Chapter 103 - Big Mood

Snapping his eyes open while leaning against the wall to support himself, Lucas trembles while stabilizing his breathing. Thankfully, Miss Calculated's attention is currently on her sister, just now reaching her arm out in front of her to stop her.

Willy, however, was in the process of scolding Lucas. When he noticed the odd behavior, he ceased his barking.

[Unfortunately, the time given is fairly limited, but at least the damage caused before you had time to react doesn't count against you. You seem calmer than I would expect, did you come up with an idea already?]

'Yeah, actually. When I tripped, I fucked up the wall just trying to get my bearings, right? That damn girlie is causing so much havoc, I don't feel bad breakin' a few walls to stop her.'

[Hmm, indeed. After seeing her lethality, accepting a bit of a penalty for environmental damage in favor of improving your chances of success is a sound course of action.]

"Mash, seriously, this is a terrible idea. I can almost guarantee that they're far back in the alley, with nothing for you to hide behind on your way to them. There's no way you'll be able to get close. If anything, you should be trying to stop Lucas." While Miss Calculated actively tries to dissuade her sister, Miss Masher visibly hesitates again.

Not giving Miss Masher a chance to repeat her actions from the last timeline, Lucas immediately speaks up while turning around to face them.

"You're totally right, but that's only if we go through the alley." When he interjects, both sisters initially look confused. It isn't long before Miss Calculated's expression shifts from confusion into contemplation, then transforms into surprised understanding.

"Right, of course. There's no need to play by their rules, what's a brick wall to either of you? It could be hard to estimate when to come back out, but it's certainly better than giving them a clear target. I still don't like it, but it's at least a far more acceptable alternative. Ah, since there seems to be a bit of time between shots, once the next one is fired I'll take a quick look to estimate how deep the alley is until you reach your target. That way I can follow behind you two and tell you when to break through. I imagine you were already planning on being the battering ram, Lucas, and I'm sure Mash can protect me from whatever we agitate inside. It'll probably be safer for me than waiting by the street, anyway." When Miss Calculated finishes with her speculations, Willy quickly gives a single muffled bark in support of this alternate plan. He still has all of his toys at hand, er, mouth, and his posturing seems to indicate that he's eager to follow as well.

Miss Masher is now wearing a huge grin, completely on board with the suggested course of action.

"Sounds like a plan." Voicing his agreement, Lucas takes two steps back from the corner, getting in position to shoulder-check his way through the wall. Worried that the potential cloud of debris might obscure her vision, he waits to give Miss Calculated time for her inspection before beginning his career as a wrecking ball.

As both Miss Calculated and Miss Masher make their way over to Lucas's side, another string of giggles followed by another high-speed airborne marble occurs.

As Lucas stands ready to smash his way through the wall, this time around he is positioned such that he can see the previously disregarded marble.

It zips through the neck of the driver for a small SUV, tearing open their carotid artery, fatally injuring them. As their death isn't instant, in their panicked convulsions they manage to swerve their vehicle into oncoming traffic, beginning a five-car pileup. Thankfully, their max speed through the area is limited, or else at higher speeds the destruction would have been significantly higher. Even still, a few pieces of wreckage land only a few feet away from Lucas.

Making it to the corner, Miss Calculated quickly leans forward so only half of her head is exposed past its edge. Catching a glimpse of the girl on her nest of crates, she takes as little time as possible to get a rough idea of the distance before pulling herself back away from the edge.

"It's some damn pampered princess! All right, I think I got enough of an idea for how far, lets go!" Shouting over the noise from the ongoing accident to make her discovery known, Miss Calculated steps back a bit to give Lucas some more room. She is, of course, mindful of the edge of the alley as well as the aggressively busy street nearby when choosing her direction for movement.

Getting the go sign, Lucas leans away from the wall to help build up an extra bit of momentum before slamming into it full-force with his right shoulder. Crashing through the wall with even less effort than he anticipated, he almost loses his balance from the lack of sufficient resistance from the poor little innocent wall.

Laughing with satisfaction, he starts charging straight ahead through the freshly exposed office. The few human workers inside scatter and scream in a very reasonable response to the sudden guest appearance from a self-made door.

In short order, Miss Masher dashes in behind him, grinning from ear to ear. Close behind her, Miss Calculated and Willy both run in after her, giving her a bit of a lead so she has room to maneuver should the need arrive.

Lucas grins evilly when he notices an obviously old all-in-one printing machine, stained with age and most likely more than just one explosion's worth of ink.

"VENGEANCE!" Shouting with the wrath of a previously repeatedly-stymied-by-barely-functional-office-equipment white-collar worker, Lucas begins laughing maniacally.

[What the..?]

Swerving a bit out of his original path to reach it, he tackles the machine at a full sprint and uses it to smash through the next dividing wall.

Not only is Miss Masher laughing at the entertaining chaos, but Miss Calculated is also in absolute hysterics, nearly to the point of tears.

"Oh nooo, now upper management has no choice but to finally replace the printer, what a shameee~!" Managing to choke this out between laughter, Miss Calculated barely holds back a snort once she's done saying it. She has to wipe her eyes so she can see where she's even going while she runs after Lucas and Miss Masher through the recently opened office space.

Willy is easily keeping pace alongside her, giving an amused bark in response.

Needless to say, the employees in their cubicles here had a reaction greatly akin to that of the first office's staff.

Lucas isn't satisfied with the level of destruction from driving the machine through only a single wall, so he continues carrying the offending office equipment like some sort of horribly misshapen oversized American football.

Continuing the charge, at the last moment he holds it out before him just in time to spike it into the next wall, now opening a path into an employee break room.

Tearing open the barrier, he's now finally satisfied with the damage he inflicted on the overworked printer. Finishing the spiking motion, he slams it into the ground and then kicks its remnants out of the way.

The one middle-aged woman that was in the break room at the time silently looks up at him, looks down at the mangled printer, then takes a sip of her coffee as she resumes looking down at her phone.

'Same, lady, same.'

-----

Lucas kills this chapter: 0

Lucas total kills: 7

Lucas deaths this chapter: 0

Lucas total deaths: 11

Lucas current GDV: 10.48 (+.01 -.01 +.01 -.01 -.01 -.01 = -.02 net change)

Lucas's fame level: 4* (Beyond just local, viral meme tier. Local levels are fairly high.)

Lucas's hero suspicion level: 2* (More than just passing suspicion for only a few paranoid individuals)

Jonathan kills this chapter: 0

Jonathan total kills: 6

Jonathan deaths this chapter: 0

Jonathan total deaths: 2

Jonathan current GDV: 2.57

Jonathan's fame level: 2.5* (Mostly just local)

Jonathan's hero suspicion level: 1.5* (Only highly paranoid people)

Willy's fame level: 1* (Anonymous meme fame, local fame as 'Xenoclast's dog')

Supervillain social circle size: 11

-----

Little character theater:

Jonathan was disoriented for a moment when trying to get his bearings again post rollback, then began using the same path again to approach the scene, getting the same GDV task to rescue the people from the multi-car pileup once again.

Willy is happily trotting after his father (?) through the unfortunate offices: Bark!

Lucas, spotting an open box of donuts on one of the tables in the break room, skidding to a halt and stealing a powdered donut to stuff it in his face in four bites: Fuck yes!

427, torn between laughing and crying: [I believe that is your first time managing to lose GDV in the theater, congratulations, I think?]

Author, grinning toothily: Priorities, Lucas has them.

Mr.. Quacks, also spurning the now-thoroughly-destroyed printer: Quack.