Coil sat in silence at his desk, his hands steepled in front of him as he stared at the far wall, deep in thought about the recent developments in the city he hoped to one day rule.
Just a few short months ago, things had been going completely fine. His power and underground influence had been used to great effect, allowing him to move pieces on the board and witness the effects of his plays without anyone the wiser. This advantage had allowed him to prepare things to suit him, to set the stage just as it needed be for his eventual takeover.
In due time, the entire city would be under his control and completely oblivious to that fact.
Or at that was how it would be, if not for the thorn that had been lodged deeply in his side just a few months ago and thrown a wrench into all of his carefully laid plans.
Yosei was a variable that he could never have hoped to account for. Coil had no idea how he had never known that Lung had a daughter before the fact was made public, but it was a glaring oversight on his information network. And he hated nothing more than oversights in any of his operations.
As he gathered information on the woman to rectify this, he wasn't quite sure what he would find. At first, he had imagined that she would be like her father, powerful but lazy. He had been half right.
Unfortunately, it wasn't the half he wished for. Yosei was just as powerful as Lung, that much was easily apparent . Unlike her father however, she wasn't content to simply react to threats as they came along, languishing in her position until it was threatened. No, she had taken an active role in the ABB, cleaning up their operations and managing things from the top, becoming the boss in all but name, while at the same time holding a fierce loyalty to her father.
From what his informants had managed to gather the ABB had seen a nearly thirty percent increase in productivity in just the first few months she had been in charge.
Sp only was Yosei powerful, she was also an extremely competent leader. Her existence turned the ABB from a simple obstacle to be carefully played around, into an actual threat to his eventual rule over the city so long as she was at her father's side.
Coil would admit, he was at a loss for what to do for a long while. Careful poking and prodding had revealed little except for what he already knew, but there was one interesting tidbit of information that Coil believed might actually come in useful.
According to his sources, Yosei held her father in extremely high regard, placing his desires and commands above literally everything else. It was clear that he was the reason that she had taken up such a role in the ABB and perhaps if he was gone, she would lose the motivation needed to lead the gang and things would go back to normal.
It was a thin hope, truthfully, but it was also the only thing Coil had been in a position to do at the time. He couldn't simply just sit back and wait, watching as the ABB consolidated it's power and grew. He needed to strike as soon as possible to stop this before it got out of hand.
Convincing Emily and the other directors to send Lung to the Birdcage had been no easy feat. He had called in numerous favors and had likely put himself at odds with multiple people, but he imagined it would all be worth it. After all, without her father to lead her, Yosei would certainly be no threat.
Or so he had thought. To his horror and utter frustration, it seemed that Yosei was made of sterner stuff than he realized. Instead of crumbling underneath the pressure of leading the ABB, it seemed that her father's imprisonment had lit a fire under the woman and the ABB itself.
In the short amount of time since her father had been sent away, Yosei had underwent the arduous process of restructuring the entire gang and the way that it operated. With this restructuring, came a vast amount of scrutiny in basically every level of the gang.
Already, Coil had lost at least three moles to said scrutiny and had to pull out six more before they were caught as well. His play had been a complete and utter failure.
Any subsequent attempts to infiltrate the gang once again had quickly been sniffed out and taken care. Frustrated with the lack of progress, he had simulated an actual attack on the ABB itself, just to try and gain an idea as to the scope of Yosei's power.
It had been enlightening to say the least. If the attack on the Rig hadn't proved that Yosei was indeed Lung's daughter, then this certainly had.
The Undersiders and his newly hired Travellers put together did little to slow her down, much less stop her, and even when the Empire joined in, taking advantage of their biggest enemy's supposed preoccupation, Yosei and the ABB's pet demon had managed to hold their own quite well.
Not only that, but it seemed that she either had contacts in the Empire, or the few informants he had left in the ABB were in dire need of replacement. He wasn't sure exactly what kind of connection Rune had to the Asian gang, but the way she had defended their territory alongside Lung's heir had made it clear where her loyalties lied. And it certainly wasn't with Kaiser.
It had only taken a few hours of this simulation, during which the Protectorate from Boston was called in to assist with quelling Yosei's rage, before Coil had decided that he had seen more than enough and closed the timeline, musing on what he had witnessed and what it meant.
Overall, it was made abundantly clear that he couldn't touch the ABB right now. Not unless he wanted to arouse her suspicion or gain the ire of the city itself, villain population included. Any attempts at subterfuge were sussed out far too quickly, and even the more overt attempts would end in nothing but disaster. There was nothing he could do.
For now, he would have to leave the ABB be and focus on other, much more tangible pursuits.
Reaching down into the folds of his costume, Coil retrieved his phone, flipping it open and dialing a familiar number before holding it to his ear, waiting for an answer.
He didn't have to wait long of course, despite the early hour in the morning, she knew better than that.
On the third ring, the call was picked up, a carefully respectful voice undercut by a thin layer of annoyance coming through the speaker, "Yeah boss? What do you want?" Tattletale asked, her voice slightly gruff with sleep.
Coil raises an eyebrow at the teen's tone but decides to let it slide this time. He was always sure to give his Tattletale a bit more leash than his other subordinates. Just long enough to give her the illusion of freedom that she desired so much, but also short enough that a swift yank on said leash would bring her right back to him when she stepped out of line.
"Good morning, Sarah." Coil deliberately used the name he knew she loathed, "How is our newest recruit?"
"...She's doing fine." Tattletale answered, anger hidden in her tone, "She's a bit skittish, may be from an abusive household though I'm not sure, and she's still planning to sell us out to the boys in blue but I might be able to change that. Types like her tend to latch onto the first positive relationship that comes their way, so I'll see if I can't cozy up to her and convince her to stick around."
Coil nodded in satisfaction, "Good. Though, please ensure you don't get too close. I know how much the girl's situation may remind you of another that you keep close to your chest, but this is not the time to get distracted by ghosts from the past."
He continued before she could say anything in response, "Moving on, I have an assignment for your team. I'm going to need you to perform a high-profile heist on Brockton Bay Central Bank in a few days."
"What?" Tattletale was both confused and angered by this turn of events, "There's no way they'll agree to that! We both know that hitting a bank isn't worth the risk. We could make ten times as much going after one of the stashes the Merchants left behind. Not to mention, we might have another person to split the cut with if Skitter does decide to stick around!"
Coil frowned at her words, "You are hitting the bank because I am telling you to. I don't care about the money, that's none of my concern. I simply need a distraction from another one of my operations. And as for risk, the Protectorate will be out of town or husky on the afternoon you hit the bank, I'll make sure of it, so you'll only have the Wards to contend with. If you plan it correctly, and I know you can, I'm sure you will be able to deal with the children and escape unmolested." He said, deliberately playing to the teenager's ego with his last sentence.
Tattletale didn't say anything for a long moment, clearly mulling it over, "...I might be able to get them to agree. Alec might go for it. Rachel probably won't care as long as she gets a good cut. It's getting Brian to agree that's going to be an issue, and maybe the newbie too depending on how far she is willing to go to maintain her 'cover'."
"Try to convince them." Coil ordered, "If necessary, tell them I'll throw a little extra on top of what you can expect to take away."
Tattletale let out a low whistle, "Wow. You must really want this done, huh?" She said, her tone making it clear that she was trying to figure out exactly why that was.
Coil didn't say anything, continuing right past her words like they hadn't even registered, "Do your best to convince Skitter to come along as well. Her abilities will mesh well with the rest of the team and would be extremely useful to have on a heist like this."
"I'll see what I can do."
"Good. I'll contact you later with more details." He hung up without another word, ending the call right there.
He sighed, placing his phone back into the folds of his costume. Speaking with Tattletale was always a stressful affair, even over the phone. That power of hers was like a trip-wire, the smallest mistake setting off a chain reaction in her brain to lead her to a conclusion. He had to chose each word carefully lest she figure out what he was planning. He couldn't afford any screw ups. Not this time.
Reaching across his desk, Coil pressed on his intercom, "Mr Pitters. Prepare the room for my pet's arrival. Ensure that you are well stocked just in case she turns out to be more resistant than we expected."
"Yes sir. I'll begin the preparations right away." The reply came promptly, causing Coil to smile. At least some of his men were competent.
He leaned back in his chair, glancing towards a closed file on his desk, the contents held within already more than familiar to him thanks to countless nights pouring over their every detail.
Soon, his pet would be in her rightful place by his side. And then everything would be much, much simpler.