by Stan Lee
She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. The majestic form of the Zodiac’s Rooster rose up to surround her, shrieking with power.
“Hey!” said a deep female voice. “There’s no need for that.”
Roxanne whirled around. On top of the truck, a large muscular woman stood with her arms crossed, glaring down.
“Horse,” Roxanne hissed.
“Hey, Rooster girl.”
Horse tensed her muscular legs and leaped off the truck. As tumbled down to the pavement, landing hands first, the galloping figure of a stallion appeared briefly around her.
Instinctively, Roxanne shrank back. The crowd backed up a few steps, watching warily.
Horse smiled. “What’s the matter, girl? Remembering how I whooped you, tied you up, and dragged you through the snow?”
Roxanne clenched her fists. “More like how I whooped you back, later on,” she said. But her voice was trembling.
“With a lot of help from your friends.” Horse made a big show of looking left, then right. “I don’t see ’em anywhere.”
Roxanne took a step back and touched her earpiece. “Liam? Steven? Jasmine? Anybody?” She grimaced, keeping her eyes on Horse. “I need backup.”
“How’s the music going, little Rooster?” Horse taunted, taking another step toward her. “Mommy still supporting her spoiled little girl?”
The jab struck home, in ways Horse couldn’t have intended. Roxanne’s mother had been terrified at the first sight of her daughter’s Zodiac powers and kicked her out of the house—right after a disastrous manifestation of Roxanne’s powers had ended her musical career. That had been a terrible time for Roxanne. In a single day, she’d lost both her music and the person who’d always loved and supported her.
Horse didn’t know any of that. She didn’t know that Roxanne’s mother had just gotten back in contact, either. Or that Roxanne was considering leaving the team.
Don’t think about that now, Roxanne chided herself. Focus on the two Zodiac-powered goons that are about to attack you!
“Listen,” Roxanne said. “You can tell Maxwell I’m not here to fight anybody. I just want to clean up this mess on the highway so people can get to shelter before the storm hits. That’s all.”
“We don’t work for Maxwell anymore,” Dog growled. “He crossed a line.”
Roxanne raised an eyebrow, startled. “Must have been some line.”
“Besides,” Horse said, “cleaning this up is our job. A rich guy hired us to make sure he and his family got out of the city—and now he’s trapped back there, someplace.” She waved a hand at the long line of cars.
“A rich guy. Great.” Roxanne took a tentative step forward. “What exactly happened here?”
Horse and Dog seemed uncomfortable. They stood silently, not looking at each other. Dog spat on the highway.
Finally, a heavyset man in a business suit stepped out of the crowd. “He did it!” the man said, pointing at Dog. “He was chasing the truck and the driver panicked. That’s when it tipped over!”
Roxanne turned to Dog again. “Chasing the truck?” she asked.
Dog turned slowly toward her, glaring at her with his one eye. Then he let out a growl that chilled her bones.
“It’s my nature,” he said.
“It’s been a rough few months,” Horse added, clenching her hand into a fist. “Not much work out there for Zodiacs. I’m looking forward to cutting loose a little.” She laughed, a very unpleasant laugh. “This is like old times.”
Dog smiled. “Let’s kick her tail feathers.”
Roxanne glanced up. The storm cloud was very close now. The rain was increasing in force, and the air was thick with sand. Roxanne twisted her sweatshirt around to breathe through its hood.
When the rain subsided, she lowered her hood and turned to face Horse.
“It’s not like old times…Josie,” she said, taking a moment to remember Horse’s real name. “Back then, I’d only had my powers for a little while. Now I know how to use ’em. Now I’m…”
She paused, unsure. I’m what? she thought. Stuck in a rut? Fighting for no reason? Far from everything I love?
Suddenly, Roxanne missed her old life.
Horse smiled. “Let’s see what you are.”
Horse took off, leaping into the air. A fierce steed flashed to life above her, snorting with power. Two fists and two energy-hooves reached out for Roxanne, who shrank back—
—just as something struck her on the back of the neck. Pain exploded through her skull as she rolled to the hard pavement. She whirled around and looked up to see Horse and Dog, both glaring down at her.
Dog’s furry brow was hard, cruel. “I owed you that one,” he said. “From last year.”
Roxanne shook her head, dazed. Wet sand blasted her in the face, blinding her. Liam, she thought. Steven! Where are you guys?
Dog kicked her in the stomach. Then he balled an enormous hand into a wet-furred fist.
“This one’s gonna be just for fun,” he said.
NOBODY’S GONNA SAVE ME, Roxanne thought. But I can do this myself.
I’m a Zodiac.
She opened her mouth and let out a deafening Rooster-cry. Dog shrank back, grabbing at his ears. Horse cried out, flailed, and fell backward. She twisted in midair, barely managing to land on all fours.
The civilians stepped back out of range, watching anxiously. Several of them ran back to their cars, slamming the doors behind them.
Roxanne braced herself against a stalled car and cried out even louder.
The energy-Horse recovered before Josie did. It turned and fixed black eyes on Roxanne, wailing an eerie, inhuman cry.
Roxanne stared back, briefly mesmerized by the display of Zodiac power. Rain sliced through the Horse, pelting its dazed host as she lay on the pavement.
Then something very strange happened. A beam of light flashed down out of the sky, bathing Dog in a yellow glow. He whirled around to look up. “Huh?”
When Dog turned back, he seemed different. It took Roxanne a minute to realize why: His fur was shorter. She blinked, rubbed sand out of her eyes, and looked again.
Dog’s fur was almost gone. Skin showed through the thin hair on his arms and face. His scar was redder, clearly visible against the pale flesh of his cheek. He looked almost human.
Roxanne scrabbled to her feet just as the yellow light flashed again. This time, she saw where it was coming from.
Duane was floating down out of the thick storm cloud, a bright-colored parachute trailing from his back. He held a small metal device shaped like a flashlight, studded with electronic switches and triggers. He was aiming it straight at Dog, immersing the rogue Zodiac in its yellow light.
I’ve seen that gadget before, Roxanne realized. It’s a smaller version of the power drainer Carlos used once!
Carlos had set the device aside after that, after Maxwell had learned how to nullify its effects. But Horse and Dog weren’t working for Maxwell anymore. Duane must have been listening to her comms, Roxanne realized, and taken a chance that these “freelance” Zodiacs wouldn’t be protected from the power drainer’s effects.
Roxanne looked around. The rain was pelting them harder now. Horse still lay dazed on the ground, rubbing her head. Most of the bystanders had climbed back inside their cars, seeking shelter from the storm.
Dog rose slowly to his feet. He seemed unsteady, as if he weren’t used to walking around in human form anymore. Roxanne wondered: Does he use his power all the time? That must be exhausting.
Duane was five meters up now, still descending slowly. “Thanks!” Roxanne called to him. He turned, smiled shyly, and waved down at her.
A murderous growl filled the air.
Roxanne whirled around. Dog was crouched down on all fours. His face was pointed at the sky, his eyes fixed on Duane. The yellow light still shone down on him.
But Dog was hairy again.
“Duane!” Roxanne cried. “Look out!”
Dog leaped o
ff the ground. He grabbed hold of Duane’s foot, catching him by surprise, and swung him through the air. Duane lost his grip on the power drainer; it flew away, clattered to the pavement, and rolled under a car.
Dog grunted, reached up to unsnap Duane’s parachute, and flung Duane sideways. Duane soared through the air and smashed hard into the truck. He cried out in pain.
Roxanne rushed to catch Duane as he tumbled to the pavement. He grunted as he landed in her arms.
“Sorry,” he said. “Thought I could build the drainer from Carlos’s notes. But its effects…just short-term.” He gasped for breath. “I can find any information, follow any engineering instructions. But the principles…so complex…”
“Don’t try to talk,” Roxanne said.
She set him down on the ground, using the side of the truck to shelter him from the storm. But he grabbed at her collar. He seemed desperate to tell her something, to justify himself. Duane, she knew, had always felt insecure about his lack of fighting ability; no matter how often Roxanne and the others reassured him, he felt like a lesser member of the team.
“I tried,” he said, his voice weaker now. “But I failed…again…”
“It’s okay—”
Two sets of arms wrenched her away from Duane. Horse’s thick fist smashed into Roxanne’s face, and Dog’s huge foot slammed into her stomach. That foot was covered with fur again, as if Dog’s powers had never been gone.
Roxanne doubled over. Before she could recover, Horse chopped an elbow into the back of her neck. Roxanne slumped to the ground in a haze of pain.
“The great Zodiac team,” Dog sneered. “What makes you better ’n us?”
“Shut up,” Horse told him. Then she turned to point down at Roxanne. “And you—just lie there like a good wet hen while I see if I can salvage the job my partner screwed up—”
“See, that? That’s the answer to your question right there.”
Roxanne turned sharply in surprise—just as Liam sailed through the air. He’d pulled his knees up to his chest, forming an almost perfect sphere as he plowed into the surprised Horse.
“UHHHHH!” Horse cried. She toppled sideways, off balance, and cracked her head against the side of a car.
“What makes us better?” Liam said. “We don’t blame mistakes on our teammates.”
He bounced onto the side of the truck with a loud rattling noise. Then he unfolded his body in midair and landed in a perfect crouch on the ground. The energy-construct of the Ram raged and snorted above him.
Roxanne struggled to rise, marveling at Liam’s resilience. That impact with the truck would have killed a normal person—but there wasn’t a scratch on Liam. There never was.
“About time you showed up,” Roxanne said.
“Sorry.” Liam gave her a crooked smile. “I had to dig some kids out of a pile of rubble, bash down a wall before it could fall on some people, and knock a rogue satellite out of the sky with my head.”
“See, I almost believed you until the last one.”
Liam started to reply, but his words were lost in a sudden rush of wind. The rain began to beat down harder, becoming a sheet of water mixed with sand. Roxanne could hardly see the buildings past the road.
People began to panic, blinking their headlights and revving their cars. A few people opened their windows slightly to yell for help.
Then Horse tackled Roxanne. Liam grabbed Horse, who jabbed him in the stomach. Liam leaped on top of Horse, and Dog jumped at Liam, dragging all four of them down to the pavement in a heap.
Cars honked. Rain pelted everything. Sand and dust filled the air.
With a grunt, Roxanne threw Horse off her back. Then she turned, startled by a soft poof.
Great, she thought. What now?
Steven stood in the rain with his arm around Kim. He looked around at the scene, rubbing sand from his eyes.
Kim ducked down and stumbled a little in the rain. She looked exhausted.
All at once, the fighting seemed to stop. Liam pushed Dog off; Dog made a show of unruffling his fur. Horse turned away, shaking her head.
Duane staggered to his feet, rubbing his head.
Steven’s brow furrowed and the fierce, majestic Tiger rose up around him. He stared at Roxanne in disbelief.
“I’m glad you’re all having fun,” Steven said. “But has anybody noticed there’s a giant freaking storm about to wreck this city?”
Roxanne opened her mouth to bark back at him. She wanted to say: I’m doing the best I can. You weren’t here, and neither was Jasmine!
But she didn’t say that. She raised a hand to brush wet sand off her face. Then, slowly, she nodded.
“What do we do now?” she asked.
STEVEN CAST HIS EYES across the scene. The truck was still blocking all four lanes of the highway. Hundreds of cars were backed up, the line stretching back as far as he could see.
The storm grew stronger every second, coating everything in a blanket of wet sand.
And what had the team been doing, while Steven and Kim were off rescuing children? Wasting their time fighting with Horse and Dog. Now Steven had to fix things—fast.
He sighed. This should be Jasmine’s job, he thought. Not mine.
But it was his job. Ever since Carlos’s disappearance, Jasmine had retreated further and further inside herself. All her energies were directed, almost obsessively, toward finding Carlos. Sometimes she holed up in remote corners of their headquarters for days, staring at computers, not speaking to anybody.
So Steven had stepped into the role of leader, directing the team in the field. At first he’d felt awkward. He hadn’t asked for that responsibility, and as one of the youngest members of the team, he worried that the others would refuse to take his orders.
Well, he thought, it’s time to see if I can cut it.
“Roxanne,” he said, “is that man hurt?”
Roxanne followed his gaze. A man lay dazed, rubbing his head, by the side of the road.
“He must have gotten knocked down in the confusion,” she said. “He might have a concussion.”
“Okay. Kim.” Steven turned to take the small girl by both shoulders. “You remember the clinic we passed on the last jump, a mile back that way?”
Kim grimaced.
“I know you’re exhausted, but—just take him there. Then sit down for a while.” He smiled at her. “We’ll take care of this mess.”
Kim nodded, moving toward the man. “I’ll be back. As soon as I can.”
“You’ve done more than your share.”
Kim took the startled man by the hand. As the Rabbit-halo rose up around her, she flashed Steven a grateful smile. Then she leaped away, and the two figures vanished with a poof.
Steven turned to address the others. “Duane,” he began—then flinched as a blast of sand hit his face. He coughed and waved it away.
“Duane,” he repeated. “You and Roxanne get these people to safety. There’s a police checkpoint half a kilometer past the truck—just take them there a few at a time.”
“People?” Duane repeated. “I’m n-not so good with people.”
“Just follow my lead,” Roxanne said. Then, smiling, she walked up to a car and rapped on the window. A little girl stared out at her skeptically.
Reluctantly, Duane followed. “It’s p-perfectly safe,” he explained to the girl’s mother.
“Now,” Steven said, turning to Liam. “We’ve gotta move the truck.”
“I can bash into it if ye want,” Liam said. “Be fun. But I don’t think I can move it.”
“No. We’re going to need Josie and Nicky for that.”
Horse and Dog were standing over by the truck, arguing in low tones. At the sound of their real names, they turned to look sharply at Steven.
“We ain’t helping you,” Dog said.
Steven moved toward them, allowing the Tiger to flare up around him. Dog flinched, but Horse stood her ground, watching him carefully. Steven turned very deliberately to look at her.
“You two are the strongest Zodiacs here,” he said. “The three of us should be able to handle a few crates of muffins.”
Horse stared at him. Then she laughed.
“All right, kid,” she said. “I guess that’s why we’re here.”
“I’m here for the cash,” Dog grumbled.
But soon the three of them stood at the back end of the truck, Horse and Dog each gripping a corner and Steven taking the middle. Dog growled at the mass of cars shining their headlights through the gloom.
Roxanne and Duane eased their way around the truck, holding up a blanket to cover a family of tourists. The group disappeared quickly in the storm.
“We don’t have to move the truck far,” Steven said, banging a fist against it. “Just enough to open up a lane. Two if we can manage it.”
Dog brushed wet fur out of his eyes. “Rain’s gettin’ thick.”
“So let’s do this already,” Horse said.
Steven strained his muscles, feeling the Tiger flare up inside him. To his left, Horse stood with her feet planted against the pavement, her snorting Zodiac avatar whipping back and forth in the wind. On his other side, Dog growled, scrabbling and clawing as he leaned his shoulder into the truck.
“Hey-up,” Liam called. “Incoming!”
Steven ducked just in time. Liam soared through the air, balling himself into a projectile again. He struck the side of the truck, shaking the entire vehicle, and bounced harmlessly away.
Steven shook his head and studied the truck. Liam had made a thick dent in the side. But the truck hadn’t moved an inch.
Dog turned to Steven, threw back his hairy head, and laughed. “Looks like you’re as big a loser as we are, kid.”
Steven shook his head. “We’re not done yet.”
Keeping his grip on the truck, Steven squeezed his eyes shut and banished all outside stimuli from his mind. Dog’s complaints. Liam’s suggestions. The cars revving and honking and shining their headlights.
And most of all the storm, the sand and dust and rain whipping and whirling around him.
Steven shut out all distractions, one by one, until he was conscious of only one thing—one force, radiating and vibrating through the air like invisible cords.