First storm, p.10
First Storm, page 10
I bit my lower lip. “Hope you’re right.”
Rubberman patted me on the shoulder. “I know you’re concerned, but there’s no need to be. Once the barrier is down and Mirar is captured, everything will go back to normal and the people will go back to loving us. We just need to do the work. Like always.”
Rubberman’s reassurance helped me relax. But when I looked out the window at the crowds of people cheering on Prime Man just for being here when he hadn’t even done anything yet, I wondered how true that was.
“Arriving at destination: Golden City First National Bank,” said the Rubberband AI’s voice over the car’s radio.
We pulled up in the street in front of the Bank and stepped out. The Golden City First National Bank was a large building with a white marble facade. It was by no means the biggest building in Golden City, but it stood out in comparison to the other buildings around it, especially with the marble columns and front steps that led up to its fancy glass doors.
Prime Man landed beside the Rubbermobile as we stepped out of the vehicle. He looked up at the bank with his hands on his hips. “So the second Ritual is in there, right?”
“Should be,” I said. I looked at the Necromantress. “What do you think, Necromantress? Is this the place?”
The Necromantress winced, putting a hand on her forehead. “Yes. The Necromantress senses that the second Ritual is very close by. It seems to be underneath the bank, but she cannot pinpoint its location exactly.”
“Weird,” I said, looking at the bank again. “How did Mirar and Obadiah set up the second Ritual inside the bank without anyone noticing? That doesn’t make sense.”
“Maybe there’s another hidden tunnel in there,” said Rubberman. “Regardless, we have no time to ponder about this. Let’s get inside, disable the Ritual, and move on.”
As soon as Rubberman said that, the doors to the bank flung open and a small, elderly man rushed out. He ran down the front steps, almost tripping over his own feet on the way down. In fact, he actually did trip and fell headfirst toward the pavement below, but then Prime Man rushed over and caught the elderly man before he could crack his skull against the pavement.
“Whoa there, mister!” said Prime Man as he set the man on his feet. “Please watch where you’re going. If I hadn’t caught you, you would have smashed your skull open all over the pavement.”
“Yes, thank you, Prime Man,” said the man with a vaguely Eastern European accent. “I am so sorry. I was just in such a hurry to meet you heroes that I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.”
“Why?” I said. “And who are you?”
The man bowed quickly. “My name is Ezekiel Aleksander. I am the president and founder of Golden City First National Bank. We have met before.”
Ah. Now I remember. Ezekiel Aleksander was a Ukrainian immigrant who had come to America about fifty years ago. He had founded the Golden City First National Bank and was probably one of the wealthiest men in the city. We had protected his bank from robbers multiple times over the last year and a half, but I’d only met the man personally a few times myself. Rubberman tended to deal with him directly more than I did, but I had seen him before, which was why he looked familiar to me.
“We remember, sir,” said Rubberman. “And there’s no need to worry. Now that we’re here, everything will be fine.”
“Agreed,” said Ezekiel with a smile. He looked up at Prime Man. “Especially with Prime Man here, that is how I know things will be okay.”
I groaned inwardly. Even Ezekiel thought Prime Man was better than us. I knew better than to let it bother me, but I still didn’t like being treated like chopped liver compared to Prime Man.
“Well, tell us what the problem is, Mr. Aleksander,” said Prime Man, “and we’ll be happy to help, although I must warn you that we are here for our own reasons in addition to whatever problems you need help with.”
“Yes, yes, I understand,” said Ezekiel as he rubbed his hands together anxiously. “You see, since the barrier went up, the bank has felt very unsafe.”
“Unsafe?” I said. “How so?”
Ezekiel looked like he was struggling to put his thoughts into words. “By ‘unsafe,’ I mean I get this feeling of deep dread whenever I am inside it. And it’s not just because of the circumstances, I feel, but rather because of something … otherworldly. It reminds me of the old fairy tales my grandmother used to tell me back when I was a child, back in the Ukraine.”
I nodded. It had to be the second Ritual. Based on the Necromantress’ understanding expression, I could tell that she was thinking the same thing.
“As well, I’ve heard voices and movement in the bank,” said Ezekiel. “Ghosts, I think, or something like them. All of my employees left the building when the barrier went up and the broadcast went out. As a result, I am the only person still here, so I know it cannot be any of my employees.”
Prime Man nodded, scratching his chin in thought. “Well, that sounds like a job for us, then. We’ll investigate your bank and see if we can’t get down to the bottom of this mystery.”
Ezekiel bowed. “Thank you, Prime Man. I would be honored to have you walk in my bank.”
“I’m simply doing my job, Mr. Aleksander,” said Prime Man, patting Ezekiel on the shoulder lightly. “Now you should probably go home. There’s no telling what will happen once we go inside the bank and start looking for the source of the disturbance ourselves.”
“Yes, of course,” said Ezekiel. “I trust that you and the others will save not just my bank, but the whole city.”
With that, Ezekiel walked away toward what looked like his car parked a few feet away. As Ezekiel got into his car, Prime Man looked at us and said, “Ritual?”
“Definitely,” said the Necromantress. “Although Ezekiel might be an ordinary human with no special magical powers of his own, the Society has always taught that even untrained amages can sometimes sense powerful enough magic if it is close by. The Necromantress cannot, however, explain the source of the voices and footsteps.”
“Probably some of Mirar’s Squires,” said Rubberman. He looked up at the bank before us. “So what are we waiting for? Let’s go inside and deal with this.”
Rubberman took a step forward, but then Prime Man suddenly appeared in our path holding up a hand.
“Hold on, Dennis,” said Prime Man. “Let’s not get too hasty now. Perhaps not all of us should go inside.”
I frowned. “Why not? Won’t that make it easier for us to disable the Ritual if we all go in together?”
Prime Man, however, shook his head. “It’s not quite that simple, Beams. Given what you have told me about Mirar, I think it would be safer if half of us went inside and disable the Ritual while the other half stayed out here as backup.”
“Why?” said Rubberman.
Prime Man stood straight like he was about to give us a lecture. “Firstly, it sounded to me like the only member of our little team who is actually necessary for disabling the Rituals is the Necromantress. She is not much of a fighter from what I can tell, therefore she needs muscle to keep her safe should there by any guards protecting the Ritual. Therefore, I will accompany the Necromantress into the bank while you two stay out here and keep an eye out for any ambushes or attacks from the Zero Knights.”
“But we have more experience disabling these Rituals than you do,” I said. “Doesn’t it make more sense for us to go in there than you?”
Prime Man wagged a finger at me. “Not so. In case you don’t know, I have fought Zero Knights in the past, even if I haven’t beaten or arrested any of them. Should Mirar himself appear, I would be perfectly capable of keeping him away from the Necromantress. It’s simple logic.”
I opened my mouth to argue further, but then Rubberman said, “Fine. You two can go in and we’ll stay out here. But be careful, okay? We have no idea what sort of traps Mirar or Obadiah might have set up in there.”
Prime Man chuckled. “Don’t worry. In my long and storied career, I’ve dealt with plenty of dangerous, even life-threatening traps. With muscles like these, I should be more than capable of dealing with anything Mirar might throw at me.” He looked over at the Necromantress. “Now come! We have a city to save, don’t we?”
With that, Prime Man turned around and marched toward the bank. The Necromantress followed, albeit somewhat reluctantly. She even looked over her shoulder at us, but Rubberman just shrugged in response, and soon both Prime Man and the Necromantress disappeared into the bank, the doors swinging behind them on their way in.
I looked up at Rubberman. “Why did you let him make us play guard duty? We should have gone inside with him.”
Rubberman rubbed his forehead in exasperation. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that you don’t argue with Prime Man. It would make an ugly scene out here in public and the last thing we need is for the public to hate us even more because we argued with Prime Man. Plus, I had to admit his argument made sense. Prime Man is more powerful than you and I put together. Between him and the Necromantress, they probably should be okay.”
I frowned deeply. “Maybe, but Prime Man just literally got here. He doesn’t know what the Zero Knights can do or how dangerous they actually are.”
“Perhaps, but what are the odds of Mirar himself being down there?” said Rubberman. “It’s safe to assume that the second Ritual is probably only protected by a couple of Squires, if even that. I imagine that Prime Man and Shawna should have little trouble dealing with the—”
Rubberman was interrupted when my phone started ringing in my pocket. Surprised that my phone was still working after getting doused in water, I pulled it out of my pocket and saw that it was from Mr. Peters again.
“Who’s calling you?” said Rubberman, looking at me quizzically.
I sighed and sent Mr. Peters to voicemail. “Mr. Peters. I’m not sure why, but he’s been trying to call me all day. He tried to call me before we entered the tunnel to the first Ritual and I hung up then.”
“Do you think he might actually have something important to say?” said Rubberman. “Something about your powers, maybe?”
I frowned. “My powers have been fine since he gave me that stabilizing serum last month. I’m not sure what kind of information he could possibly have for me that I don’t already know.”
“Didn’t you think that about the last time you drank a serum from him?” asked Rubberman wryly. “Look at how that turned out.”
I rolled my eyes, but before I could respond, my phone started ringing again. Thinking it was Mr. Peters, I looked down at my phone, only to see that it was actually a notification from the Golden City Journal news app. Curious, I opened the app and saw a video buffering briefly before Mirar appeared on screen again. It looked like he was still in the same dark location as before, his reflective armor reflecting the lights. He seemed to be calm, though why, I didn’t know. I thought he would be upset given how we had destroyed one of his Rituals already.
“Citizens of Golden City,” said Mirar in the same booming voice as before. “I once again have an important message to deliver to you. This one will be a good deal shorter than the first, but rest assured it will be just as terrible as the original.”
“What the—?” I said. I looked around the street and saw all of the nearby civilians were watching or listening to the video on their phones/tablets as well. “Another citywide message?”
“Shh,” said Rubberman, holding up a finger. He stood at my shoulder, his eyes fixed on the video. “Let’s listen to what he has to say.”
Mirar went silent for a moment as if to draw out the suspense of what he was going to say next. But when he did speak and reveal his announcement, a deep sense of dread rose within me as I knew exactly how screwed we were.
“My announcement is short, simple, and to the point,” said Mirar. “As all of you know, the entirety of Golden City is currently encased by a green, magical barrier that ordinary means cannot destroy. Your heroes have been hard at work disabling the barrier, having already destroyed one of the Rituals powering it.
“But such news is not nearly as good as it seems. The reality is that even if your heroes—Rubberman, Beams, and Prime Man—destroyed the remaining Rituals, the barrier will indeed fall, but you will not be safe, for the Ritual of Death will activate and kill everyone in the city. Instantly.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
A stunned silence fell over the street in front of the bank. Every single person gathered here had gone utterly silent at Mirar’s newest revelation. It was like someone had pressed the mute button on a TV. It was so silent that I could hear the breathing of other people around me.
“You may not believe me, but I speak the truth,” said Mirar. “If there is one thing that you must understand about the Order of the Zero Knights, it is that we have contingencies for all situations. Never are we taken by surprise. Never do we let unexpected circumstances control our decisions. At any and all times, the Order is in control, even when it does not seem like it.”
Mirar raised a closed fist. “I send this message to you, citizens of Golden City, so you will know true despair and understand that even your ‘heroes’ can’t save you. And to the heroes themselves, who are undoubtedly watching this message, I say this: Your actions have doomed the city either way. All actions have consequences, from the smallest decisions to the biggest, and the consequences of killing a fellow Zero Knight is the deaths of every man, woman, and child in the city under your protection.
“Remember this, citizens of Golden City. If your ‘heroes’ had not interfered with our operations, none of you would have to die today. But because they dared to take the life of a brother-in-arms, we have no choice but to eliminate all of you. For the world must be made to understand that the Order shall not be crossed and that anyone who opposes us must be exterminated from the world itself.”
With that, the screen went blank again.
I looked up at Rubberman. “Boss, what do you think? Do you think he’s telling the truth about destroying the Rituals and the Ritual of Death?”
Rubberman bit his lower lip, a deeply concerned expression on his face. “I am not sure. I know very little about magic, especially the kind practiced by the Society. Shawna would know, but she’s not here and I’m not sure if she and Prime Man got—”
Rubberman was interrupted when his own phone started ringing. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and said, “Nathan, what’s up? Are you guys all right?”
“The Necromantress requires backup!” the Necromantress’ shrill voice boomed over Rubberman’s phone, audible even to me. “It was a trap. Prime Man has disappeared. The Necromantress is on her own. Please help!”
“Shawna?” said Rubberman in surprise. “What’s the matter? What do you mean that Prime Man has disappeared? Where are you and what are you doing?”
“We are under the bank trying to disable the second Ritual,” said the Necromantress in a hurried voice, “but as I said, Prime Man disappeared and now the Necromantress is on her own. They know where we are, Dennis, and if you don’t get down here quick—”
The Necromantress’ voice was cut off, replaced by loud static that made both of us cringe away.
“Shawna?” said Rubberman, raising his voice. “Shawna, are you there? Shawna!”
But there was no response from the phone, at least none that I could hear. There was only static, which told us more than any words the Necromantress could have said.
Lowering his phone, Rubberman looked at me and said, “We need to get into the bank right away. Shawna and Nathan are in danger.”
I nodded, but then one of the nearby citizens suddenly pointed at the sky and yelled, “What the heck is that?”
Both Rubberman and I looked up just in time to see what appeared to be a missile rocketing straight toward us. Without waiting, Rubberman tackled me to the ground and sent us rolling toward the bank’s front steps. Just in the nick of time, too, because the missile crashed straight down onto the Rubbermobile, making the Rubbermobile explode into a ball of fire and causing the few citizens who hadn’t run away yet to flee the scene screaming their heads off.
“The Rubbermobile!” Rubberman shouted, looking at the fiery remains of the Rubbermobile in horror. “No!”
“What are you so worried about, hero?” came a mad, cackling voice from within the flames. “Does your car insurance not cover your car getting totaled by a Squire of the Order?”
The silhouette of a humanoid figure appeared in the flames before stepping out, revealing that it was indeed another Squire. This one, however, was obviously not Marie. He was male, for one thing, with clearly defined muscles and broad shoulders. A broadsword clung to his back, while his black-and-red armor gave him a demonic look, especially with the horns on his head. His glowing red eyes didn’t make him look any less demonic. He was about the same height as Rubberman, but looked far stronger.
“Who are you?” I said as we scrambled to our feet. “Another one of Mirar’s Squires?”
“Of course,” said the Squire. He gave an exaggerated mock bow. “My name is Sir Daniel. A pleasure to meet the famed duo who killed a Zero Knight.”
Daniel’s sarcasm was obvious when he said that last sentence. And when he stood up, I could just feel the anger radiating off of him from the knowledge that we had committed the unthinkable and killed one of their Zero Knights.
“You sure picked a good time to show up,” I said. “I suppose you decided we would be safer to fight now that Prime Man is gone.”
“Divide and conquer is a legitimate strategy, boy,” said Daniel. “My partner underneath the bank agrees.”
