*000000*

DANGERDEATHRUN Three cried. Two watched as our blood began to boil inside. Seven struggled against the damage, mending where it could. Fourteen screamed at her impending death, my death, I am fourteen, I am Quarrel.

We cannot let ourselves be taken, One insisted. We must fight.

HateRageMurder, Nine screamed into the mind of the blond that would be our new host, forcing her to keep attacking. Desperate stupid ploy Three cried out. Worked before, Ten insisted, adding its voice to the will of Butcher.

The annoying boy that I couldn't kill charged in, and I focused One's pain aura on him. He vanished, only to appear again. I kept the aura active, if anything the pain only drove my enraged victim to fight that much harder to kill me. The boy couldn't get to me, and somehow he lost his ability to teleport me away from her. I didn't know why. I didn't care in the slightest.

Suddenly an unexpected surge of power lanced out from the girl's weapon. Regeneration impossible! DeathdeathdeathDEATHdeathDeathDEATH.

Seconds later, I was whole again. ShockPainAngerLossRemorseRageHopeShameGlorySuccess.

"Taylor?" a girl's voice spoke. TaylorTAYLOR.

"I... I'm here," I answered. "I'm okay."

"You killed her," another voice. Minerva... her name's Minerva. Lisa. Tattletale. Traitor.

"The Butcher?" I answered sadly. I AM THE BUTCHER! "Yeah... she's dead... how long do you figure I have left?" Yes, tell us how long until fifteen breaks and submits to the will of the whole.

"Not sure," Minerva responded. "The third host managed to hold out for weeks. But there was only two previous hosts, then. You've got seven times that many to deal with. Then there's your powers, which might help you, or it might hurt you. No way to know until we see it."

I looked at Amelia. I focused on my love for her. If anything, anyone, could help me fight this.

Betrayer! Five shouted. The irony, her being the one that got the position by poisoning meherthemFourhim in his sleep, was not lost. The only host that wasn't a parahuman. Five rebelled against the thoughts. You forced me! Used me! Tortured me! Five was always troublesome, able to resist the Butcher better than all the others.

I crumpled to the ground under the conflicting thoughts and the horrific memories of sadistic abuse inflicted upon me. By me. No, her. Him! Four and Five! Not me. I'm not them. I'm not the Butcher. I'm... I'm... HostPreyMonsterPropertyHeroCowardWeaponWeakWarriorBrilliantPatheticPerfectMagnificentVictimTaylor! "I'm Taylor," I spoke aloud. Insistent. Desperate. I was the Butcher. I will be again. I will win this.

Amelia was crying, moving toward me. I took flight. "Don't come closer," I commanded.

"Please, Taylor," Amelia requested. "Let me touch you. I can make you sleep. Keep you unconscious until we find a way to remove the Butcher's influence."

"Won't work," I countered. Grief and certainty of victory warred with equal measure in my mind. "Can't work. It's been tried. If you succeed, it just means you're the new host." The idea of Amelia being trapped in this filled me with grief and joy. Her powers combined with mine-hers-mine-no! It is incomprehensible. It is thrilling. It is the stuff of horror.

Don't fight, I reminded myself. You've been through this before. Accept and push through. I breathed deeply.

"We'll figure out some way," Lisa insisted. "Rapture's technology. Riley's. We have options!"

"STOP TRYING TO CONTROL ME YOU MEDDLESOME BITCH!" I shouted at her. Much of my armor dissolved itself and reformed into a magnificent ebon colored rapier. I paused for a second, smiling as she stepped back. KillherProtectherControlherBreakherSaveher. I looked away and closed my eyes. The voices had a harder time envisioning a goal if I wasn't looking at it. It's the bugs, I realized. They're having trouble distinguishing my senses from the bugs. "Sorry... I'm... that wasn't me."

"Yes it was," Minerva replied, sadly. "Maybe you wouldn't have said it like that. But that was still you."

I called on my swarms and found a target. A lot of targets. My insects poured through sewers, finding and slaughtering rodent populations en masse. I wasn't efficient about it, I didn't want to be. I needed to draw it out. Distracting the minds inside me by inflicting suffering on a target that wasn't human. I was not clean, I was not merciful, and the minds within me were mollified. Or at least distracted temporarily. In the long run, this would probably make their influence stronger. I don't care about the long run.

"You're probably right," I admitted. "I'm sorry. Now I need you to listen to me."

"We're listening," Amelia agreed.

"I know I don't have a lot of room to talk when it comes to trust," I continued. "I've done a lot of soul searching in the last few days. None of that really matters right now, but I want you to know that I'm sorry for everything. I was going to talk to you. Apologize for everything. Talk about maybe renewing the empathic bond. That's... none of it's going to be possible now."

Her eyes were tearing up, but she didn't cry. She was being strongStupidBeautifulCowardTraitorPervertBeloved. I cringed. It was getting worse. I faltered, barely managing to keep aloft. I can't keep them at bay forever. More rodents were sacrificed at the altar of petty sadistic amusement. To my surprise, I was actually running out. How does New York City run out of sewer rats? I allowed my slaughter to make its way into the empty alleyways, away from prying eyes. I had to upgrade the carnage to stray cats and dogs.

"I want you to know I love you," I smiled, painfully. It was hard to focus on tender feelings when I was torturing animals a million at a time.

"I know," she agreed.

"When... when you awaken my copy..."

"Don't talk like that!" she insisted. "We can save you, if you let us."

"Too much risk," I told her. "Like I was saying, you have to trust me on this. When you awaken her. Me. She'll want the empathic bond restored. She won't know why it's missing. I want you to give that to her. Will you do that for me?"

"I..." Amelia looked away. "I don't know that I can."

"Just do what I say you dumb bi-" I bit down on my tongue hard enough to sever it. I spit the chunk of flesh out of my mouth, where of course it was caught in the mask. I wasn't so sure what I thought of the inability to feel pain, right now.

"Sorry," I said through the armor suits that were linked to my mind. I considered it a perverse victory that the voices may have been able to control my body, at least to a degree, but they couldn't control the voices of my power or the actions of my swarm. "It's getting worse by the second."

"It took me two weeks simply to be able to control my power," my physical body muttered, speaking more to myself- both Taylor and Butcher- than to my audience of friends. My words weren't intelligible anyway. The bleeding had stopped and my tongue was growing back, but it hadn't gotten there yet. "I controlled, maybe, a square mile back then. Now... now I control a fucking world. Let me know how long it takes you to do the same."

VAST. All my gates came down, every barrier I'd placed between my power and my mind collapsed. Right now, I was tapped into three cities. Boston, New York, and Brockton Bay. Millions of people. Hundreds of thousands of active voices. More when you added every television and radio. I could handle that. They could not. I felt the twinges and breaking as I discovered I couldn't handle it, either. Thanks to their powers, I was aware of the damage I was doing to my body and my brain. Two, Three and Seven issued their meek warnings that the only reason I hadn't given myself a fatal stroke was thanks to my newly acquired durability and healing.

"Okay," I croaked. "I've bought time. Don't know how much."

"We can still help," Amelia insisted.

"I know you would try," I agreed. I was getting tired. Slow. Winning the war inside me was impossible. "I don't want you to. Butcher dies today. That price is worth the last week of my life. I can't say I enjoyed it much, anyway. Just promise me you won't let my copy suffer for the things I've done. Treat her well. And don't listen when other people try to say what is right for us from now on, okay?"

She closed her eyes, fighting the tears. "I promise."

"Thanks," I didn't bother smiling. She wouldn't be able to see it through my mask, or all the blood. "I love you."

"Love you, too," she sobbed.

I didn't look at Lisa. I didn't want to give her any more clues than this last one would provide. It had been hard enough getting this far. I brushed my hand over the weapon I'd extracted from Zach's kamikaze Raptor. I crushed its containment system.

===============

A/N- If you were hoping for a 'satisfying' conclusion to their breakup... well, too bad. Life doesn't work that way. I won't disrespect the story like that. :p

Last edited: Apr 1, 2015

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Amelia, Ch 161- Taylor

I woke up slowly. Strange, this isn't my room. I couldn't move, so I must still be sleeping. It was peaceful, quiet. Quieter than I could ever remember it being. I was floating in emptiness. No... no terrain? No bugs. No Amelia! My eyes snapped open, and I tried desperately to sit up. I was in a room I didn't recognize, even if it was clearly in the Yggdrasil. Amelia, Lisa, Emma and Riley were all there watching me. I could feel Amelia's power throughout my body.

"What happened?!" I exclaimed, trying to move. I couldn't. I wasn't merely restrained, my body was paralyzed. I was reminded of Leviathan, and the hospital after. I wasn't alone this time, but I was still frozen. It was easier not to panic than I would have expected, but

"It's a bit of a story," Lisa smiled warily. "Let's start with the last thing you remember, if you please."

I took a slow breath. Amelia and I talking. Emma's apology. The transfer tech's true nature. "I'm the backup copy, aren't I." It wasn't a question. There wasn't any other kind of logical conclusion here. "Guess that's not much of a surprise. What's the date?"

"August twenty eight," Emma informed me. Everyone else seemed too busy staring at me to answer any questions.

"Really?" I probably would have sounded more shocked if I wasn't completely locked down. "I didn't last very long, did I?" The false bravado was not likely to fool anyone in this room, but it was easier than thinking about this in a serious manner. Huh, wonder if this is what Zach feels like all the god damn time. No wonder he acts like such a dumbass sometimes. "So... what happened? I'm guessing it wasn't an Endbringer. Did one of those would be assassins manage to get me?"

"You don't remember that we were going to fight the Butcher?" Lisa asked.

"Ah," that did explain it. "I killed her, didn't I?"

"You did," Lisa confirmed. "We did a lot of damage and she was trying to force Crystal to kill her. Probably would have succeeded, too, but you used the system override and finished the job. Taking 'credit' for the kill, so to speak."

"Guess that explains the paralysis," I replied. "And the attention. You're making sure Butcher didn't come back with me."

"Something like that," Lisa agreed. "Now stop dodging the question. Why is your last memory from a week ago?

I frowned. It went badly, didn't it? "Can I talk to Amelia?" I asked.

"Not yet," Lisa insisted. "We're still running our tests. Asking questions, making sure there's nothing that went wrong. We have to keep Amelia away from you just in case Butcher manifests itself. The rest of us are only here in changeling form, but we need her present to control the facility and keep you under control. You can talk to your lover after we're done with all the tests."

Lover? My stomach would have clenched if it could actually respond to my thoughts. Maybe things did work out. But then why wouldn't I update myself... Or, well, I guess the question is really why wouldn't she have updated... uh... me? Future me?

"I thought so," Lisa answered. And I would have slapped her if I could. She probably figured it out before they ever woke me up. Okay, prior self, how badly did you fuck things up? Scale of one to ten?

"Emma, Riley, would you mind leaving so we can have a private conversation?" Lisa asked the other two girls. Oh, that's at least a nine. I watched as the pair retreated without any objection. Nine and a half. Lisa turned toward me and smiled an ever so saccharine grin. Ten, definitely ten. "So, why don't you tell me how long you've been planning to kill yourself to get out of your mistakes?"

Oh, fuck you, me. "I... don't think that I was?" I answered. "Wouldn't your power be able to figure it out?" Seriously, Taylor, what the fuck is wrong with you? Me? I'm going to need therapy for this, aren't I? I might need it just from trying to figure out the pronouns.

"Taylor," she sighed, sitting down on one of the chairs jutting out of the floor. "If there's anything I've learned from you in the time we've known each other. It's that you're incredibly good at finding ways to jam my powers. Moreso thanks to that whole 'Taylia' thing."

"Speaking of which, why isn't that working?" I asked. "I can't sense anything at all. I've never been completely blinded since I've had my powers."

"We sorta started the Exodus project a bit ahead of schedule," Lisa answered. "This is another dead world. Near as we can figure, life never happened here in the first place. If your stupid ploy to remove the Butcher actually works, then we will end up bequeathing this planet to Dragon using a cute little bylaw in the international Endbringer treaties about weapons research and some crap about space exploitation that was written, badly, in the sixties."

"Well, that's good news," I agreed. "So, what would have happened if it carried over and I was still the Butcher?"

"What makes you so sure you're not?" she asked. "What will happen, if you still have those powers... well, here's some facts. Somewhere in this dimension, possibly at the bottom of the ocean or in high orbit, is a gateway the size of a human eye. The only other way in is through shunting tech. If you're still the Butcher, we abandon this world and have Labyrinth change the portal destination. The atmosphere outside of this underground building is unlivable. It could take a century for the Yggdrasil to change that on its own."

"So basically, a prison that makes the Birdcage look fun?"

"Are you saying you wouldn't just open the door and walk out to die again?"

I blinked. Again, I chewed over the word. It didn't sit with me. I might do just that, just to ensure the Butcher was disabled. "That... I didn't do that," I muttered, looking at the ceiling. I really didn't have many other places to point my eyes, after all. "From my perspective it's a week ago. Amelia and I just got done making some kind of pseudo-reconciliations with our past bugbears, and I decided..." I froze. Does she know? That's kinda private, even for me to share with Lisa.

"You decided to make yourself attracted to Amelia," Lisa finished for me.

"Guess I'm not surprised that you know," I closed my eyes. "She did that, after the backup... after I was made. If it didn't work out, then this... I don't have that trait. I decided on that being the first legitimate difference between us. "

"You did plan to kill yourself," Lisa accused.

"No!" I insisted. "No. I just... accepted the odds. We live dangerous lives, and we're not immortal." What the fuck did that other me do? "You know what happened better than I do right now. Did she change so much in just a week? Do you believe she was attempting suicide?"

Lisa just looked at me, studying my mostly numb face. I had to wonder how much body language one could read from 'paralyzed and wrapped in a living blanket'. "No, I guess not," Lisa answered. "Okay, she's cleared. You're safe to come out now."

I felt Amelia's power let go, and I had control of my body again. I moved my arms for... well, the first time ever. It was difficult. Coordination was built into the brain, not the muscles. Contrary to what people sometimes believed about 'muscle memory'. I knew how to use my body, but that was just the thing. I knew how to use my body. And this body I was in now wasn't really mine. The inside of my mouth felt funny because my teeth weren't quite in the same alignment. Calluses weren't there. I was willing to bet my fingerprints were different. Everything was just close enough to feel familiar, without being close enough to be familiar.

"This is going to take a little time to get used to." I said as I slowly worked myself to a sitting position. I decided to wait a little while before attempting to walk. At least they included some kind of clothing, I noted. I guess it doesn't really matter. Semi-public nudity is better than being dead, but I was glad for the outfit nonetheless.

The wall opened and Amelia stepped through. "Hi," she said. She was nervous. Shy, even.

I, on the other hand, was just glad to see my best friend. "Hello," I answered. "I'd get up, but I'm still getting used to moving around. How long until that wears off, by the way?" Dammit, Taylor, why are you being so awkward? I asked myself. Oh, right, because something bad happened and all I know is that they're not telling me.

"Riley says an hour or two," Amelia smiled cautiously, walking toward me slowly. "Are you upset that I had to imprison you like that? Or that I was spying on your conversation with Lisa? I'm sorry if it was a unpleasant. I tried to make it as comfortable as possible.."

"No," I answered. "I mean, I'd really prefer not to make a habit of it. Being paralyzed like that isn't fun. But I get why you did it. It was the right decision. I'd have recommended the exact same thing, if it were someone else who got possessed."

"Good," she managed to move next to the bed I was sitting on. "I was worried it might bring back some ugly memories. I also might have mixed in a little mood stabilizing to keep you from getting too upset. That should wear off soon."

"It's fine," I repeated. "Special circumstances. You've stopped doing it now, right?"

"Yes," she confirmed. "You're not mad?" Seriously, what the ever loving FUCK did other-me do? I was beginning to be glad that she was dead.

"Not at all," I insisted in the most reassuring tone I could, as I reached out shakily and brushed my fingers across her hand. She tensed, and I pretended not to notice even though there was no way I could hide that from her while we were in contact. She pretended that I succeeded in hiding what I'd noticed. It wasn't the ideal reaction, but it was enough for us, for now. "We're partners," I insisted, pushing the emotion. We didn't have the link active, clearly for good reason, but she could see my every emotion through her power, since we were in contact. "I trust you."

She hugged herself tight against me and started crying. I wrapped my arms around her as I felt the flicker of awareness blossoming. One point of knowledge when I was used to a world's worth of constant information. And yet, somehow, that one spark meant more all of the rest combined.

ReliefJoy.

========

A/N- Yay! Happy feelings. Err. Just don't think about it too hard.

Also: THIS chapter. Remember the whole "twilight zone" thing talked about during the Emma arc? Hehe. Foreshadowed so hard.

Last edited: Apr 1, 2015

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#185

Amelia, Ch 162

"Just promise me you won't let my copy suffer for the things I've done. Treat her well. And don't listen when other people try to say what is right for us from now on, okay?"

I fought back the tears. She means Lisa. "I promise."

"Thanks," Taylor said through the armor. It didn't carry vocal inflections, which I knew meant she was struggling to control it at all. She was normally very good at making her override sound convincingly normal. I could only imagine how hard she must have been fighting. "I love you."

"Love you, too," I sobbed, looking up at her hovering in the air. She reached her hand into the pack she kept with her, and a half second later she was concealed in ice and plummeting to the ground, trailing steam and smoke.

One of the ice weapons that Emma had designed, I realized, even as I focused my power into the Yggdrasil. I pulled the mass back, while forcing it to spew as much fluid into the hole as possible. I had only seconds, however. Not nearly enough time to create a pool deep enough. She collided hard enough to shatter. Explosively, thanks to the insanely cold temperatures of the ice exposed to the much warmer Yggdrasil. Liquid nitrogen and oxygen splashed across the Yggdrasil.

I just stood there, stunned. She's dead, I struggled to comprehend what that meant. So many things I should have said. Not just now, but before. Things I would never have a chance to say. Unless.

"Call Coil," I commanded Lisa. "Undo this."

She didn't say anything, she simply pulled out her phone and pressed a few buttons. Then she stood there watching the screen.

"Did you know she was going to do this?" I demanded to know.

"No," Lisa answered coldly. "I didn't."

"How the fuck did she sneak something like that past your power?" I may have phrased it as a question, but it was an accusation. "She had a god damn Tinker suicide bomb in her purse! How could you miss something like that?"

"Because of your god damn link!" Lisa yelled back.

I glared. "Explain."

"I can't read Taylia!" she exclaimed. "No one can! I've paid other Thinkers while pretending to be someone trying to spy on Pantheon, just to see how it pans out. It's laughable how wrong they are. Dinah comes closest, and her predictions lose accuracy in a matter of days at best. I'm pretty much convinced that even Coil's power doesn't actually work on you, but there's no fucking way to confirm or deny that because Schrodinger's Snake takes its secrets to the grave with it. And since my power doesn't work on you, either, all the stuff I hear from Coil that sounds wrong to my power might be because I don't understand you."

"Taylia hasn't been around for a week," I reminded her, bitterly. My one source of happiness in this world, and I gave it up because I thought it was hurting Taylor. Then I lose her anyway. I ruin lives no matter what I do.

"Hasn't it?" she sighed. "Yeah, you don't have the link active, but you're already hard to predict thanks to your 'third trigger', and Taylor can offload so much of her mind and personality into her swarm that if she wants to block me out, then the only thing my power tells me is that she's deliberately blocking me out. Something she started doing the moment you two broke up, and hadn't stopped doing since. A talent she only got better at thanks to her practice with Taylia."

I didn't say anything. I knew our link was, functionally, a Taboo unto itself. We all did, of course. I just hadn't realized that it was as effective as that. Lisa hadn't told me that we'd blinded her power. I suppose it's no surprise she'd keep that weakness to herself.

"Both of you have been fucking around with your Passengers so hard that I..." Lisa paused, searching for words. "I was finally just barely starting to understand 'Taylia' enough to work around it and predict its influence. And even that was patchwork at best. Then you go and surprise me by turning off the fucking bond!"

"You wanted us to do that from fucking beginning!" I yelled back. "Don't blame me when you get what you want!"

"Did I get what I wanted?" Lisa asked. "Taylor just said she was planning to ask you to restore the link, and I don't need my power to know you'd jump on that like the lovestarved puppy that you are. We also know that Taylor's copy never lost the link in the first place. Then there's her really flashy self sacrifice suicide ploy, complete with dying wish. There's no fucking way your bond won't be up and running the minute she wakes up. You can't give it up, and neither can she."

I broke eye contact, looking back over at the ice fog pouring from Taylor's remains. "I don't know," I admitted. "Taylor's dead. I don't know if I can look at her replacement and have the same feelings. That I'll be able to look at the copy and see her as the same as the original."

"You will," Lisa sighed miserably. "You can't help yourself, and if you do, somehow, resist the impulse... well, Taylor will find a way to make that the only option in the long run. It's easiest just to let you both have your way. I failed, the damage I hoped to prevent has already happened. Heads you win, tails I lose."

"Does that mean you'll tell me the real problem you had with our link in the first place?"

She paused. I had to wonder if she was thinking about it, or looking for a way to change the subject. Probably the latter, and fate conspired to help her as her cell blipped at her. She looked at it. "Fuck," she muttered. "We have to keep this timeline."

No! I cried out internally. "No," I gasped, trying to force the word to be an order.

"It looks like Butcher managed to transfer to Crystal in that one," Lisa continued. "She's still fighting, and it's tearing Boston to pieces."

"God damn it," I whimpered. Choosing between Taylor and Crystal. Plus however many civilians are dying in the battle. Butcher "only" managed to kill one person, here. Two, including Taylor. Radiant could kill a city block every three minutes.

"We can't keep that timeline," Lisa consoled.

"What about the other teams?" I asked, grasping at straws. "Did anything go wrong in those missions?" Lisa is right, as it stands we can't allow something like Radiant into enemy hands. It was an anti-Endbringer artillery platform with so many features I couldn't begin to imagine the damage it could do if someone really wanted to go all out with it. Combined with Butcher's powers... the Triumvirate might not be enough to stop it.

"Okay," Lisa replied, her voice showing no signs of hope. "Hecate, status report?"

"We're golden," Emma answered. "Scry's intel is awesome, and Assault and Battery's combat systems are working better than anticipated. If we get the time, I'd really like to see if I can upgrade them to named suits. The normals are basically mopped up, and there's this breaker that is made out of water being a pain in the behind." Behind? I wondered. Emma's probably spending too much time around Riley. "He can't do much, but he's really durable. We're having trouble hitting him hard enough to hurt him, without accidentally killing him. And frankly, I think our combat team is showboating a bit. Other than that, there's nothing to worry about."

"Thanks," Lisa answered. "Tell them that the other missions are almost done, and they're going to be last if they don't hurry up." Lisa switch communications without waiting for Emma to respond. "Aceso, status report?"

"Not good," Riley answered. Riley, not Clarice, that's bad. I realized then how happy I was to hear it was bad news. "We found Haze." Oh, he's one of the bad ones. "His powers are a lot stronger than anything our intel suggested. Missy's been injured. I've stabilized her, but even with healing, she won't be able to contribute for the rest of the battle. Clarice has been destroyed. Theo's declared the mission a failure and is running a rescue mission to pull Adamant out of the battlefield."

"Understood," Lisa answered. She looked over at me. "Both those missions went well in the other timeline. But..." she didn't finish the sentence. She didn't have to, I knew what she was saying.

"You said Coil's power doesn't work right on us, didn't you?" I begged. "You don't know..."

"We know enough," Lisa said softly. "Butcher going to Taylor instead of Crystal was probably as much luck as it was anything else. A moment of hesitation might have been all it took for Taylor to be too late. Even if we don't know that Coil's right, that means it's just as likely that Taylor did the same thing in that reality as she did in this one. She was counting on this, you know. Taylor gets what she wants, no matter what it takes."

I smiled sadly. "She really does, doesn't she?" Warm tears came to my eyes. One of the things I loved most about her. One of the things I hated most as well. "It's still my command to give, isn't it?"

Lisa didn't say anything, she knew that I already knew that. That amount of lives lost was not an option.

I spent several minutes watching the fog cloud slowly dissipating. There wouldn't even be enough identifiable material to call what we buried a body. Damn you, Taylor. "Tell Coil we're keeping this timeline."

=====================

A/N- Not a lot to comment on with this one.

Last edited: Apr 1, 2015

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Amelia, Ch 163- Lisa

"Tell Coil we're keeping this timeline," Amelia managed to choke out. I was almost tempted to hug her. To apologize for my failure to see this coming. How did I miss something so important? Taylor hid behaviors, power forced to rely upon models instead of indicators. Models inaccurate due to influence of Taylia on personality corrupting the behavior. Greater personality regression than anticipated. Impossible to predict. I tried to take solace in the knowledge that I couldn't do anything, but if anything it only made me feel worse.

I called Coil. Or, more properly, I called the line where the Directors were waiting for news. Calvert was amongst them, at the Boston site, alongside the various political leaders and whatnot. Both cities would have speeches and press conferences and all that stuff ready for the evening news. They probably wrote everything days ago, right after I contacted them.

"Minerva here," I said over the phone to their teleconferences. "Primary mission successful. Butcher has been successfully removed to classified location. All parahuman resistance at Boston site has been eliminated. You're clear to move in. Be prepared for the possibility of nonpowered resistance. Secondary New York missions are still ongoing."

There was cheering in the background. It was Butcher that was the biggest problem. The rest of the gang would be demoralized and likely fairly easy to break up and take down in smaller missions over the course of the next few days, if they were't beaten immediately. I would also need to consult Accord about the missions his Ambassadors were sent on. Lowest risk missions, mopping up drug and prostitution rings. But, ultimately, even if everything else was a failure, they'd call this mission a success.

How New York's location went wrong, I wasn't terribly surprised. We had been torn on that one. It was the worst odds, with only a 75% chance of success. Still no risk of any permanent harm to our team. Or at least that's what Dinah had said. She also said we'd get out of this one without losing anyone. Power works by sampling possible futures. Power works based upon her mental imagery. Cannot parse something she doesn't personally comprehend. Needs concepts or faces to perceive events related to them. Dinah would have no means to realize clones even existed. Perception does not view clones as different people.

I cringed. Well, that's one mystery down.

....

"Okay, first is how we divide our teams," I told the gathered forces of Pantheon. "We have a very narrow margin of time for this mission, Dinah's models place our best odds at Friday, between 4 and 4:30. After that, they plummet down to the levels they were last week. We may never get another shot at this. Amelia, you're going to be on the anti-Butcher team. To provide additional ordinance if Taylor runs out during the battle and to keep Butcher thoroughly unconscious once she's disabled. There's no sense in having both our healers at the same location, so Aceso is assigned to New York."

"Makes sense," Taylor agreed. "I'll be going to Boston as well." Concerned for Amelia's safety. Asserting position before argument can be made to countermand it. Wants to be part of the main mission. "Naturally my power means I'll be providing command support in both locations, but Butcher is a dangerous opponent... you won't be able to rely on me once I've engaged her."

"All the Moirai are going to New York," I continued. Lily is frustrated at the lack of influence, similar to Taylor, wants to be on important mission, views secondary mission as 'beneath her'. Already resentful due to a lack of being consulted beforehand. "We can't risk our precog-disruption suits potentially interfering with Dinah's predictions. Not with such high likelyhood of success. And I think we can all agree that the further away from Atropos that the Butcher remains, the safer the whole world will feel."

Sabah looked over to Lily, rightfully worried, and wrapped her arm around her girlfriend. Everyone else was no doubt running the same thoughts through their head. The Butcher. In Azrael. There were no words for how terrifying that was. It partially mollified the pair, at least. "Lily, you know New York better than any of us, you'll be a team leader, probably with the Adepts, if you're okay with that."

"I can handle that," Lily agreed. Happy with decision, glad to be in a position of trust. Still dislikes being part of a secondary goal, but properly intimidated by the prospect of becoming host to Butcher. This wasn't going to be a permanent solution, of course, but it was a good patch for now. Hopefully it would allow Lily to feel less like an outsider.

"Zach's respawning power and the new teleportation tech is integral to locking the Butcher down long enough to defeat her," I continued. "And Crystal's the only heavy hitter we have that can be relied upon to disable the Butcher without accidentally inheriting her powers." No arguments from that part of the plan.

"Theo, you'll go to New York," I continued. That made him and Missy very happy. "Your durability won't mean anything to Butcher's powers. Your powers will be put to better use against the Teeth's heavy hitters in that area."

"Emma... you and I are the wildcards," I continued. "You could be an asset to the Butcher team, looking for tells in her power and giving Amelia ideas. So could I, in a similar but different manner. I'll have to consult with Dinah about which gives the best odds. Either way, be prepared to listen in, even if you're in the New York team. So I'll need you at all detailed mission planning for both teams." That wasn't true. Coil's split timelines would let us use both plans simultaneously.

"I can do that," Emma agreed eagerly. Still desperate to please, feels guilty over her indirect part in Amelia and Taylor's breakup. Insecure and worried about being blamed. Worried that she may be legitimately responsible, hopes to find a way to fix the problem.

"Now, Chariot, I'd like you to work with Accord's team..." I continued.

....

I made the difference, I realized. I was there. Probably because I alerted Taylor to Butcher attempting to compel Crystal into murdering her. Taylor must not have realized the danger in time, in the other timeline.

I called Riley. "Are you free to talk?" I asked. "When you are, I need a full mission briefing."

"Yes," she answered. "Haze isn't an illusionist. His power is similar to Labyrinth. They're mostly immaterial, but still fully 'there' according to all of Clarice's senses. They even interfered with Adamant, who we had expected to also be immune. It'll be in my report to the PRT, along with a recommendation to raise him from a six to an eight."

I sighed. There wasn't anything my power would tell me on that angle, but chances were good that if I were there, I could have adapted to the discovery. I could picture how I would have made the difference in that mission by simple imagination. "That's good to know, please go on."

"His power also seems to extend outside the cloud he generates. I don't know if the cloud is even necessary at all, or something he does to bluff his enemies," she added. Unnecessary detail, providing it to put next detail into context. "In the confusion of the battle, he managed to trick Atropos into shooting Lachesis and Horus with an empowered bolt."

Oh fuck. "You said something about her being stable?"

"I fixed her, for the most part," Riley explained. "She could recover naturally, now. But I'd like my big sister to speed the process." Doesn't need to make that request, there's no doubt that Amelia would heal Missy at earliest opportunity. Missy was hurt more badly than Riley's words would indicate. Riley is upset and angry. Blames Lily. Afraid of her thoughts and impulses. Correction: Afraid of how Amelia or Missy will respond. Feels lost. Needs comfort and guidance.

I looked over Amelia, who just stared blankly at scene where Taylor died. Not an option. "I..." do not tell Riley that Taylor died. "I'm afraid Amelia's still dealing with Butcher's defeat," I informed the girl. It was true enough to beat any lie detector. Riley knew how we needed Amelia to make sure Butcher stayed under control. "Is Missy conscious?"

"No," Riley admitted reluctantly. I already knew that would be the answer.

"Okay," I said. "Put her in one of the generic Yggdrasil outfits. Talk to Emma to see who can spare one. Then Amelia will be able to do her thing at range. It's the best we'll be able to do until Missy's able to set up her warp tunnels."

"Okay," Riley agreed.

I contacted Emma immediately. "So, everything cleared up?"

"Yeah," Emma answered. "Your advice worked perfectly. Riley's calling, want me to put her on with us?"

About damn time something went right. "No. She's really upset right now. Missy's wounded and Amelia's really distracted. Do your best to make her feel better. Consider this the most important job you've had all day."

"Uh..." Emma hesitated. "Oh. Oh fuck."

Say what you will about her, she knew how to figure out social subtext quickly. Even if her presence on the team is what ensured that Riley and Taylor were competing for second place in any theoretical contest for most fucked up psyche in Pantheon. I cut the com so she could talk to Riley. Hopefully that'll be enough. How did everything go this wrong?

I went back to those thoughts. I didn't have much choice, did I? My best friend killed herself. Like my brother killed himself. I tried to help her, like I tried to help him. He pushed me away, she pushed me away. I failed. I failed miserably. I need to know why.

It's my fault, I knew that much. If I hadn't been here, Taylor wouldn't have done this. Taylor claimed she planned to apologize and make up with Amelia. Would have restored Taylia. Would not have been willing to self sacrifice. Would have tried, but hesitated. Taylia could have been restored sooner, was delayed because of Butcher mission. Reason success existed in such a narrow margin.

Dinah's numbers changed the day Amelia and Taylor broke up. Changed back the day Taylor and Amelia would have reconciled. Had they reconciled sooner, predictions would have reverted to failure of Butcher mission.

Dinah should not be able to anticipate Taylia. Doesn't need to. Dinah's power works around the Taboo by technicality. Uses a different method than other precognition powers. Accidental consequence of shard's true function being corrupted. Unanticipated by the Entities. Partially unfettered power. Dinah can be used to fight Scion directly, despite Taboo.

That was amazingly useful information, and somehow I couldn't force myself to care. Taylia could have saved my best friend. It it were active, then Dinah never would have given this mission a chance at success. I was responsible for taking that away. Her death is my fault.

I didn't scream, I didn't cry, I didn't weep. Those were things that other people did. I wasn't sure I even knew how to express myself openly, even in a situation like this. I broke quietly, looking at what little remained of my closest, arguably only real, friend. Everything went black.

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