Chapter Text
/ 3 /
If Kristen didn’t show up soon, he might just break himself out and go find her. The stealth operation had been scheduled to return four days ago. He wasn’t presumptuous enough to assume that he might be the first person she came to visit, or even one of her top priorities. But no sign of her was making him anxious.
A few days ago, one of the guards at his door had mentioned something about the captain being upset. Furious he called it. Because the general had made a mistake that ‘cost them.’
He had no idea what that meant. But the captain was Kristen’s father. And if he was upset…
He tried not to think about it. What good would it do him to worry? But in the tiny cell that had become his home, there wasn’t much else for him to do.
There hadn’t been a battle in several weeks. Or at least, not one that they had deemed him necessary for. The general had started ordering regular exercise routines for him, just so he wouldn’t wither to dust in his room. Which he appreciated. But those brief times out of his cell barely stomped down on the restlessness he felt. And the longer he wore the collar without it being deactivated, the more his skin itched and he reached out desperately for his powers that he hadn’t felt in some time.
On the worst days he found himself pacing the length of his cage. He had too much energy, even with the collar, and he needed to move. He missed having someone to talk to, even if he didn’t do much talking and just listened to her speak.
He hoped she was ok…
A sound outside his door had his eyes snapping open. He must have fallen asleep at some point in his waiting, but he was awake now. It was dark, the small window near the ceiling gave no sign of the sun. The only light in the cell was let in through a barred opening at the top of the door.
He didn’t move.
Then, a shadow blocked out the light and Kristen’s face appeared.
He rushed forward, grabbing the bars and scanning her face. She startled, then looked relieved to see him. The feeling was mutual.
“I wasn’t sure if you were here.” She whispered. “You didn’t make a sound. That really scared me!”
He was too busy glaring daggers at the bandage he had found around her neck to look sheepish.
“Oh this? Don’t worry! They got me all patched up. I’m good as new.”
She sounded exhausted. Hell, she looked exhausted. The little he could see of her wings, they hung limp off her shoulders. It put him on edge. He hated how the constant surety and gentleness of her presence was now marred by this. His hands reached out like they wanted to grab her, and she touched her fingers to his through the bars.
“That mission was not one of my prouder moments, let me tell you.”
She rested her forehead against the metal. He did his best to give his most expectant look, prompting her to continue. And she did. In hushed whispers she told him everything. From the moment they left, to when everything went south, and how they barely managed to escape. He pressed his head against hers, even if they couldn’t touch through the metal.
“We never should have gone.” She yawned, her eyes getting more and more tired over the course of her story. “We’re never going to win this war Angel. I’m not sure why we even keep trying.”
He wasn’t sure what to do with her sudden honesty. Truly, he had known already that this war was hopeless, pointless, and a waste of good human life. He hated it. But not as much as he hated how sad she sounded.
“Philza.”
Kristen’s eyes were suddenly very wide, and awake. “What did you say?”
He was just as shocked as she was. He hadn’t meant to say that. He hadn’t meant to speak at all. But something about the darkness, and their whispers, and the shadows on her face, had the words slipping out of him.
“Not Angel. Philza.”
“Well…” She was grinning now, so wide he thought it might hurt her face. “I guess something good happened today after all.”
-//-
Blood Pulse introduced himself as Techno. He was a piglin hybrid, and after some interrogation, it turned out he was actually younger than Wilbur. (Still not as young as Phil had been. But that didn’t keep Phil’s heart from breaking any less.)
He was working with a group in the underground of the city. Wilbur had been surprised that there was an underground of the city. Phil just nodded. He had figured as much.
Their goal was to do all the dirty work that the heroes weren’t stepping up to fix. Busting drug rings and putting a stop to the illegal hybrid markets. Techno spent that first night on Phil’s couch, accepting dinner and some water, explaining all the gory details. They were almost vigilantes, except that they had adopted a ‘punch first, ask questions later’ type of mentality.
They weren’t violent by choice. But when violence was necessary, they weren’t afraid of being labeled villains for their choices.
It sounded terrible when he described it, and Phil felt his heart sink each time a new detail was brought up.
Wilbur listened with tight lips and a determination that worried him.
“What’s our next move?”
Techno paused. “Our?”
Wilbur only nodded. And that had been the end of that.
Techno shared that most villains in this city had the same end goal: overthrowing the Hero System entirely. What the heroes didn’t know was that these villains were working together to achieve this goal.
Techno had seemed excited enough about taking down the heroes. But what he was really in it for, were the hybrids. All those hiding beneath the city because it wasn’t safe for them here. With Wilbur’s voice, it would only get easier for them to find a way out.
Muse was officially classified as a villain a few days later, after being seen with Blood Pulse in public after Techno’s injury had fully healed.
Phil was doing his best to be ok with everything that was happening. But seeing his son classified as a villain had hit him harder than he was expecting. It was one thing for Wilbur to have a hobby that was a bit dangerous. As a vigilante he was helping people, but he was never a big enough name for any of the heroes to notice.
As a villain, he was being actively hunted. He was a wanted criminal, his masked face broadcast on television as a warning to LaManburg’s citizens. The heroes were looking for his son.
(Chasing, always chasing. Even now when Phil thought he had made it far enough away.)
But Phil wasn’t going to make it easy for them. It was like falling back into familiar territory, the level of espionage he was involved in. See, out of all the names Phil had created for himself, his most important one was quickly becoming his own.
“Your dad works for the heroes?” Techno was shocked. “You work for the heroes?” He pointed the question at Phil when Wilbur only gave him a bashful look.
“Technically I just work in the tower. I rarely see the heroes at all.”
They had decided to tell Techno how exactly Phil was so good at finding out the info that he did. It seemed only fair, considering Techno had shown Wilbur to the underground, once he decided to trust him fully. The amount of refugees and hybrids who were supposed to be protected by the city, but were instead cowering in the tunnels, hoping for a chance to escape…
Phil had never seen his son so motivated before. It made him proud that Wilbur was still trying to help people, even when they had nothing they could give him in return. He and Techno had gotten closer. Wilbur had made it his goal to drag the man home with him any chance he got. Apparently, he didn’t have a family or a place to stay of his own.
And well, they couldn’t have that.
Phil welcomed him every time he was forced inside by a very pushy Wilbur. He had his doubts at first, but it turned out, Techno was a funny guy. And a good kid. Sometimes his serious act would drop, and his age would show. Phil couldn’t help getting attached. Especially when he was just as passionate as Wilbur. Even if Techno was slightly more subdued about it.
Phil liked to think that Techno trusted him, and not just his son. Hopefully this confession wouldn’t change that too much.
“So, what, you’ve just been hacking into the highly secure hero computer system, anytime you need to find something out?”
Phil grinned. “You’d be surprised what a person can manage, working in IT. But mostly, I just use it to make sure none of the info they try to record about you and Wilbur stays in the system for long.”
He had more than one method for getting information, after all.
Techno didn’t know what to say to that. He seemed oddly touched that he was included under the umbrella of Phil’s protectiveness. But truly, he couldn’t help himself.
Once, when Phil was spending his night in his usual manor (obsessively checking and rechecking the first aid kit which had grown into a small storage closet) he heard a knock on his front door.
Immediately suspicious, Phil had pulled out his phone to check the small camera he had installed above the front door. Even with the camera's poor quality, he could recognize Techno’s bright pink hair anywhere.
“Umm, hey Phil.” Techno greeted him when he opened the door.
He looked uncomfortable, shuffling his feet in the doorway. Phil realized with a jolt that this was the first time he had seen Techno out of his costume. Instead, he was wearing a ratty pair of jeans, sneakers, and a hoodie with a band name on it that Phil only vaguely recognized as something Will would listen to.
On second inspection, it might have been Wilbur’s hoodie.
He should welcome him inside. Or do something to spare Techno from the obvious anxiety he was feeling.
“You wear glasses?”
That is not what Phil had meant to say.
“Oh. Yeah.” Techno adjusted the square lenses. “I don’t wear them under the mask; they would probably break too easily. But I need them to read and like… see small stuff.”
Phil snorted. “They suit you. Make you look older somehow.” He stood aside, letting Techno in. He gave Phil an odd look as he walked inside.
“Do I not look old already?”
“Nah. You’re just a kid. You and Will both look young despite the stuff you get up to.”
“Hmm, maybe you’re just old. It’s easy to look young when standing next to you.”
“Oi! You little—” Phil laughed, happy to see the mirroring smile on Techno’s face. It was a rare thing, that smile. It felt like a success each time he saw it.
“Not that I don’t love having you here mate, but did you stop by for a reason?”
Techno shrugged and sat down on the couch. “Not really.”
His voice was small. Phil smiled. Yup, still just a kid.
They ended up making dinner together, having it ready by the time Wilbur got home later that night. He had joked about Techno replacing him as the favorite son, barely containing the delight he obviously felt at seeing Techno in their home without any forceful coercion. Techno had tried to argue that he would need to be Phil’s son to be a favorite. So, Phil made it a point to call him ‘son’ for the rest of the night.
“Can you pass me the salt, son?”
“I don’t know son, it looks like you cheated.”
“What was that son? Speak up for your old man.”
Wilbur had gotten a kick out of that last one. Techno hadn’t laughed, but instead furiously tried to hide how red he was turning.
It was a good night for Phil. Somehow having Techno over didn’t feel like a nuisance. He only added to the atmosphere and fueled that warm feeling in Phil’s chest that was only ever stoked by family.
When Wilbur brought out his guitar and Techno curled up in the armchair with a book off Phil’s shelf, it felt right. His family had grown to include someone new. And Phil wanted to protect it.
-//-
When Phil said he would protect it, this isn’t quite what he had in mind.
He had just wanted some groceries. Some eggs, maybe a gallon of milk. One or two things, and then it would be a quick ride home. But no, of course not.
He felt a little silly for complaining when the situation was so serious. But on the other hand, his short trip to the grocery store looked like it was about to take much more time than necessary.
A body had been thrown through the front window of the store, followed closely by several other angry people. There had been screaming, some loud shouts of anger and demands for everyone to leave and get out of the way. And Phil planned to do just that. Until he noticed something. One of the assailants, the man who was currently defending himself against three others, was wearing a familiar red cape.
Techno.
Well, there went all his plans.
What Techno was doing out in broad daylight, Phil didn’t know. But he felt a sudden fear grip him that he was about to watch the first person he had welcomed into his life in a long time die in the produce aisle. He couldn’t leave him here by himself. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do to help… But Phil wasn’t about to abandon him either.
With nothing else to do, he followed the crowd of people out of the store, and then ducked behind some fleeing people to hide beside the building. He crouched low in an alley and tried to think.
Those men who had been attacking him were dressed head to two in all black. Several others were outside on the crowded street, trying to push onlookers to safety. They were Shadows.
Shadows were the nameless workhorses of the hero system. Powered individuals with useful abilities that didn’t make the cut to be actual heroes. Their powers were either too harsh, or their personalities too unpresentable to be known as anyone specific in the public eye. So instead, they were all given identical black costumes, and blank masks so that no one could tell them apart. They were told to stick to the shadows and only move when told to move.
They were soldiers. Doing the dirty work that no one wanted to think about.
That was a tough fight against just one Shadow, much less the four he had seen inside, and the two still outside. Techno needed help.
Phil could feel his hands grow cold. Something he was used to feeling before hearing an attack command.
Another crash was heard, and several screams came from the street. Phil saw a blur of motion sprinting down the road. Techno was on the move. Without thinking, Phil gave chase.
Phil tried his best to stay healthy in retirement. But long distance sprints across town were not something he had planned for. He was rather proud of himself for keeping up with the trained Shadows, and even for being able to track their movements. But by the time they had slowed down and Phil had caught up to them, he was worried he was too late.
They had run further from the crowded streets of the city center and instead were in some dirty back alley. The reason they had stopped here became clear. Techno had run into a dead end. There were six of them. Even with his skill, Techno couldn’t beat them all.
“Help!” Phil screamed, the three shadows closest to him turned Quickly. Phil rushed up to the closest one, stumbling into him. “Please help someone’s chasing me!”
“Sir,” the one holding him started to speak. “Sir you need to calm down, you can’t be here.”
Phil did just the opposite, trying to escalate the situation as much as possible. He wasn’t a good actor, not by a long shot. But the run over had made him sweaty and panting and he forced his hands to shake as he gripped the shadow by the front of his solid black costume. Hopefully that was enough to persuade them.
The one who had spoken to him gripped his arms and began to drag him away. That wouldn’t do. Time to engage.
Phil took hold of the man who was still holding him, flipped him around his shoulder so he landed flat on his back on the concrete, then stomped his head into the pavement just to make sure. He didn’t move.
With one down, and three pinning Techno down, that left two more still near Phil.
To the Shadow’s credit, they didn’t pause to wonder at why this civilian was suddenly attacking them. Instead, they each drew a dagger from their belts, and charged.
But Phil didn’t hesitate either. He dodged the first; side stepped the Shadow as he charged and grabbed his wrist. He went to twist the Shadow into a hold that would have immobilized him, but they saw it coming, sending a quick kick in Phil’s direction. They traded strikes and punches, Phil spinning madly to make sure he didn’t get caught between both shadows and instead kept them both in front of him. He was beginning to feel the effects of being out of practice. He decided this fight was going on for too long.
When the next kick came, he let it strike him, falling back on the ground, then flipping around to sweep the Shadows legs. He went down hard, and with a strong punch to the nose, Phil made sure he stayed there.
The second shadow tried to strike Phil while he was low to the ground. But he caught their leg, yanked out their support, and delivered a brutal kick to their temple. This time, there was blood.
Phil grit his teeth against the smell, shaking his head and trying to remember why he was there. Here, in this alley, and not somewhere else.
Scheduling that mental breakdown for a later date, Phil set off in the direction he had seen Techno run. He hoped he had gotten away, but just in case…
Phil’s hopes were crushed when he heard a struggle up ahead. He rushed in, adrenaline high, heart sinking at what he saw.
Techno was strong. Both physically and with his powers. But one vs. three was hardly fair. Still better than one vs. six, but not by much. Especially when those three were also highly trained, powerful individuals. Techno was bleeding from one arm, cornered like a wild animal, with his eyes glowing bright red under his mask.
One of the shadows was on the ground, blood leaking from their mask, but they struggled to their feet as Phil approached. He jumped into action.
He took the Shadow back down to the ground with a sharp punch to the head. Techno saw him arrive, the glow fading from his eyes as he straightened in shock. One Shadow took the distraction as a chance to jump forward, and the last turned towards Phil.
One vs. One seemed much fairer. Until the man in front of Phil pulled a short sword from some sheath on his back.
“Seriously mate? That’s a bit overkill, don’t you think?” The Shadow answered by swinging the blade at Phil’s neck.
Phil would be lying if he said that he wasn’t exhausted. Muscle memory came back in a way he hadn’t expected and that was the only reason he was still alive. The adrenaline only increased with fear, his arms were tired much faster than they might have been several years ago, but the jumping pace of his heart never faded. The ache was an old friend, and the few nicks he got on his arms only fueled the fire.
But more than anything as the fight went on, he was angry. Angry at the way his day was going. Angry that Techno was in danger. Angry that these Shadows were so clearly aiming to kill when that was meant to be against everything that their association stood for. Angry at the world, at the blood on his good shoes and angry at the ache was going to feel the next morning.
Then he glanced over, and he saw Techno on his knees. He seemed to be struggling to stand, and now, the shadow he had been fighting also had a sword.
All the anger turned into crushing dread again. Honestly, Phil could not handle all these drastic swings in emotion.
The man in front of him took advantage of Phil’s distraction, moving in to strike.
With nothing left to do, and no time, Phil called on his own blade.
The air sparked and ignited. Purple flames danced on his fingers and when he raised his arm again, it was with his own sword in his hand. The sound of metal on metal was so loud, it drew the attention of Techno’s assailant. He rushed forward to help his teammate, and Phil pushed back against both.
The diamond blade glowed, hues of blue and the signature color of a purple enchantment. The sword was longer than both of their short blades, with a grip that required both of Phil’s hands on the pommel. But he swung it with ease, and practice.
The next few seconds felt like hours. Trading blow for blow, until Phil saw his opening, he found his moment. And he struck.
There was a sickening sound of a life being taken, and in the brief shock that followed, Phil took care of the second Shadow. He stood panting over their bodies. He felt sick to his stomach. Not at the death or the blood. Although that was certainly part of it, it was too late for him to grow remorse over taking a life now. But who had been watching him.
Techno’s eyes were on him when he turned. Their glow had faded. His shoulders rose and fell quickly, like he was still trying to catch his breath.
“You alright mate?”
He tried for nonchalance.
“That’s an Antarctic blade.”
So much for that then…
He had been hoping Techno wouldn’t know what he was looking at. But he should have figured that war history and enchanted blacksmithing would be something the kid was interested in.
“Ah. You noticed that, did you?”
“How did you get an Antarctic blade?”
Phil did his best to shrug. “Would you believe me if I said I won it in a game of cards?”
Techno looked completely baffled, eyes dancing between Phil and the sword. Phil prayed he would just drop it. He didn’t.
“None have been made since the war, and only the generals and leaders ever got enchanted swords.”
Phil held his hand over the blade, urging it back into its little pocket of magic. “That’s true. Only their leaders.”
The sword disappeared slowly, and the blood that had been clinging to the metal dropped to the ground. Techno watched, still thinking out loud.
“All of their enchanted weapons were recovered once they lost the war. All but one.”
Phil knelt to be at eye level with Techno. He held his gaze through the skull mask, then decided he didn’t want anything in the way when they had this talk. Techno only flinched a little when he reached up to move it aside.
“You’re very smart Techno. And I’m sure that your mind is already racing, trying to find an explanation for why I have that sword. And I promise, one day I’ll be able to tell you.”
That seemed to catch Techno off guard. The fact Phil would be willing to tell him.
“But I can’t tell you just yet. So, until that day comes, I’m asking you to trust me.”
They stared at each other for a long moment. Phil tried to look as unsuspecting as possible. He could see the war on Techno’s face, before he seemed to reach a decision, nodding slowly.
“Well, you did just kill two people for me. I guess trusting you is the least I can do.”