Druid in the Marvel Universe Chapter 118: Life Is So Precious

Alvin shot Lucifer an apologetic look, "Look, man, I might not see eye to eye with you, but I shouldn't have decked you. Didn't you come to me 'cause I'm kinda good-looking?"

To make up for it, Alvin offered to buy Lucifer a drink at the bar.

"Being gay ain't like having AIDS, no need to freak out."

To Alvin's surprise, the bar wasn't as rowdy as he thought. Every superhero or supervillain was just chillin' in small groups, chatting quietly. It actually made Alvin feel pretty good.

The bar's decor was super modern, all techy and sleek. Alvin hadn't been to places like this much; he just figured anything shiny and glowing was high-tech, kinda like Tony's mansion.

That good-looking, shy Lucifer took the beer Alvin offered and vanished somewhere!

Alvin grabbed a seat at the bar and ordered a whiskey. He needed to chill out; he could count on one hand the times he'd been to a bar, let alone a gay bar! He was kinda nervous!

The bartender was a buff "woman" or maybe a lesbian's "boyfriend"; Alvin wasn't sure how to label her. All he knew was, judging by her beefy arms, his old self definitely couldn't have taken her in a fight!

The bartender seemed pretty chill. She handed Alvin the whiskey and smiled, "You look a bit on edge! Relax, everyone here is cool. Hope you find what you're looking for!"

Alvin downed the whiskey in one go and grinned, "I'm here to find someone, but not for love. Thanks, though!"

The bartender topped off Alvin's drink and said, "Holler if you need anything!"

Even though it was kinda annoying being mistaken for a gay guy, Alvin liked the bartender's vibe. She had good boundaries, making her easy to like.

Alvin spun around on his barstool, resting his elbow on the bar, and scoped out the crowd.

He'd seen a pic of Botu, a short middle-aged white dude. But today wasn't his lucky day. It was a DC Comics hero meetup, and almost everyone was either masked up or dressed like comic book characters.

There was a lot to take in. Catwoman and Harley Quinn made a hot pair. But seeing Batman and the Penguin hugging? That was a bit much!

After a while, Alvin couldn't spot Botu in the crowd. But he had a plan. He pulled out his phone and called Botu.

Alvin held the phone to his ear, watching the bar patrons to see who'd answer.

Unexpectedly, a phone rang from behind Alvin.

Turning around, Alvin saw a small box on the bar shelf ringing.

To be sure, Alvin dialed the number again, and the ringtone still came from the small box.

Satisfied, Alvin thought, "You'll have to come get your phone eventually, right?"

Alvin hung out at the bar until 2 AM, fending off seven or eight people who tried to chat him up. He got offered several drinks but didn't dare accept any. He played the aloof handsome guy, making it clear he wasn't interested.

Luckily, there were no drama scenes like in novels where someone gets offended and tries to start something. The patrons here were super polite. Alvin figured they were high-quality, elite folks looking for love or acceptance, not cheap thrills.

Botu stayed in the underground vampire bar until 2 AM. He had some business with the vampire boss Deacon Frost and had been coming here a lot for help. Lately, things had been rough for him.

His New York operations got wrecked by a guy named Alvin, nicknamed "Principal." All his crew got wiped out. Even Mrs. Hayes got taken out by Alvin, and her body had to be sent back to Japan for revival.

Botu was still scratching his head over why Alvin went berserk on the Handshake Association. The dude's ruthless efficiency gave Botu the creeps.

"If you wanna start a war, at least give me a heads-up! This ain't how things are supposed to roll!"

Botu had tried hitting up Kingpin to get the lowdown and make some plans. But as soon as Kingpin heard his voice, he hung up, like he wanted nothing to do with him.

That’s when Botu realized the Handshake Association had ticked off a serious enemy. So he holed up in Los Angeles, trying to figure out what the hell was going on and waiting for backup from HQ before deciding when to head back to New York.

There was something in New York more important than life itself for the Handshake Association, something they couldn't just ditch!

The Handshake Association had a branch in Los Angeles, run by his buddy Sowanda. Under Sowanda's lead, the Handshake Association was killing it in LA, with their products from several drug factories taking up nearly 30% of the West Coast market.

But none of that mattered to Botu. He couldn't count on Sowanda's crew; the Handshake Association wasn't as tight-knit as it looked.

So he came here to get help from Deacon, the half-blood vampire boss of LA. He needed some fearless folks, and he could offer Deacon a deal he couldn't refuse!

But after several visits, Deacon, the nutjob, kept stringing him along, like he had his own problems to deal with.

Botu checked his watch; it was already 2 AM, and Deacon still hadn't shown up.

Disappointed, Botu shook his head, glanced at the chaotic underground bar, and sneered. He left a small stack of bills under his glass, adjusted his collar, and headed for the hidden exit. He still needed to grab his phone. This was a vampire bar; no human could bring communication devices down here.

Botu despised these half-blood vampires. Besides being fearless, they were pretty much useless. If it weren't for the issues at HQ in Japan stopping them from sending reinforcements, Botu would never sit in such a filthy place. It was gross!

He would never turn himself into such a creature for the sake of a long life. He wasn't a saint, but he wouldn't turn himself into a disgusting being that couldn't see the sun and needed blood to survive. The Handshake Association had better methods!

But first, he needed to get back to New York, which required power. And these vampires were the cheapest and most effective power he could find.

Alvin was still at the bar, chatting it up with the buff female bartender. She was sharing her unique fitness diet with him.

The bartender occasionally flexed her beautifully tattooed arms to Alvin, proving she wasn't BS-ing. Her girlfriend even backed her up!

Alvin smiled and nodded, playing along. He joked that disagreeing might get him chopped up.

When he saw Botu come to the bar to grab his phone, Alvin smiled and handed the bartender a $100 tip, waving goodbye to her. He then tailed Botu out!

Alvin made no effort to hide his intentions, just following Botu. When they were almost at the parking lot, Botu stopped and turned to face Alvin.

The middle-aged man was calm, smiling lightly, "If you're looking for some pocket money, I think you've got the wrong guy!

If I were you, I'd turn around and leave. Life is more important than anything!"

Alvin didn't mind being mistaken for a mugger. After all, Botu was gonna die.

"You're right, Mr. Botu. Life is more important than anything. Since you value life so much, taking it from you should be even more satisfying!"