the barely guy to his feet. From the looks of it, the man was aware and had a modicum of control of himself. Once the guy supported his left side buckled, I left. I don't know why the ABB were helping a random Asian guy, but there could be more people inside that needed saving. Besides, the ABB were an exclusively Asian gang that acted as foil to the Empire 88's pro-white agenda, so it was probably a pride thing.
Not surprising, but I found another couple in the building, this time on the second floor. At least these two were safe, if trapped inside their apartment by burning debris. The blades on my Stormflowers made short work of it, and another saved couple were free of the building. This continued on for a good couple of minutes before I had checked every room I could find.
This time, when I got outside none of the gang members were still around. In fact, many people who I had save from the fire weren't here anymore. Considering that many of them were Asian and that the ABB were known for helping Asians, I was willing to let it go. Picking up the strange tinker, I jumped onto a nearby roof and speed off into the night.
For some reason, the PRT night shift was surprisingly nonchalant about the whole process. I only had to give the briefest report on what happened and they took it over from there. A pair of industrial hand cuff were used to restrain the woman and then they escorted her and let me leave without much more that a brief inquiry for injuries.
It was only a couple of days until I got my first result back from the online courses. Much like I expected, I was only barely passing in English and history. If it wasn't for my phenomenal grades in Science and Math, I probably would have failed out of the program. Then again, marks that low would make it look like I'm avoiding work to just do drugs or something.
I queued the page up for printing and took a moment to check out PHO. Perhaps it was a bad habit to always be checking the message boards about myself and other similar heroes, but my curiosity wouldn't let me stop. So many people where interested in me now!
I could hardly believe it, all I had done was fight with Uber and Leet twice and now there was a whole thread dedicated to me. Suddenly everything wasn't just doing a little bit of good here and there. People knew me, or at least knew of me, and held me up as a hero. Even after fighting villains, it felt weird to be so... popular is the best word I can think of.
My stomach did little flip flops every time I returned to the forum dedicated to me. So many people were saying nice things about me now. The posts had slowed down, but right after that fire it was flooded with report of me saving people. It was kinda neat to see how fast people can propagate information when they actually care.
I logged off and left the terminal. Dad would be happy to see my grades reaching such a phenomenal height. It just goes to show that I could have gone to Acadia if the trio hadn't been sabotaging my work. N-not that they mattered anymore. I was living my own life now.
I grabbed the print off and paid for the page before leaving to head towards home. Normally, I would spend some time tinkering down in my secret lair. Huh, that makes it sound evil when I think of it like that. Anyway, today I felt that just relaxing and reading a good book before supper. The alignment for my newest batch of dust wouldn't be done until tomorrow anyway.
It was 3:00 right now, and Dad sometimes got home as early as five, I was only loosing like two hours anyway. The air was quick fresh and had a nice breeze going as I took a leisurely stroll to the bus station. It was early spring and the light snow we got this year hadn't yet thawed out completely. In a way, the subtle patterns of grass pocking through the snow had an artistic charm to them.
Honestly, I wasn't sure how long I was just admiring the scenery before the bus came to pick me up. Nature was something that no one seemed to care for anymore. Even as I sat down, my eyes kept drifting to the window. A lead weight settled in my stomach as I caught sight of Sophia a couple of seats ahead of me.
From her demeanour, I don't think she recognized me. Hopefully my luck would hold out and let me slip away from her. Maybe if I time it right I can slip just by her without looking to awkward or attracting to much attention. Sophia's attention seemed to be focused on her phone for some reason, but at least she wasn't coming for me.
My nerves were shot by the third stop. It was hard to keep from jumping out the window every time her attention drifted in my direction. She had only looked directly at me once, but thankfully her phone went off and she quickly looked at it. I could hear my heart frantically beating in my ears as the world outside seemed to fade away.
On the fourth stop, my heart stopped when I saw Emma of all people get on. The phantom sensation got worse as she slowly took stock of the bus, presumably looking for Sophia. I carefully kept my face passive as I stared out the window. It was for nought, as I saw Emma sit down next to Sophia and point directly towards me.
The smirk that grew on Sophia's face was full of self righteous satisfaction and sadistic anticipation. All that happened in my life, from Mom's death to my fights with Uber and Leet, and I've never felt as unsettled as that twisted mockery of a grin made me feel now. Throughout my body I felt a deadly chill flood through my blood and a sudden clarity invaded my mind.
Sophia wasn't just a bully that enjoyed the fleet moments of superiority. She was a monster. The worst kind of person, the cancerous growth of humanity. A twisted killer, or at least she would become one. I have no idea why, but this sadistic thing was hell bent on hunting me down. Her essence, her soul was broken. There is nothing I would prefer that a swift run away from this creature.
The next stop was blissfully soon, and I could barely contain my need to flee as I quickly got off the bust and lightly jogged down the street. This wasn't the best neighbourhood, but it might play in my favour if it made Sophia second guess her pursuit. The sound of my feet hitting against the cement gave me a moment's peace.
As Taylor, I had never been in this part of town. Dad considered it too dangerous of a young woman to find herself alone in, and for the most part I tended to agree with him. What he didn't know, was that I wasn't just Taylor. I was equally Ruby Rose. She knew these roads and alleys like the back of her hand from nearly constant running.
It was only because of this history and experience that I knew one of the best shortcut's in the city, aside from the abandoned tinkertech sewers. I turned on a dime and did a couple short hops on top of a stack of bins until I reached the bottom of the fire escape and pulled myself up. As my hands swiftly pulled myself up to the first landing, I saw Sophia belt to the opening of the alley not even twenty feet off.
That twisted grin was still there as I jumped into the second floor's apartment window. This particular tenement was ruined and structurally unsafe, but with no one willing to spend money it was empty save for the homeless as I ran through to the open window on the other end of the building. My feet griped into the window sill as I hooked my hands into loose rebar and used it to swing my body.
My feet landed on the dilapidated roof of the abandoned shop and I let go of the window to let myself slide down the steep incline. The roof had a hole about halfway down that dropped me a floor and a half directly into the basement of the building. I landed in a roll and scampered up to the window and the very top of the eastern wall.
The window had been broken not even a week ago when I had mistimed a jump and crashed into the ground. Thankfully it let me exit through the backyard of this building and into the small wooded park. Behind me I could year a breathy curse as Sophia hit something rather hard. The woods were rather sparse and easy to run through, but it had one feature that made it particular good as a shortcut.
Part of the fence here was cut open and gave me access to the train yards. While it wasn't formally a part of a gangs territory, it was insanely risky for me to be running through them. Thankfully I only need to get to the third set of tracks. As I began to breath heavier, I risked a look behind me. Sophia was only now getting out of the basement with a frustrated look on her face.
The third set of tracks were particularly ruined because of a fight between a couple of capes years ago. It left a particularly deep gash in the ground that intersected with the regular sewers. My shoes skidded as I jumped down and continued to run with energy provided by my soul. While the smell was god awful here, it was a twisting maze that had been added to patchwork over that past twenty years.
That is, it was a maze of interconnected pipes that meshed old and traditional systems, with newer, tinkertech augments that were the compromise for the loss of the completely tinkertech sewer. It took several exhausting minutes, but I think I've completely lost Sophia. Taking a brief minute, I allowed myself to use my soul to get my breath back.
Afterwards, it was a sedate pace as I travelled towards the manhole closest to home. Not twenty minutes passed and I was home and relaxing with a good book and a mug of tea. I just couldn't keep my mind off of that look I saw on Sophia's face. Not that it stopped me from trying.
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The tea at the small cafe, 'Gas Lamp Lounge', was quite good. I only wished I could afford to come more often. After the chaotic run yesterday, the calm atmosphere was welcome. I sighed as I relaxed into my seat and focused on my novel. It's been a long time since I really had a chance to just relax, and I was enjoying it immensely.
In particular, I was reading Mistborn: The Final Empire and enjoy the rather unique take on magic. The characters weren't the best I've read, but not bad either. The inclusion of duelling canes actually gave me an idea for a cane that shot explosives. Really, that idea wasn't the most practical, but it was easier to pass off as a normal item.
I took a deep drink of the still hot tea and enjoyed the aftertaste it left. Yes, the tea here was of a higher quality than most other cafes in Brockton Bay. Then again, it was Brockton Bay, so that might not be a fair comparison. The door gave a jingle as another person entered the cafe. I looked up briefly and saw Monty enter the cafe.
He was wearing more modern clothing, a pair of jeans and a simple T-shirt with some Asian script on it. I would assume Chinese, but for all I know it could be Korean. Koreans used a logographic alphabet, right? Honestly I have no idea. Either way, it was a nice look. Logographic icons look kinda neat .
I turned back to my book. Idly I wondered why Logographic letters weren't used in English. It was a different system to the normal alphabet, but it feels like attaching direct meaning to symbols would be a more direct evolution of a written language. Of course, I didn't actually know, but it was a curiosity.
"Do you mind if I sit here?" I was pulled from my thoughts as Monty walked to the small table I was sitting at. He had a small smile and was carrying a drink and a pair of muffins. Blood tried to rush upwards to my cheeks, but I brutally fought my blush down.
"Yeah, sure. Are you okay from the other day?" I replied. He sat down across from me and gave me another smile.
"I was going to ask you the same thing. Muffin?" He held one of the muffins towards me.
"No, I couldn't. Thanks" I hesitantly smiled back.
"Don't worry about it, I just want to make up for running into the other day." While he didn't make the offer again, he left the muffin in front of me.
"I thought we agreed that it was both of our fault."
"We did, but that doesn't mean that I shouldn't make amends."I was going to reply, when a terribly loud screech echoed around the bay. My throat became tight and dry as I recognized the sound.
It was the Endbringer alarm.