Invest?
Howard Stark wanting someone else to invest in him was ironic.
The future founder of Stark Industries, the man whose weapons would one day reshape wars… and he was currently a kid begging for startup capital with a homemade rifle and the confidence of a caffeinated squirrel.
"…"
Garfield, perched on the counter like a smug loaf of judgment, stared at him.
High Claw Majesty King Garfield. Ruler of the shop, occasional tyrant, full-time orange menace.
"Investment?" Garfield flicked his tail. "And what exactly am I investing in, tiny capitalist?"
Howard puffed up. "Inventions! Really good ones."
He held up the rifle like it was a holy relic. "Current service rifles fire one round. One. You pull the bolt every single time. Wasteful! Inefficient!"
"So I added a detachable magazine, redesigned the internals, improved the cycling smooth as butter. Much higher rate of fire."
He practically vibrated with pride. "But… uh… firing it inside your shop seems like a bad idea."
"Follow me. We've got a range." Garfield jerked his chin toward a side door.
Howard hesitated at the dark doorway. It looked like the entrance to a dungeon where children never returned.
But the industrial empire of his dreams lay somewhere beyond fear… so he squared his jaw and followed Garfield inside.
As the door shut behind them with a heavy thud, Queenie drifted over, watching the duo disappear. She waved the succubus sisters close.
Lilith and Vivienne slid in from opposite sides like sharks circling a fresh swimmer.
"You two were very well-behaved earlier," Queenie said, raising a brow. "Since when do you fear punishment? Did Howard Stark do something special?"
Lilith and Vivienne exchanged a glance.
"This boy," Lilith whispered reverently, "Is a child of destiny."
"A pivot point of countless future events will hinge on him. If we can form a contract with him… gain a spark of his fate or a piece of his soul we may ascend to higher ranks of demonhood."
Vivienne nodded eagerly. "If we can tempt him into corruption? Even better."
"Then tell me… what's my fate?" Queenie's eyes lit with curiosity.
"…?!?" The succubi blinked owlishly.
Ordinarily, Queenie's fate line was simple… smooth at first, then plunging into catastrophe with a high probability of early death.
But after she came under Garfield's domain, the shadow of the Dark Monarch, her destiny had twisted like smoke. Once-bright threads were now fog, unreadable and shifting.
Which meant one thing… If they answered wrong, Garfield would roast them again.
The sisters ducked their heads together. "Lilith, what do we do? If we tell the truth, Garfield might punish us."
"If we lie, Garfield might punish us worse!"
"…Let's lie carefully?"
"…Good plan."
Lilith turned back with her best innocent-demon smile. "Lady Queenie, your fate is… currently shrouded in mist. We can't see it clearly."
"Then what about Baima?" Queenie frowned, disappointed.
"…!!!" Both succubi went dead pale.
Lilith hissed internally… Sister, your turn. Your turn!
Vivienne stiffened, saluted dramatically. Do not worry, sister. Behold my greatness, Vivienne Pando Godzilla Garfield!
(Yes, the name was ridiculous, but Garfield had bestowed it upon her, and thus it was sacred.)
Lilith nodded solemnly. In truth, she also thought Garfield's self-chosen 'King Garfield' was far classier, but that was neither here nor there.
Vivienne straightened her posture and addressed Queenie with as much dignity as a trembling succubus could muster.
"Master Queenie… Lord Baima's fate is also blurred."
Queenie blinked. "Why?"
Vivienne gestured vaguely toward the side door where Garfield had gone.
"Because she became involved with Garfield. Anyone who gets too close to our master, well, their destiny twists into fog."
"My sister speaks the truth. It is exactly like that." Lilith nodded eagerly.
Queenie tapped her chin. "Then what about my sister? What abou Tina?"
"…" The succubi exchanged a silent, panicked conversation through widened eyes.
Lilith… what do we say now?
Keep lying! If her fate changed because of Garfield, then saying so makes us sound incompetent!
Right, right… Then you say it!
Lilith took a deep, dramatic breath. Very well.
Witness the power of~ She struck a pose… her Majesty Lilith Pando Godzilla Garfield!
Vivienne's jaw dropped. Sister! Since when did you add one of master Garfield's titles like that?
Lilith shrugged proudly. Whim. Felt right.
Vivienne, unwilling to be outdone, quickly added, Then I shall henceforth be her Majesty Vivienne Pando Godzilla Garfield!
It was, admittedly, very imposing.
Lilith cleared her throat and returned to Queenie. "Master Queenie, your sister Lady Tina has a turbulent destiny. Many dangers… many blessings."
"She is meant to survive storms that would kill others and rise as a famed figure of her era."
Vivienne added solemnly, "But since she came under Lady Garfield's shadow, some of that fate has turned foggy… the threads are changing."
Queenie raised an eyebrow.
Everyone who gets mixed up with Garfield ends up with their destiny scrambled?
Garfield? That adorable, smug orange gremlin she shares a bed with?
That Garfield?
"…Just who exactly is Garfield?" She asked, rubbing her temple.
Lilith and Vivienne's eyes filled with shimmering admiration.
They spoke together, almost singing…
"The Great King Garfield Pando Godzilla."
Then quietly, with all the seriousness in the world. "He is our master, and we are his mounts."
"…???" Queenie stared. The succubi looked like fangirls discussing their favorite celebrity, it was… unsettling.
"…Why do you worship him so much?" Queenie asked.
Both succubi nearly choked.
How do you not know?! their expressions screamed.
Lilith muttered under her breath: "The dread demon lord Mephisto treats him as an equal…"
Vivienne whispered: "The Supreme Sorcerer's successor…"
"He is the Child of Destiny…" Lilith again, soft but urgent:
"He is a being of great origin." Vivienne shivered slightly.
They didn't dare say more… some legends were better left only half-remembered.
Stories of Odin the All-Father leading armies that crushed entire realms…
Stories of the demon world losing horribly…
Stories Lilith and Vivienne refused to think about too long, lest they remember the winged Asgardians they now instinctively hiss at.
They snapped back to attention and said in unison, with absolute conviction:
"Master Garfield is a truly great existence."
Queenie watched them with mild disbelief. Two supposedly fearsome demon sisters had turned into squealing devotees.
At this point, she knew she wouldn't get any straight answers from them.
"Never mind…" She sighed.
✦••┈┈••✦••┈┈••✦
Meanwhile, in the modified workshop…
Howard Stark stepped into the hidden industrial chamber beneath the shop.
He forgot to breathe. "My God…"
"…this is real?"
꧁𓊈𒆜༺⚜༻𒆜𓊉꧂
Phantom your way through a treasure trove of chapters waiting on P@treon!
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