Evening had arrived. The glow of sunset spread across the land, making the skyscrapers cast long, deep shadows.
A car kept passing through those shadows until it finally pulled up in front of a house.
CIA Deputy Director Susan Raynor stepped out of the car and walked out of the garage.
Just like usual, she took out her key, opened the door, and walked into the house. Before she even had time to take off her shoes, she heard a voice say, "Your rum's pretty good. Pardon me, I helped myself to a glass without asking."
The deputy director jumped in fright, then clutched her chest and looked toward the figure sitting in the dim corner of the living room.
"Damn it, Butcher, you can't just come in like this."
She turned on the light. The brightness revealed a rough-looking face.
Butcher sneered, "Then how should I come in? Should I wait until you take off that damn skirt before I come inside?"
"Shut up, bastard."
The deputy director walked into the living room and pulled the curtains shut.
"What do you want?"
Butcher reached into his clothes and pulled out a test tube. Inside it, a blue liquid churned slowly.
"What's that?", Raynor looked at the thing in the bearded man's hand and reached out to take it.
Butcher immediately pulled his hand back.
"No, no, dear Susan. We're not that close yet."
"My stuff doesn't get handed over that easily."
Raynor stared at the bearded man.
"What do you want?"
"You know what I want. And it's definitely not sleeping with you."
Butcher set the test tube on the table.
"This is Compound V."
"According to what the Female told us, this stuff gives those superhumans a high, like they're on drugs."
"And it can make them go into a short burst of excitement, boosting all their abilities."
"But the side effects are obvious. It'll wreck them."
He paused for a moment. Then the corner of the bearded man's mouth curled upward.
"But that's not the most important part."
"The most important thing is this. Guess where I found it?"
"Heh! A hospital. In the intensive care unit of a children's hospital."
"They inject this stuff into kids. Do you know what that means?"
"Supes aren't chosen by God. Screw that 'chosen by God' crap."
"This is all Vought's doing. They use this stuff to turn little brats still wearing diapers into supes!"
The deputy director couldn't help pulling out a cigarette and lighting it.
"So that means those superpowered criminals… were also created by Vought?"
"They create the 'enemy,' and that way their superheroes, their 'products', sell better?"
Butcher stood up, "That's right. That's exactly how it works."
"Take it. Make Vought pack up and get the hell out. And that guy flying around in a cape, he's not God. He's just a drugged-up clown!"
The deputy director put away the test tube.
"I'll take care of it."
The bearded man stared at the woman.
"Don't disappoint me, Raynor."
After that, he left through the back garden.
———
Butcher drove his car, smoking and listening to music. Before long he arrived near the place where they were hiding.
He glanced at the house.
Then he didn't stop. He kept driving forward.
On the house's window, someone had sprayed a red X with paint. It was a signal of danger.
"Damn it."
"Did Vought already track us down?", Butcher stepped on the gas and sped away.
Today he had gone to see the deputy director without wearing that alloy battle armor. Barehanded like this, he didn't dare risk entering the house.
But just as he drove past an intersection, the ground suddenly rose upward.
Seeing that, Butcher didn't back off. Instead, he accelerated. The car rushed forward, launching into the air and flying toward the intersection on the other side.
At that moment, frost rapidly spread across the road ahead.
When the car landed, the tires slipped. The vehicle lost control and slammed toward a streetlight on the side.
Bang!
The car crashed into the streetlight. Butcher bounced up, then dropped back down, hitting the airbag that had just deployed.
He nearly blacked out.
Just then, through his blurry vision, he barely saw a tall figure walking toward him from ahead.
It was a beautiful woman, shaped like a supermodel. With every step she took, a thin layer of ice formed beneath her feet.
Ice Princess!
"Damn it."
Butcher hurriedly unfastened his seatbelt and climbed out of the car.
The moment he stepped out, a violent gust of wind blasted toward him, pushing him backward in Ice Princess's direction.
On the other side, Element Woman walked forward, controlling the wind and blasting it at Butcher.
Ice Princess said excitedly, "We finally found him!"
"After Noir died, the task of investigating Blue Hawk's death fell to us."
"But this guy is really too slippery. We've spent quite a bit of effort tracking him down."
Element Woman nodded, "I'll send him your way. Freeze him."
The two superheroes were about to capture the bearded man together when suddenly the sky roared.
Night had already fallen. A dark cloud drifted in from somewhere.
Lightning flashed and thunder roared inside the cloud. With each flash, a figure could faintly be seen within.
Then bolts of lightning came crashing down from the sky, striking the road in chaotic patterns. Some of them struck toward Ice Princess and Element Woman.
Ice Princess quickly froze the moisture above her into solid ice, forming a layer that blocked the lightning.
Element Woman made chunks of stone rise from the ground. Large and small fragments gathered overhead, forming a wall that shielded them from the lightning strikes.
While the two superheroes were being pinned down, a figure suddenly flew down from the sky, grabbed Butcher, and fled.
By the time the lightning stopped, Butcher was already gone.
Ice Princess and Element Woman looked at each other in disbelief.
Neither of them had expected that the duck already in the pot would suddenly fly away.
———
BANG!
Butcher was tossed onto the ground. His back slammed against something hard, making him bare his teeth in pain.
He supported himself against the wall and struggled to his feet, looking at the woman who had just pulled him out of certain death.
She had asymmetrical short hair and wore a black-and-red combat suit. A short cape hung behind her, reaching down to her knees.
Though the woman was less than 1.7 meters tall, she carried herself with a look of arrogant superiority as she looked down at Butcher.
"You want to bring down Homelander? I'm in!"
———
Several luxury cars arrived at 881 Seventh Avenue in New York and stopped in front of the entrance to Carnegie Hall.
The doors opened, and Angelina stepped out in full evening attire. Protected by bodyguards, she entered the hall.
Built in 1890 and funded by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, this concert hall was an iconic landmark in the Federation's classical and pop music world.
Tonight, there was a performance here. And recently, Angelina, Vice President of Vought, had been appearing frequently at various public events and activities.
Tonight was no exception.
As Angelina entered the hall, Alex stepped out of a taxi behind her, wearing a brown leather jacket and jeans. Holding Caitlin's hand, he walked with her toward the music hall.
"Can we really get in?"
"That's Carnegie Hall."
Tonight Alex had invited Caitlin to listen to music. But when she heard it would be at Carnegie Hall, she felt both excited and uneasy.
Alex smiled, "Don't worry."
"I used to repair pipelines here before. I know the maintenance supervisor. He agreed to let us in through the back door."
"Really?"
"That's great," Caitlin finally relaxed.
Just then, a surprised voice sounded behind them.
"Oh my god, my eyes aren't playing tricks on me, are they?"
"Caitlin, is that you?"
"You came to listen to music?"
"Why are you dressed so casually? You don't seriously think Carnegie Hall is some random countryside bar anyone can walk into, do you?"
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