章節 12: Skyfall

2:00 pm, 6th December 2010

Cherie Vasil took a deep breath, disguising it as a yawn. Okay, Cherie, you can do this. You can do this.

She hoped her itty bitty anxiety didn't slip through the carefully created mask of polite reservedness. She didn't want the young man in the driver's seat- who was 'helping' her hitch a ride to an auto shop he insisted was up the road- to wonder what was wrong.

She met his shy smile with a small one of her own, just enough to spark his dopamine and oxytocin but not enough for him to fully ascertain if she was really interested or just polite.

She internally sneered at his blush and his attempts to hide the fact that he was staring more at her face and tits than he was at the dusty road ahead.

Terrible manners the youth of today had, she lamented, while shamelessly ignoring that she was just 20 and only four or five years his senior.

"Where were you heading, miss, if you don't mind my askin'?" Jared asked, trying to start some inane small talk to wave away the awkwardness perhaps.

Cherie smiled, "Oh, well," she pretended to hesitate like any normal, well-adjusted woman would. "My grandmother lives in Kansas City and her health has been on a decline, so like any good granddaughter, I wanted to pay her a visit."

Jared frowned, "I'm so sorry to hear about that, miss. Um, it's also very admirable," Cherie's eyebrow twitched. "That you'd visit her all the way from… uh where did you say you were from?"

"Oh, I didn't," she replied, while playing with her hair. "I live in Oklahoma."

"Ah," Jared nodded. "You've come a long way, huh?" He chuckled.

'Ugh, kill me', thought Cherie while she chuckled politely along with him. "I have," she nodded. "But I'll manage."

"Alone?" He raised his hands and tried to disarm her small frown. "I- I meant to say- wouldn't it be better to bring some friends along with you? If I hadn't come along you'd still be stuck on the road."

"I- yes you're right. It's just… my parents aren't exactly around," she made her lips twist sadly, and scoffed internally at his sympathetic expression. She sighed, "And I don't have many friends- at least not ones that'd travel all the way to Kansas with me."

Cherie knew that what she said was something no woman travelling alone should say to a strange man they had met barely ten minutes ago. But most women were not looking to purposefully make themselves prime cult targets.

Her empathic senses picked the music of relief, interest and excitement at what she had revealed about herself. Cherie loved it when a hook caught fish.

They passed through a small town and there was nothing too off about it- at first glance at least. Children playing in a small park, their mothers looking over them like hawks. Two men sat on wooden chairs on a porch, drinking bottled beers and smoking. Their eyes followed the pickup truck the whole way, and theirs were not the only eyes that were curious. Despite how they wished to hide it, Cherie found it easy to catch the spikes of wary and curious emotions hiding behind curtains, peeking through the gaps.

If she hadn't read about the role this town played in helping the Mathers cult avoid any nosey capes, PRT, and law enforcement from the cities, then she would've struggled to believe that these weren't just some hyper-religious hicks.

From what her vast empathic sense could reveal, these people were all afraid of someone or something. Every action they took, every emotion that bloomed was carefully cultivated and molded into fanatical reverence for someone. The orange ribbons of reverence flew through the air, humming and twisting to one common direction- the compound that they were no doubt heading towards. She didn't know why Nemesis wanted to spare them, she knew all about brainwashing and brainwashing this thorough? It'd take too much effort to unwash them.

Cherie shook away her doubts, her boss wanted what he wanted. There was no benefit to questioning the motives of a man like him. She let her arm hang out the window and loosened her palm. A dark purple bean fell out and unbeknownst to her or anyone else, smoothly sunk itself into the soil, leaving no sign of its intrusion.

She pretended as if everything was fine and dandy the whole way and only allowed herself to frown when they passed the small town without stopping. "We've passed the town, Jared," she reminded him.

"Oh yeah, we did," Jared slightly clenched the steering wheel. He turned and smiled at her, "I thought you'd want to rest your feet at my family's place, we've got good food and drink, and my sisters would keep you company while I drive one of the mechanics over to see what's wrong with your car." He explained, so smoothly that Cherie wondered how long the boy spent preparing it.

"Is that okay with you, miss Helen?" His knuckles whitened over the wheel and his smile was nearly brittle. He was really close to breaking character. Well, no need to push the poor boy so soon. This was probably his first time doing this all alone- in fact Cherie was certain it was- Jared felt like he was flying by the seat of his pants.

"Oh yeah, sure," she shrugged. "That sounds good." She pretended not to notice how his fingers regained colour and how his chest deflated.

Her attention was soon caught by the tall, grey barbed wire-topped walls of the family's compound that had appeared up ahead.

Before she could ask, Jared hurriedly explained, "My family is wealthy, and they like their privacy and security. There's no need to be afraid."

Wow he was really bad at this, wasn't he? "Oh, alright," Cherie chuckled.

"What?" Jared tilted his head, confused.

"Nothing." She grinned, "I almost mistook it for a military base." Cherie cringed internally. She hated acting so fucking clueless and genuinely prayed that no woman was truly as stupid as she was pretending to be.

"Oh, haha," Jared chuckled awkwardly. "Nah, we just like our privacy out here."

Jared took his foot off the gas as they grew closer to the gate. This should be the spot where the motion-triggered puncture strip was buried in the earth. The truck jumped a bit over the hidden bump.

The steel gates to the compound slid open as the truck came close and Cherie could see two armed men in white and grey gear walk up to the truck. One of the men talked with Jared in low tones while the other kept her in his line of sight. Cherie could see his finger tracing the trigger guard. His emotions were bound into a tight package of mistrust, and that did make her a bit wary. She kept her emotional attack at the ready in case things went south but, thankfully, it wasn't needed. The guard conversing with Jared gave them the go-ahead and the truck began trudging up a slightly inclined path to the compound proper.

Cherie made sure to remember all that she saw even though she had memorised the place's layout beforehand. The cult residence was big- big enough that it could be considered one sprawling mansion. 'A small castle, more like,' she thought, and it was- made of smooth cut grey stone, and several stories tall, solid and imposing.

Her power pinged off of 126 different people. A majority of which were not parahumans and were part of the servant class in the family. The parahumans, on the other hand, could be recognised by how heightened and weird their emotions were. They were like a bunch of bungled up threads and pointy, rusty wires held together with sticky tar trying to pass off as guitars. She counted seven of them.

There was always the possibility that she was wrong about some of them, and that there was a well-adjusted, neurologically sound parah- Cherie stopped herself from giggling. Yeah, right.

She jumped out of the truck and followed Jared into a long, shaded veranda. There, three girls of varying height and hair colouring greeted them, each one wore long, white, and loose summer dresses. They had welcoming smiles on their faces, though their eyes told another story- they were suspicious of her. As they should be.

She smiled back and Jared introduced them. "Miss Helen, these are my sisters, Sara, Miriam, and Hope. Girls, this is Miss Helen, her car broke down and she's stuck with us for the time being. Please show her to the living room and if Brother Eligos asks- she's a guest."

Cherie raised an eyebrow at 'Brother Eligos'. That was the old bitch's guard dog that she had traded one of her 'soldiers' to the McVeays for. An aerokinetic Blaster. Dangerous, violent, and self-assured. She wondered how she'd deal with him.

The three girls drew her away to a well-furnished living room. The chairs were old fashioned and the varnish was dulled with the passage of time.

Here Cherie was subjected to an interrogation session that was disguised as 'genuine' interest in who she was and where she had come from.

At one point, one of the girls got up and excused herself, while the other two continued the conversation. The third came back soon, bringing a tray of refreshments with her. For Cherie it was difficult to refuse anything beyond the first few protests. Any more and it would've been incredibly rude, and in this particular case, would've raised suspicions. She knew how eager the girls were for her to taste the cookies or drink the fruit juice, likely laced with something.

Now, you see, Cherie was in a bit of a bind. From the briefing she had received, she knew that Valefor wasn't present in the compound at the moment. If she wanted to take out everyone that made up the Mathers branch, she'd have to wait for the 'Silver Son' to return in two days' time. That meant that Cherie couldn't act out right away.

Unfortunately, that also meant that she had to stay with these freaks for the next two days, eat whatever they gave her and act clueless until the cultists tore off their kind masks or tried to seriously harm her. Because despite all they said, she knew it deep down, her car wasn't getting fixed and they'd do anything to keep her here- their emotions revealed most of their intentions.

She just hoped she didn't get groped while she was knocked out, that would be a downer but not the end of the world. Nemesis had assured her that no sexual harm would come to her, so that probably meant no one would rape her- so nice of them. That was good enough for her. Rape would just bruise her up and it would annoying to fight and run with an tender pussy.

With a mental 'cheers' to her boss, if he was even listening, she took her first sips. Then she took a bite of the cookie, and found it to be delicious.

Whatever was in it was slow-acting. It took a few more bites before it took effect. Her vision blurred and she felt light.

__________________________

Sara's face lost its genial smile once the outsider whore slumped down into the chair. The slut won't be waking up for an hour.

She nodded to her sisters and they picked her up and laid her down on a sofa. Hope took off her boots, and Miriam unbuttoned her shirt. Sara did not hide her disapproval while she unbuckled the belt around her jeans- pants- she scoffed. The world was going to the dogs, women wearing the garbs of men! The gall these unenlightened city girls had! Women had their place, Sara knew. Such debasement of societal values and nature was exactly why the Heralds had come to punish mankind. It was a sign!

She scowled at the red 'whore stripe' in the girl's hair. The stripe told her all she needed to know about this harlot's character. The girl was clearly of the rebellious, feminist sort- the worst kind of gender traitors that could ever exist, she fumed internally. Her half-brother had clearly lost his wits, bringing such a woman into their sacred grounds. Though she could sympathise with her brother's moment of weakness- this Helen was well-spoken and pretty with a figure to match, it was no wonder why she had wrapped the poor boy around her finger with her sweet words. But Sara did not think with her cock as she did not have one, and so she saw the fleeting cunning glint in the girl's eyes. The only reason she hadn't poisoned her was because the Mother was curious about her.

Sara loved the Enlightened Matriarch with all her soul, and admired what she stood for. She was blessed by the Singing One, and had seen the deep truths of the world. And so, Sara obeyed. The girl would live, for the Mother knew what she did not. She smiled with pride as she felt the phantom touch of the Mother's warm hand caress her back.

Focusing back on her task, she flipped the pockets of the jeans with practiced ease and felt around for any hidden needles, knives or suspicious objects. She found a thin wallet, and a packet of strawberry flavoured bubblegum which she placed into a tray. After rummaging through her denim jacket, Miriam added an mp3 player with headphones, a phone and sunglasses to the pile. Hope, finding nothing in the girl's shoes, snatched up the phone device and did her best to crack it open using the techniques the Silver Pastor had taught them, but Sara saw her frustration peek through, this password was not an easy one to crack. Annoying, but not something that would matter much since the devilish device wouldn't work here anyways.

Sara bunched up her frock, and kneeled by the sleeping girl's side. Her earrings caught her eye, on her left ear hung a bean-shaped stone of bright red coral- she guessed from what little she was taught of precious stones- and on the right, an equally smooth bean of blue. She ignored them, seeing no signs of tinkertech and instead focused on her mouth.

She pressed her thumbs into her cheeks and pried her jaw open. With a small flashlight, she did a complete sweep of her enamel, even using an ice-cream stick to peek under her pink tongue. No visible lumps over them or packets tucked in between her teeth, that was good. That crossed 'trained spy/assassin' off the list.

Could it be that this girl was telling the truth? Perhaps she really was who she said she was. The license looked legit too. Sara sighed in relief, an honest slut was better than one that had secret motivations or affiliations, though she would not rule them out entirely. She could just be a plant by the FBI or PRT. She wondered why they'd send someone with no powers for the job, didn't they know about the blessings of their Preacher?

Her mind drifted towards said silver-haired man, whose blue eyes had captured her heart when she first looked into them. It was in those moments that Sara knew that she had been set free, her mind unchained from the troubles of the mortal world. Her spirit had been unleashed and sung with rapture in the embrace of his ethereal words. Truly, Lord Valefor was worthy of being the right hand of the Enlightened Mother. She just hoped he'd take her into his bed one day and bless her with his seed.

Her wandering musings were interrupted by Hope, "All clear?" She had clearly lost interest in the girl or her belongings, Sara sent her a disapproving glance, but the stubborn girl was resistant to it by now.

"Yes," Sara sighed. "All clear. Dress her and sit her back up," she picked up the girl's driver's license, "Brother Eligos has asked for this, I better not find a hair out of place on her when I return," she ordered sternly. Her sisters nodded with feigned earnestness. Sara narrowed her eyes before walking away, these airheads would be the end of her.

She nearly fell over as she bumped into a large mountain of muscle, large hands gripped her arms, steadying her. Looking up at said mountain of muscle, her face went through shades of white as fear gripped her heart. Bowing her head, "Brother Seir," she intoned. She tried her best to keep the disgust out of it as Seir inappropriately rubbed her arms with his fat paws, his thumbs rubbing slow circles dangerously close to her armpits.

"Aha, you need to be more careful, sweet Sara," Seir chided, his flabby, zit marked jowls quivering as a result of his ugly smile. "You poor thing, so fragile, you should eat more." He licked his lips. "How about this, you come and visit your Aunt Elena in my wing and we'll feed you something other than that tasteless slop Eligos gives you." Fucking pig! How dare he suggest that she involve herself in his disgusting orgies. He smirked, taking her silence as possible consent.

She lamented Elena's fate, her poor Aunt had to suffer his sweaty attentions whenever he wished to slake his lust. Sara hoped Aunt Elena's womb matured enough to carry a child, at least then this brute would leave her alone for the next nine months. Then she felt bad about the other young girls in the family, Seir would just slip into their beds and do what he did to her little Aunt.

"I thank you for your concern, Brother Seir," she twisted out of his grip as gracefully as possible. "But I really must report back to Brother Eligos."

The smile dropped from Seir's face, he frowned. "Is this about the newcomer?"

"Yes, it is." Sara might dislike the brute but he was a believer in the cause and was Blessed. Any attempt to lie to him would be met with sharp reprisals and punishments. She didn't want to give him any more leverage over her or her sisters than was necessary.

He scratched his neck absentmindedly, "Hmm, is she in that room?" The lecherous smile was back in full force.

Sara frowned. "She is. The Mother was very interested in our new guest. She has commanded Brother Eligos and I to monitor her until Lord Valefor returns."

For a split second, fear and apprehension crossed Seir's face. Sara was satisfied to see it, however briefly. She mentioned Mother's name precisely for this reason and she knew that Mother knew it too. Sara was happy that Mother did not disapprove, it turned out that even she did not like Seir's whoring ways.

The manwhore would think a thousand times before touching their young guest now. "By your leave, sir?" She bowed and walked past him, not even stopping for a response.

She hurried, not wanting to keep Brother Eligos waiting. If he asked, she'd just mention what Seir had said, particularly his opinions about the quality of food Brother Eligos had provided those who worked for him.

__________________________

Cherie woke up to a strange sensation in her jaw. It wasn't sore or anything and she did not taste anything weird, that crossed out a nocturnal blowie. 'It could've been a micropenis,' Cherie chuckled to herself.

The three sisters were staring at her with false concern. Their emotional tunes were out of sync with their expressions. They felt nothing but annoyance and disdain, and was that jealousy in the youngest- Hope was it? Cherie rarely saw such acting skills in the average person so it was always a weird experience when she came across people who had almost perfected the art. Living in a cult commune made one pick up the necessary skills, she guessed.

She acted reasonably confused, and when asked what had happened, was given the convenient answer of "Oh, you must've been in a lot of stress to have fainted" by the eldest of the three. Sure, gaslight away, Queen.

Of course, she nodded along and got up to stretch her legs a bit despite their protests.

The girls insisted that she should come and eat something, maybe even meet the rest of their family at this lunch.

Cherie smiled brightly and accepted the invitation. That was exactly what she wanted.

__________________________

At a large table she was introduced to the members of a small subfamily of the Fallen. A tan, bulky, hazel-eyed man sat at the head of the table, and introduced himself as Eligos. He was apparently the eldest in this subset of the family and thus responsible for her "safe return to her grandmother". When pigs fly, sure. Wait- maybe somewhere in the world a crazy biotinker did just that. You never know.

"That's not a name you'd hear often," Cherie commented while she helped herself to some sandwiches and salad.

Eligos chuckled good-naturedly, "I've heard that more times than you'd think," he took a bite. "My mother was a big mythology nut. That's probably it."

"Greek?"

"Hm, yes. Close enough," he nodded.

While he and the rest of the people at the table engaged her in inane trivia and banal discussion, Cherie tightened the strings of her power and tuned into one mind after another. She was lucky that Ahrima wasn't here or the prepubescent Thinker's danger sense would've sniffed out her invasions as an immediate threat. She began by charting every bond, fear, hope and weakness in their psyche. She mentally marked the two parahumans at the table.

Aside from Eligos himself, there was Bamet- who introduced himself as Carl- he could give animal traits to humans and vice versa. She shuddered. He looked at her with poorly hidden lust and greed, and it was funny seeing people at the table doing their best to distract her from noticing. Eligos had to give Bamet a warning glare to get him to tone it down. 'Wow,' Cherie thought wryly, 'This feels so disgustingly familiar, snide remarks, smirks, awkward dinners, and a family submerged in lust, lies, and greed at each other's throats.' And she hated it. 'All the more reason to rip it apart', she smiled at Jared sitting down the table, and the boy blushed.

She pushed into his mind.

__________________________

The day passed relatively uneventfully.

And by the next evening, seeing that she hadn't tried to escape, their suspicions eased. They truly thought her a dumb, trusting bitch.

The room was bugged. The microphone was in the lampshade and the camera was in the picture frame.

When she sensed Jared's desire to visit her pique, she plucked the strings of his insecurities and fear. He subconsciously grabbed his switchblade and tucked it into his pocket.

Jared's visit brought news about her broken down car. Sadly, it was a slow-going process. The car needed an oil-change too. Cherie pouted but nodded. She reached out and hugged Jared, rubbing his back and squeezing his arm in gratitude as she separated. "Thank you for all you've done for me, Jared." She gave him one of her sugary smiles.

The teen sputtered and blushed so red that Cherie thought his cheeks would sprout tomatoes.

As he left and the door closed, Cherie carefully folded her arms and walked over to her bed, throwing herself in it, and placing her left arm under the pillow. She unfurled her hand and left the switchblade under it.

After dinner with the family- this time the obnoxious and piggish Seir had joined them- Cherie walked back to her room and closed the door. She slipped into her bed after a leak.

In the cover of darkness, under the sheet angled away from the camera, she took the switchblade and pressed it high up on her left forearm, balancing it so it didn't fall off. Then slipped her leather bracelet up that arm, locking it tightly so it held the switchblade in its place. Wearing a denim jacket had come in handy, the sleeves were long and wide enough to hide any lumps or peeks.

Cherie closed her eyes and pretended to sleep.

__________________________

Overnight, purple flowers sprouted in the town. Parks, gardens, and backyards, even the gaps in the barks of old, high trees were not left untouched by this hypnotic flower. A sweet scent filled the air.

__________________________

7:00 am, 8th December 2010

It came as no surprise to her when, come morning, she found Valefor sitting on a chair staring at her. She audibly gasped to sell the act and scrambled up to cover her non-existent nakedness.

Valefor raised his hands in a sign of peace and smiled. He had a nice smile, Cherie would admit but she knew better than to trust smiles of any sort except the most naïve.

"Who are you?" She frowned.

"Hello, Helen. No, I haven't been watching you sleep the entire night, I just arrived." He waved her 'concerns' off with a soft laugh. "I'm Valefor and it's nice to finally meet you."

"You're a cape," she said, pointedly glancing at his costume and mask.

"I am", he replied.

"What do you want from me?" Her voice trembled trying to seek answers and get him to talk, meanwhile Cherie pulled on her power, subtly working on Valefor's twisted mind, avoiding the notice of the queen bitch's constant presence in his consciousness.

"It is not about what I want from you, Helen, but what you want from this life," his lips twisted in sympathy, and Cherie could feel his power buzz in the air as she held eye contact with him and heard him speak. It was hard to describe but it was like a fly softly buzzing in her ear. A shudder ran down her spine, thinking of how it would've ended between them had she no defense against fellow Masters.

Cherie nodded along as the insane preacher talked about her place in this world, and asked her about her fears and dreams. Then once he was certain that she was caught into his web, he dove headfirst into a speech about the End of Times, how that time was nigh and how everyone in the world deserved to be 'cleansed' for their sins. Oh dear, this man was truly insane, especially the reverent way he talked about the Endbringers. Cherie did not do anything but nod along and agree, like a hypnotised doll. Valefor's smile grew and he became more animated.

While only half an hour had passed, for Cherie it felt like three.

Then came the offer, to join his perfect family, in his words- "A community that cared for each and every member, enlightened by the hidden truths that many in the world wished to hide, living simply and without any worry for their salvation. The world may perish but those we who have already fallen could not possibly fall any further. The only way is up."

Cherie accepted. Valefor leapt up and took her in his arms, hugging her and then kissing her forehead. She kept smiling. "Be welcome then, sister. To those who have fallen in the eyes of our rotten society, welcome to the Fallen!"

She was dragged by Valefor to a different wing of the house. "You must meet my mother. She'd love to see you."

Cherie's heart beat in her chest but she could not act now. Not until she was in the room. She did however, plant the seeds in several minds, parahuman or other.

They entered a large room, on the bed of which sat an old woman in a pure white nightgown. The light of the curtains highlighted Eligos who now stood in a costume made of red and black jagged rock-like substance, there was no doubt about which Endbringer inspired the style.

Eligos made eye contact, Cherie did not flinch. Cherie turned her head to notice a figure lurking in the far right corner of the room- Amaymon. Clad in white, the Trump cape kept his four yellow lenses trained on her. Ahrima stood by the bitch's side.

The woman suddenly stood up and her bones audibly cracked, Cherie winced internally, 'Yikes.'

Cherie kept her eyes trained on the floor. She knew that if she looked at Mama Mathers then she'd have to act. The bitch would know something was wrong when she was unable to take over Cherie with a quantum fragment of herself. The jig would be up.

And so Cherie patiently waited for the woman to stand before her.

The woman raised her chin with her hand. That was when Cherie acted.

Her power suddenly pushed Amaymon's anger, rooted in something real perhaps, and directed it at Eligos. The old bitch gasped as she felt Amaymon's rage spike. Ahrima screamed in alarm but it was too late. Within a short moment, he drew a suppression sigil in the air, sending it whizzing towards the Behemoth lover.

Eligos, caught off guard by the attack, could do nothing but take it. His power stuttered and then fell silent- for a time. Time that was very precious to Cherie. While she stoked Eligos' rage with her power, she drew the switchblade in her sleeve, flicked it open and in one smooth motion, tore a gash in her throat.

For that moment the world stood silent. Valefor looked on in horror as his mother grasped at her open throat, red lifeblood seeping past her wrinkled fingers. "Mother…"

"Mother!" He hugged her to his chest. "NO!"

Then Christine Mathers gasped audibly, her hand going to her chest, and warbled a name with her final breath, "John…" Valefor's eyes lost their light. That was Lionheart's name.

While the shock persisted, Cherie sparked the flame of rebellion without any delay. With no Stranger bitch to command them, the normie guards and the servants were now free- free to be manipulated.

Cherie pulled at the emotions of every person in the compound. She might have been given full command over this mission but she didn't know how Nemesis would take the deaths of children, infants, or just everyday cult people. Seeing as he had decided to spare the townsfolk, she felt that sparing these people was the best call in the moment. Emotions ran high once she had killed their Matriarch, but Cherie was nothing if not a master of emotions.

She guided their song into one of panic and fear and so fear gripped them tightly and pursued them- most ran towards the compound gates, screaming as if possessed but there were some, however, who remained. These people overcame their fear with madness and ingrained fanaticism for the cult and their 'home'. So they remained, some huddled in a corner, others brawling in the halls, some however, were making their way towards this wing- parahumans included. Cherie had to be quick.

The blue bean in her palm dropped to the floor.

Valefor rose, furious and growling, and Amaymon had already drawn a sigil to send her way, but Cherie was nothing if not desperate and willing to survive at all costs. She picked up the screaming seven year old Ahrima and tossed her at the approaching sigil. The sigil hit her body and bound her in chains of light. The child fell with a thud, bound and gagged.

Valefor paid for his distraction with a firm kick to the nuts. He folded and slumped, then howled like a little bitch. With two quick jabs, she popped his eyeballs. The howling intensified. The sigil suppressing Eligos had vanished, and so he slashed his arms in an arc, two blades of air rippled outward. Cherie did what she always did, throw someone else under the bus.

She quickly dropped to her knees and laid down until her back bent to touch the hardwood floor. She sent an emotional distress signal into Valefor's brain, he jerked and stood up in his panic, turning around to fight a phantom enemy. His arms separated from his shoulders and his torso was slashed open in a way that his organs did not need to slither out through any gash, they just thumped right out.

Eligos roared in anger at what he saw, his brother in arms, his beloved pastor- dead by his blades. "You whore! How dare you!"

Cherie tuned him out, she pushed her torso up from the floor and pushed up with legs to stand. She pulled her arm back and in a single motion, sent her knife flying into the fool's exposed liver. She thanked his retarded costume choices for this, this fight would've been much harder without it.

She simultaneously felt out for the people fleeing. They were allowed to pass through the gates by befuddled guards. They'd soon reach the town and get knocked out like the townsfolk.

Now that the mansion and the compound were mostly clear of random normies, Cherie pushed the guards manning the machine guns at the gates and guard towers to open fire at the mansion. The guns whined and Cherie dropped to the floor as a hail of bullets ripped through the walls of the mansion.

Most did not penetrate where the stone was too thick. The windows and the parts where it wasn't, were obliterated. This was how Bamet and his pets were ripped apart.

She commanded the guards with assault rifles to storm the mansion, and gun down any hostile they found. They did so, butchering their way through stubborn fanatics. The only ones that now stood in their way were Seir and Coronzon- an elder of the Fallen Council, and a grotesque Changer.

__________________________

Seir laid a line of shadow over the floor, from this came ten shadows. Each shadow leapt at a different soldier. Seir changed places with one, put his gun to the man's head and blew his brains out, then swapped again. He did so until he had only two shadows left that he sent ahead. He shamelessly swapped places with them, effectively teleporting towards the wing Cherie was in.

Coronzon growled, 'Craven bastard!'

His changer form barreled into three men, ripping two to shreds while the third was crushed under his monstrous weight. The remaining three opened fire and didn't stop firing until they died. Just when he thought it was over, the machine guns started spitting bullets again. 'Fuck, who stocked these fuckers up on siege ammo?... Oh. Right.'

His changer form could only be maintained for a limited time and his time was running out. If he went ahead, he might survive like Seir and if he stayed he'd revert back to his weak, cancer-ridden body and die for certain. Christine was dead, her son too, from the feel of it- what was there to live for? Coronzon had never felt so free and so tired. He just wanted to take a nap.

__________________________

Cherie felt Seir approaching ascending the stairs, huffing and puffing.

There was no time to-

There was a bang, and Cherie, who was putting her training with Nemesis to good use by dodging and jumping over Eligos' desperate air blades, fell down and hissed.

Amaymon! The bastard shot her. He shot her! What the fuck? Wasn't that illegal or something? Probably.

'Oh fuck, it hurts. Fuck me, it hurts so much!' Her gut was shot. Thankfully it missed the liver.

She had no choice now, Cherie decided, watching Eligos approach, a vindictive smirk on his face. The blade was still stuck in his gut and his liver was probably leaking blood into his gut so he'd be dead in an hour or two. She had really hoped he pulled that knife out, that would've made her day.

Ah fuck. She had to hold on until it sprouted. She tried to pull herself up, only to scream when Eligos dug his boot into her shot gut.

"What's wrong little whore, you don't look so good." The cockgobbler mocked.

Cherie grunted and smiled. "Better than any of you, I'm certain." She yelped when he lifted his boot. Then he snapped his leg and hit her head with the same boot. Her vision spun and Cherie saw three or four of him. She felt nauseous. Her power slipped through her hands. Ugh.

"How about now?"

"Just get rid of her!" A reedy voice yelled, Amaymon, likely.

"With pleasure!" She felt two large hands squeeze her throat, and it became harder and harder to breathe. She tried to reach for the knife in his gut but Eligos twisted out of the way.

Cherie spat into his eyes, and raised a trembling hand to her left earring while he wiped the bloody spit out, she tugged on the red bean and slapped it over her mouth.

The bean dissolved and Cherie's body burned.

A new strength entered her muscles. The bullet was forced out by the swiftly mending flesh and the wound closed in real time. The strength Eligos was applying to her throat felt like nothing. His touch felt as weightless as a feather.

Eligos' eyes widened as he noticed the change. Cherie squeezed his hands, crushing them into chunky salsa. She did not wait for his screams and just ripped his biceps out by digging and hooking two fingers deep under the muscles. Cherie didn't hear what Eligos was saying, she didn't care. He had to die.

Cherie grasped his head in both hands and squeezed. A creak first, then a groan, the squish of flesh and the crunch of bone.

Amaymon and Ahrima screamed.

Seir screamed. He had entered the room, just as Eligos was strangling her.

It was then that the floor split apart and the beanstalk sprouted. Its tendrils ripped their way through the compound, twisting and turning. They impaled and crushed, finding their way through every hole and crevice they could. Seir tried to run away but as luck would have it, the beanstalk sprouts found him to be an excellent target for impalement, like many others. They dug their way into his ass, and any open hole they could find, then they widened in size. Cherie thought it a glorious sight.

The greater stalk grew and the foundations of the mansion groaned as they were tested- and found wanting.

With a lurch and a roar, the entire wing was lifted into the air. The wind whistled and screamed. Cherie held on for dear life as gravity forced her against the floor. Ahrima was sobbing for her mother and Amaymon was blubbering or praying, who knew. Higher and higher they rose.

And then it stopped.

Cherie looked around and carefully got up, the whole room creaked noisily. A wind blew her hair and she saw a small cloud float by. Through the door she could see a thick stalk which she was sure she could step on.

The creaks grew and Cherie felt a terrible premonition. 'Not good,' her gut told her. 'Yes, I know!' She snapped back at it.

She gingerly walked out towards the door, and it was because of this that she avoided the large gaping hole in the wooden floor ahead of her that led down to- Cherie gulped. That was a long drop.

Amaymon groaned and scrambled up. "Fuck! Fuck! What the fuck, man?!" He pointed an accusing finger at her. "What the hell, bitch?! What did you do?! Who are you?"

She said nothing and that just made him more angry. "Listen here, bitch…" The floor board he was about to step on fell through.

He didn't move after that.

Cherie felt fairly confident in her speed to- Aha! That's a good idea!

She rubbed her sweaty hands on her jacket, lowered her stance and leapt at a hanging branch of the stalk, then used the momentum to swing herself through the doorframe and landed on the stalk outside.

"Holy crap!" She cursed. She didn't dare look down. That way lies madness and fear.

The wing behind her creaked furiously and the wood splintered and cracked, the stone, plaster, anything that could crack and shatter, shattered. The stalk had compromised the building's structure, it would not last long up here, gravity was a cruel mistress.

Ahrima's voice screamed from the collapsing building, Cherie would've ignored it and shut herself off from the tragedy, if the voice wasn't coming closer. That is to say, towards her.

The wooden flooring before the door frame collapsed, widening the gap to safety. The girl was sobbing now.

Cherie grumbled, huffed and got up.

She stood at the edge of the doorframe where the stalk was the thickest. She looked into the little girl's eyes and opened her arms. "Jump! Come on!" She yelled.

Ahrima shook her head. Cherie rolled her eyes, what a dumb child. She was never this dumb. "Jump or you'll die! Do it! You're a brave girl, come on!"

Ahrima grit her teeth, took a few steps back and then ran at her. She fell a few steps short but Cherie scooped her at the edge of the large hole. She pulled back and set the child down.

Just as she did so, a pentagram made of light enclosed her- a power suppression sigil. "Die, Brute bitch!" Amaymon yelled.

Two shots were fired but their sound was drowned out in the open windy air. Cherie suddenly felt a sting in her spine and the back of her head. She looked back and saw Amaymon's mouth open in horror upon seeing her alive and well. Cherie gave him a smile and a wave then kicked the wall of the building hard.

"No!" The building slid a few inches and that was all that was needed to completely shatter any support that maintained it for this long.

The torn structure fell from the beanstalk.

"Biiiiiiitccccchhhhhhh!" His voice was lost to the wind.

Cherie looked down at the trembling girl in her arms and smirked- she trembled even more.

Cherie looked up and saw Nemesis standing on the stalk a few metres away, she sighed in relief.

Ahrima suddenly fell unconscious, Nemesis waved a hand and a light passed over her head. A flash of light and Ahrima was gone.

Cherie raised an eyebrow, "Where did you send her?"

"The Protectorate."

"Didn't you want her to join you?" She asked.

"Why would I want that?" He tilted his head.

"I dunno…" she mumbled.

Nemesis shook his head. "The child is better off in the care of government-paid nannies."

"Who would make a child soldier of her?"

"Perhaps, perhaps not. She knows more about war than most Wards, especially after what you did. She'll manage."

"So..."

"So?"

"How'd I do?" She grinned widely.

Nemesis nodded. "I'm impressed."

"Just impressed?"

"Very impressed."

She could squeal and jump around, high on adrenaline as she was. But she didn't. She had a reputation to maintain.

"Nice work with the people inside. You stopped the unnecessary casualties with that." Nemesis nodded in appreciation and Cherie couldn't help but beam with pride.

"The stalk worked," she said breathlessly.

Nemesis chuckled. "Almost too well. Was it useful at least?"

"The Brute Bean? Yes. The beanstalk? Ehh, created more problems than it solved. Almost died 'cause of it."

"You thought I'd let you die from a petty fall of all things?" Cherie didn't measure but 2000 feet was not a petty fall. "Have some faith, my dear."

Cherie rolled her eyes good-naturedly.

"What about your end of things? Work out well?" She asked.

"The Crowleys and their associated biker gangs had an accident. A major gas leak at their camp, a cigarette sparked in a petrol pump, and their remaining bikers were killed in a tragic," Cherie could hear his smile, "highway accident involving an eighteen wheeler and the steel gym equipment it was carrying inside it. Horrible business."

"My condolences. And the McVeays?"

"Most are dead. The non-parahumans that were salvageable were wiped of their memories. Their loved ones will find them soon enough."

"And their leader? Lionheart?"

"Killed him too."

Cherie hummed. "How long ago would you say you killed him, boss?"

"About seven minutes before I came here. Why do you ask?"

Huh. She shook her head. "Nothing. Shall we go? Getting a bit chilly up here." Nemesis hummed and walked over to her. She linked her arm with him and with a flash of blue light, they vanished.

Unlike the others, Jared did not run away to the town. He couldn't. She was in there. His soul mate. His half-sisters were in there too but they never looked at Jared with the same sweetness that Helen did. He stumbled back as the beanstalk rose and then ran towards it in despair. She was up there, he knew it!

"Helen!" He yelled.

But it was not Helen who answered, a coarse and shrill voice did. "You bastard! You did this to us!" Jared looked over his shoulder. Ten metres away stood Sara, his eldest half-sister.

"Did what?" He frowned.

"You brought that whore to our home! That whore did this! She killed Mother!" Sara's eyes were wide and shot with red, her face cut up and her ankle bleeding. She hobbled but stood firm. Then Jared saw the gun in her hand as she raised it. "I'll kill you, TRAITOR!"

Before she could press the trigger, a large shadow fell over them, Sara looked up and so did Jared.

It was the last thing they did.

Author Note: I have never uploaded a 7.6K chapter in my life. So this is a new one for sure.