Arise, thread of threads, for I come bearing new content! In which we join Skidmark in his day-to-day business helping the downtrodden of the city. And by that I mean pushing lots and lots of drugs.
This chapter was... difficult. Apart from trying to intentionally write flawed english as a foreign speaker, I'm someone who really tries to get into the head of whoever I'm writing and Skidmark's head is an uglier place than most. Trying to write a loving but still abusive relationship was not a pleasant experience even if it was a good way to expand my perspective and writing skills. Dropped quite a few bits, including him using his power and using drugs because it simply didn't work within the story and I couldn't write it with a quality I was happy with.
Regardless, I'm again thanking to Wobulator for beta'ing. Any typos and bad grammar are probably intentional.
Enjoy the chapter, and remember kids: drugs are bad.
Arc 2 Final Interlude:
Tainted Lordship
A murky fog left his head as he finally managed to fully wake up from his dreams. Sit up. Legs out of bed, keep moving you stinking fuck. Stand up. No, keep it down you are NOT going to puke all over. Alright, all ready for ano-
His foot slipped on something and he crashed back down, half on the bed, half beside it.
"Fucking god-damn cyst-ridden shitcunt EEEAAAGHH!"
Picking himself back up and pushing through the pain from a new gash on his thigh, Skidmark looked down to see the empty beer can that had caused his early morning fall. Leftovers from the night before, something to help him relax for some rest after all the shit he and his people had been going through the last few of weeks. First the ABB rolls into their turf and puts a dozen of the boys in the hospital. Not some street-level thugs, but the real deal, and the distribution had suffered. They'd brought more in than they'd sold for a bit and the stockpiles had grown as a consequence.
Nothing too bad, they'd sell everything eventually so they'd get their profit except bloody New Wave'd gone and started wrecking their shit with a ferocity and speed he couldn't explain. In a fit of lucidity, Burke had checked their site to see if they'd gotten some new bitch to join their team, but nothing. Four stashes gone, including Squealer's new order when they first hit. Best case scenario was it all got snorted up Armsmaster's ass and next time he'd go nuts on patrol, but either way they'd never see their goods again.
Four goddamn stashes, and they took Mush.
They'd tried to plan a bust but the PRT had locked him up good. Before they'd figured out how to get him out, the bastards had moved him out of town. Gone. They'd have to grab him out of prison now from god-knows-where halfway across the states probably. They weren't gonna abandon him though, they might not be the strongest gang but nobody fucks with the Merchants like that. Mush was gonna be back.
Mush- Leo'd been part of the Merchants for years, since right after the shitstorm that had hit the Bay back when the Slaughterhouse, Marquis and Allfather turned the city into a warzone and had left Teeth gone tits-up. Fuck, they'd had such a great plan. Without the Teeth to control the trade, the city was ripe for some new leaders in business, and the three of them had taken the throne like they were the goddamn Holy Trinity. Skidmark, Mush and Snot, narcotic nobility of the bay! Didn't matter everyone looked down on them, people knew who could deliver when you needed a good time. And as the new leaders of the local drug cartels, they'd have all the hookers and blow that money could buy.
'Course, Snot died from an overdose not two years in, but it's how the fool would've wanted to go.
Fuck it, he was getting all mopey now. Breakfast and a fix, that'll make him feel better. There should at least be some pizza in the fridge, if Sherrel hadn't broken the damn thing again to build a freeze gun or whatever. She was a keeper for sure, but goddamn that bitch could be frustrating to live around.
But first, he was gonna find something to fix his goddamn leg!
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Sherrel was working when he got to the garage downstairs, and he'd learned long ago not to interrupt her when she was in the zone. He'd never quite lost the dent she put into him with that wrench the second time he'd tried. They still joked about it sometimes, but fuck if it didn't hurt. Ahhh, Sherrel...
Besides, there were some perks to letting her work in some relative peace. The view was always something spectacular, and not just because of the machines she was working on. Seemed she was in one of her more lucid Tinker frenzies at least, wearing an oil-stained overall with a couple of tears and patches in it. Too bad. He was hoping for something more spicy to start his day, but you can't win them all. He didn't even know if she wore the new stuff underneath, he'd taken a couple of the others and robbed a lingerie store after they'd kicked one of the guys out for smelling too bad. That'd serve them for not selling to the Merchants.
Hmmm, maybe he'd make sure some of her usual work clothes got... 'lost'... somewhere tomorrow, give her a bit of a... Nah, probably better he didn't, last time one of the guys got his arm broke when he went a bit too enthusiastic with complimenting his girl. Then, he'd broke one of the fool's legs himself when he heard about it, 'cause nobody insults his girl without facing the consequences!
He sat down at an old camping chair against the wall next to the door, suppressing his wince as the bandaged cut on his leg reminded him of its presence. Dropping the lukewarm pizza on the folding table next to it, he settled in for a wait until Sherrel would snap out of it. Looking around, he noticed someone had pinned a printed out screen shot of one of those kids' cartoons from TV to the wall above the table. The one with the crappy drawings and all, some old guy in front of a school board with the caption 'Drugs are bad, m'kay?'. Probably a joke from one of the guys, that shit would be right up Dean's alley.
Asshole.
He'd all but finished his pizza before Sherrel noticed him long enough to snap out of her Tinkering. Heading his way, she gave him a toothy grin as she wiped the grease from her hands. Hm, looked like she was in one of her better moods, then. That'd be a better start to the day than he'd had so far.
"Hey babe, you're finally up! What'cha- oh, hey, let me have a piece!"
She quickly snatched away one of the last bits of pizza and flopped down on the chair opposite his own. She continued talking, all the while munching on shreds of pizza.
"I missed breakfast, g-got some ideas I wanted to try out first. I'm making some stuff to go bust Mush out once we find his prison. And I'm gonna get those New Wave chicks, too, for stealing my stuff. Maybe find a way to burn that foam of theirs for next time 'cause that shit's foul. When did they start using it anyway, isn't it supposed to be just for those PRT dicks? Fuck, I lost so much on that first raid of theirs, so many things I wanted to do with the gear that was coming in..."
"We'll get them back for what they've done, love. But we'll bust Mush out first, he'd want to be there for it, payback for what they did to fuck him over. Until then, we can always raise the prices to make up for the shit we lost. Maybe use some of that cash to buy you some new toys to work with."
Ah, the wonders of modern capitalism. City runs out of dope to sell? No problem, we can charge what we want and there's no fucking competition anywhere! He'd almost have to thank New Wave for that, prices would be high for months to come and the Merchants sold the real deal, not those bullshit designer drugs the Empire liked to show off. Common drugs for the common man, yeah! Skidmark's what cares for the regular guys! They shoulda' made him mayor for the service he's doing this city.
"I struck a deal with the Teeth yesterday, too. We give them a cut, we can sell some of their stuff. They don't know the people on the street like we do, and the Butcher doesn't want to spend the time to get over here and shake shit up. The crazy bastard's now a crazy bitch, apparently, and he's stuck holding the Teeth together over there. She's stuck. Whatever. Still crazy though, but they have the goods to sell and we get a nice slice for ourselves."
"Heh, win-win for both our groups then. I'm still pissed those high'n mighty heroes took off with my stuff, but I've got just the thing for that, new car I've been working on. Hey, think you can use some of that Teeth money to get me some extra stuff? I've got some things I want to try but I'm low on supplies so-"
He slapped her across the head, sending the last bit of pizza she held flying off to the floor. She gave a small yelp at the hit but mostly stayed silent, knowing he was the one calling the shots and you didn't go against the leader of the Merchants. Not even if you're his girlfriend.
"The hell you thinking? Crossing the Butcher's a death sentence! I like a good haul as much as anyone but that's a line we can't cross, woman! This deal could be first of more, get the Merchants the Teeth's supply lines, we could be selling twice what we're doing now with their help and you want to fuck it up?!"
"Shit, Skids, I didn't mean it like that, just like... we could use that to make more money and pay back the Teeth anyway. No need to cross them, you know?"
"No, just don't. The Teeth are crazy, and the Butcher's the worst of the whole bunch. I do not want to watch my back against those faggots. We deal with them, we sell their drugs and take our cut, and that's it. They'll stick to the deal if they ever want to get back to Brockton Bay, too, so it's a pretty sweet and safe deal. So no fucking tricks!"
Skidmark got up and kicked his chair back into the wall. This was gonna be one of those days, he was sure of it. His good mood from earlier was gone again, and now the cut on his leg had started hurting from the sudden movement. Fuck, maybe he should get that thing disinfected instead of just bandaged up.
"I'm off, gonna get something for my leg and collect our cut from the dealers. Maybe I'll see if I can get you a little extra, too."
Fuck it, she'll have forgotten that promise by then anyway. Easy cred. Ain't no-one as smooth as Skidmark.
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By the time he got back that evening, he was tired, wasted, and a whole heap of cash richer. The trading had suffered with half their stashes gone, but the guys were doing good out there regardless. He'd told them to raise prices a bit and start moving their own stocks just in case. They had no fucking clue how New Wave was tracking them down but the Merchants would endure. Even if they had no fucking clue why those pussies had declared war on their gang in the first place.
"I'm back! Who of you dykes left the pus-damned door open?"
The handful of Merchants inside turned towards him, varying forms of denial and terror etched on their faces. Fucking useless, these guys. What got them riled up this time?
"Why are you fucks not talking to me? I asked who left the fucking door open?"
"Squealer did, man! Your girl's flipping in there, said she wanted the fresh air while she worked. Ain't any of us stupid enough to leave the door open so people can find us, but I ain't going against Squealer either! Not when she's like this..."
Ah fuck-damn it. Sherrel's going into one her bad spells again. He did not need that shit right now, better do something fast before she crashed completely and blew up the shop or something. Easiest way to get the girl happy again was to get her talking about her cars, and who knows... maybe he could get a bit of 'extra' out of it tonight.
He headed over to the garage area and was greeted by the racket of a heap of parts and tools clattering over the floor. He could just barely make out Sherrel's form behind one of the piles, digging into the mess and occasionally throwing back some wires, pipes and other pieces for her projects. A constant flow of mumbling and profanity drifted over to where he stood.
Yep, bad spell for sure. But he was Skidmark, and he knew women like no other! Fixing a bad trip was child's play to one of his vast talents. Heading over to where his girl was working, he finally made his presence known.
"So what'cha working on now, love?"
The Tinker turned to face him, staring at him with wild eyes from behind a mess of hair dirty with oil and soot. The electronics board she was holding shook slightly, the meth coursing through her stopping her from steadying her hands. She looked bad, almost feral, but then again... that meant she'd rebound real far, too.
"WHAT?"
"What'cha working on, babe? You look like you've been busy today, wanted to see what you've been up to. Looks like the new car's almost finished too, that something cool?"
As if she'd flipped a switch, Sherrel suddenly turned bright-eyed with an enormous grin on her face. Oh yeah, he was one suave son of a bitch all right.
"Oh man, 'cool' doesn't even begin to do it justice! It's just that this thing's great but I have to scrap the monster to give it guns so it's not just a crasher, and- and it can actually get something done but I don't want to break the monster because it took forever to build that thing!"
"Whoah, slow down love. Why'd you want to fuck up the monster now? That thing rocks like no fucker's rocked before! What's your new car do anyway, that it's so important?"
"Well, New Wave's been hitting us all over the Docks, I can't be everywhere at once. Except now I can! This beauty's a genuine grade-A teleporting car, baby! The monster's great, but I kept getting bits of cars and concrete stuck in the tracks so it's awful work to keep running. Kept slowing me down, I have to get faster to beat them..."
She walked over to the newly assembled vehicle, tossing the circuit board over her shoulder back onto the pile she was digging through. Climbing on top of the stripped down car, she slammed her hands on the bulky machine that had taken the place of the trunk. An eerie, blueish glow shone out of the gaps between the heavy metal plating, flickering occasionally.
"This thing here lets it jump like, a quarter mile at a time, it's awesome! Next time New Wave hits one of our places, BAM! Tank in your face!"
She fiddled with something on top of the car, and a tremor went through the entire vehicle. The brightness of the light coming from the generator intensified as the car started emitting a faint whine.
"It's works and everything, but I need some guns and armor for it 'cause right now it's fast but it might as well be made of paper. But when it's done, we'll be there the moment they show up, it's gonna be great! Probably gonna be pretty cool for busting Mush out, too. I figure the cops going to be on our asses pretty soon once we level the prison, but with this they'll never catch us!"
A teleporting car? Oh man, that would really help against those fuckers. Good for the drug-running, too, come to think of it. Oh yeah, this thing had potential... Sherrel's newfound enthusiasm proved infectious. New Wave wouldn't stand a chance, and the other gangs were strong, but they were slow as well. The ABB only got Lung, and if he wasn't there... two cars like this and they could hit those Asian fools wherever they wanted! More territory for their gang, more trade, and more dope and money for them at the end. Maybe it was time to show those bastards what happens when they fight the Merchants, payback for the boys they put in the hospital.
"Hah, that's gonna be great! We really gotta put some cannons on it, though. Show those bitches they can't mess with our stuff anymore? Not gonna ruin the monster but I might be able to get some shit imported anyway so you don't have to build a new gun for it. Just small stuff, maybe a few machine guns and such, keep that thing light and fast so we can fuck up New Wave, or those cocksuckers of the ABB or those Nazi shits when they try something next. Leave the monster for when we've got someone to really fuck over."
"Yeah, I can do that! You get me some guns, I'll make it shine! That thing'll be the best surprise ever, I can't wait to see their faces next time we're fighting those New Wave bitches!"
Not a moment after she closed her mouth, the skylight above the workshop shattered with a deafening crash that showered the two Merchant capes with broken glass. At almost the same time, a loud crash and yelling sounded from the hallway leading to the living areas and their bedroom. Skidmark turned to face their attacker as an all-consuming terror blanketed over them, leaving him desperate for a way out. A young woman rose from the crater she'd left on the garage floor after her three-point landing, and she flashed a grin at the Tinker who was scrambling back from her.
"No need to wait, we're riiiiight here!"
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EDIT: Also a question to you, readers: how do people like the chapter length and pacing so far? The chapters I'm writing are now between 3-4K usually, and that works reasonably well for me, but I'm thinking I might need longer chapters/arcs eventually so I'd like to know if it works like this. In terms of events and planning, the story will be about 25 Arcs so that's the time frame you should consider for pacing etc. Unless I make chapters much larger the story won't be as long as some of the others and definitely not Worm itself.
Arc 3: The City's Lights
3.1
Earlier that same day...
"She's been in there all day as far as I can tell, tinkering and occasionally going outside. Might be for a smoke, but I don't know for sure. I didn't want to leave the drone where they could possibly spot it so I only have the sensor data to go by."
"One of these days, you're going to have to show us just what those sensors of yours can do. I know you're using them to find criminals, but you need to be careful. The information you're getting might be a serious breach of privacy. I'm not necessarily saying you should stop, but if you're tracking people without proof, that opens up some very complex ethical issues. I'm not sure if you ever read comic books as a child, but one of them, Spider-man, said it quite well. 'With great power comes great responsibility'. It was from before Scion appeared and the comic industry changed it's focus to real heroes, but still seems pretty appropriate. I doubt anyone's going to make it a problem with the Merchants, but if or when you decide to go up against a more powerful and professional group like the Empire or Coil, they can cause a lot of problems for you."
"Ahh, I... hadn't really considered it that way. I felt it would be better to catch them first, then sort the rest out later. Though I must admit it doesn't surprise me given my own experiences."
Take off the mask, and suddenly you're untouchable. That didn't apply just to villains, but to 'heroes' as well...
"Hmmm. Our mysterious ally becomes ever more surprising. You haven't been going solo vigilante without telling us, have you? Or maybe you're not as saintly as you present yourself and you've had some run-ins with the law in the past?"
Crap. Lady Photon was smart. Even if she wasn't quite right, her prying into my past was... no. I didn't trust them enough for that, not yet. Not while they might still choose the PRT's side over mine. Lady Photon continued after a moment, having apparently guessed my discomfort from my silence.
"Don't worry Revenant, I won't pry. Aside from your scary name and the style of your robots you've been nothing but a hero to us. I don't understand your need for secrecy, but while we'd love to know more about you it's your choice on when to tell us."
"Thank you, Lady Photon. I ah- I appreciate the vote of confidence."
I hadn't missed her subtle choice of words there, though. 'When', not 'if'. New Wave was polite and patient about it, but they wouldn't stay silent about it forever. Not after they'd unmasked themselves for their cause of openness and accountability of all capes. I just hoped by the time I met them face-to-face they, or rather Brandish, would help me go against the other heroes.
"Ahem. Regardless, about your question regarding my sensor technology... I've been trying to find a way to get visors for you and your companions, but my tech isn't really geared for it. I'm not sure if I want to share the method I use myself. It's rather volatile technology and I don't want to accidentally hurt you or your team."
Oh, nothing serious, just installing a cybernetic supercomputer into your brain.
"Well, that sounds somewhat ominous. I suspect you understand your technology better than any of us, though. It won't matter for tonight anyway, so we'll stick with the phone system for now. Well, actually, we won't. Ne- Manpower and I will not be available tonight, we have other obligations."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... I know it's short notice."
"That's quite all right. Being a hero can mean long hours, and not all of them are spent catching drug dealers or stopping robberies. My husband and I are visiting a charity event, I'm afraid we can't cancel this late and we're already making preparations for the evening. Still, I think Shielder is free tonight and he's been pretty enthusiastic about our newfound heroics so I'm sure he'll help. Laserdream is too busy with a project she needs to turn in tomorrow. Still, if Brandish and her girls are free you'll have another three capes ready to go tonight. With you to guide them from above, that should be plenty to deal with a few Merchants."
"Thank you. And I really mean it. The trust you've given me... New Wave has done a lot for me when all have to I offer is words and promises."
"It's an odd partnership for sure, but your help is appreciated. Just don't get too star-struck, we're not quite as perfect as you might think. We became heroes for our own reasons and... What? Oh, Neil would like to talk to you as well, one moment while I put him on."
There were a few noises, probably from the phone being passed around, before I had to mentally adjust to Manpower's rumbling voice.
"Hello? This is Neil. Sorry, Manpower. I heard my wife talking to you on the phone, and I wanted to ask a few questions if that's all right. Hold on, I've got my notes around here somewhere."
"Uhh, sure? I won't promise I'll answer everything but I'll listen. What did you want to know?"
"Well, I've been doing some reading about Tinkers and Tinkertech in general, it's been a pretty new experience for us. We usually only see it from a distance, either working with other heroes like Armsmaster or if it's used by opponents like Squealer or Leet. I wanted to get a sense of how we could work together more effectively, how to best handle having a Tinker on the team. Ahem, metaphorically. Nobody's forcing you to join New Wave or anything."
"Oh! Well, I can talk about that I think, but my own power doesn't seem to work quite like that of most other Tinkers. I don't really invent new things so much as I've got a bunch of designs to start with and that's it. I can make some modifications, but if I don't have anything that does what you need I doubt I can come up with it on my own. Maybe if you tell me what you're looking for I can see if there's anything I have that could work?"
"Hmmm. Well, I think you already know of our suggestion for visors or communications so I'll skip that... armor for our more fragile members would be the obvious next idea. Your flying robot seems to be pretty sturdy but the team already has a style so it would ideally be in the same colors or worn underneath the costumes. Lightweight armor for Laserdream and Panacea, possibly heavier armor for Brandish and Flashbang. Can you build something like classic power armor? You've got some impressive anti-gravity or engines that you use in your drone, maybe you could include a jet-pack mode for the team members without their own flight powers?"
"That's going to be really tricky, I think. Well, I might be able to get something working for flight, but my designs aren't really meant to be used by people. I don't have anything like suits of armor or jet-packs. I'll see if I can modify some of my existing ideas though, I can probably get something you can use to fly, but I'll have to figure out how you're going to pilot it, too."
The only tech I had that was meant to be piloted at all were my Armored Command Units, and those were several dozen meters tall. In fact, I didn't even know if I had anything that could be used without the implants to make the connections. I hadn't noticed anything like levers or keyboards in the cockpits, although there were some computer screens.
"Oh, now that you mention that, I also noticed how you use the robot to carry things. You're using some form of magnetism for that, right? Really interesting. I don't really need any extra defense, but my own Brute powers have an electromagnetic part to them as well so that might open up some more options. Can you do anything with altering Lorentz forces or creating mono-polar magnetic materials? I've got so many ideas for that, hold on..."
As I listened to Manpower's musings with a slowly dawning horror, I realized... was he geeking out over my tech? How am I supposed to deal with fans?!
Some time later, I had a freshly updated (and lengthy) To-Do list for making new designs, and something to discuss with my dad as well. Once Manpower had finally run out out ideas to share, Lady Photon had taken the phone back and asked me for some help with one of the consequences of our first joint activity.
The PRT occasionally issued small bounties for criminal parahumans or captured villainous Tinkertech, and the gears of bureaucracy had finally turned far enough that New Wave had received a modest sum for Mush's arrest. The team would donate their own part of it to charity, which was apparently one of the reasons the Pelham couple went to the charity event tonight, but that still left my share. I wasn't really sure how to feel about taking money for being a hero, but on the other hand... money had been tight after my expenses from building the first assembler, and I could certainly use it to replace some of my school supplies as well.
Right now they had it in their team's account because the PRT didn't know my details. Of course, I couldn't simply give someone the number of our bank account, not without hanging a metaphorical sign outside our door saying 'TINKER LIVES HERE, BEWARE OF ROBOT'. When I faced the PRT, I wanted it to be on my terms, not theirs. Still, a few hundred dollars in cash was... weird, to think about. Would the PRT or New Wave be upset to give it like that, or would they think I didn't trust them?
Actually, I realized I hadn't thought to ask if there was a way to open a new bank account anonymously in my cape name. I probably didn't want to, not yet, but it might become useful in the future if bounties like this became a regular thing. It might be a better way to earn money than selling weapons of mass destruction, at least.
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As it turns out, my implant doesn't quite help with everything. While traveling back home, I'd turned my attention inward after calling Brandish to organize a new strike against the Merchants. I didn't want to risk calling her during school so I'd waited until the bus ride home, and now I was paying the price. Between the dulled sensations and the twists and turns of the bus, I was starting to get some pretty bad dizziness. A small blessing was that I sat at the very back of the bus, so hopefully nobody would notice me until I got out at my stop. I just hoped it didn't turn into full-blown car sickness before then.
"I must admit, it takes some guts to attack a Tinker in their own workshop. Are you certain this can be done safely? I'm not about to lead my daughter in there just to see her get shot, especially if you're hanging back and watching as usual."
"You won't need to worry about that, Brandish. I'll be bringing an addition to my drone with me, so I'll have some firepower of my own. Sadly, it's... pretty much guaranteed to be lethal unless Panacea helps them immediately afterward, but it should be plenty to take out the weapon on Squealer's combat vehicle. I only have three shots so I won't use them unless it's necessary, but the option's there. Other than that she's working on three or four other cars, I'm not sure if one of them is being scrapped for parts or if it's a project of hers. The good news is I didn't see any guns on them the last time and they looked to be only partially completed. I'll make a final check before we head in, just to be sure."
A low sigh came from the other end of the line.
"Oh, all right. It's not like Vicky would ever forgive me if I kept her back here for something like this. With a little luck we'll catch them off guard anyway and it won't matter. The four of us will meet you once we've picked up Shielder, to make some final plans for how we're going to do this."
Four? Oh, right...
"Flashbang will be with us this time? I haven't had the chance to work with him yet so I'm afraid I don't know much about his powers. I know it has something to do with throwing balls of light, but little else. Could you ask him if he's ok with explaining his powers and preferred role in the field, please?"
"It's probably better if I explain it for him, really. Flashbang can create and launch spheres of hard light, and has some minor control over how they behave and how long they last before they expire. The explosions aren't particularly strong in terms of force, but they're very loud and bright, hence his cape name. He doesn't have any Brute powers so he's usually tasked with stopping unpowered enemies. As for why he's not explaining this or why he hasn't fought beside you yet, he's... not well."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that, I hope he gets better soon. Wait, can't Panacea help him?"
"He's not sick, it's depression and she doesn't work with brains. It's... I'd really rather not discuss it."
Okay, now I just felt really stupid for putting my foot in my mouth like that. I was getting to know the team better each day, especially the younger members, but it was still very easy to forget that they were people first and capes second. Their lives just seemed so much better than mine. I'd never considered they could be dealing with things like this, and if the resentment in Brandish's words was any indication it was pretty bad.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know. Are you sure it's a good idea to bring him with us?"
"Not doing anything to help while the rest of us was out there the last two weeks hasn't been good to him either. Making a difference he can be proud of might actually help him a bit. We'll make sure he stays safe. Don't worry about it, it's not your problem, Revenant."
We spoke for a little while longer, going over some of the details on the building the Merchants were in until I had to say goodbye and promised to contact them later today to plan everything. While there were still things I'd wanted to discuss, I was really not very good at multi-tasking, and I had other things to do right now. Deactivating the communication link, I grabbed my backpack and started making my way off the bus.
Cape business was important, but getting hit by a car two streets from home would be pretty bad for my dreams of heroics and Winslow-related justice. And right now, I badly needed some fresh air.
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Five capes huddled in the rain, kept safe from the worst of the downpour by a shimmering blue field directly above their heads. My drone hovered a short distance away, having picked up the missile launcher unit after carrying one of the sensors to the roof of the building next to the garage. I couldn't carry both a sensor and the launcher at the same time, so I'd had to fly back and forth for a bit to get everything in place. Fortunately, New Wave had been kind enough to keep an eye on the launcher while I was busy.
"Squealer and Skidmark are inside, as well as about seventeen regular Merchants. I can't see into the deepest parts of the building so I don't know what kind of supplies they have. Worst case scenario, they've got an armory in there and they're all armed. Best case, it's another drug stash and they have nothing that would be a threat to any of us."
"Wait, didn't your sensors allow you to see inside as well? What's different this time?"
"Uh, yes, they do. I can track movement of anyone further in and I can get a rough idea of the shape and size of the rooms, but I can't make out details like what's in there unless I've got actual line-of-sight. You won't need to worry about there being more people inside."
"Unless the Merchants have picked up a Stranger, but if we're going by that logic I don't think we'd ever get anything done, right guys?"
"The Merchants don't have a Stranger, Shielder, just... not today, all right?"
"But that's what they want you to think!"
Tuning out of the bickering that erupted from the New Wave teenagers, I turned my attention to Flashbang. Brandish and I had agreed we'd try to keep him out of the worst of the fighting, not trusting him to be alert enough to keep track of danger once the chaos inside would begin. The man seemed not much different from the rest of his family, a white-and-color costume much like the others. If I'd had to describe him like this, I'd have picked something like 'calm but confident'. How much was that just an act, a way to hide his problems from those outside of his family?
I was pulled out of my musings by Brandish's voice, the woman having had enough of Shielder's antics.
"Everyone please, just be quiet! We've got a job to do here, attacking a Tinker's workshop is dangerous, no matter the fact it's Squealer. We're going to hit them from all directions at the same time. Glory Girl hits them from above through the garage skylight, she should have little trouble taking down their capes and stopping them from getting into their vehicles is a priority."
"I'm on it! Should I focus on the capes or the vehicles? I'm pretty sure I can break those pretty quick if they're not shooting at me. Ahh, the vehicles, not the people."
"Capes first. See if you can land between them, cut them off from the cars. Revenant can destroy the cars if necessary. Shielder, you're protecting Flashbang while the two of you head inside through the ground entrance. Focus on keeping the two of you alive, Flashbang can take them out easily."
Shielder responded with a large grin, while Flashbang simply said "Yeah". He looked like he was going to say something else, but a moment later he turned back to look at the building instead, mumbling to himself. I suddenly realized why they'd paired him with the strongest defensive cape on their roster. If he was this distracted during the fight...
"Finally, I'm going in through the upper floor windows of the living areas of the building. Revenant can lift me up there. He and Panacea stay outside unless they're needed. Panacea is there to heal any injuries we take, she can head inside after Flashbang and Shielder have cleared the main entrance. Revenant can head inside when Glory Girl opens the garage doors, but only if needed. His drone is too big to easily use inside anywhere else but the missiles he's brought should let him stop any car they might try to leave with. Everyone ok with the plan?"
After a number of nods and confirmations and doing a last check of the phones, the group split up and headed out to prepare for the attack. I was left with just Panacea and Brandish standing in the alleyway. An awkward silence stretched on until the others called in for a last check.
"This is Shielder, we're good to go."
"Glory Girl here, I'm ready and waiting for the signal. I've got a good view of the garage below, they look pretty calm so I don't think we've been spotted yet."
I wished Panacea luck as Brandish jumped onto the drone, and rose into the air. I'd almost dropped my passenger during the Mush fight, but this time the drone wasn't damaged so I was hoping for a less embarrassing result today. Fortunately, it seemed Brandish had a much better sense of balance than her daughter did. She didn't seem to have the slightest problem with staying upright despite the heavy tower shield she was holding in front of her. Something to do with her power maybe?
"Revenant here. I'm moving Brandish into position, get ready to move in twenty seconds. Good luck in there. Let me know if you need backup."
Settling the drone at roof-level, I counted down and prepared to drop down the last few feet. On my sensor view, I watched as Shielder and Flashbang dashed to the front door of the building. A few moments later Glory Girl moved as well, smashing through the skylight with a speed faster than I could track without activating my implant.
"No need to wait, we're riiiiight here!"
Wait, what was that? Some kind of combat taunt I didn't get? I couldn't pay too much attention to Glory Girl though, as I had to keep the drone stable while I brought Brandish level with the upper floor windows. My passenger shattered the dirty glass in front of us with some sort of mace, and leaped through while shifting into her Breaker state to avoid the worst of the glass fragments.
Beneath me, a series of deafening cracks and flashes indicated Flashbang had begun taking down the unpowered enemies downstairs. Leaving Brandish to deal with the startled Merchants inside, I pulled back and took position a little ways outside of the garage doors. She was experienced enough to not need my help, and with the element of surprise on our side I doubted any of the Merchants inside could even draw a weapon before being introduced to the wrong end of her mace or shield. She really seemed to like bashing people with it for some reason.
Keeping track of the different capes and drug dealers inside proved to be fairly easy, our strike had caught them completely off guard and it looked like most of them never stood a chance. I was occasionally losing track of Brandish as my sensors didn't work too well with her Breaker state, but it wasn't too much of a problem.
"Whoop, these guys are all down! Head on over, Panacea, I think one of my ears has gone deaf from your dad's tricks."
"I'm on my way. Did Mark send one too close to you?"
"Nah, I was careless. Made a shield to pin one of these guys and it sent one of his orbs bouncing back. Boom, instant karma!"
I tuned out of their conversation to keep an eye on the surrounding area. Panacea wasn't too far away, but without any combat abilities I didn't want her to get ambushed outside. A few moments after she joined Flashbang and Shielder inside, the sounds of combat coming from Glory Girl's phone connection were replaced by a faint stream of profanity.
"Glory Girl here, I've got Skidmark pinned and Squealer's cut off from her cars on the other side of the garage. She can't get in without going through me but she's still got a few guys and they're getting antsy so I'd appreciate some backu... OH FUUU-"
Her sudden shout was drowned out by the sounds of machine gun fire, and a moment later the line went dead.
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Author's note: because people might freak out a bit I'm making this clear: no, I'm not killing Glory Girl. Where would I get my Amy/Vicky drama angst if I did that? I just like cliffhangers, is all, and this was a good place to end the chapter.