Hughie, Frenchie, and MM returned to their new hideout. They never let their guard down, and although there was no sign that anyone had discovered them, they decided to change their hiding place regularly.
As for Hughie's father, his girlfriend Robin, and MM's wife and daughter, they had been moved to secure locations in case something happened. Naturally, just like Annie's parents, they were given VIP treatment.
It's amusing that the guys are living with traffickers while their families are staying in nice accommodations outside New York. Of course, this is thanks to Allen; there's no way it couldn't be. If there's one thing CIA agents learned from Vought executives, it's not to piss off the guy who can destroy the world.
Frenchie's friends were initially wary, pointing guns at them when they arrived, but they were hospitable nonetheless. However, once they got to this location, the others felt uncomfortable because it was a place involved in arms trafficking.
Hughie warned Frenchie that Allen wouldn't be happy to hear about this place either, but Frenchie reassured him not to worry; it was only for a few days, and they would find a new place soon.
The support of someone with money and influence had given them a breath of relief. At least in this world, The Boys weren't completely marginalized; they had the CIA's support, albeit very discreetly.
"Well, whose turn is it?" MM said, placing a bag with a prepared breakfast on the table. Hughie glanced at Frenchie; it was his turn.
"Alright, I'll do it. I'll feed the witch..." Frenchie said begrudgingly.
Madelyn Stillwell had been accustomed to a life of luxury, but now she had to take refuge in a dismal place with arms traffickers.
The irony was that all of this was her own doing. Every decision that led her to where she was was her fault. She had spent years building an empire only to watch it crumble due to her trump card. However, as miserable as her situation was, it was still better than having Homelander blow a hole in her head with his heat vision.
Madelyn sat on a soft bed with her baby in her arms. Now that she no longer had other concerns, she focused her attention entirely on her son.
Frenchie walked through the place with a bag containing a simple breakfast and went to a small room at the back.
Opening the door, he found Madelyn with her baby.
"I've got something for you..." Frenchie left the bag without being overly courteous but also not rude.
"Thank you. Although I feel like a prisoner," Madelyn sighed. "I've already told you that I'm not going to escape; you don't need to lock me in here…"
Frenchie coughed. That wasn't the reason they had Madelyn there; it was because there were weapons and drugs everywhere. It wasn't a suitable place for a baby.
"Mallory is working on getting you a new identity. With only the help of her 'secure' connections, it will take some time if you want it to be completely safe."
Madelyn heard the name and murmured, "Grace Mallory… Edgar has a habit of eliminating anyone who represents a threat…"
"No, I don't think you'd have to worry about that..." Frenchie countered.
"It's true... the order came from Edgar, but I sent Lamplighter..." Madelyn paused. "I'm sorry, and if it helps at all when my son was born, I stopped ordering assassinations."
Frenchie punched the wall, causing the room to shake. Madelyn shielded her son.
"We're really doing our best not to put a bullet head... so don't push us."
Frenchie left the room and took several deep breaths to calm himself. The murder of his former boss's grandchildren was not something that sat well with anyone, and it had become the main trigger that led to the downfall of The Boys years ago.
Frenchie walked over to where Hughie and MM were.
"Is she alright?" Hughie asked, hanging up his phone. He had been talking to Robin, needing support after seeing A-Train.
"Unfortunately, yes..." Frenchie replied, ignoring Hughie's surprised look as he walked over to Charlotte, who was asleep on a couch. Frenchie brushed a lock of hair away from Charlotte's face. "Sorry…"
Technically, Charlotte and Madelyn were in the same position at the moment, but Madelyn, having a baby, had special treatment.
MM observed Frenchie's actions and called him over to a corner. Frenchie went over without much thought.
"Frenchie, what was that sh*t?"
"What?"
"Oh, come on, I've known you for years, and that cheesy French seducer act you use when talking to A-Train's girlfriend."
"She has a name, it's Charlotte, and she's the ex-girlfriend..."
Marvin shook his head and decided not to pay any more attention to this.
"Do whatever you want, but don't forget she's a prisoner."
"..."
...
The three men were concerned because they hadn't received any news from Butcher and Allen, who had gone to find Rebecca Butcher.
Suddenly, a guy burst into the room carrying another man who was severely injured. Marvin, having some medical knowledge, was shocked to see the man's shattered arm.
While Frenchie's friend continued shouting in French, Marvin couldn't understand him.
"Frenchie, tell him to take him to a hospital. I can't do anything with such a severe wound!"
MM was nervous because the man could bleed out, and the corpse attracted a lot of attention. Frenchie reluctantly questioned the other friend, and when he heard what was said, he was stunned.
The Boys decided to investigate at the dock.
...
Allen was dealing with his own problems. Moments earlier, Homelander surprised Allen with his increased strength.
It wasn't just a matter of a bit of luck; this version of Homelander was already stronger than Black Noir at his peak.
Allen furrowed his brow and gripped Homelander's arm still embedded in his stomach. There was pain, but it was nothing he hadn't experienced many times before. This level of damage wasn't even enough to make him suffer.
Allen struck Homelander's chest with a palm strike, pushing him away.
The fact that he had managed to hurt him and that Homelander was now even stronger was within Allen's expectations, but there was something different about this version of Homelander.
Homelander used to rely heavily on the decisions of others, showing only a displeased face when contradicted or when Madelyn made a decision he disliked, but now it was different.
'This bastard is acting with intention; it's not just a rage-driven killing.'
Allen clenched his fist and flew toward Homelander, directing his punch at Homelander's face. The blow reverberated through the area. The main priority was to get this lunatic away from the suburbs.
Homelander watched Allen's fist approach, somewhat surprised. It was still very fast, but this time he could see the fist that had struck him before, unable to respond.
Homelander felt pain in his jaw, which annoyed him but also made him feel powerful.
Homelander was consumed by the anger of seeing Butcher, feeling that his place was about to be taken. However, he lost his composure. He hadn't expected to find Allen here, but it was an interesting surprise.
Allen halted his advance and watched Homelander from a distance. 2B, who was with Butcher, had informed him that he, Rebecca, and her son were moving away from the area.
It was better that they moved where Homelander wouldn't find them.
Allen looked sideways at the burned and broken-in-half houses. 'How many people died?'
The mood swings of someone crazy are unpredictable, Homelander out of nowhere decides to destroy everything, which adds to his power and speed several times even if it temporarily, overcomes the spider-sense.
'Damn, how many people?!...'
Artoria – 'Don't forget that you're not alone...'
Allen's eyes widened at Artoria's soothing and supportive tone. It was true; he was never alone, even if his power was restricted in this world. Artoria's was not.
She, knowing that Allen would blame himself for allowing people to die so close to him, had saved them even faster than his spider-sense. A smile formed on Allen's face as he suppressed his urge to hug and kiss her right then.
Artoria had a strong connection with Allen and could sense his emotions when they were intense.
She blushed. "You fool..."
Allen smiled, and he disappeared and appeared next to Homelander.
"You!"
Allen grabbed Homelander by the arm and threw him across the distance, breaking the sound barrier in the process. Allen immediately pursued him.
Homelander fired his heat vision as he moved away. Allen covered his arms with energy and blocked the attack while chasing Homelander.
One laser shot after another was blocked by Allen as he closed the distance. Allen clenched his fist, and Homelander did the same. Both exchanged blows in the sky, creating a shockwave.
Allen scoffed, "You're still leaving yourself wide open."
Allen hit Homelander's stomach, then his face, chest, stomach again, and jaw. Unlike before, Allen felt significant resistance from his opponent, but his strikes were still powerful. Homelander tried to respond, but Allen didn't give him a chance and nullified his weak attempts to retaliate.
"Did you think that with a little training, you could match me?"
"Did you think that injecting yourself with compound V, the steroid version, would make you win?"
Homelander tried to respond to the attack after Allen but couldn't.
Allen vanished and appeared beneath Homelander, kicking him in the back to send him soaring. He reappeared above Homelander and greeted him with a guillotine kick.
"Ahhhh;"
Homelander crashed into a lake and never came back out... Homelander had escaped.
Allen calmed down; he didn't need to push himself to the limit this time. He only needed to buy time for Butcher to get away.
Homelander was strong, but not up to par for a fight with Allen. In the end, he fled.
....
(A Few Hours Later)
Hughie, Frenchie, and MM were watching a security recording they had obtained.
Frenchie's friends weren't the best people; however, Frenchie thought they only sold weapons and perhaps drugs, not people.
"Damn it, Frenchie! these are your friends?!" Marvin covered his face with his hands. "We have New York's most valuable person in the next room, and you bring us to human traffickers!"
"They're not my friends!"
"Guys, look at this!" Hughie interrupted the argument and everyone turned their attention to the screen. A young man who was the last to come down began arguing with the man Frenchie had brought in, who was gravely injured.
The young Asian man started making strange hand movements, and the boat that had brought him began to levitate, then was thrown at the terrified man.
"They brought a super-terrorist into the country."
If Allen had been here, he would have been surprised, as this shouldn't have happened yet. Kenji, Kimiko's brother, was supposed to arrive sometime after Billy discovered that his wife was alive.
...
Homelander had been in a foul mood. Even with the modified compound V, he couldn't defeat Allen.
This was concerning. However, at least he had the power to face him, which was a small consolation in the midst of the bad.,-
'You're pathetic. How can you be satisfied with just watching him? You should have torn his head off, even if it meant dying in the process. That's the only way to prove your superiority!'
Homelander looked at his reflection with indifference. Previously, he would have been affected by these words, but now he saw them as the impulsive, idiotic statements they were.
(A/N: In the series, Homelander displayed a hidden personality. I used this and gave his reflection on the aggressive and bloodthirsty personality seen in the comics, though also more impulsive.)
Homelander walked into Madelyn's office unconsciously. Upon arrival, he noticed renovations were underway. Ashley had been promoted to Madelyn's position, a move strongly "recommended" by Homelander.
Homelander noticed a display case had been moved. Madelyn used to keep bottles of milk there, seemingly for her son Teddy.
Homelander looked at the place, trying to act indifferent, but it was impossible. Even after wishing to kill Madelyn, he still couldn't shake his attachment to her.
Homelander opened the display case and took a bottle of milk. It might be a few days old, but he didn't care. He opened it, smelled it, and then tasted it with his tongue. It might seem like disturbing behavior, but that's how damaged Homelander was at this point.
"Homelander?"
Ashley entered suddenly, pleased with her new position.
Homelander dropped the bottle and quickly tried to act normal, but his awkwardness and embarrassment were evident. Fortunately for Homelander, Ashley was so intimidated by him that she didn't notice.
"There's someone I want to introduce you to, as a replacement."
Despite Ashley's enthusiasm, Homelander would normally have shown disapproval, but he decided to accept it this time.
She took him to a training floor where a young man dressed in black was practicing with knives.
"Ashley, what's this?"
Ashley stood up straight, as if proud of her actions. She began talking about the young man, who was named Blindspot. It was needless to say he was the Daredevil of this world.
"So, why is he here?"
"A-Train... due to his injury, we need someone to replace him. Since we have Luke and Sam, I thought someone young would be ideal. The millennials will love him."
Homelander smiled to contain his anger and addressed Blindspot.
"It's an honor, sir."
"That was impressive."
"Yes, you don't need eyes when you have ears."
Blindspot and Ashley laughed, and Homelander merely smiled.
"I see... and what happens if..." Homelander approached, and without hesitation, struck Blindspot's ears with his palms, rupturing his eardrums.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
Blindspot fell to the ground, bleeding heavily. Ashley looked like a trapped rat as she watched the young man bleed and scream.
"Now you're just another blind man..." Homelander stepped over Blindspot. "This must be some kind of sick joke. Ashley, what made you think I would let a cripple join the Seven? For the love of God, Ashley, don't look at him, look at me!"
"ASHLEY, LOOK AT ME!!"
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry."
Terrified, Ashley snapped out of her shock, driven by her survival instincts.
"The only reason you're in that position is because of me. It wouldn't look right for me to run the company myself."
Homelander walked toward her slowly, instilling terror with every step.
"From now on, everything that happens, every event, every commercial, every decision, even the color of your underwear, will be approved by me."
"So forget about the 99th floor; those executives aren't essential, and neither are you!"
"Y-yes... yes..."
She snapped out of her trance, naively believing she could command as Madelyn once did. However, she was just a convenient puppet to fill an empty chair.
===
A/N: I actually feel a little bad for Ashley the whole series is Homelander's punching bag.