Polymeniac’s [Regenerate] was one hell of a passive ability. While Throm was good, this took healing to a new level. It was like I had returned to being an ordinary, my body working overtime as a warm glow spread through each vein.
My burnt wrists were noticeably healing, the scarred flesh starting to fade away after a few seconds. At the same time, I felt my ribs start to piece themselves back together. While Throm would focus on whatever needed the most attention first, this ability was healing every injury at the same time.
There was one issue, though. Polymeniac would have a front seat view of my caved in chest healing, which would definitely catch his attention. Without any way to stop the healing, I needed to find a way to hide it.
“Hey, Poly, can you get me a shirt? It’s not like I can go against what you’re telling me, so can you at least stop ogling me?”
“I am not ogling you!” He shouted, his face contorted in a look of disgust. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“Just saying, if you weren’t looking, you wouldn’t mind getting me some clothes. Seems like you just want to stare at me, which is fair, since I did lose some weight recently.”
“Jesus fucking Snake Christ, it’s always something with you.” He took off his jacket and tossed it to me. “Is that enough or do I need to send someone to Walmart?”
“That’s good, just happy that you’re not undressing me with your eyes anymore.” I quickly put on his jacket, zipping it up.
“You had nothing on! I can’t undress you if you’re wearing nothing!” he let out an exasperated sigh. “Can we just go back to what we were talking about?”
“Yeah, I’m all good now. You can keep talking about the rules.”
While he explained the expectations Agony had for me as a lieutenant, I tried to figure out my escape plan. It wasn’t easy keeping down my excitement, but I needed to keep this power a secret. I had countless possibilities available now, and my options were more open if I could keep them in the dark.
But right now, I was being held back by the fact that they were keeping Reload hostage. If I just jumped out of the window, being scraped off the sidewalk and taken away by Frank, they’d kill him. I needed a plan that would save the both of us.
No news was still good news. If he couldn’t see anybody nearby, then that meant Agony and Quarry weren’t watching over him. With Polymeniac in front of me, those two were the only ones that were a real threat. I just needed to get rid of at least one of them before making my move. Thankfully, their new security measures made that easy.
With everything in motion, I just needed to wait. But when you’re face to face with your old boss, the man who rescued you from homelessness, only to order your death years down the line, there are some questions that you need answered.
I interrupted Polymeniac, “Hey, Poly, I need an answer from you. Why did you try to kill me?”
“What?” He asked, his train of thought interrupted. “You failed at a job and led a hero to one of our safehouses, that was your last straw. We couldn’t overlook your performance forever, so you left us with no choice.”
“See, I know you’re not telling me the full story. You guys kept giving me harder jobs with no time to prepare. Who the fuck plans a bank robbery the day of? It’s like you were setting me up to fail.”
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
“Look, can we just finish this meeting and move past this?”
“No, we’re not going to move past this.” For a second, I felt my composure slip. “You don’t get to just ignore the shit you put me through. If you expect me to work for you again, then I need you to be honest with me. So tell me the truth, what's the reason for all of you to betray me?”
“It wasn’t my decision.” He gave up trying to avoid the topic. “Agony gave the order to push your limits with jobs after you started stagnating. Once it was clear you weren’t going to get any better, he told me to wait until you failed, then take you out.”
“What?” I felt a flash of anger overwhelm me.
“When we first hired you, you were still used to living on the streets. You did what you needed to and did it well. But once you got comfortable, you started coasting, getting fucked up and partying every chance you got. We needed a fighter, not an alcoholic.”
I slammed my fist against the table. “Oh, I’m so sorry that I wasn’t a fucking saint like all of you! Hey, quick question, was Club Thirst a new age church, or was Squirm there to convert people to Dendrism? And who the fuck does Agony think he is? He doesn’t even fight anymore! All he does is sit up in his office and tell us what to do.”
“Watch yourself,” Polymeniac warned me. “He doesn’t need to fight because our job is to do it for him. A leader is meant to lead, not waste time on the small things. So before you criticize him, remember that he earned the right to do what he wants.”
“Oh, and I didn’t? I’ve made millions for the Disciples, even though most of it just ends up in his pockets. You can’t give me shit about not living up to your expectations when I managed almost every job you gave me!”
“That’s not enough, Taker!” He finally snapped, screaming back. “The shit you’re doing now, manipulating Surge Gang, taking out supers, that’s what you needed to do! You hated being a henchman, yet you didn’t even try to act like a super!”
“Fuck you!” I shouted, barely holding myself back. I didn’t care who was right or wrong at that moment, I just wanted to kick his ass. Right as I was about to leap out of my seat, I received a message from Tóxica, which stopped me in my tracks.
I took a deep breath, trying my best to calm myself. I slowly stood up, Poly shifting in his seat, ready to make a move. “Well, I’ve become the person who you wanted me to be. In one day, I’ve killed more people than I did in the four years I worked for the Disciples. Whether it was throwing myself into death matches or manipulating Surge Gang, I did whatever I needed to do to survive.”
My wounds finished healing, my body feeling refreshed, despite a growing exhaustion from the ability. While I talked, his phone started to buzz. But right as he moved to grab it, I interrupted him. “I’d lost my sense, my vision, my potential. And in a way, I do need to thank you.”
I took a few steps, slow enough to not cause a reaction, yet still draw his attention. “If it wasn’t for the Disciples, I could never have become that man I am. Even now, my powers are stronger than I could have ever hoped for. And, if I’m being honest, I learned something about myself. I love power, that feeling of getting stronger. It’s more addictive than anything I’ve ever done before. That’s all thanks to you.”
In his eyes, I could see the slightest hint of pride as he spoke. “You’re welcome, Taker. I didn’t expect you to react like this, but I’m happy you did. If you act like you have been these past few weeks, then I'd be proud to have you working for us. There’s nothing I respect more than a man willing to do anything to survive.”
“You’re right. I really will do anything to survive.” I activated [Take], pulling the keycard dangling off his pants. I ran to the door, making the most of the few steps of distance I’d gained, using the keycard to unlock it.
Once I ran through, I shoved it close. As I slammed it against the frame, I could hear the mechanical whirr of the locks. A moment later, I felt Polymeniac collide against the door with all his might.
Dozens of fists smashed against the door, as aggressive shouting poured out of the room. While he cursed me out, I ran to the stairwell, hoping that Quarry had already left. As I sprinted down the stairwell, pushing past the confused Disciple employees, I sent a message to Tóxica.
As I ran, I realized that running down all five floors would take too long. So, halfway down the stairs, I leaped over the side of the railing, clinging onto whatever I could find to slow my fall. As I crashed onto the bottom floor, painful cracks sounded from across my body. But by the time I stood up, they were already being healed.
I could only hear three things coming from the first floor, as I approached the door at the bottom of the stairwell. Panicked screams, gunfire, and a bone chilling roar. I walked out to find Tóxica, transformed, covered in the remains of most of the henchmen on the first floor, being shot at by the remaining henchmen. She was more focused on tearing open the metal doors to the elevator than dealing with the stragglers.
I used [Take], pulling a pistol from the nearest henchman, shooting him in the head as he turned to look at me. By the time I reached Tóxica, she was biting an elevator cable in half. The remaining henchmen had given up, choosing to run away instead of fighting the pissed off super Komodo that was only interested in destroying transportation technology.
“Good to see you, Tóxica.” I said, making sure she knew it was me and not another victim in waiting.
She growled, her reptilian voice deep and ragged. “?Dónde está Reload?”
“Reload’s in the basement, I know the way there.” I headed towards the back, hoping to get out before reinforcements arrived.
Near the back of the first floor was a locked room, which hid the entrance to the basement. It was meant to hold enemy supers, anyone worth keeping alive, and it could even act as an emergency bunker. It was so hidden that the elevator didn’t have a button for the floor, only able to be called by the guards stationed there.
If it wasn’t for the fact that I knew where to go, we might’ve never found Reload in time. Once I showed her to the stairs, Tóxica charged forward. As I tried to keep up, I could hear the sound of gunshots as the guards tried to stop her.
Bullets bounced off her scales like bundled straw wrappers, doing nothing to stop her as she massacred the guards stationed at the bottom of the stairs. By the time I reached the end, the main room had become a mess of death, with Tóxica standing at the center of it.