First War (Minimum Wage Sidekick Book 6)

by Lucas Flint

  “Good idea,” said Rubberman. “You need all the rest of you can get, but I still would like you to come by the Elastic Cave today and see the surprise I have for you. Remember the surprise I told you about yesterday?”

  I had completely forgotten about it in all of the drama I’d just been through, but I nodded anyway. “Yeah. You still want me to see it?”

  “Of course,” said Rubberman. “I know you’ll love it. You don’t have to do any fighting or anything. Just come by, see it, and then go home if you want, though I can guarantee that once you see it, you won’t want to go home immediately.”

  Despite how sad I was, I could not help but feel intrigued by Rubberman’s words. I had no idea what kind of surprise he had that would be so good, but Rubberman was rarely one to lie or exaggerate, so I figured he had to be telling the truth.

  Still, I didn’t know if I wanted to go and see Rubberman so soon. I didn’t know how I would treat him if I saw him. Would I try to kill him right away or would I just see what his surprise is? Or maybe I would break down and tell him about my meeting with Sasha. Given my current emotional state, there was no telling how I would react.

  Nonetheless, I said, without hesitation, “Okay, boss. I’ll be there as soon as I can. Just make sure the surprise is ready for me, okay?”

  “Okay,” said Rubberman brightly. “See you soon, Beams.”

  Then Rubberman hung up. I lowered my phone to my side, but I didn’t look at it. I was too busy wondering what I was thinking, agreeing to go see Rubberman so soon after my meeting with Sasha. I suppose I was about to find out.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Ten minutes later, I parked my bike in the Elastic Cave’s bike rack inside its false storefront entrance. Though my shoulder hurt the whole way, I had managed to make it to the Elastic Cave in good time. That wasn’t very surprising; after all, it was my shoulder which had taken the bad injury, not my legs. Even so, I could not help but be surprised at how fast I’d made it here, even despite my own reservations. I guess I’d just gotten in the habit of getting to work as fast as I could that my body had acted on its own when I began my trip to the Elastic Cave.

  As it turned out, however, I wasn’t alone in the Elastic Cave entrance. Just as soon as I finished locking my bike up, I heard a small ding come from the elevator and then it opened and Adams rose from within. He wore his usual immaculate suit, while his mustache was as perfectly combed as it always was. I know it had been several weeks since his encounter with Iron Angel, but I still couldn’t get over how quickly Adams had recovered from having his chest torn open. He was a pretty old guy, like in his sixties or something, but he seemed as healthy as ever after going to the doctor and getting the necessary surgery. Granted, Adams was in the military in his youth, so he was probably stronger than your average old dude, but that didn’t make his quick recovery any less miraculous.

  “Mr. Fry,” said Adams, nodding at me when he saw me. “Good to see you again. You certainly didn’t waste any time in coming here after Rubberman called you.”

  “What can I say? I like surprises,” I said with a shrug. I rubbed my shoulder. “And as long as I don’t have to fight anyone, I should be okay, I think.”

  “Yes, there will be no fighting today, that much I can assure you,” said Adams. “The Vigilante Legion knows of the Elastic Cave’s location, but we added in several additional security measures during the remodeling of the Cave after Iron Angel and his vigilantes ruined the place. Should they attempt to break in here … well, let’s just say they will likely take a longer time to recover from their injuries than you have.”

  I nodded. I already knew about the extra additional security measures which Rubberman had added to the Cave after its remodel, but it was good to be reminded of them every now and then. After Iron Angel and his men infiltrated the Cave, the place had felt a lot less safe than normal, though no one else had managed to break into the Cave since Iron Angel’s defeat.

  “Anyway, let’s head down into the Cave itself already,” said Adams in a businesslike tone. “Mr. Pullman is awaiting us and it is not good to keep him waiting. He can get rather impatient sometimes, you know.”

  “Yeah, I know,” I said as I walked over to Adams and took a space beside him on the elevator. “Let’s go down there already, then. I’m ready.”

  “Very well,” said Adams.

  Adams raised his smart watch and tapped the screen. Immediately, the elevator descended into the floor and the hole above us closed shut. But thanks to the lights in the elevator itself, we could still see our surroundings. I looked at the floor level display above the doors. I expected us to stop at Level One, but to my surprise, we skipped Level One without even slowing down.

  I looked at Adams in confusion. “Wait, why did we skip Level One? Isn’t that where Rubberman is?”

  “Not today,” said Adams, shaking his head. “Mr. Pullman is down in Level Two, which is also where the surprise is. We’re going straight down there. No need to stop at Level One.”

  “That’s weird,” I said. I almost started. “Wait, is the surprise my own car? One like the Rubbermobile, perhaps?”

  Adams chuckled. “Of course not, but I won’t say much more than that, as Mr. Pullman has given me orders not to tell you what the surprise is. Besides, aren’t you still saving up for your own car?’

  “Oh, yeah,” I said, nodding. “Almost finished. Just another paycheck or two and I should have enough money to buy my own car.”

  Adams nodded in approval. “Smart boy. I did the same thing when I was your age. I spent an entire summer in my teenage years working three different jobs to save up for my first car. It was a good old car, that Dodge was, and I am glad to hear that you are doing the same.”

  “It was my dad’s idea,” I said. “He wanted me to save up for a car for when I go to college in a few years.”

  “Your father is a wise man, it seems,” said Adams. “But once you reach your savings goal, do you intend to keep working for Rubberman? Or will you quit?”

  I hesitated. The original plan had been to work for Rubberman just long enough to save up enough money for my own car, then I would quit. I had never intended for this job to become my career or anything like that. I thought it would be like how James handled his sidekick job; just get some money and then quit as soon as possible.

  But after working so closely with Rubberman for so many months and being through so much with him, I was now starting to wonder if I really could turn this job into a career. I might not even need to go into college. If I could take the experience and knowledge I earned as a sidekick to start my own superhero business, that might be better than getting an old-fashioned college degree and getting a boring office job somewhere as I try to pay off my college debt.

  Of course, if I kill Rubberman, none of this might matter, but I still tried to pretend—without too much success—that that wasn’t real.

  “I don’t know,” I said. “I still haven’t decided. I like working for Rubberman all right and the superhero business is very interesting, but—”

  “But it’s also dangerous,” Adams said. He patted me on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, Mr. Fry. If you decide to quit, Mr. Pullman would understand. Very few sidekicks last long in this business and even fewer go on to become superheroes in their own right. Most go do something else; if you choose to quit at some point, Mr. Pullman won’t think any less of you, though it will mean he’ll need to find a new sidekick, I suppose.”

  I was going to say that I wasn’t worried about Rubberman thinking less of me when, without warning, the elevator came to a stop. One ding later and the doors opened, which Adams and I stepped through without further ado.

  We emerged onto the main platform of Level Two, which overlooked the Rubbermobile, which was parked below us on its usual spot. The Rubbermobile’s sleek design reflected the fluorescent lights beautifully, while its windows were so clear that they were practically invisible.

  I paid little attention to the R
ubbermobile, however, because my attention was drawn to the person standing next to it. It was Rubberman, who looked up when he heard us exit the elevator and, smiling bigly, waved up at us.

  “Alex, so good to see you!” Rubberman shouted. “Come down. Your surprise is down here under this tarp.”

  Rubberman gestured at something long and elongated under a black tarp next to him. The tarp was big enough that I couldn’t even begin to guess at what was underneath it. The best I could figure was that it might have been a vehicle of some sort, but it was too small to be a car and too big to be a bike. But I couldn’t think of what it could be, but perhaps I didn’t need to, because Rubberman was probably going to tell me.

  Adams and I made our way down the stairs. Rubberman looked impatient to yank off the tarp and show the surprise already, but he held his impulses in check until Adams and I made it to the bottom of the stairs and walked over to him. By the time we reached him, Rubberman was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet; literally bouncing in this case, because he was made of rubber. His excitement must have been rubbing off on me, because even I couldn’t help but smile and feel excited despite not knowing what was underneath the tarp.

  “Are you ready to see it, Alex?” asked Rubberman eagerly.

  “Yeah, sure,” I said as Adams and I stopped a few feet away from the surprise. “That’s what I came all the way down here for, after all. If I wasn’t ready, I wouldn’t be here at all.”

  “Excellent,” said Rubberman. He grabbed the tarp. “One … two … three!”

  Rubberman tore the tarp off of the surprise. Once I saw what the surprise actually was, my jaw fell open.

  It was a motorcycle. It was green and yellow, the exact same shades as the colors of my costume. Lightning bolts were painted on the sides, but even without the stylized lightning bolts, it looked sleek, even sleeker than the Rubbermobile. It made my bicycle look like a piece of trash, in all honesty.

  “Here it is,” said Rubberman, gesturing at the motorcycle like a car salesman showing off this year’s newest models. “The Beams Bike!”

  “The Beams Bike,” I repeated. “Wow.”

  “I know,” said Rubberman. “Of course, I originally considered naming it the Beamscycle, but I figured that that sounded too much like Beamscicle, which would actually be a great name for ice cream treats based off of you, now that I think about it. I should write that idea down for later; could make some good money off licensed ice cream treats in the summer.”

  I was too busy staring at the Beams Bike to listen to Rubberman’s ramblings about the profitability of ice cream treats. I couldn’t believe how awesome it looked. It didn’t seem real, yet if I wanted, I could reach out and touch it. I didn’t dare do that, however. While it was probably built sturdily, I was afraid of getting even a smidgen of dirt on its beautiful body.

  “It is quite the sight,” said Adams, who stood beside me with his arms behind his back. “Even more impressive in person than in the pictures that Mr. Pullman showed me.”

  I shook my head, snapping out of my daze, and looked at Rubberman again. “Is this for me?”

  “Of course it is,” said Rubberman. “That’s why it’s called the Beams Bike. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten about it already.”

  “When did you tell me about it the first time?”

  “After we defeated Barriers,” said Rubberman. “Remember? I even showed you the prototype design.”

  “Oh, right,” I said, nodding. “I remember now. But didn’t you say it wouldn’t be ready until spring?”

  “Armando works fast,” said Rubberman. “The guy is a genius with all things auto and motor. He even managed to add the AI into it, which is pretty amazing given how he’s not a particularly computer savvy guy.”

  “AI?” I repeated. “What do you mean?”

  “The Beams Bike has an AI,” said Rubberman. He gestured at the Rubbermobile. “You know how the Rubbermobile has Rubberband, who can drive the car itself if necessary? Well, I had Armando install a similar AI into the Beams Bike. Watch.”

  Rubberman looked at the Beams Bike. “Laser, say hello to Beams and introduce yourself.”

  All of a sudden, a feminine, monotone voice spoke from the Bike. “Hello, Beams. I am Laser, the Beams Bike’s built-in AI system. I can control the Beams Bike or provide you with information on how to drive the Bike correctly, if you have never ridden a motorcycle before. Additionally, I come with a built-in GPS map system with access to all major GPS satellites and can plot out the best route to your intended location in less than five seconds. A complete list of my features is available on request.”

  “Whoa,” I said. “She talks.”

  “Of course she does,” said Rubberman. He patted the Beams Bike’s handlebar. “It just came in yesterday, which is why I didn’t show it to you until now. I was really tempted to just take a picture of it and send it to you, but I decided it would have a bigger impact if you saw it yourself in real life first.”

  “Wow, boss,” I said. “This is just so … generous of you, I guess.”

  “Don’t mention it,” said Rubberman. He extended a hand toward me and ruffed up my hair. “Think of it as a thank you gift for being such an amazingly loyal and competent sidekick. I wouldn’t give you this motorcycle if I didn’t think you would appreciate it.”

  I nodded, but said nothing. Partly, that was because I was so full of emotion that I didn’t trust myself to talk without bursting into tears of happiness, but partly also because Rubberman’s words made me feel guilty. I kept thinking about how Sasha had threatened to kill everyone I loved if I didn’t kill Rubberman myself.

  I could do it now. Rubberman’s guard was clearly down. Adams didn’t seem to sense anything out of the ordinary, either. One smart, quick application of my lasers and Rubberman would be dead. His rubber body protected him from a lot of things that would kill or maim normal humans, but they couldn’t withstand my lasers. One shot, at either the head or the heart, and Rubberman would be down for the count.

  But I pushed such awful thoughts out of my mind. I had a week in which to kill Rubberman. One week. That was plenty of time to figure out a way to take down Sasha without having to kill Rubberman. Right now, of course, I didn’t see how that would be possible, but I believed that, given enough time, a solution would come to mind. I just didn’t know if a week was enough time in which to do it.

  “Mr. Fry?” said Adams, looking at me curiously. “Did you see something?”

  Snapped out of my thoughts, I shook my head immediately and said, “No, uh, sorry. Rubberman, thanks for this gift. I don’t know what to say.”

  “You don’t need to say anything,” said Rubberman. He patted the Bike’s handlebar again. “Just hop on and give this bad boy—or girl, I guess I should say—a try.”

  “But I’ve never ridden a motorcycle before,” I said. “I mean, I have a bike, but I’m pretty sure that bikes and motorcycles are not interchangeable.”

  “That is not an issue, Beams,” said Laser. “As I said before, one of my features is being able to take control of the Beams Bike in the event that the rider is unable to. I can also provide you with basic motorcycle riding lessons, the ‘Training Wheels’ Program, which lets you learn how to ride a motorcycle at your own pace.”

  “Training Wheels?” I repeated. I looked at Rubberman reproachfully. “Really?”

  “I didn’t name the program,” said Rubberman, holding up his hands defensively. “Armando was the one who worked with the software designer who built Laser’s AI. If you’re going to blame anyone for that name, blame that guy.”

  I sighed, but shook my head and said, “All right. I guess I can take the Bike for a quick trip up and down the street. Just let me get my costume on; I don’t want people seeing me riding the Beams Bike without my helmet on.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  My shoulder wound meant I had to take a week off work. I had agreed to assassinate my boss in order to protect my family. My girlfriend had
dumped me because her thief father was afraid that I might tell the police about him.

  All in all, the past day and a half had been one of the roughest periods of my life. It sure wasn’t going to be a time I was going to look back on fondly when I got older … if I survived all of this.

  But at the moment, none of that mattered, because I was zooming through the streets of Golden City on the Beams Bike and it was amazing. Even wearing my helmet, I could feel the cold February wind rushing past me, but it didn’t even feel like I was riding anything. I knew that the Beams Bike’s tires were touching the street pavement, but the Beams Bike drove so smoothly that it felt more like it was hovering than riding.

  And it turned corners so smoothly. Okay, Laser was mostly in charge of the Beams Bike at the moment due to my lack of motorcycle riding experience, but every now and then she’d give me a chance to try out certain features of the motorcycle so I could get a handle on its controls. It was similar to riding a normal bike, but it would definitely be a while before I actually learned how to ride it without Laser’s help.

  I heard a crackling sound in my helmet and then heard Rubberman’s voice through my radiocom. “Beams, how is the Beams Bike handling? Having fun?”

  “Yeah!” I said as the Beams Bike zoomed past a large delivery truck. “It’s like I’m flying! It’s so cool.”

  “Great to hear,” said Rubberman. “Adams and I are tracking your movements here in the Elastic Cave via GPS, so we know where you are. But I think you should come back to the Cave now.”

  “Why?” I said. “I’ve only been out here for what, ten minutes? I can ride for longer.”

  “It’s more about your safety than anything,” said Rubberman. “Given how the Vigilante Legion is after you and me, it’s not good for you to be out in the city by yourself unsupervised.”

  I glanced around, but didn’t see any vigilantes as I zoomed across the streets. “Come on, boss, how likely do you think the Legion would try to attack me in the middle of broad daylight like this? There’d be too many witnesses.”