“What if you can’t?” asked a demolitions expert.
“Then drop all the mines you got and retreat. We won’t be able to move on.”
The Bone Terror screamed again. Alex used his periscope to look around the corner.
“It’s not far away. Hit it with grenades and heavy rounds. Hold it back so I can get behind the elevator to the mainframe computer room. ”
The weapons experts emerged with their grenade launchers and assault rifles blazing. The thundering percussion of explosions and spent bullets almost drowned out the Bone Terror’s desperate roar.
The weapons experts and Jenny ran across the room and took their position in the other corner of the lobby. Their rifles’ dry cracks added another level of ear-splitting noise to the cacophony.
Jenny stood at the end. She put her hands into a cone and threw a burst of wind that sent debris slamming against the monster.
As the demolitions experts planted mines, Alex and the negotiators sprinted around the elevator. The door to the mainframe was wide open.
Alex turned his shotgun’s safety switch off and entered. “Vijay?”
Asura tapped furiously on the keyboard. The screen read “PLAN FAILSAFE INITIATED. 5:00” and the time counted down by seconds.
Alex put the shotgun’s barrel against Asura’s neck. “Hands up.”
Asura raised his hands and turned around.
“Turn it off.”
“Nope. Won’t do it.”
“I’m not kidding. I will shoot.”
“And then who will turn off Plan Failsafe?”
“I …”
“I’m the hero here, Agent O’Farrell. I’m saying that for your benefit, because I’m not sure you’re smart enough to figure that out.
“How are you the hero?”
“The Idea Man is about to enslave everyone, the Skreaks want to kill everyone, and Le Parrain and the Shade Blades want me dead. This is the only way.”
“You’re going to die too.”
“I’ll die saving the world.”
“We’ll die too.”
“Run away while you can.”
A negotiator tapped Alex’s shoulder. “Not to question your authority, team leader, but this is our area of specialty. Let us talk to him.”
Alex left them in the room and went around the corner.
The Bone Terror fell to the ground in a pile of shattered bony protrusions.
The weapons experts stopped shooting. “Looks like we got him.”
Jenny let the wind die down.
Alex shouted, “Keep shooting!”
The Bone Terror was more broken bone than flesh, but it still sprang to its feet and charged towards the weapons experts. Half of them fell back in pure terror. The remainders weren’t enough to hold it back. It knocked one of them down the stairs with a backhanded swing.
Alex got close enough to hit it with his shotgun. “Fall back behind the mines.”
“But you’re cut off,” said a weapons expert.
“Do it!”
The Bone Terror stared at Alex. His giant eyes blinked.
“Remember me?” said Alex. “I beat you before, and I’ll do it again.”
The Bone Terror let out its loudest, most bloodcurdling scream and ran after Alex.
Alex ran towards it at an angle. When the Bone Terror swung its arm he ducked and dove. In his mind Sergeant Hammer said, “If the time comes to sacrifice, remember everyone’s worth more than you.” He acted through pure reflex and dodged the beast’s huge fist.
The weapons experts saw a clear shot and fired their last shots into the Bone Terror’s legs. The monster fell again but started healing before it even landed.
Alex fired his shotgun at the Bone Terror’s face until his rifle clicked with an empty chamber. Each round blew away a chunk of thick skull and fangs, but the monster wouldn’t go down.
“We’re out of rounds,” a weapons expert said.
“Go around the back,” said Alex. “Retreat.”
There wasn’t much left of the Bone Terror’s head – even parts of its brain were exposed – but it still stood and screamed at Alex.
Sergeant Hammer’s voice: “Any idiot knows a club never runs out of bullets.”
Alex held the shotgun by the barrel. He swung it like a baseball bat into the monster’s gaping maw and ducked.
This time the Bone Terror anticipated the move. Instead of swinging high, it scooped the ground and caught Alex’s bulletproof vest. It swung him in a wide arc and slammed him on the ground. His suit’s reflexive hardenings was the only thing that kept his bones from breaking.
It lifted him again when a chilling burst of wind shot up from right below them with enough force to take the Bone Terror off its feet. Sergeant Hammer’s words: “Armor doesn’t do a dead man any good, you dumbass.” Alex tugged at his vest’s straps but couldn’t get it off.
The gust of air ripped him free from the Bone Terror’s grasp and lifted him to the ceiling. A cyclone of dust and spent ammo appeared below him and cushioned his fall.
Jenny stood in front of the elevator. The Bone Terror regained its balance and screamed at her. She made a cone with her hands and threw bursts of wind against the monster.
The wind slowed the monster down but didn’t stop it from getting closer to Jenny.
Alex avoided the wind by staying directly behind the Bone Terror. When the beast was almost in punching distance of Jenny, Alex leapt on its back. He shoved his pistol into its flesh and pulled the trigger until it grabbed Alex and threw him across the lobby.
Alex rolled to his feet. The Bone Terror plodded towards Alex. It was slower and its breathing was labored. It was tired. Alex remembered seeing the monster look like that before it passed out.
The light fixtures fell from the walls. The glass shades and bulbs hit the ground simultaneously. Mounted machine guns pop out of the holes.
“Take cover,” Alex shouted.
The machine guns pointed at the Bone Terror as Alex dove behind the security desk. Jenny ran behind the elevator.
The machine guns opened fire on the Bone Terror. The monster screamed as it was reduced to a mess of twitching tissue. Only then did the overheated guns stop.
Alex came out from behind the desk. “Clear. We got him.”
Deon was at Alex’s side in a second. “That dude who got thrown broke his leg. He’s heading out.” He looked at the pile of tissue and viscera that was the Bone Terror. “Is that thing still alive?”
“It’ll regenerate and be uglier than ever,” Alex said as he put his bulletproof vest back on. “It’s come back from worse. Demolitions, shovel anything still moving into the back of our van. Jenny, where are you?”
Jenny came around the corner. Alex went to her, took off his helmet and hers, and whispered into her ear, “Don’t stop being a hero. You’re brave enough to face monsters, loyal enough to take orders, and smart enough to question leaders when they’re being stupid. I don’t care what anyone else says, you have what it takes to be one of the greats. The world needs you.”
Jenny smiled. Alex kissed her forehead and put her helmet back on.
Asura and the negotiators were on the other side of the elevator.
“We made a deal,” said a negotiator. “He stopped Plan Failsafe and told us Lady Amazing is in the bioscience lab with the Skreaks, Stardancer is in the penthouse with Le Parrain, and Rock Jock and Mind Dame are both with the Idea Man in Doctor Von Pyme’s lab.”
“Where’s Doctor Von Pyme?” asked Alex.
“Didn’t see him,” said Asura.
“We shut down power to the bioscience lab, so whatever the Skreaks are doing there they’re doing it with emergency generators, and sealed off the penthouse,” said the negotiator, “but something is blocking our efforts to depower Doctor Von Pyme’s research lab. Somehow the Idea Man gained enough hacking knowledge to take his system offline from the mainframe.”
“What does Asura get out of this?”
“I
get to walk away,” said Asura. “No charges, no hassles.”
“I don’t like this deal. He worked with our enemies. He’s practically a supervillain himself.”
“Our objective is to rescue hostages,” said the negotiator. “He helped.”
“Too bad, agent,” said Asura. “I outsmarted you at every step.” He pointed to Jenny and yelled, “See you in the funny papers, Panda Bear.”
Alex grit his teeth as Asura walked by the rest of the team as they came up the stairs. When Kayleigh walked past, he pinched her butt.
The reflexive fabric instantly tightened, holding his fingers in place for an instant.
Kayleigh spun around and slugged Asura. She hit him hard enough to knock him out if she didn’t have the extra five million volts from her stun gloves.
“Everyone saw that, right?” said Alex. “That was assault.”
“But he grabbed me,” said Kayleigh.
“And now we have an accusation. Agents, arrest Asura. Cuff him, book him, and have our guys outside run background checks until they find something else we can charge him with. When you’re done, we’re going to the bioscience lab.”
When the team reached the bioscience lab, Alex pointed his new assault shotgun at the door. “No plan. Go in there and open fire. Lady Amazing can withstand more bullets than we’ve got. Legally the Skreaks aren’t people and their presence here is an act of interplanetary war. Don’t worry about making arrests.”
“Watch the goat,” said Deon. “That one there in the cage near the door.”
A weapons expert said, “Take five, team leader. We got this.”
Alex wanted to refuse, but he also wanted to have enough energy to rescue Trista. He nodded and stepped back. “Deon, a medic never leaves a patient behind. Get Billy Two.”
“Right.” In a white flash Deon grabbed Billy Two and got him back to the stairway.
The weapons specialists and a psychic defense expert loaded their guns and entered the room. The Skreaks’ radiation machine still emitted an eerie pale green glow. It still glowed as the agents unloaded their assault carbines and shotguns. The Skreaks emitted high-pitched warbling shrieks over the percussive gunfire.
When the shooting ended, some of the agents screamed. “What is that thing?”
A voice barely recognizable as Charlene’s said, “Kooonnn … taaayyyy … jissss…”
Alex looked between the agent’s legs. He never would have guessed the moving mass of slimy misshapen flesh was his old teammate if didn’t have a few scattered locks of blond hair and the shredded remnants of the Lady Amazing costume.
“Did it just say ‘contagious?’” said the psychic defense expert.
Alex took off his helmet, pulled his hood over his face, and tapped a keypad near a glass door. “Anyone who went into the main room, in here, now.”
After the agents filed into the room, Alex pressed a button. A clear door with QUARANTINE written in big red letters fell and sealed itself.
“We can’t take any chances,” said Alex. “An alien virus could wipe out mankind. There’s MREs and water in there. They’ll get evaluated after the tower is secured.”
The agents screamed about betrayal as Alex ran back to the bioscience lab. He pressed a large red button against the wall. A clear plastic wall fell and bisected the room.
The creature formerly known as Lady Amazing put her hand against the plastic wall. Alex put his hand against hers. She shuttered and let out stuttered moan.
“Don’t give up, Charlene,” Alex lowered the hood and looked into the now uneven bloodshot eyes that still held the memories of his friend. “We’ll find a way to restore you.”
“It’s horrible to see her like this,” said Kayleigh. “She was my hero.” She put her hand on the glass. “Stay strong. Remember, you are Lady Amazing.”
Lady Amazing turned away and fell to the floor.
Deon looked down at Billy Two. “You think he’s okay? Should we be quarantined too?”
“I truly have no idea,” said Alex, “I can’t imagine the viruses spreading this far and jumping species, but these are alien viruses. We’ll shower in sanitizer before we leave. Who do I have left on my team?”
The weapons experts, demolitions experts, negotiators, and a psychic defense agent stepped forward.
“Only one left for psychic defense?”
“One’s shot and one’s in quarantine,” he said.
Alex locked the psychic nullifier on his own head. “There’s no turning back now. You, come with me. We’ll take the maintenance stairs to Doctor Von Dyme’s lab. Everyone else, take the west stairs to the penthouse office.”
“Wait,” said Steve. “I’ll help you get Pete.”
“Who’s Pete?” said the psychic defense agent.
“Rock Jock. He's my best friend.”
“This is going to get dangerous," said Alex. “You don’t have to put yourself at risk.”
“But I almost abandoned my friends once today. I don’t want to do it again. Please, Agent O’Farrell, I have an idea.”
“You’ll be a liability. What if the Idea Man takes over your mind and makes you attack us?”
“What’s the worst I could do, flash light? You can kick my ass with your eyes closed.”
Alex couldn’t argue with that. “Fair enough. Agents, bring back Stardancer. Jenny, support them as necessary. Kayleigh, punch anyone who gets too close. Deon, save everyone you can, but go easy with the painkillers for Le Parrain’s henchmen.”
Jenny saluted Alex. “Good luck, Agent O’Farrell.”
He saluted her back. “You’re one of the best I’ve ever fought alongside.”
Deon bumped fists with Alex. “Never thought I’d say this, but you’re a hell of a trainer.”
“You did all the work. I just shot goats.”
Kayleigh waved her stun glove. “You’re much cooler in real life than you are in the comics.”
Alex waved back but didn’t know what to say.
The teams took separate stairways to their destinations.
After walking up forty flights of stairs, Alex’s legs trembled with adrenaline, fear, and fatigue. He planned to lead three specifically trained agents against a familiar foe. Instead, he had one agent and an unprotected actor.
They were five flights from Doctor Von Dyme’s floor when the thundering footsteps came from above.
“It’s Pete,” said Steve.
Alex unslung his shotgun. The psychic defense agent turned the safety off of his carbine.
“No, don’t,” said Steve.
“It’s him or us,” said the agent.
“His skin is made of rocks,” said Steve. “He’s bulletproof.”
Rock Jock came into view. He kept running without hesitation.
“How do we take him down?” asked Alex.
“Let me try something,” said Steve.
Rock Jock jumped down the landing. He came down with enough force to shatter the tiles on the floor below him.
Pinwheel launched a blinding burst of light.
“Pete,” Steve shouted, “quit it!”
Alex pulled Steve back as Rock Jock swung blindly.
“You’re too in character,” Steve said. “Knock it off.”
Alex tried to think of how to fight something with few visible joints. At least Rock Jock was so lumbering that he couldn’t hit anything.
Steve hit Rock Jock with another burst of light “Remember you cues. You’re coming across as hammy. Tone it down.”
Rock Jock slowed down. “Hammy?”
“You acted like a fratboy at an improv class.”
Rock Jock looked at his hands and spoke in a much higher-pitched voice. “I never felt that in-character before.”
“It’s a wrap, big guy. Take a bow.”
“Yeah, I … it all felt right, but … that was weird. Thanks for the talk, Steve.”
“What just happened?” asked Alex. “Did you beat psychic control through actor coaching?”
�
��Psychic control is based on imposing a new identity on someone,” said Steve. “We actors become our roles by assuming a new personality. When we’re done, we leave it behind. It takes a lot of thinking and questioning who you are to do it.”
“Did you know that would work?”
“No, but I couldn’t abandon my best friend. I’m sorry, agent, but I must get him out of here.”
Steve and Pete walked down the stairs. Alex looked at the psychic defense agent. Both of them shrugged and continued up the stairs to Doctor Von Dyme’s floor.
“Remember,” Alex said, “I want Mind Dame apprehended alive.”
“Is wounded acceptable?” asked the agent.
“No.”
Under the stark fluorescent lights overhead, Alex felt the discordant energy that made the air feel thick and cold.
Alex and the agent walked carefully towards Doctor Von Dyme’s lab.
The lights went out.
Alex spun around. He heard the agent let out a muffled cry. He punched in that direction and hit something softer than the agent’s armor. Muffled footprints ran away.
The lights came back on. The agent’s helmet was off. He clutched his bloody neck.
Alex got his bandages out. “It’s not a deep wound. Stay with me.” He stuffed gauze into the wound and picked up the agent’s helmet.
The agent’s face turned to pure horror. His breath became rapid. “Get away. Go back under the bed.”
“Use your training, agent.”
The agent fired a single shot. Alex fell backwards as the round slammed against the ceramic plate in his bullet-proof vest. The agent yelled, “Mommy!” as he ran down the stairs.
Alex got back to his feet. He tapped the ceramic plate in its body armor. It was cracked, no longer effective as armor. He unstrapped it.
Glossy red lips made a kissing noise.
Alex turned.
Mind Dame stood in the hallway and smirked.
“We meet again, agent.”
“Trista, I came to save you.”
Mind Dame stood and spoke far differently than Trista.
“You look much smaller without your suit. Oh, wait, you hate it when people say suit, right? Your exoskeleton.”
The Prospects Page 23
