Episode Four - 'Heroine Chic'

"Carl..." protested Harry as he tried to concentrate on his driving. He had one hand on the steering wheel while his other hand rested on Argent's bare thigh. She sat in the cab of the lorry, pinned between the two men.

"Little tarts. They love it..." Carl clambered back into the cab.

"Listen to me. I'm trying to drive this thing as quietly as possible. If you don't shut up we're going to be stopped by the police."

The surviving Bloodhawks had packed all their equipment and themselves into an old lorry early in the morning. They had spent a nervous night awake following Argent's bungled intrusion, before the weather had cleared sufficiently to proceed with the proposed hydrofoil crossing of the Channel. Harry had personally kept a watchful eye over his new prisoner until his men were ready to move out. Elenor had spent a miserable few hours in the corner of the warehouse, listening to the rain drumming against the corrugated iron roof. The Bloodhawks had searched Elenor's utility belt and, discovering the plastic ties, had used one of them to tie her hands behind her back.

"Our pretty guest seems particularly quiet this morning," mused Harry as he navigated the lorry through the streets of Brighton. "I bet you're missing your breakfast, aren't you, love?" He moved his hand a little higher up her thigh. Elenor flinched and flexed her wrists. She couldn't feel her fingers anymore.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked.

"We've got a hydrofoil waiting off shore. Once on board we don't stop until we hit the coast of Spain."

"And then?"

Harry laughed. "I don't know, love. Got anything in mind?" He slipped a finger slowly inside her underwear.

"I'll kill you, you bastard!" And she meant it.

"Hmm... it's obviously that time of the month." Harry placed both hands on the wheel and acted as if nothing had happened.

And, sitting on top of the lorry as he was, Atom Man could hear every word...

On Board a Hydrofoil, cruising out to sea

"Alone at last, eh?" Harry sat down in one of the nearest chairs and reached for a bottle of red wine to pour himself a drink. "I'd offer you one but, well, you've got your hands tied behind your back." He sipped the cabernet sauvignon and nodded in appreciation. "I've been trying to introduce Carl to the delights of the grape but he's strictly a beer drinker by preference. Shame really - we go back a long way and I hate him to miss out on something as good as this."

"I'm really not interested," replied Elenor.

"Oh... so you do speak? And, uh, I guess this is the 'defiant super hero approach' is it?"

"No. I just find you tedious and boring." Elenor stared at him. "You think you're really something, don't you? Hasn't anyone ever told you you're just another madman with a gun." Elenor flexed her wrists again.

"Uh yes... but in actual fact they're all dead now. I don't think you have much to gain by insulting me."

"Why do you do this? Why do you kill people? What's wrong with you?"

"I'm just a guy who gets... a little excited, I guess..." He smiled. "Mind you, I could equally ask you why you dress up like a lap dancer and go around fighting crime."

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," replied Elenor sadly.

An hour passed by before the trouble began. The call came through to Harry that the hydrofoil was being followed.

"It looks like Bloodhawk, sir. Two miles and closing," said Liam.

"So near, yet so far," mused Harry. "How do super heroes always find us," he wondered. "They just... always do." He walked toward a shelf and lifted down a heavy armaments crate. "Luckily I came prepared." Harry flipped open the lid of the case. Inside, cushioned in a specially cut foam compartment, lay a Gustav MP-11 surface to air missile launcher and two missiles. The Bloodhawk leader lifted the weapon from its case and swiftly locked the components together.

"Cost me an arm and a leg at short notice, but I knew this baby would come in handy."

Harry flipped down the computer sights and selected the 'heat-seek' option on the head up display.

"That's a nice piece of hardware," said Liam.

"Here," Harry passed the missile launcher over to his man. "Be my guest."

Argent looked out of the window at the approaching super hero and back again at the surface to air missile launcher. "Is that going to stop him? He's armoured."

"So is a United Nations A-Hawk armoured gun ship and one of these missiles will take that out with a direct hit." Harry grinned. "So sorry, the rescue attempt is going to fall a bit flat. Even if Bloodhawk survives a direct hit - which I doubt - he's going down into the bottom of the sea with all the systems in his suit wrecked. Gravity and the weight of his suit will do the rest. I don't know how much air he carries in his armour, but it won't be enough."

Elenor felt suddenly very calm. Bloodhawk is coming to help me and these men are going to kill him, she thought to herself. He won't know until it's too late.

"Whenever you're ready," suggested Harry. "Nice and slow - just line up the sights and squeeze the trigger." He walked back to the left-hand side of the control room.

No, thought Elenor, it isn't going to happen this way. I won't let it. Argent opened her mouth... and screamed.

Liam was hit full force by the channeled scream - he was thrown into the air by the sonic blast, his finger slipping on the trigger as he fell. The missile fired wild, through the window, and into the deck below, punching a hole through the fiberglass, down through the crew cabins and into the lower hull where it finally encountered something hard enough to make it explode. The Hydrofoil was rocked by the explosion, which blew apart a large section of the underside of the hull. Liam fell to the floor, unconscious.

Harry began to turn around, his hand reaching towards the Heckler & Koch zip gun in his shoulder holster, but before he could clear the gun from its sheath, Argent had turned her head and screamed again. This time the blast was wider. It shattered all the side windows and knocked Harry through the open door. He tumbled, falling several feet onto the lower deck where he was showered by tiny fragments of glass. His zip gun flew from his holster, half drawn, and skidded across the white fiberglass deck.

Argent stood alone in the remains of the control cabin. She stared, astonished at the sheer spectacle of what she had done. Then she shrieked with joy.

Above the English Channel, Bloodhawk saw an explosive flash from the hydrofoil, followed by a distant bang. The ship lurched suddenly and began to tilt, though it continued to speed away from him.

Argent wrestled with the plastic restraints, cursing Atom Man for providing such high quality equipment. Her utility belt hung from one of the coat pegs in the cabin. Quickly, Elenor sat down and slid her bound hands under and over her legs so that they were now in front of her. She ran to the coat pegs and fumbled with the pouches until she found the Swiss knife set. It contained various titanium saw blades. Elenor pulled one of the blades in place and began sawing.

Harry Stone lay stunned, his ears ringing, for over two minutes. "Where..." he coughed, "did she learn... to do that?" He picked himself up and looked around for his gun. Unable to locate it, he staggered away from the deck rail, aware that the hydrofoil was developing a rather serious tilt, even as it sped further through the Channel. Glancing behind him, Harry saw that Bloodhawk was closing fast. "Fuck."

Elenor was free and halfway across the floor of the cabin when the right hand door suddenly opened. An astonished Bloodhawk terrorist stared at her, mouth open, for a split second. Argent snap-kicked him in the stomach. As the man fell, Argent punched him twice, once with each fist, in the face.

"My God... I can't believe I'm doing this..."

The man lay on the floor, groaning. Elenor pulled out one of the plastic restraints from her belt and bound his hands behind his back. She searched his body and found a military pistol, which she placed in her belt. "I can do this!" she shouted.

"I should've listened to my dad... he always used to tell me, Son, whatever you do in your life of crime, never ever take a super hero prisoner. They always, but always manage to escape..." Harry pulled a boat hook off its mounting. "Still, you live and learn..."

"This is Bloodhawk speaking." The amplified voice echoed across the waters. "This is the only warning I'm going to give you. Your ship is sinking. Surrender now and I'll see that you get to shore safely. Otherwise I'll see that you go down with the ship."

Harry ran along the length of the deck as Bloodhawk's shadow swept across it. A few warning shots from Carver's suit-mounted guns destroyed sections of the ship's railings. Harry grabbed a flare pistol and fired it. The flare struck Bloodhawk's armour and burst harmlessly.

"Don't make me do this the hard way."

Oh yeah, thought Harry as he continued to run, as if you people like doing anything the easy way. I'm sure you hate beating up people like me - you find it such a chore.

"You on the deck - I could have killed you by now."

"Your mistake!" replied Harry as he dived through a hatchway and descended a flight of stairs. He ran straight into two of his men.

"Sir, what's happening?" asked Rudy.

"Don't go upstairs. Bloodhawk has turned up." Harry led his men down the final few steps.

"But Sir, we can't stay here - the hull has been breached - the ship is filling with water."

Upstairs there was a loud thump that could only be a suit of armour landing on the deck. "And we can't go upstairs cuz there's a super-psycho with chain guns mounted on his arms," replied Harry. "Now move!"

Bloodhawk surveyed the deck. He could see the shattered windows of the control cabin and the hole in the deck where the surface to air missile had ripped through. Movement in the cabin caught Carver's attention. He raised himself telekinetically and hovered in front of the smashed windows. Bloodhawk pointed one of his chain guns at the cabin, but held his fire.

"Last chance, whoever you are."

A young woman dressed in a black and yellow costume appeared suddenly silhouetted in the window. She had her hands in the air and was gesturing frantically.

"Don't shoot! I'm on your side!"

Carver regarded her. He didn't recognize the costume, but then he didn't know all the UK super humans by sight.

"Who are you?"

"Argent... and please stop shouting! You're really loud!"

"Sorry..." Carver switched off the suit's amp. "I mean, sorry. Force of habit. Argent?"

"Yes. I'm a... well, a super hero - like you! Could you stop pointing that gun at me, please?"

Carver laughed, but lowered his arm. "Am I interrupting you at work?"

"No - I'm really glad you're here. I'm uh, well, I'm a bit new to all of this." Argent stuck her head and shoulders out of the window. "I think I saved your life, by the way."

"Did you now? You English are so kind." Bloodhawk surveyed the ship again. "How many terrorists are there?"

"Five plus their leader. He's called Harry. I want him for myself."

"Well, I'll tell you what, I'll clean them out downstairs and you can have Harry when all this is over. Deal?" Carver regarded Argent. Why was she staring at him like that?

"Something wrong?" He turned round in the direction of her gaze and saw Atom Man hovering above the sinking deck.

"To all things there comes an end!" screamed Atom Man. "To all things an end!" His atomic blast hit Bloodhawk, knocking him out of the air, and into the sea. Elenor screamed.

"Well done my beamish girl. And hast thou slain the Jabberwocky?" Atom Man hovered before her. "Come - I have so much still to show you..."

Argent hit Atom Man with the full strength of her sonic scream. As the figure fell, she hit him with a second sonic strike, but this time she felt her voice break. Atom Man hit the deck hard and shuddered. Elenor croaked, aware now that she had over-exerted her powers in too short a time. She jumped from the open window and clicked her bracelets together, gliding to the deck below. There was no sign of Bloodhawk and Atom Man was already recovering. Elenor pulled the service pistol from her belt and snapped the safety catch back. From close range she emptied the pistol into Atom Man's body and flung it away over the side of the ship. But Atom Man was still moving. Blood pooled beneath his body, but he was still moving! She dared to examine his body closely and saw the wounds begin to knit themselves back together. From this close she could see that, although the wounds were healing swiftly, they were leaving behind scar tissue. She shuddered to think what Atom Man's body must look like by now underneath his costume. He had been fighting crime for, what - six or seven years? By now he must be grotesque... Elenor recalled how Atom Man had never removed his mask. She had thought it was to preserve his secret identity. But now...

"So young and so untender..." said Atom Man as he began to lift himself slowly. "Oh, how sharper than a serpent's tooth it is to have a thankless child..."

Argent found herself running down the hatchway stairs at full speed. Her feet touched the ground and splashed into four inches of water. She glanced back up onto the deck. Atom Man glared at her from behind his smooth plastic mask. "Oh, Elenor... I will do such things to you... what they are yet I know not, but they shall be..."

Elenor didn't hear the rest as she was running, her feet splashing, through the corridor, past the cabins, and into the main hold.

An arm seized her from behind. Argent kicked back and swung her elbow up, breaking someone's nose. A Bloodhawk terrorist stumbled back, clutching his face. Elenor turned and saw a second Bloodhawk aiming a gun in her direction. She dived for the floor and rolled as two pistol shots cracked above her head. Elenor lay behind a crate and pulled a flash-bang from her belt. Quickly she pulled the plastic catch and threw it over the front of the crate. There was a flash, there was a bang, and there was a scream.

Argent emerged quickly from hiding and ran towards the flailing figure, partially concealed by thick black smoke. She hit him, once, twice, three times, until he dropped. A sound from behind warned her of another assailant.

"This is ridiculous!" shouted Harry through the thick plumes of smoke. He ran at Elenor with the boat hook in his hand. Elenor pulled the steel baton from her calf-sheath and threw it with sudden, surprising accuracy. It hit the fingers of Harry's right hand. There was a crunch of bone as the baton bounced off somewhere inside the hull. Harry dropped his boat hook. "Fuck!" He shook his right hand in the air. "You've broken one of my fingers!"

Elenor stepped forward. "Isn't that a shame... you bastard!"

Atom Man stood poised for a moment above the open hatchway. He imagined Elenor, confined to her room for several weeks, with suitable punishments to reward her disrespect. First he would...

"Care to try that a second time?" Bloodhawk rose from the ocean floor, seawater dripping from his scorched armour. His weapon systems locked onto the black and silver super hero before him. And then he opened up with the chain guns. His on-board suit systems were reading a 69% efficiency factor following the Atomic blasts, but at close range that was all he needed. The chain guns ripped into Atom Man's body, blowing chunks of rotting meat off his arms, legs, and chest. The steady roar of the machine guns threw Atom Man back until this time it was he who fell overboard. Carver shut down his guns and glanced about the deck. "Argent?"

Down below, Elenor could hear Bloodhawk's amplified voice. She smiled, but she wasn't going to miss this opportunity for the world. She ran at Harry, who defended himself with his healthy left arm. Elenor kicked sharply at his shins and watched him stumble backwards. She followed up with several snap punches to Harry's head and arms. Harry stumbled and fell to his knees.

"Where are all your funny anecdotes about life now then, huh? Don't you want to tell me what's the best wine to buy? Don't you want to say something sarcastic about unarmed waiters? Just before you shoot them! Don't you want to grope my tits?" She kicked him in the ribs. With his right hand injured, Harry was finding it difficult to fight back. "Come on - why don't you tell me how stupid my costume looks?"

"It looks very stupid," said Carl as he pointed his gun at Argent. "Leave him alone and step well away."

Elenor turned round and saw Carl standing five yards away with a machine pistol in his hand. The water level was now fifteen inches deep.

"I'm going to shoot you, you know. It's just a question of where." Carl leveled the gun at Elenor's midriff. "Any last words?"

"Put the gun down, Carl." Harry lifted himself painfully from the ground. He was soaking wet and badly hurt. "We're not going to shoot her."

"What?" Carl kept his gun trained on Argent.

"Carl, it's over. We've lost. The girl's got guts. I'll give her that." The ship suddenly lurched dramatically. Harry, Elenor, and Carl all fell into the water. Carl was the first one back on his feet.

Bloodhawk appeared in the doorway to the hold. He regarded the two standing terrorists.

"Well, well," Harry scratched his head with his good hand. "The big cheese himself. How's life?"

"It's over. I'm taking you in."

Carver waded into the hull. Carl looked at the armored suit, the on board rockets and the chain guns, and dropped his machine pistol into the water. "Smart move," remarked Carver.

Harry reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a Bloodhawk badge. "See this?" He held it aloft, staggering slightly as the ship continued to tilt alarmingly. "This was passed down to me by my father. I think you know what I'm talking about when I say it's the most precious thing I own."

"If you think you're going to form some sort of bond with me because our Fathers knew each other, think again." Carver helped Elenor to her feet.

"Ha!" Harry laughed to himself. "No, nothing like that. I just want you to know that I'm not just some punk who stole your name. Things just... kinda went wrong somewhere..." He pinned the Bloodhawk badge onto the lapel of his jacket. "Here we are, officer." Harry put his hands in the air. "I guess you'd better take us in."

Bloodhawk lifted one of the fallen terrorists. Argent supervised Carl as he lifted the other man across his shoulders. Harry followed them out, cradling his injured right hand.

By the time the group reached the main deck the hold was rapidly filling up with water.

"So, super lady," Harry addressed Argent. "I take it we're not leaving anyone behind. Liam should still be in the cabin. That leaves Marco hiding somewhere. Let's give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he's swimming for dear life by now."

"You seem very concerned about your men," said Elenor.

"Yeah. Does that surprise you? The bad guy cares about his men. Sort of breaks the cliché, doesn't it?" Harry stared at the rapidly encroaching ocean. "These men would follow me to Hell and back. Money doesn't buy that sort of loyalty."

"You don't deserve it," added Elenor.

"You're right. I don't."

Bloodhawk pointed to one of the lifeboats. "Get in." The fallen men were loaded in first, followed by Harry, Carl, and Elenor. Carver hovered and flew toward the cabin where Liam lay.

But before he was halfway across the deck, the sea gave up its dead. Atom Man rose silently into the air, mimicking Bloodhawk's return.

"Care to try that a second time?" He laughed. "Care to try that a second time! Care to try that a second time!" He flew at Bloodhawk. Carver turned in mid air and met Atom Man head to head. Atomic energy flared around Atom Man's body as he wrestled with Carver's titanium suit. Bloodhawk upped the power output to his exo-skeleton and tried to push the crazed super hero away. Together they slowly ascended into the sky, wrestling and punching each other. Super flesh met super steel as the sky grew darker around them.

Elenor's hand was on the launch mechanism of the lifeboat. She stared up at the battle raging above her head. "This is so big..." she whispered. "I'm no match for this sort of thing."

"Hey, Argent girl," Harry tapped her on the shoulder. "Sorry to, like, interrupt your train of thought, but what about Liam? Are you going to leave him to die?"

Elenor glanced up at the cabin. The surface deck was now mostly submerged below the water line - the ship only had a few minutes left before it would sink beneath the waves.

"Are you a super hero or aren't you? It's make your mind up time," said Harry.

"You'll escape..." said Elenor.

"And leave Liam behind? No... as you said, I care about my men."

Elenor jumped out of the lifeboat and ran across the sunken deck toward the cabin. As she neared the ladder, she heard the release mechanism go on the lifeboat. She turned to see the lifeboat drifting out to sea.

"Sorry!" shouted Harry to the astonished Argent. "What can I say?" He shrugged his shoulders. "I'm a bad guy. But I know you'll do your best to save Liam. Bye!"

Elenor ran and jumped/climbed up the ladder rungs until she was inside the control cabin. Liam lay on the floor, still unconscious, but Marco's body had disappeared. The shell of the surface to air missile launcher lay nearby. Elenor ran toward the crate and found a second missile inside it. Quickly, following the instructions printed on the inside of the lid, she loaded the second missile into the launcher. Then, lifting the heavy weapon on to her shoulder, she ran to the broken windows. Above the ship the fight continued to rage.

Atom Man pounded Bloodhawk and sent him reeling. Bloodhawk opened fire with his chain guns and pushed Atom Man away. Elenor could see that Bloodhawk wanted to use one of his rockets, but he was too close to Atom Man to do so.

"Bloodhawk!" Elenor screamed as loud as she could. "Bloodhawk! Fly away! Fly away!"

Carver looked down as he spun around, atomic energy flaring and exploding around him. He saw Argent climb out through the window, onto the roof of the cabin. She was holding something...

"Bloodhawk! Please!"

Bloodhawk's on board display showed his armor was down to 45% efficiency. Atom Man was risking some form of melt down - he was losing control of his power, letting it rage across the empty sky. Blast screens dropped in front of Carver's eyes - an automatic defense mechanism against the intense level of light. The heat being generated by Atom Man was climbing off the scale of his sensors. The heat...

Carver recognized what Argent was holding. He cut all telekinetic lift from his body and dropped like a stone, suddenly plummeting towards the sea. Atom Man hung in the air, caught by surprise.

Down below, on the roof of the rapidly sinking ship, Elenor focused Atom Man in her sights and fired. The surface to air missile streaked up into the air, locking onto the biggest heat signal it could see.

Perhaps Atom Man saw it coming - perhaps he did not.

When the explosion cleared, there was nothing left in the air, save smoke and burning ash.

Elenor knelt on the shifting roof, aghast.

Bloodhawk telekinetically stopped his body from falling fifteen feet above sea level. He was aware of an explosion high above his head. It was over.

SUIT SYSTEMS: 37% WARNING! read his head up display. Bloodhawk glided onto the rooftop beside Argent.

"Not bad," he remarked as the blast shields in front of his eyes retracted. "Not bad at all."

Argent suddenly hugged him. "I did it!" she shouted. "I did it!" She felt the ship tilt some more.

"One moment..." Bloodhawk pried Elenor's arms from his waist and levitated down into the cabin. Cold seawater was sloshing around Liam's body. Carver hoisted the fallen Bloodhawk onto his shoulder and levitated back up onto the roof.

SUIT SYSTEMS: 36% WARNING!

"Um..." Elenor looked around. "What now?" The first wave lapped at her feet.

Bloodhawk looked out to sea. In the distance a lifeboat was disappearing on the horizon. He thought he saw a figure cracking open a bottle of wine and toasting him.

SUIT SYSTEMS: 35% WARNING!

"Now..." Carver sighed with regret. Unfinished business... "Now I get you two to the shore before the energy cells in my suit give out. I think Atom Man must have ruptured something."

"Is it expensive?" Asked Elenor. "I mean, sorry - that's a stupid question - of course it's expensive..."

SUIT SYSTEMS: 34% WARNING!

Bloodhawk lifted Liam in one hand and cradled his other arm so that Elenor could sit in it. Elenor wrapped her arms around his neck and held on for dear life. Carver lifted off, just as the ship finally disappeared beneath the waves. Turning round, he began to head for the shore.

Three days later in Brighton - The Globe Restaurant

"The steak tastes lovely." Elenor cut another slice and placed it in her mouth. "I don't normally eat much red meat but, well, I guess we're celebrating."

"That we are." Carver dabbed the side of his mouth with a napkin. "And I don't often drink wine. To Argent." He raised his wineglass. Elenor smiled and clinked her glass against his.

"So then," Carver sat back in his chair and left his food for the time being. "Is this the start of something good, or just an interesting experience to tell your grand-children about in years to come?"

Elenor laughed. "I got lucky. I couldn't do that again."

Carver raised an eyebrow. "You don't take out several terrorists and a super hero through luck. You've got the gift."

"The gift?"

"That something which makes you good at what you do. It would be a shame to throw it away. Especially since your country doesn't have many heroes."

"We don't have many villains either."

"Well... I think that's going to change. Nothing I can put my finger on - just a gut feeling. But seriously - you did well. For a first attempt - you did well. I imagine you could be quite a hell raiser in a year's time."

"I don't know..." Elenor sipped some more wine. "I'd feel really self conscious, and I've got my job and everything."

"Give it some thought - I mean it. And if you need some advice, or help, well, I've been doing this for a long time. Call me."

Elenor laughed again. "I imagine your leggy girlfriend would love that."

"Kory isn't jealous of me, and I'm not jealous of Kory. We've got a good relationship."

"I'm sorry - I didn't mean..."

Bloodhawk waved his hand. "Of course not - don't worry."

"So, um, what next for you, Bloodhawk?"

"Rio."

"Oh. Well, um, have a nice time."

Carver laughed. "You English... sometimes I love you..." He carried on laughing for a good minute and a half.

Neither Elenor nor Carver spoke for a while.

"It was actually almost fun toward the end. Can I say that?" asked Elenor.

"Of course you can. Does that mean you'll think about it?"

"Maybe." Elenor refilled both their glasses. "But I tell you one thing - if I do decide to do this again, I'm getting a new costume. Something that doesn't make me look like a lap dancer!"

March 2001 - The Channel Tunnel Station, Waterloo, London

A cold wet day in March. The train arrives from France, disgorging its passengers as it does several times a day. Some of the passengers are returning to the UK; some are visiting on business or for pleasure. And some have darker motives in mind. Rachel Parr disembarks from the train like any other tourist. She stands, gathering her two battered suitcases and her hand bag, and smiles.

Twenty-four hours later she walks along the river Thames, taking in the sights and sounds of London. She turns up the collar of her coat against the cold wind and, seeing a post box, drops a card through the slot and walks away, thinking of Amy.

Dear Amy,

London is everything they say it is. How can a city be beautiful and ugly at the same time? I saw my first UK super hero in action today. They call her Argent and she can glide off rooftops and stop articulated lorries with a single scream. She wears a thick leather jacket, which is a very sensible idea for fighting, but her hair is too long. Once during the fight one of the criminals seized her by the hair and nearly succeeded in stabbing her. I've made a note in my book to have my hair cropped short when I begin my new life as London's first super villain. Oh, Amy, I have so much still to learn and prepare, but it's going to be so much fun...! I think I'm going to kill so many people...

I'm going to be so very, very clever!

With love always

Your Rachel.