Dock 17, Negative Island - 00:07AM, 4th September
Janissary finished checking his online account, Avalon had kept her word and the money had arrived only five minutes after she and her associate had left, only somebody with teleportation and time travel abilities could get funds into an account that quickly, he thought. Vandal was beginning to pack up, in just a few minutes they would be gone, as a gesture of faith to the convicts Janissary considered leaving the portals open as long as the Sarin Gas had dissipated from the area around the jump-gates but ultimately decided that leaving SHIELD to clean up his mess would be more fun.
On the screen a message popped up indicating that Connors had just entered Anhialus's camp, the self proclaimed leader of the Negative Zone, the xenophobic alien menace heading on an intercept course with the intruder. Typing in a command Janissary watched as the homing nanites in the Lizard's body overriding his motor skills and sending him scurrying back to home. If the Sarin Gas and Prisoner 000 failed to exterminate the remaining population, then Anhialus would succeed. Janissary wasn't an idiot though Anhialus would try and break through the jump gates but from now on when the portals were activated the fuel would detonate swallowing the entire prison in a massive Thermobaric Nuclear explosion.
"Jan." Vandal called. "Phone call for you." she announced tossing a cell phone, it's back supporting a freaky looking antenna that boosted transmission in and out of the locked down silo.
"Hello." Janissary said, "Yes I am just finishing work right now. Yes. Yes if the price is right. I am interested in what you have to offer. I can be in position for that date. Yes. Yes your call is confidential. What? Kill the girl? Yes Boss it's as good as done." Janissary said as he talked on the phone. As soon as he said 'kill the girl' Vandal reached for the slim pistol on her holster. As he hung up Janissary saw a barrel of a silenced USP .45 trained on his head.
"Who was that?" Vandal asked.
"Confidential." Janissary replied coolly.
"Tell me and I'll make it quick." Vandal ordered.
"Put the gun down and I'll do the same." Janissary replied. Vandal swore something in Spanish before pulling the trigger, the gun clicking. Angrily she pulled out the magazine to see that it was empty. Janissary ripped a patch of synthetic skin off his arm revealing a metallic hatch drilled into this muscles and tendons, the bullets tumbling out. "Override code 073-126. Remote Control all but vocal systems." he ordered, "Now drop the gun." he said.
Vandal opened her fingers and dropped the pistol. "What the hell did you do to me?"
"I put neural control nanites in your popcorn." Janissary told her, "If you had done your homework you would have found that I have no allergy to corn like I claimed. It was then when I knew you were disposable. Now head into the Negative Zone." he ordered, "Take this." he said throwing her an MP5. "It's loaded with anti-cancer rounds, go kill Deadpool."
Robotically Vandal walked over to the portal before walking through the blue disc and disappeared before Janissary switched the portal to cool down mode before altering his record and overlaying the footage from Dock 17 with fabricated footage. "Commander." he called, "There had a change of plans; you and your men are about to become Heros of the Negative Island Siege, "I congratulate you on the capture of a highly dangerous prisoner."
"Who?" the commander asked.
"Me." Janissary replied smiling at him.
Guard Control Room, Level 0 - 00:12AM, 4th September
Tate finished sealing up the cracks and ventilation shaft, reducing and finally stopping the Sarin Gas's infiltration of the Guard Control Room. Over on one of the military style beds Boomerang begun to show signs of life as Deadpool drew on the Australian's face with a thick permanent marker while Unicorn cursed in Russian as the tap in the kitchen refused to work. Slipping onto the computer chair Tate brought up the screen showing a map of prison before activating the remaining atmospheric sensors in an attempt to locate which areas were still affected by the gas.
"Hey Tate what are you doing?" Deadpool asked as she flipped the map to turn it into a three-dimensional model, the screen flickering and occasionally parts erupted into patches of electronic snow before reverting back to normal.
"I'm charting where the gas is and hopefully trying to work out where it came from. I know for a fact that the Sarin Gas wasn't installed as standard in this prison, so unless Norman Osborne installed it I guess our lovely host Janissary smuggled them in." Tate replied before hitting the print screen button, the ancient printer springing to life and nosily transferring the map to paper. Along with the map Tate also printed out a list of prisoner locations that Deadpool took and scrutinized.
"Ah murder but who did it?" he asked no one in particular as her pulled a deer stalker over his head.
"Who was murdered?" Boomerang asked in a cockney accent.
"Well Dr. Myers it seems that in addition to everyone who was dead last time that Cutthroat, Powderkeg, Poundcakes and Skein have all succumbed to the deadly vapours. The problem is who of the remaining suspects is responsible. Nobody is above suspicion not even me the humble detective for hire Wade Winston Sherlock Wilson, the greatest detective who ever lived." Deadpool explained in a British Accent that all four countries in the United Kingdom would find insulting, "It is a puzzle."
"I think Stink Bug did it, in the maintenance shaft with a set of Sarin gas grenades." Tate deduced.
"Now Ms. Odette Adler, we must not jump to conclusions." Deadpool chided, "Detective Unicorn De Stradd what's your theory?"
"I think the water is off, air recycling too which could possibly mean the shields that keep the aliens out may be offline as well." Unicorn told Deadpool.
"I meant about the murder." Deadpool said, "Hey what's up with the computer?" he asked.
"Something is disrupting the electronics in the prison, judging from the very inaccurate energy readings the computers are recording there emanating from what looks like a Jump Gate amplification chamber on Sub Level 5." Tate explained, "Electro is in the area so maybe he has something to do with it." she added coyly as Deadpool picked up the map printout and studied it placing a monocle over his left eye.
"So the gas seems concentrated around the entrances to the prison as well as access points such as Guard Stations and Loading Docks." he analyzed, "The main part of the prison was unaffected, if I didn't know any better somebody whose name begins with J is trying to keep us from escaping." The other three stared at him with looks of disbelief. "What?" Deadpool asked, "I get to have one amazingly smart comment per chapter."
"Bloody Hell." Boomerang cursed, "What did you do to my face?" he asked as he checked the plastic mirror above the sink.
"So where is the gas coming from again?" he asked Tate quickly, ignoring the enraged Australian.
"Sub Level 14 from a maintenance hatch leading to the oxygen processors. From there it was able to go anywhere the bomber wanted." Tate answered, "I'm guessing Stink Bug because you know he stinks, in this case quite literally."
"Alright so just beam us down Botswanary." Deadpool said. "You know that's not as good as Scotty, also harder to say."
"Unfortunately the EM interference has locked down teleporters as well as other systems." Tate answered getting up from the computer desk and cautiously burning through part of the sealed door. "Looks like we'll have to take the stairs." she announced as she checked for any signs of the Sarin Gas.
"I hate stairs." Deadpool moaned as he was followed out of the room by Boomerang and Unicorn.
Dark Energy Amplifying Chamber, Sub Level 5 - 00:38AM, 4th September
Unicorn pulled the door to the Amplifying Chamber open, the electronic lock had long since stalled and had probably been the first casualty of the strange EM interference that was now infecting the rest of Negative Island's systems. Inside the room there was a strange blue layer of light particles that bobbed and whizzed like fire-flies at about waist height.
"Any more ideas?" Boomerang asked Deadpool as the group split up to search the room for Electro's body and clues to what had happened in the room.
"Nope as I said one good idea per chapter." Deadpool said as he headed into the energy station.
"Williams, would you say that this chamber has been used recently, say since the breakout begun." Unicorn asked pointing to the aligned rings leading to the Jump Gate.
"I would." Tate told him, "Somebody got out, possibly before interference got too high." she announced as Boomerang stalked past the guidance computer, "Boomerang check the computer see where our jail birds fled too."
"Who made you boss?" Boomerang complained as he checked the computer, "Poor Saps," he muttered, "They headed to Mt Erebus."
"Is that bad?" Deadpool asked as she pressed numerous buttons in the charging centre.
"Yeah I'd classify that as bad." Boomerang announced, "Mt Erebus is a dormant volcano in Antarctica, the nearest sanctuary is the Savage Lands and well, from the name you can probably guess how friendly that place is." The room suddenly shook and the particles vibrated, almost like a heart beat.
"What did you do?" Tate asked Deadpool.
"I pressed buttons." he said shyly. Tate walked over from the base of the rings to the charging centre to see the computer going through an ambient energy discharge routine, often used to bleed off excess dark energy that powered the jump gate. "Did I do bad?" he asked
"Well it's not bad but it doesn't really help." Tate told him, "New Rule Wade don't press anything, pull any leavers or accidently shoot the discharge canisters up there."
"Uh what if there is a giant blue man formed of electricity behind you." Deadpool asked.
"This isn't a time for you hallucinations." Tate chided, "Big glowing Blue Man my ass." she announced. Turning around she looked into the amplification chamber to see Boomerang and Unicorn staring up at the aforementioned glowing man. As her jaw dropped open, Deadpool whispered something in her ear. "Touche." she muttered before leaving the booth dragging Deadpool out with her.
"Electro." Boomerang called up, "Is that you?"
"It burns, your interference will not be tolerated." the man growled his voice hissing and spluttering like a live cable exposed to the air. "You have caused me pain and now I will make you suffer."
"Electro it's me Boomerang, your buddy," Boomerang said trying to reason with Electro, his body now composed completely of pure energy, "What happened, who did this?"
"I was working on opening a portal when my body was disrupted by a plasma burst, the combination of my bio-electricity, radioactive dark matter and plasma caused my human form to vaporize leaving me scattered across this chamber. I begun to reform when somebody discharged the energy in this room. When I find them they will be punished." Electro bellowed, "You all are guilty and you all must be punished." he announced holding onto the rings, electricity coursing through the structure and the floor and up the bodies of the group of villains who screamed in pain.
"Now time to make you four another death by lightning statistic." Electro hissed as his body sucked electricity from the ambient lighting and computer in the room before stockpiling it in his hands, a massive crackling orb of energy ready to be released as he got ready for the final strike.