15

Discretion 2.2

I had more to do this morning. But before I could take any immediate action, I waited for Agate to finish her analysis. How I would proceed would change if the portal function could be used for transportation. Shortly before 8AM, she informed me of the results.

'I've acquired Parallel Dimension Manipulation Protocol, with two modules: Permanent Parallel Dimension Portal and Temporary Parallel Dimension Portal,' she reported.

'So you can make portals that close after a while?'

'Yes, but I don't know how long it would last exactly. It might be anywhere from 30 seconds to several hours. We have to open one and wait to see what happens before I can try to make adjustments.'

'Can the portal be targeted? Can we open a portal to somewhere else on the same dimension?'

'We can target to any place I set a Waypoint, and I can set a Waypoint at any fixed point in space that I go to physically. A fixed point in space is in reference to a major gravity well at least on the scale of a planetoid. But in order to target the same dimension, I would have to open two portals, one into another dimension, then another one back. Right now, the only place in another dimension that I can target specifically is the same place that the Madison portal goes to. On Earth-Bet, I can't target anything yet because I just finished the updated Waypoint system. Otherwise, we can go to random parallel dimensions nearby.'

That was pretty good, all things considered. Even if a portal lasted for several hours, it was still a potentially good tactical tool. The worst case was if every portal would be permanent; that would make the ability far less powerful. With experimentation, we should able to adjust the parameters and reduce the time the portal stayed active as well.

'Also, I can't make portals more than once per minute with my current energy levels,' Agate warned.

'Have you discovered any way to increase Prana recovery?'

'I think the Entities and shards can use mana. Whenever a cape uses a power, I can detect a tiny fluctuation in mana but it disappears almost immediately. If we could get to a shard physically, I might be able to do something. Other than that, I've got nothing. Earth-Bet, and the world the Madison portal leads to are both devoid of mana, and no humans we've met produce any Od, and I don't know how to harvest life force directly.'

Perhaps I should put acquiring a Cauldron vial on higher priority then. Those were technically pieces of Eden's dead body, right?

I wasted no time opening a temporary portal. It was best to start this test as soon as possible. It went to the world that the Madison portal went to, one of Cauldron's worlds that formerly contained a part of their experimental facilities that spanned multiple worlds connected by portals. They had abandoned it after the Simurgh attacked the facility, and the rest of the world was largely uninhabited as well, as far as I could remember. The portal opened directly on the floor underneath the couch but with a smaller surface area, effectively hiding it. It opened up to the atmosphere above looking down on empty flat grasslands.

That done, I left the apartment and went to a nearby abandoned warehouse, while sending off Agate to finding Sophia Hess.

School had just started and students were filing into their homerooms. The police had already arrived and were parked outside. They were staying in their vehicles and hadn't moved out yet. Students were whispering to each about the police vehicles they saw on their way in.

We found Taylor moving along with an apprehensive look on her face, keeping to herself.

Emma was talking to Sophia in the hallway.

"Have you seen Madison? She hasn't responded to my texts all weekend," Emma asked Sophia with a confused voice.

"No. I haven't seen or talked to her since Friday at school," Sophia answered.

"That's weird…think it could have anything to do with the police here?"

"Dunno."

They went on their way shortly after.

Once the students were all settled in, two detectives and three police officers exited their vehicles and moved as one group towards the principal's office after showing their credentials to the secretary.

Agate tracked along with them and I listened in as the detectives began interrogating Blackwell.

"Principal Blackwell, I am Detective Mathers, and my partner here is Detective Moreau. In January, we came by to investigate the incident in which Taylor Hebert was found locked inside of her own locker filled with toxic waste. At the time, no witnesses came forth and we were unable to continue with the investigation. Recently, we have come into new evidence of a long-term bullying campaign targeted at Taylor Hebert which took place on this institution's premises. We have some questions for you, the staff, and a number of students as part of the investigation. These conversations will be recorded. Do you agree to answer our questions?"

"We will of course cooperate. What did you need to know?" Blackwell answered professionally.

Mathers nodded at Moreau.

"Prior to the locker incident in January, did you receive reports or complaints about bullying targeted at Taylor Hebert?" asked Moreau.

"I did receive a few complaints from Ms. Hebert, but there was never any proof of it or other witnesses to support her."

"Did you file any records of such complaints?"

"No, without any evidence I could only treat them as false allegations of an attention-seeker, which is what other students have described her as."

Moreau looked at Mathers.

"Principal Blackwell, you're under arrest for obstruction of justice, criminal negligence, and accessory after the fact to attempted murder. You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future," detective Mathers declared. An officer behind him came up to cuff Blackwell.

"Wh-what? But I haven't done anything wrong! You can't do this!"

"We have a reliable witness who presented proof of the events you claim to have dismissed due to lack of evidence. If you were only doing your job to the best of your ability, you have nothing to worry about. We'll find out soon enough after we talk to the rest of the staff and students. If you do not cooperate, you may be charged with resisting arrest," Moreau answered.

Blackwell was slack-jawed. "I want to talk to my lawyer!"

"You will be provided with access to an attorney before any further questioning."

And so Blackwell was led away by two officers.

After that, the vice-principal was called in, and asked a few questions, before members of staff were interrogated. In the process, the secretary was also arrested, and they were in the midst of interrogating the teachers when I had Agate move back to Sophia Hess.

Sophia Hess felt her PRT-issued phone vibrating in her pocket. She quickly excused herself from the class and went into the girls' washroom. She saw the unknown caller number, but answered anyway.

"Shadow Stalker, this is an emergency. We have reason to believe you're currently being targeted by a powerful new Master in Brockton Bay," the voice on the phone said. It was a male voice, but not one that she recognized.

"Who is this? What are you talking about?"

"One of your friends in your civilian persona, Madison Clements, is suspected to be a Master victim. She has confessed to numerous crimes committed together with you and Emma Barnes. The BBPD are at Winslow as we speak and are likely to be compromised as well. They are preparing to arrest you with almost no evidence, just the word of your friend."

"What the fuck? Is this is a joke?"

Just then she heard the vice-principal's voice over the PA. "Would Sophia Hess and Emma Barnes please come to the principal's office. I repeat, would Sophia Hess and Emma Barnes please come to the principal's office."

She froze.

"I assure you this is no joke. This Master is extraordinarily powerful and is suspected to be responsible for Panacea's disappearance two days ago, the defeat of Lung and Oni Lee, and has compromised large sections of the local PRT and Protectorate."

"Why the fuck are they targeting me?!"

"Evidence suggests that they have a personal vendetta against you in your civilian identity. We believe the Master is Daniel Hebert, father of Taylor Hebert. You should be familiar with these names. Taylor Hebert was named in Ms. Clement's confession as the target of an attempted murder by you and Emma Barnes."

"Attempted murder? Hebert?! Why would I murder that weak little shit?"

On the PA, the vice-principal's voice could be heard again. "Sophia Hess, you are needed in the principal's office immediately. Sophia Hess, you are needed in the principal's office immediately."

The voice on the phone continued, "You must escape from Winslow as soon as possible. Taylor Hebert is also a suspected Master, capable of controlling bugs. She could be tracking you right now."

Sophia's eyes widened and started darting around. Now that the voice mentioned it, there were an unnatural amount of mosquitoes and flies around her. She moved away slowly and the bugs seemed to follow.

"Fuck!" She immediately turned shadow and leapt through the walls of the school, enduring the pain, and dashing madly towards one of her secret stashes.

"Wait, who are you? You never answered me!"

"My name is Thomas Calvert, PRT commander."

"How do I know you're telling the truth? How do I know this isn't some kind of trick?" She asked as she jumped through walls again, through segments that she knew didn't have electrical wiring, to a section of an abandoned building.

"You can look me up in the PRT directory if you want, Thomas Calvert. Look at the latest press releases from the PRT on the capture of Lung and Oni Lee. The disappearance of Panacea is still classified. However, the PRT itself has been compromised so you won't be able to confirm anything with them. Go ahead and try to call director Piggot or Armsmaster. They won't be available no matter what your emergency. Deputy director Renick is now in charge, and has ordered a total lockdown and Master/Stranger protocols for a large number of PRT and Protectorate members, ostensibly as a security review, but I can tell you that if you go in there you aren't coming back out with your mind intact. I noticed the strangeness just as they confiscated my PRT devices and barely escaped. That's why I'm not using my PRT number. I'll call you back in five minutes once you're finished checking everything out," the voice explained calmly. Then he hung up.

Sophia reacted quickly, using her phone to look up Thomas Calvert, who was in the directory listed as a Field Commander. She then checked the PRT press releases and found one published an hour ago announcing the defeat of Lung and Oni Lee by three new independent heroes, Polychromic, Araliac, and Skitter.

"Lung defeated by three new heroes last night? That's fucking bullshit!"

She tried calling Armsmaster, the person in charge of the Wards.

"You have reached Armsmaster. I am not available right now. Please call again later or leave a message after the tone."

She tried calling Piggot. Another voice mail message.

She tried calling Miss Militia, the person usually managing the Wards. Again, a voice mail message.

"What the actual fuck?"

She tried calling the PRT operator.

"Hello, PRT hotline, how can I help you?"

"This is Shadow Stalker, I have an emergency! I need to talk to the director!" She said with urgency in her voice.

"Shadow Stalker? You are confirmed. Unfortunately, director Piggot is not available. I can put you to deputy director Renick," the operator responded.

"What? Why isn't director Piggot available?"

"You are not authorized to know that, Shadow Stalker."

"What about Armsmaster or Miss Militia?"

"They are also unavailable."

"Am I not authorized to know why they aren't available either?"

"That is correct."

Sophia took her phone away from her ear and stared at it incomprehensibly.

"Shadow Stalker? Should I put you through to deputy director Renick?"

She put the phone back to her ear. "Yes, put me through."

After a moment, Renick's voice answered. "Shadow Stalker? You have an emergency?"

"Renick, what the hell is going on?! Where is Piggot and Armsmaster?"

"You're not authorized to know that. What is your emergency, Shadow Stalker?"

"Is it true that there's a dangerous new Master in Brockton Bay, and Panacea's disappeared?"

"Who told you that? That's classified information." Renick asked with a hard tone.

"Thomas Calvert, PRT commander. I got a call from him just now."

"That's impossible. He's been undergoing a security review and he hasn't called anyone."

"But I just talked to him!"

"Whoever you talked to is NOT Thomas Calvert. Shadow Stalker, you need to come in and report everything you know about this imposter, understand? This is a major security breach."

"Fuck! Real fucking convenient! Piggot, Armsmaster, Miss Miltia, not available and I can't be told why. The only guy that actually calls to warn me about the new Master targeting me, you say he's under a security review. You're fucking lying, you just want me to come in so you can lock me up like the rest of them, don't you! You've been fucking Mastered too!"

"What? No, calm down Shadow Stalker! This is the first time I've heard about you being targeted, and nobody's being locked up—"

"Oh yeah? How about you let me talk to Dauntless, or Velocity? Assault and Battery?"

"Velocity and Assault are not available but Dauntless can—"

"You think I'm stupid? Half the Protectorate's been locked up and other half's been Mastered, this is bullshit!" She hung up.

"Fuck, fuck! The hell is going on! Fucking Heberts," she angrily muttered and slammed her fist against a wall.

Her phone vibrated again.

"Shadow Stalker, this is Commander Calvert. I assume you've checked things out?"

"Yeah I did, this is fucked! What do we do?"

"I have been trying to get in touch with the higher ups but the lack of my PRT devices and Renick's false reports have made it impossible to convince them I am the real Thomas Calvert. We are likely alone facing what is potentially an S-class situation. Are you in a secure location? Did you escape from Winslow?"

"Yeah I escaped. I should be safe here."

"Good. If we're going to get out of this situation, we have to attack the problem at the source. I do not know if the rest of the Wards are compromised yet but you are the one most suited for this operation. Are you up for a very dangerous solo blackops mission?"

"I'm not a prey that runs from danger! What do you want me to do?"

"I want you to use your shadow abilities to quietly tail the Master, Daniel Hebert, and look for an opportunity to subdue and capture him so we can force him to release his victims. We suspect that his power works through prolonged exposure to hearing him speak. Be on guard for the bug-controller working with him as well. They likely have a range of several blocks, so if you attack from far their bugs might block your bolts. Can you do this, Shadow Stalker?"

"I got it. I'll take them down, no problem!"