Jay Pov:
"When the gang split up to have individual lives back in Auradon, Lonnie and I spent most of our days traveling the kingdom to visit lands where there were things a former thief like me could get into trouble. Not the evil type of course but the kind that could help people than the usual hero work that everyone knows about and everyone can see a mile away. But being teleported to a place where I'm being watched by hundreds of creatures, my parents, and a bloated monster who enjoys seeing people hurt is the last place I'd want to visit. But I guess I'm not the only one who wanted to be here, this Lizard kid is just as a victim as the rest of us. I'm getting a feeling that if we don't get outta here, we might as well become residents of this nightmare."
Afternoon-Mojo World 2
Having found a place to lay low and avoid being seen by other contestants who enjoyed fighting for the thrill of it, Gamma had found a destroyed building that no one would suspect of looking to find them. The four were in a conversation with the lizard boy who was forced to be a part of Anastasia's Savage Six and attack them upon their arrival.
"His name is Billy Connors. My dad told me about being on a team with his father, The Lizard. There was an accident that eventually turned him and his mom into lizards, and since then his dad retired from the villain life to be normal."
Carlos introduced them to Billy who despite appearing frightening with his claws and fangs. He was innocent in this situation that he was forced to be a part of and had no say in the matter of fighting the VK when they arrived in Mojo World 2.
"I didn't know how I got here in the first place. One minute I was in the sewers with my parents talking about going to the surface, then out of nowhere that hunter lady attacks us and puts that collar on me. Suddenly I'm acting like my dad and wanted to hurt people."
Billy explained how he got here and acted like a wild animal when he encountered the others since he wasn't thinking like a human but an animal. Gamma felt sorry for the kid since he had reptile DNA in him and knew what it was like to lose control and let out their inner beast onto people.
"Will find a way to get you back to your parents. If we can find the others before Mojo decides to bring in new people to try and kill us."
The cyborg informed Billy and the others on finding a way out of Mojo's show and avoiding a grizzly death on live television. Continuing to talk amongst themselves in planning to find a place where they can travel without being spotted, Princess rested by the side thinking if her siblings and father were alive and trying to look for her. With the boys continuing to talk and continue planning, Princess's ears went up as she heard a floating device coming from outside.
"Someone's close. And they smell weird."
She spoke out to the boys before acting like a wolf and lunged at whoever was outside of the building. Crashing through the wall and giving out their location, they ran out to see who Princess had attacked and had gotten them into a fight. They thought they were hearing the sounds of ripping and tearing of flesh from whoever Princess was fighting, she was nibbling on a large head sitting on a chair that was none other than Melissa, Modok's daughter.
"Get this damn mutt off me before I shoot it!"
Crying out to attack the symbiote dog since her breath smelled like she'd eaten someone. Unsure if the floating girl was a threat, Melissa was accompanied by Mal and the others who found the boys looking conflicted about letting Princess continue attacking the woman as their friends gestured that Melisaa was with them.
"Sis. Drop the floating head."
Eleanor told Princess which made the symbiote wolf drop Melissa as the floating head grumbled to herself and wanted to kill the dog for what she'd done to her. Only to be stopped by Gamma and Jay who aimed their weapons at her to not attempt to harm Princess. It took them a while to settle down before they started to greet one another being relieved for surviving this long, they heard a static coming from the broken screens around them as it showed Mojo's face smiling at them.
"It's nice seeing you all coming together like a team. But that's not what the people want! So I'm sorry to say but I have to cut this reunion short, with a surprise ambush!"
Declaring that while it was right to take a break from the action, Mojo didn't want to dull his fans and needed constant excitement to feed him. Confused at what the host meant and preparing to send something to attack them. They saw from one of the buildings a portal that resembled the one that Spiral used to teleport them to Mojo's arena. The figure that Mojo had picked out was a man wearing a skeleton mask and heavily armed.
"It's Crossbones. I thought Mojo would be original and get someone that's unpredictable like Typhoid Mary, Black Tom Cassidy, or Doctor Bong. Which doesn't mean what you think but he wears a bell as a hat."
Melissa responded to the person that their captor had sent to handle them which made the others unsure if he should be taken seriously. Only for Crossbones to show them a gauntlet that Mojo had given him and pressed a button that singled something to approach the group. They heard a rumbling coming from the ground as they saw hands emerging frighteningly as they were the remains of contestants that had been used to test out the terrain of Mojo World 2.
"The art of dying brings me to life. Death by design, tongue-tied and you're terrified. Go!"
Crossbones announced toward his resurrected soldiers attack the VK as they disassembled to avoid being shot at since they brought out firearms from the ground. Firing different types of ammunition toward the gang, Melissa brought up an energy field to protect Billy and Evie since they weren't armed like the others who fired back at the attackers.
"No one makes it out alive! Split the canvas open wide, Don't you dare say the art is dead. Mojo's world is painted red!"
Continuing the song while the battle resumed, Princess picked up Carlos to help him avoid getting shot at since the others had different means of protecting themselves. Gamma had his metal arm that generated an energy shield to protect himself while Mal used her magic to create illusions to fool the soldiers into shooting each other. Jay was in the air and used his targeting system to lock onto how many were appearing around his friends.
"Celebrating, mutilating. Born from suffering!"
The mercenary told the young adults as Jay fired off a barrage of rockets from his jetpack. They scrambled through the air and landed on several of the soldiers that exploded on impact. Smiling at the sight of him and the gang showing no restraint in protecting one another, Crossbones decided to make trouble by pulling out a grenade launcher and firing off grenades at the ground causing explosions around the field.
"The art of dying brings me to life! Death by design, I'm tongue-tied and you're terrified now. Dying brings me to life! Their blood won't dry. I'm tongue-tied and you're terrifiеd, tongue-tied and you're tеrrified!"
He told everyone as the VK managed to avoid the projectiles leaving Eleanor to try and shoot Crossbones off the building. Only for the mercenary to avoid the bullets coming at him and join his controlled soldiers on the ground. Just as he joined his group, they regrouped around Crossbones and acted like a unit as they started to fire on the group. Princess continued to run across the place protecting Carlos as the boy was trying to figure out how he could aid his friends from the shooters.
"Hacking all what's near and dear. All hope is gone if Mojo was here when he's drawn to torture."
Crossbones warned them before pressing another button on his gauntlet that controlled the trees to show automated turrets. They fired a barrage of bullets toward Gamma who managed to avoid getting shot at but not so for Jay who was able to withstand the bullets with his armor as it knocked him out of the sky.
"Celebrating, mutilating. Born from suffering!"
Praising in the air about the destruction that was being made from their fight, Crossbones changed his ammunition to smoke grenades. Leaving everyone blind and unable to find a place to hide, the VK saw a pair of red eyes peering through the smoke as they resumed to shoot them.
"The art of dying brings me to life! Death by design, I'm tongue-tied and you're terrified now. Dying brings me to life! Their blood won't dry. I'm tongue-tied and you're terrifiеd, tongue-tied and you're tеrrified!"
The mercenary continued his ballad of destruction which left everyone dazed and confused at the confusion that Crossbones had made. Hearing the sound of someone getting shot repeatedly and a body dropping, the smoke cleared away to show Eleanor to be the one who was shot. Mal had managed to find cover as well as the others who saw the girl on the cover appearing dead, only for her and the others to see Eleanor standing up with a look in her eyes that looked familiar to Trick and Deadpool whenever they got angry.
"Welcome to a gallery that you won't ever leave. 'Cause nothing is subjective as she stabs and hacks and cleaves. Beauty is in the eye of the beheader for tonight, the devils in the details and she's painted, red."
Eleanor told him and the soldiers around her as Eleanor whistled from the side where Princess surprised from the side and hit Crossbones leaving Carlos to use his tentacles to take the gauntlet him and shut off the tree turrets. It left Eleanor to go in a frenzy and hack up the soldiers left to right without stopping. It gave the others to aid her in the fight as the VK made quick work of the deceased contestants.
"An easel of wickedness, a frame to fill! Hang, hack, slash, kill! An easel of wickedness, a frame to fill! Hang, hack, slash, kill!"
They shouted for Mojo to hear to show that this wouldn't stop them from escaping this nightmare, saving their parents, and making him pay for putting them through this hell. Seeing the soldiers taken down and no sign of Crossbones being around, they heard someone getting up they saw their attacker having two Gatling guns on his arms and a packet equipped with shoulder-mounted rockets.
"The art of dying brings me to life, death by design!"
He yelled at them before firing off his weapons at everyone. Thinking that he might have gotten lucky and killed one of them, Crossbones was shocked to see Mal who was aided by Melissa to hold back the bullets and missiles. The two used their means of power to keep the ammunition in the air but Mal was getting frustrated which left her to reveal her frost giant side that turned her skin blue and changed her eyes red.
"The art of dying brings me to life! Death by design, I'm tongue-tied and you're terrified now. Dying brings me to life! Their blood won't dry. I'm tongue-tied and you're terrifiеd, tongue-tied and you're tеrrified!"
Mal told Crossbones as she took control of pushing the bullets and rockets toward Crossbones, it sent him flying into the air and hitting the ground. Eleanor and Uma rushed over to try and stop the mercenary from getting back up, only for him to be teleported by Spiral to make a quick getaway.
"Damn it! If we don't find a way out of this place, I swear I'm going find an ocean or lake and go sea witch on this place. You hear that Mojo?!"
Uma shouted in the air to make it clear she'd destroy this place in her giant form. With the field settling and fighting done, Mal noticed her skin changing and calmed herself as she was able to revert to her regular look. She noticed Princess staring at her as Carlos got off her to try and work on the gauntlet that Crossbones had on him.
"Your blue skin looks cool, Mal."
She complimented her about having an alternate side which made Mal smile at someone acknowledging her frost giant heritage. Deciding to check up on her wife who was looking over Billy to keep him from acting savagely like before, they hear a cheer coming from Carlos as he managed to figure out how to work Crossbones gauntlet.
"I can't deactivate any of the surrounding traps we might come across. But that doesn't mean we can't use the digital map to locate any vehicles that are being used, which there's one a couple of miles in front of us."
The Cruella boy explained to everyone how they could find where Trickster and Deadpool were located. Without wasting any time and checking out the vehicle they used to get here, the combined group used the gauntlet to follow the pair and see where they were staying and if they were in trouble.
Later-Valentine Vuong Hideout
Having spent several hours at the hideout where the group hadn't been attacked by anyone or Mojo who could have sent people after them. Wade was having a few drinks with his friends who were talking about his new kid and the difficulty of having a proper relationship with him, unlike his daughters who love him.
"Not to be rude, which is impossible since you find a way to make anyone want to insult you. But with what he's been through and having to coop with being a Halloween version of you? It's no wonder he's pissed off."
Fantomex responds to Wade's explanation about what his half-son's childhood had been like and having similar events that happened to him. Shaking his head at Fantomex's response, he didn't know how to handle the situation with him and that of sharing the same hideout with his recent ex-lover. Domino was by the side with a sniper out keeping a lookout for anything that might come their way since Mojo wanted to keep his fans entertained with their movement.
"From what I can tell he's trying to be someone that's not this Oogie bastard and you. Sure, you have your moments when you're not an asshole, and can be fun. But you tend to stir up trouble out of nowhere."
She added her opinion on the matter due to how she knew him better than the rest, not because they made out one time but because she saw him as more than just another messed-up mercenary trying to get paid. Deadpool had heart when it came to people that are close to him. The masked Canadian sighed during his drinking and sitting by Taskmaster as he needed a shoulder to cry on.
"I mean. Would I be better if I had him in my life? Yeah, Shiklah? She'd treat him like fucking royalty. But you know at the end? Trick would have caused the same amount of deaths I've committed in my career of being a professional merc. As well as my girls. But, regardless of what happens. They want to be me."
Wade told them in a drunken tone how he wanted to be a good person by keeping them away from him so they'd have lives that weren't similar to his. Sadly, it didn't seem to work since the trio had his genes and personality. The three saw Wade collapsing on the table due to the amount of liquor he'd drank and sharing his emotions with his friends. Valentine had listened to the conversation and felt sorry for what he'd been dealing with since they broke up, their attention went over to Trickster who was checking out the center of Mojo World 2 which was heavily armed and had people who were protecting it.
"From what you all were able to show me. Mojo spared no expenses of bat shit people that Spiral brought in, but with these weapons, we got from her Ravagers and you lot. We can screw them sideways and frontways. But I'm not going until I find my wives, my sisters, and everyone else."
Explaining to Valentine about him not going with them until his crew found them. Then, they could lead a full-frontal assault to escape and get their revenge on Mojo. It was interesting to see someone related to Wade act seriously and have a plan instead of just winging it.
"As much as I would want to plan with you on leaving. I think we should discuss the shark in the room and ask. Did Wade break up with me, or did I?"
They brought up a personal question that was on the VK's head since he couldn't care less about fighting and wanted to know what happened between them and Wade. Realizing that the mutant could see through him and pondering about his father's relationship, Trick walked over to a sleeping Jeff and comforted him since he wanted his new friend nearby so he could have the conversation with them.
"I don't even need to ask. You broke up with him."
Trick answered the question that Valentine was the one to break up with Wade regardless of whether it was because of their occupations or because they didn't match together properly. Valentine sat down with Trick since the two needed to discuss it before fighting since he needed a focused mind when he got to the center of Mojo World 2.
"Yeah, I did. While he can be idiotic, insane, and can get on your nerves for no reason. But he hides a side that cares for people close to him, even if it means getting blown up to pieces. You of all people should understand that more than anyone."
Informing him that while it was difficult to get along with Wade and the antics he gets people involved in. He'll make sure that they're safe from harm and protected to the best of his capability, no matter what it might be. The Oogie didn't say anything but could see that it was the truth that they shared the same attributes, including being involved in situations that required him to get violent. Just as he decided to accept the fact that he was like Deadpool, the Landshark started to smell a familiar scent coming outside as well as Trick and Valentine heard a vehicle coming from outside.
"We got company! A colorful one by the looks of it."
Taskmaster shouted at the two as Jeff rushed out of the hideout to see who had found them. The mercenaries armed themselves to see the surprising sight of a large symbiote dog, a female version of Modok, and a group of young adults who looked tired and worn out from the fighting they'd done in Mojo World 2.
"Uncle Task!"
Princess shouts in excitement at recognizing Taskmaster as she runs over to greet him by licking his face. Realizing that they were friendly, the group brought the VK inside where Trickster saw Mal and Evie coming in who noticed their husband speechless at them being alive. He didn't say a word and hugged them as he was relieved they were alive and safe.
"Care to explain why our father-in-law is passed out drunk?"
Evie asked because of how she and the others noticed Deadpool on the ground unconscious with his mask off and muttering in his sleep. He rubbed the back of his head nervously about that since it was partially his fault for making Deadpool drink his issues away. The trio looked at their friend settling in the hideout and meeting the others who were able to figure out that these were the VKs that Wade was talking about during his drunken conversation.
"We should get on with the plan of getting the hell out of here and finding Mojo. This hideout isn't going to hold everyone in here."
Fantomex advised them about the amount of people that were in the hideout and wanted to commence with the plan in leaving Mojo World 2. With that being announced and Valentine explaining about what they were going do. Trick looked over at Eleanor and Princess who helped their father up and tried to wake him up since he needed to know what was going on.
"Oh, hey kids. Glad to see all of you here. And ready to get the hell out of here!"
Wade announced to his children back together again and seem eager in heading back home after they rescue their parents. Trick nodded to him before handing Wade back his mask in order to look presentable for the discussion on facing whatever Mojo had placed at the center of his world.
The song used for this chapter was 'Art of Dying' by Ice Nine Kills. All rights to the song belong to the band and writers who wrote it. Stay tune to see what comes next!
