Victor gave her a snort as he shook his head. “There is no need for that. You hate me, and you have a right to. What I did was wrong, and whatever you wish to say to-”
A scream from outside the diner cut through the air. Everyone turned to look outside, and Victor saw a woman pointing at something in the sky. He got up and walked briskly out of the diner. Following the woman’s finger, Victor looked up and his eyes went wide. Not at the sight of the small green Gap in the sky, but what it represents.
Danger.
By itself, a Gap was nothing. Gaps appeared on Nexus all the time, and most were harmless. This one was not. A pair of claws were sticking out of the gap, looking as if they were trying to rip it open. Victor didn’t know why, but he felt a strange sense of excitement at the sight of it.
“Oh, no!”
Victor turned at the sound of Jennifer’s voice. Everyone on the street had come out to see the Gap. Then, the sirens sounded. A noise no hero or villain wanted to hear. The Nexus Accord has been activated. Victor’s wrist communicator rang. Be it visor, wrist, or tablet, everyone’s communicator rang. Victor pressed on his communicator and the holographic message appeared.
Emergency! Emergency! Leave your homes and go to the nearest shelter. Please follow emergency procedures and the directions of your local authorities.
Emergency! Emergency! Leave your homes and go to the nearest shelter. Please follow emergency procedures and the directions of your local authorities.
The emergency message went on repeat and the hologram even show Victor a route to the nearest shelter. Not that he would be going. There were multiple shelters spaced around Velocity City to keep people safe, but those were for civilians. Victor was a villain. He was in The Game. And it was time to play.
“Don’t just stand there. Get moving!” Victor couldn’t help but scream. “Everyone get to the shelter! They will be locking down the city. Everyone get moving NOW!”
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Victor grabbed his daughter’s arm. Jennifer looked at her father in shock for a second before murmuring. “The boys. They are in school. I need to make sure-”
“No. They are in school. They are safe. The teachers will know what to do. They will keep the boys safe. That’s their job. Your job is to fight.”
“What?”
Victor knew he need to be the sensible. No matter how powerful you were, hero or villain, fighting against a Gap was terrifying and it was Jennifer’s first time. However, Victor was never a person who gave soothing speeches. It was always sink or swim for him.
“You want to be in The Game, right? This is what you wanted, right? Are you willing to fight? Are you willing to play?”
For a moment, Victor saw various emotions on his daughter’s face. Shock, dismay, fear, then she rallied. She got her emotions under control and gave Victor a nod.
“What do you need me to do?”
“Protect our territory. Get to the lair. Everyone in the crew will be there. Armed them and spread them throughout the Kings. Concentrate in places where we have interests in. Our properties, this diner, and-”
“What about you? Where will you be?”
Victor gave his daughter a grim smile at her question. He turned back to the Gap in the sky. A few seconds later, a ripping sound echoed through Velocity City. The sound of the tearing of the dimensions and the Gap got noticeably bigger. The claws withdrew and something replaced them. A ball of red scales that struggled to roll through the still narrow gap. The tear in the sky looked to be too narrow for it, but the ball kept on coming and then…it was through. The monster through rolled this enlarged gap and fell to the ground like a small meteor from space. Above it, more balls rolled out of the now widened Gap.
“I will be fighting.” Victor turned to the three villain support who were with him. “Go with Jennifer. Keep her safe.”
Jennifer immediately object. “I can get to the lair on my own. You shouldn’t be alone out there.”
“He won’t be alone.”
Everyone turned to the woman who spoke. Koyuki was standing with a holster around her hip and the magical gun that once made her famous was in it. For a moment, Victor wondered if she was going to shoot him. Then, he remembered that the former heroine needed his help. She probably won’t shoot him till he delivered on the promised help.
“You’re playing?” Victor asked.
“No. I’m helping.”
“You are a civilian.” Night Leopard said. The local heroine was not pleased, but Victor noticed she was not quite objecting either.
“No one ever said you need to be a hero or villain to fight monster. Civilians are allowed to ‘help’ and that’s what I’m doing.”
Koyuki looked at Victor, challenging him to object. For a moment, Victor wanted to, but he remembered how good she was with her six-shooter. Victor gave Koyuki a nod instead. Night Leopard exploded.
“Are you kidding me? I don’t care what history you have with her. She is a civilian. She has no place fighting a Gap.”
Koyuki chuckled, and Victor just smiled at the young heroine. “Night Leopard, please meet the Six-shot Samurai.” Night Leopard’s eye bulged as Victor turned to Jennifer.
“Go!”