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Mob Rules, part 9 Thursday, 23-Sep-1999 11:36:41
Chapter Nine Visionary gulped as the hundreds of triggers were pulled. There was a blinding flash of light, followed by the *clicks* of the countless weapons. All in all, he felt surprisingly good for a man who should be toast. He blinked his eyes and looked around. They were still surrounded by armored Yakusa, yet something seemed definitely wrong with them. Many of them were slumping on their feet, and others were struggling to even move. “Ah… not that I’m complaining, mind you…” spiffy said hesitantly, “but why aren’t we dead?” “Clean living” Space Ghost suggested. “Well, yeah…” NTU-150 said suddenly, dropping from the sky with Zebulon and an odd device (odd compared to ordinary devices, that is… Pretty mundane for one of Enty’s). “Either that, or because of the massive electromagnetic pulse I just blasted them with” he noted, jerking his thumb towards the armored mob. “It’ll take a while for their electrical systems to unscramble.” Visionary whirled to face the other Legionnaires. “Quick, while they’re deactivated… spread out and search Masamune’s for Cheryl!” he ordered. They all just stared at him. “Er…” Visionary added sheepishly, “Please.” The Legionnaires grudgingly followed the request, more for Cheryl’s sake than for him, he assumed. He turned back to NTU. “Man, do you have good timing… how’d you find us anyway?” NTU just pointed a gauntleted hand skyward. Multiple news helicopters were circling over the now quiet war-zone. “Oh” Visionary said. “I want to go look for Cheryl too!” Zebulon chimed in with an oddly singsong voice. “She’s a hottie.” “Er… pay no attention to him…” NTU interjected quickly. “I found out that he was the mole who planted the bugs in the lair. It seemed to be the result of some kind of mind control, but I couldn’t be sure until I questioned him thoroughly…” “I mean… she’s built, too…” the elf continued in a half-daze, “Have you seen that ass of hers?” “Ah… so anyway…” NTU rushed on, “I eventually had to whip up a truth serum to get to the bottom of things. It hasn’t quite worn off yet… must be his elfin physiology.” “Uh-huh” Visionary said levelly. “So who was mind-controlling him?” “Unfortunately, he honestly doesn’t remember” the cybernetic man grunted. “I found a smashed psionic amplifier in the lab… I think Tina and Lisa got a fix on whomever was using it.” “Whoa… those two are mighty fine as well!” Zebulon piped in enthusiastically. “Do you suppose the three of them could be convinced to…” “Vi… er, Jarvis…” spiffy called suddenly, saving Zebulon from incurring the wrath of the two attached Legionnaires. “You’d better come over here… We found Cheryl…” Relief welled up in Visionary as he rushed forward, stooping to pick up Lisa’s pendant almost as an afterthought. That relief was quickly replaced by a catch in his throat as he saw spiffy’s face. His young teammate shook his head sadly. “I’m so sorry…” Jarvis, tied up next to Starseed and Yo, watched the events on television with overwhelming relief. NTU’s timing was unbelievable—if it were fiction, he would have attributed it to a hack writer. Still, he was saved from his own forgetfulness. The sooner he and Vizh switched back and lost this psychic link, the better. “Unexpected” The Apostate stated simply, watching the live broadcast. “Perhaps your leader is not as incompetent as he seemed.” The villain turned to look at the three captive Legionnaires. “Of course, this contingency was planned for as well… Once they discover your wife’s remains” he said with a nod towards Jarvis, “the battle will be rejoined, and I’ll either be rid of the bulk of the Lair Legion, or rid of the only crime family not under my immediate chain of command.” “What do you mean…” Jarvis asked carefully, “Cheryl’s ‘remains’?” “Ah, but that would be giving away the best part…” He replied. “I only wish your companions there could be coherent enough to appreciate it as well.” Jarvis looked to Yo and Starseed. Both were lost in some fantasy created by the Apostate. Odd that Jarvis was not. Starseed was sweating profusely, and shudders were occasionally wracking his body. What kind of torture did he believe he was receiving? As for Yo, now that he was changed into an ordinary human, he had lost the immunity to the Apostate’s powers that came from being made of pure thought. Their captor was making good use of his newfound weakness… Of course! Jarvis nearly smacked himself upside the head. Yo’s report on his adventure into Visionary’s past had stated that Visionary was also immune to the Apostate’s control! How could he have forgotten that? Perhaps Vizh’s body had some genetic brain defect… that would explain a lot. “Why would you want all of the International Crime Cartel under your control?” Jarvis asked, hoping to gain some traditional villainous exposition. “That hardly seems like a ‘holy’ endeavor.” The Apostate looked at him curiously. “You don’t understand, do you?” He walked over to where the three teammates were bound. “No, I suppose *you* wouldn’t. It’s a shame that Yo interfered last time, keeping our first meeting from ever happening… You know, I’m intensely curious about it. I’ve downloaded and read his report multiple times…” Jarvis grunted. Well, not exactly what he was fishing for, but at least this confirmed his most obvious suspicions. The Master Cultists were the ones to infiltrate the Lair. It also brought up a disturbing possibility—that the mind switch hadn’t made him immune to the Apostate’s powers, but rather that the Apostate simply believed that he was after reading those files. That would be kinda ironic. “Mostly, I regret losing whatever information I may have learned about you” the villain hissed, studying Jarvis intensely. “All this time in the Parodyverse, and what have you accomplished? Where is your mark? You’re nothing. Wasted opportunity. I should have been you, all along. I was *meant* to be you…” What the hell was this bozo talking about? Jarvis had been Visionary for a good day and a half, and frankly, he didn’t recommend it. “Well” the Apostate sniffed, rising. “It is of no matter. I am here *now*, and I will not waste my existence as you have.” He turned and strode back towards his monitor screen. “I will *shape* this Parodyverse, and the Master Cultists and the Crime Cartel are just the beginning. The Cultists, with my help and powers, have been slowly infiltrating the Parodyverse for months. Climbing into positions of power, seducing some to our cause, eliminating others. We are no longer a mere cult, but a society…” Jarvis looked at him with something akin to shock. “You’re trying to create a *real* Illuminati? An all-powerful, secret society? That’s the stuff of paranoid fairy-tales and X-files episodes.” The Apostate chuckled. “If there is one thing that I’ve learned in my short time here…” he rumbled, “it’s that all things are possible.” He turned back to the screen. “Ah, it looks as if the real show is about to begin.” “She’s dead, Vizh” spiffy whispered to him quietly. “It’s… pretty gruesome.” Visionary went cold. “Wha… what? That’s not…” His legs could suddenly no longer support him. “Are… are you…” Donar nodded sadly. “Verily” he said in a choked voice. “They… cut her throat.” Banjooo explained softly. “And, ah… someone wrote a message in her blood on the wall…” Visionary dropped to the pavement, then looked at him blankly. “…’Nobody crosses us’…” the Sea Monkey elaborated softly. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think… “Beautiful, isn’t it?” The Apostate asked, delighted. Even without the audio, it was clear what was happening. Visionary collapsed in grief, the other Legionnaires shocked… “Where is she?” Jarvis replied, horrified. The Apostate turned, his eyes alight with hate. “That, I believe, is something I shall keep to myself. I think it only right that you should die without ever knowing her fate.” He returned to the spectacle on the screen. “Your leader seems to be taking it rather hard… that should put the next battle more in doubt.” He nodded as the television cameras began to pick up movement from the Yakusa—their armor was coming back on line, freeing them from their paralysis. “Care to make any wagers?” spiffy took a concussion bolt in the chest, flinging him across the rubble. “Aw, crud!” NTU said, turning his attention to the mob as it came back to life. “Their E-M shielding must be better than I had guessed…” “Take cover!” Banjooo yelled, grabbing Visionary and jumping behind a garbage truck that had been abandoned in the original melee. He snagged spiffy and pulled him to safety as well. “Cripes, that hurt!” spiffy said indignantly. “My fern should have absorbed that!” “Hard light beam” NTU explained. “Concentrated photons… It’s got actual mass. If your fern hadn’t absorbed the energy from it, it would have burned through your chest.” “Oh” spiffy answered. “Well… it still hurt.” “Then duck next time, Einstein” Banjooo said unsympathetically. “Donar, DarkHwk, Zebulon and Space Ghost are all pinned down as well…” he shook Visionary gently. “Vizh, snap out of it… we need you.” Visionary didn’t respond. “You… You..!!!” Masamune’s words came broadcast to them from the street. “I’ve had it with you Legionnaire people! When I’m through with you, we’ll hunt down everyone ever associated with you! I will personally see that everyone who has ever even met you is wiped off the face of the earth!” She was raving now. “*Nobody* crosses us!!!” Visionary went stiff. “I, ah… don’t suppose there’s somebody else waiting out there to save us this time?” spiffy asked NTU pointedly. NTU’s eyes went wide as he watched Visionary rise. The widower Legionnaire’s face was grim, and crackling energy was escaping from his clenched fist. “I don’t think that’s the problem…” he answered softly. “I think the question is, who’s going to save *them*?” Cheryl wasn’t dead—at least, Jarvis was pretty sure she wasn’t—and if he was right, then he had to find a way to stop this catastrophe now before things became permanently screwed up. He watched as Visionary stepped around the garbage truck, heedless of his own safety. Multiple shots hit him, but if they had any effect, he didn’t show it. Instead, he raised his arm towards the Yakusa, and a wave seemed to emanate from him, burning the air like heat waves rising off a sun-baked road. The front lines of the Yakusa reeled, then slowly toppled to the ground. More surprising yet, their armor shattered like glass on impact. The occupants quickly high-tailed it out of there. “Impressive” the Apostate said approvingly. Actually, it was… Jarvis rarely cut loose with the cosmic power when he controlled it, always holding back a little out of… what? Fear? Respect? Vizh certainly wasn’t holding back now… to bad he was fighting the wrong enemy. He made his way through the attacking mob until he came face to face with a lithe, armored, pink form. Masamune was shooting at him desperately, once more with no apparent effect. With a snarl that was seen more than heard, he shot out his left hand and grasped her around the throat. There was a blinding flash, and when the picture was restored, the remaining Yakusa had been stripped of their shells. Only Masamune remained. “I dare say he’s going to squeeze her neck until her head pops off…” the Apostate said, with a trace of respect. “How marvelous. I didn’t realize the depths to which this little scenario would hit him.” Jarvis sucked in his breath. If he was going to act, he’d have to do it now. He wrapped his tied right hand around his left pinkie… “What was that second rule of the mob?” Visionary asked scathingly, his voice raw, as he began to squeeze. “Nobody walks away from you, either… isn’t that right? Well, allow me to help you with your ‘retirement’…” Masamune struggled feebly, her wide eyes visible under her helmet’s visor. Suddenly, Visionary screamed as pain shot through his hand. He dropped the mob boss to the ground, and clutched the small finger of his left hand. It felt like it was broken, yet the bones didn’t seem out of place… Masamune took advantage of this distraction to try and scramble away from the seeming insane man. Visionary reached for her but was brought up short again as his finger was twisted, shooting pain up his arm. As his mind began to clear of rage, it slowly dawned on him what was happening. He looked up to the news helicopters circling overhead. “All right, already…” he muttered darkly, defeated. “I got the message.” NTU had gathered up Masamune, and with some trepidation, lead her back to join Visionary and the others. “So… what do we do with her?” “Bring her with us…” Visionary answered. “We’re going to see my wife.” After exchanging looks with Donar and Banjooo, spiffy sighed and lead them all back into the ruined sushi bar, down a flight of stairs and to the door of a storeroom. “Are you sure you’re up to this?” he asked. Visionary nodded, and stepped off to the side. He reached up and managed to undo Masamune’s helmet. Her large, manga eyes burned with hatred. “Put her in front of the door and open it.” Confused, Donar grasped the mobster's arms and forced her in front of the door as spiffy swung it wide. The shocked look on her face was convincingly real as she viewed the horrific contents of the room. Wherever Jarvis was, he was right. She wasn’t responsible. Fighting to control his shaking, Visionary took a deep breath and stepped to the doorway. After a long pause he looked up. He stared for a minute. Then a brief, hysterical chuckle escaped his lips. Then another. Finally, he broke out laughing. “Aw crudpuppies.” Zebulon noted. “Jarvis went loopy.” Visionary shot the elf a wild grin. “Nope” he said. “Not this time, either.” He looked in the storeroom and once again felt his legs go out from under him, this time from a wave of relief. Sitting on the floor of the otherwise barren room was a severely slashed bag of flour. On top of it was a device that, Visionary assumed, looked remarkably like what a psionic amplifier should look like. He tuned to Masamune, who had gone pale with horror at the sight before her. “I think we need to talk” he said cheerfully. “It seems there’s been a… misunderstanding.” Visionary |
| Mob Rules, part 9 (Visionary) (23-Sep-1999 11:36:41) |
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