Post by cross on Jan 6, 2015 17:05:23 GMT -5
Ultimate Catman #5
God Complex Part 2
"We have a flamethrower right?" Thomas sped through the side streets of The Hub making his way towards the Rail District for the second time in one day.
Ambush Bug cleared his throat. "No. That's not something we have just lying around."
"Really? I figured you would have whipped one up and been waiting for a good time to use it." Thomas slowed down and pulled into a cramped alley putting the Siberian in park.
"You may want to start working on something quick. I'm not actually sure what my plan is other than punching him in the face really freaking hard until he stops moving." Thomas sheathed his batons on his back and closed the Siberian's door. "I'm about a block away. I've exited the Siberian and am moving on foot the rest of the way."
Cayce ripped the headset away from Ambush Bug. "Hey! I was using that!"
"Catman this is William. What is the plan if you cant physically beat the guy?" Cayce pushed Ambush Bug away from the computer.
"We can cross that bridge when we get to it." Catman ducked behind a dumpster feeling the temperature drop suddenly.
"We are at the bridge right fucking now Blake! You are walking into this blind and it's going to kill you!" William clenched his fist so hard that it was beginning to hurt.
"The temperature dropped a good thirty degrees here guys. I'm heading in now." Catman ignored Williams question and pushed forward into the newly forming snowfall.
"GOD DAMN IT!" Cayce slammed his fist into the table shaking the whole computer set up. "Irwin, give me your keys. He's not going to do this alone." Schwab stood up from his chair.
"I'm not letting you do this alone either." Schwab stretched his back.
"I never said I was. You have the teleport power not me. I fully intend to exploit you and that power in this fight." Cayce turned and gave Schwab a matter of fact look. Schwab only nodded.
"If we are doing this then we need to get you a code name. If we keep saying Cayce somebody is going to catch on." Irwin grabbed a ski mask and continued looking around the garage for something else to conceal his identity.
"I was just going to go by Guardian or something like that." Cayce grabbed a duffle bag of equipment and moved for the exit.
"I like that name." Kitrina in a hushed voice startled Schwab with her comment.
"Guardian it is." William smiled.
***
Catman could barely see a foot in front of himself. The blizzard had come out of nowhere and was blowing in every direction. He found a brick wall and began tracing it to a door. He entered and had to force the door to close again behind him. "God damn! Hey Ambush. Where is the storms point of origin?"
Nothing from the radio responded. "Ambush-Bug, can you hear me?" He tapped on his radio built into his cowl.
"Thomas, this is Kitrina. Irwin isn't here." Thomas looked at the snow outside puzzled.
"Okay. So where is he then?" Thomas listened intently.
"Cayce took him to help you. I think I'm in trouble for telling you." Thomas backed away from the quickly icing over door.
"You're not in trouble. I need you to look on a weather site and find out where the storms center is for Hub City, okay?" Kitrina quickly grabbed the keyboard and began searching for the source.
"The website is saying that the storm is over the Rail District in Hub City and it's not moving at all." Kitrina searched another news website trying to find a video feed of the storm.
"I know where the storm is Kitrina but I need to know-" Before he could finish his sentence, a blast of ice exploded the door off of its frame. The form of moving ice walked through he wreckage staring at Thomas.
"Hello Kitty." Icicle raised his hand and liquid ice exploded from it towards Thomas. Catman leaped into the air landing both feet firmly onto the corridor wall. He back flipped off of the wall as it is covered in the blue ice. He lands in a crouched position and rolls forwards as fast as he can trying to avoid the blasts. He timed the roll perfectly. The Icicles wide open as Catman takes his shot.
CRACK!
Every bone in Catman's clenched left fist breaks with the swift uppercut. He dropped to one knee in front of the Icicle in pain. "FUCK! My fucking hand just broke!" Catman looked up to see Icicle unmoved form the attack.
THUNK!
Icicle kicked Catman right in the chest. The kick connects and starts to freeze the front of Catman's suit. Thomas flew back from the kick and smashed against the tiled flooring. He could barely get a breath in before Icicle was on him again. He grabbed onto the back of Catman's neck freezing the touched spot. With what seemed like no effort, Thomas was flying through the air and sliding out into the snow from the building. His fist throbbed from the hit and he could feel his body temperature dropping. "Ki-Kitrina? I need you to-"
SLAM!
Catman was hunched over and gasping for air suddenly. Icicle dropped his leg from the left side of Catman's now shattered ribcage. Icicle began to laugh.
"Heh ha ha. This is the mighty cape that caught me and thought it was just a game to put me in jail? I was actually afraid of you when I was running from you. Now you're sitting here being slowly frozen to death while I beat the hell out of you." Icicle formed what would be considered a smirk if he wasn't covered in living ice.
THOKK!
In a flash, a large chunk of ice fell from Icicle's face and shattered on the ground. He fell with it. Catman stood up after the hit holding onto the baton as tightly as he could. "You talk too much dumbass." He rolled over the body and took a step back shocked.
"Cameron Mahkent? That's who you are? I have been trying to figure out why you kept telling me to meet you here and kept referencing this morning." Cameron's face began to freeze over again as his eyes opened. "Shit. Here we go. Kitrina, I need you to call Cayce and tell him that Icicle is Cameron Mahkent!"
Kitrina looked into the computer screen confused. "Icicle is Cameron?"
"JUST CALL THEM!" Catman slammed his batons into Icicle repeatedly trying to break the ice again and get to the human form of Cameron but it was regenerating faster than he could hit. As he went for another wide swing, Icicle threw his hands up and blasted him square in the chest with ice. He was lifted off of his feet as the ice encased his torso and launched him into the air backwards. It shattered as he hit the ground. Thomas tried to stand back up but his leg had given out and he dropped back to his knees. He could hear the slow steps of Icicle as he approached. He came into view holding what looked like a javelin made of ice. The ice covered humanoid reared back for the final blow.
BAMF!
Ambush-Bug stood in front of Icicle with a bandanna around the lower half of his face. He reached out and touched the ice covered chest of the monster.
BAMF!
Suddenly they both were miles above the ground and free falling. Ambush-Bug pushed away from Icicle. "Lets see if you can fly."
BAMF!
Ambush-Bug appeared on the ground safely and watched as William finished loading Catman into the back seat of the car. "HURRY UP AMBUSH! WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE!" Cayce got into the drivers seat and put the car into drive. Irwin sprinted and slid into the front seat and the car was off.
Icicle raised his hands in mid air and began to fire ice from his hands and feet. His decent slowed and he started to float gracefully sending more ice falling from his feet and hands to the ground. He looked down and smiled at his new found use of power. He turned his body and began to fly towards the heart of the city.
***
"Gimme his cowl!" William was driving like a madman through the downtown streets of the Hub. Irwin removed the Catman cowl from Blake's head and handed it to the panicked driver.
"Kitrina! I need your help please answer me!" After a split second that in Cayce's mind felt like hours, Kitrina answered.
"Guardian this is Kitrina. What's wrong?" Kitrina began to breathe faster from the knot building in her stomach.
"I need you to find me the fastest route to a female doctor named Amina Franklin!" Cayce gripped the steering wheel so hard his knuckles had turned a bright white color from little blood circulation. The young woman immediately went to work searching the name and what hospital she was employed at.
"Guardian, Wh-what's happened to Catman?" She continued her search for the doctor but the knot in her stomach continued growing. "Is he okay?"
William looked over to Irwin and back to the road. "He's fine. He took a beating from Icicle but I think he will live."
"FOUND HER! She is about six blocks away from your current position at Hub City Medical Center. Keep north on the road you're on and you will get to the hospital." Kitrina let a big smile form on her face and spun around in the computer chair.
***
The front door to the bank exploded open followed by Ice forming all around the frame. Icicle slowly made his way into the same bank he had robbed not seven hours before. "STOP!"
BLAM!
The shotgun blast fired into the chest of Icicle not moving him one bit. The frozen creature turned his head to see a frightened security guard holding the still smoking shotgun. "The police have already been called now leave here before-"
The security guard couldn't finish his sentence before the ice swallowed him whole. "No police are coming." Icicle continued on his path to the vault. He placed his hand on the huge door and engulfed it in his ice. After covering it and some of it surrounding wall the ice began to crack. He put his foot to the large door and pushed.
CRACK!
THUD!
The sound rippled through out the bank as the door fell into the vault exposing the vast amount of money no longer safe. Icicle didn't move. He looked around the full vault. "What is it that I'm doing? What will money bring to a god?" Icicle contemplated his own question before turning and leaving the bank. As he stepped out into the daylight he took into the air flying towards the east side apartments of Hub City.
***
She had majored in Meta-Human medical sciences from Metropolis University, the first time the university had ever offered the degree. She thought she had seen more than most people ever would. From car accidents, Killings, all the way to mutations. She had never seen anything like this. "So he's Catman?"
Cayce and Irwin both nodded their heads. "And you're Guardian?" Both men once again nodded their heads. "And you're Ambush-Bug?" By this point Dr. Franklin had crossed her arms and leaned back onto her stool. Both men nodded in agreement.
She took a deep breath and put her hands on her knees. "Why me?"
Cayce cleared his throat. "Doctor, I have been studying you and your work since you graduated. I know that you are one of the only doctors in the nation who specializes in Meta-Human medical practices. My friend here is not in fact a Meta but he has had the holy shit beat out of him by one. What we do has the inherent risk factor. I need someone who has better skills than I have in medicine to come with us on this self destructive journey we are on. I just need three things from you. Help us, Heal us, and keep a secret. Can you do that?"
Dr. Franklin grabbed the broken hand of Thomas and began studying the bruises on it. "Mr. Schwab, I need you to grab another blanket from that closet behind you. This man is going to die of Pneumonia before his injuries kill him." Schwab did as the doctor said.
***
The sign on the top of the building read "Bridgeview Apartments". Cameron Mahkent had lived here for years. He knew every inch of the building like the back of his hand. This was the place he called home. Icicle dropped to the city street from an alarming height. He smashed into the sidewalk crumbling it beneath his frozen form. As walked up the steps to the apartment his Icicle form melted away from him, returning him to his natural, human looking state. The door to his long time home burst open revealing an older looking woman with a look of fear on her face. "I was so worried about you sweetheart!" She wrapped her thin arms around the body of Cameron and led him into the living room. "I have been watching the news about an attack. I thought you may have been in it." She smiled seeing her son in front of her safe.
"Mom. I have something to tell you." Cameron broke free from his mothers embrace and stood up in front of her. She looked at him puzzled. He raised his arms up and the blue, liquid ice began forming around him again. "It's me mom. I'm the guy on the news." Icicle tried to make a smile in his Icicle form but the attempt turned into something horrid and sinister looking. His mother began to back away with a look of disgust on her face.
"I RAISED YOU BETTER THAN THIS!" Her voice had raised into a high pitched squeal. "Damn It Cameron! After everything that we went through with your father, why in the hell would you pull this?" She had gotten to her feet with a look of pure anger in her eyes.
***
Amina finishes wrapping Thomas' ribs with a light bandage. "This isn't going to just heal overnight. You are going to be in pain for at least a few months if you don't relax and take it easy." Cayce and Schwab hold Thomas up with them under his arms for support.
"You know that I'm going to go right back out there right?" Thomas tries to give her a defiant smile like a teenage boy going against his parents rules.
"Then I wont expect to see you back here in anything less than a body bag Mr. Blake." Thomas crooked his eyebrows in shock. "Don't pretend that I'm one of your soldiers here Mr. Blake. I'm helping you because I like what you stand for. I do not however support how you are going about it." The doctor turned and began to go back into her office.
"Thanks...I guess." Thomas and his human crutches turned and made their way into the Siberian.
***
Kitrina sat next to Thomas on the couch watching Irwin and William work on the Catman suit on the floor in front of them. "No one else is coming." Thomas turned his head and gave his full attention to the young girl. "The Hub isn't worth it."
"No one was coming for you when you were with Falcone were they? Then I came." Thomas struggled to get to his feet as Kitrina's eyes welled up with tears. "Alright, once you two are finished meet me downstairs. We need to plan."
Everyone assembled in the garage around the computer battle station. Irwin had taken to calling it the "Battle Station" and everyone just took to calling it the same. "Lets see it. Thomas clutched his ribs in pain from taking a deep breath."
Irwin held up the Catman suit which now looked a bit bulkier. "I present to you all, The insulated Catman suit!" He waved his hand over the padded suit showing it off. "We have given it an extra layer of padding and insulation for helping you against the cold and really against Icicle."
Kitrina spun around in her chair. "FOUND HIM!" William jumped from the loud exclamation. "The police have tracked him to the old Bridgeview Apartment building."
"You know that if we do this everyone will know about us." William handed the suit to Thomas. "There is no more being in hiding after this. Catman is public."
Thomas began to put his Catman attire on. "This city will fall if we don't. I know what is at stake here. It's time that Hub City gets the protection that it deserves. No more hiding."
Schwab jumped out of his chair suddenly. "LOOK! On top of the building." Schwab pointed at the computer screen for everyone to see. "We just found our battle ground."
***
"Cameron, when your father was arrested I lost faith in this place and it's people. I knew that he didn't sell drugs. The police were crooked and were just making some kind of example out of him. When he was killed in prison I then truly lost my faith in everything. You were the only thing I loved that was left. Seeing you like this kills me." His mother looked at the floor with tears running down her face.
"Don't you see it mom? I'm going to be the justice that this city needs. I will rule over this rotten hole and make sure that justice comes to those who have wronged us." Cameron smiles again. "I'm going to change everything."
"STOP!" She screamed at him and lunged into his arms hugging him. "Just sto--"
Icicle hugged his mother. "What?" He received no response. His arms began to grow stiff. Upon pulling away the frozen form of his mother fell to the floor with a crash.
"No. Mom?" Icicle began to raise his voice. "MOM. MOM!"
The window to his apartment building exploded outward into the city street sending what was left of the HCPD running farther back. Icicle flew out of the window and curved upward towards the roof of the building.
"Hello Cameron." Catman and Guardian both stood atop the building waiting for the monster. Icicle landed softly on the roof with a look of astonishment on his face.
"You're still alive? Man, you really are a cat! Nine lives and shit." Icicle raised his hands towards the pair. "Who's your boyfriend?"
"Guardian." William kept the talk simple. No need to make the guy with ice powers mad.
Catman slammed into the side of Guardian knocking him out of the way of an ice blast. "Pay attention." Catman scrambled to his feet and started zig zagging between shots from Icicles fists.
Guardian got to his feet letting Catman distract Icicle. He raised his hand to his ear. "Okay Ambush. Go now!"
A quarter mile away Ambush-Bug stood atop another apartment building watching the battle with binoculars. "Okay. I'm on my way." He put down the binoculars and grabbed an axe. Once he reached the other edge of the building he began to run as fast as he could towards the opposite edge of the building. He reached the drop off and teleported.
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!
He was moving faster and faster towards the battle. Every time he would appear he would teleport again gaining speed.
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!
BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!BAMF!
SCHOKK!
The axe exploded right through the beam holding up the large water tower container for the apartment. Ambush-Bug slid to a stop and spotted his target as the Water tower was falling.
BAMF!
He was right next to Icicle now. Catman stopped dodging attacks and smiled. "Got ya bitch!" Ambush-Bug touched Icicles chest.
BAMF!
Ambush-Bug let go and waved at him as the water container fell right on him crushing him under itself.
BAMF!
The local news helicopter rotated it's course above as it captured the attack on live TV. Guardian grabbed the axe and readied for more. Catman walked up to the wreckage and began pulling broken wood planks out of the pile. After enough wood was cleared the view was open for all. A large mound of ice trapped Cameron in the middle. The frozen form stayed still. "Guys. We uh, we got to get out of here. That copter is coming in for a landing." Ambush-Bug placed his hand on the shoulder of both Guardian and Catman.
BAMF!
***
The Police had made their way to the roof of the Bridgeview Apartments and had cleared the area of reporters. Suddenly another helicopter landed on the roof with them. Out of the helicopter came the largest man any of the policemen had ever seen. "Officers. My name is Josiah Power and I represent the Power Company. I would like to personally thank each and everyone of you fine men for protecting Hub City. I would also like to explain my being here. My company owns the form frozen in that mound of ice and I am here to collect it. I apologize for any inconvenience." The Police officers one by one moved out of the giant's way letting him get a full view of the ice. "Thank you all. Allow me to compensate your precinct and it's loss with a donation of an undisclosed amount of money." Josiah shook the hand of the nearest officer. His hand completely covered the officers hand.
***
Kitrina and Irwin glanced at multiple webpages showing the "Catman vs Icicle" story being covered. Nearly every major news source online had posted a story since the battle. Thomas walked through the door with William coming in too. "Team meeting." Thomas pulled up a stool and slowly sat down squinting his eyes in pain. "What we have done here has been real good. This team has come together and shown the world that Hub City is going to fight back. Now comes the bad part." Kitrina turned off the monitors giving her full attention to Thomas now. "I'm going to go away for a while. I have connections that can help me become a better protector of the Hub. I'm going to go get training and when I am ready I will come back better prepared for this life and this city." William stood up with the rest of the team.
"What about us? Don't be some self righteous asshole and up and leave after what we have accomplished. You're not going to win a fight and then leave." His voice was filled with anger. Kitrina ran over into Thomas' arms hugging him tight.
"I'm not leaving forever. I'm going to come back don't worry. After Icicle, I know that Guardian, Ambush-Bug and Catgirl and defend this city just fine without me." He glanced down at Kitrina and gave her a wink. She gripped him tighter.
***
Behind a large wooden desk sat Police Chief Kristen Kramer. She shuffled through papers trying to sort them after the Icicle fiasco. The door to her office opened slowly and a man wearing a nice suit strolled casually in. "Chief Kramer I presume?"
"That's what it says on the door." She looked at him annoyed by his intrusion.
"My name is Armand Krol and I am the mayor of Hub City." He flashed a smile filled with bright almost blinding white teeth.
Kristen stood up and shook the man's hand. "I know who you are Mayor Krol. I'm very busy protecting this city of yours with a quarter of a normal sized police force. What do you want?"
"Simply put, approval." He sat down in the chair across from her large desk. "I need your approval to put together a task force for this "Vigilante" problem that has just reared it's ugly face in Hub City. We are all over the news now being known as the city with Catman in it. That is something that I will not stand for. I'm being mocked now for not being able to control my city and your HCPD is being mocked for having to rely on costumed vigilantes This shit flies in Gotham but I will not let it go here."
Chief Kramer folded her hands together. "Who all do you have in mind for this task force?"