They were Glutton Mony, Corrosion Girl Rio, Giant Terra, Blood Girl Mary, and Fire God Luke.
Glutton Mony was the youngest, still a little brat, but his power was something special. In the early rounds he'd sat right in front of the entire crowd and eaten a whole bicycle, metal and all. Nobody had a clue how the hell he managed it.
Anyway, he'd made it to the finals and become one of the star contestants.
Star contestants, just like the name said, already had massive online heat. They were the heavy favorites to win. Starlight herself had been one of them back in the day.
Her popularity crushed every other contender, which was exactly why she ended up in The Seven.
"They won't miss the finals today." The "they" Ivan meant were Butcher and his crew.
Just as he'd predicted, Butcher's group had slipped into the stadium in disguise. Their seats were just farther back.
"Shit! You're seriously planning to grab Ryan during the finals? Jesus Christ, you've lost your goddamn mind!" Hughie, black mask over his face, watched Butcher pull a pistol out from under his ass.
"Don't forget every single member of The Seven is here today. I guarantee the second you show your face Homelander's lasers will dice our heads into confetti."
Hughie's voice came out tight and fast. Even with the mask you could see the panic written all over him.
"Where's Starlight? And why aren't Frenchie and the others here yet?" The moment he realized Butcher was actually going for it, Hughie felt like his seat was on fire and ready to burn him to ash any second.
"Relax. The show's already started." Butcher stuffed the gun back into his leather jacket and pulled out his phone, like he was waiting for a message.
"You already kicked off the operation?"
Hughie sucked in a sharp breath, then locked eyes with Butcher and gritted his teeth. "Butcher, you absolute piece of dog shit. You didn't even tell me the plan beforehand! What, you think I'm a Vought mole? Fuck you, fuck your entire family!"
Seeing Hughie about to blow and his voice getting louder, Butcher had to explain. "Starlight told me not to tell you. She was worried you'd try to stop her if you knew."
"So you used her. You used how desperate she is for revenge to pull off your crazy-ass scheme! You bastard! If she doesn't come back, you're finished!" Hughie was breathing like a wild animal about to lose it, ready to tear Butcher apart right there.
He'd spent enough time with Starlight. Their relationship wasn't official, but anyone with eyes could see what was going on between them.
Butcher leaned back in his seat, face ice-cold, and ignored Hughie's powerless rage.
Time jumped back three days.
After watching the heads explode at the hearing, Butcher understood that no one and no method could stop Compound V from getting legalized.
Vought had won again, and they'd won completely. Facing a result he couldn't change, even Butcher felt a deep, heavy helplessness settle in.
On top of that, Vought had dumped every possible black mark onto Starlight. All the evidence he'd been sitting on that could have stirred up public opinion was now basically worthless garbage.
Out of options, Butcher called Mallory looking for a way to break the deadlock. Mallory told him she couldn't change the current situation either and that he'd just have to wait patiently for the right opening.
But Butcher had zero patience. If he just kept his head down, who the fuck knew when that "right opening" would show up—one year? Two? Even longer.
He'd rather take the fight to them.
Right then the TV started running a promo for the Superhero Selection Tournament. In the ad Homelander held Ryan's hand and posed with a hand on his hip. The second Butcher saw Ryan, a bold idea sparked in his head.
He was also betting that Vought's Executive CEO Edgar couldn't actually keep Homelander on a real leash. Get Ryan, and he'd have a bargaining chip important enough to force Edgar to the table. The more he thought about it, the more a crazy light filled his eyes.
As if on cue, Starlight walked into the room looking for him.
Starlight wanted to rescue her mother, but there was no way she could do it alone.
"How do you know they're holding your mother in Vought Tower?" Butcher asked in a low voice.
"Because in their eyes no place is safer. With Homelander and the others there, not even a fly gets out."
"You're right. The only reason Hughie managed to pull you out was pure dumb luck. Homelander and the rest just happened to be away from the tower. It's different now. After that close call the security at Vought Tower is only going to be tighter. Not even all of us strapped with explosives could force our way in."
Butcher stared hard at Starlight.
Starlight looked at the TV screen beside them. "The finals of the Vought Selection Tournament in three days. That's the best shot. From what I know, every member of The Seven will be on stage. Vought Tower will be empty."
A few seconds later Butcher suddenly grinned. "You've got a mole inside The Seven. I'm not wrong, am I?"
"The Deep or Queen Maeve?"
"Queen Maeve. She agreed to help me." Starlight didn't hide it. "How'd you figure that out?"
"Hard? Your face said you had some confidence but not much. Plus you somehow know The Seven's schedule. A runaway supe doesn't get that kind of intel."
Butcher pulled a cigarette from his pocket, stuck it between his lips, lit it, and took a deep drag.
"Helping you get your mother out isn't impossible. I've got one condition."
"Spit it out."
"We kidnap Homelander's kid…"
Butcher walked over to the TV, squinted at Ryan on the screen, and blew out a thick cloud of smoke. "Ryan!"
"What do you need me to do?" Starlight didn't refuse.
"Contact Queen Maeve. On the night of the finals, have her arrange a separate car for Ryan, one that leaves at a different time from Homelander. Give me the plate number. I'll plant a tracker on the vehicle in advance and watch the route in real time.
I'll send Frenchie and the others with you for the job."
After hearing the whole plan Starlight couldn't help asking, "Then who's going after my mother?"
"Don't worry about that. I've already got the perfect person in mind."
She still didn't fully trust Butcher, but the arrow was already on the string. Miss this rare chance and rescuing her mother would become damn near impossible.
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Read 12 Advance Chapters—P@t- Captain69