Wretched Joy 31 (Patreon)

Commissioned by southmonk

Wretched Joy

Chapter 31

-VB-

The longer she went out to work, the more she grew to disdain the adults. 

She could understand why Assault couldn’t just do what she was doing; unlike her, he had obligations and risks that he couldn’t take. He was one of the few adults she confronted on why they weren’t doing anything, and he had been open about it. 

She didn’t like what he did before he became Assault. In fact, she really didn’t like it. Punched him in the face for it. He let people like Lung and Kaiser out of Birdcage transports! What the fuck?! 

Which also meant that he was on a very thin line and a short leash. If he stepped off of that line, then the government was going to come down on him. Hard. 

Which … 

Vista hated that, too.

The government was coming down on a hero - past villain, okay - for being a hero? Heroes will get sanctioned and sidelined for doing what was morally right and spiritually upheld the law?

What the fuck? 

She thought it was just bureaucracy being a bitch but no.

There were actual people inside the government who weren’t just bitches and bastards but actual villains in all but name. And they were allowed to be that just because … they were voted in? 

What the fuck? 

Even though she wasn’t in high school, she knew that being voted in meant nothing! Just because someone was voted in didn’t mean they had the best interest of the people at heart! Hell, by the very nature of being voted in, he probably didn’t have the best interest of the people who didn’t vote for him!

And they were allowed to do whatever but heroes weren’t? 

She …

She just felt hate. 

A tired hate. 

An exhausted hate. 

So she shoved those thoughts to the side and kept doing what she needed to do: telling the corrupt that justice (or vengeance) was coming for them. 

She didn’t get taken seriously at all places, even though she was a hero, but she did it. 

Because she believed that being a hero wasn’t about doing what the law said or what the people said. 

It was doing what was … just. To be fair. To be direct. To stand before evil, even if that meant telling evil people they were about to get shafted. Everyone deserves a notice before they get sent to hell.

And she was starting to feel a sort of vindictive satisfaction giving out these “notices of doom.” The look on the faces of hidden villains - of “polite” criminals - cheered up everyday.

Because no matter how loudly they shouted or ran, Joe would be there. 

And he was a merciless god of fairness.

He didn’t care about skin color. He didn’t care about age. He didn’t care about your family. 

He came at you and you alone. 

If you killed, then you might die. 

If you stole, then you might have bones broken. 

If you stole enough that people starved to death, then you might die, too. 

If you lied and got someone imprisoned, then, again, bones might break.

If you just beat someone up for no reason, then he might beat you up.

He was fair. 

“And I think that’s why people support him,” Vista said out loud while sitting next to Amy. 

Amy Dallon, or Panacea, had seen front and up close what Everyday Joe’s “justice” and “vengeance” looked like. 

“Doesn’t mean he’s right to do it,” Amy grumbled. 

“... Who decides that?”

Amy paused and looked at her. 

“What?”

“Who decides what’s right or wrong?” Vista asked again before taking a sip of her grape juice. 

Grape was obviously the superior flavor to strawberry or cherry. 

“The people do, obviously!” 

The way Amy said that so sincerely made Vista feel jealous. 

‘Ah,’ she thought. ‘I’m becoming a jaded old lady as a middle schooler.’

“The same people who have Neo-Nazis as brothers, sex traffickers as children, ignore the crimes committed by their parents, and say they are too weak to stop it just because someone with more confidence than power comes up to the stage to talk?” Vista asked quietly. “Someone with a really good sniper rifle could have killed Kaiser a long time ago, Amy. How many people would that have saved in this city? How much misery would we have not had to see?”

Amy faltered.

“... That still doesn’t make it right,” Amy continued to grumble. 

Vista liked that about her. She wasn’t like a lot of the people she delivered the “notice of doom” to. Amy was cynical but still strove to do what was right. 

She was the best hero in the city, even if it hurt her own pride to admit it. Someone who fit the stereotype of a hero in the unfortunate sense. 

She knew this because she studied this on her own.

She hated that school was becoming relevant in her hero life or that her hero life was making her start studying the boring things. 

“Yeah, it isn’t a good thing,” Vista agreed. “But I’m not sure if … it isn’t right.”

Amy looked at her in surprise. 

“What?”

“Here.”

And just handed Amy a copy of the paper packet she’s been using to relay “notices of doom.”

Amy took the packet of paper with a frown, looked at her in confusion, and then started reading. And the longer she read, the harsher her frown became. 

“Instead of doing something about this, they sit and argue because there is no legal evidence for them to go after the people here.”

“... And what have you been doing?”

“I talked to them.”

Amy blinked. “What?”

“I walked up to their house. I talked to them about them being in the sight of Everyday Joe. And then I told them that Joe has yet to go after anyone in prison.”

The healer stared at her before she looked like she had just achieved enlightenment. “He doesn’t, does he?” she muttered. 

“Nope,” Vista shook her head. “So I told everyone I’ve met so far that they can either submit themselves for whatever crime they committed but that we don’t know or they can wait for Joe’s tender mercies. And considering the shit that’s on that paper, which Joe provided the PRT, he’s not going to just beat them up. He’ll kill most of them.”

“How do you know?”

“There’s a pattern to his actions. He never killed anyone who hasn’t killed or ruined the lives of many. If you kill, then you die, too. If you ruined someone with your corruption, then he will beat you up or break your bones. It’s simple. Too simple.” Then she sighed. “I should get going. I have a few more people to talk to today before I go back to the Rig.”

She yawned before she gestured for Amy to give her back the packet, and she did so reluctantly. 

“I’m sure you can tell Brandish about this. I’m sure she can raise some hell to get the PRT and the Protectorate to get moving. Or not,” she shrugged before raising her arms up and stretching. Then she let out an exhausted sigh. “Time to go talk to the … asshole business owner number 22 about his tax fraud and wage theft.” Then she paused as she glanced at the sheets. “Joe will probably just beat the shit out of him. Break a bone or two.”

And then she was gone.

---

After Vista left, Amy sat there on the hospital’s rooftop bench.

Then with a gulp, she pulled her phone out and rang up Carol.

“Um… Carol, hi? I think you might want to know about this…”

And she told her just the five things she managed to remember from the first few pages of the “Brockton Bay’s complete list of criminals.”

Including those within Carol’s own law firm. 

“... and apparently, PRT and the Protectorate has known about this for a while? But because there are no obvious evidence, they aren’t doing anything. Except Vista.”

“...?”

“She’s going around telling everyone on the list that they are on Joe’s list.”

“...?!”

“Considering that some of the people on the list showed up at the hospital, Carol? I don’t think he made the list to scare people. It’s his bucket list.”

Like she expected, Carol exploded, half at the PRT’s inaction and the other half at the vigilante/villain’s rampage.

Yeah… Carol was going to wail on the PRT come tomorrow.