Part 5 - Blood of the King

Chapter 89 - Psychological Warfare

Six days had gone by since the massacre. In that time, the GOC was completely cut off from Republic resources and, in turn, it collapsed. A small quantity were redirected to the Legion, but the organisation was mostly self-sustaining. Max didn't bore himself with the details; he was fifteen. He should be playing video games, not reading financial reports for the multiverse's most powerful organisation. His body felt stiff and achey, but most of his injuries had healed apart from the scars he would wear for the rest of his life. Ganke sat down next to him with a bowl of popcorn and a hot chocolate each.

"Did you hear what your mum did?"

"It's all I've heard since I got my brain cells back. Robert says he's gonna start calling me 'son of a psycho' instead of 'son of a bitch'."

"I'm not sure who that's more insulting to."

"Mum is crazy. I wish I could help her, but I think she's too far gone for anyone to do anything about."

"Your dad kept her on the right track, but he's gone now. You're the only thing she's got left and she'll make anyone who hurts you pay with blood."

"Clearly. How did Dad help her, though?"

"They loved each other. They'd gone through so much together, always been there for each other. They'll see each other again in whatever afterlife there is."

"Bastria is weird."

"Been there?"

"Nobody alive has since the fall of the Empire."

"I wonder if the devil went to Hell when he died?"

"Always asking the right questions, Uncle G."

There was silence for a few seconds in which the pair tucked into their popcorn. Suddenly, it was interrupted by the door bell.

"Maybe that will be the parcel I've been waiting on for two years?"

"Or someone trying to reach you about your extended warranty."

"Warranty on what?"

Ganke opened the front door and frowned.

"What the...Miles? How? Why?"

"Is Max here?"

Max appeared behind his godfather. He wanted to believe what his eyes told him, but since his kidnapping he was paranoid about everything.

"Dad, take your mask off."

"I will, but come on. We're going to HQ."

"No, do it now so I know you aren't another GOC guy coming to tranq me."

Miles pushed his mask up a little to the ridge of his nose, but still covering his eyes.

"You happy? Come on."

"Take it off completely."

Why would Miles cover his eyes but not the rest of his face? The spider sighed and pulled it off, but he kept his eyes shut.

"Open your eyes."

He hid his hand behind his back and slowly opened them. Max pulled Ganke back inside his apartment and tensed up, ignoring the aching in his muscles.

"Alright, Khahrahk. What the hell does this achieve?"

Miles' eyes were glowing red, just like those of someone possessed by the Scarlet King did. He pulled his hand out from behind his back to reveal a charged venom strike which he struck his son with, sending him flying into the wall. Ganke fainted in shock; Max groaned as his father advanced twirling a knife. The former reached for his wrist and tapped his watch five times. The device beeped twice, then the fight began. Max rolled out of the way of the strike before grabbing one of the bowls of popcorn and throwing it. Miles ducked around it and threw his weapon. Max leapt onto the roof and the knife embedded itself in the wall; he jumped on his possessed father and pounded him with his fist. Another venom strike knocked him off, but he struck the wall beneath the knife. He knew what he had to do and he grabbed the knife. He was about to kill someone, and his father at that. Then again, his father had died a few weeks ago; this was a possessed imposter. He rushed forwards, sliding under a third venom strike and driving the weapon into the imposter's back. The imposter gasped and fell flat on their face just as a Legion security team appeared with their weapons ready. Max lay on his back, catching his breath. The fight had lasted all of twenty seconds but he was exhausted both physically and mentally.

Two hours passed; the imposter's body had been removed and Ganke had come around. He was still freaking out and his flat was a mess, but Max was his biggest concern. The spider was sitting, staring at the blood stains in the carpet.

"Those won't come out easily." Ganke joked.

Max continued to stare, but spoke.

"Why did that happen?" He whispered.

"Well...psychological warfare, I guess. If the imposter didn't kill you, it would leave a mark."

Spider-Boy leaned back, staring up at the roof.

"Why me? Why my family?"

Teresa, Robert, Edward and Lisa stared at the knife.

"If I'm not mistaken, it's a near perfect replica of the Subtle Knife, ELO-011." Said Lisa.

"Could it cut a Plate?" Asked Robert.

"The easiest way to answer that would be to test it, but I don't think anyone here is willing to try." Said Teresa.

"How's Max coping with having to kill his father?" Asked Conall, walking into the meeting room.

"Shaken. He's with his godfather. Do you have any ideas about this knife?" Replied Edward.

Conall sat down in Max's chair and picked the weapon up tenderly. He inspected every marking then nodded, dropping it onto the table where it embedded itself.

"This is a Scarlet Dagger. It can cut anything and wounds it inflicts are fatal, even if it's just a graze. The Crucible's baby if you want. Quick question, does Gwen know about what happened?"

"We're going to let Max tell her."

"Good thinking. She might not stab the messenger that way."

A few more hours passed. Max took a deep breath and walked into Gwen's quarters aboard the Legion headquarters. She was sitting in clothes not dissimilar from those worn in a prison, but less orange. She was staring out the window at a fleet of dark grey ships. When she heard the door open, she turned to see who it was. Her mouth spread into a smile when she saw Max.

"Hey. How are you?"

"I'm...scared."

"What of? It isn't me, is it?"

"No. I know you won't hurt me. Dad came back."

"Wait...what?"

"Yeah. Then he pulled a knife and tried to kill me. I had to kill him first."

"Was he possessed or something?"

"I think so. His eyes were red."

Gwen stood up and pulled Max into a tight hug.

"I guess there's nobody I can go on a rampage and slaughter, this time."

"You could slaughter Khahrahk..."

"It wouldn't end well."

"No."

She sat him down and they sat in silence, watching as a ship went into temporal warp.

"Mum, I want to help you get better."

"There's nothing you can do; I am who I am."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Can you promise me something?"

"Anything."

"Promise you won't try and merge with another Plate or steal the Animator."

"I promise. I can't be in the same room as a raw Plate, and my view on the Animator nowadays is the dead should be left to rest."

"I love you, Mum."

"That means a lot. I love you too, Max."

"I need to go. Velociraptor army or something."

"Have fun. Don't think about what you had to do. The first time is the worst."

Stanley, Lisa and a few other scientists were staring through a window as Max arrived. Stanley grinned at him.

"One army of dinosaurs. There's still some fine tuning to be done, and they look nothing like their biological counterparts, but they're an interesting solution to a big problem."

Max looked through the glass. A group of small creatures was running around the test chamber. They looked almost identical to the metal Velociraptors that had been on the beach in the Ark, except their lights were red and their metal black to match the Legion's colour scheme.

"Can I bring Jacob to see these? He'll go crazy."

"It was his idea, so of course he can as long as it is good crazy."

"The best crazy."

The Max's watch began beeping. He sighed and tapped it, wondering what it could be now.

"Go ahead."

"It's Teresa. Khahrahk is back; he's going for the Crucible and...well...you might want to see this for yourself."

"I'll meet you in 71."

"Be quick."

Crossovers in this Chapter

- SCP Foundation
- His Dark Materials (I mentioned the Subtle Knife)
- Ark Survival (the dino army)