What was once known as the Pentagon had since become one of the central Cerberus locations following the Kotharian invasion. And it was where Ramsey was told Callus wanted to meet. Ramsey sat in the back of the helicopter, staring out the window at the tarmac below. He turned to the armed soldier by his side.
“There are snipers in place, right?”
“Yessir,” said the soldier. “Your protection is our top priority.”
Ramsey sighed and settled back into his seat. The soldier’s words weren’t exactly a comfort, though he wasn’t sure why. And he didn’t know what he was so worried about. After all, it was because of him that Callus was given a chance to reclaim his position as Cerberus Director. M’Lak required someone capable in the role, someone who could be trusted to follow orders, and Ramsey said Callus was the perfect man for the job.
Surely, Callus wouldn’t forget all that. Whatever differences he had with M’Lak could be worked out. Ramsey took in a deep breath and tugged on his shirt collar. The tie felt too tight.
Looking out the window once more, Ramsey was surprised he saw no sign of Callus. He’d been told Callus would meet him on the helipad. So where was he? If only his attempts to trail Callus had led to something more. But the man was either completely clean or just very good at covering his tracks. And based on what this meeting was about, Ramsey wasn’t sure which.
“We’re about to land, sir.”
Ramsey looked in the direction of the pilot, gave a nod, then turned back to the window. The helipad grew larger as the chopper slowly descended. They touched down on the surface and Ramsey felt a slight bump.
As the blades whirred to a stop, the sound of the door sliding open caused Ramsey to jump. He looked out and saw a man dressed in a Cerberus uniform standing outside the door.
“Governor, if you’d follow me. Director Callus is waiting for you inside.”
“Inside?” asked Ramsey, thinking about the snipers. “But…I thought he wanted to meet here on the helipad?”
“A lead came in about the specials, he had to address it immediately,” replied the agent. “He instructed me to bring you to him so you could be in on the plan.”
Ramsey cleared his throat and climbed out of the helicopter. His bodyguard followed. Ramsey’s eyes scanned around, looking for any hint of the snipers he’d placed but didn’t see them.
They entered the front entrance and moved through several floors before arriving at Callus’ office. The agent who led him here stopped by the side of the door and fixed his gaze on Ramsey.
“The Director is waiting inside, sir.”
“Okay.” Ramsey glanced behind him at his bodyguard. “Let’s go.”
“Uhh, actually…” The agent placed his hand on the door before Ramsey could open it. “I’m going to have to insist your bodyguard remains outside with me. The Director is discussing classified information.”
“My bodyguard comes with me, or I don’t go in at all,” said Ramsey. “Is that clear? Now, I’ll take full responsibility if Callus has a problem with it.”
The agent gave him a once-over. He stood back and nodded. “As you wish, sir.”
“Thank you.” Ramsey held open the door and motioned for his bodyguard to go in first.
The guard entered the office and looked around. His face became perplexed and he looked back at Ramsey. “It’s…clear?”
“You sound confused, son.”
“Completely clear, sir.” The guard turned around. “As in there’s no one here at all.”
Ramsey looked at the agent. “What’s the meaning of this?”
The agent shrugged. “Maybe he had to use the restroom, sir. I’m sure he’ll be back momentarily, just go on in and wait.”
Ramsey gave a slow and deliberate nod, then closed the door and stepped deeper into the office. He walked over to the desk, seeing no papers scattered about. It was completely pristine, without a speck of dust on the surface. The governor examined the computer next, hitting a button. Biometrics were required to unlock it. So much for snooping around before Callus returned from his piss.
“Does this feel off to you?” asked Ramsey.
“Sir?”
“This whole thing. Meeting in his office, him conveniently being in the bathroom when we arrive, the agent trying to get you to wait outside.” Ramsey walked around the desk and moved closer to the guard. “It’s odd, isn’t it?”
“I…wouldn’t know, sir.”
“Right, of course.” Ramsey exhaled and turned his back to the guard. “I just wish something made sense here.”
There was a thump. Ramsey glanced over his shoulder and gasped. He backed away, seeing his bodyguard lying motionless on the floor, blood seeping out from his sliced throat.
“Oh my god…” Ramsey ran to the guard’s side and pushed him away. The only thing he was interested in was the deceased’s teleforce sidearm. Standing, he gripped it tightly in both hands, slowly circling around and monitoring the room.
“You made a big mistake, Joe.”
“Who is that?” asked Ramsey, spinning. No one. No one he could see, that is. The voice sounded distorted, using some kind of synthesizer to disguise it.
“Did you really think Callus was stupid enough to trust you?”
Ramsey spun in the direction of the voice and fired. The blast hit the wall. And then the sound of laughter came from behind him.
“Oh come on, Ramsey. Did you really think that would work?”
“Who are you?” His face was fraught with fear. But through that, he started to put two and two together. An opponent he couldn’t see. Working for Callus. Silent. “Roque.”
“In the flesh.”
The voice came from right behind him. Ramsey turned around and brought the gun up. Blindside grabbed the barrel of the gun and tore it from his hand. Her fingers tightened around the weapon and it crumpled in her hand, thanks to the benefit of her armor. The same thing that powered her invisibility.
“So much for that.” Blindside tossed the trashed gun over her shoulder.
Ramsey tried backing away, but Blindside grabbed him by his tie and yanked him towards her. She raised him over her head and threw him at the desk. He struck the surface and rolled over the edge, hitting the ground with a grunt.
Before he could get up or even process what had just happened, the desk was raised up and thrown to the side. Blindside towered over him, raising one of her arms. She clenched her hand and a knife emerged from the gauntlet right where her hand met her wrist.
“Do you have any idea how monumentally you’re going to screw things up?” he asked. “I’m the only one protecting humanity from the Kotharians!”
“You’re a puppet and a traitor.”
Ramsey scoffed. “And what does that make you, Roque? You and Callus and the rest of your little Hellhound squad—you were all just as willing as me to curry favor with those orange bastards.”
“You’re right, and that’s something we’ll have to answer for.”
Blindside plunged the blade into Ramsey’s chest. He spasmed, but she kept him still with her free hand. She waited until the last breath left his body, then drew her weapon out and stood. The blade retracted into her gauntlet and she turned away from him.
“But first, there’s work to be done.”
***
Director Nathan Callus’ private plane touched down on the surface of the island of Arcadia, right on the plateau that topped off the small mountain. He emerged from the craft and crossed the distance to the edge of the plateau. Callus dusted off sand from the ground, revealing a metal hatch. He felt around for a panel and opened it, revealing a fingerprint scanner.
Placing his thumb on the pad, a green light flowed over and then the hatch’s locks turned. Callus closed the panel and opened the hatch, climbing down the ladder.
He’d come down here several times before. When they discovered the special was still alive, this served as the perfect place to keep the stasis pod. The computers here monitored the vital
signs and power input. Callus knew he was taking a risk by attempting something like this, but it seemed he didn’t have a choice. It’s the only way they could hope to stop the Kotharians.
Dropping down at the end of the ladder, Callus opened the door into the cave. He saw the stasis pod and he also witnessed a person standing in front of it. Callus drew his gun, holding it in both hands. Careful, cautious steps were his signature as he emerged into the cave, approaching the console.
Shift. She must have been sent here by M’Lak. Callus cursed himself, he’d revealed too much during that conversation. He never should’ve mentioned the prisoner.
Callus took aim at Shift. She didn’t seem to notice him, just continued to stare at the stasis pod. Must be under M’Lak’s trance. Was she here to release the special or to intercept Callus?
He wasn’t about to wait to find out. A finger tensed against the trigger, but just as he squeezed, the aim was thrown off. A gray blur appeared in the corner of his eye and his arm was struck, forcing his blast to strike the cave wall.
Strong, steel-like fingers wrapped around his throat. Callus groaned when his back was shoved against the wall. The gun fell from his grasp and he grabbed at the powerful, gray arm that raised him off the ground. Pitch-black eyes narrowed at him and a grimace full of razor-sharp teeth greeted him.
“Callus. Oh boy, have I been waitin’ a long time for this,” said Sharkskin.
CHAPTER 6
Callus sputtered, struggling to get words out. But Sharkskin’s grip on his throat was too strong. He slapped at Sharkskin’s arm, trying to communicate that he had trouble breathing. This only seemed to make the special squeeze even harder.
Then, he was thrown across the cave, skidding on the floor. Just as Callus tried to get up, Sharkskin crossed the distance between them in a single leap. He landed right in front of Callus, that monstrous jaw just inches from his face.
“Come to check on your handiwork?”
“You don’t know what you’re doing!”
Sharkskin grabbed him again, this time by the collar of his jacket and raised him up. Recoiling his free hand and balling it into a fist, Sharkskin glared at the Cerberus leader.
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t turn your head into a stain.”
“Her!” Callus pointed at Shift, who stood mesmerized in front of the stasis pod.
Sharkskin looked in her direction, then back at Callus. “You’re the ones who did this to her. M’Lak send her to meet you?”
“I’m here to stop M’Lak!”
Sharkskin scoffed. “Right, like I’m really gonna believe that.”
“We need the special inside that pod to stop him,” said Callus. “The power level’s off the charts. It’s the only thing that will work.”
“What are you on about?”
Before Callus could offer an explanation, Sharkskin was tackled from behind and Callus fell to the ground. He sat up, shaking his head and saw a man in a tank-like suit of armor standing over him. Bruiser, one of the Hellhounds. Callus saw the rest of the team blocking the cave’s main exit.
“You’re gonna stay down this time,” said Bruiser, pointing at Sharkskin.
Sharkskin lunged. His jaws clamped down around the armor’s finger, tearing it free with a burst of sparks. Bruiser pulled his arm away and examined the damage. Fortunately, his real finger was intact, his body located in the center of the suit.
The Vanguardian stood and spat the crumpled, metal finger onto the ground. He raised his fists, ready for a fight. Bruiser did the same and swung one, massive arm. Sharkskin ducked, sliding around Bruiser and delivering a few quick jabs to his side. Bruiser followed his movements, driving his fist into Sharkskin’s face and throwing him across the cavern.
Coldsnap took him from there, raising his arms and encasing Sharkskin in a column of ice that descended from the ceiling. Sharkskin struggled against the ice, but every time he formed a crack, Coldsnap replaced it. Spark kept her hands on her hips as she looked up at Sharkskin.
“Only needed two of us to take you down this time,” she said. “Must be embarrassing for you.”
Zero helped Callus to his feet and he joined his team, looking at them each. “Blindside?”
“Got word from her while we were en route,” said Coldsnap. “Ramsey’s no longer an issue.”
“What do you mean?” asked Sharkskin from the ceiling.
“Just what I was trying to tell you,” said Callus. “We’re fighting back.”
The ground shook. Large vines burst through the floor, coiling around the Hellhounds. Spark sent electricity through them to free herself, while Bruiser’s own strength was sufficient to break free. Coldsnap froze them to a brittle state, and Zero used his forcefield to slice through them.
“We’ve got company,” muttered Callus, struggling against his own vines. The Hellhounds were already racing towards the source of the attack and he could do nothing more than watch.
***
Tuwa stood at the mouth of the cave, green energy swirling around her body as she commanded the island to attack her enemies. The Hellhounds did what they could to avoid the attacks, only to find more Vanguardians waiting just outside the cave for them.
Talon flew in the air, avoiding the ice blasts fired by Coldsnap’s gauntlets. She dove at him, her claws poised to strike. Coldsnap held out his hands, tensing his fingers. Frost began to form on Talon’s wings, frost which quickly expanded into ice stretching along their length. Her wings wouldn’t respond and she fell towards the ground.
Coldsnap moved to stand over her, about to blast her when she sprung up. Her claws sliced through the front of his armor and she slammed her wings against him, using the force to break the ice. She threw him, where he fell into the waiting arms of Cache.
“Hi, how you doing?” Cache smiled and then grabbed the exposed wiring of Coldsnap’s armor. He drained the armor’s power reserves into his own body, the red glow of his eyes growing with every spark he absorbed. When he was finished, he let Coldsnap drop to the ground and his own body’s bulk increased.
Bruiser charged at Cache and the two titans collided. Cache funneled the absorbed energy into his muscles, powering hammer-like blows against the armored behemoth. Bruiser’s armor provided him with far more strength than Cache could generate, even with the power he’d just absorbed from Coldsnap’s armor. But all Cache really needed to do was keep Bruiser distracted long enough for Gunsmith to sneak up on him and plant a device on his back.
Before Bruiser realized what had happened, the explosive went off, disabling crucial parts of his armor. And the energy from the explosion only served to give Cache even more fuel. Energy that he now redirected in the form of powerful blasts fired at Spark.
Spark countered Cache’s blasts with electricity of her own, while simultaneously trying to keep Ink’s creations at bay. Zero aided in that as well, his forcefield providing weapons that struck back at the ethereal dragons that swarmed around them.
Tuwa summoned up columns of rock, but Zero was too fast and able to keep ahead of them. His forcefield blades continued to bat off Ink’s dragons as he moved, jumping through the trees. Talon dove after him, swerving from side to side whenever she came too close to a tree. Her fingers elongated and her eagle-eyed vision never lost sight of him, despite his speed.
Zero sprung off one of the trees and doubled back, heading towards Talon. The forcefield around his fingers grew, forming into claws of his own, and he brought them down on her.
Talon twisted just before he struck, raising her own claws to defend herself. The impact caused them both to crash down to the ground, where Talon let her ferocity take control. Her claws raked against Zero’s forcefield, but couldn’t penetrate.
Zero didn’t have that same issue. With a swipe, his claws cut across her stomach. Talon managed to jump back just before the strike, so the attack only damaged her uniform. She jumped and flew right past him. As Zero turned, Talon’s wing smacked him, the force of the powerful a
ppendage throwing him against a tree.
He shook it off, about to leap back into battle, when his entire body froze. Zero’s eyes went up and he saw Pulse hovering above, his eyes crackling with electromagnetic power. Pulse raised his hand and Zero’s movement followed until he was level.
“Pretty impressive suit you got there.” Pulse narrowed his eyes and held both hands up. His fingers tensed and as they did, the metal components of Zero’s suit started to come apart, The forcefield collapsed and Zero now hovered in mid-air with nothing to protect him from a fall save Pulse’s good graces.
A grin flashed across the special’s face and then he hurled Zero right back down. He shot through the air, flying straight towards Spark and crashing into her. She struggled to get back to her feet and when she did, she saw the rest of Vanguard standing over her. Before she could say another word, Pulse removed the power source for her armor and it hovered before Cache. He took it with a nod of thanks and sucked its power dry, then casually tossed it over his shoulder.
The team returned to the cave, walking inside. Sharkskin was still frozen to the ceiling, although he was starting to free himself. Talon sped it up by flying up to his location and helping him chip away at the ice. It cracked open and he fell to the ground, landing in a crouch.
“’Bout time you guys got here,” he said. “Although I don’t think we’re fighting the right people.”
The Analyst did a quick scan of Sharkskin’s mind and realized the problem. The moved deeper and saw the stasis pod, which Shift still stood in front of and Callus was busy at the controls.
Tuwa summoned vines up from the ground and they wrapped around Callus’ arms and legs. They pulled him away from the console as he struggled against the bonds. Cache stepped up to him, holding up a fist crackling with crimson power.
“Go ahead, make a move.”
Gunsmith holstered his weapon and slowly approached the stasis pod. The Analyst was by his side, looking just as shocked. Tuwa narrowed her eyes in anger at the subject resting within.
“This…this can’t be possible…” Gunsmith looked over his shoulder at Sharkskin. “Can it?”
Vanguard: Season Four: A Superhero Adventure Page 23