“I didn’t,” he said. “But I wonder what this ‘self-destruct’ button does.”
Steve saw Darcy’s eyes get real wide.
“It’s a joke,” he told her.
“Right,” she said. “Of course.”
They kept plowing through the ground at a steady rate, maybe for twenty minutes, when the drill tank punched through a layer of stone and fell into an open cavern.
“We’re going down!” said Steve’s dad.
Nora and Steve’s mom used the spell of windy winds on themselves and everyone in the tank, pinning them all against the ceiling in a cocoon of wind.
The tank landed hard on its side. Steve felt like he was on the world’s worst rollercoaster. His stomach was churning and his head was spinning.
Darcy helped him to his feet, and his parents made sure they all got out of the ruined vehicle. Maybe two hundred feet above them, there was a crack in the cavern that must have been along the surface, because beams of moonlight were filtering through.
They heard the approach of another drill tank. He knew, without a doubt, that it was Drogar pursuing them. He would have bet his entire collection of smoke bombs that it would be her. What could they do to get away from her?
Sure enough, the drill tank appeared, though it stopped before it would have plummeted to the ground. The cockpit opened and Drogar got out.
“I would prefer to let my father be the one to get rid of you,” she said. “But I guess I’ll do it.”
She dug down beneath her tank and clawed her way out of a tunnel so that she arrived right in front of them.
“You can’t beat all of us,” said Steve’s dad.
“Yes I can,” said Drogar, blocking as Nora threw a shuriken at her.
There was a low growl from the shadows. Steve glanced over and saw a tall, dark form loping toward them. And another. And another.
“Bear-wolves,” said Steve.
It was then that he noticed the cubs hanging back.
“Is that…?” he said.
“Is that what?” said Drogar.
“I think those are the bear-wolf cubs we rescued earlier,” he said.
The bear-wolves stepped into the moonlight. Fog began rolling off of them and their giant wolf forms became giant gray-and-black bear forms.
Now they were all larger than Drogar.
Paws the size of basketballs. Claws the size of throwing knives. Teeth the size of…
“Why are some of their teeth so small? They’re like kernels of corn,” said Steve.
“They’re omnivores,” said Nora, looking pale. “In bear form, they eat berries and meat, so some of their teeth are sharp for tearing, while others don’t need to be.”
“That’s berry interesting,” said Steve’s dad, “but it’s time to get out of here.”
The bear-wolf cubs yipped. The adults growled.
They stampeded right past Steve, and they attacked Drogar all at once.
Steve’s mom led the way forward, the sounds of the fight fading behind them. The cave passage soon turned completely dark. Steve held his hand in front of his eyes and couldn’t even tell that it was there.
“We need light,” said Steve’s dad.
Darcy’s ghost fire danced along her fingertips. It cast deep shadows across everyone’s faces. When she looked at Steve, a horrified expression crept across her face.
“It’s a spider, isn’t it?” asked Steve.
He turned around.
“Boo,” said Three.
DARCY
Before Darcy could say anything, Steve’s mom was on the offensive. She swung her baseball bat. Three reached up and blocked it with his forearm. He didn’t budge.
“Clara,” he said, sliding out of the way of her next swing, “why are we doing this?”
“I’m doing this for Vanessa.” Steve’s mom then performed what Darcy would have called “the spell of the octopus.” Her two arms became eight and Darcy had no idea if they were real or merely illusions.
When all of them struck Three at the same time, she got a definitive answer.
Three stumbled right into Ninja Steve’s dad, who struck him in the back of the knees with his bat. Three lost his footing, but before he could hit the ground, a puddle of glowing ones and zeroes swallowed him up. When he next appeared, he had a hand on Darcy’s back.
“Don’t touch me,” said Darcy.
“You’re all overreacting,” he said. “So, in order to make sure we all calm down, I’m going to suggest we all stay very, very still for a little while. I’m here to help you, as long as you are willing to hand me the Nexus key.”
“We don’t have it,” said Darcy. “Drogar destroyed everything in the storage tubes before we could figure out which one was the key.”
His grip tightened on Darcy’s shoulder, digging into her skin. “That’s not true. The vision showed that you all would arrive here with the Nexus key.”
“I’m telling the truth,” said Darcy. “And I told you not to touch me.”
She felt no fear of Three. Having seen Steve’s parents actually land attacks on him had shown her that Three wasn’t invincible. Right here, right now, they had a chance of defeating him and maybe, finally, getting some answers about what he was doing.
His hand didn’t move.
“You warned him,” said Toran.
Darcy’s entire body radiated with ghost fire. Three’s gloved hand burst alight. He flung the glove off before the fire could consume him, too.
The glove hit the cave floor. It bubbled and melted.
Three’s exposed hand gave off a dull glow. Darcy recognized it immediately. It was chromega, just like her dagger. There was a difference, however, because Three wiggled his metallic fingers.
“You’re a cyborg,” said Darcy.
“Maybe,” said Three.
Darcy let out a deep breath, and the fire dimmed and flowed back over her body until it was only coating her left hand once again.
“You’re in our way, Hiro,” said Steve’s dad.
“I’m here to help with that,” he said. “I’m your quickest way back. Accept my offer and give me the key. I’ll have you back in Ninjastoria immediately.”
“She told you the truth,” said Steve’s dad. “We saw Drogar destroy everything. You should open a portal so you can see for yourself.”
Three fixed his mask in place with his chromega hand. He crossed his arms.
“Did you investigate your file before you left?” he asked Darcy.
Darcy said nothing.
“Did you find any useful information, like I told you that you would?” he asked.
Steve’s mom spoke up. “Don’t believe that, Marcy. Everyone from the bureau is going to have interesting info in their files.”
She had a point. There was always going to be something mysterious in an agent’s files. It was like when people wrote horoscopes: if you provided vague predictions, at least one of them was bound to come true.
“Fine,” said Three. “My offer is gone. Best of luck finding your way back.”
His watch spilled out glowing numbers and he descended into them. They were left in the tunnel, Darcy’s ghost light flickering.
Darcy said, “I keep running into him, but no one will help me figure out what he wants.”
There was a silence in the cave.
Steve’s mom said, “We have no idea what Hiro really wants. All we know is that after Vanessa went mad from using too many level four spells, he followed her out of Ninjastoria. The next time we saw him, it was years later. He was wearing that mask, using that watch. It’s a blend of bureau tech and ninja technique that he created himself. Or maybe Vanessa created it.”
Darcy couldn’t imagine someone like Three taking orders from anyone, let alone a person who had gone insane. Why would he have followed her?
Steve’s dad picked up. “There are several legendary level four spells that dwarf the rest. Our best guess is that Hiro and Vanessa are still seeking them out. Wheth
er or not they intend to use them is beyond the point, because no one is even sure that any of them actually exist.”
Darcy looked over at Steve and Nora.
Steve said, “How come nobody has been trying to stop them?”
“We are, constantly,” said Steve’s mom. “We can’t tell you much about the efforts, though, because doing so would endanger the other missions.”
“So how are we going to get out of here?” asked Darcy.
Another glowing puddle of ones and zeroes appeared. Three rose up through them.
“I have a new idea,” said Three.
STEVE
“You’re really annoying,” Steve told Three.
Three didn’t respond to Steve. Instead, he held up a watch that looked identical to the one his own wrist. He reached out toward Steve and his family.
“This watch has the same portal capabilities as mine, which I’m sure you’ll find useful. In fact, the tech is based on what I learned about Ninja Princess Tamika’s level four travel scroll. The upside is that it won’t corrupt your brain like the spell will,” Three said. “It was going to be a gift for Two, but I want to try this, instead.”
Steve stared at the watch. Was it possible? Portal travel without a huge risk? He wanted to believe it. Something told him, however, that anything Three gave to anyone was most likely a trap. Still, the thought of being able to go anywhere was a powerful one.
“Nora, I know you’re tired of being held back,” said Three. “You told me that when I visited your jail cell.”
Steve felt a jolt go through his body. He had asked Nora if Three had visited her in jail. Nora said he hadn’t.
Nora had lied.
“Stop it, Hiro,” said Steve’s dad.
“Even now your parents are afraid of you acting independently,” Three said, sliding out of the way as Steve’s dad launched an attack on him.
“I know your potential, Nora, because I was like you,” he continued, fending off attacks from both of Steve’s parents. “The only way for your life to advance is to move forward on your own. You’ve known this, deep down, for a while.”
Three ducked beneath a kick from Steve’s mom, blocked a punch from Steve’s dad, and casually threw the watch in Nora’s direction.
Steve picked up a rock and hurled it. It was a perfect shot, headed straight for the watch.
A throwing knife collided with the rock and knocked it out of the air. Nora had been the one to throw it. She caught the watch and looked it over.
“Nora, put that down!” Steve said. “It’s dangerous.”
“No,” she told him.
Steve knew that something had shifted in Nora. She stared at Steve, her eyes empty. The watch was giving off a dull glow.
Three laughed. It echoed in the cavern. “It works just as easily as you think it does.”
Then he was gone again.
“Nora, you can’t do this,” said Steve. “You belong in Ninjastoria.”
“Do I?” she asked. “Weren’t you the one who told me that I didn’t have any friends? That I’ve never had a date? I don’t belong in Ninjastoria, little brother. So if you want me to stay, you’re going to have to take this watch away from me.”
Steve felt he had no choice. He launched himself at Nora. He threw his punches as if he was battling a mecha-mole and he did it while his eyes filled with tears. Not once did he land an attack; he couldn’t see where he was striking.
Nora dodged every strike, but never struck back.
“Nora, when we get home, we need to have a serious talk,” said Steve’s mom.
“I’ll take us home, but I’m not staying there. The only way I’m ever going to listen to you again is if you defeat me in a fight,” said Nora. “And everyone here knows that you don’t have a chance of beating me.”
Steve realized that his parents had no idea what to do. Nora wasn’t a child who could be sent to her room. She had already graduated from college. She had no fear of them.
“You can’t trust Three,” said Darcy.
“Oh, and I should trust you?” said Nora. “Because, last time I checked, you’re a mysterious orphan who just so happened to arrive in our village at the exact same time everything started falling apart.”
Nora studied the watch and then pressed a button on the side of it. A purple oval portal made of ones and zeroes opened up beside her. It looked like a stained glass window with sunlight shining through it. When Steve looked, he thought he saw Ninjastoria on the other side.
Nora examined her portal. The thing that she had created. She laughed when she saw it.
“This is unreal,” she said, smiling brighter than Steve had ever seen. “I can go wherever I want, whenever I want.”
Nora walked through the portal on her own.
Steve’s parents ran after her.
He wanted to believe that it was only temporary, that Nora would go back to being his usual older sister in no time. Another part of him, however, felt that something had changed forever.
Steve looked at Darcy and felt horrible. She had just witnessed the worst family argument they’d ever had. Before Arjun’s parents had gotten divorced, Steve had seen Arjun’s mom and dad get into a nasty argument, and he remembered that all he felt like doing was slinking out the door and running home. He imagined that Darcy was feeling something similar.
“I’m so sorry that you had to see that,” said Steve before walking into the portal.
It was nothing more than walking from one place to another. The portal had transported them into the upper balcony in Swords R Us and Tea B We.
Darcy was right behind him.
“I’m okay, Steve. I’m worried more about you and your family,” said Darcy, taking Steve’s hands in hers.
“Nora will calm down soon enough,” Darcy added, and Steve wasn’t sure if she was actually telling the truth or if her spy training was kicking in, helping her to sound convincing.
He saw his parents leaping frantically through the store, calling for Nora. There was no response and she was nowhere to be found.
Then, a pack of brute mecha-moles came tearing through the front doors. A squad of ninjas came chasing after them.
Steve and Darcy let go of each other’s hands.
“Let’s go,” said Darcy.
They leaped over the balcony and landed in the katana aisle. The mecha-moles were caught between them and the other ninjas.
Steve’s parents led the charge, baseball bats at the ready. The mecha-moles stood their ground.
Steve’s dad did a slide tackle, catching a mecha-mole on the ankle. A ninja from the squad struck from behind with her baseball bat.
One of the brute mecha-moles broke away from the pack and got past Steve’s mom. Steve and Darcy got ready to spring out of the way.
There was a bang and a cloud of smoke as Steve threw his black smoke bomb right in front of them. In the confusion, he and Darcy were able to get a few feet back.
“That was useless,” said one of the mecha-moles, stepping through the cloud of smoke.
“No, it wasn’t,” said another ninja, who leaped from the top of a nearby shelf and threw her baseball bat at the mecha-mole.
It ducked out of the way, but moved right into the path of another ninja, who delivered a flying elbow strike to its cheek.
“Hi, Steve,” said Ninja Kelly, landing next to him.
“Hi,” said Steve.
“Oh, great, it’s Marcy,” said Ninja Steph, landing right in front of her. “Look, Kelly, we showed up just in time. Steve was going to have to do everything by himself if it wasn’t for us.”
Steve did not like that tone. Steph clearly had no idea what Darcy was capable of.
The mecha-mole grunted. Steve took his baseball bat and went for a swing. The mecha-mole caught the bat and flung Steve into a tower of carefully arranged rubber swords for toddlers. They went everywhere.
The impact knocked the wind out of Steve. His lungs felt like they had collapsed. He kept pullin
g in air, but his body wasn’t responding.
He watched as the mecha-mole knocked Kelly off of her feet with a single kick and then did the same to Steph. Both of the ninja girls had landed near Darcy. Neither one was moving.
That’s when Steve felt the ground beneath them start to quake.
DARCY
Darcy felt the earth quaking. She knew exactly what was beneath them. A drill tank.
A small crater started to form. In a few moments, it was likely that the entire floor would drop out from under them.
Darcy looked down at Kelly and Steph, who were both dazed from the mecha-mole’s attack. She looked up at the ceiling. If she ran up the side of the shelf and jumped…
Instinct took over. She threw Kelly onto one of her shoulders, Steph onto the other. Darcy clenched her jaw and made her muscles obey. She didn’t think about gravity or falling or failure. There was no time for that.
She planted a foot on the shelf and then the other and the next thing she knew, she was running straight up the side of it.
As the floor collapsed and the shelf fell into the pit that opened up, she leaped into the air, twisted, and kicked her feet against the ceiling.
They stuck.
Then, the floor collapsed.
Everything within five aisles was swallowed up by the earth. The entire building shook, and Steph and Kelly both fell from her shoulders.
The girls reached out as they fell.
Kelly grabbed Darcy’s left forearm. Steph was clinging to Darcy’s right.
Darcy knew that she wouldn’t be able to hold on for much longer. She could feel her right heel coming loose from the ceiling.
She saw Steve running toward her. She saw Steve’s parents coming from the other direction. But she didn’t know if they’d make it in time.
“I’m not letting go!” said Darcy, both to herself and to the girls.
There was a blur of motion and a rush of wind. Someone else had grabbed Ninja Kelly and taken her.
Ninja Gertie.
Darcy reached out and Steph grabbed hold of her other forearm. With a yell, Darcy yanked her up and helped her get her footing on the ceiling.
Agent Darcy and Ninja Steve in...Mecha-Mole Mayhem! Page 10
