"Hey, Archer?"
"Yes, Master?"
"Do you think… being a Hero is worth it?"
"..."
"Hmm..? You became quiet? Did my sudden question take you aback? I was only expecting a joke answer like "Yes, absolutely!" or "It's hard to say." Ku ku ku!"
"Please don't joke like that, Master."
"Ahaha, did I embarrass you? Sorry sorry!"
"May I ask what brought this on?"
"Umm… I've just been thinking a lot."
"Haven't we told you not to? Ah, it was my mistake to assume you'll immediately switch natures."
"Ehehehe… That's right."
"While it is useful to analyze every situation from a logical viewpoint, doing it for too long can spell your death. The same can be applied to life."
"I guess I was a paranoid brat back when, huh?"
"I would rather say mistrustful."
"Yeah… I wasn't really in the best mind state at the time…"
"But you managed to mature through it all."
"Because of you guys, duh. I never would've gotten rid of all that baggage if it weren't for you."
"Oftentimes, the only way to save a life is to talk to them."
"Well now you're making it seem like I wanted to die back then."
"Was it far from the truth?"
"Well no, but that's besides the point! We were talking about hero stuff!"
"Of course."
"You see… you know how masters and servants often share their memories?"
"I am aware."
"What did you think of my memories?"
"..."
"A frown… It's okay, Archer. You don't need to-"
"You have done well to make it this far by yourself, Master. The battles we all face may seem trivial to each other, but to us, they are our greatest obstacles."
"H-hey! I didn't ask for head pats! S-stop that! You're messing up my hair! Archer!"
"You remind me of someone I knew. Please allow me this moment."
"..."
"..."
"... Archer."
"Yes?"
"If I said I want to save everyone, would you stop me?"
"..."
"I have lived so many lives. Through you and the others. I have seen Humanity through the eyes of her heroes and villains. I have experienced through their ideals and regrets. Though in dreams, I have felt I was there myself. I have witnessed the decisions you have made and I have come to understand the paths you have walked to get here."
"..."
"So… tell me… please, Archer… Is being a hero worth it? For all your suffering I have seen, for those brief moments of relief and happily-ever-afters, is it worth it?"
"... No."
"..."
"For me, I do not believe it was worth it. And yet, I shall continue to be this Hero no matter what may come. But for you, what do you think? You must decide this answer for yourself. This is a path you can only walk yourself."
"Ah… that's right. How can I forget? You're my Hero of Justice after all. Always saying stuff like that with so much confidence."
"You mustn't doubt yourself, Master. Stay true to your ideals. Learn from others, but do not seek to emulate them."
"R-right...You're right…"
"Did you expect any other answer?"
"Sort of… I guess I was wishing for too much from you."
"And what would you do if you heard what you wanted to hear?"
"I… would've felt reassured that what I'm doing is right. My methods. Do you think I am doing too much, Archer?"
"It has been taking its toll on you. The signs have been showing."
"Ehhh…? But I thought I was hiding them so well."
"That is what we have warned you of."
"I know."
"But you do not regret it."
"Never."
"Then you have your answer. Can you yourself accept it?"
"I…"
"It does not have to be now. A person's resolve is tested as time passes. Whether you can accept these new ideals, only time will tell how much you have grown since then."
"..."
"...? Master?"
"Just hug me back, you goofball."
"Ah, yes. My mistake."
"But… Archer."
"Hm?"
"You haven't answered my question yet. If… there comes a time when I, at the end of this path I'm on, can save the world at a price that you can't accept… will you stop me? Not just Will . Can you stop me? Before I make a decision no one can properly repay? Regardless of our relationship as Master and Servant,"
"Can you please kill me to save the world ?"
---
"There was another man. He was wearing blue spandex and had a red spear." The girl in green recounted the best she could in her involvement with Chaldea. "He was the one who threw it."
The squeaking of black ink carried with the marker across the board. A variety of descriptions already occupied the majority of it. "Anything else?" The neutral question of Armsmaster came.
Everything was a blur to her, like the drifting of leaves down the river. Her young memory can only remember so much of the past few days. "I can't." I'm sorry, she did not say.
"It's fine that you can't. We've been holding this off while trying to reestablish order." The Hero stood back as his visor scanned the details on the board.
Vista glanced around the room on the couch. Still and empty with the miracle of air conditioning filling her ears. The chilled air grazed her skin under her costume. The lack of the presence of her team took a story plenty.
Her parents didn't notice her coming to the Rig at all. Despite everything, they won't notice her coming home.
"What's it like out there?" Vista wanted to learn about it herself. Look it up online. Read the news. See it all for herself.
But to hear it from someone she can trust, it provided a cushion to the shock.
"Bad." Armsmaster said it as simply and plainly as he did. "Behemoth's interference with electronics was worldwide. Virtually, all electronics that were not shielded are rendered useless." Armsmaster talked as the information blazed through his visor. "Efforts are being made to reestablish national communications. There are still some dead zones needing assistance"
"Does that mean there's no more internet?" Vista wondered. It seemed an apt question to ask.
"Not necessarily." Armsmaster explained. A small panel on his suit detached. The heavy thuds of his boots marked his approach. Vista accepted the device extended from his hand. The screen showed a bog standard search engine. She tested it with a search for puppies. She smiled at the results. "Approximately five hours after the electromagnetic pulse, the global electromagnetic field was forcibly restored to pre-behemoth readings. For all intents and purposes, Behemoth never attacked."
"Why would it fix what it destroyed?" Vista remembered the destruction the Endbringer left in its wake. Why is this time any different?
"This divergence of behavior has been discussed in detail with the relevant parties, but no one could determine a satisfactory answer." Armsmaster shook his head. "No one knows and any response the PRT could make up for the public would just be a cover up from the truth." A bitterness inked those words.
"Except for Chaldea." She noticed the elephant in the room.
"Who we couldn't contact since." A breath to lull his rising frustration, Armsmaster said. "The number they imparted to us had stopped being answered, leading to their answer machine."
"Should we be worried?" Vista had plenty on her mind, but there's only so much she can ignore before it all spills over.
"We should always be worried." Armsmaster said as fact, opening another fresh marker. "Just because one problem is over doesn't mean the others we don't see go away. If that's the case, then there wouldn't be any use in the Protectorate or the police anymore."
He wrote down the pseudonym atop the white board. "Sleádóir. Suddenly appeared in the Irish province of Ulster where they fell through the rooftop ceiling of a local pub and was the focus of the altercation that occurred afterwards. After 15 minutes, they disappeared in a white light, leaving after incapacitating the patrons and owners. This incident was dated before Simulacrum's appearance."
"They're related?" Vista recalled a relevant video. Who knew the man she saw in the tornado would be the same man who got into a drunken brawl?
"The evidence matches that it couldn't be a coincidence." Armsmaster nodded before noting it down. "At the very least, we can consider them and any other similar appearances as a part of Chaldea."
"Should we be worried about them?" Vista wanted the answer to be "No," but life is never so kind.
"They are an organization that has the ability to travel anywhere on the planet while possessing abilities that exceed that of the governments and the S-Classes we know of." Armsmaster turned to her. "That is reason enough for everyone to be wary. Worse still, we don't have anything to stop them. The only thing that can placate the public is their assumed morality to uphold order."
"We don't trust them." She guessed.
Armsmaster began to wipe away the board. "I know we have taught you that actions speak louder than words, but words themselves can be just as loud. While Simulacrum and Chaldea have gotten rid of the threats that plagued us, they introduced a new threat."
"Them?" Vista continued the line of thought.
Armsmaster bobbed his head. "The reason why the Triumvirate are considered the greatest heroes is because of their public appearances and speeches. Their powers and feats are a consequence. The people trust those three to save the world, even if it's just empty faith. Meanwhile Chaldea appeared one day, breaking multiple conventions and then just solved everything. Their only official statement was during Leviathan. In the short term, the public thanked them, but in the long term..."
"Everyone's afraid?" Vista tilted her head, churning the thought.
"This is a reason why we mandate your engagement with the public." Armsmaster gestured for her to follow him to the elevator. "The people need to know who you are and build a sense of trust in you."
"I don't like being known as the munchkin..." Vista whispered under her breath.
She could've sworn she saw the beginnings of a smirk on Armsmaster's face.
"Then use that to your advantage." Armsmaster pressed a button on the wall panel. The doors locked shut and the elevator's movement hummed. "In any case, we have no reason to believe Chaldea's actions aren't for betterment, but we also have no reason to go against them. It's true that they disposed of known S-Classes and two Endbringers. That much is worth a sizable amount of goodwill, but they've also operated outside of the accepted guidelines given to recognized Parahumans and all related organizations like us. They neglected to explain some of the questionable actions they took such as assassinating a government official and wiping out an entire criminal syndicate. They did inform the local authorities to follow and clean up after them, but there is a certain order that must be taken before anything can be done."
"What if there's no time to wait?" Vista played advocate.
"To ask for forgiveness instead of permission…" Armsmaster looked at the ceiling. "There is nothing inherently wrong with that in the eyes of a vigilante. It is a different story with the authorities. We have laws in place to prevent unsupervised heroism. There is always a risk for us whenever we wear the mask. These rules are to help minimize the consequences. I understand why someone might jump in and play hero, but they always bring unnecessary risks with them. We can't save them all. We save who we can while keeping ourselves from having to be saved." A history came with his explanation.
Vista looked at the floor instead. "But they're still saving people." She stated the obvious.
Armsmaster paused, then nodded. "I recognize that. It's not the same for our superiors." His throat held back years of grievances he never wanted to say.
"Then why the caution?" Vista questioned.
"We don't know how to stop them if their perceived threat becomes true. We can designate them as an S-Class, but that's all we can do until we can devise a feasible plan of action." Armsmaster crossed his arms.
Vista swallowed her further questions, but one.
"What about Scion?"
She saw Armsmaster's gears grinding behind his helmet. He exhaled a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"We don't know." His face morphed into a scowl towards the wall. His thoughts shared the same as his many equals and superiors.
Vista didn't know either.
---
It was as if the streets were never empty. With noise and chatter, Vista saw people coming and going along the sidewalks, cars motoring up and down the roads, and the sounds of life riding the wind.
Armsmaster was by her side. Rather, he was walking just a step after her. A Hero escorting his Ward. A new edict made by the Protectorate. A mentor system of sorts instead of the patrol routine Vista was used to with the Wards. It wasn't a new idea. It was a safe idea really, but inefficient. It meant less coverage of the Bay with how the system worked, meaning less eyes on them. However after recent events, the Protectorate were convinced that such a forceful change was necessary, effective yesterday.
A fan was walking up to them with a pen and paper. She kept up her smile as she signed it with Armsmaster's permission. He didn't show much emotion when several people asked for his autograph.
Petty crimes were less often than before Leviathan and Behemoth, but they still persisted. Brockton Bay never changed, Vista thought as she watched Armsmaster called for a patrol car to pick up a pair of muggers.
Her hands were chilly beneath her gloves. The sight of normalcy before her after the abruptness of the apocalypse, it felt so surreal.
The hotdogs Armsmaster bought for the two of them provided some sense of comfort…
"How much longer?" She asked, deferring to her greater.
"An hour. We still have a few blocks to circle back to." He said; his scanning eyes moved with his helmet.
Vista's eyes followed suit. Looking down the passing alleyways, searching for sketchy groups, smiling and waving at the occasional citizens distracting them.
It was funny to her, how it still felt uneasy with the threat of the ABB and the Empire hovering over their shoulders. She thought Brockton would feel safer ever since the Merchants were locked up. Wishful thinking, she guessed. It's like things never changed.
Vista glanced across the street. It was the local graveyard, fenced off with black metal. The lot was filled with tombstones, unmarked and not. It was empty. Figures, she thought. After so much death, the last thing anyone would want to do is immerse themselves in…
A passing car broke her line of sight for her to see a reflection of herself on its windows.
She stopped in her tracks. She blinked to shake what might be a delusion of two figures standing alone in the cemetery.
It wasn't.
"Hey, Armsmaster?" She spoke up, aloud and on comms.
"What is it?" Armsmaster said when he doubled back. His sight trailed to where Vista's were. All he would see were epitaphs inscribed in stones. "Is something there?" Thoughts of a stranger effect came to his mind's forefront.
"I see Simulacrum and that girl she's sometimes with." Vista pointed a vague yet precise direction. "I think they're visiting."
Armsmaster doubts grew as he flipped through his visor's visions. There was nothing to see…
All the more reason to investigate.
"Stay behind me." The hero commanded. A car stopped at his flat hand with Vista following behind him. His hand was alert. "Guide me."
Crossing the street was a mundane affair; entering the graveyard also.
A shiver crawled Vista's spine as she passed by the tombs. It was a subdued feeling. Perhaps because of Armsmaster's presence. But she kept her purpose in mind as she guided him through the grounds and trees. Her eyes zeroed in on two women in modest coats, standing before a grave.
The one with pink hair noticed her first. She blinked then prodded the side of the other standing between them.
She did not move. She continued to smile at the stone mound before her.
"Here." Vista indicated the place where Taylor Hebert stands. "She's looking at the grave."
Armsmaster nodded and his head turned slightly. The name on the headstone was easy to recognize.
"Your mother?" He said…
And then he blinked.
He did not flinch when he now sees the two figures himself. Taylor Hebert's smile was warm to see. It wasn't warm enough to melt his guard.
"Yes." Taylor said before looking back. "Care to join us?"
Vista looked up at Armsmaster's towering figure. She couldn't see the thoughts he was cycling through. What questions were being made. Was he going to call for backup?
"..." Armsmaster said nothing as he stepped forward and turned to the gravestone. She saw his tense shoulders let go.
Vista hesitantly did the same. She didn't mean to read the epitaph.
She taught something precious to each of us.
She wonders if her own mother will do the same.
"How did Vista see you when you didn't want to be seen?" Armsmaster conjectured; his voice was low, giving the barest amount of respect he can.
"Any hero can see things clearly, if they want to." Taylor said in a somber mood.
"Your definition does not include me?" Armsmaster pursed his mouth.
"I do not know, but that scarf of hers is proof of her heroism enough." Taylor pointed to the ward.
Vista suddenly felt a familiar cloth on her neck. How…?
Armsmaster was careful to remove it for her. "This was supposed to be locked up for study." His question was stern.
"And it wishes to be worn by its owner, as would any other piece of clothing want." Taylor replied.
The length of cloth began to tug from his grip. His hand tightened on it. "Why?"
Vista can see a question mark appear over Taylor's head.
"Why what?" Goes the woman's question.
"Why the mystery?" Armsmaster pressed on. "What is your goal?"
Taylor closed her eyes and ruminated. Her head bobbed as if her thoughts popped as quickly as they bubbled.
"What is yours?" She answered back.
"I'm asking the questions here." Armsmaster firmly established. "Ever since your appearance, the world is undergoing changes no one can catch up with. You've gotten rid of S-classes. You killed Leviathan and Behemoth. You overstepped the boundaries the rest of us had to stay behind. You left a vacuum, but you haven't indicated that you gave a care. Why? Why do all this? If you're saying for no reason, then that would be a lie." He accused with an emotion he held repressed for too long.
Taylor listened, then nodded.
"I did it for me." Taylor responded. "I did it for peace of mind."
"Because you wanted to save the world?" Armsmaster guessed.
"Because I wanted to save you." Taylor clarified.
"Do you think of yourself as a savior?" Armsmaster continued.
"Never." She shook her head. "That is the most selfish position anyone can take."
"Then what was your plan?" Armsmaster asked again.
Taylor paused, picking her words carefully. The melancholic before her would not accept any less. He couldn't. Only the words he allows himself to listen to will he accept them.
"Exaltation." She spoke.
Armsmaster expected a nonsense answer, nevertheless. "Of what?"
"Primates." She continued.
"Monkeys or Apes?" Armsmaster slowly questioned.
"Humans."
Did this become 20 questions? Vista thought, fluffing the scarf around her neck again. It was soft as the first moment she had it.
"Why?"
"Terminus."
"Where?"
"Stars."
"How? Our powers do not function in outer space." Armsmaster noted. "To say nothing about the Simurgh."
Taylor smiled. "Subversion. Reorient."
Armsmaster hardened. "Change what?"
Taylor tapped her cheek, looking up. "不可思議"
Concepts that cannot be expressed in English, Armsmaster thought. His software translated it as 'incomprehensive'. "Say it."
"現象"
"The phenomenon of what?"
"Superkrachten." She said.
His hand twitched. "How?"
"Viera."
"Thoughts cannot exert tangible force on the material." Armsmaster shook.
"Наблюдение."
"Neither can observation. Physical properties can only be recorded, never changed. Retroactively and otherwise."
Taylor grinned. "Then explain your powers."
His teeth grit; the question was clear. "I can't."
"Then the truth is still out there. You and the world at large do not know the source of Parahuman abilities. Only the facts and laws that can be gleaned with Science."
"You're implying that you do." Armsmaster's impatience hitched in his throat.
"I do." Taylor nodded. "An observatory's purpose is to study natural phenomena."
"Then why won't you tell us?" He grew tired of the questions.
"To save you." Taylor repeated.
"Even if the truth is not meant to be known, we have a right to know." He turned his head.
"By birthright, you do. But it is not my place to tell you." Taylor refused. "It is your duty as Humans to find out yourself."
"Then why won't you tell us? Why the mystery?" Armsmaster growled.
"Once known, the supernatural goes away. So the saying goes." Taylor replied. "Though in your case, it's more like a black box."
Armsmaster didn't try to refute it. "You're trying to change what the inside of the box looks like before we could see it."
"A reductionist answer, but yes." Taylor beamed.
"Reality cannot be affected so easily…" Armsmaster paused. His thoughts flickered with evidence. "But you could. You showed ample proof."
"It is just a hypothesis. It may not even bore fruit." Taylor scoffed. "But it would make a good starting point."
I cannot let you do as you want, Armsmaster nearly let his conviction speak for him. He knew he would be too slow to act. "To what end?"
Taylor pointed upwards at the evening sky. "There. The finish line for Humanity."
"Space?" Armsmaster stated the obvious.
"The Stars." Taylor clarified. "Instead of the petty quarrels here, shouldn't you be worried about travelling the grand unknown?"
"There's been attempts, but they haven't been successful." Armsmaster said. "Why the rush?"
"Why the stall? You have the world on your fingertips and knowledge unending in your mind. When will you follow after Voyager?" Taylor pouted.
"There is still unfinished business for me here." Armsmaster answered. "I imagine it's the same for everyone else."
"Your career. I see." Taylor nodded. "This era still values standings. It is my fault to not empathize with it." Her voice sighed… and slipped.
"Senpai?" The woman in pink hair spoke soft.
"You sounded different." Armsmaster was always quick to notice the small details.
Taylor covered her mouth. "Ah. My mistake. I can never remember how I should act. The amount of personas can be laborious to keep track of. Remind me, was I acting the part of the mysterious stranger or the bombastic Quixote?"
Armsmaster fumed… and subsided. "The uncooperative vigilante. I'd ask you to come with me, but I have no power to convince you." Armsmaster turned off his helmet. "I only have a few questions left."
"Speak." A neutral tone.
"Will there be any more trouble?" He did.
"Change requires sacrifice. Today is here. Tomorrow will be different. Depending on how it is believed, a future will be how you wanted it to be." Taylor said with a nod.
"Answer the question." Armsmaster huffed with a glare.
"Yes. A thousand trials. Hundreds of tribulations. Tens of sufferings. Of both yours and those beside you." Taylor answered.
"Can I do anything about them?" Armsmaster remembered what the woman declared. It was not enough for him then.
"With enough drive in this age of Parahumans, you can. As a saint or sinner. As a hero or villain. A great person can come from anyone."
It was almost enough for him now.
"What will you do next? Wait until another Endbringer? Find more S-Classes?"
"If it provides any solace, I don't plan on anything except further my hypothesis."
"Will it affect anyone?"
"If all goes well, nothing will happen at all. And you can continue your life and career in the Protectorate as if I never existed."
"And the Simurgh?"
"I am deliberating whether I should intervene or allow you to handle her yourself."
"And renege on what you said?"
"I cannot be here forever and you cannot lean on a crutch forever."
"You expect us to handle her ourselves?"
"With enough drive."
"That's irresponsible."
"How would your mother raise you?"
Armsmaster snapped shut his next thought. His eyes were unfazed against Taylor's.
Instead, he looked down before him.
"Ma'am." A nod.
And turned away with Vista at his side. "I would arrest you for mastering me. I wouldn't have humored you for this long."
"If all it takes for anyone to stick around to chat is a little charisma, then you should arrest every single politician out there." Taylor laughed.
Armsmaster didn't respond.
"And Vista."
The ward turned back to see Taylor kneeling before her. Her hands fixed the scarf around her neck.
"You must take care of this. It is your proof of heroism, but it is up to you to believe that it is." Taylor patted it. "Okay?" A soft smile.
It was something Vista would've wanted to see every day.
"Yes, ma'am." She muttered.
She was reminded of how small she was. A familiar feeling. Before the world beneath her.
The two walked away. Armsmaster would never mention this encounter in his logs. Vista would nestle in her bed that night with the dreams she always wanted.
Mash Kyrielight felt the chill breeze nip her cheek as she watched.
Taylor looked weary as she rejoined her. Her bright smile masked her fatigue.
"Ready to go, Mash?" Taylor bubbled, pulling a strand of hair from her face.
Mash's gaze drifted to the bundle of flowers she placed. She wanted to meet the person who gave her Taylor.
She didn't expect it to turn out like this.
How did Taylor manage to never tell her?
A better question would be, why didn't Mash ask sooner?
"Yes, Senpai." Mash nodded.
"Great!" Taylor glowed radiant. "Let's get some hot cocoa. M'kay?"
"That sounds nice." Mash found it easy to smile.
She hopes it will be easy in the future.
She knows better that it won't.
---
AN: Often I wonder, how can I possibly show my face to you again after leaving for so long? After such unworthy scribbles? Then I cast away my doubts and simply write my feelings. How will the future look with you by my side? I hope my feelings reach you. If you are not here, then I will value your words. If you do not speak, then I shall value your presence. And if neither are true, then I will wait for you. For as long as you may need.
As an aside:
"Hey, remember the fact that Da Vinci used Cu as a test dummy to test rayshifting into Earth Bet?"
"It's been far too long. I've forgotten many of the plot threads I have strung asides from the most important of ones."
"It would elicit a laugh if he barged through the ceiling of a drunk pub in Ireland, yes?"
"It... would. Yes."
"Excellent. Continue writing!"
