Got the Grimoire, Chapter 52

Chapter 52

The Thinker before me gave an innocent smile that I knew hid a cackling fiend. As much as I loved her, Lisa could be such a little chaos gremlin at times. Meanwhile, Taylor looked embarrassed to be there, clearly out of her element.

“Lisa,” I said with a practiced smile. I swear, my eye wasn’t on the verge of twitching. “You didn’t tell me you were bringing a guest.” I turned my eyes onto Taylor. “Hi, nice to meet you, miss…?”

Taylor, bless her soul, took the hint and acted like it was our first meeting. “Taylor Hebert. Um, sorry, Lisa kind of dragged me along, I can leave if-“

Her fumbling ‘introduction’ smacked of all too real hurt feelings and insecurity. I gave Lisa another gimlet eye which was met with a serene grin before addressing Taylor again, host mask falling into place. “No, no, it’s totally fine, you’re more than welcome. I’m Mak, come on in. Shoes off please if you’re fine with it, but they can stay on if that’d make you uncomfortable. You guys hungry?”

I spun to go grab some plates and caught a snippet of conversation as Taylor muttered to Lisa. “Is the shoe thing normal?”

“I dunno, haven’t been here before. Pretty normal thing in Asian households though and he does tend to stay off carpet when he’s wearing shoes…”

I swept back over with a pair of plates balancing utensils. “Dish up whatever you’d like, we’ve got burgers, hot dogs, bratwurst, and tri-tip all good to go and plenty of sides. I’d recommend the baked beans that Mark brought, he’s a pretty damn good cook.”

“The hells a tri-tip?” Lisa wondered out loud.

“Oh you poor uneducated East Coaster,” I grinned. “Really good cut of beef, think the best part of brisket, but without all the fat. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good brisket, but you gotta cook those suckers for almost a whole day to get them nice and tender. Tri-tip is a lot more flexible. West Coast thing,” I explained to Taylor, noting her rather baffled expression. “I grew up in California, only moved out to the Bay like… four, five years ago?”

“If it’s a West Coast thing, how did you get your hands on one?” Taylor asked.

I just winked and left them with their plates while I slipped through the room, gauging everyone’s reactions to Lisa and Taylor. They were all superheroes, most of them combat veterans, so they had all clocked the new arrivals of course. Luckily I’d already warned them that there would be civilians around, so work talk was either kept mostly to a minimum, especially since it wasn’t like New Wave knew all of the Protectorate’s identity, meaning my coworkers actually got to flex their ‘innocent civilian’ disguises. I was sure there were guesses floating around through the minds of New Wave, but despite their public identities, they held great respect for the secret identities of fellow heroes.

Fleur had seen to that.

Feeling just a tad overwhelmed with all the socializing, I found a quieter corner and just sat for a moment. I didn’t have long to myself (the apartment was only so large) before Crystal was seated in the same chair, though the size of said chair made it so that she was half on it and half on my lap. Not that I minded that position overly much.

“Did you seriously invite a couple of civilian teenagers to a party full of capes?” Crystal said quietly into my ear. “And don’t even pretend that your ‘PRT coworkers’ aren’t the Protectorate. My dad and brother might buy it, but I’m not that dumb.”

“I owed the blonde a favor,” I said back in a low voice.

“How do you even know her? Is my dear boyfriend aiming to leave me for a younger model already?” Crystal teased. “Way to make a girl feel old.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m already like six years older than you and that occasionally makes me feel ick with myself. No, Lisa is-“

“I’m his younger sister.” I felt an arm wrap over and across my chest and a chin rest on the shoulder opposite of Crystal. “Hi, I’m Lisa! You must be Crystal. Mak literally never shuts up about you.”

Y’know having two blondes hanging off me like this might have once been the stuff of dreams. Now I just feel like I’m in danger.

That is because you have some sense of self preservation, my young friend.

Crystal smiled as she studied Lisa for a moment. “Yeah, he’s mentioned you too. Funny, you two don’t look related at all.”

“Only half siblings,” Lisa ‘explained’. “Our dad hooked up with my mom at a wild Vegas party. Neither was being particularly careful if you catch my drift. Truth be told, we didn’t even know each other existed until I moved to the Bay.”

“How did you two meet then?” Crystal asked curiously. “Let alone figure out you were related?”

“Oh, just randomly ran into each other at a coffee shop,” Lisa said. “Got to talking about parents, shared names, cross referenced some dates and realized what was up. Funny how life works sometimes.”

Ah, sprinkling lies with truth, a classic. Also not something to lie about when there was a biokinetic only feet away that could tell if Lisa was being truthful and could also verify that we shared zero DNA.

My nightmare scenario of seeing Lisa get dragged into prison as a villain or get press-ganged into the Wards flashed through my mind. She must have seen it in my body language or something, because she just grinned wider for a moment and squeezed lightly with the arm she still had draped over me.

Crystal meanwhile was trying to hold in a laugh. “So, pray tell, what were you doing talking to a random- sixteen?” “I’ll be seventeen this year.” “-Almost seventeen year-old girl?”

There’s not good answer to this question, is there?

You dug this pit of half truths and lies yourself, my host. Now you must look the fool and pervert.

I was saved from that fate when Lisa giggled. “You got it backwards. I approached him actually.”

Crystal raised an eyebrow, eyes still alight with mischief and mirth. “Really now? You got a thing for older guys?”

“Nah, he just looked so sad and lonely,” Lisa said with what sounded like total honesty. “I felt like the least I could do was sit and strike up a conversation. I’d say it was one of my better decisions in life.”

The mirth faded slightly, but Crystal’s smile remained warm. “I’m glad you ran into each other then. Sometimes luck just works out like that.” She glanced around suddenly paled. “Oh God, that’s like Mom’s third glass of wine. I’ll be right back.”

As she glided across the room to stop Lady Photon from doing anything too strange, I turned my attention to Lisa, who shifted herself around so that she was leaning against one arm of my chair rather than embracing me from behind.

“Well, glad she bought it,” she said cheerfully. “The best lies have a grain of truth to them anyway.”

“Did you really mean that?” I asked softly. “About when we first met.”

She glanced away. “…Yeah. My power threw a lot of junk my way, which is where the accusation of being one of Coil’s men came from, but I first approached you because you were practically screaming at my trigger. You were on the verge of doing something stupid, really stupid.”

“Not the verge.” She froze, eyes widening as she looked at me. “I’d taken a large dose of pills and booze the night before. Got powers instead. Crystal thinks I triggered while being assaulted by Empire goons, but the truth is that I’d gained powers that morning, they just took time to kick in.”

“You aren’t planning on doing a repeat, are you?” She kept her tone light, but I could hear the tension beneath the words.

“Of course not. I’ve got way more to live for these days.” I smiled in what I hoped was a reassuring manner. “Seriously, no more misadventures in attempting to unalive myself, I swear.”

“You use the weirdest slang sometimes.” Suddenly Lisa’s attention snapped to across the room. “Excuse me, I see a poacher approaching,” she said with icy calm.

She stalked off and I traced her path, finally noticing that Victoria had cornered Taylor and was talking rather animatedly. That brought a smile to my face. Taylor needed more friends. I knew Lisa wasn’t Vicky’s biggest fan though, so I couldn’t help but feel a smidgen of worry.

…Ah, they’ll all be fine, they’re good gals.

Isn’t one of Glory Girl’s nicknames 'collateral damage'-

One troll on the internet, I don’t think we have to worry about that here in a place full of capes.

So you hope.

Shut up before I shove you back in the mind box.

As you command, my gracious host.

Raziel withdrew and I walked out onto the balcony to grab some air, quickly realizing that I wasn’t alone. Amy stared out across the city with a contemplative look, one hand propping up her chin. I folded my arms and leaned against the railing next to her.

“Penny for your thoughts?” I asked.

She glanced at me with a lazy expression and then gave a slow shrug. “This is the most peaceful the city has been in a while. I haven’t had so much free time since before I even got my powers. And it’s all thanks to you.”

“Nah, not all of it, the PRT and Protectorate have really been-“

“They’ve backed you up and taken care of the smaller stuff, but the big stuff, the changes that matter? Those are all you, just take the compliment.”

“…Thanks.”

“Hm. You know, there was a time that I might have hated you for your powers.”

“What now?” I asked, feeling slightly baffled.

“You have so much power, but you also have my same power or at least, something close. You can heal others, yet you choose to fight instead. For just a minute, I envied your freedom of choice, but resented that you didn’t choose to help the way that I do. Then I realized that you help in so many other ways. You’re a preventive measure, rather than a cure, like me.” Her lips curled into a faint smiled. “And even then, you still find some time to hit the hospitals and take care of the cases that I can’t or don’t prioritize.”

“You said ‘might’, so is that safe to say you don’t hate me?” I teased.

She rolled her eyes and elbowed me roughly. “If you were just another Armsmaster or even another cape like the Triumvirate, then maybe I’d be peeved, but like I said, you’ve actually brought positive change to the Bay.”

“Yeah, I guess I did,” I mused. “Now we’ll just have to keep it that way.”

“The hardest part is done, now it’s maintenance.” She straightened up and stretched. “So, Lisa… Who is she really?”

“My sister.”

“I can read things down to the level of DNA, Mak, I know you two aren’t actually related.”

“And yet, that’s what she is. Thicker is the blood of the covenant than the waters of the womb.” I grinned at her baffled expression and poked her in the side. “Means that the family we choose is stronger than someone that happens to share our DNA. I helped Lisa out of a bad spot and she helped me right back in her own way, so I count her as family.”

“…You are such a sap. How does Crystal put up with you?”

“There’s a reason I keep so much alcohol around my apartment,” I joked.

Amy rolled her eyes. “Whatever. I’m going to go make sure Vicky isn’t doing anything stupid.”

“I didn’t invite Dean, so I’m pretty sure she’s just talking to Lisa and her friend, Taylor.”

She snorted at my innuendo and then paused. “Wait, is that why she looks so familiar? Is she that independent hero that I healed a while back?”

“…Maybe.”

“Her and Lisa just happen to know each other?”

“I might have introduced them. Taylor needed, still needs I guess, friends that she can trust.”

Amy shook her head. “You’re playing with fire, having so many capes in one room.”

“Playing with fire is easy when you’re immune to heat.”

“I meant metaphorically, jackass.” She flipped me the bird and slipped back inside as I laughed into the night air.

After I composed myself, I stepped back inside and listened in on Vicky and Taylor’s conversation. Ever the cautious girl, Taylor had kept herself reserved up until that point, but apparently Victoria had unleashed her inner cape nerd and Taylor’s had responded with equal vigor.

“…I’m telling you, raw power trumps versatility,” Vicky said with a wave of her soda can. “Alexandria could totally kick Eidolon’s butt if she speed blitzed him.”

“Eidolon’s whole thing is that not only does he have basically every power, but they’re all strong, too!” Taylor argued back. “Cape fights aren’t always just a matter of who’s stronger, but rock-paper-scissor match-ups. If you can carry all three at once…”

“What about the Endbringers then?” Vicky countered. “They’re powers are pretty simple, but they’ve all got massive scale, not to mention their innate Brute ratings.”

“Those things barely count,” Taylor said with mild exasperation. “They break the mold of basically every other parahuman encountered, not to mention that there are several occasions where Eidolon has been key to driving them off.”

I paused at the reminder of the Trump. I made a mental note to check in on him and see if he’d managed to get his Shard under control. I was sure that I was strong enough to deal with them now, but the extra firepower might come in handy fighting the big golden one himself.

I sauntered over to where Lisa was leaned up against a wall nearby, listening, but not interjecting, smiling softly in Taylor’s direction.

“Fun show?” I asked quietly.

“Oh it’s hilarious watching two nerds debate,” Lisa confirmed. “Its good to see Tay making more friends. A minute ago they were debating Eidolon versus Magus.”

“Yeah?”

“Both agree that it would be a tough battle, but Taylor thinks Magus would pull out the win by virtue of his wider ranger of abilities, while Glory Ho- Ah, Vicky thinks that Eidolon’s experience would give him the edge.” She glanced at me. “Any thoughts?”

Hm, well Eidolon does have a lot of power and versatility, but so do I, probably even more so when using my Vestments. But then again if he pulled out the Endbringers… That’s assuming he can even control them at this point.

“Nah, I’d win.”

Lisa failed to understand the reference and I was forced to curse Leviathan once again. The death of manga and anime culture on Earth-Bet was a true travesty.

You are a massive ‘geek’ as they say, my host.

Let me mourn my beloved fandom in peace, insolent angel.

Ah yes, a mere human sorcerer referring to a son of the Most High as ‘insolent’. Truer words have never been spoken.

Quit it with the sarcasm.

Ethan sidled up next to me and led me away with an arm around the shoulders. “C’mon Mak, have a beer with me and Mark, I want your take on something.”

I rolled my eyes and followed my teammate, casting one last glance back over to the teens. It looked like they were getting along just fine and that made the entire party worth all the prep time. Seeing friends getting along with each other never got old.

“So, we were discussing how thanks to the Protectorate-“

“Mostly Magus,” Mark interrupted.

“Who is part of the Protectorate I believe, unless I read the website wrong?”

“No, no, go ahead,” Mark conceded.

“Anyway, now that the gangs are gone or crippled, how would you handle the power vacuum? Mark was bringing up a good point that we might be looking at an invasion by the Teeth or Elite if our brave heroes aren’t careful.”

“Overwhelming response. Just don’t let them in, come down on any attempts to get back into the Bay with all the power they can muster,” I suggested. “Cast a wide net to keep out the big players. Smaller criminals might filter in to fill the market, leading to a great deal of smaller criminal operations, but such operations can be shut down much easier than an entrenched opponent like the gangs. Then in the meantime, invest in the city, improve it, make it so that crime really doesn’t pay and hope that the market for illegal enterprises slowly dies off.”

“And what if some real big name shows up? Like The Butcher or Bastard Son?” Mark challenged. “Someone that can’t just be driven away as easily as some regular thugs?” I opened my mouth to reply. “And don’t just say Magus will take care of it, he can’t be everywhere at once.”

“The Protectorate will handle it. You guys, New Wave, will handle it. Both teams have been operating on the back foot for too long. I’m sure that with the home field advantage, you can keep them out.”

“See, faith in the brave men and women of the PRT,” Ethan said, slapping my back fondly. “That must be why they hired you.”

“Well that and ethnic quotas. I swear, I’m the only Asian guy in the office,” I said only somewhat jokingly.

I did another sweep of the room and paused as I spotted Mimi handing something to Eric and then to Amy. I narrowed my eyes and sharpened my vision with a bit of magecraft.

Oh son of a…

I got up and went to go stop my roommate from giving cigarettes to minors. I hated being the responsible adult sometimes.

***

The party continued for a while, but seeing as everyone had rather busy lives and some had work the next day, they slowly began to filter out in ones and twos. First the Protectorate, mostly in order of their arrival, then the Dallons, followed by the Pelhams.

“We’re staying the night by the way,” Lisa said once the last of my other guests had vacated. She had already dumped a change of clothes out onto the couch from where they’d somehow been stored in her purse. “I know you got a guest room for a reason.”

“That’s not cool to just expect him to let us stay, Lisa,” Taylor said with a frown.

“Oh c’mon, you think Mak is the kind of guy to make a couple of teenage girls walk all the way back home at night in Brockton Bay?” Lisa said, turning mock puppy dog eyes in my direction. I rolled my eyes, which she took for permission as she dragged Taylor to the guest room to change clothes.

Mimi perked up from where she was slumped at the counter. “Oh good, they can help us tidy up then. I hate cleaning.”

“You and me both,” I muttered. Then I flicked a finger, assembled a spell in my mind, giving power shape and purpose and released it into the air. I called it my ‘Sorcerer’s Apprentice Special’. Dishes began doing themselves, a broom and vacuum cleaner both came to life, and accumulated dust from shoes that hadn’t been removed flew out the windows. “So why bother at all?”

“I ever tell you that your powers are great?”

“No, but feel free to keep doing so.” I sat next to her with a barely suppressed yawn. I hadn’t had much to drink, but the rush of playing host made me especially tired. “Seems like you got along pretty well with everyone.”

“Oh yeah, they were all super nice,” Mimi said. “Even your boss. He seemed like kind of a hardass, but was pretty chill once he had a beer.”

“Colin is just dedicated to work, but even he needs to let his hair down on occasion.”

“That Ethan guy was cool too.”

“Dude is an absolute bro,” I agreed. “Work would be a hell of a lot more boring without him around.”

I heard the door to the guest bathroom close and then the shower begin running. Taylor walked out in a loose t-shirt and pjs. “Lisa is taking a shower. Got a minute to talk about cape stuff?”

I threw up my customary sound baffle, even if it might not have been necessary. “Yeah, let’s talk shop.” I grinned with a vicious edge. “There’s a new gang trying to snap up territory in the Docks. The Merchants. Druggies and scum. I think Kage, Firestorm, and Arachne might be busy in the coming weeks.”

Their answering grins were just as vicious in their own ways. I brewed some tea and we began to talk shop.

Brockton Bay had just freed itself from the grip of the gangs. I’d be damned if I let another one rise from the ashes.

***

A/N: What do we have here? A post on Saturday night? My new writing strategy already bears fruit. I didn't succeed in meeting my quota every single day, but the days I did certainly added up and allowed me to get this published early. Hope y'all enjoy :)