Superfreaks/ACRA: Superfreaks Season 2 Trade Etherback #1 (Collecting #'s 1-5)

[Martin Phipps]

Michael King, Mary Jones 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 #1

                  "STANDARD PROCEDURE"

                         PART I

9:15 am

  "Are you sure this is a good idea?" Detective John
Phelps asked.
  Detective Michael King nodded.  "Absolutely. 
There's no harm in having him look at old cases."
  "He's not a trained investigator."
  "No, that's why we won't have him handling any of
the physical evidence.  But anybody is entitled to
look at the reports and photographs.  Frankly, if he
thinks he can help us I don't see what the harm is."
  John grimaced.  "His psychic visions are not
admissible in court."
  Michael nodded.  "Which is why I prefer to have him
looking at older cases, cases where we've exhausted
all other leads."
  "You really believe this psychic hocus pocus?"
  Michael smiled.  "It's not a question of what I
believe or don't believe.  Think of this as an
experiment.  If he doesn't have psychic powers then he
can't help us but if his powers are real then he can
help us a lot.  I'm willing to take that wager."
  Suri Das looked up from his desk and smiled at the
two officers.  He then went back to looking at the
report that they had given him to read.
  "Yeah, well, maybe after he's read a whole bunch of
reports he can be considered an expert on them.  That
might be useful."
  "That's the spirit."
  Just then Naomi Chen called to the two officers from
across the room.  "Detectives, we've got a dead body
in the harbour."
  "Thanks, Naomi.  Michael?"
  "I'll get my equipment."

9:39 am

  "So, Michael, what do you think?  Did this guy drown
or what?"
  "Not likely, John.  Look at his ears."
  "What about them?"
  "They're pointed."
  "Oh yeah.  What could cause that?"
  "He's an Atlantean."
  "Ah.  So drowning is out of the question."
  "No, John.  Atlanteans are perfectly capable of
breathing under water.  See?  He has gills."
  "Okay.  So what killed him?"
  "My guess is he was shot.  Notice this bullet hole
entry wound in his back and the exit would through his
chest."
  "Okay.  Yeah.  That would have done it."

10:10 am

  Detective Mary Jones and CSI Frank Lopez arrived at
the scene of the brutal murder at the zoo.
  "Did anybody see anything?" Mary asked one of the
zookeepers, a Mr. Carl Thompson.
  "There were no people around when it happened but
one of the chimpanzees might have seen something."
  Mary looked at the zookeeper askance.  "That's not
very helpful."
  "Don't be so sure!" the zookeeper said.  "These
chimpanzees have all been taight sign language.  You
might be able to get a description from them."
  "Really?" Mary said.  "Okay, Frank, that's your job
then: you get one of the zookeepers to help you
communicate with the chimps and I'll process the
scene."
  "You've got to be kidding me."
  "I'm not, Frank," Mary said.  "And that's an order."
  "Okay."  He spoke to the zookeeper.  "So can you
communicate with the chimps?"
  "I'll try."
  "Let's go."
  Frank followed the zookeeper to the cage where the
chimpanzees were kept and asked them if they saw
anything.  One of the chimps signed back.
  "What did he say?" Frank asked.
  "He said he saw the killer."
  Frank sighed.  "Can he give us a description?"
  "That's going to be a bit difficult."
  Frank nodded.  "I'm sure.  Okay, he's what we do. 
First we take the chimp to a room where we can
question him.  What's the best place?"
  "The main office."
  "Alright.  Have the chimp brought there and I'll see
if I can draw a picture of the suspect based on the
chimp's description."
  "You can do that?"
  "It's my specialty."
  "Alright then.  We'll do that."

10:31 am

  "What can you tell me about the body?" Michael
asked.
  Medical Examiner Jack Greenspan shrugged his
shoulders.  "Cause of death is a bullet through the
heart.  What's interesting is that the bullet was
through and through, which is odd for an underwater
shooting."
  Michael nodded.  "Because the water should slow down
the bullet so that it wouldn't be moving fast enough."
  "Correct."  Jack Greenspan cringed.  "There's no way
for me to determine the kind of ammunition used based
on the wound.  The only way we can move forward in
this case is if we can find the bullet that shot him."
  "And there's not much chance of that if our victim
was shot in the middle of the ocean."
  "I would imagine it would be extremely difficult if
not impossible."
  "Okay.  Thanks."

10:39 am

  "And how about the eyes?" Frank told the zookeeper
to ask the chimp.  "Bigger or smaller?"
  The zookeeper signed the question and the chimp
signed back.  "Smaller."
  "How's this?" Frank asked after modifying the
sketch.
  "My God."
  "What?"
  "That looks just like the zoo groundsman, Chuck
Perez."
  "Ask the chimp if the drawing is of the man who
killed our victim."
  The zookeeper signed the question and the chimp
signed back.  "That's him."
  "Alright.  I'll go tell Detective Jones.  You bring
Chuck Perez here immediately."
  "Will do."

11:01
 
  "Any luck?" Michael asked.
  Edward pointed to the computer screen where an ocean
current similation was running.  "Yes and no.  Based
on where the body was found, we can assume that the
body must have drifted in from the ocean."
  "The problem being..."
  "It's a big ocean."
  "I know."  He sighed.  "There might be somebody who
can help us in this investigation."

11:15

  "Where were you between eight and nine this
morning?" Mary asked Chuck Perez.
  "I already told you.  I was working."
  "Were you anywhere near the scene of the murder?"
  "No.  I was on the other side of the zoo when it
happened."
  "Can you prove that?"
  "Are you saying I did it?"
  "We have a witness who described you perfectly."
  "A witness?  That can't be."
  "Why not?"
  "Because... there's never anybody in the zoo that
early in the morning."
  "Except you?"
  "Yeah but I was on the other side of the zoo."
  "And the victim."
  "He does research into animal behaviour."
  "So you knew the victim."
  "Yeah.  Wait.  Are you accusing me?"
  "We're not just accusing you, Mr. Perez, we're
arresting you.  Mr. Perez, you are under arrest for
the murder of Dr. Kevin Knightly.  You have the right
to remain silent.  Anything you say can and will be
used against you in a court of law.  You have the
right to an attorney.  If you cannot afford an
attorney one will be appointed for you.  Do you
understand these rights?"
  "Who was it?  Who is accusing me?"
  "Do you understand these rights?"
  "Yeah."
  "Mark, Tom, take him away."  Officers Mark Johnston
and Tom Jackson placed the suspect in handcuffs and
took him away.

4:11

  "John?"
  "Yeah?"
  "I'm Roger Roeper, the public defender assigned to
Chuck Perez's case."
  "Okay."
  "Am I to understand that the witness who fingered my
client is a chimpanzee?"
  "He did match the description the chimp gave us."
  "John, this is ridiculous!  You can't hold my client
based on such evidence!"
  "Roger, he and the victim were the only two people
in the zoo at the time of the murder."
  "How do we know that?  Maybe the zookeeper did it."
  John shook his head.  "The zookeeper punched in at
9:00 after the murder took place.  He's the one that
found the body."
  "Right.  So maybe it was pre-meditated: he shows up
early, he kills Dr. Knightly and then goes back to
punch in and give himself an alibi."
  John bit his lip.  "We have enough to hold him until
tomorrow and then we can bring in the witness and do a
line up."
  Roger shook his head.  "John, your witness is a
chimp."
  "I know that.  You get somebody who can read sign
language so that you have independent confirmation
that the chimp is being asked the right questions."
  "This is ridiculous."
  "It's standard procedure for suspects who are deaf
or mute."
  "I'm going to get this case thrown out!  You'll
see."
  "Yeah yeah.  Sure.  Just come back tomorrow morning
and we'll get it all figured out."

                       PART II

9:13 am

  "I appreciate you coming down to talk with us, Water
Lord," Detective Michael King said.
  "Extreme said it was important."
  Michael nodded.  "I asked the Super Soldier to have
him bring you here."
  "So what is this about?"
  Michael showed him a picture of the victim.  "Do you
know who this is?"
  "Looks like one of my subjects."
  "Can you give us a name?"
  "No.  We don't rely so much on facial recognition
seeing as how we can't see each other very well under
water."
  "Understood."
  "How did he die?"
  "He was shot."
  "Ah.  Then I'm not a suspect.  Atlanteans do not use
guns."
  "I didn't say you were."
  "Then why am I here?"
  Michael frowned.  "I would have thought you would
have wanted to help us find out who the killer is.  Do
you know of any trouble between your people and the
people on the surface."
  "No.  We've been at peace.  Until now."
  Michael showed him another photograph.  "Do you know
who this is?"
  "No."
  "It's Irwin Stevens, the Alligator Hunter.  He did a
TV show down in Florida."
  "I don't watch TV."
  "No, I don't suppose you do."
  "So what does this have to do with me?"
  "Irwin Stevens was killed a year ago by a stingray."
  "So?"
  "So Singrays don't usually kill people.  Now, I was
thinking that since Atlanteans can communicate with
marine animals that perhaps an Atlantean could have
been responsible for his death."
  "Are you accusing me--?"
  "No.  Not at all.  It could have been any Atlantean.
 Or it could have been a freak accident.  The point is
that each of us has had somebody from our race die in
the water under suspicious circumstances.  Perhaps the
two deaths are related."
  "You said your Mr. Stevens died a year ago."
  "Yes.  But I thought it might be a lead that you
could follow."  Michael showed Water Lord a map that
Edward had printed out the day before.  "We believe
your victim lived somewhere in this area."
  "That's a pretty big area."
  "But you are their king--"
  "Atlanteans tend to keep to themselves."
  "Nevertheless, you have both the means and the
authority to investigate."
  Water Lord nodded.  "Very well.  I will ask about
both victims, yours and ours, and see what I can find
out."
  "I appreciate that."

10:21 am

  "Mr. Roeper."
  "Mr. Russell."
  Pepperton Public Defender Roger Roeper and Pepperton
District Attorney Alan Russell shook hands.  "I
appreciate you being here for this."
  "I have to protect my clients rights."
  "I understand that.  Did you bring your own expert
in sign language?"
  "I did."
  "Then we can get started.  Mr. Thompson, is Jacky
ready?"
  "I'll ask."  Carl signed to Jacky and Jacky signed
back.  "He's ready."
  "Okay.  We're going to bring in the suspect and four
look-a-likes and we're going to get Jacky to point out
which one is our killer."
  "I know the procedure."
  "Good."  Alan signaled to Officer Mark Johnston to
have the line up brought in.
  Once the five men were in line, Carl Thompson signed
to Jacky and asked him to point to the killer.  Jacky
pointed to Chuck Perez.
  "My God," Roger said.  "Is this all on the up and
up?" he asked his expert.
  "It's standard American sign langauge," she told
him.  "And he definitely pointed to our client."
  "Convinced?" Alan asked.
  "I'm not the one who needs convincing, Alan.  Are
you going to bring that chimp into court and have him
point him out in court?  Because that's what you are
going to have to do.  You're going to have to convince
a jury that a chimapanzee is a credible witness."  He
picked up his briefcase and left.

11:55 pm

  "Excuse me, but I think you've had enough."
  "I'll decide when I've had enough."
  "Actually, it's my job to decide when a customer has
had enough.  I'm the bouncer.  And you're going to
have to leave."
  "Make me."
  The bouncer smiled.  "So happens that's part of my
job too."  He grabbed the customer by the shoulder.
  "Unhand me!"
  "Stand up!"
  The customer stood up... and then grabbed the
boubcer and threw him against the wall on the other
side of the bar.  Several patrons screamed, including
some men.  The customer just sat back down and
finished his drink.
  "Okay," he said.  "Now I go."
  
                        PART III

2:01 am

  "Cause of death appears to be blunt force trauma,"
Detective Michael King determined.  "The victim hit
the wall head first."
  "The bartender says our suspect through him from
over there," Detective John Phelps said, pointing at a
table located on the other side of the room.
  "Hmm," Michael said dispassionately.  "That was
quite a throw."
  "I don't think I'm going to want any of my officers
going after this guy.  He's too dangerous."
  "My thoughts exactly."

10:16 am

  "I appreciate you having me come to see you,"
Michael said to the Super Soldier.
  The Super Soldier nodded.  "This is the second time
this week I've been able to help you."
  "It's been a busy week."
  "So what do you have for me?"
  "A man was murdered today at a local bar.  He was
thrown across the room.  And this was a two hundred
pound man.  A bouncer.  The guy could defend himself. 
Usually.  But not against this guy."
  "I see."
  "One of my CSIs drew this picture based on the
description the bartender was able to give us."
  "I don't know this man.  I'm sorry."
  "No, but perhaps Extreme can look for him."
  "Extreme?"
  Michael nodded.  "We believe that this man would
kill any officer who tries to arrest him.  Our only
hope is to have Extreme arrest him for us.  Your
people are able to do that, aren't they?"
  "We are authorized by the President himself."
  "Then what's the problem?"
  The Super Soldier smiled.  "If we get involved then
it becomes our case."
  "I understand that.  Just keep us informed."
  "Alright.  I'll do that."
  
2:02 pm

  Extreme had been scanning the city looking for
somebody who fit the description he had been given. 
He finally found somebody at a construction site.  He
flew down to confront him.
  "Excuse me, Sir, were you at the Sax and the City
Music Bar last night?"
  "What's it to you?" the suspect asked.
  "A man was killed there last night."
  The suspect nodded.  "Yeah.  He should have learned
to mind his own business.  You should too."
  "Was that a confession?"
  The suspect smiled.  "What it was was a bit of
friendly advice.  And if you want me to stay friendly
then you'll leave me alone."
  "Was that a threat?"
  The suspect laughed.  "You're a bit slow, aren't
you.  Yeah, it was a threat!  You don't understand
what I am, do you?"
  "A mutant?  An alien?"
  The suspect shook his head.  "Listen, hero, I am a
god.  Mortals used to know not to mess with gods. 
What happened last night was a reminder."
  "I'm afraid you're going to have to come with me."
  "I don't think so."
  Extreme smiled.  "You can't treat me the way you
treated that man last night."
  "Don't be so sure," the suspect said and then used
his super speed and super strength to grab and lift a
steel girder to use as a weapon.  He struck Extreme
and knocked him off his feet.  "Too easy," he said.
  Extreme got back up.  "Everybody evacuate the area
for your own safety," he said, although he really
didn't ahve to do that because everybody working at
the site was already leaving.
  The suspect was impressed.  "Not bad.  This will be
fun."

2:10 pm

  Detective Michael King and John Phelps and Officers
Mark Johnston and Tom Jackson arrived on the scene as
shortly after the report came in on the radio.
  "It looks like he's fighting the guy," Mark said.
  "Good for him!" Tom said.
  "It looks like it's over already," John said.  "He's
bringing the suspect down to us."
  Extreme flew the unconscious suspect down to show
the police.  "This is your man.  He confessed."
  "Okay," Michael said.  "Thanks.  We'll take it from
here."
  "Um, I'm sorry but I can't do that."
  "What do you mean?"
  "This man is too dangerous to be placed in your
custody."
  "So what are you going to do with him?"
  "We have a holding cell where we can keep
superpowered prisoners.  I'll take him there."
  "Where he can await trial."
  "Um... you're going to have to talk to the Super
Soldier about that.  This is our case now.  Remember?"
 And with that Extreme flew off, carrying the suspect
with him.
  "What did he mean by that?" John asked.  "What does
he mean it is there case?"
  Michael cringed.  "I didn't agree to this.  He told
me I'm going to have to talk to the Super Soldier. 
Well I'm going to do just that."

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
aretruly our last line of defense.  But what about
thecapes whose cases they have to investigate?  Should
they be considered a help or a hindrance? 

                SUPERFREAKS SEASON 2 #2

                  "THE ANTI-DIMENSION"

                         PART I

7:01 am

  "Joanne!  It's time to get up!"
  Diane Cryer, the mother of Joanne Cryer, opened the
door to Joanne's room
  "Joanne?  Where are you?"
  Diane went back downstairs to speak to her husband
Bob.  "Bob, have you seen Joanne?"
  "No.  Why?  Isn't she in her room?"
  "No," Diane said.  After a moment's consideration,
she started to panic.  "Oh my God!  Where is she?"

9:32 am

  "I want to thank you for your help yesterday,"
Detective Michael King told the Super Soldier.
  The Super Soldier smiled.  "You could have told me
that over the phone.  Why are you really here."
  Michael laughed.  "You are very perceptive.  You
would have made a good detective."  He nodded. 
"Alright, I don't want to seem ungrateful..."
  "But?"
  "But the victim's family in the Sax and the City
case needs closure.  They can't get that if I tell
them the killer is being held in some secret
undisclosed location."
  "Why not?"
  "Try to put yourself in their position.  Imagine it
is your father or your son who was killed.  Wouldn't
you want to see justice done?"
  "What would you have me do?  Turn a dangerous
superpowered criminal over to ordinary police?  I
thought that was why you contacted us in the first
place."
  "We wanted your help in apprehending a dangerous
criminal."
  "And help we did."
  "But you didn't hand him over to us."
  "I told you that if we take a case it becomes our
case."
  "We still have jurisdiction over crimes commited in
our city."  Michael sighed.  "Look, is there some way
I can confirm to the victim's family that he is indeed
being held somewhere."
  "You have my word."
  "I'm sorry but that just isn't good enough.  A year
ago, Harry Roy was in your 'custody' and he ended up
almost joining your team."
  "That was different."
  "Why?  Because the man he killed deserved to die."
  "Okay.  I see where you are going with this."
  "I want to see where you keep people prisoner."
  "It's top secret."
  Michael took out a piece of paper.  "I have a
warrant."
  The Super Soldier laughed.  "A warrant from a judge
here in Pepperton is not good enough."
  "So you officially not co-operating with this
investigation?"
  "So this is an investigation now?"
  "I want to know where the suspect is being held.  I
also want to know what happened to the Brotherhood of
Masters, Zon and all the Zon clones you captured."
  The Super Soldier considered for a moment.  "I'll
have to discuss this with my superiors."
  "You do that." 

9:59 am

  "When did you last see your daughter?" Detective
Mary Bailey asked.
  "Last night when we went to bed," Diane Cryer
replied.
  "Was she upset?  Is there any reason to think she
might have left without telling you?"
  "She's only seven years old."
  "It's not unheard of for--"
  "Mary, I'm sorry to interupt," Frank Lopez said,
"but you need to see this."
  Mary and Diane followed Frank over to the side of
Joanne's bed.  "Is this what I think it is?"
  "It looks like blood," Mary said.
  "Oh my God!" Diane said.
  "Don't panic, Mrs. Cryer," Mary said.  "We'll need a
sample of your daughter's DNA to compare it to."
  "You think it's her blood?"
  "We can't be sure.  That's why we have to run a
comparison.  Does your daughter have a hair brush?"
  "Yes," Diane said.  "Over here."  She handed the
hairbrush to Mary.  It had several hairs on it.
  "Can I keep this?" Mary asked.
  "Sure," Diane said.
  Mary placed the hairbrush in a plastic bag.  "Frank,
collect a sample of that blood."
  "Okay."
  "Please find my daughter!" Diane told Mary.
  "We'll do our best," Mary said.  "We have to hurry
back to the crime lab right now.  We'll be in touch."

1:01 pm

  "Okay," the Super Soldier said.  "It's all agreed. 
You're going to come with us on a tour of our
Anti-Dimension facility."
  "Anti-Dimension Facility?" Michael asked.
  The Super Soldier nodded.  "The prison where we keep
superpowered criminals is in another dimension.  So,
you see, there is nothing for you to worry about
because there is no way anybody can ever escape from
it.[*]"
  "Then how do we get there?"
  "There's a portal.  Follow me, please."
  Michael was led to a laboratory ran by senior
Extreme Force Headquarters scientist Richard Reed.
  "Detective Michael King!" he said, extending out his
hand in offer to shake Michael's.  "I've heard so much
about you!"
  "All of it good, I hope," Michael said.
  "Oh, of course!"  Richard directed them to the
portal to the Anti-Dimension: a high tech piece of
equipment that looked pretty much like an empty
gateway with a lot of wires coming out of it.  "Here
it is!  The portal to the Anti-Dimension!"
  "This will take you to another dimension?" Michael
asked.
  Richard smiled.  "I know it doesn't look like much
because it isn't switched on."
  "Switch it on then," Michael said.
  "Of course.  It'll just take a few minutes for
everything to power up."
  "Fair enough," Michael said.  "So how is this
possible?  I mean, I try to keep up with the latest
advancements of science but I would have thought
interdimensional travel was beyond our capabilities."
  "Oh I stumbled across the possibility while I was
researching the possibility of generating stable
microscopic wormholes," Richard explained.  "I was
under government funding, you see, so when I presented
my preliminary results they had me move my lab here. 
That was several years ago.  Construction was
completed early last year."
  "Construction on what exactly?" Michael asked.
  "You don't know?" Richard asked.  He looked at the
Super Soldier quizically.
  "He's here so we can show him."
  "Oh.  Alright then," Richard said.  "The portal
should be ready soon."
  The portal switched on and what had been an
unimpressive gateway was now shimmering with blue
light.
  "Shall we go?" the Super Soldier asked.
  "If you are sure it is safe," Michael said.
  The Super Soldier smiled.  "Don't worry.  The
prisoners are all held securely."
  "I was thinking about radiation."
  "Ah."
  "Oh, don't worry!" Richard said.  "Radiation levels
are minimal!  No more than you would get on a sunny
summer day."
  Michael sighed.  "I was afraid of that," he said. 
"I didn't bring any sunblock."
  "We'll make this quick then," the Super Soldier
said.
  They passed through the portal and into another
laboratory which mirrored the one in our dimension. 
Beyond that was the prison itself: Michael was
surprised by how ordinary the prison was.
  "It doesn't look to be any more secure than a prison
back on Earth," Michael said.
  The Super Soldier laughed.  "Those prison bars are
made from titanium steel!  Extreme himself couldn't
bend them!  And even if the prisoners were to escape
there would be no way they'd know how to operate the
portal to get them back to Earth.  They are trapped
here!  There's no way anybody can escape from
here![*]"
  "Show me where the suspect in the Sax and the City
incident killing took place."
  "He's right over here," the Super Soldier said.
  As Michael passed through the prison, he was able to
spot not only Zon, his clones and the various members
of the Brotherhood of Masters but also some prisoners
he didn't recognize.
  "I want to know what all these people are being
charged with," Michael said.  "Holding prisoners
without charges and without a fair trial is a
violation of the constitution."
  The Super Soldier sighed.  "This is another
dimension.  The American constitution doesn't apply
here."
  "These people are Americans," Michael pointed out.
  "These people are dangerous.  They are a threat to
our very way of life."
  "Prove it."
  The Super Soldier nodded.  "Okay.  I'll present full
disclosure in writing as to the prisoners being held
here, but in return I want you to acknowledge that
this facility is outside your jurisdiction.  I only
brought you here for your own peace of mind."
  "This facility may not technically be part of our
jursidiction but your Headquarters still is and we
have a right to know what sort of prisoners you've
brought through here."
  The Super Soldier nodded reluctantly.  "We're here."
  The suspect in question pulled on the bars of his
cell but they didn't move.  "I'll get out of here one
day!  You'll see!  You can't hold a god!"
  The Super Soldier smiled.  "The man is obviously
delusional.  Extreme beat him easily.  He's no god."
  Michael sighed.  "And yet Extreme himself clearly
fills the definition of what we commonly think a god
would be like.  And this guy did give Extreme a run
for his money."
  "I could crush Extreme!" the would-be-god said.
  "But you didn't, did you?"  The Super Soldier
laughed.  He turned back to Michael.  "Are we done
here?"
  Michael nodded.  "Sure.  I've seen what I wanted to
see.  I'll let others worry about the legality of what
you've set up here."

2:34 pm

  "Edward, did you run the DNA on the blood and hair
from the Joanne Cryer case?" Mary asked Edward.
  "Yeah."
  "And?"
  "It's not Joanne's blood.  In fact it isn't even
human blood."
  "What is it then?"
  "It's rabbit's blood."
  "Rabbit's blood?  Oh God."
  Edward frowned in confusion.  "Isn't that good news?
 It means that Joanne's probably alive somewhere."
  Mary sighed.  "Edward, think.  What kind of guy
would bring a dead, bleeding rabbit with him when he
kidnaps a young girl."
  "Oh God!"
  "Exactly."  

                         PART II

9:14 am

  "Okay," Detective Michael King said.  "I need to be
brought up to speed on the Joanne Cryer case."
  "Frank found blood at the scene," Detective Mary
Bailey explained, "but it wasn't human blood: it was
rabbit blood."
  "Rabbit blood?"
  "That's what Edward said."
  Michael grimaced.  "So you're thinking that it's
some daemon cult that was behind the kidnapping?"
  "It certainly looks that way."
  Michael nodded.  "Alright then.  We need to go speak
to an expert."

9:31 am

  "So who is this Professor Stephen Stomper?" Mary
asked.
  "A few months ago there was a case involving two
dead teenagers, John Marx and Mitch Rogers.  They died
only minutes apart and they knew each other because
they had both been on a bus that had had a bomb on it:
the bus was on its way to Florida but then their
classmate, Julia Perez, got this vision of the bus
exploding and she, John, Mitch and Max Grimes all got
off the bus before it exploded.  Anyway, Professor
Stomper was able to determine that some daemon was out
to kill all four of them based on the notion that they
were meant to di on that bus."
  Mary frowned.  "I don't remember that case."
  "Of course not," Michael said.  "You had the day off
because you and Edward were going to get married. 
Then you two went on your homeymoon.  I told Edward
but I guess he didn't tell you."
  "Not a peep," Mary said, "but then I didn't want to
talk shop.  So Professor Stomper is a Professor at
Pepperton University?"
  Michael nodded.  "Yeah.  In the Department of
Paranormal Phenomena.  It's in that building over
there."
  "Alright then.  Let's go talk to him."

10:15 am

  "Detective Michael King!  So good to see you again!"
  "Professor Stomper, this is Detective Mary Bailey. 
She's a collegue of mine in the Pepperton Police
Department."
  "What can I do for you both?"
  "We have a case involving a kidnapped girl," Michael
explained.  "And the only clue we have is a drop of
rabbit's blood found at the scene."
  "Rabbit's blood?  Oh my!"
  "Indeed.  Can you help us?"
  Professor Stomper nodded.  "You're in luck.  Today I
have a light schedule.  I am free for the rest of the
day.  I'm supposed to be here for office hours but I
think this qualifies as an emergency."

10:53 am

  "I don't mean to be rude," Diane Cryer said, "but
who are these people?"
  Mary smiled.  "It's alright, Mrs. Cryer.  This is my
collegue Detective Michael King and this is Professor
Stephen Stomper from Pepperton University."
  "A university professor?" she asked.
  Professor Stomper nodded.  "Yes," he said, "a
professor of Paranormal Phenomena, to be exact."
  "I'm sorry professor, but I don't understand. 
Parawhat?"
  "Paranormal Phenomena," he reiterated.  "The basic
idea is that there are things that we would consider
supernatural which probably actually have scientific
explanations but as long as these explanations elude
us they are considered paranormal phenomena.  I have
become an expert in such phenomena, to the extent that
anybody can be said to understand them."
  "But how are you going to help us find our
daughter?" she asked.
  Stomper stood there with his mouth open.  "If you'd
rather I left..."
  "No, no," she said.  "I didn't mean to be rude.  I
just wanted to understand what was going on."
  "It might be a longshot," Michael explained to her,
"but we need to cover all possibilities if we are
going to find your daughter."
  Diane nodded.  "Yes.  Yes, of course.  Go ahead."

11:02 am

  Stomper stood there for a few minutes in Joanne's
room, just taking everything in.
  "Any ideas how the kidnappers got in and out?"
Michael asked him.
  "Yes.  They teleported in."
  "Teleported?"
  "These people don't just worship a daemon: they draw
power from it."
  "Perhaps we should contact the Extreme Force Six
then," Michael suggested.
  "That would be prudent," Stomper agreed, "but I fear
time is of the essense in this case."
  "Can you figure out where they took her?"
  "I can do better than that.  I can follow them:
there is a trace remaining of the spell they used to
teleport in and out.  I can follow them to where they
took her."
  "I want to go with you."
  "If you want, but your partner needs to stay here. 
The fewer people are placed in danger the better."
  Mary nodded.  "That's fine," Mary said.  "Just keep
your cell phone on."
  "Hopefully I will still be able to get a signal
where ever we're going," Michael said.
  Professor Stomper closed his eyes and concentrated. 
His ordinary clothing transformed into the red and 
yellow robes of a master of the mystic arts!  He then
raised his arms and waved them around until he and
Michael had disappeared.

                        PART III

11:19 am (the same day)

  "This is it," Professor Stephen Stomper said.  "This
is where they took here."
  "And there she is!" Detective Michael King said. 
"On that altar!  Surrounded by dancing daemon
worshippers!"
  "We're too late!" Stomper said.  "That one's got a
knife!  They're going to kill her!"
  "Do something!"
  Stomper concentrated and managed to throw a bolt of
bedevilment that threw off the aim of the kidnapper
ever so slightly and caused him to only graze little
Joanne Cryer.  Nevertheless a drop of blood managed to
drip down onto the altar.  Behind the altar, a portal
openned.
  "What's happening?" Michael asked.
  "They must have recited a spell to open a portal to
another world.  The daemon they worship is trying to
come through it."
  "What now?"
  "If the daemon gets through then I will have to
fight it.  In the meantime, we need to get Joanne off
the altar."
  "Right."  Michael took out his gun and his badge and
held them close together in two separate hands. 
"Pepperton police!  Move away from the girl or I'll
shoot!"
  The cultists backed off at the sight of Michael's
gun.  Meanwhile, the daemon started coming through the
portal.
  "It's too late, copper!" one of the cultists said. 
"Our lord has come to claim this world as his own!"
  "Stephen?"
  "I say... NAY!" Stomper said as he struck 
the daemon with a bolt of energy.  The daemon struck 
back but Stomper had put up shields to deflect the
creature's attack.  Stomper similarly found it
difficult to land a second strike on the daemonic form
he faced.  But get through he did!  And every blow
that struck the daemon weakened it and forced it back
to the other side of the portal.
  "I've got the girl," Michael said as he took Joanne
off the altar.
  "Wipe the blood off the altar," Stomper said.  "Then
I'll be able to close the portal."
  Michael wiped the altar with his sleeve and then
carried Joanne back up the stairs.  Meanwhile the
portal began to close with the daemon still on the
other side.
  "NO!" the cultists all screamed.
  "Don't go anywhere!" Michael said.  "You're all
under arrest."  He took out his cell phone and used
speed dial to call Detective John Phelps.  "John. 
It's Michael.  Send everybody down to my location. 
I'm going to leave my cell phone on so you can follow
the signal to where I am."

3:01 pm

  After the police arrived at the cult's hangout, the
cultists were all arrested and Joanne was taken to
Pepperton hospital.
  "The doctor says she'll be okay," Mary told her
parents.
  "Thank you so much!" Diane Cryer said.
  Mary smiled.  "Don't thank me.  Thank Detective King
and Professor Stomper.  They saved her."
  Diane sighed.  "Yes.  Thank you both so much!"
  "Just doing my job," Michael said.
  "Me too," Stomper said.  "I mean, that is, I was
happy to help."
  Diane frowned.  "Why my daughter?"
  "We may never know," Michael admitted.  "The
cultists aren't talking.  We're not even sure which
one of them took her."
  "But we've got one of them for attempted murder."
  "Absolutely.  I was a witness," Michael said.
  "Oh dear," Stomper said.  "Will I have to testify
too?"
  Michael nodded.  "I understand how it might be
difficult.  That's why we'll focus on the attempted
murder charge: we can't prove that the cultists
actually took Joanne from her bedroom; mystic
teleportation is not recognized as a credible means of
transport.  Suffice to say we followed their trial and
found them trying to sacrafice her."
  "Those bastards!" Bob Cryer said.
  "Luckily we got there in time to stop them."
  "What about my daughter's testimony?" Diane Cryer
suggested.  "Perhaps she can identify the ones who
took her."
  Michael nodded.  "As soon as she's well enough we'll
show her some pictures of the cultists we arrested. 
You're right.  She might be able to tell us which ones
took her."
  Diane sighed.  "I just wish this could be over."
  Michael nodded.  "It will be.  We'll find a way to
make sure they all serve time in prison for what
they've done.  I promise you that.
  
                SUPERFREAKS SEASON 2 #3

                      "COGNITION"

                         PART I

12:02 am

  "So you say that these girls are all actual clones
of porn stars?" an anonymous pervert asked.
  "That's right.  And you get thirty minutes with the
one of your choice," the "massage" parlour owner told
him.
  "What if I need more than thirty minutes?"
  "Then you need to provide another hundred dollars. 
How much do you have on you?"
  "I have more than two hundred with me."
  "That should be enough.  Our customers are
usually... fully relaxed within half an hour of their
massage."
  Just then a man in a mask carrying a machine gun
barged through the front door.  "Everybody get down!"
he said.  He aimed his gun at the window in front of
the clones.  He opened fire and shot them all.  He
then left the way he came.
  "Somebody call the cops!"

12:58 am

  "I'm Detective John Phelps.  What happened here?"
  "Some madman broke in here and shot up all my
girls."
  "My God.  Did you see who it was?"
  "No.  He was wearing a mask."
  John grimaced.  "Okay.  We'll get people in here to
examine the scene and take the bodies to the morgue. 
We'll find the man who did this and we're going to put
him in jail for a long, long time."

9:01 am

  "Naomi, I need to speak to one of the detectives."
  Naomi Chen gave Suri Das a sympathetic look.  "I'm
sorry but they're all out on a case.  A whole bunch of
girls got shot at a massage parlour."
  "Okay.  When one of them comes back, tell them I
need to speak to them."
  "Will do."

10:02 am

  "All rise for the honourable Judge Kevin Matthews in
the case of Charles Perez versus the City of
Pepperton."
  Judge Matthews entered the court room and sat down
on the bench.  "You may sit down," he said.  "Mr. 
Russell, you may present your case."
  Pepperton District Attorney Alan Russell got up. 
"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, we are here to
prove that this man here, Mr. Charles Perez, did
murder Dr. Kevin Knightly with his bare hands, in cold
blood, in a premeditated act when no human witnesses
were present.  The prosecution contends that there
were not only no other people in the zoo when it
happened but that he was identified as the killer by
our witness, a chimpanzee named Jacky."  He sat down.
  "Mr. Roeper?"
  Pepperton Public Defender Roger Roeper got up. 
"Ladies and gentlemen, the proscecution's case is
ludicrous.  A chimpanzee as a witness?  What will they
think of next?  If a parrot says he murdered Dr.
Knightly will they say the parrot is a credible
witness?  Ladies and gentlemen, you canot allow
yourselves to be swayed by the testimony of a witness
that isn't even human!  Thank you."

11:01 am

  "Mr. Craig Thomas?"
  "Yeah?"
  "I'm Detective John Phelps from the Pepperton
Police.  Are you the owner of the Pussycat Massage
Parlour?"
  "Yeah."
  "Are you aware that there was a shooting at the Miss
Galaxy Massage Parlour across the street from your
establishment?"
  "I heard about it on the news."
  "Members of your staff reported you leaving work
before midnight.  Can you tell us where you went after
that?"
  "I was tired.  I went home."
  "They tell us that was early for you and that you
are usually there until three in the morning."
  "Yeah well I had to run some errands yesterday."
  "Right."  John took out a piece of paper.  "I have a
warrant to search your apartment.  These two officers
and I will conduct the search."  He pointed to
Officers Mark Johnston and Tom Jackson who were
standing behind him.
  "I've got nothing to hide," Mr. Thomas insisted. 
"Come in."
  The three police officers searched separate rooms so
it wasn't long before they found what they were
looking for.
  "Is this your mask?" Mark Johnston asked.
  "Yeah," Craig said.  "I wore that last Halloween. 
Is that a crime?"
  "How about this machine gun?  Is _this_ yours?"
  "Ah."
  "Because owning a machine gun _is_ a crime.  And if
we can match this gun to the bullets fired at the
scene..."
  Mr. Thomas laughed.  "Look, guys, those girls were
all clones!  He was taking away my business!  That
means that my girls, my real human girls, aren't
getting a fair share!"
  "You're talking to the wrong person if you're
looking for sympathy," John said.  "You're under
arrest!"
  "Oh come on!"
  "Tom.  Read him his rights will you?  Then get him
out of my sight."
  
                        PART II

11:48 am (the same day)

  "Mr. Thompson, you are the zookeeper at the
Pepperton zoo, are you not?"
  "Yes."
  District Attorney Alan Russell nodded.  "Alright. 
And is it your contention that you can communicate
with Jacky the chimpanzee through sign language."
  "Yes, I can."
  "Alright.  Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I would
like to introduce to you Jacky the chimpanzee."
  Jacky walked into the courtroom whle holding the
hand of one of his handlers.  He was led up to the
witness box and placed on Carl Thompson's lap.
  "Mr. Thompson, would you please ask the chimpanzee
to point out the man who killed Dr. Knightly?"
  Carl Thompson spoke to Jacky using sign language. 
Jacky then pointed to Chuck Perez.  The jury members
all gasped.
  "Does the defense have any objection?" the judge
asked.
  Public Defender Roger Roeper confered with his
expert in sign language before answering.  "We don't,
your honour."
  "Do you wish to cross examine?"
  "We don't, your hounour."
  "Alright then.  We'll break for lunch then."

1:01 pm

  "Michael?"
  "Yes, Naomi?" Detective Michael King asked.
  "Suri Das wanted to speak with you."
  "Is he here right now?"
  "I think he went out for lunch."
  "Alright.  I'll talk to him when I see him."

2:03 pm

  Detective John Phelps went to the crime lab to see
forensic expert Edward Bailey.
  "Edward, have you examined the DNA from all the
victims in the Miss Galaxy Massage Parlour shooting
last night."
  "Yeah."
  "And?"
  "Eleven of the girls were clones but one of them was
the real Sahara Sands."
  "You're sure?"
  "Nuclei DNA and mitocondrial DNA were a match.  It's
definitely the real Sahara Sands and not a clone."
  "Why would the real Sahara Sands be working in a
massage parlour?"
  "Deniabilty perhaps.  If anybody recognizes her they
just think she's her own clone."
  "Okay, thanks."

3:40 pm

  "Has the jury reached a verdict?" the judge asked.
  "We have your honour."
  "Please read the verdict to the court."
  "We the jury in the case of Charles Perez versus the
city of Pepperton find the defendent guilty on the
count of murder in the first degree."
  The judge nodded.  "Thank you.  Will the defendent
please stand."
  Chuck Perez got up.
  "Mr. Perez, you have been found guilty in the murder
of Dr. Keven Knightly and are hereby sentenced to
twenty years in prison with no possibility for
parole."
  "But your honour!  The witness is a fucking monkey!"
  "Order!  Order!  Officers take Mr. Perez away!"

4:32 pm

  "Suri?"
  "Ah!  Mr. King!"
  "You wanted to see me?" Michael asked.
  "Yes, I was reading about this case here.  The man
who killed a woman and buried her out in a field."
  "What about it?"
  "It wasn't his only victim."

                        PART III

9:43 am

  "Are you sure this is where you saw the killer bury
the body in your vision?" Detective Michael King asked
Psychic Investigator Suri Das.
  "Yes, I'm sure."
  "Because if your not sure..."
  "I'm sure."
  "I was about to say that we have no reason to think
that there was even a second victim."
  Just then, Officer Tom Jackson made an announcement.
 "Detective, you need to take a look at this."
  Officer Mark Johnston pointed at the body he'd found
buried one foot into the soil.  "Is that the girl you
saw in your vision?"
  The body was badly decomposed.  "I certainly hope
so.  If not then there'd be another one."

10:12 am

  "Hey, honey, sit down!  What can I do for you?"
  Mary smiled.  "I'm Detective Mary Bailey from the
Pepperton Police Department."
  "Oh.  I see.  Well then, am I in any trouble?"
  "Not yet.  You're Max Hardinger, the manager of the
porn star Sahara Sands?"
  "That's right."
  "I'm sorry to tell you this but she's dead."
  "Dead?  How?"
  "She was shot."
  Max cringed.  "Who did it?"
  "It was Craig Thomas, the owner of the Pussycat
Massage Parlour.  The shooting happened at the Miss
Galaxy Massage Parlour across the street from his
establishment."
  "What was Sahara doing at a massage parlour?"
  "She was working there."
  "What?  This is the first time I've heard of this."
  "She was apparently working there in secret."
  Max Hardinger laughed.  "Not possible.  Sahara Sands
is one of the most recognized faces in the porn
industry today."
  "She was able to work there in secret because people
assumed she was her clone."
  "What?  Well how do you know she wasn't a clone?"
  "Because her nuclei DNA was a match for her
mitocondrial DNA."
  "What?"
  "It was her.  It wasn't her clone."
  "My God."
  "On top of that the manager of the Miss Galaxy
Massage Parlour admits to hiring Sahara Sands under
the condition that she be introduced as her clone and
not the real Sahara Sands."
  "I'll sue the bastard!"
  Mary sighed.  "Mr. Hardinger, Craig Thomas is
already facing charges of manslaughter, assault,
trespass, property damage and criminal negligence. 
Any civil action you would want to file would have to
await the outcome of the criminal trial."
  "Alright.  I'll wait.  Meanwhile I'm short one
starlet."
  "I sympathize with yoyr position, I really do. 
Right now, however, I need you to come down to the
morgue and officially identify the body."
  "Yes.  Yes, of course."

11:20 am

  Detectives Michael King and John Phelps were meeting
to discuss what was now apparently a double murder.
  "What do the two victims have in common?" John
asked.
  "Not much," Michael admitted.  "They were both
students but they went to different universities. 
Wait."
  "You've got something?"
  "They were both enrolled at ELI language school. 
They were in the same Spanish class."
  "Alright.  Let's go."

11:50 am

  "Jordan Banks and Adriana Winphrey were my students,
yes," Miss Ruiz told them.
  "Was there anybody in your class who you would
describe as acting suspicious?" John asked her.
  She nodded.  "Yes, Matt Spencer.  He creeped out
everybody."
  "Would you happen to have an address for him?"
Michael asked.

1:20 pm

  John kicked open the door to Matthew Spencer's
appartment.  "Police!" he shouted.
  "What's this about?" Matt asked.
  "What do you know about the deaths of Jordan Banks
and Adriana Winphrey?" Michael asked him.
  Matt smiled... and disappeared.
  "He teleported!" John said.
  "No," Michael said, "we would have heard an audible
pop when he disappeared.  He must have turned
invisible.  He's still in the room!  Quick!  Close the
door!"
  Before John could close the door something -actually
someone- knocked him out of the way and sped outside. 
Michael opened fire but all he hit was the wall on the
other side of the hall.  Michael looked both ways out
the door but couldnb't tell which way Matt went.
  "He's gone," he said.
  "A serial killer who turns invisible?" John asked.
  "Looks like it."
  "So what do we do now?"
  "We're going to need help on this one."
  "The Extreme Force Six?"
  "Not them.  Not just yet."
  "Then who?"
  "Some old friends."

               SUPERFREAKS SEASON 2 #4

                      "DEVASTATUS"

                         PART I

8:58 am

  "Our invisible killer has struck again," Detective
John Phelps said.
  Detective Michael King was skeptical.  "Are you
sure?"
  John nodded.  "Witnesses saw the victim get stabbed
but they didn't see anybody there."
  Michael sighed.  "He's esculated."
  "He thinks we can't stop him."
  Michael grimaced.  "He's wrong.  We will stop him."

9:31 am

  "I'm Lana Lewis and this is Oscar Unger.  We're
Special Agents for the FBI."
  "Oh, yes!" Naomi said.  "I remember you.  Detectives
King and Phelps are out on a case right now.  You can
sit over there and wait for them if you like."
  "Thank you.  We'll do that."
  "I'll give them a call and let them know you're
here."

10:02 am

  "Michael!  John!"
  "Lana!  Oscar!"
  They all shook hands.
  "Lana, I've got bad news.  He's struck again."
  "Your invisible killer?  Are you sure?"
  Michael nodded.  "Witnesses saw the stabbing took
place but they couldn't see the assailant."
  "When did this happen?"
  "Around eight o'clock this morning."
  "So it happened in broad daylight?"
  "Apparently."
  Lana sighed.  "Michael, have you contacted the
Extreme Force Six about this?"
  Michael grimaced.  "I've been reluctant to do that
because there are still some jurisdictional issues
that we have yet to resolve with them with regards to
superpowered suspects."
  "My God, Michael, the killer is esculating.  He
doesn't think we can stop him.  We need to get the
Extreme Force Six involved right away so that they can
stop him before he kills again."
  Michael nodded.  "Your right.  It was my call and I
take full responsibility."  He took out his cell
phone.  "I'm going to call them right now."

11:10 am

  "I got a call about an hour ago from Detective
Michael King of the Pepperton Police," the Super
Soldier said.
  Weapon Alpha shook his head.  "Him."
  "He wants us to help him on a case."
  "Does he now?"  The Human Spider rolled his eyes
back.
  "It involves an invisible man who is killing women
so, yeah, it sounds like a case where we could
actually help.  You both have enhanced senses so use
them and find this guy."
  "You're the boss," Weapon Alpha said.
  "What happens when we find the guy?" the Human
Spider asked.
  "Then he's to be kept in our custody.  The civilian
police can't be trusted to imprison superpowered
criminals: they were always escaping.  That's why
heroes like Night Man would constantly be facing the
same criminals over and over again every six months. 
Now we have the means to imprison superpowered
criminals ourselves.  What the American people want is
to feel safe and that's what we're providing for them,
a sense of safety.  It's the only way.  There are no
other options."
  
11:32 am

  "Weapon Alpha and the Human Spider are here," Naomi
told everybody as they entered the precinct.
  "Let me introduce everybody," Michael said.  "You
know Detective John Phelps.  This is FBI Special Agent
Lana Lewis and this is her partner, Special Agent
Oscar Unger.  Lana, Oscar, this is Weapon Alpha and
this is the Human Spider."
  The heroes and agents shook hands.
  "Actually I do remember seeing you guys on TV,"
Oscar said.

1:01 pm

  "So this is the crime scene, huh?" the Human Spider
said.
  "He was here at eight o'clock this morning," Michael
said.
  "I'm picking up his scent," Weapon Alpha said.
  "Way to go Rover!" the Human Spider said.
  "Quit with the jokes or I'll use my claws on you."
  "Ooo," the Human Spider said.  "He's really scary!"
  Everybody followed Weapon Alpha to the abandoned
warehouse district.  "He went this way."
  "I can't see him," the Human Spider said.
  "Of course not!  He's invisible!"
  "Ah!  That makes sense."
  Weapon Alpha said something under his breath that
nobody else could hear.
  Finally, Weapon Alpha made the announcement
everybody was hoping to hear.  "He's in this
warehouse!  He's somewhere over there!"
  "I sense him too!" the Human Spider said and then
fired his webbing in a wide dispersion pattern.
  "Look!" Lana said.  "Something's caught in the web
over there!"
  "Yay!" the Human Spider said.  "We got him."
  "Alright!" John said.  "Thanks for your help.  We'll
take it from here."
  "Um... no," the Human Spider said.  "He's under our
custudy."
  "Wait?  Since when does the Extreme Force Six take
custody of the criminals they apprehend?" Oscar Unger
asked.
  Michael sighed.  He resisted the tempation of saying
"I told you so."  Instead, he directed his demands to
the Human Spider.  "Look, Ken," he said saying the
hero's real name in a way that the FBI agents wouldn't
pick up on.  "This guy killed three women.  He has to
face justice in a court of law.  The victim's families
are going to demand it."
  "This guy is our prisoner now.  You wouldn't have
caught him without us," the Human Spider pointed out.
  "Okay, fine," Michael said, "but we need to know if
he's killed any other women.  We're going to have to
question him.  And he's going to have to have a lawyer
present."
  The Human Spider thought for a moment.  "Look, we
can let you question him in the Anti-Dimension.  And
you can bring a lawyer with you.  I'll just have to
clear it with my superiors."
  "Fine.  You do that."
  Lana was confused.  "What's the Anti-Dimension?"
  "It's what I didn't get a chance to tell you about. 
Do you want to come with me and see?"
  "Sure."

                         PART II

2:03 pm (the same day)

  Detective Michael King and FBI Special Agent Lana
Lewis brought Public Defender Roger Roeper to Extreme
Force Six Headquarters where the Human Spider and
Weapon Alpha still had Matthew Spencer in their
custody.  The Super Soldier was there to greet them.
  "Just wait a few minutes and the portal will be on
line," he told them.
  "Excuse me, I'm FBI Special Agent Lana Lewis," she
said.  "What exactly is the Anti-Dimension?"
  "The Anti-Dimension is a world just like ours but
different," the Super Soldier told her.  "If you want
a more technical, scientific explanation then you will
have to speak with Doctor Richard Reed.  He's the one
who discovered the Anti-Dimension.  For me, it is just
a convenient place to put superpowered criminals."
  "I see," she said.

2:12 pm

  "Alright, everybody come with me," the Super Soldier
said.
  They all passed through the portal to the
Anti-Dimension: first the Super Soldier, then the
Human Spider, Weapon Alpha and Matthew Spencer and
finally Michael King, Lana Lewis and Roger Roeper.  On
the other side was a laboratory not unlike the one
they had just left and beyond that was the prison
designed to hold superpowered criminals.
  "Everybody follow me," the Super Soldier said. 
"There's a room which has a field where superpowers
are negated.  That's where we bring superpowered
criminals for questioning."
  "Why not just build the entire prison with a power
negating field?" Michael asked.
  "Because the power negating field spends an enormous
amount of power," the Super Soldier explained.  "We
only turn the field on when we are questioning a
superpowered criminal."
  "Fair enough."
  "Good.  Now you understand why we need to keep these
people here."
  The Super Soldier was the first to enter the room:
as he did not technically have super powers the field
had no effect on him.  The Human Spider and Weapon
Alpha stopped at the door and threw Matthew Spencer
inside.  Matthew wanted to turn invisible but found
himself unable to.  The Super Soldier stood there
laughing at him.
  "It's alright for you to come in," he said.  "The
power negating field only works on superpowers."
  Michael, Lana and Roger entered the room.  There was
a table already set up with five chairs: the Super
Soldier sat down at the head of the table with two
chairs on either side of him.  Michael and Lana sat
down on one side and Matthew Spencer and his lawyer
sat down on the other side.
  "Can we make this quick?" the Super Soldier asked,
not wanting to blow the prison's electricity budget
all in one day.
  "Alright," Michael said.  "Matthew, besides Jordan
Banks, Adriana Winphrey and Cassandra Rivera have you
killed anybody else?"
  "You don't have to answer that question," Roger told
his client.
  "He doesn't have to but we already have a strong
case against him for three murders so it would be in
his best interest to co-operate at this point."
  "I didn't kill anybody else," Matthew said.
  "Just those three women?"
  "Just those three," he admitted.
  "Okay," the Super Soldier said.  "Are we done?"
  "Not yet," Michael said.  "It would give the
families of the victims a lot of peace of mind if they
could see a written confession so that they know for
certain that we have the right person in custody."
  "And you all have to be here for this?" the Super
Soldier asked.
  "We have to witness him as he writes and then signs
the confession," Michael said.  "Here.  I brought some
paper and a pen."
  "I would advise against this," Roger said.
  "Then you'd be giving your client bad advice. 
Frankly your client is no longer in American
jurisdiction."
  "What?!" Roger asked.
  "We're no longer on planet Earth.  We're no longer
even in our home universe.  We're in the
Anti-Dimension.  American law doesn't apply here."
  "So why am I here?" Roger asked.
  "Because if he co-operates them we might be able to
negotiate the right to bring him back to Pepperton to
stand trial."
  "This is ridiculous!"
  "I actually agree," Michael admitted, "but as long
as there are superpowered criminals and they pose a
threat to people in Pepperton then we need the Extreme
Force Six to bring them in.  And apparently that puts
these criminals under their custody.  And unless
Matthew co-operates there's nothing we can do about
it."
  "Okay!" Matthew said.  "I'm going to write the
confession!"

2:21 pm 

  Matthew was about half way through writing his
confession when a huge explosion shook the prison.
  "What was that?" Lana asked.
  "Don't worry," the Super Soldier said.  "Apparently
somebody from outside is attacking."
  "Somebody from outside?!" Michael said.
  "Yes but as soon as such an attack happens then the
various sections of the prison are sealed off so that
a loss of pressure only occurs in the immediate
section where the hull breach occurs."
  "This has happened before?"
  "It is an occasional occurence.  But we've got a
security team in place to deal with it."

2:13 pm

  With the prison hull breached, the being responsible
entered from outside.  "You people have invaded my
dimension!  Devastatus will destroy you!"

                      PART III

  Devastus stood inside the prison.  Almost everyone
had been evacuated from this damaged section of the
prison, however.  Only three people stood there to
face him, Eliminator, Reject and Extreme Junior, the
three sentient clones of Extreme.
  "You won't destroy us, Devastatus," Eliminator said.
 "It is we who will destroy you!"
  Eliminator flew over to Devatatus and gave him a
solid punch but Devastatus recovered immediately and
struck back with a blow of his own that sent
Eliminator flying backwards towards the wall.  Reject
and Extreme Junior followed up with their own attacks:
Extreme Junior first hit him in the chest with the
full force of his two extended arms and Reject hit him
squarely in the face.  Now it was Devastatus who was
stunned.
  Eliminator stood up and walked over to where
Devastatus and his two fellow clones were fighting. 
"You are very powerful," Eliminator said, " but you
can't take on all three of us."  The three of them
managed to get Devastatus down on his knees and then
continued to pummel him until he was unconscious.
  "We did it!" Extreme Junior said with satisfaction.
  "Ugly man is down!" Reject said.
  "Quite," Eliminator said, not wishing to point out
the irony of Reject describing somebody else as ugly.
  "We need to get him to his cell before he wakes,"
Extreme Junior said.
  "Indeed!" Eliminator said.  "Last time we had to let
him get away because we weren't ready for him but now
we've got a prison cell with his name on it!"

4:56 pm

  "Repairs have been completed," the Super Soldier
announced.  "You can go back home now."
  "Finally!" Lana said.
  "I do apologize for the inconvenience," the Super
Soldier said.  "You just came at a bad time."
  "But you said this had happened before," Michael
reminded him.
  "Yes," the Super Soldier said, "but it is all
cleared up now.  I tell you what: before you go, I
will give you one more tour of the prison and you'll
see that everything is alright now."
  The Super Soldier took them out of the room where
they had been waiting and into the area that had been
attacked by Devastatus.
  "See?" the Super Soldier said.  "That's the wall
that was breached by Devastatus.  But as you can see
it is fully repaired now and the area has been
repressurized."
  "Where is Devastatus now?" Roger asked.
  "I'll show you," the Super Soldier promised.
  "I don't think you'll be able to take him on as a
client, Roger," Michael said to him.  "This isn't our
universe, remember?  This Devastatus won't even be
human."
  "I know," Roger said.  "I'm just curious."
  The Super Soldier led them into the area with all
the holding cells.  Again Michael was able to see the
Brotherhood of Masters members, Zon, the Zon clones
and all of the other immates, most of whom he didn't
recognize. 
  "I still haven't gotten the paperwork on all these
people," Michael pointed out.
  "Oh, the paperwork is ready," the Super Soldier
assured him.  "It's sitting on my desk.  I'll give it
to you as soon as we get back home."  The Super
Soldier pointed to the cell holding Devastatus. 
"There he is."
  "How do you know there aren't others out there like
him?" Michael asked.
  "Oh, don't worry," the Super Soldier told him.  "We
delt with him easily enough and we'll deal with others
just as easily."
  "You delt with one easily enough.  How about a
hundred?  Or a thousand?"
  "If there were more of them then they would have
attacked by now," the Super Soldier said.
  "I wouldn't be so sure," Michael said.  "This is
their universe, not ours, and we are the invaders.  I
wouldn't be surprised if there aren't others like him
out there.  And with us holding him prisoner, they
would have more reason to attack."
  "The fact that we can hold one of them prisoner is
good reason for them to stay away," the Super Soldier
pointed out.  "Let this be their deterent.  Now they
can learn to live and let live."
  "It's probably not a good idea to try to guess how
an alien race might think," Michael pointed out. 
"Even in our own culture, when the enemy holds one of
us prisoner it is hardly considered a deterent."
  "You let me worry about that," the Super Soldier
said.  "It is best the three of you get back.  The
Human Spider and Weapon Alpha already left hours ago:
they were on their way back when this happened."
  The Super Soldier led them back to the laboratory
where the portal back to their home dimension was. 
Again, the Super Soldier was the first to pass through
with Michael, Lana and Roger following close behind.
  "About those papers," Michael said.
  "Right.  Follow me."
  "Look, I'd best get going," Roger Roeper said. 
"I've been gone all afternoon."
  "Understood," Michael said.
  Michael and Lana followed the Super Soldier to his
office.  The Super Soldier handed him a thick file.
  "This has all the information you wanted about all
the prisoners we have in the Anti-Dimesion," he said.
  Michael took the file and slipped in the confession
that Matthew Spencer had written.  "Alright.  Thanks. 
We're done here so we'll be going now."
  "Let me know if you need anything else," the Super
Soldier told him.

5:30 pm

  Michael and Lana stood outside of Extreme Force Six
Headquarters.
  "So I guess you'll be heading back to Langly
tomorrow," he said.
  "Yeah.  I should call Oscar and let him know that
I'm alright."
  "Fine.  You do that.  Are you two close?"
  "Close?"
  "Or are you just partners?"
  "We're partners but we're also friends."
  "But just friends?"
  "Yeah.  Just friends.  Why?"
  "I thought after you called Oscar and let him know
that you were alright that we could go somewhere and
have dinner.  It's almost time.  Are you hungry?"
  "Dinner?"
  "Yeah.  This is only your second time to Pepperton. 
I thought I'd introduce you to a restaurant I knew."
  "Alright.  Fine."
  "Just you and me.  No Oscar."
  "He can proably get something at the hotel," she
suggested.
  "Okay.  Good."  Michael was very pleased with
himself just then.  Very pleased indeed.

                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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