[Given heâs an old man, Billy decides to have this conversation over phone.]
Oi, Ho-ho. Iâll bite: youâre some cheeky fucker runninâ a Supe-killing machine. Yâgot insurance in case one of the cunts gets too big for their britches and comes after ya?
[Moshi moshi, grandpappy. The voice is still synthetic, but it's slightly clearer. The phone is more modern than the speaker system, but just a bit.]
Call me H, if you find it difficult to pronounce.
It's less of a superhuman-killing machine, and more of a superhuman-powered mechanism. Regardless, I always expect those blessed with abilities to test their limits. They would be too passive for our purposes otherwise.
âBlessedâ, eh? Where Iâm from thatâs a load of bollocks they sold to keep the freaks whose mums shot âem up with V when they were babes thinking theyâre gods to us.
Itâd muck up your whole plan if some bastard came in and popped your head off, wouldnât it? So do you have the means to kill a Supe that breaks the rules?
Hmm. The propaganda around superhuman abilities is similar in many worlds.
Many have tried for my head, both here and elsewhere. They've always failed and become fodder. We will complete this plan and leave this island, whatever it takes.
[âWhatever it takes,â huh? Heâs heard that sentiment before. It was a pact he and Hughie had made when heâd first dragged that kid into this lifeâdo whatever it takes to grind the pompous, egotistical Superheroes that had taken the people they loved into tiny specks of dust.
Hughie had been too kind to stay on that pathâ-heâd abandon the idea of revenge if it meant saving more people.
Billy is far from kind, though. Anyone else can burn if it gives him the chance to reduce Homelander to nothing more than a splatter on the wall.]
So you do have a way to kill a Supe.
Whatâs a bloke gotta do to get his hands on that?
[There's always a weight to the words spoken through this ID, but for a phrase, like the sun being eclipsed or clouds rolling in -- it darkens, deepens. Becomes a touch richer. Returns to being casual in a moment.]
But it's something much more valuable than what we're already offering, which I think is a decent incentive. But I'll hear you out. Do you want this prize just for this island, or for something else?
Well, Iâd be chuffed to have a safeguard here, butâŚI need this Supe killer for somethinâ more serious back at home base. Nasty prick in New York whoâs had it too good too long, if you get my drift.
Iâd make it worth your while in the long term: youâre gonna be needing more Supes to charge your battery soon as this bunch wipes each other out, wonât you? I can hook you up if youâre willinâ to bargain, H.
Good. In order to earn your way off this island and other bonuses in the first place, we require that you have the ability to sacrifice one of the others with your own power, or to be able to avoid being sacrificed. It wouldn't be worth it, otherwise.
[It's quite matter of fact, really.]
I don't anticipate it taking more than this group, but that's assuming that they'll shed enough blood for us to make progress. We can discuss the matter of what comes after, if we end up needing more superhumans. In the meantime, perhaps you can do more for me here, during what is in progress.
What you propose I do for you then? So long as you got proof that you ain't just pullin' me leg about the Supe-Killer, I'm the man for the job.
[This is risky. Nobody likes a rat, especially one that's cooperating with the guys holding everyone hostage. If Billy gets found out, he might as well put his head on a platter with a side salad right then and there.
If this is a sure thing, though, it's worth it. For Becca. For Ryan. Fuck, for the Boys too, and probably the good of humanity at this point.]
[There's a moment of thought, it seems, a considering pause -- the other end flipping through options, perhaps, ticking off what this caller can do for them and maybe even vice versa. At length:]
I do have a need for some samples from your fellow islanders, that would be much easier to collect with someone actually living amongst them -- especially once the bloodshed gets going. And I can tell you that not only will you eventually get proof that we can take care of your superhumans problem, as you put it, because I anticipate this group needing discipline sooner or later...
But that if you do this for us, then you will get what you want. We value people who can get these things done, in my line of work.
What sorta samples? Y'need me to nab folks' toothbrushes or get drawin' blood?
[Honestly, possibly a bit easier to manage than most things he's done in terms of covering his tracks. Injections can be blamed on mosquitos, personal belongings can be misplaced.]
We'll probably need varying samples from week to week, but not to worry -- you won't need too much stealth, since you'll be taking them from the corpses of the sacrificed.
[Easy peasy. Just depends on how squeamish one is, but from the tone here, they don't expect Billy to be an especially squeamish sort.]
My request is to get those samples within a few hours -- I'll provide you with a specialized container and a preservative for transport, and you'll be rendez-vousing with one of the robots that can then get them to me. I don't think I need to tell you to use your discretion with this.
It will be nice to have more competence than the robots. They're advanced for what they are, but this is more delicate work.
[Said semi-thoughtfully. Billy's isn't the sort of demeanor you'd associate with delicate work, but it seems our resident highfalutin bird has decided to go for it.]
I'm a man of my word, but you'll see that too, in due time.
Now, I have some spare time -- why don't you tell me more about your home circumstances?
[Apparently they donât just have that information on hand, unlike other stuff. Or they want to hear it from his mouth.]
The Supes where Iâm from are fucking monsters. Get up to the worst shite behind closed doors, squash people in the blink of an eyeâany moment now oneâs gonna go off the bend and start a massacre no matter what fuckinâ diplomacy the twats in Supe Affairs come up with.
Biggest right cunt of âem all happens to be the hardest to take downâ-bombinâ the prick didnât work, so gotta go bigger.
When you say "Supes", I assume you mean superhumans. This must be a pretty interesting vacation for you.
[It's a musing tone, rather than a sympathetic one, but perhaps that's to be expected. The attention of somebody turning over something and examining it from all angles, but attentive all the same.]
The easiest way to gain an iron grip on society is to have the power to back up your vision; the easiest way to have people get used to their oppressors is to have a good PR team. But the state of affairs where you come from sounds pretty artificial to me.
Still, there's a way to take down anyone and anything. What else have you tried? How big was the bomb?
[He's trying to see a bit of entertainment value in it, given he's still pretty sure that all superpowered people inherently need to be gotten rid of. The list of the ones that haven't been raging assholes is very, very low.]
What you're going on about is how it all works back then--they make bloody blockbusters outta them. You ever have to see the monster that took everything from you on every fuckin' billboard you turn a corner on?
...bomb was big enough to total the entire house. Also dropped several tons of concrete on the bastard and all it did was slow him down. Been able to rule out stabbin' or shootin' him working through reconnaissance, too.
[Youâre looking out on the lake with a young boy: your wifeâs son, Ryan. You donât think youâre equipped to be the kind of parent he needs with everything inside of you, but the least you can do is do what you promised your wife and keep him safe, and make sure Ryan never becomes the sort of monster his biological father is.
He has to go into hiding with the CIA so his father doesnât find him. Heâs essentially going to be alone. So it doesnât surprise you when Ryan tells you heâs scared.
You arenât sure how to comfort him, but you have to try. Because you promised. So you take off a small chain necklace that youâve been wearing for years now and show Ryan.]
This here belonged to your mum. Itâs a Saint Christopher. She gave it to me a long time ago and told me it would keep me safe. And it has. âŚmostly.
[You put the necklace over Ryanâs head gently, letting it settle on his shoulders as he holds the charm on it.]
And now your mum is gonna help keep you safe.
[You hear the sound of the car pulling in and gently coax Ryan over. Grace Mallory, your former boss and trusted confidant, will look out for him. You trust her, and she has the experience of being a grandmother. Itâd be a bit of a shame if she never got that again, you think in spite of yourself. Before Ryan gets in the car, you exchange a handshake and a few words.]
Remember what I told you.
Donât be a cunt.
[You canât help a little smile at him. As the car drives off, Mallory offers you her condolences. Youâve lost your wife all over again, after all. She says sheâll handle Vought and the fact that theyâll be wanting Ryan back in their custody, and asks you something.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Week 0 Day 1
Oi, Ho-ho. Iâll bite: youâre some cheeky fucker runninâ a Supe-killing machine. Yâgot insurance in case one of the cunts gets too big for their britches and comes after ya?
no subject
Call me H, if you find it difficult to pronounce.
It's less of a superhuman-killing machine, and more of a superhuman-powered mechanism. Regardless, I always expect those blessed with abilities to test their limits. They would be too passive for our purposes otherwise.
no subject
âBlessedâ, eh? Where Iâm from thatâs a load of bollocks they sold to keep the freaks whose mums shot âem up with V when they were babes thinking theyâre gods to us.
Itâd muck up your whole plan if some bastard came in and popped your head off, wouldnât it? So do you have the means to kill a Supe that breaks the rules?
no subject
Hmm. The propaganda around superhuman abilities is similar in many worlds.
Many have tried for my head, both here and elsewhere. They've always failed and become fodder. We will complete this plan and leave this island, whatever it takes.
no subject
Hughie had been too kind to stay on that pathâ-heâd abandon the idea of revenge if it meant saving more people.
Billy is far from kind, though. Anyone else can burn if it gives him the chance to reduce Homelander to nothing more than a splatter on the wall.]
So you do have a way to kill a Supe.
Whatâs a bloke gotta do to get his hands on that?
no subject
[There's always a weight to the words spoken through this ID, but for a phrase, like the sun being eclipsed or clouds rolling in -- it darkens, deepens. Becomes a touch richer. Returns to being casual in a moment.]
But it's something much more valuable than what we're already offering, which I think is a decent incentive. But I'll hear you out. Do you want this prize just for this island, or for something else?
no subject
Iâd make it worth your while in the long term: youâre gonna be needing more Supes to charge your battery soon as this bunch wipes each other out, wonât you? I can hook you up if youâre willinâ to bargain, H.
no subject
[It's quite matter of fact, really.]
I don't anticipate it taking more than this group, but that's assuming that they'll shed enough blood for us to make progress. We can discuss the matter of what comes after, if we end up needing more superhumans. In the meantime, perhaps you can do more for me here, during what is in progress.
no subject
What you propose I do for you then? So long as you got proof that you ain't just pullin' me leg about the Supe-Killer, I'm the man for the job.
[This is risky. Nobody likes a rat, especially one that's cooperating with the guys holding everyone hostage. If Billy gets found out, he might as well put his head on a platter with a side salad right then and there.
If this is a sure thing, though, it's worth it. For Becca. For Ryan. Fuck, for the Boys too, and probably the good of humanity at this point.]
no subject
[There's a moment of thought, it seems, a considering pause -- the other end flipping through options, perhaps, ticking off what this caller can do for them and maybe even vice versa. At length:]
I do have a need for some samples from your fellow islanders, that would be much easier to collect with someone actually living amongst them -- especially once the bloodshed gets going. And I can tell you that not only will you eventually get proof that we can take care of your superhumans problem, as you put it, because I anticipate this group needing discipline sooner or later...
But that if you do this for us, then you will get what you want. We value people who can get these things done, in my line of work.
no subject
[Honestly, possibly a bit easier to manage than most things he's done in terms of covering his tracks. Injections can be blamed on mosquitos, personal belongings can be misplaced.]
no subject
[Easy peasy. Just depends on how squeamish one is, but from the tone here, they don't expect Billy to be an especially squeamish sort.]
My request is to get those samples within a few hours -- I'll provide you with a specialized container and a preservative for transport, and you'll be rendez-vousing with one of the robots that can then get them to me. I don't think I need to tell you to use your discretion with this.
Sound doable?
no subject
Very fuckin' doable. Not too hard to nab somethin' off a dead stiff. I've smuggled worse in deeper shite.
Long as you're keepin' up your end, I'll keep up mine.
no subject
[Said semi-thoughtfully. Billy's isn't the sort of demeanor you'd associate with delicate work, but it seems our resident highfalutin bird has decided to go for it.]
I'm a man of my word, but you'll see that too, in due time.
Now, I have some spare time -- why don't you tell me more about your home circumstances?
no subject
The Supes where Iâm from are fucking monsters. Get up to the worst shite behind closed doors, squash people in the blink of an eyeâany moment now oneâs gonna go off the bend and start a massacre no matter what fuckinâ diplomacy the twats in Supe Affairs come up with.
Biggest right cunt of âem all happens to be the hardest to take downâ-bombinâ the prick didnât work, so gotta go bigger.
no subject
[It's a musing tone, rather than a sympathetic one, but perhaps that's to be expected. The attention of somebody turning over something and examining it from all angles, but attentive all the same.]
The easiest way to gain an iron grip on society is to have the power to back up your vision; the easiest way to have people get used to their oppressors is to have a good PR team. But the state of affairs where you come from sounds pretty artificial to me.
Still, there's a way to take down anyone and anything. What else have you tried? How big was the bomb?
no subject
[He's trying to see a bit of entertainment value in it, given he's still pretty sure that all superpowered people inherently need to be gotten rid of. The list of the ones that haven't been raging assholes is very, very low.]
What you're going on about is how it all works back then--they make bloody blockbusters outta them. You ever have to see the monster that took everything from you on every fuckin' billboard you turn a corner on?
...bomb was big enough to total the entire house. Also dropped several tons of concrete on the bastard and all it did was slow him down. Been able to rule out stabbin' or shootin' him working through reconnaissance, too.
Memshare!
He has to go into hiding with the CIA so his father doesnât find him. Heâs essentially going to be alone. So it doesnât surprise you when Ryan tells you heâs scared.
You arenât sure how to comfort him, but you have to try. Because you promised. So you take off a small chain necklace that youâve been wearing for years now and show Ryan.]
This here belonged to your mum. Itâs a Saint Christopher. She gave it to me a long time ago and told me it would keep me safe. And it has. âŚmostly.
[You put the necklace over Ryanâs head gently, letting it settle on his shoulders as he holds the charm on it.]
And now your mum is gonna help keep you safe.
[You hear the sound of the car pulling in and gently coax Ryan over. Grace Mallory, your former boss and trusted confidant, will look out for him. You trust her, and she has the experience of being a grandmother. Itâd be a bit of a shame if she never got that again, you think in spite of yourself. Before Ryan gets in the car, you exchange a handshake and a few words.]
Remember what I told you.
Donât be a cunt.
[You canât help a little smile at him. As the car drives off, Mallory offers you her condolences. Youâve lost your wife all over again, after all. She says sheâll handle Vought and the fact that theyâll be wanting Ryan back in their custody, and asks you something.]
You think heâll turn into his father?
Becca didnât think so.
...I pray sheâs right.