Still April 5th, 2010
My SEP field talismans were amazing for sneaking around. What they were outright TERRIBLE for, was a direct confrontation.
Just think about it - imagine you go to the store for groceries. You pick up your stuff, go to the checkout - only to see that the only cashier is a 900 pound gorilla, dutifully doing every single thing a cashier should, and even wishing people a nice day in its own gorilla way. You think it's weird. Maybe you sneak a picture (dick move - always ask permission to take someone's picture), but eventually your groceries are done and you try to get Cashier Gorilla out of your mind. Maybe you go to that shop again, and Cashier Gorilla is there again, and it's just a bit less weird for you this time. And again next time, and the next time - it gets less weird with each trip, and since nothing happens, your brain decides it might as well ignore the fact that the cashier is a gorilla. But if it suddenly picks up the register and tries to bludgeon you with it? Yeah, there's no way to ignore it any longer. Even if you escape the brain trauma successfully, you'll be wary of the Cashier Gorilla for the rest of your life.
The worst thing I could do while hidden under SEP field was to try to attack someone. Our brains are really good at ignoring things they can't wrap themselves around, but they're equally as good at reacting to danger. If you're chased by a magical maniac with a time-shredding chainsaw, you don't have to UNDERSTAND how magical is that maniac, or what a time-shredding chainsaw does to your fragile time-space continuum, you only have to understand that you're in danger, and that you need to either run, or deck that maniac in the jaw hard enough to confiscate his chainsaw and time-shred HIM instead. Also next time, your brain will be less likely to ignore that weird tingly feeling it receives from being close to a time-shredding chainsaw OR to filter out someone being magic. Or, in other word - if I used a SEP field to attack someone off the back of my turtle - they were very likely to see my SEP-cloaked turtle afterwards, and the effect could even spread to me in general, or in the worst case scenario, make them more resistant to all SEP fields.
So I couldn't just start raining justice under the cover of stealth. I had to decloak first - and I needed a plan of action for what to do afterwards.
"Well-well-well," Alabaster smirked, his voice sounding the exact kind of dusty, gruff bass you'd expect from a goon #3 in a mafia movie, "I was wondering when we'll meet, lil' Scarab."
He sounded pleased with himself. And yeah, why wouldn't he - he and fifteen of his Nazis were blocking all the entrances to this alleyway, with their ambushee stuck in the midst of it, looking practically tiny in their trench coat and bandages.
"…not Scarab," they shook their head, "…Brightbug General…"
"Well, we'll try to remember that after we ventilate you good," the Nazi cape shrugged. His entire entourage was armed with pistols.
Here from my vantage point of flying overhead, I could see that Brightbug was in quite a pickle. The Nazis surrounding them looked bulky from afar - because if you got just a bit closer, you could see that they were each wearing a beekeper's costume. Which was definitely bad news for a bug whisperer like General - there was just no way to use bugs to incapacitate someone who was wearing this level of anti-bug protection.
The only one wearing normal clothes was Alabaster himself - which still didn't constitute for good news. Since you know, damage-nullifying Brute.
For Brightbug's own defences… Look, those bandages might stop a low caliber bullet from penetrating, but it'll still have one hell of a kick to it. If all fifteen Nazis were to empty their clips into them? They wouldn't be standing for long either way.
This was the exact kind of a situation I warned General about. The fact they willingly stepped into this ambush was, honestly, aggravating - but at least, I was here to help, so I could be aggravated at them afterwards
"Well, there's another way, I guess. You can join us," the Nazi cape smirked, before pointing at the noir mummy, "Take off those bandages though. Gonna make sure ye'r white enough."
There was a lull in the conversation, as if General was considering Nazi's words. It lasted for just a few moments - a few moments I've used to plan my next course of actions.
"…no deal."
Next moment, the shadows in the alley surged, hissing, skittering and BUZZING.
I decloaked myself.
Gunshots began to sound through the alleyway.
I threw a barrier talisman in front of the largest group, causing them to flinch as their shots pinged against the hard light construct.
Brightbug dashed to Alabaster, who pulled a pair of pistols on them - and began firing at the mummy wannabe.
I pulled another barrier talisman, throwing it between the next largest group of Nazis and the two capes. Their shots, unimpeded by their own parahuman support being in melee with the target, THWOMMed against the light construct.
"A-ANOTHER CAPE!"
Buzzing shadows descended on all Nazis, not exactly hurting them, but still lowering their vision somewhat.
Brightbug punched Alabaster, hitting him with a sharp CRACK - the albino flew about six feet, falling prone. Some sort of a minor Brute power..?
"IN THE AIR!" one of the Nazis yelled, immediately shooting at me. The bullet plonked off Hanzo's shell - glad I had him reinforced with long-effect Defence talismans, like my toolbox. And my clothes.
Bloody hell, they were SHOOTING at me!
General was already amidst the four Nazis who were waiting with Alabaster, not-exactly-coordinated swipes still tearing their protective suits with one or two hits each - after which, clouds of insects descended on the newly exposed victims.
Yeah, minor Brute rating.
Alabaster was standing up, seemingly completely ignoring both the Brute-rated punch from before AND the thick carpet of insects trying to sting him.
I turned, and thwacked my Orb towards Alabaster.
Another couple of bullets plinked against Hanzo's shield, and once - against my own.
The albino was just about to fire into Brightbug's back - while they were dashing towards the next group of Nazis - only to be bonked on the back of his head. He didn't see it coming - just went for a little nap on the pavement.
General was already amidst three other Nazis,
I pulled the Orb back to me, and threw a Defence talisman between my ally and the final group of Nazis, them yelling in surprise.
The three guys with their suits already torn were swarmed by the surrounding shadows.
I thwacked the Orb at a Nazi cluster - the furthest from General, so their wild, near blind shooting didn't hit one of their own.
Brightbug was already running towards another group, and vaulted over their barrier.
My Orb bonked one Nazi in the head, another in the chest, and the third in the groin, all three falling to the ground, unconscious. Huh, cool.
There was one more shot at me (this time at an odd angle - ricochet?), plinking uselessly against my personal shield.
I pulled the Orb back to me.
The last cluster of Nazis was already writhing on the ground, screaming from all the bugs crawling through their torn beekeeper's suits.
I couldn't help but shiver at the thought. Then, I shivered again - the reality I would've been shot by now without my barriers hit me like a sledgehammer.
I... Yeah, I could've died here. How the HELL were some capes doing this without some sort of personal protection?!
Like, imagine trying to fight armed gangers with just a power to shoot pewpew lasers out of your fingertips, and nothing but your ability to not be shot at to protect your squishy body.
Utter madness.
Okay, aside from that...
It seemed like General was not very well-trained - their moves were very amateurish, but just powerful and quick enough to still work. Definitely a Brute with only enough training or control not to hurt regular mooks.
Also…
Yeah, the fight was over in... Uh... Less than a minute, maybe?
I eyed Alabaster - still taking the dirt nap after eating one too many Orbs to the head (one). Either that, or pretending to be unconscious.
"Zip tie Alabaster first," I said through the walkie talkie, before thinking about it for a moment. He was a brute… "Actually, do you have something stronger than zip ties?"
"…NO… …I'LL USE SEVERAL…" came the response.
Hm…
Couldn't they just make spider silk threads to restrain Brutes? Or was it difficult for some reason..? It really shouldn't be…
I flew a bit closer, prepared to chuck the Orb at the Nazi cape again at a moment's notice - but it was kinda unnecessary. Brightbug just used three zip ties on his wrists, and then went to tie the rest of the Nazis. While limping a bit.
Shit, were they injured?
"I'll mop them up. Sit down, and call the PRT," I sighed.
General seemingly wanted to object - but then nodded, and pulled their burner out of the trench coat's pocket. With how many bullets were flying around? It was probably a miracle the thing was not busted by now.
Especially since that trench coat had quite a few holes in it now - no blood though.
Still not good…
I've finished zip tying the Nazis in just a few minutes - some of them were unconscious, some were barely responsive while in fetal position, though none offered much of a resistance to being restrained - and approached Brightbug, sitting on the ground next to them.
I really wanted to have another talk with General, but - not here. There were too many probably-conscious Nazis here.
A few minutes later, I've heard the sounds of an approaching motorcycle - which in just a few seconds, burst into the alleyway - nearly ramming into one group of subdued Nazis, before popping a wheelie just high enough to go over their heads, and stop at the other side of the freshly refrightened Nazi pile.
"Whoa, sorry about that. Didn't see you there," the new arrival noted, clearly only slighty sorry about the ordeal, as if she bumped into someone in a corridor.
Challenger - one of the local Protectorate members - then disembarked her bike, and approached us.
"You're the ones who called this in, right?"
She had a weird costume - red bodysuit with epaulettes. Also, she didn't wear a mask - pretty sure the only PRT cape with that distinction. On any other occasion, that would've put her in good enough graces with me to give her benefit of the doubt, but-
"What the HELL was that..?" I ground through my teeth, looking straight at the newly-arrived 'hero'.
"Like I said, I'm sorry," she put up her hands placatingly, "I really didn't think they'd be lying there, that was my bad."
"'Your bad', huh," I looked at the woman who was probably twice my age, with the mental maturity of someone two times younger, "And whose bad would've it been if you 'accidentally' pasted them? Yours - a career 'Hero' with so much to lose if you get criminally charged - or ours? Because I'm pretty sure it's not you PRT would be glad to throw under the bus."
"It still would be me," she argued, pointing at a dark spot on her epaulette, "My bodycam, always on, so-"
"So it can be accidentally wiped or destroyed if something happens, by claiming 'weak EMP', or 'Brute-rated accident'. And even if your bosses know it's your fault, we'll still have to assume they don't default to covering their asses by hiding the evidence and putting the blame on us."
"Khhh-," she looked like she REALLY wanted to argue with me, but was trying not to, "Okay. You're right. I'm very sorry for this. I've made a stupid mistake, and probably should've left my bike outside. Can we start over, please?"
If there was one plus to wearing no mask, it was the ability of others to see your facial expressions. And while I was not as socially proficient as Lisa, I saw that this apology was both difficult for her, and sincere enough to MAYBE count.
I've decided that we could start over, but she was on paper-thin ice.
"Sure," I sighed, doing my best to level my own expression, "Yeah, we're the ones who called this in. This is Brightbug General, the Nazis - who decided to call them Scarab - ambushed them in this alley. I was nearby and, after seeing them engaging Alabaster, decided to intervene."
"And you are..?"
"I'm still thinking on my own branding. That stuff is difficult," I sighed, then looking at the Protectorate cape, "Do NOT put me into the system under some kind of a temporary designation."
"I'm sorry, but it's kind of out of my hands," she grimaced, "We do that every time a new cape appears, but we will update-"
"If you have to put me in under a temporary name, just use 'Jane Doe'," I deadpanned. 'John Doe' and 'Jane Doe' were governmental placeholder names, in case the person in the documents was not identified. Then, in a flash of inspiration (and a bit of channeling Lisa), I side-eyed Challenger's bike, "Think of it as a… Favour you could do for me."
She slowly, unhappily nodded, seemingly catching my drift.
"So… What exactly happened during the fight?" she asked, seemingly both finding the situation a bit uncomfortable, and not finding any particular joy in debriefs.
"You can ask Brightbug General about their own contributions to the fight," I noted, "But as for me… I was hanging back away from the fight, and picked out three Nazis, as well as Alabaster once it became clear he was in stalemate with Brightbug."
"Picked out… With what exactly..?" she eyed my Yin-Yang Orb.
"With something I have an access to. I am not comfortable sharing any details," not with PRT. Not after they've bugged my entire house like a bunch of freaky stalkers.
She clearly didn't like that response, but at least was not confrontational enough to keep pestering me.
Brightbug was in even less of a mood to share, giving one- or two-word answers. Not sure if they shared my uncharitable impression of PRT, or it was due to them turning into one big bruise from all the sustained gunfire.
In the end, I've decided that at the very least, I could tolerate Challenger enough to work with her. I wasn't going to like her any time soon, but you didn't necessarily liked people you worked with. Though now, I planned to get one of them portable cameras to incorporate into my own costume - like hell was I going to trust PRT the next time they screwed up in my vicinity not to pin their shit on me. Maybe one that streams video to a private server? Thoughts for later.
After about twenty more minutes of empty talk, clarifications and 'no comments' with Challenger, PRT agents and police officers, we were finally flying away from that alley, concealed on Hanzo's back.
"Okay, what was that?" I finally decided to raise the question.
"…you mean… ...ah… …I become stronger, the less troops I comma-"
"Not that. Why did you get into the fight, Brightbug?" my look was less than impressed, "Sure, we won. But it was an unnecessary risk. Unnecessary fight. And it might complicate things down the line, so… Why?"
"…" they thought about it for a minute, "…I… …I need to be a Hero… …I can't- can't make stupid mistakes… …and that Thursday, I made a- a mistake that nearly cost someone their life…"
"So you've made a stupid mistake to try to cover for another," I deadpanned. General wilted at the words, "Do you know what's going to happen now?"
"…um… …Alabaster will be sent to prison… …and his grunts will be too…"
"…except PRT will likely lose Alabaster when Empire raids his transport to the federal prison. The rest of the goons? Half of them will likely be out on parole in a week, the rest maybe in a month. If we're lucky, one or two of them will end up in prison - only to return to the Empire the moment they stage a breakout or something. Sure, you've traumatised at least some of them for good, but it takes a stupid person to make the same mistake over and over again, and you have to be pretty damn stupid to be a Nazi," I looked at Brightbug, "And even if all of them miraculously stay in prison for longer than a fortnight, they've got lawyers, corrupt cops and who else who can bring the info they've got today to the Empire."
"…oh…"
Oh indeed.
"So now they know that you've got some sort of a Brute rating, that small caliber fire is useless, and that I was there, either by coincidence, or allied with you. And in a few days tops, the rest of the Empire will know as well. What will they do next? Probably try higher calibers, maybe assault rifles, or shotguns. Maybe a sniper rifle, or even explosives - some of them could be ex-military. Also, they'll likely try with Stormtiger or Hookwolf next time, since Alabaster didn't pan out. Either way, they'll be just a bit more ready for you - and they only need to succeed once."
General… Sniffed? Wait, were they crying..?
"…I'm sorry… …I didn't… … …I'm sorry…"
Yep, they were. Bloody hell…
"Look. Brightbug. I know you are trying to do good here, but you should also be trying to do smart. You know the statistics - most independents don't live past half a year. That's because they do stupid shit, and mistake their blind luck for skill. And luck eventually runs out," I scooted over, and put my hand on their shoulder. Lightly, on account of possible bruises - but they still flinched a bit, "Luckily, you've got us. Me and Witch. You don't have to be this lone crusader, trying to save Brockton Bay by beating up Nazis one at a time. We can help - but only if you let us help you. If you actually listen, and learn. Can you do that..?"
They sat still for a few moments - likely, looking into my expression. No idea what they wanted to see there though.
"…yeah…" General nodded, and then took off their hat - and began unwrapping bandages on their face, "…and I… …I'd like to join you guys properly, so," layer by layer, the bandages fell on their shoulders, revealing contours of their face. A face I, to my utter shock, already knew from my civilian life, "…Madison Clements…"
I looked at the girl in front of me. She looked… Not as badly as at school. Oh, the eyebags and the mousiness that was revealed once she foregone all makeup were still there - but as a cape, she looked just a little bit less… Desperate..? Slightly more in-control. Even with tears in her puffed up eyes, she didn't look as dead as at Winslow.
After soaking in this newly revealed information for a few moments and, to my surprise, not exactly finding a lot of of anger or betrayal in my heart, I slowly nodded and raised my hand to the bright red Chameleon Circuit ribbon in my hair, pulling it free.
"Taylor Hebert," I said nonchalantly, face already back to my civilian identity.
And the winner for the most shocked expression of the century is…
Yeah, you've guessed it.
Take a cookie