When people think genius, it is usually choked up to them being good at math and building things. That is sadly untrue. People usually don't realize intelligence as a mixture of imagination, problem solving skills, and deductive reasoning. Dials was probably the best version of these three. He solved three cases a day. Though, he was usually held back by things like having children.
"Hello, Dials."
His boss, a redhead who treated him with the bare minimum of respect. It was around night when they met for the first time that day.
"What would you like today?"
"We need you to find someone in New York."
"Let me guess, James?"
Dials had been a mostly neutral person in the war between the E.P.F and D.O.W.N. He even made a deal with both sides. If James were to win, he would reform the E.P.F as a force under him. He also made a deal with his boss for eternal servitude.
"Yes, but one of your spies is in the belly of the beast. Least you could do is send a recovery team there."
"That would be sending men to the slaughter."
She smiled and waved him away.
"You can choose whoever is on your team."
Dials got his men and in the dead of night, radioed Lighter.
"We're here. Get out of the house and run to the helicopters."
Wait, if dad is here to rescue me, that means he is doing something for the sake of being nice. But he never does that so that means I'm a liability and he's trying to kill me and everyone else here.
"Put someone else on the radio and make them tell the objective."
"Yes."
The detective blacked out and handed the radio to the pilot.
"We're here to recover everyone that we have placed in the manor and to cause as much damage as possible."
"Fine. I'll come out."
Lighter had locked himself in the bathroom of Alexandria's. She was waiting patiently for him before she heard the window open and a loud thump came. It was followed shortly by Lighter yelling and hitting the ground.
"I wonder what he's up to."
The young man went towards the helicopter before remembering BB, the man who shadowed him throughout his entire year as Dials's kid.
"BB."
"Yes?"
When Lighter used his ability, it allowed him to make those affected hear him no matter where they were at.
"Kill Scott and Alexandria."
"No."
"What?"
BB had supernatural willpower that was boosted by his instability and the end eyes. From that moment on, BB found his real nemesis. BB hated Dials with all his heart, but Lighter only ever wanted his approval.
"Johan, I know he was behind that. I don't care how it works. I know one thing for sure, he's connected to Dials and I'm going to have both of them gone soon."
BB took a small revolver off the kitchen table and ran outside before he realized what was outside. A helicopter with a machine gun mount pointed directly at him. I guess this is it. My monologue is over. All for nothing. What a joke I became. Doing those things for what? Daddy's attention? I'm a disappointment to my team.
"Whoa there, BB. Don't want you getting hurt."
The killer had opened his eyes to see the savior he wasn't expecting, the thug known by the name of Joey. He saw BB get out of his bed and paused time. With a trip to the kitchen, bullets and knives had been fired at the helicopter.
"Why am I surprised?"
"I don't know how that is an apology."
BB had already formed a plan but the problem was that Dials had formed one faster. BB planned on capturing Dials and killing him. It would allow D.O.W.N a way of survival and BB could simply take Dials's place in the cryosleep pod and pretend to be him. Dials had figured out that this was BB and had decided that it would be best to kill Lighter and replace him with BB. The true successor of him. Dials almost shed a tear at the thought of removing his kids from the face of the earth but the thought of BB continuing as the Appalachian Butcher would outweigh him as the next Dials.
"You should put down your guns."
Lighter had been thrown out of his seat in the helicopter before being sent to the ground. He had a propeller blade land over him. It was hot as it burned his left arm and his abdomen. But, it kept him safe.
"I don't believe I can do that."
The cowboy and Dials had been in a small stand off as both had their weapons drawn on one another.
"Yes you can. Your team is dead. I know you probably have backup on the way so I'm not going to be taking any chances."
Yeager fired from the balcony and hit Dials in the left arm. If he planned on killing him, he'd be dead. BB immediately mobilized to attack the detective with one of the knives Joey threw at him.
"You took everything from me!"
"No, you have nobody to blame but yourself."
BB was slow in the fight thanks to his previous injuries. Dials meanwhile, was in his prime and beating the you man to a bloody pulp.
"Win the fight."
Dials heard the voice of Lighter in his head as he went on autopilot. Within seconds, BB was dismantled. It began when BB tried to stab Dials in the stomach. He caught the blade in his hand and returned it to BB's leg. Then the detective began to punch and block all of BB's punches.
"This isn't your style. You need a pick me up? The Dials needs a pick me up?"
BB basically let the fight happen as the genius beat him into the ground. Sears was forced to beat the closest thing he had to a daughter to almost death.
"Why?"
Her knives weren't a match for his bullets. She was an adept fighter but it's hard to fight someone when they have ninety pounds over you and have invented their own fighting style. She was basically being used as a weapon against Mistress and Joey before Scott eventually blew a hole in his leg.
"Where am I?"
"Dreamland."
With a loud whack, the bud of his gun collided with his skull.
"Should we help BB?"
"Nah, we did what we needed. Just let them fight it out. We can pick him up once they're done."
BB woke up in the hospital. Scott was the only one there. He had some wilted flowers in his hand as he watched his best friend wake up.
"When am I?"
"Backtown. Seven years ago, we met."
"Seven years ago, you kidnapped me."
"Tomato tomato."
"Where's everyone else?"
"Sears is somewhere, Alexandria is with her brother, Mistress has started a cult, Dials is gone, Johan has disappeared, and I'm right here with you!"
"Did we?"
"Take back our city?"
"Yes?"
"Yes."
BB nearly jumped out of his bed to give Scott a hug before he realized something.
"How long was I out?"
"Two years."
"I guess we should meet what's left of the family."
BB looked at his journal and thought to himself for a moment. I don't need that anymore. I can live my life.