Heroes Uprising: Alternate Universe (Thread 3)

"Painting?" Sandra sounded a little surprised by that. "I don't think you've ever mentioned that before." The more time they spent together the more skills Tanesha seemed to reveal. Cheerleader, dancer, singer, painter... it really made Sandra reflect on frankly how boring her own life had been in comparison prior to True Notes, even if she hadn't realized it at the time. Although her curiosity was also peaked, Sandra wondered just how good Tani's work was. "You think you could show me some of your art later"

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"I feel... better, calmer." It felt good to air her grievances out to somebody willing to listen and care, Tesla hadn't realized just how much she needed that. Of course the song was then just the cherry on top. Everything had come together to really lighten Tesla's mood. Tesla's pain was still there inside her, but it was less at the forefront at the moment.

Tanesha looked a little sheepish " Oh, im not really good or anything. Its mostly a side hobby, but sure " she felt a little self conscious, but if Sandra wanted to see her stuff, shed happily show her.

Kaiser brought the aircraft over a another island, this fun looked very nice, lush plant life, a few normal animals roaming. The drone zoomed in on a beatiful waterfall, some open fields and forest.

" Wow, this place looks great " Dave commented " A shame theres probably zombies or its a nuclear test site in the making " basing this on all the other islands they'd been too.

Kaiser began the descent, landing in one of the fields " This may just be what were looking for, lets just give it a closer look, be on your guard "

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" Thats good to hear dawling, you can only grow stronger now from this moment " Emmet told her " The weight you've been carrying for so long seems to have lessened, your pain is still there, but I believe it will no longer control you, you can seize control of your own life and live "

Sandra took Tanesha by the had "Tani you've been absolutely amazing at anything I'd seen you do. From cheerleading to dancing, singing, sex, cooking, and more. I'm sure I won't be disappointed." While Sandra would take Tanesha concerns to heart and set her expectations reasonably low, Sandra also had a feeling Tani might of been a little better then what she was giving herself credit for. Kaiser would come in for a landing and the team would step off the aircraft. Just like from the sky, everything so far looked good. "Gotta say I feel kinda bad if we set up camp here. So much untouched natural beauty, would be a damn shame to potentially destroy it all when we battle those mercenaries. I get we need to lore them away from Genosha so more people don't die, but does this place really need to be subjected to the wrath of battle?

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Emmet seemed quite sure of his words, Tesla herself still had some concerns about slowly slipping back into her old ways. Emmet seemed to believe in her though, which again felt good emotionally. So perhaps this was the start of something, a new beginning in a way. Tesla actually seem to stumble over her words a bit before replying with a "thank you." Tesla didn't seemed quite use to get so much positive support, that probably stopped when she was a child. And while her godfather probably done what he could, the type of support Tesla would of gotten from him wasn't close to her true actual parents. Still while not used to it, Emmet could tell she was certainly open to it.

" Gee, who could have fucking seen that coming? "

Riku was checking twitter, for porn, when he noticed fire was trending on genosha. Suprising no one, the Lee's house was engulfed in flames. Looks like the Lee's had no place to return too. He smirked darkly, future sight wasnt one of his skills, but he was bright enough to read between the lines of things, he'd help save this caucasian family, as much as he felt like doing, but he was curious about the reactions of the more compassionate and heroic lot, should they not be able to save the Lees....

Suddenly the medic bay was covered in a red tint, the space becoming deformed. Riku sighed in annoyance, knowing this was a summoning. He put his phone away and jumped into the yawning hole that had appeared. He fell, far and for what felt like forever but was probably four minutes. He plunged downward through hell, each level till he reached the final one.

Appearing in the black and red sky, Riku sprouted wings and soared over the landscape, a massive, twisted city of the damned and demented, pandemonium. He reached the king of hells castle and passed through the barrier. He landed at the top of the stairs and nodded to the hulking guards standing at attention. The massive gate, comprised of some rare ore that only exist in hell, consited of ten doors, each weighing an insane amount. Only the strong were allowed to enter the castle.

With a bit of effort, Riku opened four of the doors and entered the castle.

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Tanesha smiled " Damn you really know how to make a girl feel special "

As the group explored the island, Dave echoed Sandras sentiments " Yeah, seems kinda fucked up to destroy this place, I mean I get that it would be the best place for it but still "

" Hmm " Kaiser vanished for a moment, appearing back a few minutes later " I've surveyed the island and sent pictures to Emmet, as of now its highly likely this is where we'll stay...but I agree it is beautiful, lets continue searching for now and keep this place in mind "

They were soon back on the plane and flying off.

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" Your welcome dawling " Emmet told Tesla, he checked his phone upon getting a notification " We seem to have prime realestate for a spot, its quite lovely actually " he showed her the pictures Kaiser had sent him " It would almost be a shame to destroy such a place, but if we must, then we must "

Another pot was delivered, with florish, Emmet poured them both another cup. Taking great care in the amount of sugar and honey he added. " Though id a destroyed landscape over lost friends "

Sandra didn't say these things just to make Tani feel good, it was honest appreciation as Tanesha really was the most amazing girlfriend Sandra could of possibly dreamed of. They took in the sights of beauty of the island for a few more minutes as Kaiser went off to quickly take some pictures. Sandra had a fondness for natural beauty so Sandra didn't want to see a place this nice destroyed. Of course if it came down to it, then do what you gotta do. Hopefully however there would be other suitable islands they could bright the fight to. After what happened in the mall, Sandra expected the upcoming battle to be quite destructive.

Before long Kaiser was back and the team had boarded the plane once more to continue their search. After a little flying the next island came into view and it was just as unbelievable as the Dino island. "OK, there has to be mutants or someone living on some of these things" Sandra said as the group observed the island, which was completely covered in ice. It looked like a mini arctic.

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Tesla really wasn't all that much of a nature person, like yea it was nice and all but she wasn't one to lose any sleep over if it got wiped out. "I agree. Beautiful or not that place is uninhabited, it's perfect for us to make our stand." Since she had kinda brought up the subject anyway she felt the urge to ask. "Emmet, if you was to give me your brutally honest opinion just between me and you, how ready are we for this Four Horsemen group? This is not the usual team of misfit minions we deal with, and with the Lee's under their control they are clearly packing some serious power. Even if we win the war, are odds likely that we get get out of this without any casualties?"

Emmet sounded like he didn't intend to lose anybody, but realistically how high was Emmet's desired outcome?

" You know a treadmill would really tie this long ass hallway together " Riku gripped as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and set off down the nnoying long hallway leading to the throne room.  Said hallway was adorned with portraits, telling hells history, starting with Lucifers fall from grace.

Not just his fall of course, but the other angels that took the plunge with him rarely get mentioned. From there was the great battle between heaven and hell, Lucifer cementing himself as king and various exploits.  As he got further down the hall, a different narrative began. Hell was ruled by seven princes, all under the main rule of Lucifer, but demons and devils werent renowned for wanting to stay their stations.

Such was the case with Asmodeus, prince of lust and Riku's father, for he lusted after the throne of hell and greater power. For a long time he secretly amassed power and swayed others dissatisfied with the current order to his side.  At some point Lucifer grew bored and apparently started up a bar in L.A, Riku had never fully believed this and still didnt.

Asmodeus somehow, he'd never revealed how, gained a massive amount of power, enough to rival Lucifer. So when word reached the king of hell that one of his princes was launching a particularly hostile takeover. The portraits shifted over to the great battle of hell, which is said to have lasted for centuries, time worked weird in hell,  seconds and minutes could on earth could be months and years here and vice versa.

However long it lasted, the end result was Lucifer being defeated, as a particularly ego stroking portrait showed. Lucifer fled, either to his bar on earth or one of the secret pockets in hell, licking his wounds and plotting his revenge, as it goes. He wasnt alone of course, a few of those still loyal with him, replaced by those with Asmodeus. He paused in front of the portrait showing Asodeus on his throne, surrounded by the new rulers of hell.

Suddenly a large snake slunk down from the ceiling, it opened its mouth possibly wide, allowing for a woman to slide down and land softly on the ground. She was statuesque and beautiful, wearing a vibrant green robe that was open enough to reveal she was naked underneath. A white bone crown adorned her head and kept her hair, a writhing mass of snakes, coiled together.

" Good times, wouldnt you say? "

Riku shrugged " Question lil, how does Medusa feel about you ripping off her look? "

Lilith smiled " Far as I know she's adopted a less slithery style these days, besides I think it suits me better, dont you? "

Riku felt an immense pressure squeezingn him, but he did his best to not show it, Lilith, one of the new lords of hell per Asmodeus's reign. Said to be the first he won over to his side, Lilith, the first woman and mother of the succubus. Lucifer never fully recognized her as one of his court, but the new king was bright enough to not make that mistake.

" If you say so, now if you dont mind, daddy dearest is calling me "

Lilith's smile become sweeter, which was never a good sign when it appeared on a demons face " Oh he mentioned that, the lords are actually having a meeting today, but he's pushed the time back a little to see you, didnt mention why though "

Yeah, right Riku thought, not caring that she could hear said thoughts. Giving her a mock bow he continued on his way, sprouting eyes on his back to keep her in his sights, but she dissapeared. This made him somewhat more anxious about this meeting now. Eventually he got to the gate leading to the throne room. Like the door to the castle, it was rigged as a test of strength, on steroids. This gate was composed of a hundred doors, each one amounting for the full gate to the castle.

Riku took a breath and focused, he was stronger in hell then he was on earth, which was saying something, but this still got on his nerves, especially since his father refused to make a special door for him. Letting out his breath, he slammed his hands against the door and started pressing. He pushed his power further and further, his body beginning to take on a more demonic and nightmarish appearence. He used reinforcement magic and several other augmentation magics he knew. Finnaly drawing on the power of hell itself, an ability he naturally had, though he still had to work to " earn " it Letting out a roar, he forced open fifteen of the doors and flowed into the room, just missing the doors slamming on him.

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Emmet took a sip from his cup before he responded, he'd been expecting this question and pondered how to respond to it " Brutally honest you say? Hmm very well " he sat the cup down and folded his hands on the table " Our chances do not appear to be very high, and my declaration would realistically be foolhardy. Were dealing with trained killers who have probably killed a hundred times over. They have skill and experience, much experience, plus the will to kill, an incredible thing in itself and that alone can turn the tables in battle "

He spoke calmly as he explained his points " Honestly this wont be an easy battle at all, but it is not impossible. Provided we go into it prepared and with the right mindset, our group is large and diverse dawling, we have a demon, mages, an assassin of our own, an asgardian prince. Not to mention our five dimentional visitors with skills and power of their own, whats more and this is something youve voiced already. We have those who are prepared to do....what others arent. The highest achiement we can make in this involves saving the Lee family...but I shall not sacrifice any of you for their sake "

His words were firm and full of a certain emotion Tesla couldnt place, he certainly wasnt relishing the prospect of killing the family like Riku most likely was, nor was this over emotional to the families plight. It was a procise and right to the point viewing, Emmet treasured all of his friends and if it seemed like the Lees couldnt be same then he would have no qualms about burning them all down, if that was what it took for them all to make it home safe, there would be no mercy, no pity, or remorse, not from him. If this made him seem to be a monster then he would accept that, he would shoulder that the same way he would a stylish coat.

" Keep all of this in mind as we go into this battle, were aiming for the best outcome, but our views on that may not entirely match up and thats fine, however this goes I'm prepared as are several of our other members. Do as you wish, we all have each others backs and i'm already planned out several scenarios, given the abundance of material we have to work with, its like sculpting "  Emmets hands started moving as if mimicing molding clay " Painting as well " one hand was sculpting while the other painted.

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Upon reaching the frozen island, Kaiser dispatched the droids again, the image on the monitor showed a blizzard starting to pick up.

" Is that professor Ashe? " Dave asked

Sure enough, their teacher was standing in the center of the island, he suddenly looked up in their direction and waved. Dave waved back apsentminded " Uhh you think he knows its us "

Ashe nodded before becoming obscured by the blizzard, which quickly transformed into a fire storm, then wind, water as Ashe cycled through the elements.

When Tesla suggested killing the Lee's before, she was still speaking out of short temper and a place of anger. Riku chiming in and reminding her of her past certainly made Tesla reconsider her words. But at the end of the day what had to be done, will have to be done. Tesla may not be a quick to jump to the extreme as she was before, but she did still realize the reality of the situation. "Have you accounted for the more compassionate members of our group though, Sandra, Tanesha, Dave and such. Sandra I worry about getting herself into trouble, we'll have to be careful she doesn't get herself killed again. Ever since the attack at the mall, Sandra seemed set on somehow freeing and rescuing that little girl. It's almost as if she made a promise, and I'm not so sure she wouldn't go to whatever lengths it took to see that said promise was fulfilled."

Tesla also wondered if Sandra could handle it if the battle got bloody and corpses started piling up. Emmet had to think up a excuse to get Sandra to leave the room when Riku was tearing through soldiers, all the misery and death weighed heavily on that girls mind, no doubt due to her past interactions with Karen and the slow brutal death Sandra endured at that woman's hands.

"To be honest Emmet, I fear Sandra might just be the biggest liability out of all of us. Not that I mean that as a insult, I just think she has a lot playing against her."

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Katy watched Ashe shift through the elements, his floridness and control with ice and water in particular really interested her. That's what Katy wanted, she realized she was a long ways away but that type of control over her elements was her goal.

Asmodeus had certainly added his own personal flair to Lucifers former throne room. Filled with statues and portraits to Asmodeus, the focal point of course being the large pile of naked, human, elves, orcs, etc, bodies piled up with Asmodoeus's throne at the top. Composed of stiched together demons, Asmodeus sat atop, surveying all that he ruled and making Riku roll his multiple eyes as his body resumed it's regular form. He gave a very sarcastic curtsy " Hey daddy "

Asmodeus regarded him for a moment, his body obscured by a cloak of shadows, obscuring his true form, as he stood and made his descent down, his shape changed to a more humanoid one. Riku scowled, Asmodeus's human form was a tall white man, with slicked back black hair, mustace and goatee with eyes that pulsed with black energy. Atop his head was a high crown of black bone, said to be made from a few of Lucifers ribs. The fact that Asmodeus's form was white was, as always, a source of annoyance to Riku.

Asmodeus approached his son and clasped his shoulders " My son, it has been too long "

" Not really, but lets go with that " Riku said behind clenched teeth " I was here yesterday for my usual lessons "

" Ah yes, your tutors tell me your doing just above satisfactory, excellent " Asmodeus gave him the same smile that Lilith had and it was no less reassuring.

" I'd say i'm doing above excellent, but really what do I know " Riku said " Not like these tutors hate me and are trying to trip me up at every step, barring one or two of course, but I thank you o great king of hell who's shadown of power cast shadow upon darkness and blah blah blah, can we please stop this fakey bullshit and get to the point "

Asmodeus regarded him for a moment then laughed " HA, there is that sharp tongue of your, something else your tutors are endlessly telling me about, your lack of respect "

" Again barring some of them, pretty sure I outrank quite a few of them so they can deal, unless those titles are for show and some petty and impolite commentary is enough to knock them down " Riku said idly, he could sense they were being watched, well he was. The high ceiling was composed of, you guessed it, stitched together naked people, but Riku had noticed some time ago that it had a two way mirror affect and the gazes on him radiated a lot of power.

" In a matter my son, given the circumstances of your birth it is not suprising, also given that mouth, that you arent well viewed, even despite your skills "

Riku shrugged at that, he'd been told this ever since the first time Asmodeus felt like being a father and literally dragged him down to hell and showed him off to his audience. Out the corner of his eyes he saw an ever familiar portrait, tucked between two larger portraits of Asmodeus. Was an beautiful african american woman with long braids and a very familiar smirk on her face, the one Riku saw in the mirror. His mother, Oshun Darkholme, his human mother.

Following Riku's line of sight, Asmodeus gestured and the portrait floated forward " Trully a remarkable woman, it is not every mage that can summon a demon lord, and she did it right on the heals of my victory over Lucifer and might ascention to absolute power. Of course she didnt know that when she prepared her summoning, calling on me to obtain my dark seed.  I amused and impressed, so I gave it to her and then some " he smiled lecherously making Riku roll his eyes. He starred impassively at the portrait, given that her soul was trapped in the portrait, though he didnt care of course.

" Though you wouldnt know it, looking at you, she did her best to insure her human blood didnt muddle my glorious blood and she succeeded, a little too well in some regards " the hand on Riku's shoulder tightened, veily thinned anger, given Oshun Darkholme called on some rather alien entities when she was preparing Rikus birth, not that it did any of them any good at the moment.

" Doesnt seem like it really matters to most of these low budget bitches, though it makes pissing them off sooo much better " Riku said, smirking darkly " Again gonna ask daddy, what did you call me for? "

" Why to congragulate you of course, on your victory over the mad paladin " Asmodeus said " Verstande relayed the details and we have him in our finest torture chamber, he's nearly ready "

" Ready for what? " Riku asked, though he had a good idea.

" Why to be reprogrammed as a warrior of hell, I have some new limbs being prepared for him as we speak, as well as weapons. Soon he'll be ready to be unleashed upon the world "

Riku just nodded a long, he was liking the sound of that, it was hard to be beat the look on Noahs face when he'd come to him with a note from the church, just managing to thank him and swear to kill him, Riku had been milking it ever since " Well thats cool, is that all? "

Asmodeus snapped his fingers, a gateway appearing " Of course not my son and heir, theres one other thing, come "

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" I have " Emmet said when asked if he'd taken into account the more compassionate members of the team, remembering how Garfield had reacted " There are a lot of good people in this group and I am happy for that, having a good mixture of....morals helps keep the group grounded in its actions. Could you imagine if everyone held Rikus ideals, my what would that group look like? " He sipped his drink, giving off the slight impression he was very curious about that.

" That being said, I have every intention of saving the Lee's but as I said earlier that may not imply to them getting out alive, to some death is preferencial to being enslaved and theres so much we dont know about Conquest's brand of mind control, from my own limited understanding, when I attempted to read the Lee's mind, I was met with a lot of resistence, but what I was able to gleam felt like veins, intertwined deeply into their minds and bodies "

He couldnt help but see it as beautifully well done, even in the face of the overall horror " Sandra is indeed a cause for oncern, even with the power of the phoenix force, it's still too alien to both of us, even as we've gained more control over it, I cant help but feel like were still only at the surface of it. But drawing too deeply on it in our current states could prove to be akin to Icarus flying too close to the sun. I'm prepared to shoulder the outrage and anger should we need to do what has to be done. Even if that means restraining some of us, I dont relish the thought, but im prepared "

Riku, Kaiser, or Kano could do it, but if it came to that, Emmet himself would render the ones who protested immobile, only he would face their scorn, if that meant keeping them all safe then he was prepared for that, even as he rather it not get to that point, he was ready " Would you count yourself as one of the more compassionate ones dawling? Would you turn you avert your gaze should it mean looking away from the deaths of innocents? "

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Miss Kharma, see me afterschool on on tuesday if you'd like to learn

Katy heard Ashe's monotone voice in her head, sure that he was only speaking to her.

The group watched Ashe's display a bit longer before continuing on, they were getting quite far from Genosha now, seeing several islands, each more riddiculous then the last till they reached an island similar to the beautiful one of before, though this one seemed more, lifeless, there was water but the green life seemed bleaker. Kaiser hovered over the island and let the droids out.

" Hmm, it seems caught in between being barren and plentiful, it's not natural " He brought the plane down but didnt land " I'm going to check "

Kaiser jumped off the plane and quickly surveyed the island.

"I guess I would consider myself a realist." Tesla said. "Look I don't take pride in the thought the Lee's might have to die, nor do I relish the the thought of being compared to "him", but if I must get blood on my hands to protect the closest things I have to friends, then I will." The reason Tesla put it that way instead outright calling the True Notes her friends is because she realized her attitude as of late has probably soured quite a bit of the group on her. Tesla had her demons, though compassionate wasn't exactly the first word to come to mind when describing her.

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Katy would have to take up Ashe on that offer, while she'd made some progress with her powers she still felt behind the curb when compared to some other True Notes. But if Ashe was willing to teach, that could probably go a long way.

As they flew it looked like there wouldn't be any other suitable islands until they came by one more. But as Kaiser pointed out, something didn't look right. "This would make a better spot to stand our ground, but Kaiser is right in that something seems off. What do you guys think might be wrong with this place?" Sandra asked the others.

The gateway revealed a small room with a lone figure chained up in the center. He was naked and covered in blood and grime. Pale and bruised skin with a bald head bearing odd tatoos, the large battered white wings marked him as an angel. Asmodeus marched into the room.

" This fool and four others like him attempted to infiltrate hell, but Mephistoles's troops captured them and brought them to me. After a bit of torture they revealed they were running a reconnnaissance mission, of their own accord. They saw themselves as obtaining dire information and flying back to the pearly gates to be lawded as heroes, how wrong they were "

The angel whimpered as Asmodeus roughtly grabbed the back of his neck and formed him to look at Riku, he immediately averted his gaze at seeing the demons blackened eyes and stammered a prayer.

" Oh your lord cant hear you all the way down here " Asmodeus told him cheerfully "  The other ones have been dealt with, but I saw this one as a nice gift for you " he let go of the angel and walked back to the entrance.

Riku walked over to the angel and looked him over, he wasnt bad looking, especially all beaten up and miserable. He moved behind him and trailed his fingers over the wings, they flexed weakly under his touch, the chains holding him made specifically to hold the warriors of heaven.

" Oh, isnt one of your school mates an angel? Hmm perhaps this gift is too offensive for you now " Asmodeus said idly.

Riku didnt even bother trying to pretend to be shocked, he was aware he was watched at times. He and Tie had a grudging respect for the other but that was as far as it went, it hadnt changed his overall perspective on angels in the slightest. He fixed his father with a warm look then opened his mouth wide, revealing rows of large jagged teeth and cruelly bit into the angels wing.

The angel screamed in agony as Riku chomped down again and again, he thrashed against the chains holding him but it was all for naught, he begged and pleaded, that if Riku was really friends with an angel then it should mean something.

" Except it doesnt, not at all, she's fallen too soooo I dont know if that makes you change your outlook on it, this needs some seasoning " he sprinked a few different seasonings on the wings and went back to devouring them. Soon the angels pain wracked screams fell silent as he broke. Riku picked a few feathers out of his teeth.

" You know those had more meat on them then I thought they would, anywhoo now for the next course! "

The chains holdign the angel vanished, Riku flipped him onto his back and straddled him " Heh, now im going to devour you in every sense of the work, hahaha-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! "

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Emmet nodded " Your a good person Tesla, at your care you care about all of us as friends. Believe me I do not wish for you or most of the others to have blood on your hands. As I said this is the worst case scenario, we could very well pull off a miracle, wouldnt be the first time " He did believe this, to an extent, saving the Lees and returning them home would be a wonderful ending, but still it did not eclipse all of his friends coming home, choices would have to be made and he was prepared to make them.

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Kaiser came back ten minutes later, he sat down in the pilots chair and pondered " I believe we may have found our spot "

" But didnt you say something was wrong with it? Tanesha asked

Kaiser nodded " Yes, something bad happened here, in such a way that it impacted the islands existence, a terrible tragedy and loss of life that effected the island so deeply that it's caused something of a lock on it, spirits that should have moved on have not and all of the negative emotions and energies have poisoned the island, but even that is in an arrested state "

" Uhhh then how is it good to use this island, if we stay on it are we gonna get possessed or cursed? " Dave asked, remembering something similar to this from one of Riku's lessons.

" In most cases that would be a possibility, but I know of a way to appease the island as it were so that we can use it safely and ultimately as the way the fight is going to go, possibly destroy it, but for that we will need Emmet "

Sandra wasn't drawing the connection here, as far as she was aware she shared similar abilities to Emmet though they both seemed to be excelling in different areas. Telepathy, telekinese, Phoenix Force. She pondered that Emmet had been showing some signs of empathy as of late, was there something else he could do that she couldn't? "Um if you don't mind me asking, how is Emmet going to help with the situation on this island?" Sandra now just had to pose that question, if not for anything else then just the curiosity of it.

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"And what about you?" Tesla asked. "I mean you seemed to not care when Riku killed random bad people in the past, but this situation is a little different is it not? This Lee family are people you right, people who I assume, you would also call friends would you not? Can you pull that trigger if need was be, and if so can you live with that guilt of ending people you personally knew?"

Tesla hoped this question wasn't pushing things to far, but Emmet seemed to be showing so much care about everybody else in the group. But what about him? Emmet may desire to put any and all guilt upon himself, but was he truely prepared to deal with that long term?

Asmodeus closed the gateway as Riku finished his meal " Your talents for inflicting pain have increased again I see "

" Fuck yeah, thanx for the meal daddy " Riku said as he wiped the gore off his mouth.

" You earned it, now there is one other thing I wanted to discuss with you " Asmodeus said casually

Riku mentally rolled his eyes, and theres the other shoe " What is it? "

" You have a younger sister "

This line was delivered so nonchalantly that it nearly went over Riku's head. He went over the words a few time till he fully understood them " Ok? You have a shit ton of kids, none of them are in my league so why should I care " As the former prince of lust, it was no suprise that Asmodeus had a rather large brood under his belt. But this was before his ascention to absolute power. Since then Riku was the only child that he'd conceived that grew into anything. All other children were mindly beast that tended to fall apart.

Asmodeus chuckled " Well this one is quite different. As you said your the only one of my children that is trully interesting and hold the greatest potential. Also the only one since I took hells highest throne, thanks to your mother and that got me thinking "

" Dont tell me you knocked up another human mage from an evil family in an attempt to duplicate me?! " Riku said in mock eggageration.

" HA, that is a once in a life time occurence. No for this I relaized I needed a particular partner more on my level or as close as possible " Asmodeus explained " And it worked, she was born some time ago but I neglected to inform you, wanted it to be a suprise, oh shes something quite spectacular if I do say so, a regular princess of hell "

Riku just starred at him, out of all the bullshit he was prepared to get sprung on him....this was honestly in the top ten. Annoying to be sure, whith so much more bullshit likely attached to it " Yeah Princess of hell is trademarked by me, this bitch can have clown of hell if she wants, wait I think thats taken too, I guess she can just be nothing, which is whats gonna end up as soon as I see her "

Suddenly the room was filled with terrible laughter, Riku looked up and sure enough, the silhoutes from the other lords were lighted up, so they were all in on this then.

" Well I am curious to see how you two measure up against one another, she's had all the same teachers as you, though the entirety of her training has been in hell, so its likely she's learned and experienced far more, not to mention her base power most likely exceeds yours, being the purest of pure demon against your mostly demon and other blood " Asmodeus said with the worst kind of smile on his face " Yes I'd almost wager she would surely defeat you "

Riku felt something rising up in him, something he hadnt felt in quite awhile Absolute anger,despite how he may have acted, he held a great pride in being basically the heir to hells throne, the prince/princess of hell/the abyss, so who was this random bitch to come along and threaten that " Let me guess, only one of us can be the princess of hell "

Asmodeus shrugged " Hmm truthfully the main title is yours as my firstborn since ascention, but you can only hold it while your alive and she doesnt appear to jive with that, I can also see your not going to let it lie either so a peaceful coexsistence was never an option for you too "

" So are we doing this now or what? " Riku demanded, his power already starting to swell up.

" No " Asmodeus said simply " These things in the proper order and it would be no fun if you two simply fought it out, as I said your chance of victory is rather slim. But as you both wish to hold the title of my heir, you'll need more then just your own power, same as I needed more to dethrone Lucifer, you'll need factions, allies, and weaponry "

Dammit Riku cursed, If that was the case then this bitch probably had a head start, shed done nothing but live in hell whereas Riku just visited frequently, not to mention he hadnt really gone out of his way to make friends, not to say he didnt have people he could probably force to help him and whatnot, but this fight was going to take more then that, much more. This was quickly becoming a problem.

Asmodeus was enjoying his sons discomfort and annoyance " She's agreed to not attempt anything for the time being, given that you already have a battle coming up, against human missionaries is it? How cute, go into that fight knowing you wont have to worry about her "

" How nice of her, doesnt sound very demonic if you ask me " Riku said sarcastically, something occured to him " Who is her mother? You said its someone comparable to you "

" Indeed I did, a demoness of great standing, though I dont know if I should relay who-

Riku sighed " Just say its Lilith, its way to fucking obvious not to be, Tiamat is sure of fuck not agreeing to this bullshit "

A roar from the ceiling seemed to agree with him.

Asmodeus wasnt bothered in the slightest " Indeed son, Lilith is the only one I could as for this task "

" Wait a minute, Liliths a carpet muncher, unless you sprouted some boobs then- Riku stopped as Asmodeus smirked

" I didnt think you would want the intimate details of our coupling, but yes I appeased to her interest and became a woman so that we may couple and conceive " Asmodeus said, relishing the memory.

Riku rubbed his forehead " Ok lets move away from this conversation, like forever " ugh this bitch had Asmodeus's power and Liliths? fuck a duck, this wasnt good, not impossible in the slightest either. He composed himself " Whats her name? I wanna have a nice tombstone prepared for her "

@#$%

Riku raised an eyebrow " Come again? "

" You'll know it when she says it to you " Asmodeus said " Now I believe I've made my fellow rulers wait long enough "

Riku glared up at the ceiling " Fuck that damn circus of clowns!! "

An immense amount of pressure suddenly slammed down onto him, he could feel his organs start to rupture, his bones cracked and creaked as the rulers of hell turned their malice and amusement onto him. He reinforced his body with magic and demonic energy, he refused to fall to his knees in front of them.

" This is nothing!! Do whatever you want, i'll take it and one day i'll be sitting on that throne, just you wait, I'm gonna make all of you my bitches!! Especially you Lilith!!! " Riku screamed, his body had started morphing, but in the next moment his legs shattered and he was slammed onto the ground.

Asmodeus watched this for a moment longer then raised a finger, the pressure vanished. Riku pushed himself up onto his hands and handstanded out of the room, not quietly at all.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Emmet took a long sip from his cup before he responded " I can see where your coming from dawling and to be honest, I dont fully know. I have a great amount of confidence in everything I do, but applying that to situations like this. A part of me feels I can do it no problem, but then I question where that comes from and realize it all feels so familiar. I've never been in a situation like this before, I've had sex with Junior once and wouldnt consider him a true friend, but hes still a person i've known, i've seen his family, a simple but happy bunch of people, who dont deserve whats happened to them "

He closed his eyes for a moment, recounting all of the Lees from the time he first saw them to how they were now, mere puppets for a killer. He thought of the implications of their deaths, what that would mean for him in the long run. He wasnt like Riku who relished death, or Kaiser and Noah who seemed indifferent, used to it. Emmet didnt fully know where he placed, he could take a life, anyone could take a life. But it was the aftermath of doing it, the weight of that life and where it could have gone, Emmet looked at these thought and ultimately knew what he felt, but didnt want to say.

He opened his eyes " Yes I can do it, because I knew them, however minor it may be, I know them and I know myself. As I said I will kill them if need be, burn them to ash to save you all, I will take all of the hatred and guilt, the accusations, all of it. You need not worry about me dawling, I shall be fine " more then fine really, but he needed not go into that " Even if some of you may turn from me, I shall continue on this path " He starred at Tesla for a moment, almost as if asking what she would think of him should he do this, would she leave?

----------------------------------------------------------------

Kaiser turned the plane around and headed back for Genosha " To make use of the island, were going to need to appease it, so to speak, communicate with it in a way that calms it and helps release it from its stagnation "

" Then doesnt that mean we should use magic " Dave asked " Riku and his mage friends could probably do that "

Kaiser should his head " I thought that at first, but that would run the risk of exacerbating the situation. Sandra to answer your question, we need to reach this situation in a particular way, yes Emmets empathy in itself helps, but its not the key thing. For this we need something that is universal and understood by all "

It clicked for Tanesha " Music? "

Kaiser nodded " Precisely, by using music we may be able to reach the island and make it usable "

" Well that makes sense, Emmet is the best singer " Tanesha said " He can put more emotion into his performances then i've ever seen "

Kaiser focused on piloting, that wasnt entire reason to have Emmet do it, but that was the answer they needed to know.

Tesla could tell Emmet was awaiting a response. "May I assume you are curious if I'd still support you after this? It depends. I'm not quite as morally high strung as some others, as I said I see myself as a realist. If this Lee Family truly is a lost cause, then I can support you doing what needs to be done. If it comes to light they could of been rescued but you killed them anyway, then we might have more of a issue. Ultimately I have to see how everything plays out."

Tesla wasn't so sure about the likes of Sandra and Dave. Any action taken against the innocent could drastically alter their viewpoint on Emmet. However Sandra has shown surprising hints of malice in the past and Dave had feelings for Emmet. So she did wonder where the likes of them would stand with Emmet if this outcome happened. Tesla wouldn't say she herself didn't care, but so many years shunning people out of her life have left her a bit more open minded then most to see things like more logically rather then emotionally. So as she said, watching how everything unfolds would ultimately determine her answer. As for right here, right now. She could not honestly give Emmet a straight yes or no. But if Emmet kept true to his word, killing the Lee Family only if it was his last resort in order to protect the True Notes. Then yes, Tesla would indeed support Emmet in that.

-----

"Oh music, I didn't even consider that." To Sandra music was just a fun thing they did in class, or sometimes at random. She never imagined there being a actual tangible use to it.

Riku hobbled into an empty room and sat on a chair as he waited for his legs to regenerate, any other time they would have by now, but because of those bum ass clowns it was taking longer. In any event it gave him time to think, this was certainly not what he was expecting when he came down here today. But here it was and he had to deal with it, fucking A, he had no real info on this bitch and she probably knew everything about him.

Riku was so busy grumbling that he barely noticed he had a visitor, he looked up to see Verstand manifest in the room and sighed " Oh great, let me guess youve come to gloat about how youve known forever, get it over with "

Verstand starred at him for a moment " Actually i've come to offer my assistance "

Riku raised an eyebrow " Well.....thats suprising, wait a minute, is this the part where you tell me youve always cared for me and thought of me as a son?! "

" Absolutely not " Verstand said in an exasperated tone " I just find you somewhat more amusing and other reasons that it isnt time to disclose "

Riku eyed the skinless demon, he was a powerful psychic force and one of Asmodeus's most trusted general. He instructed Riku in the use of psionic based powers and as it was the case now, his sister. His first thought was this was probably a trick, but Verstand was....complicated, it came with the territory of being able to see the future.

" Well you are one of the few people here I can actually stand and youve always been something like upfront with me, but I also know your not the kind to make a bet unless your absolutely sure your gonna win, saddling yourself to the winning horse are you " Riku said with a smirk " Have you seen my victory? "

Verstand shook his head " No, i've been forbidden from peering into the future of this event, which I couldnt do if I wanted too, theres too many factors obscuring the future. But im not so depended on my abilities that I cant read the future through mundane ways "

Riku believed him " Well welcome aboard then, first off, this chick actual exist? "

" Yes, i've been training her the same as you, her power and skill are aweinspiring "

Riku scowled, that wasnt what he wanted to hear " Great, so shes like totally better then me in every way then "

" Not quite, shes had the same training down here as you, but your training as a mage up there is something that you may have an edge on her with as well as....other things "

Riku knew what he was talking about, unfortunately it wasnt something he could really rely on, not while that bastard was holding the button " Well thats something "

Verstand continued " One of few, but as your father said this battle will be more then just one on one comb at, your both expected to gather forces and wage war. He will be taking a stance of neutrality for this battle and the other lords have been ordered to stay out of it as well "

" Cause Lilith is totally not gonna help her brat " Riku said with an eyeroll " I'm gonna assume they cant directly join in, but lending forces is peaches and cream "

" More or less " Verstand confirmed " Though most of the lords have no real interest either way and will simply watch, but that doesnt mean you couldnt persuade one or two to offer some assistance "

Riku slouched in his seat " Yeah cause they'll totally want to help me, like really


" I will admit that your chances of convincing them arent very high, given your colorful personality and how youve insulted all of them on multiple occasions. Still there is one that you have a good chance at maybe getting to listen to you " Verstand said

" And that is? "

" Satan "

Riku sat up straighter, The prince of wrath and Lucifers other half, as the rumors went. During Asmodeus's coup it was said that out of all his allies, it was Satan that people were most suprised by. Again it was that whole rumor that when Lucy fell, Satan was spawned as a result, but no one could confirm this and Satan didnt feel abliged to say shit. Honestly he was the lord Riku had the least amount of exposure too, he mostly kept to his domain and minded his business " Hmm, ok then see if you can set up an appo-you already did that "

" Naturally "

" You know I have to say, I would think you would fall into the category of demons that cant help me, given how high ranking you are "

Verstand snorted " Thats never stopped you from dragging me into whatever assinine endeavor your on, though the slaughter in the tower was very enjoyable. Lord Asmodeus has not forbidden me and I believe he may have been pushing for me to help your sister, but she already has a full council and your rather lacking "

Riku grinned " Ha, your plenty of council " his legs had fully grown back by this point, he hopped out of his chair and checked the time, it would suck if he'd been down here for years without realizing it, but it seemed that barely thirty minutes had passed " Alright then, well this battle aint happening for awhile and I do have other shit top side to do. Keep me posted on Satana and anyone else that might wanna join this shit show. Rimuru should be down and Valvara, though she is one of Tiamats ilk, think she'd wanna help "

" I'm not sure, she was one of the ones that veigned indifference, but its not out of the realm of possibilities. By the way your father has said your not allowed to summon any demons during this upcoming human fight "

" What the fuck?! Why does he care? " Riku demanded, he glared when Verstand shrugged " Im guessing this means the ones under the Darkholmes control too, whatever I'm plenty for this damn fight and were not lacking in power and bodies to through at these merc motherfuckers. Any way im out this bitch " he sprouted wings and started to leave.

I believe we shall see each other very soon

He looked back at Verstand, as always, cryptic as fuck.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

" Thank you dawling, your as straight forward and to the point as always, a very good quality to have and one I find admirable in you " Emmet said " I swear I shall only take the Lee's lives if it seems they are lost to us and if any of you may be in danger, not a moment sooner " he poured another cup of tea " I shall also make it as painless as I possibly can, I wont relish in their pain or the loss of life. But if it has to happen then I will "

Emmet received a notification on his phone " It seems Kaisers group have found a possible island, with some odd conditions to it. There heading back to my home, we should as well " sending out a mass text to meet at his house, Emmet finished off his tea and called an Uber.

------------------------------------------------------------------

" Oh, mama hasnt felt this good in awhile "

Harmonia was eyeing herself in the full length mirror, specifically her newly attached limbs, made with Adamantium and Vibranium, her ultimate form so to speak and toys she only brought out for special missions, Luthor had pumped out some more cash so this mission now counted. She checked her computer and saw that her other yours were on standby and read as well.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

" There, i've done the best I can, but as I said i'm not a healer " Alice told Iskandar, who had arranged all of the Lees, having them cleaned off and given new clothes, specifically tailored to their abilities.

" You've done well Alice, they should last a good while " he said from Mortimers mouth " Now, we just need a location "

Alice reached into her pocket and gave him a card " I know you lot dont believe in magic, but take this, just in case "

Iskandar looked at the card, but couldnt deduce any tricks, so he pocketed " Much appreciated "Riku hobbled into an empty room and sat on a chair as he waited for his legs to regenerate, any other time they would have by now, but because of those bum ass clowns it was taking longer. In any event it gave him time to think, this was certainly not what he was expecting when he came down here today. But here it was and he had to deal with it, fucking A, he had no real info on this bitch and she probably knew everything about him.

Riku was so busy grumbling that he barely noticed he had a visitor, he looked up to see Verstand manifest in the room and sighed " Oh great, let me guess youve come to gloat about how youve known forever, get it over with "

Verstand starred at him for a moment " Actually i've come to offer my assistance "

Riku raised an eyebrow " Well.....thats suprising, wait a minute, is this the part where you tell me youve always cared for me and thought of me as a son?! "

" Absolutely not " Verstand said in an exasperated tone " I just find you somewhat more amusing and other reasons that it isnt time to disclose "

Riku eyed the skinless demon, he was a powerful psychic force and one of Asmodeus's most trusted general. He instructed Riku in the use of psionic based powers and as it was the case now, his sister. His first thought was this was probably a trick, but Verstand was....complicated, it came with the territory of being able to see the future.

" Well you are one of the few people here I can actually stand and youve always been something like upfront with me, but I also know your not the kind to make a bet unless your absolutely sure your gonna win, saddling yourself to the winning horse are you " Riku said with a smirk " Have you seen my victory? "

Verstand shook his head " No, i've been forbidden from peering into the future of this event, which I couldnt do if I wanted too, theres too many factors obscuring the future. But im not so depended on my abilities that I cant read the future through mundane ways "

Riku believed him " Well welcome aboard then, first off, this chick actual exist? "

" Yes, i've been training her the same as you, her power and skill are aweinspiring "

Riku scowled, that wasnt what he wanted to hear " Great, so shes like totally better then me in every way then "

" Not quite, shes had the same training down here as you, but your training as a mage up there is something that you may have an edge on her with as well as....other things "

Riku knew what he was talking about, unfortunately it wasnt something he could really rely on, not while that bastard was holding the button " Well thats something "

Verstand continued " One of few, but as your father said this battle will be more then just one on one comb at, your both expected to gather forces and wage war. He will be taking a stance of neutrality for this battle and the other lords have been ordered to stay out of it as well "

" Cause Lilith is totally not gonna help her brat " Riku said with an eyeroll " I'm gonna assume they cant directly join in, but lending forces is peaches and cream "

" More or less " Verstand confirmed " Though most of the lords have no real interest either way and will simply watch, but that doesnt mean you couldnt persuade one or two to offer some assistance "

Riku slouched in his seat " Yeah cause they'll totally want to help me, like really


" I will admit that your chances of convincing them arent very high, given your colorful personality and how youve insulted all of them on multiple occasions. Still there is one that you have a good chance at maybe getting to listen to you " Verstand said

" And that is? "

" Satan "

Riku sat up straighter, The prince of wrath and Lucifers other half, as the rumors went. During Asmodeus's coup it was said that out of all his allies, it was Satan that people were most suprised by. Again it was that whole rumor that when Lucy fell, Satan was spawned as a result, but no one could confirm this and Satan didnt feel abliged to say shit. Honestly he was the lord Riku had the least amount of exposure too, he mostly kept to his domain and minded his business " Hmm, ok then see if you can set up an appo-you already did that "

" Naturally "

" You know I have to say, I would think you would fall into the category of demons that cant help me, given how high ranking you are "

Verstand snorted " Thats never stopped you from dragging me into whatever assinine endeavor your on, though the slaughter in the tower was very enjoyable. Lord Asmodeus has not forbidden me and I believe he may have been pushing for me to help your sister, but she already has a full council and your rather lacking "

Riku grinned " Ha, your plenty of council " his legs had fully grown back by this point, he hopped out of his chair and checked the time, it would suck if he'd been down here for years without realizing it, but it seemed that barely thirty minutes had passed " Alright then, well this battle aint happening for awhile and I do have other shit top side to do. Keep me posted on Satana and anyone else that might wanna join this shit show. Rimuru should be down and Valvara, though she is one of Tiamats ilk, think she'd wanna help "

" I'm not sure, she was one of the ones that veigned indifference, but its not out of the realm of possibilities. By the way your father has said your not allowed to summon any demons during this upcoming human fight "

" What the fuck?! Why does he care? " Riku demanded, he glared when Verstand shrugged " Im guessing this means the ones under the Darkholmes control too, whatever I'm plenty for this damn fight and were not lacking in power and bodies to through at these merc motherfuckers. Any way im out this bitch " he sprouted wings and started to leave.

I believe we shall see each other very soon

He looked back at Verstand, as always, cryptic as fuck.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

" Thank you dawling, your as straight forward and to the point as always, a very good quality to have and one I find admirable in you " Emmet said " I swear I shall only take the Lee's lives if it seems they are lost to us and if any of you may be in danger, not a moment sooner " he poured another cup of tea " I shall also make it as painless as I possibly can, I wont relish in their pain or the loss of life. But if it has to happen then I will "

Emmet received a notification on his phone " It seems Kaisers group have found a possible island, with some odd conditions to it. There heading back to my home, we should as well " sending out a mass text to meet at his house, Emmet finished off his tea and called an Uber.

------------------------------------------------------------------

" Oh, mama hasnt felt this good in awhile "

Harmonia was eyeing herself in the full length mirror, specifically her newly attached limbs, made with Adamantium and Vibranium, her ultimate form so to speak and toys she only brought out for special missions, Luthor had pumped out some more cash so this mission now counted. She checked her computer and saw that her other yours were on standby and read as well.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

" There, i've done the best I can, but as I said i'm not a healer " Alice told Iskandar, who had arranged all of the Lees, having them cleaned off and given new clothes, specifically tailored to their abilities.

" You've done well Alice, they should last a good while " he said from Mortimers mouth " Now, we just need a location "

Alice reached into her pocket and gave him a card " I know you lot dont believe in magic, but take this, just in case "

Iskandar looked at the card, but couldnt deduce any tricks, so he pocketed " Much appreciated "

Emmet seemed honest in his words, not that anyone had reason to doubt him regardless. But had some others disagreed with what might be the only realistic course of action, Tesla was ready to stick up for Emmet if need be, at least at the current moment. She and Emmet got in the car and started heading back "So what are these conditions?" she asked, regarding the island the others found.

-----

After much consideration Cassandra had made up her mind, she was going to make a play for Tanesha. She had to choose the right time though, they where just about to embark on a battle against trained killers. It would be foolish to risk turning any of her allies against her right now. She also needed to find a effective way of removing Sandra from the equation. She had some idea about that, but now wasn't time. She received a text on her phone that mother brought her, looked like the group was meeting up at Emmet's place. She pocketed the phone and set off towards the meeting, call the limo to meet her outside the school.

-----

The airship was making good time but it seemed like it was taking a bit of a while to get back. "Wow I didn't realize we had come this far" Sandra said. "Time flies when your having a adventure" responded Katy. "At least loring the mercs way out there, Genosha will be well and truly out of danger." Katy had a point, to a degree the further out in the ocean they went, the better.

Dr.Spayde finished up Adrians healing just as Emmet sent his text out. Adrian and Tyrone left the room and found Riku in the same spot he'd been in before, albeit coated in a burning smell.

" Ems calling us back " he opened a void to Emmets house and the three entered it.

-------------------------------------------------

Emmet shrugged, Kaisers text was short and too the point " I imagine he'll explain when were all together "

They soon arrived at Emmets house, where they found Riku, Adrian, and Tyrone standing outside.

" I think your neighbors are calling the police on us " Tyrone commented " Some woman with a bad hair style walked by and asked us what we were doing here, I said waiting for you to get home and she didnt believe us, despite having seen us all here before soooo "

Emmet sighed " That woman is detestable, I've written numerous letters about her racist antics and have not received a word back, why didnt you just teleport in?....wait is that all that happened? "

He was looking at Riku as he said this, knowing full well the demon would not have let the woman just walk away after saying such nonsense, but he appeared to be lost in thought.

" Yeah, basically, Riku said it would be rude to go in when your not home " Adrian explained, he too had been prepared to watch Riku rip the womans head off, either verbally or physically.

Emmet starred a bit longer " Dawlings, your always welcome in at any time, regardless of if im present or not. He unlocked the door and everyone took a seat in the living room as they waited for everyone else. Soon Kano, Dave, Garfield, Victoria, and Donovan all arrived.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

" Yeah, despite how weird a lot of these damn islands are, it was a pretty nice trip " Tanesha said in agreement " We should do this more often "

" Well Emmet has been talking about sunday brunch trips on this thing around the sea, maybe one of them can be the dino island " Dave said, half in jest.

Kaiser cranked up the speed and soon they were flying over Genosha, zeroing in on Emmets backyard where they made a gentle landing.

"In all seriousness though, we definitely need to revisit that beautiful island." Sandra was considering revisiting that island more often anyway. Anytime she had needed to get away and think, or even just relax or have a romantic night. Sandra had taken to going to one of Genosha's lovely garden's/parks. However while they are nice, they seem to be to close to danger and Sandra keeps finding she gets attacked/ambushed there. Maybe that island could serve as a nice, quiet and peaceful place to escape to every once in a while.

-----

The biggest surprise to Tesla was Riku giving a rats ass about being rude. That wasn't like him. The group entered the house and not long after another batch showed up. This was followed up with Cassandra arriving next who Tesla still kept a keen eye on. Due to others liking her Tesla decided she'd ease up slightly, but she still didn't trust the girl. Finally Kaisers group also made it back and entered Emmet's house. Everybody got comfortable as they awaited Emmet to start the proceedings of the meeting.

Noah was the last too arrive, once everyone was arranged around Living room A, Emmet began " Alright, let the meeting begin, Kaiser could you relay what your team discovered? "

Kaiser nodded " We discovered a few islands, most of them unusable because of some absurd reason. But we finally found an island a fair distance away, it is almost perfect, theres a complication " he explained how the islands existence was by some monumental and tragic event that seemed to separate it from the outside world.

" Like a reality marble?" Dave asked

Riku had brought up that brand of high level magecraft a couple of times during his lessons.

" Its something similar, but less complicated, in the sense of how we deal with it " Kaiser said

" I believe this is where I come in correct? " Emmet said, out the corner of his eye he noticed Riku leaning against the wall and muttering to himself, usually the demon sat close to him and loudly gave his opinion on things, but he seemed very distracted by something.

" I believe music is the key, the right song by the right person may be able to break the lock on the island by harmonizing with it " Kaiser explained.

Emmet considered that " Hmm, I am the best sing and have the best voice, so it makes sense, i'm certainly willing to try of course "

"So we're trying to save a island, just to possibly destroy it anyway. What do you suspect the repercussions are if we didn't harmonize it?" Tesla asked this question curious if the island was dangerous as it currently stood, because rescuing it sounded kinda pointless otherwise.

The tone of Tesla's voice struck Sandra, Katy and possibly others a little bit by surprised. She actually came off a lot calmer then she'd been in quite some time. She didn't sound like the hard on angry bitch of the group that the members had become accustomed to hearing. Not to say she was this sweet little saint all of a sudden, that certainly wasn't the case. But something in her demeanor had seemed to changed while the group where gone. Sandra used her elbow to lightly nudge Tanesha's arm and softly spoke into her girls ear, clearly keeping her voice lowered "so is it just me or has ultra bitch after gone and swallowed a chill pill?"

" Yeah theres a lot of bitch energy lacking in the room " Tanesha whispered back. Referring to how quiet Riku was being.

Ok so say I get Satan, thats a huge help but not a real game changer, who else can I get? the slime demons other then Rimuru might be down if they can eat a bunch of people.

" Hmm I imagine thats what makes this island so perfect to use " Emmet said " This is only a theory but maybe the islands current state prevents it from being destroyed? As was explained its cut off from the world and locked in a loop of torment the tragic event that happened there. If Im able to break it with my perfect voice, then would the island still be sustainable? "

" Ive heard of situations like this and the answer is usually no " Noah explained " Such spots are usually sustainble for a few days, but in places like this, after those days the island should decay "

" Then that would make it a good place to fight, if its gonna be destroyed anyway, a little suprising the resident master of magic didnt explain this " Victoria said idly " No spells to do in case this puts Emmet in danger? "

" In general yes, but this is beyond me unfortunately, Emmet has it, he shouldnt be in any danger " Riku said apsentmindedly.

This immediately had everyone looking at him.

Ugh!! gonna have to outfit this bitch too, im alright in hells currency, but can I get discounts amd what about guns and ooh tanks would be good, but that bitch probably has a whole mess of tanks already pre made, shit!!

" Riku "

Emmets voice cut through the haze in the demons head, he looked up, seeming to remember where he was.

" Dawling are you alright? " Emmet asked, his tone very concerned " I sense that your very distressed about something "

Riku cursed internally, he was starting to obsess over this sister act crap, it deserved all of his attention, but at the moment he had something else to deal with, further more he didnt like worrying Emmet. He sighed and scratched the back of his head

" Uhh im fine, just some irrelevant bullshit thats going to become relevant later, no worries, im still the baddest bitch in this group " he turned toVictoria " and yes you unbuttered biscuit, I certainly could fix this damn island, unfortunately it would take more time then we got, but I doubt you could understand the complexities, just stick to trying to culturually appropriate more dance moves for the squad "

" Excuse you bitch but all my stuff is original! " Victoria snapped

Riku snorted " Yeah and thats why Tanesha and big red be out there looking like their having seizures "

" ok hoe you know what " Tanesha started but was quickly drowned out as music started playing.

Riku(Adrian):
Ayy, hey, Flo Milli
Flo, Flo Milli shit, bitch


See you may not like me but I'm still gettin’ money bitch (Ching)
I don't have to prove a point, that lil' ho know that I’m the shit
Everything I do irritate insecure bitches
Follow my every move, call that ho a fiend, she addicted
When I walk up in the room, I fuck up her whole mood (Hey)
They see me and these bitches catch a whole attitude
If it's a target on my back, ain't nobody hittin' it (You missed it)
Watch yo' man, 'cause he 'bout to break his motherfuckin' neck
Hoes green, you would think they was the motherfuckin’ Grinch
Bitch, I’m mean, I don't want to be your motherfucking friend
And ain’t no competition to me, girl, I always seem to win
When I'm done with her, I bet she won't try that shit again (Come here, shit again)

[Chorus]
Girls be acting, I can tell that you're pretending (Haha, bye)
These hoes really be jealous, that’s the reason I'm not friendly (Bitch)
I hear these haters talking shit, it really don't offend me (Hello)
'Cause in a crowd full of pussies (Ugh), I see that you blending (Ugh)
Girls be acting, I can tell that you're pretending (Hi)
These hoes really be jealous, that's the reason I'm not friendly (Bitch)
I hear these haters talking shit, it really don't offend me (Yeah)
'Cause in a crowd full of pussies (Yeah), I see that you blending


Move, I don't fuck wit' you, baby, get a clue
Apeshit, I belong in the zoo
Stuck up, they be saying I'm rude
If I don't get my way, I get a attitude
I never paid attention in school
Never been the type to follow the rules
I'm the boss, do what I say do
Sleeping on me? Bitch, stay on snooze
Not finna play wit' you hoes, I got a fuckboy glow
I do what I do when I want, can't nobody tell me nothing
I will shit on you for fun, hon'
You got my leftovers, my crumbs
How do my pussy taste on your tongue?
You in the back and I'm in the front
Stay in your place, you lil' bitty cunt


And I'm flexin' on the next bitch (On the next bitch)
But I just shitted on her, now she off my checklist
I'm just flexin' on my ex, bitch (Flexin' on his ass)
In his feelings, now he see what he neglected (Move)
And I'm flexin' on the next bitch (On the next bitch)
But I just shitted on her, now she off my checklist
I'm just flexin' on my ex, bitch (Flexin' on his ass)
In his feelings, now he see what he neglected (Move)



Move, I don't fuck wit' you, baby, get a clue
Apeshit, I belong in the zoo
Him and his friend lookin' kinda cute
Fuck that, I don't wanna choose
Lose one, bounce back with two
I can't love you, baby, you a fool
He gimme brain then he get the boot
Trust a nigga is something I won't do
Not finna play wit' you hoes, I got a fuckboy glow (Fuckboy glow)
They catchin' feelings for the kid but I'm too busy countin' dough (Busy countin' dough)
Just gimme the right amount of cash, I'ma put on a show
I do what I do when I want, can't nobody tell me nothing
I will shit on you for fun


Girls be acting, I can tell that you're pretending (Haha, bye)
These hoes really be jealous, that's the reason I'm not friendly (Bitch)
I hear these haters talking shit, it really don't offend me (Hello)
'Cause in a crowd full of pussies (Ugh), I see that you blending (Ugh)
Girls be acting, I can tell that you're pretending (Hi)
These hoes really be jealous, that's the reason I'm not friendly (Bitch)
I hear these haters talking shit, it really don't offend me (Yeah)
'Cause in a crowd full of pussies (Yeah), I see that you blending


I would tell you to catch up 'cause you too slow (Too slow)
But they all scared to make a move so they tiptoe (Tiptoe)
If you still got pressure then maybe you should let it go (Let it go)
Bitch, I'm self-made, didn't nobody put me on (Put me on)
I would tell you to catch up 'cause you too slow (Too slow)
But they all scared to make a move so they tiptoe (Tiptoe)
If you still got pressure then maybe you should let it go (Let it go)
Bitch, I'm self-made, didn't nobody put me on (Put me on)


Riku ended the song with a little bow, earning some applause as he leaned against Emmets chair, making the other boy grin. He gave a nod to Adrian as thanks for th background vocals in the song.

Emmet cleared his throat " Well now that weve had that moment, we have our grand stage, lets talk battle strategy now "

Well Riku wasn't long breaking his silence. Although Sandra had to wonder what was on Riku's mind, while it wasn't always easy to tell Riku's usual banter from genuine insults, he did sound like he went in kinda hard on Victoria. Then he didn't even give Tanesha a moment to speak as she got drowned out by music. But, maybe it was best not to pry, they did have the mercenaries to worry about in the immediate future anyway. As Emmet changed the topic Sandra posed a question "Um just a thought, but we know the Horsemen themselves have 4 members, then they have the Lee Family to add to that. But do you think they'll enlist the aid other groups to fight as well, like say the Fear Factor?"

"Your thinking they might want to inflate their numbers and have more bodies to throw at us?" Katy said. There was a possibility the Four Horsemen had some dealings with the Fear Factor, but to what extent was largely unknown outside it likely being the Fear Factor that was providing them a safe haven to hide. The Fear Factor had stayed away from any fighting since the Horsemen showed up, but no doubt they had members who'd get great pleasure out of being able to get another crack at Emmet or Sandra most notably, and would be more then willing to jump on the opportunity if provided. So a team up probably should not be ruled out.

" That is in the realm of possibilities, but one I ranked lower down the list " Emmet explained " These mercenaries havent displayed their full strength yet, coupled with the fact that we only know half of the groups capabilities gives them an advantage. This is very much a quality over quantity situation, but we should review waht we know of Fear factor regardless "

" Well theres Karen, she can control her size, and other people and objects " Victoria said

" Some half baked mages, including the witch of wonderland and some bitch that can do sealing magecraft " Riku added " Also some clown that can control shadows, ooooh I wanna kick his teeth in! "

" Uh why? Aside from you just being a violent psychopath " Dave asked to which Riku shrugged

" No real reason, I just tend to hate umbrakinetics, they lack understanding of true darkness "

" There is the vampire Nina, who also posesses demonic powers now " Kano put in

" Definetly wanna put that peasant in her place " Riku said, a little fiercer then necessary " Oh wait, Katy dont you have to reclaim what passes as honor against the moldy pile of mayo? "

-------------------------------------------------------------

Iko, Harvey, and Bawla had returned back to their base after dropping Adrian off at the medic bay, to which they all discovered none of them remembered what happened prior. Iko was meditating, Harvey was relaxing in a pool of lava and Bawla was staggering around in a pair of heels.

" I cant believe that woman had the nerve to be attractive and not just mope around, can you believe it?! Hanging around with those old people too, I tell you anyone over 18 is just ready for the grave!! "

" What the fuck are talking about now? " Harvey asked

Bawla executed a perfect backflip, landing on the edge of the lava pool " What are you talking about? Im talking about that awful woman I just fought while you were fighting the naked man and Iko was fighting the OLD man and Adrian was fighting that muscled girl who was no threat to me as a woman! "

Iko suddenly appeared in front of Bawla and gripped her neck. Bawlas power appeared to be making force fields to block physical attacks, but was it possible she was shielded from mental based attacks too? " Explain everything that you remember from the last hour "

"Yea, Nina's speed and strength combined with my lack of experience with my powers have always ensured the vampire has stayed ahead of me any time we fought in the past. I'd certainly love to start evening the score."

Sandra and Tanesha remembered fighting Nina in the tournament as well, Katy is right the girl is quite fast and she hits very hard. After being around long enough to pose a fair opinion, Sandra do think the True Notes has members like Riku that can beat her. But there is no doubting the vampire would pose a serious threat to quite a lot of their members. Then there's the mystery of that demonic form, nobody really knows what that is or where it came from. Hell Nina might not even understand what it is, seeing she lost her mind seemingly at the tournament. It's always a pain trying to prepare for something nobody understands.

Truthfully that whole group gives Sandra the creeps. She's after had her neck bitten and her blood sucked out by Nina. She's literally died once already at the hands of Karen. Like what the hell is next? She shook the thoughts from her head, it was concerns for later. "Well the shadow guy does seem to be the string puller of the group. If we take him out first, teamwork and trust among the rest might quickly dissolve" Sandra said. Whenever it the group was in public, Jet did seem to call the shots.

" This is assuming theirs not someone else pulling his strings too " Adrian said as he checked his phone " They could have someone hiding in the shadows "

" That is a possibility, fear factor is certainly a....factor we cant ignore " Emmet stated " They certainly add something to the fight "

Garfield cleared his throat " How are we going to save the Lees, that should definetly be one of our top priorities "

Emmet nodded " Of course, breaking a mental hold can usually be achieved by overpowering the mind controller physically, trying to override his control, or striking the controlleds cranium with the right amount of force. attacking the white rider is out as its highly unlikely he'll physically make an appearance and his mental prowess is beyond any of the telepaths in the group. Sandra and I could draw on the phoenix force but im not sure if that wouldnt backfire "

" Then we just have to hit them then? But theres kids " Donovan said, not liking the idea of fighting little kids like Lily.

" I agree friend Donovan, but it is for the sake of saving them from their mental prisons " Kano told him " It is done with noble intent "

Riku cracked his knuckles " Dont worry i'll throw hands with a kind, who says I wont?! "

Tanesha rolled her eyes " Anyway, if we can free them, that also takes care of the a good chunk of their fighting power "

Sandra didn't like the idea of having to hurt the kids, but as Emmet pointed out it may be the only way. Tesla spoke up "Well have to be careful about that the one with the pheromones. I suspect it's one of them that caused the riot in the hallway between myself, Katy, Cassandra and a bunch of other students."

Sandra also thought of something else. "Oh that lady that attached our squad practice and tried to sniper Victoria. I remember she had a bunch of those gun drone bot things. We got shot up pretty good by those last time we fought her. We should probably expect her to bring along more of those things."