System supervillain book.., p.1
System Supervillain: Book 6: Overwhelm, page 1
System Supervillain
Book 6: Overwhelm
Prologue – Trade Chat
(Capes & Cowls Forum, General Chat)
Message of the Day: Remember, Capes & Cowls is ‘neutral ground’. Keep it civil, and if you try to track someone through our site, it will not end well for you.
Speedy, AngelEyes, Victory, HotStuff, Jester, Aegis, Stars, Emerald, Snowflake, MagicGurl, RedHot, Scholar, Turbo, DontYouWantMeBaby, KoolAidMan, SliceNDice, Destroyer, Inquisitor, Chummer, TheWhiteHat, LuckyDice, GrimDark, DarkAngel, Chiller, Sparky, MultiMe, Stepford, Dollmaker, Mindtaker, MrRoboto, TitaniumTits, Lolth, InfoGirl, ScoopGirl, HolyBlessing, and DonJuan are in the chat.
AngelEyes: So, yeah, just as things are starting to get back to normal, the System Admin went and changed things up again!
Emerald: Why you complaining? It means extra points for most people.
AngelEyes: Because I was just getting used to everything, and then it goes and changes again!
KoolAidMan: Could be worse. Could have come back and found that something was undercharging, and deleted points.
MrRoboto: Don’t even joke like that. One audit rearranging my points was bad enough.
Victory: Infuriatingly enough, the changes only gave me one point, not enough to do anything with.
MultiMe: Already had all those skills at higher levels, right?
Victory: Indeed. Annoying as hell.
Turbo: Well, it could be worse. I tried to use the points to pick up some of that ‘Mental Defense’ power. Turns out that since it wasn’t part of my original powerset as a speedster, I either needed to do training or get some item to hold the power, it couldn’t just give it to me.
Mindtaker: Well, you could have also accepted some sort of transformative power that would have given you Mental Defense as part of its changes.
InfoGirl: There are powers like that?
Dollmaker: Oh, yes. I infuse it into my dolls so that no one can take them away from me.
Turbo: That… wasn’t really what I had in mind.
DarkAngel: I’m just wondering why these changes keep popping up, seemingly at random.
Lolth: Do you have any idea how complex a ‘program’ the System is? Some bugs are never going to be found until things go live.
TheWhiteHat: As much as it pains me to agree with her, she’s right. Especially with an unplanned launch like this? It is likely that things are getting patched as they come to the awareness of the System Administrator(s). But we still have no idea who or how many there are.
Chummer: Probably a small team, at best, considering the message that we all got when the System launched. That implied it found one Admin. That Admin would have had to elevate other ‘users’ personally, most likely, and I don’t know about you guys, but I would be VERY choosy about who I bumped up to share that kind of power with.
Stepford: Yes, sadly they didn’t decide to ask me to join. I can only imagine the fun that could be had if they had.
Mindtaker: By the way, Stepford, how has the System adjusted your powers? Are your brides still functioning correctly?
Stepford: Oh, yes. The straight mind control aspects are weaker, now, but the more in depth parts of the change are now ‘hard-coded’ into the bride’s Status as Disadvantages.
Dollmaker: Ah, an elegant way of dealing with it. Impressive.
Stepford: What about you, Dollmaker? Your dolls still behaving?
Dollmaker: Yes. I won’t go into the specifics, though, since I like having the element of surprise.
DonJuan: Changing the subject a bit, I think Bloodmoon is here in the US. New York, specifically.
TitaniumTits: Why would you say that?
DonJuan: I saw someone matching her description heading into the New York branch of the Tailors. But she had a whole group with her.
TitaniumTits: Do you have pictures?
DonJuan: No, I don’t go filiming everything around me. That’s a good way to get in trouble. Especially when the Guild is involved. They are protective of their neutrality clauses.
Chiller: The New York Tailors branch was convenient for getting to the Physicians.
MultiMe: Is she sick? Something go wrong with her transformation?
Chiller: Morning sickness. Along with a few others.
MultiMe: Wait, really? How many?
Chiller: Thirteen that I’ll admit to, so far. I may have been a bit reckless in the last couple months, since the System came online. Though part of it is adjusting to the changes in my abilities.
Dollmaker: Admit to? Why not the full number?
Chiller: Because some ladies don’t want their names associated with mine, whether for religious, social, or familial reasons, and I have no reason to disrespect their wishes when they haven’t caused me any trouble.
Victory: So, it is as we thought. You have some item that grants you powers, but it also affects you.
Chiller: I mean, I haven’t exactly made it a secret that I grab items I think might be helpful, and incorporate them into my kit. Don’t know why you’re thinking that’s some big discovery.
Scholar: It also means that it may be harder to depower him completely, since most power dampeners, post-System, only work on certain types of abilities.
Victory: Even before the System, universal dampeners were rare.
Chiller: Which is why I made sure to have a variety of options at my disposal.
DonJuan: Hey, Icy, you mind settling a bet for me? Which girls did you knock up?
Chiller: I’ll admit to Bloodmoon, my maid, and the Tokyo Rangers, minus the new Green one. I’ll let you guess on the others, unless they want to announce themselves.
Stepford: Minus the Green one? Didn’t want to complete the set after killing the last Green ranger?
Chiller: The current Green Tokyo Ranger is eight. Even I have lines that I do not cross.
Stepford: Ah, yes, I can see that.
SliceNDice: There’s a reason why people who do things to children have to be kept in solitary in prison. Even murderers and the scum of the earth have families.
ScoopGirl: So, is that why you took out the Dark Cabal just recently?
Chiller: Yes. Since their activities would inconvenience my girls once they were further along in their terms, I decided to pay them a visit, and encourage them to take a year’s vacation.
ScoopGirl: I take it they said no?
Chiller: Sadly, they proved most hostile to the idea, requiring me to make them take a much longer leave of absence. The only one of their leaders that actually impressed me will be back in ten years. The other two? Well, I doubt you’ll be hearing from them again.
Scholar: But I thought that they couldn’t be killed, not permanently.
Chiller: Those two are not, technically, dead. But they can’t really be classed as ‘alive’, either. One is hidden in a place where it is doubtful they’ll ever be found. The other is currently serving as a table in my living room.
HotStuff: There were rumors that you could turn people into solid ice. Did you?
Chiller: Yes. And, before anyone asks, no, I don’t know whether they are in stasis, are aware of their surroundings, or just trapped in an endless hell of sensory deprivation. No one I’ve used that ability on has been allowed to recover and report on it.
MrRoboto: And you were doing stuff like this even before the System?
Chiller: On occasion. I reserve it as a punishment for people who have protections against death, or who have especially angered me.
HotStuff: So, how are things going to work, with some of your… partners being heroes?
Chiller: The ones who wish to remain heroes can do so. Those who wish to become villains can do so. Those who wish to just retire to a quiet life can do so.
TitaniumTits: Uh-huh. Why don’t I believe you?
Chiller: Because you have clockwork where your heart should be? Or maybe you’re just upset that I’ve never shown you as much affection as I have the other women on your team. Afraid you don’t measure up?
TitaniumTits: WHY YOU!
Sparky: Oh, she hates when people do that.
Chapter 61 – Time Skip
Things fell back into their familiar pattern after I dealt with the Dark Cabal. The System may have turned on all of a sudden, but that didn’t mean that people had suddenly changed. Heroes were still heroes, villains were still villains, and normal folk were still normal folk, just trying to get by without getting caught up in the crossfire. While the chaos of the System’s emergence had thrown everything up in the air for a while, but by the two-year anniversary of the System being implemented, a new status quo had established itself.
Of course, some things continued to shake up the status quo, at least for me. The last of my small-scale baby boom was Electra’s child, Uriel, but she was the fifteenth of my kids born, sixteenth if you included Starsinger’s child. Yes, sixteen kids from fourteen mothers was quite a haul. Fortunately, Huinnalge and Bulkkoch would forgive me, eventually, for saddling them with twins, each. After all, I’d already made it so that they didn’t need to return to being heroines, so they didn’t need to worry about getting back into fighting shape while dealing with the kids.
Of course, they couldn’t hide forever, looking as they did. Eventually, one of the delivery drivers caught sight of Huinnalge in the yard with Kyong-Ja and Hyo-Rin, her daughters, as they were bringing a delivery of groceries. While most people didn’t recognize her face out of costume, the
Honestly, out of everyone, the Tokyo Rangers and the Red Ranger’s sister had it the worst. They were all in school, after all, even if they weren’t high school kids, so it caused no small bit of embarrassment for them, and their families. Continuing with their studies before and after the kids were born was a struggle, but they had their families with them to help, so that made it easier.
I hadn’t been in contact with Starsinger since that meeting at the hospital, and she hadn’t tried reaching out to me, so I assumed she was handling things on her end. The Elementals were not really a group that I needed to concern myself with, given their focus, but I did have alerts set to inform me if any scandalous news reports came out about them. So far, nothing, so I didn’t have any reason to insert myself in their affairs.
The situation around the lair was… busy. Three pregnant ladies had led to three new mothers and three kids, all demanding attention. And being a supervillain with a secret identity and a hidden lair definitely put up barriers when it came to hiring a babysitter, or anything else to do with child care. It wasn’t like I could just hire any random schoolkid for the job.
By comparison, Electra had it fairly easy. Sure, she was a single mother, on paper, but between her team and everything else, Uriel wasn’t lacking for anything, even without my secret contributions. Her reputation had taken a hit, sure, and she’d spent several months under observation, to ensure that I wasn’t giving her any commands, or controlling her directly. Too bad (for them) that the scanners that Silver Knight and Mechana came up with didn’t actually show the changes that had already set. They probably would have detected active mind control or similar effects, but a ‘set’ effect that was a permanent change? Didn’t seem like it.
However, that didn’t mean the Knights had stopped the surveillance of Electra, whenever she went out and about. It just meant that the surveillance changed from having an escort (including at least one super) with her at all times, ready to intervene if she went rogue, to more passive surveillance. Like the agent who was doing a credible job of not arousing suspicion and looking like he belonged, as he trailed Electra while she went about her daily life.
All the agents who had been assigned to observing Electra, and keeping tabs on her, were men. And that was due entirely to my powers. I didn’t have to guess or reason that, because Crystal hacked their computers and literally read their mail, as they sent it back and forth. They didn’t trust me not to seduce and corrupt any women who were assigned to watch Electra.
It was a positive change, really. While still annoying to deal with, especially without arousing any suspicion or causing bodies to start stacking up, it was, at least, possible to get in touch with her, now. A big change, considering that, before, I had to move separately to the Tailor shop so we could go to her checkups with the Physicians together. Even then, the only reason they didn’t have someone with her was because they didn’t want to run afoul of the Guild.
It was an annoyance, but I hadn’t made it as far as I had by jumping at obvious bait. They hadn’t harmed Electra or Uriel in any way, which meant I didn’t need to destroy them. It was just a bother, and meant she needed to work a bit to slip her leash. So far, though, ‘good behavior’ had convinced the Knights that I was letting her be.
It wasn’t like I didn’t have distractions of my own. Tammy’s kid, Sophie, was the loudest of the bunch, always talking. Min-yuè’s boy, Zedong, was turning out to be very much a momma’s boy, and stayed close to her, or his other mothers, as much as possible. Isobel, Crystal’s daughter, was the other way. She loved her daddy, and wanted me to spend time with her, whenever possible.
I tried to spend time with all my kids, but with circumstances as they were, there was only so much I could do. Fridays, I dropped in on Electra and Uriel, after evading her minders. Saturdays were when I spent time with the kids in Japan. Sunday, I went over to Korea, and spent the day with the girls and their kids. Sometimes, I managed to get over for more, but I couldn’t be everywhere all at once, so I still ended up seeing the kids in the lair more than the others.
These newfound responsibilities reflected themselves in my Status, as people were starting to call the System screen. I’d picked up a hefty disadvantage from having fifteen kids I was actively trying to be a part of their lives with, worth thirty-five points. That was balanced by the fact that I’d lost the ‘Loner’ disadvantage, since I was definitely no longer running alone, as a rule, as well as the ‘Villain Groupies’ disadvantage, since having a bunch of kids apparently made me less desirable to the fangirls. Not that I minded that, of course, since they could get annoying. But it did leave me with a 20-point gain.
Actually, all the girls got a gain of twenty points, though it wasn’t always due to having a kid to care for. Sometimes, their reputation had changed, or other problems. Either way, the events of the last couple years had given us all points to play with, which was good, since we’d all been keeping out of the limelight as much as possible, which meant that we weren’t pulling in XP as quickly as Crystal and I had been, shortly after the Initialization.
Deciding what to spend the points on was simple. I bumped up my ice control power to an 83-point pool, with a 41-point control. That spent 19 of my points, but I figured I’d save that last one for later. That bump in the pool from 70 to 83 points didn’t really sound like much, on the face of it, but it would allow me to be far more versatile with my abilities.
Which was good, because I had a feeling that I was going to need those abilities, sooner rather than later. Some people just couldn’t leave well enough alone, after all. Here I was, just enjoying my life, and they have to go and try to mess things up. Well, I suppose I shouldn’t be too hard on them. It was their job, after all.
I sighed, and looked up at Crystal. We were sitting in the living room of the lair, enjoying a movie with the kids when she suddenly said something that ruined the mood. “Say that again, Crystal?”
“Sorry, brother, but I checked. Electra has new shadows on her when she goes out, as a civilian. They aren’t on the same comm network as the one the Knights have been using. I’m pretty sure that a new player has entered the game.”
“Well, that’s just great,” I grumbled. “So, I know you have more than that, since you’ve already looked into their comms situation. What do you have?”
“That’s the thing. I think they’re completely analog. They don’t even have digital watches, from what I’m able to scan. Not a single computer chip on their entire person. Do you know how fucking rare that is, in this day and age?
“What comms they are using looks like tech that is at least twenty or thirty years old. The kind of old school, but rugged, stuff you’d use if you were deep in the jungle, or something like that. I’m picking up encrypted radio transmissions, but they are using multiple layers of code, with the smallest transmission times possible, on a rotating frequency pattern. They definitely trying their best to guard against me.”
I paused to think about that. “You’re right. That is suspicious as all hell. This fucking reeks of professionals. But professional what? Spies? Electra’s identity is public, and the cameras are always following her. You don’t need to spy on her, when the public does it for you. Sure, the Knights had a watcher on her, but that was because they were concerned that she was under the influence. These people definitely don’t sound like they’re worried about her health.”
“Then it is obvious that they’re enemies, Master,” Min-yué said. “The only question is whether they are your enemies, or Electra’s, and what they intend to do.”
