And we're back! I'll try to update more frequently. I have PLENTY of free time, after all. Well, we'll see how this goes. Also, Abysswalker (woulda PMed you but...you're a guest so) if you look closely near the end of Chapter 10 you'll see that Moreau was NOT the one to bomb the city. Just clearin' something up. :)
The cries of freedom and the promise of truth kept the crowds from examining too closely the carnage left behind by the riot. Hundreds had died in the attempt to combat the drones and soldiers, and their bodies littered the streets indiscriminately. No one could tell anymore who was who, but the survivors crowded around the stage where the resistance leaders would soon be speaking and rallying.
Three days prior, London had been determined as a weak spot among Max's forces. Moreau and Scarlett had both calculated that they would be easily capable of taking it after turning the entire city to their side. They were also banking on the hope that Max wouldn't just bomb the shit out of the place due to his newfound conscience. Plus, the death of thousands of innocent civilians-as well as industry, would hardly do wonders for him.
So, with a bit of planning, and a lot of luck, London was taken, and Max's air strike troops had been recalled. Scarlett in particular had been incredulous about betting their lives on the notion that Max had slowly started becoming a better person.
In the end, it had paid off handsomely.
Who knew putting the leader of the world out of commission for a week would leave behind such a power gap? Well, both schemers did.
Moreau closed his eyes, slumped against a wall. A break was necessary to keep him going. Too much seriousness at one time drained him. He was expected up on that stage soon to deliver one of his usual speeches, but still he worried for the civilians. What if Max just sent in more drones and soldiers and just targeted resistance members? Whatever the case, Moreau had not been personally a part of the fight and regardless of whether London would soon be under attack, he would be leaving and returning to his prior base.
Five minutes passed and the resistance leader didn't move an inch. Part of him just wanted to stay like that forever. It would certainly be easier than perpetually leading revolts and systematically causing uprisings with the eventual goal of becoming ruler and fixing the fucking mess Max had left behind.
His eyes opened, and he smiled.
But then again, he liked his job. Might as well continue with it.
"Moreau, you ready?" Scarlett barked, stalking past him with Sky hesitantly following behind her. "You're on."
"May I remind you how to defer to someone in charge," the businessman replied evenly, adjusting his stride to match the redhead's quick pace.
"Apologies, sir," Scarlett responded while making it clear that she was doing everything but apologizing. "I'll acquiesce towards your desires from now on."
"Good," Moreau said. "Now all you have to do is stand to the side. Marcus and company are gonna make sure that nobody tries anything. We'll be safe. We've only been attacked at one rally."
"Everyone there died," Sky said, eyes narrowed. "He'll pay for that. If that's not evil..."
Moreau and Scarlett both individually noted Sky's insistence on thinking of things in black and white.
"We'll get him," Moreau said supportively. "Now come on. I have a speech to give."
The crowd wasn't as large as he'd expected, though still spanning several blocks. Cheers and whoops filled the air, and he smiled as he soaked it all in. He remembered that some people would not be attending, but would still be watching from their homes. The local propaganda station was now under their control. People across the city, and hopefully across the country would be able to hear every word.
Moreau smiled. This was his element.
"I'm going to start by asking you a question." He paused dramatically, looking out at the crowd.
"How many of you have benefited from Project Cleanup? Raise your hands."
Almost everyone rose their hands. Moreau smiled. "I'm pleased to see that. As much as I may want Max off the throne, I admire his decision to genuinely help people..."
"...or would, if it weren't for the wrong reasons. When I look at this whole thing, I see that dear Max Vile-or, if you want to go by his birth name-Max Hiscock-you understand why he chose to drop that surname. Anyways, Max Hiscock, or Vile, or whatever, is one of two things. First, someone trying and failing to seek redemption for his actions. When I was a child, and forgive the comparison, Hitler and the Nazis were viewed as the worst scum the world had to offer. And now...Max Vile has spent the last decade fucking things up, killing millions of people, and all with no accountability for his own actions."
"And now that he's finally seeing what a piece of shit is, he'll TRY to be redeemed. But his actions..." Moreau shrugged. "They speak for themselves."
"The first option paints him in a better light than the second. The second...well..." Moreau chuckled darkly. "The second is that this is a way to pull out the rug from under us. If we have no reason to fight, then we won't fight. He's trying to make people wonder why we exist in the first place. He wants to throw you a bone so you will forget everything still wrong with him and his system!"
The crowd roared with righteous anger. Moreau paused for a moment before continuing.
"Well, the reason we were capable of liberating all of you from your cage...it's because Max had been shot, nearly killed by an assassin. In his own fucking capitol, no less! A strong ruler would never have let this happen! He's pathetic! And without him there is anarchy. So let us rise up and end this conflict! If he's feeling genuine remorse for everything he's done, we will peacefully depose of him. And if not..." A wide grin broke out across his face. "There will be blood."
Cheers filled the entire square. Moreau waited for the fervor to die down a bit before finishing. "If you wish to stay home and enjoy your new freedom, that's fine. But if you're truly ready to fight for what you believe in...well, it'll be up to you to take the first step."
The sounds of an entire city whipped up into a frenzy filled the air and Moreau swiftly exited, followed closely by Scarlett.
"So it's done," Scarlett yawned, picking at her nails. "Now, when do I get to kill people again?"
"Soon," Moreau said. "As a matter of fact, I want you, Marcus, and Sky to head out soon."
"Where to?"
"Toronto," the revolutionary replied. "Lay low until you see a man named James Brass. I have his profile right here. Coerce him into helping you enter the place he's inevitably going to enter. This is recon, but critical to the plan."
"Oh?"
Moreau smirked. "This could take weeks, but his Archive has something I need for the invasion to work. Make it happen."
With that, he patted Scarlett on the shoulder and strolled down the street, barking orders as he went.
The last time Max had been to the hospital, he'd been out in a matter of days. With new and advanced technology, his bullet wound to the stomach had been no big deal. This time, it was a bit different. Couple of cracked ribs and a concussion from the initial explosion combined with the stab wound in his torso did not do wonders for him.
Alejandro's leg had been moderately damaged but fortunately did not need to be amputated. He'd also suffered a concussion but after four days due to the lack of an additional stab wound to treat. He seemed shaken by the event, but not deterred in the slightest.
And filled with a resolve to make the resistance pay.
Max on the other hand had remained in the bay for a week or so as they attempted to heal him. The matter of who was in charge of proceedings took precedent. Noah and Dave had collectively assumed temporary control but were frustrated to find that Max's system of organization was abysmal. His papers and orders and procedures were scattered around in no seeming particular order. A simple task like calling the lobby could involve at least four different, equally tedious steps.
Noah and Dave stood outside of Max's room. He was nearly ready to receive visitors, but not quite yet.
"They're going to kill us if they find out how bad we fucked up," Dave whimpered. "How did...how did the resistance get an assassin in here? That wasn't..."
"Likely Scarlett's had some influence," Noah responded. "Don't beat yourself up about it. There's no way we could have known. Plus, it's not like this is an actual problem."
"Well, I'm anxious, okay!" Dave spit. "I'm anxious! I don't want to fuck this up! They're counting on us! What if...oh god..."
"Suck. It. Up." Noah sneered. "Max is still alive. Alejandro is still alive. Apparently you're still hung up on what would have happened if the two of them had both been killed!"
Dave winced. "I could...I could never live with myself...everything would be ruined..." He sniffled.
"You are WAY too invested in this," Noah sighed, shaking his head in an exasperated manner. "Just...chill out, okay? In just a few minutes Izzy and Evil One will be here to visit, and I want you to be on your best behavior." He paused and examined his sentence.
"Don't treat me like a child," Dave pouted, folding his arms.
"Don't act like a child. Yeesh, it's like you've learned nothing...seriously. What the hell."
"What about the London revolts? We should SERIOUSLY just bomb them too," Dave said casually.
"Then we'd lose the last of our sympathy, and a lot more civilians. Plus, Moreau is known for being a tricky little bugger to pin in one place."
"Then send in soldiers!"
"That will be Max's decision to make," Noah jerked his thumb to point through the window at the miniature dictator.
Dave snorted. "Yeah. I got it."
The two Indian nerds-turned-conspirators simply stared through the window inside as Max began to stir, bandages wrapped around his head and midsection. He started mumbling things under his breath, but neither Dave nor Noah really wanted to go in.
"Can you lip read?" Dave asked Noah. "What's he saying?"
Noah stroked his chin and narrowed his eyes. "I think he's grumbling about wanting that stupid pug of his. Or maybe he's grumbling about wanting to fuck a pig. Difficult to tell."
"You're just fucking with me, aren't you."
"Yep."
"Screw you."
"Innuendo~..."
"Oh, can it, you started first!"
The sound of a door sliding open made the two conspirators quickly stop bickering. The redheaded somewhat insane girl and the deceptively boring archivist both stepped in, eyebrows knit in concern. As little respect the two may have had for Max's policies, the man himself was inexplicably important to them. They didn't really know why, but somehow they cared about him.
A thought crossed Noah's mind that as inactive as Max was, he was the center of every single viewpoint and agenda trying to worm its way to the top.
"How is he?" Evil One asked. "He feeling alright?"
"He'll be ready to receive visitors in a few minutes," Dave responded. "Right now he's somewhat incomprehensible."
"And into bestiality," Noah added helpfully.
"Oh, cool!" Izzy chirped.
"Ew, really?" Evil One gagged.
"No," Noah and Dave responded at the same time.
Izzy snorted. "Anyone ever tell you guys you're a lot alike?"
"We're not cousins," Noah groaned. "Or related. Just...two Indian guys working for the same people."
"Who are both sarcastic," Evil One pointed out.
"Oh sure, just lump us together like that," Dave threw his hands up in the air. "You guys don't know anything. Why do you care about this guy again?"
"What's YOUR reason for keeping this job?" Noah pointed out, well aware that neither Evil One nor Izzy knew the answer to the question. And as much as he would like to just tell Izzy and Evil One everything, he was sure that Dave would immediately shoot him in the face. Or his earpiece would melt his brains out or something. Secrets were a tricky thing.
"I...um..." Dave scratched his neck anxiously. "Oh look, Max is awake and actually capable of speech! Yay! Let's go talk to him!"
"YAS!" Izzy pumped her fist in the air before excitedly jogging inside, Evil One following bemusedly behind her.
Max groaned, rubbing his bandaged head. "What the hell...man, I feel like Satan's shit. And not the good kind of Satan's shit."
"Well, you did get a concussion, several broken ribs, and a knife wound," Evil One pointed out. "That's not exactly going to make you all happy and shit."
Noah and Dave slinked in behind them, avoiding talking to Max.
Max sniffed. "Thank you for your concern. I am fine though, thank you. Do we have an ID on the body?"
"Apparently not," Izzy said. "We think the dude expunged all his records. Heh, that's a funny word. Expunged."
"Well, it's pretty obvious who hired him," Max sniffed. "Beef up security on this city." He turned to see Dave and Noah whispering to each other near the back of the room. "You two! Has anything changed since I was out?"
"Well-" Dave began.
"Moreau organized a riot in London and took control of the city," Noah said bluntly. "Sources indicate he might be planning an attack on the city."
"WHAT?" was the unified response of Max, Evil One, and Izzy.
Dave scowled at Noah. The egghead shrugged. "What? I don't butter things up. It is what it is."
Max steepled his fingers and furrowed his eyebrows. "Most concerning...how's Alejandro?"
"Conscious, but shaken," Noah replied, once again interrupting Dave as he was about to speak. "He doesn't want any visitors."
Max nodded. "Can we bomb London? That'd be easiest."
Izzy tensed at this. "Thought you were gonna be nicer," she said, voice low.
The overlord glanced at his strategist funnily. "Is something wrong?"
"Nah," the redhead snorted unconvincingly. "Just...thought you were gonna be done with knowingly killing people."
"No," Max said. "I think there's a problem here. You've been acting strange for a while. Standoffish. Could you talk to me about it?"
"How about I just go order pizza instead?"
"See, you keep trying to change the subject! You just let whatever random thought pops into your head control you!" Max growled in frustration. "You just...I can't tell whether you're insane like they made you out to be on TV, or just broken!"
Noah cleared his throat, glancing at Evil One and Dave. "We should be leaving now."
"I don't see why," Dave said.
"Yeah," Evil One affirmed. "Maybe we should stay and help-"
"Welp, them's the breaks," Noah interrupted. "We're leaving everyone. Might as well let these two work out their issues." Noah shoved Evil One and Dave in the back, ushering them outside. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a serious allergic reaction to sentimentality, so I'll just be off actually running the world. You know, your ACTUAL job. Ciao ciao. Should I lock the door until you reach a compromise?"
"Why?" Max inquired.
"Bye!" Noah said, and slammed the door shut.
Izzy and Max stared each other down. "Tell me everything," Max said. "Am I just evil? Do you hate me? Did I do something wrong?"
"You did pretty much everything wrong! But I feel bad because I don't care about most of it." Izzy sighed. "I didn't mind you killing a whole bunch of people until you actually killed someone close to me."
"What?"
Izzy laughed. "I'm not right in the head! No matter what I may tell people, to tell the honest truth, I was perfectly fine with everything you were doing! It was funny! It got rid of the RCMP! It gave me new people to run away from!"
"So you're concerned because you weren't concerned?" Max asked incredulously. "Why hasn't this come up before?"
"Because then I learned you weren't actually the one behind it. And...something else."
Max scowled. "I'm a terrible person but I'm trying to do better."
"Can you ACTUALLY redeem yourself for the deaths of billions? I watched you on the show! You were hilarious! Then SOMEONE decided it'd be funny to actually give you that power. And I'm trying to find out who!"
"You want to know who my benefactor is?" Max asked in bewilderment. "Well, I'm about as clueless as you. I'm gonna ask again, where is this coming from?"
"You killed Owen!" Izzy yelled.
It was silent for a few moments as Max allowed it to sink in.
A beeping sound on his watch. Both Max and Izzy glanced down at it.
"Order 4,532 authorized," a robotic voice said.
"What?" Max barked. "What are you talking about?"
A recording of Max's voice played from the watch. "Order 4,532. This is Class A important. I have hired another former Total Drama contestant. Original, I know. Hopefully, she shall help me further my evil schemes. But...if she discovers Owen is dead and poses a threat...kill her."
"WHAT?" Izzy yelled.
"Deactivate!" Max ordered.
"Vague command interpreted as 'deactivate target.' By extension, deadly force has been authorized. Thank you for selecting the M-180 Command Watch-"
"OH COME ON! THAT WASN'T VAGUE AT ALL!"
"-and we hope you have a nice day. Toodles."
Because this is Max we're talking about, he had installed a turret in every room in the facility, which would prove useful when the resistance inevitably invaded. It had been designed to fire at an obscenely fast rate with alarmingly accurate precision. He'd wanted something a little more in line with traditional evil overlord fare, but Dave had convinced him to be a little more genre savvy in this particular case.
The turret fired.
Izzy dived under Max's bed, screaming as it opened fire. Pain spasmed in her shoulder and she realized she'd moved a little too late. Fortunately, the wound wasn't very bad. Catlike reflexes really helped in this kind of scenario. The gun continued to fire. Despite its deadliness, it was still stuck in one place, incapable of moving throughout the room.
That design flaw is probably what saved her life, to my recollection.
The door burst open and a panicked Evil One entered the room, disheveled and sweaty. He held up a remote that had last been in Max's tower.
A press of the button, and the turret deactivated. Izzy was shivering on the ground.
"We need medical attention!" Evil One called out, pacing around.
"Medical attention? In the sick bay?"
"Yes! Someone got hurt here!"
"Huh. Never heard of that happening before."
Max curled up into a ball and shoved his covers over his head.
"Sir, what do we do?" He could hear Evil One talking to him.
"Just go away," he spoke into the blanket. Tears welled up in his eyes.
"Sir...do you need a hug?"
"JUST GO AWAY!"
Evil One backed up. "Okay, okay, fine...yeesh."
Max closed his eyes, trying to wipe away the memories of that day. Trying to figure out how to fix everything.
Sleep took his worries away.
"No, seriously. Are you sure you're up for this?"
Noah sipped his coffee calmly as Izzy nodded. A bandage on her shoulder was the only sign she'd ever been almost assassinated. Three days spent. Max had tried to get a hold of her multiple times to no avail.
"Max put an order in to kill me if I knew the truth," she scowled. "I think I'm as ready as I'll ever be."
Noah nodded.
The door opened and Evil One entered, a handgun at his waist. His usual dopey expression was gone, replaced by serene determination.
Noah cleared his throat and rose to his feet, placing the coffee on the table. "This mission is critical to the objective we discussed. Hidden in one of the file you took for your Archive," he said, giving Evil One a significant glance, "was a list of connections and the order Max had been in contact with. I wish I could just tell you all right now, but their sphere of influence is quite capable of murdering me if I spill. I can tell you, however, that if you follow the trail to whoever these people are, you can eventually trace it back to the benefactor."
"So we're just heading to Toronto?" Evil One asked. "To my Archive? Sounds simple enough."
It was quiet for a moment as Noah and Izzy just looked dumbfounded at him. "Oh my god did you just say that...oh no, you said it, didn't you..."
"What are you talking about?" he asked obliviously.
"Now that you said that, there's gonna like be a huge firefight or something," Izzy said, sighing and shaking her head. "Man, you don't know how this works, do you?"
"Apparently Abed here doesn't realize that if you dance naked in front of the fates, you're just tempting them to screw you over," Noah groaned. "Okay, so prepare for trouble at any turn thanks to our buddy here. Get the files. And get the hell back here as soon as you can."
"Yes sir!" Evil One and Izzy saluted at the same time.
Noah slouched even more than usual as he stared blankly at their over-zealousness. "Just get a move on already."
The two grumbled and walked away.
Noah sighed and sat down.
He squinted while looking at his coffee, as if wondering if it were poisoned.
With a shrug, he downed the whole thing.
References~
Anyways, hope you enjoyed! Be sure to review! And SEE YA NEXT TIME!