Capítulo 79: 79 Interlude: Taiyang Xiao Long 2 Electric Boogaloo
Releasing a low groan, Taiyang Xiao Long leans back into his seat, exhausted by yet another pile of paperwork.
"Damn that madwoman and double damn that walking missile."
After muttering to myself I just close my eyes and try to relax.
Ever since Extinction decided to drop a miniature sun on the city, 𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘤𝘦, things have been incredibly chaotic and the amount of work piling up on my desk has increased enough that I might as well be some kind of desk jockey.
I normally only have to go through a couple of pages a day. It's not like I became a gang lord to do paperwork after all. In fact, one of the main reasons I turned to crime is to avoid this kind of work.
Ah well, needs a must.
Still, everything is falling into chaos.
It's barely been more than 48 hours since it happened and already there are riots on the streets.
It makes sense though. Thousands of people died yesterday and they died to a government sanctioned Hero at that. Each of those people will have families and friends and each of them are evidently unhappy about it.
If it was only that then it wouldn't be such a bad thing, but yesterday my main rival, the Street Lords fractured.
Nobody knows why for sure, but after thinking about it for a subjectively long time I believe that it was simply a case of Bang getting ambitious and attempting a takeover.
In the end however his former boss clearly saw it coming and the only result is that Bang has split off with the other two Blasters to form the 'Young Lords' while the rest of the capes have stayed under their previous banner.
Honestly, having my enemies weakening themselves would normally be a good thing, but with the chaos that is already spreading through the city there just isn't the opportunity to do anything about it.
As if to make things even worse, I 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 haven't heard anything about Lucy since the incident and I'm really starting to worry that she was among the casualties.
That is when my door is burst open by one of my men who is smiling despite breathing heavily as if he ran all the way here.
"What is it Kenchi?" I ask, hoping to get some good news for a change and I am glad to not be disappointed.
"It's Rose Boss! She's back!" Kenchi is one of the guys who really took a liking to Lucy.
Part of it is no doubt simply because of her being both an attractive and fit woman who is also just fun to be around, but a large part of it for most of them is more than simple attraction.
It's that they, like Kenchi, are the ones that took to her CQC lessons like fish to water. I've overheard them talking about how much fun it is, reminding them of messing around in phys-ed when they were at school while also causing them to be noticeably better fighters.
She hasn't even been a member of the family for more than two weeks yet, but I can already tell that she has won the respect of the majority of the men under me, capes included.
More than that though, she has earned their 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 at the same time. She truly is a born leader and while I would normally be opposed to trusting someone who is still as new as she is, things are different with her.
Ever since that scuffle she and Junior got into a few days back I've known that she is loyal enough.
I remember Junior telling me about it. He was fighting Bang by himself when one of our normals decided to try and help. Bang set out to erase him in response, yet he was spared of his life by Rose who risked her very life to push him away to safety at the cost of her own arm.
She's lucky she can regenerate, however slowly. But if she was just a single foot to the side, she would have been torn apart at an atomic level until nothing was left to heal.
Yet she willingly rolled that dice for the sake of someone who most parahumans would see as simple 'mob' characters, rather than genuine people.
After he told me this, I let Junior know that should anything happen to me, she is to be given the position of leader.
Senior might be annoyed at someone so fresh getting the title, but the simple fact is that no one else has the position and temperament for the job.
Junior is very much a right hand kind of man, Senior is like a general. He would turn the family into a militia, one that would likely not last long. Summer isn't even interested in all this stuff, she only helps the family as a favour to me.
And the less said about Stacy the better. That woman only wants to build more pets, she would allocate the families entire budget to her Tinkering and run us into the ground.
Lucy however, I'm sure that after a brief adjustment period that she could be an even better leader than me. Because as much as I don't like to admit inferiority, my own charisma is simply not a match for hers once she really gets going.
Ah, speak of the devil.
I'm knocked from my thoughts by the sound of footsteps and as I look up I am greeted to the sight of a slightly battered looking Lucy.
She mostly looks the same, her skin is just paler than I remember it and her lips are dry. She looks sick. Normally that wouldn't be too worrisome, but she is a regenerator, so whatever is making her look like that would probably kill a normal person.
However, after using my power to think on it, I decide not to expressly mention her appearance. Despite a lot happening between then and now, it still hasn't been too long since her trigger and I don't want to bring up any bad memories by 'exposing' her weakness.
So instead, I simply greet her with an entirely genuine warm smile.
"Lucy. I'm glad you are ok. With you not answering any calls I feared for the worst. Though I have to ask, where have you been?"
She gives me a weak smile as she moves to take the seat opposite me.
"I got caught up in the recent incident. I was only in the periphery of the damage though, so at least I was only injured instead of dead. I've just been letting myself heal since then until I was well enough that I could actually make it here."
Seeing as nothing bad seems to have happened beyond simply being injured, I allow a relieved smile to grace my features.
"I'm glad. How long do you think it will be until you're back in good health? Things have been getting rather chaotic lately and I could really use an extra pair of competent hands to keep things in order."
Unexpectedly, she makes a somewhat complicated face, causing me to raise an eyebrow questioningly.
"About that Boss. I should be good to go by tomorrow but I was thinking we could do something else instead of just 'keeping things orderly'."
Her face tells me enough of how serious she is so I don't say anything immediately and just stare deep into her eyes.
She matches my stare unwavering, her eyes just as intense as when she first walked through my doors.
"...What do you have in mind exactly?" Despite my question, I'm pretty sure I already know what she is going to say. I just want confirmation from her mouth.
"The city has fallen to chaos as you said but in the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity. I heard about the Lords and how they split in two. It's the perfect opportunity. Our enemies are weak and we are strong. We can take them out before the city has a chance to calm down, while the police are all busy with the riots we will only have to worry about the Heroes, but they will probably be keeping their heads down until their PR department fixes things for them."
Her passionate words draw out a sigh from me.
I have obviously already considered this, but the situation is simply too chaotic. Riots are popping up all over the city and my men are having to act like they are some kind of police officers just to keep us from losing mass amounts of revenue.
Any kind of attack will leave us undefended and could have consequences that just aren't worth the risk
"I'm sorry Lucy, but the situation is just too chaotic. Starting an offence now would end poorly." I can see that she is going to argue the point but I cut her off by explaining further.
"We are the only truly organised gang left in the city yes, but that actually works against us with the current situation. You are only young, so wanting to rush ahead is expected, but you must keep in mind that the now named 'Young Lords' would have the advantage simply due to their lack of organisation. They could, and would, start to use guerrilla tactics with their strong Blasters and there would be little we could actually target of theirs."
Those so called 'Lords' are my enemy and I have spend an inordinate amount of time plotting their downfall, so I do completely understand her desire to rush ahead and strike while we can, but it is simply not worth it.
To be a leader you have to learn when to push the advantage and when to simply stay your hand for the sake of those under you.
This is a lesson that I hope Lucy will learn with all of this, so that she may do better should she succeed me.
Thankfully, instead of lashing out or getting angry, she accepts my words and slumps down into her seat.
As I am thinking of what to say next, my power activates itself at full power and the entire world slows down to a standstill while a vague sense of danger grows in the back of my mind.
I look at Lucy as I try to understand what is going on and in slow motion I see minute changes.
They say that eyes are the window to the soul, and I watch as her eyes slowly seem to change from feeling disappointed to annoyed until they brighten as if she just had an epiphany.
It's then that she turns to look at me and in slow motion I watch as she smiles a smile so foreign to me that I almost don't recognise her.
Then she starts moving and despite how slow it looks under the effects of my power, I know that if I wasn't using it then she would be little more than a blur as she moves far faster than she has shown to be capable of.
I am physically incapable of moving fast enough to avoid her and realisation comes crashing down on me like a bucket of ice water once her eyes start to slowly turn red with pulsing red veins spreading out over her black sclera.
She launches herself over the table and flips so that she lands behind me with her arms around my neck, all in such little time that my face is still showing the same expression as before my power activated itself.
I see.
So all of that was an act then?
Despite myself and the hatred growing in my chest, I can admit to being impressed.
I really had no idea. She had all of us fooled.
I wonder how much of it was even a lie, or if any of it was true in the first place.
I don't bother trying to resist. I recognise those eyes and I understand that I am already dead.
I accepted long ago that I would likely die a bastards death. Though I never thought it would be to someone I trusted.
Oh well. The dead have no need for regrets.
I have to actually force my power to deactivate itself, as if my power is refusing to accept the situation in my place, trying to fight.
Alas, there is no point.
Time returns to normal and for a second I say nothing. I feel the arm around my neck and I know I am dead, but she is not putting in enough force to choke me yet.
Even though she says nothing, I recognise this for what it is.
My final words.
There is only one question I really want to know right now.
"Before I die, I have to know. Was anything you said real? Is there even a single part of you that is the Lucy Kalmana that I came to trust?"
The last words I ever hear are whispered to me with a kind of playful sadism that reeks of insanity and bring a single tear to my eye that never even gets a chance to be shed.
"That's not my name.~"
It was good while it lasted, I suppose.
𝘚𝘯𝘢𝘱!
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A/N: He~llo! Dear readers!
Honestly didn't plan this, it was kind of a spur of the moment thing. Like, I always planned for Tai to die, but there was supposed to be this whole thing where she got the Xiao Long to attack the Lords but then I realised that it wouldn't work towards the greater plan, so I decided fuck it, I will stick to Lusia's character and do what I have always done.
I will just write whatever comes to mind and make it up as I go along. Cuz keep in mind, Lusia is basically just as smart as I am, so any plans that she makes she is making up on the spot, because I am writing her and I am making them up on the spot too lol.
Anyway, this arc will get wrapped up soon, then we will be onto arc 3!!
Also I am hella tired today for some reason. Like, woke up tied and am still tired, idk why.
(5+)Advanced chapters with the links below!
pat/reon.com/user?u=41732867 (get rid of the first slash or check the description)
Also, join the discord with this invite code! Pj3Dttwses
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