Crystalized Munchkinry - Act VI - Chapter 76 (Patreon)

Max didn't know how it happened, but every time something bad happened, it was James who delivered the news.

So, while he was on a phone call, to a casual observer talking about diversification, but to those in the know talking about moving his headquarters far from the Bay, James came in with a grimace on his face, and he knew deep in his guts that he wouldn't like it.

"I have to go, I will call you back."

With that, he hung up, not even giving the person on the other end time to react. Not that he cared. He placed the phone down, and his other hand found a freshly added button on his desk.

After suspecting that the PRT knew about his identity, he had made sure to enhance the security of his office, and that button would turn those specific security measures on.

He and James waited until the small LED next to the button flashed green before he spoke up harshly.

"What in the nine hells happened again?"

James' grimace deepened, and he looked like he didn't really want to be there. Max let out a low growl, and James immediately started talking.

"Well, Sir, while you were working, there was a small skirmish between our guys and the ABB."

"So? Did someone die?"

James nervously shook his head and continued. "No, Sir. Stormtiger, Alabaster, and Fenja went to support them after they called in for said support."

"What the hell was Jessica doing there?"

"Apparently, dropping off some papers or something, and decided to tag along. I don't know why."

"And? Why are you stalling? Spit it out, for God's sake!" spat Max, his fist clenching, wanting nothing more than to skewer the other man.

"Well, they were winning, then Armsmaster showed up. He then used some kind of Tinker tech to turn his motorcycle into a mech suit."

"What?"

"Then Dragon showed up."

"What?!"

"They have been captured. It's on PHO already. Somebody filmed the entire thing."

"What?"

He closed the window on the screen after the video ended, then looked out the window, contemplating once again the sunset and life in general.

He had already seen the video yesterday, when one of his underlings brought it to his attention after a bunch of them returned with their tails between their legs. It was at times like these that he wished Oni Lee hadn't gotten captured. The teleporter was excellent at rapid response. And while he could have personally headed for the fight, his presence alone would have escalated the fight to a level he didn't currently wish to engage in.

Not that the fight was important. He had already begun reorganizing the ABB, knowing that their previous behavior would run afoul of Dragon and, if the rumors were to be believed, the Protectorate, after most of their capes had somehow gotten better and stronger powers.

Seeing what Armsmaster did, he wholeheartedly believed those rumors. Though he had to smile at the memories of his childhood that the transforming motorcycle brought to the forefront.

Maybe…

The reorganization of the ABB resulted in him shutting down all the sex work and related enterprises and distancing himself from hard drugs. A smart businessman knew to change when the market changed.

He decided to invest more heavily in gambling, upgrading their security and facilities and making them seem legal. He even started looking for people with clean backgrounds who could start legal businesses. The other things he invested in were smuggling and forgeries. White-collar crimes were less interesting to the parahumans, so he hoped they would fly under the radar until he was ready with his plan.

Though with Dragon in the city, he didn't expect it to last long.

Not that it mattered. The gang was losing people every day. Some to the police, some to the PRT, some simply leaving for greener pastures, some trying to strike out on their own, and some trying to challenge him for the right to lead the gang.

He let them go. There was no need for people with a weak mentality in his gang.

Valefor walked sedately toward the abandoned golf course in the middle of the night. His only partner on this walk was Blasto, who had been transformed into a full thrall by now.

Knowing that the same thing could happen to someone at any time, as it had with the cleaning woman, he had the man tinker up a compound that would deepen his control over a human, so even if his power wore off, the target would still remain docile and obedient.

After that, and a little interrogation, he found out that Blasto had some kind of animosity going on with Spree, so he simply had the man use some of his idiotic creations to bait the other cape into a position where he could look into his eyes.

After that, and losing a few other thralls to the Teeth cape, everything was pretty much smooth sailing. If Valefor were sane and less consumed by his grief and rage, he would have wondered: Why hadn't the PRT reacted to him yet? But he had only one goal, and that was revenge. Nothing else interested him.

He barely ate, seldom showered, and only concentrated on the tasks he gave his thralls, following them on the cameras that Blasto had access to with paranoid single-mindedness.

After Spree was captured and fed the same compound that Blasto had ingested, Valefor had the Master, over the course of a few days, lure the rest of the capes in the Teeth to him. Soon after capturing the first one, Vex, Hemorrhagha, and Animos were under his control. It turned out Reaver was a fake cape.

He then gave himself a few days to clean up and rest. After all, one should meet destiny in clean clothes.

When he was satisfied, he simply had Spree deliver a letter inviting the Butcher to a meeting.

And now he was on his way to do just that. He didn't know if his plan would work, but what could he lose?

His life?

He snorted a little at that thought, then took another look around, ignoring the placid, empty stare of Blasto behind him.

Nobody was there. That was good. Yet still, something deep inside him was telling him that it shouldn't be this easy…

With great practice, he ignored the small voice of dissent and continued on the trek toward the agreed-upon meeting site.

The moon was barely showing in the clear night sky, so the only light he could see was his own flashlight and the lights the Teeth brought.

Despite his expectations, the infamous villain group was deathly silent as he finished his trek to the 18th hole. Butcher, in her usual armor, stood in the middle, with the four parahumans he had subverted behind her, two on each side.

The waxing moon cast enough light to illuminate her face, allowing Valefor to see the deeply unsettling and beyond-intelligent gaze of the famous villain. He met her gaze with his own as he walked toward the group, Blasto obediently following him.

When he was a few feet away from the waiting group, he stopped and nodded at the Butcher, then waited.

Butcher seemed to observe him for a while, while also glancing with a smirk at Blasto, then carefully and deliberately gave him a slow nod.

Despite himself, he let out a small sigh. He didn't really care about his life, but it was still a relief that Butcher hadn't started by trying to kill him.

"So, what do you want, little Fallen?" asked the woman, her deep voice flat, yet Valefor could have sworn it echoed a little.

Valefor took a deep breath, and instead of answering, he issued an order.

"Restrain and kill."

The parahumans around the Butcher immediately sprang into action. Animos transformed and howled, then sprang forward and bit the woman. The rest distanced themselves while Vex retrieved a gun from his costume.

He had expected a lot of things. Cursing, carnage, and death, but not a Butcher who was calmly standing there, her hand in a vice grip in Animos' mouth while Vex aimed a gun at her eye.

"So that was your plan, little feather friend?"

Valefor watched as the calm vanished, replaced instead with a demented smile.

"Goood! Goood! I enjoy a crafty foe, little friend. We shall have so much fun! So much blood!" exclaimed the villain. Then she began to laugh. "Hahahahaha-"

BAMM.

Vex's gunshot tore through the eye and brain of the woman in a second, splattering Animos with them. He ignored the collapsing body and turned to Vex, who was still holding the smoking gun. After a second, he dropped the gun and fell to the ground, convulsing and screaming in pain.

Valefor watched for minutes as the parahuman turned into the next Butcher. After he saw the same demented smile appear on Vex's face, he barked out another instruction.

"Restrain and Blasto. Kill."

Animos howled again and jumped over to the man still lying on the ground, using his animal body to keep the new Butcher on the ground. Blasto, still looking at nothing, walked forward calmly, picked up the gun, and simply raised it until it was aimed at Vex's eye.

BAMM.

Vex died, and Blasto fell to the ground, only to convulse and scream in pain in the same way. Valefor, meanwhile, kept looking around paranoically, hoping the noise hadn't alerted anyone to their presence. He had deliberately chosen the hole farthest from anything, but he was so close to tasting victory that he couldn't help but worry.

After a few minutes, when Blasto fell silent, he spoke the next order.

"Restrain and Hemorrhagia. Kill."

The woman mimicking the others walked to the gun that he was sure would one day be placed in a museum, picked it up, and shot Blasto through the eyes.

BAMM.

While he waited for the blood-controlling woman's screams to subside, he wondered if he could have done something differently. Maybe if he had been there at the compound, the fight would have gone differently? Maybe he could have used his power for something else?

There were hundreds of questions running through his head, but in the end, all of them were useless because he was committed. He knew that if he were to run, the Butcher would catch him in short order. Plus, it wasn't like it mattered…

He was already dead, either from this or from the ones who were hunting him. This way, at least he could have his revenge, and through him, the entire family.

Idly watching the night sky, marveling at the stars, he quietly gave another command.

"Restrain and Spree. Kill."

Another howl.

BAMM.

Another shot. And now Spree was throwing himself all around in the middle of the bodies while screaming his head off. He watched intently as the clone Master 'transformed,' then, when he saw him calm down, he issued the last order.

"Restrain and Animos. Kill."

There was another howl, and the man transformed back to his human form and picked up the gun.

BAMM.

He could have had Animos tear Spree's throat out, but he wanted to be consistent. While Animos suffered, he calmly walked to the gun and checked if it still had bullets. Exactly one left. Just as he ordered. Good.

He walked next to the thrashing Animos, sat down with his legs crossed, and rested the hand holding the gun on his knee. He waited until Animos regained his breath and could talk.

The voice was hoarse and different from the Butcher who had talked at the beginning, but to Valefor, it sounded almost the same, even with the added small echo in the background.

"Enjoyed the show?" rasped out the Butcher XIX. "I wonder, fallen little friend, are you brave enough to pull that trigger? Are you? Are you? Are you-"

BAMM.

There was a brief moment of panic as Valefor felt something slam into his mind. Then everything went black, and the only thing he knew was pain.

Emily looked at her dinner happily. Finally being able to eat anything she wanted was rather nice, though the fact that she had to have dinner in her office because of the quantity of work she had marred the experience a little.

Thanks to the apprehension of Stormtiger, Fenja, and Alabaster, the Empire rallied their troops, causing chaos everywhere as they tried to break out their comrades. As if she would be that stupid.

The moment the parahumans were in custody and had been read their rights, they were loaded onto a plane borrowed from Dragon and were on their way to the other side of the country. Let Alexandria deal with those assholes.

So, they only had to weather the storm while the Nazis impotently flailed around. Though, thanks to the upgrades the heroic parahumans had gotten, it was a rather one-sided beatdown. She still had to shake her head at how ridiculous Armsmaster looked with his transforming motorcycle.

According to the Tinker, it was efficient to bring supporting equipment in the shape of his motorcycle, thus decreasing the need to weigh down his armor unnecessarily.

Though the last she heard, the PR department head was foaming at the mouth about how much merchandise they could produce from it.

She heard a small chime signaling that she had received an email, so she dabbed her mouth with a napkin, put away the box, and turned toward the monitor.

Emily's good mood immediately soured when she saw the header.

URGENT - WEDGDG

She opened it with trepidation. Though, if Emily was honest with herself, she should have expected something like this to happen. Things were going entirely too nicely in Brockton Bay, and even without the daily call from the Chief Director to see if she had found Serenity, things were looking up.

As she read the email, she felt chills running down her back.

Warning to all departments! WEDGDG members sensed/predicted an increased chance of a catastrophic event (S-class) happening in the northern part of the eastern seaboard. We ask everyone to keep an eye out for unusual…

"What the fuck does that mean?"