MISC: GODLING # 65 Hugs and Thugs by J. Vandersteen

[Jochem Vandersteen]

– GODLING – THE ONE MAN PANTHEON:  Hugs and Thugs by J. Vandersteen

Wade Hudson stands in front of Quentin Alexander's apartment where his girlfriend Monica went. He watches at the window. He sees the lights go out. He clenches his fist.
     "That bitch is staying the night," he says through clenched teeth. "I knew that four-eyed geek couldn't be as whitebread as he presents himself. I'm going to kick that bastard's ass."
      Wade walks to the apartment with great strides. He ends up at Quentin's door and kicks it open with his boot. As the door flies open Monica jumps up from the couch, only wearing her underwear. She screams.
     "You two-timning bitch!" Wade shouts at her.
     "What's going on?" Quentin says as he comes running in from his bedroom, only wearing his shorts.
     "I caught you two, that's going on. I'm here to kick your ass, you four-eyed creep!" Fist swinging Wade comes at Quentin.
     Quentin thinks of transforming into Godling, or using the martial arts Ares taught him to defend himself. He decides that might show he wasn't just a mild-mannered college professor anymore though. So he just stands ready to take the punch.
     Monica grabs Wade's fist, hanging on to it with all her strenght. "Wade, you've got it all wrong. I'm just sleeping on the couch. Nothing happened!"
     "And I'm supposed to believe that?" Wade snarls. "Every time he looks at you it's obvious he wants you."
     "She speaks the truth, Wade. Please, calm down. If something was going on between the two of us don't you think she would be in my bedroom instead of the couch?" Quentin says.
     Wade scratches the back of his head. "Yeah, maybe."
     Monica says, "Well, that doesn't matter anymore. We're absolutely totally down for sure now. Get out before I call the cops. That would really hurt your career, wouldn't it?"
     "Monica, don't be like that. You know I can get just a bit riled up."
     "That's exactly why I was here and why I can't be with you anymore. Please leave."
     "It's all your fault, Alexander!" Wade says, shaking his fist. He leaves though.
     When he's out the door Monica falls down on her knees, crying. Quentin hugs her, stroking her hair, telling her, "Shhhh... You're going to be okay."

*

On Olympus Aphrodite is looking at what happens in Quentin's apartment and smiles. "That looks so good."
     Her husband Hephaestus stands next to her. "It is just like watching a favorite soap opera for regular mortals for you, isn't it?"
     "Stop giving me such a hard time. All of you should be more invested on our agent back on earth."
     "Yeah... His efforts to get us more popular haven't been quite as effective as we'd hoped."
     "Well, Mark Brant isn't doing a better job as The Thespian," Aphrodite says (last seen in #50 and #55).
     "What HAS he been up to? Let's have a look," Hephaestus says and Quentin and Monica disappear from the screen, replaced by Max Brant in his Thespian costume...

*
Thespian (check https://a.wattpad.com/cover/128323070-176-k279419.jpg for his image) is surrounded by five guys in high-priced suits, all carrying guns. They are in an Italian restaurant.
     "Come on guys, I'm sure we can work this out," Thespian says.
     An old man with green sunglasses, wearing a green suit says, "You shouldn't have barged in on my meeting with the Mancuso's."
     "I couldn't have you guys joining forces. You'd just get too powerful. Wouldn't want you to rule the West Coast underworld," Thespian says. "I'm a superhero, you know. Breaking up this kinda stuff is what I do."
     An old Italian guy pipes up, "Mr. Green I suggest our men execute this clown."
     "Clown? I'm a thespian, not a clown! Now I'm angry," Thespian says and changes into a Viking. A Viking wearing an old Greek thespian mask. He carries a shield and a battle axe. 
     "Kill him!" Mr. Green shouts. As the guns fire Thespian holds up the shield, the bullets deflected by it.
     Thespian's axe cuts through the henchmen, looking like something out of a Frazetta painting of a Conan novel. A head goes up in the air as does a hand. After a short battle Thespian stands victorious, battle axe full of blood in his hand, surrounded by his downed enemies.
     "That was a nice workout. Now, you two..." Thespian says.
     "You just killed those guys? That's not what a superhero does?" Mancuso says, shocked.
     Thespian points his axe at the mobsters. "Dude, it was clearly self-defense. Now listen... I had to beat the crap out of a lot of snitches and lowlifes to find out where you were having this meeting. That means I'm getting awfully tired. So I will keep it simple. You work together I'm coming after you."
     "After us?" Green asks.
     "I mean I will chop off your heads and serve it along with your pasta. Speaking of which... Meeting in an Italian restaurant? Really? Isn't that a bit playing along to the stereotype a bit too much?"
     "You're crazy!" Green says.
     "Yeah, at least I'm not old and ugly." Thespian says and grabs a bottle of wine that is on a table. "Taking this one along for the road. Ciao, grannies."
      With those words Thespians walks out the door, leaving two befuddled mobsters.
      "We really can't let this slide. We need to have him taken out," Mancuso tells Green.
      "He said he's going to kill us if we work together," Green counters.
      "Then we need to make sure he's killed first," Mancuso offers.

*
Hephaestus tells Aphrodite, "Wow! Ares must like his style. He's gotten even more violent than he used to be as Godling."
     "He's just terrible," Aphrodite says. "I thought we wanted a hero representing us, not a thug."
     "I don't know, love... I guess Godling was just a little bit too...whitebread to popularize us again. Guy like Thespian fits the sign of our times, you know. Brutal hero for brutal times."
     "I will always refuse to believe that," Aphrodite says.


NEXT: Who will they send after Thespian?