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Issue #3 February 2010	"High-Seas Hydra" Written By Tony Thornley

Ten minutes ago…

                  Danielle Moonstar watched as Black Widow raced across the Gulf in the inflatable motorboat.  She sighed and took her small radio off her belt.  She turned and began walking towards the staircase leading to the underbelly of the boat.

                  “Ebersol, meet me below deck,” she said.  She replaced the radio and drew her sidearm.

                  “Aye, aye, captain,” Fixer grunted.  Dani rolled her eyes, held up her gun and released the clip.  Fully loaded.

                  “Good,” she whispered, and reholstered the pistol.  She rounded the corner to find Fixer coming from the opposite direction.  They met in front of the improvised brig.  Fixer pressed a button on a remote on his arm, and the forcefield holding the prisoners dropped.  Dani gave Fixer a nod and placed a hand on her gun.

                  “Gentlemen,” she said.  “You obviously know who I am.  I’d like to return the favor.  I want to get to know you.”

                  “And why the hell you know who we are,” Fixer said.  One of the group looked up at them.  He smiled, baring his teeth.

                  “You know one of AIM’s biggest projects is recreating various superhumans,” he said.  “They pluck petty criminals off the street and give us these amazing abilities.  Of course, some of us fail spectacularly.”  His eyes began to glow.  Dani drew her pistol and pressed it against his forehead.

                  “Whatever you’re trying to do, DON’T!” she screamed.

                  “Oh don’t worry,” he said.  “After all, it’ll be quick.  Say hello to Nitro 2.0.”  Dani felt Fixer grab her as her world exploded into white.

                  Jack Monroe played absentmindedly with his plasma pistol.  He held up the gun with his left arm.  The new one.  The techno-organic replacement didn’t feel all that different from his organic arm, and that was more disturbing than anything.  He thought about Moonstone.  The bitch had disfigured him, and he would respond in kind the next time he saw her.

                  “No sign of zee Black Widow?” said a voice from behind him.  Nomad didn’t turn.

                  “None,” he replied as Batroc joined him.  “Falsworth aboard?”

                  “Oui,” he said.  “Not long ago.  You’re worried.”

                  “Yup,” he said.  “We’ll need as much support as possible when Hydra comes aboard.”

                  “I know,” Batroc said.  “Come.  We must be prepared below deck.”

                  “All right Froggy,” Nomad replied.  He took a final glance at the horizon, then turned to follow Batroc.  The ship’s second level was filled mostly with a large ballroom, the site of the evening’s festivities.  Jack spotted Jaqueline Falsworth as soon as he walked into the ballroom.  They gave each other a nod and continued on their respective way.  Nomad patted his jacket pocket.

                  Some time ago, he had disappeared to the world at large.  Many people, including his closest friends, had assumed he was dead.  The truth was that he had been kidnapped by the Commission on Superhuman Affairs, and brainwashed to become a weapon against the former Masters of Evil, particularly those who now called themselves the Thunderbolts.  The Thunderbolts had helped him break that programming.  He walked away from the CSA with most of the gear the CSA had given him.

                  Thanks to Pym particles, the entire arsenal fit into his jacket pocket.

                  “So do we have a plan?” Batroc asked.

                  “Right now?” Jack replied.  “No.  Not without Tash here.  We have no idea the timing of the attack or where it’ll be coming from.  We’ll have to go by the seat of our pants.”

                  “And until then,” Batroc said, “it is like you Americans zay, ‘urry up and wait?”

                  “Yeah, pretty much,” Jack said.  The ship shook suddenly.  Jack and Batroc looked at each other.

                  “Or maybe not,” the Frenchman said.

                  “Let’s get to the bridge.”  Batroc nodded, and the duo broke into a quick jog.  They stepped into the bridge, where the captain and head of security stood together.

                  “What was that?” Jack growled.

                  “Just a strong undercurrent,” Captain Guerra said.  “Happens all the time.”

                  “Bullshit,” Batroc said.  “Boating iz one of my many skills, and that was no current.”

                  “Gentlemen,” Richards, the security chief, said as he slowly moved his hand to his side, “the captain is right.  There’s nothing here to worry about.”  Richards drew a gun and aimed at Nomad.

                  Jack was quicker.

                  He quickly drew his plasma pistol and fired two shots.  The first pierced Richards’ gun hand, and the second his shoulder, forcing Richards to drop the weapon.  Several other men on the bridge drew weapons.  Batroc jumped into action, easily disarming the nearest two, drew a small knife from his belt and flipped across the floor to a third.  He jammed the knife into the man’s arm, then spun and kicked him across the jaw.

                  Jack crouched as their assailants drew weapons and drew a handful of stun disks from his pocket.  He tossed them as they resumed normal size, each striking their intended target.  He fired his pistol several times, taking out the remaining invaders.  Jack stood and aimed his gun at Guerra’s forehead.

                  “How many more?” he growled.

                  “All of Richards’ men,” he said.  “They came to me, forced me to let them aboard as security.  They threatened my daughter.  Please…”

                  “How many?” Nomad repeated.

                  “Not sure,” he replied.  “At least fifteen.”

                  “With more coming?”

                  “Si.”  Jack shook his head.

                  “Dammit,” he said.  He turned to Batroc.  “Froggy, try Tash, tell her what we’re up against.  I’ll go downstairs and find Jaqs.”

                  “Oui,” he said.  “I have a name Nomad.”

                  “I know Georges,” he said.  “Froggy works though.  French acrobat?  Come on.  Now go.”  Nomad turned back to the captain.  “Lock yourself in here.  As of this moment, the only person you trust is me.  Understood?”

                  “Yes.”

                  “Good.  The glass up here bulletproof?”

                  “Yes.”  Nomad nodded.

                  “Perfect,” he said as he left.  “If you’re lying, I won’t be responsible for what happens to you.  Now, help me tie up these jokers.”

=FW=

                  Natasha Romanoff ignored the sound of her communicard as it beeped consistently at her.  It was one of the three on the yacht, more than likely, and right now, they weren’t her concern.  She steered the outboard of the inflatable boat into the burning rubble field that was their mobile headquarters only minutes before.  She could see a prone figure nearby, slumped over some of the wreckage.  Judging from his size and scabbard on his back, it was Ares, but she couldn’t be sure without a clear view.

                  She stopped when the rubble was no longer passable, a mere matter of yards from Ares.  She was certain it was him now, and he was still breathing.  True, he was supposedly an immortal, but Tash had been agnostic most of her life.  Despite fighting alongside supposed gods in the past, she always had her doubts about them.

                  “Ares!” she called.  “Ares!”  The big man stirred and lifted his head groggily.

                  “Natasha!” he said.  “I feel like I spent an evening with Hercules, drinking the strongest ales in Greece.”

                  “You probably took a blow to the head,” she said.  “Anything broken?  Missing?”

                  “All limbs and appendages accounted for,” he said.  “Nothing broken.”

                  “Good,” she said, turning back into the boat and grabbing a rope.  She swung the coiled ends several times, and then released it, the bulk of it reaching Ares.  He grabbed it and she began pulling him in.

                  “Where’s Dani or Fixer?”

                  “Both were below deck,” he said.  “I do not know whether either survived.  I’m sorry Natasha.”  She sighed and looked around.

                  “You’re fine,” she said.  “Help me look for them.”

                  “Black Widow, I only survived because I’m immortal,” he said.  “The blast was-“  Tash spun, fire in her eyes.

                  “Dammit Ares, shut up and help me look!” she screamed.  “You don’t know whether they are alive or dead, so stop assuming the worst until we make an effort.  They deserve that much.”  He hung his head and nodded.

                  “I’m sorry,” he said.  “I’ve become too much of pessimist in my old age.  Probably from living among humans for so long after leaving Olympus.”

                  “Not all of us are pessimists,” she said.  “Not even old communist defectors.”  She turned back to the wreckage just as something bobbed into view.  She squinted to try to see it clearer through the flames.  It was a shimmering energy bubble.  After another moment, she could see Fixer clearly, but there was no sign of whether he was alive or if Dani was with him.  She quickly hooped back to the outboard and engaged the engine.  She steered over to the bubble and could make out a second form.

                  “There they are!” she exclaimed.  Ares slid to the front of the boat.  Fixer looked up at them as they got close and grinned.  He adjusted a dial on his wrist and the bubble slowly dissolved.  Dani stuck her arm out first, and Ares eagerly pulled her, then Ebersol into the boat.

                  “Took you long enough,” he said.  “I was starting to wonder if you had to call the helicarrier in before you could rescue us.”

                  “Some gratitude,” Dani muttered.

                  “My force-field saved your cute Navajo ass, missy,” he said.  “You should be showing gratitude.”

                  “I’ll say thank you again if it helps,” she replied, not bothering to correct him about her heritage.  She turned to Tash.  “What’s the word boss?”

                  “I don’t know,” she said.  “What happened?”

                  “One of our prisoners was a human bomb,” Fixer said.

                  “A dishonorable tactic,” Ares growled.

                  “Well, it worked,” Dani said.  “If Fixer wasn’t right there, I’d be scattered across the water.”

                  “So what now?” Fixer asked.

                  “We respond in kind,” Natasha said.  “Let’s back up Jack, Batroc and Jaqs.”  Ares grinned and drew his sword.

                  “A fantastic challenge.”

=FW=

                  Nomad watched the outer hull slowly melt away as a cutting torch slowly created a new hole in the engine room.  He stood just behind cover, ready to engage the first invaders through the new hatch.  Batroc sighed behind him, while Spitfire stood silently, watching the door.

                  “Why do we wait so long?” he asked.  “Could we not stop them now?”

                  “Where’s the fun in that Froggy?” Jack asked.  “I thought you liked senseless violence.”

                  “Violence, yes,” he said.  “Senseless, no.”  Jack grinned.  He heard the cutter stop and gripped his staves tightly.

                  “Here they come,” he said.  “You two ready?”

                  “I am always ready,” Batroc said.  “And always excited.”

                  “Definitely,” Jaqs replied.   There was a clang from several meters away.  The smile on Nomad’s face grew wider.

                  “Give them ten seconds,” he whispered.  “Then we move.”  Batroc smiled.

                  “It won’t come soon enough.”

                  The clang of boots started to fill the engine room.  Each of the three heroes counted silently to themselves.  As they each reached “ten” the first Hydra stormtrooper stepped into view.  Spitfire moved first, zipping past Nomad and Batroc and slamming into the first two Hydra troopers.  She slammed them together, headfirst, and then threw them away.  She jumped into the air, kicked and twisted, knocking both to the ground.  To Nomad and Batroc it appeared as nothing but a blur.

                  Jack moved next, taking advantage of the element of surprise.  He slammed one staff into the next trooper’s neck, then slammed the next across the jaw.

                  “Nomad, duck!” Batroc cried.  Jack dropped and Batroc leaped over him, tackling one trooper, flipping and kicking another across the face.  Jack punched another in the jaw and grinned.

                  “What a bunch of glass jaws!” he cried.  “They’re going down like bowling pins.”

                  “Oh, you wish it was that simple.”  A dagger flew through the air and slammed into Batroc’s shoulder.  Georges cried out in pain and dropped to the ground.  A steady drumbeat started, and a screeching sound filled both Nomad and Spitfire’s ears.  It grew in intensity until they collapsed, holding their hands over their ears.  Moonstone stepped over them and grinned, followed by several other costumed figures- Zaran, Machete, Firebrand and Calypso.

                  “Hello Jack,” Karla said.  “Good to see you again.”

=FW=

                  The boat slowed as they neared the large yacht.  Fixer whistled as he looked up the hull.

                  “Some deep money here,” he said.  “If SHIELD wasn’t taking care of my needs…”

                  “Shut up Ebersol,” Dani said.

                  “Hey, I just sav-“

                  “I don’t care.”  She turned to Tash.  “Do we have a strategy?”

                  “No,” she said.  “I haven’t heard from the team inside.  That means we have trouble.”

                  “I like trouble,” Ares said.  He grabbed a large semi-automatic machine gun in his free hand and stood.

                  “You really like speaking in catch-phrases,” Fixer said, standing as well.

                  “Funny thing though,” Dani said.  “I agree.”  Natasha grinned.

                  “Then let’s make some trouble.”

=FW=

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