Spark couldn’t help chuckling. “You mean to tell me Pike was tossed around by a little girl?”
Bruiser grumbled and stepped towards the kid, raising his fist. “Yeah, well let’s see how strong the Force is in this one after I turn her into a stain!”
The girl’s head snapped up, her eyes filled with tears and glowing with a bright, blue energy. With that one look, she mentally shot Bruiser through the roof. She was about to do the same to his teammates when electricity coursed through her small body and she screamed in agony.
“The guy may be an arrogant douchebag, but he’s our arrogant douchebag,” said Spark, the power flowing from her fingertips.
Coldsnap pulled her arm down and the electricity stopped. “Are you out of your mind? She’s just a kid!”
Spark narrowed her eyes behind the lenses of her visor. “‘Just a kid’? You saw what she did to Pike!”
“What would you do if you were in her position?”
As the two argued, they didn’t notice the girl hover from her position, arms held out to her sides. At first it was small objects that struck them—plates, pictures, cups—but soon, the larger furniture began rattling.
Spark destroyed most of what flew at them, but whenever she tried to fire off a blast at the girl, something else would be thrown at her to draw her attention away. Coldsnap dropped to the ground, rolling to the side where he had a clear shot. He armed an inhibitor and fired it from his gauntlet, hitting the girl square in the chest. Energy surged through her and her body convulsed before she—and everything her power had been holding up—collapsed to the ground.
Spark walked over to the kid, staring down at her. She glared at Coldsnap. “‘Just a kid’ my ass.”
***
A tear in space and time opened in the darkened cave. The cloaked special called the Ferryman stepped out of his portal, drawing the attention of the caped man in blue and white who stood before two cells covered by stone bars.
“We’ve got a problem,” said the Ferryman.
“What is it?” asked the Exemplar, stepping closer to his friend.
“Some sort of attack. They’ve got power, but I don’t think they’re specials. I saw the Cerberus logo on one of them.” The Ferryman placed a hand on the Exemplar’s shoulder, looking up into him with despair. “Cal, they got Tuwa.”
Callum King’s eyes narrowed and he grit his teeth together.
“You know…this is where my gifts could prove useful.”
The Exemplar spun on his heel, his eyes now fixed on an occupant of one of the cells. The old man was bald with a white beard and piercing blue eyes, with a knowing smile on his face.
“It’s what I warned you about. The humans have come for us,” said the man called Animus. “Let me help you.”
A growl accompanied Animus’ words, coming from the cell beside him where the lupine Fenris sat. “Don’t forget about me.”
The Exemplar cast a look to the Ferryman, who shut his eyes and gave a solemn nod of confirmation. The Exemplar’s attention turned to his prisoners. He approached the cell and took the stone bars between his powerful hands, snapping them like twigs.
“Don’t make me regret this,” he said.
Animus’ smile grew. “Perish the thought.”
CHAPTER 2
Zero moved silently up the hill to the small structure that sat overlooking the rest of the town. He laid his hand on the door and his forcefield expanded, blowing the door apart. But inside he saw nothing.
“Anything?” Blindside flickered into view at the doorway. Zero looked at her and shook his head. She sighed and stepped outside with Zero coming up behind her.
A growl came from above them. Blindside and Zero turned and saw Fenris perched on the roof. He pounced on them. Blindside’s suit not only granted her invisibility but also increased her speed and strength. She nimbly dodged his strike, vanishing from sight in the process.
Zero’s arms fell to his sides, his fingers spread. The forcefield reshaped around his hands, forming into translucent, orange claws. Fenris crouched and jumped. Zero met him, their claws cutting into each other as they passed. When Fenris hit the ground, his dark fur was matted with his blood, four deep gashes across his chest. But for Zero, not a scratch.
Blindside attacked from behind, sweeping Fenris and dropping him on his back. He flipped up almost immediately, but couldn’t see his attacker. Invisible punches came at him from what seemed like every direction at once. He tried to focus on his other senses, but Blindside’s blows came too fast until an uppercut sent him flying over to the waiting Zero.
Zero delivered a strong kick at Fenris’ chest. The blunt force against his open wounds caused him even more pain and he howled. The assassin followed by crashing his elbow down on Fenris’ back and the wolf struck the ground, face-first.
Not quite finished, Zero kicked him over onto his back. He hefted Fenris by his neck. The forcefield around his free hand reformed into a sickle-like blade. He prepared to strike, staring at Fenris pain-contorted face through the red lenses of his goggles.
Blindside flickered back into sight, deactivating her suit’s stealth mode. Zero looked at her for confirmation and she gave a nod. With permission granted, Zero impaled Fenris on the forcefield’s blade, then tossed his body to the side.
“Say that again?” asked Blindside, her attention drawn to the incoming comms. Her mouth slackened and she turned her gaze on Zero. “Something’s wrong, we have to get back to the town.”
***
Bruiser swung his massive fist, his target dropping to the ground to avoid his strike. With the size of his suit, he was slow to turn and brought his other arm up, ready to crash it down on her head. Spark held out her hands and sent thousands of volts of electricity into his suit before scurrying off.
“What is wrong with you?” she asked.
The behemoth shook off the charge and slammed his feet against the ground. “I’m tired of your smart mouth, that’s what!”
“Where’d this come from?” she asked.
“You called me an arrogant douche!”
“Well, you are!”
That only angered Bruiser more and he barreled at her. Coldsnap acted quickly, flash-freezing the moisture in the air around Bruiser’s legs and encasing them in solid blocks of ice.
“Time to take a breather, big guy,” he said, circling around so he was in Bruiser’s line of sight. But the Hellhounds’ strongman just struggled against his ice shackles. Coldsnap saw the cracks beginning to form and quickly refroze them, building up layers of ice to increase its strength.
Bruiser extended his arm, activating his hydraulic punch that slammed into Coldsnap’s chest, sending him soaring across the town and into the rubble of one of the destroyed homes. Bruiser punched the ice, shattering it and breaking himself free. He towered over Spark, fists clenched.
Zero dropped onto his back, his forcefield in the shape of a blade around his hand. He slammed it into Bruiser’s armor, trying to break into it. Bruiser swung around, trying to throw Zero off. The assassin held on, like Bruiser was a bucking bronco.
“Enough!” Blindside appeared in front of Bruiser and he glared at her.
“And who the hell are you to tell me what to do?”
“Don’t you see what’s going on here?” she asked. “They must have a special who’s manipulating you, Pike. Are you going to let these freaks play with your mind like that?”
Bruiser paused, thinking over those words. He struggled against the thoughts plaguing his head. Could it be true? Was this all just some form of manipulation?
Blindside picked up a new signature. She activated the stealth mode and followed the signal and saw an old man hiding behind one of the homes, his eyes glowing and vacant. She raised her arm and fired an inhibitor, dropping him to the ground.
Almost instantly, Bruiser felt his head clear. All the anger and resentment that had made him see red was suddenly gone. He relaxed and Zero dropped down from him. Spark came over with
Coldsnap leaning against her for support and Blindside approached, dragging Animus behind her and dropping his unconscious body in the center of the group.
“Sorry about that,” said Bruiser, looking at Spark and Coldsnap. “Dunno what came over me.”
“This guy did,” said Blindside. “Is that all of them?”
“Boss, I’m picking up another signal incoming,” said Spark.
The Hellhounds looked up at the sky and saw the Exemplar lowering from the clouds, his face contorted in anger. Blindside smiled beneath her mask. “The big man himself.”
The Exemplar flew down at top-speed, fists-first. He struck the ground with such force that a shockwave rippled out from the impact, throwing the entire team except Bruiser off their feet.
Bruiser grabbed the Exemplar and held him up, using the hydraulic arm to deliver a series of powerful blows. About a dozen struck before the Exemplar grabbed the fist. He strained against it and Bruiser tried to put more power into the hydraulics. The machinery strained against the force and the Exemplar broke the hand off, exposing sparking wires. The Exemplar then fired a powerful energy blast into Bruiser’s chest, which proved enough for the large Hellhound to release him.
Spark channeled massive amounts of voltage into the Exemplar’s body. Pain rocked through his form, pushing the limits of his nigh-invulnerability. He tried to fire energy blasts at her, but the charge threw his motor skills off and he had difficulty aiming, hurling blasts in random directions. He fell to his knees and pounded at the ground with all his strength. Each blow sent a tremor through the earth, and Spark stumbled, her concentration faltering for just the briefest of instants.
Coldsnap encased the Exemplar’s body in ice, freezing him solid. While he was held prisoner, Zero threw several blows, the force of his fists augmented with his forcefield. The Exemplar strained against the ice, trying in vain to break free. Zero cleared away as Bruiser approached, using the remaining arm on his suit to batter his opponent.
“Playtime’s over,” said Blindside, readying an inhibitor. “It’s time to clean up.”
The Exemplar channeled his power into his hands, the heat from them melting the ice around his body. Cracks appeared in the surface and he pulled his arms up, breaking through the crystalline prison. He grabbed Zero by the throat and threw him into Bruiser. The Exemplar fired a blast at Blindside, but she dodged and went invisible.
He picked up large chunks of the broken ice and hurled them at Coldsnap, then pounced at Spark, clearing the distance and grabbing her by the throat. Spark placed her palms on his chest and channeled electricity into his body.
Spark was struck from behind by the Ferryman, falling to the ground. He helped the Exemplar to his feet, supporting him as he struggled to stand. The Ferryman looked at the Hellhounds and saw they were already recovering. Time was short.
Something hit the Ferryman’s face and he was thrown back. More blows came, moving swift and fierce, but there seemed to be nothing in front of him. The Exemplar was weakened from the attacks inflicted on him, but still he fired a single blast from his palm that struck the invisible Blindside in her back, a sound of pain escaping her lips.
The Ferryman struck where he heard the sound come from and Blindside was knocked back. The teleporter held up his hands and opened up a tear in space and time. His eyes fell on his leader.
“Go, now!”
“But what about you? What about the others?” asked the Exemplar.
“Just go!” The Ferryman’s insistence was unlike anything the Exemplar heard from his friend before. “You’re too important!”
The Exemplar didn’t want to leave the people who had become his family behind, but he had no other choice. The Hellhounds were too strong and soon, he would be taken prisoner just like them. He’d recover and then he’d find out just what the hell happened here.
Once the Exemplar was through the portal, the Ferryman closed it up. Zero leapt at the portal, trying to follow their target through. But it was closed before he could enter and he jumped through empty air.
Blindside gritted her teeth and slammed her open palm against the Ferryman’s chin. She punched him in the chest and then slammed her elbow against his face. Once he fell to the ground, she fired an inhibitor disc at him, then became visible again.
She opened a comms channel with the ship. “Blindside to Big Brother—mission complete. Ready for retrieval.”
“Copy that, Blindside. What about the big man?”
Blindside sighed as she gave her report. “Negative on the big man, he managed to escape.”
The brief moment of silence on the other end felt like an eternity to Blindside as she waited for a response. When it finally came, it was no additional relief to her. “Zeus won’t be happy, Blindside.”
“No shit,” she said. “Just get down here so we can clean up and go home.”
CHAPTER 3
Jim Ellis disembarked from the aircraft clad in a crimson exoskeleton. The yellow lens that covered his right eye flashed data into his retina as he entered commands into the control console hidden within the gauntlets on his forearm.
The man by his side was dressed in a black uniform with a red patch on the shoulders, eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses. Enclosed in the red circle was the silhouette of a three-headed hound. He was older than Jim by a good fifteen or twenty years, but still kept in great shape. In his hand was a small tablet computer.
“This is Tora Bora?” asked Abram Zukov, his accent colored by his Russian heritage.
Jim gave a nod. “Yup. The mountain fortress of the Red Fist.”
“The surrounding area seems pretty desolate. No life-signs that I’m reading.”
“Still helps to be careful, Abram,” said Jim. “Those mountains are capable of hiding some pretty impressive stuff. The Khagan had Lee under his control for a while, and during that time, there’s no telling what he was able to build for him.”
Lee Parker, a young special forced to be a slave of the Red Fist due to the mental conditioning of the man known only as the Analyst. Lee possessed technopathy, a unique ability that enabled him to communicate with machines, and also granted him a design capability unparalleled.
“You think he built something capable of fooling our sensors?” asked Zukov.
“After what happened on Olympus, nothing could surprise me.” Jim closed the panel on his control console. “Let’s go. Be ready for anything.”
The pair moved down the ridge, walking towards the mountains of Tora Bora. Jim had explored them once before. When he still went by the name Gunsmith, this place was where Vanguard began their final mission. The Red Fist’s brainwashed specials attacked them in these mountains and they were then imprisoned inside.
Jim approached a hole in the surface and peered inside. He could see inside a deep cavern. When the Exemplar battled a brainwashed Paragon, they burst through this spot. And now it would be the means of his entrance. He signaled to Zukov, who came over to him.
“Get night-vision ready, doesn’t look like there’s any more power flowing,” said Jim.
They hooked rappel cables to the edge of the hole and lowered themselves inside. Jim’s lens automatically adjusted itself to the light and Zukov hit a switch on the side of his sunglasses, activating a night-vision mode.
After a bit, they reached one of the catwalks and released the cables from their belts. Zukov peered over the edge of the railing. There were definite signs of a battle—scorch marks on the rocks and metal, mangled railings, and even a destroyed catwalk.
“Do you really think we’ll find anything here?” asked Zukov. “There’s little chance Azarov would remain in such a place.”
“He stayed in Virey for some time,” said Jim. They spoke of Erik Azarov, a twisted Soviet scientist whose experiments attempted to create a super soldier to battle the Americans. A man whose brutality earned him the nickname of the Cold War Frankenstein.
“He was still working for my government at the time, though,” said Zukov.
>
“Fair point. If nothing else, maybe we’ll find some clues that can lead us to the next step in our search. Azarov and the Analyst are the only members of the Red Fist who are still at large.”
“And also the most dangerous.”
“You don’t have to tell me, I experienced it first-hand,” said Jim. “This place is a labyrinth. Let’s split up, we’ll cover more ground that way.”
“Very well, although I still think we won’t find much.” Zukov went down a stairwell to one of the lower levels.
Jim continued to explore the one he was on. As he moved down the corridors, he got a sense of deja vu from when he was held captive here. The doors along the hall he currently walked through housed prison cells. One of these cells was where he and the rest of Vanguard were held along with the Exemplar. One of the doors had been broken off its hinges—courtesy of the aforementioned special’s superhuman strength. Jim glanced inside and saw nothing, then continued on. He tapped the comms link on his ear.
“This level clear. Going down to the next.”
He descended the metal staircase onto the underlying level. A corridor here was absent of any doors, save for one at the end. Jim took hold of the handle and tugged on it. Locked. He pulled harder, the servos in his suit activating and breaking it open. Inside, he had to cringe at what he witnessed. He covered his nose from the stench.
The room was far larger than he expected, with body parts strewn around. The gurneys against the wall were stained with blood and gore. On a workbench, he found the remains of notes scribbled in Russian but not much else.
“Abram, I think I found Azarov’s lab.”
“Anything useful?”
“A few notes but nothing more. Looks like he took everything when he left.”
“Or someone else did. Keep looking, maybe we’ll get lucky.”
“Roger that.”
Jim collected the notes and left the remains of the lab when the scanner over his eye flashed a notification against his retina. The scanner was picking up an additional life form, and what’s more, it was reading as a special. He reached down to his thighs, drawing free the crimson teleforce blasters affixed to his armor. Jim moved down the corridor slowly, keeping careful watch on any movement from his scanner.
Vanguard: The Complete Second Season: A Superhero Serial (Vanguard: The Collected Seasons Book 2) Page 10