Chapter 156: Chapter 156: Advice
"Kidnappers?"
"Yeah, it happens occasionally."
"These people... are obviously not Filipinos."
The Baby Crew had their eyes squinted, staring at the so-called kidnappers and wondering how one group...can actually look so much like kidnappers. And even with masks, one, it was quite obvious that none of them were local to the country at all.
But while the rest of them were doing that, Riley was looking elsewhere entirely—at one of the cameras that was set up on one of the rocks behind them.
"Sister," he whispered, glancing at his sister. Hannah wondered why Riley looked at her at first, but her eyes instinctively landed towards the camera without Riley even needing to tell her.
Foreigners. Knows where the cameras are. Brought a lot of people with them.
Obviously, anyone who wanted to kidnap them would have planned this extensively. And considering that they’d only decided to visit the Philippines a few days ago, it meant they’d been waiting for them to just randomly come for several months now. That, or it somehow leaked that they were visiting the country.
"Did any of you post on social media that we’ll be visiting the country?" she asked the group, but all of them shook their heads quietly. They did, however, also glance at Gracey.
"What the hell are you guys looking at me for?" Gracey raised an eyebrow. "I didn’t post anything or tell anyone! But... I was planning to post our videos online for a vlog."
"Huh..." Hannah shrugged before finally turning her focus back to the kidnappers. She was about to speak with them, but she closed her mouth as soon as Riley stepped forward.
"Greetings, kidnappers," he casually said while waving his hand, "May I ask all of you to leave us alone for now and come back when my sister is not with her friends?"
Despite Riley’s weird greeting, the kidnappers didn’t react at all. Most would probably look at each other, confused and bewildered by how nonchalant he was treating all of this. But no.
The kidnappers didn’t even flinch, nor did their eyes even stray away from the group, even for a single second. They all just stood there, menacingly.
Well, the same could be said the same to Riley. He just stood there, waiting for them to answer without a change of expression on his face.
And when they still didn’t answer after several seconds, a small sigh escaped Riley’s lips.
"I would truly appreciate it if you would comply, kidnappers. It is essential that—"
Riley’s eyes slightly widened as he turned his head behind them. The others all instinctively followed him, and they saw a figure floating beyond the cliff.
It was a tanned-skin man, and unlike the kidnappers who had their faces completely covered with a hood, he didn’t seem to mind at all that the Baby Crew could see him and even smiled at them.
The man was wearing a black baseball cap, and he had two band-aids plastered on each of his cheeks like some sort of whiskers.
And the baseball cap was literal, as he was wearing a matching black jersey, both with a large purple symbol that almost looked like a ’W’.
"Isn’t that..." Gracey squinted, and before she could say the rest of her words, Tomoe surprisingly completed it for her.
"Warslugger."
[Warslugger | Villain Rank: C | Threat Level: A | Powers: Generates concussive shockwaves with bat-like swings. Can condense these shockwaves into high-speed energy balls that explode on impact. Flight. Enhanced strength and reflexes. Once a major-league champion in a non-super league, but was disgraced and slammed when it was revealed that he was a super.]
"You know me?" Warslugger smiled, cracking his wrists at the same time as his eyes scanned the Baby Crew before ultimately returning to Tomoe, and then onto Gracey.
"I guess it doesn’t matter. I’ll make this quick. I’m here for you two."
"The fuck are you on about?" Gracey’s eyebrows lowered, adjusting her clothes to make sure none of these villains were seeing her in her swimsuit. "Wait... this isn’t about that stupid list, is it?"
"It’s that obvious?" Warslugger scoffed, lightly tipping his cap while the smile on his face remained perfectly still. "But yes, this is about the potential villain list."
"Ah, crap. I knew it..." Gracey closed her eyes, slightly lowering her head before looking beyond Warslugger and into the horizon. "...My potential is too great to just let pass. And—wait a minute. You’re with the Dark Millennium?!"
"Not officially." Warslugger shrugged, slowly descending toward the cliff. He gently swung his arms like he was swinging a bat, which made Hannah and the rest of the Baby Crew flinch.
Warslugger noticed that and immediately lowered his arms and chuckled as he landed on the cliff.
"Oh, my bad," he said. "Just a force of habit. I’m not here to hurt any of you. I don’t harm kids. Oh, and by the way—who are those people?"
"Huh?" Hannah raised an eyebrow, carefully glancing at the rest of the kidnappers before focusing back on Warslugger. "Wait. Don’t fucking tell me you’re not with the fucking kidnappers?"
"If you think about it, I am a kidnapper. But no, I’m not with them. I’m guessing they’re here for you two rich kids?" Warslugger leaned his head to the side, once again looking at the other group.
"Well, we can’t have that now. Can we?"
Warslugger clasped his hands together, raising his left foot as he got into his batting stance.
"Fuck!" Hannah quickly pushed Pauline to the side, and Pauline also let herself fall to the ground as she understood what was happening. The rest of the Baby Crew also scattered, and the only one who didn’t move at all was—
"Riley!"
Hannah screamed at her brother, but Riley only watched as Warslugger swung. What little grass beneath his feet was blown away, and a loud bang thundered toward the horizon as a skirt of wind exploded from him.
The grass was once again completely blown away as this skirt of wind flew toward Riley’s direction. But as it got closer to Riley, this blast parted. The grass beneath and around his feet was completely still, while the rest was shaved away.
But the blast didn’t stop, no. It continued to travel toward the direction of the other kidnappers and through them.
Literally.
The blast went through them; the shockwave was so heavy that their skin was turned into dust, and their flesh, along with the bones, was turned into a pulp.
Their blood, now a mist in the air.
This all happened in less than a second.
Just like that, without even knowing their true purpose, who they were, or where they came from, the initial kidnappers now painted the cliff.
"Oh, fuck!" Gracey screamed.
"Wh—" Pauline covered her mouth.
"Nah..." Bella gritted her teeth.
"Oh." V held her breath, the sparks in her eyes turning wilder.
"Hm." Tomoe hummed.
"Riley!" Hannah was still focused on Riley.
As for Riley, he didn’t even look back at the carnage behind him. He nodded at Warslugger and said,
"Thank you for saving us, Warslugger."
"Riley! What are you doing?!" Hannah rushed back to her brother’s side. "He could’ve killed you!"
"That is not possible, Sister." Riley shook his head. "After all, he told us that he does not harm kids—I believe I still fall in that category."
"You stupid—"
"Your brother’s right." Warslugger sighed, interrupting Hannah as he pointed his hand at Riley as if he were holding a bat.
"You’re right, kid," he said. "I’m not here to harm you, but it doesn’t mean I won’t knock you unconscious."
"Be that as it may, you have rid us of the kidnappers." Riley shrugged. "And for that, may I give you some advice, Warslugger?"
"Hm?"
"You should go... before I rid us of you, Warslugger."