Controlling Interest 4

A/N: This chapter was commissioned by ToxinVictoria!

I had to manually space all of the indents because of Patreon's text editor, please appreciate me.

Chapter 4: Action Bias

>So.
>How do you feel about your little escapade against the Empire now?

I stared at the text, fingers tight around the phone.

How did she get this number? Grue had suggested that the last member of the Undersiders was a thinker, and this all but proved it.

I shook my head.

     I told you not to contact me again <

After I sent my reply, I waited, holding the phone, but she didn’t reply back right away. With a sigh, I slumped back on the bed. It had already been a long day. I’d gotten beat up by Sophia, suspended from school, and the last thing I needed was to have this conversation. If All Seeing Eye didn’t want to text me back, so much the better.

I rolled to the side, holding back a wince, and was just about to put my phone on the bedside table when it buzzed again.

> But we worked together so well last time. Didn’t you like my friends?

I growled something unkind under my breath.

     I’m a hero <
     You lied to me about being villains! <

Even if they hadn’t actually claimed to be heroes, they’d still misled me. And even though Rachel was now the closest thing I had to a friend, that didn’t mean I was going to give the rest of her team a pass.

> D:

I blinked in confusion.

> Sorry for lying to you bug
> Let me make it up to you <3

I frowned at the message. Even if I didn’t know what the D was supposed to mean, the rest of the message was very clear, and I was not interested.

     I don’t need your help <

> You wanna be a hero don’t you? I can help with that

     …how <

> Say please :P

I growled again. “Fricking bitch.” I wasn’t going to play her silly little mind game. Instead. I tossed the new phone across the bed. Like I said, I didn’t need her help at all, much less if she was going to keep jerking me around.

Then it buzzed again.

I threw my arm over my head.

It buzzed again, and again.

“Ugh, fine!” I rolled back to the phone and flipped it open.

> Your no fun
> Aww, don’t be like that bug
> Fine I’ll tell you

I smiled.

     It’s “You’re” not “your” <

> Now look who’s a grammar nazi

I rolled my eyes.

    Tell this plan or I’m throwing this phone away <

> But of course!
> You need to convince people you’re not part of the Undersiders. The easiest way would be to get in a fight with them

I frowned.

     Against your team? <

A long pause this time, then,

> Well, you know how it goes in the game
> But I can see why you wouldn’t trust me to set something like that up.

My frown deepened. Did Rachel know her new boss was considering selling the team out? Being a villain really was the worst wasn’t it.

> Instead, you need to show that you’re a hero by hitting other villains.

     But that’s what I did! <

> Not unpowered gangsters bug, you need to get into cape fights

I huffed.

     Didn’t Bitch tell you my name <

> We’re not that close

Yeah, I thought so. I was definitely gonna try to get Rachel to quit that awful team. As much as I worried about…working with other people, I felt better around her, and she definitely deserved better than this kind of treatment.

     It’s Weaver <

> A pleasure. Did the Undersiders share my name?

     No. <

> Perfect! You can call me Seer

I nodded to myself. Definitely a thinker. Maybe that meant I was an idiot for talking with her, but so far this seemed like a normal conversation. I’d read that thinker powers sometimes had weird restrictions. I could only hope that distance would keep me safe.

> Stealing from the gangs is still stealing. But if you were to get into a real cape fight or two, then you could change the narrative about your affiliation.

     My power isn’t good for cape fights <

> Aww, how unfortunate. If only you had someone who could help you out with that.

I worried my lip. On one hand, what was I gonna do with bugs against like, any cape in the Bay? In the ABB, you had the rage dragon and his teleporting assassin. In the Empire, I’d have to go down the list to find one that wasn’t an awful matchup. There were a few other smaller gangs I’d heard about at school, but I had no idea where they were or if they even had capes.

> You won’t be fighting against the Empire this time, though

The next text jolted me out of my thoughts.

     Why not? <

> You want to distance yourself from the Undersiders, don’t you? You need to hit someone else. Don’t worry, I have a perfect target in mind for you!

I let out a breath.

     What do you want in return? <

> Tell you what, take this guy out and we’ll call it even.

      Take who out? <

> Heard of Coil?
> He has a bunch of mercenaries, but as far as I can tell, he’s the only cape, maybe

      Maybe? <

> He might not have a power
> Or if he does, its subtle

      Some thinker you are <

> Do you know the location of his secret base?

      Then why haven’t you done anything about it? <

> But if I did that, who would be left for my cute little Weaver to take care of?

      Don’t call me that <

> Look, I’m doing you a favor here. If you’re just going to complain, I can stop
> In or out, right now

I worried my lip again. This plan seemed a bit…convoluted, but it probably would separate me from the Undersiders in everyone’s minds. If the other alternative was going to the PRT and coming clean about how I’d been duped, I think I’d prefer to get into a cape fight.

And if the Protectorate reacted like Glory Girl did, I’d also prefer throwing myself at another cape as opposed to getting a tongue lashing from Armsmaster. I would honestly rather die.

      I’m in <

>Good. I’ll text you some addresses as well as what information I’ve put together.

       Wouldn’t PHO be easier? <

> Thought you didn’t want me contacting you there :p
> Be careful when you start investigating tho
> Coil may be recruiting some other capes to work for him

I frowned. Rachel had mentioned something about a secret boss.

       Did the Undersiders used to work for them? <

> They had a backer

So maybe it was Coil. Though, like Rachel said they clearly didn’t anymore, or else someone affiliated with the Undersiders wouldn’t be telling me to attack Coil.

> Here’s what you need to know. Your power should be perfect for scouting
> Don’t get caught too early! The fun’s only getting started

I debated texting back, but what followed after quickly were several addresses as well as a break down of Coil and his mercenaries.

“Mercenaries?” I rolled back on the bed. “Underground bases? What did I just agree to?”

Whatever it was, it was too late and I was too tired to handle it right now. As the anger left me, my eyes started getting heavy almost immediately. With a promise to look at it in the morning, I fiddled with my phone until I managed to turn off the buzzing and put it in my bedside drawer.

The next day, I made sure to spend some time with my dad before he went off to work.

“What are your plans for today?” He asked.

“I’m gonna train Champ some, then maybe go to the boardwalk.” I shifted back and forth. “I want to keep up my running schedule, and then, maybe this weekend we can look at transferring schools or something?”

He smiled, ruffling my hair. “Sure thing, Taylor. I know a few guys who got a GED before going into a trade school; I’ll ask if they have any advice.”

“Thanks, Dad.” I smiled. Now I wouldn’t be a high school dropout. And, just as good, now I had free time for the rest of the week to handle this Coil situation.

After Dad left, I went back to my room and pulled out my phone to see what All Seeing Eye had sent me.

As I read, I realized that this was going to be much more difficult than knocking over some stash houses. Coil had an underground bunker located close to the boardwalk, entrance and exits unknown. He employed well-trained mercenaries, and sometimes they even had tinkertech weapons like lasers. I had some small hope that my spider silk armor would stop a bullet, but weapons like that would punch a hole right through me.

“Don’t die too early,” I muttered. “Gee, thanks.”

But if I pulled it off, no one would be able to doubt that I was a hero, that I was doing good for Brockton.

Eye was right about one thing: my power should be good for scouting out his base. Then, if I played it right, I could even smuggle in a bunch of insects and attack the whole base without even being close by. Maybe that wouldn’t be enough to take Coil out, but hopefully I could do enough damage to expose what was going on.

That morning, free from Winslow High for—hopefully—the rest of my life, I got dressed in some jogging clothes and took Champ for a run.

I spent the time at the bus stop working on his training. Rachel had told me that ‘stay’ training was super important, so I was conditioning him to not move from my feet by giving him treats constantly.

He took to that command like a champ.

Sometimes I could even make myself groan.

The bus down to the boardwalk was almost empty, which was why I’d picked this time. At ten, most people would be at work, but there would still be enough people on the street to disguise me as I went scouting for Coil’s base.

With the info I’d been given, it took me less than ten minutes to find it. There was a huge empty space underground, beneath a block that had a few old parking garages and a Kohls that looked almost as abandoned as the empty lot right next to it. If I hadn’t been specifically looking for anything odd, I still might have noticed the complete lack of earthworms in the area.

I paused as a realized the sheer size of the base. There were only a few flies inside of it, all I had to figure out exactly what was going on down there.

I sighed, reaching down to pet Champ. “What did I get myself into?” I asked him.

Champ licked my face, grinning up at me as I tried to push him away.

“Alright, alright!” I tried to hold back a laugh and failed. “C’mon, bud. Let’s go for a run.”

I cinched up Champ’s leash and started off on a slow jog that would take me past the Kohls. After that, I would loop a bit further around the next block, taking a round that would hopefully look believable to anyone who was keeping an eye on the street.

And while I ran, the handful of bugs I had access to began to explore.

First, I tried to map hallways, flying back and forth as naturally as I could. The corridors unfolded like a tangled map in my head, along with one or two bigger rooms that flies got lost in. Trying to navigate with their sense of sight or smell sent sharp spikes of pain into my head, which made things slow going.

Then I found an air vent. I explored it carefully, only to grin when one of the forks led upwards to an opening in the parking garage. I lost a fly to a spinning fan, but now that I knew where the entrance was, I could start slipping more bugs into the base to build a more complete picture.

And when I did…

The first thing I noticed was how many people there were.

Carefully as I could, I marked about 18 men either standing guard in small booths or patrolling the halls. The big room, probably a cafeteria, had ten more, and there were a few other places that I couldn’t easily slip my flies into.

I couldn’t even work with too many. People knew there was a bug controller in the bay now, if I just went through with a swarm of gnats out of nowhere, Coil would know.

As I made my second loop around the block I started breathing heavier, and not just from the exercise. There was practically an army down there.

Still, with my bugs, I managed to map out most of the corridors, and even found what I thought was the main entrance.

There was a path that connected to the parking garage, behind a dumpster and a fake wall, that some men in a van left through halfway through my planned route. I had no idea what I was gonna do about that, but maybe if I flooded the bunker with enough bugs, the mercenaries would come running out.

The last thing I found was a few large cans of what smelled like death to my insects. They cost me a dull throb behind my eye, flickering static as I realized that Coil probably had prepared this insecticide specifically for me. At that point, a few of the mercenaries had swatted at my bugs, and I decided to pull back before potentially exposing myself.

I’d have to clog those cannisters before I attacked the base, but as long as I didn’t overplay my hand, it should be possible.

No, it was definitely possible. Here was an enemy that played directly to my strengths. I just had to stop second guessing myself and commit before Coil could invest any more money into defenses…But some additional help wouldn’t hurt.

Slowly, I jogged out of range of the bunker, making sure to pull almost all of the insects out as I left. Tomorrow, I would start bringing more bees and wasps to the area, along with my black widows.

Today…the text messages had mentioned that Coil was recruiting other capes to work for him. That spelled trouble. I shivered at the thought of clearing the base, only to get caught by some unknown cape. There had to be something I could do about that.

I came to a stop next to a coffee shop, letting Champ lay down at my feet as he panted for air.

“Doggie!”

My head jerked over in surprise. A young boy was scrambling out of his mom’s arms, fingers grabbing the air towards my dog.

“Um,” I managed. “Hi?”

“Doggie!”

“That’s not your dog, David,” the woman said. His face scrunched up.

“Oh, no!” I waved my hands. “Its fine. Champ’s a rescue, but he’s great with kids!” When I took him babysitting, he’d stayed next to Aster almost the entire night, even going so far as to lay down next to her crib protectively. “He can pet him if he wants?”

The woman gave me a tired smile. “Thanks.” Then, to her son, “What do ya say when you want something?”

“Please doggie!”

She sighed. “Yes, please doggie.” Then she set him down, and with a burbling laugh, David ran over and started running his hands over Champ’s face and neck. Champ licked him back just as aggressively, and the kid started laughing again.

“Thanks for that,” the woman said to me. “Boy’s obsessed since that show.”

“No problem.” I adjusted my grip on the leash. “I was just finishing up my run. What show?”

“Oh that doll girl, Parian. She does shows with stuffed animals on the boardwalk.” The woman waved a hand. “She had one with the dogs, and since then he’s been crazy bout them…”

I smiled at that. “I loved dogs when I was a kid too.”

She raised an eyebrow. “You better still like ‘em now.”

“I—wh—Of course I do!” I said. “I volunteer at my friend’s shelter!”

“I bet you do!” We shared a smile. Then she paused, glancing over at David and sighing again. “That’s dog slobber in his hair.”

I looked as well, and sure enough, his tightly curled black hair was half matted down from Champ’s tongue. “Oops, uh, sorry?”

“Not your fault.” She leaned down, scooping up her son. “Right. That’s enough of that. What you doing to your hair, silly?”

David laughed, reaching back towards Champ. “I’m petting dat dog!”

“Yes you are. Say bye to dat dog, okay?”

“Bye dat dog!” David waved. “Bye dat dog!”

“And bye to you too,” the woman said. “Have a good rest of your day now.”

“You too!” I smiled.

After she left, I couldn’t help but let out a big breath. How long had it been since I’d just had a nice, normal conversation with someone? Certainly never at school. I leaned back, glancing in the direction of the boardwalk.

Parian was the Bay’s local rogue. Instead of getting involved with the heroes or the villains, she used her power to animate stuffed animals, I thought. I guess she did shows for kids like that woman had said. A doll rogue hardly seemed like the first choice of recruit for Coil, but at the same time, this was the guy who’d built himself a giant underground base. It was mindboggling to think that less than three blocks away there was a literal bond villain base in the middle of my hometown.

If anyone was going to reach out to an inconspicuous cape, it would be someone like Coil.

At the very least, I should check.

“C’mon Champ.” I stood. “Let’s go back home, you look like you need some water.”

Champ dutifully got to his feet, padding after me back to the bus stop.

He curled up right next to my ankles the entire way back, before happily falling asleep in his bed. I set out his water bowl with a happy smile. Just think, I could have been in math class right now. The best part was that Champ absolutely loved to lay around. Now that I’d gotten his run in, he’d be set until dinner time, which left me a few hours to fit some more cape work.

And I knew just what I was gonna do with it.

I changed into my costume, and baggy clothes over top once again, and went back to the boardwalk. This time, I stayed far away from Coil’s base.

The was a crowd out at lunch time, which made it a bit tricker to find a spot to change. I found myself worrying my lip sitting on the edge of a pier. I’d only gone out at night before, with so many people out…And I was a known villain, too. What if one of the Protectorate members spotted me after I got into costume? Or when I was talking with Parian?

I was starting to this this wasn’t a good idea. Maybe I should approach her at night instead, but then what would she do, if a known villain snuck up on her at night?

My one outing with the Undersiders, still causing me no end to my problems.

In the end, I committed. I shelled out for a cheap domino mask instead of slipping off my hoodie and going in full costume. Hopefully, that would get me a conversation.

I ducked my head under my hood, thankful for the afternoon chill coming in off the bay. With a few bugs, it was easy to wait just around the corner until her shop was empty, then slip inside and slip on the mask all on one smooth motion.

The inside of Parian’s shop, well, I’d say something like ‘wasn’t what I was expecting’, but I hadn’t given myself a chance to form any expectations in the first place; otherwise I might have talked myself out of this meeting.

It was cozy inside, with a warm, plush carpet that my shoes sank into. Bolts of cloth sat on a shelf against the back wall, around the corner I saw a little mirrored nook with a raised platform for tailoring. Instead of posters for decoration, a wallboard ran the entire length of the shop filled with artfully posed stuffed animals. Probably the same ones for her show.

“Can I help you?”

My head snapped over to Parian. She stood behind a simple counter, glass showing more fabric and other materials. At her back a massive teddy bear had paused, half lifting a box of sowing supplies onto a shelf.

I tried to hold back a smile. I failed.

“Um, Hi?” I waved. “I’m a cape; I’m here to talk.”

Parian shifted at that. For her part, she really did look like a doll. Her costume was an elegant Victorian dress, complete with lace petticoats, to go with a doll mask. She placed one hand, covered with an elegantly stitched glove, against her ‘cheek’.

The bear shifted, to stand at her side.

“Talk?” She took a step back. “About what?”

“Ah, uh—” I paused for a second. I hadn’t actually thought this far ahead, and I stumbled over my words. “That’s, recruitment?”

Her demeanor changed in a heartbeat. The bear stepped forward, puffing up more until its head almost brushed the ceiling.

“I thought I made myself clear enough last time!” Parian waved a hand, and the stuffed animals on the wall started to move. “Get out of my shop!”

“W-what?” I squeak out. I took two steps back, swarm surging closer outside. “What last time? There was a last time?”

Parian paused. She tilted her head suspiciously. “Your group has been here before, or didn’t they tell you?”

I licked my lips. “The Undersiders tried to recruit you?”

“The Undersiders?” The bear took a step back. “You’re not with the Empire?”

“No!” I shook my head. “I hit the Empire last week. Looks like it’s still causing me trouble.”

“Hit the—” She puffed up again. “You’re that cape who spits fire!”

I shook my head again. “No, I—Oh my god this is a mess. Can I…just start again from the beginning?”

Parian stared at me for a long moment. “What do you want?”

“That’s not really the beginning,” I muttered, before continuing. “I just…I heard that Coil’s been active in the area, recruiting some capes on the sly, I wanted to know if he’d approached you.” I paused, glancing over my shoulder. “Or the Empire, apparently.”

“…Oh. Coil?” Parian shook her head. “Sorry, I don’t keep up with the gangs, but he’s the one with all of those guys with the guns?”

“I think all the gangs have guys, and guns,” I said. “But yeah, that’s who I’m talking about.”

“Men.” She sighed, waving her bear back another step. “No. Only the E88 have been awful enough to try to press gang me.” Another pause. “You better not be here recruiting for your gang either. I’m a rogue.”

“No, I’m not I just…” My thoughts caught up with me a second later. “And they’re not my gang! I’m a hero!”

“…Really?”

I slumped at that. “I’m trying to be one, at least. I thought the Undersiders were a hero team. I…also don’t keep up with cape stuff.”

“Hmm.” Parian still sounded a little skeptical. “Seems like something you should know, if you want to be a hero.”

“I’m starting to figure that out,” I replied. “Sorry about this, whole mess. I just, was checking, like, yeah.”

I turned to go, feeling thoroughly defeated and more than a little embarrassed when Parian said, “Wait a sec.”

I paused, hand on the door.

“If you’re not the fire breathing one, are you that new girl, with the bugs?”

“Yep,” I said, “that’s me. Villainous power, and now I’m trying to turn my image around after my big debut.”

“That sounds…difficult.” She paused, leaning against the counter. “You could always make a statement online about it.”

“Who would believe me?” I asked. “We burned down like, five houses.”

“I read the news,” she replied. “And I think two of the people whose houses burned down filed an insurance claim for Nazi memorabilia.”

I turned back. “Shut up.”

“No seriously.” She waved me closer. “It just blew up on ANN this morning. So you know, maybe don’t burn anymore houses down, but if it had to happen to someone?”

“You’re making me feel a lot better about this,” I said, voice flat.

“Sorry!” She held up her hands. “I just, after almost getting strongarmed, I maybe felt a bit of glee when I heard that.”

“No, that makes sense.” It made me feel better too. Sure, insurance would pay them back, but, “Hopefully there are less like, Nazi coins left in the world now, or whatever it is those weirdos collect.”

Parian laughed. “I think one guy was losing his shit over a signed copy of Hitler’s little book.”

“God,” I said. “What a weirdo.”

“I know.”

We shared one of those not quite laughs. I shifted. “Was…that everything, or?”

“Oh, right! I—uh, sorry again.” She fiddled with her gloves nervously. Somehow, the sight managed to calm me down. “I actually wanted to ask how much control you have over bugs. Like, can you make spiders spin silk for you?”

It made sense that the fabric cape would be interested in fabric. “Yeah, actually, I can.” I smiled, fishing my mask out of my pocket. “My whole costume is made from black widow silk. Here.” I leaned over the counter to hand it to her.

She jolted slightly, but before I could apologize, she reached out and took my mask. “This is all spider silk? Incredible.”

“My whole costume,” I said.

Parian looked away from my mask, which had blow up like a balloon and was now slowly deflating. “Can…I see?”

“I—” I glanced back towards the door. “Right now?”

“Here, I’ll close up.” She more glided than walked over to the door, locking it and flipping the sign. “I’ll make it up to you?”

I waffled for a bit, but it wasn’t like I was planning on getting any more hero work done tonight. I was reasonably sure Parian wasn’t lying about being a mole for Coil, at least. “Sure.” That would give me time to figure out what to do about the Empire trying to recruit her, because that also couldn’t stand.

“Here, we can use my stand.” She led me over to the back corner of the shop, with the mirrored alcove I’d noticed before. In the middle of the mirrors was a raised platform, maybe a foot or so high. “I use this for alterations; technically I don’t really need one since I use my power, but I’ve always like the way the look.”

I nodded, shrugging out of my hoodie and sweats while awkwardly making sure to keep my mask on. “Well.” I stepped onto the platform, spreading my arms. “What should I do?”

“Wow.” Parian leaned back, hand on her chin. “Just stand like that. That’s a really daring design.”

“Thank…you?”

“No, you look incredible!” She waved her hands. “It’s just, I certainly didn’t have the confidence to go with the skintight suite, and the shell details matching your power? It looks so good.”

“Thanks,” I said again. This time my voice was a little warmer. “Looking back. I kinda wish I’d gone for something more like your costume, but at the time…”

“I understand the feeling.” Parian started to circle me. “It came together so well, buuut if you wanted to add a bit more volume without ruining the whole effect, you could probably add some darts, maybe a little flared hems. Mmm.”

“Darts?” I asked.

“Oh, sorry, do you sew? It looks very professional but…I don’t really see any seams,” Parian said.

“I…kinda wove it all with my spiders.” I rubbed my arm sheepishly. “I’ve learned a bit more since then, but I probably can’t make anything much more complicated than a sheet without a, uh, a model.”

“Model?” Parian looked up at me, blond ringlets bouncing. “You mean?”

I looked away, blushing.

Parian reached out, patting my hip. “The things we do for beauty.”

“It’s just a suit,” I said.

“it’s a beautiful suit,” she replied. “Much better than most of the ones I’ve seen on newbie capes. The other day, someone came in here wearing grease-stained overalls.”

“Well…” I managed a smile. “As long as they fit the theme.”

“Oh they did.” Parian laughed. “Buuut, I heard you mention something about silk cloth?”

“Do you want some?”

“Definitely.” She nodded. “How much can you make?”

“I…” I shrugged. “I haven’t really tested the specifics.”

“We’ll go over it.” Parian waved a hand. “But, as a thank you for letting me look at it, maybe I could help if you ever want to do a redesign?”

“That…wouldn’t be bad,” I said. So many people had told me that my costume looked villainous. It would be nice to have a second pair of eyes, especially someone who knew what they were talking about. “Are you sure you want to be seen with someone who’s been pegged as a villain, though?” I asked.

“Well, looks like you better get to work clearing your name, hero,” she replied.

I paused at that, before grinning. “Yeah. Just you wait, I’m gonna bust Coil.”

“I believe you.” Parian took a step back, curtseying. “Now, I would like to set up an order for that silk fabric of yours, just thinking about what I can do with it…”

“Sure.” I shrugged. “I’m done with school, so I have plenty of free time.”

“Oh?” She tilted her head. “Thinking about college?”

I pulled a face. “Maybe in a year or two.” I would focus on getting my GED of course, but even though I knew my dad expected me to go to college, and my mom would have too… “The thought of it feels small, compared to the good I can do, helping people. I can’t just sit back and wait for someone else to help.” Because no one ever helped me. It was only a second later that I remembered who I was talking to. “Oh, I uh, I didn’t mean to make it seem like you should—I.”

Parian laughed lightly. “Don’t worry, I didn’t take it like that. You just seemed so determined.”

“I am,” I said. “This is what I was meant to do.”

“Then I wouldn’t mind helping with it,” she said. “After all, making beautiful designs are what I’m meant to do.”

We shared a smile, or at least I hoped we did. “I’m glad I stopped by.” I paused. “Oh, right, and if the E88 ever comes snooping around here again, let me know.”

I picked up my sweats, digging my phone out of my pocket. “Though, I probably shouldn’t use my personal phone for this.”

“Oh is that the newest DragOS? It should be fine; they have excellent security.” Parian drifted over to my side. “Want me to show you?”

“Go ahead.”

She walked me through setting up the security features and purging the one potential bug I’d somehow already got. I blamed the Undersiders’ thinker for that one, but I’d have to be more careful going forward. Parian put her number in as PS before shooting a quick text to herself.

“What’s the S stand for?” I asked.

“Secret.” She twirled playfully. “What should I put you in as.”

“My name is Weaver,” I said.

“Mmm. I think I’ll call you Taylor,” she replied.

I stiffened. “What?”

“You know, weaver, tailor? That way I can message you about fabric so it won’t be weird.” Sabah pulled out her own phone, stepping away a second to do just that.

“Oh.” I let out a breath. “Yeah, that makes sense.”

After that, Parian walked me through some fabric terms. Apparently there was a standard width for rolls of fabric, so I told her that I’d produce something that wide and as long as I could make it, when I had the time, and she told me that she’d start drafting costume design ideas.

I felt flattered, actually. Especially when she mentioned that I had a good figure. I knew I was still kinda fat, but it was nice that my daily runs were starting to show a little progress.

After that, we quickly parted ways, and I slipped my mask off and slipped into the afternoon rush in the boardwalk. It had been a productive day, if not in the way I’d first expected. Parian was nice, and definitely a good contact to have. I had no idea how I’d go about repairing my costume if I tore it.

Of course, that was all secondary to my main objective of scouting out Coil. I had a mental map of his base still shining clearly in the back of my head, and I wanted to hit him soon. The only problem was still the other potential capes. Just because Parian wasn’t one didn’t mean he wouldn’t have other people on his payroll that could make trouble for me. I’d thought, briefly, about asking Parian to help me out, but she’d made kinda a big deal about being a rogue and…I just couldn’t bring myself to ask.

Who did that even leave me with? If I asked Rachel, then that would be just one more thing tying me to the Undersiders. I didn’t like the thought of going in alone, but I hated the thought of waiting even more.

On my way home, I realized the answer.

I spent the rest of the bus ride trying to talk myself out of it before I admitted that I really had no other choice. And if it worked, it would probably go a long way to proving that I was in fact a hero.

At home, I pulled up PHO on my phone, and started to draft a reply to a message that had been sitting in my inbox for days now.

♦  Private message from Weaver:

Weaver: Glory Girl,

I wasn’t lying about being a hero, and I can prove it. It’s okay if you think I’m a liar, or the scum of the Earth. Just please hear me out, and I promise it will be worth your time.

The night we met was my first night out, and I had no idea that the Undersiders were a villain team. When they approached me to hit the Empire 88, I assumed that they were just new heroes. I told them not to use fire, but was overruled. There, in the middle of the fight, I decided that hitting the nazis where it hurt was more important. Maybe I was wrong, but I still stand by the good I did that night, if not the people I did it with.

I refused to work with them anymore after I learned the truth. Please believe me, because I’ve discovered something that’s so much bigger than a two-bit gang of liars. With my bugs, I’ve found Coil’s main hideout, and you won’t believe where it is.

To clear my name, I’m going to hit it. I’m going to bring him in. I could really use the help of a hero to do it.

If you don’t believe me, then I’m sorry I waisted your time, but if you do, if you think there’s a chance, I could be telling the truth, meet me two days from now on the roof of 22718 Parker Street East. Even if you decide not to work with me, I’ll tell you everything I know.

Someone trying to be a hero,
Weaver