Chapter Thirteen
"Really, that's it? I thought you said we had a problem." I shoved my hands into my pockets and sighed.
My partner shrugged at my dismissal, but Sundancer was of a different opinion. "Of course it is! Cody and Oliver are out there, stuck between the Protectorate and the fucking Teeth. And Krouse thought it was such a great idea to go off on his own!"
"Technically, Jess is out with…" The words evaporated in Ballistic's mouth when he caught Sundancer's glare.
Turning back to face me, Mars gazed into my eyes for a second before looking away. Her fists clenched as she forced herself to raise her eyes once more. "Help us- please."
The girl grinded her teeth as even the most minor thoughts of rebellion elicited a painful deterrent.
"Alright."
Sundancer stared for a moment longer before her knees collapsed beneath her. Ballistic rushed to help her and she accepted his support.
"What? Did you think I wouldn't do anything? It took quite a bit of preparation to get you seven. I'd need more discouragement than a few measly parahumans to stop me." I chuckled internally as I watched various emotions pass over Mars' face.
When she was done pulling herself back up with Ballistic's assistance, the girl glanced back up at me. "What do you need?"
"Not much. Does Trickster have his phone on him? If so, he can link up a mirror on his side for a quick extraction."
Quickly grabbing her phone, Mars dialed up the ex-leader. To our luck, Krouse did indeed have his cellular on him. After a couple words, the blonde girl passed the phone to me.
"Fiction?! It's a fucking mess-"
I cut him off before he could explain further. "Not now. You can explain while setting up a portal."
"But…!" Krouse cursed away from the receiver. "Fine, I got it, okay?"
There was an indistinguishable noise as the speaker crackled in and out of static. A squeaky door could be heard as Krouse groaned.
"As I was saying, it's gone to hell. Teeth members are going around looting and killing while the Butcher is fighting some villain. To make things worse, the Protectorate is here in large numbers because there isn't a single unpowered Teeth member. Oliver and Cody are stuck in one of the convenience stores."
"Wow. Very exciting, huh? Did you see what heroes were on the scene, or who the Butcher was fighting?" I wandered over to the general living space. Both because I usually walked when talking on the phone and to reach the closest mirror.
"No, I got most of that from Oliver. Uh, the mirror thing should be working now."
"Good. I'll be there shortly."
Handing the device back to its owner, I repeated the same motions as earlier to activate the link. Stepping into the portal, I located the newest addition and stepped back out.
Krouse was in his civilian clothes. At the very least, he was wearing a mask. Reminding me to do the same, I donned my book apparel.
"Alright." Rolling my shoulders, I got Trickster's attention. "We should make this quick. How far are your teammates?"
The parahuman exhaled as he reached for his breast pocket. One that was empty on his civilian attire. "Maybe a couple blocks east—but the area's crawling with capes. Aside from fighting our way in, I… I don't know how to get them out."
The building rumbled as a bit of dust scattered from the ceiling. I frowned at the thought of being in a disadvantageous position.
"Have you already tried calling them? The same mirror trick can be used to move others as well." Crossing my arms, I internally sighed at Trickster's disgruntled foot tapping.
"Of course we called them! It's how I knew where to look in the first place. It's just- Oliver hasn't responded to any more calls. And Co- Perdition doesn't answer my calls either way."
As Krouse's foot tapping steadily grew louder, I brainstormed a few ideas on how to proceed. Really, it came down to how much effort I wanted to put in.
"Alright, I think I have something." Feeling resolved, I walked to the nearest door and shoved it open. Light rushed in like water out of a floodgate and my eyes momentarily adjusted to the change of exposure.
Outside the building, which I now knew to be a vacated apartment, the smell of blood and soot permeated the atmosphere. Aside from the ruined streets and occasional pillars of black smoke, I didn't see any fires or dead bodies.
By the time I was done examining my surroundings, Trickster rushed out of the apartment to follow me. "You uh, never said what the plan was."
Cracking my neck, I looked at Trickster over my shoulder. "It's quite simple. I'll make a clear pathway directly to our entrapped associates. You said the two were about eastward?"
Registering my question, the parahuman slowly nodded. His lips slowly pulled into a frown, as though asking a silent question.
Ignoring him, I pulled out my phone to access my compass. It was too early in the morning to pinpoint the exact position of east with the tall buildings in the way.
I slowly followed the compass till I was exactly on the east most marker. Directly in my way was, ironically, the very building we just left.
Satisfied with my precision, I aimed forward with my index finger while my thumb pointed to the sky. Basically, the standard pointer-finger gun hand.
With one eye closed, I looked over my iron sight (read thumb) and pulled the trigger. The area in front of me, about six by six square feet, crumpled up into a paper ball. And beyond that, for a good quarter of a mile, was nothing but buildings with square holes and paper in various forms of deterioration.
Gazing down the tunnel-like path, I could spot what looked to be a small convenience store at the very end.
"Nice. Looks like I didn't hit any bystanders. It would be a shame to miss the spectacle up close." Hooking my thumbs in my pockets, I strode to the confinements of the two Travelers. "Come on, if we're quick, we might miss whatever fighting is going on."
