The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

“Yo, yo, yo,” Trinity said. She walked toward Luttles, who looked up at her as she approached. She walked with her hands on her hips, swaggering and exaggerated. “Isn’t this the real idiot?”

Lutells slowly stood up, scanning the street. Sienna stepped back slightly, into the deeper shadows of the alley. She still needed to pull Teddy back, otherwise the bear-girl might rush out and into his sight.

“What are you doing?” he asked. Sienna could barely hear him.

“I’m laughing at you,” Trinity said. She waved her arms dramatically and pointed at Ruttles. “Idiot, crybaby, moron, coward… uh…” She paused, clearly unable to think of any more insults for the moment.

“Slug head,” Maple suggested.

“Capitalists,” Teddy added.

“I don’t think that kind of insult would work on someone his age,” Athena said. “But let’s just call him a brainless nerd.”

“Oh,” said Aleya Ikta. “Idiot! Fool. Uh… how about clumsy fellow?”

The girls nodded, then turned their attention to Sienna and Charm Girl.

“Whatever this is all about, I’m not getting involved,” said Charm Girl.

Sienna nodded in agreement.

Standing on the street, Trinity grinned and said, "You're a capitalist, a snot-nosed idiot, a moron."

“I think I misspoke the last word,” Maple Leaf said.

“Well, I think the message got through,” Trinity said with a shrug nearby. She was right. Ruttles looked extremely annoyed. He began to walk towards Trinity, cautiously and slowly.

“You’re not serious, are you?” he said. “Of all the useless masked men who showed up tonight, why you of all people? Do you know how much I want to punch someone right now?”

“Tch, you couldn’t hit me even if you wanted to, you old bastard,” Trinity said. She pulled down her eyelid with her middle finger and stuck her tongue out at him. “I’m amazing.”

“I really beat you before,” he said. “What are you doing here?”

Trinity paused, then straightened up and shrugged. "I'm here to tell you something."

"Oh? What is it?" he asked.

"You're both stupid and ugly. Not just one, but both at the same time."

“I should really get out,” Athena said, shaking her head. “It’s pathetic. You don’t understand the art of insulting people at all. Just telling them they’re stupid and ugly won’t work; you have to hit their weaknesses.”

Trinity blinked at her sister. "For example?"

“Well, if I were to insult Charm Girl, I wouldn’t say she’s stupid and ugly. I would say she doesn’t deserve her current popularity, that her abilities aren’t nearly as impressive as they seem, and that her nose is a bit long for the size of her face. You have to be more specific,” Athena said.

Sienna reached out and patted Athena on the shoulder. "Alright, don't hurt our own troops," she said.

Charm Girl touched her nose, looking quite worried.

“What method would work on Ruttles?” Trinity asked.

“Hmm.” Athena leaned forward slightly, wanting to get a better look at the villain who was still exchanging barbs with Trinity. Every time he spoke, Trinity would fart at him, which really annoyed him. “Yes, so he’s wearing a leather jacket and a skull mask, obviously trying to hide a lot of things. I think he’s actually quite scared.”

Trinity nodded, and the Trinity next to Ruttles stopped sticking her tongue out at him and making strange noises. "I know you're scared," Trinity said.

“I’m not afraid of you,” Rattles said sharply.

Athena nodded. “He’s not afraid of you. But he is afraid. He’s afraid he’ll really lose control and throw a tantrum, afraid he’ll accomplish nothing. That’s why he came to Auclair, because he can’t make any real friends in the villain circle. He’s all alone now, and he always will be, because no matter what he does, he’ll always be both annoying and easily forgotten.”

Charismatic Superwoman took a small step away from Athena, and Sienna somewhat understood her reaction.

Trinity, however, simply grinned and nodded. “Want to know something?” she asked Ruttles before starting to walk around him. She maintained a safe distance from him. “I know why you’re afraid.”

“Of course you know,” Ruttles said.

"It's not because you're a coward, nor because you're the weakest villain in the boss's territory. It's not even because you're afraid of death. It's because you know the truth."

“What truth?” Rattles asked.

“You will always be alone,” Trinity said.

Athena nodded. "Because the most effective evil skill of villains like him is to harm the person closest to him first."

Trinity's smile widened. "Because you're the kind of stupid villain who hurts the people around you. Like an idiot. You're afraid because you know you'll lose control and throw a tantrum."

“It’s temperament,” Athena corrected.

“And because you know that no matter what you do, no matter how many cool leather jackets you wear, you’ll never really be cool, and you won’t make any real friends,” Trinity continued. Then she stuck her tongue out at him to emphasize.

“That motorcycle,” Athena said, sounding a little excited. “It got nervous when you got close to it.”

“Oh!” said Trinity, who was nearby. “I’ll go kick it!”

Trinity, who was closest to Ruttles, laughed and then rushed toward the motorcycle.

“Hey!” Lutters shouted.

It was too late. Trinity had already run to the scooter. She kicked the kickstand, and the scooter tilted to one side before crashing onto the sidewalk with a loud crack of breaking plastic.

“Oh, you little rascal!” Ruttles said.

Trinity laughed and ran away.

Ruttles stretched out a hand to her, and a strange tremor ran through the air. The ground shook, and in the blink of an eye, Trinity turned to ashes and quickly vanished.

A new Trinity appeared next to Sienna. “Oh dear,” she said. “He’s angry.”

“Everyone, to your positions,” Sienna whispered. “Bandit, go tease him again. The rest of you, take cover.”

As she spoke, Sienna ran back to find cover, and soon she and most of her sisters and her current allies hid behind a trash can.

Trinity's laughter at the alley's entrance mingled with the sound of Luttles firing a shot. Sienna crouched even lower, the ground beneath her feet and the nearby trash can trembled slightly. Even the brick walls on either side of the alley shook slightly, and she saw a small piece of mortar fall out between two bricks.

"Oh!" Trinity called out from the alley entrance, then ran deeper into the alley.

Rattles strode after her. Truly long strides. Each step was a heavy stomp that shook the ground, turning Trinity's run into a staggering motion. She raced past the trash cans, giving Sienna a thumbs-up as she passed.

Rattles followed.

The plan's success depended on several factors beyond their control. First, Rattles wouldn't collapse the alleyway and crush them; second, his night vision would be impaired as he stood on the street.

“Now,” Sienna said.

Three things happened at the same time.

Maple Leaf activated her anti-vibration device, and the frequency of the vibration changed.

Charm Girl summoned two enormous, glowing orbs of light that instantly illuminated the entire alley. Finally, Athena rolled out from behind cover deeper in the alley, wielding the Toaster Cannon.

Rattles cried out in surprise and raised an arm to shield his eyes. He stomped his foot hard, but because his leg was shaking, it didn't produce the strong jolt he usually did.

Then Athena opened fire.

She missed, but in the chaos, Sienna couldn't blame her. The shell whistled past, a powerful shockwave spreading through the air, sending debris flying everywhere.

Lutters dodged a little too late, but the shell, which had already missed its mark, still grazed past him.

Just then, Aleia Ikta appeared out of nowhere and bumped into him on the back. Only his arms were visible. The rest of him was covered by Trinity's cloak, one part draped over his head like a hood, the other two taped to his body. Combined with the dim light of the alley, this made it difficult for Rattles to see her.

Rattles turned around, tripped over his own foot, and missed Aleia's face completely.

Then Charm Girl threw her orbs of light around him.

He looked down. Alejandro Ikta jumped away and turned around.

The ball of light exploded.

Lattles staggered backward, blind and unlucky, out of balance, utterly confused, and far weaker than Sienna had ever seen before.

“Take him down!” Sienna said.

Rattles had barely blinked when he saw Teddy's paw slam down towards his face.