"Garlic-reeking frenchie’s got quite the temper."
Stormfront sneered as Ivan walked out.
"You shouldn’t have provoked him. He runs the Public Relations departnt now," Edgar said, his face darkening. He had always known about Stormfront’s extre worldview, but he hadn’t expected her to insult Ivan so openly. "You need to learn so restraint. He is Vought’s acting vice president and my direct aide."
"Fine, my bad. Still, I can’t believe you’d let so uncivilized slly frog into Vought."
[I’m toning down the racism, but Stormfront is a racist person as well as a Nazi bitch]
"Don’t forget, you are a supe under Vought. I brought you in. I can throw you out just as easily." Edgar didn’t tolerate Holander’s shit, so he sure as hell wasn’t going to tolerate hers.
"Really? Too bad Vought needs right now," Stormfront replied with a dismissive smirk.
...
anwhile, Ivan returned to his office with a cold expression. He wasn’t actually angry — mostly just keeping up appearances.
In his view, Edgar had carefully chosen to bring Stormfront into The Seven. With Madeline’s sudden death, Holander was becoming harder to control. On top of that, Holander had pushed hard to bring Ashley back, clearly trying to expand his own influence.
If Ivan could see Holander’s intentions so clearly, there was no way Stan Edgar hadn’t noticed.
Stormfront’s role was simple: a counterweight to Holander.
Beyond that, Edgar likely had deeper plans. The appearance of super-terrorists had made the public desperate for national security. Right now, the only thing they could rely on was Vought’s supes.
If Ivan guessed right, Vought’s next strategy would be to deepen the public’s dependence on their heroes.
"So how do we make the masses even more dependent on Vought..." Ivan’s lips slowly curved into a smile.
He opened his computer and stared at the large swastika on the screen.
"Of course. Brainwashing. Simple fans aren’t enough for Edgar anymore. What he wants are devoted believers."
Knock knock knock...
A light tapping sounded at the door.
"Co in," Ivan said, closing the webpage.
"Mr. Greevs, I’m here to report for duty. I’m very happy to be your assistant," Ashley said. She looked exactly the sa as before, clutching a folder to her chest.
Seeing her forr subordinate now as her direct superior was clearly awkward for her.
Ivan stood up naturally and shook her hand. "I’m glad to have you back at the company. How’s everything going? Settling in okay? If you run into any problems, just tell ."
"Thank you for your concern, Mr. Greevs. Everything feels great. After being away, I realized Vought really is the best fit for ."
Ashley’s attitude was noticeably more respectful now. She understood the situation perfectly — she was under his roof now. If she didn’t play nice, her life would only get harder.
As a seasoned corporate veteran, Ashley wasn’t stupid enough to miss sothing so obvious.
"This ti you ca to see about sothing?" Ivan asked.
Ashley quickly handed him the file. "I heard Vought is selecting new supes. I’ve got the perfect candidate here. He’d be an excellent replacent for Translucent."
"Blindspot. Expert in hand-to-hand combat and mid-to-long range weapon throwing. Blind, but has super hearing. Looks promising. In your opinion, what’s his main selling point?" Ivan asked after skimming the docunt, looking up at Ashley.
Ashley answered without hesitation. "He’s disabled, and he’s incredibly resilient. Arican audiences are dying for a hero like that."
"Not bad. Take to see him."
The two of them headed to Blindspot’s training area. Holander was already there.
"The current mood is all about inclusion. People want special supes. I think if we can find a minority or a minority woman, we’d be unstoppable," Ashley said to both of them.
In other words, pure political correctness.
"Losing your sight but still moving like that... truly impressive," Holander said, hands behind his back as he watched Blindspot train.
Blindspot, who had just finished his session, heard the praise and excitedly walked over. "Oh, Mr. Holander, it’s such an honor..."
"Wait, you knew it was ?" Holander flashed an exaggerated smile. "That’s amazing."
"With super hearing, I don’t need—" Blindspot started, but Ivan cut him off.
"Don’t need what? Don’t need anyone’s help? Oh, young man, I really hope Vought can help you."
The guy’s super hearing was sharp. Ivan didn’t want Holander ruining it.
"Mr. Greevs, interrupting people like that isn’t very polite," Holander said, a dark glint flashing in his eyes. Then he smiled again at Blindspot. "Don’t need what?"
Blindspot realized his words had been off and quickly corrected himself. "Just like this gentleman said, with super hearing, I don’t need anyone’s help."
"Hahaha." Holander’s smile grew even wider. He placed a hand on Blindspot’s shoulder. "Your power is incredible. And you, my friend, you are the real hero."
"Not because of your job, but because of all the obstacles you’ve overco."
"Thank you. Your praise ans everything to ," Blindspot said, clearly thrilled. After all, he was a huge Holander fan.
"But..."
Holander’s fingers suddenly clamped down hard.
"Sir, what.. Ahh—! Arrg.."
Amid Blindspot’s scream of pain, he flung him aside. "But your power is too weak. You don’t deserve a spot in The Seven."
Holander’s expression changed in an instant. He turned to face them both with cold eyes. "From now on, everything concerning will be decided by . My publicity strategy, my talking points — I approve them all. You two, stop trying your little tricks. Especially you, Mr. Greevs."
"You’d better keep those extra eyes inside your head and stop looking around. Otherwise even Edgar won’t be able to protect you. I an it."
Ashley stood frozen beside them, too terrified to make a sound. It was clear Holander planned to turn them into his puppets. From now on, everything in the company would be decided by him alone.
"Really? I don’t think you’re in any position to talk to like that," Ivan said without flinching. He stepped right up to Holander and t his gaze. "Just now, Mr. Edgar approved a new supe nad Stormfront to join The Seven. Funny thing is, it seems he didn’t ask for your permission."
Holander’s eyes glowed bright red as he grinned viciously. "Good. Let see what your powers actually are."
"Guess," Ivan replied. At the sa ti, his own pupils flashed blue.
Suddenly, Holander burst out laughing and clapped Ivan on both arms. "Oh, you were also experinted on. Haha, buddy, I was just ssing with you. Without your PR work, I wouldn’t know what the hell to do."
"In my eyes, you’ve always been the leader of The Seven. And you always will be," Ivan said, flashing the sa bright, sunny smile right back at him.
"Of course. Our partnership will continue," Holander replied with a nod. He smiled as he walked out of the training room.
The second he was out of sight, his expression went flat, but his eyes burned with rage. He knew his real enemy was Edgar, not Ivan.
He stepped into the elevator and hit the button for the 87th floor.
Ivan watched him leave with a cold, indifferent look, then glanced at Blindspot on the floor. "Take him downstairs for treatnt. Make him and Shockwave reserve mbers. Vought doesn’t just have The Seven. We can develop other heroes too."
"Understood," Ashley said quickly, snapping out of her daze.
In reality, these so-called reserves were Ivan’s personal power bank. A-Train’s Super Speed, boosted by Compound V, had already reached 51% fusion. Ivan had tested it — his own speed was now at least four tis faster than before.
...
At the sa ti, Holander arrived at Edgar’s office.
On the TV screen inside, a female senator was giving an interview.
"I’m concerned about the terrorists too, but that doesn’t an Vought gets to use our fear to control us."
Edgar kept his eyes fixed on the senator’s face. It was obvious the two knew each other.
"Good morning, Holander. Quite a surprise to see you at this hour," Edgar greeted him.
"No need to be surprised. Let’s talk about this Stormfront situation."
Holander didn’t waste any ti. He went straight for the topic of Stormfront.
"What? You wanted to ask for your permission before bringing her in?"
"Why not? Every other mber went through my approval," Holander said. He saw this as Edgar challenging his authority. "Don’t forget, I’m the leader of The Seven."
"I respect your position as leader," Edgar replied with a small smile.
Holander barely held back his rage as he stared at Edgar. "I’m not feeling any respect from you. Even Madeline never tried pulling this kind of shit with ."
Under Holander’s relentless questioning, Edgar’s smile slowly faded. He took off his glasses, stepped right up to Holander, and laid it out: the FDA already knew about Compound V. Unless Holander was ready to lose everything he had, he should shut the fuck up.
"You have got one thing wrong.. Whether I want you posing on the Golden Globes or flying around in a cape, I don’t need your permission," Edgar said, the corners of his mouth turning up. The pressure he gave off was enough to make Holander stay silent.
___
Fuck.. I played 007 First Light for 15 hrs straight the day before yesterday, then I decided not to touch it.. and ended up playing it yesterday till its completion. IDK why people badmouth it.
[]~(￣▽￣)~*
Read 12 Advance Chapters—P@t- Captain69
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