CHAPTER 44: APOCALYPSE NOW, PART 2
Arnold Shortman has had many issues run around his head; straining his mind and making him less and less capable of completing his duties of defending the city of Hillwood. Since the escape of 'Little' Nicky Russotti, he has been raped by an undead Rhonda Lloyd, had an affair with his fiancee with an old flame named Lila Sawyer while discovering her recent acts of pedophilia, his best friend has ended their life-long friendship, his relationship with Helga is straining, and the Freak has returned with every single one of his powers, and much more, leaving a significantly high body count in his wake.
To say that he is being strained is beyond the definition of an understatement.
Nonetheless, still faithful as ever to his cause of protecting the city of Hillwood and all its citizens and fulfilling his purpose as the path of the Spirit Master beckons him to. Proceeding his way to the Hillwood Heroes' base, there was much to be done in the way of accomplishing his goal of defeating the Freak, and only time standing between him and that goal.
Still, while speedily walking down the streets of Hillwood, he cannot move the dark clouds that are his thoughts away from his head. Suffering more than his share of bodily and mental punishment that a human being could take, the temptation to give in had not been anywhere close to a factor in his mind in the past, but, in these recent days, was starting to gain traction in the face of these events.
But Arnold Shortman is not one to surrender, and neither is the Green Eye. With his body more than able to intervene against the danger to Hillwood, he must force his mind to follow suit, and focus back on the mission at hand, lest more lives will be needlessly and horribly lost.
Soon making his way to Lloyd Manor, taking a secret entrance down to the Hillwood Heroes' hidden base underneath the home, Arnold arrived to his point of rendezvous, allowing him to change to his alter-ego of the Green Eye. Shedding his civilian garb and replacing it with his uniform, the time now came for him to put focus onto fighting the Freak.
Joining with the collective of the remaining Hillwood Heroes, he cannot help but notice the absence of G-Funk and Lady Tetsu, leaving him feeling hollow in his efforts again. Still, there is no time to dwell on broken friendships when a broken city is in his hands, leaving him to put aside his troubles for the task at hand.
"So, let's recap. What do we know so far?" Green Eye asked.
"What we've got so far is this: The Freak's most likely recruited Wolfgang, and maybe, based on your simple hunch, a delusional ice cream truck driver. We don't know where any of them are at the moment, and, with the Freak able to fly now, they could all be anywhere at any given time." Valiance said.
"Any word back from 'Little' Nicky yet?"
"None so far."
"Alright. Here's what we're going to do. Mauve, Flower, and Insect Girl, you three head to the Jolly Olly station and talk with the manager about Willie. Star, Dirt, Bad Boy, I'm going to try to contact 'Little' Nicky and have you work with his men on finding Curly. Head to the Danger Zone and wait for them to pick you up. I have my own task to handle of heading to the First Baptist Church of Hillwood." Green Eye said.
The final part of his orders brought some minor confusion to the team, none understanding why he would be heading to a church at a time like this.
"Uh... Why do ya wanna go ta church?" Dirt Man asked.
"Lila's at the church. She's... she's done something that I have to bring her in for." Green Eye said.
"What? Lila did something? As in, the sweet and innocent Lila that everybody liked? What'd she do?" Insect Girl asked.
"I can't explain it right now, but, rest assured, I'm not doing this without my reasons. Curly is still the main priority, but I can't keep 100 percent of my focus on the job until I take care of this one-"
Before the Green Eye could finish his sentence, the main computer to the base began blaring off an alarm, prompting the group to turn their attention to it. Heading straight to the keyboard and controls, Valiance pulled up the primary alarm to the front, letting the Hillwood Heroes view the cause for alarm, being shown a news report of events unfolding downtown.
On the scene of the event was Lisa Bartholomew, standing behind a large group of protesters holding up picket signs reading messages like 'WHERE ARE OUR HEROES NOW?', 'HILLWOOD HEROES HUGE HACKS', and 'WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMEN?' just to name some of the signs.
"This is Lisa Bartholomew reporting live from Channel 96 news. Just last night, a group of children reported missing were discovered eaten alive in a stolen school bus, sparking a huge protest against the Hillwood Heroes over a lack of efficiency against the threats surrounding the city of Hillwood. The Hillwood Heroes have already come under a strain of controversy around the violent threats espoused by longtime member Valiance, himself a controversial figure during his period due to his history of lethal force, but it seems that the public approval for the Hillwood Heroes is steeply dropping. Let me see if I can get a word in from one of the protesters." Lisa Bartholomew said.
Stepping to one of the protesters, Lisa Bartholomew asked a young woman about the protest, inquiring for context of the event.
"Pardon me, I'm Lisa Bartholomew with Channel 96 news, could you please tell us what the goal of these protests are here today?" Lisa Bartholomew asked.
"We're sick and tired of the Hillwood Heroes not doing their job, letting poor children die young and like animals. It's disgusting and 'evil' doesn't even begin to describe it. We want better from our heroes, and if they can't do any better, then maybe it's time they get out of our city once and for all." The protester said.
The Hillwood Heroes took to the news with great somberness, realizing just how far they were failing as protectors of the city. With the public that they were meant to defend calling for their heads, it was clear that this present issue was not one that could be ignored or postponed, calling for their immediate attention.
"Well, this is bad." Mauve Avenger said.
"Alright, then. New change of plans?" Valiance asked.
"Only for us. Looks like the church'll have to wait again. You and I need to handle this crowd. Everyone else, stick to the plan. Remember: None of you are to be seen with 'Little' Nicky's men. If you're seen working with him, all the explaining in the world won't convince the public of what we're really doing, nor will anyone trust us again. Let's move out." Green Eye said.
The teams all split to fulfill their respective tasks, with the Green Eye just lagging behind Valiance as he prepared the transport for the duo to make their way to pacify the crowd. Before the former made his way to meet with his teammate, however, the Green Eye was stopped by the Mauve Avenger, Flower Child, and Insect Girl; all holding looks of sympathy in their faces.
"Hey Arnold?" Mauve Avenger asked.
"What is it?" Green Eye asked.
"We just wanted to say... well... We're really sorry about what happened between you and Rhonda. That wasn't okay, what happened." Insect Girl said.
"If... If you ever need anything at all, we're here for you. Anything at all. We just wanted you to know that." Flower Child said.
"Speaking of which, I was wondering if, uh, I could go and check out the church for you. I talked it over with Sheena and Nadine, and they're fine with it." Mauve Avenger said.
"No, Eugene, you don't have to-" Green Eye began to say.
"I want to. Please. We're all teammates here, and we're supposed to help each other. We know Gerald's gone, and you could probably use all the help you can get right now."
Though such a proposal did not bring pleasure to the Green Eye, his sense of logic could hardly be beaten by his heart. With a child predator free and needing to be brought unto justice, there was no room for personal emotions to interfere with the right thing to be done.
Consequently, the man in green gives his approval to the man in mauve.
"Okay. I'll let you handle this. It shouldn't be that hard to handle, anyway." Green Eye said.
"Sounds good to me. Just tell me, what am I bringing Lila in for?" Mauve Avenger asked.
"She... She's molesting a little boy at the church. I can't explain how I found it out yet, but believe me when I say she did. I'll make sense of everything later."
The revelation took the Mauve Avenger aback from the implications of the fact, but he quickly stood fast to the challenge nonetheless, ready to follow through his assignment.
"Got it. I'll bring her in." Mauve Avenger said.
"Oh, and one more thing: Please be careful. It's a baptist church, remember; these people are much more hard-line on their beliefs, and many of them-" Green Eye began to say.
"Are homophobes. I know the type. I've learned to work around these people, but thanks for the heads-up. I won't let you down, Arnold."
"Thank you."
As the Mauve Avenger readied to make his way to the First Baptist Church of Hillwood, he was briefly stopped by Flower Child, wishing to speak with him herself.
"Eugene? You will be careful, right?" Flower Child asked.
"Uh, yeah, I'll be okay. Oh, it's the crowd of hardcore baptists, right? I'll be okay, trust me." Mauve Avenger said.
"I believe you. Still, I just... I worry about you. I can't help but feel like there's something bad that's going to happen, like a premonition or something."
Having deeper feelings to express regarding the Mauve Avenger, Flower Child gave off a blush, biting her knuckle in anxiety.
"Plus... Well... You know how I feel about you. Even if you won't feel the same about me, I still care a lot about you, and I want you to be okay. I... I love you, Eugene. I really do." Flower Child said.
Flower Child turned away in shyness, but the Mauve Avenger brought her face back to his, needing to send his next words personally and carefully.
"Hey... I've actually been thinking a lot about that lately. I knew you always liked me in that way, but maybe I haven't been all that fair to you about it. I know I'm not attracted to women in that way, but you're not just some woman. You're my friend, and you've been my best friend for a long time. Maybe I might not be physically attracted to you, but I definitely do have a lot of love for you." Mauve Avenger said.
"Are you saying...?" Flower Child asked.
"Well, I don't know how exactly we'd work everything out, but... I'd be willing to try. Only because it's you."
"Really? You mean it? I'm... I'm really happy, Eugene. I just want to make you happy, too."
"Tell you what: How about we go out for a cup of coffee sometime? You know, when all this blows over; a celebration."
"I'll hold you to it. Until then, just be safe, okay?"
"I will. I'll see you later."
Concurrent to the preceding conversation, the Green Eye does not depart for his new task just yet. Before his departure, he has one final chore to tend to prior to any clashing with disobedient civilians. Seating himself on the ground, the Green Eye extends his soul and consciousness across the city, in search for one specific mind to conversate with regarding his own team.
Reaching out to the edges of the city, he eventually meets with the intended target of conversation: 'Little' Nicky Russotti. Just as the Green Eye made his way into his target's mind, the massive mafioso also acknowledged the presence in his mind, turning his attention inwards to talk to it.
There's not a lot of people that can sense me that quickly. Green Eye said.
"Mr. Shortman, I heard telepathy was one of your powers. I got your message. Glad we could come to an understanding. You'll forgive me if I can't help but comment on the messenger in question; he complained that you made him bleed all over another of his beloved vulgar shirts when you shot him in the head." 'Little' Nicky said.
I didn't shoot him, but never mind that now. I'm guessing you saw the news?
"I did. I'm guessing you'll have your hands busy for the while?"
Not that busy. I have 3 of my people looking to rendezvous with yours in the Danger Zone: The Star of David, Bad Boy, and Dirt Man.
"I'll send the stretch limo to pick them up. Need any help with your crowd control?"
No. Under no circumstances is anyone to know that we're working together; the people will never trust us again. We already lost a teammate because he didn't agree with this choice.
"No offense taken. You have fun, then. I'll just sit back and watch the fireworks."
As the presence of the Green Eye departed from his mind, 'Little' Nicky took out a cigar and lit it, inhaling the smoke and letting the hot tobacco flames reach inside his lungs. Overhearing part of the conversation, Weston approached his employer to have what was heard contextualized for him.
"Talking to yourself now, sir?" Weston asked.
"I've just gotten a little call from the Green Eye. Seems like he's going to be busy for awhile, but he's asked me to send a few men to pick up some of his down in the Danger Zone." 'Little' Nicky said.
"How, sir?"
"Some kind of telepathy trick, I can't keep up with all these super-powers anymore."
"...'telepathy', sir?"
"Don't seem so surprised, Weston. We're in a new age now. People can fly, kids can blow things up, skaters can defy gravity; anything goes these days."
"Right, sir. I'll have a car sent out for them."
"Good. Thank you, Weston."
With each member of the team set on their sights for their respective tasks, the Hillwood Heroes have set out on their own missions to accomplish; each with the collected goal of putting a stop to the Freak and whatever sinister plans he may have for the city of Hillwood.
The first to arrive to their destination are Insect Girl and Flower Child, heading to the Jolly Olly truck station. Their purpose for this visit is to investigate a connection to the murder of a young girl named Hannah Williams, believing one particular employee by the name of 'Willie' to be involved.
"I still don't get why Arnold wants us to check out some ice cream place. I remember that ice cream truck driver being crazy, but, going from that to eating kids alive?" Insect Girl asked.
"We used to think that way about Curly. He was just some weirdo in our class that we never paid that much attention to, and... Well, you know the rest." Flower Child said.
"Hmm. I guess you're right, but I still don't think this is the best use of time."
"Why not? Don't you want to catch the man who killed that poor girl?"
"Of course I do. I just don't think this is where we're gonna find him. I mean, what are the chances of anything to be found at an ice cream truck place?"
Upon arrival, the first thing in their sight is a group of police officers surrounding the station, giving this connection once thought to be trivial to the two now having much more substance, as well as putting a silence to Insect Girl's skepticism regarding their mission.
Now, she regrets he decision to downplay the task.
"Um... If there's a bunch of cops outside, do you think that raises the chances a bit?" Flower Child asked.
"Shut up." Insect Girl said.
Heading to the entrance of the building, the two heroes were blocked off by a pair of police officers guarding the building, refusing them entry.
"Halt! What do you two think you're doing?" One officer asked.
"Well, when you see some people walking around in costumes in Hillwood, it's usually either trick-or-treaters or the Hillwood Heroes. Since Halloween just passed a month ago, I think that pretty much narrows it down, doesn't it?" Insect Girl asked.
"Oh, right, you're from the Hillwood Heroes, and a smart-ass at that."
"My dad always said it was better to be a smart-ass than a dumb-ass. Now how about you stop being the latter and let us through so we can see what's going on?"
"Simple. We've seen enough of what you people do, or, lack thereof. There's people out on the streets and almost rioting because of you. It's not enough you have to try to steal our jobs, but you also have to cause all kinds of trouble, too?"
"It's not us that cause problems around here. If you want to blame someone, blame Valiance, and blame him all you want, but we're trying to-"
"Valiance is still on your team, and one of you. If he's a friend of yours, you're not a friend of mine. Now get out of here and let the adults work, why don't you, little girl?"
"You little-!"
Before Insect Girl could cause any fight with the policeman, Flower Child, true to her peaceful nature, gave her kind words to pacify the situation.
"No, wait! Please, don't fight. Listen, we don't like Valiance either, but we need him, like you need us to stop the Freak. He's already hurt so many people, and we're trying to do what we can to stop more people from being hurt. You need our help just as much as we need yours." Flower Child said.
With the child of peace speaking a call for some manner of it between these people, Flower Child managed to calm the situation, leading neither Insect Girl nor the police to fight. Instead, understanding Flower Child's plea, the policeman gave into her argument, stepping aside to let the two pass.
"Fine. You can take a look around. You know something we don't, don't keep it to yourselves." The policeman said.
Walking inside the Jolly Olly station, the duo began their investigation of the building; searching for any clues that would connect this event to the Freak. The first and most obvious item on their agenda was to find out what sort of crime transpired at this place, leading them to head to the congregation of the most amount of officers in the building.
This led them to a group of paramedics and police officers standing around a body bag, all preparing to carry it away on a stretcher. Immediately heading to the body bag, Insect Girl and Flower Child, feeling a mix of eagerness and pre-emptive queasiness that would settle in soon, inquired on the recently deceased.
"So, who's this guy?" Insect Girl asked.
"Manager of this place. Been dead for at least 2 days." One paramedic said.
"Dead how?"
The paramedic opened up the body bag, revealing a half-eaten body that once belonged to Willie's father, the manager of the Jolly Olly station. With their senses being assaulted by the smell of a decaying, half-eaten body, Insect Girl and Flower Child both instantly jumped back, with Flower Child running away to vomit.
"Jesus! I could've just taken your word for it." Insect Girl said.
"Right, sorry." The paramedic said.
"How's he been dead like that for 2 whole days? Nobody thought to look for him?"
"We checked into that. Apparently, he wasn't that nice a person to his employees, and they mostly just stayed away from him. Everyone we questioned had just punched in and out without even noticing." A policeman said.
"Any of them match the description of a cannibalistic psycho-killer? Or any of them go by the name of 'Willie'?"
"None named 'Willie' that we found. As for that description, if any of them did fit it, we would've held them by now, don't you think?"
"Right. Never hurts to ask, though."
Walking to retrieve Flower Child from her place in the corner of the building, emptying out the contents of her stomach from the sight of the dead body, Insect Girl urged her on to continue with the investigation. Though she was slow to start back on the job, Flower Child brought enough composure to herself to continue on the job.
"I'm okay, I'm okay. Just... Just needed a minute." Flower Child said.
"Well, you got your minute, let's go. We got a killer to catch. I just checked with the cops; they didn't find Willie, nor any other suspects so far." Insect Girl said.
"They didn't find Willie?"
"No. They asked every employee here, he said he never found a guy named 'Willie'."
"But that doesn't make sense. If he's works here, that would have to mean-"
"Then maybe he doesn't work here anymore. Maybe he got fired."
"Oh... Then what should we do now?"
"There's gotta be some employee records around here somewhere. Let's take a look through them and see if we can find his last known address."
The sight of an ice cream truck is not much to suspect on the streets of Hillwood, much less one patrolling around the First Baptist Church of Hillwood on its opening day. However, this particular ice cream truck is a tad more peculiar of a sight, as one with more acute detective skills would discover; a lack of music and parking behind the church would bring suspicion to the truck and its driver.
Its driver was one of a small but psychotic group of murderers, all following the lead of the newly-returned supervillain known as 'The Freak', complete with all the superhuman abilities of the Green Eye, plus more that remain undiscovered. The purpose for this visit to this self-proclaimed house of god is made for the purpose of discovering more of those powers, where this church's congregation will soon serve the purpose of being lab rats.
"So, how long until service starts?" The Freak asked.
"In about 12 minutes, my angel. The sinners should all arrive here, and you may slay each and every one of them yourself." Saint Lila said.
"Good, but I won't be slaying them myself. I've got a better idea in mind."
"And what might that be, o' mighty angel?"
"You'll see soon enough. Just keep the faith, sister."
As the group began waiting for the service to begin, Wolfenstein and the Jolly Olly Man took notice of an approaching third party to the event, one dressed in a light shade of purple. Stepping onto the scene was the Mauve Avenger, arriving to apprehend Lila for her crimes of pedophilia, unaware of her current whereabouts or her new confederates.
"Hey, boss, check it out. It's one of the Hillwood Heroes." Jolly Olly Man said.
The Freak stepped to the window to investigate for himself, laying witness to the approaching Mauve Avenger, but also recognizing his alter-ego instantly.
"Well, look who it is. Eugene." The Freak said.
"Eugene? I remember him, he was that faggot kike who dressed in polo shirts, right?" Wolfenstein asked.
"And the same guy who sharpened my pencil down to the nub. I'd recognize him anywhere."
"A sodomite daring to enter a house of god? To see other such sinners enter is one thing, but this is an unforgivable offense. I will handle him once." Saint Lila said.
"No. Let him go in. Let's throw him in the mix."
"Uh, don't you want to get rid of him? You know, he could call in his buddies and we'd all be in real serious trouble." Jolly Olly Man said.
"This is an experiment, my friend. What do all experiments need? Test subjects, and I've wanted to try something like this on him for a long time. This oughtta be interesting."
Back at the Jolly Olly station, the investigation for more clues to the suspect of Willie continued on. Finding no clues so far, the two headed to the manager's office, searching inside for any records pertaining to Willie. To pass the time, the two continued on more casual conversation.
"So, tell me something. You and Eugene. What are you gonna do?" Insect Girl asked.
"What do you mean?" Flower Child asked.
"You're into him, but he's not into women, and you both know that, but you're still friends. How's that working out for you now?"
"Well, that's kind of personal, you know."
"C'mon, girl, I'm just trying to give you some help."
"Sure you are."
"Look, I don't pry into this just for gossip. I know you two are best friends, and I'm more than happy for you guys, but I can tell you two aren't gonna last long if you keep playing this game with him. I already lost my own best friend, I don't wanna see you guys have to break it off just over some stupid thing like that. I know what that's like."
Understanding her cause for concern, Flower Child gave out a nod, deciding to share the further details between herself and Eugene.
"Well, if you must know... He's decided to take me on a date when this is over." Flower Child said.
"A 'date'? As in, a 'date' date? As in, 'trying to find out if you two could be a thing' date?" Insect Girl said.
"Honest to truth."
"But he's still gay? He didn't just suddenly say he's bi or anything?"
"Nope. He said he knows that he's still into men, but he'll try to see if he can make it work."
"Do you think he can?"
"I hope so. That's something, right?"
"Well, it's something. Not a good 'something', but... something."
"Why's that?"
"Ever see Chasing Amy?"
"No. Is that a movie?"
"Yeah. Same guy who did Clerks; my boss made me watch it at my first job. Anyway, the plot of Chasing Amy is pretty much what you're describing to me, except it was a straight guy and a lesbian. I'm just getting some flashbacks from that movie."
"Oh, really? Does it all work out in the end?"
"No. They break up and never see each other again."
Beginning to grow annoyed with Insect Girl's direction of the conversation, Flower Child's normally peaceful demeanor began to grow irritable.
"Is there a point you're trying to make?" Flower Child asked.
"Yeah. My point is that I don't think it's gonna work, and you'll end up hurting yourselves. I've still got some ex's I can't talk to anymore; people who I used to be pretty good friends with. Like I said, I don't wanna see you guys start to break off each other because of something like this." Insect Girl said.
"It won't happen. I'll make it all work, you'll see."
"I'll believe it when I see it, but, if it doesn't happen, don't say I didn't warn you."
After their long search throughout the manager's office, Insect Girl found an employee file on Willie, pulling it out of an assortment of files.
"I got it. He lives at some place called 1029 Castellaneta Drive, apartment 57." Insect Girl said.
"Should we call Arnold and update him?" Flower Child asked.
"Yeah, probably should. I'll get on that."
Taking out a communicator from her belt, Insect Girl summoned a call to the Green Eye, wishing to inform him of the situation at hand.
"Green Eye, it's Insect Girl. No sign of Willie here, just a half-eaten middle-aged dude who wasn't that missed by his employees, enough so where they didn't even notice him for a few days. We're gonna check his last known address and see what we can find. You copy that?" Insect Girl asked.
"Fine by me, but I can't talk much right now." Green Eye said.
Concurrently as the conversation continued to carry on, cooperating to complete the challenge of trying to calm the choleric crowd of convulsed civilians clamoring on the collected and cathartic cry for justice following the cruel and calamitous murder of countless callow children carnivorously cannibalized by the crazed and chastely corrupt creature who carried out the chilling crime were the Green Eye and Valiance, both arriving to the scene as quickly as possible to offer their services.
As the pair arrived in the heavily-armored war vehicle belonging to Valiance, the Green Eye was briefly stopped short in his talk with Insect Girl. Standing before both him and Valiance was a large crowd of angered protesters blocking the streets, with the police standing at the ready with riot gear; a scene sure to spark a shocking and sickening situation should the set of superheroes stall in their sortie.
"What's the matter? That whole protest thing worse than it looks?" Insect Girl asked.
"A lot worse. By the second. I'll contact you later asking for an update if you have one." Green Eye said.
"Got it. Best of luck."
"Thanks. I'll need it."
Arriving to the scene of protesting civilians, the Green Eye and Valiance dismounted from the vehicle, stepping up to the crowd. As soon as the superheroes made themselves seen to the protesters, the group all began lining up and facing towards them, continuing to shout and growing even louder towards the objects of their rage.
Wishing to put their cause for concern and source of anger to rest, the Green Eye came first to the crowd, trying to pacify them to speaking in a civil manner.
"Everyone! Everyone, please! I know all of you are mad at us, and I can understand why. I came here to speak with you personally as a sign of good faith. Please, if you'd all just calm down and talk one at a time, I can answer all your questions and I can do my best to fix everything. I promise." Green Eye said.
The pleas of the Green Eye seemed to work on the crowd, urging them to cease their shouting and calmly ask their questions, even if still carrying anger in their voices as they did so. Naturally, with the controversial figure of Valiance being put to the crowd alongside the Green Eye, most questions went straight towards him.
"You'll fix everything, huh? How do you plan to do that with a goddamn murderer on your team? Can you justify calling yourself a hero when you keep bedfellows like him?" One protester asked.
The crowd shouted multiple agreements following the question, all demanding an answer.
"Valiance is not the same person he used to be when he started. He's done many things that I don't like, and many of them are completely unforgivable actions, but he's come a long way, and I've put him on that better path." Green Eye said.
"Oh, yeah? Is giving out violent death threats to people over live TV your idea of a 'better path'?" A protester asked.
"I was not okay with that, but, try to understand something. Valiance is a human being, too, just like all of you, and he has his weaknesses as a human being. What drove him to be Valiance, what makes him what he is, is because he's lost his own family. When he saw Chloe Williams and her daughter die, he was reminded of how he lost that family, and it tore him apart, like it would anyone in his situation."
Hearing this news, a large chunk of protesters quieted down completely, finding themselves lowering their signs and losing their will to protest entirely. Even with this revelation, however, there were still many in the protest still not fully swayed. This persistent revolt continued with one protester, who asked...
"Yeah, right. If you people love kids and family so much, then why didn't you stop the Freak from killing and eating all those kids alive?" A protester asked.
"We're not sure that it's the Freak that ate them, but we're doing everything we can to stop that. Our resources and manpower are already being stretched paper-thin, and the Freak's gotten much more clever this time around. We've had trouble trying to track him down." Green Eye asked.
"Bullshit! You all probably don't care at all what happens to people like us, you're just like that Silver Sentinel guy; just playing the hero so you can have your 15 minutes of fame as long as you can!" Another protester shouted.
Not able to stand by and take the protesters' complaints any longer, Valiance stood forward, overtaking the spotlight from the Green Eye and silencing the crowd.
"All of you listen here. I don't care what you think of me or any of us. I don't care if you don't like how we do things to get the job done. But don't you ever accuse of being frauds or comparing us to any, especially not pieces of dogshit like Silver Sentinel who would kill a 4-year old boy to keep a sponsorship. I'm in this one simple reason: Stopping the Freak. If you have a problem with me trying to do that, by all means, fight me on that if you dare." Valiance said.
Valiance's no-nonsense approach to the crowd did not seem to land as well as the Green Eye's calm reasoning, leading more protesters to turn against him.
"Yeah, right! People like you don't deserve to protect the streets!" One protester said.
"You're a sadistic Nazi in a cape!" Another protester said.
"You're the same kind of sicko as the Freak! You're the same damn thing!" A different protester said.
Catching ear of the latter protester, the white knight immediately grew enraged at the accusation, scowling in intense anger at the one who dared to speak such a damning comparison. The Green Eye sensed his lack of control overcoming his mind, but he also knew that he was far to do anything about it.
Giving his fist a clench, Valiance prepared for the next action he was about to take.
"Alright. I've had enough of this shit." Valiance smoldered.
Marching right up to the young lady who spoke the words, Valiance grabbed her by the shirt and punched her in the face, sending her to the ground with a broken, bloody nose and the protesters all collectively shouting and gasping in fear. Afraid that he would try to come and attack them next, the protesters began rushing towards Valiance to attack him first.
One protester tried to throw his punch towards Valiance, but was quickly met with Valiance's fist in his face. Another protester rushed to grab him, but was met with his power-armored leg kicking him into more protesters. A different protester tried to attack him with his picket sign, but Valiance drew his sword and sliced the sign before it could make a hit, and bashed the protester in the head with the sword's hilt.
Preparing his sword to use it against the rest of the protesters, all now charging towards the riot police for protection where they once stood to try to quell the crowd, Valiance found one last obstacle stand in his way. Jumping in front of his armor-clad colleague, the Green Eye grabbed hold of his sword, preventing him from furthering his attack.
"STOP IT! VALIANCE, YOU SON OF A BITCH, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Green Eye shouted.
Being stopped in his tracks by the Green Eye, Valiance began to come to his senses, realizing the full implications of his actions and seeing first-hand the consequences of them. Seeing many injured protesters look on him with scowling, bloody faces, he immediately understood that this bad situation had now become much worse for himself and the Hillwood Heroes.
Turning and running back towards his vehicle, Valiance jumped inside, driving off and away from the scene before anything else could come about from his presence. Moving to the first protester he could, the Green Eye began helping them off the ground, taking each one he could collect to the authorities for medical help.
With hope, he wishes that his efforts with this can undo some of this damage.
All the meanwhile, the Mauve Avenger stepped inside the First Baptist Church of Hillwood, seeking out the name of Lila Sawyer to bring her to justice for crimes against one of the most vulnerable forms of human life there is. The instant upon stepping inside the church, many eyes instantly snapped onto him; an obvious consequence from his the flashy costume that he donned.
Being the first openly gay superhero, he still cannot help but hope that these same churchgoers are also thinking about his sexuality, and silently judge him as they look upon him. Had he the empathic powers of the Green Eye, he just might pick up a confirmation of those sentiments.
Nonetheless, he remembers that he is here on a mission, and must stop a criminal from her evil acts. Heading to one member of the congregation, the Mauve Avenger asked for the whereabouts of his target.
"Uh, excuse me? Sorry to bother you guys before your service, but I'm looking for a Lila Sawyer. I, uh... I have some questions for her." Mauve Avenger asked.
"One of you guys now? Look, we told the cops when they asked, now I'm gonna tell you the same thing: We've never heard of Lila Sawyer." The member said.
"What? But I was told she was the head pastor at this church-"
"Well, you heard wrong. We know our people well, and we've not heard of her before."
"Hmph. Well, thanks anyway, I guess."
Heading to another member of the congregation, the Mauve Avenger asked his next interviewee the same question, only to receive the same answer.
"Hi, there, uh, have you seen a Lila Sawyer around here? I heard she was the lead pastor at this church." Mauve Avenger asked.
"No. We already answered the cops when they asked; the real authorities in this town. We've never heard of Lila Sawyer, and, even if we did, we don't appreciate a clown in a costume strolling through our church. It is an insult to the house of god." The member said.
"Well, sorry, I'm just asking around. It's really important that I find her."
"Then you would do yourself well not to waste your efforts searching here. Maybe you should leave and search elsewhere; our service begins shortly."
"Alright, point taken. I'll go."
Preparing to leave the church, the Mauve Avenger turned around and began heading out the door. Finding no luck or even a sense of welcoming in this place, it was clear that his business here had concluded, and there would be no success in his mission to be accomplished here.
Until, however, one youthful member of the congregation, a young child, tugged on his cape and called for his attention.
"Excuse me, Mr. Superhero? Are you looking for Miss Lila?" The child asked.
With his attention instantly gained from the child mentioning Lila's name, the Mauve Avenger kneeled down to the child, listening carefully for more information.
"Why, yes, I am, little buddy. Do you know who she is?" Mauve Avenger asked.
"She used to watch me and my friends and teach us the bible, but then she went away and didn't come back." The child said.
"Did she say anything before she left?"
"Miss Lila was giving a sermon to everyone before she left, and Billie said that she touched Joey's penis, or something."
Shocked and disgusted by the information that he was being given, the Mauve Avenger took it as calmly as he could, trying to compose himself in front of the child.
"Okay, why is everyone here acting like they've never met Lila before?" Mauve Avenger asked.
"Mommy said we're not supposed to tell anybody, and told me not to tell the police. I wanted to tell you because I trust you. I see you fighting bad guys on the TV, and I like you. You're pretty cool." The child said.
Feeling a sense of pride in the child's compliment, the Mauve Avenger held back a chuckle, forgetting the dark topic at hand for the moment.
"Heh, thanks. I appreciate-" Mauve Avenger began to say.
Before the Mauve Avenger and the child could continue their conversation any further, his mother snatched her son into her arms, taking him away from the man in mauve.
"What do you think you're doing talking to my son?" The mother said.
"Well, I came here looking for Lila Sawyer, only to have all you guys tell me you've never heard of her. Your son here tells me that you're all lying to me, and she molested a kid named Joey. Care to explain yourselves?" Mauve Avenger said.
Hearing the Mauve Avenger reveal the collective lie that the congregation was spreading, each member of the church turned to the conversation, listening closely.
"I don't have to explain myself nor do any of us. Especially not to a faggot dressed in purple like you." The mother said.
Eugene Horowitz has always been known for his happy-go-lucky demeanor, never ceasing his attitude even when being faced with broken bones, severe injuries, and near dismemberment and death over his many years on Earth. But Eugene Horowitz is not present in this church; in his place is the Mauve Avenger, and he is less than willing to let anyone protect the crimes of a child molester, much less being called a horrible word as he calls them out for it.
"What did you just call me?" Mauve Avenger asked.
"You heard me. A faggot! A sodomite! A godless homosexual, you and all your kind in those capes! We don't know any Lila Sawyer, and we're not answering to the likes of you." The mother said.
"Well, you're dead wrong on multiple accounts. First of all, it's mauve, not purple. Second, I'm a Jew, not godless."
"Oh, so a Christ killer, huh? That's almost worse."
"I didn't kill anybody, or harm a single person I've met. You, on the other hand, let a predator go free, and I'm not going to let you get away with that. You're right about one thing, at least. You won't be answering to me, you'll be answering to the cops."
As the Mauve Avenger took out his phone and prepared to contact the police, the rest of the congregation daring not to stop him and make things worse on themselves, the Freak began sensing the events as the unfolded inside. Not liking the development of the police bound to arrive, it seemed that the time for enacting his plans had come.
"Shit. He's calling the cops." The Freak said.
"I think half of them are dealing with that protest downtown. We should have some time, but, whatever you're gonna do, I recommend you do it now." Wolfenstein said.
"Good tip. I think I'll take you up on it."
Focusing all the mental energies he could muster, the Freak began reaching his own empathic abilities towards the members of the church, trying to connect with each and every individual inside. The effort was taxing on his concentration and energy, but the others had no comprehension of the process, questioning their leader's actions.
"Uh... What exactly are you doing?" Jolly Olly Man asked.
"One of the Green Eye's abilities includes influencing people into doing whatever he wants, like a Jedi mind trick. Only all he does is use that to make people nice to each other. Let's see if I can make them all kill each other." The Freak said.
Synchronous with the events unfolding at the church, the Green Eye concluded the last of his medical attention to put upon the protesters, helping first responders to patch up the last of the wounded. Utilizing his own powers of mental influence, he used a psychological approach to cease the pain of the resting protester, guiding him to an easy sleep.
His eyes glowed a brighter green, followed by a message sent across the astral plane.
You will not hurt or feel pain. You will rest easily and heal. You will wake up and feel better. Green Eye thought.
The protester was lulled to sleep just as intended, resting off his injuries and forgetting about the events that transpired here. Impressed by the treatment of the leader of the Hillwood Heroes, the medic who the Green Eye was working with gave a nod of approval to the man without pain, placing his confidence in the guardian in green.
"Thank you, Green Eye. I gotta say, you're a hell of a lot more than a hero than your buddy, Valiance." The medic said.
"You're welcome, but, please, don't be so hard on Valiance. I'm trying the best I can to help him, but, above all, I can't stop the Freak without his help. If I could do this on my own, I would. I don't like to involve people into situations like this." Green Eye said.
"A loner much?"
"I just don't want people getting hurt. That's why I wanted to stay and help."
"You've got a real heart of gold, friend. Glad you're on our side."
With the Green Eye still partially set across the mental plane, he suddenly felt a presence that felt foreign to him, yet still familiar in some way he could not place. Whatever this strange presence spelled, the most obvious thing he noticed was that this feeling was not a good one, and action was needed at once.
"Something wrong?" The medic asked.
"I have to go. Will you be alright on your own?" Green Eye asked.
"Buddy, we're more than just fine after your help. You go do what you gotta do."
Giving a thankful nod to the medic, the Green Eye stepped away and took to his communicator, contacting the rest of the Hillwood Heroes for status updates.
"This is the Green Eye. I want a sitrep from everybody; is everyone doing alright?" Green Eye asked.
"Dirt Man here. 'Little' Nicky's guys are treatin' us just fine, 'specially after a little of Stinky's Sticky Icky." Dirt Man answered.
"Insect Girl reporting back. No progress on the Jolly Olly station, like I said, just left the apartment complex. Looks like Willie got evicted a few days ago, nobody's seen him since." Insect Girl replied.
"Understood. Mauve Avenger, how goes your mission?" Green Eye asked.
Back at the First Baptist Church of Hillwood...
Concluding his conversation with the police, summoning law enforcement to arrive shortly, the Mauve Avenger placed his phone away, exchanging it for his Hillwood Heroes communicator. Responding to the Green Eye's call, the man in mauve answered the question in a mixed sense of smugness and pride, glad to bring such criminals to justice soon.
"Mauve Avenger here. Turns out the church tried to deny that they knew Lila at all, told the cops they'd never heard of her after her hurting that boy. Fortunately, I've just called the cops, and I think they'll have a very different conversation this time-" Mauve Avenger began to say.
In one instant, the Mauve Avenger and the entirety of the church grew dead silent; all receiving a mental message in unison, with the same message being received the same. Inside their minds, the presence of the Freak was felt; whispering in their ears like a devil urging them on to sin.
You will all kill each other painfully. You will all rip each other limp from limp. You will leave no one else alive but yourself. No flesh shall be spared. The Freak thought.
[Soundtrack Cue: The Weather Girls - It's Raining Men]
Dropping his communicator on the ground, the Mauve Avenger looked upon the multiple targets standing in front of him with a look of poorly-hidden rage; the same face that never ceased in smiling once now holding back an intense, immeasurable fury. With his hands freed of any objects in them, he clenched his fists to ready them to be driven into his enemies before him.
"Mauve? Mauve Avenger, are you okay? What's going on?!" Green Eye called.
Where the Mauve Avenger was at least partially able to hide his anger, the many members of the congregation were not so discreet with their emotions. Despite claiming to worship a deity that emphasized a life of peace and tolerance, their own bigotries were let loose upon the Mauve Avenger, each remark making his anger harder to hide.
"YOU FILTHY SODOMITE! YOU WILL BE FUCKED IN THE ASS BY SATAN'S BARBED COCK EVERY DAY IN HELL!" One member shouted.
"A FIERY ROOM IN HELL AWAITS YOU, PERVERT! SATAN'S SPERM WILL EAT THROUGH YOUR STOMACH DAY AFTER DAY FOR ETERNITY!" Another member shouted.
"YOU ARE A FILTHY DEVIANT! CHRIST DOES NOT ACCEPT YOU! DIE IN YOUR DISGUSTING LIFESTYLE OF AIDS AND SODOMY, YOU WRETCHED QUEER! YOU DISEASED FAGGOT!" The boy's mother shouted.
Watching the same mother of the boy continue to harrass him and throw homophobic slur after slur against him, the Mauve Avenger could take no more abuse from her or anyone else in this supposed house of god. His barely-composed face finally turned to a full-on scowl; his teeth nearly crushing against one another in rage and his eyes turning red and bloodshot.
Reaching his hand to the mother, the Mauve Avenger clasped down around her neck and quickly pulled back, ripping out her trachea. Unable to breathe without the vital muscle and tissue in place to carry air to her body, the mother dropped to the floor, dying within seconds over the loss of her trachea.
After this first kill, the entire church devolved into total chaos; husband turned against wife, parent turned against child, sibling turned against sibling, and human being against human being. While some were more preoccupied with each other than the Mauve Avenger, a large chunk of the church rushed to him as their main target.
One member of the church, however, the son of the deceased mother, was not so able to bring himself to violence, mourning over the loss over his mother while turning to the Mauve Avenger for answers.
"MOMMY! YOU KILLED MY MOMMY! WHY DID YOU KILL MY MOMMY?!" The child asked.
The Mauve Avenger did not answer the child's question, but instead met him with a kick of his boot to the boy's face, knocking him to the floor, subsequently stomping on his face, caving it in on itself and murdering him. With this one obstacle out of his way, the Mauve Avenger continued on to the other members of the congregation, ready to end each of their existences.
Outside the church, the Freak and his colleagues watched the carnage unfold from its windows, taking note of the reaction of the Mauve Avenger and his drawing of first blood. Watching him murder a mother and son in cold blood, and soon to end even more lives, the group all watched on in anticipation.
"Damn, I didn't think the little ginger moron had it in him." Jolly Olly said.
"You'd be surprised what kikes are capable of. They're real resilient little bastards; you kill 6 million of 'em, and they just come right back." Wolfenstein said.
"Yeah, right. That kid's always had bad luck. I bet you $20 he doesn't make it."
"I bet you $50 he does make it. His luck's gotta change around for him sometime."
"You're on."
The Freak paid no mind to the bet between his teammates, instead continuing to place his concentration in continuing to cause the chaos in the church. Saint Lila watched the violence with a sense of wonder and mesmerization; astounded at what her perceived angel of death was capable of.
"I had no idea your powers were so... grand, my angel. The lord god has truly blessed you." Saint Lila said.
"Indeed he has, Lila. Indeed he has." The Freak said.
Back inside the church...
While the Mauve Avenger is known for being the clumsiest member of the Hillwood Heroes, wishing to opt out of combat whenever he can, he is not without his own combat training, provided by the Green Eye himself like many other of his teammates. Even by being the least efficient fighter, the weakest of the Hillwood Heroes is still miles better a fighter than the average brawler.
So, now, it is time for him to see how he holds up against many brawlers all trying to kill him at once.
Rushing to the first church members that headed towards him, the Mauve Avenger blocked away the punch of the leader of the pack, throwing in his first punches to him. As his allies stepped in to try to back him up, the Mauve Avenger brushed them off with his skills as well, performing a sweep to knock the 3 down.
The next member that came to attack him approached with a revolver, preparing to fire upon him. Said member only managed to fire one shot from his gun, before the Mauve Avenger swooped and grabbed his arm, breaking it and commandeering his weapon. He then fired the revolver into his head, eliminating him from his path, and fired 3 rounds into the heads of the 3 he had previously downed before they could get up again.
Another member then rushed at him with a knife, leading the Mauve Avenger to drive the revolver into his eye socket, gouging out his eye and leaving him to scream in agony with the hot gun barrel burning his brain and flesh. Pulling the trigger of the gun one last time, the Mauve Avenger fired a round through his skull and into the head of another chuchgoer behind him, removing 2 more enemies from his path.
Retrieving the knife from his dead enemy, the Mauve Avenger moved onto one bare-handed brawler, evading his punches and delivering two stabs to his leg, driving him to the floor. With his enemy on his knees, the Mauve Avenger then slashed at his throat, then swung it upwards in an uppercut-like motion into the jaw of another attacking church member, piercing right through to his brain.
Having many more enemies to slay and more than enough drive to do so, the Mauve Avenger continued on his rampage until no enemies remained.
As the massacre continued to rage on, the Green Eye still desperately tried to get ahold of the Mauve Avenger, unaware of his predicament or his current body count. After try after try over his communicator, no reply came from the Mauve Avenger; the only sounds coming from the speaker being sounds of violence and death, with the occasional scream and yell thrown in.
"Mauve Avenger? Eugene?! What's going on?!" Green Eye asked.
Trying to find an answer to this question, the Green Eye soon found the answer forced upon him through the mental plane; that same familiar presence returning with a voice, and an even more familiar voice saying...
Hey Arnold. The Freak said.
"Curly!" Green Eye said.
I told you, that's not my name. How many times do I have to say it until it gets through that football head of yours?
"Where's Eugene? What did you do to him?"
Oh, he's still at the church; I didn't move him. As for what I did to him... Well, why would I tell you when I can show you?
Suddenly, the Green Eye's perspective changed to that of the Mauve Avenger's; his own eyesight replaced with the man in mauve and experiencing everything that the Mauve Avenger himself was experiencing. From the perspective forced upon him, the Green Eye watched as the Mauve Avenger slaughtered dozens of people at the First Baptist Church of Hillwood; sparing none in his one-man rampage.
"What's... What's going on? This is... This is Eugene doing this?" Green Eye asked.
Oh, yeah. I found out how to use those cool Jedi mind trick powers of yours; telepathy, or whatever you call it. I'm making all these assholes kill each other right now. Don't feel too bad about them, though, they were all a bunch of bigots anyway. The Freak said.
"You monster, Curly! I'm not going to let you get away with this!"
Actions speak louder than words, you know. How about you quit that whining and try to come get me?
Taking his suggestion in full, the Green Eye began rushing himself straight towards the First Baptist Church of Hillwood, hoping that he would be in time to save at least one person from the massacre, and prevent the Mauve Avenger from continuing it. Needing more hands on duty for help, he summoned the rest of the Hillwood Heroes for assistance on this task.
"Insect Girl, Flower Child, this is the Green Eye. Get to the First Baptist Church of Hillwood now. Mauve Avenger's in trouble, and he needs our help." Green Eye said.
"Mauve Avenger's in trouble?! We'll be right there, just hold on!" Flower Child replied.
Setting his communicator away, the Green Eye continued to rush down the streets of Hillwood, keeping on his course to arrive at the First Baptist Church of Hillwood. After witnessing so many bodies laying dead from the Mauve Avenger already, it was only a matter of time before they were all dead.
And that was not a thought he could bear to live with.
Back in the First Baptist Church of Hillwood...
Smashing one congregant's head into a light fixture, shattering the light bulb inside on her head and driving glass into her flesh, the Mauve Avenger took one last piece of glass and drove it into her neck, finishing her off. Picking up a handgun laying on the floor from another dead victim, he swiftly picked it up to use on his next foe.
The next enemy in front of him displayed a pair of knives, wildly swishing them in the air like a caricature of a martial artist. Such a display might ward off one with no combat experience or perhaps one who has seen too many action films, but, to a trained professional like the Mauve Avenger, this is no such threat.
Dodging the strikes made by the bladesman, the Mauve Avenger drove himself into the knife-wielder's stomach, lifting him up in the air while firing off all his bullets straight through his body. Throwing the enemy to the ground again, the Mauve Avenger landed him onto his neck, breaking it and killing him.
Taking the pair of knives left behind by his victim, the Mauve Avenger took them and swished them into the air in a more controlled manner, ready for the next enemy that would come his way. Fortunately (as far as his newfound bloodlust was concerned), more victims came his way to grant him his wish.
One church member jumped towards him to try to land a kick into him, but instead only received a slash to his bottom of her kneecap instead, followed by a cleave from her neck to her crotch, ripping her open and letting her organs spill onto the ground, from her lungs to her uterus. Removing the emptying body out of his way, the Mauve Avenger kicked it from his sight, letting him focus on his next target.
With two more brawlers coming his way, each trying to throw their own crude punches and kicks towards him, the Mauve Avenger readied his knives for these next two victims-to-be. Slashing at one arm as it punched his way, stabbing another behind the elbow as it followed through, the Mauve Avenger drove one blade into the chest of one brawler, and placed the other into the neck of the other, leaving both dead on the ground.
Just as he finished these two enemies, the Mauve Avenger finally found a strike meet with him, being kicked through a wooden bench, crashing through it and hitting the ground. Looking up to see who had thrown such a strike to him, the Mauve Avenger was met with a large, burly man; surely one that would not be finished so easily.
But, of course, that fact did not stop the Mauve Avenger. Instead, his first instinct was to jump up onto his head and gouge out his eyeballs, driving eyeball pulp and screams from this victim. Striking him into the back of the head with his elbows, the Mauve Avenger then sent the giant falling down; his neck landing in the broken wood of the bench, stabbing through and killing him.
Followed by this one victory was a multitude of children all jumping on him, each clawing and biting at him, with a few stabbing him with knives. Needing to force these smaller targets off himself to face them one at a time, the Mauve Avenger kicked them off, preparing the finish each off personally.
Starting with a little girl that laid in front of him, the Mauve Avenger removed his cape, tying it around the girl's neck and then tying the other end to a beam on the ceiling, letting her choke to death in a makeshift noose. Picking up a toy action figure from the floor, he then broke it in half, driving one half of it into a boy's eye socket and neck, ending his life as well.
Picking up another boy that came his way, he grabbed him and picked him up in the air, subsequently driving him down onto his knee and breaking his spine, ending his life next. Grabbing another girl that came his way, the Mauve Avenger then picked her up by the legs, pulling as hard as he could and tearing her legs apart, ripping her lower body in half and letting her undeveloped sexual organs spill on the ground.
Upon tossing the body aside, the Mauve Avenger was then met with another girl jumping up onto him, proceeding to stab him repetitively with a knife. Taking the little girl's arm, the Mauve Avenger forced it back, bending it the opposite direction and breaking it, leaving the girl to scream in pain.
Taking the knife from her hand, the Mauve Avenger then drove it into her neck, subsequently spinning it a full 180 degrees and breaking it, letting her body fall dead.
[Soundtrack Cue End]
Then, all of a sudden, after finishing off this last enemy, the Mauve Avenger stopped in his tracks, losing all sense of bloodlust that had once taken him over. Gaining full control of his consciousness once again, his thoughts came back to him in a slow haze, but, when fully doing so, he finally realized what sort of action he had just committed.
Looking upon the multitudes of mutilated bodies left laying in front of him, bodies once belonging to children and families, the Mauve Avenger soon realized exactly what had transpired in this church, and how events had soon all led up to this one deadly and horrible event.
These people were all dead, and he had killed most of them.
Unable to comprehend this fact, the Mauve Avenger immediately rushed out of the church, spewing all the contents of his stomach onto the street, a process that took quite a while before it eventually ceased. Falling to his knees before a puddle of his half-digested food, the Mauve Avenger began excessively crying over the violence he had committed; disgusted with his own actions and unable to believe he had committed them.
In the midst of his self-pity, his weeping was interrupted by a singular sound of applause, leading him to look up to see who was clapping over his one-man massacre. Standing before him was none other than the man who was responsible for making him follow through the action; the Freak, joined with his newfound confederates in crime.
"Now that was a damn good show." The Freak said.
"Told you he'd make it. Pay up." Wolfenstein said.
Annoyed with losing his bet, the Jolly Olly Man handed Wolfenstein a sum of 50 dollars, paying him off as promised.
"The... The Freak... You made me... You made me..." Mauve Avenger panted.
"I made you do exactly what I wanted you to do: Go nuts and just kill some motherfuckers. Just like I like to see." The Freak said.
"But... why did you do it... to me?"
"Well, I was hoping that you'd get killed in the mix, seeing how you always almost got yourself killed on a daily basis, you being the little 'jinx' of the class, but it looks like your luck turned for the better for once. Frankly, I'm just as surprised as you are."
The conversation was interrupted briefly with the Hillwood Heroes communicator on the Mauve Avenger's belt going off, with the voice of the Green Eye on the other end.
"Mauve Avenger? Can you hear me, Mauve Avenger? If you can hear me, just hang on, help is on the way! I'm on my way now!" Green Eye said.
The Mauve Avenger prepared to reach for his communicator, but the group all drew their weapons on him, leading him to raise his hands.
"Don't get up. I'll answer the phone." The Freak said.
Taking the communicator for himself, the Freak responded to the Green Eye himself, smiling as he took the opportunity to mock him.
"Hey Arnold. Eugene's a little busy at the moment, please leave a message after the beep. BEEP." The Freak said.
"Curly! What did you do to Eugene?! I swear to god, Curly, if you do anything to him, I'll-" Green Eye began to say.
"You know, you're in front of a church right now, you shouldn't use the lord's name in vain. Anyway, I heard you've been looking for a few of my buddies; Willie and Wolfgang. Wanna say 'hi' to 'em?"
The Freak turned the communicator to Wolfenstein and the Jolly Olly Man, who both bid the Green Eye their sarcastic greetings.
"Hey Arnold. Looking for another 'A' on your next career day?" Jolly Olly Man asked.
"Guten tag, Arnold. By the way, the book you gave me sucked, but nice try with your Jew propaganda." Wolfenstein said.
"Oh, and, while I'm thinking about it, say hi to Lila, too. I heard you sent Eugene here to get her." The Freak said.
"Hello, Arnold." Saint Lila said.
"What?! Lila?! Wolfgang?! What did you do to them, Curly?!" Green Eye asked.
"I didn't do anything; I just invited them along for the ride. They were more than happy to join in. By the way, if you happen to come across a rotting baby skeleton in a dumpster in some alleyway somewhere, that was Willie's first meal, sorry for not cleaning up the mess, Anyway, back to the topic of churches, we're carrying out Eugene's funeral service at the moment, so, if you have anything dearly important to say to the dearly-to-be-departed, I suggest you say it now while he can still hear you."
"Eugene, if you're listening to me, just hang on, I'll be right there to-"
The Freak crunched the communicator in his hand, preventing the last of the Green Eye's transmission from following through and not letting the Mauve Avenger hear it.
"Whoops, guess you don't get a eulogy. That's okay; I don't think half the people I've killed got any, either." The Freak said.
"My angel, may I please slay the sodomite? To service you by removing this sinner would be my greatest pleasure." Saint Lila said.
"No way, bitch. Eugene's a Jew, that means he's mine. I've waited a long time for my first opportunity to kill a 'real' Jew, bashing that mischling Edmund's head in doesn't count." Wolfenstein said.
"Neither of you get him. This little prick's one of the kids that always tormented me, wanting their stupid ice cream everyday. This is personal for me; I'm the one who kills him." Jolly Olly Man said.
"Now, now, children, there's plenty of Eugene to go around for everyone. But I'm still the first one who get a shot in. This is personal for me." The Freak said.
The Freak drew out his revolver, cocking back the hammer and preparing to use it on the Mauve Avenger.
"Personal how? What did I ever do to you?" Mauve Avenger asked?
"Don't you remember? That little instance where I got two whole weeks of detention over pulling that fire alarm? How I pulled it and tried to blame it on you? Do you remember why I did it? BECAUSE YOU SHARPENED MY GODDAMN PENCIL TO THE ERASER BEFORE I GOT IT BACK!" The Freak shouted.
Not expecting something so petty to be the reason behind his revenge, the Mauve Avenger could not help but look completely dumbfounded by his reasoning.
"Are... Are you serious? IT WAS JUST A FUCKING PENCIL!" Mauve Avenger said.
"It was MY FUCKING PENCIL, ASSHOLE!" The Freak shouted.
The Freak bashed the Mauve Avenger in the back of his head, driving him onto his hands and knees. Kneeling down to the Mauve Avenger, the Freak continued on their conversation, still not content with the final act of revenge he was carrying out over his beloved and oversharpened pencil.
Putting his revolver under his chin, the Freak brought himself and the Mauve Avenger face-to-face.
"You probably think I'm a really petty person, don't you?" The Freak asked.
"Framing me over a pencil? Turing into John Wojtowicz over not being ball monitor? Yeah, I think you're batshit crazy, Curly, just like you've always been." Mauve Avenger said.
Giving a light chuckle, the Freak pushed his revolver further against the Mauve Avenger's chin, driving him to stand up on his feet again. After playfully tapping against his chest, the Freak then lightly ran his revolver down his arm, eventually reaching his aim to his hand.
"Well, see, I've got this very bad social-skills problem: People don't like me, so I don't like people." The Freak said.
Continuing to taunt the Mauve Avenger, the Freak began placing his revolver against his individual fingers, counting them off one at a time from the pinky to the thumb.
"This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed home. This little piggy had roast beef, this little piggy had none. And this little piggy cried-" The Freak began to say.
Accidentally pulling the trigger of his gun before properly aiming at the thumb, the Freak shot off the entirety of the Mauve Avenger's hand, sending his fingers and other parts of his hand flying across the street. Unable to overcome the overwhelming pain of having his hand shot to pieces, the Mauve Avenger cried and squealed in agony at the pain.
"AAAAAHHHHH! AAAAAAHHHHHH! AAAAAAAAHHHH!" Mauve Avenger shouted.
"Oops. I guess they all went like that all the way home." The Freak said.
The rest of the Freak's teammates all laughed at the cruel method of torture, with the Jolly Olly Man partially distracted by a chunk of the Mauve Avenger's palm landing at his feet. Picking up the piece of his hand, the Jolly Olly Man bit into the meat, chewing down a piece of it.
"Hmm, not bad. I feel like it needs some kind of 'umph' to give it flavor." Jolly Olly Man said.
"Alright, alright; enough jokes. Just kill this loser now." The Freak said.
Dropping the piece of meat, the Jolly Olly Man readied his semiautomatic shotgun, with his colleagues aiming their automatic weapons, and all aiming them straight at the Mauve Avenger. Squeezing down on their triggers, the confederates of the Freak all collectively opened fire upon the man in mauve, executing him by firing squad.
Feeling large and small pieces of lead fly through his body, each one taking pieces of his organs, skin, blood vessels, and muscles, the Mauve Avenger could not help but scream as he was being fired upon by the 3 servants of the Freak. With each passing second, more and more pieces of his body flew away, leaving very little left of the whole.
In 3 seconds of firing, his right arm was gone; flying off to the ground. In 5 seconds of firing, his kneecap was shot off; separating his leg from his body and sending him to the ground. In 8 seconds of firing, the other arm flew away, as well as a chunk of his left side; exposing his organs and letting a few slide out and/or be shot out.
Soon, when the 3 had depleted their ammo, there was not left of the Mauve Avenger but a screaming head atop a skeleton with mere strings of muscle and organs hanging off of it; still clinging for life even with this irreparable damage. Unable to believe their eyes, the group could not help but laugh at the predicament of the Mauve Avenger.
"Ha-ha! Hey, Freak, take a look at this! He's still alive!" Wolfenstein said.
"Yeah, look at that. Guess his luck really has changed for the better." Jolly Olly Man said.
Ready to finish off his target, the Freak holstered his revolver and pulled out his Cobra Assault Cannon, aiming the massive weapon straight at the surviving Mauve Avenger. Looking down the barrel of the giant rifle, the Mauve Avenger knew that this would spell his end at last; an end he was beginning to welcome to end the suffering he was forced to endure.
"Well, his luck's just ran out now." The Freak said.
Firing the Cobra Assault Cannon at the Mauve Avenger, the explosive round detonated his body instantly; sending chunks of what remained of his body flying into the air, and leaving nothing behind in its wake save for a small crater and large pieces of meat falling from the sky.
Cheering on the kill, Wolfgang raised his hands into the air and shouted proudly, only to have some of the Mauve Avenger's remains splatter all over him, leaving him covered in human meat chunks and ending his cheer.
"Oh, god, I got faggot Jew chunks all over me. Nasty." Wolfenstein said.
Taking a piece of the Mauve Avenger's remains from his body, the Jolly Olly ate a piece, chewing on the meat and savoring the flavor to compare it to his last bite.
"So that's what it needs. Who knows little assholes like him taste better after a high-explosive cooking?" Jolly Olly Man said.
Though it seemed that there was nothing left of the Mauve Avenger now, it seemed all but logical to assume that he was dead. However, this did not prove to be the case just yet. Of all the pieces of his body that fell from the sky, his head landed on the ground, still remained intact and conscious; his eyes and jaw still moving.
Naturally, the group still cannot believe what they are seeing; driven to further hilarity.
"No fucking way! He's still alive after all that shit?! HA-HA-HA! This little cum-swallower's just full of surprises, isn't he?" Wolfenstein asked.
Taking out his revolver and pointing it at the Mauve Avenger's conscious head, the Freak cocked the hammer back, preparing to fire.
"Swallow this." The Freak said.
Pulling the trigger of his .44 revolver, the Freak blew the Mauve Avenger's head to pieces, finally ending his life and the alter-ego that accompanied it.
Eugene Horowitz is dead.
Blowing the smoking barrel of his revolver, the Freak spun it in his hand like a cowboy of the wild west, holstering it back in his pants and holding the Cobra Assault Cannon over his shoulder. Hearing the approach of police sirens, it was clear that their business here had concluded, and it was time to move on to the next part of their plan.
"Cops are here, let's get gone." The Freak said.
All rushing back inside their ice cream truck, the Freak and crew began driving off the scene; escaping the law enforcement and heading off to their next destination.
"Alright, boss. You found some more powers. Now what do we do?" Jolly Olly Man asked.
"Now, we eliminate the competition so we can move onto the rest of Hillwood. Keep driving straight until I tell you to take a left." The Freak said.
Almost an hour passed following this horrible massacre, leaving plenty of time for the authorities to come and handle the situation, with first responders gathering up the bodies that remained in the church. Even for veterans of a field where one would encounter some of the highest testaments of pain to the human body, what laid inside the church was a true test of their stomachs; leaving even the hardest of stomachs rushing out for air.
After the authorities managed to handle most of the affairs, the Green Eye finally arrived to the scene, just as offended by the sight of carnage as most on the scene were. To see people torn to pieces in such horrifying ways, even women and children within a place of worship and prayer, such a sight is not one easily removed from the mind.
However, as damning as the sight of death that laid inside the church was, it was the spectacle that laid outside the church that remained the most haunting. Most of the signs of death from the Mauve Avenger's execution were cleaned up by paramedics, but many pieces still remained about the road, with responders still picking them up.
Needing to confirm if these remains belonged to his friend, the Green Eye inquired for information to see if these pieces used to be Eugene.
"Excuse me? These... remains... did you find a head?" Green Eye asked.
"Haven't found it yet. There's a lot of pieces scattered around here." The paramedic said.
"Well, have you noticed any sign that it could be the Mauve Avenger? He's one of my teammates, dresses in purple, he's-"
"Look, Eyeman. When I know something, you'll know something. There's a hell of a lot of bodies to go through, and we're doing the best we can here."
"Okay, I understand. Thank you."
As the Green Eye patiently awaited for more information about the Mauve Avenger, Insect Girl and Flower Child arrived as well, both moving straight to their team leader. Flower Child, having the most reason to for concern about the Mauve Avenger, immediately rushed to the Green Eye for answers.
"Eugene! Where's Eugene?! Is he okay?!" Flower Child panicked.
"Calm down, and don't say his real name out loud. Mauve Avenger's not been found yet; he might be fine." Green Eye said.
"All those pieces of... a person, you don't think it could be him, do you?"
"I don't know; I don't want to assume anything yet. He might be just fine, just have some faith and take it easy. It'll all be okay."
Before any sort of promise could be found in the Green Eye's words, the words of a paramedic caught the ear of Flower Child, instantly gaining her attention.
"I found part of the head! I found part of the head over here!" The paramedic said.
Brushing off her teammates and running straight towards the voice, Flower Child immediately looked to see the identity of the head, needing to confirm if it was Eugene or not. Trying to catch up with her, the Green Eye and Insect Girl rushed after her, not wanting to see anything that she would not need to see.
"Flower Child, wait! Flower Child!" Green Eye shouted.
Alas; upon catching up with Flower Child, the Green Eye and Insect Girl found themselves too late, looking upon her standing before the paramedics and their piece of the victim. The piece of the head they managed to find held the eyes up to the scalp, holding a head of red hair and a pair of bright eyes going dull.
And, with that piece of evidence, they know that Eugene is dead.
Unable to cope with such information, Flower Child fell to her knees; her breath quivering and tears falling from her eyes. The Green Eye and Insect Girl tried to offer her whatever sympathies they could but it would ultimately make no difference at this point, as mostly evidenced by her next reaction: Throwing her fists in the air and screaming in a voice of pure, uncontrolled pain.
Curling herself up, her face on the ground, all that the Flower Child can do now is wilt and cry; forever mourning her loss and the love that could have been.