“So do those eyes of yours glow with an awesome power?”

“Leave it alone Levy.”

“Do they help you see through to your enemy’s weak point?”

Shaggy sighed and tried to squeeze next to Levy and use the terminal, but his wife wasn’t done.

“Oh, do they see through all forms of illusion?”

“Yes, you are hilarious. Now, can we hurry this up? We have better things to do than stand around listening to bad jokes.”

“Fuck you, my jokes are hilarious.”

“I’m sure they are honey and one day you’ll find the right audience to perform your stand-up for. But it’s not here.”

Levy huffed and turned back to the terminal. Grumbling, she brought out the holographic screen and showed Shaggy what she had been working on. He had been correct. It was a terminal for a smaller Villain Hideout and not a full Lair. They needed a few more Players or a lot more NPCs before they could get a Lair. But Levy seemed happy with what they had to choose from.

Clicking through a few tabs, Levy brought up the choices. They had a lot of space to work with, but limited resources. Again, Shaggy could buy ready-made things for more money or provide materials for the system to build something for fewer credits. They could also just build it themselves, but Shaggy didn’t think his new pack would appreciate being house wolves. Nearby, Rita looked antsy just standing guard.

Her eyes kept drifting toward Cekrass and the others, who were all trying out their newfound abilities. She still denied wanting to join them, though. Saying that Shaggy’s safety was paramount. Shaggy wanted to say that he was more powerful than the lot of them. But he let the matter drop. He had a whole new Hideout to outfit, and they were going to need supplies.

Levy waved a hand as several brick and wood buildings were shown on-screen. Everything from old-fashioned cottages to newer sturdier industrial-style buildings were shown. Although Levy threw out the more modern or sci-fi designs. Shaggy sighed loudly as he watched the designs fall into the digital trash.

“Love. We are in a modern setting. We don’t need a freaking brick cottage.”

Levy sniffed, affronted. “I’m a Sorceress. I need an appropriate domicile that matches my theme.”

Shaggy scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “And… my theme?”

“Oh please, you’re a Werewolf. What kind of theme goes with that? A cave?”

“Hey! I’m a modern werewolf in a t-shirt and jeans. So a high-rise apartment wouldn’t be too far off the mark.”

“We can’t fit an apartment in here, Shaggy.”

“It was just an example! My point being we don’t have to go all witch in the woods. We can have modern comforts and don’t have to live in a fantasy-style shack.”

“Well, what do you see that pops out at you, then?”

Shaggy glanced over the choices and scanned them. Everything from wooden cabins to metal bunkers scrolled past as Levy kept swiping through pages. Shaggy read through the stats of the various buildings. For now, they could only build a few amenities. Just enough for themselves and the kids. So what they need was a bunkhouse for the pack, then another for the kids, and then Levy and his own house. Seeing something like what they needed, Shaggy jabbed a finger forward.

“There! That’s perfect for the pack and we can build a second one for the kids.”

“Really, dear? Bunkhouses? Isn’t that a little demeaning?”

“What? It does what we want, and it saves on future space. We can make them nicer.”

Shaggy brought up several options on the Bunkhouses shown. Some were made of wood planks, but others had a more modern feel. They could even get running electricity and plumbing if they paid for the spell-work. Although Shaggy wasn’t sure who performed said spells. Did the system handle all that? He shook off the thought as Levy studied the designs. She stuck her nose in the air and made a small grunt.

“Hmph! It’s fine, I guess. But what about us? It’s our Love Shack you need to decide on.”

“First, please don’t call it a love shack. Second, WE need to decide on it. This is just like choosing a house IRL. We both need to come to an agreement on what we want.”

Levy straightened her back and crossed her arms. On anyone else, that sort of posture would look combative. But Shaggy knew that, for Levy, it was her ‘I’m listening’ pose. She always closed in on herself when she was thinking. He just needed to be a part of whatever inner monologue she was having. Which meant he needed examples to show and reasons for a non-fantasy-style building.

“Okay, so we have a Witch and a Werewolf ostensibly. So we need something that speaks to both those archetypes. A Witch or Sorceress makes me think tower or shack in the woods. A werewolf also has the woods aesthetic. But they can also be in caves or, like I said, an apartment or something more modern.”

“Hmmm” Levy hummed in thought as Shaggy spoke.

“So I think what we need is trees. We can plant them down here and maybe magically nurture them? That gives us the forest look we want. Meanwhile, we can create a more modern looking house to place at the center of our cave forest.”

“But won’t the looks clash too much?”

Shaggy grimaced as he mentally agreed. “Sure, but what about a log cabin?”

Levy raised an eyebrow. “Doesn’t that clash with your modern house argument?”

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

“Not really. We can make it a hi-tech wooden cabin. On the outside, it fits the look of a forest setting. But inside it has all the amenities of modern living. We are going to need to find an Electronics Store or something for all the bit and bobs we need though.”

“Why don’t we just pay for it all with the system? We can buy the things and have the system place it for us. All it takes is credits.”

“Credits we don’t have. If we steal the resources, my pack gets to run off some energy and we save money. It’s a better deal all around. Also, I get more Evo Points to level and keep growing stronger.”

Levy huffed. “We could use IRL money to buy things in-game.”

Shaggy shuddered. “Don’t be gross, babe.”

“Fine…” Levy rolled her eyes and let the matter drop.

It took a little more back and forth discussing over the terminal. But once they were both happy with their choices, they had the terminal print a list of items they needed. It wasn’t a short list and Shaggy wasn’t sure where they would get most of it. He knew they could probably raid a construction company for most of the basic items. But some of the more esoteric things were going to be rough.

After they finished, Shaggy shot a message to Obadiah through the Tablet and then went to talk to the kids. Levy was still tinkering with how she wanted everything to look. The terminal even allowed her to see what the landscape would look like once all the trees were planted and grown. They were going to need a shit load of grass seeds and lamps for the cave. It was still almost pitch black in the cave. Even with the kids setting fires and running around with flashlights.

It was quick work to find Luis and Mari, though. Shaggy had Rita run off and tell the others the plan as he sat next to an exhausted-looking Mariposa. The young girl had been working out since they got back and had finally finished. Shaggy could see the regret on the sweaty girl’s face. No amount of wiping with a damp towel would make you feel clean after a workout like that. Shaggy gave the kid a commiserating look and asked.

“You kids doing alright?”

Luis and Mariposa glanced at each other before shrugging. He grimaced, sure the apartment had been a hole, but it at least had beds. But for some reason, the gang of kids had followed them down here. Maybe it was the cops or maybe the threat of the Wild Bunch. But either way, they were here now, and they needed to make the best of it.

“Well, if you need anything, let us know. We’re going to go get some supplies to make this place a little more livable.”

Luis shot up as Mari looked excited. “Like food?”

“Or sleeping bags?”

Shaggy grimaced as it hadn’t occurred to him or Levy that the NPCs would need beds to sleep in and food. Their bodies were sustained through the gaming pods and they barely needed to sleep. He wanted to kick himself. Their list was going to get that much bigger now that they needed to furnish all the buildings.

“Oh, yeah. We have that on the list as well.” Shaggy lied. “But we need to find out where some of this stuff is.”

“Oh well, there’s a grocery store, like, three blocks from the deli.” Luis mentioned.

“Oh, come on! Not Antonio’s? We can’t rob him.” Mari said.

“Who said anything about robbing?” Luis asked, looking between Mari and Shaggy.

Shaggy just grinned as he shrugged his shoulders. “What did you think? We were going on a shopping trip? That’s not how we do things, kiddo. We need something, we steal it. Simple as that. I hope your crew understands that.”

Luis groaned, but Mari stepped in. “Oh we do, it’s just Luis is kinda slow on this stuff. Ice for brains and all. Even so, don’t hit Antonio’s. They’re good for the neighborhood. Instead, there’s this corporate place that’s been trying to squeeze them out. We could hit them and feed us all at the same time.”

Shaggy rubbed his chin and fell into thought. As he did, he felt the others of his pack all mentally discussing various bits of their new forms. When Shaggy’s mind brushed up against theirs, they all fell silent. Shaggy felt them running through his memories until he felt a few questions pop up. He didn’t know if they were his or his crews, but he asked them anyway.

“What kind of food? What’s the security like? Also, should we wait until nightfall to raid the place?”

Luis and Mari glanced at each other again before shrugging simultaneously. Shaggy sighed as he nodded knowingly. Looking around at the other kids who were wondering around in the dark, he said.

“Why don’t you kids run some recon on the place and find out? If you can find a spot with some Mana-Lamps or industrial sun lamps, that would be great.”

Mari and Luis put their heads together and had a whispered conversation that Shaggy pretended not to hear. Once they were done, Luis said.

“Fine. But we want better loot and equipment… and you're going to have to train us… also pay... We want to be paid as well?”

Shaggy grinned. The boy had started out strong, but then lost confidence in what he was saying. Apparently, Shaggy’s smiled didn’t help as Luis and Mari both gulped nervously. Shaggy sighed and pressed his lips over his sharp canines. He was sure staring at the daggers he called teeth didn’t calm the kids down. Instead, he tried to smile with just his face and nodded.

“Sure, we can come to some agreement. But you let your crew know that for now they are strictly recon only. I don’t want them throwing down with the Bunch. They ain’t shit for mutants or enhanced, but mundanes are gonna get wrecked.”

Mari waved a hand between her and Luis. “We’re Mutants.”

“Hows that power been treating you lately?” Shaggy asked.

Luis’ body became covered with ice as Mari ignited one hand in flame. But Luis’ ice was still thin and flaky, while Mari’s flame flickered dangerously. Shaggy saw the sweat on the girl’s forehead shine even more and he had to wave a hand at the both of them. They had abilities, but they needed practice. Although he found it strange that they weren’t better considering their age. Something must've shown on his face, because Mari got defensive.

“My powers only showed up a year ago, and Luis never had a chance to use his. Also, he’s lazy.”

“Fuck you! No, I’m not.”

“You’ve had abilities for five years and your shits still weak.”

“Again, fuck you. No, it’s not.”

The two bickered while Shaggy smiled at the pair. Once again, he was reminded of his sister, which in turn brought up thoughts about Chromia. Shaggy wondered how the others were doing in Under-Town. He was going to have to visit as soon as possible. But first his pack needed to run. As the kids argued back and forth, Shaggy told them to do the recon and then turned to his pack.

They had all come running when Shaggy gave a mental pull. They stood ready and waiting. He could feel them almost pulsing with excitement. They were all eager to get to work. Even if the work was simply stealing construction materials, they radiated pure joy. Shaggy shook his head at how excitable they all were.

“Y’all got a handle on it?” Shaggy asked.

Four heads shook while one nodded. Shaggy turned to Tom, who was still nodding happily. Once Tom realized he was the only one nodding, he glared down the line at the others. Amusement filled their bond as Rita flipped Tom the bird, while Vick shrugged. Sybil and Cekrass ignored the thin man. Shaggy suppressed his own amusement as he nodded.

“Well, I guess we’ll see how everyone's doing. First step is to steal a construction company truck and bring it back to the deli. We’ll have to be on the lookout for The Bunch again. I’m sure they’ve noticed a few of their own going missing, and we can be sure they’ll be on the lookout.”

“Whats the SOP on engagement, boss?” Vick asked in a half-growl.

Shaggy could feel Vick’s excitement. “Same as always, Vick. Drop the fuck and take their cash.”

The pack smiled and Shaggy almost fell into the rush of feelings that washed over him. But he caught himself and turned to Levy. She was still standing at the terminal swiping through pages of choices and trying to find the just what she wanted. She felt his gaze and looked at him. Shaggy smiled and waved for her to join them, but she shook her head, nodding down at the terminal. Shaggy gave a fake pout, which caused her to laugh, but she still waved him away.

“Looks like you’re stuck with just us for now, boss?” Rita quipped.

“I’ll manage, Rita. Let’s get you pups up to speed and then we go to work.”

“Y’know, I can almost, practically shift already.” Tom said as they walked toward the exit. “So I doubt I need as much training as the others.”

Shaggy grinned as he thought about all the extra training he was going to give Tom. The others all cackled as Tom felt his thoughts and nearly tripped in the dark tunnel. Shaggy joined the laughter as he and his pack went out to hunt.