11.g

Worm 11.g

A teenager with a red streak in her hair danced down the street, earbuds in, oblivious to the late hour. She reveled in her pattern of theft, everything she owned was stolen. Lost in her music, she was stopped by a concerned soldier. He warned her of the dangers lurking in the city, offering a ride to a shelter.

“The people I’m staying with? They’re the Slaughterhouse Nine. I’m one of them,” she confessed, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. The soldier, initially gentle, turned stern. He tried to reach for his gun, but she delved into his mind, twisting his fear, manipulating his emotions.

She forced him to switch seats with her, taking control of the jeep. As she drove, she manipulated his emotions towards his comrades, creating suspicion and paranoia. Ordering him to retrieve his gun, she then stalled his short-term memory, redirecting his feelings for his family to herself, making him incapable of shooting her.

She stopped the jeep, hearing another approach. Two soldiers emerged. She turned her back, slipping in her earbuds, as her passenger shot his comrades. The authorities would be baffled.

She mused about the chaos in Brockton Bay. People were on edge, emotions raw and easily manipulated. Her phone battery died, cutting off her music. She dialed a number, knowing she had fifteen minutes.

She sought out the outliers, the most disturbed individuals in the city. She had profiled them, identifying those with powers. She found her target and approached a building guarded by two soldiers. She manipulated their emotions, forcing them to commit suicide. Inside, she did the same to four more guards.

“Jean-paul. Ça va?” she greeted a feminine-looking boy.

“It’s Alec now. Regent in costume,” he corrected.

“Alec,” she smiled. “Still sounds French. I approve, little brother.” She introduced herself as Cherish and revealed her manipulation of the guards. Alec, unfazed, revealed he was controlling them. Cherish intensified her emotional assault, but Alec countered, using his own powers to control his subjects from a distance.

A stalemate ensued. Cherish revealed she had left their abusive father, joining the Nine after killing Hatchet Face. Alec warned her of the dangers, but she dismissed his concerns. She revealed a bomb strapped to her chest, threatening to detonate it if he didn’t let her leave.

Alec, unable to sense her emotions, was caught off guard. They struggled over a woman Alec was controlling, but Cherish pinned him. She taunted him about their father’s overprotectiveness after he left, revealing she had nominated him for the Nine, a test likely rigged against him due to her unpopularity among some members.

“Have fun with that,” she smirked, standing. She warned him not to come after her, threatening to expose his location to their father.

“They don’t have your back, Cherie,” Alec warned. “They’re going to kill you someday.”

Cherish scoffed, confident in her ability to manipulate the Nine. She took a phone and gun, resetting the timer on her bomb. She bid Alec farewell, believing she was on the path to becoming one of the most dangerous people in the world. She had this, and soon, she’d have the Nine wrapped around her finger, unaware of the perilous game she was playing.