Greg and Wormmon

POV Digimon Wormmon

The next morning in the warehouse base. Greg was holding the Digimental of Courage toward Wormmon and yelled out, "Digi Armour Energize!"

Wormmon was armor digivolving. "Wormmon Armor Digivolve to! Shadramon!"

Shadramon was a Digimon resembling a butterfly with wings and an insect head, featuring a humanoid body with cannon-like appendages for hands, his cannon-like hands were each adorned with saw-toothed edges. Its entire body was marked with a fiery flame design.


Shadramon created a fire ball and said, "In this form, I'm the master of fire!"

Greg muttered loudly, "I am super jealous. Why can't I have fire powers? They're so awesome."

Shadramon de-digivolved to Wormmon, "Before I forget, where did the Digimental of Courage disappear to?"

Greg was confused. He looked at his hand and found nothing. He checked his pockets and found nothing. "Where did it go? It was here one second ago!"

Wormmon said, "Try to Armor Digivolve me with the Digimental of Kindness. I have a theory."

Greg responded, "I don't have the Digimental of Kindness?"

"Just do it. Trust me."

Greg nodded hesitantly and said, "Digi Armour Energize!"

Greg's left eye had the Crest of Kindness. The Crest of Kindness in Greg's eye was glowing bright.


Wormmon was armor digivolving. "Wormmon Armor Digivolve to! Bucchiemon!"

Bucchiemon was floating in front of Greg and said, "I saw the Crest of Kindness in your left eye. I think the Digimental of Kindness is inside you, Greg."

Greg touched his chest and said, "I awakened an awesome eye power! Like the sharingan. How is it in my eye?"

Bucchiemon shrugged. "Digimon shenanigans."

Greg then asked excitedly, "Does that mean, I have superpowers? Am I a parahuman?"

Bucchiemon de-digivolved to Wormmon and said, "Well...if you consider you can transform me into other forms, then maybe?"

Greg deflated, "That sucks. I want to be a cape too."

Wormmon shrugged. "You are cape, you just don't have parahuman powers. Well, I still need you to digivolve. Anyway, take a break for the day or even practice your shooting. I have some work to do before we beat Bakuda."

Greg nodded. "Alright."

Wormmon was digivolving. "Wormmon Digivolve to Stingmon!"

Stingmon was flying in the air and said to Greg, "I will see you soon."

----

Miss Dairy Fantastic Ice Cream Shop sold ice cream, beverages, snow cones and other desserts.

The teenage ice cream scooper with the name Ray looked to be having a heart attack as the intimidating monster in front of him peered over the different ice cream flavors.

Vanilla
Chocolate
Strawberry
Mint Chocolate Chip
Cookies and Cream
Rocky Road
Butter Pecan
Coffee
Cookie Dough
Pistachio
Neapolitan

Stingmon was having a dilemma, he didn't know which ice cream to pick. He finally settled on Neapolitan.

Stingman said, "I will take three scoops of Neapolitan!"

Ray the ice cream man quickly gave the ice cream to Stingmon and with a smile, said, "Here you go!"

Stingmon took the ice cream and placed the twenty he was holding onto the counter. Stingmon said, "Keep the change."

Stingmon didn't have any pants, let alone pockets. There was no way he could carry around loose change without pockets.

Stingmon nibbles on the frozen treat as he leaves the ice cream shop.

Stingmon found a bench on the boardwalk and sat on it while enjoying his frozen treat and looking over the ocean tides.

Stingmon didn't see the Protectorate HQ, however, he did enjoy the waves on the water.

Stingmon was at peace.

That all changed when Triumph blocked his view while crossing his arms.

"What do you think you're doing?" Triumph asked, giving a stern look at Stingmon.

Stingmon took a bite out of his ice cream and said, "Neapolitan. You can't have any of my ice cream."

"...I am going to have to arrest you."

"Oh really. Is there anyway to treat a hero who risks their lives to save someone you care about? Personally, I would give this poor unfortunate hero some money as a reward."

"...Are you extorting me?" Triumph asked, giving Stingmon a weird look.

"I would never... It is not like I knew your routine. I found a nice ice cream store and waited for you to show up... Anyhow, please donate to this poor hero if you have any heart. About 1,000 dollars should do. I know your loaded."

"Are you sure you can call yourself a hero? I should arrest you."

"Oh, we both know I can fly away. Well, I don't want to since I would ruin my ice cream."

"How do you know I will follow your demands?"

"Because you're a hero, and most importantly, you owe us... Ah well... Please help us, hero. My ambitions to save Brockton Bay would be much easier if I had cash... "

Triumph shook his head, sighed and looked at the sky, hoping for guidance. After sixty heartbeats, Triumph finally said, "Wait here... I will give you some money."

Triumph walked away.

Stingmon started to eat his ice cream and enjoyed the view.

Stingmon came to an epiphany. He could order three different types of ice cream scoops. With the new information, Stingmon was going to order different ice creams the next time he went to the ice cream store.

Triumph would later come back with a thousand dollars.

Stingmon now had the money to buy all the drugs he ever needed.

----

Stingmon was flying through the night sky. Heading toward the Palanquin to buy drugs.

"Hey stop!" A familiar female voice yelled at Stingmon.

Stingmon slowed down and turned his head to the left, where the voice came from.

Glory Girl, Shielder and Laserdream were flying toward him.

"Stop, don't come closer," Stingmon said, raising his clawed hands outstretched in front of him.

To Stingmon's relief, the trio of heroes stopped getting closer to Stingmon. He personally didn't want to be affected by Glory Girl's aura.

Shielder was the first to say, "Hello there, Bait! The hero of the day. I must confess, initially I thought you were a bit of a lunatic, but you've certainly proven me wrong. Great job!"

"Shielder," Laserdream softly chided and whacked her brother at the back of the head. "Hello Bait. You can call me Laserdream, this is my brother Shielder and my cousin Glory Girl. We were patrolling the area when we spotted you... I need to ask, Are you not planning anything nefarious or breaking any laws?"

Stingmon entertained the thought of telling the younger members of New Waves that he was going to buy drugs. Instead, he replied, "Currently, I am running errands... Well, I want to tell you more, but well... Yeah."

Glory Girl said, "Bait isn't exactly a bad bug, more of a morally gray character. He's not a villain per se, though he does fall on the wrong side of the law."

Shielder then said, "He is a good guy in my book. If it wasn't for Bug Cowboy and Bug Man, we would have gotten way more deaths and injuries. That means more work for Amy, which would mean she would be more cranky."

Glory Girl nodded her head in agreement, "True. We all don't want a cranky Amy."

Stingmon said, "Bug Cowboy and Bug Man? Are those names that the PRT has given me?"

"Yup! Isn't it as catchy as Master and Bait," Shielder said happily. "You know that PHO is calling you? The Jerkers of Brockton Bay."

Laserdream smacked her brother behind the head again.

Stingmon nodded his head and said, "Ah yes, I love the internet."

Laserdream then said, "I don't like your methods, however, your heart is in the right place. I think you can be a good hero with some guidance. Would you like to patrol with us?"

Stingmon responded, "Thank you for the offer, yet it was never my intention to be a hero. At best a savior, at worst a violent vigilante. It would be better if you... nice and friendly heroes don't associate with me."

Laserdream said, "I think I know what you're saying. You are going to be breaking the law to take down the villains. If you walk down that road, I will warn you, we will be enemies."

Glory Girl and Shielder seem to be tense.

Stingmon admitted to himself that Laserdream was correct. He was going to have to kill. He was going to break the law. He was going to use everything at his disposal to not just survive, but to save everyone.

Stingmon said, "You're going to hate my methods... You can consider me an enemy. I will consider you guys as allies."

Shielder smiled and said, "Do you want to be friends?"

Laserdream smacked her brother behind the head the third time.

Shielder yelled at Laserdream, "Why do you keep hitting me?"

Laserdream responded, "Because you're my idiot little brother." Laserdream then looked at Stingmon with a complicated expression and said, "We will stop you if you do go evil."

Glory Girl said, "If you do need help, that won't involve breaking the law. We will happily help you."

Stingmon responded, "Thank you. I hope you three have a nice night."

Stingmon quickly flew away.

----

The Palanquin seems to be bursting with teenagers having a good time.

The neon lights on the sign guide hormonal teens like a moth to the flames.

With Bakuda bombing spree going through the city and high school close, teenagers had a lot of free time.

Stingmon could have broken into the building. Either through a window or by using digital devices. However, he wanted to have a better relationship with the Faultline Crew that ran the place.

Stingmon waited in line. Much to the discomfort of everyone else also waiting in line to get into the Palanquin.

It was a long wait before Stingmon got in front of the line.

The Bouncers looked at Stingmon and said, "Id."

Stingmon said, "I am here to talk to Faultline."

"Figures." The bouncer nodded his head.

Bouncer opened the door and allowed Stingmon to walk through.

The dance floor was packed, and there wasn't a single table without a large group.

The music was loud, obnoxious, and would definitely kill someone's eardrums.

Stingmon awkwardly moved to the bar and signaled to the barkeeper.

The barkeeper smiled and said, "What can I get you?"

Stingmon said, "I want to talk to Faultline."

The barkeeper pointed up, "You can find her on the second floor."

Stingmon nodded his head, turned around, and didn't see any stairs. Only hundreds of teenagers were partying like it was the end of the world.

Stingmon sighed, this was going to be an arduous journey.

----

It took longer than expected, however, Stingmon found the second floor, where he meant Gregor the Snail.

Gregor said, "Good evening. What can I help you with?"

Stingmon said, "I have journeyed long and hard to find Newter. I want some of his saliva, blood or sweat. I will pay for it."

Gregor asked, "What exactly are you going to do with Newter bodily fluid? Is it for your own pleasure or other entertainment? Is it to experiment with the liquid to create drugs or other tinkertech inventions? I do worry since I am his friend."

Stingmon answered, "It is to take down Lung. Newter powers work really well against Lung, even when he goes full dragon."

Gregor replied, "I believe we should consolidate with Faultline. Will you please follow me?"

Stingmon said, "Sure."

Gregor led Stingmon to Faultline's office.

Faultline's office had three chairs and a coach. Faultline desk is being made from nice oak.

Gregor moved behind Faultline, who was sitting behind the desk.

Faultline stared at Stingmon and motioned for Stingmon to sit.

Stingmon sat in the chair.

Stingmon and Faultline didn't say anything for a few moments.

Faultline eyes seem to examine Stingmon's abnormal appearance.

Faultline poured herself some whisky and said, "Hello, Bug Man. What brings you here?"

Stingmon said, "I want to buy Newter body fluids and use them to take down Lung. Also, the name Bug Man is a very lame name. Can you please call me Bait? I prefer that name over Bug Man, Miss Faultline."

Faultline replied, "Alright then. If you don't mind me asking, Are you a Case 53? Do you have the Omega symbol on you?"

Stingmon remained silent. Thinking about what he could reveal to Faultline. "..."

Faultline said, "Are you alright?"

Stingmon chuckled. "Geez in front of you guys makes me want to change my plans... Case 53 are the victims and always seem to get the short end of the stick. This is a problem that even I have trouble fixing... To answer your questions. I am not Case 53, and you are also wrong about a fact. That tattoo that Case 53 have... it is not the Omega sign, it is the letter 'C'. I know the truth."

No one talked. Fautline and Gregor absorbed the information.

Faultline looked at Gregor's Case 53 symbol and examined it in detail.

Faultline slowly rose from her seat, leaned toward Stingmon, and said, "Do you know how hard it is to break a toothpick? Is it exactly how hard it would be for me to tear your limbs from their sockets. Start. Talking."

Stingmon responded while shaking his head, "The end... The well.. Hmm... I will be honest with you. I made a blunder. As you know, we have information about the future. So I need to ask? Are you prepared to die, Miss Melanie? The same people who created Case 53 also accidentally created Endbringers. Do you understand the scale of how scary these people are? They are also totally fine with killing to keep their secrets. One time, they released Case 53, which killed over 100 people for no apparent reason. You cannot run from them, you cannot hide from them, they will kill you..."

Faultline then growled out,"How do you know my name?" Faultline shook her head, "Of course your teammate must have told you."

"Their one exception to the rule! Scion! Yet they're working hard to figure out how to kill him too. Not to worry though, the situation will change in a year, and I will be free to tell you all about the origins of Case 53. So please be patient, the alternative is that you will... disappear."

Faultline nodded her head and said, "Okay... Okay... Do you want to work for me? I can pay you well."

Stingmon considered the proposal and then shook his head. "Well, maybe. Not at the moment, right now, me and my partner are going to be fighting against the ABB."

Faultline nodded her head and said, "Alright. So you want to use Newter fluid to take down Lung. I can accept that. How much are you going to pay for it?"

Stingmon took out the hundred-dollar bills and laid them on the desk. "1000 dollars."

Faultline took a single hundred dollar bill and said, "Learn to negotiate. Gregor, please bring Newter."

Gregor nodded his head and left the office.

Faultline took a drink and asked, "So your like a Changer?"

Stingmon answered, "I am more similar to an infant Endbringer."

Faultline choked on air.

Newter arrived with a plastic cup and said, "So your the customer?"

Stingmon nodded his head and said, "Yes, I am."

Newter nodded, breathed in, and spit out a large amount of saliva into the plastic cup container which was then sealed with a plastic lid. He took out tape, wrapped around a plastic cup lid. Then took out a marker and wrote the name Bug Man on the plastic cup.

Newter gave it to Stingmon, who mechanically took the sealed plastic cup.

Newter than said, "I am available Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights. You can ask the barkeeper if you have any orders and pick it up from the barkeeper when I get to it. Anyway, I hope you have a nice day, dude. The price of saliva is set at 50 dollars."

"Thank you for your help," Stingmon said to Newter.

Stingmon decided to leave the Palanquin since his business was complete.

POV Greg

Thirty-five bombings occurred last night. The casualties were increasing and the city was turning into a war zone.

Greg sighs heavily as he thinks about the miserable state of Brockton Bay.

The Warehouse that became their heroic base is now much cleaner. In the corner of the warehouse, Greg had all of his equipment.

Multiple rifles, guns, grenades, bullet-proof vests, shields, knives, ropes, medical gear and an inflatable raft.

Greg looked at the container that held Newter toxins and carefully removed the lid.

Greg had the bullets lined up like miniature soldiers in front of him.

With caution, Greg grabbed an artistic paint brush and dipped into Newter toxins, then grabbed a bullet and started to coat the bullet with the highly potent toxin.

Greg was able to coat 22 bullets with Newter toxins.

Stingmon returned to the warehouse. As normal, he uses the broken windows as his entryway.

Greg tips his cowboy hat toward Stingmon and says, "Howdy partner."

Stingmon gives a nod in return, "Hello Greg. Finding Bakuda is turning out to be extremely difficult. We are going to need to ask for help."

"Who are we going to ask?"

"The Undersiders."

"Who?"

"They are a group of villains that like to steal things."

"Oh. Why do we need their help?"

"Because there are villains with a heart of gold. I mean, seriously, with all you went through with the PRT, can you really trust them? Shadow Stalker used her position to torment Taylor. Dauntless, who fought us when we tried to spread the truth, Coil, who was part of the PRT and kidnapped a young girl, The Undersiders are bad people, the dilemma is that the PRT is so much worse."

"What about Legend?"

"I stand by my statement. Let's ask Taylor to set up a meeting with the Undersiders. She is a member of their gang."

"Wait! Taylor ended up joining a gang!"

"Don't worry, she is a terribly good influence on them."

----

Greg was once again in front of Hebert's residence.

Knocking on the door, Greg waited patiently on the front steps.

Greg could hear the pitter platter as someone was walking down the stairs.

The door opens and Taylor, wearing her pajamas, is now staring at Greg. She briefly looked up and down at Greg, searching for any clue as to why he was here.

"What do you want, Greg?" Taylor asked.

Greg smiled and said, "It is good to see you. Well..." Greg coughed. "I want to talk with your teammates about a favor."

Taylor then frowned and said, "What kind of favor?"

"About the bombings, I am not asking you to fight. Well, can your team help us find Bakuda?"

"I don't know," Taylor seemed to hesitate. "I don't mind helping you guys. I don't know about the rest of my teammates, they're motivated by money."

"Can you contact them at least? A lot of people are getting hurt."

"...Alright Greg. Wait a minute."

Taylor closes the door and the sound of her feet going upstairs echoes in the wind.

It wasn't long before Greg grew bored.

Greg takes out his gun, he makes sure the safety pins are on and then starts to twirl the gun around his finger.

Taylor eventually returns after a long wait.

Taylor was now wearing her cape costume. "Against my own and their better judgment. My teammates have agreed to meet with you. Let's go meet them."

Greg gave a brilliant smile. "Sweet! I will drive us there!"

Taylor raised an eyebrow. "You can drive?"

"Totally!"

----

Greg drove Taylor to an isolated and remote parking lot in front of a forgotten mall.

Greg spotted three monstrous dogs and the other members of the Undersiders were waiting for them.

Taylor left the van first.

Greg had prepared a cunning weapon against the Undersiders.

A basket of muffins.

Greg paid top dollar to get fresh muffins.

Chocolate muffins.

Blueberry muffins.

Banana muffins.

All were in the basket.

Greg just knew he would win the hearts of the Undersiders with the baked goods.

Greg left the van with a basket of muffins in hand.

Greg briskly walked toward the Undersiders and waved his hands widely. "Hello, my fellow law breakers! I have brought the muffins!" Greg yelled out loudly.

Grue, who was the most intimidating with his skull mask and darkness shroud, didn't react.

Tattletale examined Greg with a critical eye.

Regent twirled his staff.

Bitch seemed to lean closer.

Skitter bugs seem to be buzzing.

Greg stretched his hand and the muffin basket closer to the Undersider. "Go ahead and have a muffin. There are plenty to go around. My personal favorite is the chocolate chip muffin. My least favorite is the banana muffin."

Bitch moved forward, took out a muffin from the basket, sniffed it and then removed her mask and took out a large bite. Bitch nodded her head and said, "Tasty."

Greg smiled. "These are the best in Brockton Bay. Made from Pauley Mother's Bakery, which I rate the best bakery goods in the city."

Regent then approached and said, "I am the last person to say no to free food."

Regent took a banana muffin.

Grue finally spoke, "Your not wearing your cape costume. Still, it wouldn't be rude to assume I am speaking with Master."

Greg nodded his head and said he was going to respond.

"He's a fake," Tattletale said in a sing-song voice. "He doesn't have power. He's been lying about being a time-traveler. He is far too trusting and gullible. If a girl was even a tiny bit nice to him, he would fall in love and follow her like a lost puppy."

"Ouch," Greg said. "Dude, you just murdered me."

"Tattletale," Grue said in a warning voice.

Tattletale continued, "Wait, I am not done. You are attracted to our good friend Skitter, but you are too cowardly to ask her out. No wait. You feel guilty... Something about a baby."

Skitter, Grue, Regent, and Greg turned their full attention toward Tattletale.

Tattletale shrugged. "That is the best I'm getting out of him."

Regent then said, "Skitter, I didn't know you were bringing your ex-boyfriend."

Skitter said calmly as the bugs seemed to buzz, "He's not my ex-boyfriend."

Regent responded casually, "Fine, your sugar daddy, sex toy, boytoy, friends with benefits, side piece or whatever you like to call him."

Skitter said, "He's just my classmate."

Regent responded, "You're boring."

Grue clapped his hand. "The drama can wait another time. I wasn't even sure we should have this meeting. However, you have arrested our boss, approached one of our members out of costume and been active in Brockton Bay. What exactly are you planning?"

Greg's blackberry started to ring, Greg pulled out his phone. Wormmon digitized out of the phone into the real world.

Wormmon waved one of his stumps at the Undersiders. "Hello everyone, it is good to see you."

Regent leaned down to take a good look. "Sweet a pokemon."

Wormmon responded with a shrug. "Yes. Yes. Yes. I look like a cuddling Pokemon. I am definitely tougher than them. It feels weird to meet the exalted Undersider in the flesh. Actually, I feel like crying. It is kind of weird since it should be a happy moment."

Tattletale muttered out loud, "I can't fucking read him. What is that thing?"

Bitch answered, "A really big bug."

Grue asked again, "What are you guys planning?"

Wormmon answered, "I am from the future. Well, it is the best analogy that isn't too complicated for you guys to understand. Originally, I was going to become Skitter's partner. The Queen of Escalations! The Ultimate Antivillian! Taylor 'Badass' Hebert."

Skitter responded, "Please don't give me a weird epithet."

Wormmon answered, "We all love you Taylor very much. Anyhow, this is my plan. Kill Eidolon. Mystery steps. Profit. Mystery steps. Save the world."

Greg nodded his head in full agreement. "Sounds like a plan."

Grue said, "You are leaving out a lot of details."

Wormmon nodded. "Yup. Anyhow, let's make a deal. A secret alliance, if you will. You help us. We will help you. My plan is to take down the ABB and Empire 88 and have the Undersider replace the gangs in Brockton Bay."

Tattletale said, "I like this plan."

Skitter said, "Do you think it is a good idea to be an official gang and take over Brockton Bay?"

Grue crossed his hand and said, "Hold on everyone. Before we start a war with parahuman gangs in Brockton Bay, I need to ask the important question. Why should we trust you?"

Greg answered, "I want to help the people of Brockton Bay. The city of Brockton Bay is like a person, there could be bad bacteria and good bacteria. I don't need to be a genius to know that murderous bombings by psychos and Nazis are not good for the city. Besides, Coil was going to betray you guys anyway, didn't you find his conditions too good to be true?"

Tattletale spoke dramatically, "I am shocked. I am absolutely speechless! The mysterious backer with an unknown agenda, oversized ego and love giving me grunt work would betray us!."

Regent said, "I like our boss, he paid well."

Grue finally said, "We'll help you track Bakuda down. I hope you get payback for us. As for our future alliance, I guess we will keep our eyes peeled and ears to the ground."

Greg was happy and said, "Awesome!" Greg tried to shake hands with Grue.

Grue ignored Greg and leaned down and handshaked with Wormmon's stubby arms.

Regent said, "Your jealousy is showing."

Grue responded, "Shut up, Regent."

Master and Bait and the Undersiders have officially become secret allies.

POV Grue Brian

Brian was armed with a broom and dustpan. The Undersiders Hideout was a mess and he was going to clean it and make it liveable.

Brian first started in the corner, where Lisa had put her conspiracy board.

Lisa would rotate what she put on the board and the latest conspiracy she was trying to unravel was the mysterious new capes, Master and Bait.

Brian stared at what was on the board. A picture of the Master with his fly mask and cowboy attire. A red thread was connected to a picture of a baby and another to a show called Dragon Ball. As for Bait, there was a connection to Master.

Brian started tidying up all the articles that were left haphazardly on the floor and placing them in a folder.

"Lisa is going to be mad," Brian said out loud. Lisa didn't like Brian touching her board or anything else she used to figure out a mysterious conspiracy. Brian could already imagine her voice bitchy at him.

Brian thought it was worth it. A clean Hideout was good for his headspace.

A good headspace is what Brian needed.

They lost their boss and the only reason Brian wasn't freaking out was that Lisa was clever enough to steal a few million from Coil's account.

Right now, the Brockton Bay cape scene is too hot for comfort, especially with Bakuda trying her hardest to blow everyone up.

Brian was the leader of the Undersiders and needed to prepare to act. A good amount of headspace was needed. A good headspace requires a clean hideout. As such, Brian continued to organize everything neatly and tidy the area.

Brian moved to the TV video game bookshelf.

Alec was playing Mortal Combat on the TV and lying on the couch.

Brian took charge of the situation and began arranging the video game shelf meticulously, sorting the titles alphabetically. Alec, on the other hand, threw a fit, questioning Brian's actions with exaggerated complaints.

"Hey, are you messing with my games?" Alec bellowed as Brian sorted.

"I'm just organizing them alphabetically," Brian replied calmly.

"But I have my own system! How am I supposed to find anything now?"

"Relax, Alec. Alphabetical order makes it easy to locate games. How do you even find anything? Some of the video game discs are in the wrong box."

"By color."

"That's stupid."

"It's not stupid! It's like a ritual for me," Alec defended. "I enjoy the hunt, rediscovering games along the way. It's like exploring a treasure trove of nostalgia."

Brian shook his head. "Well, if you're going to make a mess, at least clean up after yourself," he remarked, undeterred as he continued organizing.

Alec mockingly saluted him. "Yes, mom."

Taylor was reading a book with the title 'Living Dead Girl' on the table.

Brian asked, "Do you want some tea?"

Brian himself preferred coffee. However, he knew that Taylor enjoyed tea. He got better at making tea for Taylor. He even had a nice tea set and biscuits to go with the tea.

Taylor's response was hurried, "Oh, no need to trouble yourself. I'm fine."

Brian's lips twitched in a faint smile. "Ah, well... Hmm... My throat feels parched, and the mood calls for tea. I'll brew some. Should you change your mind, a cup awaits."

With a purposeful stride, Brian made his way to the kettle, filling it with water from the sink.

"Brian," Taylor's voice wavered, hesitation evident in her words. "Do you believe we should form a gang?"

Brian answered, "Yes, I think that's the next step for the Undersiders."

"But wouldn't maintaining our current setup be better?"

"I think transitioning into a gang will solidify our unity as a team."

"I'm not sure I follow."

Brian placed the kettle on the stove and immediately his fingers adjusted the stove's dials with precision. While the water was heating up, Brian moved to the table and sat at the seat across from Taylor.

"When we had our boss, he provided the money and incentives to stay together as a team. Now that we have a lot of money, what is the point of staying together as a team?"

"Friendship?"

"I have my doubts. We work well together, yet our interests do not align and will cause friction. We need a goal to strive for. Anyway, establishing ourselves as a gang secures our unity. Better yet, if we gain territory, we can use our rising reputation to protect us from outside threats. I want this team to help me if I am ever in trouble. Don't you also want the same thing?"

"We could rebrand ourselves as heroes."

A wry chuckle escaped Brian's lips. "I doubt Regent or Bitch would want to help people. Can you fathom Bitch clad in spandex? And Tattletale's sharp tongue would surely lead us astray."

"Ugh..." Taylor groaned as the realization hit her.

"Anyway, we can still do good as a gang. I would love to kick out the Empire from the city. Wouldn't that be great?"

"Yeah..." Taylor answered.

The kettle started whistling and Brian got up to make the tea.

Brian made two cups of tea.

Taylor absently took the cup of tea, obviously thinking about the early conversation.

Brian enjoyed the peace and quiet.

Lisa left her room with a vulpine smile on her face.

Brian turned to Lisa.

Brian asked, "What did you find?"

Lisa answered while giving a smirk of triumph, "Where Bakuda is hiding."

Lisa's answer was music to Brian's ears.

----

POV Vista

Vista was running on coffee and spite.

The PRT, Protectorate and Wards were running around from one disaster bombing to another.

The harm that Bakuda committed to people was unforgivable. Vista was at the scene of people being disfigured by the bombs. Sometimes. Only sometimes, death was a mercy. Especially the victims of the Greyboy's bombs.

The internet had so many pictures of victims of Bakuda bombing that even made full-grown men disgusted and queasy.

The internet was both a blessing and a curse. There's just some information you should not know, just so it doesn't affect your own mental health.

Vista and Clockblocker were now heading toward a parahuman incident.

From what the console told them, Bug Cowboy and Bug Man were spotted going into a hardware store and buying questionable items.

Vista stretched space and allowed herself and Clockblocker to arrive at the hardware store quickly.

They entered the store and saw the shelves filled with various building tools and equipment.

The store manager, a white middle-aged man with square glasses, greeted Vista and Clockblocker. "Hello Wards, I'm the manager of this store and my name is Watson. What can I do for you?"

Clockblocker replied, "We heard you got a visit from Master and Bait. We would like to know what they bought."

Vista corrected, "They called Bug Cowboy and Bug Man."

Manager Walson said, "I'll check the store camera and the register."

Vista and Clockblocker waited until Manager Walson collected all the information.

Vista and Clockblocker received a list of the items that Bug Cowboy and Bug Man purchased.

"Huh," Vista said. "Why would they buy this stuff?"

Clockblocker answered, "Maybe they're building something?"

The list of items bought by Master and Bait.

Ten spray paint cans.

Five gasoline tanks.

Twenty-five dish soaps.

Fifty pounds of metal nails.

Vista and Clockblocker were left with more questions than answers.

This is the new cover image with Wormmon, Greg in (cape costume) and Taylor visiting the ice cream shop.

I did produce any of the images, just a lot of editing

POV Greg

Greg was standing on the rooftop of an abandoned warehouse.

Greg was wearing a bulletproof vest underneath his costume and carried an AK-47.

Most of the villains were active at the late hours of the night in Brockton Bay.

That is why it was important to attack at 10 AM, when the villains were asleep.

The surprise attack only really worked when it was a surprise.

Greg was staring down at an unmarked warehouse with all the windows covered in dark curtains.

Greg didn't see anyone guarding the warehouse. However, according to Tattletale, the warehouse is where Bakuda was hiding. "It ends today, doesn't it? We are going to arrest Bakuda."

Wormmon answered, "Not just Bakuda. If our plan works, this will be the end of the ABB."

Greg replied with a smile. The anticipation was making him jumpy.

Greg decided to open his brand new tablet and check out the plan.

A bird's-eye view of the ABB warehouse was displayed on the map.

To the north of the ABB warehouse was an empty parking lot.

To the west of the ABB warehouse was another abandoned warehouse.

To the east of the ABB warehouse was the bay.

To the south of the ABB warehouse was another abandoned warehouse. Greg and Wormmon were observing the ABB from rooftop of the south warehouse.


The battle plan against the ABB gang was more like a guideline that Greg and Wormmon followed. It was better to separate them into bullet points.

The first bullet point of the plan was to use gasoline and start a fire in the west, east, and south of the ABB warehouses. This way, the ABB gangsters and capes will fight in the abandoned parking lot in the north. The fire path would be shaped like a crescent moon, with the ABB warehouse in the center and the North parking lot being the only path not engulfed in flames.

The second bullet point was to create a field advantage to the north of the ABB warehouse, which was the open parking lot.

We used metal nails to forge Japanese ninja makibishi or caltrops. The caltrops are made up of two or more sharp nails or spines arranged in such a manner that one of them always points upward from a stable base. The caltrops were crude and will be spread across the parking lot or soon-to-be battlefield.


We also spread dish soap everywhere in the parking lot. We are hoping that enemies will slip on the dish soap.

The reason is because all three evolved forms of Wormmon, which are Stingmon, Bucchiemon and Shadramon, can fly. Both the caltrops and dish soap wouldn't affect a flying Digimon. It was effective against Oni Lee, Bakuda and even Lung, who only gained wings near the end of his rising power.

There were individual plans to take down the three ABB Capes and gangsters, but they were more situation-based.

Greg turned to Wormmon and said, "We prepared everything. We set up the battlefield with traps. We spread the gasoline around the ABB warehouse. Are you ready?"

"I was born ready," Wormmon said with resolution.

Greg smiled with excitement and said, "Digi Armour Energize!"

In Greg's left eye, the Crest of Courage appeared.

Wormmon said loudly, "Wormmon Armor Digivolve to! Shadramon!"

Wormmon glowed brightly and Digivolved into Shadramon.

Shadramon said, "Let's end the Azn Bad Boys!"

Shadramon flew toward the area that was covered in oil and aimed his arm cannon at the oil that was spread on the ground.

"Flare Buster!" Shadramon started sending fireballs and lit the oil.

The west, east, and south of the center of the ABB Warehouse had a wall of fire spreading.

Greg had a feeling that the flames would spread much farther. However the priority was to capture Bakuda and end her reign of terror.

Shadramon returned to Greg's side and de-digivolved to Wormmon.

Wormmon asked in concern. "Do you think they know they're getting attacked?"

Greg looked at the flames that were spread out. "Well, it doesn't even look like they have anyone keeping watch... Should I fire my rifle at the warehouse?"

"Don't hit the windows," Wormmon warned. "We don't want to accidentally trigger any bombs, which could potentially cause a chain reaction that will end up killing Bakuda."

"Yeah, killing Bakuda is bad. So I can hit the windows, right? The bullet impact should wake them up."

"Go ahead and hit the walls of the warehouse."

Greg nodded his head. He got his AK-47 rifle aimed at the ABB warehouse. He pulled the trigger and the bullet hit the ABB warehouse wall. Greg smiled that he hit his target. He pulled the trigger two more times and both hit the warehouse.

It didn't take long for ABB gangsters and even Oni Lee to leave the warehouse, searching for the enemy.

Wormmon said, "Wormmon Digivolve to Stingmon!"

Wormmon evolved into Stingmon.

Stingmon said, "I got Oni Lee, aim for the gangster."

Greg saluted, "Will do boss."

Stingmon swiftly flew toward Oni Lee.

Oni Lee and Stingmon were currently battling it out.

There were over thirty ABB gangsters, some had guns, and others were carrying bats and knives.

Greg aimed his rifle and shot at the ABB gangster with a gun in his chest.

As soon as one of the ABB gangsters went down, everyone ended up scattering.

Either it was a planned strategy from ABB gangsters or everyone panicked. Either way, it was making Greg's job much harder to hit anyone with the rifle.

Wormmon once joked that Greg couldn't even hit a fish in a barrel, even if he used a machine gun.

Greg was going to prove Wormmon wrong with his incredible marksmanship.

"Come on guys, stand still," Greg whined as he lined up the shot and missed hitting the ABB gangster.

Moving targets seem to be Greg's weakness.

Greg lost his temper and unleashed all of his bullets.

Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang.

Much to Greg's ire, he couldn't hit anyone. Greg was forced to reload his rifle and try again.

Greg was fortunate that none of the ABB gangsters were a threat to him.

Greg had two advantages, he had a rifle, while the ABB gangster's most advanced weapon was a pistol. Second, he had an environmental advantage, a wall of flames was blocking the gangster from approaching and the warehouse rooftop he was standing on made it difficult for any gangster to reach him.

Greg would continue in vain to hit the ABB gangsters.

----

POV Bakuda

Bakuda was a genius, surrounded by imbeciles.

"Move it, people! Move it faster! If we lose any of my tools, I will blow all your heads off!" Bakuda screamed.

The pickup truck was going to be used to move all the equipment she used to make the bombs and even the surplus bombs were being moved.

Before long, the heroes, rival gangs and even the police were raiding the warehouse.

Bakuda knew that Lung wasn't going to show up.

The idiom that you shouldn't wake up a sleeping dragon was fitting for this clusterfuck of a situation.

The gangsters and the recruited volunteers loaded the pickup truck.

Bakuda was going to escape.

However, first she was going to teach the overgrown bug that you shouldn't mess with her.

Bakuda had her bomb launcher ready and got onto the pickup truck.

"Let's show that insect my beautiful baby bombs!" Bakuda yelled.

The truck started, and the warehouse's garage door opened as the truck left the warehouse.

----

POV Stingmon

Fighting Oni Lee was like trying to swat an annoying mosquito. He constantly replaced himself with a clone, and just when you thought you'd hit him, he'd stab you with his dagger.

The clones were numerous, making the fight feel like a game of Whac-A-Mole. Each clone disappeared with a single hit.

Stingmon had initially thought their battle would be a prolonged exchange of blows, like a scene from Dragon Ball Z, but he quickly realized how wrong he was.

Oni Lee was a skilled and experienced fighter who had perfected his power to its fullest potential.

Stingmon hovered just above the ground, his stingers poised and ready.

Oni Lee, wielding a dagger in each hand, slashed with his left hand while throwing the right-hand dagger at Stingmon's face.

Stingmon leaned to the right, using the rotation to deliver a lightning-fast kick to Oni Lee's side, disintegrating the clone into ash.

Two more Oni Lee clones appeared on either side of Stingmon, aiming their daggers at his vulnerable armpits.

Using his momentum, Stingmon extended his arms like helicopter blades and slashed both clones with his stingers.

Stingmon flew into the sky, hearing a loud screeching sound below as space itself twisted. The reason: the clones had dropped Bakuda's Tinkertech grenades at his feet.

Spotting Oni Lee, Stingmon swiftly flew toward him and swung his stinger like a sword. The clone dissolved after the attack.

Oni Lee reappeared a few feet behind Stingmon.

Stingmon flew back and stabbed the new Oni Lee, but this one was also a clone.

Another Oni Lee appeared just as quickly. Stingmon rushed at him, attacking relentlessly.

No matter where Oni Lee teleported, Stingmon was always one step behind. He would attack, and Oni Lee would replace himself with a clone.

Sometimes Oni Lee dropped bombs, other times he chained his teleports with dagger attacks.

All attacks were useless against Oni Lee.

Stingmon was as swift as the wind, and his reaction time was just as quick. He could keep up with Oni Lee's teleportation.

Oni Lee moved toward the parking lot, where the traps were laid out.

Stingmon pressed the offensive.

A pickup truck emerged from the ABB warehouse. Bakuda stood in the back with her grenade launcher.

She fired five bombs at Stingmon. "Have a taste of these overgrown cockroach!"

Stingmon swiftly flew up, allowing the bombs to detonate below him. The explosions created a swirling vortex, and one turned the air gray, a Grayboy bubble bomb.

Oni Lee jumped onto the moving pickup truck and was trying to make a getaway with Bakuda.

As the pickup truck went toward the parking lot where Stingmon and Greg set up a large number of traps, Stingmon had a premonition of a car crash.

The pickup truck slipped on the dish soap and started to lose control. The wheels were then punctured by the sharp caltrops, deflating the tire and making the pickup truck uncontrollable.

"Hit the brakes! Hit the brakes! Hit the fucking brakes!!!" Bakuda screamed like a lunatic as the pickup truck started spinning in a 360-degree circle.

Oni Lee was forced to jump off the uncontrollable pickup truck and land safely on the ground.

Stingmon flew quickly at him, swinging his stinger like a sword.

Stingmon ended up destroying an Oni Lee clone.

Oni Lee teleported to another location in the parking lot, but stepped on a sharp caltrop that dug into his shoe and pierced his foot.

For a second, Oni Lee looked down at his injured foot.

That was all the time Stingmon needed.

He pointed his stinger forward and charged at full speed toward Oni Lee.

Stingmon's stinger punctured Oni Lee's chest, creating a hole.

A clone replaced Oni Lee, only to turn to ash.

For a brief moment, Stingmon thought he hadn't injured Oni Lee. However, the hot blood on his stinger proved he had wounded the elusive parahuman.

"Argh!" Oni Lee appeared behind Stingmon.

Oni Lee was clenching his bloody chest as he was on the fours in the asphalt parking lot.

Stingmon hesitated, yet he steeled his will for the task ahead. Stingmon was going to kill Oni Lee. "I can't keep being a coward."

Stingmon moved quickly behind Oni Lee. Stingmon thrust his stinger into the back of Oni Lee's head, piercing through Oni Lee's skull, piercing through Oni Lee's brain, and finally ending Oni Lee's life.

Stingmon took his stinger out from Oni Lee's skull. Stingmon could smell the rusted scent of blood from his stinger moving to his nose.

Stingmon hunched over like he was going to barf but couldn't. Stingmon spoke with regret, "Oh god."

Stingmon couldn't even start regretting what he did, a loud explosion deafened his ears and smoke covered his eyesight.

----

POV Bakuda

The pickup truck finally stopped spinning like a top. Two of its wheels were deflated, making it difficult to drive.

Bakuda felt like throwing up, but she held it in.

She needed a plan to escape. The attack had been coordinated to block any escape routes, and they had set nasty traps. By the time she and Oni Lee dealt with the attackers, the heroes would be after them.

Bakuda took out one of her more harmless bombs—a smoke bomb designed based on the power of the Undersiders' leader, Grue.

It needed more power and range.

She quickly dismantled another bomb and took out its battery. She added the battery to the smoke bomb to enhance its range and power.

Activating the heat vision on her mask, something she hadn't made herself but found useful, she tossed the smoke bomb into the air and activated it.

The smoke bomb created a huge, wide mist of darkness that covered the entire area.

Bakuda could see through the mist with her heat vision mask and started running out of the parking lot. She slipped a few times on the soap-coated ground but pressed on, carefully avoiding the caltrops.

Bakuda didn't rush into the city recklessly; that would have made it easy for her to be tracked down and captured.

Instead, she headed to the bay and jumped into the water.

As the cold water chilled her body, she immediately regretted her decision.

Before she left, Bakuda decided to leave one last surprise for those who had attacked her.

She activated the bombs in the ABB warehouse and on the truck.

The explosion was music to her ears.

Now, no one could access her Tinkertech, and she hoped that Master and Bait were either hurt or killed by the unexpected blast.

Bakuda began her arduous swim to escape her pursuers.

POV Greg

Greg and Stingmon stared at the destruction they had caused. There were dead bodies, property damage and fire. The fire was everywhere and the wind was spreading it. There was also a parking lot filled with sharp, pointy caltrops and slippery surfaces from the dish soap.

Greg asked, "What now?"

Stingmon answered, "Call the PRT to clean up this mess."

Greg nodded his head and said, "Alright."

Greg didn't even know where to begin to fix the area after a cape fight.

Stingmon asked, "I'm wondering, how do you handle killing people?"

"Betty," Greg said. He started to recall a black horse with a white snout. The hot, humid air and the thrill of riding his favorite horse on his grandparents farm. Back then, he thought he was a real cowboy. "I used to have a horse named Betty. Betty got sick and I had to put her down."

"Oh, I'm sorry I brought it up."

"No, it's fine. I think in a way, I needed to be the one who killed Betty, since I was the one who was closest to her..." Greg said, "It is much easier to kill a human being than to kill an innocent horse."

"Greg, you're hardcore."

"I know, let me call the PRT."

"Ask for hot chocolate and marshmallows."

Greg made the call to the PRT and both Stingmon and Greg waited awhile for the PRT and police to arrive.

----

Greg was holding Wormmon when the Brockton Bay Police arrived.

Much to Wormmon's joy, he did receive a cup of hot chocolate and marshmallows from a police officer.

Greg watched as the police started blocking the area by putting in traffic cones and yellow warning tape.

The Brockton Bay Fireman arrived and started to extinguish the fire with their water hose.

The PRT Troopers arrived in black, unmarked vans. They surrounded Greg and Wormmon, they seemed to be ready for a fight.

The heroes finally arrived. The heroes consist of Armsmaster, Miss Militia, Triumph and Velocity.

Greg recalled the times he meant the heroes individually in his civilian identity and his cape costume. Yet it was spellbound to see nearly half the roster of Brockton Bay heroes in front of him.

Armsmaster, the leader of Brockton Bay Protectorates, was the first to speak. "Bug Cowboy and Bug Man, do you have any idea what you have done?"

Greg smirked and said, "My man, I'm saving the city from bad guys and kicking so much ass, it's insane. My leg is getting seriously tired from all the butt-kicking, but these villains just keep coming back for more."

Armsmaster continued, "The statement was a rhetorical question. You attacked the ABB and endangered civilian lives. The explosions and the fire seem to be spreading at an alarming rate. You caused millions of dollars worth of property damage. What is unforgivable is that you have killed people."

Greg replied, "Of course there will be a mass amount of property damage and death. Brockton Bay is in a state that's so deep down in the gutter that conventional means won't help anyone. Come on guys, you have to admit, we can't hold back. We killed Oni Lee. That is a win for the good guys! You heroes haven't had a win for a long time. I don't just want myself to win, I want to see the heroes win!"

"The PRT and Protectorate are not just cleaning up the destruction that Bakuda's bomb has caused. We are also tracking Bakuda down. While our operations are confidential, I can assure you, we are using everything available to take down the ABB."

"Everything except giving every ABB cape a kill order."

Armsmaster waved his hands at his surroundings. "This is your solution. Spreading death and destruction. We want to minimize the harm while also taking down the villains. Do you really think the war you caused can be justified?"

"When you're left with only options that are perceived as evil, you often find yourself choosing the lesser of two evils. We could have left Oni Lee for you to arrest, but there's a good chance he would have escaped and caused further chaos. Another option was to incapacitate him by injuring or removing his eyes, rendering his powers useless. We also had the choice of releasing him and risking more casualties. Finally, we could have ended his life. Which of these options would you guys have favored?"

Triumph answered, "Knock the villain out and keep Oni Lee asleep with anesthesia until we have a prison that can hold him or send him to the Bird Cage."

Armsmaster said, "I would have invented a tinkertech device to capture Oni Lee without killing or crippling him."

Greg shrugged. "If you can't hold Lung in your custody, you guys definitely can't hold Oni Lee in your custody either. Why am I talking in circles? I am going to give you a chance. Let's make a truce until Bakuda is captured. I can help you guys find her."

Armsmaster asked. "You are telling me to ignore all the crimes you committed and work together to capture Bakuda?"

Greg smiled and nodded his head. "Yes, of course!"

Armsmaster pointed his halberd at Greg and said in a commanding voice. "Bug Cowboy, you're under arrest!"

Greg was confused and shocked. "What are you doing?"

"Your intentions appear noble, but your methods are too extreme," Armsmaster said. "If you genuinely aspire to be a hero and aid the city, you should have no problem cooperating with us. Please consider remaining in custody temporarily to address our questions. Rest assured, we will apprehend Bakuda, but using optimal force."

Velocity said, shaking his head, "There are too many deaths to ignore. We can't have a vigilante killing people in the streets."

Miss Militia created a gun and said, "Please surrender."

Triumph muttered softly, "This doesn't feel right."

"No way, I thought it would work..." Greg muttered. "I... really wanted to work together with the heroes."

Wormmon said, "Wormmon Digivolve to Stingmon."


Wormmon glowed brightly and evolved into Stingmon.

The heroes got into defensive postures.

Stingmon grabbed the back of Greg's shirt and swiftly flew away from the heroes.

"Capture them!" Armsmaster yelled.

"Armsmaster, they are gone," Triumph said wearily.

The heroes could only watch as Master and Bait flew away.

----

POV Bakuda.

The water in the bay was warm on the surface but cold underneath.

With labored movements, Bakuda clawed her way onto the rocky beach, her body exhausted from the swim.

Bakuda needed to retreat and reach the safety of the ABB Safehouse.

Fumbling with the radio phone, Bakuda's frustration mounted as she struggled to establish contact with her comrades. The water destroyed her radio phone.

Bakuda cursed, "Piece of junk. A little water and it breaks."

Bakuda started heading toward another ABB Base where she could rest and rebuild the equipment she lost.

The streets were empty, with only the homeless out and about.

Bakuda hurriedly walked through the streets. It wasn't safe for her in broad daylight and to be outside. Someone would spot her and make things difficult, either the other gangs or heroes.

Seeking refuge in the shadows of an alleyway, Bakuda stumbled upon an unexpected encounter. Three Empire Eighty-Eight gangsters were relaxed as they smoked. Both Bakuda and the gangsters froze in astonishment at the sudden encounter.

It broke when one of the members started to take pictures of Bakuda with his phone and said, "That's Bakuda! We found her guys."

The second member was pulling out a gun and aiming at Bakuda. "Idiots! Don't just stand there gawking! Shoot her!"

The third member was running away.

The second member fires his gun in rapid shots.

Bakuda's bulletproof vest was hit by the bullets. To retaliate, she launched a bomb at the two Empire Eighty-Eight gangsters.

Bakuda said, "Boom!"

The bomb exploded, ripping the space in like a whirlpool. The two Empire Eighty-Eight gangsters were sucked in and turned into a grotesque meatball.

Bakuda snorted, "Low-level henchmen can't possibly beat me," Bakuda said. She checked how many bombs she had remaining. "I desperately need to restock on more of my bombs."

Bakuda removed her mask, she didn't want to be recognized. Too bad she didn't have spare clothes to change into. She was still cold from taking the dip in the water in the bay.

Bakuda would continue her journey to the ABB Safehouse. Making sure to stay out of sight of the heroes, gangsters and whoever else was hostile toward her.

Finally, after a long journey, she reached the ABB Safehouse and entered its walls.

The ABB Safehouse was once a person's home and now serves as a backup base for the ABB members. It was rundown and had a layer of dust everywhere.

The only benefit is that it has working electricity and water.

Bakuda crashed on the couch and closed her eyes to rest. When Master and Bait attacked the ABB warehouse in the morning, it was when Bakuda was sleeping. Currently, she is running on two and a half hours of sleep and needs more to get back to fighting conditions.

In not even ten minutes, a bright light illuminated the sky. The light flooded the ABB Safehouse living room.

Bakuda was forced to open her eyes in irritation.

Bakuda moved to the windows, peaked out the window and saw Purity.

Purity said, "Surrender now, Bakuda! You will pay for all your crimes!"

Bakuda sneered, "Who did this Nazi bitch think she is?"

Purity created a large double helix of light in her hand. It grew larger until it was twenty feet long. Purity swung down the light structure and cut the ABB Safehouse roof as it dug into the building.

Bakuda was furious as the ABB Base was being destroyed. "You are an oversized light bulb and you're going down!"

Bakuda charged out of the house and fired a bomb at Purity.

Purity flew away from the bomb.

Bakuda covered her ears.

The bomb exploded and a high-pitched ringing sound covered the area from the explosions.

Glass from nearby buildings was destroyed, as were glasses from cars.

Purity was affected badly, as her ears felt like they were going to explode.

Bakuda smirked confidently and fired three more Tinkertech bombs.

Purity flew high making sure she wasn't anyway close to the bombs.

The first bomb detonated in bright light.

The second bomb twisted space.

The third bomb made the air hazy.

Bakuda pulled the trigger on her grenade launcher and discovered, to her horror, that it was empty. She had no more bombs.

Bakuda started to flee and she was approaching an alleyway between two buildings for cover.

Purity ears rang and weren't getting any better. She fired beams of light at Bakuda.

Bakuda dashed into an alleyway as the beam of light scorched behind her.

Bakuda grabbed a rock on the ground and put it in her grenade launcher.

Bakuda turned around and fired the rock at Purity. Bakuda roared and said, "Eat this!"

Purity immediately bolted far away from the rock, thinking it was a bomb.

Bakuda didn't see Purity, she made a bet that Purity wasn't watching her at the moment.

Bakuda quickly jumped into a large heap of garbage bags in the alleyway.

Purity flew toward the alleyway and didn't see Bakuda. She looked for Bakuda in the alleyway and found nothing; she quickly flew away to search for Bakuda somewhere else.

Bakuda waited five minutes and then slowly came out of the garbage bag pile, removing the discarded diapers, rotten fruit and questionable stains from her clothes.

Bakuda, with much trouble, was able to escape Purity's pursuit.

Bakuda heard police sirens. She groaned. It was going to be such a pain to escape to a new safe house.

Bakuda started running.

----

POV Greg

There was a box waiting for Greg and Wormmon when they returned to the apartment.

An innocent-looking box from R.O.B. to a person called Tommy.

"Another mysterious package," Greg said as he opened the package.

"Awesome, that's the Digimental of Knowledge!" Worrmmon said.

Inside the package was the Digimental of Knowledge. A yellow metal egg with a drill coming out of the top portions of the egg. The Crest of Knowledge was on the egg.

Greg grinned and picked up the Digimental of Knowledge and said, "Digi Armour Energize!"

Nothing happened to Wormmon.

Greg scratched his head. "Okay, I did this before. How do I get this working?"

Wormmon puffed up his chest. "Elementary, my dear Greg. You don't have the trait of knowledge that the Digimental of Knowledge is searching for to activate."

"Hey! I am not stupid."

"I never said you were stupid? Anyway, I have a perfect idea to get the Digimental of Knowledge to acknowledge you. I want you to memorize the names of all fifty states in the United States of America."

"Why though?"

"Knowledge is the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject. Memorizing the 50 states is a good test. If it was too difficult for you to comprehend, I think we would take months to years to activate the Digimental of Knowledge."

"Why though?"

"We need a bench mark. Can you tell me the names of all 50 states in the USA?"

"Not on the top of my head. I am going to need something to write it down with. Let me get a notebook and pen."

Greg retrieved his notebook and pen.

Wormmon placed the Digimental of Knowledge on a cushion so it could observe Greg as he worked.

Greg started to write down the states he could remember.

Wormmon tilted his head in confusion. "Greg?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you write down Gotham?"

"Isn't that a state?" Greg said it with a confused expression.

"No, that's a fictional city in the world of DC. Also, Philadelphia isn't a state either, it is a city."

"Are you sure?"

"We can check at the end. Keep writing down states."

"Okay."

After over thirty minutes, Greg gave the list to Wormmon to check.

Wormmon spoke about the results. "Out of the 50 states you memorized, 8. You are going to have to study hard.

"Do I have to?"

"Getting a new armor digivolution would help. To summarize, yes."

"I hate studying." Greg was crying. T__T.

----

POV Uncle Bill

Bill woke up in the evening. As a night nurse, he slept during the day and at night he would work.

It was almost time for his shift to start at the hospital.

As Bill left his room, he saw his nephew doing something strange.

Greg was looking at the USA map, muttering to himself.

Greg looked up and stared at Bill with mad eyes. "Bill, do you have any Adderall?"

"You have a test coming up?"

Greg sighed and said, "I got to memorize the 50 states to impress an egg."

Bill thought for a moment and said, "I don't have any Adderall. But I have index cards you can use as flashcards."

"I will take the index cards. Thank you very much."

Bill nodded and got the index cards he kept in his drawers for his nephew Greg.

Bill thought that it was good that Greg was studying.

----

POV Greg

Greg had used different strategies to memorize the 50 states in the USA.

The first strategy was just to memorize the states.

Ended in FAILURE.

The second strategy was to separate the USA into different sections. For New England, there is Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York and New Jersey. For the Midwest there are the states, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico.

Ended in FAILURE.

The third strategy was using flashcards. For example, TX was the abbreviation for Texas. One side will have the abbreviation and the other side will have the state name.

Ended in FAILURE.

The fourth method was song.

Greg was wearing a tux, a top hat, tap shoes and a cane.

Wormmon and the Digimental of Knowledge sat on the couch and watched.

Greg used his cane into a makeshift microphone, channeling his inner diva as he belted out the opening lines of the song: "Fifty-nifty United States from thirteen original colonies. Fifty nifty stars in the flag that billows so beautifully in the breeze." With each note, his voice resonated through the room.

Tapping the cane gently on the floor, Greg's voice flowed effortlessly as he sang, "Shout 'em, scout 'em. Tell all about 'em, One by one till we've given a day to every state in the USA."

As the tempo picked up, Greg's cane became an extension of his rhythm, twirling and spinning in perfect synchronization with the beat. With lightning speed, he rattled off the names of each state, his performance a whirlwind of motion and sound. "Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut. La. La. La."

Greg singing continued, "Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan. Na. .Na.Na."

Greg singing continued, "Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada; New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, O-hi-o. Ho. Ho. Ho."

Greg finished the song,"Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas; Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wy-o-ming."

Greg ended the song with jazz hands.

Wormmon clapped his stubs together and said, "Bravo! Bravo! You finally memorized all the states in the USA!"

Greg performed the dance routine.

Digimental of Knowledge started to glow brightly.

Wormmon said in excitement, "It's working!"

"Super Good!" Greg pumped his arm in the air in excitement.

Greg took the Digimental of Knowledge and held it toward Wormmon.

Greg yelled in excitement, "Digi Armour Energize!"

Wormmon started to say, "Wormmon Armor Digivolve to! Searchmon!"

Searchmon has a sleek, futuristic design reminiscent of a mix between a high-tech robot and a beetle.


Greg got on his knees and yelled, "We are number one, baby!"

Searchmon possessed the ability to perceive the wireframe blueprint of the building and people as they moved. It was as if it had the power of a bat's echolocation ability on steroids, he could scan the entirety of the block from where he was standing.

"Greg! I now have the power to find Bakuda!" Searchmon said it in excitement and glee.

"Awesome. I'll get my costume on! We are going hunting!"

"You do need to rest, Greg. I think you have been studying for about five hours."

"I don't need rest, I need justice."

"...Drink some coffee at least."

----

Greg was driving the van. While Searchmon was on top of the van, scanning for Bakuda.

Searchmon was looking through different buildings for Bakuda. The new form was able to pinpoint the sound of Bakuda's voice. Bakuda's voice was available online when she made an announcement of her debut online and started the bombing.

Greg and Searchmon were looking long and hard for Bakuda in Brockton Bay. They even worried that Bakuda might decide to run away.

Searchmon heard Bakuda's voice and he could see the wireframe outline of Bakuda working on making a small bomb.

Searchmon said, "I found Bakuda!"

Greg replied, "Awesome, show me where she is!"

Searchmon led Greg to drive toward Bakuda's new base.

Greg was now parked in front of an abandoned mechanic shop.

Greg asked in wonder, "Isn't this place too small?"

Searchmon answered, "Well, maybe we destroyed Bakuda's workshop and now she is trying to gather tools and other supplies from here? I think she's on her last leg. I don't see any other gangsters or even traps. Just her and a few of her bombs."

Greg nodded his head. "Alright then, what's the plan?"

Searchmon de-digivolve to Wormmon.

Wormmon answered, "Have me digivolve to Bucchiemon. I will go in first through a broken window and then I will disarm Bakuda. When about a minute passes, you will enter through the front door and tie her up with some rope."

Greg showed Wormmon his lasso. "Not rope, lasso."

Wormmon shrugged his shoulders and said, "Whatever works for the cowboy. Can you digivolve me?"

"Sure!" Greg then said, "Digi Armour Energize!"

In Greg's left eye, the Crest of Kindness appeared.

Wormmon started to say, "Wormmon Armor Digivolve to! Bucchiemon!"


Bucchiemon floated in the air. "Let's do this."

----

POV Digimon Bucchiemon

Bucchiemon squeezed through the broken window and entered the abandoned mechanic shop.

Bakuda was working on one of her bombs near a table. Completely engrossed in making her bomb, she was in a tinkering fugue.

Bakuda wasn't aware of Bucchiemon's presence.

Bucchiemon made a heart shape with his hand and said the attack, "Heavy Beam!"

A heart-shaped beam of pink light hit Bakuda.

"What is this!" Bakuda yelled as she was getting hit.

Bakuda picked up her grenade launcher and glared at the fairy-like digimon. For unknown reasons, she couldn't attack.

"What are you doing to me?" Bakuda demanded to know.

"My attack soothes your heart and quells your fighting spirit," Bucchiemon answered as it kept firing the Heavy Beam at Bakuda.

Greg entered the abandoned mechanic shop and immediately spotted Bakuda.

With a dramatic flourish, Greg spun his lasso above his head before skillfully hurling it towards Bakuda, ensnaring her within its coils. With a swift tug, he securely bound Bakuda with the rope.

Greg said, "Looks like I caught a big one."

Bakuda growled out, "Let me go."

Bucchiemon said, "Tie her tight and remove the Tinkertech she has on herself."

Greg responded with a thumbs up and said, "Will do."

Greg removed the Tinkertech on Bakuda and secured the lasso around her. Bakuda couldn't even move her legs or arms. Bakuda was tightly snarled by the lasso.

Bucchiemon said in appreciation, "You have talent with rope knots."

Greg smiled and said, "Thank you."

"Lung is going to kill you," Bakuda said. "Rip your pieces and then burn you alive. No one messes with me. By the end of the day, I will be out of prison."

"Yeah, yeah," Greg took out his phone and took a picture of Bakuda tied up by a rope. "I am going to make a cape account on PHO and post that we caught Bakuda. I might as well mention that we killed Oni Lee. Is there anything you want to write on the forum?"

Bucchiemon thought for a moment and said, "Yes, say that I respect the Brockton Bay Protectorate since they make great janitors."

"Janitors?" Greg said, "Really? Can you not pick a fight with the heroes?"

"What?" Bucchiemon said it in confusion. "They're only good for cleaning up our cape battle messes."

Bakuda said, "Enjoy your victory while it lasts. I am making a special bomb for both of you."

Bucchiemon said, "I will deliver her to the PRT. She got sassy while she tied up."

Greg nodded and muttered, "Hopefully she stays in PRT custody."

Bucchiemon nodded. "We can only hope."

----

POV Digimon Stingmon

In front of the PRT building was a PRT squad van, with Vista and Clockblocker enjoying coffee.

Stingmon decided to hand off Bakuda to the Wards.

Stingmon carried Bakuda like a sack of potatoes.

Vista and Clockblocker saw Stingmon as he landed in front of them.

"Hello, you two. I'm dropping off my freshly caught cape villain," Stingmon unceremoniously dropped Bakuda in front of the feet of the wards. "That is Bakuda."

The two Wards examined Bakuda, noting she was tied up by rope and had tape on her mouth.

"This is Bakuda?" Clockblocker said in wonder. "You caught her?"

Stingmon nodded his head. "Bakuda has a dead man switch, so if she dies, everyone that she implanted a bomb into will also blow up in a hellish explosion. I'll be going now."

Stingmon flew away, leaving two flabbergasted Wards and tied up Bakuda.

POV Triumph Rory Christner

The PRT office had rows of cubicles with office workers filing documents. It was past the twentieth century, however, bureaucracy hasn't changed. Nearly everything was done on paper.

Rory was handwriting the report on the property damage that occurred from the Master and Bait battle with the ABB.

Rory noted that only two ABB gangsters have died.

Rory read over the report with a fine-tooth comb.

Interviews conducted by captured ABB gangsters said the battle had a headcount of forty-two ABB gangsters, some of whom were forced to fight by Bakuda after being brutally implanted with a bomb in their heads.

The forty-two ABB gangsters engaged in battle against a single sniper.

The sniper in question matched the descriptions of Master.

Master seems to have a higher vantage point, as he was sniping on top of an adjutant warehouse building and a wall of fire to stop the gangsters from getting closer to him.

It was a good plan, because the gangsters weren't going to jump into the wall of fire to take down the cape in question.

Master has also skillfully killed two gun-wielders who were a threat to him.

Rory wondered why the Master didn't kill more people. Maybe he only killed the gangster who was a threat to him and only fired a warning shot at the rest.

Rory then reviews the battle between Oni Lee and Bait.

The battle itself was sketchy, with not enough eyewitnesses to tell the details of the battle, but Oni Lee made a mistake and Bait killed him.

Bakuda then ran away with a smoke explosion.

Master and Bait then tracked Bakuda down and handed her over to PRT custody.

Rory would admit that Master and Bait were effective in taking down villains. They caused mayhem, yet they got the job done.

Rory leaned back in his comfortable office chair.

Rory pondered if the PRT and Protectorate Heroes handled the ABB raid, would it go smoothly? Were Master and Bait right about killing capes?

----

Rory went to the break room to get some coffee.

Hannah, the civilian identity of Miss Militia, was standing next to the water collier. A plastic water cup in her hand.

Rory approached Hannah and lifted his coffee toward her. "Hi Hannah, how has everything been?"

Hannah grimaced, "I have been doing triple shifts for too long and I think Armsmaster hasn't had a wink of sleep for days. Now that Bakuda has been captured, we don't need to worry about buildings blowing up, people blowing up or worse, both at the same time."

"Master and Bait were the ones who caught Bakuda and delivered her to our doorsteps. Doesn't it make you frustrated? We call ourselves heroes and a couple of fresh capes capture the most wanted villain in the city."

Hannah frowned. "I wouldn't use the word frustrating to describe how I'm feeling. I feel more relieved that Bakuda was captured. I would have liked to have given her a piece of my mind. Right now, though, I'm just happy that it is all over."

"It is not over. We still don't know how the ABB will react," Rory said. What was left unsaid is that they were worried about Lung.

Rory recalled the Armsmaster saying he developed a drug that would knock the ABB gang leader out of commission. Since it did the job the first time, it should work again.

Rory continued, "I understand why we needed to keep Bakuda alive to remove the deadman switch. Now, that isn't an issue. Shouldn't we execute her? Lung will obviously try to break her out."

Hannah shook her head and said, "We shouldn't be the ones to decide if Bakuda lives or dies."

"We are risking people's lives by keeping her alive."

"Do you know why us heroes aren't allowed to decide to kill people, Rory?"

Rory frowned and thought about the question. "We need the manpower to fight the Endbringers?"

"Yes, that is one reason. The other is that we are also humans. If we made a mistake and killed someone innocent, wouldn't that be awful? It is much harder to bring a person back from the dead than it is to release them from jail. The second is the role of the hero in current society."

Hannah sighed, her gaze drifting back to the plastic cup of water. "I want to live in a world where places like Brockton Bay aren't constantly on the brink of becoming warzones. If we start killing all our villains, more will come. We'll go from one battle to another. I want to make Brockton Bay a place where people can go about their lives without fear, knowing that they're safe and protected. We strive for stability—the status quo. Maybe in the future, when the situation is in our favor, there will be no gangs and less blood shed. It's nice to think about."

Rory thought about what Hannah said. Hannah answered one question, but it raises so many more.

Given the current manpower of the Brockton Bay Protectorates, are they only capable of maintaining stability? Is preserving the status quo and ensuring stability more important than holding villains accountable and achieving justice?

Rory drank the coffee, it was too bitter for his taste.

----

Rory was in his costume as Triumph.

All the Brockton Bay Protectorates Heroes and Wards were present in the conference room.

The conference table was a long oak table.

The adult heroes on the right side of the table were Armsmaster, Assault, Battery, Dauntless, Miss Militia, Velocity and myself, Triumph.

The wards sitting on the left side of the table are Aegis, Clockblocker, Browbeat, Gallant, Kid Win and Vista.

Director Piggot was sitting at the head of the conference table with a document in front of her. "Let's begin the meeting," Director Piggot said, folding her fingers. "The first topic on our agenda is to have a press meeting and reveal Bakuda's has been captured."

Armsmaster, "We should also include how the Wards arrested Bakuda."

Dauntless said, "Didn't Master and Bait capture Bakuda?"

Miss Militia said, "They are called Bug Man and Bug Cowboy."

Assault raised her hand and said, "I vote we change the names Bug Man and Bug Cowboy. They're really dumb and not as catchy."

Armsmaster said, "Regardless of what transpired, technically, the Wards still arrested her. It will be helpful for our image if we reveal that we did it."

Dauntless said, "We are taking credit away from the people that actually captured her. I might not agree with the way Master and Bait acted, but they deserve the credit."

Director Piggot said, "I will mention that independent capes captured Bakuda and the Protectorates have her in our custody. We don't want parents to think we allowed Wards to battle a dangerous bomber."

Dauntless shook his head and said, "It's a start."

"Good," Director Piggot said, nodding her head. "Next on our agenda, we need to give a trial to Bakuda and have her sent off to a secure prison. Hopefully it is the Bird Cage, so she can never escape. Armsmaster, I hope you prepared a plan for the transport and guard details."

Armsmaster said, "Actually, I would like to offer Bakuda as a Probationary Protectorate member."

Director Piggot looked at Armsmaster like he was crazy. "No," Director Piggot hissed.

A tense standoff between Director Piggot and Armsmaster began.

Armsmaster started to explain, "Bakuda bombs are extremely powerful. Especially her skill in replicating other Parahuman powers into the bombs. She was able to create a Greyboy bomb, which I believe can hurt an Endbringer. We could even break the Greyboy bubble if we studied the bomb and reversed the effect. If I can reverse engineer her bombs, well, the possibilities are endless."

Director Piggot said, "Miss Militia, please list the deaths, injuries and damage to our city that Bakuda is responsible for."

Miss Militia said, "158 deaths, 564 injuries and estimates of 12 million worth of property damage."

Director Piggot slammed her palm on her desk and said, "Bakuda needs to go to jail. She had killed too many people and caused too much damage! Getting Bakuda's help in facing the Endbringer is like getting the help of Siberia against the Endbringer. It will work in theory, but it doesn't work in reality."

Armsmaster said, "If you don't want Bakuda to be a member of the Protectorates. Then how about allowing Bakuda's trial to be on hold for a month so I can study her bombs? If not, I will go to the Legend and Chief Director, they will be more agreeable about my proposal."

"This. This is going to be a disaster..." Director Piggot rubbed her temple. Director Piggot glared at Armsmaster and said, "Go ahead and talk to the Legend and Chief Director about your plan. If they are in agreement. Then I will postpone Bakuda's trial for a month. I want you to know that you will be responsible for Bakuda's imprisonment. If Bakuda escapes, there will be consequences for you, Armsmaster. I will go to Legend and Chief Director Rebecca and make sure you are demoted. I will personally crucify you. Don't. mess. up."

Armsmaster nodded his head and said, "I won't let you down."

Director Piggot turned away from Armsmaster and said, "Hopefully the next item on our agenda is easier. What do you believe about the threat rating for Bug Man and Bug Cowboy?"

Dauntless answered, "Master should have Thinker 7, considering he's saying he is from the future. Bait though is fast, so a Mover 4, Brute 4 and Changer 4."

Velocity said, "Bait is a Mover 6, he is very fast. I will have trouble keeping up with him when he flies."

Armmaster said, "I do not believe Bug Cowboy cannot see the future. We can lower the rating to Thinker 3."

Triumph added, "Master achievements speak for themselves. Capturing Shadow Stalker using electricity. Warning the city about the bombing and escaping our custody. Capturing Coil and saving Din—I mean, the Major niece. Finding ABB Base while they were hiding. Killing Oni Lee and capturing Bakuda. At this point, we should raise the Master rating to Thinker 8."

Miss Militia added, "Even if the Master is not a time traveler, I do believe he knows what will happen in the future. It would explain how he found out our civilian identities and located the villains so quickly."

Armsmaster grumbled, "Another week and I would have found Bakuda."

Director Piggot wrote down the rating in her documents. Director Piggot then said, "Good, we will now talk about attending the fundraiser. Who wants to represent the PRT?"

Armsmaster asked, "Director, how should we approach Bug Man and Bug Cowboy?"

Director Piggot said, "The News Station that was broken in doesn't want to push for legal action considering recent events. On record, they only killed three people. Two are ABB gangsters and the other is psychopathic teleporter Oni Lee. I personally don't want a battle between PRT and those two to occur that will only hurt the city when we still have other serious villainous capes to worry about. As such, treat Bug Man and Bug Cowboy as independent heroes. If possible, invite them to the PRT Headquarter so I can speak with them."

Armsmaster said, "I believe we should attempt to capture and arrest them."

Director Piggot said, "I am not receding the arrest warrant. But you need to understand that public sentiment is on their side. Especially since we looked like buffoons when we failed to capture a mad bomber that was terrorizing the city for a week. It would turn us into a media circus and look bad for us if we did arrest them. Bug Man and Bug Cowboy are reckless, they made a number of amateur mistakes when trying to capture Bakuda in the ABB Base raid. They will get more cocky now that they arrested Bakuda. If everything works out, we can recruit them as new Wards."

Armsmaster nodded his head and said, "Yes, I understand."

"Good," Piggot nodded her head and then said, "Let's continue with the earlier topic. The fundraiser is in the Art Gallery. Who would like to attend?"

Triumph and other heroes continue business as usual.

POV Digimon Wormmon

Yesterday was spent resting and recuperating. The battle with the ABB gang completely wiped out Wormmon and Greg.

Wormmon was in Greg's room.

Wormmon was on the computer, looking through articles. He read about Canary's upcoming trial.

Canary was a parahuman who was an indie singer. Her power allowed her to master people by voice alone. She accidentally said something to her ex-boyfriend that ended up with her ex-boyfriend performing self-castration. It was obviously an accident, but Canary ended up going to the Bird Cage.

Wormmon muttered, "We might as well break out Canary from her holding cell."

In the story of Parahuman Worm, few were wholly good or evil, most were morally gray. Canary, who was neutral, was dealt a bad hand. Compared to most parahumans, who were just awful, her neutrality made her seem virtuous.

Wormmon considered adding her to the team of Master and Bait. However, they didn't have a house or even enough money to support her.

The Undesiders, though, had plenty of both. Canary will be a fine Undersiders member.

Now, another problem to consider. Was it worth the risk of going to Boston when Lung might attack around the corner?

It would be great if they took down Lung before he counterattacked. They were going to need to find Lung. Which wasn't going to be easy since Searchmon found Bakuda using the sound of her voice.

Bait battled with the conundrum in his head.

He didn't trust the heroes who protected the city to actually do their job.

They would only be gone one day, but knowing how the world worked, the day they were gone to Boston, Lung would attack to release Bakuda.

"I wish there was some competent person that I could trust..."

Wormmon decided to hold off saving Canary. Maybe when it was her court date and she was found guilty, they would swoop in and save her. The date was a week from now.

A more concerning problem is what to do about the Endbringers. Wormmon preferred to end the root of the problem and then fight a war of attrition against the Endbringers. He needed to kill Eidolon. How was he going to kill Eidolon?

Wormmon was going to need to make plans. He was going to need to decide what to do.

Should Wormmon kill Eidolon in the Endbringers attack?

Should Wormmon go to Texas and kill Eidolon?

Should Wormmon bring Eidolon to Brockton Bay and then kill him?

How should Wormmon execute Eidolon?

What precautions should he take against Cauldron?

Wormmon's head was swarming with questions.

"I need to get some fresh air," Wormmon said. "Might as well meet up with the Undersiders. Ask them to set up a room for Canary."

Greg was still sleeping like a log in his bed. Wormmon hopped onto the floor and said, "Wormmon Digivolve to Stingmon!"

Wormmon glowed bright and digivolve to Stingmon.

Stingmon flew away from Greg's home to visit Taylor.

----

Stingmon found Taylor's house.

Stingmon peered into Taylor's window, it didn't look like anyone was home.

Stingmon decided to wait for Taylor. He sat on the rooftop and crossed his legs, thinking about his schemes.

An hour later, when Taylor returned home, she seemed to have spotted Stingmon sitting on the rooftop.

Stingmon flew down to greet her. "Hello Taylor!"

Taylor asked, "Who are you? What are you doing hanging around my house?"

Stingmon felt embarrassed, Taylor had only seen his Leafmon and Wormmon evolutionary forms. She has never seen his Champion evolution form as Stingmon.

Stingmon waved his hand haphazardly and said, "Sorry, I'm Bait. You know? Greg's partner."

"Oh," Taylor said, looking up and down at Stingmon. "You look... older."

Stingmon chuckled, "Oh no, your mistaken. I Digievolved into another form. The inside of me or my personality hasn't changed."

"Okay," Taylor responded. "Is there a reason for the sudden visit? You being on my front lawn can expose my identity. I don't want any of my nosy neighbors to see you."

"Well," Stingmon was going to explain that he wanted to meet the Undersiders. However, something shiny caught his eye. Taylor's hair was sparkling. Stingmon examined it closer and saw glitter in Taylor's hair. Stingmon saw that Taylor was holding books and he deduced she must have come back from school.

Stingmon decided to ask, "You were at school, weren't you?"

"Huh? Yes, I was at school."

"Why is there glitter in your hair?"

"We were having a really big party in class," Taylor said while staring Stingmon dead in the eye.

"Is... that... so..." Stingmon spoke slowly. Stingmon pondered how he should handle the situation. He came to the conclusion that he would use brute force to solve Taylor's bullying issue, but for now, he wanted Taylor to feel better. "Would you like to come out with me for some ice cream?"

"Why?"

"Ice cream would make me feel better and I think it would make you feel better too. So why don't we get a scoop or two?"

"You're a giant bug person. I don't think I can go out in my civilian outfit with you."

"Then go out with me to get ice cream as Skitter."

"Is this some kind of trap?"

"No! No! No! I will never do that! I mean. It is not a trap, aren't we allies? Think of the stuff we did together. Stopping Shadowstalker. The muffins? Hmmm, I can't think of anything else. Well, I promise you, it's not a trap."

"Won't that be bad for your reputation? I'm a criminal."

"I suspect the PRT will try to arrest me no matter how good I do. It will be safe if we go together since I'm one of the fastest Capes in the Bay and your Taylor Terror Hebert."

"I don't know," Taylor said nervously. "I still need to do homework and work on my history project."

"Don't you want to know my nefarious plan?" Stingmon said it succulently.

"Well... Maybe I can do my schoolwork later. Let me get ready, and we can go out," Taylor responded.

"Excellent," Stingmon said happily. ^__^.

----

Taylor was now dressed in her Skitter costume.

Stingmon lowered himself and extended his hands as if carrying something. "Hop on."

Skitter replied, "You're going to fly us there?"

Stingmon nodded. "Yes."

"Are you going to carry me bridal style?"

"You can hop on my back if you prefer."

"I'm debating which option is less embarrassing... I'll hop on your back then."

Stingmon nodded and turned around, kneeling down.

Taylor went behind Stingmon and wrapped her arms around his head.

Stingmon grabbed underneath Taylor's thigh and said, "Hold tight."

With his bug wings extended, Stingmon flew off with Taylor on his back.

Taylor marveled at the city below her as they soared through the air. It was an incredible sensation, difficult to put into words. "Flying is amazing! I've always wanted the power to fly! This is incredible!"

Stingmon chuckled. "I'm glad you're enjoying it."

Stingmon soon reached Miss Dairy Fantastic Ice Cream Shop.

Stingmon and Taylor entered the establishment.

The ice cream worker, Ray was behind the counter. Ray muttered, "It's you again!"

Stingmon waved his hand. "Hi Ray, I will take Neapolitan ice cream."

Taylor was carefully examining the ice cream on display. "Do you serve green tea ice cream?"

Ray shook his head. "Sadly, we don't serve green tea ice cream."

Taylor frowned. "That's too bad. I will take the pistachio."

Ray nodded and got the order ready. The faster he finishes the order, the faster he can get these capes away from the store.

----

Stingmon and Skitter were sitting on a bench on the boardwalk. The Protectorate Headquarters was visible in the watery bay and its reflective blue shield shone brightly. The water in the bay created calm waves.

Stingmon and Skitter were eating ice cream.

Stingmon discovered the appeal of Neapolitan ice cream, the taste of chocolate and strawberry together was delicious. They should make strawberry and chocolate swirl ice cream.

Skitter was eating her pistachio ice cream, another good choice. Stingmon liked pistachio ice cream. The issue is how it was made. Most pistachio ice creams don't actually contain pistachio but instead use cheaper almond extract and food coloring.

Stingmon didn't tell Skitter this though, he didn't want to ruin the moment.

Skitter asked, "What do you want to talk about? What's your plan?"

"Well... Before we begin, I would like to confess some stuff to you," Stingmon said. "I hope you are prepared, it is heavy."

"This isn't going to be a love confession?"

Stingmon tilted his head and said, "Well, in a way, it is. Their different forms of love. Romantic kind of love. Familiar love for one's family. The love you feel for a friend. The love you feel for a pet. I love you, Skitter. I told you I'm from the future, but the truth is complicated. The knowledge that I have about the future is exclusively about you, Skitter. I basically read about you; you could say I read your biography. Your victories, your setbacks, the array of emotions you've weathered, and the difficult decisions you've faced. I've looked up to you. Amidst this chaotic world, you've been tirelessly striving to mend it."

Skitter took in the information, "Your giving me too much credit. You make me sound like a mythical figure. I don't think reading about my accomplishments will allow you to know me as a person."

Stingmon continued, "I know so much about you. I want you to know me as well. Allow me to introduce myself. I used to be a normal person with the name Tommy-Wilson Merys. I love surgery food and am obsessed with an anime called Dragon Ball. I'm what you might call a Digimon. To understand who I am, you can watch an anime called Digimon Adventure. While some episodes were made in Earth Bet, Earth Alpha had produced the complete series."

Skitter said in melancholy, "You don't need to share all your secrets. Without my powers, I'm nobody. Before I became a cape, nobody cared about me. I am not the special person that you think I am."

Stingmon chuckled and spoke softly, "Skitter, you are a special person to me. The first person I meant in this world when I hatched was you. The reason I'm a bug, Digimon, is because your iconic power is to control bugs. The decision I made, the bias I have and the goal I'm trying to achieve are all because of your influence. I believe wholeheartedly that I was meant to be your Digimon partner, to fight beside you. In a strange way, you are my mother."

Skitter's brain stopped working. She opened her mouth, trying to speak, but no words came out. Skitter finally said, "I can't be your mother."

Stingmon said out loud, "I consider you my mother figure. As such, I will be calling you mom."

Skitter begged out loud, "Please don't."

Stingmon chuckled. "Anyway, mom. Me and Master are planning to break out Canary from jail. Can the Undersiders please look after Canary?"

Skitter spoke, "Ugh. I am not your mother... Who is Canary?"

"An unfortunate Parahuman that was wrongly convicted. She accidentally hurt her ex-boyfriend with her powers when the ex-boyfriend harassed her. It will be better if you look up the article about Canary. In the future, Canary will help you specifically. I know you will help her."

"I might agree with adding Canary to the Undersiders, but I need to talk to my team about adding a new member."

"I have an idea; you can say that if Undersiders won't take Canary, then the Faultline Gang will take her. I know you can convince them, mom."

"You're not going to stop calling me mom. Are you?" -__-.

Stingmon chuckled and ate his ice cream. ^__^.

It was a beautiful day with beautiful memories.

----

Stingmon found Greg in the Warehouse base.

Greg was using spray paint to paint the white van very flowery.

The van now looked very hippie, with large flowers decorating it.

Stingmon asked, "What are you doing?"

Greg answered, "Making the van pretty. White vans are very pedophilic. I am not driving a white pedophilic van."

"Well, it is pretty... Anyway, Greg, I have a plan to make us rich."

Greg's grin widened. "Let me guess, you've got a scheme brewing."

Stingmon nodded eagerly. "Yep, and it involves some serious software prowess. I'm thinking of developing a game."

Greg shrugged. "I'm not exactly a tech whiz, but making a game sounds interesting. I'll give it a shot, though I can't promise it'll be a work of art. What's the concept?"

"Don't worry about your tech skills, just give it your best shot. The game is called Flappy Bird."

----

POV Greg

Greg sat hunched over his computer, attempting to bring to life the game Wormmon had requested. This game, known as Flappy Bird, is easy to create on paper. Flappy Bird was going to make them filthy rich.

When Greg first received the request from Wormmon, he approached it with a sense of overconfidence. The game's simplicity deceived him, he believed it would be as easy as pie to create.

He was gravely mistaken.

Creating the game was proving to be a real pain in the ass.Greg managed to finish the artwork in three hours. The droopy bird, the pipes, the background, and all the game elements came together with a deceptive ease.

But Greg was no wizard with code. In fact, he was terrible at it. The programming aspect was a monstrous challenge, an eldritch beast lurking in the shadows of his mind.

One hour bled into two, and then two hours stretched into an all-nighter. The computer screen glowed with a malevolent light, the lines of code twisting and writhing like cursed runes.

Greg fought on as he battled the unforgiving logic of the machine.

Wormmon stirred from a peaceful sleep and asked Greg, "Are you still working on the Flappy Bird game?"

Without looking away from the screen, Greg nodded and said, "Yup."

Shaking his head, Wormmon remarked, "You have an obsessive personality. Get some sleep, Greg."

Greg replied, "I will when I'm done."

Wormmon warned, "At this rate, you'll die."

Greg responded, "So be it."

Wormmon sighed, shaking his head once more as Greg continued to code the Flappy Bird game.

Greg nearly gave up until he had an idea. He went to PHO and sent a message to GstringGirl.
♦ Private message to GstringGirl:

It was around noon that Greg finished with the help of GstringGirl.

Greg flopped back in his chair and exclaimed, "I'm finally done."

Wormmon, casually eating cereal, replied, "Oh, that's great! Let's play the game."

Greg nodded slowly. "Okay... I need to warn you, though. When I was testing it, it was difficult to play, the controls were janky."

"Is that so?" Wormmon said it with amusement. "Let's give it a try."

Wormmon jumped onto Greg's lap to reach the computer and play the game.

Greg nodded again and booted up the game.

Floppy Bird started.

Wormmon took control, clicking the mouse to make the bird fly. The bird hit the first pipe and died.

Greg scratched his head, embarrassed. "Wow, this game sucks."

Wormmon chuckled. "Nope, this is perfect."

Wormmon played again, this time reaching the hundredth pipe before dying.

"You recreated the game perfectly," Wormmon said. "Let's sell it. We'll need to get game streamers to spread the word."

Greg was doubtful. "This is a terrible plan."

"Trust me," Wormmon said. "We'll be rich in no time."

Wormmon would put the game on the stream, Google Play Store, and App Store.

Wormmon and Greg would contract every game streamer to feature their game.

----

POV Leet

Leet was playing a game with his bro Uber.

A message popped on his phone.

Leet checked the message and with confusion, asked Uber, "Hey, have you ever heard of a game called Flappy Bird?"

----

POV ???

An Irish man with green hair was talking to his webcam. "Top of the morning to ya laddies I'm jacksepticeye and this is Flappy Bird. You said it with me right?

----

POV ???

A man with glasses and a calm voice narrates to his fans, "Hello everybody, my name is Markiplier and welcome to Flappy Bird."

----

POV ???

A Canadian man with fake blond hair was squatting on the chair, sitting on his haunches with his feet flat on the seat and his knees drawn up close to his chest.

The man starts to say, "Hey chat asasadasasdadassda."

The game Flappy Bird starts to be played.

----

POV Greg

Greg was drinking Dr.Pepper and said, "Do you think this will work?"

Wormmon responded, "I am positive it will work. Now we just need to be patient."

Flappy Bird was spreading throughout the world like wildfire.

POV Greg

Greg was sleeping peacefully in bed.

Bill tiptoed into the room and started to shake Greg gently awake.

"Greg. Greg. Greg," Bill whispered softly.

Greg's beady eyes look up at Bill's shit-eating grin. "Whatcha doing."

"We're going fishy. Come on, buddy, the ocean is calling us."

"I don't wanna," Greg said, pulling his bedsheet over his head.

"Nope! Up and atta boy," Bill pulled the bedsheet off Greg.

Greg shivered in the cold.

Bill said cheerfully, "Get dressed and be in the car in 15 minutes."

Bill left the room.

Greg moaned in agony.

Wormmon walked out of the closet and said, "I was hoping we could track down Lung today. I guess it is family bonding time."

Wormmon requested to find some audio tapes of Lung speaking so it would be easier to track the criminal down.

Searchmon uses sound to find people. Searchmon was able to memorize a sound and pinpoint the location when the sound was created.

Greg searched the internet for Lung audio or anytime Lung spoke. Greg was left empty-handed. It turned out Bakuda spoke when she announced her debut and started the bombing. Lung, on the other hand, didn't have any audio of him speaking, let alone any sound from his battles.

Greg considered asking the PRT if they had audio of Lung. But Wormmon's opinion was that it was a waste of time.

Greg and Wormmon were going to be left asking the Undersiders for help tracking down the elusive gang boss.

Greg's entire day was ruined. He had to go fishing.

Greg moaned in agony as he wanted to sleep.

Wormmon asked politely, "Hey, can you digivolve me into Shadramon? I need to go on a personal quest for vengeance!"

Greg muttered, "Digi Armour Energize."

Greg left-eyed glowed with the Crest of Courage.

"Wormmon Armor Digivolve to! Shadramon!"

Wormmon glowed and digivolved to Shadramon.


Shadramon said to the drowsy Greg, "Enjoy your trip, Greg."

----

Bill was in his car. The car was a buggy.

Greg entered the car with a thermostat filled with coffee. Normally he wouldn't touch the stuff, but he really needed it now.

Bill started driving, the road was bumpy and Greg nearly spilled his hot coffee.

"Hey Greg, do you have a girlfriend?"

Greg yawned loudly and then finally replied, "No girl can handle the G-man. I'm still searching for someone who wants me."

"Alrighty then. We are not exactly fishing alone. My coworkers are also going to be there with their families."

"That's not surprising, isn't that the only reason I am going fishing. I hate fishing. You hate fishing. I'd rather hit the arcade than reel in fish. Oh right, Sarah will be their right."

"I am not going to ask for a lot, Greg, don't embarrass me. I work with these people every day. It would be really awkward if you started some kind of drama."

"Pla-Ezzze, I'm always behaved."

Bill seemed to sigh.

----

They reached the beach and a beautiful blonde woman was waving at Bill.

Greg and Bill reached the pier, where a boat was waiting for them.

The woman's eyes lit up when she saw Bill. "Good, you're here, the sun is beautiful and the wind is fair. I hope you like red wine, I have a case of it prepared."

Bill returned with a smirk, "I wouldn't say no to any drink when you're offering it."

The woman replied, "What if I offer poison?"

Bill said, "I'll happily drink it."

The woman smiled lightly and said, "You're a smooth talker. Get on this boat before we leave."

Bill waved Greg on the boat, "Come, we are going."

The woman turned to Greg and said, "Nice to see you again Greg, I'm Margaret. I hope we all have a pleasant party."

Greg only responded with a "Yeah."

Margaret seems to be more happy to see him than he was to see her. "I hope you enjoy the party."

----

Greg wasn't unfamiliar with the people at the boat party. He basically knew everyone vaguely. There were new faces at the party, but everyone seemed to either have a good time, some trying out fishing, other being bored, or playing with their phones.

Greg saw a familiar face wearing a nice dress. Officer Kaya was sitting in the boat, nursing a drink.

Greg thought it was a small world. He considered not even greeting her since it might reveal his cape identity.

Greg wondered if it would be more suspicious if he didn't greet her. Greg was cursing his past self for flirting with the Officer.

Kaya was now looking at him.

Greg made a decision and would casually talk to her. Maybe say hi and talk about the weather.

Greg walked up to Kaya and said with a smile, "What's up beautiful."

Greg instantly regretted what he said. He had no choice, he was going to have to go back in time and shoot himself.

Kaya replied, "I'm flattered, but you're too young for me to date."

Greg chuckled awkwardly. "I was not trying to flirt with you. I wasn't going to call you beautiful. Don't get me wrong, you are beautiful. I mean, dammit. My mouth starts moving even faster than the brain can process what I'm saying."

Kaya hummed and finally said, "From what I understand, your mouth doesn't have a filter. It might be better if you worked on your issues. It will cause problems in the future."

Greg nodded his head. "Yeah. Would you consider dating me?"

Kaya drank her drink before replying, "Our age difference will be a problem."

Greg said with confidence, "Well, age is just a number."

Kaya replied with mirth, "With your logic, then prison is just a room."

Greg shrugged and said, "Well, I tried. Enjoy the party."

Kaya said quickly, "Before you go, what's your name? My name is Kaya Kasongo."

Greg gave an exaggerated bow and said, "Nice to meet you Officer Kaya. My name is Greg Veder."

"Curious," Kaya said, narrowing her eyes. "You seem to know I'm a police officer without me telling you."

Greg smiled and said, "You have an, what's the word to use? Aura. Presence. You have such an intense presence that you're dangerous. Like your part of the military or an officer of the law. I'm just lucky I got it right."

Kaya replied, "Is that so, Veder? I noticed you have the scent of gunpowder. Care to explain?"

Greg replied, "You have a good nose. What else do you smell?"

Kaya took a sip of her drink and replied, "My nose is like a bloodhound. You don't seem to be old enough to own a gun."

Greg said, "I plead the fifth."

"Well, I definitely get you to talk."

The predatory smile on Kaya's face made Greg realize something critical.

Greg was in danger.

----

POV Alan Barnes

Alan was a divorce lawyer who worked for Brockton Bay Lawfirm.

Alan parked his car in the parking lot near the building of the law firm.

Alan slowly got out of the car with his suitcase.

"Well. Well. Well," a voice spoke above Alan. "Look who we have here."

Alan looked up to see a human-sized, red-armored insect flying in the air.

Alan jumped back in surprise and hit his car. "Jesus Christ!"

The cape flew down and sent a spinning kick at Alan's face. The kick hit his face and it felt like getting hit by a metal bat.

Alan was violently thrown to the ground. His mouth was bleeding from the impact. Some of the teeth were lost or broken.

As Alan instinctively tried to get back up, the cape kicked him in the stomach and he rolled violently on the asphalt ground.

Alan coughs. He kept coughing as his stomach was bruised badly.

"Alan fucking Barnes. I hate you so very much." The cape growled out. "I am not going to kill you. I am going to make you suffer!"

Alan saw that the cape pointed its cannon hand at his car.

The cape said, "Flare Buster!"

A fireball hit his car, denting the car door with the impact and melting the glass and metal.

The cape continues to chant, "Flare Buster! Flare Buster! Flare Buster! Flare Buster! Flare Buster!"

Each time a fireball is unleashed, it slams into Alan's car and burns the car further. The car was now completely engulfed in flames.

Alan was furious and yelled, "Why are you doing this to me! What have I ever done to you!?"

The cape glared at Alan and said, "All of this is payback. My revenge! I want you and your entire family to leave this city!"

"I am not scared of you! The PRT will throw you in jail and I will sue the hell out of you."

"The PRT will try to stop me," the cape says. "The PRT is also very slow to respond. Your house is 4577 Greenbag Road, correct? I wonder if I will reach your house or if the PRT will reach your house first?"

Alan looked at the cape in horror and said, "No."

"The next time you see me, I will burn you alive." The cape flew into the air and went in the direction of Alan's house.

Alan took his phone out and called his wife. The phone rang.

Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring. Ring.

"Come on, Zoe! Pick up the phone," Alan cursed loudly when the answer machine message responded.

Alan started to get up and hobble into the building he worked in.

Alan tried again to call his wife but much to his horror and frustration, he only heard the answer machine.

Alan got into the building and sat in a chair in the lobby. Alan called the PRT.

The phone was picked up and the feminine voice on the other end spoke, "This is the PRT Hotline. How can I help you today?"

Alan says in relief, "Hello? I need help! I was attacked by a cape!"

The PRT representative replied, "Uh, excuse me? Did you say a cape?"

"Yes, a cape! A person with superpowers!"

"Is this some kind of prank call?"

"No, it's not a joke! I'm serious! I was attacked by a cape!"

"Calm down, sir I'm going to need your information."

"My house is going to be burned down! The cape will set my house on fire!"

"Don't worry, sir. I just need your information first."

"Are you kidding me? My house is burning and you want my information? I need to talk to a hero now!"

"Sir, I understand you're upset, but I need your information to proceed."

"If I don't get to talk to a hero right now, I will sue you and your entire company!"

"Please remain calm, sir. I'm trying to help, but I need your information to send assistance."

Alan cursed, he answered all the PRT Representatives questions and then the PRT Representatives said they were going to send a hero to investigate his claims.

Alan felt he was losing brain cells while talking to the PRT Representatives.

"Carol!" Alan said in realization, "Carol Dallon can help me!"

Alan ran toward Carol's office.

----

Carol was working on a case when Alan barged into her office.

"Alan?" Carol responded with confusion. "What happened to you?"

Alan said hurriedly, "I was attacked by a craze cape. He burned down my car and now he is planning to burn down my house! You have to help me!"

"Calm down, Alan," Carol said, getting up. "Have you called the PRT?"

Alan said bitterly, "Yes."

Carol nodded her head. "Let's hurry then, get in my car and we will check on your house."

"Thank you," Alan said in relief.

Carol and Alan left work to drive to Alan's house.

----

Alan saw his house ablaze in flames. The house in which he lived for three decades and raised his children was in flames.

The house was on fire and a crowd of people were watching.

Alan, in a daze, got out of Carol's car to watch in horror as his home was destroyed.

"Alan!" A voice screamed.

Someone was holding his arms and shaking him.

It took a while to recognize his wife, Zoe.

"Alan!" Zoe yelled.

"Honey, what happened? Are the children safe?"

"Anna and Emma weren't home when the fire monster parahuman attacked. He busted into the house and started burning everything."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. What should we do now? Our house is gone!"

"I... don't know," Alan stuttered.

Velocity approached Alan and Zoe.

"Hello?" Velocity asked, "Are you the homeowner?"

"Yes," Alan responded.

Velocity then said, "We will do our best to arrest the parahuman that caused this. Do you have any idea who has a grudge against you that would go this far?"

Alan deflated and said in a defeated voice, "There are just too many people that hate me."

----

POV Greg

In Greg's room.

Greg saw the news and recognized Shadramon's description from the news report.

Greg asked Wormmon, who was eating cheerios, "Did you burn down a person's house?"

"Correction," Wormmon said, "I burned down Emma's house."

"Why?"

"I want her to stop bullying Taylor and I want payback. If the Barnes know what's good for them, they will leave the Bay."

"Are you going to attack Madison next?"

"Yes, but not anytime soon. I targeted Alan because he's a divorce lawyer, and his job makes him quite hated," Wormmon said. "Now if I target the Madison family, it will create a pattern. Which would link up with Taylor. As much as I hate to admit it, there's only so much I can do for Taylor's situation. We are going to need to tell Taylor to transfer to another school or get a GED. It's not healthy for her to go to Winslow."

"I think you are obsessed with Taylor."

"I consider her my mom. We do go to the extreme for the people we love."

"Your mom? Seriously? Back on track, I am not shedding any tears for the Barnes family. I do wonder if there is a better way to handle this that wouldn't make you look like a crazed pyromaniac."

"I actually thought about it a lot. I could try to legally sue Emma and Madison, but the issue is that Taylor and her father, Danny, both have personality and social issues to follow that path."

"Okay, now you're confusing me."

"Danny is a good man, but he failed Taylor as a father. The choices he made regarding Taylor's bullying situation were irresponsible." Wormmon sighed deeply. "Danny is like a politician, he talks a lot but doesn't really do anything. That's when shit hits the fan, he gasps in surprise as the crap gets in his mouth."

"Alright then, what about Taylor?"

"There are several reasons. First, she is going to need to stop being Skitter for the lawsuit, we can't have her illegal activities discovered. Second, she is going to need to talk to her dad, which is difficult for her. Third, Taylor does not care."

"Hold on, what do you mean Taylor doesn't care?"

"Look, I don't know if it is her power that allows her to dump her emotions into her bugs or just her personality. Taylor does not value her own life or wellbeing. On the other hand, she is very goal-oriented. She would do everything in her power to reach that goal, including risking her own life. However, if a person hurts someone she cares about, she will go to the ends of the Earth to make them pay. It makes her a martyr-like character."

"That's kind of sad."

"Well yeah... Taylor being a cape isn't healthy for her, it is good for humanity... Taylor doesn't want to see her depressed father go to court for her. Taylor doesn't want to lose her connection to the Undersiders, whom she is growing to like. Taylor doesn't want to get payback for Emma, Madison or Sophia. All she wants is not to get bullied. I can offer advice, but I can't fight this kind of battle for her without her cooperation."

"Next time," Greg said with a look of resolution. "Will you bring me on your quest for revenge for Taylor?"

Wormmon nodded his head and said, "Of course, partner."

POV Triumph

Triumph cruised through the city on his motorcycle, his only mode of transportation since he lacked the abilities to fly, teleport, or use any other Mover powers. He'd chosen a motorcycle for its practicality and speed. His bike was adorned with Roman decorations, and a lion's head proudly adorned the front, symbolizing his strength and regal bearing.

The people on the PHO call his motorcycle the LeoRider.

Triumph was on patrol, making sure the villains weren't breaking the law. It was important for heroes to be visible to the public and make people feel safe.

Triumph once thought that these patrols were useless. But the statistics did lower crime when heroes were present. His only wish was that he wasn't so predictable with his patrols. Someone needed to beef up PRT security badly.

Triumph stopped at a red light at an intersection, a sense of unease creeping over him.

Cars began to hem him in from the left, right, and behind.

"I have a situation," Triumph said into his earpiece.

He was now only hearing static. Something was jamming the signal.

A pickup truck pulled up in front of him, blocking his path. In the back stood Lung, already beginning to grow and transform.

Lung leapt from the truck, his form expanding. "Fight me, puny hero!"

Triumph dismounted his beloved LeoRider, preparing for the battle of his life. He needed to defeat Lung before he grew too powerful. He needed to strike hard and fast. "Time to slay a dragon!"

Triumph charged at Lung.

Lung swiped a claw at Triumph.

Triumph dove under the claw, then unleashed three powerful punches into Lung's chest. With a shout, he released a point-blank sound blast at Lung.

Lung was thrown back, slamming into the pickup truck.

Triumph watched in dismay as Lung grew even larger.

Realizing his best attack had barely slowed Lung down, Triumph dashed away. He knew better than to fight a rampaging dragon head-on.

Before he could escape, a car door slammed into his back, sending him crashing to the ground. "Ugh!"

Pain coursed through Triumph as he struggled to get up.

Lung was in no hurry, slowly walking toward the fallen hero.

Triumph looked up at the towering figure of Lung.

With a powerful kick, Lung knocked Triumph unconscious.

----

POV Amy Dallon

Reona Mall had multiple department stores, offering everything from clothing to arcades.

Amy navigated the aisles, picking out clothes she felt comfortable in. Her sister preferred bright colors like yellow, pink, and blue, while her parents favored clothes that were old-fashioned and outdated.

Amy, on the other hand, liked dark colors such as brown and black. She didn't enjoy shopping for clothes, but her wardrobe was getting old, and she didn't want to borrow from her sister anymore.

Her hands picked up a punk pink t-shirt that said, 'Baddest Bitches Around.'

Amy liked the t-shirt message but hated the color. She needed something emo-dark. She considered going to Hot Topic and getting a goth outfit.

Amy could see herself walking into her house wearing a goth outfit with pale makeup and carrying a decorated skull in her hand. Carol would lose her mind when she looked at the goth outfit she was wearing.

Amy sighed and ended her daydream. She picks a safer brown blouse from the rack.

Amy didn't want the ensuing shouting match with Carol when expressing her taste.

Panacea had an image. She felt the weight of living up to the image of a healer. Expectations were heavy on her shoulders.

Amy heard the commotion before she saw it, people screaming and the sound of gunfire.

She saw ABB gangsters storming into the mall, with Lung leading the charge.

Before she knew it, an ABB gangster was pointing a gun at her, ordering her to follow him.

Amy sighed. "Why am I a hostage again?"

Amy followed the gangster to the center plaza, where the other hostages were waiting.

The hero Triumph was tied up by a rope and looked to be unconscious.

Amy saw that Tinkertech bombs were being attached to the walls.

Lung was standing on the second floor, looking over the operations.

Amy could feel that the situation was much more dangerous than the Undersiders bank robbery.

----

POV Leet

Leet was checking out his camera drone.

Leet's meticulously upgraded camera, now mounted on a high-performance drone, represented the pinnacle of photographic technology. The combination allowed him to capture breathtaking images and videos from perspectives previously unattainable. From expansive landscapes to dynamic action shots.

Uber asked, "Everything looks good?"

Leet grinned and nodded his head. "Everything is working to perfection. My drone is going on his maiden flight. We are going to capture the battle between Lung and the Heroes. The visual will be in 4K Ultra HD, it will be like we are actually in the battle."

"Dude, you're amazing. We are going to post this online and get so much money."

"Yup. We don't even need to lift a finger."

Leet got control and started the camera drone to start flying toward the mall.

----

POV Armsmaster

Armsmaster got off his motorcycle and marched toward the Reona Mall.

A police line was formed in front of the Reona Mall.

The PRT was holding the line as concerned civilians were trying to get into the mall.

A camera crew was giving a report about the situation.

Armsmaster saw the heroes grouped up in front of the mall.

Protectorates heroes Velocity, Assault and Battery.

Every member of New Wave, with the exception of Panacea, was present.

Armsmaster asked out loud, "What is the current status?"

Battery answered, "Lung and his gang are holding over a hundred people hostage. Including Panacea and Triumph. He wants to exchange the hostages for Bakuda."

Brandish spoke, "We should be storming the mall and rescuing the hostages. What are we waiting for?"

"Carol." Lady Photon said, "That will endanger the hostages."

Brandish said, "It will only get worse if we prolong this. My daughter is in there. We can't just keep twiddling our thumbs and doing nothing. We should hit them fast and hard."

Battery said, "I think it would be better to trade the hostage for Bakuda. We don't want civilians to get hurt."

Assault said, "I might be the bad guy for saying this. But I don't want Bakuda to get free. We will go back to living in fear of her bombs."

Velocity asked, "What is Director Piggot's orders?"

Armsmaster replied, "I talked to her about the situation. The Director doesn't want us to let go of Bakuda. We need to find a solution that will save the hostages and take down Lung."

Brandish spoke, "What is the plan then?"

Armsmaster answered, "We will try to renegotiate with Lung. We need to get as many hostages out of his hands as we can. We should gather information, such as the number of gangsters and the structure of the mall. If Lung or any of his gangsters start shooting at the hostages, we will storm the building and defeat the ABB."

Velocity said, "Alright then, what should we do in the meantime?"

Armsmaster responded, "Stay on standby and wait for my signal to storm the mall."

----

POV Greg

Greg entered a gun store to get ammo for his guns.

Rifles were on the back wall behind the counter, while ammo and other gun-related maintenance tools were on display.

A middle-aged man was behind the counter with the name tag Markus on it.

Greg approached Markus, "Hey."

Markus smiles warmly and speaks with a German accent, "Ah, guten tag! Welcome to my store. How can I help you today?"

"Looking for ammo and, um, I was wondering if you could show me some guns."

Markus nods enthusiastically, "Of course, of course! I am always happy to help someone appreciate fine craftsmanship. What are you looking for? Something for hunting? Target shooting?

"Just looking around for now. I'm not really sure yet."

Markus chuckles, "No worries, my friend. Let me show you a few options." Markus reaches under the counter and pulls out a small pistol. "This here is a classic 9mm. Good for beginners, easy to handle."

"Wow, it's cool. Can I hold it?"

Markus hands the pistol to Greg carefully. "Of course. Always remember to treat every gun as if it's loaded, even if you know it's not. Safety first, ja?"

"Yeah, got it."

"You seem young. Are you here with your parents?"

Greg answers, "Nah, I'm just looking for myself."

Markus asked, "Do you admire the Desert Fox?"

"You mean the Desert Eagle?"

"Nevermind then. You know, you need to be at least 18 to purchase a firearm, depending on the type. Do you have an ID?"

"I was hoping you might make an exception. I have a lot of cash on me."

"I am sorry, but laws are laws."

"Alright then, let me buy some ammo then."

Greg buys the ammunition and leaves the store.

Greg hears his cell phone ring. Greg answers his cell phone and says, "Hello."

"Greg." Wormmon's voice says warily, "That guy was a Nazi."

"Wait, really? What are we going to do?"

"Investigate if he is part of Empire 88. If he is, we tip off the police. If the police don't do anything, we beat that guy up and burn down the store."

"You really like burning down buildings, don't you? I am starting to see a pattern."

"You are right, we are going to steal all of his stuff and then burn down the building."

Ding. An alert is sent to his phone. Greg sees an alert that Lung has resurfaced on his phone.

"Let's put a pin on that plan," Greg says.

Greg clicks the alert and sees information that the ABB is holding hostages in the mall.

Greg says, "Lung is holding a mall full of civilian hostages. What should we do?"

"Finally, Lung shows up. Get your rifle with Newter's liquid-coated bullets. We are going to kill Lung."

"Alright, do have a plan to save the hostages."

"I don't really know? I typically take a day to think of a strategy. I'm having issues thinking of a plan on the fly. Do you have any ideas?"

Greg thought for a moment and smiled. "Oh, I have a plan."
----

POV Director Piggot

There wasn't a single easy day for a PRT Director. Especially when a city like Brockton Bay was determined to set itself on fire.

Some days were more difficult than others. For instance, today they were dealing with a hostage situation with a Cape that had enough firepower to fight Leviathan to a standstill.

Piggot was on the phone with the Mayor, "Mister Mayor, we are doing everything in our power to save our own hero and your son."

The Mayor was hysterical, "My son is being held by a lunatic! If something happens to him! I am going to make sure you get fired!"

Piggot didn't envy the person who would replace her. Piggot replied calmly, "PRT will do our best to ensure that the hostage and our own hero are saved. We will also arrest those who are responsible for this crisis."

The Mayor sighed tiredly on the phone and begged, "Please save our son."

The phone call ended.

Piggot rubbed her forehead. She looked out of the window and into the city. Somewhere out there, a battle was going to be fought.

Piggot hit the intercom and spoke to her secretary, "Who is the next person I am going to be speaking to?"

The secretary responded, "Master and Bait wants to speak with you. They are saying it is urgent."

Piggot said, "Put them through. I want to talk to them."

The phone in her office rang.

Piggot picked up the phone and said, "You are speaking with Director Piggot of the ENE PRT. Who am I speaking with?"

The voice answered, "Yo, what's up! You are speaking with Master. I know you've been busy with Lung's hostage situation and we have a plan to solve the problem."

"You both are on thin ice. Especially with the Barnes situation. Why should we cooperate with you?"

"Well, to save hostages lives, obviously. You guys can try to arrest us later, when the current crisis is resolved. Anyway, can I tell you my plan?"

"I will make a compromise considering these dire situations. Tell me your plan on how you are going to save the hostage from both Lung and his minions?"

"We are going to recruit Skitter and secretly send her bugs to disable the ABB gangsters guns and then defeat the gangsters next. Then the heroes can take down Lung without worrying about the hostages."

Piggot was going to need to increase Skitter's rating if she could accomplish such tasks. "Are you sure that Skitter is able to perform such tasks and not be discovered? It almost sounds like your gambling the hostages lives."

"Skitter is an absolute knightmare to fight because she has the entire insect kingdom under her command. Wasps, spiders and everything that skitters around. She can easily beat a group of armed gangsters holding hostages without anyone getting hurt."

"Hmm... How would you recruit Skitter for your plan?"

"Money is a very good incentive. Also, we have Bait, which can scan the entire building, so we know the perfect time to attack Lung. This is the best plan to save everyone."

Piggot analyzed the plan, it wasn't perfect, but it was much better than the one previously available. She can even polish the plan and reduce the risks.

Piggot asked, "If we do go with your plan, are you going to be held responsible if it messes up?"

"...They're always going to be a risk.... Yes, I will take the fall if it goes down badly."

Piggot nodded her head. "What do you need from me?"

"Time," Master said. "We need time to recruit Skitter and my group needs to get to the mall. Ask the heroes not to attack Lung until we are there."

Piggot nodded. "I will do so. Keep me updated on your progress."

"Thank you Director, signing off."

The phone call ended.

Piggot was going to need to call Armsmaster and tell him to wait for further orders.

----

POV Armsmaster

Armmaster was in a van, looking at a screen.

Armsmaster was able to hack into the mall's surveillance system.

Armsmaster was looking at the placemate of the ABB gangsters and Lung.

With the number of heroes and PRT Troopers available, they could easily sweep in and take down the gangsters.

Lung was the only real problem. However, Armsmaster was confident that his Tinkertech Drug would be able to take the dragon down.

Director Piggot was calling him, and Armsmaster assumed to get an update on the situation.

Armsmaster answered the call, "Hello Director."

"Armsmaster, you didn't start raiding the Mall have you?" Director Piggot asked.

"No, we have not. I have created a plan that will ensure the safety of the hostages and take down Lung."

"I want you to be on standby. Bug Man and Bug Cowboy will arrive at your location and they will provide a plan to handle the current crisis."

"Director." Armsmaster said it curtly. "Bug Man has committed multiple crimes. Are we going to ignore them?"

"We will address the issue another time. What's important is that we save the hostages and take down Lung. Bug Cowboy plan is the best we have in our current situation. I am ordering you to be on standby."

Armsmaster frowned and said, "Fine Director. We will be on standby."

Armsmaster left the van and saw the other heroes waiting for him.

Miss Militia asked, "Are we going to start the operation?"

Armsmaster unfolded his halberd, "Get everyone ready. We are raiding the Mall."

Armsmaster was going to prove the Director wrong.

Lung having a meeting with his subordinates.

Lung looked over at all his subordinates and saw a tall bug man.

Lung asked, "Who are you?"

Stingmon replied, "Well I am a new cape that joined the ABB. I was once a native Japanese man but my power turned me into a bug man."

Lung nodded his head, "What is your name?"

Stingmon said, "Jugem Jugem Shit-Tossing of Shin-chan's Two-Day-Old Underwear of Shinpachi's Life Balmung Fezalion Issac Schneider 1/3 Pure Love 2/3 Hangnail Anxiety Betrayal Knows My Name Or Does It Really Ignore Calls Squid Dogfish Halibut Trout-Cod Dogfish... This Is A Different Dogfish, I'm Talking About The Dogfish Shark Kaluga Angler Ray Yuuteimiyaoukimukou Pepepepepepepepepepepepe Runny Diarrhea's."

Lung said, "That's a ridiculously long name!"

Stingmon said, "You can call me Goku."

Lung said, "No. You are now the Kamen Rider. Let's go over the plan one more time."

Lung continued the meeting.

Stingmon rubs his claw hand together. Excellent he infiltrated the ABB and he was officially Asian.

POV Dauntless

Shawn thought about what exactly a hero is.

Is there a way to measure what a hero exactly is? Could it be measured by how many people you saved? How much of a positive impact did you have on the world? Was it defeating the villain and making sure they didn't hurt others or society?

The question of what the hero was was a dilemma that Shawn was grappling with. It was important to him to find an answer, especially since he was growing more powerful every day.

Over the years, he was an active hero. His answer kept changing. A hero was his duty. A hero's job was supposed to save people. A hero was to lend their hand to the people in need. A hero was supposed to bring smiles to children's faces. A hero was supposed to defeat villains. A hero was an accumulation of so many duties, righteous actions and ideals.

Dauntless wasn't a perfect hero, he was still striving to be the perfect hero in his imagination.

Currently, a foldable table is displaying a map of the mall.

Armsmaster was leading the meeting, explaining everyone's roles.

Armsmaster was at the head of the table.

Miss Militia, Assault, Battery, Velocity and himself were on the right side of the table.

New Wave with Brandish, Flashbang, Manpower and Lady Photon were on the left side of the table.

The children of New Wave, which were Glory Girl, Laserdream and Shielder, were on the other end of the table.

"Here is the plan," Armsmaster pointed out two entry points on the mall map, "We will be going through these openings, which the ABB guards are not guarding. The Protectorate Heroes will be going through the Insider Eye Doctor entrance way, while New Wave will go through the Sandy Jeans entrance way."

Armsmaster continued, "New Wave will focus on protecting civilians and evacuating them from the mall. Proceed to take down any ABB gangsters and anyone else who gets in your way. The Protectorate heroes will concentrate on dealing with the ABB gangsters, rescuing Triumph, deactivating Tinkertech bombs, and taking down Lung."

Photon Lady nodded her head and said, "Okay, we will do that."

"Good," Armsmaster turned to Dauntless. "Dauntless, I want you to deactivate the Tinkertech bomb with Tinkertech that I created."

Dauntless nodded his head and said, "Okay."

Armsmaster hands over a device that looks like a handheld radio.

Armsmaster explained the details of the Tinkertech. "The Bomb Scrambler operates on the principle of disrupting the electronic and signal-based components of Bakuda's bombs. Bakuda's explosives often rely on sophisticated triggering mechanisms and communication protocols to function. The scrambler emits a targeted disruption frequency that interferes with these components, rendering the bomb inactive permanently within a twenty-five-foot range of the Bomb Scrambler."

Dauntless takes a minute to parse from Armsmaster's explanation, he needed to push a button on the Bomb Scrambler and be twenty-five feet from the Tinkertech bombs to inactivate them.

Dauntless nodded his head and said, "I won't fail you."

"Good," Armsmaster said. "Let's go over the finer details of the plan."

Every hero was working together to save the hostages and defeat Lung. They couldn't afford failure.

----

Dauntless, a blur of gold, skidded to a halt on the polished tile floor. He scanned the scene.

Unlike the usual ABB grunts, these weren't your average thugs. They were kitted out in heavy body armor, the glint of bulletproof vests catching the overhead lights. In their hands, instead of crude pistols, they sported menacing rifles, their unmistakable black barrels pointed at the crowd.

Velocity was a blur of red as he rushed toward the closet ABB gangster. In an instant, he went from being a streak of red to a solid presence.

The armed gangster barely had time to register the sudden appearance of the hero before Velocity's fist connected with his face. The force of the punch sent the gangster sprawling to the ground, unconscious, before he hit the floor.

Panicked shouts and the roar of gunfire filled the air as the ABB gangsters unleashed a torrent of bullets at the hero. It was a futile effort, for Velocity was already out of sight.

Assault and Battery arrived on the scene.

Battery, her expression serious and focused, moved with precision, her fists crackling with electricity. Each punch she delivered was swift and powerful, with bolts of lightning arcing from her hands to the gangsters, incapacitating them instantly.

Beside her, Assault moved with a contrasting ease, a confident grin on his face as he delivered a flurry of punches and kicks. His movements were fluid and almost playful, but each strike landed with devastating effectiveness, sending gangsters reeling.

New Wave arrived and immediately unleashed their power on the ABB gangsters, creating a path for the hostages to escape.

"Everyone! This way, hurry!" Lady Photon shouted to the crowd, guiding them toward an exit and away from the battlefield.

Miss Militia arrived and materialized a high-tech rifle. With practiced ease, she sighted down the barrel and fired a single round, aiming at the ABB Gangster weapons.

On the second floor of the mall, Dauntless spotted his comrade Triumph, beaten up and tied to a chair. Unfortunately, Lung stood guard, his menacing form looming over the captured hero.

Lung was growing larger as the conflict escalated, his formidable presence intensifying the chaos.

Armsmaster was already rushing toward Lung, determined to confront the towering villain.

Amid the turmoil, Dauntless spotted Tinkertech bombs strapped to the pillars of the mall, their presence a dire threat to everyone inside.

Dauntless rushed toward the Tinkertech bombs, determined to deactivate them.

Moving swiftly, Dauntless weaved through the bullet, using his enhanced agility and his shield to block attacks. He took down two gangsters with his Arclance as he neared the bombs.

When Dauntless was near the Tinkertech Bombs, he activated the Bomb Scrambler, its lights flickering as it synced with the explosive device.

The Bomb Scrambler beeped, indicating it had worked. Dauntless focused on keeping the gangsters away, using his Arclance to knock out any nearby threat.

Dauntless heard a deafening roar on the second floor.

Lung had grown immense, his massive form dominating the battlefield. Armsmaster, with remarkable agility and precision, expertly maneuvered between bursts of fire and sweeping claws. Even Dauntless couldn't help but admire Armsmaster's combat prowess.

With a swift, powerful motion, Lung seized Triumph in his enormous, clawed hands and hurled him at Armsmaster like a missile.

Armsmaster deftly sidestepped the flying hero, treating him like a dangerous projectile.

As Triumph plummeted from the second floor toward the unforgiving ground below, Dauntless sprang into action. He wasn't sure how fast he was moving, but he knew he had to catch Triumph before he crashed into the hard, laminated floor.

Dauntless caught Triumph in mid-air. "I've got you, buddy," he reassured.

Quickly assessing Triumph's injuries, Dauntless untied the rope binding him to the chair and lifted him into his arms, carrying him like a princess. Without hesitation, Dauntless bolted out of the mall, determined to get Triumph to safety.

----

POV Panacea Amy.

All the heroes were battling the ABB gangsters. The mall had turned into a chaotic battlefield, with hostages caught in the crossfire.

Amy found herself in the midst of the conflict, powerless to save herself or the people around her. She desperately wished she had a different power.

The sight of New Wave arriving brought her a wave of relief.

"Amy!" Victoria called out, finding her sister. "Are you alright?"

Amy replied sarcastically, "I'm having a wonderful day."

Victoria managed a small smile and scooped Amy into her arms.

"Both of you, get out of here! The situation is deteriorating rapidly." Carol shouted as she hurled a light axe at a gangster.

"Okay, Mom!" Victoria responded, taking to the air with Amy.

Just then, a group of ABB gangsters appeared on the second floor as the Heroes seemed to be gaining the upper hand. Coordinated, they unleashed a hail of bullets.

Assault, Battery, and Velocity were taken by surprise and sought cover, some narrowly escaping the bullets and others being scraped by the bullets.

The hostages screamed as they were gunned down.

Victoria was struck by bullets, her shield shattering as the bullets pierced her body. Her agonized scream would haunt Amy's nightmares.

"Vicky!" Amy cried out in anguish.

Victoria crashed to the ground, collapsing on the laminated floor as blood poured from her wounds.

"Girls!" Mark shouted.

Victoria groaned, "Ugh, I'm not dead yet."

Amy immediately began healing her sister, determined not to let her die.

More ABB gangsters surrounded the heroes, their rifles aimed at the hostages and heroes alike.

"It's a trap!" Uncle Neil shouted.

Amy saw the guns pointed at her and instinctively used her body to shield Victoria.

The ABB gangsters opened fire.

Amy felt the searing pain as bullets tore through her body.

Gritting her teeth, she concentrated on healing Victoria.

"Amy!" Victoria cried out in anguish.

Amy recalled the many times she had resented her powers, the long days at the hospital, and the guilt of not being able to heal more people. But in this moment, the fact that her powers could save her sister brought her immense relief.

She couldn't imagine living in a world without Vicky. The only good part of her life.

As she lost consciousness from the blood loss, the last thing she saw was Victoria's anguished face.

----

POV Armsmaster

Armsmaster faced Lung with confidence born from meticulous preparation and advanced technology. His combat analysis software was running at full capacity, predicting Lung's every move with precision. He smirked behind his visor, convinced that he had the upper hand.

As Lung grew larger and stronger, his flames intensified, enveloping the battlefield in a searing inferno. Armsmaster stayed calm, firing a series of darts filled with Tinkertech drugs specifically designed to neutralize Lung's abilities. The darts struck true, embedding in Lung's flesh. Armsmaster's confidence soared as he saw Lung's growth slow down.

For a moment, it seemed like the drugs were working. Lung's advance halted, and his flames flickered. But then, with a roar that shook the ground, Lung erupted in a burst of flames, growing much larger and stronger in an instant. The heat became unbearable, even through Armsmaster's armor.

Lung moved with terrifying speed, backhanding Armsmaster with a force that sent him crashing into a wall. The impact was brutal, denting the reinforced metal of his armor. Armsmaster groaned, trying to get up, but his suit was partially melted and fused from Lung's intense heat.

He struggled to move, his overconfidence now replaced with a grim realization of Lung's overwhelming power. His combat analysis software was struggling to keep up with Lung's rapid growth and unpredictable movements.

A searing wave of fire surged toward Armsmaster. At the last moment, Dauntless appeared, interposing himself and shielding Armsmaster from the fiery onslaught.

----

POV Dauntless

With a roar, Dauntless charged, his spear crackling with electrical energy. Lung barely had time to react before Dauntless was upon him, the spear's tip slicing through scales and flesh alike. Each strike was accompanied by a burst of lightning, sending arcs of electricity dancing across Lung's body.

Lung staggered back, his eyes narrowing in pain and fury. The cuts and burns from Dauntless's relentless assault were beginning to show, but they also fueled his transformation. Lung's body began to grow, with muscles bulging and scales thickening. His skin darkened and his heat intensified, the very air around him wavering from the rising temperature.

Dauntless pressed his advantage, leaping into the air and driving his spear into Lung's shoulder. Lightning surged through Lung, causing him to roar in agony. But with each roar, Lung grew larger and more fearsome. His head touched the ceiling, now fully transformed into a dragon-like visage, and wings began to sprout from his back.

With a thunderous roar, Lung swiped at Dauntless, sending him crashing into a nearby store. Dauntless struggled to his feet, the impact leaving him momentarily dazed. Lung advanced, his size now dwarfing everything in the nearby area. The heat radiating from his body caused the floor tiles to crack and melt.

Dauntless shook off his fear, determination flaring in his eyes. He leaped back into the fray, his spear spinning in a dazzling display of skill and power. He struck again and again, each blow met with fierce resistance from Lung's now impenetrable scales.

Lung's claws slashed out, catching Dauntless across the chest and sending him sprawling. Dauntless gasped for breath, the pain was almost overwhelming. Lung loomed over him, his mouth opening to unleash a torrent of flame. But Dauntless, summoning every ounce of his willpower, rolled to the side.

Dauntless, battered but resolute, he rose to his feet, his Arclance shining bright and crackling like thunder itself. His eyes blazed with determination, and he gripped his weapon with renewed vigor.

"Lung!" Dauntless roared. "I'll show you why they call me Dauntless!"

Dauntless moved with the speed of sound, his Arclance slicing through the air with a sharp, electric hum. Lung barely had time to react before Dauntless struck, leaving a deep, diagonal wound across his chest. Lung roared in pain, his body convulsing as electricity surged through the wound.

Unyielding, Dauntless pressed his advantage, each slash of his Arclance a blur of light and power. He carved through Lung's thick scales, leaving deep, smoking gashes in his wake.

Lung's eyes burned with fury, his claws swiped out with tremendous force, aiming to crush Dauntless beneath their weight. But Dauntless raised his shield and Arclance, crashing into Lung's powerful strike.

The impact reverberated through the mall, shattering windows and sending debris flying. Dauntless stood firm against Lung's attack. He pushed back with all his strength, deflecting Lung's claw away with a surge of lightning. Lung staggered, momentarily thrown off balance, his eyes widening in a flicker of fear.

Dauntless surged forward, his Arclance blazing with renewed intensity. He unleashed a flurry of strikes, each one faster and more precise than the last. Lung tried to counter, but Dauntless was relentless, his resolve unbreakable.

Lung roared, unleashing flames in all directions. The inferno struck the Tinkertech bombs, triggering an explosion that shattered the mall pillars with exotic effects. As the mall began to crumble, Dauntless spotted Armsmaster, defenseless against the falling debris.

"Armsmaster!" Dauntless moves to save Armsmaster from being crushed under the heavy debris. Dauntless reaches the Armsmaster's fallen body, raising his shield above them both.

"What are you doing? Finish the fight!" Armsmaster shouted.

"I am not abandoning you!" Dauntless shouts with unwavering resolve.

The mall roof collapsed, and Dauntless braced for impact. The weight of the concrete crushed him, but summoning herculean strength, he pushed the debris off and sighed in relief.

"Dauntless!" Armsmaster screamed.

A massive, scaly hand grabbed Dauntless by the chest and hoisted him into the air. Lung's reptilian eyes bore into him as Dauntless struggled to break free, but to no avail.

With a sinister grin, Lung unleashed a torrent of flames that engulfed Dauntless. In an instant, Dauntless was reduced to ashes. His molten golden armor and equipment were all that remained, clattering helplessly to the ground.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello readers,

I would like to get a vote on a character that I am going to adding later in the story. I will admit she is going to play a big role in the story.The character has to be female and attractive. Their is a possiblity she might become Greg love intrest.

Here are the three rule or restriction for the vote.

The character has to be anime, cartoon, or game character. I like playing with images

Cannot be character written by Wildbow

Cannot be Dragon Ball Bulma. (I am not going write a NTR story) -__-

[] Write name of character.

POV Wormmon

Taylor wasn't home. Which was unfortunate since it was an emergency.

Using Searchmon's ability to detect sounds, pinpointing the location of Undersiders was a piece of cake. They had the sound of nearly every Undersiders member speaking, with the exception of Bitch.


The hardest part was actually driving to the Undersiders Base.

Greg drove the van near the base. The van was now spray-painted with flowers, which didn't blend well with the downtrodden area.


The two left the van and walked the rest of the way to the Undersiders Base.

Searchmon de-digivolve to Wormmon.


Skitter saw the pair of Greg and Wormmon through her insect sense and wrote in the sky with her bugs, 'Why are you here?'

Greg, now outfitted with his Master costume, shouted loudly, "We need help beating up the ABB!"

Wormmon waved his stubs and said, "Hi mom!"

Skitter's bugs rearranged themselves in the air. 'I am not your mother.'

Wormmon shrugged and said, "If I tell others you're my mom, they're going to believe it. Especially considering your powers."

The bugs in the air paused. Skitter's bugs rearranged themselves in the air. 'Do not call me your mother in front of others.'

"Alright, if it makes you happy," Wormmon said. "Can I call you mom in private? Pleeeaassssseee." Wormmon gave puppy dog eyes to the flying insect. 🥺.

The bugs in the air seem to fly randomly for a few minutes before writing them out. 'Okay.'

Wormmon cheered, "You're the best mom ever."

Wormmon was content, and it seemed the flying insects were turning into a vortex.

Greg spoke, "As sweet as this is, can we talk to the rest of the Undersiders? There is a job I want you to help us with."

The bugs still spelled out, 'We will come down.'

The Undersiders walked out of the base and faced the pair of Master and Bait.

Greg tipped his hat and gave a greeting, "Hello, my underlings."

"What do you want, Master?" Grue asked.

Greg replied, "We want to kill Lung. I want Skitter's help since she defeated Lung before."

Wormmon added, "We are happy for the other Undersiders to join us on our heroic quest."

Tattletale responded, "Oh, you are really manipulative. You are going to use our dear Skitter conscious against her. Let me guess, you are going to mention that an innocent bystander will get hurt if she doesn't help."

Greg nodded. "Well yeah, that's the plan."

Skitter said, "Mind games don't work on me."

Greg asked, "So you are not going to help? A lot of people are going to get hurt by Lung without you helping us."

Skitter seemed conflicted with the bugs buzzing around her and she harshly said, "That's not fair."

Grue said, "Hold on. We are talking about Lung here. He's powerful and dangerous. The last time we fought him, we only survived because of dumb luck. Do you think we can beat him, let alone kill him?"

Greg said, "Well, we have-."

Tattletale interrupter Greg, "They have two ways to beat Lung. A new transformation from Bait will calm the Dragon down. They also have a drug that can also work. They don't need Skitter to take down Lung, they need Skitter to save the hostages."

Greg muttered softly, "I was going to say that."

Grue said, "Have you heard about the Unwritten Rules? No killing capes. If we do help you execute Lung, it wouldn't be good for our reputation, isn't capturing a better alternative?"

Wormmon answered, "Your telling me there's someone that cares about Lung that would avenge him? Lung crossed way too many lines by not stopping Bakuda's rampage. Besides, we will be doing the killing, you can deny knowing anything about it."

Greg added, "We can pay you if you want. I don't want Lung to break out of jail and rampage in the city."

Regent said, "How much money are we talking about?"

"Before we talk about payment," Tattletale said. "There is a huge secret I need to reveal. I figured out the whole truth. You have a lot of secrets, trying to masquerade the truth as a joke. Your goal is to kill the Eidolon. What I wondered about was the reason. So I did my research and discovered the shocking answer. Eidolon created the Endbringers. Isn't that right, Master and Bait?" Tattletale gave a vulpine smile.

Everyone reacted differently.

Grue turned his head toward Tattletale, not believing what he heard.

Regent lost his grip on his staff, dropping to the ground.

Skitter bugs were buzzing intensely.

Bitch raised an eyebrow.

Greg had a eureka moment.

Wormmon nodded his head in approval.

Greg said, "I figured that out months ago."

Tattletale was indignant at the idea of Greg figuring out the world-breaking secret. She could tell Greg was lying, so she screeched, "You lying faker! No, you didn't!"

"Anyway," Wormmon said, "Skitter and Undersiders, will you help us against Lung?"

Skitter asked skeptically, "Don't you think dealing with Eidolon's Endbringer problem is more important?"

Wormmon asked, "Who is going to believe us? We are accusing Eidolon. Can any of you take the heat from the entire Protectorates and one of the strongest capes in the world?"

"...."

"...."

"...."

Wormmon nodded sagely and said, "I thought so. No one is going to believe us. We will eliminate Eidolon when we have a fighting chance. Right now, though, Lung and the ABB have a mall full of people as hostages. Will you help us save them?"

Skitter answered, "I will help."

Regent answered, "I will help for moolah."

Grue said, "The Undersiders will assist you guys for money."

Greg grinned. "Awesome."

----

POV Greg

Greg was driving toward Reona Mall in the Flower Van.

The Undersiders were riding monstrous dogs behind Greg's van.

Skitter gathered flies, mosquitoes, butterflies, moths and bees in the area, creating a swarm that was best described as biblical.

Wormmon clinged to the top of the van. Ready to act at a moment's notice.

In the sky, Lung's titanic body, wings, and flames were visible as he soared in the air as a massive dragon.

Greg yelled, "Digi Armour Energize!"

Wormmon announced, "Wormmon Armor Digivolve to! Bucchiemon!"


Bucchiemon flew towards Lung in the sky.

Greg put it on the radio. Hoping for a battle song that would inspire hope and determination. The radio started singing, "I'm a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world!"

Greg and the Undersiders arrived at the battle scene. The heroes looked defeated, and civilians were panicking.

Everyone was looking at Greg's van, which was playing the Barbie song in the middle of the battlefield.

Bucchiemon was near Lung in the sky.

Bucchiemon, with his hand, formed a heart shape and unleashed, "Heavy Beam!"

A heart-shaped beam of pink light struck Lung.

Lung retaliated with a wave of flames, but Bucchiemon dodged, maintaining the Heavy Beam.

Lung began to shrink, his wings and flames diminishing as he descended.

Greg stopped the van and prepared his AK47, loaded with bullets coated in Newter's toxins.

Lung touched down, his form much smaller, wings vanished, and flames were weakening under the Heavy Beam. He slumped to the ground, as if struggling against the weight of his own gravity.

Skitter unleashed her swarm on Lung, with the insects biting, stinging, and attacking his vulnerable spots. Over a hundred thousand insects covered Lung. Lung thrashed and tried to burn the insect away.

Lung tried to summon his flames but failed under Bucchiemon's Heavy Beam. He could only roar in defiance.

Greg exited the van. He walked closer to Lung as the song 'I am Barbie Girl,' played in the background. He aimed his rifle and fired all his bullets until nothing was left in the clip.

Lung was hit by multiple bullets, each coated in Newter's toxin, piercing his flesh.

The combined assault of Bucchiemon's Heavy Beam, Newter's toxin and Skitter's swarm overwhelmed Lung.

Lung fell backward with a thud. Lung was defeated and lying unconscious on the ground.

Greg reloaded his rifle.

Greg approached the fallen Lung, now reverted to human form, and pointed his rifle at Lung's head. With a pull of the trigger, Greg ended the reign of the Gang Lord, who had terrorized the city for so many years.

"I was expecting more of a fight," Greg said.

Bucchiemon flew toward Greg and then de-digivolved to Wormmon.

Wormmon said, "Well, that's taken care of, we might as well get out of here."

Greg and Wormmon were walking back to the van, which was playing Barbie Girl in full volume.

Velocity blocked Greg and Wormmon's paths and said, "Wait."

Wormmon said, "Wormmon digivolve to Stingmon."

Wormmon glowed and Digivolve to Stingmon.


Stingmon asked, "Are you picking a fight with me?"

"No!" Velocity said in panic. "We just want to talk."

Stingmon shook his head. "Every time we talk to you heroes, I'm left disappointed. How many more times do we need to be rejected? How many more people need to be killed? At this point, you heroes are hindering us from making any progress."

Greg said, "I'm an optimistic guy and I want to believe in the BB Protectorates. But it's really hard with all your past actions. I mean, how many times do we clean up your mess? Shadowstalkers, Bakuda and now Lung. Not to mention the mess with Eidolon. How are we supposed to trust any of you heroes?"

In the background, Tattletale screams, "You lying piece of shit! I figured out the Eidolon conspiracy!"

Grue placed a hand on Tattletale's shoulder and said, "Not now."

Velocity deeply sighed and said, "Look, I don't have an answer that would satisfy you. I am just a middleman, the messenger. Isn't that worth talking to us at least?"

Greg said, "Fine. Lead us to your leader."

Stingmon said, "I vote we leave. This is going to be a waste of time."

Greg replied, "I want to hear what the heroes have to say to us."

Stingmon said, "Nothing good. Mark my words."

Velocity led Master, Bait and the Undersiders to the Protectorate Heroes gathering.

----

Greg wasn't raised in Brockton Bay. The people had a kind of hopelessness in them. Every day was a struggle. It was much more prevalent today, as many people were injured and the sounds of ambulances and police cars made noise in the air.

A woman's voice yelled from the heroes gathering. "He was dead because of us! How am I supposed to explain this to his son!"

Greg recognized Battery as the electric arcs were dispersed in the air. She was furious as she yelled at Armsmaster.

Including Velocity, there was Armsmaster and Battery from New Wave was Photon Mom.

Armsmaster said, "At the stage, Lung was too powerful. We wouldn't have helped."

A table with only four heroes. Greg guessed the others were too injured to attend the meeting. The meeting occurred outside, in front of the mall.

Greg entered the meeting by tipping his hat and saying, "Howdy."

Armsmaster straightened up and stared down Greg. "Bug Cowboy and Bug Man. You have a lot of explaining to do."

Greg noticed there was only one chair left at the table. He didn't want to sit down and leave his teammate standing. "Hey, where are all the chairs? We need," Greg started counting everyone, "Five more chairs? Velocity can you get me five more chairs?"

Velocity looked over to Armsmaster, his stare asking the senior hero if he should comply with Master's demands.

Armsmaster growled out, "Stop wasting time and sit down."

Greg began to say. "Look, we all know the Protectorate heroes might look down on us, the Undersiders, and treat us like scum. But let's get one thing straight, we saved the day. We stood up when it mattered. I didn't take down the gang leader, Lung, by myself; it was a team effort. Each and every one of us contributed to that victory.

Greg continues to speak, "When Lung was rampaging, it wasn't just me standing there. Skitter, you were their swarming Lung with venomous bugs. Bait calmed the Dragon down. Bitch was important in transporting her team to the battlefield. Grue, Tattletale and Regent were our cheerleaders, giving us moral support."

Greg wraps up his lecture. "We all deserve a chair because that's the respectful thing to do. Because respect is not optional. It's essential. If you can't respect us, we will leave. We won't be part of a discussion that doesn't value what we bring to the table. So, let's start with something simple. Let's make sure everyone has a chair to sit on."

Lady Photon says, "Velocity, please bring five chairs for our guest."

Armsmaster says, "That's not necessary."

Battery replies, "Master is obviously not going to budge on the issue. He seems a little stupid."

Greg was offended and replied, "Hey!"

Skitter coughs loudly, trying to stifle her laughter. Tattletale bursts into loud laughter.

Armsmaster breathes out through his nostril in frustration and says, "Fine."

Velocity returned with five chairs.

The Undersiders, Master and Bait sat in their chairs.

Armsmaster began, "Now that everyone is comfortable, I am going to ask the question that has been on everyone's mind. Why did you execute Lung?"

Greg answered, "We both know why Lung needed to die. I can't trust the Protectorates with their track record of holding villains imprisoned. Lung would escape and cause more havoc in the city. I don't want Lung to continue to destroy Brockton Bay."

Battery interjected, "Master and Bait, you've been on a streak of killing villains. While there may be short-term benefits, this approach is morally wrong, illegal, and harmful to our future." She held up three fingers and leaned back in her chair. "First, it's morally wrong to kill, even if the person is a criminal. Taking a life is fundamentally wrong. Second, it's illegal. Our society has laws to determine the fate of criminals. The heroes shouldn't have the power to jury, judge and execute since it leads to corruption and abuse of power. Third, we don't want to escalate fights to the point where they become death matches."

Greg shook his head. "I am doing what needs to be done. I know killing is wrong. But how many more innocent people need to die? The PRT's incompetence has left this city infested with criminals. Apologies, condolences, and sweet words won't bring the dead back to life. Brockton Bay doesn't need cowards who are afraid to get their hands dirty. They need someone to show the villains their consequences."

Battery asked, "How many people need to die on your crusade?"

"Look around you, people are dead because of your inaction," Greg said. "Give Shawn's son my condolences. It is truly a shame he died."

Armsmaster opened his mouth, then closed it.

Tattletale has a smile that is predatory. "Oh, isn't this spicy?"

Stingmon had a bad feeling, "Grue, I will pay you a million dollars to keep Tattletale's mouth shut. I don't want to aggravate the heroes."

Regent said without hesitation, "Double it."

Stingmon nodded in agreement. "I will pay two million to keep Tattletale's mouth shut!"

Regent moved to stop Tattletale from talking.

Tattletale knee struck Regent in the balls and shouted, "Nothing will stop my monologue!"

Regent crumbled on the floor, covering his injured ball sack. Regent screamed in French, "Putain! PUTAIN!"

Tattletale said, "Armsmaster, you're hiding something, aren't you? Master here told the Director we were coming. I know the Director would tell you to wait for backup. It seems strange that the battle had already started before we all arrived. I could assume something happened to start it early. Or it could be someone. Let me tell you what happened, you attacked too early and got wiped. You were supposed to wait for these two clowns—Master and Bait to arrive. They had a plan to take down Lung easily and save the hostages. Because of your pride, you decided it would be better to charge into battle and now you have your ass kicked."

Armsmaster said stiffly, "Stop speaking nonsense. You are twisting the facts. I had a plan to take down Lung!"

Tattletale had a wide smile and said, "Lol. Your plan wouldn't have worked since you never once defeated Lung," Tattletale pointed at Skitter. "Skitter defeated Lung the first time he was arrested. You!" Tattletale pointed an accusatory finger at Armsmaster and said, "Just stole her credit. That's why these two clowns begged us to save your ungrateful asses. They needed Skitter's power!"

A tense silence settled at the table.

Stingmon facepalmed, he was covering his face with his claw hand.

Greg blinked and said, "Oh wow."

Photon Lady looked at Armsmaster with a fierce gaze and asked, "Is this true? My niece is in the hospital because you couldn't wait for backup."

Armsmaster asked, "Are you going to believe what a villain is sprouting?"

Tattletale said smugly, "You can ask the Director to verify everything I said. She would have told Armsmaster to wait for backup."

Armsmaster drew his halberd and swung the razor-sharp blade toward Tattletale's head.

Clang.

Stingmon intercepted the strike, blocking the deadly blow with his stinger.

Tattletale wisely stepped back, distancing herself from the menacing weapon aimed at her.

The Undersiders prepared for battle. With the exception of Regent, who was clenching his injured genitalia and cheering for Armsmaster.

"Armsmaster!" Photon Lady said it in horror.

"Put your weapon away! What the hell are you doing?" Battery yelled.

Armsmaster growled. "She is obviously provoking me with lies and slander!"

Stingmon said, "We will be leaving now. Undersiders. Master. Let's go."

Stingmon pushed Armsmaster's halberd back.

Regent whined, "But it was getting good! I might see Tattletale finally get her comeuppance! She broke my balls, man!"

Grue sighed and said. "Let's go before it becomes a battlefield."

Greg and Stingmon with the Undersiders left the hero gathering.

No one noticed the Leet drone was filming everything. It's the camera's eyes adjusting and watching everyone's every action.

Hello readers,

Their are still 16 days left to pick a character to vote for.

I would like to get a vote on a character that I am going to adding later in the story. I will admit she is going to play a big role in the story. The character has to be female and attractive. Their is a possibility she might become Greg love interest. The voting closes in three weeks.

Here are the three rule or restriction for the vote.

The character has to be anime, cartoon, or game character. I like playing with images

Cannot be character written by Wildbow

Cannot be Dragon Ball Bulma. (I am not going write a NTR story and Bulma is Wormmon waifu) -__-

[X] Name of character.

----

Here are the counted votes

[X] Zoe Orimoto from Digimon Frontier (5 Votes total)

Xenvic, Lordddarkrai2, Plik ,Tanatos, Prince of Space

[X] Ranamon from digimon frontier. (2 Votes total)

Jealousfailure, Toon king

[x] Tomoko Kuroki from "No Matter How I Look At It, It's You Guys Fault I'm Not Popular!" (1 Votes total)

zharshoul

[X] Pinkie Pie from My Little Pony Equestria Girls Variant (1 Votes total)

Harmonic

[X] Lina Inverse from Slayers (1 Votes total)

Bloodfox

[X] Wednesday from Addams Family (1 Votes total)

clone1000