The Fun Center
Missy was having a good time. JD was completely unintimidated by doing potentially embarrassing things in public. He launched into Karaoke belting out tunes with an enthusiasm that sadly was not matched by skill. Not that his singing was terrible, it was strictly average.
His dancing was extremely good. He admitted to having taken ballet lessons. That was a surprising admission. She wasn't sure if he was serious about his instructor being a retired world-class Russian performer.
They had moved between activities testing them out till they grew bored. Then it was off to another. They were currently evenly matched at the air hockey table.
"Yes!" Missy exclaimed, having sunk a puck against John.
"Ahh!" JD exclaimed. He then hung his head in mock shame.
"Soda break?"
"Sure, let's see what they got."
The pair headed to the concession area. Missy felt her spirits fall when they made it to the counter.
"It was later than I thought," she admitted.
"It's cool we can get a snack and then wait for Dean and Vicky."
"Yeah, I guess."
"Nachos or pizza."
"Nachos and pizza. Get them we'll share."
"Oh, brave girl. Many relationships have ended over topping wars."
"They have like three toppings, get 'em all."
"Cool. No chili on the chips? Planning to dip the crust in the cheese?"
"Of course, I'm a woman of culture."
"That you are."
They had worked out the deal that Missy paid for the games and JD picked up the food. She had been willing to pay for it all and let JD get the next one. Sure Pop-pop's BBQ had taken off but they had to still be rebuilding from having nothing.
They collected their trays and sat down across from each other in a booth. As they ate Missy shared a story about a girl at middle school who had bribed a high school freshman to pose as her up to then entirely fictional boyfriend.
Having laughed at the awkward but humorous resolution. Quiet settled on them.
"What next?" Missy prodded.
"It's getting late. Not long enough for another game before Dean comes around." John admitted.
"Let's refill our drinks and sit outside."
"Yeah, that works. It's warm enough."
They tossed their trash and refilled cups at the soda station. Outside the warm air was moderated by an ocean-side breeze blowing in.
"I've had fun, John. It's not the sort of thing I expected to happen when you gave me that folder to sign."
"Ahh, we're dropping the pretense then?"
"Yeah, I know you know and you know I know. I just. What's up with you and Justin? I assume he's your twin? I mean I guess you could be a year apart but you look more like identical twins."
"We are. He really did think you were cute."
"Was he upset? About this?"
"Oh no Justin doesn't get upset much. He was a touch disappointed at his luck. Very happy for me, however. Sort of his forte. I doubt you will ever meet anyone with such an optimistic view of the universe as my brother."
"Oh?"
"Every problem is a puzzle that's meant to be solved. Every setback is a challenge to overcome. Every cloud has a silver lining, every night heralds a new dawn. It would be annoying as hell if it wasn't so genuine."
"Only child. I literally can't imagine what it's like."
"Same only inverted. Sometimes I wanted deeply to be myself, not half of a pair. Felt guilty about it at times. It never bothered Justin. He never felt saddled with me or disappointed at my choices. More often than not when the mood passed and I wanted him with me, he joined me in whatever direction I was going.
I can't say the opposite is true. At times I've had the worst humor about him doing things I didn't want to be a part of."
"I'm glad he's back on the right side of the law. I didn't want to be continually against him."
"I'm not sure," John replied with a faraway look.
"You're not sure I don't want to fight him?"
"No, I'm not sure there is a right side of the law or that he's on it," John replied lost in thought
Missy looked at John confused trying to work out exactly what that meant. Before she could ask any questions Dean's car pulled up.
"Hey, are you two ready to go?"
"Coming!" Missy called back
John hopped to his feet and offered Missy a hand up. They made it to Dean's car. Once they were situated Dean and Vicky returned to talking about the movie they had seen. John smiled at Missy.
"If you're up for it next time there is a place called Mama Joann's. They have some real soul food. She makes chicken and dressing that is to die for."
"That sounds fun. I'll text you later to make plans."
Dean came to Missy's house first. She waved goodbye to John and headed towards the door. She slowed as she neared the entrance. Her mom had said was going to wait up but hadn't opened the door.
"Back here, Missy." A familiar voice called from the backyard.
Rounding the house she saw a figure that looked almost exactly like John. His clothes were a slightly different color and cut but of similar styles and tastes. Dated like someone who got the 2000's and late 90's styles confused. He also wore dark aviators with side shields.
"Did you do something to my Mom?"
"No need for anger. Nothing direct. I just silenced her alarm so she didn't wake up from her nap."
"What do you want?"
"I just want to make sure, absolutely sure, of your intentions towards my brother."
"Oh for-". Missy stopped herself. "I was originally pumping him for information thinking he was you. Now that I know you're not the same I realize I had fun. He's nice."
"Good John needs some good things in his life. He's always so melancholy. I worry about him sometimes."
"You don't have to look after him, he's literally the same age. He's not weak."
"You're right. In some ways, he's stronger than I am. In others, he's at risk. He's like glass hard to damage but it shatters. Very hard to fix once it does. I made a promise to protect him."
"To whom? Mary?"
"That's what you call her, sure."
"Wait really?"
"Big sis doesn't want baby bro hurt."
"She's your older sister? Why did you wipe her mind?!"
"She felt guilty about Dad's death. Also to help her with an addiction."
Missy eyed Justin trying to get a feel for if he was being honest and serious.
Justin took his glasses off and gave Missy a sad smile. "She infiltrated a group of Radicals called Terragen. They taught her their ways. Toxic ways. Habits were built that prioritized Quantum empowered life over mundane people."
"She's not like that. Not now."
"Then she's on the right path. If she works through her mental trauma her memories can be returned."
"Then do it!"
"I'm not the one who gets to make that call. I'm told that I'm too forgiving. I'm far too confident that everyone will do their best. Or so I've been told."
"I'm not sure you or your family are entirely sane."
"Probably a reasonable assessment. I should go. It sounds like your Mom is stirring. We got a bit loud there."
"Goodbye, Justin. Next time you want to talk, do it more normally.
Something about the situation seemed to tickle Justin. He seemed to be holding back laughter, His bare eyes looked odd. The pupils did a weird squiggly bounce. He slid the shades back on giving her a thumbs up
"As the lady has requested I shall of course put forward all efforts to conform every bit to the part of playing the gentleman she rightly demanded that I be." He replied tipping an imaginary hat
With that, he turned and made his way into the dark night. Missy shook her head and went inside.
Boston.
Armstrong fit in better as a researcher than a director. That wasn't to say he was bad at his job he was among the best at it. He would have been happier doing research, but there were plenty of people good at research. There were not nearly enough who were good at managing Parahumans.
Piggot and the S class threat team were being prepared for deployment if the Nine showed up. Jack Slash was very tricky. His sending his crew of serial killers into this sort of chaos would be a very close match for his previous actions such as in New York. That was exactly why the PRT was doubtful things would be that straightforward. Jack was very seldomly straightforward.
Tricks, riddles, and the need for theatricality were his hallmarks. There was a chance he would do such a thing simply because it wasn't expected of him. There was also the unknown of the other Butcher's voices throwing off his normal rhythms. Best Piggot remains in reserve for now. Besides she and he were like oil and water they could exist in the same containment but each separate from the other. If they had to work together it was better to work out a division of responsibilities over collaboration.
He didn't yet have a feel for who Calvert was as a Director. His time working in Boston as a contractor didn't give Armstrong a feeling for who he was as a leader. Armsmaster substituting himself over Miss Militia in the reinforcement team had to be something Calvert approved. Did he ask for it or did he bend to Armsmaster's request? After being cooped up in the Endbringer prison it could be that Armsmaster wanted to stretch his legs and test newly inspired tech. It's just as likely he could have wanted more time to work on said tech in his lab.
The Brockton Group was deployed north of the city. They had been quartered near the airport. Armsmaster, Triumph, Sere, and Dovetail had been joined by two members of New Wave Sarah and Neil Pelham. They were better known as Lady Photon and Manpower. They had been protecting the valuable supply line to the city. He had ordered them forward across the water and down state road one to meet a major break out from the Teeth. Bastion and the local team were attacking Quincy and could not break away. Cavalier's New York group would come at the Teeth from Savin Hill Avenue. Mouse Protector and a group of other independents had convinced a team called the Punks to link up for a rear attack. It would catch them in a vise if time correctly.
"Sir?" Hunch said from his console
"What do you have, Hunch?"
The precognitive boy tapped his screen "Something very good is setting up in Savin Hill Park. If the Teeth break they need to be pushed for the park."
"How good are we talking Hunch can you give me any more?"
"Hum... Feels like Legend showing up good. I think."
"Oh? That's pretty major." Armstrong reached for his mic
Armsmaster listened to his earpiece he waved his hand to point out directions "Dove Tail focus on that band. Leave a gap in your barriers to allow the Teeth to break east."
"Won't that let them flank the Indeps, sir?"
"The Precogs say no, let's trust Armstrong on this one. Sere let's see how your power interacts with Hemorrhagia. Be prepared to break away if the interaction isn't good for us."
Lady Photon spoke up "I'm going to work with Triumph Offense and defense like Laserdream and Sheilder do at home. Manpower sticks to Armsmaster like glue you have his back, he has yours."
Armsmaster gave a nod. Now the issue was how things would go to pieces once they met the enemy.
Animos and Hemorrhagia were leading this band of less well-known Teeth. Armsmaster didn't like the lack of solid data on them. There would be surprises and those could shake up events too much for comfort.
Animos was charging down the highway in the lead his animalistic semi-quadruped form boosting his speed. His plan was obviously to weaken any defenses with his power-draining shout before his group hit the weak point. Hemorrhagia was riding her teammate. She was armored up and had chains of blood from one hand wrapped around Animos giving her stability the other held what could be a Tinkertech lance. Animos didn't make a straight charge but zigzagged forward trying to avoid Triumph and Lady Photon's attack. Armsmaster revved his bike crossed the overpass and charged. Neil was dashing after him.
Manpower didn't have a mover rating but could do some impressive sprints by leveraging his super strength. Armsmaster was counting on him to run in a straight line while he weaved. The gleaming edge of his halberd should keep the Teeth's attention enough for Manpower to close. To Armsmaster's surprise, Hemorrhagia tossed the lance she had straight at himself, keeping it on target with a cord of blood. Armsmaster jinked to the side avoiding the strike but when the tip hit the asphalt the ground shuttered and rippled in a roll that dropped the overpass that took the highway over the avenue. Sarah quickly made a solution to that impediment with a light bridge. The rest of the Brockton force rushed forward to cross so she could dissolve the bridge.
The mini earthquake had sent Armsmaster tumbling off his bike. He stood pushing off the ground with the haft of his halberd. Neil closed in and reached for the motorcycle.
"Just pull the weapon from the right saddlebag. They are closing too fast to mount up."
Neil pulled out a large Mace and let the bike crash back to the ground. He activated the switch on the handle and took an experimental swing. A weird vibrating hum followed the round macehead. Animos had reached the rest of the Brockton team who had scattered to avoid more than one being caught in the cone of Animos' scream.
Sere's attack was forcing Hemorrhagia's blood constructs to condense reducing her range. Dovetail and Lady Photon were using their aerial mobility to evade and harass Animos. Triumph was being evasive while sniping at the pair.
Armsmaster and Manpower faced the approaching mass of Teeth. One woman who was wearing an outfit primarily made of leather straps had bits of rib sticking out of her torso. She pulled on them yanking them free and dropping them as she ran. The ribs expanded and morphed into generic-looking Teeth members made entirely of bone. Another cape was producing an aura of color around himself that his fellows were avoiding.
Neil took a swing with the mace at the bony minions that were closing. A sonic blast shattered the construct into pieces. Armsmaster aimed past him to stab a brute he vaguely remembered relied on kinetic force absorption and redirection. He slid his blade along cutting the cape's skin rather than seeking to impale lessening his ability to stop the attack.
"This is the one that hits harder against stiff things? So it's safer on flesh?" Manpower asked for clarification.
"That's the one. It has added nausea I cribbed from the Danger kid."
"Nice!" Neil added slamming it into the side of the bleeding brute's head. The brute power stopped most of the blow but he fell to his knees spewing vomit from his nose and mouth.
Armsmaster sliced a bone soldier then slapped a human henchman across the gut with the backend of his weapon. Animos had broken out of Dovetail and Lady Phontons containment and headed east as planned. He was going to circle back. The Brockton crew used the relief from the attack to push forward towards their comrades.
Walls of light started to funnel the Teeth into positions advantageous to the Heroes. Dovetail began layering defense around the north and west. In the distance, Armsmaster could make out Mouse Protector riding on some sort of mini-tank. The tank was armed with high-caliber machine guns. Animos burst out of the side streets aiming to slow the back attack. Hemorrhagia had formed full body armor and a pair of curved blades. She lept off her partner and started organizing the larger throng of teeth.
The Cape with the colorful aura moved toward the new attackers surrounded by a drill-like swirl of aura. It deflected the bullets the tank shot but didn't do anything when the center of the tank rotated and fired a laser beam. The cape started rolling screaming in pain, his costume on fire.
A dark cloud rolled out of the same streets Animos had exited. It moved to engulf both the animalistic cape and rolled towards the bulk of the teeth."
Armsmaster analyzed the cloud. "Insects. It must be Weaver.".
Neil pointed to shapes forming within the cloud humanoid forms that were distracting the Teeth.
"Definitely her. The unexpected help? Maybe the Undersiders?"
The cloud stretched to the heroes. It was thin around them but it was able to form a droning voice.
"Aid incoming, don't shoot him."
"We won't," Armsmaster answered.
A man flew over the buildings. He was wearing a blue full-bodysuit that only left his mouth to lower jaw uncovered. On his chest was a red letter U. He was tall, well over six feet.
Hemorrhagia changed one of her blades into a spear and tossed it at him. The man braced and screamed at her. The spear, her armor, and the other blade all collapsed into a spill of blood. At the same time, she was slammed into the ground and did not rise.
"New cape!" The bone minion Master screamed.
She started pulling her teeth out and tossing them to the ground. Smaller minions formed and rushed forth. It wasn't replacing the mundane henchmen that were rolling slapping and otherwise trying to deal with Weaver's attack.
The New York capes had started to appear. They were driving another group of Teeth before them. The new cape held out his hand and laser blasts similar to Lady Photon struck the strongest points of resistance. He then waved and a giant crab appeared alongside Usra Aurora's bears.
He's a power duplicator. That first attack was Animos combined with Triumph. Armsmaster realized.
"New Cape! Duplicate Dovetail and Lady Photon hamper their mobility. We can mop this lot up completely."
"Yes sir! Weaver, double up the back and sides." The new cape shouted.
The cloud of insects shifted.
"Weaver I hope you're watching for severe reactions. We don't want another Lung."
"Of course." The droning insects replied.
Armsmaster slashed one of the new minions. The enamel made them harder to cut. Manpower was smashing away at them. So Armsmaster shifted strategy to tripping them.
Chevalier unleashed a cannon blast at Animos. The bestial cape was already dodging gunfire from the mini tank and the sword slashes of two athletic highly dexterous cyborgs. The blast knocked him into the highway's guardrail. Overwhelming firepower rained down on the remaining Teeth. Within minutes they were overwhelmed.
Armstrong greeted the capes who had come to his city's defense. There was still work to be done. The siege of Quincy was ongoing and the Nine had not shown themselves. The day's battle, however, was a significant victory.
He greeted numerous independent heroes and the Punks. He thanked Chevalier and Armsmaster then stopped to regard the new Hero and known villain. Union had shrunk and deflated. He was now a wiry muscled man just under six foot. He had a few odd patches of pudge that spoke of being in the middle of a fast-paced effort to get in shape.
"I am Director Armstrong and you are?"
"Union. For we are all stronger together!" the new Cape exclaimed with the gusto of the extremely new.
Weaver seemed to wince a bit.
"I see and why are you here Weaver? There is a truce but that seldom sees out-of-town villains to join in a city's defense."
"My daughter has made some mistakes sir but I assure you that if the PRT and Protectorate give us a chance she will be redeeming herself," Union replied.
"Your daughter?" Armsmaster exclaimed.
"Yes, and I am hoping you will give some testimony to aid our plea for leniency and a shot at redemption."
"Perhaps in private?" Armsmaster asked Armstrong.
"No time like the present. If you will all excuse us. This way please?" Armstrong said, waving toward his office.
Once in the office, Armstrong sat in his chair behind his desk. He had Armsmaster sit to his right. He had Union to the left with Weaver to the extreme left.
"So what is it you need to explain?"
"I encountered the girl on her first night out as a cape. She was surprised by Lung and gave a good accounting of herself. She was however on the verge of defeat when The Undersiders, mistaking her for a villain, came to her aid. They were Lung's primary target so the action was not entirely benevolent. I showed up shortly after the Undersiders evacuated and took charge of the prisoner. I had hoped if Weaver didn't take credit for the defeat, Lung wouldn't go after her. It would have been better for his reputation to play along with the story I defeated him. I underestimated the rage he felt at her actions. Weaver poisoned him and inflicted a large amount of damage to-," Armsmaster stopped to weigh his words.
"His manhood. She told me" Union replied.
"Yes his- nether regions. The sedatives I gave him had an unexpected interaction with the bug poison. At the time I was angry she didn't reveal the level of poison she pumped into him. I should have been more careful knowing she was an extreme neophyte. What I at first took as negligence or deliberate sabotage was a mistake of ignorance. She refused Wards membership.
She later came to me about going undercover to find information about a mastermind who was behind the Undersiders. The teenage gang had offered her a position. I advised against it and told her I could not offer her any kind of immunity. She refused both protective Ward membership. She also would not listen to my warnings about unsanctioned undercover work. Given that I had given her a scathing rebuke for the poisoning incident her reaction was given hindsight, very predictable.
She was a very useful aid in the battle against Leviathan and the search and rescue after."
"Does that cover the basics?" Armstrong asked.
Union looked at Weaver.
"Basically. Lung still blamed me and came after me. Doctor Danger was pretty convincing about trying to work for good on the wrong side of the law-"
Armsmaster groaned "That boy!-" he stopped to compose his words. "Is a menace sometimes"
"Well menace or not he's accepted an amnesty. So why should I stick to a path he isn't following? I brought a distillation of everything I could obtain on Coil's gang and their plans for the area. As well I have all the information they have on criminals from up and down the coast. You already have everything they had on the E88 and Merchants. There is some stuff on the gangs forming out of the ABB."
"I can get you a slot in the Wards. That will come with amnesty."
Union shifted. "That's sadly not on the table. We have strong private reasons. Sir I'm willing to pledge my support for S-class threats and as an ally to the Protectorate. I will make sure she stays on the straight and narrow. I know you want that of any cape. I also know you don't always get it. I am also willing to give the PRT a significant trump card to play if we were to fail to live up to our pledge."
Armstrong leaned back. A thoughtful look on his face. Armsmaster picking up this queue leaned forward
"Your power seems significant. You are a power duplicator and can combine effects. How many powers can you copy at a time."
"If there is a numeric limit I haven't reached it. Dozens at a time. I won't reveal more until we have a signed deal. The details of that are on the table. Also, I am willing to reveal our civilian identity so there would be no hiding if we went villain. Surely all that is worth far more than a Wards membership." Union bargained.
Armstrong looked up at the ceiling a bit "You don't think Calvert would take this deal. You came here because of that at least in part. However, you do present us with a good bargain. Let's get down to the brass tracks. I will call the DA's offices here and in New Hampshire we can send some faxes back and forth to hammer this deal out.
Hours Latter
Sarah was wearing sweatpants and a tee shirt. The Hotel room was blessedly cool after the day's exertion. Neil exited the bathroom wearing nothing but athletic shorts.
He posed and raised and lowered his eyebrows a few times. Sarah rolled her eyes and threw a pack of granola bars at him. He dodged out of the way with a boyish grin on his face.
A knock at the door grabbed their attention. Puzzled, Neil made his way to the door and peered through the peephole.
"Union and Weaver."
"If you're going to answer it, put some clothes on."
Rather than return to the bedroom Neil grabbed an A-frame shirt off the dresser and shrugged it one. He opened the door before Sarah could object.
"Hello, I hope it's not a bad time," Union said in greeting.
"What can we do for you?" Neil asked.
"Did your meeting with Armstrong go well?" Sarah inquired.
"Yes, thank you. The two are related. I have here copies of the paperwork. My daughter is in the clear for her inappropriate actions. She has a note in her file that if she gets in trouble again they can throw the book at her like she had a prior. Other than that she's all clean."
"Well, that is all well and good. She still was part of a robbery that traumatized people. She was involved in a gang war and helped the Villain alliance solidify their hold." Neil countered.
"She was under some bad influence and needs good influences in her life to replace that. You are a family of capes. Well, we're just starting. We have a lot to learn. You have been down a lot of miles, we're now looking to cross.
I'd be a fool to go it alone when such experienced heroes live in our city. Help us learn to be a cape family. Let us join the New Wave."
Neil lifted one eyebrow and gave his wife an uncertain look.
Sarah pondered "You do realize you would have to do a public reveal? We haven't recruited anyone after Fluers death but public identity is still in our charter."
"That can go very wrong, we won't judge you if you turn back at that," Neil added.
"I know Brockton Bay from way back. I remember when you were titled the Brockton Bay Brigade. I followed the news when you disbanded the Triple B and formed the New Wave. I saw the trial on TV and all the testimony when that damn Nazi killed that nice girl." Union shook his head at the memory.
"For us, it wasn't just images in the News," Sarah said sadly.
"No, it wouldn't have been. Weaver and I have had our share of loss. it's just us two. We had drifted apart. Our grief pulled us in different ways, toward different things. We're learning to stand together now. We want to tell Brockton that there is hope we can do better. Everyone's got a chance to turn things around. Our city beat an Endbringer for God's sake we can pull ourselves out of the slump we're in!"
Weaver gave a nod other than that she has been standing almost inhumanly still. Sarah looked her over.
"Don't mind me when I'm processing a lot I tend to get quiet. Dad's saying things better than I could."
Sarah read through the paperwork. He had given the PRT his identity. Doing a public reveal meant that hold wasn't what it appeared to be. Carol would find that bit of fine print manipulation humorous. Armsmaster Armstrong and the District Attorney's offices had signed off. Sarah pondered if the girl was likely already known to the villains the Father would be easy to figure out. They had little downside to a public reveal. Breaking the rules to target them would be made more obvious by the reveal. Their blood wouldn't be on her hands if this went bad. Union seemed serious about it.
"You are accepted. Welcome to the New Wave."
"ALRIGHT!" Union exclaimed, pulling his daughter into a side hug.
The motion seemed to break her out of whatever fugue or trance she was in. Her body language spoke of deep embarrassment at her father's excitement.
Sarah smiled at the normalcy of the situation at odds with the subject matter.
"Okay, so how does your powers work? We have to work on some planning." Neil prompted.
"Oh, it's not complex," Union said.
"I can control insects and similar things within about three blocks. I can do a lot with that. More than I thought I could at first." Weaver said.
Union nodded. "I generate these little beetles. I also can feel if anyone is a parahuman in around three blocks. If I land one of these little buddy's on you it lets me copy your power. That's anywhere not covered by pretty thick covering, at least a thick winter coat."
"Your beetles were hidden by her swarm." Sarah realized.
"Right in one. What's more, If one of us is in the other's range even if I don't have a beetle on her we can feel each other and our ranges extend into the other's band. If I copy her power it gives her a taste of mine. She can't duplicate powers but she can feel them too. We can communicate with each other and she's really good at feeling out what someone is capable of." Union admitted.
"That's going to be a major force multiplier for us Sarah." Neil opined.
Sarah nodded. "There's one last thing."
Union pulled back the face mask part of his bodysuit. "Danny, Danny Hebert. I plan on keeping my DWU job and promoting the union a bit. I hope that's copacetic"
"Social causes are fine," Sarah said, turning to focus on the girl who was reluctantly removing her mask.
"I'm Taylor. I hope you don't give us cause to regret this."
"I've seen you before. You've been to a few places with Vicky and Amy. I wouldn't think you'll have any cause. Welcome to the team."
Unknown Hiding place
A woman watched a man she cared about talk to himself. It was worrying because he was answering himself in voices that were not always his own. They were watching a video of the large battle of the day. They were watching Union help break the Teeth.
"Yes, but you missed this see. Here and here. Yes, now you understand." Jack pointed to the screen.
"We would have found it eventually!"
"Would you have? Truthfully?" Jack inquired
"He wouldn't have, he's worthless! But I will not be ignored!"
"Oh do be quiet you don't have anything of substance to say. All your attention-mongering only grates on everyone's nerves. Feel how they hate you? Yes if you want to be important wait to speak." Jack counseled.
"The New one he could be a threat to us he could defeat us"
"He would enslave us not kill us but end the chain, worse than death."
"He is predictable my boy. We can work around him easily. Watch and learn" Jack countered.
"Your plans are clever perhaps too clever the Heros are not as predictable as you think." a falsetto voice complained.
"We will see, won't we? I doubt they will be as incompetent as you for example but we will see. There needs to be a little risk in life or it's all boring isn't it?" Jack said, straightening up.
"Why, Shatterbird, whatever troubles you?" he exclaimed, turning around.
"They talk more now. More than they did."
"I give them more whenever their input might have relevance. In turn, they are given less when I require their silence. You need not fret so the situation is in hand."
"If there is anything I can do."
"You will be the first to know. For now. Is everything ready?"
"Siberian Crawler and Bonesaw are going out together. Ravager is still sulking but has made a choice. Mannequin is prepared. Damsel is going with Burnscar and I finally found a potential."
"Good, good. Things aren't completely predictable but everything is basically where we wanted."
Jack smiled. He closed with Shatterbird unexpectedly. He stared into her eyes
"Let's make this our most impressive performance yet. So many people with so much false hope. We will make them understand the dark truth of their lives. We will teach them what life is all about."
Shatterbird shivered with anticipation. She looked out the window at Brockton Bay. They were all asleep. She would wake them soon.