Issue
Synopsis:
Issue #1
The Mission: To detain and capture the super villain team known as the Elementals.
The Dossier: The Elementals consist of Bedrock, Blaze, Tempest, and Undertow. Each has an incredible mastery of their respective element and they often create elemental golems to overwhelm their opponents. Bedrock, the obvious leader of this operation, is a brilliant strategist with the ability to create highly technological tools and weaponry. Blaze was a thug who brings a certain level of street smarts to the team. Tempest was an heiress to a fortune built in the airline industry before she threw it all away on crime. Undertow is a vicious killer who brings nothing more to the group than pure savagery.
Reading over the dossier given to him by Crius, Dante looks for an angle to tackle this case. Initially, he is uncertain how well he will fare against a powerful team with an established history of working together. As he flips through the pages, Dante fears this mission might end up being a brutal slugfest and absently lets himself become sidetracked thinking of property damage and loss of civilian life. Suddenly, an interesting little fact in the files catches his eye. There is a mention that Blaze has a twin brother who also has powers and goes by the name of Arson. Reading further, the file details that the two are bitter rivals. Dante tries to focus in on this tidbit of information. He knows he has found his angle, now he just needs to figure out how to work it.
Attaining Arson’s current address and his police record, Dante heads out of the office and in towards the slums where apparently Arson has made his new home. Walking into the ratty old apartment building, Dante makes his way up the stairs. As he walks up several flights he ignores the looks of the junkies and street urchin, simply walking around or over them. The inhabitants of this building would normally be a threat to a clean-cut stranger, but the long leather trench coat and the skull on his face seems to deter even the most determined thug.
As a simple series of knocks rap against his shoddy front door, Chris VanDuul quickly leaps from his lounging position on the couch and grabs the remote off the coffee table, killing the music pouring from his expensive entertainment center. Surprised – since no one should know that he’s here – and fighting the urge to run, he slowly heads towards the door. The knocking at the door has started up again, giving Chris a good idea of where his guest is standing on the other side. For a moment, he thinks about using his powers to send a fiery blast right through the door. He discards it immediately, as he gave up his Arson persona because when he thought like that it always ended with him getting his face smashed in.
Dante, tired of waiting and fearing that his quarry may not be home, decides that he may have to find another way in. Remembering a fire escape by the side of the building, he turns to head back down the way he came. After taking only two steps, he hears the click of the lock behind him. Dante stops in his tracks and turns around.
Chris, opening the door far enough to let the safety chain lose all slack, sees the back of the groomed head in front of him. Before he has time to wonder why this person has a bandanna tied around his face, he sees the front of the man as he turns – the painted skull staring back at him. Panicking, Chris slams the door shut and puts his back to the door. Looking for a place to run, he figures he can reach the fire escape from his window. Just as he bolts towards his escape, Dante crashes through the door with amazing speed and tackles him mid-air as he leaps over his couch towards freedom. With a loud thud they both hit the floor and Chris finds himself pinned by the weight of his masked assailant.
With all the charm of a schoolyard bully who grew up to be a police interrogator, Dante drills Arson about his twin brother Blaze. After the direct approach seems to fail, he changes tactics and lets Chris sit on the couch. Dante introduces himself and the conversation turns more casual as Chris becomes slightly comfortable with the realization that this strange man truly isn’t after him.
The idea of ratting out his brother – whom he has hated with a passion for many, many years – is incredibly appealing to him. Unfortunately, he has not had contact with Blaze or the rest of the Elementals for quite some time. They parted ways in a rather violent end when Arson thought he had finally killed his brother and disguised himself as Blaze, joining the Elementals. Of course, his anarchist ways and disrespect of authority quickly revealed his true identity. Much to his surprise, the Elementals were incredibly loyal to his brother. After beating Chris to a pulp and leaving him for dead, they found Blaze and nursed him back to health.
Now this Dante fellow was in his living room and his curiosity was definitely piqued. What had Blaze done and how deep as he in this time?
It only takes Dante a few minutes of speaking to the former criminal to realize the files didn’t do justice to the animosity that exists between the two siblings. Understanding that Chris would be the last person to know the whereabouts of his brother, Dante decides not to spend any more time researching a dead lead. Instead, he offers Chris a simple opportunity – to help him capture Blaze.
Chris pauses for a moment, as if letting the words sink in. The memory of his last encounter was too strong, too painful. He looks up at the skull-faced man and soundlessly shakes his head. He watches Dante turn to leave, without speaking a word, and remembers something that might help him after all. Uncertain what information the hero(?) may be able to discern from “It”, Chris calls him over and leads him back into his bedroom and opens the closet. He pushes the clothes hangers squeakily along the metal support rod until the very back of the closet is exposed. “It” hangs from the last hanger, looking gaudily out of place amidst the t-shirts and jeans that were still swaying nearby. Dante recognizes “It” as a golden opportunity.
As Dante reaches into the closet and pulls out the villainous outfit that once belonged to Blaze, his plan formulates instantly. He notes that the costume was obviously cared for, as the minor tears and battle damage have been meticulously tended to. Choosing his words very carefully, Dante mentions to Chris that he could have his record wiped clean for any participation leading to the arrest of Blaze. If things go the right way, Arson may even be recognized as a hero. Noticing his quarry has taken the bait, Dante reels him in. He tells Chris that after this is all over there could be a spot for him in a hero team based in Chicago. The idea of not only wiping away the anger and stupidity of his violent youth, but also the thrill and excitement of fearlessly using his powers again proved to be more than enough to sway his opinion. Chris agrees to help and the two sit down to plan their mission.
The plan is simple enough and with the resources of the Agency they are able to put it into motion that next night. As he heads to his ambush point, Dante reviews the plan in his head. They turned an empty stand-alone storefront building into a fake jewelry store. At 10:22 PM Arson will arrive at the destination dressed as Blaze and proceed to use his powers to rob and utterly destroy the store in a flamboyantly fiery fashion. Dante has made arrangements for a single television station to get an anonymous tip and give live coverage as the event is unfolding. He’s hoping this defiant act by Arson will bring the Elementals down upon him with a vengeance – allowing Dante to confront and detain the team in one swift stroke.
Dante smiles from his surveillance van as Arson arrives dressed as Blaze. The news crew appears shortly thereafter and manages to get footage of “Blaze” bursting down the front door with a barrage of flames. They maneuver around to get shots of him inside looting the jewelry and setting fire to the display cabinets – all of which they are broadcasting live. At that very moment, halfway across town, Undertow knocks on the door of Bedrock’s lab. As the leader of the Elementals opens the door, Undertow turns and points in the direction of the television. Bedrock furrows his brow at the sight and gets the team together to deal with this insolence once and for all.
As Arson climbs to the top of the building, creating a pyrotechnics display that special effects masters only wish they could duplicate, a strange craft suddenly appears in the middle of the street. The craft is sleek and somewhat alien. A door opens from the side of the ship, and the four Elementals emerge. Immediately Blaze creates a fiery tiger elemental and sends it rushing after his twin. Tempest takes to the air as Bedrock and Undertow begin to circle the building in opposite ways.
Dante sees his opportunity and quickly goes after Undertow, who is the nearest to him and currently out of sight from his teammates. Feeding on all the fury of the combined Elementals (although most of the rage is coming from the hatred shared between the twins), Dante is able to take down Undertow in one massive blow! Continuing to circle around the back of the building, Dante gets a bead on Tempest - who is seemingly occupying Arson until Blaze can reach the top of the building. Dante draws his gun and waits a moment, making certain Blaze has time to reach Arson before he evens the odds. Once he is certain Arson and Blaze have locked up, he takes his shot at Tempest – firing all the animosity between the brothers at her in the form of a monstrous energy blast. Tempest has no time to react as the shot catches her by surprise, plucking her from the air. Dante rushes towards the spot she’s headed to crash and just before she hits the ground he connects with an incredible right cross, changing her trajectory altogether. Tempest flies into the side of a dumpster, unconscious before she even hits it.
The quick defeat of Tempest does not escape the keen eye of Bedrock, who is already creating two earthen golems to assist him in destroying his unknown assailant. As Dante cautiously rounds the corner, he finds himself ambushed. Both golems pound on him with rock-hard fists, trying to pummel the life from him. Bedrock slowly approaches, regarding this new variable carefully. He vaguely remembers him from the recent “Auction” fiasco and if rumors were to be believed, he was an unstoppable force.
Bedrock can’t help but to smile at the sight of the skull-faced man quickly grabbing the wrist of one of his golems – swinging it full force into the other and knocking them both back dozens of feet. The Elementals were always feared in the superhuman community and Bedrock knew the defeat of this “Hero” would solidify their status beyond a shadow of a doubt. Bedrock initiates conversation with his opponent to learn the identity of this new threat that has put fear into the hearts of his fellow villains.
Dante maneuvers around Bedrock and away from the slowly reforming golems as he answers the questions asked of him in a confident yet cautious manner. Looking up to see that Arson and Blaze are still tearing at each other’s throats, Dante lunges at his rocky opponent. His uppercut connects with a solid thud, stinging his fist and causing Bedrock to falter back. Both combatants realize they are fairly evenly matched as they begin to exchange blows. The more frustrated Bedrock becomes with his opponent, the stronger Dante seems to get and blows that he barely felt before are beginning to take their toll.
Dante is able to keep the pressure on Bedrock while fending off his mindless earth elementals. He can feel himself whittling down his opponent, but it isn’t fast enough! Oblivious to the news crew and frantic to end this mission (with victory SO close), Dante dodges away from one of Bedrock’s blows and rolls back into a crouching position with his gun drawn. Bedrock arches an eyebrow, uncertain why he would change his tactics when they both knew he was winning the brawl. Bedrock takes a moment to catch his breath, feeling his second wind coming on. Dante points the gun upwards and instantly Bedrock realizes his folly.
His shot strikes Blaze hard in the back, allowing Arson to finish him in a single shot. Dante quickly dives out of the way as Bedrock’s charge comes too late. Immediately, fiery elementals engage with the earthen golems as Arson hurls flames at the leader of the villainous group.
Bedrock is no fool. He has been defeated before and he can easily recognize a losing battle. His hopes of one of his teammates reviving and turning the tide of the fight were dashed now. He knew what he had to do. The teleportation technology interwoven into each of their suits would instantly send them all safely home, but he would have to activate the teleportation beacon within the ship. He was well aware that his attackers would never allow him to get close enough to the ship to do what needed to be done.
As Dante runs after the besieged Bedrock, obstacles began to appear in his path. The sidewalks became cement walls and the ground begins to crack, creating large chasms. Dante knows that even with these obstacles, he could catch Bedrock before he got back to his ship. That’s when he began to notice the earth elemental being formed from beneath the street – right next to the craft. Fearing Bedrock might use the elemental to control the ship’s weapon systems, Dante speeds up his chase. Leaping fearlessly across a minor chasm, Dante not only manages to catch up with Bedrock, but also tackles him to the ground.
Feeling his sore body hit the hard concrete, Bedrock focuses all his energy into controlling the golem. If it could get inside the ship and activate the teleportation sequence, he knew everything would be okay. It was only in this moment of clarity did he realize the full scope of this evenings events and it made everything all the more urgent. He MUST escape. He is so determined he almost doesn’t feel the first blow to the back of his head. Then comes the second hit, which he most certainly feels. Strange colored spots blot his vision as he witnesses the golem disappear into the ship. He tells himself to hold on for just a few more seconds. It is the last thing he can remember.
Three hits. That’s all it takes for Dante to knock the behemoth unconscious. Feeding off Bedrock’s fear and desperation made Dante so much stronger. Bedrock was already weak from the fight. Three hard slams to the back of the skull had finished him off. Dante’s team quickly moves in and detains the craft, confirming that the golem inside is nothing but a mound of dirt. The news cameras continue to roll as the police finally move in. Dante was not even aware the police had arrived. His men are covering his tracks with the local authorities… everything went exactly as planned.
Dante meets Arson at the foot of the building, now just a brick skeleton of the structure it once was. Dante pats him on the back as they both head to the surveillance van, to be whisked away back to the safety and quiet of the Agency’s office.
Crius looks up from his desk, having heard Dante’s detail of the evening’s events. Dante also mentions Arson’s bravery and willingness to work with the Agency. After all, Dante did have to make good on his promise to Chris. Crius decides that Arson would be a valuable asset to the superhero team he has formed in Chicago. He asks Chris if he would like to change his name and his image to join the Untouchables. Chris quickly agrees, his eagerness surprising everyone – including himself. As the guards arrive to escort Chris to Chicago, Dante offers to go as well, but Crius tells him no. Dante is needed here.