Chapter 4: Prologue 4: Gang Shit Fr Fr
Brockton Bay
Medhall Building, CEO's office
June 22nd, 15:00
///
"-with all of that said, allow me the great pleasure of introducing all of you to Brockton Bay's newest Wards!"
Max Anders is a handsome, physically fit man. With short blond hair, and brilliant blue eyes that remain glued to the monitor on the left side of his large and luxurious desk as it shows one of many live feeds to the press conference that the PRT called for.
His expression remains thoughtful, sipping on an expensive brandy from an expensive glass as he watches a pair of costumed teenagers enter the stage, with Miss Militia following right behind them.
The shorter of the two seems to only be around fourteen years of age at a guess, with features too androgynous to say for sure whether they are male or female. Not helped by the mask that covers the upper half of their face with a depiction of what looks like some kind of cartoonish rodent, with round, button nose and a short pair of protruding 'teeth' that hover just above the top of their actual nose and large round eyes, the left of which has a star around it.
The rest of their costume is obviously under the effects of their power, as it is a large poncho that is constantly rotating around their body like a vortex of cloth, traversing the air under an unknown power with a complete disregard for gravity. He can vaguely see that they are wearing a skin-tight combat outfit underneath the shifting threads.
Probably a CQC style Hero, then.
The taller of the two however, is much easier to identify, at least in terms of gender.
If Max had to guess, he would say that she's not far off being too old for the Wards, if her generous curves were any indication, so he'd put her at seventeen, probably only a couple months off eighteen at that.
Unlike her fellow, who is covered so completely that only their mouth and short, neck-length black hair is visible, this girl is showing a generous amount of skin, with even her hair being opposite, as it is an enchanting, flowing silver-white that reaches her lower back.
The first thing that stands out to Max is that she is brown, more Middle-East than Africa. Her costume is fairly simple; tight red boots that rise to just above her knees, followed by a few inches of caramel skin before her short, equally red skirt.
Her belt is a dull gold and dips down slightly in the centre to form a loose 'V' shape. Directly connected to her belt, is a skin-tight blue top, with long sleeves that extend all the way down to her palms, with a small hole for her thumb to stick through and is tight enough to clearly show off her toned body, while also accentuating her breasts.
To finish it all off, there is a red, diamond in the centre of her chest, inside of which is a golden pair of scales, the same colour as her belt. In addition to that, she has a red cape on her back that flows down past her skirt, despite capes being somewhat out of fashion for anyone who isn't a flier.
The whole ensemble reminds him of another one of the New Wave brats, Victoria Dallon, who triggered very recently and has a very similar costume, just with whites and golds instead of blues and reds. With the cape identity of 'Glory Girl', it's clear that unlike this girl, who's outfit all but screams 'patriotic justice', the most recent addition to the family of Heroes that is New Wave's costume seems to scream 'vanity' more than anything else.
More of interest to Max however, is the cane in her hand and the blindfold over her eyes. Combined with the scales on her chest, and it's clear that she's going for the 'Lady Justice' theme. The cane's handle even juts out like the guard of a sword would, leaving the body of the cane resting between her fingers as she walks. It kind of reminds him of a corkscrew though, oddly enough.
Either way, his first impression is that she is also the CQC type. That's good. They're easier to deal with.
Both of them have wide smiles on their faces as they make their way to centre stage, waving to the press, seemingly unbothered by the constant flashing of the camera lights.
The trio of Heroes reach the podium full of microphones together, with Miss Militia being flanked by her two fresh Wards.
"Thank you all for attending," she starts, eyes crinkling in that way you know means she's smiling. He's always wondered how she does such a good job expressing emotions with only her eyes. "I won't waste any more of your time, so first, please give a hand for Gypsy."
The smaller of the two, apparently a male, steps a little closer to the mics at Miss Militia's prompting, and quickly half deafens everyone in the room. "Ohayo!!" He exclaims with a full body wave, causing a high pitched ringing sound to sound out as he brought themself far to close to the microphone.
Miss Militia is quick to pull them back, and though Max can't hear what she whispered into his ear, he's pretty sure he can guess.
"Sorry 'bout that!" He sheepishly exclaims again, this time allowing his excitable voice to be projected normally. "I'm Gypsy! Nice to meet'cha! I promise to only beat up the bad guys, and uh, I hope we get along?"
With his incredibly brief introduction, Gypsy simply nods their head once and steps back, giving the crowd a grinning, double thumbs up as he does.
His accent is noticeable enough that Max can peg him as an Oriental, which is unfortunate. It would have been better if at least one of them was white, but they shouldn't be an issue.
"And now, please meet Falcon." Miss Militia says, and Max also gets the feeling that there was something more to her tone when she introduced the now named 'Falcon', but he couldn't name what. Probably just worried about another Clockblocker incident or something.
"Hello all," the girl starts, a soft smile on her lips and serene in tone, "as Miss Militia said, I am Falcon. I hope that one day I will be someone you call all look to for safety. That said, I believe we will be answering some questions now?" She finishes looking at Miss Militia, who seems to nod encouragingly back.
But Max ignores that and tunes out the monitor in favour of turning to the man standing by his side. He is a tall, incredibly well build man with a bland buzzcut and a serious visage, wearing a professional suit that seems to be struggling to contain his muscle mass.
The first few questions are always plants anyway, just easy stuff to get the kids comfortable with answering questions before they let the actual journalists ask what they want.
"What do you think, Hector? What do we know about them?"
"They were captured during the recent raid against Restaurant Innocence, formally Suzuya Rei and Juuzou respectively, so they might be less hesitant about hurting whoever they fight. But Suzuya's power is relatively weak, being just some kind of cloth control limited to himself. He's also apparently a little crazy."
"Understandable, if he was with that fat Master for so long." Max says with his tone hinting on disgust. He's heard what sort of stuff the leader of Restaurant Innocent got up to, after all. "And the other?"
"Apparently Juuzou was a fake name, so we don't know her identity. Her power is pretty decent, but she's not much of a heavy hitter either. By all accounts, it seems that she is much more the 'heroic' type than Gypsy is. My guess is that they are going to try and play up the reformed Hero angle; make sure it's known that she was forced to be a Villain, and then turned Hero after being 'saved'."
Max can only nod his head at that. People do love a good redemption story, and if she really is as 'heroic' as Hector claims, then this could be pretty good PR for the Heroes.
How annoying.
///
Downtown South
The Heart of Azn Bad Boys' Territory
///
"Is it true that both of you were Villains?"
Inside a luxurious room, full of Oriental decorations and furniture, from the tapestries on the walls to the low tables holding bowls of saké, a man can be seen, surrounded by fawning women.
This man is Lung. Lung is tall, over six foot, and well muscled despite his half-Chinese, half-Japanese heritage. His shirtless body, from neck to hip is covered in tattoos of Eastern style dragons, and his brown eyes are surrounded by a bloodshot red, instead of the typical white of sclera and gleam with a feral madness, like he's some kind of beast in human skin.
Lung pays half a mind to the television and the conference it displays. Two more capes joining the ranks of the so called 'Heroes'. It's no surprise that they would celebrate and parade around any new capes they manage to gather. But for Lung? It doesn't matter.
Two or Ten, it doesn't matter. For he is Lung. Ants will never be able to scratch his scales, two more ants makes no difference to Lung.
However, one of them is clearly Asian, and now Lung hears that they used to be Villains? Lung finds himself contemplative.
Lung turns away from the women servicing him to look at the wall-mounted television, mildly curious of their past. He sees the taller of the two, Falcon, his mind belatedly supplies, as she steps up to answer.
"Yes, it is true." Lung can respect the simple admittance. No useless words, no saying one thing while meaning another. Just simple and straight to the point. "Both of us were taken from our homes when we were young, forced into a life of which we wanted no part." The girl takes a breath, and if not for the blindfold, Lung would be sure she has closed her eyes.
Lung can't help but find himself slightly interested in what the young Heroine has to say. It's not often that a Hero would admit to having been a Villain after all. It seems as if everyone else holds the same interest, as other than the occasional camera flash, the room around her seems to have fallen silent.
Letting loose a deep breath that the microphones barely pick up, Falcon straightens up and starts to speak, her tone solemn. "I have been forced to do many things that I regret. Bad things. I have hurt people. I was even forced to..." Her breath seems to hitch, and she swallows away her words, shaking her head lightly before continuing. "Many regrets were forced upon me, but those times are now behind me, thanks to Miss Militia and the other members of the Protectorate, who saved us." She pauses again, this time to turn properly to face Miss Militia, before she bows to the older woman. "Thank you."
Miss Militia places a hand on Falcon's shoulder, rising her back up, and the two share a nod before she turns back to the microphones. This time, when she speaks, there is a steel to her voice that has the dragon watching smiling slightly.
"Now, I have been given the opportunity to atone for my sins. To fight for Justice, instead of Selfishness. And so, I swear to you all, that I will do everything in my power to uphold Justice, and to ensure that no one has to suffer as I have. I will be a Hero." Her final declaration only makes the smile on Lung's face grow, the fire inside him stirring slightly at what he considers to be a direct challenge.
You will be a Hero, little bird?
Then come.
Come and stop Lung.
He will see then, what kind of Hero she is.
///
The Trainyard District
Inside A Warehouse in Red Hearts Territory
///
"Thank you for your time, but that will be all for now."
Unlike the other gangs of Brockton Bay, the Red Hearts are a recent addition. they only moved into the city a couple of months ago, but they have quickly subsumed the gang known as Merchants, and established themselves as the predominant drug supplier in the city.
It comes as no real surprise to any of the powers in the city to see this happen, as the Merchants were hardly ever much of a gang compared to the Empire Eighty-Eight or the Azn Bad Boys.
Compared to the might of Red Hearts, a gang that has quickly risen in both power and influence, becoming the only gang in America that could be said to challenge The Elite as an equal.
Now, as a part of their constant expansion, they have sent one their divisions to Brockton Bay. The Red Hearts have ten 'Decks', each led by a Number. One to Ten, 'I' to 'X'. And to Brockton Bay, they have sent the strongest Deck of them all, headed by the ever mysterious Number, Ten. Said to be the strongest of the Numbers, though no one has ever really seen him fight.
That man is X, Ten, or Wash, to his friends.
"Oi. Stop falling asleep." A resounding smack can be heard as Elsie, a stern looking woman in a prim black suit with straight black hair, hits a homeless looking man upside the head, causing him to jerk awake.
He is a simple looking guy, with scruffy brown hair matched with his brown eyes and ratty brown suit that appears to be coming apart at the seems, and when he realises who woke him up, he only sighs and slumps back into his recliner.
"What now Elsie? I watched the thingy like you said, can't I nap?" He asks her, not quite whining.
"You need to be up to date on our enemies if you want to finish your job in any reasonable amount of time, Wash," Elsie says, shooting him a glare that makes it clear how little she cares about the difference in power between them. She's only a normal human after all.
"Meh. Not like Big Boss expects us to be done any time soon. Just think of it like a vacation and stop being so serious all the time. Maybe we should grab some dinner, y'know, to help you unwind?" Wash asks, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively all the while.
"Not a chance in hell." Only to be mercilessly shut down without a moments hesitation.
"So cruel~. I'm going to kill myself if you don't go on a date with me."
The look she gives him shows exactly how little she cares for his 'threat'. Not that he was expecting anything else. After all, they both know how little his suicide would change anything.
"What are your thoughts on the two new Wards," Elsie asks instead, ignoring her boss' flirting.
"You don't need to check that I paid attention you know, I'm not a child," is Wash's droll response, only for her to give him a look that speaks of how low her expectations of him are, and he can't help but appreciate just how expressive her eyes are.
A good thing really, considering the rest of her face could be carved from stone from how few expressions she makes beyond the perpetual look of vague disgust and disappointment that she seems to give everything.
Or maybe just him, who knows really.
Letting out a sigh, Wash relents, considering this the price for being able to push all of his work onto her. "They 'ain't too big a deal. Any of our capes could probably beat them one on one, and the boy seems like someone we could just bribe anyway. The girl might be annoying though, those righteous types usually are. Happy?"
"With you? Never," she answers, her tone unchanging, and Wash really can't tell if she is joking or not. He decides to assume she is though, since the alternative means that he really doesn't have a shot, and he refuses to give up.
"One of these days Elsie. One of these days you'll say yes."
"I will not."
"Yuh uh."
His intellectual answer only makes her sigh. "How juvenile."
Yeouch. Different approach.
"I hear there's a new movie out, something about-"
"No."
"Damn."
In the end, Wash soon forgets about the new Heroes. Wearing his secretary down to accept a date is far more important than cape business. It's not like he ever has to fight anyway, and since Elsie does all the paperwork, he basically gets paid to just hang out and do drugs, which is pretty cool in Wash's humble opinion.
The real question is, what flowers are Elsie's favourite? He's given her a bunch of them over the last few months he's spent trying to woo her, but she never seems to react to any of them.
"One day, Elsie. One day."
His only answer is the door closing behind her as she leaves.
One day.
///
Somewhere Downtown
June 24th, 00:40
///
Deep inside of an old, disused Endbringer shelter that never actually finished construction and whose records of being built no longer exist, sits a man.
He is dressed in a black full body suit with only a white stencil of a snake coiling around his body, it's head ending over his own as decoration. The suit has no eyeholes and is tight enough that you can see his individual ribs and joints, showing just how skinny the man is.
This is a man who know many things.
He knows of the two new additions to the Wards, and he knows of the various gangs' reactions to their addition. From the indifference of the Red Hearts to the caution of the Empire.
But most importantly, he knows of Lung's response.
The prideful Dragon feels challenged.
He gives it a week at most before Lung seeks out the new Wards and challenges their ideals, and if they have the strength to back them.
But while others see the movement of The Dragon as a walking calamity, to a man with knowledge such as he, it is merely an opportunity.
The Empire has grown too much since Gesellschaft's fall. Having a flaming rage dragon rampaging through their territory could do a decent job preening those numbers.
For a man with knowledge does not need to dirty his own hands when he wants to remove competition.
After all, to a man who can control Fate, he has already won. the world just doesn't know it yet.
That said, leaving everything to that brute would be foolish. Without his guiding hand, the overall gain would be limited.
Luckily, there are solutions to those problems.
Wealth is easy to acquire when Destiny lays in one's palms, and through wealth, one can buy loyalty. But there is only so much that the average mercenary can accomplish, and though there is a mercenary crew of capes in his Bay, Faultline's Crew is unfortunately... Moralistic.
Not the ideal business partner.
Fortunately, there are other, better options.
"I have a job for you." His words, seemingly spoken to an empty room, don't get an answer for a long moment.
But then he hears it.
Step.
He turns his head to face a side-door in his room, one that leads to a dark room, the only light being what shines through the door.
Step.
A foot, encased in a long, red and teal striped cloth shoe that curves up at the end, holding a small bell the tip enters the light from the darkness, a light jingle following it.
Step.
Another light jingle and a leg enters the light, wearing puffy breeches that continue the red and teal stripes from the shoes.
Step.
Another jingle, and more of their body is revealed, showing six downwards facing triangles of cloth that hang past their hips, almost reaching their knees. The three on the left are that same teal colour, while the three on the right match the red.
Step.
More of the torso becomes visible, showing that the colours continue, their left being a solid teal and their right red, connected by a number of buckles. Except for their arms. While they do have their hands in their pockets, it's still clear to see that they are wearing leather cloves that reach halfway up the forearms before folding back in four more triangles, each tipped with a tiny bell.
Step.
The rest of their body short of their head enters the light, showing that while their forearms are both covered in teal coloured fabric, their biceps are both covered in red, with the shoulders being puffy and striped, much like the pants. Additionally, there is a red triangle coming down from the neck to rest upon her bust, with another pair of triangles coming down either side at an angle and with opposite colours.
Step.
All at once, her 'face' enters the light. Her mask covers her entire face with a plain white base, not depicting any kind of mouth. The eyeholes are thin and end in a cursive curve either side, with a red line streaking through the centre and down the cheek, where it ends with a small black marking.
Above that, there is a black band, edged with gold, that goes around her forehead, peaking up slightly at the centre and spreading down the centre of the mask until it ends in a sharp point just above where her mouth would be. In the centre of the band, there is a red, four pointed triangle, adding some colour.
Then, to finish everything off, the top of the mask is a cloth cap, right half teal, left red, that splits in two, both cones of cloth hanging down either side of her head and topped with a larger, golden bell.
"You called~?" She asks, her voice full of amusement, as if she is silently laughing at a joke that only she knows.
Her mask covers her mouth completely, but he is certain that she is grinning at him. He can feel it.
Hiring a Clown could be considered something of a gamble. They are a dangerous bunch after all, but he is confident that they will not betray a contract. And besides, the more dangerous they are, the better for him.
"Yes, I want you to kill someone for me."
"Oh my, Handsome~. You say the sweetest things~," she purrs, sauntering towards him as she does so, and if not for the fact that Destiny was in his hands, he'd likely be unnerved by the glint of madness in her eyes.
"I hope you won't disappoint me...
Jester."
///
A/N: He~llo! Dear readers!
Lmao, I totally didn't copy paste a para or two from my own fic at the end there, I have no idea what you mean...
Anywho, this chap was the end of the prologue, just a introduction for the players that will be taking part in my story.... I pity them, really. To have me as their author... oh well. :)
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