I, Panacea Pt 4 (Patreon)

Amy banged on the metal door with a rock she had found.

I feel silly. Are you sure there's someone home?

I'm certain of it. Hear those dogs?

What if they've gone out and left the dogs in here?

Nope, Bitch wouldn't do that. They're more dear to her than kids.

The barking was closer now, just inside the door that she was banging on.

You might want to drop the rock now.

Why?

So you don't look like a threat.

Oh.

She dropped the rock, just as the door was yanked open and three dogs leaped out. They circled around her, barking madly, as a tall black teenager and a shorter, stockier auburn-haired girl - Grue and Hellhound, she guessed – each grabbed her by an arm. Before she could protest, she was hauled into the warehouse and the door slammed behind her.

Grue pushed her against the wall, not hard, and frisked her, quickly and efficiently. He came away with her purse and her phone, but not much else. "What are you doing here?" he asked, holding her arm behind her back. "Why were you trying to break in?"

She was vividly aware of the dogs; no longer barking, they were eyeing her and growling ferociously. Hellhound stood off, watching her with a grim set to her jaw. Hostility fairly radiated from the female villain.

"Not trying to break in," Amy managed, turning her head to look at him out of the corner of her eye. "Wanted to talk to you guys. To the Undersiders."

"The fuck?" growled the girl, her head coming up. The dogs took a step forward, their growls intensifying in volume.

Amy felt the tall black guy's grip tighten on her wrist. "Rachel," he snapped. "Back off."

Hellhound - Rachel - stood for a long moment, a challenging look in her eye. Then, apparently satisfied that she'd proven that she did not just blindly follow orders, she stepped back and clicked her tongue. The dogs stepped back with her.

"You want to talk to us?" asked Grue. "We can do that."

I didn't like the way he said that.

He pulled the hood of her jacket up and over her head, and then down, so that she couldn't see anything except her feet. And then even they disappeared. She couldn't see anything at all. Even her hearing was muffled, almost to the point that she thought she'd gone deaf.

The presence in her head was calm, reassuring. You weren't meant to. He's just trying to intimidate you. Like right now, his darkness? Scare tactic. Keep you off balance.

Well, he's succeeding. But she wasn't as frightened as she might have been.

You're doing well. Just remember what we talked about. And Skitter isn't about to see an innocent get hurt. Watch your step. Spiral staircase coming up.

Trusting an awful lot in the goodwill of someone that Vicky threatened to send to the Birdcage. That I threatened to do awful things to with my powers.

Tempers were high, he assured her. Hurting someone in cold blood, that's something that Regent might do. Rachel's never really calm either. But Grue and Tattetale and Skitter won't let that happen.

She felt her left hand being guided on to a railing, one that curved up and around to the right. Grue – she presumed it was Grue – still held her right arm behind her back. Forewarned, she felt for the first step, while simultaneously being prodded, guided and supported by Grue.

The climb seemed interminable. Ascending a spiral staircase is by no means an intuitive process, given that the part of the brain inherited from one's monkey ancestors is used to climbing in straight lines. Doing so in the dark puts an even greater strain on the instinctive reactions. How much farther?

She could hear him mumbling in the back of her head. Twelve more steps. Thirty-three in all.

How can you know that?

Been here before. Counted 'em.

But how -

Long story. Maybe after we finish negotiating with the nice supervillains?

Okay. She shut up and concentrated on climbing steps. Step, turn, slide hand on rail, step, turn ...

Top step.

Okay, thanks. She put her foot flat to what felt like a wooden floor to her heightened senses, and was walked forward a little way.

And then the darkness faded. She could only see a little way in front of her, due to her hood still being pulled down over her face. But it didn't stop her from hearing Tattletale's voice.

"Holy shit. That's fucking Panacea."

<><>

Amy reached up and pushed her hood back, looking around at the supervillains surrounding her. Regent, she recognised immediately, along with Hellhound, or Rachel, as Grue had called her. The girl with the dark blonde hair, which she was running her fingers through to shake out of a braid, wore street clothes, but her domino mask told Amy that she was looking at Tattletale. The other girl looked ordinary from the neck down, if a bit skinny. From the neck up, she was Skitter; already, bugs were gathering in a nimbus around her. More were swarming into the area with every second that passed.

She stood in a loft area above the warehouse. The floor underfoot was wooden, with rugs here and there. High windows, in need of cleaning, gave light, but did not afford a view from Amy's angle. Two couches, a big-screen TV on a stand, and a gaming console under the TV seemed to make up the majority of the furnishings in this room. A corridor led out of the area, but she had no idea what was in that direction.

Kitchen, bathroom, their bedrooms. Skitter has yet to move in.

She was almost startled by his comment. Oh, uh, thanks.

You might want to say something.

But she didn't get the chance; Skitter spoke first.

“Everyone, be careful of her,” the skinny girl warned them. “She can do more than just heal people. Grue, don't let her touch your skin.”

“Got it,” grunted the tall guy behind her, but before he could put word into action, Amy felt her limbs being taken over. She rammed her elbow into what felt like an iron-hard gut – God, does he eat barbells for breakfast or something? - raked her heel down his shin, and turned and twisted at the same moment. Caught off guard, he let go; Amy felt herself step back until her back was against the wall. Rubbing her wrist, she eyed each of the Undersiders.

What are you doing?

Showing them that you're not a pushover. Control was returned to her. They're wary of you now. Use that.

“Okay,” she stated clearly. “Now that I have your attention, please listen carefully.”

Check out Tattletale. She's just picked something up.

And it was true. The blonde was staring, eyes widening. “Guys ...” she began. “There's something off here. I think she might be Mastered.”

“Hey, that's my thing,” objected Regent. He waved in Amy's direction, and her knees began to buckle.

And then they didn't. Amy could feel the control inside her body overriding what Regent was trying to do.

“What the fuck?” he muttered.

“A strong Master,” Tattletale clarified. She stepped forward until she was a little over arm's length from Amy. “Okay, you brought Panacea here. What's your plan? What are you doing this for?”

“Tell Jean-Paul to quit it, and we can talk about it,” Amy heard herself say. She heard an indrawn breath from Grue and Regent; Hellhound didn't react, and she couldn't see Skitter's face. Tattletale's eyes widened just a bit.

Amy felt herself start to panic just a little. What are you doing? We can't antagonise them!

His voice was terse. We have to present a strong front, or they won't take us seriously. Okay, back to you.

Control returned to her; she took a deep breath.

“As I was saying,” she repeated, “I need you to listen carefully.”

Tattletale nodded. “Listening.” Her expression was intent.

Amy concentrated on what she had talked to Michael about. What he had told her about the Undersiders. What he had told her to say.

“You've got problems, and you don't even know it,” she began. “I'm here to help you fix them. To get past them.”

Grue had picked up his motorcycle helmet and was fitting it over his head. “What problems?” he asked, his voice hollow.

Amy held up her hand, ticked off points on her fingers. “Your boss does not have your best interests at heart. He wants to enslave Tattletale and, when Skitter becomes inconvenient, he'll kill her off if he can. He lied to you about the bank robbery; there was a reason for it, and that reason was so that his men could have the opportunity to kidnap a twelve year old girl. Also, I know his real name, and I know exactly what powers he has.”

Okay, give it time to sink in now.

“You could be lying,” Grue stated flatly. “Starting with basic information, cold reading us, trying to instil doubt in our minds. Playing with our heads.”

“I could,” Amy retorted. “But that's not me. That's what Tattletale does.” She looked directly at him. “I know about you, how you triggered, about your sister. How you want custody of her.”

He took a step forward. “If you're threatening … “

Amy shook her head. “Not threatening. Just letting you know that I know.” She looked from one to another, repeating what Michael was telling her. “I know stuff about each of you. Your names. How you triggered. Names of people who are or were important to you, once upon a time.”

“Wait a minute,” interrupted Skitter. “Kidnapped a twelve year old girl?”

Bingo.

Amy nodded in her direction. “Dinah Alcott. The mayor's niece. She's a powerful precog. He's getting her drugged up, so that she'll do whatever he says. Right. Now.”

It was hard to read Skitter's body language, given that her face was hidden, but she sounded shaken when she spoke next. “Tattletale, is that true? What she's saying?”

Tattletale hesitated for the longest moment. “I … don't know. I can't get a read on her. The Master keeps taking over, imposing his body language.”

Bullshit.

“Bullshit!” snapped Amy. “Also, more. Closer to home. The ABB is still looking to take you down.”

“But Lung's in custody,” objected Regent.

“Probably why they're so eager to get you out of the way,” Amy retorted. “Bakuda's hired Uber and L33t to help her do the job.”

Grue shook his helmeted head. “You've got to be kidding me. Those losers?”

“Plus a stack of ABB. Including conscripts.”

Skitter sounded honestly puzzled. “How do you conscript a gang member and expect them to hang around?”

“Easy.” Amy tapped the side of her neck. “Put a bomb in here, keyed to Bakuda's remote detonation control system. You act out, she sends the signal, you suffer the effect of whatever she put in you.”

Tattletale sat on a couch, rubbing her temples. “Fuck,” she muttered. “Fuck. Every time I try to work you out, you throw another curve ball. Fuck, my head's killing me.”

“Detonation system?” asked Grue practically.

“Heads up display in the goggles. Toe rings on her left foot,” Amy repeated Michael's words. “Big toe and next toe. She crosses them, the rings come into contact, sends out the signal to the bomb she's chosen.”

Tattletale threw herself back on the couch. “Toe rings,” she groaned. “Fuck, why didn't I pick that up?”

“Because you need to spend at least a little time interacting with someone to get information like that,” Amy pointed out. She was starting to feel a little more confident; with Michael feeding her the information, she was holding her own here.

“So we stay out of their way, or we kick their asses,” Regent proposed from his seat.

“Unless they ambush you,” Amy responded. “Rachel, you're thinking of taking the dogs for a walk sometime, right?”

Hellhound glared at her. “What's it to you?”

“Because they'll be waiting on you,” Amy explained patiently. “They capture you, force you to give up the location of the money, move the money,” she looked at the rest of the group, “and when you guys come looking for it, that's when they hit you.”

“You're talking like this has already happened,” Tattletale remarked. “Which really has me worried. Because I don't know any Master/Thinkers that are powerful precogs.”

“No,” Amy told her directly, quoting Michael's words. “And you still don't.”

Tattletale clutched her forehead. “Argh! Ow!”

Amy felt a little concerned. Is she all right?

Thinker equivalent of an ice-cream headache. She was following a line of inquiry and she ran head-first into 'nope'. There was a measure of grim amusement in his voice. She loves to troll people with what she knows. Turnabout is fair play.

I have to admit, with what she nearly did to me and Vicky …

Grue cleared his throat. “Okay, presuming we even believe you, what do you get out of this? So far you've come here and given us unsupported allegations. You haven't told us what you want out of all this.”

“You're going to need to check them up and act on them, one way or the other,” Amy pointed out. “I know that while some of you are happy with going along with your boss, others are less than thrilled about working for him, especially when it comes to the fact of kidnapped children. Or are you willing to live with the knowledge that you could have done something … and didn't?”

Amy's eyes tracked toward Skitter; the skinny girl had just moved uncomfortably. Even the bugs orbiting her were moving in a different pattern. Oh yeah, she doesn't like that one little bit.

“Hell, I'm comfortable with it,” Regent offered from his seat. “What I'm not comfortable with is some walk-in knowing shit like my real name.”

“That's because you're a sociopath.” Amy told him. “Probably not your fault. Heartbreaker was not a model dad.”

Silence again; Skitter's head turned toward Regent, who got out of his seat.

“Okay,” he snapped. “I've just about had enough of this -”

He was moving toward Amy, heavy-looking sceptre in his hand, when Grue got in his way.

“Sit. Down.”

“What the fuck?” snarled Regent, looking down at the large glove-clad hand that had been placed in the middle of his chest. “You're taking her side in this?”

“You keep sniping at her, you take your lumps,” Grue informed him.

“But she said -”

“She also warned us about the ABB,” Tattletale spoke up from the couch, where she was leaning back, eyes closed, hand on her forehead. “And gave us valuable intel on Bakuda.”

“If it's true,” Regent retorted sulkily.

“Oh, it's true,” Tattletale informed him. “She's not lying.”

“Unless she's being Mastered,” Regent pointed out. “Which you said she is.”

“Then the Master isn't lying,” she reiterated. “Either way, it's not a lie. She believes what she's saying. And it makes too much sense to not be true.”

“And what about the other stuff?” asked Skitter. “About the boss? Enslaving you? Killing me if I become inconvenient? The kidnapped kid? How is that okay? Why aren't we talking about that?”

“Because Tattletale knows who he is, and has a good idea of what his real power is,” Amy replied steadily. “And she's been given orders to not tell anyone …” She trailed off, because Tattletale had produced her little pistol again.

Christ, she really is between a rock and a hard place.

Amy couldn't formulate a reply, because she was staring at the muzzle of the gun. It was tiny, really, just a fraction of an inch across, but to her it looked enormous.

She felt him take over speaking for her. “And because he had her recruited at gunpoint,” she heard her own voice say, “and she can't be sure that I'm not pulling some sort of bluff intended to out her if she's intending to betray him.”

Grue stared at Tattletale. “You never told me that!” he blurted.

Tattletale sighed. “I never told you a lot of things,” she told him. “Panacea, you said before that you know all our real names. Was that true?”

She felt control return again. Tell her yes. The other ones are Brian, Lisa and Taylor.

“Uh, yes,” she confirmed. “Do you want me to prove it?”

A shake of the head. “No, don't bother,” replied the blonde. “Are you working for … for the boss, in any way?”

Amy shook her head. “No,” she stated firmly. “Just the -”

Tattletale held up her hand. “Don't say any more,” she ordered. “'No' is good enough for me. Right. You know stuff, and you've come to us to give us stuff, but you haven't yet told us what you want from us.” Absently, she put the gun away.

I need to save the world, and you guys are the first step. Plus, I'm going to need a place to stay.

What? I can't say something like that!

Why not?

Because it's … it's too corny, that's what! They'll never believe it. And do I really need a place to stay?

Not sure. Maybe. Okay, tell them this.

Amy cleared her throat. “I want you to help me rescue Dinah Alcott.” 

Part 5