The soft clinking of glasses was shared as the two women smiled at each other. A soft cheer from Debbie was made as she allowed the smooth smell of the specially prepared Scotch that her friend prepared. Rebecca in this instance allowed herself to relax on her chair just next to her in the traditional-looking bar they had in her home.
"Mmm… God
that was divine," Debbie exclaimed as the elation she felt was equal to the admittedly tasty drink and general aura of their little bonding moment.
"I did say this one was special, brewed by a specific guy we once knew way back. He had the strictest calculations on everything and even in his free time he was relentless in making sure to mitigate the slightest probability of mixing the concoction wrong."
"Sounds like an interesting person…" Debbie joked to which Rebecca managed a brief chuckle.
"Oh, he wasn't even close to being on the level of the other one. If I were to describe her in one sentence, it'd be that she's the picture-perfect personification of a data-crunching machine."
"Why's that?"
Rebecca's formerly light tone and aura then vanished as a frown manifested on her face.
"Because she only dealt in absolutes. Based on whatever statistic, number, or data was progressively thrown into her face. It made her seem inhuman." She explained before downing another sip of her own drink.
"Wait… are you telling me… this person was some sort of… well, I hate to be the first to ask this kind of question, but-
"A hero? Like the ones flying around the world, saving people and smiling for photos?" Rebecca asked with some sarcasm veiled in a lighthearted tone, despite a sort of bitter pill entering her emotions within her head.
"Well yeah…" Debbie awkwardly replied. "Was she then? And I completely understand if you can't tell because I kinda have experience in that department as well."
Rebecca appreciated the correction in her words, but she waved it off. Sorting through old memories from a world before had surprisingly made her emotional. Which was strange in itself. A strange notion of nostalgia for a time that many might consider 'controversial'. To her, it was merely an affirmation, a determined objective to do what was right… in a broader, complex context.
Being honest about it now, was what made her feel mostly confused, internally.
"She had a knack for wearing a certain flair in her wardrobe. Top hat included, you could say she was…
stylish, but not for matters that I would say that would stray into the realm of being a 'superhero'."
"But she was…
stylish and if I'm getting this right from your tone, she looked good in it," Debbie added to give a sense of levity to their conversation after seeing that Rebecca was now dipping into something that resembled a personal, uncomfortable memory.
Thankfully the normally stoic woman towards the world and her co-workers managed a grin that bordered on a small laugh. "She looked ridiculous… but she wore it with
pride and damn it, she did look great in it, and served basically as her brand moving forward. One that she used to the very end, or at least the very last time I saw her."
"I guess a fashion sense is a must when it comes to capes. They tend to always gravitate on that, though I guess looking like a hobo in a suit doesn't really scream heroic to the general public."
Rebecca took another sip as she smiled. "Sometimes simplicity is also what makes the image, poignant, memorable, amazing even… just something as small as a hat or wearing neon can evoke a certain feel to people." Rebecca then frowned as she looked at her glass.
"It's oftentimes symbols that you use certain meanings to that you allocate most of your ideals, your promises towards the world. Symbols that people hold on to. Symbols… that used to mean something before people see you for who you are, underneath it all, even if your objective was still that just
transformed into something heavy that people won't accept in any clean fashion."
Sensing the change in tone, Debbie placed her glass down on the bar and looked at her friend. Her usually stoic face was much harder now, eyes more emotionally resonant with how they gazed onto an empty abyss with both self-justification and… strangely enough, guilt?
Maybe not that, but it was very complex. Ones that Debbie only saw in people like Dark Wing who had a very troubled, oftentimes, terrible past.
"Becca… you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
"Have I been slacking on trying to hide as a civilian, Debbie? Because… at this point, I was expecting you to ask me if I was a cape." Rebecca asked in a strange tone that made her friend feel confused.
Debbie, feeling slightly intimidated, managed a sigh.
"I didn't want to. I don't want to barge into someone's personal space even if I have permission to. I respect you, Becca. I respect you truly, as a friend, and… quite frankly, if you aren't comfortable with talking about something, then I would be fine changing the subject." She said with sincerity and honesty that made Rebecca pause and think.
"You don't even know me that well…" Rebecca replied with a low tone. Her eyes drifted away as if she was expecting Debbie to leave right at that moment and never speak to her again.
But Debbie was never that type of person. She merely pushed her seat closer to hers and bumped her shoulder lightly against Rebecca's in a friendly, supportive way. The contact surprised the woman to a degree as she looked at her in slight confusion.
"I know enough to say with confidence… that you wouldn't let others see nor hear this side of you unless you were absolutely sure that you could trust them in some capacity," Debbie said with a kind smile that somehow reminded Rebecca of a similarly positive and hopeful friend in the past. One that still believed in the symbol that they all promised to uphold. One who still believed that for all their faults, they were still good people despite it all.
A rather naïve and… perhaps stupid perspective.
Yet one that kept Rebecca, and the others grounded back to reality. He and Clark. The Yin to their Yang. Even if they kept said friend in the Dark and lost the other long ago.
Until now at least, in Clark's case.
"I once saved this kid from a dark past long ago…" Rebecca started as she licked her lips, focusing on Debbie as they stared into each other's faces. "…attentive kid, one with potential. One whose sense of being was so warped yet salvageable that saving her quite literally changed her life for the better."
A memory of a wide-eyed child looking up to her helmeted face continued to swirl in Rebecca's head as that same child while she flew her to safety, melted into her arms in a thankful embrace. A lovely smile that kept popping back over and over while she saluted in almost damn near every encounter since. Even-
"This was before Taylor?" Debbie asked, concerned with the tone Rebecca was having.
"Quite a lot before her, yes. I brought her home with a few others. Good kids they were. Clark and my other friends loved them all the same, but she always looked up to me, maybe not as a mother figure, but something that she wanted to be like when she grew up."
After a small pause, Debbie began frowning as she saw how uncomfortable Rebecca was with the memory she was uncovering. "What happened to her?"
Rebecca reluctantly smiled. "Nothing terrible, mind you. If anything, she was the perfect student of mine who embodied a lot of the things I believed in. She was the pitch-perfect model soldier, with the loyalty, perseverance, and determination to match. One that believed in the system. One who actively complied and saw the greater moral compass that the system and all that it symbolized, stood for." She then sighed. "But then…"
"You two had a falling out." Debbie surmised.
A well of emotions from the most controlled and practically unyielding woman of an Earth so distant from where she now began manifesting. It was subtle at first, one that Rebecca herself did not expect. Whether by direct control from the
[HOST] itself or through actual,
honest reaction towards a heavy memory, she found her eyes being wet as tears started to oscillate into being.
"The most stupid part about this was, I can't even call it as falling out. Because after… after a revelation changed how she started to view me, she didn't stop being the loyal and perseverant officer. She continued to be what I once symbolized and inspired her to be in the first place, albeit with some reluctance and…
hesitation to some orders or concepts."
Rebecca then remembered the subtle change the next time they met.
"The worst part was that I could see it in her
eyes. She had the most expressive eyes. I could always tell and see that she was elated,
genuinely happy in seeing me with each consecutive visit… but after everything, the only thing I could see was
disappointment and
apathy."
She saw how much that salute meant to Hana after that moment. She still believed in most of what Rebecca had taught her, but even without speaking to each other, things would never be the same. Silently, while she did not put her mind to it back then with her unfailing memory, she now finally realized how hurtful it was to see the warm eyes of a child she saved back then looking back at her the same way that Hana finally did, days before her memory of her past life ended.
Debbie watched as Rebecca wiped her eyes. She even stared at her tear-stained digits for a second as if shocked that she was even capable of such a thing. It was then that Debbie pieced together why the woman seemingly questioned the degree of trust that existed between them…
"I'm a terrible person to be friends with," Rebecca admitted.
…
because she had broken the trust of someone she cared about long ago.
Despite it all Debbie, the kind-hearted soul that she was, which transcended even through space-time in the many worlds that consisted in this branch, didn't flinch nor even entertain the idea of walking away. Like her son, she was born of a stubborn sort, a kind that believed in
humanity despite all of its flaws.
"I don't think that's necessarily true."
Rebecca huffs as she finishes her glass. She even grabbed the bottle and filled herself another, to the literal limits of the glass itself and its contents.
"Do you want to know why?"
Rebecca finally turned to her, after ignoring her for a few seconds as she downed half her glass after just finishing earlier with one.
"Why?"
"Because Clark exists."
Debbie looked at her friend and managed a smile that seemed to cut deep as Rebecca stared back in contemplation. "That's different…" the woman said in her defense.
"How is it any different than everything you believe you said? You have David there too and from what I understand you always mention this Keith and quite a lot more people than I expected from a person who legitimately thinks she's a horrible friend." Debbie added a bit of smugness with her grin as she took another sip.
"But really, Becca… the fact alone that you're married in a very loving relationship with Clark as well as being a mother to Taylor already tells me enough that you
care."
"Is that really what you see… in me?" Rebecca asked; she was not insulted in any manner, but she was surprised by this assessment.
"I do. Nobody's perfect, Becca. The mere fact that you told me about the story of that kid who looked up to you and how painful it was to see your relationship deteriorate tells me that you do
care. You valued the relationships that you cultivated with the people in your life to the extent that you felt guilty when they fell apart. Isn't that already a reflection that you wish things were different? That you wish… things had gone better?"
Rebecca laughed with irony as she turned away. "You're far too trustworthy on my part."
"Because I do see it."
"See what?" Rebecca challenged as she sighed.
"That you're a good person. Just… jaded from all the failures, the guilt, the pain. Deep down you wish that you could keep being the hopeful person that you once were, but the world seems to push it all back down towards a level where the only thing you cared about is to get it all done. To see it all be accomplished, even if the good intention behind it is gone."
Debbie saw her friend pause before slowly facing her again.
"H-How do you know that? No…
how could you say that?"
Debbie shakes her glass a bit as she downed the last of her drink.
"Clark and I talk a lot. And no, he hasn't broken your trust in telling me your secrets or anything like that, but he
worries about you."
Some of the panic previously simmered down within Rebecca, as it seemed like Clark hadn't told Debbie the full picture of what their lives once were. Yet, part of her felt elated, even more guilty, and reflective on what Debbie just said.
"Becca… look, you're a good friend. Regardless of any mistakes you've made in the past, I trust you enough to know that you're trying to be better. That right now, you're doing things that you wished you'd done in the past to be a better person with your friends… and most importantly, your family."
Rebecca ruminated on her words as she then offered Debbie another glass with their current bottle. It was nearly empty, but they still managed to share a pint with both their glasses.
"Can I ask you a question?" Rebecca started.
Debbie smiled softly as their glasses clinked in a small exchange of cheers.
"You may…"
"Why do you have so much faith in people? Does it ever occur to you that perhaps, they could always be wearing a near-perfect façade that you wouldn't think twice in believing even if it was all a lie in the end? Does it ever bother you that you might be placing too much faith in someone only to be broken by it once you've known the truth?"
"That's an easy question to answer, believe it or not," Debbie replied.
"Oh?" Rebecca said, her curiosity piqued as she recalled a similar conversation with Keith long ago. Only this time, she didn't expect most of the nuance of the answer that instead followed.
"If you don't trust someone's words, then you can tell clearly what a person is, through their
actions. You could fool the most stoic, the most hard-pressed person in the world who could tell when somebody's lying by making the most convincing act but deep down what you're only left with is a face. Deep down you can't really say who and what they are just through words and emotions."
Debbie then looked at the empty bottle as she continued speaking, recalling her own personal memories. "A good example would be my husband."
Rebecca blinked; Debbie's tone made it feel as if it was almost like an admission of a very dark secret.
"To be real with you, I
don't know who Nolan was before I met him and before we fell in love. In fact, I'm actually quite surprised looking back at it now how quickly we hit it off as if he knew how to press every button on trying to woo me." Debbie said with some embarrassment. "Contrary to what you probably think about me, I wasn't the most trusting person back then either. Due to a lot of factors in regard to my family that I couldn't care less about now, I was more
leveled out when it came to my perspective in life, and I was more wary of Nolan back then even as our bond deepened."
"What changed?"
"When I saw how much he cherished the news that I was pregnant. When I saw his actions after that even if circumstances around both of us changed immensely, Nolan cared deeply in the fact that we were having a family. I could see it in his eyes. I could see it when he carried Mark into his arms as we took our first picture as a family."
Rebecca then similarly recalled a memory of her, Hero, Eidolon, and Legend taking their first official photo together as the founders of a new age of Heroes and how much they all smiled with hope back then.
She then returned her focus back to Debbie who was also reminiscing about a very cherished memory. "It was through that when I realized that whatever happened in the future, good or bad, I would always trust my husband to
always care about our family, regardless of what happens."
The proud smile on Debbie's face with pure unadulterated hope made Rebecca wish she could believe it wholeheartedly. In fact, Debbie's feelings on the matter could be taken with much indifference on Rebecca's part, yet the aura in her words and how it similarly resonated with her in some capacity, pushed her not to think of that rational part of her brain to overtake this moment.
"One thing's for certain... one that I can confirm without hesitation is that
you Deborah Grayson are a good person. A far too good person that nobody truly deserves." Rebecca proclaimed as Debbie started to laugh.
"Oh, don't you start, Mrs. Self-Loathing. It was
your idea that we drink in the first place."
Rebecca managed a smirk as their conversation was now turning back to something more positive. She then pulled out another of Numberman's specially brewed bottles from the box beside her and opened it as Debbie chuckled.
"And I can say wholeheartedly that I don't regret that decision," Rebecca said as Debbie cheered while she poured them back to full again. Rebecca herself did not even notice that through her new constitution compared to her 'bootleg' assimilation through the vials, her body was more susceptible to nearly human levels of sensations and physiology again and one of them included being affected by alcohol.
Perhaps it was the reason why she felt more open to talking her feelings out with this exchange with Debbie. Or perhaps in her 'second chance' at life, she was just hoping to alleviate some of the loneliness that came with only having two of her friends being with her in this new world-line.
Or more probably, it was through the Administrator's plan to return some form of normalcy back to her persona again. Whatever the case was, the two were starting to enjoy their bonding after a heavy set of conversations at the start by laughing now with actual fervor minutes and hours later.
"So, you're Alexandria? The tough, durable, and boring hero?"
"What do you mean boring?" Rebecca said, feigning betrayal from the statement.
"Girl, outside of the men being your chief fanbase, your entire spartan-like gimmick and the drab colors kinda ruin your whole image."
"How is that ruining my whole image? People like a powerful and strong-looking woman."
"Yeah, but
not for the reasons that you'd think at first glance though. Most of the demographic that follows you are young boys and teenagers in their emotional phase of life. I hear the kids call it 'emo'. You're basically the poster child of that entire thing to them."
"I am not… and which
demographics and data did you even get that from?"
Debbie laughs cheerfully as she lightly slams the glass on the bar. "Some of the kids I hear even call you… what was that again? Right, 'edgy'. Whatever that means."
Rebecca found herself not mustering a rebuttal as the subtle buzz of the alcohol in her head was now starting to kick amidst her own laughs and Debbie's.
"And Oh God… forgive me for asking, but Clark is Hero, right?"
"Yeah… why?" Rebecca replied, almost cheekily curious but embarrassed to ask where the conversation was heading.
"And he's just super-smart? Correct? No super-strength and whatnot?"
"Uh-huh…" Rebecca hummed as she started sipping her drink.
"How does that work in the bedroom?"
A loud and audible sound of Rebecca spitting out her drink while Debbie laughed occurred.
"God… don't you even dare insinuate that we're-
"But
it does happen sometimes, right?" Debbie teased.
"Screw you," Rebecca said with a smile as they continued their moment straight in the afternoon, all the way to night as the former heroine of Earth Bet found solace and appreciation at least in having to cultivate a friendship with one Deborah Grayson.
Inwardly, she might not believe it herself, but she thanked the woman for allowing some form of realness again in her life, even if she was still apprehensive about telling anyone else the whole truth.
For now, it was enough.
"Tay…" Mark said as they continued to watch their favorite cartoon together.
He then saw Taylor meet his gaze in question, yet she was supporting a rather curious smile.
"You think your mom and mine are doing okay downstairs?"
An echo of glasses being shattered downstairs along with laughing from the two could be heard as Taylor only chose to smile with a nod. As if nothing bad were to occur to just let the two grown-ups let loose.
"Okay. But it's weird hearing Aunt Becca laugh like that. It's the first time I've heard her this excited…" he then perked up with an innocent smile himself as he grinned. "Which probably means that they're becoming good friends as well, like the both of us, right?"
Taylor cheerfully nodded as her curly hair bobbed with her movements. The notable and pretty hairpin that he gave her as a gift glinted every now and then as Mark smiled.
"I hope so as well. Aunt Becca is kind, and so are you. You're possibly the kindest person I know outside of Mom and Dad…" Mark said wistfully as Taylor continued to focus on the TV, yet they were still comfily sitting beside each other as many close friends would.
However, something dawned on Mark through the many times he worried about her not giving him a second chance. Something that in a deeper sense, bothered him for the mystery that it ultimately set up.
"Tay…"
The girl instantly looked in his direction, wondering what he was about to say. Her cute eyes twinkling back at him made him feel innocently guilty for what he was about to say. He was scared that the girl might think she was doubting their friendship.
"I… um…" he was already faltering through how she continued to stare back at him. Only for him to feel Taylor's hand supportively land on his shoulder accompanied by a smile. He found himself regaining his composure as he placed his own hand on top of hers.
"Why did you choose me to be your friend?"
Non-verbally Taylor, seemingly confused and worried by the question merely answered back by giving him a warm embrace. As if saying that the bond they had alone was the reason why.
And even with Mark's rather young perspective, he immediately understood what she meant by that action as he returned the embrace in full.
"I'm sorry… I know it's a dumb question. B-But, you could have always found other friends than me and… I'm very happy that we are, I'm just curious that you chose me out of everyone."
Taylor then perked up from those words and through her marvelously smart intellect, she started sifting through both
[DATA] from existing human interactions that initial
[Host] used to have as well as corresponding information from their research thus far.
Slowly with precise motions and sincerity that betrayed even one Fedora-wearing woman's abilities. It was a more skewed evolution of said function and with the need of intensive energy requirements now removed, it enabled a much keener free-form simulation that allowed complex human thoughts and emotions in play.
To Mark Taylor merely proceeded forward by pointing her finger towards the boy's chest, reflecting his heart as she then retracted her hand placing it on her own chest. The act made Mark blush slightly in a manner that made him feel embarrassed, for how seemingly important he was to Taylor.
"R-Really? You think I'm… special to you?"
Taylor nodded with a perfect smile that did not indicate any other meaning with precise motion. It procured no such doubt onto the primary subject exposed.
"That's… wow."
He then saw Taylor offer her hand, which he carefully took as the wonderful sensation blossomed into being within him again as their fingers made contact. The brevity of the energies shared was immense and Mark started to glow subtly.
Then, Taylor tapped something within him as through Mark's hand a volley of lights appeared into being. They expanded forth, rapidly in an untold number that even an adult human could not specify with complete accuracy. The lights symbolized something that the
[DATA] contained, but distilled in a fashion that made Mark-
"This… is so cool!" the boy excitedly said as various colors came into being from
his own powers no less. Said colors forming into concepts that to any human would either look like Neurons, Singularities, Planets, Galaxies, or even Stars amongst the great expanse as through Taylor's fundamental simulations, allowed her to dim the electricity within the room. Turning off the lights, harmlessly shifting the programming of the television to show and produce inspirational, softly operatic-sounding music to add to the whole scene.
It was all deliberate on Taylor's part as Mark was lost in the wonder of creativity, expansion, and best of all inspiration. He even wanted to touch and innocently gawk at the lights, some in colors that were not even visible through the Visible Light spectrum, yet Mark could see it through
[Coruscant Knave]'s functionalities.
Yet within the various, innumerable entities that were now filling the entire room, there existed one, singularly special
Blue entity that even Mark had quickly caught up on. It shined with such reverence, with such light and potency that even with the greater, more pronounced entities near or far from it looked unimpressive.
"What is that?" Mark asked.
Taylor then stood up. Observations pinpointed this certain anomaly above the rest in this world-line. A paradox to the greater existence of one Mark Grayson. With tact, to make Mark understand a bit further, the lights around the blue entity turned into various shades of Red. Many of them now produce an ominous, painfully sinister-like color as Mark slowly became wary.
Yet the calm, hopeful blue of the singular entity remained, giving a sense of comfort unlike anything before. Gently, this particular blue light slowly levitated down towards Taylor's hands as the red lights around it started to disappear one by one. Their simulations were all moot, their existences, unimpressive and redundant except for comparison to the one, singular Anomaly.
Taylor then smiled as the Blue Light finally landed on her palm.
The paradox. The one Mark Grayson who despite it all, remained a 'good person' as Humans understood it. The one Mark Grayson who had faced countless anomalies, entities, and even versions of himself that would and could have changed him to be in line with the trend that his character represented in the wider stretches of this world-line.
Yet remained… as he was. A most human specimen.
A most prudent and closely pure specimen that withstood everything and came out the same.
Taylor gently cupped and caressed the light, as if it were sentient with measured steps.
Its determination, steadfast belief, and violent fixation towards the ideal of 'doing right' almost reminded her of her own prior
[Host]. Even if not the closest comparison, their unwavering strength of will, to weather the events that transpired around them was what fascinated her.
The impossibly stupid and bizarre 'Will of Humanity' went to extreme lengths in both these individuals. A useless trait in the grander scheme of things yet pushed them to the point that they became unintentionally important by concept to these…
worlds.
"Tay?"
It was then that Taylor returned to her simulated present once again. The static of the TV returned to normal, and the lights were back on again within the room.
And her treasured specimen smiled back at her as if his feeble, young little mind could comprehend in some further deeper fashion the presentation of the
[DATA] points she showed him.
"That was amazing Tay…" he said as he took her hand.
Then again, she was naïve to deeper 'human interaction' that seemed, 'spiritual' and 'soulful' to Humans. Perhaps such spatial, abstract concepts that don't exist in the functional universe would be taught to her by her specimen.
Concepts that sadly, she didn't learn with full brevity with her prior
[Host].
Clark opened the door to his home as he sighed with exhaustion.
It had been a long day dealing with Cecil Stedman and the company that he and Rebecca were cultivating within this Earth and he was ready to just come home, greet Taylor and just to head to bed…
Only for him to quickly face Rebecca, wearing her newly updated Alexandria suit for this world, sans helmet, looking back at him with a face that he did not expect her to have.
And the smell that was emanating from her… he couldn't help but be confused.
"Heeeyyy Clark… how was your day?" she said, quickly clinging onto him as her breath hit his nose, much to his own blush of embarrassment. Strangely enough, he could hear Debbie's drunken laughter in the background as she watched the scene of the two of them from their living room.
"Uh…"
"Just ask him already!" Debbie shouted as Rebecca smiled, near deliriously through the haze.
"R-Right… uh, you think I'm hot, right? You think I'm beautiful in this costume, right?" she asked him as she sensually swayed near him, which was something that Clark himself would never, ever expect Rebecca to do nor even attempt while she was sober or even beyond it.
Still, a strange mix of emotions started to dwindle within him and despite being one of the most powerful tinkers on record, he could not, for his life know how to functionally respond back to
this hidden side of Rebecca that he was encountering now of all times.
"Oh, come on… y-you called me cute before we got our powers."
Debbie's laughter continued to echo as Clark realized that he was in for a long night.
AN: Nolan POV next. 
