I am back with a new chapter and the last proper chapter of the first Arc. The only thing left for this Arc is a PHO interlude, something I'm tentatively planning on doing for the end of every arc. I'm honestly surprised at how this story has grown and developed as well as the reception it's recieved. While it hasn't all been positive, much of the critism has been constructive and helped me develope this story into something I can truely be proud of. Don't know if all of those people are still following this but if you all one of those people, I must say, thank you very much.

With that little spiel out of the way, let's get on with the chapter.

Chapter 15: The Road Ahead

Saturday, January 29th, 2011

Taylor quickly entered through the automatic doors of Brockton Bay General Hospital. Her father had dropped her off and was now on his way home. It was decided not long after they got into his truck that he'd drop her off and then run all her new clothes home. While she wanted to get to the hospital as soon as possible, she didn't want to leave the clothes in the truck. While not super valuable, they still didn't want to just leave them in the truck and risk it being broken into and having them stolen. Given it had already happened to them twice, they didn't want to chance it. Since Danny didn't know Rose as well, having only met her once, he had no pressing need to see her, though he did plan to regardless after dropping everything off at their house.

Taylor quickly marched up to the woman working the front counter in the main lobby. She was a middle-age woman who sat looking bored and tired as she stared at the computer screen. Taylor stopped in front of the counter.

"Excuse me." She spoke.

The woman's eyes lazily shifted towards her.

"Yes?" The woman spoke in a monotone tone.

"Uhm… hi, I'm here to visit my friend, Rosemary Sato. We got attacked and she got injured saving me. She should have gotten here by now. Can you tell me what room she's in?" Taylor inquired.

"I didn't need the whole story, just her name would have sufficed." The woman answered in the same monotonous tone.

"Oh ah… sorry?" Taylor replied.

"It's alright, I'll look through the system now." The woman replied before going to work.

The keys of the keyboard clacked away as Taylor stood and waited. And waited. And waited. And she continued to wait. And wait. And wait. She looked around the room to try and distract herself from the worry rising within her as she waited. And waited. And waited. She struggled to not let her worry turn into annoyance as the woman tapped away at the keyboard as she waited.

"Ughh… damn system's being stupid again." The woman spoke in the same monotone voice as before.

"Uhm… I don't want to sound rude but… are you okay? Cause you sound kind of… dead, for lack of a better term." Taylor spoke up.

"I'm just having one of those days. Normally I'm much more lively than this." The woman answered monotonously.

"Here's your coffee Jane." Another woman spoke up, walking from behind Jane.

She placed the mug of coffee by Jane.

"Thanks Doe." Jane replied monotonously.

Doe nodded with a smile before moving to another computer to help someone else who had just come in. Jane took a sip of her coffee.

"Alright, I have her here. She's in room 338 and she just became available for visits." Jane spoke, her monotonous tone completely gone.

Taylor just stared for several seconds as her mind tried and failed to process what she'd just seen and heard.

"Uhmmm… thanks…" She replied

"You're welcome." Jane returned with a small smile.

Taylor again stared for a few seconds before turning away.

"This is a weird ass city." She muttered under her breath as she quickly made her way over to the elevators.

She pressed the button to call the elevator and anxiously waited as the elevator slowly descended to her floor. Time seemed to slow as the elevator gradually descended. She felt antsy. She fidgeted nervously in place as she waited for the elevator to arrive. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the elevator door opened and she quickly entered the empty elevator and hit the button for floor three. After a bit, the door slowly closed and the elevator lurched upwards. It moved steadily towards its destination uninterrupted. Taylor stood near the door, her anxiousness and worry ever present. The elevator stopped at the third floor. As soon as the door opened wide enough for her to fit through, she exited, weaving past those trying to get on the elevator. She followed the signs leading her to the correct room. The door was opened, but she couldn't see inside from the angle she was at. She stopped just before the doorway. Taylor didn't enter immediately, weighing things in her mind. Do I ask about that mention of Mei? It'd seem weird to ask about hearing voices in your head. It just sounds kind of crazy. I know from personal experience.

'HEY!'

And maybe it isn't what I think it is. And even if it is, I didn't exactly want to tell her about Kiana or my powers so why should I expect the same from her. But I… I… I don't want to abandon my friend. She stood by me, so I'll stand by her. She took a deep breath, and entered inside. She saw Rose sitting upright on a hospital bed looking out the window. She seemed to be lost in thought.

"Hey Rose. How are you doing?" Taylor asked.

"Taylor?" Rose muttered in surprise.

She turned to look at her.

"Your…" She began but stopped and winced as though someone shouted in her ear.

Taylor felt a bit of trepidation well up in her. It's looking more likely.

'Yes it is…' Kiana noted with excitement.

Why are you getting so excited about this? Assuming it is your Mei, it's not like you can even talk to her.

'Just knowing Mei-senpai is nearby is enough for me.'

That's… actually kind of sweet.

'Thank you.'

"You're here?" Rose finished.

"Surprised?" Taylor asked.

"More at how fast you got here." Rose admitted. "Not that I'm complaining, it's nice to know I have a friend who cares. And I'm doing fine, thanks for asking. I'll need stitches because of how deep the bolt went, but other than that, I'm fine."

"That's good to hear. And hey, it's because of you I got out of that without a scratch. The least I could do is check in on you." Taylor pointed out. "And like you said, we're friends."

Rose smiled.

"Yeah… friends." She muttered.

Her expression suddenly shifted to bashful as though someone mentioned something embarrassing. Dear god, how did nobody notice this with me?

'I think you've got a better poker face than her.'

Taylor looked behind her to see no one was coming in or within listening distance. While she wasn't sure she was actually in the clear, she decided to take the chance. She walked closer to Rose and leaned in, confusing the other girl.

"This is gonna sound strange." Taylor whispered. "But back when you winced after first seeing me, did you hear a girl exclaim 'Kiana-chan' in your head? A girl who's name happens to be Raiden Mei?"

Rose's eyes went wide in shock.

"H-h-h-h-h-how did you…" She began.

"That all but confirms it." Taylor noted.

'MEI-SENPAI!'

Taylor tried and failed to hold back a wince. Rose's eyes went wide.

"W-w-w-wait… d-don't tell me y-y-y-you…" She began.

"Yep, you and I are in the same boat it seems. So the good news is you're not crazy." Taylor finished.

"I guess… ha haaaa…" Rose replied with a strained smile. "Though I didn't think I was crazy. Well… I did, but then I did this thing that summoned a weird energy in my hand and then…"

"I get it." Taylor interrupted. "I went through something similar when it happened to me."

"I see…" Rose mumbled.

There was silence as neither girl knew what to say. Their own respective headmates remained silent, letting the girls work through this.

"Why…" Rose eventually spoke.

"Hmm… why what?" Taylor asked.

"Why…" Rose began before looking to make sure no one was walking in.

Once she felt she was in the clear she continued, "Why reveal you have powers? You've obviously had them for a while now that I think about things. You clearly didn't look like this Kiana before but now apparently you do. So why reveal them now?"

Taylor looked away bashfully.

"Because we're friends, and if you have powers I don't want my friend going out alone. Assuming you will go out, that is." She explained.

"Well, you're going out right?" Rose asked.

Taylor nodded.

"Then I'm going out too. Like you don't want me going out alone. I don't want you. We're friends now and friends stick by each other. Good friends that is. Not total bitches who'll dump you and the drop of a hat." Rose added.

Taylor giggled.

"Besides, if we want to help our city, working together would be better." Rose added.

"Yeah, trying to do that all by yourself would be really stuuuuuuuuu… pid…" Taylor began before trailing off.

A realization dawned on her. She groaned and face palmed

"I'm an idiot." She muttered.

'And now she gets it!'

Don't you start!

"Uhmmmm… what?" Rose questioned.

"Don't worry about it, I'll tell you later." Taylor replied.

"Ahhhhh… alright… I guess." Rose stated.

There was a brief moment of silence. Then the growing sound of what seemed to be several tiny feet could be heard. Rose eyes went wide. Taylor wisely stepped away from the bedside.

"BIG SIS/ONEE-CHAN!" Came the cry of four young children as they barrelled into the room.

There were three boys and one girl each with the same hair color as Rosemary. Two of the boys were twins and appeared to be about nine years old. One had a bowl cut while the other had long hair. The other boy appeared to be seven and had messy shoulder length hair. The girl was the youngest at either five or six and had long well maintained hair that went down to her thighs. They crowded around Rose's bedside. Despite how wound up they were, they had the sense to not do anything that might exacerbate their sister's wounds.

"Big sis, are you alright?!" The kid with a bowl cut asked worriedly.

"You didn't get hurt too bad did you?" The boy with long hair added.

"The boo-boo isn't serious is it? Mama said you'd be fine, so it can't be too bad, right?" The boy with shoulder length hair questioned.

"Do you need me to do your hair onee-chan? You always say it helps you feel better, maybe it'll help here if I do a really really really REALLY good job." The little girl added.

The four children continued to pester their sister who was trying, and failing, to assure them she was alright. Taylor just stood off to the side awkwardly, unsure of what to do or say.

"Alright, children, that's enough!" An authoritative yet kindly voice spoke up.

The four children stop their prodding to look to the source. Taylor also looked. It took a few seconds for her mind to register that this was not in fact Rose's older sister but her mother. The only clue was the fact that she looked clearly and distinctly western with no asianic in her unlike Rose or her siblings.

"I understand you're worried about your sister and want to help, but pestering her like that will only do the opposite." She scolded lightly.

"But mooooom… I want to help." The boy with long hair pleaded.

"Yeah, I want to help too." The boy with the bowl cut also pleaded.

"Hey, don't go stealing my idea!" The long-haired boy barked.

"I wasn't stealing your idea doofus. And we can both do it." The boy with the bowl cut retorted.

"It is stealing, and I don't need your help, Roy." The long-haired boy returned.

"Well I'm giving it anyways! Why gotta act like a dork now of all times, Roger?" The boy with the bowl cut declared.

"What you call me, bowl head!" Roger shouted, butting his head against Roy.

"I called you a dork! Dork!" Roy shouted back, pushing his head back against Roger.

They growled at each other.

"OW!" They exclaimed when they felt something hard hit their heads.

They turned to see their youngest now barefoot sister glowering at them with a shoe in each hand.

"What the heck, Mimi?!" The two exclaimed.

"Roger-nii and Roy-nii need to stop being big stupid dummy heads!" She shouted.

"What is it with you and mixing Japanese with English like that?" Roger questioned.

"Boys…" Their mother spoke in a frosty tone.

The two boys froze and mechanically jerked to look up at their mother. A glare that would make even the hardiest of men cower in fear was leveled at the two boys. They began to shake as their faces rapidly grew pale.

"You two can both work together to help your sister." She declared. "There will be no arguing about who's doing it. The BOTH of you WILL work together."

"B-b-b-b-b-b-b-but mom…" Roy began.

Her glare intensified. He became quiet.

"W-w-w-well work together…" They replied.

Her glare relented and a gentle smile replaced it.

"Good…" She stated before walking up to Rose's bedside. "And good job Mimi."

The little girl preened at the praise while her other brother merely looked on with silent amusement. Mary directed her attention to Rose.

"How are you doing sweetie?" She asked.

"A little shaken up, but I'm doing fine mom. Thanks to Taylor, all I'll need is some stitches." Rosemary answered.

Mary breathed out a sigh of relief.

"That's good to hear. Speaking of, it's nice to finally meet you Taylor. I wish it was under better circumstances. And thank you for saving my daughter." She spoke.

Her attention was shifted towards Taylor, who merely stood there awkwardly, as if trying to process everything before her.

"Uhm… I-i-it's n-nothing r-really. A-and Rose saved me so you could just look at it as repaying the favor, or something." Taylor eventually replied.

"My, you're a bashful one aren't you." Mary noted with a hint of amusement.

Taylor blushed lightly. Mary giggled. Then a thought came to mind and she smiled. Taylor grew nervous.

"Oh Chiiiiiiiildreeeeeeeeeen " Mary sang.

Four little heads turned towards her. A realization slowly dawned upon Rose.

"Oh no…" She muttered.

"I think you forgot to thank your sister's friend for saving her life." She stated, pointing at Taylor.

Taylor swallowed a lump in her throat as the four little heads turned to look at her. Before she knew it, she was surrounded by four little children.

"You saved big sis?" Roy questioned. "Thanks, you're the best!"

"Uhmm…" Taylor tried to speak.

"Yeah, it's awesome you did that. You must be super cool." Roger exclaimed.

"O-oh ahh…"

"Thank you for saving big sis. My name is Michael by the way, or Mike, that way everyone knows." The second youngest child added.

"W-what do you…"

"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou pretty lady. Since you saved onee-chan, does that mean I can call you onee-chan too?" Mimi asked. "Also, can you stop over sometime and let me do your hair, it's really pretty. I'd ask to do it now but I don't have my special brush with me."

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh…"

Taylor continued to try and fail handling the children as they pelted her with thanks and questions. Mary looked upon the scene with amusement while Rosemary looked at her mother unamused.

"Did you have to do that to my friend?" She questioned.

"No, but I couldn't let a good opportunity pass me by." Mary answered.

Rose sighed as Taylor grew increasingly flustered.

'You can face down a psychotic ex-hero trying to kill you without problem, but four energetic children and you're barely keeping from breaking down.'

S-shut UUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup!

Later that day…

Emily Piggot let out a tired sigh as she sat in her office. The fallout from Shadow Stalker's escape and subsequent attack on two civilians was still ongoing. They had, obviously, not been able to cover up what Shadow Stalker had done and news of it was spreading like wildfire. Videos of the fight between Ms. Hebert and Shadow Stalker were already out on PHO(Parahumans Online) with comments neatly explaining what led up to the moment since that hadn't been caught on video. Thus her department was forced to go into damage control mode. She scowled at that fact. All this from one damn ward throwing a hissy fit. Though I suppose it's ironic that doing so is what condemned her, not our investigation. Had she'd waited I'd have been forced to let it go and settle with passing the buck off to someone else.

An incoming call request came from her computer, breaking her out of her thoughts. She looked to see who it was and sighed. Knew this was coming. She schooled her expression and answered the call. A video feed opened and the face of a hispanic woman who appeared to be in her forties was on the screen. She was dressed professionally.

"Good evening Chief Director." Emily spoke.

"I'd hardly call this evening good given what's transpired in your city, Director Piggot." Chief Director Costa-Brown replied. "Though you already know this."

"Yes, I am well aware. We are already doing what we can to recover the blow to our public image. It's somewhat taking effect, but whether it will stick remains to be seen." Emily answered.

"I saw. A simple yet effective tactic that with a little luck might just work. Turn the story from PRT corruption and incompetence to one of Shadow Stalker just being particularly good at hiding the worst aspects of herself." The Chief Director noted. "Not ideal but it was the best you could do with the hand you were dealt."

"Thank you, Chief Director." Emily replied.

"I wouldn't thank me yet, I want to know how this happened. Shadow Stalker shouldn't have been in the position to attack those two like she did." The Chief Director pointed out.

"We are looking into the matter. Loathed and embarrassed as I am to admit it, moles we had up until now only suspected gave her the tools she needed to escape. I'm having Dragon help Armsmaster comb through our personal and systems just in case. So far nothing we haven't already accounted for and or turned to our advantage as come up." Emily explained professionally, not letting the Chief Director's accusatory tone get to her. "That being said, if not for the relative safety of this line I'd be worried about our conversation being leaked out."

"I see, not ideal but you're handling it well enough I suppose." The Chief director relented. "Now, there's another topic of interest I want to discuss with you."

Emily adopted a quizzical expression.

"This girl, Taylor Hebert, Shadow Stalker's victim, what do we know about her?" She questioned.

While confused, Emily answered, "We suspect she's a parahuman. We're still looking into things, but, from what we've dug up, she seems to have made remarkable progress in many departments beyond what a normal human should be capable of. The most obvious one can be seen in these two pictures I'll send you."

The two images were quickly sent over to the Chief Director who brought them up. One had a girl with glasses and long dark hair who had an almost depressed look. The other showed a beautiful girl with white hair who looked far more confident. While seemingly depicting completely different girls, the Chief Director noted that there were some similarities in the facial structure between the two photos.

"Believe it or not, those are both pictures of Taylor Hebert." Emily began. "The one with dark hair is what she looked like before and the white haired one is her current appearance. This change took place in, as far as we can tell, only about a month. On top of this, despite having no prior combat training we could find, she held her own and eventually defeated Shadow Stalker. Even accounting for the bit of outside help she had and Shadow Stalker's poor mental state, it was far above what she should have been capable of, based on our knowledge. Factor in her above average strength and reflexes as well as seemingly predicting Shadow Stalker's attempt at getting her from behind it all points to her likely being a parahuman."

Emily sighed.

"Have to give the girl credit though, up until now she's done a good job at hiding this fact. I doubt she will after this, even without our blunder on the scene." She noted.

"Quite…" The Chief Director muttered. Then added softly. "It is similar to those girls."

"Hmm… what was that?" Emily questioned.

"Nothing important, anyways I want you to focus on getting Ms. Hebert on our side, preferable in the Wards, but recent events make that unlikely. While she doesn't seem strong it's possible she's hiding more than we realize. Even if she's not, every bit counts." The Chief Director ordered.

"Yes, with Shadow Stalker gone we've lost a good deal of combat power. Say what you will about the girl, she was effective." Emily noted. "If possible some additional capes would be useful. The gangs are likely to be emboldened by recent events."

The Chief Director sighed.

"I knew this would come up again. Unfortunately, while I have two who should be available to send, they are being held back by extenuating circumstances. As soon as they are available I will send them over should you still need them." She explained.

Emily's eyes widened slightly. In all her times asking for more support, this was the closest to an affirmative she got.

"I see, I suspect I will. Hopefully they can come sooner rather than later." She replied.

"We shall see." The Chief Director noted. "That is all I wished to discuss with you Director Piggot. Is there anything you wish to bring up with me?"

"No, Chief Director." Emily answered.

"Good, best of luck Director Piggot. Keep up the good work." The Chief Director stated before ending the video call.

Emily sighed and leaned back into her seat. Her eyes gazed up upon the ceiling.

"Why do I fear our troubles are only just beginning." She muttered to herself.

And that's a wrap, hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Till next time.