Outside the Juvenile Detention Center, the battle was in full swing for the three heroes. After She-Bang had darted out towards the building, their original plan had been abandoned with gusto, and now it was every man for himself.
Currently, Gear was wrestling with Talon, while She-Bang was taking on Shiv, leaving Static to fight Kangorr.
"I'm going to crush you like a bug, mon," he sneered in his thick Jamaican accent.
"You know, that's pretty big talk for a guy who's tripping over his feet all the time," Static quipped.
Gritting his teeth in frustration, the large-footed bang-baby began hopping towards him at rapid speed. Static frantically surveyed his surroundings, looking for something he could use against the meta-human. Just as he was about to give up, a glint of something shiny caught his eye from one of the nearby alleyways.
Flying down to take a closer look, he saw that the piece of metal was actually a strip of metal piping, scrap from the abandoned oil refinery across the street.
His discovery couldn't have come at a better time, as Kangorr was hot on his tail. The bang-baby leaped in the air, ready to come smashing down on his opponent, and Static realized he had to act fast.
"Hey, Bigfoot, I got a little present for you."
Using his powers, Static grabbed the metal piping, and before Kangorr knew what was happening, the electric superhero wrapped the piping around his ankles in mid-jump, causing him to fall to the ground with a loud thud.
"That should keep you busy for a while."
Meanwhile, several meters away, She-Bang was dealing with Shiv.
"You superheroes…are always…causing us trouble," he grunted as he swung at the heroine.
However, as athletic as she was, she was proving to be quite successful at dodging his attacks.
"Thanks, but flattery's not gonna get you very far," she teased, cartwheeling around the blue-haired bang-baby.
She had to admit, it was hard to land a punch when the person you were fighting had giant knives for hands. To win the battle, she had to use his greatest strength against him.
She looked around, noticing that they were only a few feet away from the wall of the building. With an idea in mind, she led him towards the wall, backing away until her back hit the brick.
"Got you!" Shiv exclaimed as he stopped in front of her. He held the point of one of his knives mere centimeters away from her neck. She could practically feel beads of sweat beginning to form on her forehead, wondering if this was as good of an idea as she had thought.
"Too bad your mommy's not here to save you," the meta-human sneered. He raised his arm to strike but She-Bang smoothly ducked, causing Shiv to miss, and his knife-like hands to get stuck in the wall.
He tugged with all his might to get free of the wall's hold, but his knives were too deep inside the brick.
She-Bang stood proudly behind him, dusting the imaginary dirt off her costume. "Glad I wasn't the wall," she muttered.
Not unlike his cohorts, Gear also had a meta-human problem to deal with. Talon was showing no mercy as she continued to assault him with her sonic shrieks.
"Think you can stop us, Nerd-Brain? Think again," she sneered, aggressively darting back-and-forth.
Thankfully, the techie wasn't easily intimidated.
"I know I can't stop you," he began, rummaging through his pockets until his fingers wrapped around a hard, metal sphere. "But I know this can."
Before Talon could process what was happening, Gear had tossed a zap-cap at her, and, like clockwork, She fell to the ground with the coils clasped around her body, holding her in a tight grip.
The bird-like female glared up at him as he stood over her proudly.
"I'll get you for this," she hissed.
Gear smirked. "I'm counting on it."
"But were you counting on me?" a voice asked.
Upon hearing the all-too-familiar voice, Gear's smirk immediately fell. He could hear him, but he couldn't see him.
Seconds later, a pool of shadow began to form next to Talon. Gear slowly backed away as he watched Ebon materialize in front of him.
"Uh, guys?"
Both She-Bang and Virgil turned to see the gang leader himself.
"Decided to invite yourselves over huh?" he sneered. "If you wanna see your friend again, I suggest you give up now."
Static glared at the shadowy meta-human. Like he had said before, this was taking a more personal turn.
"Let her go and we'll think about it," he shot back.
Ebon chuckled darkly. "Not a chance, Sparky. You're in my house now, so you gotta play by my rules."
Static raised a brow. "And what rules were those, again?"
Ebon narrowed his eyes. "Hang up your cape for good. Otherwise, she's gonna be sitting in a jail cell for a long time."
Electricity crackled in the electric superhero's hands. "I don't think so."
Before his arch foe could get another word in, Static had already begun bombarding him with lightning bolts.
Gear ducked out the way, somersaulting until he was what he considered a "safe" distance away from the action.
This would probably be a good time to find Zoey, he thought to himself. Glancing back to see the shadow man and his partner were grossly engaged in battle, Gear took the opportunity to make a beeline for the doorway.
However, to his dismay, just as he approached the entrance, he was greeted by a familiar red-haired individual.
"Hotstreak!" he exclaimed in surprise.
Realizing who was standing in front of him, the pyromaniac grinned evilly. "Expecting someone else?"
Gear saw his fists ignite, and that's when he knew he was in for trouble.
"Hey, Hotstreak, I think it's time to cool you down."
In one swift motion, he pulled out another zap-cap from his pocket and tossed it at the former bully. As it flew through the air, it exploded, leaving the pyromaniac drenched in water.
Hotstreak scowled. He attempted to ignite once more, except all he could muster were a few sparks.
"Hey, you shorted me out!" he fumed.
Gear placed his hands on his hips. "Yeah, I thought you were a little heated up. You should consider taking anger management classes."
Hotstreak's eyes glowed, rage boiling inside of him.
"When I get my hands on you...!" he seethed.
Gear's face fell, realizing he may have celebrated prematurely.
Like an enraged bull, Hotstreak charged at him. Before the green-clad hero had time to react, his body was smashed against the wall of the building, causing him to topple to the ground in pain.
"Oh, did that hurt?" Hotstreak taunted. The pyromaniac loomed over him. "Not so funny now, Hero."
Gear felt himself being slowly lifted up from the ground by the front of his suit. He glanced up and saw Hotstreak raise his free arm, preparing to throw another punch at him.
"Please don't hurt me," he pleaded, wincing as he braced for impact.
"Hey Hothead, how many times do I need to remind you to pull up your pants?! They're hanging way too low!" a female voice called out.
Both males looked up to see She-Bang running towards them.
Once again, Hotstreak's temper got the best of him as he let go of Gear, his attention turning to his next opponent.
"Hey, it's my style! You don't tell me how I should wear my clothes!" he growled. With his person now beginning to dry off, Hotstreak was able to ignite once more.
Eyes glowing, he shot a ball of fire at the agile superhero. With minimal effort, She-Bang was able to jump out of the way, though it was a little too close of a call for her comfort.
"Hehe, not so hot now, are you?" he mocked.
She-Bang gritted her teeth. "I could say the same thing," she snapped. She started cartwheeling towards Hotstreak, successfully dodging every single one of his fire balls. Finally, with one graceful flip, she landed in front of the two boys.
"I'll take care of Mr. Low-rise here," she said, meeting Gear's gaze.
The techie nodded, scrambling to his feet. Once again, he turned and made a break for the door.
Hotstreak noticed the direction Gear was headed in and turned to chase after him, when he felt something tug at the waistband of his pants, preventing him from moving.
"Hey!"
He glanced behind him to see that She-Bang was holding him back.
"You and I are gonna have a little chat about your wardrobe choices."