Chapter One Hundred and Thirty-Three: Disaster at City Hall

 Sir Lionheart and Mobster Marion were fighting tooth and nail. Chuckles rushed in to defend Sir Lionheart, who couldn't keep up with Marions speed, especially using a scythe. Soon all you could hear was the clashing of swords as the two fought with extreme speed and skill.

“Almost sounds like a good beat.” Sir Hyper started tapping his foot along with the rhythm of the clanging swords.

“I can't even.” Giggles groaned.

“Makes two of us.” Sidewinder joined her next to the chandelier. “I am going to KILL him when he gets home.”

“You two really aren't natural blondes?” Giggles asked.

“Not platinum blondes, no. Naturally we're a more darker blonde. Strawberry blonde even.” Sidewinder shrugged. “Marion is sensitive about it, so was Dad and Grandpa.”

Giggles noticed the Mystic Eight Gun sitting on Sidewinders hip. She felt her fingers wanting to try it out.

“Don't even think about it.” Sidewinder told her. “Or I WILL fire you.”

“You're mean.” Giggles pouted.

“How do you think I got this far in life?”

“Mostly nepotism.”

“How rude!”

The battle between Chuckles and Marion was firing up the rest of the Mobsters of Misneach and Haunted Maze Troupers, who had started taking pot shots at each other.

“This is going to turn into a brawl, get ready!” Sir Lionheart had caught his breath and was ready to go again.

“I think not.” Sidewinder held the real Dragon Scale Scythe at his chest. “We came to take back what is ours, and that means bloodshed.”

“But I had paperwork on my desk…” Giggles whined.

“Your own fault. Clean desk policy.” Sidewinder said.

Lady Silent sighed. “REALLY?” 

“Yes, really.” Sidewinder said.

Lady Silent blinked. Her introversion hadn't worked? Sidewinder should have at least been a bit startled!

Giggles glared at Sidewinder and gripped the Lucky Seven Gun tightly as it sat in its holster.

“Giggles DON'T!” Sir Lionheart saw her. All the colour had drained from his face.

Giggles pulled out the Lucky Seven Gun.

“Go ahead. Do it. Just be ready for the consequences.” Sidewinder sneered at her.

“Giggles, THINK ABOUT IT!” Sir Lionheart cried. The Dragon Scale Scythe moved closer to his neck.

“She wouldn't, would she?” Lady Silent asked her brother.

“I don't know, you know how she gets about paperwork.” Sir Hyper pointed out.

Giggles hesitated…then shot the new chandelier, destroying it..

“That…was not what I was expecting…” Sir Lionheart scratched the back of his head.

“You…you DIDN'T!” Sidewinder wailed.

All the violence in the office stopped. Even Marion and Chuckles stopped, looking confused.

Then the sobs started.

“You REALLY want to take over this?” Chuckles asked as the office workers mourned, rather loudly.

“I really need an EAP or something, the fact that my employees are doing this is embarrassing.” Marion sighed.

“If you didn't MISTREAT them and gave them FULFILLING WORK this wouldn't be an issue!” Giggles screamed.

That got everyone laughing again.

Then the police arrived.

“Are we leaving?” Sidewinder asked Marion.

Marion smirked. “Nope.”

Giggles looked at Chuckles, who looked pale.

“You lot should probably leave. A bunch of vigilantes isn't going to achieve much.” Sidewinder shoved Sir Lionheart away. “This is now between us and the Troupe.”

“Mobsters! To me!” Marion called. 

Chuckles looked at Giggles, who was trembling. He then looked towards Demons office. Giggles realised what he was up to and nearly fainted.

“We have to do it.” He said, walking over to her.

“I know.” Giggles sighed. “Let's just make it quick.”

Chuckles nodded. As the cops began to force their way in and the Knights of the Last Order escaped, Chuckles and Giggles rushed to rescue the Mayor and get him home safely.

“I can't believe we're doing this.” Giggles shoved Demon towards his car.

“YOU can't?! I'm tempted to put in a lotto ticket for tonight, that's how shocked I am!” Demon unlocked the car and got in.

“We didn't do it for you, we did it for Pleasantville.” Chuckles warned him.

“Oh, of course.” Demon sneered. He drove off, leaving Chuckles and Giggles feeling exhausted.

“Why does it feel like we're constantly going one step forward, two steps backwards?” Chuckles asked.

“Because we are.” Giggles replied. “The whole system is geared towards keeping the status quo in check, and in order to fix it we need to play by its rules. It's impossible.”

“You know what ISN'T impossible though? A burrito at your Uncles restaurant.” Chuckles said.

“I hate burritos. Seafood pasta here I come!” Giggles felt better already.

They headed back to the tip as City Hall burned.

“By the way, what IS it with the chandeliers?”

“Well, most of the office drops some hard drugs before work anyway, but it's mostly that we all hate our jobs with a passion like no other. The chandeliers are a nice distraction.”

“That is pathetic.”

“Your face is pathetic!”

–

Daryl smiled as he saw his father drive off with Chuckles and Giggles. That would have been quite a blow to Demons ego! 

Meanwhile the battle raged inside and outside. The building was going to need repairs after this whole mess. Daryl watched from his car across the street, waiting for the lull in proceedings that he knew would come. 

In the meantime he wondered where Master Revolver was. Surely the leader of the Death Valley Gang would want his finger in this pie? Or were the rumours true that he'd lost his nerve? Anyway, he was another factor that Daryl knew he had to take into consideration.

He looked outside again. Now the factions were taking up defensive positions against each other, rather than outright fighting. Good. It meant the time was close. Daryl fixed up his mask and got out of the car (that he had “borrowed” from Crusader Roger). 

He marched to the battleground, no one paying attention to him. He walked around to the back entrance. His father hadn't taken his key off him – big mistake. He quietly and gently eased the door open. He slowly peeked in, his hand on the handgun in his belt in case there was a guard. There wasn't. He slipped in, keeping the door open behind him for a quick escape. He quickly and quietly made his way to his fathers office to hide – everyone had seen Chuckles and Giggles evacuate the Mayor, so no one would expect anyone to be in the office.

Now it was time to watch and wait. After seeing if his fathers liquor cabinet key was still in its hiding place. Yes, it was! Perfect!

–

 

Timothy Masters, better known as Master Revolver, sat at the end of the bed in the dark bedroom. He knew that he was pretty much alone in the building, the Mobsters of Misneach had gone off to support their beloved (if insane) mistress Mobster Marion. 

And they WERE Mobsters, every single one of them. All of them had forsaken the Death Valley Gang (which was a stupid name anyway. What was his great-grandfather THINKING when he named his vehicle for revenge). Now not even the Death Valley Mobsters remained. Had that been her plan all along? 

Revolver sighed. It was over. Instead of revenge they'd just become what they had been fighting against. Just like Damon and Pythias would have turned into if they had lived, and what Chuckles and Giggles would turn into as well. You couldn't fight the system without becoming part of it, and once you became part of it, well then it was very hard to get out.

He weighed the gun in his hand. It was heavy and solid. In his other hand was a glass of port. He finished the port in one quick gulp, then flicked the safety off the gun in his hand. It should have been the Lucky Seven Gun, but that was long gone now. He pointed the muzzle at his left temple. 

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Snipes, the servant, had his phone and would sir like to take a call?

Revolver sighed again, and pressed the phone to his ear. It was just a lackey letting him know that disaster had stuck and that Mistress Marion was going mad. Would sir please come to assist?

“Can I get you another drink sir?” Snipes asked after Revolver had hung up the call.

Revolver responded by shooting him in the head. 

— 

The disaster in question?

The Haunted Maze Troupe had circled the building, putting the Mobsters of Misneach at a disadvantage. The Emerald Mobsters were equalled by the drugged up weapons of the Troupe, and were now in trouble.

“Damn, where are the backups?!” Mobster Marion hissed as she sliced another Trouper in two. 

“I wouldn't be surprised if the Crusaders were involved.” Sidewinder replied, firing out of a window. 

Daryl, who was listening in from his hiding place, grinned. The rest of the Crusaders were actually out terrorizing Fallsville, so the lost Mobsters had no excuse.

“Hang on, I see them!” One of the Mobsters called. “They're breaking through now!”

“Excellent!” Sidewinder grinned. She continued to provide cover fire for the Mobsters who were slowly getting through the Troupers, who were now confused and starting to lose the battle.

“Once they get here we'll go out for a full offensive. Back away from that window, let the flunkies do their job.” Marion called her sister back. All of the Troupers in the building had been slaughtered. There was time for a breather before starting the battle again, this time from a stronger position.

Daryl pulled out his gun and turned off the safety. 

“Hopefully we'll be finished here soon. Marcus will be going to bed in a few hours.” Sidewinder stretched her arms above her head. “I like being there for bedtime.”

“Don't babies sleep all the time anyway?” Marion asked, pulling a whetstone out of her pocket and running it along her sword. If she only had the Lions Claw Blade, she wouldn't have to worry about sharpening it…

“He's starting to be more curious about the world, so he's not sleeping as much. I swear he wants to get his hands on anything he can!” Sidewinder grinned with pride. “Of course most of the time he throws it away and then gets upset because he doesn't have it anymore. Just like his aunt.”

“Sod off before I skewer you.” Marion glared at her sister. They laughed. No matter what happened between them, they would always be sisters.

The pair were standing at the back of the main part of the building, while the rest of their Mobsters were around the perimetre making sure the reinforcements could get through. No Mobsters were close enough to protect them.

Daryl couldn't have planned it better. He shot out of his fathers office and tore towards Sidewinder!

Sidewinder saw him and grimaced. Random Crusaders?! She threw a pair of Emerald Daggers at him…and they just shattered against him!

“JUDY NO!” Marion cried, rushing to protect her sister. 

Daryl laughed. It was too late.

The bullet went right between Sidewinders eyes. Judith Jofrey died instantly.

“Roger WILL be pleased!” Daryl laughed behind his mask. He got out of there via the back door as the Mobster reinforcements arrived.

And that's when Mobster Marion lost the last of her sanity.