[Superfreaks/ACRA] Superfreaks Season 2 #5

[Martin Phipps]

Michael King, Mary Bailey and Frank Lopez: crime scene
investigators.  John Phelps, Mark Johnston and Tom
Jackson: police officers.  Jack Greenspan and Edward
Bailey: medical examiners.  Alan Russell and Roger
Roeper: lawyers.  These are the men and women who
are truly our last line of defense.  But what about
the capes whose cases they have to investigate? 
Should they be considered a help or a hindrance? 

                SUPERFREAKS SEASON 2 #5

                        "FUSION"

                         PART I

  This time there was less warning: the prison
personel barely had time to get out of the area before
the outer wall was breached and Eliminator, Reject and
Extreme Junior barely had time to get in place when
the alien finally broke through.
  "You may have defeated Devastatus!" he said.  "But
you'll never defeat Fusion!"
  "We'll see about that!" Eliminator said.  He flew up
towards Fusion but Fusion simply raised his hands and
projected a blast of energy his way, resulting in a
direct hit that knocked him backwards.  Reject and
Extreme Junior managed to grab his arms but Fusion
still had enough maneuverability to touch Reject with
his open palm.  Fusion then activated his power in his
right hand and Reject was vaporized.  Fusion then had
one hand free and moved to touch Extreme Junior who
released his grip on the villain in order to get out
of his reach.  Fusion then projected a blast of energy
his way and knocked him backwards.  Eliminator moved
in for a second attack and grabbed both arms from
behind: Fusion simply reached behind him and touched
Eliminator and activated his power a fourth time; this
time Eliminator disintegrated.
  This all happened in a matter of seconds.
  Extreme Junior was extremely weak when Fusion
approached him, so weak he could barely move.  Fusion
approached him slowly, savoring his victory.
  "You... killed them," he said.
  "Yes," Fusion said.
  "But we are clones of Extreme.  We can't die."
  "All things die."
  "No, not Extreme.  He will avenge us."
  "Not if I kill him first."
  Extreme Junior was helpless: there was no escape for
him.  Fusion simply picked him up, held him in the
vacuum of space that had formally been full of air and
activated his power, causing Extreme Junior to
disintegrate, just like his brothers.

  The portal back to Earth had just been openned when
Fusion broke through to the laboratory.  Thus the
prison personel were unable to escape from the
Anti-Dimension but were, instead, sucked out to empty
space.  Fusion laughed at these helpless creatures who
required air to breathe and who lacked the strength to
continue moving forward regardless of the winds
pushing them back.  He reasoned that they had been
trying to pass through the portal.  He decided to pass
through the portal to see what was on the other side.

  On the other side of the portal, the Extreme Force
HQ personel could already see him coming, even though
he couldn't see them: this was because the portal to
the Anti-Dimension was designed to open from either
end but objects, including light, could only pass
through in one direction at any particular time.  This
had the added benefit of protecting the Extreme Force
HQ personel from being sucked through the portal into
the vacuum of space that now existed on the other
side.
  The Super Soldier, who spent most of his time
dealing with the day to day tasks of running Exreme
Force HQ, was the first member of Extreme Force to
arrive at the scene: all he knew was that something
hostile was passing through the portal from the
Anti-Dimension and into Extreme Force HQ.  He knew
that he had to be there to protect his non-super
powered staff from harm.  He therefore stood on the
other side of the portal and waited for Fusion to pass
through.
  "Who are you?" Fusion asked.
  "I am the Super Soldier," the Super Soldier said
with pride.
  "I was expecting somebody named Extreme."
  "He is coming."
  Fusion nodded.  "Very well then.  I have no use for
you." 
  Fusion raised his arms.  The Super Soldier
immediately recognized this an attack so he raised his
shield to protect him.
  The Super Soldier's shield was made of an alloy of
two metals, one being Titanium and other being a metal
so rare that it made his shield absolutely unique.  It
was indestructable.  Thus when Fusion blasted him, the
shield simply took the blast and remained unharmed.
  The Super Soldier, however, was merely flesh and
blood and thus the parts of his body which were not
covered by his shield, which was most of him seeing as
how his shield was only aboyt as wide as his forearm,
were unable to withstand the blast.  Thus, the Super
Soldier's upper torso remained in tact but everything
that was above his neck or below his waist simply
disintegrated.
  "You murderer!" Extreme said, having just arrived in
time to see what had happened.
  "Who are you?"
  "I am Extreme!"
  Extreme was the one he had come for, the one who the
smaller one had said would avenge him.  Fusion wasn't
interested in small talk: he activated his power once
more and knocked Extreme down to the ground.
  Exreme felt weak.  He could barely move.
  Fusion laughed.  "You are no different than the
others!  You will die just as they died!"

                       PART II

  When the crime scene investgators arrived on the
scene, Extreme Force HQ was a mess: not only had
entire walls been vapourized by Fusion's blasts but
people on the other side of those walls, people who
apparently hadn't evacuated the building quickly
enough, were killed, some of whom could not
immediately be identified as only charred remains were
left in most cases.  They estimated that there were
about a dozen bodies scattered throughout the building
in addition to the two bodies they found in front of
the portal to the Anti-Dimension.
  One body was clearly that of the Super Soldier, or
what was left of him: they could clearly make out a
portion of his costume, the part that had covered his
chest, although the rest of his costume had
disintegrated along with his body.
  The other body they found was obviously alien:
Detective Michael King recognized that it belonged to
the same race as Devastatus, the creature that had
attacked the Anti-Dimension prison a few weeks ago
back when he was there to question the serial killer 
Matthew Spencer before he was incarcerated.  John
wondered if this wasn't Devastatus himself: it was
really hard for him to tell because the creature was
missing his head.
  Also in the room was Extreme.  Michael found it odd
that Extreme was sitting down: Extreme almost never
sat down because his power was such that standing
required barely any effort on his part.  Besides,
standing was much more dramatic than sitting and
Extreme always did make a point of appearing dramatic.
 Indeed, to see him sitting there, he just looked like
Daily World reporter Kenneth Clark wearing an Exteme
costume.
  "Would you like to tell me what happened?" Michael
asked.
  "He came through the portal," Extreme said.  "He
killed the Super Soldier."
  "Why didn't they close the portal and prevent him
from coming through?"
  "I don't know.  Maybe it happened too fast.  There
were people on the other side.  In the prison.  They
didn't make it."
  "It's closed now."
  "I closed it.  I didn't want anything else getting
through."
  "Fair enough."  He pointed to the dead body of
Fusion.  "So what happened to him?"
  Extreme nodded.  "After he killed the Super Soldier,
he attacked me.  The extent of his power was
incredible: it felt as though I were passing through
the sun!"
  "Is that something you've actually done?" Michael
asked.
  "No, of course not.  I'm not sure if even I could
survive the heat of solar plasma."
  "So you thought you were going to die."
  Extreme nodded.  "I was helpless.  I could barely
move.  He reached out to me.  He touched me."
  "Go on."
  Extreme smiled.  "But I am faster than him, even in
my weakened state: I grabbed his arms before he could
activate his power and kill me and lifted them up so
that when he activated his power they were pointing in
the direction of his own face."
  "Ouch."
  Extreme nodded.  "So that was the end of him."
  Michael pursed his lips.  "You look weak."
  "I'll be fine."
  "How long before you're back to full strength?"
  "I don't know," Extreme admitted.  "I've never felt
anything like that before.  It might take a while."
  "Because you are going to have to go back into the
Anti-Dimension prison and rescue anyone there who
might have survived."
  Extreme looked surprised.
  "I remember when Devastatus attacked that the prison
was divided into sections and each section that was
not open to space remained pressurized.  There could
be survivors there."
  Extreme nodded.  "Okay."
  "That includes the prisoners.  They will have to be
brought back through and relocated to civilian
prisons."
  "What?"
  "I'll make the arrangements.  The Super Soldier
provided me with details about all the prisoners.  I
know that they can all be handled by civilian
authorities, all except maybe Zon and Devastatus."
  Extreme balked at the idea.  "I'm not bringing Zon
back through.  And Devastatus isn't even from this
dimension."
  "No, but the human prisoners shouldn't be left to
rot in another dimension.  Perhaps you forget that we
humans have to eat and drink.  They're proably also
running out of air in their cells."
  "Okay.  Point taken.  But Zon and his clones don't
need to eat.  Well, Zon doesn't have to.  I don't know
about his clones."
  "You do what you think is right.  You're the only
one who can do this."  He thought for a moment.  "What
about your clones?"
  "I don't know about Bizarre Extreme but Eliminator,
Reject and Extreme Junior were on the other side."  He
grimaced.  "He said 'You are no different than the
others!'  I think they're all dead."
  Michael nodded.  "That is something you will have to
confirm for us.  As soon as you are ready, of course."

  It was another hour before Extreme felt fit enough
to fly through the portal.  Extreme spent the rest of
the day evacuating prisoners from the Anti-Dimension
prison and taking them to the civilian prisons that
Michael recommended to him.  Michael acknowledged with
satisfaction that the prisoners that had been held in
the Anti-Dimension were finally going to be facing
civilian justice.  This wasn't how he hoped it would
happen, however.
  Over the next few days, arrangements were made for
the funeral of the Super Soldier.  All of his
teammates were there as were the surving members of
the previous incarnation of the Extreme Force Six,
including Water Lord.

  After the funeral, Water Lord approached Detective
King.
  "Detective, I was able to identify the Atlantean who
was killed by your people," he said.
  "Do you have a name for me?"
  "We Atlanteans don't use names.  We communicate
telepathically.  There is no need for names because we
always know who we are taling to."
  "Alright.  So what is it that you have to tell me?"
  Water Lord reached into one of his pockets and
pulled out what appeared to be spent ammunition.  "I
found these bullets at the bottom of the ocean near
where he was last known to be swimming.  He was
definitely shot."
  "We knew that."
  "Here!  Take them!"
  "I'm not wearing gloves."
  "So?"
  "I'm not supposed to handle evidence without
gloves."  He sighed.  "Just put them in my pocket here
and I'll take them out later."
  "Alright," he said as he placed the bullets in
Michael's right jacket pocket, "but I want to know
what you find out."
  "How can I contact you?"
  Water Lord smiled.  "They tell me that Extreme Force
Six is now without a leader.  I will therefore return
to fill that role.  Thus you should have no trouble
finding me: I will be in his office all day."
  "The place is a bit beat up."
  "They tell me construction crews are working around
the clock to fix it up."  He shrugged his shoulders. 
"I don't mind a bit of a mess.  Just be sure to keep
me informed."

                       PART III

  Michael went back to the lab and put on some gloves.
 He took the bullets out of his pocket, out them in a
bag and labelled them as having been recovered by
Water Lord in connection to the case involving the
dead Atlantean.  He then took the bag with him and
went to see Edward Bailey.
  "Could you take a look at these," he said.
  "They look like spent rounds from a navy jet."
  Michael nodded.  "Water Lord found them."
  "You mean he found them on the bottom of the ocean?"
  "That's what he says."
  "That must have been extremely difficult."
  Michael shrugged his shoulders.  "Not for him.  He's
Water Lord.  So is there anyway to determine where
they came from?"
  "We'd have to test fire bullets from an actual jet
and compare them but, yeah, it's possible."
  "Then it looks like we're going to be taking a
trip."

  Michael contacted the navy and was told which ships
were in the area where the Atlantean was shot during
the period when he was believed to have been shot. 
Michael made arrangements to have him and Edward
transported by helicopter out to where one of the
ships was stationed.  They spoke to the ship's
captain.
  "I can assure you, gentlemen, that I did not order
any attack on any Atlantean.  And none of my men would
have acted against any Atlantean without my orders to
do so."
  Michael nodded.  "Perhaps.  But we'd be able to rule
out the possibility if you'd just let us test fire the
guns from your jets and compare them with the bullets
we have here."
  The captain nodded.  "Fair enough.  I'll tell my men
to co-operate with you."

  The guns from each of the jets were test fired under
the supervision of Michael and Edward.  Edward then
tested each of the bullets with the bullets Water Lord
recovered.
  Edward sighed.  "We've got a match."
  "You're sure?"
  Edward nodded.  "When a bullet is fired from any
kind of weapon, it passes through the barrel of the
weapon and any imperfections along the inside of the
barrel produce grooves on the spent bullets that can
be used to identify the gun used to fire it, even a
gun mounted on a navy jet."
  "Alright," Michael said, "then we'll have to talk to
the pilot who flies that jet."

  "I didn't shoot anybody," the pilot insisted.
  "Have you ever fired your guns over open water?"
Michael asked.
  "Sure," the pilot said, "just to test fire them."
  "Then how do you know?"
  The pilot laughed.  "Nobody would be swimming out
this far!  We're hundreds of miles from the nearest
land!"
  "Our victim was an Atlantean.  They spend all their
time in the water and could very well have been
swimming in the water below you when you test fired
your guns."
  "Oh," the pilot said.  "Look, in that case it was an
accident."
  Michael nodded.  "Is that your official statement?"
  "It is."
  "Then that's what I'll write in my report."

  Water Lord, however, was not happy.  Michael spoke
to him at Extreme Force Headquarters as soon as he got
back to Pepperton.
  "I don't care if it was an accident!" he said. 
"They are responsible for the death of one of my
subjects."
  "And they are agreeing to this.  They are willing to
pay compensation."
  "Compensation?  Is this some kind of joke? 
Atlanteans have no need of your money!"
  "Then I suggest you get a lawyer and take it to the
courts.  You can sue the government for wrongful death
on behalf of the family."
  Water Lord shrugged his shoulders.  "And then what? 
Will they just offer me more money?"
  "What do you want."
  "The oceans belong to us.  Your navy ships have no
right to be there."
  Michael shook his head.  "The surface of the Earth
is about 75% water.  You can't claim sovereignty over
three quarters of the Earth's surface."
  "What would you have me do?  Your military shot and
killed one of my subjects!  It was an act of war!"
  "It was an accident."
  "So they say!"
  "This isn't getting us anywhere.  Find a lawyer, one
that specializes in international law.  He might be
able to find a precident somewhere.  There has to be
some way to make this right."
  Water Lord laughed.  "I'm being asked by old friends
to help them defend the surface world from those who
would seek to destroy it and yet your navy wages war
on my people!"
  "You must do what you think is right, of course."
  Water Lord sighed.  "Alright.  I'll do as you say:
I'll hire a lawyer."
  Michael nodded.  "I think you'll find that it is
best to work within the system we have set up."
  "We'll see."

  Michael went directly from Extreme Force
Headquarters back to the precinct.
  "Did you have a good trip?" Naomi, the receptionist,
asked him.
  "Not really," Michael said with a smile.  "It was
all business."
  "This came for you," she said as she handed him a
letter.  "It's from the National Crime Scene
Investigators Association."
  "Ah," he said.  "That's my invitation to the annual
Crime Scene Investigators convention in Washington,
DC."
  "Are you bringing anybody with you this year?" she
asked.
  Michael shook his head.  "Not anybody from here."
  "Who then?"
  "That's none of your business," Michael told her.
  "Come on!"
  "Okay," Michael said.  "If you must know I'm meeting
with Lana Lewis and we're going to attend the
convention together."
  "Really?"
  "Really."
  "So what's going on then between you too?"
  "It's like I said: it's none of your business."
  Naomi gave him a sly smile.  "So it's like that then
is it?"
  "I'm not telling you anything else."
  "You've told me enough already."
  "So I have."
  Naomi's smile broadened.  "I'm good at questioning
people.  Maybe next time you're questioning a suspect
you'll bring me in on it and we'll see what I can get
out of him."
  Michael laughed.  "I might just take you up on
that."

                        THE END

Martin


       
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