Free Web NovelChapter 31: Ch 30: The Jester Knows Everything
After the chaos of the bridge, Gwen finally made it back to her dorm. She had done a quick costume change on the way, swapping her scorched spider-suit for an oversized hoodie and loose trousers before slipping onto campus.
Last time Veritas attacked, his words had rattled her so badly she went straight home instead, half-expecting him to show up at her parents’ place. Fortunately, he never came.
This time, she came directly to her campus dorm; she had to minimize her time away during the day.
The dorm room was under scholarship, so she didn’t have to pay for it. But she was planning on getting a part-time job and getting herself her own apartment.
This time, she wasn’t that tense. After all, it was just a couple of broken bones and a few ugly burns. Painful, but nothing that wouldn’t be mostly gone in a few days. She healed fast.
’Sigh,’ she finally collapsed onto her bed, the mattress letting out a groan that matched her own. She didn’t even take off her shoes. She just put on her noise-canceling headphones and closed her eyes.
It had been the hardest day of her life. She had saved the hostages, sure. She had pulled a train carriage to safety with her bare hands. But she couldn’t stop Veritas from killing Patrick.
By all rights, she should loathe Veritas. He had caused absolute carnage on that bridge, putting the lives of so many people in danger and killing a human, even if that human did what he did. Veritas had even beaten her until her bones cracked and skin burned.
But for some reason... the hatred just wasn’t sticking today. For some strange reason, the burning hatred she usually felt for him was fading into something else... pity.
After hearing about his past, she couldn’t help but see the cracks in his armor. She began to understand how someone could become so twisted.
That’s the sole reason she didn’t deliver the punch that dented the metallic beam to his face.
"He was probably persecuted his whole life..." she whispered to the ceiling. "Probably never knew a single moment of real human warmth or love."
If you spend your whole life being mistreated, it’s hard to see the good in anyone.
Veritas didn’t just hate the world; he was convinced the world hated him first.
’I think the reason he calls me again and again, is that he sees himself in me...’
She could understand, just a little, the descent. How a person could become so broken, twisted... psychotic.
"And trust me, after you go home today and see the world with the eyes of people... you will realize just how great it is sometimes to just let someone... die."
His words echoed in her mind...
She sat up so fast her ribs protested with a sharp stab. ’What did he want me to see?’
Her laptop was on her study table. She flipped it open and typed into the search bar.
The internet was already on fire.
[NightOwl47]: Did you guys see the files? They’re horrible. During the stream, Veritas didn’t show a fraction of how evil that monster was...
[Lina]: Still doesn’t mean Veritas has the authority to kill a human.
[Jack]: @Lina Patrick doesn’t fall under the human category. So, I guess it was just a... hunt?
[Bottle]: @Jack Agreed!
[Roxy]: I’ll ask again, does anyone know what streaming platform Veritas uses, lol. I wanna re-read those in-stream comments. Lol #ConfessionTrainOnBridgeIncident
[Adorable_filter]: I’ve collected all the stream comments via multiple sources. Here is the link if anyone wants < LINK >
[Bottle]: @NightOwl47 True. Before reading those files, I didn’t really know if Patrick deserved life imprisonment or death by Veritas. But now I think Veritas didn’t make him suffer enough.
[Bottle]: Among the massive data Veritas uploaded, I’ve compiled and ranked the worst deeds of Patrick and Senator Stern. <LINK>
Gwen’s cursor hovered. She clicked the first link, the one from Adorable_filter. A chat log appeared, capturing the live comments from Veritas’s stream.
[aviprince]: First!
[Lina]: Oh, no!
[CJ]: Spider-Woman please see this!!
[Jack]: @aviprince son T_T this is a terrorist...
[NightOwl47]: HE’S BACK ALREADY
[CaffeineWitch]: I can’t believe I’m watching this in Starbucks rn
[BlankProfile99]: Holy crap don’t tell me the ongoing commotion on that bridge is due to him?!?!?!
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These comments were from when Veritas’s mask’s mouth opened up to reveal hundreds of jagged teeth inside.
[CaffeineWitch]: Wtf!!!! Scaryyy!!!
[Ann]: Yeah... that’s what a devil jester looks like...
[Misa]: My type tbh...
Gwen paused mid-scroll. She blinked at the screen. ’What is wrong with this Misa girl?’
She kept going..
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Gwen scrolled faster, past the panicked reactions, until she hit the moment Veritas executed Patrick.
[300_months_young_infant]: Fucking hell! Veritas killed him!! Heck yaaaaaa!!!
[Ashly]: Holy shit!!!
[Ivan]: Well deserved... I’d say. Such predators don’t deserve to live at all.
[CaffeineWitch]: As much as I hate Veritas, him killing that monster brought a relief in my heart somehow...
[Ava]: What the hell guys? Are you all seriously supporting a freaking terrorist? He just executed someone live...
[Emily]: @Ava You’re right. What if next day he decides to kill someone because they broke a red signal?
[Adorable_filter]: The devil of truth executes a monster in human skin wearing a white robe... instead of pointing a finger at the jester, the evil sympathizers can finger their ass...
Gwen’s eyes widened at that last one. The internet was a wild place.
Then the comments shifted. Veritas had told his story and gave final speech to the beat up Spider-Woman.
[Zoey]: Damn! Veritas’s dad was such a monster. I wonder how much he suffered as a cute little child.
[Adorable_filter]: Trust me, I don’t support Veritas’s actions except for him killing Patrick. But honestly, isn’t Veritas kinda right though?
[Diego_Nascimento]: Do you know what’s scarier? He only spoke the truth. Every word he said is true.
[Ivan]: Get up Spider-Woman! You can do it! You have to save the hostages!
[Adorable_filter]: Spider-Woman, why don’t you accept his deal and then ask him to free the hostages in return? I’ll support you even if you’re with Veritas. Maybe I’m even looking forward to it.
Gwen felt her face heat up behind the screen. ’Looking forward to what, exactly? I’m never gonna join him.’
[Angela]: What the heck, he freed himself!
[Adorable_filter]: Fuck, Veritas just left? How is Spider-Woman supposed to save the people stuck in the train?!
[Misa]: No, Veritas, please don’t go!!!
Gwen closed the comment log and leaned back in her chair. Her brain felt like scrambled eggs.
The comments were all over the place—some horrified, some bloodthirsty, some disturbingly thirsty.
But one thing was clear: the vast majority supported what Veritas had done to Patrick. They weren’t just indifferent. They were celebrating.
’Just what else did Veritas upload?’ she wondered.
Her cursor moved to the second link. The one from @Bottle. A compilation of the worst deeds. She clicked.
The page loaded, and the first file opened.
Her stomach dropped.
An hour later, her guilt of not saving Patrick Sein was no longer there at all.
’But it doesn’t mean I support what he did!!!’
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[The Triskelion — SHIELD Headquarters]
[The day after Veritas’s attack on the East River Bridge]
Nick Fury sat behind his desk, flipping through confidential files like usual, when the door hissed open.
Agent Maria Hill stepped in, "Sir,"
Fury closed the file. Without looking up, he pressed a small button embedded in his desk. Every listening device, every monitoring feed, every digital ear inside the cabin went deaf and blind.
"Agent Hill," Fury said, finally meeting her eyes. "I have a couple of assignments for you."
Hill stood at attention, ready.
"First," Fury continued, "I want you to recruit Spider-Woman. Bring her in as a SHIELD agent—superhero trainee track. Gwen Stacy has done some remarkable work these days. She’s rough around the edges, but her potential is undeniable."
Hill nodded. "Understood, sir."
"She’ll be placed under candidacy for the Avengers Initiative, allocate her budget accordingly," Fury added, his single eye narrowing slightly. "Keep that part confidential from her for now. No need to inflate the ego of a young adult."
Hill allowed the faintest twitch of a smile. "Understood, sir. And the other assignment?"
Fury slid a physical file across the desk."This remains between us."
Hill picked it up and flipped it open, scanning the contents with her trained eyes.
The file detailed the Lemurian Star—a covert mobile satellite launch platform, currently sailing somewhere in the Indian Ocean. SHIELD property. Highly classified.
What Fury wanted next made Hill pause.
He wanted her to hire a terrorist to hijack it. frёeωebɳovel.com
Not just any terrorist. Veritas.
Hill’s brow furrowed, but she didn’t question the mission itself. She knew better. Fury’s plans had layers within layers. What she did question was the choice of asset.
"Sir, why hire him?" she asked, closing the file. "He’s extremely unpredictable."
Fury leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers. "We hire him precisely because he’s unpredictable. And because he can’t be caught."
Hill understood the implication immediately. If Veritas hijacked the Lemurian Star, the world would see it as another attack by him. No one would suspect Fury’s involvement.
"It’ll be hard to locate him within the timeline, sir," Hill said. "We’ve already been trying to track him. Whatever technology he uses, it masks him from satellites, all kinds of recognition systems, and even our heat-signature mapping. And his acceptance to the mission is not guaranteed as well."
Fury’s expression didn’t change. "That’s why I gave you a list, Agent. Dismissed."
Hill saluted again. "Sir."
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Few days later, the secure line on Nick Fury’s desk chirped.
He picked it up immediately, leaning back in his leather chair.
"Report, Agent Hill," Fury commanded.
"The asset declined the mission, Sir," Hill’s voice came through the encrypted channel, sounding uncharacteristically tense.
Fury’s expression remained unreadable. "He’s a wild card, Hill. I expected a ’no.’ Anything else?"
Hill paused for a second.
"Sir, he already knew the mission details. Perhaps more than even me... Before leaving, he also gave me some advice: don’t trust anyone except for you."
’The Jester that knows everything, huh...’
Fury let out a dry, short chuckle. "Well, I’ll give him some credit—that’s the best advice you’ll ever get. Tell me, how did you finally track him down to deliver the offer?" freёwebnovel.com
Hill’s voice sounded tired. "I didn’t have to, sir."
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