My Life in Wednesday With a Vampire System

The moment Ethan disappeared up the stairs, Hughie lurched sideways and threw up onto the concrete floor.

The image of that thing on Ethan's face refused to leave his head. It wasn't even the appearance itself. It was the feeling. For a split second, every instinct in his body had screamed at him to run.

"What the hell was that?" Hughie asked, wiping his mouth. "That wasn't normal. That wasn't any Supe I've ever heard of."

Frenchie lit a cigarette with noticeably less enthusiasm than usual. "I do not know. But whatever it was, it shrunk my balls." He glanced toward Mother's Milk. "Mate, your hand is still shaking."

Mother's Milk looked down. The gun was trembling slightly in his grip. He holstered it immediately. His hand hadn't stopped shaking since Ethan's face changed.

The problem wasn't the appearance — Supes came in all shapes and sizes. The problem was the reaction it triggered. For a moment his brain had stopped processing Ethan as a person.

The feeling had been primitive. Instinctive. The same feeling a rabbit gets standing in front of a wolf.

"Yeah. I felt it too."

"Felt what?"

"Like I was looking at something that shouldn't exist."

Frenchie nodded immediately. "Exactly."

That made Hughie even more uncomfortable. Frenchie usually found weird things interesting. Right now he looked disturbed.

Mother's Milk glanced toward the stairs. "Does anybody remember a Supe with powers like that? Something that messes with people's heads?"

Frenchie thought for several seconds, then shook his head. "No."

"Neither do I," Hughie said. "If Vought had a Supe who could make people see things like that, he'd be on every poster in America."

Mother's Milk didn't answer. The explanation sounded logical. It just didn't solve the problem. All three of them had reacted the same way. All three had felt the exact same thing. And none of them had spoken to each other before it happened.

The basement went quiet. Eventually Frenchie broke it. "Well, whatever he is, I am very happy he was carrying the girl instead of trying to kill us."

Nobody disagreed. Looking at the bodies scattered across the basement, Hughie found himself wondering what would have happened if Ethan had decided they were a problem.

Mother's Milk finally shook off the thoughts about Ethan and refocused. "Alright, enough standing around. Search everything. If there's anything connected to Compound V, I want it."

The three split up. Hughie searched desks and storage boxes while Mother's Milk checked filing cabinets. Frenchie moved through the medical equipment and shelves along the wall.

Most of what they found was useless — maintenance records, supply requests, random paperwork.

Then Frenchie's voice came from the other side of the room. "I found something."

The other two walked over. Frenchie was holding a small injection vial with a faint blue liquid inside.

"Is that Compound V?" Hughie asked.

Frenchie examined it under the light. "Yes."

Mother's Milk took the vial. Barely any was left — only a trace.

"Hardly any remains," Frenchie said.

"So we're too late."

"Looks that way."

Whatever Compound V had been stored here was already gone. The vial looked more like a leftover sample than an actual supply.

Frenchie dug through the surrounding shelves and pulled out several folders and ledgers hidden inside a storage box. "Then this is probably more important."

Mother's Milk took them. Every page held shipment records, inventory numbers, dates, and references to Compound V. Not enough to explain what the substance actually was. More than enough to prove it existed.

A slow smile crossed his face. "Forget the vial. This is what we came for."

"Paperwork is harder to argue with."

"Pack everything related to Compound V," Mother's Milk said, gathering the ledgers together. "Butcher's gonna want to see every page."

***

In Ethan's house, Aqua stood beside the bed looking at the unconscious Kimiko. Curiosity eventually won out. She reached out and repeatedly poked her cheek. "Who is this woman anyway?"

Ethan glanced up from the couch. "She's stronger than you, so you might want to keep those hands to yourself."

Aqua looked offended. "What can some ordinary human do to a powerful goddess like me?"

"She can probably break both your arms without much effort. She also doesn't like strangers, so keep poking her if you want to find out."

Aqua's hand withdrew instantly. She took several steps backward and positioned herself behind him. "Why the heck did you bring such a dangerous woman here?"

Ethan looked toward Kimiko. "I'm a kind man. I can't ignore someone who's in trouble."

Aqua stared at him. Then started laughing. "You? Kind?"

The laughter went on long enough that Ethan slowly turned his head toward her. Aqua immediately regretted it. The look on his face wasn't serious. It was the annoying kind.

Before she could escape, Ethan grabbed both of her cheeks and started pulling.

"Aaaaah!"

"I gave you food."

"I gave you a place to stay."

"I even tolerate your existence."

Aqua desperately tried pulling his hands away. "That hurts!"

"Good."

Eventually he released her. She covered her cheeks and glared at him. "You are an evil god."

Ethan nodded. "Yes, I'm a very evil god. Now be quiet unless you want to find out what starving actually feels like."

***

A/N: And on Patreon, The Boys arc started.

The Patreon version is already updated with 46 advanced chapters. If you'd like to read ahead of the public release schedule, you can join here:

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