Book IV
Chapter II: Heat
-~Amethystar~-
Theyre alive, I know they are, thought Amethystar as she flew down the coast of the Atlantic. Flying next to her were Netherflare, Gravanator, Tribal Axe, Dinah Might and Phantoma Storm. Gravanator had been keeping them in the air and dragging them with him for hours now and they were still miles and miles away from Florida, their destination. It was dark out, so Amethystar couldnt see exactly where they were.
So, what exactly are we going to do when we get there? asked Netherflare as she began to do some aerial flips in the sky.
Track down Ana Cruz, find out what she knows about Silent Spy and NeoRadiation, said Tribal Axe, drifting in and out of sleep.
Amethystar looked around and noticed everyone else relaxed, except for Phantoma Storm. Amethystar forced herself near Phantoma.
Are you okay? asked Amethystar.
I cant sleep, said Phantoma Storm.
Why not? asked Amethystar.
Trying to keep the weather nice, said Phantoma Storm. Theres a tropical storm heading towards Florida. Im trying to hold it back or it will become a hurricane and unleash full fury on the state.
Surprise, a hurricane in Florida, said Amethystar sarcastically.
Yes, but if we get a hurricane while were there, were going to have some problems. Im trying to redirect the hurricanes route, but that involved changing the water current, which isnt too easy for me to do, said Phantoma.
Ah, well, Ill just leave you alone then, said Amethystar, forcing her body away from the Phantoma again.
As Amethystar pushed her body away, she pushed herself too far away from Gravanator and fell down. She fell onto a rock in the water and then bounced off the rock, into the ocean, creating a quiet splash. Her arm was bleeding from falling on the rock and burnt from the salt water. Amethystar resurfaced to scream for help, but the rest of the group was gone, they had flown away without her. She tried to gain energy to fly after them, but was too tired and in too much pain. She quickly climbed on top of the rock, holding on and gasping for breath.
~-NeoRadiation~-
NeoRadiation, under the name Larry Stone, and Silent Spy, under the name Maria Loften, sat inside a car parked outside of Ana Cruzs mansion outside of Miami, Florida. It was now 9:00AM and they had been waiting for several hours for Ana Cruz to leave her house.
Are we just going to ambush her right when she gets inside her car? asked Silent Spy.
Pretty much, yeah, said NeoRadiation, smiling.
Ana Cruz stepped outside of her mansion. She had short golden blonde dyed-hair with tanned sun-kissed skin. She had huge lips with cool blue eyes. She wore a tight red short dress with strappy red high-heeled shoes and a blood red scarf. Nothing about Ana Cruzs body appeared to have a flaw; none of it could possibly be real. With millions of dollars, Ana Cruz could make herself look like anything.
Ana walked down the front steps of her house and stepped into the black stretch limousine on her driveway.
Ready? asked Silent Spy.
Go, said NeoRadiation as the both jumped out of their car and rushed towards Ana Cruzs limo. However, two men jumped out of hedges and ambushed them. One quickly grabbed onto Silent Spy as the other grabbed onto NeoRadiation. They were dragged towards the limo and then thrown inside.
Inside the limo was Ana Cruz, sitting across from them with a glass of champagne in her hand. Next to her was a huge bodyguard.
Gracias Diego y Francisco, said Ana to the two men. The two men, Diego and Francisco, shut the doors to the limo. Hello, Silent Spy and NeoRadiaton.
You know our names? asked Silent Spy.
Yes, Lord Recluse told me all about you two, said Ana.
Youre working with the Arachnos? asked NeoRadiation.
Why, of course, said Ana Cruz, smirking.
What do they want with you? asked Silent Spy.
Do you honestly expect me to reveal the entire plan to you? asked Ana Cruz with a laugh. Ana pulled out a pistol and held it at Silent Spys head. Im not stupid, Silent Spy.
Ana slapped the gun across Silent Spys face, cutting her cheek. NeoRadiaton quickly grabbed the champagne bottle and hit the bodyguard with it. The bottle cracked into pieces, but the bodyguard hardly flinched. The bodyguard snarled.
Somebody goin hafta clean dat up, said the bodyguard as he slugged NeoRadiation in the face, knocking him unconscious.
-~Tribal Axe~-
Gravanator, Tribal Axe, Netherflare, Dinah Might and Phantoma Storm walked into their hotel suite on the beach.
Im going to rest for a bit, then Ill head back to look for Amethystar, said Gravanator, lying down on the bed, exhausted from the long flight. They hadnt realized Amethystar was missing until it was morning. By that time, they had decided that it was too late to turn around and look.
Phantoma Storm sat down on a chair on the balcony, overlooking the beach in a meditation position. Tribal Axe shrugged and turned to Dinah and Netherflare.
I guess its just us, said Tribal Axe. How are we going to find Ana Cruz?
Netherflare shrugged and turned on the TV as she flopped onto the couch.
I dont know, said Netherflare. Phonebook?
Tribal Axe grabbed the remote from Netherflare, taking it away from her to turn off the TV when he changed the channel to the news.
There is a major accident on I-95 heading north, said the newscaster. The footage of the accident showed multiple cars turned over or on fire.
We should help them, said Netherflare. We can find Ana after.
Netherflare is right, said Dinah Might. We are heroes after all.
Okay, lets go then, but make it quick, said Tribal Axe as Netherflare and Dinah were rushing out the door.
-~Silent Spy~-
What the hell is taking so long? asked Ana angrily as they waited for traffic to clear up on the highway. This was Silent Spys chance to make a run for it. She quickly kicked both her feet out, kicking the bodyguard and Ana as she opened the car door.
Andres! Get her! shouted Ana as Silent Spy jumped outside the car and began to run. The front doors of the limousine opened as Diego and Francisco jumped out, carrying Uzis. They began to shoot at Silent Spy, creating panic for all the other people stuck in traffic. People ran out of their cars and ran as far as they could. Ana climbed out of the car and began to shoot at Silent Spy, who was hiding behind a car for protection.
Need a hand, Silent Spy? asked a voice. Silent Spy turned behind her to find Netherflare flying above her head, smiling.
Netherflare! gasped Silent Spy. A gunshot was heard as Netherflare fell to the ground in front of Silent Spy with a bullet in her chest. Oh, crap.
Im fine, said Netherflare, holding back her pain. Netherflare and Silent Spy quickly rushed out from behind the car and charged at Ana Cruz.
A motorcycle rode in front of them and right next to Ana Cruz. The motorcyclist grabbed Ana and dragged her on the street until the motorcycle stopped. Dinah Might hopped off the motorcycle and kicked Ana Cruz in the gut.
I hate girls like you, said Dinah as she lifted up Ana above her head and threw her two lanes across the highway. Dinah smiled and winked at Silent Spy, not paying attention to what was going on around her. Andres charged at Dinah and punched her in the cheek, sending Dinah flying in the air and onto a car, breaking the windshield.
Andres grabbed a car with one of his hands and lifted the car over his head and tossed it towards Silent Spy. Silent Spy quickly ducked as Netherflare launched fire at the car, causing it to explode in midair.
Diego then began to shoot his Uzis towards Netherflare, but was stopped as Tribal Axe smashed Diego on the head with the flat part of the axe, stunning him. Diego fell to the ground as Tribal Axe then tossed the axe at Andres. However, the axe just bounced off and fell to the ground, only cutting through Andress clothing. Andres turned to Tribal Axe, who was standing near Silent Spy and Netherflare.
Run, said Tribal Axe as Andres began to charge at them. As he ran at them, he knocked all the cars in his way out into different lanes. Hed occasionally grab a car and toss it at them as they ran.
This guy is a beast! shouted Netherflare as they ran from the raging bodyguard.
I got a plan! shouted Silent Spy. Silent Spy stopped and turned around.
She grabbed a small ninja star from her back pocket and waited for Andres. She then charged towards Andres as she began to make herself intangible. When she became intangible, she ran into Andress body and stuck the ninja star into his heart and came out of his body from behind him, leaving the ninja star in his body. She made herself tangible again and fell to the ground, looking at Andres. Andres stopped moving and clutched his chest as he fell onto the street. Silent Spy panted in shock of what she had just done.
Im never doing that again, said Silent Spy as Dinah Might walked over to the group.
Wheres Ana? asked Netherflare.
I thought she was with you, said Dinah.
Helicopters from various new stations flew overhead. One of the helicopters had a rescue ladder with Ana Cruz climbing up it. The helicopter had the Arachnos insignia on it.
Shes getting away! said Silent Spy as the helicopter began to fly away. Netherflare hovered up, but Silent Spy grabbed her arm and pulled her down.
No, we cant use our powers with the media here, said Silent Spy. This is Florida, not Paragon City. Theyre not used to seeing heroes, and we dont need the publicity right now.
NeoRadiation approached Silent Spy and looked at the rest of the group and smiled.
So, does this mean we no longer are Larry and Maria? asked NeoRadiation with a laugh.
We need to head back to Paragon City now, said Netherflare. If Ana Cruz is with the Arachnos, we better head the Arachnoss headquarters
Grandville.
---Next Chapter: Ana Cruz brings the tension back to Paragon City as she works on her deal with the Arachnos.---