Chapter 13: Whatever it Takes

"Jesus christ."

Neo pressed a finger up against Rocketeer's mouth, silencing him…Silvermane was speaking. The old man was, as expected, doddery. He was wheelchair bound and he honestly should have been dead at this day and age. Instead, he is still here.

"My friends!" The Maggia boss bellowed, as if hacking for air, "The time is ripe for change itself! To those that doubt me, they need only to look upon this decadent city. Feast your eyes upon the chaos that has been wrought by the fool in office and the people on the street; recognize the failure of this system of sin that 'free will' has wrought; gaze upon the war that is waged upon the streets! This, I can never accept!"

The Maggia man grasped the arm bars of his wheelchair. "Allow me to lecture you on history, my history." Silvermane began, his arms shaking violently by the simple act of lifting his own body. With great difficulty, he did so but his voice was hoarse as he shouts, "When the Maggia first began, America was rife with this chaos. My people were under threat by this insanity. The government, was useless. Their pathetic attempts to keep order were all for nought because of fools and incompetents. The only one that did anything in this nation of dullards and idiots were, the Maggia. Through me, we maintained order by any means necessary. Did you know what the people did?"

"THEY CELEBRATED!" Silvermane stood up to his full height, cheering for the gathered audience, "The people want order, they want to be controlled! They are but sheep, unable to think what's best for themselves. We shepherds must herd our lost flock, teach them, reshape them. If they squander the opportunity we provide them, then they can be replaced with a new generation. For we at Hydra will shape the coming future! HAIL HYDRA!"

The gathered crowd cheered, boasted, and celebrated with a (pre-emptive) victorious round of applause. The gathered criminals in the railings were disgusted. They want to go down and massacre the whole lot. Neo and Blackie held them back, a finger pressed against their lips. Silvermane was signalling for calm. It wasn't time yet.

The old Maggia boss calmly stated, "However, time is not on our side. We must strike fast if we are to achieve our final goal that I had envisioned. As we speak, that halfwit Osborn seeks to make an 'antiserum' for the Devil's Breath weapon. We shall take it from him, this antiserum and weapon, into our more capable hands. With this weapon in our protection, we shall use it for the betterment and happiness of all mankind. Now, from intelligence gathered from our spies, the secret biotech facility is located at 10th and Cathedral. We have leaked this information to the Demons, whom will provide a suitable distraction. As those subhumans fight off the jackals of Sable International, we shall infiltrate and take command of the facility. So I advise you dress appropriately."

The Hydra soldiers clapped in thunderous applause, only for Silvermane to calm the crowd down again. "Now, some of you may be worried of these 'heroes' of New York City. Well, I do not believe them a threat, especially with what our weapons team has developed."

Men and women in white lab coats took it as their cue to enter, bringing up two bizarre handheld weapons. Neo's eyes widened in shock of recognition, something that didn't escape Blackie's gaze. 'How on Remnant did they find an Atlesian rifle?' She thought, clutching the railing tightly. While not completely inaccurate, appearance-wise, the weapon resembles more of a ramshackle attempt at an Atlesian rifle re-made from junk and cables. Silvermane explained, "This is our key to victory against Spider-Man!"

Neo's eyebrow furrowed with worry, anxious to know what insanity the old man is talking about. Blackie rested a gentle hand on her shoulder, squeezing warmly. She looked at the green-suited Consigliere, who shook his head and pointed at his ear. Neo bit her lip and continued watching, clutching her arm.

The scientist brought up a robot, activating it. It started mimicking Spider-Man, especially his jumps and swinging. The scientist aimed the weapon and compressed the trigger. Instead of gunfire, a metallic disc latched onto the metal body. A glowing laser below the rifle's barrel lit up red, the scientist showed it off before aiming the weapon to the ceiling and compressing the trigger. To everyone's surprise, red, blue, yellow, and purple 'bolts' of energy shot into the air and 'homed' onto the jumping robot. The reaction was instantaneous, the robot was lit aflame, frozen, electrocuted, and crashing to the ground, utterly destroyed.

Neo's eyes widened in disbelief. It was impossible. This can't be possible. It can't. Silvermane announced, "Gentlemen, allow me to introduce to you the Sharpshooter rifle. The key to our victory over the inferior races!"

The scientist pulled the magazine out and emptied its contents, pouring the fine, dry luminescent powder onto the ground. "I must warn you, however," He continued, the scientist dropped a match onto the pile, narrowly getting obliterated from the small pile, "the powder is highly reactive."

The gathered Hydra soldiers clapped in applause, while Neo sat on her ass, shock in her eyes. She couldn't believe it. They made dust and they are going to use it against Peter! This cannot stand! Neo smashed her fist into her palm, pointing at Silvermane. Blackie nodded.

Neo's slasher smile revealed itself as the petite woman jumped from the railing, aiming the axe blade down on a scientist as he finished reloading the weapon. Before a single soldier could shout a warning, the blade jammed itself into the man's neck, killing him instantly. The Neapolitan Vigilante hefted the axe on her shoulder, and waved at them. Silvermane crashed onto his wheelchair, barking, "KILL HER! DESTROY HER! SHE CANNOT BE ALLOWED TO STOP OUR PLANS!"

Guns were trained on her, and triggers were compressed. Suddenly, Captain Inmate jumped down and let the rounds harmlessly bounce off the shield. From behind the group, the Rocketeer jumped down, smashing the pavement and throwing a small group of soldiers aside. Hydra soldiers to within that small radius whipped their guns around and fired, only to find their enemy jumping into the air, the jetpack allowing him to hover in place.

"DEATH RAINS FROM ABOVE!" He shouts, the mini-rockets forcing his chest to rock back-and-forth. The rockets smashed into the Hydra soldiers body armour, penetrating deep and blasting men down.

Blackie localized a black hole, gathering all the bullets and guns to him, surprising the Hydra soldiers on the ground. Neo, seeing the opportunity, sheathed Hustler and took up Sharpshooter, firing from behind Captain Inmate, the dust rounds devastating the firing line in a blast of elemental gunfire. The quartet gathered together, satisfied with the mess they made, before realizing they missed someone. Where's Silvermane?

A base-wide alarm blared throughout the area and elevators filled with Hydra soldiers started rushing out. Neo smiled at Blackie, whom smiled back and nodded. Captain Inmate took point, thrusting his shield forward and Rocketeer hovered behind him. Blackie took up the right flank, a blackhole localized in the palm of his hand and Neo rested Sharpshooter on her right shoulder, a grin on her face.

"INMATES ASSEMBLE!"

The 'Inmates' charged the enemy in a whirlwind of blood, sweat, and bullets. These terrorist will pay for the blood they had (probably) shed. Neo blasted them with dust rounds, occasionally retreating to collect more magazines, letting Rocketeer to take up her position and indiscriminately launch mini-rockets. Captain Inmate threw his shield, letting it bounce off walls and ricochet off Hydra soldiers, causing internal damages wherever it hits. Blackie simply created a protective black hole, before launching those rounds back at the enemy, eviscerating them.

The poor bastards of Hydra could do nothing more but die, one-by-one, as they were massacred by the inmates. The reinforcements that rushed from the elevator also shared the same fate. Who could blame them? They were out in the open, exiting from a kill zone, and were cornered. No mercy was given and no quarter was demanded from them. Any survivors that tried to leave the area, were smashing the button from whence they came. Hope seemed to arise for them as the elevator doors began to close. The survivors could only watch their comrades fall due to the sheer wall of insanity from beyond closed doors.

Suddenly, the doors began opening again, a lithe foot prevented its full closure. The soldiers huddled up, backs towards the wall. A flash bang grenade was thrown in as it opened, detonating and blinding the crew. The resulting scream ended the minute it began, the men killed by the Neapolitan Vigilante in a barrage of bullets. Blackie came from behind and lightly patted her shoulder, warmly stating, "I am so very proud of you my dear. Come, come, let's track down this bastard."

Neo smiled and happily nodded, entering the elevator and holding the door. Captain Inmate and Rocketeer entered quickly soon after and the four relaxed to the sound of elevator music. The Captain passed a water bottle around, letting the others take a quick sip from it. Rocketeer split a chocolate bar four ways amongst them, giving Neo a larger piece. She accepted it, or course, and gave him a sidearm just incase he ran out of rockets. Blackie gave Neo some more magazines whom cheerfully accepted them and pocketed them.

Captain Inmate remarked, "Man, this elevator is so slow…"

"Yeah, you'd think they would have used an express elevator for this." Rocketeer agreed, lightly tapping his foot.

Blackie commented, "They'd probably forgot to update it, since no one was expecting an attack, let alone discovery."

Neo remarked, the Italian accent of her choker still active, "Still, this is a secret underground factory, I don't see why they can't just upgrade it."

"What'd the midget said." The Captain seconded, "I mean, look at the number thingy."

Neo rose an eyebrow. 'Number thingy?' she thought, looking at the Dial Floor indicator. 'Admittedly, it is rather ancient.'

The Maggia Consigliere sighed, asking, "May we please get ready? We are almost there."

Captain Inmate took point again, with Rocketeer and Neo taking the flanks, and Blackie to the rear. The elevator counted down, each ring counting down til the doors open. Neo rested a hand on Captain Inmate's shoulder, Sharpshooter's barrel resting on his shield. Rocketeer mimicked the Neopolitan vigilante, rockets ready to fire.

The doors opened and a hailstorm of gunfire blasted the shield. The Captain held firm, pushing towards the makeshift barricade. Neo fired the tag and launched a barrage of dust rounds, though something unexpected happened. 'How peculiar. She thought, seeing the tags orbit around the vicinity of the tag. 'I wonder…'

The vigilante fired a second tag, hitting an officer, and all the rounds slammed into him. The Rocketeer, not wanting to be one-upped, launched mini-rockets whenever possible, letting them fly to search for targets, though the majority of them missed. Blackie lightly tapped the man's shoulder, forming a small blackhole. The Rocket-obsessed criminal dumped his payload into the hole. The green-suited consigliere opened a blackhole behind the barricade, and let the rockets fly out, instantly killing their targets.

Neo huffed, resting the Sharpshooter on her shoulder, pointing a finger at Blackie accusingly. The old man protested, "Come now Neapolitan, let some of the others have their chance."

Rocketeer teased her, patting her head before meeting with the Captain. The Consigliere patted Neo forward, the three now finding themselves at an intersection. The Captain remarked, "Three lanes boss. We can't all go down a single path."

"As expected." He agreed, "Therefore, I shall stand guard here. You three, clear out each lane. Leave no one alive."

Neo checked her weapon quickly, exchanging magazines, and rapped the cocking handle. Captain Inmate helped Rocketeer load rockets into their tubes, asking, "So where should we head first?"

The vigilante fished a coin out of her pocket and flipped it. She pointed the barrel towards the left lane, the Rocketeer agreeing, "Yeah, let's go left. You're the boss."

Neo smirked and patted their shoulders, leading the two former prisoners towards the belly of the beast. It was remarkable, for an old laboratory, to look so clean and pearly white. 'The maintenance staff must be on point.' She said, distracting herself for what's to come. 'Perhaps I could capture one and force him to clean my room for once.'

Then something caught her sinuses…their sinuses. The entire section reeked of formaldehyde. Rocketeer murmured, "Wh-What the fuck?"

"It smells like…a Doctor's office."

Neo turned on her choker, "Or a murder scene from a movie."

Captain Inmate sputtered, "Y-You don't think…"

Neo peered through the closest glass window, spotting something lying on the table. She went to open the door. Locked. The vigilante frowned, trying again but with a bit more force. Still locked. Rocketeer gently pushed her aside and placed plastique on the lock. He forced the trio back, warning, "Fire in the hole!"

The doors were blasted open, followed by the panicked screams of those inside. Captain Inmate moved in first, instantly ricocheting the pistol-calibre rounds off his shield. Neo backed him up, perforating the armed Hydra soldiers with dust rounds. The doctors begged, "No! Don't kill me! Please!"

Neo demanded, "Who are you?"

"I-I-I'm Doctor Gelman. They kidnapped me and forced me to work for them. Please, you got to get me out of here."

"Uh…boss. You gotta see this."

Neo ordered, "Keep an eye on him. If he so much as moves or speaks, hit him with the shield."

Captain Inmate nodded once, before hitting Doctor Gelman, since he moved. Rocketeer murmured, "This is fucked up."

"What is?" She asked, before getting a headache and turning off the choker. The Rocketeer unveiled the carcass. Neo almost threw up by the sight of it. The body appeared dehydrated, the skin was blackened like char, yet it was not burnt. The eyes were dried, bulging out of the poor woman's socket. The vigilante trembled at the sight of her.

Wordlessly, Neo reared around to find a clipboard, a single signature on it. Her eyes narrowed in fury, quickly rummaging through the cabinet before finding a breathing apparatus connected to a canister. Rocketeer asked, "Do you want me to give them a cremation kid?"

She nodded once, marching back to the doctor. The man in question started pressing himself closer to the wall. He pleaded, "D-Don't!"

Neo heard none of it, smacking the Doctor with the canister and hooked the breathing apparatus to his face. She turned on the choker, barking, "What were you testing down here?!"

"P-Please…Don't!"

She threatened to turn the valve on. The Doctor panicked, "Mercy! Please! We were looking for a cure for the Devil's Breath!"

The Vigilante backhanded the doctor, who whimpered, "You don't understand!"

Neo snarled, "So you used people! Living people for your sick experiments just to create a cure? Bullshit!"

Doctor Gelman protested, "What else could we do?! We didn't have access to Devil's Breath! So, based off of signs and symptoms, we created our own! Those people were homeless anyways, no future! This way, they can be used for the betterment of all! This was for the Greater Good!"

"The greater good?" Neo murmured, voice void of emotion. "Tell that to the twenty men and women you murdered with your twisted mind."

"And I told you they were necessary sacrifices!" He insisted, no remorse in his tone, "We couldn't have used simulated or dead test subjects because that won't tell us a thing! It has to be living people! They weren't doing anything and certainly no one would notice a few homeless going missing! You see that, don't you?"

Neo said, "Did you know I was homeless, Doctor Gelman? I had nobody to look after me…"

"See!"

"Until someone arrived and adopted me." She continued, undeterred, "He was my one-thing in a cruel and unforgiving world. Whenever I was lost, he would come and search for me. Whenever I ran away from home and lived out on the streets again, he would come and find me. Whenever I was sick, he nursed me back to health."

At each remark, Doctor Gelman sank deeper into the floor. His eyes were begging, beseeching for clemency. Neo glared at him, simply stating, "Good bye, Doctor Gelman." She turned the valve on, allowing a small portion of the poison gas into the panicked Hydra Doctor's system. According to the clipboard, only a small dose was required.

Neo stayed by him, watching the poison flood the man's lungs as his screams turned to gurgles. Steadily, the Neapolitan Vigilante loaded a singular shotgun shell into the barrel of Hustler and rested it against his temple.

She compressed the trigger and put the man out of his misery. "Know that I am not completely without mercy." She hissed, walking away from the laboratory.

Rocketeer asked, "Was that really true? Everything you just said to him back there?"

Neo nodded once, eyes closed, and trying to push the thoughts of the man's death away. Captain Inmate asked her, "What's the plan boss-lady? What should we do to this part here? Burn it?"

"…Erase it." She confirmed, "Erase it all."

Without another world, Rocketeer and Captain Inmate did as requested, blasting room after room with high explosives. Anybody trying to escape the cleansing concussive blasts were immediately put down by Neo, armed with Hustler in one hand and Sharpshooter in the other. 'So this is what they are.' She bitterly remarked, 'They really do poison everything they touch.'

Within a short ten minutes, they had torched the entire left wing and returned to Blackie. He asked, a concerned 'look' at Neo, "Perhaps you should stand guard here, Neapolitan?"

She shook her head. Neo had to see this through until the end. Two more hallways to go, and Neo started looking towards the centre lane. Blackie suggested, though it sounded like an order, "Perhaps we should go together this time, Neapolitan. The others can stay for the time being."

Neo sighed, motioning for the older man to follow her. Blackie nodded once to the two inmates and walked alongside her. He murmured, "I understand that you have seen the atrocity of man itself."

"They weren't men." She bitterly spat, "They were mere Grimm walking into the kill zone."

He stopped the vigilante, kneeling down to her level. Hydra soldiers rushed out from the corner, forming a firing line and firing dust rounds. Blackie simply three up a blackhole shield. "I understand completely on what exactly you feel." He warmly murmured, "But that does not mean we must fall down to their level. Sometimes, you must simply kill them. No boasts, no taunting, no sympathy. A wise man, a priest-"

Neo sputtered, "A p-priest?"

Blackie nodded, repeating, "A priest. Father Vittorio has once told me that he didn't enjoy killing during his time as an Arditi, however, when done righteously, it was a chore."

"A chore?"

"A chore…shall we start?"

Neo nodded, and Blackie returned the hailstorm of elemental dust back into the firing line. Neo dual wielded her weapons, blasting the Hydra soldiers with no remorse. Blackie suggested, "We should split up! Go room-to-room. Blast them out!"

The Neapolitan vigilante smiled once more, kicking doors down and killing all within. No need to make it anything more than murder, as it should be. Room-to-room, she repeated the process. She then found herself in a chemistry lab, within glass beakers was a familiar luminescent dust. They even had a dust crystal. Now, there was no sign of motion inside. She smirked and started searching for papers, documents, computer files, anything that can tell her how Hydra made dust. Yes, the greedy side of her mind is working overdrive, the opportunity is too good to pass up.

A gleaming smile from ear-to-ear was made apparent upon her face, finding the treasure. The unassuming, cheap notepad held the formula to synthesize dust. Oh yes, Neopolitan struck gold! She pocketed the lab notebook and agitated the dust, destroying the entire lab in the process. Blackie was patiently waiting for her close-by. He asked, "Did you find something of interest?"

Neo nodded, proudly displaying the notebook for his approval. The Consigliere skimmed through the pages. "Chemistry isn't my field, but it seems this powder has potential to replace gasoline."

'Oh, you have no idea.' She thought, extending a hand to take the notebook back. Blackie surrendered it, patting her shoulder.

"Come, come." He said, walking her over to the others. "Let's finish this!"

Neo wholeheartedly agreed, the two walking back to the intersection. They suddenly took off to a sprint, seeing both Captain Inmate and Rocketeer knocked down. Blackie started assessing Captain Inmate, as did Neo with Rocketeer. She heard him ask, "What happened? Who did this to you?"

"I-I don't know boss!" He groaned out, weakened, "She came outta nowhere!"

"Who came out of nowhere?"

Captain Inmate pointed at Neo. She sputtered, "I beg your pardon?"

"Y-Yeah. Really. I'm not shitting you. You came at us with some kinda bodysuit and beat the shit outta us."

Neo demanded, "Where did she go?!"

"Down the hall…"

Without a second thought, she started to sprint towards the last hallway. "Neo!" Blackie shouted, "Wait!"

Neo turned to face the Maggia man, whom requested, "Be careful."

She nodded, pushing onwards. Hydra troops attempted to gun her down, but she was one step ahead of them. Taking a page from Ruby's handbook, Neo loaded an high-explosive shotgun shell into the chamber and fired directly behind her. The Vigilante was launched into the air, avoiding the gunfire below her. Time seemed to slow down, and she took advantage of it. She let loose a barrage of rounds into the stunned Hydra troopers, killing them indiscriminately from above.

Neo gracefully landed just as the dead bodies hit the floor. The Neapolitan Vigilante went door-to-door. Shock 'n awe was key, and they didn't even stand a chance against her. Eventually, Neo stopped herself to catch her breath. She limbered up, bouncing on both her feet before kicking down the door to the last room. Neo scanned the area. It appears she was in an arena-like room, a viewing gallery closed off to all. Yet, there was no sign of the "doppelgänger." Did she escape?

Neo quickly ducked-and-rolled, narrowly avoiding the blade. She came out of the roll to see…herself. Yes, the Inmates were right…there was another her. The microphone burst into life, followed by some tapping. "Neapolitan!" Silvermane growled, "Your very existence is a cancer to my new world and you cannot be allowed to live! May I present to you, Cecilia! The women who you could have been were it not for arrogance and simplemindedness! Now, DIE!"

Neo readied herself against Cecilia, whom was already charging the vigilante. The crazed look of her slasher grin with green and black eyes versus the disgusted snarl with pink and brown eyes. This was no sister of her's! She's been far too corrupted by the bastard and there was no saving her. Neo rolled backwards, kicking Cecilia off. Unfortunately, the Hydra woman recovered just as quickly, drawing her hand cannon and fired.

Neo deftly evaded the slugs, returning fire with Sharpshooter. Cecilia smirked, dancing around the gunfire. The vigilante frowned, this as going to be a drag-out fight. With no choice, she charged in, and so did she. However, every blow Neo threw, Cecilia danced around it and every time the Hydra woman tried to kick her, Neo dodged.

Suddenly, the room started to change. It reminded her of Amity Colosseum and she didn't like it. The floorboards started to remove itself, revealing metal grates, exhuming flames. The arena walls themselves were moving closer. Neopolitan was suddenly hit by Cecilia, blindsided by her worries. Neo retaliated, successfully striking Cecilia's knees.

The Hydra woman was on her knees and the vigilante struck her face with a roundhouse kick. Cecilia's body rolled away, but she had a smirk on her face. Neo, confused, suddenly looked down. Her eyes widened and rolled forward, but not before a gust of flames burn her back. She released a silent scream, feeling those flames touch her. Aura could do so much, yet she stood up. Once again, the Hydra woman kicked her, and Neo was launched into the arena walls, causing a dent.

Neo whined again, struggling to get up. Cecilia helped her up, and used the dazed vigilante as a punching bag. Her hits were causing more damage than Neo expected, one even threatened to make her throw up. The vigilante finally managed to kick out, giving her space. Her breathing was hoarse, and she was hurting. The Hydra woman was in no such rush, aiming her hand cannon and fired and missed. Neo snarled, she was purposefully missing her, trying to get her to jump around. It was exactly what she would do.

The vigilante rose sharpshooter and fired, taking up Hustler in another hand and fired. She marched forward, releasing a volume of fire, and forcing Cecilia on the defensive. Suddenly, she too stopped and stood still. Neo was in no mood to play with her food and fired, only to find that she shattered. Neo stumbled back, eyes wide.

'She has my semblance.' She thought, looking around in panic. Neo fired wildly, managing to hit Cecilia. The doppelgänger glared at the original, cartwheeling away to evade the dust rounds. She landed on her feet and charged Neo.

The two went at it in close quarters. Neo swung Hustler, forcing Cecilia back. The Hydra woman recovered, jabbing the blade into Neo's chest. The aura deflected the blow and allowed the vigilante lowered Sharpshooter's barrel onto Cecilia, and compressed the trigger. Cecilia deftly dodged, only to hear a distinct click.

The Hydra woman laughed, and landed on her feet. Neo was exchanging the magazine and the doppelgänger charged her and swung the blade, cleanly cutting the rifle. Neo's eyes twitched, and swung hustler, but caught nothing but shattered glass. So did Cecilia when she retaliated and the two were back at square one. The arena was getting smaller, and there was no more space to move.

With no choice, Neo rushed in for an axe swinging downwards. Cecilia let it hit the ground and stomped on it. The vigilante didn't have time to pull out, kicked right into the walls and used as a punching bag. She dodged a few hits, throwing a few of her own. Cecilia caught a loaded fist and locked it. There she had full access to Neo's gut, whom she thoroughly abused. Neo felt a reprieve for a moment. The vigilante opened her eyes to see what's going on.

Cecilia smiled, eyes closed, then a blade rammed right through her gut. Neo gagged, leaning forward to find Cecilia grin victoriously, her sadistic black and green eyes on her. The vigilante quickly pinned the Hydra woman with whatever remains of her strength. Her pink and brown eyes glared on green and black. Then several loud blasts from the hand cannon rung out, and Cecilia slumped down, large holes perforating her gut.

Neo smirked, albeit weakly, before succumbing to her wound. She collapsed onto the cold ground. She could see the arena expand around her, or was it just her imagination? Nonetheless, the vigilante closed her eyes.

"NEO!"

'Blackie.' She thought, feeling her body roll over.

"Starai bene, mia dolce figlia. Ti riporterò a casa. Ha ancora una città da salvare."

Neo weakly smirked, only hearing the faint echoing of Blackie's voice.


AN: Just one more chapter my dear readers. I hope this was worth the wait and please stay safe.

Chapter 14 will be coming out in one month so please hold on.

I really do appreciate all of you and thank you.

-Vumanchu