Issue #4 "RIPTIDE" Part 2: Under Pressure by David Ingram

Mirage Wolfsbane X-Treme Speedball Nova Kymaera Wiz Kid Arsenal Edie Sawyer

The Story thus far: The Undertow, for reasons thus far unknown, launched an attack on Force Works. Using subterfuge, cunning and preparation, they managed to capture and escape with Kymaera, Wolfsbane and Speedball. Force Works was left no way to follow them, until, that is, Michael Shauneghann of Project Earth showed up, offering a deal. Which brings us to... Three thousand feet above the Lone Star State Michael Shauneghann leads what could be called a charmed life. As a member of the radical environmental organization Project Earth, he's seen a lot. Illegal dumping, acres of trees being cleared inside of day, environmental crimes kind of stuff. One of the last things he ever expected to see first hand was the entire state of Texas from outside of a plane. Seeing all those houses, farms and specks of people truly drove home how truly insignificant mankind was compared to the immortal mother earth. "I said, tell me what you know, here and now, or I'll drop you!" A voice shouted at him. Michael's attention snapped back the matter at hand. The man called Nova was holding him aloft and threatening to kill him if he didn't reveal the information he had on the Undertow. "Lovely view, isn't it?" He asked, not even acknowledging Nova, "And mate, stop the theatrics, okay? We both know you aren't going to kill him. That wouldn't get you anywhere." "I'm not above torture." Nova snarled. "Oh, I'm sure you're not. But I've been tortured by the Israelis without breaking." Michael pulled a stick of gum out of his pocket, unwrapped it and placed it in his mouth. He then flicked the wrapper in Nova's face. "So I doubt I'll even notice what you do to me. So why don't you set me done on terra firma and we can talk about this in a polite fashion? Otherwise we could be here all day, and the info I have comes with an expiration date." Nova, with considerable effort, swallowed his pride and started to descend back to the small airfield where the rest of Force Works was waiting. "Anything?" Mirage asked. Nova just shook his head. "Don't act all surprised, luv, you know as well as I do that you wouldn't harm me." "So what do you want from us?" "Me? I want to help you take down the Undertow." "Out of the kindness of your heart, no doubt," Wiz Kid said. "What's the catch?" "I'll get to that in a moment. First, I need to tell you fine people what exactly you're up against." "What does it matter?" Tarene asked absently. "Just tell where they are!" "Because knowing what the hell you're dealing with always helps. The Undertow knew what the hell they were dealing with, after all. They came prepared and kicked your arses." "We already know what the Undertow are about," Nova said. "They're a fringe paramilitary organization who like to impose their ultra conservative agenda on the world. I researched them for a freakin' year looking for 'Nita." "That's right, but there's more to the story. The Undertow started out as a Black-Ops weapons testing organization. Any weapons the yanks thought were too dangerous, or too crude to use effectively were given to the Undertow, along with the regular toys. The Undertow would then use and refine the hardware. That way, the military knew what weapons were bunk, and what weapons would be good for field use. The Soldiers of Misfortune? All failed attempts to recreate the super soldier formula, and all the test subjects were blokes who, thru one way or another, got to close to the Undertow. The sub-dermal communication system they use? It'll be proposed for Delta Force use in six months. The teleporters the Undertow uses? It's the basis for SHIELD's Hermes system. The special subs they use? They will be 'designed' in two years and go into mass production for the Navy in three." " lever." X-Treme said, "the Undertow allows the U.S military to test hardware in combat situations years before they would be allowed normally. Must save them millions in research and development." "That's impossible. No one would arm fanatics like the Undertow," Arsenal, who had recovered by now, stated as he shook his head in disbelief. He had served in the Air National Guard, and he simply couldn't believe that anyone in the military would condone what the Undertow was doing. "Well, the good news is that the corruption isn't very wide spread. The majority of Undertow's top brass are Cold War warriors who had a hard time accepting they weren't needed anymore. They struck up a deal with a few generals who felt the same way, and the Undertow was formed from there." Wiz kid, for his part, ignored Michael's briefing on the Undertow. Rather, his attention was focused on something else entirely, though equally important. "And the foot soldiers?" "High school drop outs that couldn't cut it in the real thing. The Undertow isn't exactly on the same level as Hydra, but dangerous enough." "So how do you know so much about the Undertow?" Mirage asked. "Somehow, I don't think Project Earth's and the Undertow's agenda are all that compatible." "Too right, luv. The Undertow's taken a few stabs at the Project, so we decided to push back. Which brings me to why I'm here. I know where the Undertow is going to strike next. Promise to leave the Project alone, and I'll tell you." "The Undertow are launching an attack in Nicaragua, aren't they?" Wiz Kid said, matter of factly. "How did you..." "During this time that we have been talking, I hacked into Project Earth's computers thru their website, and downloaded all your information on the Undertow, including the Undertow's G.P.P devices. And, the coordinates directly above your head were large help." Michael looked up, and sure enough, were the coordinates for the Undertow's next attack, clear as day. North 1345234.69 and West 578010.414. "How the bloody hell..." Underneath her mask, Mirage smiled. One of her mutant powers was to be able to project illusions based on information in another person's mind. She wasn't about to tell Michael that, though. She created a psychic arrow, and pointed it at him. "Thanks for your help. As a way of saying thank you, Project Earth is moved to the bottom of our shit list." Mirage let the arrow fly, and before Michael had even hit the ground, she turned towards her team. "Let's get the hell out of here and save our friends." As Namorita Prentiss, known as 'Nita to her friends and Kymaera to her enemies, rejoined the waking world, she felt a knot forming in her stomach. She didn't need to be fully awake to know exactly where she was. She could tell from the scent of burned fish in the air, the taste of the Undertow's teleportation system her mouth. These things were burned into her memory forever. She tried to move her webbed hand to massage her head, and found, to no one's surprise, that it was restrained. "Welcome home," a voice said. It sounds more like someone gargling molten rocks than an actual human being. "Protocol," she hissed as her vision cleared. Protocol was a good nine feet tall, with light brown skin and white spikes that completely covered his fore arms and lower legs. His shoulders were as broad as three men standing together and his muscles were larger than most people's head. He was standing directly in front of her, with that infuriatingly smug smile he had plastered on his face. Behind him what looked like scientists were scurrying about, doing whatever it is scientists do and standing next to him was General Obsidian, Protocol's yes man and fall guy. "How are we feeling, Ms. Prentiss?" Kymaera ignored him and quickly assessed her situation. She was alone in what looked like a lab. She was restrained to a metal chair, with an odd helmet and electrodes attached to her head. For a long moment, Kymaera was confused. Why wasn't she in surgery? She couldn't feel an implant in herself, and the Undertow's normal M.O. was to implant one in any captured superhuman. "Feeling well?" he continued. "You're lucky your body absorbs water as quickly as it does. Most people don't recover from dehydration as fast as you and your cousin." "Go to hell," she growled. "Where am I? Why did you kidnap me? Where are the others!" "My, my, so many questions. I'll see what I can do to answer them," Protocol replied in a business like manner. "The Undertow has suffered reverses of late. After the events of September 11th, the few allies we had in Washington decided to...distance themselves from us. They had already begun to do so when the new president was elected..." "Chosen," Kymaera interrupted. "Excuse me?" "The current president was chosen, not elected." Protocol rolled his eyes. "I see your time among us hasn't disabused you of your liberal leanings. Pity. At any rate, the Undertow currently suffers from a lack of capital." "And you intend to brainwash me and steal the money my cousin and I earned from selling Oracle Inc," Kymaera finished. "But why attack Force Works? Why not just ambush me while I'm alone?" "Because Force Works possesses resources I hoped to capture, as well. Sadly, I was not able to do so, and I was forced to kill them." Protocol sighed. "You don't expect me to believe that, do you?" "I expect you to believe your own eyes." Protocol pointed towards the side, and Kymaera tilted her head so that she could see what he was pointing to. It was a monitor, and on it was an aerial view of the airfield that Force Works had fought the Undertow, obscured in a yellowish gas. Kymaera's keen eyes could make out the bodies of her team-mates, laying prone on the ground. Mirage, Wiz Kid, Tarene, everyone. But what made the image seem real to Kymaera was the fact that there were Undertow soldiers among the dead. "How..." "Mustard gas canisters, left over from World War Two. Crude, but effective," he explained. "Shame we had to sacrifice so many soldiers, but that's how it works sometimes." "But...Speedball and Wolfsbane..." Kymaera asked, unable to take her eyes away from the screen. "Speedball is in a special cell now. We will most likely kill him; he is no use to us. As for Wolfsbane..." The screen that had moments before shown the dead bodies of Force Works was replaced by an image of Wolfsbane. However, it didn't show the vibrant, passionate young Scots woman 'Nita had befriended. Rather, Rahne was curled up in a fetal position in her human form, softly weeping. Her yellow and blue costume was in tatters, and Kymaera could make out a small amount of blood on the young woman's thighs. "You..." The words died her in her throat and she started to cry for her friend. "Us. Wolfsbane, we will ransom back to her mother. I simply wished to have something to properly motivate the good doctor." Protocol smiled, this time revealing his many, many edged teeth. When Kymaera saw that smile, all her grief and pity fled her. It was replaced by an emotion very familiar to a sub mariner. Rage. "I swear, as Neptune as my witness, that I will kill you for what you have done," Kymaera said calmly. "Unlikely. The machine you are hooked up will completely rewrite your personality and make you a willing servant of the Undertow. When you are released from that machine, lovingly called the Rewirer, you won't be a member of the Soldiers of Misfortune, you will be their leader." Protocol signaled for the Rewirer to be activated. Kymaera gritted her teeth, as the Rewirer went to work. It felt as though a thousand burning needles were being forced into her brain while her skin was doused was aflame while her blood felt as though it was replaced with acid. "After all that time we spent together, you never learned an important fact about me," Kymaera snarled as beads of sweat dripped down her face. "Oh? What's that?" "I ...will not... be broken." Protocol scowled at that. "Unlikely." Protocol left the room, leaving the Rewirer to do it's work, and made his way back towards his command center. "Was it really necessary to lie to her like that, sir?" Protocol looked down and saw General Obsidian. He had forgotten all about him. "After all, those lies she saw will only strengthen her will to resist." "I know, General and that is exactly what I want. I want her at her strongest, because once she is broken, she will be ours forever. Break your enemy at their strongest point, and then victory will be yours. There is only one way to leave the Undertow," he said, eying the General. "Understood, sir. Anything else?" he said nervously "Yes, I must say I'm rather disappointed with this operation. The intent was to capture more than three members of Force Works, and more important members than Speedball. Had we captured Nova or X-Treme, we would have their knowledge of alien technology. Had we captured Wiz Kid, we could have bent his genius to our cause. Instead, all we really have to show for our work is Kymaera and Wolfsbane." Protocol then eyed the General. "Not your finest work." "I...umm... I understand, sir, but...but we had to launch when we did. All things considered, something is better than nothing. And we can always try again using Kymaera as bait," he stammered. "I suppose," Protocol sighed. "In the meantime, see to ransoming Miss Sinclair back to her mother. She has close contacts in several X teams, including X-Force. The sooner she is out of our hair, the better." "Yes, sir." Hector Caballereo isn't a superstitious man by any means. That was most likely because belief in the supernatural meant that he had to believe, at least to some degree, in an afterlife. And, considering the fact that he's currently loading drugs into an old barge, well, let's just say that belief in an afterlife would hurt his job performance. And that wouldn't help his family one bit. Mr. Caballereo despised drug dealers with all his heart and he hates what he is doing. But his mother is old, and his beloved wife of twenty years has breast cancer. The only other way to even hope to pay for her treatments is for his two daughters to go into the world's oldest profession, and he would die before he allowed that to happen. Still, as he went about his job, preparing opium to be transported to America, he couldn't help but feel as though he was being watched. And he is being watched. But not by spirits, but by six super humans loaded in one of the most advanced airplanes in the world, known as the Stealth Wing. Hovering at twelve thousand feet above Mr. Caballereo, the members wait. "Well, it's a drug deal," X-Treme said. The Stealth Wing had high definition cameras and directional mikes located on every possible angle. X-Treme hoped to break the tension in the air. "But why should the Undertow care?" "The Undertow are basically the Republican party with guns," Nova explained. "Well, more guns. I guess they just want to take a stab at the operation below." "Wish we could..." Arsenal muttered. "But we can't. The Undertow are coming, and this is our only chance to find our friends before they're brainwashed and turned against us. They see us there, they'll cut bait and run," Mirage explained. " You have to learn how to wait sometimes in this business." "How are you so sure the Undertow are coming?" Nova asked. "I just am," Mirage replied. She felt it best not to explain that she could sense death approaching. While his team-mates made idle chatter, Wiz Kid prepared, seated in a chair specifically equipped for him. Cables reached out of his back pack and were plugged into specially designed ports that allowed him, thru the cybernetic link that allowed him to control his high tech back pack, enabling him to amplify the Stealth Wings scanners. If anything abnormal happened in this South America country, he would know about it. Just as a precaution, he scanned all radio signals within a fifty-mile radius, in case the coordinates were misremembered. For the normal human mind, organizing, analyzing and processing such information would be impossible. But Wiz Kid's brain was very abnormal. He could process information faster than the most powerful super computer, and could actually have two different trains of thought at once. Wiz Kid wondered, for a brief moment, how his friends would react to the fact that his computer like mind wasn't a part of his original mutation. He put that thought out of his mind as his scanners acted up. "We got company." X-Treme pointed towards the monitor that was trained on the docks below. Men, wearing uniforms recognizable as those of the Undertow, had teleported behind the docks, and began advancing on the drug runners. Most of the people who were loading the boats were unarmed, and were cut down with ease. The few guards that had been posted were no match for the Undertow soldiers. "Wiz Kid?" "I'm tracing them now. Give me a few minutes." "Hell," Mirage muttered, "I don't think they'll last that long." "Shouldn't we save them?" Tarene asked as she watched the massacre. In a way she couldn't explain, she felt drawn to the battle below. It somehow sang to her, calling her forth. "If we go down there and reveal ourselves, we'll lose whatever chance we have of saving our team-mates." Mirage said, " So, we stay here." "But people are dying down there!" "I know Tarene, but they made their choice to live their lives supplying poison to millions. They made their choice, and I made ours." "We're heroes, so we should save everyone, no matter the personal cost! Rahne, Robbie and Nita knew that!" Tarene turned and walked towards the drop hatch. "And so do I!" She was ready to tear the hatch open if they wouldn't let her out, but before she could get to the hatch, she was struck down with a psychic arrow. "Well, at least one of us will have clear conscience," Dani muttered. "Wiz Kid, how is it coming with those scans?" "I've just finished tracing them back to their base," he replied. "We're good to go." "Good. Okay force Works, let's get down there and..." "Don't bother going down there." "What? Why not?" "Because, according to my scanners, everyone down there is dead." "Oh." "Let's make sure they're the last victims of the Undertow," X-Treme said as Wiz Kid programmed the coordinates for the Undertow's base into the flight computer. They all nodded in silent agreement. "Besides, I'm sure they deserved what they got," Nova muttered under his breath. "You guys are gonna be sorry about this! I'm 'bout ready to bust out of here any minute!" Speedball shouted. "And then the Masked Marvel's gonna lay the smack down on your candy @$$s!" No one replied, mainly because Speedball was in a vat of filled with a non hardening glue up to his chest. To make matters worse, Speedball strapped immobile to a chair in the center of the vat. It was a very crude cell, but against someone who needed movement to use his powers, it was very effective. Okay, this is not good, Speedball thought to himself, this goop just absorbs my kinetic blasts. So, I can't bounce, and my blasts are useless. How am I going to get out of here? Speedball thought long and hard on that subject. Then, he remembered something Dani had asked him. She had asked if he could charge objects with kinetic energy. When he asked why, she explained that an X-Man she knew could, and she just figured that someone who controlled kinetic energy like him could do so as well. Speedball never gave the comment much though, until now. He had always been able to absorb kinetic energy, but what else could he do? Well, no time like the present to find out. "Kinetic energy, I choose you!" Speedball declared as he reached out with his powers, hoping he knew what he was doing. He squinted his eyes at the goop and concentrated for several minutes. "Any time now!" Nothing. The vat was completely inert. "Well, that was a waste of time," he muttered. "At least no one saw me looking like I was about to pass a kidney stone." Speedball, in his disappointment, failed to notice a fly above him that had lived out 99.99 of its life, and was preparing for death. Directly over the Undertow's formerly secret base on the Pacific Ocean. "We're in sight," Arsenal said. "I'm surprised," Nova said as he saw the island that served as the Undertow's base. The island was pure bedrock and there was no trees on the island, and the island was covered with hangars, buildings and barracks, "According to 'Nita, most of the Undertow's bases were under the ocean." "They were forced to abandon them all when 'Nita was freed," Wiz Kid explained, "They were afraid of what would happen if Namor or his army found them." "How do you know that?" "Because I just hacked into the Undertow's computer. I've downloaded everything, including a few encrypted files. They contain something rather disturbing, I might add. Apparently, the Undertow used our hot line against us. When they phoned it tips, and when we acted on them, the Undertow was on the scene with scanners..." "So they knew our weaknesses," Mirage finished. "I should have seen that one coming. When this is all over, we'll have to make sure that doesn't happen again. Taki, I want you to create a virus that will burn their hard drive, eat their soft ware, and gives the Undertow a nasty social disease. Can you do that?" "Does E equal MC squared?" Mirage turned towards her team. Tarene had recovered by now, and was silently pouting. "Alright team, here's how we're going to do this. Taki is going to create a virus with a delayed effect. We're going to sneak it, get our team-mates out, and then start smashing things from the inside. Got it?" "Screw that, Mirage," Nova said, "I say we do a full frontal assault. That'll force the Undertow to show their hand now. Sneaking around will just waste time." "Guys..." "That may how you did things in the Warriors, but that won't work here." "Guys..." "The original Warriors beat Sphinx, Terrax and Supernova, all baddies who gave the Avengers trouble. Our record speaks for itself," Nova snapped. "Hell, we did just fine against your buddies in X-Force, too!" "Guys!" "Different situation, different response!" X-Treme, rather than try to get their attention with words, jerked the control stick to the right. Once he was sure he had their attention from the looks of hatred on their face, he explained why he did what he did. "A huge explosion ripped thru the Undertow's base. Sneaking in isn't an option." Mirage looked at the monitor, and saw what X-Treme was referring too. The bedrock was cracked and seeping thru it were multi colored bubbles. "Speedball did that?" "Who else?" X-Treme confirmed. "According to our scanners, there was a huge explosion of kinetic energy around him. He's still alive, if that's what you're worried about." "Okay, now plan. Wiz Kid, get on the horn. Let everyone who matters know where the Undertow is. The coast guard, Navy, SHIELD, everyone. I doubt the Undertow is willing to go to the mat with real law enforcement personal." "Done. I also downloaded the schematics of the Undertow's base, and can show X-Treme where they are holding Wolfsbane. Kymaera's location, though, isn't in the files." "Not a problem. Nova, you're flying X-Treme and I down. X-Treme, once we're on the ground, I want you to find the others. The rest of us will be fighting a holding action. Any questions? No? Good." Mirage opened the drop hatch. "Well, let's go to work!" "Oh man...two acts of mass destruction in one day. Slap me in a leather fetish gear, mark me with an X and sign me up for a real mutant team!" Speedball said as he stumbled out of the rubble that used to be his cell. The hall was covered with hanging tile, exposed wiring and upheaved flooring. "Get him! Get Superball!" Speedball looked down the hall, and saw members of the Undertow whom escaped the blast advancing on him "The name's Speedball, the masked Marvel!" Speedball said as he launched himself as them, "Though why they called me the masked marvel when I have no mask, is simply beyond me." Protocol watched the events unfold monitors thru gritted teeth. He was undone. Undone by children. All his ideals, his aspirations for the world, gone. Everyone knew where the Undertow was now, and he had no hope of saving his precious organization now. Still, these children would not inherit the world. "If I am to fall, then I will take my enemies with me," he said defiantly. He typed several quick commands into his command consul "Project Five Chinamen readied. Command authorization code?" a computerized voice asked. "Authorization Gamma, Gamma Omega Five. Authority Protocol," he answered. "Project Activated." Protocol then walked over to a secret compartment. Typing in a command code on what otherwise looked like a mirror, the mirror opened to reveal a large bottle of scotch. Not bothering with a glass, Protocol took a large swig and sat down in his large command chair. It was done. Now all that was left for him to do was wait for the end. "Breaker comin' up!" Nova warned. A split second later, he flew over the Undertow troops that had amassed on the tarmac against Force Works at mach one, basically breaking the sound barrier over their heads. That punishing attack was followed up by a flurry of psychic arrows, optic blasts, energy bolts and lightning that demolished the first wave of troops. "Keep up the pressure!" Dani shouted. Wiz Kid smiled as he saw a dozen mandroid units approaching the battlefield. Mandroids were massive armored battle suits, standing twenty feet tall, with shoulder less helmets. At the end of both arms were large plasma cannons. They had enough firepower to level a small country, and that was exactly why Wiz Kid was happy to see them. "Time for reinforcements," he smirked. He formed boot jets around his feet, and flew at them. He avoided their fire with ease, and he landed on the head of one of the units. Wiz Kid quickly unleashed a small magnetic pulse from his backpack at the other eleven Mandroid units. It didn't cripple them, but forced them to shut down for several minutes until they could reboot. But that didn't matter; all he really needed was a few seconds. When he landed on the first mandroid, microfilaments came out for his backpack and drilled into the Mandroid's helmet, merging with it and rewriting the software. After about twenty seconds, Wiz Kid had commandeered the Mandroid unit for his own use. He sent a quick electric pulse thru the mandroid, knocking the pilot out. "Let's see how you handle, eh?" Wiz Kid turned the Mandroid on his fellows, programming the other members of its unit. While that Mandroid went to work on that, Wiz Kid quickly commandeered two more mandroid units. "Well, that was easy," Wiz Kid commented, as he looked down on the Mandroid unit he had defeated single handily. Standing proud on one mandroid, and with two others flanking, Wiz Kid almost forgot that there was still a battle raging. He snapped back to reality when he saw the Soldiers of Misfortune emerge onto the battlefield. He created a special neural weapon from his backpack, created by the Undertow in case any soldiers managed to free themselves and he had discovered while hacking their files, and picked of Dark and Wrong before he was noticed by the other soldiers of Misfortune, who in turn attacked him and his puppets. Don't give them a second to breath! Arsenal reminded himself as he waded into the legion of Undertow soldiers in front of him. Rather than flying above them and strafing them, he had chosen to use his steel form and meet them head on. His metal wings also made great offense tools, giving him a long reach and also allowing him to simply sweep foes aside. But as the battle progressed, Arsenal could almost feel his foes getting stronger. He hoped he was wrong, because he knew that Force Works couldn't keep this pace up much longer. "This is Commander Grange! I've done a security sweep of the lower levels. The prisoners are in their cells and Force Works hasn't penetrated down here yet." "Understood, Grange. Get your team up here so we can keep it that way. This'll be our last scrap, so let's make it good!" "You got it!" X-Treme put Commander Grange's radio down on his body and started to head towards where he had been informed the cells were. So far, he has having an easy time. He had only been forced to take down about a half dozen men, besides Grange's team. X-Treme didn't get ten feet before Commander Grange and his security team began to awaken. Strange, they should have been out for at least five minutes He thought as he removed several throwing blades from his belt, and it's only been two minutes and ten seconds. Without looking back, he threw one at each member of the security team, nicking them and drawing the slightest amount of blood. "Burn!" X-Treme quickly made his way towards the area he had been informed that Wolfsbane was being held. Before he could decide on where to kick the door on or not, a body flew out. X-Treme easily sidestepped the man. Surprisingly, the man was only stunned by the impact. "Your thug toss needs works," X-Treme commented as he backhanded the soldier into unconsciousness. "I do jus' fine, thank ye," Wolfsbane replied. "What kept ye?" "Traffic was a dream." Wolfsbane chuckled a little bit. "Nightmare. Traffic was a nightmare." Before they could say anything else, the wall behind them exploded with incredible force, knocking them to the ground. Before either hero could react, they were lifted off the ground and grabbed tightly grabbed. "Oh, thank Neptune you're alright!" X-Treme was about to stab the offender squeezing the life from him before he realized who it was. "Nita?" he winced. "I thought you were dead!" She said as she hugged her friends. "Nita...I love ye tae...but...air is becoming an issue!" Wolfsbane rasped. "Sorry." Nita released her friends, and they gasped for air. "Where are the others?" "They're topside, dealing with the Undertow. Dani sent me to find you and the others." Nita turned towards Rahne. "Are you okay? Did the Undertow...hurt you?" The concern was evident in her voice. "They jus' locked me in a cell an' forgot aboot me," Rahne replied. "Why?" "Doesn't matter. Look, you two get back to the others and help them out. I'm sure Speedball can take care of himself. I'm going to find Protocol and deal with him myself." "Are you sure?" "I know the Undertow better than anyone. You two will just slow me down." Kymaera didn't wait for any counter arguments. She simply flew off, heading farther into the depths of the complex. "Roosha, that makes me feel special," X-Treme commented. Behind him, the soldier he had downed was getting to his feet. X-Treme backhanded him with enough force to break his jaw and send him into a coma for three weeks, but the man was simply knocked senseless. X-Treme noted this, and 'flashed' the man with his powers. "Talons of T'Thyees'sha!" he exclaimed. "This man is channelling an incredible amount of bio energy!" "Meaning what?" "Meaning it's making him one tough bastjak!" He replied as he struck the man down again. X-Treme picked up Wolfsbane in his arms and began running back the way he came. "I ken run, ye know!" Rahne protested. Not as fast as I can carry you. We need to get to open ground if we want to see the next solar rotation." "Wait! What about 'Nita?" "She'll have to fend for herself," X-Treme replied. "Things don't look so good for you, do they children?" Protocol asked as he watched Force Works battle his forces. Force Works, despite their power, was being forced back, giving ground. A powerful force field was surrounding the island now, making retreat impossible, and kept any help from arriving. Several Navy ships and the SHIELD Helicarrier were just outside the island, futilely trying to penetrate the force field. They would get thru in time, but not soon enough to save Force Works. "You will join me in the depths of Hades," Protocol declared. He was on his fourth bottle of scotch now, but given his incredible body weight, he barely had a slight buzz. Suddenly, a blue blur smashed thru the far wall and slammed into him with incredible force. Protocol heard a sickening snap, and knew he was paralyzed before he even hit the ground. He opened his eyes, expecting to see Nova standing over him. He was somewhat surprised to see... "Miss Prentiss, I see Speedball freed all his team-mates with his little stunt." "Where is it!" she demanded. "Where is what?" "The kill switch, you smug bastard! You used to gloat to me and the other Soldiers of Misfortune about how you could shut us and the rest of the Undertow with the touch of a button!" Behind her, a soldier attempted to tackle her. Without think, she slapped the man away and into a wall with such force that every bone in his body should have been broken and killed him instantly. Kymaera normally didn't use such force against those weaker than her, but the Undertow was different. The acts they forced her to commit scarred her soul, and she had no place for mercy in her heart for any member. Regardless, the man was simply knocked out, not killed. "How did he survive that blow?" she asked, out of morbid curiosity. "Tell me, Miss Prentiss, have you ever heard of the Collective Man?" Speedball smashed thru the last door that lead to the surface and quickly surveyed the situation. As impossible as it seemed, the Undertow was winning. Force Works, and the three mandroid units were being forced back. About twenty feet away from the rest of the team, Tarene was fighting off eight Ironmongers with a passion. She seemed to be holding her own but how long she could do so was uncertain. Something tells me we'll need our big gun if we're going to make it thru this hoe down Speedball thought as he made his way towards his teammate. What he could do to help her, he wasn't sure, but he knew he had to try. "Tarene, I got yer..." -Wham!- Speedball didn't even get a chance to finish his sentence. Tarene, consumed in a rage, struck Speedball with her full force, sending him flying. "Wahhhh! Jane! Stop this crazy thing!" he shouted as he flew over two hundred miles per hour away from Tarene. "Speedball!" Tarene stopped fight and froze the moment she realized what she had done. Unfortunately for her, this gave the men in the Ironmonger suits a moment to regroup, and they used it to smash Tarene with their repulsar blasts. Speedball, didn't do much better. He smashed thru the doors of another hangar, one clearly marked to indicate it contained Ammunition and Jet Fuel. Spirits help me! Mirage prayed as she was suddenly overwhelmed by the Undertow. Her psychic arrows had no effect on her foes now, and they quickly rushed her, hoping to crush her with their numbers. Get off her you mutts! She heard someone yell. The mass of bodies crushing her quickly disappeared. Arsenal and Nova were digging her out, throwing the Undertow soldiers away and thru the air like rag dolls. "We need to get you to higher ground," Nova said. Mirage didn't argue with that. Nova took her hand and flew her up to the top of the Mandroid unit Wiz Kid had hijacked. Wolfsbane and X-Treme were up there as well, protecting Wiz Kid. "Taki, what the hell is going on here? These guys won't stay down and are getting stronger by the minute!" "I don't know how, but these guys are somehow channelling the life force of half of North America!" Taki explained. He created a plasma rifle with his backpack and tossed it to Mirage. "WHAT! Can you do anything to stop it?" "I...don't think so. This may be our last fight." "I've heard that before," Mirage said as she blasted two Undertow soldiers back. "Do you at least have any suggestions?" "Yes. Prepare to go down like Custer," Wiz Kid smiled. "If we live, Taki, I'm going to kill you for that comment!" "The Collective Man was a brain washed superhero who protected China. He possessed the ability to channel the life force of an entire nation thru his body," Protocol explained to Kymaera. "Potentially, he possessed the ability to channel the life force of millions. As such, the Undertow took an interest in him. We made a deal with China. In exchange for a device that would increase the quality of life for everyone in China, they would give us a blood sample." "And you managed to duplicate his powers somehow," Kymaera finished. "Not exactly. We haven't been able to duplicate the element that allowed him to safely channel such energy. Within several hours, every member of the Undertow present here will explode with enough force to level several city blocks." "Father Neptune... Tell me how to stop it!" Protocol smiled. He could just ignore her, but a better revenge came to mind. His grudge was never with Force Works directly; rather it was with Kymaera, who had cost him so much. "The third screen from the left. The one that is not on. Smash it, and you will see a large green button." Kymaera hesitated, unsure of what to do. "Miss Prentiss, do as I say. What do you have to lose?" He had her there. She smashed the screen, and sure enough, the button was where Protocol had said it would be. "And this will shut down the Undertow?" "No." "But you said..." "It will kill every member of the Undertow. Including the Soldiers of Misfortune." "WHAT!" "You heard me. What, did you think I would make this easy for you?" Protocol sneered. "You monster..." "That, my dear, is in the eye of the beholder. What are you waiting for? Save your friends..." "You mean choose between them. Your Soldiers of Misfortune are my friends as well." "Whatever your choice, I suggest you chose quickly. Force Works won't hold out much longer." Kymaera looked at the green button intently. As ashamed as she was to admit it, the idea of killing the Undertow didn't bother her one bit. She was an Atlantean, and when she ruled Atlantis during Namor's absence, she oversaw the execution of spies who tried to take advantage of Atlantis' weakness. Every member of the Undertow was a willing participant and as far as Kymaera was concerned, got what they deserved. But the Soldiers of Misfortune were different. They were innocent pawns, pawns she knew very, very well. "Time is running out, Miss Prentiss." "Hell, I'm out!" Mirage shouted as she tossed plasma rifle she had been using only moments before aside. She concentrated, and created her trademark psychic arrows. Only this time, they were far more powerful than her normal arrows. She unleashed a barrage of them from her vantage point on the mandroid unit at the Undertow, with little effect. The Undertow soldiers were swarming it like ants now, and Dani knew they were only moments from being overwhelmed. "Mirage, I'm getting a reading a huge build up of kinetic energy in that hangar over there!" Wiz Kid pointed towards the hangar Speedball had been blasted into. It was deformed, with a dozen dents and more forming by the minute, " What should we do?" Mirage didn't reply. That was because she saw death approaching. It came at them with incredible strength and overwhelming power. The last thought that went thru Dani's mind as the hangar exploded and her world turned to white was that she hadn't been dedicated enough to being the leader of Force Works, and they had paid the final price for her failure. Mirage, along with Wiz Kid, Wolfsbane and X-Treme, was blown off the mandroid and thrown thru the air. Mirage came smashing down on the tarmac and skidded a good ten feet before she stopped, flickering it and out of consciousness the entire time. Once she stopped, and it took her a full minute to realize she wasn't dead. With an incredible amount of will power, she pushed herself over, her body complaining the entire time. Lying on her back, she then activated her comm. unit. "Report...Anyone...report..." She rasped. There was no response, but Mirage was undeterred. "Mirage... 290. Status?" She said into the comm. unit. Everything any member of Force Works said over their comms was instantly recorded by computers in the Stealth Wing and what Mirage had done was activate her private code for remote use of the Stealth Wing scanners. "All Force Works life signs are nominal. Opposition forces are negative except one," it reported. That last piece of information really didn't register with Dani. She started to give into the temptation to pass out; so very relieved now that she knew her team was somehow alright. The overwhelming pain was a big factor in that decision as well. "You...you killed us all..." a voice said immediately followed by the hammer of a gun clicking. THAT snapped Dani back to reality. She opened her eyes to see the form of General Obsidian standing about five feet away from her, with a .45 magnum aimed at her head. "You...have...destroyed us, but at least...you won't live to tell about it," he said weakly. Though he didn't much show it, he was on the verge of death. The only thing that saved him was the fact that he secretly had his implant slightly modified. But that only delayed his death by minutes. Dani refused to close her eyes as she sensed death approaching, yet again. "Stop!" a familiar voice yelled. Dani craned her neck to the right, despite the massive pain the act caused. She saw her friend Rahne with a gun in her handed, trained on the General. "Stop or I'll shoot!" Spirits Dani thought. She was screwed. Rahne couldn't pull this bluff in a million years, and she couldn't muster the will to create an arrow. "You...don't honestly...expect me to believe you will shoot me, do you? I've read your file, and you're no killer." "What ye believe is yuir business," Rahne replied, her hand shaking ever so slightly, "but please drop the gun." "You'll have to shoot me." -Blam!- -Blam!- Dani clenched her eyes closed despite herself. When she opened them, she was surprised to discover that she still could and by what she saw. The gun the General had been holding was laying on the ground away from him, and he was clenching his wrist, attempting to stem the bleeding from a bullet hole. "I...won't...fall..." he rasped as he attempted to pull a knife from his belt. "Wwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!" General Obsidian didn't have time to even look up before he was smashed under the falling form of Speedball. His body had just enough give so that Speedball didn't bounce away. Speedball, covered in smoke and ash, stood up, and brushed himself off. "So, what's new with you guys?" Wolfsbane crunched the gun she had used against the General into a ball and dropped it. "Hateful thing," she muttered. "I'm nae sure what happened, Robby." Wolfsbane knelt down next to her old friend. "Lay still, Dani. I need t' check ye oot." "Cripes, Rahne, where.... did you learn to shoot like that? Rictor? Cable?" "Robby, please turn away," she said as she started to rip Dani's costume open to examine her chest. "Mummy taught me." "Moira?! She taught you how to handle a gun?" "Aye. I dinnae want tae, but mummy said that it was something every lady o' Kinross shid know," Rahne explained she felt Dani's ribs. "Oww! Watch it!" "Well, ye have several broken ribs." "I could have told you that." "I'm jus' doin' what me mum taught me. Yuir lucky yuir costume takes as much punishment as it does." "Yeah... lucky me," Mirage winced. "Any idea what happened?" "I killed them." The three Force Works members turned as one and saw Kymaera emerging from the lower levels of the base, weeping profusely. "I killed them all..." SHIELD Helicarrier, Medical Bay "...And apparently, her battle with Protocol activated some auto destruct sequence. It killed everyone, including Protocol." Mirage finished. She was lying down in the medical wing of the SHIELD Helicarrier, being patched up while being debriefed by Dugan Dum Dum, one of the highest-ranking members of SHIELD present. "Poor kid." Dugan said as he lit up a stogie. "Wonder how she's takin' it." "We're not kids, Dum Dum. In the eyes of the law, every member of Force Works is legally responsible enough to commit murder. Now, I don't suppose you can tell me what exactly SHIELD managed to get from the Undertow?" "A whole lot of squat. When we busted the force field the Undertow had around their base, it caused feedback that fried everythin' damn thing. It'll take our tech boys twenty years jus' ta kind out what kinda operating system they had. Hope ya appreciate it." "We do. So where's Forge and X-Force?" "Umm, busy," he stated.* * (See recent issues of X-Force and Excalibur to see what Dum Dum is talking about) "Well, we'll get out of your hair in a little," Dani said as she sat up. "Ms. Moonstar, please, lay down," one medical technician implored. "I'm fine. Don't fret over me," she said. "Check the others of you need to keep busy." "Ms. Moonstar..." "You heard the lady," Dum Dum interrupted. "She's fine. Go see to her team-mates." The two lab technicians quickly left, afraid of angering their superior. "Thanks. I thought I was being too subtle." "Ta others, maybe. But I've been in the game long enough ta know when someone wants to talk to me in private. What can I do for ya?" "Nothing, really. I heard about what happened to Fury." "So? What of it?" Dum Dum asked, already uncomfortable with the subject. Nick Fury, in a series of events that no one could have foreseen, was turned against SHIELD and everything it stood for. "Fury personally recruited me into SHIELD. He gave me a purpose after I was kicked out of Asgard, so I owe him a lot." Mirage reached into her belt and pulled out what looked like an average calling card. "I know he's made enough enemies on both sides of the fence that would like nothing more than to see him dead." "So?" Mirage handed him the card. "So if you ever need some... outside help dealing with Fury, just call us. This calling card is untraceable, and connects directly to our personal voice mail." "Thanks, Moonstar. I'll consider that," he said as he tucked the card into his belt. SHIELD Helicarrier, Morgue Namorita Prentiss, as a Submariner, is normally immune to the effects of lower temperatures. She frolicked under the polar ice caps as a child with no ill effects whatsoever. But now, the cold of the morgue cut thru her like a knife. Laid out in front of her on metal gurneys were seven dead bodies of her family members. A family forged of mutual enslavement, loss and pain. And for the second time in her life, she was an orphan. Tears streamed down her face as she thought about what she had done. She heard someone quietly approaching. "I told you Richie, I want to be alone now," she choked out. "I'm nae Richie." Nita turned around. "Rahne please, just leave me be..." "Ye did them a kindness," Rahne said. "How would you know!" she snapped. "I took away any chance they had of returning to their family!" "I know because I once spent time as a slave," Rahne explained.* "Fer an entire week, I was forced tae obey the every whim of my 'masters'. I still remember how that one week twisted me, and filled me with hatred. Ye were fortunate tae escape. But the fact that ye did isnae yuir fault." * (Rahne was turned into a slave during X-Tincton Agenda) "You don't know what I'm responsible for!" Nita taunted, despite herself. Her guilt was so much that she now wanted someone, anyone to hate her for what she was forced to do. Rahne gently took Nita's hands in her own. "I know that the Undertow wasnae killed because of yuir fight wit' Protocol, if that's what ye mean." Nita looked at Rahne, shocked. She had seen thru her lie, and would expose her for the coward that she was. Nita was torn about what to do next. Should she run, beg Rahne to keep the secret, not give a damn about what happened next, what? Rahne, however, had no such questions about what to do. "I know ye did what ye had tae. Ye had no choice. Yuir friends are in a better place now, ye know that as well as I do." "How can you be so sure?" she choked "Because I know ye. I know, with all my heart, ye wouldnae have pressed that button if ye dinnae believe that ye were helping them." Nita wanted to tell Rahne that she was wrong, that she was a poor judge of character, but when her mouth opened, her throat just went dry. Though it was hard for her to admit, she knew that her fellow members of the Soldiers of Misfortune could never return to their normal lives. After all, how many times had she heard them wake up in the middle of the night screaming in shame over the acts they were forced to perform? She had lost count after two hundred and twenty three. "They ne'er could have gone back to their old lives." "I...know." "Then let it out, Nita." And she did. Namorita let loose all the pain, and torment that she had been bottling down since Protocol had forced her to choose between her two families. Rahne comforted her as best she could as Namorita broke down crying in her arms. Metro City, Workplace Hours later Namorita started at the ceiling in her bedroom, unable to find sleep. Her actions weighed heavily on her. It wasn't because of the death she had caused. No, she came from a warrior's culture, which allowed for the slaying of an enemy. Namorita for a time, rejected that culture, but was forced to embrace it when she was forced to rule Atlantis in Namor's stead. Her culture also taught her to accept the fact that actions, good or bad, cannot be undone They can only remembered as a lesson for the future. And perhaps, if only of out necessity, Namorita truly believed that now. Perhaps, it was something else. The Undertow, the Soldiers of Misfortune, were gone forever, and there was nothing she could do to change that. But there was a way she could remember them. She silently got out of bed, taking care not to awake her lover, Richard Rider. She threw on a robe, and picked up a piece of clothing she had brought with her from SHIELD. She then flew towards the lab. Taki took a sip of his coffee, and looked at the items in front of him. Laid out on a table in were Force Work's costumes. With the exception of Speedball, who wore no costume but changed into another form. He was ordered to find a way to integrate something into the costumes that would block scans. Oh, no, it wasn't good enough that the costumes, made of unstable molecules, was fire and bullet proof, no it wasn't good enough they all had concealed rebreathers in them, no it wasn't good enough they had integrated comm. units that could take as much punishment as the costumes themselves, no, it had to... Wait a minute, didn't he volunteer for this? Taki took another sip of his coffee, remembering in fact he had. It was a challenge, and that's what he lived for. "I doubt I can cook something up to block someone like Iron Man's scanners, but I think I can make something that'll work none the less,"he mused aloud. "Then it's a good thing I got here before you started." Taki wheeled around, startled. He wasn't expecting to be around at this time. He saw Namorita, wearing a somewhat revealing robe. "I wanted to talk to you about my costume." "Oh, what about it?" He walked towards his worktable and sat down. Mechanical hands came out of his backpack. "It's not much to work with, but don't worry..." "You love a good challenge. I have to disappoint you, though." Namorita tossed another costume onto the worktable. "I want you to modify this costume. I also want you to alter it so that it retains water." Taki picked the costume up. It was the green and white costume Namorita had worn as a member of the Soldiers of Misfortune. "I can...make it so that it holds water, and can add a miniature humidifier to it as well. May I ask why you intend to wear this costume?" "To remember." Next: Force Works does a little community service when Grey Gargoyle hits Metro City. Plus, more on Doug and Rahne.