The Good Life: The Grand Plan (ch. 15) (Patreon)

It was actually kind of incredible how the timing turned out. Oh, I was being framed like a motherfucker -- which was pretty neat in itself -- but I couldn't exactly blame people for believing that I was behind it. Mostly because I had to double-check that I wasn't behind it. "What are the odds?" I wondered, scratching at my cheek as I watched the snuff film. Seriously, what are the odds?

"At least Asami can expect a significant windfall," Yoruichi remarked, draped over the arm of a couch. Silver lining, I suppose. Asami started shorting the stock massively about three seconds after the sex tapes went live. And, within seconds of that, the snuff film went out. It had been… revealing, even if people were doing their damnedest to scrub it from the internet. Not that it really mattered -- the word was already out. Translucent was tortured and sang like a canary before exploding via some C4 shoved up his bum.

As one would imagine, the double whammy did not do good things for the stock price for Vought International and Asami made out like a fucking bandit. If it wasn't for the fact that she was potentially under investigation for insider trading, she'd be a major shareholder for Vought by now.

"Someone other than me killed a member of the Seven," I muttered, a frown tugging at my lips. There was a lot to unpack based on the many, many, many confessions that Translucent made -- that he'd frequently break into people's homes and jack off over them while they were sleeping, corporate espionage, and most damning of all was Compound-V. The confession that supes were made, not born. The same substance that we found in the Sage Grove Center was given to babies to make them supes.

Neither God or evolution had anything to do with it. It was all Vought.

What a fucking con.

"You're getting caught up in personal goals, Law. Right now isn't the time. The government just declared the Eight a terrorist organization and they're making a massive mobilization to cut you out of the city," Yoruichi warned me, stretching out. I saw that announcement too. Whoever killed Translucent had laid the blame at my feet, and in combination with everything else, my organization was getting called a terrorist organization. Rightly so, honestly. But that meant that the military could get involved and if it was a fight between gangsters and Marines… well, I knew who'd win that fight.

I could feel the ground shifting under my feet, the balance of power moving against me. I'm sure if I bothered to answer the calls I was getting, I'd get an earful about how it's all falling apart. Robin's insulating measures helped a bit, but not enough. To save face, they were reporting dozens, if not hundreds of arrests. My criminal empire was falling apart, chipped away against the titanic heavy weight of the US government. The NSA spying on everyone kind of fucked us, honestly.

"What about Vought?" I asked, mostly unconcerned with the fate of my organization. It was just a toy for me to play with -- but I wouldn't stand for someone trying to take it away from me. It was a matter of principle.

"Damage control. According to them it's all deep faked and edited -- they were prepared for that news to get out, it seems. Translucent's confessions are being dismissed as having been made under duress, so no action is being taken yet. As for what the Seven are doing… they're in the field, smiling for the cameras, trying to make it look like  everything is okay." Yoruichi informed me, echoing my suspicions. Edgar was trying to recover and bounce back. "So? What are you going to do?"

I considered the question for a moment, the news playing a clip of Cold Snap freezing a dozen gangsters, killing most of them outright, but those that survived would be lucky to keep their fingers and toes due to frostbite. When he was done, he turned around to the cameras and gave a practiced smile. "Your heroes are here to help -- don't believe Heartless' lies!" He said something of a practiced slogan that all the heroes were given before he fucked off to go attack another one of my gang's hideouts.

I pursed my lips, idly considering what should be done. "We have supes, right?"

Yoruichi gave me the flattest stare that I had ever seen. Impressive, coming from a cat. "A good dozen. In theory. I can't imagine most of them would answer the call in this situation."

A dozen? Holy shit, Robin had been busy! She was so much better at this whole 'gang boss' thing than me. "Give 'em the call anyway. Whoever shows up will show up," I dismissed with a shrug of my shoulders, shooting Cinder a text. It didn't take me long to receive an answer with what I wanted -- Supe movement orders. Reality had slowly chipped away my expectations when it came to how heroes functioned.

Heroes didn't go on patrol or investigate crimes. They got marching orders from Vought, whose crime analytics division did all the grunt work for them. The heroes showed up to slap the cuffs on the criminals and to smile for the camera. That was it. So, all I needed was their schedule telling me where they were going to be and I could kick my feet up waiting for them to walk headfirst into my trap. What trap would be sprung was a bit of a question, but I did know that there would be a trap.

"What exactly are we calling them up for?" Yoruichi asked and I hummed as I got my Heartless gear ready. I was feeling the pressure. One wrong move and the game would be over. If I was lucky, they would kill me. If I wasn't, they'd toss me into the deepest pit that they could possibly find. The thought should inspire fear. Terror even. My entire life hinged on what happened next and while the fear was there, it was just spice. The main dish was excitement.

This was everything that I hoped it would be. I felt myself being backed into a corner, the stakes were never higher -- this was exactly what I wanted.

This... was fun!

"Well, if they're going to call us a terrorist organization…" I began, securing my mask to my face and wearing my hat. "Then we might as well start acting like one, huh?"

They'd never know what hit them.

…

My supes were losers, I quickly realized upon meeting them. Well, except for the ones that were rescued from the Sage Grove Center -- they were badass and crazy enough to not leave me on read when I gave the call to assemble. Kimiko and Cindy were coming with me, while the rest of the supes would be under the careful wing of Robin.

Kimiko and Cindy had picked out costumes for themselves -- Kimiko wore a mask similar to mine and street clothes. Nothing particularly stood out beyond the brass knuckles that were shaped to fit her palms but made full use of her superhuman strength. Cindy, however, chose to wear a full helmet along with a ballistic vest. Her hands were clenching and unclenching in anticipation. As mentioned before -- they were crazy. Full-blown insane in the membrane. Kimiko seemed to be functionally mute, Cindy was the silent and deadly kind of fucked up.

So, naturally, I wasn’t too keen on getting to know them. Crazy recognized crazy, after all.

Vought was throwing shit at the wall and hoping that it would stick. They had the Seven -- currently just the Six, once again -- along with every single other A-lister, B-lister, and even some C-listers. They were flying them out to New York and some other cities -- I apparently had a presence in the South? -- to come out in force for some good press. They worked alongside Homeland Security and the police, dragging my people in kicking and screaming.

Meaning that New York was a target-rich environment.

I heard gunfire rattling off in the distance, telling me that some of our foot soldiers were following orders. Most weren't. Gangsters were like rats when they felt the ship was sinking, quick to jump overboard in an attempt to save themselves. I was under no delusion otherwise -- honestly, I respected the gangsters that told me to get fucked a great deal more than the ones who were blindly following my orders. I couldn't deny that those idiots were useful, though. With them on the streets, taking shots at the cops, they were running interference for us.

"Room," I intoned, creating one. Kimiko and Cindy both braced themselves before I transported the three of us. We went from a back alley to the safehouse for one of my gangs -- I'm not entirely sure which one. Never bothered to learn. What I did know was that it was under attack -- I could hear the shouting of soldiers telling everyone to get down and surrender, along with the screaming of people.

Kimiko and Cindy both stepped out of the laundry room, revealing themselves to a soldier. His assault rifle snapped in their direction, but before he could pull the trigger, Cindy clenched her hand into a fist and it was like the hand of God grabbed the soldier and squeezed him like a blood-soaked rag. Bones snapped, flesh tore, and blood sprayed across the doorway he stood in.

"Contact, contact, contact!" I heard another soldier shout out, blind firing into the laundry room before he found a target in Kimiko. Bullets tore through her, but it didn't slow her down any and by the time the bullets erupted through the back of her jacket, the entry wound had already healed. The soldier screamed as his arms were broken before going abruptly silent when Kimiko ripped his entire head off of his shoulders.

It was a good way to announce our arrival, I decided, switching places with a soldier in the living room to see a half dozen people encased in ice, and those that were half encased were the ones screaming in agony. "oh, fuck! Oh, FUCK!" Cold Snap shouted, stumbling back when he saw a spray of blood coming from down the hall before half of a soldier's body dropped into the doorframe. He started to turn on his heel, facing me and I reached out with a hand.

"Scalpel," I said, poking his heart out of his chest. He flinched back so badly that he fell flat on his ass, gaping up at me like an idiot as I lazily tossed his heart up into the air and caught it in the palm of my hand. He winced, his hands groped at his chest and his panic skyrocketed when he felt the gaping hole there. "Hello, Cold Snap," I said, squatting in front of him while another soldier screamed out.

Cold Snap was one of those heroes that weren't as popular as they should have been. His power, Cryokinesis, had a lot of utility. He pulled moisture from the air, turning it into ice -- which made his weakness to fire and low humidity days apparent, but it was still a cool power. However, for one reason or another, he never managed to get out of being a B-lister. I used to think it was because of his obvious weakness.

Now? I was a little wiser to the workings behind the curtain. Cold Snap was probably a colossal piece of human filth that Vought management didn't want to promote because they were sure he'd fuck it up somehow.

"You- You-," he licked his lips and I wasn't ashamed to say that I relished in his fear. The word hero wasn't worth what it used to be. Not even close. Guys like him and Translucent and the Deep devalued the word until it was practically worthless. Still, it sent tingles down my spine and put butterflies in my stomach to see a hero so terrified out of their mind that they could barely speak in my presence. "Lo-look, man, I'm just following orders-"

"That excuse didn't work for the Nazis and it's not going to work for you," I replied drily. "Do you want this back?" I asked him, letting him nod slowly before he reached out for his heart, only to have it vanish from my palm to be replaced with a post-it note. "Did you really think it would be that easy?"

Yes, apparently. Yes, he did. Cold Snap licked his lips, flinching badly when the last scream could be heard. A second later, Cindy and Kimiko appeared in the living room, the latter dripping with blood. Her shirt and jacket had more holes in it than not, but she seemed completely fine. I think he was more scared of Kimiko than me in that moment. He swallowed a lump in his throat, shaking like a leaf when his gaze flickered back to me. "W-what do you want me to do?"

"How do you feel about committing a little domestic terrorism?" I asked him, handing him the post-it note that had a few dots of instructions. I watched Cold Snap read it before whatever blood was left in his face drained away.

"They'll kill me," he protested and I really wish I wasn't wearing a mask.

"... Yeah, probably," I agreed easily enough. "You, my friend, are stuck between a rock and a hard place because, as it so happens, I'm also going to kill you if you don't do what I say. However, I do promise you that I will enjoy killing you a lot more than someone like Homelander will." I told him, not an ounce of mercy to be found in my tone. He was sweating -- fat drops of it started racing down his forehead, it starting to sink in what level of fucked he was. "But, if you put in the extra effort, when they do come to kill you, you could convince me it's worth the effort to save your life. How about that?"

I could never trust Cold Snap, or any of the other supes I was press ganging into my service. No matter how nice or friendly I was to them, I would always be that guy that stole their heart and threatened to murder them in cold blood. So, it was pointless going for a gentle touch. I couldn't even expect betrayal from them because that would imply they were ever on my side. They weren't like Robin or Yoruichi, who joined me knowing full well what I am. So, threats of death and extreme violence were a handy management tool.

The post-it note crumpled in his hands ever so slightly, tears shining in his eyes. His voice failed him so he offered a silent nod of his head. I gave him a pat on the cheek before standing up, satisfied with the outcome.

The plan was rather simple. If they were going to take my unpowered people away, then I would just take their supes away.

"Come on, ladies -- we have a few more stops to make. Who are you feeling? Shockwave? Livewire? We're spoiled for choice," I said, jubilation in my voice despite the rather dire circumstances. Or, rather, it was there because of the circumstances. Kimiko looked to me and I could tell that she was frowning at me due to that whole 'being a mute' thing. Cindy, however, offered a thoroughly uncaring shrug. "Excellent suggestion -- why not both?" I agreed with a laugh.

Cold Snap would do as he was bid, because the heroes weren't heroes. They weren't willing to put their lives on the line for the sake of doing the right thing. That… that was something they were going to suffer for. Something I would make them suffer for. They failed to live up to my expectations and for that, they needed to be punished.

I teleported us back into the alley before I made another Room, taking us back into a vehicle. I got behind the wheel, driving off to our next destination. Shockwave was speeding through the city streets, putting an end to gang fights with quick and brutal takedowns. The only times that he was still was when he stood around for the cameras.

Pulling up, I saw him giving an interview on a street curb with a dozen groaning bodies around him, their arms and legs snapped at unnatural angles. Black and burnt orange costume, complete with sunglasses -- he was A-Train's main rival when it came to speed. He was about as useful as A-Train in a fight, too.

The allure had worn off. The brilliant shine on the heroes and their capabilities was gone. A-Train was a moron that didn't know how to use his powers. Shockwave was cut from the same cloth.

"Room," I intoned, making another Room. My range had grown by another thousand feet, I noticed -- my practice paying off. It wasn't a game changer, but the larger the Room, the more space to maneuver. The Room stretched over Shockwave and I noticed that he had some weight to him. More than A-Train did, despite their similar power and top speeds. It wasn't strength that determined their weight.

It was ego.

What the fuck did that say about Homelander?

I shoved my darkening thoughts to the side before switching Shockwave with a paperclip, making him appear in the back of the car. Cindy, surprisingly, was on top of things because she held him in place with a telekinetic grip. "Hello, Shockwave," I said, poking his heart out of his chest. The cocky smirk that had been on his face for the reporters slid right off, replaced with one of pure horror, which intensified when he saw his life in the palm of my hand.

The threats were the same, complete with pushing a post-it note to his forehead and replacing him with the paper clip again in front of the shocked reporters. I'm certain that Vought had an inkling of what I was doing by now, but they had shot themselves in the foot. Not only were there too many Supes in New York, but the out of state losers were flying in to make a name for themselves. Between my ability to teleport, the target rich environment, and my gangsters causing a ruckus…

Livewire, Ice Princess, the Bulk, Nubian Prince, Big Game, Professor Z -- all of them fell under my command in short order. I might have to come up with a new naming scheme, but, honestly, I think I'd rather whittle the numbers back down to Eight.

We hit fast, we hit hard, we took the hearts of our enemies, but if three times was a pattern, then nine times is enemy action. Something they wouldn't miss, and it was as I stood over Popclaw, her heart in my hand, that I heard it -- the crackling of electricity. I smiled to myself, feeling a rush of excitement rush through me a split second before I heard a clap of thunder. A split second later, the windows shattered as a pure torrent of energy tore through a door with enough heat and force that the shards that remained attached to the hinges caught on fire.

It would have hit me dead in the chest if I hadn't swapped with some gravel, taking everyone outside to see the arrivals. The ones that were tasked with bringing me to justice. "Afternoon," I greeted them, tossing Popclaw's heart into the air before it vanished, a marble falling into my palm. Popclaw staggered out of the building -- she was in her early thirties, pretty, but her power was pretty lame -- Claws that jutted out of her wrist. She wasn't even that well trained, getting by with enhanced speed and strength.

"Hello there," a woman greeted me, her tone pleasant even as electricity cackled around her hands. Dark hair, pretty with a sharp nose and dark blue eyes. She was confident with a smug smirk tugging at her lips. "I don't suppose you have any interest in surrendering?" She asked as my attention drifted to the two that were hidden. Black Noir and Starlight. Black Noir had a perfect vantage point to get the drop on us, while Starlight was positioned to take advantage of the billboards that scrolled by. A simple enough tactic -- heavy hitter out front and center, a ranged option to provide cover, and an ace up the sleeve.

"Why would I?" I asked, tilting my head. The ground beneath my feet was still uncertain, shifting but I was shaping it into what I wanted. The supes that I had collected would have their role to play, but more importantly, Vought would take them off of the board because they were compromised. They couldn't trust them to follow orders any more than I could.

Behind me, I noticed that Cindy was bristling, her hands clenching into fists. Even Kimiko was trembling with anger. That was when it clicked -- the lightning supe from the Sage Grove Center. Where they were trying to make supes. What a fucking joke.

Bitterness welled up inside of me at the sheer disappointment that I felt with the entire thing. Vought. I accused Edgar that lies were all Vought sold, and I was more right than I had ever wanted to be. Supes weren't chosen by God or cosmic chance. They were fed some blue juice and turned into supes, all on Vought's dime. The heroes? They weren't heroes. They were actors playing a part. Worst of all, they turned that asylum into a fucking horror show in the name of progress to create… what, a version of Compound V that could be used on adults? Make powers stronger?

It pissed me off, I decided. It pissed me off more than words could hope to convey.

"Probably not. I can't imagine you'll have a good time in prison, if you ever make it that far," She said, and I knew who she was. Stormfront. A supe from the deep south. Her existence was overshadowed by Supernova and Mirko, but she was a rising star all the same. With that, Stormfront thrusted her hands out and lightning leapt from her fingers, racing towards me.

Lightning was a cool superpower. Mostly for aesthetic reasons. It was a powerful force of nature that had left people in awe since people first became a thing, and even today, there was something mesmerizing about a lightning storm and the thunder that followed. However, lightning had been tamed. Studied. We knew the inner workings of it so thoroughly that we built our society upon it. Lightning was a cool looking power, but not an impressive one when you knew how to beat it.

My training had paid off -- touching what I could see or feel was getting easier. So, I touched the air currents. I shaped the roads that the lightning took in search of where it could be grounded. Instead of my chest, the bolts of lightning slammed into the ground with thunderous force, sending up sparks and bits of molten asphalt. Stormfront's eyes widened a fraction at that, clearly not expecting me to invalidate her greatest strength.

"I'm so fucking disappointed in you heroes," I admitted, letting the bitterness out. "Do you know why I do this? What this is all about?" I asked, striding forward with Cindy and Kimiko in step. "Why I bothered putting on a mask in the first place?"

"I'm guessing you're going to tell me," Stormfront said, her tone flippant but the smug smirk was gone. She wanted me to monologue. That was fine. I had plenty to get off of my chest.

"This. This right here. All the other boys and girls wanted to play hero, but this was what I wanted. A good old fashioned fight between good and evil. Black and white. Good guy," I gestured to her, "Bad guy." I continued, gesturing to myself as I stood in the center of an empty road which had been an artery to the heart of New York City. "Everything up until now? It's just been a bit of harmless fun, you know? I did it all for a giggle." That seemed to unnerve Stormfront, even as lightning buzzed between her fingers.

I shook my head, "Do you have any idea how disappointing this is? My childhood dream dashed -- not because I didn't have powers, but because the heroes I wanted to bring low were pieces of human shit instead of the paragons of virtue I was led to believe they were. Oh, it's still fun tweaking the nose of society, but the main point? The part I was most looking forward to? You ruined it. Powers from a vial. Corporate heroes. What a bad joke and I… don't find it funny anymore."

Stormfront shifted, sending the change in me. "So, what? You're going to throw a tantrum?" She asked, her tone confident but there was an edge of fear now as she was starting to realize exactly how crazy I was.

"You're goddamn right I am. It was all about having fun before. Nothing personal," I replied, my power surging as my grip tightened on the Room. I could feel my control over it growing finer in response to my emotions. "Now, the gloves are coming off. It's not just about fun anymore." I shook my head as I started to stride forward, meeting her gaze every step of the way even as the trap began to close in around me. I wasn't bothered. I wasn't scared.

I was pissed the fuck off.

"Death will be the kindest thing you will receive from me."