Trump Card (Worm AU) [Complete]

Trump Card

Part Fifteen: Body Double Shenanigans


Thursday Afternoon, January 13, 2011

“So you had to self-destruct your guns, huh?” asked L33t, leaning on the door-frame of my workshop. “That really sucks. I hate it when I build something cool and it breaks. Good thing your suit's still up and running.”

“Oh, they're not gone for good,” I told him as I peered into the interior of my suit. “I just have to make them again. I might need to price a few of the more interesting components, but now we've got the cash to do just that.”

He stood up straight at that. “Wait, what? When something of mine's broken -”

“ - you can't remake it, I know,” I agreed. “When I borrow your power, it works the same way. But when I shift my power to Über and then back to you, it's like I'm starting fresh.”

His eyes widened. “No shit? You mean, blank slate?”

I turned to him and zoomed the goggles back down to standard before nodding. “Sure. I mean, I can't make more of one thing, but so long as it doesn't exist as a device any more … “

“Wait here!” he exclaimed, and dashed out of the workshop.

I blinked behind the goggles. Well, that was interesting. Where was I going to go, exactly? With a shrug, I turned back to the armour. A few bits and pieces had been bent and broken during my fight with Glory Girl, but hopefully, nothing that I couldn't fix. Zooming the goggles back up to full mag, I peered into the interior of the suit, activating the LEDs with a flick of my eyes at the HUD. “Ah-ha,” I murmured. “There you are.”

Clear as day, I could see a connection that had been jolted free during the wild slide across the rooftop. Reaching in, I positioned the soldering iron -

“Here!”

I jumped violently at L33t's exclamation; fortunately, the soldering iron had not been active, or I might have slagged a couple of critical components. Turning, I dialled down the mag once more, and gave L33t an exasperated look. “What?”

He didn't seem to notice at all. “Here!” he blurted again. “My old notes! Cool shit that I built, that got broken!”

With a sigh, I put down the soldering iron. “Let me see.”

He thrust the thick sheaf of notes into my hands. “If you can help me rebuild any of this stuff, any of it at all, that would be so damn cool. I would be in your debt like, forever.”

I leafed through them; they were classic Tinker notes. That is, scribbled in pencil on whatever paper was available, stained with coffee and soda rings, annotated with mostly-illegible writing, and thumbed through a hundred times. But of course, I could understand them perfectly.

“Huh, cool stuff,” I noted. “Yeah, I could build some of it.” I looked up at him. “You supply the materials, of course.”

He nodded eagerly. “That's fine, that's fine."

I tapped the notes. “And some of this stuff impinges too closely on what I want to make for myself, so I can't; you understand that, right? But some of it, sure.”

"Whatever. Just … wow, holy shit. And if I break it, you can make it again?”

I shrugged. “Sure, I guess. It's no biggie.”

He was dancing on his toes, looking like a terrier wanting to go walkies. “Holy shit, wait till I tell Über.” He paused. “Right now, I'd hug you and maybe kiss you, but that would be way too creepy, so I won't.”

I nodded solemnly. “Definitely way too creepy. Hug and kiss, understood. Bring the materials by; I'll get to it once I sort my own stuff out.”

He nodded jerkily and darted out of my workshop. Outside, I heard a “Woo hoo!” that dopplered into the distance.

Tinkers. With a grin and a sigh, I turned back to repairing my armour.

And in the back of my mind, Alibi's daily life went on …

<><>​

“It's not going to work, you know.”

She/I looked around as Emma closed on her/me in the hallway.

“What's not going to work?” she/I asked.

“Whatever it is that you've got going on,” Emma sneered. “The teachers can only cover for you for so long. They can't watch you one hundred percent of the day.”

“Is that what's stopping you, Emma?” she/I asked innocently. “Don't like witnesses? Or is it that you aren't so sure of yourself without Sophia around?”

“Shut your fucking mouth,” she retorted viciously. “Sophia'll be back. You'll see. And sooner or later, the teachers will stop letting you use their bathroom -”

“Wait, what?” she/I asked. “The teachers' bathroom?”

“Well, you're not using the regular ones,” she replied, frustration evident in her voice. “And you sure as hell can't hold it all day. So you've worked out some deal where you use the teachers' bathroom; big deal. It can't hold forever. They'll stop caring. And then – you're mine.”

“I look forward to it,” she/I told her with only the slightest hint of sarcasm in her/my voice, and moved on. Inside, I was feeling annoyed with myself. With all the excitement going on around the armoured car heist, she/I had forgotten to go to the bathroom all day. It was a small slip, but small slips lead to big ones.

She/I, as Alibi, didn't need to use the bathroom; her/my digestive system was designed to make as close to one hundred percent use of processed foods as I could manage. But to not go into the bathroom, to occupy a stall for a certain amount of time per day, would eventually be noticed. So far, Emma wasn't actually suspicious. But that could change.

When I brought Alibi to stay at Über and L33t's for Friday night – I'd decided to spend that night at home with Dad at first hand, instead of second hand – I would insert a timer that would remind me that she/I needed to 'use' the bathroom. All equipment had bugs in it to start with, I reminded myself.

Ironically, because as Alibi was able to give Dad one hundred percent of her/my attention, she/I was getting along with him better than ever. Who knew that getting a job as a supervillain would help me reconnect with my father?

<><>​

He sat three seats away from the Hebert girl, on the bus. For a suspected cape, she didn't spend much time keeping an eye on her surroundings; most of the trip, she had her nose buried in a book. As expected, she got off at the stop two blocks from her house, and walked away; he stayed on the bus, watching, as it pulled away from the curb again.

At the next stop, Alec got off the bus and pulled out his phone.

<><>​

Coil answered the call at once.

“Report.”

“Hi, boss. Yeah, I'm fine. How are you?"

Coil ground his teeth. "Just. Report."

"Okay, fine. Just rode the bus from the school to her stop. She's totally zoned. Didn't look around even once.”

“Did she seem to register you as a cape?”

“Like I said, didn't look around even once. Her range must be pretty crappy, or it must be something she's got to turn on.”

Coil considered that. “Estimated chance of hostile extraction?”

Regent snorted. “Pretty damn good. Given half a chance, I could maybe walk her right off the bus and no-one would be the wiser.”

“Friends or acquaintances? Anyone likely to see?”

“Hah, no. Everyone ignores her. She's a loner. The classic invisible girl. Except, you know, not.”

“Hm. Well done. Very well, unless I tell you otherwise, tomorrow you have a green light. Call me if you have any complications.”

“Sure thing, boss-man.”

“Good. Keep the rest of the team in the dark about this. I don't know how they would react, and it would be unfortunate to find out that it's 'badly' in the middle of the op.”

“Yeah, like I'm gonna screw this up now.”

“Excellent. You'll find a bonus in your pay this month if you can pull this off.”

“Woo! Under Fire Six, here I come!”

He ended the call and leaned back in his chair. Regent was enough of a sociopath that Tattletale had trouble reading him at the best of times; by the time she connected the dots, if she ever did, it would be too late.

Permanent access to a cape who could copy powers was potentially very useful indeed. And Coil intended to be the only one with that access.

<><>
​

Über wandered into my workshop. “Hey, Hax. Damn, but what you've got on the stove smells nice. Oh cool, you finished fixing the armour.”

I refrained from telling him that he could cook just as well as me, if he chose to use his power that way. “It was only dinged up a bit. Nothing major broken.”

“Yeah, but taking on Glory Girl? That was some kinda badass.” He grinned. “We're getting more hits than ever on our channel, and the amount of speculation as to your powerset is reaching ridiculous levels. Everyone's got you pegged as some kind of Brute, but as for the other powers … well, L33t can't stop giggling, every time he starts reading the threads.” He shook his head. “Seriously, you're the best thing that's happened to this team since forever.” He peered at the workbench. “What's that you're doing now?”

With the screwdriver in my hand, I indicated the gun in front of me. “I'm putting my wireless taser back together. It was the easiest one. The big gun's gonna take some cash to rebuild.”

“I can throw some in,” he offered. “After all, it got broken on the job. And L33t tells me that you're willing to help rebuild some of his old tech.”

“Well, sure,” I agreed. “It'll take time and some money, but I can do that, easily.”

A wistful look crossed his face. “You couldn't rebuild the sword he made for me, the time we did the old Masters of the Universe game, could you? That sword was wicked awesome.”

I couldn't help it; I laughed. “You put on that ridiculous breastplate and played He-Man?” Though, when I thought about it, I had to admit that he had the physique for it.

He nodded, grinning. “You should've seen L33t as Skeletor.”

I shook my head. “Now I have to see the Youtube clip.”

He grimaced. “Spoilers – it doesn't end well.”

I patted him on the shoulder. “Well, we're gonna have a lot fewer of those to deal with, from now on.” I picked up the sheaf of notes and thumbed through it, until I found the sword. “And sure, I can build it, no problem. It looks like fun.”

He looked like a kid who'd been promised a puppy for Christmas. “You're the best. Wanna come sit down for a three-player?”

“Love to,” I told him, “but I've gotta get this baby back online.” With a nod, I indicated the pistol, still in bits. “Soon as I'm finished, though … “

His grin lit up the work-room. “Excellent. See you out there.”

He wandered out again, humming something that sounded suspiciously like We are the Champions, in perfect tune, of course; I grinned to myself and set to work on the wireless taser once more.

<><>
​

“So why couldn't I just fly you home from school?” Vicky grumbled. “It would have been a whole lot quicker than taking the bus.”

Amy gave her a level stare. “Because, hello? You were knocked out on that rooftop by unknown means, and I don't want you to risk passing out in midair and risking your life and mine, until I know how she did it.”

Vicky sighed. “I feel fine. You checked me out. You didn't find anything wrong with me.” She kicked at a pebble on the pavement. It ricocheted off of a telegraph pole, and skittered most of the way across the road.

“Yes, I didn't find anything wrong, which is what worries me,” Amy told her. “Because I didn't find anything that told me why you were unconscious. No trauma of any sort. No drugs. No toxins. You were just … asleep.” Her voice became very dry. “And I know that you've found some fights to be somewhat boring, but I've never known you to fall asleep during a fight before.”

“Maybe she's just got some sort of sleep touch,” Vicky suggested. “Induced narcolepsy, or something.”

“I may not be willing to affect brains,” noted Amy, “but I can read brain chemistry. Yours was all wrong for narcolepsy. It was, however, perfect for someone who was just … asleep.”

“Fine,” Vicky told her. “You don't know what knocked me out. How about the bank cape? Blockade, or whatever his name was?”

Amy shook her head. “They'd revived him before I got there. But I checked him over, and he didn't have any trauma either. And I know he took hits that should have at least bruised him.”

Vicky frowned. “Well, that's just plain weird. What do you make of it?”

Amy shook her head. “I have no idea. It doesn't make any kind of sense. Unless, I dunno, she's got some sort of healing sleep ability, and she's putting people to sleep and healing their wounds at the same time.” The tone of her voice showed how little credence she gave that idea.

“You know, Ames …” Vicky's voice was slow and thoughtful. “Your powers could do that exact same thing. If it was you instead of her.”

“But you said she had Brute levels, and could maybe jump or fly really well,” protested Amy. “I can't do any of that. Maybe she did some sort of neural induction thing that knocked you and Blockade out without leaving outward trauma.”

“And the healing thing?” pressed Vicky.

Amy shrugged. “A regeneration field that's always on?”

“Well however it goes, she certainly wins the award for most ethical villain of two thousand eleven,” Vicky joked. “Seriously, no-one really hurt, and she leaves me in the recovery position, even though I whaled the tar out of her?”

Amy raised an eyebrow. “You sound like you want to shake her hand instead of punch her, if you met her again.”

“Oh, I'm ready for a rematch, that's for sure,” Vicky declared. “And this time around, I won't go easy.”

Amy rolled her eyes. “I've never known you to go easy.”

Bickering good-naturedly, the two strolled on toward home.

<><>
​

I flopped on to the sofa and grabbed up the controller. L33t glanced over at me as I logged in. “Cool, you done?”

“With the armour and taser, anyway,” I agreed. “And I glanced over your notes. Gonna have to look over what we grabbed from North Side, but I'm fairly sure I can put Über's sword together again, and there's a teleport plate doohickey that looks reasonably easy to construct.”

“Woo hoo!” exulted Über, from the other side of L33t. “By the power of Greyskull!”

“Hey, how about you Greyskull some of those bad boys over there. I'm getting shot at, here,” L33t chided him with a chuckle. “You know something, Hax? I feel like I should be pissed that you're using my power better than I ever did – and let's not forget the total ridiculousness of being able to hit the reset button like you do – but it'll be worth it just to get some of the old favourites back up and running. And hey, there's a few devices I started on and never finished because I built something else sort of like it … “ he trailed off.

“And you'd like me to see if I can finish them off?” I replied. “Uh, sure. When I've kind of got the time, but yeah, I can do that.”

“Suh-weet!” he exclaimed, just as I sniped one of the enemies that had him pinned down. “Holy shit, nice shooting.”

“Thanks,” I replied with a grin, then glanced at the screen clock. “Uh, just so you know. Fifteen minutes, then dinner will be ready. Okay?”

L33t sniffed at the cooking odours drifting over from the kitchenette, and a blissful look crossed his face. “Oh, you know it.”

Über and I shared a grin as we went back to the game. I'd had my doubts about joining forces with a supervillain pair like Über and L33t, but I was honestly enjoying myself. And, villain or no, the respect I was getting from them was going a long way toward repairing my self-esteem.

<><>
​

Friday, January 14, 2011

“Hey, Alec, where you going?”

Alec looked over at Brian as he buttoned his shirt over the mail coat, then pulled a jacket on over the top of that. His sceptre and mask went into his backpack. “Out. Boss gave me a job.”

Brian frowned. “The boss only contacts Lisa. What's going on?”

Alec shrugged. “Contacted me for this one. Does it matter?”

Lisa wandered out of her room, yawning. “What's going on? Alec, the boss contacted you? Why?”

Alec tried to hide his annoyance, but realised that Lisa would see it anyway. “He wanted me to do a job, okay? Something you're not needed on. A one-person thing.”

“You still don't know who he is,” she noted. “And this is something that the rest of us probably don't want a hand in.” She fixed Alec with a stare. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

He shrugged. “A bonus is a bonus.” She'd figure that bit out pretty quickly anyway.

Brian frowned. “I don't like it. We're supposed to be a team.”

“And you want the extra money?” jibed Alec.

“No,” growled the older teen. “I don't like some of us going off and doing solo jobs. There's a risk involved here.”

Alec shrugged. “Take it up with the boss. Me, I've got a job to do.” Hefting the backpack on to his shoulder, he headed for the stairs. They didn't move to stop him.

He was just glad that Brian and Lisa didn't know about the injector that he'd been handed on the way home yesterday. Some guy, a bit on the bulky side, had brushed past him on the bus, and he'd found himself holding the thing. It was in the side pocket of his backpack right now, and it would have definitely raised some very awkward questions.

He supposed that he should feel bad about helping to plan the kidnapping of a teenage girl, but it really wasn't his problem. The boss would treat her all right, surely. And it might be cool having another girl on the team. Once she came around to their way of thinking.

<><>
​

“You're really serious about this jogging thing, aren't you?” Über puffed, keeping up with me but showing the strain just a little.

“Yeah,” I told him, vaulting on top of a dumpster, then leaping to the next one before jumping down to ground level again. “Seems that running away is a good skill to have.”

He mustered a grin. “And you're definitely more into the parkour than I ever was.”

“Saved my ass with Armsmaster,” I agreed. “And I owe you for that.”

We turned a corner into an alley which was blocked off by a high chain-link fence; Über began to slow down. On the other hand, I sped up. Hugging one side of the alley, I ran toward the fence, then at the last moment, ran at the other side. Leaping into the air, I ran up along the wall for a few strides, then kicked off, giving me just enough height to put my hand on top of the fence and vault over it. Bouncing off of the wall on the far side, I landed, rolled, came to my feet, then turned to look back at him.

“Well?” I asked him. “You coming?”

He nodded, then jumped at the fence, pulling his way up the links with unsurprising skill. “Now, if we could get L33t out here exercising as well … “

I snorted. “I'm sorry. I can copy any powerset, and I'm in a team with one guy who can let me learn any skill, and another who can let me build anything. But I can't work miracles.”

Über laughed so hard that he fell off the fence.

<><>
​

Julia sauntered up to where Emma was sitting in the cafeteria. "Hebert's on her way to the bathroom now."

Emma stood up from her seat. "About fucking time. What was she doing?"

"Talking to Mrs Knott."

"Did it look serious?" Emma led the way out of the cafeteria.

Julia shrugged. "Dunno. Afterward, Mrs Knott went one way, and Taylor went another."

"Do we even know she's going to the bathroom? She must have a bladder like a camel."

"Madison's following her. If Hebert goes somewhere else, she'll let us know."

"Good." Emma got to the stairs and started up them. Behind her, Julia's phone pinged.

Emma stopped. "What is it?"

Julia grinned at her. "She just went into the bathroom."

"Okay, let's hurry."

<><>
​

As helpful as L33t had been in outfitting my workroom – he had donated a large amount of his spare tools to the cause – there were some things that it lacked. Large floor-mounted power tools, such as drill presses and heavy-duty grinders, for instance. I had them on order – I could afford them now – but they had yet to arrive, and so I had to borrow L33t's workshop for some of the jobs.

Initially reluctant to let me use any of his things, he had changed his tune almost totally since the North Side job, and then the armoured car heist. And with my assurance that I could use his powers to recreate some of what he called his 'greatest hits', he was gratifyingly eager to let me use his equipment.

Given that the stun rifle needed a few key components that we needed to either make, buy or steal in order to make it work, I had elected to hold off on even starting it yet. After all, we didn't need it right this minute. Of course, I had taken the time to jot down a few notes, such as a double-tap mode to defeat Glory Girl's invulnerability field. The next time we met, I was going to zorch her out of the sky. Crash test dummy, hah.

I dialled back my goggles to normal clarity as I lifted the length of metal from the grinder. “This is about the right shape, yeah?”

L33t, across at the other side of the workshop turned around and lifted one side of his ear protectors. “What?”

I lifted mine as well. “Shaped like this, yeah?”

He looked at it closely, then nodded. “Yeah, perfect. You've really got an eye for this.”

I shrugged. “Über's power let me pick up engineering techniques. And your power lets me estimate lengths and measures pretty good too. So between them, I'm set.”

Über leaned in through the workshop door. “Did I just hear someone say that my power was useful in building something?”

L33t rolled his eyes. “Now you've done it. He'll be insufferable from now on, you realise this.”

“Hey, they call it synergy,” I told them both with a grin. “I – oh god. Oh god, yes, this is too perfect.” I began to giggle.

Über peered at me suspiciously. “Is this some sort of Tinker thing?”

L33t shook his head. “I don't think so. Hax?”

My eyes, behind the goggles, were focused elsewhere.

<><>
​

They got there just in time; Hebert was just exiting the toilet stall as Emma pushed her way through the door, followed by Julia and Madison. She would much rather have gathered a few more girls, given Taylor's sudden show of fighting capability on Monday, but short notice was short notice.

Taylor looked around as Emma entered the room. "Oh, hi, Emma," she greeted the redhead mildly. She crossed to the basins and started to wash her hands.

"Seriously, that's all you can say?" Emma retorted. ""Oh, hi'?"

Taylor looked over her shoulder at Emma. "What did you want me to say?"

"You're pathetic," spat Emma. She stepped forward and grabbed the strap of the bag that was slung over Taylor's shoulder. Taylor didn't resist, which emboldened her. Emma dangled the bag from its strap. "What are you going to do now?"

Taylor straightened up, and Emma took a step back. "Please give me my bag," Taylor enunciated clearly.

"Or you'll do what?" taunted Emma. "Beat me up?" She almost added 'or use your powers', but you never knew who was in the toilet cubicles, who might hear her words.

Taylor drew a deep breath. Irritatingly, she did not seem the least bit upset, only ... curious. "Why are you doing this, Emma?" she asked. "Why have you tormented and bullied me ever since I got to Winslow?"

Emma felt uneasy at that. Taylor was being far too calm. Too strong. Too confident. For just a moment, she considered returning the bag, leaving the bathroom.

But then Madison took the bag from her and went to a basin. Turning the water on full, she prepared to empty the contents into the basin, into the water swirling there.

"Because you're pathetic," Emma spat, regaining her confidence. "You're weak. You're not worth knowing. You don't deserve to be at Winslow."

Taylor ignored her. "Madison," she stated warningly, "don't do that."

Madison gave her a long look; Julia aligned herself alongside Emma, screening her from Taylor. "Do it," she urged Madison.

Madison tipped the contents of the backpack into the basin, and Taylor acted. She moved forward, but without any finesse, without any of the grace and speed that she had exhibited on Monday. Almost clumsily, she tried to push between Emma and Julia.

Recalling her previous humiliation at Taylor's hands, Emma initially recoiled from her, then regained her courage. She grabbed an arm, trying to force it behind Taylor's back. On the other side, Julia was doing the same.

"Let me go!" shouted Taylor, struggling just hard enough to make them tighten their grips.

"Not until you get down on your knees and tell us how weak you are," Emma panted. Sophia made this physical stuff look easier than it was, but she had to admit, it was fun. The one thing she couldn't figure out, the one thing that niggled at her, was the question of why Taylor was such a pushover now, when she'd been so formidable on Monday?

And then the toilet stall opened, and the question was answered. Mrs Knott stood there, a forbidding expression on her face.

"Let. Her. Go," she snapped.

And after that, it was no fun at all.

<><>
​

“So these girls know you're a cape and they're still trying to bully you?” asked L33t. “Are they fucking insane?”

I shrugged; the grin was still on my face, but I had stopped giggling long enough to give them the basic explanation of what was going on. “They're so invested in it that to stop now would be to admit that they're wrong,” I explained. “But now they're trying to push me into using powers against them, so they can report me.”

Über shook his head. “Powers, which for all they know might be capable of hurting them badly,” he observed. “And they hate you enough to risk that sort of danger, just to bully you.”

“Not all of them. Just one.” I leaned back against the work bench. “But the others follow her lead.” My grin had more teeth in it than normal. “And right this very second, that's leading them into the principal's office.”

“Wait a minute,” L33t put in. “You … did you bait them, with Alibi?”

I tried to look innocent. “Maybe,” I admitted. “I may have also … “

<><>
​

Carrie Blackwell rubbed the bridge of her nose with thumb and forefinger. She did not need this. Most especially, she did not need Emma Barnes, popular girl and daughter of a lawyer, in her office, accused, along with Madison Clements and Julia Morrow of bullying the girl she had given strict instructions to protect from such bullying.

“So, Taylor,” she began. “If I get this right, you approached Mrs Knott and told her that you didn't feel secure going to the third floor girls' bathrooms, and would she go there to make sure that you weren't accosted.”

Taylor nodded firmly. “Yes, ma'am, I did.”

Backwell turned to Mrs Knott. “Gladys?”

“Yes, she did, ma'am,” Gladys Knott confirmed. “You told us Tuesday to keep an eye on her, so I decided to do as she asked. I went to the bathrooms first, and she followed along.”

“What happened then?” asked Blackwell of Taylor.

“Well, I got there, and I did what I needed to do,” the girl replied readily, “and I was just about to go, when Emma came in with Madison and Julie.”

“I was in a toilet stall. I heard them come in,” Mrs Knott went on, “and I overheard them saying very hurtful things to Taylor. She asked them why they had been bullying her since she came to Winslow, and they did not deny it. Then I heard a scuffle, and water running, and I peered out to see Emma and Julie holding Taylor, while Madison ran water over her books, so I intervened.”

Principal Blackwell looked over the three girls with extreme disfavour on her face. “This is bullying and victimisation of the most egregious type,” she declared. “I have no doubt but that this has been going on for some time. Thus, my course is clear.”

<><>
​

L33t was sitting on the floor, laughing. Über leaned against the door-frame, holding his sides. “That's awesome,” L33t choked out. “You owned them.”

“Getting a teacher to listen in,” Über managed. “That's fuckin' epic.”

I nodded, chuckling a little myself. “And get this. In-school suspension. For the next two months. The principal is pissed.”

“There's something I can't figure out,” L33t pointed out. “If they were harassing you so much, how come this never happened before?”

I shrugged. “Before, it was them against me, three against one, and the principal always listened to the popular girls.”

“Yeah, I hear that,” L33t agreed. “Shit like that happened to me, back in the day, with the jocks.”

“Not the only one, bro,” Über declared. “Remind me to tell you the story about how I got shut in my own locker that one time.”

I shook my head. “Yeah, no thanks. Pass on that.”

Über shrugged. “Suit yourself. Anyway, I was heading out for a food run. Any requests?”

“Uh, get some more Twizzlers?” asked L33t.

“Twizzlers, gotcha,” Über noted. “Hax?”

Pulling off my work glove, I reached into my back pocket and extracted a folded sheet of paper. Über unfolded it and looked it over. “Well, damn,” he noted. “Is it just me, or is most of the stuff on here healthy and nutritious?”

“Well, if I don't get you guys to buy stuff that's good for you,” I retorted, “who will?”

“Fair point,” conceded Über. He turned to go. “See you guys later.”

I nodded. “Just so you know, I'll be heading home later. Alibi will be here in time to make sure dinner doesn't burn.”

“And gaming too?” asked L33t eagerly.

“And gaming too,” I agreed with a smile.

“Excellent.”

<><>
​

She/I got on the bus at Winslow. Two stops later, she/I got off the bus, in order to change lines. Über and L33t's base was a different direction to Dad's house, after all. A few people got off at the same stop; most walked away. One stayed; a teenager of her/my age or so. He seemed engrossed in his Gameboy, so she/I ignored him.

When the new bus came, she/I got on board. So did he. This seemed a little coincidental, but not hugely so. This kid might take this line every day; I had never taken much notice as to who went where, after all.

There weren't many spare seats at this time of day, so she/I picked a seat down toward the back. At the next stop, the woman sitting in the window seat got off the bus; she/I moved over to take the window seat. A few moments later, someone sat in the seat next to her/me. She/I looked around, to see the teenager from the bus stop looking intently at her/me.

“Hi,” he murmured, just as she/I felt the needle penetrate her/my arm. The dermis was designed to detect pinpricks and cuts, of course, and her/my arm jerked in response. His eyes narrowed in surprise. “That's funny ...”

Damn it.

She/I had three options: play along, play dumb, or out Alibi as what she really was. She/I went with the first option, slumping down in the seat. I hadn't built chemical sensors into Alibi, but it was definitely on my list of things to do. Thus, I had no idea what it was that this kid had just injected into her/me, but it was a good bet that partial or full unconsciousness was one of the side effects.

As for the rest of it, this was obviously a kidnap attempt on Taylor Hebert, rumoured cape. I couldn't let that slide, and I couldn't let them figure out what Alibi really was. In short, I had to save Alibi without blowing her/my cover, and also make life really hard for whoever was trying to kidnap her/me.

In other words, I was going to have to stage a daring rescue of my own body double.

This was going to be interesting.


End of Part Fifteen

Part Sixteen