by Stan Lee
The ship began to vibrate and hum. A flat plate, shaped like a square with the corners clipped, rose up and out of the ship’s hull. It started to glow.
“Oh, no,” Duane said. “I think that’s a—”
Steven didn’t hear the rest. Suddenly his skin felt like it was on fire, burning from the inside out. He looked down at his arm, expecting to see flames. But there was no trace of a fire, no marks at all.
Steven, Roxanne, and Kim were flailing around in pain. “What is it?!” Roxanne screamed.
“A.D.S.,” Duane replied, grimacing. He pointed at the glowing plate on the ship. “Active Denial System—commonly known, for obvious reasons, as a heat ray. The U.S. military uses it for riot control.”
“What’ll it do to us?” Kim asked.
“Nothing permanent. Except stop us in our tracks…”
Steven closed his eyes, concentrating as hard as he could. His Tiger form began to rise up around him, flaring with power. But then it wavered and vanished.
The pain, he thought, it’s too strong. We can’t concentrate enough to use our powers!
He looked around. Duane and Kim were on their knees now, teeth gritted in agony. Roxanne backed up, through the thick dust cloud, toward the cave wall. Liam was still on his feet, but just barely.
Steven’s lapel-radio crackled to life. “—you hear me?”
He jumped. He’d forgotten the tiny radios that Carlos had issued to them.
“Jasmine?” he replied.
“I can’t see you,” she said. “You’re on the other side of the ship. What’s going on? Are you all right?”
“We’re under attack,” he said. “Are you feeling the…the heat ray, too?”
“We can feel something, but it’s much weaker over here. Must be unidirectional.” She paused. “Carlos says it’s a clever way to attack you. He wishes he’d thought of it.”
“I wish he’d thought of it, too!”
Steven looked up. Through the haze, he thought he saw something else moving on the hull of the Vanguard ship. Was it…a hatch, opening?
“I gotta go, Jasmine.”
“Do you see Maxwell?” Jasmine asked.
“No. No, I do not see Maxwell.” Steven couldn’t keep the irritation out of his voice.
“Steven, I can’t help you right now. I have to help Carlos start the power-drain procedure.”
“Okay.”
“And Steven? I’m sorry. I should have told you the plan.”
“Yeah, okay. Later!”
The dust blew toward him now, obscuring the ship. Steven coughed and reached out for Duane, wincing with every move. He felt as if his insides were on fire.
“Duane,” he said, “see if you can get near the ship, take out that heat ray.”
Duane looked up, tears of pain in his eyes. “Okay,” he said, “b-but Carlos said the Vanguard tech was shielded.”
“Just try!”
“But my power—”
“Duane?” Steven grabbed him by both shoulders and stared into his frightened eyes. “This is one time we want your power to disrupt something.”
Duane smiled quickly. He coughed, nodded, and disappeared into the dust.
Steven whirled around toward the others—and found himself staring straight into the grim face of Ox.
Ox’s massive fist lashed out. Steven ducked back, dodging sideways. He reached into the pocket of his cargo pants and pulled out a small electronic staff, a tiny version of the one Carlos had used to repel the Vanguard team back in Greenland. Steven clicked it on and a beam of yellow energy reached forward to engulf Ox.
“Remember this?” Steven said.
Ox just smiled. “Yeah,” he said, “but we’re shielded from it now. Along with the heat ray.”
Steven barely saw the next punch. It slammed him backward, knocking him to the ground. He hit it hard, coughing dust. His skin still burned like fire.
Well, he told himself, we expected that. Still, it’d be nice to catch a break once in a while.
With an effort, he shook his head and looked up. Roxanne lay on the ground, with Horse kneeling over her. Just past them, Liam and Ox circled each other like boxers. He couldn’t see Kim. She must have poofed away.
Under other circumstances, Steven realized, it might have been a fair fight. But Horse and Ox were both fully powered up, their energy forms blazing around them. Liam and Roxanne were trying to use their powers, but the heat ray made it impossible for them to concentrate. A spectral Ram shape flickered in the air above Liam, while a fierce Rooster struggled to stay corporeal around Roxanne’s helpless form.
They’ve got us, Steven realized. They’ve planned for this…planned for everything. Everything except…
“We’re going to need every trick,” Carlos had said on the plane. “Every edge we can muster.”
Steven squeezed his eyes shut, willing the pain away. He reached inside and forced the reluctant Tiger out of its cage. It radiated forth, seeking out others of its kind. Seeking its friends, its allies.
Its teammates.
Steven bolted toward Roxanne, reaching out with his hand. The Tiger power radiated forward, ahead of him. Energy flashed through the air, expanding and billowing outward.
When Steven’s energy touched Roxanne, her eyes burned with sudden fire. The Rooster form flared up above her, its beak snapping furiously. Roxanne threw Horse away, breaking the Vanguard agent’s powerful grip. Then she opened her mouth wide.
A fierce, powerful scream burst forth, stronger than any cry Roxanne had ever managed before. It struck the startled Horse head-on, enveloping her in an unimaginable blast of sound. Horse cried out and raised her hands to her ears. She staggered backward, colliding hard against the hull of the Vanguard ship.
Steven saw his chance and swung, punching Horse hard on the side of the head. She went down.
He held out a hand to Roxanne. She looked at him, dazed, for a moment. Then she extended her hand and let him help her up.
“Thanks,” she said, coughing and holding her throat.
“You with us?” he asked.
She nodded, her face grim.
Then she turned, very fast, and pushed Steven aside. He turned, surprised, to see Ox charging toward them. Roxanne ducked her head low and cried out.
Her sonic blast struck Ox on his feet, knocking him off-balance. Steven saw his chance and leapt through the air. Ox twisted and tried to regain his footing, but he stumbled and went down.
Steven landed on top of him, punching and kicking with the full force of the Tiger. Don’t let him get the advantage, Steven thought. Learn from your mistakes. Don’t give him a chance!
The battle raged for several minutes. Ox was muscular—every time one of his blows connected, Steven felt it in his bones. But Steven was faster. He landed two punches for every one of Ox’s.
Finally he heard a voice in his ear: “Cannonball!”
Steven looked up to see Liam leaping through the air. Steven held up a hand, sending Tiger energy surging into Liam. The Ram form whirled and rolled along with Liam, its spectral horns slicing the air. Steven’s energy flashed into him, supercharging his power, lighting him up like a full moon.
At the last minute, Steven rolled out of the way.
Liam landed on top of Ox with the full force of his steel-hard skin. Ox let out a loud gasp and went limp.
Liam rolled to his feet. “How about that,” he said, smiling easily. “Immovable object wins after all.”
Steven pointed toward the heat-ray projector, still glowing atop the Vanguard ship. “We’ve got to take that thing out,” he said.
Liam reached for Ox’s limp form. “How ’bout we use this?”
Steven nodded sharply. He took hold of Ox’s arms, while Liam grabbed the big man’s feet. Roxanne hefted his middle, and together they hurled him toward the ship.
Ox traveled two feet through the air and fell short, landing on the ground with a thud. He groaned faintly.
Roxanne gestured at the uncon
scious Horse. “Maybe something lighter?”
One minute later, Horse’s body slammed into the heat-ray beam. The projector cracked, sparked, and split in half. One section hung loose off the ship, while the other clattered to the ground.
All at once, the pain was gone. Steven exhaled in relief, shaking out his limbs. “Vanguard does have the best toys,” he said.
“Maybe.” Liam smiled. “But I always used to break my toys.”
“S-Steven?”
Kim’s voice sounded scared over the radio. Steven whipped his head around, searching for her. “On our way!” he yelled. He took off at a run, with Liam and Roxanne right behind.
The Vanguard ship’s entrance had piled up a mound of rock against the zodiac statues. Steven zigzagged around it and stopped short. Dog, the third Vanguard agent, stood braced against the rock pile, holding Kim tight in a vise-like grip.
“He’s got me,” Kim said. “I, I can’t jump if I can’t move!”
Liam gritted his teeth and started forward. But Steven grabbed him by the shoulder. “No,” Steven said. “Like we practiced. Roxanne?”
Roxanne sucked in a deep breath and charged forward. As she drew near Dog, she let out a series of sonic cries. Steven tensed—but this time, Roxanne’s assault seemed to be silent. Steven couldn’t hear anything at all.
Dog could, however. He let go of Kim and whirled toward Roxanne, grabbing at his ears. He began to howl in agony.
“I’ll be a wart on my grandma’s nose,” Liam said. “That trick works.”
“Ultrasonic cries,” Steven said. “Too high-pitched for humans to hear. But dogs…”
Dog dropped to his knees, making a weak, high-pitched noise.
Liam clapped Steven on the back. “You’re up, mate.”
Steven charged forward, willing the Tiger power to come forth. It filled his arms, his legs, his senses. When he reached Roxanne, she backed up a step, making way for him. Dog turned, confused.
Steven leapt onto his back.
Dog reared back, howling. He reached out to grab hold of Kim. And, despite her instincts, Kim stayed put, knowing that she had to keep Dog from sprinting away. Steven grabbed him around the neck, clamping an arm around his windpipe. Dog started running, leaping around, bucking and jumping—anything that might throw Steven off his back. But the Tiger’s grip was unbreakable.
Steven tugged on Dog’s ear. The Vanguard agent let out a yip and turned in that direction.
“Huh,” Steven said. “Steering’s a little sticky…”
“What do you know?” Liam yelled. “Yer too young to drive!” He stepped forward and gave Steven a “Bring it on” gesture.
Steven pulled on Dog’s other ear, hard. Dog spun around and took off at a run, yelping and howling. Steven held on, held on, held on…then leapt away just as Dog slammed into Liam at full speed.
At the moment of impact, Liam flew backward. Dog bounced up in the other direction, high into the air.
At the top of Dog’s arc, Kim appeared in midair with a soft poof. “Remember me?” she asked. She punched him on the nose as hard as she could, then poofed away again.
Dog’s eyes rolled back into his head. By the time he crashed to the ground, he was unconscious.
Steven ran to Liam and Roxanne. “Everybody in one piece?” he asked.
“Safe as houses,” Liam said. He wasn’t even breathing hard.
Before Steven could answer, Kim poofed in and grabbed all three of them, pulling them in for a group hug. Steven was startled, and Roxanne tried to pull away.
But Kim held on tight. “This is happening, guys,” she said. “I got feels!”
“What the heck,” Roxanne said. “I guess we earned this.”
Steven felt a sense of pride stronger than anything he’d ever felt before. They really were a team, now.
Then Roxanne pulled away, pointing toward the Vanguard ship. “Is, um, is that supposed to be happening?”
A bright glow was rising up over the nose of the ship, piercing the settling dust. Steven’s heart beat faster as he recognized the shape within the glow: a shifting, shimmering Dragon.
Kim frowned. “Is it another heat ray?
“Or…” Roxanne grimaced. “…Maxwell?”
“No—it looks like Jasmine’s Dragon,” Steven said. “I think she’s activated Carlos’s machine.”
Liam started off around the ship. “Well, let’s go then. We better make sure no bloody rocks fall on her.”
But Steven frowned and thumbed his radio on. “Duane?” he called. “Where are you?”
No answer. That’s not good, Steven thought. There might be more Vanguard agents in the ship.
We’ve got to go after him. I can’t abandon a team member—
Then a second, bright light caught Steven’s eye. It was coming from the very center of the ceiling, directly above the Vanguard ship. As he watched, it grew stronger, almost blindingly bright. A white-hot opening began to appear in the rock, stretching upward farther than he could see.
Liam pointed up at the hole. “That,” he said slowly, “was not there before.”
“And it’s melty,” Roxanne added. “Melty bad.”
Kim turned to him. “Steven? What do we do?”
Steven looked up at the blinding light, then down to the glow emanating from Jasmine’s Dragon. Two problems, both demanding immediate attention.
And then there was Duane.
Another decision, Steven thought. And this time, I better choose right.
JOSIE STUMBLED through the narrow, curved passageway inside the Vanguard ship, past the branching doors leading to the drill-control and weapons chambers. She punched the wall and swore softly—she couldn’t believe this group of children had gotten the better of her again.
“Such language,” said an oily voice from up ahead. Josie recognized it immediately: Thiago, the Rat.
Josie grunted and eased her way down into the main cockpit. It was cramped, but just large enough to hold the motley group that confronted her. Vincent, the Monkey, sat in the pilot’s seat, speaking intensely in a low monotone. Next to him stood Celine, the Snake. She turned, her one visible eyebrow rising at Josie’s entrance.
A smirking Thiago stood up to face Josie directly. “You combat team guys aren’t making out so good, are you?” He reached down to the floor and grabbed Duane, the Zodiac’s Pig, by the hair, holding him like a trophy. “I did my part. Knocked this guy right out.”
“I could have just hypnotized him,” Celine said. “That is my power, you know.”
“I used my gas gun. More fun.” Still holding Duane, Thiago pulled out a high-tech sidearm and squeezed a puff of gas into the air. “Pleasant oaky bouquet, too.”
Josie frowned. She didn’t like Thiago, and though she hated to admit it, she was a little frightened of Celine. The two of them made up the Vanguard Black Ops team, and Maxwell had assured Josie they were all on the same side. But Thiago was creepy and sadistic, while Celine seemed cold and unpredictable.
Josie turned toward the pilot’s seat and gestured at Vincent—who, she could now see, was talking continuously into a cell phone. “What’s he doing?”
“Status report,” Celine said. “He’s all business now, our Monkey.”
Josie looked at her, a bit surprised. Was that a note of worry in Celine’s voice?
Vincent tapped at a touchscreen, and another screen lit up with an image of Steven reaching out to share power with Roxanne. “Preliminary findings: targets manifesting previously unseen cooperative capabilities,” Vincent said. He tapped again, and three portraits appeared with big red Xs through them: Nicky, Josie, and Malik. “Agents one through three neutralized.”
“Hey,” Josie protested.
Vincent turned and seemed to notice her for the first time. He showed no reaction, but turned immediately back to his report. “Agents one and three neutralized,” he corrected. “Agent two…damaged.”
Thiago snickered. “Damaged,” he said, pointing at Josie. “Tha
t’s you.”
Despite her fear—and her aching muscles—Josie clenched a fist and turned toward Thiago. He flinched and shoved Duane’s body away, toward the corner of the cockpit.
Vincent looked up, surprised, as Duane’s unconscious form slid by him. Vincent looked slightly confused.
“That man,” Vincent said, pointing at Duane. “Do I know him?”
Josie turned to Vincent, incredulous. “You fought him,” she said. “Two days ago.”
“Oh, yes. I was different then.” A look of contempt stole across Monkey’s face. “I was a fool.”
Josie frowned. Vincent had been boastful and arrogant for as long as she’d known him, constantly butting into other people’s business. But ever since his private meeting with Maxwell, all that had changed. Josie knew she should be happy—the “old” Vincent had been incredibly irritating. But when she looked at the cruel smile on the new model’s face, a chill ran up her spine.
If I disobey orders, Josie thought, I expect to be disciplined. A week of menial-labor duty, a demotion, maybe even imprisonment. But Maxwell has done more than that—he’s changed Vincent’s entire personality. Is Maxwell really that powerful?
And if so—what’s to stop him from altering all our minds?
Vincent kicked at Duane’s body, just enough to make the teenager groan. “The Pig,” Vincent said. “I remember him now. Payback is coming.”
Thiago laughed. “I like the way you think, Monkey Boy.”
Then Thiago’s whole body stiffened up. He looked around, his eyes wild, as if he were caught in a mousetrap.
“What is it?” Celine asked. “What do you see?”
Thiago’s beady eyes darted toward Celine, then Vincent, and finally Josie. He stared for a long time at Duane’s limp form, his eyes blinking rapidly.
He can sense things, Josie remembered. That’s the Rat’s power: intuition, maybe even foresight. Can he actually see the future?
Thiago turned to look down the short passageway toward the ship’s outer hatch. The hatch was out of view, around a bend. Thiago opened his mouth and spoke two words, too quietly for Celine to hear.
“What?” Celine frowned. “What did you say?”
