“YOU WANT TO DO WHAT?!”
Ishtar leaned back with the sudden rush of wind that blew over her in the wake of Marta’s outburst. Ishtar made a face, reag up to scratch at her nose. Hm. Perhaps I should have brought that up more tactfully. She thought as Amos burst into ughter on the couch tht. She turowards him ahe thud of his body as he fell onto his side, howling with mirth. He rolled off the cushions and nded on the ground. Is he kig his feet?
“Marta,” Car insisted from Ishtar’s left, “Even just agreeing to it could snatch just a small amount of peace back, the world his.”
Marta let out a groan, “Look at her!” she barked, “She is in no dition to be doing anything! Let alone having a meet and greet with Liberty!”
Ishtar flexed her fingers, galled, her muscles were still atrophied. That was why she felt so weak. The sequences of invoking Visage were more dire than she could have imagined. It had quite literally sucked the strength right out of her. Even so, she was feeling well enough to move her torso. She took a breath and sought patience while Amos pulled himself bato the couch. Marta is just doing her job as caretaker and guardian. She turned her head towards Car and sidered her. If the war breaks out too soon, though, I won’t be able to py a role either way. All that preparation Sonya had put into pce, wasted. There are still some final details to settle as well.
“Marta,” Ishtar said patiently, “We ime.”
Marta’s rant trailed off and she let out a sharp sigh, “You’re itted to this?”
“She wants Ishtar at the meeting and she wants the Pandora ittee to facilitate it,” Ishtar said, “I will cede, I am not good at people without Sonya’s assistance, but I uand her mind, I know what she wants. She wants to make a point of the Pandora ittee begging Ishtar to e. It will raise questions and undermihe ittee’s standing. With what she’s dohe Pandora ittee is desperate to avoid a war even with the iional ittee’s blood boiling. Though I believe war is iable.”
Car let out a sigh, “I hadn’t sidered her using it as a public retions assassination.”
Ishtar chuckled, “You don’t think like a vilin, I do,” she said and held out her hand, palm to the ceiling, “The trick is trolling the narrative. I imagine she sent the ditions very securely?”
“Yes, just as we sent a specialist to keep things quiet, so did she,” Car said.
“I thought so,” Ishtar said with a grin, “Because she wants my appeara the event to be squarely on the Pandora ittee’s shoulders. Sonya’s appearance will be the cession she emphasizes,” Ishtar ched her fist, she imagihat irritating woman’s head popping like a ripe tomato in her palm. Her lips curled, “So we take the initiative and use those so-called demands for our own be.”
Marta grunted, “That is all depending oher or not you go. I’m putting my foot down here, you’re in no dition to go. She will take one look at you and kill you. She wants Sonya dead for her role in Cass’ life. If she found out how Cass sees her now she’d lose her mind.”
Ishtar opened her mouth but Marta tinued speaking.
“If I go as Sonya she won’t see an injury on me, I ’t fake it and that’s why she wants Sonya there, I’m guessing. I put her fa but that’s it. If I go as Ishtar…” Marta said, “You’ll be sitting in Sonya’s seat, in this state and, I’ll repeat myself, she will kill you. I’ve fought her before. She is a monster.”
Ishtar raised her hand to her and sidered it, “You’ve been learning.”
“I spend a lot of time around you, ma’am,” Marta said.
Ishtar leaned ba the couch, I wish I could y legs, she thought with a sigh before turning to Amos, “How long do you think it will take to finish your project?”
He whistled, “That’s not an easy o e up with,” he said, “I’m reverse engineering an ability and basically building a rept. Those impnts were just simutions of teopathy, they used a lot of pre-pandora ted post-pandora materials to achieve the desired effect. This is the real thing,” he said, “It’s like… w with magie of the things in those eyes of yours were just impossible by pre-pandora standards of tech.”
“You took a full s of them, every detail,” Ishtar said, “ you not just make copies?”
He chuckled, “It’s a little more plicated than that, boss.”
She sighed, “Timeframe?”
“A month?” he said, “If I pull a few more people off some other projects. That’s a big maybe, by the way.”
“She won’t wait that long,” Car said, “Based on what we’ve mao get out of her, she’s willing to wait at most half that before the promised day.”
“So your eyes won’t be ready,” Marta said, “Then-”
“Then I will focus on other things,” Ishtar said firmly, “Fifteen days, you get Liberty to allow for that long, Car?”
“I… well, yes, of course. It will take some doing but I think she knows that we ’t just ma Ishtar out of thin air. She will have to give us time,” she said befrowling in irritation, “Which I now realize is her way of attempting to humiliate the Pandora ittee.”
“She’ll give you the time,” Ishtar said, “She expects you to either fail and humiliate yourself even with time graciously offered or have Ishtar appear by your request and damage your image. Either way she gets what she wants if she’s patient. sidering how her ability works, the fallout will strengthen her either way if we allow it to py out to her narrative.”
“Ishtar,” Marta cut in, “What oh are you going to do with fifteen days?”
Ishtar paused. She knew what she o do to optimize the time and recover as much of her poossible for that day. It was aremely repugnant prospect, though. She let out a sigh. Do it for Sonya. Perhaps I make some headway with Sonya while I’m at it. Nothing is impossible, she told herself before reag up to rub the bridge of her ’s the most effit option, I o buy time with this meeting. One month. I’ll have my eyes and my other preparations should be done by then.
She felt all eyes on her, “You don’t seem happy about whatever it is,” Amos ented, “What? Are you gonna have Bck Lotus move in or something? She was treating yht?”
Ishtar lowered her hand and turo face him, her expression stony even with her eyes closed.
Silenihe room.
“Ooooh,” Amos said, realization dawning, “That’s… not ideal.”
“You hate each other,” Marta chimed in.
“Does Bck Lotus know about your split?” Car asked.
Ishtar rubbed her temple with her good hand, she was feeling a headache ing on, “Yes,” Car went quiet for a moment and Ishtar turo her, “You couldn’t know, given your position. The Mythic heroes are ofte from the truth dete process. I assume you are now as well, but there hasn’t been time.”
Car sighed, “I know, it still stings.”
“It’s going to be hell,” Marta said, bringing them back to topic, “If you want to get anywhere he point where you could survive the enter if she decides to sh out. Do you even think you get enough of those things out of you to make a difference?”
“It’s all hands on deck, then,” Amos said with a grunt as he hopped to his feet, she heard him brush his hands off, “I’ll whip something out to make the process easier and tell Da-Som he’s going to be on boss-dy duty for the wo weeks,” Amos said, getting right down to business, “Maybe we should get Beyol in on this.”
“Wise,” Ishtar said, “I’ll talk to him about it. I o che with him and Barry anyway.”
“Barry’s on schedule,” Marta said primly, “Beyol is sending a report today on his findings so you talk to him about them when you call. I informed both of them that you were mobile.”
Ishtar smiled, “As effective as ever, Marta dear.”
“If we’re doing this, I am going to make sure all of our bases are covered, ma’am,” she said.
“Beyol? Barry?” Car asked.
“Bckrazor and Kingshark,” Amos said offhandedly as he started to walk away, “I’m off, shit to do, ’t leave my evil weather mae alone for too long.”
“Bck-” Car gasped, “W-wait a sed I o process,” she stumbled over her words, “Are you actually building a weather mae?!”
Amos burst into ughter as he left, “Sure thing, it’s in my skull shaped fortress on an isnd of ierminate location!” he shouted as he walked out.
Ishtar smirked as the womao her let out a long suffering sigh, “He was always so nice when I dealt with him at the Pandora ittee, is this what he’s really like?”
“You should see him when he and Sonya py fighting games,” Ishtar said with a chuckle before turning to look up at Marta, “Marta dear, ye a meeting with Bck Lotus?”
Marta hesitated, but ultimately relented. Ishtar knew she wasn’t happy, but this was the way things o go. The soohey got things started, the better. “Very well, ma’am. I will make the necessary arras.”
–
Ishtar’s world ain.
Every cell in her body screamed as the strange energy from Bck Lotus’ palm worked its way through her body. She felt it move, pushing against the numerous roadblocks in the form of Visage’s seeds. The stream that they ran down bucked and shifted with each ge of the flow, gentle ebbs that turned into mind-numbing agony when the seeds shifted. She gripped the sheets on the bed and gasped before snappieeth back together. She could feel one of the seeds starting to loosen. Almost there.
“Should I let up?” Bck Lotus asked.
“Don’t,” Ishtar grunted, “You dare.”
“Fine, have it your way,” Bck Lotus growled and Ishtar felt her redouble her focus. It was like she could perceive the woman’s state of mind through the e that had formed. Another rush of power crashed through her body and she doubled over, several seeds shuddering uhe onsught. One in particur put stars into her eyes, a seed lodged in her spine. She ched her fists, her nails digging into flesh. The seed wriggled again, whatever was anch it in her body giving way a little more.
“Keep going!” Ishtar croaked and her head spun. She forced herself back to her senses with a growl a four seeds e loose. Her lower spine, her right shoulder, just beh her left breast, and a st one in what she assumed was her kidney. She grabbed hold of them and tried to rex her mind as best as she could. She pulled a Bck Lotus’ fiwit her back.
“Da-Som, be ready!” Bck Lotus called.
Ishtar heard the man race over as she pulled the seeds through her flesh, she felt her body tearih her skin, her muscles and sinew giving way as she yahe offending objects out. The first one surfaced and puhrough her skin. She let out a gasp of pain and a hand touched her arm, “Not yet! A few more!” she wheezed. She pushed, and pushed, and pushed, until four blood soaked seeds fell onto the bed around her. When she slumped, Da-Som quickly put his hand on her shoulder, a prick of pain signalling the use of his ability.
Ishtar shuddered as her body began to heal, the wounds closing where the seeds had vacated. Muscle reached out to attempt to reattach to bone, something hard inside her muscles budged and shifted here and there. She ehe agony until it faded and Bck Lotus pulled her hand away. Ishtar panted with the exertion, s off her face.
“Are you alright?” Bck Lotus asked.
“I’m fine,” Ishar said as Da-Som pulled away. She tested her right arm and tried to roll her shoulder. The movement was difficult and a little painful from the soreness, but she finally enjoyed a full range of motion. Her muscles still felt thin, though. Not enough to restore heroic strength, Ishtar thought and moved on to experiment with her legs. With the seed lodged in her spine gone, perhaps she could move them a little.
She shifted her right leg, then her left, then she kicked her feet. The effort it took to do so was moal though, and she could feel the seeds in her knees and hips. At least I feel them again, she grumbled before sloug where she sat. She was exhausted.
“You did well today,” hua said, “Your meridians are getting strooo. They weren't as shaky this time on my end.
“You’re… taking this seriously,” Ishtar panted.
“Chairwoman Mint told me about what yoing to do, now that she apparently knows everything,” she ented, “This is the right thing to do, even if I’m loath to see you ba your feet. I’d feel better if I was doing this for Sonya.”
“Keep your kinks out of this,” Ishtar rumbled, “I would prefer it if Sonya did not have to experiehis kind of pain.”
“My- what?” Bck Lotus barked before letting out a calming breath, “You’re messing with me.”
“I sider it practice,” Ishtar said.
“How is ing up with iive ways to annoy me while I’m doing you a favor, ‘practice’?” Bck Lotus demanded. Her tone was as hostile as ever but she sat dowo Ishtar anyway. Ishar smirked at her but said nothing, shaking her head. She fell bato the bed ahe plush fabrid mattress support her. She didn’t care that she was getting blood on the sheets. Though she knew Marta would give her a hard time about it ter.
“Just… getting used to it,” she finally said.
“Pretending to be like Sonya?” Bck Lotus asked after a pause.
Ishtar nodded, “Doctor Da-Som?” she called out and the man walked over from where he had retreated. “Thank you for your effort today, that will be all for now I think.”
“Of course, ma’am, always happy to be of service. I’ll collect the seeds and deliver them to Doctor Carter,” he said befathering what he needed aing.
When the door shut, Bck Lotus turowards her, “Are you alright?”
“I’m improving,” Ishtar admitted before feeling something twist in her gut, her lips thinned as she realized what it was. She let out a heavy sigh and turned her head away from the hero sittio her. “Bck Lotus, I know this is not for me. It is for her. It’s why I’m enduring it as well,” she said in a low voice before turning her head towards the ceiling again, “Regardless, I will say this only once…” she trailed off and frowned, struggling with the words. They felt wrong and right at the same time and it irked her that emotions could be so plicated.
“Thank you.”
