System Supervillain, Chapter 86

Chapter 86 – Arrival

“Thank you so much for bringing me to this, Master! I’ve never been to a supervillain party before!”

I had to smile as FX thanked me, yet again, for bringing her. She was the newest of my pets, so I thought it good to introduce her as the new member of Devastation. The other three pets I had with me were Web Mistress, Bloodmoon, and my maid, Tammy. Serafina and the former Squadron Supreme members were all starting to show baby bumps, which meant their costumes weren’t fitting right, and this was a Mask On affair, after all.

That was also why I didn’t bring Electra, Huinnalge, Bulkkoch, or any of the Tokyo Rangers. This was Mask On, so bringing any of them would basically be forcing them to give up their ‘hero’ (or ‘retired hero’) status, and making them villains.  Similarly, I couldn’t bring my lovely pet congresswoman without outing her as my slave, which would ruin her potential uses in the future, as well as making it more likely that government officials got regular psychic screenings to prevent someone like me from hijacking them.

Mask On events, despite the name, did not require people to actually wear masks, though most villains, at least, had them as part of their costumes. Not being identifiable was a good way to keep out of prison, after all. However, it was true that most people saw the costume more than the person wearing it, on both sides of the law. That was how heroes who went around with their face on full display could still have civilian identities just by changing clothes, acting a bit differently, and maybe putting on a pair of glasses. No one expected Cупермен, the hero that protected Moscow, to actually be mild-mannered Victor Ostaltsev, reporter for the Дейли Планет, after all.

That was fairly important, because, of our group, only Web Mistress and myself had masks. Bloodmoon’s costume was mostly a variation of her former transformation’s costume, which did not hide her face, and Tammy just wore her normal maid outfit. Yes, that outfit doubled as armor, but it didn’t do anything to hide her face. But, by Mask On etiquette, people were treated as their costumed persona, not the person everyone knew they were. It was an important part of the way we all managed to coexist.

FX could have made a costume which hid her face, of course, since her powers were easily capable of making something like that. However, that didn’t fit her exhibitionist style, and her powers actually allowed her to change her appearance, if she wanted to, so there wasn’t much point in her wearing a mask, other than aesthetics. So, instead, her costume consisted of a green bodysuit that contrasted nicely with her dark skin, and looked as though it was both made of latex, and covered her completely below the neck, with even her hands and feet covered. Of course, the whole thing was just an illusion, and she was actually completely naked, but that wasn’t something that anyone else needed to know.

Turning to the newest member of Devastation, I smiled. “Well, FX, I’m sure we’ll all have a lot of fun. Now, do you remember the rules?”

“Yes, Master. Rule One: Costumes on at all times while in public areas of the party. Rule Two: Refer to everyone as their costumed name, even if you know them in real life. Rule Three: What happens at the event stays at the event. Rule Four: Don’t start fights.”

“Very good,” I nodded. “They might seem fairly basic, but these rules are what allow us to go out and enjoy the company of other villains, instead of snapping at each other like beasts. In the future, we may even attend parties where heroes are attending, and the rules are even more important in those cases. Without them, any gathering would risk becoming a bloodbath, and the Guild would eventually need to get involved. And no one wants that.”

“I was surprised to learn about the Guild, Master. Wouldn’t the heroes try to take down a group that was supplying supervillains with all their stuff? Or, at the very least, try and get their client data?”

“There have been those who suggested just that,” I chuckled. “It ended very poorly for them, and those around them. The Guild survives because it has made itself the glue that holds the whole balance of power between heroes and villains together. The Guild’s presence allows for some civility to be brought to the whole thing. Just having the option of ‘neutral ground’ has ended more wars between supers than you might think. When you are able to see the other side as people, instead of just monsters, that changes things.”

“Master is right,” Web Mistress added. “The Guild helps ensure that there is some level of civility to the whole ‘heroes and villains’ thing. Before the Guild’s creation, you often had cases where those on both sides would track their enemies and rivals to their homes, sometimes taking friends and family hostage, only to send them back a piece at a time. Nasty stuff, really.”

I nodded, “Of course, there are still some people who go by the ‘old ways’, but the Guild doesn’t do business with them. Which is more problematic than you might think. If you can’t do business with the Guild, then you don’t have workers from the Mechanics helping build and secure your lair, or providing you with a ride to get around. You don’t have the Enchanters who can help you get magical gear, or who can remove a nasty curse someone put on you. You don’t have the Tailors making you costumes that can augment your abilities and help keep your insides from being on the outside. And you don’t have the Physicians to patch you back together again when you inevitably get hurt.

“Without that? You’re basically trapped at being a small-time super. Street-level vigilante, or maybe a crook with a couple powers. And, since those types don’t play by the rules, no one will help them if someone goes and takes them out.”

FX frowned slightly. “But what about you, Master? You’ve killed a lot of people before.”

“Yes, but the rules aren’t about not killing. They’re about not killing people who aren’t involved. For instance, you heard about my attack on Axis, and that Senator, right? I killed everyone on site, except for two janitors who were just doing their jobs, and Tammy, here. The other guards all died, along with everyone in the sublevels. When I went to Ultrahuman’s house, we took out him and his guards, but didn’t kill the staff. And at the Capitol, I only killed the Senator. We even left the staffer who stumbled into the conference room we staged out of stunned, rather than dead.”

FX nodded. “So, killing is fine, if you’re killing the target, and actual threats, like guards. Everyone else, either leave them alone, or go for nonlethal?”

“Exactly. Sure, killing a Senator, and doing it as publicly as I did, brings a bunch of heat down on your head. That’s just unavoidable. There isn’t a hero team around that wouldn’t try to take me down, if they thought that they could pull it off. But they’d start with trying to capture me. On the other hand, setting off a bomb in the middle of the Capitol to kill one person would have everyone after you, because you didn’t show restraint. And you’d be more likely to have snipers trying to get headshots, instead of heroes trying to make an arrest.”

Web Mistress nodded. “And it is the same for the heroes. If they kill a villain while they’re fighting? These things happen. Killing one while they’re in custody? That’s different. And causing all kinds of collateral damage in your fight? That can have heroes be treated as the real villains.”

“And then there’s the fact that the majority of the people on this planet aren’t supers. Humans didn’t become the dominant force on this planet by simply accepting threats. They found ways to kill and drive off any threats. And that’s another reason for the rules, and why the Guild is important. Anyone who looks like they’re getting to be a big enough problem that they start making the humans, as a whole, start looking at ‘final solutions’? They get killed, long before that happens. Because we all know what frightened and angry humans are capable of.”

“All right, that’s enough of that, Master,” Web Mistress said. “I’ve accessed a networked camera overlooking the ‘reception area’ that Stepford designated as the teleport ‘landing zone’. There look to be teleport inhibitors in the other areas around the lodge, but no defenses in that area. If it isn’t clear, then we’re walking into a trap.”

“Stepford isn’t that stupid. None of us have moved against him, so that would be breaking the rules. And, in that case, he’d have to be certain of killing all of us, or he would have the entire party after him, and the Guild would definitely hear about it. He would never do something like that. Take us in.”

We were in the digital realm, moving between nodes as Web Mistress made sure to disguise our path so that even she would have trouble tracing us. This whole conversation had taken place in a network node just outside the ski lodge’s internet footprint. There was a bunch of technical jargon for the specifics, but I left that to the experts, like my sister. I knew enough to not fuck things up, and that was typically good enough for my needs.

With the scream of dial-up internet, we appeared in the parking lot of the ski lodge, underneath a security camera. There were several cars in the lot, but none of them screamed ‘villain’. No doubt some of the villains took rental cars and the like to get here, and changed into costumes when they had a chance. The rest of the cars probably belonged to the staff of the ski lodge, and Stepford himself.

Looking around, I saw a security guard running this way. A big bruiser of a guy, wearing a simple black security outfit, and armed with what looked like an FN P90. Probably with armor-piercing rounds. All kinds of illegal in Colorado, but supervillains really didn’t care about such things. And, really, anyone who tried to come to a supervillain’s home and serve up weapons charges deserved whatever happened to them.

The guard stopped about five meters away from us, weapon raised, but his finger off the trigger, and the muzzle pointed away from us. In a slightly robotic voice, he said, “This is a private event, with licensed security professionals on guard. Please identify yourselves.”

Well, that made a few things clear. The man was clearly under some form of mind control. Whether it was a permanent transformation, or something more temporary, I couldn’t tell without accessing his settings in the System, and I wasn’t about to do that in the open like this.

In the end, it didn’t really matter. While I knew that Stepford’s version of mind control involved nanite systems rewiring the individual’s body and mind, his ‘Wifemaker’ device was supposed to only work on women. However, he did have the Inventor skill, and plenty of money. It wouldn’t surprise me if he had a custom ‘Wife’ around, with the ability to affect men. Especially given what Web Mistress had found in his search history. Using it on me, or any of the guests, would still be a breach of the rules, and I was fairly certain all the main guests had protections in place already against mental attacks, on top of the ‘assurances’.

Putting those thoughts to the side for the moment, I looked at the guard, and said, “Iceblade and party, we are expected.”

The guard spoke into a microphone hidden in the cuff of his suit. A moment later, he nodded, no doubt having gotten confirmation from the security office. “Yes, you are expected. Please, follow me.”