Calamitous (Kaylor)

4

 The next few weeks were quiet for Karlie's department. They hadn't heard a peep from the informant in over a month, and Karlie was beginning to worry that maybe Catastrophe had discovered their identity and had them silenced. She didn't know if the gang was still doing jobs without the police catching wind of it or if they were just laying low for the time being.

While it was relaxing to not have to go out late at night to try to catch Catastrophe anymore, Karlie found herself getting bored. She didn't have a lot of detective work to do - the occasional missing person or stolen car wasn't much to get excited about. But tracking down a notorious criminal mastermind who happened to be as mysterious as she was beautiful? That was something the detective enjoyed, no matter how much scolding she received whenever the blonde leader escaped her grasp for the umpteenth time.

This is why, when she was alerted to alarms going off in a nearby office building late one night, she decided to tag along. She needed something to break up the monotony of her job, and this seemed like as good an opportunity as any.

They quickly made their way up to the level that had been breached. Karlie burst through the door and was shocked to see the guards in a full-on brawl with some dangerous-looking women. So they ARE still active, Karlie thought, scanning the room quickly as her squad joined in. But where is Catastrophe?

Noticing the newcomers, the gang quickly disengaged, backing toward an open doorway on the other side of the room. The officers were thoroughly beaten, slumped around the room, many of them unconscious. Karlie understood that this was a fight they would not win today - but she might as well try to get some information out of it.

"Arsyn?" she called out, recognizing the short, dark-haired woman across the room. "Care to explain what's going on here?"

"I don't think that's any of your business," Arsyn snapped.

This girl doesn't like to talk. "Well, I think it is," Karlie pressed. "And I'd also like to know why your leader isn't here."

"You should know, you're the ones who injured her," a young woman that Karlie didn't know blurted out from the back. Arsyn snapped around and glared at her, which made her fall silent and step back behind another woman.

"Kitty Cat's injured, huh?" Karlie mused. "It's been nearly six weeks, what did she do, break a few bones?"

"Once again, that's none of your business," Arsyn hissed. "And don't talk about her like that. She'll murder you on sight after I tell her about your little nickname game."

"You do that. She won't do anything. I'm pretty sure she enjoys our 'cat and mouse' games as much as I do."

The hatred that shone in the eyes of the gang was so strong that Karlie almost felt like she was burning. Deciding to back off, she rolled her eyes and gestured toward the exit. "There's the door. Are you going to leave so I can get these losers to a hospital?" she waved her arm at the officers lying around the room.

Arsyn looked like she wanted to argue, but she decided not to engage, instead turning to lead the group out of the building. Many of the women sent baleful glares toward Karlie as they left. After the last one was long gone, Karlie sighed and looked at the carnage around her. She took out her phone and made a call. "Hello? Yes, can I get a clean up crew down here?"

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"What do you mean, you got caught? Arsyn! You should know to be more careful!" Catastrophe scolded the shorter woman. In the weeks since the incident, Cat had grown bored of her existence. She sat around as her ankle healed, giving orders and directing her crew, but unable to participate in any jobs. This is why Arsyn's job was important - Cat usually could trust her to do the right thing, so the gang had been carrying out small jobs under her leadership over the past month.

After the scare six weeks ago, when Cat had been injured and Arsyn had gone missing, Cat was reluctant to send any of her girls out to carry on their normal activities. Sure, Arsyn had turned up the next morning, explaining that she had been followed and had to lose her tail, and Cat's ankle would be fully healed in just a few days now, but the memory of it kept her wary.

Never before had a job gone so wrong. None of the girls had ever been injured in the line of work, save for a few bumps and bruises and the occasional minor stabbing. Going from this stellar record to having their leader shot out of a tree and having to sit around with a broken ankle for six weeks sure was a shock.

And now Arsyn had messed up this job. Cat trusted her, she really did; Arsyn was a formidable and charismatic leader who could get just about anyone to follow her orders. She was just a little impulsive sometimes, so when the orders weren't good, things could go foul. She also had a bit of an authority problem herself, mixed with a stubborn streak a mile wide.

"Oh, come on! It wasn't my fault that Homeslice didn't notice the tripwire to the alarm," Arsyn protested, rolling her eyes.

"Actually, it is! It's your job to notice everything, and to inform your crew of it," Catastrophe countered. "A good leader takes responsibility for anything that happens during a job, good or bad."

"So we agree that it was your fault that the police were waiting for us six weeks ago," Arsyn spat hotly. Cat stared at her, taken aback. Where is she going with this?

"That was not something any of us could have predicted, Arsyn," she chided. "I did my best to get us out of there safely - we all did - and I was the only one who paid the price. It's in the past; let's learn from it and move on." Her deputy was quiet for a moment, then relaxed, a sorrowful expression on her face.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I know I was out of line. And I was sloppy today. I've just been really stressed, you know? Being a leader is harder than I expected. We need you out there."

Cat patted the seat next to her and Arsyn gratefully sunk into it, pressing closely against Cat's side. The blonde sighed and rested her head on the other woman's shoulder. "I'll be back to normal soon," she murmured. "Until then, I trust you to do all you can to keep the girls safe and to lead them well." She felt Arsyn nod, and she closed her eyes, relaxing against the shorter girl.

"Did you at least find what I sent you for?" she asked quietly a few moments later, breaking their companionable silence.

"No, Cat. It wasn't there. It must be at their other building." Catastrophe groaned and ran a hand through her hair frustratedly.

"That's what I was afraid of. Launching an assault there won't be an easy task."

Arsyn turned and pressed a kiss to the blonde's forehead, which got an appreciative hum in response. "We'll manage," she said, rubbing Cat's arm soothingly. "We always do."