by Stan Lee
A chill ran up Steven’s spine. For a moment, he wondered if this was the right thing to do.
Kim turned to Jasmine. “Are you…are you taking something from him?”
Jasmine stared intensely at the grappling energy forms. “Nothing he needs,” she said.
Maxwell’s Dragon began to whirl around, its shriek growing higher in pitch. As Steven watched, it seemed to shrink, shriveling up before Jasmine’s onslaught.
“Nothing he didn’t try to take from me,” she added.
The Maxwell-Dragon coughed fire, then turned its head to look straight up. It let out a final, panicked scream and vanished.
At the same moment, Maxwell collapsed. He struck the ground and lurched to one side, pulled off balance by the manacle still linking him to Carlos’s machine.
Kim poofed in next to Steven, staring at Maxwell. “Did she kill him?”
“I think that’s the least of our problems,” Roxanne said.
Steven whirled to see her pointing upward. He followed her gaze—and saw Jasmine’s Dragon, surging and spiraling in the air. Its fierce eyes glowed, and something that wasn’t quite sound hissed out of its mouth. It seemed twice as large as before.
It turned and lunged downward, enveloping Jasmine.
When the Dragon energy struck, Jasmine arched again. Her eyes glowed, her mouth opened. Fire burst forth all around, licking and curling into the corners of the chamber.
Kim and the others shrank back. Steven just stood, paralyzed, watching the incredible display of power.
Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. Carlos stared at him with frightened eyes.
“Help her,” Carlos said.
STEVEN STARED into the inferno, the fire that seemed to blaze throughout the chamber without burning anything. He focused on the Dragon, the raging Zodiac creature that was Jasmine and something else, too.
He remembered Jasmine leaping toward the Zodiac pool, reaching out for the energy beam. As she’d told Kim, back in America, Jasmine had asked for the power. In a way, she’d invited it in—but now it was threatening to overwhelm her.
Grimacing, he ran forward and grabbed her hand. The Tiger energy rose up around him. It reached out, seeking its own kind, stretching out a strong paw to help its Dragon teammate.
Jasmine turned, as if aware of Steven for the first time. She made a frantic head motion, warning him away.
“Not going anywhere,” Steven said. “We can do this. Like in my quarters, remember?”
“No,” she said. “Not this time. It’s too much. Too strong.”
The energy poured into him, coursing through his veins. It felt like fire, like sparks, like tiny electric shocks all over his body. She’s right, he realized. She’s absorbed all the Dragon power this time. It’s too much for her—too much for both of us.
“Get away,” she gasped. “Leave me.”
Suddenly he knew what to do. He looked at her, gripped her hand tighter, and smiled.
“No,” he said.
Then he swept his other arm wide. The Tiger whirled like a jungle cat, roaring out an ancient summons. It called out to its allies, its teammates. Its friends.
“ ’Bout time we saw some action,” Liam said.
And then they were all there with him. Roxanne, the Rooster, her power fierce, wild, and rebellious. Kim, the youthful Rabbit, an endless font of energy and heart. And Liam, the unstoppable Ram, smiling as he fed them his strength. The Tiger guided them, led them, fed the fierce Dragon energy in tiny jolts through each of them in turn.
Slowly the Dragon form calmed, shrank to its normal size. Jasmine staggered, sighed, and dropped to her knees. She looked up in a daze, taking in each of her teammates.
“Thank you,” she said.
Kim shook her head. “That was intense.”
“Quite a rush,” Roxanne said.
“ ’Ey!” Liam called out. “Look who finally showed up!”
Steven turned to look. Duane was staggering toward them, coming from the direction of the Vanguard ship.
Kim, Liam, and Roxanne moved forward to help him. “You missed all the fun,” Kim said.
Roxanne grimaced. “Girl, you need to learn what ‘fun’ means.”
The Tiger, still on alert, reached out for the newcomer—and snarled. Something’s wrong, Steven realized. Duane seemed dazed; his movements were stiff, uncoordinated.
“Duane,” he said, “are you okay?”
Duane turned glazed eyes toward Steven. “I’m sorry,” Duane said.
Then he reached out and fired off his power.
“NO!” Carlos cried.
Behind Carlos, the machine exploded. Jasmine’s and Maxwell’s manacles snapped open as the blast flung them in opposite directions. The cavern floor shook, knocking Roxanne and Liam off their feet.
Dust flew everywhere. A pair of stalactites crashed to the floor.
Steven grabbed Duane by the shoulders. “Why?” Steven asked.
“Don’t blame him,” a female voice said. “I sort of made him do that.”
Steven looked up sharply. A new agent, one he hadn’t met before, walked forward out of the dust cloud. She was tall and imposing, with high boots and a cape. Her hair was swept over one eye; the other was glowing a deep shade of green.
Instinctively, Steven knew who she was: Snake.
“Vanguard tech is shielded from your friend’s powers,” Snake said. “Your little toys aren’t so sturdy.”
Kim, Liam, and Roxanne gathered together near Steven, waving away the thick dust.
“Savages!” a voice said.
Steven whirled around. Monkey stood crouched over the limp form of Maxwell, glaring at Steven with a deadly, unnerving fury.
“You did this,” Monkey said. “You crippled him. A great man, brought low by the likes of you.”
Liam turned to Steven. “Is that the same fella we fought before?”
“He seems different,” Kim said, staring at Monkey.
Snake, Steven thought. She’s the real threat here. He turned back toward her, ready to attack—then stopped as a quake rippled through the entire chamber.
“Don’t do it,” Snake said. “This cavern is about to collapse.”
She’s right, he realized. The roof was cracking and shattering, breaking off in large chunks. The explosion had been the last straw.
“A great man,” Monkey repeated. “The only person on Earth who can be trusted with the Zodiac power. Everything I am, I owe to him.”
He propped up Maxwell and started leading him toward the ship. Maxwell shook his head, groggy. He seemed partially paralyzed.
“We’ll be leaving now,” Snake said. “Good luck getting out with your lives. If you survive, we’ll see you again.”
At the ship’s hatch, Maxwell held up a shaky hand. Monkey paused. With great effort, Maxwell turned his head to look back at Steven and the others. When he spoke, his voice was crystal clear and full of hatred.
“You think you’ve won. But you’ll destroy yourselves,” he said. “And then you’ll destroy the world.”
A massive chunk of ceiling crashed down, followed by an avalanche of rock. A stalactite dropped straight toward Steven. Roxanne looked up, opened her mouth, and shattered it into powder with a sonic cry.
Kim’s hand clutched Steven’s shoulder, a little too tight. “Like I said, confined spaces?” she said. “Not amazing!”
The Vanguard ship’s hatch slammed shut. Its engines hummed to life and it began to sink into the ground, shaking the chamber even more.
Steven motioned his team back and pointed up at the quivering ceiling. In the center of the cracked stone, Maxwell’s entry passageway was still intact. “There,” Steven said. “That’s our only way out.”
He turned toward Jasmine. She grimaced, still weak from her ordeal. But she nodded.
“Hang on,” she said.
Glowing brightly, she reached out her arms. The Dragon energy fanned out, encompassing all of them: Carlos, Kim, Liam, Steven, Roxanne—e
ven Duane, who stood dazed and disoriented, only half recovered from Snake’s hypnosis. They gathered together, huddling for protection against the falling rock.
Another large stalactite cracked loose from the ceiling. Jasmine turned toward it and roared, incinerating it with the Dragon’s fire-breath.
Then she closed her eyes, concentrating. The Dragon spread its wings and began to rise toward the ceiling, carrying the entire group inside its ethereal body.
She really is powerful, Steven thought.
As they drew closer to the hole in the ceiling, Steven cast a last glance down at the ancient zodiac statues. A shard of rock struck the tiger statue in the neck, severing its head. The tiger head teetered, toppled, and crashed to the ground, smashing the remains of Carlos’s machine.
The stone tiger head rolled into the center of the room. It tottered for a moment, then disappeared into the huge abyss left by the departure of the Vanguard drill-ship.
“I, ah, don’t think that means anything,” Liam said.
Then they shot upward into Maxwell’s passageway. Jasmine’s Dragon energy lit up the narrow vertical tunnel, showing their progress as the rock walls sped past. Up, up they flew, clinging to each other as the cavern below crashed in on itself.
“Uh,” Kim said, pointing upward. “Uh, uh, uh…”
Steven looked up. Just ahead, the passageway seemed to terminate in a thick round metal hatch.
“Jasmine?” Steven asked. “We’re kind of heading for that hatch, like, extremely fast.”
She frowned, holding her hands to her temples. “If Maxwell got through it, so can we,” she said. “Hang on.”
“Wait a minute, Jaz,” Carlos said. “We’ve been traveling upward at a slight angle. If I’m remembering correctly—”
But he was too late. The Dragon opened its mouth and spat fire at the hatch. The metal burned white-hot, softened—melted—
—and then water gushed over them like a tidal wave.
Steven had just enough time to draw in a final gulp of air. The river, he thought. Maxwell tunneled down from the bottom of the river!
Then the Dragon energy dispersed, and the water pulled Steven away. He caught a quick glimpse of Roxanne and the others, caught up in the flood, being swept back down the tunnel along with the rushing tide of river water.
But Jasmine reached out with her power and caught hold of them. With a tremendous effort of will, she pulled them all up, forcing them through the hatchway. First Steven, then Kim, Duane, Liam, and Roxanne, with Carlos bringing up the rear.
Steven shook his head, letting a few bubbles of precious air escape. He looked around at the river bed, littered with seaweed and rusting bicycles.
Jasmine’s glow faded. She flailed in the water, almost floating away. Liam caught hold of her and handed her off to Carlos.
She’s exhausted, Steven realized. She got us this far—now we’ve got to save ourselves.
He looked around at the group and pointed, straight up.
They began to swim. Duane kicked hard with his big legs. Liam shot upward like a cannonball. Carlos swam surprisingly fast, supporting the semiconscious Jasmine.
Steven’s lungs ached as he strained to hold on to his last remaining air. None of our powers can help us now, he realized. It’s just us. Just seven people, determined to survive.
Seven teammates.
He broke the surface, gasping.
The stone bridge stood a few hundred feet away, spanning the river. A couple of tourists had stopped to stare, pointing at the figures popping their heads up out of the water.
“Agggh,” Liam said, spitting water. “That’s not what ye want when you get up in the morning.”
“Or the afternoon,” Roxanne said.
Steven looked around. Duane had just surfaced, gasping for breath. Carlos was treading water, holding Jasmine’s arm around his shoulder. She smiled, a weak but relieved smile.
“Kim,” Steven said, suddenly frantic. “Where’s Kim? Where is she?”
Liam looked around too. Roxanne made a frightened noise, a very un-sonic cry.
“Uh, guys?”
Steven looked up—and saw a very strange sight. Kim sat perched in midair, smiling down at them. She was soaking wet.
“What took you so long?” Kim continued.
Steven looked closer. Kim wasn’t really sitting in the middle of the air. There was something underneath her…something that shimmered, almost invisible to the eye. Something hovering low over the river.
“It’s the Vanguard plane,” Carlos said. “The one they used to drop off the strike force, in Greenland. It’s hovering in stealth mode.”
“I poofed up here, but nobody attacked me,” Kim said. “I think it’s on automatic.”
Steven motioned for the group to gather together. Liam and Roxanne splashed over closer to him, keeping their eyes on Kim. Carlos followed, along with Jasmine. Duane joined them last.
“Duane,” Carlos said, “Vanguard seems to have protected their equipment from your energy-shorting effect. Do you think you can hack through that plane’s security the old-fashioned way?”
Duane turned to Carlos and nodded, very fast. “It is very literally the least I can do,” he said.
“Looks like we found our ride,” Jasmine said. She turned to Steven, a serious look on her face. “Well, Tiger? What do you think?”
Steven looked around at the soaking wet faces, all turned to him. Then he glanced up at Kim.
“Let’s go home,” he said.
LIAM GRABBED HOLD of the control stick with both hands. “This thing is too slow,” he said. “Have y’got the voice-command circuit working yet?”
He was sitting in the Vanguard plane’s pilot seat. Next to him, Duane leaned over the copilot’s station, fiddling with a sprawl of wires spilling out of an exposed console. “Almost,” Duane said.
“My Uncle Dez taught me to fly planes,” Liam said, a lazy smile on his face. “Quite a barnstormer he was, too. One time during the war he—”
“Got it,” Duane said.
Liam cocked his head at him. “Did you just say that to interrupt my story?”
Duane smiled.
Steven smiled too, watching them. Duane actually made a joke, he thought. The world’s full of surprises.
Outside, they could see the Chinese countryside below. The coastline was just coming into view. Steven stood behind the cockpit, in an open area equipped with crash-seats and a large table. Jasmine and Carlos sat together at the table, talking quietly and bandaging up their wounds.
Roxanne lounged in a corner, picking idly at an old guitar she’d found in the back. “Gibson Sunburst,” she said, almost to herself. “Vanguard does and their toys.”
“All right, ye crazy plane,” Liam said. “How ’bout a quick loop-de-loop?”
The plane lurched sharply upward, then flipped upside down. Jasmine swore. Steven’s stomach jumped as he flew into the air, reaching out wildly for something to hold on to.
Then the plane swung around and leveled off. Steven landed, catlike, on the floor. Jasmine lurched into the table.
Liam laughed. “That’s how Uncle Deke used to do it!” he said.
“Don’t you mean Uncle Dez?” Duane asked.
Jasmine wasn’t amused. She picked at a bandage covering her stomach. “Opened my wound back up,” she said, wincing.
“Ah,” Liam said. “Sorry ’bout that.”
Steven walked up to the cockpit area. “Keep it level, you guys?” he said. “At least until everybody’s patched up.”
Duane nodded. He leaned in and touched the copilot’s console. A tiny spout of Zodiac energy burst from his fingers.
Liam stared at him. “What was that?”
“I just told the plane not to listen to any more of your commands.”
Liam sat back, chagrined. “Uncle Dez wouldn’t have put up with that,” he muttered.
Stifling a laugh, Steven crossed back to the table. Just then, Kim poofed in with a big box of b
andages and first-aid equipment.
“There’s plenty more in the back,” she said. “Those Vanguard guys were ready for anything.”
Jasmine picked out a large bandage. “Except us,” she said.
Kim grinned and held up a box of pastries. “They got treats, too!”
Liam’s hand was in the box shockingly fast. “So is that it for us?” he asked. “Is the whole team thing over, now that Maxwell’s defeated?”
“He’s not exactly defeated,” Jasmine said. “Yes, we extracted the Dragon power from him and prevented him from capturing you kids. But he’s still out there, and he still has his millions and at least some of his Zodiac agents and his Carlos, what are you doing?”
Carlos was running a large wand over her, from head to toe. “Just measuring your power,” he said.
“I can’t go home yet,” Duane said. “I need that training you guys were talking about.”
His words sound sad, Steven thought. But his voice sounds like he wants to stay.
“What about you?” Kim asked, looking hesitantly at Roxanne.
Roxanne gave her a half smile, then struck a chord on the guitar. “I think maybe I can make the two halves of my life fit together,” she said.
Kim smiled back. “Besides, we can do more than just fight Mr. Maxwell, right? With our combined power, we could do a lot of good in the world.” She stopped, suddenly self-conscious. “I—I’m sorry. That’s not for me to—”
“No,” Jasmine said, a thoughtful look on her face. “You’re right. We’ve been so busy fighting for our lives…it’s easy to forget why we’re really doing this.” She looked at Steven. “After all, there’s more to life than just fighting the Vanguard, right?”
“If we’re going to do good in the world,” Steven said, “I still say we ought to have a name. All good hero groups have a name.”
“Well,” Carlos said, “I may not have powers, but I think I can help there. I was going to save this until we got home, but…”
Everyone crowded around as Carlos opened his laptop. Steven craned his neck, watching as a simple, stylized word appeared on the screen: