Broker
Chapter 290

A pair of golden eyes opened in the dark as a cloud of smoke swirled around the solitary figure sitting in an armchair. He looked down at the smoldering embers in the fireplace, his hand resting on a sphere of polished crystal. His thumb drifted down the smooth surface before his hand slipped away, stopping atop a flask with a name engraved on it: ‘Ironsides.’ He tapped a finger against the name once before picking up a lighter next to the flask. He turned it over in his hand and frowned at its engraving.

‘It’s bad for you, Detective. Love, Ishtar’

He flicked the lighter open and lit it. The flame rose with a spark before leaping from the lighter into his palm. It coiled in the air before darting towards the fireplace, the dying logs bursting into new life. Roaring flames flickered across his face, scattering the shadows that hid the deep scars on his face that cut into his thick beard. Magic. One part of the truth of how the world works. It’s only thanks to my eyes that I understand it. This will even the playing field. He snapped the lighter closed and reached for the crystal ball as a light bloomed in it.

“What’s your status?” Mimir asked.

A moment later the easygoing voice of Maximillian rose from the sphere. “We’ve managed to slip away.”

Mimir frowned. “Were you seen?”

“Haha! Of course not. I got the boy out of there in record time, though it’s a shame about the recording. His phones were damaged somehow,” Maximilian said thoughtfully. “Technocrat, probably. The Major was right; Ishtar and Chernovna are taking advantage of one another. I’m convinced Ishtar doesn’t want Chernovna’s event to be disrupted.”

Mimir closed his eyes. If only I could just tell you myself. “The recordings don’t matter. It’s all a diversion for The Major anyway.”

“I’ll have Drifter back at the hotel where the rest of the press are staying before anyone notices,” Max said. “He’ll be able to rejoin them without issue.”

“Good,” Mimir said. “Have him keep up the pressure. Did he get anything interesting out of it as a bonus?”

“Actually, yes. I’ll send you a report of what he heard,” Max said. “How are things on your end? Did she grab him?”

The door opened to the sitting room, and he looked up, meeting Addison’s patient gaze. The redhead was smiling. He returned her smile and got to his feet. “The Major just got back. I’ll update you when I know more.”

“Understood.”

The crystal ball dimmed, and Mimir approached his second in command. She put her hands on her hips and looked into his eyes. “It’s getting worse. Let me handle it instead.”

He cocked an eyebrow and slipped the crystal ball into his coat pocket. “You do recall that I was a detective at one point, right?” he asked incredulously.

She rolled her eyes. “Come on. Let’s get this done with.”

The two of them walked into the hall, passing a few offices and workspaces that had been set up by other members of this branch of his organization. To call it a proper organization was a bit of a misnomer, though. It was a collective of cells that operated towards a generally unified goal: root out the corruption in the Pandora Committee, oppose the false heroes, and counter the villains. What they were doing wasn’t legal by any standpoint, but Mimir had long let go of the idea that following the legal route would stop what was coming.

His eyes narrowed a little. “Do we have any word on Otis?”

Addison’s nose wrinkled. “We’re keeping a close eye on him. He’s doing a good job keeping up that persona of his, but a few of us have spotted cracks here and there. He’s been starting fires to put out. Disgusting little rat.”

Mimir nodded. “And his minions?”

“Felwinter and Riot are the two big names. He picked up some girl at a hospital that we think he’s going to integrate,” she said. “We still don’t fully understand Riot’s abilities, so we’re avoiding any direct confrontations with him. Felwinter is volatile, so we’re thinking about attempting to set her off in a way that gets her license revoked, at the very least.”

“Just be careful,” Mimir said. “Otis is literally invincible. I know he has a weakness, but the only way we can find out even a hint is…” He scowled. “I’m not ready to cross that line yet.”

“I don’t blame you,” Addison agreed.

“For now, keep working on indirectly hurting him as much as we can. Intercept villains he sets up and arrange for bad press.” He exhaled. “How’s the Saudi op going?” he asked.

“We lost a cell but gained two more. The people in that region are tired of how things are going and are willing to attach themselves to anything other than Erebus,” she said. “Hitting him in the wallet won’t accomplish anything. The local militias and our cells are preparing a series of strikes against the sons that are actively participating in his crimes. They’re asking for any counters we can come up with for his sons’ abilities.”

“I’ll look into it. Get me a dossier on what we know. As long as I’ve seen a similar ability, I should be able to come up with something. Have we figured out which one is the favorite?” Mimir asked.

“That would be one of the youngest, Saleh,” she said. “He’s our priority.”

Mimir nodded. “Good. The rest of Europe?”

“We’ve examined the individuals that have regained their youth, like you suggested. There are a few outliers that we suspect were just purchased youth contracts. However, there is an obvious one given our suspicions. We have a contact who is trying to pull Lucci’s financials but is getting systematically stonewalled by the local government. If Lucci is really associated with Ishtar, we might attract Verde’s attention,” she said. “His group is well entrenched, so I’d rather not risk our local cells against it.”

He scratched his chin. “That’s fine. Stop for now. We didn’t lay low for a year to waste all of our work on a half-assed push for some information that may not even pay off.”

They stopped at a heavy-looking door, and she turned to face him with a serious look. “How are you feeling, really?”

He glanced at her and then shrugged. “If you’re asking about my… fixation. I’m fine. Obsessing over one target is not going to accomplish anything. We have a path, and we’re going to follow it. The plan for dealing with Ishtar has already been set into motion. We just need her to tie the noose herself.”

“And how are we going to get her to do that?” she asked pointedly. “I need more to work with here. I know you can’t actually verbalize it, but there’s got to be something.”

Mimir turned and looked at her. “I need you to go when the time comes. I’ve already had Double-T get you what you and your team will need.” 

“Me?” she asked before wrinkling her nose. She sighed and gave a resigned nod. “Yessir.” She gestured to the door. “Shall we?”

He nodded, and they pushed their way inside. The room was well lit for what amounted to an interrogation room. A single table was set up much like the interview rooms he was familiar with, and the chairs attached to it were the bare minimum of comfort. There were already two people inside. The first was the short-haired Hellion. He was standing off to the side while he glared daggers at the second man sitting in one of the interview chairs with a bag over his head. His wrists were attached to the table by a pair of secured ASTA-brand power suppressors.

Mimir nodded to Hellion, who stormed over and ripped the bag off the head of a thin-haired man with a gaunt face and glassy, off-yellow eyes. The man whipped his head around wildly for a moment before looking up at Mimir. His eyes bulged. “Y-you! How did I get here?”

Mimir frowned at him but kept his mouth shut. Instead, he nodded to The Major, who sat down across from the man. “Representative Dubois, all you need to know is that you are no longer in Dharan, and you won’t be returning in time to see the event. We already have a stand-in set up as well. No one is looking for you. Beyond that, I’m afraid you won’t be getting many answers.”

Dubois paled before leaning back in his seat and swallowing hard. “After those first raids, you went quiet. I see you’ve been busy in other ways, Mim- AUGH!” The man screamed as his eyes darted to the source of the sudden pain. A glowing green needle pierced the flesh of his left palm, sticking out like a pin in a cushion. He gasped and looked wildly at The Major. “What the-”

“You aren’t here to talk to him. Focus on me, Dubois. It will hurt a lot less,” The Major said darkly. Dubois glowered, then squinted at her for a moment before blinking a few times. She leaned back in her seat. “You aren’t wearing your contact lenses, no. We can see your eyes.”

He snarled, his hackles rising as fangs grew in his mouth, “Get to the point, human.”

“We’ll start with something simple for you to warm you up,” she said, before shifting to a more demanding tone. “Where is the main camp?”

Dubois abruptly looked away only to wince and gasp as another needle appeared in his hand. He squeezed his eyes shut and endured two more before he gasped. “Avignon! You pasty little- UGH!”

Mimir took a deep breath and thought over what he knew, considering the details gleaned from the various uses of his ability. With that new information, he tried to compare and contrast details to see if it all matched up. Finally satisfied, he nodded. “He’s not lying.”

“Of course I’m not lying, you goddamn zealot!” Dubois barked. “What point is there in that? Who do you think you are, anyway? Deciding what’s best for this world? Evolution is the next step. It always has been. We demons will inherit- AAAK! SON OF A BITCH! MY HAND!”

“Shut up,” The Major said patiently, pulling her hand away from the second needle and conjuring up a third to twirl between her fingers. “We’re not interested in your babbling. Keep this up and it won’t be me asking questions. I’ll have Hellion do it.”

Dubois’ skin went from pale to a sickly green. He whipped his head towards Hellion, who showed his teeth and snapped a finger, an eerie red flame appearing on his fingertip. Dubois swallowed hard and nodded. “F-fine, perhaps I was a bit hasty. Please, continue.”

Sniveling coward, Mimir grumbled. Just like the rest of them in the Pandora Committee. No wonder it’s so corrupt.

“Your boss is beginning his speaking tour tomorrow. What’s his third destination?” she asked.

Dubois was sweating at this point. “...B-boss? I-I’m a representative for the Pandora Committee. I don’t answer to anyone but-”

“You just went on a tirade about demonkind,” The Major said evenly. “Quit playing games. Last chance. We know you work for him.”

She turned to Mimir and held out her hand. Mimir reached into his coat and pulled out the envelope that monster Blackrazor had dumped on Hellion months prior. He passed it over to her, and she pulled it open, slapping it onto the table. Photos spilled out of Dubois standing with Astaroth, observing humans being carted off into vehicles.

Dubois sank into his seat. “...Why didn’t you just release these?”

“Because then we couldn’t get you talking now. It was a choice between a scandal where Astaroth could flee the country or something better,” Addison said darkly. “We’ll release them if you clam up.”

Dubois sank even further in his seat and sighed. “You aren’t letting me leave,” he grumbled.

“Still depends on you, sort of,” Addison shrugged. “Talk, Dubois.”

He clenched his teeth and spat. “Lord Astaroth is going to start in Bordeaux,” he snarled. “After that, Toulouse, Avignon, and then Lyon.”

The Major turned to Mimir. “We have enough people there to facilitate,” she said. Behind her, Dubois shot up in his seat, wide-eyed.

Mimir ignored the doomed man and nodded. “Good. We’ll proceed as planned then.”

“Last question,” she said and turned back to Dubois. “Who are his lieutenants? We know he’s got heroes-turned-demon operating as his top dogs. I want their names as well as the other patsies like yourself.”

Dubois gaped at her. “Are you insane? Why would I tell you anything now? You just- you’re MAD!”

The Major glared at him. “Hellion?”

A powerful hand was around the back of Dubois’ throat in an instant. Dubois shrieked as dark red flames spread from the vigilante’s fingertips. His veins turned black, his eyes clouded, his teeth turned black, and he started to convulse. “STO- sto-hoh-puh-PLEASE! Okay! Okay!”

Hellion released him, and he gasped, slumping forward in his seat for nearly a minute before he looked up and cleared his throat. “...Pulse, Rosa, Cede, and Sheer,” he wheezed. “Give me a damn pen.”

It only took a few minutes to write everything down. The Major got to her feet with a nod before turning to Hellion, who took the paper and nodded as well. “About half of these are fakes,” Hellion growled, “but the rest check out. We should be able to figure out who he’s omitted based on association. Cede’s a lie as well; I’ve crossed paths with him and didn’t smell it on him. As for the rest, two of them are high-ranking military,” Hellion said with a self-satisfied smile. “We should be able to get the full list out of this with a little cross-referencing.”

Mimir frowned. “I’m glad you’re so satisfied.”

He pointed at Dubois in protest. “He’s a demon, though! After what they did to my brother, I-” He met Mimir’s stare and sighed, nodding. “Fine. I understand.”

Mimir shook his head and turned to head for the door. “Major, make it fast.”

The flash and crack of a gun going off followed him out into the hall. He reached into his coat pocket out of habit and froze, reminding himself once again that he no longer carried cigarettes. He closed his eyes again. It’s what’s necessary. It sickens me to know you’d agree. You and I will always be enemies. But… I understand you now, Chernovna, Ishtar. Better than anyone else ever will. That was why I gave you a chance. 

He exhaled and turned around as the other two stepped out. Hellion was looking disappointed, while The Major just looked grave. “We can have everything ready from Avignon with the spell tablets. I can also get my team to Lyon as well to help.”

“You’re sensing a problem?” he asked.

“The reaction won’t be gentle,” she said. “It will be chaos.”

“For a short time, yes,” Mimir said with a reluctant nod, “but it’s better than being cattle. The people of France have a right to decide their own destiny. No one can do that for them. Not the Pandora Committee, not Ishtar, and not Astaroth. Purge all of the people on that list who would be too difficult for civilians to deal with. Let France sort out the rest.”

“Someone else will step in,” The Major cautioned.

“Which is their right as well,” Mimir growled. “If they also become a problem and if France can’t protect itself again, we’ll deal with it. Our job is to deal with the problems that others won’t, not to rule or control anything. We are a bitter medicine.”

The two of them straightened their backs and nodded. “Yessir!”

Yes, I know I’ve turned into a zealot. Madness held me, but I’ve looked myself in the mirror. I see myself. I was wrong about a lot of things. It was all bravado. Now? Now, you only have yourself to blame for what I am and what you’re up against.

He looked towards the door to the interrogation room. “Have someone clean it up and then get in contact with the team we were thinking about sending to New York to assist the cell there. I’m going to uplift them.”

The Major frowned. “Mimir.”

“I’m fine,” Mimir said testily. “Get them in here. Hellion?”

Hellion cleared his throat. “Yessir?”

“Good luck in France, and don’t forget-”

Hellion sighed. “I know. This isn’t a fight to win. It’s a fight to protect. If the heroes show up, let them handle it and get out of there.”

Mimir put a hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “This is your justice, Hellion. You aren’t an animal like him. I see you. I know the kind of man you are. If the heroes think they’re so special they can run around and play police, let them do it. If we can take advantage of them to further our own goals, so be it.”

Hellion grinned, “I won’t let you down, sir.”

–

Sonya leaned back in her seat and stared at the wall. Her lips formed a line. That reporter stank of Mimir, the questions he asked… Sonya pursed her lips. My gut is just telling me it was him.This is twice now. He’s moving a lot more brazenly. Provoking me. He’s finally decided to take action, but is this specifically a move against me? Her mind started working, her intellect and Art of War kicking into high gear. She felt Ishtar rise to the surface with the ability. That visit in The Hague was exactly what he said it was. A final warning. 

A distraction, very likely. We should look into anything unusual that’s happened in the past few hours. He must have a higher motive. That power of his gives him a lot of insight into your psychology, Ishtar pointed out.

I expected a more audacious move. If he’s taking these kinds of actions, though, his caution is more alarming than any violence could be, she thought. What are you planning, Mimir?

She tilted her head and played with her hair as a shadow formed beneath her. “Don’t obsess over this,” she said. “That reporter will be back, and you’ll have another opportunity. He may be able to hide his face, but I’ll figure out who he is one way or another.”

Blackrazor rose from her feet and knelt. “Yes, Mistress. What of the news agency he works for? Do you suspect the one he gave was a feint?” Blackrazor asked.

“I do,” she said. “I need you on high alert going forward. Mimir won’t stop with this,” she said thoughtfully. “The man’s stubborn as hell.”

“Yes, Mistress.”

Sonya, for her part, stretched out her legs and yawned. She rubbed her eyes and leaned forward, smirking to herself. Not bad, Mimir, for an opening move. Were the scrubs in Indonesia just a way to get me to lower my guard? She scoffed. As for whatever your reporter did to hide his identity from my eyes, that’s a double-edged sword. I’ll know they’re one of yours if I can’t see their name.

Perhaps they’ll come without a disguise next time, Ishtar pointed out. They won’t make that kind of mistake. We’ll have to go by his voice, provided it wasn’t also disguised.

Agreed, I need to watch what I say when the reporters come, Sonya thought before leaning back and cracking open a soda. “Alright, Mimir. Show me what you’ve got. You have my attention.”