Dragon's Progeny: Chapter 68

Less than a week after my meeting with Director Piggot, our alliance was already bearing fruit. The PRT’s tactics combined with the ABB’s manpower was already making quick work of the lawless elements of the city and restoring order once more, so much so that the difference was easily noticeable from the chaos of just a few short days ago.

Of course our efforts wouldn't have been nearly as effective as they were if our enemies were even slightly more organized than a barely cohesive mob. The Fallen – the Crowley branch at least – were nothing more than a group of thugs trying to take revenge for an ill-perceived slight against their religion, and the less said about the hollow vestiges of the Merchants, the better. What was left of that rancid gang was quickly disappearing as order was restored and the desperation of those susceptible to the vices they pushed vanished into thin air.

The Fallen were a bit more dangerous, but only thanks to their numbers and the confidence inspired by their leader. They had a few capes, enough to pose a problem if they were ever utilized successfully, but they were nothing when compared to the might of the empire that I had already brought low. It wouldn’t take long to drive them out.

Having a government force with actual military tactics at their disposal was a novel experience and I could certainly see why Piggot had managed to keep this city under some semblance of control despite the forces working against her at every turn. That woman was a shark in the nastiest sense. I almost admired her.

With our operations in order and the city slowly calming down, that gave me the opportunity to focus on the most important issue of the moment. There was still a snake in the grass, after all, a rot in the city’s underworld that I would be remiss to let fester any longer. Coil had to go, and he had to go soon.

Which was why I once again found myself in my home, sharing a room with one of the most maliciously cunning capes I had ever met to date. Tattletale’s hatred for her employer burned with a surprising amount of passion. Since we had reached our agreement to do away with the man, she had been working on bringing about his downfall with an incredible amount of dedication and zeal. She had clearly been looking forward to this for a long time.

She clicked the enter key on her laptop with a sense of finality before turning to me, eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep yet carrying a frenzied alertness to them, "Alright, so! Do you want the good news or the bad news first?”

I mulled over the plethora of options that had been given to me. So many choices, how was I to decide between them all?

“I suppose I'll take the good news first.”

Tattletale grinned, turning her laptop around to reveal a screen full of boxes and straight-edged columns, “I managed to get my hands on some blueprints to Coil's base. It wasn't easy; I had to pull in a lot of favors and bribe a bunch of people, but I got it. This should make it a lot easier to plan our assault.”

“That is good news.” I said, eying the plans. They were quite extensive, with annotations made in specific spots, clearly put there after the fact by Tattletale. Possible security cameras, traps, intentional dead ends, and even patrol routes. She had been putting her power to use it seemed.

Still, “These seem… a bit incomplete? What's the bad news?”

“Unfortunately, that is the bad news.” Tattletale sighed, “These blueprints are part of a set. Coil intentionally separated the full plans so that no one person would have a complete set.

Coil must have known there would be traitors in his midst and took efforts to ensure that his enemies wouldn't be able to use them against him. It was a smart tactic, and also very inconvenient for us.

“From what I can tell just from this one piece, we'll definitely need the rest of them if we want to actually plan any sort of assault.” Tattletale continued, “The layout of his base is intentionally confusing. We'd be running into a deathtrap.”

“Can you get the rest of the blueprints?” I asked. 

“Working on it as we speak.” Tattletale grinned, “It'll take a few days but my contacts should pull through. In the meantime, I've also been working on the other Undersiders. Trying to sway them over to our way of things instead of Coil's.”

“And how is that going?”

Tattletale’s smile disappeared as she sighed, “Skitter’s on board but the others… aren't really happy with me right now, or her. Team stuff.” She added on at my curious look, “You'll probably have to help me convince the rest of them, though I use the word ‘convince’ lightly with one of them. Regent will probably do anything as long as he gets paid for putting in minimum effort.”

I pondered her suggestion. To think that just a few short months ago I considered Tattletale and the rest of her team to be my mortal enemies. Their shenanigans were a big part of the reason that my father was no longer with me today, after all. But my eyes had long since been opened to the truth behind his incarceration. With Tattletale’s assistance, the veil had been lifted, exposing the mastermind pulling the strings in my city, and my hatred for him burned far brighter than anything I felt for the gang of petty thieves.

Simply put, at this point, Tattletale's vendetta was as much my own as it was hers.

“I'll speak to them all. If we're going to work together, then I'd rather meet them all face-to-face rather than through you.”

“I'll set something up then.”

“Please do.” I said, before moving on to another topic, one that I hadn't yet had the chance to bring up, “Have you found anything pertaining to Kon?”

My heart sank as Tattletale shook her head, “Not apart from those files I already showed you.”

The files she was referring to were a set of falsified documents she had managed to nab from Coil's tight-knit information network. They were made to appear as official paperwork, meant to authorize the transfer of a prisoner from PRT confinement to another location. Only the location wasn't specified, meaning that said prisoner, Kon, could be literally anywhere.

It was disgusting, the fact that nobody has noticed such a discrepancy in official documents, but I had a feeling that it was Coil's hand at play once again. That man seemed to have the uncanny ability to shift very crucial things in his favor. It was infuriating, especially so now that I was no longer blind to his machinations.

“I see… Please let me know the moment you find something.”

“Sure thing, boss.”

~~~

The halls of Yuko's home were almost silent, an oddity for this time of day but not exactly something Tammi would complain about. She actually preferred the silence compared to the messy crowds she'd been dealing with here recently.

Everyone who was usually here was out on the town, doing their duties or simply away, except for Yuko who was napping in her room. That only added to the silence as anyone who was here was being extremely quiet so as not to incite Tammi's wrath. She knew how little rest her girlfriend actually managed to get these days so every hour was precious.

Tammi would normally be up there with her, or out on patrol or something, but she was already done for the day and if she had to spend another moment working with the twins or the heroes, she was gonna be sick. It was useful to have the extra manpower, but she wasn't sure it was worth dealing with the annoying bickering or sanctimonious preaching all the time.

“Whatever works, I guess.” She muttered as she came across a door just like all the others. Just like them, except for the two armed guards standing on either side of the entrance.

They didn't even look at her as she approached, more than used to seeing her by this point. They knew that she was allowed to be here and they didn't put up any sort of fuss as she walked past them and into the room beyond.

Said room was bare, only slightly less spartan than the ones the twins were put in, with only a bed and desk to keep it company. It's sole inhabitant was laying on the bed, her hair spread out in every direction as she stared at the ceiling despondently. She glanced up as Tammi entered, and her blank expression shifted in anger as she caught sight of the girl.

“You…” She hissed, “Why do you keep showing up here? I already told you I didn't want to see you again.”

“Tough shit. I'm here anyway.” Tammi said as she closed the door behind her.

“Why?”

“Because you're my cousin. Even if you're a huge bitch.” Tammi replied, taking a seat at the desk, “Did you reconsider the offer yet? Or are you still being a stubborn idiot?”

Ophelia sneered, “You're asking again? You must be an idiot if you think that I'd want anything to do with my cousin who betrayed everything our family stood for, just to fuck the woman who killed my husband!”

Tammi twitched at her words and the way she phrased them. She took a deep, calming breath, “Technically, they aren't dead, just statues. They're just sitting pretty in whatever base the PRT hauled them off to.”

“As if that's any better.” Ophelia snarled, “I heard what she did to Max. What she did to Kayden! She ripped his head off and buried her alive! She's an animal!”

Tammi's frown deepened at the name. Kayden wasn't really all that bad, at least considered to most of the people Tammi worked with back in the Empire, but war was war and she still chose to side with Kaiser despite knowing what kind of man he was. She chose her side, no matter what the reason was.

“Yeah, it sucks that she's gone but don't act like they were saints. Besides, it's not like you'd be crying for Yuko's people so don't expect us to cry for yours.”

“They were our people, Tammi!” Ophelia cried, “You were a part of the Empire just like I was but you turned your back on them so easily!”

Tammi shook her head, “It might have looked easy to you but I promise it wasn't. And we both know I was never really much of a member anyway.”

“You disgust me.” Ophelia fell back on the bed, too angry to even look at Tammi anymore, “Someone will come rescue me, you know? Agnes or someone from the Gesellschaft. And they'll probably take care of your girlfriend on the way out.

Tammi snorted, “Is that so? I hate to break it to you, but that shit isn't happening. Agnes disappeared after Leviathan, probably ran back home like a coward. And the Gesellschaft? Come on, they don't care about you. Your power is useful, sure, but you're still just one cape in a failed operation. Kaiser’s dead. The ones who survived Yosei disappeared. You're all alone.”

Her words hit Ophelia hard, she could tell. The girls face got all red and her lip quivered for a moment as if she was about to cry. Maybe she wasn't as delusional as Tammi thought But she still wasn't very smart.

“I guess I'll just stay alone then.” Ophelia said, her voice filled with an unhealthy mix of anger and anguish, “I'm not going to have anything to do with the ABB, or you. As far as I'm concerned, you're dead to me.”

Ophelia probably thought it hurt to hear, but Tammi felt nothing as the girl basically disowned their familial connection, severing the bond that was barely hanging on by a thread in the first place.

She sighed and stood, “Yeah, that's what I thought. I just figured that I'd give you one last shot out of this. Bye, Ophelia. Hope you're happy wherever you end up.”

Her words startled the girl. Ophelia sat up in the bed, watching her back as she walked towards the door, “What are you talking about?”

Tammi paused with her hand on the door, glancing back at the girl who was staring at her warily, “I mean we’re done. You didn't think you were gonna stay locked up here forever, did you?”

A bit of hope entered Ophelia’s face, “So… you're letting me go?”

Tammi looked at her like she was crazy, “What? No, why the hell would we let you go? I said you can't stay locked up here forever. We're just giving to the PRT so they can transfer you out of the city or something. You're not our problem anymore.”

Tammi had to admit, as mean as it was, she found an odd amount of vindication seeing the color drain out of her cousin’s face, “What?” Ophelia asked weakly.

“You’re eating up resources. Three square meals a day worth, actually. Yuko said I could have one last chance to convince you but since you didn't take it, the gravy train’s over.” Tammi grabbed the doorknob, “Some agents will be here to pick you up tonight and then we probably won't ever see each other again.”

Ophelia stared at her, slack-jawed, and Tammi shrugged, “So again, hope you're happy wherever you end up. Bye, Ophelia.”

“Tammi–wait!”

As the door shut behind her, Tammi heard a rushing of footsteps and a heavy thud. The guards jumped, glancing at each other and then her, “Don't worry about it.” She said, walking away as more thuds came from just beyond the door.