AN: Alright, so I'm back, sort of. New job, new schedule, less free time. But I'm still here and I'm still writing. This is maybe not my best work but I'm content with it and I feel like if I don't get moving I'll stall out again. So without further delay a brief look at what the Protectorate, PRT, and especially Lily have been dealing with while Tay was busy with the Merchants.

Lily Interlude: Four days before the Merchant raid.

Walking in step with Gallant, I tried not to flinch at the smell. People were doing their best, but garbage and waste were starting to build up along the sidewalks. The camps just didn't have a good way to dispose of it with access to most of the city being so risky. Sure, no one sane wanted to hijack a garbage truck, but the question of the Merchants sanity was highly debatable. They had attacked three already. No one seemed to know why just yet, but it was giving more than one analyst headaches supposedly.

"Any idea when Armsmaster and Clockblocker will be back on their feet?" The now customary joke about Clockblocker's missing foot slipped out along with the question. "I kind of thought Panacea would have stopped by already."

"I don't really know." Gallant admitted with a small twitch. "With so many cell towers down, I haven't been able to get in touch with Vicky. She flew Panacea out here a couple of times after the attack, but no one's seen New Wave in days." There was an obvious thread of worry in his voice.

"I'm sure she's alright. If she's as tough a brute as you say, I doubt anyone managed to hurt her."

"Yeah." His muttered response didn't convey any real confidence. It left my gut twisting uncomfortably. I wasn't sure what more I could say to reassure him. Gallant shook himself lightly and pushed on with larger steps as if he could leave his worries behind him. "Are you and Vista getting along better?"

"She's a little warmer with all of us now. I guess it must have seemed like we were here to replace people with how fast we showed up."

"Just a touch." Gallant admitted with a wry twist of his lips. "She always used to complain about there not being more girls on the team. She works hard to be professional. I think you and Phantom have thrown her for a loop because you're both pretty relaxed most of the time."

"Ahh, we'll have to introduce her to Legacy. She's a lot more serious, a bit like Hood actually."

"Huh, would have figured, er, I mean, you don't strike me as someone who would go for that?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Ah nothing," he held his hands up in surrender, "it's just… I don't think I can answer that safely?"

I gave him a very flat look.

"You just seem nice, open, friendly." He shrugged. "Legacy sounds… I don't know, stiff, serious. I guess I'm just curious how she caught your interest."

I gave Gallant a halfhearted glare as I chewed over the question, and whether or not I wanted to answer. It wasn't really any of his business, but it didn't cost me anything to answer. More than that, I was a little offended on Taylor's behalf. He didn't know her. Hell, he'd met her once and by all accounts that was right after her trigger while she was still coming to grips with having a voice in her head. It was downright rude of him to be making assumptions based on so little information.

"Legacy is… driven. When she commits to something, she throws herself into fully. I've seen her practice her archery for a couple hours at a time without getting distracted at all. Even when there were people trying to talk to her. She didn't even hear them when they shouted her name. She's like that with a lot of things. Though usually not that bad. Cooking, sparing, heroics in general… You know she started reading the handbooks almost as soon as she got them? I've never met a Ward that didn't procrastinate on that, but she just jumped in feet first."

I took a moment to gather my thoughts while shining my flashlight down a shadowed alley. No people but I startled a cat into bolting away.

"She's like that with people too. It's a bit harder to notice but if you pay attention, she sort of keeps her distance from people at first. Though once she gets to know someone and decides to trust them, her walls come down bit by bit. And while she lets you in a bit more she's always just there being supportive."

"How so?"

"It's the little things. You have a bad day? Your favorite snack turns up on the coffee table. Want to talk? She has time to listen. Fall asleep on the couch? Wake up under a blanket… After Leviathan she felt awful. We got back and she threw together a small feast to try and cheer us up even though she wasn't feeling any better. Even now, when she realized her Dad was here and Legend wouldn't let her leave, she immediately found an alternative and did it anyway."

I'd really been thinking about her a lot, hadn't I? It hasn't even been two months though since I met her. How much of what I'd pieced together was true? Was I projecting? Was this just the surface of who Taylor was? How much more was there to learn about her?

"She won't just come out and say it, but if you pay attention to what she does it's clear that she cares."

The silence that followed wasn't uncomfortable, but I still felt annoyed with Dean for asking about Taylor like that. I hadn't needed to answer, but ignoring the question and letting him make bad assumptions would have felt like a betrayal. I let myself return the favor.

"What about you and Vicky? You seem like you care about her a lot, but you've broken up so many times? What keeps drawing you back if there's that much drama involved in dating her?"

Dean glanced at me and winced. No doubt my emotions gave him a decent idea of why I was asking. Maybe it wasn't fair to ask that sort of question when he was already worried about her. Then again, I was plenty worried about Taylor too, so it was an even playing field all around.

"... I might have a bad habit of sticking my nose in where it isn't wanted or welcome." He grimaced. The fact his statement could easily be applied to our conversation was not lost on me. "So sometimes I annoy her. But I have a hard time not asking. I can see what people are feeling, I always know when they're upset about something. How could I not want to check up on everyone around me when it's always right there. The more I learn about people the more I want to learn too. What makes them tick, what makes them happy. We all fit together in this massive mosaic and every piece influences how everyone around them feels. And I always want to know more."

"So you ask."

"Yeah, even when I probably shouldn't."

I only hummed back. I'd take the olive branch for what it was. This time. What few conversations we'd had between patrols had been pretty good before this. If he was just nosy with a tendency to poke landmines out of some mix of curiosity and concern… well I'd just have to be firm about telling him to drop certain subjects should they ever come up.

{}{}{}{}

"If I make it out of this city alive, I'm going to hug Fred." The thought flew through my mind as my arbalest self reloaded one of it's on the spot made flechettes. Fred's tinkering may have added six pounds to its weight, but autoloading and infinite ammo more than made up for that. And right now, that relatively rapid fire was the only thing that made me useful.

Brushing a finger against the flechette I gave it a weak charge and snapped off a shot at Hookwolf. The bolt pinned an extremity to the blacktop and pulled him up short for a moment. It was just enough to stop him from pouncing on Battery. Though her half stifled scream said she'd been tagged.

Hookwolf abandoned his pinned blades just in time to catch a Buick courtesy of Assault. The villain and the car bounced and rolled forty some odd feet along the road. I didn't have time to cheer. I had to snap off a shot at one of the Valkyrie twins who was trying to drag the supply truck away. She side swiped the bolt with her shield. The tip of the bolt fazed through obviously but as the shield hit the rest of it, it ruined my shot and knocked it to the street. I swore and rolled away from the other giantess' spear strike.

I cursed under my breath as I backed away. They were really trying to hurt me. Almost no one in New York would risk that. They all knew damn well that Legend would come down on them like a laser spewing meteor. These villains didn't even hesitate. There were always a few loose cannons, but this was an entire team! How were these lunatics still out on the streets?!

I was beginning to understand why Taylor and Jason were so skeptical about the Protectorate standards for excessive force.

Gallant shot off a few multicolored blasts of light harassing the giantess. It wasn't very effective, but it was enough to force the woman to put all her focus on blocking the blasts with her shield. That bought me breathing room. Just enough to see cricket charging Assault and snap off a shot to intercept her. The woman danced around it which bought Assault the second he needed to reorient on the new threat.

It also distracted me enough to not notice the blast of air which sent me tumbling ass over elbows. By the time I shook the cobwebs out of my head and got back to my feet I was just in time to see Assault get kicked like a soccer ball and go sailing past me. Before anyone could stop her Rune floated the truck into the air. The Empire retreated, and we weren't fast enough to stop them.

{}{}{}{}

We were getting checked out by a few paramedics when word came down that Lung had moved on one of the camps. We weren't even half way there when dispatch reported Lung and the ABB had made off with a truck's worth of supplies. Three dead troops, a dozen injured, and multiple burned civilians. When we all got back to base Phantom wouldn't stop fussing over Red Hood because some idiot shot him. And Hood was exasperated because, like always, it barely left a bruise. That little bit of normalcy didn't numb the shock of the fatalities nearly as much as I'd have liked. And I hadn't even been there to see the bodies.

{}{}{}{} Two Days prior to Merchant raid

The people were shouting. Some of them were heading out into the city in spite of all the villains and criminals running around unchecked. They were leaving the safety of the camps. Not many, but when the camps all had a few thousand people… well even a small percentage wasn't a small number. I hoped they wouldn't go far. That they just needed to get away from the shouting. But I suspected many had decided to throw their lots in with one of the gangs.

I eyed the crowds carefully, they were shifting and moving almost like schools of fish; separating and combining, surging and receding. Then a brick flew out of the crowds towards us and pandemonium broke out. Some people broke away, others surged forward. And all around me troopers and heroes shouted back and braced.

There was a heart stopping moment when I realized the mob wasn't going to back down, that they were going to beat us down. Beat me down. They could kill me. They were just angry desperate people and they could kill me, and I'd have to fight them and I didn't know what to do! I wasn't trained for this! I couldn't stop this many people without killing a lot of them, and they were just people. They didn't deserve that. What was I even supposed to do?!

Before I could figure it out, containment foam bathed the first few rows of people. Seconds later tear gas landed behind the new wall of white foam and stuck bodies. There was a moment of indecision, the energy in the air wavering, and then the mob broke. Screaming and shouting they fell back. Mostly they fled back into the camp, but some broke away heading into the city.

I could hear my own pulse pounding in my ears. Feel my heart trying to beat out of my chest. And in that moment, I looked down and realized I had raised my arbalest. The tip of the flechette was charged and shaded by my power. I didn't remember lifting it. I didn't remember using my power. All I remembered was the mob getting closer.

Everything after that was a blur until Phantom pushed me down into a folding chair and looked at me like she thought I might just vanish.

"Lily, you alright? You've been out of it for almost half an hour?"

I blinked at her blankly as what she said sank in.

"I," My throat voice croaked and I realized that my mouth and throat were uncomfortably dry. I snagged the canteen off of my belt and took a sip. It helped. "They were going to hurt us."

"I know." Dani admitted quietly.

"They're just normal people and they were going to hurt us, maybe kill us, and for what?" My eyes were stinging and my throat felt tight. "All we've done is try to protect them and they-" I closed my eyes and shook my head. "I almost shot back. If they hadn't broken off I, I might have-"

Dani's arms wrapped around my shoulders and dragged me into a hug. I wasn't sobbing, I wasn't breaking down.

But I was crying.

Being a hero wasn't supposed to be like this. We were supposed to be helping people, and they were supposed to support us because we put ourselves on the line to do it. But we could barely help at all here, and it wasn't enough for these people. We'd been here less than a week and I was already homesick for the packed streets and crowded skyline of New York.

{}{}{}{}

"Piggot's sending a group to the camps around Captain's Hill." Jason said as he stood in the doorway of the Wards room and looked us all over.

Dani and I were both on our feet in an instant ready to volunteer. But Jason waved us back down.

"No one is being stationed there and it won't be a lengthy visit either. New Wave dropped off the map not long after Leviathan but now they're moving again. But only around Captain's Hill. We could really use Panacea's help. Hell, we could use any help, but especially a healer's. Only problem is Lady Photon, in no uncertain terms, told the Director that she wasn't going to let any member of her family get farther from her than a short flight right now. The Director wants to see if we can send people to Panacea instead. We really need Clock and Armsmaster back in action. Not to mention the number of injured troopers."

"Jason, it's still a chance to see Taylor. I, we need to know if she's alright. You heard the reports of what happened with Mush. She needs us." I tried very hard to keep my tone professional.

Jason breathed out a sigh.

"I know, and I hate to say this Lily, and don't think it's a mark against you... but short of an actual psychiatrist I'm a bit more familiar with what she's going through. Even if the circumstances are different."

I hated that he had a point.

"That doesn't mean I can't help!"

"Would you even come back?"

I opened my mouth to shout something back and instead… nothing.

"I'm sorry Lily, I know it isn't fair. I know it isn't right. But the truth is between New Wave, Taylor and the National Guard those camps are better staffed and better defended. And the only ones they've had to deal with are the Merchants. We need you here. We need everyone here. If Piggot didn't think sending capes was necessary for a show of force she'd just be sending a couple of troopers. We're not even supposed to be there more than an hour."

I looked into his face and I could tell he hated this just as much as I did. It didn't make me feel any better about it. It didn't make me like it. I turned on my heel and walked away. Then I slammed the door to my temporary room. I was really beginning to hate this city.

{}{}{}{} Morning after the Merchant Raid

The early morning conference wasn't anything new, but the high tension in the room was... a bit more than the norm. A lot more actually.

"I'll try to make this as brief as possible. I know several of you only just got off the night shift, and several of you are no doubt still nursing your first coffee." Piggot's words were direct, but her voice was tired. "Last night the Merchants launched a raid on one of the Captain's Hill camps. They killed more than a dozen people, made off with a number of supplies, and kidnapped a dozen young women. The National Guard and the on site heroes organized a raid in retaliation. They have arrested just over twelve hundred individuals including the full roster of Merchant capes. Due to just how badly understaffed we are, and because of concerns as to what actions such a raid might provoke from the gangs, and the rushed nature of the raid... Deputy Director Renick made the judgment call that the Protectorate and PRT would not participate. Which is why you are all only hearing about this after the fact."

Several people around the table seemed stunned. A few seemed angry but I was having a hard time focusing on that. Taylor had needed help, again, and I couldn't be there. None of us were there. We had left her on her own. And I couldn't even yell about it now because it had already happened and nothing I could say about it would matter. Later. I would vent later. As soon as the door shut behind me, I was going to start venting. And I was sure Dani would agree with me, even if helping would have meant missing out on sleep last night.

"I'm not thrilled with how it happened. Or with the fact that at least twenty people died from either being trampled or from health problems related to tear gas. I'm very unhappy that this happened in my city without my input or support." The way she said it I wasn't sure if she was angry with Deputy Director Renick, the National Guard, or both.

"Still the Merchants are no longer a threat, and that at least is good news." She stopped and sighed. "Unfortunately, that's the only good news… The city aquifer is no longer properly separated from the ocean. It's brackish to the point of being unhealthy. Between the existing damages, and the cost of setting up proper filtration, as well as taking into account how long it would take to set that up and the costs of temporary measures until the problem can be addressed…" The woman leaned back in her seat. It was like watching a weight lift off her shoulders, even as she seemed suddenly older, and frailer. "Brockton Bay has been declared unsalvageable."

There was shouting from a number of the locals. Jason, Dani, and I all shared looks. We weren't that attached to the place. Given some of the nightmares I'd been having about Leviathan and mobs I might actually hate it. If the city was going to be fully evacuated then we were leaving. Much sooner than expected. I think we'd all be happy to see Brockton Bay in the rearview mirror. I was a little worried about how Taylor might take it, but she rarely had anything good to say about the city so I hoped it wouldn't hit her too hard.

When the shouting eventually died down Director Piggot chose to ignore everyone's objections and simply pick up where she had left off.

"Given that Captain's Hill is now the most secure part of the city, evacuation will begin there and then the National Guard and capes will reinforce our camps here before we get the rest of the civilians out. With any luck the news that the city is being abandoned will push the gangs to stop harassing us and instead have them start relocating. If we can ease off some of the pressure we hopefully won't need to deal with any more riots."

"Red Hood, when Legacy gets here, I expect her to fall in line under your command. When she was half a city away I could pretend to ignore the problem, but that won't work when she's working with us. I don't care if she quits as soon as she gets back to New York. Just keep her on a short leash until then."

Jason nodded. I wanted to object but I was too relieved to care.

"That's it, people. We've got to keep things moving for a bit longer. I know we're all tired, but in two weeks this should all be behind us and we'll have a chance to breath before any new assignments come down the line. So for now, stay calm, stay safe, do your jobs, and we'll all get through this. Dismissed."

Her bit said the Director stood from her chair and moved to leave. Armsmaster started shouting out patrol routes for the day and the local Wards attempted to shout over him to get their questions answered.

I just leaned back in my chair and breathed out slowly. Knowing that the end of this assignment was in sight at last was a genuine relief. Now we just needed to convince Taylor to come back with us.