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"Look at you all! Mere sheep, following through the motions of your lives, because you know nothing else!" It was a sadly familiar sight in Steel
Canyon. A Vortex Adjutant and a squad of Nebulas standing on a street corner, harassing those that passed by with the propaganda of the council, insults, and
even outright threats. The modern day version of a press gang. The fact that an organization born from the Nazis and the second world war could openly walk the
streets of Paragon City was depressing, yet all too common in a world still healing from the Rikti Invasion.
People didn't look at the Council soldiers as they walked past as fast as possible without drawing attention. While mere cannon fodder by the standards of
the Council, the Nebulas were still deadly to the everyday citizen. With so few police officers left in Paragon City, it was safer to keep your head down and
not get noticed. After all, what if they decided you'd make a good addition to the Council and there wasn't a hero nearby?
The Adjutant stepped off his box suddenly, marching towards a slightly overweight man in his late twenties. "You are exactly the kind of failure I speak
of," the Council solder said, voice nearly dripping with disgust. "You have wasted your life. Your body has been neglected, mistreated. Now it slowly
rots away, just like your mind," he said as the man backed up, visibly terrified by the Nazi, but at the same time, drawn in by the sheer force of his
words.
"It is not your fault. It is the fault of a society that teaches the lesson that 'close enough is good enough.' They tell you not to try, not to
find your limits. Just sit back, watch television, and buy things that make you feel better." The disgust seemed to fade as he placed a hand on the mans
shoulder. "I was the same way once, before the Council opened my eyes. They helped me to rediscover who I was meant to be. They could do it for you
also..."
"After the invasive surgery, mind-altering drugs and mental reprogramming," added a new voice. "Then you'll be all set for life as a Nazi
henchman, threatening people, shooting innocents, and generally being the scum of society."
The Adjutant scowled, turning, then paled at the sight of a trio of heroes standing there. Well, two heroes and what looked like a Lost Headman, mutated
features hidden in the hood of his jumper and a face mask. The voice had to belong to the man in green power armor, as it obviously didn't belong to the
fairy girl in rather decorative formal wear.
"Kill them!" the Adjutant ordered, grabbing his flamethrower and pulling it up. The trio scattered instantly as the Council squad moved to obey. As
he opened fire on the fairy, the squad leader identified two of them. Lady of the Peace and Sell-Sword, founding members of the somewhat new supergroup Riot
6.1. Against the 'children' he was leading, not good at all.
Lady jumped into the air, wings lifting her even higher as flames appeared around her hands. Smirking, she threw the flames like a baseball into the Nebulas,
scattering them across the street. One didn't have a chance to get up before Sell-Sword nailed him in the chest with a short burst.
Ignoring the seeming death of one of his men (The death of a mere Nebula was the Councils 'survival of the fittest' at work' ethic after all), the
Adjutant unhooked a grenade from his belt and tossed it at Sword. He leapt clear, but was stunned for a moment as he caught the very edge of the blast. The
Nazi smirked coldly, stepping forward, only to find himself lifting into the air, feet danging a foot off the ground as his whole body felt like it was being
held in a vice. Forcing his head to the side, he saw the 'Lost' standing back, a hand held out in front of him.
Seconds later, Lady dropped, fists glowing with arcane energy as she slammed them down on his head. The world seemed to explode for a moment, then spun as he
tried to get his bearings. "He's a durable one," Lady mused.
"Boss, move please," the 'Lost' said in a surprisingly normal voice. Lady stepped clear, then the Vortex saw a trash can pick itself up and
fly towards him at high speed.
Lady of the Peace winced as the Nazis body made a rather nasty sounding crunch at the impact, bouncing along the ground. "He's not getting up
soon," she said, pulling a teleport tag from out of nowhere and walking over to him.
"This one is," Sword noted as a Nebula tried to get up. Raising his rifle, he took aim.
"Sword, alive."
"Why?" he asked curiously.
"He's easier to question then Vortex boy."
"Good point," he agreed, walking over and punching the Council goon in the face. He dropped back to the ground, out cold.
As Lady secured the Council goons and teleported all but the one Nebula away, the 'Lost' walked over to the man the Vortex had been harassing. "My
apologies for that sir," he said, nodding his head respectfully. "A few minutes sooner, and you wouldn't have had to deal with their abuse."
"That's quite alright," he managed. "I... I thought you were a Lost at first," he admitted, embarrassed.
The giant chuckled. "Understandable," he said. "Sadly, there are very few clothing options for a man of my size. It's made for some..
interesting encounters." The friendly tone in his voice made the man smile, despite the situation.
As Sword walked up, he paused, looking at the armored hero. "Invasive surgery?" he asked.
"Oh yes," Sell-Sword replied. "They pump you full of combat drugs, tweak your DNA and thought patterns, and suject you to brainwashing until all
you can think of is serving the Council and their quest for world conquest and Fourth Reich." The man looked slightly horrified. "Scary, isn't
it?"
"...yes," he said after a moment. "Very. He made it sound so... appealing..."
"He's a fanatic that knows the right thing to say," Lady of the Peace said. "Blame everything on things outside your control and tell you he
could make it all better. He had a lot more stuff to feed you," she added. "Not your fault. He's trained to mess with peoples heads." The
man looked thoughtful as he thanked them again and went on his way. Lady watched him for a moment, then turned to Sell-Sword. "You know a bit about the
Council."
The armored hero nodded. "They gave me a job offer back before I got this gear," he admitted. "Had potential, then it fell apart when I took a
closer look. I'm a mercenary, not a fanatic. Turns out they don't do contractors." He glanced over at the giants snicker. "What's so
funny Horizon?"
Iridium Horizon shrugged. "Just love the fact you dislike villain groups based off their hiring practices," he commented, drawing a giggle from Lady.
"Whatever," he said, going over and picking up the one Nebula they hadn't teleported. "Lets get started on questioning this guy
already."
***
As the Nebula woke up, he realized a number of very important details in short order. One, he was upside down. Two, he was utterly naked. Three, he was
floating a few meters from the edge of one of Steel Canyons many skyscrapers, the ground far, far below him.
"Oh God..." he managed.
"Morning sunshine," said a cheerful voice. Looking at the rooftop, he saw Sell-sword and Iridium standing there, Sword looking through the Nazis
gear, Iridium reading a book as he held out a hand, obviously keeping the Nebula floating there. "You know, they really don't give you grunts much in
the way of decent stuff," he mused. "A glock ripoff they must make in one of their own factories, some armor..."
"Whatever you want, I'll never talk!" the Nebula said, voice rather squeaky.
"Right..." Sword said, sounding rather amused as the rooftop door opened and Lady of the Peace came out, having grabbed drinks from a vending machine
(With a straw for Sell-Sword). "Sorry it took so long, it's like this is the only building in the city without vending machines everywhere..."
she paused. "Did you have to strip him naked?"
The mercenary shrugged. "Best way to make sure he's not carrying hidden weapons. Why, distracted?" he teased.
"No, just noting that the rumors about the Council enforcing sterility among its troops must be true." Iridium snorted as Sword laughed, and the
Nebulas face went bright red.
"I haven't had any gene-treatments yet!" He paused, then processed what he said. "... Wait!" All three heroes cracked up laughing.
"That's not funny!"
"It's a little funny," Iridium said, chuckling. "But not really important."
"Here's how it is," Lady of the Peace said. "We ask questions, you answer them honestly. Lie to us or refuse to answer, and we drop
you."
"You wouldn't dare! You're heroes!" he protested.
"And you're a Nazi," Lady said. "And if we drop you, you'd be the first naked suicide in Steel Canyon since... help me out here..."
"That stock broker last year," Iridium replied casually, relaxing his grip and letting the Nebula drop slightly. The Nazi made a slight shriek.
"Okay okay okay!" he yelled.
Lady grinned and leaned forward. "Let's start with wherever your Archon is resting his head these days."
***
"Whatever this is Ellis, it better be good," Lt. Conner said as he stepped into the bases control center. The Sky Raiders resident intelligence
officer looked over his shoulder with a grin.
"Better then good Boss, gold. Just verified some info the Council sent us. Now hear me out," he said as the Porter gave him an unamused look.
"It's been verified. Remember that dustup the Legendary got in over at Chiron Medical about a few months back? First appearance of Lady of the
Peace?"
"Yeah, Space Mage said she was Knights sister. What about it?"
"Well, the Council realized something we didn't. Those wings and ears? They're not a magical transformation. She's got them full time."
That got Conners attention, as he leaned over Ellis' shoulder for a look at the screen. "Ifrit Barnes, got herself a decent apartment in Atlas, blah
blah blah... But, with her, we get..." he opened another window, revealing photos of a man in his mid twenties with orange-red hair. "Robert Barnes,
or as we know him..."
"Knight of the Peace," Conner said, smirking. He'd ended up with a broken arm and some time in the Zig before the Raiders had used an Arachnos
attack as a distraction for a breakout of their own, thanks to Knights patrols in Striga. "He's a tech hero," he mused. "It's all in his
armor."
"Yep. And one more little gift... The Council sent his address." Conner looked at him. "They raided the FBSA offices in the Canyon last week.
Guess they managed to get some info out."
Conner shook his head. "Too easy. Why would they give us that?"
"Because he's been pissing them off as well, but he's living right here in Faultline," Ellis grinned. Conner grinned as well. "Right on
our doorstep. Our people can get there a lot easier then the Council can."
"Nazi pricks are using us," the officer said. "But this time, I don't mind. Don't tell anyone else Ellis, I'm taking this to
Castillo." Ellis grinned, turning back to his workstation as Conner ran out.
***
Robert Barnes pulled his head out of the shower stream at sound of the doorbell. "Just a minute!" he yelled, spinning the taps and climbing out,
grabbing a towel. "Every single time lately," he grumbled, speed drying before wrapping the towel around his waist and heading out of the bathroom.
Reaching the front door, he checked through the spy hole, then smiled and opened the door. "Oh, it's you. Should have spent a little more time in the
water."
His younger sister grinned. "You waste enough of that anyway," Miranda said, stepping inside. The bodysuit she wore to contain her electrical powers
was mostly hidden under street clothes, leaving only the shocking blue hair that most people would assume was a dye job as a clue to her other life as Miss
Lightning. "Go and get dressed, I'll be fine," she said, heading into the kitchen.
Robert came back out in casual clothes a few minutes later, finding Mir waiting for him with a fresh cup of coffee. "Did you just get up?" she asked
curiously. As he nodded, she raised an eyebrow. "Rob, it's nearly four in the afternoon."
"And I was up all night dealing with the Devoured over in Talos," he said. "Kidnapping scientists for some reason for another..." He
shrugged, sipping at his coffee. "Who knows how those things think."
Mir chuckled, drinking her own coffee. "Don't look at me. I'm still working on Hellions and Skulls."
Her brother gave her an amused look. "You know, Ifrit's leaving you in the dust," he teased. "Not to mention that kid she's taken
in..." Miranda rolled her eyes and waved a hand at him, small electrical arcs crackling in the air and making Robert back up slightly with a laugh.
"Touchy!" he grinned.
"Unlike you two, I'm too busy to run around in spandex full time," Miranda said. "The perils of a more conventional career."
"A Freedom Corps technician is conventional?" he asked, getting another zap for his teasing. "Ow ow okay I give!" he laughed, holding up
his hands in surrender.
Mir smirked, making a pistol with her fingers and 'blowing the smoke away'. "Smart boy."
***
"Dammit, I can't see anything. If he's there, he's not opening the curtains," grumbled the Sky Raider trooper sitting at a window in one
of the broken skyscrapers in Faultlines crater.
The Raider Engineer with him sighed "Just be patient, would you? We set up this surveillance an hour ago, you can't expect miracles."
"Look, if Knight does live there, why not sneak in, plant some cameras and bombs, and blow him up when he comes home?"
He looked up at a short laugh from the Engineer. "Christ, you are new."
"And what the hell does that mean?" he scowled.
"Two things newbie. One, He's a registered hero. Which means, if that is his apartment, the Freedom Corps have added their own layer of security on
top of the already impressive shit you see in any of the new buildings in this zone. We try and sneak in or plant bombs, and they'll know. Hell, waiting
for him to step on the balcony and sniping him would leave a pretty ripple pattern on the forcefield generators and not much else." The Engineer chuckled.
"They may be cape-licking little snots, but the Corps do good work."
The Trooper looked up to him. "What's the other thing?"
His amused look shifted to a scowl. "We're not making this shits death quick. His interference has cost us a lot, in money, men and equipment. Captain
Castillo is going to make him suffer before the end."
There was an amused snort. "You mean he wants it to be dramatic and make him look cool." The Engineer paused, then nodded, conceeding the point.
***
"So if they'd been better with the pay plan, you would have worked for the Council?" Horizon asked as he used his powers to blow the warehouse
door inwards, flattening the rather shocked guard in the process. Lady of the Peace followed up with a fireball through the opening that set the other people
in the room on fire.
"Sure," Sell-Sword said as he stepped in, firing a short burst at one of the guards. "I've worked for worse."
"Worse then Nazis?" Lady wondered as she followed him in. Flames flickered around her hands as she whispered an incarnation. A moment later, flames
formed just below the rooftop and dropped on the Nazis running towards them. As they tried to find cover or just charge through, Horizon picked up the door
again and threw it at them.
Sell-sword tagged the guards still breathing and teleported them to the Zig. "You'd be surprised," he said.
"And now?" Horizon asked as they walked into the warehouse, ignoring the sirens wailing.
"I'm under contract to the FBSA and Riot Force," he shrugged. "And the pixie pays well. One of the kids better habits."
The gravity giant chuckled. "And you hired this guy?" he asked Lady. Before she could answer, a pair of Nebulas emerged from a side room. Lady
knocked the first ones gun away from her with one hand, formed a sphere of magical energy around her other fist, and punched him in the face. As he flew
backwards and collided with a wall, Sword swapped modes on his rifle and unloaded a shotgun shell into the other Nebulas chest.
"Two reasons," Lady smirked. "One, he's worth the contract. Two, I don't want to go up against him." Horizon considered this, then
nodded, moving on ahead.
"Gee fairy princess, I'm flattered," Sword laughed.
"Just go earn your paycheck mercenary," she said, rolling her eyes. The armored hero shot off a mock salute and moved on. She took off her glasses
and wiped them on her coattails, then jogged after them.
This particular Council safehouse was relatively well-defended, but with more Nebulas then any other type of soldier. The trio of heroes were deep inside the
base and causing havoc before the Nazis could get organized, and showing no signs of slowing down. "Factory floor," Lady noted as they passed through
a break room and onto a balcony looking over the large room, filled with crates, conveyor belts and Nazis.
There was an amused chuckle from behind her as Iridium Horizon stepped past her. "Mind your head," he said, raising his arms. Even as the Council
soldiers below raised their weapons, their surroundings went wild. Crates flipped up into the air and down onto unlucky men, tools flew in all directions, even
one or two Nebulas found themselves airborne.
It only lasted a moment, Horizon having his limits, but it was enough to throw the gathered villains into chaos. As he backed up, trying to get his breath
back, Lady of the Peace and Sell-sword jumped over the railing and took to the air, floating over the factory floor and launching their own all-out assault.
Flames, grenades and gunfire rained down on the Nazis, sending the survivors running, and by the time the pair were done, Horizon was ready to go again,
finishing off those left standing.
"Quick, brutal, and effective," Lady smiled as she landed back on the balcony. "Now, to find their computers and find out just what they've
been up to," she said.
"That won't be needed, Miss Ifrit Barnes," replied a new, stern voice. The trio turned to find a Council Archon standing there with nearly ten
Vortexes standing behind him. "Had you asked, I would have been more then happy to tell you about our recent operations," he continued, a cold smirk
on his face. The three members of Riot Force didn't move, given the number of weapons aimed at them. "After all, they did involve you somewhat."
"You know this guy?" Sword asked.
Ifrit shook her head. "Not really... he does look familiar though," she replied, thinking.
"He knows you," Horizon pointed out.
"Yes, but she lacks a secret identity," the Archon smirked. "Most troublesome. My name is Cartney-"
"Now I remember you!" Lady interrupted, snapping her fingers. "Faes Piñata!" She was rewarded with a slight twitch from the Nazi,
confirming her theory.
"I remember that story," Sell-Sword said, a smirk clearly in his voice. "She was after candy, and Wide said-"
"Enough!" Cartney snapped, his calm facade cracking somewhat. "There are more important things for you to worry about right now."
"Like the fact you're smirking about knowing my name," Ifrit replied. "I'll admit it's a concern, but it's a fact I've had
to deal with from day one."
"Actually, you are still new enough to life as a costumed 'hero' that you are of little concern," the Archon said, the knowing smirk
returning to his face. "The Council is more interested in your brother, Robert. Or does he prefer Knight of the Peace?" he smiled. Ifrit flinched
slightly. She'd seen it coming, but even so... "Unlike you, I believe his powers are based in his armor, correct?" he asked, in the tone of a man
that already knew the answer.
As Ifrit glared at him, the smirk widened. "In an odd twist of fate, even as you entered this facility, I received word that the Sky Raiders have stormed
the medicomm facility in New Overbrook. Until they are driven out - an hour at the most, I expect - there will be no medical teleports there. So when they
attack your brothers apartment..."
"You son of a bitch," she growled, flames flickering around her. The Vortexes readied their weapons - then one of them jerked suddenly, his yelp of
pain taking on a slower tone then what would be expected. Cartney spun, only to duck as a red blur leapt over his head and landed in front of him.
"Hey guys, check out the new upgrade!" said the small woman in red power armor. All three heroes recognized her as Net Sabre, one of the supergroups
subteam called the Sabres of Paragon (Ifrit also recognized her as her girlfriend, but hey, secret identity). Cartney growled as a pair of Vortexes fired on
her, only for Net to use her stolen speed to slip out of the line of fire - and it took their attention off the other three heroes for a moment.
Cartney was reminded of this critical fact when an almost solid blast of flame slammed into his chest, knocking him back several feet. His attention refocused
on Lady of the Peace just before she flew at him, a glowing fist colliding with his face and throwing him backwards. At the same time, the other three members
of Riot Force opened fire on the other Council soldiers.
***
"So the way Star tells it," Miranda said, snickering at the memory, "is that it was about her third day at the job. She's checking out a tip
from MAGI about a Hellion warehouse, so she takes a shortcut, jumps a fence... and lands right in the middle of some Vaziloks. The reapers are having a smoke,
and they're all surprised, then..." she grinned. "She notices one of the Cadavers has a weird backpack mounted."
"Oh no," Rob said, a grin forming. "You're telling me..."
"There's a click, a boom, and the next thing she knows, she's in a medical teleporter at Chiron," Mir laughed. Robert laughed, leaning back
into his chair. "I'd call it the most entertaining of all the first medicomm express trips," she said. "The best part though? She went back
to that back alley and found all the Reapers out cold. Caught in their own blast."
Rob snickered, before being distracted by the insistent beeping of his phone. Still laughing slightly, he stood up and went over. Flipping it open, he paused,
laughs fading. "What's up?" Mir asked, noticing the expression.
"Sky Raiders," he replied, reading the text message. "They've hit the Faultline Medicomm, taken it off line." He backed out of the
message and dialed a phone number. "Serge? Knight here, what can you tell me about the Medicomm mess?"
As her brother talked to his contact, Miranda pulled off her civilian clothes, revealing the dark blue bodysuit underneath. She closed her eyes and
concentrated, a network of circuits woven into the suit beginning to glow with a faint golden light, before she took a blue domino mask from her belt pouch and
put it on. When Rob flipped the cell phone closed, Miss Lightning looked over at him curiously.
He put the phone back on the table. "All the staff got out and the police department has the place sealed. They're waiting for Longbow and powered
suit support before they go in, but they are asking for hero assistance."
"Of course they are," she grinned. "Poor buggers couldn't keep up with it all without us-" She was cut off mid-sentence as explosions
erupted outside the apartments window, held back by the blue-green forcefield that had sprung into view. At the same time, a loud, attention-seeking wail
pulled their attention to a holodisplay that emerged from the wall, showing just how long before the Freedom Corps defenses failed.
The siblings didn't waste any time, sprinting for the nearest door and slamming it behind them. For a moment, the explosions suddenly got closer, ripping
through the kitchen and living room of Robs apartment and destroying anything they touched. As they died down, Rob moved away from the door and went across the
study to where his armor was hanging on its hooks. While he pulled on the thick cargo pants and shirt, Miss Lightning opened the door slightly and peeked
through.
Nearly a dozen Sky Raiders and several of their assault skiffs were moving towards the exposed room, weapons at the ready. "Raiders," she hissed. Rob
swore as he zipped up the under suit.
"Explains the medicomm attack," he growled, grabbing his rocket boots. "Two minutes, and be careful. No hospital." Lightning nodded,
opening the door and stepping out, raising a hand. Electricity arced from her fingers and sped across the destroyed room, tagging a Raider as he tried to land.
He yelped, then screamed as his raptor pack died and he fell to the street below.
"Private property, traitor boys," she spat, hands crackling as she took up a ready pose. "So why don't you just turn around and be on your
way?"
"I am afraid to be telling you that such a thing shall not be happening," replied a voice that sounded like it was attempting to be dramatic.
Lightning blinked as a Raider in a... unique costume descended into view. She'd never seen a Sky Raider with epaulets and what looked like flame patterns
on his flight suit before. "But you are not to be the one I came here seeking," he said. "Although I admit, you are to be a fine example of a
woman... no doubt you are admiring me, for I am a dashing example of a Sky Pirate," he smirked.
"Captain Ernest Castillo," Lightning said, wondering at how he honestly thought that was appealing. "I see the stories about you are true."
Castillo seemed to straighten up slightly, the smirk widening. "Ah, you truly are to being as intelligent as one is to expect from a woman."
"Actually, I was talking about how Doctor Stein was so utterly repulsed by you she went to the trouble of making a restraining order against a worthless
traitor," she responded, smirking as Castillos eyes widened in rage. She knew what was about to follow, but frankly, getting her ass kicked was probably
less painful then listening to this.
"You dare to-" he growled. "Teach this foolish woman to be remembering her place!" he spat, raising his flamethrower. Lightning grinned,
electricity arcing off her as the Raiders charged.
***
Archon Cartney dodged to the side, barely avoiding Ifrits glowing fist as she tore a hole in the wall. Reloading his gun as he rolled, he came up firing, the
salvo tearing at the heroines barrier jacket and forcing her to back up a few steps.
That move gave him time to glance across the room and assess the situation. What he saw was actually rather unsurprising. These new heroes were better then
their security rating suggested, and were rather quickly tearing the Vortexes apart. The gravity controller that looked like a Lost trying to hide was throwing
the surroundings at the Council soldiers, Net Sabre seemed to have activated a repulsion field that let her scatter her enemies just by getting close (Which
explained the battle cry of "Bowling for Council!" he'd heard earlier). And Sell-Sword...
As he watched the green armored figure launch a taser bolt into a Vortex, then unload a shotgun shell into stomach, he realised that the man was a LOT more
competent then his offical security rating suggested. Perhaps reports that Sword had mentioned a previous career were more accurate then suspected?
Flames whipping around him pulled the Archon back to his main opponent, as Lady of the Peace took to the air and opened up with a full salvo of fire spells.
Cartney didn't dodge fast enough, screaming as a flare bit into the side of his face. Falling onto his back, he clutched a hand over his left eye and
cheek, while a part of his mind noted he had the worst luck with flame based heroes.
"I am going to tie you up, hang you from the roof, and give Fae an axe," Lady growled, landing on the walkway again and moving forward, arcane
energies wrapping around her fists. Cartney winced, then pulled out his holdout weapon. Twisting his wrist, he launched a small web grenade from his gauntlet,
which impacted with Lady and detonated, coating her arms, chest and wings in a thick gel. As she stumbled back, surprised, Cartney used the chance to run for
the door, leaping through it a moment before Iridium smashed a desk against it.
"Archon's running!" the massive figure said.
"Let him go," Ifrit scowled, calling up the flames around her to burn away the gel. As that bubbled away and fell to the ground, she pulled her cell
phone out of thin air and dialed. "Come on Rob, pick up..."
***
The sudden sound of Yoko Kanno coming from the burnt couch caught Castillo by surprise. He looked over at it in confusion, turning his attention away from the
woman he'd pinned to the floor. Miss Lightning took the opening, releasing her hold on the power contained in her body. Castillo screeched as electricity
crackled along his body and armor, releasing her and falling backwards. "A cowardly tactic!" he managed, stumbling. "Now I shall be teaching to
you a lesson-" He was interrupted by a plasma salvo that nailed two of the remaining Raiders in the destroyed room, slamming them into a wall and knocking
them out.
Knight of the Peace stepped through the doorway, firing on another Raider as Lightning tagged the last one, dropping him near the one she'd taken down
before. Castillos eyes lit up at the sight of the hero. "Ah, at last you are showing yourself, Knight of the P-" he was interrupted yet again as
Knight fired up his boot jets, launching himself across the room, tackling the Raider captain and throwing both of them out the missing wall, where they
collided with one of the circling Raider skiffs. Both bounced off in different directions, before Knight got control of his flight and went after Castillo
again.
Lightning finished standing up and watched, somewhat amazed, as she got her first good look at her brother in action, darting through the air, gauntlets
blazing. His targeting drones darted around the area, even as he occasionally became a faint blur, cloaking device throwing the Raiders into confusion. She
stood there for a long moment, before the ringtone of Knights phone caught her attention again.
Unable to just let it ring through to the message bank, she darted over, picked it up - then flipped it open the moment she saw Ifrits name on the outer
screen. "Sis, we've got trou-"
"Raiders?" Ifrit replied.
"How'd you-"
"Council jerk was gloating about it to us. How bad is it?"
She leaned out the window as Knight appeared on top of a skiff, unloading both gauntlets into its engines. He didn't dodge fast enough as several Wing
officers opened fire, knocking him off the staggering craft. Lightning winced as her brothers forcefields flickered under the strain. "Bad," she
replied. "I'm seeing a lot of Raiders here. You better bring backup, gotta go!" She flipped the phone closed, then went over to one of the Sky
Raiders scattered around the apartment and pulled the flight pack off.
The electrical hero stopped for a moment, hissing in pain as she moved in just the wrong way. Carefully, she twisted, frowning at what little she could see of
a burn on her back from the Raiders flamethrowers. The thought of pressing a large heavy flight pack against that made her pause... then she heard the roar of
her brothers gauntlets and made up her mind, forcing the pack on and tightening the straps.
***
Lady hit the end call button and put the phone away. "They're already there," she said, pulling another object out of nowhere, this one a Freedom
Corps communicator configured for Riot 6.1 and the Legendary. "This is Lady of the Peace to any heroes availible. The Sky Raiders are making a hit on
Knight of the Peace in Faultline. Medicomm is down, we could use some assistence."
"Eight, ten minutes to the base portal," Sword said. "Take the Legendary teleporters to Faultline-" He paused as Lady pulled a small card
out of her costume. "Or we take the dance club solution," he shrugged, ripping the hard drive out of the computer on the desk (Given it had a Council
screensaver, it was a good bet).
"The Raiders are doing what?!" Net asked, pulling her own Pocket D pass from a belt pouch. "They have to know what the response would be!"
Sword laughed as he stored the hard drive in a belt pouch that should have been too small for it. "Dreys lot might, but Castillo tends to dislike having
people smarter then him under his command. Most of his lot are mercenaries recruited after they went traitor, and they suck at long term planning." He
shrugged as their passcards began to glow. "They bring it on themselves... wonder who else is coming," he said to himself as all four vanished in
warped space and time. For a moment, it felt like they were nowhere and everywhere, then they were walking into the Tiki Lounge of Pocket D, the
interdimensional nightclub for heroes and villians.
Behind the bar, a Pantheon Spirit Mask looked up from cleaning glasses. "Evening folks. Party or shortcut?" he asked.
"Shortcut," Ifrit said, running towards the other door.
The mask bobbed up and down slightly, his equivilent of a shrug, picking up another glass. "Such a frantic life they lead..."
The dance floor was relatively quiet at the moment, with only a few heroes and villians enjoying themselves. One Crab Spider paid attention to the group of
heroes in a hurry and went to taunt them, but stopped at a warning look from the mysterious DJ Zero.
"Only in Paragon," Sword mused as they reached the secure elevator to the hero exits.
***
Knight was an experienced hero, who'd taken on the Sky Raiders plenty of times and won. He knew their tactics, weapons and equipment. But he'd been
beaten by them before, only saved by the Medicomm system that watched over Paragons heroes. This time, there was no chance of escape, being teleported to a
hospital emergency room if he was badly injured. To his credit, that didn't seem to worry him, as he matched the Raiders blow for blow, but it did wonders
for the Raiders morale.
For every one of them he took down, another was there, charging in with guns blazing. His personal forcefield held out as best it could, but all too often he
had to use his emergency power cells to pump it back up, and he was showing a number of bruises and cuts from when the field hadn't been strong enough.
Cloaking device, web and smoke grenades, tasers... he used the lot, at one point grabbing a sledgehammer from one of Faultlines many construction sites for use
as a melee weapon. But eventually the mercenaries forced him down to the ground near the donut shop. As he tried to pull himself out of the concrete, Castillo
landed nearby, several of his men covering him as others took aim at the police officers emerging from the store and coming from the Zone gates.
"You fought well, Knight of the Peace," he taunted. "But, in the end, you had to be knowing that you could not be standing against the might of
Casti-" he stopped talking as something bounced off his head. Catching it instictively, he looked at it in confusion.
It was a stuffed kitten, somewhat scruffy from a rough life, and with the occasional stain that didn't quite look like food or drink. He looked at its
adorable face for a minute, then turned to see where it came from...
And was blasted across the parking lot as a massive bolt of radiation slammed into his face. As he came to a halt, he lay there, stunned, his face tingling
like really bad sunburn. The concept of his wonderful face being damaged snapped him back to reality as he sat up, and found himself looking at nearly a dozen
heroes in various costumes approaching, one of them grabbing the cat from where it had landed and hugging it tightly.
"You do the best ambushes Mister Whiskers!" Emerald Blast declared, placing the stuffed kitten back on her shoulder with a satisfied look. "He
never saw it coming!" The cat, naturally, did not seem to reply.
Castillo moved to a kneeling posistion, only to freeze as a pair of arrows slammed into the ground near his foot. He glanced at the two archers standing on the
roof of the donut shop, scowling.
"He doesn't look happy," Purrfect Archer mused.
"As it should be," William Bishop replied, watching the other Raiders dart about, most of them either falling back or taking cover. "This could
be interesting," he said softly.
"Castillo!" Evangelia declared from the center of the core group, raising her sword to aim directly at him. "Stand down and surrender!"
"I think not, little girl-child," he said, arrogant posture returning as he stood up. "For now, the Sky Raiders will be disposing of many more
of you hero folk! Attack!"
A slightly evil smile passed over the magical girls face. "They never learn," she said softly, before raising her voice. "Legendary, take them
down! For love and justice!"
"Hey Rob," Gamma Emission said, walking over to him. "Hate to say it, but you look terrible."
"I feel just as good," he admitted with a weak grin. "Don't suppose you can help a guy out, oh atomic nurse?" She gave him an amused
look before starting to glow, odd energies rippling out of her body and over him. Knight let out a relieved breath as the bruises under his battered chestplate
responded and shrank considerably. Even his visor, slightly cracked and drained of power, powered back up as Lisas bizarre radiation recharged his power cells.
He smiled, standing up. "You're a champion," he grinned, before turning and blasting a Raider trying to take them by surprise. "And now, no
time for talk!" Knight said, firing up his boot jets and taking to the air again.
***
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![[Image: laugh.gif]](http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/laugh.gif)
![[Image: tongue.gif]](http://www.ezboard.com/intl/aenglish/images/emoticons/tongue.gif)
