The four were back in the Will Seed chamber on the ninth floor and the silence from the small group proves deafening, two of them especially. They could never forget what they saw. The unmasked Manic continued to seethe as he leaned against a nearby wall for support.
Tears finally stung his cheeks as the truth of his father's death was now very clear to him. His murderer's identity was now known to him and it hurt all that much more knowing his death was covered up the way it was. Knowing that Jean may have likely lost her job over this because she poked her nose into something that she wasn't meant to have any knowledge of except the few that were involved.
Knowing wasn't the worst part; it was the fact that justice for his death had been denied to him for years. And not only that, it was now clear why Anton really had it out for him with all the twisted petty mindgames he plays... It was because he had made that vow to Farrell to make his own son's life a veritable hell.
Avatar would lean against a wall, having his back to the other three as he takes in what he saw. The memory uncomfortably hitting very close to home for him and it nearly brought up some unpleasant memories for him before he forces them back down. Choosing to focus on what's at hand.
It all makes sense now.
Anton has been taunting Manic for as long as he has because Farrell's father been hiding in plain sight the whole time, being the most privy to the hedgehog's tragedy to make cruel jokes about it. When he killed Farrell, he crossed over the line and never looked back since while he spirals further down the sinkhole just as he had foretold years back.
In his path to become someone influential, he traded his soul and values to obtain material success. Everyone else in his life is disposable; even his own family. His hands stained with blood and sin of the evils he had committed to get to what he calls his Elysium of Wealth built on the bones and off backs of other people who never did him any wrong except existing in his world.
He has become a slave to his own desires and like the parasitic creatures they are, they dictate every centimetre of his moral compass.
Manic soon began sobbing audibly with tears streaming from his eyes under his mask, sniffling as he did so. The bombshell finally hitting him at last. The sight of his father being murdered continued to play out in his mind on repeat like a record being replayed repeatedly over and over again. Not only that, it made him miss him even more now and made his hatred for Anton increase tenfold.
Whatever sympathy he had felt for the gang leader, the lizard proceeds to find a way to murder it brutally for him. Almost like Anton just refuses to let himself be pitied by the green hedgehog consciously or sub-consciously at any turn. The very thought of Manic giving him any sympathy is abhorrent to his very being.
"Bastard..." He whimpered, gnashing his teeth with closed eyes. "That fucking bastard! I'm going to make sure that fucker crooks if it's the last thing I do!"
"...O.V.I." Avatar narrows his eyes as he straightens himself up after spending a few moments in silence like Rogue and Seeker were doing. "What's the probability of us stealing Anton's Treasure killing him?"
"I'm afraid I can't answer that question for I do not know it myself." O.V.I replied, mulling over the question. "If the Treasure is removed, he'll still continue to live but he will feel a change in his heart. On the other hand, we might take away a core component of his being and the machine that is Anton proceeds to seize function without it."
"I'd rather he live to confess to his crimes but if not..." The wolf tips his hat back, having a stern face on him. "Then he can rot in eternal damnation for everything he's done. He will pay for his acts of evil upon others."
"Get up and look at me." He looked over to the tearful Manic and addressing him sternly. Manic looked over, tears still in his eyes. Getting up to face the red wolf.
"What?!" The hedgehog responded in a choked shout. Ready to throw hands in his state.
"Whenever we get to the Treasure; you'll be the one to take it because it's your right to do so for all he has done to you over the years..." Avatar tells the hedgehog, undeterred by the tearful sight. "And if by any chance we have to fight his Shadow for it, the fate of Anton will solely be your call to make. The rest of us will be there should you need any support."
Then the wolf added; "Whichever action you take with him, you'll be saving a lot of lives that he would have destroyed in his wickedness if he isn't stopped sooner than later. For every good father, mother, daughter and son to be saved... He needs to be taken down for good. What will you do now?"
"...I..." Manic replied, trying to get the words out; "...I'll take the Treasure... And I'll make him confess his sins through his own mouth... Every single one, no matter how big or small; he'll confess to all and he'll face punishment for them. That's what I'm going to do."
Removing his mask; Akira goes over and puts his hands on his shoulders, grabbing the sides of them. "Then remember the objective you've set for yourself and remember what makes you better than what he ever hopes to be as a son. Know the difference between yourself and him. Know where you went right and where he went wrong at your lowest points in your lives.
"Y-Yeah..." The green hedgehog turned his gaze down in sorrow.
"...The hardest grief of all to handle is not the loss of someone you care about but the fact that they'll never be there to witness your achievements in person nor will your children ever get to know them like you would have." Akira said sombrely with closed eyes. "The parent who never gets to know their grandkids, the relative who'll never get to be a godparent, the child who'll never get to see adulthood, someone who left prematurely before they could define their place in history, the soulmate of someone that'll never know who their other is..."
He opens his eyes to meet Manic's. "Whatever mistakes you had made over the years that has caused hardships for yourself and others be it from your own grief, your folly or just your rotten luck, you're still here. He may be gone for nearly eight years now but you still keep pushing on forwards and continue being the son he raised you to be. If you bring Anton down, you'll finally get a bit of closure for yourself by bringing his killer to justice at the very least. When in doubt, let his spirit be your strength and be one of your lights through the darkest shrouds of yourself to find clarity..."
"...Yeah..." Manic replied, nodding slowly. "...Yeah, you're right. I gotta do this not just for him but for everyone else that Anton has hurt. This... This is personal. It's as personal as it gets. And I will see it through. He cannot keep getting away with this."
"Then let's make it so."
Sly nodded with a new determination coursing through him. "Yeah... Let's do this."
Akira slips his mask back on. "That's the spirit."
"Not to butt in or anything but where's the Green Will Seed?" Rogue asks. "Sly didn't have it after the memory ended."
"Good question." Avatar glances around the room as he pulls out the Blue Will Seed. "Has to be around here som—"
He stops as a Green Will Seed suddenly flies out of one of Sly's jacket-pockets as did the Red Will Seed that flew from one of Avatar's. As soon as the three skulls met each other, they were greeted by a brief flash of light that the four instinctively covers theirs before subsiding to reveal all three Will Seeds merged together along with the accompanying refreshing sensation like the previous two chambers.
"Ugh." Seeker scoffs at the new odd object in Avatar's hand with a disgusted look upon seeing it. "It's not just creepy anymore, it's hideous too. What does it even do? Be a weird paperweight?"
"Yeah..." Sly said, looking at the object as well, "What the actual hell is that thing? It looks so freakin' weird... Yet... Kinda cool..."
"If you think it's cool, then you can have it." Avatar tosses the fused Will Seed over to Sly. "If you find a use for it, go crazy with it."
"Jeez!" Sly replied, catching the fused object after stumbling with it in his hands a few times, looking it over, "I mean, it looks cool but I don't know exactly what it is or what it's supposed to be... Am I supposed to put this on a shelf or something? Pawn it off maybe? Probably the latter considering I don't have a home anymore... Bummer."
"Maybe it's got magical properties attached to it." Rogue said offhandedly.
"Yeah, great dude but it's not like you can just go into a corner drugstore and have ask them to appraise the magical qualities of something like this. If I brought something like this into any old drugstore, they'd send me to an asylum or call a fuckin' priest to stage an exorcism! I mean, look at this thing!" Sly held the object in front of Rogue's face. "This thing looks like a bunch of plastic army men and action figures were all melted in a microwave, then clumped together into a big glob and then cooled down in the crisper drawer of a fridge for a few hours. Whatever this thing is... It's fucking weird-looking... It looks like the kinda thing you'd worship if you were running a weird cult in your grandpa's lakeside vacation home."
"Guys, we're getting off-track here." Avatar calls to Rogue and Sly. "We've still got one more floor to go. If it helps make you feel any better Sly, you can show Anton or Hud that whenever you run into either and tell them that's what their mom looks like without the makeup on."
"You say that..." Sly replied, putting the object into a side pouch on his outfit, "But the thing is that I'll probably end up doing that anyway. But yeah, I think we should definitely press on because we got incredibly off-track with that one."
"Definitely off-track there..." Seeker said with a nod as the four starts walking out of the chamber. "So, let's be talking about Rogue's luck with Patty while we make our way up to the next floor like his attempt to get to third base with her."
"Third base?" Sly asked, looking at Rogue, "Oh! Are you two dating?"
Rogue runs a hand over the side of his face with a groan. "Ignore what Seeker says. He spews shite like the time he says that he's got twenty-inch pythons for biceps."
"I believe I got them..." Seeker held his chin in thought. "I think. Still, you have been seeing Patty since you joined the Hooligans and who knows? Maybe you'll get some disabled toilet action with her."
"Oh, fuck off..." Rogue said with the 'off' coming out sounding like 'up'.
"Well, I would normally make a joke about that there's nothing wrong with some forms of bathroom stall sex..." Sly remarks. "But if you are dating her, you should know that she is a bit of a hopeless romantic and she's had her heart broken many times; so you should definitely be gentle with her."
'Sounds like someone I know...' Avatar though to himself as he lead on. Overhearing the conversation going on behind him.
"That's what she said!" Seeker interjected, earning a head-shake from Rogue.
"Go shag a Motorbug in the tailpipe Seeker if you're going to be like that..." The rabbit said in annoyance before addressing Sly's statement; "Anyhow, I'll keep that in mind with her. She's been dealt enough muck from her so-called friends; getting her heart-broken again will just be adding onto it. Patty deserves better than what she's being given..."
Despite the conversation coming off like a series of non-sequiturs coming from a serious matter, the wolf knew they needed that brevity. Seeing it as good for morale to have something to laugh about rather than something emotionally draining to help them push on through but they'll still have the dark revelation to think over separately in their own time.
The four eventually made it to the tenth floor, making a quick stop at the Safe Room that's on it to replenish themselves and establishing another checkpoint for their own convenience. Then they were soon being greeted by the Sagittarius graphic adorning the doors leading into what is Anton's Executive Office moments later.
"Right. We're at the very top of the Palace..." Avatar puts his hand on the office door handle. "Let's go."
He slowly opens the door to peak inside, seeing no signs of Anton's Shadow about from where he is. Seeing as the coast was clear; he cautiously leads the other three into the office.
The interior of the office is very exotic but gaudy and overdone in decoration; having velvet red carpets, gold chairs, a window view of the city below with the large gold statue of Don Chairman Anton seen outside through one side of it, the desk in front of it being fine-cut oak with a desk-light, a set of TV's off to the left of it where Anton's Shadow can see them from his desk and wall structures constructed in pure gold, built-in fishtanks in the walls and other extreme displays of wealth in the office.
When they looked up to the ceiling, they see an image aping that of the famous Sistine Chapel ceiling painting the Creation of Adam by Michelangelo with Anton replacing Adam in the depiction. Sly is appalled at how narcissistic he is to be that blasphemous.
Lastly, there are two golden doors with one to the left as well as one to the right and a dedicated spot on one of the walls that morbidly pays "respects" to the people Anton had either killed, drove to suicide or played a heavy part in their deaths like Sly's deceased trans friend. Being the "ever-decent" mobian being he is, he had Farrell's mural the most bling'd out. Sly would recognise a few of the others up on the wall but the rest are strangers for him and he never knew some of the deaths had Anton involved in them.
"God, even Goldly McRichie would think this room is tacky and extravagant..." Sly mused, using humor to try and mask his complete disgust with the room; though even that facade seemed to be fading
"Where's the Treasure at?" Rogue asks O.V.I.
"The door to the right is where the Treasure Room is." O.V.I
Avatar would ask; "Then's what the door to the left fo—"
"Yeah Patty and Monica, shake 'em nice and good for your boss daddy!" They'd hear the voice of Shadow Anton from the room behind the door to their left accompanied by the sounds of erotic moans. "You too Tatiana!"
"Hehe. As you wish Master~" The cognitive copy of Tatiana cooed, sounding like a poor man's Princess Venus with the seductive infliction and the heavy bimbofication in her dictation that leaves her coming off very air-headed. "My hot bod exists for your divine pleasure only and your love is second to none~"
Sly jerked his gaze to the door in question, trembling with rising anger as he was trying to fight every urge to peek inside that room before deciding against it. Knowing he'd be seeing red right now.
"Will I be getting a ride on your Almighty Schlong Dragon today?~" Cognitive Tatiana asks from behind the door with a coo in her voice.
"Not today babe I'm afraid..." Shadow Anton replied with satisfied-sounding moans. "I've got a red vixen here having a go on it and taking in every inch of it..."
"Red vixen?" Rogue mouths to Seeker, Sly and Avatar. None knowing who that could be except for Avatar's guess and knew it couldn't be Patty he's referring to.
"Ain't that right sexy?~" They'd then hear him say to one of his girls in his harem and hearing a bottom being smacked.
"Oh, you know it baby~" Cooed Cognitive Fiona's voice from beyond the door, loud pleasures moans to be heard from her and other obscene noises to be heard. "Mmmm, your cock feels so hard and big... It barely fits in my fox hole tehe~
"I want a turn on him!" Cognitive Monica whines. "I want mine widened!"
"Wait your turn She-Man!" Cognitive Fiona snarled at Cognitive Monica. "I got first dibs on it, fair and square!"
Sly shook his head at Rogue but then looked at Avatar, reading his body language. The wolf's eye twitches right after hearing what Anton's cognition of Fiona sounds like and feeling disgusted by what he sees his friend as, viewing her as nothing but a slutty person in his eyes. Exactly what the other students at the campus whispers to each about because of an unfounded rumour spread by Migu.
He clenches his jaw tightly. If Anton had a cognition of Vanilla that's just as demeaning to the real person, he'll kick that door down and viciously boot his ass down with his foot until he breaks every bone in it.
"Avatar?" Seeker says to Avatar. Able to read the boiling vibes emanating from him.
"Let's grab the Treasure before I decide on making Anton actually croak for real..." Avatar replied through his teeth, leading the four to the door on the left. Having heard enough from that door.
"Right..." Sly replied, not wanting to press Avatar about a subject that might possibly be touchy for him and lead to him having a nuclear meltdown.
Avatar pushes on the door where it moves back to reveal the Trophy Room full of AntonCo memorabilia alongside memorabilia of himself as though he's a world famous rockstar and there in the middle of it all; the Treasure that represents the core of the Palace itself... Or at least something that seems to be the Treasure because all they can see in front of them as a smokey, cloudy formless orb that hovered in place.
"Is that... The Treasure?" Avatar looks to Rogue in confusion.
"It's... Unique?" Seeker scratches the back of his head. "For real, is this actually it?"
"It is indeed the Treasure that the Palace's stability rests upon..." O.V.I confirms what they're looking at. "Although..."
"Although...?" Sly responded, trailing off to get an answer from O.V.I.
"Like the elevator door, us being able to grab the Treasure depends on us changing his cognition." O.V.I answered. "As it currently stands, we cannot take it."
"Anton believes his Treasure is unobtainable." Seeker concluded after thinking about it. "Therefore, we'll need to make him realise that it can be stolen to make it materialise for us."
"Correct." O.V.I said with an invisible nod. "It'll have to be done with him aware of it or else it won't work."
"Well, how exactly do we pull it off?" Rouge questioned. "He's aware of us looking into his activities now and we can't exactly tell him about it to his face. Hell, I don't think I can even safely go to him now since he'll likely be suspicious of me in light of what they've found about us."
"...Well Manic, time to bring your idea to the table." Raffles spoke to the green hedgehog from within his thoughts. "It's better than nothing."
"Right..." Sly replied to Raffles in his thoughts, then said to the others; "I got an idea. What if we sent a calling card out? Like, we make a calling card and put it somewhere where Anton will see it?"
"A calling card?" Avatar raises an eyebrow. Not too well-versed in the thievery trade as Sly would be.
"Ah, I get it now..." Seeker chuckles in delight. "What's worse than getting robbed? It's knowing that you're going to get robbed and anticipating when."
"A brilliant idea there." O.V.I said to Sly. "That could be the best way to alter Anton's cognition because he will subconsciously feel threatened by the gesture when it's addressed to him. Calling cards has a way of affecting their addressed targets psychologically speaking."
"Yeah." Sly replied, scratching his neck. "I'll need a place to make it at though since... My most recent home has just been burned to the ground... I go through homes and hideouts like toilet paper..."
"I'm afraid we're not much good there as our current housing setup don't offer much options for whatever you're going to be making and probably easy to get ambushed at." Seeker told Sly. "You'd be at risk of getting jumped by Anton's goons at it with them out on the prowl."
"Sly can craft one at my place." Avatar interjects. "I live in an apartment building and Anton's thugs will have a harder time breaking into my apartment without being seen coming in."
"Then it's settled. Sly, you'll be staying at Avatar's place for the time being." Rogue tells Sly before looking to Avatar. "Meet up at Rockwell's tomorrow?"
"Actually, no. We'll reconvene at my apartment instead." Avatar said to the group. "Knowing them, they'll likely be expecting us there if we go to meet up there and probably use it as a trap."
"I agree." Sly replied with a nod. "If your enemy knows where you are; don't be there. 'Sides after all this, I could prolly look around for a place to set up a new hideout at."
He smiled to Avatar. "Don't worry leader-man. I'll whip up a calling card Anton will never forget, then I'll sneak over and put it in a place where he'll definitely see it."
"We'll discuss on how we send the card over to him once it's completed." Avatar told Sly before around to face the door as the four begins walking out of the office, ignoring the lewd moans heard from the room to the right. "Now, let's get on out of here for today before I start considering the alternatives..."
Akira's Apartment, Cyber City. Mobius
Evening
After departing from Johnny and Cortez upon giving them his house address, Akira cautiously led Manic back to his place. Making sure they weren't followed by any of the Hooligans on the way over. Once they safely reached the building, they made their way to the floor level that Akira's apartment is at and went inside with Akira locking up the door behind them. Dropping off the bags Little John had left them earlier in the day near the couch afterwards.
"Jeez, this is a nice apartment you got here..." Manic spotted Tiara setup and asked; "Whoa, uh... You already got a roommate?"
"Nah." Akira notes to himself to ask Tiara to take her things away whenever he has other people over before coming up with a believable excuse since he's thought of it the other day as a good mild threat; "I got them from someone. They're handy for Jean in case I had to give her a roof to sleep under if your hideout needed to undergo renovations or you and Little John both needed to go somewhere. Don't know if these clothes would fit her or not but it would be the least I can do for her..."
"Also this apartment ain't that nice..." He added as he sits on the couch. Letting out a tired sigh.
"Hmmmm..." Manic mused, looking at some of the clothes Tiara had hanging on the clothing racks, holding up a pair of metallic sky blue lycra pants. "Well, maybe some of these would fit her... Well, provided she's daring enough to dress like she's going to a nightclub that is."
"The person who generously provided them didn't seem to have much for casual wear."
"Well, I guess nightclub clothes will have to do for her now... I kinda wish I could visit her right now..." Manic sighed, then said; "But I have a job to do. I have to make our calling card, then sneak over and put it in a place where Anton will see it."
"I think we'll need to approach this smartly." Akira stops him. "Sneaking it in might be one thing but it's another when it comes to him actually reading it and us knowing if he'll read it or not for the Treasure to appear. We might only have one shot at this and it's better that he reads the card where we'll know he's seen it as well as us being better prepared for the theft of his Treasure."
"...I'll help you with the calling card." The wolf got up from the couch after some deliberation. "If we're going to send him that card, we better make sure it's something he can't easily recognise as being from us—"
Akira stops as he goes to answer the phone when it buzzed and it isn't coming from his' but Grady's, putting on his Grady impression. "What do you want now? I've got better things to be doing than wasting time with you."
He held his hand up to Manic as he converses with the other speaker for a full minute. "...Right. Well, I'll try to be over someday soon when I'm available. Bye."
Manic waited until Akira was finished with his call before speaking. "Who was that?"
Akira would answer after sending Johnny a text message with his own phone; "One of Anton's guys rang to ask when Grady will be in since both D. F and Ryder are out of commission for the time being; the former receiving third degree burns on his genitals from hot boiling water while the latter has a damaged testicle with both caused by Little John I can safely assume. That and to discuss getting rid of Johnny in person since Anton suspects his ties to us."
"I see. Say... That gives me an idea. Maybe you could take the calling card there and tell Anton you found it somewhere in his hideout?"
"It'd be the best way to know if he sees the card or not." Akira nodded, seeing where he's getting at. "Since Johnny can't go over to Hooligans' hideout anymore, Grady's our best option to get that card to him as he still wouldn't be aware of the switch and catch him off guard."
"Then that's what we'll do." Manic agreed. "I'll stay up as long as I need to in order to get this card done, so don't worry about a thing."
Akira goes over to a drawer in the kitchen and pulls out a notepad along with a pen; "First. Let's go over what the message should be first before it goes on the card..."
To Be Continued...