Heroes for Hire S1E6
"Wizard"
By: Anon Anon Edited by: Anon Anon's significant other
"Heroes", Bentley Wittman declared, "Are they really what they seem? I've sure you've all heard of the team of vigilantes known as 'The Heroes for Hire': the team of anonymous superpowered individuals who beat up criminals for pay. For pay?! Please, tell me this is a joke…" The crowd stirred uncomfortably, staring up at this man speaking something that wasn't necessarily a lie. "These vigilantes cause property damage to neighborhoods that can barely afford to live their own lives, and spreads fear throughout the projects. We've even heard rumors from a residential area in SAN FRAN of superhero activity. San Fran?! We can't let these people spread harm and fear over our country, much less our prestigious city." He said, finishing his speech. Cameras immediately started flashing, but he was used to this.
"MR. WITTMAN! What will the Kronos Corporation do to fight off this terror?!" A reporter asked. She looked new to the job, young, naive, and cute. Bentley turned to her, intentionally not saying anything, and leaving going back inside his office building. She frowned, before saying to one of his bodyguard's that she wanted to meet him later. All of the reporters were in uproar, demanding another press conference as soon as possible.
Bentley sat in his office, staring down at the citizens swarming to the front of his building. They love me, but more specifically my honesty. These people will soon hate these fraudulent Heroes, and we'll swiftly remove them from the streets He thought, sneering before pouring himself some more wine. "Sir", the man walking in said. "What Steven?" Bentley asked semi-disinterestedly. "The crowd is getting unruly" the man responded nervously. You're a guard, get yourself together man Bentley thought, before shaming himself; Steven was his favorite bodyguard.
"Hmmmm, tell them I'll be out in one hour" He responded, before asking "How's your good brother Edwin doing?" "He's still recovering from the attack of that crazy lady a couple months back" Steven responded sullenly. Personally, Bentley thought that the Heroes had something to do with that. But that's crazy, he always thought, as he exited his office, going down the escalator and ready to meet the masses.
(Cue theme)
Ava walked to the dryer in the only pair of pajamas she'd owned. It had been so long she had worn these as well, her grey sweatpants and red tank top. She couldn't decipher why she liked tank-tops so much, but decided not to think too deeply about it. As she was walking, she turned checking the small closet near the back hallway where the machine resided. Hector always hid there, scaring her when it was her turn to switch out the loads. She stopped for a second, opening the closet just to see if maybe, maybe he'd be hiding there.
But there was no one. Ava compulsively sat down on the carpeted floor, feeling nothing but sadness and regret. "Why did you go?" Ava muttered, curling up in a ball, compressing her legs into her warm chest. She cried silently, hoping that her guest, Peter, wouldn't hear her. Her sadness ebbed and flowed, like a tumultuous ocean, missing her brother. She hadn't really thought about him all that often, hanging out with Danny every day did that to a girl. But every week, a certain event triggered feelings like this.
She quickly composed herself, before going to the dryer, sorting her clothes, and returning to her living room where her new friend Peter sat, watching some news channel. "Have you heard this guy? It's Bentley Wittman, chairman and CEO of Kronos. He's been talking about us for the last hour or so." Peter explained, before turning the volume up on Ava's tv.
"Would you want people, such as, oh I dunno, the police going around unchecked? Blue bloods are already in so much contention right now, and now these kids are paving the way for more individuals to come out, and start taking our perfectly normal justice system, and shred it up and enforce martial law." "What the hell is this Alex Jones wannabe piece'a shit talking about? MARTIAL LAW?! Seriously?" Ava muttered angrily.
Peter looked over at her, nervous to voice what he was thinking at the time. "Ahem" He coughed, Ava looking at him strangely, before he stated "Y'know maybe what we do IS a little…unrestrained. Heard about the time I accidentally assaulted Luke cuz he had stolen food on his person? Our fighting techniques definitely allow for casualties on the sidelines. And on top of that, this group specifically does what we do for profit. Why don't we tone down our violence, and use our talents for real good?"
Ava stared back at him, before exploding "We don't just do this for the greed! We have profits because we all have no job, except for you with your fancy Bugle job, we do this out of our own volition with no unemployment. People like Luke are doing it because his parents are struggling, and they need to retire soon. Danny's fucking homeless!" "But the public especially would be-" Peter strated, before Ava exploded again, staring at Peter will real fire in her eyes "Fuck the public image! We do this for our families, ourselves to save us from our collective crummy lives. I dunno how you're doing financially, but I don't see you being homeless or having dead relatives! HUH?!"
Peter stopped, taking a deep breath, before shouting "How dare you…" "How dare me?! We allowed you in our gro-" "NO, how dare you assume my familial status. I had an uncle until about 3 years ago. He was shot by a mugger and died alone on the street in the rain. I couldn't SAVE HIM, OK?!" Ava was taken aback by Peter's screaming, before feeling ashamed. She backed up to her end of the couch, staring at the floor for a while. Peter finally looked to her, not in anger but in sympathy.
"Who'd you lose?" He finally whispered, scared of his louder angrier self. "Hec, m-m-my brother. A-and my daddy" Ava finally choked out. Peter frowned, before apologizing, "I'm sorry Ava. Really am, y'know what? Screw the news, let's have fun today, eh?" Ava smiled, genuinely smiled, happy to at least make-up with her friend. The two of them got up, Ava saying "Want me to call the boys? We can have a lovely day on the town" Peter nodded, and Danny and Luke were soon at Ava's house.
Luke looked at Peter contemptibly, saying "So YOU'RE the guy who beat me up, huh?" Ava interjected, "Luke, don't…", before Luke wrapped his arms around Peter lifting him up, saying "Nah you good man. At least we know now who you are…" "Yeah, heh heh" Peter said, fixing his hair, looking nervously at Luke. "So what did ya' call us over for?" Danny asked, looking down at Ava. "I dunno. Fun? A break from running around in skin tight costumes, and just hanging out as people?" Danny smiled, looking at her and all her beauty.
"Not a bad idea" Luke proclaimed, before turning to Peter once more, saying "SO, sorry I wasn't there to indoctrinate you, personal reasons, but welcome to the group. We don't have too many rules here, you probably know them already, so yeah." "Yeah indeed" Peter saying before everyone looked to Ava for ideas. "OH!" She started, "Well, why don't we walk to this fuckwad's headquarters and protest? Y'know start a riot, as millennials do" She stated. Everyone laughed, before realizing that defending their honor outside of their personas may help win the people back over.
"I could get my camera from the office, and start filming Mr. Wittman's next 'sermon'." Peter mentioned, the rest of the group nodding in approval. "Why don't you get that, and we can start a livestream?" Ava asked; Peter nodding, before leaving to run off to the Bugle. The group followed suit, heading to the Kronos Corporation instead.
…
Peter was staring down at Jessica, the two of them hiding in the closet. "Wanna take this farther?" Peter asked, Jessica smiling, asking nervously "Um, what exactly?" "T-this relationship?" Peter asked. "If you're implying-" Jessica replied, becoming slightly perturbed. "NO! Not that-not that at all. (He chuckled nervously) I mean, wanna be my girlfriend?" He asked. "O-of course Pete, I didn't know WHAT you were asking, but why wouldn't I?" She responded, hugging him violently. Peter felt elated, feeling excited, aroused, a whole troupe of emotions at once simultaneously.
"Ok baby, SO, I gotta go now. Hanging out with the friends and what-not. I'm gonna take my camera, and go" Peter said, looking into Jessica's eyes. "Can I come with?" She asked innocently. Peter thought for a second, before concluding, "Why not?" She looked excited, and the two left the building hand-in-hand.
Ava was looking at the anti-Heroes crowd, frowning at the lot of them. She wanted to start the riot right now, but waited for at least Peter and his camera. She caught Luke out of the corner of her eye, and walked to him, asking "So, could you talk to Bentley?" "Nah, the security guards manhandled me, might've said a racial slur" "Fuck's sake" Ava said, turning, looking for Danny, who up until now was at her side. Where did he go? She thought, before hearing a call from Peter. "HELLO GUYS!" He shouted, running over camera in one hand, Jessica in the other.
"OH?" Ava grunted, "Who's this?" "This is my...um...girlfriend Jessica" Peter said, grinning wildly. Luke fell awfully silent, turning around and walking off awkwardly. "What's up with him?" Jessica asked quietly, Peter and Ava nodding. "Oh ok" Jessica responded, slightly embarrassed. Danny suddenly arrived, dispelling all awkwardness, and putting a smile on Ava's face, as he said "I think we're ready to go guys". The group got collectively psyched, ready to fight not for their honour, but the cities as a whole.
As Peter turned on the camera, and the speaker set he brought, Ava brought out her phone, going to twitch, and announcing their riot. "Hey everyone! If you live in the Manhattan area, and you want to defend the Heroes for Hire, come visit the Kronos Corporation and riot with us! Thanks!" After sending that initial speech, Ava checked the comments, frowning as most of them were derived from thirsty people sending smarmy messages about her body. "I hope we get a good turn out, eh guys?!" Luke called to his friends, as they passed high fives around.
But, as the five soon realized as the day dragged on was that most people who had conviction in their words, they wouldn't go to rally. "It's almost like people who have conviction don't have the scrote to rally" Ava sighed, as Bentley spoke his second speech since they had been out. "How much of this shit do people want to hear?!" Danny roared angrily, disturbing part of the crowd near the group. "Do you have anything to say, young man?!" Bentley called from his podium to the group. They stood up, frightened, responding "No, no we're good". Mr. Wittman shook his head, before continuing his speech. Ava sighed, before saying "C'mon guys, let's go home." The rest of the group nodded as well, save Danny who wanted to voice his opinion.
"Y'know" Danny started, the Heroes freezing in their tracks. Danny, please don't… Ava thought, as Danny said "Y'know a lot of you guys would be dead without the Heroes. Like, remember when the zombie was trundling around? OR the card throwing assassin? People like you need to...need to shut the fuck up and learn to be grateful" The crowd was taken aback by Danny's timbre, gasping. Ava smiled to herself, looking at Danny with a sense of admiration, before Luke said "Let us gtfo, now". The crowd descended on them threatening violence, as the five ran faster than they ever had before.
…
Luke frowned to his teammates as they hid out in Rand Tower, asking "Anyone got any other ideas on how to clear our good name?" "Well, um...Jessie won't be helping, since the mob broke the Bugle's equipment. Heh heh…" Peter explained, massaging his sore wrists. "Sidenote, how the hell do your powers work?" Luke asked. Peter looked to him, before explaining, "Well, um, when I was bitten by the spider, these glands grew inside my wrists, and my body went like an emo kid and slit them, and when I flick my hand like this (He demonstrated, shooting a net of web), the glands produce a web-like substance. HOWEVER, I can't control the webs, which is why I made these web shooters, which sew the webs into strands. 'K?"
"Oh, ok" Luke said thanking his friend, before Danny interrupted with "Seriously guys?! How are we going to defend our honor from these lunatics in the streets?! They won't listen to us!" "I have an idea:" Ava piped up with a tinny voice. Danny turned to her, the fury draining from his eyes, and she responded "Why don't we go to Bentley as the Heroes? We can explain ourselves as to deflect hate and educate people. Bastante bien, ¿verdad?" The group stared at Ava confused, before she said "Pretty good right?". She blushed heavily, thinking Shit, I'm using spanish with Danny now...oh geez. "Sounds like a plan guys" Luke said, before declaring "HEROES! Suit up!"
While Ava was putting on her suit, she heard a voice in her head saying Hey A? You there? "Hector?" Ava asked, before thinking What're you doing here? Now? Can you...see me naked? Hector responded, W-what? NO. And even if I could, why would I? I'm here for support Ava, you seem sad and distraught. Well, Ava responded, I missed you this morning. I was going to get the wash and...and...well I miss you. Hector laughed quietly, before saying That's not all is it? Ava sighed loudly, before responding with No. It is not. Danny? Hector asked. Yes, it's Danny. He...he reminds me of you in some ways. He's kind, but extremely volatile. He has character, but can also go wild when having fun. He-He's just a really good friend y'know? Ava explained. Ah, but he is just a friend? And if so, eww gross, don't say he reminds you of me. Hector responded jovially.
Ava grumbled, before saying, Look Hector, I don't know what to say to him. He's saved my life once or twice now, and I'm not sure if it's cuz he's a teammate, or….I mean, I did kiss him once, as a joke. Sigh. Hector seemed to smile, Ava didn't know how she could be able to know but she smiled back. I say, follow your heart. He's like you, very much like you. That's all hermana, te amo. Ava began to tear up, thinking No te vayas por favor, but Hector was already gone. She put on her bra, zipped up her suit, and walked off to meet her friends.
"Hey Ava, let's go" Danny said, as the two ran to catch up with Peter and Luke. Please call me A, Ava thought, shaking that idea away in a moment. The four of them strutted down the street, before they stopped abruptly, asking each other "Where IS the Kronos Corporation?" "Weren't we JUST there. How d-did we forget?" Luke asked, stifling his laughter. "Follow me" Peter said, as the Heroes went back to strutting.
The four strode into the crowded area, parting the dumbstruck crowd as they entered the Kronos building. The four of them got shouts, some racial some sexist, some just straight up hateful. "Ignore them" Ava commanded her teammates, and they continued walking, until they were in the lobby of the building itself. "EYYO PEOPLE! WHERE'S MR. WITTMAN" Luke shouted, startling the hustling employees. "We just wanna talk!" Peter shouted as well, "No harm from us!" "Um…" one of the workers piped up, saying "He's in an interview upstairs r-right now" "Hey thanks" Luke said calmly, as gestured to the group to use the escalator to their right. The employees watched the Heroes through their whole descent, and even until they were gone.
Bentley was furious, how did the Heroes get into HIS building? He kicked down the door, exiting into the hallway, leaving the bewildered reporters behind."WHY ARE YOU INTERRUPTING AN IMPORTANT-?!" Bentley roared to the Heroes, before being interrupted by Peter, who said "What? Your meeting with the BUGLE? Ha, 'important'" Bentley turned to him in especial disgust, before asking again, "Why are you here?"
"To clear our righteous names" Luke declared, and gestured to Bentley to come downstairs. "I want you to get downstairs and have a levelheaded discussion with us AND the press. That alright with you big man?" Bentley scowled, before agreeing. "Go on, I'll be right there" He said, as the four Heroes went down the pristine escalators. "Get the cameras rollin, they will never stop. No matter what anyone says, even if I say to, got it?" He whispered to his bodyguard. "Yes sir" He responded, saluting before he left.
…
The Heroes stood proudly in front of Bentley and his podium, ready to give him their piece of mind. "So, heroes. What are you here for?" Bentley asked, cameras flashing wildly. "We are here today, in front of the city, to say...um…" Peter started, turning to his teammates. "We are live right?" Danny whispered, part of the group nodding. "TO PROVE" Ava started, "That the four of us are the official Defenders of New York. And there's nothing anyone can do about that". The rest of the group gasped quietly, as Bentley stood genuinely perturbed.
"Not bad" Danny whispered in Ava's ear, giving her a pat on the back. Fuck yeah, Ava thought, turning back to Bentley. He snarled, staring at the small group of reporters, they were only non-Kronos affiliated people allowed in. "Are you so naive that you REALLY believe that? It makes me laugh…" He started, sliding his hand into the podium, and putting on a mechanical glove discreetly.
"Yeah, we ARE the Heroes of New York" Luke added, making Ava beam with rebellious pride. "Um no, you are actually the Heroes for Hire. Now get off of my premises" Bentley ordered, clenching his fist in the glove still hidden from view. "WOAH! Hey, not cool man. If you're gonna give us air time, give us more than 3 minutes." Peter retorted, but Bentley roared "OUT!" "Now wait just a second" Ava commanded, as she strode towards Bentley hostilly. Now was his moment; he brandished his glove, shooting a light towards her, stunning her and sending her flying.
"What the hell?!" Danny roared, as he caught her. Peter shot a web at the glove, trying to disarm Bentley, but failed, as he got hit with a pulse also. Luke covered Danny as he dragged Ava to safety, going for Peter next. "STOP ATTACKING!" one of the guards called, brandishing out a stun rifle and shooting indiscriminately. Danny rolled away from Peter, who tried to stand after the shock of the pulsar. Luke scowled, turned and smacking the guard into the wall, he fell spraying one last volley before he fell unconscious. Danny felt like something hit his arm; then the pain kicked in. "S-s...h...i...t" He said, staring into Peter's eyes before falling asleep.
Luke raced towards Bentley, who had now procured a second glove, and began to pick up Luke with his gloves. Frikin Deja vu right here He said, as he entered weightlessness with his friends; the four of them raced towards the ceiling at a high speed, before blacking out.
…
…
Peter woke up to a painfully bright light, and an aching pain shooting up and down his ribcage. He looked to his right, seeing Danny in the same condition. "What the hell...h-happened?" Luke wheezed, Ava chiming in "Same…" "Hey guys" Peter said, staring at several pairs of feet, "We got visitors." A crowd had gathered around the Heroes, shocked and dazed. The four of them gradually stood, looking at their surroundings in utter confusion. The four of them had woken up on the Statue of Liberty's pedestal on Ellis Island, and the crowd has been municipal cleaners.
"How did we get here?" Ava asked, turning to a cleaner, before asking again, "No seriously how did we?!" "I honestly don't know, but you guys should know that you are public enemies 1 through 4" the man said, looking at all of them with genuine worry. "What is THAT supposed to mean?" Ava asked him, reaching out to grab him. "Woah, hang on lady. We don't got all day to talk, we came up here to see if you were ok, you need to get back to the city now. And stay hidden, I'm sure a lot of people are not happy with what you guys did." He replied, and with that the group left. "You heard what he said team, let's change out of our suits and return to base with whatever clothing we can scrounge up" Luke ordered, and the team dispersed.
The four of them left Ellis Island, covered in souvenir t-shirts and other paraphernalia, Ava rolling her eyes saying "You shoulda seen the vendor. His eyes were basically asking for me to change right there. For fuck's sake…" "Yeah, well, having anyone willing to help is a step in the right direction; let's hope none of them saw us leave the island with said free clothes and put two-and-two together, huh?" Luke said, the team nodding.
"What happened back there though, anyone remember?" Peter asked. "I remember being fucking shocked" Peter said. "I think I did too" Ava chimed in. "Something at Kronos...weren't we meeting with Bentley Wittman?" Luke asked. "Yeah!" Danny retorted, then lowering his voice not to attract the crowd of the ferry's attention. "He attacked us when we refused to leave the premises" He added. "Ohhhhh" the other three said, relieved. "But why would the city be mad at US. Bentley attacked us, not vice versa." Luke stated. "And what was in those gloves, man, cuz those hurt like anal without lube?" Peter jokingly questioned.
"Something about the Kronos corporation seems off now" Ava remarked, and the rest of the group nodded in agreement. "We should split up and look for clues, knowwhatimsayin?" Peter asked. "Y-yeah…" Ava started, as the boat entered into the dock. After a strenuous process, the boat stopped with a churning sound. All of the passengers got off, including the Heroes themselves, who dispersed like the crowd, before rejoining.
"Subway?" Luke asked. "Subway" Everyone else responded, before returning to Ava's place on the subway. The four of them stood outside, sitting down on the slightly warm pavement, before Ava's mom opened the door, and asked "You guys alright?" "Umm, sure?" Peter responded, as she gestured for everyone to come in. The four of them piled into the small living area, and sat down on various couches.
"Hello everyone, again of course. It's nice to see you. Have you seen or heard anything on the news recently?" Ava's mom asked. "Wait...she knows we're heroes?" Luke asked aloofly. "Guh..LUKE!" Ava cried out, "She's known this whole flipping time!" "Oh" He responded simply, embarrassed. "Anyways…" Her mother started, "The four of you better watch your backs." "But WHY? No one has said anything to us yet." Danny pleaded.
"Don't you worry, I recorded the whole thing. If someone's gonna slander my daughter, you bet your ass I'm gonna save that shi-" Ava's mom said, stopping herself. "Woah there" Peter said, giggling quietly. She stared in annoyance, before bringing up the clip.
It showed Bentley at his podium, asking questions, before suddenly the Heroes attacked; Luke taking out a guard. There were some screams, one stood out was "STOP ATTACKING". Ava herself leaped towards Bentley, before being gunned down. After the threat was neutralized, the tape cut off abruptly, and the four of them sat there in shock.
"What the-that's NOT what happened AT ALL!" Peter roared in anger, the rest of the group emanating vengeance from their very being. "What do you mean?" Ava's mom asked. "Ava's m-what's your name again?" Peter asked. "Maria" She responded candidly, before he continued "Bentley lied to us and said that our interview was live, BUT IN FACT, the footage here is edited. He attacked us, after Ava refused to be silenced, and the guards probably said manipulative dialogue so that it could be rearranged for this 'live broadcast'. And will the news say it's not live? NO! They care about denero"
Maria paused, frowning, before saying, "Why do you think such a man as Bentley would do that?" "You're right, madre. The guy would have to have SOME ulterior motive…" "Yeah, there's no reason to slander our good name like that, unless you're that much of a douchebag." Luke declared, standing up. "You gonna go somewhere with that confident stand? Maybe say something like 'Let's get to the bottom of this'?" Peter remarked, receiving a contemptuous glare back.
"In all seriousness, I think that if we can, we should infiltrate the Kronos corp to find that ulterior motive." Ava started, gaining the attention of her peers. Her mother stared down at her nervously, before saying "Are you sure we need to do this? I mean, if you get caught, then these people will have legitimate reason to slander you guys" She said, Ava retorting "I think I speak for my friends when I say this, but we need to know. If we can expose them or find their reason, we can dismantle their argument easier. I'm not gonna kill anyone or anything. And I won't get caught, I have the Goddess."
What? The boys collectively thought, before brushing aside that thought. "Look. Tonight, I'll sneak in alone, as you three watch me from surveillance or something" Ava declared. "Not bad, let's get to work." Luke said, as the four got to work.
…
Ava suited up, as the three stared at the computer monitor. It displayed Kronos's surveillance cam feed that Maria Ayala had just accessed. "Will they know?" Danny asked. "No, we're just piggybacking off their feed" She responded, flashing a devious grin for a second. Ava departed the house at that very moment, and drove off into the night in her "Catmobile".
She arrived silently to the building, exiting, checking for exterior cameras and staying out of their sights. "Psst Ava" Danny whispered into the mic, "Near the garbage disposal out back, there's a door with only one camera. You're gonna have to crawl, and roll to get in, ok?" "Wait, I think I see it" Ava replied sprinting silently towards said door. She saw the camera once she got in range, in fact she nearly missed it.
It was cleverly hidden, and she watched its movements with a keen eye, as she let the Goddess take over temporarily. I'm going to need your reflexes for this, k? She thought, not getting a response, and deciding the silence was a given yes. She poised, crouching like a tiger would ready to kill its prey. Danny stared at the monitor in confusion, mouthing to Luke and Peter Is this normal for her? They shrugged, and turned back looking at her.
Wait just a second darling, your chance is coming up very soon, The Goddess voiced, and not even six seconds later the camera had turned, and Ava was lunged at an abnormal pace forwards. It wasn't much of a roll, more just a sporadic hurl, but the Goddess kept Ava's movements out of the camera. As she neared the door, she skidded behind a garbage pile, as the camera came back around. Holy hell...you did great Ava gratefully said, as her companion responded Be back if you need me I suppose. She quietly entered the back door, surprised it was unlocked, but not lingering in her confusion.
"She did it!" Danny called excitedly, but Ava winced at the loud voice in her earpiece, and Danny whispered "Sorry" guiltily. "It's alright Dan." She reassured him, as she walked down the dimly lit, and stark white corridor timidly. Each step she made was deliberately quiet and slow, but she had to have a certain haste about her. "Danny, I'm scared" She voiced as quietly as possible, "Just wanted to get that out". "Don't worry Ava, I've got your back" He responded. She smiled under her mask at that, but also felt unnerved at the sinking feeling of being followed.
As she crouched, and searched for cameras in the dark, she felt something creeping down her lower back. She nearly shrieked, as she grabbed her rear and pulled, realizing it was just her suit getting caught. She let out a quiet sigh of relief, before moving on quickly, realizing she'd probably lost time with that debacle. Keep going Ava She thought, egging herself on. When she hit the corner of the hallway, she peeked around it to find two guards standing and guarding some door.
She frowned, before leaning against the wall, and decided what she had to do. Goddess, I need you now She thought, as her eyes faintly glowed green. Gotcha darling The Goddess coily said, sending a kissing sound, as she began to sprint. She bounced off the wall silently, dug her claws into the ceiling, and began to climb sideways. Every move she made was subtle and quiet, so as not to alert the guards.
In a heartbeat she was over the men, still oblivious, as the ceiling was high, and her costume matched the tone of the interior. C'mon lady! Ava screamed internally. I will drop you if you don't shut up you dead-eyed bitch The Goddess scorned. Ava fell silent, attempting to come up with a good comeback, but only after they had passed these men. As she reached the other corner of the hallway, she descended, but only when she had turned said corner. Her feet made a little clap as she hit the floor. She froze, and Danny and Peter held their breath worriedly.
However, the guards hadn't noticed. Okay, you cum swallowing dainty-ass slut, time to leave. Ava commanded. The Goddess laughed, as she said, Good one, darling leaving. That's right she thought, as she explained to Danny in the tiniest voice possible "Hey, where's the room we're looking for?" "Well, I mean...I don't think the 'room-containing-the-secret-info-that-may-not-even-exist would be easy to find" Danny responded gravely.
"What about Bentley's office?" Ava whispered, heading towards the back staircase. "Where is the office compared to where I am?" Ava asked, all in one breath, looking around as she walked down another white hallway. She flitted her eyes back and forth, constantly on edge looking for any guards hiding around the corner.
"Hey Ava...so, Bentley's office is so close to you. Remember the escalators? You're close to them. His office is just down the hallway. It's on the right, three doors down." Danny explained. "Kryptonite?" Ava asked quietly, much to Danny and Luke's confusion. "It's a music joke...whatever…" She mumbled, upset. She reached the escalators, and saw the lobby beneath. There were some guards congregating in the lobby area, so Ava rolled discreetly along the waxed floor to the other wall. She backed up against it slickly, silently, confidently.
She walked down the hallway, reaching his office. She stared at the locked door, before prying the door open with one of her claws. She opened the door quietly, so as not to alert anyone. She was in. Ava snuck over to the computer at the desk, thinking Score. Seriously, if I were trying to find incriminating info, I'd go straight to the computer and the browsing history…
She slid into the swivel chair, bypassing into the computer almost immediately. She smirked as she accessed Bentley's files; most of them were nothing to write home about. Typical company files, on top of...Wait Ava thought. She found something that looked not right. It was a receipt...a receipt on a weapons order. What would a tech company like Kronos be doing selling weapons of this caliber to third party companies? She thought, as she inserted a USB into the computer to extract these files.
She stared at the door, thinking she'd heard something, shaking her head, and extracting the thumb drive. She fist-pumped excitedly, before sneaking out of the room and then the building.
…
She had returned to her house, covered in sweat and panting heavily but holding up the USB like a trophy. "He-hey! Nice!" Danny called, going for a high five, but not receiving one. He frowned, before asking quickly, "So...what's that? Or, what's on it?" "Well, it's got top secret files, but thanks to mi madre's skills I have stolen receipts for illegal weapon sales."
"What does Kr…" Danny started, but Ava interrupted and said "Yeah, I thought that too, until I realized that all the scientific innovation could really easily be turned into weapons for the big mean bad guys. It's really cliché, actually." The boys thought for a second, before all agreeing with Ava. "Ok, so now that we know this info...couldn't we like...I don't know...coax Bentley into giving up said information? He does seem hell bent on destroying us" Ava planned. "Well, while plausible, that plan does seem quite dangerous…:" Peter pointed out. "We are teenagers in our prime. Danger is what we do" Ava declared, smirking.
The three laughed, before going "Yeah, you right though…" "Ok" said Luke, "Let me take the lead now" Luke whispered to Ava. "So, team. What if we started a fight with Bentley, and forced him to reveal said weapons to fight us and all of our superpowers." "This still sounds terrible" Peter muttered to himself, deciding to go with the flow in the moment. Luke reassured him with a "Dude, I'm bulletproof. You shoot webs from your fucking wrists. We can do this, if we can't, what's the point of being a hero?" "Ok, let's do this" Peter said nervously, cracking his fingers for maximum irony.
…
It was 12:00 PM the next day at the Roxxon Corporation. The workers had all stopped working, mainly because of the two colorful vigilantes who had claimed to 'have them for ransom, but not really it's just for show'.
Bentley had sat blissfully in his office, until he had heard the news. "Are. You. Serious?!" He roared angrily, as he decided to storm off to his office. "I can't believe the little idjits actually went bad" He muttered to himself, utterly bewildered. The secret panel kept so hidden in his office opened up to reveal a deep purple suit of armor, with helmet and glowing gloves to boot. He slipped into it effortlessly, the armor whirring to fit his form. He turned, snarling as he smashed through the window, flying off to stop the Heroes for real.
Danny and Peter looked at each other nervously, Danny whispering "Hey Pete, when do you think this'll all go south?" "Pretty damn quickly…" Pete whispered back as they walked out to the front of the building to see what the noise was. The two stood there, mouths agape as they saw a purple shape descending from the sky then hitting the ground with a loud thump.
The sidewalk cracked underneath the man, as steam poured out of his boots. Peter and Danny stared at each other nervously, before Peter called "Who the fuck are you?!" The armored man scoffed, before replying "I'd say the same…but you're the Heroes for Hire, no? Well, at least some of you. Where are the others?" "I dunno…" Peter started aloofly, "They could be um jacking off for all I care, but we don't care, right Danny? Especially after that…" "Huge fight we had" Danny finished, nodding and winking.
The armored man stared at them oddly, before saying "Well, Heroes, or should I say ex-Heroes? Is that fitting? I, Bentley Wittman, aka the Wizard, have come to kill you to protect this city." "Talk about cliché" Peter mumbled, before responding, "You're gonna need more than an ugly purple suit to take these two strapping, young, hunky dudes out" the Wizard smirked, before removing his belt. "I didn't mean that!" Peter shouted, as the belt expanded into a hoop shape. It continued growing, until it started glowing a soft blue hue. It gave off light, as suddenly, robots began emerging from the circle. "He has a portal?!" Danny shouted, shocked.
"Get ready…" Peter said, cracking every joint he could crack, before literally swinging into the fray. He shot a strand of web, swinging gracefully, before planting both his feet into the face of the foremost robot. Danny hunkered down behind a concrete divider, whispering into his earpiece "Luke, he has a fucking portal!" "A what? Are you serious?" the tinny voice of Luke responded through the earpiece. "Y-yeah HOLY S-" Danny cried, as a robot lunged towards him above the divider. He skidded on the street, turning towards him. Danny shrugged meekly, before activating his iron fist, fisting the robot through his chest.
Ava slithered down the hallways of the Kronos corporation, Luke hot on her heels. Security guards fired and shouted all around him. Luke yelled in anger at every bullet that ricocheted off his skin in hot blasts. "Keep moving Ava!" He roared. I'm so fucking hard right now Ava thought, bloodlust in her eyes, devious grin flashing even through her mask. "Where's this control room?" Luke called over the SKS fire. "Right down the middle of cliché and hackneyed alley" She retorted, flipping before stomping a guard in front of them to the ground.
"Why we need to find this control room?" Luke asked Ava. "Well, that weapons receipt detailed remote controlled robotic soldiers, and if he's unleashed them…" "ohhhhhhh" Luke nodded, winking. He turned towards two guards unloading on them, rushing towards the two. He picked up the first one, swinging him into the gut of the other one. The two fell with a resounding crack.
"AVA! Methinks it's in here" Luke called. Ava rushed towards him, more guards on her heels. "We need to get in there ASAP" She forewarned him, as she frantically smashed the keypad for access. "Looks like I'm goin back to shielding." Luke groaned as more bullets tore up his goldenrod top, groaning and cursing the whole time.
…
Peter and Danny were back to back, staring at the encroaching circle of robotic soldiers. "Ideas?" Peter whispered. "Well….." Danny started, before whispering to his friend. The Wizard floated in the air gleefully around the impending death of his enemies. Peter shot a web, connecting to Danny's back, before swinging him as high as he could into the air. The Wizard frowned, flying over to the Iron Fist, getting kicked by the devious ninja, before Danny slammed the ground with his iron fist. Peter web-slung out of the crater just before impact, watching the robots fly away in flaming heaps. He smiled at his friend, giving him a thumbs-up.
A robot soldier charged Danny, as he flipped pushing it down to the ground, falling with it. Crouching above it, he punched a hole clean through its head. Danny then stood up, wiping the dust off his hands, before narrowly dodging a pulse from Wizard's gloves. "Shit!" He called, as he rolled to dodge another. "Coming!" Peter shouted, as he flew through the air towards Wizard, but was grabbed and slammed into the ground uselessly. "Fools" He muttered as more robots came out of the portal. "Fuckin WHAT" Peter called, as they trampled him. Danny was able to punch a hole clean through two robots, before falling out of exhaustion.
Ava's fingers were flying on the keyboard, eyes flashing with curiosity as she typed away in the control command. "What exactly are you trying to do?" Luke asked. "Trying not to get distracted by you, go guard the door or something" Ava commanded. "Ok, jeez" Luke said, sauntering off begrudgingly. She looked through the list of programs she could use, trying to search for either a system reboot or to at least put them on a different target.
Peter ran over, attempting to help his fallen friend, who was currently being crushed by a stronger droid. However, in the process, Peter was body slammed from the side, too fast for even his Spider sense to recognize it, and he fell too, gasping from the nasty blow. They were paralyzed as the robots piled on top of them, knocking the wind out of them. "A...Ava better have some clever shit up her sleeves."Peter wheezed, as the air flowed from his lungs. The robot gripping his neck had no qualms with killing.
"I think I got it!" she shouted, as she typed 'shutdown /s /m \\Bentley /t 000'. She pressed the enter key with a gleeful cry, as the door to the office caved in and guards filled the room. Luke sent punches and kicks to some of them, knocking them into their comrades. "Don't worry mortal child, the situation's in my hands" 'Ava' spoke, to Luke's confusion and dismay. The Goddess in Ava's body flew through the air, much like a cat, slashing and clawing the men in a matter of seconds. Luke stared at Ava's glowing body, and asked "Um...who are you?" "I am known as the Goddess, and that's all you're getting today as Ava seems to be very rudely pulling and kicking me back to my homeworld." She said, bluntly, before Ava shuttered, losing her green.
"We need to check out the team" She panted, as Luke nodded compliantly, smashing the wall behind the two. "Smash enough and we'll get out, right?" He stated. "Right" Ava responding, laughing hysterically.
Peter and Danny lied on the pavement, gasping confusedly, as Danny remarked "I think Ava shut these dudes down or something" "Doesn't change the fact they're on top of us...like for fuck's sake" Peter retorted, annoyed. "Push them off then, instead of whining" Danny said. Peter glared at him, before doing just that, and helping his friend up. Wizard gasped nervously, before conjuring a portal, and hopping inside. "WAIT! Our near-spotless record!" Peter called to him, but by then he was already gone.
"How many times have we let the bad guy get away?" Peter asked to his friend. "Well, only like, one other time really" Danny thought. "Jesus.." Peter muttered, as the police finally arrived on the scene. Danny stared at his whimpering friend, and patted him on the back, smiling as the officers left their squad cars.
…
The five friends stood side-by-side, hiding away in a garage, listening to the thumping noise outside tentatively. "Are you guys ready?" Ava asked, touching Danny's arm and gesturing to the rest of the group. "Sure" Peter mumbled, lifting the cast which contained his now fractured arm. Luke hushed the three, declaring "Alright guys, be cool, eh? This is the first time the media, and even the Bugle, wants to put us in the spotlight positively. Act natural and be nice. Hug babies and sign autographs or some shit."
The doors opened, opened by the garage owner himself, and the four walked out in full costume, waving the whole way. The crowd cheered magnanimously, roaring and clapping for the cities newfound heroes. "What are we gonna say?" Danny whispered to his friend. "WE? No no no no, I will say a nice speech that Peter helped me write (Peter nodded subtly) and you all will answer any questions given to you." Luke responded with dominance.
Peter glanced at a beautiful woman with a young child in her arms, and subsequently walked towards her. The kid stared in amazement, touching his mask, and crying some gibberish. He smiled, saying "You too" reassuringly. Ava waved at some possibly infatuated teenage boys, and Danny made his fist glow for show. That drove the crowd especially wild. And finally, Luke stepped up on the podium, staring gladly into the masses of potential fans. Always great to have a fanbase he thought, before beginning his speech.
"Well, honestly I don't know much about speeches. I dunno much about anything. A couple months ago I was a lonely convict blamed for a crime I never did. Now I'm friends with some of the best people I know. My friend Iron Fist here had a dream, an idea. That we could do some good in this world. And we can...A-White Tiger, Spider-Man, and us can and have done great things. ("Thanks for emphasizing the hyphen" Peter whispered to his friend. Luke silently nodded, smirking) And we will continue to do great things for the people of this city...now, we will answer anyone who has a relevant, interesting question. Please, anyone, come up to the stage, and ask."
Immediately, a group of people rushed to the stage, but Luke called "Single-file! C'mon guys…" One person asked "Who are you people?" to which Luke responded "Not at liberty to say". "Could I hire you guys?" Another asked. "Well, do you need us?" Luke asked sarcastically, moving swiftly onto the next person. This went on for a while (27 more people to be exact), until a small girl accompanied by what seemed like her older brother asked in a nervous voice, "Will you defend me from the monsters?"
"What monsters?" Luke asked, intrigued. "She's afraid of some of the people in our neighborhood, it's...pretty rough" her brother clarified. Luke nodded in agreement, before saying loudly enough for the whole crowd to hear "Well, you heard what White Tiger said, no? We're the Defenders of New York!" The crowd cheered insanely for what seemed like forever, until the boy next to him noted "Defenders sounds...like...really generic. Tbh, just keep Heroes for Hire". Luke stared at him oddly, before the boy left. Danny laughed.
Next Time…
When a comet descends on Earth, an unearthly creature is unleashed, and it's up to Heroes to recapture it.