The group walked towards the pub, and the door opened as they neared. They were expected. As the group stepped inside, Jennifer realized that you should never judge a book by the cover. The Pub of Endings was a classy looking place. The curtains and tablecloths were an understated red. The walls were in dark brown, and the soft lighting complimented the decor nicely. A long table had been placed at the center of the pub with chairs neatly arranged around it. Three people were sitting at the long table. Each had a small group of men behind them and as her father sat at one end of the table, Jennifer stood behind him with the rest of their group. As they arranged themselves, Jennifer took a quick look at the people at the table.

One of the them was a girl who was wearing a half-mask that covered only the upper part of her face. She was dressed in a loose white blouse with a long flowing skirt. Her most distinctive feature was her hairstyle. Her left side was long, over her shoulder, but most of her right side was shaven. The highly punkish style told Jennifer the woman was the leader of The Hacking Circle who went under the online handle of Owl-girl.

Sitting opposite her was a tall thin man dressed in a T-shirt and jeans. His only concession to the tradition of villainy was a black motorcycle helmet. James Walker was the head of Speedy Waste Disposal and his company took care of waste disposal for the villains of the city. Even with a helmet that covered his whole head, Jennifer could tell that the man was very nervous.

The third member at the table was the only person who was dressed like a villain. He wore a red mask that had two stubby horns poking out from the forehead. His blond hair was in a long ponytail and his skin-tight costume was black in color. It covered him from neck to toe and the way it clung to his skin allowed Jennifer to see the man’s ample biceps and washboard abs. Jennifer was glad that her mask kept others from seeing her distaste. Despite his impressive body, Mindpusher was a pimp who kept his girls in line with a combination of drugs and mind-control.

Victor sat down at the table. There were still seats available, but her father had no intention of waiting for the others.

“That should be everyone. Anyone who’s not here won’t be coming. I must say I’m surprised to see even three of you here.”

“Really?” Mindpusher scoffed. “Then I must have wasted my time. If I knew the attendance would be so bad, I wouldn’t had bother.”

“As if you could afford to miss out on this meeting.” Owl-girl didn’t hide her disdain when she replied and Mindpusher took exception.

“What does that mean? I don’t need this.”

“You do, and everyone on the street knows it.” To Jennifer, the hacker sound like a teacher scolding an errant student. “Drug prices had jumped thirty percent in the past six months, and it is cutting into your profit. It is also cutting into your control because you need a steady supply of drugs to keep your stable docile.”

“If you believe everything you hear on the street, then you and your ‘circle’ are stupider than I thought.”

Owl-girl smiled evilly at the pimp. “I believe in spreadsheets. Do you want me to show everyone your profit and loss since Red Maddy fled?”

“You hacked me? Why you…!”

Mindpusher stood and his men got into a defensive stance. Owl-girl’s group did the same. For a moment, Jennifer thought both groups would begin fighting. They didn’t. Instead, they just stood staring at each other. Walker turned to her father and broke the silence.

“Are you going to do something?”

“No.” Victor’s reply caused everyone to turn towards him. He just looked at everyone, a small smile on his face. After a few seconds of total silence, Walker had to ask.

“Why?”

“If these two are stupid enough to start something here, then I don’t want them in my organization.” Victor calmly said. “You guys know the rules.”

The two groups immediately deflate as they remembered where they were. The tension lessened but no one stood down. The two leaders looked at each other uncertainly. Victor gave an audible sigh. Her father stood and began speaking.

“I was told the rules hadn’t changed much since I went inside, but that’s obviously not the case. So, here’s a refresher. This is neutral ground. You are here under truce. We are here to talk. That means no fighting, no powers, and no baiting. Leave your ego and grievances at the door. If you do not, everyone else in the room, which means me, will put you down. Do we understand each other?”

The bar became quiet as everyone digest what Victor said. Her father was putting his foot down, and no one was willing to test him after the fight with the Green Leaper.

“Sit down. Both of you.” Her father ordered.

Owl-girl and Mindpusher reluctantly did so, glaring at each other the whole time. Jennifer wondered if there was some history here. The one who broke the silence again was, rather surprisingly, Walker. Maybe he’s the type of guy who need to talk when he’s nervous.

“I’m not sure why I’m here.” Walker said. “I’m not a villain. Or even a criminal! I am just a businessman.”

Victor gave him an incredulous look. “Is that how you sleep at night? Thinking of yourself as a simple businessman? Sorry, but simple businessmen don’t help villains evade the law. They don’t clean up crime scenes for villains, and they certainly don’t get rid of dead bodies. All of you are here today because you are criminals in need of protection against the law, the heroes, and other criminals looking to put you out of business. In other words, if you are not desperate, you won’t be here.”

Walker, Owl-girl and Mindpusher looked at each other, but no one said a word. The Sweet Fist was right, and they all know it. Jennifer glanced at her father and saw him in a new light. He was exactly pretty good at this. After a few seconds of silence, Owl-girl asked the question all three of them wanted to know.

“What are you offering?”

“Protection.” Victor answered. “You need it. I can provide it. All you need to do, is to toe the lines I set.”

“Which are?”

“Join my crew, and you will find out.”

The answer caught all three leaders by surprise. They weren’t expecting the offer, and neither was Jennifer. Her father never told her any of this. Not for the first time, she was glad she was wearing a mask.

“The Hacking Circle is independent.” Owl-girl said. “Some of our members have actual jobs and lives. We can’t be part of any villainous organization.”

“That is why you are in so much trouble right now. You do work on commission, and there’s not much you can do if your clients don’t pay. Sure, you can launch hacking attacking against them but that’s more of an inconvenience. You join me, and you have a name behind you. When people know there’s muscle behind you, people will pay.”

“But what about the members who are-”

“They are still doing the same thing. Only now they know there’s someone you will need to answer to. Nothing has changed for them, only for you.”

Even with the mask, Jennifer could see Owl-girl’s mind turning. She was seriously thinking about it. Her father sat down and let the them think. Walker began speaking to one of the men behind him. A second-in-command maybe? After a few minutes, her father asked.

“Are you all in?”

Walker nodded. A few moments later, Owl-girl and Mindpusher did the same. Victor smiled. A smile that made everyone uncomfortable.

“Good. Let’s do something to commemorate this new beginning.”