Welcome back to the story, please enjoy.


1.5 - In Service of Taylor Hebert

For Parian, known to her only cape friend by her real name of Sabbah Al Assad, things had been going well. Business wasn't necessarily booming, but she was making more than enough to keep her doors open. After all, whenever a cape got hit during a fight, the result tended to be a tear or crack in whatever they used as their costume, sure, there was not much she could do about the latter, but clothes and fabrics were her specialities; even some tinkertech fabrics were within her purview, even if she only got to work on them once in a blue moon.

The gangsters of the ABB and Empire had also left her alone, it was little surprise to her that the men who'd come by last week to threaten her did not in fact sic Lung or Oni Lee on her; if she had to take a guess, they were nobodies who just liked casually throwing around names to scare people into submission. Well, after their performance on the Boardwalk that day, it was little surprise that things had gone back to normal, perhaps neither she nor her friend were combat powerhouses, but they were good enough that any attack would require cape support, and as far as she knew, nobody in the city wanted her hurt. Sure, to them, having another cape on their rosters would be nice, but she was hardly powerful enough that they'd bother to kidnap or threaten her, especially since she did do work for them on occasion.

Speaking of her favourite Servant, Taylor had come by three times that week. Once, to actually clean the place, since Sabbah herself never seemed to manage the level of tidiness she could, and twice just to hang out. It was a bit awkward for her at first, she didn't have any close friends, even in college, just associates, so she did not really know what to expect. Taylor admitted she wasn't all that experienced either, and for their first time hanging out, they'd just sat there on the shop floor and chatted. Even if they were disturbed a few times by customers, it was nice to just talk to someone about nothing in particular.

Taylor reported that she now had a decent revenue stream, though it wasn't as if she had work consistently, enough people either genuinely needed her services, or just hired her for the novelty of having a cape clean their houses. She'd advised her on a few of the parahuman-related particulars at her request, but Sabbah was proud of her friend; even if some of it was her powers, Taylor had proven herself a good businesswoman and she'd admit to enjoying their talks about business expansion more than she had initially expected.

The doorbell rang as the black and white of her friend's costume moved through the door, her eyes covered as usual by the strip of black cloth. But her movement was off today, Taylor was not the kind of girl who'd strut about with her head held high, but her body language was not usually like this.

"Hello, Taylor. I'm happy to see you" she smiled under her doll mask.

"Hey Sab" her friend sat down on her sofa "I found out something new about my powers yesterday"

"Oh? That's cool, what is it?"

"I'm afraid it's a bit of a story, not a very pleasant one either" her friend was looking at the polished leather of her shoes "If you don't want to listen, that's fine"

"Of course, I'll listen. Just give me a moment" She left her seat behind the counter and flipped the sign on her door to 'closed' "So, what happened?"


Just another day at Winslow High. By the estimations of Taylor Hebert, it must have been at least a year and a half since her first year had begun and her former friend, Emma Barnes, had begun a campaign of harassment and violence against her. At first, she'd held out hope, thought that Emma was just going through a phase, meeting new people and hoping to impress them. She'd wanted to help, naively allowing her already mediocre reputation at the time to talk to the level of 'school doormat' less than a month into her first term.

It had taken her far longer than reasonable to realise that the Emma she'd known for years, been best friends with, shared her secrets and dreams with, had left long ago; that all which remained was a stranger wearing her face and holding her memories, happy to toss a barb which would open old wounds every so often. Perhaps it was her lack of friends up until now that had allowed her to keep the delusion going, the thought that her best friend would come back any moment and they'd have everything they'd lost if she managed to hold on.

In comparison, Sabbah was a model friend, perhaps a bit distant, but she'd been told that in confidence by the woman herself and could not find it within her heart to hold it against her. The fabric-controlling parahuman was pleasant to be around and their conversations had been fun, giving Taylor something to look forward to besides leaving school at the end of the day and running her business as Servant. It was reassuring, knowing that someone had your back.

Perhaps the trio of Emma, Sophia and Madison had spotted the change in her demeanour. All the abuse, the pain and the schoolyard rumours all seemed a bit petty in that new lens: she had a successful business, a friend, and her Father would soon be out of the hospital and on his way to recovery.

She did not have to open her locker to notice the foul odour within. She could not tell the specifics without her power, but it did not take a parahuman power for her to guess that her locker had something or other shoved or poured through the ventilation slits on the locked door. Nor did she require a degree in crime scene investigation to notice the unusual still of the corridor, people were still talking, some were still moving but a great many stole glances at her while a few held phones as if ready to record her reaction to something.

What would it be this time? Taylor wondered. A few similar situations had caused her to carry all her books and papers in her backpack, having had to throw out her old ones after an entire bottle of juice had somehow found itself spilt in her locker. Now all that remained was her gym kit, and even that was wrapped in a waterproof plastic bag to protect it against further vandalism.

She opened her locker. Whatever was stinking up the corridor was a pile at the bottom, not enough light coming through from behind her to see anything more specific. There were also a few ants, or some other small insects moving about within. Taylor sighed, she probably couldn't trust the school janitors to clean up the mess properly, they weren't paid enough to take care of shit like this, so she would have to borrow some cleaning supplies and make a second pass at the mess.

Suddenly, she felt a hard shove on her back. Her forehead connected with the steel of the locker and she saw black.


Taylor did not know how long it had been. She had woken up in near darkness with a killer headache and the smell much stronger than before, nearly as bad as that sceptic tank she'd been hired to repair a week back. Checking herself over, she found a cockroach right in front of her, illuminated by the beams of white which shone through the metal before her.

One part of her, the one that had been a victim for so long, wanted to scream and cry, to hammer her fists against the door, pray that someone heard her and let her out. But the second part, the more recent one that had defeated three gangsters without a scratch, persevered and insisted that she look at the situation more objectively before acting on impulse.

She was stuck in a school locker filled with filth and bugs. The lights were still on in the corridor outside, which meant that either it was the evening and only the staff would still be around, or it was mid-classes and everyone would be anywhere but the corridor. She was a cape for Pete's sake! Surely there was some way her Thinker power could get her out of here?

There was the book, it appeared in her hands, but the interior of the locker was far too dark to read anything complicated. It was also hard to open and flick through it, considering that the locker was not that spacious with her inside of it.

Thus, she thought back to what her power was; to be 'in service' of someone and get the knowledge necessary to best serve or assist them.

But… she felt a little stupid thinking about it only now. Surely, she counted as 'someone'?

"Taylor Hebert, I wish to be of service, would you permit me to aid you in your endeavours?" she spoke, her voice reverberating in the darkness "I accept your service Taylor, may you assist me to the best of your ability"

She could not tell too well in the darkness, but the lock on the interior of the door felt like a cam lock of some description. Those were generally employed in low-security applications and thus were of cheap manufacture, made more to deter wandering hands rather than an actual crook who specifically wanted to break in.

As such, the mechanism currently keeping her within the pungent prison was made specifically with the idea of keeping a person out by giving them little to hold on to as a handle while attempting to force the locker open. It was not at all designed to keep someone on the inside trapped, with a hard push on the inside of the door, it should not take her long to bend the locking iron enough that the door would open.

A few shoves later, the door was open and Taylor stumbled out, only her parahuman grace allowing her to not fall as the blood rushed back to her legs. She stared at the clock a little to her right; it had been over two hours and the final bell would sound in just a bit. Against all reason, she punched her locker, suppressing a whimper as her power told her exactly why punching steel with her untrained hands was a bad idea.

Then, she adjusted the strap of her schoolbag and walked out.


"So yeah, I guess I can be 'of service' to myself, which means I don't necessarily need to…"

"Taylor!" Sabbah yelped "Holy shit, are you alright?" the woman held her head in her gloved hands looking as mortified as her doll mask would permit.

"I feel fine Sabbah, though I did have to wash several times back home to get it all out. I did not want to stink up your store after all"

"Don't you understand?" her friend said quietly "Your locker got filled with a pile of shit, you hit your head so hard that you blacked out for over two hours, and then you just walk off" She put her hands down and took off her mask "I don't even know how to react. Shouldn't you be going to the hospital to get checked out?"

"No need, according to the Glasgow Coma Scale I'd diagnose my symptoms as either a nine or ten. I'll be fine"

"Fine, I'm not a doctor but I suppose you are now with your power" she sighed "What now? Do we call the Police, report it as an assault? I know it might seem like a good idea, but if you assault them using your power you could be looking at years in prison or the Birdcage"

"I know Sabbah, and it's oh so tempting right now… I can practically see it. I find Sophia's house, break in and set a delayed-fuse chemical incendiary bomb near their gas line, or simply provide the E88 with an anonymous tip about how she'd bullied a white girl. For Emma, I think it would be the height of irony for her to…"

"Listen to yourself, Taylor! What happened to the kind girl who came into my shop a month ago, talked to me about how she wanted to become a hero and make Brockton Bay a better place?"

Taylor froze, then undid the bow holding her mask on, her eyes tired and red "I'm sorry. But it's been so long, I've done everything I was supposed to; reported it to the teachers, kept a log of it all. It's just never enough for anything to be done about it. They always get away"

"I'm not saying turn the other cheek, Tay. I'm saying you've got to be smart about it; above the law so you can raise them the middle finger at the end and they can't do anything about it" Suddenly, the woman wrapped her hands around her, causing Taylor to freeze before returning it a moment later "You've got a whole library in that head. Use it."

They stayed like that for a while before Taylor pushed her off and smiled ominously "There is actually something I could do. It would all be above board. Frankly, I am dutybound to do it as a citizen of this fine city"

"It is legal and moral to do?"

"Legal, yes. Moral, eh. You see, there are many psychological studies which assess the impact of domestic violence upon children in the household, most conclude that children coming from such environments tend to be prone to violence and antisocial behaviour, perhaps even psychopathic tendencies. All I need to do is report my concerns to the Child Protective Services of Brockton Bay, I'm sure that with their spectacular personalities, they will be all too happy to comply with their investigation"

Parian donned her mask once more and sighed "I suppose I can't complain about that. But will you be going back to Winslow? I can't say I'm not concerned about your safety there, especially while those three are still waking free"

"I've had enough of that place. I can do the GED from home; it would allow me to expand my business hours as Servant. I just need to talk to Dad about it"

"That sounds like a plan. And if those girls come after you again, talk to me alright? I've got your back"

The smile on Taylor's face was beautiful.


A day later, Taylor came by for her weekly visit, Brockton Bay General looking as it always had, besides a few more security guards by the front desk. As always, she'd been escorted up to the second floor to her father's room, where she was met with her father sitting in a metal wheelchair while the doctor opposite him spoke.

She went in to hug him, noting how the cast each leg was in had been shortened, allowing him to sit comfortably in the wheelchair "Hey Dad, so they're finally letting you come home?"

"Yep" her father smiled "They'd prefer to keep me a few more weeks but hey, hospital stays aren't cheap and I don't want to have to depend on the generosity of my wonderful daughter any more than I have to. Besides, the food here is bad even by the standards of what we have at home"

"Well, I'll make sure to cook something nice when we get home"

"I'm looking forward to it. Also, they told me Panacea came back yesterday. I'm still fairly low on her list to heal, but they said it shouldn't be more than a month"

"That's still a long time. Perhaps I should try and talk to her, maybe get you moved up a few levels"

"It's alright, you don't have to. I'm already causing you enough of a bother" he waved "Why don't you tell me what's going on with your business, and your new friend"

"Business is going great, I don't have work most days but I'm still making something like a thousand dollars on average per week, sure cleaning supplies and other disposables are cutting into it, and taxes too… but I don't think you need to worry about rushing back to work right away. You should get some rest at home and recover"

"Taylor, the DWA is not just my job, they're my second family. Sure, I go there to work, but my friends are there too, which means that half the time it feels like I'm barely working. Alright, I'll rest for another two weeks, then we'll see just how accessible the DWA offices are; that might even get them to fix up the old elevator"

"Elevator? When I went there for work, they had one working"

"Then they moved fast" Danny smiled "In any case, I've had enough of these thin bedsheets and hospital gowns for a lifetime. Have you called us a cab?"

"Yeah. They should be pulling up sometime soon. You've filled in everything?"

Her father nodded and she left for him to change out of the hospital gown with the help of a nurse. He exited in his old button-up shirt and slacks, though they had to be cut at the back to allow the casts to fit through. Just like that, they were out of the hospital and heading for home.


"I like what you've done with the place" her dad noted as he was pushed up the front steps of their front door. "I imagine it looks even better on the inside"

"Well yeah, would you trust a cleaner who lives in a pigsty? Not that I'm calling the house a pigsty, but you've got to admit that we never properly cleaned the place since Mom died"

"Yeah, sorry about that. But once I'm back up and running, we can make this place look beautiful again, perhaps even repaint some rooms"

Taylor nodded and drove him into the living room "Yeah, sounds good. Unfortunately, I haven't managed to earn enough to get you a stair lift, but hopefully, with Panacea back in town you won't be missing out for too long. For now, I'll bring down your bedding and we can fold out the couch"

"That's fine, it will probably still be more comfortable than the hospital beds. I'd offer to cook tonight, but…"

"You can still help me; vegetables need cutting and meat needs grinding. I'm making Shepards' Pie tonight to celebrate your recovery"

Danny went to wash the ingredients while Taylor went upstairs and fetched his blankets. Folding out the couch, she laid out several pillows for him and then covered them in his usual grey-green tartan sheets before joining him in the kitchen. She'd missed her father's company, they worked efficiently together and before long the dish was in the oven. But there was still one more uncomfortable conversation they needed to have; she did not like springing this on his first day out of the hospital, but the sooner the process could start, the better.

"Dad, I'd like to leave Winslow"

Her father paused and turned to her, turning off the TV they'd been watching as the food cooked "Why?"

"I know you and Mom wanted me to go to school, go to college and get a job like you, but I think my place is elsewhere. Besides, with my powers, I could sit any exam and get a perfect score right now, they aren't teaching me anything now; not that the teachers did a particularly good job even before I got my powers"

"You want to drop out then? I know I said I'd support you but this is going quite far, Taylor. What about your friends? Building the social skills and connections you'll use for the rest of your life?"

"I've told you before Dad, Emma hasn't been friends with me since we started Winslow and has turned from my best friend to someone who made my life hell on a daily basis. This isn't some spat, you don't harass and assault someone for a year and a half out of some teenage drama; she hates me straight up and I don't know why. Even if I could take an educated guess with my powers, I don't want to"

Danny looked down solemnly "Well, surely we could try to get you into another school?"

"Arcadia High is several hours by bus and the waiting list is around the block. Imaculada is expensive and I don't intend to become a nun. Parian told me about something called the GED where you self-study and just come in for exams, I think that's a good option if only to tick the box. In any case, I'm a parahuman who knows anything she needs to, that's going to be a skill that people will pay good money for"

"Well, I suppose you aren't exactly normal anymore. Maybe you're right, that school is holding you back. I'm willing to accept you homeschooling and doing the GED, but not leaving education altogether. I'm sorry"

"That's fine Dad. I don't imagine any parent would be happy to hear their daughter is dropping out of school to run about town in a costume. But thank you for trusting me anyway, even if I sprung this on you so suddenly"

The oven timer began to ring and Taylor ran over to bring out the steaming dish. She and Danny ate together in amiable silence, then she washed the dishes and utensils as her father fell asleep on the sofa bed.


While her father was busy filling in the paperwork to authorise her homeschooling, Taylor left for work once more, her pocket weighted down by an inexpensive flip phone. It had taken some back and forth for Danny to agree to her carrying it, but she'd make the rather obvious argument that if he needed help, it would be better if he could call her. There was also the fact that arranging her business appointments was rather difficult when all you had was an email and the only way to access it was the old laptop she had at home.

Today's work was something a bit out of her comfort zone, one of the bars in E88 territory was looking for someone to clean up the place in the morning, while there wouldn't be as many patrons to get in the way. At first, she'd wanted to turn it down, but she remembered Parian's words about neutrality in this city of gangsters; with any luck, doing some minor jobs for them would keep her on cordial terms with them and avoid any kidnap or assault attempts.

Really, could they not be any less subtle? The place was called the 'White Knight' and while there weren't any outright swastika marks on the windows, anyone with a pair of eyes could tell that this was a place for the sort of folks who'd attend the rallies the E88 held every so often.

There wasn't a bouncer outside, so she just walked in with her tool bag of cleaning supplies and a mop over her shoulder. A few white men and women turned to look at her from their booths as she strode to the bar where a biker-looking man wearing a bandana was watching two men playing at the billiards table "Good day. I'm here for the cleaning" She looked him up and down through her mask "Where would you like me to start?"

"Hey there. Nice to meet you Fraulein Servant" the man spoke in an almost comical German accent "I have heard that you can work miracles on dust and grease, so I'd like you to clean the whole floor starting with the bar and then moving to the booths as they become unoccupied. You can clean the floor last"

"I see" she nodded "Would you like me to also clean the taps and kegs? I assure you that I am quite capable of doing so"

"Very well Fraulein. I shall have your cash ready for when you're done" The man waved and headed upstairs as Taylor sighed, she was not sure the $560 she'd quoted was worth it.

Servant began with the counter itself, the man clearly did the bare minimum on his side of the bar, presumably, he did not think it necessary to do so as the customers would never see it, but she questioned whether a health inspector would see it the same way, assuming the Empire 88 weren't paying them off already. It was rather annoying work, as her chemicals could only do so much to scrub off the sticky layer that had likely built up over a decade.

"Hey, maid girl. Get me a drink" a voice demanded suddenly, Servant looked up to see a girl in a black and red robe covered in runes "I want a Coke with an orange squeeze"

"I'm not the bartender, I'm just cleaning the place" she stated and got back to work.

"You're behind the bar, that means you're serving. Chop chop" The girl snapped her fingers a few times

Taylor nearly growled at being once again interrupted from her work, but after the girl wouldn't walk away, she finally picked up a can from the fridge behind the bar and squeezed some orange juice into it in a 1:8 ratio, adding a metal straw and some ice cubes before serving. Ordinarily, she'd add a small piece of the peel to add a zesty aroma but frankly, the annoying girl did not deserve it.

The girl took the glass offered to her and took a seat at the bar, taking a long sip "That's good stuff, maid girl. The name's Rune, it's good to see another cape of the right sort in this town"

"You may call me Servant, and I think we'd disagree on the definition of 'the right sort', Thank you very much"

Rune laughed and took another sip as Servant continued to work "Well, as far as I can see you're white, so that's basically half the definition covered, then you're not covered in tats and smelling of meth which makes up another quarter and you've been seen beating the fuck out of those ABB sons of bitches, which makes you the 'right sort' in my book"

"Well, I don't intend to join you, if that's what you're asking. What I did to those ABB gangsters was self-defence, I would do it to anyone who tried anything similar against me, my friends or my family" The threat did not need to be made any clearer.

"No need to get your panties in a twist, Empire only recruits those who are up to fight the good fight. If you aren't, then you aren't. Though if you aren't interested, why take this job in the first place?" Rune asked, placing her drink on the bar counter.

"Because I don't discriminate in the kinds of work I do and who I work for. I don't intend to align myself with any of the powers in this city. I don't intend to get into cape fights and fight turf wars. I just want to provide for my family and come home at the end of the night" Servant scowled as she moved onto polishing the brass beer taps, cleaning out some of the gunk that had built up over time.

"I can respect that" nodded Rune "Still, you should know that there may come a time when there is no such choice. When you've got to pick a side or be flattened in the crossfire when the traitors to America finally cast off the masks of civilisation they've been wearing and go to war against the white race. When that happens, we can keep you and your family safe"

"Thank you for the offer, Rune, but I think I'd much rather get out than stand in some crossfire. I intend to make sure nobody has a grudge against me, it's part of why I'm here when I'd rather be cleaning just about anyplace else" She moved on to polishing the beer glasses.

"Well, I've said my piece then" the E88 cape shrugged and passed back her glass "Though I am curious, would you be up for some more jobs from us? You'd be well-compensated of course"

"That depends on the work" Servant spoke as she went off to clean the various booths around the bar, Rune following her like a shadow "I do not mind jobs like this. But if you want me to do something that goes against my morals, I will simply not accept the job; you cannot hold that against me"

"Not really. We'll leave you alone in that case" Rune tossed her a dollar "For the drink. Though, some advice. You've probably heard about how the ABB kidnaps girls our age. Yeah, they get swiped off the streets in ABB territory and then end up in a brothel or even trafficked abroad. If they ever offer you a job, turn it down. I'm telling you this for your own safety, I've seen one too many of those during my 'work' for the Empire" Servant looked at her for a moment, then slowly nodded. Rune smiled and left her to get back to cleaning the booth she was on; exiting the front doors just as the biker barkeeper returned to his post.

It did not take her too long to clean out the rest of the place now that the Empire cape was no longer bothering her. Taylor thought about the girl's advice as she worked, she had heard those rumours and even if she was half-sure that they were grossly exaggerated by the Empire, the fact was that there were some stories like that on the news. She didn't want to think about taking advice from a straight-up Nazi, but perhaps they weren't completely wrong about keeping her eyes open while in ABB territory.


You must be wondering why I ended up writing the locker scene. Honestly, it seemed like a good way for Taylor to discover this aspect of her power. Plus, it also comes off as a scene of self-realisation for her and I hope that I've written it well enough for you folks to get that impression as well.

Also, I wanted to point out that it genuinely isn't as overpowered as it sounds. Taylor would have to know that she needs something before that knowledge comes to her, and as she uses her powers more and more, it risks becoming something of a crutch unless she actively does something about that. There is also only so much it can do for some things like her social skills, sure she'd be a qualified psychoanalyst, but does that help her much while socialising or trying to convince someone with some genuine charisma?

Finally, about Taylor meeting Rune and her trying to recruit Servant into the E88. For the Empire, it seems like an inexpensive way to feel out an unaligned cape and set up cordial relations with them. Also, I think it would be interesting, if they continue to encounter one another, to write how they affect each other in their views and opinions. Will Rune find it in herself to abandon Neo-Nazism? Will Taylor go goose-stepping to Winslow? Find out next week on Dragon Ball Z!