“Ready with your documents?” I asked Anne.
She nodded. “I can’t believe they need so much paperwork from me. You didn’t have to write so much, did you?”
“I didn’t know how much was needed then. I do now. So you can prepare your documents in advance.”
My sister made a face. “Do all heroes have to do this much… bureaucracy?”
“Andrew’s right,” prompted Paul. “You’re going to meet a group of lawyers today. You have one battle to your name, and only the fact that you’re Andrew’s sister is getting you in with them. Otherwise, it takes weeks to get an appointment with McCarthy and Butterfield.”
“Sure, Dad,” muttered Anne. “I’ll do my paperwork. Honestly, homework was bad enough….”
“You want to be an ultrahuman, you do the work. You also need to practice with the armor so you can wear it.”
“Chill, Dad. I know. Although walking around in twenty-odd kilos of nanofibre weave armor is kind of tiring.”
Paul cast me a look.
“I’m working on her powered armor suit,” I explained, “but I still need more heavy power packs.”
“If she can only carry twenty-four kilos now, how will she be able to wear the heavier armor? Isn’t that sixty kilos?”
“It’s not that way, Dad,” Anne clarified. “Powered armor basically moves itself, so it doesn’t take up any of your carry capacity. It also lets you carry a lot more. Like, Andrew’s Boar armor boosts his carry capacity by an additional fifty kilos.”
“Oh. So you can carry more ammunition and equipment.”
“Exactly,” I nodded. “If I’m carrying more weight, though, the batteries run down faster. Normal endurance is only eight hours.”
The alarm buzzed. Eight-thirty. “We need to move,” I said, “or we’ll be late.” Anne nodded, grabbing a sandwich as we piled into the Spinmaker, Paul in the driver’s seat.
Twenty minutes later, we stepped out in a deserted alley and pulled our armour out of Inventory.
Despite it being her first time using the ability, Anne’s armor snapped into place perfectly. In less than a second, Anne and Andrew had vanished and Nanocloud and Belessar stood in their place.
“Be careful,” Paul told us. “And send me the rendezvous point.”
“Will do,” I replied.
Anne was seated in the jeep when I got in. “We need to have a name for our ride.”
“Why?”
“Superhero cars have names. Like, say, the Ultimate Fighting Vehicle.”
“That wasn’t a car, and this is hardly a fighting vehicle.” I turned onto the main street. “Why would we need a special name?”
“Just because. Hey, I know! The Dragonmobile.”
“A little derivative, don’t you think?”
“That’s the fun of it. We’re the Dragonflies, after all.”
“How about the Gladiator?”
“That’s just the brand name of the jeep.”
“So, that’s fine.”
“The Dragon Gladiator.”
“No.”
“The Flying Gladiator?”
“Do you see any jet engines attached to this thing?”
“You could make it fly with gravity control.”
“My power doesn’t work that way.”
“Let’s ask someone at the law firm what a good name would be.”
“Because we really need our ride named by a bunch of lawyers?”
“So you like the idea!”
“Well, they’ll certainly suggest a name for five hundred dollars an hour.”
“Spoilsport. We should have a named vehicle. Ooh, shish tawouk!”
“That's an even worse name.”
"Not that, look outside."
I glanced out of the window. On the pavement, food carts were set up, grilling meat over a live flame. “Where are we?”
“It’s the Tanisport Food Festival. The theme this year is Lebanese cuisine. Grills and shawarmas. We should get some for Dad.”
I nodded, thankful for the change of topic. “We’ll pick some up on the way home.”
We passed through the streetside food festival. Two signals later, we were at the building that housed McCarthy and Butterfield.
----------------------------------------
“Mr. McCarthy’s nice,” Anne remarked as we walked out of the building.
I nodded. “And he explains things clearly. I think we’d have missed out a lot otherwise.”
McCarthy had been most helpful in getting Nanocloud registered as an ultrahuman, and in registering the Dragonflies as an ultrahuman team. Being an officially listed team gave us a few benefits - in case one of us was injured or in trouble, the other would be notified by SURGE. Payment applications had to be handled individually, of course.
We’d technically been in combat for about five and a half hours. We’d be paid for six. For Anne, that would net a cool $60,000 in her role as a support. She’d be taking home about $40,700 after taxes and bills.
My pay was - rather more.
After McCarthy had viewed the footage, he had called up the Stratospheric Guard office in Liverpool and threatened to take them to court if I wasn’t classified as an anchor.
The Stratospheric Guard representative had responded by confirming that I would, indeed, be listed as one of the anchor combatants for the Battle of Liverpool. All of the seven ultras who went over the stadium walls in the first or second waves were being classified as such - by direct order of General Windsor, backed by no less than the King.
My payment for this battle would come to one point five million dollars. For six hours of combat.
After taxes and legal fees, it would still cross a million dollars.
McCarthy had been positively gleeful. I figured out that the legal fee he charged would alone come to one hundred and twenty thousand dollars, so it was probably justified.
“We should go shopping,” commented Anne as we exited the building. “You can afford to buy me something nice.”
“We’ll see,” I grinned. “First priorities have to be getting you proper combat armor.”
“You already spent what you need for that,” replied Anne. “All you need is time. Besides, I’m not likely to go into the firing line.”
White letters flashed in front of my eyes.
TEST OF PERCEPTION: PASSED.
DANGER ALERT! AN ENEMY HAS TARGETED YOU.
The street in front of me ignited.
Orange-red tongues of flame raced across the asphalt, the trees, the plastic park benches, and the cars parked on the street.
Agni was here.
People screamed and ran. I yanked out my Lightning Hammer.
“Nanocloud,” I barked. “Get to cover. Inside the building.”
“I can fight,” she snapped.
“Fight from cover. Get me eyes.”
Anne - Nanocloud - nodded, then raced back into the building.
Where was the enemy?
A wave of flame raced towards me. Fires licked at the Boar Armor.
LIGHT FLAME ATTACK. 8 DAMAGE REDUCED BY FIRE RESISTANCE. 24 DAMAGE NEGATED.
So her flame attack did 32 damage normally.
I didn’t know if Agni needed line of sight to send flames in my direction, but it seemed likely. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to target them at me.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Another wave of flames raced across the pavement. I jumped out of the way.
I tried to seek her out with Mindstrike.
There were minds out there, of course - dozens. Hundreds. Civilians.
And there was no way I could tell which was Agni’s in the lot.
People were still running to safety. Meanwhile, I was glancing around, unable to figure out where my target was.
QUEST UPDATE: FACE THE FIRE.
HIDDEN OBJECTIVE UNLOCKED: NEUTRALIZE THE THREAT OF AGNI WITHOUT KILLING HER.
AGNI HAS TARGETED YOU FOR ASSASSINATION FOR AN UNKNOWN REASON. FIND A WAY TO END HER ENMITY WITH YOU PEACEFULLY AND WITHOUT KILLING HER.
REWARD: NEW SKILL TREE UNLOCKED: PATH OF FLAME
FAILURE: DESTRUCTION OF CITY OF LONDON, 9 MILLION DEAD
…. Wait, what? If I kill Agni, London is destroyed?
A car next to me exploded. Right, battle still on. Flaming chunks of debris rained down on the pavement. Some struck my armor. No damage, fortunately.
A thin arrow of nanobots materialized in mid-air, pointing towards a window on the other side of the street.
I could see a silhouette outlined against it. Eight hundred feet away.
Too far to be certain.
I saw the silhouette jump backwards, retreating from the window. The flames retreated.
Nanocloud’s bots would have materialized in the room, then, and formed a threatening message. Just like she did for the Grunter guards at the mansion.
As if on cue, the flames retreated.
If that wasn’t Agni, it was pretty fishy behaviour.
I sprinted across the street, heading for the building.
I screeched to a halt in front of a florist’s glass display.
The display shattered. Glass shards flew outwards, striking my armor like needles.
Red hot needles.
Agni had somehow superheated the glass.
FLAMING GLASS SHARD ATTACK! 15 FIRE DAMAGE RESISTED. 60 DAMAGE. ARMOR POINTS: 940/1000.
She’d managed to hit me with molten glass pieces. Damn.
I dashed into the florist’s.
There were flowers everywhere. At the back of the store was a life-size idol of the Hindu god Ganesha with burning sticks of incense before it.
An Asian woman stood in front of it. Her black hair was tied in a bun, and a white surgical mask covered her face.
AGNI
LEVEL 40
CLASS: ELEMENTAL
FACTION: INDEPENDENT
HP 110/110
The villainess’ eyes had a wicked gleam in them. She seemed to smile, then flicked on a lighter.
I used Bodycharge.
I smashed into the idol, shattering it into pieces. Incense sticks scattered everywhere.
Agni was gone.
I rushed out. A Starbucks stood across the road, empty - except for one woman.
I could close with her, knock her out. That would solve the quest, right?
As I dashed across the street, she vanished again.
Nearly two hundred feet away.
Powerjump launched me into the air. A second later, I smashed through the glass storefront.
Aroma candles were burning, and Agni looked up, surprise in her eyes.
Dozens of paintings, wax candles, perfumes and wooden carvings spontaneously ignited.
I couldn’t feel the flame inside my armor.
Agni vanished again.
I swapped the Lightning Hammer for a Fullersteel Pilum and dashed out. The spear would do only 80 damage - hopefully enough to slow her down and then knock her out.
Agni was in the middle of the street - and it was on fire.
I hurled the Pilum.
She blinked out of existence, then she was a hundred feet further away. The Pilum smashed harmlessly into the pavement.
The Laser Sniper Rifle was in my hands an instant later. I snapped off a quick shot.
CRITICAL HIT!
DAMAGE NEGATED DUE TO FIRE RESISTANCE! AGNI IS IMMUNE TO FIRE AND HEAT BASED WEAPONRY.
Are you kidding me?
Agni seemed surprised by the beam at first. Then…
A wall of flame rose from the middle of the road. At least fifty feet high and a hundred feet wide.
And then it rushed towards me.
Can’t dodge, it’s too close and no time.
With the flame barely five feet away, I used Powerjump again.
I sailed through the flames.
10 FIRE DAMAGE NEGATED. BURNING CONDITION RESISTED.
The villainess flickered to a new spot further away.
Too far for Lightning Strike. I ran after her.
Another flicker, just as soon as I was closing.
I kept running towards the flame-hopping villainess. Why was there so much fire everywhere anyway?
A massive truck came barreling towards me. On fire.
I dodged out of the way.
The truck slammed into a car and exploded.
A pillar of flame shot up almost a hundred feet into the air. Flaming chunks of debris began to rain.
2 DAMAGE FROM FLAMING CHUNKS NEGATED!
2 DAMAGE FROM FLAMING CHUNKS NEGATED!
Where was Agni?
I ran after the teleporter.
Generally, chasing a teleporter on foot is considered to be a very ineffective strategy. I could understand why, as every time I closed, Agni just teleported away.
Even Powerjump didn’t help.
I needed her to stand still for about three seconds, long enough for me to get within a hundred feet with Powerjump, and then hit her with a Lightning Strike. Unfortunately, the villainess seemed to instinctively understand the danger. She kept zapping from one location to another, seemingly randomly.
I dodged a burning object that flew through the air towards me.
YOU HAVE DODGED A FLAMING TURKEY. NEW RECIPE UNLOCKED: ROAST TURKEY EN VOL.
What was I supposed to do with that?
FEED IT TO TARGETS FOR A 50% BONUS TO PERSUASION.
More flaming food soared through the air.
Agni stood in the middle of the road, surrounded by burning food carts. We’d reached the Lebanese Food Festival.
“Surrender, Agni!” I yelled out. “You can’t win this.”
The woman laughed. In her hands was a large bird. She ignited the poultry and threw it at me.
I ducked the burning duck, then used Bodycharge.
I smashed through a flaming food cart. Agni had blinked away again.
The street was filled with fire and smoke. And screams.
Not all the food vendors had escaped before the battle erupted.
Agni teleported away.
No time to lose. I raced forward.
A stream of shoppers were running out of the supermarket. Dozens at least. Smoke had already begun to follow them out.
I Powerjumped over the heads of the crowd, smashing through a glass display window.
20 DAMAGE FROM GLASS SHARDS NEGATED.
Agni was somewhere in there - possibly behind the shelves?
The shoppers were emptying out. Good. If she stayed here I could hit her with Mindstrike - once the civilians were out of the way.
Shelves crashed below. Agni was in the basement level.
I stalked forward, readying Lightning Strike to be unleashed at a second’s notice. A terrified shopper dodged out of my way.
Agni couldn’t have started any fires here yet - the sprinklers would have doused them.
She might have made a mistake coming here.
Time to capitalize on that.
I scanned around, Observe in full swing. The few remaining shoppers were clearly not Agni - mostly male, some too old, some with children.
“Please evacuate,” I said loudly, “there is a dangerous ultrahuman in the premises.”
The shoppers rapidly ran out.
I darted into the first aisle. She had to be here somewhere.
Not in Soaps and Shampoos. Nor in Housewares.
I stepped into the aisle marked Gardening. Dozens of plants adorned the shelves.
Agni was there. Calm. Confident.
Lighter in hand.
“You know,” she remarked, “burning is a slow way to die.”
Keep her talking. “You’d know better than me,” I said, gently stepping forward.
“No need to come closer,” she remarked. “Don’t you know it’s rude to get too close to a girl? Oh, sorry, they probably never say no to you.”
I shrugged. “I’ve had my fair share of successes.”
TEST OF CHARISMA: FAILED.
Agni cocked her head. “Is that what you call it.”
“You could do a lot of good against the aliens, you know.”
“Could I, now?”
“Maybe we can talk this over. With less fire and explosions.”
Agni shrugged. “Fought them before. Less keen on it now. Do you think that justifies what you do?”
“What I do? Healing people?”
Agni shook her head. “Oversmart, are we. Let’s see how smart you are now.” She flicked the lighter on. “The Esperanzas send their regards.”
She was gone.
And the shelves burst into flames.
Every plant was on fire around me. The flame raced across the walls, the stacks of goods, the floor….
The ceiling.
The sprinklers didn’t activate. Instead, the sprinkler lines themselves ignited.
Fire roared through the department store.
I was surrounded by flame everywhere.
NEW QUEST ALERT: ESCAPE THE TRAP!
AGNI HAS TRAPPED YOU IN A BUILDING ON FIRE. GET OUT BEFORE YOUR SUIT FAILS AND YOU BURN HORRIBLY TO DEATH.
REWARD: SURVIVAL, +1 DEXTERITY, NEW SKILL UNLOCKED.
FAILURE: DEATH.
The entire building was on fire?
A sudden cracking sound alerted me.
A heavy duct fell from above, coated in flame. I dodged the missile as it crashed to the ground.
The shelves were burning. Why had they used wooden shelving in the racks?
No matter.
I smashed my way through the store. Fire was to every side of me. Where did I need to go anyway?
WARNING: AIR DEPLETION. SWITCHING TO SUIT AIR SUPPLY. TIME AVAILABLE: 8 MINUTES.
I needed to get to the stairs and get out. Easier said than done - there was fire everywhere.
A thin green line materialized in mid-air, nanobots forming an arrow. This one didn’t stay, though, as the heat roasted the bots and overloaded their systems.
EXTERNAL AIR TEMPERATURE AT 120 DEGREES CELSIUS.
There were rows after rows of burning tables and shelves between me and the door.
The roof was too low for Powerjump.
I activated Boar Charge.
I could feel myself propelled forward, as the Boar Armor splintered burning shelves and tables alike.
BURNING SPLINTERS IMPACT. 20 DAMAGE NEGATED.
18 DAMAGE NEGATED.
12 DAMAGE NEGATED.
24 DAMAGE NEGATED.
22 DAMAGE NEGATED.
If I’d been a normal person - and not in armor - each splinter would have wounded me at least. The collective impact would have left me a corpse.
Agni didn’t play around.
I slammed against solid metal.
The shutters had slammed down in the store.
Observe.
REMOTE-CONTROLLED STORE SHUTTERS
PART OF AGNI’S TRAP, THESE ARE INTENDED TO KEEP YOU LOCKED IN THE STORE WHILE THE FIRE BURNS YOU TO A CRISP. HP 200/200
I swung my Lightning Hammer at them.
STORE SHUTTERS -106 HP! ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE: NO DAMAGE FROM LIGHTNING EFFECT.
A second blow smashed the shutters to pieces.
I raced up the stairs. The entire supermarket was on fire, with waves of flame racing across the roofs.
That wasn’t natural.
Agni.
An explosion sounded above.
A chunk of concrete the size of a truck fell from the roof and slammed down mere feet from where I stood.
I needed to get out before the whole place came down.
Racing through the flames, I dashed for the door.
Seconds later, I was bursting out into the open, as more chunks of concrete crashed down behind me.
I was in the open air.
…. All this and for nothing?
I turned to look at the burning supermarket.
Fire had turned it into an inferno.
As I watched, a wall crashed, revealing a blaze that the fire brigade would have a tough time with.
QUEST COMPLETED: ESCAPE THE TRAP. +1 DEXTERITY. SKILL UNLOCKED: LEVITATION.
“Hello, Belessar,” came a voice from behind me.
I turned. Lumina was there, as was Soundwave in his - now repaired - armour.
“Agni got away,” I said.
“I can see that,” replied Lumina. “You can heal, right?”
“Yeah.”
“There are about a hundred badly burned people at the Lebanese Food Festival you left behind. Sixteen dead, though I don’t suppose you can do anything for them.”
“No, of course not.”
“Well, perhaps you can help the living then.”
“Soundwave, can you track Agni?” I asked.
The inventor shook his head.
“We need to save the citizens first,” Lady Lumina interrupted. “Chasing the villains can wait.”
I nodded. There wasn’t anything else I could do anyway. “We’ll need to keep an eye out for her.”
“First the bystanders, Belessar. We’ll talk afterwards.”