The antiheroes halted in their tracks as they were about to enter the tunnel when they saw the message appear.
"Maniac?", Samantha asked.
"Hold up, everyone. Someone seems to have contacted us again through the system.", Trevor stated.
There had already been multiple incidences of this, but there didn't seem to be any grand link between them. Apparently the Determined had been given the option to leave a message previously, but it was unlikely that the spider queen had been given the same option.
What was more likely was that for one reason or another, the thoughts or emotions emitted by a nearby being could reach them in the form of a message.
But why didn't this always happen? Why did it only happen in certain cases and not others? Surely these two spider people were filled with emotions when they witnessed the killing of their brethren, no? Even if they weren't, they were certainly filled with fear when they saw the antiheroes approaching. That much Garett knew to be true.
"Should we change our plans?", Ashley asked, erring in caution.
"No. We already knew there was some torturing maniac down there. On the contrary, this gives us more reason to go down. If we manage to kill him off- and I doubt that we will be unable to do so with your insane intelligence stat at this point- it actually benefits us more if there are people to save and indebt to ourselves."
Trevor grinned.
"However, saving them would result in us looking like some form of heroes... we cannot have that now, can we? What will we do if people start relying on us for things and expecting us to help others like some sort of charity? That wouldn't do."
Garett grinned.
"I completely agree. If we paint ourselves as heroes saving people... that will lead to many issues. People will think we fight for some sort of justice... they will come to us with issues... they will expect us to hold to their principles of morality..... what we need is absolute dominance and loyalty. Trust forged through friendship is nonexistent. I know this better than anyone. If you help people, they will only learn to use you at every chance. Therefore, we must make it clear that we are not helping others out of something silly like kindness."
"A mutual benefit... a business transaction"
The two laughed.
"By painting ourselves as scheming businessmen... we will not be bothered by those who are good nor evil... we will be considered a neutral party in all affairs, and thus will not be dragged into other peoples problems. Our domain that we create will eventually be large and encompassing, but while it is small, it is crucial to remain neutral and beneficial to others, while backed by military power to prevent any war or infighting. The military being ourselves of course." Trevor explained.
"Well... things are a little more complicated than that, but at any rate, being seen as heroes would be too problematic. We should make it clear that we are not here to save others out of goodwill. And I happen to know exactly how to do that...", he noted.
Trevor huddled together with the other members of the party and explained the details of his plan, based on what they knew.
"So we know for sure that there is some maniac who tortures others, correct?"
"That much is very likely"
"Then there must be a torture room, and likely victims inside right now, am I wrong?"
"No, that should be correct"
"Alright then. Here's what we will do."
----
Coran was unsure what to think after overhearing the conversation between his new masters.
Painting themselves as scheming businessmen?
Not allowing themselves to be viewed as heroes?
Who would do such a thing as to purposely try to ruin their own public image?
Now, Coran had never lived a proper life in a society. His only relationship was that with his sister, and so he did not understand the complexities of dealing with many people, however the fact remained that he had a human conscience, and he felt human emotions.
Why was it that these demons acted so polar?
At some times, they seemed to be more human than even he was... more caring towards each other, and more... well, even Coran didn't understand it. They had a strange chemistry between each other that reminded him of his own bond with his sister... but it was different.
From the point of view of others, they seemed to be complete monsters, who held no sympathy towards anyone, and ruthlessly caused chaos and sought their own benefit over all else.
Their moods shifted at the drop of a hat. At some moments they seemed insane, and the next they were discussing logical possibilities and having regular conversations like a group of friends. Coran had no idea what could possibly be going on inside their minds.
But what they had just discussed, to Coran, was unfathomable.
He could not possibly imagine wanting to look bad in front of his sister. Even if it were for her sake, he would never purposely try to make her hate him. He could never bring himself to do that. And yet, these people... these monsters.. whatever they were.
They wanted to be seen as villains.
They wanted others to look at them as evil, and at the same time wanted to save those people for their 'benefit'.
For what benefit?
Surely one would reap more benefits if everyone loved them, as opposed to the opposite?
Was it really just so that they could dominate anyone in their path? Or was it something more complex?
Either way, It was beyond the comprehension of Coran, yet in the end he simply decided on this answer:
They were demons.
They didn't need a reason to be evil. Of course they would want others to look at them with fear.
But was that really what was going on here?
With doubts in his mind, Coran decided to stop thinking so much on it.
He decided that he would simply continue to perform his role, and make sure that his sister was not put through any suffering.
He looked toward his sister, who didn't seem puzzled at all. She was calmly watching, without so much as a facial expression, as their masters discussed their plans.