The Protectors

"Entrapped by the Octagon" by Martin Maenza

Six figures sat in the shadowed darkness of a rooftop in one of Manhattan’s harbor front districts.  Twelve eyes kept their focus on a nearby warehouse just across the way.  When the people spoke, it was in low whispered tones.

“Are you sure we got the right place, Mystifier?”

“My magic has not failed me before, User.  I have no reason to question it now.”

These young costumed people were the Protectors, a relatively new teaming of super-heroes.  Having been rebuffed a few hours earlier, their mission at this late night hour was to prove they had what it takes to stand along side some of the more renowned super-teams of the world.

“Amazon, I hope she’s okay.”

“She should be, Hydro Girl.  She’s pretty level-headed.  I can’t imagine her doing anything stupid or risky.”

Earlier this evening, this group of heroes battled a team of super-villains known as the Octagon.  They managed to capture one of the eight criminals, but the others escaped through a portal created by the Geometric Man.  The Protectors had since tracked the villains to hidden lair in the warehouse, and one of their own decided to infiltrate the group disguised as the captive Shadow Dancer.

One of the figures fidgeted consistently. “Any idea how long Rainbow’s been in there, Larynx?”

“Does it look like I’m wearing a watch, kid?  I don’t know.  Maybe twenty minutes.  Thirty tops.”

“I’m tired of waiting around.  I’ll just run a quick recon.”

“Ricochet, don’t!”  Larynx tried to grab the speedster to stop him, but Ricochet was gone in a flash.  “Impulsive kid!  He’s going to blow this for sure.”  He turned to the others who were as surprised by the teen speedster’s action.

User frowned.  “So, how long we give him?”

“Given his speed, I’d say two minutes max,” Amazon proposed.  “If he’s not back by then, we go.”  The others nodded in agreement.

One hundred and twenty seconds later…

Two pairs of fists smashed through the outside wall of the warehouse, sending metal and wood splintering to the floor.  Amazon and User led the full frontal charge into the lair of the Octagon.  “Hmm,” the black male said, “maybe they all cut out before we arrived.”

“I doubt it,” the blonde powerhouse said.  “If they did, where are Rainbow and Ricochet?”

“Good point,” User agreed.

“This way,” Mystifier pointed.  “Not only did I track the villains’ teleportation energies, but I was also tracking Rainbow.  She is nearby.  I can sense it.”

“I’m sure she’ll be pleased to hear you’re keeping tabs on her, Mysty,” Amazon joked.

  The sorcerer tried his best not to blush.  He and Amazon had worked a lot together in the past, so he didn’t mind her gentle ribbing.  He viewed her almost like a sister he never had.

The five made their way carefully through the darkened corridors, past large crates stacked to the ceiling.  When they turned the corner, they found a huge open area.

A single light bulb dangled overhead from the ceiling.  In the circular glow of its brilliance was Rainbow, gagged and bound to a chair, and Ricochet, apparently frozen in his tracks right next to her.

“Guys!” Hydro Girl called out as she rushed into the room towards them.

“Hydro Girl, be careful!” Larynx warned.  “Touching them could trigger a trap!”  He and the others moved in closer to the captive pair.

“Smart thinking,” a gruff female voice called from the shadows above, “but not smart enough!  Warp, now!”

Each of the five Protectors felt a wave of energy crash over them, leaving them trying their hardest to move but failing.

Lights then filled the entire room, and on the catwalks above stood the seven remaining members of the Octagon.

“Timewarp, you snagged ‘em all!” Geometric Man cheered.

The villain all in blue didn’t acknowledge the compliment.  He appeared to be focused on the stasis field he had projected around the group of heroes below.

The other villains were too busy celebrating the capture and taunting the captives to notice.

“So, what shall we do with our little frozen statues?” Golden Greek asked.

“Let me play with their minds until they’re dead!” Dr. Delirium offered.

“Nay,” Prince Pyro said.  “Let me fry them like I did Star Light!  Too bad they won’t be able scream though!”

“Hey, why does Pyro get to have all the fun?” Mimic asked.

“Quiet, all of you!” Madame Mammoth snapped.  “No one does anything until I say so!  And even then, Amazon is off-limits!  She’s mine to do with as I wish.  She’s cost me dearly over the years, so now its payback time!”

While all of this was going on above, the minds of the captive heroes were silently racing.

If only I could open my throat… Larynx thought.

Oh, Larynx!  We hadn’t even gotten to go on a real date yet, Hydro Girl lamented.

Damn! User cursed silently.  This can’t be the end!  Karen couldn’t have been right!

All my fault, Rainbow chastised herself.  If I hadn’t gotten caught, none of the others would have either.

Without incantations or gestures, my magic takes longer to bring forth, Mystifier thought.  I just need to find the right spell…

I hate this! Amazon fumed.  I wonder if…wait!  What’s going on with Ricochet?  The blonde focused, really focused, her attention at the young speedster.  At first she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her, that the blurring was some side effect of the stasis ray.  Yet, she was wrong.  He’s moving…vibrating.  He hasn’t given up.  And neither will I!

Amazon concentrated, not so much in trying to move either her arms or legs but instead to do something else.  She focused on just growing, increasing her size and thus her mass.  It didn’t take physical movement to do it. 

If I can just increase my size…maybe that will help.  Throw off the stasis field or something.  After a few moments, and a lot longer than it normally took, she could feel the difference.  It was the similar feeling she felt when she grew normally, except this time it was much slower and more prolonged.  The sensation was odd but not distracting.  She was adding slowly to her height and her mass at the same time.  Come on, come on.  Keep it up, Diana.  You can do this!

At first, Amazon’s change went unnoticed due to the villains’ discussion.

But then, Mimic glanced back at the captives and picked up the details.  “Uh, guys!  We’ve got a situation!  Look!”

“Your enemy is growing!” Pyro spat.

“And that’s not all!” Golden Greek added.  “We thought we had that speedster stopped when he barged in here first, but he no longer seems to be held as fast!”

“Timewarp!” Mammoth bellowed.

“He’s trying, lady!” Geometric Man said.

The strain was showing on Timewarp’s face.  Sweat ran down his cheek.  “Too much…never held a field…uh…this large this long…” 

The efforts of both Ricochet and Amazon were causing the villain to exceed the limits of his physical endurance.  While his equipment was responsible for most of his abilities, it took quite a bit of his own willpower to sustain them.

  Finally, the pressure was too great! 

Timewarp collapsed into his comrade’s arms.  “I’ve got you, Warp,” Geometric Man said.

“Idiots!” Madame Mammoth growled.  She backhanded the pair, sending both men sprawling to the cat-walk.  “The rest of you, destroy those heroes before they fully recover!”

“Too late!” Larynx shouted as he took to the air.  “Your little trap backfired!”

“Time to put these creeps on ice!” Hydro Girl said as she followed after him on an ice-path of her own creation.

“You okay, lady?” User asked Amazon.

Now at a full eight feet in height, the blonde nodded.  “Yup!  Let’s go crush some criminals!”

“I’m with you!” the African-American male said.  Having touched a piece of steel before they even broken into the warehouse and taking on its attributes, the User was ready for a fight.

Prince Pyro was one of the first villains down to the main floor.  As Hydro Girl slid past overhead, he took aim in her direction.  “A fiery redhead like you shouldn’t play with fire, sweetie!” he said as his flames encircled her.

“Ooh…” the heroine exclaimed as the ice beneath her feet lost its structure as it melted from the intense heat.  She tumbled to the floor, landing on her knees.

“See,” Pyro said.  “Fire and ice don’t mix.  Fire always beats ice.”

The heroine recovered fast.  “Yeah?” Hydro Girl replied with a smile.  “Then how’s about we go another round?”  She thrust out her hands, sending a surge of water to drench the villain.  “There!  Water always beats fire!”

Overhead, Larynx laughed.  “Nice going, red!  He’s all wet now.”  Suddenly, a blast of yellow energy hit him from behind, sending the sonic hero falling.

“Better keep your eyes on your work, boy!” the Golden Greek lectured him, her hands still crackling from the blast she had just fired.

Mystifier finished working the knots that held his teammate to the chair.  “Rainbow, did they hurt you?”

With a free hand, she pulled down the gag about her mouth, happy to breath easier again.  “Not much,” she said.

Mystifier smiled.  “I am glad for…”  Before he could finish his words, a martial kick nailed him squarely in the back and sent him sprawling.

“Left yourself wide open, pal,” the Mimic laughed.  “Now, let me pluck your pretty flower here!”

“In your dreams, creep!” Rainbow responded angrily.  She concentrated.

The Mimic saw the entire landscape about him change.  Instead of being in the warehouse, he found himself plummeting off a cliff into a deep chasm.  “Aaaah!” he cried out, scrambling.  He fell to the side and slammed into something hard, something that didn’t appear to be there before.

Rainbow was satisfied with how her illusion powers had affected the criminal.  By making him see what wasn’t there and not see what was, he slammed right into the wall.  Still, I kind of wish I could do more to help the team.

Across the way, “Are you sure about this?” Amazon asked as she hoisted User into the air.

“Sure,” the steel-formed young man said.  “I used to see this move in the comic books all the time.”

“Okay.”  The giant sized woman cocked back her arm and whipped it forward, launching her teammate into the air.

The airborne User cleared the catwalk and slammed right into Madame Mammoth.  “Aw yeah!  Now that’s what I’m talking about!”  The villainess tumbled over the edge with the hero falling right after her.  The two slammed into the floor hard.

Mammoth grunted in pain but quickly shook it off.  “Get off me!” she barked as she used both her hands and feet to shove the User into the air.  The impact and their combined weight had made a slight crevice in the floor.  She pulled herself out of the opening.

All about her, the battle between costumed figures was going at full throttle.

We’re evenly matched by numbers, she thought.  And they just might have an edge in overall power levels.  But we have experience on our side.  That and we don’t play by the rules.  Still, I won’t be taken down so quickly. 

Madame Mammoth got to her feet and ran towards one of her teammates.  “Delirium!”

Dr. Delirium was sticking to the fringe of the battleground.  “What?” he snapped back.

“Are you going to help us or what?”

“Fisticuffs are not my specialty,” he reminded her.  “You recruited me for things with more finesse.”

“Whatever!” she said.  “Just do something to distract those heroes!  I need to get something.”  She bolted back towards the catwalk and plodded up the metal ladder.

“A distraction?” Delirium said.  “Fine.  Let’s see them try this on for size.”  Normally, the evil doctor worked his powers on his victims via a direct contact.  His powers were certainly most potent and effective that way.  Still, when pushed, he could stretch them a bit into a much wider range, affecting a number of targets at once.  He knew in that form that it wouldn’t kill any of them so much as it would startle them all a bit.  The blue faced man with white hair concentrated, letting his mental powers flow out to those around him.

His abilities did not discriminate.  Any of the combatants, hero and villain alike, that were in his range were suddenly hit with a wave of insanity. 

For a few moments, their minds raced in a dozen directions at once.  Colors produced a cacophony of sounds in their heads.  Their visual perceptions twisted and altered like a Salvador Dali painting.

  Dr. Delirium’s powers were able to randomly mess with their various senses, enough to throw off their actions.  Those who had been flying found themselves crashing hard.  Some of those on the ground fell to their knees in confusion, holding their heads in hopes that it would soon stop.  Some of the villains who knew what was happening cursed at Delirium.

“Doctor, enough,” Madame Mammoth called down from above as she reached her destination.  “Get Pyro and the Greek.  I’ll be there in a moment.” 

Delirium nodded, but off his attack and went to retrieve the effected pair.

Madame Mammoth turned and spied Geometric Man who was about to draw a weapon from the pouch on his belt.  “Give me that!”  With her huge hand, she grabbed his belt and pulled.

“Hey!  What gives, lady?” the shape-wielding villain asked.  The belt came unlatched.  Before it could get completely away from him, Geometric Man grabbed the pouch.  “My weapons are in there!”

With her other hand, Madame Mammoth pushed the pouch off the belt.  Geometric Man tumbled backward.  “Keep the weapons, deadwood!  I just need your belt for teleporting!”  With her prize in hand, she leapt from the catwalk and fell to the floor below.

Geometric Man sat dumbfounded for a moment.  “But…you can’t…”  When he saw her land and join three of the other villains, all the while accessing the controls to summon a rectangular door of energy, he realized that she could and did!

“Time to go!” Mammoth ordered.  Prince Pyro, the Golden Greek and Dr. Delirium all nodded.  They stepped through the portal, one by one, and vanished.  After Madame Mammoth did the same, the portal closed.

 The heroes recovered in enough time to see the four vanish. 

“Damn!  They did it again!” User proclaimed.

“But they left some behind for us!” Ricochet replied.  In a blur, he raced about the warehouse, collecting the Mimic, Timewarp and Geometric Man.

The rest of the Protectors surrounded the three cast-asides.

“Well, boys,” Amazon said, her added height contributing to her level of intimidation, “we gonna do this the easy way or the hard way?”

Timewarp was still drained from trying to keep the entire group in stasis.  Geometric Man was still in shock that the other villains had turned on him and taken his gadget for their own use.  The Mimic, possessing only his enhanced skills and martial arts, clearly felt outmatched by the six super-heroes surrounding him.  He looked to the others.  “Well, guys?”

“Yeah…” Timewarp muttered.

Geometric Man just hung his head.  No way they could escape at this point, and no point in taking any more beatings.  “Yeah,” he echoed.  “We surrender.”

***    

After depositing the villains off at a nearby police station for processing, the Protectors regrouped at the Mystifier’s mansion in Greenwich Village for a post-battle celebration with pizza and beverages.

“We’re out of pepperoni,” Ricochet said as he finished his fifth slice of pizza.

“Geez, kid, slow down!” Larynx said.  “Save some for the rest of us.”

“Its too bad Mammoth and company got away,” Amazon said.

“We got half of them though,” Hydro Girl said.  “That’s not bad for one night’s work.”

“It could have been more,” Rainbow sighed.  “If I hadn’t screwed up and got caught, we might have gotten the surprise on them.  Maybe Emotion had the right idea in quitting the team.”

“Don’t say that!” User said.  “We need you, girl.  You promise me you’ll stick wit’ it, okay?”

The brown haired woman sort of smiled.  “Okay…” she said.

The Mystifier rubbed his chin in thought.  Maybe there is some way I can help her out, he thought.  I certainly do not want her leaving the team.  This was something he would have to ponder over the next few days.  He hoped, in the meantime, things would remain quiet so he could do so.