Evil Spirits

"Even if you're talking about all-out war, this is all we have to work with."

They knew what Supes were capable of in a fight.

Most heroes who trained year-round couldn't be wounded by bullets.

"I have a plan for that. You don't need to worry about it."

Rorschach had been eyeing something in the system store for a while. Since this was his chance to get past Stormfront's defenses, he decided to buy it.

"Where do we go after that?" Frenchie cared more about that.

"You think I twisted Lamplighter's head off just to make you all feel better?"

Rorschach couldn't help sounding exasperated.

Then again, however deep their schemes ran, these people could only act on what they knew.

In the end, they were still pawns.

Rorschach, on the other hand, had viewed everything from the perspective of a higher-dimensional storyteller from the start. No matter how weak he was, he was still a player at the board.

And with the system's help, his points had been climbing fast.

So this time, he selected the Ghost Rider template!

With the Spirit of Vengeance, he would become impossible to kill.

He could also face his enemies with Hellfire and the Penance Stare!

Of course, a template this useful and relatively cheap came with a drawback of its own!

Its power came from hell. If the user grew addicted to it, he would surrender his soul to hell.

Rorschach knew that in both the Marvel Universe and DC, heaven and hell, angels and demons, all existed.

The joke was that even then, humanity still couldn't manage something as basic as making sure good and evil got what they deserved.

Rorschach had also long known how to keep anyone from claiming his soul: sign a few more contracts.

When the demon lords started fighting over who owned it, he could keep enjoying life in the mortal world.

Worst case, he could repent and turn over a new leaf. Heaven might even come to fish him out then.

He'd always been good at exploiting loopholes.

Still, his willpower was only at the limits of an ordinary human's. He'd better avoid showing off this template in public.

Rorschach figured most people would take even that in stride, but the power truly went beyond what they understood a superhero to be.

By the time they returned to the base, it was late at night.

Translucent stood silently inside. Rorschach's watch chimed twice, and he raised it for a look.

"You're here?"

Translucent revealed his head and looked at Rorschach with a trace of fear.

For some reason, seeing Rorschach this time made his chest tighten.

It left him even less sure of himself.

"The Church of the Collective has a file on Storm. Bring it to me, and I'll give you a chance to get those things out of your stomach."

Rorschach's tone left no room for negotiation.

When Translucent got no further response, he silently took two steps back.

"You're wondering if you can snatch my watch, aren't you? You're hidden, and I'm out in the open."

Rorschach unzipped his bag. Inside was Lamplighter's head, his face frozen in despair.

"I have more than one ability. I'd think twice if I were you."

"Getting in is easy. How am I supposed to get that thing out?"

Translucent had heard of the Church of the Collective, but Vought had planted a tracker on him and monitored his movements at all times.

As long as he showed up for scheduled events, though, Vought generally didn't go looking for him.

"I'm sure you'll find a way. Off you go."

Rorschach opened the door. His meaning was clear.

After dropping their gear back at the base, the group headed to a CIA safe house.

Marvin's wife and daughter were there, along with Butcher's wife.

And Ryan, of course—the eight-year-old boy who had inherited Homelander's blood.

Once Susan had brought them into the safe house, Frenchie and Kimiko handed a bag to Colonel Mallory.

"Is this...?"

Mallory weighed it in her hand, then broke into a delighted smile.

"Take it outside. There's a child in here."

Rorschach handed Ryan a bag of food: burgers and other things he'd picked up from a fast-food place.

"Had dinner yet?"

Butcher took the hint and led Becca away. Suddenly, only Ryan and Rorschach remained in the spacious room.

"Not yet. Mom usually makes me pasta and stuff. I hardly ever get food like this."

Ryan took a tentative bite of the burger, then began chewing in earnest.

"Let me guess. Even here, she's insisted on cooking for you every day."

"Yeah." Ryan swayed from side to side, then took a sip of the milkshake in the bag.

"Ryan, your mother may not have done everything right, but she's done all she could."

Vought believed a child raised beside his mother would grow up gentler, so Becca had cared for Ryan alone for all eight years of his life.

She had endured those terrifying circumstances for eight years and still managed to make Ryan feel safe.

Rorschach couldn't believe Becca didn't love him.

"Why did we have to move here? I never moved once in my first eight years."

Ryan looked up at the basement ceiling, putting on a wistful air.

Going outside had brought new things, like a phone and tasty food.

But he rarely saw the sun now, and he had much less time to play outdoors.

"Ryan, you're a chosen child. That's why countless evil forces want to get their hands on you."

Rorschach gently patted Ryan's head, feeling a little melancholy.

Fighting and laying traps were his specialties. Faced with a child, he found himself at a loss.

"Will the evil forces be defeated?"

Ryan blinked, his eyes full of hope.

"Can I see it happen? I want to watch."

"That day will come, and soon."

Rorschach couldn't help laughing. Becca's maternal love had overcome her fear. The boy in front of him really was a good kid.

"But it might be a little too much for children to watch. Maybe another time, okay?"

"Okay!" Ryan licked the sauce from his fingers and beamed.

He didn't know why, but he felt an instinctive closeness to Rorschach.

"I brought you a little present."

Rorschach had searched everywhere before finally finding a LEGO set that wasn't tied to a superhero.

"Some people want you to be a cash cow that keeps making them dollars. Others want you to become a god on Earth who saves everyone from suffering."

"But Ryan, you only need to be yourself."

"I don't get it," Ryan said bluntly.

"That's okay. Just remember it."

Rorschach glanced at Becca as she returned, then at Mallory's delighted face.

"Want to talk outside?"

"You want me to do you a favor, don't you?"

After so many years in intelligence, Mallory knew there was no such thing as a free lunch.

Butcher and the others might have acted out of guilt. But why had Rorschach, the leader of their team, done all this?

"Take me to see the director. I have a few ideas."

Rorschach's eyes were smiling, but deep within his pupils, a tiny blue flame burned slowly.