She carried Rhenvar to the meeting.
Everyone was seated around the Super Squad table. Rhenvar kept muttering about someone named Willow and Sylvia. She couldn't tell if he was dreaming of the living or the dead. He sounded sad.
"Is he okay?" Starwoman stood. "Did you get attacked on the way here? I should have escorted you."
"No, no, he's just… tired." Bunnygirl defended knowing Rhenvar was completely plastered.
There they were at the table, five heroes. Ultimateman, Starwoman, Spiritdeer, and now Ice Maiden, her slicked-back white hair and icy blue eyes sharp enough to slice. Pale skin. Her powers had saved a lot of lives. Next to her was Timestamp. Always masked, wrapped head to toe in white bandages. Like a mummy.
"Well, let him rest," Timestamp said. "Let's begin now that Bunnygirl's here."
"This meeting is being streamed to the other heroes," Starwoman added. "We're on red alert."
Ultimateman stood, eyes hard. "Now that we have your attention… there are new villains, and I fear the casualties are only beginning."
He walked to the broken window.
"The Crow Queen we call her, killed Blue Zipper," he said, voice buckled. "I fought two of her companions: a catgirl with strange powers, and a man with mind control."
"Mind control?!" Ice Maiden shot up. "You mean to tell us they have someone that powerful-?"
"He's gone," Ultimateman cut her off. "He's dead now. Killed by our temporary ally," he gestured to the guy sleeping on the couch "who saved us from a very dark future."
"If he killed someone, shouldn't we imprison him?" Timestamp asked.
"Wait, he did it to save me!" Bunnygirl shouted. "The mind controller was going to use Ultimateman to kill me."
"…Yes," Ultimateman admitted, stepping closer. "He was strong enough to make me do it. I'm sorry."
"We'll deal with that later," Starwoman said sharply. "For now, let's focus on the Crow Queen-"
"Do you mean me?" A voice sliced through the air, wrapped in violet fire and black feathers.
The woman stood on the table, laughing.
"Oh, pink cat your tracking skills are impressive! You really are full of surprises!"
Bunnygirl's heart seized.
(She's here. The monster. The one who will give me nightmares.)
"You!" Ultimateman spat. "You'll pay for what you've done!"
"Killing that supervillain?" Corvessa giggled. "Oh?"
She leapt down and kissed Rhenvar like they were lovers reunited.
"My King Crow!"
"Restrain her!" Starwoman barked.
Timestamp activated his powers. Corvessa froze mid-kiss.
"You- dare?" She hissed. "I'm in a very bad mood, you know!"
"Yes, we are, let's get that RPer!" a familiar voice cheered.
Meowfunction.EXE appeared out of nowhere, cutting Timestamp's neck with a glitching bunny plush sword.
"Wha-" Timestamp reached up, touching the bleeding pixelated wound.
His body folded into itself, collapsing until only a glowing orb remained.
"Sweet! Let's check your loot!" Meowfunction chirped, skipping toward the glowing orb.
Ultimateman rushed Corvessa.
Starwoman charged Meowfunction.
Spiritdeer froze in fear, and Ice Maiden stood, eyes wide on Corvessa.
(Were they here for Rhenvar?)
Without thinking, Bunnygirl moved. Grabbed him and ran. They were distracted, for now.
(I'm a hero. I can't let them kill him.)
(If they're starting a fight here, of all places, they're desperate.)
(The others should be fine. They're the Super Squad.)
(…But Timestamp's already dead.)
(The Crow Queen killed Blue Zipper.)
(What if-)
(No. Just run. Hide. Live.)
(It made no sense. No villain ever attacked us head-on. We always won.)
(We never lost.)
****
She burst out onto the bottom floor, lungs burning. Debris rained from the sky. Explosions shook the building behind her.
Chaos.
Rhenvar groaned in her arms.
She ducked into the nearest alley, heart pounding.
"Rhenvar! Wake up!"
(Why did he have to get drunk? Note to self: Never, ever drink alcohol.)
"Ohh, look at this," a voice chuckled. "An HQ attack got all the heroes in a bind."
She froze.
(Clownshoes.)
She knew him. Everyone did. He hunted down low-class heroes. Called it his circus.
"Please leave us alone…" Her voice shook.
"Now, now. The news reported Blue Zipper's death, Variable announced a prison break and now an HQ raid? I knew you little sidekicks would be out and about." He grinned. His red nose lifted with his smile. "But running? Tsk tsk. How delightfully pathetic for a hero."
Suddenly, Bunnygirl was laughing.
Not because it was funny. Because it was his power.
She couldn't stop. She was wheezing with tears in her eyes.
He approached with his knife.
"No, please haha, I don't want to haha die-"
He crouched in front of her, knife gleaming.
"Isn't it funny? I'm going to stab you so many times! You'll be the laughing stock of the news! And just wait until I dress your bloodied bunny body in a clown suit-!"
He laughed. She laughed.
Someone else was laughing.
Then-
Rhenvar stood.
He grabbed Clownshoes by the head and smashed it against the wall.
The man's skull burst like a watermelon.
"That wasn't funny," Rhenvar muttered, like he hadn't just murdered someone. "Hic… you okay?"
"Y-Yeah…" She blinked. "Rhenvar, they're attacking. They killed Timestamp! The catgirl and the Crow Queen are still fighting!"
Rhenvar opened a trash can and tossed Clownshoes' corpse in. "Littering is bad. Haha…" He turned around. "Sorry. Still kinda drunk."
(He doesn't care?)
"Rhenvar, I-"
"I heard you. It's better if we're away from the battle."
"What?!"
"My mission-hic is to protect you. I can't fight and keep you alive."
"But-!"
"No buts. We need to go."
(But… it's not fair.)
(People are dying. I'm a hero.)
(This is what I am.)
"No! We fight! I ran once… I'm not running again!"
Rhenvar shrugged. "It's never easy, is it?"
(No, Rhenvar. Being a hero is never easy.)
(You might be a killer. I might not agree with your methods. But I know this:)
(The villains are coming. And they're bringing blood with them.)
(So, if you're a weapon?)
(Then I'll point you straight at them. I just hope some of them survive, then maybe we can at least, have some kind of hope, for a brighter future.)