Modern Age Online

Kaleb raised his metal arm and deployed Shocky. The little shield built into his forearm spread out and caught the bat that was aimed at his head. With a thought, he activated Shocky’s Stun feature and sent arcs of blue electricity into the bat, then down into the man holding it. The thug seized up and started gibbering as Kaleb spun to the final gangster in the alley. He spotted D34d-I dancing around a taller man’s waist, wielding his pistol like a club.

With practiced ease, the duck brought the thug to his knees and slammed the butt of his pistol into the side of the guy’s head. The thug crumpled and Kaleb took stock of the alley. Overhead, one of Farrah’s drones hovered over the mayhem, sweeping low for a better look. Kaleb holstered his Sun Gun and dismissed Shocky.

This was the third mugging attempt they had stopped, and it hadn’t even been thirty minutes. D34d-I wasn’t kidding about the gangs being out in force. Multiple young men and women were out and about trying all sorts of shit. Reaching down, Kaleb used the standard Super Group plastic cuffs to tie up both gangsters at his feet. One was still smoking a little from his bout with Shocky.

“Police have been notified and are in-route.” Said the voice in Kaleb’s ear.

“Thanks, Jasper. How’s my car?”

*Quack*

“It’s fine. Quit being paranoid. It only happened once.”

“Once is too many times, Dead. I don’t to have to chase down some fucking teens that stole my car for a joyride.”

“Uhh, your car is still safe and sound up the street, Mr. Rat,” Jasper’s youthful voice said in his ear.

Kaleb sighed and nodded as he stacked the unconscious gangsters against a wall. “Fine. What’s next Jasper.”

“A line of stores are reporting a string of ultra-fast robberies. They're a block up and working their way down. If you hurry, you’ll be able to catch them at the end of the block.”

*Quack*

“How the fuck are we supposed to deal with a speedster?! Send it to Vivienne or something.”

“Your team is the closest and we suspect that when the speedster is done, they’ll leave the neighborhood.”

“We got it,” Kaleb said as he exited the alley at a run and reached into his pocket.

The smooth surface of a plastic egg met his fingers, and he held it gingerly. Behind him, he could hear D34d-I waddling along after him. But Kaleb’s eyes were on the end of the block. The warm Texas sun was beating down on him and it warmed his blood. He bit back a smile and pumped his legs against the hard sidewalk until he came to the cross-street.

He was just in time to watch the front of a Silver For Credits store exploded outward. Shards of glass went everywhere and a black and purple suited woman was standing in the chaos. The body suit clung to the woman’s form as fire seemed to ignite on her body. The black and purple suit seemed to extinguish the fire as the speedster looked around. She was carrying a large burlap sack over her shoulder. Which almost made Kaleb laugh. The buzzing drone drew the woman’s head upward. Kaleb could see she had short black hair that match her body suit and dark tanned skin that clashed with both.

He slowly approached as the woman watched the drone in the sky. When he thought he was close enough, he fast-balled the taser egg and reached into his lab coat. The woman blurred out of the way as the taser egg went sailing past and she turned to regard Kaleb. Purple eyes met his own and a playful grin danced under the woman’s domino mask.

“Let me guess, I was supposed to catch that?”

“It would’ve made this easier.” Kaleb said, drawing his magic gun and channeling his magic.

“I ain’t a first-timer, cop. Too many speedsters think they’re fast enough to deal with anything. That’s when life slaps them upside the head. It ain’t happening to me.”

“Oh, so you’re going to drop the stolen goods and run away? That’s nice.”

Kaleb kept walking forward as his Magic Gun started to spin up. The speedster did put the burlap sack down. But then she turned to Kaleb and cracked her knuckles.

“Naw. Imma kill me a cop and then take that nice-looking gun of yours.”

Kaleb smiled as he felt a slight headache form. He stopped channeling his magic and gripped the gun with both hands. He got into a firing stance and quirked an eyebrow at the speedster, who was hopping idly as he got ready. With a snap of air and the smell of burning ozone, the speedster blurred and Kaleb fired. But he wasn’t aiming for the woman, instead he pointed the gun downward and released the ice spell he had been charging.

The road cracked as it was super-cooled and Kaleb saw the speedster blur try to turn away. But it was too late. The woman shimmered back to normal speed as her feet slid along the icy road. She almost tripped and fell, but managed to catch herself as she continued to slide toward Kaleb. That’s when her face met Kaleb’s metal arm in the mother of all clotheslines.

Kaleb winced as he heard the woman’s nose crack. Her feet went up, and she made a complete backflip before slamming down onto the icy road. As quick as he could Kaleb started binding the woman’s hands and feet with the plastic cuffs. She groaned as Kaleb finished and spun her around to face upward. Her nose was bloody and broken, but otherwise she appeared fine. Jasper’s drone flew in close and got a shot of the woman’s face before the young hunter spoke into Kaleb’s ear again.

“Oh! This lady is called Black-Wing. She’s wanted in four counties for high-speed theft and armed robbery. She’s got a pretty hefty bounty. Which is good because the police are already saying they are going to charge us for the road you just ruined.”

“What? It’s just a little ice.” Kaleb complained as he looked around the street.

The road was already cooling down under the sweltering sun. But the rapid cooling of the asphalt made the road split and bulge in various areas. D34d-I finally came running up, wings flapping and bill squawking as he took in the scene. He gave the woman a cursory glance before he looked at the street.

*Quack*

“They are going to charge us out of the ass for this.”

Kaleb waved him off as the duck got his breath back. “It’s fine. What’s next, Jasper?”

Jasper's voice sounded distracted when he answered. “Uhhh, the cops have asked you to remain with the criminal. Like I said, she’s a high-valued target and they want her supervised at all times.”

Kaleb groaned. “Argh! Fine. But switch me to another channel. I want to know how the others are doing.”

“Uhhh, Miss Kyneklos has asked me not to do that.”

“Oh, come on! What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.”

“Yeah, but what we don’t tell her will hurt me, sir. And seeing as you're not the one right next to her, I’m going to obey her for now.”

“ARGH!”

Kaleb pouted as he reached down and picked up the groggy and groaning woman. He dragged her to the curb and sat her down as D34d-I followed along. The duck sat down a few feet away from the woman and raised his white pistol. Ostensibly keeping her under guard. Kaleb double checked the woman’s leg and arm restraints before standing slightly behind her and checking his pockets.

As he took a slow inventory, his mind was occupied with how useful the freezing spell had been. It made him think of his first gadget besides Shocky. It was a freeze ray. Simple, effective, and rushed. It had served him well. Right up until it cost him his arm. Which took forever to grow back. He was playing the with the idea of bringing his old freeze ray back when a black and white cop car showed up.

They avoided the cracked and pock-marked street. Preferring to hug the curb along the main road. Two uniformed police officers stepped out of the car and walked over. The driver cast a weary eye over the broken side street and Kaleb could see annoyance in the man’s eyes. He bit back any snide remarks as the two cops wordlessly grabbed the woman and started marching her toward their car. Remembering the woman’s ill-gotten gains, Kaleb spoke up.

“She had a burlap sack of stolen goods. It’s slightly up the street by the store she was robbing.”

The two cops shared a look before the one holding Black-Wing carried on to the car. The other ran down the street to check Kaleb’s words. He returned quickly with the sack over his shoulder and he hurriedly loaded it into the back of their squad car. Both cops gave Kaleb and D34d-I looks before they entered their car. But the driver apparently couldn’t go without a snide comment.

“Thanks, Heroes.” He said sarcastically.

Kaleb couldn’t help himself, either. “You’re welcome. Happy to do your job for you!”

The cop froze halfway between entering the car. D34d-I slapped Kaleb’s leg, but he ignored it as he turned and started walking down the street. He knew it would not be the first time one of the cops down here would give them shit. The cops were extremely unhappy to be working with heroes. Almost to the point that it made Kaleb suspicious.

*Quack*

“You need to stop antagonizing them.”

“Did you hear that sonofabitch? I just returned his bullshit right back to him.”

*Quack*

“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.”

“How does that make sense? I poke your eye out, so you poke my eye out. Then I poke your other eye out, and then you're blind and I walk away with one eye. Sounds like I won.”

The sound of the cop car starting and driving away hid D34d-I’s standard quack as he responded.

“You know that’s not what the saying means. It’s about how if we all go around hurting each other, then none of us can make progress.”

“I know. But I am also a mirror, D34d-I. If someone throws crap at me, I’m going to fling it right back. Do you think I want to be at odds with the police? Half of the shit we are dealing with right now should be their jobs. But because they are fucking with us, we have to deal…”

Kaleb came up short when he was trying to think of an appropriate crime. Thankfully, Jasper spoke up in his ear.

“Purse-snatcher.”

“Yeah, we have to deal with purse-snatchers.”

“No. I was reporting a crime. We’ve a got purse thief booking it down on an alley to the east. We’ve got a drone on him. But we are going to have to pull it back to recharge soon. So hurry and follow my drone.”

Kaleb swore under his breath as D34d-I groaned. But suddenly, the duck stopped and looked up at Kaleb.

“Let me have the keys to your car. I’ll grab that and swing round to pick you up while you deal with this.”

“Oh, so you don’t have to?” Kaleb said, pulling out his keys.

“It’s a purse-snatcher. You’ll be fine.”

Kaleb tossed the duck the keys and then ran off after the drone. He could see it hovering in the air above and ahead of him. It led him a block over and slightly north before it slowed to a stop outside of an alleyway that split the block in two. The buildings on either side were massive, creating a dark corridor that made Kaleb sigh. Now he was going to have to wrestle with a thief in the dark.

He clipped his flashlight to his chest and waved a hand at Jasper. The drone sailed above the alley as Kaleb stalked forward. He had traversed half of the block before he found what he was looking for. A shirtless man was hunched over near the right-side wall. A purse dropped by his feet and its contents spilled all over the alley floor. Kaleb wasn’t quiet or subtle in his approach, so the half-naked man spun around.

Kaleb winced at the alien’s or, maybe, mutant’s face. Large red eyes sat on a face too small for them as sharp pointed teeth grinned at him. The creature’s grayish skin seemed to shin under Kaleb’s flashlight, but the purse thief didn’t flinch away from it. So he obviously wasn’t a vampire despite hiss looks.

“What the fuck are you?” The thief hissed as Kaleb got closer.

“I’m your worst nightmare.”

Kaleb gave himself a mental pat on the back for being able to get that line out without laughing. But the thief’s response surprised him.

“No. Waking up without my penis is my worst nightmare.”

Kaleb blinked as the old movie quote bounced through his head. He looked back to find the obvious Player grinning even wider at him.

“Oh, damn it! You have to be kidding me. Why do I always get the player purse-snatchers? Don’t you bastards know there’s a better way to make money?”

The gray-skinned Player shrugged. “Maybe. But seeing the looks on the NPC’s faces when you rob them always cracks me up.”

“Oh, great and you're a damn asshole, too.”

“What!? They ain’t real. So it’s not like I’m hurting anyone.”

“Yeah. Pulling the wings off digital butterflies makes you perfectly stable.”

“I am FUCKING STABLE! Who cares if I enjoy watching pain flash across a stupid doll’s face? Better than doing it in real life.”

Kaleb pulled his Cybar and Sun Gun and sighed. “Okay, I can’t tell if you’re playing up a character or if you’re really twisted. Either way, you’re going to jail.”

“Oh great. Some bleeding heart pussy is going to save all his digital sex dolls. I don’t think I’ll let you arrest me today, pussy.”

Kaleb sighed and raised the Cybar. “So the hard way, then?”

“Oh, I’m always hard.”

“Yeah, that’s gross.”

Kaleb was about to shoot when the other player’s arms swung up. As they did, they extended, clearing the space between them. Kaleb threw himself backward and fired. But one of his opponent’s elongated arms caught him in the shoulder and slammed him into the left wall. The other player’s arm snapped back to normal as Kaleb used the wall to right himself. Raising his guns, he started firing at the other player.

His opponent stayed crouched to dodge the blasts of energy as he hopped away like a monkey. As the player moved, he bounced off the walls and used the random bits of junk and debris to give himself cover. Kaleb blasted away, seeing multiple shots scorch the other guy’s skin, but the other player stayed mobile. However, when he vented his Cybar, the other player popped out of hiding and punched both of his hands forward. His arms stretched down the alley and Kaleb threw himself to the floor.

He felt the air whoosh by him as the arms sailed past. But then they dropped onto his back and started dragging him across the alley floor. Kaleb rolled over, maintaining a hold of his guns and tried to stand. But the Player’s slim arms were surprisingly strong, and they kept a firm hold on his back. When Kaleb finally got to his feet, it was in time to see the scurrying and manic player flying at him.

The hunched player slammed into Kaleb’s chest and opened his mouth wide, teeth bared. His arms were over Kaleb’s shoulder, holding fast to the back of his lab coat. His legs were on Kaleb’s waist and his sharp toenails were digging into Kaleb’s skin. On instinct, Kaleb raised his metal arm and released a rail spike into the other Player’s torso. The feral-looking player’s face became shocked, and he looked down to see a thick black spike sticking out of his side.

The Player howled in pain as he released Kaleb and tried to yank the spike out. But his arms were still too long. He hadn’t retracted them yet. Kaleb took the advantage and pistol whipped the player in the face with his Cybar. The other player grunted and fell to his ass as he glared up at Kaleb. But Kaleb ignored the glare and put a few shots into the other player with his Sun Gun. His opponent hissed in pain a few times until he went still and simply laid back on the alley floor.

“FINE! You got me. Fucking stop! That shit stings like hell!”

Kaleb ignored the player and put two more shots into him before he finally stopped and checked his work. Red and purple welts were raised on the other player’s skin and bits of him were smoking. He glared at Kaleb as he raised his hands up to be cuffed. Kaleb snorted and spun the guy around and used three cuffs to basically hog-tie the criminal. He cuffed his hands and feet and then connected them with another set of cuffs.

“Oh, fucking come on! This is inhumane.”

“You’re a stretchy bastard. At least your hands are. Protocol says to be cautious when apprehending a crook. That goes double for when we don’t know the full extent of your abilities.”

“Great. You’re a fucking boy-scout as well as a pussy.”

“Whooped your ass,” Kaleb said smugly.

The other player clamped his mouth shut and continued his evil glare. Kaleb had a few moments of blessed silence before the other player spoke again.

“You know this shit doesn’t matter, right? I mean, every crook in Austin now knows it’s open season on this place.”

Kaleb blinked, but stayed quiet. He didn’t want the other guy to know he was interested in what he was saying. So instead he downplayed it.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m sure things will even out once the crooks know this place is well-guarded.”

“Hahahaha, no. It won’t. The words out. This place is now the wild-west.”

“Oh? And why’s that?”

“Because, dumbshit. The HLO and the cops don’t bother with independent districts. Once an area has contracted Heroes, the HLO stops answering calls and the cops find better things to do. Which means this entire neighborhood is going to be a free-for-all.”

Kaleb twisted his head in confusion. “How would someone like you know that? This game’s only been out for a short time. Are you telling me a guy like you has contacts? Please.”

“I fucking know people, fuck-lizard! And they are getting ready to carve out this whole neighborhood. Us little guys are just trying to grab what we can before this fucking place becomes a hellhole.”

“Interesting. Did you get all that, Jasper?”

“Yes, Sir. Recorded, filed, and Ms. Kyneklos is making copies as we speak. The cops are on route and D34d-I is as well.”

Kaleb nodded solemnly as he looked down at the confused player. The man was on his side, glaring confusedly at him. Kaleb smiled.

“Thank you so much for this. I mean, you’re a criminal, so your word is shit. But with what you’ve just said, we can cause some waves.”

The other player fell silent as he seemed to think about his words. When nothing occurred to him, he looked back at Kaleb, even more confused. But Kaleb remained silent. He stayed silent when the cops arrived and gave him the dirty-eye and he said nothing as he got into his car. D34d-I was in the driver's seat. The motor was still running as he looked over at Kaleb.

*Quack*

“You know what this means?”

“It means the HLO is picking and choosing the districts they want to protect and warning off the police.”

*Quack*

“No one’s going to believe us.”

“Maybe not in City Hall. But we have connections outside of Austin, remember? Also, the court of public opinion is a powerful thing.”

D34d-I’s eyes widened in alarm as he turned fully to address Kaleb. “You want to release the footage?!”

Kaleb shrugged. “Farrah’s making multiple copies. If one accidentally goes missing, that’s hardly our fault. We were just making sure we had back-ups on hand.”

*Quack*

“That’s a dangerous line of thinking. Especially with our audit coming up.”

“Then let’s put it to the group tonight. We still have to handle the Demon thing and take care of the riffraff here. So we can put it on the back burner for now. But pretty soon we are going to have to expose HLO and the city government for the duplicitous snakes they are.”

D34d-I said nothing. He merely gave a honking sigh as he put the car into gear and started down the street. Kaleb spoke to Jasper as their car traveled north.

“Alright, kid. Give us the next one.”