Chapter 37

"Estel," Blaze paced forward with little enthusiasm.

"Fielding," the blond officer tilted her head, acknowledging her back. She was standing outside of the front door uncomfortably. Adam was resting his shoulder on the door frame in front of her with his arms folded, preventing Estel from entering the building.

"If you're here to try and arrest me again, it won't work this time. You'll have to fight me!" Blaze immediately squared up to her.

"Just hear her out," Adam intervened whilst avoiding Estel's eye contact.

"And you trust anything she has to say after what happened yesterday?"

Estel's voice was urgent and serious, "there's not much time,"

"Then you'd better get your bitch ass outta here before I…"

"BLAZE STOP!" Adam halted his friend, pressing his forearm in front of Blaze's sternum, "just hear her out ok….?"

"Fine,"

"Murphy, his officers, the biker gang and the rest of Y's fighter's are gathering themselves to come over here."

"Great, cause I've missed a decent fight," Blaze replied.

"I'm serious. They have rockets, guns, planes, you name it. I found out WOPD has been supplying Y-Corp all this time with everything they're using. Even the precinct itself, the twins now own it and the land it's on!"

"And whose fault is that?" Blaze replied.

"You won't even begin a fight with what they're about to do! I overheard Bernstein talking to Mr Y. They're planning on blowing this whole fucking complex to pieces with you all inside here."

"Jesus," Adam sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"How much time do we have then?" Blaze asked.

"2 hours, maybe 3 tops!" Estel answered.

Blaze and Adam briefly glanced at one another before the officer continued.

"They're coming from South of Y-Tower, meaning that all of the North routes are currently open. It will mean leaving the city but…"

"It's ok, I know a place we can all go to," Adam nodded. "Sammy's friends can get hold of unmarked trucks, they won't suspect a thing", he turned to Blaze.

"I was going to say something like that would work in getting you all out of here," Estel replied.

Blaze gave her a tight smile, with sarcasm in her voice. "Why are you here anyway, huh Estel? You made it clear which side you stood for, so why the sudden change of heart?"

Estel raised her eyebrows, unintimidated by the brunette. "Let's get one thing clear, I fight for the law and for justice. I'm just doing what's right."

"And you know I'm still a wanted criminal according to your precious law…" Blaze replied.

"And sometimes the people serving the punishment for breaking the law have no justification to do so. Blaze, I might come across as a cold hearted bitch, but…"

"You can say that again," Blaze laughed to herself,

"...but I never forgot what that gang did to you. So I'm giving you, and everyone else in here a head start in leaving this city. But if you ever return, I will put you behind bars."

"Then you'll have to fight me when that day comes,"

"If that's what I have to do…"

Blaze quickly turned to Adam, "are you sure we can trust her not to let her mouth slip as soon as we leave this place?"

"We don't have a choice! I know what the SIF have access to the weapons she's mentioned and if Y Corp are controlling our federal precincts, they're controlling everything! Now let's move!" He ordered.

"Ok," Blaze agreed. "I'll make sure we get the injured plus my sister and Kaiden out first. Shiva, Floyd, Sammy, Axel Cherry and Zan can all go with them in the truck that they'll load with our stuff and the lab equipment. Then you and I can trail them in case any feds are on our backs."

"Sounds good to me," Adam nodded. "Give me five minutes, ok?"

"Sure,".

Blaze quietly walked away leaving Adam and Estel on their own.

"I just wanna know why?" Adam bit his tongue from saying anything else.

"I'm sorry. I thought I was doing what was right in upholding the law…" Estel explained.

"But you and I know that law ain't always justified!" He snapped.

"But you don't understand! I can't be seen assisting or condoning any type of vigilante behaviour that you or any of the others are associated with. Whether that's from a group of ex cops or a group of street thugs! I was just trying to do the right thing, just like I am now…"

"So your career is more important than your friends?"

"No Adam," she sighed.

"First Bernstein, then Murphy and now you!" He shook his head.

"I still care. And I don't want them to kill any of you!"

"I know that," Adam bit his lip. "Don't worry yourself. You won't be seeing any of us again for a while…"

"Adam, this isn't what you think."

"Just don't let the city fall to shits anymore than it already has!"

"I won't let that happen. I got this under control, trust me" Estel reassured him.

"I hope so,"

"Be careful, Hunter".

"You too," he regretfully nodded before closing the door.


"I have to say, these friends of yours sure weren't fucking around when they said they got hold of an unmarked truck!" Floyd flashed his torch towards the roof of the large furniture vehicle containing several heavy crates at the very back of it.

"It's a shame it reeks up in here!" Cherry remarked.

"Would you rather stay at the lab and get your ass blown up?!" Sammy argued with his niece.

"Hey! Easy now, you don't wanna scare the kid…" Floyd hushed them down, briefly glancing over towards Amira who was sitting quietly with Kaiden resting his head on her lap on the other side.

"I'm sorry," Cherry whispered.

They could also see Dr Zan quietly sitting on one of the crates guarding his lab equipment whilst keeping one eye on Axel who was sleeping on a stretcher as he was still wounded. Although Max was also injured, he was sitting at the front of the truck as a passenger next to Shiva who was driving ahead at full speed.

Meanwhile, Blaze and Adam closely trailed the truck three cars behind it with Adam in the driver's seat.

"Seems clear ahead to me. No feds have been around for miles," Blaze observed, glancing behind them at the near-empty open road they were travelling on. They had been driving for the past two hours and were now well beyond the boundaries of Wood Oak City."

"Chief's place is only another hour from here. He'l be happy to see you," Adam smiled.

"Well, saving his ass wasn't that easy," Blaze contemplated as she took in the morning breeze. "I still remember that alarm and that poisonous gas then running in and out of that elevator like a madwoman! Chief was lucky we found him alive that day,"

"No thanks to your new best friend, Leon…"

"Hey, I thought we were past all that!" Blaze scolded.

"I'm sorry," Adam took a deep breath, calming himself down.

"It's ok."

"And yes, I can see the man has changed. He's still an arrogant piece of shit though - 'I am a living weapon' , who the fuck even says that?!" Adam laughed to himself, mocking his old rival.

"Oh, wait til you see some of the tricks Shiva has up his sleeve. I'm sure you'll wanna learn! And that was pretty impressive what you did too, I must admit. I had no idea you could manipulate energy like me…"

"Well, since Axel got back he's showed me some of the stuff he learnt out in the woods. At first it was difficult, but I made a breakthrough."

"I see, good for you!" Blaze answered, staring out at the road ahead.

"He's been so good with Cherry, every day training her. I think a part of Axel regrets not staying here."

"Yeah well, Axel is leaving again when this is all over," Blaze replied with disappointment on her face.

"He told you that?" Adam frowned.

"Yep,"

"I'm sorry. I know he missed you…"

"Does it matter?"

"You still haven't told him yet, have you?" Adam queried.

"Told him what?" Blaze frowned.

"About the baby…"

"It doesn't change a thing!" She snapped.

"Don't you think he has a right to know".

"Like I said, none of it changes anything."

"That reminds me, I have something that belongs to you. I took it from your old apartment before Tim and the feds managed to raid it when he put your ass on the run,"

Blaze immediately fell silent and unresponsive in her own thoughts, surprised with him. "...What? You found the urn?"

"Yeah!"

"I thought they destroyed everything left in that apartment, I didn't realise you kept it."

"You know, there's a place near where we're going that you can scatter the ashes. Sammy and I released our father there…"

Blaze quickly fell silent and unresponsive, not wanting to talk anymore about it. Adam could sense she was uncomfortable with it all and now wasn't the right time or place to fire up her emotions.

"In other news, I had a chat with Estel before we left…" Adam broke the silence.

"Really? What happened?" Blaze glanced at him once again.

"If you must know, she and I are well and truly over now…"

"And does that bother you at all?" Blaze queried.

"What do you think….?" Adam sighed.

"Then I guess that makes two of us. When this is all over, let's take our sad, heartbroken, single asses on holiday…."

Suddenly, their conversation was cut short when Adam was forced to pull over at the side of the road.

"What's going on?" Blaze frowned. The two of them could see that the truck the others were in abruptly halted by the side of the road ahead on the highway. The two of them immediately stepped out of the car to investigate.

"I don't know, but they need to keep moving!" Adam replied.

"Yo Leon, why the fuck did you stop the truck?!" Adam rushed forward, annoyed at Shiva who jumped out.

"I need your help! I don't know what to do, he's unresponsive. We need to unlock the back so that the Doc can help him….."

"What?" Adam frowned, confused.

The three of them opened the passenger door of the truck to find Max slumped forward on the dashboard.

"What the hell did you do to him?!" Adam yelled at Shiva.

"Nothing! He just collapsed all of a sudden! Maybe it's a seizure…." the fighter shrugged.

"Max? Max wake up!" Blaze climbed up into the truck by his side. She held onto his face as she looked down at him. "Max, can you hear me?... Max?!"

Her voice was nothing but a distant echo whilst the wrestler stared up at her with blurred vision.


48 hours earlier.

Mr Y stood with dominance, wearing his long beige jacket. His arms were folded and his stare was cold as two female nurses walked past him. After a further minute, a male doctor in a white lab coat met his gaze in the distance.

"Let's hope that Bernstein's backup plan worked after the stunt they pulled tonight," Ms Y whispered in her brother's ear as she stood by his side.

"They have a lot to prove after letting Blaze and the others get away. One thing is for sure, that fire Stone caused earlier at the docks sure needs an explanation. It was even more powerful than the outrage he caused at the concert. We lost 12 of our fighters and officers tonight!"

"They'll pay for this," Ms Y snarled.

"Mr Y, Ms Y. It's a pleasure to meet you," the surgeon in his late 30s flashed a smile as he held out his hand. The twins however, had a strict policy of not touching anybody. They were obsessed with keeping their distance from others in case of germs, bacteria or if someone got close enough to make an attempt on their life. Their father raised them to be cautious of everyone, even their own loyal soldiers.

"Dr…." Mr Y stumbled.

"Dr Gabriel," the surgeon nodded, lowering his unshaken hand.

"Yes, Dr Gabriel. What's the update on the surgery tonight?"

He grinned, "it was a success! And the patient is responding well to sound."

"Is he awake?"

"As a matter of fact, yes."

"Good. This is for your troubles." Mr Y replied, handing over to the surgeon a briefcase full of cash.

"Thank you,"

"And remember the deal Bernstein made with you. Not a word of this to anyone."

"You have my word," he nodded.

Without hesitation, the surgeon took the briefcase then started to walk away. "He's in room 7, downstairs".

"Thank you doctor," Mr Y grinned. He then turned to the other woman who was standing on his left. Stiletto was tall, athletic and had a spiteful temper. "Kill him," Mr Y quietly ordered in her ear.

"With pleasure," she smirked before discretely following their hired surgeon.

The twins then went to meet Commissioner Bernstein one floor below. During the early hours of the morning, this part of the hospital was empty and the corridors were dark. No visitors were allowed and most of the staff were doing night shifts on the emergency ground floor. The three of them cautiously opened the door, noticing Max asleep in his bed.

"Are you sure the implants will work on him?" Ms Y turned to her brother.

"Have they ever failed before?"

"We are dealing with a professional wrestler. He's strong, not like any of the wimpish feds we operated on",

"Even more reason to have him under our control, don't you think?"

Max started to shuffle himself around on the bed, still with his eyes closed.

"Well boys, we'll see now whether this works or not…" Ms Y took a deep breath. She gripped tightly onto the handle of her rapier, prepared just in case their old enemy decided to put up a fight. Bernstein and Mr Y however, were more at ease as they took a seat opposite their subject.

Next to Max's bed was an old 90s radio. As soon as Mr Y pressed the play button, Mozart's Symphony 40 quietly chimed from its speakers.

"What now then?" Ms Y frowned at the others, still standing.

"Be patient, sister."

Suddenly half way through the song, Max took a loud gasp of air then his eyes broke wide open. The wrestler was silent, but his pupils were dilated, his face was pale and his eyes were almost white. It was as if he was in a fixated trance-like state.

Mr Y was the first to break the silence in the room, staring down at Max with intrigue and excitement on his face. Mr Hatchet,"

Max's gaze immediately turned to Mr Y's direction.

"How are you feeling after your procedure?" He gently asked.

"Better," Max bluntly replied.

"Good. Do you remember where your are, who you are, or how you came here?"

"No Sir," Max answered, still staring blankly back at him.

"And do you know who I am?"

"Yes. I'm your loyal fighter and I am here only to serve you."

"Looks like the hypnosis is working then," Ms Y whispered in Bernstein's ear, feeling slightly more at ease.

"What would you like me to do?" Max asked.

Mr Y smiled. "First I want you to rest and recover until your wounds heal. The time will come when you will fight again, I can promise that. And I will show you exactly who I want you to fight. In the meantime, I have a few questions I need answering."

Max simply nodded, staring intently with his white eyes still locked with Mr Y's.

"Tonight, our operations were interrupted by some people you know very well. So I need some information from you about them…"

"Of course, Sir. I'll tell you anything you want," Max replied.

"Axel Stone. Where did he disappear over the past 10 years?"

Ms Y and Bernstein briefly glanced at each other with anticipation.

"The wilderness…" Max briefly answered.

"Why?"

"To study his powers."

"I can tell. And what does he and his friends want?"

"Vengeance…"

"Hmmm, great minds think alike don't they? Why did he kill my father when they could have arrested him?"

"Axel didn't kill your father. Blaze did."

Ms Y and Mr Y immediately locked eyes with one another, surprised that the rumours that Tim sparked were true.

"Tell me, Thunder, if you don't mind me calling you that…"

"I don't mind," Max answered with a monotone.

"I know Hunter can be dangerous, but he would have arrested my father instead. So how dangerous are Fielding and Stone?"

"Individually, anyone in the group can be beaten or placed under your control. But together, they are the most dangerous pair of fighters. He can manipulate fire and she can control electricity."

"I see. So tell me, what are their weaknesses?"

"Weaknesses? Not many. They're both strong, they have fast reflexes, high jumps, good defence…"

"No, I didn't just mean physically…"

"Blaze has a temper she can't control. She often fights with her emotions and when someone damages her pride, her anger clouds her judgement."

"I see. And what about Axel?"

"He is calmer and more patient as a fighter, but is still unpredictable."

"And his weakness?" Mr Y probed.

"Well, it's Blaze", Max casually shrugged.

"Hmmm. There's more I want to know so that we can decide when to attack. Everything you do and say from now on is for my cause and you'll follow exactly what I want you to do, understood?" Mr Y glared intensely over Max who was currently fully under hypnosis.

"Understood".