Super sales on super heroes 5 -ch31- (Patreon)
Content
Slamming into the stone base of a planter, Felix felt like he’d managed to get several shots on his target. He had no idea if they were dead and down, as he didn’t want to stick around to find out.
He’d noted that two of the individuals who’d been coming toward them, had those fancy weapons that’d dropped Lucille.
He had no idea if they’d be strong enough to rip through his Legate armor, but he also didn’t want to test it. For whatever reason, the Agency was out to bring him in, and lethal force wasn’t off the table for them.
Lucille had turned off to the left as he went and was now embattled.
She’d squared up with three men who’d been trying to flank up on Felix. with men wearing what could only be described as high-tech boxing gloves. Sparking with small crackles of electricity with each thrown punch, they seemed to be giant high powered tasers.
Though given what he’d seen, they were just as likely to make someone’s heart burst. There was just no room to trust what the agency was doing.
Faith pushed up behind him with her SMG in hand. Easing up over the top of the planter, she squeezed off two bursts and then came back down.
A whump of something slammed into the other side of the planter and sent splinters of stone over the top of it. Spraying Felix and Faith down liberally.
Grimacing, Felix considered what to do while they waited. Realistically all they had to do was hold out long enough for the Andrea convoy to arrive. Then they’d be out of here. The idea of trying to fly out of here on Dragon back sounded like asking someone to put a missile from some type of air asset into them.
Looking up, Felix did indeed see what looked like drones and Dragons circling each other. He couldn’t watch long though, as a round from one of those fancy weapons detonated the ground not far from him.
Cracking the stamped and decorated concrete into bits and shards.
Goldie had joined Lucille and was liberally hosing people down with flame from her mouth. Washing them in fire even as she lined up a kick on another person. Her foot crashed through their head and splattered it in every direction like a ripe watermelon.
Popping out from cover on the long side, Felix lined up his pistol on where he’d seen the enemies last. They had scrambled up behind some very limited cover and were trying to extricate themselves.
Felix fired several rounds on them, causing them to hunker back down.
One was the person Felix had simply opened fire on.
Evie and Carol rushed past him, moving at a dead sprint to those who were taking cover. Evie jumped over the top of it and somehow wrangled her body around in midair to grab one of the agents in cover. Tumbling past him, she dragged his body along with hers.
Carol came around the other side and dove in.
Tucking back into cover, Felix surveyed the area. He could see a Blue Dragon not far away with her arm blown off and part of her chest caved in.
Not hesitating, Felix burst out of cover and moved toward her at a crouched run.
There was no way he was leaving anyone behind. Making sure they were mobile would be the first step to keeping that promise to himself.
Getting down to a knee next to the devastated Dragon, Felix looked her over. She was alive, though taking in shallow breaths, and was quite pale.
“Punched-me,” she groaned, her bright blue eyes locked on him.
Maybe one of those super punching gloves I saw. Definitely not trying to spare us at all. They’re out for blood.
“Well, get up and go punch him back. Bring me back his gloves as repayment,” Felix grumbled and then laid his hand to her chest. He didn’t ask for the cost to repair her, he just did it.
Even as her body began to reconstruct itself he unloaded energy into her. Filling her to the brim with power.
Romina dropped down in a crouch next to him, her rifle coming up in a smooth motion. It slapped to her shoulder, her finger hit the trigger, and she let rip with a partly uncontrolled spray of fire.
A man who had been charging them stumbled to one side and then fell to the ground. He skidded along the ground for a foot or two before he came to a stop.
Blood began pouring out of him and pooling on the ground.
“Oh god,” whispered Romina. “Oh god, oh god. Shit.”
The woman had let the rifle dip down a fraction but was actively scanning their surroundings. Andrea was standing beside the younger woman, facing the opposite way and looking around at the same time.
“Good line, discipline was a bit sloppy, but not bad,” analyzed the PMC commando. “You’re doing good, Juno. He was here to kill us. Keep the puke in till we’re clear, then empty your guts. I did it for years.”
A helicopter rose up over a building in the distance. Felix could see it clearly as it lined the front up on him in fact.
Faith moved in front of him and then pushed her hands out in front of herself. A massive and glowing green dome of power came to life.
It slammed down over the entire battlefield. Covering friend and foe alike behind the bright shield.
“Bring it, bitch,” growled Faith, her hands falling down to her sides. She stood there glaring up at the helicopter.
Daring it to fire.
When it did, Felix wasn’t quite sure what was going to break first. His nerves, the missile, or the shield.
Four were fired in rapid succession. All of them streaking straight toward Felix and the others.
They slammed into the green dome that Faith had erected and exploded. Each of them becoming nothing more than bits of debris and a fiery death knell of their futility.
“Uh huh. Try some more. I’m a Dryad that was born to battle. I’m in communion with my own goddess, and her counterpart. I’m a Dryad of two worlds. Few can stop me,” declared Faith, standing proud and staring at the helicopter.
From the side of them, several more detonations came, Felix’s head jerking to look that way. He caught the sight of two other helicopters slowly moving to the side, yet in view.
“That’s right. Focus entirely on me,” Faith said and held up her left hand.
A brief, bright, and sharp spike of nature energy launched out of her and connected with the dome. Feeding it yet more energy.
There was a speck of Orange light in the corner of Felix’s eye. Followed by a Dragon zipping across the skyline.
It tore off the front of one helicopter as it passed. The windscreen and the pilot jerked free of the vehicle.
The tail of the Orange Dragon slapped out at the second helicopter. Catching it nearly dead center and bending the thing in half.
Dropping the pilot casually, the Orange Dragon flapped its wings and sped off toward the third helicopter that was now in full retreat.
Roaring into view came a big Blue Dragon. It casually showered the helicopter in enough fire that was impossible without an impressive pair of lungs even for a Dragon.
Dropping out of the sky, the helicopter pitched to one side and slammed into a building.
What had been a distant horn was now a very loud and near-by horn. One that felt like it was screaming at him at the top of its lungs.
“NNN! FELIX! I’VE COME TO RESCUE YOU! GET INSIDE!” shouted an Andrea from an armored vehicle only twenty feet away. Which was followed by a great deal of honking.
The front wheel of the vehicle was casually resting atop an agent whose hand was scrabbling at the concrete. A copious amount of blood was coming out of his silently screaming mouth.
A turret on top of the bunker on wheels swung to one side and began opening fire on the nearest enemy combatants.
There were two vehicles on either side of this one, with people in mounted machine gun nests on top of them. There were faint red domes of power around each one, which meant it was likely Alma and Carlotta were inside them.
Felix went to grab the Blue Dragon, only to realize she was gone. She was nowhere to be found in his immediately vicinity.
Getting up, he ran toward the center vehicle and then to the rear of it. The rear hatch was open, and an Andrea stood beside it with a raised weapon.
Faith shoved Felix from behind toward the entry, even as Goldie grabbed him and tossed him inside.
Losing his balance, he skidded for a moment before he slammed into something, then bounced into a seat.
Faith, Goldie, Romina, Lucille, and a couple of Andreas joined him.
Before the door could be shut, the Blue Dragon Felix had healed showed up. She was carrying with her a bloody arm attached to one of the boxing gloves.
Pulling the glove off, she tossed the arm out and then yanked the door shut.
An Andrea casually locked it up and pushed the Blue into a seat, taking one herself after, but not before slapping a button near the back of the vehicle.
“Andrea, no one gets left behind. We’re not leaving unless everyone is accounted for,” demanded Felix. “Tribune, head-count check. Let me know the moment everyone is loaded up in a vehicle, or on top of one.”
“Uh,” said an Andrea uncertainly.
“Yes, Legate,” answered Tribune. “Only one is unaccounted for. Legionnaire Evie has yet to return to a vehicle.”
“Then someone find her so we can —”
“All Legionnaires are now accounted for,” reported Tribune, interrupting Felix.
The vehicle slammed forward in a flash of acceleration.
“Hump, hump, hump and bump,” said what Felix assumed was the Andrea at the wheel. “Nobody stop for nothing. Bump’em out of the way if they don’t get out of the way. Give’em the horn in warning up until that point. Drive right over the median or anything else.”
“Roger,” came back two responses.
Romina was scrambling with her helmet. Her fingers failing to get the clasp off.
Turning, Felix grabbed her by the head. With a few deft motions, he hit the locks and then jerked on her helmet, pulling it off her head.
The wide and bright-eyed Juno was staring at him. All the color was drained out of her face and she looked like she couldn’t get enough air.
“Gonna puke?” he asked.
She nodded her head quickly.
“Can you hold it till we get where we’re going?” Felix asked as it felt like they suddenly drove up a curb.
Romina shook her head.
“If you puke in my vehicle, I own it,” asserted Felix.
There was a pause before Juno nodded her head fractionally.
A second after that she was bent at the waist and throwing up onto the ground.
Felix simply removed it all from existence for points. Wishing it away as if it was never there.
***
“Entering! Prepare to disappear and clear!” called a voice over the communication system, shaking Felix out of his thoughts.
They’d only been driving for maybe five minutes, but it’d felt like an eternity. Bouncing, bumping, and crashing through things.
“Everything is ready,” answered Tribune.
Disappear and clear… right. Okay.
I’m the one who wanted this plan, so this is easy.
Go into the warehouse, enter the underground complex, remove everything above ground that’s ours with my skill.
After that… clear the entrance and change it back to the concrete slab it had been when this place was built.
It’ll look like we vanished into the air.
Romina was staring down to the ground right now. Gazing into nothing and everything.
This wasn’t supposed to be part of her duties. The rifle they’d equipped her with was meant to be decorative. Not actually used to kill other people.
Over the radio he’d gotten confirmation that there were a few Dragons who needed assistance, but no one was dead. Though there was a Green that’d lost half of her body and needed his attention desperately, but she was still alive.
Felix felt the vehicle tilt into a steep angle and then they were racing downward. Only to bounce out of the descent roughly and level out.
They whipped to one side and then came to a stop.
“Baggage Train is en route, but we’ll be stuck here waiting for a bit,” Andrea said over the comms. “Aaaaaand… we’re clear. All vehicles and personnel are here.”
That means it’s my turn.
Felix wanted to eliminate all traces of his people, organizations, and technology from the building above them.
Then he wanted to replace the concrete slab they’d destroyed to dig out a train station below.
Not bothering to read either screen that popped up, Felix dismissed them, shooting up out of his seat.
Before he even had to ask, the Andrea near the rear door had it opened for him.
Getting out, he looked to the other vehicles and then hustled over to them
“Green? Green Dragon? She’s badly hurt? Where is she?” Felix asked, meeting the eyes of several Dragon Maidens who were atop the vehicles. They’d eyed his approach and him curiously.
“Christina,” said one of the Dragons.
“Is she a Green? Wounded?” he demanded. “Where?”
Carol appeared in the open hatch of one of the vehicles and came out even as he asked his questions. She was hauling along with her a very sorry-looking Green Dragon.
Or at least the upper half of one.
Laying her down on the ground, Carol sighed and waved a hand at her.
“Still alive but… there’s not much to do with her. We can just bring her back again and—”
Felix grabbed the Dragon by the shoulders and instantly paid the cost to bring her back to full, following it by a blast of energy as well.
Standing up, he looked to Carol.
“I’ll not let my Dragons die if I don’t have to. Are there any others who are injured?” he asked. If he could prevent it, he’d never let another one of his people linger in death.
Never again.
He’d played that game for far too long and never liked a single minute of it.
“I… uh… no. No one that’d need your attention,” Carol whispered, looking at the Green Dragon who was rapidly reforming to a whole state.
Her eyes were open and staring up at Felix in an odd way as well now. Clearly quite aware of the situation.
“Good,” Felix said and then just stood there. He didn’t know what else to say or do.
“Felix, are you hungry?” asked a curious voice from his side.
Turning, he found Evie standing there. She had a sealed package of summer sausage in one hand and a soda can in the other.
“Yes, yes I am,” he said and then pulled his helmet off. Setting it down at his feet, he took both from Evie, who’d opened both items for him by this point, and started with the soda. Drinking half of it in one go.
“Good, Nest-mate,” Evie murmured, then pulled out a small plastic bag. It looked to be filled with small circular cookie-like things. “Eat these when you’re done. I baked in a number of things that Faith said would help you regain strength.”
Nodding his head, Felix took the bag from her.
“Thank you, Evelyn. Thank you,” Felix gushed after swallowing down a massive hunk of sausage he’d been gnawing on.
“Of course!” she said with a happy smile.
“Legate,” came Tribune’s voice from the overhead speakers.
“Yes?” Felix asked.
“The League of Villains is attacking a number of prisoner facilities. Many of them housing minimum to high security Super prisoners.
“The only prison they aren’t moving against is the one owned by the Association. The Guild of Heroes wasn’t able to respond effectively, as they were being dispatched to our own situation.”
Felix snorted at that and then looked to the Green Dragon. She was almost completely whole but still stared up at him.
Leaning down, he gave her the rest of the sausage. Grabbing her hand, he pulled it up to her mouth till she got the idea and started eating.
Felix pulled out one of the cookies and pushed the whole of it into his mouth. Greedily, he began to chew at it.
“Sounds like when we were kicking in the CIA’s teeth, the League used it as an opportunity. Chances are they’re going to come out of this with a great many new recruits to work with,” surmised Felix.
“I’m currently working up a bunch of things to spin up a media frenzy,” said an Andrea. “They shot first and tried to kill Lucille. That can’t be argued, given the footage we have.
“I’m editing it to make it look like the Agents were completely at fault. Then I’m going to release it to some of the uglier websites out there. Let them have it and toy with it.
“I’m sure at some point someone will take Romina’s footage and put some real rip-and-tear like metal music that sounds like the Doom of others.”
“Dandy,” Felix replied as he started to dig out two more cookies. “Evie! These are amazing. Please, for the love of all that’s holy, start baking for me every day.”
“Certainly!” promised the Red Dragon with a spine-stiffening sweet smile. “Anything for you… Nest-mate.”
Dragons were crowding around him now.
They were smiling, the nervous looks melting away, and looking like they all had questions or comments.
“Alright,” Felix stated, realizing what was happening. “You… my Dragon Wing, have fought for me, and with me. In a pitched battle with Dryads, Humans, and Dragons. I want to hear of your exploits. Let’s start sharing them. I want to know all.
“Though please excuse me if I share none of these cookies with any of you. These are… delicious… delicious and precious to me.”
Summoning a chair from little more than the dust around them, Felix sat down in it. He made several more of them as well.
He had other Lieutenants who would need to sit with him.
Starting with one particular Red.
Pointing at the chair directly on his left, he looked at Evie. The one immediately on his right he was reserving for Goldie.
This was going to be a Dragon’s den of storytelling for the time being. He needed to prioritize them.
While also reinforcing what Goldie wanted.
Lucille was second to Evie.
“Sit there, my glorious Red,” he demanded, then gestured to a seat beyond her. “Lucille, sit behind your Champion as her second.
“You two will tell me your story last. Let’s begin with someone else. How about… you.”
Felix pointed at a lovely Silver Dragon who wasn’t far off.