Quenching 3.3 – Taylor's POV
"I said sorry…" I mutter as I watch the single waiter of Somner's Rock give me her fifth ugly stare since I started counting. It had been a bit of a disastrous introduction, especially since I had come in costume. My face burns in shame and embarrassment from under my mask. "You could have mentioned she was deaf…"
"You introduced yourself before I could." Shirou says back without even looking my way, holding one of those martini glasses from those spy movies I used to watch as a kid. I wanted to be upset, but it was just really hard to stay mad when Shirou was dressed so smartly. He had decided not to come to work today in his costume, simply because he was here to work, not meet like everyone else. Convening was why I was here. There was the problem of being recognized, but truly that hardly mattered anymore. The week leading up to this meeting was beyond stressful for many reasons. Not least of all being the fact that Shirou's identity had been fully released to the public by, who I can only assume to be, Bakuda about mid-way through the week. It was printed on papers and put around town by her flunkies and her conscripts. It was mass posted online on every forum site I could think of. Hell, Bakuda even made sure to put an actual bounty on Shirou's head just yesterday, which almost gave me a heart attack. The bright side of that being it was rescinded the next day for some reason. Which was also at once followed by Winslow being blown up the next night, in some kind of petty revenge? I… didn't really feel all that bad about that, it also got me out of school for the week at least.
She must be holding a grudge for her leg though.
The fucking bitch.
Honestly, I think Shirou was a bit relieved that he didn't have to wear the mask anymore if he fought in costume again past this point. Which I hope he did, because I made it for him. It was so like him to brush off the trouble that came his way. It was infuriating and- God he looked so good in a butler's outfit.
Deep breaths Taylor…
I have to think of something else before I soak my mask with spit staring at Shirou.
...I could think about my dad, but that was on the other side of the extreme. He had called Lisa a day after Shirou's identity was revealed. I answered and he had demanded to talk to Shirou.
I hung up. I hung up on my own father! I was going to have to face this at some point, but I could push it off until Lung was dealt with, right?
Right?
My head turns to a booth nearby, where the Undersiders were sitting and discussing the coming meeting. It felt strange to be sitting in the same room as them in an official capacity. It felt strange to do anything in an official capacity really since I was still so new. But Lisa had said that this wasn't just going to be a meeting between the city's villains. The Protectorate and even New Wave itself were sending representatives. They didn't enjoy what Lung had done to the oil rig, or what that chunk of oil rig had done to the city.
I know I didn't.
The image was still burned into my head and I could not stop the small sting of dread in my heart. But I ruthlessly batter that feeling until it retreats. Shirou wasn't even fazed when he heard the news, he was almost fearless really and it was something I appreciated most days. But that was the thing, he was ALMOST fearless.
He was afraid for me. No matter how much that thought made me feel warm, I didn't want to be the only thing holding him back, that meant I couldn't be afraid anymore. That started here, with this meeting in a dive bar between the biggest capes in the city sans Lung.
Oh boy.
I see Matty on the far wall, looking as cute as ever, eyes surveying the room silently. Brutus was right below him instead of sitting next to Rachel, which she didn't seem to mind though I couldn't see her face through her mask. Matty was bouncing Brutus' rubber ball with one of his mandibles, dribbling it around the dog who was having the time of his life trying to catch it between bounces. I kind of wish me and Rachel got along as much as they seemed to.
I was nervous to bring him, but if I was going to include him in my work as a Hero, this was the best time to show him off, I think. Lisa had explained that normally creatures like that weren't allowed at meetings like this. But since it was a meeting between basically every group in the city, it would be overlooked for everyone's personal protection.
There was a lot more rules to this meeting then I thought there would be.
A glass of coke is unhappily placed at the bar counter to my side. I again see the waiter, who Shirou had said was named Selene, give me a grumpy stare before moving on to the Undersiders. I know I made an insulting mistake but she could at least accept the apology I had Shirou sign out for me. She looked better when she smiled, like she did when Shirou walked through the door.
Wait a minute-
That line of thought is unable to be followed as the door opens. I hold in a soft gasp of recognition and slight excitement as Armsmaster walks through the door, that last meeting had left an impression on me, even if Lung had escaped in the end. That held in gasp becomes harder to hold in when Battery walks in after him, followed by Assault. Battery was somewhat of a role model to me; I couldn't not be excited seeing her in costume for the first time. Though the distrustful frown on her lips wasn't something I could say filled me with confidence. Something that was matched by Armsmaster now that I really looked at him.
Assault on the other hand looked completely at ease, the same grin you see in all his pictures on full display. He walks past his teammates and stands in the front, surveying the room openly while Battery and Armsmaster give him a severe look. At least it seems like that from how their frowns grow.
"So can I get a drink or-" He starts, making my jaw drop slightly under my mask. He is not allowed to finish his request as Battery's arms cross, the sheer aura of disapproval she lets out makes me a bit uncomfortable. I imagine Armsmaster would be reacting the same way, if he wasn't looking directly at me and Shirou. Or I guess just Shirou?
…Who was ignoring everyone like it was his job to. Considering this was apparently a favored spot by the capes of the city to meet and talk business, it was his job to do just that. He absently cleans another glass as Selene walks back around the counter next to him and dully stares at the heroes. I absently sip at my cup of cola to calm my nerves, which spike when he starts making a beeline directly towards us. Assault and Battery seem startled at his abruptness before they too notice Shirou, and make their way after the leader of the city's defenders.
My heart hammers in my chest at being so close to people I really looked up to, even if they weren't my ideal heroes.
Selene looks at Shirou in some clear worry, her normally sullen features cracking when she is forced to stand next to him while three heroes are staring him down. Slowly, the girl begins to put down her notepad before Armsmaster kind of rudely waves it off. Ok, Selene was rude too but she was deaf so a lot of it was understandable.
"Sword." Armsmaster starts, a flat if relieved greeting. "I wasn't aware you would be joining this meeting, I-"
"Emiya Shirou, sir," Shirou says back, cutting Armsmaster off and motioning to his shiny nametag under his outfits breast pocket. "…I am also currently working."
"What?" Is how Armsmaster responds, sounding stumped. Battery's frown lightens up into a confused line while Assault…
…Is writing down an order on the notepad.
"I work here sir," Shirou repeats before putting the glass down on the bar counter. "If you would like a drink, then please write it down for Selene. If you would like some food, please write it down for Selene and I will get that to you as quickly as possible." It was unfair how attractive he was when he was being serious in a butler's outfit! Armsmaster couldn't really see that though, because I watch him chug along after a moment.
"Sword, this is serious, I've been looking for you-"
"Emiya, Shirou… sir," Shirou says again, slower, and I see him frown slightly. It was a bit unfair of Shirou to blow Armsmaster off. But Armsmaster wasn't paying his bills either. "I'm on the clock right now sir, it wouldn't be right of me to steal my employer's time."
"What if we buy something?" Assault asks, handing Selene the notepad that she slowly takes and looks to Shirou again. The question if he'll be all right was clear, he just smiles politely at her and does another sign with his hands that I do not understand. I wonder when he learned Sign language? She nods, gives us all another look, and leaves the conversation.
"Then I suppose that would upgrade you from loiterer to a customer and you would have my time." Shirou says in the silence, eyes squinting slightly before they lighten up. Assault takes the seat to my right while Battery and Armsmaster sit beside him. Assault looks at me and offers a friendly smile, one that manages to make me feel less nervous. Ok, sorry Armsmaster, I think Assault is my new favorite male cape in the Protectorate. He was absurdly friendly even with the Undersiders sitting not too far away.
Speaking of the Undersiders, all of them were looking at us, Lisa was for sure keeping them informed on what we were talking about.
"Chrysalis, right?" Assault asks casually while he leans against the counter from his stool. Shirou turns his head, watching Assault intently. "Nice to finally meet a new hero, we don't really get many of those in the bay."
"N-Nice to meet you too!" I say back and OH MY GOD, my voice cracked. Assault seems amused at my embarrassment. Enough that he lets out a sharp chuckle that only makes it worse.
"Sword." Armsmaster tries again to get Shirou's attention, but now it seemed like Shirou was purposefully ignoring him. Armsmaster shakes his head and sighs roughly. "…Emiya Shirou"
"Just Shirou is fine." Shirou says, I hear Lisa snort from across the room, followed by Circus and Alec. Only now do I realize that Shirou was fully capable of being a petty smart ass. "What can I do for you?"
"After this meeting, I must ask that you and Chrysalis go with us to PRT HQ. There are many things we must discuss, like your recently fully revealed identity. As well as moving you both to another city." Armsmaster explains, suddenly making me tense up which Assault notices. If the sudden frown is anything to go by. Moving? I didn't want to move, and neither would my dad unless I… told him what I've been doing. "Bakuda is publicly hunting for you, Lung is publicly hunting for you. We can have you on a helicopter out of the city in a few hours."
"Why would I need to run?" Shirou asks seriously, lifting another wet cup and beginning to polish it off. While I was unsurprised at this point, his casual disregard for his own safety is met by three pairs of opened mouth stares. "I-" He stops and visibly glances at me, I try to ignore the very nice feeling it gives me that he remembers. "-Me and Chrysalis, we will stop Lung and Bakuda."
"…It's not going to be that simple." Battery speaks up for the first time, she had a nice voice. I could also hear the genuine concern she held for Shirou's lack of worry. "I get it, you think you have a strong power and that it can take anyone on. But that's not how the real world works. There is always a bigger fish, and one of the biggest fish around wants you dead. Not only that, people are in danger of being caught in the crossfire."
"People will be caught in the crossfire if I leave too, that changes nothing." Shirou says back instantly, a piece of impatience forming in his eye before he calms himself down. "…I'll be looking for Bakuda and Lung by tomorrow. Someone who's opinion I respect just convinced me it would be better to work with everyone. But I'm not running, you won't convince me of that."
Armsmaster looked ready to argue, but he's cut off by Assault, who looks away from me and turns to his teammates. The hero in red places his hand on Armsmaster's shoulder and shakes his head.
"I think the kid made his point-" Assault says.
"I'm 18."
"I think the kid has made his point~," Shirou's expression become dull at Assault's playful jab. "He won't leave, and he's not wrong. Plus, we got more pressing people to try and talk to tonight, right?"
"That's not a reason not to attempt to convince him." Battery says dryly to her partner, who seems unfazed by her reaction.
"Yeah, but frankly speaking, unless he starts committing crimes, we don't actually have any authority over him. Until then he's under normal police jurisdiction. Besides, Armsy here gave me the reigns tonight remember? Why don't you two just trust my instincts like you already planned to?"
Armsmaster and Battery share a look, or at least I think they do, it's hard to know for sure with those helmets.
"It's really disrespectful of you to call the police normal like that, their job is just as respectable as your own." Shirou speaks up, making us all turn back to him. He had a slightly annoyed look on his face that… that…
Christ, I can't ever have him wear that in front of me again. I feel Matty's amusement through my connection with him, was my floundering obvious even to the giant spider?
"Aren't you a little too young to be touching alcohol? Maybe I should tell your friends at the police about that~?" Assault asks in a sing-song tone instead of acknowledging Shirou's point. Selene takes that moment to come back with another tray, not looking anyone in the eye as she hands two drinks to Armsmaster and Battery, who don't touch it. She hands Shirou the notepad before demurely standing at his side and waiting.
I take a long sip of soda after pulling my mask over my lips, watching as Shirou reads the order and gets to work on a drink. I'm not ashamed to say I know nothing about the art of drink mixing, so I can barely follow along as Shirou's hands become a bit of a blur. The whole time he doesn't take his eyes off of Assault's grinning visage. He finishes in what I assume is a quick time, putting a glass of alcohol down in front of Assault, who also doesn't look down at it. Though maybe that was because Battery and Armsmaster we're visibly upset with him.
"Aren't you a little too heroic to be treating with villains tonight?" Shirou shoots back flatly.
"Touché"
Shirou's eyes sharpen and he turns his eyes to the entrance to the dingy dive bar. Reflexively I grasp the handle of the Atlas dagger in its holster, my mind instantly splitting into two, then three, then four, in a way unlike my bugs. It was still a little disorienting even after a week, but it was far easier to deal with then before. I don't miss the sudden euphoric feeling my mind gets every time I grasp the blade, it's no less powerful then the first time. Moving passed that as best I can, I use my heightened perception of everything around me and reach out with my bugs. two blocks, four blocks, six blocks, eight blocks, it stops at eight. four blocks had been my maximum range the first time I did this, the fact the growth was visible to me helped my confidence greatly.
I set one of my mind rooms to keep an eye on the room's changes, one to control my enormous swarm, one to separately parse the information the bugs fed me, and one to plan using all the info the other three were able to get.
Brain three see's them before they open the door. Kaiser and his empire, a lot of them. While I was still very upset at Lisa, the information she gave me and Shirou throughout the week was very helpful. Kaiser came through the door with a girl on each arm, blondes with measurements like Playboy models. It was enough to make me feel instantly insecure. Fenja and Menja were their names I think, there Valkyrie style armor somehow practical yet showy in a way that only made Kaiser seem more imposing.
Not really to me though, Lung was far scarier.
The tension in the room only seems to grow as Purity follows after, glowing white even to me through my glare reducing goggles. I was surprised, as was Lisa when brain one glances at her. She told us that Purity had left the Empire. That was worrisome, as she was comparable to a high-flying artillery cannon in the league of the most powerful blasters in the country. She's followed by Krieg, Night, Fog and Hookwolf, an obvious statement to everyone in the room.
No funny business.
Kaiser stops on his way to the large table in the center of the bar to look at the Protectorate Team, who all stare back stoically. Besides Assault, who offers a two-finger salute that the empire leader unsurprisingly doesn't return. Then his eyes drift to me and I suddenly remember that I'm sitting with the protectorate heroes. While it was the choice I probably would have made regardless, it was a bit jarring to realize so suddenly. It also felt a bit good to be recognized as a hero by one of the city's worst villains.
He then glances at Shirou.
…Who looks directly back at him without a single care. They stare at each other for a long moment, enough for the rest of the room to start feeling nervous.
"Why did no one see fit to mention that the child Bakuda is chasing would be here?" Kaiser makes it sound like a question, but it was clearly a demand from the way his eyes lid. The rest of the Empire pause in finding their seats to see how their leader choses to move forward.
"Uh, we wanted it to be a surprise obviously?" Assault says back, before his smirk drops. "-Was actually hoping you could answer that. But I assume we'd have to wait for Coil, as he's the one that chose this meeting place."
"If you all could please take your seats, Selene will be around to take any orders you have." Shirou cuts in, his professional tone returning. "Alcohol is served at the bar, but if that is to much of a problem, it can be brought to you."
Kaiser is silent for a moment, before regally nodding as if it were his idea in the first place. He turns and takes his seat at the head of the meeting table, an act that goes noticed by everyone but unmentioned. Grue takes that as a cue to remove himself from his booth and take his own seat a few seats down from Kaiser. Assault gives all of us heroes a grin before he quickly downs the sitting alcohol in front of him and heads off to the table, sitting at the other end of the table.
New Wave arrives next, Lady Photon and Manpower leading the duo of Laserdream and Shielder inside. The Dallon-side of the team was suspiciously missing though. I was disappointed really; it would have been quite something to see them all standing together.
Third brain catches Lisa looking very relieved. I could guess why; she wasn't in a hurry to see Glory Girl again.
The four of them survey the room, keeping together before Lady Photon heads to the leadership table as I'm now calling it. I really didn't know how much more I can take before I break and try to ask for someone's autograph. The rest of her team/family makes their way to us while Lady Photon sits beside Assault to his right.
Manpower sits to Battery's right, offering a silent greeting. While Laserdream and Shielder…
Sit next to me?
If my mind didn't currently run about 8 times faster then usual, it might have stopped altogether in surprise. Shielder offered me a smile, his dyed blue hair standing out from everyone else. He looked to be somewhere around my age.
"Hey, you're that new hero Chrysalis, right? Sick costume, you make it yourself?" He speaks with nothing but curiosity. I hold in the squeal I want to make at being recognized as a hero, this was an amazing first step. I don't trust my voice at the moment, so I slowly nod and hum. "Wow, I wish I could do that. Though aren't black and red Empire colors?"
One of my brains catches sight of more people coming in but it's that point I let go of the Atlas dagger, I didn't want to seem threatening to the guy right beside me. His sister, Laserdream that is, elbows him in the side. She was pretty, not crazily so, but pretty like Lisa. Where they could blend into the crowd if they wanted but when you looked at them directly, they had really nice features. I also can't believe I just thought Lisa was pretty, I'm still mad at her.
"The Empire doesn't own red and black." She says, lightly admonishing him but grinning.
Ok, new favorite cape in New Wave.
"…Though if your name is Chrysalis, wouldn't white and red been a better choice?" Laserdream continues, making Shielder snort.
"What, like you?"
"Yes, like me, which one of us have more followers again?"
The two of them start to devolve into petty but quiet arguing and all I can do is stare, before I feel a strong hand tap my shoulder. I turn in my seat to face a frowning Armsmaster.
"I'd like to know something; how exactly did you know about this meeting?" The man asks me and I suddenly freeze. I couldn't exactly tell him I had been rooming with a villain group for the last week. That would be almost as bad as my dad finding that out. Which he might if I couldn't think of a lie...
Stop thinking about dad.
"U-Uh…" I mumble, wishing I hadn't let go of the Atlas dagger, grabbing it now would be too strange a response.
"I told her," Shirou hums to save my dreams of heroism like always.
"You're lying," Armsmaster grumbles disapprovingly, making my heart stop.
"So?" Shirou says, raising an eyebrow. "That's the only answer you're getting."
"This is that kid that got Bakuda in such a frenzy?" Manpower cuts in, thankfully changing the subject. Shirou more politely turns to him and nods. I notice that Selene was once again doing her rounds. "…Didn't expect him to be here in a butler's get-up taking orders."
"Neither did we…" Battery adds, finally drinking from her served cup.
"…He's really rocking that outfit though~" Laserdream comments, her tone a bit flirty. I suddenly notice she looked to be Shirou's age. I also suddenly wonder how'd she react to a bug in her drink. And she was suddenly not my favorite member of New Wave anymore. Shielder, you're up, don't disappoint me.
Shirou spares her a long glance, an eyebrow raised. He didn't look like he knew how to react to the compliment. Manpower does the same thing, but he looked more disapproving then confused.
"Don't make me regret bringing you two along?" Her dad asks.
Laserdream doesn't back down though, leaning in to the table like I'd see girls at school do when talking to the popular guys. I'm about to find out how the bug in her face scenario would go down before the door opens again and I notice I've missed a few entrances. What was assuredly Faultline had taken her seat at the middle of the leadership table. Her team, which Newter and Gregor instantly stood out, had a booth to their own, like the other teams in the room.
The one in the full body gimp suit that sat opposite of Faultline somewhere in the middle, his name was Coil I was pretty sure. From the sounds of it, also the one who organized this whole meeting.
And the one that probably knew Shirou worked here. I was at once on guard, because that most likely meant he had been watching Shirou long before his identity was revealed. There was no way this choice was just dumb luck.
The one's who just entered the bar however, they were…
I didn't know who they were…
They looked like junkies really, that was the only way I could described them. Shielder must have somehow noticed my confusion through my mask. Because he turns to me with a grimace and speaks.
"Merchant's, their a newish gang I'm pretty sure. Into drug manufacturing and dealing," he says, distaste clear. I realize that though we were the same age, he was infinitely more experienced with the hero thing. It was something I saw on not only his face though, but everyone else in the bar had the same look of disgust as well. Didn't I hear that name before? "The leader is that guy with head mask with two holes poked through, calls himself Skidmark. The woman is Squealer and the robot midget is Trainwreck."
Trashy. Very, very trashy.
I watch Skidmark reach for one of the chairs at the table before Kaiser kicks it out of reach and across the floor. The air becoming dangerous again as everyone tenses up.
"The fuck?" Skidmark snarled.
"You can sit in a booth," Kaiser spoke. Even though his voice was completely calm, I felt like his actions showed it was anything but.
"This is because I'm black, hunh? That's what you're all about, yeah?"
Still calm, Kaiser replied, "You can sit in a booth because you and your team are pathetic, deranged losers that aren't worth talking to. The people at this table? I don't like them, but I'll listen to them. That isn't the case with you."
"Fuck you. What about this guy?" Skidmark pointed at Grue, "I don't even know his name, and he's sitting."
"Well," Assault speaks up casually, like he's talking to a friend, but I see the way his eyes narrow through his mask. He held no feelings of comradery with these capes. "He doesn't sell drugs to kids for one, two, his team has had run-ins with lung in the past and survived multiple times-"
"And his team successfully robbed Bay Central bank last week, no offense to the Heroes present." Faultline adds, nodding towards the bar. I notice how everyone tenses up, not just Armsmaster and Battery, but Manpower and Laserdream as well. Assault seems unaffected, but I was sure he was more then a bit upset about that as well. Lady Photon just silently narrowed her eyes.
"Successful my ass! I saw that video of the blonde bimbo beating the shit out the skinny one! That shit looked like a fucking joke of a fight!"
"They escaped in the end, which grants far more notoriety then selling drugs to children and festering my people's youths like a cancer." Kaiser adds, starting to sound not so calm. Purity starts to shine a bit brighter as well. "Find a booth."
Skidmark gave him a look, then looked at the others sitting around the table. All still, every set of eyes he could see behind the masks was staring him down.
"Assholes. Puckered, juicy assholes, all of you," Skidmark snarled, stomping off to the booth where his teammates already sat.
I see Selene begin to move to pick up the chair when Shirou grabs her arm and stares directly at Kaiser.
"Sir, please pick up the chair you dropped." He asks, like he was talking to a normal customer and not the leader of the biggest gang in the city. Every time I think Shirou's devil may care attitude to big problems had a limit, he would just surprise me. Surprisingly, Kaiser simply does so, motioning to Purity, who kicks it back to him. He then sets it back on all fours. Shirou was probably white looking enough or something, I don't know what goes on in the mind of a racist.
"I'll be taking a chair, I think," someone spoke from the door. Most heads turned to check out a male figure in a black costume with a red mask and tophat. It gave me sort of a Baron Samedi vibe. His teammates followed him into the room, all in matching costumes of red and black, differing only in design. A girl with a sun motif, a guy with bulky armor and a square mask, and a creature so large it had to crawl on its hands and knees to get through the door. It was hard to describe, approximating something like a four-armed hairless gorilla, with a vest, mask and leggings in the red and black style its team was wearing, six-inch claws tipping each of its fingers and toes.
"The Travelers, yes?" Coil spoke, his voice smooth, He was familiar with these guys? "You're not local."
"You could call us nomadic. What was happening here was too interesting to pass up, so I decided we'd stop by for a visit." The guy with the top hat pulled off the second really formal bow I'd seen in my life. Shirou's was better. "I go by Trickster."
"You know the rules here?" Assault asked Trickster. "Just making sure, we can have a little sit down and explain them if you want?"
"We've been to similar places. I can guess. No fighting, no powers, no trying to bait others into causing trouble, or everyone else in the room puts aside all other grievances to put you down." I had startlingly little faith in any supposed rules at the current moment, but I keep that to myself.
"Close enough. It's important to have neutral ground to meet, have civilized discussion."
"I won't argue that. Please, continue as if I wasn't here."
When Trickster took a chair and put his feet up on the table Skidmark looked like he wanted to kill someone. The rest of the Travelers settled in a booth not far from the Undersiders. The gorilla thing sat on the floor and it was still large enough to be at eye level with its teammates.
"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to remove your feet from the table, people eat there." Shirou again requests, making Trickster sigh like a scolded child and lower his feet. "Thank you."
"Now that everyone who can arrive seems to, lets get started with this meeting." Kaiser says, seemingly reverting back to the calm he had before. I wasn't so willing to trust it would stay like that though. I again grab the Atlas dagger, setting up like I had before.
"We are still missing one guest at this table, actually." Coil speaks from his chair before his completely covered head turns to the bar. More specifically, his head turns to face Shirou. With my heightened state of awareness, I see Lisa's expression tighten up in a way I can feel my face match. So that had been part of his goal then? "Mr. Emiya, would you care to join us at the table?"
"I would not," Shirou says, back to cleaning a few of the cups that we had finished off. "I'm only here to observe and do my job. With all due respect, I have bills to pay and an apartment to replace."
"I'll make sure to transfer ten thousand dollars into your account after this meeting. To pay for your and your employers time." Coil offers and my mouth goes dry, that was a lot of fucking money! But it was also from a villain! B-But that was a lot of money! Armsmaster looks enraged at the offer, like Coil was personally taunting the heroes present by waving what was clearly dirty money in front of them.
"No thanks, I prefer to work for what I get the right way." Shirou denies without a second thought.
"This does involve you…" Assault reminds, before grinning and patting the seat next to him. "Come on! Big bro Assault will keep you safe from the scary villains!" From how hard Armsmaster was gritting his teeth, he was regretting following Assaults lead.
"…" Shirou wordlessly stares down everyone in the room, unlike Skidmark however he didn't seem the slightest bit worried. It looks like he was going to deny them again, but Selene nudges him in the side, making him frown. I watch him remove his pristine white gloves and set them on the counter. Those hands then raise to his neck and loosen his tie, changing his look almost completely.
"U-Uhm, why are you undressing??" Laserdream asks, leaning away in shock when Shirou goes farther and removes his vest while unbuttoning the dress shirt tucked into his pants. I was a bit frozen myself, two of my four brains coming to a stop. Lisa lightly slams her head into the table of her booth.
"What in the…-" Kaiser starts, actually looking dumbstruck for a second before a flash of blue lightning covers Shirou's form. Shirou grabs the cowl that had formed over his head and tosses it away where it disappears into motes of blue light like everything he unsummons. He stood in the outfit I made for him, his uniform held over his arm and his dress shoes in hand.
"Y-You could do that the whole time??" I ask smally, hopefully too small for the greater bar to hear. Shirou glances at me before nodding.
"I'd prefer to wear the real thing, but this will have to do." He says, before making his way to the table. All eyes follow my Hero as he approaches his seat and takes it besides Assault. "…I am here now; can we please get on with this?"
"You give everyone in here a strip tease and you're the impatient one?" Assault asks, patting Shirou's shoulder.
"Regardless of his… display, the boy is right. We've come here to convene, let us convene." Kaiser cuts in, I was impressed by how quickly he recovered, because I felt like my mind was melting.
Coil dipped his head in a nod and steepled his fingers. When he spoke, his voice was smooth, "That should be everyone. Lung won't be coming, though I doubt any of us are surprised, given the subject of tonight's discussion."
"The ABB," Assault replied, his features losing their friendliness completely.
"78 individuals confirmed dead and over a hundred hospitalized in this past week. Armed presence on the streets. Ongoing exchanges of gunfire between ABB members and the joint forces of the police and military. They have raided our businesses and bombed places where they think we might operate. They have seized our territories, and there's no indication they intend to stop anytime soon," Coil clarified the situation for all present.
"It is inconvenient," Kaiser spoke.
"They've also attacked multiple public gathering spots, places like schools, parks, even shopping centers." Assault adds, his lips curling into something clearly angry. "They've even attempted a few hostile take overs of the hospitals in the city."
"Not to mention the thing we all passed on the way here." Lady Photon speaks, able to keep her face more neutral than Assault, but what she said was enough to make everyone in the room shift uncomfortably. What was quickly becoming known as The Dragon Scar to the people of the city. A 5-mile-long street wide divot in the ground that stretched diagonally from the bay inward. Even now, some of the flames were still burning.
"…So, this was why the Protectorate agreed to meet with all of us huh?" Faultline asks, coming to some sort of realization that flies over my head. "I was always under the impression that the protectorate would never treat with us unless it was something on the level of a S-Class threat."
"We aren't quite at that level." Lady Photon admits with a shake of her head. "But it easily could become something like that if we fail to stop this."
"Can someone share with the fucking class??" Skidmark spits, literally, all over the table he's sitting at.
Armsmaster takes that moment to unhook something off his belt and approach the leadership table. Placing it on the table, he presses a button on the side before it expands into some sort of projector. Like one I would see at Winslow, except far more high-tech and obviously expensive. Instead of shooting an image on the nearby wall however, it creates a 3D full color image of…
Leviathan? For a second my four brains all focus on the image of one of the three boogie-men of humanity. Why was he showing us this? What did this have to do with Lung?
It's then that Leviathan starts moving, and I realize this is a video.
"This is a recreation of the recording of Leviathans attack on Kyushu in 1999." Armsmaster explains, nobody in the room looking comfortable with what we were seeing. The waves pummeling the island from all sides, heroes and villains by the dozens throwing themselves in Leviathan's path. I wanted to look away, but I forced myself to not avoid the image. After a minute, the battle view pans out to reveal an approaching monster just underneath Leviathan's height. What was-
"That is Lung," Armsmaster explains.
Oh.
For the next few minutes, the entire group of gathered capes and I watch in growing trepidation as Lung grows and grows during his fight against Leviathan. The two trading juggernaut blows that blow back the water around them. But that wasn't the worse part, that was reserved for the fact that Lung was actually pushing Leviathan back, all on his own. Every strike the Endbringer gave destroys flesh but is fixed faster than the monster can attack.
Then the island sinks, and Leviathan retreats from the single beast he had been fighting. Then the recreated video fades, leaving the Bar in silence.
I almost cough when I realize how dry my mouth had gotten. All four of my minds trying to think of something to say.
"That was the day Lung debuted, he fought and managed to drive off Leviathan on his own. This wasn't something known to the public, for obvious reason I hope." Assault takes over, motioning for Armsmaster to sit back down. He had everyone's attention and had no intention of losing it. "We shared this video with you all so you can understand how bad the situation actually is. Normally, we'd just sit this kind of meeting out, let you guys decide amongst yourselves how to handle it, and coordinate from there. But due to recent events that's no longer possible."
"Doesn't Lung have to ramp up? Even if he could get strong enough to fight Leviathan, it stands to reason that it's not just something he can easily do, correct?" Grue speaks up, his helmet doing a great job of hiding how he felt. "Otherwise he would almost certainly have defeated every team in the city already."
I can see Armsmaster grip his glass of water so hard his hand shakes. It's a wonder he doesn't break it. He seemed upset, specifically at Grue's prediction.
"Yeah, that single fact was what made him a much smaller concern in the long run. To get that strong he'd have to fight somebody that strong. It's actually something you can abuse and he knew it, which was why he never put himself out there if he didn't have to be. Preferring to send out lackies and Oni-Lee." Assault says, actually seeming a bit grave now. It makes me shift uncomfortably in my seat and glance towards Lisa to see she was pale and covering her mouth. "...However, that is not the case anymore. Lung is either able to transform to his largest recorded size without the need to ramp up any longer, or his ramp up conditions have changed. We can't really be sure which is which, but what we are sure of is that Lung is somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean at the moment."
"Excuse me? He fled, after tossing your base through the city?" Kaiser asks, some measure of disbelief in his tone.
"No, we know for a fact from some captured members of the ABB that Lung is somehow still in contact with Bakuda, most likely some sort of drone that can follow him in the ocean. His return is a certainty, and soon too."
"He's still in the ocean?" Faultline asks, her voice quiet.
"We assume he can breathe underwater because we haven't been able to find him." Assault says with a sigh, his sharing in the misery actually making those around him wind down in a way I wasn't sure would be the case if anyone else was delivering this news. "...Though that's not even mentioning the Bakuda issue."
"While the ABB isn't recognized as S-class threats yet, they do have the capability to be." Lady Photon speaks up after taking a drink of water from her glass. "The Director has informed New Wave and the Protectorate that the capes of the ABB have been given tentative kill orders, if we can capture them, fine, but the time for kids gloves has far passed."
Excuse me? I mean I didn't necessarily disagree with the action since I personally saw what Bakuda was doing to people. But why was she talking about killing someone so easily? Especially when her kids-…
My thought dies when I see both Shielder and Laserdream staring at the meeting with full attention, utterly unaffected. That leads me to look at everyone else, no one seemed overly bothered, just me.
I didn't know what to think about that.
"Bakuda is at the center of this," Grue's voice makes me focus back on the conversation with brain three. "Lung may be the leader, but everything hinges on the girl. She 'recruited' by orchestrating raids of people's homes while they slept, subduing them, and implanting bombs in their heads. She then used those bombs to coerce her victims into kidnapping more. No less than three hundred in total, now. Every single one of her soldiers knows that if they don't obey, Bakuda can detonate the bombs. All of them are willing to put their lives on the line, because the alternatives are either certain death or watching their loved ones die for their failure. Taking her down is our ultimate goal, but she's rigged her bombs to go off the second her heart stops, so it's a little more complicated than a simple assassination."
"Use these." Shirou finally speaks, having just been politely listening till now. I knew that more than anyone, Shirou wanted to take the ABB down, so it was little wonder he spoke up once the conversation reached this topic. Everyone at the table looks at Shirou as he holds out a hand, a dozen of those long knives appears floating above his hands before gently settling down in front of the gathered leaders. Shirou called them Black Keys. I just thought that it was remarkably cute and childish that he named his swords.
"The handles of these are far too small to be used as a sword." Trickster speaks up, one of the blades in his hand without me even noticing him reach for it. "...And I thought we weren't meant to kill Baccara or whatever her name is?"
"These are Black Keys, a sword I made that can paralyze someone's movement if stabbed into their shadow. It's what I used to subdue the conscripts that attacked me the night she revealed herself."
"Interesting name..." Kaiser notes dully, before really inspecting the sword. "Hmph, impressive artisanship I will admit..."
Assault just looks at his curiously, before nonchalantly dropping it blade first into his own shadow.
"...Yep, can't move anymore, but I can still talk? This seems bullshit even for Tinker Tech." Assault says casually, before glancing around at everyone as much as his eyes can. No one was moving to free him and he seems to realize it a minute to late. "H-Hey... a little help?"
"I must advise you not to give potentially powerful weaponry to criminals Shirou." Armsmaster speaks up from the bar as he approaches Assault and pulls the blade free. "...Though the Protectorate and PRT would be incredibly interested in a supply.
"I am always aware of how many of my swords are outside, as well as where they are, and I can dismiss them with a thought. It's really no danger at all." Shirou says while Armsmaster hums in pleasant surprise, putting the blade into a compartment in his armor. "I'm only interested in taking down Bakuda, Lung, and Oni-Lee, nothing else."
"Well, Mr. Emiya certainly understands what's at stake here, how about the rest of you?" Coil speaks up, spinning his own Black Key back and forth as if in thought. "A truce then? Between all of us?"
There were nods and murmurs of agreement from around the table, some from the various villains gathered around the room.
"Good, our groups will restrict our illegal activity to only what is absolutely essential to our business, and we will enforce the same for those doing business in our territories. That would let police forces and military focus entirely on the ABB. There would be no violence, infighting between our groups, grabs for territory, thefts or insults. We band together with those we can tolerate for guaranteed victory, and we ignore those we cannot cooperate with."
Assault rubs his chin, before nodding easily without any attempt at hashing out a different deal. Though I suppose when I thought about it, that was as good as you could expect when working with villains.
"Sounds good, we're going to be holding you all to that."
"Just saying my group won't be getting directly involved in this without a reason," Faultline speaks. "We won't be going after the ABB unless they get in my way or someone pays my rates. It's the only workable policy when you're a cape for hire. And just so we're clear, if it's the ABB paying, my team's going to be on the other side of things."
I hear Manpower and Battery mutter the word Merc's under their breath. I agreed with the sentiment honestly.
"Unfortunate, but you and I can talk after this meeting is done. I'd prefer to keep matters simple," Coil says, "You're okay with the other terms?"
"Keeping on the down-low, not kicking up a fuss with other groups? That's status quo with my group anyways."
"Good. Kaiser?"
"I think that is acceptable," Kaiser agrees.
"I was talking to my group about doing something not too different from what Coil just proposed," Grue adds, "Yeah, we're cool with it."
"Sure," Trickster says, "Not a problem. We're in."
Around the table hands were shaken. I don't know if it was the general distrust I had for every villain in the room, or my heightened perception. But something seemed off about it.
"What about you Mr. Emiya?" Shirou turns to Coil when he's called out, having kept his hands to himself. "You are an interesting entity right now in the city, the ABB are hunting for you specifically, but as far as I know you don't subscribe to any group at all. You and... Chrysalis, was it?"
Minutely, I nod, trying to figure out Coil's game.
"-You and Chrysalis are only two people, will you be joining the protectorate in the future? Safety in numbers?"
"I'm no Hero," Shirou says simply, those simple words making my heart hurt so bad. I didn't understand why he would ever think that. He was the greatest Hero in the world to me. "I'm no villain either, I'm just a guy trying to live his meager life as well he can. Lung threatened that, I'm going to make sure he can never do that again."
The finality in his voice grabs everyone's attention, making it impossible for anyone to mistake his words.
Shirou Emiya was going to kill Lung or die trying.
And that terrified me.
"I'll say this once," Shirou says, eyes hard and glaring at everyone openly. "Threaten me and those I cherish, you won't get a second chance. I'll prove that when I kill Lung."
Yet made me feel so safe.