Wave (A Wormverse Story)

[Rhyzler]

Wave is a story written in the setting of Wildbow's Worm, and takes place in Sydney, Australia in 2005, seven years prior to the events of Worm itself. It follows Parthian, a new and less-than-heroic tinker who must navigate the parahuman political landscape of a city that was almost completely destroyed by Leviathan 7 years ago. Now, the city stands once again, reborn from the ruins with a new team of capes watching over it, The Atlas Alliance. However, the AA aren't the only capes to have made Sydney their home, with several villainous factions having embedded themselves in the infrastructure of the new city as it was rebuilt. How will Parthian fare in Sydney and its dark underbelly? Especially when she has a few dangerous secrets of her own to keep.

The story is written with the intent that it could be considered canon within the larger Worm story/timeline. Wave serves as a novelised adaptation of an ongoing tabletop RPG campaign, similarly as The Legend of Vox Machina is to Critical Role. It will primarily consist of a completely original cast of characters, with major figures such as the Triumvirate only making occasional appearances. As much as we all love them, our favourite gang of teenage villains will almost certainly not feature at all in this story, so please don't expect to see them.

Just like with Worm and Ward, readers should be cautioned that Wave will be fairly dark as fiction goes. There will be graphic language, descriptions of violence, sex (which will occur offscreen) and references to potentially triggering material such as child abuse and sexual assault. I take these topics very seriously as a writer. I will do my utmost to treat them with the respect they should be shown and will not tolerate anyone who fails to do the same in the comments. As Wildbow did with Worm and Ward, I would give this story an MA-15+ (PG-18 for non-Australians) rating. I advise reader discretion in general for this whole fic but chapters that contain any of the aforementioned potentially triggering material will be preceded by trigger warning notifying readers of the sort content ahead, should they wish to avoid it.

With all of that said, I sincerely hope you'll enjoy this exploration into a different place and time in the Wormverse we all love so much. Onwards!

 

[Rhyzler]

Splash 1.1​

Friday, 2:54pm, April 22nd, 2005

It was a quiet afternoon as I made my way west along the motorway, leaving the coastal city of Sydney behind me as I headed inland towards the Blue Mountains. It wasn't rush hour quite yet, but there were enough vehicles on the road that I had to focus. Focusing was good - I was glad for the distraction. Anything to keep my mind and my eyes from wandering over my shoulder to the blankets I had covering the gear in the boot and backseat of my car. I'd turned the radio on to help drown out the nerves, but quickly found that the idle political chatter on ABC Radio just became a new kind of background noise.

Having to brake behind a particularly slow moving truck was enough to shake me from my stupor, just in time to be surprised by a trumpeting tune that heralded the beginning of the news.

"Good afternoon, it's three o'clock and I'm Darren Walker, here with your ABC Radio News update," the voice began. "It's been a day of excitement and showboating today as the Medi-Evils villain duo Steam Punk and Battle Bard carried out a robbery at the Eastwood branch of the Commonwealth Bank. As usual, Protectorate capes Gloryhammer and Excalibur were first to arrive at the scene to attempt to stop the pair. Unfortunately, the heroes were occupied protecting civilians from Steam Punk's clockwork soldiers and both villains managed to escape. The Protectorate plans to make an official statement on the clash later this evening and the Commonwealth Bank has declined to give details on how much money was stolen."

"People don't like Americans poking their noses in… Why do we need Aussie capes flying the Protectorate flag, anyway?" I commented out loud over the ongoing radio broadcast, turning pointedly to the side to address my helmet, perched on the passenger seat. Its birdlike gold-and-white visage peered back at me, partially covered up under some rags. Of course, not expecting an answer from the inanimate object - I was nervous about the upcoming tests, not crazy - I turned my attention back to the road, one hand loosely over the top of the steering wheel, the other hanging limply over the centre console near the shifter.

The newsreader continued and I tuned out the non-cape stuff. Things like the housing market or a party's latest political stunt didn't interest me.

"Speculation continues to swirl around the current construction going on beneath the Atlas Alliance's headquarters in the harbour. The area has been closed off from the public eye for the better part of six months now - with all members of the AA, their connections in APRA, and their corporate sponsor Cardon Enterprises all refusing to elaborate when asked. And, our final story - in news following the recent string of attacks and killings occurring at nightclubs across the city, APRA and AA confirmed this morning that there is parahuman involvement, according to recovered CCTV footage showing at least one suspect with powers. Specifics of the power or whether the suspect is acting alone were not addressed in the statement. Authorities have advised people to avoid going out in the city for the time being, and to keep their eyes open for unusual activity. If you see any parahuman incidents, please call for emergency services or the Atlas Alliance directly via their hotline, 1800 ATLAS, that's 1800 28527. I'm Darren Walker, and this has been your 3pm ABC Radio News update."

The next half an hour or so went by quietly, and nowhere near fast enough for my liking as I was forced to maintain the speed limit. My thoughts started drifting to my sister again. It had been more than a week now since I'd last heard from her and all I could do was worry. Tinkering had helped to distract me from… everything else that was wrong but it could only take me so far. As anxious as I was about going out in costume before I thought I was completely ready, my workshop had started to feel like a prison of my own making.

A field test had been the only logical choice. Somewhere safe and secluded where I wouldn't accidentally stumble into a cape fight or have other capes stumble into me, not until I was completely, totally ready.

If I can ever be ready, really.

If I really tried, I could probably make excuses to spend the rest of forever in my workshop endlessly pulling things apart and putting them back together for the umpteenth time to make sure they were perfect even though I knew they were. I couldn't let my workshop become another prison though, I'd spent too long in one of those already. I sighed with relief as I finally exited the motorway and spent a few more minutes bobbing and weaving down smaller roads, following my Sat-Nav uplink until I reached a small rest stop area adjacent to a bushwalking track that lead into the Blue Mountains National Park. Here I could focus on topics other than my sister while being somewhere other than my lab.

Well, first thing's first. Step one: Due diligence. Let's see if there's anyone about right now.

Pulling into the rest stop area, I peered around, looking for other cars or signs of movement. With the exception of another car passing by as I climbed out mine and started moving around to the boot, I was alone. No sounds of any oncoming cars either.

Alright. Step two: Air superiority.

Reaching into the hatch, the first thing I pulled out was a sleek looking module, not dissimilar to a hard-shell Camelbak, sans straps. Roughly the size of my own back, the underside was mostly flat, with four magnetic attachment points denoted by insert circles which aligned to matching anchors on the back of my own torso armour. In the centre was a hollow within which a sophisticated optics package sat, and the top side of the entire module was curved like the upper edge of a wing. I took another quick look around, picked my helmet up and pulled it down over my head with one hand as I flung the module up into the air with the other. At the apex, right when it would have started to fall, shimmering hard-light wings - nearly twice its length reaching out to each side, like pale blue panes of glass - quickly formed as it started hovering, awaiting orders.

Those orders would come via encrypted radio from my helmet, itself linked to a very simple haptic system in my gloves. Small pads on my fingertips made contact with patches on the insides of my knuckles, completing circuits not unlike keys on a keyboard. The real magic was the input interpreter; with my left hand I selected modifiers and on my right I typed. There were enough combinations to emulate a full alphanumeric character set, but the vast majority of functionality I achieved with a shorthand language of glyphs. Like the kanji I'd learned studying Japanese, some of the glyphs represented complex concepts; some of them were invented out of necessity, being required to help describe incredibly in-depth physics interactions I'd needed to reference when concepting and building my tinkertech.

I ordered the drone - Peregrine, as I'd chosen to name it - to fly up overhead, to about 500 metres, and keep me in sight. A tuneful chirp sounded in my ears as the Peregrine confirmed my orders and started flying over the treeline in the direction of the forested area. A moment later my HUD flashed, and two small screens appeared in the top right corner of my field of view. The first was a mini-map detailing the Peregrine's distance and position from my location, and the second was a view from Peregrine's camera.

I had to fight the urge to jump up and down with glee as I watched it fly up, up and away, until it was small enough that even its wingspan - as wide as I was tall at around 170cm - was just an ever-so-slightly brighter blip amongst the afternoon sky. With the Peregrine's optics package fixated centrally on my heat signature, I blew up the minimap to cover the entirety of the right lens of my helmet, compositing it with a simple opacity mask so that the hot signals would stand out and the ambient temperature background faded away, letting me see through it normally.

HUD set, I shrugged off my loose button-up overshirt, revealing the costume beneath. On the surface, it wasn't unlike a set of biker leathers; pants and a long-sleeved jacket in dark greys and blacks, with some smatterings of maroon to add in some colour.

I'd had neither the time nor the inclination to go the 'power armour' route so many other tinkers seemed to take. There wasn't a tinker in the southern hemisphere or possibly on the planet whose power armour could match Sentinel's, and my technology didn't particularly seem to lend itself to building bulky physical protection, anyway; I had the feeling a full suit of armour would take me months or years to produce. Instead I relied on off-the-shelf materials, practical soft protective covers, with plenty of utility - and harnessing on which to attach the tinkertech I actually felt suited for.

This served me perfectly. It was lightweight - very important when it comes to flight, as even anti-gravity isn't exactly a free lunch - and it had high flexibility. Reasonably comfortable, too. I preferred other methods of protecting myself than hard plates of steel or other tinkertech materials, anyway. Although I wasn't expecting to have to defend myself from enemy capes just yet and could have probably forgone them, I went through the process of attaching all of the soft pads and plate inserts anyway, then a set of sacrificial hard-light reactive armour projectors, leaving the cape until last.
Yes, I had a cape. I didn't care if it was cliché. If capes were good enough for Alexandria and Eidolon, they were good enough for me. Plus, the vertical gold stripes on that maroon fabric was going to look damn cool blowing in the wind once I was zipping about. I donned the cape with a swish and my transformation was complete. Annelise Maxwell was gone, and in her place stood the new tinker in town, Parthian.

With the Peregrine continuing to show me the all clear on my HUD, I reached into the boot of my car with a gloved hand and shifted the blankets covering up the Lightreach, laid out in full at an angle across the entirety of the boot. I gripped the handle, sending a signal to activate its self-stabilisation. With a gentle hum, the anti-gravity generators whirred to life, negating its weight and allowing me to lift it up into the air like it was a prop made of foam instead of the several-hundred-pound slab of steel and tinkertech it actually was. I pulled back and closed the boot of the car, not bothering to lock it. The fact it was a 21-year-old shitbox, and the presence of the gear stick, combined to make plenty of a theft deterrent.

With all my readings currently stable, I turned and started making my way down the trail, figuring I'd walk into the forest a little bit before taking off. Then I'd fly a little further into somewhere secluded before starting weapons testing. After a good 10 minutes of walking or so, I did a quick check of the area, made sure the Peregrine was reporting A-OK and then started running final pre-flight checks on the Lightreach.

Two months, two weeks, and three days of work since my parents- since I became a tinker, leading up to this field test. I really hope this doesn't turn out poorly.

I'd been more fortunate than most tinkers, having access to enough money that I was able to skip the 'build stuff out of literal scrap' stage of tinkering without having to join either the Atlas Alliance or the Protectorate. I didn't have a problem with them, joining just would have been… complicated, on account of existing relationships, and I wanted to make my achievements on my own terms, anyway. Even with a proper workshop and high quality materials, the tinkering process hadn't been much less difficult; but the Lightreach's power source and hard-light projectors were stable now, the anti-gravity generators weren't overheating anymore and the entire thing had finally agreed to stop ripping itself in half whenever it shifted configurations.

Even with all that in mind, I was still nervous. I had done rigorous testing in my workshop but that was a small, sterile, controlled environment. I needed to know how it would perform outdoors, under unpredictable circumstances. I needed to know how I would perform under unpredictable circumstances. There was no way in hell I was gonna throw myself at one of the leaders of a local villain group on my first night out in costume. I'd have to be crazy, stupid or both to even think of doing that. Instead, I'd decided a field test was in order. So here I was, out in the forest waiting impatiently for the console to return a zero exit code, indicating checks completed without errors.

With no errors returned, I held my hand out, palm down, fist closed around the handle of the Lightreach, and let go. I took a step back to watch it hover and just kind of let my mind be blown for a second that I built this. I'd built this board and it was hovering in front of me, currently defying physics while simultaneously exceeding any technology my world was currently capable of producing without the use of powers.

I put my hand up on the surface of the board, pushed down as I jumped up, putting my back foot behind me on the rear end, front foot up towards the forward tip, and raised up to a standing position, hovering a metre off the ground. With a subtle 'vvmm', the soles of my boots magnetised to the surface of the board, keeping me steady. The balance gauges on my HUD danced momentarily but quickly settled well within acceptable ranges. I was flying.

I'm flying. I'm not just standing on it in my lab. I'm outside, just me and Lightreach, there's no safety nets, and I'm ACTUALLY flying!

I couldn't resist letting out a little whoop of excitement and joy. Pushing down with my back foot, closing one fist as I leaned forwards down to my knee, I angled the Lightreach upwards and began to accelerate - slowly - up towards the treetops.

I watched as the ground began to fall away from beneath me as I simultaneously observed myself rising up towards the Peregrine from its own perspective. The drone gave a tuneful chirp as a marker pinged on my mini-map, indicating a decent sized clearing further into the forest that was suitable for the weapons test. I angled around - awkwardly at first, having never actually turned this thing at speed before, only hovering in the workshop while stationary. I touched my thumb to my knuckle, then slid it out towards my fingertip, the command gesture for the board to start accelerating. I hunched down further, letting the nose of my mask split the air in front of me as the wind started whipping past.

I had heard and read countless times about what it felt like to fly from capes blessed with the ability to do so, and... They were right. There was this feeling of energy that flowed through my body as I started to accelerate, an almost giddy sense of joy at the feeling of freedom as I watched the canopy of trees blur past beneath me and soared over the top of them. Distracted by my own excitement, I let my hand drift outwards to feel the wind blowing past and was promptly punished by physics. I knew what kind of effect extending my arms would have at high speeds, but there's a difference between theory and practice. The air currents pushed my arm upwards abruptly causing me to overbalance. I threw my other arm out on instinct, trying to throw myself back upright, but that just made it worse. I shrieked as the board - and I along with it - angled towards the ground, continuing to accelerate. Half a dozen alerts began flashing across my HUD, snapping me out of my shock for long enough to drag my thumb across the inside of two knuckles, sending a signal for the Lightreach to level itself out. The entire incident only lasted a few seconds, but in the aftermath I couldn't stop wondering just how painful - if not lethal - a dive into the ground from my current height might have been.

Upright once again, I crouched as low to the board as I physically could with my boots still magnetised to it. Shallow, scared breaths shot in and out of my lungs for a few seconds as I grappled with my own mortality.

Good to know the magnets and command inputs are working properly. Shoot. I could've actually died.

The list of people who would miss me was depressingly short. My roommate Sam? Possibly. My dad? Maybe. My sister?

Would Elly miss me?

The fact I didn't know anymore sat like a rock in my stomach. I wasn't supposed to be thinking about her right now. Although… Consciously trying not to just brought about a kind of guilt all its own. I grit my teeth and reasserted my position on the board. I spent a few moments tweaking the maglocks, allowing me to crouch nice and low like a speedboarder, one hand gripping my board and one leg out behind me to brace against.

Yeah, having a hand down forwards helped a lot. I started to pour on the speed again, this time using the stance of my whole body to help cut through the air rather than just the beak of my helmet. I let the feeling of the air rushing past me peel away Annelise's problems as Parthian started racing through the sky once more.

I'd done the maths - the board itself would definitely push almost 400 kilometres per hour in Earth's gravity. I was, of course, wildly excited to experience that speed for myself… But real life has a way of raining on parades, and there's a tricky little issue called 'acceleration', insofar as the human body could only withstand so much. Even in my improved riding stance, I still wasn't optimally positioned, given that I was standing on top of the propelling mechanism. By the time I'd closed the distance to the clearing, on account of my own mistake, my airspeed had only just passed 120. I sighed, disappointed in myself, and started slowing down to flare out. Angling downwards, I continued to ditch speed steadily before aiming all the way down to the ground in the centre of the open area.

I came to a steady stop, wobbling just a little about a metre off the ground. Another chirp from the Peregrine told me there was no one else in the area or any approaching air traffic that might see me from overhead. The magnetic locks had released automatically as soon as the board registered a level flight below walking speed; I stepped off one side, dropping a metre or so to the ground, and the Lightreach stopped with me... Waiting. I took it by the handle and prepared to wield it.

Time for the weapons test.

I felt the anti-gravity generators and internal stabilisers clunk as they shifted to ballistics mode. With the exception of a hard-light bowstring materialising along one side of the board, the Lightreach didn't change shape at all. I had deliberately built the board in the shape of a hefty great bow with the limbs being large and solid enough to both stand on and house all the tinkertech inside it. All the changes made when swapping from hoverboard to greatbow configuration were internal; the hard-light projectors engaged and the anti-gravity generators reoriented their stability fields to act against each other - for balance, rather than propulsion. I had read online from scientific articles and PHO threads that while most tinkers had some sort of speciality or focus, others had a much broader range of things they could create. My power seemed to fall somewhere in the middle. A mix of both anti-gravity and hard-light technology. I could build some things outside of those direct categories like the optics package on the Peregrine and I could make things that used just anti-gravity or just hard-light technology, but my tinkering had always felt at its strongest when I was building something that married the two together.

I guess that makes this the Lightreach's honeymoon getaway?

I looked around for a tree nobody was gonna miss - in case I'd... misjudged things. A quick glance let me spot an older looking, more withered tree on one side of the clearing. I raised the bow in front of me left-handed. A ray-casted, depth-mapped projection of the calculated impact point overlaid on both lenses of my helmet as I pointed it at the hapless tree. The overlay changed again as I toggled between firing solutions; I thumbed the input for Direct Fire Support, Armor-Piercing Fin-Stabilised Hard-Light, and watched as 'DFS-APFS-HL' flashed on my HUD and the projection flattened into a line. Like flash-forged silicon carbide, a hard-light arrow would fly truer than any physical arrow with a payload to deliver.

I pulled back the string, slowly - the Lightreach materialising the selected munition on demand - listening and feeling the mechanisms of the bow compound my own draw strength by tens or hundreds of times through its internal mechanisms. I loaded the limbs fully as the projector trued up the hard-light projectile to the target designator, then eased back a little bit. I wasn't planning to send it all the way through in one shot. I held it for another second, the targeting solution steady despite the excited tremor in my muscles, then let go.

With a rush of air and a supersonic crack, I watched as the hard-light arrow effortlessly speared through the trunk of the tree, sending chips of splintered bark flying as the arrow whizzed off into the forest, stopping a moment later with a dull thud as it stabbed into the thicker trunk of another tree. I let out a shocked but appreciative whistle.

Note to self. Minimise draw strength and use flathead projectiles when firing directly at people. Maybe I'd better find a berm to fire into…

I went for a walk-around, inspected the damaged tree, took a few notes, moved over to the arrow embedded in a tree further back, made a few more notes, took a close scan of the projectile's structure through my helmet optic. Each time I let go of the Lightreach to write in a field notebook, it hovered there, exactly where it was when I let it go, until I grabbed it again and it started to move with me. I returned to the clearing, lining up another shot. I drew back the hard-light string once again, listening to and feeling how the Lightreach accounted for the new draw strength limit. I sucked in a deep breath and lost it with a surprised yelp as my HUD flashed indicating I had an incoming phone call.

Elly?

I answered immediately, without even checking the caller ID, frantically sucking in another breath of air as I prepared to vomit out all the worry I had been feeling.

The automated spam call spouting something in a foreign language felt like a punch in the gut, bringing on a sudden, irrational burst of rage. I hung up with a swift gesture, gritting my teeth again as I felt the tears welling up in my eyes. My grip on the Lightreach became white-knuckle tight as I pulled the string back all the way, hitting and blowing past the draw limit indicator I had set moments ago. I didn't need to shout or scream - the thunderous cracks that echoed through the forest as I unleashed arrow after arrow into that poor old tree made my feelings known far louder than I possibly could have. By the time I was done, the tree looked like it had been on the wrong end of a machine gun.

The anger was gone and although the sadness lingered, I couldn't help but marvel at what I'd achieved with the Lightreach's firepower. A calm sense of satisfaction washed over me as I let Annelise's problems go once again. I spent the next few hours freely loosing arrow after arrow, continuing to wonder at the efficacy of my tinkertech, despite my reservations about whether or not I was ready to really make full use of it yet. Satisfied after a few more basic test shots, I started to get more creative with my aim. I practised shooting through targets, testing to see how many branches I could skewer on a single arrow. I tweaked the parameters on my arrows and attempted some curved shots, testing the way the arrows curved through the air to hit targets I seemingly wasn't aiming at. Even with the HUD aiding my aim to a significant degree, I still found myself giggling with delight as I made tricky shots, sending my arrows through narrow gaps in the treeline to hit specific knots on a trunk a distance away.

After a while of this, I started getting more confident and decided to attempt some dismount-to-shoot drills. Jumping on my board, I began flying in circles and once I'd picked up a bit of speed - though not enough to harm myself - I manually disengaged the mag-locks on my boots as it came to an abrupt stop, my boots sliding off for a very quick dismount. I managed to catch it as I fell, feeling the 'thunk' as it switched configurations - but there was a momentary delay in the switch between modes that put me off balance, causing me to land flat on my face as the Lightreach floated out of my grasp.

A brief glance at my HUD showed me to be unharmed except for probably a few small bruises on my body, and a slightly bigger one to my pride. I laid there face down in the dirt and groaned, my helmet catching the sound and reverberating my voice out into the quiet clearing.

Absolutely and utterly defeated. Hoisted by my own petard. Flew too close to the sun. Pride before the literal fall…

I let out a little giggle, followed by another. Then a guffaw, and finally, raucous laughter; thoroughly amused as I was by my own misfortune. For a good minute or two, I continued like that - laying face down, arms wide, with the Lightreach hovering diligently nearby. Eventually, I put a hand down into the dirt and raised myself up. After a few hours of testing, it was just beginning to get dark now. I marked the clearing on my GPS; a good spot to return to if ever needed to do some more tests. For now, though, I had plenty of tweaks to do with fresh data. Ergonomics, functionality adjustments, some fine tuning, and the early thoughts for a system to help reduce my descent speed should I ever be separated from the Lightreach mid-flight.

I ordered the Peregrine to scout the way back to the rest spot, getting a chirp of acknowledgement from it as I reached up to use the bow to pull myself upright onto my feet. After waiting a minute for the Peregrine to return to the rest area and confirm that no-one was around, I hopped back up onto the Lightreach and rode my way back in under five minutes, coming to a gentle stop by my car. Reluctantly, I took off the cape, gloves, and helmet, sliding my overshirt back on and stowing all the equipment in the car.

After a few more tweaks, I really ought to go do… Something. Patrol. Maybe stop some crime. Make some friends, or some enemies. Make a name for myself. Who knows? Anything but making more excuses to do nothing. I can't afford to leave myself alone with my idle thoughts any longer.

Even those blessed distraction-free hours spent fiddling with tinkertech only managed to delay the unhealthy, anxiety-inducing brooding that I'd taken to. I couldn't hide away in the lab forever.

I called down the Peregrine, reaching out to grab it as it descended, the faintly glowing wingspan vanishing suddenly as its engines disengaged. I deposited it in the boot and tossed the blankets back over the lot to hide them before climbing back into the driver's seat. Any notifications I got on my phone should've been transferred to my HUD, so it was perhaps irrational of me to pull out my phone anyway, hoping for a text from my sister to be waiting there for me. Unfortunately… No luck.

We'd called each other multiple times a week at first, after I fled, but her calls had dropped in frequency. That was right around the time I got a text from my mother, saying I was a disgrace to her family, officially dead to her, and I should never come back.

Eventually, Elly had stopped calling entirely. I still got a text at least once a week, asking if I was okay, and she'd answer when I called her. Our conversations had been getting shorter and shorter, though. She always mentioned how much she was working and studying, but she never wanted to get into details, and she always sounded tired and hollow.

Powers in a bottle. My mother, wanting to turn me into her pet cape. My father, letting her have whatever she wanted. The unbearable weight of expectation. In a kind of sad irony, it turned out they didn't need the vial to give me powers at all. I had to run away. I had to leave Elly behind. I wish I'd taken her with me instead of leaving her in our parents' clutches. I'd always shielded her from the worst of it, and it seemed more and more like Elly couldn't handle the brunt of it alone.

This latest stretch was the longest yet without contact. Nothing since I'd last tried to call her on Monday, and she hadn't tried to call back yet. I brought up her number again, routing the call through a proxy service to avoid being tracked or identified.

"Please pick up…" I whined quietly, bouncing my knee agitatedly. With a beep, it went to voicemail.

"Hey, it's me. You know which number to call. Love you," I hung up with a defeated, heart-aching sigh.

---

AN: And so it begins! I'd like to give a huge thank you to my co-author Casey West and our beta readers, NotDis and two more who've chosen to remain anonymous for now. I recognise that this is a somewhat unconventional Worm fanfic, being both almost completely original and based on an RPG but I'll be happy if even one person thinks this is cool. I am far from a professional writer so feedback and constructive criticism is greatly appreciated!

I'm going to initially be cross posting this fic to SB, QQ, AO3 and FFN to see where it gets some traction (if any) and then I'll probably narrow it down to one or two forums. The current plan is to post a new chapter every two weeks or so but that may eventually slow down to monthly depending on how much life gets in the way and how quickly the fic catches up to its RPG source material. The eldritch horror within me hungers for your comments so please feed it!

 

[Rhyzler]

Splash 1.2​

Friday, 8:34pm, April 22nd, 2005

Thanks to the rush hour traffic coming in, the return trip to my workshop had been much slower than the journey out. It had been made all the more unbearable by the unscratchable itch to tinker, to boot, but the drive was thankfully almost over.

Seven years ago, when Sydney had flooded, the inner suburbs had been just.. washed away, taken by the tides, leaving no evidence humans had ever built there except for spotted ruins of half-unearthed underground utilities and the hardiest footings of skyscrapers. The rest had been simply inundated, but mostly repairable. The affectionately named 'Poverty Belt' marked a several-kilometre-wide dividing line between the two - not washed away, but by far the most heavily damaged of what remained.

Rather than start at the edges of the devastation and work inwards, reconstruction had purposefully begun in the areas Leviathan had completely wiped out - a deliberate effort to restore what we'd lost, rather than let the city naturally expand back into the ruined parts of the landscape. The restoration money had mostly run out - squandered, misused, reallocated - before reconstruction could get underway all the way out there, so it served as a ring of ghettos dividing the freshly built inner city from the merely repaired outer suburbs, attracting the poorest of Sydney's surviving residents. Then the better-off folk had moved into the newer, better Sydney en masse, and then the international refugees started flooding in, while the poorer survivors stayed out in the cold, and well… The resulting xenophobia and resentment was predictable.

My workshop was an industrial unit in northwest Sydney, just on the outside of that Poverty Belt. I actually thought it was a really smart play; capes probably looked for new tinkers all the time in the poverty belt itself and on the outskirts of the city, not to mention how sketchy the electricity services could be out there and how suspicious deliveries of materials could look. With a unit, as long as I was very careful, I figured I'd be effectively hiding in plain sight - and with a few other tradie businesses operating in the same block of units, I was able to keep my tinkering fairly inconspicuous. Loud noises late at night, high-power-draw tooling, and deliveries of machining equipment and building materials were the norm.

I let out a happy sigh as I pulled into the unit and began unloading my gear into the workshop space, my home away from home - literally, even, on the occasions I'd ended up on a creative spree and just not bothered to go back to my apartment after a long day of work. I was eternally grateful that I'd had the presence of mind to ensure my own financial stability before running away from home. My family was quite wealthy thanks to their business connections, wealthy enough to be just fine after I'd rendered their bank accounts a few million dollars lighter with the help of one particularly mutinous family accountant. I couldn't explain exactly what moved him to help me instead of turning me in when he caught me taking the money, but I owed him a lot; he'd hidden what he could, and continued to manage my funds in secret after I fled. Maybe he was sympathetic to my plight - he'd worked with my uncle for more than a decade, after all, and probably had better moral character than the goons my parents hired. While it bothered me to let him keep so much insight into my ongoing affairs, the other option was being broke and homeless, so I'd made the choice to accept that risk.

That afforded me the luxury of sitting here, now, with all the resources I needed to do my work. The first order of tinkering business was, as always, maintenance. I stripped my costume down to the fitted gym clothes beneath and then loaded the Lightreach, chest rig, and helmet onto their respective stands, plugging them into my computer so I could begin a diagnostics check.

As those scans got underway, I started stripping some of the smaller hard-light panel projectors off my chest rig and cracked them open. The short fall I'd suffered had merely bruised my dignity, but in a fight, an unplanned dismount could mean death. I sat down and started scribbling, glyphs and numbers and a few simple equations spilling forth as an idea crystalised in my head. I measured and made physical adjustments, altering the hard-light lensing components. I reassembled them, ready to operate in a new shape, with a new purpose: a prototype safe-descent system.
The diagnostic scan finished about an hour into my work and I was happy to find that everything was in the green. Experience had come to lend credence to what I'd read about tinkertech needing fairly consistent maintenance over time, but it was nice to know that the Lightreach wasn't already in need of adjustments so soon after the full teardown and rebuild I'd carried out earlier this week. I returned to my work designing the slow fall system, the end result of which would be something akin to a pair of rigid, hard-light wings that would project out above and behind my shoulders.

The other thing I wanted to work on was finalising my newest batch of specialty arrowheads. Snare arrows. I hadn't had time to finish them before I'd forced myself out for the field test, so they'd remained unfinished on my workbench until now. But if I was going out on patrol, I needed a non-lethal takedown option, so that was next - after I was done with the slow fall system. The two cheap dummies I had weren't good substitutes for people either. During the few tests I ran, their arms, heads and torsos fell off too easily, so it was difficult to tell if the bindings would stay tight enough once deployed.

Guess these will need a field test of their own.

The field test had helped, but ultimately it hadn't been enough to get my mind off of Elly and everything else. I had real practical proof that my tech was ready, now. It was time to take it out into the city and make use of it. If I didn't go soon, I worried I would worry myself into never going out at all.

No more excuses.

By the time I'd finished tinkering and was pulling out of my workshop again - costume on, Lightreach and Peregrine covered in the boot - it was a bit past midnight. I drove south along the border of the Poverty Belt until I found a suitably dark alleyway to pull into. As I was about to get out of the car, my personal phone buzzed with a text notification from my roommate Sam.

Turning in 4 the night. Spagbowl in fridge if u havnt eaten. Hope ur getting good $$$ for overtime.

Though I'd initially been happy with my newfound freedom, about eight weeks or so after moving into my new place, that happiness had started to falter. Beyond the annoyances of shopping, cleaning and cooking - skills I'd never had to master, and more importantly, kept me from my tinkering - I'd felt lonely. Evidently I was still burdened by the lack of real relationships my upbringing had left me with despite all the parties and charity galas my parents had forced me to attend. Two weeks of filtering applicants for my room for rent advertisement, and some mildly invasive background checks had given me Sam Bourkley, a 23-year-old mild mannered young man and aspiring artist. I didn't care for rent money, I could've lived there alone - and Sam was more than happy to accept the strange arrangement of performing all the household duties, cooking, and cleaning in lieu of payment. He'd protested a little, offering to pay at least a reduced rate, but I'd seen no need.

I fussed over a response for far too long before finally sending something short in reply.

Thx Sam. Goodnite!​

With no-one else around at this hour, I was clear to take off. Uncovering the equipment in the boot and donning the rest of my costume quickly, I finished up with the cape again before taking the Peregrine and holding it up to my back, beneath the cape. With a dull 'thunk', it mag-locked to the back of my chest rig, blending into my silhouette underneath the maroon fabric. I grabbed the Lightreach, positioning it midair, hovering eerily still and unsupported near the car while I closed the boot.

I set the Lightreach to its board configuration and clambered up onto it, angling up towards the sky and launching out of the alley. I configured my HUD as I gained altitude, sorting all my readouts into place as the different systems came online and linked up. Picking up some speed, I angled around roughly towards the new Harbour Bridge, aiming for a few thousand feet of altitude.

The dull hum of the board picked up a little as I propelled myself skywards over the Poverty Belt. With so few tall buildings around this area, I quickly found myself alone in the night sky. After Leviathan had almost completely destroyed the city, Sydney had been fortunate enough to receive a great deal of international funding and support, which - thanks to the efforts of Australian construction and engineering giant Cardon Enterprises - had allowed the city to be almost completely rebuilt from the ground up. Not everyone had seen the benefits of that support, though. For the people who'd barely survived the city's ruination, there was no greater insult than seeing the city welcoming the displaced and needy into our safe harbour instead of putting its own poor first. From above, the Poverty Belt looked like a scar on the face of the city. An ugly and permanent reminder of everything we'd lost, that not even time would likely heal.

I crouched down into a speedboarder's stance as I picked up speed, the city coming clearly into view in just a few scant minutes. Shining towers of steel and concrete pierced their way up into the darkness, the glow of fluorescent lighting casting a yellow-white halo over the entire region. Even at this late hour, I could see the streaks of red and white denoting cars cruising the streets, tiny specks beneath me as I raced through the cold air.

Specific details began to come into view as I got closer. I recognised the headquarters of Cardon Enterprises standing at least 10 storeys proud of the other buildings. Its logo made it clear and obvious to all as it cast a blue neon glow out into the darkness from its prime position in the middle of the new central business district. Even higher still, floating above the skyline was the famous headquarters of the Atlas Alliance. A sleek, flying fortress, hovering above the waters of the harbour and casting a watchful eye over the city beneath it.

As I flew over the city wondering what the best course of action would be, my thoughts returned to the news broadcast I'd heard in the car earlier this afternoon. There was nothing to be done about the Medi-Evils now, and I wasn't planning to throw myself at the parahuman serial killer in the area just yet… At least, not alone. If they did strike again tonight, though, perhaps I could volunteer as overwatch? Pursue them from a distance until Atlas or APRA caught up to stop them, maybe provide some long range cover fire.

That said, fighting crime wasn't the only way to get noticed, and the serial killer wasn't the only thing in the news. The Atlas Alliance was building something on the island beneath their headquarters, and everyone wanted to know what that was. The no-fly zone around and beneath the flying fortress had prevented any news helicopters from getting decent pictures, but a small drone with a tinker-grade optics package?

Posting some sneaky pics to PHO would certainly be one way to start my cape career, and I probably won't even need to enter the no-fly zone.

I considered briefly, then opted for the best of both ideas. Darling Harbour had the highest concentration of nightclubs in the city, and it wasn't far from the Atlas HQ, so I pivoted around and sped off towards it. From my vantage point up high, I made use of the extensive magnification on my helmet optics and began surveying the roads. I screened my radios until I found the frequency for the Sydney police dispatch and tuned in.

With nothing immediately catching my attention, I reached behind my back beneath the cape and pulled out the Peregrine. With an almost haphazard toss, I released it into the air as its own engine and wings flickered to life, and it sailed off at low speed, loitering and waiting for orders. I instructed it to circle Atlas Island (formerly Goat Island), looking for angles it could capture footage with its own optics package - that was far superior to the one built into my helmet - and find out if there was anything interesting visible. I also made sure to tune into civilian aviation frequencies, just in case Atlas HQ started hailing the Peregrine.

The Peregrine chirped in response before peeling off in the direction of the island. In the short amount of time it took to travel the distance, a report about a bar fight on the dispatch radio stole my attention. I manoeuvred sharply downwards over Darling Harbour, running text searches against public business directories to try find the building in question. I came to a stop a few hundred feet in the air - high enough to still be a dark spot among the dark backdrop of the sky and nearly impossible to spot, but low enough that my optical zoom could provide a sharp look at what was going on at ground level.

Maybe I'll get a chance to field test the snare arrows after all. Fingers crossed for someone rowdy!

I found the bar's street address and swooped towards it, clearing the rooftops in the surrounding area and bringing myself to a stop at a vantage point that gave me a clear view of the sidewalk outside the bar. I could already hear sirens approaching, and less than a minute after I arrived, a patrol car rolled down the street and pulled up to the premises.

I descended down to the roof behind me, across the street from the entrance - it looked suitable to land on. Stopping a few metres above it as the mag-locks on my boots disengaged, I crouched down and grabbed the bow handle as I let myself fall forwards in a roll. As soon as I felt the weightlessness in my gut - the Lightreach swapping configuration and ceasing to hold me up - I activated the slow fall system.

Angled panels of pale blue light formed in succession, starting from my shoulder blades and proceeding outwards. They angled to catch air even as additional, larger panels appeared in concert, overlapping and splaying out like angelic wings; I could see the tips reaching around the sides and to the front, like a parachute, holding myself in the air by my chest rig for precious seconds of hangtime. My boots touched down on the bird-crap-ridden rooftop - roughly, but not injuriously so - and the panels began to flicker and fade.

Test One of Slow Fall System: Success. Now I just need to build more replacement armour panels.

Grinning widely, I took a few steps towards the ledge so I could see the street opening of the bar again. Two officers had stepped out of the car and gone inside before I set down, and nothing particularly wild seemed to be occurring at that moment.

Ears perked up and eyes scanning, I reached down to my thigh bandolier to grab a special arrowhead and fed it to the shelf of the bow. My HUD flashed briefly as it recognised the munition; Proximity-Fused, Air-Bursting, Target ARresting System. The snare round I'd just finished building, designed to wrap a human-sized target up in a bundle of wires. The ballistics computer flashed 'PFAB-TARS' and the Lightreach hummed, holding the munition in place, just waiting for me to draw the string and give it room to project the hard-light arrow shaft to mount it to and fire it with.

A handful of people exited the bar as a group, looking just a bit rattled and a moment later, one of the police officers stepped out, pushing a man in handcuffs along with him who was struggling to stay on his feet, no doubt due to heavy intoxication. Over the dispatch radio, I heard them advise that a single ambulance had been requested as well, with no sirens.

Seems like they've got it in hand. Unfortunate.

Was it messed up that I was disappointed the police were able to do their job safely and successfully?

I left my own question unanswered, stowing the snare tip back at my thigh and turning my attention to the Peregrine's camera feed in the corner of my HUD. Now rapidly circling the island at a fair distance, I blew up the feed to fill one half of my vision so I could take a better look. There was definitely something being built on the island, although it was difficult to make out in the darkness. Construction seemed to have ceased for the day, so there was nothing to light up what was down there. From the silhouettes, though, it looked like a collection of buildings, with a design that matched the sleek aesthetic of the Atlas HQ. It also seemed to have much more square footage than height, with the construction expanding out beyond the island's land mass in a few spots, requiring extra manufactured supports. If I had to guess, it looked kind of like a space-age university campus.

Alright, time to test out and dial up the light amplification.

I swapped the Peregrine's optics to night vision and momentarily lost track of what was going on, the feed going white as the cameras started absorbing all the light pollution from the surrounding area. Once I dialled in the right adjustments though, the buildings came as clearly into view as if I were viewing them in daylight. Construction seemed to be largely (if not completely) finished; there were no cranes or large vehicles on the grounds, and only a few traces of scaffolding here and there - though there were several large lorries parked out the front of the building in an open air carpark, along with a few other small construction vehicles.

If any construction was still underway, I could safely wager it was now taking place indoors. Even with my new daylight perspective, I wasn't granted any additional insight into what the building's purpose might be.

Maybe it's some kind of museum?

Whatever it was, I told the Peregrine to save a few full-resolution images to its drive that I could pull from it later. I felt a sense of devious satisfaction at my accomplishment, like a kid who'd managed to sneak a peek under the wrapping paper and see what their Christmas presents were. The little mischievous smile on my face promptly faltered though as the video feed suddenly began to crackle.

I expanded the feed to fill my view and brought up signal diagnostics to try and identify the cause. It wasn't a connection issue between the Peregrine and myself, but the crackling continued to get worse until the feed went completely static. The drone itself was apparently completely fine otherwise - GPS, altimeter, static pressure sensors, environmental sensors, etcetera all reading stable - but its cameras were blind.

What the-?

I pulled up the camera diagnostics and began cycling through its different vision modes. The light sensor was reporting null data. Low - even near-zero - data implied a physical obstruction, null data meant either damage or worse, hacking.

I turned my head up towards where the Peregrine was supposed to be, letting my HUD highlight a little ring around where the drone would be in the sky and activating my full 100x optical zoom to try and make out the faint lights of its wings as it zoomed around at high speed. No sign of any physical interference.

Someone's hacking my drone! Who's hacking my drone?

My fears were confirmed moments later when a crackle came over the aviation frequency.

"Ah, ah, ah!~ Sorry, but there's no sneak peaks," said a heavily-synthesised masculine voice "You'll have to wait until it's finished like everyone else. Run along now!"

I quickly inspected the Peregrine's storage to validate the pictures I'd taken were still saved, and was relieved to find that whoever was doing this, they only seemed interested in scrambling my cameras and didn't have control of any other systems.

"Last callsign, say identity?" I replied curtly, incensed.

"This is Olympus One. You are not currently violating the no fly area surrounding the Atlas Alliance headquarters, but I know what you're trying to do. I've scrambled your video feeds for now but if you don't break off your current flight pattern in the next 10 seconds, I will be forced to seize control of your drone remotely."

Olympus One was the callsign for the Atlas HQ. I was talking directly to someone up in the home of the Atlas Alliance.

Guess I've poked the hornet's nest.

"Acknowledged," I curtly answered once again… And immediately initiated downloads of the saved full-res images from the Peregrine's storage to my helmet.

Whoever this - I assumed guy - was, I did not like his attitude. Intending to both push the point and be obnoxious, as well as test the exact capabilities and the extent to which Atlas HQ was prepared to go, I let the 10 second warning lapse as I drafted up a series of timers and instructions for the Peregrine: first, to power off its own radio once the upload to my helmet was complete, cutting it off from any remote access; then, to wait in the current loiter pattern circling Atlas Island for 15 minutes before breaking west by five kilometres to loiter there; then finally to re-initialise the radio hardware and reconnect to my system.

With the course laid in, I plucked another special arrowhead from my thigh bandolier and loaded it onto the shelf. The HUD flashed 'ACE-X' - Anti-gravity Collapse Effect eXplosive. When I'd first started working on my anti-grav generators, I'd discovered the smaller, flimsier initial prototypes had a tendency to collapse in a violent, roiling gravity wave preceding a concussive explosion. A pain when it came to building the Lightreach, but quite useful for deliberately harnessing as arrowheads with a bit more kick to them. Essentially a small, fragless grenade on the tip of a hard-light arrow... Just in case I needed to scuttle my own tinkertech.

The voice came over the radio again. "Well that's a shame…"

An alert flashed on my HUD warning me that an override of the Peregrine's systems was being attempted.

Okay. FUCK this asshole!

Maybe I was flouting the spirit of the no-fly zone by taking the pictures, but I hadn't actually violated any restricted airspace. My conduct so far had been perfectly legal, and now this blowhard was overstepping his authority to try and steal my drone. I didn't know what kind of silly game Olympus One was playing, but they'd got me fired up, and I was going to pick up the gauntlet - I refused to walk away with nothing. With a particularly cold anger starting to settle in, I immediately set about making things as incredibly difficult as I possibly could for the other connection trying to jack my drone, delaying them while the images continued to upload.

I hadn't expected a hostile actor to be able to so easily get inside my systems, not even with downgraded user privileges - so I hadn't bothered to put in any kind of internal security. Access control was supposed to be cryptographically secure - intruders were meant to be stopped at the door, not once they'd already gotten in. Bad clients were supposed to be banned after just a few attempts. How had they managed to even open a connection?

No time to find out now - I'd just have to investigate later, in the aftermath. I wasn't some AI with the mental bandwidth to do digital forensics under pressure at high speed; I was only human, entering commands in a terminal via haptic gloves, far from the optimal battlestation.

No, now was the time for drastic measures. I did have one clear advantage; I was already fully connected, secured and encrypted, and I had administrator privileges.

I went to the firewall first. In regular operation, the drone connected to a lot of external resources, over private and public network connections; the state table was huge. While the attacker continued to feed exploits to the system, I spent precious seconds finding and isolating the entries associated with the picture upload process and my own administrative backdoor… and then dropped the entire remainder of the table, cutting off every other link between the Peregrine and the outside world until they could all initiate new connections. An effective but temporary defence.

I knew it probably wouldn't stop the attacker for long - as soon as they realised their signals were being dropped, they would use whatever method they'd originally used to gain access again and just pick up where they left off. But it was a start, and sure enough, several core components stopped logging access attempts.

I used the time I'd bought to start working on the next radical obstacle. I tore through the instrument and flight control systems and scrambled every hardware driver present - drivers I'd personally written - effectively cutting the nerves from the Peregrine's brain to its own muscles and senses. The upload continued to tick along steadily - obviously, I couldn't just unplug the radio itself to kill Olympus One's connection, not until the images were secured.

The drone started to veer off course, no longer able to determine its own heading or orientation, nor commence any flight adjustments. I could see the attacker had reconnected and was trying to issue commands, but the drone couldn't even control itself right now, so the attacker had no hope.

That situation was untenable, though - the drone still had plenty of altitude, but if it went into an uncorrected dive and crashed, I'd lose. I cursed under my breath for lack of a regular keyboard as I painstakingly built primitive replacements for the drivers I'd just ripped through, slowly giving the machine its eyes, ears, and wings back. With the flight control system hastily adapted to drivers running under my own privileged access, only the Peregrine itself - or I, personally - could exercise what degraded control I'd managed to re-establish, which meant that there was one big obstacle left in the way of the attacker:

Access to my own personal privilege level. Root access to the entire system.

Olympus One has opted for the most efficient method, focusing on getting unprivileged access and then exploiting specific hardware directly instead of trying to hammer at universal privilege escalation, but it cost them; now their work was useless, and they had to take the hard route anyway.

I briefly considered taunting them, but they hadn't bothered talking to me on the aviation frequency since this whole affair began, so I figured smug silence was better.

Still, I watched the logs nervously as they tried to crack open my own user access. I'd put all my eggs in one basket, hoping that the hacker wouldn't be able to achieve full access before the upload completed. If they succeeded, though, they could backchannel through to all of my other hardware - my helmet, the Lightreach… I'd have to shut everything down. I'd either be completely compromised, or incredibly vulnerable, having to walk home dragging the Lightreach behind me. A kind of crystalline fear started to form as the logs flew by, so fast - inhumanly fast. It had to be some kind of automated exploit kit, or maybe some parahuman power. The attacker was trying things so quickly my eyes couldn't even track what it was doing at a given moment.

Then my feed disconnected. I felt that crystal form into a drop of pure terror and fall down into my stomach. For a few dark moments, I just gaped in shock, wondering if I'd failed. Then I watched with my own eyes as the Peregrine started lazily banking into the pre-programmed loitering pattern I'd given it earlier. Its indicator on my HUD was dark.

In a rush, I checked my helmet storage. The files were all there. I checked the file hashes; they matched from the drone. I opened one of them, and there it was; a crystal clear picture of the buildings beneath the Atlas HQ.

A feeling of overwhelming elation shot through my veins and burned away the terror, replacing it with the need to whoop and throw my fists in the air. The upload had finished, that's why I'd been disconnected. Then, just as I'd instructed it to, the Peregrine had powered off its radios and moved to carry out its programming in silence. Nothing could hack into it now, not without physically catching it, and it was much too fast for almost anything to catch.

I laughed, exhaling lungfuls of nervous energy as it gave way to sheer relief, relaxing muscles that I hadn't realised I was holding taut. I'd beat him, and now the drone was going to rub it in his face. What was he going to do now that he couldn't win?

The feeling of victory was short-lived.

A hatch opened on the underside of the flying fortress. An ovalescent object - about the size of an armchair, with sleek armour panelling in a blue and white colour scheme - dropped out and rocketed away on an intercept course with the Peregrine. From the design, I could instantly tell it was one of Sentinel's probes, although it was about half the size of the ones that usually accompanied him personally when he was out.

The realisation that I might have just made a fool of one of the most powerful tinkers in history came with a lot of mixed feelings I didn't have time to process now.

I drew back the Lightreach's bowstring. The weapon manifested a hard-light shaft for the explosive arrowhead I'd mounted earlier and began calculating a firing solution; not for Sentinel's probe, but for the Peregrine. Sentinel's specialisation wasn't public knowledge, but whatever made the armour for his suit and probes out of was nigh indestructible. Since his first appearance after Leviathan had destroyed Sydney, he'd only been beaten once, by the leader of the Odinsons. I was just being a realist when I accepted that there was simply no chance I was shooting down his probe.

As fast as the Peregrine was, to my dismay, the probe had insultingly little difficulty matching its speed and quickly closed in. A hatch on the probe opened up and a mechanical arm extended from it, reaching out for my drone as the gap between them got smaller and smaller. Since I'd disabled its radio to prevent the hack, I couldn't even tell it to evade; my drone was about to fly gently into the waiting arm of its captor. All that work keeping them from seizing control of the Peregrine and I was going to have to blow it up anyways.

At least it's going out on my terms.

I held out hope that this was all bluff until the very last second, when the probe's arm snatched the Peregrine out of the air. With a sigh, I loosed the explosive arrow and watched it briefly disappear into the night sky with a supersonic crack, detonating with a spectacular blast right in front of the probe. The Peregrine underwent rapid unscheduled disassembly, as expected, and I could only hope that Sentinel would have to deal with some gnarly scratches in his probe's paintwork for my trouble.

Barely shaken by the blast, the probe immediately closed its hatch and beat a hasty retreat back into the ventral hatch it had first appeared from.

Serves you right! Get out of here.

I watched through my magnified helmet optics as the weapons array beneath the fortress sprang to life and began scanning for targets. Seconds later, three of Sentinel's full size probes descended and began rapidly circling the area. I raised my eyebrows - were they planning to send them after me? They had maybe 40 square kilometres of city to cover if they wanted to find me - much more if they didn't know which direction that arrow came from.

I set the Lightreach down and leisurely clambered aboard, pulling up the photos the Peregrine died to get me while I watched with amusement at Atlas HQ's frantic reaction. A few more seconds passed, and then the circling probes suddenly came to a halt - before breaking off and flying towards Darling Harbour, rapidly closing on my approximate position.

Oh, shit.

​

---

AN: Here's chapter two up a whole day early! It's not a huge difference but I'm happy that it's not late. There's a bit of a cliffhanger on this one and I know these first two chapters have been very tinker-technobabble heavy but I promise there will be good old fashioned dialogue and character introductions and interactions in the next few chapters now we're past the tinker-y business.

The next chapter might be a few days late as I'm going away for a few days the week before it's due to go up but I'll do my best to stick to schedule. In other news, I'm looking for someone to help beta this fic on a regular basis (once a fortnight) so if you'd be interested in volunteering your services, please DM at Rhyzler#9795 on Discord.

Thank you once again to my lovely co-author Casey and our beta reader Juff!

 

[Rhyzler]

Splash 1.3​

Saturday, 1:04am, April 23rd, 2005

Did I regret the choices I'd made up to this point in the evening? No. Would I have made them again if I'd known this would be the result? Maybe not. Were Sentinel's probes fast? Yes. Very fast.

Aboard the Lightreach, I angled forward and down into a steep descent from the rooftop. I sucked in a breath as my stomach lifted inside me - and then dropped back into place with an equally sharp turn to level the board back out, speeding along just above the tops of the street lamps. I booked it south as quickly as I could manage, deeper into the CDB.

A crackle came over the police dispatch radio.

"All units in the Darling Harbour area, be advised. AAHQ reports an explosive projectile was detonated beneath its airspace. ShotSpotter pins the projectile from the Darling Harbour area. Three Sentinel probes currently deploying to survey the area and potentially pursue. Parahuman involvement possible but not confirmed - Deva and APRA on standby to deploy in the event of confirmation."

Hey, that's not… That's not fair!

I keyed into the frequency in a fit of irritation, opening my mouth to respond to the dispatcher and give them some obviously lacking context, and immediately froze. Slowly, I let go of the key, leaving my 'broadcast' as just a pair of radio clicks, hopefully lost in the signal.

I was self-aware enough to know my ego and big mouth had gotten me into this situation, and continuing to lean on them was unlikely to get me out of it by this point. I still felt riled up, though. Olympus One started it by trying to steal my drone! And then they wanted to get uppity, when all I did was protect my property - material and intellectual - from an illegal seizure? The audacity!

I knelt a little further down, fully embracing the speedboarder stance as my cape kicked up behind me, tugging at the fixing points atop my shoulders while I poured on as much speed as I thought I could safely manage. It had only taken me a few minutes to get into the CBD, but anything beyond 100km/h was likely to be a high speed ticket to an early grave as I started dipping and weaving between buildings - especially while flying this low down, in the hopes of staying out of sight of the probes.

Partly due the nature of my upbringing, and partly just because of my own interests being elsewhere, I'd never been much of a cape groupie growing up. Even though Sentinel had made a huge impression in the media when he first appeared, just a few months after Leviathan hit, I'd never given him much thought. I started looking into him more once I'd become a tinker myself, though - because of course I wanted to know just how good the greatest tinker since Hero was. Now that I was currently fleeing from his tinkertech, I found myself rather pissed at just how powerful and versatile it was.

Last I'd checked on PHO, Sentinel's highest known top speed on record was somewhere around Mach 4, so it was safe to assume his bigger probes could match that - considering he almost always travelled with a pair of them. There was no chance I could simply outrun them, but I did have a few advantages; manoeuvrability, and size.

As best I could tell, Sentinel's suit and probes flew using some kind of electric rocket engine. Very good for high top speeds and acceleration - but not as well suited to weaving through tall buildings at speed, lest the force of the thrusters blow out all the windows along their flight path and rain glass down onto the streets below. The probes didn't know my exact location just yet, and they hopefully wouldn't be able to get close enough to do anything - as long as I played to my advantage.

I heard the muted roar of the probe's thrusters as they reached the harbour not even 30 seconds after I'd cleared the area, and I suddenly found myself regretting that I'd lost the Peregrine. Without it, I couldn't safely multitask tracking the probes and navigating through the city. I also couldn't plot an escape route, unless I wanted to risk getting higher to see over the buildings and at the same time potentially reveal myself to the probes.

Crap, crap, crap!

I veered sharply around one building and dove to avoid a suspended footbridge linking it to the building across the street. I raced along at street level, quickly pulling back up as a bus came into view. The driver admonished me by laying on the horn, even as I cleared it with more than enough room to spare.

Rude!

I heard a whooshing sound overhead, glanced up to see one of the probes flying past me over the buildings a few blocks down. I returned my attention forwards again and-

Shit!

My stomach turned over as I dropped my weight backwards, steering the Lightreach vertical and shooting upwards, narrowly avoiding flying straight into a block of offices. I tucked my legs into my chest and quickly pulled the board into a backflip before I gained too much height, shooting back towards the ground before pulling out of the dive and curving to the left, to carry on down a different street.

"This is Unit 12," a voice began on the police radio. "Possible suspect just spotted heading northeast on Mary Ann towards Paddy's Markets. Costumed individual appeared to be riding a hoverboard."

Oh come on! Who? I didn't even see any cop cars.

An acknowledgement from the dispatcher came across the channel, but nothing to confirm if the probes were onto me now or if APRA and Deva were going to get involved. I zig-zagged between a few smaller buildings and tucked into a barrel roll to circle around a section of monorail track, before diving back once more down towards the street. I heard another whoosh - this time passing somewhere behind me - but I wasn't going to risk another glance, not after how well the last one went.

I breathed a small sigh of relief as the sound grew fainter, and then choked on it moments later as the rumble of the thrusters picked up again, growing gradually louder as it approached from behind. I banked left at the next opportunity, shifting myself to near horizontal and tilting my head backwards to steal a glance without having to take my eyes off my current course for more than a split second.

I did not like what I saw in that split second.

A few hundred feet above me, clear of all but the tallest buildings, one of the probes was now hot on my tail, moving as the crow flies in order to keep up with my erratic movements.

Damn you Sentinel.

I decelerated rapidly and executed an Immelmann turn - pulling up into another backflip and then rolling myself over at the apex of the loop - quickly reversing my course at the cost of some speed and a queasy feeling in my stomach as I levelled out. The manoeuvre was effective - if only temporarily. Another risky glance backwards showed the probe slowing down as quickly as possible and pulled sharply upwards to execute a Herbst manoeuvre - flipping over on its end and then rolling over once it had killed enough speed before rocketing back towards me. What little ground I managed to gain was lost in under 20 seconds as the probe closed the gap once more.

I heard more thrusters overhead and another steep, banking turn let me catch a glimpse of the other two probes closing in on my position and moving to create a triangular formation. They maintained a wide berth from each other as they flew over the buildings.

Hemming me in so I can't escape with my current tactics.

A smart move. While I could outmanoeuvre the probes all night long, this formation would make it almost impossible for me to actually escape them. Almost.

Played out the advantage of manoeuvrability... Time to lean on size, then.

I continued my wild flight pattern, dipping, diving, bobbing, weaving, and dodging between the many skyscrapers of Sydney's CBD until I found what I was looking for - the monorail track I'd flown past earlier.

Back when old Sydney still stood, the monorail had been just a tourist attraction. It still was, but advancements in maglev technology by Cardon Enterprises - extrapolated from tinkertech - had opened up the possibility for use as a genuinely feasible form of public transport. With the underground train networks of the old city centre flooded and damaged beyond repair, the reconstruction efforts presented the perfect opportunity to implement a brand new monorail network to connect the new CBD.

And now it was going to help me escape Sentinel's probes - or at least, I hoped so.

I banked upwards and began following the rail as it weaved through the city. The clearly marked path would be easy for the probes to follow me along, but it allowed me to safely pick up some extra speed I was going to need for my plan to work. I kept my foot on the metaphorical gas as I chased the track through the city, winding around buildings - and occasionally shooting through them, where the odd station had been built into one of the existing structures rather than as a standalone fixture.

One building, two, three, then four. I needed the probes to think I was just following the track at this point… That I'd given up on my erratic flightpath and was dumb enough to try to just outrun them by following the track. Five, six, seven, eight…

When I counted the ninth building, I kicked the Lightreach upwards and slammed on the brakes immediately as I entered. I grunted as my knee buckled and slammed into the board, swallowing the pain as I finished my abrupt stop and quickly moved to position myself over the station platform.

Safe from a fall any bigger than a half a metre, I then rapidly set about powering down all of my tech except for the bare necessities required to see through my helmet and keep the Lightreach flying. I heard the whoosh of the third probe from the rear of the formation rush past outside and instinctively held my breath. It wouldn't take them more than a few seconds to notice I hadn't exited the station and double back to try and find me.

With all my extra computing power and flight assistants shut down, I was struck with the realisation of just how much I relied on my tech; I knew what the almost fly-by-wire protocols did for me, I wrote them myself, but the extent to which they made my job easier was now starkly apparent. My legs began to wobble as the Lightreach freely shifted about under my weight, completely unstabilised and unassisted by computers.

I've never ridden a skateboard or snowboard before. Why is it so damn wobbly?

I swallowed the thought and grit my teeth as I worked to balance out the board. Dangerous as this idea was, I'd be damned if I was going to let myself get caught now. I spun around and slowly began to move back out of the station the same way I came in.

Hugging the wall, I edged my way back out of the building, looking down as I hovered out into the open. I expected the Lightreach to begin to lower itself, and the utter lack of any such movement gave me a shock not unlike when you go to take another step down a stairwell but you're already at the bottom step. Of course the Lightreach wouldn't be following terrain height - there were no sensors running to even keep track of what was beneath me. I kicked myself mentally as I scrambled to figure out how to angle down for the safest possible descent.

I heard the roar of the probes approaching again and slid backwards, flattening myself against the exterior wall of the building. I hit much harder than intended. My helmet and board smacked against the concrete, and I cursed silently, thankful my helmet kept me from anything more than a dull throb in the back of my head. I held my breath as two of the probes shot past overhead, no doubt checking to see if I was doubling back along the monorail track. Either by virtue of my tech being minimised, my position against the building or perhaps just sheer luck, neither of the machines seemed to spot me.

Glancing about, I spotted a fire escape on a building across the street and slowly hovered my way over to it, barely controlling the wobbling in my legs from constant overcorrections, clearing the area just in time as the third probe arrived. I clutched at the metal railings of the fire escape and quickly pulled myself onto the stairs, dismounting from the Lightreach and holding it close as I made myself as small as possible on the fixture.

Breathing heavily, I watched as the third probe rounded the corner into view, now moving slow enough that it could safely descend to the height of the monorail track. I watched with bated breath as the large, ovalescent machine stared into the station tunnel with eyes I couldn't see, no doubt scanning across a dozen different spectrums of light and sound to try and detect my presence.

The probe itself wasn't particularly imposing in its design, but knowing that it was nigh indestructible, packing some degree of ungodly firepower and currently hunting me like the Terminator gave it a deeply intimidating quality. I slowly began inching my way down the fire escape on foot as I heard the thrusters of one of the other probes approaching. It soared past overhead, tracking back along the monorail line in the direction I'd been going originally and then the probe stalking the station entrance boosted back up beyond the skyline. I expected it to fly off but instead, it remained hovering over the building, presumably keeping watch in case I was hiding somewhere inside, waiting to escape.

I descended a few flights of stairs and then carefully climbed back onto the Lightreach, setting off in what I hoped was a westerly direction. For my own safety and because I assumed the probes would be watching for anything travelling fast, I kept my speed down as I flew from fire escape to fire escape, climbing up and hunkering down each time I heard the sound of one of the probes approaching.

After 10 minutes of sneaking about with no probes coming close in the last three, I decided to power my computers and other tech back on. A feeling of comfort washed over me as I felt the Lightreach become a little more rigid beneath my feet and my GPS reconnected and informed me that I had in fact been moving in the right direction.

Pushing away from the latest fire escape, I pulled up just a little and began to pour on the speed again, flying out over the harbour towards the ANZAC Bridge. I put myself on course back to my car and dropped low over the water as I inevitably ran out of skyscrapers to hide behind with the CBD behind me. Slowly, I let myself relax as a strange sense of giddiness began to bubble inside me. I'd broken free of the probe's triangulation and was now heading back towards my car. I'd escaped.

First the hack battle, now the chase.

Holy crap… I outsmarted Sentinel twice in one night.

Almost.

The alert pinged on my HUD only moments before I heard that painfully familiar roar steadily growing louder behind me. One of the probes had found me again now that I was exposed - or it had never actually lost me - adjusted course, and was rapidly closing on me again.

"Oh come ON!" I shouted.

I pulled upwards, flooring it as hard as I could manage while keeping my balance, accelerating rapidly towards 200km/h. But the probes were still closing in. My HUD issued another alert.

1000 feet and closing…

500 feet and closing…

250 feet and closing…

And then the probe suddenly broke off its pursuit.

…

…

WHAT?!

I dropped my speed back down and watched as the probe along with the other two still in the city just… Returned towards Atlas HQ.

The police dispatch radio came through my ear again.

"All units, be advised. Pursuit of the suspect has ceased and the search order from AAHQ has been rescinded. Continue with normal operations."

They just let me go..?

I wasn't entirely sure how to feel about that... Glad, perhaps, that I was out free? Annoyed, that they didn't catch me while they had the chance? Slighted, that they didn't think I was worth capturing?

A wave of exhaustion washed over me but I couldn't bring myself to not look a gift horse in the mouth. Just because I wasn't being actively pursued anymore and the broadcast said the search order had been rescinded, didn't mean they weren't still following covertly or tracing some sort of signal or energy frequency my tech was emitting. Rather than just boost it back down to my car, I adjusted my course and took an obnoxiously long, winding path back towards where I'd parked.

I touched down about a block from where I'd taken off originally, and shut off all my tech - save for the functions required to keep the anti-gravity generators running on the Lightreach, as it was much too heavy for me to carry unassisted. I slipped through a series of alleys to return to my car and took one last quick look around before hurriedly shucking my gear, pulling my helmet off last and setting it down with the rest before covering it. The pile was a little bit smaller for the lack of the faithful Peregrine, sacrificed for the sake of the shots I now had stored on my helmet.

Deciding that, on the off chance I was still being followed somehow, I went straight home to my apartment rather than my workshop. The last thing I wanted was to get Sam involved, but my apartment was much more replaceable than my workshop. About 30 minutes later, I was stepping out of the lift in my apartment building - costume stuffed in a duffel bag - and itching to get to my laptop so I could pull the photos from my helmet and post them to PHO. Perhaps not the most sensible idea, but the Peregrine had died for those photos, and I refused to let its death be in vain. A little bit of cops and robbers wasn't going to deter me.

I slipped back into my apartment, sneaking my way through so as not to wake my roommate Sam. I set my duffle down in my room, grabbed my helmet, and plugged it into my computer; a chuckle came out unbidden as I pictured a dastardly Parthian twirling an imaginary moustache as she slapped the 'Post' button. In the few minutes it took to offload the pics, I logged into PHO on my 'Verified Cape' account - a perhaps vain but prudent decision I'd chosen to make in advance of my debut - and navigated through to the Sydney board.

I typed up a somewhat cheeky title while waiting for the pictures to upload. With the post almost ready to go, bathed in the light of the laptop screen with my helmet staring at me with its almost accusatory expression, I pondered for a moment… And then I stood up.

This calls for wine, I think.

I slipped back out to the kitchen to pour myself a glass, then promptly returned to the sight of the mouse still hovering over the 'Post' button and the image upload now complete as I took my seat. I crossed my legs up on the side of the desk, leaning all the way back in my chair with the glass in hand, took a sip, and clicked the button.

[Your message has been posted!]​

I sat there and watched it for a few minutes, excitement slowly fading as I sipped away further. Of course nothing was going to happen right away. It was well into the early AM by that point. Nobody was awake.

Ehhh... Well…

I started clicking around other boards, looking at other random postings, cape sightings, Atlas Alliance news, scrolling aimlessly and not really paying too much attention while I finished my glass. The biggest thread of the day was about the fight between the villainous Medi-Evils and their heroic rivals, Excalibur & Gloryhammer, and the debate seemed to be pretty mixed. Some people said that capes who were supposedly as powerful as Excalibur and Gloryhammer shouldn't be letting joke kid villains get away, while others were justifying it as something akin to street theatre with how camp the two pairs tended to play things when they clashed.

Others still took offence at that, considering that real lives were actually in danger when Steam Punk took hostages with his automatons. They argued that if the Protectorate was going to keep insisting on forcing their capes into Australia as part of the resource and training exchange program, they should at least take their jobs more seriously.

Well that's a flawed argument. Excalibur and Gloryhammer are Aussie nationals, not Americans.

I couldn't imagine things would be much different if they were part of the Atlas Alliance instead, but I had to admit it set a bad precedent for the Protectorate when their experimental Oceania division was supposed to be showing Australia and New Zealand how government hero-ing should be done.

After Leviathan, it was painfully clear that Australia needed a more organised system for heroes to work under. Sentinel and Cardon Enterprises mostly solved that issue when they went to the government with the Atlas Alliance proposal, a few months after the attack - but it hadn't fixed everything. Australia now had organised, government- sponsored heroes, but still lacked its own equivalent of the PRT - and the Alliance was only successful in cities where independent hero teams already existed or where they were specifically created for the Alliance, like in Sydney.

As part of the reconstruction efforts, the US had commenced a resource and training exchange program to help the government found the Australian Parahuman Response Agency, or, APRA. Our own PRT. Unfortunately - in some people's opinions - it also came with the stipulation that the Protectorate would form an Oceanic division as an alternative to the Atlas Alliance. The proposal was popular initially, but public opinion quickly soured when it became clear the team was more of a political and PR stunt than a genuine effort to actually expand the Protectorate into Australia and New Zealand.

The division operated out of a base in Canberra, but with only five capes on a team that was supposed to cover a region as big as the entire United States, public interest and government funding quickly turned back to the Atlas Alliance.

I doom-scrolled for a little longer and then let the tiredness start to overtake me. Dragging myself back upright, I set the glass down on the table and wrapped my helmet back up before returning it to the duffel bag. Changing out of my clothes, I slipped under the sheets and didn't bother with an alarm. I'd wake up when I woke up, and then I'd be fresh to get back out there, rebuild my Peregrine, and... see what came.

---

I was woken the next morning by the sound of knocking at my door and a faint buttery smell wafting into my bedroom. I jerked upright, turning around in my sheets before dragging myself into a sitting position and addressing the closed door to my room.

"Hey?"

"Hey!" Sam called to me from the other side of the door. "I'm making pancakes for breakfast. Want any?"

"Yes. Please! Thank you," I called back, disjointed while I started getting my thoughts in order, shaking loose the fragments of dreams and inspirations already fading away, like they always did. I looked over to my laptop - screen now dark - before rising up out of bed and going to pull on a robe.

"Ooooorder up!" I heard him call back, followed by footsteps as Sam moved back into the kitchen, the sound of sizzling picking up again.

I wandered out of my room and into the bathroom first, looking at my dishevelled appearance. I pulled my hair out of its ponytail and combed it through a little before putting it back up again, wiped off some of the slightly smudged make-up, forgoing a full shower and clean-up for after food time. My stomach demanded attention first.

Still a little tired-eyed, I cinched the robe around myself, wandered out to the living area barefoot, and joined Sam in the kitchen, opening the fridge looking for breakfast juice.

Sam was more than a full head taller than me with short, dirty-blonde hair and what I considered a handsome face - not that his admittedly good looks had been the only factor in my choosing him as a roommate. He was dressed in long, flannel pyjama pants and a loose fitting t-shirt that depicted the hero Deva in an angelic pose; the words 'Guardian Angel' were written in a fancy scrawling font beneath the image. She was the third most popular hero in the Alliance's Sydney team after Sentinel and Maverick, owing largely to the fact that she chose not to wear a mask but still somehow managed to retain a secret identity. As a result, she'd developed something of a cult following on PHO; the 'Deva Hunters', as they called themselves, a group dedicated to working out Deva's real identity, despite having found no success in almost five years.

"Morning sleepyhead," Sam addressed me with a mildly teasing tone. "I noticed you didn't eat the spagbowl. How late did you get back last night?"

It struck me at that moment just how odd it was, for me, to be so casually dressed and familiar around someone who wasn't family or an employee. I looked away from him for a moment while I considered. It felt nice to be… Unguarded. I looked back up at him with a smile, tinged with guilt at his line of questioning.

"I was gonna have some... I was looking forward to it. I just forgot. It was... pretty late," I answered sheepishly.

"That's fine. Orange juice is in the door."

I gave him another guilty smile and poured myself a glass of juice, replacing the carton in the fridge before taking my cup down to the dining table. I took a seat facing the TV to see if there was any big morning news while I waited for pancakes.

I flipped on the TV and surfed to ABC News, which was currently in the middle of their eight o'clock news broadcast. Lots of talk, but no new information about the 'Sydney Club Killer', as they'd now been dubbed - and only a small mention of reports regarding an explosion occurring around the Atlas HQ last night, and a possible chase through the CBD involving three Sentinel probes and an unknown individual. No statements had been made yet by officials in the Alliance, APRA or Sydney police.

I wasn't sure if I should be offended or proud of that. Either my actions last were apparently not newsworthy or I'd embarrassed the Alliance enough they wanted to keep things quiet. I still didn't understand why the probes had stopped the chase right before they caught me though. What was the deal there?

Sam distracted me from my thoughts as he came over to the dining table and set down a big stack of pancakes in the middle, along with a variety of toppings and a plate and cutlery for me.

"Anything big happening?" He asked, gesturing to the TV.

"Mmmmm..." I responded vacantly, eyeing the pancakes. "Oh, umm… A bit of stuff about the serial killer. Still not saying anything about what their power is, or why they're targeting nightclub bar staff and customers. I'd be worried if I had time to go to a nightclub."

I raised my utensils and started the grave work of disassembling the fluffy foodstuff for sustenance.

"Hah, yeah. That's pretty scary though. The idea of a cape serial killer sends shivers down my spine."

The last thing Australia needs is its own Slaughterhouse Nine.

I responded mid pancake, raising a hand up to the corner of my mouth quickly as a consequence of messy eating.

"I mean... Any serial killer, right? Cape or no cape... Strange the authorities can't or won't say what their power might be."

"Maybe they've got some sort of power that makes them good at sneaking around or something?" Sam theorised as he scooped a pancake onto his plate and began slathering it with blueberries and maple syrup.

"Nobody's that good at sneaking. And if they were that good, it'd be obvious that was their power... right?" I asked as I set my knife and fork down for a moment to take a sip of orange juice.

"I guess? Who knows, powers are fucking weird..." Sam shoved a big forkful of pancake into his mouth.

I let out a bit of a chuckle, knowing all too well how true that was.

"If you got a power, what do you think it'd be?" I asked idly as I grabbed another pancake off the stack.

"Mm-mm." Sam mumbled as he finished his mouthful. "I don't want powers. Far too much trouble for me. If I had to get a power and I could choose? I'd want something to help me with my art. Like super steady hands, or some sort of vision power that lets me see the world differently so I could do some crazy psychedelic stuff."

I nodded along amenably.

"You?" He prompted.

"With my luck, probably some messed up power that makes it impossible for the cops to find out that I've been killing nightclub goers," I responded wryly. Sam choked a bit on his current mouthful and gave me an odd look.

"Well that's dark..." he muttered.

"I'm kidding, obviously," I backpedalled, holding my hands up sheepishly. "Could you imagine me manhandling anyone? I couldn't fight my way out of a wet paper bag."

Smooth, Lise. Joke about being a serial killer with your roommate. Real smooth…

"I dunno about that. You work out, don't you?"

"A little. Are you calling me a serial killer~?" I jabbed my fork in his general direction and squinted ominously, the expression somewhat ruined by the muscles tugging upward the edges of my mouth.

"It would explain why you're always out so late, but no. I don't think you're a serial killer 'Lise," Sam snorted with a shake of his head.

And, successfully escaped from the hole I dug myself into. Yay!

I let out another little chuckle and stabbed the last slice of pancake menacingly.

"I'd want to fly," I spoke up in a softer voice, after a few moments.

"Yeah. Flying would be great…"

It is, Sam. If only you knew.

"Any plans for today?" He continued

"I mean, work?" I said. "Like any other day of the week."

"Seriously? It's a Saturday. Don't you have anything else to do? Are you being forced to work against your will?" He leaned in close and spoke in a mock whisper. "Blink twice if you're being blackmailed!"

"Oh! Oh, umm. Saturday. I guess... I've got some time, yeah," I wondered.

Am I just now realising I've had no life outside of tinkering?

"No, no plans, then," I followed up with a sheepish grin.

"Well I'm heading into the city to do some landscape work with a few people. You're welcome to join if you want?" Sam offered.

"Landscape work?" I asked curiously.

"Painting landscapes. We're gonna pick a good spot in the city and then paint the skylines."

"Oh! Oh. I'm no good with a brush or anything. I'd just be dead weight, haha..."

"Could just be a fun outing? Up to you of course." Sam finished his plate and started clearing away the mess.

I needed to get back to my lab to work on replacing the Peregrine, as well as upgrading my security - since apparently Atlas has someone who can just crack into my secure network through a port that shouldn't be crackable. But doing something other than tinkering for a change did sound kind of nice. Maybe hanging out with Sam's friends would give me a chance to take my mind off Elly for a little while.

"Umm.. when are you going?" I asked

"Ten-ish?" Sam replied, looking down at his watch. "So in about an hour and a half."

I fought the indecision for another few moments and then nodded.

"I'm in. That's enough time to check in on something I need to and… Well… Clean up," I decided.

"Cool," He acknowledged with a soft smile before moving over to start washing up the dishes.

I finished my cup and stood up, taking my plate over to the bench to stand next to him, waiting, thoughts elsewhere. Sam took the plate and cup from my hands and gave them a rinse before loading them into the dishwasher. Broken from my short, temporary reverie, I gave him a quick little "thanks" and retreated to make my way back to my room.

I sat down at my desk, nudging my laptop to wake it up and reaching for the refresh key to see what's been made of my PHO posting.

⬥ Topic: Look What I Found!
In: Boards ► Places ► Australia ► Sydney
Parthian (Verified Cape) (Original Poster) (Temp Banned)
Posted on April 23rd, 2005:

[Removed]

(User was banned for this post.) (This thread has been locked.)

(Showing Page 1 of 1)
​

► Veggiemighty
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
Holy wow! New cape alert and pics of what they're building under the AAHQ? Amazing!

► Big_Ernesto
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
super interesting. some sort of campus-ish building or maybe museum? pics are super good quality from angle and lighting it looks like these were taken at night while flying over the harbour. must have some crazy camera tech. $1000 says theyre a tinker of some kind.

► ACoolUsername
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
GUYS! WHAT IF ITS A CAPE SCHOOL?! IS AUSTRALIA FINALLY GONNA LEGALISE CAPE MINORS? IS THE AA CREATING ITS OWN WARD TEAM?!?!?!?!

► Aussiex3 (Moderator) (Sydney '98 Survivor)
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
Please refrain from posting classified information on these boards. This is your first and final warning. Anyone found to be reposting the content from this post will also receive a ban.

► Superfly
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
What kinda cape name is Parthian? First thing that comes up on Google is some ancient Middle Eastern Empire. Hope they're not a terrorist.

► Moxter (AA Enthusiast) (Deva Hunter)
Replied on April 22rd, 2005:
Wow. Very cool & super racist over generalisation you've made there, asshole.

► Superfly
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
There were reports of an explosion beneath the AAHQ last night and then a chase through the CBD with THREE Sentinel probes. With where these pics were taken, what are the odds they also caused the explosion. Just calling it like I see it.

► Almighty_Uncle (AA Enthusiast)
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
Don't agree with the racism but it'd be a pretty big coincidence if it wasn't the same person. Obviously they are trying to make a spectacle for their first appearance by doing this. Fingers crossed they are not a full blown villain and just an overzealous rogue

► Sleepyhead
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
Fuck! The post has been removed. Did I wake up too late? Dammit!

► Ace_Appreciator (AA Enthusiast)
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
Noooooooo!!!! I missed it too! Let me see you cowards!!

► Aussiex3 (Moderator) (Sydney '98 Survivor)
Replied on April 23rd, 2005:
[This thread has now been locked.]​

Well, that had about the effect I was hoping for.

Overtaken by the most infectious grin reaching from ear to ear, I checked my account to see how long they'd temporarily banned me - seven days - then flicked over to check the other boards to see if there were any Parthian speculation threads yet. Pulling up the board for all known capes in Sydney, I found Parthian marked with an asterisk, listed under the 'Rogues/Vigilantes' column alongside the likes of Beacon, Gusto, Hoodlum and King Hit. Clicking through to my board revealed it to currently be locked.

⬥ Topic: Parthian
In: Boards ► Capes ► Australia ► Sydney ► Rogues/Vigilantes ► Parthian
Aussiex3 (Moderator) (Original Poster) (Sydney '98 Survivor)
Posted on April 23rd, 2005:

[This board is locked.]​

While an account by the name of Parthian exists as a verified cape and a post was made by them late last night, this board will remain locked until confirmed sightings of this cape occur.

"What a killjoy!" I muttered. I sent off a short message to Aussiex3's message box, requesting an appeal of the ban, including a quick apology and a promise not to post rule-breaking content again. Maybe they'd let it slide the first time and ease up on the ban early, it couldn't hurt.

I pushed myself upright and was reaching out to close my laptop when a notification pinged to inform me I'd received a private message. I sat back down and pulled it up to read.

⬥ Private message from ManInTheCan:

ManInTheCan: Sorry about the drone​

Hmm..?

---

AN: A few days late on this one, apologies for the delay. I had a busy week and struggled with finding a way to end the chase sequence that hit the key points I wanted it to without handing Parthian the idiot ball. I'm satisfied with what I got in the end so I hope it was worth the extra wait!

Next chapter will be a bit of slice of life stuff, worldbuilding and plenty of dialogue. It's time to get to know 'Lise a little better out of her costume before things pick up towards the end of this arc.

Thanks again to my wonderful co-writer Casey and if you'd be interested in betaing this fic, please DM me at Rhyzler#9795 on Discord. Fingers crossed the next chapter is out on time!

 

[Rhyzler]

I have baked some life. Anyone want a slice?

Splash 1.4​

Saturday, 9:00am, April 23rd, 2005

⬥ Private message from ManInTheCan:​

ManInTheCan: Sorry about the drone​

Hmm..?

I leant back in my seat for a few moments to ponder before typing out a response.

Parthian: You made your choices, I made mine. Can't hold a grudge.​

Parthian: Have any trouble getting the frag out of your paint?​

ManInTheCan: A couple of scratches, which is more impressive than you might think. But that is why I'm messaging you. While I certainly don't condone your photoshoot, what happened last night shouldn't have happened. Evidently, I put a little too much trust in someone I shouldn't have while I was out of state and they greatly overstepped their bounds of authority.​

ManInTheCan: I'd hate to have bad blood with a fellow tinker (I assume?) so soon after their debut, so please let me know if there's something I can do to make it up to you. Within reason of course.​

I couldn't help but giggle maniacally to myself as I pondered my options. Someone with the username 'ManInTheCan', who described themselves as a fellow tinker, was messaging me out of the blue to apologise for the loss of my drone. I could only assume I was talking to either Sentinel himself, or possibly Arsenal - Atlas' other resident tinker - on his personal account. What could I ask the - presumably - man himself for?

I typed and re-typed the start of a sentence in response, then deleted it all again and thought some more. With time slowly ticking away to get ready to go out with Sam, I decided to leave my interlocutor without a firm answer for the time being. A favour from Sentinel was no small thing and I didn't want to waste it with a hasty response.

Parthian: I'll think on it and get back to you. Consider any bad blood cleared.​

ManInTheCan: 👍​

I closed the lid of my laptop and headed in the direction of the shower, eyeing the time as I went. Over the next 40 minutes or so, I went through the daily ablutions, scrubbing down, cleaning up and doing some hair care. Once I'd finished drying it and setting it, I put on some make-up - maybe a little more than the usual "no makeup" look I normally went with. I wanted to make a good impression with Sam, and his friends, of course.

I'm not overthinking this, am I?

I was definitely overthinking it.

I fussed for another 10-15 minutes, picking out some clothes - aiming for an elegant and slightly gothic look I hoped would be appealing - before heading out to find Sam. I found him waiting in the lounge room, in some blue jeans, a similarly toned polo with a white undershirt beneath, and a few big bags of art supplies beside him.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah. Can I help with those?" I offered.

"Please." Sam stood up from the couch and handed me a big duffle bag, shouldering another 2 himself. With an eager 'Okay!' I hefted the last bag and followed him to his small hatchback, down in the parking lot. Once the bags were loaded in the boot, I climbed into the passenger seat and buckled in as Sam flipped on the radio and pulled out of the car park, heading towards the city.

Despite my best efforts, I failed to resist eyeing him curiously as he drove.

Just… Keep it casual Annelise. You were literally raised to be able to carry small talk. How much more difficult could just a casual chat be?

"How many of your friends are coming?" I asked idly.

"One girl - Jane - I know personally, and then three others I met at a class last week," he answered.

"Ahh, okay. Do you usually do stuff like this on the weekends? Go and find stuff to paint? With Jane?"

"Sometimes. I've known Jane since high school and she's like a sister to me," Sam explained. "I started a course on landscape art with her last week because I suck at anything that's not portraiture and that's where we met the other three. We thought it might be fun to go out and do something together so we settled on a group painting day."

"Cool, cool," I responded, leaning back into my seat a little bit and finding a tune to softly tap a foot to while I tried to find a way to continue the conversation. "So... you're gonna find somewhere with a bit of skyline. Got somewhere planned out?"

"Well Jane is a bit of a cape geek, and very persuasive. So… Probably a view of the harbour that's got the AA base in it. Maybe around Huntleys Point on the north side. It's got some good vantage points."

I hummed in acceptance, and went back to watching the parts of Sydney go past that I didn't usually pay attention to while I was the one driving; the alleys, the side streets, the buildings, the people walking... and, occasionally, back at Sam.

"How long does it usually take to... paint a skyline?" I asked a little sheepishly, trying to prompt some more idle discussion.

"Depends on how detailed you wanna get and how fast you can work. We'll probably be there for most of the day although you don't have to stick around if you don't want to."

I let out a small laugh.

"No, I'm not trying to get out of it already... I'm just curious. Some time away from work is probably a good thing, since stuff's come to a bit of a flashpoint and I could use a bit of time away from it to let things settle in and develop. A day away from it all is good."

Sam chuckled in response.

"It's fine, really. I'm under no illusions about you being as interested in art as I am. I just wanted you to do something other than work. Plus, it's nice to get to know you better. I feel like I've hardly seen you since I moved in, with how much you've been working."

Great. Even Sam thinks I have no life.

"Yeah, I suppose that's true enough... Very busy... Lots to do..." I mumbled. "But! I'm here now. And, yeah, I'm plenty interested, but you have to admit that being as interested as you is a pretty high bar!"

"I'll take that as a compliment," Sam laughed jovially.

I gave him a broad smile by way of approval.

The drive into the city took around an hour or so, thanks to traffic, and as we were approaching the Anzac Bridge I heard the rumbling of jet engines approaching from the south-west. A familiar rumble.

I panicked for a second, twisting in my seat to try and spot the source of rumble before remembering that I wasn't currently Parthian. Sentinel - assuming he and ManInTheCan were one in the same - had extended an olive branch and apologised for last night, apparently passing the blame to someone else for the entire debacle, but I wasn't going to take him at his word and go knocking on Atlas' door in costume.

Continuing to gaze out Sam's window, I watched as three dots in the distance rapidly approached, growing bigger by the second until they quickly became recognisable as Sentinel, flanked by two of his probes flying towards the bridge.

"Huh," I muttered, before deciding to feign ignorance. "That's… There's a cape heading towards the bridge, with some big drones," I told Sam.

Sam's head whipped around to glance out his window.

"Holy-! 'Lise - that's Sentinel!"

The probes peeled away from Sentinel to fly under the bridge as he rocketed over the top, slowing down and arcing up to perform a loop-de-loop before banking back down and carrying on across the harbour towards the Atlas HQ. A bunch of cars honked their horns as a way of cheering as he passed over and I giggled as Sam joined in.

"Seems like a bit of a show-off," I mused, continuing to play clueless.

"Well he is a celebrity of sorts. How the hell do you not know Sentinel is?" Sam flashed me an incredulous look.

Whoops. Too much ignorance.

"I've heard of him!" I responded defensively. "Just seems a little reckless to be flying those things around a bridge willy-nilly, you know?"

Says the girl who played Cops and Robbers with three of them in the middle of the city last night.

"He's only the greatest Tinker since Hero, may he rest in peace! I'm sure he knows what he's doing," Sam said in defence of the hero who definitely didn't need defending.

"Mmm. I suppose you don't get to that point without having a pretty good idea," I conceded.

"You're not that big on cape stuff, are you?"

Is that a heaping pile of irony I hear knocking at the door?

I turned back to Sam, with Sentinel's drones now well out of the vicinity, and gave him a shrug.

"I guess I just haven't really had that much time to follow the scene or anything."

"Well a lot has happened since Leviathan..." Sam trailed off.

I nodded, humming in agreement, and decided to let the statement lie. I turned away again to watch the buildings go by.

After another 15 minutes of weaving through the city traffic, Sam pulled into an underground lot to park. We collected the gear he packed and headed back up to the surface for a short walk to the public transport hub at Circular Quay. I stuck close to him, clutching his equipment tightly as I focused on passively observing and going with the flow, rather than giving in to the instinct to interrogate and take control of the situation and where we were headed.

It was a nice day out, the weather was clear, and we seemed to be getting a reprieve from the chill of the last few days. As a result, there were a lot more people out - tourists and locals alike, going about their days and enjoying the sights. We waded through the hustle and bustle, having to gradually fight harder against the tide of people as we got closer to the quay, until I heard a voice calling out.

"Sam! Sam! Over here!" a woman called to us.

I perked up, looking for the source, ready to signal Sam if he hadn't noticed yet. Unsurprisingly - considering he was a foot taller than me - Sam was able to spot them with ease, and gave a wave in her direction.

"Hey, Jane!" he called in response.

He gave me a nod, tilting his head in her direction and led us over to where Jane sat with two other people. Another young man, who I guessed might be Greek from his features, and an older looking woman in maybe her mid-50s. I surveyed the group, putting on a well trained smile and holding up one hand in a chipper half wave as I introduced myself rather than waiting to be introduced.

"Hi! I'm Annelise, but people call me 'Lise."

Compelled by curiosity, I took a bit of a longer look at Jane, wondering what kind of lady Sam would be long term friends with. She was what most people would consider to be conventionally attractive; standing maybe three to four inches taller than me with shoulder-blade-length straight blonde hair, a slightly ovalescent face with bright green eyes, a rounded nose, and a bright toothy smile.

"Hi! I'm Jane," she responded with an even more eager attitude than mine, darting over as we arrived to take my hand in a sort of part-clasp, part-shake. "This is Keith and Mel. You must be the mysterious and benevolent housemate Sam has told me about!"

Well she's certainly a ray of sunshine.

"Yeah! Not mysterious by any particular choice, though - I just work a lot," I enthused, giving her hand a friendly squeeze in turn. "So the invite out today was nice for the chance to... get away from it all. I hope I'm not intruding or anything."

"Not at all! We're happy to have you," she insisted.

Keith gave a nod, and Mel smiled warmly in agreement.

"Thanks," I said with another smile - Jane's pep was infectious - before turning slightly back to Sam. "Did you say there was someone else coming too?"

"Oh, Will just texted me," Jane cut in. "He woke up with a fever so he's staying home. Huge bummer."

She frowned slightly but quickly perked back up again.

"So, we were thinking of getting the ferry up to the Berry's Bay lookout as our spot for the day. Any objections?" she proposed.

I shrugged and nodded agreeably, adjusting the bag on my shoulder.

"Just happy to tag along," I enthused.

"Sounds good to me. Let's go!" Sam piped up. He adjusted his bags as the others gathered up their gear and then we all headed into the Circular Quay ferry terminal. Tickets purchased, we headed for our wharf to await the arrival of the next ferry.

"So is the Berry's Bay lookout a nice spot?" I asked, directing the question to the whole group.

"Oh it's lovely," Mel said. "I've done some work there before but it's a whole new city to paint now."

"It hasn't stopped sprouting upwards," I remarked, alluding to but not quite stepping on the cause of it.

Leviathan was always an awkward topic. Even seven years after his attack, people still didn't really know how to talk about what had happened. Sydney was the third city Leviathan attacked, and the first time we'd truly 'lost' to him. With no mass teleporters to bring in heroes, only Legend, Eidolon, Alexandria - and shortly after, Hero with a dozen other capes - had arrived in time to reinforce Sydney's (at the time) small cape population... Along with other Australian cape teams, like the Mystics and the Renegades, who had access to Mover powers.

It hadn't been enough, and more than 1.5 million people died in the attack.

Despite the destruction, Sydney had bounced back remarkably fast thanks to the international support. So quickly, in fact, that the city had still managed to host the Olympics in 2000, which ended up being treated as a sort of grand re-opening for the heart of the city. A celebration of human perseverance that showcased we could still thrive and carry on with our traditions, even in a world beset by the Endbringers.

For a lot of people though - especially those who'd lived through the attack - it left them at an awkward middle point. Talking too casually about the Australia's biggest national tragedy felt like an insult to the memory of all the lives that were lost, but too much negativity and mournfulness felt like it undermined how far the city had come since its destruction and how much we'd prospered in spite of what we lost. And there were plenty of survivors, friends, and family who just didn't want to talk about it, under threat of reliving their own memories of it all.

Lost in thought as we waited for the ferry, I found my eyes drawn to Atlas HQ more than anything on the ground while I listened to the idle chatter.

"Are you a cape enthusiast too?" Jane asked in her ever eager tone. She must have caught me staring and assumed. I broke from my reverie to look back at her with a smile.

"Not particularly," I answered. "Most of my life I've been too busy to pay attention. I suppose it's been bringing itself to my attention a little bit more lately, though. Sam - tell them about Sentinel at the bridge!"

Sam recounted the spectacle to Jane and the others as the ferry docked at the wharf and the workers set out the gangplanks for us to board. I could only describe the look on Jane's face as that of a child listening to a grandparent tell an old war story.

"What?! No fair! That's so cool! Ugh! I'm so jealous! I want Sentinel to do a backflip for meeeeeeee~!" Jane complained, in an overdramatic but oddly genuine fashion.

"It did look pretty impressive..." I conceded. "Wonder what he was doing?"

"He loves doing things like that whenever he's out on patrol," Jane explained. "It's the sort of thing that puts a smile on people's faces. If the capes are happy to be showing off a little, then we know there's nothing to worry about, right?"

The piercing sound of the ferry horn split the air momentarily before the roar of the engines picked up, and the vessel started to pull out from the wharf, turning towards the harbour.

"You ever wonder if maybe things weren't all A-OK, would they stop doing that?" I countered. "Or would they keep doing it anyway, because people would notice and start panicking otherwise?"

Jane's face hardened as she started to ponder that thought very deeply - as if the idea that heroes could lie to the people was a totally alien concept to her. Keith leant over and whispered conspiratorially to me.

"Jane is totally gaga for cape stuff. Apparently, Maverick saved her life once when he stopped a car from running her over and she talks about it all the time. I guarantee she'll mention it to you before the day's over," he joked playfully.

The mention of Maverick was a bit of a jolt. Even as a cape myself now, it had been so long since I'd thought of him. I gave Keith an understanding nod, and in the interest of confounding Jane further, I elaborated.

"I mean... wouldn't it kinda be required of them? As superheroes? To make it seem like everything's okay regardless of whether it is or not. In order to protect the public from anything bad that might happen if people started panicking and thinking the heroes don't have everything under control."

"I guess? It depends though, doesn't it?" Jane began. "If there's a villain on the rampage, seeing Sentinel doing backflips instead of rushing to the scene at Mach four isn't gonna put me at ease, right? It's about the ideals they embody. When there's trouble or danger, we can count on them to protect us and catch the villains, but when there isn't, they ease up. That's not to say I don't think they aren't still working hard, but if the heroes are always looking for trouble non-stop and we see them doing that, then we'd assume that there was trouble to be found and then we'd always be worried."

"I almost got run over once," she continued. "Car was doing 70 in a 50 zone and ran a red light. It was a big car too, almost certainly would have killed me... but at the last second, from out of nowhere, Maverick jumps in front of me and takes the hit for me, practically catching the car. I was terrified! But despite the fact that he'd just stopped this car going 70 kilometres an hour almost dead in its tracks, that he was covered in broken glass and I could see this piece of metal stabbing into his leg. Despite all that, the first thing he did was flash me this big, warm smile and say, 'Are you okay, Miss?'"

I watched as Jane's eyes widened with wonder as she recounted the story. For a near death experience, she didn't seem traumatised in the slightest. Quite the opposite in fact. Earnestly caught mildly by surprise, I frowned as I pondered one of the statements.

"Stabbing into his leg?" I asked.

"Crazy, right? Because he's shown himself to be bulletproof before. I can only think that maybe his powers take time to activate and if that's the case then what he did was even more heroic! He made a split second decision and legitimately put himself in harm's way to save me."

I lapsed into thought for a few moments, a few complicated expressions working their way across my face. That was certainly Maverick... My cousin, Peter. He had always been a genuine hero right down to his very core. I wondered if his father was happy or upset about that wound and why he got it. Peter could be bulletproof if he wanted, but after that accident that led to him getting powers, Uncle Dave had never truly been able to stop worrying about him. That was a big part of why he'd decided to have Cardon Enterprises fund the Atlas Alliance… So that Peter - Maverick - would have a team around him to watch his back and help keep his bleeding heart from leading him to take too many risks.

A wave of sadness washed over me as I thought about Peter and Uncle Dave. We'd been so close when we were kids - to the point that I still thought of Peter as more of an older brother than a cousin. I wished I could have gone to them after I… left home in a hurry. But they were too closely connected to my parents; I couldn't predict what they might have done if I'd told them everything. And I couldn't go back home. Absolutely not.

I suppose I could reach out sometime. It's not like I'm kept too busy to get in touch anymore. Maybe Peter could tell me why Elly isn't taking my calls anymore? Or at least find out if she's okay…

I blinked a few times, realising I just absolutely zoned out, and gave Jane a sheepish smile.

"Yeah - really seems like one of the good ones," I agreed.

"Definitely. He's also a total hunk. Mmm!"

Hahaha… ew.

I gave Jane a bit of an involuntary weird look at that thought, and chuckled. The ferry rocked a bit as it docked again at another wharf.

"Hey ladies!" Sam called out. "This is our stop."

I hefted my bag and made to follow Sam again. As we disembarked from the ferry, Keith leant in again.

"Told you~!" he muttered.

"You absolutely called it," I marvelled back at him. "Within minutes."

"It's kind of endearing, though. Nice to know that the AA really can inspire so much hope in people."

"Honestly it sounds like a life-changing experience. I can hardly blame her for wanting to share the story," I agreed.

It was a five minute walk from the wharf to the lookout where we all started to set up our various bits of equipment. Sam and Mel both had easels on which they set out some canvases, Jane had a big sketch pad and Keith had a bulky and expensive looking digital camera.

"Any preferences for what you want to work with?" Sam asked. "We've got acrylic or water paints, or you can do sketches like Jane, if you want?"

"I'm good with a pencil," I replied, eyeing Keith's camera curiously. It looked like a new model and was probably very expensive. I could feel my power tingling in the back of my mind.

The best way for me to describe how my hard-light projectors worked was that it was a kind of lensing effect, much like that of a camera - except, instead of bending light, it bent its properties. High quality optics were more than just necessary, they were the bulk of the weight of a projector; I'd spend a lot of time early on disassembling junk cameras for parts to prototype with before I reached the point where I needed to manufacture my own, more specialised lenses. Those weren't only useful for hard-light projectors, either - the optics package on the Peregrine was far better than most consumer tech, on account of being able to build it myself, to much more exacting specification.

That camera looks pretty nice, though. I wonder if I could strip it down for parts for the Peregrine rebuild?

Sam dragged me away from that distraction by handing me a sketch pad and a set of drawing pencils. I took the supplies gratefully, but instead of getting started, I hovered around a little bit, curious as to what everyone else planned to start with.

Unsurprisingly, Jane had chosen to frame Atlas HQ as the focus of her piece, and was currently working on sketching out a rough skyline. Sam was focusing more on the CBD itself, while Mel was starting with where the harbour opened out into the ocean. It was harder to tell exactly what Keith was shooting, but he seemed to be getting pictures of all kinds.

I clutched my sketch pad and took a few steps back - contextualising not only the skyline of the CBD, but Sam against it as well, observing him as he observed the lay of the land and pondered his canvas. After a little while spent just watching and taking in the details, I put a soft pencil to the page and began to lightly outline the shape of my subject; Sam, and particularly the look of concentration on his face.

From the moment I put the pencil to paper, I could feel the urge to use this time to lay out design and concept drawings for the next version of the Peregrine. Thanks to yesterday's field tests, though - and the choice of Sam as my subject - I was able to fairly easily suppress that urge for the time being, as I zoned in on something organic rather than technological.

The first handful of hours passed by quietly as everyone focused on their work, only pausing occasionally to make idle small talk. As the day went on, I could feel the itch getting a little more nagging. I really did want to work out some new ideas for the drone. There was always room for improveme-

I managed to shut down the instinct again as I stared even harder at Sam's face and body, to the exclusion of my awareness of anything else. Sam was no Hollywood hunk, but he certainly wasn't bad looking. A little on the lanky side but I could choose to see it as toned if I wanted.

I might have ended up stylising him a little bit in my sketching; a little more angular here, a little bit more prominent there, adjusting his stance a little bit more confidently, his grip on the brush assured. Maybe it was a little bit embellished. So what? It was art, even if it was just a sketch. It wasn't that bad, it was just... picking good features that were already there.

As I added a little bit more shading to the side of his brow in profile, emphasising the not-quite-severe, purposeful expression, my thoughts turned somewhat to my stomach; not much more than peckish on account of a filling breakfast, but fairly thirsty. I pondered speaking up to inquire whether the group planned to take a break, but shied away from the idea, unwilling to shatter the unique atmosphere of artistic focus.

Very zoned in on my work, a jolt of surprise shot through me as I realised Jane was peering at my work over my shoulder.

"Ooo! Interesting! I love your composition," she said in a teasing fashion.

"Ah! W-what?!" I yelped, jolting upright and twisting as she announced her presence.

For a split second, I wondered why my new alert scripts for the Peregrine didn't ping me that someone was that close to me; then it hit me all over again that I wasn't in costume, I hadn't uploaded those scripts yet, and the Peregrine experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly just last night.

In the here and now, I found myself moving to hide the sketch from her in a guilty fashion and then forced myself to stop, mentally cursing that I got taken by surprise. I took a second to master myself and then put on a smile.

"Thanks," I responded shyly, looking down to consider it again in its totality myself, having spent most of the time laser focused on small details.

The piece did include vague references to the skyline, wiggles of shading here and there to indicate splashes of colour, but I had mostly avoided any straight lines; with the exception of the parts of the easel necessary to convey the context of the subject I was sketching, almost all of my efforts over the last few hours had been soft outlining, marking, hard lining, shading and little flourishes here and there, all telling the story of an artist and his dedication to a work in progress.

"You know we're supposed to be drawing landscapes right~?" Jane whispered to me.

I whipped my head back around to look up at her, mortified. This was weird, right? This was probably creepy. We quite literally came out here to do landscape work and I actually just drew a sketch of my new house mate instead. It was probably going to creep him out. Jane gave me a wink and then spoke louder as she addressed the rest of the group.

"Do we wanna break for lunch now?"

I tried to at least freak out silently, hardly listening to the others as they piped up in response. A consensus was quickly reached, with Keith and Mel volunteering to stay and watch the gear while Jane, Sam and I went to grab some food from a kiosk we'd passed earlier.

I stiffly flipped the sketch pad closed and stood up, clutching it tightly where nobody could spy on what I had drawn and then shuffled in with the others. It was only a short walk up to the kiosk and the three of us made a bit of small talk about how our pictures were going.

"I'm kinda impressed Lisey~" Jane needled.

Lisey? Is that my nickname now? I wonder if Sam will catch onto it, or if he'll keep calling me Lise…

"You've got a real eye for detail," Jane continued. "Do you work with small scale stuff a lot? Like for work or hobbies?"

Dammit… Jane, please pick anything else to talk about..!

"Uhh... yeah. My job is... technical," I answered in a small voice, vaguely deflecting.

"Oh really?" Sam chimed in. "I'm kinda curious about your job actually. Is it like engineering or IT?"

I perked up a little bit at Sam's show of interest, nodding emphatically.

"Yeah. I can't give you any specific details because it's, uhh, classified." Nice cover, 'Lise. "But it's been a lot of both, lately..."

"Ooooo~!" Jane cooed conspiratorially.

"NDAs are exciting. Wait! You're not working on the thing they're building under the AAHQ are you?! If you are, you have to tell me! I need to know Lisey! What are they hiding down there?!" she lamented in dramatic fashion, grabbing me by the shoulders and jostling me gently.

"Jane, calm down!" Sam said, a little concerned.

I grinned a little bit as I brought a hand up to rest on her wrist against my shoulder, deciding to take the opportunity to do a little retaliatory teasing.

"You know, I might know a little something…" I said as nonchalantly as possible. "Did you see the photos that leaked on PHO before the thread was taken down?"

"No, I didn't!" Jane whined. "I woke up late this morning and they'd already been taken down..!" She pouted and hung her head momentarily before perking up again. "Wait. Did you?!"

I grinned even wider for a moment, letting the tension build up a little further, enjoying my newfound leverage far too much.

"Maaaaybe~" I allowed, before suddenly reaching into my purse to pull out my phone, unlocking it with a few taps and bringing up the photos I'd saved. I tilted the phone to her, showing her the Peregrine's overhead stills in ever-so-slightly grainy - but high-resolution - full-colour night vision.

Jane's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree and she snatched my phone from my hand to stare into it, giggling like a schoolgirl. It took her a few seconds to catch herself and turn bright red with embarrassment as she meekly held out my phone to give back to me.

"Sorry..." She said sheepishly.

My instinct was to snatch my phone back and admonish her rude behaviour, but I swallowed the thought.

Be nice. Make friends. Everyone needs friends.

Instead of taking my phone, I leant over and swiped to the next shot from a different angle and nudged the device back towards her.

"They posted a few different shots," I prompted.

Jane giggled again, almost dancing with joy as she stared into the screen as the three of us queued up to order food.

"So what do you think it is, based on those? And... any thoughts on who might have taken them? It seems like it's a new cape... I don't really know much," I lied, trying to prompt her into speculating, in the interest of figuring out what she thought of me… Or, rather, of Parthian.

"Well, I read through all the other comments before the post was locked and I'm leaning towards some sort of training centre," Jane answered. "A museum seems a bit self-aggrandising and not really worth the secrecy. Question is, who's it a training centre for? The AA themselves almost certainly have one up in their flying fortress already - so who, then? A Wards-esque program seems the most likely… but the bill to legalise underage capes has been stuck in the senate for more than a year now. So unless something's changed, or is gonna change soon, I'm not sure. As for the cape who posted the pics, I don't know, really. We don't know anything about them or what their powers are yet, except that maybe they're a Tinker, but that could be any number of things."

I pulled an incredulous frown - partly at the relative dismissal of the 'mystery cape', and partly at a revelation hidden right in the middle of her… admittedly expert-sounding analysis.

"I didn't even realise underage capes were illegal," I said. "Why even do that? There are so many young parahumans... There's going to be ones doing cape stuff either way. At least in America they've got a safe option..."

Jane frowned as well.

"A lot of the capes who died in the Leviathan attack were kids, and there's some pretty morbid footage from news crews and people on the streets of it happening. Stories from parents who had no idea their kids had powers, spending days wondering what happened to their children… only to find out they'd been drowned or crushed or died in any number of other horrible ways while trying to fight Leviathan. It was a big point of contention when Sentinel and Cardon Enterprises went to the government with the AA proposal. There's still plenty of underage heroes out there like Beacon and Gusto, but legally, they have to be classified as Rogues - and the AA, Protectorate and APRA always have to discourage their actions even when they're saving people. It sucks on a lot of levels. Hopefully, now that we have a much more organised system for heroes, this'll be the turning point for them," she concluded.

"Yeah... If your kid's got powers, they're probably going to fight... Would you rather they fight alone as Rogues or have a team, as well as older capes looking out for them? It should be an absolute no-brainer... Oh well. I guess I'm glad I don't know any underaged capes to worry about." I said, shaking my head.

Jane continued to swipe through the pics on my phone, zooming in and studying them for the next few minutes of waiting until we reached the front of the queue to order.

"What do you want 'Lise?" Sam asked.

"Oh! Umm... I'll... take a Caesar wrap and a bottle of water," I offered in response.

"Gotcha." Sam placed the order and the three of us stepped aside to wait for our food. Jane handed my phone back to me, a nervous and guilty expression on her face.

"Sorry. I might have swiped a little too far and seen a pic of your workplace," she muttered.

I stiffened in place, my veins running ice cold before I clawed my phone back and frantically stuffed it back in my purse to secure it.

"Umm, you, uhh..." I floundered for a few moments in pure panic, lowering my voice with a worried tone. "That stuff's, umm, classified, so uhh... I didn't... you didn't see anything serious, right?"

"Just a fancy looking workshop I think?" Jane answered in an equally hushed voice. "But I didn't see anything. You don't have to worry about me one bit."

She mimed zipping her mouth shut.

"Food's here!" Sam called as he started loading stuff into his arms. I moved up to grab my stuff, mentally kicking myself.

Dumb, dumb, dumb! I should've put those photos in their own folder. What if she saw the Peregrine? What if she saw the Lightreach? Now all I need is for Sam to find out I sketched him instead of, y'know, what we actually came here to sketch, and make me look like a weirdo. Then my total fuck-up of the first time I've actually gone out with new people and tried to make friends will be complete.

I followed close behind the others as we moved away, almost physically shrinking down as I cringed at my simple, stupid mistake. My eyes remained fixated on the ground as we walked, watching the placement of my feet and enduring the tension and awkward silence that seemed to last an eternity on the short walk back to the others.

Jane sat in silence as she ate, while the others talked. I snuck glances at her, doing my best to stay discreet, trying to pierce through the windows of her eyes to decipher what she was thinking about that's got her so quiet. I prayed to gods known and unknown that she didn't see anything that would inevitably become identifiable as belonging to Parthian.

I pulled my phone out again and began frantically going through it. First, I saved all the incriminating photos to their own folder and encrypted it. Then, I went through outgoing connection logs, breathing a sigh of relief as I determined she hadn't uploaded copies anywhere while the phone was out of my sight.

I was upset with myself, even so. Angry enough that I didn't even want to finish my wrap. Instead, I just sat and simmered, kicking myself over and over again so I might never make such a rookie mistake twice.

When lunch was over, everyone went back to working on their respective art pieces. I looked at the front cover of my sketch pad and contemplated what to do next. I could have started something new, but... Nothing else I might've wanted to draw out here would help me keep my mind off my gear. Not to mention, it would be obvious I'd started over, and they'd probably want to see what I was working on before.

Instead of making a decision, or sitting there staring at my sketchpad and looking awkward, with a stroke of genius I put off the decision by pulling out my phone. The bookmark to the PHO home page called out to me, to see if there were any new developments. Both the thread I created and the one about Parthian remained locked, so there was nothing new to read there. I had, however, received a response regarding my ban.

⬥ Private message from Aussiex3:​

Aussiex3: Right now your ban is gonna stay in effect. We don't know anything about you except you're a verified cape whose first post was pics of classified material. PHO doesn't condone and tries not to encourage villainous activity, so if you're not a villain maybe go do something heroic? Catch a thief or save a cat from a tree or something. Once we know more about you and that your intentions are good, I'll think about lifting your ban early.​

Ugh. That's so unfair! Other capes' speculation threads were fine. Why lock mine? Overzealous moderators...

I paused as an idea occurred to me.

Hmmm...

I pulled up the private message thread with ManInTheCan and started to type.

Parthian: Think you've got the influence to get me unbanned from PHO and my speculation thread unlocked? I'm not a villain, but the moderator seems to have a hard-on for the idea.​

I sent the message, then lowered my phone for a moment to look around at the others. Everyone else seemed to be zoned in on their work. Jane noticed me looking and gave me a small but nervous smile before returning to her work. I looked down at the sketchpad and then brought my phone up again, refreshing my messages.

Nothing yet.

I let out a sigh.

I put my phone back in my purse and then grabbed the sketchpad, flipping back open to my previous work. There was no point starting something new and fighting the urge to tinker when Jane had already seen my sketch of Sam and the others would probably ask to see it anyway, so I continued work on it. After about another hour or so of working my phone pinged with a notification.

I suppressed a jolt of surprise as I was broken from my focus and then carefully closed the sketchpad, putting it down to the side and pulling out my phone to check it.

⬥ Private message from ManInTheCan:​

ManInTheCan: I can probably swing that. Is this what you want as your favour?​

I pondered for a few moments. It was probably a fair ask. It did require him to demonstrate his influence a little bit. And I did want people talking about Parthian... That was the whole reason for the stunt in the first place.

It wasn't exactly the best thing to use a favour from the most powerful tinker in the southern hemisphere on… But there's favours and then there's favours, and this was not the latter. It wasn't a 'Get Out Of Jail Free' card - not that I was planning on landing myself in jail. No… this was a perfectly appropriate request.

Parthian: Yes.​

ManInTheCan: Deal.​

I failed to suppress a giddy little grin as I anticipated getting what I wanted from the annoying moderator. One of those small victories that tasted oh so disproportionately sweet.

ManInTheCan: Don't post anything you shouldn't this time.​

​

Parthian: Already promised the moderator I wouldn't! Cross my heart.​

​

ManInTheCan: It's me you should be worried about crossing. 😉​

​

Parthian: And yet, here you are about to get me unbanned! And you didn't even demand that I go save a cat or something first. Truly, you're a gracious adversary.​

​

Parthian: 😏​

​

ManInTheCan: So long as you use those powers for good, we won't have a problem.​

​

Parthian: Alright, big guy. You've made your point, and it's well received.​

With a sudden rush of awareness, I hid my phone screen for a moment while I looked up and around to make sure nobody was watching me. Nobody was but the flash of movement did draw a glance from Sam.

"Everything okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, just- uhh, just work stuff. It's nothing, just... a notification," I said, putting as much confidence as I could in my voice and ending with a weary smile.

"How's the drawing going? Mind if I take a look?"

I froze up, opening my mouth so that my brain could generate an appropriate refutation. When it unexpectedly and utterly failed to produce one, I gave him an awkward smile and grabbed the sketchpad, clutching it close.

"I- it's, no, you don't want to, it's not... I don't think... it's not really done or anything..." I started to try and excuse myself.

Annelise. Get a hold of yourself! What's wrong with you today?

"That's cool. I can get a bit cagey about showing my work before it's finished too," he said sympathetically. "Lemme see at the end of the day?"

I breathed an altogether probably too loud sigh of relief, and muttered a few vaguely agreeable words. He gave me a smile and went back to painting.

I let my racing heart slow down again and - with another quick glance around - opened the sketchpad to cautiously continue my efforts. I was basically continuing to dig my own grave after learning it was destined for me, but… maybe he'd forget?

Or maybe he'd be too busy looking at the other parts of my drawing. The way I had started sketching the skyline was rather abstract.

Hmm, that's basically a circuit diagram… No! Bad! Stop that!

I started aggressively shading over the hints of circuitry - creating a much more darkened backdrop that, annoyingly, only served to highlight the drawing of Sam in the centre of the page. Exasperated, I tried to flesh out more detail elsewhere in a more… organic manner. Smooth, curved lines that flowed naturally like... the wings on the Peregrine drone.

Nope! Perhaps if I sketch another person? That seemed to be working.

I started drawing Keith, and quickly realised I was much more interested in his camera as I started envisioning - and then sketching - a refined optics package for the Peregrine.

Okay, I need to stop.

I started to scribble over what I had drawn so far, and then stopped for a moment. No point letting good ideas go to waste. I pulled out my phone and took a quick photo before going back to scribble some more. Once I thought it looked suitably like a mistake in the drawing, and not a covered-up design, I slowly closed the sketchpad, closed my eyes, and tried to centre myself for a few minutes.

I let time pass for a short while. It was actually very relaxing in the warm afternoon air, and the idea of just dozing off for a while began to rapidly grow more appealing. Maybe a quick nap would let me get back to it without all these designs floating around in my head trying to get out. I leant back, closing my eyes and focusing on the warmth of the sun, just letting time pass.

---

A voice called into the depths of unconsciousness… calling for me.

"'Lise? 'Lise~!" Sam said, trying to gently rouse me.

I opened my eyes and straightened up.

"Yeah... what's up?" I asked, looking around.

"We're gonna start packing up now."

As I looked around, I noticed the sun was much lower in the sky, right around the point where it was starting to turn the horizon orange. A little surprised and embarrassed, I gave him a little smile and a nod.

"Ahh, okay... yeah," I agreed, still gathering my wits about me.

I reached around, checked my purse and phone before grabbing the sketch pad. It was 5:11pm now, according to my phone, and everyone else was gathering up their gear. Keith was packing away his camera while Jane helped Mel remove her canvas from the frame, and Sam was washing off his brushes. Still clutching the sketchpad close, I hovered around, observing, looking for an opportunity to help if someone needed it, considering I had basically nothing to pack up.

"Mind helping get my canvas off the frame?" Sam asked as he finished packing away his brushes.

"Sure!" I said, glad to have some direction. I moved up to the easel, sketchpad under my arm and took my cues from him.

He'd painted a very realistic depiction of the Sydney CBD skyline using acrylic paints. It was a bit smudged and sloppy in a few spots where he had clearly painted over a mistake, but on the whole it looked quite good to me.

He handed me a small tool to use for prying the staples from the wooden frame, and I took it with a nod before getting to work. Immediately comfortable working with my hands, I operated almost on autopilot while I split my attention between the staples and taking in the details of his painting.

"It's amazing," I marvelled aloud. "Accurate."

Sam smiled brightly as he continued to work.

"Thanks! You really think so?"

"I do! You only need to look out there to see," I enthused, gesturing back out to the view, giving him a broad smile.

"Guess my skills are improving then. You'll have to show me yours too."

I gave him a noncommittal grunt and another smile to hide the dread as I finished separating the canvas and gladly let him take over, gently rolling it up and stowing it away in a special canister. In a few short minutes, everyone was almost all packed up and ready to go.

Sam tapped me on the shoulder.

"So can I see or what?"

I looked around nervously as it started to sink in that there was probably no reasonable way to get out of this. It was going to look wildly inappropriate. I was going to look creepy as hell, and then we were going to have to drive back to the apartment and it was going to be just so unbelievably awkward. There was really no two ways about it; the drawing was so absolutely and utterly focused on him, and everything else was an afterthought of an afterthought by comparison. Purely because trying to draw anything else resulted in tinkering, but it wasn't like I could ever explain that.

I set my jaw and slowly extended the sketchpad towards Sam, still looking away, bracing myself for the reaction.

It's really not going to help the matter that it's a pretty flattering rendition, either...

I started to shrink down in a kind of anticipatory cringe.

Sam was quiet as he took the sketchpad and looked over the drawing.

Just kill me now…

"Wow... This is... Really good." Sam looked up at me with a slight blush. "I'm kind of flattered. What do you guys think?" He turned the sketchpad to show the others.

I shrank down a little further, cursing as I felt the heat in my traitorous, burning cheeks. I could hardly understand why this was affecting me so much - I'd spent so long not caring what people thought of me when I was growing up as the scion of a pretty rich family.

Why do I care so much now? Why do I want them to like me so much?

There were several hums, nods and mutterings of approval. Jane managed to catch my eye and gave me a wink.

Without any real way to respond to that, I defaulted to putting on a weak smile by way of acknowledgement.

Mercifully, the big deal I was expecting about my sketch never eventuated, and we all finished packing up and headed back down to the wharf. We boarded the next ferry to arrive and headed back to the city. I spent the entire trip back almost entirely self-absorbed and quiet, grappling with confusion over how quickly they all reviewed the sketch and then left it be, moving on like it wasn't something really strange for the weird new girl to do... and Jane's wink.

When we arrived at Circular Quay, Mel stayed on the ferry to head back to her place and Keith darted off after a quick goodbye to catch his bus, leaving Sam, Jane and myself in the same spot where we met this morning.

"It was really nice meeting you today, Lisey! I had a super fun time," Jane said.

"Yeah - you too," I replied to Jane. "Maybe again soon."

I was now entirely unsure of how to feel about Jane. She seemed nice, if almost too bubbly. She'd seen the picture of my workshop but behaved as though it was an honest accident, and I hadn't found anything to suggest she'd made copies of the picture - or done anything else underhanded. Had she guessed I was a cape, or had my abstract descriptions of my work being secretive been enough to convince her not to pry? If she had guessed, she was hiding it well.

And what was that wink about? That was twice!

Jane pounced on me, enveloping me in a big hug.

"Thank you for being so good to Sam," she whispered quietly to me, before pulling away to playfully aim a punch at Sam's arm and then envelop him in a hug, too.

I looked at her, a little confused, but gave her a smile regardless as she pulled away, complete with a micro shrug. She waved goodbye to us both and then skipped off down towards the CBD.

"Shall we?" Sam asked, turning to me.

"Yeah," I agreed quietly, coming up alongside.

Once we'd reached the car and loaded it up, the trip back home was a long one, thanks to Sydney's notoriously terrible evening traffic. It felt even longer, on account of the awkward but amicable silence hanging in the air. Early on, I felt like maybe speaking up, or apologising, or something… but I never mustered the will to actually do it. Instead, I just wallowed in a kind of silent anguish. I'd had fun, sure - it was a good day, but… well.

I guess it turns out that actually, I SUCK at socialising.

Truly the cruellest of ironies for the lonely, former socialite longing for acceptance.

About 10 minutes before we got home, Sam finally broke the silence.

"Any thoughts on dinner?"

"I'm easy... I mean- I don't mind- Whatever's convenient," I offered.

"Probably leftovers then. I'm gonna go shopping tomorrow."

I looked over at him and nodded a few times.

"Need any cash for groceries?" I asked.

"Not unless you want anything expensive," he joked.

I shrugged.

"Maybe some of that really nice ice cream?"

"Sure. I'll send you the bill." He chuckled lightly and I found myself laughing along.

Maybe not so awkward after all…

I looked down at the sketchpad. It belonged to him. Was it weird to keep it?

Should I take my page out and give it back... Or give it back, page and all? Should I just abscond with it entirely? Would he mind? Should I buy him another pad? What's the least weird option?

I grappled with that for a little while, looking at the sketchpad but not really seeing it. Sam pulled into the carpark and turned off the engine. After a few minutes of unloading, we were back in my apartment, safe and sound at just a bit past seven. I retreated to my room with the sketchpad, dropping it down next to my laptop, and then headed back out, making my way to the fridge in search of the aforementioned leftovers.

I found the spag bol I didn't eat last night, some meatloaf, and a few slices of frozen pizza in the freezer. I decided I definitely wasn't going to let the spaghetti go to waste, pulling it out and setting about heating it up. Even after a day in the fridge, the spag bol was some of the best I'd ever had. That wasn't idle praise; I'd eaten at some high end Italian restaurants before.

I said my goodnights to Sam and headed back to my room, cracked open my laptop and checked PHO. My ban had been lifted, and my thread was no longer locked. There was some light discussion, but not a huge amount of buzz; talks of the pictures I had posted, whether or not I was connected to the explosion that happened last night, and a few very grainy and blurry photos of me whizzing through the city on the Lightreach.

I pulled up a CAD program, opened my phone, pulled up the photo I took of the design I drew before scribbling it out and started to explore the idea a little bit, tinkering for a few hours to scratch the itch. A feeling of relief settled in as I stretched my creative legs again, iterating on the Peregrine for a while using the photo I took of my sketch, then moving on to a new idea. When I was starting to get tired again, I'd pretty much finalised the Peregrine rebuild plans, and made headway on a new arrowhead. I saved the new file as 'Data Knife' - name pending, but that first idea sounded pretty good to me.

I checked the clock - 12:22am - and on a whim, reached into the duffle bag under my desk to retrieve my helmet and pull it down over my head. I crouched down in front of my desk, hands over the edge as I peeked upwards at my laptop webcam, so just my fingers and the upper half of the helmet was in frame, with the rest of the room in darkness. I took a cheeky picture, pondering it for a few moments before posting it to my speculation thread with the hope that it would stoke some more conversation

The helmet went back into the duffel bag, my clothes joined the pile in the hamper, and I dove haphazardly under the covers to let sleep take me.

I guess today went alright after all.

---

AN: Definitely not happy that I was late again with this chapter but in my own defence, it is about twice as long as previous chapters and the first draft was even longer! I thought about splitting this up into 2 chapters but I couldn't find a point anywhere that felt like a good stopping point without giving the next chapter an awkward start. Turns out I have a tendency to get lost in the weeds when writing SoL stuff, so big thank you to my co-author/beta reader Casey for helping me cut this down to something more manageable.

On a different note, I said in the very beginning that Parthian had some secrets of her own and here is where we get our first hints of that. It seems that being a cape runs in the Maxwell/Cardon family~

We're nearing the end of Arc 1 now. I estimate maybe 1 or 2 more chapters (depending on length) and then our first interlude before we begin on Arc 2!

I've also decided that I'm going to move the day I post (or at least try to post) updates to the weekend rather than in the middle of the week and since I don't want to keep people waiting 2.5 weeks for the chapter, I'm going to aim to post Splash 1.5 on the weekend of the 25th of Feb.

Comments sustain the eldritch horror that fuels my writing so please feed it. Thank you all for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

Warning, this chapter contains some (not quite S9 level) graphic depictions of violence. This is a Worm fic after all. Please read at your own discretion.

Splash 1.5​

Sunday, 8:12pm, April 24th, 2005

After yesterday's outing and a late night - spent designing my new Peregrine, and the early workings of my new 'Data Knife' arrowhead - I hadn't woken up until around 10:30 this morning. Sam was long gone for work by then, and I knew he wouldn't be back until the evening, so I decided I might as well head straight for my workshop after breakfast.

My speculation thread on PHO had erupted overnight, with dozens of people arguing over just about every imaginable aspect of who exactly Parthian might be. Some had latched onto the idea I was a villain, and that the explosion was a failed attack on the Atlas HQ; others were screaming at me for more info on the building beneath it, believing that I had some kind of inside source or might be a whistleblower. A handful of them were dismissive, claiming it was all a publicity stunt and that I might not even be a real cape. More than anything, people just seemed to want to know more about Sydney's newest cape, and that put a pretty big smile on my face.

I'd been debating on the way to the lab whether I should lay low for a while, after last night's excitement - keep working on the Data Knife, upgrade the Peregrine further. The prospect of patrolling again tonight won out, though. With an already-finished design to work from, and enough spare drone parts lying around to scrap and reassemble, it only took me a few hours to get the Peregrine up and running again, after all - so I ended up having little time to spend working on designs anyway, until evening rolled around.

By 8pm I had the beginnings of a workable prototype, with my main issue currently being the delivery mechanism. Launching the arrow with the Data Knife payload was easy enough, but having it impact softly enough to not destroy the knife - without sacrificing all my penetration power in the process - had me a little stumped for the time being. I had plenty of possible concepts rolling around, but none of them really fleshed out yet. I'd have to spend some time just following the possibilities and see what seemed more feasible… But tonight wasn't the time for that.

I suited up, grabbing my costume from my car - having brought it back with me from my apartment - and got partially dressed, fitting everything but the helmet, cape, and gloves. As I checked my security cameras to see if anyone was around, it occurred to me that I could take off from my workshop if I wanted. There was a ladder with an access hatch to the roof, for ventilation maintenance, and the air conditioning units up there would offer solid cover from anyone who happened to be looking.

Rational paranoia told me no, that I shouldn't risk revealing the location of my workshop… But logically, the risk was minimal. The block of industrial units where my workshop was located was almost completely dark in the evenings, and there were next to no other businesses nearby that would still have people working at this time of day. On top of that, the Lightreach was near completely silent, and it gave off no light when in hoverboard configuration. If I took off fast enough, I'd be little more than a dark spot against a dark sky.

I checked the security cameras again to make sure no-one was around and then pulled on my cape, gloves and helmet. Then I checked the security cameras one more time. As satisfied as I could make myself that there was nobody around, I mounted the Peregrine to its mag-locks on the back of my armour and grabbed the Lightreach from the boot of my car. One diagnostics check later and I was ascending the ladder to the rooftop hatch.

I stepped out into the crisp night air and hunched low between the air conditioning units to hide myself from view. It had been an overcast day, and the clouds still hung low in the sky, blocking out the stars and making things all the more suitable for a rooftop launch. I mounted the Lightreach and accelerated away, sticking low to the tops of the surrounding buildings for a few blocks before angling upwards into the sky. If anyone happened to be looking, or if I managed to get picked up on radar somehow, they wouldn't have seen me until I was well clear of my workshop.

I kept my speed down a bit, due to the reduced visibility brought on by low cloud cover that saw me bathed in the fluorescent and neon lights of Sydney's CBD after just a few minutes of travel. Looking out over the city below, I tuned my comms to the police dispatch radio and began to listen in. I reached behind me and pulled the Peregrine free of its mount, tossing it up in the air and watching as its hard-light wings flashed into existence. I ordered it to loiter a few thousand feet up, circling in a one-kilometre radius around me and keeping its cameras on my position.

I dropped down to a few hundred feet and began flying along at a steady pace, doing loops around some of the major streets of the CBD while telescoping in to do some people-watching and keeping an ear out for the radio. Plenty visible at my current altitude, the occasional shout and whoop came my way from the pedestrians below as I passed overhead.

Much to my chagrin, the first hour passed by uneventfully, then the second. Police chatter started to pick up around 11pm, but it was mostly just reports of drunken disorderliness, angry homeless people, and the like. As condescending as that moderator had been, I would have killed for a petty thief or a cat stuck up a tree right now.

Not every patrol is eventful, I guess… That's supposed to be a good thing, right?

I roamed the streets from above for another 20 minutes before a fresh report finally came across the PD radio.

"Patrol units near Central, be advised - we have reports of a code thirty-six at a convenience store near Barlow and George. Suspect is male, average height, in loose dark clothing with a buzz cut and allegedly wielding a bladed weapon."

Code 36… That's a robbery!

"This is unit one-four responding," said a new voice. "Heading to scene now. We'll attempt to apprehend suspect as they leave the scene to avoid escalation."

I checked my GPS and started searching for the intersection in question. The moment I had it, I took off as fast as I could. Bobbing and weaving between the buildings felt a lot less stressful when I wasn't fleeing from Sentinel's probes, and I arrived at the location in just under two minutes. There were a few different small shops along the street corner when I arrived, so rather than try to guess which store was the target, I set the Peregrine to start scanning my vicinity for two things: any unsheathed, bladed weapons; and anyone running away from the intersection.

I angled down towards the intersection and set down on a building with a flat roof, just a few storefronts away from the intersection proper. Three of the shops at the intersection fit the bill for what could be considered a convenience store - the dispatcher had been frustratingly unspecific. Cautiously and quietly, I stepped up to the edge of the roof and called the Lightreach to my hand. I felt the familiar 'thunk' as the anti-grav generators switched to bow configuration and the hard-light projectors hummed to life, forming the bowstring while I drew a snare arrowhead from my bandolier and mounted it on the shelf.

It was eerily normal as I looked down. No crowd was forming, there was no-one screaming and shouting or running in terror. From my point of view, everyone was just going about their usual business.

Am I too late? No, surely not…

As I continued to watch, I heard the sound of police sirens in the distance, gradually growing louder. In the eerie quiet, I put a foot up on the lip of the roof and drew back on the bowstring. The shaft for the arrow flashed into existence - already nocked - and I went as still as I possibly could, letting the Lightreach's internal mechanisms hold the weight of the draw. I strained my ears to make out any noise, maximising the overlay of the Peregrine's camera in one lens of my helmet, in order to keep an eye on both of our vantage points at the same time.

The Peregrine suddenly chirped at me with an alert, its cameras zooming in and highlighting someone leaving a convenience store across the road. The person turned to walk in the opposite direction of the approaching sirens, one hand tucked into the pocket of a dark and baggy hoodie and a backpack slung over their shoulder. Their face was concealed at the Peregrine's current angle, with the hood covering their head.

It didn't take years of enforced etiquette and social tutoring to read this guy like a book; he was nervous, in bold font and all caps. His head was turning back and forth like he was looking out for something, and yet he always avoided looking back in the direction of the sirens - which were now close enough that I could see the flashing lights travelling up one of the streets.

Some more chatter came over the PD radio just as two very distressed looking individuals stepped out of the same convenience store Hoodie had just left, stumbling onto the street to wave down the incoming patrol car.

That was enough for me to make the call.

Time for that field test.

No warning. No mercy. No ambiguity. I loosed the snare arrow at Hoodie.

The arrow flew true, bursting in mid-air behind him with a pop like a firecracker, sending a tangle of wires that ensnared him in a split second, coiling around his limbs and torso. Hoodie let out a surprised shout, falling to his side on the ground with a dull thud.

Field test, Target Arresting Munition: successful.

"Hey! What the fuck?!" Hoodie shouted.

I ignored his protest and started scanning the rest of the area, watching through Peregrine's feed as well to see if anyone else was acting suspicious. There were a number of shocked gasps and shouts in reaction to the sudden and aggressive apprehension of the otherwise unsuspecting bystander, and one person darted over - seemingly to check if Hoodie was okay, though he didn't get too close. As all this was happening, the police car pulled up outside the store and one of the officers disembarked to begin conversing with the two presumed victims.

I stayed standing right against the edge of the rooftop, looking down. I toggled my helmet zoom and took a much closer look at my suspect, observing how he was reacting to the police presence. Hoodie's hood had fallen back during his tumble, and now that he was lying on the ground, I could see his hair matched the buzz cut description. His hand was still in his hoodie pocket, trying to pull something from it, but the cables of the snare kept his arms firmly in place.

I grabbed another snare arrowhead and held it loosely in hand in case he somehow managed to break free; there I waited for the police to finish talking with the two people from the store. The pair continued talking to the officer and one gestured down the street in the direction Hoodie had been moving. There was a brief pause as the moment of realisation came, followed by some frantic hand gesturing, and then a flash of lights and sirens from the patrol car before it began rolling down the street to where Hoodie was lying bound on the ground.

I double checked my radio, making sure I was still listening on the dispatch to see if they would call it in. It seemed like they had it under control. I took a moment to kind of... shift my pose a little bit, to look... a bit more heroic. Just in case anyone had noticed me and started filming or taking photos or something.

There was some radio chatter as the other officer got out of the patrol car and confirmed that Hoodie was indeed the perpetrator, and that he was being taken into custody. The first cop and the two victims were now looking around the vicinity, presumably trying to spot whoever was responsible for capturing Hoodie. Another bit of chatter came over the radio asking if any Atlas or other capes had been spotted in the area.

C'mon, guys. I'm right here. Just look up!

I turned around, looking for the HUD marker indicating the otherwise impossible-to-spot at this distance Peregrine and then looked directly at it as I flashed it a peace sign. I sent it a signal to dump its VIS camera cache to disk, saving a recording of the events. Nobody saw what happened in real time, but maybe PHO would appreciate my work.

I turned back to the street, lowering the Lightreach to my side and putting a hand on my hip. I contemplated clearing my throat to draw attention to myself, but decided that was probably beneath me.

I'm not that desperate for recognition. Besides, surely they'll look up soon?

I waited for what felt like another five minutes as they continued glancing about, utterly stumped and ignorant of the world's Z-axis. The officer who'd gotten out of the car first took statements from the two victims, while occasionally checking his radio for any information about the 'elusive' hero. The other officer carefully disarmed Hoodie of the large kitchen knife he had stuffed in his front pocket, and then awkwardly began lifting the crook to his feet.

I expressed my disappointment with a quick "tsk", turning on the spot and taking a few steps before mounting the Lightreach once again.

Ahh well. Recognition will come later.

I hovered forwards and upwards a little bit, watching as the officers loaded Hoodie into the back of the patrol car. I waited for them to leave before taking back off into the sky to return to my patrol. I didn't have to wait long for something new to grab my attention.

"Units in the Mosman area be advised and on alert," the dispatch radio came to life again. "We've just received reports of a Code thirty-seven and ShotSpotters confirm origin point to be somewhere between Military and Middle Head."

Gunshots. In Sydney?

The National Firearms Agreement of 1996 had put serious restrictions on gun ownership in Australia, and the subsequent government buyback amnesties meant that almost no-one in the country owned a firearm anymore. Those that did had to acquire a licence and register their guns, and they were limited to using them only for hunting or collection purposes. Active gunfire in the middle of the city likely meant only one thing: gang activity. And if I was remembering correctly, Mosman was in north Sydney - Wogs of War territory.

I brought my board about, ordering the Peregrine to skew cameras in that direction and move across the harbour to loiter between those roads. Once the drone was on its way with its cameras pointed in the right direction, I took off after it, jetting out across the harbour. I angled upwards as I reached the other side and continued at speed, no longer impeded by tall buildings.

The Peregrine arrived shortly before I did, quickly spotting a large crowd of people currently running down the street from where the shots had been reported. I swapped the drone's cameras to infravision and traced the faint trails of thermal energy back to a club called The Buena, where I could see a few people were still trickling out. I didn't waste time with the crowd and instead flew straight towards the club to meet up with the Peregrine.

Heart beating fast in my chest, I overflew the building high above it as I instructed the Peregrine to start looking for any sign of a pistol or other firearm, the same way I'd asked it to search for bladed weapons earlier. I dropped down lower and started circling the building at a steady clip, looking around to identify entrances, windows, and searching for a way to get a view into the building.

The building was a three storey nightclub with access points on the rooftop dance floor and balconies on the first and second floors. Other than the front entry, there was a staff entrance and loading dock around the back. Looking over the building, a chill ran through my blood as I made a sudden realisation about the current location.

A nightclub… Could this be the serial killer?

Going from stopping petty crime to wading in on gang violence was already a pretty big step. A serial killer - and a parahuman one at that - was a whole other level of dangerous.

I'm pretty sure I'm not ready for this.

A gunshot went off somewhere inside the building. The sound was dulled by the layers of concrete it had to travel through, but it felt loud all the same.

You don't have to fight the cape, Parthian. Just… help anyone who's still inside escape.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, steeled myself, and angled downwards, making for the rooftop entrance and intending to bust my way in if necessary; the Peregrine would ping me if anyone else exited the building or when law enforcement arrived.

The roof was an open party area, with a currently deserted bar and dance floor and a set of stairs leading down into the building. I swapped the Lightreach to bow configuration and took a snare arrowhead, mounting it to the shelf. I approached the stairs and began to descend; not hurrying, but not slowly either as I relied on my helmet cameras to provide me better vision in the darkened interior of the club.

There was a sort of ominous dissonance as I descended into the building. The second floor - like the roof - was a nightclub with a bar and dance floor. The lights and music were still blaring, but the space was completely devoid of any people or signs of life.

Muffled shouting, followed by a crashing sound, echoed up from the stairwell across the room that led down to the first floor. My head snapped to the source and I raised my bow, two fingers drawing the hard-light string to arm the snare arrowhead with a hard-light shaft as I proceeded towards it, aiming down the steps as I observed what I could of the floor below before descending.

The next floor down was a much more brightly lit space, probably once a dining area. As I cautiously made my way down, I saw that a large number of the tables had been overturned, chairs strewn across the room, with plates and glasses shattered all over the floor. As I reached the bottom of the stairs, immediately to my left, I spotted the body of a heavyset man who I guessed might be Greek. From his clothing, it looked like he was a security guard or bouncer of some sort, but something about him looked wrong as I gazed down at him.

I stifled a retch and quickly looked away, lowering my bow as I realised why.

Holy fuck..!

The guard's body was lying chest down on the floor but his face was looking up at the ceiling. His neck had quite obviously been broken with enough force to spin his head around more than 180 degrees.

I swapped to infravision and raised my head again. With the sight of the body now reduced to a more tolerable blob of heat, I did a quick scan around, looking for any fading heat signatures that might indicate a trail of the likely serial killer leaving the scene. The body on the floor next to me was starting to fade, and I detected another weak signature across the room where the stairs leading down to the ground floor were.

I raised my bow again and moved off from the poor bastard. I activated the cell uplink in my helmet, cursed myself for not memorising the Atlas Alliance hotline, and dialled triple zero instead as I pointed my bow out into the room. Noting that the Peregrine hadn't pinged me yet about anyone leaving, I took a deep breath and advanced across the room to the next set of stairs as the phone rang.

When I reached the other side, I swapped off the infravision to check the other body - in case it was still breathing - and immediately regretted it. He was younger looking than the other guy - maybe mid-20s - and Middle-Eastern in appearance, dressed in the same gear as the other bouncer.

It looked like he'd had his ribs caved in.

"You have dialled emergency Triple Zero. Your call is being connected," said an automated voice.

I looked away from the body and swallowed the bile rising in my throat as the phone picked up.

"Sydney emergency services. What service do you require?" said the woman on the line.

I took a moment to breathe and formulate the information I needed to convey.

"This is independent cape, Parthian, calling from The Buena, Mosman. I'm following the trail of another unknown cape down towards the ground floor of the building. I've found two bodies already... injuries incompatible with life. I believe the Sydney Club Killer is responsible and still present at the scene," I followed up, trying my level best to keep the quaver out of my voice.

I slowly shuffled down the first step to the ground floor, keeping my bow up and drawn, Snare ready to go. I took another step… then... another, as I listened for the operator.

"Understood," she responded calmly. "We've received multiple reports of gunshots and police and ambulance units are already on their way to your location. Are you certain there is another parahuman present at the scene?"

"Y-yes. I'm certain. Only a cape could cause these injuries… so easily, ma'am," I said, inching down another few steps. "I'm moving to attempt to identify and subdue. But you should get Atlas out here fast. I'm sure the killer hasn't left yet."

"Understood. I'm going to advise police to hold back and transfer you to APRA for further advisement. One moment…"

There was a brief dial tone as my call was transferred.

As I continued down the stairs, I found myself in an equally well lit foyer area. I spotted two more bodies - just as badly mangled as the previous ones - on the floor in the same uniforms and a trail of blood that led towards some back rooms; one of the doors to which had been knocked off its hinges. My call reconnected, this time to a male operator.

"This is Parahuman Response. Independent cape... Parthian, is that correct?"

"...Yeah. Tracking an unknown cape at The Buena in Mosman. Brute for sure, I think the gunshots were in self defence. I've found... four dead so far," I answered, taking a second to take a deep breath.

I paused for a moment, squeezing my eyes shut and focusing on my breathing again, trying not to heave breaths and blow out the mic to the APRA operator while the blood pounded in my ears and my heart beat a million miles a minute. I opened my eyes again, pulled the bowstring to half draw and aimed it, bringing up the reticle on my HUD and continuing forward.

"Acknowledged... The nearest patrolling cape, Deva has been informed and is on her way now along with two squads of APRA troopers. Based on my information or rather lack thereof, I'm going to assume you're a new cape, Parthian. I would strongly advise you to retreat and wait for trained professionals to handle this," the operator warned.

I continued into the back area. I could see several doors on either side of a dimly lit hallway, lined with a lush red carpet. Some of the doors were hanging open, and the trail of blood led to the very end of the hall where I could see one more door, currently shut. I heard the shouts of a female voice coming from beyond it. She sounded angry and... upset?

"I'll… take that under advisement. I can hear someone shouting. How far away is Deva?" I muttered, taking cautious steps towards the final door, aiming right at the centre of it. I proceeded forwards slowly, intending to get close enough to distinguish what the woman was saying unless something else happened.

"Deva is approximately five minutes away and the APRA units are ten."

As I got closer to the door, I could see something had punched a hole through it, right around where I would have guessed the lock had been. Crouching down while maintaining as much distance as possible, I attempted to peer into the room, only to find a busted, flickering light repeatedly washing out my night-vision over and over. Upon swapping back to infravision, though, I quickly counted five heat signatures in the room through the hole in the door. Three were laid out on the floor, gradually fading to ambient temperature. One was off to one side, and the fifth seemed to be floating in the air in the middle of the room. As I listened, I could hear shouts coming from the fourth person.

"TELL ME WHERE, DAMMIT! I'm tired of having to work my way through you people location by location! Just tell me where they're being delivered, and all of this stops!" she yelled. In addition to being enraged and upset, she sounded young.

I turned off my infravision, pausing and waiting.

"I-I... Don't know where…" Another voice choked out, barely audible, male. "They send the girls here each a-afternoon... and take 'em again... the next m-morning... Please!..."

"Might not be a Brute," I whispered to the APRA operator with my heart in my throat. "Might be a Shaker. Telekinetic of some kind."

"Understood. Parthian, I am strongly advising you to fall back," the operator warned me again. "Deva is three minutes away."

The girl shouted and I almost leapt out of my skin.

"FUCK! Why don't you know anything?!" she exclaimed. "Am I seriously gonna have to claw my way up your ranks to some big boss?!"

"I-I don't..." choked the man.

"Who delivers them? Where do I go next?! TELL ME!"

"B-Bali Springs… Near Headland Park. I know th-they also... take deliveries…"

"Fuck... Fuck! Fine! Another brothel it is..."

I held my breath, continuing to listen, unwilling to retreat from another potential murder in progress, hoping the girl would let the last victim go. I held position short of the threshold to the room, ready to break in if she didn't.

"T-there... I told you what... I know. Now let me go... P-please... I've got a wife and... d-daughter at home..." the man pleaded.

There was a long pause. It sounded like both the girl and the man were sobbing.

"I was somebody's daughter once too…" the girl muttered. "Kusottare."

A shout.

A crashing sound.

A sickening crunch.

A dull thud as a body hit the floor.

---

AN: Worm really did love its sudden escalations in the story, didn't it?

*Throws parahuman serial killer at Parthian*

Obviously things may not be as cut and dry as they seem at face value though. If there's anything Worm loves as much as sudden plot escalation, it's moral ambiguity!~

The next chapter will be the final one for Arc 1, followed by our first interlude and then it's on to Arc 2! Please enjoy the dramatic tension of this cliffhanger until the next chapter and feed me some yummy comments. Thanks for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

Warning. This chapter contains discussions of kidnapping, human trafficking and allusions to sexual assault. Please read at your own discretion and for goodness sake, be respectful in the comments. Thank you.

Splash 1.6​

Monday, 12:08am, April 25th, 2005

I could only watch as the white-hot thermal silhouette of the man suspended in the air was suddenly flung up into the ceiling. Something - probably his neck - broke with a crunching sound that made my stomach turn, and then his body dropped to the floor.

Fuck!

Fuck fuck fuck!

That was too fast! Way too fast!

I'd thought I was in position, poised to intervene before the girl - the serial killer - would be able to hurt the man... and she'd killed him faster than I could comprehend. Utterly stricken with fear, I started to back away, hurriedly backpedalling with my bow aimed right at the centre of the door as I made my way out of the back rooms.

"S-she just killed another one," I said to the APRA operator in a tight whisper, following up with hurried, rapid-fire statements. "Shaker… Telekinetic power that works on people, I guess. Really strong. Ground floor, back rooms. Her next target will be, uhh, Bali Springs if she gets away. I think she might be a trafficking victim trying to locate other trafficking victims. I'm heading for the ground floor exit."

"Understood," the operator responded. "Deva should be there any second now to stop her if she starts attacking civilians. APRA is four minutes away."

As I continued to back away down the hall, turning off my infravision as I moved, I heard footsteps from the room and saw movement through the hole in the door. I backed up faster, pulling the bow to full draw as the door creaked open and a head peered out from behind it.

"She's coming out..! She's looking at me!" I groaned under my breath, skipping back another few steps - I hoped - into the foyer. I kept the arrow fully drawn just a little bit longer, ready to dodge to the side and make a break for the entrance as soon as I was in the foyer proper. I only caught a glimpse of the killer before she quickly pulled the door shut again, but a few distinct things stood out to me.

She didn't seem to be wearing a proper cape costume, and the bottom half of her face was only covered by some fabric tied around the back of her head. She was Asian, and definitely younger than I was - 22 at the oldest. Her eyes were red and swollen, her cheeks streaked with tears and her left arm was heavily tattooed with what looked like a tentacle, curling all the way up before disappearing into the torn sleeve of a baggy, black jumper.

The moment the door closed again, I eased the tension in the bowstring, turned, and ran for the exit as fast as my - admittedly very shaky - legs would carry me. The Peregrine chirped a warning at me and highlighted a silhouette flying rapidly towards the building.

That's gotta be Deva for sure. Thank god!

I booked it, doing my best to ignore the two bodies in the foyer. As I stepped out through the front entrance and into the street, I was showered in a golden light; a moment later, Deva landed hard before me in the middle of the street and quickly took a defensive and ready stance.

Whenever she appeared on television or in newspapers and magazines, Deva always made a point of eschewing any implications or suggestions about her religious beliefs, maintaining a firm stance that her actions and choices were always based on her own thoughts rather than the guidance or teachings of any religious texts. She had apparently chosen the name Deva because while it remained thematically appropriate - meaning 'celestial being' in its original Buddhist context - it didn't carry the same burden as a name like 'Angel' or 'Seraph' would in the Western world. She claimed to have forgone a mask because she wanted people to see that she was still human beneath the heavenly visage of her costume - and standing before her, it was easy to understand why so many believed she was, in fact, a divine being.

Both angelic and profoundly intimidating in appearance, Deva stood at least seven feet tall as she drew her huge, white-feathered wings together behind her back. Her costume was a white dress with golden armour plating at her chest, shoulders, forearms and shins. Unmasked, her face looked as if a renaissance painting had come to life and the halo of shimmering light that hovered above her head only exemplified how supernaturally beautiful she was despite the hard stare she was giving me.

"Parthian?" she queried.

I held up my hands both in greeting and as a display of non-hostility, slowing to a jog as I moved - not directly towards her, but to the side of her, to get out of her way.

"Yeah," I called back. "Cape inside. Did the APRA operator fill you in?"

"I am apprised of the situation," she said with assured confidence. "Wait here."

She marched without hesitation straight up the steps and into the building. As she passed by, I couldn't help but relax as I felt a wave of calm wash over me; the fear and tension of the fight or flight instincts that had been coursing through my entire being moments ago just ebbing away now that I was in her presence.

I slowed to a stop, lowering my bow and letting the hard-light arrow dissolve as I found myself nodding; my worries quashed by her words. It was thanks to that clarity that I remembered to provide Deva with a key piece of context to the situation.

"W-wait! She's... a victim, too," I called to Deva as she advanced, before trailing off and standing there, a little awkwardly. She paused for a moment, head turned to the side, and gave a nod of acknowledgement in my direction before continuing on.

What was I supposed to do now?

As Deva disappeared into the building, the Peregrine gave me another warning chirp, snapping me from my momentary confusion. I expanded the feed on my HUD to see a small figure travelling away from the back of the building. If they hadn't been highlighted by the Peregrine's thermal overlay, I wouldn't have been able to spot them as they moved. A small feminine figure, dressed entirely in black. She took to the air, and although they didn't appear on the white-hot thermals, the night vision hinted at what looked like wings made of shadow.

"Are you still on the line?" I said over the phone to the operator as I reached down to my bandolier and retrieved an IF-TSDS arrowhead.

A tracking round, designed to tag targets with microdots I could trace by radio.

"I'm here, Parthian," the operator answered. "The APRA squad will be there shortly. What's happening?"

"The…"

Why does 'killer' feel wrong now..?

"…girl has left by the back of the building. She can fly," I said, nocking the tracking round and angling my bow upwards... Way upwards. I signalled the Peregrine to lock its camera on the girl and follow it as the Lightreach and Peregrine started exchanging data to give me a firing solution. "I'm going to try and tag her with a tracker from a distance."

"Got it. I'll notify Deva. Tell me if you hit her."

I drew my bow to the calculated power, lining up my shot and loosing the arrow through the air, watching as it sailed high - straight over the building, far and away. I gazed through the Peregrine's camera for second after second as the arrow came back down. Right on target, the arrow discarded itself mid-arc as it deployed its almost unnoticeable payload; the miniature radio tracer. As the only part of the arrow that actually came down to land on the girl, the tracer stuck itself to her back without her noticing as she continued to fly away, taking up a more evasive pattern as she moved towards the harbour.

"Tagged her. Tracer is transmitting." I notified the operator.

I instructed the Peregrine to begin following the tracer's signal rather than the visual of the girl in case she ducked out of sight of its cameras. I ran back into the building after Deva, consulting my GPS for "Bali Springs'' to see if the girl was heading in that direction. Concerningly, Bali Springs was a kilometre east of us, but she wasn't heading in that direction at all. I checked the Peregrine's feed again, in case the girl had done something to confuse the tracer, but only confirmed that she was in fact travelling south-west.

"She's not headed to Bali Springs," I yelled down the hallway to the back rooms as I reached the foyer. "She's heading south-west!"

I turned back and took a few steps out onto the street, setting out the Lightreach in board configuration and climbing on. I angled upwards, gaining speed and altitude as fast as I safely could. Consulting the Peregrine's current airspeed as it kept pace with the girl, I determined she was only moving at about 50 kilometres an hour. I could catch up to her easily.

"Can you give us the frequency for the tracker Parthian?" asked the operator.

I reluctantly rattled it off, making a mental note to take the rest of my tracer arrowheads apart and rebuild them - they were all single-frequency right now. Maybe I could write some kind of dynamic frequency allocator... a tracer frequency tracker for my HUD? Then I could rename the trackers on the fly and know which was which - I could just...

Not the time, Parthian!

I climbed to a few hundred feet and followed from a fair distance back, matching the girl's speed; I didn't need to follow her with my own eyes, the Peregrine was both harder to spot and had better cameras. I glanced back to the nightclub to make sure I wasn't going off alone and saw the light of Deva's halo emerge from the back of the building a moment later, as her wings unfurled and she took to the air.

"I'm afraid the range on your tracer is too small for us to pick up on any of our scanners currently. The Wogs are pretty thorough with taking down any relay towers we try to set up in the area. Are you comfortable pursuing the suspect with Deva's support, Parthian?" asked the operator.

"I… I can do that. I'm in flight. Still have the girl in sight. Can you put Deva on this call?" I asked as the wind started to whip up around me.

"Patching her in."

"How fast can you fly on that?" Deva asked as she rose up to meet me.

"Fu... Fast, really fast," I said, stopping myself at the last moment from swearing in her presence. It felt... profane. "She's going about fifty kilometres per hour. I can go much faster."

"My top speed is one hundred but it takes me time to reach it. Can I ask you to go ahead and keep eyes until she stops?"

"I'd prefer to stay with you." I admitted. "I can still track her remotely using my drone."

Deva nodded, then took the lead in our two-person formation. I pulled up close to her, flying off her side and clear of her wingspan as she accelerated up to her top speed as quickly as she could in pursuit of the girl. We were rapidly gaining ground on her as she briefly flew out over the water, until she suddenly turned and began descending, to land at the tip of one of the small peninsulas that jutted out into the harbour.

I called out the sudden change in direction to Deva, pointing at the girl - or more accurately, pointing at the blinking icon on my HUD that indicated the location the Peregrine was looking, locked on to the tracer signal and the white-hot infrared signature that just dove downwards.

Deva slowed down to a stop and hovered in the air, beating her huge wings to stay aloft.

"What's she doing?" The hero asked.

I expanded the Peregrine's camera feed, swapping off infrared to its colour night vision sensor and zooming in to take a look. The girl had touched down on a little outcropping right by the water. She sat down and pulled off her shoes before dipping her feet into the water. I watched as she wrapped her arms around her torso and began hugging herself tightly while her body shuddered.

"She's just... sitting there," I answered. "She's got her feet in the water. She looks like... I don't know. She's hugging herself. She was crying when I saw her face. I think she's having a breakdown..."

I zoomed out a bit, partly so I could check the area around her for other heat signatures and partly because I suddenly felt as if I was intruding on something deeply private. There were no other signatures around and the girl's one was slowly starting to drop a little as she kept her feet in the water.

"You said you thought she was a victim. Of what?" Deva asked softly.

"Trafficking, maybe... I think you know the kind I mean. She was looking for girls... Girls being taken and moved. I overheard her talking about trying to claw her way up the chain to a boss who would know about the workings of the operation. She indicated... she lost her parents," I explained, trying not to let the emotions I was feeling get to my voice.

A sombre look crossed Deva's face.

"She's alone there," I continued. "Nobody else is around. We might be able to approach slowly and talk."

"Lets," Deva replied as she began to slowly descend down to the rocks.

I stood upright and slowly rode down behind Deva, keeping my arms out to the sides and empty, trying to maintain as non-threatening a posture as possible. I held back a little bit behind Deva. Though I continued to feel calm in her presence, my heart rate started to pick up again nonetheless as I remembered what the girl had done to those men with her power. The bodies…

"Don't forget she's a telekinetic," I muttered, a little worried, but very glad for Deva's presence.

The light of Deva's halo and the beat of her wings announced our presence as she touched down on the rocks a safe distance away from the girl. Though, 'safe' was a relative term considering we didn't know how large the range of her power was. The girl noticed immediately and scrambled to her feet, quickly pulling up the fabric to cover the bottom of her face.

She took a defensive stance, holding her arms out. I could see that both sleeves of her jumper were shredded and tattered almost all the way up to her shoulders and her arms were covered with full sleeve tattoos from palm to presumably shoulder. I could see patches of skin catching the light from under her clothes through what I assumed must be bullet holes. I would have been worried about the fact she might be bulletproof if she didn't look so… scared…

What on earth has she been through..?

"Did the Wogs send you?" she called out.

I touched the side of my helmet's jaw, retracting the lower portion of the beak so I could speak with my own voice, rather than having my helmet rebroadcasting it. I felt like anything even slightly imposing would send things entirely in the wrong direction right now.

"Nobody sent me," I called back. "We… We want to help."

I cast a glance over in Deva's direction.

"No you don't!" the girl shouted back. "Nobody's ever helped me. Not for years!"

"Then we want to understand," replied Deva. "You must be angry. Upset."

"Hah!" The girl laughed, but there was no levity in her voice. It was a harsh, choked sound, jagged with sarcasm and disbelief. "I am so far beyond angry! I'm overflowing with RAGE! I HAVE SO MUCH AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH IT!"

I glanced rapidly between her and Deva, unsure of myself and very, very scared of the little girl. Even if I'd had any clue about what to say, I wouldn't have been able to speak the words.

"I won't patronise you by pretending to understand what you're feeling, but what you're doing has to stop. I can't let you keep going around killing people." There was a presence in Deva's voice as she spoke. Firm and assertive, yet there was something calming about her words.

"I don't kill people!" The girl retorted. "Those men weren't people! They were animals and monsters and they deserved to die for what they did to me! To all those other girls!"

She gesticulated angrily as she yelled, and as her arms flailed, I could see that the tattoos on her skin were moving, the tentacle around her left arm coiling like it was alive.

"Not a Shaker," Deva whispered to me over the phone line. "Changer. Or maybe a Breaker of some kind."

"That explains the wings," I muttered back, eyes boggling behind the lenses of my helmet as I watched the girl's skin literally crawl.

"Hey, look… I'm Parthian. You probably know Deva, right?" I asked; I doubted she did, since she'd assumed we were with the Wogs when we first arrived, but establishing a sense of familiarity was a good way to diffuse hostility. Just one of the many lessons I'd been forced to learn quickly or suffer whatever consequences my parents deemed appropriate. "What do we call you?"

"I don't have a cape name. I don't want to be a superhero or a villain..."

"I understand," I continued before Deva could speak again.

Establish familiarity… Then try to find common interests.

That was actually easier than I would have expected.

"I... don't necessarily wanna be either of those things, myself. I'm new. I just... feel awkward calling you 'girl'," I explained. "Is there... a nickname you want, just for now?"

"My name is Aiko. I'm still a person... Or at least… I want to be…" The girl- Aiko's defensive stance faltered as she looked at the ground. "I didn't want to kill anybody, but nothing else worked... It makes me feel sick but I'm finally making progress. Please don't stop me. Not yet. I…"

The words seemed to catch in her throat.

"I think I'd rather die than not be able to finish this…" She turned her head away, looking out towards the harbour behind her.

A few moments passed in silence.

"What do you need to finish? I don't know much about you, Aiko, but I know they hurt you. Are you... looking for someone? Trying to get revenge? Trying to save someone?" I probed cautiously.

"I want to stop the Wogs bringing more girls in," she answered, her voice surprisingly calm. "I've already rescued a few from some of the clubs I went to, but if I don't find where they're coming from then they'll just keep bringing in more. More kids like me, pulled off the street from another country and dragged here to be bought and sold like livestock. It has to stop! I HAVE TO STOP IT!"

I tried not to physically recoil as her anger returned so suddenly. Hopelessly out of my depth and completely winging it, I peered over at Deva, trying to gauge which way she was leaning. Her expression was almost unreadable, her beauty almost aggravatingly distracting as I tried to guess what she might be thinking. She glanced over at me and then reached up to her ear. I heard a brief dial tone as she hung up from the phone call with the operator and I.

"Hang up on the APRA operator," she whispered to me. "Make it look like you got disconnected if possible."

With a few taps of my thumb against my knuckles, I called a script and power cycled my helmet's cell radio hardware, forcing the softphone to the APRA operator to crash. I gave Deva the slightest incline of my head.

"Can I talk with Parthian for a moment?" Deva asked Aiko.

She responded with a nod though I could see the wariness in her eyes. Deva slowly unfurled her wings, opening them out and then drawing them in to form a curtain around the two of us.

"We may have a unique opportunity here to kill several birds with one stone," Deva whispered conspiratorially. "The only issue is we could all be in serious trouble if we get caught. Should I say more?"

A small smile crept across my face.

"Go right ahead," I encouraged. "I'm with you."

"My public position as a member of the Atlas Alliance prevents me from conducting myself in any manner that falls outside of the law. You however, aren't currently bound by those limitations, so to speak. I am not blind to the flaws of government heroism and the laws that sometimes prevent us from truly achieving justice. I am proposing that you go with Aiko back to wherever she is staying or take her somewhere you know is safe; and then join her crusade, acting as a chaperone of sorts. You keep her from killing anyone else as you continue to search for the heart of these trafficking operations and put a stop to them. After the Wogs are dealt with, she surrenders herself to the authorities to be properly tried. We help a young girl find the closure and justice she very clearly needs, stop the Sydney Club Killer's rampage, shut down a sex trafficking ring and potentially cripple the Wogs' infrastructure all at once."

That's… actually a pretty solid plan.

But paranoia demanded I play devil's advocate.

"And if something goes wrong?" I asked.

As expected, Deva's expression hardened.

"Worst case scenario. You are branded as an accomplice to the killings and I am charged with aiding and abetting two parahuman serial killers. If we're caught, we'd quite likely all end up as cellmates in the Icebox," Deva said gravely. "However, if you notify me in advance of any 'research' you're doing on the Wogs, I can put myself on patrol in those areas and help to turn a blind eye to your activities. So long as you or Aiko aren't killing or maiming anyone."

I let out a low whistle, taking a few moments just to consider. Processing everything Deva just said. Everything Aiko had said. Everything that just happened tonight…

This is one hell of a night…

"Putting a lot of trust in the moral fibre of a cape you just met tonight, aren't you?" I muttered back to her.

"Well, that arrow you shot at one of Sentinel's probes was just a misunderstanding, wasn't it?" She answered coyly.

I bristled.

"I shot that at my drone, you know," I replied. "He understood."

Deva smiled at me. The expression had an almost motherly quality to it.

"I can imagine."

I tapped my foot a few times, looking back and forth as I considered everything for just a little bit longer - though, in all honesty, my mind was already made up.

"I'm in. Give me a number I can contact you on securely. You wanna make the offer, or should I?" I queried.

Deva quickly rattled off a phone number. I was surprised she had a secure one just ready to go.

Maybe this isn't the first time she's bent the rules to help someone do the right thing?

"I'll make the offer," Deva asserted, closing her wings back up and turning to face Aiko. "Aiko, I'd like to make you an offer. On the condition that you turn yourself in to the authorities for your crimes afterwards and don't kill any more people, Parthian will help you in tracking down the source of the human trafficking ring and stopping them while I make sure no-one else interferes in your search. Are you willing to agree to that?"

I turned to face Aiko as well, giving her a purposeful nod.

Aiko's eyes widened in disbelief and her arms dropped to her sides.

"Really?" she exclaimed.

"Really really," I confirmed, putting on as chipper a voice as I could muster.

Her head started bobbing up and down with increasing frequency as fresh tears began rolling down her cheeks.

"Yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes! You can send me straight to jail afterwards if you want! Thank you! Thank you!" she cried, happily.

I stepped towards her, leaving the Lightreach hovering preternaturally behind me, suspended in midair.

"Do you have somewhere to stay, Aiko?" I asked her.

"Umm... no... I don't really own anything," she confessed. "I've been living off money I stole from the clubs I went to..."

"I have to go and report that the suspect has escaped and took Parthian hostage in order to do so," Deva said in a knowing tone. "I trust I'll hear from you soon Parthian."

She gave us both a nod and a warm smile before unfurling her wings once more.

"Don't forget to scrap that tracer."

With a mighty beat of her wings, she took to the air, becoming a light amongst the now starry night sky as she flew back the way we came. With Deva gone, that feeling of calm I'd been basking in dissipated and some of my rational fear and apprehension returned.

"Yeah... So. You wanna come stay with me for a while, then? Until we get this all resolved," I offered, partially turned to watch Deva leave, wondering in the back of my head if I'd just been set up to get totally fucked over

"Are you sure that's okay?" Aiko asked.

Gods, no! I've got no idea how this whole thing's gonna work out. I'm taking a huge risk and I've literally watched you kill people!

"Yeah, I'm sure," I lied. "We'll figure it out."

Aiko pulled down her mask and gave me a big, beaming smile, which quickly devolved into teeth chattering.

"Fuck, I'm so cold!" She gasped as she wrapped her arms around herself.

After a few moments of hesitation, I reached up to grab my helmet and pull it off my head.

"Call me 'Lise," I said, holding out a hand. "Pleased to be your partner in crime-busting."

Aiko steadied her shivering as she took my hand and gave it a firm shake.

"Thank you for this, Lise."

---

AN: And that concludes Arc 1. Damn was this a hard chapter to write. Aiko is a very tragic character and it's definitely tricky to write her and do her story justice without being too blunt or glossing over it instead. I hope I've found the right balance in this chapter and will be able to keep doing so going forward.

Our first interlude is next and will offer a brand new perspective on the Sydney we know so far and the heroes and villains that occupy it. Any assholes, thugs or shitheads who go around the streets at night starting fights, committing crimes and generally causing trouble are liable to get King Hit.

Speaking of assholes, thugs and shitheads. Arc 2 is all about the Wogs of War and plenty of righteous, guilt free gang busting. So look forward to that!

Comments are tasty and I would very much like them please. Thanks for reading!

 

[untimely_gyre]

Thanks for writing! Love the original characters, and the more hopeful tone overall. (Incidentally, this setting could stand very well on its own.)

Deva not only permitting but originating this plan is very surprising, but it's refreshing to read an authority figure actually following their own moral judgement rather than hiding behind the system. Wish the world were a place where that kind of behavior was more common.

Parthian's signing up for a whole lot of risk here, and putting a lot of trust in Deva's ability and willingness to actually follow through. And she seems to be saying that Aiko can stay at her apartment? It's going to be interesting to see how her roommate takes that, and how Lise feels about essentially taking responsibility for Aiko's behavior both against the gangs and around her friends.

Even if everything goes perfectly smoothly in Arc 2, Parthian will eventually be faced with the choice of whether to support Deva in subjecting Aiko to the carceral system, or take a more explicitly abolitionist stand against it. Deva's proactive compromise has delayed that choice, but it'll be interesting to see whether the intervening time makes the decision easier or harder for Parthian.

"My name is Aiko. I'm still a person... Or at least… I want to be…"

Click to shrink...

This line hits pretty hard.


("Wogs of War" strikes me as an unfortunately Wildbow-esque name for an antagonist group, but then I don't fully understand the context.)

 

[Rhyzler]

Really glad to hear you're enjoying the story so far!

("Wogs of War" strikes me as an unfortunately Wildbow-esque name for an antagonist group, but then I don't fully understand the context.)

Click to shrink...

Wogs of War is a play on the turn of phrase "The Dogs of War". "Wog" is an old Australian racial slur used for people from the Mediterranean region such as southern Europe and north Africa but can also be applied to people from India and other parts of southwest Asia. It generally isn't considered a slur anymore depending on how the word is used as it's been reclaimed. (See things like Superwog and Wog Boys Forever.) The gang is primarily made up of and lead by Wogs, hence the name.

The name is intended to be at least somewhat Wildbow-esque. While what I'm writing is a largely original story, it is still very much set within the same world as Worm and as the story goes on there will be more connections drawn to some of the more prominent figures organisations on Earth Bet.

 

[Rhyzler]

Interlude 1
The Mechanic​

Sunday, 11:34pm, April 24th, 2005

It took effort to pry his glass from the bar's surface. Not much - hardly any really - but enough for him to notice how sticky the poorly cleaned it was. Leo downed the rest of his pint of cider, and then quickly chased it with a shot of vodka. It was a vile combination - but he was well past the point of being drunk enough, now, that the taste on his tongue and burning down his throat barely registered.

He slammed both glasses back down onto the bar in a clumsy fashion. If he'd been somewhere more civilised, the action might have drawn some attention - but Frenchy's was not a place that could ever be described as civilised. The very essence of a dive bar, the location showed its age and desperate need for maintenance - or even just the bare minimum TLC - in everything. The bar itself was scratched and gashed to hell by what must have been all manner of sharp implements; nails, keys, knives. There was one particular gash that looked so bad Leo could have only guessed it was made by a machete. The wooden surface would have been a series of bad splinters waiting to happen, if not for the sticky residue of years of spilled drinks that managed to hold the wood together.

The rest of the bar was awful, too. Stools that wobbled as much as the drunks that sat in them, tables with every flavour of slur and gang sign - Wogs of War or 99ers, mostly - carved into them. Chairs with backs so weak someone had apparently started a pool to bet on which regular would fall out of one next, if the chalkboard on the far wall was anything to go by.

Frenchy's was certainly not the place any sane person would go to drink for pleasure, so it was a good thing Leo was there on business. With a slurred shout and a clumsy wave, he called the bartender over.

"Glasssss of whiskey and ruuummm… Both neeeat…" Leo ordered.

"I think you've had enough," the bartender - Leo hadn't bothered to remember his name - responded as he cleared away Leo's empty glasses.

"Fucken' lightweight…" the man grumbled to himself as his head dipped below the bar out of Leo's view.

Leo didn't waste energy taking offence at the comment. From the bartender's perspective, he was already shit-faced after only one pint of cider, a shot of vodka, and a glass of whiskey since arriving at the bar. Easy to believe he was a lightweight, since the bartender hadn't seen him pregame half a bottle of tequila, four glasses of rum and a quarter bottle of whiskey back at home.

"Fffffine then. What do I… owe?" Leo asked.

"Twenty-one fifty," the bartender answered.

Pretty cheap, all things considered. Leo would have to keep this place in mind for the future if he didn't end up totally trashing it. He slapped the money down and rose from his seat, leaning against the sticky bar for support as he reached down to grab his backpack from where it had been tucked between his legs.

"Got a shiiiitter..?" he called out before the bartender could turn away, ignoring the sour look he received in return.

"Through to the back," the bartender indicated with a tilt of his head. "But if you make a mess in there, I'll fucken clock you one, aight?"

Leo scoffed - he'd like to see him try. He staggered his way towards the back, taking note in particular of the door at the end of the hallway that led out into the back alley, in case it proved useful later. He slipped into the bathroom and, after checking he was alone, wedged the door shut with the stopper that had up to that point been holding it open. The reek of piss and shit was even worse in the closed space - if Leo hadn't smelled much worse before, he might have thrown up. But he needed privacy, and he wasn't going to cram himself into a single stall.

He dropped his bag on the floor and stepped over to the sink, resting his hands on the chipped basin for support as he stared at himself in the grime- and graffiti-covered mirror.

He looked like shit.

He checked his watch quickly. 11:40pm. They'd be here any minute.

"Time to get to work..." Leo said to himself in the mirror.

His body began to tingle - an intense feeling of pins and needles running from his stomach out to his fingertips, toes, and up into his scalp as his power came to life. The lethargy of his drunkenness left him as the alcohol in his system was consumed by his power as fuel, leaving him with only the loose and relaxed feeling of being drunk and none of the impairments that normally came with it.

He winced and groaned as the whiskey kicked in; the bar grew unbearably noisy in the background and the light of the bathroom brightened faster than his eyes could adapt. The adjustment period was always a little rough, but being able to see in the dark and hear a person's heartbeat up to 20 metres away was an advantage he'd be stupid to turn down.

He looked in the mirror again, viewing himself with sharper eyes.

He still looked like shit.

There was a deeply cruel irony to Leo's power. Alcohol had ruined his life, cost him his wife and daughter, his dojo… His dignity. And now, alcohol was the fuel required to live his new life. Without it, he was nothing, but with it?

Time to right some wrongs…

Leo opened his backpack and began pulling out his costume. It wasn't well made or particularly impressive, but it suited his needs. A protective vest, fitted leather pants, and a small leather jacket came on first. Over the top of those, he shrugged into a heavy cloth gi in black, embroidered with a fist logo over the left breast. For the finishing touch, he grabbed a long strip of fabric with cutouts for his eyes, wrapped it around his head, and tied it off at the base of his skull.

Someone started pounding on the bathroom door, demanding it be opened. He ignored them for the moment.

Looking back in the mirror once more, he finally felt better about his appearance. The face of Leo Kwok - a lonely, aimless drunk - was now gone, a mask he discarded. In its place, King Hit - the man he truly was, now - stared back, filled with purpose.

"Oi! Open the fucken door, cunt! Or are you takin' a shit on the floor in there?" shouted the drunken oaf in the hallway as he continued hammering with his fist.

"Wait!" He shouted in response.

"Fffffuck you! I gotta piss ay!" yelled the oaf.

King Hit tuned out the protests once more - as best he could, with his enhanced hearing - as he stuffed his clothes back into his backpack and pulled out a hip flask. He unscrewed the cap and took a quick sniff; cider, rum, tequila, vodka, and whiskey all mixed together inside, just in case he needed an emergency top up. He tucked the flask into the left breast pocket of the jacket beneath his gi, and straightened up.

A ruckus came from out in the bar, and King Hit checked his watch again. 11:45pm.

Right on time.

He grabbed his backpack and proceeded towards the door, kicking the stopper away and grabbing the handle. He swung the door inwards, tapping into his tequila-enhanced reflexes to effortlessly dodge the fist flying at his face the moment the oaf caught sight of him.

"Just what the fuck do you think-!" The oaf got out, before being cut off mid-sentence by the fist closing around his shirt. King Hit lifted him up with one hand, using his vodka-enhanced parahuman strength, and glared at him. It took the oaf a moment to process what he was looking at before his eyes widened in a mix of shock and fear. Mask meant cape, cape meant superpowers. Only idiots with death wishes dressed up if they didn't have powers.

"Move," King Hit growled, and threw the oaf into the opposite wall where he collapsed in a groaning heap on the floor. He slid his backpack across the floor, down towards the back door, and turned towards the bar proper, making his way towards it.

The number of occupants had doubled inside, but there was a very clear divide between the existing patrons and the men who'd just arrived. If the darker colours of their skin weren't enough of a clue, the oranges and browns they wore made it very clear exactly who they were. Wogs of War.

King Hit had been watching the area for the last few weeks, starting back when that serial killer first showed up; they seemed to be making their way north, through various Wog businesses, and into their territory proper. He hoped to go after the killer at some point and stop them personally, but he hadn't had much luck finding them or working out ahead of time what location they might strike next. Instead, for the time being, he'd been working his way through smaller groups of Wogs wherever he found them.

This particular group of thugs were collectors for the protection racket that the Wogs ran in this area. Leo had gotten word of them from speaking with a few of the business owners in the area, but their movements were fairly inconsistent… Except for one. Every Sunday night for the past three weeks, the group had finished their collection route here, at Frenchy's - always arriving between 11:45 and 12pm, without fail.

There were eight of them in total. Five of them - Bracelets, Flatcap, Beardy, Tattoos and Buzzcut - were currently threatening the patrons into handing over their valuables, while one - the leader, presumably - menaced the bartender, flanked by the remaining two cronies. King Hit put his fingers to his lips and let out a shrill whistle to draw everyone's attention.

All the heads in the bar turned, a mix of expressions across the faces in the room. The patrons looked scared, the bartender confused, a few of the Wogs laughed - but their leader looked wary. Bracelets, who was nearest him began sauntering closer, evidently unafraid of the cape standing before him.

"Uh oh boys!" he spoke with a condescending tone. "The fucking pyjama police have come to get us. Have we stayed up past our bedtimes? Here to tuck us in, are you?"

Bracelets' stupid quips earned a few laughs from Flatcap, Beardy, and Crony One, but the leader kept a wary eye on him. Smart. As for the others, King Hit was all too happy to let them underestimate him. It would be their undoing.

"Well, guess what, bro?" Bracelets continued blathering as he closed the distance, producing a set of brass knuckles from his pocket and slipping them onto his right hand. "I'm the fucking Tooth Fairy. So how about you give me your money, or I knock some teeth out instead?"

King Hit rolled his eyes. He wasn't going to bother telling Bracelets that that wasn't how the Tooth Fairy worked. He had no interest in meaningless banter.

He surged forward - the cider in his system enhancing his speed - and slammed his fist into Bracelets' chest before he could react. He heard the crunch of the man's sternum fracturing and continued to drive his fist forward, sending Bracelets flying backwards until he crashed into an empty table, collapsing as the piece of furniture keeled over under his weight. He was left wheezing for air, trying to suck back in the breath King Hit had driven from his lungs with the blow. Each shallow gasp was no doubt excruciatingly painful due to the fracture.

One down.

King Hit burst forward again, leaping over a table as he closed the distance to Buzzcut. Around him, the bar erupted into panicked shouts as the patrons ducked for cover and the Wogs frantically tried to get their shit together.

Buzzcut had a switchblade drawn and stabbed it towards King Hit as he came into reach. Years of training in Wing Chun, along with his enhanced reflexes, kicked in - King Hit planted his right foot, pivoting away from the thrust and converting his momentum into a spin as he whirled around and struck Buzzcut with an elbow to the stomach.

With Buzzcut momentarily winded, he wheeled around in time to see Flatcap swing a baseball bat towards his head. He raised his arms and grunted as the bat made contact, pivoting his forearm to deflect most of the impact away and steer the bat's momentum towards the ground. He still felt the pain, though - not that it would matter in a few moments.

He spun and threw a backwards kick at Flatcap's hand, causing him to drop his bat and buying a few extra seconds to deal with Buzzcut. Buzzcut lunged with the knife again and King Hit blocked with his left arm, throwing a counter punch with his right straight into Buzzcut's gut, striking the same place he'd elbowed earlier. As Buzzcut gasped, he curled his left hand around the thug's wrist and brought his right hand up to grasp the man's bicep. Then, with a swift shove, King Hit broke Buzzcut's elbow.

Buzzcut howled, going weak at the knees. The knife slipped from his hand as he collapsed, and King Hit grabbed the weapon as it fell, spinning to throw it into the back of Flatcap's hand as he reached for the bat he'd dropped. Flatcap began to wail just as loud as his friend did, until a swift kick to the head knocked him out.

Three down.

A chair came down on King Hit's back, and he staggered forward. Unlike the movies, the piece of furniture didn't shatter into a mess of splintered wood, and he just managed to block the second swing with his arms as he ducked left to avoid a punch from Tattoos. Quickly shifting his stance, King Hit grappled the chair and yanked it out of Beardy's hands, tossing it towards their leader and his cronies by the bar.

He didn't spare a glance at the result, instead rushing at Tattoos and throwing a series of rapid jabs into the man's chest and stomach. He took it better than the others had, but still staggered backwards, gasping for air. He slipped on a spilled drink and fell, but managed to grasp King Hit's gi as he went. Rather than fall with Tattoos, he took the man's weight and seized hold of his forearm. There was a moment of confusion on the thug's face before King Hit yanked him forwards and drove a knee into it, causing Tattoos' nose to explode in a fountain of red as he went down.

Four.

Beardy made the amateur mistake of announcing his attack with a shout as he charged at King Hit like he was going for a football tackle. The cape glanced back and wheeled around where he stood, letting his momentum carry down into his leg as it snapped outwards and clocked Beardy across the jaw - hard enough to redirect the man's charge, sending him crashing head first into the bar before he could arrest his own momentum.

Following through on his kick, King Hit planted his foot as it came back down to the ground and used it to launch himself forward at the first of the two cronies that was now approaching him, serrated combat knife in hand. He ducked low as Crony One swiped out with the knife and dropped to his knees, sliding across the floor past the thug before twisting around into a crouching position as Crony One quickly found his balance and spun around to face him again.

The two charged each other once more, Crony One frantically slashing and stabbing at King Hit with his knife as the cape bobbed and weaved with expert precision, dodging each attempted strike and punishing the whiffs with counter punches to Crony One's arms, chest and gut. The thug lunged forward again, overextending his reach this time and stumbling a step forward as he lost his balance. King Hit seized the opportunity, grabbing Crony One's knife hand by the wrist and pulling it upwards as he kicked the Wog in the back of the knee, forcing him to drop down onto it.

King Hit turned on the ball of his foot, positioning himself behind Crony One as he pulled the man's arm straight and pressed his other hand into his shoulder in preparation to break it.

"STOP!"

The word cut through the chaos and King Hit turned his head to the source - the leader of the group.

Crony Two had pulled the bartender part way over the fixture and was currently pinning him to the surface while the leader pointed a pistol at his head.

Shit. He hadn't noticed one of them was packing. Amateur mistake.

"Listen the fuck up!" barked the leader, "Okay, cunt? If you don't let my mate go and fuck off right now, I'm gonna shoot this guy in his fucking head! Okay?!"

King Hit glanced at the bartender, the man's eyes were wide with terror. 'Please,' he mouthed silently. King Hit turned his gaze back to the leader and narrowed his eyes.

"You're not going to kill him," he said, adamantly. "If he's dead, you stop getting your protection fee." He tightened his grip on Crony One's wrist and began to apply pressure to the man's shoulder with his other hand, causing him to yelp in pain.

The leader grabbed the bartender's left arm and slammed it on the bar, before pulling his gun away from the man's head and pressing it to the back of his hand instead.

"Then I'll blow a hole in his fucking hand! Fuck! Off!" he yelled.

A moment passed in tense silence.

King Hit shoved his hand forward and the shoulder broke with a visceral crunch. Crony One's pained howl was drowned out in an instant as a gunshot shattered the air, the noise sending King Hit staggering backwards as the bartender's screams joined Crony One's.

King Hit fucking hated guns.

They were deafening to his enhanced hearing…

And they were the weapons of cowards.

He shook the ringing from his ears and charged forward with a roar. The leader turned his gun on him and fired again, the sound shattering the air once more. A searing pain sliced past King Hit's right shoulder as he twisted away from the bullet's trajectory, but failed to dodge it completely. Even with his reflexes enhanced, he couldn't dodge a bullet from such a short distance.

He continued forward, tearing the pistol from the leader's hand with one hand as he slammed the base of his palm into the man's wrist, likely breaking it along with his trigger finger as the weapon was wrenched from his grip. King Hit continued to advance with elbow raised, pushing the leader down onto his back against the bar and pinning him with a forearm against his neck.

Guttural, angry growls rose up from the man's throat as he desperately swung and clawed at King Hit, trying to reach for his throat in turn. He glanced at where the bullet had grazed the cape's shoulder, and his eyes went wide.

The bullet hadn't penetrated King Hit's shoulder, but it had left a fairly deep gouge as it tore through his skin. He ought to have been badly bleeding, but the blood had already clotted thanks to the rum fuelling the regeneration aspect of his power. It would only take minutes for the flesh to knit back together, and maybe an hour or two after that for any trace of the wound to be gone entirely. He would have to remain drunk on rum to keep his power going, though.

He drove his fist into the leader's face, and his nose burst like a shaken soft drink. Then he punched the thug a few more times, for good measure, before letting him drop to the floor.

Seven.

The sound of the front door slamming drew his attention and he turned his head to see Crony Two fleeing down the street. He wasn't going to get away that easily.

King Hit started towards the back of the bar.

"Hey!" the bartender called with a pained shout as one of the other patrons - who must have hidden behind the bar during the scuffle - helped to tie a cloth around his bleeding hand. "Where the fuck are you going?!"

"To catch the last one," he answered without stopping.

"You trashed my bar and I got shot because of you!"

"And now you won't have to worry about the Wogs bothering you anymore," he called back. "You can spend the money you save on your hospital bills and new furniture. You're welcome."

He passed the oaf he'd thrown into the wall earlier - now cowering behind the bathroom door - and collected his backpack from where it lay by the back door, before stepping through it into the alley. He swung the bag onto his back and then leapt up to the roof of the building, catching the lip with his hands and pulling himself up the rest of the way, groaning as the pain in his shoulder flared.

He moved to the edge of the roof that faced the street and looked out, searching for the final gangster. He focused his hearing, too, turning up the sensitivity he'd toned down before the fight began in order to listen for shoes beating rapidly against pavement.

Gunshots pierced the night air and King Hit turned his attention in their direction. They were distant this time, but still loud enough he could pick them up. He glanced up and down the street again, hoping to catch sight of the eighth Wog. More gunshots sounded from the same direction as the last ones.

He clicked his tongue in frustration and pulled out his hip flask to take a sip of the awful mixture. He'd have to let Crony Two go for tonight.

Stepping away from the edge of the roof, King Hit turned in the direction of the neighbouring building and broke into a sprint, leaping from the edge of Frenchy's roof to the next as he began making his way towards the gunshots.

He moved fast, leaping fairly easily from rooftop to rooftop as he went. He'd never properly tested just how fast he could go, but he guessed it was somewhere around 50 kilometres per hour. The buildings in this area were organised in a grid pattern, all about the same height, so jumping from one to another wasn't too difficult.

After a bit under ten minutes of running, King Hit knew he must be closing in when a police car passed by beneath him, lights and sirens blaring, travelling in the same direction. Cops were an inconvenience, but one he could work around - as long as they didn't get in his way.

He leapt to the next roof, rounding the corner onto a new block, and immediately found the source of the commotion.

At one end of the street, a huge crowd - maybe 50 or 100 people - was being corralled near a cluster of police cruisers and ambulances, as officers hurried to cordon off the area. King Hit looked down to the other end of the street and witnessed a similar sight. Neither would be the actual location the gunshots were fired from, then. So where..?

It was a big group of people, and only one building on the street looked big enough to hold such a crowd - a triple-storey building that blatantly stood out from the surrounding ones as some sort of nightclub. Moving a few rooftops closer, he could see a big neon sign on the front that read 'The Buena'.

The gears began turning in King Hit's head as he quickly slung his bag off his back and reached in for his phone. He pulled up the GPS to check his location. Middle Head road, Mosman; the southeastern edge of Wog territory.

Gunshots. Nightclub. Wog territory.

It seemed he was in luck tonight after all.A smile crept across his face.

"Found you, Club Killer," he muttered to himself.

He tucked his phone away and set his backpack aside while he observed the scene and considered the situation.

He couldn't just go in blind. He didn't know who the killer was, or what they looked like. According to APRA, they had powers, but didn't know what kind. That made things more troublesome.

King Hit tried to avoid cape fights. They were dangerous - usually more trouble than they were worth - and often ended with one party running from the other. A fight wasn't truly won if your opponent got away.

He believed he'd be able to take the killer, though. They only attacked at night, kept things as subtle as possible, likely worked alone, and never stuck around to go after law enforcement or capes. They might be a killer, but they were also a coward. He could beat a coward.

And if he caught the killer, maybe he could finally convince Michelle he wasn't worthless. Maybe she'd let him see Ava again.

He caught a glimpse of movement from the ground floor and tensed, readying himself to leap down to the street and attack if he needed to. Someone in costume ran out of the building, and he almost jumped - before the sky abruptly filled with a golden light and another cape descended, touching down on the street in front of the nightclub. This one he recognised.

Deva.

Fuck. Did she seriously just swoop in to steal his glory? That bitch. He needed this!

He considered leaping down anyway. If he was at least involved in the fight, he could share some of the glory. That would have to do. Except…

They weren't fighting?

He'd missed any words the two had exchanged, but Deva was walking right past the other cape into the nightclub.

The killer must still be inside.

Then who was the other cape?

He didn't really recognize the costume, but the big board-looking thing they carried gave them away. Partisan. Or was it Parthian? Partition? Something like that. They were a Tinker. Supposedly new, but with good equipment. It wasn't clear yet if they were a hero or a villain.

He watched as Partisan stood passively out in the street. They'd run out of the building and Deva had gone in after the killer.

Coward.

Something suddenly caught Parthian's attention and they grabbed something from their thigh, loading it onto the board and wielding it like a bow. They drew back a glowing string and fired an arrow up off into the sky before dropping the bow to the ground, climbing onto it like it was a skateboard, and then taking off in the same direction they'd shot.

She could fly too?

Fucking Tinkers…

Running away. Not surprising for a coward.

But then he saw Deva flying up from the back of the nightclub to join Partition before they continued flying south-ish as a pair.

Not running, then. Pursuing the killer. When did they escape? How did he not notice them?

Cursing, he leapt down from the building, leaving his backpack behind as he started pursuing too. Being landborne quickly proved to be a significant disadvantage as the buildings became more varied in design, the street layout much less of an even sprawling grid as the terrain sloped down towards the harbour. If not for his enhanced eyesight, he would have lost sight of the light from Deva's halo more than once and been left behind as she and Partisan flew on ahead.

Why are they going so fast? Can the killer fly too?

The thought irked him. It would help explain how the killer had continually managed to escape so easily, but it would also make catching them a lot harder for him.

He continued to fall behind despite his best efforts as he leapt from house to house, sliding down slanted tile roofs and vaulting over disused chimneys as he parkoured his way through the suburban area leading down to the harbour. His lungs were starting to burn, and he could feel the aching fatigue starting to whine in his muscles. The right types of alcohol could enhance his senses, speed, strength, reflexes and healing - but nothing he'd tried improved his stamina. Furthermore, he was getting dehydrated, and drinking water was counterproductive to using his power.

His heart began to sink and his frustration boiled as the heroes flew out over the harbour.

No! Not when he had been so close to finally catching the killer. He'd hesitated to run in and the opportunity had slipped through his fingertips.

Coward.

Panting for breath, he pulled the hip flask from his chest pocket and downed the rest of it, letting it refuel his power as he cursed himself.

Then, Deva and Parthian suddenly turned and started flying back towards the land, descending from the sky as they went. Gauging their trajectory, it looked like they were heading to an outcropping that was actually closer to him than the direction they were headed before diverting.

Amusingly, if he'd been able to better keep up with them, he would have had to double back in order to get around to the other outcropping.

So - perhaps his luck for the night hadn't run out yet.

With renewed vigour and his power freshly topped off, he surged forth again, sprinting across roofs for as long as he could before dropping back to the ground when they ran out, and continuing down through the wooded area towards the outcropping.

He heard shouting as he drew near. The blood was pumping too loudly in his ears to clearly make out the words, but the voice sounded female. Deva? Or was it Partition, or the killer?

The shouting stopped and he could only assume the three had started fighting.

Come on! He was so close. He was almost there! As long as he could get even a single punch in before it was over, he'd be able to say he helped. That he was there. That he wasn't worthless.

Maybe, if he was really lucky, he'd show up in time to land the finishing blow.

He cleared the trees and began weaving his way between the rocks. As he closed the distance, looking ahead, he could see the light from Deva's halo illuminating the area right down by the water. They were still there. The fight wasn't over yet.

The first few words of their conversation started to reach him, impeded by the blood pounding in his ears, drowning some of them out. He skidded to a stop, staring in growing disbelief.

"...an accomplice to the killings and I… …aiding and abetting two parahuman serial killers. If we're caught… …cellmates in the Icebox," Deva said in a conspiratorial tone.

What?

The fight wasn't over because the fight had never started.

"However," Deva continued. "If you notify me in advance of… …the Wogs, I can put myself on patrol in those areas and help to turn a blind eye to your activities..."

What?!

Were Deva and Partisan conspiring with the killer to get rid of the Wogs? That didn't make any sense! The Atlas Alliance would never do something so underhanded. Especially not Deva. He had to be missing something.

"...I'd like to make you an offer," Deva spoke once again, addressing the killer. "On the condition that you… …kill any more people, Parthian will help you in tracking down… …and stopping them while I make sure no-one else interferes in your search…"

King Hit couldn't believe what he was hearing. Something had to be wrong. The killer's power was unknown, could she be a Master? Or a Stranger? What about Parthian? Now that he had time to think, he recalled some more of what he knew about them. They were a Tinker, but according to rumours online, they'd managed to escape from Sentinel after apparently trying to attack the Atlas Headquarters.

He doubted that was true. Sentinel was Sentinel. No-one just 'escaped' him.

Unless…

Partition could be a grab bag cape with multiple powers. Hell, the killer could be a grab bag. Either one of them could have a Master or Stranger power, or even a Thinker power that made them good at manipulation.

"I have to go… …suspect has escaped and took Parthian hostage… I trust I'll hear from you soon, Parthian."

He watched as Deva's wings unfurled and she took the air once more, flying back the way they'd all come. He turned back to Parthian and the killer.

"...come stay with me for a while, then. Until we get this all resolved," Parthian said, partially turning to watch Deva leave.

"Are you sure that's okay?" the killer asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure…"

And now Parthian was offering to let the killer stay with them? From the way the killer responded, it seemed like Parthian was the one in charge. It certainly took balls to invite a serial killer to stay with you. Unless Parthian believed they could keep the killer under control.

King Hit snarled as Parthian lifted their helmet off. They were looking away from him, but their long hair marked them as a she, as well.

There was so much he didn't understand about what was going on, but there was one thing he could be certain of…

He watched as the two of them shook hands.

Parthian was working with a serial killer, and Deva couldn't be trusted to stop them.

Which meant it was up to him.

---

AN: Uh oh. Seems like there's going to be a bit of misunderstanding ol' King Hit and our protagonist. Surely nothing bad can come of this and they'll sit down like mature adults to have a civilised discussion that will resolve the confusion.

For anyone curious about the title of this chapter, 'The Mechanic' is the name of King Hit's shard. I decided it would be a fun and kinda unique thing to name the interlude chapters after the character's shard (where applicable). I'll have to change it up a little when we get to interludes for non-powered characters.

I have to apologise a thousand times to my wonderful co-author/beta reader Casey who I've forgotten to thank publicly in the last couple of chapters. She does an amazing job of making my terrible grammar read like it's actually written in the English language and I'm super appreciative of all her hard work.

It's been really exciting to watch the readership of the fic slowly grow in an organic fashion. Especially since I know OC fics aren't for everyone, even more so when they're so far disconnected from the original setting and characters. Engagement is fun so gimme those tasty comments and maybe shill this fic to your friends in exchange for my eternal, virtual gratitude!

Next time on Wave, Arc 2: 'Undertow' begins and 'Lise goes on a shopping spree with a superpowered serial killer?!

 

[Rhyzler]

Happy belated Easter. I don't have any chocolate eggs but hopefully this is sweet enough. Behold! 9 thousand words of CSKDCT (Cute Serial Killers Doing Cute Things)!

Undertow 2.1​

Monday, 8:10am, April 25th, 2005

The lights were off and the space was dead silent as I climbed out of my car and wandered into my workshop.

"Aiko?" I called out tentatively, slowly unloading the huge order of breakfast food I'd brought with me along with my duffel bag full of tight fitting spare clothes and other bits of gear I'd brought for Aiko.

There was no response.

I rounded the corner to the back of the shed and reached over to flick on the bay lights, bathing the workshop and the mezzanine in brightness once more.

Still no response.

Huh... Well, if she hasn't eaten for as long as me, this will probably wake her up.

I headed back to the car and carted in the mountain of McBreakfast, setting it all down on a bare table below the mezzanine, a little bit away from the workbenches and computers.

Last night had been such a blur. I was half expecting it to have all been a bizarre nightmare when my alarm had dragged me kicking and screaming back to the land of the conscious at seven this morning. Because of Aiko's much slower flight speed, it had taken us about 30 minutes to get back to my workshop after the… discussion with Deva, and it had been well past 1am by the time I'd gotten back home to my apartment.

I'd left Aiko at my workshop overnight, because there was no chance in hell I was going to show her where I lived - especially not with Sam living there, too. I hadn't loved the thought of leaving her alone in my workshop, but I'd offered to let her stay somewhere, and I only had the one little camping cot up on the mezzanine for the times I'd ended up tinkering late into the night and hadn't been bothered to go back home to sleep.

That was the reason I'd given her for why I couldn't stay at the workshop with her, and while it wasn't strictly untrue, we both knew the real reason was because I was too scared to sleep in the same building as a serial killer. It had obviously been a hurtful thought for her, but she'd been mature enough to understand. To help with my reservations about having a stranger wandering around in my workshop, I'd told her the truth about having dangerous equipment in the workshop… and then added in a lie about having booby traps set up to protect it.

I should probably turn that lie into the truth sometime soon.

I'd given her some spare clothes - though they didn't really fit her slim frame - to replace the tattered and bloodstained ones she'd been wearing, along with a spare laptop so she'd have internet access. Then I'd left her to go take a shower while I put all my gear back in its proper places before heading home for the night.

With no signs of life from Aiko just yet, I grabbed my helmet and went over to my desktop computer to double check on the insurance I'd secured last night before finally going to sleep. A video from my helmet camera - of Deva, describing to me her plan to skirt the law and our mutual agreement to follow through on it. I had encrypted it in a hidden, self-deleting partition of my laptop that would zero itself if the wrong hardware boot sequence was followed. Then I encrypted the decryption keys with the RSA keys on my phone, placing that on its own self-deleting partition before uploading the encrypted footage to my backup server here at my workshop.

It would be absolutely overkill - if I didn't know what a tinker could do with time and inspiration. This way, at least, I knew that without my phone, my password, and the correct boot sequence, I could never hack myself. Insurance was good, but getting hacked and it getting out without my meaning to would be much worse than actually having a reason to use it.

Still no signs of life from the mezzanine.

Did she run off after I left?

"Aiiiiikoooooooo! Food's here," I called out as I started making my way towards the stairs to the mezzanine, a knot of worry beginning to grow in the pit of my stomach. The list of very bad things that could go wrong if Aiko had run away grew longer by the second as I began ascending the stairs.

From halfway up the stairs, I heard some grumbling and rustling on the mezzanine and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh no... No, no, no... Dammit...!" Aiko whined.

Celebrated too soon.

"Is everything okay, Aiko?" I called out as I sped up the remaining stairs and quickly crossed the mezzanine to where the cot was.

I could see the blankets had been tossed about and the cot was a little lopsided. As Aiko sat up and climbed out of bed, I immediately noticed the left sleeve of the shirt I'd leant her had been torn to shreds - almost as if it had exploded.

"It... comes out when I sleep sometimes. I'm so sorry..." Aiko mumbled apologetically.

I put on a bit of a laugh as I saw the damage she'd dealt to the clothes.

"You, uhh, might have to consider sleeping naked," I joked. "Or, well, budget big for sleepwear. Listen, I brought some better clothes we can go out in. You wanna get dressed first or you wanna come down and eat? I wouldn't blame you for picking food first, I know I'm starving."

Aiko's eyes lit up at the mention of food.

"Yes! I'm so fucking hungry!" she exclaimed.

She took a moment to adjust the shirt, which now hung even more loosely from her, before moving towards me. With one of the sleeves ruined, I could see more of the tentacle tattoo that coiled up her left arm as well as some of the turtle shell pattern that reached up to cover her left shoulder. I'd caught a glimpse of her back the night before when she was heading for the shower, and it was just as heavily tattooed as her arms, with a distinctly aquatic theme reflected throughout; small fish and other sea life, as well as a turtle shell pattern. I hadn't seen her legs yet, but at this point I assumed she was covered from the neck down.

"C'mon, then. Can't you smell that? Come grab something and eat!" I exclaimed incredulously, waving back down the stairs behind me. "Oh, and grab that chair and bring it down. I've only got one other chair down here."

Aiko turned around and extended her left arm. The tentacle tattoo started to coil and writhe before erupting outwards; the ink seemed to flow out of her skin to form the appendage - translucent except for the dark lines defining its outline and details, somehow both liquid and smoke at the same time. The tentacle surged forward, extending metres in length to coil around the chair before pulling it back to her hand as the ink receded into her skin once more, returning to the image of the tentacle tattooed up her arm.

She killed someone metres away from me with that, last night.

I took a step back before stopping myself as quickly as I could, putting on a smile as she turned back to me.

"C'mon," I repeated, turning around quickly and then walking down the stairs towards the table of food as I rebuilt my composure.

"Sorry..." She mumbled.

She shrank inwards a little bit when she reached the bottom of the stairs, giving me an apologetic look. I grunted noncommittally, not quite able to tell her it was okay. I wheeled my chair away from my desks and over to the table where I began busying myself with unloading breakfast muffins, hash browns and hotcakes.

I hadn't even finished laying out all the food - let alone sat down - before Aiko was cramming it into her face with ravenous intent. There was an almost jarring disconnect between the hungry girl sitting in front of me, stuffing her face, and the blood-splattered, wild-eyed killer I'd met last night.

The all-too-normal sight of a girl demolishing some Macca's, along with my own desire to demolish some myself, eased the tension right out of the air over the course of a few minutes as I settled in to unwrap, munch, and drink.

Once a suitably large pile of rubbish had accumulated and my stomach had decided it was no longer cross with me, I sat back in my chair, regarding Aiko and waiting for her to finish. Her appetite seemed almost inhuman as she consumed double what I did and then some, before finally settling down and letting out a very unlady-like burp.

"'Scuse me..." She mumbled, looking slightly sheepish.

I gave her a big grin and a shrug.

"We've got a bit to get into, I think. But, clothes first, maybe?" I asked.

"Yeah, sure."

I grabbed the duffel bag and hauled it back upstairs with Aiko, putting it down on the cot and laying out the two different outfit options I'd brought, both fully covered from neck to toe; one cutesy and demure, and one simple to the point of utilitarianism.

"I didn't know what kind of style you'd like, so I got something cute and something simple," I said as I stood back and let her have a look. "I figure you can pick either one now and we can go shopping for more today."

"Shopping? I um... don't have any money..." she mumbled, contemplating for a moment before going for the simple option, pulling off her ruined shirt and reaching for a sports bra.

"I guessed as much," I replied, starting to fold up the other outfit again.

As she dressed in front of me, I saw her chest and stomach were - as I suspected - just as heavily tattooed as the rest of her torso. Her legs were covered too, all following the same aquatic theme.

I took a moment to study her and her tattoos in wonder as I absent-mindedly packed the rest of the clothes back into the bag. I tossed her the spare pairs of socks so she could stack up until my runners fit a bit better on her smaller feet, and then hefted the bag, turning to carry it back downstairs again.

I set about clearing away the rubbish from the table and a minute later, Aiko joined me downstairs, looking like a perfectly normal young woman.

I almost don't recognise her.

I gestured back to her seat and then sat back down in mine, leaning forward over the table. She sat down and pulled her feet up onto the chair so she could hug her legs and rest her chin on her knees.

"So," I said, gauging where to start.

"So?"

"We're partners now," I said, letting it hang in the air.

"I guess so. It feels a little weird honestly. I haven't had someone... that I could trust, in a long time." She squeezed her legs a little tighter.

"You seem pretty open to it, in spite of that. Do you... wanna tell me a little about yourself?" I invited.

I saw her expression change in an instant. She was closing herself off.

"That depends on what you wanna know..." She spoke softly.

"I'm not asking for a life story," I said, hoping my tone was reassuring. "I just... I'm operating off a lot of assumptions about you, right now. I wouldn't mind getting a better understanding of you. In the interests of working together, at the very least."

Aiko took a deep breath and started to speak slowly, keeping her eyes focussed on her feet.

"I was born in Japan and I grew up there until I was about ten, which was when I was... taken…" The words hung in the air as she paused for a few seconds. "I try not to think about everything that's happened since then. I got my powers about two weeks ago which is how I was able to escape… I just want to help as many other people like me as I can and stop the monsters who did this to me. I'll do whatever I have to to achieve that… Even killing."

I waited for a moment before responding, shocked and unsure of the right thing to say.

"I don't know if it's worth anything, but... I'm sorry that... you... Yeah… Have you been staying anywhere for the last two weeks?"

"I've jumped from shitty hotel to shitty hotel when I've been able to steal enough money from the places I searched. I've spent a few nights in homeless shelters..."

I gave her another nod and another pause while I thought carefully on the next question.

"Do you... want to kill? To stop it all? Or is killing just what you had to do to get there?"

Aiko hugged her legs tighter.

"I'm not really sure anymore... I didn't want to at first but… No-one would tell me anything. Then when I first started doing it, it felt... really good. Finally being able to hurt the people who spent years hurting me. It also felt good knowing that they wouldn't be able to hurt anyone else, but now..? It still feels good in the moment, feeding that black hole of rage inside me… but afterwards I just feel tired and sick. I didn't think I'd have to kill this many people to get what I wanted..."

"If we're going to work together... I can't do that," I said. "I can't kill people. And I can't help you if you intend to keep killing people, unless you absolutely have to in order to protect yourself. We have to do it differently. Okay?"

She raised her head to look at me.

"What if they won't tell us otherwise?" She asked, challenging.

"That last man you killed last night told you. Before you..." I trailed off, a little darkly.

"He was different," she rebutted stubbornly, her gaze becoming a glare.

"He had a wife and daughter. He begged," I replied simply, closing my eyes and remembering that sickening crunch before I turned to flee.

"Then he knew how dozens of other girls felt." Aiko spat back. I could hear the anger in her voice. "He was a monster. He beat his wife and daughter and bragged about it to his friends. And the rest of us… Even though we were slaves we were still supposed to be treated with the barest human decency. He didn't care! He didn't have proper security watching the back rooms to make sure customers followed the rules. Girls who got sent there came back hurt, badly. Sometimes they never came back..."

I deflated, suddenly feeling much more unsure of myself. Of how I ought to feel about… all of this.

"I... I don't wanna make this a moral thing. Call it... a capability thing. I... can't do that. I just can't. If I help you - it has to be my way. With as little murder as possible, ideally zero. But - in case you haven't pegged it quite yet, I'm a tinker. I've got more options to get to the truth than just... killing my way to it. Can you trust me enough to try that?"

"I hope you never have to," she said with a solemn nod.

"I will promise that if it truly comes down to it, and there's no other option but to kill, I will... not stop you. As long as you're willing to promise that you won't do it until I concede that we've reached that point and there is nothing else left to do. Would that be okay?"

She nodded again. I barely caught the "thank you" she mumbled into her knees.

"You're welcome," I responded, putting as much honesty and conviction into it as I could. "I don't... I haven't gone through what you have, but I want very much to help."

I let the silence fall for a few moments again before I spoke up once more.

"So... Any questions about me?" I queried.

Aiko lifted her head and looked around at the workshop.

"Where did you get the money for all this? It looks expensive. I know that tinkers are smart and can make really fancy tech stuff, but it still costs money, right? You don't just magic your stuff out of thin air?"

"Born to privilege," I said simply. "Not any more, but I took a fair bit of cash when I got out. More than enough to get me started and keep me going, for a good while at least."

"Why would you run away from that?"

"I... That's, ahh, really... I don't think I can really convey..." I started, before coming to a stop and thinking it through. "That would be a life story. Suffice to say, privilege and money isn't everything."

"A 'grass is greener' thing?"

I let out a little laugh. I hadn't known what to expect from Aiko but she was surprisingly sharp.

"Oh, no. The grass right here is positively viridescent. A good bit of cash means I can build my tinkertech... and it means I'm in a position to help you. Starting with buying you some more clothes when we go out later."

She perked up a little at the thought. I saw her cheeks lift as the corners of her mouth pulled up into a small smile.

"I've never been clothes shopping before."

I gave her a smile back, a little bittersweet.

"It's fun. I think you'll really enjoy it. I can't imagine you have any idea what kind of style you have... So we might have to buy a fair bit for you to help you find it."

I paused as I was struck by a thought.

If she was taken at ten...

"Do you... know your measurements? Your bust size? Did they ever... fit you properly?" I asked, a little unsure of myself.

"I don't know my own measurements. Every now and then, someone would come and measure us but the clothes they gave us were usually so… skimpy it didn't matter. I know my… chest is bigger than average for an Asian girl, apparently that gave me extra..." she trailed off, the small smile dissolving.

"That's okay," I quickly interjected to fill the silence. "No problem. Getting measured is super easy. We'll fix that today. Every girl needs a good fitting bra, especially big chested girls, trust me."

I gave her a broad, reassuring smile. Aiko returned a weak, half smile back before her expression changed as her train of thought shifted to a different track.

"Do I need a costume?"

I let my smile similarly drop to a more thoughtful expression.

"You'll want something, yes. And probably a name I can call you when we're masks-on."

"I was thinking about that while I was in the shower last night. I still don't think I want to be a cape but if we're going to finish this the right way, I think a name will help separate the killing from the saving."

I shook my head.

"You're a cape, Aiko," I tried to impress upon her. "I've never heard of anyone stopping being a parahuman... and I looked. Maybe you don't become a hero or a villain, but... I don't think you're going to escape your powers now they're yours."

"Guess I should start thinking of a name then..." she said, perhaps a little crestfallen.

"I don't think we're in a hurry," I spoke carefully. "I... told APRA about Bali Springs... before I decided to help. You're in the news lately and probably have a fair bit of heat from APRA and Atlas. I think it's best if we don't rush just yet. Plan and think things through first before making any moves. Plenty of time to figure out all the cape stuff."

Her gaze hardened for a few moments.

"That's... frustrating. I was hoping to speed up now that I had your help but I suppose waiting makes sense. Can't save anyone if we get caught."

"We will do a better job if we do it properly," I asserted. "It's not enough to rush through cutting off limbs. You'll just make a power vacuum that the Wogs will simply fill with others. You're not fighting an evil entity, you're fighting a business, and businesses are resilient. We need to dismantle them, systematically, if you want the... abuse, to stop... here, at least."

"Mmhm."

"At some point we'll have to go over... all the gory details. Everything you've done and everything you know so far. We'll need to start researching, gathering information, learning. Like I said, we'll have to think about your cape name and your costume. But all of that can wait for a little bit longer. What do you think, Aiko? Shall we head out shopping?"

That child-like joy sparked across her face again.

"Yes!"

---

"Enjoying the view?" I asked as Aiko continued to stare out her window at the city with wide-eyed wonder.

"There's so much colour.." She answered with a sense of awe in her voice.

I leaned over to glance out of her window and found myself disappointed by the somewhat unremarkable view. We'd been flying over the harbour the night before with a view of the entire CBD shining like a beacon in the night - what was so special about this?

Colour… Has she not seen the city in daylight before?

The thought surprised me. Sydney had always been a beautiful city - even more so since the reconstruction - but I'd grown numb to it, seeing it every day growing up in my high rise prison. The Lightreach had allowed me to rediscover some of that magic again, seeing the city from a totally new perspective. Was it the same for Aiko now?

"It really is a beautiful city…" I commented, a little wistful.

I'd seen the city from above on my Lightreach, but I'd also seen what it looked like underneath now. The darkness and the cruelty lurking just beneath the surface. The veneer really was so thin…

I looked back over at Aiko, still staring out the window as though she was a child seeing the world for the first time. She'd spent so long buried underneath and yet she was still able to appreciate the surface beauty with such ease.

I remained quiet for the rest of the trip, letting Aiko enjoy the view. I didn't want to spoil her mood with my lamentations.

Her wide-eyed awe didn't dissipate as we entered the shopping centre, either.

"It's so big! There's so much here!" she gasped as she spun around in circles, trying to take in all of the different signs and storefronts, each one fighting for her attention but never managing to hold it for more than a few seconds before something else pulled her away.

Her enthusiasm was infectious and while I told myself in the moment that the reason I was running after her was so she couldn't disappear; in reality, I wanted to share in that sense of wonder she was experiencing.

"It is a pretty big place and there's dozens and dozens of shops we can look through," I commented as I caught up to her.

"I think I'm gonna need your help because I have no idea where to start," Aiko buzzed excitedly.

"Well there's food, clothes, more clothes and we should stop at an electronics store to get you a phone too. But first thing's first, the basics. You need shoes and underwear. Which is bothering you more?" I asked.

Aiko hopped from foot to foot and then did a few stomach twists and star jumps, like an athlete getting warmed up.

"I think shoes," she decided. "Especially since we're gonna be doing a lot of walking, I assume?"

"Mmhm. Shoes it is!" I pointed her in the right direction and then immediately wished I had chosen to lead her there instead as she took off like a rocket once again.

How the heck am I gonna keep up once she's got shoes that fit?

I sat Aiko down at a measuring bench and took her size before I set about gathering a few different styles and options within them for her to try.

"So you're definitely going to want a pair or two of runners and maybe some boots… for cape stuff," I said, lowering my voice conspiratorially at the end. "Any other styles you might like? Flats, heels, converse?"

"Well I usually only wore heels until now… but I don't think I want anything like that," Aiko answered.

I bit my tongue, hoping I hadn't been insensitive with my question.

"That's okay - we don't have to get any heel heels, but if you're used to walking in them, maybe you'd like something else with a little height?" I suggested. "Some Mary Janes with a block heel, maybe - I think those are cute."

"I think we should probably just focus on practical stuff," Aiko said, a gloom crossing her face. "It's not like I'm gonna be going out or anything once this is all over..."

I set down the boxes in my hands and put my hands on her shoulders.

"Two things. Firstly... you don't know what the future holds. You've done what you had to so far, but you've got options right now. You'll have options even when all this is over. So don't be fatalistic about what comes after, this early on, okay?" I said, quietly and firmly, looking her in the eyes and waiting for her to respond.

"Okay." She responded in a small voice.

"Secondly - it costs you nothing to enjoy it. The money is nothing to me, and it's well spent as far as I'm concerned. There's no point to just doing the bare minimum and rushing onwards, since we need to lie low and plot for a little bit anyway. And even if," I said, pausing for effect. "Even if you weren't... going out or anything... afterwards. Which we don't know. That doesn't stop us from doing something nice now, and enjoying it for a little while. It'd still be worth it. Alright?"

"Mm."

Aiko spent a few seconds pondering before her face brightened up a tad and she made grabby hands at the first box.

About two dozen pairs of shoes later and Aiko had settled on four she liked: some hardy boots, a pair of low-heeled Mary Janes and two pairs of runners, one of which she wore out of the store.

"Underwear next?" she asked.

"Underwear next," I confirmed. "Though we should probably go and put this stuff in the car first." I lifted the bags of shoes in my arms to indicate them.

"Do we have to?" Aiko asked, her tone pleading. "When we sometimes got to watch movies or TV the girls would always walk around with bags and bags of stuff when they went shopping."

My expression lifted at her - frankly adorable - request.

"Ahh, I get it. Sure, we can go for the full shopping spree experience if you want!" I said with a smile.

Aiko bounced up and down and actually 'squee'd with excitement.

"Come on, then!" I tilted my head in the direction of the next store, encouraging her to follow. "So, the big hurdle here is getting you measured. Normally, one of the store assistants could help… but I imagine you want to keep your tattoos hidden?"

"I don't mind people seeing my tattoos, they're important to me," Aiko asserted.

"Hmm, okay. Would you… be comfortable if I helped measure you?" I suggested. "I'm a bit of a worrier. The shopkeepers might not recognise you now, but stores have cameras and people chase capes because it's exciting. If details about your powers or what you look like come out, and an assistant sees your tattoos and remembers them, it's possible they might put two and two together and tip off APRA about your identity and they'll probably have camera footage, too. It's unlikely but not impossible - and like I said, I'm a worrier. It might not be a huge risk… but I personally wouldn't take it."

Aiko pondered for a few moments and then nodded.

"Okay. I trust your judgement."

I'd made the decision that Aiko deserved some proper, high-quality undergarments rather than cheap department stuff, so I led her towards a specialist store. As we got closer, though, I found myself questioning the decision. The store in question had a particular look to it, and a knot of worry started to grow in my stomach.

Will this make her uncomfortable..?

To my relief and surprise, Aiko's reaction was quite the opposite and she seemed quite enamoured with the vast panoply of undergarments.

The fitting went about as well as I could have hoped for. The shopkeeper was professional, and polite enough to not ask any questions regarding my vague but still entirely truthful story about Aiko being a friend from another country who'd lost all her other clothes on the journey over. I couldn't deny that there was an awkward tension between Aiko and I in the fitting room, though. I was… unsurprised, but nonetheless saddened, to see the lingering effects of the Wogs' treatment of Aiko reflected in the way she was reacting.

Despite my best efforts to keep things calm and - for lack of a better word - casual, I could see she was growing less and less comfortable by the minute. I stepped out as soon as I'd finished taking her measurements, then gave the numbers to the assistant so she could bring Aiko some options to try on while I went to the neighbouring cafe to buy some water for her.

Handing her the bottle when I got back, along with a quiet compliment on her tattoos, seemed to go a long way towards lifting her mood; enough that she was smiling again - though a little smaller than before - when she finally exited the fitting room.

"How does that feel now?" I asked as we exited the store, Aiko now wearing one of the new sets we bought under her borrowed outfit.

"Yeah, it's way comfier. Hey, can we get some coffee next?" Aiko asked, her smile perking up a little more as she slung the new shopping bags onto her arms.

"Yeah! Absolutely. There's actually a cafe right around the corner here..." I mused as I directed her towards it, falling in by her side again as we proceeded out.

Aiko scampered out of the store and over into the cafe, stopping to stare intently at the drinks menu.

"Anything take your fancy?" I asked with a grin, after spending a few moments just letting her stare.

"I... Don't really know what most of these weird words mean," she said a little sheepishly.

"Have you had coffee? ...Err, recently?" I stumbled through.

"I've never had coffee before, but people are always drinking it on TV and in movies so I really wanna try it!" She paused as she realised what she had just said and started turning red with embarrassment. "I sound like a little child don't I?"

Absolutely moved for a moment, before I realised it I was stepping towards her and encircling my arms around her to give her a squeeze. After a second I stopped and let my arms drop back down, taking a step back again and hoping that wasn't much too forward of me while I cleared my throat.

"No. Yes, sort of, but not in an embarrassing way, I promise. It's exciting. I love introducing people to new things," I enthused.

The little girl that was present earlier in the morning when I presented her with an all-you-can-eat buffet of Macca's returned in full force; she was beaming back at me with an expression of pure joy.

"So, a latte is probably the basic thing you want to try first," I started to explain. "Your different types of coffee drinks are just variations on how much coffee, milk, and froth there is, for the most part. But I actually like mochaccinos. They're an even mix, but they add some chocolate powder to it. It's nice."

"They put chocolate in coffee?! I want that!" Aiko exclaimed.

"Yes, they put chocolate in coffee and I'm an absolute sucker for it," I enthused as I led us up to the counter and prepared to order two larges.

Aiko watched very intently as the barista went about the process of making them. Nabbing her cup as they were served to us, she scuttled over to a table to sit, staring intently at her drink and then up at me as I took mine, as if she was waiting for permission to drink.

"Just as a warning - they're hot. I find that timing it so you drink it at just the right temperature is a matter of patience. Here, do this, and try it on your lip," I instructed, raising the hole in the lid to my upper lip and tilting it a little bit to test the temperature. "Saves you burning your tongue, sometimes."

Completely transfixed, as if I were giving her some profound enlightenment, Aiko carefully followed my example. Her eyebrows climbed in response as she set the cup back down.

"Some people like to add sugar to theirs, but I think you should give yours a try without it first," I recommended. "It's a personal preference thing. You might like it without any, and mochaccinos are a bit sweeter from the chocolate already."

I raised my cup and took a sip before lowering it back down to the table, grabbing two sugars, tearing them open one after the other and mixing them in.

"I like it sweet," I said with a shrug and a smile.

Aiko waited a little while longer before lifting her cup back to her lips eagerly and taking a big sip. A whole Shakespearean play of emotions shifted across Aiko's face in a matter of seconds as she contemplated the taste of the drink, before setting the cup back down.

"Mmm. Let it settle for a few moments before you give a verdict." I encouraged. "The taste kinda hangs for a bit."

"That wasn't quite what I was expecting..." Aiko smacked her lips a bit and made another funny face as she thought some more. "Can I try some sugar?"

I nodded emphatically and gestured at the little stand on the table with the sugar packets.

"Lid off, tear open a packet at the top, pour it out, grab one of these little straws and mix it in," I explained.

She followed my instructions and then set the lid back on before taking another sip. This time, her eyes lit up and I could see the corners of her mouth curl into a smile.

"Better?" I asked. "The sugar offsets the bitterness of the coffee. Some people prefer it bitter. Some people don't like it. You'd be surprised how heated that can get between people."

"I like it! It's like a… hot milkshake for grown-ups." She took another big sip.

"That is... like, exactly. Yeah," I said, kind of bewildered as I contemplated the description. "Well, there you go. That is a large mochaccino with sugar."

I continued to sip at mine, watching her, enjoying the sight of simple, unguarded enjoyment on her face as she sipped hers as well.

"So, what's next?" Aiko asked as she continued to drink.

"Now we hit every other store," I laughed. "And try clothes. The selection of well-covered clothing will be a bit lower, but there will be plenty to try. We'll try and pick up enough outfits for you to go for a week. After that - depends on whether there's anything else you want to do while we're out."

"Cool," she leaned in closer and spoke in a whisper. 'What about costume stuff?"

"Well," I began, leaning in to match her conspiratorial volume. "You've already bought some boots which is a good start, although you might want to upgrade to something industrial grade and steel-toed. As for the rest, we probably won't find what we need here. We'll probably want to look at military surplus stores or specialty retailers. I've got some leftover kevlar from when I made my costume that we can use and I should be able to help you with anything you need custom made. Like a mask for example."

I sat back upright, returning to my usual tone of voice.

"But all of that comes later. Today is about making you comfortable in your day today. Speaking of, shall we go look at clothes now?~" I gave her a little wiggle of my brow to match my enthusiastic tone.

"Yes!" Aiko cheered after downing the rest of her coffee. "Teach me the ways of the shopping spree, Sensei," she said with mock seriousness, bowing before me.

"Hai! Ikimashou!" I answered, causing Aiko's brows to shoot skyward.

"Eeh?! Nihongo o hanaseru no ka?!" Aiko queried incredulously, a joyous grin breaking out across her face.

"A little bit. Mostly formal stuff I learned as part of my business studies," I clarified. "Swear words too, of course."

"Sugoi da yo!" she cheered, impressed nonetheless.

The next few hours settled into a routine as we patrolled the fashion stores - doing some window shopping first, finding something that drew Aiko's interest, going in and doing some searching, trying some fits, and then moving on to repeat.

I commented a little bit on body types and fits, pointing out what looked like quality fabrics and what looked cheap, watching Aiko for indications of preference for certain kinds of clothes in certain colours. I tried to check my own biases, directing her to simple mix-n-match fits, mostly slim cut pants and long sleeve tops, tending towards muted colours. However, given the much more extensive collection of fashion in dresses and skirts and my own predilections to the same, I couldn't help but pick out a few more vibrant and beautiful items to try and prod her into modelling - including a few to try myself, giving her as much encouragement as I could and hoping that she'd opt for a few to express herself and explore the fashion a little bit.

I was able to talk her into trying on a few more colourful rompers and sundresses and she picked out a few other pieces that created a sort of Pop-Punk style with darker monochromatic colours that suited really well with her tattoos. The last stop on our journey was an electronics store, where I grabbed a cheap phone and a prepaid SIM so that Aiko would be able to contact me in an emergency. I was unsurprised to learn she didn't know how to use one, assuring her I'd teach her when we got back to the workshop.

Arms heavy-laden with bags - some of which contained some items for myself - we were making our way towards the parking lot to load up before heading home when a pet shop suddenly drew Aiko's attention.

"Fish!" she exclaimed like a small child as she hurried over to the large aquarium that occupied one of the store's display windows, pressing her face up against it to stare at the aquatic creatures inside.

"Fish," I confirmed with a sage nod and an undoubtedly confused tone as I moved to stand beside her and gaze into the tank. "Think you'd want to have a little aquarium of your own one day?"

"I actually always wanted a pet octopus or turtle, but I'm pretty sure you can't keep them as pets. I would love an aquarium..." Aiko trailed off wistfully.

"I'm pretty sure you're allowed to get either, although you'd probably have to do a fair bit of paperwork to prove you'd be a good owner. Octopi make bad pets, though, I've heard," I mused.

"Really? They're so intelligent though."

"That's the problem. How do you keep a smart pet like that happy in a tank?"

"Hmm... I'd just have to get a really big tank then!" she said, nothing short of absolute, earnest conviction in her voice.

"And fill it with all sorts of cool stuff," I played off her enthusiasm. "Features and bubble streams and places to explore and hide."

"Mmhm!" Aiko replied, continuing to stare into the fish tank. I got the distinct notion I was going to have to pull her away.

How can someone who's been through so much awfulness since they were so young still have such a childish innocence to them?

I envied that innocence.

I couldn't quite bring myself to do it - not for a few minutes at least. I left Aiko to her reverie for a while longer, until a thought crossed my mind.

She's mentioned movies a few times today…

"Hey Aiko, wanna go see a movie?" I asked.

Aiko wheeled on me with startling speed and a wildly eager expression on her face.

"Are you kidding me?! Yes!"

---

I'd picked a sci-fi movie to stoke her sense of wonder and even 40 minutes after the movie had ended, Aiko had continued raving non-stop about the quality of the special effects, the story and how good popcorn was, until she'd finally fallen asleep in the car on the drive back. I looked over at her and chuckled softly to myself again at the thought.

I still can't believe she'd never even heard of popcorn before today.

It left me with this strange bittersweet feeling inside. I felt kind of bubbly knowing that I had had the privilege of being the one to introduce Aiko to all of those first-time experiences like coffee and popcorn… But at the same time, I was heartbroken about the reason why she'd never been able to have those experiences until today.

I gave her a gentle nudge on the shoulder as I finished pulling back into the workshop and turned off the car's engine.

"Are we home...?" Aiko mumbled as she slowly came back to consciousness.

Maybe she was just tired, but I didn't miss her choice of words. Home.

"...We're back, yeah," I agreed. "Help me get all the bags upstairs to your room? I'll see about something you can put all the hangers on."

"Mmhm..." She rubbed her eyes and clambered out of the car. "I can carry all the bags, if that's okay?"

"You're brave!" I said, moving in the direction of my lab. "Go for it."

Aiko proceeded to roll the left sleeve of her new shirt up to her shoulder and brought her tentacle tattoo to life, threading it through the handles of all the bags and coiling it up so she could carry them up the stairs.

"Useful for more than just violence~" She boasted innocently as she passed.

I watched her as she passed, nonplussed but impressed. A moment later, I found myself surprised by how… not intimidated I felt at seeing the tentacle out and in use again.

Has she changed since last night, or has my opinion of her?

Not one to be outdone with a show of power in my own workshop, I grabbed the Lightreach from its charging cradle and moved over to a currently empty server rack frame, which I figured would suffice as a makeshift clothes rack. I propped the anti-gravity bow up underneath the top of the frame and proceeded to effortlessly lift the 40 kilos of steel a few inches off the ground, before walking it over to the stairs and carefully guiding it up to the mezzanine.

"Touche~" Aiko remarked as she looked over, equally impressed by my own ingenuity.

I basked dramatically in her approval for a moment as I set the now-clothes rack down, and then shot her a grin before turning to grab the box with the phone and proceeding to set it up for her. I added my number to it, then let Aiko spend a few minutes poking at the device as I taught her how to use it. Tutorial complete, I set the laptop I'd leant her to download a few pirated movies, then left her to hang up her clothes as I returned downstairs to continue working on my Data Knife project.

---

I felt Aiko's weight on the back of my chair as she leaned over my shoulder, the sound of chewing filling my left ear as she happily munched on the pizza I'd ordered for dinner after I realised the Data Knife project was going to have me working late.

"Do you mind if I watch you work?" She asked.

"I don't... see why not," I said, a little puzzled by her sudden interest. "It's pretty complicated stuff, though."

"I don't mind. It looks cool!"

For the rest of the time I spent working, Aiko sat nearby, watching me while doing some light browsing on the laptop as she taught herself how to put games on the phone. I turned and started to scope out the delivery problem for my Data Knife arrows. The most important problem to be solved at the time was penetrator delivery... but I had a bit of a novel idea for that.

Six hours of design, prototyping, and testing later, and my first proof of concept was ready. It was far, far from finished - but I'd proven my harebrained idea could be done.

"So what's that supposed to do?" Aiko queried, having stuck close by despite my working in near silence for the past several hours.

"Well... I'm calling this project Data Knife," I began. "The spec is for a ballistically delivered - uhh, an arrow I can shoot - hardware exploit package... uhh, a hacking tool. So I can strike targets from a distance and then hack into any electronic systems they have."

I flicked the switch and the hard-light projector I was currently working on flickered up a projection of circuits in 3D space, layered flat in a facsimile of modern silicon lithography, sans the silicon wafer; a motherboard, without the "board".

"But I can't really shoot a computer at targets. They're delicate and they break. So instead of putting a computer in my arrow... I figured, why not shoot an arrow that builds a computer after it's gotten through any surfaces protecting the target? So, this is what I'm doing: seeing if I can do just that. And now I know I can."

I gestured to the projection.

"This is a computer. Like your laptop. But it's made of hard-light; it's ephemeral. It doesn't run an operating system, not the way you'd think of it. It needs to run interruptible software. That's... a problem for next time I sit down to work on this, though. I'm done for the night, I think."

"Okay I understood maybe five of the words you said but it sounds really cool. Wait. Could you hack a regular computer with that? Or just in general?" Aiko asked, rising out of her chair.

"I mean... well, the Data Knife is meant to crack the hardest armoured tinkertech drones I know of..." I said slowly. "So it's probably going to be massively overkill, but... yeah, there's no reason it couldn't hack a regular laptop or a computer or a server or something."

I wasn't planning on getting on his bad side again, but after my first interaction with Sentinel's probes, I definitely wasn't going to chance another Benny Hill chase sequence with them. It might have been optimistic to think I would be able to punch straight through the probes' armour, but that was what they were designed to do. If not, they were bound to be vulnerable elsewhere; at joints, or via the optics or external antennae, perhaps. My hope was that a good shot and a bit of luck would let me override control of one long enough to at least cause some confusion or create a distraction. If I ever needed to, that was. And it was a big if.

"That's great! If you can hack the computers at the next place we go to, we might be able to find better information! A... money trail or a... record or some kind of list of places the other girls are sent or kept!" Aiko started jumping up and down with excitement. "We could make real progress! We might only have to go to a few more places!"

I nodded.

"Honestly, we might not even need the Data Knife for that. A good old USB delivered quietly would probably get me what I need. But hacking is definitely part of the plan, however we go about it. It'll be on the table to chat about when we start planning out our strategy tomorrow."

Aiko beamed at me.

Taken a little bit aback by her excitement but just as happy that she was happy about it, I just kinda sat and beamed back at her for a few moments.

"We'll take 'em down," I reassured her. "We'll study the enemy, track them, and learn how to dismantle them. And then we'll do it. Promise."

She nodded again, and then kept nodding and then I watched her expression start to change and suddenly she was bawling her eyes out where she stood.

I don't know what came over me but it took all of half a second for me to cross the distance between us and fling my arms around her to squeeze her tight. I didn't say anything, because anything I said would just have been a platitude. I just held her.

She hugged me back tightly. Much tighter than I would have expected for someone of her size, but I was glad she was hugging me back, even though my breathing was a little bit impacted. I hummed to her and slowly rubbed a hand up and down her back, not bothering to make any moves to disengage. I didn't plan on letting go until she was done.

A good five minutes of bawling passed before she finally started to calm down to a quieter sob.

"Thank you…" she choked out between sobs. "Thank you for today... For the first time in nine years I felt... Like a person again... Like a normal girl... Thank you... Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you..!"

"You're welcome. You're welcome, Aiko. You're welcome. I'm glad I could give you that. You deserve- Every girl deserves that..."

"We're gonna help them... We're going to give all of them this chance... We have to..."

"Yep," I said, rubbing my hand up and down her back and continuing to squeeze her.

"I always wondered... What it would be like to have... A big sister..."

The words struck me like a punch in the gut.

Elly…

I held Aiko tighter, squeezing my eyes shut and forcing myself not to cry as the ache of guilt and longing twisted and churned in my chest. I kept my posture rigid, doing nothing that would betray just how much her words had affected me... but I didn't vocalise a response, either. I knew opening my mouth would just lead to tears of my own and that wasn't what Aiko needed from me. I just kept holding her as she continued to quietly for a few more minutes before finally pulling away.

Aiko's eyes were red raw from crying and there was a huge wet stain on my shirt, but I couldn't even imagine mustering the will to complain. She gave a big sniffle.

"Thank you. I really needed that. Needed all of this... Sorry about your shirt..." she mumbled apologetically.

I looked down as though I'd barely even noticed it and shrugged with a nonchalant expression. We both glanced at the clock, and I realised just how late it was now.

"You can go home now. I'll be okay." Aiko gave me a smile as she wiped her cheeks.

"You'll feel much better tomorrow morning. And we can start tackling the big questions then. And you've got your new phone. You can call me if there's any problems. Anything at all. Or anything you want to talk to me about. Feel free, okay?"

"I will. Thank you 'Lise." She gave me another hug to say goodbye and then waited to watch me leave.

I reached over and switched off the hard-light motherboard. Then I squeezed her shoulder as I passed her on my way through to the car, giving her another little wave as I went.

The drive back to my apartment was standard fare. Oddly, the lights were still on as I opened the door. I double checked myself to make sure I wasn't wearing or carrying any cape stuff - not that I had at all at any point today, but still, just as a reflex - and then pushed my way inside. It was a bit after midnight at this point, so I entered cautiously and called out softly.

"Sam?"

There was no answer, but I could hear the sound of the TV playing. I closed the front door again and locked it. With a mix of exasperation and confusion, I wandered over to investigate.

I found Sam sprawled out on the couch, fast asleep with the TV still running; he must have been waiting up for me and fallen asleep. I flicked off the TV and then leaned over him, resting a hand lightly on his shoulder.

"Sam..? Are you fast asleep?" I asked softly, not intending to wake him unless he was already close to wakefulness.

He stirred as I spoke to him, blinking a few times before coming to consciousness.

"That you, 'Lise?"

"Yeah, Sam," I said. "Staying up late now as well, are we? C'mon, you should be sleeping in your bed. I mean, you're welcome to sleep here. But I'd rather sleep- I mean, I imagine you'd rather sleep in your bed, uhh, because it's probably nicer than the couch..."

"I was waiting up for you. You didn't get home before 1 last night and you were gone by the time I woke up this morning. I wasn't sure you'd come home at all... Are you okay?" He asked with moderate concern in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's nothing new, just - something came up at work," I lied with a sheepish smile. "I thought I'd be able to take it easy for a bit but it turns out some extra effort's gonna be required for a little while. I was in last night - late, and I left early this morning. Ate at work."

He frowned a little.

"You should take better care of yourself. I can't imagine whatever you're working on is worth overdoing it like this."

He rose from the couch and gave me a pat on the shoulder.

"Get some decent sleep. I'll make bacon and eggs for breakfast tomorrow, okay?"

I frowned as well, pensive.

"You're right. It's good work, though. Important work. Especially lately," I said with a totally different level of conviction than just a moment ago, and then sighed. "But you're right."

He smiled.

"I'll see you in the morning then?"

"...If... work doesn't call?" I offered, another sheepish smile on my face - earnest, this time.

"Maybe at least leave me a note? Or send a text?"

"...Yeah. Umm, feel free to call me, too. I don't mean to be rude to you, I just... forget sometimes. I'm sorry."

"I forgive you. Goodnight, 'Lise." He lifted his hand from my shoulder and turned to head towards his bedroom.

"Good night, Sam!" I called back softly, watching him go.

After a minute or two, I rose back up to my feet, setting an alarm for breakfast, making sure Aiko's number would ring through my do-not-disturb mode if she did call, and then collapsing into bed, dead asleep before my head even hit the pillow.

---

AN: Arc 2 begins! I'm not sure why the slice of life chapters end up being so long - I think it's because I prefer to write chapters in narrative beats rather than trying to aim for an arbitrary word count - but it is what it is. That said, I have to thank Casey for her hard work beta'ing this chapter because the earlier drafts were actually way too long.

I know I promised thug punching in this arc and there will be plenty of it - don't you worry - but the next chapter or two are probably going to be a little slower paced as there's a fair bit of setup required as well as some minor character development. I hope you'll stick around until we get to the ass-kickings.

Comments and discussion are cool since I'm a fiend for engagement, recommend to your friends if you'd be so kind and thanks for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

Undertow 2.2​

Tuesday, 7:45am, April 26th, 2005

The buzz of my alarm brought me back to consciousness, and I could already smell and hear breakfast sizzling away in the kitchen. I opened my eyes, blinking a few times as I laid still. Then, abruptly, I moved to stand up, letting the bedsheets drape down over the side of the bed after me.

I walked over to lean on the edge of my desk, pulling up my phone and unlocking it in order to quickly check my notifications - in case anything urgent had popped up while I was sleeping.

No news was good news, I figured.

With a yawn, I started to move down to the living area as I flicked over to PHO to check up on things there - my DMs, my personal thread, and the current top threads to see if there was any news about Deva, I or the serial killer.

Ah, shit…

I hadn't set my direct messages to be private, and now my inbox was overflowing with dozens upon dozens of messages from random people. Evidently, the story about Parthian getting kidnapped by the serial killer had finally hit the news, and the responses were a pretty mixed bag. A few of the messages dated back or referred to my first outing, but most of the new ones were either concerned or surprisingly hateful. Some asked if I was okay, alive, or in need of help after getting kidnapped. Others were berating me with accusations saying that it was all fake, some sort of publicity stunt or even implying that I was working with, for or actually was, the serial killer.

What a pain…

Chagrined, I walked down to the dining room on autopilot, doom-scrolling my inbox as I realised it was too late to turn the filter on now, or they'd know I was active on PHO and therefore probably not kidnapped.

A day had passed since the event, so buzz had died down a little bit, but the biggest story on the Sydney boards was easily the fight at The Buena from two nights ago.

The official story given by the Atlas Alliance and APRA was that a new, independent cape named Parthian had tracked the killer to the venue and made a report to APRA before engaging them. When Deva arrived, the killer fled and the pair of capes pursued them down to somewhere near the harbour. The heroes attempted to cautiously confront the killer, believing them to be a parahuman telekinetic, but the killer took Parthian hostage before fleeing. Concerned Parthian might come to more harm if she continued to follow, Deva made the difficult decision to halt her pursuit and instead returned to The Buena to make an immediate report to APRA and the Alliance.

I nodded to myself absentmindedly as I read, happy enough with the outcome there. I mean, I guess it did make me look a bit... incompetent, maybe. But it was a bit difficult to slice this narrative any other way that gave me and Aiko the freedom to move for now.

"Morning!" Sam greeted me as I entered. In a mock elderly voice he said, "Kids these days, always staring into their phones."

I sat down at the dining room table, transferring my pensive expression from my phone to Sam. As I gazed up at him, I could see he was very deliberately looking in any direction other than where I was.

"Perhaps a bit more distracted than normal," he said sheepishly. "Ahem..."

"Distracted? I..."

It took me a few more moments to notice that my state of relative undress - other than underthings - was the source of his pointed refusal to look at me.

My chair squealed backwards at a similar pitch to the squeak I let out as I bolted upright. I turned, cringing, as I quickly made an exit through the loungeroom and back towards my bedroom, still painfully exposed most of the way.

"Sorry!" I yelped back behind me just as I finally shut the door to my room, crossing the distance to the silent valet to lift off a robe, pull it on, and tie it closed.

I paced for a few moments, took a deep breath, and opened the door again before heading stiffly back to the dining room.

I could hear soft, awkward laughter as I approached. Unable to quite bring my gaze up to meet him, I cringed a little harder at the sound, good natured as it was yet all the more red my cheeks for it. I rigidly sat back down in the chair and slid it back in, reaching back down for my phone.

"When I said I wanted to see you this morning… I didn't mean that much of you." Sam flashed me a slightly awkward but well meaning smile as he set a plate of sausage, bacon, eggs and hash browns in front of you.

I looked down at the plate, eyes fixed right in the middle of the delicious assortment but not actually really seeing any of it.

"I'm sorry, I... I got comfortable just walking around like that before..." I said in a low voice, trailing off for a moment. "Before I got a roommate. I didn't mean to be inappropriate."

"No harm done. I'm sorry if I embarrassed you. What were you looking at that was so interesting?" he queried, gesturing to my phone with a fork as he sat himself down opposite me with a matching plate.

"Uhh, just keeping up on top of developments with my work."

I grabbed some utensils to make a start on my plate. Feeling like it was probably a little ungrateful to shut his query down entirely after he'd just served me breakfast, I cast around for a moment, figuring out how best to phrase things.

"I, uhh... made a decision earlier that's generating a lot of spammy notifications, but we're committed to this course for a little while longer and I won't be able to fix that issue until it's run its course," I lied, once again relying on spinning out what was strictly a kernel of truth - phrased in such a way that it resulted in a perfectly reasonable, if vague, implication. "But there might be something useful in the spam, so I was looking through it just in case."

"Sounds sucky."

I gave him a bit of a self-pitying smile.

"Yeah. It'd have been real simple to set that toggle properly in advance, too. But I didn't, and now I'm stuck with it for a little bit. Oh well. Hopefully it's only for a little while longer."

"If there's something I can help with, let me know."

"You're already doing it," I assured him before taking a bite from my fork and giving him a warm grin as I chewed. "So, what about you? Classes today, or..?"

"Couple of classes this afternoon. Figured I'd spend the morning vegging out a little. Have you got work?"

I nodded, chewing, then swallowed.

"Yeah. Some important strategy planning to get done today, actually," I replied. "Nothing's exploding or on fire - so-to-speak - but there's a few things coming up that will need to be handled carefully. Y'know, to avoid exploding or catching fire... so-to-speak."

"Right..." He gave me an odd look and as if on cue, my phone started ringing.

I startled, my hand quickly darting out to snatch the phone.

I didn't say anything too weird, did I? That was plenty vague, right?

I stood up from the table, bringing the phone up to my face to identify the caller as I stepped away towards the lounge room.

"Hello?" Aiko's voice came through the speaker. "Is this working?"

"Hey, how's everything at the shed? Nothing exploding?" I replied jovially, giving a quick laugh as I shot a discreet glance back at Sam.

"No! Definitely not! I haven't gone near your workshop I promise!" Aiko replied with a panicked tone.

"It was a joke! Nothing's actually gonna just explode. Honestly, am I just not funny..?" I grumbled in a low voice.

"You said there were traps set up in your lab and things that would explode. Was that a joke? You seemed pretty serious at the time but maybe I was just tired?"

…I did say that, didn't I?

"No- There's- I mean, technically... But actually it's not - No, I mean, I'd know if... Forget that for now," I stammered, flustered. "Everything good there? Do you need anything?"

"Yeah, everything's fine, it's just... I'm kinda hungry. Are you coming over with breakfast soon?" she asked.

"You can heat something up or I can grab something on my way in, up to you. I'll probably be there in under an hour," I said, glancing back to Sam again. "Maybe forty-five minutes? Thirty if you need me asap."

"I um... I don't know how to use the microwave... Fuck that's embarrassing. I put some of the pizza from yesterday in there and just tried pressing buttons until it turned on. I thought I'd done it but... when it was finished it tasted really bad. I think I cooked it too much? Or not enough? Fuck, I must seem like a total idiot... Sorry."

If I could reach through the phone to hug her, I swear…

"Hmm. Nah. That thing's a little... obtuse to figure out. Don't worry. I just need to finish something up. I'll give you a call in about ten minutes, alright? I'll be there in thirty."

"That's okay. You don't need to rush-" Aiko's stomach growled loud enough to be audible through the phone. "Don't take too long though. Sorry. I'll go now. See you soon. Bye!... How do I hang up?..."

I laughed and lowered my phone, hanging up on her before turning back to Sam.

"Looks like I'm on the clock to finish up here and get on site," I said, crossing the lounge room to sit back down at the table.

"Damn, really?" Sam asked as he finished his food and began clearing his plate from the table.

"Yeah. It's not chronic or anything, but... well, I'll need to be there," I said before I started to shovel down another mouthful.

"You can leave your plate on the table when you're done, I'll clear it up with everything else."

"Ahh... Thanks, Sam. I really appreciate that," I squeezed out between mouthfuls, rapidly working my way through the last bits before I finished up and stood upright.

"Thanks again for breakfast, Sam. That was really great. And I'm sorry again about... yeah," I trailed off, blushing faintly, having not moved on enough to avoid cringing a little.

I stepped away from the table, pushing my chair back in as I turned to start making my way back to my room to get ready.

"Have a good day! Don't overwork yourself, okay?" Sam called out to me as I passed through the dining area again on my way out.

"You too! I'll try! Catch you later!" I replied as I shuffled out.

I headed down to my car, fishing out my phone and dialling Aiko back as I climbed in and closed the door. It rang for a few seconds before she answered.

"That's it right?... Moshi, moshi? I mean- Hello? Lise?"

"You've got it! I'm on my way now. Want anything in particular?" I asked, starting the car and looking around to pull out and drive off.

"Ummm... Umumumummmm... Oh! I saw a sign for something called a breakfast bur-eye-toe..? at the shopping place yesterday. Could I have one of those?"

"Yep, I can do that. You want a coffee too?"

"Mm! Yes please!"

"Alright. I'll be there in twenty-five then, and we can sit and eat. And then, well... We can begin."

"Okay. I've already made a start on that but my notes are pretty messy. See you soon! Bye! ...And it's this button."

Aiko hung up.

---

I arrived at the unit on schedule and spotted Aiko waving to me from the mezzanine as I pulled in to park. She was dressed in some of the more practical clothing we bought yesterday, some loose fitting jeans and a modest halter top I talked her into buying which still showed off plenty of her tattoos.

"Hi!~" she called down as I climbed out of the car.

"Hey, you. Breakfast burritos!" I called back, hefting the bag, followed by a cup tray. "And coffee!"

"Woohoo!"

"You look nice," I commented, grabbing my chair and dragging it over to the table that had suddenly become this commercial unit's dining room table, falling into said chair as I deposited the food.

"Uh, thanks! I didn't really make a particular effort. I've been up for a while, took a shower maybe four hours ago?"

"Early riser?" I asked as I sipped my own coffee and watched her unwrap her breakfast.

"Trouble sleeping actually. Bad dream..." Her face fell a little.

"Oh... I'm sorry, Aiko. Do you wanna talk about it? Or want a hug?" I offered, setting the coffee down again and sitting upright a little bit.

"I'm okay... Nothing's broken, which means I didn't use my powers in my sleep. So I've had worse. Figured it would be better to make myself useful instead, so I showered and started writing and researching. Knowing we're gonna stop them helps. Makes it easier to put aside for the time being, you know?"

"Yeah," I agreed, relaxing back again slowly and picking up my coffee to sip at. "Having something important to do helps. Let me know if you change your mind on talk or a hug though."

"Mm," Aiko acknowledged, taking a bite out of the burrito.

"Mmm!" she exclaimed in wonder, taking another bite as her eyes rolled upwards. "Huck me! Hats fo goo!"

I gave her a grin, and then I started to ramble a little, bringing a bit of order to my thoughts on what we need to figure out today.

"Alright. We've got a few things to worry about first. Your cape name and costume we'll have to figure out soon, so starting to figure that out early is good. I might need to think on that as well... Since the official story is that you captured me, it's not going to look good if Parthian is obviously still out and about. We'll also need to... go over and review everything you can tell me about these guys. There's... Bali Springs to think about as well."

"Mmhm, mmhm," she nodded agreeably as she continued to wolf down the burrito, only pausing to take sips of her coffee.

I finished off the rest of my cup and then put it back in the bag the food came in, now magically transformed into a rubbish bag by the power of repurposing. I didn't have to wait more than two minutes for Aiko to finish devouring her breakfast.

"So, Aiko. You had notes? Any thoughts on what we should tackle first?" I began as she tossed her rubbish into the bag and reached for her laptop.

"Yeah. I made a list of all the places I've been to so far, plus some information about the Wogs and some stuff I know from experience."

I moved my chair around to sit next to her and leaned in. Her screen showed a list of the places she'd attacked and some rough doodles on a Google maps screenshot.

"It's kinda crappy, I know, I'm still learning with the computer. So, the crosses are all the places I visited and there's this kinda northward path that takes us up into Wog territory, which I marked out with this black line based on my own knowledge and stuff I found online earlier today. When I was- um… brought to Australia, it was by boat, and that seems to be the most common tactic from what I've found. I was brought here around 8 years ago, so it might be different now, but I would guess that any new... 'shipments' would probably be delivered somewhere around here, since the main harbour is so public," she summarised, gesturing to a big red circle which marked an area called Middle Harbour, an offshoot of the ocean inlet that ran northwest away from the main Sydney Harbour.

"And that's Bali Springs there?" I asked, pointing at a smaller circle at the far east of the territory line she'd marked.

"Yup."

"Alright. Well, we can try to survey that area. It's a big area to cover, but... Well, we can fly, so..." I trailed off, pondering the map for a little bit. "Might be a good idea to try and get a closer look at Bali Springs, too. They'll be alerted, though, I can only imagine."

"Yeah... I know you were trying to help at the time, but it really sucks that you told the cops about Bali Springs..." Aiko lamented.

"I... Yeah. I didn't know... a lot. There was a lot I had no clue about in that moment," I offered, looking down pensively. "Turns out I only gave both of us a harder job. I'm sorry. But, I'll make up for it."

"Well it'll have been two nights since I went to The Buena after tonight, and if Bali Springs is part of the Wogs' network, I'm sure they'll be trying to pull some strings with bribes to turn some eyes away. Maybe you could give Deva a call, see if she could make the cops look elsewhere for a night? I always went in at peak times because I wanted to be sure there'd be people I could interrogate around, but if you can hack their computers, we could try sneaking in really early one morning, like three am? It could improve our chances of avoiding APRA too since they'd be expecting me to attack around the same times I have previously."

"If I give Deva a call, she'll probably want to be in the area personally. So she can... ensure we're not scrutinised too closely, and also that nothing bad happens. But you're right on that front. Sneaking in is going to be a total switch-up and will probably throw them off."

"If Deva's patrolling herself that's even better! That way she can turn a blind eye and we can get a bit rough," Aiko suggested.

"She'll be obligated to step in if we start seriously hurting anyone," I warned. "At least while she's watching. What her presence would do, though, is allow us impunity to scope the place. See who comes and goes. Track them until we know who's in the building and when. And we can sneak in on a night maybe when we can catch someone important off guard? Who knows."

"We don't need to scope the place though." Aiko pressed. "We know that's the next place to go, so we go in, break some bones if anyone tries to stop us, get the info and go. If you call Deva, we could go tomorrow night!"

"And how will you know if that info is good?" I challenged. "All it's gotten you so far is a string of nightclubs to hit. When does that list end? It won't. The Wogs can keep moving things around faster than you can compromise them. At least, until you're really caught. Remember you were already caught once."

I stood upright.

"And what happens when you run into one of their capes, like Siphon or Frag - who are inevitably going to be waiting at the next stop at some point?"

An intense look of frustration crossed Aiko's face for a few moments and then deflated into hopelessness.

"Then we- I just- We can... I don't know, I don't know about any of that! All I know is that every day or night we spend scoping out somewhere is another night girls like me have to suffer. What else am I supposed to do? I got powers that made me good at fighting people who are bigger and tougher than me, what's the point in having them if I'm not fighting back against the people who are responsible?..."

"I'm not saying you can't fight them. There will come time for fighting. But if you fight them the way you have been, eventually it will catch up with you. It's not enough to want to beat them, Aiko. You need to understand them and understand how to beat them. And then you do it," I explained, hoping she would see my reasoning.

"You'd think after being trapped with them for nine years I'd have a better idea of how they operated... Some saviour I turned out to be. I'm so fucking useless..." Aiko slumped back on the couch and closed her eyes, visibly trying to hold back tears.

"Hey," I said as I sat down next to her, reaching out to touch her arm, on the verge of a hug. "You're their best saviour, Aiko, because you are a saviour. And you've been doing everything you can. And you're not useless. Not yet. You're here. It's far from over. We can find things out. We can research and observe. We can fight when it's time to fight. We have options."

"I'm sorry... You're right. It's frustrating but you're right. My way wasn't going to work in the long run, so let's do it your way."

"We don't have to sit around on our thumbs staking the place out for ages. Maybe we don't wait and take notes of everything. But let's scope the place out first at least. I can go there in civvies and take some notes. My drone can watch the place during the day. We can plant a bug at night and see what turns up from their computers. We identify key players - the people who actually can answer your questions. And we find them."

"Where do we start then?" Aiko asked, looking to me.

"I'll call Deva and let her know she might want to be patrolling around Bali Springs for the foreseeable future if she isn't already. Then, you need a costume and a cape name so you can go out. I expect they know your face, so you can't go near them out of costume. But you can go out in public out of costume now. So you can watch the place from a distance. I can go in and check the place out during regular hours, make a plan to hack in. Thoughts?"

"What about any girls you find while you're there?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. We need good information first. Without it we get nowhere. Once we've gotten all the useful information we can out of the place... We can cross that bridge when we get there. I don't have space to house a whole bunch of girls, though."

"So you'd just leave them there? Knowing what's happening to them," she questioned with a threatening undertone.

"What's happened to all the other girls you've come across so far?"

"I've tried to help them. The ones that I managed to talk to, I told them about shelters they can go to, and then the police would show up after because of what I did, so the other ones could talk to them, right?"

"Mmmm. We can do that. As long as we know where the girls are," I said, pausing to ponder for a moment. "There's nothing stopping anonymous tipsters from calling in details about what we find, either. The police can be there quicker if we give them the opportunity to organise first."

"Mmhm."

"Alright. The thing I actually think we need to sort out the most is your costume and cape name. We'll be waiting on that being ready before we can strike any targets," I explained as I pulled out my phone and started typing up a text to Deva.

Call me somewhere private. -P​

"Okay. I'll give it some more thought. It's usually not a good idea to have the same name as another cape right?" Aiko asked

"Honestly? You've got a lot of wiggle room... Some small time capes share names in different geographical areas. Just avoid the big names. It's not like it's a legal thing, it's just an etiquette and practicality thing."

"Okay... is there a list somewhere of Australian capes I could look up?"

"Yeah, actually, let me pull up PHO for you..."

I leaned over her to reach for the keyboard, bringing up the browser and navigating over to the site and its associated wikis and threads for Australian capes.

"They're obviously not as comprehensive as APRA's files - but good luck getting those. This is everything the public knows - which, really, is plenty to figure out whether a name is 'taken' or not."

"Thanks. I'll start looking." She began to browse through the site. A moment later, my phone pinged with a reply from Deva.

Returning from patrol. 5 mins.​

"Got any ideas on the costume side of things?" I asked.

"Not too sure really. Picking a name will probably help my decisions on the overall design. Something bulletproof would probably be good. I'm already bulletproof myself but it still hurts to get shot and having a costume full of holes wouldn't be a great look, would it? It would also have to be sleeveless so I don't damage it when I use my powers."

"Just sleeveless? No other areas to worry about?" I inquired.

"Yeah. I've got more tattoos on my legs but my power doesn't seem to work on them. I might need more practice, or maybe they're the wrong kind of tattoo?" Aiko explained. "Oh! My back. That would need to be open for the wings too."

I gave her a little nod, pausing for her follow-up interjection.

"Okay. Hmm. Yeah..." I trailed off as I sat back down and leaned back in my chair, pondering over possible, practical outfits and materials to use.

A few minutes passed and my phone started ringing. The caller ID was hidden. I pulled the phone up to my ear.

"Hello."

"Is this Parthian?" A woman on the other end asked, using a voice changer to mask her identity.

"Who made the offer to the girl?" I queried.

"Excuse me?" The woman responded, confused.

"Who are you?" I replied, slowly.

"I asked first," she countered.

I hung up, lowering my phone down and shaking my head.

"Not gonna play that game when the prevailing story is that I've been kidnapped..." I murmured, bringing up my texts and sending Deva another message.

Took a call from someone asking after Parthian. Did you hand out this number? -P​

The reply came quickly after.

😮‍💨 It's me. I'm making sure you're you, since I gave you my number. Remember?​

I sighed, then sent another back.

Try again, then. -P​

My phone rang again and I brought it back up to my ear.

"Who made the offer?" I asked again. "It's a very important detail you shouldn't have forgotten already."

"I did. Let me hear the girl's voice so I know it's you."

"Hey. Say hi for me, to the other person that was there that night?" I said to Aiko, leaning over and holding the bottom of the phone towards her.

"Uh, hi? Is that Deva?"

A few moments passed and then Deva's voice came over the speaker.

"Okay. All good. Excuse the extra measures," she said apologetically.

"Understandable. Your caller ID was blocked - I couldn't be sure you weren't... Sentinel, for all I know. I had to ask something only you'd know before answering something as probing as 'is this Parthian'."

"I understand. Christ this is exhausting..." she said with a sigh.

"Everything okay on your end? We're about to start making our first moves."

"All clear for now. We haven't seen any major changes in the Wogs' activity recently either. APRA are still watching Bali Springs, but I should be able to move them with a false report while I'm on patrol the night you go in. Are you planning to make a move tonight? Is that why you're calling?" Deva asked.

"First steps shouldn't involve any fireworks whatsoever, but you may want to get yourself put on patrols in the area over the next few days in case something does happen. Does APRA have any capes watching or just agents? And do you know if the Wogs' capes are in the area?"

"No capes. The Alliance is APRA's only go to for cape response in Sydney. I can't divulge classified information to you about the Wogs' activity but you should assume Fracture, Frag and Siphon are active within their territory. Someone else you should look out for is King Hit."

"Is he after the Wogs of War, too?" I asked.

"It's possible, but going after gangs with known cape members isn't his usual M.O. He had a fight with some Wog thugs at a bar called Frenchy's the same night we were all at the Buena and he was later spotted in the same area. Intelligence suspects he's most likely trying to hunt down the serial killer," Deva explained.

"Alright. We'll keep that in mind. One other thing I wanted to ask you. Do you think that you can trust Sentinel with what's going on? I might need to use my drone, and if I do, I'm sure he'll have an opportunity to spot it with his own tech. If possible, it'd be best not to have to worry about making him suspicious."

There was a long sigh over the phone line.

"I'm sorry, looping Sentinel is a non-starter, I'm afraid. It's not that I don't think he wouldn't understand - but as the leader of the Atlas Alliance, he has a responsibility to be honest with APRA and other law enforcement. So do I, technically," she said before pausing for a moment. "The AA can afford to lose me if this goes wrong. The AA- this city, this country can't afford to lose Sentinel. I won't take that risk."

"Okay. We'll make it work. We'll be snooping around Bali Springs in the next few days. Feel free to try and get yourself heading up those patrols if you want to. That's all for now."

"Understood. Before I go, how's the girl?"

"How are you, Aiko?" I asked, holding the phone to her.

"I'm good! Li- Parthian took me shopping yesterday for some new clothes!" Aiko said cheerfully.

"You took her out in public?!" Deva asked with exasperation.

"I wasn't reckless about it... But, yes. And it was absolutely necessary," I asserted. "A girl deserves adequate clothing. She's not going to mope about in rags in my wor-... At a safe place."

Deva let out another long sigh.

"I don't disagree… But that was still risky. I'm sure you don't need a reminder of how dangerous and emotionally volatile she is. I can't stop you, but I strongly advise you don't take her out in public for non-cape purposes again."

"I'll take that under advisement," I replied just a little frostily, doing my best to earnestly mean it as I said it. I took a second to cool down, pacing a few steps around my workshop.

"...I know it's your head, too. I'm not planning to bring us all down. And I haven't forgotten what's already been done. But... It was necessary," I insisted. "We'll be careful, I promise."

"That girl and I are putting a great deal of faith in you Parthian. I sincerely hope it hasn't been misplaced. Contact me again when you plan to make your next move… I hope at the end of all this I'll be able to meet you as an ally once again."

"Something will have gone very wrong otherwise," I replied before hanging up.

I sat down next to Aiko again.

"Deva's updated. How's your name searching going?"

"Okay... Definitely no taken names that I'd be interested in. I'm just not really sure what feels like me, you know?"

"Well, your power works off your tattoos... but just some of them. You could go with a name that kinda informs what your powers do a little bit, or refers to some aspect of them, or maybe you could go with something else, like a virtue or something. I went with a historical reference, myself. You could go with something as simple as 'Ink' or 'Canvas' or something more convoluted."

"Mm. I'll keep thinking. Is that okay?"

"Noooo~! You have to pick right this second," I said in a facetious tone, smiling as I leaned forward to boop her on the nose.

Aiko went cross-eyed as she looked down at my finger and made a funny face, obviously unsure of how she felt about being demeaned in such a fashion.

"Of course you can keep thinking about it, Aiko. I'm gonna start doing some research. On the Wogs in general and specifically on Frenchy's. See what the business actually reports it does, see if I can't get any building plans, trawl the media and online for reports and posts about the Wogs in general. You've got time."

---

Finding outfacing info on Bali Springs was pretty easy. The place was built in 2000 after the area was destroyed during the Leviathan attack, and was originally a high end restaurant, the plans for which were publically available online. It closed down in early 2003, and the building was bought a few months later. It underwent extensive renovations, and now it was a day spa with an artificial hot spring built into the back of the plot. There were records for council clearance and proposals for the hot spring, but nothing for the actual building itself. Based on photos of the interior, though, it didn't seem like the floor plan of the building had been significantly altered - so it wouldn't have been unreasonable to assume that there were no new blueprints since none were needed.

I did a little more background research on the Wogs of War, too; they were a small time gang that rose to prominence after the Leviathan attack allowed them to assert dominance over Sydney's northeastern suburbs - folding a number of smaller gangs into their own, which allowed them to grow rapidly and hold the territory they'd taken even after the Atlas Alliance was established. They seemed to have their thumbs in all the usual pies of gang dealings; weapons, drugs, etc., and were heavily believed to be the primary source of sex trafficking in the state. Unfortunately, it seemed their operations were so well integrated into the city that uprooting this aspect of their business had proven to be a major struggle for the authorities. Women that had been rescued or escaped either didn't know enough to be useful, or were too scared to talk - and gang members that had been arrested had also refused to give up anything of significant value, either out of loyalty or fear of the gang's leader. The leader's identity remained a mystery, though they were assumed to be a cape.

I printed out the construction plans attached to the original building approval in 2000, satisfied that on the balance of probability, they would be accurate enough for what I needed. I marked out places I thought would serve as offices, looking for the distribution board or comms risers to indicate where the backbone of the building's telecommunications would be.

I also looked for a materials specification to see what the plan called for the exterior walls to be constructed from. It didn't particularly matter what it was; but if I knew ahead of time, I could do some calculations once I'd built and done initial penetration testing with my prototype Data Knife, to see exactly how much force I'd need to simply shoot through the building and embed the arrow inside, broadcasting a backchannel for me... A 'Plan B' in case getting inside and sneaking a USB in wasn't feasible.

"I've got it!" Aiko suddenly piped up.

"Oh?" I said, dropping my current line of thought and turning back to her.

"Reef!"

"You've got reef?" I asked, teasingly.

"Huh?"

"You said you've got it. Reef. You've got reef?" I said, giving her a grin.

"Oh hardy har~" She poked her tongue out at me like a petulant child.

I stuck my tongue out back at her.

"Reef. As my cape name. Do you... not like it?" She asked tentatively.

"I like it. I think it's good, actually. What made you pick it?"

"Well I've always loved fish and the ocean, and apart from the wings, all of my tattoos have got an aquatic theme to them. My body is kinda like a coral reef for aquatic tattoos so it just fit! It feels like me. Like the sort of cape I would have wanted to be if I'd gotten my powers in different circumstances. Although I suppose I wouldn't have tattoos then."

"Then it's perfect. Reef," I said, sounding it out. "Reef and Parthian. Against the Wogs of War."

"Hoo-rah!"

I giggled at her.

"Where'd you pick that one up? The... Marines?"

"I hope your fancy arrows are as good at poking people as you are," Aiko scoffed.

"C'mon! You've got to admit that was funny, though," I protested. "And yeah, I'd say my arrows are plenty good at poking, but they do cooler stuff than that, too."

Aiko reached over and poked my arm a few times.

"Watcha lookin' at?" She asked.

"Bali Springs," I stated with a sage nod, gesturing vaguely over the lot - an incomprehensible mess of lines and curves and scribbles for anyone without a construction background - as though it spoke for itself.

After a moment I broke the routine with another giggle and then pointed over at the image of the exterior on one of my monitors as I began to explain the building's history, construction, layout and how that was relevant to our plans.

"I'll probably buy a spa package so I can go take a look in person. I'd offer you one too, but... for obvious reasons, I imagine you'd decline."

"Yeah. A day spa hmm? And it used to be a restaurant. Does that mean they added the hot springs when they modified it?"

"Yeah," I affirmed, clicking over and bringing up a copy of the approved proposal. "They didn't make any structural changes, though, just added it to the back."

"I... I wouldn't be so sure," Aiko pondered. "They would have had to do a bunch of digging to make the hotsprings right? They might have added a basement or some kind of underground storage area to hold any girls in. When... when we get shipped around we're usually held either individually in a room and a customer comes to us or we're kept together in some locked hidden room and then dragged out when it's time."

"Ahhh... Maybe. But, there's a difference between digging and a structural change to the building itself. I might... Might have a way to find out whether something else was constructed down there off the books, though... Depending on a few things. You'll have to leave that with me, though. If we can be sure before we go in, that'll be ideal."

"Okay. So are you gonna go today or should we work on my costume? Unless you've got more stuff you need to do first?"

"I might have to grab some stuff to work with, depending on what we want to try, so I was thinking we'd hash out the ideas first, then I'd go check out Bali Springs and pick up some stuff on the way back, something like that?"

"Sounds good!"

We spent the next while discussing details on what would be Reef's costume. Design, materials, colour, and any extra equipment she might want or need. As the conversation went on, we ordered lunch and I took the time to teach Aiko how to use the microwave so that future leftovers wouldn't go to waste. I then went to Bali Spring's website to look at their different offerings and availability.

I figured that more money would likely equal fewer questions and a better chance to enquire about under-the-table offers without coming across as too suspicious. I looked up their most expensive package - which had a decent discount for a double booking - and noted that they did have some openings this afternoon.

A thought crossed my mind. Admittedly a little selfish, but having someone else there who was oblivious to my ulterior motives would help the believability of my cover… right? I input my details and selected the package and booking time, leaving my mouse hovering over the 'Pay Now' button.

Then I grabbed my phone and called Sam.

"Hey!" he answered after a few seconds. "What's up?"

"Hey Sam - Hey, listen, are you busy this afternoon?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah. I've got some classes, didn't I tell you this morning?"

"You did, yeah, umm... Look, I thought I'd ask anyway. I've been told to take a break from work and they actually bought me tickets to a day spa to get me out of the building! ...It's a pretty nice package. But it's a double booking. They told me to bring someone along with me. I'm... not sure who else to ask, and, well, I figured I'd repay you for the invite out into the city the other day. Maybe... did you wanna maybe skip your afternoon classes and come with me?" I finished up, speaking maybe a little fast as I reached the end of my proposition.

"Oh! Umm... Did- Do you need an answer right away?" he responded politely.

"Well- No, I suppose not, but... I'd like to know..." I replied, sounding forlorn. "Worst case, I guess, maybe I go alone... But, umm, it's okay if you can't, obviously, I know it's a bit to spring on you."

"Yeah. Tell you what, gimme a few minutes to check what I'd be missing and see if I can get someone to take notes for me. Call you back soon." He said before hanging up.

I leaned back in my chair and held my phone in my lap, looking up at the ceiling and spinning back and forth, just kinda pondering over things while I waited for a call back.

"Who's that?" Aiko asked as she poked her head up from the rough sketches she'd started drawing for her costume.

"Ahh, uhh, a friend of mine. Just purely because I figure going together would make it pretty hard to peg me as obviously spying," I answered with a half truth.

Aiko frowned a little.

"You're making a date out of your investigation?"

"Whoa- Where'd that come from?" I asked quickly with a little laugh. "It's not a date, I'm just going with someone so it doesn't look like I'm casing the joint like some kind of burglar. Or conspirator."

"Yeah. Two people going out to take part in an activity of some sort. I've seen enough movies to know what a date is."

"Are- Are you teasing me or upset right now? It's not a date date, seriously, we're not involved, I promise," I insisted.

"Just don't get distracted. You're there to do a job, okay?"

"Jesus. Deva with the- the 'don't bring the girl out for non-cape stuff' and now you with the 'you're there to do a job'! Am I walking around with a big 'I'm incompetent and impulsive' sign on my back or something? Have I given off the impression that I'm not taking this seriously? Aiko? Christ!"

I got up out of my chair and started to pace away towards the roller door and then back along in front of the rows of server racks.

Aiko shrunk down a little at the sudden outburst. The look on her face was that of a child who knew she'd done something wrong but didn't really understand why she was in trouble.

I looked up at her as I paced and stopped in my tracks, stunned. I'd seen that exact look so many times from my little sister, on account of our parents, and it hurt me to witness it now, just like it always had. My instinct to reach out and comfort her kicked in, and I'd raised my arm in her direction before I could stop myself, lowering it again and shaking my head slowly.

"Hey, Aiko, don't- I-" I pleaded softly. "I didn't mean to... You're not... I just..." I let out a sigh, deflating.

"Me either…" Aiko said softly. "Sometimes it's difficult- I don't really understand- I don't know if I'm different now because of my powers, or because of... what happened to me. Sometimes my emotions get all mixed up and I don't really understand which ones I'm feeling. I think I'm jealous? Or maybe just angry? I don't really know..."

I let the silence hang for a little while before responding.

"Do you think... Are you worried that I will get distracted?"

"Maybe a little? I don't know. It's not that I don't trust you. I just... I'm feeling kind of... Anxious? Like I've got this itch that's not an actual itch."

I took a while to ponder that.

"Is there... anything you could think of that you would feel better about? Some different plan, or... something else you want to do?" I probed, just as unsure about her feelings as she was.

"Is there something I could do while you're out? Just so I can feel useful, rather than sitting here waiting."

"I... I don't know what you could do, I'm sorry. At least until you've got a costume and a mask... it's not the safest for you to go anywhere alone. You could keep doing research, maybe - go through the PHO threads and try to figure out what people are saying lately about Wogs of War territory lines, conflicts, stuff like that... Unless there's something else you can think of, at least for this afternoon... it's probably best to stay in."

"Do you have like a training dummy or something?" Aiko asked, frustrated. "Then I could at least try practising with my powers a bit."

"Hmmmm. I've got targets. And a pair of mannequins I used when I was making my costume. The mannequins will probably break pretty easily, but the targets should take a beating - they're bolted to the floor and I shoot at them with my arrows, which are... pretty powerful."

Aiko perked up a little.

"That's okay! I can work with those. I'll try not to break the mannequins."

"I might think about getting something else more sturdy and humanoid? Something that can hit back a little bit? What do you think?" I asked, giving her a smile.

"Yeah, that would be great!" Aiko said enthusiastically.

"Okay. Maybe I could build something with hardlight, too," I mused, as my expression started to morph into one of tinker-fueled purpose.

"Mm. But later. You... You should go."

"Mmm. Uhh..." I headed over to my bag, pulling out my purse and fishing out enough cash for her to order enough food for a few days.

"I'm just waiting for a return call and I'll see what I'm doing," I said, handing it to her. "Here, if you wanna get anything else to eat."

She took the money from you and, as if on cue, Sam called back.

"Hey Sam!" I said quickly.

"Hey, I can afford to miss my classes today, but are you sure you wanna bring me? You don't have a girl friend you wanna bring with you instead?" he asked.

"Spa packages are for guys too, you know! You don't want a massage and some time in a hot spring?" I asked. "Have you ever actually gone to one before?"

"Well no, I'm just surprised I'm your first choice, is all."

"I suppose you could give your spot to Jane," I said with a little laugh - teasingly, but not unkindly. "No, but, really. I thought it might be nice given you invited me on your trip, and... well. I guess... work is kinda my life?"

"Okay, I'll come, if only to make sure you aren't working while you're there," he said.

Oh, the irony.

"What time and where? I'll meet you there."

"It's at a place called Bali Springs apparently, and it'll be..." I slowed for a moment as I clicked the 'Pay Now' button and looked for the confirmed booking time on the confirmation page. "Around one o'clock?"

"I'll see you at one, then. Anything else?"

"That's it for now! I'll see you then - bye!"

"Bye!" Sam said as he hung up.

"All set?" Aiko asked as she filled something in on her sketch.

"It's all lined up. I'll go check the place out. I'm hoping to find out that security is lax and it'll be pretty easy to visit later. I'll be taking mental note of any cameras and guards, confirming the layout of the building as much as possible and maybe I might catch some kind of indication of... girls there. If I have the opportunity at any point - and hopefully I will - I'll get 'lost' and do a quick bit of snooping around to confirm where the offices are. And, when I come back, I'll be back with the beginnings of your costume."

"Cool," she enthused.

I headed over to the targets - configurable to represent a variety of materials and withstand variable degrees of impact - and started to configure them with the maximally strong backing layer, followed by various layers of softer and softer material down to the front, a soft, clear gel-based flesh analogue, figuring that Aiko could probably cut her way down to whatever level she liked and keep hitting it.

As I puttered about rearranging the modular target layers, I let my mind drift to a hard light target dummy - probably an ideal training system in a number of areas, really...

I grabbed the mannequins, pulling off the various half-realised costume parts and leaving them bare and ready for their demise near the targets. Once that was all done, I started gathering my non-cape stuff, evacuating any cape gear from my vehicle as I got ready to head out.

Aiko set her sketch down and hopped up from the couch, walking over to join me at the target range.

"Looks good! I can definitely work with this. Thank you." She reached out and gave me a tentative hug before quickly letting go.

I stepped in close to her - before she could pull too far away - and drew her into a proper, tight hug. She let out a small squeak of surprise, and then melted a little as she just let me hug her.

A powerful protective instinct seized me and I just held her to me, engulfed in my arms, for like a whole minute... Maybe two. Maybe too long, I didn't know, but I wanted to just hold her for a minute even though we'd only really known each other for a few days.

When I finally pulled away, I spotted a little moisture in Aiko's eyes before she could quickly wipe it away.

"You should go now. Don't wanna be late for your not date," she snarked, flashing me an impish grin.

"It's not- are you actually teasing me now?" I retorted incredulously, rolling my eyes.

She poked her tongue out at me playfully.

I took one last look around the workshop as a quick visual check to make sure everything seemed in order, and then I turned to head for the car, with Aiko giving me a wave as I climbed in. I pulled out, pausing to make sure the shed's roller door dropped securely back down, and then drove off, heading to meet my roommate at the den of the enemy.

---

AN: I know this chapter was another slow one and I don't think I'm totally satisfied with it. I definitely feel it was necessary though with there being character development and planning that needed to take place before we get into the meat of this arc. Speaking of the meat of this arc, the forecast for the next chapter is sunny with a chance of asskicking!

Thanks to Casey for beta'ing and thanks to you for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

Undertow 2.3​

Tuesday, 12:54pm, April 26th, 2005

Sam was already waiting for me when I pulled into the parking lot next to Bali Springs. After a brief greeting and an apology for springing the whole thing on him so suddenly, we began to make our way to the front entrance. As we walked, I cast a scrutinising eye over the exterior of the building, paying close attention to the decorative timber facade, looking for signs of weathering and wear that might indicate its quality to me up close. I made note of the orientation of the building as well, lining up the plans in my head with its street facing and mentally marking out the location of the two rooms I was most interested in, checking that the windows all still lined up to the plans I'd seen.

Based on the building's orientation, I surmised that the offices and the room likely containing the MDF were adjacent to the parking lot I pulled into. The wooden facade exterior had some weathering to it but was otherwise well maintained.

"So. Able to get someone to take notes after all?" I asked conversationally, taking a quick glance up at Sam to my side as we stepped into the building.

"Yeah. Jane's covering two of my classes and then I've got another friend taking the third for me."

"I hope you'll find it was worth it!" I enthused, peering around the reception as we walked up to the front desk. I greeted the receptionist - a young looking woman with brown skin, a big smile and a smooth voice - and gave her the details of our booking. She then offered us a small checklist to fill out some preferences for the treatments and directed us to some chairs we could sit in.

I turned around a little bit to face Sam, pondering over my sheet and its many options. I pored over the list, quickly filling in all the boring allergy and medicinal stuff. Then I moved on to the straightforward options, picking a basic relaxation massage and a herbal scrub, looking up to see if Sam had picked anything exotic before I finalised my choices.

As I glanced up, Sam turned his checklist away defensively as if he was hiding a test paper from me. I faltered and quietly directed my eyes back down to my own clipboard, wondering if I'd made a faux pas. As I quickly ticked off the remaining boxes, something caught my eye as I got to the bottom of the checklist. I flipped the sheet over, honing in on some writing in a small font on the bottom right corner.

For more discreet services, ask the manager about a buttermilk scrub.​

I quickly flipped the page back down, doing my best to put on a poker face. It wasn't the most subtle of hints, but it was innocuous enough to go unnoticed if you weren't looking for it - and exactly the sort of thing you would look for if you were interested in 'discreet services'.

If I asked, I could probably downplay it and act embarrassed, I suppose. Going through with it might give me some insight as to where the girls are, and I could turn it down when the time comes... but with Sam here, that's a super awkward proposition. And it feels wrong.

No. I would pass. I'd already decided what I was here to get, and I would do just that. No need to improvise.

I made no comment, taking a step back from Sam as I turned to him again, just to be clear about not peeking at his sheet. We handed off our checklists to the receptionist and then made our way through to the changing rooms at her instruction. I stripped down, stowed my belongings in one of the lockers, and donned a robe before making my way through to something called a 'Garra pond', where I met up with Sam again.

Still mindful of my goals, I kept the context of the building layout in my head as I moved through to the next room. Some new walls had definitely been put up in order to segment the building further - but on a macro scale, the floorplan was unchanged, with all supporting walls marked in the blueprint still present. Stepping out into the Garra pond, I saw a small rounded pool set into the floor of the space, dressed up to look like a pond you might find at a park or a fancy backyard. There were a number of small fountains and water features feeding into the crystal clear water, which was filled with dozens and dozens of tiny fish, a number of which were currently swarming the feet of the three other people sitting around the pond.

"Wow..." Sam muttered as he exited the men's changing room and joined me.

"This place seems pretty up market," I admitted to him, making my way over to the pond to avail myself of the… fish pedicure?

Sam took a seat beside me, trying and failing not to squirm as the fish began to gather around his toes.

"Nice to know your hard work is being appreciated."

"More like you were probably right about me spending too much time at my job," I responded dryly, not bothering to try not to squirm and letting out a soft squeal instead as I flexed my toes, slowly acclimatising to the sensation.

Sam let out a laugh and then clamped his mouth shut as the other patrons flashed him a dirty look.

"Whoops," he whispered.

I let out a bit more of a restrained giggle, partially at the continued nibbling and partially at the situation he'd found himself in.

"It's a little hard for me to disengage," I continued conversationally after a moment. "I'm still thinking about work right now, you know. It just kinda continues on its own in the back of my mind sometimes. Hopefully I'll get some real good out of this trip."

"Well as long as it's not at the front of your mind, I suppose that's something."

I continued to look around, letting the sights of the place sink in... Discreetly checking for security cameras and making a final mental note of what the room implied about the layout, pushing myself to be as fastidious as I possibly could be in light of my sense of duty. So far, I'd clocked two cameras in the reception area, and now a third looking over the pond. After spending probably way too much time processing the details of the environment and neatly filing it away in my memory palace, I leaned back and closed my eyes, finally letting myself relax for a little bit.

Some other customers came and went and after about 20 minutes, two young looking women - one Asian and one Middle Eastern - came into the room to collect us. We were led down a hallway and into a large, well decorated room, with two massage tables set out in the middle.

"Would you like me to draw the privacy curtain?" The Asian woman asked.

I went to wave it down, indicating not to bother - having rarely been bothered with it with others in the past - and then I stopped, remembering how Sam avoided looking at me when I came downstairs earlier today.

"Oh, uhh," I stalled, looking over at Sam with a shrug.

"Um... I'd like the curtain please." Sam said a little awkwardly.

Entirely unconcerned, I nodded firmly in support of Sam's decision. The Asian woman smiled and drew a curtain up between the tables to conceal our bodies from each other, though we were still able to see each other's faces. The woman took my robe and helped me up onto the table to lie face down. She rubbed some oil over my back and then started the massage, based on my chosen preferences from the form.

I closed my eyes and let the masseuse do her thing, relaxing my body while my mind drifted. I re-envisioned the hallway we walked down, mentally ticking off the walls and partitions, again clocking any cameras, particularly noting any other visible doors and signage, adding everything to my mental map just in case it would be useful.

I opened my mouth to ask Sam what treatment he was currently getting behind the curtain, and then decided not to pry, just to be safe.

Instead, once my collation of the layout thus far was complete, I let my mind drift once more to blueprints of Data Knives, anti-gravity explosives, hard-light training dummies, and the other various concepts floating around in my head.

The next two hours drifted by in calm, relaxing bliss. The massage and body scrub finished, the woman helped me back to my feet and offered the robe again as she directed me towards a shower for washing off the scrub before going to the hot springs. I shrugged into the robe and thanked her, proceeding through to the shower and then the hot springs once I was clean, opting for the mixed gender pool.

A few minutes later - and to my pleasant surprise - Sam joined me, slipping into the spring a conservative distance from me and only removing the towel around his waist after he was submerged.

"Hooooo... That's nice."

"I thought you'd opt for privacy again," I muttered, not teasingly but merely observationally.

"I thought about it, but it seemed kinda rude to not join you since you invited me. Where'd all this confidence come from suddenly? …If you don't mind my asking?"

"Oh, I've... never really been bothered by it so much... It's only really embarrassing if someone else finds it embarrassing. I don't want to... make you uncomfortable, though, like I did when I came down from my room. I'm pretty sure we could talk over the barrier, if you'd prefer, but it is probably a little easier to chat here. I thought I'd leave it all up to you," I explained.

"I'm okay here. I never would have guessed you were embarrassed because I was."

"Well, I mean - sure, accidents happen, but I was embarrassed because I didn't mean to, uhh... well! Just because I'm okay with my body, doesn't mean exposing other people to it who aren't of the same opinion isn't really poor behaviour, you know? It's... rude, impolite."

"Yeah," he acknowledged.

"But, well, here you know what you're signing up for, I guess," I ventured, and Sam nodded sagely.

"You been enjoying yourself?" he asked.

"I think I've been getting what I came here for," I answered truthfully; in all honesty, also feeling quite relaxed, although somewhat energised beneath that layer. "My masseuse did a good job. How about yours?"

"My shoulders haven't felt this loose in ages. I'm gonna have to do some painting when I get home." Sam chuckled softly.

I let out a gentle laugh along with him.

"I wonder if you'll find an improvement in your work or not?" I asked, opening my eyes again to look at him, checking whether he was looking back at me, or elsewhere, or had his eyes closed like I did.

He was looking in my direction, making eye contact when possible. I liked that.

"Maybe~" he answered playfully.

"I'm gonna get up out of the water for a minute," I said by way of fair warning, having spent a few minutes heating up and ready to take a short break. I lifted my arms up out of the water behind myself, preparing to raise myself up, pausing for just a moment in case Sam wanted to avert his eyes.

He did as much. Closing his eyes and tilting his head up to point at the sky. I slowly pulled myself out, dripping as I sat myself up on the edge, lowering the towel down to my lap.

"You've never done something like this before painting, before, then?" I asked.

"You mean painting nude subjects?" Sam asked with a hint of incredulity, keeping his gaze firmly upwards.

I let out another soft laugh.

"I meant relaxing and getting a massage to see if it helps you with the detail work or something, but I like your question more."

"No, I don't usually go to spas. Not usually something that's in my budget, even with my current circumstances. I have painted nude subjects before, but they're professional models, and I'm doing it in a room full of other people also painting the same nude person. It's… not the same as looking at my roommate, slash friend, slash landlord while she's nude in a hot spring with me," he answered candidly.

"Think it makes a big difference? Being so much more... impersonal, about it, I suppose?"

"Absolutely," he asserted.

"For better or worse, do you reckon?"

"That is a much more difficult question… that my brain is too mushy to answer right now," he responded with another little chuckle.

I opened my eyes and fixed him with a stare, banking on catching him looking at me. His eyes were still shut and directed skyward.

Such a damn gentleman.

I let out a little chuckle and slid forwards to sink back into the hot water, moving my towel back up to my head and sinking back down to my shoulders. Sam gave a tentative glance down to me and then lowered his head, seeing I was now back in the water.

I spent another five minutes or so submerged, opting for idle chatter about Sam's classes, the news, or whatever came up, and then slipped out again - giving fair warning once more. While Sam was ostensibly not looking at me at all, I glanced back over to the main building, once again observing with a critical eye. Now that I'd had a chance to see it in person and think about it, Aiko was right. It was entirely plausible that a basement room had been added underneath the building when the springs were built.

I dipped back down for a third and final short soak before deciding I was done and letting Sam know as much, giving him the opportunity to be his polite self before I stood upright to exit the spring. Sam averted his eyes as I climbed out and departed the area, joining me again a few moments later once we were both covered. Another staff member came over and showed us back to the changing rooms to dry off and dress once more.

As I prepared to exit to the main area, I produced from my purse something I'd prepared the other day while working on my Data Knives. A small USB drive - one of three I'd brought - which I put just hidden mostly out of the way at the base of one of the lockers, where someone coming through to clean would see it. With any luck, they'd be dumb enough to plug it into one of the office computers and the malware program loaded on it would give me remote access to the machine even after the USB was unplugged.

I pocketed another USB, ready to seize an opportunity to plant it somewhere in or near the reception area on my way past, out of sight of the cameras I observed on the way in. Sam was waiting for me at the reception desk, currently filling out something on a clipboard. The receptionist turned to me with a smile.

"Would you mind filling out a quick survey to let us know how your experience was?"

"Of course!" I said, reaching out to take the proffered survey.

At the far end of the reception, I spotted a chair next to a side table with a potted plant and some magazines on it - it seemed to be just in the blindspot of the cameras. I waltzed over and planted myself down, clicking my pen a few times while I palmed the USB and then placed it carefully into the stack of magazines, making it look as though it may have fallen out of someone's pocket. Spycraft completed, I finished up the survey itself - standard fare I made sure to rate them highly on - and handed it in before returning to Sam.

"Heading home now?" Sam asked as we made our way out to the parking lot.

"I need to pick something up from the shops, so you'll beat me home," I replied.

"Back for dinner though?"

"I should be," I weaselled. "Might be a bit late, but no later than seven thirty, alright? I'll send you a text when I'm on my way back?"

"Awesome. I'll be sure to have dinner ready by seven forty-five then. See ya soon!" He gave me a wave goodbye.

I waved back, opening the door and getting into my car, then pulling out my phone to fiddle with it until he pulled out. Once he was gone, I wound a window down and peeled out, tossing the final USB out onto the pavement to clatter in towards the walkway along the outside of the building - basically no security system was going to save camera footage at a bitrate high enough to even spot the tiny little thing without forensic analysis, or so I gambled.

---

I already knew exactly where to go to get materials for Reef's costume, having done all the research the first time around making my own. After hitting the outdoor/sporting goods store, a textile outlet, and a hobby shop, I pulled back up to the lab a little under two hours later, just before 7pm.

I found Aiko munching on some taiyaki as I unloaded my recent purchases, and we spent some time going over the sketches she'd worked on in my absence. I told Aiko about my findings at Bali Springs, and explained the USB plan to her, after which she sheepishly admitted to ruining one of the mannequins and damaging the targets I'd left her with.

I cast my eyes over to survey the carnage for a moment before looking back at her with a barely exasperated sigh. There was some heavy denting in one of the targets I'd set up. As for the mannequins, the arms on one had been broken in half and the other had had its torso completely crushed just above the stomach, effectively cutting it in half.

"Oh well. They'll be cheap to replace, and I was kind of expecting you to smash them, so it's okay," I said with a forgiving smile. "Will you be alright here for the rest of the night?"

"Yeah. I'll be fine, there's a ton of sushi and stuff in the fridge and I ate a whole bunch at lunch so I'm not too hungry. Is there anything for me to do here about the USBs or is that all you?"

I shook my head.

"If they do pick them up and plug them in, it'll try to run some software that will install itself and then try to phone home. If they're really smart or well organised they might have their computers secured against that exploit, or maybe a policy in place to throw out USBs, but it only takes one person to think 'Oh, I'll just plug it in to see who it belongs to' and, welp, system's compromised. I think there's a good chance I might not need to use a Data Knife or sneak in personally if it works, but we'll see. Probably by tomorrow."

Aiko gave a thumbs up as she took another bite of taiyaki.

With that, I gave Aiko the suggestion to look up some sewing and dyeing tutorials and a warm farewell before heading back to the apartment. Unfortunately, traffic was not on my side on the drive home, and it was approaching 7:45 before I made it back. A sheepish smile and an apology on my part was met with some light teasing - followed by a meal of herb-seared chicken with roasted vegetables and a lemon-y sauce that beat anything I could have ordered off a menu. I thanked Sam again for joining me and for the meal before retiring to my room to spend a few hours working on the software components of my Data Knife concept and then conking out.

The next day got off to an excellent start as I rolled over to check my phone for notifications.

Software upload successful.​

You beauty!

I let out an approving grunt and pumped my fist in the air victoriously. I quickly climbed out of bed and set about getting dressed and fixing myself some toast as I shot Aiko a text to let her know we'd got a bite and we'd find out what we'd caught when I got to the workshop.

A response quickly followed.

Aiko: 🖕​

I hung my jaw open in bewilderment, until a second text came through.

Aiko: Crap. Wrong one.
Aiko: 🤞 ✌️​

I chuckled to myself before shooting off a response of my own.

Annelise: See you soon! 👋😉🖕
Aiko: 😛​

Well, she's getting the hang of texting pretty quickly, which is good.

I cleaned up after myself quickly and then headed back down to the car to head to 'work'.

Cautiously optimistic, I pulled up, dropped the roller door, and proceeded into the back, calling out cheerily to Aiko.

"Hi- Ow! Fuck! Hothothothothot!" came the reply from above.

Up on the mezzanine I caught Aiko doing a ridiculous dance as she tried to dodge away from an invisible foe and quickly resorted to pulling her shirt off.

"Everything OK?" I called out to her, pausing on my way over to the computers to peer cautiously up in her direction, in case she needed any help quickly.

"Spilt coffee over myself. It was so hot!" She came downstairs a few moments later in just a sports bra and some loose pants, tossing some paper towels into the bin before offering me a takeout cup.

"Oh, you got some for me too?" I lit up happily as I relieved her of the offered cup, holding it up to my lip to test the temperature.

"Yeah! Seemed rude not to. Careful."

As I held it to my lips, I pulled back reflexively. It was very hot. With a chuckle, I set it back down at my desk a little bit away from my keyboard and a few stacks of loose papers, dropping down into my chair.

"Thanks, Aiko. Oh, uhh, do you need any more cash yet?" I asked as I turned around to face the screens, logging in and bringing up a terminal.

"I'll probably be okay for the next day or two but who cares about that?! What did we get!?!" She leaned over to me very eagerly, pressing up close as she looked over my shoulder at my computer screen.

Proudly I issued a command that printed a little text-formatted ASCII table, with one entry, denoting a single remote shell currently dialled into my server for me to run commands on.

"Ta-da!" I said, gesturing grandly at what probably looked like a useless mess of alphanumeric jargon to her. "Now, to be fair, we don't know what we'll get. It might not be incredible. Especially if they're old-school and do all their books by hand... but who knows. If we get a little bit lucky - maybe incriminating evidence, stuff we can use to track down higher-ups and other important locations."

"So can we look through their files or do we have to wait for them to do stuff?"

"Well, let's find out! We might need to. Right now, I have a shell running on some computer, most likely one of the ones at Bali Springs that's probably on their internal network. Lets see here..."

I intertwined my fingers and stretched, palms out, before leaning forwards and attaching to the remote shell. I ran some commands, looked at some outputs, a few walls of text denoting the extent of hardware accessible to the shell, trying to find some clues to put together a picture of exactly what they'd plugged my USB into.

A point of sale, perhaps? Or an office computer?

A few minutes of browsing around coupled with context clues told me this was most likely the reception computer, but it was connected to some other systems. There were records for bookings, some email communications, employee rosters, maintenance scheduling…

"We've got some records, some correspondence, rosters, stuff like that," I explained to Aiko in a stilted manner between rapid typing. "I'm grabbing what I can now, and I'm hoping, if we're lucky, that their cameras aren't closed-circuit, because then we might be able to take a peek..."

A few more minutes of searching, rooting and querying passed and I was left disappointed.

The cameras were on a closed circuit, or at the very least, they weren't on the same network I currently had access to. Furthermore, any other truly useful pieces of info that I might have hoped to access didn't reveal themselves to me. Nothing related to finances or transactions, and there was a distinct lack of administrative communication, files or the like.

"Damn..." I muttered softly as I probed a few other avenues to confirm what I already knew. "Ahh, well, can't win them all so easily..."

I leaned back in my chair, idly watching the download progress as my program pillaged their devices for what minimal lesser-secured data remained available, pondering the next move.

"What? Is it no good?" Aiko asked, sounding somewhat distressed.

"We got in, and we got some stuff to go through. Might be some useful stuff in here, but might not be. No cameras on that net... And there's other stuff missing too. I'm pretty sure there's another network there, physically segregated. That will be where all the administrative stuff is, and possibly the cameras. But I've gotten everything I likely can out of the USB trick."

Aiko frowned and her brow creased with frustration. There was a slight crumpling sound as she squeezed her coffee cup just a bit.

I liked to think I'd gotten to know Aiko pretty well, even though it had only been a couple of days. I'd seen her at probably one of her lowest lows and what I hoped was one her highest highs in recent years. She was visibly fighting the urge to lash out in anger. I reached out and steadily placed a hand softly on her wrist above the cup; with my other hand I reached out to gently take it from her, intending to set it down and lean in for a hug.

It took a bit of effort to wrest the cup from her hand and the moment I did she tightened it into a white-knuckle fist. She made no move to close herself off from the hug I wanted to give, but she didn't open up for it either. From the look on her face, I wasn't sure she even recognised I was beside her right now. Her silence was deafening.

Instead of a hug, I left one hand on her wrist and reached across her to put my other hand firmly on her shoulder to ground her.

"Aiko. This cost us nothing to get, and we haven't struck out yet. We're so far from out of the game it's not even funny, we've got so many options left it's just a matter of deciding which one to take; like I said, can't win everything that easy, and if they were really that vulnerable, some other hacker would have fragged their system for laughs or blackmail long before I came along. This was just the opening salvo, okay? A ranging shot. We didn't get everything, but we were prepared to get nothing out of this. This is good."

"We got nothing. We wasted a day talking about playing dress-up then you went and got a massage..." Her voice was tight as she spoke, rage boiling just beneath the surface.

I faltered, recoiling back in slow motion, leaning back into my chair with a distraught expression. The soft tugging at her shoulder stopped as my hand slowly slid back with me, my hand on her wrist dropping down to dangle off the arm of my chair. I opened my mouth to say something and then shut it again a moment later, my brain having failed to supply anything to respond with in time. I just sat and let her statement twist in the air unanswered.

"It's not over," I insisted stubbornly after a few moments, my tone a little bit lacklustre.

Aiko continued to just stand still, rigid with anger, still fighting the desire to just explode with anger.

And then she lost.

Her head snapped to the left in the direction of the practice range and the tentacle erupted out of her arm. It lanced towards the mannequin with broken limbs and closed around its throat before proceeding to slam it into the ground over and over again until the torso was nothing but shattered plastic. She retracted the tentacle, pulling the head of the mannequin to her other hand and it expanded into the shape of a giant, inky black crab claw, using it to effortlessly crush the head as if it was made of paper.

I jerked away as she lashed out violently, kicking out to roll my chair away from her as she used her power so close, so suddenly and so angrily. I pushed up to my feet abruptly once I had a few feet of separation and continued to back away as my chair careened off somewhere behind me. Heart pounding and eyes wide, I kept my gaze fixed on her, save for the moment I glanced away to locate the Lightreach.

Once the mannequin head exploded in the grip of her power and her sudden outburst started to subside, I slowly came to a stop, most of the way backed up to the weapon stand holding the Lightreach upright, my hand halfway behind me, frozen damningly mid-reach for it.

I blinked at her once, twice in the ensuing silence, uncomfortably still, remembering what she did to the people at the Buena, what she did to the person who begged for their life. That sickening crunch a deafening echo in my ears.

A deathly silence hung in the air as Aiko took a few deep breaths, the claw slowly withdrawing back into her arm.

"Tonight." She said, her voice not as tense but still hard, adamant. "We go tonight and we do it your way. Or I leave tomorrow and I go back to doing it my way."

She didn't mean it as a threat. It was a statement of fact.

---

AN: Definitely not as happy with this chapter as I could be. 😕 I said the forecast was sunny with a chance of asskicking last chapter but life really got in the way of things these last two weeks. On top of work, I had to fly out of state for a few days for a big job interview and then when I got back, it was finally time to graduate from university after three and a half long years!

On top of all that, I discovered as I was writing that there was actually a whole lot of stuff that came between Lise leaving for Bali Springs and the brief throwdown that will occur there. It was too much to manage as a single chapter in order to finish in time, so I made the call to split it in two in order to have something ready for this week.

Because the next chapter is already partially written, I'm hoping to get it out a week ahead of schedule but I can't make any promises. Here's to hoping you'll all stick around until it releases.

Thanks as always to Casey for beta'ing and thanks for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

Undertow 2.4​

Wednesday, 10:02am, April 27th, 2005

Aiko slowly turned to look at me, a hint of sadness crossing her face as she saw me frozen, reaching for the bow. She spoke again, her voice softer now.

"I'm gonna go shower... Sorry about the mess." She turned and started to head back up the stairs towards the bathroom.

I barely moved except to follow her with my eyes as she walked off, my arm slowly lowering back down to my side. It wasn't until she entered her room that I explosively released the breath I'd been holding, collapsing back into my chair a few more steps behind me and leaning forward to put my head in my hands and thank my lucky stars, warranted or no.

It took me a few minutes to recover. Once the post- fight-or-flight shakes had finally stilled, I got up and pushed my chair back to my computer. I adjusted a webcam to point across the lab towards the stairs and opened a window with the feed, using it as a makeshift mirror to watch behind myself for Aiko's return. I then pulled on my costume gloves, with the embedded signal plates that I could use to activate the Lightreach quickly. If I needed to…

Forcing myself to calm down a little - though checking over my shoulder religiously in case Aiko came back - I immersed myself once more in the plans for my Data Knife. I was going to need it tonight.

Aiko emerged from the bathroom about 40 minutes later in minimal clothing and came back downstairs. Without a word, she gathered up the wetsuits, dyes and a few other tools before heading back upstairs. She was gone for maybe another two and a half hours before emerging again, now fully clothed in a t-shirt and shorts. She descended again and gathered up the fabric, padding and everything else I'd purchased the day before and carried it back up to the mezzanine. I watched her struggle with the huge pile, but couldn't work up the nerve to offer to help. She could have used her tentacle to make things easier for herself, but refrained from doing so for whatever reason. I suspected it was supposed to be for my benefit, and found myself feeling a touch guilty for not offering to help as a result.

She descended again a few moments later and quietly approached me, not getting too close and being careful not to startle me as I worked. Having spotted her approaching on the webcam, I was already spinning around in my chair as she gently cleared her throat to get my attention.

I couldn't stop myself from getting more and more tense as she got closer, preparing to stand.

"Have you got some sewing equipment?" she spoke softly.

"Yes," I replied after a moment, raising a combat-gloved hand to point over to a bench further down, closer to the exit. "Just there."

Aiko nodded, taking a moment to look everything over.

"Is it okay if I work here?" she asked tentatively.

"Yeah," I lied. "No problem."

Aiko went back upstairs and brought everything she'd gathered back down. Setting everything out, she flipped open the sketchbook I'd given her to a page with a couple of crude drawings of what she'd envisioned her costume as. Doing her best not to disturb me, she pulled up some video tutorials on her laptop and set to work.

I surreptitiously changed the angle on my webcam to cover the side she would now be approaching from, and then got back to work. The hours passed by in focused, tense silence, only ever interrupted by the occasional grunt or grumble of frustration from Aiko when she made a mistake during her efforts.

…

"I don't think this is a good idea," I stated simply into the relative silence, broken only by scribbling, mechanical tooling and the hum of the prototype hard-light generator.

Aiko stopped midway through her work and exhaled something between a huff and a sigh.

"Maybe it's not, but I can't stomach waiting longer. Not when the long way proves so... empty. And those other girls definitely can't stand to keep waiting." She went back to her work for a moment and then stopped again. "Don't forget to call Deva, let her know we're coming."

I grunted in acknowledgement, letting another few minutes pass in silence as I tweaked and scribbled and redrew a diagram.

"And if I can't get anything useful out of their computer systems before the police, APRA, or the Wogs of War show up in force?" I asked, trying not to come across as challenging.

"APRA shouldn't bother us as long as you call Deva. The police won't be able to do anything to stop us. And if the Wogs show up, we go through them," she answered matter-of-factly.

I let out another grunt, ruminating on her answer again for another few minutes.

"I can't fight the police if they respond," I said earnestly.

"We won't. I don't want to hurt people who haven't done anything wrong. We can just fly away if they show up. You only need to shoot an arrow into their computers right?"

"And hope it works. This will be the first time I've used it."

"I trust you," she replied.

"We don't know where the girls are yet."

"We'll find out tonight," she asserted. "We'll get the place itself, or the names of other places we can look. There might even be some girls there at Bali Springs we can save."

"We don't know who at Bali Springs would know anything useful to us."

As my line of interrogation picked up - not accusatory, simply... insistent and factual - I focused on what was in front of me, continuing as I split my attention between some delicate hard-light wirework and tackling strategic problems.

Aiko's breath caught a little as I spoke.

"Why are you being so pessimistic about this? I thought heroes were supposed to be symbols of hope." There was no anger left in her voice, but her tone was still hard.

"I'm not a hero," I replied softly, lowering the tool I was working with to the benchtop and sitting back in my chair. "A hero wouldn't waste a day talking about playing dress-up and then go and get a massage while girls are suffering..."

I let out a sigh that bled a complex mix of emotions; guilt, worry, hurt, anxiety…

"I'm not a hero, I'm a person, and I'm afraid," I continued. "Of doing the wrong thing and losing the trail, of not securing the advantage we need to succeed in the long run. I'm afraid that the Wogs of War will harden their defences and get ahead of us and stop us dead or worse before we can free anyone else. I'm afraid that doing the right thing now will make the right thing later impossible to achieve. I'm afraid of people dying. I'm afraid of this turning out with me getting a reputation as another killer cape, a villain, and being forever tarred with that brush - instead of us doing this right and succeeding in the end and redeeming both of us."

I leaned forward again, picking up the tool and getting back to work.

"And besides - a hero can't help you. You don't want a hero. They'd be obligated to take you into custody," I muttered.

"Everyone's a person. If you're not a hero, then what are you?" Aiko asked. "Maybe I'm stupid or my head is messed up because of everything I've dealt with but I feel like I don't understand you. How can you be brave enough… to look after a serial killer, spend time with them, treat them like a human being… but be too scared to risk getting a bad reputation for trying to do something good?"

"You think it's inconsistent of me to be scared of the world treating me like a villain just for trying to do the right thing... and then turn around and try to humanise you, because that's already happened to you, but worse, because you were victimised for years beforehand? That doesn't make sense to you?"

"I... I don't know... You've been a hero to me, though. What good are the people in the Alliance and APRA, if the law stops them from doing the right thing when they know something wrong is going on? In the movies, sometimes the hero has to break the rules in order to save the day. I... I know I've already gone too far, but you haven't. Deva trusted you to do the wrong thing for the right reason. To help me because she couldn't. I think that should make you a real hero… So why are you afraid to be one?"

I intoned my response, measuring out each sentence and word and delivering it all evenly, without accusation or pleading, plucking away at my design all the while.

"There's a middle ground between doing everything above-board, which is what Deva must do, and doing... what we're doing tonight, what you've done so far. That middle ground, that's where I... want to be. I told you at the start we had to do it my way, but it feels like you've lost faith in that, lost faith in me. That... hurts, but maybe it's fair, and either way, that's your prerogative.

"I don't think it was the wrong choice to go get the massage, but... I feel bad about it, now. Because if we go tonight, it really will have been for naught. And I will have really actually paid for a pampering at a business run by people exploiting girls like you for no reason at all and I'm not sure I'll be able to come to grips with that. And, I can't regret taking you shopping. You needed clothes, but you also needed to just be a person too. None of it will be useless unless we disregard all that effort and just rush in, praying and crossing our fingers that we find our next lead.

"The selfish part of me is screaming to cut my losses, let you go, say I 'escaped' you after you kidnapped me, and get away clean. It would be the soulless, pragmatic thing to do. I'm not really sure why I'm committed to going with you tonight. Maybe I'm afraid. Maybe because I know if you're going anyway, you'll have a better chance with me. Doesn't matter why, I suppose."

I let the last words hang in the air, standing on their own, my delivery not requiring or demanding any answer in particular.

"What would we be doing if we weren't going tonight?" Aiko asked. "Spending the day working on my costume, while you spend some time on your arrow?"

"No, I don't know how far along your costume is, but I'll have my arrow ready tonight anyway. What would we be doing? Planning to sneak in and get access to the hidden network. Or just shooting it with an arrow, yes, but trying to hide it. Trying to find out where the girls are, if there are any on site, before we get there. Trying to find out who at Bali Springs knows anything useful before we get there so that we can catch them before they run away and leave us with patsies to interrogate uselessly. Staking out the rooftops in the area to find out where the best spot for me to be when we attack will be. Trying to find a way to hide the Peregrine from Sentinel so I can monitor suspected Wogs of War coming and going twenty-four seven. Trying to manufacture results-focused options for us. So that when we go to smash... we know our enemy, our goal, and how to achieve it."

I shrugged, resigned.

"I'm coming with you tonight, I already said. I'm committed. I just want to make as much as I can with what I've got."

"That's what I want too. I don't think your approach is wrong, it's just too slow… At least this time. This is just another place like the other's I've hit but you're treating it like we're walking into the final boss room. I want your thing to work. I really do. I hope we can just shoot an arrow and get everything we need. But if we can't, I'm not okay with going home and trying again another day. You said you can hack in yourself, so we do that if the arrow doesn't work." Aiko got up from her chair and eased closer to me, watching my reaction carefully.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you with what I said this morning. I was angry… but not at you. It's not your fault your plan didn't work and I'm still really thankful you took me out shopping. I can't be angry at you for that." She folded her hands in front of herself awkwardly. "I know you're scared of me now... After what I did... Is there... something I can do to change that?"

I turned to face her as she came closer, tensing up for a moment before making a conscious effort to lean back again and take a deep breath in the process.

"I've seen dead bodies before. I was in the city when Leviathan attacked. But you were... the first time I've seen someone actually... being killed. I know, compared to what you've been through - I can only imagine - that pales in comparison and I'm just being precious about it. But I can't... deal with the sound that man's chest made when you... crushed it. The way his ribs all... cracked, all at once. I tell myself he deserved it, in my gut I think he probably did, but I don't know. And whether he deserved it or not, it scared the life out of me. I thought I was next. That was all before I knew you, but it's... still there, knocking around in my skull. I don't think I've been scared of you since this morning. I think, deep down, I've been scared of you the whole time and you just reminded me why. I know you didn't, wouldn't, at least I hope so, but fear doesn't always make sense."

I thought for a few moments.

"And that's one of the reasons I'm not a hero," I added as an afterthought.

"Oh..."

She seemed genuinely saddened by the idea that I was scared of her. She gave me a small nod and took a step back.

"I... That's fair..."

"I'm sorry," I said simply to her, pausing for a few moments to let the apology air before pressing on. "I mean it. I'm not a hero. I'm afraid. I want to do the right thing. I don't want to be a bad person. I don't want to be scared. I don't want to kill. I want to help you and I wish I could handle it better. I'm sorry."

"You're trying. That's more than anyone's done for me in a really long time." Aiko sat back down and turned back to the desk. "Let's just get ready for tonight. We should leave a little before midnight."

I gulped painfully and turned back to my bench.

"It should be enough. We should be okay," I said, trying more to convince myself rather than her. "It's not like it's a total Hail Mary. We've got a plan. We'll probably find what we're looking for. It'll probably just be in, smash, threaten, gather information, and leave."

"Mm."

---

By 11:45pm, I was suited up and ready to go with three Data Knife arrows in my bandolier. A minute later, Aiko descended from the mezzanine, suited up in her prototype costume.

A neoprene diving suit dyed a deep ocean blue, with the sleeves and a large portion of the back cut off, served as a warm base layer. Over that, she had attached some elbow and knee pads which - along with her boots - had been painted in bright pastel colours like pieces of coral. Finally she wore a big sea green poncho cut into the shape of an upside down wave which allowed her some modesty - as well as extra protection, from the spare bits of kevlar weave I'd helped sew into fabric where it fell over her chest and stomach. The only piece that didn't really fit was the helmet she'd borrowed from me. It was a spare prototype of my current helmet, stripped down to the basic frame and internal components for the HUD and communication, so Aiko had covered most of it with the hood of the poncho. It was definitely a crude and rushed first attempt at a costume, but it was functional. Better-known capes had certainly been seen in worse costumes.

"How do I look?" Reef asked tentatively.

"Like a professional. The helmet needs work, though... Sorry. I will come up with a better setup for you soon, I promise."

"Thanks. I'm not sure the full helmet is really my thing but we'll work on it. So, are we gonna fly or drive?"

"Fly. We'll be fastest on my board," I said, lifting the Peregrine's shell up and sliding it back up beneath my cloak to mag-lock to my backplate. "No killing. Please."

"No killing. Promise."

As we climbed up onto the roof, I found myself thinking about how quickly it was becoming my preferred launch point for going out in costume.

Perhaps I should add some kind of lift to make getting up here easier and faster for takeoffs?

Reef climbed up behind me onto the board and I struggled to hide my discomfort as she wrapped her arms around my midsection.

"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked, no doubt feeling how tense I was. "I can fly myself."

I tentatively eased into my flight stance, lowering one hand to rest against her arm around my stomach, not entirely at ease, but a far cry from freezing up or fleeing.

"I know, but we'll be faster like this," I reasoned. "Ready?"

"Let's go."

I took off, building up speed as we came around to angle for Bali Springs in the distance. Picking up speed, I felt Reef's grip tighten around my waist as the two of us raced across to the north side of the city in a matter of minutes. Even as I slowed back down near Bali Springs, her grip remained tight.

"Wow. That was really fast..."

I let her comment go unanswered - a small, prideful smile being the only outward response she'd never see.

"I was planning on taking a rooftop and supporting from afar. Between your camera and my targeting software, I think I could probably shoot straight through the walls at an enemy in a pinch. I can monitor the situation from out here, focus on my Data Knife, and make sure nothing goes awry. If I'm seen fighting directly alongside you, that will invite some awkward questions in terms of our polite fiction with Deva that 'the killer' kidnapped me. Is that... okay with you?"

"Yeah. That's fine. I figured we'd start with the arrow. There's no reason for me to go down there if we can get everything we need from the arrow. Where should we land?"

In lieu of an immediate answer, I pivoted slightly, turning my head to survey the area and look for a rooftop that would serve well for our plan. I patted Reef's forearm twice by way of warning and then gracefully angled down, towards a five-storey office building a few buildings down from Bali Springs. I shot past it and came around in a J-hook to settle over the rooftop, where I had a clear shot at the wall where the server banks should be.

Reef loosened her grip and nimbly dropped down onto the concrete roof of the building with a little huff.

"First thing's first. I'm calling Deva now."

I brought up the softphone in my helmet, punching out to my real phone to call the contact number I had saved for her and let it ring for a few seconds until she picked up.

"Parthian. Is everything okay?"

"Deva. I'm not saying someone might be making a move... but you should make sure you're ready to respond to a callout to Bali Springs tonight."

There was a slightly exasperated huff over the line.

"Okay, I'm already patrolling the north side of the city. There's still a small APRA unit stationed in the area but Bali Springs has been lowered on the list as a priority watch site. It's fine this time, but I need more notice in future, okay?"

"I'll take it under advisement. Thanks."

"I hope you find what you need. Good luck tonight." She hung up.

"Me too," I answered to the dead line as I stepped off the board, pivoting inwards in the air to land with a slight bend of the knees, the handle of the Lightreach in front of my chest. I reached down to my left hip bandolier, pulling the first Data Knife and nocking it almost reverently in the massive greatbow.

"Alright, Reef. Ready?"

"Fire away."

With 99 percent of the calculations pre-computed based on a number of assumptions about the exterior and interior building material specifications, as well as a number of predictions of the prototype Data Knife, hastily confirmed with quick measurements before setting off, the only work left for my targeting computer to do was account for distance, elevation, and windage.

I gently pushed the Lightreach into position, pivoting it about the handle with the gentlest touches, lining it up somewhere between my own intuition and the HUD's projected reticles, pulling the hard-light bowstring until the internal sensors measured an optimal tension in the mechanism.

After a few seconds, when the moment felt right and the wind shifted, I loosed the arrow with a 'crack'. Like a silent missile, it whizzed through the air, punching clean through the concrete and embedding itself in the wall next to where I hoped the distribution board was.

Before I could stop myself, I let go of the Lightreach - having held the archer's pose for the entire duration of the arrow's flight - leaving it floating unassisted while I pumped both fists into the air and then brought them back down. Hastily I composed myself and opened the Data Knife uplink in my HUD, watching as the hard-light exploit processor came to life and reached out with faintly glowing hard-light cables to find network paths to intrude on.

"Did it work?"

"Oh, it worked," I said, watching as literal streams of packets began flowing through the little terminal in my HUD. I manipulated the uplink a little bit, muttering to myself.

"Give me the cameras, please, DK..."

It took a few seconds to locate the feeds amongst the rest of the data and then I was in. Seven feeds popped up in small windows on my HUD labelled 'Reception', 'Garra Pond', 'Hot Spring Entry', 'Staff Room', 'Office' and 'Storage'.

I passed the feeds through to the HUD on Reef's helmet and then began looking through them myself. On the Reception feed I could see one burly looking dude sitting in the receptionist's chair, looking at something on his phone. On the Office feed, I saw a similarly dressed man, sitting at the desk watching the computer screen. There was nothing of note on the other feeds except for the 'Storage' feed which was currently showing static.

That caught my attention and I enlarged the video. Something seemed off about it.

What's going on here..? Oh! I see.

To a non-tinker or someone without the right experience, the crackling image would just appear as static, but I could see the difference. There was a repeating pattern to the fuzziness. Not static - encryption.

"That camera labelled 'Storage' - it's not broken," I explained to Reef almost breathlessly. "It's encrypted! But how? I should have control of that camera. I'm missing something. Is the encryption happening in firmware..?"

I started issuing queries and commands to the device, probing it, but a one-way firewall stymied my attempts; with only one option left, I started working on de-scrambling it on the receiving end. A few minutes later, I had a working filter cipher running on my helmet, revealing the image of… A small room, probably not much more than five by five metres, half of which was taken up by a large mattress - on which two young looking women slept.

"Reef..."

"Rokudenashi," Reef growled.

"We'll get them out," I asserted in a firm voice. "Let me do some more digging. You keep watching all the feeds, see if you can piece together where 'Storage' is, and if there are any more people in the building."

With the cameras under my control, the next step was breaching the protected office computers in the search for incriminating evidence. Bank accounts, a handful of names and contact info, records of women who'd been cycled through recently, and some other employee info and correspondence were all within my digital grasp. Plenty of information useful for prosecutors, but nothing immediately useful to us right this second. No addresses, either.

I syphoned it all away as fast as possible, saving it to local storage in my helmet as well as opening a connection to my own servers to upload it all securely.

"Alright. I think I've got everything I'm likely to be able to get. I haven't searched through it all personally yet so I don't know exactly what we'll find... but it looks good. Good stuff we can give to the authorities after we're done. Have you figured out where 'Storage' is yet? And have you spotted anyone else other than those two guards inside?"

"Haven't seen anyone else," Reef answered, "but there's a lot of blindspots and totally unsurveilled areas inside. Am I using those words right?"

"Yep. So... Storage could be anywhere in the building, but I think it will probably be an undocumented basement level."

"Most likely in the back. There's a whole bunch of unmonitored space on the building's right side where the staff areas are. If it's a new room, they'll have added it when they built the springs. Two guards - one per girl - is normal, but we should assume there's at least three."

"Okay. Do we think it's just a few guards inside? Not likely to be anyone else?"

"This place isn't worth protecting with a cape," Reef said with certainty. "Even if they're expecting me- Well, the other me, to show up."

"Okay. I think the only thing left is to get in there, deal with the guards, get the girls out, destroy the place, and leave. What do you think?"

"Destroy the place?" I couldn't see Reef's face but I could hear the eager grin in her voice.

"Yes. Gratuitous, devastating property damage. Hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of it. Enough to write off this little enterprise of theirs. You seem pretty well suited for it and I'm sure it will be quite cathartic for you, too."

"Fuck yeah." Reef's poncho rustled as her wings burst out of the openings in the back of it.

"Alright. Here's what we do. You go in, scare the shit out of the guards, send them running, and I will restrain them after they exit. Then you go find the girls. I will call Deva and tell her to get them to safety. Then you go take out all your anger on the building. Smash the reception, destroy the massage rooms, see if you can wreck the pools. Tear down some of the ugly facade. See if you can get up and wreck the roof, too, that'll be a hundred thousand dollars worth of damage on its own. Do you want to interrogate the guards once you're done?"

"I don't think they'll have anything better than what you've got. Can I at least throw them around a bit?"

"I'll ask Deva to keep any police or APRA response back while you're rampaging... for their own safety while she evacuates bystanders, of course. I'll make sure the guards don't move once I've restrained them and you can go say hi before we leave."

"Ikkimashou." Reef turned on her heel and dashed to the edge of the roof, leaping off and flying down towards the front entrance.

"You're hotmic'd to a radio link just between us, just talk and I'll hear. Keep me apprised."

I brought up the softphone to dial Deva again while I linked the electronics of Reef's helmet camera to my targeting system, tracking her as she moved towards the building and giving me an idea of where she's looking.

"Update?" Deva said as she picked up.

"Two female victims. Probably in an undocumented basement level. Two, maybe three guards. Nobody else on site identified yet. We're going in to get them out, maybe ask the guards some polite questions before we leave. I have a mountain of digital evidence of criminal activity I will submit anonymously to APRA or wherever else you like.

"When the call comes in for a disturbance, I will need you to make sure APRA and the police stay back from the scene until you've dealt with the, uhh, 'dangerous rampaging cape', and then delay dealing with her until you've helped get the two victims to safety. If this all goes down without a hitch, nobody's going to get seriously hurt and the Wogs of War are going to get a nasty hit to their business here. Any questions? Oh, by the way, say 'Hi', Reef, you're on the line."

"Hi Deva, it's me. I'm also gonna trash the place once we're done helping the girls."

"I'm glad to meet you, Reef." Deva spoke with a calm confidence. "I will advise police and APRA to hold their positions while I engage. Once you've detained the guards and the women are safe I will move in to secure the area. I think it would be wise neither of you are present when the authorities arrive. And Reef, I should warn you that the Atlas Alliance does not endorse gratuitous property damage in the line of duty. However, in this case, I absolutely do. Call me when it's done." Deva hung up again as Reef touched down in front of the building.

"You heard the angel," I murmured into Reef's ear, readying a Snare arrowhead for the first sucker to run out of the building. "Best get to it."

Watching through her helmet camera, Reef was presented with the closed entrance to the building. The big glass windows were shuttered and a blind was dropped down behind the glass double doors. Drawing her hand back and manifesting the massive crab claw, Reef lunged forward and smashed through the glass of the door, completely shattering it and tearing down the blind behind it in one move.

"Jesus fuck!" the guard at the receptionist's desk cried, falling out of his chair in shock before clumsily scrambling to his feet as he fumbled for a weapon holstered at his hip.

Reef lunged forward with her tentacle arm, slamming the guard into the wall behind him. His head flew back and smacked against the wall with enough force to knock him out instantly as the tentacle wrapped around him like a boa constrictor. Before Reef could make her next move, a high pitched whistle came from down the hall towards the staff area as a door closed. On the CCTV feed, I saw the guard who was in the main office had drawn a small pistol and stepped out into the hall, the whistle a likely signal for any other guards.

Reef extended her tentacle and gently held the unconscious guard out on the sidewalk. Ready and waiting, I loosed my arrow and effortlessly ensnared the guard before Reef gently deposited the unconscious body on the ground and retracted her tentacle back to a more manageable length. With no-one in my line of sight I drew your bow again and took aim once more with another snare arrow.

Reef started moving and as she rounded the corner past the reception, she was suddenly confronted by two guards waiting for her at the end of the hall. Both of them armed with pistols, they opened fire as Reef twisted herself back around the corner in time to avoid both shots. I shifted my aim, using the brief glance I got from Reef's camera and CCTV feeds to update my telemetry and rapidly calculate a new firing solution. I disarmed the snare arrow I had loaded and redrew, forging a hard-light arrow with a blunted flathead tip.

With a growl, Reef lunged back out into the open, her tentacle surging forth to grab the guard on the right side and pin him. In the same moment, I loosed my arrow with a supersonic crack, crossing the distance like a gunshot and punching through the exterior wall and two more interior walls like paper to strike the second guard square in the torso with just enough force to knock him flat on his face and down for the count without inflicting lethal damage.

The last guard struggled in Reef's grasp but failed to escape as she tightened her grip. Stepping back out towards the reception, Reef lifted the guard off his feet and carried him through the reception to hold him out on the street. I quickly nocked another Snare and swung the bow around to loose it at the easy target Reef had presented for me. With the man bound, Reef unceremoniously dumped him atop his unconscious compatriot and stalked back inside to collect the last remaining guard and show him the same treatment.

"That was... very efficient," I remarked. "Thanks."

"I can't believe you shot that guy through the wall!" Reef gushed as she started making her way through the building, smashing open doors with her tentacle and claw.

I'd never even attempted such a manoeuvre before. I thought it would work, but I hadn't expected it to work that well. Without Reef on the ground to provide the telemetry, I doubted it would have been possible.

Having someone I could rely on was… Really nice.

Door by door, Reef continued to work her way through the building, ripping the partition walls to shreds, tearing doors of their hinges and shattering any furniture she came across in search of the hidden storage room. I could hear it in her grunts and growls, the gradually growing frustration, until finally, she was met with fearful shouts as she tore one door open. Watching through Reef's camera, I saw two young women - both Asian in appearance - huddled up together in one corner of the room and visibly terrified.

A strange sense of twofold relief washed over me. We'd found the girls. They were going to be okay and neither of them were the ones who'd looked after Sam and I yesterday. I don't think I would have been able to stomach the thought if that hadn't been the case. If I'd inadvertently involved Sam like that..?

My view was momentarily jumbled as Reef took off her helmet and set it down on the stairs.

"Cameras - be careful with your helmet off. Why am I even talking? She can't hear me right now, she has no earpiece..." I trailed off muttering to myself as I started looking to scrub and corrupt local recordings from that room at the current timestamp.

The mic on Aiko's helmet was still open and I could hear her talking to the two girls, first in English, then cycling through Japanese and what I guessed was Korean before settling on Mandarin, which the girls appeared to understand best. It took a minute of coaxing before they started to uncurl from their huddle. I watched through the CCTV as Aiko crouched down and took one of their hands each and held it tightly. There was more talking and then suddenly both girls threw themselves at Aiko in a tight hug as they started bawling, Aiko joining them herself a few moments later.

Still hanging around on the roof, I almost felt like I was intruding a little bit on their moment. I looked around awkwardly, searching for signs of Deva... or something. I could hear the sound of sirens approaching in the distance. Another half a minute or so of crying passed and then Aiko helped the girls to their feet, wrapping the blanket they were given around their shoulders to help keep them warm. She guided them up the stairs, grabbing her helmet and putting it back on before leading the girls out into the street.

"Where should I tell them to wait?" she asked.

"Tell them to wait near the tied up guards. They can give me a wave from down there if they like, I'll watch over them until Deva comes to take them to safety. Feel free to tell them that I'm not going to complain if they wanna kick the struggling guard until he stops his pointless wiggling."

"'Kay."

As Reef relayed my message to the girls, I realised her Mandarin was less than fluent. I didn't speak the language myself but I could tell Aiko was struggling. Perhaps I needed to add a translator to my helmet? The girls sat down and huddled together outside the building, staring at the guards more in disbelief than anything as Reef stepped back inside to continue ruining the place.

My phone rang with a call from Deva and I opened the line.

"Have you got your call yet or do I need to call it in anonymously?" I asked.

"We've got reports of gunfire. You've got about 3 minutes before I'm there. Is everyone okay?"

"Nobody was shot... with a gun," I clarified. "No life threatening injuries, either. The girls are huddled out the front, waiting for you to pick them up. I think they speak Mandarin the best. The, uhh, 'dangerous rampaging cape' is currently rampaging. The guards will be tied up at the entrance near the girls, and they'll be there when you get back after taking the girls to safety, too."

"I'll put in a call for an interpreter as soon as I land. They'll be well taken care of. You've done really good work tonight, both of you."

"I just hope we get a good lead to keep doing it," I replied. "I'm pretty optimistic."

"As am I. Good night Parthian."

"Sure is!"

I hung up just as I heard a thunderous crash followed by the sound of gushing water as Reef tore apart the pump system for cleaning the hot springs.

It's impressive, the amount of damage a pissed cape can do in three minutes. By the time Reef was done, the place was barely recognizable. The reception completely rolled, the water features in the Garra pond torn out and smashed against the wall while water sprayed everywhere, crab claw holes punched through the walls of the massage rooms and the privacy walls of the hot springs toppled into the pools. Reef gave a deeply satisfied sigh as she walked back through what was left of the building.

"Damn that felt good."

"It looked good. I might keep a recording of that."

"Nice." She turned and gave the two girls one more hug and a few words of assurance before opening her wings again and taking off back towards my perch on the building.

"Well... I guess that's us done for the night, right?" I asked.

"Yeah. Guess so." She paused for a moment and then pounced on me, hugging me tightly.

I tensed up, arms wide, Lightreach still hovering a foot or so away... and then slowly brought my arms around her in return, squeezing her back, thrilled and exhilarated after the brief flurry of conflict, the success, and even praise from Deva herself.

Reef held me tightly for a while, not saying a word. Long enough for the light of Deva's halo to appear in my periphery as she descended down to the street, her arrival finally seeming to shake Reef from her stupor. Hands still on me, she pulled back and looked me in the eye as best she could through our respective helmets.

"Thank you, Parthian. Thank you so much for your help tonight."

"I'm glad I was wrong about waiting," I replied, arm still loosely around her as I turned my head to watch Deva approach the girls. "Should we head back, then? They're in safe hands with her now."

"Yeah. I just wanna say that I don't think you were totally wrong though. The way I was doing things, I wasn't really making much progress in actually finding the source. I was too aggressive and maybe you were too passive. But when we worked together? We saved some girls tonight but we also got a bunch of info that'll help us save more tomorrow, and in the days after."

"I hope so. I'm still going to worry that we're not prepared enough, though. If we miss something because we do go fast, that's not something we learn until it's too late, if we ever realise we missed anything at all. But... tonight went about as good as I think it's possible to go," I finished up cheerily.

I reached out to grab the bow handle, ready to manoeuvre it into flight mode... But I paused, not wanting to end the moment. Or look like I was ending it hastily out of fear, for that matter. Instead, I waited for Reef.

Reef let go after a moment and then mounted up on the board behind me again. The position was fundamentally the same, but the way she gripped me felt different from how it did when we left. There was a closeness to it, an affection.

Like a hug from a little sister.

I tapped her on the forearm again by way of warning as I angled up and started to accelerate, curving around westerly towards the workshop, and simply leaving my hand there with a little squeeze.

---

AN: And here it is! Finally, some action as promised. No big cape fights just yet but we'll get there~ I'm quite pleased with this chapter. Aiko is learning to do things like a cape rather than a violent serial killer and Lise is doing a bit of healing herself as she begins to find a new little sister figure in Aiko.

We'll be back to our regularly scheduled fortnightly releases from next week when Lise and Aiko work through the aftermath of their raid while the rest of Sydney keeps changing around them.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

"We'll be back to our regularly scheduled fortnightly releases from next week." he said… 🤦

Undertow 2.5​

Thursday, 12:45am, April 28th, 2005

Having changed out of my costume and showered, I stepped back out onto the mezzanine to see Aiko staring intently at the helmet I gave her, next to the sketches of her costume on a table. I strained out my hair with my towel as I wandered back downstairs in my civvies.

"Any ideas on design? It was... a very hasty job. I can do much better with a specification and a bit of time," I called out across the way.

She was aware of my presence but didn't quite acknowledge it. When she spoke it was both to herself and to me.

"I know that I'm different now. I can feel it," she said with a melancholic tone. "I was always sad and lonely and angry, but I wasn't rageful. I hated the Wogs, but at the same time I never had the energy or the will to hate them. I don't know if I always had this in me and my powers just gave me the ability to unleash that rage, or if the rage is some kind of side effect of my power itself.

"I don't know if I'm going to be able to stick to doing this the right way, but I want to try. I really, really want to try. Tonight, for the first time since I started this, I actually finished the night feeling good. Like I'd actually done the right thing, taken a real step towards stopping those bastards and actually saving those girls."

"I don't think it's your power," I posited thoughtfully as I came down to sit near her. "Mine didn't make me any more... anything, than I already was. Capes everywhere are violent, aren't they? I think there's a lot of that in everyone... and powers are just a new outlet."

I leaned forward, staring into Aiko's helmet as its lenses stared back at her dispassionately.

"But it's good to feel like you're using it productively," I agreed. "To feel like you took the right approach and got a good result. Worked with the right people and made a difference. I definitely need to work on that helmet though... haha..."

"Yeah. It's not at all what I had in mind..." She said with a chuckle as she slid the sketchbook over to me, showing the two different mask designs she had. One seemed to depict an octopus sitting atop her head, with its tentacles coming down to coil around her eyes and cover the top of her face. The other was stylised like a piece of coral, with lots of little dimples across it and two larger ones for her eyes.

"We should go over the info you stole first, but if there isn't anything to jump on, I'd really like to work on my costume with you properly tomorrow. If that's okay?" Aiko turned and looked up at me.

"Definitely. How'd it go tonight, by the way - first impressions for your first time out in costume? Did it... fit? Feel right? Padded correctly? Chafe anywhere or obstruct your movement at all?" I rattled off while I had a look at the two designs. The octopus was more of a work of art unto itself... but the coral would be a fairly simple exterior plate design…

I shook my head to clear it, making sure I didn't get sucked too deeply into the drawings to actually process her response.

"The wetsuit worked really well as a base," Aiko answered. "Comfy, kept me warm and didn't restrict my movement. The sleeves and back are fraying a little where I cut them off. I don't know if there's a way to fix that. The poncho was the biggest problem. It's probably my shoddy work but it was a bit... What's the word? Unwieldy? Flappy..? It was kinda distracting having it flapping about. Maybe we need to make it smaller or connect it to the wetsuit somehow so it follows my movements better?"

"Yeah, we can sew in some snap fasteners or something..." I said, envisioning a few possible solutions. "I figured the point was to have it a little bit loose so that it can simply move out of the way of your power in a pinch. Maybe fastening to the underlayer at your stomach and back..? As for the fraying, that's probably just the fabric layer, the actual neoprene won't fray. We can sew a hem for the fabric layer, but it'll reduce the stretchiness there, and that fraying won't continue very far anyway. And I'll figure something out for one of these helmet designs."

I sighed and leaned back in my chair.

"We can do all of that tomorrow. It's pretty late, though. Do you want to stay up and go through the data now or do you wanna do that tomorrow as well?" I asked.

Aiko let out a polite yawn that very quickly became very unladylike.

"Tomorrow..." she mumbled.

I stood up and tossed my head towel over the back of my chair.

"Make sure you eat something before going to bed, yeah?" I said as I walked past her, putting a hand on her shoulder and squeezing gently as I went to pass her on the way back to the exit.

Before I got far, Aiko jumped on me again from behind, hugging me tightly once more. I held her arms to my stomach as she hugged me. After a few moments, she let go and stepped back. "See you tomorrow, 'Lise."

"'Night, Aiko," I replied cheerily, turning to give her a big smile and a little wave before getting in the car to head for my apartment.

I was back home in around 20 minutes and slipping back into the apartment just a little after 1am. It seemed like Sam had already turned in for the night. Feeling a weird mix of tiredness and excitement, the elation of the evening still bubbling in my chest, I checked the fridge for leftovers in the hopes that Sam would have left something for me. Chicken pot stickers and a cabbage slaw awaited me.

I gave silent praise for him as I availed myself of a quick meal, placating my slightly neglected stomach, and then did a bit of cleanup before dragging myself off to bed, setting an alarm for eight... No, 10 hours from now. If Aiko needed me earlier, she'd call.

---

I rose at 11:30 the next day, dragged to consciousness by my alarm and blinking away the last remnants of sleep before going about getting changed, checking my phone, and heading downstairs to grab some breakfast. I brought up PHO on my phone and went to flip on the news, only to find Sam was already on the couch watching intently.

"Heya," I greeted as I poured myself a bowl of cereal and grabbed a spoon, sitting at the dining table to watch.

"Oh! Hey, perfect timing! Siddown, siddown. You're just in time, they're about to rerun this morning's big stories!"

"Sure, sure - something interesting?" I asked - surely Bali Springs getting demolished would be top news...

"Some things," he emphasised as the presenter began.

As expected, the first story was about Bali Springs. Late last night, an unknown cape attacked the business, ransacking it and revealing it to be connected to a sex trafficking ring allegedly run by the Wogs of War, according to the two young women who were saved. Speculation was rampant about whether the attack was connected to the recent string of killings that had been occurring across nightclubs and bars in the city. The consensus was that while it could be the killer, the lack of dead bodies pointed to it more likely being either King Hit - who had been spotted in the area a number of times recently - or another new cape. There was a brief mention about the hero Parthian still being missing, having been reportedly kidnapped by the killer the last time either were seen.

"Holy shit!" I let out, impressed and earnestly incredulous as a shot of the damage to the building was shown; Reef's work looked way more impressive in the daylight than it did at the time.

"Nobody was hurt? We just went there ourselves!" I followed up to avoid seeming too... unworried. I pull up my phone and take a quick recording of the TV screen as they go to a helicopter shot of the building. "I need to show this to one of my coworkers..." I mumbled.

"Well some guards that were there to watch the girls got smacked around pretty good, but nothing serious. It's kinda sickening in a way..." Sam responded.

I typed up a quick message.

Lise: Morning Aiko 🖕❤️
Lise: We made the news bigtime!
Lise: Attachment: recording_6743.mov​

"What did the anchor say the place was? A sex trafficking ring?" I queried as I looked up after hitting 'Send'. "That's... wild."

"It's awful... Those poor girls, and we were there and we had no idea. I'm glad it was something your work paid for, I think I'd feel even worse if I'd actually given them my own money..." The discomfort in his voice was clear.

"I'm glad someone was able to put a stop to it," I asserted with a sudden conviction. "You've gotta wonder - it's not like when we went there the place screamed 'we engage in sex slavery'... are there more places like that? That just... keep trafficked girls like that?"

"Yeah... This- this is gonna sound awful but... You didn't know, did you? You couldn't have known, right?" Sam asked, turning to look me in the eye,

I went silent for a few moments. I did know... but I knew for the right sort of reasons. And going back to smash the place with Reef surely made up for it.

I didn't want to lie to Sam though. Not about this. He deserved better than that.

"I... They... Did you see a little message on the back of the last page of the questionnaire, Sam?" I asked, a little sadly.

"No... The paper wasn't printed double sided so I didn't look. Was there something there?"

"Yeah. There was a little message telling you what to ask the manager if you wanted.... uhhh... 'discreet services'," I said, using the opportunity to let out some of my own guilty feelings bleed into my voice. It wasn't the whole truth, but it was better than an outright lie.

"But, I mean, licensed prostitution isn't illegal in Sydney... and there's a huge leap between offering happy endings and keeping sex slaves in some dirty basement! Right? Surely I couldn't have known just from that, right..?"

Sam's eyes widened at my explanation and his frown deepened.

"Yeah, of course you couldn't. Jesus... What a gross coincidence."

"Feels so gross," I agreed. "I mean, I don't know - would you have ever taken that option, like, if it was offered? Would you ever take it now, now that you know that the person 'serving' you could be some poor exploited girl taken from her family overseas and imprisoned in some basement here?"

"I probably wouldn't have before. That's not really my thing. But now? Definitely not. Never ever... Fuck..."

"Yeah, me neither. I was never really up on the idea of paying a stranger to take care of me like that, I'd sooner ask someone I know and am comfortable with… I mean, I don't begrudge actual sex workers their profession or anything, but... the idea that it could be someone unwilling, someone in such an awful situation... That's pretty hard to deal with," I said with a shudder.

Aiko texted me back. Her response was a stark contrast to how Sam was taking the news.

Aiko: WOOOOOO!!!!
Aiko: Also, are you making 🖕 a thing now? It was an accident the first time.​

Lise: 🖕 Celebrate, girl! 🖕😜​

Aiko: 🖕 😝 🖕​

I scarfed down the rest of my cereal.

"Anyway, I'm about to head back to work. You got anything interesting on today?" I asked, pivoting as the conversation got a little bit dour.

"I've got a class later this afternoon and then I'm working tonight. Don't go just yet. There's one more big story that's actually pretty cool."

"Yeah?" I saud, wandering over to the couch to sit down near him, turning my attention back to the news.

There was a few more minutes of debate about Bali Springs and a few interviews from experts and "witnesses" before the station shifted to the next story.

Earlier that morning the Atlas Alliance released a press statement inviting heroes, rogues, the press and public to attend a big presentation happening at Champion's Parade next Monday, during which they would finally unveil what's been built beneath their flying headquarters.

"Huh," I muttered, wondering to myself how the heck I was supposed to make that presentation when Parthian was currently 'kidnapped'.

How rude of them to hold it now!

"Well, that should be interesting, I can't imagine they're doing anything mundane with it. Especially if they're inviting capes and the press."

"I know right! The fact they specifically said rogues too is super interesting. I was doing some reading on PHO earlier. Some plane buffs have been tracking Sentinel's official flight plans the past few days and he's been making a few trips back and forth to Canberra, so this could be a big government thing."

"They invited the public, too. You reckon you'll wanna go? I can only imagine Jane will be," I said thoughtfully.

"I mean, yeah! This'll probably be the biggest bit of cape news for Australia since the AA was founded. Reckon you could get off work and come too?"

"I'll have to find out. Maybe!" I agreed. "Gonna be a spectacle at minimum! Although there's probably gonna be huge crowds..."

"Apparently people are already starting to try and camp out. The cops are gonna have their work cut out for them."

"Mmm, we'll see," I said, seriously considering doing away with the polite kidnapping fiction just so I could be there for the big announcement.

"I'll keep you posted on whether or not I'll be free from work. I'm sure they'd be happy for me to take a break, but sometimes there's pretty important stuff going on... I'll let you know."

"Sure. You heading out now?"

"Yeah," I said, getting back up to go rinse my bowl and load in the dishwasher. "Might be another late one tonight. Oh, I had some of the leftovers late last night. Thank you!"

"My pleasure. See you later tonight!"

I gave Sam a smile and a wave as I shouldered my bag and headed for the door, texting a quick message to Aiko.

Lise: On my way in now, see you soon​

Aiko: Got something to show you when you get here!​

I wasted no time when I arrived, hurrying inside and calling out a greeting.

"Up here!" Aiko called back

I dropped my bag at my main desk and then rounded to the stairs to speed my way up where I found Aiko sitting on the couch with her laptop, sipping a coffee.

"Hey!"

"So? What have you got to show me?" I asked eagerly, making my way over to drop down next to her.

"Mm! So I was digging around online for stuff about making hero costumes and I stumbled across this!"

She turned the laptop screen to show me a rather extravagantly designed website advertising the services of a rogue cape called Makeover. A fashion designer and minor celebrity makeup artist who was also in the business of designing and making costumes for capes. Her credentials included the costumes for Deva and Ace from the Atlas Alliance, Duplicity from the Renegades, - an Alliance partnered team based in Perth - Timeout and Maelstrom from the Mystics, - another Alliance team in Melbourne - and even a handful of rogues, including Beacon - a young girl who operated here in Sydney.

I just kinda sat there for a moment, slack-jawed. Makeover's name had come up a handful of times when I'd first started making my costume but I'd been way too paranoid to even consider her as an option at the time. I'd been insistent on keeping as low a profile as possible and going to another cape - even an unaligned one - to get my costume made felt like a non-starter. Plus, knowing that I was likely going to have to reiterate my costume several times as my tech evolved and improved only reinforced my belief that going to someone else was a bad idea.

It didn't stop me from feeling somewhat foolish right now though.

"I spent weeks creating my costume. I learned a bunch of sewing and leatherworking techniques to make it and I could've just ordered one from another cape? How much does she charge?" I breathed out.

"I think it varies depending on the costume and what sort of powers she has to work around. More durable costumes made from expensive materials will cost more right? We don't have to if you don't want to. I don't know if you wanted to make my costume with me and it is your money we'd be spending. Plus, working with another cape could be risky if we don't know what her powers are," Aiko said.

"I mean... I don't regret learning how to make and take care of it myself, especially since it's filled with tinkertech. But for you, it might be a really good idea. Unless we go public though, there's an information risk there, you know?" I explained.

"Mm. You know more about all this cape stuff than I do and I'll be happy either way so you can decide. Should we go over all the data you got now?"

"Yeah we can do that. But the other thing about going public... Did you see any news about what Atlas is doing this Monday? About the reveal of what's going on beneath their fortress?" I asked.

"Oh? No. There's no TV here and I don't really watch the news anyway. What's up?"

"They've invited rogues and heroes to check it out. I was thinking of going, maybe in civvies, but if we're public we could go there in costume and see what they're doing. Could be interesting. Might be a good opportunity for you to make a clean break from the 'nightclub killer', too, since your powers still aren't very well known. We could probably say that Reef saved Parthian from the killer," I suggested.

"I mean... Maybe. That feels risky though and... I'm still not sure how I feel about pretending I didn't do what I did," she answered earnestly.

"The alternatives are, that you turn yourself in and hope APRA cuts a deal with you to join Atlas or maybe the Protectorate as a probationary cape in light of the... extenuating circumstances of your actions. I don't think what you did means you deserve to be imprisoned... especially not when you can do good... but even if the courts feel the same way and it works out, you'll be on one of the big teams' very short leashes.

"Or... you just stay as a vigilante, always at odds with heroes who won't ever be allowed to work with you, staying hidden and avoiding arrest. That or you just stop being a cape, leave the country and find somewhere else to live. I... don't think that's likely to work out.

"You've got plenty of time to think about it, anyway; it's on Monday. Just know that if we decide to take you public as Reef and lie about you saving me, we can always go back on that later if you change your mind and want to throw yourself on the mercy of the law."

"Mmhm." Aiko nodded.

"The other question I have is... does Makeover do work for... villains and vigilantes?" I said tentatively. "I can't imagine she would... not publicly, at least."

"Well she's done stuff for Beacon, that kinda counts right? I read that she's not legally allowed to be an official hero because she's under 18."

"Yeah, but Beacon's not, well, a killer who's kidnapped a new cape..." I said. "I just think it might be a point for announcing Reef as an independent hero, at least for now. Something to consider."

I leaned back a little, not pressuring her for an answer either way.

"Oh yeah. I wouldn't introduce myself as that me, she'd probably call the heroes on the spot. Reef is who I need to be now in order to stop the Wogs and help the girls, I'm not against that. It was more after we're done with them that I'm not sure about."

"Alright, then, I'm going to go downstairs and sift through that data," I said. I hesitated for a moment, and then leaned over on the couch towards her to slip my arm around behind her and squeeze her close to me in a somewhat familial gesture.

"Okay. Lemme know if there's anything I can do to help."

I gave her a nod and then got up to head back downstairs to my computer.

I spent the next three or so hours combing through everything I'd scraped from the computers at Bali Springs. Starting with the banking - which proved delightfully easy to crack - I was able to worm my way into three different accounts, two of which had rather substantial amounts of money in them.

I sent a quick email to my accountant with the details of the hacked accounts and instructions for what I wanted done with the money and received a one word response a few minutes later.

Done.​

Damn, he's good. Unbelievably fast too...

With the money sorted, next came the incriminating evidence - and boy was there a lot! Lengthy email conversations discussing the treatment, storage and movement of girls dating all the way to when the building was first purchased and renovated to become Bali Springs. There was more than enough to have several people arrested on the spot as well as open investigations into a number of others.

I collated everything into a neat little data package, but held off on doing anything with it for the moment. I didn't want to take the chance that having the police taking some off the street might cause us to dead end our investigation later on. Finally, came the much longer process of deciphering the coded emails. Time ticked away and I grew increasingly frustrated and worried there wasn't as much information as I had hoped for. On several occasions, decoding one message only revealed another coded message that used codewords that meant nothing to me or didn't make an appearance elsewhere. But just as I was starting to lose hope I'd find what I'd been looking for…

A group email, with a date, time and location.

May 1st, 1:30am, 25 Minnamura Rd, The Bonds Crown Club.​

Collection.​

"We're going out masked up again Saturday night!" I yelled up at the stairs before searching for the club to start getting some info at what we'd be looking at.

Aiko leapt over the balcony, whipping out her tentacle to grab the bannister and catch her fall at the last second before dashing over to me.

"You found something!?"

"Right here," I said and pointed at one of my screens.

Aiko looked at the email on the screen, which I'd forgotten was still coded.

"Eh?"

"Whoops, sorry. It's a code. Hold on..."

I shuffled around between a few pages in front of me, moving one in front of her with a bunch of scribbles and crossed-out words, pointing at where I'd written out the decoded message. I watched her eyes flick back and forth over the page and then light up like Christmas. She pumped her fists and started jumping for joy.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" she exclaimed.

"I'm just having a look at The Bonds Crown Club now.." I said, moving back over to another screen.

It was a fairly big location. A nightclub/bar/restaurant that was about the same size as The Buena but with a large outdoor area in the back that had a big open grass area for concerts and a few gazebos that could be rented as private spaces.

"Doesn't look like Makeover's gonna have a new costume for you by the time we head out again," I said with a grin.

"Well you don't know that, but it sure sounds like you're angling for us to get to work." Aiko teased.

"You think you could reach out to her and get her to make you a prototype in two days? I think you're dreaming," I ribbed at her lightly.

"Hey! Maybe her power is making costumes. You dunno!"

"...Do you wanna reach out to her?" I asked. "I managed to get about a hundred thousand dollars from Bali Springs' bank accounts, so your costume is on them."

"I'll send her an email to see if she's available for a fitting tomorrow. Then maybe you and I can work on my mask and redo the poncho, just in case?"

"Yeah!" I enthused. "That money is all yours to use as you see fit, by the way. As well as any more we steal from them in the future. Use it to help us in the fight against the Wogs of War, or donate to charities that can help the girls we save when we're done."

"Really?" Aiko seemed surprised. Thankyou!"

"Alright. I'll start thinking about this mask for you, and you shoot Makeover an email. Uhh, over in the sewing kit there's a bunch of snap closures and safety pins - you should put the costume on and then pin where you wanna fix the poncho to the suit, then move around a bit and make sure it sits well and works well. Then I'll come mark it and we can sew them in. Sound good?"

"Mmhm!" She gave a quick nod and then scampered back up the stairs.

Over the next few hours, I took apart and reconfigured the helmet into a smaller mask that would cover the top half of Aiko's face. With the actual tech and bone structure of the mask sorted and with some design input from Aiko, I started printing the pieces of the coral that would assemble together over the bones to create the finished mask. While it printed, I worked with Aiko to add some fixation points to the wetsuit and marked out where the matching ones would go when I remade the poncho, as well as fixed up the fraying along the sleeves and back. By the time the mask was finished printing and being assembled, it was about 6pm.

"Oh, did Makeover get back to you about that appointment tomorrow?" I queried as I propped her mask up on a little stand and set out some paints.

"Umm. Lemme check." Aiko quickly darted back upstairs to check her laptop. There was a little squeal and she scampered back down. "Okay, she can't see us tomorrow but she's got an opening at two on Friday if we want it."

"Let's do it, then. Does she explain how that's gonna... work? Do we show up in our current costumes, or..?"

"She says we can come in costume or just wear masks to hide our faces if we prefer. She said I should bring my current costume if I have one and any sketches or drawings I've made so she can have an idea of what I'm looking for."

"If we're going in costume we'll want to make an announcement that Parthian is okay. If we're going in domino masks... I guess we could just rock up, but, it'll be a little weird just driving there I guess. I feel like we should probably fly there or something."

"You think so?"

"I mean, yeah. Unless you wanna drive there in civvies and then... just put domino masks on and walk around the corner or something? I dunno, that just feels weird," I said with a bit of a chuckle.

"I think there's an indoor place to park just for that reason." She grabbed her laptop and did a bit of scrolling. "Yep! There's a small underground car park for 'client discretion'," she said, making air quotes with her free hand.

"Mm. You don't think there would be people watching people that come and go? Cape watchers?"

"I dunno. The cape stuff is your field, remember?"

I rolled my eyes.

"You know I met you on my second night out ever, right?" I'm deadpan. "I'm a worrier. I worry."

"Wait really?" Aiko's eyes widened in surprise.

"Yes. I worry about lots of things," I responded obtusely.

"I mean about you meeting me on your second night as a cape!" Aiko exclaimed, barreling through my deliberate obtuseness.

"Yeah. First night out, I shot an explosive at one of Sentinel's drones. Second night out, I ran into you."

"Wow. That must have been a crash course... Haha..."

"Sure was. So... yeah. I don't know, really. I just figure there's no way our identities could be compromised if we actually show up as full blown capes."

"Capes it is then. As long as you're okay with revealing you've been un-kidnapped."

"Sure. As long as you're okay with playing Reef, the cape who saved me? Unless you've got another idea."

"I can be Reef. I suppose the big question is… How do we say I saved you, and what happened to the other me?" Aiko puzzled.

"Easy. You just say that you've been working on that sex trafficking ring that got busted at Bali Springs - you can claim credit for that - and during the process you tracked the nightclub killer. You could speak the truth a little bit here; the killer seemed like a girl out for revenge for what they did to her. As for what happened to her... she ran instead of fighting when you came to break me out."

"Okay." She nodded firmly.

"The only real question I have is... how the heck do we even announce that? I mean, I've got a PHO account. I could just post a thread. But I don't exactly have media contacts or whatever and the only person I know in Atlas is Deva. I guess we make a report to Atlas or something? Maybe I'll text Deva and ask..."

"Mm. I... I don't want to make a big thing of it," Aiko said a little nervously. "The other thing is. Won't the heroes want to ask you questions about me?"

"I'm not going in for an interview or anything. I don't work for them and they can't make me anyway. I'll just say I'm busy and I'm just letting them know, I guess. I'll hand over the evidence we've collected from Bali Springs, tell them you saved me and in return I helped you collect the evidence and then you went and smashed the place up. I could probably handle the whole thing I guess, just maybe put you on a phone call to confirm maybe, I don't know, I just figure we should have the story straight before we tell them. It's important we do tell them, though, because otherwise it'll be a real scene if we ever pop up in daylight."

"Yeah. Well we've got all day tomorrow to work it out at least."

I nodded.

"Wanna wrap it up for tonight, then?" I asked.

"Yeah. Unless… you wanna stay for dinner? We could watch a movie...?" Aiko suggested in a timid fashion.

"Ahh, you've convinced me," I said dramatically, giving her a big smile. "You wanna pick the food, or pick the movie?"

"You pick the movie. Something funny. I'll find us some food." She beamed back at me.

---

As sunlight peaked in through the windows of the unit, I was brought to consciousness by something rustling and bumping against me lightly. I roused in turn, blinking awake and stretching out. Limbs somewhat strewn about and with her head resting in my lap, I found Aiko stirring but not awake yet as we lay on the couch where we must have fallen asleep together last night.

I put my hand down on her shoulder, gently rubbing up and down while she joined the realm of the conscious, yawning and reaching for my phone with my other hand to check the time or for any notifications. I had one text from Sam and couldn't help but chuckle at his joking insinuation that I might be on a hot date.

Aiko stretched out and blinked her eyes open. It took her a few seconds to realise what position she was in, at which point she turned quite red and scrambled to sit up.

"Oh- Um... Sorry..." she mumbled sheepishly.

"Nah, it's fine. I dozed off as well," I said. "Sleep alright?"

"Yeah! Really well actually. I hope that's not weird." She answered with an embarrassed smile.

"Dunno," I said with a shrug, "Maybe. But it's nice."

I took the opportunity to do a big stretch.

"I might head back to my place to shower and change, then come back, we can have some breakfast and figure out how we're going to tell Atlas that I'm free and working with another cape. And then we'll work on your costume a little ahead of tomorrow's fitting. Sound good?"

"Mhmm! See you soon then."

I gave her a smile and kinda debated internally for a minute before deciding, on impulse, to give her a quick hug. Aiko yelped in surprise but didn't resist. I then stood up to go about collecting my stuff to make a quick jaunt back to my apartment, drafting in my mind the message I was going to send Deva about our plan to get her input.

Or maybe I should call her? Hmm. When I get back.

As I opened the front door, I could smell scrambled eggs wafting through the apartment. Sam turned his head around the corner to see me come in.

"Walk of shame?~" he teased.

I peered at him with a faint smirk, studying him closely.

"Fixated on the idea that I might have gotten laid last night?" I ask candidly, watching for his reaction.

"Well the other possibility is a lot more depressing for you, so I'd like to hope for the best," he replied earnestly.

Damn gentleman.

"Omelette?" He gestured with a spatula to the frying pan in his other hand.

"I... want to say yes, but… I'll pass this time. I've gotta shuffle out again. For reference, no, I didn't have a sexy date, but it wasn't the gloomy alternative you're thinking of, either. I wasn't working overnight. I just got caught out late with a friend and decided to stay the night," I clarified, continuing up in the direction of my room. "Thanks anyway, though. I mean it, I'm sad to turn it down."

"No worries. I'm glad to hear you were doing something other than working last night."

Damn gentleman!

I gave him a grin and headed up to shower, and change into some fresh clothes before heading back down a little while later.

"Probably won't be able to go with you to the Atlas thing," I called out to Sam as I typed a message into my phone. "Not definitely ruled out yet, but for the time being, we should probably assume I'll be working."

Addressing the message to Deva, I hit 'send'.

P: Gotta chat about changing our cover story and about our next move. Got some time to call in about half an hour?​

"That's a shame. Jane was looking forward to seeing you again. We'll have to plan a get together some other time. Maybe you could bring this mysterious friend along?" Sam proposed.

"Possibly, if work shifts a little. I'll keep you posted. Alright, chat later!" I called back as I moved back towards the exit to head back to the workshop.

"Cya!"

I climbed back into my car and started the drive back to the workshop, grabbing some bacon and egg muffins and coffee on the way and checking the response I received from Deva as I pulled in to park.

D: Finishing some reports. Will call when done.​

Aiko came skipping down the stairs at my call.

"Deva's gonna give us a call when she's free shortly," I explained. "We'll chat about our plan for cover and give her a heads up on this 'collection' we're possibly gonna crash."

"Cool!" She said before taking a big chomp out of her muffin.

"So, I figure it'll be pretty simple. I'll run it down with Deva and see what she thinks, but, just to go over it again... Essentially, you came to find me and the killer ran away. You were tracking down the sex trafficking ring at Bali Springs and that coincided with the killing spree a little bit which is why you knew I'd been taken. You can claim responsibility for the destruction at Bali Springs if you like, and I'll give them the data I helped you get on them. Pretty straightforward, yeah?"

I dug into a muffin of my own while that sunk in.

"Mmhm. Should we mention we're going to see Makeover tomorrow?"

"We could mention it off-hand, but for the most part, this is just to update them that I'm alive and well so there's no awkwardness when we show up somewhere but you're new and I'm supposed to be kidnapped."

"Okay."

A little while passed as we ate and drank and then my phone rang. I put it on speaker and set it down on the table between Aiko and I.

"Hey. Finished your reports?" I asked.

"I have. I'm just looking over the translated debriefings from the girls you Reef rescued now. Is she there with you?" Deva asked.

"I'm here," Aiko said cheerily.

"Two things we wanted to chat about, actually," I began. "First up, to get it out of the way, there's something going down in the very early hours of Sunday, in Northbridge. We're going to scope it out, but it sounds like they might be moving girls. You might want to get the Saturday overnight patrol in the area."

"Can do. I should warn you again about King Hit. He went after some Wog gangers at another club the same night you hit Bali Springs and he showed up there not long after you left according to APRA. He's still hunting Reef's less-than-lawful alter ego."

"Noted. Well... We wanted to talk about that actually. About Reef. We were thinking about changing our cover, as I mentioned in the text message. Currently the loose scenario is that the killer has me kidnapped. But that means it's... very awkward for me to show up, either at one of the Wogs of War sites, or in public. So we were thinking of saying Reef saved me and I'm back on the beat, so to speak. Do you have any input? Suggestions, thoughts - Advice on how to go about how we'd actually let Atlas know or.. announce it, I guess?"

Deva let out a frustrated hiss.

"It's good thinking... The only issue that APRA is likely going to want to question you and potentially put you in M/S containment for a few days."

Crap.

I'd expected they'd want to question me, but I hadn't even considered that Master/Stranger containment might be a possibility.

"Okay, but APRA can't force me to come do an interview or be contained, can they? You're right, it's a concern, but... less of a concern. And, this way, Reef and Parthian can act together without having to go completely undetected by the authorities in the process."

"That is true. Though still at large, the killer hasn't acted in several days and there's only so many resources APRA can devote. Besides, now that we know she was only targeting members of a gang allegedly operating a sex trafficking ring in the city, there's less of a sense of… urgency in locating her. So as long as no more bodies turn up, you should be relatively in the clear.

"As for how to announce your return. I'd recommend you put a call into the AA's hotline to say you're safe and well, then I can make sure to have a say in how the report is handled."

"I'll do that, then. I'll keep it brief. I'll ask them how they'd like me to submit the evidence I collected from Bali Springs, too, probably..." I mused. "Anyway, that's all we have for now, I think. Hopefully this is plenty of heads up this time."

"Plenty, thank you. How much intel did you gather?" Deva inquired.

"Lots of email correspondence, all conspiring over the sex trafficking. They must have thought there was no way anyone would hack them, because, boy, there is a lot. Enough to take a few people off the streets, probably, and more under tight scrutiny."

"That's excellent. Perhaps I'll get the chance to twist some arms myself," Deva mused keenly.

"Yeah. We'll get that done today. Once we're done on the phone, probably. Sooner you can jump on it, I imagine, the better."

"Indeed. Is there anything more we need to discuss?"

"I've got nothing else for now. I'll let you know."

"Okay. I look forward to receiving that intel. Best of luck to you both." Deva hung up.

I gave Aiko a thumbs up.

"Looks like Deva's on board with the cover story change. That's good! I'll be able to send up the Peregrine without worrying about Sentinel or odd questions. And Reef might be able to start earning a bit of a reputation as well."

Aiko returned a double thumbs up.

"I'm still not too sure about the hero thing. You two sound so serious and important when you're talking about cape stuff," she said.

"I think you and I have very differing opinions on what a hero is. I told you, I'm not one. You don't need to be either," I asserted, before leaning back and shrugging. "So, shall we call the Atlas hotline?"

"Mmhm." She gave a slightly apprehensive nod.

"You don't need to jump in if you don't want to. I can fill them in entirely. We're not going to go into much detail. It's just a quick courtesy to let them know I'm good and they don't need to worry, oh, and hey, my saviour also turned over Bali Springs and I've got a bunch of incriminating evidence, which email do I send it to? We're not looking to interview or compile reports, we're busy. Sound good?"

"Yeah. Okay, let's do it." She fidgeted a little in her seat and then sat up straight.

I grabbed my phone and dialled the Atlas hotline, setting it back on speaker phone in the middle of the table, ready to take the lead. The phone rang once and then picked up with an automated message.

"You have dialled the Atlas Alliance emergency hotline. If you are trying to report a non-cape incident, please hang up and dial triple zero. To report an active cape confrontation, press one. To report information relating to parahuman activity, please press two."

I darted out a finger to hit the '2' key on the dialer. There was a dial tone and some hold music started playing. About a minute later, the phone picked up and a young sounding woman spoke.

"Good morning, this is Atlas Alliance's information hotline, you have some parahuman activity to report?"

"Uhh, yes. I've got some information about the Wogs of War - actually, well, this is Parthian speaking. Independent cape," I replied, leaving it at that for a moment in case the operator already knew or might be looking up details on their end.

"Parthian... Oh! Parthian? Hmm... I currently have you listed as missing in action as of the twenty-fourth of April. Is there a way you could verify your identity for me?"

"I'm not sure how to verify that over the phone. Would details help? I could tell you that night I was at The Buena, investigating the nightclub killer. I called emergency services and was put through to Deva. I was giving her information about the killer and we tracked the killer down together after they left the club."

"I see. One moment please." There was a pause as the woman did something on the other end. "Okay, we have some recorded audio of you from that night. If you can go ahead and give me information you want to report, I'm going to run this call through a speech comparison program to verify your identity. Is that okay?"

"Yeah. So, firstly, I need to report that I was in the killer's custody for a while, but ended up getting away with the help of a new cape. I'm unharmed and well now."

"That's good to hear. Do you have information to provide on the killer?"

Aiko flinched, her body tensing up as she gave me a nervous look.

"Yes," I answered, locking eyes with Aiko. "She never harmed me, never even threatened to. She's... quite young, and emotionally compromised. I'm convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was trafficked by the Wogs of War. Far from any kind of premeditated murderer - she was out for revenge, most likely very new to her powers. I don't think she's a threat to the general public, only the people standing between her and the people that hurt her. I couldn't tell you much more about her description or powers, though, not more than what Deva's probably already reported."

I watched Aiko's posture relax as I spoke, her expression softening and a small but grateful smile inching across her face.

"Okay. And what about the location you were held at? Could you tell me where that was?" the woman continued.

"We moved a few times before I was freed. We seemed to be hiding in abandoned structures, somewhere along the belt I would guess. We were alone."

"I found her in the poverty belt, somewhere in Longueville I think the suburb's called," Aiko suddenly jumped in. "I couldn't tell you the exact address but I've been back there twice since and I haven't seen any sign of her. I'm pretty sure she's moved on." Aiko looked up at me, not quite sure if that was the right thing to do.

I give her a silent thumbs up.

"I'm sorry, who was that speaking?" the woman asked.

"That's Reef, the cape that rescued me. When Reef found us, the killer fled and left me behind. I don't think she knew what to do with a hostage anyway, she was... just winging it. All of it."

"Hi, um... I'm Reef. I was the cape that raided Bali Springs the other night too," Aiko added.

"We've got some more information about that to submit, as well. A large amount of incriminating evidence on the Wogs of War's sex trafficking operation."

"Okay. Is there any more information you have to convey verbally?"

"Not at this time. Just that Parthian and Reef are now continuing to investigate the Wogs of War independently, and - well, how would you like me to submit the evidence? It's all digital."

"I'm going to forward a link to the number you've called me on which you can use to access a secure server where you'll be able to upload all your evidence for processing. As for security and authenticity, while I've been able to verify that your speech patterns are a match to those from the recording, I'm obliged to ask that you come in for an in person debriefing about your time with the killer. We would also like to conduct a series of tests to ensure that you're not under any lingering Master or Stranger effects. Would you be amenable to such an arrangement?"

"I'd rather not. Time spent in an M/S lockup is time not spent going after the Wogs of War. I'll start the upload as soon as I get the link but I'm not coming in. Is that going to be a problem?"

There was a long, tense pause as the woman no doubt conferred with her superiors.

"No." The woman finally answered. "While the procedures are meant for your safety, as an independent, we cannot force you to participate." Her voice was level but I could hear the tension in it. APRA and the Alliance clearly wouldn't be happy about, it but for the time being, that wasn't my problem

"That's everything, then. Thanks," I finished.

"Thank you, Parthian and Reef."

"Bye!" Aiko interjected a little awkwardly as the operator hung up. A few seconds later, I got a text with a website link.

"Excellent! Nice work jumping in there," I said, smiling at her. "One hurdle down."

Aiko let out a huge sigh of relief.

"That was kinda nerve-wracking. And um... Thanks for not selling me out."

I shrugged again before leaning back in my chair, a little drained from the tension.

"I only told them the truth about you. Hopefully it will mean something when we're done," I mused, giving her a smile.

---

AN: Really sorry for the huge delay on this chapter. Life's been getting in the way big time for the last few weeks but I'm hoping to be able to return to regular posting again now. At least for a while.

If you've come back to read after such a long gap, I really appreciate it. Next chapter should hopefully be out within a fortnight at the latest.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

Undertow 2.6​

Saturday, 9:02am, April 30th, 2005

After a yawn, a stretch, and a quick check of my phone, I got up, stripped down, put on a dressing gown and dragged myself off for a morning shower. Sam was still asleep as I entered, but by the time I'd finished I could hear him puttering around the kitchen.

I ducked back into my room to change, coming back down in a simple sleeveless dress and a light jacket. I would be changing out of it later today anyway. I stepped into the space and found him wearing the 'Guardian Angel' Deva shirt he sometimes slept in, making himself some sourdough toast.

"Anything on today, Sam?" I inquired cheerily as I entered.

"Your live-in maid is cleaning the house today," he replied jokingly.

"I mean, I could knock off an hour or two helping out if my maid was truly overwhelmed by the task..." I teased with a grin. "But then what would I be paying you for? I'd have to get some other value for it."

Sam laughed loudly.

"I'll manage."

My expression fell just a smidgen, unhappy that he gave up so quickly instead of continuing to play the game, but mostly just confused at myself as to why that bothered me. I put on a smile again anyway.

"Well, I'm heading out today with my mysterious friend," I said, affecting the same teasing tone as before. "We're going out together today."

"Oh! A second date?" Sam jested in kind as he noted the outfit I'd chosen for the day.

It was nowhere near as put-together or nice as the outfit I picked when I went with him to paint landscapes. I almost kicked myself for not being able to play up the 'It's a da-ate~' angle, even if I had already told him it was just a friend. There might have been more fun to have on that angle.

Oh well.

"Hah, I suppose. No, but, we're hanging out and going shopping. I honestly did have a few hours to kill first, though," I trailed off thoughtfully.

"I mean... You can pitch in if you really want to but that would kinda undermine my whole 'cook and clean in exchange for free rent' deal, wouldn't it?"

"You're right... Maybe instead you should put on a maid outfit and I can laze around and watch you while you clean and wait on me," I replied, rolling my eyes.

"Well if you're gonna be like that you can clean your own toilet," he retorted, wagging a finger at me.

I gasped in mock horror.

"Fine, you've convinced me. I won't help you, I promise," I chuckled. "That said, even though it's our agreement... I'm grateful for it. Thank you."

I got up, moving to collect my purse.

"Guess I'll just pop in at work for a few hours in the meantime," I said with a shrug.

"Don't work for fuck's sake! It's a Saturday, go buy a coffee and go for a walk or sit in a park dammit!" Sam admonished.

I let out a giggle, happy with the reaction.

"Maybe I will. Have fun cleaning. Catch you later!" I called out as I turned and headed for the door.

---

I decided to do exactly as Sam instructed. I had a few hours, and Aiko hadn't been out without a costume since I first took her shopping. So, coffee and a walk in the park it was.

After grabbing some coffees, we headed to one of the many point reserves that overlooked the harbour where we could wander about and people-watch on a Saturday morning.

I looked over at Aiko, dressed conservatively in some jeans and a turtleneck to conceal her tattoos. She had been noticeably disappointed when I'd made the suggestion, but understanding in going along with it. Until everything with the Wogs of War was over, we had to be careful with her identity. At least she seemed happier now that we were out and about.

"I can't imagine you had many opportunities to... just go and enjoy places like this," I said softly during a lull, in a tone that didn't require any particular response.

"Not for a long time no…" She answered wistfully. "I have vague memories of going out places with my parents, but sometimes it's kinda hard to convince myself that it's me in those memories. It was... a whole different life in a whole different part of the world."

"Any idea yet what you wanna do when you've done what you set out to? Or is that still pretty far away in your head?" I asked as I reached out and set my arm around her back to grab her opposite shoulder, holding her to my side.

"I can't even think that far. Nothing beyond stopping the Wogs matters right now. Is that crazy?" she asked, still gazing out over the water. "I mean, if we're lucky, all of this could be over in a week - and I can't think about how anything else for the rest of my life could matter more than what'll happen in the next few days."

"Maybe nothing else for the rest of your life will matter more. Do you think that'd be a good thing? To be able to go back to a life without this? With nothing so... all-consumingly important?"

"I... have... no... idea..." she answered slowly. The worry evident in her voice.

"That's okay, too," I said, giving her a squeeze and letting a few moments pass in contemplative silence.

Aiko shifted a little and tilted her head to rest it on my shoulder.

"What about you? Do you know what you're gonna do after we're done with this?"

"I'll look for new ways to make a difference," I said. "Make my mark, make waves, be recognized, change the world, whatever. On my terms."

"Fuck yeah..."

She gave my shoulder a gentle and encouraging punch with her free hand.

"You're welcome to stick with me, you know," I said after a few moments. "After. While you figure it out. Whatever it is you wanna do."

"I'd like that. I'm not sure I'm good enough for you anymore, but I'd like that. Thankyou for offering."

I frowned and turned my head to look down at her on my shoulder.

"What do you mean?" I pried.

"You know what I mean," she sighed. "I'm broken in a lot of different ways that probably can't be fixed. I let… what happened to me define a lot of my choices and I did bad, evil things. And even though I know they were bad and evil, I don't regret a single thing I did. I want, so badly, to be fixed. To let you fix me, make me into the person you see me as - but I'm not sure it's possible, and I don't want to drag you down with me while you try."

I didn't say anything for a while after she finished talking.

"Maybe," I said, then let that sit for another few moments before speaking again. "I've already told you about the thing I saw that night that I can't forget. But... you know what else I saw I won't forget?"

"Mm?"

"I saw tears streaming down your face."

I rubbed my hand up and down her upper arm opposite me.

"I've already decided to take a shot on you. If I'm going down with you, you couldn't stop me if you tried. I don't know what you think is 'good enough' for me, like... like I was shopping for a worthy enough cause or something, an appropriately damaged - but not too damaged - project for me to work on and fix and turn into a productive human being, or something. It wasn't anything like that. I just... saw you hurting. You've killed, but I'm not convinced you're a murderer. Or at least... you don't have to be one."

"Maybe..." she mumbled.

I squeezed her arm.

"Maybe!" I said, changing the tone a little. "Thought... about what kind of costume you might get Makeover to do for you? Iteration on the theme or something different entirely?"

"Yeah!" She gave me a nudge and then slipped out of my grip to lay down on the grass. "I like what we've done. I'm thinking just a really fancy and well made version. Professional looking, like yours."

I sat down beside her, knees bent, feet beneath me and to the side, carefully manipulating the dress as I went.

"Mm. I wonder if she'll make some good suggestions. Heck, I wonder if she's got any suggestions for mine. I know we're going to your fitting, but I think it's kinda tied into her power, right? So maybe she'll nitpick mine too. Make some material suggestions or something, who knows."

"Who knows!" Aiko tucked up into a ball and let herself roll down the small slope we were sitting on. "Wheeeee!"

I giggled, watching as she enjoyed herself. It was deeply heartening to know there was some innocence left in her.

I let the time pass and after a little bit, I checked my phone before calling out to Aiko.

"We should probably hit the road again - we've gotta get ready."

"Coming!"

---

Zipping over the city on my board, Reef let out an excited whoop as we coasted south east towards where Makeover's studio was. Finding it difficult to avoid smiling broadly at her excitement - and my own - I gave up any attempt at seriousness and leaned into it a little bit, curving back and forth smoothly like a snowboarder in the sky.

I tapped her twice on the arm as I started to angle downwards again, aiming for the entrance of the building - supposing it was possible they'd have a rooftop entrance, but not assuming as much.

As we descended, I spotted a high fenced entryway that led down to an underground parking lot. There was a security gate present, likely to keep out groupies and paparazzi which we zipped over without issue, angling down into the carpark.

There wasn't a huge crowd waiting in anticipation of a potential arrival, but we did get a few cheers and shouts as we passed, with some bystanders holding up their phones to film us as we landed.

Unable to help myself, I twisted a little bit and glanced back to give a friendly wave, still grinning under my helmet until we disappeared into the underground parking area.

I stood upright as we coasted a few inches above the ground, looking for the entrance to zoom straight for it, slowly enough that Reef could step off if she wanted or continue to cling to me until we got there.

There was a set of double doors at the opposite side of the small lot, at which two burly-looking, secret-service-style guards kept watch. They tensed as we approached - hands reaching into their jackets, but not not withdrawing anything yet.

"Parthian, here with Reef, we've got an appointment," I called out across the way, slowing the board to a walking pace and leaving my arms non-threateningly at my sides, watching to see if they give any instruction.

One held up their hand in a stopping gesture while the other reached up to touch their ear and radio a communication. A few moments later, the doors opened to reveal a well-dressed man with a tablet cradled in his arm.

"Hi there, you must be Makeover's two o'clock for today. Which one of you is Reef?" He greeted in a friendly tone.

Reef hopped off the board and gave a small wave.

"Hi, that's me."

"I hope it's okay if I tag along. I'm her ride," I explained to the man as I stepped off my board, assuming him to be an assistant of some sort. I held out my hand, and the Lightreach slowly pivoted upwards; I directed it to my back, where it locked in place with a magnetic-sounding clunk to the back of my vest, behind my shoulder, right next to where the Peregrine sat beneath my cape.

"That shouldn't be an issue. Do you mind if I get your name?"

"Parthian," I repeated. "P-A-R-T-H-I-A-N."

"O-kay! If you'll both follow me, I'll take you up to the studio."

He beckoned with a wave, then turned on his heel to head back through the doors and up a flight of stairs, Reef following close behind and then myself a step behind her.

We were led up the stairs and down a hallway past a series of other doors. The walls were decorated with blown up magazine covers, each one depicting a different woman along with various catchy titles like, 'The Power of Looking Perfect' and 'Stopping Crimes Against Fashion'.

"Wow, some of these are really great," I enthused as I paused near one to look closely for a moment, shuffling on to catch up a few steps afterwards.

"She'll be glad you think so!" The assistant said. "In the grand scheme of things, she's still small-time, but her brand is growing fast. She designed Scarlett Johansson's dress for the 2004 MET gala, you know?"

"I had no idea, actually," I enthused, my hand wiggling as I conducted a search on the internet for photos of the very dress. "Ahhh, it looks very nice."

Evidently the theme for that year had been 'Heroes of Our Time' - as such, just about every non-cape attendee had gone in something inspired by a cape costume. While many were rather tacky or obvious renditions of certain capes, Scarlett's dress was a dazzling but impressively tasteful homage to the appearance of the Guild hero, Narwhal.

We carried on down the hallway and the assistant gave a knock at another set of double doors.

"Makeover, Reef is here for your two o'clock appointment."

"Ah! Come in, come in. I'll be with you in a moment, I just need to finish putting on my face." A feminine voice with a distinctly British accent responded.

The assistant opened the doors and gestured for us to enter.

"Can I get either of you anything in the meantime? Sparkling water, still water, lemon water?"

I shook my head.

"I'm good, thank you. Reef?"

"What's sparkling water?" she whispered to me.

"It's just water but it bubbles, like Sprite or Coke," I whispered back. "Try some!"

"Um, can I have some sparkling water please?"

"Certainly. I'll be right back." He gave a nod and then closed the door as he exited.

We were left standing in a large studio with a central podium. Hanging from the walls were numerous different fabrics and other materials, sketches and designs for different shapes of cape, bodysuit and so on. There were also a few mannequins standing about in various heroic poses with assorted pieces of costume on them.

I took a step up to one of the mannequins, leaning in to observe some of the materials closely while I waited, careful to respectfully not touch anything. Even with my limited knowledge of fabrics, I could tell that Makeover was probably working with very high quality materials.

A moment later a woman wearing a fancy looking pantsuit stepped out from around a corner to greet us.

"Terribly sorry about that. Good afternoon ladies, it's a pleasure to meet you. If it wasn't already obvious, I'm Makeover. Now, which one of you is Reef?"

Much in the same way she introduced herself to the assistant, Reef gave a small wave before repeating herself.

"Hi, that's me."

Makeover shook her hand before turning to me expectantly.

"Pleased to meet you, Makeover. I'm just Reef's transport today - Parthian's my name," I said, gesturing to Reef and bowing out of the way.

She nonetheless extended a hand for me to shake. As I stepped closer I could see what she had meant by 'putting on her face'. Rather than a mask, Makeover had concealed her identity with extensively detailed makeup that gave the illusory effect of actually changing the way she looked. Looking at her cheekbones, the curve of her jawline, and the shape of her eyes, I had a startling realisation.

"Wait, wait- Those magazine covers, are they all you?" I asked, amazed. Her make-up alone allowed her to look like a different person in each one!

"Oh, yes, they are! Not many people catch on to that so quickly, I'm impressed!" Makeover responded proudly.

Reef went slack jawed with shock.

"Oh no, we can't have that dear." Makeover reached out and used a finger to gently lift Reef's chin and close her mouth. "Even capes need proper manners."

A sudden click issued from beneath my helmet as I snapped my own jaw shut in response.

"That's actually incredible," I enthused. "And that's all just makeup?"

"Mmhm! Now, let's get started shall we?" Makeover moved over to a large table opposite the podium and started laying out some sketch pads and pencils. "If I could have any notes or sketches you brought with you for your costume?"

Reef stepped over, producing her notebook from a pouch hidden underneath her poncho and I wandered over to observe as well.

"Did you have a hand in the designs Parthian?" Makeover asked as she started flipping through the book and quickly sketching out some of the details onto the sketchpad.

"I laid out the basic idea. It was mostly a practical design, to accommodate her power," I explained, feeling more than a little self-conscious. "And put together quickly with things we could get off the shelf or assemble quickly with minor effort. Reef did all of the colour and embellishments."

"Well it's remarkably well-made for a first costume. Is the mask 3D printed?"

"Yeah. Another, umm, mostly practical consideration... It's housing some technology I put together, to help us coordinate in the field... Printing it is a lot easier than fabricating something more complex, and it's pretty straightforward to paint..." I started to ramble before shutting up again awkwardly.

"Impressive." She turned and looked me up and down. "Tinker, right?"

"Yes ma'am," I said, caught between withering back or straightening up a little bit; with my own costume assembled more from practical high quality gear and leathers, having spent much more time and money on it and carefully crafted to act as a rig for complex technology studded throughout, I was - if possible - even more self-conscious about it on account of the effort involved for the outcome.

"Tinkers always have the most interesting costumes. It's very frustrating because they won't let you look at them. But I'm letting myself get distracted," Makeover muttered. "Reef, if you would be so kind as to step behind that divider over there and take your costume off for me, I can start by taking your measurements. Leave your mask on, of course."

Reef gave a nod and then stepped off behind the divider to strip down. As she did, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Makeover said.

Almost subconsciously I positioned myself between the divider and the door, looking over in that direction to see who'd arrived.

The assistant appeared again with a tall glass of sparkling water, which he set down on one of the dressing tables before promptly leaving again. Shortly after, Reef returned in just her underwear, costume slung over her shoulder.

"Oh!" Makeover gasped as she witnessed Reef's extensive body art for the first time.

I caught the surprise in her voice before she quickly suppressed it with a trained professionalism. Her make-up didn't hide her eyes, though, which were staring at Reef's heavily-tattooed body. Reef's posture shrank just a little.

I cleared my throat, looking over at Reef and then indicating the sparkling water that was dropped off for her with a nod.

"Can I?..." Reef asked hesitantly.

"Oh!" Makeover said again before snapping back to attention. "Yes of course, dear. Where are my manners? I'll take those from you, if you don't mind? Grab your drink and go ahead and stand on the podium in the centre for me."

Makeover took the costume from Reef and started laying it out, putting the poncho on one mannequin and laying the wetsuit out over another table while Reef grabbed her drink and headed for the podium.

"Now Reef, could you tell me what class of Parahuman you are?" Makeover asked.

I leaned forward a little, ready to interject if she looked like she needed a hand with this line of questioning.

Reef looked to me, completely clueless.

"She's a Changer," I cut in. "And I imagine APRA would give her Brute and Mover subratings too. She manifests appendages she can fight with."

"I see. Would you mind demonstrating? So I can get an idea of what I'll need to work around."

Reef nodded and took a deep breath as she focused. The tattoos across her body started to move and writhe as they came to life, the tentacle and crab claw emerged from their respective hands while the wings unfurled from her back and a tortoise shell pattern spread across her entire body.

Now it was Makeover's turn to go slack jawed.

"Ma'am?" I said with a chuckle, waving at her and then gesturing at my jaw.

Her jaw clicked shut and then curled into a big smile.

"I've never seen a power quite like that before. This is going to be a fun challenge~" She mused.

Reef relaxed and let the tattoos return to her body before grabbing the glass as Makeover turned to grab a measuring tape.

A sudden explosion of hacking and coughing cut through the quiet of the room as Reef sprayed water from her mouth all over the podium.

"Are you okay?" I called out to Reef as I hurried over to her, reaching out to take the glass from her if she needed a moment.

She handed the glass off to me. Her face was bright red, both from the coughing and with embarrassment.

"You said it was like Coke!" She whined, "That doesn't taste like Coke at all!"

"I said it was water, but bubbly," I said patiently, putting a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. "Surely you don't gulp down Coke like that? I can't imagine all the burping..."

"I thought it would be sweet! That stuff tastes awful, who drinks that?!"

"People who think Coke tastes garish and sugary," I explained, matter-of-factly.

I reached up and pressed a button on the side of my mask, and, as the jaw of my helmet pulled away, pointedly took a few sips from the glass.

Makeover approached and handed Reef a small towel to wipe her face.

"Nothing to be embarrassed about dear. I've seen celebrities make far greater fools of themselves choking on something," she gave me a knowing wink, "and this is hardly a mess compared to the last cape I had in here."

Entirely unperturbed, she extended the measuring tape and started taking Reef's measurements. I kept the glass, taking a step away to give Makeover room to work.

"Dare I ask what the last cape in here did?" I wondered.

"Well, that would be confidential, I'm afraid~"

I shrugged, taking another sip.

"So, if you don't mind my asking - I'm curious about your process, especially when it comes to cape costumes... Do you usually design from scratch to suit the theme..? Or do you take and adjust existing designs?" I enquired.

"Depends. Some capes have existing costumes and just come to me for something higher quality - like that lovely young girl, Beacon. Others are starting from scratch, in which case I have much more of a hand in the design process, like with my most recent cape customer."

"So, what are you thinking so far about Reef? We like the overall look at the moment, but I'm curious as to what you'd do. Or does that input come later on in this process?"

"Well, I think the aquatic theme is wonderful, and it suits the power well. I think it's mostly going to be a matter of using better materials as well as having the costume tailor-made to fit you." Makeover looks up at Reef. "I saw your notes about the poncho being unwieldy. That's something I'll be able to fix as well."

She noted down the last few measurements and then began sketching again, seemingly copying some of the more prominent tattoo designs across Reef's body.

"If you don't mind my asking… Did the tattoos come with your power, or did you already have them?" She asked Reef.

There was a brief moment of awkward silence as Makeover looked up at Reef. I caught what seemed like a flash of realisation in Makeover's eyes. As if she had just read Reef like a book. "Oh my dear... I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to..."

"It's okay." Reef responded in a small voice.

I spoke up, changing the topic a little.

"I've only ever seen you do stuff with your arms and the wings, Reef. Your power doesn't do anything with your legs or anything, right?"

"Not that I've found yet, no. I think it's to do with what the tattoo is an image of? When I'm using my power, I can feel the tentacle or the wings like an extension of myself. I can't do that with any of the fish or other animals or anything that's an object." She gestured to a school of tropical fish she had swimming up her right thigh and a small anchor beneath her right armpit.

"Mmm," I acknowledged before taking another sip of the sparkling water. "What kind of turnaround do you usually have for a costume like Reef's?"

"Well, from your notes, your power can make you bulletproof, right Reef?" she queried, receiving an affirmative nod in response. "That's a big time save, since materials like that are harder to acquire and work with. Standard turnaround for a non-bulletproof costume with an existing design is about two weeks, but I can have it done sooner for an additional fee."

"We can make that decision when we pull the trigger, I suppose," I said with a shrug.

"If you like. Reef, you can put on that dressing gown if you like, and we can start looking at materials and design tweaks." Makeover made a few more notes while Reef moved to pull on the dressing gown.

As we started looking through materials, the three of us made small talk, and I started to get the impression that Makeover was something of a gossip at heart.

"So how did you two meet?" She asked.

I gave Reef a bit of a probing look for a moment, contemplating how to respond. Makeover seemed pretty switched on... and lying outright in person was always trickier than, say, over the phone. I opted to keep it vague, strictly truthful, and a little guarded; if Makeover picked up on that and assumed we were a little cagey about it... All the better.

"In costume, in the field, actually. I got in a spot of trouble on my... second night out," I explained carefully. "She's been a big help since, too."

"We're trying to stop the Wogs of War," Reef added.

"I see. I saw on the news the other morning - a day spa in the northern suburbs was raided, and two girls who'd been trafficked were found there. Was that you two?"

"Yeah," I confirmed. "Don't tell anyone, but we might've tossed the joint a little while we were there, once the girls were free..."

I gave a conspiratorial little chuckle, proud of the damage Reef did to the building.

"Good on you. The Wogs, Odinsons and Ninety-Niners are a blight on this city, and the sooner they're scoured from it, the better." Makeover said firmly.

"I just hope the next Wogs of War business we come across is as straightforward..." I mused. "Hey, another random question. Ever make a costume for a cape you'd regretted later?"

"Interesting question. Well, if I had, I certainly wouldn't be telling you about it, but no. I only do design work for capes with established reputations or freshly minted ones like yourself. That way, I at least have plausible deniability if they do decide to go villain, which thankfully, none of them have decided to do yet. And that certainly isn't an invitation for you to be the first, young lady." She said to Reef in a semi-serious tone, wagging a finger at her.

Reef smiled awkwardly.

"I'm trying to be good. Honest."

Makeover then turned to me with an inquisitive look.

"Why do you ask, Parthian?"

"I don't know how many cape costumes you've done, but, well, if you look at the figures... Atlas is the biggest hero team, and they've got their own costume designers in-house, right? Same with the much smaller Protectorate. Cut them out and the percentage of capes remaining is... pretty heavily in the realm of the grey area or outright villains. Mostly I was just curious about the... clientele, the demographic, I suppose?" I finished up - earnestly curious, although now considering somewhat the awkwardness of the question given Reef's past and hoping Makeover doesn't interpret the question as pointed at all.

"Well, I've never worked with the Protectorate, and while the AA does have a publicity team, I'm frequently hired on to consult. As good as their team is, nothing tops someone whose superpower is making people look good. Beacon is the only other rogue I've done a costume for, and she had an established reputation as a young hero - plus she's a kid. Part of the benefit of working with heroes publicly is that villains don't usually come asking to work with me, because they assume I'm a nark. Frankly, designing cape costumes is more for publicity than anything, plus the AA pays disgustingly well. My real aspirations lie in makeup and fashion, as I'm sure you can tell."

"I did get that impression! I didn't know you consulted. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense," I replied. "So we're your... second independent cape client, I suppose?"

"That you are~"

I eased up the line of queries after that, happy to let the professional work with Reef uninterrupted on materials and design considerations. The three of us carried on for a while longer, until Makeover and Reef seemed satisfied with the choices of materials and tweaks to the design. It was approaching 5pm by the time payment was up for discussion.

Knowing how much I spent on materials and the time I invested in my own costume, getting it just right for me, I leaned forward - hoping Makeover was much more proficient a seamstress than I, and hopefully able to secure materials a lot easier, but otherwise bracing for a decent number.

"Okay, so including today's appointment of..." she checked her watch, "three hours, the raw materials needed, fireproofing treatments, colouring, insulation, padding and so on... We're looking at 14,800 dollars to have the costume done in two weeks."

"Gotcha," I said, a little relieved. "And how much for a second spare?"

"A second spare will be an additional eight thousand."

"Alright. And, finally, if we got one made priority?"

"Just the one?"

"I figure waiting on the spare is fine - assuming, of course, you don't make them at the same time for efficiency reasons, and, well, assuming you have other clients we don't need to make wait just for a spare..." I mused with a shrug.

"Mm. How soon would you want the first one done by?"

"As soon as possible. We're not planning on sitting around on our thumbs in our campaign against the Wogs of War. How much would it take to make this your next project, and how long would it take in that case?"

"Hmm. One moment," Makeover pondered before moving to the double doors of the studio and pressing a button on an intercom. "Michael, can you come in for a moment. I need to look at our current list of projects."

There was some muttering and a few moments later, the assistant - Michael, evidently - stepped in with his tablet. There was some hushed conversation as they both swiped about on the tablet before reaching a consensus.

"The absolute earliest I could have the costume done by is Wednesday afternoon. You'd be looking at 58,600 dollars total. That's today's appointment, the rush order on the first costume, and the spare," Makeover explained.

I leaned over to Reef to whisper in her ear.

"You've got a hundred thousand from our raid. It's all for you to spend at your discretion. It's probably a good idea - I mean, it's just a costume, but it's a good investment. It'll probably serve you well."

"I dunno what else I'm gonna spend it on." She shrugged, "Let's do it!" She stuck her hand out to shake, and Makeover obliged.

"Would you like to make a deposit or pay it all upfront?" She asked.

Reef looked at me.

"Would it be acceptable to pay upfront for the first costume and the rush order, and then pay the rest when we receive the first costume?" I inquired. "I can have the money wired, I'll just need some details."

"Certainly." She tapped the tablet a few times and spun it around to show me.

It was $50,600 upfront, and then a second payment of $8000 which accounted for the second costume. There was a short form in which for me to fill out some contact information for the wire transfer, and then a place to sign. I filled out the minutiae myself and then passed it to Reef for her sign.

"Just scribble your cape name down there," I said to her, wiggling my finger in the air. "Doesn't need to be legible, just needs to be unique to you."

Reef scribbled something out, and I gave her a smile as I spotted the little fish she doodled next to it. I passed the tablet back.

"If that's acceptable, I'll get that wire arranged now?" I said, pulling out my phone and composing a message to my accountant with the details.

"That's alright. We'll make a start on it as soon as we receive the money. If there's nothing else, Michael will show you out. It's been a pleasure meeting you both," Makeover said cordially.

"Likewise. Thank you," I said, hitting 'send' and putting my phone away. I gave Reef a nod, and offered my hand again to Makeover.

She took it and gave me a firm but not aggressive shake, before doing the same with Reef. Michael then escorted us back through the hallway and down to the parking lot again.

"Excited?" I asked as I disconnected the Lightreach from my back - the soft hum departing my ears from its continuous self-supporting field as I pulled it away from me - and tossed it down to the ground, where it slowed to a stop a few inches above the asphalt. I stepped aboard, offering a hand back.

"Mmhm!" Reef took my hand and mounted up behind me. "Back to the workshop now to get ready for tonight?"

I nodded as we accelerated out of the lot, cautiously exiting the underground area before I tapped her arm and took off as fast as we could into the sky, watching the earth fall away as we went, angling towards the workshop.

As we levelled out and relaxed a little, I spoke to Reef over the helmet radios in order to cut through the whipping winds.

"You've got a fair bit of cash left after that. Could do some shopping for the workshop, you know? Get a nicer couch, maybe a TV or something, a laptop just for you, stuff like that. My amenities are pretty bare back there, I never considered having someone else staying when I set it all up."

"Maybe. I think I'd rather wait until all this is over. I'll probably donate most of it. There are people who need it more than I do," Reef responded.

"Sure. Although with a bit of luck we'll recover some more of the Wogs of War's dubiously acquired liquidity yet. Did you get much of a read on Makeover? She seem on the up and up to you?"

"I liked her. Her accent was interesting and she wasn't too nosy."

"I noticed that she stepped on a bit of a landmine with the question about the tattoos... I've never asked, although I was curious. Would you prefer to keep that to yourself?" I offered.

"I... I think I'd be okay telling you... but maybe after tonight?"

"No pressure," I agreed, squeezing her arm around my waist. I gave her the signal as I started a long, flaring descent.

Eight hours until the 'Collection'.

---

AN: This was a fairly simple chapter but I think it contained some worthwhile character development. A look at Sam and Lise's relationship, a look at Aiko and Lise's relationship along with some insight in how Aiko's feeling about the future.

We meet Makeover, one of Sydney's now growing number of rogues and through her learn a bit about the broader cape scene as well as some more specific details about how Aiko's power works.

In the chapters to come: It's collection time at the Bonds Crown Club, but Parthian and Aiko are going to have something to say about exactly who's getting locked up.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

Undertow 2.7​

Sunday, 12:25am, May 1st, 2005

After we'd gotten back from the costume fitting with Makeover, I'd spent the next two hours building more Data Knife arrowheads to add to my arsenal, before joining Aiko in pizza and a power nap. When my alarm had woken me up again just before midnight, I'd felt strangely calm and totally wired at the same time. Aiko had felt the same way. I'd expected myself to want caffeine but found I didn't need it at all. I put it down to a mixture of anticipation and nerves.

Even now, that feeling lingered, worming its way through me as we slowed down and took up a loitering pattern a few hundred feet above the Bonds Crown Club. Whatever this 'collection' was, it sounded big. But there were so many unknowns that - even with Reef in tow - I felt underprepared.

If it was as big as I expected it to be, it was a near certainty we were going to encounter one of the Wogs of War's capes tonight. Reef was bulletproof, but I didn't know if she could withstand one of Frag's explosions. I didn't even know if I could. Siphon's power was a mystery, save for his Striker classification. The obvious strategy for him was "just don't let him touch you", but that was always easier said than done in the heat of battle.

And then there was King Hit. From my research, I knew his strength and speed meant he was almost certainly packing some kind of Brute power, but I'd also only heard of him fighting while drunk. I was hoping to avoid him most of all, because he was a total wild card. He had been going after the Wogs of War, but it seemed secondary to his hunt for Reef's murderous alter-ego. If he showed up, we'd have no way of knowing who he'd go after first.

I took a deep breath and sent a quick text to Deva.

P: We're on patrol now. Hope you're on call. We'll be calling it in as soon as anything goes down.​

"And now we watch and wait. Do you mind taking wing..?" I asked.

"Sure." Reef took a moment to focus as her wings unfurled from beneath the poncho. She loosened her grip on me and took to the air, beating her wings to hold position just a little above me. That left me free to reach back underneath my cape to retrieve my drone.

"So what are we looking at? I can't see anything from this high up," Reef said.

"Me neither, but he can," I explained, disengaging the Peregrine and tossing it out to the side. It fell a few feet before its hard-light wings flickered into existence, the leading edge and curve adjusting for optimal lift and glide until the mild anti-gravity propulsion kicked in, sending it suddenly accelerating away before curving up and cutting its way another several hundred feet upwards.

I set its loitering pattern and altitude above us, circling at a fast clip, and then slewed its optics towards the address of our target. Overlaying the thermal and colour night vision spectrums created an almost daylight view of the target building, with the added benefits of thermal hotspots being highlighted. I then fed the Peregrine's sight into both of our HUDs.

"Woah. Fancy..." Reed admired.

"Yeah. I'm proud of him," I responded, chuffed. "We can find a spot lower down now. Let's descend a little and see if there's any good rooftops nearby, shall we?"

"Sure."

As we began to descend, the growing sound coupled with the view from the Peregrine painted a distinct picture. The Bonds Crown Club was a jumping joint, packed to capacity. The outdoor entertainment area was filled with people dancing to loud music orchestrated by a DJ, and there were enough people inside the three-storey building that a big, dull, red blob was visible on my thermal cameras.

"Damn, that's a lot of people... How do they plan to move girls under the noses of everyone here?" I asked as we lowered down, adjusting the Peregrine's zoom level to give us a wider shot of the area - with a close-up of the club less helpful, I figured that seeing comings and goings might be a bit more useful.

"That's exactly how they do it. Fuck me, I know what this! I've been through these before! This is what they meant by 'collection'." Reef frowned.

"What do you mean? What are they going to do?" I queried.

"A 'collection' is where the Wogs gather up most of the girls in circulation to be taken back to where we're kept when we aren't being pimped out. At the same time, they'll have a bunch of fresh girls already here, ready to be sent out to wherever they're wanted. They always do them at these big clubs and have these massive events on the night they do them because it makes a great cover. A bunch of drunk and high people banging their heads to loud music aren't gonna notice other sluttily dressed girls being dragged through the club by security guards, and if they do, they just assume you're being kicked out..." Reef said in a grim tone.

Hearing her explain it, the realisation of just how effective the method was was horrifying. A textbook scheme of hiding in plain sight. The sheer boldness of it made my blood boil.

How on earth have the heroes not put a stop to this by now?

I knew the answer and it only made me angrier. Legal limitations. Without evidence of criminal activity, the police would be hard pressed to get the go ahead for an investigation and without evidence of direct villain involvement or immediate presence, the heroes wouldn't even be called to get involved.

Which meant until we could get that proof, it was up to Reef and I.

"So we've got new girls inside already? And they'll be moving girls who've been here a while... somewhere else? So we've got essentially two sets of girls?" I asked, quickly working to wrap my head around the situation.

"Not just girls who've been here, girls from all over the city. Parthian, this is huge. We could be looking at maybe 60 girls here tonight."

"I... don't even... know where to start..." I trailed off, collecting my thoughts. "So, they're going to be sending them out in groups over the night, then? Multiple... 'deliveries' outgoing?"

"Yeah, they'll be bringing a whole bunch in first though. Watch for vans and those cars... S-U-Vs they're called right? They'll be bringing them in cars like that, mostly through back or side entrances. We should get lower and see if there's a loading area."

"You want to go in there now? Do you have a plan in mind?" I pressed, concerned.

"No. Not yet. If the meeting time said 1:30am then we shouldn't go in until 2. Most of the girls will have been delivered by then and hopefully they won't have started sending the new ones back out. Have you got tracking devices?" She asked. I could hear the nervousness in her voice growing.

"Yes, I do. Do you want to... just tag them and watch? We could find out a lot of their other sites that way. If there's that many girls... maybe most? All of them? If we're lucky?" I offered.

"There's no way I'm just watching but... If we tag the first few outgoing ones then we can make sure all the returning ones are here before we go in. How good are your trackers?"

"They're discreet more so than they are powerful. You can pick them up for a few kilometres at most. Maybe if we loop Deva in, ask her to get all hands on deck, have people follow the SUVs with the help of the trackers? This could be a big operation... really big..."

"Mm," Reef hummed in affirmation. "Call Deva and make sure she has some way of handing out information on the trackers to the police or something. I know this is the smart thing but... I... I'm not sure I'm okay with risking letting some of the girls get sent out. If we lose them..." Even with her mask on, Reef was visibly churning with a whole array of conflicting emotions.

"Look at it a different way, Reef. If we do this passively, find out all of the other locations they're using, we could end the Wogs of War in one fell swoop. What if there are girls that aren't part of this collection? Knowing all of their locations means we won't miss anyone."

I pondered for a moment.

"Or... we take the nuclear option." I continued. "Make a huge scene. Scatter everyone. Disable any Wogs of War vehicles that try to leave. Let civilians leave while we take down any guards trying to get out with the girls. Sweep the place ourselves and take the lot down before anyone takes anybody to secondary locations. We wouldn't miss anyone... but if there's capes... we could be in real trouble. And we'd be the aggressors in that situation."

"Fuck... Fuckfuckfuckfuck, fuck! I need to sit down. I- I need to think..." Reef started to descend, swooping down towards a building about a block away from the club but still had a clear view of it.

I followed her down, cautiously, landing after her. I walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Deva doesn't have either option. She'd be forced to do things legitimately. She couldn't let those cars go either, not if she knew there were victims and criminals on board, she'd be obligated to stop them. She couldn't cause a ruckus and simply stop everyone and search them all either. Her hands are far more tied than ours are. We get to try and achieve the best outcome for the girls."

"I know! I know... I just... It's different for you. It's easier for you to say we do this passively because you don't know what it's like! You- You haven't lived it like I have! Fuck! God! Why does this have to be so hard?!..." She started pacing back and forth across the roof anxiously, kneading her hands together.

"Hey, hey, hey!" I said as I approached her, leaving the Lightreach floating in place behind me as I grabbed both her shoulders to stop her and turned her towards me. "Take a moment. We've got a little bit of time, okay? Stop. We're going to save all of them. It's just a matter of how. We'll get it done, alright?"

"Fuck... Okay... Okay." She took a few moments and then eased my hands off her shoulders before dropping into a squat and then sitting down.

"Okay. I'm going to make a case here and you're probably going to be a little less than happy about it, but hear me out, alright?" I said firmly.

Reef nodded.

"We stay passive. I tag every single SUV and van that leaves tonight. The Peregrine does the rounds, sticking with as many as possible and verifying where they end up going. We make a list of every location we find. Then the Peregrine scours Sydney at high speeds until every single vehicle is accounted for. We know where all the girls are, and more importantly, we know all of the Wogs of War's locations. After that - no more games, no more intel gathering, no more passiveness. We coordinate with Atlas and anyone else we can call and we hit them. All of them. And free everyone. Defeat in detail. We might be done before you get your costume."

"It's good... I know it's good and smart... but... I'm sorry, I'm not comfortable letting all those girls go when we could help some of them now. Even one or two more days is too long for them... for me..." Reef hugged herself tightly, shaking her head.

Moments passed in silence. It irked me that Reef couldn't see reason and just do this the smart way. I had to remind myself that this wasn't a reasonable problem for her, that she could accept solving in a rational way.

"I still want to do it though... sort of," She spoke up. "Tag all the cars and vans we see show up tonight. We'll... we'll let some of the outgoing girls go so we can make sure all the incoming ones are here, then we go in. Once we're done rescuing the girls that are still here, you give the tracking info to Deva and start doing sweeps of the city with Peregrine. That should let us find the girls we let go and maybe a few more places too... Will you help me do that?" She looked up at me, wide-eyed behind her mask.

"Of course," I answered. As if there was any other response I could give.

I reached down and offered her a hand up. Reef took it and jumped up from her seat to pull me into a tight hug.

"Thank you..."

I hugged her back firmly, keeping an eye on the Peregrine's feed until we separated.

"At what point do we loop Deva in? Before we go into the club? Or after?" I asked, getting my head back in the game.

"I dunno. You probably know better than me."

"Before, I think. She'll know to stall long enough for us to do our job, probably."

"Okay. Let's start spying then. I'll follow your lead."

I wandered back to my greatbow and took it in hand again, leaning over to peer at the building and take stock of exactly what we were dealing with. I picked a building that looked like a good vantage point, tagged it in both of our HUDs and then tossed down the Lightreach in board mode.

"Coming?" I asked, and then cautiously lifted off, carefully heading around mostly out of sight of the building itself, just in case, and manoeuvring to the vantage point.

Reef's wings unfurled again and she took off, following behind me. Once we touched down again, I came down to a crouch, swapping my own helmet to night vision as I peered at the loading dock located around the side of the building.

"You think that's what they'll use, then? I imagine they can get girls to and from that without, y'know, having to walk through most of the public area?" I hypothesised.

"They'll definitely use it for some of them." Reef confirmed. "Keep an eye on the front too though."

The next hour and half dragged along at an agonisingly slow pace as the cars and vans started to come and go. Drawing my bow, I fired tracer tip after tracer tip, discreetly tagging every vehicle that went to and from the club. Some would almost certainly be dead ends, but I wasn't taking any chances. At around 1:45, with the party still raging, we started to see some girls being led out of the building for the first time - rather than in - where they were forced into some waiting cars and vans. With each one that left I saw Reef's posture wither just a little bit more, muttering an apology in Japanese for every girl she let go.

By the time it was approaching 2am, no new girls had been dropped off for the past 20 minutes. By my count, 27 girls had been brought in and nine had taken out, meaning there were 18 victims present at minimum.

"So... how do we... kick this off? I could try another network intrusion, but, without knowing where their networking is..." I said with a shrug. "I guess we could just walk in?"

"I say we go right in through the loading dock. It'll give us the fastest route to whatever back rooms they're keeping the girls in." Reef said, voice hard with resolve. "Are you coming with me?"

"I can. I'm worried about people fleeing, though, but maybe..."

I took a look around, taking a tally of the parked cars that were likely to be Wogs of War vehicles.

"I suppose I could disable those vehicles before we go in? Then they can't take any more girls off site once we get started."

"Don't disable the vehicles unless they're getting away with more girls. We should let a few of them go because they might give us more locations," Reef suggested.

"I'll follow you in, then - I'll just be ready to run if I need to catch one of them. Peregrine can follow them if they get very far, but I doubt they will."

I brought up the softphone and dialled Deva, bringing the connection up on Reef's helmet at the same time.

"This is Deva. I was wondering when you'd call Parthian. What do you have for me?" She answered in a tone that meant business.

"Bonds Crown Club, 25 Minnamura Road. Huge event, lots of civilians... and lots of victims. We've seen at least 27 girls. I estimate a minimum of 18 inside but Reef says there could be as many as 60." I began explaining. "We've tagged a number of vehicles that have already left to other locations we intend to track down, taking nine girls with them so far. We'll be going in for the rest shortly. You'll want to be close for the call that's inevitably going to come in from some of the bystanders.

"We're going in with less information than we had at Bali Springs - don't know how many girls in total, how many they have guarding them, or where exactly in the building they'll be kept. But we're going in via the loading dock at the back and we're going to be going straight for them. I suggest you get as many people as you can when you get the call, this will be a big bust."

"Understood." Deva responded. "Upload the tracking frequencies to the server you submitted your evidence to the other day. I'll contact AAHQ and have them get law enforcement on standby. Be careful, both of you."

"Thanks. Wish us luck."

I ended the call and turned to Reef, nodding down at the loading dock.

"Shall we?" I asked.

She gave a firm nod and then jumped from the roof as her wings manifested once again, letting her glide down to the loading dock. I took a few steps back and then ran up to the edge of the building, jumping off it as well before activating the slow fall system, a set of hard-light wings projecting outwards to glide me safely down to the ground... albeit a ways short of the dock itself. I proceeded on foot behind Reef, readying a snare arrow.

"I'll look for computers and security to break into while you poke around?" I proposed.

"I doubt you'll get the chance. We'll see."

"Maybe not," I agreed, following her up to the dock. "We can muck about looking for a way to get that door up... or you could crush your way through it with your crab claw," I said with a wry smile, stepping back.

Reef took the suggestion with a calm enthusiasm, planting her feet as the ink on her skin began to writhe and churn. Spilling out of her skin like a liquid mist, the claw took shape, its slightly spectral appearance almost invisible in the dim light. Reef wound her arm back and lunged forward, punching clean through the sheet metal of the door with a metallic squeal. It groaned and creaked as she pried the hole open wider, peeling the metal back until there was a hole large enough for us to step through. From the other side, I could already hear the sounds of shouting and the thundering of rapidly approaching footsteps.

I stepped through first, bow drawn and quickly spotted two men running towards me in the orange and brown colours of the Wogs of War. With a smooth motion, I swiftly pivoted towards the one on the left and loosed the readied arrow, ensnaring him in an instant and sending him collapsing to the floor. The other stopped in place, drawing a pistol and clumsily letting off a shot that went wide before his eyes followed suit in realistation.

"Capes!" he hollered, turning on his heel to sprint back the way he came. "Get Siphon!"

Reef dashed past me in pursuit, tentacle unfurling from her harm and surging forward to try and grab the man, just missing as he disappeared around a corner and out of her range. I advanced quickly down the hall, keeping a step behind Reef as I readied another snare, watching over our shoulder for any surprises. Reef stopped as she reached the corner and glanced back at me. With unspoken understanding, I stepped out first, aiming my bow at the approximate centre mass of any potential targets. We hadn't exactly practised, but it felt smooth and natural, like some kind of spec-ops tag team.

Corner cleared, I gave Reef a nod and she moved around it, advancing swiftly towards the door waiting at the end of it. Breaking into a sprint, she charged the remaining distance and swung out with her claw, reducing the door to splinters on impact and revealing five guards in the room on the other side.

Three of the guards wheeled on Reef immediately, drawing their pistols. I fired at the nearest one, clipping his shoulder and sending the snare cables scattering uselessly towards the wall. Reef ducked left as the men opened fire, but still caught one shot to the gut, driving the wind out of her. She staggered for a moment, then rallied with a growl. Storming into the small space, she withdrew her claw and tentacle - in their place, her arms became covered in pufferfish spines, and a narwhal horn extended from the palm of her left hand.

And what happened next, in a brilliant blur of motion almost faster than my eyes could follow… Well, I would have to review the footage of it from my helmet camera in detail, multiple times, later.

She thrust the horn like a rapier at the man who shot her, parrying his gun. Her spine-covered fist sank into his stomach. The man next to him took a horn to his jaw. He reeled as she whirled back on the first, a spined backhand sending him to the ground. Two guards down.

A burst of movement saw her across the space. A guard finished reloading his rifle just as her horn speared the back of his hand, forcing him to drop it. His buddy took a shot at Reef. It missed, hitting him in the calf instead. He sank to the ground. Reef snatched the weapon, swinging it at the fifth guard, deflecting another spray of bullets and disarming him. It swung into his jaw next with a crunch. A spined fist followed, thudding into his groin. It sent him to the floor with a pained yelp. Four down.

The one who shot his buddy in the calf was the only one still armed at this point. Reef surged forwards, slashing the tip of the horn across his wrist. She dropped low, carrying momentum to skewer his foot as the gun fell from his hand. He dropped as she withdrew the horn and brought out the tentacle again. It whipped out as the second guard got up to run away - the shadowy appendage grabbing his leg and pulling him upside down. He landed on his back, head smacking against the floor and dazing him. Five guards down.

I could only look on in slack-jawed awe, a little bit terrified of the way Reef worked her way through the guards. There was something primal about her, like a wild animal fighting for its life. And yet, her movements were methodical, targeting the most immediate threat before moving on to the next most dangerous one. I hadn't even had the chance to load another snare round into my bow before Reef had finished wiping the floor with the five guards in about as many seconds.

We're not done yet. Focus.

Readying another snare, I moved to the other side of the room and flung open the next door to reveal a set of stairs descending into a small basement - and three figures rapidly approaching. The first two were guards, more heavily armed than the ones Reef had just disabled, but there was no mistaking the third individual as a cape. His costume was styled like a tracksuit in the appropriate gang colours, with the addition of bits of thick leather padding over vulnerable areas. He wore fingerless gloves with blood-vessel-like patterns, and his mask was a bandana covering the lower face, a deeply creepy and menacing grin printed on it.

Siphon.

Not interested in taking the chance to learn what exactly his power did firsthand, I dropped the snare round and redrew my bow, flash-forging a flathead hard-light arrow. The air cracked as I fired, and the arrow punched Siphon in the chest, knocking him flat onto his back - and hopefully out cold.

"Boss!" One of the guards shouted as he wheeled around to help, crouching down and taking Siphon's hand.

The other took aim with his rifle and let loose a burst of gunfire. For the first time ever in real, actual combat, reactive hard-light armour panels flickered into existence. Bullets struck the panels, which exploded outwards as they stole all of the kinetic energy from the projectiles, rendering them harmless to me. Every shattered panel was one less defensive hard-light generator to protect me, though - and I didn't have an infinite number rigged to my costume. Still, I'd just been shot at and came out unscathed - I couldn't help but let out a whoop as adrenaline surged through me.

"Siphon's down!" I called out as Reef leapt out from behind me and lunged at the standing guard with her tentacle, punching him hard in the stomach and causing him to collapse to the ground.

I turned my attention back to the guard by Siphon's side and watched in shock as his breathing suddenly grew laboured as if he was getting strangled. A moment later, he crumpled to the ground as Siphon rose in his place.

"So, you're the bitches who've been crashing our parties," he growled with a slight accent.

He surged forward with surprising speed. I drew and fired again, missing as he weaved out of the way. My heart leapt into my throat; another frantic shot followed, a glancing blow that looked painful enough, but failed to put him down.

Reef ducked past me, lashing out with her tentacle. She struck his torso, but not hard enough. He slipped free as she tried to curl it around him, then reached out to seize the shadowy appendage, the malicious grin beneath the mask still visible in his eyes.

"Getting grabby is my thing, bitch," he sneered. Reef groaned, stumbled slightly. Siphon's expression turned to curiosity, then spoiled in frustration; it clearly wasn't the effect he expected. "Well, that's disappointing. Guess I'll have to go straight for the source!"

He lunged again. I couldn't hit him - couldn't adjust the Lightreach's aim fast enough, struggling with my ballistics computer when I needed to be relying on instinct in a fight this close. Reef swung wide, trying to slam him into the wall at first, then following up low; he jumped over the second swing, but stumbled on the stairs when he landed.

That was my chance. I ignored the indicators on my HUD, pulled the string and loosed, striking him square in the stomach. Reef followed up as he doubled over, curling the tentacle around his body and squeezing. Just when I thought we'd won, Siphon put both hands down on her shadowy limb. Reef crumpled against the wall, groaning like she'd just been punched.

"I watched the security footage," Siphon growled, recuperating as Reef weakened. "I saw how brutally you killed those men - and now you're dressed up as a hero? You're a killer, bitch… And I'm gonna make you fucking pay!"

Reef's tentacle was actually protecting him - I couldn't shoot her, and I couldn't shoot him anywhere other than his head - which would probably be lethal. I called out to Reef, holding my shot; there was nowhere else in this narrow stairway to manoeuvre for a better angle.

Siphon was looking past me, up the stairs towards the exit; he talked a big game, but he moved like a rat, searching for the first chance to scurry away. When Reef finally relented - withdrawing her tentacle all the way into its tattoo in order to escape the effects of Siphon's power - he leapt forwards again. Rather than attack, he evaded us, jumping past Reef's slumped form and then shoulder checking me into the wall before sprinting upwards to escape.

It took me a moment to recover my footing. Incensed, I stormed up after him, drawing and shooting him full in the back right as he crested the top of the stairs. The flathead impacted the back of his ribs, and he dropped like a rock, momentum carrying him out of sight as he crashed to the floor. Reef rallied, joining me as we made our way up.

The sight of an unconscious Siphon, flat on his face, was a victory short-lived in light of the shadow of another figure looming.

"A pack of wild Wogs, the Sydney club killer, and the rogue who helped her escape. It must be my lucky night," the man said with slightly slurred words and a Chinese accent as he hunkered down into a fighting stance.

King Hit.

---

AN: Dun dun duuuuunnn!!

Hey look, it's that Chekov's Cape I set up 7 chapters ago. Who could have possibly seen this coming? 😱

This chapter actually ended up being a little shorter than I expected and credit for that goes to my amazing co-author/beta reader Casey! She took my overly detailed and somewhat clunky fight scenes and turned them into something way more frenetic and engaging. Y'know, like an actual fight?

I've already started working on the next chapter so I'm hoping to get it out a little bit earlier since I'll be going away near the beginning of August. Also, I've been thinking about doing an Informational post with power profiles of all the capes we've encountered so far and updating it as the story progresses. So if anyone has interest in that sort of thing be sure to let me know.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Rhyzler]

The fic lives! Sorry for the huge delay with this chapter. Explanation in the AN at the end. I recommend that people go back and re-read the previous chapter in order to maintain the momentum of the scene as this chapter is an immediate continuation from where we left off.

Content Warning: This chapter contains descriptions of sex trafficking victims and practices which some readers may find disturbing. Please read at your own discretion.

Undertow 2.8​

Sunday, 2:09am, May 1st, 2005

Before I could react or get a word in, King Hit was on top of us. He kicked out, sweeping my legs out from under me as he shoved me, sending me flying backwards down the stairs. I crashed into Reef, sending her tumbling back down with me.

The Lightreach came with me as we fell, drifting along after us in my gloved grip. With a frantic gesture from my free hand, it shifted into flight mode, stabilising itself in midair with a pulse of anti-gravity. I grunted as it wrenched my shoulder and almost leapt out of my fingers, but I held, and a moment later my feet were back on the stairs. Reef landed heavily further down behind me.

White-hot anger surged through me at the prospect of losing Siphon - after the effort I went to in order to drop him! Twice! My fingertips brushed almost unconsciously over the bandolier at my thigh, an inch away from a destructive ACE-explosive arrowhead. The kind of firepower that could end this fight before it began.

The moment passed. With a single smooth, practised movement, I drew and loosed a flathead hard-light arrow instead. There was a satisfying thud as it sunk into his stomach, and he stumbled backwards from the impact, forced to yield the top stair he was lording over us from.

Either he's just a bully, and he'll back down when we give him more of a fight than he can handle. Or he's got principles, and he'll see reason when he realises Siphon will escape.

"Stay the fuck out of this!" Reef yelled up at him as she surged back up the stairs, brandishing the huge tattoo claw. King Hit ducked under one wide swing with ease, but Reef pressed on, thrusting forwards with open claw. That seemed to catch him off guard for just a moment, but then he did something that surprised both of us in turn; he leaned into the strike, then brought both hands up to shove off the inside of the claw before it could snap shut, pushing himself backwards to safety and surrendering more ground in the process. We both saw the nasty cuts on his palm from the sharp edge, though he didn't seem too bothered.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" I shouted past Reef as I ascended to the top of the stairwell, bow drawn and looking for another angle. King Hit had dropped into a lower stance and was manoeuvring around Reef, and I couldn't get a clean shot off. "We're here to save the girls they enslaved! We're not killing anyone. You should be helping us! Siphon's probably killing someone right now!"

King Hit moved back in close to Reef, prompting another strike, but he was entirely in command of the situation. He spun to the left, brought his palm down on the claw as he ducked back to the right, controlling its distance with ease. He moved so fast and stayed so close that Reef couldn't get a wind-up to swing at him, and couldn't get the claw around him, either. When she twisted away to draw her arm back overhead and prepare for a swing, he struck at the gap immediately, like he'd been waiting for it.

The impact forced the air explosively from Reef's lungs as she stumbled back. It was incredible how much force King Hit could muster in such a short space. I could tell Reef was hurt - bad. And I still couldn't get a shot in. It wasn't a coincidence - he was playing us, expertly, controlling our positioning in this cramped space where he somehow had the advantage on both of us. He was so much more dangerous than he seemed.

"You're a killerrrrr…" he growled with slurred words as I put out a hand to steady Reef. "Putting on a costume doesn't change that. I'm going to bring you to justice."

I swore under my breath. He was neither principled nor a bully. He was a zealot.

"He's gonna let Siphon get away!" I hissed. Reef rallied and pushed off me, surging forwards. She was still reeling, but rage was fueling her now. She swung wide, giving me an opportunity I couldn't afford to miss. I stepped to the side to get my angle as King Hit sidestepped her claw. He moved into the path of my draw, and I loosed the hard-light arrow. It smashed right into his chest, and I could tell - purely because I knew how much force was behind one of them - that he was now suffering from multiple broken ribs.

It was his turn to reel backwards, and Reef pushed the advantage. Her open claw came forward and clamped shut, trapping his arms up against his sides, his hands up towards his head. He let out a pained yell, muscles flexing to try and push back and prevent her from crushing his chest. I took another step, pulled the bowstring back, waiting for a clean line. But King Hit still wasn't done.

"How many?" he growled, still struggling.

"Shut. Up!" Reef spat back. In response, he twisted and pivoted his hip, striking out with a foot to her shin. Reef dropped to her knee and let out a pained cry. It was silenced a moment later as King Hit struck with his foot again, firing a series of rapid heel kicks into her stomach and driving the wind out of her once more. She choked and wheezed but despite it all, Reef didn't let go. King Hit was really struggling in her grasp, now, and I could see blood dripping down his arms.

"Does it feel good? Do you enjoy it?" he goaded her through grit teeth.

"You don't fucking know me!" Reef yelled hoarsely, forcing herself to stand up and bear down on him. I heard a series of hollow cracks as King Hit's arms went limp, and she kept crushing until she forced the air from his lungs in a pained shout. Then, finally, he slumped over.

I let out the breath I'd been holding, a noise somewhere between pained and exultant. It was over… But this whole thing had just been a distraction. I swivelled around the room, looking for Siphon.

He was gone. Distant footsteps echoed down the hallway we'd originally come through.

"Fuck!" I spat. I wheeled around, grabbing a snare round from my bandolier and shooting it almost absently at King Hit. The round popped like a firecracker, sending a messy tangle of cables to encircle his unconscious form. Reef jolted, dropping him in shock and stepping backwards.

"You good for now?!" I called urgently to Reef. I needed her to be okay so I could go after Siphon.

"I didn't mean to!" she answered in a panicked yelp, staring in horror at the mangled body of the cape she'd just crushed.

"Fuhhhh- screw him!" I dismissed, then pressed her. "Siphon's literally running right now. Are you okay for a minute?"

"I don't know. I don't know!" she replied, edging on hysteria. I gestured, using my glove to signal the Peregrine to watch the exit. Then I looked up at Reef. Her normal hand was shaking like a leaf.

I got a chirp a moment later. The two vans were already gone. The Peregrine was locked on to Siphon as he ran for the remaining SUV.

"Is he dead..?" Reef asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Blood still pumping, but with the adrenaline slowly cooling off, I shook my head to clear it. I let go of the Lightreach for a moment, leaving it to float unnervingly in the exact place I left it as I shuffled a few steps over. I dropped down to give King Hit a cursory check over, careful not to disturb the mask - even if I didn't give a crap about respecting his identity, it was just easier not to open that can of worms.

I wasn't a medical professional, but I'd made sure to take a few first aid courses after getting my powers so I knew the big things to look for. Despite the crushed ribs, he was still breathing, although it was raspy and somewhat weak. He had some pretty deep cuts in his forearms from the edges of Reef's claw but the blood was already starting to congeal at a rate much faster than normal. The cut he'd gotten on his palm earlier was already closed over, scar tissue slowly fading away to be replaced by new, pink skin.

It was clear that King Hit had some sort of healing factor and whatever it was exactly, it was preventing him from dying or bleeding out at the moment. He didn't deserve it, but he probably needed some proper medical attention. I knew his power was related to alcohol consumption somehow, but not exactly how it functioned, or whether or not it might wear off.

I pulled away and turned back to Reef, only to find she'd backed into the corner of the room and curled up a little.

"Please tell me he's not dead..." she mumbled faintly.

"He'll be fine. C'mon, get up! The girls need you!" I tried to prompt her, trying to snap her out of it with some urgency.

"I know! Don't yell at me!" She snapped back, and I winced.

With another gesture, I took the Peregrine off loiter and tasked it to follow Siphon's vehicle. Maybe wherever he ran to lick his wounds, he'd lead me to it. With any luck, it'd be somewhere important to the Wogs of War.

"I'm sorry. It looked like you were about to fall apart. We can't, not yet. Not until we've got the girls safe."

I stood up, nudging King Hit's leg with my boot.

"It was you or him. Frag won't be here, or he'd have come to fight already. But there might be other unpowered guards still. Can you check the room downstairs while I look around? Or do you need help?" I stepped closer and offered her my hand.

Reef took a few seconds, just taking deep breaths, even though it seemed to cause her a fair bit of pain. Then she took my hand, and I gently pulled her upright.

"I'm okay... I'm okay," she muttered, at first to herself, the second directed at me. "Can we stick together?"

"I..." …wanted to go to the rooftop and send Siphon a message. An explosive message, delivered ballistically through the roof of his SUV.

Not today, I guess.

I breathed in through my nose and out of my mouth as my heart rate began its journey back down to stability, grateful again for a full face mask to hide my expression as I grappled with all of the emotions suddenly rushing in, no longer held at bay by the fight or flight response.

"Yeah. We can. Let's go," I suggested in a shaky voice, reaching back for the Lightreach and turning down towards the door at the bottom of the stairs that was guarded. "Down there, probably..."

"Should we umm?..." Reef gestured at the unconscious guards on the ground who were still unrestrained and had access to their weapons if they woke up.

I blinked a few times.

"Yeah- Yeah! Yep. Definitely," I said, reaching to a brace at my lower back for more snare arrowheads and quickly shucking them for their wire. "Some cable ties would probably be useful in future..."

We set about drawing loops of the wire around the guards, one by one, winding the weighted tips around each other a bunch of times and digging them through the loops. The guards properly secured and their weapons out of reach, Reef led the way down the stairs and into the room from which Siphon came. The other two guards that were with him were still there and we bound them as well before proceeding further.

The room itself was something akin to a small break room or common area with only a couch, armchair, coffee table and a small TV to furnish it, but it was a dead end. I swept my aim across the room as we moved through it, doggedly and cautiously, looking for more exits.

Surely they would've been guarding the girls down here somewhere, right..?

Reef and I searched around the room for any clues, turning the furniture over and checking along the walls, growing more frustrated by the second until an idea hit me. I swapped my cameras to thermal vision, and the lower portion of the opposite wall lit up like a bonfire of reds and oranges. I spent a few more moments searching with Reef's help until we figured it out; a seam on the wall that had been behind the couch. Pressing my hands flat against it, the false sheet of plasterboard slid away to the left to reveal a heavy looking steel door.

"Reef," I called softly as I tried the door.

It didn't budge. No handle - only a small keypad on the left hand side. I brought up a flashlight, looking for shiny keys; brought it up on thermals to find any residual heat; even scrutinised it under optical zoom, checking for surface wear. Frustratingly, six of eleven keys had signs of use. I brought up a terminal on my HUD, opened a remote shell back to my server, and started kicking off text searches; discrete words surrounded by whitespace, six characters long, with some combination of those six characters. Maybe someone might have sent it in an email or a text or something.

Time was ticking. I was acutely aware of Reef's growing frustration - and my own, too. The searches weren't turning up any hits. I reached up to run my hands along the frame, looking closer at the wall - the door was extremely heavy duty, but its strength wouldn't matter if the construction around it wasn't as strong. Unfortunately, it all seemed pretty solid.

"Can't you just use one of your hacking arrows?" Reef asked, impatiently. I shared the sentiment.

"Option four, then," I muttered, pulling out a Data Knife and nocking it. After one final quick appraisal, I aimed it downwards at a 45-degree angle, one inch above the keypad. It was a guess, but I felt sure about it. The knife bit in, connected to the circuitry, and started its almost-entirely-automated exploit routine, giving me complete access to the door's control scheme in seconds.

"Aaand... open, says me," I muttered as I triggered the failsafe, unlocking the door. A heavy clunking sound came as the locks disengaged and the door swung open just a fraction. With no hesitation, Reef was up and pressing against the door to open it.

"Careful, there might be other guards in there too," I said quickly. Hopefully not, though; I didn't know how much more fighting we could handle right now.

The door swung open to reveal another small staircase downwards, at the bottom of which was another heavy steel door. Fortunately, this one just had a big handle on it - Reef reached out with her hand, clenching it briefly before resting it on the handle. She turned to look back at me.

I held the bow in a low ready position and gave her a hopeful little nod.

Reef turned the handle and pulled the door towards her, opening it.

Oh my god…

Huddled together in a large, bare, concrete room were what my HUD quickly summed up to be 57 young women of varying ages and ethnicities - though at a glance, the majority appeared to be Asian. The clothing they wore was a variety of cheap looking shirts and shorts, cocktail dresses, lingerie, and underwear - which was providing them nowhere near enough warmth, as I could see that most of them were shivering... Especially the smaller and younger ones.

Even with my helmet on to help filter it, the distinct smell of urine permeated the air and there was one corner of the room all the girls were clearly avoiding. By some small miracle, though, nobody looked to be visibly sick or injured.

They all turned to look at Reef and I - some expectantly, some with fear, others anger, and a few with hope.

I lowered my bow, reaching forward to give Reef a gentle squeeze on the shoulder, careful of her injuries. We'd done it.

"I'll call Deva now, and watch over King Hit...?" I offered.

"Mmhm," she nodded, then stepped into the room as she began to address the girls, at first in English. "It's okay. My name is Reef and this is my friend Parthian. We're capes, and we're here to save you. My friend is going to go call the police now and we're going to get you out of here. You're safe now, you're free."

About a fifth of the girls' faces shifted in recognition and started murmuring to one another as Reef started speaking again, this time in Japanese. I turned away as she continued speaking and headed back upstairs to check on the guards and King Hit - holding my bow forwards, perhaps a little paranoid. Some of the guards had started to come around, but none of them seemed to have the energy to say anything yet. King Hit's condition seemed to have improved somewhat, too, with his breathing being deeper than it was before.

As I stood in the room, it came to my attention that I could still hear the pounding of music through the walls coming from the club proper. The music must have been loud enough to drown out the series of scuffles that had occurred back here. For a moment I just contemplated that in amazement. I hated that I was impressed by the Wogs' ability to hide their activities in plain sight through methods like this.

I texted Deva first with the details, then dialled 000.

"Sydney emergency services, what service do you require?" a male operator spoke as the line picked up.

"I'll need Atlas," I said in a cordial tone. "At twenty-five Minnamura Road, the Bonds Crown Club. This is the independent cape Parthian - my teammate Reef and I have apprehended King Hit, a number of Wogs of War gangers, and we're in the process of freeing nearly sixty enslaved girls and women."

There was a moment of silence. I wondered if I'd managed to throw a 000 operator off guard; I figured they'd get some pretty wild calls, but maybe this kind of crazy didn't happen too often.

"I'm sorry, can you repeat that?" The operator asked.

Patiently, I repeated my way through; stating what organisation I needed, the location, identifying myself, and then briefly outlining the situation.

"Is that sixteen, one-six? Or sixty, six-zero?"

"Six-zero. I made a hasty count of about fifty-seven," I said, reviewing my own helmet camera footage again to double check. "Does Atlas have anyone on patrol in the area to secure King Hit?"

"I'm notifying emergency services, law enforcement, APRA, and the Atlas Alliance now. According to my patrol reports, Deva is the closest cape and should arrive shortly, followed by police."

Right on cue, Deva started calling.

"Thank you," I said to the operator, and promptly hung up before answering the incoming call. "Deva?"

"I'm two minutes out. Upload the frequencies for the trackers you tagged the cars with to the evidence server and Sentinel can start working with law enforcement immediately. What happened with Siphon and King Hit?"

"King Hit was labouring under the delusion that I helped the nightclub killer escape," I replied in a droll voice, kicking my boot into the side of his leg without much force, before continuing in a progressively more sombre tone. "Reef and I were forced to put him down, but his actions... allowed Siphon to escape."

I resisted the childish urge to kick him again and actually put some force behind it.

"We almost had Siphon, Deva!" I lamented. "He was out cold! Twice he drained one of his ganger buddies and got right back up again. The second time because King Hit got in the way and let him go!"

I stopped to take a deep breath, cleaning the venom and emotion from my voice. I brought up my HUD and started uploading the individual trackers' frequencies from all of my fired tracer munitions, letting the mechanical actions help me clear my head a little.

"I'm sorry, did you say you put King Hit down?!" Deva asked, shocked and appalled.

"Poor choice of words. He's lights out right now, but stable. He made it clear he wouldn't relent and he wasn't going to let us retreat, either. He'll definitely need medical attention, but he's breathing strong and has a good heart rate. I've got him tied up just in case."

Deva let out an exasperated sigh.

"Okay, that's a relief, but also frustrating. Did you get a tracker on Siphon's vehicle?"

"Better than that," I said, checking on the latest from the Peregrine's feed in pursuit of the SUV Siphon took. It was still on the move, heading roughly north. "I've still got eyes on him, too. I'm hoping he leads us somewhere interesting."

As an afterthought, I added a trigger to the Peregrine to ping me if the target was stopped for more than a minute.

"Reef's talking with the girls now. They were in... inhumane conditions, but most seemed to be healthy. At least on the surface. Deva... has anyone else called in this raid yet? Are we the first emergency services call?" I inquired.

"You were. I expect there's going to be quite the debacle when the police arrive. You and Reef should leave when they do, if King Hit knows about you two and wakes up while you're still around, it will be difficult to avoid questions. Are you planning to pursue Siphon yourself?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "Probably not tonight. Fighting him twice, and then King Hit immediately after, wasn't easy. I think we'll just watch him for now."

I started peering around as I talked, looking for security cameras, looking back down towards the stairs, out towards the hall and in the direction of the busted loading dock door.

"Let the AA take over from here, I'll single that tracker out to Sentinel and we'll send some of our own. I'm here now, which entrance should I meet you at?"

"Loading dock," I replied, leaving it at that. She'd know when she saw it.

Moving up and down the halls and through the back rooms, there was only one camera I came across, which was pointed in the direction of the alcohol storage room. There were a few other points in the ceiling where mounts for security cameras were attached, but no actual cameras. Disappointingly, the Wogs had been smart enough to not record themselves sex trafficking.

I picked up my last Data Knife and fired it off into the ceiling right next to the camera facing the drink storage. It took a little while longer than it did at Bali Springs, but after about a minute of work, I cracked their security systems and tapped into their CCTV network. Behind me, I heard heavy booted footsteps approaching.

"Deva?" I asked, my head still very much in the hack as I used my new access to start routing back to the network hardware and hack my way out of the circuit, hoping to start pillaging as much as I could from every device I could get access to.

I turned around to see the seven foot tall angelic figure of Deva approaching, wings folded up behind her, halo glowing, face as supernaturally perfect as ever. As she got close, I felt that familiar wave of calm wash over me, carrying away any traces of adrenaline that were left over from the fight with Siphon and King Hit.

"Good... I suppose morning, Parthian. Having a stickybeak are we?" The hero inquired lightly.

"Yeah," I said, suddenly feeling very relieved and very, very tired. I took a few steps backwards to the wall of the hallway and leaned back against it, letting myself slide down into a seated position, letting the Lightreach hover beside me.

"Down there," I said, pointing in the direction of the path down to the stairs and the secure room beyond.

She gave a nod and a smile and turned her head that way.

It took a few attempts to break free of the closed circuit network, but from there I was able to start digging into the juicy stuff pretty quickly. More coded emails and communications, even a few phone numbers this time. Disappointingly, there didn't seem to be any bank accounts - but there was still plenty of incriminating evidence and communications to decode. I filed it all away to be dealt with later.

"Deva's coming down," I said to Reef over the comms. "I think we're just about done here."

"Okay." Reef responded, sounding about as tired as I felt.

While Deva and Reef were busy, I kept a wary eye out and worked on a payload to wreak havoc on their computer systems once I'd finished stealing every last file in reach. Reef was the first to poke her head back out a little bit later.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

"It's been a matter of minutes, but I feel like I've run a marathon," I said with an almost exultant chuckle. "I'm gonna sleep well tonight. Deva has the girls in hand?"

"Mmhm." she responded, failing to stifle a pained wince as she clutched at her stomach. "She has a healing power that she used on King Hit and she's going through the girls one by one to check none of them are sick or have internal injuries. If you're hurt, you should go ask her."

"Did you?" I asked simply.

"She said she couldn't use her power on me. Something about whatever Siphon did to me when he touched me makes it risky for her to try and heal me..."

I frowned, but didn't say anything more about it.

"You got it way worse than I did, though. Think you'll be able to cling to me on the ride back? Might be uncomfortable, but I don't know if winging your own way back will be any better..."

"I don't suppose we could get a taxi?" She let out a small laugh that immediately became a groan of pain as she clutched her stomach a little harder.

"We can try," I humoured her. "It's late, though. And on the bumpy roads... for the whole trip... probably be easier just to go full speed and get the flight over with."

"Okay." She turned and started to hobble her way towards the loading bay door.

I could hear the sound of dozens of sirens approaching now. I leaned over and got my knees under me, then pushed myself back to my feet, following her out the hole we made on the way in, listening as the sound of the music faded and the sirens got louder. We mounted up onto the Lightreach and Reef grabbed on tightly with another grunt. As we took to the sky, I could see what was best described as a fleet of emergency service vehicles converging on the Bonds Crown Club.

Flying carefully more for Reef's sake than my own, I angled back towards the workshop, leaving the Peregrine in the field to loiter and continue to watch over Siphon's vehicle. Whizzing over the city, I turned my head towards the harbour and could just make out the AAHQ as it spat out half a dozen Sentinel probes from its underside, which quickly started to fan out, travelling in various directions.

About 10 minutes after we landed back at the lab, I got a chirp from the Peregrine telling me that Siphon's car had come to a stop at a location in Killarney Heights. The desire to pursue him was long gone, now. By that point, I was helping Reef get comfortable, and checking her for any signs of more serious injury as I peeled her out of her costume. She had a few nasty bumps and bruises across her body, but what was most worrying was the massive black and purple bruise on her stomach, from where she'd gotten shot by the gangster and later struck repeatedly by King Hit.

I got her to lie down on the cot, and then headed to the fridge freezer, pulling out every single ice tray and emptying them all one by one into a plastic bag. I wrapped it up in a towel and placed it gently over her stomach, flat and spread out over as large an area as I could to cool it down. Then I put another towel gently over top, tucking it in beneath her sides to keep it from sliding off and insulate it just a little more from the air.

"How's it feeling now?" I asked as I placed a glass of water in reach.

"Still really sore, but better... I wouldn't be surprised if I'm peeing blood for the next few days though." She reached feebly for the glass of water and took a sip from it.

"It's gonna be rough," I agreed, before letting out a big yawn. "I think I'm just gonna crash here tonight."

"Please."

I stood up and headed over to one of the seats, having not bothered to take off the majority of my own costume, and collapsed into it. I leaned back and crossed my arms over my stomach.

"Just gimme a shout if you need anything," I said, closing my eyes. "You might need to yell loud."

"You should take your costume off, make sure you didn't do anything too bad when you got knocked down the stairs. Plus you'll get all stinky and sweaty." Reef giggled a little and then groaned again.

I sighed and made a theatrical effort of pushing up out of my chair. With most of the electronics already gone, off came the cloak, the neckerchief, the gloves and shoulderpads, the belts and then the jacket, the boots and the pants, leaving me in just a light cotton underlayer. I pulled up my shirt for a moment, twisting around to visually inspect myself. I had earned myself a few small bruises, but my reactive armour had done its job well. I ran my hands up my sides and back, prodding gently and making sure nothing hurt, much like I'd already done for Aiko, other than the obvious stomach bruising. I felt a little guilty seeing the differences in how badly we'd come out of the fight. Aiko was bulletproof, but clearly not invulnerable. Perhaps I needed to consider how feasible it would be to make a second set of reactive armour for her.

"I'm good," I declared finally, sinking back down into the chair. A fair bit less covered, now, I curled up a little tighter, hugging myself as I tried to get comfortable.

I didn't get a response from Aiko. Turning to look at her, I could see she was out cold, with no sign of movement except for the gentle rise and fall of her chest.

I watched her breathing, and it didn't take long for me to join her as sheer exhaustion claimed me with ease.

---

AN: Big thanks again to Casey, the amazing co-author/beta reader who did yet another amazing job of improving my clunkily written fight scenes. I am learning from her but I've got a ways to go before I'm at her level.

So why on Earth did this chapter take so long? Well, as I said in my AN at the end of the previous chapter, at the start of August I went away on an exchange program which I am still currently participating in. There's a whole bunch of different factors that have made working on the fic difficult but to put it simply, I'm just too busy. I don't have the time to spare to give this fic the attention and effort I want to give it.

In light of this, I'm officially putting Wave on hiatus until I return home at the beginning of next year. This chapter marks the end of Arc 2 so when I have the time to start writing again, we'll be picking up with an interlude before continuing into Arc 3 where more Wog behind is sure to be kicked.

To everyone who came back to read this new chapter after the almost 3 month gap, I love and appreciate you. I hope you won't mind waiting a bit longer for the next chapter. Thanks for reading!