Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Vongrak.
Taylor POV.
"Nervous about your first patrol?" Vista asked, as she finished getting ready and I adjusted Shusui around my waist.
"Not really?" I hummed, though the buzzing of my insects suggested otherwise, but I wasn't about to mention it. "By the way, what's the limit of force you can use to subdue a villain? I mean, you have your rubber bullets, is that why? " I asked curiously. Vista snorted dryly.
"I use rubber bullets because PR doesn't trust me to handle a real weapon effectively and responsibly with my power, and they also didn't want to risk me not being able to control my power properly in tense situations and ending up hitting allies," Vista said sarcastically before snorting and looking at me. "And you? Is that something you have to ask often? " Vista teased playfully. I shrugged.
"I mean, my quirk certainly isn't friendly. It can escalate quickly, going from a simple distraction to completely lethal in an instant. I mean, I can make my insects eat their eyes with ease, or rot people's skin, or lay eggs under their skin." I said with a hum, glancing at Vista who was staring at me, almost horrified.
"Have you done those things?!" she asked almost scandalously, I smiled mysteriously at her.
"Only two of them," I said playfully.
"Two of them?! To humans!?" she asked once again quickly.
"Yep." I said playfully, I mean, was I sure Nomu still counted as humans?
"Please, don't let your insects eat the villains alive, no matter the circumstances," Miss Militia said curtly with a disapproving look as she approached, fully ready for patrol. My eyes sparkled with amusement. "Use minimal force to restrain them. If you need to escelate and use more force, speak to me or the console first; they'll give you permission to climb," Miss Militia said simply as she handed me a small earpiece. I nodded.
"Of course." I nodded as I placed the earpiece in my ear while it connected to my scroll, before putting on my mask.
"Do you know how to ride a motorcycle?" Miss Militia asked as she signaled to Vista and me to follow her.
"Oh? We'll be riding motorcycles? " I asked curiously. Miss Militia nodded.
"If you know how to drive, great. If not, you two will go in a Protectorate truck that will drop you off near the patrol's starting point, and I'll catch up with you on a motorcycle." Miss Militia said, and I nodded.
"I know how to drive, my husband has one, he taught me, I use it often, I got my license before starting UA, I... it's a Japanese license, can I use it here?" I asked confusedly, looking at Miss Militia, she just smiled with her eyes and nodded.
"Yes, don't worry, the police won't be stopping us to ask for our licenses," Miss Militia said playfully. I heard Vista snort. "Even so, stay behind me and just keep a close eye on me. You might need to get a license later; I'll have to talk to someone about it," Miss Militia said with a hum. I nodded.
"And Vista?" I asked curiously, to which she snorted and crossed her arms.
"My parents were so busy fighting with each other that they refused to let me get my license at 16, like any normal teenager. A couple of months ago, when I turned 18, I was finally able to start learning. I recently got my learner's permit, but the Protectorate wants me to keep practicing for a couple more months or weeks before they'll officially let me drive the Protectorate's motorcycles." Vista snorted sullenly.
"You need the experience. In case of an emergency or a chase, even though we have priority, it's still very different driving at full speed," Miss Militia recited as if she were already used to it. Vista just snorted.
"By the way... you mention your husband a lot." Vista pointed out, changing the subject. I shrugged.
"Well he's my husband? I've been living with him for over a year and a half, he's a massive part of my life now,," I said with a small smile.
"Uh... that sounds amazing," Vista said, almost dreamily.
"And you?" I asked curiously. "Is anyone there?" Vista stumbled slightly.
"Anyone?! There's no one here! " Vista yelled, and my smile grew wide.
"So is it Gallant or Weld? Or someone outside the Protectorate? " I asked playfully. Vista blushed even more.
"Shut up." Vista said, embarrassed. I heard a small laugh from Miss Militia.
"Didn't you have a date with Gallant recently?" Miss Militia asked playfully. Vista choked on her breath.
"You know that?! Who else knows?!" Vista shrieked in a panic. Miss Militia laughed amusedly.
"Welcome to the office gossip, and I heard it from Assault, who heard it from Clockblocker, so the whole Protectorate knows," Miss Militia said amusedly. Vista grunted.
"I'm going to kill that damn-" Vista growled, embarrassed. I laughed amusedly.
"Gallant is married to Glory—to Antares, right? " I asked curiously.
"Yes, that's him." Vista grumbled, before sighing wearily and then smiling almost dreamily.
"I guess the date went well," I said playfully.
"Shut up." Vista growled once more, and I chuckled.
"Okay, let's change the subject. What's up with Weld?" I asked curiously. Vista looked at me curiously. "Your power—I mean, I know living beings interfere with your power, but… does Weld interfere with it too? Since he's made of… metal and all that, is he made entirely of metal? Even his organs? " I asked curiously. Vista snorted.
"Is there a problem?" Vista asked, frowning.
"No? I mean, just curious, we have a teacher who's made of cement, or so I think? I think she can bleed and has normal organs? But her head is a huge block of cement with a face." I said, confused. Quirks could be weird sometimes.
"Oh no, Weld is made entirely of metal, even his internal organs. I think they were made of gold or silver or something," Vista said. "He still interferes with my power, in fact, Weld has the best of both worlds. If the quirk only affects living beings, or if it only affects inorganic ones, they tend not to work on Weld. That's a pretty nice advantage," Vista said, shrugging.
"Interesting." I hummed softly. "And how small does a living being have to be so that it doesn't affect your quirk?" I asked once more.
"Small? The insects are already interrupting me, you've already used it to your advantage," Vista said dryly.
"Well, yes, but there are smaller things, like bacteria and microscopic living beings, which definitely don't interfere with your power; otherwise, you wouldn't be able to use it at all." I pointed, and Vista paused for a few seconds.
"Uh... actually... you're right." Vista said, considering it. "So that means I'm spaghettifying microorganisms every time I stretch the space?... Cool." Vista said with a small smile. I burst out laughing. "And you? Do you just control insects or what? " Vista asked back.
"Something like that? My quirk is weird. In theory, it's 'Bugs' that I can control, but my quirk is quite arbitrary when it comes to choosing what the 'Bugs' are. For example, skin mites are extremely small, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, but they belong to the Arachnida class, the same as spiders and scorpions, which I can control easily. But I definitely can't control mites; they're too small."
"On the other hand, I can also control other invertebrates that aren't 'Bugs,' like small crabs or lobsters, or similar small creatures. I mean, it's not like it's about size, because I can control monster insects the size of a dog, so... I can control almost all bugs, insects and arachnids, but there are several exceptions at both ends of the list." I said with a hum.
"That sounds complicated," Vista said, wrinkling her nose. I chuckled slightly.
"Maybe, but I just use whatever I have within my range, which is always insects and arachnids." I shrugged. "I mean, all things considered, it's more versatile than my... my dad's quirk, which is controlling small rodents, and Aiden, who can control small birds, so... I prefer my insects." I shrugged.
"Aiden?" Vista asked curiously, I could also see Miss Militia looking at me curiously.
"Oh, my brother." I said easily, Vista's mouth opened.
"Wait, you have more brothers besides-" Vista closed her mouth tightly, I snorted.
"I don't mind them mentioning Emma," I said curtly. Vista grimaced, but nodded. "And yes, Anne, she's the oldest of all of us, by three years, Zoe and Dad's daughter. Then there's Emma and me. We were born around the same time, which is why we were the closest. Emma is also Zoe's daughter, but Annette's my mother, so we're actually half-sisters."
"And well, finally there's Aiden. Shouldn't he be 10 now? He's my dad's son with a third woman. She was a friend of my parents and Zoe's in college. She doesn't have a partner, she's not even dating my dad, but they were doing her a favor, so she and Aiden live in another house. I barely saw him growing up, at some parties or something. We only share blood, so... yeah." I said, shrugging. "Complicated family, like anyone's." I said easily.
"Don't even mention it." Vista grunted. "My father only married my mother, but he had other women and children. When I was a child, my father had cancer, and my mother cheated on him with his brother, my uncle. So my father had the brilliant idea of getting revenge on her by getting rid of her dogs. One thing led to another, and Father started spending more time with the other women and their children, and they kept fighting, using me as leverage in the middle."
"I barely turned 18 when I left that house as fast as I could, and I haven't spoken to them since," Vista said with a grimace of disgust. I just nodded in understanding; I didn't offer her words of comfort. As someone with a dysfunctional family, I knew she wouldn't want them.
Even so… placing it right next to Vista? With such a marked family problem on my first patrol? Was it meant to make me empathize with her? To form a kind of camaraderie through shared trauma? Was it a coincidence or had someone planned it?
I grimaced before dismissing the thought. Overthinking these things would only make me paranoid, and the last thing I wanted was to be constantly on guard while doing this internship.
Finally we arrived at the parking lot, where an armed guard was waiting for us. She took out two keys; Miss Militia thanked her and took one, the guard handed me the other.
"Thank you," I said quickly as I took it. I checked the key; it had a series of numbers and letters. I quickly followed Miss Militia through the various vehicles. There were several ordinary cars, some large vans with turrets on the roof, and some simple modified trucks. All of them had the PRT logo on them.
Miss Militia approached a motorcycle before pointing at the one next to it. I could see the motorcycle's license plate was the same as the key code. I almost cursed in my head for not noticing. I guess I had gotten used to seeing Japanese license plates. Besides, I had never driven here in the US, so I had never gotten used to seeing their license plates.
"That one's yours," she said with a smile. I nodded. "Vista, are you coming with me?" Miss Militia asked, getting on the motorcycle and starting it. Vista snorted.
"I'm going with the new girl, whenever I go with you you go too slow." Vista snorted, Miss Militia just laughed slightly.
"If you're sure," Miss Militia said playfully. I snorted, looked at the motorcycle—it looked a lot like a police motorcycle—and simply shrugged. I took the silk rope from my compartment, released my swarm, and began tying my haori with a tasuki using my swarm's help. This was a way of tying my sleeves so they wouldn't bother me. I also folded the haori halfway down my waist and tied it with the same rope, lifting the haori so it ended at my hip.
Finally, I got on the motorcycle and started it up. I almost sighed with relief when I found everything where it should be, although I did exhale heavily as I looked at the speedometer in mph.
"I hope you know how to drive this thing properly." Vista grunted as she sat behind me and grabbed my waist.
"We'll see." I scoffed playfully.
"Alright, girls, we're getting started." Miss Militia said firmly, silencing us. "Console, this is Miss Militia, initiating motorized patrol with Vista and Skitter, assigned sector The Boardwalk and The Docks. Time: 2:47 AM. Check-out requested. Over." Miss Militia said firmly.
"Copy, Miss Militia, registered motor patrol. I need confirmation from Vista and Skitter, over." I heard through my earpiece.
"Console, this is Vista, initiate motorized patrol with Miss Militia and Skitter, over." Vista said immediately before lightly hitting my waist.
"Console, this is Skitter, initiating motorized patrol with Miss Militia and Vista, over." I said firmly, though I looked at Miss Militia for confirmation, she nodded.
"Received, Miss Milita, Skitter, Vista, you have permission to leave. Maintain frequency three. Console out."
"Received. Miss Militia out." Miss Militia said before starting her motorcycle, and I did the same. Miss Militia began to move, slowly at first so I could keep up, which I did. She slowly began to pick up speed, especially once we left the building.
My eyes widened as I saw a road made of a force field that we would be traveling on. Miss Militia increased her speed, and I easily kept up. To my surprise, after a short ride, we finally reached a real road, which led right past the Boardwalk.
I easily kept pace with Miss Militia until she parked and began to get out.
"We'll do a foot patrol along the Boardwalk, then we'll come back and go to The Docks." Miss Militia said once I stopped beside her, I just nodded.
Even though I was on patrol, I couldn't help but look around and notice... how little everything had changed. It's been over two years since I'd been to the Boardwalk, maybe more than three. The last time I'd been here was with Emma.
Everything was practically the same: the same shops, the same places. Some had changed, others had closed, and several remained closed due to the hour, but the essence? It was still practically the same as I remembered, and there were just as many people. The Boardwalk was one of the busiest tourist areas because even at nearly 3 a.m., there were still a lot of people around.
And they immediately noticed Miss Militia ya Vista, and especially me. Which caused me to attract a lot of attention. Until finally someone approached.
"Hello! Is this a new heroine? " the teenager asked excitedly. Miss Militia smiled.
"Hello, and something like that, she's doing an internship here at the Protectorate, her name is Skitter." Miss Militia said easily, I nodded.
"Greetings." I waved gently while bowing my head.
"Hello!" the woman squealed when she looked at me intently. Yes, I guess my disguise was too intimidating, at least from the front. "Are you new? Are you going to join the protectorate?" "What's your quirk? " she asked excitedly. I took a deep breath.
"I'm new to the Protectorate, but not to the city. I was born and raised here in Brockton Bay, studied at UA in Japan, and I control insects," I said as some bees emerged from my haori and danced in a circle.
The teenager stared at me, her eyes wide. She looked first at the insects, then at my face, then down to my waist where my sword lay.
"Shusui," she gasped, then stared at me incredulously and practically screamed. "You're our S-Class?! You're the heir to God Sword Ryuma?!" the teenager shrieked, and I could practically feel everyone freeze and stare at me. I laughed awkwardly.
The next two hours were the longest two hours of my life. I had prepared myself to be a hero, but no one had told me how exhausting it would be. Somehow, it was almost 5 a.m., and somehow, people kept coming out of nowhere and talking to me.
The traitors Miss Militia and Vista stepped back and left me to handle the civilians. Which I understood; people were coming to me mainly because of me, so I was the one they were looking for, but neither of them had to look as pleased as they did.
This had been completely different from what she expected, especially compared to what Izumi had with Mirko.
"Well done, you survived your fans." Vista mocked. I glared at her, but with my mask it wasn't very effective.
"Tell me I won't be coming to Boardwalk every night." I stood in for Miss Militia, who just laughed.
"Don't worry, it's only once a week. Since you didn't have any official introduction because you're not a hero of the Protectorate, it was the best way to introduce yourself to the public, but it's also an important part of the job, simply posing and talking to people." Miss Militia said easily. I sighed and nodded.
"Fine, because if I have to do it two nights in a row, I'll use my swarm to hide." I warned dryly as I climbed onto the motorcycle.
"Trust me, using your quirks never stops them," Vista said dryly as she climbed in behind me. I sighed as Miss Militia laughed. I could see several civilians taking pictures of us as we left.
I followed Miss Militia through the night streets of Brockton Bay. The motorcycles were quite quiet, because there was hardly any noise. Our speed was quite low. I listened to Miss Militia's orders as we scanned the streets.
Which made for a rather boring night, because even with my swarm, I could hardly find anything of interest beyond a few vagrants.
"Sighting." I said immediately. Miss Militia stopped silently, and I did the same. She and Vista looked at me, waiting. "Two blocks east, people wearing red and green, possible ABB members, at least a dozen." I said quietly, and they nodded.
"Console." Miss Militia said simply.
"Received, proceed with caution. Miss Militia, you're in charge. Over." The voice from my earpiece said. Miss Militia nodded and began to dismount her motorcycle and block it. I did the same.
"Skitter, report." Miss Militia said as we started walking through the streets.
"A dozen of them are coming out of a building, they're gathering in the street, they're frowning, being expressionless, not speaking." I said quickly.
"They're planning something," Vista said without hesitation. Miss Militia nodded.
"Vista, come closer." Miss Militia said. Vista nodded, and we continued walking as space warped before us. We crossed the two blocks in a few seconds. I tensed, grabbed them both, and pulled them back to hide. My insects had spotted a person—a woman wearing an ornate dragon mask.
"It's Lung." I growled softly, careful, and could see them both tense up suddenly. We were still close enough to the group to hear them talking.
"… the children, just shoot. Doesn't matter your aim, just shoot. You see one lying on the ground? Shoot the little bitch twice more to be sure. We give them no chances to be clever or lucky, understand?" Lung growled loudly enough for us to hear the last part.
The three of us froze instantly. What the hell? Were they going to kill the kids?
Author's Notes: And so it begins! Sorry (not sorry), for those who read Worm, I couldn't resist including this part! I believe I mentioned that I would be moving some of the Worm canon around for when Taylor returned to BB, and here's one of them!
A/N: If you liked the story, join my patreon, patreon.com/Camellya_Addams, there are up to 10 chapters in advance, thank you. Or you can also visit my Ko-Fi, ko-fi.com/camellya_addams.