2.1 Inside the Q-Zone

As Able entered it some distance behind Mouthpiece, the Q-Zone seemed highly overrated. The Q-Zone was famous even outside the Divide for its randomly occurring “wild zones”, areas where reality shattered and the laws of physics had no meaning. Anything could happen in a wild zone. The stories made it seem like the things popped up every few seconds, but Able saw nothing of the sort. He kept his eyes open nonetheless as he focused his metagene detection ability forward.

He could feel several more metahumans in the Q-Zone, but most seemed to be congregated somewhere ahead. As they neared and Mouthpiece slowed down ahead, Able could see the edges of the crowd formed in the Q-Zone’s center. Able scowled. The only thing he liked less than Americans were groups of Americans.

He pushed his revulsion to the side and pushed his way in to the crowd. As he stepped forward he could see a raised dais in the center of the crowd. Mouthpiece joined his compatriots on the dais. Able recognized the Great Question’s commander Conundrum as well as his two dwarfish sidekicks. A woman dressed like an American cowboy hovered a few steps behind Conundrum. Another man, cloaked in a robe covered in druidic runes, stood off to one side.

The crowd cheered their leaders with reckless abandon. Able felt like he had somehow found himself in some B-movie third world country, where the population mindlessly loved their evil leader. Something here wasn’t right; a tingle in his spine reiterated it.

Conundrum listened to a few words whispered in his ear by Mouthpiece. He smiled. Mouthpiece stepped forward and the crowd went quiet to listen to his proclamation.

“The enemy of the people of the Q, the American’s vile agent Mister Midnight, is dead! He fell at my hands only minutes ago. The Great Question takes another victory in the control of our great Divide!”

The crowd cheered with perfect timing.

“No!” A figure leaped from within the cheering crowd. The multicolored rags she wore fell away in mid-air. Beneath it, she wore a white costume that glowed with light as she floated down to the ground on the stage.

“I will avenge my partner’s death. Prepare to die, Mouthpiece.”

The two midgets moved in to protect their leaders, but the man in the druid’s robes stepped forward. “Shock, Awe, hold,” he said to his compatriots.

The midgets dropped back a few steps. The robed man pulled his hood back revealing rows of nappy dreads. “Doctor Dawn, welcome to the Q-Zone. I plead with you; do not throw your life away here today.”

“It’s you that will die today, Antagonist. You and all your kind!”

Antagonist looked around at the members of the Great Question, both on stage and off. “You’re surrounded by hundreds of my men, Dawn. I rule this city while you’re just a pathetic pawn of an inept government. I will give you one more chance, stand down and leave.”

“Never.”

Americans and their showboating, Able thought. If the fool of a woman would have struck from her position in the crowd, Mouthpiece would be dead now. Instead she placed herself in hopeless odds with no chances of victory. Idiot.

Antagonist shook his head. “Great Question, stand down. I will deal with this fool myself.”

Doctor Dawn dove at the Great Question’s leader but Antagonist shot in to the sky above her head. Dawn answered with bolts of concentrated light fired in Antagonist’s direction, but he answered with a raised force field. The lasers ricocheted in to the sky.

Antagonist dropped the field and unleashed his own devastating blast of force that drove Doctor Dawn hard in to the ground. Dawn’s flowing outfit began to glow even brighter. Able shielded his eyes as he felt what came next.

A blinding light filled the courtyard. Able uncovered his eyes as Dawn’s glow faded back to normal levels. She struck out with another series of blasts in Antagonist’s direction. The ruler of the Divide answered with a shield of his own energy.

With a scream, Antagonist unleashed another blast of pure force. Dawn flew back several feet before crashing in to the solid wall to the back of the dais.

Antagonist walked over to Doctor Dawn’s unconscious form and grabbed her by the chin. He took a moment to look at the woman’s face before he turned to Mouthpiece. “She is yours to work with, Mouthpiece. I will expect her ready by this evening’s festivities.”

“Yes, my liege.”

Antagonist turned to the crowd and raised his arms in victory. The crowd cheered.

Savages, Able thought. Americans at their worst. Nevertheless, he was thankful for the display. None of the metahumans here possessed what he needed. As it should be. I would rather die than make allegiance with this body before me.

Able turned and made his way out from within the crowd. He felt one more metahuman presence nearby. Best to check it, then leave this godforsaken hole forever.