Sandi wasn’t sure what Quinn had been up to, but she
focused on the Oakwood map. The Story Oak was in the middle of town and Oscorp
had no offices nearby. “Just that place on the east side,” she murmured.
“What’s that?” Daria asked.
“Just noting where Oscorp is present,” Sandi responded.
“The only one we’re aware of,” Daria pointed out.
“I agree.”
Back at the hospital, Officer Vale finished interviewing
Ninja Talon. “Thanks for letting me know,” Vale said. “Although there is stuff
you held out on.”
“As I said, that’s up to Spidey.”
“And I see you are good friends.”
“We help each other with what we do,” Ninja Talon said.
“I suspect more.”
“But that’s all I’m saying,” Ninja Talon said as she
left.
She headed back to the room where Professor Alder had
been again placed for observation, where she found him and the silent vigilante
playing a game of Go Fish.
“I’ve been thinking,” the Professor said.
“What about?” Ninja Talon said.
“There is no one at the mound right now. Oscorp could
make a move and try to locate what they are looking for without regard for
keeping the site intact,” the professor said.
“I could go out there and check,” Ninja Talon suggested.
“That would be a good idea,” the Professor said.
“I’ll do it,” Ninja Talon said before sending a text to
SpiderGIrl and slipping out of the room.
Quinn read the message from Brittany as she sipped her
latte.
“A message?” Joey asked.
“Yes,” Quinn answered. “Nothing to worry about.”
Sandi looked from the map of Oakwood she had been looking
at to Larissa, who was sitting nearby.
“Maybe we’re, like looking at this wrong,” she said.
“What do you mean?” Larissa asked.
“Maybe it’s not Oakwood itself, but in th forest. That mound where Quinn and Joey were,”
Sandi said.
“Good point,” Daria said. “Do you have a map of the
forest?”
“I’m not sure,” Larissa answered. “But we have at least
one of the entire county.”
“That would be better than nothing,” Daria said.
Larissa didn’t take long to find a fairly large map of
Lawndale County. “So, you’re not sure where the mound is?” she asked as she
placed the map on the table.
“Just from Quinn’s description,” Daria said. “That it’s
closer to Oakwood than to Lawndale.” She looked at the map.
As did Sandi. “There,” she said as she pointed to the
spot. “Right next to the State Route.”
“Quinn has always liked the scenic route,” Daria
commented as she had a closer look.
“That makes sense, with the way she sometimes got
distracted,” Sandi commented.
“But It wouldn’t be a good idea to look at it at night,”
Larissa said.
“The Moon is still nearly full,”
Daria pointed out.
“But it has been
a little cloudy,” Larissa said.
“Not too
cloudy,” Sandi said.
“You’re adamant
about this, aren’t you?” Larissa asked rhetorically.
“Yes,” Sandi
answered.
“Some things
can’t wait until morning,” Daria said.
“So, you’re
doing it?” Quinn asked.
Daria nodded.
“In a short while.”
Five minutes
later, Daria and Sandi looked out over Oakwood from the roof.
“It is indeed
much like Lawndale,” Sandi commented.
“Or rather, like
Lawndale before Groundhog Day,” Daria clarified.
“That is one
reason why we’re here isn’t it?” Sandi asked. “To stop something similar from
happening here?”
“That is yet to
be determined,” Daria responded as she looked out towards the east.
Sandi’s hands
glowed purple with her powers. “As I’ll do anything to protect Lawndale, I’ll
do the same for Oakwood,” she declared.
“Let’s get
going,” Daria said as she extended her quarterstaff and thus adopted her
Dafoanairi persona.
Sandi tied her
hair back and then threw off her jersey, showing the Enigma’s purple ensemble
beneath. “Absolutely,” she said as she put on her mask.
Meanwhile, Ninja
Talon approached the mound. The place looked deserted in the moonlight. ‘But
that could change quickly,’ she thought as quickly looked at her watch. 10:40!
It was still early in the night.
Back at the
Story Oak, Quinn headed to the apartment after the café closed for the night.
‘Larissa is suspicious, but not as much as Daria.’ What Daria thought, she
wasn’t sure. ‘I know she doesn’t suspect me as SpiderGirl, but she might
realise that I’m one of the heroes after tonight if I’m not careful,’ she
thought. Then there was Joey. She knew that he would be thinking about it also.
She entered the
apartment to find that Joey was probably already asleep, as the light was out
in the main room. She quietly went over to her room and switched on the light
there, as she knew that she most likely wasn’t getting any sleep. She checked
her phone, and noted that Brittany was already at the mound. ‘If Oscorp is
going to make a move, it’s probably going to be later in the night.’
It was slightly
past eleven when the Enigma and Dafoanairi emerged from the relatively sparse
forest into the clearing around the mound. The fencing around the
archaeological site was a stark contrast to the nature of the forest.
“Do you sense anyone?” Dafoanairi asked the Enigma.
The Enigma closed her eyes briefly. She then looked at
Dafoanairi. “One person. But I don’t think it’s one from Oscorp.”
“Another of us Lawndale vigilantes?”
“I know it’s not Mother.”
“But it could be SpiderGirl,” Dafoanairi pointed out, as
the Enigma considered herself SpiderGirl’s rival.
“I won’t confront her tonight, if it is,” the Enigma
decided.
Ninja Talon heard something and turned. She saw the
Enigma and Dafoanairi approaching her position. “You heard about what happened
earlier too?” she asked.
“Yes,” Dafoanairi said. “Through our contacts.”
“Same here,” Ninja Talon responded.
“But it’s going to be difficult to counter whatever
Oscorp is going to try to do,” Dafoanairi said.
“They probably don’t expect us to be here,” the Enigma
said.
“Just SpiderGirl,” Dafoanairi said.
“And me too. Osborn saw me,” Ninja Talon said.
“What?” Dafoanairi asked.
“He was on a video connection when we rescued the
professor,” Ninja Talon answered.
“He may have seen you and SpiderGirl, but he still
doesn’t know we’re here,” Dafoanairi said. “Besides, I have seen you improvise.
Osborn and his agents can’t predict everything.”
Back at the Story Oak, Quinn couldn’t sleep, and so went
up to the roof. ‘Just as well Larissa is likely at home,’ she thought as she
headed upwards through the deserted theater.
Up on the roof, Oakwood was quieter than it had been
earlier. ‘OK, listen here as I do to Lawndale from home,’ she thought before
changing to SpiderGirl.
The silent vigilante left the hospital after the
professor had fallen asleep. She left by a side entrance, as the OWPD still had
a large presence out the front. She listened as she walked slowly to the park
near the side entrance. It appeared that Oscorp had withdrawn. ‘Does that mean
they’re making a move on the mound again?’ she wondered. She looked back at the
hospital and wondered if waking the professor would be a good idea. She shook
her head. ‘No, he needs his rest.’
She was going to head home, but paused. ‘Mom already
suspects something,’ she thought. But there was no choice. She had to be ready
in case Oscorp moved on the mound again.
She then headed in the direction of the mound.
SpiderGirl arrived back at the mound shortly after
midnight. She had received a message from Ninja Talon, so she knew that the
Enigma and Dafoanairi were there. She swung to where Ninja Talon was waiting.
“Nothing else happened?” she asked.
“The silent one was still at the hospital when I left,”
Ninja Talon answered.
“And Oscorp was still there?” SpiderGirl asked.
“Yes,” Ninja Talon answered. “But that doesn’t mean they
won’t be here soon.”
“But with four of us, we can keep watch on each side,”
the Enigma said from where she stood next to Dafoanairi.
“Or are you suggesting that because you don’t want to be
near me?” SpiderGirl asked.
Dafoanairi sighed. “Not now, Enigma.”
“That is only one reason,” the Enigma answered quietly.
“Of course not,” SpiderGirl said, sarcastically. “But
we’d be spreading ourselves thin.”
“Maybe we just need to be near the road, on both sides,”
Ninja Talon suggested. “They’re more likely be approaching from the road than
the forest, whether they be coming from Lawndale or Oakwood.”
“That makes sense,” Dafoanairi responded.
“We’ll watch at either approach,” SpiderGirl decided.
The Enigma and Dafoanairi went to the east side of the
mound. “Did you have to stir things up?” Dafoanairi asked.
“I was a valid suggestion,” the Enigma answered.
“But you didn’t need to antagonise SpiderGirl.”
“She may be more alert to what may be happening next.”
“I guess so, but she would have been alert anyway,”
Dafoanairi argued.
The Enigma was then silent as she watched.
‘How she worked with her a week ago at Alchemax, I’m not
sure.’
As they waited on the western side of the mound, Ninja
Talon glanced at SpiderGirl. To anyone who didn’t know her, SpiderGirl would
have looked distracted. But Ninja Talon had come to know that in that state,
her friend was very focused. She was trying to put the Enigma’s attempts at
riling her up out of her mind by focusing on the situation.
