Capítulo 628: 67
Date
2011 February 24th - Wednesday - Earth Bet Time
They stood up on a hill near the hustle and bustle of the entire camp going around, yet leaving a wide, empty area around them. A few people were blatantly staring at them (some even filming) and the others were glancing at them out of the corner of their eyes as they did their jobs.
Taylor and the rest of the team stood in a loose circle, looking at each other silently. After what happened, nobody knew what to say. It was finally Taylor who had enough of the silence and turned to Tess.
"Hey, Dragon, do you need me for anything else?"
"No, Lux. I think we can manage the rest without you," said the AI with a chuckle while glancing at the enormous, perfectly spherical hole, where Ellisburg stood. "Thank you for your help."
"Any time!" she answered, then turned to the others. "Cardea, chin up, it could've been worse!" The woman nodded nervously, and Taylor could see she was itching to get away from them. "Give your contact info to Dragon, I want to talk to you later."
Not waiting for a reply, her next target was Nero. "I would like to request that you stay away from the United States as long as possible."
"You are just jealous that I can explode things better than you!" answered the bomb Tinker indignantly while crossing her arms.
"I don't care if you are better at it, I'm just deeply afraid of how you do it!"
Ignoring the Tinker sputtering in denial, Taylor turned to Narwhal and Armsmaster. "It was a pleasure to fight alongside you, Narwhal, Armsmaster."
"The pleasure was all mine," replied Narwhal with a smile on her face.
"Indeed," said Armsmaster, his previously gruff voice nowhere. "Are you sure you still don't wish to enlist with the Protectorate?"
"Or the Guild?" added Narwhal playfully.
She laughed a little before answering. "Thank you, but no. I'm a lone wolf."
"Pity," replied Armsmaster flatly, then nodded to the others and began walking towards the command center, presumably to report to Director Piggot.
Taylor then finally turned to her personal hero, Alexandria. "Keep the sword. It suits you!" And with that, she jumped up in the air, and to the surprise of anyone watching, vanished in a brief flash of yellow lightning.
"Well, can't say she doesn't have a style," remarked Narwhal, looking at the spot in the air where Lux Arcana vanished.
Date
2011 February 24th - Wednesday - Earth Bet Time
Alexandria also looked at the spot where Lux vanished abruptly and then let a quiet chuckle. She was joined by Dragon.
Cardea, however, spoke up. "I'm sorry, everyone, but I have to go. I want to check up on my friends."
"Of course, Cardea. Thank you, too, for your help," answered Dragon in a gentle voice. "I will be in contact with your boss about an appropriate reward for your actions."
"Th-thank you!" replied the nervous healer, then she beat a hasty retreat.
They watched her practically run away from them before Narwhal spoke up. "Come on, Nero. Let's go check on the Guild people."
"Oh yeah, I wonder if Glyph got more kills than me?" wondered Nero out loud while following her boss down the hill.
Alexandria waited until they were out of earshot, then turned to the body of the AI, who was quietly looking over what remained of the battlefield.
"Dragon."
"Yes, Alexandria?"
"You could've taken care of this entire thing with only Lux, am I correct?"
There was a brief pause before Dragon answered.
"More than likely, yes. But not this cleanly and efficiently." She then threw out her arms, motioning at the crowds before them. "And that would have been a win for us, but this way it's a win for everyone. Much better, if you think about it."
"Indeed…" murmured Alexandria in response as she beheld the celebrating people.
Date
2011 February 25th - Thursday - Earth Bet Time
Piggot sat on her ultra-ergonomic medical chair, which was required because of her condition, and for the first time, she thoroughly enjoyed what the chair provided. It wasn't just the fact of her rapidly improving condition that allowed her to experience the joys she had long ago given up on, but the fact the city of Ellisburg was gone also removed an invisible weight from her shoulders.
Seeing the frankly terrifying empty space where the city stood (she made a note to have an official warning put on Nero; just in case) and then re-watching the explosion several times with a small glass of scotch was cathartic beyond reason.
Unfortunately, while the battle ended with victory, it didn't mean her job was over. She had to organize the cleanup, the research into figuring out if Nilbog left behind anything and the communication with the relevant government agencies who after the danger was over showed up demanding an explanation or in some ludicrous cases, credit.
She rebuked with great relish, confident that her win here earned her enough political power to do so. She could barely wait to capitalize on it. Though if history was true to itself, then she would need to kill the Nine, solve world hunger and figure out the Grand Unifying Theory to get even a slight budget increase.
But a woman can dream…
So when all was said and done at the crater formerly known as Ellisburg, she packed up with her tired but content troops and hightailed back to Brockton Bay, half worried it had burned down while she was away.
She came back to a very smug Vista, some weird rumors of Hookwolf, and an immeasurable amount of paperwork. So with a heavy heart, she sat down in her chair (already missing the battlefield) and began a new fight, one where she wished she had more of Nero's work.
Her job was made even harder when soon after the battle ended, somebody leaked her connection to the city, and the journalist began to siege her door even harder, despite her promising an all-day-long press conference.
She was pretty sure it was somebody in the PRT that leaked it because the PR department pounced on it suspiciously fast. She already heard rumors of posters and her own figurine in the gift shop…
She was about to get into the report about Vista, and something about excessive force, when her door opened and her secretary entered.
"Director, you asked me to remind you an hour before the press conference starts."
"Oh, yes. Thank you."
The secretary nodded, then left, closing the door behind her. She reluctantly put away the document and took out the one prepared for the conference.
She had some reviewing to do…
She walked through the back door of the building, surrounded by countless agents and even Armsmaster even, as she headed for the conference room that the Major loaned them because their biggest one was too small for these many people.
Not even near the actual hall, and she could already hear the murmur of the throngs of people who came. According to the report she got at least several dozen film crews and over two hundred journalists were present, not to mention government officials, security people, and the staff.
She wasn't really looking forward to it. Emily would have rather stayed in her office, and watching once again the explosion, or now that she was capable again, down in the gym trying to get back into shape.
After a few minutes of waiting, a nervous staff member approached them and directed them towards the podium.
She was standing behind a wall, waiting for her cue, when the presenter exclaimed.
"And ladies and gentlemen, the woman you've been waiting for, Director Emily Piggot!"
She fought down a scowl, checked her ensemble once more, then stepped forward…
Date
2011 February 25th - Thursday - Earth Bet Time
Rebecca finished signing the last paper in front of her, then she threw away her pen in disgust while stretching her hands above her head. It didn't really do anything, due to her power, but it still felt nice.
She had been in her office ever since she returned, and she had done nothing but answer calls from increasingly important people, and review and sign documents. While the fight went indeed fine, there were still hundreds of issues she had to deal with.
The people they've left behind in Canberra to help return the evacuated, and look for those that may have suffered some kind of accident during the evacuation process.
The reorganization of the Madison containment zone, while Tagg bleated in the background about unimportant issues.
And so on.
Issues kept coming in while she tried to stay on top of them.
But as of now, she was done for the day, though she expected that as soon as the press conference in Brockton Bay was done, she would get even more calls. But that was tomorrow's Rebecca's problem.
At least she didn't have to be present.
She once more congratulated herself about leaking Piggot's past, thereby pointing the jackals in her direction, then she stood up and went to get her sword that was leaned against the wall. She picked it up, swung it carefully a few times, then walked back to the desk and pushed a button on the phone.
"Esther, make sure nobody bothers me for the next… three hours. I will be on a secure conference call."
"Yes, Director," came the prompt answer from her secretary, while she pushed another button on her desk, and the door locked, while the window shades darkened the room.
After she was satisfied once again with the security, she spoke aloud.
"Door to Cauldron."
She arrived in the usual meeting room, where Doctor Mother was waiting for her, with a technician who was standing next to a small roller table. She immediately placed the sword on it, and the technician without a word wheeled it out of the room.
"How was the fight?"
"Simple. Where is Contessa?"
"Resting."
"Why?"
The older woman motioned for her to take a seat while she did the same.
"She has been run ragged protecting the Battle of Ellisburg."
"From what?"
"Basically everybody. According to her, when the Simurgh broke the pattern, a lot of groups showed up on the Path, but their plans only solidified when the Simurgh descended on Ellisburg. She and Numberman have spent the entire time putting out fires, preventing people from interfering."
Alexandria scowled hearing that, understanding finally why Contessa didn't answer any of her messages.
"Who tried to interfere?"
"Who didn't?" replied in a slightly sarcastic voice the Doctor. "The Nine decided they wanted to cause trouble somewhere that would require people to leave the fight and cause the defense to collapse. The Butcher wanted to get killed by Nilbog and take over the entire thing. The Fallen wanted to protect the city as a holy site, and so on. There were around two dozen groups small and big who wanted that battle to fail, and not all of them parahuman in nature."
"But she took care of them?"
"Yes. I think the last one happened when the explosion went off. Blasto decided he wanted samples. She just called up Accord and told him to stop Blasto."
"That explains a lot," said Alexandria, then retrieved a flash drive from her pocket. "But now we need to talk about Dragon and Lux Arcana."
Date
2011 February 25th - Thursday - Earth Bet Time
Taylor sat in their living room, stuffing herself with greasy burgers that her father made in their super tinker tech kitchen, while she watched dozens of newscasts on mute. Some were showing highlights of the fight; some were showing the press conference with Piggot or another one with the Guild. She was even tuned to an Australian station where a ceremony was held to honor Cardea.
The poor woman looked really uncomfortable, so Taylor reaffirmed her decision to build something cool for her as thanks for her help (not that needed it much).
The central part of the screen, however, was filled with a comedy movie. She took another bite of the greasy goodness that her father magicked up, then checked her phone, then answered the half dozen messages Vicky sent in the last two minutes.
"Taylor, how many more do you want?" yelled Danny from the kitchen.
She took stock of herself and the carnage in front of her before answering. "Two more, Dad!"
"Coming right up!"
She smiled, then returned her attention to the movie.
Date
2011 February 25th - Thursday - Earth Bet Time
Vicky walked into the kitchen, grabbing herself a drink from the fridge, then turned around and floated back towards her room. PHO was almost melting, and she didn't want to miss anything.
Sadly, she was waylaid by her own treacherous mother…
"Is she still sleeping?"
"Yeah, I checked up on her before I came down. I think she took a bathroom break, but she is still out."
"I have to go into the office, but call me if there is a problem," said Carol with a frown.
"Sure, mom!"
They said goodbye to each other, and she returned to her room. She plopped down in front of the computer and began reading the things she missed while sending the funny ones to her friends.
Date
2011 February 25th - Thursday - Earth Bet Time
"Bro…"
"I know, bro…"
"We missed it."
"How could we miss something so epic?"
"Well, we are villains."
"That doesn't matter. That was straight out of D&D. That's our expertise! They should've called us!"
"And we would have done what exactly? Tell them to use a plus three vorpal sword?"
"I could've built something…"
"More than likely that's the reason they didn't call us."
"Ugh, you're such an asshole."
"How about we get a beer and pizza and edit together what Vista did to Hookwolf?"
He let out a long groan while the other man watched him bemusedly.
"Fine! But no anchovies this time!"
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