Balance of Power

by Stan Lee

  “Bet you she escaped,” Roxanne said. “That girl’s like a cat.”

  “I think we’ve got a more immediate problem.” As Josie manipulated the outside view, dark water bubbled across the hologram. “Where’d the Dragon go? That thing is fast—”

  Mrs. Lee cleared her throat. She pointed at the viewport, eyes wide.

  A single enormous eye stared in at them. Its pupil was a crystalline formation, like a glass carving floating in an ocean of red-veined fluid. Huge scales surrounded the eye, each one the size of a satellite dish.

  “Um,” Roxanne said. The Rooster rose above her. “Last stand?”

  Steven clenched his fists. “Guess so.”

  “Our helmets are buried inside the collapsed volcano,” Mrs. Lee pointed out. “We cannot survive unaided at this depth.”

  “Mom! If you’ve got a better idea…”

  He trailed off. The eye was gone; the glow had faded away. The viewport was empty except for the raging, bubbling sea.

  Josie was already working the hologram. “There,” she said. “It’s turned away from us.”

  Steven and Kim crowded in to look. The Dragon’s electric glow was moving incredibly fast. It was headed toward the surface, already barely visible through the dark, rippling water.

  “Guess it decided four Zodiacs and two civilians weren’t worth its time,” Roxanne said.

  Steven swallowed, a terrible feeling growing in the pit of his stomach. “How far away is Japan?”

  “Roughly sixteen hundred kilometers,” Mrs. Lee said, pointing at the receding Dragon, “in exactly that direction.”

  Josie muttered something and plopped down in the pilot’s seat. She turned to look at Steven. “I don’t suppose the next thing out of your mouth is gonna be ‘Good job, team. Let’s head for home’?”

  Steven turned away. He was exhausted, waterlogged, and emotionally drained—just like the rest of them. He wanted nothing more than to order that the drill-ship return to Greenland, and to fight the Dragon another day. But…

  “There are a hundred and twenty-seven million people in Japan,” Mr. Lee said. His voice was unusually gentle.

  “Steven?” Kim asked. “What do we do?”

  “I want to say it.” He frowned. “But it’s gonna sound lame.”

  Roxanne rolled her eyes. “Spit it out, boss.”

  He turned to Josie, then stared out the viewport and grimaced. The Dragon had already passed out of sight, but the faint glow of its energy lingered across the mountain.

  “Josie,” he said, “follow that Dragon.”

  The drill-ship shot through the choppy water. The Dragon’s speed was incredible, and it already had a sizable lead on them. Steven rapped his fist on the bulkhead in frustration.

  “Come on,” he said. “We’ve gotta catch it!”

  The whine of the engines grew louder. The ship began to rattle. Kim braced herself against the wall and clasped Steven’s hand. Roxanne sucked in a nervous breath.

  “Faster!” he cried.

  On the opposite side of the chamber, the hull patch creaked. A small trickle of water ran down the wall.

  “If I push it any more,” Josie called, “we’ll blow apart!”

  A sharp noise came from the hull. Steven looked over to see a thin vertical crack, expanding as he watched.

  “I do not recommend this,” Mrs. Lee said. She and her husband were strapped into the ship’s only two crash seats. “The hull’s integrity is extremely tentative.”

  “Translation,” Roxanne said, “we’re about to crack open like an egg.”

  “Approaching the surface!” Josie yelled. “Hang on!”

  There was a noise like a clap of thunder. The ship shuddered as surface tension slammed everyone down onto the floor. The hull groaned, a noise that almost sounded like a human scream.

  The ship shot out of the sea like a bullet from a gun. It hung in the air for a moment, engines smoking. Then it bounced down onto the waves, rolled once, and floated.

  Water poured into the cockpit. As his parents unstrapped themselves, Steven leaped to his feet and saw the source: the crack along the hull.

  “Josie!” he called, pointing at it. “Turn us so that side is facing up!”

  “Roger that.”

  The world tipped on its side. Roxanne, Kim, and the Lees tumbled to the bulkhead, which had suddenly become the floor.

  Steven leaped up, grabbed at the crack in the wall, and forced it apart. Above his head, the Tiger roared and flashed. All its senses were alert now, its ancient power lending him strength.

  The wall buckled and cracked open. Steven hauled himself up through the narrow gap. Sunlight shone bright, blinding in contrast to the dim sea depths. He blinked, waiting for his eyes to adjust.

  Japan was barely visible, a hazy coastline breaking the line of the water. Still a long way away—but too close, he knew. Barely a hop across the street for…

  “Steven?” Kim called from below. “What do you see?”

  Something was wrong. The sun was high; it must be almost noon, Japan time. But some object obscured the bright yellow orb. A thick spiked body with a fan of bat-like wings.

  The Dragon dove out of the sky. For the first time, Steven saw the creature clearly. It was pure fury, primal power given corporeal form. It was huge, many times the size it had been under Jasmine’s or Maxwell’s control. As it drew closer, it seemed to grow even larger, the electric outlines of its wings spreading to cover the sky.

  Its jaws gaped wide. Its eyes showed no mercy, no hope, no trace of humanity.

  And it was heading straight toward them.

  I broke the cycle, he thought. I beat the curse. But I guess it doesn’t matter.

  Looks like I failed, after all.

  There was nothing to do, nowhere to hide. No way to save his team or the millions of innocents on the islands of Japan. So the Tiger just stood its ground, reared back its head, and roared.

  Steven became aware of a presence at his shoulder. Roxanne stared up at the raging beast.

  “Last stand?” she asked.

  “This time,” he replied, “I’m pretty sure—”

  “kkkkkrackl—even? Steven, do you read?”

  Steven slapped his ear, startled. His earpiece hadn’t worked underwater. He’d forgotten he was wearing it. “Duane?”

  Roxanne pointed up. “Look!”

  The Dragon stopped, whirling in midair. Even with Steven’s enhanced senses, it took him a moment to make out the reason: a small dot in the distance, flying high—but closing in fast.

  “The plane,” he said.

  “We’re almost there,” Duane said in Steven’s earpiece. “ETA forty, maybe fifty seconds.”

  The Dragon seemed to pause, as if considering Duane’s words. It spat fire at the oncoming plane, but its flame fell short. Then it turned and cast a dangerous-looking glare at the drill-ship.

  “Gulp,” Roxanne said, enunciating the word carefully.

  “Steven,” Duane said, “you have to get out of that ship.”

  “Out!” Steven cried, whirling around.

  Roxanne was already leaning back inside the cockpit. “Everybody out!” she yelled. “Now!”

  Mrs. Lee climbed up first; Steven gave her a hand, helping her out and into the choppy water. Mr. Lee followed. Josie went last.

  “Kim?” Steven called. “Where—”

  With a poof, she appeared on the outside of the hull. She reached out for Steven, and together they looked up.

  The Dragon was circling. It looked like a cat considering whether to eat the mouse on the ground or chase after the fly buzzing above. It whirled, locked eyes with Steven, and opened its jaws.

  “Dive!” Steven cried.

  He and Kim leaped free, less than a second ahead of the searing burst of flames. Steven struck the water hard and immediately started swimming. He glanced sideways to confirm that Kim was keeping up with him.

  Ahead, Josie and Roxanne were treading water. Steven caught sigh
t of his parents and thought: Good thing they can swim. That’s another thing I didn’t know about them.

  He looked back. A steady stream of flame reached from the Dragon’s mouth to the cracked, battered drill-ship. The hull began to char and melt. Metal dripped down in rivulets, sizzling as it struck the water. Black smoke rose, filling the air with a foul machine-oil smell.

  Steven’s earpiece crackled again.

  “Hang on down there,” Malik said. “Let’s see if we can distract ’im for you.”

  The plane screamed down out of the sky, buzzing around the Dragon’s head like a mosquito. The Dragon clamped its jaws shut, cutting off the flame barrage, and whirled upward. It shrieked in irritation and coughed fire, three quick bursts blazing through the air.

  The Zodiac plane dodged the assault, swooping and zigzagging. It veered sideways, dangerously close to the water, then executed a vertical climb, straight toward the sun. The Dragon followed, still spitting fire.

  Malik is one hell of a pilot! Steven thought.

  With a screech of tortured engines, the plane reversed course and dove again. The Dragon, momentarily blinded by the sun, continued its upward flight.

  “Mom,” Steven said, swimming up next to his parents. “You okay?”

  She coughed and nodded. “Though I’m glad I did not wear my usual office clothes.”

  “Bought us a little time,” Malik said in Steven’s ear.

  “Thanks,” Steven replied. “I’m glad you’re on our side.”

  “Stand by for a rescue. Boss.”

  The plane leveled off, turning toward the six floating figures. As it swooped past the smoking drill-ship, the charred vessel burped water and sank below the waves.

  “Always liked that ship,” Josie said sadly.

  A hatch slid open on the underside of the plane. Three figures dove out gracefully: Nicky, Malik, and Snake. Their Zodiac avatars flared as they struck the water and started swimming, moving toward Steven’s group with strong, purposeful strokes.

  “Geroni-bloody-mo!”

  Liam followed out of the hatch, dropping like a rock. He tucked himself into a ball and splashed down hard.

  “Vanguard training,” Josie said, deadpan. “Some people got it, some don’t.”

  Roxanne laughed and splashed her.

  The rescue party fanned out toward the floating Zodiacs. Malik moved easily through the water, reaching out a hand to each of the Lees. Liam lay back and allowed the exhausted Kim to climb onto his stomach.

  “You don’t dive too good,” Kim said, teasing him.

  “Nah,” Liam replied. “I’m more of a flotation device.” He looked like he was lounging in a pool, despite the choppy waves.

  Nicky swam over to Josie and Roxanne. “Joze,” he said. “This your new BFF?”

  “She a’ight. But you’ll always be my partner.” Josie punched him playfully, then wrinkled her nose. “Wet fur and all.”

  A shadow fell over the group. Steven looked up to see the plane. It swooped low, hovering over the water as if it were about to land on a runway.

  “Tiger?”

  He whirled around in the water. Snake floated before him, holding out her hand, her dark hair slicked back. “Rescue time.”

  He hesitated.

  “Don’t worry.” She smiled in that unnerving way of hers. “This is just Zodiac business.”

  Reluctantly, he took her hand, wondering: How does she always make me feel eight years old?

  The plane slowed to a stop atop the water. One by one, they all climbed onto the wing. Mr. Lee helped his wife up, the two of them coughing and gasping for breath.

  Maybe they don’t swim as well as they pretend to, Steven thought.

  Kim poofed onto the wing next to Malik. “If you’re here,” she asked, “who’s flying the plane?”

  “Jasmine took the stick,” he replied.

  “Jasmine?” Steven asked. “Is she—”

  A roar filled the air, interrupting him. All at once, the assembled Zodiacs turned to see a column of fire, reaching out of the sky to touch the water with a sizzle.

  “One bloody guess who that is,” Liam said.

  Steven frowned. “What’s it doing?”

  The Dragon hovered above, its jaws open wide. But it didn’t seem to be aiming at the plane, or at the figures gathered on the wing. It swept its head around, forming a semicircle around them. And everywhere its breath touched, the water remained on fire.

  “Ah,” Roxanne said. “That’s, ah…”

  “Impossible?” Liam asked.

  The Dragon’s assault continued. It moved in a full circle, its motion steady and unhurried. The fire barrier grew, almost completely surrounding the jet and its passengers. The flames rose at least five meters from the water’s surface.

  Liam, Roxanne, and Kim gathered around Steven. The others collected in small groups, watching the mystic fire that seemed to burn seawater itself.

  “That,” Liam said, “is a literal—”

  “Don’t say it,” Kim said.

  “A ring of fire,” Steven whispered.

  The Dragon finished its circle, closing the ring with an extra burst of flame. Then it turned, growling, to regard its enemies.

  “Now?” Roxanne asked.

  “Third time’s a charm,” Steven said gravely.

  He turned to address the others. Some of them were his friends; some he barely knew. He’d fought against some of them and alongside others. As for his parents, he’d spent most of his life running away from them.

  And it’s all led to this.

  “Zodiacs,” he said in his most commanding voice, “last stand.”

  Jasmine grimaced, grinding her teeth as she watched the holographic display. The Dragon wheeled around in the air, spitting fire down at the sea. The creature was pure fury, unbridled destruction. She knew that better than any of them.

  They can’t stop it, she thought. All of us together couldn’t put a dent in its hide. Only one thing can.

  She flipped off the hologram and leaped out of the pilot’s chair. As she approached the big table, Duane looked up from his welding torch. “What’s going on?”

  “You don’t want to know.”

  Carlos shot her a quick worried glance. He had shaved and dressed; he looked weak and shaky but determined. The table was strewn with electronics, tools, and welding equipment.

  He held up a hand for Duane to stop. Duane flicked a switch and the torch’s flame died.

  “How’s it coming?” Jasmine asked, trying to conceal the urgency in her voice.

  Carlos beckoned to her. He held up the still-smoking object. It was made of bronze, cube-shaped, and roughly the size of a teapot.

  “Almost ready,” he said.

  She took it in her hands. It was warm, its surface slightly tarnished. All six sides of the cube were blank.

  A gout of flame, visible through the front windows, seared past the plane. Jasmine tensed, grimaced, and tossed the cube back to Carlos.

  “Better hurry,” she said.

  STEVEN GATHERED the Zodiacs in an arc formation, balanced on the wing of the plane. The Dragon hovered just above its wall of fire, snorting and flapping its enormous wings.

  It’s in no hurry, he thought. It knows we’re trapped.

  Nicky glanced back at the fuselage. “I, uh, don’t s’pose we could just hop inside and fly away?”

  Josie gestured at the Dragon. “That thing would burn us out of the sky.”

  “With barely a thought,” Snake added.

  The water churned and boiled, rocking the plane. Steven stumbled and almost fell off the wing.

  “All right,” he said. “Everybody—”

  “RAWWWRRRR!”

  Nicky sprinted forward, dropped to all fours, and leaped off the wing. He soared into the air, headed straight for the hovering Dragon.

  “He keeps doin’ that,” Liam muttered. He lowered his head and charged.

  “No!” Steven cried.

  Nicky flew thro
ugh the air, his sharp claws swiping wildly. Liam followed a few meters behind, the deadly Ram avatar blazing and snorting above him.

  “I can’t look,” Kim said.

  The Dragon didn’t even move its head. Only its eye swiveled slightly, following Nicky’s path. It reached out a single talon and slashed, knocking both Zodiacs out of the air with one blow.

  Nicky struck the water—dangerously close to the Dragon’s fire barrier. Liam splashed down, went under, and resurfaced spitting water. He pointed at Nicky and yelled back toward the plane: “He’s out cold!”

  Malik touched Kim’s shoulder. “Take me there,” he said. She nodded and grabbed his arm. Together they leaped off the wing and poofed away.

  They reappeared above the water near Nicky, who was drifting toward the fire. Malik dove under and swam toward the unconscious Dog with thick, powerful strokes. He grabbed Nicky under the arms and began dragging him toward the plane.

  Kim rode on Liam’s back. “You know something?” she asked, pointing at Malik. “He’s heavy.”

  Steven registered all that out of the corner of his eye. His attention was focused on the Dragon. It hovered dangerously close, dark clouds of smoke puffing out of the corners of its electrically charged mouth.

  The Lees helped haul Nicky back onto the wing. He came to and shook his head, scattering water in all directions. Mr. and Mrs. Lee recoiled.

  “Tired of fighting monsters,” Nicky muttered groggily. “I want a real job.”

  He’s out of action, Steven thought. This is bad. An unstoppable enemy, no strategy—and right away we’re down one man.

  Liam and Kim appeared at his side, both soaking wet. Kim was winded. Liam seemed completely unharmed, as usual.

  “We need a delayin’ tactic,” Liam said.

  “Fast,” Kim added.

  Steven nodded. “Roxanne. Wall of sound?”

  She grimaced and inhaled deeply. The Rooster appeared above her head, shrieking and cawing. Roxanne held her breath for a long moment, allowing the Zodiac power to build up.

  Then she opened her mouth and let loose a powerful sonic assault. Her head swiveled back and forth, sweeping the sound wall before them. The Dragon growled, eyeing the barrier.

  “She can’t keep that up for long,” Kim said.