Hey guys! Here's the next episode. Fun fact this one didn't exist at all until I was finishing the last one and decided this needed to happen before I could move on to the next. Extra episode: Yay! The contents of it: not so 'Yay'! It is as terrible as the title proclaims. To make it up to you, the next one will be much more fun and silly, it will still have angst, we're too deep into this terrible plot to be purely cheerful but it's the last breath of relief before the finale, so enjoy it.
Until then, read this one and please leave a review. You're amazing and I appreciate every one of you!
Danger S1E26: Devastation
March 13, 2022
The relief the six heroes feel upon arriving back in the Man's Nest is short lived as they notice that all the lights and power are off, and outside the window Swellview is a swath of darkness in the fading twilight. "We're not done yet," Henry says. "He's out there attacking the city. We'd need go find him."
"And put that sword to use," Chapa agrees vengefully.
Henry nods, observing it again. "We're back in Swellview now, get your masks on." They run to their lockers to get gumballs, Henry not bothering since he's still in his Dystopian uniform with a mask.
"If feels so good to change," Mika says once she's in her normal uniform. "And as soon as we finish him off, I'm taking a long hot shower."
"A full night sleep on a real mattress," Miles whists with her.
Dawson almost smiles with them, looking cautiously hopeful. "Guys, if the sword works. This could be all over before we go to bed tonight." More unadmitted noises of relief echo around the room.
"Let's get it done," Henry says.
"Wait, where's Schwoz?" Bose asks. "We should tell him we're back."
"Schwoz?!" Mika calls through the empty Man's Nest.
"Schwoz!" Henry echoes her call.
They all listen, though obviously not hearing the same as Mika. "He's not in the mountain," she says.
"Are you sure?" Bose asks worried.
"I can't hear anything but our six heartbeats. So, unless he doesn't have one…" she cuts herself off looking sick. "He's not here."
Henry frowns, "We'll find him later, lets deal with Shadow Man first."
They teleport to the city, then again as they search around for any sign of attack. The entire place seems empty. Nobody, no cars, no movement catches their eyes as the go from one block to the next. The silence is eerie. "Where is everyone?" Dawson asks.
"Did Shadow Man get everyone while we were gone?" Bose worries tearfully. "He knew we were in Dystopia from the first day. He's had so long to…"
"No," Mika cuts him off. "He couldn't have killed everyone. He didn't. They're just hiding or something."
"Can you hear them?" Chapa asks.
Mika pauses to listen. The rest of them staging as quiet as they can. The desperation on her face growing as she listens harder and turns her reverse-hearing aides up as high as she can. "Maybe…" She says grasping for something. "That way, to the north. There's voices, whispers."
"How far?" Miles asks.
"At least a few blocks," she replies.
"Maybe they're all taking refuge in one place… like we did during the Zombkinis, at City Hall and Hip Hop Puree." Chapa suggests.
"City Hall is a few blocks north," Bose says.
"Let's try City Hall then," Henry determines.
They teleport to the main foyer of the building. It's as dark and empty as the rest of the city. But Mika perks up, "They're louder now. I can hear them." She listens more closely, eyes closed and turning her head one way and the other to locate the source of the whispering voices she hears. "Does City Hall have a basement?" she questions.
"Yeah," Henry says. "Dr. Denoument's lab is down there. And probably some storage space."
"There's also a secret emergency bunker down there," Bose says. "It's supposed to be able to withstand bombs and stuff and hold thousands of people. My step-dad showed me one time."
"The voices are coming from beneath us," Mika says.
"Then down we go," Henry says. Miles teleports them again.
"If there's a secret bunker, why didn't we hide there during the Zombkinis?" Chapa asks.
This time when they reappear there is a series of screams that ripple away from them. In quick succession several voices shout "Freeze!" and "Don't Move!" at them. The six heroes end up as startled as all the civilians around them. A handful of cops stand among the candle-lit crowd, guns trained on the heroes. One of them is a little too jumpy, for as they're all shouting at them not to move, he pulls the trigger on his gun and a bullet comes flying at them. Instinctively Danger raises his forcefield to deflect it. Then with a wave Brainstorm sends it into the ceiling instead of letting it ricochet into the crowd.
"Sheesh! What the heck, man?" AWOL demands.
"Don't tell us not to move and then fire at us," Shoutout reprimands.
Volt directs her magnetism at the jumpy cop and pulls his gun away from him. "You are way too trigger-happy!" she says. "First the pot shot at Danger, now this?"
"Danger?" Chief Stalwart says walking quickly through the crowd as people recognize and realize who the six are. Just as the screams had rippled, so does the news. Some people peer happy and hopeful at them while others glare and scowl. Chief Stalwart reaches their side, "Oh thank God, you're back. Stand down, men."
"Stalwart," Danger greets. "Why is everyone gathered here? You evacuated the city?"
"A lot of it," he shrugs. "Follow me, the mayor will be glad to see you." He directs them through the crowd. "We've got a few thousand people here, others found different places to gather or hid in their homes. Everyone refuses to go out in the city. They're terrified of being alone. They all think Shadow Man is going to pop out and attack them… which isn't a baseless fear."
"He's been attacking unchecked for days," Danger nods knowingly, stepping around families and little groups. Everyone staring at him and chattering intensely with each other. "But is keeping everyone gathered like this a good idea at all?"
Chief Stalwart casts his gaze around at the numerous civilians. He sighs, "Probably not. But they feel safer and won't go anywhere. At least we can keep an eye on everyone while we're gathered."
"But when Shadow Man does show up, they'll be fish in a barrel." Danger protests.
"Yeah," Chief Stalwart nods. "But we don't know what else to do. He's slaughtering people left and right no matter where they are." Danger grimaces.
"How many?" Shoutout asks. Chief Stalwart stops walking and looks back at her. She asks again, "How many has he killed while we were gone?"
Chief Stalwart looks away, all around the room but not at the heroes. "Too many," he mutters. After another breath he seems to work up the nerve to ask. "Where were you? Why were you gone so long?"
Danger avoids eye contact this time as he answers. "We were looking for a way to stop him."
"Did you find one?" the chief questions.
"Yeah," Danger answers, grasping the hilt of the Dark Angels' sword tightly. "Do you know where he is?"
"Not until he appears," he apologizes. "We know he's been all over, but we still can't track him. And all the power is out, even wireless and battery powered things. We can't contact anyone outside of this bunker. Any of the citizens gathered elsewhere could be under attack and we have no way to know."
"Power stealing magic. Same as he used in the first attack," Volt notes.
Chief Stalwart nods and shrugs, "Whatever magic spell he's cast even seems to dampen the light and warmth of the candles. Morale is wildly low. There's very little optimism around here."
"Danger!" a little girl's voice cries happily and he finds a little body pressed in a hug around his leg.
He looks down to see Maribel Hall. "Mari?"
"Hi!" she beams up at him.
Chief Stalwart smiles. "She is one of the brightest little spots around here. Her mom though…"
"Maribel!" Evelyn Hall shouts, racing after her daughter. She pries the little girl off Danger's leg and gets after her angrily, "You need to stay with me. You are not allowed to run away!"
"Mommy!" Maribel whines. "Is Danger!"
"Evening, Evelyn," Danger greets.
She gives him a cold stare in return. "You're back then," she says coolly. "Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea the destruction you let happen by leaving?"
"Language, you got a three-year-old right there," AWOL admonishes.
"Worry about your responsibilities, not mine," she says hostilely back.
"Ma'am, please," Chief Stalwart tries to quell her, but she is only getting started.
Her voices raises as she demands, "Where were all of you while your villain was massacring the people of this city? You abandoned all those people to die at his hand! You didn't come when the entire city was calling for help!"
"Ms. Hall, please," Chief Stalwart says more forcefully. "You need to calm down. You're causing alarm and I need to get Danger to see the mayor."
"What he should be doing is stopping that villain!" She shouts, several angry people shout their agreement from the crowd.
"Mommy," Maribel complains.
"We're working on it," Chief Stalwart assures.
"Your assurance isn't worth much! You've all been working on it for days! For months! And you haven't stopped him! How about you make those promises to the DiNozzos, or the Walnuts and the Macklins? Or any of the other families that have been torn apart by Shadow Man. If there's any of them left to tell."
"Wait, what?" AWOL asks.
Shoutout beside him also clearly caught the mention of their last name. "Oh no," she mutters quietly to him. "Do they think we're dead? We've been gone for days and with the attacks..." They share a look.
Out of the crowd walks Mayor Blithe drawn to the noise. "Ms. Hall please restrain yourself. This behavior will not help the situation at hand," she says sedately. "Danger, Danger Force, Lil' Dynomite. Good to see you back. Please tell me you come with good news."
"Yes," Danger answers.
"Says he has a way to beat Shadow Man," Chief Stalwart says.
"Beat him?" she asks taken aback.
"Yeah," Lil' Dynomite says. "When we find him, we can end this."
"End it? Completely?" Mayor Blithe asks with amazement and a bit of hope.
"Probably. Hopefully. All it should take is one good hit," Danger says holding the sword up to display it to them. They look at it curious and unsure.
"You has a sword?" Maribel asks Danger, having snuck around her mom again. "You going to get bad guy with?"
"Maribel!" Evelyn chastises.
"Yeah. It'll stop him," Danger promises.
"It's a magic sword," Brainstorm says.
Everyone in the vicinity looks on with wonder and curiosity. "I am definitely going to need more of an explanation," Mayor Blithe says. "And I have things to tell you as well. Come with me, there are some more private places we can talk."
They leave Chief Stalwart behind, where he'll be able to keep an eye out for trouble. "I'll let you know if we see anything."
"Thank you, Stalwart," she says. After a minute she asks, "Can that sword really stop him?"
Danger nods, "Yeah, at least that's what they said. With one solid hit, it should kill him."
She raises her brow. "Kill him? How?" she wonders. "How could you even land a hit? He's untouchable."
"The sword should be able to help with that too," Danger says. "I don't know how yet, I haven't got to see it in action."
"But you're sure it'll work?" She asks anxiously.
He shrugs, "Pretty sure."
"Where did you get it?" She asks.
"Some acquaintances. It's better if you don't know details," he says. "What's happened here? Stalwart didn't get to say a lot. How bad has it been?"
She sighs, "Bad, really bad. Turning off the power cut us off from the rest of the world. And something weird, magic I guess, keeps anyone from going in or out. The entire city's been shadowy, the sunlight dimmer. And so many killings, more than ever before."
"How many?" Danger presses.
"Dozens, maybe hundreds. We can't really keep a rolling count," she says remorsefully.
Danger breathes exhausted and downtrodden, "That many?"
"He hasn't really taken a break. It's been one to the next," she explains. She hesitates thinking. "I need to tell you, the first victims…"
They've reached the far side of the large bunker room and exit through to a hallway. It's almost void of people but Vice Mayor Willard comes running towards them with a wild scream of, "Where have you all been!? Where were you!?"
"Willard," Mayor Blithe tries to dissuade.
He just goes on yelling, "Shadow Man attacked the city. He's been attacking for days! He's killed hundreds! He killed my wife! And you weren't here to save her!" Grabbing onto Danger's jacket he demands, "Why weren't you here?! You could've saved her!"
"You- your wife?" Danger asks in alarm.
"Shadow Man killed her?" Volt asks with equal astonishment.
Brainstorm's eyes flick around as he puts together the terrible news, "Your wife? But your wife is my…" Shoutout grabs his hand and shushes him quickly. He holds onto her with shaking hands. She tries to keep him calm.
Luckily Danger still has the vice mayor's attention. He only glances over at his distraught sidekick quickly, before turning back to the vice mayor with the mayor to try to calm him down. Mayor Blithe works on her vice, talking him into letting go of Danger and go relax in a private room.
"We need a private room," AWOL tells Danger.
He nods, already knowing this. "Mayor Blithe, why don't you take care of him. I'll find you later to discuss the situation. We'll go find some space to clean up and gets some rest," he suggests to her while she's seeing the distraught Vice Mayor Willard off.
The kids take the queue to try to get away. "No, no," Mayor Blithe insists. "I need to talk to you. There's something I must tell you. Please follow me, I have a private room we can use. Bose can mourn without anyone seeing and you can all use it freely as you need to deal with things when we're done, but I have more important and terrible news to tell you than just Mrs. O'Brian's death. Please."
Every one of them look at her perplexed at Bose's name. "Did you just…?" AWOL asks.
"Yes," she whispers, looking around to assure herself that the vice mayor is gone and no one else is around. "I know Bose's identity, but there's more than that. Please come with me."
(Theme Song: Henry's Voice dubbed over the image of Captain Man's bronze statue. "It all just kinda happened. It wasn't supposed to be this way. He shouldn't have died. But now here I am, doing his job." Cut scene to Man's Nest in chaos as the members of Danger Force and Schwoz run around reacting to an emergency alert blaring through the base. "I'm not sure I'm ready for this." Henry states and the music of the theme song begins to play...)
She leads them into a separate room of the bunker, a sort of office mixed with a living space; there's a desk and a cot with a small dresser and filing cabinet. "How do you know who I am?" Bose asks as soon as the door is locked behind them.
She casts a guilty look at him, "I couldn't avoid knowing who you are," she says. "Even though Raymond Manchester revealed his identity in his will I swore I would stay away from anything that could connect the dots to your identities. But, well, he owned Swellview Academy for the Gifted and passed it on to Danger, and I already knew the Bose went there. And that he was one of only four students at the time. It was too obvious to ignore, but I swore that I wouldn't ever say anything about it to anyone."
"You've known his secret this whole time," Volt says surprised.
"Because my step-dad is the vice mayor?" Bose figures.
She nods. "Okay," Danger nods, "That makes sense."
"I never would've said anything," she promises. "But now…"
"My mom" Bose says, eyes filled with tears, "She's dead?"
The mayor nods, empathetically watching him sit down on the cot and cry. Shoutout sits beside him, hugging him and giving him her shoulder to cry on. "I'm sorry, Bose."
After a moment of grieved silence, aside from his sobs, Danger asks, "What else did you need to tell us that you brought us in here for?"
Mayor Blithe gulps, "I- I'm sorry. I don't know how to tell you all this. I don't know where to start… er, I suppose I should start with this: I know who you all are, not just Bose."
"What?" they all question out of sync with each other as they look up at her surprised. Chapa goes on with, "You just said you were avoiding clues to put our identities together."
"I was," the mayor assures. "As much as I could, I avoided anything to do with SW.A.G. but then the avalanche happened, and I couldn't stay away. I had to go see how bad it was, find out if you were trapped inside. I was concerned about you." Her admittance of this is somewhat bashful.
"And you met all our parents there," Mika realizes. "They told you our names and it wasn't hard to figure out who was who."
The mayor nods again. "Yes, I spoke with the Macklins and the de Silvas, and the concerned teacher Kris Hart, whose son worked at the school and who came back with a brand-new student to enroll on the same day Danger had teamed up with Lil' Dynomite. So, I know all your real names. But that's not my point with this, just background.
"The more important news is that because I know who you all are, when Shadow Man started this siege of Swellview, I understood why his first victims were more than just seemingly random citizens."
"Who'd he kill?" Bose asks in a terrified and perceptive expression. The expression matched on most his friends faces, all of the desperately hoping she won't say who they fear she will.
"It's not only Mrs. O'Brien he went after. Some of the first people he targeted the night this all started were all of your families," she tells them in a small, defeated voice. Mayor Blithe goes on explaining, "Willard wasn't home when Mrs. O'Brien was attacked. But he got all the rest of your parents. Herman and Angela Macklin, Jake and Kris Hart, Alejandro and Alejandra de Silva along with the five de Silva children that were in the house."
They all recoil at the news; Mika bursting into sobs, Miles dropping to his knees on the floor, Chapa pacing away with a furious cry and sparking, Henry turning aside to stare blankly at nothing, and Dawson looking around a little lost. Bose curls up with Mika, crying; and Miles crawls over to join them.
"I- I'm sorry," Mayor Blithe says meekly. "I'll leave you. You can stay as long as you want, I'll be sure no one disturbs you." She walks out the door and leaves them.
Several long moments pass without any change to the situation.
Eventually, Chapa stops pacing to join her teammates, the cot becoming quite full as they crowd together to mourn. Dawson looks on, unsure what to do or what to say. With the Danger Force four together he decides to step up to Henry instead. Henry hasn't moved, like he's frozen in place he doesn't react to anything the rest of them do until Dawson reaches out to touch him, asking quietly, "Henry?"
Henry pulls away from him and glances over, suddenly aware again of the room around him. His eyes move to the cot and the other four mourners crying together and quickly move away again. He looks in every other direction and breathes heavily. Nothing offers his turmoiled heart relief. His eyes land eventually on the dark sword and his fist tightens around it again. With a shaky breath he quickly instructs, "You guys stay here. I'll be back in a bit." He walks out the door.
He doesn't stop moving, he doesn't dare, he doesn't want to think. He ignores the door opening and closing again behind him. He walks back through the bunker, another set of feet following behind him, the kid calling his name repeatedly, switching after a couple calls of "Henry!" to "Danger!". Dawson catches hold of his jacket arm and tugs. "Wait! Where're you going?" Henry tries to pull away again and keep moving but Dawson digs his heels in and pulls back. "Henry, stop."
"Go back to the others. Don't worry about anything else. With… after that news… you guys should be there for each other. Give each other some comfort, some company. You shouldn't be alone." Henry says clumsily between labored breaths.
"You shouldn't be alone," Dawson counters very seriously. "You should go back, be with them for comfort. You're the one who just got that bad news."
"I- I'm- I'll be- I don't-" Henry can't get any real words out. "Just, go care of yourself and them; I can…"
"What?" Dawson asks. "Brush off the news that your parents are dead? Handle the grief? Ignore it all together? That's ridiculous and untrue. You still have days where Captain Man's death gets you all out of sorts." Henry huffs, blinking away tears and chocking on air as he shakes his head at the kid beside him. Dawson goes on, reminding Henry that, "I didn't lose anyone, I don't have any family to lose. You're the one suffering."
"I'm fine," Henry snipes, trying to walk away again. "I'm going to find Shadow Man and kill him."
"Okay," Dawson nods, walking along with him. "But you're not going alone. I'm not letting you be alone until you've had a chance to calm down and face what's happened to you."
"The others need you more," Henry contends.
"No," Dawson says. "They've got each other. I've got you."
Henry looks down at the kid's stubborn and caring expression. "Okay," He accepts quietly.
(Commercial Break)
"How are we going to find him by walking around the city?" Dawson asks rhetorically. "In the dark, when no lights are working?"
Henry stalks down the street a few paces ahead of him. "Better than sitting around waiting for him to find us."
"Except you don't know where to find him, and he's way more likely to attack there, where people are. He can't steal souls where there's no one around," Dawson says gesturing to the silent, empty street.
"We have to do something! I can't sit around! I won't wait for him to kill anyone else!" Henry grouches.
"I know you don't want to sit around. You're really not good at sitting still, especially when you're upset. But you can't outrun grief, and you're not helping anything by wandering the city," Dawson says.
"I'm not running from anything," Henry defends. "We're going to find Shadow Man, and we'll kill him. I can't rest until he's dead."
"Then let's go where the people are," Dawson says. "We can protect them better from where they are."
Henry shakes his head, "We need to draw him away from them, so no one else gets hurt. It's me he wants, so I should be able to lure him away from all of them."
"Yeah, he wants you, or at least your soul, for something. But he hasn't ever come after you. Every time we run into him, he leaves as quickly as he can. He staged this attack on the city because he found out you were in Dystopia. And now you have a magic sword that is supposed to kill him. He's not going to come after you," Dawson points out logically. Henry huffs and walks faster. "Henry," Dawson begs. "Please, just slow down."
"I can't!" Henry says. "I can't slow down. I can't stop, Lil' D. I need to keep moving. I need to do something, to find him. I can't sit still."
"You need to keep running so you don't totally lose it?" Dawson says, knowing.
"Yes!" Henry shouts. Finally, he stops walking. With a heaving chest he continues, "If I can't find something else to do, I'm going to lose it. I can't be useful to anyone, I can't protect the city from him, if I'm too busy breaking down. I need to find him and kill him before I can do anything else."
"But you're not going to find him like this," Dawson stresses. "And you can't hope to beat him in a fight if you're too torn up inside."
Henry stubbornly blinks back tears. "He killed our parents to try to cripple to us. I can't let him win like that."
"He already did. He killed your parents," Dawson says frowning. "And he'll keep winning like that if you don't fight smarter. He's got a lot of advantages, don't waste the few we've got."
Henry sniffs and turns about in the darkness. With some terribly shaky breathes he starts walking back towards City Hall. "Fine."
Dawson trots to catch up with him. "We'll find him. When we're ready, we'll make him pay for everyone he's killed."
The air around them drops in temperature, the shadows of the early night stretch across the street. "I doubt that very much," Shadow Man rumbles in his deep voice, "But feel free to try. I am more than ready to have the two of you for myself."
Henry and Dawson spin on their heels to face the villain. Glaring at him ferociously, Henry attacks. He swings the sword as hard as he can at Shadow Man with a yell. Shadow Man easily sidesteps the swing. The second swing is no more effective than the first. "Oh, pitiful. Do you even know how to wield a sword?" Shadow Man mocks.
Henry holds it ready to fight, "Come and find out." His form is a little sloppy, but his attack bears some level of skill. Shadow Man weaves away from three sword slashes before sending a low attack of his own towards Henry. He drops the blade with a quicks swish and slices the shadow in two. It dissolves back into the natural darkness of the night.
"Not bad," Shadow Man comments. "So, it's revenge then. Does little Hart miss his mommy and daddy? I didn't even get a chance to pay your sister a visit. Florida was too far out of the way when I had such unrestricted access to all of Swellview."
Henry comes at him again, yelling without words. Shadow Man dodges again, only the sleeve of his cloak catching the blade and being sliced with a long clean slit. "I'm going to kill you," Henry swears.
"No," Shadow Man disagrees calmly, investigating the slice in his cloak. "I am going to kill you. That little trinket the angels gave you won't stop me. No matter what magic they've placed within it, I am more powerful. I have consumed so many souls in your generous absence that my power is unmatched through all the world's history of magic. I am finally ready to have you, as I have so long wanted. Your soul, and the souls of your righteous little sidekicks are finally going to be mine."
"No!" Henry steps forward, slashing swiftly. The sound of Shadow Man in pain is somewhat surprising but a relief to hear. A long straight cut splits the back of his pant leg, and a thin line of thick, dark blood stands out against the exposed skin beneath.
Shadow Man retaliates with a fierce wave of power. Henry gets knocked off his feet, dropping the sword. "Better, but still not enough." He sends another two dark blasts towards Henry. Henry puts up his shield and scrambles towards the sword. Shadow Man bears down on him.
"Leave him alone!" Dawson yells, launching into the air with a quick burst from his boots and coming down at Shadow Man with his plasma shooters hot. Shadow Man growls in irritation. His power swirls around, whipping the air around and throwing Dawson off his flight path. Dawson turns off his thrusters to drop to the ground, but he doesn't stop firing his plasma. Running hard once back on the ground, fighting the wind, he gets in close to Shadow Man. "You won't have anyone! You're not going to hurt Danger! And you're going to pay for what you did to his family!"
Shadow reaches out to grab Dawson, catching and lifting him easily with one hand under his chin. He stares at him, expression hidden within his black helmet. "You could not have picked a more worthy apprentice, Danger. He is a true echo of your light, perhaps he could even come to outshine you. As you did your dear old Captain. But he won't have the chance." Shadow Man initiates his spell to take Dawson's soul, moaning in horrid ecstasy. "No one else has touched this level of satisfying save the taste I got of you."
"You're never going to get another!" Dawson swears, even as he chokes from the pain.
"Lil' D!" Henry shouts, searching for where the dark sword had landed. It blends well into the darkness of the night. His hand finds the hilt, though he still cannot see it and he grabs it, swinging it hard at Shadow Man. The sword connects with the villain's forearm, tearing the cloak and shattering the plate armor and Shadow Man's radius bone. Shadow Man screams and the darkness around them is torn apart as every streetlight in the city suddenly flares back to life. All three are are pushed back by the force of the blow, crashing down to lay on the ground, stunned for a long moment.
Henry is the first to get to his feet. He glances at Shadow Man, rolling and groaning on the asphalt, and steps quickly to Dawson's side. Dawson is blinking in shock up at the stars and streetlights above. Henry grabs him, turning Dawson to face him and checking him over. "Are you okay?"
Dawson sways as he sits up, saying, "That was the worst thing ever."
"Yeah," Henry says. He helps Dawson to his feet. "He got you good. That was too close."
"Next time it won't be," Shadow Man swears, broken arm clutched to his chest as he stands. "You cannot stop me. I will have both your souls!"
"Wanna bet?" Henry asks, brandishing the sword in front of himself and Dawson defensively. Shadow Man makes no move towards them. "You're not going to kill anyone else. You're not taking any more of my family from me. You're going to die, here and now." Henry steps forward and points the sword at the villain.
Shadow Man steps back. Henry smirks balefully and moves another step towards him. Shadow Man retreats yet again. Henry chuckles darkly satisfied. He charges forward quickly and slashes the sword. Shadow Man sends a desperate blast of darkness to meet it, moving back all the while. Henry pursues him, slicing through every bit of magic he sends his way.
Henry and Dawson chase the limping villain down the street. They catch up to him with ease. Shadow Man turns to meet them, hands held out radiating with as much dark magic as he can muster. Dawson is stopped from flying any closer. It's does nothing to stop Henry. He hits Shadow Man with the sword, breaking the visor of his helmet. Shadow Man yells horridly in pain and anger, one solid black eye and some dark veined skin visible now. Shadow Man collapses to his knee and lashes out with a thin razor of darkness, one Henry is unable to block quick enough. It cuts and immediately cauterizes a line deep into his flesh. Dawson swoops in from above. Shadow Man sends a black slash of magic at him too, literally cutting him out of the sky.
Henry clutches his wound with one hand and swings the sword with the other. Again, Shadow Man screams in pain as a long, shallow laceration opens in his side. An uncontrolled blast of darkness burst from the shallow cut, cracking the ground and felling the nearest streetlamp in its path. Henry is untouched by it as it splits at the sword's edge still held before him.
Shadow Man's scream echoes in an unearthly way. Then it cuts off abruptly and Shadow Man is gone. Henry and Dawson look where he'd been, stunned into stillness for a moment. "No. No. No. No." Henry mutters.
"Did you get him?" Dawson asks unsure.
"You killed him!" another voice shouts. Down the street a door has opened and half a dozen people are looking out from what must be a second gathering place of citizens. They're watching Danger and must have seen the end of the fight. They all begin to clap and cheer, "Danger got him! He got the Shadow Man!"
"No," Henry shakes his head.
"That was it?" Dawson questions. "He's dead? Just like that?"
Henry shakes his head, "It can't be."
"The Dark Angels said it would only take one hit," Dawson says.
"One good hit," Henry corrects, "to a vital part of his body. That means head or torso, I only got his helmet and scratched his ribs, it couldn't have been enough." He doesn't sound entirely sure. "I don't know. We… we'll have to find him to be sure."
"How? We still don't have a way to do that," Dawson asks. His next statement comes out as a disappointed and furious burst. "We had him! We were so close!"
Henry is too upset to articulate words. He screams and stabs the dark sword into the cracked road, it slices through easily but uselessly. The citizens coming out of the building down the road stop and stare in confusion and alarm. Henry collapses against the hilt in the ground and cries. Dawson leans against him and Henry pulls him into a broken-hearted hug as the city reawakens around them.
(Commercial Break)
Danger Force and the Mayoral staff find Henry and Dawson on that street before too long. The heroes recap their fight with Shadow Man while a couple of medics treat their wounds. "That is wonderful news," Mayor Blithe sighs relieved.
"He got away!" Lil' Dynomite protests to her, his arm bandaged and in a sling, a burn salve smeared on his jaw almost pointlessly.
"You hurt him! You nearly killed him!" She enthuses. "That sword has given you the power to defeat him, so you will. The next time you see him…"
"The next time we see him, he's going to have found a way to combat it," Danger growls.
"How can he? The sword cuts straight through his magic, right?" Chief Stalwart questions.
"It did; and I did nearly kill him," Danger answers. "And that is exactly why he won't show himself again until he's found a way to fight it. This was our best shot, maybe our only shot to kill him, and he got away."
"But we finally have a chance, with that sword. We will finally be able to avenge all those he's killed," Chief Stalwart says agreeably.
Danger turns away from them, eyes clenched and chest heaving as slow as he can manage. He fights the grief surging up inside him. "We can't fix what he's done," he argues pained.
A moment of silence passes. Chief Stalwart softly saying, "I know. I didn't mean…"
Mayor Blithe lays a hand of comfort on Danger's shoulder. "Nothing can fix what he's done. But it will stop him from taking what we have left."
Danger doesn't turn, instead slumping further into his sorrow. "What exactly do we have left?"
"We haven't lost everything," she tries to comfort.
He scoffs, finding that really hard to believe at the present moment. "Doesn't feel that way."
A moment of discouraged silence resounds loudly through the group.
"So what? You're just giving up?!" Vice Mayor Willard demands. "You leave for days, allowing Shadow Man to slaughter hundreds under the belief that you'd come back with a way to defeat him. And now, you say that chance is lost?! You let them all die, you let my wife die, for nothing?!"
"Willard! Please!" Mayor Blithe chastises.
"You're supposed to protect us!" Willard shouts. "You're supposed to save us from this villain! But you've failed!"
"Willard!" she repeats.
"We failed!" Danger interrupts her. "They're all dead because we keep failing. Because we can't beat him." his voice softens with defeat. "Even with the help of a magic sword," he throws it on the ground.
She frowns sympathetically at him. "You're in pain," she says kindly. "But you'll come back from this. This isn't the end." He avoids looking at her still. Danger Force share his opinion on the matter.
Lil' Dynomite hops down after looking around at them all. With his good hand he picks the sword up and holds it back out to Danger, moving in front of him. "We're gonna beat him. He's not unkillable. You made him bleed. I broke his arm." he emphasizes. "We're gonna be okay."
Henry looks at him with very wet eyes. "None of this is okay."
"We'll get through this," Lil' Dynomite assures. "We- you haven't lost everything. You've still got us. We can't give up now."
Something about Dawson's expression gets to him. Henry shakes his head and takes the sword. "I'm going to kill him or die trying," he vows. "The latter is just far more likely."
"No," Dawson contradicts. "You'll kill him."
Brainstorm nods, "We'll all be there. He won't escape next time."
"We'll make him pay for killing… all of them," Volt agrees with a sneer.
Mayor Blithe nods, looking a little relieved and still concerned. "Good. I'm sure you will. For now, you should all go hom- go get some sleep, you look tired," she advises. "We'll take care of getting the city back on its feet. You need to take care of yourselves for a while."
The six of them make it all the way up the tube to the Man's Nest before they break down. Exhausted from their long day since waking up in Dystopia and receiving the sword from the Seraphim. It is now after four a.m. in Swellview. They collapse onto the round couch or the floor. Tears cover their faces and in less than a few moments more than one of them are asleep.
Henry lays the sword on a table and sits on the couch, head buried in his knees as the events of the day finally overwhelm him. He's trying to pretend, trying to hold back the sobs that will begin wracking through him any second, if he doesn't manage to simply pass out first. Dawson curls up against him and blinks drowsily. Henry begins shaking with the effort to breathe at all normally, a failing battle. His eyes become wells as they shut, his heart clenching painfully even as his mind gives into his exhaustion.
Despite their ability to all drift off so quickly, they hardly get a few minutes to sleep before they're awoken by a shimmering colorful mist and the appearance of some eight people all talking noisily over each other.
Quick as thunder they're on their feet, their overworked adrenal glands somehow still functioning even as they're minds lag in the uptake. Henry has the dark sword pointed at the newcomers, mere inches from Schwoz's nose before he realizes who he's directing it at. With a huge gasp and several clearing blinks he figures it out. "Schwoz?" he asks, voice rough and cracking.
"Henry!" Schwoz returns with so much relief. "You're back!? You're all okay?!"
Henry drops the sword. His answer sticks in his throat. "Schwoz!" Mika's voice does not stick and is filled with as much relief as the small man's is. She rushes to his side.
Her call is only outdone by Bose's shout of "Blue!" The monkey jumps from Chloe Thunderman's arms to greet him in return.
All seven Thundermans had appeared with Schwoz. Mind catching up with the non-threat, the jolt of adrenalin leaves Henry. He collapses back onto the couch, more exhausted than before. Dawson and all of Danger Force follow suit quickly as well. "What happened?" Schwoz asks them. "I was so worried! Are you all okay? Shadow Man attacked Swellview, the same day you left! He knew you were gone. He was relentless, nobody could stop him! He was killing everyone! I tried to call you but he'd made all the power stop working! And you didn't come back from Dystopia! What happened? You weren't supposed to be gone that long! Did you get into trouble? Did you find a way to stop Shadow Man?"
"Schwoz!" Thunder Man booms over the hectic rambling. "Calm down. Slow down. Give them a chance to answer."
However, even with Schwoz taking a breath and waiting expectantly, none of them offer any answers. Bose lays on the ground, curled into a ball, absently grooming Blue's fur. Mika and Miles curl together, avoiding looking anywhere near Schwoz or the Thundermans. Chapa simply keeps her mouth pressed shut, staring at one spot on the floor. "Henry?" Phoebe petitions. He shakes and pulls his head back out of his knees to look at the visitors. "What's wrong?"
He shakes worse, running a hand over his hair and face. "What's wrong, Henry?" Schwoz asks, standing right in front of him.
"We know about the attacks," Dawson finally answers for them all. "The city was still under the magical blackout when we got back. Henry and I went to find Shadow Man. The sword can hurt him, Henry almost killed him, but he got away again."
"You almost killed him?!" Schwoz asks appropriately shocked.
"Nice!" Max comments. "From what Schwoz said about this guy's power, this must be some sword." He reaches curiously for the dark blade.
"Don't touch it," Henry orders hoarsely. "It's magic, you don't want to cut yourself on it."
Max pulls his hand back. Schwoz considers Henry. "What's else is wrong? This is way more than him getting away after you almost killed him. Did he do something? Did something happen in Dystopia? Why are you all…"
"He killed everyone," Henry says, words stuttered as his voice breaks. "All… all of our…"
"All their families. Their parents," Dawson finishes for Henry.
Schwoz's eyes go wide and he mutters, "Aye! No."
The Thundermans too gasp, Barbara and Hank walking closer to offer comfort. "All of them?" she whispers.
Dawson nods, "Their parents and siblings: well Chapa's siblings." Most the eyes trail curiously to her.
"I didn't even know you had siblings," Miles comments. "Let alone five."
"You've met my parents," she grumbles in return. "Do them seem the type to have only one kid? They had as many as they could. I have six siblings. They probably would've had more, but after the triplets they had to stop."
"Mayor Blithe only said five," Bose recalls.
"Leon's eighteen, he doesn't live at home. He's out on deployment: marines," Chapa says. She grows more teary thinking about it. "Oh god, does he even know? If Swellview's been cut off for days… I need to find a way to call him." Her lip trembles helplessly. "How am I supposed to tell him?"
"Oh god," Henry echoes. Similar thoughts to hers playing out in his own head, save with 'Leon' being replaced by another name: "Piper."
"Your sister," Phobe says. "She's a hero in Florida. Tallahassee, right?"
"She… does she know what's been going on here? Schwoz, have you talked to her?" Henry asks.
"I talked to her, and Charlotte and Yasper," Schwoz says. "I told them about Shadow Man attacking Swellview, they were planning to come help. But I didn't know about your parents."
Henry slumps over, so very low on energy and will power. "It's late for you all," Barbara Thunderman says. "You can call your sister in the morning."
"It's after seven there, she's awake. I should tell her sooner than later," he mutters.
"You should get some sleep," she argues. She looks around at the kids. "You all should."
"Where?" Chapa asks. "Where are we gonna stay? We can't go home; we have nowhere to go."
"Here," Henry answers. "You're not going to go anywhere. We have to stay together, especially now. You'll all stay here."
"We have plenty of room," Schwoz agrees. "There are hundreds in the mountain, you can all have your pick."
Bose frowns and says, "What about Vice Step-Dad? I'm still going to live with him, aren't I? Unless he doesn't want me, or my dad comes back for me."
"We'll see about all that tomorrow," Schwoz says. "You still can have a room here, at least for tonight. All five of you kids can stay as long as you need to, or want to. If you have family that can take you, we'll find them tomorrow."
"Mrs. Foster is probably going to come looking for me, now that Swellview isn't under attack," Dawson says.
"Yeah. How likely is it she'll ever let you set foot in Swellview again after this?" Henry asks.
Dawson frowns, "I could hide here. She'll come to the school, but she wouldn't find me if I stay in the Man's Nest."
"What'll we tell her?" Henry asks.
"You could tell her Shadow Man killed me," Dawson says to Henry.
"She'll expect a body," Henry says.
"She might think Henry's kidnapped you if he tries to feed her a cockamamie story like that," Phoebe suggests. "You have to go home."
"I can't abandon our team!" Dawson argues. He turns, begging to Henry, "It's barely a home, just a place I live. No one there will even miss me. I need to stay with you. I can't risk her taking me away, or disenrolling me from SW.A.G."
"We'll talk to her," Schwoz assures. "No one at SW.A.G. was hurt. We'll just say we kept you here to keep you safe; she can't argue that we didn't."
"We'll figure it all out," Henry agrees. "We won't let you be taken from us."
"In the morning," Barbara convinces, though it takes little effort. "You all should get some rest, change out of your uniforms."
"Masks like those suck to sleep in," Max comments. "And you all look a bit rough to be honest."
"I really need a shower," Mika agrees.
"I need to call Piper," Henry says, tears beginning to fall again.
They all go downstairs, each of the kids finding rooms not too far from Henry's. They shower, change and/or go to sleep quickly. The horrible uncertainties that await them weighing heavily on their minds. Grief consuming each of them. Henry calls Piper and his heart is ripped again by her screams when he tells her of their loss. The next days are filled by the losses and the fights to keep everything together.
Such is the way of the entire city. Swellview may have been freed from Shadow Man's spell of darkness, but it is still weighed down by the darkness his spells have wrought.
Henry stares out the Man's Nest window towards the glittering city, wondering where Shadow Man is. There is no new news of him. He hasn't shown a trace, likely treating his wounds wherever it is he's hiding.
The tube alert rings and out comes Piper. Leaving her bags on the platform, she rushes to him. He clings to his little sister. Together they cry.
Next Episode: S1E27: Not Helpful