Marvel: Starting From The Bottom

Chapter 36 - The Rules of the Table

"Don't mess with dogs? That's the first rule?" Deadpool had to buŧŧ in. Well, the rule does sound absurd… so it's not his fault. "What's next pal? Don't mess with bitches?"

I shook my head. "No, the next rule is kind of serious." I look at them. "The next rule is that… if you break any of the rules ahead, you will be marked as a rogue and then killed."

None of them seemed fazed so I went straight to the next point. "Next point is to never let anyone know your real name… under no circumstances should you let your real name be known." I said, looking towards Marc, who looked down… Betty was the same.

"Next is that… you are not allowed to do any business within the Continental grounds."

Betty immediately interrupted. "Didn't you say that the Continental will be responsible for the big business ȧssignments… and if you prevent any business to take place in there… Doesn't that contradict your previous statement."

I smiled. "That it does. But what I meant by that was-" I pointed at them. "You all won't be able to carry out business within those grounds."

Betty raised an eyebrow so I elaborated. "What I mean is… Let's say you are given a mission to kill someone and that someone happens to be drinking within the continental… You are not allowed to kill that person."

"Why is that?"

"The continental is supposed to be a safe haven for the ȧssassins. So even if there is a bounty on them… They can stay safe within the continental grounds. But-" Of course there was a but. "They will only be allowed to stay there for 24 hours only… after that, they are fair game."

They nodded. "Next rule is about the excommunicado. If you kill a member of the ȧssociation without orders, leak any information… you will be thrown out of the ȧssociation. And if that information or person happens to be of extreme importance to the ȧssociation, you will be killed instead of being thrown out."

"Next rule… if anyone helps the said person… They will not be allowed in the ȧssociation… ever again."

"Damn. Strict." Wade chimes in.

"Rules are meant to be strict, Deadpool." He shrugs his shoulders. "The next rule is about the targets."

"You are allowed to give up on the mission if you find that it might harm the ȧssociation or if the target is of higher influence or stronger than mentioned in the contract."

They nod. "Next is that if a mission is given by the continental and someone from the high table tries to stop you from completing it… without the maximum support… that is majority of the seats on his or her side. You are free to complain against him… and in bigger cases, you can kill."

Their eyes widened at that. I do want the high table to have authority but if corruption occurs among them… They will be put down.

"Next is that the Elder rules above all. This means even if all 12 seats agree onto something but the Elder doesn't… The Elder's order must be fulfilled."

"You haven't told us anything about our payments yet…" This dude needs to learn to stay quiet… But he is Deadpool. *Sigh*

"I was getting to that. Anyways, as Deadpool asked… The next one is about your payments."

If their focus was at 80% previously… Now it's at 101%.

"You do not have to pay the ȧssociation… anything."

Betty and the ninjas already knew about this.

"What… I must have heard wrong."

I chuckled. Even if they put their lives at risk for the missions, in the end… they still had to pay commission to the ȧssociation.

"You do not have to pay anything. No tax, commission… absolutely nothing. And if someone asks for money, you are free to act as you like."

No point in taking any money from the ȧssassins. The client already pays a certain amount to the ȧssociation… So I never saw the point of asking for more from the ȧssassins.

Marc didn't care much about the money as he was kind of rich. Not to the point of being filthy rich as I appointed him before he could start his business… but rich enough to not be affected by any sort of taxes.

"You will have to get rid of your emotions when you are on a mission. If you accept a mission and the target turns out to be a family member… You are free to leave that mission, but if someone else takes the same mission, you are not allowed to interfere in that mission. If you try causing problems for the ȧssassin, you will be marked as a rogue."

Some of them didn't seem to like that… But they agreed nonetheless.

"The next two rules are interlinked." Only a few rules are required to manage the ȧssassins as the main rules will be applied to the high table... as the high table has the highest risk of corruption. "The first one is about making a promise."

"Promises?" Domino interrupted.

"Yes, promise. A beautiful word… one that heals the heart or breaks it. But if anyone dares to break the promises in here… The result will be an instant death."

"How do you make sure that the promise is fulfilled. No one is going to believe in verbal promises."

Betty, oh Betty.

"That's where-" I put my hands inside my pockets and brought out a silver ornament. "This comes into play."

"A piece of jewelry?" Marc was skeptical of the piece.

"This is called a marker." I pressed the small buŧŧon that was on the side of the ornament. The circular device opened.

"The marker has two halves," I said pointing towards the line that divided the circular surface into two parts. "You stamp one side when making the promise… and the other once it is completed."

"That brings us to the second part. The first involves making a promise which means you cannot take back the promise." I rubbed my chin. "If you fail to complete the promise after making it… No matter how small it is, no matter how irrelevant it is for the ȧssociation. If you do not fulfill the promise, you will be hunted down."

I obviously modified the original version of the marker and the promises. But I like my version more.

"Now these are the new rules. Does anyone have any questions?"

All of them shook their heads… making a smile to appear on my face.

The bottom layer is completed. I will have to increase the connections later on… But for now, this has to do.

Filling the 12 seats will take a long time… I cannot afford to rush that phase.

"That's it. Dismissed."

They will receive their markers later… and when I start the work… Gold will be provided.

…

[Few days later]

"So Howard ditched us?" Not that I care but pretty sure he was going to ditch the moment I said Peggy was coming along.

He acts like a tough guy… But he has never been rejected before, so Peggy's rejection came as a shock to him.

"So it's just you, me, and the theatre." I have been so engrossed in my projects that I haven't had much time to enjoy.

"*Giggle* Seems that way… Anyways, let's go or we will be late."

I am not a romance movie type of guy… But who am I to complain. After all, I just decided to go to Cinema… The movie was chosen by her.

"Yeah, let's do that."

[Later]

The movie is pretty meh, but Peggy is in tears. *Sigh*

"Here." I offered her my handkerchief… Like a true gentleman.

"Thanks." She blushed… which definitely made me raise an eyebrow. I have never seen her blush… but neither have I seen her crying over a movie. Probably that's the reason for blushing… embarrassment.

"Heh. That face suits you, not the crying but the blushing one." Her blush deepens.

"Oh, look… it's almost the ending scene." Her focus shifts to the movie.

[10 minutes later]

"What are your plans for this weekend?" She asked.

"Nothing much. I have a few things to deal with here and there but nothing of major concern." I do have some major concerns… But I cannot deal with them right now. It will require time.

"So… Do you want to hang out again?" The end credits were rolling on the screen… the ending was kind of a disappointment.

"Yeah sure, why not?" Her face blooms into a smile as I said that.

"Most of the work is done, so I am quite free. That's the reason I asked if you want to hang out again."

I mean… why not.

[After the movie]

"I didn't know that you preferred black coffee." Peggy could easily pull off the elegant noble lady look with the way she drinks.

"I don't like sweet stuff. The bitter one is more refreshing in my opinion."

Personally, I am not much of a sugar fan either. I used to love sweets… but my tastes have changed… So has my personality and my life.

"By the way Peggy." That drew her attention.

"Yeah?"

"You look gorgeous, today."

*Pffft* The hot coffee lands on my face.