Spider Quinn 20 The Imitation Tempest Part 6

 

Dafoanairi saw Tania running up. “What’s wrong?” she asked as she held her staff in a ready manner.

 

“I was in the park, and then there was someone following me,” Tania explained.

 

“There is someone nearby. It could be one of those agents,” the Enigma said.

 

“Agents?” Tania asked.

 

“Oscorp, intimidating the hero vigilantes by having them followed,” Dafoanairi answered.

 

“As if people in Lawndale aren’t on edge enough!” Tania responded. “What’s your plan?”

 

“We were doing our usual late-night patrolling and rescuing,” Dafoanairi snarked. “But if you want to go home, we can take you there.”

 

 

Tania thought for a moment. ‘It’s probably a good idea to go home.’ But she did also enjoy the occasional night with the two heroes as they did what they did. ‘And they seem mismatched, but they work.’

 

“Tania?” Dafoanairi asked.

 

“Not yet,” Tania said.

 

“We were headed to the Giant Strawberry,” the Enigma said.

 

“It is a good lookout spot,” Tania said. “But on a cloudy night like this?”

 

“Things can still be seen,” Dafoanairi said.

 

 

At the Strawberry, the town still seemed quiet, but the Enigma was able to spot some agents as they jumped from rooftop to rooftop downtown. “That’s about four or five so far,” she said after fifteen minutes.

 

“Four or five too many,” Dafoanairi murmured.

 

“It’s not like you can fight them all,” Tania said.

 

“A war between the heroes and Oscorp wouldn’t be good for Lawndale,” the Enigma said. She thought about her encounter with the agent an hour before, and the damage she did to the that house. ‘More buildings damaged, but at least it got off a lot better than the Lawndale Center.’

 

“That’s an understatement,” Dafoanairi said.

 

“So, what will you do about it?” Tania asked.

 

“Not sure yet,” Dafoanairi admitted. “But we can’t just lie low. That won’t be good for Lawndale either, and it would be like admitting defeat.”

 

 

SpiderGirl climbed out on the roof at her usual time to listen to Lawndale. She didn’t hear any of the agents anywhere near her neighborhood. That at least was reassuring. The town sounded, pensive, as if it was waiting for something. ‘For what?’ she wondered. After around fifteen minutes, she heard sirens near the Creek, southwards of the Jefferson Bridge. “Responsibility calls,” she said as she swung away.

 

 

In Dega Street, the Shadow was watching the area near the Zon/Zen nightclub when she heard something nearby. She looked after switching her mask to night vision mode and saw a figure watching her. ‘It doesn’t look like one of the others,’ she thought. She knew it wasn’t a new vigilante hero; something felt off.

 

She then took out a dry ice pellet, moved quickly and disappeared down a fire escape to the ground.

 

Down on the ground she watched the person go to her last position and look around in confusion. ‘It has to be Oscorp,’ she thought.

 

 

Nearly five minutes later, she was on top of the Historia, looking around. ‘If Osborn is scouring the rooftops, he’s up to more than just trying to discredit SpiderGirl through the media and shoddy merchandise.’ She looked towards the Oscorp headquarters down the street. ‘I know what else I’m going to do tonight.’

 

But she wasn’t going to do it straight away. ‘How to catch one of them?’ she wondered.

 

 

It wasn’t long before one climbed up the side of one of the neighboring buildings. They then just stared at each other for a first time. ‘I doubt it would be as easy as using my grappling hook as a zipline,’ the Shadow mused. ‘But I’ll give it a try.’ She quickly lined up the grappling hook.

 

However, the figure moved as she fired it, sprinting to the street side of the rooftop.

 

The Shadow quickly retracted it and dashed to behind an HVAC vent. ‘That was impulsive!’ she thought. She took out a camera and threw it to the side. Her HUD then showed the image. The figure had moved.

 

“I know you’re there!” she said.

 

No response.

 

‘Osborn probably just wants them to tail.’ But still, she wanted to know why. ‘Undoubtedly the others may have had their own encounters.’ But that wasn’t really helpful, as she often worked alone, and hadn’t really worked with SpiderGirl and Ninja Talon since Groundhog Day.

 

 

After another five minutes again, she moved out to the open and looked around again. She spotted what looked like the same figure one two rooftops over. ‘Keeping his distance, but I can work with that,’ she thought as she grabbed another dry ice pellet.

 

 

This time the agent didn’t see it coming. He was enveloped by fog and then was tied by a zip line. When the fog had cleared, he saw that the Shadow had captured him.

 

“Why is Osborn having the heroes followed?” she asked.

 

He remained silent.

 

“I want to know!”

 

She sighed and took out a pen.

 

“You’re making notes?”

 

“Usually do art, but taking notes works.”

 

The agent was silent again.

 

But then there was pain, like he was being tased!

 

 

The Shadow didn’t want to resort to that, but she was getting rather impatient. But it was short. ‘What would Trent say?’ she asked herself.  ‘Something the Enigma would do!’ She didn’t want to think that it was because of her abduction by Beck.

 

“I knew it! The vigilantes aren’t heroes!”

 

“We are heroes. At least SpiderGirl and Ninja Talon are. The fourth and Dafoanairi, I’m not sure of.”

 

“I’m still not saying anything!” the agent said.

 

“I can infer something. That Osborn, or the middleman, told you that the heroes aren’t what we appear to be.”

 

“You’re getting close.”

 

“I’ll take that as a yes,” the Shadow said. It was all she wanted to get for the moment. She picked up a dry ice pellet. ‘No, I can’t leave him on the Historia’s roof!’ She thought as she looked around. She looked at the Oscorp headquarters again. ‘There!’

 

 

It was difficult to carry the agent across the rooftops, but it didn’t take too long and the agent was placed on the rooftop next to a camera. She sprayed paint over it and rappelled down the side, to an alley where she placed a graffiti tag before making herself scarce.

 

 

At the same time, the Enigma and Dafoanairi arrived at the rear of the Ashworth’s place with Tania. They hadn’t come across any agents on their meandering way from the Strawberry. “It may be that Oscorp is aware that High Hills Park is a regular meeting place,” Dafoanairi said.

 

“That doesn’t surprise me,” Tania said.

 

“Like, we can’t be there every night,” the Enigma said.

 

Tania shrugged. “I have been going to a dojo, learning self defense.”

 

“Good idea, given that you’re involved with us,” Dafoanairi said.

 

“That wasn’t the only reason. My parents wanted me to do it, given that I have been going out late at night.”

 

“So, they accept that you’re Wiccan?” Dafoanairi asked.

 

Tania shrugged. “They don’t understand it, but they are open minded and have tried to raise me the same.”

 

 

The Enigma thought about what Tania had said as she and Dafoanairi left. ‘It seems Mrs. Ashworth is letting Tania follow her heart.’

 

 

As the coming dawn started to appear in the east the Shadow returned to Casa Lane. She knew she wasn’t going to tell Trent about the tasing.

 

She entered the kitchen and took off her mask and saw that Trent was there with Jesse, brainstorming a Mystik Spiral song.

 

“Hey Janie, long night?” Trent asked.

 

“You could say that,” Jane answered.

 

“Something is up?” Trent asked.

 

“Oscorp,” she said and explained about the agent.

 

 

Trent took in what Jane had said. “We knew Oscorp was up to something.”

 

“Yes, but I don’t know what it has to do with that break in at Alchemax, nor with the fake SpiderGirl clothes,” Jane said.

 

“Are you sure those are from Oscorp?” Jesse asked.

 

“I doubt it would be something separate,” Jane answered, although she couldn’t on finger on why.

 

“But it still could be,” Trent pointed out.

 

“I know that, but it would be difficult for me to check,” Jane said.

 

“You could ask Daria,” Trent said.

 

“I know that, but between her existing investigation, the Historia, school, tutoring Brittany and hanging out with Sandi, she’s busy enough.”

 

“Hmmm, Isn’t Sandi helping with the investigation?” Jesse asked.

 

“She is,” Jane answered with a sigh. ‘Dani must have told him,’ she thought. “I’ll ask Daria anyway.”

 

“Isn’t the play on again tonight?” Jesse asked.

 

“It is,” Jane confirmed.

 

 

Lawndale Sun-Herald

Friday, March 9, 2001

Mysterious Figures seen on rooftops

 

Norman Osborn put the paper aside. It was inevitable that the agents would be noticed by the Lawndale public at large. His cell phone rang. “It is early,” he said.

 

“The agents were taken out,” the Chief of Security reported.

 

“So quickly?” Norman asked with disappointment.

 

“By all five.”

 

“It was just two yesterday evening.”

 

“And the Shadow vandalised an outside wall of the headquarters,” the Chief of Security added.

 

“Not surprising. I’ll look at it later.”

 

“You don’t need to.”

 

“I will,” Norman said as he hung up.

 

Bernard then entered the room. “A masked woman calling herself the Violet Force is here to see you, sir.”

 

“Of course. Bring her here.”

 

 

The Violet Force entered the office.

 

“Welcome, Linda,” Osborn said.

 

“I knew that you had figured it out,” she said.

 

“I think I know why you’re here.”

 

“You’ve gone too far.”

 

“And you and Sandi are going to stop me?” Osborn said.

 

That brought the Violet Force up short. She hadn’t realised that Osborn knew about Sandi. ‘I hope he doesn’t know about Daria too!’ she thought as she raised a forcefield.

 

“Yes, I know that Sandi is the fourth vigilante.”

 

She could tell that Osborn was telling the truth, but she wasn’t going to let that dissuade her from what she was there to do. But first. “What about the others?”

 

“I still have no idea who they are.”

 

“But you’re trying to find out.”

 

“Naturally,” Osborn answered.

 

“I’ll make sure that won’t happen.”

 

“You’re going to stop the agents?”

 

“I don’t need to. Sandi has already stopped one, and I heard that others have been stopped by other heroines as well,” the Violet Force responded.

 

“I could expose both of you.”

 

“I know, but I think you won’t, because of whatever plan you have.”

 

“I admit that,” Osborn responded.

 

“Still, I want you to stop tailing the other heroines.”

 

“No. I’ll continue putting pressure on them as I have been.”

 

“I’m sure you’re aware of what I did in Boston?” the Violet Force asked.

 

“I am, but Oscorp isn’t the Mafia!”

 

“I know that, but it’s more insidious!”

 

Osborn just stared. “I admit there are ethical lines I’m willing to cross, but that is more than an exaggeration.”

 

“It isn’t an exaggeration!”

 

“Are you referring to William Morris? The LDPD haven’t been able to corroborate his story.”

 

“A stalemate,” the Violet Force grumbled. “But know that I’m keeping an eye on you, along with Sandi, whoever the other four vigilantes are, as well as others.”