Chapter Fifty-Four: The March Hill Massacre.

The morning of the protest dawned clear and calm. At the crack of dawn both boys were up to do their chores before heading out for what they believed was the turning point in the history of their city.

"Just promise me you boys will be careful." Thomas Masters said to James as the family sat down to breakfast.

"We will. We'll be going as Damon and Pythias. That should discourage anyone from trying to attack." James helped himself to another slice of bread and butter.

Meanwhile, Peter Begly was having a similar conversation with his son, Frank.

"Any sign of danger and I want you to promise me you'll come straight home." Peter warned as Frank drank his milk.

"We promise." Frank agreed.

The pair met at the scrapyard, where they changed into their disguises and headed out to meet the crowd - and their destinies.

"Did your father read you the riot act too?" James asked as he pulled on his black pants.

"Yeah. Anyone would think he didn't have two other sons to carry on if I was lost." Frank chuckled, putting on his blue shirt.

"I have three for the old man to fall back on, although I don't think Lachlan really subscribes to the family ethos." James mused. "He's never had the Improbability Clause used on him, and I don't think he knows any of the rules from the Masters Code."

"A Masters who doesn't know the Code? That's a bit worrying." Frank raised an eyebrow. "Montague Masters wrote the Code because of his violent tendancies, which he got from his father."

"That's MAURICE Masters, Montague was the Begly, but that's just a legend though. I mean, I've never had any violent urges in my life." James pointed out as he tied on his scarf to finish his transformation into Damon.

"I guess so." Frank laughed, putting on the hat that finished his transformation into Pythias.

--

"WHAT DO WE WANT?" Yelled Damon.

"A SAFE CITY!" Was the reply from the slowly increasing crowd in front of the the Mayors office.

"WHAT WILL MAKE OUR CITY SAFE?" Yelled Pythias.

"COUNCIL RESPONSIBILITY!" Was the cry.

"For the last 90 years our Council has sat in the pocket of criminals and scum, letting them terrorise this city and those who live here!" Damon cried. "We won't let this city become overrun with corruption, the time to stop the rot is now!"

The crowd cheered.

"You really know how to give a good speech." Pythias grinned as Damon took a breath.

"That's because I'm educated." Damon smirked.

The front doors of City Hall opened, and out walked the Mayor.

"What is the meaning of this disturbance?" He asked coldly.

"We're sick of the underbelly this city is fostering!" Pythias replied. "We're sick of criminals hurting people and either getting let off or getting piss-weak sentences!"

"Or even the state of Pleasantville Correction Centre, anyone would think you WANTED to allow criminals to walk out of there without any worries!" Damon added. "And it's the same crims every time, the ones who are paying you and keeping you in your snug little office!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." The Mayor replied coldly, and getting jeered and booed by the crowd for his trouble. "I will now ask that you move along, you are creating an unlawful disturbance."

"We're allowed to protest!" Damon retorted.

"You two are known for your violence and insufferability." The Mayor pointed out. "How do I know this protest won't devolve into something more sinister?"

"We've left our weapons at home. We plan to do this peacefully." Pythias opened his arms to show that the Lions Claw Blade was no where on his person. Damon copied him, to prove that he didn't have the Lucky Seven Gun etiher.

"So be it. I will not be held responsible for anything that goes wrong, you hear?" The Mayor scowled before stalking back to his office.

"Believe me, nothing is going to go wrong." Damon grinned.

--

Several days later, the protest was still going. Many people had left in boredom, and tempers were starting to rise.

"This ISN'T working." Pythias groaned as another small group of people left, leaving only 48 people and the two cowboys.

"Trust me, it will work. The Mayor is starting to crack, believe me." Damon insisted.

He was half-right. The Mayor WAS starting to crack. A government representative was going to be visiting in the next few days, and if the protest was still going then questions were going to be asked. It could very well mean the end of his time in charge of the city.

"You're the highest power in this city." The Mayor looked out of the window of his office at the crowd below. "They fear you, as they rightly should. That's why I called you in here."

"And what do I get out of it?" Crusader Roger scowled, his arms shackled - after the attempt at stealing the wagons, Crusader Roger had been captured by Pythias, who had tied him up and left him for the sheriff to deal with.

"A pardon, of course. For you and your men." The Mayor turned to the angry criminal. "Get rid of them."

"You have yourself a deal, Mister Mayor." Crusader Roger grinned.

Outside, Pythias was talking to another protestor while Damon was stalking the front of the crowd.

"We've almost got them. I'm certain we do. They can't just ignore us." He muttered to himself.

"Who says we're ignoring you? A bit stupid to do this unarmed, don't you think?"

Damon and Pythias spun around. In front of the Council building stood Crusader Rodger and over a hundred of his Crusaders.

"We're protesting peacefully. You have no right to be here." Pythias said, but his voice wavered slightly. Each of the Crusaders held a shotgun in his hands, and they were all pointed at the crowd.

"What are we going to do?" Whispered one of the protesters.

"We're staying here." Damon glared into the eyes of Crusader Roger. "He'd never fire on an unarmed group, and even if he did, he'd be finished within the hour."

Crusader Roger laughed. The colour drained from Damons face.

"Don't you get it you fool?" Crusader Roger pulled out his own pistol and aimed it at Damon. "The Mayor is the one who ordered us to do this."

A look of pure horror covered Damons face, before Crusader Rogers bullet went through his heart and ended his life.

"JIMMY!" Pythias screamed, before his head was blown off by another bullet. The Crusaders had begun firing on the crowd, who were sitting ducks. Some managed to start running, but they too were easily mowed down.

After the dust cleared, nothing was left of the protest but bloodied, dead bodies.

--

"And it was after the massacre that Lachlan Masters, fuelled by his rage, formed the Death Valley Gang." Belle continued to explain. "He kept the Lucky Seven Gun for himself, and traded the Lions Claw Blade to the Mobsters of Misneach for help in destroying the March Hill Crusaders."

"Damon and Pythias." Daniel mused.

"The forerunners of Chuckles and Giggles." Sunny said.

"Yeah, only they didn't have the luxury of seven Noble Knights of the Last Order behind them." Sam pointed out.

"And luckily, we don't have to deal with the March Hill Crusaders." Petunia shuddered. "They sound brutal."

--

In a small cabin just outside of Pleasantville, two men were meeting.

"I can't thank you enough for giving me this job." One said to the other. "After I stormed out of the Death Valley Mobsters in the middle of a job, I thought I was done for."

"Not at all." The other replied. "Your information has been beyond helpful, not to mention your skill and experience as a criminal. They were foolish to let you go."

"Well, I think Revolver was too concerned with what his psycho girlfriend was plotting, not to mention it's kinda hard to shoot a man in his jocks." The first man laughed.

"Either way, I'm glad you're on our side for now." The second man got up out of his chair and poured two glasses of whiskey.

"It's admirable that you and your people have managed to stay hidden for so many generations." The first man accepted the glass of whiskey from his co-conspirator.

"To our return to power." The second man lifted his glass in a toast.

"To your return to power." The first man grinned.

Chapter Fifty-Three: Damon and Pythias.

"She's reading AGAIN." Charlie rubbed his temples.

"Your best friend has a hobby. Big deal." Sunny shrugged, sitting at Bills resturant trying in vain to feed Melody without a major mess.

"What's she researching this time?" Tammy asked, sipping her thickshake.

"She's found out that the two ringleaders of the protestors who were slaughtered 93 years ago were none other than James Masters and Frank Begly." Charlie slumped down next to Sammy, who offered him some chips. "So now she's wondering what else our family has been involved in."

"Sounds interesting." Webster said, taking a mouthful of beer. Sunny frowned at him.

"Where's Maddy and Tate?" She asked.

"At home." Webster replied shortly.

"Why aren't they hanging out with us?" Sunny pressed.

"Because they're at home." Webster scowled.

"Shouldn't you be at home with them?" Sunny continued her onslaught.

"I'm a Knight of the Last Order as much as you are. Where's Patrick then if you're being so high-and-mighty?" Webster shot back, annoyed.

"At work, he's been putting in extra hours due to the destruction wrought by the DVM." Sunny replied triumphantly. "We're going out for a family dinner tonight when he gets home."

Webster didn't reply, he just glared at his beer like he wanted to kill it.

"Is there something up with you and Maddy?" Sam asked innocently, earning a thwack over the head from Tammy and a kick in the shins from Sunny.

"It's nothing." Webster got up. "But if you guys don't want me around, I'll piss off."

"Webster, don't be like that!" Tammy tried as Webster stormed off. On his way out, he shoved past Belle, who looked super-hyper-mega affronted.

"What happened?" She sat down next to Sunny, dropping a small mountain range of books on the table.

"We were just wondering why Webster isn't spending much time with Maddy and Tate." Sammy said, rubbing his sore shin and head.

"Oh, that'd be because it's coming up to the anniversary of when his friend Tate offed herself." Belle said with all the sensitivity of a dead cod fish. "Plus Maddy's been a doing a bit of a Mobster Marion and started talking about marriage."

"And you know all of this how?" Charlie looked sceptical.

"Because I talk to people and do my research, dumb-dumb." Belle smirked back.

"I thought Webster adored Maddy?" Tammy asked.

"He does. But he misses Tate too, especially around this time of year." Belle sighed, thinking back to her own part in the whole affair, nearly getting herself killed out of pride.

"What's with the books?" Sunny asked, remembering her own part in what had happened and feeling awkward.

"I've been looking up James Masters and Frank Begly." Belle replied brightly, making Charlie groan.

"You're not going to make me hear this story AGAIN are you?" He whined.

"Stick a cork in that whine, this is our family history we're talking about!" Belle snapped.

"I wanna hear the story!" Sam decided.

"I do too!" Tammy grinned.

"Why don't we all go back to my place? The others can meet us there and we can all hear it!" Sunny beamed, cleaning up Melody.

"Swell." Charlie muttered.

--

"So, we all ready?" Daniel asked the next night.

The group were all sprawled out over Sunnys lounge room, all in their pyjamas, some wrapped in blankets, the lights low.

"This will be interesting." Maddy snuggled into Webster, who smiled weakly.

"Only the first sixty-nine times." Charlie scowled, sitting in the window frame, looking out over the creek.

"Let's get started!" TJ grinned, sharing his popcorn with Petunia.

Belle felt important.

"It was 93 years ago, when the DVG didn't exist and the Mobsters of Misneach were only a very minor player in Pleasantvilles growing underbelly..."

--

Pleasantville had just celebrated her 100th birthday. To celebrate, Crusader Roger of the March Hill Crusaders had decided the time was ripe for a heist. A small convoy of wagons carrying gold from the mines that lay north of the city was heading that way, and the March Hill Crusaders wanted to get in first before the Mobsters of Misneach, the Silent Lake Gang, the Light Reach Gang or the Hidden Fear Crew heard about it.

It was early one Monday morning when the convoy was meant to shuffle through. They were going to stop to refresh their horses and supplies before heading off again. The plan was to steal the booty while the drivers were busy.

Alas, the March Hill Crusaders hadn't planned on the crime-fighting hero duo Damon and Pythias coming to spoil the party.

"Hi Roger! Why are you hanging around those wagons for?" Damon asked as Roger approached the stationery wagons, ready to call his men over.

"YOU!" Crusader Roger growled. He glared at the cowboy in front of him, who wore a black hat, a red scarf over his face, a red flannel shirt, black pants and carried a very strange-looking gun that he dubbed the Lucky Seven Gun.

"Yes, me. Me Damon." The cheeky hero replied. "You wouldn't be after the cargo of these here wagons would you?"

"Never you mind that!" Crusader Roger felt for his own pistol. He wanted to get this over quickly before any of the other crime groups showed up. "You get out of here before I call my men."

"Oh wow, like THEY'LL do anything." Damon rolled his eyes.

"Especially if I have anything to do with it." Said a voice from behind Crusader Roger. Suddenly, he felt his pistol fall to the ground, still in its holster.

"Pythias! So glad you could be bothered to join us!" Damon grinned at his best friend.

Pythias smirked. "Why would I let you have all the fun?" Pythias was dressed almost identical to Damon, only in blue and white instead of red and black. Instead of a gun, he held a long, five-foot blade that was called the Lions Claw Blade.

"I am warning you two. Let me go and get out of here. You wouldn't want to be here when everyone else gets here." Crusader Roger warned.

"Well, you can discount the Light Reach Gang, Gangster Steven is still out with a broken jaw." Pythias pointed out.

"I really should apologise for that." Damon mused.

"Yes, you should." Pythias agreed.

"That still leaves the Mob, the Silent Lakers and the Crew." Crusader Roger grimaced. Why oh WHY did these two INSIST on incessant babbling?

"Well, I dealt with Mobster Michael on the way here, so he won't be showing up." Pythias said. "By the way Damon I wouldn't go near Misneach Manor anytime soon if I were you."

"Why?" Asked Damon.

"I might have insinuated a few things about you and Michaels wife."

"For the love of-! Will you two can it already?!" Crusader Roger roared furiously.

"Are you going to leave these wagons and their cargo alone?" Asked Pythias.

"Nope." Was the snappish reply.

"Then we're not leaving until you've been brought to justice." Damon replied with a nod.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the March Hill Crusaders. Looks like you've got your hands full there Roger."

Damon grabbed his gun. Crewmate Theodore and his men had arrived to claim their share of the booty.

"Damn this! Where are my men?! They should have stopped you!" Crusader Roger roared in fury.

"They're busy dealing with the Silent Lakers. So we thought we'd bypass the crap and get straight to the treasure." Crewmate Theodore casually explained. "Now move."

"Nope." Damon and Pythias replied together.

"Then so be it." Crewmate Theodore growled. "FIRE!"

Crusader Roger fled the scene in a rage while Damon and Pythias hid behind the wagons.

"Get out here you little cowards!" Crewmate Theodore cried.

"Well, this has gone well." Damon sighed as Pythias quickly poked his head out from behind one of the wagons, nearly getting it blown off.

"No big deal, we just wait here until the drivers come back and then we help them escape." Pythias brushed his best friend off.

"Pythias, the Crew are advancing on us, we have NO way of holding them off, the drivers are probably inside scared stiff after hearing the noise and you want to - PYTHIAS!" Damon cried in exasperation. He grabbed the Lucky Seven Gun and fired at the feet of the Crew while Pythias opened the gate of a nearby cattlepen. The beasts, happy to have some room to move, stampeded out towards the Crew.

"Oh I am going to SLAUGHTER him when this is over!" Damon growled to himself, eye twitching. He quickly ran into the saloon where the drivers were hiding.

"Here's our chance to get out of here, let's go!" He beckoned for them to follow him. Keeping an eye out for any criminals, Damon led the drivers back to their belongings and went with them to the city boundaries.

"You're safe now. Whatever you do, don't come back here!" Damon warned as the last wagon made its way over the ridge.

"Trust me, we won't!" The driver of the wagon assured the young cowboy. With a flick of his whip, he set his horse to a trot and it wasn't long before all Damon could see of the convoy was a trail of dust.

Sighing, Damon made his way back to the scrapyard, where he knew Pythias would be waiting. Sure enough, when he got there Pythias had already shed his disguise and emerged as Frank Begly.

"Before you yell at me, I managed to get all the cattle back into the pen, so no one is losing out." Frank chuckled at the look on his friends face.

"You could have been killed - AGAIN." Damon pulled off his disguise to reveal James Masters.

"I swear Jimmy, I'll never get myself killed. In fact, it'll probably be you who gets me killed!" Frank laughed. "How would that be for irony?"

"Irony and coincidence are not the same thing." James scowled.

"Oh, sorry, I forgot you're all educated now." Frank teased. James couldn't help but grin back.

"You're an idiot." He punched his friends shoulder.
"How are the plans for tomorrow anyway?"

"Ready to go." Frank replied. "Graham and Jack have managed to get about 20 people who are sick of the direction this city is going in. They've all agreed to a sit-down protest outside of City Hall."

"Perfect." James replied. "If we include the 60 people that I managed to muster, that's 80 people who will be protesting with us."

"You really think this is going to work?" Frank asked as the pair headed home.

"I know it will." James smirked.

Chapter Fifty-Two: The Art Of Self-Love

"What is it THIS time?" Chuckles grumbled as he and Giggles made their way to the Pleasantville Entertainment Centre.

"She didn't like the direction the play was taking." Master Revolver told them, looking harrassed.
"She's getting out of control!" Giggles facepalmed. "Just about anything sets her off nowadays!"

"She's not the only one." Sir Lionheart muttered under his breath.

--

"Hey Tuney! Sunny, Lizzy, Tammy and I are going for a walk to the dam with Maddy and Lara, do you want to come with us?" Belle asked a few days earlier, thinking some good quality girl time would help get Petunia out of the funk she was in.
Instead, Petunia looked at her coldly.

"I'm fine, thank you." Was the reply as she sat down at Bills resturant eating chips.

"Tuney, sitting around eating isn't going to help anyone." Belle tried.

Of course, she inadvertantly put her foot in it.

"I'll manage my life as I see fit, and I'll thank you not to judge!" Petunia snapped angrily. "Leave me alone!"

"Petunia!" Belle gasped.

"Leave. Me. Alone!"

--

"Anyway Lady Luck, we were thinking it'd be worth you getting in on our combat training." Sir Lionheart said as the Knights of the Last Order (and Lizzy) assembled for their "training" the next day.

"Why? Isn't my job to make sure you're all healthy?" Lady Luck frowned.

"Well, yes, but-," Sir Lionheart began.

"So why should I bother learning "combat" for?" Lady Luck narrowed her eyes at him.

Sir Lionheart turned to look at Sir Dark, who looked confused.

"We all thought that you'd benefit from knowing how to fight." Sir Dark tried.

"What are you trying to say to me?" Lady Luck stood up.

"Lady Luck, we're just trying to help." Lady Silent pleaded.

"Well I don't need help, thank you." Lady Luck turned on her heel and left.

"Tuney wait!" Sir Dark bolted after her as the others looked at each other, upset and confused.

--

"It must just be that time of month." Master Revolver shrugged, earning him a slap upside the head from Giggles. "I rest my case!"

"Can you NOT antagonise my partner when we're trying to stop Marion from destroying the entire city one temper tantrum at a time?!" Chuckles glared at Master Revolver, who scowled back.

"Where's the rest of your Knight friends? I thought they'd all be here rallied around Lionheart the instant I looked at him." Master Revolver grumbled.

"We've been having some issues. Look, here's Lady Courage, Lady Silent and Sir Hyper now!" Sir Lionheart breathed a sigh of relief as three of his Noble Knights of the Last Order appeared.

"Sir Hedgehog is on his way, but I have no idea about Sir Dark and Lady Luck." Lady Courage informed her leader.

"Fair enough." Sir Lionheart frowned.
"So how many innocent people has she got in there hmm?" Giggles turned to Master Revolver, who flinched.

"You act like this is MY fault!" He winced.

"Well, you're the idiot who brought an emotionally-unstable psychopath with a severe entitlement complex to the theatre." Giggles pointed out.

"There's at least 100 people in there, I managed to escape with a few others." Master Revolver sighed, defeated. "You're not going to be able to stop her though, she's completely off her rocker at the moment."

"Alright, I'm going in there to stop her!" Chuckles announced. Giggles facepalmed again.

"She's armed to the teeth, probably with explosives and Emerald warriors, not to mention CHUCKLES I SWEAR I AM GOING TO HURT YOU IF YOU KEEP RUNNING OFF MID-SENTENCE ON ME!" Giggles roared with fury as she rushed in after her best friend.

The pair burst into the lobby, weapons drawn, ready to subdue the irate Mobster. It was too quiet though.

"This is up there with one of your very WORST ideas." Giggles grumbled as Chuckles headed towards the main theatre. Sure enough, ambush. I think we all saw it coming a mile off.

"I suggest the pair of you just STOP right there. I don't know what prompted you to come rushing in here, but I can tell you right now you're outnumbered, outgunned and outdone." Mobster Marion stepped towards them, flanked by Emerald Mobsters.

"Who takes minions to a play?" Chuckles questioned, eyeing the Emerald Mobsters.

"Yeah, one would think you'd want a little privacy on your date." Giggles pointed out.

"What, and you two don't take those Knights with you everywhere you go?" Mobster Marion scowled.

"We don't go on dates." Chuckles and Giggles replied simultaniously.

"Riiiiight."

"We don't!" Giggles frowned.

"We've never been on one single date together, ever!" Chuckles protested.

"Suuuuure."

"It's true!" Giggles yelped. "Besides, Chuckles was more interested in Lady Courage than me."

"I forgot about that, how does it feel to know your partner liked a secondary character over you?" Mobster Marion grinned triumphantly.

"Better than getting stuck with that loser Revolver. When are you two getting married anyway?" Chuckles stepped in to defend Giggles.

The mention of marriage seemed to set off a firecracker in the head of Mobster Marion, who immediately flew into a rage and started swinging her sword at Chuckles.

"Oh dear." Giggles scratched her head as Mobster Marion screamed like a furious banshee.

"'Oh dear' is right, she's been itching for a ring for a while." One of the Emerald Mobsters said, looking bemused at the scene in front of him.

"You should see some of the hints she's been putting out. It's getting quite sad really." Another Emerald Mobster piped up.

"Wow. Just wow." Giggles said, her voice laced with pity as Mobster Marion made life hell for Chuckles.

"GIGGLES WILL YOU HELP ME HERE?!" Chuckles roared, barely holding his own against the onslaught.

"I'm not a swordmaster though." Giggles pointed out.

"SHOOT HER!"

"And lower myself to the standard of that moron she's dating?"

Outside, the Noble Knights of the Last Order were milling around when Lady Luck and Sir Dark finally showed up.

"You two okay?" Sir Lionheart asked kindly.

"Fine." Lady Luck bit.

"Chuckles and Giggles rushed in there. So far nothing." Lady Silent looked at the doors of the theatre. Just then, an Emerald Mobster walked out, sighing.

"Get in there. It's getting ugly." He said to the Knights, before turning to Master Revolver. "I'm not working for that psycho bitch any longer, I quit."

He stripped off his Emerald Suit, leaving him in only his boxers, before stalking off with as much dignity as his fashion would allow him.

Master Revolver looked at the Emerald Suit at his feet.

"Well." He frowned.

"Come on guys, let's go." Sir Lionheart motioned for his Noble Knights to follow him into the theatre.

They found Giggles checking her fingernails as Chuckles desperately tried to protect himself from Mobster Marion.

"Wow." Sir Hedgehog gaped at the scene in front of him.

"Yeah. All over an engagement ring that Revolver is too thick to give her." Giggles checked the Desert Eagle. "Dad really needs to polish this."

"I actually think it's smart of Revolvers part." Sir Hyper said.

Mobster Marion stopped attacking Chuckles, eye twitching. Suddenly she rushed at Sir Hyper, who yelped and ran screaming from the psycho Mobster.

"Just...I got nothing." Lady Courage threw up her hands.

"I think I can understand." Lady Luck sighed. "You just want someone to recognise that you need love, don't you Marion?"

The Mobster stopped chasing Sir Hyper and glared at Lady Luck.

"Everyone always has a go at me about my weight. The man of your dreams doesn't get the hint that you want to be with him forever. It sucks being female, doesn't it?" Lady Luck approached Mobster Marion, whose bottom lip was starting to tremble.

"I know." Mobster Marion dropped her sword.

"I still got nothing." Lady Courage groaned as the two women in front of her started hugging and crying together.

"At least nothing's going to get blown up." Sir Lionheart pointed out.

--

"I'm going to go and do my rounds." Petunia sighed as the nurses at work started talking about diet plans and dress sizes. Another day, another round of hearing about weight and body shapes and ugh!

"Oh, Petunia? Can you cover my rounds again please?" One of the other nurses asked. "I'll take yours if you like."

"Sure." Petunia sighed. She headed out to the ward, ready to clean up messes and fix up bandages.

"HEY! It's Nurse Petunia!" She heard a young voice cry, followed by several cheers. She grinned. Her wards for the afternoon were the children who were currently in hospital - and THEY certainly didn't care about how fat she was!