by Andy Briggs
Eric smiled. “You may not believe me, but because of the lack of those two attributes, we were betrayed by some heroes who broke away and formed the Council of Evil—”
“Heroes are running that?” Lorna exclaimed in surprise.
“Ex-heroes. From that point we knew it was dangerous to fully trust our own ranks. The traitors took the blueprints for Hero.com and the Council of Evil created Villain.net in direct opposition. But it wasn’t as good as the original.”
Pete let out a low whistle. “So heroes do become villains. Interesting.”
Eric stared into space as though recalling something. “It can happen with the best of friends.” He gave Toby a curious glance. “But that is something you wouldn’t yet know.”
What’s that supposed to mean? thought Toby. He wondered if the old man was going senile.
* * *
Having left the heroes with Commander Courage, Mr. Grimm drove the Land Cruiser to a building on the edge of the complex. Poised against the raging firewall was a squat bunker bedecked with satellite dishes. This was the main communication relay hub, and Commander Courage had asked him to discover what damage had been caused by Viral’s incursion.
Inside sat a technician named Johnston who was busy studying streams of code on the screens. Mr. Grimm looked around.
“Have the rest of the support staff been evacuated?”
Johnston didn’t look up. “Been relocated to the elemental subbases as a contingency in case we fail here.”
“And is that likely to happen?”
Johnston tapped the code on the screen. “The satellite’s off-line, but it hasn’t been destroyed. This is one doozy of a bug. It has put the network to sleep for the next four hours or so, then the whole thing’ll be back online as good as new. Just need to get this place pumping out the powers and we’re back in business.”
Mr. Grimm frowned. “Why would they attack the satellite, but not destroy it?”
“At a guess, they have no intention of destroying the Web site, just taking it over.”
“To use against the Council, no doubt,” mused Mr. Grimm.
Johnston looked at Mr. Grimm for the first time. “You think so?”
“Can you delay the system from coming back online?”
“Delay it? Why would I want to do that? We need the network on ASAP.”
“Basilisk and his team are almost here. I want to make sure that if they do seize control of this facility, then they won’t simply be waiting for the system to come back online.”
“Sure. I’ll get on it. But there’s so much other stuff in here that I can’t figure out …”
“I’m sure you will.” Mr. Grimm spun on his heels and exited. He had heard all he needed to. He left the building and straightened his tie.
It was useful information to pass on to the Council of Evil. He had long traded secrets to the Council in return for obscene amounts of money, and occasionally fed the Hero Foundation information too. He was a double agent, paid by the good guys to protect their interests and by the bad guys for information on the Foundation. He revealed nothing too problematic that would bring about the fall of either organization, such as the locations of their headquarters and substations, but just enough to maintain a healthy competitive balance between the two sides, and keep himself earning a living.
The Council had asked him to assist Basilisk’s final assault, which he had no intention of doing. Even less, now that he’d uncovered Basilisk’s true intentions. All Mr. Grimm now had to do was get out of the conflict zone.
A dull whump reverberated across the complex. Mr. Grimm’s hand was on the door of the Land Cruiser when he looked up. The firewall had gone out—leaving a clear view of nothing but sky beyond. An intruder alarm immediately sounded across the complex.
Mr. Grimm felt a tingle of panic as he realized that the virus Basilisk had inserted into the satellite system had just lowered the shield, leaving the Foundation wide open to attack before he could leave.
Four figures materialized on the deck, striding out of the expansive folds of Trojan’s cape. Before Mr. Grimm could open the car door, an energy blast slammed into the vehicle and knocked it over—leaving him holding nothing but a broken door handle.
“You will not be needing that, Grimm,” shouted Basilisk. “This place is mine now.”
“Basilisk, an unexpected pleasure—,” began Mr. Grimm in passive tones.
“Shut up! I never liked your double-dealings when I was with the Council. And I certainly have no need for you now.”
Johnston appeared at the door of the communications bunker, eating from a large bag of chips.
“What’s all the noise … ?”
He trailed off when he saw the four villains. He tried to turn and run but Viral hurled a ball of smoke at him. Johnston fell as the black mist enveloped his head. He began choking, clawing at his throat as welts appeared across his face. He coughed helplessly until he finally died.
It was such a spectacle that the others had taken their eyes off Mr. Grimm. It was just enough of a distraction for him to make an attempt at freedom. Grimm disliked confrontation, and was a coward at heart, which was why he had abandoned the young Downloaders at Diablo Island. He took to the air, and immediately transformed. His face became gaunt, almost skeletal, and he zoomed through the air like a ghost—an aspect of his power that had given him his alter ego.
Basilisk launched in pursuit, ordering the others to access the Foundation’s computers through the communications bunker.
Basilisk and Grimm skimmed at high speeds through the myriad glass cylinders, toward the Foundation’s central buildings. Basilisk realized that Grimm wanted to take refuge in there, but it was too close for him to be able to open a portal to escape—that power only worked over long distances. Basilisk fired an energy blast that went wide—fracturing one of the canisters. Almost immediately the glutinous superpowers within seeped out; Basilisk narrowly avoided getting splattered.
Grimm weaved his way through the complex, ducking under and over high-pressure pipes in a valiant attempt to shake Basilisk. But the supervillain was too quick for him.
Basilisk took the initiative and raced ahead of Grimm’s position. As he had anticipated, Grimm changed direction when he couldn’t see Basilisk pursuing—then Basilisk swooped like a hawk.
Grimm was brought up short as Basilisk blocked his path. Startled, Grimm unleashed a sonic blast at him. The sound wave was visible as it erupted from Grimm’s mouth and pounded into Basilisk like a fist. The villain was pitched through the air and the sound wave shattered two more of the chemical vats around Basilisk, the superpowers merging like a rainbow on the deck floor, hissing as they violently reacted with one another. Basilisk was desperate not to get any of the liquid on himself.
Mr. Grimm looked around and was relieved to find that Basilisk had vanished. He turned to flee and was surprised to see the villain hovering right behind him. Grimm didn’t even have time to make a sound—Basilisk’s eyes glowed brighter than ever, his powers stronger than they had been in the last fourteen years now that he had rejuvenated himself with Pete’s DNA.
Grimm raised his hand—which turned to stone. He screamed, then opened a portal and slipped away from danger. He was injured and this was no longer his fight.
Viral studied the computer system in the communications bunker.
“It looks like we can access everything from here. Worm, do the honors.”
“Shouldn’t we wait for Basilisk?”
There was a twinkle in Viral’s eye. “Nah. I’m beginning to get the impression Stone Head has a plan he’s not telling us. I’ll infect the system with a little backup for us, just in case he ever thinks he doesn’t need us.”
Eric Kirby closed his eyes when the sirens went off; it was as if he was seeing the events in his mind’s eye.
“Basilisk, Trojan, Viral, and Worm. The gang is all here.”
“This is it,” said Toby. “The final fight.” He was surprised that he wasn’t frighten
ed. During the flight to Mongolia he’d had time to think. He nodded to his friend. “Pete was right. We’ve been disorganized. Greedily taking whatever superpowers we thought were cool. But not this time. Now we work together. What do you think, Pete? Best way to handle this?”
Pete was surprised by Toby’s question. Toby had never asked his opinion about a mission before.
“Er … there’s four of them, four of us—an even fight. We know their capabilities, so let’s try to figure out how to counter some of them.”
“Aren’t you forgetting that Hero.com is off-line?” said Emily. “We don’t have any more powers.”
Eric stood and expanded his hands. “This is the home of Hero.com. There is no need for you to access the Internet here. This time they come straight from the source.” He winked as he booted up a computer. “And they pack a punch!”
Basilisk joined his companions outside the communications bunker.
“Grimm has fled.”
“I hate that creep,” said Trojan. “I saw him at a few of the Council parties. Never trusted him.”
“Viral, how long before the satellite is back online?”
“Four hours. The virus I created didn’t all go through, so I can’t bring it back when I want. We have to sit it out.”
“Very well. Now the last phase. There was no provision for an enemy getting this far; the Foundation deemed it an impossible task. We know the Council is keeping the Enforcers busy, so this city is ours for the taking. Once we seize the control center”—he pointed to the towers in the hub—“then it’s game over. Take no prisoners. Show no mercy.”
“Giving sermons as ever, huh?”
Basilisk turned around to see Pete hovering in the air, grinning.
Basilisk snarled. “You just won’t die, will you?”
“You first!” said Pete as he extended both hands, multiple laser blasts shooting from his fingers. Basilisk reacted just in time and summoned a small shield to deflect them.
Viral and Trojan both took their battle stances, but before they could do anything, Toby and Emily appeared on either side of them with a thunderclap, and unleashed their freshly gained powers.
A large bubble formed around Viral and swept him off his feet—just as he unleashed a viral agent that only polluted the air within his transparent cell, causing him to cough and gag.
Emily shot forward at superspeed and delivered some twenty punches to Trojan in a single second. The villain only had fleeting glimpses of a fist smashing her stomach, then her chin and ribs in rapid succession. She fell under the onslaught.
Worm backpedaled away, thinking he could escape. Lorna blocked his path and tutted.
“And where do you think you’re going, short stuff?”
She hurled a set of glowing darts from her fingertips. But Worm reacted with surprising speed. He collapsed into a pile of earthy granules, which flowed around Lorna’s feet and reformed into Worm in the blink of an eye.
Lorna’s energy darts slammed into the back of Basilisk. He dropped to his knees in agony as they exploded, shredding his cloak.
Pete landed and grabbed Basilisk around the throat.
“After what you did to me, I’ll definitely show no mercy!” he snarled. He had super-strength, so when Basilisk’s huge stone hands gripped Pete’s arms to pull him away, he resisted. Basilisk’s hood slipped off and Pete gaped at what he saw. Even misshapen and scarred, he could recognize his own features.
“What—?”
Pete was distracted enough for Basilisk to lunge forward and head-butt him. He staggered back, and didn’t see the right hook Basilisk delivered. The blow lifted Pete off his feet, and he smashed through two separate power-holding tanks. The colorful gloop cascaded out, covering him.
Toby quickly surveyed the battle and was alarmed to see Pete knocked down. Trojan had hidden beneath her cape and Emily’s punches were now useless. He glanced around to see Lorna.…
She was being yanked off her feet by Worm. Like a wrestler, he held Lorna over his head, then body-slammed her against the deck. She skidded, winded—and then rolled off the edge of the platform!
Looking over the edge, Toby could see nothing but the clouds and mountain ranges below. He took a step toward Worm and was about to unleash a fireball when Lorna reappeared, leaping back on the platform and surprising Worm. She pointed beyond Toby.
“Tobe! Behind!”
He spun to see that Viral had beaten his way out of the energy bubble, which sagged around him like plastic sheeting.
“Nice try, kid. But you’re no match for me. How about a little Ebola?” He puckered his lips and a green mist blew out, straight at Toby. But Toby had been prepared, and ensured he’d downloaded powers to tackle the flying infection.
Toby breathed in a lungful of air—then blew out with such force it was as if a whirlwind had struck Viral. The mist flew back into the villain’s face, and he was plucked from his feet and smashed into a network of steel valves and pipes behind him.
Meanwhile, Basilisk flew over Pete, who was spitting out the thick, superpowered liquid.
Basilisk laughed. “That stuff will hurt, much more than this.” He shot an energy blast at Pete, and the boy was hurled backward into another glass tank that fractured as the pressure was disrupted.
Toby ran after Viral but was floored as a plasma discus smacked into the side of his head. His vision blurred, but he could just make out Trojan crouching on a set of pipes. She hurled another plasma blast, which painfully struck his back. He hit the deck and saw that Emily was also on the floor, out for the count.
Toby gritted his teeth because of the pain. It seemed they were losing against the more experienced villains.
Worm stood over Lorna as she struggled to get her breath back. He pressed his foot against her throat, choking her. “In my day, girls knew that their place was to be unseen and silent!”
“Let her go!”
Worm’s eyes grew as wide as saucers. He didn’t have to look to know whose voice that was. “As I live and breathe! Commander Courage!”
Eric Kirby was standing calmly on the deck, both hands resting on his cane. “I thought I’d seen the last of you.”
Worm was genuinely shocked to see how his nemesis had aged. “Commander, you look … so old. I think you did me a favor leaving me in suspended animation for all those years. I look much better than you.”
“You couldn’t look better than me, even if I were dead!”
The two adversaries circled one another. Lorna rubbed her throat, unable to say a word. But she knew the old man didn’t stand a chance. Eric Kirby unsheathed a long sword blade hidden inside his cane and swished it expertly through the air. Worm retaliated by extending long thin claws from the fingertips of one hand—four blades against one.
They clashed in a whirl of claws and steel. Eric Kirby was still as nimble as an Olympic gymnast. He somersaulted over Worm’s head as the villain charged—causing him to run headfirst into a set of steel pipes.
Basilisk glanced at the fight behind him, and assumed he was winning with the three kids down. He turned back, just as Pete leaped to the air like a jack-in-the-box, dripping an assortment of liquid powers that were burning his skin. His glasses had been knocked aside, but remarkably he could see perfectly.
“You’re going down!” he bellowed at Basilisk.
Pete spread his arms wide and his entire body glowed with an intense silver light—a shock wave rippled out, sending Basilisk reeling to the ground; a glass tank cushioned his fall as it shattered.
Pete burned like a supernova, forcing Worm and Eric Kirby to shield their eyes. It was enough of a distraction for Worm, who blindly lunged, cutting Kirby across his chest. The old man staggered backward.
Worm followed it with a backstroke. Kirby parried the blow and delivered a devastating swing that cleaved Worm in half.
Lorna had been watching in fascination and grimaced, expecting a lot of blood. Instead she blinked in surprise.
Worm was stil
l alive.
The villain looked at his two halves in despair. Amazingly a brand-new lower torso formed on one half—and a duplicate upper torso on the other. It was like watching a balloon expand as the second-Worm’s features slowly formed.
Then the two duplicates stared at each other and laughed.
“Two against one,” they both said simultaneously. “Time for revenge!”
Eric Kirby was too astonished to defend himself as eight claws slashed at him.
“No!” screamed Lorna, and she unleashed powerful energy darts from both hands that smashed into the duplicate villains.
At the moment Trojan was about to finish Toby off, the blinding flash from Pete caught her attention. Without a moment to lose, Toby blew his hurricane breath straight into Trojan. It caught her cape and lifted her backward against a storage tank. The glass cracked but didn’t break.
Toby followed it up with a fireball that smashed across her chest and shattered the glass behind her. Trojan was lost in the wall of liquid powers, but Toby could see her arms waving as she battled to stay afloat. The liquid flooded the deck like a tidal wave.
Toby suddenly felt a new wave of energy. He was the group’s leader; he couldn’t let the villains win this one. They had suffered failure time and time again as Basilisk or his cronies had slipped through their fingers, kidnapped Pete, and now infiltrated the Hero Foundation headquarters.
He struggled to his feet, looking around at his battling friends. “Come on! Fight them! We can win this! We are heroes!”
Lorna felt surprisingly motivated by Toby’s battle cry and tore her gaze from the Worm duo to assess the situation. She noticed that Emily was lying unconscious in the path of the tidal wave.
“Em!”
The wave scooped her up and dragged her toward the edge. Lorna leaped into the air and raced forward—plucking Emily out just as she reached the rim. She watched helplessly as Trojan was swept off, limbs flailing as she fell into the clouds.
Basilisk shrieked in pain as the liquid superpowers burned his skin. He knew high dosages were dangerous, even to Primes. He had seen what moderate quantities had done to Jake Hunter, his old protégé, but Pete was practically swimming in them—absorbing the raw, undigitized powers through every pore in his skin.
