Chapter Text
The first thing Taylor does is… step. Out of the locker, into the bay. Landing bodily in the water, she shakes her head, clothing and hair heavy, but forceful kicks keep her head above it to keep from drowning. Now that she’s no longer stuck - unable to move, in a box, in… - she looks down, seeing how she seems ever so slightly cleaner.
Stepping again, she goes from salt water to standing in her own bathtub. Reaching over, she turns the water on, and climbs out of her clothing. It’s cold under her shower, but now that she’s no longer panicking as bad, she can survive.
Maybe.
She tosses her clothing to the floor, ignoring how disgusting it is, and just… sits and shakes, water pouring over her. Clutching her legs to her, she puts her chin on her knees, staring at nothing. She’s not sure how long it is, but by the time she feels… stable enough to get up and dry off, the water is cool, but not quite cold.
She finds herself sitting on her bed, fully dressed, and her journal of the various things the Trio have done in front of her, not yet filled out. She stares down at it, wondering why she’s not writing. It takes far more time than it should to realize that while her hand is moving, she doesn’t have a pen in her fingers.
Setting it down, she stands up, and searches for a pen, just as something - anything - to do, so she doesn’t start screaming. She finds herself standing in front of the mirror, and the person she sees staring back doesn’t even feel like her. Doesn’t feel like herself, doesn’t look like her, and when she moves her arm, the arm in the mirror may move, but her own perception of the arm is so disconnected it may as well not be happening.
Her eyes move slowly from the reflection to her hand then to the face in the mirror, repeating a few more times. Her hand moves, and she picks up the towel sitting there, rubbing it in her hair to dry it, almost futilely. She’s not sure what she’s doing, but she hears someone say, “I can’t stay here,” over and over. The mirror person’s mouth is moving, just in time to the voice. Over and over and over and-
Taylor takes a step.
When her foot lands on the ground, she’s in a place she’s only seen in pictures. It’s hot, muggy, and she’s … okay.
It’s okay.
Maybe.
But for now, she needs to go do something else, something better. And maybe that something is … oh. Whoops.
She touches her face, shaking her head. Time to get a mask. One of the ones for people with glasses. She checks her pockets, and she has her wallet. More than enough to get to somewhere that isn’t the old and defunct theme park her parents went to in Louisiana.
A glance around shows the slowly rotting remains of the roller coaster she knows her parents kissed in front of, and slowly feels more and more creeped out. Yeah, this is not the place for her. But she can just take a step-
And place her foot back in her bathroom. It’s the only real room with no windows that are easy to see into, so it’s perfect for coming and going.
She grimaces at the wet and filthy clothing on the floor, but ignores it to go find some old masks. She knows she has some old frames she can modify into them and wear those.
--
The mask is not a mask at all, but a pair of older ski goggles of her mother’s that fit over her glasses. They’re a bright and reflective yellow, that hide her face easily. While digging through the various things in the closet reveals a faded black newsboy cap, and an about as faded long coat of her father’s. The hat fits when she tucks up her hair, and the jacket is a little large on her, but works just fine as a costume with the benefit of being warm.. Standing in front of the full length mirror, she stares at herself with her outfit with a yellow belt around her waist, old black boots on her feet, and faded black jeans.
She looks silly, but also not like she’s wearing something just anyone will wear. She’ll probably buy something specifically for her costume when she has money in whatever name she decides for being a cape. She doesn't want people to have easily traced ways of seeing that Taylor Hebert is buying it. Taylor stares blankly for a bit longer, then… takes a step.
Her foot crunches down on snow. Looking around, she can see her breath as she breathes. Tucking her hands in her pockets, she walks for a bit, going towards the sounds of what exactly she wants to see. The sounds fill the air, and she crests a hill.
Below her, there’s a large amount of penguins, and off to the side, she can see some scientists doing whatever the hell it is scientists do in Antarctica. It’s summertime here, so it’s not dark and miserable. She takes a step, and she’s right behind them.
Leaning over, she asks, “What ‘cha doin’?”
One of them, a woman, says, “We’re studying the habits of Emperor Penguins. We need to get some weighed, if we can. The eggs are going to be hatching soon, so that won’t help us too much.”
“Cool,” she says, staring at the penguins who are carrying eggs between their feet.
Another scientist snickers, as one of the others sighs and says, “It stopped being funny ages ago. How are you still hung up on this?”
“Cool,” the snickering scientist says, giggling harder.
Taylor hums, then says, “So, you guys have any food? Walked here from America, and boy are my legs tired.”
“Isn’t that supposed to be flew in, and your…” The talking scientist turns, trailing off at the sight of her. “Ah… How… how did you get here?”
“Walked,” she repeats, shrugging. “A little cold right now, actually. My hair’s kinda wet.” Drier since it’s been a while since the shower, but still a little wet. “I can head off, since I don’t want to get a cold or anything.”
“...Why are you here?”
“Penguins.”
“...Oh,” the scientist says faintly.
Another says, “You better not be thinking about building a base here, we deal with enough idiots who suddenly assume just because Antarctica is-”
“Nah,” she interrupts. “Had a… really shitty day, now I got powers. Wanted to see penguins.”
One of them curses, and walks over to her, putting out his hand. She cautiously shakes it, and he says, “Dr. Richardson. Let’s go sit down, and we can talk.”
“Okay?”
She follows him as he leads her from the other scientists and as he says, “So, you’re the first cape that’s shown up the day of their trigger, so this will be a bit difficult for me, but you seem… lost.”
She shrugs, then realizes he can’t see her do it. “I dunno. Maybe?”
He sighs, and carefully steps back, putting a hand on her shoulder, “Come on, I’ll explain things. It’ll be nice to get you out of the wind, and a little warmer.”
“Explain what?”
“What a Trigger is, for one. After that? I’ll explain various options you have. Bet you think you should be a hero, right?”
“I dunno.” The idea of being a hero isn’t as appealing as it could be, not anymore. Constant attacks by those in power and her former friend leave a kind of sour taste in her mouth. Still, maybe she will, maybe not. No one can keep her contained. She doesn’t even really need to step, so she won’t be stuck in one place ever again. Stepping just feels like the right word for what she’s doing, if not what she’s actually doing.
“Ah, a villain, huh?”
She shrugs, “Not really?”
He hums softly, “Well, how about I talk to you, and we figure things out?”
“Sure.”
They sit down in a tent, and he explains what a Trigger is. She just kind of nods, and finds herself explaining what all has been going on in her life. The loneliness, the want to just leave, the feeling of how nothing is helping, everything, including the shit going on in Brockton Bay. It isn’t like some dude in Antarctica is gonna know who the fuck she is, so whatever. She keeps it to first names only and doesn’t name her city, but that’s about it.
Eventually, Dr. Richardson says, “That sucks, kid. I wouldn’t want to be a hero, either, if you can’t trust any authority, and that you have fucking superpowered Nazis in your city no one is getting rid of. When I was growing up, shit like that would have justified shotgun justice.”
“Yeah.”
He leans back in his chair, humming a little in thought, then says, “I’ll be honest, kid. I’d figure out what all you can do with your powers, then make a killing on them. You said you went from the United States to here with your powers, right?” She hums an agreement, and he gestures at nothing, “That’s fucking expensive, even if all you’re doing is delivering packages that can fit in your pocket. More than that? Well, that’s even more pricey. Test what you can do.”
She tilts her head, “I can see if I can take you?”
“... alright.” He starts to stand up, “We can-”
“Stay seated.”
He sits back down, “If you’re sure.”
She stands up, and takes a step.
Dr. Richardson laughs next to her, still seated in his chair, as they end right next to the rest of his team. He claps his hands a few times, slow and impressed, “How many do you think you could take?”
She shrugs, “I’m not sure.”
He gathers the rest of his team together, and has her move them. She takes a step, and lands easily back where all the tents are. He asks her with a smile, “How’s that?”
Taylor tilts her head, “Not too much harder, really.” She can feel there is a limit, but isn’t sure exactly what that limit is. She should test it, though. Maybe research at some library, and figure things out. Not in Brockton Bay, of course, but she can go to other places in costume and find a library.
She just needs a picture to know where to go, is all.
The other scientists murmur to each other, and Dr. Richardson quiets them down before turning back to her. “You want to spend some time with us, see if you’re able to move other things?”
She shrugs, “I dunno.”
He laughs, “How about you put us back, and go spend time figuring things out? You’re welcome to stay, but you probably want to just… go.”
She nods, “... I do. I just… I don’t want to stay in one place.” She won’t be stuck, won’t be forced to remain in place ever again.
“Could you take us back?”
She does so easily, just taking a step that places everyone back at the research area. “There you go.”
Dr. Richardson walks over to her, “You can come visit us whenever you want, kid. We should be around here for a while. Show up about once a week, and we’ll tell you when we’re heading back to the more permanent spots.”
Taylor nods, taking his hand to shake. “Thank you. You were… a lot of help.”
He gives her a crooked smile, “Got a niece about your age. If I didn’t help you, what kind of uncle would I be? A bad one, that’s what!” He barks out a laugh.
She giggles a little, joining him even if it isn’t much of a joke. It feels nice to laugh, and she wonders if she can keep smiling as time goes on. “We don’t want that,” she says weakly.
He chuckles, “Right. Now, you head home or someplace warmer. You may be in a coat, and this is about the warmest Antarctica will get, but you are thin as a rail. Go get something warm to drink, and stop shivering.”
She nods, “I'll do that.”
“Good,” he says kindly, waving to her as she moves away from him.
She waves back as she takes a step, arm going down as she lands in front of that pyramid in Las Vegas. It’s real big, that’s for sure. But now she’s no longer shivering, so that’s good. She isn’t sure she wants to stay here, but at least it isn’t biting cold wind.
She looks around, and walks into the building. She’s pretty sure it’s a hotel, and the person at the front desk won’t tell her to fuck off if she waits her turn and asks where the library is, or for a picture, maybe. If they are rude, she can go to another place.
Waiting in line is boring, but acceptable, and when she gets there, she lets the lady go through her greeting before asking, “Could I see a picture of a library?”
The woman stares at her for a full second, then says, “I… I guess?” She turns to the computer, typing in quickly, and showing Taylor the monitor. “Here you are?”
Nodding, Taylor says, “Thanks. I hope you have a good day.”
“You, too.”
She walks back to the door, since it would probably be super rude to use her powers to leave. This is a casino and a hotel, so they probably will get upset if she does. No telling where she is, and so on.
But when she’s back on the sidewalk, she takes a step, and walks into the library. Heading to the desk, she talks to the librarian, who smiles and points out where the computers are, and explaining she only has half an hour on them unless she has a library card. Since she doesn’t, she’ll live with that half hour.
She gets on PHO, making a new email to make a new account called Walkabout. She knows there are cape accounts, so may as well take advantage. She uses one tab for that, asking what prices are good for using powers to transport goods instantaneously, and another tab for just searching for images of various places to visit. The places all seem interesting, but she mostly focuses on the pricing in the Rogue boards.
Especially since the prices are… eyebrow raising. The payment people will do just for items is massive, to get it to another person quickly, but transporting people is where it is at. She can do just a few transports, and she will be making more money than most people see in their lives. That has her researching how to open a bank account in a cape identity. Not the easiest, but it is doable. She needs to visit a PRT building, and get an ID, and then figure out what her address for mail will be, and it just…
Taking a deep breath, Taylor leans back, stretches, and runs her hand through her hair, catching her hat with her other hand. Setting her hat in her lap, she twists her hair back in a bun, slamming a pencil from her pocket through it, and focuses on the computer. She does write down what she needs to do, so she can do it, and also notes that she should buy a camera as soon as she can.
Unfortunately, it is much too soon when the half hour is up, so she signs out of everything, noting down the names on her paper, and gets up, tucking the paper on her inner jacket pocket. She puts her hat on, nodding to the nice librarian as she heads out, and when she’s outside, she takes a step.