Vought Tower, and then Elsewhere in New York City | Wednesday Evening

[defenderofdesmoines]

Starlight	After meeting with Maeve, Annie tried to find a few other things to do so that anyone who might be watching her movements -- look how paranoid all of this had made her -- wouldn't find it interesting that she took private meetings with both Queen Maeve and Supersonic today. But she did eventually seek Alex out, pulling him into her apartment and, ironically enough, activating her VoughtSonic sound system from her phone as soon as they walked in the door. "Baby, baby, baby, got your license to drive..."
Supersonic	"Oh, shit," Alex sighed, wandering in after her. Here he'd thought he might get a cool tour of his friend's swank apartment -- his was also pretty dope, if weirdly sort of...dark and German in decor, still. "You're about to tell me something awful." As though he did not already have enough negative associations with his shitty music, Annie.
Starlight	Annie paced restlessly over to the window, debating turning on more electronics for more sound interference -- but Homelander had a key, apparently, anyway. She should have found somewhere else for this talk, but everywhere in the tower was compromised right now, and.... She crossed over to stand close to Alex, clearing her throat. "Just listen to me," she said, pitching her voice very low. She didn't...she had no right to ask this. But she knew he could help. He was as bulletproof as she was, and that sonic clap was no joke, and Alex had been there last night. He'd seen her face when Diego had been pulled out on stage -- not to mention that Homelander was clearly having fun being openly racist to them both. "If it comes down to it...." she started, clearly at war with herself for even asking. "I mean, if we need to fight him for real, will you help me?"
Supersonic	Alex stared at her for a long, long moment before speaking -- and when he did, it came out as a whisper. This was the third time Annie had pulled him aside like this to talk to him, and while he'd had trouble believing her before -- last night had brought a lot of things into focus. "You serious?"
Starlight	"With how he's been acting lately?" Annie replied, eyes wide. Alex hadn't been here for a year to witness this, and she got that, but -- this was worse. This was worse than it had been for over a year. This was worse than it had been when he was with Stormfront, even. He was getting bolder.
Supersonic	"He's invincible," Alex pointed out. Though that wasn't technically true. There was always a bigger fish, right? Maybe a whole school of slightly smaller fish might do, too.
Starlight	"There might be a way, okay?" Annie told him, because so far this was not a no. "It's safer if you don't know how." Helped that Annie didn't quite understand what this weapon was, too, so she couldn't explain it to him anyway. "But we need your help. There's me, there's Maeve -- we probably need four or five more." There was her fiancé, who she was keeping in her back pocket as a last resort because she was already fairly terrified for his life. "But with a team, we have a shot." As his disembodied voice floated out from around them inviting a teenage girl to 'show him her ride,' Annie offered up a watery smile. "I'm so sorry, Alex. I didn't want to ask you this, but...I don't know where else to go." There were three people she could trust in this whole one hundred-story building. She hadn't slept the night before. She was terrified for her life, and the lives of everyone around her, and...this was what they did, right? But she still hated asking him.
Supersonic	Alex stared at her, quiet and still as his own song played around them in boppy contrast. He thought about how long he'd known the woman in front of him. How Annie had written to him in rehab, when every other person he knew had slammed the door in his face until he could prove he was clean. How Annie somehow -- maybe? -- was actually as good and decent and righteous as Starlight, in the spotlight and out. "Okay. I'm in."
Starlight	...God, she might cry. A wave of emotion hit Annie so hard she thought she might lose her knees' steadiness, for a moment. "You're in?" Annie repeated, already not trusting her voice and blinking. "Just like that. You don't even want to think about it?"
Supersonic	That reaction sealed it, even if he'd already decided. "I'm good," Alex assured her, serious and without any of his usual boyish playfulness.
Starlight	"I don't get it," Annie replied, shaking her head and swallowing down tears. "Why are you so --" Heroic? Unwavering in this decision? Willing to put his life on the line because of her say-so? "-- nice to me?"
Supersonic	If she was going to get all emotional about this -- well, he was likely to, also. But he had a great defense against that. "Isn't it obvious?" Alex scoffed softly. "You're the only girl I've ever loved, Annie January."
Starlight	Fucking fuck. So much for that. "Oh, Alex." Annie took an enormous step back, completely thrown off by that revelation. "I'm sorry. I--I don -- no, it's just me and Diego...." You know, her fiancé that Alex was kind of friends with?
Supersonic	"I'm fucking with you," Alex told her, widening his eyes and shaking his head. "Get over yourself. You really think my grandmother was gonna let me marry --" he gestured to her "--the whitest girl in all of white?" It didn't mean he didn't still love her, mind you. But he had not been pining for his lost love for five years, no. This was not about that.
Starlight	"You asshole," Annie whispered, but it was through both soft laughter and some earnest tears, now. She could not handle being fucked with right now, Alex!
Supersonic	"Yes, that's what I am," Alex agreed, moving back into her space to clear the distance Annie had backed up away from him. "Listen to me. Since you moved to New York, you've gotten tough as shit. The Annie that I knew? She saw the good in people." He smiled at her, soft and sincere, as Annie gave a tiny nod in acknowledgement. "I'm gonna help you 'cause it's the right thing to do. That's all." And now he was just going to stay with her, quietly, while his song played to mask their conversation, and he watched Annie work to keep all that glitter from sliding down her cheeks. She'd been there for him through the darkest time in his life. It was the least he owed her.

Starlight	The very first meeting of The Seven with seven actual heroes since, like, the week Translucent had died had gone pretty disastrously. It had mostly been an excuse for Homelander to refer to Annie as Alex's "former lover," (gross) and welcome him again in Spanish. (Which, in turn, resulted in Alex politely sharing that he did not actually speak that language.) In any case, after they'd all gone their separate ways for a bit, about half of the team found themselves back in the conference room to watch an FBSA press conference that had been called that afternoon. Annie found a spot near Maeve to stand, giving Alex a small nod and A-Train a quick glance.
Victoria	On the screen, Victoria took the podium, casual and confident as ever. "Good afternoon. Thank you all for being here. I'm Congresswoman Victoria Neuman, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Superhuman Affairs," she began.
Homelander	"What's going on?" Homelander asked as he walked in. He stopped in his tracks and looked at the TV. "Oh shit."
Victoria	His teammates all turned with a start to look at him -- with the exception of Maeve, who didn't want to give him the attention. Meanwhile, on the screen, Victoria continued. "For the last year, the Bureau has been working with Vought International under one guiding principle."
Homelander	It probably wasn't great he didn't look all that worried. In fact he was nodding along with what Victoria was saying, almost like he knew what was going to happen next. "That..."
Victoria	"The most powerful among us are not above the law, including the most powerful man at the company," Victoria read from the papers in front of her, before seeming to come to some sort of roadblock. "Homelander...." Everyone in that room and in pockets around the world probably held their breath for a moment. Well. Almost everyone in that room, anyway. Other people had had a hand in writing this speech, maybe. "...has bravely come forward as a whistleblower, and provided evidence of crimes committed within Vought by CEO, Stan Edgar. And in the coming days, the FBSA will be investigating charges of blackmail, perjury, and obstruction of justice against Mr. Edgar. Vought International must be held to the highest ethical and legal standards." The press room on the screen erupted into chaos. Victoria had to raise her voice to be heard over the clamor of questions and objections that arose, and Stan himself appeared to be getting mobbed by cameras as soon as he stood in the audience.
Maeve	Maeve barely had to register what was happening and how Neuman was acting before she was rounding on Homelander. It was obvious what had happened here. How no one else could see it was beyond her. "What did you do?"
Homelander	"Something I should have done a long time ago," he said with a casual shrug. "This is a superhero company. Always has been. Belongs to us, not him. So I set things straight, that's all." He turned to face everyone else. "Oh, uh, anyone that has been hiding under his little apron?" AKA Starlight. "That's over now, too. It's a new day, people. It's the Dawn of the Seven!"
Starlight	Given the things Annie knew about Victoria, too, this was all...the absolute fucking worst thing that could have happened. And none of them had anticipated something like this. She didn't particularly like Mr. Edgar, but he'd been the only thing in Homelander's way. As long as I'm CEO of Vought. He'd even said that to her. Maeve looked to Annie, who in turn looked to Alex as Homelander left the room, clearly confident that he'd ruined everyone's day. And if she'd been a little less preoccupied -- she might have noticed the way Alex looked over at A-Train. And she might have worried.

Starlight	When you were co-captains of the leading superhero team in the world, there was no time to sit and digest the world-shattering news you just received via televised press conference. You still had to go to the opening of some nightclub where everything was freeze-dried. Annie had been on autopilot for most of the evening, wishing she could just grab Diego and swing back to Fandom and sleep for a day and do jello shots with Summer and explain a holiday or a snack to Rey and see Tiny and the troopers -- she missed Tiny and the troopers, that's where they were with this -- but given that she'd been Starlight for the better part of a quarter century, none of that showed. Every person who asked her a question or complimented her and Homelander was graced with a bright smile, just like they would be any other time. And anyone who asked about Mr. Edgar got a sympathetic wince and a topic change. But God, she was tired. And she didn't know how what else could be next. They hadn't seen this coming. What else wasn't she thinking about enough?
Homelander	Homelander, meanwhile, was in the best mood in had been in over a year. He was having a great ol' time smiling and waving for the cameras next to his wonderful co-captain. "Hey, you know what?" Homelander said, like the idea just came to him. "I think I wanna fly home. Can we fly?"
Starlight	"Um." No, she absolutely did not want to fly home, for so many reasons -- starting with the fact that not a whole lot of things could hurt Annie, but being dropped from a mile up would certainly do it. "The car's right there," she pointed out, gesturing to the car that was, indeed, literally right there. It would be so rude to the driver! "Next time?"
Homelander	"No, no, no," Homelander said, waving his hand at the car like it was the lamest thing in the world. "Come on, I'll carry you." Wouldn't that be nice? "Who wants to see Starlight and me fly?" Homelander said, turning to the reporters. "What, are you gonna disappoint them?"
Starlight	Annie's clear reluctance was still written all over her face, even as she tried to mask it for the crowd's sake. "...okay," she agreed, throwing on a false smile and already feeling like this might be a catastrophic mistake as she stepped closer. But what could she do? Publicly disagree with him?
Homelander	She couldn't! That's what made this so great! "Okay, up you go," he said, sweeping Starlight into his arms into a princess carry. Surely not demeaning for Starlight at all! "I have a view I really want to show you, it's gonna blow your mind. Hold tight!" Homelander did not care if Starlight was holding on at all when he took off. He didn't actually go far, and wasn't really going anywhere near the tower, but it wasn't like Starlight could do anything about it at this point. Eventually he landed on top of a innocuous roof that really didn't have much of a view at all. "This really is a beautiful city."
Starlight	Demeaning. Terrifying. Yet another thing that she'd enjoyed doing with Diego that was now going to carry a little reminder, forever. "You know, you don't have to do this," Annie said, breaking away from Homelander as soon as she was confident she'd have solid roof under her feet. "The cameras are gone." And this wasn't the tower, but she was trying very hard to stay confident and authoritative in spite of not knowing what the hell was going on.
Homelander	"Yeah. But that's the thing about me, Starlight," Homelander said. "If I promise something, I deliver." He gestured over to something shadowed lying on the roof. If you moved a smidge closer you'd be able to see what it was. "Now that is the view of a lifetime."
Starlight	Annie followed the gesture, and in spite of the way her heart was hammering up into her throat, took a couple steps closer to the...object? lying over there. It wasn't an object. She could see what -- who -- it was nearly as soon as she took that first step closer. There was so much blood, but she knew what she was seeing. "Alex?" A blue-banded calf was closest to her, ripped off below the knee. Then an arm. Then the rest of Alex's body, slumped against a wall. Annie might not have recognized him if he hadn't been wearing his uniform, considering what Homelander had done to his face. "Alex! Alex, oh my God." Annie initially staggered over to the body of her friend on unsteady legs, thinking she could maybe still -- no. There wasn't anything she could do for Alex now, and she couldn't keep looking at.... No, no, no, no, this wasn't happening. This couldn't actually be happening. "You fucking psycho!" She reeled back on Homelander, her eyes illuminating before she had even turned around all the way. Twice in one day, now. Maybe she'd actually fucking finish it this time.
Homelander	Homelander rolled his eyes. "Stop it. You know how that ends." With her face looking much like Supersonic's was right now. "Besides, this is your fault as much as it is mine."
Starlight	Thanks for that, Homelander; she might not have reached that conclusion on her own for several minutes without the boost. The guilt hit Annie like a punch to the gut, even if she didn't exactly understand what he was getting at, yet. "What?"
Homelander	"A-Train told me about you little mutineers and your plot." Which was just truly stupid of Supersonic. Clearly he didn't belong on the team with instincts like that. "You just don't get it, do you? I mean, you have no fucking grasp of the situation you're in at all," Homelander said, moving closer to her. "I'm going to break it down one more time, and I'm gonna make it crystal clear so that even you can understand it, okay?" Why did everyone make him do things the hard way? "There will be no more plotting, planning or playing around. That is over, okay? From here on out you are my dutiful, accommodating, co-captain," he said. "Whenever I want you or your moronic fiancé to smile for the cameras and make us look like a big, happy family, you are going to do it." Homelander placed a hand on her shoulder, leaning in closer. "Because if if you step one inch out of line--I mean, if you so much as fucking blink the wrong way--then that, my dear," Homelander pointed over at Supersonic. "will be Diego. Do you understand me this time?"
Starlight	Annie was faintly aware she was in shock right now. Her skin had broken out in a cool sweat, and the longer she was up here, faced with the mangled mess that had been a breathing and smiling and joking person just hours earlier, the shorter her breaths were coming in. She was crying, too. She wasn't sure when that had started, exactly, but her cheeks were wet. She nodded, slowly. She understood, yes. This scene wasn't terribly unlike what she'd pictured in her nightmares, when she thought about what might happen if Homelander ever actually did follow through on his threats to Diego. But to use someone else she loved as a proxy to make himself clear was a level of sadistic cruelty she couldn't even begin to understand.
Homelander	"Good. Then say it, so I know," Homelander said. "That'll be Diego."
Starlight	Annie swallowed, looking away and battling down a wave of sheer hopelessness, before looking back to Alex. God, Alex, she was so sorry. She was so, so sorry. She shut her eyes against the image, because it was too much coupled with the words. (And it didn't matter, because it was all she could see with her eyes shut, too, except with her imagination involved, it was worse. It was what he wanted her to see, when she closed her eyes.) "That'll be Diego."
Homelander	"There we go," Homelander said, releasing Starlight's shoulder. "You can find your own way home." Wow, insult to injury.
Starlight	She waited for him to leave, and then waited some more. She wasn't really sure how long she waited, actually. Time was kind of weird, just now. Could have been five minutes she spent staring at what was left of Alex and hearing her own words ringing in her ears. Might have been an hour. At some point, though, she realized she wasn't going to get off this roof without help. She fished out her phone, fumbled out a text -- I need you to come get me ASAP -- along with a drop pin, and sent it off. And then back to waiting and living in this nightmare.

[And this is the end of episode 3.04, 'Glorious Five-Year Plan,' and on this one I need to warn for stuff besides language -- WARNING for descriptive gore and the murder of an NPC. Preplayed with knife_bender, who is continuing to kill it (lol) as Homelander. NFB, NFI, OOC is welcome.]