Prologue:

Verity strode through the shopping centre, pushing her way through crowds of mindless, untalented, ordinary, everyday people. She didn’t even know why she was here. Twitch had told her to ‘go and see the sights beyond the flat and Daniel’s estate’. She’s rather have spent the day shooting arrows in Daniel’s estate, drinking Jack Daniels and planning her next assault on The Beatle, but no! She had to go out and be all sociable and normal!
She looked round, trying to locate the nearest bar when she saw it!
Across the centre, Verity’s eyes fixed on a shop window, her heart immediately speeding up and goose bumps covering her skin.
In a flash, she was pressing her palms against the window, gazing in at the pair of £200, 6 inch, red leather high heels.
So red....so shiny....so...so...
“Beautiful!” she murmured.
“Yes you are!” sang a silky, male voice next to her. Verity automatically regained composure and turned to see an extremely attractive young man in his early twenties, wearing a sleeveless, denim jacket and a trilby hat.
Verity looked him up and down, her eyes pausing on his six pack and then resting on his perfect face.
“Th-thank you, err...”
“Clint.” He winked.
“Clint, hi. Verity.” She reached out her hand and he shook it, gently, clasping her hand.
“What a beautiful name. Perfectly suited to a beautiful woman.” He smiled, warmly. “Fancy a drink? I know a great place.”
“Absolutely!” gasped Verity.

Part 1: Resignation and Cherubs

Blur Fury sat in her office, staring at her computer.
She didn’t belong here. Not at all. She stared once again at the letter terminating her current assignment of tracking and restraining The Beatle, A.K.A. Alice. After the incident at the warehouses, she’d been told her work was done. She’s stopped the Red Goddess and The Beatle and now she was assigned to paranormal activity in London. A job only worthy of ants!
The feeling that she was desperately needed somewhere else was overwhelming. She’d felt a part of The Warriors. She’s felt a part of something! Fury took refuge in the fact that there was always a room for her in Daniel’s house.
But what scarred her more was the fact that Lorna and Alice were still out there. And no one was doing what must be done. No one knew where they were, or what their next plan is.
Fury leaned back in her chair.
This kind of life was far too slow.
After a moment of contemplation, she rose from her chair, took her files on the Red Goddess and her keys and left her office. Half way down the hall, she was stopped.
“Hey, Fuwy, have you finished thoshe ashignmentsh yet? They need to be archifed!”
Fury turned to see her boss; an obese young woman whose stomach hung out of the bottom of her floral shirt and her trouser barely contained her thighs. She had a hoarse voice and a lisp that was so severe, that whoever was subjected to her speech manor would be drenched within minutes. She had yellow teeth and her skin had a green tinge. People tended to try and avoid her if possible, but sometimes it was just unavoidable.
Times like this.
“I’m resigning.” Fury met her boss’s hard star.
“Fine. That’sh fine. Have you found shomewhere to live? You know you’ll lose your flat? And your gun. And you motorcycle.” She spat, phlegm flying from her mouth.
“Oh, I know.” replied Fury, turning and striding down the hall.
She saw no point in notifying anyone of her resignation, thanks to her boss it was probably half way around the company by now. Making her way to the garage, she mounted her motorcycle.
Fury checked her handgun was still loaded and, satisfied, secured her files on the Red Goddess.
“Hey, dismount the bike!” came a small voice form behind her. Ignoring it, Fury turned on the engine and made for the garage exit.
“Stop!” someone yelled from behind her and the garage door started to close.
Fury didn’t falter and sped up, the gap between the door and the floor getting smaller and smaller. The door got closer and closer, yells echoing behind her and, at the last minute, when the door was right on top of her, she turned and skidded through the gap, barely making it through!
Fury looked behind her and the world went into slow motion. A black shadow appeared the other side of the closing gap and a shiny silver object came flying in her direction. Reaching for her gun, Fury aimed and fired within milliseconds. Shiny silver shards went flying, the knife that the guards had thrown not even making it through the narrow gap.
The world went back to normal and Fury skidded to a halt, the bike on top of her. Standing up, she revved the bike and sped off, down the road and onto the motorway.


Verity gazed across the table at Clint, who sipped his larger.
“So, tell me, where do you come from?” asked Clint.
“Erm, I was born in England, but raised in China, and I returned to this country about a month ago.” She explained, sipping her cocktail.
“Nice! What’s China like?”
“Like China. Pretty boring really. Where are you from?”
Verity felt something brush her leg and immediately blushed.
“I’m from the wonderful wonderful land of London. It’s pretty boring really.” He winked across the table. “but I know how to have a good time.”
“Do you now, and what would that involve?”
“Oh, a party here, a cocktail bar there. I’m in a band, so obviously, fun is part of the job occupation.”
“A band?”
“We’re called Out-Take. We play little gigs here and there and the rest is all party! But enough about me, what do you do for fun?”
Verity blushed and paused. “Erm, well, I’m gifted at archery, but apart from that, I’m unemployed.”
“Mmmmmm, so you’re a cherub then?”
Verity paused, gazing past Clint and met a dark figure sat in the corner of the bar, looking straight at her.
“Erm, something like that.” She smiled, suddenly very cautious and worried.
“You ok?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” mumbled Verity, trying to identify the figure.
“You seem distracted.”
“I need to go to the bathroom.” smiled Verity, standing and marching past the table to the toilets. As she passed the table, she glanced sideways, getting a close up of The Beatle!
Fear ran through Verity’s veins, turning her blood cold as she entered the bathroom. She leaned against the sink for a moment, before splashing her face with water and figuring out what to do.
She had no arrows, no bow, no way of defending herself. All she had were her fighting techniques and her cunning. If she could only get to her flat without a confrontation.
Leaving the bathroom, she strode past the table, noting the Beatle was still sat there, happily drinking a martini in human form, and sat back down, opposite Clint.
“Look, I’m going to have to go, can I have your number?” she asked.
Clint smiled. “Sure you can, a woman as beautiful and as unique as you is worth seeing again.” He took her hand and whipped a pen from his pocket, scrawling his number in her palm.
Verity strode from the bar and out of the shopping centre. The street was thronging with people, but she moved through them with a sophisticated grace, towards a line of old buildings, several stories high with shop fronts on the bottom floors.
She moved up the street and glanced behind her.
There was no sign of The Beatle, until she spotted a blond-haired girl with sunglasses striding towards her. Alice.
Verity turned and carried on to a small side-road and carried on until she came to a set of stone steps with metal rails. Small trees lines and road below and as she climbed the steps, she went along a wooden balcony. Glancing behind her again, Verity saw a dark figure coming round the corner of the side-road. Verity jogged along the line of flats and came to number 3. Hurriedly unlocking it and leaping inside, locking the door behind her, she paused, breathing hard.
“Georgia!” Verity called,
“Verity? Hey, wha-” Georgia came round the corner form the lounge to see Verity’s worried face.
“Sshh, I think I’ve been followed by Alice, The Beatle.”
“What?” Georgia shared her worried glance. “Wait.” Georgia closed her eyes and put her fingers to her forehead, concentrating.
“Verity, there’s no one out there. The Beatle’s gone.”
Verity breathed out, relaxed.


“Nicki, Nicki, Nicki, Nicki, Nicki, Nicki, Nicki, Nicki!” Daniel flailed his arms to get Nicki’s attention.
“What?” murmured Nicki, who was sprawled out on the sofa, smoking.
“Come, see my creation!”
“What?”
“Come outside and look!”
Nicki got up from the sofa with a painful groan and followed Daniel outside.
“Behold!” shouted Daniel, proudly, raising his arms.
Nicki squinted up at a large, glass greenhouse.
“Is it another Cube?”
“It is indeed, but it is Cube Mrk. 3!”
“Another one? Haven’t you learned? The world obviously doesn’t want you to have a Cube.”
“No, Lorna and the beatles don’t want me to have a Cube. The rest of the world is irrelevant.”
“Well, I hope you have insurance.” murmured Nicki, turning back to the house.
“Yeah, I think I should invest in some.” responded Daniel, following. The two were halfway back to the house, when a blue mini pulled up on the gravel drive way.
Out of the car came Verity, wearing a pair of red, leather, 6 inch heels and a black mini skirt with a red tank top. Georgia got out of the driver’s side wearing a suit and Holly got out of the back, wearing skinny jeans and a Van Halen T-shirt.
“Hi guys.” mumbled Nicki.
“You look rough. What have I told you about drinking all night.” Georgia raised her eyebrows at Nicki.
“Hey, no mind mojo, my mind is fucked up enough, thank you.” She mumbled in return. “But yeah, drinking all night was a bad idea.”
“Hello.” chirped Holly.
“Van Halen?” Nicki frowned in surprise at her T-shirt.
“I have discovered the delights of what you call ‘music’.”
“Really?”
“Guys, we have a predicament.” interrupted Verity, impatiently.
She marched onwards to the house and, as everyone began to follow, Georgia mumbled to Daniel, “Nice Cube! Let’s hope it stays upright this time.”


Part 2: Ah, there’s the plot!

Fury sped up to the black, metal gates, dismounted and pushed one of them open. Remounting her bike she sped through the trees of Daniel’s estate over the over-grown, gravel road. She soon lost sight of the busy streets that circled the estate and found herself at the familiar, gravel drive way, beyond of which was Daniel’s wooden, 3 story house.
Dismounting, she marched up to the door and knocked.
“Hello?” Daniel answered the door, looking distracted, but when he saw her, he raised his eyebrows.
“Hello!” he cried in delight.
“Hey, err, can I come in?”
“Of course, make yourself at home!” he stepped aside and Fury stepped inside, gingerly.
“Oh, look who it is!” snarled an unfriendly voice.
“Verity. How delightful to see you again.” Fury murmured, looking at the floor.
“Come to put us in danger again? Or is it to gives an extremely dangerous artefact?”
“Verity! Shut up!” snarled Nicki, standing. “At least she doesn’t prance about pretending to be Peter Pan!”
“Zip it, lizard girl!”
“Guys!” snapped Georgia. “I am sick and tired of you fighting. Face it, you are stuck with one another, whether you like it or not! So shut it!”
“Not if I leave.” said Verity, the room turning cold all of a sudden.
“W-what?” stammered Georgia, surprised.
“If I leave I won’t have to put up with you freaks, I won’t have to sit around, waiting for my next chance at The Beatle. I could be out there, tracking her down. I could be following her, instead of her following me and ruining my life!”
“Fine then, go!” snapped Nicki. “We don’t want you to get freaked out by us FREAKS any longer!”
“Fine.” And with that, Verity snatched up her bow and her arrows and stormed from the house.
The lounge remained quiet. Nicki lit a spliff.
“I shouldn’t have come.” murmured Fury, sadly.
“Nonsense! Your one of us. Verity just needs to find her place.” responded Georgia. “Trust me, I’m a psychiatrist.”
“If I hadn’t have come, she wouldn’t have left!”
Georgia paused looking at Fury. “Something’s happened. What’s happened, Fury?”
Fury paused. “I resigned. I got terminated from the Red Goddess case. No one was following it up. Paracorp isn’t doing it’s job anymore. It’s like it forgot all about the impending threat on mankind.” Fury signed and sank into a chair.
“What? You mean, they’re just ignoring the Red Goddess? I thought you said Paracorp were trying to keep our kind a secret?” Georgia raised her eyebrows in surprise.
“I did, that was when a whole team was dedicated to finding the Red Goddess and The Beatle and I was assigned to following The Beatle and finding any information I could.”
“Something’s not right there.” Nicki frowned.
“Do you think we should find Verity?” asked Daniel, worriedly.
“No, she needs space and she needs time to realize she needs us. Remember she spent most of her time in a Chinese monastery plotting revenge on The Beatle for killing her parents and she’s come this far to find she has to wait even longer.” explained Georgia.
Fury raised her eyebrows. So that is the story of Quivachi! Her file at Paracorp hadn’t said much.
“Well, while we wait for her to come back, any one fancy a bacon sandwich?” asked Nicki.
Before anyone could answer, the loud, reverberating sound of an explosion came from outside, orange flames sending sparks of light through the window!
“Argh!” yelled Holly.
Nicki was at the door in minutes, Fury right on her tail, Daniel, Holly and Georgia following.
To the left of the drive, orange flames danced within thick, black smoke, shards of glass soaring in all directions.
Daniel fell to his knees speechless.
Nicki edged closer to the heat. From the smoke came a huge figure.
Fury gasped.
Before them stood Fury’s boss, her huge belly trying desperately to escape her bright, pink shirt.
“Fuwy, you steal, you thief, thieves are bad!” Fury’s boss slurred.
“Who the hell are you?” asked Nicki, recoiling from the ugly sight of her. “What is that smell?”
“They call me, Wancid!”
Nicki paused. “Rancid?”
“That’sh what I said, Wancid! Behowd!” Rancid suddenly convulsed, her milky green skin rippling. Her flesh burst from her clothes and continued to grow, until what stood before the Warriors was a giant ball of green flash with no bodily features, apart from two tiny eyes, a blob that could be mistaken for a nose and a yellow mouth.
“Thieves need to be dewt with! Thieves need to die!”
“What? Can’t you just arrest me or something?” asked Fury, confused.
“What did you steal?” asked Nicki.
“May have made off with a gun, a motorcycle and files on the Red Goddess.”
“Ah, well, it seems we’re going to have to teach this big, bumbling mass of vomit a lesson.” Nicki winked.
“Now, you and all your fwiends will die!” shouted Rancid.
“Why, surely thievery doesn’t call for death? The death sentence hasn’t been around for years? What’s going on?” Fury shouted back.
“Somefing bigger than your band of Wawwiors!”
Nicki and Fury exchanged a glance of realization and then looked back at Rancid, who was sliding towards them, leaving a trail of green slime behind her.
Fury whipped a gun from her leather coat and Nicki leapt to the side, watching as the bullets shot straight through Rancid and out the other side.
“Shit!” mumbled Fury.
“Guys, move!” yelled Holly form behind them, who raised her hand.
The sky immediately darkened and lightening shot down from the sky, electrocuting the green blob, sending globules of slime in every direction!
Nicki and Fury both dodged slime, while Daniel raised his arms over his head and the earth immediately reshaped into a shield, slime pelting it instead of him, Georgia and Holly.
Rancid still stood, however, bits of slime regenerating, causing her to grow even bigger.
Fury paused for a moment, one thought resonating in her mind. Fire.
“Nicki! Fire!” she yelled. Nicki nodded and leapt into the air, the dragon within her bursting forth. She circled Rancid for a moment, before letting out a cloud of flames, totally engulfing the green blob.
“AAAAAAARRRGGGHHH!”
Fury watched as it’s flesh burned and blistered. Getting her gun, she aimed for the head of Rancid. Missing, Nicki landed on the floor in front of Rancid and Fury took her chance, leaping up onto Nicki’s tail and up her back, the world went into slow motion. Fury, travelling faster than sound, leapt up onto Nicki’s head and just as the flames momentarily subsides, Fury leapt into the air and shot downwards, plunging a bullet into Rancid’s brain. Fury landed the other side to see Nicki gazing at her, her dragon form slowly shrinking back to human form.
Rancid sank to the ground, her slimy flesh bubbling over the gravel. The earth shield Daniel had made shrank back to the ground and the 5 of the starred at the green dead thing on the ground.
“The fucker destroyed my Cube. Again! I don’t know why I bother.” mumbled Daniel.

Verity strode through the streets, her bow over her shoulder and two quivers of arrows on her back. The light form the street lamps cast orange shadows onto the pavement and the night air was nippy against her exposed skin. Every so often she would glance behind her, for fear that The Beatle was nearby. This was ridiculous! Half of her wanted so desperately to return to the Warriors, but the other half was angry and wanted the Beatle to find her, so that she could end this, once and for all!
“Verity?”
Verity turned to see a familiar face and relief spread through her. Clint was stood in front of her, surprise on his face. Verity didn’t know why she was relieved; perhaps because the very sight of Clint sped up her heart rate and made her face hot.
“Clint!!”
“What are you doing out here alone?”
“Err, I had a bit of an argument with a friend. I needed space.”
“A friend, eh?” he frowned.
“Yes, she is just someone who was holding me back and now I’ve come away from all that/”
“Oh!” it was Clint’s turn to look relieved. “I just finished a gig, fancy a meal?”
“I have no money.”
“Hey, I asked you on a date, I’m paying!”
Verity smiled and took his warm hand.


“I still don’t get it.” murmured Fury, sat next to Nicki in the lounge. Everyone had wanted to just collapse after the ordeal with Rancid, which had almost scarred them for life. The smell still lingered in the room and no amount of Febreeze air freshener sprayed by Daniel could have gotten rid of it.
“Why would she want to kill me? I’ve worked there for years, it was only a motorbike, a gun and some files! I’d have given them back if I’d have known she’d followed me!”
“Did you always know that she was a...a...blob?” asked Nicki.
“No, no one really knew what her power really was. We’d always assumed it was the ability of having a really bad lisp.” replied Fury. “At least I got the files on the Red Goddess. Wait...files...”
Fury paused for a moment and put her head in her hands.
“What is it?” asked Georgia from her arm chair.
“I stole the files on Lorna. What if....no!”
“You think that Lorna has taken over Paracorp and sent Rancid to come and kill us?” explained Georgia.
“Er, yeah. Stop reading my thoughts!” Fury looked up, annoyed. “But it makes sense, especially as....oh God.”
“What?” snapped Nicki, waiting for a reply.
“Er, what if I said that Paracorp has files on all of us and that if she’s taken over the company, she’ll have direct access to those files?” mumbled Fury.
“I’d say we have another mission!” chirped Daniel, sipping tea form his mug.

Part 3: The battle of the Paracorp Lobby!

Verity sat next to Clint in the booth they’d been given by the waiter, her bow and arrows on the seat opposite.
“I’m not interrupting plans for tonight, am I?” asked Verity.
“Only my plan to sit in front of the TV all night.” He winked and touched her arm. “You look dazzling tonight, by the way.”
Verity blushed. “Thank you.”
“So, tell me, what does a woman like you indulge herself in?”
Verity went along with his social questions and spoke about herself, her archery, her past life, yet missing out her alter-ego, Quivachi, and her ongoing battle with the Beatle and the Red Goddess. She accepted when Clint offered to buy her another martini and laughed at his jokes and his stories. She began to think about how fun this so-called ‘socialising’ actually was! It turned out Clint was a very cultured guy, having toured the world in his first indie rock band, and how he played guitar in almost every state in America. She told Clint about her mahogany bow and how her father had made it and used it to kill people threatening his family in China, and how it had the perfect weight, not too light and not too heavy, how the bow was suited to her father and only her father, but when she was born, he altered it for her use. She slurred about how she’d trained with it since she was young enough to hold a bow, how she’d locked it away for 5 years when she vowed her revenge for her parents death, and how she’d escape from China and come to England with nothing but her bow, her arrows and a small bag full of necessities. Clint laughed at her story, not quite believing her.
After a lot of booze and drunken laughter, Clint asked, “Wanna come back to my place? I got beer!”
“Sure!” Verity agreed and, snatching up her bow and arrows, took his hand and followed him from the pub.
Out in the street, the two staggered towards Clint’s flat, laughing about how Verity could hit almost anything with her bow, any target in any wind, anytime, anyplace.
“Prove it then!” laughed Clint.
Verity glanced around the deserted street. “Fine, I will then!” she took her bow from over her shoulder, and loaded it with an arrow. “What shall I hit?”
Clint looked around. “The taxi cab sign on top of that cab!” he pointed at a taxi coming up the road. Verity aimed at the moving target and, when she was satisfied, took the shot. The arrow lodged itself in the taxi cab sign as it passed the pair and disappeared down the street.
Clint laughed and took verity by the waist, pulling her into him. “Come!” he led her away to his flat.
Clint’s flat was small, but clean and tidy and full of character. He had an orange leather sofa and a huge, widescreen TV. Verity put her arrows and her bow down and sat on the sofa. Clint sat next to her and leaned in.
Verity, to her surprise, found herself leaning in too, she was so close, it’s gonna happen! Her heart rate sped up, her face reddened, Goosebumps covered her skin...
A dark shadow appeared by the window and verity gasped, leaning back.
“What’s wrong, babe?”
Verity stared at the window that led to the balcony, the shadow growing huge and skeletal.
Fear gripped Verity immediately as the shadow sank back from the window, and then burst through, sending shards of glass in all directions. Clint yelled at the sound of smashing glass and rubble and verity screamed before leaping for her bow and arrows.
“What’s this? Quivachi all along with no dragon body guard to protect her?” snarled a horribly familiar voice. Verity aimed an arrow at the Beatle who crouched at the jagged whole in the wall where the window should have been.
“What the fuck?” yelled Clint, frozen on the sofa.
“Go away, this is nor the time nor the place!” yelled Verity at The Beatle.
“What’s going on?” he yelled again.
“I...err...can I explain later?” Verity glanced at him apologetically. “There’s some things you don’t know about me!”
“Interrupting a moment was I, how terrible.” spat the Beatle, sarcastically.
Verity looked at the Beatle and noticed the whites of bandages over one of her eyes. Aiming for the good eye, Verity sent an arrow flying in the Beatle’s direction. The Beatle screamed and turned it’s head slightly, causing the arrow to lodge itself in its left temple.
The Beatle lunged forwards, claws outstretched. Verity leapt out of the way, gracefully landing on her feet crouched, ready to shoot another arrow at The Beatle.
“Clint, run!” Verity yelled as The Beatle got stuck on the lamp hanging from the ceiling. Verity took her chance and plunged an arrow into the fleshy part of The Beatle’s neck. The Beatle turned, still trying to untangle itself and Verity moved towards the balcony, stepping out onto the metal grate.
“Verity!”
“Run, Clint!”
Verity glanced behind her down at the narrow street and the balcony inches opposite. The Beatle had almost untangled itself and was readying for another leap at Verity, when verity leapt up onto the metal railings of the balcony, aiming another arrow with her bow. The Beatle leapt forwards, but as it did, Verity stepped up, onto it’s head and flipped over the top, landing gracefully into it’s back. She then jumped into the air, shooting arrows down, into it’s scales and landed on the floor of the lounge. Looking round, Clint was nowhere to be seen.
The Beatle reached out with it’s claws and sank it’s talons into Verity’s ankle. She screamed in pain, twisting and shooting more arrows at it’s face, sinking them into the fleshy, vulnerable parts. This didn’t falter the Beatle, as it reached out with it’s other talon and plunged Verity into darkness...


“Verity? Verity? Wakey wakey!”
Verity stirred in the silence, her head ringing with pain.
“Morning, sleepy head.” cackled a cruel voice.
“Where am I?” Verity mumbled.
“You’re hanging from the ceiling of the Paracorp lobby.” Verity opened her eyes to see Lorna stood on a glass balcony. She glanced around, inspecting her surroundings, and the gasped in horror at the scene below. She was on the upper floor of a five-floor building, but where the balconies circled the main hall, Verity was hung, in the space in the middle, chained to an office chair! She could make out an empty front desk below, and sofas dotted in the lobby. She stared forwards, where Lorna stood, smirking. Verity struggled, but only succeeded in swinging herself across the space, unable to move her arms and her legs.
“You seem a bit helpless without this, don’t you?” Lorna winked, holding up a mahogany bow and a quiver of arrows.
“Bitch!” screamed Verity, fear rising in her, her yell echoing around the lobby.


“So here’s the plan.” started Daniel, glancing at Fury, Imperia, Electriss and Dovashiin gathered round the table. He spread out a large map of the complex on the table. “We’ll go into the lobby and Georgia will search thoughts for Lorna and once we locate her, we’ll go in, guns blazing, I’ll trap her in a mighty ball of earth and Electriss will electrocute her, killing her dead!” he finished, smiling.
“We really shouldn’t let him male plans.” mumbled Nicki.
“Fury, you’re the best and making plans here, what do you suggest?” asked Georgia.
“Err, you sure? The last one I made kinda went wrong.”
“That was a minor mishap, and everything goes wrong once in a while!” reassured Georgia. “Come on, hit us.”
“Ok, well, the Red Goddess will be in there somewhere and so will The Beatle. So we need to be subtle. I think Georgia should go in first, pretending to deliver something. Once inside, she goes this fire exit round the back,” Fury pointed at the map. “and lets Nicki, Daniel and Holly in. I don’t think we should split up, so you guys have to stay together. I’ll get in through the roof. Then, we rendezvous on the fifth floor. I’ll be several minutes late because I need to find our files, but once I’ve found them, I’ll get rid of them and meet you on the fifth floor.”
“Why do we need to get rid of them? I wanna know what mine says!” complained Nicki.
Georgia raised her eyebrows at Nicki.
“Fine. Ditch them!”
“OK,” Fury continued. “once we rendezvous, Georgia will amplify our thoughts and get Lorna to come to us.”
“What do we do then?” asked Daniel, worriedly.
“We fight her and the Beatle. Hopefully winning.” replied Fury.
“Oh, simple...” Daniel mumbled.
“OK, let’s suit up!”


Georgia pulled up in her blue mini and parked in the empty car park in front of the huge skyscraper. Looking around, she took a brown package from the passenger seat and made her way into the building. There was a blond woman at the reception desk.
“Excuse me, I have a delivery.” murmured Georgia, searching around for the others with her thoughts.
“OK, moment please.” The woman turned away and started to type at a computer.
Georgia! Oh my god, Georgia!
Verity’s voice came as a shock, Georgia looked around. Where was she?
Georgia you have to help me!
Where are you?
Up here! Look up!
Georgia looked up slowly and briefly. Shock filled her as she looked back down at the receptionist, who turned, smiled and gave Georgia clearance.
I’m gonna help you. We’re all here to help you!
Lorna’s here too. And so it The Beatle! Be careful!
Ok!
Georgia hurried behind the reception desk and into the maze of hallways behind the lobby. The fire exit was down an unfurnished hallway, undecorated, unlike the rest of the hallways, which had lights hanging from brackets, fancy wall paper and fancy tiling on the floor. This hallway was cluttered with cleaning equipment and had a stone floor. The fire exit was padlocked, but Georgia put don her package and concentrated on the lock.
In an instant, the lock slicked open and the door opened, revealing Nicki, Daniel and Holly stood behind it. Nicki and Daniel were both clad in their armour and Holly was wearing her suit with her traditional red cloak. Georgia wore her suit, but beneath a leather coat, which she also disposed of.
“Right, to the fifth floor.” chirped Nicki.
“Err, guys, Verity’s here. She’s kinda hanging from the ceiling with a chain, curtsey of the Red Goddess.” explained Georgia.
”What!” gasped Nicki.
“Does my sister know no bounds?” sighed Holly.
“Apparently not, not let’s move!”


Fury aimed her gun and shot a bullet through the lock on the door on the roof. The lock cracked open and Fury pushed through the heavy metal door. It hadn’t taken much to gain enough momentum to run right up the side of the building. But now she knew she had to be careful. The death threat from the company had indicated they didn’t really want her back.
The archives were kept on the fifth floor and were heavily guarded on an ordinary day. But for some reason, there was no one around, no one guarding the entrance and no one at the desk in front of the archives. Fury relaxed and paused in front of the huge room filled with ceiling high shelves crammed with files. The files were sorted into time, year by year and within that, subjects were sorted into alphabetical order. Going to the shelves marked 2012, Fury went to the ‘W’ section and began to search.
After several moments of hurriedly rifling through files, Fury came to the horrible realization that they weren’t there! Of course! The Red Goddess wouldn’t have just left them here for the taking! Fury fled from the room and towards the fifth floor...
...and skidded to a halt when she spotted the Red Goddess stood with her back turned, facing Verity who was hanging from the ceiling chained to a chair!
She backed round a corner and sent a mental image to Georgia. Looking around, she spotted The Beatle stood across the landing and on the other side of the balcony, a mahogany bow and a quiver of arrows. Fury checked that her gun was loaded, a plan forming.
Georgia! Get Nicki to go to the lobby and turn into a dragon to be a distraction! I’ll shoot Verity down so that she’ll land on Nicki. We can then take out the Red Goddess!
Ok! replied Georgia. We’re over here, the other side of the landing!
Fury looked across the landing and saw Georgia, Daniel and Holly peering round a corner.
“You know, Verity,” Lorna spoke to Verity, who hadn’t spotted them. “I would have thought your friends would have come to get you by now. Especially as I sent them a little present.” Verity remained silent. “It’ll surprise me if they didn’t survive; Rancid was never the perfect soldier. It says so in her file! And oh, look what I have, files on all of your friends!” Lorna laughed a shrill, cruel laugh, waving a thick brown folder. “Who’s this I have here, oh look, Daniel Oakenbaum! ‘Display’s no real threat; however his powers’ limits are not clear’. Hhmmm, could he have survived? ‘Holly/ Electriss: Her Goddess heritage could make her extremely dangerous if not investigated’. Hhmmm, yet another super human with such weak powers! And can you believe that we are related! Let’s see now,’ Georgia Twitch/ Imperia: Telepath, may prove to be a powerful and dangerous power if not under strict control’.” Lorna paused to see if Verity was listening. Verity was looking down, her dark, silky hair hiding her face. “Now, ‘Nicola/ Dovashiin: an extremely dangerous power, may require a full investigation to see if it can be controlled or restrained.’ Looks like your friend needs to be caged. Wouldn’t that be weird if Paracorp got to her and left it to me to investigate her fiery side! Now, ‘Blur Fury: Her speed makes her fast and her skills make her extremely dangerous. She must be looked at’. Such a sorrowful bunch! Such weak and feeble powers that you can’t even control yourselves!” Lorna laughed. “But look, there’s one more! Verity Ward/ Quivachi: Her gifts in archery and martial arts make her less that a threat’. Ha! Looks like this won’t be so hard after all!”
Just as Lorna let out an evil laugh, a tower of flames burst up from the lobby below, hiding Verity from view. Fury took her chance and aimed her gun; the second the flames subsided, she put a bullet through the chain and sent Verity plummeting to the floor!
“Fuck!” yelled Lorna, dropping the folder and turning. Fury emerged from her hiding place along with Georgia, Daniel and Holly. In a flash, lightening sparked in front of the Beatle, sending her over the edge of the balcony and Fury was pointing her gun at the Red Goddess.
“Stop this, now!” yelled Holly.
“You really think I would?” Lorna winked.
“Well, err no, but it was worth a try!” replied Holly.
Fury shot three bullets in Lorna’s direction, but Lorna only raised her hand and the bullets stopped mid air and fell to the ground.
A nearby tree burst forth from it’s plan pot and thick vines entangled Lorna. Lorna screamed and clenched her fists, invisible knives slicing through the bonds.
“Daniel!” yelled Fury.
“There’s no more potted plants!” she heard him cry.
The lights began to flicker and electricity sparked from their sockets, flashing towards Lorna, but Lorna merely held up her hands and absorbed the energy. She then flexed her fingers at Fury and set her flying into the wall behind her.

Verity balanced on Nicki’s back, pelting the huge, ugly Beatle with arrows. Nicki opened her mouth and Verity held back as a tower of flame engulfed the Beatle, sending it flying upwards. Verity shot an arrow into the fleshy part of its underbelly and a gunshot could be heard from above, sending the Beatle crashing back down again. Nicki dodged as it hit the ground, Verity holding onto the spines that lined Nicki’s back.

Up on the balcony, Lorna turned to Fury. “You shot my Beatle! Bitch!” Lorna flexed her fingers and began to melt into blue dust. “Come Beatle. You may have won the battle, Sister, but you have not won the war! This is not over!”
Georgia, Daniel and Holly paused before peering over the edge of the balcony, where Nicki gazed up at the, her huge yellow eyes dazzling and Verity pointing her bow at a pile of blue ash.
“Nice team work guys.” smiled Georgia. Fury looked down at Verity, who looked up, frowning.


Part 4: Tie-ups

“Hi, Clint?”
“Verity! Hey, about the other night, you don’t have to explain. I know you’re a complicated kind of woman and I can live with that!”
“But you deserve an explanation!” Verity gripped the phone with both hands.
“Hey, we all have shit in our lives; we just have to live with it. And I want to, I like you, Verity. I mean I really like you!”
“Look, Clint, I don’t want to put you in danger!”
“But that’s what I love about you, Verity! I love your sense of danger, I love the way you surprise me every minute with something new!”
“It’s gonna be hard. With me you’re in constant danger.”
“Then let me be, if it meant being with you.”
“You’d really sacrifice your safety?”
“I’d sacrifice everything to be with you!”
Verity blushed and smiled.


“Who’s Clint then?” asked Georgia when Verity came into the lounge and sat down on the sofa.
“Stay out of my head, none of your business!”
Georgia smiled and went back to her tea.
“So, you’re rejoining the Warriors, then?” asked Fury.
“Well, if I’m going to get my revenge and avenge the deaths of my parents, I have to make sure it is done to a certain standard and to do that, I need you guys.”
“Aaaww, how touching.” murmured Nicki.
“Shut it, lizard girl!”
“Whatever, Robin Hood!”


Epilogue:

“Is the Bishop in place?”
“Yes, Red Goddess.”
“Good. Now, call the assassin.”
“As you wish.” The Beatle clutched a Blackberry and held it to her ear. Lorna stood in the background, cracking her knuckles in anger.
“The Red Goddess is ready. Get to Earth, we have an assignment for you.”

Impressum

Tag der Veröffentlichung: 02.08.2012

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