A Second Generation Whateley Academy Adventure

Silent Mountain

by

MaLAguA

 

Part Six

 

Saturday, December 24th - 9:46pm
Silent Mountain Base - Level -1 - Generator Room

<N-Now start turning the screws on the protective plate. Once it’s loose, lay it on the ground.>

<This ones?> Vic asked.

<No! Not those! the three further away.>

<Okay…> Vic answered, uncertainly. With his eyes closed and no other sound in the surrounding area, he had gotten into the rhythm of creating a mental image of the inner workings of the machinery and sharing it with Josh via the telepathic link. It wasn’t exactly the easiest thing to do… but he didn’t really expect his mom’s mental visualization exercises and his hobby at picking locks to pay off in this manner… but here he was, holding hands with his friend, Josh, trying to disarm a reactor rigged for a meltdown.

What began like a simple Syndicate exercise to determine if he would still be retaining the Syndicate sponsorship to remain in the school. Instructions were vague: go over to the villain base of ‘Silent Mountain’ where you’ll receive the other part of the exercise… little did they know that the base would be taken over by a hostile group. From there, one thing led to another in an escalating cavalcade, including a new friend being taken away, him getting stabbed, and now he and his middle school friend were lying prone before a huge generator, holding hands as they tried to disarm and disconnect the troublesome parts.

<Got it,> he said as the water deposited the heavy metallic plate down to the ground.

<Alright… now reach in?> Josh hesitated.

<Are you sure?> Vic stalled, really not wanting to do it with the water mass that encompassed both their arms. He was going to be reaching deeper into a large industrial size machine that was meant to power up the state of the art reactor of a lair in a mountain… with a water limb. <I… I feel the electric current… I won’t get electrocuted, right?>

<Y-Yeah?> Josh answered uncertainty. His hand fidgeting within the water limb as if ready to break free the second he were to lose his courage. Unfortunately for him, Vic was using a strong grip.

Josh’s hesitation was palpable… but opening his eyes for a moment, Vic looked at the screen near a reactor where a timer marked about eight minutes left before a complete meltdown. The numbers oscillated and counted down erratically, but did so at a speed about two to three times faster than expected.

They really didn’t have the time to be second guessing…

<Josh!>

<Yeah, reach in! It shouldn’t shock you… unless there’s a bad connection,> Josh conceded.

<That… Screw it.> Vic said. Closing his eyes for focus, the water limb reached in further, filling in the newly unlocked space in between. There was a line he had to walk there, between focusing on the use of his powers and trying not to let the urgency get the best of his concentration…. And it became much more difficult the moment he felt the thrumming of energy course beneath the surface of the machine.

<So far, everything is fine. Alright… I think…> Vic told himself. Being stabbed was its own stress and trauma earlier that night… but this was different, he was the one willingly risking getting shocked.

<Okay… Okay,> Josh said, closing his eyes to visualize the parts before looking at his side where the manual rested. <Okay, see that piece I’m mentally pointing at? Start to unscrew it. It should come loose soon after. Now, after that… Well, there are several steps… so we better hurry.>

<I’m so dead…> An errant thought slipped off Vic’s mind as followed the instruction. And yet, despite all that he would be dead either way. <A mal paso, darle prisa. At bad step, better make haste. Rip off the bandaid…> Vic muttered as he heeded Josh’s instructions and the one that followed after that, and so on and so on.

He really wasn’t trying to be reckless, but just wished for this whole ordeal to be over with. Forcing himself to go on with each of the steps without much complaint aside from asking for clarification, was taking its toll as he felt his heart want to jump the moment the next piece of metal he touched brimmed with more energy than the last.

Still, he followed the flurry of instructions, almost immediately as they were doled out. Unscrewing things, flipping tiny safeties and then forcefully removing parts, all the while the buzzing of energy increased with each passing moment…. But in the end, it worked and soon, he was feeling the weight of one of the condensed high power batteries within the mass of water. <This’ll buy us some time, right?> Vic asked as he opened an eye to peek at the screen.

The timer was still within two minutes before meltdown… but the timer had slowed dramatically, now running at normal time.

<Yeah… Just carefully put it down and we can work on decoupling this thing from the reactor… then it’ll be over…>

<It’ll be over here…> Vic said. <I still have to go upstairs and get my phone back…>

<If we’re lucky, Raffina and Root would’ve somehow put the matter to rest.>

<If we’re lucky… are we lucky or unlucky?>

<Hard to tell…> Josh noted, his hand tightening around Vic’s as he was reminded of the careful operation in progress.

<And we set it down…> Vic said as, with a little bit of focus, he rested the removed battery on the ground, still deep under the backup generator as he reeled back his water, glad one of the two parts of it was over.

<Now, we move over to the other part. Separate the reactor from the generator…>

<Well… that’s another reason for us to go through this fast,> Vic muttered to himself. In reality he didn’t really want to keep on working with the electric parts and just move on to his revenge. <So I just decouple this?> He asked, wrapping the water he used around his left arm and right torso as he moved over to the connecting cable. A thing that was about twenty or so centimeters in diameter, looking so heavy that it needed a complex steel mechanism to fasten the thing.

<Yeah… Once we get this thing off, the problems should stop for now,> Josh said as he too approached the cable, confidently resting his hands on the iron part without getting electrocuted. Probably the biggest reassurance Vic needed on the matter. <Now that the extra battery was taken out, the transferred current will be lesser.> He then pointed to the side where a jagged piece of thin metal that was once a handle rested neatly against the structure. He tried to pry it, but he lacked the leverage and the thing appeared quite stuck where it was.> Of course, they broke it to make sure we couldn’t fix it. Fortunately, your powers make you a good tinkerer…>

<Okay… this is the last part of the whole disarming the meltdown, right?>

<Right!>

<And it is safe for me to try use water to decouple the cables that feed power to the entire facility, right?> Vic said.

<Yes…> Josh said, but an <I hope…> slipped through their mental connection. <Oops, I meant, yes,> he declared, more assertively.

Vic sighed. Once again, he acted with complete caution when it came to bringing his water to any sort of electric element… He wondered if that spirit had any advice about it… but… as promised, after healing his injury, her voice and presence had suddenly disappeared. Not that he could consider her gone… she was just putting herself back together, like before.

Shaking other concerns and thoughts away, Vic got to work, lowering the large body of water onto the locking ring. There was no less trepidation than before… but he was spurred now that he could see the timer on the computer screen counting down.

The first thing that shocked him (in a nonliteral sense)… just like before, was the thrumming of energy that coursed through, much stronger than when they were removing that extra battery. But, Vic couldn’t really back down. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and allowed his control to seep in through the gaps and space around the handle.

The thing wasn’t just broken… but also stuck, which was what made bruteforcing it so hard. Still, with a little bit of strength and a lot of persistence, he managed to make the locks and pieces start to move. All it took was for a sliver of water to find a point with enough room to wedge the gap, forcing the rest into motion.

<I got it!> Vic called out.

<Let me help you!> Josh said as he moved in to hold the cable. A couple of seconds later, after several spins and twists of the locking mechanism, a solid clank was heard and the cable was released, and it did so with visible zaps of electricity thrown into the air. Regardless, it was a fortune that he already had the water soaked hand off the thing.

<We did it?> he asked, taking a couple of steps back. When Josh raised his hand in celebration after dropping the unplugged cable, Vic felt his knees turn into jelly as all of the panic and stress of the past minutes finally came crashing in, now that he wasn’t forcing himself to act anymore.

<Yeah… Look,> Josh pointed at the console’s screen. Now, the timer was gone, instead replaced by the system compiling a report of the activities regarding that emergency. Even the lights in the room changed from an urgent red to a serene white. <We did it! Woooooo!> Josh repeated, now as a celebrating shout. Offering his hand for a high five.

<Good…> Vic humored him. <I’ll just… I’ll just take a breather and set off.>

<Are you going back upstairs?> Josh asked.

<Yeah… This isn’t over and we have to deal with the enemies.> Vic muttered looking over at Josh. He could guess what his friend was going to say. <I know we could just hunker down and let them leave… but that wouldn’t be right! Not after what they put me through… Plus that jerk has my phone.>

<Alright. Fair…> Josh thought for a moment as he looked down at his blaster, which still appeared to be unresponsive. The power cell was really dead. <I can’t fight.>

<It’s fine. Your talent has always been in inventing. I’m apparently on the track to being a henchman,> Vic half joked, although not as much as he knew guys like Groundpounder in the school who aspired to be just that. <You should stay here to be safe…>

<I’ll figure something…> Josh answered.

Vic was about to head off when he spotted a window had popped in on the console’s desktop. A DM issued by the “Security room” addressed to them.

[VIC! JOSH!]

<Josh? Check this out.> Vic called his friend out of his pensive stupor as another message popped in.

[It’s Leslie! I’m here with Root!]

<Oh great… she’s alright!> Josh blurted out as Vic typed. [Glad to hear you’re safe.]

[Root saved me. He and Censer took down that brick woman.]

<Even more good news.> Josh noted.

[That’s great.] Vic wrote just as Leslie sent another answer.

[Root here. Has the meltdown been prevented?]

Vic looked at Josh to get his confirmation before hitting the ‘enter’ key. [Yeah. Josh says it’s fine. How are things up there?]

[According to the cameras, our enemies have fled to the third floor hangar, getting ready to escape by ship.]

[Alright, I’m heading there right now,] Vic answered.

[Are you sure?]

[Positive.] Vic answered. He knew that it was just him charging into danger. Danger he doubted he was ready to face. But he just couldn’t sit back idle, letting the man that stabbed him and took his cellphone get away with it. <As long as I have enough water, I can face them…> He reassured himself, almost forgetting Josh was listening.

<Vic. Just be careful.>

<I will be,> he conceded, shuddering at the memory of the knife plunged into his stomach in the confusion as the world went silent. The burning cutting ache in his insides, the emptying feeling as his blood ebbed out and the loss of energy with each second. Even Josh was shuddering at the emotions the memory brought. Fear… Fear of it repeating… with the vines around his stomach and the anesthetic plants acting as a reminder of what’s already been. <It won’t happen again…>

<That better be the case,> Josh said with all seriousness. In the interim of their mental conversation, Leslie sent another message.

[If you’re coming up. We need you to bring us Josh’s manual of the base. We want to shut down the silence field.]

<That would be great. It was starting to get eerie…> Josh said as he passed the book onto Vic’s dry hand.

<You’re not coming?> Vic asked, holding the thing out, worried that the water might damage the pages.

<Not yet. There’s something I want to do first…> Josh said, drifting back at the tunnel they came from and at some of the spare batteries and tools that were left on the workshop corner of the area.

[I’ll be on my way.] Vic typed back before addressing Josh. <I’ll be cutting our connection once I leave.>

<It’s alright. Just make sure it all goes in our favor.> Josh reassured. <That way, we can spend the rest of the time hanging out in the super cool villain lair playing videogames. Like we always dreamed.>

<When have we dreamed that? We were cape-watchers.>

<We can get new dreams, can’t we?> Josh said, bearing a smug smirk.

<New dreams, huh?> Vic muttered pensively. Fortunately before he could dwell on it, Josh continued, pointing towards the side.

<There is a large service elevator there. It’s used to carry items between here and the hangar. Think it can stop by the second level, where the security room is.>

Vic nodded. <See you, then.>

He gave Josh a reassuring smile and, fading off the mental link, he set off towards the elevator. With what could be considered about twenty liters of water clinging to his arm and torso, he would meet up with the power mimic and beat the hell out of him.

Saturday, December 24th - 10:05pm
Silent Mountain Base - Level 3 - Hangar - Aircraft

Silent Mountain’s hangar was one of the main selling points of the base. Meant to house a small fleet of airships, from compacted personal transport, to carriers meant to house a sizable number of henchmen. With all the facilities that might be needed to accommodate such assets and a sufficiently capable maintenance area at the back. Located within the side of the mountain formation, it had a disguised large sliding gate towards the outside which ensured for a stylishly classic take off.

Yet it was that last selling point that was the one that Ruben was cursing. Not because of any oversight or design flaw (in fact, the base’s structure was perfect), but because he was forced to keep the hangar’s massive gate open to ensure their escape. Thanks to the altitude and the snowstorm that was going outside tonight, this place was, by far, the coldest area of the base. Even with the heating systems still running, it was like working next to a freezer.

But this was what needed to be done if they wanted to make a clean getaway before the reactor would suffer a meltdown and before the kids downstairs would catch up to them…

<Unbelievable…> Ruben muttered. To think that the situation would get out of hand thanks to a group of kids and now they might be factoring as a threat. The plan was simple: get the small team of recently evicted henchmen to the mountain, use their backdoor access and specialized tools to deal with the home team, break into their pilfered hoard, load it onto the ship, set off into the night as the base blew up. Maybe wish each other Merry Christmas if things happened to be a success. It sounded easy… and for a moment it was…

And then, the kids showed up. The Syndicate just happened to decide to perform a sort of test on potential recruits on the same night as their heist.

No problem, they thought. We can just keep them contained within the first level after we dealt with the obvious trouble that was the telepath of the group. But things went wrong fast. One thing led to the other and before they knew it, the kids of seeming B or C tier quality had rallied themselves in response.

Ruben was trying to coordinate things from the Security Room, when, out of nowhere, his chair got swept out from under him and one of the kids emerged from the underside of his table, the shadowy imp of a girl, Obscura. Ruben wasn’t much of a fighter, so when she proved herself fast, armed and slightly stronger than him, he knew that he needed to desperately escape, even going as far as using his only flashbang to accomplish that. The moment the girl was off his back he scampered out of the room and upstairs.

They had lost their footing on this operation.

After that encounter, Ruben made haste over to the hangar while using his modded phones, which allowed for communication within the mountain even if the antenna wasn’t working, to direct Steve down to deal with the kids and warn Barb about their presence. And that was all he could do on the matter. Since his regular phone relied on the base’s antenna, he couldn’t check on the bugged security cameras to keep track of the situation.

Once he got to the hangar, he noticed that the flight gate had moved ever so slightly, as if someone had tried to remotely close it. No doubt it was the girl that took over the security room… And she probably stopped the process when she noticed the alarm from the incoming meltdown. Still, just to be sure she would try to pull off a spiteful plan like locking them in so everyone gets blown up together, Ruben moved over to the gate, where snow had begun to pile up on the floor and proceeded to jam the mechanisms on the gate.

From there on, he spent the rest of the time putting the engine back together into the selected aircraft. Fortunately, Steve, the dumb mutt, was knowledgeable enough about these machines to pick the parts that were needed to work. With the turn of the wrench, the lid was closed down and properly sealed.

<Perfect!> Ruben thought, already wanting to leave this place.

They were on the clock. By now, the threshold of the energy feedback cascade would’ve already been reached and the meltdown would’ve ensued, giving them about half an hour before the actual explosion. Even if he wanted to stop it, it wouldn’t be possible.

He took a couple of steps back to quickly appreciate the transport they would be traveling in. About the height and width of two RVs stuck on top of another, it was a hefty thing meant for the transport of cargo and units. Practically, the SUV of aircrafts. Not the most appealing things, but sturdy and safe, more than capable of pulling its weight.

On the side, the wings were short stout things that could be extended once the flight began. Two important pieces of tech rested on them to ensure the safe travel. One of them being an anti-grav engine for stability support and the other being the weather shields that would minimize the effect of the snowstorm outside. Both of which were working according to Steve…

<Although I’ll be the judge of that…> Ruben thought as he moved around the back.

The backside completely opened and lowered to allow the quick loading of, in this case, the treasures that they were recovering for their boss: The ingots of gold, the fossil, and armors stolen from a museum in Vancouver. At the left hand side was a stairwell that allowed them to access the second floor where a small lounge awaited as a preamble to the cockpit.

<We’re almost ready…> Ruben thought to himself as he turned around with his hand at the ready to draw the handgun he grabbed shortly after evading the police. He didn’t like the idea of having it or using it on a girl… but he wasn’t about to let her stop him.

He didn’t spot the gremlin girl, but he did spot the two henchmen they arrived with: Guy One and Guy Two. Those (probably) weren’t their names, it didn’t matter to anyone as they were just baseline henchmen. They came running from the far entrance carrying about two stolen paintings each, the last pieces of the hoard left in the boss’ office. Aside from that, there were still a couple of things missing: namely the frozen Lightning and the knocked out telepath girl they would keep as hostages and ransom for extra money.

Ruben watched them run past him and into the ship to stash the pilfered items, with Guy Two making sure that the paintings were properly fastened along with the rest of the goods, while Guy One approached the techie, producing his phone to write a text.

[What took you so long!?] Ruben asked first, using his own phone.

[We had trouble finding an entrance. Doors kept on locking on us…]

<Figures…> Ruben thought. <They took control of the security room and these two goobers don’t have the modded phones that grant access facility wide…>

[Where’s Barb?] he showed the text.

[Some guy with a wooden stick showed up.]

<Wooden stick?> Ruben thought with an amused smirk. No doubt it was one of the remaining kids that came here for training. One of them was, according to the notes, a sort of mage that could create plant life. <There is no way that some guy with a twig will beat a rate 3 exemplar combined with a density shifter trait…> But then Ruben thought of how this whole operation had been going and all the mistakes they made, from Chad failing to actually end that kid to that surprise visit he had in the Security room. <But… on the off-chance it did…>

[Make sure everything is fastened and take out the blocks around the wheels.] Ruben ordered via text before moving into the ship, climbing up the stairs and moving past the small lounge and into the cockpit where two seats awaited before a bundle of displays, the steering wheel and additional controllers for the flight of the vessel.

Sitting down, he took a moment to text the rest of the team, updating them on the situation. Barb was supposed to look after Guy One and Guy Two; Chad and Steve were both off to parts of the base, searching for anything else they might be able to take, be it provisions or extra valuables.

[Attention! Ship is ready. We should be taking off in the next fifteen minutes. If you don’t show up in ten minutes, I’m leaving you behind!]

And with that he pressed the ignition button, turning the engine on. With no sound allowed, there was no hyper advanced revving of the engine, but he did feel his seat start to rumble as the whole vehicle came to life. The screens along the board booted up as they performed a quick checkup on the ship’s status.

So far, things appeared to be marching as expected. Checking the modded phone one last time, he confirmed that both Steve and Chad got the message and were on their way… but there was no answer from Barb… which didn’t bode well for the crew.

<Shame…> He said with a heavy heart as he turned around, practically getting jumpscared as he saw the two henchmen at the threshold.

At his frown, Guy One held his phone where a small message was written out.

[All goods are fastened. Do we really have to go back and get that electric mutant and the girl? We don’t think Barb could handle them.]

<We share the same thought…> Ruben thought for a moment before frowning as he agreed with their assessment. He took a moment typing on his phone. [Yeah… And she isn’t answering. We’ll have to leave her behind so we don’t get caught in the melt-]

He was rudely interrupted mid-typing by an urgent Guy One as he tried to direct his attention at something behind him. Judging by their concerned expressions and the time crunch they were in, there was a sinking feeling in his stomach as he turned around and confirmed it. One of the ship's screens flashed with a warning message: [Weather shield compromised: Port R2 disconnected. Efficiency of the shield at 87.5%.]

<Weather shield?> Ruben thought. Those were the systems grafted on the wings. About one of the first things he checked the moment he began to inspect Steve’s work, just to make sure he wouldn’t have to stand on the precarious wings again. Systems were optimal at the time…

<Something is wrong. We->He was halfway through that mental sentence when something began to happen to the world around. The permeating silence that had been around them for the past couple of hours, suddenly grew more invasive, feeling as if it was out of nowhere trying to drill itself into their ears.

And then… like someone exhaling after taking a very deep breath, the world seemed to expand in its wake. With all the sounds that had been missed suddenly coming back at the same time to demand center stage.

Ruben heard the beeping of the message of the ship’s console, the rumbling of the engine working, the screech of the leather seat underneath him, the sound of Guy One’s boot screeching against the floor, a sordid clanking to the side, the sound of his own stuffy nose from being out in the cold, the screeching of his own teeth and so much more.

“What the hell was that?” Guy Two blurted out. Briefly surprised to hear his own voice again.

“I can hear you!” Guy One gasped.

“And I hear you too!” Guy Two confirmed in celebration.

“Yes! We can all hear each other!” Ruben snorted, “That just means the kids have, somehow, turned off the silencing device… We’ve really lost the second floor. Better start getting ready to take off!”

“But what about the error message?”

“It just says that the weather shields are operating under a hundred percent of their full power. It will still be a bumpy ride but we’ll make it throu-” His voice went to an abrupt halt as he turned around to the consoles again, only to notice a slight change in the message:

[Weather shield compromised: Ports R1, R2, R3, disconnected. Efficiency of the shield at 62.5%. Imbalance impedes proper deployment]

“Something is wrong with the systems!”

“How bad is it?!” Guy Two asked.

“If we don’t fix it, the moment the ship goes out into the storm, there is a high chance that the systems will freeze up and the wind will swing us back against the mountainside or into the forest below!“ Ruben explained, frustrated, as he reached into the large backpack of their remaining equipment, tools and weapons, producing a handgun he stole from the officer that tried to arrest them in Vancouver and the set of tools he’d been using to put the engine back together.

“I have to fix it and then we get out of this place!” Ruben said, only to pause. Now that the sounds had returned, he began to pick up a sound that had been running in the background oddly persistently, but easily got lost in the burst. That of something striking metal coming from the right side of the ship that seemed to slip in through the open window. In haste, he leaned into the cockpit as far as he could to spy onto the wing’s engine.

He wished that the problem was some sort of imperfection in the machine, a flaw in the hatch’s lock or faulty wiring. But instead, it was someone that caused it. Standing crouched on the wing was a young girl with an inhuman appearance: Dark skin with glowing markings around her wrist, elven ears and a tail that swished mischievously while she was at work. Like a gremlin, she was crouched on the wing, wedging a wooden knife into the cover that belonged to the antigravity engine, pushing it as deep as she could until it popped open. Right next to her was another lid that had been forced open, with a bundle of cables yanked and unplugged out of place… that was part of the weather shield.

Ruben’s blood boiled. “It’s that…” He held his insults and curses, knowing that they were up against time. It was the same girl that had assaulted him in the Security room just a couple of minutes ago, Obscura. The only candidate in the dossiers whose powers had been redacted. Now she was getting in the way of their escape route. That was something he couldn’t allow “I’ll show her!”

When he glanced back at the pilot’s screen, another message had appeared: [Alert. Right wing’s Antigrav engine uncovered.- Alert, Right wing’s Antigrav emitter disconnected.] The message corrected itself on the spot.

Ruben turned towards Guy One, giving him the handgun as he himself carried the toolbox. “One of the students is sabotaging the wing’s system. You need to get rid of that monster and cover me, while I plug things back together as best as I can. Then we’re out!” He explained as he lead the henchmen into the mini lounge where, at either side of the space, rested a couple of slanted doors meant to lead out onto the wings.

The two henchmen nodded, Guy One preparing to aim the gun as Ruben took a deep breath before turning the locking mechanism and forcing the heavy hermetic door open as fast as he could.

The sound didn’t go unnoticed and, by the time they opened the doors, Obscura was already looking back at them with a mixture of surprise and a taunting smirk as she applied some leverage to the wooden knife only to force some of the energy cables out with a sordid sizzle.

“Shoot her!” Ruben ordered as Guy One drew the gun onto the teenage imp.

And yet, in between them trying to sort out the best angle and the elbow room to take aim, the impish girl had already recognized the threat of the firearm and already leapt to the edge of the wing, making a handstand before sliding underneath before the first bullet could be fired.

Guy One tried to pursue, climbing out the hatch, trying to aim the weapon at the saboteur. But the last thing they saw of her was her tail slipping around the hefty body of a similar ship model and a scaffolding used for maintenance.“She’s gone…” Guy one reported as Ruben was climbing out the hatch as well.

“Yeah… no wonder,” the techie scoffed as he crawled his way to the damaged systems, clearly not happy doing this sort of work. “She’ll probably try to come back. Keep an eye on the surroundings. If she shows up, shoot her.” He also turned to Guy two. “You check the cargo hold! We’re not staying here!”

Saturday, December 24th - 10:18pm
Silent Mountain Base - Level 3 - Hangar - Aircraft

“Shoot her!” Raffina’s pointed ears twitched at those orders. Her heart sank as she spotted one of the two henchmen by the ship’s porthole trying to pull out a gun. This wasn’t the first time she’d gotten close to being held at gunpoint… but it was never a welcomed experience. Fortunately, she got over the fear and surprise fast to get her body moving. She leapt to catch the edge to do a handstand, quickly swiveling to change hands and then slipped herself under the wing just before the gunshot was heard.

“Shit. I thought this was Canada. They have guns here?” Raffina joked to herself as she touched the ground and quickly sprinted away from the ship, curving her path in search of cover until she was around the scaffoldings used for maintenance and the other aircrafts in the base.

“I’ll need to figure out another angle now that they are onto me,” She thought to herself in between quick steps. After Vic cut their telepathic link, she carried on investigating the situation from the security room, watching how Root engaged with that brick woman and locking the doors for the henchmen carrying the last of the stolen goods. She didn’t linger, though. Knowing what their escape plan was, she resolved to keep them from escaping just to spite them, especially the techie that flashbanged her.

After some traveling along the base later, she made it to the hangar and climbed up the wings of the aircraft when the chance was given. Without sound, she went unnoticed, giving her the freedom to use the wooden knife Root gave her to pry and force the lids of what appeared to be important pieces of technology and…

“Oh… the knife…” Raffina gasped, realizing that as she escaped off, she left her weapon stuck between the cables she was trying to break.

She stopped for a moment behind a smaller ship, climbing it just to peek through the gaps on the scaffolding. She could see the lower midsection of one of the henchmen standing on the wing turning around searching for her while behind him the techie was working to undo the damage she left.

“Let’s hope it’s enough… but I have to find another angle of attack… maybe i can ‘dig my way under the other wing?” she muttered to herself. Then she felt a slight tug in the back of her mind–one that she recognized as a telepathic ping.

<Raffina?>

She gasped, it was Leslie’s mental voice.

<Leslie? Are you alright?> She asked, keeping her eyes focused on the legs of the man with the gun. <They got you out!>

<Yeah, Root and Censer dealt with the woman that had me locked up. I had the fight of my life when I walked into the room and realized that the base had been taken over… And then, I woke up trapped in the dark of the supply closet.> she said with fear lingering in her mind.

<Where are you now?> Raffina asked.

<I’m in the security room. I’m monitoring everyone.>

Raffina briefly looked over her shoulder to spot the camera by the roof. Giving it a wave before she went back to keeping track of the enemies. <I’m glad to hear from you… and that you managed to reach me.>

<I really had no exact way of knowing how. But then, I sensed the echoes of the connection Vic created, which made it easier. It was like fixing a road.>

<And you’re feeling alright?> Raffina asked, recalling that Vic was feeling the strain of the connection before.

<I am feeling alright so far,> Leslie reassured.

<Good to hear… so, tell me, how's everything else? Because just before we cut the connection, there was the matter of the base scheduled to have a meltdown… Probably should’ve eased you on that topic, but I’d assume they’d already filled you in on everything that’s going on, right?>

<They told me everything. Fortunately, Vic and Josh solved that problem about fifteen minutes ago.>

Raffina sighed relieved, that was one less concern to deal with. <Glad those two managed to make it work. So, what now? Did you call the Syndicate for help?>

<Not yet. Root is here by my side.>

<He’s sitting out of the fight?> Raffina chided.

<He’s injured and is already out of seeds to use his magic on…>

<Well, he lasted more than I gave him credit for,> Raffina joked.

<I can hear you,> Root’s mental voice chimed in.

<Were you listening all this time?> Raffian scoffed.

<It’s not a private channel and I’m right next to Leslie. But it’s still good to hear you’re safe.>

<For now… I’ve tried to break the aircraft they were planning to use for their escape but they caught on to me and one of them has a gun.>

<Are you in trouble?>

<Nah, just sizing my options… Think you can close the hangar’s doors?>

<We tried that… but seems like the mechanism is jammed.>

<Figures… Now I have to think about my next attempt, this time flanking my way to the left wing, but I’d need another opening to slip around unnoticed.> Raffina thought for a moment. <Maybe lights can be turned off.>

<Don’t worry, reinforcements are on the way.>

<But will it be enough- Ack!> Raffina blurted out, suddenly cut off. Her ears twitched, suddenly sensing hastened steps from behind. Her gut reaction was to turn around, just to see a bearded man had already closed the distance to drive a fist intot her stomach leaving her without air for a moment.

And yet, a moment was all that was needed as she slid from the side of the aircraft, he was already there to catch her, pressing an arm against her throat while his other hand was quick to catch her wrist.

Her reaction was to use her free hand to claw herself free, but then. “Ack!” She croaked, feeling the pressure on her windpipe increase, threatening to put an end to her struggles the easy yet gruesome way.

<Raffina? Are you okay?!> Leslie asked.

<I… I got ambushed… the power mimic… I’ll talk to you later…> was the message she projected as she pretended to relent. “You… got me…” she struggled to say.

“Damn right I did!” The man snorted. “You kids are a handful! Show up when we’re trying to collect what’s ours. Refuse to stay dead, shoot me with your weird electric guns and just keep showing up when unwanted! I would kill you for this if you were a man.”

“And… what are you going to do to me then?” Raffina asked, keeping him talking as the man appeared to not have noticed her tail disappear into the aircraft.

“Hm… I would say things that would terrify you…” he said with a grin that got Raffina to shudder inwardly. “But we’re running out of time, so I’ll just have to make this quick.” He raised his hand, showing his hold of her wrist.

At first she was puzzled as to what he was referring to… but then she spotted the strange ghost-like leeches emerging from his skin, wiggling in the air before one tentatively reached over to burrow in Raffina’s skin. “Ew! Ew!” Raffina said, trying to fight the need to act, even as the ghostly thing began to ‘burrow’ into her skin.

“I’m a power mimic, you see. I have the ability to copy the mutant powers of others… and I think you’re the more interesting of the bunch. Shapeshifting is always fun to taste…” The man seemed to take his time enjoying doling out the explanation… and yet, the more time passed with his leeches burrow into Raffina’s skin, the more his brow furrowed as displeasure began to appear on his face.

“What’s this?…” he said, tasting the air as disgust appeared visible in his face. “Yuck… It’s just a Wiz trait? You can have that… but… if that’s all there is then how do you-”

“-look like I do?” Raffina finished, managing to give out a devilish grin.

Fortunately, the man did expect an answer which gave her some small leeway despite being pinned. Her tail, having phased through the aircraft, was wiggling about, gathering as much darkness as it could muster.

“This form isn't a mutant manifestation, it’s that simple. You can blame my dad… He wanted his little girl to have a way to protect herself and just couldn’t wait to see if I would have mutant powers of my own.” Raffina seized the chance to display her slightly higher strength by forcing the man’s arm away.

The man was surprised. But not defenseless as he let go of her arm and immediately pulled out a large combat knife from the scabbard that hung from his belt. Raffina was keenly aware that this was the man that stabbed Vic, so she wasn’t taking any chances, especially if she was unarmed while the whole base was still covered in light.

In the brief moment as he pulled his arm back for a stab, she pushed him away, giving herself as much berth as she could get to reveal the pool of darkness on the hull where her tail had disappeared to. In a swift motion, she pulled it out, coated in mana and darkness for an extra sting of energy that she used to lash in the power mimic’s direction.

Fortunately, the flash of darkness was intimidating enough to force him to leap back as the light in the surroundings made quick work of the shadow energy. “Idiots like you never learn!” Raffina laughed as she pushed the man away with her foot before moving away with quick strides. Though not without giving the creep a gesture.

Her digitigrade legs allowed her to reach superb speeds in record time. Nimble enough to leap over one of the short wings and darted around another scaffolding.

Before long, she knew that she’d left him behind, hearing the sound of a distant crash and clutter as if the fool appeared to have tripped himself up against an obstacle.

<Well… lost my cover. Now try to see if I can speed my way around…> Raffina thought as she was forced to run back towards the loaded aircraft.

She emerged from a side the gunman hadn’t expected and, by the time he spotted her, she had already slipped under the wing, where her extra sense told her there was enough darkness to pull off some of her tricks…

Saturday, December 24th - 10:26pm
Silent Mountain Base - Level 3 - Hangar - Aircraft

“Idiots like you never learn!” Raffina mocked the power mimic as she backed away, her legs picking up speed as she raised up a middle finger his way before turning around and running away, vaulting over the aircraft’s wings.

What she didn’t know was that the bearded thug wasn’t just about to let her escape as easily. No sooner she began to take steps away after turning to look forward, he was already up on his feet to give chase, quickly realizing he wouldn’t catch up to her.

In his frustration, he took aim just as Raffina dashed in a straight path and pulled his arm back with the knife at the ready for a throw.

And then, a huge fist of water came crashing from the side, blindsiding and sending him loudly up against the aircraft’s hull, with his knife falling to the ground just before him.

“Fuck… what was…” he muttered halfway through his sentence, but realized there was only one answer. “I still can’t believe you’re still alive…” He turned to face his new opponent: a furious boy carrying a large amount of water around his waist stretching up to his right arm in the shape of the large fist that had just clobbered him. He was dressed in a black spandex suit with a matching jacket, with a set of vines wrapped around his torso where hints of red could be spotted.

“I know you couldn’t hear me, but I promised I would make you pay,” Vic frowned.

“I got electrocuted and shot. That should make us even.”

“Hardly,” Vic said gritting his teeth, as the large water mass tensed and flexed like a cobra for the next attack. “Not even close.”

“Are you going to kill me? Do you even have the guts?” The man challenged still from the ground.

Vic hesitated for a moment and that was telling enough.

“I knew it. You’re weak… especially with that power…”

“I don’t know if I’ll kill you or not. But I’ll certainly pay you back for what you did.”

“Empty words, barely worth the time considering the base is about to explode.” His words picked up speed as his hand went for the knife. “But, then I guess I’ll just need to finish what I started!”

Vic lashed out with the water limb to steal the blade, but the distance allowed the power mimic to get there a second earlier, and he wasn’t just reaching for his weapon… but instead reaching out to meet Vic's attack with his extended arm.

And once that happened, Vic realized the tactical error. Through the fluid medium, he felt the man’s influence running in opposition to his own. How his will corrupted the watery limb, only stopping when Vic offered resistance. They were at a stalemate, tethered by a thick line of water that neither would let go.

“I still have your powers, TideStriker.” The power mimic laughed. “You must’ve known this would happen.”

“I suspected it… but I did it anyway,” Vic asserted.

“You’re an idiot… and your codename is stupid,” the power mimic mocked as he got up and pulled the knife out from the mass of water. All while still focusing his concentration to fight Vic’s influence. “Sadly, I'm not using my real codename… but you can call me Chad.”

“I know I can beat you,” Vic took a step back while the other guy took a step forth, moving away from the side of the ship. “This is my power after all.”

“Well, I’m a fast learner,” the power mimic, Chad, said as they circled each other. “Let’s see… I’m also more mature than you and have experience in fighting.”

“I’m pretty sure I do too.”

“Shush. The adult is talking.” He answered with a spike of water from his section of the tether launched at the boy’s head. In a brief panic, Vic brought up the coated limb to catch it and immediately absorb it back into his control.

But that was just a distraction as the entirety of the water mass was yanked to the side just so the mimic could take several quick steps to close the distance, with the knife coming in with its point aimed at the vines around Vic’s wound.

It would’ve been another lethal strike if he hadn’t expected it and instead thrown his body to the side… the wrong side. The water was thrown to the right, Vic had been forced to jump to the left. The power mimic raised up the knife hand to cut the tether, giving himself the greater portion of the mass.

Vic concentrated what little he kept around his fist, bringing it against Chad’s back in the brief moment of distraction and victory as the power mimic consolidated his power.

It was enough of a disruption to splatter parts of the water mass, and threaten to pull them apart. The student’s hand reached and connected with the unstable tentacle limb as Chad recovered. And, before the man could exert his control against it again, Vic drove the water limb against the nearby aircraft’s wing to force the split.

When the two split apart, they both had a mass of water with them, but Vic had a narrow margin more. Of course, that changed little, as it could just as easily change the next time they traded blows if no outside influence was thrown into play.

“Good one… but it won’t be enough.” Chad frowned as he held up his side of the water limb. “Because, as I was saying. I’m more mature, I have more experience, I’m more than willing to kill you, as you already know.”

Vic’s offhand moved down to the height of his stomach where the wound rested. By now, whether by Root’s herbs or whatever healing ability the spirit had, the pain had lessened drastically. And yet, he still felt the need to be mindful of his own condition.

“Fourth point, I’m not the one injured,” Chad mocked. As he pointed at the height of his stomach, just to twist the metaphorical knife. “You should probably take care of that. I have no idea what you did to spare yourself. What devil you had to sign the pact with, but it can’t be a perfect solution if you need bindings to keep your bowels from spilling out.”

“I’m good enough to fight you.” There was really no way he was backing out of the fight now.

“And the last point is that, goodness gracious, I’m the one with a knife here.” Chad held it up to make a threatening point.

Or at least that’s how it started, but then quickly switched to an attack. The knife was thrown into his own water limb as he ran at Vic with his dry arm outstretched.

Vic read his intentions as trying to steal another portion of his holdout, so he just reacted by leaping back. Which was what Chad had wanted as, the third step into his sprint, he swung his other arm, with the whip of water stretched out with a new addition to the tip: the knife. He couldn’t even think about stealing back the water as the metal edge came his way.

Blood was spilled into the water bubble around his arm where the knife had made a cut on Vic’s skin the moment he tried to defend himself. The burning sting was bad, but that wasn’t the end of it as Chad pressed on the attack, swinging the whip back for a backswing that would’ve aimed for his neck if he hadn’t kept on backing away, trying to repeat the process in the hopes that he could land another cut with the blade. “You lack the aggressiveness! What can you hope to gain just by backing away and earning cuts!”

Vic had no answer. He was right. Step after step, the only control he’d had in the battlefield was to steer himself away from the wall just to not get pinned down.

“You know what another difference is? I’ve been in this situation before, facing people on ‘equal’ ground and I’ve always managed to come out on top thanks to my ingenuity!” He punctuated by kicking a box full of nuts and bolts, sending them scattered to the ground to make Vic mindful of the next step he might take, capitalizing on that concern by thrusting the water limb forth with the knife at the tip, aimed straight at his face.

That would’ve been the end of him if Vic’s own holdout hadn’t made contact with a pipe by the wall. Imaginary hands held onto his own and pulled him out of the way just enough so that the only damage done was a bleeding cut on his right cheek.

Once enough distance was taken, Vic counter attacked, throwing the water down to the ground for a cleaning sweep that snatched a bundle of the iron bits before throwing a part of them at Chad in the next spin. That move did take the power mimic by surprise, forcing him to halt his attacks.

“You think I haven’t been forced to be resourceful?” Vic said, using the pause to prepare, picking up a wrench that had been in the thrown toolbox, holding it as his protection within the bubble of water around it. What little he could hold, he would make use of it.

Chad frowned. “Your powers are such a hassle. It’s already giving me a headache to keep using them.” He spoke… strangely louder than before. “You have to hold the body of water in control at all times. I mean, it’s easier than I imagined when it’s all contained, but it still requires constant focus. So how about we finish this fast!?”

It was near the end that Vic realized it. He was talking out loud in hopes of masking another threat. But the sound of heavy footsteps drawing closer and the reverberating growl in the throat got Vic to turn around with his arm at the ready.

It was the werewolf from before. The image of it tearing through Roots vines and then stalking Vic and Josh through the corridors came into the forefront of his mind at the moment he saw him just a good a good couple of meters away from him but closing in fast. His claws were ready to savage him!

Still, there was enough space for Vic to attack! So he answered as hard as he could, swinging the water coated limb against the threat for a sordid splashing smack that sent the werewolf howling.

The main reason for that was because all the remaining bits of metal were pushed up to the forefront, along the impact zone, adding extra sting to the attack, along with the whole strength of the attack. That was enough to give him a reason to be cautious.

The only downside being the attack had been costly for Vic as well. A lot of the water used was lost at the moment of impact, leaving him with about a quarter of the strength left, yet he couldn’t focus on picking it back up as his opponents were still up.

Fortunately, they appeared to be more focused on berating one another.

“Couldn’t you be any quieter, Steve? I was practically yelling to cover your steps!” Chad snapped. “That was an easy kill!”

“Fuck you, Chad!” The werewolf spoke up, his voice raspy and deep. “We wouldn’t have been in this situation if you’ddealt with him earlier!”

“Well, are you going to show me? Or are you going to bicker before the place blows up?” Chad muttered.

“How much time do we have left?” Steve grumbled, shaking his head as he brushed the shrapnel embedded in his hide.

“About twenty minutes,” Chad answered. Vic knew he was lying. He had no way of actually knowing that.

“Fine! I’ll show you,” Steve said, his voice devolving into a growl as he raised his hand and prepared to go on the attack.

But then, his ears twitched, picking up rattling of chains, forcing him to duck under just as a large steel ball crossed through the air, narrowly missing his head, instead smashing a dent into one of the wall’s panels before being pulled back and caught by a man dressed in a combat outfit, holding the rest of the chain coiled in his other hand.

<Reinforcements are here!> Vic heard another voice through the mental link Leslie had established. He was so focused in keeping himself alive, he’d forgotten about the rest of the team.

He hadn’t met this person before… but by process of elimination, this could only be Censer. The Syndicate operative that awaited in the mountain alongside Lightning.

And he was ready to dole out the punishment.

Saturday, December 24th - 10:33pm
Silent Mountain Base - Level 3 - Hangar - Aircraft

<You’re TideStriker, right?> Censer asked through the mental link. <Are you okay?>

<I think I am…> Vic answered, his eyes switching between both Chad and Steve, judging by the yells that had been going on before his attack.

<I’ll handle the wolf… I think I have something he isn’t going to like.> Not taking his eyes off his opponent, he produced a lighter. With a couple of flicks, a flame was held to one of the holes on his weapon. He could feel the kindle light up with no problem.

“Hey! Wolfie. You stupid enough to turn your back on me? The moment you try to attack that kid, I'll make you regret it.” He spoke up as he began to slowly swing the silver ball from side to side, letting the white smoke start to slip out of the orifices of the ball.

“Don’t fall for it, Steve!” Chad mumbled after his ally had been quiet for quite some time.

“You’re not the one who’s exposed to the man with a ball hammer, Chad,” Steve growled as he turned around towards Censer, having made his decision. Chad let out a groan.

“I hoped you would’ve made things easier by letting me clobber you while you had your back turned,” Censer boasted. His hands, however, clenched tightly around links and handles of the chain.

After all, he was facing a werewolf, a beastman that stood over two meters tall; covered in bristly brown fur that did little to hide wild muscle underneath; with claws that could rend through him and fangs that were said to transmit the cursed condition.

Still, Censer had to trust in his tools. After his chain broke, he made his way back to his locker where he kept the spares and add-ons he bought from the money after the mission in Concord. The new one was sturdier, slightly thicker than the fine one he used before, with handles every couple of meters to make it easier to grasp.

At the end of it was the large orb that swayed back and forth, letting out thin trails of smoke that slowly began to spread themselves into a thin miasma. Fortunately, the werewolf’s nose didn’t seem to pick up anything wrong with that. His signature weapon kept on moving, starting to pick up speed.

He wasn’t sure if this was the best or worst of times for a trial run…

“Are you dumb for picking a fight against me?” Steve asked with a growl under his breath as he lowered his body, ready for an attack.

“No… I just felt like I needed an easy win. I’ve been quite unlucky recently and you seemed like the ideal start to reverse that streak.” Those were, for the most part, half truths. Although he really had a bad streak of encounters, facing off against a werewolf felt the furthest away from a safe bet.

“Don’t belittle the strength of the naturally blessed!” Steve snarled as he charged forth, preparing to bring down his claws against his opponent.

And Censer answered with a practiced move as he took a step back, dragging the round weight around him as he used his power to make the incense smoke incredibly dense, appearing as if he just drew a cloud in the middle of the air.

The werewolf was surprised by that move, forced to stop in his charge just to gasp and cough from the densely charged incense that shocked his enhanced nose. And right after that, his ears picked up the rattling of the chain again, as the hard round hammer came in from the side, attempting to crash into his head as it completed the circle.

“Fuck!” Steve snarled as he ducked under and forced himself to leap out of the way as the next spin of the metal ball came in at a lower angle. This one managed to connect on the side of his stomach, sending him a couple of steps back. “You coward! Fight fair!”

“I’ll fight you fair when you turn into a human!” Censer answered, standing at the center of the circle traced by his weapon. Still spinning leaving a trace of white smoke that made it look like a meteor crossing the air.

Steve didn’t answer, instead his eyes were focused on the end of the chain, tensing as it passed and looking for the right moment. And then, the next time the sphere swung by, he charged in with an angered snarl.

Of course, Censer saw it coming. It was probably one of the scenarios he practiced the most when training with his weapon. Raising the hand up into the chain, he yanked the thing mid swing, changing its trajectory before bringing it down onto Steve.

Still, the werewolf was able to see that attack and react, leaping to the side cutting short his attack. Just two more steps and he would’ve reached Censer… but then, the wannabe mercenary swung his other arm, letting a silvery object trace the air and slicing across the beastman’s chest, forcing him to back away.

The sphere never stopped moving, even after crashing on the ground, it just bounced and resumed its swing against Steve. Ducking under, and just making a desperate scamper out of the way, he managed to narrowly put himself out of the range of the next couple of swings… And all the while, holding his chest where the line had been traced.

“Why does this burn so much!?” Steve called out in between the guttural snarls that wanted to slip out of his lips. “What was that?”

Censer humored him, holding out his offhand as he took a pause from spinning his weapon, just so he could see what it was about. At the other end of the chain was a metallic stake about the size of a large knife. Something that Censer felt he could’ve used in his last mission, just before that middle eastern mercenary wrapped his own weapon around his neck. “I got this recently from my usual smelter. Coincidentally, the edges are lined with a silver alloy, the same as the protective rim around my censer.” He mused.

The werewolf’s eyes narrowed and his lips curdled. “You cheater!”

“I refer you to my previous comment about fighting fair.” With that, Censer resumed the attack, letting the metallic football drop just so he could give it a kick with the steel on his boot, sending the thing in motion with a wild spin, threatening to get closer and closer to Steve.

And yet, as Steve thought he could predict when the next attack would come just by watching the swing of the ball, he was surprised as a second rattle of the chain that came underneath the first one. The silver stake thrown his way, managing to prick his stomach harshly enough to let his flesh feel the silver point.

It wasn’t a killing blow, or even grave, but it certainly left the werewolf reeling and even angrier as he tried to stand his ground, even daring to attack before being forced to back away. Emboldened, Censer pressed the attack, spinning both point and round end of his chain in practiced coordination, not giving his opponent a chance to get close at the risk of being caught by a sudden changes in trajectory of one of the heads, all the while the smell of the incense was probably starting to affect him.

That was probably the reason why Censer was having an easier time. His power allowed him to zero in and focus on any substance that was dispersed up in the air. Once he did, he had a full sense of its spread and dispersion in the environment as well as a certain degree of control over it. It wasn’t complete control, though. He couldn’t order it to stop in mid air or have it launch itself against the enemy, but he could steer it just slightly to make it count.

It was also that sense that allowed him to keep track of the werewolf as it tried to find an angle of attack. The chains came and went, the metals clashing into each other suddenly ricocheting and coming close to hitting him. It was by sheer luck that he was barely taking damage so far.

Eventually, said luck ran out as the wrecking ball managed to connect with the man’s arm. It was then that Steve realized he wasn’t being given a decent opening that wouldn’t result in a harsh backlash from the mercenary. So instead, he opted to flee, turning around at next chance given.

“Not going to happen!” Censer said as he made the ball go for a wide swing, even giving it much more chain than before as he aimed for the ankles… But it wasn’t far enough and Steve had managed to get away.

“Get back here!” He said as he stopped a moment to reel back in his weapon before giving chase, towards the center of the hangar, where the escape aircraft was located.

The rear gate of the vessel was wide open leaving the stolen confiscated goods within sight. <We’re so close! We can take them down!> Censer thought to himself as he drew closer.

There was some chaos already going on as he caught a glimpse of the lithe dark figure engaged in a fight with one of the henchmen, pursuing him between the aisles as the other one up in the level above was trying to take aim and open fire with a handgun.

Eventually, though, the gunner lost them as they disappeared under the stairs where the girl pushed her opponent and herself through the wall, emerging outside the ship. From there, she leapt up to get herself back on her feet before her opponent.

That little display caught the attention of the werewolf as he stirred over to the side. With a roar, he was demanding to change partners!

<Obscura! Watch out!> Censer reached out, using the mental link.

The girl reacted to the thoughts and immediately began to sprint out of the way.

Censer tried to keep on the chase to stop the werewolf from harming his comrades but immediately his focus shifted towards the second level of the aircraft, where the henchman with the gun took notice of his presence, standing just in the middle of the open, like a sitting duck.

<Shit!> Censer said as two bangs were heard followed with the thankful click of a needed reload.

By the time the henchman had finished reloading his weapon, all he would see was a large cloud of dense white smoke filling the space just outside of their ship and starting to grow.

<That was close…> Censer thought to himself deep within his makeshift cover. He was crouching down to make himself as small as possible just in case the gunman decided to randomly open fire again.

But also because he’d been injured. While the first shot went wide, missing his side, the second struck his lower torso. This was the first time he’d been hit and he wasn’t exactly enjoying the burning feeling or the stinging pain the bullet left behind.

The good news was that he’d recently upgraded his suit to add some resistance to bullets… the bad news was that it wasn’t enough to keep the lead from piercing through and carving a shallow hole. It would certainly keep him from performing at his max… or even running.

“Shit…” He cursed as he saw the outline of the two henchmen and the techie in the ship get together to, presumably, discuss a plan… all while looking in the way of his cover.

Saturday, December 24th - 10:42pm
Silent Mountain Base - Level 3 - Hangar - Aircraft

After facing the power mimic and escaping, she ran her way around the aircraft as fast as her modified legs would take her. The man acting as sentry, naturally, spotted her and tried to take aim, but she happened to be fast enough to make it underneath the wing. After that, she skulked her way around the ship, making her way around to make another attempt on the techie, as she spotted him making progress in the damage she made. If she could take him down, they would be grounded for good and have no other chance but to surrender.

But she had been spoiled by the field of silence just as much as the techie expected her and, the moment she was perceived, he threw her wooden knife back at her before calling for the gunman to take her down. From there, she ran away, sliding into the porthole of the ship before leaping over the handrail into the cargo hold where the stolen goods were, landing in the aisle in between.

And right before her was the other henchman, taken back by her presence. Clearly remembering her enough to be concerned about not having a weapon of his own, the only option that would salvage his pride would be to raise his fists to fight. Knowing that the gunman would be looking over the handrail any second now, Raffina also decided to go on the offensive first.

She charged up first, surprising her opponent just before driving her fists straight into the man’s gut and face. Quick and light, restrained as she’d been taught, to get him stunned and off balance. From there it was easy for Raffina to push him towards the hull, right underneath the stairs where enough darkness could be mustered to create a gap out of the aircraft and onto the ground.

Not a moment too soon as she heard the bang of a handgun hit the steel, just as they’d already disappeared through.

Once outside, the man’s back and head touched the ground while Raffina bounced off to land on her feet a good distance away. A habit. One of her tutors always taught her to never be caught on the ground for long. From there she turned around and prepared to sprint forth, going forth for a knockout kick when-

<Obscura! Watch out!> Censer’s words came in loud and clear in her head, forcing her to pay attention to the large figure that moved her way. A large wolf dressed in the remains of human clothes that had seen their fair share of stain and tearing. It was the werewolf in the enemy team… and its eyes were fixated on her. She was the prey!

“Shit!” was Raffina’s gut reaction as she sprinted in the opposite direction. Everything, including the two gunshots she heard in the distance along with Censer’s mental curse became secondary as she tried to maintain her distance.

A werewolf wasn’t like anything she’d ever faced, and not something she was willing to face off and fight! So she sprinted as fast as she could all while hearing the sound of clothes being shredded as the steps of her pursuer became more frequent and faster. A quick look over her shoulder confirmed that the man had changed into a more beastial form, running on all fours to gain on her.

Still, she wasn’t about to surrender just because the distance in between was growing narrower, instead she moved across the side where more scaffolds, workshop tables, pieces of equipment and other ships were, using it as a sort of makeshift obstacle course. She vaulted over an aircraft and the wolf still followed, albeit judging by the cracking sound of the cockpit’s window, he probably broke it; She leapt through a gap on the scaffold, and the wolf just crashed through, pretty much knocking the thing down in a cacophonous crash that almost had Raffina caught in it.

Right after, she led the wolf up against a wall in what felt like the deadliest game of chicken, picking up speed. She was committed to her plan, reciting a quick incomplete spell for good luck. Upon reaching the wall, she used her momentum to climb the thing as fast and high as she could with cat-like grace. While the werewolf met the surface with a sordid crash, narrowly missing his bite.

Fortunately, by the time she lost her momentum and was skidding along the wall towards the ground, the wolf was on the ground reeling back from hitting the wall. Even as it got back up and resumed the chase, Raffina already had quite enough distance over him.

<Raffina?> said Censer’s voice in her head. <Are you alright? Sorry but I’m pinned down by the men at the ship. I can’t chase after the wolf.>

<It’s fine,> Raffina thought in a rush. <I can deal with him. You try to capture the men at the ship!>

<I can do that…> Censer said, though his mental voice carried a bit of a strained grunt.

Raffina’s eyes set themselves towards the back of the hangar. The place that was supposed to be the warehouse and actual workshop area, where all the hardware was meant to be stored. According to the manual, at least to what little she glimpsed, there was plenty of room, different areas and aisles and a little bit of everything really. From spare parts to workshop to cargo containers that could be moved about between the levels via the service elevator.

But more importantly, with the doors open all she could see was pitch darkness in the spot. Something she managed to confirm while she was in the security room. The place’s lights weren't working, and everything was covered in darkness. <Leslie!?> She pushed her thoughts down the mental link..

<I’m here, Raffina.>

<You’re still in the security room, right?>

<Yeah. What do you need?> Leslie said as she stepped into the dark space.

<I need you to close the doors to the hangar and lock them,> Raffina requested as she made her way to the right, towards the aisles of hardware materials.

<Are you sure? You’d be->

<Stuck with the werewolf. I know, but I have the advantage here,> Raffina assured her as she threaded her way down the aisle, hearing the werewolf about ten strides behind her. With that much berth, she grabbed two boxes filled with nails and screws and tossed them to the floor.

The werewolf growled at the mild inconvenience that was stepping on the metal bits before he was forced to back away. And that’s when what little light was left was suddenly extinguished as the doors were closed, casting the place in complete darkness, along with the clanking sound of the lock engaging.

“Good…” Raffina said as she reached into some of the hardware boxes while also picking up a wrench that hung from the display wall. “Now that the base isn’t going to blow up, all I have to do is wait for the Syndicate to get her and deal with you…”

To that, the wolf began to laugh, his voice sounding gravely deep. “You really think it was a smart move? Lock yourself up with a werewolf? I can just take you hostage and demand my release. I saw your file, you’re a sort of VIP.”

“Aw thanks…” Raffina laughed.

“You’re dumb, laughing like that when I can smell and hear you…” to which the werewolf began to move around, slowly prodding around his way in the darkness.

“Ah really? All I have to do is just phase through solid matter and…” Raffina paused as she crouched to touch the ground. “Well… that’s unfortunate.” She said with a quivering voice.

“What?” The werewolf asked.

“I may not be able to do that in these conditions. I think I’ve used my last cantrip for the day…”

The answer was a slow guttural laugh. “You’re screwed.”

“Oh crap!” Raffina gasped, that seemed to be the exclamation the werewolf needed to let out a hunting howl and resume his chase.

She made him work for it, though. Running all the way around the space, vaulting over tables, making sharp turns around or before objects just to have the werewolf trample through them.

“You’re very tough,” Raffina opined in between obstacles.

”After being poisoned and bashed by silver, crashing against barrels is nothing!> The wolf answered in between pants, his frustration palpable. “Just wait till I catch you! Your parents will have to be happy their demonspawn girl is still breathing!”

From there, the two engaged in a protracted game of cat and mouse. Raffina ran when he had a trail on her and hid whenever he lost it. Moments of ruckus were followed by ones of dead silence when only the wolf’s growl could be heard… that is until the sound of metal creaking or clinking would reignite everything

Eventually, the words “Oh crud! It’s a dead end!” came out from Raffina’s mouth as she, in an act of seeming panic, ended up entering into one of the long containers that happened to be near the back of the room, just a crane drag away from the service elevator.

“Got you!” The werewolf laughed as he stepped in through one of the double doors, the only one that appeared unlocked, blocking the path out of the dead end.

“Stand back!” Raffina blurted as her hand hit against the back of the container.

The werewolf was about seven steps away from her and seeming to enjoy the slow capture.

“Help!” Raffina screamed, her voice bouncing off the metal surfaces in the container.

“It’s no use. You might be nimble, but you can’t slip past me now! I can sniff and hear you just fine. Whatever you try, it’s over.”

“Over?” She smirked. Her demeanor suddenly changed as she held out her arm. Charging her mana with the darkness of the environment for support, she released a magic bolt after the werewolf. The things packed quite a punch as three hard hits to the face, shoulder and stomach almost forced him down to one knee… but not out of the fight. That just made him all the angrier, forcing him to charge forth.

“You said I couldn’t run away, right?” Raffina mused as she produced the handful of iron nuts she took from the shelf and tossed them around, sending them scattering against all the metallic surfaces for a chaotic ringing that affected the wolf’s hearing.

Once distracted, she threw the wrench she’d nabbed from the tool wall against the wolf' while her hand was already creating a pool of darkness against the steel surface of the container. When it struck the beastman’s head, he couldn’t retain a cool mind and launched himself forward against Raffina, only to find that the girl had already disappeared.

Outside, Raffina emerged out of the container, closing the gap just behind her just in time to hear the thunk of the wolf slamming himself against the back of the steel box. That bought her enough time to run up the front of the container to smash her shoulder against the door to swing it to a close.

“You gremlin!” The wolf snarled as he trampled his way to catch her.

Raffina hastily moved the thick iron lockbars into place, just in time to feel the weight of a large body slam itself against the doors, practically shoving her back. Fortunately, both held.

“You! How did you!?” The wolf howled.

“I’m surprised you didn’t notice this… but while you could only sniff and hear me, I could sniff, hear and see you as clear as day,” Raffina laughed. “I was never in a panic as I prepared this trap for you. I just needed to use myself as bait and slip out!”

“You bitch! I thought you were out of cantrips?!” He snarled, slamming himself against the doors. Not that it would change anything.

“And you believed me?” Raffina mused, dusting her hands. “Why would I share something like that with my enemy? If you had a bit of common sense, you would’ve questioned those words from the start… but you wanted to believe that I was an easy prey with no way out. That’s on you. Dumb mutt,” Raffina admonished.

For some reason that got the werewolf really riled up, slamming his body against the confines of the crate as if his rage would compel steel to bend. “Sit there and think about what you’ve done,” Raffina snorted as she walked away, back to the hangar hoping the guys had managed to stop the rest of the enemies.

Saturday, December 24th - 10:55pm (Some minutes earlier)
Silent Mountain Base - Level 3 - Hangar - Aircraft

Vic’s fight with Chad had prolonged itself more than either of them were willing to keep on entertaining.

The Whateley student kept on trying, making the effort to beat his opponent with his own strength. He kept himself on edge and always improvising on ways to get the upperhand, despite the risks involved and the low success so far.

While the power mimic found his opponent getting more and more savvy in the fight. What would once be clear swings and lethal stabs suddenly found themselves falling short…

The need to end the fight was felt.

“You know that the reactor is about to explode, right? Aren’t you worried about it?” That was his attempt at psychological warfare… but Vic knew better.

“If that’s going to happen, then what do I have to lose? You should probably turn around and run off the cliff, if you’re so scared,” Vic said, pointing with the wrench he used as a foil to Chad’s knife.

His eyes narrowed. “You stopped it, didn’t you?”

“That doesn’t change anything. You still need to flee as the Syndicate will arrive in any second,” Vic said.

“Then I’ll have to end you,” Chad said, taking a deep breath before looking up with serious eyes. His body leaning forth in preparation… “This’ll be the last one.”

“I… I agree…”

Vic feigned closing his eyes for a meditative breath, but opened them right away as Chad attacked at the next perceivable opportunity, thrusting a water spear with the knife at the tip, aimed down for the heart.

To that, he countered by outstretching his water coated arm, having it rip out the fabric of his coat and slide forth to meet his weapon. Having visualized the moment, Vic’s tactic had the upper hand, wrapping steel in fabric and keeping it arrested in place as, realizing his mistake, Chad tried to pull it back and he refused to allow it.

“Screw this thing!” Vic snarled as he drove his hand into the body of water to grab the halted weapon, throwing it as far as the motion of his arm would allow. “I hope to have this thing broken into pieces after I beat you up!”

“We’ll see about that,” Chad snorted. Not one to be stunned in place, he had already taken two steps forth to have his fist meet Vic’s stomach, aiming for the same wounded spot, only to be grabbed before it could connect.

“I’m not letting you…!” Vic mumbled, surprising Chad by how his own punch was brought to a full stop. When he looked down, he sawa thin layer of water covering the surface of his hand like a glove. Acquired the moment he ripped the knife off the body of water.

“When did you get so strong…” Chad said those words mockingly… but soon found himself starting to mean them as Vic’s own influence on the connected water limb didn’t ease up after all the movement, instead it began to spread, shunting off the power mimic’s control.

Realizing his predicament, he tried to back away only to feel Vic’s hold on him. The boy’s water coated grip was suddenly strong and untouchable to his own power.

“Normally my power has a cap of eighty kilos… that doesn’t just mean the amount of water that I can lift… but also the amount of power I can pack!”

Chad tried to take his chance while he was talking, pulling his head back for a headbutt, but by then, Vic’s control had reached the water around his arm, forcing it to bend in a painful way to disrupt the attack. And at that opening, Vic pressed on, pulling his fist back before launching it against the stomach, repeatedly until his opponent was forced to take a step back.

“I’m supposed to have the same powers as you!” Chad managed to say between gasps.

“The same mutant powers… but I had an extra I kept with me all this time that you just couldn’t steal!” Vic said as he used now the full control over the water limb to whip and slam the power mimic up against the small aircraft. “Because it’s something I don’t want!”

“I hoped not to have to use it when dealing with you. I thought I could… But you were right! You’re stronger and had that stupid knife!!” With that he slammed Chad against the ground. “But if change is inevitable and the damage you did was like opening the floodgates… then there’s no point in holding back!”

He punctuated his spiel by thrusting Chad against the wall of the hangar. He wanted to keep doing it, to dole out an even higher punishment for the fear of his near death experience, for the sorrow of never seeing his friends again, and for the frustration of a tarnished future! And yet, after the third slam, he realized that Chad wasn’t moving.

Something gripped his heart and squeezed it tightly. Something punctured his stomach and wrapped itself around his throat: Guilt. He despised the man. he wanted to see him suffer but… had he just crossed a line he never wanted.

“Is he… is he…” he stammered as he strung the man up in the air by the arm. His face bruised, his nose was bleeding and places on his skin bore the scraping from the collision against the wall… He’d been clobbered but still alive at least that much he hoped as he laid him down on the floor.

While a part of him was still itching to keep on with the punishment, the narrow majority told him that was enough… especially as he appeared to be unable to continue fighting, even if given the chance.

The fight was over and Vic had won, even if it hardly felt like it. <I’ve taken down the power mimic…> Vic muttered, though not exactly bothering to reach out and share the message as he fashioned the binding from a piece of cable from one of the tool boxes.

In the process, he searched the pocket’s of the man jacket, finding his phone tucked safely in an inner coat, without even a crack on its screen. Fortunately, it had been left locked, so it didn’t appear to have been tampered with.

He had no intention of lingering around Chad any longer so, once bound and securing his opponent, he ran over towards the center of the hangar, with the large water mass around his arm at the ready to provide support to the rest of the team. They were so close. So close to ending this.

His fight had been mercifully isolated from the rest of the chaos going on, tucked into the side of the space behind a couple of smaller aircrafts and scaffolding that blocked their view from the rest. Even so, Vic heard snippets of the chaos that went on outside. There was the ringing of metal, the snarls of a beast and the gunshots that were fired…

“I’m done! Get ready to take off!” He heard just as he turned around the corner of the concealing cover. This was the first thing he heard as he spotted the designated aircraft the criminals would be using to escape. A two story tall thing that appeared built like some sort of sci fi spaceship. And just above the wings, he happened to glimpse the moment a hatch was closed and locked.

<They said they’re taking off!?> Vic called out to every person within the link.

<Then do something!> Raffina snapped.

<I’m working on it! But my leg got shot. I can’t run!> Censer called out, his voice coming out from the cloud of white smoke just behind the ship’s open door. <I’m so close!>

From the smokescreen, a silver object linked to a chain flew out, finding its mark and quickly pulling out a man from the back side of the ship, making him disappear into the thick veil.

After some time in which bullets flew upwards from the smoke, then suddenly stopped and Censer reported. <I have the gunman! Now, I just need to get in!>

But the words came in a second too late as the screech of gears and the sound of a mechanism activated brought attention to the back entrance of the ship where the wide ramp began to raise itself and the upper rooftop began to close down.

<Shit! It’s moving!> Censer called out.

<What do we do?> Leslie asked, presumably seeing everything through the cameras.

<Can’t you climb in?> Raffina suggested. <I’m in the other side of the hangar!>

<It’s closing! I can’t make it.> Censer snapped.

<Then step away!> Josh’s voice suddenly pierced through.

<That would mean letting them go!> Raffina noted, as the ship was starting to move along the runway at a slow pace… to start. With the cargo area now closed, it was like staring at a tank parade as it was about to make its run.

<Not what I meant! I’m just telling everyone to clear the area!> Josh snapped as he emerged into the hangar, running, nearly exhausted thanks to the payload he carried on his back. Large pieces of equipment and technology joined together by high duty cables, duct tape and tensed bands.

<I can’t see because of the smoke! Can anyone do anything about it!?> He asked as he began to drop things down in the middle of the hangar. It took Vic a moment to recognize the components. Outside of the blaster Josh brought with him, the rest were pieces he’d seen in the basement. Taped on the barrel of the blaster was the laser carving tool from the mountain excavation sector. while plugged behind was the spare batter he removed from the generator…

The thing looked like a haphazard railgun!

<On it,> Censer said as the smoke grew thinner and transparent, enough to reveal him dragging the now handcuffed henchman away.

<Good! Take cover!> Josh said as he mounted the thing on his shoulder and crouched enough so that the added steel frame projected behind would find footing on the ground. The barrel of the makeshift weapon began to glow as energy was charged, with energy splashing out from every connecting cable.

<Are you going to be okay?> Vic asked as the ship was starting to pick up speed.

<It’s fine… I have some electric resistance,> Josh said as he leaned in closer to his weapon, lining up the shot before pulling the trigger.

A bright red beam flowed from the battery, lighting every section of the weapon up to the nozzle from which it was blasted out, tracing a line through the air, brimming with energy and flashing with the trace of electricity it guided.

The shot missed the right wing, just by a narrow margin, going above it… but as long as the trigger was still being pulled, the energy beam kept on flowing, so Josh forced the aim down an inch so the shot would meet the base of the wing until…

Booom!

A caustic explosion followed, separating the wing from the rest of the body, sending it tumbling onto the side of the hangar, and smacking into the half closed gate at the face of the mountain.

The main body had a, fortunately, much safer stop as the shockwave of the explosion forced it to drift into a half spin mid run until it was forced into a stop close to the edge of the mountain, where the snow had been piling up for the past couple of hours of exposure.

From there, it didn’t appear to be able to move or keep going.

<The shot was charged with electricity… it probably shorted out the engine,> Josh reported

<Good job, FitTogether!> Censer called out as he approached the downed ship, joined by Vic and Raffina, both cautious and ready for whatever could happen. The long walk did little to mitigate the concern.

“Fuck, it’s cold!” Raffina cried out as they approached, rubbing her arms as she felt snowflakes underneath her bare feet.

The air from the snowy outside was biting and unnerving, piercing through their skin and biting to the bone. Vic wasn’t faring any better with his limb covered in water and soaked clothes, risking hypothermia or a cold would just be something he would have to risk right now before having the matter settled.

“Can we hurry up on this?” Vic asked..

“Check on them,” Censer told Raffina, offering a pair of handcuffs he acquired from the first level.

She didn’t appreciate the order, answering with a clear frown, but accepted, being aware that she was the only one who could tend to this fast. Using both guys as footing, and her acrobatics, she leapt up all the way onto the surviving wing.

A minute later, she managed to open the hatch and slipped in.

Everyone held silence with dread and anticipation for news, ready for what might happen. A wait that felt longer than one could be comfortable with. But fortunately, Raffina answered their concerns. <They were knocked out in the crash. I just cuffed them.>

The news was felt by everyone, answering with a collective sigh. A feeling of relief that was exchanged with no words. Each one of them had been looking forward to this moment since the night began.

<We did it!> Josh celebrated from the back, running away as his custom made invention started to let out smoke. <We took them down!>

<Is it really over?> Leslie said. The girl sounded like she wanted to cry from joy.

<Can we get signal now?> Raffina asked.

<Or something to eat.> Root mumbled, exhaustion creeping in his voice.

<First…> Censer interrupted. <I hate to say this… but first we have to round up the enemies… make sure all of them are restrained.>

Everyone groaned through the mental link.

<Not exactly the way I expected to have Christmas, like this…> Leslie noted.

<I guess, since we’re in Whateley time… Merry Christmas.> Vic noted much to the amusement of some.

<Merry Christmas,> Some others echoed, finding the funny irony.

<It’s better than the alternative…> Vic muttered, his hand feeling the vines around his waist as he backed away from the cold. Hunger, fears, injuries, stresses and exhaustion, it was all there… but the thrill of victory and the promise of at least a break would be enough to keep them going to wrap things up.

 

To Be Continued