Author's Notes: Hello, long time no update. I am really sorry. Last year kicked my ass extremely hard and I was hard at work on writing this episode. I hope you guys hate me for it but I am here now (incredibly late but here it is.)
Okay, if you thought Seddie coming back was good, I am excited for this episode. The couple getting together in this episode is my personal favorite. If you guys don't ship them, it's totally cool. No ship shaming here. I am all about having fun and I hope this episode is fun for all of my readers (my very patient readers.)
This episode also marks a question I have been getting in reviews so I hope this gives you guys what you want. This is my labor of love.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except the original characters. Also I took stuff from a crap ton of source material and what I used doesn't belong to me either. If you can spot it and tell me where it's from, you get an internet cookie.
Reminder: There have been heavy rewrites going on and I really hope you like them. Especially the stuff I'm cooking up for Alec. If it isn't anyone's cup of tea, I do apologize. I am going to try to update more frequently so I can get this season finished. Emphasis on 'try' but it's not gonna be easy.
That out of the way, please enjoy Episode Fifteen!
•••
•••
"Love is a Serious Mental Illness"
Plato
•••
Two paramedics burst into the emergency room of St James Hospital with a man in dark clothing on a stretcher as attending doctors and nurses begin to try to treat the man on the stretcher.
"Thirty four year old male with minor smoke inhalation and possible internal injuries." One of the paramedics told the ER doctor.
"Treatment room one." The nurse told the paramedics as they wheeled the patient into the room to begin treatment.
"How long has he been conscious?" The ER doctor asked.
"He came too as we were unloading him." One of the paramedics replied.
The ER Doctor shines a light into the man's eyes and asks "Sir, can you tell me your name?"
"D-Danny Parker."
The man on the stretcher was indeed Danny who had dried blood on the side of his lip and streaks of blood on his forehead that came from a moderately sized cut that was fully healed. He looked confused by what was happening.
"Alright, Danny. We're going to need you to stay calm. You're going to be okay." One of the nurses said.
"Where is she?" Danny asked, sounding almost frantic. "Where's Ca-"
Just then, another pair of paramedics wheeling in another patient on a stretcher. Only this patient was a female with very familiar red hair.
"Thirty four year old female with minor first degree burns and possible hemorrhaging." The new set of paramedics told a different doctor and nurse.
"What do you mean by possible hemorrhaging?" The doctor asked the paramedics.
"Her palms are caked in blood but we can't find signs of any injuries to show where the blood came from." One of the paramedics told the doctor. "It's her blood, officers on scene confirmed it."
Danny looks over and sees that it was Cassie was laying on the stretcher being wheeled in and he starts to try to get up to see her "Cassie? Is she okay?" However before he could get up the paramedics held him down.
"Mr Parker, you need to calm down." The doctor ordered him.
"No, she's my friend. Is she alright?" Danny asked in a panicked tone.
"You need to focus on letting us help you." The doctor told him.
"Your friend is in good hands, don't worry." The nurse attending him reassures Danny.
Cassie is wheeled into a trauma room and another doctor begins to check her over. She wore an all black outfit and she was completely out of it. A female doctor was treating Cassie who saw that Cassie's eyes were closed as the doctor checked her pupils to see for any sign of life.
"I've got no pulse." The nurse with the female doctor stated.
"Was she showing any signs of cardiac arrest on the way here?" The doctor asked the paramedics.
"Her pulse was weak but she was doing okay on our way here." One of the paramedics told the female doctor.
The doctor goes to check her pupils and sees something that worries her as Danny turns his head to see her. "She's unresponsive. Body's gone into shock."
"Cassie! She's not-" Danny tries to get up and the paramedics try to restrain him.
"You're going to have to sedate him for his own good, Doctor." The nurse treating Danny suggested.
The male doctor pulls out a needle and preps to fill it with some kind of drug. "Hold him down."
"No! I need to see her- She saved my life- Get off!" Danny yelled as the paramedics held him down tighter and the doctor injected him with a sedative. "Stop... Cassie!"
Upon hearing the scream, Cassie's eyes snap open and she breathes in deeply with a gasp.
After that, everything goes dark…
•••
Three Nights Earlier
Inside of the dojo, Leo and Freddie were sparring with Cassie in a fast paced training session while Millie and Sam looked on. The two boys did their best to try to bring Cassie down only for her to counter all their attempts to strike her. Cassie hits Freddie with a swift right roundhouse kick that knocks him to the floor.
"Man, Cassie is good." Sam stated. "But I still think the boys are gonna win this."
"Nah, Cassie is like a living weapon. She's going to win hands down." Millie comments.
"That's my supportive girlfriend, everybody." Leo said, overhearing the conversation as he tries to punch Cassie but she dodged it, grabs his arm then pins his arm behind his back. "Ah!"
Freddie gets up and rushes to tackle Cassie and the two of them fall to the floor but Cassie gets to her feet quickly due to turning her fall into a summersault. Freddie then sweeps her legs and Cassie lands flat on her back.
"Ooh. That must hurt." Sam said and Millie nodded.
Freddie and Leo stand over Cassie who is still on her back. "Ready to call it quits?" Freddie asked.
Cassie uses her legs to spring up and kicks Freddie in the stomach which sends him rocketing backwards halfway across the room. As Leo tries to grab her from behind, Cassie elbows him in the chest and does a judo throw, hurling him over her shoulder across the room.
The boys both lay on the floor next to each other as they look at Cassie who stands with her arms crossed.
"Does that answer your question?" Cassie asked with a smug smile on her face.
The boys lazily look up at their aunt and groan in pain as Sam hands Millie a five dollar bill which she triumphantly accepts then they get off the floor and make their way to their men. Cassie goes to help the two of them off the floor.
"You guys okay?" Millie asked.
"Yeah, just sore." Leo said, rubbing the back of his head. Millie goes to check if he had really hurt himself. "Ever the nurse, aren't you?" Millie gives him a quick peck on his bruising cheek
"Don't feel so bad, Freddie. This isn't the first time you've been beaten up by a girl." Sam said.
Freddie gives a weak smile. "Have I mentioned you aren't funny?"
"It may have been brought up." Sam said grinning as she planted a quick kiss on his lips only to have him grab her by the arm and pull her in for another kiss but this one was more loving.
This romantic gesture causes Millie to squeak with joy while Cassie and Leo just smile. The couple pulls away from the kiss when they remember there were others in the room.
"Fine, we'll stop." Freddie stated with embarrassment.
"Oh, you'd better not." Millie said with insistence.
"So… we obviously need to improve our skills, right?" Freddie said, changing the subject.
"Obviously." Cassie said in a teasing tone. "But you boys did give me a run for my money. You just need to stop telegraphing your attacks."
"Guess I must've picked up someone's bad habits." Leo said, looking at his brother.
Freddie looks at Leo and glares at him. "Oh sure, blame me for your poor technique."
"Hey guys, relax. I will give you a positive note, you guys did work well as a team. You just need to sharpen your skills more." Cassie with some encouragement.
"You're right., Shadow's still out there. We need to make sure we take him out as a team." Freddie said.
"Which explains why you've spent the rest of your winter break looking for the hobknocker." Sam remarks which caused Freddie to give her a look. "Look, I'd come up with a convincing lie but your auntie seriously scares me."
"Wow, I scare the legendary Sam Puckett? I'm touched." Cassie said laughing.
"Don't get too comfortable. Your aura of intimidation will fade real quick the more I get to know you." Sam said defiantly.
"No, it won't." Freddie, Millie and Leo answer simultaneously.
Sam stares at Cassie who just smiles that makes even the mischievous buxom blond feel anxious.
"Let's go see how Gabe, Claud and Brad are doing with the new tech setup." Freddie said as he protectively puts him arm around Sam.
"And by that you mean, let's see if Claud hasn't tried to kill Gabe while we were out of the room?" Leo surmised.
"You catch on quick, big brother." Freddie said with a grin as the five walked into the main room of the Cave.
The group walks into the room and sees Gabe and Claud finishing plugging in a cable on the back of a new monitor which looks more like a clear piece of glass. Brad Warner was standing in front of the monitor to check if everything looked okay. Galen sits on the stairs keeping a close eye on the pair.
"Think it looks fine from here." Brad stated. "How's it looking from the back?"
"We're almost done here." Gabe said as he tried to connect a wire to the modem.
"You got it?" Claud asked.
"Would you relax, Tweety. I got it." Gabe said, sounding annoyed.
"I'm just trying to help you out, Malfoy." Claud said.
Gabe raises an eyebrow. "Draco Malfoy? Oh no. If I am anyone from Harry Potter, I'm Ron Weasley."
"Why Ron?" A confused Brad asked.
"Yeah, don't look like a ginger." Sam quipped.
"Um, best friend of the hero? Hello?" Gabe stated in a matter of fact way.
"Nah, I don't see it." Millie said teasingly.
"You're more of a Neville Longbottom to me. The unexpected hero no one sees coming." Leo comments.
Gabe grins then shrugs. "I guess I'll give you that one, Maxie Zeus."
Cassie walks over to Galen and whispers to him. "Anything exciting happen between those two tech geniuses?"
"Just that Gabe kept insisting that the Beatles are better than the Rolling Stones and Claud almost clawed his eyes out before I stopped her from reenacting Hitchcock's 'The Birds' on Gabe's face." Galen said which made Cassie chuckle softly.
"So, is this bad boy ready to be tested?" Sam asked the tech whizzes.
"Pretty much. I wanted to add a self contained satellite transceiver but Ms Moon thought it would be too much for the operating system." Gabe stated.
"I'm not the only one, Bradley here agrees with me that it would overwhelm the processor. Right, Brad?" Claud asked.
"Um, I would disagree with you but seeing as you might peck out my face if I do, I won't argue the point at all." Brad said nervously.
Freddie looks at Claud. "He saw your hybrid form?"
"Yeah, that couldn't be helped. Lost my cool and I almost scratched out Morgan's eyeballs" Claud stated, then she looked at Brad. "Sorry if I freaked you out."
"Don't worry about it. I wasn't expecting it but it's not as bad as I thought it would be." Brad said.
"Wait, you apologize for scaring the crap out of him and you don't apologize for attempting to peck out my eyes?" Gabe asked.
"Don't need to apologize if I didn't actually do it. Do you want me to have something to apologize for, Montana Max?" Claud threatened in a playful manner.
Gabe stares at her horrified then swallows hard. "Nope, I'm good."
The group displayed some indistinct ways to agree with Gabe's decision as Sam whispers to Claud. "Now I can see why my sister likes you." The statement made Claud laugh.
Gabe regains his composure and walks over to the computer. "Let's switch this beauty on, shall we?"
Gabe flips the switch on the main processing unit which starts to turn on the new hub computer which now has a clear glass monitor and powerful high resolution picture on the screen. The keyboard and mouse pad were on a clear glass mat in front of the monitor lit with LED lights.
"Whoa, this is impressive." Freddie comments.
"Just impressive?" Gabe asked, sounding incredulous.
"Yeah, what's up with you? Normally you'd be over the moon by seeing something like this?" Brad stated.
"I am, really. I'm just too worn out to totally gush over it." Freddie said. "The three of you did a really great job."
"Cut my boy some slack. He and the master archer have been out every night for the last few weeks." Sam reminds him.
"Which is why I suggest you boys should take the night off." Cassie said to Freddie and Leo.
"That doesn't sound like a bad idea." Freddie replied.
"Yeah. Figure we could use a bit of breather." Leo stated.
"The mighty Fox wants to skip out of a crime fighting outing?" Gabe said, sounding surprised. "Must be a sign of the Apocalypse."
"Hilarious." Leo said sarcastically. "But man needs to know his limits and frankly we've kinda hit the wall."
"That's true, taking a micro break isn't a big deal." Brad said. "I mean, what's the worst-"
Before he could finish his sentence, Millie reaches over and puts her hand over his mouth. "Okay, word of advice - never say those words or any variation of those words. Nothing good comes after saying that."
"Like superhero superstition?" The now perplexed Brad asked once Millie had moved her hand away.
"More like knowing the meta rules of TV shows and/or movie clichés." Gabe answered.
"This isn't a TV show or movie, it's real life." Brad stated.
"Yeah, best not risk it." Gabe said while the others agree with him with various indistinct statements and nodding in agreement.
"So, movie night?" Freddie suggested, cutting through the awkward silence.
"Sounds good to me." Cassie said. "My place?"
"Nah, not that much room at your place for all of us. How about my place?" Leo suggested. "Got a new plasma and movies are much better on a flat screen."
"Show off." Gabe said which made Millie slap him in the back of the head. "Ah!"
"Sorry, Richie Rich, there's a new rich kid in town." Sam said teasingly.
Gabe looks over at Freddie. "You mind getting your girlfriend off my case."
"Can't help you there. She's not tormenting me anymore and she's gotta be mean to someone." Freddie said laughing.
"No she doesn't." Gabe exclaimed but in an almost lightning fast motion, Sam whips out her buttersock and whacks him over the head which knocks him to the floor. The others look surprised by this action as Sam puts her hands on her hips then raises her head high in triumph. Gabe groans in pain "Okay... I'll admit when I'm wrong."
"And who says true love is a myth?" Cassie whispers to Galen who laughs at the statement.
•••
In another part of town at a high tech laboratory facility, two guards were sitting in front of a few security monitors. One was an older man with grayish brown hair who was almost close to retirement and another man almost two decades younger were on duty. The older man seems to be training his replacement.
"I know this seems rather tedious but the boss says the equipment in this building are some of the most important prototypes in this company." The older man said.
"Aren't there like high tech weapons in this place?" The younger guard asked.
"I don't ask too many questions and best you shouldn't either. Most of the people who work in this lab have to sign NDAs. They can't even tell their families about what goes on here." The older guard stated. "We're under government contract so we can't reveal anything unless it's important."
"Then why put one guy to guard the place?" The younger guard asked.
"Because it only takes one person to run the security system. I just push buttons and look at the camera while the system takes care of the rest." The older guard told him. "I already gave you the security codes, now I'm going to explain how the cameras work-"
Suddenly they are interrupted by a beeping sound from the console.
"What's going on, Earl?" The younger guard asked.
"The motion sensors have detected someone in the lab." The older guard Earl said. "Stay here, Reggie. Keep watch on the cameras and I'll alert you if anyone has broken in."
"Then I push the silent alarm?" The younger guard Reggie asked.
"Very good." Earl said as he got up from his chair.
Earl leaves the room as Reggie locks the door after he leaves. Reggie goes back to looking at the monitors when he sees a figure in black come out of the shadows in one of the monitors. All of a sudden, every single one of the monitors starts going offline and only static can be seen.
"Damn it! I need to tell Earl." Reggie frantically said as he gets up from the chair and goes to the door. He opens the door to call Earl only to find the figure in black that he had seen was standing in front of the door. He was wearing a black long sleeve T-shirt and black pants, he also had a ski mask over his head.
Without warning, the figure bashes Reggie across the face which knocks Reggie out cold. Reggie falls limply to the floor and the figure in black starts tying him up by his hands and feet.
•••
At Leo's apartment, the sounds of Kung-Fu movie music and fighting thuds and grunts are heard coming from the television. Freddie and Sam are sitting on one end of the couch and Millie and Leo sat on the other end, both couples cuddling with each other respectively. Gabe was sitting on the floor at one end of the coffee table while Claud and Brad sat on the other end. Cassie sits on one arm chair that was next to the couch while Galen enters the room with a large bowl of popcorn in his hands.
"Did I miss anything?" Galen asked as he put the bowl on the table.
"Just more poor voice dubbing and racial stereotypes." Claud said.
"Action's been good so far." Brad said.
"Yeah, not that the lovers are paying any attention to know that." Gabe quipped, directing it at the two couples sitting on the big couch.
"Hey, back off, Royal Pain." Sam said as she threw a piece of popcorn at him which Gabe caught then popped into his mouth.
"Sam, just relax and watch other people beat each other up." Freddie said to try to simmer his girlfriend down then nibbles the side of her neck which makes her calm down.
"Mmm, that feels nice." Sam breathes as a smile forms on her lips.
"Why have you never nuzzled my neck like that?" Millie asked Leo while looking at Sam and Freddie.
"Because I prefer to do this." Leo retorts then he gently grabs her by the bottom of her face and pulls her in for a kiss which she responds to by kissing him deeply.
Galen taps Cassie on the shoulder. "Cass, the kids look like they're about to go to second base. Gonna do something about that?"
Cassie seems distracted by watching the movie and she looks at the young couples on the couch. "Kids, don't make me hose you down."
"What's up with you? Usually your threats have more punch than that." Freddie points out.
"Think she was too focused on the movie. She keeps criticizing it every time there's a fight scene." Gabe stated.
"I do not..." Cassie tries to defend herself but gets distracted by the movie again. "Oh, give me a break! See, you'd hit the big guy first, a flying kick. Then clear out the little ones - bam, bam! Oh! NOW with the flying kick?"
"It's like watching Mystery Science Theater 3000." Gabe said.
"Yeah, the Kung-Fu edition." Claud teased.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door which caused the group to look up at the door.
"You expecting somebody, Bruce Wayne?" Sam asked Leo.
"Nope... Unless a certain violent blonde ordered ten pizzas for herself?" Leo said as the knocking continued.
Sam slaps Leo on his knee which makes him flinch slightly. "It's probably Danny. I told him where was, he's been a touch overprotective since me and Freddie got back together."
Cassie gets up from her chair and walks over to the door. "I'll make sure it is him and if it's not, I'd be more than happy to pummel somebody."
"And you say I'm violent." Sam said to Freddie who shushes her.
Cassie opens the door and finds Danny standing there. "Well, I'm guessing you're here because you heard people were having fun and wanted to put a stop to it?"
Danny shakes his head in amusement then walks inside as she closes the door. "Always a pleasure, Sinclair."
"Relax, you know I'm messing with you." Cassie said. "You just can be a buzzkill sometimes."
"Only when I'm ruining your fun." Danny teased.
Freddie sees Danny and promptly moves his arm away from Sam's shoulder but she shakes her head then puts his arm right back where he had it. "What are you-"
"Chill, Freddie. You don't need to do that." Sam said as she looked at Danny. "Someone's just gonna have to live with his little sister dating."
"I am completely comfortable with you dating, especially Freddie." Danny told her then he looked at Freddie. "But I do appreciate the level of respect you have for my sister and for me."
"Um, thanks." Freddie said, swallowing hard.
"If you aren't here to check on Sam, not saying that I mind but why are you here?" Cassie asked.
Danny looks at Sam and smiles. "It's here."
Sam's smile widens with joy as she stands up then turns to face her brother. "Shut up. Really?"
"It's outside." Danny said.
Without hesitation, Sam goes running out the door with Danny following her as the others seem confused. All but Freddie and Cassie.
"Did I miss something? What's here?" Gabe asked.
Freddie smiles and simply says "Lola."
•••
Sam runs out and sees something in front of the building which makes her smile. It was her motorcycle parked in front. "Oh, I have missed you." Sam said in a mildly affectionate manner.
The rest of the group walks out of the building to see what was going on and see Sam getting on her bike.
"That's Lola?" Millie asked.
"That's her. A 1964 Sterling." Freddie explained. "It's her pride and joy."
"Oh, Mama's butt is home." Sam said which made the others laugh.
"How did you get this here?" Galen asked Danny.
"I rode it here myself." Danny stated.
Cassie stares at him dumbfounded. "You rode this bike here? No way."
"Guess I'm not as much of a buzzkill as you thought." Danny said playful as Cassie just grins.
"Come on, Benson. Let's take this baby out for a spin." Sam said.
"Oh no, you are riding this late at night." Danny told her.
"And what a way to prove to everyone that you're still a buzzkill, Dan Dan." Cassie teased.
"Just a quick once around the block?" Sam pleads.
"I would trust your word but your credibility is a bit in the red." Danny told her.
"Come on, Danny. She's an adult, she is more than capable of riding in New York traffic. It's like LA traffic..." Cassie spoke up. "Except more bike messengers... And more swearing but it's in different languages so Sam would eventually become multilingual."
Danny looks at Cassie with an annoyed look on his face. "You're not helping."
"Look, she just wants to take a quick ride." Cassie insisted. "Besides, if she is going to be driving around the city, she's going to need to learn the feel of the road."
"Who says I'm going to let her ride around the city?" Danny replied which surprised and disappointed the others until he laughed. "I was joking."
"Wow, Parker made a funny." Cassie said laughing.
"What can I say, I'm full of surprises." Danny said playfully.
Sam clears her throat as she changes the subject and turns to others. "So, what do you guys think of Lola?"
"It's a lot smaller than Pete's motorcycle." Millie comments.
"Well he does ride a Harley." Gabe stated.
"Speaking of Pete, where is he?" Danny asked.
"He had to visit a friend upstate. Something about a medical emergency." Cassie said.
"And you believed that? Thought you were a better detective than that." Danny joked and Cassie playfully hit him in the chest.
"I can say that I definitely pictured a motorcycle as your main mode of transportation." Claud replied.
"I still think it's pretty dangerous." Freddie said.
"No worse danger than you face." Sam said offhandedly.
Freddie's eyes widened in shock at Sam's slip of the tongue as she realized what she had said.
"What kind of danger are you in, Freddie?" Danny asked.
The others try to recover from Sam's verbal faux pas until Cassie speaks up. "I think she means that as an ironic joke. His mom was extremely overprotective of him and thought everything was a danger to his well being."
"Including using scissors." Freddie retorts as the others look at him to see if he was kidding around only to have him scoff. "You think I'm joking."
"Your mom sounds like a real pleasure, Freddie." Danny joked.
"Why do you think I'm glad she's in South America?" Freddie replied which made the group smile. "Let's go back inside and finish the movie. Think we were right near the end."
"How would you know? You were too busy making moon eyes at your girlfriend to notice." Gabe jokes.
An annoyed Freddie stares at him saying. "Would you like me to sic my girlfriend on you?"
Gabe's eyes widen as he looks at Sam then at Freddie. "I'll be quiet."
"Smart move, Mr Stark." Sam said as the group went back into the building.
Cassie looks back at Danny. "Why don't you join us? Not like you have plans or anything."
"For your information I-" before finishing his sentence, Cassie stares at him with a skeptical look on her face. Danny sighs then shakes his head. "You're right, I have no plans."
"See, honesty is the best policy." Cassie said as she pushed him inside the building.
•••
Meanwhile back at the lab facility, Earl was still inspecting the building looking for whatever set off the alarm. All of a sudden, all the main lights in the building turn off then a few moments later backup power turns on.
"Idiot kid must've hit the main power." Earl uttered as he pulled out his flashlight and walked down the hallway.
Earl uses the flashlight to light his way as he continues walking until a clicking sound is heard behind him. Earl turns his head and finds the masked figure that attacked Reggie standing behind him, pointing a gun at the side of his head.
"Don't try anything stupid, old man. Otherwise, I'll splatter your brains on that wall." The figure threatened.
"What do you want?" Earl managed out, a terrified quiver in his voice.
"You got the keys to the lab? Where do they keep the prototype weapons?" The figure asked him, Earl nodded quickly. "Good, you're gonna take me there right now."
"Why do you want me to do that?" Earl asked.
"That's none of your business, Pops! Now move!" The figure said as he pushed him forward to get him to take him.
Earl gulped and reluctantly agreed to take him where he needed to go. The two of them walked down the hall until Earl reached a door marked 'Prototype Storage'.
"Open the door." The figure ordered, jamming the gun barrel hard on Earl's back. "Now!"
Earl did as he was told then pulled out his keycard and unlocked the door to the room. "There, it's done."
Suddenly, the figure shoots Earl in the chest several times until Earl slumps to the floor, dead.
"Thanks." The figure said as he opened the door to walk into the room.
The masked man looks around, seeming to be knowing what he was looking for until he stops at a hard metal briefcase on a shelf that reads 'Heatwave' on the side.
The masked man grabs the box then opens the box to check the contents. A laugh of amusement comes from him and he closes the briefcase and walks out of the room then walks down the hallway. As he walks, he accidentally steps on the pooling puddle from Earl's blood and leaves a trail of bloody footprints as he walks.
•••
In the front of the building where Danny's loft is, Sam pulls up on her motorcycle with Freddie riding on the back. She turns off the bike and looks back at Freddie. "You alright there, Freedo?"
Freddie swallows hard. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"Really? Because you were squeezing on my waist every time I made a sharp turn." Sam teased while getting off her bike.
Freddie chuckles. "Still can't resist giving me a hard time."
Sam laughs as she throws her arms around him and lovingly stares into his eyes. "Well, a girl does need her hobbies."
"Oh really?" Freddie said with a laugh then he started affectionately kissing her.
The couple stops when they hear a car pulling up and they see Black Beauty pull up and come to a stop. Cassie turns off the car and she and Danny get out of the car.
"There, you got to ride your bike. Happy?" Danny asked, slightly annoyed.
"I'd be happier if you wouldn't give me such a hard time about it." Sam retorts.
"Don't give him such a hard time, Sam. Your brother is just a bit cranky." Cassie stated which made Sam laugh.
Sam then gives Freddie a sweet goodnight kiss on his lips "See ya tomorrow."
"Oh most definitely." Freddie stated. "Good night."
"Good night." Sam said as she went into the building.
"Thanks for the ride back." Danny said.
"Don't mention it." Cassie said while patting him on the shoulder. "I mean, I can mention it if I need a favor…"
"Ever the opportunist." Danny said with amusement.
"Just playing to my strengths. I am smart enough to know what favors to call on." Cassie replied. "So, do you still want me looking after Sam while you're at work?"
"If you wouldn't mind…" Danny stated.
"Not at all. I get that you don't want to leave her home alone." Cassie said. "Besides, I like hanging out with her. Been giving the lil ruffian a few tricks of the trade. Teaching her some of my fighting moves."
"Great, the world gets another Cassie Sinclair." Danny said unenthusiastically.
"Oh please, there is only one of me and I'm planning to keep it that way." Cassie said in a teasing tone.
"You two wanna be alone?" Freddie spoke up, interrupting the moment the pair was having.
Danny clears his throat and Cassie turns to face her nephew "Wait in the car."
"Aye aye, Serge." Freddie said, motioning a mocking salute then he got into Black Beauty.
"That boy has such an overactive imagination." Cassie stated. Danny nods trying to hide his mild embarrassment but then he grimaced in pain which Cassie saw. "Headaches again?"
"They've become a lot more tolerable with the painkillers the doctor gave me but not by much." Danny comments while rubbing his left temple. "But you don't have to worry about me, I'm fine."
"I have to respectfully disagree with you on that, Parker." Cassie said. "But I'll humor you so as to not compound it into a migraine."
"That I appreciate." Danny replied with a smile. "See you tomorrow?"
Cassie grins then nods in agreement. "For once, I look forward to it. See ya."
A small smile forms on Danny's lips as he walks into the building and Cassie gets into her car. She starts to put on her seatbelt but she is met with an amused stare from Freddie.
"So… when are you two going to drop the pretense?" Freddie asked, laughing.
"What pretense?" Cassie asked, playing coy.
"Oh, come on! It's torturous watching you two." Freddie stated. "I know you're into him so please don't play dumb with me."
Cassie lets out a heavy sigh "I like the guy, okay. There, happy?"
"So what's the problem?" Freddie's curiosity peaked.
"One major one, it starts with a 'P' and shoots lightning out of their hands." Cassie informed him which made Freddie look down. "A relationship can't survive on a foundation of lies and your secret is one of the biggest lies I've had to tell thus far. It hurts to lie to him like this."
"Then why don't you tell him? I mean, it was easy for you to tell Pete and Galen." Freddie jokes.
"This is different." Cassie said frankly.
Freddie then says "Because he seems like the type who would turn me into the authorities."
Cassie exhales "I like him as a person but he tends to go by the book. Especially when it comes to Pulse. Last thing I want is for you to get into trouble because I told him your secret."
"Is this because you're afraid of what'll happen if my mom finds out?" Freddie asked.
"No!" Cassie said with a laugh then she became somber "Because if he finds out from me, he's going to feel like I betrayed him because I lied to him. But this doesn't just affect us but your friends, Leo, anyone who knows could be in serious trouble for keeping this a secret."
Freddie sighs then says something that he's afraid to say. "What if... hypothetically speaking... What if I told him?"
Cassie sighs as she starts the car. "That's up to you, kiddo. You want to try, go ahead but there are consequences for telling him. It's your choice."
Freddie looks down again. He had a lot to consider and either way, it wasn't going to end well.
•••
Early the next morning, Alec's car pulls into the parking lot of St James Hospital and he and Jake sat in his car. Alec is in a well tailored suit but his was dark blue and he wasn't wearing a tie while Jake is in dark blue scrubs and sneakers. He also wasn't wearing his glasses.
[Soundtrack Note: 'More Colors' by Kidswaste ft Chelsea Cutler plays]
"Thanks again for the lift. You really didn't have to." Jake said.
"Hey, the city isn't safe right now. I wouldn't want something bad to happen." Alec said, flashing a charming smile.
"Well you also didn't have to stay over at my place but you did." Jake joked, grinning at him. "Who still sleeps on my couch when he knows he doesn't have to."
Alec laughs and gently takes Jake's hand. "I'm trying to be a gentleman here. I don't want to force myself into your bed."
Jake smirks as he uses his fingers to play with Alec's. "You do realize that this isn't my first rodeo, right?"
"I'm not that naive. I just want to respect you." Alec told him.
"Then respect my decision." Jake said as he plants a kiss on Alec's lips until he breaks away and stares into Alec's eyes. "I want you in my bed, okay?"
Alec smiles and touches his face with his free hand. "Okay."
Suddenly, Alec's phone vibrates to break the romantic tension. Alec checks that it was a text message from David that reads 'Meet me at the laboratory ASAP'.
"And that's my cue." Alec said halfheartedly. "I wish I-"
"You keep saying that, I will 'Cassie' punch you." Jake said assertively which made Alec laugh. "We have responsibilities, we can't change that."
"I know. Be nice if we can." Alec replied as Jake pulled his hand away and put on his glasses. "Text me when you get home."
"I will. 'Charlie' has to pick up her last paycheck anyway." Jake told him.
"So, it's just gonna be you from now on?" Alec asked.
Jake nods. "I only do that when I'm making a break for it."
"How many times have you done this?" Alec asked.
"Five times. I've had to be a nonperson for so long, it wasn't easy being a person with a personality." Jake explained. "It's nice being 'somebody' for a change."
"I feel like I'm to blame for that, aren't I?" Alec asked.
"Maybe but I'm glad you did. I have something I can stick around for." Jake said then he started to get out of the car. "I will text you later."
Alec smiles as Jake walks into the hospital. He sighs then starts his car to leave the parking lot to head to work.
[Soundtrack Note: Songs fades as the scene ends]
•••
Meanwhile at a bus station in Queens, a bus was pulling up to the station and a driver was letting his passengers off. As the passengers got off, a thirty six year old man with slick back light brown hair and blue eyes walked off the bus. He was wearing a long sleeved black shirt with the sleeves rolled up, dark pants and sneakers. He has a red hoodie on with the hood over his head and an over packed black duffel bag draped over his left shoulder.
As the other passengers exit the bus, the man begins walking away from the station only to have a shady looking man round the corner and step in front of him, catching the man off guard.
"Nice backpack." The man said in a voice that suggested he had dark intentions on his mind. "New in town?"
The brown haired man tries to get past the man but every time he did, the shady looking man would get in his way. He became frustrated with the older man and finally spoke up. "Get lost! I don't have any money so just leave-"
"I don't want anything... Not exactly. You just look a little lost. I can help you." The man said, his voice becoming more and more grim.
The younger man knew the stranger had malicious intent in mind and he reacted quickly by smacking the man hard with his duffel bag. He takes off running as the older man seems flustered by the attack but gets to his feet.
"You son of a-" With that, the man wastes no time and chases after the younger individual.
The brown haired man continues running down an alley until he reaches a chain link fence. He tosses his duffel bag over the fence and starts climbing up the fence.
As the brown haired man climbs, the older man rounds the corner into the alleyway and sees the younger man climbing the fence.
"Hey!" The man shouted.
The brown haired man tries to remain calm and continues climbing until the man reaches the fence and grabs his leg. The brown haired man starts to panic and tries to get free, the two struggle with one another until the brown haired man looks down at the older man.
Suddenly, a wave of red energy flows from the younger man which knocks the older man backwards almost two feet away from the fence. The brown haired man finally makes it over the fence, grabs his duffel bag and continues running down the alley.
•••
A bit later on, the laboratory that was broken into had now become a crime scene with several emergency vehicles surrounding the building and yellow police tape blocking off the building.
Just then, Danny's car arrives on the scene which stops next to the coroner's van. Danny and Victor get out of the car and start to walk towards the building where they find Officer Penelope Simmons waiting for them.
"You called us here to a burglary?" Victor asked Penelope.
"From the looks of it, it might be more than just a run of the mill burglary." Penelope said as she led them inside the building. "Around eight o'clock last night, the silent alarm of the lab alerted police of a break in. When they got here, they found two guards down, one dead with several bullets to the chest. Also the suspected killer stole a valuable piece of equipment."
"What was stolen?" Danny asked.
"By orders of the owner of the lab, that's classified information. We won't know for sure until the owner of this lab arrives to survey the place." Penelope stated. "But what we do know, what was taken was worth killing for. Earl Marino, our vic, was shot eight times in the chest. CSU is on scene examining the area."
"What about the other guard?" Victor asked.
"Reginald Talbot was taken to the hospital last night. He took a nasty blow to the head from our burglar then tied up and gagged in the security control room." Penelope said as they reached the site of where Earl was killed.
The two detectives see the huge pool of blood on the floor as two CSIs are hard at work, including Leo who was taking crime scene photos of the bloody footprints that the burglar left.
"Doesn't seem like this guy did a good job covering his tracks." Victor comments.
"That I agree with, Detective." Leo said, still concentrating at work.
"Did he leave any other clues?" Danny asked.
"We were able to recover two of the eight shell casings next to Mr Marino's body." Leo stated. "Seems he was trying to get out in a hurry and didn't care what he left behind. Total amateur hour."
"Or maybe he didn't care about getting caught." Danny surmised.
"That's just what I was thinking." Victor stated. "Could be a disgruntled employee who came back for some late night payback?"
"I don't think so. Usually in those cases, the gunman wants as many victims as possible and won't just go after two employees and leave one alive with a head injury." Leo said as he looked back at the spot where Earl's body had fallen. "This was a means to an end. Mr Marino was just an obstacle in his way."
Another officer runs up to the scene and walks over to the detectives. "The owner of the lab is here. He's asking to see who is in charge of this case."
"Who is it?" Victor asked.
"David Morgan." Penelope said, reading off her notes.
Victor appears to be very annoyed with this turn of events. "Where is he?"
"He's waiting in the main entrance of the building." The officer told him.
"Tell him that we'll be right there." Victor stated and the officer nodded then left. "As if my day couldn't get any worse..."
"Relax, Vic. We'll go there and talk to him. I'm sure it won't be too bad." Danny assured him.
"Easy for you to say. You don't know the man like I do." Victor said as Leo listens while he works. "The man is a lying, cheating snake in the grass who would sell his own son down the river to save his own skin. The only reason he took his son's kidnapping the way he did was to save face in front of the media."
"I'd say you were overreacting if I didn't agree with you. Listen, if we solve this case, we won't have to be the ones to have to explain why this happened, it'll be his responsibility." Danny stated.
Victor grins then exhales. "Let's get this over with."
The two detectives walk down the hall to leave while Leo stares at the tread of the shoe prints.
Victor and Danny enter the main entrance of the lab where they find David Morgan standing in the room with Alec standing by his side. David was dressed in a well tailored and expensive looking all black suit with a blood red tie and Alec is still in his suit he had been wearing earlier. The two quieted down from a conversation they didn't want the detectives to hear.
"Hello, Victor. It's good to see you again." David greeted them with a smile.
"I wish I felt the same but seeing as this is work related it can't be helped, now can it?" Victor said in a bitter tone.
"I only hope we can remain civil despite our past... misunderstandings." David stated.
"If by misunderstanding you mean my wife being killed on your property, I can... set that aside for however long it takes to solve this case." Victor said through gritted teeth.
Danny and Alec look at each other then at the two men and Danny decides to break the tension and get down to business "So, Mr Morgan, do you have any idea who could've orchestrated this break in?"
"No, Detective, not a clue. This facility has the latest in high tech security systems. No one can gain access to this building without a keycard with high level security clearance." David explained.
"Why does this building need such a high level of security?" Victor asked.
"This facility is where some of MI's powerful and highly dangerous prototypes are housed and tested." Alec stated. "Mr Morgan's company has several contracts with the military and several projects started here."
"Including Project Subzero?" Victor asked.
David sighs and shakes his head "That project was tested in an undisclosed location, so secretive that not even I could get a close look at its progress. The prototypes in this facility were new handheld weapons for high level military operations."
"Such as?" Danny asked.
"That's classified." David said, asserting his authority over Danny which did not sit well with Victor one bit. "But I think I can bend the rules if it means helping this investigation. I know about a few of the weaponry housed here. I was told one of my experimental guns was taken from the lab. We call it the Heatwave gun."
"Heatwave?" A skeptical Victor asks and David nods. "You never were a fan of subtlety, were you?"
"What does it do exactly?" Danny asked to keep the conversation on task.
"In a sense, it's a weapon that unleashes a concentrated beam of heated man-made plasma." David explained. "The beam is powerful enough to metal solid steel and is able to create fire."
"Why would the military need this?" Victor asked, looking puzzled.
"Between us all, there are larger threats in this world besides your run of the mill suicide bomber." David said.
Victor and Danny stare at each other with surprise on their faces. Could it be a threat almost similar to the superpowered threats that have sprung up in the city? That same thought crossed their minds.
"Not all super powered individuals are bad but there are some exceptions that don't exactly prove the rule." Alec spoke up.
"Same can be said for some regular humans, Mr Grayson." David said, hiding a smirk that made Alec shiver. "However, it has found its way to the hands of someone who will use it for nefarious intentions. I fear this weapon has fallen into the wrong hands."
•••
Inside of a dimly lit apartment, the front door swings open to reveal the masked figure that broke into the lab. He had the metallic briefcase he had taken from the lab and he sets it down on his kitchen counter.
The thief takes off his mask to reveal a man in his late thirties with short dark hair that looked to be shaven and tired looking eyes. He starts to open the case and looks inside, finding a large looking gun with a power charging device next to it.
The man smiles, "Jackpot."
The man closes the briefcase then takes it into his bedroom. He sets it against the wall next to his bed as he walks over to an old looking wardrobe next to a closet door. He opens it up to reveal a beautiful painting of a woman with platinum blonde hair clad in all black with a domino mask covering her eyes hanging in the back of the wardrobe. Around the painting were lit candles, it looked like some kind of shrine.
"Don't worry, pretty bird. Soon we'll be together again." The man said, touching the face of the woman in the painting. "I swear it."
The woman in the painting was in fact Mockingbird, Cassie's young crime fighting alter ego. The object of this man's desire... or obsession.
•••
Freddie sits in class looking listless as he stares in front of the professor who was giving a speech about electronic conversion in monotone voice. He wasn't tired, just bored.
Gabe, who was sitting next to him and as bored as Freddie was, taps Freddie's forearm with his elbow. "I think this guy took his cues from that teacher from Ferris Bueller's Day Off."
Freddie manages a laugh as he checks his phone which then vibrates to tell him something he already knew, he received a text message from Sam that reads: 'Hey babe :)'
Freddie grins and with his technopathy sends her a text back that says 'Morning, your Majesty'
Her reply back was an emoji of a smiley face winking and sticking its tongue out. Quickly followed by a text that says. 'How are your adventures in the land of higher education?'
Freddie looks up at the professor who was still giving his drawn out lecture in the same boring voice and failing to notice most of the students trying to stay awake. He sends her a message back saying 'About as fun as a Nature Retreat'
Her response is simply 'Haha'.
"Mr Benson!" The teacher spoke up which caught Freddie's attention. "Is there something far more riveting than my lecture?"
"No, sir." Freddie replied nervously.
"Then would you kindly tell us what is so humorous?" The professor asked.
"Well... I just want to... point out... how static conversion occurs but I was distracted by another thought and can't remember what I was going to say." Freddie stated.
The professor makes a face and continues back to his lecture until the bell rings and the students start leaving the classroom. "Okay, read chapters four and five. We'll be summarizing it tomorrow."
Freddie and Gabe start to leave before the professor could question Freddie any further.
"Let me guess, you were texting your honey remotely?" Gabe asked.
"You ask like you don't already know the answer." Freddie said with a laugh. Suddenly he doubled over in pain which concerned his friend.
"Dude, you okay?" Gabe asked, sounding worried.
"Yeah... Just sore... I think." Freddie stated as he got back to a standing position.
"That's happened more than once today, Benson." Gabe stated.
"I'm quite aware of that, seeing as how I'm the one in mind blowing agony." Freddie said through gritted teeth but soon calms down. "I'm sorry. It's just, everything with Shadow and almost dying has put my body into more stress than usual."
"That's true, you did absorb a lot of energy from that guy." Gabe replied in a low voice.
"Which put me in a coma, I'm aware." Freddie quietly points out.
"Maybe it's an adverse effect of absorbing his energy?" Gabe asked.
"Certainly hope it's not slowly killing me." Freddie said. "My life is finally in a manageable point, I can't afford it go off the rails right now."
"Yes, because death is the worst stick in the spoke." Gabe joked.
"I love that you find my dilemma amusing." Freddie said sarcastically.
Gabe laughs. "So, are things going better between you and the misses?"
"As a matter of fact, things are going great between me and Sam. Certainly a lot better than the last time we dated." Freddie said. "We actually have a healthy relationship going. I mean, I guess that makes sense. When we first started dating, we were feeling each other out..." Before Gabe can snicker at the turn of phrase. "Not like that! Anyway... We were trying to understand what we were. Whether or not this was normal."
"Plus this was the 'honeymoon' stage of your relationship, right? Lots of making out... Getting to first base?" Gabe asked.
"Actually we almost got to second." Freddie said with a smirk which made Gabe laugh.
"Atta boy, Benson!" Gabe retorts.
Freddie simply smiles. "The point is, now we're more comfortable around each other. We're being real with one another, no secrets, no second guessing ourselves. Just us."
"At least you found some kind of balance which is great." Gabe said. "I've never been to that stage in any relationship."
"Not even with Lucy?" Freddie asked.
"Maybe... I'm not sure. She's great, amazing in fact." Gabe said. "I just hope I don't screw it up. Just because I know my way with the ladies doesn't mean I'm an expert on making a relationship last."
"I don't think anyone is an expert. Not even the people who claim to be. We just have to learn in our own way through good old fashioned trial and error." Freddie stated.
"Yeah, some of us don't have the luxury of being best friends with their exes." Gabe stated bluntly.
Freddie grins. "Guess I got lucky on that note."
"Has Sam told you what she's been up to since she's started spending her mornings with Cassie?" Gabe asked.
"Not much. She just says she and Cassie are spending some quality girl time with each other." Freddie told him.
"And girl time for them would be..."
"Cassie teaching Sam new ways to inflict pain." Freddie stated honestly.
"Oh." Gabe replied. "Least Sam's getting pointers from the mistress of badassness."
"I'm just worried Cassie won't be going easy on her." Freddie said sounded concerned.
"Don't worry, I'm sure Cass is being very gentle with your girl." Gabe reassured him.
•••
Inside the dojo, Sam lands hard on her back with a groan of pain. She looks up to see Cassie standing over her. Both of them were wearing workout clothes with Sam wearing a tight red T-shirt, sweats and tennis shoes, and Cassie wearing a light blue sleeveless top, black yoga pants and sneakers.
"If this was a real fight, you would be dead." Cassie informs her.
Sam sits up with an annoyed look on her face. "Well, you cheated. You know Kung Fu."
"It's called Wing Chun and it's... Okay, it's technically a simplified version of Kung Fu but it focuses more on self defense and requires you to use closed quarters combat." Cassie explained.
"Yeah... That still doesn't make sense." Sam said teasing.
Cassie hides her amusement. "Now get up and come at me. Use what I've shown you."
"Fine." Sam said with a frustrated groan as she got up and stood in front of Cassie. "You know, eventually I'm going to knock you off your ass."
"First you have to try to hit me." Cassie said playfully. "Now, hit me with your best shot."
Sam takes a deep breath and takes a few swings at her which Cassie effortlessly dodges and deflects until she grabs Sam's left arm with her right arm then puts her left fist on the girl's chest.
"You keep leaving yourself open." Cassie comments. "Also, a strike is more than one hit. It's one..." Then she smacks her hard in the chest with the back of her hand. "And two."
Sam rears back in pain then grabs her chest in pain. "Jeez, here I thought you would go easy on me."
"This is me 'going easy'. I hit much harder than that." Cassie said, mildly amused. "This is me pulling my punches."
Sam scoffs at her. "So, this isn't you going hard on me because I'm dating Freddie again?"
Cassie shakes her head. "Not at all."
Sam goes for a few kicks but Cassie deflects each one until she sweeps Sam's legs, knocking her back off her feet on her back. Cassie kneels down next to her and looks at her in the face.
"But if you break his heart again, you will be answering to me." Cassie warns Sam.
"Funny, I was going to say the same thing to you about Danny." Sam said teasing.
"Huh?"
The statement catches Cassie by surprise and Sam uses that to her advantage by hitting Cassie with her knee that knocks Cassie on the floor. Sam then jumps on top of Cassie and pins her down.
Cassie looks up at her and smiles. "Okay, I had that coming."
Sam smirks at her then gets off and helps her to her feet. "So, are you just going to ignore the fact that you have the hots for my brother?"
"Not you too." Cassie groans.
"I see the way he looks at you and you give him the same look." Sam points out. "Why can't you two just jump each other's bones already?"
Cassie laughs. "Well, that's your idea of discretion? You know, that's still your brother?"
"So, I'm not actually thinking of you two... doing that. I'm just saying, you two should just bite the bullet and get together already." Sam stated.
Cassie sighs and looks down "It's not that simple. Hell, my life would be a lot easier if it were."
Sam scoffs. "You sound like me when I was trying to come up with excuses for why I never got back with Freddie."
"They aren't excuses." Cassie said frankly. "It's... It's complicated."
"This doesn't have anything to do with Pete, does it?" Sam asked.
"No." Cassie bluntly said. "Pete's a great guy. So is your brother. It's me."
Sam exhales. "Look, I get that you've had it rough for a long time but that doesn't mean you have to give up being happy. You are one of the few people I know that deserves it."
Cassie remains silent, she knew Sam was right. Suddenly her cellphone on the wooden bench starts to ring. She walks over to the bench and answers the phone. "Hello? Hey... Oh. Yeah, I'm not really busy. Okay, I'll be right there. Bye."
Sam walks over to Cassie as she hangs up. "Who was that?"
"It's a work thing. PI work." Cassie said. "We're going to the precinct."
"You want me to tag along?" Sam asked curiously.
"Well, your brother would kill me if I left you alone." Cassie stated. "Besides, you can see it as a learning experience."
"Like I'm your apprentice?" Sam joked.
"Something like that." Cassie said smiling. "Now, get dressed. I got work to do."
Sam laughs and the two women start walking out of the dojo.
•••
At the front desk of the precinct, the brown haired man from the bus station walks forward. He removes the hood off his head and starts to look around. However he starts to lose his nerve and begins to walk off.
Before he could, the female desk clerk looks up from her paperwork and stares at the man who seemed a little lost. "Excuse me, can I help you?" The clerk asked in a matter of fact tone.
The brown haired man quickly turns his head and looks at the clerk. He clears his throat and walks over to the desk. "Uh hi. I'm looking for Detective Danny… Daniel Parker. I heard he works at this precinct. Is he working today?"
The clerk checks some of her paperwork. "He's out right now but I think he'll be here soon." The clerk said. "Would you like me to page him to let him know you're looking for him."
"No, that's fine. I'll just wait, thank you." The brown haired man replied.
The clerk nods and watches the brown haired man sit in a chair in the main lobby then goes back to her work.
The brown haired man lets out a deep breath and sits patiently waiting to see Danny. There was a look in his eyes that read desperation and fear.
•••
At St James Hospital, Jake sat at the front desk doing some paperwork as two young nurses were in the middle of a conversation which he only caught half of as they walked past the desk.
"I heard Dr Trenton is working on something in the lab." One nurse said. "He said he's experimenting with a patient's blood."
"Why would he do that?" The other nurse asked.
"He never said but I heard it was the blood of one of those women who were admitted a few months ago." The first nurse said.
Jake raises an eyebrow as he watches them head off. Whose blood were they referring to? Cassie's or Claud's? He goes over to his computer and types in some keys to access the hospital's database. After a few minutes of maneuvering, he finds Cassie's patient file.
However, when he tries to click on the file, a pop up comes on the screen and a graphic reads 'Access Denied. Higher Personele Access Only'.
"The heck." Jake said softly to himself.
Jake quickly logs off and plays off like he didn't see what he had seen. He seemed surprised that he couldn't access Cassie's file.
His phone vibrates and he sees it was a message from 'Charlie's' work which read: 'You're closing tonight. I know it's your last day but Matt has the flu'.
Jake rolls his eyes and responds with 'Fine by me. I'll be there'.
He smiles a bit, grateful he doesn't have to pull the double act anymore. Hopefully he isn't making a mistake by doing this. Then he looks at the Rolex that Alec gave him and smiles.
•••
A few minutes later, Cassie and Sam walk into the main area of the precinct dressed in different clothes than they were wearing during their training session. Sam wore a dark red jacket over a black short sleeve top with blue jeans and combat boots while Cassie wore her tan tight leather jacket over a dark green turtleneck and black pants and high heel lace up boots.
"I'm gonna see if your brother is here." Cassie told Sam.
"He wasn't the one who called you?" Sam asked, confused.
Cassie shakes her head. "Like I said, it's business."
Sam looks down the hall and sees a couple of vending machines. "Mind if I borrow a couple bucks?"
Cassie looks over at the machines and hands her five one dollar bills. "Just be careful. Those machines tend to eat your money and don't give you what you paid for. One of them still owes me like fifteen bags of chips."
"You might be overreacting..." Before Sam can finish, they see the brown haired man from the bus station hitting the side of the machine in frustration. "Or not."
Cassie smiles. "I won't take long... I hope." With that, she walks off into the building.
Sam walks closer to the machines and continues watching the man struggling with the machine that stole his money. She sees a candy bar hanging from the spring and close to falling but not budging at his poundings. After one last hit, it only serves to make the man recoil in pain which makes Sam snicker.
The brown haired man looks back at Sam as he rubs his hand in pain then he scowls at her "You find this funny?"
"Only because you're starting a fight with a vending machine inside a police station. Think that might count as vandalism and take it from me, I know these things." Sam said with a bit of pride in herself.
"Guess I didn't think that through." The brown haired man said with a shrug.
Sam looks around and sees if anyone was paying attention then looks back at the brown haired man and sees him focusing on the stuck candy bar with almost laser-like precision. What she sees next catches her completely off guard, a slightly transparent tendril of reddish energy wraps around the candy bar and seems to dislodge it from where it was stuck, falling to the bottom of the machine.
The man grins as he picks up the candy bar from the inside of the machine, he tosses in the air and triumphantly catches it in his hand but he turns around and finds Sam staring at him with her mouth hanging open.
The brown haired man quickly realized what had happened "Um, you didn't by any chance... see that, did you?"
Sam nods. "Uh huh."
"Oh... Gotta go." The brown haired man goes to make a run for it.
"Whoa, easy. It's okay." Sam said, getting in his way to make sure he didn't take off running. "I'm not going to tell anyone."
"Oh, like I believe that." The brown haired man scoffs with pure skepticism in his voice.
"A few years ago, I might've ratted you out if I saw someone do... whatever it is you just did but not anymore." Sam reassures him. "I know a few people like you. As for seeing weird stuff, yeah, not my first rodeo."
The man stares at her puzzled "You mean that?"
Sam nods "Totally. Now, I got five bucks and a lot of brute strength, wanna try to get some treats from these things?"
"You're willing to share the wealth?" The brown haired man asked. "That's rather generous of you."
"Normally I'm not but I'm feeling surprisingly charitable." Sam said smiling which made the man laugh. "We also can quietly talk about that bit of awesomeness you just did if you feel comfortable doing so."
The man drops his guard and smiles, being put at ease by this strange girl he's met. "Sure."
Sam walks closer to the machine the man was standing in front of as she pulls out the money Cassie gave her. "I'm Sam, by the way. Sam Puckett."
The man smiles and offers his hand for a shake "Riley Danvers."
Sam shakes his hand then they start looking at the machine "So, what do you call that exactly? What'd you do?"
Riley clears his throat then looks down slightly embarrassed. "Telekinesis."
Sam thinks then smiles "Cool."
Riley looks up at her and grins from ear to ear, his guard is completely down with Sam.
•••
Cassie walks towards Captain Thompson's office where she sees Victor and Danny talking to Irving Thompson as well as seeing David Morgan in the office with Alec. She walks over to the door and lightly knocks on the door.
"Come in." Thompson's voice bellowed.
Cassie walks through the door and when Danny looks her way, she gives him a smile which makes him smile. Alec sees this and hides his amusement at Cassie and Danny's silent flirting.
"Ms Sinclair, good of you to join us." David greeted Cassie as she shut the door behind her.
"Alec called, said he had a job for me." Cassie said as she gave him a warm welcome with a quick wave. Alec couldn't help but smile at his best friend. "What's this all about?"
"There was a break in at one of my research and development laboratories and one of my employees was murdered in cold blood by the culprit." David said. "Mr Grayson suggested I ask you for further assistance in the police investigation."
"He did inform you that I don't work for free." Cassie told him while she crossed her arms across her chest.
Danny grinned at Cassie's daring bravado while Alec became a bit anxious at the way she was speaking to his boss. However his anxiety melted when David smiled at this.
"We will discuss the manner of payment later." David said and Cassie nodded in agreement.
"Has the crime scene been analyzed?" Cassie asked.
"Early this morning. Mr Maxwell was one of the techs on scene. He said he'd call us if he found any valuable information from his lab report." Thompson stated.
"Okay. Have you considered that this might be an inside job? Someone could have cased the place for months before making their move." Cassie suggested.
"It's a definite possibility. How would we be able to find that out?" David asked.
"We could look at some of your personnel. If something is amiss, we can be able to determine who this thief is or who they could point us to and find them." Danny stated.
"Detective Parker's right. We'll need access to a personnel list for this lab as well as a list of any new hires to your company." Cassie said to David. "We can pinpoint which bad apple is hiding in your midst."
"Mr Grayson will give you access to those files as soon as he has them." David told her.
"Well, then let's get started." Cassie said.
David and Alec begin to leave the office as Thompson follows them out. Victor looks at Cassie "We could have figured out how to do that."
"I know, but it'll get done a lot faster without a certain someone giving a certain billionaire the evil eye." Cassie said with a grin. "Sometimes you get way more flies with honey than vinegar."
"Says the woman who solves problems with her fists." Danny joked.
"I don't always do that... But it is always a bit more fun." Cassie stated.
Victor just shakes his head amused as he walks out of the office.
"So, where's Sam? You leave her at the loft?" Danny asked.
"Nope, she's buying snacks from the vending machine. Thought it'd be better to keep a better eye on her if she was in the same building." Cassie stated. "It works for Victor with Millie."
"I'm only worried she's going to get herself into trouble. You know she has her issues with authority." Danny points out.
"Which is why she's not dumb enough to get into a petty squabble with a cop while inside a police station. Unlike a certain ruggedly handsome detective, I'm more than willing to give her the benefit of the doubt." She said,
Danny stares at her shocked. "Did you just call me 'ruggedly handsome'?"
Cassie darts her eyes, trying to avert his gaze. "No I didn't."
Danny grins at her, finding her slip of the tongue amusing. Then he hears something else.
"Least I didn't mention his abs. Would've made me look stupid."
"You only look stupid when aren't willing to admit it." Danny said with a smile.
Cassie raises an eyebrow. "I didn't say anything about thinking I look... stupid."
"Wait, you didn't say that out loud?" Danny asked, confused.
"No, I was thinking something to that degree but I never said it." Cassie said, then her expression changes to one of concern. "You feeling okay, Parker?"
Danny tries to process what had happened then he shakes it off. "Yeah, I'm fine. But I would feel better if we went to go check on Sam."
Cassie sighs as she follows his lead out of the office. "Fine but you're worried about nothing. I'm sure she's staying out of trouble... Well, by Sam standards."
"Trouble does have a habit of finding her." Danny retorts.
•••
Sam and Riley were sitting on a bench in the lobby where they were eating some snacks they had gotten from the vending machines. Most of it was paid for.
"So, you can move things around with your mind?" Sam asked quietly.
"I think that was established already." Riley said as he popped a piece of candy in his mouth.
"Were you born with them or did you get in some kind accident that gave them to you?" Sam asked.
Riley smirks. "For a second, I thought you were going to ask me if I fell into a vat of radioactive waste."
"That would've been my first guess, I'm not gonna lie." Sam says while taking a bite of a Fat Cake.
Riley laughs then says "I was born with them. They kinda popped up when I hit puberty which was when I was like twelve."
"But I thought telekinesis was supposed to be, like… invisible. I could sorta see the-"
"The energy around what I was trying to manipulate?" Riley asked and Sam nodded. "The energy is a metaphysical representation of my Qi."
"Meta-what?" Sam replied with a confused expression.
Riley smiles at her puzzlement. "Qi is basically the source of living energy. We all have it and can use it in all sorts of different ways. It's how I have a handle on using my powers."
"So you've had like a ton of years of practice?" Sam asked.
"How old do you think I am?" Riley scoffed.
"Thirty five." Sam guessed.
Riley smirks at the guess. "Close, off by a year. I've had a crap ton of practice with my talents."
"Nice." Sam said which eased Riley's mood again. "So what do you do for a living when you aren't stealing from vending machines?"
Riley laughs at the comment. "I'm a bartender but I have a bachelor's in engineering."
"You must be pretty smart." Sam said.
"Not really but I manage the best I can." Riley said with humility in his voice. "I'm currently jobless right now, hopefully that changes soon. Sorta living from hotel to hotel till I get lucky."
"Is that why you're in New York?" Sam asked.
Riley sighs. "Something like that."
Sam notices a change in his mood, sensing that what she had said bothered him. However before she could ask, Cassie and Danny walk over.
"Are you managing to stay out of trouble?" Danny asked his sister.
"Don't worry, I promise that I've been a good girl." Sam said with a laugh. "I even managed to make a friend."
"An adorable friend." Cassie said which made Riley blush.
"Don't think my brother would like you flirting with other guys in front of him." Sam teased.
Danny laughs then he gets a good look at Riley and is surprised to see him.
"Cassie, Danny, this cute twip is Riley Danvers. Riley, this is the self proclaimed female badass Cassie Sinclair." Sam said, starting to introduce the two adults.
"It's not self proclaimed if it's a solid fact, Samantha." Cassie said with a wink.
Sam rolls her eyes. "And the handsome guy to Cassie's left is-"
"Danny?" Riley spoke up.
"It's been a while, hasn't it, Danvers?" Danny said with a smile.
Riley smiles as he gets up and gives Danny a big hug which confuses Sam. "It's good to see you, man."
"You two know each other?" Sam asked.
The two of them broke from their embrace and looked at the two women. "Yeah, Riley's family used to live next door to me and my mom in Chicago." Danny told them. "We were close until they moved away when I was fifteen."
"Danny's like my surrogate little brother. Been watching each other's backs since we were little kids." Riley stated.
"Well, it truly is a small world." Cassie remarked.
"So, is this red haired vixen your new girlfriend, Danny?" Riley asked.
Sam snorts to hide her amusement as Cassie turns pink and Danny glares at Riley. "See, even people who aren't around you two all the time see it." She said with a grin.
"Thank you for the assessment." Danny stated while Cassie just bites her lip. He looks over at Riley. "So, how is your family doing?"
"Pretty good last time I heard." Riley said. "Dad got a job in Alaska right after I graduated so I only see them on holidays. Especially enjoy seeing my little sister."
"Oh right, my mom told me your parents had another kid. How is she?" Danny asked.
"Great actually. Told me she's graduating a year early, planning to go to Stanford next fall." Riley informed them.
"Wow, your sister sounds like an amazing young lady." Cassie said sweetly.
"Maybe she should meet with Sam, that ambition will rub off on her." Danny joked.
"Love you too, Daniel." Sam said with a grin.
Riley realized something as he saw the strange banter between the two. "Am I missing something?"
Danny laughs, looks at Sam then at Riley. "Sam's actually my sister."
Riley's eyes widen as he looks at Sam. "You two are brother and sister?"
Sam nods "Technically we're half siblings but that's just a minor detail."
"Wow, that's... incredible." Riley stated.
"It was… Until big brother went all Big Brother on me." Sam said with some irritation. "Danny can be a tad overprotective."
"That makes sense, seeing the amount of trouble he got into as a kid. He wants to make sure you make the same mistakes." Riley stated.
Sam scoffs at this and Cassie's eyes widen in surprise. "Excuse me?" Cassie asked befuddled.
Riley looks at Danny. "What haven't you told them?"
"Evidently not the whole truth." Cassie replied, holding back her laughter. "Danny was a juvenile delinquent, huh? Who would have thought?"
"Me thinks there are some juicy stories we haven't heard." Sam teased and Cassie nodded in agreement.
"This isn't about me right now." Danny points out.
"Now that we found out your deep dark secret, it's not about you, eh?" Cassie jokes.
"Anyway... I wouldn't have to be overprotective if you didn't get yourself into dangerous situations." Danny stated.
"I get kidnapped by one drug lord and all of sudden I get treated like I'm some porcelain doll." Sam retorts.
"Whoa, hold on. You got kidnapped?" Riley asked Sam, with mild shock in his voice.
Sam nods. "Lucky for me, I was saved by a masked superhero."
"Wait, you guys have superheroes running around New York City?" Riley asked, pretending to sound surprised by this.
"Yes, in fact, your 'little brother' here is trying to bring in any, quote 'vigilantes'." Cassie said, putting up quotation marks to emphasize the word 'vigilantes'.
"I have to do it, it's my job." Danny stated.
"You said vigilantes, as in... more than one?" Riley asked.
"Two of them we're aware of. They're called Pulse and the Fox." Danny stated.
"And only one of them has superpowers." Cassie replied.
"Which one?" Riley asked, still trying to process all this.
"The one who saved my life, Pulse." Sam said with a smile on her face. "But from what I was told, he also had the Fox there as his backup-"
"So, superheroes are real?" Riley stated, a smile slowly forming. "Couldn't have called that."
Danny rubs his left temple in frustration "Sam, would you mind taking him back home?"
"Not at all. Let's go, dude." Sam said to Riley.
"It's not really necessary. I can stay at a motel. Sort of used to it by now." Riley replies.
"No, we're like family. Besides, my mom would kill me if I let you stay in some fleabag motel." Danny stated. "You're staying with us and that's final."
"Wow, when he asserts his authority, you know he means business." Cassie remarked.
"And yet when I do it with you, you simply see it as an afterthought?" Danny said with a smile.
"Because you don't exactly leave me quaking in my stylish combat boots. Not much scares me." Cassie said with her head held high. "Except tight spaces…. and sea monkeys."
"Sea monkeys?" Riley asked amused as well as confused.
"Yeah, I don't care if they're technically shrimp or something. Those little suckers are just creepy." Cassie said, shuddering at the thought of them.
"I'm surprised sea monkeys are your kryptonite." Sam said mischievously.
Cassie crossed her arms over her chest. "Thinking of using it to pull one of your infamous pranks, I'll uppercut you into Atlantic City."
Sam gulps and grabs Riley by the arm, clearly terrified of Cassie's threats. "Come along, Chestnut. We got places to be… away from the scary redhead."
Riley looks back at Cassie who grins and then looks at Danny, and Danny hears something that worries and confuses him.
"Maybe they can protect me from those people? Couldn't hurt to ask."
The voice Danny heard sounded like Riley's but he didn't move his lips.
"Can't bring them into this. Not until I tell him what's going on."
Danny stammers a bit. "Uh- I would -I-"
Before he could finish his sentence, Danny sees that Riley and Sam had left the building. He tussles his hair in frustration as Cassie notices his distress.
"You okay, Danny? You look a little frazzled." Cassie asked.
Danny looks at her and grins "Frazzled?"
Cassie scowls at him. "It's a word. Now quit avoiding the question, are you doing okay?"
"I'm fine." Danny said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "We should get to work."
Cassie watches as he walks back to his desk then looks back at the entrance where Sam and Riley just left. "Now he's making me paranoid."
With that, she goes the direction Danny had gone.
•••
Inside the recreation center at City Tech, Freddie was resting his head on the wall he was leaning on. He had hoped his head would stop throbbing but that pain was now running through most of his body.
[Soundtrack Note: "Ghost" by Sir Sly plays from the sound system]
Freddie hears the sound of approaching footsteps which causes him to groan in pain from the noise. He looks up and sees Gabe standing in front of him.
"You okay?" Gabe asked with genuine concern.
"Not really." Freddie said, squeezing his hands to alleviate the pain.
"How about a game of pool? Just to get your mind off it?" Gabe asked.
"Sure." Freddie said, getting off the floor.
The two boys walk over to an empty billiards table. Gabe then racks up the balls into position while Freddie grabs a cue stick. "You wanna break?"
"Nah, you go first. Pool's more your game." Freddie said.
Gabe smirks. "Rookie mistake."
As Gabe lines up a shot, Freddie sees Millie and Lucy walking over. He smiles weakly and tries to hide his discomfort.
"Hey guys!" Millie greeted.
The loud greeting makes Gabe hit the cue ball before he could line up his shot perfectly. The cue ball taps the other balls but none of them go into any pockets.
"Thanks, Mills. Made me miss my shot." Gabe said, turning to face her.
"Sorry. Didn't know you were all in your 'pool shark' zone." Millie said with a laugh.
Lucy walks over to Gabe, wraps her arms around him "Maybe this will make you feel better." She plans a soft yet passionate kiss on his lips. The display of affection makes Millie giggle and Freddie blush with embarrassment.
After a good twenty seconds, Lucy pulls away and an aroused smile comes on Gabe's face. "That definitely helped, Goldilocks."
Out of nowhere, Heather walks over to the group. She seems annoyed by something but she is quick to put a smile on her face. "Hey."
The group turns to greet Heather but Freddie is the first to notice something was bothering her. "Everything okay?" Freddie asked.
"If by okay you mean terrible, then yes. Everything is awesome." Heather said sarcastically.
"What happened? Queen Bee break a nail?" Gabe teased.
"Charming as always, Gabriel." Heather retorts. "I got my new roommate yesterday and it's been nothing but a pain."
"She can't be that bad." Millie said cheerfully.
"Ever the optimist, Millie." Heather spoke up. "I mean, the girl is nice. A little overly nice, like Millie only turned up to eleven."
"Yikes. That IS overly nice." Gabe spoke up with Millie stomping on his foot. "Ow!"
"Also, she wears pearls. With everything." Heather stated, completely ignoring that Gabe got hurt. "She's a total prep."
"I'm sure you two will get along fine once you two get to know each other." Freddie reassured her.
"I don't know. Missy seems like she is trying hard to be friends with me." Heather replied.
Freddie's eyes widened. "Missy?"
Just then, an eighteen year old girl with long auburn hair walks over and stands next to Heather. She was in a light blue pullover sweater with a checker pattern, a matching pleated skirt and high heels. A string of pearls around her neck.
"Heather, you forgot your jacket." Heather's roommate said, handing Heather a jacket.
"Um, thanks, Missy." Heather said, sounding slightly uncomfortable. "Guys, this is my new roommate, Missy Robinson. Missy, these are my friends Freddie Benson, Millie Flores, Lucy Shepard and Gabe Morgan."
Missy looks over and sees Freddie who is glaring at her but tries to avert her gaze once she starts looking at him. It didn't help because she instantly recognized him. "Freddie Benson."
"Long time no see, eh Missy?" Freddie said unenthusiastically.
"I didn't know you were going to CityTech too." Missy said.
"Yeah, now I'm starting to question my decision." Freddie replied, bitterness in his voice.
"You two know each other?" Gabe asked.
Millie looks at Missy then realizes something "Oh my god, you're THAT Missy Robinson."
"I'm totally lost." Lucy was confused.
"Then allow me to fill in the blanks." Freddie spoke up. "Missy used to be best friends with one of my best friends Carly Shay when they were little and when she moved back to Seattle, she tried to be Carly's best friend again. Only thing standing in her way was Carly's new best friend, Sam Puckett. She decided to use any ruthless methods to get Sam out of the way."
"It wasn't my proudest moment, I'll admit that." Missy said. "I'm sorry for what I did."
"You should be. Especially considering the fact that you gave Sam a box of expired chocolates to make her so sick that she couldn't cohost an episode of iCarly that night." Freddie said to Missy, glaring at her. "Missy conveniently stepped in while Sam was in agony which Missy put her through just so she can get Carly all to herself."
"I said I was sorry, how many times do I have to say it?" Missy stated in annoyance.
"How about when it sounds sincere because frankly I don't think it does." Freddie spat.
"I'm sorry that I hurt Sam. I had a lot of time to think about what I did, practically on that boat I was on during this school at sea thing." Missy stated.
Freddie smirks with a twinge of malice. "You ever wonder why you won that trip even though you didn't enter it?"
Missy stares at him and realizes what he meant. "You... You won the school at sea trip?"
"I figured that the only way to get rid of you and expose you as the calculated and manipulative skunk bag you really are. That you wouldn't be able to resist gloating to Sam on your 'victory'." Freddie told her. "Also, I knew that if I won, iCarly would've had to find another technical producer and I couldn't leave my friends in a bind so I told Principal Franklin you should get the trip instead."
"So you're the reason I spent most of the school year barfing into a bucket?" Missy asked, sounding incredulous. "I lost like ten pounds!"
"Hey, I didn't know about you getting sea sick until Carly told me!" Freddie said.
"Besides, I think Freddie did you a favor." Millie said grinning.
"Who are you, his girlfriend?" Missy asks, which causes Gabe to snicker at the statement while Millie simply scoffs at.
"Actually, Millie's just a good friend and a fan of iCarly." Freddie said to Missy. "I'm actually dating the girl you gave those rancid chocolates to."
Missy's eyes widened in shock. "You're dating Sam? Since when?"
"Actually, we dated for a while but we broke up. We just recently got back together around Christmas." Freddie explained.
"Now I get why you tried so hard to get rid of me. You were in love with Sam even back then." Missy said with a smug grin.
"If I was, so what? I'm not denying it now. I love with-"
Suddenly, Freddie doubles over in pain which worries the others.
"Freddie, are you all right?" Millie asked.
"I'm... fine... Ah!" Freddie let out a pained scream. "I... I just need some air."
Freddie stumbled off as the rest of the group watched him walk away.
"Is he okay?" Missy asked.
"Why do you care?" Millie asked Missy, scowling at her.
"Why don't you back off, fan girl!" Missy said, getting in her face.
Heather then gets in between her roommate and Millie. "You haven't earned the right to speak to my friends like that, Missy. After what you did to Sam, you need to tread lightly because Millie isn't one to be messed with. 'Kay?"
Missy gulps then nods quickly.
Millie smiles brightly.
"You still got it, Queenie." Gabe said as he grabbed Millie by the shoulders. "We'll go see if Freddie is okay. Come on, Mills."
Millie sighs as Gabe pushes her toward the direction Freddie went off to.
[Soundtrack Note: Song stops playing when scene ends]
Freddie stumbles out into a back alley of the recreation center, his body aching. He struggles to catch his breath as he grabs his hands which were throbbing.
The pain starts to subside and Freddie looks down at his hands and was horrified at what he saw: it seems like his hands were vibrating at high speed.
"What- what's happening to me?" Freddie managed to say through his panic.
Freddie looks around but before he could react, he lunges forward at superhuman speed and is three feet from where he was standing before. He tries to understand what he had just done only for him to do it again only instead he slams awkwardly onto the back of a car, the impact causing the windows of the car shatter into a million pieces. He backs away from the damaged car at a normal pace, still in shock over what he has done.
Freddie soon realized what he had done and looked down the alley, a smile on his face. With one fast motion, Freddie takes off running at lightning speed.
Freddie blazes down back alleys at supersonic speed for five blocks until he rounds the corner where a delivery driver was unloading bags of laundry from the back of a van.
Freddie crashes into the open van, luckily for him the bags of laundry break the impact. The delivery driver looks into the van, surprised to find Freddie in the back of the van.
"Kid, are you all right?" The driver asked Freddie. "How'd you get in there?"
A winded Freddie grins at the realization of what he had just done. He has super speed.
•••
Winding down a remote highway road, Pete rode his motorcycle and passed by a sign on the side of the road that read 'Now Entering - Willow Springs, New Jersey. Population: 456.'
Pete enters the town and finds the place completely deserted. No people walking the streets. No cars in sight. It was littered with a few pieces of garbage. It was essentially a ghost town.
Pete turns and sees a sign to a store that says 'Mabel's Antiques'. He turns his bike and parks in front of the store. He removes his helmet and sunglasses then gets off the bike.
Pete walks over to the door and sees a sign hanging on the door that reads 'We're Open' with a smiley face under the message. He shakes his head and opens the door.
Pete steps into the shop and the shop appears to be a normal antiques store with old knickknacks and some pricey trinkets on the shelves. He turns and finds an older woman standing in front of the counter. She looked about in her early fifties with short gray hair, wearing a pale button up sweater and blue jeans. This is Mabel.
"Wonderful weather we're having." Mabel said, greeting him warmly.
Pete lets out a sigh then walks over to the counter. "Yes, but I always carry an umbrella."
Mabel nods and reaches underneath the counter and there are two items there, one of them being a sawed off shotgun and the other was a switch of some sort. She then flips the switch the wall behind her opens to reveal a secret corridor leading to an industrial size elevator.
"Took you long enough." Mabel said as she walked from behind the counter over to the front door of the shop, locking the door.
"Sorry but it's been awhile." Pete said to her. "I'm a touch rusty on the cloak and dagger aspect of all this."
Mabel flips the sign on the door which now reads. 'Sorry, We're Closed'. "Found your way just fine."
"Well, Lenny did say this was important." Pete said as he followed Mabel down the corridor towards the elevator. "I'm assuming he's expecting me."
"That he is." Mabel replies as she goes over to a switch that closes the wall behind them to conceal the corridor once again. "You don't mind being Leonard's errand boy?"
"I owe that man my life... Mabel." Pete said, hinting that 'Mabel' wasn't her real name. "I'd do anything for him."
"Loyalty is such a foreign concept nowadays, it's rather refreshing." 'Mabel' stated as they entered the elevator.
"Up until a few months ago, I would have agreed with you." Pete said as the door closed and the elevator went down.
'Mabel' chuckles softly "That kid and his friends have had quite the effect on you, haven't they?"
"Something like that." Pete replied.
The elevator keeps descending down until it stops on the floor. The doors open to reveal a military-like facility complete with a variety of weapons mounted on the walls and a base of command in the center.
"Little quiet today." Pete comments, noting the emptiness of the area.
"Most of the unit is on assignment. The information you and Leonard gathered lead to a few leads on several Division 6 members still in hiding." 'Mabel' told him. "You two are quite the team even when you two aren't together."
Just then, a tall Caucasian male with salt and pepper black hair and a gruff beard makes his way over to them. "Peter Sawyer."
Pete looks up and sees the man, standing up straight. "Tobias Lawton."
The two men stare each other down until Tobias drops his guard and smiles at Pete which allows Pete to do the same and the two men give each other a friendly but manly embrace.
"Son of a bitch." Tobias replied in a friendly and easy manner.
"It's good to see you, Toby." Pete said as they hugged.
"You too, kid." Tobias said as the two of them separated from the hug. "Seeing that you're here, you heard from Leonard?"
"I wouldn't be here otherwise. No offense to the present company but I have a job to do." Pete told them.
Tobias nods. "Follow me."
Pete followed Tobias towards the sleeping quarters area of the facility as 'Mabel' hung back. "What's this about, Toby?"
"About a month ago, one of our operatives was hunting down a lead on a member of Division 6. She found the bastard and deactivated him but the damage had been done." Tobias explained.
"He already killed the meta?" Pete grimly asked, bracing himself for the response.
"He would have had it not been for her quick thinking and even quicker draw." Tobias replied as they stopped in front of the door to a room. "Unfortunately not fast enough to save the poor girl's parents."
"He went after a kid?" Pete stated. "Why am I not surprised? How old?"
"Sixteen. Remember being that age? The worst thing most people had to worry about was surviving puberty." Tobias remarked in a calm voice.
"When I was that age, that was literally life and death. Especially with my powers." Pete replied in a somber tone. "I take it I'm about to meet this young lady?"
Tobias opens the door to the room to reveal a sixteen year old girl with long golden blond hair and soft cream colored skin who is sitting in front of a table, drawing on a sketchbook. "Pete, I want to meet Madeline. Maddy, this is Mr Sawyer."
Maddy looks up from her work to stare back at Pete with warm but sad blue eyes. "You're much more handsome in person." She said to him, managing a smile.
"You showed her a picture of me?" Pete asked Tobias.
"Not exactly." Tobias stated as Maddy got up from her chair and slowly walked over to the two men.
"I can see into the future." Maddy said frankly. "I see everything that will happen and I sometimes draw what I see."
Maddy opens up her sketch book to a drawing of a girl who looked exactly like Maddy standing in front of two men who looked exactly like Pete and Tobias. The Pete in the drawing was even wearing the exact same clothes.
"This is dated six months from now. This is incredible." Pete said, staring at the picture. "You are a very talented artist by the way."
"Thanks. My mom was an art teacher, she started teaching me how to draw when I was three." Maddy told him, a twinge of sadness in her voice at the mention of her mother.
"I'm sorry for what happened to your family. It isn't fair that these monsters did this to you because of your gifts." Pete said sincerely as he handed her back her sketchbook.
Maddy smiles then hugs him tightly, feeling safe in his arms. "Thank you."
Pete realizes why Leonard wanted him to come there. "You want to put her under my protection, don't you?" He asked Tobias.
"Not just your protection. It couldn't hurt to have the help of your new friends." Tobias told him.
"I don't think that's a good idea." Pete stated as he broke from the hug then looked at Tobias. "If I told them about her, I would have to tell them everything."
"You're going to have to anyway." Maddy said as she backed up a few steps. "They're going to figure it out soon. You just have to decide whether it's you that tells them."
Pete stares at Maddy with a raised eyebrow. "What happens when she finds out?" He asked.
Maddy sighs, she knew who he was referring to. She opens her sketch book to a page and shows him the picture she drew: it was him being punched hard in the face by a red haired woman who looked exactly like Cassie. The expression on the woman's face read of intense anger.
Pete exhales, he expected this to happen. "That figures."
•••
Back at the precinct, Danny and Victor were hard at work looking through printouts of files from Morgan Innovations personnel files. Cassie however was trying to fight being bored. She is leaning back in her chair, balancing a cup of pencils on her forehead, and spinning ever-so slowly.
Danny looks over at Cassie and marvels at her sense of whimsy. He also couldn't resist messing with her and this was the best opportunity to do so. He clears his throat which causes Cassie to lose focus and it all comes crashing down. She grabs clumsily for the cup but all the pens and pencils spill out all over the floor.
"Having fun?" Danny asked with a very amused look on his face.
Once she picks up the pens and pencils off the floor then puts the cup back on the desk, Cassie gives him a withered look. "Do you take enjoyment from ruining my attempts to NOT die of boredom?"
Danny shrugs, "We all need to get our kicks from somewhere."
"Would you two flirt later?" Victor asked, not looking up from the paper he was reading but with a small smile pursed on his lips. "We still have to look through the rest of these files and we still haven't scratched the surface."
"If this is how most police work is, I am really glad I never got accepted into the academy." Cassie said, leaning back on her chair again. "This is beyond tedious."
"Don't you normally have to do detective work? You are a private investigator after all." Victor asked.
"Yes but I do that as I'm pounding the pavement." Cassie stated. "I'm very hands on when it comes to my work."
Danny scoffs and sarcastically says. "Why am I not surprised?"
Cassie sticks out her tongue at him then she sighs and picks up a few of the papers from the desk. "But seeing as I'm... somewhat doing this by the book, I don't mind doing things your way."
"At least now you can take pride in your work." Danny said.
Cassie glares at him. "Don't push your luck, Danny Boy."
Alec returns to the desks with his PearPad in his hands and he looks over at Cassie reading from the printouts. "You're actually doing research?"
"Not by choice, Al. Trying to get Headmaster Parker from whacking me with a ruler." Cassie said. Upon realizing what she had said and it was too late to take it back, Cassie is met with perplexed looks from the three men. "Get your minds out of the Fifty Shades dungeon. That was not what I meant."
"Great, now I'm picturing you in a naughty schoolgirl outfit complete with pigtails and fishnet stockings." Alec said with a laugh whilst sitting in the chair next to his best friend.
"All right, Christian Grayson. Get your mind out of the gutter." Cassie said, playfully smacking him in the chest.
Danny stares at Alec and hears the young lawyer's voice but his lips aren't moving.
"I hate lying to you, Sand. I'm only doing it to protect you."
Danny tries to process what was going on then he hears another voice from behind him.
"Still chasing that windmill, Alec? I would feel sorry for you but... Oh god, is that a zit?"
Danny turns to look back to see Officer Penelope Simmons staring at her reflection on a window, oblivious to him staring at her. She was checking her nose for any kind of blemishes.
Cassie looks up from the paper she was reading and notices Danny's distress. "You feeling okay, Danny?"
Danny quickly turns to face Cassie and answers "Fine!" The way he had said it caught her by surprise but he clears his throat. "I mean, I'm fine."
"Could've fooled me." Cassie said with a sarcastic smirk that made Danny roll his eyes. She looks down at different printouts on the desk and something written on it catches her attention. "Wait a sec."
"What is it?" Victor asked.
Cassie picks up the sheet of paper and reads it. "This name... Who is this?"
Alec looks at the paper and reads it off "Michael DeSanta? Yeah, he does janitorial work at the lab. Or at least he did, he quit like a week ago."
"And the name didn't ring any bells?" Cassie asked, almost offended he didn't catch the minor detail.
Victor thinks it through and the same eureka moment pops into his head.
"Am I missing something?" Danny asked, just as perplexed as Alec.
Cassie sighs, amused disappointment written on her face. "Michael DeSanta is-"
"One of the main characters of Grand Theft Auto V." Victor spoke up while the trio stared at him in shock and awe. He looks back at them, irritation flashes on his face. "What, I know things."
Cassie looks over at Alec. "Can you pull up his personnel file? Maybe get a picture of this guy?"
Alec nods as he starts up his PearPad and looks through the files until he finds 'Michael DeSanta'. "Got it."
"Let me see." Cassie said as Alec handed her the device. She stares at the photo of the employee and her stomach drops. "Oh my god."
"What's wrong? You know him?" Danny asked.
"Yeah, but it's clearly not Michael DeSanta." Cassie said, mild anger dripping from her voice. "His name is Trevor Wesker. I went to juvie with him."
Alec looks at the photo again and something clicks. "That's why I thought I'd seen him somewhere before. I always thought it was my mind playing tricks on me."
"Wait, hold on. Can we get back to you going to juvie with a guy? Weren't you sent to an all female juvenile detention center?" Danny asked, genuinely concerned.
"I was supposed to be." Cassie explained. "Unfortunately there was quite a bit of... overcrowding at the time and I was sent to an all boys facility. The guards did have to keep a close eye on me while there to prevent the boys from taking advantage of my predicament. Not that I needed them to."
Danny sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Do I want to know what you did?"
"Well, let's just say that I made myself the biggest dog in the yard within the span of a week." Cassie said with a smirk etched on her face. "All I had to do was beat up the current main man at the time."
"And that was Wesker." Alec stated.
Cassie shows them the picture of Trevor Wesker and points to a scar above his right eye. "That scar. I opened him up really good. Needed four stitches to close that up."
"That would mean you two weren't the best of friends, were you?" Victor said, knowing the answer.
"There was never any love lost between us anyway." Cassie stated. "Guy used to call me a certain word that makes me want to pummel clowns like him into next week. Real class act, that's for sure."
"And I almost felt sorry for him." Danny said jokingly.
"If this guy was in the system, we should be able to find out if he has a much more current criminal record." Victor stated as he got up from his chair.
"That's a good idea. He's going to have a lengthy record." Cassie stated. "Guys like that rarely change their stripes."
"You did." Danny points out while Victor walks off.
Before Cassie could offer a retort, her cellphone suddenly rings which catches her attention. "Saved by the bell." She checks the caller ID then answers. "Hey, Millie. I'm actually with your dad right- Whoa, honey, slow down. What happened?" Cassie listens to what Millie tells her then sighs as the two men look at her. "I'm sure he's fine. Just calm-" After another pause, she speaks again. "Why don't I have him try to find him? Just breathe, okay? I'll call you as soon as I hear anything. Okay? Good. I gotta go. Bye."
Danny notices her anxiety but then he hears something else from her that she did not speak.
"Damn it, Freddie. Can't I go one afternoon without something happening to you?"
Danny clears his throat to regain his composure. "Um, everything okay? Did something happen with Freddie?"
Cassie's ears perked up when she heard him ask about Freddie. "How-how did you know that?"
Danny laughs nervously then says "I've only seen you lose your cool when it comes to my sister's boyfriend."
Cassie looks around and finds Leo entering the room. He was staring at his phone as if he had received a text message from someone. More than likely Millie, she guessed.
Alec stares at them slightly puzzled "Your nephew is dating his sister?"
Cassie pats his shoulder while getting up from her chair. "You are really out of the loop, Mr Grayson."
"I have been a bit busy." Alec said with a cheeky grin.
Cassie grins brightly as Danny and Alec watch as she walks over to Leo. Danny then hears something out of the ordinary yet again.
"Please tell me he knows what's going on."
Danny seems more and more confused by all this. What was happening to him?
"What's the deal with those two?" Alec asked.
Danny snaps out of his thought process and looks in his direction. "You're asking me?"
"I haven't had time to ask. Thought that you'd be in the know about all this." Alec said. "She does seem to like you."
"She is a very likeable person." Danny said with a shrug.
"I know… but it's different with you. It's nice." Alec made note of it.
"We're just friends." Danny said weakly.
"Sure you guys are." Alec said in a joking tone.
With that, Danny heads over to where Cassie and Leo were. Alec leans back in his chair as Victor comes back.
"What's going on?" Victor asked, patting him on the back.
"Family emergency… I think." Alec said as they got back to work.
Danny walks closer to Cassie and Leo who were finishing a quick conversation. The last words he hears are "I'll try to find him. It's not like I can track him or anything."
"His mother used to be able to but when the tracking chip got fried after the second Dershlit kidnapping, she didn't bother to have it replaced." Cassie explained. She turns and finds Danny standing behind. "H-hey you." Her voice cracking with nerves.
"That doesn't sound suspicious at all." Leo replied and Cassie elbows him in the stomach. "Ow!"
Cassie gives him a scowl then shushes him. She then looks back at Danny and sees him rubbing his left temple. "Are you sure you're feeling okay?"
"I'm fine. How many times are you going to ask me that?" Danny asked, frustrated by the line of questioning he had been getting recently.
"How about when I actually believe you when you say 'I'm fine'." Cassie said with her classic biting wit.
Leo snickers but he quickly stops when he's met by Danny's angry gaze. "I'm going to try to find Freddie before the good detective here decides he'd like to hang me from the tallest tree." He looks at Cassie as he leaves. "I'll call you once I do find him."
Cassie nods as she and Danny watch Leo leave. He stares at her and hears her voice again.
"Please don't ask me about them. Please don't ask me about them."
"So... What's the deal with Leo and Freddie lately?" Danny asked, ignoring her voice's plea.
"Crap."
Danny stifles a laugh then covers that up by clearing his throat. "Seriously. Those two seem thick as thieves for the last two months. Also, you went to him first to try to find Freddie. I'm smart enough to know that means something."
Cassie exhales, her heart beating so loudly that she thought he could probably hear it. "Fine, I'll tell you but you have to swear to me that you'll keep this quiet. You promise?"
Danny sighs then uses his left hand to cross his heart. She had him sworn to secrecy as well as his full attention.
"Okay. Two months ago, Freddie found out from Leo that... That Leo's his half brother." Cassie bit the bullet and just got that news off her chest.
Danny's eyes widen as he pulls her further aside. "You're serious?"
"Couldn't make it up even if I wanted to. Those two are brothers." Cassie stated.
"I'm going to take a guess and say your brother cheated on Freddie's mother with Leo's mother." Danny said, putting the pieces together on his own.
"Normally if someone made that assertion, I'd knock them into the next century but I'm thinking he deserves the one sided judgment." Cassie replied. "I found that out around Christmas."
"Is that why Freddie's missing? Is reality finally hitting him and he needs to be alone?" Danny asked.
Cassie shakes her head. "Actually those two have been really close as of late. They've really bonded as brothers."
"So what's the problem?" Danny asked.
Cassie takes a deep breath. "To be honest, I wish I knew. All I know is that Leo has me on speed dial in case he finds him. I can only hope he finds him and everybody is worried over nothing."
Danny continues to stare at her which makes her bite her lip.
"Geez, it's really hard to make eye contact without getting lost in those baby blues. Get a grip, girl. He's still Danny. I really wish he'd stop looking at me like that. He's giving me the heebee geebees."
His smile widens until he realizes what he's hearing. Is he hearing what she's thinking?
Victor makes his way over to Cassie and Danny with Alec close behind. "I just got word, the surviving security guard is conscious. He's ready to answer questions regarding the robbery."
"Well, if you guys are going, so am I." Cassie spoke up.
"I agree. Anything to help with this case." Alec said.
Danny looks back at Cassie who crosses her arms over her chest.
"He had better not play it by the book and make Alec and me stay behind. If so he's got another thing-"
"I think that might be a good idea." Danny stated, surprising the three.
"You do?" Cassie asked pleasantly surprised.
"You do?" Alec and Victor asked, more shocked than surprised.
"I don't see the harm. Morgan wouldn't have hired her if she wasn't competent at her job." Danny replied, trying desperately not to sound suspicious.
Cassie stares at him, her mind trying to process what was going on until she shrugs. "Fine by me. Let's roll."
Cassie begins to leave with Alec in tow. Danny tries to leave but Victor stops him.
"What was that about?" Victor asked.
"What do you mean?" Danny asked, feigning confusion.
Victor stares at him. "Normally you would be against her getting involved in a police investigation, why the sudden change of heart?"
"No change of heart. Sure, she's... unorthodox but she gets results." Danny replied. "Besides, why should we play this completely by the book this time? A little of both doesn't hurt. Now, let's go."
Danny goes after Cassie and Alec while Victor slowly walks after his partner and the two civilians.
"That boy has it BAD." Victor comments in an amused tone.
•••
Leo walks into the parking garage of the precinct and heads to his car, a 2016 dark blue Ford Focus. He goes to open the driver side door but he stops before he could then cocks his head to one side.
"You know you have everyone worried about you, right?" Leo simply said without turning to face the person behind him.
Leo then turns to see a surprised and slightly annoyed Freddie standing behind him.
"How did you know it was me?" Freddie asked with a mildly high voice.
"Dude, we're in the same line of work. I know what it sounds like when someone is trying to sneak up on someone else." Leo said in a quiet tone, in case there was anyone in the garage. "Where have you been? Everybody's worried sick about you."
Freddie nods. "Sorry. I just- something kinda happened."
"I think you can cut the cryptic, baby brother. We're alone." Leo said. "What happened?"
Freddie stammers a bit, not sure how to describe it until he realized it was best just to show him. "This."
In a flash of blue lightning, Freddie zoomed off and he was at the other side of the parking garage. Leo was caught by surprise due to the rush of wind and the speed until his eyes came into focus and he saw where Freddie had gone.
"Holy crap!" Leo called his brother.
"I know, right?" Freddie shouted back. In another flash of electricity, Freddie was now standing in front of Leo again. "I finally figured out why I've been in so much pain since the whole Shadow incident."
"Because of your body absorbing electromagnetic energy, I remember." Leo stated.
"I think when I took in all that energy, it might have awoken some dormant cells in my body." Freddie explained.
"Maybe you always could do this but your body might have been adjusting to your other abilities that suppressed the super speed." Leo said.
Freddie nods. "I guessed that too. I mean, I was able to run pretty fast before but now-"
"You can move faster than the human eye." Leo said with a grin. "Anyone else know about this?"
"No. I've been spending the last fifteen minutes getting a feel for the speed." Freddie retorts. "Spent the first five minutes learning how to stop without crashing into stuff. There might be a few dumpsters with some 'Freddie' shaped dents in them. Hopefully no one notices."
"So I'm the first person you showed this to?" Leo asked.
"Yeah." Freddie said, sounding excited. "You're my brother, thought you should be the first one to brag about this too. That's not weird, is it? I'm not used to the whole sibling decorum."
Leo smiles, touched at the kindness Freddie displayed. "That's actually thoughtful. Granted, you should've told Gabe and Millie first, especially Millie. You have her totally freaked out."
Freddie thinks and realizes his faux pas. "Man, I wasn't thinking straight. It all just... happened."
"Just call her now, I'm sure she'll understand." Leo advises his younger brother.
Freddie nods then reaches for his pocket but doesn't find his phone until he remembers. "Dang, I forgot! I left it on the pool table at the CityTech rec center. I was in so much pain and got out of there before I could grab it."
"It's fine, use mine." Leo said, pulling out his cellphone. "I've got the next couple hours free, we can go grab lunch."
"Good 'cause I'm starving. I think my metabolism is light years faster than it used to be." Freddie said as he called Millie. "Maybe we can invite Millie and Gabe too. Give them the good news?"
"Let's not forget your blond headed demon girlfriend, can't leave her out of this." Leo suggested.
"Good call." Freddie said then Millie picked up. "Millie, hey. Yeah, I'm alright. I'm really sorry for bailing like that. It's- I know that's not a good excuse but- Look, I'm with Leo right now. We're actually going out for lunch if you want to join us. Bring Gabe too. I need to tell you guys something important. Where?"
"Tell her that I'll text her the address." Leo told him.
"Yeah, Leo said he'll text you the address. Okay, see ya soon. Bye." Freddie then hangs up the phone then starts dialing. "Now I have to call Sam."
"Call her in the car. I'll drive, unless you want to go on superpowered foot?" Leo teased.
"Nah, I think my tank is running empty." Freddie said as he dials. "Probably need to-"
"Refuel? I figured." Leo said as the two of them go into the car. "Don't worry, lunch is on me."
"Cool." Freddie said with a smile.
•••
At Danny's loft, the front door opens and Sam walks inside with Riley close behind her. Riley looks around at the space and sees how big it was while Sam closes the door.
"Wow, this place is huge." Riley comments.
"That's what I told Danny when I first came to visit." Sam replied. "Still don't know how he can afford to live here on his salary."
"I think it's best not to ask questions when it comes to adult matters. Saved me the distress as a kid." Riley said as he held up his bag. "Where can I put my bag?"
Sam looks around. "Just set it down anywhere. We'll figure out the sleeping arrangements when Danny gets home."
Riley shrugs and puts his bag next to the big leather couch. "So, you're Danny's sister? I didn't even know he had a sister."
"Well, I'm his half sister and I barely found out a few months ago." Sam said. "He can be a bit uptight but he's a cool guy."
"Yeah, and he's quite the badass. Did you know he used to be involved in underground cage fighting?" Riley told her.
"No way." Sam exclaimed, extremely shocked.
"Yeah, he'd sneak out of his house and I was his alibi. We pulled it off for about a year until the fights got broken up by the cops. He had the opportunity to tell my parents I helped cover for him but he didn't. That's how much of a stand up guy he is." Riley said as he pulled out his Pearphone "Want to see his mugshot?"
"Oh you are sharing that!" Sam said as she walked over to him. He opens his phone and shows him a picture. "Whoa, how old was he in that?"
"Almost sixteen." Riley stated.
"Damn, and he had a black eye too." Sam stated. "That's crazy."
"His mom keeps saying 'he's come a long way'." Riley stated. "She's not kidding."
"Guess he's not exactly 'Mr Perfect' after all. " Sam retorts.
"But he's always been a good guy, he's just had it rough. Whenever my mom and dad would have to go out of town, they'd leave me with Mrs Parker and I would spend most of the time with Danny. They always made me feel like I was a part of the family even though they didn't have to. He even gave me some pointers on how to throw a punch hard enough to break someone's nose, but he always told me to only use it as a last resort." Riley said while putting his phone in his pants pocket. "Guess he didn't tell you guys about that because he wants to leave the violence of his past behind him."
"Kinda wish I had grown up with him. Maybe I'd be a different person if I had." Sam said somberly "You said he's trying to keep me from making the mistakes he made, kind of too little too late. I've made some pretty stupid decisions since I was old enough to crawl. If it weren't for my friends, honestly I wouldn't know where I'd be."
"You're still an amazing person, most people would have freaked out if they had seen me use my powers like that." Riley said.
"I'm actually not used to this superpower stuff." Sam said as she plops down on the couch and rests her feet on the coffee table. "It's been awesome but still weird."
"Who do you know that has powers?" Riley asked, sitting on the couch next to her. "You said you knew people with powers. Were you serious or just trying to get me to trust you?"
Sam sighs, worried if she should tell him about Freddie and the rest of Team Pulse. "If you promise not to tell anyone, I will tell you."
"You're asking the guy who can move things with sheer thought if I can keep a secret?" Riley asked, his curiosity peaked. "Pretty sure I'm trustworthy."
Sam bites her lip then speaks. "My boyfriend. He's actually-" Suddenly her phone rings and checks the caller ID. "Speaking of." She answered the call. "Freddie, hey. What? I'm not really doing anything." She looks over at Riley. "I'm hanging out with a new friend. What's up? Oh. Sure, text me the address and I'll meet you there. Relax, I won't get lost. Okay. Love you. Bye."
Riley clears his throat, a twinge of trepidation on his face. "So, your boyfriend has powers?"
Sam nods as she gets up and pulls his arm to get Riley up. "Yep and you're going to meet him."
"Really? Don't you want to be alone with your boyfriend?" Riley asked. "How can I be sure seeing his girlfriend hanging around with a man twice her age won't freak him out?"
"Nah, his friends and his brother are going to be there. I'm sure he won't mind if I bring a friend too." Sam said. "Besides, Freddie's not the jealous type… even though you are pretty cute."
"You think I'm cute?" Riley asked, mildly amused.
"Watch it there, Chestnut. You start flirting with me and both my brother and my boyfriend would take turns kicking your head in." Sam said with a mischievous smile.
Riley laughs. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind." He goes to reach for his bag but Sam stops him. "What are-"
"Don't worry about your stuff. It's safe here." Sam assured him.
"You sure?" Riley asked, nervousness in his voice.
"Dude, chill. It's cool. You're acting like your whole life is in that bag." Sam said in a teasing tone.
Riley laughs nervously as he follows Sam out, taking a quick look at his bag before leaving the loft.
•••
Inside David Morgan's dimly lit private office, David was talking on the phone with Alec who had finished informing him of how the investigation is progressing.
"Really? He used a fake name, and he's a former acquaintance of Ms Sinclair?" David spoke. "Yes. Well, she can't be faulted for that, Mr Grayson. I'm only disappointed you didn't figure out who he was before this all happened. Keep me abreast of the situation." He hangs up the phone and looks to the front of his desk. "Do you have the information you need?"
All of sudden, a shimmer of light warps in front of the desk and Shadow appears before David. His outfit was the same with the charred bits repaired or replaced.
"I have adequate information but I will need more in order to recover your stolen property." Shadow said in his disguised voice. "Might I propose an idea?"
"You are more than welcome to." David replied calmly.
"We use those two masked buffoons to help us." Shadow stated.
"And what makes you think they'd be willing to help us?" David asked, slightly caught off guard.
"By applying a little subterfuge. Those two would be willing to help once they see what kind of damage this weapon can cause." Shadow stated. "They're both such bleeding hearts."
David smiles. "I trust your judgement but be wary of them. They are blind to my true intentions. Only seeing the black and white, not willing to cross the line even when it is necessary."
"The archer perhaps but... I sense a darkness inside Pulse. He shows potential." Shadow replied.
"With the proper guidance, he can become a useful tool." David stated. "For now, I want you to survey the city. See if there are any rumblings of this man who has taken what belongs to me. But in your civilian form, do not draw too much attention."
"Understood, sir. I will contact you when I have the masked stooges involved." Shadow said as his form shimmered and vanished from sight.
A sinister smile comes upon David's lips as he leans back on his chair.
•••
In a hospital room, Reginald 'Reggie' Talbot was sitting up in his bed when a nurse walked into the room. His face was a little banged up and he had bandages wrapped around his head.
"Mr Talbot, some detectives are here to see you." The nurse told him.
"Okay, I guess that's fine." Reggie said, sounding a bit nervous.
The nurse opens the door and lets Danny and Victor inside. Reggie sits up straight but clamps up when he sees Alec and Cassie enter right behind the detectives.
"Reggie Talbot? I'm Detective Parker and this is Detective Flores, we'd like to ask you some questions about what happened to you last night." Danny said.
Reggie looks over at Alec and Cassie. "So, why is Mr Grayson here? And who is she?"
"Mr Grayson is supervising the case on Mr Morgan's behalf." Victor explained. "And this Cassie Sinclair. She's a private investigator Mr Morgan hired to help with this investigation."
Reggie's eyes widened at hearing the name which Cassie and Danny noticed. Danny stares at him and hears what Reggie was thinking.
"Oh. Oh crap. Mike warned me about her."
"Mr Talbot, you wouldn't by any chance know who Ms Sinclair is?" Danny asked.
Reggie's eyes widened more, surprised that Danny caught that. "I may have heard some things."
Danny looks over at Cassie. "Your reputation does precede you."
Cassie smirks, then she looks at Reggie, getting straight down to business. "Those 'things' wouldn't have come from a Michael DeSanta, now would they?"
"Can't tell them I know him. He might kill me. Or she will."
Danny stares at him, waiting to hear how he plans to cover his tracks.
"He-He and I n-never re-really ran in the s-same social circles." Reggie barely managed out.
Cassie scoffs at this "Oh honey, I've been doing this long enough to know that stuttering is never a sign that someone is being truthful."
"What are you going to do? Beat the answers out of me?" Reggie said, trying to push Cassie's buttons.
"Don't tempt me." Cassie said, sounding irritated at the insinuation which the three men noticed.
"Really hoping we don't have to go that route, Mr Talbot." Victor stated, trying to settle the scene.
"And it won't help your job security if you were in some way involved with the robbery... or the murder." Alec told Reggie.
"What? Marino is dead?" Reggie reacted in horror. "He said he wouldn't hurt anyone."
Danny and Victor glare back at Alec and Cassie smacks Alec in the back of the head. Alec recoils in pain and rubs the back of his head.
"Next time, we're leaving you in the car." Cassie said in a hushed tone.
"Sorry." Alec said, sounding embarrassed.
Danny looks back to Reggie and tries to regain control of the situation. "Were you involved in the break in at the lab, Reggie?"
"No!" Reggie shouted. "Well, not really. Mike just told me what night I was working my first shift. We both live in the same building and he used to work at the lab as a janitor. Mike told me there was a job opening for a new security guard so I applied for the job."
"You and Mike are friends?" Victor asked.
"Not exactly. He hung out at this fast food joint I worked at. Helped me get the job under one condition, that I tell him what day I was going to start my first shift." Reggie explained.
"Why did he ask you that?" Victor asked him.
"He didn't really say. He just asked me then he told me never to speak of this to anyone or else." Reggie replies then he stares at Cassie. "He also told me that if I ever met you that I shouldn't say anything or you would kill me. Said you were some violent man-hating psycho."
The three look at Cassie who shrugs and says "He wasn't... totally wrong."
"Please don't say I said anything to you." Reggie pleads in a fearful tone.
"Had he threatened you directly?" Danny asked.
"Sort of but... The guy is kind of eccentric and that's putting it mildly." Reggie said. "Always talked about this chick like she was the one that got away but honestly I think he was just an obsessed celebrity stalker. Well, I'm not sure she's necessarily a celebrity but she is famous around these parts."
"Who is she?" Victor asked.
"Never said her real name but he called her 'Mockingbird'." Reggie replied. "Heard she was this costumed crime fighter back in the day, not sure."
Danny and Victor look surprised by the name while Cassie and Alec are terrified by this revelation. Especially Cassie who looked like she had seen a ghost, a dark past she had kept hidden but was going to be pulled into the light whether she liked it or not.
"Oh god, no."
Danny heard Cassie's terrified thought. It shocked him how scared she sounded. Her thoughts had been vibrant as she is but this one sounded... small. Timid. Nothing she was normally associated with. This meant something to her and he now knew it.
•••
At Artie's, Freddie and Leo sat in Cassie's favorite booth. Freddie was drumming his fingers on the table, anxious to tell his friends about his new power. He was starting to move his fingers at super speed which caught Leo's attention and he grabbed Freddie's hand to make him stop.
"What?" Freddie asked, a tad flustered.
"You were going... supersonic just then." Leo said in a hushed tone. "Lucky that this place isn't as busy as most restaurants at this time of day, otherwise someone might've seen that."
"Sorry, I'm a little jittery." Freddie told him.
"Remind me never to give you coffee. Your heart might explode, Speed Demon." Leo joked.
Freddie glares at him when Jackie Patterson walks over to the booth.
"What can I get you boys?" Jackie asked in a warm and friendly greeting.
"Just water, thanks." Leo stated. "We're waiting for our friends."
Jackie looks at Freddie who seems a bit agitated but she instantly recognizes him. "Wait, I know you. Weren't you on that show on the internet? What was it called?"
A small smile forms on Freddie's lips "iCarly?" he asked.
"Yes, my nieces and nephews used to love that show. Especially that blond girl. She was always my favorite." Jackie stated.
"Yeah, Sam was everyone's favorite." Freddie said. "Especially when she was torturing me."
"Honey, that just meant she liked you and didn't know how to express her feelings." Jackie retorts.
Freddie smirks and says. "I know that now."
Jackie glanced over at Leo and recognized him as well. "I know you, too. You were with the police inspecting the diner after Meadow Skylark was kidnapped."
"Yeah, I'm Leopold Maxwell and this is Freddie Benson but I'm guessing you know that already." Leo said which made Freddie turn red from embarrassment.
"Benson? Wait, you wouldn't happen to be Lenny Benson's little boy?" Jackie asked.
"Actually yeah. I am." Freddie replied.
"Making him Cassie Sinclair's nephew." Leo mentioned.
"I knew I recognized the last name from somewhere. Never could put my finger on it. It is a pleasure to finally meet you officially. Cassie used to bring you in when she was babysitting for Lenny and Marissa." Jackie stated. "You certainly have grown up since then."
"That tends to happen." Freddie said in a good natured manner.
"I'll get you boys your water and wait until your friends get here." Jackie stated then she headed off to the kitchen.
Leo catches a glimpse of Freddie and sees he was a bit sullen over that discussion. "Hey, Serious Brood. You okay?"
"I'm fine. It's just... kinda awkward to hear people mention my dad." Freddie said.
"Especially in front of your half brother." Leo quips to lighten the mood.
"You know that's not what I meant." Freddie said with a smirk. "I just don't remember him much. I was like two when he left my mom and me, I don't have any fond memories of him."
"Guess we're both out of luck with having father/son moments with the bio dad." Leo replied. "We both turned out fine... All things considered anyway."
Freddie raised his eyebrows. "Was that a dig at me or at yourself?"
Leo shrugs. "Little of both, I guess."
Freddie laughs as he hears the door open to see Gabe and Millie walking through. Millie was a bit frantic which fades when she sees Freddie.
"You got some explaining to do." Leo said to his brother as the two of them got up from the booth.
Millie and Gabe walk over to them. "There you are." She goes to give him a hug.
"Millie, I am so sorry for bailing like that." Freddie said as he hugged her.
Millie pulls away then hits him in the shoulder, causing him to back away in slight pain. "How dare you just disappear like that?"
"Uh-"
Before Freddie could answer, Millie grabs him again and hugs him tighter. "Oh, I'm so glad you're okay."
Freddie looks back at Leo and says softly. "So this is what it's like dating her."
"More bruises from her than from Shadow." Leo said softly.
Freddie looks over at Gabe. "Did you bring my phone?"
Gabe scoffs at this. "You expected me to bring your phone? I'm not your errand boy, would I-" Before Gabe could finish his sentence, Freddie sighs then reaches into Gabe's jacket pocket and pulls out his own phone. "How did you-"
"It pooches from your jacket." Freddie said with a smile.
"Where did you go? You went into the alley behind the rec center but we checked and you weren't there. What happened?" Millie asked.
Freddie bites his lip then sighs "I'll let you all know, we're waiting for Sam."
Gabe hears the door open and sees Sam walk in. "Speaking of the blond headed demon."
Everyone looks to see Sam enter and also that she wasn't alone as Riley enters behind her.
"She brought a friend." Leo stated.
"Do you know him?" Gabe asked Freddie.
Freddie gets a good look at Riley and shakes his head. "Never seen him before."
Millie gets a good look at Riley and smiles. "Hello, Salty Goodness." She lets slip at seeing Riley which causes the others to stare at her. Especially Leo, who seems a tad jealous. Millie smacks Leo in the arm. "Insecurity isn't sexy, for the record."
Leo then leans over and whispers in Freddie's ear "Guess showtime will have to wait."
Sam walks over and hugs then plants a quick kiss on Freddie's cheek. "Hey."
"Hey, Sam." Freddie said with a grin on his face. He straightens his shoulders and glances at Riley. "Hello."
"Hey." Riley said, feeling slightly awkward.
"Guys, this is Riley Danvers. He's one of Danny's close friends from Chicago." Sam said to introduce him. "Riley, this is Millie Flores, Leo Maxwell and Gabe Morgan." Then she looks adoringly at Freddie. "And this adorkably sweet guy is Freddie Benson."
"Nice to meet ya, Riley." Millie said sweetly.
"Thanks." Riley replied then he stares at Freddie and asks Sam. "So... this is the superpowered boyfriend?"
The rest of the group are shocked at what Riley had bluntly said with mixed reactions of surprise and sheer panic as Freddie glares at Sam.
"You told him about me?" Freddie angrily asked in a hushed tone.
"Yes, but I had a good reason for it." Sam replied.
"Oh really? What reason is that?" Freddie asked, his anger starting to boil. "And the only excuse I can accept is that he's got powers of his own."
Sam laughs a bit. "Well, it's funny you should say that, honeybee."
"I have telekinesis." Riley said frankly.
The group stares at Riley, almost analyzing the man's frame. "Seriously?" Gabe asked questioningly.
Riley looks around the restaurant and sees a salt shaker on the table Freddie and Leo were sitting at. He looked around to see if the coast was clear which it was. "Watch this."
Riley holds up his right hand and an almost transparent reddish tendril of energy wraps around the salt shaker and with one fluid motion, the salt shaker flies into his hands with a light waves of reddish energy trail behind the area it flew from which disappeared when the shaker landed in Riley's hand.
Millie and Sam stare wide eyed and Freddie and Leo are speechless over witnessing this. Only Gabe was able to speak anything by simply saying.
"Whoa!" Gabe stated, in awe of what they had seen. "That was awesome."
"Understatement." Millie said.
Riley sheepishly smiles then he tosses the shaker at Freddie which he catches with lightning fast reflexes. "Wicked catch." Riley said, surprised by the display of killer reflexes.
"Thanks." Freddie stated in a mildly stern voice but still keeping his 'nice guy' persona present in the conversation. "What did she say about me?"
Sam looks at Riley who swallowed hard, trying to stay composed in front of the surprisingly intimidating younger man standing in front of him.
"She- uh- she just told me you had powers. She didn't really give me any details." Riley told Freddie.
Freddie then puts on a mischievous but good natured smile on his face "Then I have something to show you." He looks at his friends and Sam. "In fact, there's something you all need to see. Come on."
Just as they make their way out, Jackie Patterson walks back to the booth with two glasses of water. "Leaving already? You haven't even ordered yet."
"Oh don't worry, Mrs Patterson, we'll be back." Freddie reassured her. "We're just going out to get some air."
"Oh, I hope 'air' ain't code for smoking marijuana in the parking lot because I have your aunt on speed dial." Jackie scolded.
"Oh no. If we even considered that, Cassie would literally kill us." Leo stated. "And not in a conversational manner, I'm talking Vlad the Impaler style to set an example."
"Wouldn't expect anything less from that girl." Jackie stated as the others waited outside with only Freddie and Leo remaining before they went out. "Y'all better hurry back."
"Oh we will." Freddie said as they walked out. "We'll be back in a flash."
Leo groans with irritation as he lightly pushes him out the door.
The group goes to an empty back alley as Freddie and Leo quickly make their way over to them. "Coast clear?"
"We checked and double checked." Gabe stated.
"So, is this the reason why you disappeared earlier today?" Millie asked Freddie, with intrigue on her mind.
"Something like that." Freddie said with a smirk on his lips. "Ready?"
"Benson, just show us. It's not like it's nothing we haven't seen before." Gabe teased.
"Not like this." Freddie said amused.
In a flash of blue lightning, Freddie takes off running at supersonic speed which kicks up a huge gust of wind. Millie gasps in surprise and Sam's mouth hangs open in wonder while Riley is just astonished by the sight of this.
Leo just grins as Gabe pumps his fist in the air and yells "I knew it! I totally called it!"
In another moment, Freddie zooms back to where his friends were standing. "So, what do you guys think?"
"Wow, that was amazing!" Riley exclaimed. "You're like the Flash! Or Quicksilver!"
"So… what would that make you? Scarlet Witch?" Gabe quips which is met with an eye roll from Millie.
"In this case, it'd be Crimson Warlock." Sam said, sticking up for Riley.
"Feel good to get that off your chest?" Leo asked his brother as he pats him on the back.
Freddie nods "Oh yeah."
"Wait, you knew?" Millie asked Leo.
"He showed me first. Wanted to be the show off little brother." Leo said in a joking tone.
"Once I found out, I spent fifteen minutes learning to use it." Freddie told his friends. "Kinda had some collisions while trying to learn to stop."
"Did you know he could do that?" Riley asked Sam. "You said he had powers but he looks like he's just learning about this. He literally spent a short amount of time trying to master this."
Sam stares at Freddie while the others start to panic. Freddie bites his lip then exhales. "Do you think we can trust him?" He asked his girlfriend.
Sam glances at Riley who is busy trying to put facts together. "Think so. He and I have an... understanding. Don't we, Chestnut?"
Riley clears his throat and nods. "You can trust me. I promise."
Freddie stares at the others who simply wait for him to open the can of worms. He walks forward and extends his hand. "Watch this." A moderately sized ball of electrical energy forms above his palm and his hand swirls with electricity.
A startled Riley recoils in surprise as he takes all this in. Freddie closes his hand and energy dissipates, flowing back into his body.
"Okay, I'll take it back. THAT was amazing." Riley said excitedly.
Freddie smiles at this moment of peace as the group goes back to the diner.
•••
Outside of a rundown apartment building, a SWAT vehicle was parked outside as well as Danny's car and Black Beauty. Cassie was pacing outside the building with Alec leaning on her car. She was rubbing the back of her neck to alleviate her anxiety which Alec could see.
"Trevor isn't going to get away with this. You know that, right?" Alec said.
"Yeah, he's going to get tossed back into the system that created him in the first place." Cassie said bluntly. "No, wait. Scratch that, I somehow managed to create that monster because he's obsessed with Mockingbird. Ergo, Marino's death is on me but, hey, what else is new, right?"
Alec tries to calm her down. "Sand-"
"Just the walking disaster who only brings death and destruction in her wake." Cassie said, holding back her emotions.
"It wasn't your fault. You couldn't have known that Wesker was going to do anything like this." Alec assured her. "God only knows what he'll do with the Heatwave gun."
Cassie rubs her eyes. "That last bit isn't filling me with confidence, Al."
Alec sighs then gives her a warm friendly hug. Cassie hugs him back then pulls away. "I think you need to take your mind off all this."
Cassie then smiles and raises an eyebrow. "Fine. How are things going with Jake?"
Alec gulps and stammers. "We should go see what they're doing."
"Al… you aren't gonna change the subject. You haven't told me about what's going with you two." Cassie said. "Please?"
Alec smiles at her. "If you must know… we've been doing great. I've even spent a lot of time over at his place."
"Wow, look at you. Having a sleepover with your boy." Cassie said happily.
"Well, we haven't slept together in the same bed. I mostly crash on his couch." Alec said.
"Why not?" Cassie asked.
"Because I didn't want to take advantage of him." Alec told her. "He's the purest thing in my life right now. I don't want to taint him."
"Alec, I'm gonna tell you right now, you won't taint him. Right now, he's exactly what you need." Cassie replied.
"Just like how Danny is what you need." Aled said.
"Stop it!" Cassie ordered which made Alec laugh.
Just then, Danny and Victor make their way over to the two of them. Cassie's attention is refocused back to the task at hand. "What happened? Did you find anything?" She asked.
"The CSU is starting to look through it. The bomb squad just finished defusing the bomb Wesker left in his apartment." Victor said. "It was a small device but if it had gone off, it would have caused some damage."
"Good thing you told us about his history of arson crimes." Danny replied. "If we had just gone straight into the building, we all would've been blown to kingdom come."
"Well, Trevor had the tendency to burn things." Cassie said, trying to downplay her cleverness. "I only hope we can find him before he hurts anyone else."
"We're going to take a look inside if you'd care to join us." Danny said.
"Let's hit it." Cassie said then she looked at Alec "Al, you coming?"
"Uh no, I have to check in with Mr Morgan. He told me he wants to be informed." Alec told her which made Victor roll his eyes. "You go, find something that can bust Wesker. Faster we find him, the faster-"
"I can give him a scar to match the one I already gave him." Cassie said confidently.
"Not in those terms but... yeah." Alec said.
Cassie smiles as she follows Danny and Victor into the building.
Alec feels his phone vibrates and sees he has a text message from Jake that reads: 'Just got off work. Heading off for my last shift.'
Alec texts back 'You nervous?'
He quickly gets a response from Jake, reading: 'A little. Adding insult to injury, I have to close tonight'.
Alec smiles and tells him 'I'll be there to pick you up as soon as your shift ends'.
Meanwhile, the trio heads up as Danny stares at Cassie, sensing her unease despite her hiding it well. "You sure you're up for it?" He asked.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Cassie asked.
"Just seems like this guy has you spooked. Never seen you like this." Danny comments.
Cassie scoffs at this. "I'm not spooked, just... cautious. Guy's got a wrap sheet."
"So do Raina Tran and the Barracuda. Let's not forget Vaughn Mallory who I was told you managed to put in the hospital." Danny points out.
"And your point?" Cassie said, trying to dodge the questioning.
"Why does this guy have you so on edge? Not even Shadow had you like this and he had actual superpowers." Danny stated.
"It's... complicated." Cassie said.
Danny stares at her then hears another one of her thoughts.
"If you only knew how much, Danny."
"How complicated could it be?" Danny asked, almost like he was questioning her thought.
Cassie stops and turns to look at him. "You trying to get inside my head, Detective?"
The question caught Danny off guard but Victor also looks at his partner quite puzzled until they reach a hallway that was blocked off by police tape which the three walk past. They walk towards an apartment that's door was jarred open inwardly and has a line of police tape across the door frame.
They walk inside the apartment and find the CSI team doing an inspection of the place. Nina, the head of the team, was standing in front of the sink inside the kitchen area. She looks over and sees the detectives as well as Cassie who she smiles at.
"It's good to see you, Cassie." Nina greeted her.
"Likewise, Nina. Unfortunately it's not under great circumstances yet again" Cassie stated while she and the detectives put on latex gloves to not risk contaminating the crime scene. "Maybe we need to go out for a drink sometime. We need to socialize when it's not 'work related'."
"That'd be nice." Nina said with a smile but then got down to business. "Thanks to both Mr Maxwell's and Cassie's expertise, I can definitely determine that Trevor Wesker is behind the theft at the laboratory. His fingerprints are all over the place and I'm willing to bet that his prints matched those found at the lab."
"And I'm willing to bet that those prints are in the system. If Wesker pops up again, we can start tracking his movements." Victor stated.
Cassie looks around the apartment and sees how disorganized it was: dirty clothes scattered around, take-out containers with half eaten and some cases moldy food on a coffee table in the middle of the living room.
"Clearly he doesn't have time to clean up after himself." Cassie comments.
Danny walks over to the closet where the makeshift shrine was and opens the door. "Take a look at this."
Victor, Cassie and Nina go over to where Danny was and look inside the shrine. Their reactions are that of bewilderment to utter terror. Mostly from Cassie.
"This guy is clearly obsessed with this woman." Victor said.
"I think 'obsessed' is putting it mildly, Victor." Nina said.
"He can be reasoned with, right?"
Danny looks over at Cassie who he hears internally panic inside her own mind.
"What am I supposed to do?"
Her thoughts were moving rapid fire, faster than he could process them and it caused him to grab his left temple with mild discomfort. This makes Victor and Cassie very nervous.
"Danny? What's wrong?" Cassie said, turning to face him and resting her hand on his shoulder. "You okay?"
Danny nods. "Yeah, it's just another headache. I'm fine."
Cassie accepts his answer then turns to see a door down a hallway. "Hey, has that room been examined?"
"We've tried to get it open but it seems Mr Wesker must've locked it from the inside." Nina said as Cassie walked down the hall and stood in front of the door.
Cassie turns her head toward Danny and Victor then gives them a look that reads 'May I?' The two detectives nonverbally give their permission and with one swift motion, Cassie kicks the door open.
Nina was caught by surprise due to Cassie's display of brute strength. "Good lord!"
Cassie looks back at the three. "Brute force, world's greatest skeleton key. Shall we?"
Danny and Victor stare at her, amused by Cassie's slightly uncouth charm, then the four of them walk into the boarded up room. What they saw inside chilled Cassie to the bone.
The room was an even bigger shrine to Mockingbird: crudely drawn pictures of her that looked like they were drawn on makeshift paper and the quality of the drawings improves with the paper quality. There were unlit candles scattered around the room, several of them shaped in a heart around some kind of mannequin that was dressed in an outfit similar to Mockingbird including a mask and in a blond wig.
"This is definitely worse than that shrine in the closet." Victor stated.
Cassie walks over to the mannequin and stares at it. There was a pain in her chest, like someone was stomping on it repeatedly.
Danny notices this and walks towards her. "You need some air?"
Cassie shakes her head in refusal. "I'm fine. We just need to catalog this. At least now we know why he might be doing this."
Danny didn't buy that she was fine but he knew it wasn't the right time to call her on it. "Why don't I get you out of here? Let Nina and her team start their work."
Cassie nods then she follows him out of the room. Nina motions for the rest of the CSIs to get in and Victor stands by and lets them work.
As Cassie and Danny step out of the room, a young woman walks past the police tape and sees the police raiding the place. She had long brown hair and dark brown eyes, her clothes were messy and worn out. Like it came from a thrift store.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing in my brother's apartment?" The woman asked.
Cassie recognized the woman as Trevor's younger sister. "You're Trevor's sister, Tammy, right?"
Tammy stares at Cassie then realizes who she is. "And you're the psychotic redhead who beat the crap out of Trevor in juvie."
Cassie scoffs. "What did he tell you? Figure he'd give you only one side of the story."
"Miss, I'm Detective Daniel Parker and we're here conducting an investigation." Danny said, trying to calm the situation before it got more hostile. "We have reason to believe that you're brother was involved in a break in and murder at a tech lab."
"Oh god, he did it. He actually did it."
Danny stares at Tammy, trying to ignore the voice he heard. "D-did you have any idea he was planning this?"
"Maybe. He usually talks about this kind of stuff but he's all talk." Tammy stated.
"Has he ever talked to you about someone he calls... Mockingbird?" Cassie asked.
"Crap, this about his insane obsession with that bitch?"
Danny couldn't believe what he was hearing but he knew no one would believe him if he said that he heard it from her thoughts.
Tammy glares at Cassie and she looks at Danny. "Why is she here anyway? Last I heard, she's not a cop."
"She was hired to investigate this crime by the owner of the lab. Ms Sinclair's helping us with this investigation." Danny stated. "Can you please tell us where we can find your brother? It's a matter of life and death."
Tammy stares at the two and she knew Trevor was in serious trouble. "I-I don't know where he is but... I can help you find him."
Danny and Cassie stare at each other then look back at Tammy.
•••
Back at Arnie's, the group of six was sitting in Cassie's booth. There were a few empty plates on the table as they had all just finished eating. They were in the midst of a conversation and laughing at something. Freddie had his arm around Sam while Millie rested her head on Leo's shoulder. Gabe sat next to Riley who was still in awe over what he saw that day.
"So, you had him by his ankles hanging from the edge of a building and he still wouldn't talk?" Riley asked, laughing at this.
"Pretty much, it wasn't until I let go of one of his ankles that he started talking." Freddie said, bragging about one his superheroic exploits.
"For the record, you got that from me, Fred Zappa." Leo said, trying to deflate his little brother's ego.
"Ooooo, nice one." Sam said, complimenting the nickname.
"Wait, you're a crime fighter too? You got any powers of your own?" Riley asked quietly.
"Not exactly. My weapon of choice is more of the... archery variety." Leo replied.
Riley gives him a puzzled look. "Wait a sec? You're the Fox?"
Leo picks up a toothpick from the table then sees a piece of crust from a sandwich. With a simple flick of his fingers, he sends the toothpick flying at the crust and hits it dead center. "You tell me?"
Gabe just smirks while sipping his drink. "Show off."
"So, you're the Fox?" Riley said in a hushed tone looking at Leo then he looked at Freddie. "And you're Pulse?"
Both crime fighters simply nod.
Riley glances at the other three at the table. "What about you guys? Are you all like their sidekicks or something?"
The three scoff at this which makes the two crime fighters scowl at them.
"Nope, but we do have our own particular set of skills to contribute." Sam said.
"Foxxy Cleopatra over here has his own slightly goth tech girl on his side." Gabe stated.
"Yeah, I'll be sure to tell Claud you used the term 'goth'." Leo said with a laugh.
Gave glares at him then turns back to Riley. "Anyway... I myself am the genius hacker and brains behind Pulse's tech." He gloated, which made Millie roll her eyes. "Millie is our resident nurse and Sam is like our secondary muscle in case our resident enforcer is out of commission."
Riley stared at Sam. "You?"
"Would you like a demonstration?" Sam said with a stare that could turn a man to stone.
"Take it from experience, you would not like that." Freddie comments with a grimace.
Riley clears his throat. "Okay… So who's the official resident muscle?" Riley then remembers something. "It's not that redhead you were talking around with at the precinct, was it Sam?" The others were amused at what he didn't know and this made Riley a bit nervous. "You guys aren't- She's tiny. She's like what, 5'3?"
"5'4 actually. 5'5 in heels." Millie informs Riley. "But don't let that fool you, Cassie is a powerhouse."
"We've sparred with her and, believe me, the woman hits like a tank." Leo said as Freddie nodded in agreement.
A still skeptical Riley scoffs. "Please, how tough can she be?"
"She did go all Black Widow on like five massive thugs who attacked the policemen's masquerade ball." Millie said.
"Yeah, she single handedly kicked the crap out of all of them in like a fraction of a minute." Gabe stated. "I literally saw it happen and it was glorious."
"Wait a sec." Riley pulls out his phone and shows them a video from Splashface. "This it?"
The group stares at the video for a moment then they confirm it was Cassie beating up Bast's hired goons at the masquerade ball.
"That's insane!" Riley looks back at the video "This has two million views, does she know that?"
"Oh, she's painfully aware of it." Gabe said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "She spent three days trying to get me to take it down until she just caved and let the video stay up."
"Think she was actually trending, right?" Millie asked the guys and Sam.
"Oh yeah, I think she had the hashtag 'Real Life Black Widow' on Twitter." Sam retorts.
"Remind me never to make her angry, then." Riley stated in a terrified voice, still looking at the video.
"Don't worry, she's one of the good guys. She doesn't attack people unless they have it coming." Freddie explained.
"Or if someone REALLY pisses her off." Leo points out.
"That too." Freddie retorts.
"So, um... does Danny know about this?" Riley asked.
The laughter and chatter died down as soon as that question was asked. Freddie and Leo stare at each other then at their significant others.
Freddie becomes grim. "No, and to be frank, we'd like to keep it that way."
"Why? Danny's a good guy. I'm sure he'd understand." Riley said.
Millie spoke up to mellow the situation. "We're not saying he's not a good guy but..."
"He and Millie's dad are part of the task force meant to bring down crime fighting vigilantes like them." Sam said honestly, not beating around the bush. "Danny even has a board in his bedroom where he takes down notes on Pulse."
"Like an investigation board?" Riley asked.
"Is that what that's called?" Sam asked, mildly amused. "Thought that was called like a board of mystery."
"The point is that Danny can't know what we're doing because if he or anyone who can hurt us finds out, we are all gonna pay." Freddie said frankly. "Think you can keep a secret?"
Riley exhales then he glances over at Sam who smiles at him. He then looks at Freddie. "Look, I don't like lying to Danny… but this is important. I promise to keep it a secret."
"Thank you." Freddie said with polite sincerity.
"This is seriously like the WORST kept secret ever." Gabe quips.
Sam looks at Freddie. "May I please hit him?"
"Sam." Freddie said assertively.
The rest of the table laughs at this when Jackie comes over to the table. "Can I get y'all anything else?" she asked.
"Just the check please, thank you." Leo said politely.
Jackie nods then goes to the register to work out how much they owe. At that moment someone enters the diner - it was David Morgan's courier Gabe had met, Clement Lehane. He was wearing a black concert T-shirt of the band The Misfits, a tight black leather jacket, black pants and biker boots. He walks over to the booth in front of the cashier register where Jackie was.
Jackie looks up and sees the young man. "Yes, how can I help you?"
"Can I get a menu, please?" Clem asked politely.
Jackie nods and smiles then hands him a menu. "Let me know when you're ready to order, sweetheart."
"Thank you." Clem said as he took the menu from her. As she continues trying to work on the check, Clem looks around then sees Gabe with his friends and smirks.
Back at the table, Gabe and Leo are trying to settle who is paying the check.
"Don't worry, Gatsby. I got it." Leo assured Gabe.
"You sure? I wouldn't mind paying." Gabe said.
"Let him pay, Morgan. I'm sure your dad wouldn't like you throwing your trust fund around willy nilly."
The group looks to where the voice came from and finds Clem standing in front of the booth. Gabe recognizes Clem and groans. "Clem, what do I owe the pleasure?" Gabe said sarcastically.
"Ooo, me thinks you aren't happy to see me?" Clem asked with his own biting sarcasm.
"Gee, how'd you discern that?" Gabe returns the spiteful attitude.
Clem gives a once over at the group sitting at the booth then looks to Gabe. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?"
Gabe resigned to this task. "Guys, this is Clement Lehane. He's a courier for my dad at Morgan Innovations. Clem, these are my friends whose names you haven't earned the right to know."
Sam groans then extends her hand to make introductions herself starting with Leo then working her way around. "Leo Maxwell, Millie Flores, Freddie Benson, Riley Danvers and I am Sam Puckett. Was that so hard, Moneybags?"
"Kinda didn't want him to know your names." Gabe spoke up.
Sam raised her eyebrows. "Do I look like I care?"
Gabe groans in annoyance.
"Nice to meet you guys." Clem responded positively, which rubbed Gabe the wrong way. "So, how much do you pay them to hangout with you?"
Sam scoffs at this while Millie bites her bottom lip to stifle her laughter.
"Don't need to pay them anything." Gabe said bitterly. "Unlike you, they actually like me. I don't see you with anyone so who's more friendless?"
"At least I can actually keep a friend." Clem said snarkily. He then gets a good look at Freddie and grins. "So, you're the infamous Freddie Benson. I've heard a lot about you."
Freddie has a puzzled expression on his face. "Why, what have you heard?"
"You were the technical producer on iCarly, right? A lot of kids at my school used to watch that show." Clem stated which made Freddie and Sam smile. "I didn't particularly care for it though. The humor on it was just... juvenile."
Freddie's face falls and Sam notices, causing her to go on the defensive. "Hey Clementine, we made that show when we started high school meaning we were just kids."
"Oh I didn't mean it like that. I didn't say it was awful. It just wasn't my cup of tea." Clem said, putting his arms up in defense. "You guys won quite a few awards, right? So you must have done something right, no?"
"And Freddie did his fair share of stuff for the show." Sam stated. "He may have not had the on camera talent-"
"Not building up the confidence, sweetie." Freddie said, slightly embarrassed.
"Then let me finish, Freddiver." Sam bluntly said which made Freddie quiet down. "The point is that Freddie helped in other ways. He made sure the show ran on schedule, brought some crazy techie magic when we were stuck for ideas and he always did his best for the show and for me and Carly. We couldn't have done it without him."
Freddie blushes at this. My, how times have changed. "You aren't just saying that-"
"Because you're my boyfriend?" Sam finished. "A little but you did do a lot for the show and I wish I had said it sooner when we were younger."
"Thanks." Freddie said. He then looks at Clem. "So, do you go to school?"
"Not really. I'm kinda taking a break from school for a while." Clem told him. "My job keeps me very busy."
"Please, how stressful could it be?" Gabe said snidely.
Clem smirks. "Lot more than you might think, Gabriella." He looked around the table at the group and said "I'll be seeing ya." With that he walks to a different booth across the diner.
"Well, he seems... pleasant." Millie spoke up.
"About as pleasant as sandpaper underpants." Gabe said sarcastically.
Before another word could be said, Jackie returns to the table and places the check on the table. "There you go. Hope you guys come back anytime you want."
"Sure will, might even be our new place to hang out." Freddie said with a cheerful demeanor.
Jackie just shakes her head "You are as sweet as your aunt, you know that?"
"Thinking sweet isn't a word you stress when most describe Cassie." Gabe retorts.
"Oh, she is a firecracker. Has a tendency to get herself into trouble but she sure does mean well." Jackie stated. "Girl has the heart of a lion. Protect people she cares about no matter what."
"We're all aware of her awesomeness." Millie said with a smile.
Jackie beams then she walks to take Clem's order at the booth he was sitting at.
"Think we should go." Freddie said as the others agreed and got up from the booth.
Gabe looks at the check then he pulls out his wallet and pulls out a crisp one hundred dollar bill. He places it where the check was.
"Hundred bucks? That's a bit much, don't you think?" Leo said.
"If you want to one-up me, Leopold, be my guest." Gabe said.
Leo countered by pulling out his own wallet and putting a hundred of his own. "Not trying to top you but just being generous."
"Come on. Let's get you out of here before you decide to buy her a fleet of cars." Millie said as she grabbed her boyfriend and her best friend by the arms.
"So, where are we off to next?" Riley asked while they made their way out of the diner. "Feeling a little antsy with all this stuff."
"Well, seeing as how you know our secret, might as well as take you to our secret lair." Freddie said.
"Wait, you guys have a Batcave?" Riley asked in surprise.
"We affectionately call it the Pulse Cave." Millie said.
"Regrettably so." Gabe said which makes Millie smack him in the back of the head. "Ah! Would you stop doing that?"
"Would you rather I do it?" Sam asked in a mildly menacing tone.
Gabe stares at her horrified. "Tempting but I prefer my internal organs to stay that way."
"You really are a genius." Sam said as the others are amused by this and leave the diner while Clem watches.
•••
At the precinct, Danny and Victor were questioning Trevor Wesker's sister Tammy with Cassie standing in the corner of the interrogation room.
"Does she really have to be in here?" Tammy asked, very irritated.
"She is a part of this investigation, Ms Wesker. Meaning she will be present at any witness questioning and interrogations." Danny told her.
"Wonder how long that's gonna last?"
Danny looks over at Cassie who's stray thought he had just heard.
"When was the last time you saw your brother?" Victor asked.
"Um...two nights ago. He came to visit my apartment." Tammy said nervously while rubbing her left wrist. "I was out of town on… business and when I got home, he just showed up out of the blue."
"Why did he come see you?" Danny asked.
"Does he need a reason to visit his little sister?" Tammy asked angrily. She rubs her wrist and winces which Cassie notices more and more.
"There had to be something to compel him to visit you a few days before the robbery." Victor stated.
"Because I obviously knew he was going to do this? Trev's right, cops are useless."
Danny stares at Tammy after hearing what she was thinking. "Ms Wesker, as useless as you think law enforcement is, we are trying to prevent your brother from hurting anyone else. Some of us aren't as biased as most people think."
Tammy stares at him surprised then she focuses on Cassie. "What about you, Psycho Barbie? You think I'm guilty?"
Cassie starts moving over to the table closer to Tammy. She motions to Danny and Victor. "Give me a minute alone with her."
Danny and Victor seem shocked by this and Victor spoke up first. "I don't think that would be a good idea."
"I'm not going to hurt her. I just want to talk to her." Cassie assured them.
"You are seriously not leaving alone with this lunatic." Tammy spat.
Danny glances at Tammy but he looks at Victor. "Think she might be able to get some answers."
"Fine, but we will be close." Victor told Cassie.
Cassie nods and the two detectives leave the room. She then takes the chair in front of Tammy who won't make eye contact with her and continues rubbing her wrist.
Danny and Victor enter the room next to the interrogation room, concealed by the one way glass window where Alec was standing.
"Do you actually trust her being alone with Tammy?" Alec asked.
Danny smiles. "I have confidence she'll conduct herself with some professionalism."
Alec smirks. "Then you obviously don't know her at all, Detective."
"I'm not telling you anything." Tammy is heard saying to Cassie.
"Why? Is it because you think I'm going to hurt you?" Cassie asked. "Because that's what your brother told you?"
Tammy bites her bottom lip and Danny hears another thought from Tammy.
"How does she- Well, not like Trevor isn't above lying to me."
"I was there when they had to put those stitches on his forehead." Tammy said in a spiteful manner. "Think I'll forget about that?"
Cassie lets out a deep breath then speaks "Listen, you may not like me but right now, I am your best friend here. If they find Trevor, you and I both know he's not going to come quietly. He is going to try to go down in a blaze of glory and take several people with him."
Tammy rubs her wrist again and grimaces which the men behind the glass window see. However, so does Cassie.
"But maybe I'm starting to think that wouldn't be such a bad thing." Cassie said then she grabs the aforementioned wrist and roughly lifts up the sleeve to reveal that it was badly bruised. "Because he wouldn't do that to you again if he were gone."
The men are shocked Cassie was able to spot this without saying a word to her before they got into the room.
Tammy tries to push Cassie away but Cassie refuses to let go. Her grasp is almost vice-like. "Get off, you bi-"
"Please don't finish that sentence otherwise you will meet the woman who gave your brother that scar." Cassie said, angrily gritting her teeth.
Tammy looks into Cassie's eyes and realizes she meant what she said. She nods and Cassie lets go of her arm which Tammy rubs in feeling mild discomfort.
Once everything had calmed down, Cassie finally spoke. "He did that to you, didn't he?"
Tammy stares at Cassie, tears streaming down her face. "The night he came over... I saw he was carrying a gun. He said he had a job. I knew that meant he was going to do something that could get someone killed. I tried to reason with him, thinking if I talked him out of it that he wouldn't do it. Then I got really pissed off, and said he was only doing this to impress his imaginary girlfriend." She started having trouble finding words through her sobs. "Then- he- he-"
"Then he hurt you." Cassie said, sounding remorseful.
Tammy regains composure and wipes her tears. "Trevor grabbed my wrist and twisted it back so hard that he nearly broke it. Then he pointed his gun in my face, saying if I ever disrespected her again that he'd kill me."
Cassie stares at her then swallows hard. "I'm not going to say your brother didn't have it coming when I wailed on him when we were in juvie but the fact of the matter is that he's dangerous and now has his hands on something that makes him even more so." She scoots her chair next to Tammy, putting her hand on her shoulder. "Trevor needs help and can guarantee you that he can be brought in without any bloodshed. You just need to help us find him."
Tammy nods and says "I don't know where he is now... but I can tell you where he might be. He's always at this bar called The Roughneck. If he's laying low, it's the first place he'll go."
"Thank you." Cassie stated and she got up from her chair and went to walk out the door.
Danny then hears another one of Tammy's thoughts and does not like what he heard.
"Really hope she bought the sob story."
"Tammy." Cassie spoke up sternly which startled Tammy. She turns her head to face her. "If this is in any way some kind of trap, I'll give you more than just a scar to match his."
Tammy swallows hard as Cassie walks out of the room and slams the door shut.
•••
"How did you know she was lying?"
Cassie, Danny, Victor and Alec walk down the hallway of the precinct with Cassie leading the way. She looks back at Danny who had asked her the question. "Her eyes."
Alec raises an eyebrow. "Come again?"
"When she was crying, her eyes were twitching." Cassie stated. "Like she was squinting and-"
"Trying to make real tears come out." Danny realizes.
"Some of those were real but I'm betting it's from the pain of squeezing her bruised wrist." Cassie said. "And I'll bet money that Trevor did that so she could use it to help herself be more... convincing."
Danny then hears one of Cassie's thoughts and starts to smile.
"And the crowd goes wild. Oh yeah, I am that good."
"Nicely done, Sinclair." Danny said.
Cassie seems a bit thrown by the compliment but then she plays it off. "I'm sure you boys could've figured it out on your own... Well, not as fast as me, of course. Besides, we shouldn't congratulate ourselves just yet. Once we catch Wesker, that is when we party."
Danny couldn't help but smile at her but also couldn't ignore that her charm was just masking something else.
"So what do you think we should do?" Victor asked Cassie.
"We put a tail on Tammy, see if she leads us to her brother or at least some kind of clue where we can find him." Cassie said.
"Is there any way we can bug her cellphone? Use her phone calls to find him?" Alec asked.
"You'd have to get her to give up her phone willingly and she has major trust issues with cops and her own hatred towards Cassie so she won't be giving up that phone easily if at all." Danny said.
"He's not wrong." Cassie said which surprised the men.
"I'm not?" Danny asked perplexed.
"Nope. We need to look for other ways to get her to lead us to Trevor." Cassie said. "I say we go talk to the boys at the Roughneck. Sure they'd be more than happy to talk."
"I've heard of that place. A lot of people with incredibly questionable morals frequent there." Victor said. "Might not be a good idea for two cops to walk in there and start asking questions."
"True but it won't be two cops going in there." Cassie said with a smirk. "But we'll have to run it past your boss first."
Alec takes a look at her face and becomes flush with panic "That's your idea face. Nothing good comes after your idea face!"
Danny also was anxious over Cassie's expression, he's experienced firsthand what happens when Cassie has an idea.
•••
Inside the warehouse the Pulse Cave calls home, the gang enters with Riley close behind them. Riley looks around the space and sees the condition of the warehouse. He seems unimpressed.
"So… THIS is your secret lair?" Riley asked.
"Yes and no." Freddie stated.
"Like every good secret base, this is just the front for it." Gabe said in a slightly snarky tone.
Riley leans over to Sam "Does he always talk like he's the love child of Tony Stark?"
"Since the day I met him." Sam said right back to him.
Gabe rolls his eyes as Freddie, Millie and Leo hold back their laughter.
"Anyway..." Freddie spoke up, then pointed to the door leading to the Pulse Cave. "Through that door is... Well, you know."
Riley steps closer to the door and sees it looks unremarkable "If this is just a broom closet, I'm out of here."
Freddie just smiles then steps over to the door and opens what looks like a fuse box only to reveal a high tech computer screen. He touches the screen which causes it to light up with a numeric keypad appearing on the screen with the numbers one through nine.
Riley watches closely as Freddie pushes the numbers 1-0-5-4 which unlocks the door to the Cave. He opens the door to let everyone in. "After you."
Riley slowly steps inside and continues to make his way down the stairs until he reaches the bottom. "It's a little dark in-"
Faster than he can react, someone grabs Riley by the shirt collar and slams him against a wall. He gets a good look at who grabbed him and sees it was Claud whose eyes were pitch black and she lets out a high pitched shriek.
Suddenly, with a flick of his wrists, a wave of crimson energy hurls Claud back. She gets back to her feet and looks up to see Riley in a fighting stance, his hands having crimson energy swirling around them.
"You're gonna pay for that!" Claud growls.
"I'm kind of a little scared to come up with a witty retort so I'll just do this." Riley said then he throws a small orb of energy that hits Claud in the stomach and sends her falling and rolling on the ground.
Claud shrieks then pops her talons out which causes Riley to panic.
"Not good." Riley said.
Before Claud could make her way over to tear his eyes out, the rest of the lights come on and Leo runs over to put himself in front of Riley to protect him with the rest of the gang following after him. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down, Moon. He's a friendly."
Claud's eyes go back to normal as she slowly starts to simmer down and retracts her talons.
"Dude, you okay?" Sam asked Riley, genuinely concerned about him.
"Well apart from having Birdgirl nearly tearing out my eyes, I'm just the cat's pajamas." Riley said. Off their puzzled looks, he states. "It was the first thing that popped into my head and considering that I almost died, I did pretty well."
The rest of the group was amused by his panicked state.
"Who's the pretty boy?" Claud asked, confused.
"This is Riley Danvers. He's a childhood friend of Danny's from Chicago." Sam explained.
"Riley, this is my very good friend Claudia Moon but everybody calls her Claud." Leo said to introduce his friend.
"Um... all things considered, it's nice to meet you, Claud." Riley stammers out, extending his arm for a handshake.
Claud manages a smile then shakes his hand. "You too, TicTac." He looks back at the others. "So, he knows?"
"Well we don't just let perfect strangers in here, now do we?" Gabe stated only for Claud to glare at him with her jet black hybrid eyes. His eyes widened in horror. "Pants to be darkened."
"Before this turns into a beatdown, can I ask what you're doing in here?" Freddie asked. "Not that you aren't allowed in here when you want to because you're our friend and it's totally fine but... who let you in?"
Before Claud could answer, a figure jumps from the rafters of the hideout and everyone tenses up and Freddie and Leo get into a fighting stance, Freddie's hands glowing with electricity. Riley's hands glow with his red telekinetic energy and Sam whips out her buttersock while Millie hides behind Gabe who instinctively places himself in front of her. Claud does nothing and simply smiles as the figure is revealed to be Galen who is holding a grocery bag in his left hand.
"Jumpy, aren't we?" Galen said with a grin.
"Sorry, can't be too careful." Freddie apologized as his energy dissipated and returned into his body.
"Perfectly understandable. Cassie taught you right." Galen said with a nod. He glances at the room and notices the number of people in the room. "It looks like a party here."
"Wouldn't call it a party exactly." Leo retorts.
"You let Claud in?" Gabe asked.
"We were both in here. Her training is getting a little too intense to hide in the Centre so I'm going to continue our training in the dojo." Galen told them. "I just went to the store to pick up some first aid supplies to help restock the cabinet." He then looks over at Riley a bit surprised. "And you are?"
"I'm Riley..." Riley clears his throat due to his nerves of being intimidated by Galen's presence. "Riley Danvers. I'm a friend of Danny's from Chicago."
Galen smiles and puts a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Good to meet you."
"This tall, dark and mildly terrifying individual is my cousin Galen Lennox." Sam said.
"I-I didn't even know Danny had a cousin." Riley replied, struggling to keep his composure around Galen's intimidating presence.
"He just found out about me." Galen stated. "It is actually an interesting story if you're willing to hear it."
"Maybe later." Riley stammered.
"It's cool, Chestnut. He may look like a scary dude but he's a total puppy dog once you get to know him." Sam reassured Riley.
"But he will still slip back into a scary guard dog whenever he needs to." Gabe retorts. Galen turns his head to scowl at him and a low growl is heard which makes Riley take a step back.
"Dude, you need to stop pissing off the hybrids." Leo joked.
"I seem to have a habit of doing that." Gabe uttered in a deadpan tone.
"What are hybrids?" Riley asked, slightly perplexed. "I know about hybrid cars but-"
"Claud and I are humans who have had our DNA spliced with animal DNA." Galen explained to Riley. "I'm spliced with timber wolf DNA and Claud is spliced with a barn owl."
"And who did that to you?" Riley asked. "I mean, if you wanted to have this done-"
"We didn't, trust me." Claud spoke up. "This whack job geneticist did this to me and Larry Talbot over here."
"Are there other... hybrids out there?" Riley asked.
"A handful but most of them are more animal than human. A lot of them are deformed beyond recognition." Galen stated with sadness in his voice. "I had to watch a lot of good people suffer at her hand. Kind of tough to sleep most nights."
"Would it be out of line to say that I sympathize with you?" Riley asked, watching his words carefully.
Galen smiles "Not at all. Thank you."
Riley exhales a sigh of relief as he looks around at the now brightly lit room. He sees the newly updated computer hub, the display case that had Freddie's Pulse suit inside as well as the dojo that's door was open ajar and the salmon ladder.
"This is all kinds of awesome." Riley said. He then walks over to the salmon ladder and asks. "What's that thing?"
Millie looks up at the piece of equipment and stares at it with a look of whimsy and moderate arousal. "A distraction."
Leo leans up to Freddie and whispers "Who has she seen use that?"
Freddie motions with his head to point at Galen. Leo nods, understanding that Galen was a physically well built individual with a hint of jealousy that his girlfriend had seen him shirtless.
"It's actually called a salmon ladder. You use that pole beside it to go up each section of ladder." Freddie said, walking up to the ladder and picking up the pole.
"Why don't you demonstrate for us?" Sam said with a devilish grin on her face.
Millie scoffs "You just want to see Freddie's muscles on full display?"
"That is... Completely true." Sam admitted, her cheeks turning red.
"Least she's willing to admit it." Claud replied, which made Gabe snicker.
Freddie proceeds to take off his jacket, his tight long sleeved black V-neck shirt unable to hide his defined chest and biceps with its slightly bulky sleeves. "So, how many times do you think I can go up?"
"Bet you could do at least five hundred." Gabe said with a grin.
Claud scoffs at the statement. "Come on, even with his abilities, there's no way he could-"
Before she could finish her sentence, Freddie places the pole on the ladder and starts going up. However what surprises Galen and Claud is what he does next: with lightning speed, Freddie starts going up and down the ladder in rapid fire succession with electricity surging around him. The group watches in awe as he does that for a good thirty seconds then hops back down from the middle section of the ladder and lands on the floor.
Freddie breathes in deeply as he wipes the sweat on his forehead. "Okay, that was a rush."
"How many did you do?" Leo asked.
"Don't know, lost count at four thousand one hundred and twenty four." Freddie said, catching his breath as takes off his sweat drenched shirt.
"Um..." Galen spoke up first while a speechless Claud stood next to him. "What the hell was that?"
Freddie realizes what he did and explains himself "Oh yeah, turns out I have super speed. Just learned that earlier today. Sam, hand me that towel, please?"
Sam stares at her shirtless and sweaty boyfriend with a come-hither look then snaps out of it then turns to see a towel hanging on the wall by a hook. She walks over and gives him the towel. "For the record, THIS... Is incredibly hot."
Freddie laughs at this, thinking this is all becoming one big aphrodisiac for Sam. Not that he minded of course.
"You found a new superpower and added a new member to the team. You've been busy." Galen stated.
"Dude has powers too." Claud said.
Galen looks at Riley skeptically. "Really?"
Riley lifts his right arm and balls his fist then the transparent crimson aura surrounds his fist "Telekinesis."
Galen looks back at Freddie who was wiping the sweat from his body. "You really have been busy."
Freddie smiles at this, quite amused.
•••
Black Beauty pulls up to a dingy looking building and Cassie gets out of the car as Danny gets out of the passenger side. He glances up at the sign at the side of the door to the building that reads 'Roughneck'. Underneath the main sign read a smaller sign that read 'Ask for water & we'll throw ya out'.
"Quite the charming establishment." Danny remarked.
Cassie scoffs "Don't be such a priss, Parker. This isn't a hipster mixology bar that has a hookah bar in the back. This place has more rough and tumble characters and you'd do well not to say the wrong thing otherwise they will throw you out and that's frankly the kindest thing they can do."
"Do you frequent this bar?" Danny asked, half of him wanting to be surprised but expecting the obvious.
"Me? Nah, I usually go in here to get some inside information. Lots of lowlives set up shop here and those lowlives offer their services to men who cheat on their wives then decide to put a hit out on them. Believe me, I am not making that up." Cassie said. "Also, I know the guy who owns the place now. I went to juvie with him, he was a scrawny little guy who kept getting beaten up on by Trevor and his posse. Up until I knocked Trevor's block off."
"Is there anyone you haven't gone to juvie with besides my cousin and Alec?" Danny asked with a laugh.
Cassie glares at him. "Asking questions like that puts stupider people in the ICU."
Danny puts up his hands defensively. "I admit defeat, Sinclair."
Cassie grins as they walk towards the bar. "Most eventually do."
The pair walked into the bar and saw it was a dingy looking dive bar which had a few patrons inside. One sat at the bar while a couple was in the corner playing pool and one sat in a corner table drinking a beer.
"Place seems lively, doesn't it?" Danny said under his breath.
Cassie lightly elbows him in the abdomen which makes him groan. "Not the time and place to develop a sense of humor, Dan Dan."
Danny shrugs as they walk over to the bar and see a man exit from the back of the bar. The man looks like he was thirty years old with slick back jet black hair. He was well built underneath his tight black long sleeve shirt that had the sleeves rolled up which showed off the fresh wrapped up bandage on his right hand.
Danny looks around only to have more stray thoughts distract him.
"What the hell does she want?" He heard the man sitting in the corner asked privately.
"Who's the pretty boy?" He heard the male pool player say in his own head.
"Oooo, I wonder if he's single? Because I would kill to rip his clothes off and have my way with him right on this table!" He hears the female pool player think.
Danny clears his throat and feels uncomfortable as he stands closer to Cassie.
"Hey Rex?" Cassie calls out to get the man's attention. "Got a minute to spare for an old friend?"
The man looks up and sees Cassie and Danny standing at the bar then makes his way over to them. "Cassie Sinclair, what brings you to my fine establishment?"
"Business, unfortunately." Cassie said. She turns back to Danny after catching Rex staring at him. "Rex, this is my friend Danny Parker. Danny, this is Rex Buchanan."
"Friend?" Rex scoffs "Could've sworn he was either your boyfriend or your bodyguard."
Cassie gives him a look. "When in my life have I ever needed a bodyguard?"
"Touché, Red." Rex said with a smile.
Danny laughs but quickly realizes that she didn't admit or deny that he was her boyfriend and it made him blush bright red.
Cassie then gets down to business. "You haven't seen Trevor Wesker around here, have you?"
Rex nods. "As a matter of fact, I had a run in with him early this morning. It had been about an hour that I opened up when Wesker burst in like he owned the place. Wanted to buy shots for everyone in the bar."
"What'd you do?" Danny asked.
"Tried to throw the son of a bitch out." Rex told him. "I'm sure that Sinclair has rallied that there's no love lost between me and Wesker."
Danny nods. "She's made that clear to me, yes. How'd that work out?"
Rex lifts up his bandaged hand. "What do you think?"
Cassie smirks. "Least ya didn't need me to back you up this time."
"I've thrown my fair share of scumbags out of here myself." Rex stated. "Although it would've been fun to watch you kick the tar out of him again."
"What happened afterwards?" Danny asked, staying on track.
"Well, after a few of my regulars and I jumped him and threw him out, he pulled this weird looking gun from his jacket." Rex explained. "Told me that we should respect him otherwise he'd burn this place to the ground."
Cassie and Danny give each other knowing glances, they may have gotten their complete confirmation that Trevor now has the Heatwave gun.
"There any witnesses that can confirm this information?" Danny asked.
"Yes, but those people DON'T talk to people like you... Detective." Rex retorts. Danny seems surprised by this as he looks to Cassie for an explanation. "Relax, Sheriff Lobo, she didn't tell me. Your square jaw and good looks gave you away."
"I swear I used to be a lot better at the undercover stuff." Danny said with a sigh that made Cassie grin. He pulls out a business card and slips it to Rex without the rest of the patrons seeing. "If you change your mind, call me."
"If it's anything to put that bastard behind bars, I will definitely consider it." Rex said while putting the card in his pocket.
"Well, we gotta be hitting the road." Cassie said as she pulled Danny by the arm and began to lead him out. "We've got a lot of work to do on this case."
"How about one drink?" Rex offered.
"As tempting as that sounds, on the clock" Cassie reminds him. "Some other time perhaps?"
"I'll hold you to it. Don't be a stranger, Red." Rex said with a laugh. "Bring your boyfriend back if you'd like."
"Um okay... Bye!" Cassie laughs awkwardly as she finishes getting Danny out of the bar.
•••
Back at the Pulse Cave, the gang was sitting around telling stories while Gabe and Claud were hard at work on the hub computer. Freddie and Sam were snuggled next to each other with Sam resting her head on Freddie's lap, Millie and Leo sat next to each other holding hands, Galen sat on the metal table with an almost observant eye on the group and Riley sitting in the other side of the circle from the two couples.
"So wait, you fought a samurai?" Riley asked Freddie incredulously.
"Yeah." Freddie said with a nonchalant shrug. "I sorta lost but fortunately for me, he wasn't out to kill me."
"If he was, Samus would have collected your skull like a trophy." Gabe said frankly.
"If it bleeds, kill it." Galen joked in a bad Austrian accent. Only Millie seems confused by the joke. "Am I the only one who's seen Predator?"
"No, but unless you're the former governor of California, don't ever say that again." Claud quips. "I don't even think you got the line right."
The group laughs at this while an amused Galen shakes his head.
"Do you have any bizarre stories about your super heroics, Leo?" Riley asked.
"Not really ones to write home about. I mostly beat the tar out of a bunch of drug dealers and pimps. Pimps especially, don't like it when a man intimidates a woman in order to make money for him." Leo said which made Millie squeeze his hand lightly. "Freddie has mostly handled the weirdos."
Freddie scowls at him. "I don't think I've handled that many-"
"Do we need a reminder of someone calling themselves 'Wynter'?" Leo retorts which makes Freddie roll his eyes.
"Wynter?" Riley remarked.
"A female Mr Freeze who kidnapped me. Freddie totally kicked her ass." Gabe stated.
Riley nods. "Oh."
Freddie smiles at Leo. "Hey, you are just lucky you hadn't gotten yourself killed before I came along."
"How did you get your injuries treated anyway?" Millie asked, sounding genuinely curious.
Leo points to Claud. "That would be the handiwork of the talented Ms Moon. She knows how to sew up a good stitch."
"I took a few first aid classes in high school, no big." Claud said with a shrug. "Also, sewing was a skill I picked up by watching my mom sew. She's super old school and does it by hand. She only uses a machine for emergencies."
"So, you're a super smart high level hacker with superpowers courtesy of owl physiology who knows first aid and can sew." Gabe lists off. "Is there anything you can't do?"
"I don't do windows." Claud joked which puzzled Gabe.
"Does Cassie have superpowers?" Riley asked Freddie and Leo.
Freddie and Leo look to each other and Freddie acts as ambassador of sorts and speaks on Cassie's behalf. "That's not really our secret to tell. Cassie is friendly but she isn't as public as she presents herself."
"Woman has a lot of skeletons she isn't privy to." Leo said.
"What, is she like an actual super spy or something?" Riley asked with skepticism.
"Well, let's just say that Freddie and Leo aren't the first vigilante crime fighters in their family." Galen spoke up.
Riley tries to piece together the facts but decides it was best to change the subject. "Does anybody else know about you guys?"
"Besides the people in this room and Cassie, no one else knows I'm the Fox." Leo stated. "Freddie hasn't been as tightlipped. A few more people know who he is but fortunately for him, they're trustworthy and wouldn't rat him out."
"Except his psycho ex-girlfriend who is hellbent on revenge against the man who orchestrated her mother's murder then tried to kill Freddie and Leo in the process." Millie said out loud.
Sam lifts her head up and turns to face Freddie with a raised eyebrow. "Ex-girlfriend?"
"That's what you took from that sentence?" Freddie asked with amused annoyance.
"Relax, Freddie. I'm not jealous of your looney ex." Sam reassured him. "But just so you know, I'd totally kick her ass if she tried to put the moves on you again."
"And I'd pay money to see that." Gabe replied.
"Same here, Don King." Leo joked. "She really made it downright impossible to hold my pact of no violence against women. Girl was vicious."
"Yeah... but Sam can still take her." Freddie stated.
Sam grins and kisses him on the lips. "And now you're out of the doghouse... But you're still buying me a whole ham."
Freddie laughs at this.
Riley leans over to Millie and says "Those two are strange."
"I know, isn't it great." Millie said joyfully which made Riley confused.
Galen then spoke up to change the subject. "What about you, Riley? We've given some of our stories, why don't you tell us a bit about yourself?"
Riley swallows and laughs awkwardly. "You mean, talk about my powers?"
"Well, we regaled you with tales of Freddie's epicness. Wouldn't hurt to know about yours." Gabe retorts.
"No secrets in the house of pain." Galen stated.
Riley takes a deep breath and explains things "Well, my powers sorta popped up when I was like twelve. They manifested during a very stressful day at school. Took a long time for me to learn to control it."
"Right around puberty?" Gabe asks and Riley nods. "That makes sense. That's when mutants manifested powers in the X-Men comics."
"Guess we're sorta all mutants." Freddie said with a shrug.
"Not all of us, babe." Sam spoke up, patting his knee.
"Metahuman sounds a lot better to me." Gabe said. "Rolls off the tongue."
"How old are you, Riley?" Galen asked. "Thirty Five?"
"Close, thirty six." Riley simply stated.
"You don't look like it. You have a… youthful exuberance to you." Claud points out flirtatiously.
"Um… thanks." Riley said sheepishly.
"Down, Tweety. Unless you want me to tell my sister her girlfriend is flirting with someone from the other team?" Sam said to Claudia who slumps her shoulders in embarrassment.
"So you've had many years of practice with your powers?" Leo asked.
"Yeah, my mom taught me a lot about my powers. She told me my great uncle had the same thing I had and he showed her some tricks that he learned to train himself." Riley stated. "She didn't have any powers of her own but she figured it must've skipped a generation. After I graduated from college, I took a sort of Buddhist pilgrimage to learn to master my powers even further. Spent about three years in Tibet."
"About four less than Brad Pitt did." Gabe jokes.
"That's pretty impressive." Millie said sweetly.
"You're a Buddhist?" Claud asked.
Riley nods. "I actually converted when I was nineteen. My parents were fine with it, especially when I told them it would help me better understand my powers. My mom was on board. She's always been kind of a free spirit."
"Your mom sounds amazing." Millie stated.
"Yeah, she taught me a lot." Riley said, trying to hide the sadness in his voice that only Sam and Galen caught. "She used to go and on about people with powers like ours. Even told me about other kinds of mental abilities."
"Like what?" Freddie asked.
"Mostly empathy and telepathy. She'd say how both were triggered by the brain but worked differently." Riley explained. "Empaths can sense the emotions of others, feel the slightest change without even meaning to. Most don't even know they're empaths, it takes them years to figure out what's going on."
Sam stares at Riley, a pensive stare on her face. A look she normally doesn't display. Almost like she was fishing through her memories to find something she might have missed.
"What about telepaths? How different are they?" Gabe asked.
"Why don't you offer your expertise, Mr Superhero Encyclopedia?" Freddie teased his friend.
"I could but I'd much rather hear it from someone who can actually use 'the force'." Gabe said in a moderately smug manner.
"Well, from what my mom told me, telepaths are the scariest individuals on the planet. They're strong enough to control a crowd of people and basically make them think whatever they want." Riley stated. "They can also reach into a person's mind and look into their deepest secrets."
"So, telepaths are evil or something?" A worried Millie asked.
"Depends on your perspective. Not all telepaths are willing to manipulate the world for their own benefit." Riley stated. "Also, a lot of telepaths are known to form close knit society, where they can form an almost hive mind. And there are also different levels to their power. They're broken up into four brackets and are named after letters of the Greek alphabet."
"Which letters?" Claud asked.
"Let me see..." Riley said, trying to remember. "Alpha, Epsilon, Theta and Omega. Alpha is like a standard level, can do low level telepathy but if grouped together they could do some damage. Epsilons are slightly more powerful, can't do a lot of damage but they can function better on their own. Theta are quite dangerous, a small group of five is known to take control of a state the size of Rhode Island. One Theta by themselves they are considered a serious threat."
"And Omegas?" Freddie asked tentatively, worried if this was as bad the rest.
"Omegas are the most powerful of all telepaths. With enough focus and force of the mind, one can literally make a person's brain explode." Riley stated.
"Like in that movie, Scanners." Galen spoke up.
"Cronenberg... Nice taste in movies." Gabe states and Claud nods in approval.
"Fortunately for all of us, there can only be one Omega born in a generation. Other telepaths do what they can to help them find ways to learn control or they just take them out before they become a real threat to humanity." Riley explained.
"They kill them?" Millie said horrified by the thought.
"It's barbaric but not uncommon. Sounds like they're trying to be altruistic in a way." Galen spoke up.
"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one." Gabe retorts, quoting a certain sci-fi classic.
"What could be worse than an Omega level telepath?" Leo asked.
"An Omega level telepath with telekinesis. My mom once referred to that individual as a World Breaker." Riley said frankly. "The day that guy is born, we'd all be in deep trouble."
The group stares at each other with mild concern about where the conversation has gone.
•••
Inside the men's restroom at the precinct, Danny was washing his hands then he looked into the mirror. He saw that his eyes looked tired and weary. It was probably from what was going on in his head, he surmised to himself.
"It's all in your head. You've just been working too hard." Danny said, reassuring himself. "You are not hearing other people's thoughts in your head. You're just... tired."
Suddenly, he feels a violent twinge of pain in his right temple and touches it, shutting his eyes tightly. Hoping it would get the pain to stop. He doubles over in quiet agony as he starts grabbing the sides of his head, doing anything to make the pain end.
Without warning, one of the stall doors slams open violently, nearly flying off the hinges. This startles Danny, thinking he may have not been alone in the restroom. He slowly walks over to the stall and looks inside but finds no one was inside. It was completely empty. He saw another strange sight, a faint reddish aura emitting from around the door that was slowly fading away.
"Well, it's official: I've lost it." Danny weakly stated with some amusement. Trying to forget what just happened.
Cassie casually walks into the men's restroom which confuses Danny. "You okay?" She notices the puzzled look on Danny's face. "What?"
"You do know this is the men's room, right?" Danny asked, half smiling.
"Oh please, you think I haven't busted into a men's room full of guys to catch a lead on one of my cases with his pants down... literally." Cassie said. "Done it about ten times."
"It's like the more layers I pull back, I find something new about you." Danny said amused. "You're like one of those Russian dolls, what are they called? I can't remember."
"They're called matryoshka dolls." Cassie replied. Danny looks at her with a puzzled stare. "What now?"
"How could you possibly know that?" Danny asked.
"I may have spent a few years living in Siberia. Let me tell you, you don't know what cold is until you've spent a week in those mountains." Cassie said.
"Who vacations in Siberia?" Danny asked incredulously.
Cassie smirks, pulling a few less than warm memories of being brutally trained and playing them in her own head. "Wouldn't exactly call it a 'vacation'."
"And you wouldn't by any chance speak Russian, would you?" Danny asked, folding his arms over his chest.
Danny then hears her say something that makes his jaw drop.
"I do speak it rather well, actually. Not as well as the guy who taught me but... I do my best." Cassie stated in fluent Russian.
Danny lifts his arm and points at her. "Are you sure you aren't Black Widow?"
"You're dodging the question, Danny." Cassie stated frankly. "You look like hell."
"Gee thanks." Danny said sarcastically. He then breathes a deep sigh. "Look, would it be weird if I ask you something?"
"Depends, you wanna borrow money? If so, you can forget it because I am not the Bank of Cassie." Cassie retorts.
"No!" Danny insisted. He lets out a deep breath and asks his question. "What would you say to someone who found out they had superpowers?"
"Oh crap. He knows something."
"I know what?" Danny asked back, having heard her thoughts.
Cassie takes a step back and stares at him. "How did you- Did you just-" She catches her breath and smiles. "Oh, wow. That's a thing that just happened."
"What thing?" Danny asked, figuring she must've put it all together.
"How long?" Cassie asked, not needing any explanation.
"I'd say since this morning but I'm probably not sure." Danny told her, walks closer to her and asks. "So... you do believe me? You don't think I'm crazy?"
"Well, crazy is a point of view. If you're asking if I believe you, know that I do and let's see where the crazy train takes us." Cassie said, adding a 'Toot toot' at the end to ease his worry which works and makes him laugh.
"You're such a weirdo." Danny retorts.
"And you LOVE it!" Cassie quips which makes him snicker. She then becomes serious. "If you need to talk about it or you need a clear head to sit you through all this stuff that's hitting you, just know I got your back. Okay?"
Danny nods. "Got it."
Just then, Alec walks into the restroom and sees the two of them together then says "I was right to assume that you still burst into men's restrooms, eh Sand?"
"What can I say, it's a quirk." Cassie said. "Are you looking for us?"
"Sorta, I kinda have to go. My boss wants to debrief him on all that you told us from what you guys found out at the Roughneck then he said I can head home." Alec told her. "Then I have to help out a friend with… something."
"It wouldn't happen to be a certain medical assistant, now would it?" Cassie asked with a sly grin.
Alec winks at her. "Maybe."
"Well, okay then, I'll text you and see if I find out anything else." Cassie assures him. "Tell the boss man I said 'hello' and that I take cash as payment."
"Funny." Alec said sarcastically. "See you in the morning?"
"Bright and early... ish." Cassie said with a smile.
Alec couldn't help but smile then he looks at Danny and he gives him a stare that 'Don't you hurt her'. "See you tomorrow, Sand. Text me if you find something." He said as he started backing out of the room.
"Tell Jake I said 'Hi'!" Cassie said with a nod and Alec fully left the restroom. She looks back at Danny as a yawn escapes from her.
"Are you tired?" Danny asked.
"I'm fine." Cassie said, unable to hold back a second yawn.
"It's almost seven." Danny stated, looking at his wristwatch. "If you want to head home and get some sleep, I wouldn't hold it against you."
"You sure? I mean, if I go home, I might not even go to sleep. I'd end up burning the midnight oil to find more clues or anything to find Trevor." Cassie replied.
"Same here, but I probably won't go home. Might just end up falling asleep on one of those cots we have lying around in the back." Danny told her. "But I told Riley I'd meet with him and-"
"Don't worry, I'll check up on him." Cassie said to him. "He might still be with Sam and if he's with Sam-"
"That means she is with Freddie and the rest of the Little Rascals." Danny replied.
"Bingo." Cassie retorts. "They're probably hanging out at my office."
"Why would a group of teenagers want to hangout at your abandoned warehouse you pass for an office?" Danny asked mildly amused.
"Better watch what I say here. Can't have him thinking something is up."
Danny stares at her intently which she notices.
"Hey, Carnac! Stop looking through my thoughts without permission." Cassie said in a good natured tone.
Danny stammers while running his fingers through his hair "Sorry, it's sort of involuntary."
"You're lucky you're cute."
Danny turns bright red and looks at Cassie who begins to walk out of the room.
"Guessing you heard that, huh?" Cassie said with a wink then leaving the room.
Danny stands in the room, not sure of what happened. His heart was beating a ten thousand beats per minute, his stomach was in knots and he felt nauseous. Could this be because of his 'powers' or was this something else. It always happens when he was around Cassie. Always.
What was happening?, he asked himself.
•••
Back in Willow Springs, Pete was in front of the antique shop and loading the bag with Maddy's stuff by strapping it to the back of his motorcycle. He does his best to make sure that her belongings were properly fastened while 'Mabel' came out of the shop with Maddy standing next to her.
"Be careful not to trust the wrong people. If something doesn't feel right, run. Understand?" 'Mabel' explained to Maddy.
Maddy nods in understanding. "Got it."
'Mabel' stares at Pete. "You're certain your friends can be trusted, Peter?"
"I trust them with my life, so yes they can be trusted." Pete bluntly told her.
"I trust them too." Maddy remarks.
"You don't even know them." 'Mabel' replied. "You haven't even met them."
"I know but I know for a fact that once I do meet them, I'll know I can trust them." Maddy said in a bright and optimistic sounding voice.
'Mabel' exhales a sigh then looks back at Pete, handing him a motorcycle helmet for the girl. "Make sure she gets there safely. We don't want any surprises."
Pete takes the helmet from her. "I know, Toby gave me a credible backstory to tell them until I fill them in on everything that's going on. Should buy me like two or three weeks. After that, eventually someone's going to ask questions."
"Especially Detective Parker." Maddy spoke up, catching his attention. She simply opens her sketch book to a page with a detailed drawing of Danny Parker. "He tends to ask a lot of questions, right?"
Pete shakes his head amused while Maddy puts her book away in her backpack. He hands her the helmet 'Mabel' gave him. "Let's hit the road, Madds. It's going to be a long trip."
Matilda beams brightly then puts on the helmet, adjusting her hair to make sure she didn't get 'helmet hair'. "There's going to be a huge thunderstorm tonight and tomorrow." She said casually.
Pete looks up at the sky and seems a bit dismissive. "There's not a cloud in the sky. Can you-"
Maddy raises her right eyebrow. "Trust me, it's gonna rain."
Pete starts putting on his own helmet and glances at 'Mabel'. "Is the safe house still there? Don't want us to be caught in any bad weather."
'Mabel' nods. "Yep, stocked up for a couple days until you two get back on the road again."
"What kind of house is it?" Maddy asked, her curiosity peaked as she hops on the bike
Pete gives her a good natured smile. "You'll find out when we get there."
Maddy shrugs and tightly wraps her arms around Pete's hips. She turns her head to face 'Mabel'. "It was really nice to meet you."
"You as well, Madeline." 'Mabel said politely.
Maddy makes a cryptic remark. "See ya on the other side."
Before 'Mabel' could ask, Pete starts up his bike and quickly rides away with the girl letting out a yelp of excitement. The two of them ride off out of the ghost town of Willow Springs.
As 'Mabel' watches them leave, Tobias walks out of the shop and stands next to her. Both watching the motorcycle ride past the horizon.
"He's not going to be able to save her, is he?" 'Mabel' asked.
Tobias grits his back teeth then swallows. "Odds are stacked against that poor girl. I'm afraid that with precogs, fate can be pretty much written in stone."
'Mabel' hangs her head in grief then the two walk back into the antique shop.
•••
At the Pulse Cave, Gabe and Claud were still in front of the hub computer hard at work with something while Millie and Galen were stocking a big white metal cabinet with the first aid supplies. Curiously absent were Freddie, Sam, Leo and Riley.
Suddenly the door leading into the base opens then closes and Cassie descends from the stairs with some urgency.
"Well, if it isn't the woman who can't bother to answer her phone." Galen said, teasingly.
"Sorry. My phone died earlier today and I didn't have my charger. I got something that needs superpowered abilities." Cassie spoke up, removing her jacket and setting it down on a chair. She scans the room and notices something. "Is Freddie here?"
Gabe turns his chair to face Cassie. "He's in the dojo with Sam and Leo. They're doing some last minute sparring."
"She left that Riley guy alone in Danny's place?" Cassie asked with mild surprise. "I mean, he doesn't look like the sort who needs adult supervision but Danny asked her to watch him-"
"No, he's actually in there with them too." Millie said.
"Wait, hold on. Why would he be in there with-" then it dawns on her, rubbing her forehead with the back of her hand. "You guys told him, didn't you?"
"It was Freddie's decision... Sort of." Millie spoke up. "Sam told Riley that Freddie has powers and Freddie just thought it would be better if he just let the cat out of the bag himself."
"This is honestly becoming the worst kept secret ever." Cassie retorts, half amused but mildly frustrated.
"And it all started with you spilling the beans to your neighbor." Gabe is quick to point out. "I wouldn't be too quick to judge, Mama Cass."
Cassie flashes a smile. "Your point's been made, Mr Darcy. I'm only wondering what would possess Sam to tell Riley so quickly. She's barely met him."
"Because the handsome guy has got powers of his own." Claud stated.
Cassie glances at them, looking quite surprised. "Really?"
"Yeah, he's telekinetic. He can move things around with his mind." Gabe stated.
Cassie scratched her eyebrow. "I haven't been living under a rock, Gabe. I know what telekinesis is."
"So what's the thing you need superpowered assistance for?" Claud asked, trying to ignore Gabe.
"I'll explain everything as soon as the kids are done with play time." Cassie said. "How long have they been at it?"
Millie stares at her phone and smiles. "About forty five minutes. Freddie and Leo are giving him the finer points of hand to hand combat, at Riley's insistence of course. Sam's in there to make sure the boys aren't too rough on him."
"Especially considering the new trick Freddie found out about." Galen remarked, catching Cassie's attention.
"What?" Cassie asked, sounding a bit excited to hear what he meant.
"Freddie's got super speed now." Gabe simply said.
Cassie stares wide eyed as she looks at the others only to get nonverbal responses from all of them. She then grins like a Cheshire Cat. "Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that."
•••
Inside the dojo, Sam runs and leaps on Freddie's shoulders then proceeds to punch him in the head only for Freddie to effortlessly pull her off and power bombs her on to the mat. She groans in pain and stares up at her boyfriend.
"You cheated." Sam accused him.
"If I had cheated, you wouldn't have been able to jump on the shoulders to begin with. Super speed, remember?" Freddie said with a laugh.
Sam gets to her feet and takes a few swings at Freddie. "Tag, you're it!" Unfortunately for her, she only barely hit an afterimage of Freddie as the real thing zips past behind her with streaks of blue lightning following him. She looks around and sees him standing behind her.
Freddie chuckles at this. "Okay, that time I cheated."
Sam tries again only to have the same thing happen three more times, repeating the phrase 'You're it' at every attempt.
Leo had Riley in a headlock and it seemed more like a lesson he was teaching rather than the play fighting Sam and Freddie were engaging in. Riley struggles to get free due to Leo pinning both his arms back with one hand and applying the headlock with the other.
"How did this even happen?" Riley strained with an incredulous expression.
"Because you were too busy showing off your powers to focus on my movements." Leo explained almost with sage like advice. "Now, how are you going to get out of this? Use your brains and your brawn, you're allowed."
Riley moves his eyes around the room and sees a mirror in front of him that shows him and Leo's reflections. What catches his attention is the sight of a chair that was six feet behind Leo. He was pinned back by his wrists but his fingers were still free to move.
Riley smiles as the chair is surrounded by reddish energy and he makes a quick motion with his index and middle fingers on both hands to make the chair come forward. Which it does, flying forward and hitting Leo in his lower back. The blow distracts Leo and causes his to cry out in pain then let go of Riley.
Riley turns around and checks to see if Leo was okay, finding him groaning in discomfort. "Dude, that was my bad. I wasn't trying to hurt you. I'm really sorry." He sounded genuinely sorry for his actions. "Are you okay?"
Leo smiles to ease the tension. "Don't worry. This isn't the worst pain I've been in. I can assure you." He gets up from the floor and walks over to the wooden bench with a bit of limp where a bow and a quiver full of regular arrows sits. "How about we see how good your telekinesis is at dodging projectiles."
Riley gulps as Leo straps the quiver to his back then plunks one of the arrows from it and prepares to fire. "This is gonna cost me."
Freddie was no longer using his super speed and was fighting Sam at normal speed however he was still doing well despite fighting the girl who used to be able to throw him over her shoulder with no problems when they were younger. He dodges a punch from Sam, grabs her right arm and pins it behind her back.
"Can I ask, are you finding this like some kind of weird turn on?" Freddie asked playfully.
Sam flashes a mischievous grin. "Well I'm not 'not turned on', if that's what you mean?"
Sam elbows him in the stomach and gets him to let go and she goes for a right roundhouse kick only to have Freddie catch her leg then flip her, making her land on her back.
Sam stares up at her boyfriend again and smiles "Sure this isn't you getting back at me for all those times I whaled on you when we were kids, is it?"
Freddie smiles as he offers her a helping hand. "Don't think I'm not enjoying this just a little."
"Yeah?" Sam takes his hand but instead of getting off the floor, she uses his momentum to pull him down which makes him land face first on the mat. Before he could react, Sam jumps on him and grabs his right arm to pin it behind his back. "How are you enjoying this, Freddzilla?"
Freddie grimaces and starts pounding on the mat with his free hand to signal for him tapping out which makes Sam let him go. He turns to face his girlfriend with a weak smile on his face. "Guess I had that coming." She smiles and gives him a quick peck on the cheek.
The two of them get off the mat and watch Leo shooting at Riley with a few of his arrows only to have him deflect them using a telekinetic aura around him.
"This might be more fun to watch." Sam stated.
Freddie shrugs and smiles weakly. "You're not wrong."
They continue watching the scene play out as Leo attempts to try to hit Riley to no avail as Riley continues to be on the defensive. Every arrow Leo fires, Riley either swats it away with his red telekinetic aura or stops it in mid air and causes it to fall to the floor.
"This must suck for you, not having any powers?" Riley said, keeping on task as he spoke.
"Don't need superpowers to have a killer aim. Ask Clint Barton or Oliver Queen." Leo retorts, not losing focus on his task either. He feels that he only has one arrow left and he plucks it then takes aim. "Last one."
"Better make it count then." Riley boastfully replied.
Leo fires the last arrow in his quiver only to have Riley keep it hovering in the air. The arrow was surrounded by a transparent red aura and the others looked amazed. "Have to say, I'm impressed."
Unexpectedly, Cassie burst into the room. "Hey, what's going-"
However before she could finish, a startled Riley loses focus which causes the arrow he was holding in place to go flying and the force behind the arrow causes it to land dead center in Cassie's chest.
Cassie gasps, caught off guard by the force from the arrow striking her. She slowly looks down and sees it sticking out in her chest.
The four of them were shocked and horrified at the sight of this as Cassie looked up at them with a look of annoyance. "Really?"
With that statement, Cassie fell backwards and landed hard on the floor. Freddie and Leo rush over to their aunt and Riley stands in stunned silence while Sam walks over to him.
"Is she dead?" Riley manages to choke out as the rest of the gang walks into the dojo to witness the scene. "Please tell me she's not dead."
"Give her a minute. Think the arrow might've knocked the wind out of her." Galen replied.
"Knock the- Are you kidding me? She's dying and you guys are acting as if she got a paper cut!" Riley yelled.
Freddie looks around the room and asks. "Should I pull it out?"
"Think she'd be pissed if you did." Leo retorts.
"She's gonna be pissed either way." Gabe spoke up.
"Are you people insane?" The now terrified Riley exclaimed. "We need to get her to a hospital! We need to-"
Suddenly, Cassie's eyes snap open and she breathes in deeply which not only scares Riley half to death but also freaks Sam out. She had never seen Cassie come back from an injury that severe before.
"Holy crap!" Riley gasped.
Cassie looks up at the others then down at the arrow sticking in her chest "So… is anybody going to pull this out?"
The gang was amused by this as Freddie and Leo helped Cassie to her feet. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I will be... once I get this arrow out of me." Cassie remarks. She grabs at the base of the arrow and feels how deep it's in her chest. "You missed the heart by at least two inches. Almost cracked my vertebrae though." With one fluid motion, Cassie yanks the arrow from her chest with a gasp from her. The arrow being pulled from her body made a squish sound and she takes in a few breaths and stares at the tip of the arrow and glances at Leo. "Lucky this didn't hit me in the eye. All fun and games till someone loses an eye."
Riley swallows hard as Cassie realizes what Riley saw and how badly he was reacting to this. "How- how did you- How are you-"
"Remember how we said Cassie has powers but we can't say what they are without her permission?" Freddie replied, which made Riley nod. "Well..." He motions to Cassie like he was a magician at the end of a magic trick. "Ta-da."
"I heal. It's what I do." Cassie finally spoke up.
"So you're like a female Wolverine?" Riley asked, trying to piece it all together.
"More like female Deadpool except I can't break the fourth wall. Plus my face is much prettier." Cassie said with a wink.
"You know there is actually a female Deadpool in the comics." Gabe points out. "From an alternate universe. She's a member of the Deadpool Corps and-"
"Not the time and place for the factoids, boy genius." Claud retorts to stop him from becoming über fanboy.
Riley regains his composure and slowly walks over to Cassie "I'm- I'm really sorry for… impaling you."
Cassie laughs at this and pats him on the shoulder to comfort him. "If it makes you feel any better, not my first impalement and it probably won't be my last."
Riley manages a smile. "Now I see why Danny likes you."
Cassie blushes, which tries to hide from everyone. She looks down at the damaged top and looks back at Riley. "By the way, you owe me a new shirt."
Riley laughs nervously at this.
"So, is there a reason you burst in here and got yourself impaled?" Freddie asked. "Sam said you were working on a case with the police."
Cassie glances at Leo with frustration. "You haven't told him yet?"
"I've had a pretty busy day, Cass. Lots of stuff happened." Leo defended himself. "One of which includes my brother turning into the Fastest Man Alive."
"That's still up for debate. Unless he's got access to the Speed Force then yes, yes he is." Gabe said with a grin.
"The Speed what?" Millie whispered to Sam.
"Just nod and smile. Take it from experience, it makes it easier to understand the geek speak." Sam whispers back to her and the two girls have a laugh amongst themselves.
"What's going on?" Freddie asked. "Is it Shadow? Did he kill someone?"
Cassie shakes her head "It's not that bad but it is very serious. There was a break in at a lab that belongs to Gabe's dad and the thief killed a guard and stole a dangerous experimental weapon."
"Great, another problem caused by my dad's ambitious plans." Gabe said with a groan.
"What'd they steal?" Freddie asked.
"Something called the Heatwave gun. It's basically a pyromaniac's wet dream of a weapon. Melts through solid metal and burns anything it touches." Cassie explained.
"Then why's it got you all spooked?" Galen asked, sensing her agitation before anyone else.
Cassie breathes deeply then says "I know the guy and he's extremely dangerous. He's also obsessed with me... Well, not me but my former crime fighting alter ego."
Freddie knows what she meant. "Mockingbird."
Cassie nods. "We got to find him before he hurts anyone else."
Freddie sighs as he stares at Leo who nods and he looks at the team. "Guess playtime's over."
•••
It is dark now in the city and in a meat packing plant in Brooklyn, Trevor Wesker walks inside a room that may have been the main office for the plant with the briefcase in his left hand. This is where he was setting up shop, this would be the setting for his greatest masterpiece. For her. For Mockingbird.
Trevor was wearing a camouflage flak jacket that was in urban colored fatigues, black cargo pants and matching combat boots. He sets the briefcase down on a large metal table and opens it revealing the Heatwave gun inside as well as other objects: welding goggles, industrial strength black gloves and equipment needed to charge the battery of the weapon.
He stares at all of this with a look of determination. He begins to put on the gloves and starts to charge up the gun.
Trevor pulls out a small hand drawn photo of Mockingbird and starts having a flash of memories. Staring to remember where his obsession began.
•••
Outside of the same plant in Brooklyn seventeen years ago, a white delivery truck pulls in. However the driver doesn't look like the typical truck driver, he wore a three piece suit and looks like an extra from the movie Goodfellas. The driver walks over to a group of men that begin loading stuff into the back of the truck. Except what they were loading didn't look like meat.
"Let's move!" the driver yelled with impatience in his voice. "Wanna get this done before the sun rises!"
"Don't see why you're so worked up. What are the chances we run into that broad?" One of the men complained as they all begrudgingly continue to load several wooden crates into the truck.
"You idiots haven't had the pleasure of meeting Mockingbird but I have and I barely escaped. And she's one mean psychotic bitch and I don't wanna cross paths with her again, understand?" The truck driver who was acting like the spokesman for the others.
"Fine, fine, we're almost done anyways so unbunch your panties, all right?" Another man shouted from the back of the truck.
From the back of the truck, a tall eighteen year old boy with shaggy brown hair steps out of the truck. He sported a nasty scar above his left eye. He walks over to the ringleader with reluctance in each step.
"Dad, can we go?" The boy asked. "Thought you said this was going to be a quick grab?"
"Trevor, I told you how important this job is before we left the house." The ringleader told his son.
"Don't see why you had to drag me into this? If I get caught, I'm not going to go to juvie! They're gonna send me to adult prison along with the rest of you!" Teenage Trevor told his father.
"If we do get caught, which we won't, I will teach you how things work in there." Trevor's father told his son.
"Besides, you stand little chance of running into some little girl beating the piss out of you." One of the other goons made a joke at Trevor's expense.
"That happened a year ago, can we please forget it!" Teenage Trevor yelled, rubbing his forehead to relive the pain he had been through. "Sinclair just got lucky."
"Enough with the chit chat, let's get this job done!" Trevor's dad yelled at his men and his son. He surveys the room "Anyone heard from Kenny? He was supposed to be the lookout in case the cops showed up."
Suddenly, a large man crashes down from the top of the truck with a loud thud. Everyone looks at the downed and unconscious man.
"Kenny? You okay? What happened?" All the men asked in various ways.
A high pitched whistle is heard from the top of the truck. They all look up to see a feminine figure clad in what seemed like black leather standing on top of the truck. The woman had platinum blonde hair, dramatic dark red lipstick painted on her lips and she wore a domino mask to conceal her identity, her hands were on her hips and they all got a better look at her outfit: tight black pants with calf high black combat boots, a very dark blue low cut top with a black fishnet lining over it, a short black leather jacket and black gloves on her hands. This is Mockingbird.
"A little late for a charity drop off, isn't it, boys?" Seventeen year old Cassie asked, her voice trying to sound older to disguise it.
Before anyone could react, Mockingbird leaps off the truck and over the head of the closet thug whilst grabbing him by the neck and flipping him over her, knocking him down and out. The man rolls between two of his buddies as Mockingbird does a few flips towards the two and lands between them and elbows them hard in the face and knocks them out.
More of the men try to attack get but Mockingbird jumps over one and kicks him in the back to send them crashing to the floor, catches another by dodging his attempt to attack and kicks him repeatedly in the stomach and tosses him aside like a sack of potatoes, dodges a third man then rolls on his back whilst simultaneously grabbing his arm and throws over her.
Teenager Trevor sighs and charges at her only for Mockingbird to punch him hard in the face, grabbing him by the shoulders and throwing him hard through a wooden crate. Mockingbird grabs a piece of the crate, breaks it in half and hurls the pieces at two more charging goons which knocks them out with the force of the objects.
Mockingbird smiles, failing to notice one of the men trying to jump her until he growls and comes barreling at her. She runs towards some crates then runs up the crates and lands on the man's neck, grabbing him using her legs and flips him on the floor. The man hits his head hard, knocking him out cold.
"We gotta get out of here!" Trevor's father yelled to the three surviving members of his crew.
"What about the others? About your kid?" One of them yelled.
"Forget him, you should learn not to pick fights with girls." His father shouted as he got into the front seat of the truck and another jumped into the passenger side. Three other men jump onto the back of the delivery truck with what loot they managed to grab.
The few men left grabs a gun from the floor and tries to shoot her but instead Mockingbird kicks the gun out of his hand, grabs his arm before he could run off, bends it back and repeatedly kicks him in the abs and flips him over her shoulder, causing him to crash through more crates.
Mockingbird looks back to see the truck leaving only she just smiles, she knew they wouldn't get far.
Inside the truck, Trevor's dad and the other member of his crew sit in silence as they look back at the plant. Trevor's father grinned from ear to ear.
"Think she's gonna follow us?" The crew member asked him.
"Unless she got super fast, pretty sure we're in the clear." Trevor's dad stated with a laugh.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that."
Trevor and the crew members seem confused by the voice until they turn their heads to find fifteen year old Galen sitting in the middle of the seat. Only he wasn't exactly himself, wearing a black T-shirt, black pants, matching work boots and a black leather jacket. Also what set him apart was his hybrid form which had less bumps and ridges than his current form in the present but other than that, it was similar when it came to his fangs and claws. This is Lobo and he didn't need a mask at all.
Lobo smiles his toothy smile as the men begin to panic. "Boo."
The crew member screams in terror as he opens the vehicle door and jumps out while the truck was still moving. Trevor's father reaches for his handgun only for Lobo to grab his wrist and shatter it in three places. The man screams in pain as the truck comes to the sudden stop.
Trevor's father jumps out of the trucking, hollering in pain as back of the truck opens and the three other crew members jump off to see why they stopped.
Out of nowhere, Mockingbird jumps on top of the tallest crew guy left and grabs him by the neck using her legs and flips him off the ground then punches him hard in the jaw, breaking it.
Meanwhile, Teenage Trevor comes limping out of the building and makes his way over to the scene. He however doesn't get involved, he simply watches.
Before the other two could jump her, a loud animalistic roar is heard and Lobo jumps on one and proceeds to claw at his chest then grabs him by the neck and shoves him hard at the wall of a building in the alley.
The last remaining crew member grabs his gun and points it at Lobo but Mockingbird gets in front of him and takes the two shots he fired from his gun in her left shoulder and forearm. He smiles at being able to actually shoot Mockingbird but that joy quickly turns to sheer horror when Mockingbird digs the bullet out of her arm and takes a look at it as the bullet hole closes up, leaving traces of blood on her arm.
Mockingbird observes the tiny piece of metal until she looks up at the man who shot her. "I really don't like it when people shoot me." With that, she pulls a baton that was strapped to her right boot. With a flick of the wrist, the baton extends to a long staff.
The crew member raises his gun again only to have Mockingbird twirl the staff and knock the gun out of his hands. The stunned man could only watch as she twirls the staff again and cracks him across the head violently, managing to knock him out cold.
"They'll never learn, will they?" Teenage Cassie said with a smug grin on her face. She looks back at Lobo with her expression changing to one of concern. "You okay? They didn't hurt you, did they?"
"They tried." Teenage Galen said as he looked back at the still conscious man who was Trevor's dad who was holding his broken wrist in pain. "Didn't exactly work out."
"What kind of freaks are you?" Trevor's dad asked, horrified over what he had seen.
The two crime fighters stare at each other as Lobo just shrugs. "You wanna take care of this or should I?" The boy asked his friend.
Mockingbird finishes pulling the second bullet from her shoulder then simply strides over to him and punches him hard in the face, knocking out. "I really enjoyed that."
"Hey!"
The two of them tensed up and turn to find Teenage Trevor standing in the middle of the alley, his face etched in pain but also displaying admiration for what he had seen.
"That was amazing." Teenage Trevor said enthusiastically. He stares at Mockingbird with adoration in his eyes. "You are amazing."
"Um, thanks but... isn't that your dad?" Teenage Cassie asked, pointing to the man she had recently struck.
"Guy was asking for it. I didn't even want to come but he made me." Teenage Trevor informed them. "They all got what they deserve."
"I couldn't agree with you more." Teenage Cassie retorts. She looks back at Lobo. "Let's tie em up. Leave a nice present for the police."
Lobo nods as he pulls a few pieces of rope from his pockets and starts to tie the hands and feet of the downed men together.
"Can I help?" Teenage Trevor asked Mockingbird.
"You wanna help? Call the cops. Tell them what happened. You get out of here after that, you probably won't get charged." Teenage Cassie explained to him. "Dad rats you out, just say it was all his idea. Might earn you some respect."
"Or he might beat the snot out of me." Teenage Trevor points out.
"Just tell them you have me watching your back. That'll shut him right up." Teenage Cassie said, winking at him which made him blush.
Suddenly, police sirens are heard in the distance heading their way.
"Looks like someone already called the cops." Teenage Galen stated. "We'd better get gone."
Mockingbird nods and they start running down the alley and into the night.
Teenage Trevor watches this in awe as he stares at the leather clad female vigilante.
•••
"Guessing that little interaction started his obsession."
Back at the Pulse Cave in the present, Cassie, now in a low cut long sleeved black top due to her original top getting bloodied and ending up with a hole from where the arrow struck her, had finished explaining how Trevor first encountered Mockingbird. The gang sits there with a mixture of awe and surprise over what she had told them. Cassie notices this and tries to get their attention.
"Earth calling the misfits." Cassie said, snapping her fingers. Galen just laughs as the group focuses again.
"Sorry, that was just an insane story." Millie spoke up first.
"I wouldn't use the word 'insane' per-say." Cassie said, trying to downplay everything.
"Are you kidding?" Riley exclaimed excitedly. "You dug two bullets from your own body! You can't tell me that doesn't fall under the category of 'insane'."
Cassie shrugs her shoulders and gives up. "Okay, it might be an accurate description of what I did."
"After hearing that, all I can say is that you never stop impressing me." Freddie remarked. "How were you even that agility and limber at that age?"
"Yeah, especially with the flips and spins you did?" Leo asked.
"I have been taking gymnastics since I was four years old. I was able to do multiple back handsprings before I started kindergarten." Cassie stated. "I was even planning to try out for the Olympics when I was sixteen. That was until my parents-"
"We get it." Freddie said in a warm and friendly manner to let her know she didn't have to bring that up right now.
Cassie gives him a nod to acknowledge and appreciate his gesture just then.
Sam focused her attention on Galen. "So, you were her sidekick?"
"About the long and short of it but I prefer the term 'partner'." Galen informed her in a jovial and matter of fact tone. "Not that she needed me anyway. She could handle things long before I came along."
"Come on, don't sell yourself short, Gale. I always knew you had my back. Especially when most of those clowns decided to ambush me with like thirty or forty of their buddies to even the odds, thinking that would make a difference." Cassie replied. "I barely survived most of those by skill and sheer luck."
"I appreciate the vote of confidence, Red, but I was just the muscle. You could've done it on your own." Galen stated.
"I'm glad I didn't." Cassie replied which made Galen smile.
Freddie clears his throat to signal to get the conversation back on the task at hand. "Okay, so we know why Wesker is obsessed. What we don't know-"
"Is what he wants." Leo spoke up. "And how far he's willing to go to get it."
Freddie stares down at the floor then holds his head up and looks at Gabe. "Did you find out what this gun actually does?"
"You mean besides shooting fire?" Gabe said as he walked towards the hub computer and began typing. "I took the liberty to go through the files from the lab and turned up some interesting and downright terrifying info. Not only is this gun able to shoot fire, it can also shoot concentrated plasma. That kind of stuff can melt through solid metal or destroy anything it comes in contact with."
"A gun that fires concentrated energy?" Leo said, he and Freddie exchange knowing glances. "Sounds familiar because it's ringing some serious alarm bells."
Freddie exhales deeply. "Shadow."
All of a sudden, the hub computer starts to beep which causes everyone to focus their attention there and Gabe starts to type maniacally.
"What's going on?" Riley asked.
"It's my EMS detector." Gabe replied. He goes to explain and Riley cuts him off.
"An electromagnetic surge detector?" Riley stated. "Got it."
Gabe stares at the man surprised then continues "I updated the software to signal if Shadow's energy pops up. That way I can try to find a trail of his electromagnetic energy." Gabe explained while typing until he sees something that catches his eye. "And it just picked up a high frequency surge about twenty miles away from here."
"Who is this Shadow guy anyway?" Riley asked.
"He's the pseudo supervillain who nearly killed Freddie and Leo a few weeks ago." Sam told him. "We've been trying to find him and settle the score."
"That's not the only reason we want to find him. Shadow is working for the Maestro." Freddie said and before Riley could ask "The Maestro is the criminal kingpin of New York."
"He's also been trying to get his hands on Pulse for some time now. Either to eliminate him as a threat or to get him to join his side." Galen replied.
"And seeing as he has Shadow under his employ, I don't see the latter as an option." Cassie spoke up.
"What if that's what he wants you guys to think?" Riley asked the room which gets their attention. "What if this... Maestro guy wants to get his hands on Freddie, offer some kind of alliance and if he turns him down, the Maestro could hold him against his will, torture him until he's broken him. Once he has, the Maestro can easily brainwash Freddie into becoming his superpowered goon. With Pulse and Shadow under his control, the Maestro would be unstoppable."
A silence fell upon the gang, so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. They all share looks of bewilderment until they all focus on Freddie who stands in stunned silence.
Leo leans over to his brother and says "He's not wrong."
Riley senses the tension and assumes that he may have said something wrong. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that, should I?"
Freddie drops his shoulders and smiles. "You didn't. You're absolutely right. The Maestro has the upper hand tactically... For now."
Leo clears his throat to get everyone's attention "And on that bombshell, thinking it's time for us to go to work."
"Shadow is expecting us to answer the invitation, isn't he?" Freddie said with a smile. "Let's suit up."
Cassie then steps in front of her two young crime fighting nephews before Freddie could start grabbing his Pulse gear. "You two aren't going anwh-"
"Oh geez, not this again." Freddie complained, mimicking the behavior of a child being disciplined.
"Don't 'oh geez' me." Cassie said, crossing her arms over her chest. "The last time I had this level of concern for both your well beings, my apprehension was justified because you two almost died!"
"She has a point." Sam remarks, which makes Millie nod in agreement.
"Not helping, honey." Freddie said to his girlfriend, then turning back to face Cassie. "Cass, we know full well how dangerous Shadow is and he's more than likely leading us somewhere but even he wouldn't pull the same thing twice."
Leo spoke up "Fool me once and all that jazz."
"He might know what Wesker's planning or lead us to some kind of clue that points us in the right direction." Freddie stated. "You can't keep pulling this even though you have valid concerns-"
"Would you stop talking and let me talk?" Cassie retorts which silences Freddie. "You two aren't going anywhere... without me."
Freddie and Leo both do double takes "Wait, what?"
"You heard me. If you two are going to face Shadow, then I'm going with you." Cassie said with a smirk.
"I don't know if that's such a good idea. It could get really dangerous out there." Freddie stated. "You could get hurt."
Cassie scoffs at his statement. "Did you really just say that?"
Freddie looks around the room to be met with the faces of his friends which ranged from disbelief to sheer amusement. Even Leo was having trouble hiding his grin. He stares back at Cassie "Right... Forgot who I was talking to."
"Do you even have a disguise of your own? You can't have Shadow knowing who you are." Millie spoke up.
Cassie smiles and walks over to a foot locker next to the salmon ladder. "If my early crime fighting career has taught me anything, it is the art of improvisation." She opens the foot locker and pulls out a black duffel bag. "You have to be prepared for anything."
The expression on Freddie's face changes to the one typical of when his cyberpathy kicks in. He then turns and looks at Galen. "Might want to take that."
Galen pulls out his phone without giving it a second thought as it starts to ring in his hand and sees it was Danny calling.
Riley leans over to Gabe and asks "What superpower does he have?"
Gabe smirks. "Yep. It's actually quite unnerving if you think about it too much."
"Got it." Riley nods and doesn't mention it any further.
"Danny, hey." Galen answers the phone. "What's going on?"
"Can you meet me?" Danny asked his cousin. "I need to talk to someone."
"Sure, but wouldn't you rather talk to your..." Galen cleared his throat. "Your friend-girl, as you call her?" He asked, making sure Cassie heard to which she responded by sticking out her tongue.
"I'm serious. This is important and I have to talk to you." Danny insisted, his voice sounding like it was begging for help. A cry for help that only Galen's heightened senses could detect.
"Okay. Just give me the address and I'll be there as soon as I can." Galen relents, eying Cassie who notices his uneasiness. Riley also notices Galen's uneasiness as well.
Danny exhales. "Murphy's Law, it's a pub a block from the precinct."
"Yeah, I've heard of it. Lots of cops go there for drinks there. I know where it is." Galen told his cousin. "I'll be there."
"Thanks. Bye." Danny said, hanging up before Galen could respond in kind.
"Everything all right?" Riley asked before Cassie could ask.
"Uh, yeah. I kind of have a family emergency and need to sit this one out." Galen told the group. "I'll see you guys in the morning. Hopefully you'll find something to nail Wesker to the wall."
"Appreciate the vote of confidence, Lupin." Leo quips.
"Thanks, Gale." Freddie said good naturedly as he prepared his gear.
Cassie looks up as Galen goes up the stairs then she decides to follow him without anyone noticing, everyone except Riley who watches her leave after her friend. Cassie manages to catch up to Galen and calls out to him "Gale, hold up!" Galen turns to face Cassie. "Is he okay?"
Galen feigns a puzzled expression "Um, 'he' who?"
Cassie chuckled softly and simply said "Want to skip the routine and tell me if something is wrong with Danny."
Galen smiles at his friend. "You could've humored me." He noticed her demeanor hadn't changed, she seemed surprisingly stoic. "You know it's unsettling when you look at me like that?"
"Which means it's working." Cassie said. "Now, out with it. What's going on with Danny?"
"I'm sure you know more than I do, right?" Galen points out.
"You're stalling again." Cassie replied. "I may have an inkling of what's wrong but you are a lot better at spotting this kind of thing."
"Don't sell yourself short, Cass." Galen said with a smile. After a long pause, he takes a breath and says "I'll be sure to tell you when I know more." Cassie nods as he begins to leave. "Just don't do anything stupid until I get back."
"That's not how this works. The stupidity only happens when we're together." Cassie joked at his expense.
Galen deflates and steps up to her and gives her a hug. It wasn't a romantic gesture, it was something a brother would do for his sister. "You're a jerk."
"I know." Cassie retorts as they part from the embrace and Riley slowly walks out and sees this. Galen looks over and sees him standing a few feet away but doesn't say anything.
"Promise you'll be careful?" Galen asked.
"Only if you promise he doesn't get into trouble." Cassie stated.
With that, Galen leaves the warehouse.
Cassie stands in the main room of the warehouse and rubs the back of her neck with the palm of her hand. The events of the day took their toll on her. She wasn't sure how she was capable of handling any of it.
"You okay?" Riley spoke up.
A startled Cassie turns around to face him. "Jeez it! Give a girl a heart attack, why don't you?"
"Didn't mean to scare you." Riley apologized. "Surprised I could scare someone like you."
Cassie sighed. "I may be a certified badass but I'm still a human being." She sees that he was looking at her, seeming to her like he was looking for answers. "Don't think there's anything going with me and Galen. He's my friend and-"
"He's more like a brother to you? I know. He hugged you like I hugged my little sister." Riley told her. "Anyway, why would you think I would think that was anything more than that?"
"Because no matter how old I get, I just assume everyone thinks the worst of me." Cassie told him. "I'd rather be on the defensive."
"I get it. I know for a fact people suck." Riley said. "I've met quite a few exceptions but they're few and far between."
"Like Danny?" Cassie asked.
"Yeah, dude's a great guy." Riley stated, he then notices her demeanor. "But I'm betting you already knew that?"
Cassie laughs. "Not at first. I didn't exactly leave him with the best first impression." She blushes from embarrassment. "I elbowed him in the face."
Riley raises an eyebrow. "Seriously?"
"In my defense, he snuck up behind me and I was merely protecting myself. In this city, that's not an overreaction." Cassie replied. "It took me awhile for me to warm up to him. I bust his balls but he's an amazing guy."
"So... is there any particular reason you're not dating him?" Riley asked her.
Cassie looks down, takes a deep breath and glances at him. "My life hasn't granted me the luxury of a lasting relationship. I have had a few rolls in the sack, not many, but... I haven't been in love in some time." She then realizes who she was talking to and scoffs. "And I must be having a long day if I'm saying all this to someone I barely met."
"Well, I already know a lot about you so it's not like I'm a perfect stranger." Riley quips.
Cassie laughs then she notices that he was staring at the spot where she had been struck by the arrow which was in between her ample bosom. "Um... my eyes aren't there, Chief."
Riley turns bright red as he figures he's been busted. "I wasn't- well I was b-but not for the reasons you think." He regains his composure and explains himself. "I'm just amazed that the arrow didn't leave a scar."
Cassie playfully smacks his shoulder while walking past him to make her way back to the lair. "Regenerative healing, I thought we established this."
Riley starts following her as he speaks "Yeah, I know but... I'm curious about how it works. Does it- does it hurt?"
Cassie stops and turns to face him. "Want a demonstration?"
"Not really, no." Riley said but it was too late as she had already pulled her hunting knife strapped to her left holster. "Whoa, what-"
Cassie slices open the palm of her hand with the knife much to Riley's horror. She gasps softly as the knife passes her flesh. "Just... watch."
Riley couldn't help but watch the macabre display of her powers and sees the deep open wound start to close. He kept looking until the wound had fully healed and only a small pool of her blood remained on her palm. "That was- Wow."
"And by the way, yes. It does hurt." Cassie told him while she put her knife away. "I'm just used to the pain. Most of the time I'm gritting my teeth and sucking it up." She grabs the wet naps in her back pocket and takes one out, cleaning off the blood from her hand. Once she's finished, she asked "That answers your question?"
Riley swallows hard. "I wish I hadn't let my curiosity get the better of me. Not exactly fond of seeing people hurt themselves. Guess it's the Buddhist in me."
"You're a Buddhist?" Cassie asked.
"Yeah but I'm not as hardcore as the monks who I studied with. I adopted some of their teachings so I can control my powers better." Riley said. "I learned to connect with my powers using my Qi."
"I get it. I studied some Buddhist techniques myself. Every being has Qi but not everyone can tap into that potential energy. Think that we both use Qi, just in different ways." Cassie told him.
"Do they know how much it hurts?" Riley asked, changing the subject.
Cassie exhales. "They do know but they don't know how much it actually hurts and I wanna keep it that way. I don't want to worry anyone."
"Then why are you being so open with me?" Riley asked.
Cassie smiles. "Because in the future, I want you to feel free to be honest with me. I'm pretty much a judgement-free zone." She extends her hand for a shake "Deal?"
Riley smiles and accepts her handshake. "Deal."
Cassie sighs. "We should get back. They must be wondering where we went off to. Come on."
Cassie and Riley then head back to the Pulse Cave.
•••
Inside Murphy's Law, an old school Irish Pub a block from the precinct, Danny sat at the main bar with a bottle of bourbon in front of him. He grabs the bottle and pours more liquor into the rocks glass he has been drinking from when footsteps approach him. After taking a drink and swallowing the liquor, Danny senses the presence standing next to him and smiles "What kept you?"
It was Galen who was standing next to him and decided to take a seat next to him. "Really hope you aren't driving home." Galen said, expressing concern with how much alcohol Danny was drinking.
Danny swallows hard at the abrasiveness of the bourbon. "Trust me, I'm not going to take up drunk driving as a new hobby." He turns to his cousin "Thanks for coming."
Galen nods, not wanting to add anything further. Just then, a female bartender walks over to the two, a pretty twenty nine year old with a cream colored skin and blond hair who places a napkin in front of Galen which gets his attention.
"Can I get you anything, sweetheart?" The bartender asked.
"Just water. Sort of the designated driver for the evening." Galen told her.
"Boo." The female bartender said in a deadpan voice then she laughed. "Just kidding, respect you for being responsible and helping out your buddy." She turns and goes to get Galen a glass of water.
Danny stares at her then looks at Galen and laughs. "She thinks you're cute."
Galen seems surprised that Danny said that but he thinks it might be the alcohol talking. "Think you've had a little too much."
"You don't think she thinks so?" Danny asked.
"I'm not saying that." Galen said with a smile.
The female bartender walks back over to them and places a glass of water in front of Galen. "There you go. You boys let me know if you need anything."
"Can I get your name? Just so I know who to ask for help?" Galen said playfully.
The female bartender smiles. "It's Gemma. You got a name? Just so I know who's asking?"
Galen chuckles softly "Galen."
"Hmm, an Irish boy. I like that." Gemma said with a smirk and she walked off to attend to another customer.
Danny finds the attempt at flirting amusing. "Real smooth there, cuz."
Galen glares at Danny and changes the subject. "So, what is so important that you had to call me here?"
Danny winces and takes another drink. "You're probably going to think what I'm about to tell you is insane-"
"You're talking to the guy with the claws, glowing eyes and canine teeth." Galen points out, speaking in a low tone only Danny could hear. "I'm not one to judge on what sounds insane."
Danny laughs then takes a deep breath. "You want to know why I knew what she was thinking?"
Galen seemed confused by the question as he took a drink from his water. "Body language?"
Danny shakes his head and simply says. "I read her mind."
Galen coughs as he had nearly choked on the water. "Excuse me?" He coughs a bit until he gains control of his body. "Did you just say-"
"I did." Danny told him. "I think I can read minds."
"This is- Wow." Galen said with mild disbelief in his voice. "How long?"
"It's been going on all day but.. I think these might be the source of my migraines." Danny replied. "Least my head didn't actually explode."
"The night's young." Galen jokes.
Danny scowls at him. "Not helping."
Galen laughs then realizes something. "So, you're using the booze as a painkiller?"
"Well, conventional ones aren't helping. Thought this would try something different." Danny said as he goes to pour more bourbon into his glass until Galen stops him. "What are you-"
"Killing your liver isn't going to help avoid any of this." Galen told him.
"Especially with the kind of power he has. Particularly after what he said."
Danny stares at him, having heard Galen's thoughts. "Who were you talking to about telepathy?"
Galen seems surprised until he just shakes his head. "You weren't kidding." He sees that Danny was still looking for answers. "Your friend Riley was talking about it. Knows quite more than I do. You probably should have gone to him for help."
"So you want to pass your responsibilities on to someone else?" Danny quips.
Galen laughs "I think I'm starting to like you when you've had some drinks in you."
"I wonder if Cassie knows about this."
"She actually does." Danny tells him. "I sort of made her promise not to say anything. Not until I figure this all out."
Galen sighs. "Okay, this is becoming unsettling."
Danny laughs at this as he rubs his left temple. "When we were kids, we both found out he could move objects with his mind. He said his parents knew something like this was going to happen. Apparently it runs in his family, superpowers I mean."
"That's why you didn't freak out when you found out about me." Galen realized.
"Yeah." Danny told him. "When I first found out about Pulse, I wasn't sure if I wanted to bring him in. Thought he might be a confused kid who is just in over his head. I wanted to suggest he should work with us. I kept it to myself because-"
"Because you weren't sure how Victor or the captain would react? That you weren't sure who you could trust with your own knowledge. Afraid they would use it against you?" Galen guessed.
Danny laughs, "I thought I was the psychic."
"Psychics can see the future. Think you might be something much different." Galen points out.
"But it makes me wonder… did I have these powers and was I just suppressing them or is this because I was exposed to something that gave me these powers." Danny asked, almost asking himself for answers.
"Pretty sure you weren't bitten by a radioactive telepathic spider." Galen jokes.
Danny laughs. "You really aren't helping."
Galen sighs then puts his hand on his shoulder.
•••
On the top a roof across from a warehouse, Pulse zooms on to the scene. He looks around for a sign of anyone when the sound of a grappling hook hitting the side of the building is heard. E turns around and sees the Fox leap onto the rooftop.
"You're late." Freddie remarks, his mask hiding his smirk.
"No need to rub it in, Speed Ball." Leo said, not in the mood for the teasing. "Sure this is the right place?"
"Is this the right place, Loki?" Freddie asked through the com link.
"This is where the energy spawned. And it's still surging, only it's not as strong now." Gabe told them. "Can I take a guess where he led you?"
"I'd let you but your first guess would be the correct one." Freddie quips.
"No, I would've said something like 'aquarium' to now make you feel bad... and then made the correct guess." Gabe jokes. "He led you guys to a warehouse, didn't he?"
"Yep, an abandoned one which doesn't really surprise me." Freddie comments. "What it does is that there are a couple SUVs parked outside."
"What do you want to do?" Leo asked.
"We wait for Ca- Athena and check things out for ourselves." Freddie replied while looking around for any sign of Cassie. "Wonder what's taking her so long?"
"Maybe she got stuck in traffic?" Leo joked.
Before another word could be exchanged, a high pitched whistle is heard from the ground below. The two crime fighters look down to see a woman clad in an all black outfit and they both realize who it was.
"No way!" Freddie exclaimed. "How'd she get here before I did?"
"Why don't we ask her?" Leo replied.
With that, the two of them repel down from the building and land on the ground where the figure stands waiting for them.
It was Cassie of course, only she wore a long sleeved black top, tight black pants, black knee high lace up combat boots, and a matching utility belt. She wore a black domino mask and a straight black wig that was tied back in a ponytail. She was also wearing black gloves and had a long staff strapped to her back.
"What took you so long?" Cassie asked with a smug look on her face. "Been here for like ten minutes."
"How on Earth did you beat us here?" Freddie asked, sounding incredulous.
"I think the better question, one he's too prideful to ask, is how did you beat HIM here?" Leo teasingly asked which made Freddie groan.
Cassie grins. "When Gabe gave us the address, I took a few shortcuts. Once I figured out where this place was, I made it here in no time flat."
"Doesn't hurt that you're a native New Yorker." Freddie remarked.
"What can I say? Know this town like the back of my hand " Cassie said, raising her left hand and staring at the back of it. She glances around the area. "I scoped out the outside of this place. Nothing out of the ordinary… Except for the two SUVs."
"Think we should head inside. Shadow is waiting for us, don't wanna keep him waiting." Leo replied.
"Be careful. This seems like an ambush." Gabe said over the com link.
"We will be." Freddie reassured his friend.
The trio walk towards the front of the building. They see the metal door has scorch marks on it and a few dents.
"This does not bode well." Cassie replied.
Pulse and the Fox both turn their heads and simultaneously say "'Bode'?"
Cassie scoffs. "Pardon me if my vernacular isn't dope and fricky fresh."
"Hope that was sarcasm because no one says those things." Leo quips
"Even I know that and I am the unhippest of the unhip." Freddie jokes. "Now if we're done, let's do this."
With one powerful kick, Pulse knocks the metal door off its hinges which lands on the floor with a loud crash.
"Yoohoo." Leo whistled. "Anybody home?"
The trio walks fully inside only to find four bodies strewn about the warehouse. They all had third degree burns covering their bodies, the few that were recognizable as human. Few were blackened and charred beyond recognition.
"Jesus." Cassie mumbled
"Loki, you seeing this?" Freddie asked.
"Regrettably. Good thing the girls went out to get smoothies because this would even turn your girlfriend's stomach." Gabe mentioned.
"For once, I agree with you." Freddie said as they surveyed more of the scene. "Smells like-"
"Death?" Leo spoke up.
"Uh, yeah but…" Freddie started.
"It doesn't smell right?" Cassie asked.
"No. Not like the normal smell of thermal burns. There's a trace of chemicals in the air." Freddie said. He walks over to a body on the floor and notices something. "These are.." He swallows hard, choking back some vomit. "These are definitely chemical burns."
"You okay?" Cassie asked, concerned.
"Yeah, just the smell of burnt flesh isn't something I'm used to." Freddie retorts.
"Didn't figure you for having such a weak stomach."
The three quickly turn to face who had called out only to find Shadow standing at the top of a scaffolding just above them. The Fox swiftly pulls an arrow from his quiver and aims at the dangerous enemy. Cassie takes her staff from her back and Pulse's hands flow with electricity.
Shadow raises his arms in defense. "Whoa, easy there. You all are rather jumpy, aren't you?"
"I figured you were behind this." Leo said in his modulated voice, his keen eye not taking his focus off Shadow.
Shadow scoffs as he jumps down and lands a few feet away from them.
"Why did you call us here?" Freddie asked in his disguised voice.
"I didn't come here looking for a fight, if that's what you think." Shadow stated.
"And you expect us to believe that?" Leo seethed.
"You boys can hold a grudge, can't you?" Shadow retorts.
"I'm just wondering how fireproof that suit is because last I heard, you were doing a wicked Human Torch impression." Freddie quipped.
Shadow ignores the comment and turns to see the costumed Cassie and moves closer to her but she puts her staff between the two of them as a barrier.
"That's far enough there, lad." Cassie ordered, her voice speaking in a Scottish accent. This action made Pulse and the Fox turn their heads sideways. "One step and I will impale ya with this and turn ya into a scarecrow."
Shadow laughs. "You expect me to buy that that's your real voice, Merida?"
"Think we're asking the questions, boy-oh." Cassie replied, her steely gaze fixed upon him.
"You at least got a name, lassie?" Shadow asked.
Cassie slowly lowers her staff. "It's Athena."
"Now that proper introductions have been made, time for you to talk. Why did you bring us here?" Freddie asked.
"Yeah, you came to show us your handiwork?" Leo replied.
"That's making assumptions, Robin Hood, and you know what they say about assumptions." Shadow quipped.
"Keep it up and I'll ASSUME you would make a good piñata." Cassie threatened. "Ya have till five to get to the point."
"You got quite a set of teeth, don't you?" Shadow said in a flirtatious manner which made the trio uneasy. "Do love a woman with fire."
Cassie grits her teeth. "Five, four, three…"
"Careful, she might decide to skip a couple numbers." Leo warned.
"You're no fun." Shadow stated. "I came to warn you."
"That supposed to be funny?" Leo replied.
"More like professional courtesy. One masked individual to another." Shadow quipped.
"Two." Cassie barked.
"I am trying to have a conversation but since all I'm getting is the third degree, I'll just-"
"Wait!" Freddie called out before Shadow made his exit. "You aren't behind this, are you?" He asked, pointing at the bodies.
Shadow shakes his head. "Not my style. I wouldn't leave this much of a mess."
"Yes, because murder is now considered an art form." Cassie stated with sarcastic wit.
"Trust me, I didn't do this." Shadow stated.
"Why should we even consider believing a word you say?" Leo asked.
"Because IF it had been me, I wouldn't have left any witnesses." Shadow said, motioning to something behind the three.
The triad of heroes look to see a man in military like garb lying on the floor next to a broken wooden crate, starting to come to.
"That still doesn't-" Before Cassie could finish her thought, they saw that Shadow was gone. "Bloody hell, bastard pulled a 'Batman'."
"Think you can ditch the accent." Freddie told her. "Time to go to work."
"Watch yourselves. This still feels like a trap." Gabe warned.
The Fox slowly walks over to the downed man and moves the pieces of the broken crate. The man senses a presence and quickly whips out a gun only to have Pulse zap it out of the hand and the Fox grabs him by the shirt collar.
"My turn." Leo seethed as he shoves the man against the closest wall. "Don't make me add your corpse to this graveyard. Who did this and why?"
"I ain't telling any of you nothing!" the man yelled.
The Fox glares at him until he punches the man in the face. The others stand and watch until the man coughs and scowls at the three.
"I ain't telling you jack!" The man shouted.
"Bad news for you, then." Freddie replied.
The Fox tosses him to the floor near Cassie's feet. He then pulls out a zip tie and proceeds to tie the man's wrists together.
"You tryin' to scare a confession outta m-me?" The man asked defiantly. "I won't break."
"No." Cassie retorts then she steps on his back hard. "But your bones will."
The Fox binds his feet and places a small device on the rope. With a flip of a switch, the device launches a cable to the roof and a rope begins to lift the man off the ground, hanging him up like a piñata. The Fox turns to Cassie "He's all yours."
Cassie walks closer to the man as he pulls her staff from her back.
The man gets a better look at Cassie. "Hey, ain't that Mockingbird chick?" The man asked.
"I go by Athena these days." Cassie said, twirling her staff.
"So it's true what they say about you. You're a friggin animal." The man stated.
"Guess it's time to live up to my reputation." Cassie said as the man winced. "You know, you can bleed to death without ever spilling a drop. All on the inside. Tell me what happened here…" She got in his face "…or I start swinging."
Cassie backs up a bit to give herself room to swing as the man tries to act tough even though he was scared out of his mind.
"If you're gonna hit me, hit me!" the man yelled, a quiver of fear in his voice.
Cassie swings but instead of hitting the man, she hits a few barrels that were next to him. This causes the man to scream in terror. "Talk, NOW!"
The man whimpers with great terror in his voice "We-we came here because out boss wanted this… chemical being stored here."
"What kind of chemical?" Leo asked.
"I-I don't know." The man replied.
"What do you mean 'you don't know'?" Cassie yelled.
"We were paid to steal it, not ask questions." The man told them. "Then this… psycho broke in while we were working. We-we tried to stop him but he pulled out this weird gun and roasted all of them."
"Who do you work for?" Freddie asked. "The Maestro?"
The man clamps up and refuses to answer the question.
Cassie looks over at Pulse and motions to him. "Your turn." She walks away from him and Pulse takes her place.
Pulse unbinds the man's hand and grabs one of his arms. He starts bending it back and applying some pressure which makes the man scream in pain. "I start here and keep breaking until you answer. Who do you work for?"
"We don't work for the Maestro!" the man yelled "Our boss wants this chemical to make a grab for the top spot! He's afraid the Maestro wants complete control. He wants to even the odds."
"Does he have a name?" Leo asked.
The man coughs. "Callum, Callum Eastman."
"Did this man who attacked you steal the chemical?" Freddie asked, applying more pressure.
"Yes, he said he needed it and would burn the city to the ground." The man replied. "It's all I know. Please let me go."
Pulse applied more pressure, his anger starting to boil. The other two realize he might break the man's arm. The sound of police sirens are heard heading their way.
Cassie calls out to him "Pulse, that's enough. Let him go." She sees he won't let go. "I said, that's enough! PULSE!"
Pulse snaps out of it and he grabs his arms then ties them up.
"We gotta go." Leo told them.
Pulse nods and the three of them exit out the back way as the police burst in through the front door. One of them being Detective Flores.
"Jesus Christ." Victor exclaimed then he looked at one of the officers. "Call the coroner. This is a massacre." He looks around and hears the tied up man's cry for help.
"Help! Someone help me!"
Victor runs over to the man "What happened here?"
"We were ambushed." The man gasped. "He lit them all on fire. Then the masked freaks showed up."
"Pulse and the Fox?" Victor asks as he unties his hands only to have him handcuff him.
"Yeah, and some chick with an accent." The man told him. "Hey, what are you-"
"Obviously you aren't an innocent bystander here. You're going to answer some more questions back at the station."
One of the officers approaches Victor. "What do we do with him?"
"Get him down and put him in a squad car. He has to answer some questions for us." Victor said. "I will check the perimeter. See if the coast is clear."
The officer nods as he and another officer got the man down and haul him away.
Victor checks the rest of the building until he senses a presence behind him "We need to stop meeting like this." He turns around and finds Pulse step out of the shadows. "I really hope you weren't behind any of this."
"No. These deaths were the work of someone else. We just tied the only surviving member of this bonfire." Freddie told him. "We interrogated him and got some interesting answers."
"What'd he say?" Victor asked.
"That they broke in here to steal some explosive chemical but got attacked by some psycho with a weird gun. Lit them all up." Freddie stated. "Would this be connected to a case you're currently working on?"
Victor nods. "Trevor Wesker is connected to the theft of an experimental gun that lights things on fire. I won't know more until I ask the only witness."
"Wesker needs to be stopped. We'll put a stop to his rampage." Freddie replied as turns his back to Victor.
"As long as he is stopped, won't argue with you on it." Victor said.
"Then I wish you luck, Detective." Freddie said and in a flash of lightning, he disappears with his super speed.
Victor is shocked that Pulse had just ran away in a flash of light. "So… Super speed. That isn't strange at all." He then walks out of the building, still confused.
In the empty building, Shadow glimmers into sight and laughs "Huh, that's something I wasn't expecting." In another glimmer of electricity, he vanishes from sight before an officer walks back into the building.
•••
Meanwhile in an isolated cabin in the woods which was moderately sized with a fireplace in the living room area. There was a small kitchen and a dining room table close by.
Just then, the front door opens and Pete walks in with a bag of groceries in his arm. He moves aside and allows Maddy to walk inside.
"Come on in." Pete said as Maddy cautiously walked in.
"This place is pretty.. big." Maddy said.
"It's not the Ritz but it's a warm place to sleep." Pete said as he walked fully into the cabin and locked the door. "We'll stay here until morning then head out. Is that okay?"
"This isn't me complaining." Maddy assures him. "I don't mind camping but this is much better."
"You like camping?" Pete asked while putting the groceries in the kitchen.
"Oh yeah. My parents used to take me and my brother camping in Yellowstone every year. I am good at the whole 'surviving out in the woods on my own' thing." Maddy told him. "Not as well as my brother. He has been backpacking across the globe for a while now. He was a boy scout so he can live off the land if he has to."
"Do you get to see him often?" Pete asked.
"Not as much as I want to. I only see him on holidays... Or when he's somewhere with Wi-fi and we get to video chat." Maddy said. "Now... He's all I got."
"Do you know-"
"Where is he now?" Maddy finished then she nodded. "I have some ideas."
Pete nods his head. "Good. Let me know and we'll find him." He looks around the cabin. "You can set your bag in the bedroom. Make yourself at home."
"Is there another bedroom?" Maddy asked.
Pete shakes his head. "Don't worry about it, kid. I'll take the couch."
"Y-you don't mind?" Maddy stammered.
Pete smiles "After what you've been through, you need the creature-comforts more than I do."
Maddy blushes then nods. "Thanks." She goes to find the bedroom then stops and turns to face him. "Thank you."
"No problem, kid. Now you get settled. I'm gonna make dinner for us." Pete replied.
"You cook?" Maddy asked with dubiousness.
Pete laughs. "Let me rephrase that, I am going to make some real mean grilled cheese sandwiches and heat up some tomato soup from a can."
"Considering your powers, that shouldn't be too hard." Maddy teased.
Pete scoffs as she walks off.
•••
Sam, Millie and Riley walk across the street heading towards the Groovy Smoothie close to the St George.
"You did write down what everyone wanted, right?" Millie asked Sam.
Sam gives her a questioning look. "I was supposed to write that down?"
Millie scoffs. "Um, yeah. That's why I asked you to."
"Don't worry, I wrote it all down." Riley said to Millie.
Millie smiles brightly. "Thanks, new guy."
Sam playfully smacks Riley's arm. "No need to be such a kiss-up, Chestnut."
Riley smiles while rubbing his shoulder as the three walk inside the shop. There they find the place empty except for Charlie who stood behind the counter, cleaning up.
"Please don't tell me you're closing up." Millie pleaded.
Charlie looks up at the time via the clock on the wall. "Not yet. You guys are my last customers of the night."
"Jake told me that this is your last day. Is that true?" Millie asked.
"Yeah, I got a better job offer in Toronto." Charlie told Millie. "Jake said to follow my heart."
"Well, we're gonna miss you, Charlie." Millie said, going around the counter to hug Charlie.
Charlie winces, feeling bad for lying but a weight was finally lifted. Charlie then breaks from the hug and turns to face Riley "Oh, um… who's your handsome friend?"
Sam turns her head to look at Riley with a puzzled expression. "Do you have some kind of mojo over every girl you meet or is it just me?"
Riley laughs. "I prefer to call it blind luck."
Millie shakes her head. "Charlie, this is our new friend Riley Danvers. Riley, this is Charlie Robinson."
Riley extends his hand. "Pleasure to meet you, Ms Robinson."
Charlie grins and accepts his handshake. "I do appreciate a boy with manners. And you don't have to be so formal, call me Charlie. Everybody does."
Riley blushes as the girls hide their amusement. Millie hands Charlie the list of drink orders which she accepts cheerfully.
"So, you're new in town?" Charlie asked as she started to make the drinks.
"Actually I am. I'm visiting an old friend." Riley explained.
"Will you be staying long?" Charlie asked him.
"That all depends. This trip was a bit sporadic." Riley replied.
"Nothing wrong with a little spontaneity." Charlie winked. "Makes life interesting."
"Smoothie Girl, bathroom still open?" Sam asked, breaking up the flirting.
Charlie laughs. "Yeah but I just cleaned them so-" Before she could finish, Sam turned and went into the girls room. "Don't use them."
"Don't bother. Puckett doesn't really care to do what people tell her." Millie joked.
"Good thing it's my last day I don't have to clean those bathrooms ever again." Charlie said.
Just then, Alec walks into the restaurant in normal civilian clothing and not in a suit and tie. He sees Charlie wasn't alone and sighs.
"Thought you were closing up?" Alec asked.
"It was but one last order is no big." Charlie said as she handed Millie a tray of drinks. "That'll be 17.45."
Millie hands her a twenty dollar bill "I would say keep the change but this isn't my money."
Charlie raises her eyebrow. "Gabe's?"
"Yep." Millie retorts. She turns to Alec. "What brings you here so late?"
"I-I just got off work and Jake asked me for a favor." Alec said, looking knowingly at 'Charlie'. "He wanted me to give Charlie a ride home."
"Well, aren't you sweet?" Millie said. "Guess it saves you the trip of getting to see your beau."
Alec looks at 'Charlie' who hides their blushing face.
Charlie proceeds to ring Millie up as Alec stares at Riley who was a bit puzzled by the look Alec gave him.
"Um… Hi." Riley stated.
Alec snaps out of his gaze ."Oh, sorry. That was involuntary."
"Alec, play nice." Charlie replied. "This charming champion stare contestant is Alec Grayson. Alec, meet Riley Danvers."
"Um it's good to meet you." Riley said.
"Likewise." Alec nods, he looks at the person behind the counter with a look that reads with a hint of jealousy. He then focuses on Riley. "So, what brings you to the Big Apple?"
"Do I really look like I'm not from around here?" Riley said with a laugh.
"Didn't mean it like that, you just look... well travelled if that makes sense." Alec answered.
"In a sense, it kind of does." Riley replied. "I'm in town visiting an old friend."
"Friend have a name?" Alec asked, his response sounding more like an interrogation.
"He does but why do I feel like I'm being cross-examined?" Riley asked.
"Riley is a friend of Danny's." Millie retorts, hoping to ease the tension.
Alec glances at Riley as he crosses his arms over his chest. "Is that right?"
"That a problem?" Riley glares at him. "Look, no offense, but I don't see why you get the right to judge me if I just met you?"
Alec sighs and he relaxes his shoulders. "I'm not much of a people-person, especially around newer people. I'm a lawyer, I cross-examine as a force of habit. I am really sorry."
Riley nods "No apologies necessary. I just-"
Suddenly, a burly man wearing a black hoodie and a matching beanie bursts in. He seemed intent on one thing in particular and it wasn't a smoothie.
"Sir, we're closed for-"
Before Charlie could get her thought out, the man whips out a gun and points it at the group.
"Empty out the drawer, now!" the man demanded. "NOW!"
Charlie yelps and defensively puts her hands up as the others follow suit.
"All right, take it easy." Alec said. "Charlie, just give him the money, okay?"
Charlie nods in panic mode and starts to open the drawer to empty out what was inside. She noticed her hands were shimmering, the illusion was going to shatter due to her anxiety over the situation.
"Breathe." Alec said softly to his lover hiding behind the girl. "It's okay."
Charlie breathed deep to calm down as she tried to get the money out of the drawer. It works as the illusion held in place.
The robber keeps the gun pointed at them when Millie notices Sam exiting the bathroom, completely unnoticed by the man. The two exchange glances of understanding, the two young women had just devised a plan.
Riley and Alec realize what was happening but weren't going to insert themselves in it, so they don't ruin what they were planning.
Charlie hands the robber a bag of cash and he goes to leave but Millie calls out to him. "Hey!"
The robber turns around to see Millie with her hands behind her back, seductively flipping her hair back.
"Leaving soon?" she asked in a coy manner.
"Whatever it is you're playing at, drop it. Not in the mood." The robber stated.
Alec motions to Charlie who nods and hits the silent alarm button of the security system for the store.
"Aw, but I had BIG party plans." Millie said slyly as Sam quietly approached the man from behind, she was pulling something from her jacket.
"Girlie, Imma giving you the count of five to back off..." the robber points his gun at her "Or I will shoot you."
Millie stares at the gun and senses something off about the weapon, until it clicks as to what was wrong. She steps closer to where her body was against the barrel of the gun. "Go ahead. Shoot me."
This response horrifies the adults in the room, the robber especially.
"Think I won't do it?" The robber asked. "Got some kind of death wish?"
"Not exactly but I have a question." Millie said. "Ever heard of a buttersock?"
The robber raises an eyebrow as Millie looks quickly behind her to see Sam has pulled out her trusty buttersock. "No, what's that?"
"This." Sam retorts.
[Soundtrack Note: 'Timebomb' by Bad Seed Rising starts to play and continues during this fight, starting at 1:43 of the track]
Faster than the robber could react, Sam begins to pummel him with her weapon, causing the gun to fly out of his hands.
The robber shields his face from the onslaught only to have Millie turn him to face her, punch him hard in the stomach then square in the nose.
Sam turns him back to her and knees him in the groin which adds insult to injury then she pins his right arm behind him in a chicken wing arm bar.
"No- No, let go!" the robber screamed.
"Okay." Sam simply says as she tosses him back to Millie who grabs him by the shoulders. What happens next surprises everyone in the room.
Using an advanced Judo technique, Millie performs a perfect uchi mata and hurls him across the floor landing hard on the side of his back.
"Dude!" Sam exclaimed as the others were speechless at the display of violence.
[Soundtrack Note: Song ends at 2:03]
Millie catches her breath and rubs her shoulder. "Was... Was that too much?"
"A little bit." Riley retorts.
Alec grabs a napkin and uses it to reach for the robber's weapon and examines it. He was astonished by what he had discovered.
"Do you realize how crazy that was?" Charlie stated.
"Guys, we weren't really in danger." Millie reassured them.
"She's right." Alec said as he walked over to them holding the weapon. "This isn't a real gun."
"Are you kidding me?" Charlie asked angrily. "What is it? A water gun?"
"Nope, that would've made much more sense." Alec replied. "It's made of cheese."
"Wait, what?" Riley stated as the robber came to.
"Black cheese, to be precise." Alec said as he held the gun. "Give it some heft to fool the untrained eye."
"Yeah, that's why I wasn't afraid of it. My dad IS a cop, I would know if a gun is real or not." Millie said then she stared at the robber. "FYI, you threatened a cop's kid. Not your brightest move."
"Now you don't have very many options. Either you can stay here and wait for the cops or you could run with your tail between your legs." Alec replied.
"But trust that you probably won't get very far." Riley retorts and Alec nods in agreement. "Or third choice is these lovely young ladies pummel into submission... again."
The robber weighed his options and quickly ran out the door, well limped out the door.
"Smart choice." Sam quipped. She looks at Millie, smiles then raises her hand for a fist bump. "Nicely done, Mills. I had no idea you had such killer moves."
Millie smiles and bumps Sam's fist as the two girls bond over the display of violence they showed.
"Cops should be here in five minutes." Charlie informs them. She turns to Sam and Millie. "You two are insane. Where did you two learn to do that?"
"I have some ideas." Alec said with a smile. "Did Cassie teach you those moves?"
"Well we have been under the tutelage of Sensei Sinclair but she can't take credit for that." Millie replied. "I have a purple belt in Judo. Finally got to put my martial arts skills to good use."
"I just like hitting people." Sam simply said.
Alec smiles. "It's strange how the two of you remind me of Cassie, it's uncanny."
"You must be close to Cassie, I take it?" Riley spoke up.
"Something like that." Alec said, not wanting to give more details than that.
All of a sudden, a loud pained scream is heard coming from outside.
"What the hell?" Riley proclaimed as he and Alec ran outside with the girls following behind them.
The group runs and sees a man engulfed in flames running down the street out of an alley. He was screaming in agony as he struggled to put himself out. People on the street panicked and cried out for help as the man pleaded while in agony.
Riley looks around and sees a tarp on the back of a pickup truck parked on the side of the street and he gets Alec's attention. "Help me out here!"
Before Alec could object, Riley grabs his shoulder and pulls him over to the tarp as they pull it off.
As the guys try to pull the tarp, Sam gets sick of just spectating and she turns to Millie and Charlie. "Get the people off the street until we put him out!"
"Wait, we-"
Sam jumps into action as she runs over to the guys and starts to help them. "Need a hand?"
"You shouldn't be so close to this." Alec stated.
"I shouldn't do a lot of things, Lionel Hutz, but things about me is that I don't listen." Sam objected as she grabbed the tarp along with them. "Now let's put this guy out."
Charlie is stunned at the horrific sight as Millie winces at the scene. They both look at each other as Millie sees Charlie's eye color flicker. She ignores it as they turn back to the scene.
The two men relent and the three take the tarp off and rush over to the burning man and drape the tarp over him to extinguish the flames.
"Come on." Millie jumps in as well but instead she goes to get the gathering crowd off the streets. Charlie sighs then follows behind Millie as they get the crowd out of the area as best as possible.
Alec, Riley and Sam manage to put out the man but the man was no longer screaming. In fact, he wasn't moving.
"Someone call an ambulance!" Riley shouted to the crowd as a few bystanders took out cellphones and began calling.
"Think it might be too late for him." Alec said softly.
Sam pulls back a bit of the tarp at the smoldering man and her eyes widen. "Dude, we know him."
The guys take a look at the body and realize who the burning man was: it was the would-be robber.
•••
Back at the cabin, Pete and Maddy were finishing the dinner he had prepared for them: two grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup poured into disposal cups. Maddy finished the last bite of her sandwich and smiled.
"So?" Pete asked. "What's the verdict?"
"Well, considering the conditions you were under… that was the best grilled cheese I ever had." Maddy told him.
Pete grins. "Thank you."
"Shame they didn't have marshmallows at the store. Bet you make the BEST s'mores with your powers." Maddy said, laughing.
"That's not UNTRUE, Madd Hatter." Pete said, he however notices her wince at the name. "Is something wrong, kid?"
Maddy shakes her head "No, I'm just- my- my dad used to call me Madd Hatter."
Pete hangs his head. "I am sorry. For everything you have been through."
"I still see it. My mom got shot in the stomach by that… Her blood sprayed on my favorite shirt. The one my brother bought me in Finland. I still have it, can't wash…" Maddy explained, the memory fresh in her mind. "I heard my dad screaming when I was hiding in the crawl space in my room. Never saw what they did to my dad. All I knew was that he was gone."
Pete places his hand on her shoulder. "You don't have to tell me this. You went through a traumatic event, I can't expect you to tell me everything."
Maddy shakes her head. "It helps. I read somewhere that repressing memories like that can make things worse. Make you antisocial… Wounded. Like Cassie."
Pete raises an eyebrow. "How do you-"
"I don't just see the future." Maddy said as she grabbed her sketchbook next to her and showed him a drawing. "I can also see the past too. The visions flow both ways, I guess."
Pete stares at the picture and sees a red haired female figure lying on a bed, clutching a stuffed animal. It was a younger Cassie in the Mockingbird costume minus the wig.
"She suffered a lot." He said somberly.
"So have you." Maddy said frankly.
Pete looks at her. "What have you seen of my past?"
"Nothing… It's just the way you talk… You must be in so much pain." Maddy finished. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything-"
"Don't apologize. I just don't want to scare you with the details." Pete explained. He looks at the old cuckoo clock against the wall. "It's late. You're gonna need plenty of rest. I'll clean up."
Maddy nods as she gets up from the table. "I'll go get ready for bed." She goes to the room but stops and says "For what it's worth, she won't hate you forever."
With that, Maddy heads into the room and closes the door. Leaving Pete alone with his thoughts.
•••
Back at the Pulse Cave, Freddie, Leo and Cassie enter through the secret entrance and begin removing their masks and other methods of concealment.
"You're lucky you didn't break his arm." Cassie scolded Freddie as she pulled off the dark wig.
"I wasn't going to break his arm." Freddie replied slightly annoyed.
"How was I supposed to know?" Cassie asked, running her fingers through her hair to undo the 'wig' hair.
"She's right. You had that... Look." Leo comments as he combs out the 'mask' hair.
"Look? What 'look'?" Freddie asked in a perplexed tone.
"Like tunnel vision. You were so focused on inflicting pain on him that you were losing control." Cassie stated. "I've been there, not pretty."
Freddie sighs. "All right, the next time that happens you have my permission to slap me silly."
"Oh I will hold you to that, baby bro." Leo teased to which Cassie laughed heartily at.
The trio walks over to Gabe and Claud who were surprisingly quiet which wasn't a good sign.
"You guys okay?" Cassie asked.
"Yeah, Gabe looks like someone burned every copy of his comic book collection." Leo said.
The joke didn't break the somber mood which made matters worse.
"Guys?" Freddie said. "What's wrong? Where are the girls and Riley?"
Gabe glances at Claud who nods at him to tell them what they found out. "Um... You guys need to get to the Groovy Smoothie. Something happened."
The trio stares at each other, thinking the worst.
•••
Meanwhile at the crime scene in front of the Groovy Smoothie, Victor was standing next to the stretcher carrying the charred body of the robber. He shakes his head in disbelief then turns to face his daughter who was finished being questioned by an officer on the scene.
"Are you going to explain how this happened?" Victor asked Millie.
"I would but it's going to be the same thing I told him." Millie said, pointing at the officer who spoke to her. "Probably the same thing everyone else has told him."
Victor let out a deep breath then said. "Ms Robinson let us look at the security camera footage before she left with Mr Grayson."
"Oh... crapple." Millie replied, realizing what he meant.
"What on Earth possessed you to put yourself in harm's way like that?" Victor asked, struggling to his voice down and keep his anger in check. "Worse, you and my partner's younger sister formed some crime fighting tag team to beat up the vic. Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?"
"I knew I wasn't in danger, dad." Millie said, putting emphasis on 'dad'. "I have seen a gun up close and I'm not just talking about your service weapon. Remember that guy who had me at gunpoint at the rave several months ago?"
"It's hard to forget. I still have nightmares." Victor said solemnly.
Millie swallows a breath then says "I have a purple belt in Judo or have you forgotten all the lessons you paid for?" She replied in a slightly teasing manner.
Victor nods in amusement. "How could I forget?"
"Point is, how was I going to mistake a real gun for a fake gun made of black cheese?" Millie reminds him.
Victor relents and smiles at her. "Sometimes you're too smart for your own good, you know that?"
"It is your fault, you did raise me." Millie said with a grin.
Victor kisses her on the forehead like any loving father would. "You remind me so much of your mother. Never could win an argument."
Millie hugs her dad tightly and says "It was scary but I can handle it. Big girl, remember?" She looks over her shoulder to glance at the bodybag on the stretcher. "Do you guys know who he is?"
Victor pulls away from the hug and looks down at his daughter. "Not yet but fortunately your friends putting him out did preserve some evidence. I didn't save his life but helped give us a chance to find out who he was."
"Now I sorta regret creaming him." Millie replied.
"I don't. Guy was asking for the asskicking." Sam spoke up as she and Riley went to stand next to Millie and Victor. "But... he sure as hell didn't deserve that." Her voice sounded uncharacteristically serious.
"Out of the mouths of babes." Riley said.
Victor stares at Riley confused. "I don't mean to be rude but who are you?"
"Oh, sorry. We haven't been introduced, I'm Riley Danvers." Riley said, offering a handshake.
"He's a childhood friend of Danny's." Millie informed her dad. "He's been keeping Sam some company all day and in turn has been hanging out with the gang all day."
Victor sizes up Riley then accepts the handshake. "Good to meet you."
Riley nods and smiles. "Likewise."
"So you've had the distinct pleasure in meeting my daughter's boyfriend and her two male friends she can't help spending all her free time with?" Victor remarks.
"Dad." Millie groaned at his overprotective parenting.
Riley laughs in a good natured manner. "As a matter of fact, I have and they all seem like great guys. Especially Freddie, he's... quite the character."
Sam grins and winks. "And then some, Chestnut."
Over Victor's shoulder, Sam sees Danny get out of the passenger side of his car and close the door then bend down to talk to Galen who was his designated driver.
"Look who's late." Sam joked.
The others turn to see Danny walking towards them. "What happened?"
"Well, my daughter and your little sister decided to engage in some crime fighting of their own. They took down a robber trying to hold up the Groovy Smoothie." Victor told him.
Danny looks sideways at Sam who was slightly annoyed at the expression on her brother's face. "Is that true?"
Sam clicks her tongue and smirks. "Yes, and I would've done it again if it hadn't been for you meddling cops."
"This is serious. You could've seriously injured yourself or this robber." Danny replied in a stern voice.
"Actually he's a lot more seriously injured than either of these two could've done." Victor said motioning to the stretcher which caused Danny to turn his head to see the body bag. "Someone torched the guy after they let him go. Sam, myself and this Alec guy tried to put him out to save him but it was a rather fruitless effort."
Danny bites his lower lip then he looks past the emergency vehicles that blocked off the crime scene to see Cassie running towards it with Freddie and Leo in tow. He looks back at the girls and Riley "Did you tell them about this?"
"I did." Millie replied, catching their attention. "I mean, I told Gabe then I'm guessing he told them."
Danny notices Cassie being stopped by an officer only to have Leo pull out his CSI badge to try to get access. He makes his way over and starts hearing stray thoughts from the trio.
"This guy is really annoying. Been working here for half a year and I still get carded." Leo is heard thinking.
"I hope Sam is okay." Freddie's thought is heard saying. "I hate to think of her getting hurt because of this."
"Just let us through, Garth." Cassie's voice breaks Danny's focus and continues making her way over.
"Is there a problem, Officer Cambridge?" Danny asked which breaks the tension. "There a reason you're not letting Mr Maxwell in?"
"Sorry, sir. He's just trying to get these two past the barricade and we can't-"
"You mean the private investigator who was hired to work on this case which is potentially connected to this crime scene?" Danny said, defending Cassie's presence. "Or have you forgotten who she is?"
Cambridge looks back at Cassie who flashes a mischievous grin. "Right, Captain's favorite." He counters with Freddie being there "What about him? Don't see the reason for him being here?"
"You mean my sister's boyfriend, my sister who just happens to be one of the witnesses to this scene?" Danny stood up for Freddie which astounds everyone including Freddie. "Also, from what I see, they wouldn't be contaminating the crime scene so where is your excuse, Officer?"
Officer Cambridge was shocked into silence as Danny led the trio past the barricade. He couldn't defend himself and he just goes back to his post.
"You didn't have to do that." Cassie said to him then she whispered to him. "Thanks."
Danny couldn't help smiling. "No problem."
"You two want to be alone?" Leo joked.
Cassie pursed her lips then stated. "How about you two go check on your girls? It is the main reason you're here, right?"
"Come on, let's give the lovebirds some privacy." Freddie teased, grabbing Leo's shoulder and pulling towards the direction of the girls and Riley.
Cassie shakes her head. "Kids, info always goes in one ear and comes out the other." She looks around the area. "Thought Galen was with you?"
"I left him with my car behind the barricade. He drove me here from the bar." Danny explained.
Cassie nods. "Ah, that explains why I smell the distinct scent of bourbon on your breath." She notices his anxiety and changes the subject. "So what happened here?"
"Well, Millie and Sam stopped a guy from robbing the Groovy Smoothie only to have him get set on fire by an unknown assailant." Danny explained what he gathered from what Victor told him.
Cassie sighs. "And you and I both know this 'unknown assailant' just might be Wesker?"
"Think we're on the same page for once." Danny quipped to which Cassie playfully punched him in the shoulder. He then grimaces in pain, rubbing his forehead with his left hand.
"Are you feeling okay?" Cassie asked with great concern in her voice.
Danny swallows the pain and nods. "I-uh, think we should go check in with Victor and see if he's found any more information."
Cassie exhales, wanting not to agitate him. "All right, fine."
The two of them walk over to the group as Freddie goes over to Sam who wraps her arms around him and Millie runs over to Leo and hugs him tightly, knocking the wind out of him.
"Oh, okay. Millie... Hard to... breathe." Leo gasped.
Millie pulls away and looks at him. "Sorry."
Freddie places his head on Sam's shoulder in a gentle and reassuring manner. "Can't resist getting into trouble, can you?"
"Should know that by now, Freddly Neighborhood Spiderman." Sam teased as she continued to hold on to him, refusing to let go.
Freddie laughs but then senses something was off. "Why do I detect the laser focus stare of your brother burning a hole in my back?"
"That's because you do, Freddie." Danny's voice spoke up, causing Freddie to turn around in a bit of a panic.
Sam grins. "Stop trying to intimidate my boyfriend. You're just going to end up giving him a stroke."
"Which means I'm doing it correctly." Danny joked to which Cassie responded by lightly slapping his chest.
"Ease up on the overzealous big brother routine, Parker." Cassie spoke up. "Otherwise you'll deal with me and we both know you won't enjoy that."
Danny smirks. "Noted." He clears his throat then becomes distracted by the whispering thoughts of the throngs of people crowding close to the barricade.
Riley notices the face of discomfort his friend was exhibiting and says "You doing all right there, Danny?"
Danny regains focus and looks at Riley. "Yeah. Y-yeah, I'm fine."
"Is it one of those headaches again?" Victor asked.
"Or could be an early manifesting hangover." Sam teased. "Your breath smells like my mom's after she has one too many Rum & Sodas."
Danny scans the area as the voices around him begin to grow louder.
"Who could've done this?"
"Maybe this guy had it coming."
"I'm scared. Why can't Mommy take us home?"
"Wonder if anyone can see through my shirt. I should have worn a bra."
"What's wrong with that guy?"
"I wanna go home."
Danny began to grip both sides of his head with his head to quiet the voices to no avail. They voices grew louder and harder to recognize, everything began spinning faster and faster. As if he were on a carnival ride that was speeding up until, eventually it all comes to a sudden halt.
What he hears next causes his blood to run cold.
"I will watch this city burn."
A dazed Danny passes out from the strain as Cassie calls out his name with fear quivering her voice.
After that, everything went black.
•••
Later on at Leo's building, Alec walks Jake back to the apartment. Jake seemed a little shaken up by what had happened that he was quiet. Almost in shock. Alec notices this and he takes Jake by the hand which makes Jake snap out of it.
"Jake?" Alec said, getting him to focus. "Deep breaths, okay?"
Jake nods quickly as he takes in a deep breath. "Guess this night was not what I was expecting."
"Sorry you had to see that." Alec said remorsefully. "I feel like this is my fault."
"Alec… the only person to blame is the guy who lit the robber on fire." Jake said adamantly.
"I know, but this shit just keeps following me and now it's following you." Alec explained.
Jake plays with the digits on Alec's hand. "Al.. deep breaths, okay?"
Alec smiles as he holds his hands. "After tonight, I don't want to leave you alone."
"Well my couch is free." Jake teased.
"I wasn't talking about your couch." Alec said with a grin. "I don't mind sharing your bed… If you want me to."
Jake smiles as he turns to unlock his door then he opens his door to let Alec in. "I more than want you to."
Alec chuckles as the two of them walk into the apartment and Jake shuts the door behind them.
•••
Meanwhile at the cabin, Maddy was tossing and turning unable to sleep. She gets out of bed and goes to go to the bathroom but stops cold when she hears Pete's voice mumbling in his sleep.
Maddy walks over to the living room where Pete slept on the couch but he wasn't having a restful sleep. He was having a bad dream.
Maddy goes to try to wake him up but is terrified by him suddenly grabbing her wrist. She tries breaking free but the grip was locked in as his fist engulfs in flames, burning her arm.
Maddy screams in agony which snaps Pete out of his nightmare and awakens in fright.
Pete notices his still flaming hand gripping the poor girl's wrist and he quickly lets go. "Oh god, no. I am-"
Maddy stares at him, grabbing her injured wrist, fear filling her eyes.
The two of them stare at each other. Unsure what to do next.
•••
Back at his loft, Danny was lying on his bed with a blanket covering his upper torso. His eyes slowly open and he finds Cassie sitting next to him. Not too close but close enough to feel her presence. She was also clasping his hand gently.
A small smile grew on his face as he said "For a second there, I thought you were going to say 'My Name is Pussy Galore'."
"Then you must be dreaming." Cassie said with a smirk, not letting go of his hand. "How are you feeling?"
"Like someone put my brain in a blender and hit 'puree'." Danny described as he rubs the center of his forehead with his free hand. "Alcohol and telepathy do NOT mix."
"Least you aren't in denial anymore. You're actually acknowledging the fact that you aren't what people would consider 'normal'." Cassie stated. "And to be honest, being 'normal' is highly overrated."
"Guess you never were on the spectrum of normalcy, were you?" Danny remarked.
Cassie smirks. "Not even remotely on it."
Danny decides to state the obvious. "Any particular reason you're holding my hand?"
Cassie realizes this and pulls her hand away, mildly embarrassed. "I was worried about you, sue me for showing some concern."
"Sorry for scaring you." Danny said softly.
"I wasn't the only one who was scared, dumbass. You freaked out a lot of people who saw you pass out." Cassie informs him. "Fortunately for you, I made up a convincing excuse to not have to tell anyone what really is going on. Luckily they were aware of your more recent history of migraine headaches."
"Seem to be good at cover stories." Danny joked.
"It's a lot better than just saying I'm lying. Don't make it seem as dirty." Cassie said with a smile. "This may surprise you but I don't like lying. Hurts the heart, literally."
The moment they were sharing was interrupted by a knock at the door.
"You can come in now!" Cassie called out. "He's awake."
The door opens and both Riley and Galen walk into the room. Both of them try to hide their worry by displaying calm body language.
Danny could hear that they shouldn't even bother.
"Thank God he's not dead." Riley's thought is heard saying.
"He still looks worn out. Can't believe it got this far." Galen's mind thought.
"Guys, really not the time to patronize me when we know that isn't what you're thinking." Danny stated. "Treating me like everything isn't upside down is not helping."
"Sorry, we just didn't want to make things worse." Riley said honestly.
"Would it be pointless to ask if you're feeling okay?" Galen asked.
Danny slowly began to sit up. "Not pointless. Glad I'm not dead but 'okay' isn't how I would describe how I'm feeling."
"Like someone took your brain, used it as a sponge to wash a muddy car then put it back in your head upside down?" Riley joked.
Danny thinks for a minute and smiles. "Believe it or not, that is exactly how I'm feeling."
"Told you using alcohol as a pain reliever wasn't a good idea." Galen points out.
Danny scowls at his cousin. "Figured that out on my own, thanks." He starts to rub his shoulder in pain. "I feel really sore... Kind of everywhere."
"Yeah, you did land on concrete when you passed out. I'd be shocked if you WEREN'T sore." Cassie remarked. "Luckily you don't have a concussion so there's that."
"I appreciate the honesty but you aren't helping." Danny replied.
"You certainly look a lot better than a few hours ago." Riley stated.
"A few... How long was I out?" Danny asked, dread washing over his face.
"About two hours. Think your body was exhausted and you passed out. That and your body meet cement, never a good combo." Cassie told him. "You were tossing and turning a bit but I didn't want to wake you. Figured you needed the rest."
"The voices don't stop when I'm asleep, they just get softer." Danny stated, almost half speaking to himself. "Now they're a bit louder."
"Like hearing thoughts from all around?" Galen asked.
"All at once. Either way, yeah." Danny said, he looked around. "Where's Sam?"
"Oh, she was here waiting but she was still a bit twitchy over what happened and Freddie took her back to my office so that the group could decompress from it all." Cassie told him.
"You left my sister alone with a boy?" Danny asked mildly annoyed.
"First of all, she's with her boyfriend who just so happens to be my nephew." Cassie said frankly. "And secondly, they're with Millie, Leo and the rest of the Misfits. How much trouble can they really get into?"
"How much time do you have for me to make that list?" Danny said, half joking.
"You are lucky you're already in a lot of pain, otherwise I'd hit you." Cassie retorts.
Danny laughs uncomfortably. "Let's move on."
Cassie smiles which fades when she sees the troubled look on his face "How about we move on to that look on your face? The one that reads 'someone ran over my puppy'. What's wrong? "
"Wesker was there." Danny told them. "Before everything went black, I heard him think that he was going to watch this city burn. Never heard his voice before but I'd be willing to bet that was him."
"Makes sense, wanted to stick around and his handiwork." Cassie guessed. "Heard that's what pyromaniacs tend to do. They get off on seeing things burn and be destroyed."
"Might not just be that. To him, this is all about luring this Mockingbird out of hiding." Danny realized. "If Wesker is this obsessed, his path of destruction won't stop until-"
"He gets what he wants." Cassie finished his sentence. The four share looks of trepidation until someone decides to break the tension.
"So, Danny... Didn't think you'd have your own superpowers, Danny." Riley said to lighten the mood. "Guess I'm not the only weirdo between us, am I?"
"Danvers, you'll always be the weirdo." Danny joked, smiling weakly to hide his discomfort.
Riley laughs. "I'll just take that as a compliment."
Cassie swallows hard and looks at the other two. "Could I speak to you two for a minute?"
"You guys want to have a conversation without me in the other room?" Danny surmised. "I mean, you could give me some bogus excuse but my new talents make that a bit redundant."
Cassie laughs, slightly embarrassed "Then I won't bother and I will pull them out into the hallway for a chat. Excuse us." She proceeds to start shoving Riley with Galen close behind her.
"It's probably nothing important." Galen said as he closed the door behind him.
Danny lies back down and stares at the ceiling "I highly doubt that." His eyes furrow and he winces in pain as he grabs his pillow and puts it over his face. Anything to drown out the noise even though it was a fruitless effort.
Cassie pulls Riley into the hallway outside the loft with Galen close behind who closes the door only leaving it open a crack. She lightly punches Riley in the arm but he still recoils in pain.
"Okay... Ow!" Riley exclaimed. "They weren't kidding when they said you hit like a tank."
"That was a gentle tap compared to how hard she typically hits people." Galen informs him. "You're still conscious."
Riley stares at Cassie who wears a devious grin on her face which makes him gulp "Moving on. What was that for anyway?"
"You neglected to mention that Danny knows about your abilities." Cassie said in a low but angry tone.
"To be fair, when would I have time to mention that detail?" Riley said quietly. "I haven't known you or the others for twenty four hours, how was I supposed to know to tell you that HE knew?"
Cassie goes to make a rebuttal but words fail her until she gives in. "Huh, I got nothing." She bites her lip and exhales. "Sorry for the violence. I let my emotions get the better of me."
"Which is surprisingly not a rare occurrence." Galen reminded her.
Cassie turns towards her friend and glares at him. "Want me to focus the violence on you?"
"Tempting but no." Galen said sarcastically. He then looks at Riley. "How long has he known about your powers?"
"Since I was twelve and he kept them a secret because we trust each other. Keeping that kind of a secret was extremely difficult, especially for an eleven year old." Riley informs them. "I told you guys he can keep a secret."
"Things are a little different now considering the fact he has a badge and is in a task force meant to bring down vigilantes." Cassie points out. "If it weren't for those extenuating circumstances, I would've happily told him."
"You mean with Freddie's approval of course." Galen reminds her. "You're two for two. Me and our pyrokinetic friend."
"Riiiiiight." Cassie remembered this and winced.
Riley raises an eyebrow "You guys have a guy who can control fire on your team?"
Cassie nods. "His name is Pete Sawyer and he's out of town right now so if you want to meet him, I'll be more than happy to make the proper introductions."
Riley nods, he thought that he may have heard the name before but it might have been his imagination. "So, now what?"
Cassie nervously runs her fingers through her hair then exhales. "The two of you go back to the Cave. Thinking the kids might need some moral support."
"That and you want us to continue to find a way to find Wesker?" Galen surmised.
Cassie nods. "Wesker's not gonna stop till he gets Mockingbird. What happened tonight is the tip of the iceberg."
"Just what are you going to be doing, boss lady?" Riley asked with a smile.
Cassie grins. "Well, I do appreciate you acknowledging the fact that I am the boss, Witch Boy."
"Sassy, isn't she?" Riley joked to Galen.
"Part of her charm." Galen stated.
Cassie clears her throat to get their attention again. "I'll stay here and watch over Danny. Just in case things spiral, he's vulnerable right now."
"Danny shouldn't be alone right now." Galen said. "You're right."
Cassie flashes a mischievous grin and says "I never get tired of hearing that." She quickly switched to the subject at hand. "Help the others with figuring out a way to Wesker. Some kind of kink in his armor."
"Care to give us a hint?" Riley asked, "You know more about this guy's MO than we do."
Cassie sighs. "Try his sister, Tammy. She's clearly hiding him or knows where he is. Start there."
"That's a start. We'll see you in the morning?" Galen asked.
Cassie nods. "See you then."
The two men start heading down the hallway towards the elevator to leave as Cassie goes back inside the loft. She shuts the door behind her and takes a deep breath.
Her attention is pulled away when she hears Danny's pained gasp from his bedroom. "Danny? Are you okay?"
His gasp quickly turns into a pained shout for Cassie which she responds to by rushing back towards the room.
"Danny!" She called out as she ran inside and saw Danny on his side, grabbing his head in. "Danny?" She grabs his arms and tries to calm him down. "Danny, hey. Look at me. It's alright. You're okay."
Danny snaps out of the trance-like state the pain had put him in and he looks up at Cassie "C-Cassie?"
"Hey." Cassie said, almost breathing a sigh of relief. "You okay?"
Danny gulps and squeezes her hand. "I am now."
Cassie blushes. "Pain is making you warm and fuzzy?"
"Possibly." Danny said with a weak smile on his face.
"Maybe you should get some more rest. There's no shame in sleeping for a full eight hours." Cassie comments as he sits upright. "Would do you some good."
"I honestly don't think I can sleep." Danny said, starting to rub his arm. "Think I have kink in my shoulder."
"You did hit the ground really hard." Cassie reminds him. She sits down on the bed next to him. "Want me to check the damage?"
Danny laughs and says "Sure."
Cassie lifts up his shirt sleeve to see that his shoulder had some heavy bruising which makes her wince "Ouch."
"That bad, huh?" Danny said in pain.
Cassie bites her bottom lip and he hears her conflicted thoughts "Should I do it? Would it scare him? I don't know-"
"Cassie. Whatever it is, do it." Danny told her in a comforting manner. "It's okay."
[Soundtrack Note: 'Hurts Too Good' by Ruelle begins to play]
Cassie lets out a deep breath. "Promise not to freak out?" Danny nods to build up her confidence. She slowly places her right hand over his bruised shoulder then suddenly it begins to glow with her aura. His eyes widen in surprise as she continues to heal him. He watches closely and realizes the bruising was fading away until it was no longer there. Once she was done, he realized that he was no longer in pain.
Cassie exhales deeply and she works up the courage to smile "S-surprise."
"You- you- wow." Danny said in amazement and mild panic.
"I'm shocked you're speechless. Told you I wasn't normal." Cassie said as she quickly gets up from the bed which proves to be a mistake when she becomes lightheaded and feeling faint.
Fortunately, Danny gets to his feet and prevents her from falling to the floor. "Easy. I got you." Their eyes meet and he touches her face. "You okay?"
Cassie manages a weak smile and says "You sure do know how to make a girl weak in the knees, Parker."
The comment doesn't phase him, Danny was staring intensely at Cassie. He felt an aching longing for her he had been resisting for quite some time. Emotions that were surging through him that he couldn't fight any longer. He touches her face then goes in for a kiss which became more passionate the longer they kiss.
Cassie's eyes widened in shock and thought "Oh God."
Danny pulls away and realizes what he had done. "I am so sorry. I just-"
"Why did you stop?" Cassie said breathlessly.
Danny and Cassie stare into each other's eyes, looking into each other's souls. They both knew there was no turning back.
Danny grabs Cassie and kisses her deeply on the lips, his passions coming undone as Cassie grabs him around the waist and slowly moves down to take off his shirt. She removes his shirt and Danny decides that turnabout is fair play, grabbing her top and removing it from her. Both of them were topless except she was in her bra.
Cassie slowly walks closer to him and wraps her arms around him, kissing and nuzzling his neck. As she does this, Danny begins to unhook her bra which was giving him some issue.
"Having some trouble there, Dan Dan?" Cassie said in between kisses.
Danny laughs softly then manages to undo the last hook. "Not anymore."
Cassie smiles then jumps into his arms and they both fall into the bed. She looks down at him seductively "For the record, I prefer being on top."
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Danny said and he passionately kissed her again.
Unbeknownst to the two of them, smaller objects began to shake and move. A mildly transparent red energy rattling them a bit but fading away.
[Soundtrack Note: Song fades at 1:55 as the scene ends]
•••
Back at the Pulse cave, the kids were still reeling over what happened to the robber at the Groovy Smoothie. Millie and Sam specifically, they merely taught him a lesson for trying to rob them. They didn't want him to die, especially in such a brutal manner.
Freddie sat on the floor with Sam resting her head on his lap again, Leo sat on the stairs with Millie who was holding on to his hand and refusing to let go, Gabe sat at the hub computer hard at work on research and Claud sat on the metal table.
"Anyone else feel that?" Claud spoke up. "Paralyzing fear?"
"You're not wrong, Moon." Leo replied softly. "Not exactly a stellar evening.
"But you guys did get some valuable information. This could help find this guy." Gabe stated whilst typing.
"It didn't save that guy from getting turned into barbecue." Millie points out seriously.
"Great, now I'm gonna associate barbecue with the smell of burnt human flesh." Sam stated in annoyance. "Thank you so much."
"Did you find out anything?" Freddie asked Gabe.
"Just the usual, Eastman's criminal record and, boy, is it long. The strange thing is he hasn't seen a day in jail." Gabe remarked.
"That doesn't surprise me. Callum Eastman is the leader of the third most powerful criminal syndicate in the city. He can afford to pay for the best lawyer or pay to silence his witnesses or enemies." Leo explained. "Had a few run-ins with a couple of Eastman's goon squads before you guys decided to take up crime fighting."
"You've been doing this longer, we get it. Don't rub it in." Freddie said teasingly which made Leo grin.
"So is this guy as dangerous as the Maestro?" Millie asked.
"Depends. Eastman likes to keep a low profile but he will get his hands dirty if he has to." Leo said. "I even had a bit of a tussle with him my first month in town."
"How'd that go?" A curious Sam asked.
Leo lifts up the sleeve on his left arm to reveal a long nasty scar on it. It had received some proper first aid but this looks like it was a painful injury. "Could've gone better."
"Ouch. That looked like it hurt." Gabe winced.
"That it did, Richie Rich." Leo said with a weak laugh. "Eastman likes to use knives. Likes getting up close."
"Cut him pretty deep. Close to having some serious nerve damage." Claud replied.
Millie gently grabs his arm and stares at the scar. She was silent until she said "Whoever stitched you up did a good job."
"From you, that means a lot." Claud spoke up and Millie smiles.
"We need to find Wesker, don't know how this Eastman guy is gonna help?" Sam asked.
"There has to be a connection between Wesker and Eastman. One thing that links them together." Freddie stated.
"How about Wesker's sister?"
The group looks up the stairs to see Galen and Riley make their way down. Sam quickly gets up from where she was sitting and walks over to the two men. A move that surprises the group.
"Hey, how's Danny? Is he okay?" Sam asked frantically as Freddie got up and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"Easy there, Sam. Breathe." Freddie said calmly.
Sam sighs as she realizes how she was coming off. "Had a bit of a girl moment there, didn't I?"
"It's cool. We're all allowed to have those." Millie reassured her. "Gabe has at least five a day."
Gabe turns around on his chair and glares at her. "You know what, Flores-"
"Danny's okay. A little sore but he's all right." Galen interjected quickly before the situation escalated. "Cassie stayed with him to make sure he got some rest."
"Then why do you guys look like we should be worried?" Freddie asked.
"Yeah, you two are the definition of 'forlorn' right now." Leo points out.
Galen and Riley stare at each other then Riley hangs his head "So much for subterfuge." he said, slightly amused.
"Thought I'd be better at this by this point." Galen muttered.
"What's going on?" Freddie asked worriedly.
Galen exhales "What I have to tell you is probably going to freak you guys out but there's no sense in beating around the bush-"
"And yet, you're making a long winded speech?" Sam joked.
"She's got a point." Leo quips. "Think you should just tell us."
Galen laughs then nods "Danny might not be as normal as we all thought."
"Wait, does Danny have superpowers?" Millie asked, a bit perplexed until curiosity came upon her. "What kind?"
Gabe begins to snicker. "Bet he's got telepathy. A cop with telepathic powers."
"You'd actually win that bet." Gale responded, which made the group fall to silence and stopped Gabe's laughter.
"Oh. Oh God, I was kidding." Gabe remarked.
"Well, we aren't." Riley answered.
Freddie looks as if he had been punched in the stomach, a look of dread shared by the others. "Of all the superpowers Danny could've gotten..."
"Tell me about it." Leo retorts.
"The only upside here is that he doesn't have fine control over it." Riley mentions. "Being in crowded places is a bit of a struggle right now."
"Is that why he passed out?" Sam asked.
Galen nods. "All the thoughts around him that were going all at once caused a strain on his mind."
"I don't know from personal experience but from what my mom told me about telepathy, a telepath having their powers manifest can be unnerving for them." Riley explained. "Usually feels like... Like knives in the head if not focused."
Freddie comes to a realization. "But with practice-"
"He could not only read thoughts... But also control a person's actions." Riley stated.
"Well that just makes a bad situation worse." Gabe said, expressing what the others were thinking.
"Hey, how about showing some tact." Leo comments.
"Tact a fancy way of saying 'hey, let's lie to make each other feel better'? I'm just saying what we're all thinking which I'm pretty sure Danny will probably be able to hear now." Gabe stated, a hint of panic in his voice.
"Okay, why has this got you all worked up?" Claud inquired.
A small smirk forms on Millie's mouth. "I know why."
"Millicent, no!" Gabe scolded.
"He's afraid Danny's going to find out about Gabe's obvious crush on Cassie." Millie stated teasingly.
"It is not a crush, it's called admiration. A high level of respect for our resident badass." Gabe explained. "And it is no worse than your little crush on Pete or your bedroom eyes whenever Galen's on the salmon ladder."
"Least I'm willing to admit it." Millie retorts.
"I'm betting he's imagined her naked." Claud teased.
"I really hope he hasn't." Leo replied.
"Um guys, as fun as the jovial ribbing of Gabe might be, there's still a matter to attend to." Freddie spoke over the group, turning to face Galen and Riley. "You guys said Wesker's sister has a connection to Eastman?"
"It could be a possibility. We find Eastman, that leads us to Tammy Wesker." Galen retorts. "And if we find Tammy-"
"That's a step closer to finding Wesker and putting a stop to him once and for all." Freddie surmised.
"Lofty goals, my friend. This plan depends on us finding Eastman." Gabe points out. "Do any of us know how to find him?"
"I may have a source that could point us in the right direction." Leo stated then he turns to Freddie. "How fast can you get your-"
Before he could finish his sentence, Freddie zooms in and out of the room with streaks of blue electricity behind him which catches the others off guard. Once they got their bearings to ask questions, Freddie rushed back in wearing his full Pulse uniform minus his goggles and mouth mask which were in his hands.
"I'm sorry, you were saying?" Freddie said smugly whilst adjusting his right wrist gauntlet.
"Think the speed is going to his head." Gabe retorts and the others nod in agreement.
•••
In the back alley of the Roughneck, Rex was taking a bag of trash to the large dumpster located in the alley. He stops for a moment then he continues to throw the bag away. Rex goes to make his way back inside through the back entrance but stops dead in his tracks.
"Would love it if you called before these unscheduled visits?" Rex stated, not turning around he finished his thought then he turned to find the Fox standing in the shadows of the alley.
"If I did, you'd probably hang up on me before I could explain myself." Leo said in his disguised voice.
"You're lucky my clientele are too busy getting wasted to come out here. Half of them you put in the hospital." Rex replied in a jovial manner. He then notices that the Fox wasn't alone. "See you brought a date."
The Fox glances behind him to give a look to Pulse who was flanked behind him "I'm not his type." Leo retorts which made Freddie chuckle softly. "You can trust him. We share the same agenda."
"Figured you mask-wearing types run in the same social circles." Rex said
"You could say we're... brothers in arms." Freddie comments which made Leo groan. "Sorry, one thing we don't share is a sense of humor."
Rex smirks and points at Pulse "I like him."
"That's surprising. You barely tolerate me." Leo joked. "I'll cut to the chase. Have you heard anything about Trevor Wesker in your establishment?"
"I had an altercation with him today but other than that, I haven't seen him." Rex told them. "I have my own personal grievances with that walking dumpster fire and I'm not alone in that hatred. He and his old man pissed off a lot of people, which is why his dad got acquainted with the wrong side of several bullets."
"And his sister?" Freddie asked.
"Yeah, don't let her baby doll eyes fool you, Tammy is just as bad Trevor only she's never done serious jail time." Rex said to the two.
"You wouldn't by any chance know what she's more recently been up to?" Leo asked.
Rex nods "From what I heard, Tammy is working as a cocktail waitress at an underground nightclub in town."
"And I take it that this underground nightclub partakes in illicit activities?" Leo estimates.
"Well they don't have PTA meetings or fundraisers for the homeless, I would say yes. It functions as a nightclub but has different sorts of... Activities taking place every month. This go around is a sort of fighting contest." Rex retorts. "Place is owned by Callum Eastman. Take it you both have heard of him."
"He has come to our attention, yes." Freddie answers as the Fox nods.
"Well he's never around if you're looking to bust him. He has one of his flunkies run the show and he gives his boss the earnings the club makes." Rex informs them.
"This club have a name?" Leo asked, not letting the seriousness leave his voice.
Rex laughs. "Guess you two aren't leaving till I tell you." He sighs. "They call it 'The Jungle'. It's about ten miles from Pier 11. Think you boys can figure it out."
"It does help. Thank you." Freddie told Rex.
Rex smirks and looks at the Fox. "He's certainly more polite than you."
Before Leo could offer a rebuttal, an angry drunken voice yells from the bar. "Rex! Where'd ya go? I need another round of shots."
Rex's focus on his bar causes him to nearly miss the flash of blue light streak away. He turns around and finds Pulse and the Fox were gone.
"Well, that just happened." Rex muttered as he simply went back inside.
•••
The following morning, Jake was waking up in his bed and found that Alec wasn't sleeping next to him. He seemed disappointed until he smelled the scent of cooked bacon coming from the kitchen. He grabs a bathrobe and puts it on over his pajamas.
Jake walks out into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes. He adjusts his eyesight and finds Alec making scrambled eggs and bacon. Making enough food for two.
Alec turns around to see Jake standing a few feet away. "Morning. I didn't mean to wake you. I wanted it to be a surprise."
"Well it is a surprise." Jake said as Alec finished up and started serving out the food. "Especially since I don't remember having eggs or bacon in my fridge. I mostly just do take out."
Alec smiles at him. "I take it you can't cook?"
Jake turns bright pink from embarrassment. "Yeah, I never really learned how."
"I wouldn't mind teaching you, if you want me to?" Alec offered as he pulled Jake to the table in the kitchen.
"That'd be nice." Jake said with a goofy smile as they sat down to eat. "Why are you up so early?"
"I had to stop by my apartment to pick up some clothes then I picked up the eggs and bacon at the bodega across the street. I have to be at the Brooklyn precinct soon and I wanted to spend more time with you before I had to go." Alec explained.
"Does it have anything to do with what happened last night?" Jake said as he ate.
"It might be connected. We're trying to stop some psycho who stole something from my boss." Alec told him. "Some high tech weapon of mass destruction."
"Is that why you were hanging out with Cassie all day yesterday?" Jake teased, sounding mildly jealous.
"Says the person who was flirting with Danny's buddy." Alec said, also sounding a bit jealous as well.
"Riley seems nice and I will admit that he's cute." Jake tells Alec then he grabs Alec's hand. "But I like you."
Alec smiles and squeezes Jake's hand. "I like you too."
"But I think we both have places to go today." Jake said. "I have a late shift tonight. Hopefully I won't see any guys get set on fire. Or two teenage girls going all ninja on a dude."
Alec laughs. "Cassie taught them well."
"Was she like a spy in a past life or something?" Jake joked.
Alec shrugs as he takes another bite of eggs.. "Something like that."
•••
Meanwhile at Danny's loft, Cassie still lays sound asleep in Danny's bed. The sunlight peering from the bedroom window causes her eyes to flutter until she fully opens her eyes and sees that Danny wasn't there. She also realizes that she was completely naked except for a bedsheet she was wrapped in.
"Oh. That- that was a thing that happened." Cassie said in a stunned manner. She was using her usual wit to try to defuse the situation but it wasn't working because she was alone.
Cassie uses the bed sheet to cover herself up and starts to get out of bed. She looks around for her clothing and boots when she hears the front door open. She hears voices but it wasn't Danny, it was Sam and Riley.
"Sure that he can't hear my thoughts while he's asleep?" Sam asked.
"He can but it only sounds like a whisper. It's more dangerous when he's awake." Riley explained.
"Oh crap baskets." Cassie mutters then she frantically starts to grab her clothes off the floor and rushes into Danny's bathroom.
Sam and Riley were in the living room as Riley was grabbing clothes from his duffel bag and Sam was grabbing a slice of cold pizza from the fridge.
Riley looks at her sideways. "That's breakfast?"
"Excuse me for not choosing a balanced breakfast." Sam said as she chewed. She looks around the room. "Don't see a bedsheet or pillow out here. Think Cassie slept with Danny?"
"Whoa, wait. What?" Riley stuttered.
"Not like that, Creep. I mean, did she sleep in the same room with him?" Sam replied. "There is an armchair in his room. It's not comfortable but I don't think Cassie cares about that."
Riley shrugs as he finishes getting clean clothes from the bag. "Probably. She's been extremely protective of him since what happened last night."
"Dude, she's always been that way. She's the type who likes to take care of you, unless she's out to beat you down." Sam said as Riley laughed. Sam then yawns loudly "What time is it?"
Riley checks his phone. "7:30."
"Ugh, it is too early for this." Sam groaned.
"Take it you aren't a morning person." Riley remarks.
"No, but I'm starting to get used to it. Cassie likes to train early in the morning so I'm really sore by lunch." Sam stated. "She says she's not a morning person either but I don't believe her."
Suddenly, a loud thud is heard coming from Danny's bedroom.
"Danny? That you?" Riley asked.
"Maybe we woke him?" Sam points out. "Think we woke her?"
As if on cue, Cassie walks out of the room now fully dressed and rubbing her head with a pained expression on her face. "Hey, didn't expect you guys to be back here so soon."
"Well, I needed a change of clothes and Mr Metrosexual was complaining about needing a shower." Sam said teasingly.
"I was on a bus for twelve hours and I didn't really get a chance to get cleaned up before all this happened." Riley stated with annoyance. "Sue me for not wanting to smell like a used gym sock."
Cassie laughs awkwardly at the joke as she tries to hide her nerves but fails miserably.
"Is Danny awake? We also wanted to see how he was doing." Sam said, noticing Cassie's unease.
"Um, no. He was gone when I woke up. He probably went to work early." Cassie said anxiously squeezing her wrists
"You didn't hear him leave? I haven't been around him for a while but I know he isn't very stealthy when he's half asleep." Riley said.
Cassie crosses her arms across her chest. "Why would you know that?"
"You've never had a sleepover?" Riley said, defending the possible insinuation.
Sam stares at Cassie and notices something. "Um, dude, is your shirt inside out?"
Cassie looks down and realizes this, laughing nervously "Is it? I had no idea." A smile starts to creep on Sam's face. Sam knows what's going on. "Hey, they say that when a person does that and doesn't know it, it's good luck."
"Who says that?" Riley asked, starting to piece things together himself.
"People. Weird people but people nonetheless." Cassie stammered. She then notices the two of them staring at her. "Okay, what's with the looks-"
Sam just flat out says what the two were thinking. "You slept with my brother, didn't you?"
Riley grins. "And by that you mean-"
"They had sex, Genius!" Sam yelled loudly.
Cassie is thunderstruck at the statement and tries to cover it "Me? Have sex with Danny? Don't be silly-"
"No offense but we weren't born yesterday." Riley stated. "It's practically written on your face."
"More like tattooed on." Sam remarked to which Riley nodded.
Cassie lets out a breath and smacks her forehead "God." She walks over to the couch and sits down, covering her face with her hands. "What did I do?"
Sam looks over at Riley and motions for him to give them some time alone with uttering a word.
"I'll just... Uh hop in the shower. Sure Danny won't mind if I use his bathroom." Riley said, backing out of the room and entering the bedroom where he finds the room in disarray. He quickly walks into the bathroom whilst muttering. "Nope, not asking questions."
Sam goes over to Cassie and sits next to the seemingly mortified Cassie. "Look, I'm not the best at the whole 'comfort' thing but... You okay?"
Cassie removes her hands from her face to show her eyes were filled with tears. "I don't know. Not sure of anything right now."
Sam was nervous to ask the following question. "I would hate to think this but... did he, like, hurt you?"
"No. God no." Cassie said, sounding mildly offended.
"Then what's wrong? I mean, he wasn't... bad, was he?" Sam thinks and becomes mortified for a different reason. "And I just asked about my brother's sexual performance. I am really bad at this."
Cassie manages a laugh through her tears. "You're doing fine, kid. I appreciate the gesture." She wipes her tears from her eyes. "I'm just- Your brother's... an amazing guy. I didn't want to admit this but... I think I'm in love with him."
This admission left Sam speechless but she regains her composure and asks. "How long?"
"I-I can't put an exact time really but... When I kissed him, that's when it all changed." Cassie admits.
"You mean at the Christmas party?" Sam asked but when Cassie began to blush, her eyes widened in wonder. "Wait, you kissed him before that?"
Cassie swallows the lump in her throat. "It was several months ago. I was helping him find out who called his mom and told her about... Well, you." Sam nods in understanding. "He got overwhelmed and had a panic attack. I didn't know what to do so I did the first thing that popped into my head."
"You kissed him." Sam realized.
Cassie exhales deeply. "At first, I was doing it to help him calm down but... It felt different. It felt..."
"Right?" Sam admits and Cassie stares at her. "I had the same thought the night Freddie and I kissed on fire escape."
"Freddie told me about that, both of your firsts." Cassie said smiling.
"Look, let's not get into my relationship with your nephew and get back to you and Danny." Sam replied. "So, you've been in love him since then?"
Cassie nods. "For a while, it's been like... fighting gravity. Eventually it was going to pull me in and it... It happened."
"So what happens now?" Sam asked, genuinely interested.
"To be perfectly honest, I have no idea. This and this whole thing with Wesker has completely thrown me out of my comfort zone." Cassie explained. "I-I used my powers in front of him."
"Whoa, you did?" Sam exclaimed. "Which ones?"
"Don't worry, it was the unsuspicious ones." Cassie reassured her. "He knows I can heal wounds, he just know I can-"
"Heal your own wounds." Sam retorts. "You know that with his new superpower he's going figure it out."
"And I will open that can of worms when the opportunity presents itself. Right now, I need to figure out how I'm gonna make all this work." Cassie said. "But first, I need a shower. I don't want Galen to-"
"Smell Danny on you?" Sam surmised.
"Bingo bango." Cassie nods which Sam laughs at.
"How about a change of clothes too? You don't wanna walk into the precinct with the same top a few officers saw you in last night." Sam points out.
"Agreed, that's the equivalent of 'the walk of shame'." Cassie said. "Are you going to loan me something?"
"Nope, Danny is." Sam said, pulling Cassie by the arm towards Danny's bedroom. Cassie sits on the armchair as Sam goes digging through Danny's closet.
"What are you doing?" Cassie asked.
"Obviously you're feeling like you gave a bit of your feminine... power to my brother." Sam then grabs a long sleeved black shirt and tosses at Cassie. "I'm thinking you might want it back."
Cassie scoffs. "Isn't that a bit childish?"
"Yes but at least it'll break the tension and finally get him to admit he likes you too. Like, L-O-V-E likes you." Sam said as they heard they shower turn off. "Better decide before Chestnut catches you undressed."
Cassie chuckles softly then looks at the shirt. "Well, black is my color."
The women share a laugh as Riley opens the door and walks out fully dressed with his hair wet but combed back. "Everything all right here?" He looks at Cassie. "Are you okay?"
Cassie nods, "Yeah, easy breezy."
"Good." Riley said but then he notices something on the floor and he bends down to pick it up. "Cass, you promise not to kill me?"
Cassie gives a puzzled look. "Why would I want to kill you?"
Riley picks up a black fabric from the debris in the room but it wasn't just any fabric, it was the black panties Cassie had been wearing the night before. "Because I think these belong to you."
Cassie turns bright red, snatching the undergarment from his hands and clocking him in the face before rushing into the bathroom with the clothing and slamming the door shut.
Riley grabs his face in pain and yells. "Ah! Man, that woman hits like a tank."
"You were warned." Sam said, enjoying his misery a bit.
Riley rubs his cheek to get some relief and guesses. "Yeah, that's gonna bruise."
Sam simply laughs at this and lets him stew for a while.
•••
Meanwhile at the top floor of Cassie's office, Galen and Claud were sitting around in the midst of a conversation with Claud laughing and Galen just sitting back and taking it.
"So, you scared a criminal with wolf face then a minute later you freak because a spider crawled on you?" Claud said while in hysterics.
"I don't like spiders. Never have." Galen admits, mildly embarrassed.
"So the Big Bad Wolfman has arachnophobia? Who would've thought?" Claud stated.
Galen just lets her have her fun then he sniffs the air and gets up the couch. "Better let him in."
"I heard his car pull up a ten minutes ago but I think he's been pacing back and forth for at least five." Claud stated.
Before there was a knock on the door, Galen opens the door to reveal Danny standing on the other side. He seems a bit surprised at this then remembers who was answering the door.
"You knew I was out there the whole time, didn't you?" Danny asked befuddled.
"We decided to let you have a moment before we let you in." Galen said, moving aside to reveal Claud sitting on the couch who simply waves at Danny in a comically overzealous manner. "You look a bit out of it. Wanna come in?"
"Actually, yes I do." Danny said, his voice trembling a bit.
Galen nods and steps aside to let him in. He looks back at Claud and silently gestures that he needs some private time with Danny.
Claud nods and gets up from the couch, grabbing her purse "Give you two some guy time. Going to go call my mom, she's probably worried." She walks past the two to exit the warehouse. "See ya later. Take care, Danny."
Danny sighs as Galen closes the door after Claud leaves. Danny nervously runs his left hand through his hair and Galen notices his agitation.
"Everything okay?" Galen asked.
"Not exactly sure how I can answer that anymore. Not with everything that's happened." Danny managed to get out.
"If this is about your newly discovered superpowers, you don't have to worry. You're in good company." Gale reassured him. He then sniffs again, something didn't feel right to him but he tried to ignore it.
"Oh yeah, I definitely know that now." Danny uttered with a bit of anxiety in his voice.
"W-what do you mean?" Galen asked, assuming he wasn't just talking about his hybrid powers.
"Cassie healed me last night. She's some kind of healer." Danny said, beginning to pace. "I'm willing to bet you knew about that, didn't you?"
Galen gets closer to him and sniffs the air again, he knows the smell coming from Danny. "I-I may have known for a long time."
"Why didn't you tell me?" The perplexed Danny asked.
"Because it wasn't my secret to tell!" Galen yelled, his eyes glowing yellow. Something was bothering him.
Danny stares at him, looking very concerned. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"
Before Danny could react, Galen rushes towards him and grabs him by the shirt collar and shoves him against a wall. "You slept with her, didn't you? DIDN'T YOU?"
Danny was shocked by the action and a bit winded to speak but he tried anyway. "Gale- she- we-"
"Answer me! Did you have sex with Cassie?" Galen demanded, his voice sounding more like a growl.
Danny manages to get out a response. "Yes, we did. Now calm down so we can talk about this."
Galen's canine teeth were on display but he started to realize the animal side of him was controlling his emotions but it didn't fully hit him until he heard Danny's voice inside his head.
"Calm... Down."
Galen loosens his grip on Danny and backs up. His eyes and teeth reverting back to normal, taking in a few breaths to relax.
Danny fixes his shirt collar and clears his throat. "Are you feeling better?"
Galen exhales, back to his calm and reserved self. "I'm really sorry. I let the wolf get a hold of me. I am-"
"No, don't apologize. I shouldn't have been confrontational, it only just made things worse." Danny said then let out a breath. "How did you-"
"I could smell her on you. Your scent combined with hers." Galen explained. "Also, you were secreting a lot of pheromones. The kind that only occur after a human has- well-"
"Had sex?" Danny figures and Galen nods. "That was going to be what I was going to tell you but I got sidetracked."
"You panicked, I got that." Galen notices. "So she showed you her powers? How does that feel?"
Danny sat on the couch. "I don't know how to describe it. She, she was... Wow."
Galen smiles. "We aren't talking about her powers anymore, are we?" Then he got serious. "Do you have feelings for her?"
"You mean, do I love her?" Danny guessed.
"Yeah. You couldn't have slept with her if you didn't have serious feelings for her." Galen said. "Because if you don't and you don't love her, I might have to rip your throat out... with my teeth."
Danny laughs nervously, knowing that Galen was mostly serious about the bodily harm. "You want the truth?"
"That'd be nice." Galen replied.
"I'm in love with Cassie! There, I said it!" Danny yelled. Once he regains his composure, he realizes what he had said and softly states "I'm in love with Cassie."
Galen smiles "I don't think it's me you need to admit that to."
"I know, but I'm worried that-that-"
"That she doesn't feel the same way?" Galen guessed which he scoffs at. "You're crazy if you think she doesn't have feelings for you."
Danny raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"I might not be the telepath but I know Cassie and she wouldn't have... given herself in that way if she didn't feel the same." Galen told him. "You won't know until you two get in a room and hash this out."
Danny sighs. "You're right. I have to be straight with her."
"Oh, and don't let her pull that cutesy teasing with you. She can try but you have to let her drop the act and let her walls down." Galen warns him. "Might be tough considering her walls are as thick and tall as the Great Wall."
"Well to be honest, so are mine." Danny reluctantly admits which makes Galen laugh. Suddenly Danny's cellphone rings and he checks the caller ID. "Sorry, it's work. I have to take this."
Galen nods. "Go ahead."
Danny answers his phone. "Parker. Yes, I'll be there shortly. Bye." He hangs up. "Captain wants me back at the precinct. They might have some more info on how to find Wesker."
Galen grabs his jacket. "I'm coming along."
"Um... why?" Danny wondered. "Don't you have a real job?"
"Yes but I have flexible hours. Besides, Cassie is obviously going to be there and I want to make sure you two don't act like idiots." Galen revealed his intentions. "Let's go."
Danny simply laughs as the two men walk out of the warehouse and Galen locks up.
•••
At the City Tech campus, Freddie was walking with Gabe and Millie to class. They were now in different clothing from the day before with Freddie wearing the leather jacket he had gotten for Christmas over a white long sleeved shirt and blue jeans, his hair combed neatly, Gabe wearing long sleeved dark red shirt and dark pants, his hair in its usual wildness, and Millie in a lift pink cashmere sweater and tight black pants with matching flats, her hair in a ponytail.
"Sure you're feeling all right to go to school?" Gabe asked. "Thought your dad gave you permission to take a mental health day?"
Freddie looks at her with concern. "You are okay, aren't you?"
Millie groans. "Mom, Dad, relax. I'm fine. This isn't my first traumatic experience and with everything going on, it's probably not going to be my last."
"That… doesn't sound normal." Freddie points out.
"Coming from the guy with the powers, that's like the pot calling the kettle black." Millie jokes.
Freddie smiles and shrugs. "Got me there."
"But we are going to catch this Wesker creep, right?" Millie asked. "Especially since he has those scary chemicals."
"Scary EXPLOSIVE chemicals." Gabe points out.
"Think that is implied under the word 'scary', dumbass." Millie groans, playfully smacking him on his left shoulder.
Freddie seems distracted by something and sees a young woman in a grayish blue hoodie staring back at him from the sidewalk across the school. She had long light brown hair that was hard to conceal from the hoodie. She was very pretty but something told Freddie she was different.
"Dude?" Gabe called to Freddie which got his attention. "You okay?"
Freddie shakes it off when he sees the girl in the hoodie walks into the crowd of people on the sidewalk and disappears. "Yeah, just somewhere else for a second. I'm fine."
However, Freddie blinks and finds himself in another place, a back alley next to a warehouse at night. The warehouse was engulfed in flames and some explosions can be heard in the distance. He sees two bodies lying on the ground in the alley and walks over to them but a hand on his shoulder stops him.
He turns around abruptly and finds Gabe and Millie standing behind him. Both of them looked gravely concerned.
"Dude, you okay?" Gabe asked.
"Was it one of the freaky vision things?" Millie asked with a face of worry.
"You know about that?" Freddie asked, catching his breath.
"Gabe told me. Well, I made him tell me." Millie said with a shrug.
"Yeah, literally twisting my arm to do it." Gabe reminds her.
Millie sticks out her tongue then turns back to Freddie. "So, was it?"
Freddie nods. "Yeah."
The three continued walking to class as his two friends questioned him. "Thought those only happened at night. You know, when you're asleep."
"They're supposed to. I don't know, maybe it's probably nothing." Freddie told them as they walked.
"Having visions of the future isn't something to sneeze at." Gabe retorts. "Maybe you shouldn't go to class today. Just take a mental health day, like for real."
"That might be a good idea. I could take you back to the Cave, use my 'get out of class' card to make sure you relax." Millie offered. "I'll just tell my dad you took me home. He won't suspect anything."
"And I could pick up any assignments you miss. For both of you." Gabe also offered.
"You sure? You guys don't need to put yourselves out like this, especially for me." Freddie said sheepishly.
"Benson, we're your friends and we got your back. Even when you have trippy visions." Gabe jokes.
Freddie smiles and relents "Fine. Let's get going. Might help me do more research to find this creep."
"Hey, you found yourself a silver lining." Millie said brightly as she led him away.
As the two walk away from campus, Gabe is snuck up on by Lucy who startles him. "Ah! H-hey, Luce."
"Hey stranger, long time no see." Lucy teases.
"I'm sorry. I've been really busy lately. It hasn't been fair to you." Gabe said with regret.
"Gabe, you don't need to apologize. It just makes a girl wonder." Lucy stated.
Gabe stares at her, puzzled. "You don't think I'm cheating on you? Because I have put my bad boy tendencies behind me."
Lucy giggles and shakes her head. "No, but we will talk about those tendencies later, Mister."
Gabe laughs awkwardly. "So, what are you wondering?"
"Well, that you might be Pulse." Lucy guessed.
Gabe gulps then laughs this off. "Me? Being Pulse?" He scoffs. "You have one healthy imagination, Bright Lights."
"You do spend a lot of your time 'studying', for all I know, you could be living a double life."
Gabe smiles and plays it cool. "Nah, Pulse does have superpowers, doesn't he? And to be frank, it takes me like ten minutes to open a jar of pickles."
Lucy shrugs. "True but what if you're just acting?"
"Lucy, if I were Pulse, I would tell you. I swear." Gabe reassures her.
Lucy smiles and kisses him on the cheek. "Good." She switches things around. "So, why are Freddie and Millie leaving?"
"Well, Millie had a rough night last night." Gabe explained.
"She told me she saw a guy getting lit on fire. She seemed a little freaked out." Lucy said.
"Well, Freddie is taking her home so she could relax." Gabe told her.
"Oh. That's good. I offered to pick up any assignments she misses today but she said she was still going." Lucy told him. "Guess she changed her mind."
"Guess so." Gabe muttered. "Want me to walk you to class?"
Lucy smiles, "That'd be nice."
Gabe leads her by the hand and takes her to class.
•••
Back at the precinct, Danny walks in with Galen close behind him as some of Danny's fellow employees are staring at him silently but he could hear what they thought of his situation.
"How could he be here after yesterday?"
"Shouldn't he be in a hospital?"
"Wonder if he's going crazy?"
Danny stumbles a bit but Galen catches him before he could fall. Danny regains his balance and looks to his cousin. "Thanks."
"They're getting louder, aren't they?" Galen asked quietly.
"Like voices all trying to talk at once." Danny explained. "If it weren't for the fact that I need to close this case, I'd be in bed right now."
"And running from this won't help." Galen told him. "I get you're scared but you're not alone. Got it?"
Danny nods. "Yeah. Got it."
The two men walk towards Victor who was sitting at his desk and Alec who was sitting on top of Danny's desk.
"Look at Mr Punctual. Did your alarm clock not go off or did you snooze one too many times?" Alec snidely teased Danny.
Danny glares at him, not taking his crap. "How about you get off my desk and find yourself someone else to bully because I'm not in the mood."
"Or what? You'll sic Fido on me?" Alec said, looking at Galen.
"No but I'd gladly maul you for free so I'd watch it." Galen warned, his canine teeth flashing at Alec.
Alec's eyes widen then he hops off the desk and sits down in an empty chair between Victor and Danny's desks.
"You're welcome." Galen thought, which made Danny smile. He sniffs the air around Alec which makes Alec a bit nervous.
"What is it?" Alec asked.
Galen whispers in his ears. "You smell like him, by the way."
Alec blushes as he adjusts his shirt collar.
"I don't wanna know." Victor remarks then he glances at his partner. "Are you feeling better?"
Danny nods. "Sore but I'll live."
"Captain was worried you wouldn't show." Victor told him.
"I appreciate his concern." Danny said with a smirk. He turns to Galen. "Gale's just here to make sure my brain doesn't get any more scrambled."
"Which shouldn't be too hard... I hope." Galen teased.
Danny shakes his head amused when he looks past a small throng of people to see Cassie entering the room flanked by Sam and Riley. He sees she was wearing her red hair in a ponytail as well as the pants she wore the night before but her shirt was something he recognized. The shirt had been in his closet this morning. Riley was now wearing a black long sleeved T-shirt with the sleeves halfway rolled up and dark slacks and boots. Sam wore a long sleeved black and white vertically striped top that was short enough to reveal her midriff but had a black sleeveless top underneath, dark jeans and dark brown boots, her hair in soft curls.
"Sorry I'm late, fellas. Resuming my babysitting duties and this blond little demon was giving me trouble." Cassie said, motioning at Sam.
"Wouldn't need a babysitter if my brother would quit the overprotective parent shtick." Sam joked and Cassie laughed.
"Not in the mood, Sammy." Danny replied in annoyance, covering his nerves at seeing Cassie.
Cassie walks over to Danny's desk and sits down on top. "Relax, Parker. She's just teasing. You do, understandably, go overboard."
Danny smiles then notices she was playfully swinging her feet which was making him more nervous.
"And yes, this is your shirt. Not my idea. Blame your sister." He hears Cassie think.
Danny just laughs which confuses Alec. "What's so funny?"
Before Danny could respond, Cassie defends him. "Ease off, Al." She said sweetly. "Just a bit of an inside joke, that's all."
"Quick question: why is he here?" Victor asked, pointing at Riley, breaking the tension. "Wouldn't you rather be sightseeing or something?"
Riley shakes his head. "I have a feeling the action is right here. Bit of an adrenaline junkie."
Danny scoffs. "Whatever you say, Danvers."
Riley scowls at him but before he could say anything, the group notices Captain Thompson talking angrily on the phone with someone.
"Wow, that is one angry man." Sam comments on his behavior.
"That's an understatement. Irv's not exactly known for his even temper." Cassie remarks.
"He's been on the phone for at least half an hour. Something tells me he might want this Wesker case closed soon." Victor replied as Captain Thompson aggressively slammed his phone down.
"Easier said than done." Danny replied.
Thompson opens the door and calls out. "Flores, Parker, get in here!"
Victor and Danny rise from their seats and go towards the office. Cassie hops off the desk and follows them. Victor and Danny turn to face her which puzzles her. "What now?"
"Where are you going?" Victor asked.
"This may be police business but it's still my case. I'm going." Cassie assertively stated. "Plus, I got some info from one of my sources this morning. Might help us finally bust Wesker. Have to at least tell him."
"She's right. We need to get this case solved." Danny said.
Victor nods and the three of them walk into the office and close the door behind them.
Alec looks at the three in bewilderment. "Just so we're clear, we all know they had sex, right?"
Sam, Galen and Riley share statements of agreement.
Thompson looks at his two detectives to also see Cassie standing in the room. "I didn't ask for you, Cassie. This is a police matter."
"Which is a part of a case I've become a part of. That I'm being paid to handle. Do you want me to explain to David Morgan how you aren't letting help solve this, you'd be more than welcome to do so." Cassie stated.
This statement makes Thompson freeze, stammer then he sighs "Fine, you can stay."
"Well gee, thanks." Cassie said in a snarky manner.
Thompson ignores Cassie then stares at Victor and Danny "I just spoke to David Morgan and he's getting really scared we won't be able to find his property. Then I was forced to tell him about what happened last night. He practically screamed my ear off!"
"In our defense, we didn't create a weapon that could burn someone to death." Victor retorts.
"Whatever problem you have with Morgan, leave at home!" Thompson shouted. "I want this case solved so I don't have that man breathing down my neck!"
Danny then hears something from Thompson's mind that surprises him:
"That man already has me by the throat, don't need to make a bad situation worse."
"May I interject some information that I found out this morning?" Cassie spoke up, causing Danny to lose focus. "I don't want to jump to conclusions but it could break this case."
Thompson sighs. "What have you got?"
Cassie clears her throat. "Well, I got word from one of my sources that he might know where Tammy Wesker might be up to."
"We've had a tail of Tammy for almost twenty four hours, we haven't seen her doing anything suspicious." Victor points out.
"The Weskers are well versed criminals. They know how to lose a cop on their tail." Cassie reminds them. "My source tells me that Tammy is working as a cocktail waitress at an underground nightclub called 'The Jungle'."
"I've heard of that place but none of my undercovers have been able to find it." Thompson informs her.
"Yes, but you don't know the right questions to ask. Much less, which one is the right piece of information." Cassie bragged which annoyed Thompson and amused the detectives. "From what I learned, The Jungle likes to have certain illegal events every month and this month, it's a fighting contest."
"So, do you have some kind of plan in mind?" Danny asked.
Cassie turns her head and smiles. "You're legitimately asking me? Shouldn't we be playing this by the book?"
"It might be worth looking at this differently and finding... alternative means to stopping Trevor Wesker." Danny stated. "And knowing the look on your face, you do have a plan so just tell us."
"You might not like it." Cassie mentally said in a singsong manner. Knowing for a fact that Danny was not going to like the idea.
"I think we're all willing to do what it takes. You are free to share, Cassandra." Thompson tells her.
Cassie grins. "Fine. I was thinking I could go in and 'compete' in the tournament as Detective Parker goes hunting for Tammy."
Danny's eyes widen as he hears her in his head:
"And here we go."
"It's a good plan b-but you could get hurt." Danny manages to get out.
"I appreciate your concern but it has to be me, I'm the only one equipped enough to take on these 'fighters' while you try to find Tammy. I know how they operate, trust me." Cassie stated.
"So you just Danny goes in?" Victor asked Cassie.
"Well, here's the part where the rules have to be a little... bent." Cassie remarks. "I was thinking that Mr Grayson, Galen Lennox and Riley Danvers would come along to be his back up."
"So, you want me to accept three untrained civilians into a dangerous situation?" Thompson asked, a little unnerved. "Are you insane?"
"If you bring in some plain clothes officers, they'll be spotted right off the bat and we'll be exposed and that's gonna put everyone involved at risk." Cassie explained. "Grayson and Lennox have had my back for years and they can be trusted in that kind of scenario."
"What about this... Riley character? I don't even know who that is?" Thompson stated.
Victor motions towards the window of the office to point at Riley who was talking to Galen, Alec and Sam. "He was one of the witnesses of the immolation from last night. That was the first time I met him."
"And I'd be willing to vouch for him. He's a good and trusted friend." Danny said.
Thompson mumbles. "I can't believe I'm doing this." He goes towards the door, opens it and calls out "Grayson, get in here! And bring Lennox and Danvers with you!"
The three men were a bit startled by this but Danny and Cassie silently gave them the go ahead. The three of them walk into the office and Thompson shuts the door.
Sam stands by herself as Leo approaches her with a folder in his hands. She senses his presence and acknowledges him. "Hey, Da Vinci."
"Hey... So... What's going on?" Leo asked with some confusion on his face.
"No idea." Sam simply said.
Back inside the office, Thompson began to explain what was going on. "Ms Sinclair has a plan to go undercover to find Trevor Wesker and she wants to include the three of you."
The three simultaneously give Cassie a puzzled expression as Cassie smiles at them and waves. "Are you insane?" the three ask in unison.
"Careful boys, it's learning." Cassie said with a smile. "I need you guys to go in with Danny while he goes undercover to find Tammy Wesker."
"This seems awfully risky, Sand." Alec said.
"I can't believe I'm saying this but I agree with Grayson." Galen said to Cassie.
"Look, I wouldn't have suggested that you guys should go if you couldn't handle it. I trust you three, that's all you need to know." Cassie told them.
Riley looks to the others. "She can be persuasive, can't she?"
"You have no idea." Galen stated to which the rest of the men in the room nod in agreement.
"How are we even going to get in?" Alec asked. "I'm... uh... Not an expert on underground nightclubs but wouldn't you need a password or an invitation to get into a place like this?"
Cassie simply grins and pulls out something from her back pocket, four slips of paper that look like concert tickets. "My source managed to score four passes, now the four of you can get in and I can participate in this contest."
"And how on Earth are you going to get a slot?" Victor asked.
"Let's just say a slot opened up. Don't ask me how, just trust me that there's an opening." Cassie said with a smile. "So Irv, do you need to go over the ground rules or do they have to sign some consent forms?"
"I certainly don't want a lawsuit on my hands." Thompson stated which made Alec and Riley nervous. "Relax, gentlemen. I was joking." He leans over to Cassie. "Make sure they sign those consent forms."
Cassie nods as a knock on the door is heard.
"Come in!" Thompson called out.
The door opens and in walks Leo who was holding a small stack of paperwork in his hands. "I got the results from the crime scene from last night, the six bodies immolated inside the warehouse?"
"What do they say?" Thompson asked as the others focused on Leo.
"Well, there's a link to those murders and the death of that robber at the Groovy Smoothie." Leo explained. "The same chemicals were found on all the bodies, think this could prove that Wesker is responsible for these murders."
"Thinking that it could have the same heat signature as the Heatwave gun?" Cassie spoke up which caught the others by surprise. "What? I am more then sex appeal and violence, fellas."
"I ran tests on that chemical that was stolen from that warehouse. This stuff makes nitroglycerin look like lighter fluid." Leo explained. "Only two barrels were stolen but thinking two could still do some serious damage."
"And if he wanted to, Wesker could burn the city to the ground." Danny stated, echoing the words he heard through Wesker's thoughts.
"Not gonna happen. We won't let him." Cassie said, sounding determined. "Wesker is going to pay."
Danny bites his bottom lip to cover his anxiety as Riley speaks up. "Do you think Wesker might be holding up in a factory of some kind? Keeping this Heatwave gun operational has to take some serious mechanical maintenance. Couldn't hurt to see if there are any run down or abandoned factories he could be hiding out in."
Danny nods in agreement. "That's not a bad idea. Best to look at it as an alternative method in case the undercover work doesn't get us any results."
"Oh I am... 99.999999999999 percent sure this plan will work." Cassie said confidently.
"And there is such a thing as a margin for error. Just best to weigh our options." Danny tells her.
Cassie scoffs. "You are REALLY going out of your way to doubt my skills."
"I'm not!" Danny said roughly which caught Cassie by surprise. "I just think we need to look at all options. Especially ones that don't put people in mortal danger."
"Fair enough." Cassie said with a shrug.
"Geez, you sleep with a guy and all of a sudden he gets all bossy." Cassie thinks which made Danny turn bright red and made Cassie grin from ear to ear.
Alec and Galen notice the silent playful flirting and Galen clears his throat. "Do you have some sort of strategy in mind for this job?"
"Hmm, as much as I'd love to wing it, I do have a decent strat in mind. Just have to pick up a few things from home and we'll be in business." Cassie tells them.
"What, you forget your brass knuckles?" Riley joked.
"Uh... No. I just have to grab some proper gear. You boys have to find your own proper attire, no jeans and a T-shirt. Suit and tie, dress to impress." Cassie orders.
"Darn, I left my tux at the cleaners." Riley said in a teasing tone.
Cassie goes over to him and pokes his chest with her index finger. "Don't try to be cute, you're going."
"Don't worry, I'll let you borrow something." Danny tells his friend.
Alec's phone rings and he checks the caller ID. "Great, it's the boss. Better take this."
"Good luck." Cassie called out as Alec leaves the office and goes off to take the call.
"All right, report back here at 18:00. We'll need the cover of darkness." Thompson stated. "Victor, look into those factories and see if we can run Wesker out of hiding."
"Understood, Sir." Victor said as they all begin to leave the office.
"I have to return these to the lab. Nina likes to have them organized." Leo said, regarding the papers in his hands.
As the group begins to leave, Cassie stops and turns back to Captain Thompson "Silly hypothetical question: what if Pulse or the Fox show up by happenstance?"
Thompson simply says. "Guess that's three birds with one stone, isn't it?"
Leo's eyes widen and Cassie gulps then covers it with a nervous laugh. "That answers that. Come along, boys."
The group makes their way out as Sam approaches them with curiosity in her demeanor "What was that about?" she asked.
"Going undercover, beat some people up. Hoping to find Wesker and stop him once and for all." Cassie frankly explained.
"You're acting like it's going to be a walk in the park." Danny points out.
Cassie scoffs "I don't care about the rest of you but getting to kick the crap out of people and not getting in real trouble for it is my Christmas."
"You seem to be rather interested in this case. Any particular reason why?" Victor asked Sam.
"Well, normally being on the wrong side of the law for most of my childhood, it's nice seeing it from the opposite end." Sam told him. "I get bored easily so this is holding my attention which is amazing because I have kind of a short attention span."
Victor looks over at Danny who was rubbing the side of his temple with his hand "You believe her?"
"To save myself the added headache, I'll let it go." Danny said.
"Guess I better get going." Cassie said.
"I'll walk you out." Danny offered.
"Don't worry, I got it." Leo offered as he pulled her by the arm.
"But I-"
However before Danny could finish, Leo leads Cassie down the hall out of the precinct.
"Next time, you're going to get your chance to tell her." Galen communicated through his thoughts so Danny could hear him.
"Hopefully she won't chicken out and tell him. She might be as stubborn as he is." Riley's thought catches Danny's attention.
"You know?" Danny asked him.
Riley stammers "Uh, yeah. Sam and I went back to the loft and we found Cassie there. The two of us put two and two together fairly quickly."
Danny sighs and paces a bit. "Think she might be avoiding me."
"That or she hasn't told Leo. If she had, he would've let you walk her out." Galen tells him.
"Yeah, he just accidentally cock-blocked you." Riley retorts and Danny smacks him in the shoulder. "Ah! Guess you still can't take a joke."
"I can, that just wasn't all that funny." Danny said with a laugh.
•••
Meanwhile in another part of the precinct, Alec was on the phone with David Morgan and was being chewed out by him.
"Yes, I know but it's the only plan she could think of to find and take down Wesker." Alec told him.
"Ensure that Eastman's men don't talk. I can not afford to have my true identity be exposed, Mr Grayson." David spat, sounding more annoyed than angry. "I won't have my plans derailed because of your beautiful and surprisingly clever best friend. You will keep this from getting out of hand, understood?"
"Yes, sir." Alec stated.
"Because if you fail, I will have a certain electrifying acquaintance of ours clean this mess up for you. Including taking care of Ms Sinclair. Do I make myself clear?
Alec swallows hard, trying desperately to hide his terror and concern over Cassie. "I will get it done. I promise."
"Good."
With that, the line goes silent and Alec stands in the hall with a few people passing him. Unaware of the immense weight added on the man's shoulders.
•••
Outside of the precinct, Cassie and Leo were walking to her car. Leo senses some nerves poking through the usually self-assured redhead.
"You okay?" Leo asked his aunt.
Cassie snaps out of her tunnel vision. "What? Uh- yeah, I'm fine."
"Really? Because you are uncharacteristically nervous today. Are you feeling okay?" Leo points out.
"I've just got a lot on my mind recently. Including the potential of you and your brother getting caught by the cops if this whole mission goes off the rails." Cassie said seriously. "I want you to go over strategy with Freddie. Make sure the two of you and the rest of the team are on the same page."
"I know. I'll talk to Claud, see if she can pick up my gear back from the Den and take it to the cave. We'll all go over battle strategy as soon I get to the Cave." Leo tells her. "Should off around four. Most of my lab work has already been finished so I could leave early. I'll keep Sam occupied before I head over with her."
"Good. Great." Cassie said then she gives him a warm hug. "Be careful, okay?"
"You too." Leo stated. As he hugged her, he felt her tremble. Like a shiver of fear. "You're shaking. Are you sure you're okay?"
Cassie shrugs it off and smiles "Yeah, I'm fine. I'll see you later." She walks over to the driver's side door of Black Beauty and gets inside.
Leo waves as she starts her engine and drives off down the street. He lets out a breath and says "Oh, she's definitely hiding something."
With that, he heads back inside the building.
•••
Later on at the Pulse Cave, Freddie was in the dojo doing some light training while Millie sits on the wooden bench, working on an assignment on her magenta colored Pearbook.
She looks up from the screen to watch Freddie intently as he summons blue lightning from his hands which surrounds his palms. He gathers the energy together by bringing his palms close and a long bladed weapon forms from the energy. A weapon that resembled a broadsword.
"Whoa, you have gotten better at that!" Millie exclaimed in wonder.
"Thanks but this takes a lot of practice and even more concentration." Freddie said as he swung the weapon with focused precision. "If I lose focus, it could end up shattering to pieces in my hands."
"It's not hard like glass or actual steel, is it?" Millie asked. "Still learning to do stitches properly."
Freddie shakes his head. "Worse, if the shards go flying, they'll explode whatever they land or get attached to."
Millie's eyes widen then she puts her Pearbook inside her bookbag. "Yeah, not taking my chances on that. Gabe has the expendable income to buy himself laptops. Me; not so much."
Freddie smiles then he absorbs the electricity from the energy construct and the once solid weapon has vanished. However, he uses the energy to form a different kind of construct. One that resembles a round shield, similar to the one wielded by Captain America.
"This one make you less nervous?" Freddie asked with a smile.
Millie simply stares at him, in awe at what he had created. "Holy Captain Rogers! That looks- You basically made Captain America's shield!"
"Yeah, it took me weeks to get it completely solid." Freddie remarked proudly. "It isn't Vibranium but it should hold up well in battle."
Millie walks over to him and cautiously moves her hand to touch the shield but recoils a bit. "Sure it won't... shatter or shock me?"
Freddie sighs and extends his arm closer so she could take a better look. "Go ahead. I got it under control."
Millie gently extends her hand and taps the shield with her knuckle which makes a metallic sounding thud. "Whoa, that is so cool. You can deflect bullets and stuff, right?"
"Yep. I can also toss it around like a discus." Freddie told her.
"Like the real Captain America? No way!" Millie exclaimed excitedly.
Freddie smiles then turns to face the wall on the side of the room. "Just watch."
Millie goes behind the bench so she could take cover if this doesn't go well as Freddie readied himself. She gives him a thumbs up to let him perform the technique he wanted to show.
Freddie takes a few steps back then makes a running start and throws the shield through the air. The shield ricochets off the walls Freddie aimed at and starts heading back to Millie. Millie flinches in panic and goes to duck only for Freddie to catch it before it struck her.
Millie exhales deeply and opens her eyes and sees Freddie holding the construct in his hands. She watches as the shield vanishes and the energy returns to his body.
"Sorry, sorta lost control of it. You okay?" Freddie asked with a bit of remorse in his voice.
Millie takes in a breath then says "Does that thing even obey the laws of physics?"
Freddie laughs and helps her off the floor. "That sounds like something Gabe would say."
"Oh, do not say that in front of my dad. I will never hear the end of it." Millie said with a laugh. She sighs and sits on the bench. "So you're feeling better I take it?"
"Kind of. I have lots of stuff on my mind right now. That and what happened today at school didn't exactly help." Freddie freely admits.
Millie bites her lip then lets out a breath. "We can take your mind off it if you want."
"How do you plan to do that?" Freddie asked.
"I just need another person's opinion on this... idea that's been swirling through my head for a while. So it doesn't eat away at my sanity." Millie stated.
"Sure, what's the idea?" Freddie asked, his interest peaked.
"Well... Uh, you know how Cassie used to be Mockingbird?" Millie asked.
"Yes." Freddie simply said with a good natured smile.
"And she said she isn't really interested in being Mockingbird anymore so... I was thinking, if she was okay with it... that I could, you know... take up the mantle." Millie nervously got out.
Freddie stands there in stunned silence until he manages to find the words. "Y-you want to be the new Mockingbird?"
"Yeah, I do." Millie stated. "I mean, Cassie wouldn't be giving it to a total stranger or some whack-a-doo who would be going around murdering people indiscriminately. It would be someone she trusts."
"I don't think it's a matter of trust, Millie." Freddie told her. "She doesn't want to see you get hurt. And neither do I."
Millie's eyes fill with disappointment as her face falls. "You don't think I could do it?" She asked.
"No, I think you are very capable of handling the job but... have you considered what would happen if your dad found out?" Freddie asked.
Millie's eyes widened "Oh... Yeah."
"Also there's the fact that you could get seriously injured out there. Cassie was only lucky because of her healing factor." Freddie points out.
"Yeah, I think I heard that she had to pop her dislocated shoulder back in place on her own. No way can I be that hardcore." Millie said softly.
Freddie smiles and places a hand on her shoulder "I'm not saying you aren't tough. After putting up with the insane crap you've had to deal with because of me and you aren't crazy, that only proves how strong you are."
Millie raises an eyebrow and asks "This is you buttering me up so I reconsider, isn't it?"
Freddie laughs at being busted then becomes serious. "Look, I've considered the consequences if the police find out and weighed my options and I'm betting Leo has too."
"And considering he is lacking of the superpowers but is still doing this is part brave but mainly stupid." Millie tells him.
"And yet you still want to go out there yourself." Freddie points out and Millie shoots him a scowl. "It's crazy and this isn't fun and games, you could get hurt."
"I know. I just... I want to help. This isn't me seeking some kind of thrill. I genuinely want to help besides patching people up." Millie stated.
Freddie stares at her, drops his shoulders and smiles "Look, you are going to run into some opposition with this. Especially from Leo but... you have my full support." Freddie tells her.
Millie squeals with joy and wraps her arms around his shoulders to him a big hug. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."
"Hey, don't thank me. You have two huge hurdles to go through before you can consider taking the job." Freddie replied.
"You really think Cassie wouldn't let me do it?" Millie asked.
"I don't know, maybe. Cassie isn't as predictable as we think she is, so who knows what she's going to say." Freddie reminds her. "The one you're really gonna have to convince is Leo. He might not be too keen on his girlfriend jumping into the crime fighting fray."
"Yeah, it is going to take a lot of playful flirting and sweet talking to get him to come around." Millie said with a wink.
"How is it that even when you're being manipulative, you still manage to be sweet about it?" Freddie said with a chuckle.
Millie shrugs, "It's a gift."
Freddie couldn't resist smiling but their attention is focused by the sound coming from the main room of the Cave. The two of them walk into the main room to find Claud walking down the stairs with a large duffel bag draped over her shoulder.
"Hey guys, Leo said you might be here." Claud said as she set down the bag.
"What is that?" Freddie asked, regarding the bag.
"Leo's gear, he thought it might save time if I brought it here for tonight." Claud stated.
"Oh right. Right. That- that makes sense." Freddie said.
Claud stares at him, mildly puzzled. "What's with Quicksilver? He's more antsy than the norm."
Millie smiles then shrugs "He's always this jumpy when it comes to the eleventh hour of a big mission."
"Yeah, he and big brother share that trait. Can be mildly unbearable two minutes to midnight." Claud said which made Freddie feel more at ease. "Has the uber red haired badass given you the deets about the mission?"
"No, Leo did. I haven't spoken to Cassie since she took Danny back to his place. It's weird not getting the rundown from the Master General herself." Freddie stated. "I'm a little worried."
"About Cassie or the fact that Danny's now a mind reader?" Claud reminds him.
"A bit of both actually." Freddie replied. "Cassie's in love with him."
The statement surprises the girls, not at what he said but that he knew and understood what was happening to his aunt.
"Thank God you're not freaking clueless." Claud said to Freddie, which caused Millie to snort a laugh.
Freddie smiles and says "I'm not blind. Think we all saw that coming."
"Actually, I thought she and Pete were going to have a quick roll in the hay which was only going to end in heartbreak due to her being in love with Danny then it was going to spin into this major love triangle that lasts for years." Claud candidly points out. "Then again, this isn't a teen drama on the CW."
Millie exhales. "Think the point is... what we need to do is let them work it out themselves."
"But if you want to nudge them in the right direction, that's not all bad." Claud jokes. "I mean, Mistletoe? Come on!"
"It was cliché but it was the best I could come up with in a short time. Not big on master planning." Millie stated.
Freddie just stands in the room, watching the two girls aggressively discuss the matter with enjoyment on his face. "Yeah, this feels more like home."
•••
A few hours later at Danny's loft, Danny was tying a tie for Riley and the two of them were wearing white dress shirts and both were wearing black dress slacks. Riley had his hair combed back and Danny's was neatly combed.
"Still can't believe you wanted to wear a bow tie." Danny joked.
"Hey, hasn't anyone told you that bow ties are cool?" Riley remarks in a jovial manner.
"That excuse only works if your means of transportation is a blue police box that's bigger on the inside." Danny said teasingly. "You're just lucky I know how to tie one."
"Lucky your grandfather decided to show you how. Really miss him." Riley said.
Danny sighs and solemnly says "Me too."
Riley quickly changes the subject. "So, is Galen going to meet us here?"
"Yeah, he says he has to get ready at his place." Danny informs him as he finishes tying the bow tie.
Riley stares at him, curious to what he thought. "And by that, you mean..."
Danny exhales and says "Galen isn't like us. Least I don't think… the whole superpowers thing is still confusing."
"So Galen has powers too?" Riley asked, not wanting to reveal that he already knew.
"In a sense... But I will take a wild guess by assuming that you already know." Danny states frankly.
Riley stammers then laughs. "At the risk of you going through my mind for answers and finding some less than desirable information, yes I know. He was with me that rest of your sister's friends and we shared a conversation, one thing lead to another and-"
"I think I get the point." Danny said, putting his hand up to signal he's heard enough. "Finding out he has these wolf powers wasn't the craziest thing I found out about him but it is up in the top ten."
"Like finding out he's your cousin?" Riley asked. "Must've been quite a shock for you."
"A little." Danny said, sitting on his sofa. "For most of my life, it was just my mom and me. I mean, I had you and it was like having an older brother I didn't really ask for."
"Thanks... I think." Riley retorts, mainly perplexed. Danny nods then he grimaces in pain which Riley sees. "Are you-"
Danny grabs his head in pain and ends up laying on his side on the couch. Riley obviously knew what was happening.
"Not- not again." Danny manages to get out.
"Are you hearing voices now?" Riley asked and Danny nods in pain. "Yeah, they're louder in big cities. In heavily populated areas." Danny nods and gasps in pain. "Okay, I need you to listen, I want you to focus on the voices."
Danny shakes his head adamantly. "No, no. That's- that's worse."
"Trust me. You're safe." Riley reminds him. "Now close your eyes. Focus."
Danny does as instructed and closes his eyes. Overlapping thoughts and whispers bombarding his senses. The pain was almost unbearable.
"There's a single voice calling your name. Can you hear it?" Riley asked, seeming more like an instructor. "Can you find it?"
Through the flood of voices in his head, Danny hears a faint voice calling out to him. He tries his best to push past the shouts, whispers and screams to pinpoint where it was. The voice sounded like Riley calling out to him.
Danny breathed in deeply as he continued to try to find the voice of his friend.
"All right, I want you to concentrate on it." Riley tells him which Danny manages to do. "Now dial out all the other voices. Imagine there's a big knob, the volume knob."
In Danny's mind's eye, Danny sees a volume knob for an old radio.
"Now just turn it down." Riley stated.
In Danny's mind, the knob begins moving slowly on its own. Almost with telekinetic precision.
After a moment, Danny hears Riley's voice calling to him clearly and all the other voices were silenced. A sense of relief washes over him and the pain is gone.
"That's good." Riley assures his friend. "And that, my friend, is how you take control of your telepathy."
Danny exhales as Riley offers his hand to help him up, which Danny accepts. "How did you-"
"My grandfather showed these tricks to my mom. She had this idea that her gifts were going to be passed on to her daughter." Riley admits. "Unfortunately they sort of skipped a generation."
"Your grandfather was a telepath." Danny said out loud then he smiled. "That explains why we never got away with anything when your grandparents came to visit."
"That and we weren't exactly good at hiding anything when we were kids." Riley said.
"Seems we've gotten better at it." Danny replied, his words saying more than what they mean to.
A knock at the door interrupts the moment and Danny knows exactly who it was.
"It's open, Gale." Danny called out.
The door swings open and Galen walks in, dressed in a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and no tie with dark blue slacks.
"Still getting used to that." Galen remarked. "Ready to go?"
"Basically, yeah." Danny said as he grabs his suit jacket and tosses a different jacket to Riley who uses his telekinetic energy to catch it. Both of the men put them on as the three make their way out. "Is Sam still with Leo?"
"Yeah, she and the rest of the Goonies are going to stay in and watch some movies." Galen tells him.
"A Coed slumber party? Seems legit to me." Riley joked as they exited the loft.
"As long as there's no funny business, I'm okay with it." Danny stated while locking the front door.
"Oooh, Gabe did say something about taking them to a strip club for a little after hours fun." Galen replied, the statement making Danny's eyes widen however Galen couldn't keep a straight face and laughed. "Really can't take a joke, can't you?"
"Never could." Riley teased and Danny punched him in the arm. "Ow! You punch as hard as your girlfriend, by the way."
"Make another joke like that and I'll hit harder." Danny threatened as the three of them head towards the elevator.
"See, still as touchy as ever." Riley quips.
"Oh almost forgot, once this is all over and Wesker is behind bars, you and Cassie are going to sort out your feelings and admit to each other that you're in love with each other." Galen frankly stated. "I don't care if we have to drag you both into a closet and lock you in there until this matter is settled."
"You'd really resort to a cliché tactic straight out of a cheesy romantic comedy?" Danny scoffs.
"Desperate times call for it." Galen replied as the elevator doors opened and the two stepped inside, Riley standing in the middle and Danny and Galen standing beside him. Danny on the left and Galen on the right. "It's been torture watching you two."
"I'm with Mr Kessler here." Riley said pointing at Galen who smiles at the reference. "Just get it over with. I'm sure she's been wanting to talk about this too."
"Didn't seem like it. She was all too eager to let Leo escort her out." Danny said, a grim expression on his face.
"Leo pulled her out before she could reject the offer. Trust me, she wants to sort this out as much as you do." Galen reassures his cousin.
Riley swallows then stated "But if it doesn't work out... Think I have a shot?"
The two other men shoot him a look then both simultaneously smack Riley in the back of the head. Riley comically falls face first to the floor and hits his face, groaning in pain.
"Pain... Everything's in pain." Riley's muffled voice exclaimed.
"Does that answer your question?" Danny asked as he and Galen stared down at him.
"I taste blood!" Riley shouts.
"Think that's a 'yes'." Galen said with a devilish grin.
•••
At St James, Jake was walking down the hallway of the hospital where he does his best to not look suspicious. He looks around until he finds what he was looking for: Dr Trenton's office. He saw the door was slightly open and was about to go in when he heard Dr Trenton speaking to someone. Dr Trenton sounded both very angry and very scared.
"I have run several tests! How many times do I have to say this: I don't know!" Dr Trenton said to the unknown person he spoke to.
"My boss expects results, Doc."
Jake doesn't recognize the other person but we know who it was: it was Shadow.
"I understand that but I don't have access to any more of her blood to run tests. " Dr Trenton replied,
"Then find a way! No excuses." Shadow spat.
Jake slowly backs away when he accidentally bumps into a female doctor. She had caramel colored complexion and her dark hair was pulled back. She braces for impact then catches him before he falls. This is Dr Wilhemina Adler.
"Dr Adler, I am so sorry." Jake said in a panic.
"It's fine. No harm done." Dr Adler said, holding a file in her hands. "Want to tell me what you're doing here?"
"I was just exploring. I've never been to this part of the hospital before." Jake said, covering what he was really doing.
"Okay." Dr Adler said as she raised an eyebrow.
The awkward moment was interrupted by Dr Trenton who exited his office. "Oh hello Dr Adler. What do I owe the pleasure?"
Dr Adler hands him the file to Dr Trenton as Jake slinks away. "I need your help with a case I'm working on. I need your professional opinion."
"Of course." Dr Trenton said as he read the file.
Jake goes unnoticed as he slips into an elevator. He breathes a sigh of relief as the elevator doors close.
•••
Meanwhile inside of a refurbished factory that was turned into an arena, a well dressed man with dark brown hair walks into a large room and in the center of that room was a large circular cage with chain link wiring around it. He was talking to a pair of larger and taller men with bald heads that flanked him.
"Everything set for tonight?" the shorter well dressed man asked the two. "I want everything to go off without a hitch."
"You got it, boss." the taller bald man said.
"Have you heard back from Britt? Said he ran into some trouble with the cops?" The smaller man asked.
"We called him back but his girlfriend answered. Said the cops are holding him till tomorrow." The slightly smaller bald man stated.
"Damn it! He's our best fighter!" The smaller and shorter man said angrily. "After what happened last night, Mr Eastman is not in a good mood. Last thing I want is to compound his headache and frankly it adds to mine."
"Fortunately for you that I've come along, is it not?"
The three men turn to where the voice came from to find a woman with platinum blond hair tied back in a ponytail. She is wearing an all black outfit (resembles the outfit Alice wore in Resident Evil Retribution except for the idiotic Umbrella Corporation logo on the front. Yes, those movies are stupid but it's a means to an end) with a short black leather jacket on. This is Cassie in another disguise.
"Who the hell are you?" The shorter man asked. "How did you get in here?"
Cassie smirks and points at the open metal door leading inside. "Through the door." She said in a Russian accent.
The taller bald man approaches her. "Time to go, lady! You can make this easy or-"
Before he could react, Cassie grabs his arm then kicks him in the knee cap and bends his arm, forcing the man to his knees.
The taller bald man screams "Bi-"
Cassie bends his arm back a bit more to make him scream louder. "Don't do that, that bothers me. Certain sounds bother me. Nails on a chalkboard, pipe organ music..." She twists his wrist a bit further, causing the bones to crack. "A snap of an arm."
The man in her clutches winces and groans in agony as the others watch in horror.
"That's enough!" The smaller man shouted to Cassie, causing her to grin then let the bald man go. "Who the hell are you?"
"I do apologize for the intrusion but I heard a rumor that you might be looking for a replacement fighter for tonight." Cassie said, not only trying to sound like she was from Russian but also displaying an aura of sophistication.
"And where did you hear that?" The smaller man asked doubtingly.
Cassie smirks. "I have my sources. So, I would be more than happy to offer my services to your organization. Are you interested, Mr Maize?"
The smaller man, Omar Maize, smiles and creeps closer to her. "And by that you mean-"
Swiftly Cassie grabs his arm, flips him over her shoulder to him landing flat on his back to have her slam her foot on his throat. "You tell me?"
Maize's two bald goons grab at her only for Cassie to elbow the taller one in the stomach and backhand the shorter one across the face.
Cassie stares at the three downed men and smiles "Now are you interested or am I going to have to demonstrate further on you and your men?"
Maize sits up slowly, the pained expression on his face turning into a sinister grin. "Got a name, Sweetheart?"
"As a matter of fact, I have several." Cassie said then she grabs him by the shirt collar. "But you can call me Katya."
"Katya? There a last name to go with that?" Maize asked.
"That is... Need to know." Cassie said, her voice dripping in seduction and menace. "Now shall we discuss business?"
Maize grins as the two goons get off the floor "We will discuss payment later." He looks over at his men. "Gentlemen, show our lovely new fighter to our locker rooms. She has to get ready to... knock out their eyes."
The two men walk forward and begin to lead 'Katya' to a back area which Cassie fearlessly follows. Massive as they were, they were no match for her.
As this goes on, a tall figure stands in the shadows. He seems to be watching Cassie.
•••
At the cabin, Maddy walks into the living room cautiously. A fresh bandage on her burned arm and carrying her backpack in her uninjured hand. She looks over to find Pete standing in silence.
"How are you feeling?" Pete asked softly.
Maddy stares at her bandage and manages a smile. "Hanging in there. You okay?"
"I'm fine." Pete said quickly.
"Really? Because people who 'flame on' in their sleep don't classify as 'fine'." Maddy said good naturedly. "That wasn't just a nightmare, was it?"
Pete takes a breath and exhales. "A bad memory."
Maddy swallows hard. "Did something happen… To someone you love?"
Pete nods. "My family… I killed my family."
"On accident, right?" Maddy asked.
"Yes." Pete admitted. "When my powers manifested, I was asleep in my bed. I accidentally set my house on fire with my family inside… I survived."
"But they didn't." Maddy realized. A long silence is broken by the young girl. "It wasn't your fault. You had no control."
"They're still dead." Pete replied. "Because of me."
"You were a kid. You didn't know." Maddy assured him.
"I hurt you. I'm supposed to protect you and I hurt you." Pete stated.
"And I don't hold it against you." She told him.
Pete sighs. "Did you know it was going to happen?"
Maddy shakes her head. "I wanted to make sure you were okay. If I did know, I would've done it anyway."
"What if I had killed you?" Pete asked gravely.
Maddy smiles, tears streaming down her face. "Because I'm not supposed to die. Not yet."
Pete smiles weakly as Maddy walks over and hugs him. He hugs her back as she holds on tightly. "I'll take you to him."
"Thank you." She said through a sob.
•••
Back at the Pulse Cave, Claud was sitting at the hub computer desk typing on her personal laptop while Millie was setting the first aid station for the night.
"What are you doing?" Millie asked.
Claud turns the chair to face her, asking "Do you really want to know or are you making small talk?"
Millie smiles. "I want to be polite and lie but I'm thinking you might not appreciate that."
Claud grins. "Just running a backup system for this bad boy. In case the main computer is compromised."
"Oh, guess that makes sense. Not really tech savvy but I know enough to know it would be bad if that happened." Millie said. "I gotta say, I am surprised you're pretty good with first aid. Never would've pegged that."
"I wasn't always but I had to learn for Leo's sake. Last thing I'd want is for him to get a serious infection because of something I did." Claud stated, grabbing her left shoulder blade with her left hand with some discomfort on her face.
"You okay?" A concerned Millie asked, noticing the expression on her face.
"Yeah, just some back pain. No big." Claud said, downplaying her pain.
'You sure? You've been making that face the past few days." Millie makes note. "If you want, I could check-"
"I said I'm fine!" Claud snapped which startled Millie.
Millie clears her throat "Um, you-your eyes. They've gone dark."
Claud's eyes had indeed gone completely black into her owl hybrid eyes. She blinks and rubs her eyes to make them revert back to normal which they do after a minute. "God, I am sorry. I didn't mean to-"
"It's fine. Really. Sorta used to superpowered temper tantrums by now." Millie jokes which makes Claud chuckle. "Cassie warned me about this kind of stuff. Said Galen had a lot of wolfy growing pains."
"Still, it wasn't cool. I thought I'd have a better hold of it since it's an owl." Claud replied.
"Just because it's not a wolf doesn't mean it isn't an animal. You got claws too, you know?" Millie said.
"Technically they're talons but... Semantics." Claud quipped.
"Listen, if you want a sympathetic shoulder to cry on, I'm available." Millie tells her. "I might not be a crimefighter or have any powers of my own but I am a good listener. Might even help you with understanding your powers. I'm not Galen but I have books, I don't mind doing research."
Claud beams at her. "That'd be great. Thanks, Flores."
"No problem, Moon." Millie said cheerfully.
Just then, the door opens and shuts quickly as Gabe rushes down the stairs excitedly holding his bookbag and placing it on the floor.
"Whoa, Gabe. You all right?" Millie asked.
"Yeah, you have like ten or twelve energy drinks in one sitting?" Claud jokes.
"No... It was like five and a half." Gabe stated. "Got a text from Mama Cass. She's in and ready to work. Where's Freddie?"
Suddenly, a blur of blue emerges from the dojo and Freddie appears in his costume sans the goggles and mask. He was adjusting one of his wrist gauntlets.
"Got her text like seconds before you did." Freddie informs his friends. "I texted Leo half an hour ago, he said he'll be here soon with Sam."
"Guess we're raring to go." Claud stated.
The teenagers stare at each other then at Freddie who anxiously fiddles with the gauntlet.
At that moment, Leo and Sam were making their way down the stairs. Sam seems a tad annoyed at the situation.
"Still think we should've taken my bike. It would've been much faster." Sam stated. "You seriously drive like my mom after laser eye surgery."
"The fact that your mom did that is bad enough but the fact that you got in the car is unnerving." Leo comments.
"Hey, I never said either of us made smart decisions." Sam joked as she strides over to Freddie and plants a quick kiss on his lips. "Except one."
"Good to know." Freddie replied with a smirk. He glances at Leo. "Ready?"
"You're gonna have to give me a minute. Some of us can't change at supersonic speed." Leo said as Claud handed him his gear. "Did Cassie tell you anything?"
"She didn't text you?" Freddie asked puzzled.
"She did but Nina was breathing down my neck to finish the lab analysis that I couldn't see." Leo stated. "I got your text and bolted right out with your wife."
"I'm not his wife... Well, not yet." Sam teased which made Freddie blush. "So, Mom is out kicking some literal ass, huh?"
"Yeah, and it's legal too. Got some legit police work." Leo remarked as he walked to the dojo to change into his costume.
"That woman is crafty." Gabe said but back tracks. "Actually, I think the better term would be opportunistic."
"I always figured her as more of a bull in a china shop type." Claud joked.
"She's more... organized chaos." Freddie stated as he continued to fix his gauntlets nervously. "Hopefully she's gonna be okay."
"This is Cassie we're talking about. I know she's got this." Gabe remarked.
"Yeah but she's... She seems a little off her game." Freddie replied. "Like her-"
"Mind is somewhere else?" Leo called from the dojo. "I got that feeling too when she left me early this morning."
"Maybe it's because of that Wesker guy? He is doing all this because of Mockingbird, by extension, her." Millie replied. "Could have been understandably spooked?"
Freddie sighs "That might be it but I'm getting a feeling that it might be more to do with-"
"Danny." Gabe, Millie and Claud all speak at the same time.
"Danny!" Leo called out in a delayed reaction.
"Basically, yeah." Freddie replied.
Sam remains silent which everyone else notices.
"Well, someone's uncharacteristically quiet." Gabe remarked. "Betting she might know something."
"Put a sock in it, Emo Iron Man!" Sam snapped but quickly she blushed which Millie notices.
"You DO know something!" Millie yelled.
"No I don't." Sam stammers in utter refusal.
Freddie stares at his girlfriend with concern on his face. "Sam, if it's something important, we need to know. Is Cassie in trouble?"
"Depends on what you mean by 'trouble'." Sam turns to face them as an in-costume Leo walks back into the main room, holding his mask in his hands. "Look, this isn't something I should be telling you guys. This is her secret."
"Yes, because we're all terrible at keeping secrets." Gabe said sarcastically.
Sam glares at him and holds up to fingers "Strike Two, Little Prince."
"I think what Gabe means is, whatever you have to say, we can keep this quiet if it's important." Millie interjected on Gabe's behalf.
"Millie's right. Getting it off your chest might be a good thing." Leo replied.
"Out with it, Puckett. Just tell us." Claud replied.
"God, she's gonna kill me." Sam said, biting her lip and just lets the cat out of the bag. "Cassie and Danny had sex last night."
The silence that fell upon the group was so deep that you could hear a pin drop.
Claud's voice broke the silence, jokingly saying "So... who had yesterday in the office pool?"
Freddie swallows hard. "Y-you're serious?"
"Yeah, wouldn't make up something like that due to the risk of your aunt destroying me." Sam replied. "I could take her but she's got more experience. I'd probably last ten minutes and that's being generous."
"So, it's true. Cassie and Danny... They actually DID IT." Leo said, trying his best not to be crass.
"So what if they did? Not like it's the end of the world if they had sex." Sam said.
"We're not saying that." Freddie reassured her.
"But with Danny's new... gifts, it might be easier to find out a closely kept secret." Leo said. "Like that her nephews are both crime fighting superheroes."
"Loose lips sink ships." Gabe retorts.
Millie scoffs. "So you're saying that in the height of ecstasy..."
"Oh don't! I just got a mental picture." Freddie said while rubbing his forehead with his right hand.
Leo gulps "Look, let's just say we have some concerns. That's all."
"We're just going to have to deal with whatever comes out of all this." Freddie said honestly. "But... Gabe, how fast can you doctor up some fake passports?"
"Quicker than I'd like to admit." Gabe answered.
Millie looks at Sam and Claud. "So... Boys are idiots."
"Yup." Sam answers, putting emphasis on the 'P'.
"Preaching to the choir." Claud replied bluntly.
The boys glare at the girls who share looks of agreement.
•••
The sun had gone down and there was a long line forming in the back of a rundown looking factory. Most of them looked like they were in their late twenties or early thirties and were well dressed with the women wearing slightly provocative outfits and the men in dark suits and ties.
From the near middle of the line, Danny stood with Galen and Riley waiting to be let inside. The three of them seemed eager to get to the front of the line.
"Line's about as long as waiting in front of the PearStore for the latest PearPhone." Riley remarked. "Wonder if there's a door prize for the one millionth customer?"
"Should be one for this tedious standing-in-line." Galen snarked, which is met by Danny and Riley's confused stares. "Sorry but standing still for too long makes the inner beast rather hostile."
"Dually noted. I will remember that the next time I am standing behind you at a coffee shop to stand three people behind you." Riley joked.
Danny rubs his left temple with the index and middle fingers of his left hand. He was becoming annoyed by the bickering.
"Don't worry, I'll give you a five head start." Galen menacingly reassures him.
"Thank you; I'm gonna need it. You are very fast." Riley said, an anxious lump in his throat.
"Would you two cut it out?" Danny snapped which caught the two by surprise. "Seriously, you two fight like an old married couple."
"Well, as handsome as he is, Galen isn't exactly my type." Riley stated.
"You called me handsome? Aw, that's sweet." Galen said sardonically.
Danny looks around for any sign of Alec but sees someone standing on the edge of a warehouse. When he tries to get a better look, the shadowy figure vanishes in a blur of blue lightning.
"Still with us, Daniel?" Riley's voice brought Danny back into focus.
"Oh, yeah. Just checking for Grayson. Shouldn't he have been here by now?" Danny asked, speaking the question to Galen.
"Don't worry. Grayson has a habit of being 'fashionably late'." Galen jokes. He glances down the alleyway and smirks as Alec makes his way over to the three. "And what did I tell ya, right on schedule."
"Put a muzzle on it, Odie." Alec griped. They see Alec was dressed in an all black suit with a blood red tie and looked quite dashing.
"Well look at you, rocking the super villain threads." Galen teased.
"Cassie said to dress the part and that's what I did." Alec stated as he gets a good look at the others. "And I will admit, you three don't look too bad."
"Thanks... I think." Riley retorts.
"Any word from her?" Alec asked.
"All she's said is 'I'm ready and be on guard'. She kept it a tad vague." Galen said as the line began to move closer and closer to the front door.
"Think she's probably playing this by ear." Riley comments.
Danny shakes his head "If I know Cassie, she's definitely got something up her sleeve."
Alec shot him a mischievous smirk. "You think you know everything, Detective?"
Danny turns his head and stares at him with his head cocked sideways. "I know enough… Alexander."
Alec is taken aback by what Danny had said and he glares at Galen. "Did you tell him my full name?"
Galen shakes his head, mildly amused. "Nope. Can't take credit for that one."
"Then how did you-" Alec stammers.
"Best not to answer those questions. Save you the brain cells." Galen stated as the group finally got to the front of the line.
"You enjoy torturing, don't you?" Riley whispered to Galen.
Galen grins. "Be lying if I said no."
Riley chuckles softly as they now stood in front of a tall burly man with dark curly hair that was combed into a ponytail. He was dressed in all black and he did not look like he was in a good mood.
"Passes?" The burly man said, getting to the point.
Danny reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out the four passes Cassie had given them. "Here you go."
The man stares at the passes then at the four men. "You guys new? Never seen you around here before."
"No, we heard of this place through word of mouth." Danny stated, doing his best to come up with a convincing story. "Thought it might be worth our time."
"Really? Because these are only given out via formal invitation." The burly man told him. "You want to tell how you got these or I will make you tell me."
Galen, Riley and Alec look at each other nervously but Danny was eerily calm through this as he focused on the man who was seemingly frozen in place.
"We aren't here to cause any trouble." Danny said, except his voice had an odd resonance to it as he spoke. "We just want to get inside. Are you okay with that?"
After a moment in his paralysis, the burly man snaps out of it and stares at Danny. "What was I saying?"
"I said that we just want to get inside. Are you okay with that?" Danny asked, sounding like normal.
"Uh, sure. No problem. Head on in." The burly man said as he stepped aside to allow the four to enter the building.
As the four make their way inside, Alec grabs Danny's arm to turn the detective to face him. "Okay, what the hell was that?"
David stares at him. "Save the questions for later. We got a job to do."
Alec blinks then shrugs his shoulders and makes his way past him, walking ahead of them.
Riley leans over to Galen and whispers "You as concerned as I am?"
Galen nods as they all head deeper into The Jungle.
•••
Pulse was pacing on the roof across the club when he sensed a presence with him and he knew it wasn't his brother.
"Show yourself. I know you're here." Freddie stated.
A shimmer of magnetic energy flashes in front of him and he find Shadow standing behind him.
"Have to admit, that was impressive." Shadow told him.
"What do you want now? This what you wanted, ambush me from behind?" Freddie replied. "Not really in the mood for a death battle right now."
Shadow scoffs. "Take it you didn't like my peace offering?"
"Don't think I'm naïve enough to assume that you did that because you wanted to help out." Freddie replied. "You want something so get it over with."
Shadow laughs "Fine, I'll get to it. I wanted to pick your brain. I wanted to know something."
"What is it?" Freddie asked.
"Why do you bother working with that useless archer?" Shadow asked. "He's dead weight."
"Excuse me?" Freddie asked, incredibly offended.
"I have seen a taste of your real power and I know you're only scratching the surface." Shadow replied.
"You don't know anything about me." Freddie insisted.
"You and I aren't so different. We are gods among insects, we don't belong among them and you know it." Shadow quipped. "Think of what we could do together if you came to my way of thinking?"
"And be under the thumb of a criminal dictator? No thanks." Freddie snapped.
"No, you're under the boot of that vixen, Athena was it?" Shadow told him. "Saw her scold you like you're a child having a tantrum. Not the first time, is it?"
"I got out of hand. I lost my restraint." Freddie said. "I know the difference between what's right and-"
"Don't pull that 'black and white' morality crap. We are better than they are, they need you to survive. And they hate you for it, don't they?" Shadow taunted. "Think how easy it would be if you told the world to screw off? I know deep down inside is a person who believes me."
"You done?" Freddie retorts.
Shadow scoffs. "Fine, I'll leave you to your work. But you are going to come crawling, one way or another."
With another shimmer of magnetic energy, Shadow was gone. Leaving Freddie to stew in his inner conflict.
•••
Inside the Jungle, Cassie was in a makeshift locker room inside the club. She was shadow boxing to psyche herself up. She knew she could win but this wasn't a contest she was trying to win, simply a means to an end. This was all to put a stop to Wesker and prevent his rampage from escalating further, she wouldn't let him get away with this.
However her focus was taken from her task when she senses she wasn't alone. She didn't call out and ask if there was someone there. She wasn't stupid and announcing to the individual that she knew they were there wasn't wise.
Cassie cautiously approaches the presence in the room. She slowly creeps around a corner to where the presence was the strongest. She takes a deep breath and jumps out if confronted by the individual spying on her to find...
No one was there.
"Huh." Cassie stated as she clears her throat to put on her fake Russian accent. "Guess I'm being paranoid."
However a taller shadow appears behind her and a figure stands behind her. This simply makes her smile. She whips around and pushes the figure against the wall adjacent to them, pinning her elbow to the throat of the figure behind her.
The figure was a man who looked to be in his mid fifties with well groomed graying reddish brown hair. He looked to be well built despite his age and he wore a gray blue dress shirt with a black vest, a matching tie and dark jeans.
"Or I was absolutely justified." she said to the man in her disguised Russian accent.
The stranger laughs through his discomfort. "You expect people to buy that accent?"
Cassie raises an eyebrow and pressed her elbow harder. "Here I thought you hired goons with the same IQ levels. Color me surprised."
"I don't work for Maize or his boss." The stranger gasped as Cassie pressed down tighter. "Now would you mind... moving your elbow from... my neck. Getting hard to... breathe."
Cassie huffs and reluctantly pulls away from the stranger who coughs and takes in a few breaths. "Okay, so... Just so we're clear..." She speaks to him in her normal voice, dropping the act. "Try anything funny, you're out cold faster than you can say 'Onomatopoeia'. Understand?"
The stranger clears his throat and smirks. "Your reputation is no rumor, Ms Sinclair."
Cassie stares at the stranger, flabbergasted. "How did you-"
"I make it my business to know these things." The stranger told her.
"That right? Listen here, mystery man, I've got no time to do... Well, whatever THIS is." Cassie glares at him, not in the mood for games. "You obviously know who I am. How about we get to the point and you tell me who you are?"
"Sorry, Ms Sinclair, that's no information I wish to release at this time." The stranger stated as he began to walk out of the locker room. "Besides, I think you have more important things to worry about."
"What, you don't tell women your name so you can avoid the restraining orders?" Cassie snidely comments, trying to get him to drop his guard. "Because if you made that info available to the public, you'd have quite the collection."
The stranger smiles as he looks at her while he backs out of the room. "This is going to be fun."
Cassie stares at the stranger in stunned silence and once she is sure she is actually alone, she exhales the breath she had been holding and goes to crack her knuckles. Struggling to shake off the odd encounter.
•••
Inside the club, a waitress in a black mini dress walks Danny, Galen, Riley and Alec to a table where a small electronic tablet sat in the middle of the table.
"All right, boys. The next fight is about to start so be quick about placing your bets." The waitress said, pointing to the tablet. "The more fights you pick that win, your table could win quite a bit if you're lucky."
"Thank you." Danny said politely as the waitress leaves. "Wonder if she's up next."
Alec picks up the tablet and looks at the listing for the next fight. "Says the next fight is Katya vs Hancock & Galloway. Thinking that's the alias she's using."
"Two on one? That doesn't seem fair?" Riley comments.
"Don't think these guys care about being fair." Galen stated. "They care about the Almighty Dollar. Whatever makes them their percentage of the winnings at the end of the night, they'd make their own mothers get in the ring if it scored them a payday."
Danny's eyes shift around the room where he tries to scope the room. "It's like a needle in a haystack. Too many people."
"Then go through the crowd. If you spot him, you'll be the first one to catch him." Riley remarks.
Danny nods as they see Omar Maize make his way to the center of the cage with a microphone in his hands.
"Ladies and gentlemen, tonight the Jungle presents a very special treat." Maize announced. "Due to some... Unforeseen circumstances... we have a new main event."
Through the cage the two goons with Maize who met 'Katya' walk in. Both dressed in all black wrestler gear.
"Introducing first are the Jungle's favorite meatheads, Troy Hancock and Lucas Galloway!" Maize announced as the two men amped the crowd who cheered and howled at the two.
"They seem like a crowd favorite." Riley said to Galen.
"Thinking our girl is the heel of this fight." Galen said with an amused smile.
With that, Cassie enters the cage in her full disguise and the crowd instantly turns on 'Katya'. She ignores the howls and catcalls as she walks to the center of the ring where Maize, Hancock and Galloway stood.
Maize steps over to Cassie and says "You understand the rules? I don't want to call an ambulance."
Cassie smirks and stares at Hancock and Galloway "For them?"
"Knock it off. You understand?" Maize asked bluntly.
Cassie nods and she walks to the other side of the cage to focus herself as she removes her black leather jacket. While in her Zen moment, she spots the stranger from the locker room watching her. She glares at him but her gaze becomes distracted by seeing Danny and the others in the crowd.
A small mischievous smile creeps upon her face. She transmits a thought to Danny "Do you want to see something cool?"
"Oh no." Danny muttered.
Cassie turns and charges at Galloway, hits him with a flying kick in the stomach which sends him stumbling backwards and falling on the ground.
"And there's the flying kick." Galen stated.
Hancock goes on the attack and swings at 'Katya' who dodges each of the strikes with quick precision only for Hancock to clip her in the face then punches her hard in the stomach and sends her falling to the floor with a fist to the chin.
Danny looks worried but his attention is taken from the fight to see Tammy Wesker talking to a hooded figure in the crowd. This was clearly Trevor Wesker.
Torn between leaving to do his job or staying to make sure Cassie was okay.
"Go. We got this."
Danny turns to see Galen and Riley, Galen sending the message his way. He understands his trepidation but nods and decides to go after the Weskers.
"Vic, I got them in my sights." Danny said while tapping his com link on his ear. "Sit tight, do not engage until I give the signal."
"Roger that." Victor is heard saying through the device.
Danny almost reaches the siblings but accidentally bumps into a person in the crowd. He quickly apologizes and continues his pursuit as it is revealed who he had bumped into: Cassie's mysterious stranger who was now watching intently before putting his focus back on Cassie.
Cassie coughs and a small trickle of blood drips from her mouth. She smiles in spite of the pain and wipes the blood from her lips.
Galloway stood up, strides over to her and grabs her by the back of the neck. "That really hurt, lady!"
"Yeah?" Cassie said as she pulled something from her sleeve. "So will this!" With a swift motion, she shoves a bladed throwing knife into his lower thigh that makes Galloway howl in pain and hobble backwards.
"Bitch!" Galloway exclaimed.
"Oh no." Alec stated, his eyes widened.
"That was a mistake." Galen replied and Riley nodded in agreement.
A devious smile forms on her face and Cassie responds with a hard gut punch and her hurling him over her shoulder afterwards.
Cassie sighs and mumbles. "You boys will never learn."
Maize looks concerned at the scene and Hancock goes over to him. "You idiots are losing!"
"Well excuse me but you're the one who put us up against a pint sized female Terminator!" Hancock yelled.
"And here I thought you could handle her." Maize groans then hands him a heavy object "End this now! I don't care if you put her in the hospital, END IT!"
Hancock inspects the object and nods. As 'Katya' stands over Galloway, Hancock unfurls the object he was given: a long metal chain with a spike at the tip of the chain.
The crowd went from excited to horrified and started to quiet down. Galen and Riley stand up as Alec watches in horror. They knew this wasn't going to end well.
"Oh that is STRAIGHT UP cheating!" Riley exclaimed, pointing at the cage.
"Danny, give them the signal!" Galen thought loudly enough for Danny to hear. "GIVE THE SIGNAL NOW!"
Without warning, Hancock wraps the chain around Cassie's neck and begins to strangle her.
Cassie begins to struggle to get free as Galloway slowly gets to his feet. She coughs and gasps for air as Maize watches with wicked delight.
•••
Meanwhile outside, Danny runs out to see Tammy walking down an alley away from the Jungle. He goes to stop this but is crippled by his cousin's thoughts screaming in his head. He doubles over and screams which catches Tammy's attention.
At the sight of Danny, Tammy takes off running only for a blue flash of lightning to zip in front of her. She and Danny are surprised to find Pulse standing there.
"Think you have some questions to answer, Ms Wesker." Freddie's disguised voice stated. He looks past Danny who was confused by what was happening. "Get back in there, I'll handle this."
Through the haze, Danny hears a familiar voice in his head.
"Go to her. She needs you."
Danny looks a bit taken aback, he could have sworn it sounded like Freddie.
Tammy uses the distraction to pull out a small handgun from her waist and point it at Pulse's face. "Back off, freak!"
Suddenly a whoosh of an arrow zips through the air and the gun goes flying out of her hands. Tammy is startled as Pulse looks up to see the Fox standing on a ledge, bow in hand.
Pulse salutes to his costumed compatriot, picks up the gun and smashes it to pieces in front of a wide eyed Tammy. "What else you got?"
Danny sighs and runs back inside, all while talking through his com link "Move in. I repeat, MOVE IN!"
Back in the arena, Cassie gasps for air and was turning light blue from lack of oxygen as Hancock chokes her with the chain and Galloway eggs him on.
"Little tighter, dude. She's still breathing." Galloway remarked.
"Not yet, the boss is looking for a specific shade of blue." Hancock stated as he continued tightening on the chain.
Cassie wheezes in pain as she claws at the chain to no avail. Her bloodshot eyes squinted out at the crowd and the only person she could see clearly was the odd stranger she met in the locker room.
His gaze was fixed upon her, staring at her with a look of stern optimism. Almost looking for her to do something. Take action. Fight back.
[Soundtrack Note: 'Sabotage' by the Beastie Boys plays]
Cassie bites hard at her bottom lip and balls her fists, squeezing hard enough to draw blood. She closes her eyes and untightens her fist as a light blue aura shimmers and flashes over her.
The crowd watches in bewilderment as do Alec, Riley and Galen. They had never seen this before.
A smile forms on the face of the stranger watching.
Her eyes opened to reveal they were glowing blue and her gaze had become steely in determination. She uses the back of her head to bash Galloway in the nose which causes him to lose his grip and stumble backwards.
The glow fades from her eyes as Cassie turns her neck to get readjusted. She unwraps the chain from her neck and holds it in her hands. "Thanks for the weapon, boys. Now we can REALLY get down to business." She said, twirling the spiked tip of the chain.
Riley was the only one of the group able to speak, uttering "Holy-"
Galloway jumps into action, not caring how she wasn't dead, and swings at Cassie. Cassie twirls the chain and manages to wrap it around his wrist, she yanks down using both hands to pull him down which causes him to hit face on the cement floor of the arena.
"My suggestion: stay down." Cassie stated in her fake accent as Galloway slips to unconsciousness.
The crowd watches in awe at this display of power as Danny runs back over to his three allies.
"They're on their way." Danny said regrettably. "Did something happen with Ca-"
The three simultaneously point towards the cage where Danny sees Cassie standing over Galloway.
Cassie looks over at Hancock who is stunned into silence. "You have two options, Chrome-Dome. You can either; A) fight me and end up like your buddy. Or B), that being the smart choice, walk away with some shred of your dignity and most of your bones unbroken. So... What's it gonna be?"
Hancock lets out a yell and charges at her only for Cassie to twirl the chain and bashes him across the face with the spiked end, leaving a severe gash on his cheek.
"Guess you picked option A." Cassie said as she twirls the chain again and wraps it around his neck. He stares at her terrified and she simply winks then yanks the chain with one arm. Using her free arm, Cassie elbows Hancock in the jaw hard enough to knock out a few teeth loose.
Cassie then uses her momentum to rotate around and hit him with a spinning right roundhouse kick. The kick serves to put Hancock down for the count.
Danny and the others stare in awe, this was a level of violence she has never been able to achieve. Not to this extreme.
Cassie takes in a few breaths and wipes the blood from her lip and stares down at the damage. She looks over at Maize, who was understandably livid, and smiles. "What else you got?"
[Soundtrack Note: Song ends at 1:36]
Suddenly, Victor bursts into with several officers dressed in SWAT gear inside the Jungle and several of the 'patrons' make a break for it. In the midst of the chaos, Alec gets lost in the crowd and finds himself being led out a door.
Maize grabs one of his other henchmen by the shirt collar and angrily shouts. "Clear out! Make sure we aren't compromised."
"Yes, sir!" The henchman stammers as he runs off.
Maize stares inside the cage at 'Katya' and glares. "Bitch brought the cops here." He pulls out his gun and points it at her head. "You're gonna regret that."
Out of nowhere, Maize is tackled to the ground. He gets his bearings and pushes off who had attacked him only to find Galen staring back at him. Full wolf and extremely pissed off.
"Boo." Galen growled, flashing a toothy grin.
Maize backs away in fear and goes to make a run for it only to be met by one of Riley's fists that was surging with telekinetic energy, punching him hard with the help of the energy. Maize lays flat on his back and stares up at Riley and Galen.
"That HAD to hurt." Riley retorts and Galen smirks.
Maize looks on in horror as Galen punches him hard in the face, knocking him out cold.
Danny runs over to the cage and sees Cassie was wobbling a bit, falling to knees after a few steps and collapsing on the floor. Panicked, Danny nervously tries to open it but finds it was locked using a chain and a padlock. He looks back Galen and Riley. "Check his pockets. See if he's got a key."
Riley goes down and looks through Maize's pockets and finds a set of keys in the suit jacket pocket. "Here!" He tosses the keys to Danny who catches them.
Danny quickly unlocks the padlock and removes the chain around the door. He rushes in and over to Cassie's side. "Cassie, can you hear me? Cassie? CASSIE?"
"Ow." Cassie uttered as she slowly opened her eyes and looked up at him. "I'm still here. No need for melodrama."
Danny smiles in spite of himself, gently helps her to her feet and leads her out of the cage. "I lost him." Cassie stares at him, somberly assessing the situation. "I had him and I lost him-"
"Don't beat yourself up, Dan-Dan. We'll get him, son of a bitch is running out of places to hide." Cassie said softly.
Victor walks over to the pair as Galen and Riley follow him. "We got Tammy Wesker in custody. Found her bound up to a fence, I will only take a wild guess who is responsible for that."
"And you would probably be right on that, partner." Danny joked.
Victor stares at Cassie, puzzled. "What's with the hair?"
Cassie scoffs and proceeds to remove the blond wig from her head, her red hair pinned back. "Sorry, had to be convincing." She peers back to see the stranger sneaking past some officers and leaving the building. She wanted to speak up and point it out but was compelled not to.
"Everything all right?" Danny asked, noticing her thousand yard stare.
"Yeah, just recovering. Hopeful for not ending up with a concussion." Cassie said, rubbing her head. She looks around and notices something was off. "Where's Alec?"
The three men Alec came in with looked around and realized he was nowhere to be found. "He must have gotten lost in the crowd when the police burst in."
"That doesn't make any sense. Why would he-'' Cassie didn't finish her thought when she hears the ring of a cellphone coming from the utility belt she was wearing and she pulls out her blue Pearphone. She checks the caller ID and sees it was Alec calling.
"Is it Alec?" Galen asked.
Cassie nods while she answers the phone. "Al, what happened? Where'd you-"
"Lose something, Sinclair?"
The voice she heard made Cassie's blood run cold, causing her to physically wince. Something that Danny and Galen notice.
"Where is he?" She asked through gritted teeth.
"Now now, Cassie. Where is the fun in telling you?" Trevor Wesker answered with a snide voice. "It's more fun to watch you sweat."
"Where is he, you son of a bitch?!" Cassie yelled, seethed saying every word.
"Ouch, such language. You disappoint me." Trevor teased.
"Put him on speaker. We need to hear his demands."
Cassie turns to face Danny and nods as she switches the phone to speaker mode. "What do you want, Trevor? What are you after?"
"You know exactly what I want. We both know" Trevor replied. "After a bit of investigation and breaking a few skulls, I have come to the conclusion of something very important."
"Oh really? Just what would that be?" Cassie goaded the answer from him.
"That you know exactly who Mockingbird is... And how to find her." Trevor stated bluntly. "Now let's cut to the chase, you are going to bring the sweet bird to me or I will blow your friend to Kingdom Come."
Cassie's eyes widen as she looks at the others and focuses back on Wesker. "No offense but that high tech gun you stole isn't enough to pull that off."
"Well, let's just say that I have acquired the firepower to not only kill Mr Grayson but half a city block." Trevor stated, a dark sinister tone in his voice. "I know you're a violent punk but you do have a bit of a heroic streak. I know for a fact that you won't sacrifice other people to save one person, would you?"
"You don't know me." Cassie growled, her anger boiling over.
"Still, give me what I want or Alec dies. Simple as that." Trevor replied as they heard a click and the dial tone was heard.
Cassie gasps, the weight of this as well as the physical pain she had endured taking a toll. She lets out a loud and pained scream and punches the cage.
From the rooftop, Pulse and the Fox heard Cassie's scream and realized something had gone wrong.
•••
Jake is outside work, making a phone call to someone. He seems anxious as he gets no response from who he was calling. "Come on. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up."
"Hi. This is Alec. Leave a message and I'll get back to you." Alec's voicemail is heard saying followed by a beep.
"Alec, it's Jake. I know this is like the fifteenth message I left your voicemail but I'm getting really worried." Jake said, sounding very scared. "Please call me back." He hangs up and tries to calm down.
Suddenly, his phone rings and he answers before checking the caller ID. "Alec?" Jake answered frantically.
"No, it's Millie." Millie is heard saying, not sounding like her usual cheerful self.
"Hey. Sorry. I'm trying to get a hold of Alec but he's not answering." Jake said in a manic tone. "Have you heard from him?"
"Jake… I have some bad news." Millie told him in a serious tone. "Alec's been kidnapped."
Jake turns pale and is left speechless.
•••
"Where is he?"
Danny and Victor were inside the interview room, standing in front of a table that a restrained Tammy Wesker sat.
"I'm not saying anything. I haven't done anything wrong so you idiots are gonna have to let me go." Tammy remarked.
"Really? Because I am smart enough to know that aiding and abetting a murderer and a potential terrorist is a crime." Victor stated. "Nowadays, that carries a hefty jail sentence."
Tammy shakes her head. "You're bluffing. You need me and that means y'all better start being REAL nice to me. I mean, even if I was willing to rat out my brother, which I'm not."
"True, but we could also send a certain pissed off redhead in here and see how that works out for you." Danny threatened. "She is chomping at the bit to get her hands on your brother and she's more than happy to use you as a proxy."
Tammy stares at the one way glass window. "She's watching, isn't she?"
On the other side of the one way glass window, Cassie was standing close to the window staring at Tammy. Her arms folded across her chest, her fists balled up tightly but concealed by her arms.
Galen was leaning against the wall close to Cassie while Riley sat on a chair in the corner on the other side of the room.
"She is like a crazy violent whack job, but I'm betting she's really good in the sack?" Tammy taunted, she turned to face Danny. "Makes sense why you're so attached to her, huh?"
"Answer the question!" Danny snapped, having enough of the games. "Do you want more innocent people to die?"
"The crooks Trevor has been roasting aren't what you'd call 'innocent'." Tammy retorts. "They all deserved what they got."
"And where does that put you?" Danny asked.
Tammy stares at him with an odd look on her face. "I'm sorry?"
Danny sits in front of her and stares at her intently. "You'll go to jail for him? Sacrifice your own freedom to protect a person who would abandon you without even batting an eye."
"That's- That's not true. My brother loves me." Tammy said, beginning to become unsettled.
"Is that right?" Danny said, continuing to stare at her with greater focus. "Tell me, when was the last time you spoke to him before all this happened? Two? Three years?"
Tammy gasped then glared at him. "You trying to get inside my head? It won't work."
Danny smirks, trying to shake her confidence. "Oh I believe I already have. You think that proving yourself to him will make him love you? Just like how you wanted to be 'one of the boys' to make your dad pay attention to you?"
"Stop it." Tammy demanded, a mixture of anger and panic in her voice.
Galen and Riley's interest perks to what Danny was doing as Galen walks over to Cassie and stands next to her while Riley gets off his chair and walks over to the window and stands next to Cassie opposite to where Galen was standing.
"He's doing it, isn't he?" Galen asked.
"Yeah, he is." Riley replied.
Cassie silently stares at the scene, she knew that he was using his powers to get what he needed from Tammy. Hopefully it works.
"But it still wasn't enough, was it? Dad would never love you. Not that he loved your mother anyway. He saw his family as a chore. Something he had to look after, like a house plant. Or a puppy." Danny said, maliciousness hidden in his demeanor.
Victor looks to his partner, a perplexed look comes upon his face. What was he doing?
"Trevor is exactly like him, isn't he? Only comes to you when he needs you and you follow blind because you think you'll gain his favor but in reality, he sees you as nothing more than excess baggage." Danny replied.
"Shut up. Shut up. Shut up."
"Why don't you be honest with yourself and realize he used you. He won't even care if you get out unless he needs you again and you'll keep crawling back because you are still seeking a sense of belonging." Danny explained. "Just like how you wanted your dad to love you but he rejected you. Just like Trevor is doing now."
"SHUT UP!" Tammy screams at him as she bangs on the table. She calms down and takes a breath. "I don't know where he is."
"Oh, that sounds like a lie." Danny replied.
"I mean I don't know exactly where he is... but I know where he might be. He said that he's hiding out-"
"Hiding out where?" Victor interjected.
"He's- hiding out- he's hiding out where he first met her." Tammy stated. "He also said he's going to blow the place sky high unless he gets what he wants."
All of a sudden, there was a knock at the door which surprises Danny and Victor and startles Tammy. The door opens wide and enters Captain Thompson with Penelope Simmons.
"Gentlemen, a word?" Thompson stated to the two detectives which caught Cassie's attention. "Simmons, take Ms Wesker to a holding cell till her public defender arrives."
"Yes, sir." Penelope said as she grabbed Tammy and took her away.
Thompson walks inside but before he could close the door, Cassie grabs the knob and forces the door open and she and the other guys walk in.
"Any word?" Cassie interrupts before Thompson could say anything.
"How about letting me get a word out, Cassandra." Thompson replied. He takes a breath and sighs. "I just spoke to David Morgan, he said that he wants us to do whatever it takes to find Mr anything"
"Gee, all of a sudden he shows some concern. What a great guy." Riley said, sarcasm dripping from he voice. It was a moment later that he realized that he had spoken that out loud. "Oh crap, I meant to keep that to myself."
Victor smiles and leans over to Danny "I'm starting to like your friend."
"Wesker is gonna pay for this." Cassie said with grim determination in her voice. She paces back and forth, like a caged animal.
Danny speaks to catch her attention "Cassie, please-"
"Do NOT tell me to calm down!" Cassie shouted, catching everyone by surprise. "This isn't me overreacting or being the quote 'hysterical woman'. I am justified to be this pissed off."
"I know but losing our heads isn't helping him, is it?" Danny stated. "We'll get him. I promise."
Cassie nods, remembering Danny was trying to help her stay focused.
"Let me see if I got this correct, Wesker kidnapped Grayson because he wants Mockingbird?" Thompson asked.
"Basically, yes." Danny replied.
"Now I've got Morgan breathing down my neck as well as Callum Eastman's lawyer trying to make sure her client is connected to this debacle." Thompson replied. "Do any of you have semblance of an idea? Because I am open to anything."
"I do." Cassie spoke up, turning to face them. "But you're not gonna like it."
Danny stares at her, knowing the last comment was directed at him. "I can already tell this isn't going to be something along the lines of 'I will stay here and let you guys stop him' kind of a plan, is it?"
Cassie scoffs. "You and I both know that's not my style."
"What is your plan?" Victor asked.
"Give him what Wesker wants." Cassie tells them but a mischievous smile mixed in with her determination. "Or at least make him think that's what he's getting."
"And she was right." Danny remarked.
•••
Galen and Riley march down the stairs of the Cave to find Gabe and Claud manning the hub computer together while Millie stood next to the metal table that acted as the medical bay. She was holding her phone, texting Jake. Sam sat on the floor but quickly got up once Galen and Riley made it down.
"So, what's the word?" Gabe asked.
Millie looks around to find someone missing. "Wait, where's Cassie?"
"She's... Her work is not finished." Galen told them.
"Where are our heroes?" Riley asked.
"Cassie sent them directions to where she knows Wesker is hiding and holding Alec. They're on standby until she's ready." Claud tells Riley and Galen.
"Hopefully the cops don't spot them or everything will go wrong." Sam stated.
"I'm more worried about Cassie charging in there like a kamikaze." Galen remarked. "I would say I'm overstating things but we all know I'm not."
"Wonder how Danny's taking all this?" Millie stated.
"Well he certainly doesn't like her going up against Wesker but she isn't giving him much of a choice in the matter." Galen told them. "Betting he's going to be spending most of thus mission trying to talk her out of it."
"Oh to be a fly in the wall for that." Gabe quipped.
"Think joke time ended when Alec got kidnapped." Sam spoke up. "Do you think they're gonna be able to stop this guy?"
"Despite what's happened tonight, we just have to have faith that they can." Claud said.
"What if Shadow decides to rear his deranged head in the midst of all this?" Millie asked the group. "He could try to get some payback on Leo? Hurt Freddie that way?"
"I wouldn't put it past the little prick but we can't go by a few 'what if' scenarios." Galen replied. "Unless someone has a plan in mind, we have to let them do this."
Riley slowly raises his hand "I-um- I have an idea."
The team focuses on the telekinetic with only Millie showing a level of optimism in her expression.
•••
Inside of the old meat packing warehouse that Trevor had first met Mockingbird, a place that had seen much better days. It was dimly lit and surrounded by pieces of broken machinery. In the center of the room, Alec was bound to a chair and with his mouth gagged by a black bandana. He struggles to get free of his binds and tries to scream for help in spite of the object constricting his speech.
"Wouldn't bother, Allie."
Alec looks up to find Trevor Wesker approaching him. He was dressed in the military garb he had been in when he had arrived at the warehouse the day before.
"Now I may not have been a boy scout but I do know my fair share of knot tying techniques." Trevor stated as he yanked the gag from Alec's mouth. "Also, don't try to call for help. This area is basically a ghost town, anyone around has their own problems to care about a pompous little punk like you."
"Don't see the point in you kidnapping me. I don't know Mockingbird." Alec said, doing his best to feign ignorance.
"Whether you do or don't is irrelevant." Trevor replied. "Your... pretty and incredibly brutal best friend does and she's gonna give me what I want... Or else."
"Or else what? You'll kill me?" Alec asked with mild amusement. "Kill me and you get nothing. Just a lengthy jail sentence and seeing as I am an attorney at law, you won't be leaving except in a pine box."
Trevor scoffs at this. "Think I'm scared of the cops? Of the legal system? It's a revolving door, charges won't stick and it won't matter anyway. Me and my little bird will be long gone by then."
Alec couldn't contain his mocking laughter and states. "You are that delusional. Even if Cassie knew where to find Mockingbird, what makes you think she'll run off into the sunset with you? She will never love you so give it up."
Trevor glares at him and sucker punches Alec hard in the face. Alec's head is knocked to one side and he spits a bit of blood from his mouth to the floor. "You hurt me, I hurt you. I'm just a little more efficient." He grabs Alec by the chin to force him to look forward. "And you call me delusional. You've been chasing Sinclair forever, haven't you? Visiting her in juvie every chance you got? Following her like a love sick puppy? That's the definition of pathetic. Bet she's already got herself a sex buddy, doesn't she? And guess what, precious? It is never, EVER, gonna be you, Allie." He lets go of Alec and backs up a few paces, crossing his arms over his chest. "See, efficient."
Alec gives him a death glare. "You deserve every bit of the beating that's coming your way."
Wesker smirks and roughly places the bandana back over his mouth. "Either way, I know I'm gonna have a good time."
Alec continued his intense stare but his thoughts went to Jake who he was worried he wouldn't see again. Get to tell him… tell him how much he truly cared for him.
Then his thoughts went to Cassie. Hoping she didn't come to his rescue. If he had to die to keep her safe, then so be it.
However, deep down he knew she was on her way and it would not end well for any of them.
•••
Inside of a large surveillance van that was parked three blocks away from the warehouse, Danny and Victor were watching the camera feed from outside of the warehouse with the technical advisor manning the helm.
"Wesker hasn't made a move. He's obviously waiting for her." Victor stated.
Danny looks over his shoulder and takes a breath then exhales. "I am still in the minority of not liking this."
"Well, sorry, Dan Dan. My plan, my rules."
Both detectives turn around to see Cassie was still wearing the costume she had worn during the undercover mission except the blond wig she had worn was no longer tied back and she had a black domino mask on her face. She has a long metal staff strapped to her back as well as a few undisclosed weapons hidden on her body.
"You look almost uncanny to the description the captain gave us of Mockingbird." Victor stated.
"What a funny coincidence, eh?" Cassie quipped as she adjusted her gloves. She notices Danny giving her a frustrated expression and raises an eyebrow. "Are you going to keep giving me that dirty look because I refused to stay behind?"
"It's dangerous for you to be out here." Danny stated.
"I think I figured out how much when I took on Right Said Fred earlier tonight." Cassie said as she rubbed her to play that her neck was still sore from the ordeal.
"If you insist on doing this, at least let me be there as your back up." Danny pleaded.
Cassie scoffs. "Think I can't do it on my own?"
"Not remotely what I said. Wesker is an obsessed maniac, those kinds of people are extremely unpredictable." Danny replied. "I would be more comfortable if you let me back you up in case things go south, okay?"
Cassie smiles at his chivalry and exhales. "Since you're so determined to follow me into the fire, no sense in trying to argue with you... Even though I'll win."
"Usually."
Cassie's cheeks become pale rosy pink but she quickly hides it. "Let's get moving. I'll go first and you follow me a few paces back. Can't crowd each other or he'll spot us both."
Danny nods as Cassie slinks out of the van and is seen on one of the surveillance cameras leaping up a ladder of a fire escape with cat-like grace then ending up on the roof top of that building.
"Starting to think she's got that 'free running' skill down." Victor stated.
Danny exhales and walks out of the back of the van. Not saying a word.
Victor wasn't offended by this. He understood that Danny was worried about Cassie and would do anything to keep her safe. Even at the cost of his own life.
•••
Pulse and the Fox stood on the edge of the roof of a building across from the warehouse Wesker was hole up in. Both of the crime fighters remain quiet and observe the scene vigilantly.
"Should we really be waiting for them?" Leo asked, breaking the silence. "Think the two of us could easily take out Wesker ourselves."
"The millisecond we jump in there and are in his sights, Wesker is gonna blow the place up. We can't let Alec be killed because we got antsy." Freddie reminds him. "And I'm surprised you want to go in, guns blazing. Usually it's you reigning me in."
"Because you've been acting funny and I know why." Leo stated.
"Wh-what do you mean?" Freddie stammers out.
"Got eyes, bro. I saw you talking to Shadow on the roof outside the Jungle." Leo admitted. "Let me take a guess and assume he threatened you."
"Not me. He threatened YOU." Freddie tells him. "He told me that you're basically dead weight and I'd be better off joining forces with him and his boss."
"Dead weight?" Leo replied, bemusement in his voice. "You superpowered types all have this superiority complex or is it just me?"
"So, it's not causing you any kind of alarm? He threatened to eliminate you." Freddie points out.
"Oh yeah, because he hasn't been trying to kill me before." Leo said sarcastically. "I appreciate your concern but if the son of bitch is looking for a fight, I'd be more than happy to give one."
Before any chance of a rebuttal, Pulse notices a figure land on the roof of the warehouse. He adjusts the specs on his goggles to turn on the night vision mode and sees Cassie dusting herself off. "She's here."
The Fox looks down at the alley to see Danny also arriving next to the warehouse but he was at ground level. "And she brought company."
Pulse looks down to where Danny was standing who had looked up, having sensed the presence of the two heroes. Pulse gives him a quick nod to which Danny responds by nodding to acknowledge them.
"Did he just-" Gabe's voice is heard in the com link.
"Yeah, he did." Freddie told the gang. "Think he knows that we're on the same side."
"About time." Leo stated. "Ready?"
"Let's rock." Freddie replied.
"Don't ever say that again." Gabe teasingly retorts.
The two crime fighters stifle their laughs then Pulse grabs the Fox by the shoulder and two zoom out of sight via Pulse's super speed.
•••
Back inside the warehouse, Trevor Wesker paces back and forth as Alec continues in vain to get out of his bounds. His wrists were heavily bruised due to his attempts.
Suddenly, a female shaped figure drops down from an open sky light which makes Wesker grab the Heatwave gun and point it at the figure.
Alec notices the figure remained in the shadows except he sees through the silhouette that the woman had long blond hair and had a metal staff in her hands. He knew who this was.
"Mockingbird." Alec exclaimed through the gag.
Trevor smiles as he continues to point the gun at her. "Hello there."
"You've been looking for me? Trying to get my attention." Cassie said, her voice electronically disguised. "Well, you have my attention, Trevor. Now let Mr Grayson go."
"Not until I get what I want, Pretty Bird." Trevor replied.
"Sorry but the time where you make the demands is all but over." Cassie replied.
"Did your bestie neglect to mention that I have myself something that keeps me in control of this... predicament?" Trevor said, looking past her over her shoulder. "Those barrels behind you contain a nasty explosive chemical I procured. I could blow up two, possibly three, city blocks by torching them with my new toy."
Cassie turns to see the barrels were several feet behind her then she turns to face him. "You do and you'll die along with myself and Grayson. What would be the point?"
"Well I would rather go out in a literal blaze of glory. Also, if I can't have you, why should anyone else?" Trevor replied. "So... My terms are simple, I let Allie here go... in exchange for one thing?"
"And that is?" Cassie asked, then she scoffed. "An autograph?"
Trevor shakes his head then grins like a Cheshire Cat "A kiss."
Cassie laughs at the demand then states. "Hard pass."
"You are as beautiful as you are dense, Birdy." Trevor remarked. "Are you willing to sacrifice his life due to your principles?"
"Not on principle, Wesker. I just have a feeling things are going to work out in my favor." Cassie said, looking past Alec and winking at him to assure him she has a plan.
Out of nowhere, a streak of blue lightning zooms past Wesker. He whirls around to point the gun at whoever was behind him. There he finds Pulse undoing Alec's binds and lifting him from the chair.
"You!" Trevor exclaimed.
"Sorry but Mr Grayson has a date with an EMT." Freddie quips as he supports Alec to his feet.
Trevor attempts to fire the Heatwave gun but two arrows whoosh through the air and knock the weapon out of his hands. He looks around to find the Fox standing on an upper landing of the warehouse.
"This is the part where I would attempt an amusing retort but I believe I would rather let the woman with the staff whack your head in like a piñata." Leo admitted.
With that, Cassie twirls her staff and cracks Trevor Wesker across the face as he turns to face her. The blow causes Trevor to topple to the ground.
"Hang on tight, Mr Grayson." Freddie said as he grabbed the back of Alec's neck.
"What are you doing?" Alec asked, still trying to process everything.
"Holding the back of your neck so you don't get whiplash." Freddie informs him.
"Wait, what?"
Before he could object, Pulse zooms out of the warehouse with Alec who had let out a surprised yelp before vanishing out of sight with Pulse.
Trevor gets to his feet only for Cassie to sock him in the stomach with the tip of her staff then backhand him in the face where she struck him.
"I'm sorry, was that too rough? I do apologize, sometimes I don't know the limit to my violence." Cassie replied.
Trevor's vision clears and he sees that 'Mockingbird' was in fact Cassie. His face fills with pure rage. "You? How... dare you?"
"Wow, you're offended? Care to tell me why or am I going to have to play twenty questions to find out?" Cassie retorts.
"How dare you stain my memory of her by dressing up as some cheap imitation?" Wesker seethed.
Cassie swallows then says "Yeah, thinking we're not gonna settle this with logic."
Trevor swings at her only for Cassie to grab his fist and punch him in the left kidney. He stumbles back and Cassie hits him with a roundhouse kick and sends him to the floor again.
The Fox goes to make his way down from the landing to go aid Cassie but is instead grabbed from behind by what seems is an invisible force who takes him by the shoulders and throws him into an adjacent room and closes the door on him.
The Fox gets to a standing position and pulls an arrow from his quiver, pointing it at his invisible enemy. "Heard you wanted to take me out. Not the best time but if you want to have a go, happy to oblige."
With a shimmer of magnetic energy, Shadow appears in front of the door he had closed. "I have to admit, you're smarter than you look. You're still a suicidal moron for taking me ob but points for bravery." Shadow retorts, his hands sparking with red electricity.
The Fox continues pointing the arrow at Shadow, no shred of fear despite his odds. "Ring the bell, time for round two."
Shadow laughs then says in a deadpan manner. "Ding, ding."
With that, the Fox releases the arrow.
•••
Back at the surveillance truck, Victor and the man monitoring the cameras continue to observe the camera drone that was hovering above the warehouse.
"Any activity since Cassie and Danny went inside?" Victor asked.
"No, sir. But the drone is picking up a lot of electromagnetic interference." The operator told him. "Do you think it's that Pulse guy?"
Suddenly, a rapid knock is heard at the back door of the truck which startles the two men.
Victor catches his breath and pulls out his service weapon. He quickly opens one of the doors and points it at whoever knocked only to find Pulse standing there, holding up his arms defensively.
"Whoa, whoa, don't shoot." Freddie stated.
Victor lowers his weapon only slightly and asks "What are you doing here?"
Pulse slowly moves to one side to reveal a bruised and sore Alec, hunched over finishing throwing up. "Brought him back safely. He's a bit worse for the wear but he's alive."
"And my partner? And Cassie?" Victor asks as he puts away his gun and walks over to check on Alec.
"Yeah... Be right back." Freddie said as he uses his powers to speed away back to the warehouse.
Victor still is unnerved over seeing the super speed but focuses on Alec. "Are you okay, Mr Grayson?"
"I've been better." Alec said, wiping the residual vomit from his mouth. "Good thing I had a light lunch."
Victor turns to speak to the operator "Call a bus. Getting the feeling Mr Grayson won't be the only one in need of medical treatment."
Alec rubs his bruised wrists that were now a deep shade of purple as the operator called for emergency services.
•••
Back at the warehouse, Cassie was still pummeling Trevor until he decided to sucker punch her in the jaw then punches her in the gut. She gasps in pain as he grabs her by the hair and hurls her towards a broken conveyor belt.
Cassie winces in pain as she realizes Wesker had pulled off the blond wig from her head. She slowly gets up and her red hair is unfurled, turning to face Wesker
"See, just a poor imitation." Trevor said, throwing the wig at her feet. "The real Mockingbird would be ashamed of your performance."
Cassie laughs through the pain as she notices her hands had been cut open by landing on the mangled metal of the broken conveyor belt. "I'm not finished yet, dumbass."
"That right?" Wesker said as he picks up the Heatwave gun and points it at her. "I think we have a difference of opinion."
Out of the blue, a fist connects with Wesker's still aching jaw and he stumbles backwards. Trevor looks to find Danny standing in front of him with his service weapon pointed at him.
"Fair to say that there are three varied opinions, Wesker." Danny replied.
"Did everyone come with their comebacks from 80s action films?" Trevor remarked.
"Not really." Cassie spoke up as Wesker spins around only for Cassie to hit him with a spinning heel kick that sends Wesker to the ground again. "I just do this for the kicks."
Wesker groans in pain as Pulse zooms back into the warehouse to find the strange sight.
"So... What'd I miss?" Freddie asked, mildly amused.
"You..." Wesker gets to his feet again and charges up the gun. "You are ALL gonna PAY!"
Danny realizes what Wesker is about to do as Wesker aims the gun at the barrels "GET DOWN!"
However it was too late and Trevor fired the gun at the barrels. Pulse thinks quickly and grabs one of the barrels and rushes out of the warehouse with it in his hands. He zips out of the warehouse carefully and gets the barrel he grabbed far away.
Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough to get the second barrel which caused the warehouse to erupts in a loud explosion.
During the blast, Danny had grabbed Cassie to get her out of the radius of the explosion but they were sent flying in separate directions.
Meanwhile in the room Shadow had barricaded the Fox in, the two masked individuals were exchanging punches when the vibration of the explosion knocked them off their feet but they were kept safe from the flames of the explosion.
Pulse looks back at the warehouse to see he wasn't able to prevent the second barrel from being set ablaze.
"No." Freddie exclaimed with terror in his voice as he zooms back to the warehouse that was now engulfed in flames.
"Please, please no." Millie's voice is heard through the com link.
•••
Near the surveillance truck, Victor and Alec witnessed the explosion from a distance and are horrified by the destruction caused.
"Get the fire department down here, NOW!" Victor yelled to the operator.
"Do you think they got out?" Alec asked.
Victor gulps when he sees an odd sight: a seemingly transparent reddish aura surrounding the flaming warehouse. "You see that, right?"
Alec looks up and sees the aura keeping the flames contained. "Something keeping the fire from spreading? Yeah, I do."
Victor looks stunned at the scene. "Good, at least I'm not losing my mind."
Alec stares at the scene with only one concern: was Cassie going to be okay?
•••
Pulse goes to try to make it to the room where this all started and finds a disaster area. Destroyed machinery, broken walls and shattered glass.
"This is bad." Gabe stated.
"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Claud said bitterly. "Did you see where Leo went?"
"It-it all happened so fast." Freddie uttered. He pushes his com link to communicate with the Fox. "Please don't be dead. Please don't be dead."
He hears coughing from the com link that sounded like Leo's voice. An audible relief washes over everyone listening.
"Okay... That hurt." Leo said. "You okay?"
"Thank God you're alive." Freddie said.
"Well, I am trapped in a room with Shadow so I don't know how long the whole 'being alive' thing will last." Leo said.
"He's here?" Freddie asked.
"Ambushed me after you got out with Alec." Leo stated.
"What about Cassie and Danny?" Galen is heard asking. "Are they-"
Suddenly, the sound of coughing and a person moving is heard. Pulse walks over to the noise to find Danny getting up slowly. He saw Danny had a deep gash on his forehead and was breathing heavily.
"Detective, are you all right?" Freddie asked Danny, giving the team a sign that he founheavily.
"I've... been... better." Danny said, trying to find breaths. "Think I... cracked a rib... Or five."
"I'm getting you out of here." Freddie replied as he slowly helps Danny up.
"Cassie... We have to... find her." Danny said.
"Danny!" Cassie's voice calls out.
"Cassie?" Danny called out, ignoring his injuries.
From behind some flaming wreckage, Cassie slowly limps out and walks over to the two. Danny walks away from Pulse and limps over to Cassie. He hugs her tightly and she holds him against her.
"I thought... I thought you... I thought you were dead." Danny said between breaths.
"Night's still young." Cassie joked.
"Still making... jokes even... through all this." Danny said, still struggling for air.
Cassie notices his breathlessness and looks up at him. "You're hurt badly." She looks at Pulse. "Get him out of here."
"I am... Not leaving... Without you." Danny stammers out.
Cassie grabs his face and plants a deep and passionate kiss on his lips. Once she parts from his lips, she backs up a few steps. "Sorry."
Without warning, Pulse takes Danny away from the scene. Cassie stands in the still burning building and she hears movement and sees that Trevor was stepping out of some of the rubble.
Trevor was injured by the blast but still alive which irritated Cassie into a fury. "Wanted a bigger bang but... I'll take what I can get."
Cassie grabs him by the shirt collar and angrily hurls him across the room. "I am going to make you wish you had died, you bastard!" She jumps on top of him and starts to pound his face.
•••
Inside the room the Fox and Shadow were stuck in, the Fox starts to get up from the floor. "You guys still there?" Leo asked the team through the com link.
"You sure you're okay?" Millie asked her boyfriend with deep worry.
"I will be, once I get out of here." Leo stated. He looks around and finds a stairwell that leads out of the building. "Think I found a way out. Please tell me that-"
Before finishing his thought, Shadow grabs him by the back of the neck and hurls him across the room. The Fox looks up and sees Shadow tosses him to his bow which he reaches for but Shadow steps on his hand.
"Nuh-uh, Robin Hood." Shadow gloated as the Fox shouted in pain. Shadow allows the red electricity to run through his body to give the Fox a jolt that makes the Fox groan in agony. "Too bad that blast didn't kill you." He grabs the Fox by the throat with his left hand and pops a bladed spike from his right wrist gauntlet. "Well, I could just tell Pulse that it did."
However, Shadow's right arm is stopped by a reddish transparent tendril wrapping around wrist. Shadow turns around to find who had done that: it was an in-disguise Riley Danvers who wore his red hoodie and had black grease paint over his eyes to act as concealment.
Riley wastes no time and uses his powers to force Shadow to let go of the Fox then he hurls Shadow out of a window via the tendril. Shadow screams as he ends up out of the warehouse.
Riley runs over to the Fox to check on him. "Dude, you all right?"
"Well, I'm not dead so... silver lining." Leo replied as he picks up his bow. He then realizes what is going on. "Wait, who sent you?"
"Technically this was my idea but... I did it for Millie." Riley replied.
"Got a problem with that?" Millie said through the com link.
"None whatsoever, sweetie." Leo said as Riley helped him off the floor. "Thanks, Warlock."
Riley smiles as he leads a limping Fox out. "Think I'm beginning to like that name."
With that, the two men made it out of the building.
•••
In a back alley a block away from the warehouse, Pulse is forced to come to a stop by Danny's insistence that he stop. Pulse and Danny stare each other down as Danny tries to limp back to the warehouse but Pulse constantly gets in his way.
"Get... out of... my way." Danny said through gritted teeth.
"I can't do that. You need to get to a hospital." Freddie insisted.
Danny shakes his head. "Cassie needs... I have to..." All of a sudden, he coughs up a bit of blood from his mouth.
Pulse recoils in horror and understands what was happening. "This is more than cracked ribs. Think you punctured a lung... or both of them."
"That's not true. Please don't let it be true." Sam is heard saying through the com link. Her voice sounded small.
Danny tries to get past Pulse but it was pointless. "If you... Won't let me... Save her... You go. Get... her out of... there."
"I am not leaving you here to-"
"Freddie!" Danny screamed, everything he said feeling like hot burning coals.
Pulse realizes what Danny said. "You- you know who I am?"
"Save... Her." Danny tells Freddie. He didn't care for details. He only wanted one thing.
Pulse sets Danny down to sit against the brick wall of the alley. He takes off his com link from his ear and gives it to Danny. "Sam is there. Let her hear you. I'll bring Cassie. I promise."
"Thank... you." Danny managed out.
Pulse then gets up and zooms back towards the warehouse as Danny places the com link in his ear and speaks to Sam. "Hey."
"Danny?" Sam said. "Please tell me- You're gonna be okay, right?"
Danny managed a weak smile. "I'm... sorry."
With that last word, he slips into unconsciousness.
•••
At the Pulse Cave, Sam was yelling through the com link for Danny. The rest of the gang watches this with sadness written on their face.
Sam slams the com link on the table and starts to cry. Galen goes over to her and gives her a hug as she sobs.
The others watch the scene with grim sadness. This was only going to get worse. Especially when Cassie finds out.
•••
Inside the warehouse, Cassie tosses Wesker to the ground. Her hand was tired of punching him so she just did random violence.
"You know, this feels like old times. Me, beating you into submission." Cassie said to the bloodlied Trevor. She picks up her staff and twirls it.
"Hurting me... Ain't gonna save your boyfriend." Trevor managed through the pain.
"True." She raises the staff. "But it's really gonna make me feel better."
Before the staff could strike him, Pulse's arm grabs the staff. Without waiting for any form of objection, Pulse rushes off with Cassie. A second later, Pulse returns. Standing where Cassie stood.
"So... You gonna hit me now?" Trevor asked.
"Shut up." Freddie replied, angrily then he knocked him out with one punch. Pulse the proceeds to drag him out of the still burning building.
Without warning, Wesker lays at Victor Flores' feet. He looks up to find Victor staring down at him and Alec glaring at him from afar. He goes to make a run for it but Victor grabs him by the shoulders and shoves him chest first against the truck.
"Trevor Wesker, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law." Victor said, continuing to read him his rights as Alec watches with satisfaction.
•••
Elsewhere, Cassie found herself standing in an alley, still holding her staff. She seems annoyed by what Freddie did until she finds that she wasn't alone in the alley. She turns and sees Danny sitting against a wall.
"Danny?" She softly asked but got no response from him. She rushes to his side and checks if he is okay. She lifts up his shirt and sees his abdomen was badly bruised. His breathing was labored and faint.
It took her seconds to realize that Danny was dying. It was only a matter of time.
"No. No, no, no, no, no." Cassie quickly stated, utter refusal in her voice. She touches his face with her left hand and squeezes his hand with her right. "Don't- don't you dare. You can't-" Tears stream down her cheeks and one of them falls on his face.
She then felt him weakly squeeze her hand. He was still with her, she didn't have much time. She needed to act quickly.
[Soundtrack Note: 'You and I' by PVRIS (the stripped version) plays starting at 2:00]
Cassie grabs him and gently lays him on the ground. She kneels down and places her hands over his broken rib cage and abdomen.
Her hands began to glow with her healing aura. She knew doing this was extremely dangerous but she didn't care. She wasn't going to lose Danny. Not him.
She continues to heal him, doing anything to keep him from dying. Seeming to pour her life force into him. Her own aura around her began to wrap around the two of them slowly as the gash on Danny's forehead began to heal.
Cassie started to grow weaker but that didn't matter to her. She knew she was taking a risk by doing this.
Once she finished healing him, Cassie gasps for breath and goes to check on him. She sees that her attempt was successful. Danny is alive, unconscious but alive.
She starts to get up only to become dizzy. She tried to gain her balance but everything around her began to spin. After another failed attempt to regain her strength fails, Cassie falls to the ground and passes out next to Danny.
The two lovers lay next to one another on the alley floor. Cassie uses the last bit of her strength to clasp on his hand as she slips into unconsciousness.
[Soundtrack Note: Song slowly fades as the scene ends]
•••
Two hours later at St James Hospital after Cassie and Danny were brought there, the team sat in a waiting room to hear of any news about Cassie, Danny who had been brought there as well.
Freddie paced in front of a large couch that Sam and Riley sat on. Leo sits on the floor next to a chair Millie was sitting on. Gabe and Claud sat at a couch the opposite side of the couch Sam and Riley were sitting on. Galen was leaning against a wall where Millie's chair was. Each one of them with varying degrees of worry on their faces.
What they all don't notice is the mysterious man who Cassie had a run in with was also sitting in a chair silently. He was reading a magazine and was seemingly uninterested in what was going on.
"What is taking so long?" Sam expressed the thought everyone was having. "The doctor said that they were already out of the ER, right?"
"They did survive an explosion. Think they're just making sure that there aren't any internal injuries." Leo spoke up. He rubs his right shoulder with his left arm to alleviate the pain in his shoulder.
"Still sore?" Millie asked and Leo winces to give her an answer. She begins to massage his shoulder which dissolves the tension in his shoulder.
"I may not have a healing touch but I got magic fingers." Millie said playfully.
"Thank you." Leo said with relief in his voice.
"You two want to get a room?" Gabe snarks to which Claud responds with a talon scratch to the forearm arm. "Ah!"
"You deserved that." Claud responded, her talon reverting back to a normal fingernail.
"You- well, you didn't break the skin but, ouch though!" Gabe stated, rubbing his arm.
Freddie manages a weak smile as he continues to pace. "This is my fault. I wasn't fast enough to get both barrels out."
"You did your best. No one blames you." Millie informs him.
"Sunshine is right, Benson. You did your best to keep everyone safe and you were successful. No ones dead." Sam tells him.
"But I could've done better. Danny almost died, I'm surprised you don't hate me for that." Freddie stated.
Sam takes his hand and sits him on the couch next to her. "Listen to me, this is your fault. Things didn't work out exactly but hey, as my Uncle Carmine used to say 'man plans, God laughs'."
Freddie manages a chuckle. "That was... Surprisingly profound."
Sam smiles and hugs him. "They're both gonna be okay. So stop being mopey, okay?"
"Okay." Freddie said softly.
The sound of footsteps gets everyone's attention but their hopes were dashed to see it was Victor entering the waiting room. "Any news?" Victor asked the group.
"Nothing yet. The natives are getting kinda restless." Gabe retorts.
"And Wesker? Please tell me they locked the bastard up." Leo replied. "Hate for him to have gotten off on a technicality."
"Pretty close seeing the beating Cassie AND Pulse gave him but fortunately he's going away for the murder of Mr Marino." Victor explained. "That could count as a life sentence just on that alone."
"It's what he deserves." Galen said, growling.
"That I can agree with." Leo spoke.
At that moment, an ER doctor walks over to the group. It was Dr Xavier Trenton. The group focuses on the doctor and all go to see what news he had which overwhelmed him.
"Oh my, this is quite the group." Dr Trenton exclaimed. "I'm Dr Trenton, I was the attending physician who looked after Detective Parker and Ms Sinclair."
"Are they both okay?" Freddie asked, acting as the spokesperson of the ragtag group.
"Both of them are in stable condition." Dr Trenton tells them which causes the group to all breathe collective sighs of relief. "As a matter of fact, Mr Parker is up and about. He's actually asking to be discharged."
"Are you serious? I thought he had been badly injured?" Victor asked with confusion on his face.
"It is rather remarkable, I wouldn't call it a miracle but one would assume otherwise." Dr Trenton replied.
"What about Cassie?" Leo asked. "Bet she's as anxious to get out of here too."
"Actually... Ms Sinclair is still unconscious. We spent most of our time treating her for her condition." Dr Trenton tells the group. "Seems she's suffered some acute exhaustion. We won't know for certain the full damage to her nervous system until she wakes up."
"Can we go see them?" Sam asked.
"Mr Parker has been asking for any visitors who aren't hospital staff so I think a small group would be acceptable." Trenton told them. "And Ms Sinclair could use the moral support once she wakes up but only two can visit her and immediate family only."
"We're her nephews, is that fine?" Freddie told the doctor, regarding himself and Leo.
"You two can follow me, I will take you to her suite. As for those who wish to visit Mr Parker, I suggest a small group of three. Can all of you go at once?" Trenton tells the group.
"Well, I know I'm going." Sam said bluntly. "Dude is my brother."
"Me too." Galen replied.
"We might not be related by blood but I'm going too." Riley volunteers. "He's my brother where it counts."
"Nurse Sullivan can lead you to treatment room two. He's been waiting there for some time." Trenton said, pointing at a young looking nurse that motions for them to follow her.
"Guess we're staying here then." Gabe said as Millie and Claud nod in agreement.
Freddie and Leo follow Dr Trenton down the hall while the nurse leads Sam, Galen and Riley towards the elevator. Sam and Freddie stare back at each other with shared looks of encouragement as they parted ways.
"So... Now we play the waiting game." Gabe remarked.
"Been doing that all night. Don't see the difference." Claud replied, which made Millie snicker.
Suddenly, Jake heads towards the group as they all look over at the medical assistant. "Millie, hey!"
Millie looks up and sees him and walks over to him. "Jake, you're still here."
"I never left. I was waiting to see Alec." Jake tells her. "They're still checking in on him."
"You haven't gone to see him?" Millie asked, bewildered.
"I want to… I just don't wanna see him alone." Jake explained.
Victor walks over to the pair. "Is this your new friend? The one you keep talking about?"
Millie looks up at her dad. "Oh yeah. Dad, this is Jake. Jake, this is my dad Victor Flores."
"Good to meet you, sir." Jake said.
"You too, son." Victor said.
"I'm going to go with Jake to check on Alec. Is that okay?" Millie asked.
"I would say no… but you usually do it anyway." Victor said with a smile.
Millie nods as Jake pulls her back where he came from and they leave down the hall.
"That girl loves helping out lost causes." Gabe remarked.
Victor shrugs. "That does explain why she's so attached to you, Gabriel."
Gabe stares at him with his mouth agape in surprise and says "You aren't wrong, sir."
Claud nods in amusement at the comment Victor made at Gabe's expense.
•••
Alec was laying in a hospital bed, recovering from the beating he took as a nurse finished taking his vitals. He was numb to pain as he stared blankly at the wall.
"Everything checks out fine. Should be out of here by the morning." The nurse said.
"That's good, I guess." Alec said softly.
"I'll let you get some sleep." The nurse said sweetly as she left the room.
Alec lies back on the bed, his thoughts swirling as he hears a noise that made him wince.
"Oh, that was precious."
Alec shuts his eyes and winces, knowing exactly who it was. "How long have you been there?"
With a shimmer of magnetic energy, a figure appears. It was Clem Lehane, but Alec knew him by a different moniker: Shadow.
"Long enough for you to give her the puppy dog eyes." Clem said smugly. He walks closer to Alec who stands up from the bench. "As well as your little bout of whiny self loathing. 'Oh, woe is me'."
"Why don't you cut the crap tell me why you're really here." Alec snapped, not in the mood for the mockery.
"Guess I struck a nerve, my bad." Clem said, feigning an apology. "Heard that you were rescued. Boss man is dealing with Eastman, he wanted me to personally check in on you."
"Yeah, no thanks to you. You know, you could've come to my aid and spared me the bruises." Alec said, pointing at his bandages.
"Thought you could use the battle scars. Besides, I had some business to attend to." Clem informs him.
Alec scoffs. "You mean that business where the Fox hurled you out a window?"
"It wasn't him. I was about to finish him off but... Some idiot in a red hoodie and grease paint around his eyes. Thinks that's a clever disguise," Clem said bitterly. "Telekinetic, and on their side."
"Bitterness is unbecoming of you. Not that I'm not enjoying it." Alec said with the same level of smugness Clem showed earlier.
Clem laughs at this statement. "You're lucky the boss doesn't want you harmed any further or I'd be punching you till my arms got tired."
"Then get to the point, why are you REALLY here?" Alec asked, gritting his teeth.
"Despite your... less than stellar performance in getting the gun back, which I managed to get before the place turned to ashes and ripped up metal by the way, the boss wants to reward you for a job well done." Clem informs Alec.
"And what is that?" Alec inquired.
"Well, I don't have all the details but Dr Circe says she has perfected the super soldier serum he's having her make." Clem informs him. "She says she needs two things, one of which I already took care of."
"What, pray tell, was that?" Alec asked, folding his arms over his chest.
Clem walks closer to Alec and opens his messenger bag that was strapped to his shoulder. He then pulls out two IV bags filled with blood. "Slipped in and out of your bestie's hospital suite without anyone being the wiser. Took some of her blood." Alec's eyes widened in horror as Clem put away the blood packs. "Circe remembered the miraculous regenerative properties in her blood and realized it was what she needed to perfect the serum."
Alec grabs Clem by the shirt collar and screams in his face. "How dare you violate her like that?"
Clem grins evilly and grabs one of Alec's injured wrists and squeezes it. Alec yells in pain, causing him to let go. Clem adjusts his collar and stares at Alec. "Sure do show a lot of loyalty to someone who will never love you the way you want her to?"
"Could say the same about you. Well, as in regards to Mr Morgan." Alec remarked. "We're expendable assets. You know that, right?"
"Well, some are more valuable than others." Clem reminds him. "But don't worry your fragile little mind, I never harmed her. I just collected her blood, that's all."
Alec breathes deeply then asks. "What's the other thing she needs?"
"A guinea pig." Clem bluntly stated. "The boss thinks you could benefit from an upgrade. Turning you into his personal weapon could improve your importance to him."
"He wants me- He wants me to become-" Alec couldn't get the words out. "This is insane."
"You have always wanted to be at the level of us superhumans. This could give you the edge you need." Clem said, playing to Alec's envy. "You'd even be stronger than that Galen guy."
"Might even be stronger than you. Don't think you would enjoy it that much if I could throw you around like a rag doll." Alec gloated. "Sure you'd actually want that?"
Clem snickers. "You would NEVER be stronger than me. Close to my level, sure... But never ever."
"Hasn't anyone told you to 'never say never', Clement?" Alec replied.
"So, I will take this as a 'yes'." Clem said sinisterly.
Alec realizes what he was agreeing to. "I don't have a choice, either way I'm screwed."
"Best to make the best of a bad situation, am I right?" Clem said as he went to leave, disappearing using his powers. "Doctor wants to start the treatments once you're fully healed up. Enjoy your last days as a human."
Once Clem is gone, Alec enters deep contemplation over what's to come. He stares down at his injuries and at the prospect of being stronger than all his aggressors. That aspect brought him some satisfaction.
However, a feeling of dread crept up on him. The fact that this would hurt Cassie's heart. Could he really do this and lose her for good? What about Jake? He just found him, he could bear to lose him.
A knock at the door breaks his concentration as he looks up to see Millie poke her head in, flashing a cheerful smile. "Hi." Millie said sweetly.
Alec manages a smile as he rubs his wrists. "Hi."
"Are you up for some visitors?" Millie asked as she continued to smile.
"I guess I am." Alec said softly.
"Good." She said as she pulled Jake into the room much to his embarrassment. "Because someone has been waiting to see you."
Jake stumbles a bit as Millie pushes him in. He catches his footing and sees an injured Alec sitting up in his bed. "Hey."
"Hey." Alec managed to say.
Millie leans against the doorframe and watches them. After the night they all had, she needed some joy.
Jake walks over to the bed and stands by Alec's bedside. "I heard about what happened."
"You did? Who told you?" Alec asked.
Millie cleared her throat to get their attention then she smiled and waves. "Hope that was okay."
Alec smiles at her. "Thanks, Millie."
"Sure, what are friends for?" Millie said. "And Cassie's fine. She's recovering but she'll be fine."
"I know, Sand's always been able to bounce back." Alec said, focusing on Jake.
Millie realizes that they needed some alone and straightens her shoulder. "I think that's my cue to make my exit. Have a good night."
WIth that, Millie leaves the two of them alone. As she walks down the hall, she fails to notice Clem was watching her. Observing her.
Back in Alec's room, Jake removes his glasses, grabs a chair and places it at Alec's bedside then sits down. "Are you in any pain?"
"I'm always in pain… now it's more physical than mental." Alec said, rubbing his bandaged wrists. "I didn't mean to worry you."
"I-I was worried. I didn't know I was ever going to see you again." Jake told him, gently grabbing Alec's hand.
Alec gins at him as he squeezes Jake's hand. "I thought I wouldn't see you again either."
"I'm glad Cassie saved you. I owe her everything for saving you." Jake replied.
Alec bites his bottom lip and looks at him. "Can you do me a favor?"
"Name it." Jake replied.
Alec leans forward and kisses Jake on the lips. After a good long moment, Alec pulls away and stares into his eyes. "Stay."
Jake smiles back at him and touches Alec's face.
•••
In a different part of the hospital, Danny was having Dr Adler doctor shine a light in his eyes to check his pupils. He was dressed in the clothes he came in with and seemed rather anxious to get out of there.
"This is very fascinating." The doctor remarked as she shuts off the light. "Not a sign of any physical injuries. I am having trouble figuring out how this is all possible."
Danny shrugs, "Guess I got lucky."
"I would like to agree with you if I didn't think that was a load of crap, Detective." Dr Adler said frankly.
"I wouldn't question a miracle to be honest."
Danny and Dr Adler turn to find Riley, Danny and Galen standing at the door of the room, Riley being the one to speak up.
"Um- I- I guess so." Dr Adler replied, trying to regain her composure. "You folks must be his friends."
"We're more like family but, yeah." Galen stated.
"In that case, I will give you all some privacy." The doctor replied, making her way out.
As she passes by, Riley reads her ID badge. "Dr Wilhelmina Adler. That's a very pretty name. Don't see it around much." Riley comments.
"Thank you but I kind of don't like it. It sounds like the name of some duchess from the Victorian Era." Dr Adler admitted. "I usually shorten it."
"Willie? Like that singer from Temple of Doom?" Riley asked.
"Um, no. I prefer... Bill." Dr Adler told him. "It is masculine but it's only a label."
"Bill?" Riley stated then he smiled. "It has character. Quirky, I like quirky."
Dr Adler rolls her eyes then walks out of the room.
"Wow, you are the biggest flirt." Galen said which made Sam and Danny snicker.
Riley bites his lip. "Think we should not focus on that and on more on Danny."
"Okay, let's focus on how my sister's boyfriend is a superhero and you all knew about it." Danny said frankly. "Think we should focus on that."
The trio seem nervous at the situation they are in for. Galen closes the door to prevent anyone from listening in on the conversation.
"I really was hoping he developed selective amnesia." Galen jokes.
"Me too, not gonna lie." Sam replied.
"How long have you known?" Danny asked the three.
"I recently found out but only because your sister told me." Riley said to his friend.
Sam glares at Riley but she knew that it wasn't his fault, she was just annoyed. "Um, since October. He told me after he rescued me from that Deimos guy."
Galen sighs then admits "Since the night of the Spencer Shay art exhibition. When the Pequod attacked. Cassie told me."
"And when were any of you going to tell me?" Danny asked angrily. "I spent months with everyone around me lying to my face."
"Because we were all afraid of what you would do if you found out." Sam stated. "You are part of a task force meant to bring in vigilantes. Last thing I wanted to happen was for you to arrest my boyfriend."
Danny reacts to the words like he had been punched in the gut. "You actually thought I would do that?"
"You are a man of honor, you would have to do it." Galen replied.
"Maybe... If I hadn't-" Danny realizes something important. "If I hadn't fallen for her, I might have."
"You did keep my secret for years, I should've guessed you would've kept this a secret too." Riley said.
"She saved me." Danny admits. "I was- I don't know what you see exactly when you die but... I think I saw it. I felt it."
The three remain silent, letting Danny process it all.
"I felt this... Light. It didn't drag me back. Felt like it was calling me back." Danny remembered. "Next thing I knew, I was looking up at the ceiling of an ambulance. She brought me back to life."
"Really glad she did." Sam stated. "I don't know what I would have done if-"
Danny goes over and hugs her as she begins to break down. "I am so sorry."
"Don't apologize, you idiot." Sam quipped through her tears.
Danny couldn't help but smile but the smile fades when he remembers what he was talking about. "Cassie, is she okay? Is she hurt?"
Sam looks to the other two for help with an explanation until Galen speaks up. "She's stable. The doctor said she was still unconscious. Think healing you took a lot out her."
"She sacrificed herself... She did that for me." Danny stated. "Wh-why would she do that?"
"Um, where I come from, that's what they call true love." Riley replied.
Sam playfully hits her brother on the shoulder. "She did it because she loves you, duh!"
"I need to see her. I have to-"
"Whoa, whoa, take it easy." Galen said as he placed his hand on his shoulder. "We'll take you to her... After you sign those release forms.
Danny groans a bit and nods which makes the others smile.
•••
Freddie and Leo are led into a hospital suite by Dr Trenton. It was a modestly sized room with a small couch, an armchair, a coffee table and a large window with a great view of the city. Next to the window was the hospital bed where a still sleeping Cassie lays. She was slightly bruised on her forearms and her hands were completely bandaged up except for her fingertips. She also was rocking the paper gown given for her to wear.
"She was a bit worse for wear but she has no internal injuries." Dr Trenton told the boys. "She'll probably be here for a few days. She won't be objecting to treatment like she did when she was here before."
"Give her a day, she'll be trying to tear off that IV all over again." Leo spoke up.
Freddie stares at their aunt, completely shocked over seeing her in this manner. Weak. Damaged. It was an uneasy feeling. He walks over to the bed and stands on the right side, gently taking her by the right hand.
"I'll let you have your privacy." Dr Trenton stated as he walked out of the room.
Freddie grabs a chair and sits next to the bed, not letting go of Cassie's hand. "You know what's strange, even like this, she still looks strong."
Leo gives him a small smile then sits on the couch. After a long silence, he says "You need to stop blaming yourself."
"This all wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been so damn slow." Freddie remarks.
"This coming from the speedster?" Leo joked.
"She's here because of me. Danny almost died because of me." Freddie stated somberly.
"I'm also alive because of you."
Freddie and Leo turn their heads to find Danny standing in the archway of the door. Both of them rise to their feet as Danny fully walks into the room and reveals Sam, Galen and Riley were behind him standing in the hallway.
"Um, I-I wouldn't say it was because of me. Not fully." Freddie stammers, stepping away from Cassie's bedside and letting her hand go.
Danny nods then he looks over at Cassie, noticing the condition she was in. He stood where Freddie stood and started holding her hand. He gently touches her exposed fingertips as the boys watch nervously.
"So... I'm going to point out the elephant in the room, how much do you know?" Leo asked.
"Dude!" Sam exclaimed.
"It's fine. Think this is the time to have this conversation." Freddie spoke up.
Danny turns his head to look at them. "Let's be honest, this is a conversation that should've happened months ago. And yes, I know. Enough to fill in the blanks."
Freddie swallows hard and asks "Are you going to arrest us?"
Danny sighs "No."
This answer stuns everyone but Riley who smiles at being right.
"Say 'I told you so' and I break you." Sam whispers to Riley.
Riley nervously gulps "Noted."
Danny lets go of Cassie's hand and turns to face them. "I wasn't intending to throw the book at you if I had found out. I planned to find a way for you to work with the police. I wouldn't have had much clout but I was sure as hell going to try."
"Was it because of Riley and his powers?" Freddie asked.
"Mostly. I had some knowledge of superpowers before ever finding out you existed." Danny admits. "But it was also because of Galen. Because of Sam. Because of all the people you helped. I wasn't going to ruin your life for my own sake."
"Guess the non powered hero doesn't get much credit, does he?" Leo spoke up.
Danny shrugs. "Read the files on you. What you've done. All without any powers, that's honestly incredible."
Leo looks down to hide his bashfulness. "Just doing my best."
"The point is, my opinion has been affected by several factors but I understand that this city needs people like you protecting them." Danny said, extending his hand as an olive branch to Freddie.
Freddie looks at Leo then at Sam who both give him looks of encouragement. He sighs and accepts the handshake. "Thank you."
Suddenly, Riley's cellphone rings to interrupt the moment and he quickly pulls it out of his pocket. "Sorry."
"Ever heard of putting your phone on silent, Chestnut? We were having a moment." Sam retorts.
Riley checks his caller ID and his eyes widen. "Oh. It's my sister. I have to take this."
"Go ahead. Family comes first." Danny said with a smile.
"Thanks, man. I'll be back." Riley said, walking off down the hall.
"Famous last words." Galen quips but Riley ignores it.
"I understand all the reasons you're sort of on board for all this but... Is the real reason because of Cassie?" Freddie asked what everyone was wondering.
Danny turns back to look at Cassie "I'd be lying if I said she wasn't a major reason. She's- she's like no one else I've ever-"
"Don't think you need to say anything else." Freddie said, turning to look at Sam. "I understand better than anyone."
Sam smiles and shyly brushes her blond hair from her face.
"Listen, would it be all right if I had some time alone with Cassie?" Danny asked. "I want to be here when she wakes up and I have a lot to say to her. Private matters."
"Um, sure. No problem." Freddie said.
"Think the cafeteria might still be open and I could use some gurb." Sam stated. "Lets go, boys. Mama's hungry."
"You're hungry? Why am I not surprised?" Leo asked sarcastically which makes Sam punch him in his shoulder as she walks past him. "Ow! Still sore."
"And?" Sam said, walking ahead of them.
Freddie rolls his eyes and runs after Sam. "How about not brutalizing my brother?" She turns around and gives him a withering look only for him to give her the puppy dog look. "Please?"
Sam smiles and walks over, kissing him on the lips then says "Since you asked nicely." She heads off to the cafeteria.
Freddie grins as Leo catches up to him. "Knew that'd work."
"If only you used THOSE powers for good." Leo jokes which makes Freddie laugh.
Galen remained behind and watched Danny take the seat at Cassie's bedside. "Sure you'll be fine by yourself?"
"Yeah." Danny simply said as he let out a deep breath. "Think that it's time she knew, right?"
Galen smiles. "Yeah." He then follows the others, leaving Danny alone with the still unconscious Cassie.
•••
Riley walks down a corridor of the hospital with his phone to his ear. "Hey, thank god you called. I'm sorry for not answering your calls. The last few days have been pretty... insane." He said to his sister.
"Oh, I'll forgive... If you do one thing for me." A voice already familiar to everyone is heard saying.
"What's that?" Riley asked.
"Turn around."
Riley seems confused but does as he is told and finds Madeline standing five feet behind him with Pete standing next to her. "Maddy?"
"Surprised to see me?" Maddy said smiling. She then quickly rushes to his arms and gives him a hug.
Riley hugs the teenager a tight bear hug and spins her around, genuinely happy to see her.
"Ri, I love ya but put me down. Getting a little dizzy." Maddy said.
Riley gently sets her back on the floor "Sorry, I haven't seen my kid sister in forever. I got excited." He then remembers Pete was also there and asks "You get yourself a bodyguard or did mom and dad pay him to escort you here?"
Maddy becomes somber and sighs "Riley-"
"Wait, I haven't spoken to them in six months. They wouldn't-" Slowly, he starts to understand what was going on. "What's going on?"
Maddy starts to tear up. "Mom and dad are dead. Those people dad told you about, they did it."
"Division 6." Riley understands who she meant. "How did you get away?"
"Some people who are trying to stop them saved me. They- they made Pete look after me and bring me to you." Maddy informs him.
Pete walks over to them and introduces himself. "Peter Sawyer, it is a pleasure to meet you. Maddy has told me a lot about you."
"Part of me doesn't want to know what she told you." Riley replied.
"Relax, it was nothing bad." Maddy teased, then became serious again. "And he is a friend of your new friends."
Riley stares at Pete and raises an eyebrow. "You must be the pyrokinetic."
Pete nods. "That's right. Madeline told me you would be here, which one of my friends is in the hospital?"
Riley sighs and tells him. "Cassie."
Pete looks taken aback by the news then after a long pause, he says "Think we have some time to come up with a convincing cover story, now don't we?"
Riley and Maddy stare at each other, both concerned about what was going to happen next.
•••
Back at the hospital suite the next morning, Cassie starts to stir awake due to the sunlight that was creeping through the window that her bed was adjacent to. She takes in a breath and squints her eyes with mild discomfort on her face.
"Ow, bright light. Bright light." Cassie mutters.
Cassie looks around the room to find Danny asleep on the armchair next to her bed. A smile forms on her face.
"Danny?" She spoke up to wake him up which does the trick as he wakes in a start to find Cassie was awake. "Wakey wakey, Sleeping Beauty."
"I just meant to rest my eyes, I swear." Danny said whilst rubbing his eyes. He looks over at her and smiles. "Hi."
Cassie's cheeks turn rosy pink as she brushes her hair from her face. "What time is it?"
Danny looks at a clock on the wall. "Quarter to seven."
Cassie groans and rubs her eyes. "Too early."
"You have been asleep for almost ten hours." Danny stated.
"And yet I'm still tired, funny how that works." She quips. "Guess I must have been pretty out of it." She notices the bandages on her hands. "Really out of it because I look like the bride of the Mummy."
Danny laughs at her flippant nature. "Still able to laugh in the face of certain death, huh?"
"What can I say, it's a... minor deficiency." Cassie replied. "How are you feeling?"
"Better than when you had your nephew drag me out of that burning building with his super speed." Danny said frankly.
Cassie starts to slowly realize what was going on. "So... No selective amnesia."
Danny shakes his head. "Nope."
Cassie lays her head on the pillow. "Okay... So on a scale from one to infinity, how mad are you about all this?"
Danny smiles, "Four."
Cassie was thrown by that statement. "Excuse me?"
"I took your slumber to come to terms with the news." Danny tells her. "I know everything."
"Wow." Cassie exclaimed softly. "And by any chance, nobody is locked up, right?" Danny shakes his head. "Really? But I thought-"
"I might be a 'by the book' type of guy, I also have seen some extremely strange things that accepting all this is starting to come easy." Danny stated. "And dying tends to put things in perspective."
"Danny."
"You healed me, brought me back from the brink of death." He stated.
Cassie blinks, trying to come to grips with everything. "Yeah. I did."
"Can I ask why?" Danny asked in bewilderment. "It's not like I'm... important in the grand scheme of things."
"Y-you are important. To me." Cassie said with a weak smile.
Danny stares back at her. He wanted to let her speak.
Cassie lets out an exasperated breath. "I'm- I- God, I am such a jerk."
"Cassie..." Danny breathed.
"I'm in love with you." Cassie finally admitted. "Think I have been for a while."
Danny bites his lip and remains silent.
"I have lost a lot of things that I love, Danny. I sure as hell wasn't going to add you to that list." Cassie gently holds the wrist of his outstretched arm "The night we... when we..." She collected herself and squeezed his hand. "It was the best night of my life. I wouldn't have given myself up like that if I didn't feel this way."
Danny exhales the breath he had been holding and says "Guess it's my turn to confess something too."
Cassie stares at him as he takes her by the hand and pulls her in for a kiss. The couple kisses passionately for a minute until Danny pulls away and stares into her eyes.
"I want to be happy… with you." Danny admits.
Cassie beams and the two of them continue to kiss.
•••
•••
Main Cast
Fredward 'Freddie' Benson - Nathan Kress
Cassandra 'Cassie' Sinclair- Melissa Archer
Millicent 'Millie' Flores - Ashley Argota
Gabriel 'Gabe' Morgan - Landon Liboiron
Peter 'Pete' Sawyer - Charlie Hunnam
Also Starring
Detective Victor Flores- Daniel Dae Kim
Detective Daniel 'Danny' Parker - David Giuntoli
Galen Lennox- Tyler Hoechlin
Leopold 'Leo' Maxwell - Dylan O'Brien
Samantha 'Sam' Puckett - Jennette McCurdy
Guest Starring
Claudia 'Claud' Moon - Bex Taylor-Klaus
Alec Grayson - Colin Donnell
Jacob 'Jake' Logan - Thomas Sanders
Charlotte 'Charlie' Robertson – Shanae Grimes
Heather Chase - Ashley Benson
David Morgan - David Morrissey
Riley Danvers – Nick Zano
Trevor Wesker – Wentworth Miller
Missy Robinson – Haley Ramm
Rex Buchanan – Zane Holtz
Clement 'Clem' Lehane/Shadow – Cody Christian
Brad Warner – Justin Prentice
Nina Roberts – Tamara Tunie
Officer Penelope Simmons – Miriam McDonald
Dr Xavier Trenton – Seth Gilliam
Madeline 'Maddy' Danvers – Sabrina Carpenter
Dr Wilhelmina 'Bill' Adler – Mekia Cox
Mystery Man – Iain Glen
•••
And there it is. Again I do apologize for the extreme hiatus. I will do my best to update constantly in the future. In the casting, I did have some odd choices but I wanted to be a little self indulging. Hope it doesn't hurt the experience for any of you. And I hope the ending wasn't rushed, I have to get going on episode sixteen with the return of an icy enemy.
So what do you guys think will happen next? Feel free to take your guesses and leave me reviews or PMs if you want some hints. No spoilers, won't ruin anything for you guys because you all are awesome.
The rewrite is FINALLY done… Now the fun can begin.
Hope everyone likes it and if not, I am sorry. Your feedback is greatly appreciated. Catch y'all later
