I'm happy to see that people enjoyed the way that the rewritten 2.2 went. This chapter will largely focus on the results of Servant's raid on the bunker though naturally there will be other things as well. Please enjoy.
2.3 – In Service of Franchising
It had all been a blur after she'd called in the authorities. Servant did not end up sticking around for long, just enough to give the PRT a statement, promising to come by their office that day and check Dinah for injuries before she hopped on her bike, helping the girl onto its rear rack before kicking off onto the mid-day streets. Technically they were both supposed to be wearing helmets, but she figured in light of the day's events, it was enough for her to have given Dinah hers, which wasn't a bike helmet but certainly better than nothing.
The Alcott family had a very nice house in one of the richer suburbs around Brockton Bay, a white picket fence greeting them as she helped Dinah off and walked her to the front door, ringing the doorbell before stepping back, gently nudging the girl to stand in front. It took mere moments before she heard a rush of footsteps behind the door and it was thrown open, revealing a black-haired man and a brown-haired woman, their expressions changing from surprise to relief and joy as they saw their daughter.
The family sprung together, Dinah clutching her parents with quiet sobs as they held onto her.
Servant smiled as she saw this touching moment, she wondered about her own family, thinking how worried Dad would be if she'd gone missing like this. Hell, if he'd already somehow heard about her involvement with the kidnapping and everything she did today he'd be anxiously tearing out his own hair until she came home.
After countless repeated thanks, Servant eventually bowed out, refusing the money and favours she was being offered; it felt wrong for her to take a reward that she wasn't promised for her work, which was as much a penny as it was the ability to make a difference, even if it was just for Dinah, one girl among millions.
Suddenly, her waist was enveloped by the girl in a hug and she leaned down to return it. "I'm going to be fine now, for a few years at least, thank you so much," she whispered "I know we had our deal and I've already kind of paid you, but if you ever need my help, it's yours. Just… try to keep my abilities quiet alright? If people start finding out, it will get riskier for me."
Servant let go, nodding one last time to her before walking back to her bike, giving the family a final wave before she put her shoes to the pedals and began the trip home.
She'd ridden up and down the street a few times before stopping at home, it would be bad if this home was outed as being Servant's after all. Her Dad was sitting on the sofa, his crutches beside him as he watched the news. He turned as she flicked the front door lock shut and gave her a smile, "Hey Taylor. I'm happy to see you're safe, there's this whole mess on the news; I was worried something might have happened to you."
She clearly had a choice- lie to her father or come clean. He would probably disapprove of what she'd done, perhaps even ban her from doing all this cape stuff. But she was trying to be more open with him, and it felt like going back to lying to him that everything was alright would bring them back to where they'd been after Mom died, constantly lying to one another that everything was alright…
"Actually, I'm kind of responsible for it, the mess I mean." She admitted, sitting down by her father as his eyes widened, finally noticing the armour she was wearing and the shotgun that now rested by the sofa, "I'd found out that this girl had been kidnapped, and the one that did it had paid the Police to look the other way. I'd promised that girl to rescue her if anything like this happened, I kept that promise…"
"Taylor…" she wasn't entirely sure what the expression on Dad's face was, a mix of surprise, fear and perhaps a little bit of pride.
"I'm sorry Dad," she sat down by him and allowed his arms to wrap around her, "I know that when I started the cleaning business I promised to stay out of trouble. But the truth is, sometimes I just can't do that. There are evil people out there, truly vile humans that decide that today is a good day to kidnap a little girl and lock her in a cage like some animal..." Taylor almost growled that last part, her fists clenching in front of her as Danny put a comforting hand over them. She fully expected that her father would be furious with her, yet his expression spoke otherwise.
"I'm proud of you." Her father's words touched Taylor to her very core, eliciting the hint of a tear as he continued. "Perhaps I should be angry, but that would just make me a hypocrite. If I were in your place and had the power to help, I would have done the same thing, at least based on what I've heard on the news. I'm sure Anne would have done the same thing, or at least she would be just as proud of you as I am, right now"
He looked into her eyes and sighed, "I've lived in the Bay long enough to know that Cape life really isn't sunshine and rainbows. But with you, it's been months now and you've stayed out of trouble when you could. So, what I mean to say is that I trust you, Taylor, to do the right thing and to keep yourself safe, even if you can't tell me all about it. Just…" he sighed "I'd like you to come to me if you have questions or just need to talk to someone for some advice. That's what parents are for after all."
"I will Dad." Taylor promised, hugging her father gently as he let out a chuckle, "No matter what."
Taylor finished the upload, putting the cable away and putting the cover back over the headcam's data port. She'd agreed to film what happened underground and with this her obligations were complete. Unfortunately, the PRT would probably want the camera itself and the original footage, so in addition to the USB which now occupied the envelope, she also threw in a cheque for a decent sum; enough to buy a newer camera of the same type. As for the invisibility cloak, the tinkertech was in a bin bag, wrapped in tape to look as innocuous as any other package. Yes, it did make her look a little like a drug mule, but that's what the plastic bag the item and the envelope were placed into was for.
She hadn't actually had a chance to properly rest, despite having been on her feet for most of the day so Taylor removed her costume, leaving her in just her under-things before falling onto the bed to stare at the ceiling with nothing but her thoughts. She'd almost died today, all to rescue a strange girl who she'd known all of less than an hour.
But did that make any difference? Thanks to her actions, a child was safe with their parents, the fact that the said child was a parahuman with some kind of prophecy power made no difference to her. As far as she knew, no one had even died as a result of her actions, a mix of rock salt shotgun blasts and her blunt sword would probably leave bruises, broken bones and the like. The armed men down there worked for someone who found it acceptable to kidnap children, even the Empire and ABB didn't do that for the most part, so it was hard for her to feel any sympathy for them.
Taylor sighed, standing back up and moving to the shower. Stretching under the warm stream to relax her muscles before giving herself a thorough wash, Servant did have an image to uphold, after all; one of propriety and maidenly elegance. Though, frankly she felt that it was Sabah's work that was responsible for most of that. If she'd gone with a spandex suit like so many other capes, she imagined people would just see her as another tall, skinny girl. Her costume created an element of mystique as well as actually giving her body some shape, looking back on it also caused some to underestimate her, after all, who would expect her or anyone really to fight effectively in a long skirt which barely revealed her socks?
After a short session with a fluffy towel, she put on the spare costume she'd had made; the one with more details sewn onto the dress and lace decorating the apron. She knew that with her power Sabah could work quickly with cloth, but it was still nice to have her equivalent of cape formalwear ready so quickly, it could even help her with the PRT somehow, first impressions mattered and all that…
There was still one more obligation for her to repay, the one owed to Tattletale for directing her to the entrance of that base. She did not know what the woman would want in exchange, but she hadn't yet called or emailed on the matter, so Taylor was willing to put it off until she was done with the PRT. Speaking of which, the meeting was scheduled to begin in about an hour and a half, so she'd have to hurry if she wanted to drop off the footage before going to the HQ.
Grabbing the plastic bag and giving her dad a parting hug, she stepped onto her bike and began her ride back into the city.
Standing in her best outside the dockyard warehouse door, Servant waited for either of the Über and Leet duo to open the door for her. Fortunately, she wasn't left waiting for long before the intercom flicked on and she was allowed in, being met by Leet with an eager gleam in his eyes.
"Hey, Servant. I'll say it's nice to see you in one piece, I've been glued to the TV watching the news all day!" he motioned for her to enter and take a seat at her usual spot next to the young man's workstation "Please tell me you've got my camera and that it didn't get shot off or something."
"No, your camera is safe, as is the cloak," she replied, handing him the plastic bag, "Unfortunately, the PRT was also interested in the footage so they need me to bring in the headcam as evidence. I have saved the footage itself on a USB though, it's in the envelope along with some cash so you can buy yourselves a new one. As for your cloak, that is in the wrapped package, I'll say that it probably saved my skin many times, so if you ever need something from me, give me a call alright? Nothing illegal though as per my usual terms."
Leet had a mixed expression until he opened the envelope and saw the tidy sum within beside the USB, which he promptly threw into his computer and began reviewing the hour-odd of footage inside as Servant stood there and occasionally checked her watch, an amused smile coming onto her masked face as the man watched her fight with the one soldier in the heavy armour with trepid anticipation.
Finally, he turned back to her just as she was considering leaving, there was still the upcoming appointment with the PRT after all. "Say, Servant. How come you never told us you could do all this cool shit?" he asked waving at the screen, "You were completely, totally, badass there!"
"Well, I don't like fighting. I will if I must but I prefer to stick to my business, in this case, my business was simply to rescue my client if she ever got kidnapped." She explained calmly.
Leet just stared as she moved to leave, his mouth hanging open like a fish before regaining control of himself. "Well, if you're interested. I'm sure we'll have more work for you in the future." He stammered.
"Of course, provided it's not illegal." Servant answered plainly before bowing and exiting the warehouse. She hadn't lied when she'd mentioned that the cloak had saved her a few times back there, as such merely giving Leet some footage felt cheap to her as she got back onto her bike and began pedalling to the PRT HQ.
This time, she did not even have to ask for the receptionist, which meant her arriving a few minutes early was more decorum than practicality. As soon as she entered, a PRT trooper walked over to her and led her into the same elevator. She'd left her sword at home, imagining that they'd take it for the meeting and she was right, the PRT troopers on the floor patting her down before allowing her into a meeting room, perhaps a few floors down from where she met Director Piggot a while ago.
The first to walk in was instantly recognisable, the legendary tinker Armsmaster, who was arguably the best-known non-gang cape in the Bay. He was followed by Miss Militia and then Gallant, each of whom entered to sit opposite her across a long table clearly designed for much larger meetings.
"Servant. Do you have the footage you were asked for at the scene of the crime?" asked Armsmaster, his voice surprisingly flat even considering it passed through a voice modulator.
"I do, here it is." She passed over the headcam that followed her into the facility, allowing Armsmaster to take it and plug the device into a computer at the side of the room before he began to work on the projector "Is there anything else you need from me before we begin this debriefing?"
"No." replied Gallant, his voice much more pleasant on the ears "That being said, I take it you've had some time to rest since the incident. Would you like me to send for some food?"
"No thank you, I've had some time to rest and eat, so I am ready to fully assist you with this."
"Right." Armsmaster began as he sat back down with the other two Protectorate capes "It would have been better for you to have simply given the headcam to the PRT troops on site or the attending Police."
"I'm afraid I was under an obligation to provide the footage to one further party who assisted me with my operation to rescue Dinah Alcott. As such, I could not provide you with that footage until such a time. You can however be assured that this footage has not been tampered with."
Armsmaster was about to say something when Gallant raised a hand and spoke for him. "The footage can wait. Now that we have it we can watch it on our own time. Perhaps you'd like to begin with how you ended up on the site of the incident?"
Servant nodded, "I'd met Dinah herself incidentally a few weeks ago, at which point she'd confided in me that she feared that she would be kidnapped. I promised to rescue her if she ever was, for a token price. This morning, I felt something within my power, a sense of peril before Dinah's mother called me and informed me of the kidnapping. At which point I moved to search for her."
Gallant nodded and sat back, writing down a few notes as Miss Militia spoke up. "How did you find her? I've seen the place and it's clearly been in use for years."
"When I moved closer to her, that feeling of dread began to lighten, so I used that to determine the rough area she was in. Then, I called an associate of mine who told me that there was an entrance to this hidden facility behind that service door."
She could practically hear the eyebrows rise on her interviewers. Before any could demand it, she elaborated, "I believe my associate would prefer not to be named. That being said, she has a deduction-related power and I described to her the situation, at which point she pointed me to the door."
"Very well." Miss Militia nodded "Would this associate of yours happen to be Leet of the Über and Leet villain duo? We have retrieved the security footage for the car park and you were seen talking with him."
"No, he assisted me with getting inside. He isn't the associate who helped me locate the door."
"He was seen handing you some kind of invisibility cloak." She stated as a matter of fact.
"Yes. I requested his help and he provided the cloak in exchange for cash, which was then waived on the condition that I film the rescue operation."
"So, he is the one who you were obliged to give a copy of the footage to?"
"That is correct."
Miss Militia nodded and turned to Armsmaster, "How about we watch the footage now? Servant can answer any questions as they come up."
The three agreed eventually and the video began to play, showing everything from how Servant snuck in with the guard through the front door to how she defeated the sledgehammer-wielding mercenary and rescued Dinah from her cage, all from her perspective. There were a few questions from the Protectorate capes. Mainly to do with her use of force, though she was able to placate them by pointing out that her sword had been blunt and the shotgun had been loaded with rock salt.
As the video paused, having come to an end, Servant once again found herself the focus of attention as the three heroes sat in silence as if thinking.
Finally, after what felt like an age of silent communication between the three, Armsmaster spoke up. "We did not realise you were so… effective in combat. During your power testing, you stated on the form that you had the power to obtain and utilise knowledge useful to someone you were in service of. Could you please explain how you used your power here?"
"Of course, I had a contract with Dinah and Dinah needed me to break her out of captivity. I would clarify though that my skills with the sword are my own for the most part. I've decided to invest in a weapon for self-defence since that incident a month ago where I was incidentally targeted by a number of ABB thugs. I imagine you'd have a file of it, or the BBPD would on the off chance you don't."
That wasn't fully true, but she still wanted to keep that part about being able to be 'in service' of herself secret. They hadn't exactly come off as trusting the last time she talked with Director Piggot and if she suddenly revealed that a major limitation of her power just ceased to be, they might err on the side of caution and start surveilling her as a potential threat. She didn't want that, she just wanted to be left to her business and make Brockton Bay a better place.
The questioning would continue, Armsmaster occasionally winding back the footage to ask about something they'd missed. Eventually allowing Servant to leave even as the three heroes watched her go, leaving them alone in the room beside the hidden camera concealed in a digital clock.
"I sensed some notes of deception around when you asked about her power," noted Gallant as he tapped his notes together, "Nothing that would indicate a lie, but she wasn't telling us everything she knows. Otherwise, my power didn't pick up on anything I'd interpret as a lie."
Armsmaster nodded and waved to dismiss the Ward, taking the note papers as he was left alone with Miss Militia. "I think we should expand our recruitment efforts toward her. Besides having an effective specialist on everything non-tinkertech for the Protectorate. Her combat skills are good, I'd even say she could take on a low Brute and win, even if he wasn't particularly skilled like that mercenary with the armoured suit."
"And I think it would be a bad idea. She still hasn't shown herself as particularly eager to join the Wards and nothing she's doing right now would give us the necessary pull to force her, assuming we even wanted to do that. She even came up with the bright idea to get herself deputised before going in and cited all the right laws when we tried to bring it up with her. I think we're best off leaving her alone, she came to us with the offer of working as a contractor for the PRT; I've checked her rates and they aren't beyond us, why don't we just hire her and skip all this skullduggery, which for the record I think will backfire."]
The door, which had remained closed since Gallant's departure opened to reveal a tall, thin black man in a sharp suit, he smiled at the two capes and entered, taking a seat opposite them.
"Thomas Calvert, thank you for coming by. We were hoping to get your thoughts on this matter," spoke Armsmaster "The footage and notes are available to you as well as our other records on Servant."
"Naturally, I'd be happy to assist." The man smiled.
Taylor sat up in her bed, the light blinding her as she cursed herself for forgetting to lower the blinds when she'd arrived yesterday. She hopped off and moved to dress, ready to begin the morning's online classes, coming down to get breakfast and chatting to her Dad about the meeting with the PRT before heading back upstairs to her laptop to get started.
Still, she had a few minutes before they were due to begin. So, Taylor hopped onto PHO, browsing local news and funny videos as she did most days before the start of class.
Then suddenly, something caught her eye and her eyes widened. An hour-long video was trending in the Brockton Bay area according to YouTube; titled 'Servant Kicks Some Ass!' featuring a thumbnail of her sword hand striking one of the mercenaries by the base and an upper torso shot of her costumed face on one side.
She didn't even need to click the video; the run time was only a few minutes shorter than the original footage she'd given Leet and since it was posted by the verified Über and Leet Channel there really was no need to debate who'd posted it.
300'000+ views in less than 24 hours. Taylor could only hold her head in her hands and groan. She'd thought that Leet just wanted to see her in action or satisfy some curiosity about her power. But somehow, she'd overlooked the obvious motivation for the villain, content for his channel! Already this video was outperforming some of the duo's older pranks and the views were just going up every second.
This was a disaster.
It was almost funny in a way, she'd arranged this meeting of the Maids of Brockton Bay over a week ago. But it just happened to coincide with her becoming an unintentional local internet celebrity cape. So, it was probably a good thing that she'd booked an actual venue for them at a local community centre which had the hall available to rent at a relatively cheap rate.
Having arrived and locked up her bike with a chain Dad had lent her from his own bike, Servant passed through the car park, interrupted only a few times by people wanting an autograph or a selfie with her. Finally, she pushed open the hall doors and was met with a near room full of people, the noise falling to a quiet murmur as she walked down the centre to the podium that had been set up for her.
Giving a quick thanks to Ronald, the man having once again come by in a butler cosplay, she turned to face the crowd and raised a hand, sending the room into silence. "Thank you all for coming to this meeting of the MBB. I will admit, if I had known we would have this many I would have booked a larger venue, if nothing else than so some of you folks at the back don't have to stand, these meetings can drag on after all."
That elicited a few chuckles from the crowd and she continued, "For those who are with us for the first time today, I have three rules for being part of this organisation: Befitting Conduct, Neutrality and Privacy. I won't get into those now but the Board would be happy to explain them to you online or at the end of this meeting. For now, let us get to business."
"Foremost on the agenda, I'm sure most of you will have seen the video of me rescuing someone from a group of armed thugs. I stand by those actions but would like to reiterate that this was very much the exception rather than the rule, and that I certainly don't expect or want you to charge into combat." She raised her hands in a placating gesture, "This fan club is primarily for all of us to work to make this city, our home, a better place for all. So stay out of the cape fights, there's no point in us trimming bushes when the park is on fire. The city is currently at an uneasy peace, make no mistake, it would be better if all of the criminals, gangsters and villains were stopped. But, in lieu of that, I think it is better for us all that the current state of affairs continues; a cold war being preferable to a hot one."
The mood had turned somewhat dower in the hall, so Servant changed topics to something she'd looked forward to announcing for a while now. "But, on a more positive note, I would like to announce my first initiative, with the potential for any member with the right skills to assist me."
The room quietened, and the mood changed to one of silent anticipation, "I intend to fix the Boat Graveyard."
Perhaps it was a quiet of disbelief, or perhaps one of apathy, it had been so long since those vessels had sunk after all. "I would like to clarify that removing all those wrecks completely would be just about impossible for us without billions in equipment, manpower and support. But, if we limit our objectives to simply clearing enough that shipping can resume to Brockton Bay, I believe we have a chance. I will be publishing the feasibility study I've concluded by tomorrow on the MBB's website and I encourage you all to at least flick through it. With cape support, I've already secured and a few more people with underwater welding experience, I believe we can restore the position of our Docks as being one of the foremost shipping hubs on the west coast!"
Her declaration first elicited a few claps, which suddenly grew into a roar of applause, whistles and some even standing up from their chairs. Behind her mask, Taylor almost felt she could cry, they hadn't even read the feasibility study yet, but they had faith, faith in her, faith in the project even.
"So," she raised her hand again to quiet the crowd, "If any of you have underwater experience, please email the Board and they will pass your details on to me. You can find the Board's email on our website at where you can also find the feasibility study. Thank you."
The crowd was eager when she stepped down and moved to the side as Ronald stepped back to the podium and began to speak more on fan-club-related matters, as well as some of the Board's own initiatives including one to clean up a few streets on the Boardwalk this weekend.
She was suddenly poked in her back, spinning around she saw the same woman who'd been making those Fumo dolls of her, Jane if she recalled correctly. "Yes, Jane? What is it?" she asked quietly.
"Hey Servant," the woman whispered, her hand concealed within a bag at her side, "Listen, I've already sold the hundred Fumo you agreed to, so I was hoping you'd agree to let me make some more. Frankly, with this many fans I'm not sure I can keep up, would you be alright with me finding some people to work on making them with me?"
"Sure, you can do that." Servant asked with a hint of surprise in her voice, she'd mostly agreed to it to placate the woman, she didn't expect them to actually prove popular. "You can make as many as you like, but 1% of profits goes to me as a royalty, is that alright?" That was far less than you'd usually pay for a licence to sell a cape's merch, but it felt wrong to demand some major cut of what was essentially a passion project.
The woman happily nodded and pulled her hand out of the bag, revealing another Fumo doll; this one was clearly based on her costume from the video. "I worked all night to make this one, could I get your approval to make some more and maybe sell it?" She still wasn't sure when the headcam had provided a shot of her costume, though thinking back on it there were a few rooms with mirrors in that underground base. Perhaps there was a reflection?
"It is cute, I suppose you can make and sell those too under the same terms. Just… try not to wear yourself out and make sure to get all the proper business permits for your operation alright? It would look bad for me if one of my merch-sellers were arrested." Not to mention that it would be bad for the woman in front of her, the bags under her eyes suggested she hadn't slept much over the past few days.
Once the meeting was over and all the necessary greetings and merchandise signings were complete, Servant hopped back onto her bike and with a sigh began to pedal home. She really hoped Dad wouldn't end up seeing the video, though with as viral as it had been that was probably out of the question.
Whew, so this chapter covers pretty much just the aftermath of Chapter 2.2's events, I hope that was interesting enough for all of you readers.
I hope Taylor and Danny's interactions are a sufficient departure from the usual angsty teenager and overbearing parent that we seem to see between the two. Though, I think it'll be funny to briefly mention what his reaction will be to the video in the next chapter.
As for Leet posting the video… They never agreed he couldn't do that and the general position in law is that when you hire a cameraman to film something for you, you own that film. Not that Leet cares much about the law of course but consider it an explanation for why the confidentiality clause didn't trigger when he posted it.
For the PRT interview section, that was quite boring to write really, though Thomas Calvert entering at the end is nice and ominous for future chapters.
Finally, the MBB meeting is there because it represents an opportunity for Servant to put forward her own side of the story on the footage, plus I just wanted to have more of the MBB in the story. Also, we now have a Battle-Servant Fumo to go with the ordinary Servant Fumo courtesy of Jane! Get 'em while stocks last!
