บท 135: Chapter 136
Domina
With a loud crack, I appeared in front of a hall guarded by mercenaries draped in fitted suits that hid their firearms well.
I found it amusing that they'd go through the effort of pretending. As if their earpieces didn't give them away.
"They're expecting me," I said. The larger of the pair placed his hand on his ear briefly before he nodded to the other.
"The Hellfire Club welcomes you, Ms. Belasco," the smaller man said with an even voice. He squeezed the door handle and let me into a large lavish hall with four people sitting atop a dais, conversating.
Seated at the center was Sebastian Shaw, the Black King, a ruthless industrialist and entrepreneur whose greed rivaled even my own. He murdered his predecessor quite brutally if memory served.
To his right was Emma Frost, the White Queen and head of the Frost International. She was an incredible alpha-level Telepath with a secondary mutation that made her impervious to nearly all physical attacks.
To Sebastian's left was Azazel, a dimensional traveler with considerable mastery of spacetime and other magics that even Belasco does not fully understand. He had some strange beliefs about mutant-kind and used ritual magic like the devil he pretended to be, but his motivations were somewhat clear—power and domination.
Norman Osborn sat to the far left, and he was the least powerful in the group, physically at least, but he made up for that inadequacy with an astonishing amount of wealth and influence. Oscorp was a world leader in cutting-edge science, pharmaceutical, experimental bioscience, weapon design and manufacturing, and several other fields.
Obviously, he was the weak link of the group.
"I was beginning to fear I'd never hear back from you."
"A week is no time at all," Sebastian Shaw said.
"Oh?" I raised a brow, teasing him slightly. "You clearly know that's not true. Time is currency when you're on our level, and I will wase no more of yours by beating around the bush."
My eyes surveilled the room one last time before I began to speak.
"Our war with the surface is at an end," I said, "and we're going to win. We have enough soldiers to match the world largest armies, the advantage of instant teleportation, and magic unlike anything this world has ever seen. All that is left is figuring out where the most influential men and women around the world stand."
"The people seated in this room control a fraction of the world's resources," Frost spoke up with a contemptuous tilt of her lips, "and are very much interested in keeping it on its current course. How did you expect us to react?"
"Curiosity, I hope," I said. "In exchange for your support, we're prepared to accelerate the club's goal. World Domination. However, instead of spending years scheming and beating back the likes of SHIELD, Xavier's rugrats, and the United States government, you get your own private chunk of the new world."
Azazel leaned into one of his armrests as he observed me. "Why share? I've never known your kind to be benevolent."
I shrugged. "We will need someone to rule over what's left of the masses."
"And how much of them do you intend to purge?" Norman Osborn spoke up with barely veiled venom. "Your little hunt for the rogue demon took out several city blocks, and you bombed a university! I've seen how you operate. There will be nothing to rule over when you're done."
I fought back a grin. He was right, of course. Left to the First and second born, we'd take the more careful and methodical approach, spend several years creating the Ascendants, ensuring our victory before we raised a finger, but I was tired of waiting.
Revenge for Isha was just an excuse to attack New York. However, hunting down the Son of Sparda was never the point. Acquiring my bribes were.
"You're not seeing the bigger picture Mr. Osborn," I said. "Earth was always going to be conquered, if not by us, then by the thousand other empires roaming the wider galaxy. To them, Earth is just a backwater world with too many resources and not enough defenses. Although our takeover will be bloody, we have the resources to pull this planet out from the depth of obscurity. Dead humans can be replaced with cloning, and cities erected in weeks instead of years. Your wealth might take a temporary hit, but you'll be richer than ever in a few short decades. Now, if your real fear is that you'll not grow old enough to reap the spoils of conquest, I have an easy enough solution to that problem."
In my palm appeared a vial containing a reproduction of the Super Soldier Serum. Despite Banner's best efforts, he actually hadn't perfected the Serum as he'd assumed. Gamma radiation produced inconsistent results. When you swapped it out for Blood magic, however, the results were stable…and nothing short of astonishing.
Osborn's eyes went wide. "Is that—"
"The Super Soldier Serum?" I completed. "Yes, and perfected. A personal sample just for you. I will also provide the formula and the binding agent we used to stabilize it. The blind research can stop," I said. "I'm serving you the answers to your son's condition on a silver platter. He will live, and you get a significant life extension, along with the means to make a super soldier army of your own."
Just when I had Osborn leaning forward so hard he nearly fell out of his chair, I vanished the serum.
One down, three to go.
"I, of course, did not forget the rest of the council," I smiled. "Mrs. Frost. With Xavier out of the way, I imagine you might want to finally realize your dream of becoming an educator and helping your kind. Any mutant under your protection will receive full immunity."
Emma's eyes widened slightly, unable to hide her surprise.
I turned to Sebastian next. "What do I give the man who already has everything? Family perhaps. I recently laid eyes on your son. He shares the same mutation you do."
Shaw, who'd remained impassive all this while, finally showed some emotion. It was a bewildering surprise. "Where is he?" he demanded, and I raised a finger and tsked.
"All in good time."
Finally, I looked to Azazel, the most enigmatic of the bunch, and spoke with absolute confidence. "It was difficult, parsing what an interdimensional mutant who plays as the devil would want, but after some thought, it seems obvious—a way back home. Limbo has entire departments of demons who specialize in Interdimensional travel. You only need to ask, and we will get you there."
"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were my kin," Azazel said. "You charm and seduce like the best of them, but do you have the authority to make the promises you have? Belasco is conspicuously absent, as are the First and Second Born. You're what? Only the fourth most powerful offspring. Last I checked, the war against the surface was Corvus's domain."
I predicted Azazel would have some knowledge of our internal affair, but not to this extent.
Then again, I'd expected some resistance.
"Plans changed after Sparda's boy injured Isha. Jean Grey also offhandedly killed one of the most powerful telepaths in recent history. Allied with the sorcerers, they're a threat even we cannot ignore."
"Still to change decade-long plans over some teenagers, and to put someone so young at the helm—"
"It is radical, but it's the obvious choice," I said. "You seem to forget that I am the head of the Hand and brought Japan to Heel in a few short years. Who better to mete out justice to an errant demon and his precocious little girlfriend."
"But you failed, didn't you?" Frost questioned. "It's all they talk about on the news. Two more of your kind are dead by his hand, and possibly a third. And as far as I can tell, Jean Grey is still alive."
"They were more resilient than I anticipated," I admitted, "and they had some help. The Brotherhood has thrown in their lot with them, as have SHIELD. They grow more dangerous by the day, and by some miracle if they manage to delay our invasion, they'll be coming after you next. The demon kid you're so quick to dismiss claims to be Clairvoyant. Who knows what he knows."
Shaw raised a brow. "Are you trying to intimidate us into working with your kind?"
"Wouldn't dream of it," I said innocently. "I'm simply presenting you with the facts. Do with it what you will. Anyways, you've heard my offer. You know what I want. I eagerly await your response."
With that, I spun around and made my way towards the door. It opened when I knocked. None of the members said a word until they thought I was out of earshot, but it was clear I had them thinking. Frost suggested reaching out to Wen Wu, the Mandarin, to review their options before making a final choice. Still, it was clear which direction the majority of the inner circle was leaning.
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