System Supervillain, Chapter 65 (Patreon)

So, I got all excited to do a 4v6 super-powered beat-down, and wrote extra. And then I decided, "Screw it, let's toss them all up!" So, you guys get THREE chapters today! Here's 1/3:

Chapter 65 – Squadron Supreme

“The four interlopers have stopped advancing on the warehouse, Iceblade,” Web Mistress said, fully in ‘work’ mode, her earlier playfulness set to the side for the moment. “They look to be setting up containment, in case we make a run for it.”

“Very good,” I nodded. We’d set up on top a collection of crates, just a meter high, giving us a good view of the nearby area. Most of the warehouse was taken up with rows of shelves with crates and boxes, obviously, restricting the battlefield. “Stolen Victory, you will attack Indomitable with all your might. Kill him, if you can. It will be especially poetic, considering how long he’s lusted after you.”

“What? He would never!” Victory did not bother objecting to my command, because she knew that she could not. “Indomitable has always been like a brother to me.”

Bloodmoon laughed. “Oh, you poor thing. Even in China, the media we got made it clear that the big, tough man was head over heals for you. Hell, anyone who saw the footage of Master beating the Squadron after he had his fun with you would have to be blind not to see it!”

Victory looked around, and saw no disagreements. “Damn it. Why didn’t he ever just come out and say something? Part of the reason I was so eager to catch you was because of how he looked at me like he was ashamed after I came back to the team. Ashamed of everything that I had done while under your control.”

“No, Vicky,” I shook my head. “He was ashamed of how, after publicly proclaiming you were ‘his girl’, and that he wasn’t going to leave enough of me to identify, much less make it to trial, he then went and got his ass handed to him in humiliating fashion, before watching me toss his sister over my shoulder, and disappear. He was ashamed of himself, not you. But, don’t worry, he won’t be alive after this is through, so you won’t have to worry about it anymore.

“Anyways, you will entertain Indomitable. Bloodmoon, if you could take out Alchemy as a priority? Web Mistress, trip the sprinkler system once they arrive. After that, I believe you are the best one to deal with Titan’s mech suit. That will leave me to deal with Lucky Star, Foxtrot and Pyra, who won’t have her fire powers after she gets wet. Once one of your targets goes down, pick up another.”

“Alchemy will be in his chair, Moony,” Web Mistress said. “It has a forcefield that protects him, since brother crippled him during their last fight. So, use your blade to start. That will cut through the field better, and take him out with one good hit, or at least make him an easy target for your second hit.”

“Got it,” Bloodmoon nodded, just as there was a crack of lightning in the middle of an open space, near two forklifts. The six members of the Squadron Supreme stood in a circle (or sat in their floating chair, in Alchemy’s case), facing out, clearly ready for an attack from all sides. They quickly turned to face us, various looks of displeasure on their faces.

I decided to stoke the fires. “Well, well, if it isn’t the Squadron Supreme. You know, it feels like it was only yesterday when you lot tried to interrupt my fun, as I was having a bit of a celebratory bank heist after a very successful job with my lovely Vicky, here. Hey, Alchemy, remind telling me how that worked out for you last time? Unless you’re too stupid to remember?”

Alchemy’s   Enraged check, 11-: 3d6 = 12 (Fail)

Alchemy was always an arrogant bastard, and anyone questioning his intelligence was a great way to cause him to lose control. If he wasn’t ACTUALLY pretty damn intelligent, as well as being a dab hand in a science lab, he’d be no different from any internet troll. But, well, here he was. And, predictably, just as the sprinkler system went off, showering everyone and everything in the warehouse, he lit off on a tirade against me, pulling out one of his famous grenades as he did so.

“Let’s do this.”

Turn   Order

Segment

Turns

1

Web   Mistress (Mental)

2

Web   Mistress (Mental), Pyra, Iceblade, Bloodmoon

3

Stolen   Victory, Web Mistress, Lucky Star, Foxtrot, Alchemy, Titan, Indomitable

4

Web   Mistress (Mental), Pyra, Iceblade, Bloodmoon

5

Web   Mistress (Mental), Stolen Victory, Foxtrot, Lucky Star

6

Pyra,   Iceblade, Bloodmoon, Web Mistress, Alchemy, Titan, Indomitable

7

Web Mistress   (Mental)

8

Web   Mistress (Mental), Stolen Victory, Pyra, Iceblade, Bloodmoon, Foxtrot, Lucky   Star

9

Web   Mistress, Alchemy, Titan, Indomitable

10

Web   Mistress (Mental), Stolen Victory, Pyra, Iceblade, Bloodmoon, Foxtrot, Lucky   Star

11

Web   Mistress (Mental)

12

Stolen   Victory, Pyra, Iceblade, Bloodmoon, Web Mistress, Foxtrot, Lucky Star,   Alchemy, Titan, Indomitable

Segment   1:

Web   Mistress’s attack roll (Titan), (ECV 10): 3d6 = 12 (Hits ECV 9) (Hit)

Data   Editing: 2d6-1 = 9

Titan:   9/30 Mental Transform

Web   Mistress: 34/34 END

“Locked on,” Web Mistress muttered by my side, softly enough that the others wouldn’t hear it over the sound of the sprinklers. “Erasing the OS for Titan Battlesuit Mk IV. Estimated time to completion, under four seconds.”

Segment   2:

Iceblade:   +2 CSL to DCV (DCV 12)

Web   Mistress’s Data Editing (Titan): 2d6-1 = 7

Titan:   16/30 Mental Transform

Pyra’s   Attack Roll (Iceblade), OCV 15: 3d6 = 16 (Hits DCV 10) (Miss)

Binder   Gun: 5/6 charges remaining

Iceblade’s   Acrobatics check, 15-: 3d6 = 14 (Success)

Iceblade’s   Attack Roll (Pyra), OCV 10: 3d6 = 5 (Hits DCV 16) (Hit)

Winter’s   Curse: Pyra -6 ECV (-2 ECV), -6 DCV (7 DCV)

Iceblade:   43/50 END

Pyra:   9/12 EGO

Foxtrot:   27/30 EGO

Bloodmoon   uses Martial Strike: +2 DCV (DCV 12), +2 DC Weapon Strike

Bloodmoon’s   Attack Roll (Alchemy), OCV 10: 3d6 = 8 (Hits DCV 13) (Hit)

Bloodmoon   Blade: 7d6-1 = 30 BODY (10 rPD after AP)

Stun   Multiplier: 1d6-1 = 2 (60 STUN) (10 rPD after AP)

Alchemy:   5/25 BODY

Alchemy:   0/50 STUN (Knocked Out)

Bloodmoon:   50/60 END

Titan:   16/30 Mental Transform

Web   Mistress: 34/34 END

Iceblade:   43/50 END

Pyra:   -6 ECV (-2 ECV), -6 DCV (7 DCV)

Pyra:   9/12 EGO

Foxtrot:   27/30 EGO

Alchemy:   5/25 BODY

Alchemy:   0/50 STUN (Knocked Out)

Bloodmoon:   50/60 END

“Data deletion passing 50%. Estimated time of completion, three seconds.” Web Mistress focused on her work, her mind moving faster than her body could, even at the best of times. I only now caught on to what she was doing. Deleting the operating system of Titan’s battlesuit would basically turn it into a useless hunk of metal. Depending on how the controls were done up, he might not even be able to get out of the suit without assistance.

I didn’t have time to think about that, though. Pyra was always a quick one. And I wasn’t sure whether my ability to suppress fire abilities would be strong enough to work on her. Fortunately, she still had the critical weakness of water causing her powers to fizzle out. Unfortunately, she wasn’t as helpless as she used to be in the water, as she lifted her wrist, revealing a new addition to her costume that looked like a wrist-mounted shotgun!

Chunk!

The thing made a sound like an air cannon going off, but I could see that, whatever the thing was, it wasn’t actually a shotgun. However, the projectile was definitely coming my way! I managed to dodge, but a quick look behind me showed that the wall where it hit was covered in some kind of glue.

“Clever girl,” I muttered, as I leapt into the air. A quick summersault had me landing between Indomitable and Pyra, landing in a perfect crouch, with my blade on the hilt of my sword, ready to strike. “Fuyu no Noroi!” I spoke the invocation of the spell as I drew the blade and slashed out at Pyra in a single motion. The blade passed through her, as though it were not there, but I felt the curse take as it slashed her soul, even as Kotta Kaze’s icy aura began freezing the water around me.

“By the power of the Bloody Moon, I will slaughter you!” With that cry, Bloodmoon spread her wings, and took to the air. She didn’t fly long, however, just circling over a stack of crates so that she could dive down upon Alchemy from behind. As she did so, she cried out, “BLOODMOON BLADE!” A blade that looked to be made of crystalized blood appeared out of the tip of the scepter she carried, and she drove it down into Alchemy like a spear, piercing through the sudden glow of the forcefield protecting him, and impaling the scientist where the neck and shoulder met. As she withdrew the blade, the scientist slumped forward, unconscious, and the forcefield flickered out.

Segment   3:

Iceblade:   +2 CSL to DCV (DCV 12)

Stolen   Victory: +2 CSL to OCV with HTH combat (OCV 15)

Indomitable:   +2 CSL to DCV with HTH combat (DCV 9)

Web   Mistress’s Data Editing: 2d6-1 = 9

Titan:   25/30 Mental Transform

Stolen   Victory uses Martial Strike: +2 DCV (DCV 15), +2 DC Weapon Strike

Stolen   Victory’s Attack Roll (Indomitable), OCV 15: 3d6 = 13 (Hits DCV 12) (Hit)

Sword   of Victory: 5d6-1 = 17 BODY (17 rPD after AP)

Stun   Multiplier: 1d6-1 = 3 (51 STUN) (x2 Vulnerability to Magic) (17 rPD after AP)

Indomitable’s   resistant Physical Damage Reduction reduces damage (post-defense) by 75%

Indomitable:   30/30 BODY

Indomitable:   62/83 STUN

Stolen   Victory: 56/60 END

Foxfire’s   Autofire Attack Roll (Stolen Victory), OCV 14: 3d6 = 12 (Hits DCV 13) (Miss)

Foxfire:   20/60 END

Lucky   Star’s Attack Roll (Stolen Victory), OCV 12: 3d6 = 10 (Hits DCV 13) (Miss)

Lucky Star:   43/50 END

Titan’s   Computer Programming (14-): 3d6 = 14

Web   Mistress’s Computer Programming (20-): 3d6 = 12 (Success)

Indomitable’s   Enrage roll (Meeting Iceblade), 14-: 3d6 = 14 (Enraged)

Indomitable   uses Leg Sweep: +2 OCV, -1 DCV, 12d6 Strike, Target Falls

Indomitable’s   Attack Roll (Stolen Victory), OCV 9: 3d6 = 11 (Hits DCV 9) (Miss)

Indomitable:   95/100 END

Titan:   25/30 Mental Transform

Web   Mistress: 34/34 END

Iceblade:   43/50 END

Pyra:   -6 ECV (-2 ECV), -6 DCV (7 DCV)

Pyra:   9/12 EGO

Foxtrot:   27/30 EGO

Foxfire:   20/60 END

Alchemy:   5/25 BODY

Alchemy:   0/50 STUN (Knocked Out)

Bloodmoon:   50/60 END

Indomitable:   30/30 BODY

Indomitable:   62/83 STUN

Indomitable:   95/100 END

Stolen   Victory: 56/60 END

Lucky   Star: 43/50 END

Progress: 83%. Estimated time to completion: 1 second.That message scrolling through my HUD was Web Mistress letting me know how long until Titan would be offline. My sister was the best at what she did for a reason.

Victory flew down, standing by my side as she faced down Indomitable. There was genuine grief on her face and in her voice when she spoke. “I am sorry, Indomitable, but my Master has ordered me to kill you.” However, that grief did not keep her from swinging her sword, and drawing blood on the man who had never seen his own blood since he gained his powers, not until the System came online. Sure, it was barely a scratch, but the symbolism of it was everything.

“I’m sorry, Victory. But we have to take you down, so we can undo whatever this monster has done to you,” Foxfire said in Japanese, the only language she could speak while in her yokai form. Her tone was sad, but resolute. Without hesitation, the nine-tailed fox yokai jumped backwards, away from Stolen Victory, and unleashed blue flames from five of her tails, each burst of flame flying at her friend. But not one of them hit their mark. There was a reason that she was the face of the Squadron Supreme, even if Indomitable was the leader.

“Lady Victory, NO! Fight him, damn it!” Lucky Star called out to her in his alien-accented English, even as he attempted to throw one of his ‘Lightbinding’ effects at her. He missed, of course, because my slave was far too nimble for such an attack to hit her when she was expecting it.

“Damn it!” Titan cursed inside his battlesuit, which had yet to move from the start of the fight. “Alert! Alert! I’m being hacked by Web Mistress! She’s trying to disable my systems! Deploying countermeasures… ineffective!” I had to smile at that. As my sister would say, he was only flesh and blood, while she moved at the speed of thought.

“I DON’T CARE IF YOU HAVE TO GET OUT AND SHOOT THINGS MANUALLY, TITAN! GET IN THE FIGHT! WE ARE GOING TO END ICEBLADE ONCE AND FOR ALL!” Indomitable roared, clearly letting his emotions get the better of him. But he knew better than to take his eyes off of Stolen Victory. “Damn it, Victory! I’m sorry, but I’m going to take you down!” As he said that, he attempted to sweep her legs out from under her, but she easily jumped over the attempt.