A ruinous gift (23) - Fics I Read 2.0

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A Ruinous Gift by Noodlehammer

Warhammer & Worm Xover Rated: M, English, Crime, Words: 298k+, Favs: 3k+, Follows: 4k+, Published: Sep 20, 2023 Updated: Jan 28

2,397Chapter 23: Meetings

Thanks to Alvor for looking this over for me.

XXXXX

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Topic: New Member

In: Boards ► Brockton Bay ► Villains

Black Hand Official (Original Poster) (Villain Organization)

Posted On May 1st 2011:

It is our pleasure to announce that a new member has joined our organization. Normally we wouldn't do this, but this particular member is high profile enough to warrant it.

Amelia Clare Lavere, daughter of Marquis, is now a lieutenant in the Black Hand. You may know her as Amy Dallon, Panacea of New Wave. She will take the name of Shaper, leaving Panacea behind.

This no doubt comes as a shock to most, so allow me to explain a bit of history.

Marquis was not aware that he had gotten Amelia's mother pregnant, and he first learned of her when she was already five years old. Amelia's mother wanted to keep her away from the dangers of cape life, but that plan was ruined when she was diagnosed with an incurable illness. Left with no choice, she brought Amelia to Marquis, who was overjoyed to have her in his life.

The man might have been a ruthless villain and murderer, but he was a good father.

Unfortunately, the fears of Amelia's mother quickly materialized. Marquis asked New Wave to take in his daughter when they defeated him, knowing that she would be in too much danger if left to the foster system.

Alas, Brandish proved a poor parent, which is why Amelia is now a villain, but I will let her explain the rest.

(Showing page 5 of 37)

►Shaper (Verified Cape) (Villain) (Black Hand)

Replied On May 1st 2011:

Hey everyone, the former Panacea here.

Didn't expect to be debuting as a villain like this, but Psyker can be pretty persuasive.

Anyway, to get the obvious questions out of the way...

I hate healing.

Not helping people, just healing. I'm a full biokinetic (I lied about not being able to do brains), and I had to restrain myself to just fixing people one at a time, because "Biokinetics scary!". And because Brandish is a neurotic, paranoid bitch. If it was up to her, I'd spend the rest of my life acting as a healing appliance in a hospital. The PRT would be even worse about it.

No, I won't be going Nilbog or Bonesaw, I just don't want to have my every move monitored.

Anyway, that's all I got. Don't expect me to stay here answering questions. If you have any, fuck off. Go ask Psyker, it was her idea for me to make this post anyway.

►Brocktonite03 (Veteran Member)

Replied On May 1st 2011:

This was not a plot twist I was expecting.

►ArchmageEin

Replied On May 1st 2011:

They pissed off the healer. Why would you piss off the healer?

►Sothoth

Replied On May 1st 2011:

In hindsight, expecting a family of capes to be well adjusted was a bit optimistic.

►Bagrat (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know)

Replied On May 1st 2011:

Psyker

Panacea, or Shaper now I suppose, isn't a combatant (that we know of) so what will she be in charge of as a lieutenant in the Black Hand?

►XxVoid_CowboyxX

Replied On May 1st 2011:

Psyker, What are your power ratings?

►Black Hand Official (Original Poster) (Villain Organization)

Replied On May 1st 2011:

Bagrat

Amelia will be taking over the Black Hand's narcotics division.

A fact most do not know about Psyker is that she hates drugs. Having Amelia in our organization will allow us to accelerate her plans to take over and strangle the global drug trade as much as possible.

Unfortunately, it will likely be impossible to completely destroy it for as long as a demand exists, but we can at least do better than the United States government and its "War on Drugs".

She will also continue to offer services as a healer, but no longer will she be doing it for free so that everyone can take advantage of her.

While she may take the occasional charity case if she feels like it, her services will have to be paid for either in favors owed or for exorbitant amounts of money.

XxVoid-CowboyxX

Her power ratings are awesome :)

►Mac's Dual Rocket Propelled Grenades

Replied On May 1st 2011:

Shots fired!

►GloryGirl (Verified Cape) (New Wave)

Replied On May 1st 2011:

Aaaaaaaaames! You promised that you wouldn't go villain!

►Shaper (Verified Cape) (Villain) (Black Hand)

Replied On May 1st 2011:

I promised that I wouldn't go villain just to spite Carol. I didn't say anything about going villain so that I could have something resembling a life.

Maybe if SOMEBODY didn't have the bright idea to unmask me as part of their grand idiotic gesture for cape accountability I could have just faded into civilian life or become a rogue in a different part of the country.

And if Carol wasn't going to snitch on me to the PRT as soon as she realized that she can't get me back under her thumb.

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 ... 35, 36, 37

XXXXX

Mark Dallon looked up from his phone at a particular loud shout.

New Wave was in one of the PRT's conference rooms with Director Piggot and Armsmaster, and everyone was shouting. The topic was Amy's defection to a villain gang.

Piggot was raging that there had been a biokinetic in the city and she wasn't told about it. Her service record wasn't exactly public knowledge, but word got around in certain circles. She was a survivor of Nilbog and clearly had the related trauma. Carol had been right not to tell her about Amy.

It was one of the few things she'd gotten right with their adopted daughter.

Not that Mark was in a position to be throwing stones from his glass house. He had been a non-entity as a father for most of her life.

Some people might say that it wasn't his fault, that the depression was a physical condition that he couldn't simply shake off. A convenient excuse, but one he wouldn't take. He hadn't even tried to overcome it and his family had paid the price.

Amy had had nobody to rely on except her sister, Vicky had been allowed to run wild, and Carol had gotten far too used to her word being the last word.

Even now that they knew he was no longer the empty shell of a man he'd been for so long, they were still ignoring him. It would take time and multiple reminders before it sunk in that he was different now.

Mark decided to put an end to the arguing by letting off a small blast of his power. Loud, but harmless.

Everyone immediately jumped to ready positions, pointing weapons or powers at him.

"Enough with all this yelling, it's not getting anything done." he said coolly. "We're here to decide what to do, not to throw around blame."

Mark didn't miss Carol's stunned look.

"I should have you all thrown into cells for hiding a cape that dangerous." Piggot snapped, dangerously red-faced.

"If it wasn't for Panacea, the villains would have overrun this city years ago." Mark retorted just as sharply. "She never did anything to deserve this kind of suspicion and I'll thank you to either keep your issues out of your job or remove yourself from the situation."

The fat director looked like she'd just been slapped.

"You tell 'em, Dad!" Vitoria cheered, looking very impressed.

She had been Amy's most vocal supporter despite this recent turn to villainy and was no doubt glad for the support.

"It may be true that Panacea has never done anything wrong, but the description of her powers would rate her as a Striker 10 at minimum. The nature of her powers just makes the situation worse. We need to at least have a response prepared in case Psyker and the Black Hand decide to stop playing nice." Armsmaster said stiffly.

That was enough to tell Mark that Amy's fears of having her every move monitored and controlled if the PRT got their hands on her were more than justified. The PRT's own paranoia had driven her into the arms of villains.

If this blowout had happened before the Black Hand's arrival, Mark had a feeling that Amy would have ended up with the Elite.

"I'll just call her and ask what's up." Victoria said.

"Wait!" Armsmaster barked, an incredulous note to his tone.

But it was too late, Vicky had already put her phone on speaker, the dialing tone echoing across the room.

"Vicky?" Amy's voice echoed came from the phone, her tone questioning.

"Hey, Ames." Victoria said with a faintly sheepish tone. "We're all at the PRT right now and everyone is freaking out."

"Of course they are." The retort was full of exasperated sarcasm. "Gimme a second, we'll call you back."

The call dropped, making them all frown in confusion.

"We?" Crystal echoed, looking around for answers. Nobody had any to give.

A minute later, the conference room monitor showed an incoming video call.

Piggot accepted it after a moment's hesitation. The monitor showed a picture of three teenage girls sitting around a conference table not dissimilar to the PRT one. At the head of it was a girl with curly black hair, to her right hand side was a blonde with a foxy grin, and to the left was Amy.

"Good day, heroes." The curly-haired girl spoke confidently. "So glad you could join us on this auspicious occasion."

"Psyker!" Armsmaster growled.

"After the way you barged into my room with your 'halberd' out while I was half-dressed, I think you can call me Taylor, Colin." The villain placed a hand on her cheek, somehow managing to force a blush.

Armsmaster sputtered in outrage at the insinuation, a rarely seen break in his composure. The kids, meanwhile, choked in surprise or laughter, Including Amy and the blonde girl on the other side of the call.

Mark was more fixated on the fact that Psyker had just casually revealed both her name and Amrsmaster's. That was a serious breach of cape etiquette, and it hadn't escaped his notice that the one he presumed was Tattletale was also unmasked.

"You're the girl from the boardwalk!" Vicky suddenly exclaimed, floating in the air and pointing a finger at the screen. "The one with the abs!"

"I'm flattered to have my abs recognized by someone as beautiful as you, Victoria." Psyker flirted.

But his daughter was apparently not as easily derailed as Armsmaster, because she completely ignored the flirting and turned to her sister instead. "Ames, did you know she was a villain back then?!"

"She introduced herself with both her cape name and her real name." Amy admitted.

"And you didn't tell me?!"

"You'd have started punching."

"Enough!" Piggot slammed her hand on the table, glaring at everyone. Raw hatred for teenagers shone in her eyes. "It's obvious that Panacea has had extensive contact with villains before her 'official' split with New Wave. Is this another one of your plans, Psyker?"

"Everything is one of my plans." Psyker shrugged. "But in this case I really just wanted to help a girl in a shitty situation."

"It's true." Amy confirmed before anyone could voice skepticism. "Taylor and Tattletale saw us at the boardwalk that day and picked apart how fucked up our family is with a glance. "

"And I suppose her being a powerful cape didn't factor into it at all?" Carol sneered, ignoring Amy's words.

"Only insofar as it complicated the situation." Psyker responded coolly. "I help a lot of people who are in bad situations. Amelia's power just meant that she needed a more personal touch."

"Yeah, right." Carol scoffed.

"Don't take it so personally, Brandish." Tattletale said, smirking smugly. "Unlike you, Amelia isn't trusting the wrong person."

Mark knew immediately what was going to happen.

"You little…!" Carol raged, plasma flickering in her hand.

"STOP!" He interrupted loudly, making everyone look at him. It was awkward after fading into the background for years, but he powered through. He owed it to his children. "Amy Girl, are you going to be alright?"

Her expression softened. "Yeah, I'll be okay, Dad. Are you doing better?"

That she would still call him dad, even though he didn't really deserve it, warmed his heart. "Yeah, you fixed me up perfectly. I feel alive again."

"Good."

"And I want you to know that I'm not angry at you for becoming a villain." He continued. "Carol didn't do right by you and I wasn't really there. I understand why you can't be a hero anymore, but stay a good person, alright?"

She smiled at him brightly, the brightest smile he'd ever seen on her face. "Thanks, Dad."

"That's it?!" Carol barked. "She becomes a villain and you give her a pat on the head?!"

But Mark ignored her. He knew that there was no point in trying to convince his wife that she was in the wrong, not right now. It would probably take years of therapy to achieve that.

Instead he turned to the villain that his daughter had thrown in. "Psyker, you take good care of my little girl."

He half-expected her to make a joke of it or taunt him, but she just smiled. "Of course."

"If we are quite finished with the family drama?" Armsmaster ground out.

"With New Wave? Never." Tattletale snorted.

"Don't mind her, she's just naturally annoying." Psyker interjected. "Did you have something to say, Colin?"

"First off, you could stop using my real name." The Protectorate hero snapped.

"But we share such a powerful bond!" The villain protested. "I know that we haven't interacted much since I became a villain, but you were the one who made me the woman I am today."

Another easily misunderstood statement, no doubt intentionally so given the poorly hidden amusement on Tattletale and Amy's faces.

"Even after Shadow Stalker caused my trigger event by shutting me inside a tiny school locker filled with rotting tampons, I was still a child." Psyker went on, to the horrified disgust of the listeners.

Or frustrated rage, in the cases of Piggot and Armsmaster. They hadn't wanted that little detail shared.

"I still thought I could use my powers to be a hero." Psyker's tone turned wistful. "I knew I would have to hide most of what I could do, but I was still going to do what I could to clean up the Bay. Your refusal to properly punish her, and then charging into my house with nothing in your head except thoughts of how her attempts to murder me would reflect on your career, forcing me to run off into the winter night barefoot and half-dressed, was a major turning point in my life. You showed me the truth of this world, Colin, you and Director Piggot, which is why you will always hold a special place in my heart."

Mark had never heard such a sweetly phrased threat.

"Is that what this is all about? Revenge?" Director Piggot sneered.

"Of course not." Psyker refuted. "I am fully capable of folding revenge into the larger scope of my ambitions. It accounts for less than 1% of my focus."

Well, that was insulting.

"Your plans to take over the world." Piggot sounded utterly unimpressed. To be fair, it was a rather cartoonish ambition.

"Now that Amelia is on board, I think we can do it in a matter of decades." Psyker stated confidently.

"You're crazy." Vicky blurted out. "Ames would never help you take over the world."

"Ummm, about that…." Amy squirmed awkwardly.

"No…" Victoria said like she couldn't believe it. "Why? I know you said that you think letting the Black Hand control Brockton Bay's underworld would be for the best, but you can't think helping them take over the world is a good idea."

"If you like, I can give you a detailed explanation on why a single organization having a monopoly on crime is a good thing later." Psyker offered, appearing for all the world completely genuine. "For now, we should address Director Piggot's concerns."

"Concerns." The overweight director repeated flatly. "Concerns such as you having what might very well be the most powerful biokinetic on the planet making drugs for you?"

"Among others, yes." Psyker nodded. "I know the PRT likes pre-signing kill orders on any capes with S-rank powers, but that will be as far as it goes for Amelia."

"Oh really?" Piggot sneered. "I wasn't aware that villains got to dictate PRT policy now. You put one toe out of line and I guarantee that the kill order will be carried out."

"Chief Director Costa-Brown will never okay it." Psyker said confidently. "I've studied her career, and that woman is a cold-hearted machine. She'd probably feed babies to a woodchipper if it served her goals. As long as the Black Hand is a stabilizing influence, the PRT will support us even if you don't."

Judging by the unhealthy purple color Piggot's face was turning, the villain was not just blowing hot air.

XXXXX

Taylor had judged the odds of Amelia being called while New Wave was talking to the PRT as fairly low, but high enough to be prepared for it.

So far, it had been a very productive meeting. New Wave was breaking apart even further, there was a wedge driven in between them and the PRT, and she got to taunt Armsmaster and Piggot.

The taunting was not only enjoyable, but also practical. She could only hope they would do something rash. That was part of the reason that Lisa was part of the meeting. She was very good at irritating people.

"That reminds me,… "She started, as if she hadn't been circling towards this the whole time. "We've been contacted by Uppercrust, who has requested Amelia's healing services and will be arriving in Brockton Bay soon."

Uppercrust was one of the leaders of the Elite, the most respected one by far. Although technically a villain, everyone treated him like an independent. His Tinker specialty in force fields was far, far too important for anyone to dare arrest him. He was the one who had created the force field around the Brockton Bay Protectorate, among many other such projects.

He also suffered from a rare neuro-degenerative disease that left him physically feeble and was slowly killing him. When Amelia had first triggered and word of her powers got around, Uppercrust had contacted New Wave with a request for healing, only to be told that she couldn't do brains.

Now that it had been announced that she had been lying about that, his people had wasted no time in contacting the Black Hand to purchase her services. Payment had been said to be 'negotiable' with a clear implication that Uppercrust was willing to meet any price.

Taylor absolutely intended to use this as a vector to partner with the Elite from a position of strength, then gradually subsume the entire organization. If her and Lisa' read of Uppercrust was accurate, he wouldn't even mind. He was actually a good man, who simply didn't want to be a government stooge, very much unlike Bastard Son and some of the other monsters that were also part of the Elite. The chance to not only get healed, but also bolster his position in the Elite, would not be something he would turn down.

It took Piggot and Armsmaster a few seconds to grasp the gravity of the situation and her quite blatant intentions. The helpless anger radiating from them as they realized that the PRT would back off if it meant keeping Uppercrust happy was glorious.

It would have been different if Amelia was creating mutant monsters, but her reputation as Panacea was beyond reproach. They could bluster about pre-signed kill orders, but bluster was all it would ever be now that the Black Hand was going to be partnered with a critical part of their infrastructure.

Uppercrust's robust shielding tech was saving the government tens of billions every year that would have been lost to flood or hurricane damage otherwise, to say nothing of the government facilities protected by them. They literally could not afford to piss him off.

"That's good, isn't it?" Shielder asked, looking around questioningly. "I had to do a paper on him a while back. A lot of people have been getting nervous about his deteriorating condition."

Yes, Uppercrust was a rare example of a Tinker whose tech was unusually reliable and required little maintenance.

Taylor had read every scrap of research on the subject of parahuman powers and could theorize why that was. It was known that Uppercrust had triggered because of his medical condition, and it was strongly theorized that parahumans became more powerful if they were put into a mental state similar to their trigger event. These were the so-called Sechen Ranges.

Uppercrust was constantly being reminded of his trigger trauma, and it was making him more powerful.

Of course, this did mean that healing him would likely significantly degrade the quality of his tinkertech. Taylor would do her best to capitalize on his reputation and clout for as long as it was useful if that was how it went.

"I just wanted to give you a heads up so that you didn't panic and do something rash when he shows up." She said with a smile. "Oh, and one other thing. Kaiser has hired Faultline'e Crew to break Hookwolf out of the Birdcage transport, so you might want to watch out for that."

"You're sure of this?" Armsmaster demanded.

"Yep!" She chirped, knowing it would annoy the man. "I've contacted Uber and Leet and rented the Snitch to run recon, and will be feeding you the video so that you have a better chance at stopping them."

The Snitch was the gamer duo's greatest achievement. A tennis ball-sized camera drone using gravity tech. They used it to film their stupid escapades, but the device was a wet dream for stealth recon.

"We don't need your help!" The leader of the ENE Protectorate ground out angrily.

"Too bad, because you're getting it whether you like it or not." Taylor chirped again. "Anyways, that's all we have to talk about for now. Bye bye!"

She cut the connection and leaned back in her chair, looking over at Lisa. "Well?"

"Brandish is losing it, Flashbang is in full 'I'm gonna do right by my kids if it's the last thing I do' grim dad mode, Lady Photon and Manpower have no idea what to do." She paused, actually looking hesitant for a moment. Then she gave Amelia an apologetic look. "I'm also pretty sure Brandish and Manpower used to have an affair."

The biokinetic didn't even look surprised, just sighing in exasperated disgust. "That just fucking figures."

"Aaaanyway…" Lisa pushed ahead. "Glory Girl, Laserdream, and Shielder are feeling guilty for not seeing how bad things were. Armsmaster and Piggot hate your guts. They are definitely going to try pushing for a greater Protectorate presence in Brockton Bay to counter you."

"Excelleeeent." Taylor drawled, making an evil finger steeple.

The ultimate goal was to make the PRT and Protectorate concede Brockton Bay to them, but having a larger number of heroic capes in the city would ironically serve that purpose. It wasn't like they would be able to bring enough force to bear unless they called in the Triumvirate, or at least something close to that level, which they wouldn't do. So all those extra capes would just end up feeling useless before shipping out again.

Plus, it would give her more chances to poach their roster. Clockblocker had already reached out, asking what it would cost to heal his dad's brain tumor. The PR damage caused by his defection was worth far more than his power, although she was sure the Tinkers would love to run some tests.

"Alright, Dr. Evil, take it easy." Amelia snarked.

"I have to get into the proper mindset." Taylor argued. "After all, I have a meeting with Kaiser in two days."

The leader of the Empire 88 had requested a meeting under truce in the neutral ground of Somer's Rock, exactly on the day that Hookwolf was being shipped out to the Birdcage. He probably thought he was being clever with that, keeping the Black Hand busy with diplomacy while a mercenary group busted out his enforcer.

Joke was on him, because she was still going to be there.

XXXXX

A few days previously...

"We find the defendant guilty of all charges." The speaker for the jury declared.

Taylor, in the guise of Canary, wanted to snort in disgust at this perversion of the justice system. It had only taken her one court session to see that the entire jury had been specifically picked for their bias, rather than impartiality.

In fact, everyone in this court room was either biased or bought. It was ridiculous.

"Then it falls to me to pronounce the sentence." Judge Peter Regan said pompously, as if he hadn't already decided it before court proceedings even started. His soul was filled with glee.

The treatment Canary had received was inhumane. Taylor was currently enjoying a very uncomfortable gag that could have probably kept shut the jaw of a T-Rex. Her hands were immobilized in heavy buckets filled with cement and containment foam, forcing her to either hunch over or have her shoulders pulled out of their sockets, and her legs were shackled with thick steel manacles.

All of this on the premise of 'she could have hidden Brute powers'. By that logic, any random person on the street should be treated as if they had the powers of Eidolon.

They could have conducted the entire trial remotely if they were so afraid of her powers, but the judge had insisted that she be physically present. The whole thing was a scheme to rob Paige of any sympathy, to make her look like a rabid animal. It shouldn't have worked on rational people, but Taylor had long since realized that people were not rational at all.

"Paige McAbee, AKA Bad Canary." Regan went on. "Considering the sheer magnitude of your crimes, I feel that there is only one sentence that I can give you. I consign you to lifetime imprisonment in the Baumann Parahuman Containment Center."

Taylor stared at the corrupt judge with a silent promise to kill him if he was still alive by the time her influence spread to where he lived. Nobody this rotten should be allowed to preside over something as important as the justice system, and the level of comfort he was demonstrating in perverting the legal system for his own ends spoke volumes about how often he must have done it in the past. Exactly the kind of person she despised most of all.

The judge faltered as he saw his death in Canary's bright green eyes, even if he didn't recognize it for what it was.

XXXXX

May 3rd, 2011.

Taylor had noted a certain pattern in the way that the PRT handled prisoner transport to the Birdcage. Namely, they were fond of sticking multiple, extremely dangerous capes into a single transport when at all possible.

But only if those capes weren't overly disruptive.

Capes like String Theory, who had been planning to explode the fucking moon because of 'reasons' had been shipped off to the Birdcage in a Dragon-piloted tinkertech gunship, sedated the whole time. Do not pass Go, do not collect 200 dollars.

Marquis, for contrast, had been driven there in a mundane armored van, pointedly not sedated. If anyone had cared to bust him out, there had been opportunities. He might have even been able to bust out himself if he wasn't injured. Perhaps he chose not to in order to protect his daughter, although that was only speculation.

Hookwolf was an unrepentant killer, but not really disruptive to whatever plan this 'Cauldron' group that Coil had bought powers from was running. Therefore, he had been kept in holding for two weeks, then put into the same transport as Canary.

"Hey, birdie." Hookwolf called out to her. "Lean closer to me."

He was bound with thick titanium restraints, too strong for him to just break by transforming. However, it was still far from the most secure way he could have been transported. Especially in the theoretical situation where Canary got free of the gag and mastered the guards into releasing them.

Canary also couldn't escape on her own, weighed down as she was by Brute-level restraints. But if someone were to carry her…

Yes, it was definitely looking like there were deliberate weaknesses in this transport scenario. If Hookwolf had enough precision with his powers, he could make a lockpick for her gag. It would be difficult, as they were both practically bolted to their seats, but it wasn't impossible.

Taylor gleaned as much from his thoughts. Hookwolf might be a vicious bastard, but he wasn't stupid, and he'd already broken out of a Birdcage transport twice. He had been thinking of doing it a third time ever since they'd been packed inside. But Taylor didn't want to escape, never mind that she didn't have Canary's voice power anyway. No, she wanted to get to the Birdcage safe and sound.

Therefore, she played up the 'timid girl stuck in a small space with a vicious killer' attitude, and shrank into her seat, looking away from him.

"Damn it girl, do you want to spend the rest of your life locked up?!" He snapped angrily. "Help me bust out of here!"

But Taylor just shook her head, refusing to look at him.

"Fucking useless bitch." He grumbled. "Guess all that time in solitary confinement broke you, or maybe you were a pussy to start with."

He couldn't know whether Canary had actually been in solitary confinement for the entire duration of her trial, but it was a good guess. And a mostly accurate one. Dragon was the only person that had willingly interacted with Paige since her arrest and had been trying to get her a fair trial and actual competent legal representation.

By all appearances, the most famous Tinker in the world desperately wanted to help Canary. And yet, at the same time, her efforts remained restricted to ineffectual appeals.

Very peculiar. Taylor was inclined to believe that Dragon was full of shit and cared more about looking like she cared than anything else. Paige, however, was convinced that Dragon genuinely wanted to help and was very frustrated by her inability to do so. The Tinker had been the only thing keeping her sane during her imprisonment, which did admittedly point to Dragon being more benevolent than her learned cynicism would assume.

Something here was not adding up. Dragon could definitely have done a lot more for Canary than she had. She was the most powerful and famous Tinker in the world. That kind of lofty title carried with it a lot of clout. Clout that she could have used to apply pressure to the legal system.

And yet, Dragon had not done that. She had acted strictly by the book, even as everyone else used the book to beat the girl that she seemed desperate to protect over the head.

Blackmail? Threats? Mastering? Pressure from on high? Impossible to say without more information, but Taylor was quite sure that she had stumbled upon yet another bit of rot infesting the world.

She'd figure it out eventually.

For now, it was almost time for Faultline's attack. If it was just Hookwolf in this transport, she wouldn't have bothered interfering. Him escaping the Birdcage for a third time could be used for her plans to further smear the PRT.

Alas for him, she wanted 'Canary' to arrive at the prison, so he was going along for the ride.

Taylor didn't have to do much, really. With the advance warning she gave them and the video from the Snitch, the Protectorate was well equipped to fight off Faultline's crew. The only potentially problematic member was Labyrinth, a Shaker 12 that could warp her surroundings by blurring the walls between dimensions.

Physical dimensions at least. The Empyrean was still out of her reach.

Too bad for Faultline that Labyrinth's powers also affected her mind, leaving her constantly seeing into other dimensions. It made her vulnerable to psychic influence. Taylor had gone to visit their night club a few times to scout them out.

Just before the attempted breakout started, she reached out to Labyrinth's – Elle's – mind and gently pulled her ever-wandering attention away from what was happening. That was enough to neutralize her as she was distracted by the sight of a vast cloud of millions of colorful butterflies on an alternate Earth. Some of those butterflies actually crossed over onto Earth Bet and got in the way of her teammates.

And without Labyrinth, the rest of Faultline's Crew couldn't really contend with a forewarned and prepared Protectorate.

She and Hookwolf barely felt a speedbump as the sounds of battle faded into the distance.

XXXXX

Meanwhile...

Dennis knew that he was going to be in deep shit for this. Shit so deep that he would probably not climb out of it until he aged out of the Wards and joined the Protectorate proper, if even then. They would probably ship him out to Alaska and make him change his name. Clockblocker would disappear into the ether, leaving behind only something lame, like Stopwatch. That was the name they'd tried to saddle him with, before he pulled his most brilliant prank of calling himself Clockblocker at his debut.

Piggot had been furious about that, but not half as furious as she was going to be over this.

Dennis was going to negotiate with villains on his own initiative, without telling anyone, in complete disregard of all guidelines, protocols, and warnings. This was how Wards disappeared or ended up dead.

But he doubted that would happen this time. Even if it was a risk, it was a risk that was worth taking for his father.

Because Amy had been lying about not being able to do brains. He couldn't even be upset at her. The implications were terrifying, and they'd all already been told to treat her as a potential S-rank threat. Amy, the snarky, perpetually tired girl that had fixed them up so many times, had instantly been demonized for something she could do. Yeah, he understood perfectly why she had lied if this was the PRT's knee-jerk reaction. The institutional paranoia was off the charts.

His own paranoia had a bit of a flare-up when a pretty snazzy black Audi with tinted windows stopped right next to where he'd been told to wait, less than a minute after he arrived. The passenger side door opened in a clear invitation.

Swallowing nervously, he got int without a word. At the driver's seat was a girl that couldn't be any older than him, definitely not old enough to drive legally. She was pretty cute, with lush black curls and deep brown eyes. Not much chest, but fantastic legs.

"Like what you see?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

Dennis realized that he had been staring. Mostly, it had been because he was confused about her youth, but his eyes might have lingered on the bare legs that her jean shorts weren't covering.

"Sorry, I was just surprised." He quickly responded, fumbling with the seatbelt. "You seem a bit young to be in a gang."

Great job, Dennis. That definitely won't come off as preachy and judgmental.

"But not too young to lead one, ironically." She replied with amusement, her brown eyes flashing blue-white with power.

"Psyker?!" Dennis gawked, having never expected to be picked up by the supervillain gang boss herself.

"In the flesh." She grinned. "But you can call me Taylor."

Aaaand she just casually revealed her real name. Wards training did not prepare him for this!

"So, Taylor, what did I do to deserve your personal attention?" He joked, hopefully managing to hide his concern.

"You'll find me to be a very 'hands on' kind of boss." The villain said, turning to give him a smile.

There were some worrying implications in that statement, but Dennis was nervous, so he defaulted to humor. "So, you like to put your hands on your minions?"

Damn it, Brain! This isn't the Wards! You can't crack dirty jokes with the dangerous villain!

"Some of them." Taylor answered, seeming not at all put off or angry. Then she reached over and pointedly put her hand on his thigh. "Are you hoping to be one of them?"

That was the moment that Dennis realized that he was in waaaaaay over his head. This villain was dangerous!

Face burning, he managed to squeak out. "Mom warned me about girls like you."

DAMN IT, BRAIN!

Thankfully, Psyker still seemed amused. She chuckled as she responded, taking her hand away. "Yes, I suppose I am one of those girls now. Isn't it funny how quickly life can change? Just a few months ago, I desperately needed a hero, now you desperately need a villain."

Ah, so they were getting to business. Dennis was not at all sure this was a good thing. He certainly didn't feel prepared to negotiate for his father's life. He had kind of been hoping that Amy would agree to heal him for old times' sake, but that was clearly not happening.

"Amy will always be a hero to me, even if she had to join up with you to protect herself." He said and meant it.

Panacea had saved so many lives. The PRT might be quick to forget that in their paranoia, but he wouldn't.

"She'll be happy to hear that, make sure you mention it to her." The villain seemed pleased.

"Sure." It was the least he could do.

"Now, on the subject of your father…"

Dennis tensed.

"Amelia is more than willing to heal him now that she isn't hiding her powers anymore." There was definitely a but coming.. "But I can't let an opportunity like this go, I'm sure you understand."

"I'd rather talk to Amy about this directly." He evaded. That was what he'd been hoping for when he reached out.

"And she would heal your father because she already felt guilty about all the brain tumors and brain damage that she pretended she couldn't fix." Taylor immediately countered. "But I'm not going to let that happen. Brandish has saddled Amelia with a severe guilt complex that I've been working to untangle for some time now. I can't have you making her backslide. Besides, letting her heal for free is bad for her sense of value."

"Her sense of value?" His face scrunched up in confusion, not sure what she meant.

"Yes." The villain nodded. "When people give or receive things for free, it gives everyone involved a false sense that the things given or received are worthless. It's the reason why just giving money to the homeless tends to create more homeless instead of less. In Amelia's case, it made her feel like a tool, and it made the people she was healing feel like they were entitled to it."

An uncomfortable lump settled into his stomach as he remembered the numerous occasions Amy was called in fix up PRT or Protectorate personnel, particularly the Wards and heroes. It was only a 'request' seeing as New Wave was an independent hero team, but it was a request that Brandish would never have let Amy refuse.

"How can I pay, then?" He asked. "I don't have a whole lot of money…"

Wards did get paid, but it was minimum wage and most of it was locked in a college trust fund.

"Oh, I want much more than just money. I want you."

His mind immediately dove into the gutter at the wording, and he blurted out the first quip that came to him. "I'm saving myself for marriage."

Brain, I swear to God I will stab you with a fucking Q-tip.

"Your virtue is mostly safe." Taylor replied sardonically, apparently not at all thrown off. He really envied her composure.

"Only mostly?"

"Unlimited access to Black Hand prostitutes is part of my employment package, alongside dental and medical. Since I'm paying them for any encounters with our capes, the girls have made a game of trying to seduce them."

Dennis was once again reminded that he was in waaaaay over his head. He also had a flash of insight as to how Amy had been lured over to the dark side.

Talking to Psyker wasn't like talking to Piggot or Armsmaster or Brandish. It couldn't be like talking Kaiser or Lung either. Psyker wasn't decades older, demanding implicit respect by virtue of her greater age, but not really giving any back. She didn't silently demand compliance because she was an adult and 'knew better'.

Talking to Psyker was more like bantering with friends at school. Without realizing it, Dennis had relaxed and gotten comfortable. That was why his mouth had gotten away from him so many times. It was more like talking to the ultra cool kid in class or the super popular girl, kind of like the first time he'd talked to Vicky. Still a bit intimidating, but much more relatable.

It wasn't until she reminded him that she was controlling a rapidly expanding criminal empire that he was shocked out of that sense of ease. For fuck's sake, he'd almost forgotten for a moment that this was the girl that was still brutally torturing Heartbreaker at this very moment.

He was being spoken to as an equal, rather than as a stupid kid that needed to shut up and listen. If Amy's home life had been as bad as implied, then something like this would have been like a lifeline thrown to her while she was drowning at sea.

Not knowing what to say in response to potentially having his virginity threatened, Dennis decided to change the subject. "I don't really want to be a villain."

"For all I care, you can just stay inside and play video games all day. Regent already does that most of the time. My Tinkers might also ask to run some tests on your powers, but I want you to join the Black Hand so that I can hurt the PRT where it counts – in their public image."

Okay, yeah, Dennis could definitely see how a headline like 'Ward gives heroes the finger, joins villain gang' would hurt the PRT. He didn't really have any particular loyalty to them, so that didn't bother him. And if he wasn't going to have to hurt people, then just being a villain on paper wasn't that big of a price to pay for his father's life.

Psyker was a dangerous, dangerous girl. No wonder she'd been giving Piggot and Armsmaster so many conniptions if this was how she operated.

"That's all I'll have to do, just wear a T-shirt with your band name on it?" He asked.

"Unless you want to do more." She said seriously, parking the car… disturbingly close to his house, and turning to face him. "For so sworn, good or evil, an oath may not be broken and it shall pursue oathkeeper and oathbreaker to the world's end."

"Is that a quote?" Dennis tried to ignore the goosebumps on his skin. Somehow he knew that she absolutely meant it.

"Tolkien." She nodded. "I've been the victim of many broken promises, so I make it a point to keep mine… and make others suffer for breaking theirs."

Well, that was a fairly unsubtle threat. Still, he was at least assured that his father would be saved if he agreed and that he wouldn't have to pay too high a price for it. Honestly, he had been expecting worse.

"Man, going to school is going to be so weird after this." Dennis said in resignation.

Piggot was going to yell at him. Armsmaster was going to yell at him. His mom was going to yell at him. Even his dad was going to yell at him.

But at least his dad was going to be alive and well enough to yell at him.

"It won't be so bad." Taylor said cheerfully. "Besides, I intend to recruit your friends as well. Feel free to tell them that."

If Psyker managed to steal away the entirety of the Brockton Bay Wards from her, Director Piggot might actually die from a rage-induced aneurysm.

XXXXX

At around the same time…

Villain meetings at Somer's Rock were layered things, like an onion. Everything from when certain parties arrived, where they sat, how they sat, how many escorts they brought, how they greeted each other, and other things could influence first impressions and give an advantage to one or the other.

Taylor decided to arrive early, alone, and sat casually at a corner table that would leave her boxed in once the Empire arrived.

She also had her helmet/mask sitting on the table next to her while she drank a glass of bourbon, which she knew was Max Anders' drink of choice.

Kaiser's bold stride into the dingy bar faltered as he saw her. It was only a momentary lapse, but he was clearly unsettled.

"Kaiser, right on time." Taylor greeted easily. "I guess that's German precision at work."

Absolutely none of the Empire party was German, of course. Krieg was the closest they had. Or was it the Valkyrie Twins? Their costumes were Nordic, but their real names, Nessa and Jessica Bierman, were kind of German-ish? It definitely wasn't Purity, at least.

An interesting lineup, as well. Kaiser himself, of course, plus his remaining lieutenants and his bodyguards/bedmates. Purity might be here unwillingly, but this still represented the whole of the Empire's leadership.

"Psyker." Kaiser said, sitting down and letting his escorts fan out around him at the table, seemingly pinning Taylor against the wall. "You are being awfully bold."

Bold for being here alone and for unmasking, both of which were bothering him deeply. The former, because this meeting had been meant to occupy Black Hand capes so that Faultline would have a free hand to bust out Hookwolf. The latter, because it implied a great many troublesome things.

"We are all people of honor here, aren't we?" She smiled and gave him a mocking toast with the bourbon. "I'm sure we can behave ourselves."

Of course, she wasn't dumb enough to use her real face. That would have put her father in danger. Instead, she had the appearance of a mid-twenties woman with straight black hair and bright blue eyes.

A very beautiful mid-twenties woman.

Before and for some time after her trigger event, Taylor had not understood how to use beauty as a weapon. She knew it could be one, but it had always been something used against her. Since then, she had learned much.

"Indeed, we should be able to come to an accord." Krieg agreed.

He and Kaiser were obviously going to do all the talking. Purity was practically radiating discomfort.

The twins, on the other hand, were conflicted. She could feel the gratitude they felt for saving them from Heartbreaker. It left them in an odd position.

The deaf waitress came by to ask if they wanted anything. Taylor ordered another bourbon, just because. The paranoia in Kaiser's mind tasted better than the alcohol.

"So, you called for this meeting." She opened up once they were free to talk. "What did you want to discuss?"

"It occurred to me that we may both want the same thing – a prosperous Brockton Bay." Kaiser lied. "There are better ways to settle our differences than street fights."

"Are there really?" Taylor idly toyed with the rim of her glass. "The ethos of your organization is somewhat incompatible with a significant portion of my subordinates."

"Surely you must haf realized by now zat some men are simply better zan others." Krieg interjected. "You have practically worked miracles in squeezing worth out of ze negroes, but all of your most valuable subordinates are white."

Really, he was bringing this up now? Well, she supposed that it was a good a subject as any if their intention was to just waste time, but that plan had been sunk because she came here alone.

Although, Kaiser's grimace, which she could not see behind his helmet, but could absolutely feel, was rather funny. It also meant that there was some friction between them. How interesting.

"Krieg, why must you be so racist to white people?" Taylor asked in an exasperated manner.

"What?!" The man in question sputtered in shock, forgetting to use his cringy German accent.

He had been accused of racism many times, but never against whites.

"I find your lack of faith disturbing." Taylor continued fucking with him.

After all, they were just here to waste time.

"I don't understand?" Purity spoke up, tone laced with confusion.

"It's rather simple." Taylor leaned back in her seat, deliberately opening up her body language. "If we take his espoused belief the superiority of whites as true, then there is no reason to be hostile to non-whites. Simply apply the same standards to everyone and whites will rise to the top by the merit of their superiority, while the rest sink to the bottom… unless, of course, you lack faith in your own beliefs and think that whites are so weak that they need the extra help?"

"You make a fair point." Kaiser said before Krieg could reply. "And perfectly in line with the traditional American values the Empire has done its best to champion."

Oh, so that was his play? Kaiser had been trying to portray himself as a defender of American values ever since he took over the Empire, downplaying the whole white supremacy thing. Now he was trying to pivot further. An opportunist to the core, he would leapfrog from position to position whenever it suited him.

Taylor felt that she had a good measure of the man now. Studying his career, both cape and civilian, had already given her the inkling that he didn't really care about the Empire 88's original message. Meeting him in person told her that he was a narcissist, a man with no real principles, just boundless ego.

He might be even worse than a racist. He was… a bog-standard corrupt politician.

How boring.

"Really?" Taylor drawled sardonically.

"I've done my best, but there is only so much one man can do." He shrugged with false modesty. "Together, we could do much more."

Was he seriously suggesting…?

"You want to bury the hatchet?"

"More than that. I am proposing that we join hands." He said smoothly.

Taylor slowly finished off the bourbon she'd ordered, making a show of thinking deeply.

She was really hitting those low probability events lately. Kaiser suggesting an outright merging of their organizations wasn't a possibility she had contemplated with any degree of seriousness. Even more hilariously, he was subtly suggesting that they seal the deal with an intimate relationship.

And right next to his ex-wife, too. How incredibly brazen of him. The guise of a beautiful adult woman had worked better than expected. Even with his philandering with the Valkyrie Twins, she hadn't thought he was sufficiently influenced by his libido to go for a strategy like this.

Obviously, he was banking on his charisma to slowly twist her around his finger. Judging by Purity's thoughts and emotions, he had done something similar to her.

Rather arrogant of him to think he could get the better of a powerful Thinker that was rumored to be psychic, but he was an arrogant man. And for all the strength of his parahuman power, he had always preferred talking.

There were some practical benefits to the idea. She could have the Empire fully subsumed in a matter of months, with no further loss of life or resources. By the end of it Medhall would be hers… she might even get herself a pair of hot blonde twins out of it. If they were sufficiently loose to share a man, then they might be open to something a little more sapphic. All it would cost her was a brief period of putting up with his attempts to charm her while she usurped his control.

But no, such a merger would permanently stain her reputation. No doubt, Kaiser was banking on that as well, using the Black Hand to dilute the Empire's baggage while at the same time dragging them down to the same level.

"An interesting offer, but I have to decline." She said, putting down her glass and going back to lounging. "The Empire 88's reputation is a bit too indigestible for any friendly association to be viable."

There was a burst of frustration from Kaiser, one that tasted old and well worn. And it wasn't aimed at her. Huh, it looked like this wasn't the first time that being known as a Nazi organization had gotten in his way. Imagine that.

But he let nothing of it show in his demeanor, which remained casual. "I was assuming we would take up a new name. It isn't like 'Black Hand' is free of unfortunate associations."

True. When she had come up with the name, she hadn't realized that it had once been a real organization. And one responsible for setting off the first World War of all things. Serbian terrorists sure had been edgelords back then.

There was some merit to the idea of using a merger with another villain organization to reinvent themselves. However, the other organization would need to have an at least neutral reputation. Combining two organizations that had connotations to one World War each sounded like a terrible idea. It would give the PRT entirely too much ammo to work with.

"The sins of our fathers do weigh heavily, don't they?" She deflected instead of answering directly.

The entire Empire contingent froze at the implication.

"Psyker…" Kaiser said warningly.

"Do calm down, Max." She blithely confirmed his suspicions. "Coil had extensive files on the Empire, including identities. But you don't have to worry about being outed. Medhall is still the largest employer in Brockton Bay and I don't want the people of this city suffering any further hardship from its closure."

It was even the truth. Besides, she didn't need to attack the Empire in such a crude fashion to win.

"It is still a serious breach of the Unwritten Rules." He ground out, as if he wasn't intending to scour the city in his attempts to put a name to the face currently smirking at him.

"You would have to take it up with Coil." Taylor refused to take any responsibility. "Now, I am willing to negotiate a peaceful transition of assets so that you have time to pack up and leave Brockton Bay with minimal fuss."

It wasn't as generous an offer as it looked. The Sword of Damocles that was her knowledge of the Empire capes identities would continue to hang over his head. To say nothing of the fact that his power was rather distinct, and having Kaiser show up in a different city just after Max Anders moved would be suspicious as hell. Further, he would probably lose control of Purity if he did so, and perhaps several other capes.

Night and Fog for sure. Krieg might return to Gesellschaft. The Valkyrie Twins must have been distant from him since the Heartbreaker encounter.

In short, if he took her offer, he would lose almost everything. For a man as arrogant and narcissistic as Max Anders, there was only one response he could have to that.

Taylor didn't so much as twitch as a blade suddenly sprouted from the edge of the table and impaled her through the chest, pinning her to the booth behind her.

"Was that entirely necessary?" She raised an eyebrow, acting like she wasn't currently suffering from a massive stabbing-induced heart attack. "Weren't you the one concerned with the Unwritten Rules just a second ago?"

Purity and the Valkyrie Twins had jumped in surprise at the sudden attack, and were now staring at her in shock. Krieg was less affected, but both he and Kaiser were very unnerved.

The odds of them breaking the truce if she showed up alone had always been judged as high, which was why she had done it.

Kaiser didn't reply verbally, instead growing a giant pair of scissoring blades at neck height, cutting off her head. There was a faint scream of horror from the bar owners.

A moment of tense silence followed. Purity and the Valkyrie Twins were still stunned, but Krieg bent down to pick up her severed head.

"Just as planned." Taylor said, drawing on the Empyrean to make it possible to speak without lungs.

Krieg yelped like a little girl and tossed her head in the air. Kaiser jumped out of his seat, sending his chair crashing to the ground. Taylor used telekinesis to make sure that her head landed neck first on the table with a wet splat.

Then she proceeded to stare at the Empire capes, emulating Lisa's smuggest smirk. Even with her peculiar relationship with biology, having her head cut off was fatal to that particular body, but she was able to retain consciousness longer than normal. Long enough to thoroughly creep out her killers.

No doubt Kaiser had thought that the hit to his reputation for violating a truce meeting could be recovered from, and that it would be worth it to have the Black Hand fall apart without her. He had also been low key panicking from the realization that his identity was known. It had been a rash, impulsive decision.

One that would haunt him, as he reaped all the downsides of this clusterfuck with none of the benefits.

Taylor's last sight out of those particular eyes was the Empire Capes staring at her in horror as they processed what she'd said.

XXXXX

"Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned."

"Indeed you have." Father Douglas sighed. "Quite egregiously at that."

"I suppose you've heard about my livestream, then?"

"Several of my flock have already come to me, confessing guilt for enjoying a man's torture."

"I'm sorry to hear that." And she really was. She knew that streaming Heartbreaker's torture was going to have effects beyond those she was aiming for.

"I understand your reasons." Father Douglas said. "I have heard of the hundreds that your actions have forced to reveal themselves."

"It was even worse than I expected, frankly." Taylor admitted. "Even Heartbreaker forgot how many people he had casually enthralled."

The worm would sometimes do it out of boredom, just enthralling random people he ran into and ordering them to spy for him and avenge him if he was killed or captured by the authorities. Many were just average people, but there were also others he had targeted specifically. Politicians, police, soldiers,…

The PRT was finding itself overwhelmed, and a good chunk of the Canadian government was paralyzed as they tried to deal with all the mastered people. It was the worst in Montreal, which had almost ground to a halt from the sheer number of influential people that were suddenly no longer doing their jobs.

"Are you alright?" The priest asked, concerned.

Taylor paused, a little surprised. Not at the concern itself, but that he would voice it first. "I was expecting more disapproval."

"Heartbreaker is a man of the most base and depraved evil, he was always destined to meet an evil end. I may be a priest, but I am only human, and I cannot bring myself to feel any sympathy for him. But I fear for you, my child. Cruelty is not a weapon that you can wield safely. We leave the final judgment of the guilty to God so that we do not blacken our souls."

She knew that. Torturing Heartbreaker made him release so many delicious emotions into the Empyrean. First, it had been anger and indignation. That had soon turned into fear. The last drops of hope had already been squeezed out of him. Now there was only the pitiful ruins of a broken soul that would do anything to escape the pain.

It was all too easy to imagine how she could become twisted when presented with such a feast. All too easy to imagine herself torturing hundreds, thousands of people at a time so that she could devour their powerful emotions and their souls.

"I couldn't think of any other way to prevent further harm, and I can't let anyone else do it." Taylor said.

"You take too much upon yourself, Taylor." Father Douglas warned, but with a faintly pleading tone of voice. "No single person can carry the weight of all the world's evils on their shoulders, nor should they."

If there was anyone who could, it was her. She understood what he was trying to say, but the available paths forward had narrowed. Even as her power and resources grew, the purposes she could use them for diminished. Like many tiny streams merging into a great river, carrying her along towards the ocean. Or perhaps it was just her perspective that was changing, allowing her to see more broadly.

Taylor read constantly now, everything from political treatises and philosophical essays to fictional stories, seeking the wisdom to make the right choices.

"I don't intend to carry it, Father. I intend to drag it into the darkness with me. Criminals like me should not be able to stand in the light so brazenly."

She would still be able to live as she wished and help those she wanted to help, but not as a parahuman warlord thumbing her nose at the powerlessness of normal people. She would force the heroes to become actual heroes instead of just government thugs, and she would keep a leash on the villains.

The rampant chaos gripping the world would be forced into order.

"I am worried about you, Taylor." Father Douglas said after a long silence. "Every time we speak, you seem somehow… less."

Ironic, considering that she was in fact always more. Still, she understood.

"Less human?"

Father Douglas hesitated before replying. "Yes."

"You have a good intuition, Father." She said and stood up. "Thank you for your time and wisdom."

As she stepped out of the confession booth, the old priest did as well. He reached out to grab her by the wrist, surprisingly strong for his age.

"Taylor, no matter what happens, promise me that you will remember who you are." He spoke urgently. "Anyone can wield power, but it takes true strength of soul to keep hold of the things that actually matter."

"You really think I can do that?" She was curious. More than any other person, Father Douglas had seen her change over time.

"I have faith." He replied simply, his radiant soul shining brightly with the truth of it.

Not just faith in God, but a genuine faith in humanity itself. Having had her own systematically destroyed, one of the things that kept her coming back to him was her fascination with that faith.

"I guess I can't let you down, then."

XXXXX

May 4th, 2011.

Cherie Vasil, Cherish of the Slaughterhouse 9, swallowed as they approached Brockton Bay.

She hadn't understood why Jack was so fixated on this city for the past couple of months or why he felt the need to prepare so much before coming here. She also hadn't understood how he was preparing, short of listening to his 'gut feelings' and leading them criss-crossing across half the country.

She hadn't really cared since it didn't impact her plans in any way… until Psyker, the very cape that had Jack's undivided attention recently, snatched her father and started torturing him on a livestream.

It was beautiful, but it also made her regret shacking up with the Nine. If she'd known that the old bastard was going to get taken care of, she wouldn't have made such a risky play. She'd have come here to join up with Psyker instead.

Now here they were, and she was starting to get some inkling as to why Jack had spent so much time preparing for the Nine's return to Brockton Bay.

"Well? What kind of music is our dear Psyker making?" The psychopath in question asked with a small grin.

Cherie perceived people's emotions as music.

"It's like nothing I've ever heard before." She tried to explain. "Her melody is everywhere, but it's like I'm only hearing pieces of it from each location. There's dozens of sources, each one like a single note in some vast symphony. She's watching all the roads into the city and her focus is inhuman."

Cherish knew that she would not be able to influence Psyker. There was no telling if the pieces of her in Brockton Bay were all of her pieces. And even if they were, they still felt like only a small part of the whole. No wonder she'd been able to no-sell her old man.

It was giving her a migraine just trying to make sense of it.

"Interesting." Jack's grin widened. "I guess we're playing hide and seek this time."

Chapter 441 - A ruinous gift (23)