Filth in the Shadows Comes to Light

"Starlight! You've given us quite a surprise!"

Ashley walked into the room beaming and went straight to Starlight.

"The girl you helped last night is thanking you on social media right now!"

Hearing that her help had made a difference, Starlight couldn't hide her delight.

"Really?"

"Of course! Director Madelyne wants to see you!"

"Come on!"

After Ashley hurried out, Starlight let out a long breath, then followed her toward a small conference room.

"Have a seat, Starlight. We've all heard about it. That was a textbook example of stepping in to help someone on your way home from work..."

"The girl who was nearly dragged away in that fake-date scam thanked you after giving her statement, too."

Madelyne made no effort to hide her praise as she greeted Starlight.

"Your approval ratings have shot up. Punishing those men won you a huge number of male fans."

"And protecting the girl made a lot of female fans feel safer. Your approval ratings are climbing even in districts where liberalism is losing ground."

Ashley took over, her face glowing with excitement.

Madelyne, beside her, had clearly seen it all before. She was much calmer.

"This... is a good thing, right...?"

Starlight still wasn't used to this new way of doing things, so she asked cautiously.

"Of course! It's good. It's fantastic!"

"Oh... Well, that's... Sorry, I don't even know what to say..."

Starlight was embarrassed by all the praise, but Madelyne continued.

"It's good for both of us. We're partners, after all."

"These are Seth and Ivan from Marketing." She gestured toward the sofa, where two equally delighted men sat ready to speak.

"They have some excellent ideas for capitalizing on this surge of attention."

"It's the story of a farm girl whose door fate came knocking on..."

The two men launched into an impassioned pitch as a designer beside them swept the curtain off a clothes rack.

"I'm not wearing that."

The costume was so revealing it could have passed for a swimsuit. Starlight refused without hesitation.

"Sweetheart, joining The Seven means giving up a few things... Or..."

Madelyne's voice was gentle, but Starlight's heart tightened.

The Deep had told her to get out of The Seven because he was betting she didn't know how little power he actually had.

That was why he'd been so blunt and threatening.

But Madelyne? The CEO of Vought International?

She held real power. Apart from the three heavyweights—Homelander, Maeve, and Black Noir—she could make anyone she wanted pack their bags and leave.

So however gently she spoke, her words carried weight.

"Because The Deep almost... did something to me before, and I'm planning to speak out about it, I don't think this style would be right for me..."

Starlight suddenly remembered what Rorschach had said the night before and spoke up.

Once the costume designer left, Starlight finally understood what Rorschach had meant.

"If that's the case, this costume really wouldn't suit the occasion..."

Madelyne fell into thought. She hadn't known about the incident. In truth, she simply hadn't cared.

But when she connected it to the fake date and the men who had tried to use their numbers and size to force the girl away, an idea sprang up.

"Ashley, book Starlight for a late-night talk show interview. Yes, that one."

"In that case, we're happy to support your decision wholeheartedly."

Madelyne's warm, reassuring manner sent a chill through Starlight.

"Everyone got it?"

Rorschach swept his gaze over the group and asked again.

This operation hinged on whether they could break A-Train's composure. The stakes were high.

One careless move, and it would only be a matter of time before they were all wiped out.

With that in mind, Rorschach turned his attention back to the monitor.

The Female was still basking in the afterglow of the previous night. Until A-Train left, no one would notice her.

"We won't have much time. We have to move fast. There'll be a whole crowd of superheroes at the event, so nothing can go wrong."

"Got it."

All of them had training. When Rorschach needed them, they could become a blade—or a tool—at a moment's notice.

On race day.

Drums thundered, firecrackers crackled, flags waved, and crowds packed the venue.

People had come not just to see whether A-Train could keep his title as the fastest man alive, but because several members of The Seven were there too!

Homelander and Maeve were giving interviews, while Black Noir and Starlight signed merchandise T-shirts.

The Deep watched it all from beside a fish tank in Atlanta, tears in his eyes.

He could have basked in some of that attention himself.

But damn Starlight. Ever since she'd exposed what he'd done, he hadn't gotten a bit

He really shouldn't have let his little head take charge. Oh, the regret!

"Huh? I get points for this too?"

Rorschach grinned at the unexpected increase in his system points.

He'd already received points on the day of the talk show. If he could collect again from the fallout, it looked as though every television appearance Starlight made could earn him more.

"How's everyone doing?"

"All in position."

Butcher was in the stands, watching the whole venue.

Marvin was among the reporters near the locker room, keeping an eye on who went in.

A-Train, who hadn't warmed up yet, was extracting the blue liquid from the canisters.

If it weren't for Compound V, he wouldn't have spent all that time sweating with his girlfriend, who was in her thirties, in that little house.

And he certainly wouldn't have knocked on Madelyne's office door just to put her mind at ease.

His access should have been enough, but A-Train wanted to play it safe.

After all, The Female had plenty left. It could keep him at the top for another two years.

"Ready?"

Rorschach and Frenchie had crawled through the ventilation ducts to get here.

"Then send it." Once Frenchie nodded, Rorschach sent the screenshots he'd prepared on his phone.

He'd even passed over the security-camera footage and bought a cheap point-and-shoot to take those photos. He wanted the release to catch everyone off guard without leading anyone back to him.

The Female had fallen so far down the superhero rankings that few people remembered her anymore. Naturally, she paid little attention to privacy.

When she was with A-Train, she practically wished the whole thing would make headlines for weeks.

So Rorschach gave her what she wanted.

"Shit!" Seeing the explosive story spreading like wildfire online, A-Train forgot all about the race and dashed toward Ashley, the head of crisis PR, who was still at the venue.

Rorschach slapped his palm against Frenchie's. Then Frenchie was gone, leaving only a blue costume in front of him.