To be Free, by Sea (IC)

[Scuffles]

Kristin sighed in relief when the reply came crackling through the radio. She paused a moment to collect her thoughts and then spoke, trying to get as much authority into her voice as she could.

"U.S Coastguard, this is Glow and El Heraldo on the cargo vessel Flowerbell." she said, knowing full well that their names probably weren't going to carry much weight. "We need assistance. This vessel has been used for illegal trafficking of immigrants and illegal experimentation on those immigrants. The crew is heavily armed, although we've subdued a number of them. We don't know how many are left."

"There are numerous medical emergencies on board who need to be evacuated and there's some evidence than at least some of the victims have been conditioned to respond to code phrases with violent rages. The ship is also disabled and is drifting. It'll need to be towed. Oh and the yacht Diamond Princess is involved and needs to be impounded."

"Uhh.. did you get all that? Basically we need some help out here."

[Supercape]

GM

"The Diamond Princess? Isn't that Steve Diamond's Yacht? Man, I am a big fan. What's that one, you know, how does it go, doo-be-dooby doo doo be doo doo da de.."

"Ahem"

"Anyway, we will be right on our way! Glow you said? heard all about you. Got a tip off you might be on to something big. Saw that clip on the internet. Disaster from Down Under! Nice work!"

He paused briefly.

"Two vessels have been dispatched. Should arrive within 30 minutes. Careful out there, got a bad weather warning, could get choppy...."

[Scuffles]

Kristin winced as the Coast Guard radio operator clearly made the connection between "Glow" and "Little Australian telekinetic". "Jackson!" she hissed as she glanced at Heraldo. "That jerk must have seen me jump on the yacht. I'm totally blaming you for this. I'm so gonna get expelled..."

She turned back to the radio and clicked the send button again. "Understood, Coast Guard. Don't know who you're talking about though. We're going to try to finish securing this ship, but make sure they're ready for trouble anyway. Glow, out."

As she dropped the radio receiver back in its cradle she turned back to her friend. "Alright, we better go track down Diamond and make sure he's not getting up to anything. Do you have any idea where he went?"

[Ari]

"Jackson!" she hissed as she glanced at Heraldo. "That jerk must have seen me jump on the yacht. I'm totally blaming you for this. I'm so gonna get expelled..."

"How the heck was I supposed to know he'd notice you jumping aboard?" demanded Subito crossly. "Besides, we can talk to that Jackson guy as soon as this is over with"

He scowled at the question of where Diamond might be "My guess is that he's gone or going to that holding place where those prisoners are. The captain told him to dump a body for their experiments" he glanced vengefully over at the captain secured to the chair before turning back to Glow "That, or he's gone back to his boat. If you want I can search for him by sound , shouldn't be difficult"

[Scuffles]

The diminutive telekinetic resisted the urge to snap back at her friend. It's not the time for it she decided.

"Yeah never mind. Can you hear him anywhere? I don't think he'd be the type to be moving the bodies himself though right? He's probably gone back to the yacht." she said as she poked her head carefully out of the broken window at the front of the bridge, then leaned out further to see if she could get a glimpse of the smaller vessel.

Unable to get a good view she ducked back into the bridge and turned to Subito. "Are you alright?" she asked with concern. "You're bleeding! He gave you a pretty good whack with that sword of his!"

[Ari]

Subito looked down at the long, narrow cut the sword had left "OH! Uh, ow, yeah" he muttered "Er, I actually barely noticed when it hit, so..I guess it's making up for that now?" he glanced down again "Ow." collecting himself he answered Kristin's question "I'd have to go a little down the hall and really listen, you know? I bet you I could find him easily if I did that" he floated a little into the air "Whaddaya want to do with those guys?" he asked, nodding at the pile of unconscious crewmen..

[Supercape]

GM

The amazing ears of El Heraldo could pick up the faint sounds of Steve Diamond against the lolling waves gently crashing into the cargo ship. Coast Guard had been right, there was a squall forming.

"Jimmy...cast off! cast off! we gotta get moving. Captain's in a hell of a move. Cast off!!!! and get those floozies down. We gotta drop off that test subject when we get back to Freedom City. If the broad hasn't stiffed yet, like the others..."

"Damn, this is a bum deal..." he said, whispering to himself. El Heraldo could hear a thump, presumably Steve Diamond jumping down to his own yacht from the larger cargo vessel.

The cargo vessel was noticeable yawing now, although only slightly. There was a slight splatter of rain through the broken windows of the bridge, and the clouds overhead were darkening in the setting sun. Soon, it would night, and a starless one at that.

[Ari]

"He's escaping on the yacht!" exclaimed Heraldo furiously "I'll put a stop to that!" so saying, he turned and soared out of the bridge, took stock of where the yacht was moored again and shot like a bullet towards it, thundering "YOU WON'T ESCAPE DIAMOND!" the air whistled in his ears and the waves were much taller than they had been last he'd seen them, but he ignored that in favor of focusing like a laser on his quarry. He would capture Diamond and drag him and all the rest responsible for this to the arms of the FCPD, he promised to himself, or perish in the attempt!

[Scuffles]

"Aww damnit Subito!" Glow yelled as her friend went rocketing out the window in pursuit of Diamond. "It's a freaking yacht that does like 20 miles an hour or something. It's not exactly a lightning getaway." she muttered to herself as she turned to regard the unconscious crew members and Captain.

"Stay!" she told them, then dashed out the door and down the stairs at the back of the bridge in pursuit of Heraldo, hoping he wouldn't get in too much trouble before she could catch up.

[Supercape]

GM

It was all happening at sea.

It was dark with rain now, the sea rolling. It was not a storm that would threaten a ship, although it would certainly break the stomach of many a man. And with the dark sky and rain, visibility was poor.

Guided more by his hearing than his sight, El Heraldo flew to Steve Diamond's yacht, his costume soon soaked from the rain.

"Lets get going! Let's get going! Damn this rain!" shouted DIamond to his two deck-hands. He looked up as El-Heraldo landed on his ship.

"What the hell are you?" he demanded spinning around to meet the costumed hero "I've seen all types of crazy with El Diablo, but this is something new altogether..." he shouted over the rain.

"Look, I told your captain I would do what he said. I can hardly fail with this storm can I? Slip in to freedom city and dump the test subject, just like normal..."

In the distance, near the black horizon, the faint lights of the coast guard could be seen, although Diamond and the two deck hands had not seen it yet.

[Ari]

"The captain's an unconscious heap on the bridge!" snapped The Heraldo "Partially because of ME. I am El Heraldo, and I have come to make sure you don't escape this place, it will be about thirty minutes before the police get here" his hand snapped out at Diamond's shirt collar "So how about you start telling me about how you got into the pay of El Diablo, and why you do his bidding?" he had a litany of questions that needed answers, and though he understood that Diamond was unlikely to know much, he needed someone to answer for what had happened here. The doctor and the captain were out of it, and until they woke up the only target of his ire was the celebrity crooner in front of him who had colluded with what he saw as utter monsters in human form.

[Ari]

Gripping him with a hand clenched like a steel vise, Subito demanded of Diamond "Who is El Diablo? Why do you owe him? How long has this been going on? Who is that doctor? Who is the captain? How can you do this with so little concern for those captives? Above all, WHAT is this supposed to accomplish?!" he glared at the crew "Don't even think about trying to escape!" he barked, turning back to Diamond "Words spoken by that doctor, words in Latin, they turned the man who led us here into a raging beast! What do you know about THAT? For your sake" he added furiously "it had better be a lot! The storm is rising, and nobody who served the captain or you will leave this ship before the prisoners have been freed!"

[Scuffles]

The heaving of the deck made life difficult for Glow as she hustled down the stairs and made her way over to the ramp set up between the ship and the yacht.

"Heraldo!" she yelled down as she saw her friend holding Diamond by the throat. "Put him down! He knows he's not going anywhere! Get that yacht unhooked from the ship and move it away a bit! We don't want the hulls bashing together in these waves!"

The deck pitched again and she clutched at the rail as her stomach lurched. "Help won't be long now!" she called down. "I'm heading down to check on the prisoners!"

[Ari]

Heraldo heard Glow's exhortation clearly above the rising wind, and he understood fully the logic behind it. But it was a serious effort on his part to release Diamond and make sure the yacht wouldn't end up bashing itself against the larger ship, which would have likely been a catastrophe no matter which was more harmed by it. He took the time to remove the propeller from the yacht though. He still didn't trust Diamond or his crew, and knew also that the man couldn't go far without them in a storm. With a sharp "Don't go anywhere" he returned to the larger ship. Catching up to Glow he asked "Should I try and push this thing closer to shore? Even a little might help us keep from getting lost at sea" he glanced at the guards "Also we should probably imprison these guys and their commanders on the bridge, especially the captain"

[Scuffles]

"I'm pretty sure the Coast Guard must have us on radar or something," Glow replied as she strengthened her telekinetic barrier overhead to block out the worst of the pouring rain. "They didn't ask us for a position when I was on the radio so I think they already know where we are. Besides, I can see the lights out there. I'm pretty sure they're not too far out now."

She pointed out the lights to Subito then turned to look at the hatch, grabbing hold of his shoulder for a moment to steady herself as the deck pitched again. "Man I hope we can get out of here soon, this storm is not going to be fun!" she complained as her stomach lurched in response. "Lets go check that everybody is okay below decks and see if we can't get them ready for an evacuation?"

She caught her balance properly and started for the hatch, moving cautiously on the slick deck and still warily looking out for any additional crew members that hadn't yet been rounded up.

[Ari]

El Heraldo was fascinated by the way Glow's shield warded off the rain, sending it down the slopes of the bubble to turn into splashing rivulets. He wasn't mesmerized enough to not listen however, nodding as she finished and following her inside. Keeping the Banner near Glow's hand in case she needed to steady her self again(he remained floating), he wondered aloud "What about this was supposed to get anyone anything? The experiments that doctor guy was running just seemed to end up with people with no hope, or poor guys like Diego going crazy when they hear a phrase. Neither of those sound useful to anyone at all. I'd think it was just El Diablo making an example of people who try to escape him, but it just wastes resources he'd need in Mexico" he knocked off the water that had accumulated on his hat, looking ruefully at the sodden feather "What d'you make of all this, Glow?" he asked Kristin with clear frustration.

[Scuffles]

Glow led Heraldo quickly below decks toward the room where the prisoners had been held. After thinking about his questions for a few moments as he replied "I don't know exactly what they're trying to achieve. I guess we'll find out a bit more once someone gets a chance to analyze the stuff in the syringe I took off that scientist. You saw how strong Diego got though, he even gave you a hard time. Some kind of super-soldier experiments maybe?"

She paused at the doorway. "The bit I really don't understand is why they were using Diamond to drop people off, especially if people are dying. Why not just dump the bodies at sea where nobody will ever find them? But anyway, we'll find out more when everybody is in for questioning I guess."

[Supercape]

GM

Diamond was of no help.

"Lay off man! I'll get my lawyers on to you! entrapment! blackmail! you ain't heard the last of this!"

The man was scared silly, but hadn't lost his legal reflexes. Still, without the propeller to the ship, he was stranded. All he could do was wait for the coast guard.

As Glow and Heraldo went below decks, they heard a sound over the ship's intercom. It was somewhat distorted and tinny, but they could recognise the doctor's voice.

"I don't know if you can here me, but if the two dog's that assualted me, and my dear experiment, out, can hear this....know that I never forget a face! you have ruined my set up here...a free supply of guinea pig's for me to experiment on. Ruined! but I shall recover, and extract my vengeance on you! mark my words! muahahaha!"

"And don't think I hadn't made plans for such contingencies either! I won't leave any evidence of my work behind! hahahah! Adios!"

Boom!

El Heraldo and Glow could hear the rending of torn metal, followed by the sound of water. The huge vessel leaned, slightly, to one side, unbalancing the duo slightly.

[Scuffles]

Kristin halted and glared at the intercom as the tinny voice of the scientist crackled through the speaker. "Damnit, I thought we had that guy properly secured!" she cursed. "He was in a room full of all those people we let out of the cage too. Guy must be sneakier than we thought!

A moment later she lurched to the side and only just caught herself on the wall of the corridor as the explosion - apparently some kind of scuttling charge - rocked the vessel. "What the...? Oh man, did he just blow up the damn ship? I'm so doing worse than choking him next time!" she complained as she glanced at Heraldo. "I can hear water. I think we might be sinking! We have to get the people off!"

Her mind raced. There's a lot of people on this ship who can't move under their own power and even more who we probably shouldn't move at all. We probably can't get them all out of here fast enough! And the coast guard are still too far out to help evacuate.. Think!

Ship can't sink if it's not in the water....

Can I even get close to lifting this thing?

Have to. It's the only way.

"Subito..." she said quietly. "Tell the people we freed to hold on tight. I'm going to levitate this whole damn ship out of the water so it doesn't sink. Might be best if you drop me on the yacht to do it from there where I've got a better view. And then if you could tell the Coast guard to hurry up that'd be nice. I don't think I'll be able to hold it for long.."

Not wasting any time and trying not to give herself a chance to second guess the plan, Glow dashed up the stairs and onto the deck. The storm was still worsening, and with the ship starting to list the deck was a seriously unpleasant place to stand. The young heroine didn't notice at all, already falling into the meditation exercises she'd been taught. This was going to take every scrap of concentration and willpower that she could muster.

[Ari]

I will tear you to pieces doctor! El Heraldo seethed internally as the explosion rocked the ship, he had instantly begun to rocket off in the direction of the deck so he could scan the sea for lifeboats, but Glow's call had dragged him back. He hadn't shown his dismay(a first for him) and instead attended to what needed to be done for the captives to keep them from drowning in the North Atlantic. Her plan to carry the whole ship boggled his mind, but he had seen crazier things on the Atom Family Adventures! on Saturday mornings, and went with it without a murmur. Zipping down to the holding cell, he explained quickly what was about to happen and guided the prisoners into more secure rooms well above sea level, flat-out ordering them NOT to close the doors, and raced up to the bridge so he could call the Coast Guard and tell them about what had happened. Tuning to the righr frequency was easy after seeing where Kristin had turned the dials.

"Coast Guard! This is Glow's associate in heroics El Heraldo. Those responding to the recent distress call for the cargo ship thirty minutes or so from Freedom will most likely see a cargo ship flying in the air surrounded by a green glow. This is NOT a hallucination, my comrade Glow is a telekinetic who will carry the ship for as long as she can, it has been badly damaged by a deoth charge and must be brought to shore as quickly as possible, she and I will be around a yacht belonging to Steve Diamond, he is involved criminally with the captain of the vessel and a doctor of some kind" he stopped and thought this over, saying after a second's thought "I'll explain when we meet your ships, please hurry! She can't carry the ship for long!"

He soared quickly back to Glow, picked her up, saying "Alright, now or never!" and flew her to Diamond's yacht. Touching down he snapped "She is going to carry the cargo boat. If any of you make the slightest move to attack her while she's doing her thing, I will come up, bat you on the head, and throw you overboard with a life jacket for company. Do not test our patience" he dove underwater at the stern of the yacht and began pushing with all his might, willing his muscles to do a smaller version of what Kristin's brain was about to and churning off in the direction of the coast. He cursed the darkness.

[Supercape]

GM

It truly was a sight to behold. Diamonds yacht being propelled at undue speed through the storm, and the giant trawler, lofted clean in the air, its hull punctured below sea level, enveloped in the faint green light of Glow.

With a backdrop of a lightning storm at sea.

"Hoy there! Coastguard! we got your message!" called the captain of the coatguard ship. "We are going to escort you into Freedom City! Mind that ship! Put it down carefully when we are in shallow waters!" he added, staring in awe at the massive vessel.

On board, next to him, was none other than Jack Jackson.

"The scoop of the century!" he yelled, excitedly, snapping away.

"The disaster from down under rips hole in merchant vessel, nearly sinks it!" he screamed, punching fist in the air as he imagined the headlines.

And with that, the vessels made their way back to the docks...

[Scuffles]

It was probably a good thing that Kristin had little attention to spare for Jack Jackson as he jumped to conclusions and broke into his celebration dance. With her feet planted on the deck of the yacht she was fixated on the levitating cargo ship and green light was positively streaming off her as she delved deeper into her powers than she had ever gone before.

Keeping the vessel aloft was proving to be rather easier than she had expected. Getting it aloft in the first place had been rather harder. Straining against the massive bulk of the cargo ship on a pitching deck in the midst of a furious storm she had faced a task far beyond anything she'd ever considered possible, and there, in her moments of frustration and despair the realization had struck. The powers which she fought to control, struggled to master on a daily basis were a part of her.

It was the first time since the day her powers manifested that she had really dared to turn them loose and the result was something of a surprise. I'm going to make it. And I could have done it with more if I had to...

With the docks in sight the young telekinetic dared to turn her head fractionally towards the coast guard vessel that was escorting them in. "Want to tell me where to park this thing please?" she called out. "It's starting to feel a little bit heavy!"

[Ari]

Subito charged silently through the water, ears pricked to catch the least hostile movement on board the yacht. Fortunately, sense(and threats) appeared to have prevailed on them. The storm had made it more than a little difficult to push and steer the boat, which he hadn't even considered complaining about or stopping to rest because of, considering Glow's exertions and the delicacy of her task. He guided himself using the approaching Coast Guard boats as a reference, steering himself and the cumbersome yacht towards them unceasingly.

He gave a sigh of relief as they finally reached the FCCG boats, gritting his teeth at the sound of Jack Jackson(and contemplating sending a gout of water onto him...), but he kept the course, keeping the yacht as squarely between the two rescue ships as he dared in the choppy water.

With infuriating care he at last pushed the yacht next to a mooring point, waiting at a suitable stretch of water so shallow he could actually see for Kristin to deposit the boat so he could bring them in. When the yacht was moored, the prisoners safely out of peril, and he had stretched his aching arms and back, he finally flew idly up next to the captain sent to help and stated "Officer, if you will allow it I will assist your men in searching the derelict freighter for evidence of Diamond's complicity with the criminals who committed the repulsive crimes the prisoners will inform you of. The man is little better than a pirate, and much worse than those who turn to that evil out of need. Please do not be gentle with him" he added earnestly. After the captain's answer he nodded and went to Glow "That was amazing, Glow!" he exclaimed with unfeigned enthusiasm "I've never seen anything like that before! How are you?" he asked, suddenly concerned "You need a rest? I can get our stuff and fly us both to wherever you wanna. Also we should probably shower" he added, glancing at his soaked, dirty costume.

[Scuffles]

It was with a sigh of relief that Glow finally lowered the stricken cargo vessel (very carefully) into shallow water and let it settle gently. She crouched on the deck of the yacht and watched the ship closely for several long moments. Satisfied that it wasn't going to roll over or sink too far the young telekinetic stood and turned as Heraldo approached.

"I'm okay for now," she replied as he expressed concern for her wellbeing. "We should probably get over to the ship and make sure there aren't any other crew members running around with machine guns. We got everyone back here safe, I'm not about to have someone die pointlessly now that we did! And we can probably help evacuate it too. There's going to be some language barriers I think so you can help keep everybody calm.

A thoughtful expression crossed her face. "Do you have any idea where the scientist guy went? He was on the intercom so he must have been on the ship when he set that bomb off, but I guess he must have bailed on a lifeboat or something?"

[Supercape]

GM

The small micro sub whizzed along the ocean floor towards Mexico.

"Damn and curses! my work was all ruined! and I was making such excellent progress! muahahaha!"

Doctor Drake tried to cheer himself up, despite the sinking of a ship full of his experiments and equipment. He had made significant discoveries - how to manipulate the emotional system of humans with chemicals, hypnosis, and the like. It was now possible, he realised, to create an entirely docile, compliant slave force, and to create an raging violent destructive beast that could be triggered with any phrase. Both useful tools.

Diego had been his greatest success. But he had managed to smuggle some other immigrants in, too, all programmed, like Marco, to respond to various triggers and with various emotional states. Many had died, but some had lived. He had undercover assets in Freedom City. It was even possible that some of the placid helpless specimens he had locked away in the ship may have survived, if those two no-good heroes had lived up to their pathetic "heroic" tag.

All was not lost. The Serpent, El Diablo would be angry, but would continue to support his work.

A frown crossed his face. With explosive temperament, he brought his fist down hard on the dashboard.

"If it weren't for those meddlesome kids....!" he yelled.

"I'll get my revenge....they will suffer...muahahaha!"

~ Fin ~