Chapter 5

Fire, Rain and the Woman in Copper

The faint thunder roared from the distance as a cold wind swept through the city. A storm was brewing from far away.

Several people lifted signs of protest and repeated chants while police sirens deafeningly echoed.

Felix stood on the top of a building as the breeze billowed briskly in the night. He watched through the rifle’s scope as a hooded man got up from a diner’s table and walked away.

He pressed on his earpiece and mumbled, “He’s on the move.”

The diner’s door opened with a bell’s jingle and let out a faint golden glow as Maria walked out, wearing a face mask and dressed in black jacket with a pizza print on its center.

With a hop in her step, she quickly rushed forward and set her eyes on a hooded man who was walking into a thick parade of people. It was clear that the hooded man was bald, and there was a barcode on top of his left eye where his eyebrow should be.

“V.V, come in. Do you read me?” Felix asked through an earpiece while he watched Maria move through the parades of people pushing against her.

“I’m here, but I can’t get too close. It’s too… people-y.”

“I told you I should’ve gone with you.”

“And I told you your back is still healing. Besides, what’s happening here?” Maria replied.

“The protesters refuse to submit to their new president.” He answered as he looked at the writing on the protest signs. “The refugees refuse to give up their freedom.”

“Will another war break loose soon?”

“Who knows. But if it does, it’s our job to prevent that.”

“Protecting the peace, or whatever?”

Felix remained silent and unwilling to answer her question.

“Hmph.” She scoffed. “Do you have visual on the target?”

“I do. Forty, forty five, right ahead of you.”

“Well…?”

“I can’t exactly just shoot him.”

“Why not? There’s a huge protest. It could literally be blamed as stray fire by the police.”

“We don’t need unnecessary casualties. Besides, what are you gonna do, grab the key from his corpse in the middle of the streets?”

“Yes?”

“Marie…”

“Well, can’t you do anything? Is there a code for this situation, something in the manual?”

“I don’t remember. I wasn’t exactly the brightest person, I only really knew how to fight.”

“And yet you’re not even good at tha—”

“Shut it. Do you remember anything?” Felix’s blue eye twitched.

“Funny you ask…no.”

“Then just try to get him somewhere secluded.”

As the two conversed through a wire, the barcoded man she shadowed sped up his pace.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure the suspect has noticed me at least.” Maria reported as she quickened her pace. “You could always shoot at him.”

“We just need the key; we don’t need to cause a panic.”

“Maybe a panic is what we need.” She replied coldly.

“And risk getting on the chief’s nerves? Sure, if we weren’t the ones causing—”

While the two of them bickered, a line of white light pierced through a building from the distance and into the dark skies, followed by the explosion from within the same building.

Screams quickly filled the air as the crowds grew chaotic with fear. While the two agents were distracted by the explosion, their hooded target sprinted through the panic.

“What was that?” Felix mumbled.

“You tell me, you’re the one with the scope.” Maria said as she struggled against the hordes of panicking people.

“Something definitely exploded.” He remarked.

“Thanks, Sherlock. Do you still have a visual on the target?”

Felix looked back through the scope and scoured once again for their target, “Where did he—?”

“He might’ve gone into one of the buildings. Look inside.” Maria said as she quickly sprinted into one of the buildings.

Felix searched into the further buildings, where he saw the target running into an underground path, “There he is… he’s headed to the parking lot ahead of you. Be careful, I can’t see what’s inside.”

“Got it.” She quickly sprinted ahead to the indoor parking lot, but inside, she found several armed guards surrounding her target.

“Oh… fuck.” She muttered before jumping behind the pillar.

“V.V, come in.” Felix heard loud static noise, followed by silence, “Marie!” Felix got up, but as he took a step on the ledge to head down to her.

Static filled his earpiece, and a voice called out; “HQ to Blue Phantom, we picked up a disturbance, what’s the situation?”

Felix glanced at the fire from a distance and replied, “Sir, there was an explosion about ten blocks North from here, in a building by the pier.”

“Survey the situation. Capture anyone suspicious. Evacuate and assist any wounded and seek potential witnesses.”

His mismatched eyes moved back to the sight of the flames “But sir, what if it were a diversion? And what about—”

“Agent Blue Phantom, I’m not asking for your input. Just follow orders.”

“... Understood.”

As he heeded the words from headquarters, Maria found herself in the midst of a small group of armed men. Five in total, who met with her target.

“Don’t worry, Venom Vanguard isn’t an Elite Agent for nothing.” Headquarters remarked.

Felix’s eyes sharpened with focus, “Understood.” He pulled out a grappling hook and swung above the buildings and rushed towards the pillar of smoke.

From within the parking lot, one of the armed men asked, “Do you have it?” He was a tall, gray-haired old man who appeared to be the leader of the group.

“I do.” Answered the barcoded man as he presented a small black chip on his palm, from it came out a holographic projection of random strings of numbers and letters.

“Good.”

Maria watched from the corner of her eye with an agape mouth. She had found what she was after, when all of the sudden, the leader of the men yelled out, “Who’s there?!”

Without letting out a peep, she was caught.

“Is that our client?”

A gunshot struck the floor next to the pillar Maria hid behind. She gave a good long look at the cracked concrete next to her, and realized that a small section of her shadow gave away her position.

“That was a warning shot! Show yourself, now!” The man yelled, his eyes narrowed, and his brows furrowed. There was an uneasiness in his gruff voice.

A feeling of agitation spread among the men. It was a nervousness that was sorely lacking in Maria’s face, who had an expression that was a mixture of both boredom and mild annoyance.

She gave out a rough sigh and cracked her neck. Her steps echoed as she walked out the pillar.

One step.

“It’s not the clown…” Their leader whispered.

Another step.

“Wait, that woman…” Her target, the barcoded man, uttered.

And another step.

“That’s the woman who was tailing me this whole time!” He exclaimed.

All of them aimed their weapons, in that moment, several semi-automatic rifles were pointed straight at her head.

With one final step, the echoes ceased, and she was in full view. Maria had fully captured the men’s attention. The darkness in her shadow contrasted against the bright lights above, and the gray radiance that bounced off the concrete.

“Identify yourself!” The gray-haired old man yelled with a shaky breath.

She let out a cold laughter as she stood in front them unarmed.

Her eyes then sharpened, and a wave of fear passed through their bodies and caused the hair on their arms to stand. For half a second, all of them felt paralyzed by the unnerving sensation.

It was as if they were staring directly at a large serpent.

“This is… killing intent? Men, fire—!” Before he could instruct his men to pull the trigger, Maria had launched her knife directly at his throat.

He gurgled out blood, and a shower of deafening gunfire followed, drowning out the screams that came soon after.

*

There was a shaky metal groan as Felix landed atop a red fire exit. He was on the building near his destination, atop a grimy, old fire exit. Right in front of him was the burning warehouse where he was supposed to go.

He felt the intense heat brush against his face in spite of the cold weather, and nervously took a step closer.

As he did, a luminous white streak blasted through the warehouse roof and rifted apart the forming rain clouds above.

The piercing line of light reflected in the dark iris of his mismatched eyes.

He pressed into his earpiece once more; “Sir, there appears to be a beam of light tearing through the buildings.”

“You mean like a laser?” They asked.

“Yes siiiiir—!” He yelled in panic as the beam quickly descended and headed towards him like a sword swung downwards, easily slicing off a portion of the brickwork, as well as the staircase he stood on.

Before it crashed down, Felix hopped off and grabbed onto the ledge of the building beside him, but his grip couldn’t handle it, nor did the grime allow him to stay.

His fingers slipped and his body fell straight down and slammed into the pile of bricks.

“... Bollocks…”

“Blue Phantom, what’s the situation?” The voice on his earpiece suddenly spoke.

He groaned in a deep pain as he arched his back against the sharp, jagged rubble, “Sir… may I… urgh… request assistance…”

“I’m afraid we can’t do that. There appears to be an agent already present inside who requested assistance. You are that assistance, and we cannot lose face.”

“R-right…”

“Back-up would take too long to get there. Put a stop to what’s happening, and assist the operative inside.”

“Understood, sir.” He answered as he slowly crawled back up.

“Hurgh! Marie was right, my back’s still not healed yet.” He groaned and spoke in an aching, gravely voice, “Oh, I think it might be worse than before.”

“Mister, are you alright?” A voice asked from behind.

Felix’s eyes widened as he quickly turned to look behind, “A civilian?” He blurted out as he saw the young man in a green jacket.

“That was a hard fall, I should call the ambulance.” The young man asked as he pulled up a phone.

“No, I’m fine. Can you tell me what happened here?” Felix asked.

“I don’t… I don’t know.”

“Then can you help me get over there?”

“But… that’s… it’s on fire? Shouldn’t we wait for the fire department?”

“There’s no time… If I don’t get in there, someone might die.”

“You called me a civilian. Who… or what are you?” He asked nervously as he helped Felix get back up.

“That doesn’t matter, all you have to do is get me close enough. after that, you should get out of here.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Hmph?” Felix mumbled curiously.

“I’m scared… someone I know might be there.”

“Then just get me close enough and wait…”

“Ah, alright” The young man nodded.

“For me to be getting help from a civilian… How pathetic can I get?” Felix muttered to himself in a low voice as he was assisted to walk towards the building. “Hopefully Marie’s having a better time than I am…”

Silhouettes danced against bright lights as Maria slaughtered several men with her knife. Her face covered in blood as she mowed down her enemies one by one, swiftly slicing their necks open.

The deafening noise of car alarms and gunfire filled up underground parking.

Her target, the barcoded man, hid behind the armed men, quite a distance away from her, “What are you?!”

She slid under one of the men’s legs and quickly threw her knife against the back of his head, then quickly rolled over the concrete and hid behind a pillar while a barrage of bullets fired towards her.

Her breathing turned sharp and ragged as she clutched her lower abdomen. Blood covered her palms, “Shhhhhit. That stings.”

She ducked as bullets started to tear through the pillar she hid behind, “Hopefully Felix is doing better right now.”

Maria pulled out another knife from her thigh and leapt out the other side of the pillar, racing towards her barcoded target.

“FUCK!” The barcoded man quickly retreated while the group of armed men kept firing at her.

“Get back here and give me the key!” She yelled, several bullets grazing at her skin.

**

Fire burst out the warehouse as Felix stretched out his arms, crackles of blue electricity flowed out his body, “Looks like I’m all healed up for now.”

“You’re going in there, are you nuts?! What are you?! Are you a robot?!” The young man frantically asked, confused to see Felix up and about after watching him crash into the rubble earlier.

“Hey… the person you’re looking for in there… who is it?” Felix asked.

The young man clutched on his own arm, “Oh, um… he’s someone who works here.”

“That doesn’t narrow it down. If it’s someone important to you, it’s in your best interest to tell me who he is.”

“It’s… it’s my uncle.”

“I see…”

“If you’re going in there, then can you find him? Can you save him? He’s my only family left.”

Felix looked at him with his mismatched eyes and remembered the voice of a silver-haired lady with orange eyes, “From now on, yer me brother. We’re a family now.”

Another fire burst out of the building, grabbing both of their attention, “I’ll try, but let’s see if he’s alive first.” He nodded reassuringly as he walked closer toward the burning entrance.

He pulled out a worn-out mask and he put it on before heading into the burning factory.

The smoke was thick and hot, and both the concrete floors and steel beams were littered with shards and other materials.

Felix cautiously navigated through the smoke and between the crates and burning wooden boxes, but as he placed his hands on one of them, he noticed the markings behind the ash.

He wiped off the soot and saw the logo of a black bird surrounded by stars. “Cygnus Enterprise.” He muttered to himself. The deeper inside, he found blood leaking under some of the rubble. His stomach churned as glimpses of his memories resurfaced. A familiar, fiery sight.

But he pressed forward to look for survivors.

A loud crashing noise caught his attention.

As he peaked between the many cascading metal crates that surrounded the area, he saw an old man in a worker uniform standing against a figure in a copper-brown, mechanical suit.

In the old man’s arms was a large, pipe-like weapon, shaped similarly to a cannon, and covered with a glassy circuit pattern.

“You’re making this far too difficult. You see this thing’s power, don’t you?” The man threatened as he aimed his weapon.

“You haven’t been very good at wielding it.” A feminine voice came out of the armored figure.

“Mouthy one, aren’t you? Just give me the suit so I won’t have to kill you.” The old man activated the weapon and it made a high-pitched noise as its circuitry lit up.

The armored figure rushed up towards the old man with a raised fist, but before she could land the blow, it fired – a beam of light burst from the weapon.

The armored figure raised their guard, but their body was tossed against the wooden crates.

“What the hell is that?” Felix thought to himself.

“Wh-why are you doing this…?” The armored woman asked weakly.

“Because…your armor will finally free me from debt.” He answered.

The old man fired another beam, slamming her deeper into the concrete. “It will give me a fortune…”

He fired again, “I’ll finally be able to give my family the life they deserve!”

“From now on, yer me brother. We’re a family now.” The voice echoed once again in Felix’s head. He backed away slowly, but as he did, debris fell beside him, and he let out a startled gasp.

“Huh? Is someone there?” The old man glanced around before approaching where Felix was.

He fired the weapon once again; the white beam tore through the steel crates.

“Argh!” He yelled. The weapon started to sizzle, and electricity formed and crackled from it. The black barrel began to burn him, and he dropped it to the ground. “Blasted prototype.”

He pulled out a pistol and aimed at the armored woman, “Show yourself or I kill her!”

There was no response.

The old man fired twice at the armored woman’s head. Her head drooped down as walls cracked, and the debris fell on top of her.

Carefully, the old man picked up the weapon again and looked around.

Felix kept his hand over his mouth to keep his breath steady. He extended his hand forward with a focused glare.

“C’mon… work.” He muttered under his breath.

He felt his veins pulsate as heat traveled down from his shoulder, to his wrist, and out of his palm. His black glove started to glow with a thin blue outline. With a crackle from his hand, a shining blue haze formed from the nothingness, amorphous and transparent, swirling in his palm.

A bead of sweat rolled down his cheek and onto the hand that covered it. There was a muffled excitement that escaped his lips, but he kept his attention on the weapon.

With a determined gaze, he kept his aim solely on the weapon. He waited with a stare.

All the rocks around his body slowly rose up in the air.

Five seconds passed — But nothing happened.

Or rather, not the way he wanted it to happen.

His concentration broke to take in breath, and the spiraling blue shroud in dispersed, and disappeared into ephemeral nothings.

All the rocks suspended in the air stopped glowing, and immediately dropped back down.

The clatter of stones and debris quickly caught the old man’s attention, and quickly approached where it came from.

As he got closer, he spotted a black cloak and a white mask between the smoke. The old man leapt and fired – another beam burst from the machine, destroying both the cloak and burning a portion of the pale mask, and leaving molten red iron and smoke.

But no one was there.

“What the—?” The old man muttered out.

The cannon began to spark and crackle, and he instinctively dropped it from the shock. A faint smoke emanated from the circuitry. “Damned thing’s already busted.”

The old man dropped the weapon and aimed his pistol once again. “Now… where are you?”

There was another clatter from behind him, and the man quickly turned around, “Hah, got ya!”

Blood spilled with a bang.

There was a bright flash from the skies, and with the loud boom of thunder, the lights in the warehouse followed. Only fires from debris were left to light the darkness.

The man felt something warm trickle down his own forearm. The man’s grip loosened as he felt the hole in his hand, “AHGHK!!”

As he clutched his bleeding arm, his expression turned to dread as he saw cold blue eyes stare at him from the distance.

He quickly made a break for the exit, gasping achingly through the fires and debris.

The cold winds greeted him as he made it outside, along with the sight of a young man rubbing his aching forehead.

“U-uncle, is everything alr—”

“What? What are you doing here?” The old man asked in confusion.

“I was looking for, huh?” The young man looked at the building’s entrance and saw a shrouded figure with glowing blue eyes.

Felix pointed his gun toward their direction.

The young man yelled out; “Wait, no!”

The sky roared with a strike of lightning – and the man fell to the ground.

“Uncle? Uncle!” The young man put his arms around the old man as he cried out against Felix, “Murderer! I thought you were supposed to help people!”

The only sound was the pitter patter of the rain against the cold concrete.

Felix lowered his arm and said, “You’d best get out of here.”

“Not without my uncle.” The young man clutched his uncle’s arm.

Felix placed his hand on his hip and sighed, “You can relax. He’s not dead.”

“Wh-what?”

“My gun doesn’t kill people. It’s only meant to incapacitate them. But the wound in his arm will kill him if he doesn’t get treated.”

“Then, my uncle—”

“Will be taken in for questioning.”

“What?” The young man’s voice was shaken.

“Your uncle isn’t a civilian, he was the cause of the destruction here.”

“What? How? What’s going to happen to him?”

“Sorry, kid. What happens to him isn’t up to me. A team is already on its way here, if you stay any longer, you’ll be suspected and taken in.”

The young man clutched his uncle’s arm, but before he could even move, Felix spoke, “If you try to take him away, I will consider you an enemy.”

“Please, don’t let him die… I don’t want to lose another family member.”

Felix nodded, “Go.”

The young man put down his uncle’s arm and hesitantly stood-up, his shirt covered in the man’s blood. The rainwater drizzled all over their heads.

With a frightened and frustrated expression, he ran.

“Murderer, huh?” He spoke with a soft voice, the blue in his other eye faded.

Felix pressed into his earpiece once again, “Marie, do you copy?”

“A little busy at the moment!” Maria sharply replied as the sounds of bullets could be heard, all while a voice could be heard yelling out, “Get the fuck away from me!”

There was clearly a shoot-out on her end.

“DIE, FUCKING MONSTER!”

“Call you back.” She said, an explosion could be heard just before she ended transmission.

“What was that about?” He blurted out in bewilderment after the transmission ended before breaking out a slight smile.

Felix returned to the factory and slowly approached where the armored woman lay with a cold indifferent stare.

He then went and picked up his mask, and traced its tears with his thumb, before closing his eyes and placing it behind him, as if to accept the loss.

His eyes quickly opened, however, as he heard a soft whimper.

He rushed towards the woman in the brown, copper-like armor and took off her helmet. The woman went into a violent fit of cough. Between her chestnut brown bangs was a deep-red bruise on her in the middle of her forehead.

“Sorry. I thought I had to call in the Ravens to come clean you up… HERCULES armors are tougher than I expected.” Felix mumbled out as he dug into his pocket and pulled out a small bottle marked with a medical cross.

“Who… are you?” She wearily asked. Her eyes were a bright shade of copper.

“Blue Phantom from the Golden Lion. I take it you’re from Cygnus Enterprise?”

“Agent… CT-2…”

“Swallow this… it’ll numb the pain for a while.” Felix said as he placed a pill in her mouth. He then pressed into his earpiece “Blue Phantom to HQ, I’ve made contact with CT-2 of Cygnus Enterprise. She is currently in critical condition.”

“Th-thank…”

“Save your breath. The medical team should be on their way.”

He wrapped the weapon around his back using his torn black cloak, and he then put her in his arms.

“Argh, my back!” He grunted out as he struggled to lift her up.

The crackling fire slowly was drowned out by the pouring rain.

He looked up to the hole in the roof and muttered to himself, “I need some coffee…”

***

Felix sat down on the bench. The air was cold and sterile, and the light was sharp and white. In his hand held dearly a torn white mask, while his black trench coat folded beside him, hiding the massive hole in its upper torso. Through the windows of the patient’s room as he watched the injured agent slowly recover. The only sound was the slow beeping of the heart monitor.

As the door on the corridor opened, a familiar voice broke the silence, “What’s with the long face?”

“Did you get the key?” Felix asked in a lowly tone.

“It’s here, but… care to tell me why you look so melodramatic? Did something happen to your back?” She commented, looking down on his lowered head.

“Murderer…” Felix squeezed the torn and broken mask between his fingers.

There was a brief pause as Maria looked to the side as she noticed the woman sleeping on the other side of it. “Did she call you that?”

“It wasn’t her… and it’s not the first time…” He looked at her with a smirk.

“But… it still hurts?” She asked understandingly.

“… Yeah.”

Maria’s eyes lowered as her expression softened, “That thing in your hands… Can’t believe you kept that.”

“Y-yeah… I’ll keep it until I get replaced.”

“Replaced, huh? Well, gimme it.” She took the mask from his hands.

“Look.” She put the mask on his face explained, “When you put on this mask, you become the Blue Phantom. An agent doing your job. Don’t think about repercussions, just know that you have to kill.” She then took it off and continued, “But when you take it off, you’re just… you. Okay? Not a murderer, nor an assassin. That’s not you. At least, not the way I see you. Understand?”

“Then, what about the people I’ve killed… before becoming this Phantom?”

“Well, instead of carrying that weight on your shoulders, we’ll just have to blame it on the Blue Phantom.”

“Hm…”

“We’re all hiding behind masks, you just more literal than others.” She jested.

“Right, I suppose.”

“But… is that really what’s bothering you?” She asked as she watched him force out a despondent smile.

“What do you mean?” He asked.

“Come on…”

“Well… there’s...”

The young man’s words echoed in his ears, “I don’t want to lose another family member.”

Felix remembered the gentle smile of a white-haired woman in the snow, “It’s nothing. I’ll figure it out on my own.”

“You can rely on me, y’know.”

“I know. I’ll ask you when I get it sorted.”

Maria smiled in response, then pointed toward the window, “So, care to tell me who she is?”

“Agent CT-2 from Cygnus Enterprise.”

“Oh? From Project HERCULES?”

“How do you know that?” Felix eyebrows curled.

“I think I read something from her file once. She’s one of Cygnus Enterprise’s Advanced Armor users if I remember correctly.”

“Why did you have her file?”

“Would you believe me if I said it had something to do with my hacking skills?”

Felix looked at her with an exasperated expression, while she shot back with a smug grin.

He returned his gaze to the patient’s room, however, the sight of a syringe lying on the table suddenly made him feel ill. Maria took notice of his sudden discomfort and let out a wide grin,

“Still afraid of needles?” She muttered with a confidence-destroying scoff

“Mhm…So, about the key?”

“Here. To be honest, it was actually easier with you not around.”

“Oh, why’s that?”

“Hm, reasons…”

Maria opened her palm, revealing the small black chip. From it, a holographic, light-blue sphere is projected, crafted with circulating lines of letters and digits.

“So then, what’s it for?”

“I can’t make out its data the way that it is. But it’s called a key, so it has to open something.”

“And you’re sure this is it? We don’t want to make the same mistake twice...”

“Just because you’re bad with tech, doesn’t mean I am.”

“I’m… I’m not saying that. I’m just saying, what if it’s a fake?”

“If it were, it shouldn’t have had a three-tier encryption lock… It would’ve been too elaborate a prank for the Little Sun to guard so heavily.”

“Then what about the suspect?” He sighed.

“Taken care of. Permanently.”

Felix’s mismatched eyes widened, “You… you were supposed to take him in for questioning.”

“…There was a struggle, okay?”

“What is wrong with you?”

“A great, many things.” She answered.

Suddenly, he smiled and whispered to himself, “And to think I’m the one who got called a murderer…”

“Hey, that still kinda hurts, y’know…” She replied with an unfettered smile.

“Right, sorry…I guess it’s time to head back.”

“Way ahead of you.” She said as she already headed out the door.

Felix got up and then approached the window wall and placed his palm on it. On his face was a worried expression as she watched the brown-haired woman breathe weakly.

He then grabbed his things and walked toward the door. But before his hand could reach the knob, he heard a faint voice speak, “Thank you.” The woman muttered out weakly.

He looked back again and smiled, “You’re welcome. Get better soon.”