--- 3 Months Later ---
Mark and Conner had both been very active in their individual lives. Mark was taking on more and more of his role as a hero. While most of it was training with Nolan, Mark also began to handle some matters on his own.
He was fighting villains, teaming up with other heroes, and had even met the Teen Team recently. When he found out that Caitlin and Eve were both members of the team, he freaked out on Conner. He couldn't believe that his brother had kept it a secret for so long.
Conner, on the other hand, handled his responsibilities as Red King and soon to be responsibilities as Sentry. Although he still had to deal with the threats to HOMRA before he could begin his other plans.
Conner groggily woke up because of his alarm and looked at the date on his phone. When he saw that it was the 30th of December, all the sleepiness in his body immediately left him.
'Today is the day. It's time to clean up the group once and for all.'
Conner got dressed and left the house before any of his family even woke up. He flew toward the company and landed without being sighted before making his way inside. He then took the elevator to the top floor and got changed into his Red King persona.
He stayed in his office for several hours before Anna called out to him.
"Sir, it is time for the meeting. All of the Dukes are waiting on the floor below," she called out to him
Red King looked up and looked at the woman for a moment before nodding silently and standing up from his seat. He proceeded to walk to the elevator before heading down to the floor below them. Anna followed him inside.
'She was a good assistant. But even the best kings were betrayed by their right-hands.'
The pair walked out of the elevator and into the conference room. But unlike only seeing the Dukes which he was supposed to see, many of the Counts were present as well. And although they tried to hide it, the rest of the rooms on the 18th floor were filled with all the other Nobles as well. Since they bore his mark, Red King could easily since them.
Red King ignored the Counts sitting around the table and sat at his spot, the head of the table before looking at the 8 Dukes before him. Scotty and Richard were the only two that were still on his side. Nicolette was leading the rebel faction.
"It is good that everyone is here. I have been meaning to tell you all about the downsizing of the company and reducing the number of contracts we currently have out," Red King said like this was any other meeting
"About that. We have been discussing and think this is not the best course of action," Nicolette started
"That's right! We would lose too much profit!"
"How would we sustain our company?!"
"The reputation that we have worked so hard to maintain will be completely stripped away!"
With Nicolette taking the lead, the rest followed. Each of the Dukes made complaints about the new plan that Red King wanted to go through with but when they did not hear a response, they grew angrier and bolder. Finally, someone said what most of them had planned.
"I think it is time for a new leader!"
"Yes. While you have led us well, we need some fresh blood to take over the position!"
"I say we have Nicolette do it. She is the most experienced and fiercest of us all!"
"Maybe you should consider it, Boss," Anna suggested from beside him
The others continued their little play without caring about what Red King's response was now. Not only did the Dukes ignore him, but the Counts that should not have even been there started to speak up and say that Nicolette was a better choice for leadership than him.
"It seems that almost everyone wants me to be the new King. I hope that we can have a smooth succession, Boss. It would be bad if there was infighting that tears the company we worked so hard to build apart," Nicolette finally said after letting everyone else praise
She and the rest of the Nobles present looked to Red King as they waited for a response but after a minute, he still said nothing. Just when one of them was going to speak again, Red King finally spoke.
"Are you all done? You have been planning this for months but this half-assed play is all you can come up with? Bring forth the contract you created so I can see just what you all truly think of me!" Red King said in an arrogant manner
While she did not like his tone, the fact that he was asking for the contract meant that he had already agreed in Nicolette's mind. She nodded toward Anna who placed a contract in front of Red King. After taking a minute to read it over, Red King could not help but laugh when he was finished.
"You planned to only give me 1% of the profits? You all must be dreaming!" he declared
Hearing this, the expressions on everyone's faces changed instantly. The facade of respect they had was completely gone. Nicolette looked toward Red King as if she was looking at a fool.
"Do not refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit! You are currently surrounded by every Noble in HOMRA. We have all our knights on the floors below. You can either sign this contract and walk away with your life and some money or die with your dignity while we take everything from you. The choice is yours!" Nicolette said with venom dripping from her voice
Hearing what she said, Red King started laughing once again. But this one was darker. It sent chills down the spines of everyone present. Redish-pink flames began to gather around his body.
"You think you can force me to drink? Ha! I made you all! Now, I will destroy all who dare to rebel!"
The flames around his body began to burn fiercer and spread. The Nobles in the room tried to resist with their own aura and flames but discovered that they were unable to produce them. It was only then that they realized what a mistake they had made.
"Red King! We apologize! But even if you kill us, we have over 6 thousand men on the floors below. You can't kill them all. Let's just take a step back!" Nicolette tried to negotiate when she saw that things weren't going as planned
Red King ignored them. The flames around his body continued to rage until he let out a shout. That is when they turned from just a bit of flame into an inferno that filled the entire 18th floor. Whether it was those inside the room or those hiding in other rooms, all of them were burned until there was nothing left. Even those on the floor beneath could feel the heat and were suffering.
Red King was not done, however. He gathered all the flames that were blazing wildly into his hand in the shape of a small sphere at the tip of his fingers. He then flicked the orb toward the floor beneath. When it collided with the floor, it appeared to have only made a slight dent in the floor before disappearing. But to those below, they saw the true hell that Red King had unleashed, if only for a moment.
A spiraling storm of fire burned through every floor beneath them. Every Knight that was prepared for a battle was killed before they had the chance to even lift their weapons. Before the rebellion had even officially begun, it was already squashed.
Red King flew out the window and looked at the HOMRA building from a distance. All the floors were on fire and emitting smoke that covered the sky. Even from how high he was, Red King could hear all the emergency vehicles making their way to HOMRA HQ.
Everything he had worked for had been burned by his own hands. But he regretted nothing. Just as Red King was about to fly away, he got a call on his internal headset.
"Boss. We have cleared out all their stuff. Anything physical that needs time to sell is now collected while everything that could be sold instantly is gone," Scotty said over the mic.
Both Scotty and Robert had been given the task of collecting all the possessions of the traitors. They would be used to rebuild HOMRA into something better than before.
"Good. Everything on my end is done as well. I want to be back in this building within a week," Red King said to his trusted right-hand
"Only a week? You are such a slave driver. They have to sort out the crime scene, find the cause, check out the damage, and repair it all. That would take at least 3 months to do!"
"5 pounds of vibranium for you to use however you want," Red King said without changes in his voice
"Don't worry, Boss! I will be sure to get this done in a week... no, no. I will get it done in 5 days. You can count on me," Scotty said with renewed motivation
Every time he wanted to play with the vibranium, Red King would threaten to kill him if he used it for anything without permission and he always had to destroy anything he made after only a single use. 5 pounds worth of vibranium would allow him to do hundreds of smaller experiments.
Red King did not say anything else before he flew away. He didn't want to get caught up with any heroes about the mess he had just made.