As Isaac was away, Lily was in her room, quietly gathering a few things. What Horace said made sense, but she decided to put her own spin on it. She reasoned that if she helped get information for Isaac, then she could make it so they could go home sooner! She grabbed an aluminum baseball bat from Vylania's closet, making sure it had some heft to it. Her skills as a swordsman would aid her. And her being a kid could definitely give her the element of surprise!
"Okay… better be careful." She told herself. She quietly left through her window, before running off towards the alleyways.
She quietly walked, feeling her mental abilities guide her towards a gathering of thugs, themselves quietly completing a transaction. She felt confident, and a bit nervous, knowing she could handle them. She walked a bit closer to them, before clearing her throat, alerting them to her location. They looked at her strangely, not knowing why they were seeing a kid with a baseball bat. They laughed a bit, one of them crouching down towards her level, smirking.
"Well, hi there, sweetheart! What do you think you're doing?" He asked her, smiling a toothy grin, his teeth cracked. Lily frowned, herself gripping her baseball bat.
"I want to know where you're getting those Bubble Bombs!" She demanded. The thugs laughed, finding the situation amusing.
"Run along, sweetie! This is grown-up stuff!" He said, before standing up, turning away from her.
"I wasn't asking!" She exclaimed, swinging the bat at the back of his knee! The man yelled, his knee buckling! He swung his arm at her, Lily quickly swinging her bat, breaking his wrist!
"Aagh! Alright, get her!" He yelled at the others! They quickly surrounded her, Lily already feeling far more confident, seeing they weren't even armed!
"Bring it!" She exclaimed, holding the bat like a two handed sword!
They quickly tried to fight her, Lily already making quick work of them! She swung and slashed with it, feeling bones breaking through the handle! She expertly somersaulted as she fought, feeling exhilarated, a quick swing making contact with one of the thugs' jaws! As she fought them, one of the thugs made to run for it, Lily throwing her bat at him, hitting him square in the back! She ran towards him, grabbing the bat from the ground, swinging it as she kept fighting the thugs, the sound of aluminum bouncing off their bones! She quickly worked the bat under the chin of one of the thugs, angry!
"Who's giving you the Bubble Bombs?!" She interrogated.
"Fuck off, kid!" The thug grunted. Lily responded by breaking one of his fingers!
"Tell me!" She yelled, furious.
"Like I'm telling a snot nosed brat!" He grunted, defiant. Lily took a deep breath, placing a hand on the thug's head!
"Fine! You will tell me, one way or the other!" She said, invading his mind. Lily could see faces of different thugs, before seeing one that struck her as familiar. A man with a shaved head and a facial tattoo, shaped like an eagle's claw. She nodded, before knocking out the thug, quickly running back to the apartment, now having information.
"Okay, I need to sketch the man's face! Before I forget!" Lily said, running to the apartment. She climbed back through her window, quickly closing it. Tossing the bat aside, she grabbed a pencil and a notebook, quickly sketching while the face was still fresh in her mind.
Lily continued sketching, trying to make sure she got the tattoo right. If anything, it would tell Isaac where to look for the tattoo design, and if it was affiliated with a gang. Suddenly, she stopped, realizing she couldn't just give the sketch to Isaac! Doing so will mean he'll know she went and sought out information, and intentionally endangered herself! She took a deep breath, realizing she'll need to figure out a way to give this information to Isaac, without knowing she was the one that procured it.
"Oh, I've done it now! Once he finds out I went and bludgeoned thugs with a baseball bat, he'll be so pissed! Okay, Lily. Calm down. There has to be a way I can get this information to Isaac without him knowing it's from me." Lily rationalized.
Quietly, she poked her head out of her room, seeing the others weren't around. She quietly walked towards the trash can, seeing an old dossier folder. She grabbed it, before running back into her room. She tore at any discerning labels, using her non-dominant hand to write, disguising her handwriting! She wrote down the flashes of addresses she had managed to get from the thug's mind, before looking it over, making sure her handwriting was completely disguised.
"Okay, looks good! Now, maybe… I should sign it?" Lily questioned. She knew Isaac wouldn't accept information from a strange dossier, unless there was a signature that would potentially reveal who the person was. So, using her non-dominant hand, she signed the folder with an alias: The Seer. She sealed it as best as she could, crumpling it a bit, making it look different from the other dossiers.
Lily went out of her room, before placing the folder on the coffee table, making sure Isaac would see it, but would make it difficult to figure out if anyone else had written it.
Meanwhile:
Isaac quietly flew into an alley, his wings receding into his back. He quietly walked out, before seeing the place the guy told him where he had been getting the Bubble Bombs. It was an old jazz club. One of the only ones in Central City. He walked into the club, the song Minnie The Moocher being performed. He calmly walked through the club, before seeing a Mobian Cat seated at a table, herself dressed very formally. He quietly sat himself down.
"Our mutual friend sent me." He calmly said, being a code phrase. She looked him up and down, herself smirking.
"Seems I'm getting all types visiting me, today. But can't a girl get a drink before getting down to business." She asked, a slight purr in her voice. Isaac sighed, just wanting to get this over with.
"What are you drinking?" Isaac asked, not bothering to hide the disdain in his voice. The woman chuckled, her tail giving a small wave.
"Don't sound so disappointed. But I'll be having scotch." She said. Isaac waved down a waiter, ordering two scotches, feeling he might as well have a drink, feeling like he'll need it.
"I'm here on business. Not to spend time. Especially, since I'm a married man. Now, am I wasting my time, or am I in the right place?" He asked. The woman sighed, a hint of frustration in her voice.
"It's always a married man. That's my luck, I guess. Alright, sugar. You'll want to get yourself over to the subway station out on 5th and Cobalt. Look for a man wearing a fine, and I mean a fine pressed suit. Just tell him 'The sound of Jazz sent me'. He'll know I sent you. He'll get you set-up with a few bags of Bubble Bombs." She quietly said, before the waiter came back with two glasses of scotch.
The woman sipped at her glass, before grinning.
"Go ahead. I promise, it's good." She said. Isaac quickly drank it down, not even bothering to sip and savor. He put down a few rings for the drinks, before leaving. The woman sighed, seeing him leave.
"Just my luck… why the hell is every man I meet around here married?" She wondered.
Isaac walked out of the jazz club, looking at his watch. It was getting late, and he didn't want to get caught out in the dark. He flagged down a taxi, deciding getting back inconspicuously was the best method for now.
20 Minutes Later:
Isaac stepped out of the taxi, before sighing, walking into Xorelaz and Vylnia's apartment. He noticed the crumpled-up dossier on the coffee table, seeing it was signed 'The Seer'. He opened it, seeing the sketch of the man, with a list of potential addresses.
"Hmm… Interesting." Isaac said to himself. He walked into the kitchen, hearing Lily exit her room.
"Isaac!" She exclaimed, running to him, before hugging him. Isaac smiled, returning the embrace.
"Hey, little sister! Oh, by the way, did you bring this in?" Isaac asked, holding the folder. Lily shook her head.
"Never seen it before." She lied. Isaac nodded a bit, before hearing his phone ringing.
"Hold on a minute." He said, before picking it up.
"Hello?" Isaac asked, before hearing Sally.
"Oh, hey Sal! How goes… right now? I mean, yeah, I'm not doing anything, but… okay…. yeah… Sally, I'm… Lily is right next to me…. yeah, I'll be there in about… twenty minutes. I love you, too. Goodbye." Isaac said, before hanging up the phone.
"What did Sally want?" She asked. Isaac smirked a bit, before straightening his face.
"Nothing too important, just… she misses me. And… I'll be gone for a bit, Lily." Isaac said, not wishing to divulge such details.
"But… you just got home." Lily said, disappointed. Isaac hugged her tightly.
"Oh, I know, little sister. But I have responsibilities. And these responsibilities are the responsibilities of a married man and father. I'll be back, though. And tomorrow, we can hang out for a while. Just you and me." Isaac said.
"Promise?" Lily asked.
"I promise." Isaac said, before standing up. He looked over to the hearth, before snapping his fingers, igniting it.
"I'll be back either early tomorrow morning, or really late tonight." He said, stepping through, vanishing in the flames, the hearth soon extinguishing