Chapter 176: Dealing with Fallouts

"Why did Ozymandias have to be so..." Before Sullivan continue with all the sexual stuff, he had to address the most strikingly ruthless character in the story as well. "Don't tell me that all this Alexander the Great worshipping stuff is an echo to your hidden ambition, Alex?"

"Not at all, grandpa?" Alexander had to defend himself lest he is likened to Ozymandias' craziness. "If there's something I want to emulate from Veidt, then that is his smarts and the fact that he became super-rich by selling action figures. That is our Creed business model after all."

Sullivan felt relieved at that but he also went critical. "If you aren't Ozymandias, then would you consider yourself close to Dr. Manhattan then? You're so non-human and emotionless that you're not far from being that in-human being."

"Grandpa, it's best that you don't relate or find parallel to my stories and me from this point forward." Alexander could only advise.

"Hmmph... no parallel." Sullivan scoffed. "Joestars and Creed are obvious. Don't even think that you've fooled me with that Shinri and Hotaru story?"

"I did write that for Valentine but what does my life have to do with that." Alexander defended but he also connected some dots. Didn't Milla's weirdness start around that time as well?

"Oh really." Sullivan snickered but pointed towards the eavesdropping girl "How do you explain this blushing little lass beside me then?"

While Alexander reeled from realization, Milla's inner thoughts ran quick. Does that mean that grandpa Sullivan also has the same idea as me? Does that mean Alex is Shinri and Hotaru is... Aaaahh!!!

The little girl could only hide herself with all the Watchmen papers at hand while her actions only proved Sullivan's point.

Alexander felt that he shot himself in the foot now. All his story parallel seems to have enforced an idea to his grandfather that each of his stories was closely reflecting aspects of his life.

Back to the Future's time-travel to meet his parents, Top Gun for "piloting dreams", Goku's bodily age, JoJo's British start, there was the Milla and Hotaru stuff, and now with all the weird Watchmen people.

As those were listed out, Alexander could only wonder how his grandfather related all the other Creed titles to him. Does turtles, aliens, cats, robots, and police seem relatable to him?

Oh right... Alex Murphy from Robocop has the same name as Alexander's... perhaps that is another connection that spurred the old man further.

Unfortunately, he can't gauge most of that now as the Old Creed went on with the most criticizable aspect of his polarizing Watchmen.

"Why'd you have to write something like sex, impotence, and prostitutes anyway? Can't you just write the story without all the sexy stuff?" Sullivan shook his head as he reprimanded. "Even if you have to keep the sexy stuff for story's sake, why not keep it in the level of Bulma's promiscuous teenage hijinks?"

"Sorry grandpa. I wrote it in a way that I thought Alan Moore would do it." Alexander explained while using another scapegoat to half most of the incoming criticism. "DC Comics has been challenging me to go against Alan Moore in his style of writing and keeping with the Bulma-level of lewd storytelling wouldn't cut it."

Unlike JoJo which was meant to be specifically released in March, Sullivan did know why his little grandson had to publish something like Watchmen. It was a forced response to all those annoying challenges and defaming that had been publicized.

Old Sullivan would also probably make the same decision if he had his grandson's storytelling wits and demonized scenario.

"Tsk! That DC group is quite the infuriating bunch, aren't they?" Sullivan fumed and his directed grandson reprimand got redirected towards being an annoyance to DC. "Can't they just improve on their projects? Business competition is so cut-throat and scheming these days that everyone would just do whatever gimmick to get ahead of the other."

"My grandson is just making new and amazing stories left and right, outselling them despite their newsstand, un-limited single issue printing, and seniority advantage." Old Sullivan's humble-brag grumble continued. "They should just accept that they are being bested why even bother someone who doesn't even think much of you?"

Alexander could only grimace at all that. Wasn't this grandfather's words way too arrogant? DC's aggression would probably be justified when they hear his smug boasting.

"It's okay though grandpa. All those stuff can be brushed off as a minor panel filler in the whole storyline." Alexander inforced the sexualized storytelling at an opportune time. "CARS would have rated it with an NC-17 if it was too prevalent. Your worries are just probably overblowing things."

"CARS was made for our advantage, so how could those hired judges give an NC-17 to their bosses... much more to their little boss. The horror in Predator was in ab acceptable and RoboCop's maturity is hidden by its premise but Watchmen is something else." Old Sullivan could only sigh when he thought more about it.

"It's quite fortunate that the rest of society doesn't know how old you are, Alex. A 10-year-old writing something so philosophically and influentially deep is to be celebrated but something involving "adult" stuff is of a different caliber." The old man could only lament at how things have gone down for this little grandson of his.

He was always proud about how talented his grandson is but it was in these situations where questions like 'Have I raised him right?' and 'Is he even my previously cute grandson?' pop up in Old Sullivan's mind.

Stuff could be changed here and there but Old Creed also rationalized things given the balance that the entire Flawed Heroes Protocol was showing. Anyways, there might be no other way around it as Watchmen is already set and done.

It's not like being a strict grandfather now would change what was happening. All that could be done is to support it in a reluctant but spoiling grandpa way.

The Naruto Ninja Way hasn't been popularized yet but the Old Creed has his noble grandpa character to uphold.

"Alex, just make sure that our competitors don't use this grade-schooler and adult-themed conflict against everything you've built so far." Sullivan advised with conviction. "Our old Creed Comics employees are still trustable but the same can't be said for the new ones. In the worst-case scenario where the news is leaked, this grandpa of yours will take the fall for it."

It was also at these times that Alexander could only keep to himself and nod at whatever 'chicken soup for the abnormal soul' and Creed-ly advice that his grandfather is out to give him.

It was all for his wellbeing anyway and it was all his fault for writing something as semi-raunchy and overly gritty as Watchmen.

He could argue some more that DC Comics and their Alan Moore compelled him to plunder the notable and historical Watchmen. However, there was also no denying that his greedy plundering spree would still arrive at this point anyway.

Plundering Watchmen and releasing it in 1986 would make not much difference to how his old grandfather was already reacting now. After all, 9 and 10 isn't supposed to be an age where dealing with such stuff is acceptable.

Maybe the millennial age can laugh off grade-schoolers knowing about sex and stuff due to all the sex education curriculums, the 80s still isn't as welcoming to the idea.

Either way, what's done is done and all that was needed was going through the process of talking it out and stabilizing such weirdness to his grandfather's mentality.

Every action was supposed to have a corresponding reaction. Alexander just had to deal with the consequences of it now.

The reprimand went on, the potential crisis solutions were drawn up, and then the Creed duo had pretty much come to terms with every fallout nuances of Watchmen.

----

Milla, who was at the same table as the duo could only marvel and wonder at everything she observed.

Aside from the Alex admiration stuff and grandpa Sullivan not meddling much with her blushing Alex interaction, Milla did wonder about dealing with her possible future mistakes.

Would she be able to escape her mother's anger as well, if she made things about business? Maybe not though as she also knew that Alex and grandpa Sullivan was just a weird business-thingy duo.