Sticks and Stones May Break My Bones

"This idea isn't going to work…"

"It's so going to work. I saw it in a movie once."

"Oh, I feel better already."

"Just follow my lead. The great Zinnia's plans never fail." She laughed up, ringing the doorbell to the rundown apartment before yelling out. "Pizza!"

 ****

Rodger was doodling around the internet again like he always does. There wasn't any sort of mix-up for his day. He knew it wouldn't be a few hours till Marcus came home, making all the more fed up. The blend of his boredom grew the more time went on. Rodger sighed, moving away from his mindless scrolling, checking the news for more mental overloads. That was until he began feeling the pain in his left shoulder once more. Wincing, he stood up walking to the table, cupping a mixture of painkillers altogether. Gulping them all down at once while sipping the last of his whiskey. "Damn kid… No respect for their elders. He got what coming to him."

Throwing the glass away, he walked into the next room, picking up his now charged phone. The door to the back began shaking as squirms were heard. He kicked the door sweating. That was until he listened to the door. Rodger's eyebrow turned upwards. He peered down at his phone, seeing no text from Marcus. Debating what to do for a short while he decided to head over to the door calling out. "What you want?"

"Pizza."

"Pizza?" He whispered, trying to remember if he ordered a pizza. "I didn't order any pizza."

"Someone ordered the pizza. From umm, downtown about thirty minutes ago?"

Rodger smirked, shaking his head. "You're that hungry you order a pizza before even coming home, Marcus… Typical." Rodger opened the door only to freeze in shock seeing Team Rhapsody. "Oh shit!"

Zinnia slammed her foot down, pointing at Rodger. "We're here to serve you a can of ass whopping!"

Emil gave a blank look facepalming. "Kill me."

Rodger slammed the door shut running back up the stairs throwing cupboards and shelves in the way as he planned his escape. "How the fuck did they find me? Impossible! Impossible! Did that prick Gale tell them?!"

The front door was broken down as clones of Vanguard came crashing through. Rodger panicked falling over as his entire barricade was destroyed instantly. Rodger crawled back as the three streamers cornered him. "We've got you now!"

Emil picked him up smirking. "To think Gale had any problems with you. Here I was worried about nothing."

Rodger squirmed looking horrified. "How, how did you find me?"

"You were sloppy. We were easily able to track you through your streaming account."

"Truth is we got just got lucky and guessed."

"Luck?! Luck! All my hard work for him was foiled by punk teens who guessed it was me?!" Rodger screamed, hanging his head in shame. "Was this all for a reason…"

Emil held him against the wall barking orders. "How are you causing the mental overloads? Is it your powers? You work with someone else? Tell us the truth!"

"The truth? Do you really want the truth? Will the truth satisfy you?"

"You'll pay for the crimes you've committed. What you could have done to Vanguard is unforgivable."

Rodger laughed eyeing down Percy. "The number one fanboy… Percy, your loyalty to that man has blinded you. You think Vanguard is innocent, what a joke. You don't stay the number one streamer without making sacrifices! I approached Marcus with the plan, he agreed cleaning up our hard work."

Percy's eyes widen as his world began falling apart. "Vanguard… is behind this… no, that's not true. You're lying!"

"Is that your truth? The truth or a lie? What's the difference? It's all the same in the end. Or did you honestly think Vanguard was going to take you in? How truly pathetic. Alton understands. He's also willing to do anything to make it big, to keep himself alive. Join the big dogs, abandon his friends, sacrifice his lover to live. It makes no difference to him. It's how the world works kid you just need to wake up."

"Shut up!" Percy yelled. "I said, shut up!"

"Percy no!" 

Percy called a clone of Vanguard, this one blurry and deformed. The clone smashed the door behind Rodger before collapsing and vanishing in a single attack. Rodger turned, smiling. "I'm sorry children, but I'm not quite ready to give up on my dream yet, I will be Vanguard's equal. He promised!" Rodger headbutted Emil as he was dropped onto the floor. Stepping back into the room, a small breeze of air dancing through the house.

"He's making a break for it!"

Zinnia and Emil rush into the room, seeing Rodger sitting in the window. "Sorry to leave so suddenly after all the work you must have put in to catch me. I do feel bad, so I'll make up for it by leaving you a little present." Rodger holds up a button pressing it before jumping out the window. As the two streamers go for the pursuit, they are blown back by a mentally unstable streamer. Zinnia jumps up yelling. "I'm going after him."

"Don't bother, he's already long gone. Besides we don't want another Gale situation." Emil yelled, throwing the chains which were wrapped around the streamer into the wall as they blended into a 2D counterpart. "Just distract it."

"Distract how?!" Zinnia yelled as the streamer began firing sharp needles at the two. Emil kicked a table up blocking the attacks. As Zinnia was about to get stuck, he touched her shoulder, throwing her into the wall. As the episode finished, Zinnia was launched from the wall blasting past the streamer. This caught the attention of the streamer as it began targeting Zinnia. Emil got to work running around, grabbing all the chains and throwing them into each side of the room holding inside the wall. Collapsing into the ground, he got behind the streamer tripping him up. Zinnia ran around Emil and back outside as Emil touched the wall, and all the chains sprung out from the walls wrapping around the streamer and pinning him as well into the wall. Stuck inside the wall, the streamer began shaking around screaming before starting to explode. Emil panicked running out the room picking Percy up as the three ran from the building.

Leaping out the front the entire building exploded and their chances of finding any clues gone with it. Emil laid back panting. "Everyone alright?" 

"You threw me into a wall like I was some sticker!"

"That's a strange way of looking at it…"

"You threw me into the wall!"

"Yes, yes we get it…" He sighed. "We were so close. We could have brought him in and stopped it once and for all. And now Rodger has escaped, we have no idea how they cause the mental overloads, and he's going to tell Vanguard putting Alton in danger."

"So, Vanguard was involved… I should have known that slimy cocky fuck head was apart of this. I'm such an idiot."

"We were all played Zinnia, you can't blame yourself. We know what we need to do. Now more than ever, Alton is in danger. We need to regroup and discuss a plan in taking down Vanguard."

"We're doing a takedown on him? Finally, I've been looking forwards to this!"

"How can you say that?! This Vanguard we are talking about here! The number one streamer for as long as I've been born. I've watched every one of his streams, he is not a bad person!"

Both streamers looked at Percy with pity as neither one knew what to say to a boy whose dreams had been crushed by the very man he idolised.

****

"I've been doing this gig for almost twenty years now. Took me five to get to where I am now and never in my life have I seen someone eat that many bowls of ramen…" Vanguard muttered watching Alton finish his third bowl. "I don't know how you pile it away."

Alton wiped his mouth, taking a deep breath. "That hit the spot. I haven't had good food like this in months! Damn, that was worth it."

"You never cease to surprise me, Brantley. From that takedown this morning to now. You are full of surprises."

"If I'm going to overtake the number one spot you always needs an ace up your sleeve."

"What's this? Talking about being the number one streamer? Even after the press conference?"

"Only give me more of a reason to keep going. Build me up and soon people won't be asking me about my past but about my future. What you don't think I can do it? You're telling me not one person has ever been close to taking your crown?"

"Your friends at Frizzle Tooth are getting close, but there's still miles between us. There was one time I was overtaken."

"Really? How come no one ever talks about it?"

Vanguard waved his hand around, laughing it off. "Eh, it was for two days. Unfortunately, the streamer in question, Drought his name was, died two days into his reign. Got ambushed by thugs and died."

"How convenient for you, huh?"

"How most people see it yeah, it's upsetting someone of his talent died, but that's the way the world works. You work so hard for your dream only to get it and realise it was never truly was want you wanted." He threw off before getting a phone call. Vanguard noticed it was Rodger making him grouchy. "Give me a moment." Vanguard stepped outside sighing. "You better have a good explanation into why you're calling Rodger."

"Those misfit punks at Rhapsody found me out! They ambushed me, I got away but, but their onto us!"

"Damn its Rodger! You said you had this under control. The plan wasn't able to be tracked to us!"

"It was! They got lucky. It won't happen again! What are we going to do?"

"Get as much of the substance ready. We'll deal with these misfits now."

"What about Alton?"

"I'll deal with the kid. Don't screw it up again, I've worked too hard to lose it all now!"

"Yes, Marcus, sorry."

Vanguard hung up, crushing his phone as he turned back around. Alton finished drinking the broth from his ramen as he had one hand under the table. "What was that all about?"

"Argument with the manager. Finish your noodles we are heading back to the office to wrap up for tonight."

"Yes, boss." Alton nodded slurping away all while activating the small stream drone he had hidden under the table.