Chapter Text
Skeppy played some games on his console. It had been about a month since they've put Puppeteer and his posse in prison. Dream Taken was his real name.
And also due to public pressure, the hero agency had pardoned all vigilante related crimes. Not every crime committed WHILE being a vigilante, Skeppy had to pay a sum of money for minor property damage, but he hadn't gotten in trouble for being a vigilante in the first place.
So Skeppy tidied the stack of papers in front of him. The hero agency has also pardoned the need for him to go through a training course, as Bad gave him a recommendation.
Bad knocked on the door as Skeppy put his console away. "Ready?"
Skeppy sighed. "Ready. I've been fighting crime for what... five years? You wouldn't think I'd be nervous."
Bad just smiled and they both walked over to the agency. He was greeted by Fundy- Skeppy remembered seeing him at that bakery a few times- who was standing at the front door.
"Skeppy!" Fundy grinned, aggressively taking Skeppy's hand and shaking it. If he remembered correctly, Bad said this maybe nineteen year old is now in charge of the hero agency. "Welcome! I have a name tag and your schedule-"
Fundy went on and on, but eventually they got to the changing room.
Skeppy's new costume looked... almost exactly like his vigilante costume. A sharp looking cyan jacket studded with armor (a bit more secure this time) as well as an earpiece. With Bad all dressed up as well, the two walked out.
"One last thing," Fundy stopped them on the way out. Skeppy repressed a groan. "Skeppy, you said you had a history with Dim?"
Skeppy tensed up, but nodded. Luckily the forms never asked for WHERE he got it.
Fundy handed him another form. Yay, more paperwork. "We have some physical trainers for that if you need. Heroes don't usually like taking things that hinder their powers... including their powers themselves."
Skeppy blinked back, staring at the form. Help? Bad took his hand and they went to go out of the building.
They said hi to a few of the other heroes with... varying degrees of friendliness. Warden held the same scrutiny he did as when Skeppy was a vigilante, but Chronometer smiled at the very least. Royal gave a reassuring nod at the two as they passed.
Legally, vigilantes were forgiven. For every individual person, however... maybe not so much.
Jack stumbled out of a dressing room, a simpler vigilante like fashion to his new costume. While he had told Skeppy of his plan, he didn't actually think they'd let Jack be a hero.
"Good day," Jack cleared his throat awkwardly. "Ready to help people and shit?"
Skappy rolled his eyes as Bad murmered. He gave the other former vigilante a high five. "Who's your advisor?"
Jack wrinkled his nose. "Warden. Turns out I already knew him before this, but as you can imagine, we're both just so cheery about it."
He laughed and continued walking. As the halls got more crowded, Skeppy hunched his shoulders, feeling the stares. Isolated. Something brushed his hand.
Bad grabbed his arm, hooking it onto his own. "Ready to be a hero?"
Skeppy scrunched his nose, smiling. "Ready to kick some ass."
Bad gave an exasperated sigh, and the two went out into the night.
...
Punz was in jail. The heroes had hunted him down after the fight, after Puppeteer revealed plans for incase they ever got caught. And... Purpled didn't know how to feel about it.
Or no, he did. He felt like it sucked really bad.
But Purpled could manage. Without his brother.
He stayed with Ponk now, who started working with Follish as a healer for the hero agency. Purpled also took a job, even though Ponk didn't really want him to, at Puffy's tavern.
So there Purpled was, angrily drying a glass, pretending he wasn't the one to beg for this job. Puffy handed him a slip of paper with a few orders on it. He sneered.
"I'm not gonna drink anything!" Purpled called out, annoyed. "You can give me orders with alcohol!"
Puffy only flipped him off as he turned around and poured orange juice. Giving the order to a patron, the bell rang as Hannah and Ant came inside.
"Puffyyyy..." Hannah drawed out. She held up her arm, displaying the roses grossly poking through her skin and sweater. "Can you go get me some Dim?"
Puffy sighed, walking into the back room. Hannah and Ant sat down at the bar, waving Purpled over.
"How's being vigilantes working out?" Purpled asked, rolling his eyes.
"Yeah," Ant breathed through his teeth. "When they said they excused all vigilante crimes, they meant all PREEXISTING crimes. So... we're still breaking the law."
"Seems to be what Warden thinks," Hannah chuckled. "What about you? How's the boring life of a bartender?"
Purpled bristled. "I'll have you know I had to stop two bar fights since I started as well as-"
"Yeah yeah," Ant snickered, touching his head. Ant had been taking Dim less, trying to figure out how he could control his powers better. "Anything interesting?"
He shrugged. "Not really. Boring but... kinda nice. I don't need the showy crime fighting life."
"Well I do!" Hannah stretched, standing back up as Puffy gave her a syringe. "See you around, wanna do a movie night or something?"
Purpled tilted his head. "Why?"
"For fun!" Ant piped in. "I have a really cheesy movie about this guy who's a king and-"
He blinked back. Oh. Purpled used to think his job was fun, so maybe he wasn't the best judge, but he doesn't really think he's ever had fun outside of work.
"Yeah," Purpled chuckled, putting away the glass he had forgotten he was cleaning. "I'll be there."
...
"Achilles, with his golden helm-"
Niki snorted, her crappy respiratory system forcing her awake. Right, book club. While she loved being with her friends and even the books, Techno always chose the most boring stories. Who wants to read a three hundred page poem from nearly what, ten thousand years ago now?
But after a discussion that made her head hurt, the four rose from their chairs and talked about a bit less boring things.
Like vigilante things!
Niki and Ranboo had actually talked Techno and Phil into becoming vigilantes. Blood God (reincarnated, Techno joked) and Angel of Death. Finally not at the risk of anyone's job, the Syndicate was now official.
No matter how much Fundy bitched about the paperwork he had to do for two quiting heroes, file recoveries, and rediscovering old cases, Niki was having a good time.
Even if Jack was a hero now, making an effort to change things in the agency himself. They were still friends, any battle they could walk away with broken bones, get a coffee the next day, and laugh about the injuries.
And telling Eret she was a vigilante was... interesting. Like many other heroes, they didn't really mind vigilantes. But same with Jack, everyone was fair game on patrol. Which was kind of hilarious with how much Hidden was still able to spook and mess up Royal and Reynard.
"What's the gossip of the night?" Ranboo asked, putting his hands in his pockets. He hunched over so he was only a little taller than Techno.
"Hmm..." Niki thought for a moment. Her cousin being the president of the hero agency was really helpful for getting all the reports for crime. "Heard that a few of Dictator's goons are still on the loose."
Phil sighed. "Come on, let's go."
While the bakery still laid in ruin, Niki had raised enough money to buy another place. It was a bit smaller, and it needed a few touch ups, but it was a start. Plus the fact it had a basement... which is where all sorts of activities go on.
"Activities" meant preparation for patrols, which happened after book club. It was nice not having to stress about keeping secrets, especially secrets that could hurt her friends.
Open communication, turns out, was important.
"What's the plan, team?" Techno asked as the four got down to the basement. He definitely reveled in the dramatics of an official group.
Phil stretched his wings, making a wonderful recovery. Witch Doctor and Puffy had done a the base work,but Phil still needed a month or two of physical therapy to be back in full swing. "Ranboo, Tubbo said on 16th street, right?"
"16th and 7th," Ranboo nodded. Ranboo and Tubbo still were eachothers' main partners, but on weekends Tubbo was their guy in the chair. A proficiency in hacking computers, such as ones from the hero agency, was very useful. "Suspected that a robbery will take place tonight."
Niki cracked her knuckles. It was good to be back on the field. After stressing about secrets for years about keeping secrets from literally all her friends, it was nice.
"I for one," Niki grabbed her costume. "Cannot wait to finally have more bad guys to beat up."
...
Cybronix had gotten to Blaze as soon as the "Finale", as the public had begun to call it, was over. A warning to run, heroes were coming soon and would be arresting all the villains.
While they still were a bit confused on Sapnap's alignment, Eryn would prefer it if their brother WASN'T in prison.
But with two months of Blaze staying out of the public eye, no one felt the need to search for him.
Luckily and unluckily for Cybronix, who was still just as much a menace as ever.
They climbed in through the window of their apartment, taling of the mask and taking deep breaths. "Home, Sapnap!"
"How'd it go?" Sapnap walked into the room, leaning against the doorway and crossing his arms.
"Ran into Mellohi," Eryn shrugged, putting their gear in a pile in the closet. "We fought against Shadow Hunter and Clear Cut, which was entertaining as ever."
Sapnap sighed. "Almost makes me miss when I was free lance."
Eryn chuckled slightly. It still felt awkward to talk about. They didn't want Sapnap to be punished, but in a honesty... he kind of deserved it.
It was hard to wish ill intent on their brother. Who cared for them. Literally killed for them put up with their bullshit.
Killed.
Eryn shook their head. "Let's go get pizza or something."
"I heard Puffy's serving food now." Sapnap suggested.
Eryn wrinkled their nose. "You're wanted and I'm banned."
"Still?!" Sapnap raised his eyebrows.
Eryn shrugged. "Puffy can hold a grudge. Call the pizza place, let's stay in tonight."
Sapnap snickered. "Fine, what kind?"
Eryn scoffed. "Pineapple, of fucking course."
Sapnap turned to his brother, despair and betrayal on his face. "Not you too... first George..."
Eryn laughed, punching Sapnap in the arm. Regrettably, Sapnap ordered pepperoni and they sat on the couch watching TV. Eryn kind of forgot how nice it was to stay in during the night, as they usually were out fighting crime. It might be nice to catch a rest before they had to sit through Sapnap trying and failing to teach them.
But it felt nice, just relaxing. They felt normal.
...
Sure the Schlatt Corperation was just a front, but Quackity was but a ambitious kid who would not have signed up for a job there if he knew that.
With Schlatt- that old bag of bones- hopefully rotting away in prison, Quackity had nothing but time on his hands to take over the company.
A... hm. What was something the city needed? Something bright and colorful. Attractive, compared to the usually gloomy city. Something maybe just for fun.
Hmm... a casino might do.
Nothing said reformation of a company like gambling all your money away.
"Foolish!" Quackity called his friend, putting his legs up on the desk he was sitting at.
"I'm literally about to go on patrol, Quackity." The hero sounded unamused.
Giving himself his own satisfaction, Quackity changed his voice to Foolish's, just so he could hear the excitement. "You know how you said you'd power up all those slot machines I found-"
"I'm going to Puffy's tonight," Foolish interrupted, done with Quackity's shit. "You know, Dim and all that good stuff."
Quackity was so good at bad ideas. Who else would be dumb enough to be Autotune, or try and fight multiple mercenaries who were all more skilled than him at the same time.
Now, something very dumb would be a partnership between two already semi illegal businesses to form a third, very helpful and very illegal business.
"Do you think she'd want to team up?" Quackity asked, twirling the phone cord like a teen getting gossip.
Foolish paused, humming. "That actually doesn't sound too bad of an idea."
Quackity grinned, looking out the window to his unobserved view of the top of the next building over. "I know, I'm cool and sexy."
Foolish had the audacity to laugh at the facts. "I never thought I'd hear my own voice say you're sexy. Congratulations. I'll ask Puffy about the partnership."
Foolish hung up as Quackity sighed, tired. Truth be told, he was just excited to have a friend again. He didn't need excuses to hang out,but it still felt weird to be with people for no reason.
Charge machines. Gather info. Make Dim. Heal. Those all had a purpose, but sometimes Quackity needed to remind himself to step back and see people as more than what they can do for him.
Though, it was nice to have a portable charger.
Quackity made one last phone call, a phone number he got from his short time at the hero agency.
"Fundy."
"Quackity!" Fundy scrambled on the other side of the line, caught off guard. "How- How are you?"
"Better now that Dictator's where he belongs," Quackity cut right to it. He's discovered that making jokes about things opens up conversation about said thing, while releasing tension. "Thought I'd say hi. I was just wondering if you wanted like, an ACTUAL partnership with my company now that Schlatt's gone."
Fundy stammered. "Sure! I uhm- am I allowed to do that? If you're still Autotune?"
Quackity rolled his eyes. "Well one, all vigilantes are pardoned from their crimes and two, my main goal was to foil Dictator. So unless you or anyone else becomes a corrupt piece of shit, I have no reason to be Autotune."
"Right," Fundy sounded a little mote sure. The best deals are when both parties are confident. "Well, I'll see what our public resources think of that. But, it would be beneficial either way. I think Schlatt might have tapped into our funds to buy alcohol."
"Yeah, he definitely did that," Quackity recalled. "You're doing great, kid."
"I'm nineteen and like ONE YEAR YOUNGER THAN YOU-"
"See you later."
Quackity hung up, leaning back in his chair with bugs arms behind his head. He loved being around people, talking to them, maybe a bit too much. Frommaking business deals to chilling, Quackity was glad to be included.
...
Mellohi adjusted his mask, pretending he was on a tightrope walking along the edge of a building Wasp was right by him, giving him gossip.
"Just gave Enderwalker the address of a robbery," Wasp fluttered through the air. Within a month he had made himself a new bee jetpack, as the old one was ruined in the Finale. "Want to go fuck shit up?"
"With the Syndicate?!" Mellohi raised his eyebrows. "No chance. I worked with Blood God and Angel, as well as against them. I don't think I need to tell you which one I prefer."
"They were both pretty stuck uppy heroes." Tubbo remarked, leaning back in the air like he was in a hammock.
"Yeah, I'd rather fight against them," Mellohi shrugged. "What else can we do tonight?"
"Hmm..." Wasp thought. "Wanna walk by the hero agency until someone attacks us? The Syndicate is probably gonna take care of all the crime for the weekend."
Mellohi mulled it over, nodding. "Let's go!"
-
Radio was surprisingly formidable on his own, despite what Tommy thought. He easily almost defeated Mellohi and Wasp before the two made their escape.
Even so, he and Tubbo didn't get away without a few scratches and brushes to bandage up. The two were in Bee Duo's apartment, healing up before Tommy had to go home.
"Well!" Tommy stretched, putting away his costume. It was only one now, after he burnt his Nightmare costume and resigned as a hero. "I've got work in the morning, but I'll see you tomorrow!"
Tubbo stuck out his tongue. "I thought Sam hated vigilantes with a passion."
"As far as Sam's aware," Tommy stood in the door of Bee Duo's apartment "I'm just a normal citizen who was going through a hard time. Also, who am I to turn down a job offer from a job I quit in a panic?"
"Yeah yeah," Tubbo rolled his eyes. "Movie night tomorrow."
"I know!" Tommy shouted, walking out of the apartment.
It was surprisingly safe walking alone at night now, with pretty much every villain that was in the top ten in jail now. Manburg and Pogtopia both disbanded, Puppeteer and his mercenaries in jail, Blaze in his radio silence, dare he say: it was almost peaceful.
He unlocked the door to his and Wilbur's apartment, laying down on the couch. Tommy sighed, knowing he had work on Sunday then homeschooling on Monday. It felt like he barely got to enjoy his summer, juggling four jobs and keeping two of them a secret.
Oh yeah, and the whole making sure villains didn't take over the city thing. Hopefully next summer was a little less eventful.
But with Pogtopia disbanded, one of their major sources of income, that probably wasn't going to be the case.
As well asno longer having Puppeteer as an employer.
Or Tommy working as a hero.
This was fine.
But in the end, Tommy completed his check list.
A) He found out why Wil was acting weird. And after much convincing, got him to leave the villain life style behind him. Though he wouldn't admit it AGAIN, Wilbur had said he had wanted to quit Pogtopia for a while.
B) he found his friends. New ones, ones that don't value him by what he can do for them. And with many trials and tribulations, they were all safe and sound.
And C) leave the city.
... despite everything? Tommy didn't think he could do that anymore. Not after everything he put in and sacrificed to keep it safe.
No, Tommy would enjoy the fruits of his labor, thanks. Fuck you.
But even with the new difficulties, they could manage, they'd find a way, it wasn't the end of the world. Still riddled with worry (Tommy kind of hoped that would go away after he quit two time consuming jobs), he turned on the TV.
"Radio, Mellohi, and Wasp were all observed fighting by the hero agency. Radio, after being abandoned by his two former teammates, held off pretty well against the two high ranking vigilantes."
Just as the news put on a shaky, low quality recording of the fight, Wilbur came in the door. Colorful bandages littered his arms and he held an ice pack up to his cheek. He scoffed as he saw what was on TV.
"Please stop putting my public humiliation on TV," Wilbur rolled his eyes, walking into the other room. "No dessert today because fuck you."
Tommy snickered. "What, got in a fight or something?"
"Shut up shut up shut up-" Wilbur flipped him off as he went into the kitchen, turning on the stove to make spaghetti.
Tommy barked a laugh. "Wish I could have seen it!"