"None of this was my fault," Stillwell said helplessly as she stared at the man sitting on front of her.
"Of course it's not. But you know the game, Madelyn. The shareholders and the public need someone to blame. Right now, the stock is in a free fall. Our shareholders are panic selling. We've had to cancel six major projects in the last half hour alone."
"Homelander is still alive," Stillwell said. "The Deep found him. He's alive."
Edgar finally looked at her. His eyes were cold and empty, filled with contempt the moment he heard Homelander's name.
"That's not important. Matter of fact, it would have been better if he had died. At least then we wouldn't have to cater to his pathetic fear and misdirected rage. Whether he is alive or dead is of no importance to this company right now."
Edgar leaned forward and continued.
"He was defeated and rendered helpless in less than ten seconds. He was caught on camera crawling like a helpless child in front of the very people he's supposed to terrify.
If our strongest product was reduced to this state, then we have already lost the illusion of 'invincibility.' But your idea of an invasion... that was good. We are going to announce that the Supe who attacked Homelander is a Russian-engineered asset, a weapon specifically deployed to ambush him.
We'll spin it that even in his weakened state, Homelander was able to repel the creature into the depths of the Atlantic. It's not a defeat, Madelyn; it's a tragedy that requires more funding. But more importantly..."
Edgar leaned back, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the grainy footage of the rouge supe.
"I want you to establish contact with this Supe. Find out who he is, where he came from, and what he wants. Everyone has a price, and I suspect this one is far more valuable than the man child currently crying in the medical bay."
"Yes sir, anything else?"
"Did you locate the rest of the Seven or are they still on the run?"
"Queen Maeve is still in the tower with Black Noir. A-Train is out, he says his nephew is sick and Starlight is outside of the tower still morning supersonic and the Deep is nowhere to be found.
"Call them back. Assure them they won't be harmed by that man-child. That would be all, Madelyn."
"Yes sir."
Inside the medical bay, the scene was straight out of hell. Dozens of corpses lay scattered on the ground, lasered in half or torn apart. Blood was everywhere, on the walls, the ceiling, and pooling around the heavy boots of the man standing in the center of the mess.
Homelander had already recovered from his injuries physically. His skin was perfect again, and his ears had stopped bleeding.
But mentally, he was violated. Mentally, physically, literally, and figuratively. He had never felt fear before, but now, every time he closed his eyes, he was back in the dark water. He felt the cold. He felt the weight. He felt the grip of that ragged thing dragging him down like he was nothing.
The fact that he had been bit by that rabid dog, that he had bled for a homeless brat, was a rot in his mind. That boy hadn't just attacked him; he had tried to turn Him into a hollow corpse. Him. The same way he'd discarded Supersonic, like a piece of trash thrown into the Atlantic.
HIM!
Ding
The automated doors leading to the medical bay opened. There she was. Madelyn, staring at him.
"Oh, my sweet boy," she said, her voice soft and warm. "What have they done to you? Come here, tell me everything."
She opened her arms, and the man who had just dragged a pier into the ocean and butchered a dozen humans melted into her. He collapsed against her, his eyes slamming shut.
They sat together on the edge of the medical bed, surrounded by the mess he'd made. "Oh, Madelyn..." he whispered, his voice small and trembling.
"It's okay. It's okay," she murmured, stroking his golden hair and ignoring the blood on his suit. "I'm here. We're going to fix this."
"How bad is it? What are they saying about me?" Homelander asked.
"Don't mind them. They don't matter."
"Tell me, Madelyn."
She sighed, cupping his face in her hands. "It's pretty bad. But that was expected. Do you know why?"
He didn't answer. He just stared at her, waiting.
"Because they are jealous," she whispered, her thumb brushing over his cheekbone. "Right now, they are celebrating your downfall. Every single one of them. They want to replace you with someone weaker, someone they can control. They're vultures, John. But I'm not going to let that happen. I promise you. But you will have to be strong for me. My sweet boy will have to endure this for a little longer. Can you do that for me?"
"It's all because of the Deep," Homelander hissed, his eyes glowing a faint, dangerous red. "That brain-rotted idiot started all of this. I'm going to find him, and I'm going to open his head to see if there's anything actually inside it."
"No, no, no," Stillwell whispered, her hands moving to his shoulders to anchor him. "You can't do that. Not yet. He's the one who got us into this mess, but we can't have a member of the Seven disappear right now. Not while the world is watching and waiting for your downfall."
She leaned in, her voice a soothing, deadly promise.
"Once we deal with the problem at hand, once that thing is erased, then you can punish the Deep. You can do whatever you want to him. But for now, I need you to be the leader, John. Can you do that for me?"