NOVEL NEXT Chapter 45: BlackNite Ensemble!
10 advanced chapters on Patreon.com/Saintbarbido.
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(General P.O.V)
"Thank you Christopher."
Angel nodded at the CEO of his company, then regarded the guests.
"First of, let me start by saying, I'm glad to have you all in my home."
Angel began warmly, projecting the image of a polite boy with good manners.
Paired with his good looks, the whole room was deathly quiet, practically entranced by his words and demeanor.
"Most of you don't know me, so I get why my baby face might surprise you. But hey, treat me like you would any other stranger— awkwardly polite and slightly suspicious."
He said with a light chuckle that was echoed back at him by the room.
Angel kept the smile as he watched them laugh at his joke.
'Yeah, right. Most people here are jerks who wouldn't hesitate to kick someone when they're down. Politeness is only given to those on the same level as them, or above. Like me.' He sarcastically thought to himself, a complete opposite of what he outwardly displayed.
Once the room settled down, he went,
"As to where I've been these past few weeks? Traveling the world, of course. It was something I'd always wanted to do with my dad... He's gone now, but I kept the promise I made to him— sailing across the globe in our yacht."
He lied with a convincing ease
However his words had the desired effect, eliciting looks of sympathy, which were accompanied by polite clapping.
Angel's smile gave off a bittersweet sadness as he regarded the crowd,
"Thank you."
Clearing his throat, the sadness was replaced by a slightly happier expression,
"I'd like to thank my wonderful staff, especially my dependable Head Maid, Mrs. Arya Gordon, for taking care of the Mansion during my absence. Let's give them a round of applause."
He motioned at Arya who was standing behind him.
Her response was to bow her head his way while smiling genially, amidst the crowd's applause.
Angel clapped along. Then he turned to his side,
"I also want to extend my gratitude to Mr. Tresser. As CEO, Christopher has elevated my father's company to unimaginable heights."
This was common knowledge to the crowd. Many of those present worked for or were involved with him in important dealings.
Angel was now directly addressing him,
"In only a few weeks, you have achieved what no one else could. I'm impressed at your visionary ideas and ambitious strategies. With your support, Chris, I am sure that Savage Inc. will become the leading pioneer in technology development and consumer products in no time. Let's advance the human race to the next stage while making me lots of money, okay?"
Christopher's face was a mix of pride, joy and admiration, amidst a few scattered laughs.
"You're the boss, Sir. Thank you for the kind words."
He replied to Angel.
"Keep up the good work."
Angel nodded his way.
The crowd of Christopher's employees and acquaintances erupted into clapping and cheering.
Shifting his focus back to the crowd, Angel raised a hand that settled the room down.
A serious expression fell upon his face, as he moved on to an important matter. In fact, the very reason why he had decided to host such a big party.
"In this age of nukes in the form of costumed superhumans, security has never been more crucial. A superpowered battle between them, could send debris crashing down on your morning commute, or your child's school could become a war zone during an alien invasion. This is our reality— but it doesn't have to be. Not anymore."
Intrigued murmuring rose up from the crowds.
After a brief pause, Angel continued,
"During my global journey, I wasn't just sightseeing— I was seeking answers. In a world growing more chaotic by the day, it's clear the Justice League and superheroes in general aren't enough. We must take personal action to protect what matters most to us. That's why I'm excited to announce Savage Security, the newest addition to Savage Inc."
The limelight on him widened, revealing four people behind him.
From his far left, now dressed in a black Tuxedo and tie was Goku. Beside him stood Jinx, who wore a similar black outfit, only with a skirt and stockings instead of pants.
And to his right, stood Cheshire and Ravager, similarly decked out in formal suits, though Cheshire had copied Jinx with a skirt on, while Ravager wore pants along with the Tux.
The four of them looked imposingly official.
'Like Hitmen. After all, I had the Suits modeled after Hitman 47 and John Wick.'
Angel thought, admiring the way they looked.
"These are my friends."
He introduced to the crowd,
"And as you've noticed, they're looking sharp. Highly trained too, I might add. But for now, let's focus on the suits they're wearing. You probably wouldn't believe me if I told you that, apart from looking good, those suits essentially make them Superhuman."
And true enough, disbelief was colored on the guests' faces.
Angel continued confidently, after all, that disbelief would soon be replaced with something else,
"The suits can block bullets, heal grave injuries to an extent, absorb shock and impact- for example falling from a height of 50 meters, grant super strength, super agility and the list goes on. Oh and they're also self cleaning and self repairing."
The crowd gaped in awe.
The smile on Angel's face was one of pride and accomplishment. But he wasn't done.
"But don't just take my word for it. So how about a demonstration?"
Angel stated, tapping his ear.
Almost instantly, the chandelier hanging on the ceiling started glowing yellow.
A droning hum followed the glow, which permeated across the entire ball room.
There was a flash of light, which caused most of the crowd to close their eyes, and when they blinked them open...their surroundings had changed.
Now they were in a wide and empty rectangular shaped chamber. It was split into two by a blue force field that reached all the way to the high ceiling.
The ceiling itself was lit up by sections of light pannels separated by a few feet, providing more than enough visibility into the huge chamber.
All in all, the room resembled a warehouse built underground. Or rather an expansive nindoor garage space.
The crowd stood on one side of the blue forcefield, looking around in confusion and growing concern.
"I apologize for the sudden and unexpected Boomtube teleportation."
Angel spoke from a floating deck close to the right wall. Jinx and the rest dutifully stood behind him.
"I guess I should have asked for consent first."
This brought about a little laughter, the crowd now calming down as they realized they were in no danger.
"If you're wondering where we are, think of this chamber as a testing zone/Bunker. It's constructed 40 feet below the mansion and the walls are made out of an alloy denser than lead and it's Structural Strength surpasses Steel. You can talk to Christopher about acquiring one if interested."
He clapped his hands together,
"But that's not why we're here. We're here for a quick demonstration on why Savage Securities should be you go to for protection."
He snapped his fingers and Ravager sank into her own shadow, eliciting gasps, especially when she popped out of another shadow on the other side of the Force-field.
"The energy shield is there to keep us safe. You'll see why in a bit."
Angel informed, tapping his watch a few times.
"""Activating Combat Drones"""
A synthetic voice rang out across the chamber.
On the other side of the force-field, the farthest wall of the chamber opened up, multiple red dots appearing, before gray colored drones with gun barrels installed on them, poured out enmasse.
The drones were sleek and shaped like Arrowheads with no propellers on the sides.
There were 20 of them.
"These drones are a new product set to be unveiled by the company later this year. They are silent, perfect for stealth. They utilize magnetohydrodynamic principles to generate lift instead of propellers. They also have guns as you can see."
Angel revealed
The crowd was wowed.
The Drones took to the air in formation, surrounding Ravager who remained unfazed.
"""Target acquired. Eliminate"""
The synthetic voice called out and all at once, the drones aimed and unleashed a hail of bullets at Ravager.
Despite being shot at, she stayed still and immobile. All the bullets that landed on her, flattening against her black suit.
And the ones aimed at her head were stopped by the black and red mask she wore, inspired by her father's own costume.
The little bit of skin left exposed was also unharmed as a barely visible thin film of energy covered it, repelling the bullets.
After a few seconds of sustained firing, the Drones ceased.
"Unbelievable..."
"She's not dead..."
"Not dead? There's not even a scratch on her..."
The guests gaped in shocked surprise. They could see the flattened mound of bullets at her feet, surrounding her.
"Mmph."
Angel snorted. Just like he had thought, the disbelief was gone.
"The outer layer of the suit contains an invisible energy shield, powered by a limited reserve of nanites. The shield even covers exposed skin."
He explained,
"The nanites absorb heat given off by the body, and then convert it into energy, thus sustaining the Suit's durability. But that's not all, ladies and gentlemen, not even close. Commence Stage 2!"
"""Activating Stage 2"""
In response to Angel's order, the Synthetic voice stated.
The barrels on the drones retracted. Then the whole set broke up into 5 groups- 4 drones stacked ontop of one another.
There was a shift in their Arrowhead frames as they combined, latching onto each other and reconstructing into floating robotic units, vaguely shaped like a human. Only they were smaller in size and had sharp blades for hands and gun barrels for legs.
"""Commencing Attack"""
3 of the 5 units blasted off towards her, blades swinging while the last 2 units held back, providing cover by unleashing a hail of bullets.
Ravager started dodging the shots by anticipating where the trajectory. All the while she keenly watched the 3 units about to engage her in close combat.
The first went for an overhead slash a few meters away from her.
That's when she finally made her move. In an action too fast to see, her hand went for the Katana on her waist.
She drew it.
Her form flickered across the chamber as she appeared at the end of it.
The sound of something sharp cutting through the air, was followed by a click as she sheathed her Katana.
Lines appeared across the bodies of the 5 units behind her. Then with a clatter, they separated into pieces of metal that fell to the floor.
Amidst the shock, Angel took over commentary,
"As for combat effectiveness, you saw it for yourselves. The suit is made out of biocompatible materials like graphene and silk-based polymers, which through a limited number of nanites installed within the inner layer, are constructed into the body, bonding with the wearer's muscles and bones, reinforcing them without causing harm. Turning a normal human Superhuman as Ravager just demonstrated. These will be Savage Security's selling point. The BlackNite Ensemble."
Naked hunger could be seen in the eyes of some in the crowd.
The guests were top members of society and people in their positions had a lot of enemies. So having a personal bodyguard in a suit like that, was like having a 24/7 Superhero looking after you.
Scratch that, just wearing it themselves ensured protection from just about anything.
It wasn't enough to call it revolutionary, the BlackNite Suit was a scientific Marvel.
"Well, that's all I have for you today folks. Let's get back to the party, shall we?"
Angel concluded.
There was another flash of yellow light and everyone disappeared from the Testing Facility.
It had taken some time, but Angel had achieved all of his plans.
Vandal Savage was dead.
The Light were imprisoned in his dungeons.
The League of Shadows was now his.
The Justice League had been dealt with.
And he had taken the first step forward in truly establishing his Empire with the creation of Savage Security.
This was a new era. His Era. And now he could truly begin his takeover.