Tattletale was waiting outside, talking to some of the mercenaries and the remaining Travelers. About their new jobs. If they wanted to stay. They weren't pleased, but also weren't aggressive. Maybe Tattletale had promised them something, either money or whatever it is that they needed.None of the other Undersiders were with her."Here she is. Excuse me." Tattletale bowed out a conversation, jogging towards me."You hid something from me." I said, letting no emotion bleed into my voice. Tattletale winced and took a step back."Err- Yes. But also no. Would it have changed anything?"Would it?"Maybe. It was a close thing, you know. Coil was about to let her out." "But he didn't.""No." I leaned my arm on the hilt of my sword, relaxing. "He didn't.""Good. Now she's my problem, I guess. I mean, I wouldn't mind some help-""No. Not now. Send me the info and I will get to it when I have time.""Worth a try. I guess that's it then? You'll take care of him?""I'll make sure he can't escape. And yes, this is it."Tattletale narrowed her eyebrows, the expression visible even under her mask. But she didn't say anything else, so I continued speaking."I will likely leave the continent within the month. You should try and get everything settled before the next Endbringer attack. Around a month at least I believe, more likely two, but better prepare for the worst case scenario.""Without the Chosen I can probably build up a rather nifty defense here in Brockton Bay. The Pure have left the city, so the only real villains left are Othala and Squealer, which I believe will also dip. Meaning we should have the time to prepare. That is, if Dragon doesn't mess with us too much…""That is between you and her. I can act as an intermediary if necessary, but she will have conditions."Tattletale did not answer, as I walked away. She wanted to ask about Scion, I could tell, but she didn't.I stopped, turning around. One last thing to remind her."If you prove yourself to be like Coil, like the Chosen, or the Empire before them, I will come for you. Eventually."I did not wait to see her reaction before leaving.Brockton Bay would soon become stable, at least as much as it could be given the situation. I had done my part here, for now. Walking to the PRT vehicle I had stolen, I opened the back to check on Coil. I felt a chill run down my spine.He wasn't there.All that was left was a small note. With a time and a place.
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Maybe it was a trap. Maybe not. In either case, I would bite. I had already long since connected Coil to Cauldron, at least partially, so it wasn't hard to guess that this meeting was about that. I still hesitated initially, wondering if I should simply go scorched earth and destroy everything Cauldron had touched.In the end, what convinced me to go was the meeting place itself. A diner, within the richer side of Brockton Bay. One that had survived Leviathan.I watched from a distance as I waited for the appointed time, taking note of the people entering and leaving, memorizing all the cars parked in the nearby neighbourhood. Nothing suspicious. There were a lot of people, and we were close enough to the Wards HQ that it would take minutes at most for the PRT to arrive.I sighed before climbing down and onto the street. It had been a few days since I had taken down Coil. The meeting was scheduled at noon sharp, and there had been no further info about what to expect. The bell rang as I opened the door and scanned the surroundings. Immediately something stood out. A person that I had not seen enter, sitting in the perfect position to avoid being seen through any of the windows. A woman, wearing a fedora and black suit. In her forties. We exchanged glances and I immediately knew. She was here for me. I walked towards her and did not ask for permission before sitting on the opposite side. My scanners spotted three tinkertech weapons on her, all of them guns."Do you eat?" She asked, looking down at the menu in front of us."Do you?" I asked back."Yes. Quite often, even." Her speech had a cadence that was mildly off-putting. Inhuman. Intentionally so."A Thinker." I said."Yes." She answered, before putting both hands on the table. A gesture of peace. "We've been observing you for a while.""Since I appeared at the Wards' HQ." I guessed."Yes again. There was a debate about what to do with you. Whether to consider you a threat, an asset, or irrelevant."There was the unsaid implication that the woman in front of me did not take part in that debate. Odd. Maybe she was like Dinah, needing someone else to make full use of her powers."The price of taking me down was too high, I assume. Or maybe, the price of forcing me to join you was."The woman nodded instead of answering, this time. Then she finally introduced herself."I am Contessa. We share the same ambition." She glanced to the side, towards a screen displaying the news. There it was, in her voice. The same hatred that I was all too familiar with. Towards the figure that was being shown on the screen.Scion. I did not expect others to share my own goals, here on this planet. But maybe…"How many of you are from other worlds?" I asked."Few. I among them.""And how much do you know about parahumans? About powers?""Less than you. More than you. That was the dealbreaker, you see. The fact that you could help us fill some rather large gaps in our knowledge. Of course we would do the same for you, if given the chance."And with that I was fully hooked."Before we go on, I want to know more about your power. It's odd. Different from what I've seen in others, even those that have taken a power vial."Contessa did not react at all to my question, or my affirmation that I knew about how some parahumans had bought their powers."It allows me to choose an objective and see the most optimal path to achieve it."I narrowed my eyes."I'm not sure I believe that. I suspect Scion is the source of all powers. I do not believe that it would ever give out something that powerful.""You're correct, again. It was not Scion."There was another. Another like Scion. Was.Miss Militia's vision came to mind. But why had Contessa used the past tense?Could it be?"The other one is dead." I tried to guess. "And you're using it to make other powers, including yours?""Mine is a bit different still. But for the vials? Yes.""I see. And talking to me is part of the path to bring down Scion? Is that what your power tells you?""Unfortunately my power is far from perfect. I have blind spots. Scion. The Endbringers. Eidolon. Tinker creations. You, sometimes."Mh. I tested something. In the other dimension, where my true self laid, I began shifting my attention. Half focused on the physical world, half focused on the crystalline dimension. But even half my focus was enough to keep up with the conversation."Like now." Contessa spoke up, raising an eyebrow. "And the fact that you can so easily become such is very promising. I hope that knowing that I can't, in fact, fully predict what you are going to do is a show of trust you can appreciate.""I do, indeed. You are Cauldron, then. The hidden power that is controlling the world.""We are less powerful than it seems. Many times we've been caught off-guard, losing a lot in the process. We can see everywhere at once, but it brings with it a heavy cost, and even then just because we can see something does not mean we immediately understand what it is. We are blind more often than not, especially in the last few years.""Who else is part of the organization? Your public facing personnel."If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it."Alexandria. Eidolon. Legend, though he's in a more peripheral role. We have dealings with the biggest criminal organizations. Those we don't directly deal with, we influence through economic control. One of our members is a Thinker that specializes in numbers, and is singlehandedly keeping Bet's economy afloat.""You are telling me a lot. Is it because in your models, when I could still be predicted, I did not abuse this information?" My question was to gather more info on how Contessa's power worked."Yes." She confirmed.Indeed, I wouldn't. Though I was beginning to harbour suspicions regarding the darker side of Cauldron… I would probably never sell them out to the wider world. Not as long as Scion lived. Not as long as they didn't cause a calamity on the scale of the Endbringers or Nilbog."If you were to join us, you'd be informed to a similar degree to what Legend knows. Initially at least. With the intent to share more if you prove yourself to be a useful asset."There was a lot to unpack there. So much to learn. So much to earn. Having Cauldron on my side would allow me to better prepare. To find out more about powers. To find out more about Scion… And other creatures similar to it."Alright. I'm listening."
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Dragon called me as soon as I put away the last of the hard drives."You could be a huge help in Brockton Bay. You've already been one.""I can help more by going somewhere else. And I did tell you I was planning to leave.""The Director insisted I gave it a try. Sorry. Your destination is Europe then?""Yes." In search of the Blasphemies."Mh… You really are like Arsenal.""...I'm not sure I agree."Dragon chuckled at my comment, "he said the same. I think you'd get along, and he does need friends. More friends.""That aren't you.""That aren't me, yes.""Any progress on your mission?" I asked, changing the topic. "...none. It is improbable that they've managed to hide their movements for so long, especially with Crawler still among their numbers. We're rather sure at this point that they are indeed hiding in a pocket world. I tried bringing out Haywire's tech to maybe sniff them out but no luck so far.""They are hiding. Licking their wounds. Preparing.""I don't want to think about what they could be planning, hidden from everyone.""Mh. I wish you luck, Dragon. There will be no contact from me for a while, until I put my plans into action. I can't risk the Blasphemies being alerted.""Understood. Good luck to you too, Blackwall." Hanging up, I picked up my things: a long briefcase containing the disassembled Amaterasu, and a suitcase with everything else I did not wear on my person.Nobody bid me goodbye as I left the PHQ. The heroes and Wards were busy, but hopefully the situation would soon improve. Tattletale had already stabilized a large section of the city, keeping the heroes out but overall also keeping the peace. Already I had heard whispers of the Teeth preparing to move back to the city, but I couldn't stay. There was too much to do out there.It was an easy thing to disappear amidst the chaos of Brockton Bay. I reached my destination by 0:50 a.m. on the dot. An isolated alleyway, distant from any people. My transport would soon arrive.But, as always when it came to this city, things became complicated…Trash was scattered among the alleyway, producing a terrible stench. Despite that, none of the flies were moving.I turned around, glancing at the figure that had followed me from afar - further than my sensors could reach. "Skitter…" I disappointedly mumbled. The teenage girl was in full costume, melding into the dark night. As always, I could not discern her emotions from her posture or body language. Except that this time she was careful enough to keep her swarm spread out enough that I couldn't use that as a reference. Tattletale had probably told her about that flaw."Principal Blackwell." She answered, gritting her teeth. There was no anger in her voice. I couldn't tell if it was because of her odd power behaviour or if she'd finally accepted that Andrea was really dead and gone."She is dead. I've told you. I'm a parasite, using her body as a host. Andrea Blackwell was… an awful person. Even more than you think. But she's gone, and I don't want to speak ill of the dead. Please call me Blackwall.""Okay. Blackwall then. That is not why I'm here." "Skitter. Taylor. You're a kid. Go home, to your dad. Or keep your position among the Undersiders. Tattletale is a bad influence but she also cares for you, a lot. Give yourself time to grow.""Dinah told us that the world would end in a few years if Jack escaped Brockton Bay. And he did. I don't think I have the time to 'grow'.""Precogs can be wrong.""You don't think she's wrong." Taylor snapped back. Her voice was firm, sure of herself. I couldn't tell if it was confidence or delusion. But she was correct."No. I know she's right. I don't know what Jack Slash has to do with it, but the writing is on the wall. We're one bad Endbringer attack away from the end of civilization as we know it. The Simurgh could finally put into action whatever she's been planning all these years. Behemoth could cause a nuclear winter if he managed to amass enough energy during an attack. Leviathan is the least threatening of them, and that is just because he's already compromised all maritime supply lines." Words flowed out of me, the dam breaking after so many frustrating weeks.Taylor was taken back by my outburst. I was as well."All the while people are bickering and fighting over shit that doesn't matter. People that could help with these problems. People that could solve these problems. And I'm not even talking about parahumans. Director Piggot herself is fastidiously stubborn and uncooperative, to the point that I considered taking her out. Except I quickly surmised that most of her replacements would be worse."I exhaled a large breath. My heart rate was irregularly high. The body I was living in had been influencing me more than I had thought possible.It took a while for Taylor to speak up again."Principal Blackwell ignored what Sophia was doing to me. Most people ignored it. At some level, I also ignored it. Maybe that's why I don't want to stay here. I want to be out there, doing. Fighting."Not 'helping'. She was done 'helping'. Taylor wanted to make a change in the world through the means she had become most familiar with. Violence."You've seen an Endbringer. The Slaughterhouse Nine. You still want to face others like them?""Yes.""Go to the PRT.""They're not good enough. And I don't trust them."How could she, after finding out that Sophia was among them?It was 0:59. Less than one minute to convince her to leave. Or…"The world ends whether you let me join you or not." Taylor sealed the deal with that one last sentence."Very well." I answered, steeling my resolve. Taylor would be an asset. An ally in what was to come. In some ways, she'd be safer with me than in Brockton Bay.At the end of the alleyway something appeared, cutting through the darkness. A rectangle shaped door, cutting into realty. A portal, giving a glimpse into a long white hallway. A figure cloaked in black floated just beyond the edge of the dimensional door. She glanced at Taylor."I assume this isn't an issue." I said, looking at the figure."No. Contessa accounted for it." Alexandria answered.Taylor was suddenly overcome with emotions as the swarm all around became agitated, in both surprise and panic. After all, Skitter was still a villain. It didn't take long for her to catch up with the implications of what she was seeing. She couldn't help but whisper under her breath:"Holy shit."
END OF PART ONE