this isn't Kansas anymore/like Callisto to a star in Heaven
Following close behind Skids, Johnny Bifrost, Moon Knight, Daredevil, Iron Fist, and Powerman were led deeper into a series of mazelike tunnels. After several minutes Skids hesitated. "At the end of this tunnel is one of the Marauders' lair. Callisto is being kept here, I'm sure of it. Bring her to me and i will keep my end of the bargain and take you to Mister Fear."
"what can you tell us about the rest of these Marauders?" Daredevil asked.
"At one point there were several of them with varying abilities camped all throughout the tunnels, but after the X-Men fought back and time passed there should only be a couple. The only one i could speak of for sure is Arclight, whom you fellas have already had the displeasure of having met." Skids reported.
"And Callisto? Will she be of any help to us?" Moon Knight questioned.
"She actually lost her he abilities in the decimation event, but our patron Quicksilver restored them to her through the implementation if the Terrigen Crystals. She has drastically enhanced strength, speed, reflexes, and senses. Assuming she is not wounded and still alive, once she's freed from whatever bondage she's in i know she'll fight alongside a rescue party." Skids explicated.
"We will rescue your friend." Iron Fist assured Skids and bowed to her.
"Just keep an eye on Widow and Ms. Knight for us. We'll meet back with you in the processing tank you showed us. If we don't come back, please hold out and return our companions to the surface." Daredevil negotiated.
"Will do." Skids nodded and then brushed Johnny's arm in passing as she turned to leave. "Good luck."
At the end of the passage was a door of Steel alloy, fashioned similar to the hatch of a submarine with a spoked wheel that must be turned to open it. The door had been locked from the inside. Luke Cage approached and forcibly turned the wheel, attempting to break the internal locking mechanism and gain entry to the room.
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The room beyond the door was a circular processing plant. A five foot walkway with no ran the circumference of the chamber. The walkway was 20 feet above the floor and the door that opened onto it was the only entrance/exit. Beneath the walkway, on the opposite side of the tank a large pipe extended from the wall. Water was spewing from the pipe, filling the chamber. The water sat at a height of five feet as the three Marauders in the room became aware of the sound of the screeching lock.
Arclight stood with partially repaired armor and a bandaged temple at the ready, directly above the pipe and across from the door. Diagonal from her to the right, and just to the left of the door stood her fellow Marauder Vertigo.
Vertigo was a Savage Land Mutate, a native to the forbidden zone, and had been hand selected as one of Mister Sinister's elite assassins. She was a seemingly young woman with a lithe and tan body, with unnaturally green hair flowing to her hips. Her outfit complimented this with green swirls over black. After receiving artificial genetic enhancement from Mister Sinister Vertigo had boosted her ability to project psionic distortions with her voice into her environment that affect the nervous systems of her intended targets with symptoms of severe nausea, disorientation, and hence her pseudonym Vertigo. Prolonged exposure to her voice has even rendered many unconscious. Across from Vertigo and on the right of the door, Arclight's diagonal left, stood Harpoon.
Harpoon was an Alaskan Native mutant who had once used the name Kodiak Noatak, prior to becoming a Marauder for the thrill of the hunt. Harpoon's ability enabled him to charge objects by touch with various forms of bio-energy and then projectile them to explode or disintegrate matter on contact. His weapon of choice was his namesake, which he wore a quiver of on his back. He slowly drew one and began to charge the five foot barbed harpoon with a blast of bio-energy.
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Luke Cage threw the door inward, and in leapt the Heroes For hire. First was Iron Fist who literally rolled into the room before leaping back to the wall and avoiding a blast of Vertigo's disorienting screech. However, Daredevil who followed close behind with cane at the ready took the brunt of the scream. Like a banshees wail, Daredevil's extra-heightened auditory sensory was sent reeling and in an extreme bout of dizziness he fell from railing and splashed heavily into the water below. Watching this unfold before him, moon Knight slowed his entrance and took cover behind the door to shield himself from Vertigo, however leaving himself open to Arclight and Harpoon.
Luke Cage looked into the chamber through the open doorway at Arclight. Rising from the center of the floor in the chamber was a cement platform, standing at teen feet tall, five feet wide, and ten feet long. Chained hands and feet in a confusing knot was an older woman with shoulder length black hair, clearly a wig. She also wore an eye patch over her right eye, and her skin shone exceptionally pale from lack of sunlight for many years. This was Callisto, broken and defeated by three of the monsters who had slain so many of her friends and family. Those who had looked up to her and expected her to protect them. Callisto was unconscious, and deeply bruised all about her naked body.
Daredevil sputtered for air as the residual effects of Vertigo's scream wore off while he maintained buoyancy in the raising water. In a brief instant he was nearly certain he felt a rough hide brush along his back in the water, but couldn't be sure because of the trickery if his senses. However, he had felt the dense and scaled spine of an alligator. Of which there were six swimming in the water. With the water pouring continuously, the water would have reached and potentially drowned Callisto in a matter of minutes. Assuming the starved and crazed alligators did not decide to make a meal of her as soon as they had access.
Harpoon hurled his charged weapon at Iron Fist who ducked beneath the harpoon and then cartwheeled away from the small explosion, and towards Harpoon. As Iron Fist charged Harpoon energized his next projectile as he drew it, but aimed this time for Daredevil down in the water. Moon Knight threw handfuls of crescent shurikens at Arclight and Vertigo before running out from behind the door towards Vertigo with his truncheon drawn. Luke cage stepped through the doorway and proceed to tear the hatch from its hinges. Johnny Bifrost followed shortly behind and fired an intensified blast of his optic beam at Arclight who ducked beneath it and was showered in dust as the beam carved into stone. When Luke Cage threw the door Arclight's direction immediately afterward, Arclight stood and screamed as she threw a shockwave punch into the hatch and completely obliterated it.
Hunks and scraps of metal splashed i to the water and crashed into alligators as Daredevil swam towards the where the spout protruded, dodging the debris. Harpoon let loose with an electrically charged harpoon aimed for The Man without Fear, Daredevil, just as he used the grappling line attachment of his cane to connect with the spout and haul himself out of the water seconds before the harpoon struck. Fatal amps of electricity coursed through the water in the tank and through the bodies of the alligators. Steam rose from their corpses ad the boiling water cooked them alive. In an acrobatic maneuver Daredevil swung himself up o to the pipe from which the water spewed into the tank. Luckily, a valve sat along the wall above it and below the walkway he now crunched beneath. As he spun the crank to shut the release valve off Arclight sent her foot in a shockwave attack through the walkway and sending Daredevil into a leap to cling to the ledge of the walkway.
Iron Fist began bombarding Harpoon with an array of punches and kicks to his legs and torso, most of which he was not quick enough to defend against. He attempted to draw another harpoon, but as he charged it with his bio-energy Iron Fist struck his elbow and the projectile went wild. It fell into the water and exploded beneath, causing the pool of water too begin draining in an unseen rift in the tank and steel to begin groaning. Iron Fist proceeded to pummel Harpoon.
Moon Knight charged at Vertigo who unleashed another scream at him, reflexively he dropped into a slide on his back before propelling himself back up with his truncheon and stepping onto Vertigo's forward leg and stepping up to bring his knee smashing into her jaw. Vertigo tumbled backwards with Moon Knight atop her.
As Arclight tried to bring her leg up through the perforated steel walkway she was blasted with a concussive beam from Johnny. Luke Cage ran along the walkway to confront Arclight again. Meanwhile, Iron Fist helped pull Daredevil from his precarious spot hanging by his hands from the walkway ledge. Moon Knight withdrew the ring of keys that hung visibly from Vertigo's belt and then leapt down to the cement platform where Callisto lay. He then began working at unclasling the manacles about her wrists and the shackles rusting against her ankles.
Seeing that Arclight lay seemingly unconscious after Johnny's optic blast and Callisto coming to in Moon Knight's care, Luke Cage turned and joined Daredevil and Iron Fist towards the exit. Though Callisto did seem to be regaining consciousness, she was still very much out of it and unable to communicate let alone move without assistance. The group began debating as to how to get Callisto and Moon Knight off of the platform, as Arclight stirred once more.
In a fury Arclight charged all of her remaining energy into a final devastating shockwave punch and ran the short length of the walkway before diving through the air at Moon Knight and Callisto. Putting the rescue before himself, Moon Knight threw the limp form of Callisto through the air towards his companions and Luke Cage quickly caught her. Then, he attempted the hump up for himself just as Arclight came crashing down onto the platform behind and below him. Her immense shockwave rumbled all throughout the tank that had been compromised by Harpoons blasts. With the force of her blow the entire floor to the tank ruptured and began to collapse i to the myriad network of tunnels and pipes below, ripping down the rear end of the tank entirely, dropping the three Marauders into the abyss below. Moon Knight barely survived by catching the ledge of the walkway before the doorway and being hefted up by Iron Fist, Daredevil, and Johnny.
The five of them looked down into the pit and the tomb of the Marauders. "Who the fuck are you guys?" Callisto asked in her husky, brisk voice ash she became more aware.
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