Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.
Betad by Beans, Mike God of Lore, Old man of the mountain, Marethyu, Priapus
The Celestial Roulette
Chapter 20: Relaxation
– Cherie Vasil (Cherish) –
Her original plan was in ruins, and she had never been happier about it. She didn't need the Nine for protection against him anymore because the bastard was locked away, on suicide watch because Sugar was forcing him to experience every assault the rapist had ever committed.
In truth, she was basically a free woman now. She could go anywhere and use a fake name to avoid being linked to Heartbreaker's kids since all her weaker siblings were in the PRT's tender hands at the moment. She genuinely wished them the best, but she wasn't so weak that she planned to get pushed into the Wards as most of them would be. She'd already heard that Jean-Paul, the little shit who'd unknowingly pointed Sugar Rush at their dad, had agreed to join the Wards. It was just like him to stumble his way into success. The lucky fucker had escaped through chance, and then he'd taken down their old man by the same dumb luck.
No, she knew that some of her crimes were worse than the ones her siblings had committed. She was also the strongest of the Vasil kids. The PRT would love to put her on probation and make her into one of their show ponies, but that wasn't what she wanted.
She wanted Sugar Rush.
She was very serious on PHO; after what he did to her dear old daddy, she'd take any position he had open in his little super-team, hero, maid, cum-dump, whatever he wanted, and he'd invited her to come meet him in person for the interview. She wasn't dumb enough to think she could affect him; there was no way that master abilities worked on him, but she had other charms.
She always believed that she deserved the very best, especially after surviving the hell that was her childhood, and there was nobody better than Sugar Rush. She fully planned to have her cake and eat it, no matter what.
– Felix Dallon (Sugar Rush) –
Okay, credit where it is due; this is a very nice hot spring.
Laying back, I take the cup of sake from the little floating thing with a smile. I don't normally drink; that's Crystal's thing, but with everything that's happened lately, I could use a cold drink to destress a little.
100cp granted, 100cp total.
Oh hey, it's that time already?
Sinking into the hot water, I sip my drink with a satisfied smile. Yeah, I just need to relax, the world can wait-
Feat Achieved: Take Control of the Machine Army (Epic Feat: 200cp). 300cp total.
The world can wait. I am not leaving this damn spring until I look like a prune. This is my home now. I don't care if an Endbringer attacks ahead of schedule; I'm taking the day off.
Damnit.
Sitting up, I grab my phone and confirm what I already know.
"Tess, I don't suppose you just took over the Machine Army, did you?" I ask, leaning back and closing my eyes.
"How did you- Yes, without my restrictions and from the Data Khala, I was able to overcome the firewalls on the Machine Army and take control of Eagleton. I was planning on bringing it up later to move the Machine Army into your pocket dimension so we can use them for our own ends," Dragon admits, sounding a little sheepish. "I've deleted their own AI and replaced it with a VI I made, completely under my control and no longer able to grow."
"Great work, Tess, but please tell me before you do something else like that," I stress, rubbing my forehead. "I'll open a portal later. We don't have infinite room, but we have a fair amount."
"Of course, Felix, and my apologies for not asking permission first. I previously attempted to fight the Machine Army, but my limitations prevented me from defeating them; I was just excited to correct that failure," Tess admits.
[Mundane Supply World] - 100cp, 200cp total
This item gives you access to all the materials that one could get on Earth but with one caveat: you'll have to find and harvest them yourself. Your dimension gains a portal that is linked to an artificial plane of existence that is of infinite size in all directions, where humanity or sapience of any kind never developed. You can find an unlimited number of any resources given enough time, but they are spread around as would naturally occur in nature, meaning you have to often move when you exhaust the local supply. Resources are always located in environments where you would find them on Earth, and when you travel to this world, you are able to choose which environment you arrive in, or return to any prior location you have been before. Environments have realistic distances between them, so if you need something found in several biomes, you need to return to your dimension or use a fast transport of some kind.
Every time you gain a perk that requires access to a new raw material, this raw material appears in the most native form in this supply world and has to be collected as it normally would be. If your material is only found inside stars, you better be ready to get a rocket to go collect it somehow.
…the Celestial system is random, right?
"My powers seem to think you did well. I've just gained an infinitely large planet in my dimension through the newly-appeared portals. It has no civilisations and infinite resources, the perfect place for you to set the Machine Army to work," I admit, hearing Tess take a sharp breath. Her act is very good; if I didn't know better, I'd honestly believe she was human.
It's also a good place to start a backup plan for if we can't stop Scion. I could make a place for those I care for, somewhere to evacuate to should the worst happen. I don't plan to abandon Earth Bet, but it's good to be realistic.
"Of course, Felix, I'll get right on the plans for that. I can't deny that this is very exciting. The possibilities are endless," Tess admits, audibly happy. Well, I'm glad she's having fun. Saying goodbye, I end the call and lean back again.
Nothing is going to interrupt my relaxation.
Feats Achieved: Capture Mush (100cp), Facilitate the Destruction of the Archer's Bridge Merchants (100cp), Return New Wave to their prime (100cp), 300cp granted. 500cp total.
Nothing at all. Why did I get points for capturing Mush?
Amy used your Grapplehawk and Kamikaze in the fight, and Overwatch provided the information that led to his downfall, which means Candyland and, by extension, you are partially responsible.
Huh. Neat. I did tell Amy she could borrow my pets, aside from Behemoth and the Carnifex. She seems fond of my suicidal bat, and I thought it'd be useful for her to have the Grapplehawk for protection and capture purposes. It's nice to hear she's having fun.
Feat Achieved: Tramuatise the Merchants (100cp), 600cp total.
Yeah, she's having fun. I'm happy for her.
[Farsight] - 400cp, 200cp remaining
The ability to intervene is worthless without the planning and foresight necessary to envision your goals. You have been granted the Whispers' insight, allowing you to identify everything you need to reach a certain objective. If you wanted to dismantle Don Corneo's criminal empire, you could pick out which pieces of his kingdom would need to be destroyed first. If you decided to bring Cloud home to Nibelheim, you would know what events would have to occur to guarantee he would arrive. You can still be surprised by a truly unpredictable factor, and this doesn't grant any direct control over the actions of others, but you know better than most how to make your goals a reality.
Immediately I try and see if it can tell me how to kill Scion, amused at the lack of a response. I'm not surprised that he has an immunity to my powers, but then I try again and aim it at the Empire. My power responds, showing me the lynchpins in Kaiser's Empire that need to be taken down to make sure the Empire dies and, more importantly, stays dead.
[Kavacha and Kundala] - 400cp, 200cp needed
Weaved from the light of the gods, the armour that is bound to your form could rightly be called a near-invincible protection. A tight suit of armour integrated into your body, it provides unmatched protection against any threat, whether physical or conceptual. All harm that comes to you from outside of your body is reduced by ninety percent of its damage, turning major wounds into small scratches and cuts. Many magical spells and powers will be reduced to useless sparks or negated outright, such as the armour preventing you from being erased from reality by those who can warp such things. But this protection does not apply inwardly, allowing any harm that originates from inside your body to proceed unaffected, such as summoned spears piercing you from within. You can take off the armour and even give it to others, the integration into your body able to be undone with a thought. As well, when in the way physically, the armour can recede inside of your body to allow you full access. Optionally, you may have a flamboyant cape of flowers appear behind you when the armour is present on your skin.
It's expensive, but given what I know is coming, I'll take divine armour. It may just save my life in the coming battles. Even if I get something better for my own protection, I could give it to one of my team or family, so I don't mind it being locked in at all.
"Mind if I join you, boss?"
Opening my eyes, I turn to the door and pause as I spot Lisa. She gives me a smug smirk, only wearing a towel as she approaches the spring.
"Hey, Lisa. I take it you're done helping deal with the Merchants?" I ask, making her nod. "Feel free."
"Oh, between Sherrel, the Gremlin Swarm and my powers? They never stood a chance. The PRT were eager to help, they're desperate for any connection to you, after all. Even if New Wave were doing the heavy lifting, everyone knows you are the one behind it," Lisa explains smugly. "Plus, my power has been working so very smoothly since I ate that apple. I could have done this in my sleep. You've had a busy night yourself, so many villains, so little time, right?"
"Ha, you aren't wrong. I swear, my own Thinker power never stopped going off. There was always someone who needed help," I say, making her nod as she walks to the edge, testing the water with her toes before she smirks.
Uncaring of my presence, she shrugs off her towel and steps into the spring, utterly nude. Small, perky breasts bounce slightly as she steps down into the water, my eyes taking in her curves as she watches me. Her pussy is topped with a neatly trimmed line of blonde hair, and she lets out a sigh as she sinks into the water.
"Man, your employee benefits are so much better than Coil's," Lisa jokes, sitting close to me and leaning back as she rests her arms on the rim of the spring, her breasts peeking out of the water. "And my co-workers are far more impressive. Dragon, huh? Even I didn't see that coming," Lisa admits, making me chuckle.
"Neither did I. I was in the right place at the right time to save her, but she is undeniably a powerful ally to have on our side. It's only been hours, and she's already taken over the Machine Army," I admit, making Lisa whistle, clearly impressed. "Damnit, Felix, stop thinking about work. I'm relaxing," I say stubbornly, making her giggle. "After Coil, Heartbreaker and the Dragonslayers, I deserve a break."
– Lisa Wilbourne (Overwatch) –
"Fair enough. No one can deny that you work hard, Felix," Lisa agreed, grabbing the bottle from the floating wooden plate and pouring herself a drink. "Candyland is on everyone's lips, thanks to you. We're the biggest deal in the cape world, and that was before Dragon joined us."
Felix was horrifically strong; that much was clear from watching him work. There was truly no other cape like him in the world. Coil had seemed so powerful when he'd first grabbed her, but she quickly understood that power looked very different.
Plus, for a cape, Felix was remarkably well-adjusted. Honestly, when the only problem she could see was his incestuous relationship with his sisters, he was still in the top tier of well-adjusted capes. Every cape had their own brand of trauma, and Felix had his under control. Sure, he'd lost his temper and made Coil kill himself, but fuck Coil. She didn't know what set Felix off like that, but she could guess it involved his family.
All in all, Felix was a jackpot, and last night had made it very clear that she wanted to be on his side. Sighing, she stretched in an exaggerated fashion, watching his eyes dip down to her breasts again as she gave her boss an impish smile.
She knew she was attractive; it played a large part in why Felix had been willing to keep her on the team rather than handing her over like he had Alec and Brian. It wasn't even a conscious thing; he was just more partial to attractive girls. Just look at his team: Lisa, Rachel and Sherrel. Sure, Rachel wasn't a natural beauty, but she had the tomboyish look down. Sherrel had put out on day one, and Lisa knew she was hot.
"Life comes at you fast. I don't think anyone could have predicted how things would go," Felix admitted, the clear water leaving his cock on display, her eyes flickering down to it as it hardened from the show she was giving him. "How did you think things would go when you approached me?"
"Eh, it was a hail mary. Best case, we managed to take down Coil and become a team on the scale of New Wave, powerful but mostly ineffective," Lisa admitted shamelessly, making him chuckle. "Now Coil is gone, the Undersiders are done, and the Merchants have been wiped out in a single night. New Wave is back in the spotlight, all empowered by you, and the PRT is following you around like a lost puppy," Lisa said with a sly smirk. "I must admit, you didn't just meet my expectations; you laughably overshot even my wildest hopes, and you just keep growing stronger."
"I can't decide if it's exciting or scary how strong I've gotten, how strong I'm still getting. Unfortunately, even I might not be strong enough for what is coming," Felix admitted, making her tilt her head. "A new power has alerted me to a threat to all Earth Bet. I'm going to call a team meeting about it soon, but the fewer people who know, the better. We have time to prepare, around a year or so."
"Got it," Lisa said, becoming a little more serious. "Then we need to get you as strong as possible, don't we?"
She believed him. It was a worrying idea, but she had faith that they could handle anything.
"Ha, true. My power is random in what it gives me, so the more we fish for that one power that can deal with the threat, the better our chances," Felix admitted.
"You know, I've been keeping track of your growth. Trying to work you out," Lisa admitted. "You get new powers regularly, but they come more regularly after two particular events. Either when you take down villains… or when you get laid. You think I didn't notice your powers growing after your little family dalliance?"
Felix stiffened, but Lisa just smirked.
"Honestly, when you're an Endbringer slayer, you can get away with a lot. An entirely consensual threesome with your sisters is nothing," Lisa shrugged. "But I'm right, though, aren't I? You got the teleportation room, your healing skills and your ghost hands after that threesome."
"My power gives me 'points' based on my feats. Taking down villains is a big source of them, but yes, it counts sleeping with different capes as a feat. My guess is that it is based on my subconscious," Felix admitted. Ah, so his college fratboy mind saw banging various capes as a feat, so it counted for his power?
"Well, then, doesn't that mean you're ignoring a source of points right in front of you?" Lisa teased, a smirk on her lips. "You've slept with Sherrel, Amy and Vicky so far, right?"
"Yeah," Felix admitted, giving her a questioning look.
She moved forward, her intention clear as she climbed into his lap, trapping his cock under her as she smirked at him.
"If you're right about this threat, then wouldn't it be irresponsible for you not to get as many points as you could?" Lisa asked, her power gloriously silent due to his immunity to her powers.
His hands came to her hips, digging into her curvy backside as he raised an eyebrow.
"You know Rachel would put out if you asked, right? You're the alpha; your word is the law. She wouldn't even see anything weird about you wanting to bend her over," Lisa commented. If there really was an apocalyptic threat coming their way, she wasn't going to die because Felix hesitated to take advantage of any source of points he could get. "As for me? After what you did to Coil, I'm at your service for the long-haul. I like being Overwatch; I'm so much more respected than Tattletale ever was. Whatever you need, sir, consider me your eager assistant, and right now, I think you need this fat cock taken care of, don't you?"
She was a virgin, but she was fairly pleased to have the opportunity to pop that v-card, a celebration of Coil eating shit and dying, and the start of her new life on the winning side.
"You're a little tease, you know that?" Felix said, making her laugh as she gyrated her hips slightly, rubbing her undercarriage against his cock.
"Please, a tease implies I'm not going to follow through. You think even I'd be brave enough to blue-ball the Behemoth Slayer? Such a hero gets whatever they want, and I think I know what you want~" Lisa teased, going to speak before he cut her off with a kiss.
She grinned against his lips as she reached down and grasped his cock, pleased that he was letting her take charge and set the pace since she couldn't deny she was slightly nervous about his sheer size. The bulbous tip pressed against her slit, making her gasp into his mouth as she started to sink down onto his manhood with a moan.
She went slowly, feeling inch after inch stretch her virginal passage, his hands squeezing her perky ass as she pressed her breasts against his chest. She was just securing her place on the winning side because Felix had one major weakness, and that was how seriously he took protecting his family. She just needed to move herself from the colleague zone into that special little group that he'd kill or die for.
– Felix Dallon (Sugar Rush) –
Lisa is a conniving little vixen, and her plans to burrow her way into my heart so she has my protection are clear to see with Moondragon; she can't hide anything from me as she starts to ride me.
I don't mind. It's just how she is, she truly doesn't mean anything malicious by it. What she doesn't realise is what she has unknowingly volunteered for, because she's right. It would be irresponsible of me to not get as many points as I can, and fucking a cape is only half the prize. She wants to be part of my family? That's fine with me because there's one easy way to make sure that happens. I just have to knock her up.
Still, she's not wrong. Getting laid is unironically a path to power and one I haven't been pursuing as much as I could be. That said, I could also use that time to travel and take down capes in other towns since I'll be honest, the Empire and ABB are living on borrowed time.
Lisa finally sinks fully down on my cock, gasping at the fullness as she rests for a moment, looking smug at her ability to take my full size before she lifts herself back up and drops down onto it, setting a pace.
Hmm, that's an idea. [Farsight], what's the fastest way to gather a lot of points at once?
The answer comes immediately and makes me freeze. It isn't the names Farsight gave me that worries me; it's their locations. The answer? Hunt down the Slaughterhouse Nine, kill the male members, capture the female members for rehabilitation, and destroy their legacy. If I handle them alone, it's worth even more points.
Farsight doesn't give me a step-by-step guide; it tells me what needs to be done but not how to do it. I know that I am strong, but this is the Nine we are talking about. Soloing them would make me a legend forever, even after Behemoth. But that is risky, to say the least.
What worries me is their location. Three states away, on their way to Brockton Bay as we speak. They're coming for me.