Villains Club Training Camp (5)

Blood Tears

Penelope

"It's okay. It's only happened once or twice. These are cursed pennies, I make them using something we stole early on!" I palmed the penny, ready to put it in my pocket only to have Raven snatch it from my hand.

"Bad, bad bad bad on so many levels!" She picked it up, looking at it critically, "There's some serious dark magic put into this. It's connecting to something super demonic and powerful, but you know that right?"

I nodded. "Except now I guess you're useless for this mission now you handled it. That's what they usually do, the blood tears thing is something weird that rarely happens. Normally I touch someone or something with them and they get stupid. Underestimate me, assume they've won. I think it makes them susceptible to my will!" I explained.

"Lucy held out a hand to take the coin, but Raven shook her head. "Can I see the rest?" She asked. Shrugging I pulled out the other three from my pocket.

Five seconds later the set were flying through the air into the desert! "RAVEN! What, WHY Would you! AAAR, They would have been really useful to-" I stormed across the circle and peered out into the sands.

"I can do everything they can!" Crow responded, pulling me up short.

"Me to, it's demon magic of a sort. I'm not sure they put your will on people, so much as whatever is powering them was taking your side. For now." I found myself flanked my magic-users as the power in the group subtly shifted around me. I wasn't the one in charge in this moment, and that realization irked me.

Lucy was the one who explained, "I am a dark demonic being, like that who was powering your coins. These two are bound to a being of the same power. I'm going to say this once Penny Darling, cause I know your dear Claire would pout at me if I didn't. Black magic is a drug, and not the kind you want to get addicted to."

I looked into the worried face of the bright star of the morning, who considered herself the actual fallen angel Lucifer and who should have been saying "Drugs are cool!", to the two kids who I had seen first hand struggling with literally beasts within themselves, and found the message clear. They were scared for me?

"I, look at the moment the important thing is that the gateway is primed. I need you three spell casters to figure out how to plug co-ordinates into this thing so we can drop straight into the middle of the containment cells. Then using our stolen plans myself App and Vera disable security and-"

"We're not going to just drop this." Raven interrupted. Everyone was looking at ME concerned. As though I was the problem here, the one acting abnormally. "Once this job is over, we're going to want an explanation on how, who and why. You understand!"

I shrivelled under those gazes, straight up shrivelled. "I... Okay, I will."

That was apparently that, I'd lost the right to be in charge just now. The magic users, Crow and Raven rallied around Lucyfar and, with a nod to Vera to drop the hologram they did as instructed. Even Vera seamed worried, not exactly talking to me, not exactly not talking either.

I'm really not sure how this happened. Briar and Quinn took up seats nearby while the trio worked over the plan in motion.
"Alright, so I think I have a feasible backup plan!" Lucy said finally, "Prepare to fail remember!" She gestured to me, "My suggestion is doubling down on the distraction to create an escape chance. In our list we're going to include two more villains, the kind who specialize in making a huge ruckus. The guards will be focused on them instead of the main objectives. We'll then have the back up plan to be exiting through the front door!"

I sighed, " Mother will be expecting that!" I finally stood up, putting my helmet back on. Okay so a reliance on my cursed pennies to give myself an advantage had spooked these people. Maybe I would have to explain myself later but I was still the one in charge dammit. 

"The Audit knows  your usual behaviour, she's expecting the three D's!" I followed  through the train of thought in my head, "I can imagine her now in the control room, telling everyone about our personalty profiles, which villains we'll likely set free."

I looked over Briar and Quinn. "They know we'll be coming for your mother, have the biggest guard around them and will rely on the automated systems. On top of that - all of my plans involve hitting hard and getting out fast. She knows that. Making our own back door was the least expected thing she would think of!"

"That's fair. And your mother knows me very well. I guess Apparition is our Ace in the Hole! Do we need a fourth exit strategy?"

"Oh, We can do that! Just get us to our mother!" Briar and Quinn looked at us with such confidence in that moment, holding hands in a promise of defiance. "Once we are, we gather up on one spot and we'll make the exit!" We bickered as a group for a little longer, reassigning the roles of distraction, direction and disorientation in a new configuration. After much debate, I was the distraction.

"Remember, the people in here are the nastiest pieces of work in America, expect them to both be really nice to us, cause we're kids, then try to kill us when they learn we're not rescuing them!" I nodded to Crow and Raven.

"Azarath Metrion..." Raven began chanting, only to get interrupted.

"YEAH LETS DO THIS!" Crow cheered, green energy flaring out from under his emo cape and with the sound of cracking and popping of bones and joints he grew, becoming taller, thinner, stronger and sporting a pair of wicked horns. "Keep your self control Raven, I'm gonna riot for a bit!" and Crow slapped the ground with magic unceremoniously, transferring us into the prison.