Chapter 234 : Friends and friends

Maggie's reaction to the Shadow Den was... To be expected, truly. A place stewing in undead energies? With spooky ghosts and strange creatures? Of course she'd think the setting was awesome. It only made sense. There was a sparkling awe in her eyes as she looked at everything in and around the formerly abandoned orphanage.

"Nine be damned, when you said ghost nuns, you really meant it. Whoa, those are some really tall ladies."

"I figure not having legs but merely an ectoplasmic continuation of their being, as though they were spiritual shadows, would do that. What about you, James? Handling it well?"

"Yeah, I'm good. To be honest, I think the silent, unmoving guys in tactical gear are creepier than some poor women who stayed in this world after their death."

"Yeah, Jamesy boy isn't wrong. Those dudes are creepy. But also? Really neat guns."

"Of course they are, they're the models Silhouette deemed too powerful to be available to the public, and our employer has made it clear time and time again he values quality. Obviously, his elite forces would carry only the best gear in the business."

Maggie nodded along, putting on a faux-connoisseur look - she had absolutely no experience playing with guns, her expertise was magic, but she could appreciate a good weapon when she saw one. James, for his part, saw an opportunity to do something quite fun.

"Oh, these guys aren't the elite."

"Pardon?"

"Yeah, like Jeremy said, what?"

"Silhouette's elite troops are the Shadow Commando. I mean, there's also the special guys like Solvent, the goblin, and the burning werewolf guy, but those are more like... I dunno, champions? Vigilantes on a paycheck? Whatever. The Shadow Commando is a group of regular guys, no big power, just gear, training, and teamwork."

"Shadow Commando? Like, that's a bit edgy, no? That's the kind of name you pick when you want to look like a cool secret police, not when you're actually one. Shadow Den kinda does that too. Sounds more like a restaurant with a black ink pasta theme, you know?"

Jeremy cleared his throat, clearly trying to minimize and ridicule Maggie's argument... But finding himself unable to contradict it completely.

"Well, our employer does have a signature style, with darkness and shadows. It only makes sense that it would be a recurring theme in his naming conventions. It is merely a coincidence that this also happens to overlap with the classic poorly seen names sometimes picked by Vigilantes with a love for the dramatic stronger than their supposed dedication to stealth. Really, it's no worse than someone with a fire theme calling their troops Torches or Embers. It just so happens that darkness as an element has a poor reputation."

James couldn't hold back a light chuckle. He was self-aware enough to know he wasn't the best with names. Though at least this time, the blame wasn't on him. Frankly, as bad as his naming skills were, somehow the people around him were worse. Techlord was no longer allowed to name anything unilaterally unless it was for his own toolkit, like the new and improved - and not yet finished - Tech Mech.

"Hey, it's ok, Jeremy. Silhouette doesn't care about names beyond the bare minimum. Also? The Shadow Commando named itself, along with the place. It's fine, you can say it's bad. Maybe even unintentionally parodic."

Jeremy sighed in relief, tired from less than a minute of trying to defend his boss' honor.

"Oh, thank the Nine. Ah, that is, what I meant to say is that those are still appropriate names for matters related to Silhouette... But I do enjoy the wit of 'Shades Of Penumbra' better."

"Eh, no problem. And if you want to issue a complaint, just tell any member of the Commando."

Maggie giggled as she leaned against Jeremy.

"Yeah, just go up to one of the armed dudes and say that they name stuff like kids. Do it. I dare you."

"I will do no such suicidal thing, thank you. But James? Do you know how to differentiate between the two groups? I don't think I've seen anyone with a particularly remarkable armor so far, outside of Techlord and those two special bodyguards that always accompany Larry and Barry. Are they part of the Commando, too?"

"Mark and Jeffrey? No, they're just... Well, bodyguards is a good word for it. They used to fight with the twins a lot back before they all came across Silhouette, and a bit after, too. They got recruited after they surrendered in the middle of a raid on one of our bases. Honestly, that's how he got the Commando too. And a decent number of people who currently work for him. Not from the same raid, necessarily, but I'd say at least half of Silhouette's current forces are made up of people who once tried to kill him, or at least antagonized him for a bit."

"Wait, for real? I mean, I know you brought it up once before, when you said I had a better chance of becoming the head of magic research than that runic scribe, but I didn't think it was that bad."

"I was aware that Silhouette considered working for him was dangerous business, but I wasn't aware that so many of his subordinates used to oppose him. What convinced them to serve instead?"

"Money and shows of force, usually. Petty thugs don't want to risk their lives more than necessary, and Silhouette pays more than a life of crime does.  But to answer your initial question, guys, the easiest way to tell the difference is that the Shadow Commando guys banter and are a bunch of goofballs."

Jeremy didn't look convinced.

"Goofballs? You want to believe that a trained elite force of former mercenaries, now private security, capable of dealing with at least minor Villains, is composed of goofballs?"

"Yeah. They're just a bunch of dudes. It's easy to think they're idiots, but they're really competent when they get serious. I think that's their strength, they're not mindless killing machines, they're people who let themselves be who they truly are off the clock, so that they can put all of their energy into doing their job. That, or luck is on their side. Hard to tell, sometimes. Whatever the reason is, they get results."

Maggie wasn't as surprised as Jeremy, shrugging at the reveal.

"Makes sense. You hear all the time that soldiers mess around when they're off duty, makes sense that private military would do the same. So, they really have the same equipment?"

"Nah. The Commando has better stuff, but it's styled to look exactly the same as the regular gear, outside of some weapons and gadgets. That way, it's easy for people to miss them in a fight. When the elite and the regular grunts look the same, hard to know who to prioritize or be careful of, suddenly, everything feels like an equal threat. The only ones with special gear are the Supers, with Techlord having stuff that's a grade above even the rest of the best. Not because he keeps the best toys to himself, but because he's the only one who knows how to use them reliably in a fight. Seriously, I've seen him train, he switched between gadgets and weapons faster than others reload their guns."

"Uh. And this place is his turf? Think there's a chance we'll see him?"

"From what I know, he used to tinker with his latest toy in the central court before he got kicked out of the garden, since some of the Patchees needed the peace. Maybe we'll see him through a window or something? I mean, if we haven't seen him yet, then he's probably on the other side of the building. "

Maggie nodded along, watching the various armed men and bizarre creatures that called this place home work together. She looked as the ghost nuns herded the spectral children, as some of the living greeted the little ones as they played around, passing through walls and crates. She noted how a pair of guards with their helmets off, their mouths covered in powdered sugar, gave a lecture to carefully listening spirits and even some Patchees in the outside garden, the two men bickering when the topic of 'current sports' was brought up. James and Jeremy follow her gaze, though they weren't as lost in the sight as she was. They had other matters to handle.

The silent Infused leading them paused before the double doors to the inner court, opening them for the trio to go in without a sign of moving himself. The message was clear, he would wait outside while they conducted their business. Well, the outside of the central garden would be the orphanage itself, but that was to be expected when talking about a building built like a square donut.

The little group entered and, as expected, Maria was there, coiled around the trunk of Mother Greenheld, the young woman's grossly modified form a serpent of human flesh with far too many limbs. But unlike when Jeremy first came to her, she wasn't wallowing in despair. No, she was happily playing some form of board game with an overly muscular white android and an even larger and bulkier armored figure, all under the watchful gaze of hollows in the tree's trunk, remnants of the eye sockets that once were there. The trio of players, hearing the door, looked up to take in the trio coming from the surface, the six people all staring at one another.

Jeremy looked a little unsure about the two individuals with his sister, but her bright smile and happy thrill as she saw him approach broke through what little doubts he had about her new friends, and he stepped forward, hugging her neck. She eagerly returned the gesture, wrapping him in more pairs of arms than most people would ever be held in at once would ever experience.

"Hey there, Maria. I see you made some new friends. I'd like you to meet mine, too. These are James and Maggie. I told you about them a bit last time, remember? Maggie is Magic."

The voice that answered him wasn't the one who once sang him happy birthday or hummed little tunes as she did chores around the house, but it was her voice all the same. It was a hiss, a guttural sound, but more importantly, it came from the soul.

"Friends... Nice... Friends..."

The siblings didn't let each other go quite yet, but they lessened their embrace enough to more easily turn their attention to the others around them. James cleared his throat and walked forward, awkwardly presenting a hand to shake.

"James Valdest. Jeremy... Told us a little about you. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Maira tilted her hand, reaching out with her own hand but not quite grabbing James' yet.

"Shadow... Man...?"

"Ah, yes. I'm a shadow man, like Silhouette. I'm actually something of an assistant to him, so I helped a bit on the logistics of what's happening down here. But you know him, he likes doing the important stuff himself, so he'd rather come down here himself than let someone else handle the tough stuff."

Maria hummed before nodding, finally shaking hands.

"Shadow... Man... But not... Silhouette. Nice to... Meet you..."

James smiled, even if Jeremy was the only one who could see it. Well, maybe Mother Greenheld could see his happy soul, and maybe Junior's gear would help them perceive his lips. Regardless, this wasn't a fake smile or a performance. James was genuinely happy to see Maria doing better and was willing to see and talk to other people. He had truly been surprised by the presence of the other two, knowing that Mother Greenheld had an easy time recomforting others, offering a safe space.

James' gaze then went to said other two, as he figured he could greet them as well and offer an opening to his civilian friends. He didn't want to ruin Maria's enthusiasm, but it looked like she wouldn't be able to do the introductions herself, at least not with ease.

"And you two must be Adam and Techlord Junior, right? Silhouette and Techlord told me about you. It's a pleasure meeting you both too."

"Origins..."

"Ah! Yeah, that's us. So... I'm guessing the guy hugging Maria's her bro, then? And you two are friends? Thanks for coming down to see her. She was getting a little bored with us."

"Adam...!"

"Nah, don't deny it. You're destroying us every time. Some new blood will make the competition more interesting, no?"

Maggie gulped, clearly overwhelmed by the number of people, before stepping forward too, also offering her hand to Maria.

"Hey there. Sorry for what happened to you. Wanna gossip about every edgy or stupid thing Jerry did?"

Maria's smile grew wider as she took the offered hand, still holding onto James' with another one of her arms. Jeremy, for his part, found the grey skin of his face paling.

"Maria, don't you dare!"

"One time..."

"MARIA!"