I, Panacea Pt 29 (Patreon)

Part Twenty-Nine: Introductions

[A/N 1: This chapter beta-read by Lady Columbine of Mystal.]

[A/N 2: Ugh. This chapter kicked my arse.]

Skitter

The Undersiders' Loft

Taylor frowned as her phone rang. It was the one Lisa had gotten for her, which meant that everyone who should have the number for it was already in the building. Alec was engrossed in his console gaming, Lisa was typing away on her laptop with a smirk on her face, Brian was doing some kind of complicated exercise routine involving hand weights, and as far as she knew Rachel was in her bedroom, brushing her dogs.

Lisa looked over as Taylor pulled the phone out, also looking somewhat puzzled. "Who's that?" she asked.

"Dunno." Taylor looked down at the screen and wanted to facepalm. "Oh, right. Panacea." Because of course Amy Dallon was the only other person she'd given out her number to.

Alec turned his head toward her, his game temporarily forgotten. "How does she know your number?"

"Uh, we exchanged numbers a little while ago," Taylor confessed. "I'd forgotten until now." The phone rang again, prompting her to answer it. "Hey," she said. "What's up?"

"Hey." Amy sounded ... normal. Or at least, not overly stressed. "Can we talk? There's someone I'd like you to meet. It's kind of important."

This was definitely out of the ordinary. With what they'd been through, Taylor didn't imagine for one second that Amy—or Michael—was setting her up for a trap of any kind. Which left the question open: what was it about?

It didn't escape her notice that Amy hadn't given a name for the person she wanted Taylor to meet. This in turn (seeing how she was literally calling Taylor so they could meet) meant she didn't want the name to get out. Specifically, that she didn't want Lisa finding out the name ahead of time.

"Uh, sure," she said. "Where?"

She already knew Panacea wasn't anywhere close by, because her widespread network of bugs would've detected the girl by now, but hopefully she wasn't all the way across town. Fortunately, Amy Dallon might be snarky on occasion, not to mention downright obscure, but she wasn't a total bitch like that.

Well, she wasn't now. Taylor didn't have Lisa's ability to discern every last aspect of a person's psyche, but there was a possibility that Amy's association with the guy living inside her head—and wasn't that a weird thing to say—had mellowed her out a bit. He certainly seemed intent on fixing the bad things that were going to happen to her before they had a chance to. Merely associating with Amy had improved Taylor's life immeasurably; the memory of Vicky breaking Sophia's jaw still raised a savage glee within her.

"We're at the old ferry terminal right now. On the deck, enjoying the scenery. It's nice here, if rusty boats and rotting seaweed add up to 'nice'."

Well, the snark was definitely still there, but it was toned down to normal levels, rather than being Amy's go-to for every situation. Sometimes, in the less frantic moments, Taylor had caught glimpses of the girl within, and she was … nice. Usually frazzled, which was not exactly unexpected, but still someone Taylor enjoyed spending time with.

"I'll be there in about twenty minutes," she said. Getting up from the sofa, she ended the call. "Guys, I'm heading out for a little bit, to meet up with Amy."

"Yeah?" Alec tilted his head. "What's she want with you?"

"To trash talk you behind your back," Taylor said sweetly. "I'll tell you what; when it becomes your business, you'll be the first to know."

"Fuck you too, dork." He took up the controller again.

She rolled her eyes. "I will never be that desperate." Ignoring Lisa's sudden fit of the giggles, she headed for the exit leading to the spiral staircase.

Behind her, she heard the clunk-clunk as Brian put the weights down. Her bugs tracked him across the room as he hurried to catch up, so she paused at the top of the stairs to wait for him. Studiously, she refused to admire the way his muscles filled out the shirt he was wearing.

"Hey," he said, slightly breathless from the exercise. "Not trying to pull an Alec, but do you have any idea why she wants to talk to you? I'd just like a heads-up before we end up facing off against Alexandria again, that's all."

"She wants to introduce me to a friend of hers," Taylor said, deciding that much couldn't hurt. "It sounded like it was important to her."

"Ah." He tilted his head thoughtfully. "So … not a Security thing?"

She shrugged. "His name never came up." She reached out with a single knuckle and pushed against the centre of his chest, trying to ignore the solidity of his musculature. "Maybe she just wants to hang and chill for a while? I don't see the rest of you making the effort to be her friend, even after she and Vicky took Shadow Stalker down for good."

"We're grateful," he said hastily. "Don't think we're not. I mean, Stalker needed to go down in the worst way. But … even Lisa has no idea what they're thinking at any given time. They're an unknown quantity. Security's clearly got plans over and above helping you out with your bullying problems. The stakes are getting bigger all the time, and I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that."

Taylor shook her head. "And how do you think Amy feels? She's the one person who's stuck on the roller-coaster with no way off. He can only act through her, and I'm pretty sure he's determined to save the world, no matter what it takes."

He held up his hands defensively. "Which is a good thing, don't get me wrong. The world being saved is a good thing. As the saying goes, it's where I keep my stuff. I'm just not so thrilled with the idea that I might end up being a casualty in the process, because I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I've got responsibilities. Outside the team, even."

"Are we even a team, anymore?" Taylor looked at him steadily. "We're not really a villain gang. Not since Coil …" She trailed off, reliving the moment of shock in her own mind when she realised she'd actually pulled the trigger and murdered a helpless man. At her side, her fingers worked back and forth as though trying to drop the pistol she wasn't holding.

"Not since Coil, no," he agreed. "And definitely not since we got Alexandria's attention. But we can still be a team, can't we? Capes need to stick together."

"Yeah, that's true." She took a deep breath, then released it again. "Look, I'm going to go meet with Amy and her friend. When I get back, we're going to need to have a talk with everyone about where the Undersiders are going, or even if the Undersiders have a future at all."

He chuckled uneasily. "The scariest phrase in the English language. 'We need to talk'."

"No, that's 'if you don't know what's wrong, I'm not going to tell you'." She grinned at him, then started down the staircase. "Don't wait up for me. I might just go home after this. See how Dad's doing."

"Okay, understood."

As she clattered down the spiral stairs, her bugs watched him go back into the loft. Lisa would ask what they'd talked about, she knew, and Brian would fill her in. It didn't bother Taylor; she knew no more than what she'd told him. And they really did need to talk about the future of the team.

When she reached the bottom, she went to the metal door and let herself out, then locked it behind her. The ferry terminal was about twenty minutes away by foot; a nice bit of exercise to stretch her legs and get her blood pumping. The few people around, she tagged with bugs, just in case.

Humming a tune she'd heard on the radio, she set out toward the ferry terminal.

<><>

Panacea

Amy knew Taylor was nearby long before the girl came into sight. A fly landing on her hand wasn't an uncommon experience, but its brain activity told her that it was under Skitter's control. This was absolutely Taylor sending her a message: I'm on the way. She briefly 'twanged' its nervous system by way of reply. Seated beside her and gazing out at the ocean, Riley showed no sign of even noticing the insect, let alone registering it as significant.

You're getting better at that, Michael observed. Have you thought about making any more bugs for her to play with?

Actually, that's not a bad idea at all. Amy had intended to do just that, but with all the upheavals currently going on with her life, the concept had been pushed to the back burner more than once. Now, however, she had the time to remedy the omission. What do you think I should make?

Your choice. She got an impression of him shrugging. The cutter bugs worked well. Maybe bugs with better hearing or eyesight, or the relay bugs? To be absolutely honest, any kind of bio-manipulation you do that isn't straight-up healing people is a good use of your powers right now. Shards need data, and they'll push hard to get it. It's better to do stuff willingly rather than be forced or tricked into it.

A chill ran down her back at the reminder. Ensuring that she didn't accidentally turn her sister into a horrorshow wasn't a one-and-done. She had to keep working at it, maintain her progress. And, somewhere along the way, help Michael save the world.

Of course, where Riley fit into those plans, she had no idea.

<><>

Skitter

When the ferry terminal came within range of her outer screen of bugs, Taylor quickly determined that there were exactly two people sitting on the deck overlooking the water. One was indeed Amy, while the other was younger; or at least, more petite. With the length of hair, Taylor suspected a girl, but even that wasn't a given.

She landed a fly on Amy's hand to alert her, and felt the answering pulse as the biokinetic briefly adjusted the insect's brain chemistry. Amy's companion didn't react at all as a few bugs landed on her, which meant that Amy probably hadn't warned her that Taylor was in the vicinity. That was fine; Taylor didn't have any nefarious intent, and she trusted Amy not to be pulling something on her as well.

A few more minutes of walking got her within sight of the terminal. She was definitely a lot fitter than she'd been when she first got powers; even striding out as she was, there was no particular feeling of being out of breath. There was nobody waiting outside (not that they would've been able to hide from her bugs) so she ignored the sign that promised the return of the ferry any day now and climbed the steps to get onto the outdoor deck.

Amy was seated there in the shade, alongside a girl who looked maybe Dinah's age. Interestingly enough, while this girl bore little resemblance to Dinah aside from the age and skin colour, she shared a certain gauntness around the cheekbones and a look in the eyes that said she'd Seen. Some. Shit.

"Hi," Taylor said, trying not to show the curiosity she felt. Amy undoubtedly had her reasons for bringing a kid to meet her; from her experience so far, Amy (and Security) knew exactly what they were doing. "How's things? Brian says hi, by the way."

He hadn't, but that was her way of thanking Amy for saving Brian from the gunshot wound. Amy's eyebrows hitched slightly, and Taylor figured she'd picked up the subtext.

"I'm okay," Amy replied, standing up a little stiffly. From experience in such matters, Taylor diagnosed bruising rather than actual injury. "Taylor, I'd like you to meet Riley. Riley, this is my friend Taylor." There was an undercurrent to her words that told Taylor she wasn't saying everything, but it didn't feel malicious or gleeful; rather, Amy was a little anxious about what she was doing.

"Hi, Riley." Taylor offered her hand to shake.

The twelve-year-old grasped it and shook hesitantly, as though she wasn't used to meeting people. "Hello, Taylor." Her voice was soft. "It's good to meet a friend of Amy's."

Something was definitely off here. Again, Taylor instinctively checked the area with her bugs. There were no armed people—or even capes—lurking in hidden corners, readying to pounce. All the insectoid senses she could muster indicated that what she could see and hear was actually there.

So why had Amy asked her to come out just to meet some random kid? There was something deeper going on here.

"Okay," she said, and took a seat. "I'll bite. What's going on?"

Amy frowned. "This ... is going to take a little bit of explanation."

"Don't bother trying to sugarcoat it," Riley told her with a grimace. "We both know it won't make any difference."

"Well, it's better than just coming out and saying it!"

"Sugarcoat what? What won't make any difference?" Taylor stared at the younger girl, trying to discern her mysteries. "Who are you?"

Riley took a deep breath. "My name is Riley Davis, but for the last six years I've been known as Bonesaw."

Taylor froze, eyes measuring the distance between them. The swarms she'd had combing the area began to merge and pull back in from all directions; even a bunch of crabs under the waterline surged up toward the surface, ready to climb up to the deck level. "Explain." Her voice sounded harsh even to her own ears.

"It was Michael's idea," Amy said steadily. "When he was explaining to Alexandria how to take the Nine out of the picture, he specified that Bonesaw—Riley—should be captured and not killed. Since then, I've removed all of her built-in tech—and let me tell you, there was a crap-ton of it—and put her through a little corrective therapy." She put her hand on Riley's shoulder. "You're looking at what she would've been like if she never met Jack Slash. More or less."

Riley shook her head. "Not really. Even though I don't believe in the stuff he crammed into my head anymore, he's still had an effect on my life. I've lost my real family and the shitty family that was the Nine. Six years of my life have been replaced with a non-stop horror movie where I was the bad guy, while convincing myself every day that I was being a good girl." She shuddered as she spoke the last two words.

Taylor studied the girl. Her hair was the same as Bonesaw's—blonde, with ringlets—which should've been a warning flag right off the mark; that particular colour and style combination had fallen all the way out of vogue for girls of her age. Nobody wanted to be mistaken for a member of the Slaughterhouse Nine, even briefly. There was too much risk of someone deciding to take no chances and pulling a gun.

Likewise, her facial features were the same as the pictures Taylor had seen of Bonesaw, less the slightly manic grin. Instead of the Alice dress and bloodstained apron, she wore sneakers, jeans and a T-shirt with a picture of Alexandria on it, while Amy's featured Armsmaster.

"... okay," Taylor conceded at last. "You haven't steered me wrong yet, so I'll trust you when you say that she's not Bonesaw anymore. Congratulations: you've rehabilitated a member of the Nine. The question is … why? And equally important, why bring her out here to introduce to me?"

"I don't want to sound ungrateful," Riley said, glancing quickly at Amy, "I mean, Taylor seems like a nice person, but she's got a point. Why are you introducing me to her? What's the end result you're looking for?"

"I want to introduce you to Taylor's friends as well," Amy said carefully. "She was just the one who was least likely to react badly."

The dots connected inside Taylor's head so abruptly she was surprised there wasn't an audible crack. "Wait … you want to introduce her to those friends of mine? The ones I've just come from?" What the hell? Does she honestly want to place Bonesaw with the Undersiders?

"Yeah, those ones," Amy said. "It's Michael's idea, and I don't know all the details of the plan, but that's a major part of it. I've been through her body systems and taken out everything that didn't belong, so she should be safe enough to be around."

"Yeah, you said." Taylor frowned, studying Riley dubiously. "You also said you did corrective therapy. I thought you weren't able to, uh …"

"Work with brains?" Amy completed. "No, that's something I can absolutely do. It's just that I usually choose not to, and I don't tell anyone about it if I can avoid it. Three guesses as to why, and the first two don't count."

"So why are you telling me now?" asked Taylor. She could absolutely make a guess why Amy was keeping quiet. Modify brains with a touch? Yeah, I'd keep my lip zipped about that, too. "I mean, we've backed each other up more than once and I suppose it's a nice gesture, but you didn't have to."

"Yeah, I did." Amy hooked her thumb at Riley. "She knew I could, because Jack Slash gave her the heads-up on that little aspect of my powers. And she just might have told you guys at some point or another, just to mess with me."

Taylor turned to look at Riley, who rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I might have too, if I'd thought of it." Her voice turned flat and robotic. "Curses, my master plan has been foiled."

Shaking her head, Taylor let a chuckle escape. "Exactly how much work did you do on her?"

"Surprisingly little, actually." Amy held up her hand and waggled it from side to side. "There was a lot of repressed personality buried under the surface, that came up once I got the overlay of Jack Slash's influence out of the way."

"Wait a minute." Riley stared at Taylor. "Wait just one heckin' minute. Introducing me to your bestie still makes exactly zero sense ... unless ..."

Even if she hadn't known who Riley was—or had been—Taylor still wouldn't have liked the way the girl was staring at her. There was altogether too much knowing in that gaze.

"'Hecking'? Really?" Amy shook her head. "Where'd you get that from?"

Riley stuck her tongue out at the biokinetic. "Six years of needing to be a good girl, desperately wanting to swear, and having no idea how. Bite me." She turned to look at Taylor. "You're a cape. Nothing else makes sense."

Taylor knew there was nobody within two blocks in any given direction, but she still didn't like the way Riley had just pulled that fact out of mid-air. Just like Lisa would've, except without Lisa's power to explain matters. She folded her arms and tried not to sound defensive. "Not saying I am, and not saying I'm not, but is that something you're likely to be yelling from the rooftops?"

"Give me some credit," Riley snarked. "I'm twelve, but I'm not a total idiot. Besides, I'm curious. You're Amy's friend, which makes you a hero or a rogue, but I don't remember any capes with your body type making it in the hero scene recently in Brockton Bay."

"Why would the Nine have even been interested in Brockton Bay?" Amy asked. "We don't exactly stand out."

Riley grimaced. "Jack Slash loved to screw with people's heads. And if he ever got chased out of an area, he would make a point of coming back a couple of years later and messing everyone up who had a hand in things the first time around. He was actually talking about coming back here sometime, when he got the chance."

"When did the Nine ever come through Brockton Bay?" asked Taylor, frowning. "I'm pretty sure I'd remember if something like that happened."

"Oh, it happened more than ten years ago," Riley explained with a flip of her hand. "Before I was born, I think. Maybe before you were born. It was a totally different Nine then, but people talk. The stories I heard was that Marquis got tired of them causing problems and called them out. Told Jack to get out of town … and he did."

Amy rubbed her forehead. "I think I remember something like that, too … oh, wait. Michael says that actually happened. Jack Slash tried to get Marquis to break his code against hurting women or children and failed. That's when Marquis told him to leave town." She paused. "Which was pretty impressive, given that he was a low-level Master when it came to capes."

Taylor frowned. "He was?"

"That's what Amy says," Riley assured her. "I mean, part of me still wants to not accept it, but when I look at how I was, and how I am since you got rid of his influence … the rest of me can't believe that nobody else has figured it out."

"Well, it was very subtle," Amy agreed. "Hard to detect, and scary powerful. Michael tells me that his power would not only tell the other members of the Nine to act as meat-shields for him—and they'd do it—but if the attacker had a clear run, it would literally influence them into choosing not to attack."

"And Marquis still told him where to get off?" Taylor was impressed despite herself. "That would've pissed him off."

Riley nodded. "One of the things he hated the most was being told no. Whole towns died when that happened."

"And yet, he waited until ten years after Marquis was Birdcaged before he even thought about coming back," Amy said with a smirk. "Seems Marquis made a real impression on him."

"Alexandria made a bigger impression, though." Riley gave Amy a nod. "Thanks to you and your friend. And I mean that. Thank you both. I know I've done a lot of bad stuff, and I was just going to get worse as I went along." She turned back to Taylor. "And I think I've figured it out."

Taylor blinked, not sure where this shift in topic was going. "Figured … what out, exactly?"

"Who you are, duh." Riley rolled her eyes. "You're definitely a cape and probably a hero, but I've already met the one non-blonde in New Wave, so you're not Panacea. So I'm thinking Wards. You're too old to be Vista, so that leaves …" She made a dramatic flourish, finishing with finger-guns pointed at Taylor. "Shadow Stalker, am I right?"

Taylor's brain skidded to a halt so hard, smoke should've been leaking out her ears. "Wh-what?" she demanded. "What the fuck? Did you just—"

"Bahahahaahaaaaaa!" cackled Amy, rolling sideways and nearly falling off the bench. She tried to say something, pointing at Taylor, but another gust of laughter came out instead. Her face turning red, she pounded on the faux stone with her fist.

Riley nodded with satisfaction. "Okay, with a reaction like that, I've got to be right, but why's she acting like I just said the funniest thing in the world?"

"Because it's not …" Taylor stumbled over her words, trying to figure out how to tell Riley just how wrong she was without screaming at the top of her lungs. "Riley. You need to listen to me. I am not Shadow Stalker. I could never be Shadow Stalker."

"Right, got it." Riley leaned close and lowered her voice. "Your secret is safe with me."

Amy rolled a little farther and hit the floor, but even the short fall to the deck didn't mute her hilarity.

"No." Taylor took a deep breath and pushed her emotions off into the swarm. "Riley. Listen to my words. I am not Shadow Stalker, because right now Shadow Stalker is handcuffed to a hospital bed with a concussion, a broken jaw and twelve missing teeth. This is because she punched Amy in the face and broke her nose. I could never be Shadow Stalker. I'd rather be Jack Slash."

"Uh, quick reminder," Amy said, in between repeated chuckles. "Jack Slash is dead."

Taylor nodded. "Still rather be him and dead, than wake up every day and be Sophia Hess."

Riley blinked. "Okay, let's back up a bit here. Amy broke Shadow Stalker's jaw and knocked out twelve teeth? Or was that you? And why'd she punch Amy in the face, anyway? I thought she was supposed to be a hero."

Letting out a long, aggravated sigh, Taylor shook her head. "Shadow Stalker was never a hero. At best, she was a villain who went after the bad guys. In her civilian life, she went after me. Did her best to grind me into the dirt." She gave Riley a bright artificial smile. "That bitch personally caused my trigger event. And now she's going to juvey, where she belongs."

"Ah." Riley stared at Taylor, then at Amy, who was starting to recover from her fit of laughter. "Gotcha. I think. So … if neither of you punched her lights out, then who did? And if you're not Shadow Stalker, who are you?"

Taylor got up and helped Amy to her feet. "That's a story we can tell you while we walk. I'm convinced Amy's managed to rehabilitate you pretty well. So now you get to meet the rest of my friends."

"Sure," said Riley. "But who are your friends?"

Taylor grinned. "We call ourselves the Undersiders, and we used to be villains."

Riley spread her hands. "What do you mean, used to be villains? And who punched Shadow Stalker? I'm kind of missing a lot of context here."

"Okay, then," Amy said, starting down the steps. "It all started when the Undersiders were robbing a bank while I was in it …"

<><>

Grue

Angelica lifted her head and barked, and Lisa looked around. "We've got company," she said.

"What, really?" snarked Alec. "What gave it away? Taylor's back, right? And she's brought Panacea."

Brian chuckled. "You're still pissed that Security can no-sell your power?"

"No, I'm over that." Alec glanced at the screen and headshot another opponent. "I'm pissed about the rest of it. We're not even a real villain gang anymore. We're a bunch of people who sit around in a crappy hideout and play nice because fucking Alexandria knows who we are and probably where we live, and if we put a foot out of line, she'll come down on us like … well, like Alexandria."

"It's not just Panacea," said Lisa. "There's someone else, too."

"Great," groused Brian, looking at the untidy stack of pizza boxes and soda cans in the corner. "Taylor couldn't have given us a heads-up so we could've done some cleaning before she went out?"

"Who gives a shit about that?" asked Rachel. "I just want to know why the fuck they're bringing a stranger straight to where we live. I get that Panacea doesn't understand the concept, but what part of 'secret hideout' doesn't Taylor get?"

The metal door downstairs closed, and Taylor's voice floated up to them. "Okay, up here now. Watch your step."

A voice that Brian had never heard before—a girl, a bit younger than Lisa—spoke up then. "Spiral staircase? Cute. I like it." Footsteps sounded on the metal risers.

The first to appear through the doorway was Taylor. She looked around at everyone staring back—glaring in the case of Rachel—and stepped inside. "Hey, everyone. I brought Amy, plus another visitor, so nobody freak out."

"Why not?" Rachel's challenge was blunt. "What the fuck gives you the right to bring just anyone to our base? Into our personal space?"

"She's got a point, dork," drawled Alec, putting down the controller. "I mean, it's bad enough with Panacea dropping over like she's got a right to be here, but at least she's kind of badass if you squint just right. But who the fuck is this?"

"Taylor?" Brian tried to hit a diplomatic tone. "What's going on here?"

"It's why Amy called me up," Taylor said, her tone more challenging than defensive. "She wanted to introduce someone to us, so she started with me. I trust her when she says everything's on the level. When's she ever screwed us around before?"

Nobody else answered, so Brian took up the ball again. "It's not Amy we have a problem with." Alec snorted, and Brian shot a warning glance that way. "But every new person who comes in here is a whole new risk. What if they suddenly decide that they're not okay with us being villains, and they turn us in?"

"Well, it's not going to do much right now," Lisa reminded him. "Alexandria owes us a solid. So long as we keep our noses clean—"

"—and Armsmaster never figures out who popped Coil—" added Alec, giving Taylor a significant look.

"—which he won't, because nobody here's going to tell him," Lisa countered, making the two-fingered I'm watching you gesture toward Alec. "Anyway, given all that, nobody's going to be coming after us. And hey, whoever this new person is sounds interesting if both Taylor and Amy are willing to vouch for her."

"Well, she's not exactly a stranger to villain gangs," Amy said as she stepped in through the doorway. "But she's willing to not hold that against you if you're okay with it too. Come on in and meet the guys. Guys, this is Riley. Riley, meet Alec, Brian, Lisa and Rachel."

The newcomer followed Amy into the room. As Brian had already guessed, she was two or three years younger than Taylor, and not quite as self-assured as she wanted to appear. He frowned at Amy's words, wondering which villain gang she'd been a part of before. There weren't many in Brockton Bay with tweenage girls in their ranks. In fact, the only one he could think of was …

"Holy shit, you got hold of Rune?" Alec's tone was frankly disbelieving. "What the hell are you trying to pull, here? Kaiser's going to—"

"—not do a damn thing, because this isn't Rune," Amy retorted. "The Empire's going to be winding back their operations anyway, especially after Hookwolf goes to the Birdcage."

"Wait, what?" Startled, Lisa turned back to her laptop and started typing frantically. "When did he get captured? What did I miss?"

"Less than you think," Amy assured her. "Vicky and me, we went and had a chat with Kaiser, and convinced him that it was in his best interests to cut Hookwolf loose." She buffed her nails on her Armsmaster T-shirt and studied them theatrically. "It definitely helps to know which strings to pull."

Rachel sat forward, her gaze intent. "It's true? He's going to the Birdcage? For real?"

Amy nodded. "If he doesn't, Kaiser's in for a very bad time. The man knows which side his bread is buttered. Now, I can't guarantee this will put an end to the dog fights—in fact, it probably won't—but Hookwolf won't be there to guard them."

"Okay, yeah, I get that." Rachel nodded. "And this is a Security thing?"

"He supplied the appropriate information, yes." Amy smiled beatifically. "It's amazing how easy it is to get people to do what you want if what you know about them is damaging enough."

"That is kind of how blackmail and extortion work, yes," Brian agreed dryly.

Amy smirked. "He tried to use those words, too. I asked him if he was okay with me just telling everyone what I knew. It turns out that he wasn't."

Rachel let out a bark of laughter. "I wish I could see the look on that fucker Hookwolf's face when he finds out his own boss gave him up."

"Okay, good, the great Kaiser has been humbled, Hookwolf is on the way to the 'Cage, justice and light have prevailed," Alec interrupted in an annoying sing-song tone, then pointed at Riley. "So if she isn't Rune, who the hell is she?"

Taylor took a deep breath. "I was totally surprised when I found out, but like I said, don't freak out. Guys, Riley is—"

"Bonesaw," Lisa said flatly. "She's Bonesaw, isn't she?"

Amy rolled her eyes. "Goddamn it. I knew we should've cut the big reveal short. Yes, Riley used to be Bonesaw. She's not anymore, not since I rehabilitated her this morning."

At the word 'Bonesaw', Brian had come to his feet. He studied the blonde girl, measuring her pose and her apparent level of readiness. Alec had actually scrambled up onto the sofa and was pressing back against the wall, and Rachel was standing up, her dogs already beginning to grow.

"Please define what you mean by 'rehabilitated'," Brian said carefully.

Amy took a deep breath. "Just what I said. She's not Bonesaw anymore."

"Amy's telling the truth," Taylor added helpfully. "Security says Jack Slash was a low-level Master, and I believe him. Amy apparently stripped away his cumulative influence over her. I've been talking to Riley for maybe half an hour now, and she seems totally normal to me."

"That's what they all say, just before someone decides to decorate the Christmas tree with their guts," Alec objected. "How can you know?"

"I know," Amy told him. "When I touch her, I can see everything that's in her brain. If she was a sociopath, I'd be fully aware of it. But she's closer to baseline than you are."

"Not a high bar," murmured Brian.

"Fuck off." Alec gave him the finger, then stepped down off the sofa. Leaning down, he picked up his sceptre, which had fallen over in all the fuss. "Lisa, are we safe from her or not?"

Lisa put the laptop aside and stood up, then walked over to Riley. "Hm." The sound was almost contemplative as she looked the girl over. "Answer me one question. Are you planning to cut us up and use us in bizarre medical experiments?"

"For fuck's sake," Alec complained. "I said 'tell me if we're safe', not 'give her ideas'."

"I'm not planning to hurt you at all," Riley said. "That's not me. That was Jack Slash's plan for me, but he's dead so I don't have to do what he wants anymore."

Slowly, almost reluctantly, Lisa nodded. "It's true," she said. "She hates the idea of cutting someone up to hurt them." She looked around at where Rachel's dogs were waist-high and still growing. "We're not going to need those."

Rachel shook her head stubbornly. "I'll be the judge of that."

"Rachel." Brian turned to her and made a cutting motion with his hand. "Lisa says Riley's not a danger to us."

"And what if Lisa's wrong?" protested Alec. "She got it wrong in the bank. We remember all the times she got it right, but how many times has she been wrong and we just never knew about it? What if Bonesaw's so fucked up that even she doesn't know how psychotic she is, until she wakes up in the middle of the night with the urge to snack on our livers or something?"

"Whoa, hey, now," Riley said. "When I was Bonesaw, yeah, I did some really screwed-up stuff. I hurt people and killed them in ways that make me want to puke now. But I never ate people. That was all the Siberian and Crawler." She shook her head. "I know now that Sibby was a projection, which makes me wonder why the heck did she even eat people? It's not like she could get hungry."

"A … projection?" Brian knew he was going to regret asking the question, but he couldn't not ask. "Who was the projector? Was it one of the other members?"

Oddly enough, Riley glanced at Amy, who gave her a go-ahead nod. "Ever hear of William Manton? Yeah, that Manton. I'm told Siberian looked like what you'd get if you did a mashup of his wife and daughter, and painted her white with tiger stripes. And considering that she never wore clothes, and I sometimes cuddled up to her so I could sleep at night, that's extra creepy all the way around."

Alec stared at her. "Fuck you. Why did you have to say that? I did not want to feel sorry for you."

"Never asked you to," Riley retorted. "Shit happened. I bet it happened to you, too. I've seen that look in the mirror. Well, guess what? It's not a contest. I don't get to win because I got turned into a serial killer by Jack Slash and getting a hug from the Siberian was the highlight of my day. Even if whatever happened to you is even more screwed up than that, you don't get to win either. Life's a rigged contest from the start, and we all lose."

"Okay, okay," Brian said, patting the air. "Can we just … back off, or something? Nobody got here because of good things happening in their life."

Taylor raised her eyebrows. "Well, true, but you can't say that life hasn't been getting at least a bit better. The Slaughterhouse Nine, as a group, are done. Lung's Birdcage bound. So's Hookwolf. Shadow Stalker's going to juvey. The PRT and Protectorate aren't going to be kicking in our door any time soon."

"… no more Endbringer attacks," Amy added. "At least, if Michael's preparations work out like he says they should." She paused, looking around at the people staring at her. "… what? Didn't I fill you guys in on that?"

"No," Brian said carefully. "No, you did not. Are you serious? Can he … do that? I thought he could only act through you."

Lisa regarded Amy; her freckles stood out starkly in contrast as her face paled. When she spoke, it was in a bare whisper. "Jesus Christ, you're serious, aren't you?"

"If his preparations work, then yes," Amy confirmed. "We'll know on May the fifteenth."

"Exactly what will we know?" asked Taylor. "That it worked, or it didn't work?"

"Well, either one, to be frank," Amy conceded. "I mean, there's the chance that someone will be a fucking moron and Leviathan will attack anyway, but even if he does, it shouldn't be here. Because it would've been here."

"… who's likely to be a fucking moron?" Brian didn't want to ask the question at all, but he figured someone had to. "And why wouldn't he attack here, if he was going to in the first place?"

"You don't need to know the name, but as for the rest of it … conflict." Amy spoke the word with authority. "Between the two gangs working on ripping the city apart between themselves, Noelle in Coil's basement, the PRT working itself ragged and making errors of judgement because they weren't being given adequate support from Washington, and a few other things I'm not going to mention …" She paused and looked around. "An attack on the Bay would've lit the fuse on an absolute fuck-ton of conflict. But most of that isn't going to happen now. So if he attacks, it'll be someplace where all that damage will cause maximum conflict. Possibly Miami."

"And you've been working to defuse all those trouble spots, haven't you?" Lisa fronted up to Amy. "You knew what they were, so everything you've been doing has been aimed at pulling those plugs, right?"

"Well, yes." Amy's smile could've been carved from granite. "That, and saving the world in general. Which is why I asked for your advice on getting Riley on side. There's stuff I can do that she can't, and stuff she can do that I can't. But I'm thinking that between us …"

Riley turned her head to stare at Amy. "You actually want to team up with me?" Her voice quavered, then broke a little. "I thought … I thought …"

"That I was watching over you, ready to punish you if you ever tried to use your powers again?" Amy shook her head. "Yeah, that's not it at all. Your power is amazing, and Michael tells me you can pull off power synergies that I can't even begin to understand. But I wanted you to be comfortable enough to not have any self-doubts when the time actually came." She glanced at Lisa as she said this.

"And that's where I come in," Lisa said, in tones of realisation. "Where we come in. You want us to what, help socialise her?"

Amy nodded. "Well, yes. I've laid the basic foundations, but there's only so much I can do. Riley's as good a person as I can make her in the time I had available, but I want her invested in saving the world."

"You do realise what you're asking, don't you?" asked Brian. Ever since Amy entered with Riley, he'd been feeling as though he was out of his depth, and now he knew why. When Amy looked his way, he glanced at Alec and Rachel. "Not all of us are likely to be really on board with this. Just saying."

Apparently taking her cue from this, Rachel glowered at Riley. "Keep away from my dogs, and I won't have to hurt you."

"I'm not going to hurt your dogs," Riley said. "I like dogs. When I was—before I was Bonesaw, I had a little fluffy dog called Muffles. He loved to play in the snow." Her voice caught in her throat. "Jack Slash killed him, just to prove a point."

"Hey, can I just say something here?" asked Alec. "Did we get advised this was going to happen? Did we get asked if we wanted to help rehabilitate a pint-sized serial killer? Did I, personally, get any input into any of this at all? Pretty sure the answer's 'no' on all counts."

Amy raised her eyebrows as she stared him down. "You're correct. I didn't ask you, because I know you. You'd say no on general principles, just to be a dick."

Brian chuckled. "Well, she's got you there."

Riley moved toward where Alec stood at the sofa. He raised the taser defensively, but she didn't move into his personal space. "I'm sorry you got blindsided with this. It wasn't my idea. In fact, I've got no idea where this is going at all, just that Amy and Michael want me to be a good person."

"Hmm." Alec's lips twisted. "Well, the best way I know whether to find out if someone's worth knowing is to play a couple of rounds of FPS with them. You up for that?"

Ignoring Amy's quiet hmph of amusement, Riley nodded tentatively. "I've never played. It kind of never came up, you know? But … sure. I'm willing to try."

"Awesome." Alec handed her a controller, then gave Amy a challenging stare. "This doesn't mean I'm okay with her being here, just saying."

"Totally." Amy folded her arms and leaned against the wall; as far as Brian could tell, she was trying to hide a grin.

As Alec made room for Riley to sit down, keeping a healthy distance between them, Brian couldn't help wondering how his life had become so strange.

<><>

PRT Building ENE

Director's Office

"Should've seen it. Pigs flying everywhere—"

Emily Piggot held up her hand to halt Assault's verbal report about an ecoterrorist bomb attack on a piggery. "Is it just me," she said carefully, "or did you just feel a chill down your spine, too?"

Assault paused, then shook his head. "Nah, I only get that when I know Battery's looking for me."

"Indeed." She shook her head to dispel the last of the feeling. "Carry on."

Part 30