In-PSI-de Out

a story set in the universe of Champions Online

The room was normally used for group briefings, but today it served another function. At the front stood a tall, muscular, olive-skinned woman with long white hair, dressed in a black T-shirt and gloves, gleaming metallic armor covering her chest, camouflage pants, and combat boots, with a utility belt bearing a number of sophisticated-looking gadgets around her waist. Her name was Mayte Sanchez, and she was the director of PRIMUS—the Paranormal Research and Investigation Mission of the United States—an organization that dealt with superpowered threats. The room contained several dozen PRIMUS agents, all dressed like Sanchez but also wearing black berets. Some had one or more robotic limbs, a reminder of the inherent danger of being in their line of work.

Before Sanchez stood a creature about a meter tall, its body covered with gray fur. It had huge black eyes, a blunt rounded muzzle bearing a pronounced pair of incisors, and an enormous fluffy question mark of a tail that rose up higher than its head before curling back down. Fur-covered flaps of skin hung from each side of its body, extending from its wrists to its ankles. Its sole articles of human clothing were an old-style leather flying helmet with goggles, which were presently on its forehead, and a leather satchel slung over its right shoulder. It swallowed nervously as it looked up at Sanchez.

Sanchez addressed the creature, her voice deep and smoky, with a mild Spanish accent. "Having passed all entrance requirements and completed agent training with distinction, it is my pleasure and honor to formally invite you to join the most elite law-enforcement organization in America. Welcome to PRIMUS, Supersonic Squirrel." She held out a gold badge to him, smiling, and all the agents in the room saluted.

The squirrel accepted the badge and gazed down at it. It bore an impression of the Presidential eagle, identifying its holder as an agent of PRIMUS. He placed it over his heart, pressing a small button on the side of it, and it immediately adhered to his fur. He looked back up at Sanchez. "Thank you, Director," he said, speaking with a soft nasal whine. "I'll do my best to justify your faith in me." He saluted her.

"I have no doubt that you will, Supersonic," said Sanchez, saluting him back. Then she addressed the agents assembled in the room. "All right, back to work, people. Crime doesn't sleep." The other agents filtered away to their various duties, and within a minute, the room was empty save for Sanchez, Supersonic, and a slender man wearing a brown suit, glasses, and polished black-and-white shoes. He walked up to the squirrel and held out his hand to him. "Congratulations," the man said. "You made it."

Supersonic shook the man's hand, smirking. "That's real big of you, Agent Abruzzi. If you'd had your way, I'd be locked up in Stronghold Prison!"

"That would be normal procedure for someone who breaks detainees out of a PRIMUS base," Abruzzi replied evenly.

"Those aliens hadn't done anything wrong!" Supersonic shot back.

"They were dangerous and potentially hostile. In any case, it wasn't your call to make."

"Oh, should I have waited around while your doctors butchered another one?"

"Gentlemen," Sanchez said calmly but firmly. "I know you do not see eye to eye on this matter, but there is nothing to be gained by rehashing the past. Can we not put it behind us and move forward?"

Supersonic sighed. "You're right, Director. Sorry."

"If you'll excuse me," said Abruzzi, "I have work to do." He turned and left the room.

"I really don't like him!" Supersonic growled.

"I am not overly fond of him either," admitted Sanchez, "but I do not get to pick my Justice Department liaison. The attorney general does that."

The squirrel looked up at her. "Can't you request another one?"

"On what grounds?" asked Sanchez. "He does his job competently and efficiently. Just because I do not like him is no reason to have him replaced."

"I guess not," said Supersonic, and sighed again. They left the room together.

"You have three days leave before your first official assignment," Sanchez said as they walked down a corridor. "Have you any plans?"

"I thought I'd go back to Millennium City and see Kat," Supersonic replied.

"You are still in a relationship with her?" asked Sanchez.

The squirrel snickered and shook his head. "Relationship. You folks today have such funny words for things."

"What did they call it in 1964?" asked Sanchez.

"Going steady."

She smiled. "I rather like that. Have you ironed out your differences with her regarding PRIMUS?"

"We haven't really talked about it," Supersonic replied, looking pensive.

"Don't you think you should?"

The squirrel glanced up at her sharply. "Do you take this much interest in all your agents' 'relationships'?"

"I do when they're in a relationship with a telepath. A telepath who openly dislikes PRIMUS."

His huge eyes widened. "You think Kat might be a security risk?"

"The thought has crossed my mind."

Supersonic looked straight ahead, scowling. "I trust her. That's good enough for me."

Sanchez nodded. "Unfortunately, I doubt it is good enough for Abruzzi."

The squirrel stopped and glared up at her. "If he or any of his Justice Department goons give her any trouble, you will need a new liaison!"

Sanchez blinked, surprised by the normally cheerful squirrel's anger. He rose into the air and shot off down the corridor like a gray streak.

Supersonic emerged from PRIMUS headquarters—a steel-and-glass office building in downtown Washington, D.C.—and flew across the courtyard, people staring at him as he soared past above their heads. It was a cold December day, the trees bare of leaves, the sky clear and bright. He paused before a twelve-foot gold-plated statue of a masked man in a skin-tight costume standing with his feet apart in the center of the courtyard, arms akimbo. It was the Golden Avenger, the previous director of PRIMUS, who had been murdered earlier this year by Freon, a servant of the terrorist organization VIPER. The squirrel's throat grew tight. He had been there when the Avenger had died. It didn't seem right for someone like him to be killed by a VIPER thug like Freon. He hovered before the statue a moment, breath misting before him in the icy air, then turned and flew off into the cloudless blue sky.

It was a cold, gray, cloudy day in Millennium City, and my eyes were tired. I'd been watching the buildings across the street through my binoculars all day, studying the faces of the people going in and out. Normally, my partner and girlfiend, Nightfox, would have taken shifts with me, giving me a chance to rest my eyes, but she was presently in Grand Rapids dealing with some legal matters regarding the will of her late father. So Nightmunk had to go it alone, spying from a vacant apartment, because a three-foot chipmunk in a dark gray cape, hood, and body armor tends to draw attention.

The buildings were a pair of four-story brick structures with a large magenta prong sticking up from each one, glowing like neon lights. Together, they were the headquarters of a supposed self-help group called Mind Inc., actually a front for the Parapsychological Studies Institute, or PSI, an organization of criminal psychics. I'd heard from various sources that PSI was up to something, but nobody seemed to be quite sure what. That was a problem when dealing with PSI. People tended to forget things. So I'd taken it upon myself to stake them out and see if I could figure out what was going on. So far, I wasn't having much success.

I yawned and was about to pack it in and go back to my apartment in Westside when something caught my attention. A slim girl, about twenty, with brown skin, blue eyes, and white hair cut very short, wearing a leather jacket and blue jeans, was entering Mind Inc. I'd seen her on the news earlier this year, at the Golden Avenger's funeral. She'd been hugging Supersonic Squirrel—a former character from an early 1960s cartoon show who'd been brought to life last year by a magical wishing ring—after he'd delivered a tribute to the fallen hero. There had been some brief speculation on social media—who was she, were they friends or lovers, that sort of thing—and then interest had faded and life had gone on. I didn't know her name, but this was definitely the same girl. I watched her enter Mind Inc., and waited. Twenty minutes later, she came out and walked away, heading toward Westside. Intrigued, I left the apartment, went up to the roof where my grav bike was parked, climbed on, and flew off after her.

I followed her as she walked west through City Center, the upscale residential and commercial district on the north end of Millennium City. I flew high to avoid detection, keeping her in sight with my bike's telescopic video surveillance camera, which transmitted the image to a display screen on the dashboard. She walked for eight blocks without stopping. In fact, she didn't seem to be paying any attention to her surroundings at all. I probably could have followed ten feet behind her and she wouldn't have noticed. Perhaps she was lost in thought. I get that way myself sometimes.

Eventually, she arrived at a three-story apartment building called Carlton Arms. A city ordinance forbids the buildings in City Center to be more than six stories tall, giving the place a friendly, comfortable feel. All the big, imposing skyscrapers are downtown. She opened the front door and went inside. Floating high above the street, I used my bike's onboard computer to access the city's address database and got a list of all the people who lived at Carlton Arms. Then I accessed the records at the DMV, getting pictures of all their driver's licenses. Immediately, I noticed that someone named Katrina Werner didn't appear to have a driver's license. I quickly scanned through the license photos of all the folks living at Carlton Arms. None of them looked like the girl I'd been following. Well, then. I called someone I knew at the MCPD.

"Hey, Alvin, what do you want?" came a deep, gruff voice on the other end.

"Kodiak, do you have anything on someone named Katrina Werner?" I asked.

"Katrina Werner?" he repeated. I waited while he searched the police database. "Why do you ask?"

"She's a possible lead in a case I'm working on."

"You think she might be a crook?"

"That's what I'm trying to find out."

"Well, she's got no arrests, no convictions, no outstanding warrants. If she's a crook, she's hiding it well."

"Hmm. Okay, thanks, John."

"You gonna tell me what this is about?"

"As soon as I know myself," I replied, and hung up.

As I hovered there contemplating my next move, a taxicab pulled up in front of Carlton Arms. Werner emerged from the building and got in the cab, and it drove off. I debated whether to follow her or search her apartment. This is where having a partner comes in handy. No matter how good you are, you can't be in two places at once. Unless you're Mr. Gemini. I decided I was more interested in searching her apartment, since who knew when I'd have another chance to do that? I landed on the roof of Carlton Arms, entered through the rooftop door, walked down the hall to apartment 317, picked the lock, and went inside.

It was a cozy little one-bedroom place, reasonably tidy. Love seat in front of a flat screen TV. A coffee table with a bowl of plastic flowers. Dirty dishes in the sink. Small desk with a home computer on it. I went over to the computer, climbed up on the chair in front of it, and booted it up. It asked me for a password. Miss Werner liked her privacy. I stuck a little gadget into one of the USB ports and it quickly gave me the user's password. I tapped it in, and suddenly the furry, gray, bucktoothed face of Supersonic Squirrel was smiling back at me, sunlight glinting on his goggles, out-of-focus tulips in the background. She must really like the guy to use him as her desktop image.

I inspected the icons plastered across his face. They were mainly popular computer games and TV and movie websites. Also, a lot of recipe websites. I opened her browser history and searched for anything related to Mind Inc. There was nothing, which was rather odd, considering that she'd just been there. I checked her emails. She'd been corresponding a lot with [email protected]. Interesting. If Supersonic Squirrel had a PRIMUS email account, then he was probably working for them. He might even be a PRIMUS agent. Maybe Werner was a PRIMUS agent too. That could explain her interest in Mind Inc.

I opened the most recent email she'd received from him. It was dated only a few hours ago. He was catching a flight from Washington, D.C., and would be in Millennium City by tonight. He was really looking forward to seeing her again, he wanted to have dinner with her, and she could pick the restaurant. He said he had a big surprise for her. I checked her last sent message. She had replied that she'd meet him at the airport, that there was an Ethiopian place she wanted to try, and that she couldn't wait to get him home and . . . I stopped reading. I may be a snoop, but I'm not a voyeur.

I considered the implications of what I'd learned. The email hadn't mentioned Mind Inc. or PSI. In fact, it didn't even sound like two professionals comparing notes. It sounded like two people in love. Also, Werner hadn't been using a PRIMUS email address, which further undercut the notion that she was working for them. Maybe this was all perfectly innocent. Still, the idea of someone inside PRIMUS being romantically involved with someone connected to Mind Inc. smelled rotten to me. Last year, I'd rescued Mayor Biselle's daughter Brianna from PSI, after they kidnapped and tried to brainwash her. If Katrina Werner was working for PSI—knowingly or unknowingly—then who knew what kind of information she might be able to get out of Supersonic, especially if they were sleeping together, which they clearly were.

A thought occurred to me. I shut down the computer, jumped down off the chair, and went into the bedroom. The bed was unmade and there were clothes all over the floor. A photo of Supersonic stood on the nightstand, the same image as on the computer's desktop. I took a device from my belt and started running it over every available surface. A red light flashed as it passed over the reading lamp beside the bed. I picked up the lamp and examined it. There was a small electronic bug hidden inside. It didn't look like any of the standard commercial designs. I replaced the lamp, went into the living room, and swept that. There was another bug hidden in the plastic flowers. I left the apartment, locking the door behind me, went back up to the roof, got on my bike, and flew off.

Katrina Werner stood leaning against a wall in the terminal of Millennium City International Airport with her hands in the pockets of her leather jacket, sucking on a lollipop as she watched groups of arriving passengers emerge from the exit tunnel one after another. She smiled when she saw a familiar short, gray figure in the crowd. Supersonic broke into a broad grin when he saw her, and ran over, his big fluffy tail flicking excitedly. She removed her lollipop, crouched down, and threw her arms around him as he did the same to her, and pressed her lips to his bucktoothed muzzle as people stared at them and whispered.

"Hey, baby," she said, rubbing the top of his flying helmet. "Missed ya."

"Not as much as I missed you," said Supersonic, and they kissed again.

She glanced down at the badge on his furry chest. "So, you're officially an agent of PRIMUS."

Supersonic nodded. "Yeah, that's the big surprise I told you about. I work for Uncle Sam, now." His huge eyes looked into hers searchingly. "You're not mad, are you?"

She shrugged. "Hey, it's your life. You gotta do what you gotta do."

The squirrel smiled, looking relieved. "Good! I wouldn't want that to come between us. You mean an awful lot to me, Kat."

Katrina stood up, sticking her lollipop back in her mouth, and took him by the hand. "Hungry?"

Supersonic nodded. "Starving! All I had on the plane was a bag of peanuts!"

She looked down at him and grinned. "I'm guessing we can bypass the baggage claim."

The squirrel shrugged. "Why would I need baggage? I don't even own any clothes!"

"And that's just how I like you," said Katrina. "Come on, let's get dinner." She led him off toward the exit.

"I've never had Ethiopian food before," said Supersonic as they walked along the concourse together. "What's it like?"

"I don't know," said Katrina. "That's why I picked it. But considering it's a country that's most famous for its famines, I imagine the portions will be pretty small."

"It's not too spicy, is it?" Supersonic asked. "I don't like spicy food."

"Yeah, I know. You grew up in Minnesota in the 1950s, where every meal was meat and cheese casserole with a side order of salt."

"Actually," said Supersonic, "I didn't even know what food tasted like before I became real. We ate food in the cartoons, but it didn't have any flavor."

Katrina nodded. "So, just like real Minnesota food."

Supersonic scowled up at her. "You've never even been there!"

"No, I haven't. But I understand there's lots of lakes and winter lasts eleven and a half months."
"It's not that bad," Supersonic grumped.

They exited the terminal, hailed a cab, got in, and drove off. Above, in the darkening sky, a small shape on a grav bike followed them, cape fluttering in the wind.

Amba Farit was an Ethiopian and Eritrean restaurant located in City Center, its name spelled out on a sign above the door in white block letters on a backdrop of green, yellow, and red, the colors of the Ethiopian flag. The waiter looked at Supersonic in surprise, but quickly recovered. This was Millennium City, after all. He escorted Katrina and Supersonic to a table, and they sat down and began perusing their menus. The dishes appeared to consist mostly of beef, chicken, or lamb, with tomatoes, onions, green peppers, chili peppers, and homemade cottage cheese.

"These all look real spicy," Supersonic said warily.

"Could you tone down the spices a bit for my friend?" Katrina asked the waiter, and he smiled and nodded. They each ordered something they thought looked good, and Katrina added on two bottles of St. George Amber Beer, which the waiter had said was the best beer brewed in Ethiopia. Supersonic didn't normally drink, but this was a special occasion.

"So, how've you been?" Supersonic asked as they waited for their food to arrive.

Katrina shrugged. "Fine. I've joined a bridge club and play tennis on the weekends."

The squirrel sighed. "Could you be serious for just one minute?"

"But I love messing with your fuzzy head!" Katrina protested.

Supersonic looked exasperated. "Can't you see I'm worried about you? I mean, what are you gonna do while I'm on assignments?"

She cupped his furry cheek and squeezed it. "The same things I did before I met you, lover."

He lowered his voice to a whisper. "You were a thief living on the street before we met."

"Well, maybe not that. Actually, I was thinking about going back to school."

"You mean Ravenswood Academy?" asked Supersonic.

Katrina grimaced. "Oh, hell no! I had my fill of that place, with all its rules and regulations."

"Rules like not using your powers to steal?" Supersonic asked sharply.

"Among other things."

"It's just that with your abilities you could do a lot of good in the world!"

Katrina smirked. "You mean like going back in time to prevent a potential apocalypse? Or fighting werewolves and voodoo cultists? Or how about that time I rescued some aliens your buddies at PRIMUS were holding captive?"

Supersonic sighed. "Okay, point taken, you have done good in the world. But that just proves what I'm saying! You could do so much more!"

"Saving the world is your bag, boyfriend, not mine."

The squirrel frowned. "That's pretty selfish, Kat."

"Yeah, well, I'm a pretty selfish person."

Supersonic smirked. "Which is why you broke those aliens out of a PRIMUS base, and drove for two hours with a sick, dying squirrel beside you so they could heal him and save his life."

Katrina bit her lip. "We all have our weak moments," she said, finally.

Their food arrived, and they were surprised to discover that not only were the portions quite generous, their meals were accompanied by a single large, circular platter covered by a thin sheet of brown, spongy bread, much like an enormous pancake. No utensils were provided; the food was meant to be eaten with the fingers after being wrapped in torn pieces of bread.

"This is neat!" said Katrina, grinning as she lifted a bundle of food wrapped in bread, stuffed it in her mouth, and then washed it down with a gulp of beer.

"It's still kinda spicy," said Supersonic, swallowing a mouthful, "but good!" Then he heard the theme of his old cartoon show coming from inside his satchel, informing him that he had an incoming call. He opened it, removed his cell phone, and looked at the screen. It was a text message from Nightmunk. It read, "Urgent we talk at once. Meet me on the roof. Come alone."

The squirrel blinked. He had heard of Nightmunk, but never met him. He was a manimal, a human-animal hybrid created by the rogue geneticist Dr. Phillipe Moreau on an island in the Pacific. He was partners with Nighthawk, a former member of the Champions, the world's most famous superteam. He put the cell phone away and slid down off his chair. "I have to go outside for a minute," he said.

"What's up?" Katrina asked, licking her fingers.

"PRIMUS business," Supersonic replied. "I'll be right back." He exited the restaurant while she knocked back another gulp of beer.

I was waiting atop the Ethiopian restaurant Amba Farit in City Center when Supersonic Squirrel rose up above the roof, arm webs spread, then drifted down and landed in front of me. His big-eyed face looked annoyed, which was understandable, since I'd just interrupted him having dinner with his girlfriend. I was pretty certain that what I had to tell him wouldn't make him any happier.

"Thanks for coming," I said. "Sorry about interrupting your dinner." I noted the badge on his chest. So, Supersonic Squirrel was now a PRIMUS agent. I'd have to watch what I said around him. I was on generally good terms with PRIMUS—I'd even worked with its current director, Silver Avenger Mayte Sanchez—but there were things I'd prefer not to share with them.

He shrugged. "Well, since it was a message from you that sent me on the adventure where I first met my girlfriend, I figured I owed you this much. It's nice to finally meet you in person, Nightmunk."

I nodded. "I only wish it were under better circumstances."

"What's the problem?" Supersonic asked.

"It's about Katrina," I replied.

He immediately got defensive. "What about her?"

"I spotted her entering and leaving Mind Inc. headquarters today."

His huge black eyes widened. "Mind Inc.? That's a front for PSI!"

"I know it is."

"Well, that doesn't necessarily mean anything," he said, sounding as if he was trying to convince himself as much as me. "I mean, lots of people visit Mind Inc."

I nodded. "And some of them come out with their brains tweaked."
Supersonic shook his head. "They couldn't do that to Kat."

"Why not? Everyone knows she's your girlfriend. She hugged you at the Golden Avenger's funeral, on national television."

He squirmed, embarrassed. "Trust me, it wouldn't work."

"Why not?" I persisted.

Supersonic looked furtive. "Can you keep a secret?"

I sighed. "Yes."

He bit his lip, hesitating, then leaned in close and whispered, "Kat's a telepath!"

"I see," I said. "And you think that means PSI can't screw with her head?"

"Well, she could block them out, couldn't she?" Supersonic asked.

"She'd have a better chance than most people, but PSI are experts at this sort of thing. And it begs the question: If she's not being controlled by them, then what was she doing there?"

"I don't know," said Supersonic, "but I trust Kat, and I know she'd never betray me."

I sighed again. "Have you ever seen The Manchurian Candidate?"

He blinked. "That's a movie, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah, from your time. A guy is brainwashed by the Chinese to be an assassin. He kills, then forgets what he did, so he can't give himself away. It's a great flick."

Supersonic's eyes widened. "You think PSI could have done something like that to Kat?"

"They've done it before. Last year they tried to do it to Mayor Biselle's daughter, Brianna. Fortunately, I stopped them. And if Katrina is a telepath, she could read your mind at any time, giving PSI a direct line into PRIMUS, something I'm sure they'd love to have."

The squirrel shook his head. "She couldn't do that."

"Haven't you been listening?" I asked, exasperated. "She might not even know she's doing it!"

"I didn't say she wouldn't!" said Supersonic. "I said she couldn't! Look!" He removed his flying helmet and handed it to me upside down. I peered down into it. The interior was lined with microcircuitry. "PRIMUS equipped my helmet with psionic shielding. It scrambles any psionic energy directed at me."
I nodded, returning his helmet, which he put back on. I recognized the circuitry. I have the same stuff in the hood of my cape. "That's a good precaution, but you don't wear it all the time, do you? What about when you're asleep, or in the shower?"

Supersonic folded his arms, glaring at me. "What are you suggesting? That I should break up with my girlfriend, just because she might be working for PSI? You still haven't provided a single shred of proof!"

It was time for the other shoe to drop. "Her apartment's bugged, Supersonic."

He stared at me. "What?"

"I swept it after she left to meet you at the airport. I found two bugs—one in the flowers in the living room and one in the reading lamp in the bedroom."

The squirrel looked apoplectic. "What the heck were you doing in her apartment?" he yelled.

"Investigating. That's what I do."

"You had no right to invade her privacy!"

I rolled my eyes. "Someone already did that when they planted those bugs. And if I hadn't found them, that someone would be listening in on everything you and she said and did tonight." I leaned closer to drive the point home. "Everything."

Supersonic frowned as he realized I was right. "You think PSI planted them?" he asked sullenly.

"I did at first, but then I remembered that PSI are mind readers. They wouldn't need to plant bugs. Any information they wanted, they'd just take. And if Katrina's reporting to them, then bugging her apartment makes even less sense. But someone planted them, someone who probably thinks she's working for PSI. Do you know of anyone who might think that?"

Supersonic's eyes lit up. "Abruzzi!"

"Who?" I asked.

"Anthony Abruzzi, PRIMUS's Justice Department liaison. He hates Kat, and he's not too crazy about me, either!"

I nodded. "Sounds like a prime suspect."

Then we both froze at the sound of a girl's voice from the front of the restaurant. "Supersonic?" it called. "Where are you, lover?"

Supersonic peered down over the edge of the roof, then looked at me questioningly.

"It would be best if she didn't know I was here," I said. "We'll talk again later." I climbed on my grav bike and flew off into the night sky.

Katrina stood in front of Amba Farit, puzzled and annoyed. She had tried contacting Supersonic telepathically from inside the restaurant, but there had been no response, and when she'd tried to scan for his whereabouts, she'd been unable to sense him, suggesting that he'd left the premises. That wasn't like Supersonic at all. Even if some emergency had arisen, forcing him to leave—which was hardly unlikely, since he was now a PRIMUS agent—he was too polite and considerate to go without telling her, let alone stick her with the check. His old-fashioned good manners were one of the things she loved about him.

She was just taking out her cell phone to call him when he dropped down from the roof, landing in front of her. "There you are!" she said, smiling. Then her smile faded when she saw the look on his bucktoothed face. He was clearly unhappy. "What's wrong?" she asked. "And what were you doing up on the roof?"

"Um, the reception's better up there," he replied.

Katrina frowned. Supersonic's inveterate honesty made him a terrible liar. She was tempted to read his mind, but resisted. She had promised him she wouldn't do that, and she wanted to keep that promise. "Something's bugging you. What is it?"

Supersonic winced at her choice of words. "It's nothing," he said, dismissing the question with an airy wave. "Come on, let's finish our dinner."

Katrina's frown deepened. Two lies in one day might well be a record for him. Supersonic Squirrel was growing up fast. Of course, she herself had had a lot to do with that. She followed him back into the restaurant, and they ate the rest of their meal in silence.

Afterward, as they walked back to her apartment through City Center, neither speaking nor looking at each other, Katrina asked, "You gonna tell me what's going on, lover, or do I have to pick your brains?"

Supersonic looked up at her, alarmed. "You said you wouldn't do that!"

"That was before you started lying to me."

"Well, you couldn't do it anyway," the squirrel said. "My helmet is shielded against psionics now."

Katrina scowled. "Oh really?"

"You knew when I decided to join PRIMUS there would be things I couldn't tell you, and you accepted it!"

"Is it about me?"

"What makes you think so?" Supersonic asked defensively.

She shrugged. "What else would make you this uncomfortable? You think I don't know how PRIMUS feels about me? They don't like mentalists in general, let alone ones who are sleeping with their agents."

"This has nothing to do with PRIMUS," said Supersonic. "At least, not directly."

"But it does have to do with me," said Katrina.

He sighed and nodded. "Yeah, it does."

"Well, don't you think I have a right to know?"

Supersonic opened his mouth to reply, but then his eyes went wide at the high-pitched whine of jet turbines from above. A large, muscular figure landed on the sidewalk ten feet in front of them, completely encased in a suit of shiny gray armor with blue and black trim. On its forehead was the Greek letter omega.

"Omega!" Supersonic gasped, recognizing him from PRIMUS's files. He was PSI's chief of security.

Omega spoke in a harsh, electronic voice, raising a gauntleted fist and aiming it at the squirrel. "Get ready to die, you filthy rodent!"

Supersonic raised his hands and erected a shield of solidified air in front of him—just in time, as Omega fired a volley of bright, white energy bolts at him. The shield held, though the little squirrel was pushed back several feet by the force of the impacts.

"Josh, what are you doing?" Katrina cried. "Stop it!"

"Stay out of this, Kat!" Omega growled.

"You know this guy?" Supersonic asked, looking up at Katrina in surprise. Katrina simply scowled and fired a mental blast at Omega, but it had no effect.

Omega advanced on the squirrel, his big clunky metal feet thudding on the pavement. "I'm gonna kill you, animal!" he roared, throwing a right cross, which Supersonic nimbly dodged.

"What did I ever do to you?" asked Supersonic, taking to the air. "I don't even know you!"

"Stand still, damn it!" Omega raged, firing another spray of energy bolts at the squirrel, who evaded them.

"So you can kill me?" asked Supersonic. "No thanks!" He built up a sphere of super-compressed air between his hands and hurled it at Omega, striking him dead center. Omega grunted and fired another volley of energy bolts at the squirrel, one of which clipped his shoulder, causing him to spin around and drop to the ground, stunned. Omega charged toward Supersonic, fist raised for a killing blow, when Katrina interposed herself between them.

"Get out of the way!" Omega shouted.

Katrina glared back at him, completely unafraid. "Not a chance!"

They both stood as if frozen, the huge armored figure looming above the slim, white-haired girl, his fist raised to strike.

I'd been heading home, figuring Supersonic could take it from here, when I received a text message from a number I didn't recognize. It read, "Go to Fourth and Temple now. Supersonic's life depends on it." I stared at my phone in surprise. As far as I knew, nobody save Supersonic and myself was aware of my involvement in this business, and he hardly would have sent me such a message. I turned my grav bike around and flew back toward City Center at full speed.

As I reached City Center, I saw bolts of white energy shooting into the sky, and zeroed my bike's telescopic camera in on their source. Supersonic was lying on the sidewalk, apparently injured, and Katrina was shielding him with her body from Omega, PSI's chief of security. I'd encountered Omega when I'd rescued Brianna Biselle from PSI's clutches. He was powerful, tough, and ruthless, which made it all the more puzzling that he didn't appear to be moving. Had she mentally paralyzed him? That didn't seem likely. Omega's battle armor was shielded against psionics. I didn't know how powerful Katrina was, but I doubted she could pierce shielding that could block PSI's mentalists. Shelving that line of inquiry, I brought my bike in low and jumped off, dropping out of the sky and landing beside them, my cape fluttering around me, the silver-blue questionite talons on my gauntlets extended. "Back off, Omega!" I yelled.

"Not you!" Omega groaned. He looked back at Katrina. "Why, Kat?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you!" Katrina retorted.

"I sure wish someone would explain something!" said Supersonic, getting groggily to his feet.

"Omega, you are under arrest!" came a deep female voice with a slight Spanish accent from one side. We all turned our heads in that direction as Silver Avenger Mayte Sanchez and four PRIMUS agents came walking across the street toward us, the agents holding energy rifles pointed at Omega.

Omega growled, seeing that the odds were no longer in his favor, and touched a button on his gauntlet. Nothing happened. He touched it again, and again, nothing happened. "What the hell?" he asked, sounding surprised.

I grinned. PSI's operatives have a habit of disappearing when they're in trouble, thanks to some kind of teleportation technology, but it didn't seem to be working. "Something wrong?" I taunted him.

Omega looked around at the foes arrayed against him, apparently worried now, and let loose a spray of energy bolts at the PRIMUS agents. One was hit and went down as the other three took shelter behind parked cars. Sanchez charged at Omega and swung, her fist striking his chest, causing him to cry out in pain. Silver Avengers undergo a lesser version of the biochemical enhancement that created the original Golden Avenger, and while they're not as strong or as fast as he was, they're still superhuman, able to lift about five tons. As you might imagine, being hit by someone that strong hurts, even through the protection of a suit of high-tech armor like Omega's.

As Omega was reeling from Sanchez's hit, I darted in and slashed at his left leg with my claws. Questionite is one of the hardest substances on Earth, and even though I'm not superhumanly strong, it still cut through his armor like a knife going through warm butter. He cried out again, blood flowing from the gash I'd made.

Omega activated the jet turbines on his back and shot into the air. Supersonic spread his arm webs, preparing to follow, when Katrina snatched off the squirrel's helmet and mentally paralyzed him.

"What the hell?" I asked, duplicating Omega's astonished query from a few seconds earlier as I stared at her. Katrina glanced back at me, but said nothing. The three remaining PRIMUS agents fired at Omega as he flew off, but none of their shots hit. I chucked a sleeping gas pellet at Katrina's feet, and she collapsed to the ground. Supersonic unfroze and stared down at her, completely at a loss. I touched the controls on my left gauntlet, calling my bike down to me. When it arrived, I hopped on and flew off after Omega, but with his huge head start, I doubted I could catch him. Sometimes, I hate being right.

When I returned, Supersonic was still standing there, staring down at Katrina's unconscious form, holding his helmet in his hands. The poor guy looked devastated, his tail hanging low, and my heart went out to him. From what I knew of him, he was a basically decent fellow who saw the world in very black-and-white terms, as one would expect of someone from a cartoon made in the early 1960s. This had to be killing him. Sanchez was tending to the wounded PRIMUS agent while the other three stood guard, waiting for an ambulance to arrive. As Katrina began to wake up, Sanchez rose and walked over to her, took a pair of handcuffs from her belt, and slapped them on Katrina's wrists.

"Katrina Werner," she said solemnly, "you are under arrest."

All right, let's go over it again." John Cowens, a.k.a. Kodiak, was one of three superpowered agents in the FBI and senior field agent for the special operatives branch of the FBI's Millennium City office, working closely with the MCPD. He was a hulking bear of a man, with a bushy unibrow and heavy muttonchop sideburns, and his entire body, including his enormous hands and feet, was covered with thick black hair. He never wore shoes, revealing that he had opposable big toes, like an ape's. He'd been born with superhuman strength and stamina; I'd seen him pick up a steel I-beam weighing at least a thousand pounds and lift it above his head. He was also a hell of a nice guy, though he had a rather short temper from all the teasing about his looks he'd endured growing up.

I was sitting at a table in one of the MCPD's interrogation rooms. Also at the table were Kodiak, Supersonic Squirrel, Mayte Sanchez, Katrina Werner, and a thin, swarthy, bespectacled man in a brown suit who'd been introduced to me as Anthony Abruzzi, special agent of the Justice Department. I tried to get a read on Abruzzi, but he wasn't giving anything away. His lean face was devoid of expression, and he'd scarcely said a word since he'd arrived half an hour ago. There was no lawyer present, since Katrina hadn't requested one.

"You and Miss Werner were walking back to her apartment from the restaurant," said Kodiak, addressing Supersonic, "when Omega flew down, said he intended to kill you, and then attempted to do so."

The squirrel nodded. "That's right."

"And you have no idea why Omega would want to kill you?"

"Not a clue. I never even met him before tonight."

"And when you were momentarily incapacitated, Miss Werner shielded you from Omega with her own body, which caused him to hold off."

Supersonic nodded, glancing over at Katrina, who was gazing down at the table. "Yeah, she saved my life."

"And then, after being attacked by both Silver Avenger Sanchez and Nightmunk, Omega fled, and Miss Werner prevented you from pursuing him."

The squirrel swallowed. "Yeah."

Kodiak turned to Katrina. "Why did you help Omega escape, Miss Werner?"

"I told you," Katrina said, her eyes still on the table, "I have nothing to say."

"I think the answer is fairly obvious," Abruzzi said. "She's working for PSI."

"There's no evidence of that," I interjected.

"I've had her under surveillance for some time," said Abruzzi. "She's been observed entering Mind Inc. on several occasions."

"I authorized no such surveillance," said Sanchez, looking at Abruzzi accusingly.

"With all due respect, Director," said Abruzzi, meeting her gaze without flinching, "I don't need your authorization. I report directly to the attorney general."

"If Miss Werner is working for PSI," I asked, "why did she save Supersonic?"

Abruzzi shrugged. "She's romantically involved with him." The squirrel looked embarrassed as he said this. "Apparently, her affection is at least partly genuine, enough to make her want to stop Omega from killing him."

"Or perhaps it's completely genuine, and she's not working for PSI at all."

"Then why didn't Omega kill her?" Kodiak asked. "And why did she help him escape?"

I didn't have an answer to either of those questions. I glanced at Katrina, but she was as silent as a sphinx, looking down at the table.

"Everything we know about Omega says he's a cold-blooded killer," said Abruzzi. "He was certainly ready to kill Supersonic. There's no reason he wouldn't have killed Miss Werner as well, unless she's with PSI."

"Everything we know about Omega amounts to almost nothing," said Sanchez, "including his real name, his nationality, where he got his armor, and what he looks like under it."

"She called him 'Josh,'" said Supersonic quietly. I noticed Katrina's jaw clench a bit.

"And he called her 'Kat,'" I said. "People don't generally use the informal version of someone's first name unless they have a close personal connection. However, that still doesn't prove she's with PSI. For all we know, he might just be an old boyfriend. In fact, that's pretty much how he was acting."

Sanchez nodded. "Indeed. His words suggested feelings of personal betrayal."

"Then explain her visits to Mind Inc.," Abruzzi demanded.

I shrugged. "Lots of people go to visit their exes, to patch things up, make sure there are no hard feelings, and so on. And if Omega still has feelings for her, that would explain why he didn't kill her."

"That's pure speculation," Abruzzi scoffed.

"No more than your belief that she's with PSI," I countered.

"Regardless of her motives," said Kodiak, "one thing is clear: Miss Werner is guilty of aiding and abetting a known felon."

"Not just any felon," said Abruzzi. "PSI's chief of security. If we'd caught him, we'd have had the keys to the kingdom. We could have wiped PSI off the map. Which means anything they do from this point on is because of her." He glared at Katrina, who continued ignoring him.

"I am forced to agree with Agent Abruzzi on this point," said Sanchez, though she was clearly unhappy about it. "Capturing Omega would have crippled PSI, perhaps even destroyed them utterly. They are already in bad shape. Three of their biggest guns—Psymon, Medusa, and Mind Slayer—are all locked up in Stronghold, thanks to Nightmunk." She smiled at me.

I squirmed in my chair. "Well, it wasn't just me. I had some help from the Heroes of Zoolok."

Abruzzi raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"A group of superheroes on a parallel Earth," I said. "I got sent there a couple years ago when Kevin Poe dropped something called a quantum inversion bomb on Mind Inc. headquarters, which transposed all the molecules in its area of effect with their counterparts in another dimension. I was on the roof of Mind Inc. at the time, so I got taken along for the ride."

"Yeah," said Kodiak, "I remember that. For a few weeks there was a patch of farmland where Mind Inc. is now."

"Eventually," I continued, "the Heroes of Zoolok managed to figure out how to reverse the process and send me and Mind Inc. home. In the meantime, I teamed up with them to defeat Psymon, Medusa, and Mind Slayer when they tried to take over Zoolok."

"So you brought them back to Earth," Abruzzi said sharply.

"Well, it would have been pretty cruel to strand them on an alien world," I said. "Plus, it would have made them Zoolok's problem, which wouldn't have been fair to them. They don't need Earth using their planet as a dumping ground for our supervillains. They have villains of their own."

Abruzzi shook his head, presumably at the absurdity of my story, and I had to admit, after hearing myself recite it, it did sound pretty ridiculous. I wouldn't have believed it myself if I hadn't actually lived through it, and I hadn't even mentioned that the inhabitants of Zoolok were all anthropomorphic animals like myself. Then again, he was having this discussion with a squirrel and a chipmunk. "You know, Nightmunk," he said, "there's something puzzling me. How did you know to come to Supersonic's aid? It seems awfully convenient that in a city this big, you just happened to show up at the right time and place to prevent his murder."

"I've been wondering the same thing about Director Sanchez," I said, looking at her.

"I received an anonymous tip," Sanchez replied. "The information regarding what would happen was very specific, so I used the teleportation pad at PRIMUS headquarters to hop to our Millennium City offices. It is reserved for emergencies, due to the amount of energy it requires, but I felt that an assassination attempt on one of our agents qualified."

"Why didn't you call Supersonic and warn him?" I asked.

"I tried, but he did not answer. That is why I came myself."

Supersonic looked surprised. "I never received any call from you, Director!"

"Cell phones can be blocked," I said. "I also received an anonymous tip, so I came to check it out."

"What does all this mean?" asked Kodiak, clearly confused.

"It sounds to me like someone has been moving us around like pawns on a chessboard," I said. "And I'm starting to wonder if Omega wasn't just another piece in the game."

"How do you figure that?" asked Supersonic.

"Members of PSI normally teleport out when they're in danger of being captured," I said. "Omega tried to do that, but for some reason it didn't work."

"You think someone set him up?" asked Kodiak.

"I think it's a distinct possibility." I looked at Katrina. She was staring at the table, her lips pressed tightly together.

"If that is true," said Sanchez, "it would mean that there is some person or persons inside PSI working against him!" She looked intrigued by the idea.

"That's highly probable," I said. "Mentalists tend to have big egos, and personalities to match. With three of their top people in jail, there could be some kind of power struggle going on within PSI."

Sanchez nodded. "Then this could be our best chance to destroy them!"

"Our best chance to destroy them was by capturing Omega," Abruzzi retorted, "but Miss Werner blew that for us!"

I glared at him. "Did it ever occur to you that maybe if you stopped leaning on her, she'd be more willing to cooperate?"

Abruzzi laughed harshly. "Cooperate? She has a long history of defying authority. Just ask the faculty at Ravenswood Academy. They expelled her for using her powers to commit petty larceny!"

"Maybe she defies authority because so many people in authority are dicks like you!" I snarled.

Abruzzi gave me an icy look. "You know, with one phone call, I could have your registered hero status revoked."

I spread my gloved hands. "Go for it."

He blinked, clearly unaccustomed to people standing up to his bullying. "I'm not joking, Nightmunk. I could make it happen."

"I'm sure you could," I replied. "And then I'd appeal it, and there'd be a hearing, and all the details about your activities here would become public knowledge. So you'd better be real sure you want the public to know you've been conducting illegal electronic eavesdropping on an American citizen before you start making threats, Agent Abruzzi."

"What?" Kodiak and Sanchez asked in unison, gaping at Abruzzi.

"He planted two bugs in Katrina Werner's apartment," I said.

Katrina stared at the Justice Department man. "You son of a bitch!" she spat.

"I have a warrant for those bugs," Abruzzi said defensively.

"Really?" I asked. "Let's see it."

He looked flustered. "I don't have it on me!"
"You don't have it at all!" I sneered. "You need probable cause to get a warrant, and what probable cause could you offer when the subject has no arrests, no convictions, and isn't a suspect in any crime? No judge on this planet would issue a warrant under those circumstances. You're lying through your teeth, Abruzzi!"

Abruzzi glared at me, his face turning bright red as I called his bluff, and I grinned back at him. I hate guys like him with a passion, guys for whom the ends always justify the means, who think that having a badge places them above the law. Before I patted myself on the back, however, I remembered that the Justice Department man was clearly no fool. Eventually, he would find a way to make my life miserable. I'd just made a powerful enemy, as if I didn't have enough of those already. But for the moment, I sat back and enjoyed my victory over corrupt, tyrannical authority. That he'd been beaten by a three-foot talking chipmunk made it all that much sweeter.

"I shall have to speak to the attorney general about this," said Sanchez, eyeing Abruzzi coldly. I'd already surmised that there wasn't a lot of love lost between these two. I glanced at Supersonic. He seemed to be torn between unease at the trouble I was causing and pleasure at seeing Abruzzi with egg on his face.

Supersonic hopped down off his chair and went to Katrina, grasping her hand and squeezing it as he looked up at her imploringly. "Please, Kat, tell us what's going on! Someone tried to kill me tonight! Doesn't that mean anything to you? Don't you even care?"

Katrina looked down at the squirrel and swallowed. "I'm sorry, lover. I can't."

Supersonic hung his head. He let go of her hand, turned, and left the room, while the rest of us sat there in awkward silence. Even Abruzzi looked uncomfortable. Maybe the guy actually had a heart after all. Kodiak rose and went over to Katrina, placing a huge, hairy hand on her shoulder. "If you'll come with me, Miss Werner," he said. She nodded and stood up, and they left the room together. Deciding that Sanchez might want to be alone with Abruzzi, I followed Katrina and Kodiak out.

I heard it said somewhere that one day all good things come to an end

I turn around to see you. If I do or not it all depends

I was born the day I met you

Lived a while when you loved me

Died a little when we broke apart

Yesterday it would have mattered

Now today it doesn't mean a thing

All my hopes and dreams have shattered now

I'm in a lonely place without you

I'm in a lonely place without you

The Smithereens

I found Supersonic sitting on a sofa in the lobby of police headquarters, hugging himself, his huge black eyes staring at the linoleum floor. Some people in the lobby were gawking at him and whispering to each other, while others just went about their business. This was Millennium City, after all. I walked over to him, a cup of coffee in each hand.

"Want some coffee?" I asked, holding out a cup to him.

The squirrel looked at me, took the cup, sipped from it, and made a face. "This is awful!"

"What do you expect from a vending machine?" I asked. "You want good coffee, go to Starbucks." I took a gulp from my own cup. It really was bad. "Katrina's being booked right now. It'll be a few hours before her arraignment. I figure we can put that time to good use."

Supersonic blinked. "We?"

I nodded. "As in you and me."

"What's your interest in all this?" he asked.

"Whatever PSI is up to, I want to put a stop to it. Also, someone sent that text warning me you were in danger. I'd like to find out who it was." I looked at him intently. "You in?"

He sighed. "I dunno. I'm starting to wonder if I'm cut out for this."

I nodded and took another sip of coffee. "I just overheard Abruzzi saying the same thing about you to Sanchez."

Supersonic looked at me pensively. "What did she say?"

"She mentioned that you scored higher on standardized psychological stress tests than anyone in the history of PRIMUS. Including her."

The squirrel nodded. "Yeah, I did."

It actually made sense if you thought about it. On his show, he'd ended up in perilous situations on a weekly basis. Granted, they'd been artificial perils, created by the writers, but he hadn't known that. To him, they'd been very real. When he'd been tied up next to a ticking time bomb, he'd really believed that he was about to be blown to bits. Most people would have cracked under that kind of pressure.

"A lot has changed since my time, though," Supersonic said. "I don't even belong in this world." He sighed and took another sip of his coffee.

I chuckled. "And I do? We're both refugees from early 1960s cartoons. I was created by genetic engineering, while you were brought to life by magic, but regardless of how we got here, we're here. We just have to make the best of it."

"So, what did you have in mind?" Supersonic asked.

"I'd like to search Katrina's apartment."

He frowned. "You already did that."

"Yeah, but I didn't know what I was looking for then."
"And now you do?"

I nodded. "I want to find some clue about her link to Omega."

"That's gonna be kind of hard, since we don't know who he is or what he looks like."

"We know his first name is Josh, which is more than we knew before."

"That's not much to go on," Supersonic said doubtfully.

I shrugged. "I've solved cases starting with less."

Supersonic drained the last of his coffee, sent the cup floating to a wastebasket with a gust of wind, and hopped down off the sofa. "Okay, let's go."

We went.

When we arrived at Carlton Arms, Supersonic let us into Katrina's apartment, since of course he had a key. I removed Abruzzi's bugs from their hiding places and gave them to the squirrel, who looked down at them in disgust as they sat in his palm. "Whoever's on the other end of these," he said, "show's over. Buzz off!" He created a sphere of high-pressure air in his palm that smashed them flat, then dropped them in the trash. That done, we began methodically tossing the apartment.

"Your girlfriend travels light," I commented as I looked through the drawers of her computer desk. "There's hardly anything here."

"Well, she's only lived here a few months," said Supersonic from the bedroom. "And Kat's not exactly the sentimental type."

"There is that picture of you on her nightstand," I reminded him.

"Yeah," he replied.

I closed the desk drawers and went into the bedroom. Supersonic was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking morose, his hands folded in his lap.

"I guess it's my fault," he said sadly.

"How do you figure?" I asked.

"I was away for months, training to be a PRIMUS agent. If I'd been here, maybe I could have protected her from whatever she's gotten herself into."

I sighed. "Supersonic, there's a difference between protecting people from supervillains and protecting them from themselves. You can't protect people from themselves, because that's not protection."

He looked at me. "What is it?"

"Meddling. Anyway, I'd lay odds that whatever relationship she has with Omega existed long before she ever met you."

"What makes you say that?" he asked.

"They seemed to know each other pretty well. And no one who's willing to commit cold-blooded murder is going to let a recent acquaintance stop them from killing their target." I looked around the rather spartan bedroom. "I don't think we're gonna find anything useful here."

"Then I guess we've hit a dead end," said Supersonic, sighing.

"For the moment," I said. "I'd like to visit Ravenswood Academy tomorrow, see if anyone there knows anything." I glanced at him. "Abruzzi said she was expelled for using her powers to steal. Is that true?"

Supersonic hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah, it's true." He looked at me with a guilty expression on his bucktoothed face. "But it was just small stuff! Nothing valuable!"

I smiled. "Hey, you don't have to convince me it's no big deal."

"No," he said, looking away. "Just myself."

My cell phone buzzed. I took it out and checked it. There was a text message from the same number as the last one. It read: "Incoming. Watch your heads." I put my phone away, ran to the doorway, and switched off the bedroom light.

"What are you—" Supersonic began.

"We're about to have company," I said. I could hear the sound of the front door lock being picked, and drew a crescent-shaped throwing blade from my belt, holding it between my thumb and index finger as my pulse quickened.

The door opened, and three men and one woman wearing black suits, ties, and leather coats entered the apartment, casting their eyes around the living room. PSI agents. I stepped out of the bedroom, my right arm raised, throwing blade at the ready. "Hi!" I said. "Looking for something?"

One of the men narrowed his eyes at me, and a bolt of magenta energy shot from his forehead and struck mine. Fortunately, the anti-psi circuitry in my hood blocked most of it, so all I felt was a slight twinge of pain. I hurled my blade at him, and it beaned him on his forehead, ricocheted off, and hit the forehead of the man closest to him. I'd used one that had a dulled edge so as not to cause serious harm, but it did succeed in stunning both of them.

Seeing that mental attacks weren't working, the woman and the remaining man each summoned transparent blades of magenta energy in each hand and charged. I popped the questionite talons on my gauntlets and held them up defensively, parrying as they stabbed at me. They were competent fighters, like all PSI agents, but I'd been trained by Nighthawk himself. They weren't remotely in my league. While I kept them busy, Supersonic came up behind me and fired a blast of wind from his hands that sent them flying across the room and into the wall, where they both slumped to the floor, unconscious.

"Now," I said, walking toward the two I'd stunned as they began to recover, "let's have a little talk, shall we?" Then I stopped. There was someone else out in the hall. I whipped out another throwing blade and held it ready.

The person in the hall came forward. He was a tall man in his late twenties with black hair and eyes and a muscular build. He was wearing a black body suit with a reddish-orange fiery design on his gloves, boots, and trunk. Around him flowed a black cloak with an orange lining. I recognized him from his FBI file as Harold Gripp, a.k.a. Soulfire, one of PSI's top enforcers. He had the psychokinetic ability to cause living things to spontaneously combust. The effect was similar to putting them in a microwave oven. He was incredibly dangerous.

I neither spoke nor waited for him to speak. You don't fool around with people like that. I just hurled my throwing blade directly at his head. Soulfire concentrated, and the blade ignited and burned up. I blinked. There'd been nothing in his file about his power being able to affect metal. Apparently, he'd learned a new trick.

"You don't know how lucky you are, Nightmunk," said Soulfire, glaring at me. I stared back at him, confused. I was right in his sights. Why wasn't he setting me on fire? Then Supersonic came running out of the bedroom and fired a blast of wind at Soulfire, knocking him back into the hallway. I dashed out into the hall, just in time to see Soulfire, lying sprawled on the carpet, touch a gold ring on the ring finger of his left hand and vanish.

I ran back into the apartment. The two PSI agents I'd stunned had also disappeared, but the two Supersonic had blasted into the wall were still there, unconscious. I went over to them, removed the rings from their fingers, and examined them. They resembled college rings, set with magenta crystals and emblazoned with the Greek letter psi. I discovered that the crystals could be pushed in, like pressing a button. No doubt that was how they were activated. I tried pushing one, but nothing happened.

"What are those?" asked Supersonic, coming over to me.

"These are how PSI agents teleport out of danger," I replied.

He stared at them. "Those little things let them teleport?"

"I imagine they're just components in a much larger system. There's probably a central unit somewhere that they're linked to."

"Can we use them to find it?" the squirrel asked.

I shook my head. "I just tried that. No dice. They must be keyed to their individual wearer somehow."

"Makes sense," said Supersonic. "They wouldn't want just anyone using them." He looked at me. "Why do you suppose they came here?"

"Probably looking for the same thing we were—anything that might link Omega to your girlfriend. Fortunately, we seem to have a guardian angel."

"That phone call you got?"

I nodded. "Same number as the one that tipped me off that you were in danger."

"Maybe we can trace it!" said Supersonic excitedly.

"I doubt that would do any good. Whoever's behind this is too smart to get caught that easily. Besides, they seem to be on our side."

Supersonic frowned. "But if they're on our side, why don't they just tell us what's going on?"

I shrugged. "Maybe they can't. Maybe they don't want to risk exposing themselves. Or maybe they have an agenda of their own."

"That's a lot of maybes," said Supersonic.

"Well, one thing we know for certain is that someone inside PSI is helping us. They've given us advance warnings twice now, and they tried to help us capture Omega by preventing him from teleporting out."

Supersonic nodded. "And we know PSI is worried we might find out who Omega is, otherwise they wouldn't have come here tonight." Then his huge eyes widened in alarm. "What if they decide to go after Katrina?"

"If they wanted to silence her, Omega could have done it easily earlier tonight," I reminded him.

"Oh, yeah, right," said Supersonic. He shook his head. "I still don't understand why he hates me so much. I never did anything to him!"

"And I don't understand why Soulfire didn't burn me alive when he had the chance. He said I didn't know how lucky I was. What did he mean by that?"

"Have you ever encountered him before?" Supersonic asked.

"No, never. He wasn't there when I rescued Brianna Biselle from PSI."

Supersonic groaned. "This is all really confusing!" He looked down at the two unconscious PSI agents. "Maybe they can tell us what's going on."

"Even if they knew, getting information out of PSI agents is almost impossible. They're trained to resist interrogation and telepathic probing, and they're conditioned to be loyal to PSI. I'm gonna hit Ravenswood tomorrow. You can come along if you like. In the meantime, would you mind handing these two over to the cops for me?" I gestured at the two PSI agents. "I'm really tired."

Supersonic nodded. "Yeah, no problem. And Nightmunk?"

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Thanks. For everything."

I grinned. "Hey, us sciurids gotta stick together, right?" I left the apartment, went downstairs to where my bike was parked on the sidewalk, hopped on, and flew off.

Ravenswood Academy was a school for people with paranormal abilities, where they could learn how to control their gifts and use them constructively. The main campus was in a suburb of Millennium City called Orchardsville, but an inner-city campus had recently opened northwest of the Renaissance Center in order to take advantage of the high-tech facilities in the city. It was here that Katrina Werner had been a student, and here that I met Supersonic Squirrel the following morning. He looked dejected, which didn't exactly surprise me. He told me that Katrina had been released on bail, which he had posted for her. Then she had disappeared, refusing to tell him where she was going. He had no idea where she was now.

We walked together across the green lawns of the campus, beneath the spreading branches of stately oaks and maples. The buildings looked like Victorian mansions, but as with almost everything in Millennium City, they were of relatively recent construction, having been built on the ruins of Detroit after that city had been leveled by Doctor Destroyer in 1992. The students wore uniforms consisting of navy blue blazers, white shirts, and forest green ties, with dark gray slacks for the boys and blue-and-purple plaid skirts for the girls. Most of them looked like normal humans, but some had features that marked them as paranormals—such as unusual skin, hair, or eye colors—and a few had clearly nonhuman appearances. I saw one boy who resembled a goblin—short with green skin and pointed ears—and a very large girl with the head, hooves, fur, and tail of a cow.

Our inquires directed us to a girl named Ronnie Marsh who had apparently been a friend of Katrina's, and we made our way across the campus toward her dorm room. We were attracting a fair amount of attention among the students, but that was to be expected. I was reasonably well-known in Millennium City, and Supersonic was a bonafide celebrity, both for his status as a former cartoon star and for having spoken at the Golden Avenger's funeral on national television.

The door was answered by a petite, blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl in her late teens. Her eyes bulged when she saw us. "Oh wow!" she exclaimed. "You're furry!"

"Actually, I'm Nightmunk, and this is Supersonic Squirrel," I said, smiling up at her. "Are you Ronnie Marsh?"

She shook her head furiously. "Oh, no no no! I'm Lucy Evans, Ronnie's roommate." Her eyes focused on Supersonic, sparkling with excitement. She appeared to be a bit hyperactive. "You're Katrina's friend, aren't you? I remember her hugging you on TV! Tell me, what was it like shaking hands with the President?"

Supersonic smiled. "Well, it was a sad occasion, being a funeral and all, but it was still a real thrill!"

"Is Miss Marsh here?" I asked.

"Oh yeah, yeah, she's here." Lucy turned and hollered into the room. "Ronnie!" Then she turned back to us. "Please, won't you come in?"

We entered a small dorm room that was decorated with posters of popular music groups, and a slim black girl sat up on one of the beds, taking off a pair of headphones she'd been wearing. She stared at us in amazement. "What the hell?" she asked.

"Hello," I said, smiling at her. "I'm Nightmunk and this is Supersonic Squirrel. We're friends of Katrina Werner's. We were hoping you might be able to help us out."

She continued to stare at us, her brain apparently struggling to process the fact that there were two short, furry animal people in her room. She looked at Supersonic. "You're that squirrel dude she hugged on TV."

"Yeah, that was me," Supersonic replied.

Her eyes narrowed as she noticed the badge on his chest. "You a cop?"

"I'm a PRIMUS agent," said Supersonic, "so yeah, I'm a cop."

"I'm not too crazy about cops," she said, looking at him suspiciously, "but you're a friend of Kat's, so I guess you're okay. What do you want?"

"Did she ever mention anyone named Josh?" I asked.

She blinked, then shook her head. "No, never."

I frowned. "Miss Marsh, please. Katrina's in trouble, and we're trying to get her out of it. To do that, we need to find out what her connection to Josh is."

"Sorry, I can't help you," Ronnie said, putting her headphones back on and lying back on the bed.

I glanced over at Supersonic, who simply shrugged. It was obvious that she knew something. It was just as obvious that she had no intention of telling us what it was. I was about to speak when a deep, grating voice from behind us said, "See, Brain, I told ya!"

Supersonic and I both turned to see four male students gawking at us from the hallway. One was a rather ordinary-looking youth with dark brown hair, brown eyes, and average height, weight, and build. His eyes, however, were sharp and intense. Another was handsome, square-jawed, and broad-shouldered, with sandy hair and hazel eyes, wearing a cowboy hat along with his school uniform and seated in a motorized wheelchair. The third wore thick, Coke-bottle glasses that greatly magnified his watery blue eyes, reminding me of my late brother, Simon. He was short and thin, with a hawklike nose, weak chin, and large ears, his black hair in desperate need of a comb. His uniform displayed a similar lack of tidyness, with a flap of his shirt dangling over his belt and his tie hanging loose around his scrawny neck. A leather satchel was slung over one nearly nonexistent shoulder. The fourth was wide and brawny, with a square block of a head and scraggly black hair. The grin on his broad face exposed a gap between his front teeth, and his small black eyes glittered beneath a brow that wouldn't have looked out of place on your average Neanderthal.

"Seems you were right for once, Brutus," said the boy with the glasses, in a reedy, nasal voice that was a joy to listen to. Then again, I should talk.

"That's Supersonic Squirrel," said the boy in the wheelchair, with a pronounced Western drawl. "Ah saw him shakin' hands with th' President on TV!"

"I remember, Duke," said the ordinary-looking boy. "And that's Nighthawk's partner, Nightmunk." He regarded me with a trace of disapproval, though whether it was due to my costume or the fact that I was a manimal I couldn't tell.

Lucy gave an exaggerated sigh. "Permit me to introduce my friends. These are Ptolemy 'Brain' Morgenstern, Ferdinand 'Duke' Lascalla, Arthur 'Brutus' Monroe, and Henry Abbott."

I looked up at Henry. "What, no nickname for you?"

"Naw," said Duke, chuckling. "Henry's too square fer that!" Henry glanced down at him with mild annoyance.

"So," said Brain, addressing Supersonic, "are you and Katrina doing it?"

"Brain!" cried Lucy, looking appalled. "What a thing to say!"

"Oh, come on!" Brain scoffed. "You know you were all thinking it. I'm just the only one with the guts to ask."

"You mean with the rudeness!" Lucy sniffed.

"Yeah, I thought I was the rude one!" said Brutus, grinning.

I glanced at Supersonic. Given that he was from the early 1960s, I expected him to be shocked and embarrassed by Brain's question, and he did appear to be, but only for a second. Then, his mouth curled into a smirk. "It's okay, Miss Evans," he said. "I'd expect him to be curious, considering he's obviously never even kissed a girl!"

The others all stared at him. Then Lucy, Duke, and Brutus burst out laughing, while Henry broke a small smile. Brain's enlarged eyes went wide behind his glasses, and his face turned beet red. "Yeah, well, at least I don't run around without any clothes on!" he snarled at the squirrel.

"And I'm sure everyone appreciates that," said Supersonic, grinning, which caused Brain to turn an even darker shade of red.

As amusing as this was, Supersonic and I had come here for a reason. I went over to Ronnie, who was lying on her bed with her headphones on, oblivous to the outside world. She sighed as I approached, took them off, and sat up. "Look, I told you I don't know anything!" she said, annoyed.

"We know Josh is a supervillain called Omega, Miss Marsh," I said, "and he tried to kill Supersonic last night." Her eyes widened at that. "There's every reason to think he'll try again, and if he succeeds next time because you refused to help, you could be charged as an accessory to murder!"

Henry cleared his throat. "Actually, we covered this in Criminal Law last week, and I can tell you that's not true, Ronnie."

Supersonic nodded. "He's right. She doesn't have to tell us anything."

I rolled my eyes. I'd been hoping she wouldn't know that. "Okay, you wouldn't be legally guilty," I said, "but you'd have to live with the knowledge that someone died when you might have been able to prevent it. Are you prepared to do that, Miss Marsh?"

Ronnie looked uncertain. Lucy came over and sat down on the bed beside her, putting an arm around her. "Maybe you should tell them what you know, Ronnie. I mean, you don't want Supersonic's death on your conscience, do you?"

"A warrior must defend the weak," said Brutus solemnly. I doubted Supersonic appreciated being referred to as "weak," but at this point I was grateful for any help we could get.

"It'd be th' right thing to do," said Duke.

"Yes, it would," said Henry, nodding.

"What, betraying a friend's trust?" Ronnie asked defiantly.

Brain shrugged. "Sometimes, doing the right thing requires making hard choices," he said. I stared at him in surprise. I certainly hadn't been expecting any help from that little creep!

Ronnie looked at me and opened her mouth to speak, when something strange happened. Her expression suddenly changed to one of pure hatred and disgust. "Get away from me, you animal!" she yelled, and threw a punch at me. She was incredibly fast, faster than any normal human, and I was so surprised that I didn't have a chance to block as her fist struck my cheek. Fortunately, she wasn't especially strong, so it didn't hurt too much. I stepped back, rubbing my cheek and staring at her. Her change in attitude had been so fast and complete it couldn't possibly be natural. I turned my gaze to Lucy. She was looking at me with the same expression, her lips pulled back, teeth bared ferociously. That confirmed my suspicion. This had PSI written all over it.

Lucy raised her hands, which were now glowing black, and aimed them at me. "Die, you furry freak!" she hissed. This time I was ready. I whirled aside as twin bolts of blackness shot from her hands and blew a hole in the wall beside the boys. I had a brief moment to register the looks on their faces. Duke, Brain, and Henry were all staring at Ronnie and Lucy in astonishment. Brutus, on the other hand, was looking at Supersonic and licking his lips.

"Supersonic, behind you!" I shouted. The squirrel spun just as Brutus lunged, tackling Supersonic and slamming him to the floor. Brutus opened his mouth wide, drooling copiously, seemingly intent on taking a bite out of him. Supersonic raised his hands and created a shield of solidified air, blocking Brutus's attempt to sink his teeth into the squirrel's throat. A moment later, Duke leaped out of his wheelchair, and he and Henry dog-piled on Brutus, trying to pull him off Supersonic, while Brain had unslung his satchel and was frantically rummaging through it.

"Let go of me!" Brutus snarled, slobbering like a savage beast. "I wanna eat him!"

"What th' hell is goin' on?" asked Duke as he and Henry held onto Brutus's writhing, husky form. I didn't have a chance to reply, as Ronnie had put her headphones back on and was now moving like a seasoned martial artist, hands raised, body balanced, ready to attack from multiple angles, while Lucy was building up another darkness bolt. I wasn't sure I could beat both of these girls, and I didn't want to fight them anyway, so I tossed a handful of sleep gas pellets at their feet. Lucy collapsed onto the bed, but Ronnie somersaulted backward, away from the gas, landing on her feet and glaring at me. Her back was to the window, and through it I could see two women standing on the lawn outside. I recognized them from their FBI files.

One had short reddish-brown hair and a pale complexion and was wearing a dark brown leotard and boots with pale blue gloves, belt, and cape. Her name was Natalia Soyev, a.k.a. Impulse, a Russian geneticist who could manipulate emotions over a large area. The other had long curly black hair and blue eyes and wore a black leotard under a billowy pink blouse, with a gold necklace and belt. She was Barbara Wright, a.k.a. Lady Mirage, a former housewife from upstate New York who could create terrifying mental images, so terrifying that they could kill by inducing heart failure. Both of them worked for PSI.

I glanced back at Supersonic. Duke and Henry had managed to pull Brutus off him. "Two PSI agents outside!" I shouted, pointing at them. The squirrel nodded and was off like a shot, shattering the window as he exploded through it. Unfortunately, I'd taken my eyes off Ronnie, and she took full advantage of the opening I'd provided, launching herself at me and aiming a kick at my head. I barely managed to get my arm up in time to block. Even so, the impact knocked me off my feet, and I ended up on my back, dazed.

"Have you got him?" Henry asked Duke, as Brutus struggled against them.

Duke nodded. "Go!" Henry let go of Brutus and ran out into the hall. I wasn't entirely sure what was going on. Perhaps Henry was going for help? No, he would have used his cell phone for that. I didn't have time to ponder it any further, as Ronnie attempted to stomp on my head. I managed to seize her foot and, with both hands, use it to throw her upward. She somersaulted in midair, landing on her feet, which gave me a second to kip up onto mine. We stood there for a moment, studying each other.

Brain had removed a red plastic band from his satchel and wrapped it around Brutus's forehead while Duke held Brutus fast. I noted that even though they were roughly equal in size and build, Duke didn't seem to be exerting any effort, as if Brutus's strength meant nothing to him. The moment Brain put the headband on him, Brutus blinked and stopped struggling. "What just happened?" he asked.

"You were mind controlled," Brain replied as Duke released his hold on Brutus, "by one of those women out there." He pointed at the broken window.

Brutus growled and reached into his blazer, removing a black domino mask from one of its pockets and putting it on. Then he tore open his shirt, revealing a Day-Glo orange T-shirt with a turquoise star in the center. He dropped his trousers, beneath which he wore a pair of boxer shorts with alternating lime green and magenta stripes, the waistband studded with gold stars and Christmas tree lights. It was without a doubt the gaudiest, tackiest, most ridiculous costume I'd ever seen, and I'd seen some beauts.

"This is a job for the Masked Avenger!" Brutus yelled, charging across the room between Ronnie and myself and bounding out the broken window. I just stared at him as he went by, dumbstruck.

My attention was yanked back to reality as Ronnie came at me again, pirouetting like a ballerina, a crescent kick arcing toward my head. I blocked and gave ground, which she took, flipping forward. I noticed she had a tendency to perform flashy maneuvers that, while graceful, served no practical purpose, almost as though she was more concerned with looking good than fighting well. Even so, she was faster than me, and I was hard pressed to defend myself, hampered as I was by the fact that I didn't want to hurt her, since she wasn't responsible for her actions.

"I'm sorry, Ronnie," said Brain, aiming a device at her that resembled a phaser from the original Star Trek. A bright beam of light shot out of it, accompanied by a screeching sound familiar to anyone who has ever watched that show. It struck her square in the back, and she collapsed to the floor, unconscious. Brain gazed down at her, his magnified eyes filled with sorrow behind his glasses.

"Thanks," I said and ran to the broken window, jumping through and landing on the grass outside.

Immediately, I realized we had a serious problem. Impulse was influencing the emotions of a large portion of the student body, apparently instilling them with a pathological hatred of anyone who looked like an animal. What was worse, many of her victims had superpowers. Supersonic was being mobbed and had created a vortex of wind around himself to push his attackers back, deflecting ice bolts and sonic blasts they were shooting at him. I also saw the cow-girl I'd noticed earlier being chased by several students, one of whom was hurling balls of fire at her. In the midst of all this chaos, the garish form of the Masked Avenger charged across the lawn toward the two women from PSI, who both stared at him in disbelief.

"In the name of justice!" Brutus bellowed, barreling at Impulse and Lady Mirage like a locomotive decorated by preschoolers. Since he didn't look like an animal, the mind-controlled students weren't paying any attention to him. Mirage raised her hands like claws, apparently trying to conjure some mental image that would scare him to death, but it was her face that grew fearful, as her power had no effect on him. They both started backing away as he grew closer, his feet kicking up clods of dirt.

All at once, the students shifted their attention to Brutus. Impulse must have realized that neither she nor Lady Mirage could affect him directly, and had made him the target of the students' hatred. Fireballs, ice bolts, sonic blasts, and other superpowered attacks began flying at Brutus, hitting him but not doing much damage. Apparently, he was resistant to harm. They were wearing him down, however, and his advance slowed considerably. Still, he continued struggling forward, like a true hero.

I had just begun running after Brutus, intent on providing him with whatever support I could, when someone shot past me in a blur of motion, covering the hundred or so feet between me and the two psionics in a split second. I had a fleeting glimpse of a purple spandex costume with yellow lightning bolts along the sides, yellow gloves, and a white crash helmet. The speedster slammed into Impulse, and she landed on her back a good ten feet away. Immediately, the attacks on Brutus ceased.

Lady Mirage turned her attention on the purple speedster, and he screamed, grabbing his helmet and falling to the ground. "Henry!" Brutus cried, then howled with rage, ran up to Lady Mirage, and lunged, biting her on the shoulder. She screamed in pain and staggered backward, clutching her bleeding shoulder as she stared at Brutus in shock and horror. Then she touched her teleport ring and vanished. A second later, Impulse did the same.

I ran up to Henry, who was lying spread-eagled on the grass, and knelt down beside him. His eyes were wide and blank, and he wasn't breathing. Whatever illusion Lady Mirage had hit him with, it had apparently been terrifying enough to send him into cardiac arrest. I began pressing my palms down on his chest, trying to administer CPR. Supersonic flew over and landed beside me. He didn't wait to be told what to do. He knelt down, pulled off Henry's crash helmet, and started breathing into the boy's mouth as I continued to pump his chest. Brutus stood over us, watching anxiously.

As the two of us worked to save Henry, the other superteens began to arrive—Duke first, racing up in his wheelchair with Brain in his lap, then Ronnie, and finally Lucy, who seemed to congeal out of a cloud of darkness. "Henry, no!" she cried, sobbing and trembling.

I checked Henry's pulse as Supersonic continued breathing into his mouth. "He's not responding," I said through clenched teeth, and Lucy shrieked in despair, covering her face as Ronnie put her arms around her and held her tightly.

"Let me in there!" said Brain, and he jumped down off Duke's lap and knelt beside me, some weird gizmo clutched in his scrawny right hand.

"What's that?" I asked.

"I call it GUARD," Brain replied. "It stands for Get Up And Reanimate, Dummy."

I looked at him. "You're not very good at acronyms, are you?"

Brain shook his head. "No, not really. But I am good at gadgets, and if this doesn't bring him back, nothing will!" He placed the thing atop Henry's chest. "Clear!" Supersonic pulled back, and Brain pressed a button on GUARD. Henry's body jerked as if the thing had just shot ten thousand volts through it, which for all I knew, it had. Then he groaned, a sound that was music to all our ears.

Lucy broke free from Ronnie, ran to Brain, and threw her arms around him. "Oh, Brain, you're a genius!" she said, kissing his cheek, which caused his face to burn scarlet.

"Um, yeah, I know," said Brain, looking incredibly awkward and embarrassed, which was actually kind of adorable. "We, uh, we should get him to a hospital. GUARD is still in the experimental stage. It may have done more harm than good."

"I don't see how it could have," I said, "since he was clinically dead."

"Mercy Hospital is just down the street," said Supersonic. "I'll take him there." The squirrel picked up Henry's still unconscious body in his arms and flew off toward the hospital at blinding speed. Lucy dissolved into a cloud of darkness and flew after them. Then I noticed that both the campus police and the MCPD had begun showing up. There were a lot of questions coming, and as the only registered hero on the scene, I was going to be the one stuck answering them. I wasn't looking forward to the next few hours.

"I need to talk to you about Josh," said Ronnie, who had come over to stand beside me.

I looked up at her. "Not worried about betraying a friend's trust?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Not after what those PSI bastards did to Henry." She knelt down to be eye to eye with me. "Kat mentioned him to me once. He goes by the name Joshua Barclay, but his real name is Joshua Werner. He's her big brother."

I blinked. Of course, that explained everything—why he'd been unwilling to kill Katrina, why she'd helped him escape, and why he hated Supersonic. His sister was dating a squirrel! I nodded to Ronnie. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," said Ronnie. Then she hugged herself, shivering. "If I'd told you sooner, maybe Henry wouldn't . . . wouldn't . . ."

I put my arms around her and held her close as she trembled against me. "It wasn't your fault," I said, quietly.

She nodded, tears rolling down her cheeks. I got the impression that she was used to acting tough and not letting anyone see her pain. This had to be hard for her. She pulled back and looked at me, her dark eyes blazing with anger. "I wanna hurt 'em! I wanna hurt 'em bad!"

"Same here!" said Duke, slamming his fist into his palm, eyes narrowed with fierce determination.

"Henry will be avenged!" snarled Brutus. "This I swear!"

"We'll talk about this later," I said. The police were coming over to speak with me. I sighed and went to meet them.

Katrina Werner entered the sleek, spotless lobby of Mind Inc., striding past the receptionist's desk. The well-dressed, neatly-groomed man behind the desk rose, saying, "Just a moment, miss!" Katrina whirled and glared at him, a tendril of thought flashing from her forehead to his, and he sat down and stared at nothing as she continued on her way.

She walked down a corridor and past several offices until she arrived at one bearing a nameplate that read, "Joshua Barclay, Director of Security." The door was open. Sitting at a desk in the pleasant, brightly lit office was a large, muscular man with dark brown skin and short black hair, wearing a neatly tailored gray suit. There was a long, jagged scar across his right cheek. His dark eyes flicked up at her from some papers he'd been reading. "Hello, Kat," he said, in a deep voice. "I'd been wondering when you'd show up."

"What the hell is wrong with you, Josh?" Katrina demanded.

Barclay rose from behind his desk, walked over, closed the door, then turned to face her. "What the hell is wrong with me? You're the one sleeping with a goddamned rodent!"

Katrina smirked at him. "You know, considering our mother is black and our father is white, I'd think you'd be a little more open-minded."

"Open-minded? He's not human!"

She shrugged. "They used to say the same thing about black people. Look, I didn't come here to defend my choice of boyfriend. I've tried to persuade you to leave PSI before PRIMUS shuts them down, but you won't listen. Fine, it's your life. But leave Supersonic alone! He's done nothing to you!"

Barclay scowled. "Apart from turning my little sister into an animal lover!"

Katrina narrowed her eyes. "Don't go there, Josh. I'm a big girl. I can make my own decisions. I don't need you to protect me!"

He reached up and ran a finger along his scar. "Protecting you is how I got this, remember? Protecting you from racist punks who were trying to rape the little half-breed girl!"

She nodded. "And you're acting just like them."

Barclay raised a hand to strike her, then stopped. Katrina hadn't moved a muscle. He lowered his hand slowly. "Don't you realize how humiliating this is for me, Kat? Everyone here is laughing behind my back!"

Katrina folded her arms. "So now the truth comes out. It's all about you. You're embarrassed—not because you used to be a mercenary who killed people for money, not because you're a former VIPER nest leader, not because you're chief of security for a gang of supervillains, but because your sister is dating a squirrel. Poor baby!"

Barclay glared at her. "How dare you talk to me like that? After all I've done for you!"

"After all you've done for me? How about what I've done for you? I put my ass on the line for you last night, big brother! You'd be rotting in jail right now if it wasn't for me! And now I'm in a jam because of it. Everyone thinks I'm working for PSI. Even Supersonic doesn't trust me anymore, and he trusts everyone!"

"Well, that shows who your real friends are, doesn't it?" Barclay shot back. "You should be working for PSI."

"If I wanted to do that, I'd have accepted the offer they made when I was expelled from Ravenswood."

"Why the hell didn't you?"

"Because you're a bunch of psychos! All Psymon's bullshit about how psis should be ruling the world. What a load of crap! And you're not even a psi!"

Barclay turned, walked around behind his desk, and sat down. "Speaking of Ravenswood, your two furry friends were just nosing around there. They were also in your apartment last night. What do you suppose they're looking for?"

"Probably information about you," Katrina replied, "since you were stupid enough to try to kill Supersonic. That stunt kind of put you at the top of PRIMUS's shit list, bro, just below Freon."

Barclay looked at her intently. "You didn't tell anyone at Ravenswood who I was, did you?"

Katrina rolled her eyes. "Of course not! Do you think I'm an idiot?"

Barclay sighed and shook his head. "I wish I could believe you, Kat. I really do. But I can't afford to take the chance. Not with so much at stake." He hit a button on his intercom. "Harold, would you come to my office, please?"

Katrina stared at him. "You wouldn't dare!"

Barclay looked back at her, his eyes as hard as flint. "I'm sorry, Kat."

Katrina tried to mind blast him, but even as she did, she knew it wouldn't work. The office was blanketed by a psi suppression field. She whirled as the door behind her opened. In it stood Soulfire, now wearing a T-shirt and jeans. He lunged and grabbed her, holding her firmly. As she struggled, she saw Barclay rise from his desk and walk over to her, a syringe in his hand.

"You son of a bitch!" she spat, squirming in Soulfire's grasp.

"That's no way to talk about our mother, Kat," said Barclay, seizing her arm and plunging the needle into it. Blackness ensued.

Brain, Ronnie, Duke, Brutus, and I stepped out of the elevator into the waiting room on the seventh floor of Mercy Hospital, just across the street from the Renaissance Center. Lucy and Supersonic were sitting on a couch together, looking anxious and pensive. When she saw her friends, Lucy jumped up and ran over to Ronnie, who put her arms around her and asked, "What's the story?"

"They haven't told us anything," said Lucy, eyes downcast.

"Well, at least that means he's not dead," said Brain. Everyone frowned at him. "What? I'm trying to look on the bright side!"

I went over to Supersonic. "We need to talk," I said. He nodded and jumped down off the couch, and we went off into a side corridor together.

Once we were alone, I told him what Ronnie had told me. "Brother?" Supersonic exclaimed, his dark eyes going wide. "Holy cow! No wonder he's mad at me!"

"Yeah, apparently he's not real thrilled with the idea of his sister dating a squirrel."

Supersonic growled. "That's no reason for him to take his personal beef with me out on innocent people!" His tail bristled. "Boy, I'm so mad right now I could fly over to Mind Inc. and tear that place apart!"

I looked at him. "I thought you conservatives were all about law and order."

"What made you think I was a conservative?" he asked. "Just because I'm old? I voted for Kennedy, for Pete's sake!"

I shrugged. "Well, at least you didn't vote for Tricky Dick."

"Nah, I never liked him. I wasn't even surprised when I found out he got into trouble."

"History aside, you're a cop, Supersonic. You can't just go busting into private property without a search warrant. That would make you as bad as Abruzzi, plus it would make anything you found inadmissable in court. And to get a warrant, you'd need to show that Mind Inc. is a front for PSI."

"But everyone knows they are!" he protested.

"Knowing something and proving it are two different things. You think people haven't tried to connect them before? After I rescued Brianna Biselle, PRIMUS searched the Mind Inc. buildings from top to bottom. They came up with nothing. As far as anyone's ever been able to prove, Mind Inc. is a legitimate self-help organization. A little weird—some might even say a little cultish—but no different than dozens of other such groups. Why do you think they're still in business? They're smart. They know how to cover their tracks."

Supersonic thought for a moment. "If Joshua Barclay is on Mind Inc.'s payroll, then under federal law they'd have to report his earnings to the IRS. That would link Mind Inc. to PSI!" He grinned excitedly.

"Good thinking," I said. "Unfortunately, our only proof that Barclay and Omega are the same person is the word of a teenage girl who says someone else told her. Not exactly ironclad evidence."

Supersonic frowned. "And we know Kat won't back her up."

I nodded. "And even if we could prove that Barclay is Omega, Mind Inc. would just say, 'Oh my goodness, we had no idea!'"

"Yeah, you're probably right," said Supersonic, looking disgusted. "So what do we do?"

"We don't do anything. Tonight, I break into Mind Inc. and do some snooping around. I'm not a cop, so I don't need a warrant."

"That would be illegal, though," Supersonic said uneasily.

I shrugged. "And?"

He sighed. "Fine."

I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. It was genuinely hard for him to wrap his head around the idea that sometimes you had to break the rules to achieve a greater good. It went against everything he'd been raised to believe. It also bothered me that Abruzzi had used the same rationale when he'd bugged Katrina's apartment. I tried to convince myself that there was a meaningful difference between him and me. Maybe it was the fact that it did bother me.

I tabled my internal debate as an Indian doctor entered the waiting room and asked the superteens if they were friends of Henry Abbott. Supersonic and I ran to join them.

"How is he, Doctor?" asked Brain.

"He's suffered quite a shock," the doctor replied, "but he's young, strong and healthy. There's every reason to think he'll make a full recovery." Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, myself included. "We're going to keep him under observation for a few days, though, just to be on the safe side."

"Can he have visitors?" Lucy asked eagerly.

"I think that for now it would be best if Henry avoided anything that might excite him," the doctor said.

The teens looked disappointed, but nodded in acquiescence. As the doctor left, they all turned toward me and Supersonic. "So, what's the plan?" asked Brain.

"The plan is we take it from here while you all go back to Ravenswood and get on with your lives," I replied.

"We want a piece of the sumbitches who did this to him," Duke said insistently.

Brutus nodded in agreement. "Henry is our friend."

"And he's lucky to have such good friends," I said, "but this is our problem, not yours. We're the professionals here."

Ronnie folded her arms and looked down at me imperiously. "And what are you gonna do, Mr. Professional?"

"That's a whole lot of none-of-your-business, Miss Marsh," I replied.

She smirked. "I knew it. They're not gonna do a damn thing. Henry isn't some big-shot scientist or politician, so he's not important!"

I growled at her. "I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

"We're in the middle of an official investigation, Miss Marsh," Supersonic said angrily, "and in case you've forgotten, a member of PSI tried to kill me last night, so I have a personal stake in this!"

That shut them up. As they turned and went sullenly to the elevator, Supersonic looked at me. "You know, if a friend of mine was lying where Henry is now, I'd feel the same way they do."

I nodded. "So would I."

That night, I snuck across the attractively landscaped grounds around Mind Inc. headquarters, keeping to the shadows, until I reached a darkened window on the first floor. There was a burglar alarm, naturally, but it presented no more of an obstacle than it had the last time I'd broken in. I was actually rather surprised that they hadn't bothered to upgrade their security since then. I eased open the window and slipped inside, closing it behind me. "I'm in," I said.

"Roger," said Supersonic's voice in the earphone of my headset. He was crouched in a tree in Hutchinson Park across the street, watching through night vision binoculars. "There's no sign anyone noticed you."

I took out a flashlight and played it around the room I was in. Its beam was ultraviolet, invisible to normal sight, but not to the UV-sensitive goggles I was wearing. The room was an office, perfectly ordinary-looking. I checked out the nameplate on the desk. Nobody I knew. I climbed up on the chair and booted up the computer sitting on the desk. The machine wanted a password, which I obtained with my handy-dandy little USB port widget. The monitor lit up with a desktop image of a stylized human brain. I began keying in search terms.

"How's it going?" asked Supersonic, after several minutes of silence.

"I'm navigating their network," I replied. "There's an enormous amount of data here. Mostly case histories of patients. So far, it all looks pretty mundane."

"Well, they probably wouldn't keep anything incriminating where it could be found easily," said Supersonic. "Is there anything in there about Kat?"

"Not that I can tell. Nothing about you, either. Or me. There's stuff about Joshua Barclay, though. Apparently, he's Mind Inc.'s director of security."

"So he is on their payroll!" said Supersonic excitedly.

"Which means Uncle Sam will have a record of it."

"Maybe we can get him for tax evasion," said Supersonic. "It worked on Al Capone."

"You really think he's dumb enough not to pay his taxes?" I asked. "Hello. There's some encrypted files in Barclay's personal account."

"Can you open them?" asked Supersonic.

"No."

"Darn it!" Then his tone changed. "Hold on. There's something moving toward Mind Inc.!"

"What kind of something?"

"Looks like a big black cloud."

I remembered how Lucy had turned into a black cloud when she'd followed Supersonic to the hospital. "Oh no. It's the kids!"

"Holy cow! We gotta stop 'em before they get hurt!"

"How?"

"Maybe I can . . . oh rats! The cloud just passed right through the front of the building!"

"Stay put. I'll see if I can intercept them inside."

"Roger."

I jumped down off the chair, ran to the door, opened it, and peered down the hall. The cloud was floating silently toward me. "Psst! Lucy! In here!" I said. The cloud continued moving forward, floating past me and into the office, then solidified into Lucy, who was now wearing a black skin-tight costume that covered her completely from head to toe, her long blonde hair trailing out from beneath a full head mask with white eyeslits. Beside her stood Brain, looking pretty much as he had before, save that he was wearing a red plastic band around his head identical to the one he had put on Brutus that had freed him from Impulse's mental control.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I demanded angrily.

"What do you think?" asked Brain, sounding annoyed. "We're looking for evidence to use against PSI."

"Are the others here?"

"Ronnie, Duke, and Brutus are watching from across the street," said Lucy, "ready to burst in if we need backup."

"None of them are especially stealthy," added Brain.

I thought of Brutus and his ridiculously garish costume. "Well, how about you both go right back out and join them?"

Brain glared at me defiantly. "How about you make us, Alvin?" He emphasized my name to make it sound like an epithet.

"Don't tempt me!"

Brain peered past me at the computer. "Find anything interesting?"

"Just some encrypted files."

"Mind if I take a crack at them?" Brain asked. "Breaking encryptions is a hobby of mine." He rubbed his knuckles, grinning.

I started to protest, then stopped. Computer programming was very much not my thing. If Brain really could decrypt those files, there was a chance we might learn something useful. I still wasn't comfortable with him and Lucy being here, but I'd already seen that they weren't exactly helpless, and if anything happened, we had Supersonic and the other three superteens in reserve. It seemed like a risk worth taking. I stepped aside for him. "Be my guest."

Brain went over to the computer and sat down. "Now, let's see what we've got. Ah, yes, I've seen this algorithim before. Should be breakable. Might take a little time, though."

"How long?" I asked.

"As long as it takes." His fingers began tappity-tapping on the keyboard. Then we all froze at the sound of a woman's scream from down the hall.

"Lucy, stay with Brain while I check that out," I said.

"Call me Dark Duchess," said Lucy.

I rolled my eyes. "Sure, whatever." I opened the door and slipped outside.

There was nobody in the darkened hallway. I made my way down it cautiously. "Supersonic?" I whispered into my headset's microphone. No answer. Something must be blocking the signal. I continued down the hall.

As I turned a corner, a shadowy shape passed through me, and I felt a shock of icy cold. At first, I thought it was Lucy, but then it stopped, floating in the hallway ahead of me, and I could see that it wasn't. It was shaped like a young woman, with a billowing mane of black hair, black boots and gloves, and a black sash belt around its waist. The rest of it was dark gray, and its face was blank apart from two white glowing eyes. Its body was transparent, like a ghost. This creature had been seen in the company of PSI agents before. They called it Deuce, but nobody outside PSI knew who or what it really was. What was known was that it could fly at tremendous speeds and pass through solid objects and people, attacking the minds of anyone it touched. It never spoke.

I stood staring at the dark wraith hovering in the hallway before me. It made no move to either attack or flee. The people Deuce passed through reported experiencing severe psychic pain, but apparently the psionic shielding in my hood had protected me from that, and since it didn't seem to have a solid physical form, there wasn't a whole lot it could do to me. Then again, there wasn't much I could do to it, either. Slowly, I moved closer, reaching out with my hand to touch it. It did nothing, just floated there silently. My fingers touched its body, and I immediately jerked them back. There was no substance to it, but damn, it was cold!

Then a trap door opened beneath me, and I went sliding down a chute.

The chute dumped me on my ass in a large room with brick walls and a concrete floor. Around me stood Soulfire, Impulse, Lady Mirage, and Omega, without his helmet. I could see that he was a black man with a long, jagged scar on his right cheek. Behind them sat Katrina, shackled in a heavy wooden chair, looking barely conscious. To her right stood a morbidly obese man with curly red hair, wearing a gray shirt that had a shiny ochre-yellow collar and was slit down to the navel, showing off a collection of gold chains and pendants. He also wore tights that matched the collar, gold wrist bracers, and gray boots. He easily tipped the scales at over three hundred pounds, and his tight outfit did nothing to enhance his physical appearance. I recognized him as Philip Townsend, a.k.a. Inquisitor, PSI's chief telepathic interrogator. He was grinning at me in an extremely disconcerting way.

To Katrina's left stood a tall figure wearing a black bodysuit and a turquoise cloak and hood that concealed most of his face, clasped by a gold brooch emblazoned with the Greek letter psi. Lying on the floor against the wall behind him, apparently unconscious, was a blonde girl wearing a T-shirt and jeans. I had no idea who either of them were.

"Perfect," said Omega, smiling down at me smugly. "I knew a hero like you couldn't resist the sound of a damsel in distress."

I stood up, my cheeks burning with embarrassment at falling into such an obvious trap. Some professional! I folded my arms, glaring up at him. "And what exactly do you expect to accomplish by killing me, apart from bringing the rest of Team Nighthawk, the Champions, and all of PRIMUS down on your head? Seriously, Werner, this is even stupider than your attempt to kill Supersonic."

Omega's scarred face twisted into a scowl. "So, Kat blabbed after all."

I nodded, looking past him at Katrina. "That fat slob Townsend been doing his thing to her?" Inquisitor narrowed his piggy eyes. "I understand his powers often scar the brains of his victims, sometimes fatally. Nice way to treat your sister. And after she put herself on the spot to protect you. You really are a piece of shit, Werner."

Omega turned to the man in the cloak and hood. "Omen, how much will it upset the plan if I beat the snot out of this little freak?"

"I would not recommend it," Omen replied, in a low, slow, sonorous voice that came across as someone trying to sound mysterious. "We need him alive and unharmed."

Impulse nodded. "Once he has served his purpose," she said, speaking with a pronounced Russian accent, "you may do with him as you wish."

I popped the questionite talons on my gauntlets. "What purpose? What do you need me for?" Even given that they wanted to avoid killing or injuring me for some reason, I seriously doubted I could take down six members of PSI all by my lonesome. But I had nothing to lose by trying.

Omega turned back to me, and spoke in a weird, sing-song voice, like a nursery rhyme. "Hey, little chipmunk, don't be shy. Now it's time to work for PSI."

I stared at him. "What are you—"

Supersonic Squirrel crouched on the branch of a tree in Hutchinson Park, watching the Mind Inc. building across the street through his binoculars. It had been a while since he'd heard anything from Nightmunk. He spoke into the microphone of his headset, but there was no reply. That didn't necessarily mean that Nightmunk was in trouble. He might be in a situation where he couldn't speak without giving himself away. Even so, it made the squirrel uneasy.

The sound of hushed voices alerted him that there was someone nearby. He scanned the area with his binoculars. Hiding behind a clump of bushes were Duke, Ronnie, and Brutus, eyes fixed on the building across the street. Brutus was wearing his Masked Avenger costume, while Ronnie wore a black leotard, pink tights, orange headband and leg warmers, and red sneakers, and Duke wore a flannel shirt, blue jeans, boots, and his cowboy hat. The squirrel jumped off his branch and swooped down, landing behind them. "I thought we told you to leave this to us!" he growled.

Duke and Brutus both jumped, startled, and turned to face him. Ronnie remained unaware due to her headphones until Duke tapped her shoulder and she, too, turned.

"We wanna help nail the creeps who hurt Henry," said Duke.

Brutus nodded. "Honor demands it!"

"I assume Miss Evans and Mr. Morgenstern are inside?" asked Supersonic.

"That's right," Duke replied.

"Well, they're both guilty of trespassing!"

Ronnie smirked. "So call a cop."

"I am a cop!"

"You gonna bust in there and arrest them, then?" Ronnie demanded.

Supersonic opened his mouth to reply, then stopped as he heard Nightmunk's voice through his headset. "Supersonic, come quick! I need help!"

"Where are you?" Supersonic asked anxiously.

"Basement level, east side!"

The squirrel spread his arm webs and rose into the air. "Call the police!" he ordered the teens, and shot across the street toward Mind Inc.

In the office, Brain continued working on decrypting the files while Lucy stood guard and figetted constantly, the lack of activity starting to grate on her. "Nightmunk's been gone an awfully long time," she said at last.

"For you, an awfully long time is anything over ten seconds," Brain replied, fingers tapping.

Lucy scowled at him. "I didn't ask to be born with ADHD!"

"Nobody asks to be born with anything. Try meditating."

Lucy closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "Maybe I should go and look for him," she said.

"He said to stay here."

"Since when do we take orders from him?" Lucy demanded. "If we did that, we wouldn't be here in the first place!"

"We came here to get evidence against PSI, and that's what I'm doing. Nightmunk can take care of himself. He's a professional."

Lucy hugged herself. "I just hate standing around doing nothing!"

"You off your meds again?" Brain asked.

"I took 'em this morning!" Lucy retorted.

"Maybe they should up your dose. Ah hah!" Brain grinned in triumph as one of the encrypted files opened for him. "Damn, I'm good!" Then his eyes widened behind his Coke-bottle glasses. "Oh no!"

"What?" asked Lucy, running over to join him. She gasped at what she read on the screen. "Oh my God! So that's what they're planning!"

Brain whipped out his cell phone and called Duke. There was no response. He tried the police. Nothing. He looked at Lucy. "I can't reach anyone. How about you?"

Lucy shook her head, working on her own phone. "Me neither!"

"We gotta get out of here!" said Brain. "This is too big for us!"

"What about Nightmunk?" asked Lucy, biting her lip.

"Didn't you see? There's nothing we can do for him! The best thing we can do right now is escape and get help!"

They both jerked their heads up at the sound of breaking glass from somewhere in the building. Lucy looked at Brain. "That could be the others. Go out the window while I check."

"I'm not deserting you!" Brain insisted.

"Didn't you just say the best thing we can do is leave?"

"I didn't mean leave you behind!"

Lucy sighed. With Brain right behind her, she ran to the door, opened it, and peered out into the hallway. Down the hall, in the lobby, they could see Supersonic hovering just inside the broken front doors. Between him and them, Nightmunk and Omega were engaged in combat, the manimal hero slashing at the armored villain with his gleaming questionite claws while Omega dodged and sprayed blaster bolts back at him. Supersonic flew up beside Nightmunk, building up a wind blast in his hands and glaring at Omega.

"No, Supersonic, don't!" yelled Brain, as Nightmunk whirled, grabbed the squirrel's helmet, and tore it off.

Supersonic stared at the chipmunk. "What the heck are you doing?" he demanded. Then he gasped as a hideous monster—all spiked tentacles, dripping fangs, and sharp claws—appeared and lunged at him. The squirrel created a shield of solidified air in front of him, but the monster's claws passed through it effortlessly and tore into his furry chest, gouging deep, spraying blood everywhere. Supersonic screamed in agony and fell to the floor.

Duke, Ronnie, and Brutus arrived in the open doorway and stopped dead, seeing Supersonic lying unconscious but uninjured on the floor. Above him stood Omega and Nightmunk, side by side. "What th' hell?" asked Duke, brow furrowed beneath his cowboy hat.

"Nightmunk's being controlled!" Brain shouted.

As Brain spoke, the chipmunk hurled three throwing blades. One flew at Ronnie, but she nimbly dodged it. Another struck Duke, only to bounce harmlessly off a glowing forcefield that sprang up around his chair. The third beaned Brutus squarely on the forehead, to no apparent effect.

"Hmm," said Omega. "You kids are tougher than I thought. This might actually be fun." He smacked his fist into his palm.

"You'll find out we're full of surprises, baby!" said Ronnie as she launched herself at Omega, her foot knifing toward his head. Moving just as fast, Omega seized her ankle and executed a textbook aikido throw, slamming her into the floor, where she lay, stunned.

"I doubt there's anything you can show me that I haven't seen before, girl," said Omega. Then he cried out in surprise as Brutus leaped at him, grabbed his right arm, and sank his teeth into it. They bit through Omega's armor, causing sparks to fly around his face, and into the flesh beneath.

"What the hell are you," Omega cried, astonished, "some kind of cannibal?"

Brutus swallowed the chunk of steel and microcircuitry he'd torn out of Omega's armor and grinned. "My appetite . . . is for justice!"

"Get the hell off me, you freak!" Omega shouted, tearing the boy off himself and hurling him across the lobby. Brutus hit the floor, rolled with the agility of a professional gymnast, and came up on his feet, still grinning. A moment later, Nightmunk lunged at him, slashing with his claws and cutting shallow red gashes into the boy's skin. Brutus grunted in pain, defending himself as best he could.

A blast of darkness from Lucy struck Omega, staggering him, and he turned toward her and Brain. A second later, Duke slammed into him from behind, locking an arm around his neck. They struggled for a moment, their strengths roughly equal, but then Omega threw Duke over his shoulder, pulling him out of his wheelchair and slamming him onto the floor on his back. Omega turned and addressed a darkened side corridor. "Any time you'd like to join in . . ."

"But you looked like you were having so much fun!" said Soulfire, grinning as he emerged from the shadows with Lady Mirage, Impulse, and Omen behind him.

"Aw shit," said Brain, gazing with trepidation at the new arrivals.

Omega looked down at Duke as the boy grabbed Omega's leg, trying pull himself up. Then he glanced at Impulse. "Can't you just mind control these brats and end this?"

The Russian woman shook her head. "Their minds are shielded against psionics."

"Yeah," said Brain, "I didn't want you creeps messing with my friends' heads again. Once was enough."

Ronnie kipped up and glared at Lady Mirage. "You're gonna pay for what you did to Henry, bitch!"

"Temper, temper," said Soulfire, grinning. "No use getting all hot under the collar." His eyes began to glow like hot coals. Ronnie flipped and dodged as Soulfire tried to focus his power on her. "Stand still, damn it!" he growled.

"Not likely!" Ronnie said, deftly evading his gaze.

Brain drew his phaser pistol and fired a beam at Soulfire, causing him to cry out in pain. Ronnie followed up with a kick, which made Soulfire stumble back into Lady Mirage's and Impulse's arms. He glared at Brain and Ronnie, eyes smoldering. "Oh, you kids are toast!"

"Stop!" said Omen, in a deep, commanding voice, throwing his arm across Soulfire's chest. "Do not kill them, Soulfire!"

"Why not?" Soulfire asked, sounding annoyed.

"I foresee that they may be of use to us," Omen replied.

"Very well," said Omega. "I never liked killing kids anyway. Nightmunk, would you do the honors?"

Nightmunk paused his duel with Brutus and nodded, removing a handful of sleeping gas pellets from his belt and hurling them at Ronnie, Duke, Brain, and Lucy. All four immediately collapsed. Omega was also engulfed by the gas cloud but was unaffected, thanks to his armor's self-contained breathing system. "Perfect," he said. Raising his undamaged left arm, he fired a burst of energy bolts at Brutus, whose body was now criss-crossed by bleeding cuts from Nightmunk's claws. The boy groaned and slumped to the floor.

Omega looked around the room at the five unconscious teenagers. "You may be right, Omen. For beginners, they were good. Very good."

"Have I ever been wrong?" Omen asked. "They are the heroes of tomorrow. It would be better to have them under PSI's control. Accept the word of one who knows."

Omega nodded and turned to the other members of PSI. "Take the kids and the squirrel downstairs and put them in the psi-proof cell. We'll deal with them later. Right now, we have more important matters to attend to." He glanced at Omen. "How's the plan looking?"

"The way is clear," Omen pronounced. "All the pieces are in place."

"Good," said Omega. "I'll tell Gizmo to warm up the teleportation platform. And get him to fix my armor." He looked down at Brutus. "Unbelievable."

"That boy is a monster!" said Lady Mirage, glaring down at Brutus as she rubbed the bandaged shoulder he'd bitten this morning. "He should be destroyed!"

"I would like to study him first," said Impulse.

"Later!" snapped Omega, and strode away, his metal boots thudding on the floor.

"He's coming around!" said Lucy's voice. Supersonic groaned and opened his eyes. He was lying on his back on a hard surface, with Brain, Lucy, Duke, and Ronnie all looking down at him. He noticed that Brain was not wearing his glasses, nor did Duke have on his cowboy hat. Then he gasped as he remembered the last thing he'd seen. "The monster!" His hands flew down to feel his body.

"Just one of Lady Mirage's illusions," said Brain. "You seem to have weathered it better than Henry did."

The squirrel reached up and felt his head. His helmet was gone. "Nightmunk, he . . ."

"He's being controlled by PSI," said Brain. "They took all our anti-psionic headbands, too."

Supersonic got to his feet and looked around. They were in a steel-walled chamber, about fifteen feet on each side and ten high, with a single door. Lucy, Ronnie, and Brain were all standing around him, while Duke, deprived of his wheelchair, was sitting on the floor. "Where's Brutus?" he asked.

"He wasn't here when we woke up," Brain replied.

"Please tell me you called the police like I told you to," Supersonic said to Duke and Ronnie.

"We tried," said Duke, "But none of us could reach 'em."

Supersonic looked at the door and tried to build up a wind blast between his hands. Nothing happened. He stared down at his hands in surprise. "My powers aren't working!"

"Neither are Lucy's darkness powers," said Brain. "My guess is this cell is surrounded by a psi-suppressing field. Of course, that means PSI can't use their powers on us, either."

"It also means we can't get out!" said Lucy, stamping her foot.

"There's a way out of any trap," said Supersonic confidently. "We just have to find it."

"Ah tried forcin' th' door open when ah woke up," said Duke. "Ah'm pretty strong, but ah couldn't budge it."

"If Brutus were here, he could eat his way out," said Brain.

Supersonic stared at him. "Really?"
Brain nodded. "I believe that Brutus is the modern avatar of Bacchus, the god of revelry. His superbite reflects his mystical belief that the soul expresses itself in the act of food consumption, and he's able to conceive of any substance as divine food. He took a bite out of Omega's armor during the fight. No doubt that's why they didn't put him in with the rest of us. Also, he injured two members of PSI, so they're probably not too happy with him."

"What do you think they'll do to him?" asked Ronnie nervously.

Brain shrugged. "Brutus is basically a demigod. It takes a lot to hurt him."

"Nightmunk cut him up pretty badly," said Lucy.

"Nightmunk's claws are made of questionite, one of the hardest substances on Earth," said Brain. "Even so, Brutus's wounds looked fairly superficial."

"Suppose PSI brainwashes him, too?" asked Supersonic.

"Unlikely," said Brain. "When he's in his exalted state, his mind is impervious. Nothing can affect it."

"Well, that's all very interesting," said Supersonic, "but it doesn't get us any closer to getting out of here." He rubbed his chin. "They must be keeping us alive for a reason, otherwise they'd have killed us already."

"I'm pretty sure I know what it is," said Brain.

"What?" Ronnie asked.

"That spooky guy in the blue cloak and hood said we might be of use to them. I imagine they intend to brainwash us into becoming sleeper agents of PSI." He looked down at Supersonic. "You'd be their mole inside PRIMUS."

Supersonic shivered, remembering what Nightmunk had told him. "An agent who doesn't even know he's an agent," he murmured.

"But we're just an added bonus," Brain continued. "PSI didn't expect us to come barging in on them. Their plan revolves around Nightmunk, and it's been in motion for nearly two years."

Lucy nodded. "Brain decrypted a file in Omega's personal account that explained everything."

"So what is this plan?" Supersonic asked.

"Last year," said Brain, "Nightmunk broke into Mind Inc. and rescued Mayor Biselle's daughter, Brianna, whom PSI had kidnapped, intending to brainwash her."

"Only that's not what really happened," said Lucy. "He was actually captured and subjected to PSI's brainwashing. They turned him into a sleeper agent who could be activated when someone recited a trigger phrase, in the form of a rhyme. Then they released him and Brianna, after implanting them both with false memories of him rescuing her."

"Making him a big hero," said Brain, "just like Raymond Shaw in The Manchurian Candidate."

"Who the hell are you talking about?" asked Ronnie.

"It's an old movie," said Supersonic. Then his eyes lit up. "So that's why Soulfire didn't kill him in Kat's apartment! But what do they intend to use him for?"

Lucy took a deep breath. "They're going to send him into Stronghold Prison to break out Psymon, Medusa, and Mind Slayer."

Supersonic blinked. "Could he do that?"

Brain nodded. "With the equipment and information PSI has been accumulating over the past two years, yes, he could."

"They needed a registered hero for their plan to work," said Lucy. "Any hero would have done, but they chose Nightmunk because he was the one who put Psymon, Medusa, and Mind Slayer in jail in the first place, so they figured he should be the one to break them out."

"You have to admit," said Brain, "there's a certain delicious irony to it."

Supersonic glared at him. "I don't think it's delicious at all! In fact, it leaves a real sour taste in my mouth!"

They all started at the metallic clunk of the door unlocking. It swung open to reveal Omega, Nightmunk, and Inquisitor. Omega held Katrina's limp form in his arms, blood dripping from her nose, mouth, and ears.

"Kat!" Supersonic cried.

"Actually," said Omega, "I've always kind of liked the taste of blood in my mouth. Something primal about it." He tossed Katrina carelessly into the cell, where Supersonic caught her.

"There you are, love," chuckled Inquisitor, speaking with a thick British accent, his jowly face jiggling. "All reunited with your fuzzy boyfriend."

Supersonic cradled Katrina in his arms, stroking her face gently as tears darkened his cheeks. "Oh Kat, baby, what did they do to you?" She groaned, her blue eyes unfocused. He glared up at Omega. "What did you do to her?" he demanded.

"I had to make sure she hadn't told anyone else who I was," Omega replied. "Mr. Townsend here has seen to that."

"With me, there are no mysteries," said Inquisitor, grinning wickedly. "With me, there are no secrets."

Supersonic snarled, his tail flicking furiously. "How could you do something like this to your own sister?"

"She made her bed," said Omega. "It's not my fault you happened to be in it." He turned his gaze to Brain. "I've been listening in on your conversation. You're a very clever young man, Mr. Morgenstern. You've figured out everything. I do intend to turn you all into unknowing agents of PSI." He looked back at Supersonic. "And as much as I'd love to kill you for defiling my sister, you'll be much more useful to us as our man—or rather squirrel—inside PRIMUS. We'll set up some fights for you to win against supervillains we control. Nothing too easy; we don't want it to look suspicious. They'll help you rise swiftly through the ranks. Maybe you'll even become director someday. Wouldn't that be nice? A true blue patriot who's unwittingly a traitor. Talk about irony!"

Supersonic trembled with rage, biting his lip and tasting blood. With a screech, he hurled himself at Omega, who swatted him away like a fly, knocking him into the wall. The squirrel slid to the floor, stunned.

"We determined that your wind powers are psychokinetic in nature," said Omega, "so they won't work in here. And without them, you're nothing but a pathetic, helpless little squirrel."

Supersonic got to his feet, glaring at Omega and wiping the blood from his mouth. "Take off that armor and let's go a few rounds. I'll show you how helpless I am!"

Omega laughed. "You've got to be kidding!"

"What's the matter, Josh?" asked Supersonic, buck teeth bared savagely. "Afraid of a little squirrel?"

"Afraid? I'm twice your height and four times your weight!"

Supersonic shrugged. "That's okay, I'll go easy on you."

Omega was silent for a moment. Then there were a series of metallic clicks and whirrs, and his armor opened up, allowing him to step out of it. He wore only khaki shorts and a black tank top beneath. "All right, rodent, you're on!" he said.

Inquisitor looked uneasy. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Shut up, Philip!" Omega growled. "I'm going to beat this little bastard to a pulp!" He glanced at Nightmunk. "Make sure none of those brats interfere."

Nightmunk nodded. "Sure thing, boss."

Omega and Supersonic squared off, fists raised, while Brain, Lucy, Duke, and Ronnie moved aside to give them room, Ronnie holding Katrina in her arms. Omega struck first, with a right cross aimed at the squirrel's head. Supersonic blocked it and lunged, aiming a karate kick at Omega's midsection. Omega blocked the kick with his left arm and threw another right, which the squirrel nimbly dodged.

They paused, studying each other. "Not bad," said Omega. "You're better than I expected, rodent."

"PRIMUS combat training," said Supersonic, bobbing and weaving. "My instructor was an ex-Green Beret."

Omega smirked. "I eat Green Berets for breakfast."

Supersonic grinned. "I guess you need the fiber, since you're so full of crap!" Lightning-quick, he dove beneath Omega's guard, rolled, came up on his feet, and rammed his fist into the man's stomach. Omega grunted, staggering, and kneed the squirrel in his ribcage, sending him flying backward.

Supersonic kipped up while Omega regained his balance. "Looks like I drew first blood," the squirrel said, his voice tight from the pain in his chest.

"Last blood is all that counts," growled Omega. He charged at the squirrel, feinting with his right arm while throwing a left hook. Supersonic ducked the hook and sprang, slugging the man across his cheek. Omega retaliated with a right elbow jab that caught the squirrel in his side and knocked him to the floor. He followed up with a savage kick that caught Supersonic in the stomach, flipping him onto his back. Omega pounced and went for a choke hold, wrapping an arm around the squirrel's neck. Supersonic slipped an arm inside the hold to keep from being choked, his other hand pushing up against Omega's chin, forcing his adversary's head back painfully. The pair strained against each other, bodies writhing together on the floor, grunting like wild animals.

"Stop it!" Lucy shrieked, fists clenched beneath her chin. "Please, stop it!"

Omega released Supersonic and stood up, gazing down at the squirrel, panting. Supersonic glared back up at him, buck teeth gleaming. Omega backed up to his armor, and it sealed around him. Then he turned to Nightmunk and Inquisitor. "Come on, we've got things to do." The trio departed, closing the door behind them. Supersonic rose painfully to his feet and limped over to join the others.

"Man," said Ronnie, "that was something else!"

Duke nodded. "You sure showed him!"

"Thanks," said Supersonic, shuddering. Every breath hurt.

"Did I just see what I thought I saw?" asked Katrina, sitting up. "Did you just duke it out with my brother?"

Supersonic blinked, then threw his arms around Katrina, hugging her tight. "You're okay!" he said, fighting to get the words out. "I was afraid they'd . . . " He couldn't finish.

"Turned me into a vegetable?" asked Katrina, smiling as she stroked his furry head. "Nah, Philip's not that good. I do have a splitting headache, though." She shook her head. "I didn't think Josh would actually let him do that to me. Not to his own sister."

"Your brother's a jerk!" growled Supersonic.

Katrina nodded. "Yeah, he is. I'm sorry I stopped you from going after him. If you'd caught him, none of this would have happened. I just thought that maybe . . . maybe there was still some hope."

"It's okay," said Supersonic. "He is your brother. But right now, we gotta figure out how to get out of here!"

"And how are we gonna do that?" asked Ronnie.

Supersonic sighed. "I wish I knew."

Brutus awakened to find himself strapped to a table in some kind of operating room. Impulse was sitting at a computer nearby, looking at X-ray images of a human body. There was a complex-looking device suspended above him, which made him suspect that the images were probably of himself. This was confirmed a moment later when Impulse turned her head and looked at him. "You have some very strange things in your stomach," she said.

"Like a hunk of your boss's armor?" Brutus asked, grinning.

She nodded. "Also coins, paper clips, bottle caps, and I think a set of car keys."

Brutus chuckled. "Some rich kid dangled the keys to his Porsche in front of me, so I ate 'em."

"And doing this does not make you sick?"

"I've never been sick."

"Interesting." She rose and came over to the table. "Nothing in your X-rays explains how your teeth were able to penetrate Omega's armor. Also, Nightmunk's questionite talons should have sliced you to ribbons, but there are only shallow cuts on your body. And you seem to be immune to psi powers. I would like to find out how you do these things."

Brutus smirked. "Chalk it up to clean living."

"I will need a blood sample." She picked up a cotton swab and moved to dab at one of the gashes criss-crossing the boy's chest. Brutus lunged and snapped at her hand, causing her to jump back and drop the swab, a surprised look on her face. "Barbara was right! You are a beast!"

Brutus gave a harsh laugh. "Like you can talk, controlling the minds of innocents!"

Impulse frowned. "I am a scientist, working to expand human knowledge."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, lady."

There was a click, and Omega's voice came over the intercom. "Natalia, I need to see you in my office," it said. "Immediately."

Impulse sighed, went over to the speaker on the wall, and pressed the talk button. "On my way." She left the room.

Brutus squirmed on the table. The strap around his right wrist felt loose. He tugged at it a few times, and it broke, freeing his arm. He quickly undid the other straps and slid off the table, then went to the door and peered out into the hallway. It was empty. Having no idea which way to go, he picked a direction at random and headed off down the hall.

The door to the cell unlocked again. As Supersonic, Katrina, and the others looked at it, it swung open, and before them stood the unknown man from the lobby, his cloak and hood making him look like some kind of turquoise specter. Beside him was Duke's wheelchair, with Brain's satchel, Supersonic's helmet, and Ronnie's headphones on its seat.

"Who are you and what do you want?" asked Supersonic, sitting on the floor with Katrina beside him.

"I am called Omen," the man replied, "and I am here to help you." He gave the wheelchair a push, and it rolled into the cell.

"Help us?" asked Supersonic, getting to his feet and putting his helmet back on. "Why would you do that?"

"I have been helping you all along," said Omen. "It was I who told Nightmunk and Silver Avenger Sanchez that Omega was going to attack you, I who warned you that agents of PSI were outside Katrina's apartment."

"He did stop Soulfire from killing me and Ronnie," said Brain, putting his glasses back on as Duke slid into his chair and Ronnie donned her headphones.

"You still haven't explained why," Supersonic persisted. He looked up at Katrina. "Do you know this guy?"

Katrina shook her head. "Never seen him before."

"Suffice it to say, I do not wish PSI's plan to succeed," said Omen. "Come quickly. Time is of the essence." He turned and strode away, his cloak sweeping behind him. The others followed.

"What about Brutus?" asked Lucy as they proceeded down the corridor.

"Your friend is already free," Omen replied. "He will find us."

"If you already freed him, then why isn't he with you?" asked Supersonic suspiciously.

"I did not free him. He did that himself. He is favored by fortune."

"What's that mean?" asked Supersonic, confused.

"It means he's lucky," said Brain. "It's one of his powers."

Katrina grinned. "After this, we should go to Vegas!"

Brain shook his head. "It only works in the name of justice. There's nothing just about bankrupting a casino, as long as the games are fair."

"And what's your power?" asked Supersonic, looking up at Omen.

"Is it not obvious?" Omen asked. "I can see the future."

Supersonic blinked. "So you knew Nightmunk was brainwashed by PSI?"

"Of course."

"Then why the heck didn't you tell us?"

"For the same reason I allowed you all to be captured," Omen replied. "I have seen many paths. This is the one most likely to yield success. Accept the word of one who knows."

"Success for whom?" asked Brain.

Omen's jaw tightened. "Not for Psymon." He halted as they approached a door at the end of a long hallway, and the others stopped as well. "Behind that door lies PSI's teleportation device. It normally has a range of ten miles, but our resident technical genius, Dr. Brad Richards, a.k.a. Gizmo, has through some elaborate jury-rigging managed to temporarily increase its range so that it can transport someone to Stronghold Prison in New Mexico, with a concomitant increase in power consumption. That is another reason Nightmunk was chosen for this mission. His smaller mass requires less energy to transport and will therefore place less strain on the mechanism." Above their heads, the lights flickered and dimmed, then grew bright again. "He has just gone through."

"Then we're too late?" asked Supersonic.

"On the contrary," said Omen, "we have arrived at the most propitious moment. I shall enter first. After I go in, wait exactly seven seconds, then enter. Inside, you will find Omega, Soulfire, Lady Mirage, Inquisitor, Gizmo, and a young woman named Angela Baker. They will all be distracted. Follow these instructions precisely. Supersonic and Mr. Lascalla, attack Omega. Miss Marsh and Mr. Morgenstern, attack Soulfire. Miss Evans, you have Lady Mirage. Inquisitor is yours, Miss Werner, which you will no doubt find most gratifying. I will have already defeated Gizmo."

"Pretty confident, aren't you?" said Ronnie, smirking.

"I have seen myself do it," Omen replied. "Fulfilling the vision in the physical world is a mere formality."

"What about this Baker girl?" asked Brain.

"Ignore her. She is not a threat."

"Who is she?" Supersonic asked, but Omen was already striding toward the door. He opened it and went inside, and it swung shut behind him. Supersonic began quietly counting out loud, walking up to the door and putting his hand on the knob. At seven, he threw open the door.

The room beyond was fairly small, containing a circular metallic platform about six feet across, overlaid with a glowing grid and hooked up to a console and several large devices covered in blinking lights. A man in a white lab coat who had to be Gizmo lay slumped across the console. Beside him stood Omen. Facing him, with their backs to the door, were Omega, Soulfire, Lady Mirage, Inquisitor, and a blonde girl in her twenties wearing a casual blouse and jeans. None save Omen appeared to be aware of the new arrivals.

Ronnie launched herself at Soulfire, striking him with a martial kick in the middle of his back and making him grunt in pain. Supersonic hit Omega with a massive wind blast that sent him flying into the wall. Katrina mind-blasted Inquisitor and Lucy fired a bolt of darkness at Lady Mirage, and both targets dropped where they stood. Duke sped across the room, slamming into Omega and knocking him down, and Brain fired his phaser at Soulfire, finishing him off.

"Well done, heroes," said Omen, pushing Gizmo's unconscious form off the console and onto the floor.

"Wow, we beat PSI!" said Lucy, sounding surprised.

"The outcome was never in doubt," said Omen, operating the console. "I foresaw their defeat."

"You make it sound like you did it all yourself!" said Ronnie sourly.

Omen shrugged. "I played my part. The victory belongs to all of us."

"Where's Impulse?" Brain asked.

"She is upstairs in Omega's office, where I lured her."

"How did you do that?"

Omen looked up, grinned, and spoke in Joshua Barclay's voice. "It wasn't difficult."

"Well, that's a neat trick!" said Duke, smiling.

Supersonic turned toward the blonde girl. "Are you all right, Miss Baker?" he asked.

Angela Baker shrank back from the squirrel in terror. "Please, don't hurt me!" she whimpered, speaking with an Australian accent.

"Nobody's going to hurt you, Miss Baker," said Supersonic. "What are you doing here?"

"She is a member of PSI," said Omen, still manipulating the console, "albiet an unwilling one."

Supersonic stared at Angela. "You mean they've been holding you prisoner?"

Angela swallowed, looking at the squirrel nervously, and nodded. "They said they'd kill me mum and dad if I didn't do as they said!"

"Yeah, that sounds like PSI," said Katrina, scowling.

Supersonic growled, tail flicking, and turned to Omen. "So, what happens now?"

"Now, we teleport to Stronghold," Omen replied.

"You sure that's thing's safe?" asked Ronnie, looking at the pad nervously.

"I do not foresee any difficulties from using it."

"What about them?" Katrina asked, gesturing at the unconscious members of PSI.

"We must leave them behind," said Omen. "The power demand for each transport will be enormous, and the pad will burn out if we overtax it. As it is, we shall plunge much of Millennium City and its suburbs into darkness. However, it would be best if Angela came with us, rather than stay here."

"So we just let these assholes go?" asked Katrina angrily.

"Would you rather three of PSI's most powerful members were freed?" Omen asked.

"Can't we just call Stronghold and warn them?" asked Brain.

"Nightmunk has already disabled their communications systems, and the prison is in lockdown," said Omen. "This is the only way."

"What about Brutus?" asked Lucy.

"He should be arriving right about . . . now."

On cue, the door flew open, eliciting a squeak of fear from Angela. There stood Brutus in his ridiculous costume, grinning, bloody gashes across his chest. "Justice is served!" he announced. Then he looked around at all the members of PSI lying on the floor, and his face fell. "Aww!"

Lucy ran to Brutus and threw her arms around him. "I'm so glad you're all right!" she said.

Brutus chuckled. "It takes more than a few scratches to kill the Masked Avenger! Kinda bummed I missed the party, though." He narrowed his eyes at Omen. "Isn't he one of those PSI creeps?"

"He's called Omen," said Brain, "and he seems to be on our side, at least for now. Ready for a trip to Stronghold?"

"Stronghold?" Brutus asked, raising an eyebrow.

Duke nodded. "That's where we're goin', ta stop Nightmunk from freein' Psymon, Medusa, an' Mind Slayer."

Brutus grinned. "Count me in!"

Omen looked up from the console. "The machine is ready. We must go through one at a time."

"I'll go first," said Supersonic. He flew to the pad and landed on it. "Let 'er rip!" Omen operated the console, and the squirrel vanished as the lights in the room flickered and dimmed, to return a few moments later.

"Someone's going to have one hell of an electric bill," Brain observed. In quick succession, he, Katrina, Brutus, Lucy, Duke, and Ronnie all stepped onto the pad and disappeared. The lights dimmed during every teleport, taking longer to return each time.

"Your turn, Angela," said Omen, looking at her.

She shook her head. "I can't! They'll kill me mum and dad!"

Omen smiled gently. "Do not be afraid. No harm will come to them. This is your chance to be free of PSI. Take it!"

Angela approached the pad like a timid fawn, stepped on, and vanished. Omen nodded his cowled head. "And so the endgame begins," he said. He took out an energy pistol, checked it, and then he, too, stepped onto the pad and disappeared.

Silver Avenger Mayte Sanchez was in the lounge of PRIMUS's Millennium City offices, enjoying a hot cup of Mexican coffee—coffee containing chocolate syrup and cinnamon and topped with whipped cream—when the lights flickered and went out, causing the emergency lights to come on. Glancing out the 53^rd-story window of the skyscraper in which the offices were located, she saw that all of downtown had gone dark as well. She gulped down her coffee and left the lounge.

"What is happening?" she demanded as she strode into the operations room.

"Some kind of massive power drain, Director!" replied PRIMUS agent Peter St. Croix, who was sitting at a monitor station before a large computer screen showing a map of Millennium City. "It's affecting the entire city, as well as the surrounding suburbs!"

"Any idea what's causing it?" asked Sanchez, leaning over his shoulder as she peered at the screen.

"Not yet," said St. Croix, "but the pattern of blackouts indicates that the drain is emanating from northeast City Center."

Sanchez narrowed her eyes. "Mind Inc."

St. Croix nodded. "Their headquarters is in that neighborhood."

Sanchez snatched up a microphone. "Strike team, report to the vehicle hangar immediately!" She put down the microphone and bolted out the door.

Completed in 1981, Stronghold Federal Prison was a five-level underground complex constructed inside Devil's Head Mesa in the New Mexico desert. It was the highest-security prison on Earth, built to hold the planet's most powerful and dangerous supervillains. The mesa itself was one hundred meters tall and roughly the same in diameter, with sheer sides that made the top inaccessible without special climbing equipment or the ability to fly. The top of the mesa was barren save for a square concrete slab twenty feet on each side. This slab covered the opening to the elevator shaft that led down into the prison itself and was always kept closed except when someone was entering or leaving.

Each level was roughly hexagonal, with the elevator shaft in the center connecting all five levels. Level One handled the prison's administrative functions, as well as housing laboratories, testing facilities, and living areas for the guards, technicians, and administrators. Levels Two, Three, and Four were detention levels, each with twenty-four cells for inmates. Level Five contained a small nuclear reactor that provided the prison's power, while the rest of the level was used for general storage.

Supersonic materialized in one of the men's restrooms on Level One. From outside, he could hear the blaring sound of the alert siren. He quickly stepped aside to make way for the next person to arrive. In quick succession, Brain, Katrina, Brutus, Lucy, Duke, Ronnie, Angela, and Omen appeared.

"I have to ask, Omen," said Katrina, surveying their surroundings, "why the men's room?"

"With the prison in lockdown and everyone on alert, it was the safest place to arrive without materializing inside someone," Omen replied.

Lucy blinked. "What would have happened if we did?"

"That is irrelevant," said Omen, "since it did not happen. By now, Nightmunk will have deactivated Stronghold's computer and surveillance systems." He turned and addressed Angela. "Angela, I know this is hard for you, but we need your other self."

Angela shrank back. "No, don't make me do it again, please!"

"Just one last time," said Omen, "and then you can seal it away forever."

"What are you talking about?" Supersonic asked, confused.

"All right," Angela sighed. Her eyes rolled back in her head and she went limp. As Brutus caught her falling body, a dark wraith-like creature rose up from it and hovered in the air above them.

"Holy cow!" Supersonic gasped. "She's Deuce!"

"Who?" asked Ronnie, staring at the shadowy apparition.

"Deuce is a psychokinetic manifestation of Angela's negative personality traits," Omen explained. "It is the reason PSI recruited her. Deuce, please descend to Level Four and await further instructions."

Deuce nodded, dove through the floor, and was gone.

With Brutus carrying Angela's unconscious body, Supersonic and the others left the men's room and walked down a corridor toward the elevator, eliciting stares from several guards as they passed. In the central core area surrounding the elevator stood a dozen or so security guards wearing Kevlar body armor and holding automatic plasma rifles. Among them was a big man with a gray crew cut and moustache, whom Supersonic recognized as Joseph P. Kowalski, Warden of Stronghold. The squirrel walked up to him and saluted. "PRIMUS agent Supersonic Squirrel, here to offer assistance, sir!"

Kowalski looked down at him in bemusement. "You're a PRIMUS agent?" he asked, in a gruff voice. Several of the guards snickered.

Supersonic nodded and tapped the badge on his chest. "I have a badge and everything. Where's Nightmunk?"

"He went down the shaft," Kowalski replied, gesturing at the open elevator doors. "The elevator is stuck on Level Five, and he could get down there faster than anyone else. Look, how the hell did you get in here, anyway? We're in lockdown! And who are these kids?"

"They're with me," Supersonic replied. "We teleported in from Millennium City."

"Hello," said Katrina, smiling and waving to the warden.

Kowalski rolled his eyes. "Of course you did. Look, I appreciate PRIMUS offering to help, but we've got the situation under control."

Supersonic frowned. "Your computer's down, you have no eyes on anything, and you're cut off from the outside world. That doesn't sound very 'under control' to me, Warden."

"Nightmunk is downstairs right now gathering intel," Kowalski insisted.

"Nightmunk has been brainwashed!" Supersonic shot back. "He's the one who wrecked your computer and surveillance systems!"

Kowalski blinked. "What?"

Brain spoke up. "This is a plot by PSI to break out Psymon, Medusa, and Mind Slayer, Warden."

"If Nightmunk opens all the cells," said Omen, "which he can, you and your men will have over sixty angry supervillains to contend with, not to mention Stronghold's security robots, which have been reprogrammed to obey his commands."

"PSI has been planning this for a long time," said Brain.

Kowalski stared at the group, dumbfounded, while the guards began murmuring among themselves. They had all known when they signed on that this was one of the most dangerous security jobs in the world, and that they were paid to be expendable, but this was beyond the worst scenario they had expected.

"Warden Kowalski," said Supersonic, "as a PRIMUS agent, I have the authority to take command here if I feel the situation warrants it, but I'd rather not do that unless I have to. So I'm asking permission for me and my companions to go downstairs and stop Nightmunk before all heck breaks loose."

"I can't let a bunch of civilians go into danger!" Kowalski protested.

"As of now, these people are all my deputies," said Supersonic, gesturing at Katrina, Omen, and the others. "I take full responsibility for them."

Kowalski threw up his hands. "Fine! Go!"

On Level Four, Nightmunk had opened up the control panel in the north guard shack and was busy rewiring the mechanism. There were two such shacks in the central core, one on the north side of the elevator shaft and one on the south. Each shack controlled three of the six corridors radiating out from the central core to the prison cells, and each was manned at all times by two security guards, who were presently lying on the floor unconscious, knocked out by Nightmunk's sleep gas pellets. Normally, the doors of the prison cells could be opened only by simultaneously pressing a button on the outside of the cell door and a button in the controlling guard shack, but Nightmunk was in the process of eliminating this restriction. He was not concerned about being interrupted as he worked, as the doors to the elevator shaft were presently closed and only he could open them.

Once he'd finished rewiring the console, Nightmunk jumped down from the chair he'd been standing on and walked out into the central core area, where three of Stronghold's security robots stood silent guard. These state-of-the-art robots were the most complex and expensive part of Stronghold's security system. Manufactured by Harmon Industries, they were roughly humanoid in shape, with clunky metal feet, clawed metal hands, and flexible segmented metal arms and legs. Each had a head bearing its optical sensors mounted atop a flexible metal stalk. Two were Type II robots, standing at rigid attention, with only their red central scanning dot moving to show their current point of view. The third was a Type III—larger, stronger, tougher, and armed with a wider array of more powerful weaponry. It stood slightly hunched over, its massive head swinging slowly back and forth. None of them paid the slightest attention to the little manimal as he walked past and entered the corridor leading to the cells holding Psymon, Medusa, and Mind Slayer.

A navy blue armored personnel carrier, bearing the word PRIMUS along each side in white letters and the presidential eagle on the front and back, ground to a stop in front of Mind Inc. headquarters in City Center. The back opened up, and a team of PRIMUS agents wearing body armor and carrying plasma weapons poured out, led by Silver Avenger Sanchez. They charged across the lawn and into the lobby through the door that Supersonic Squirrel had smashed through earlier. The floor of the lobby was still littered with broken glass. "Spread out, teams of three!" ordered Sanchez. "Koestler, Robinson, you're with me!" She led the two agents down a corridor as the others moved into different parts of the building.

They stopped as a door opened and Impulse stepped out into the corridor, the Russian woman staring at them in surprise.

"Freeze, Soyev!" Sanchez ordered.

Impulse scowled and concentrated, then blinked when nothing happened.

Sanchez smirked. "We knew we were going up against PSI. Did you think we would not take precautions? All our helmets have psionic shielding. Now surrender!"

Impulse snarled, touched her teleport ring, and vanished.

"Damn it!" said Koestler. "She got away!"

"She did not go far," said Sanchez. "Their teleportation device must be in this building. Nothing else could be drawing that much power. We just have to find it. Come on!"

They continued on into the building.

Leaving Angela's unconscious body in Warden Kowalski's care, Supersonic and the others entered the elevator shaft. Being quite strong for his size, the squirrel descended with Katrina held against him with one arm and Omen with the other, while Brutus nimbly clambered down with Duke on his back, Ronnie did the same with Brain, and Lucy turned into a cloud of darkness and floated down above them.

"So, I'm a deputy now," said Katrina, grinning. "Does that mean I have to wear a ten-gallon hat and talk like you, Duke?"

Duke grinned up at her as he clung to Brutus's back. "Ah reckon, ma'am!"

"Nightmunk is on Level Four," said Omen. "He has finished rewiring the control panel in the north guard shack so that he can open the cells by himself."

"How does he plan to get them out of here?" asked Supersonic. "The prison is in lockdown!"

"He has three teleport rings," Omen replied. "He will give them to Psymon, Medusa, and Mind Slayer so that they can teleport back to Mind Inc."

"Where PRIMUS will be waiting for them," said Brain. "They can't have failed to notice the power drain caused by all that teleporting, and they must have traced it to its source by now."

"They have," said Omen, "but escaping from PRIMUS will be far easier than escaping from Stronghold."

"Why don't you just tell us how this all turns out?" asked Katrina. "I mean, you can see the future, so you must already know."

Omen shook his head. "It does not work that way. There are many variables involved, and I can only control for some of them. Multiple outcomes are still possible."

"Including one where we all die?" asked Katrina.

"Kat!" said Supersonic disapprovingly.

"That is unlikely," said Omen.

"How unlikely?" asked Ronnie, looking up at him anxiously.

Omen held up a hand with the thumb and index finger about an inch apart.

Impulse appeared on the teleportation platform and looked around in dismay at the unconscious forms of Omega, Soulfire, Lady Mirage, Inquisitor, and Gizmo strewn about the room. She ran to Omega, crouched down, and shook him. "Omega, wake up!"

Omega groaned. "Son of a bitch! What hit me?"

"I do not know," said Impulse. "Someone lured me to your office using your voice, but it was clearly not you."

Omega turned his helmeted head toward her. "It must have been Omen. He shot Gizmo. He's a traitor!"

"That does not matter now!" said Impulse. "PRIMUS is upstairs! We must leave this place!"

Omega growled and rose to his feet. Shoving her aside, he stalked to the teleporter and began operating the controls. "The plan can still work," he muttered.

"Forget about the plan!" Impulse shouted. "We must save ourselves!"

Ignoring her, Omega stepped onto the pad and vanished. Instantly, the lights went out, and the pad and the surrounding machines began sparking and belching smoke. Then the sparks stopped, leaving the room in total darkness.

"Shit," said Impulse.

Supersonic and company reached Level Four, finding the doors to the elevator shaft closed. As Warden Kowalski had mentioned, the elevator itself was parked on Level Five, its roof about ten feet below them.

"So now what?" asked Katrina. "Do we break the doors down?"

Supersonic shook his head. "They're made of questionite. A bazooka couldn't punch through them."

Brutus grinned and licked his lips. "I've never eaten questionite before. I wonder what it tastes like."

"Wait!" cried Omen, but Brutus had already lunged, his mouth open wide as he tried to take a bite out of the door. There was an earsplitting screech that made made everyone's hair stand on end and Supersonic's tail go bottle-brushy. Brutus recoiled and covered his mouth. "Ow," he said, muffled.

"Don't do that again!" said Ronnie, sucking on her lips.

"Ah'll second that!" said Duke, doing the same.

"You're lucky you didn't break your teeth, Brutus," Brain admonished him.

Brutus glared at Omen. "Why didn't you tell me that would happen?"

"I tried to," Omen replied. "I can only keep track of so many futures at once."

Supersonic looked up at the dark cloud floating above them, remembering how it had passed through the front of the Mind Inc. building. "Lucy, go through that wall," he said, indicating the north wall with his eyes. "There's a guard shack on the other side with controls that'll open the doors."

The cloud passed through the wall and into the guard shack and then solidified into Lucy. After a moment of searching, she located a button labeled ELEVATOR DOORS and pushed it. Immediately, the questionite double doors on opposite sides of the shaft began to slide apart with a soft electronic hum. As they did so, they covered the openings to the guard shacks, preventing anyone from entering or leaving them.

"Be ready for the robots!" Omen warned. A moment later, the three security robots became active and began converging on the elevator shaft, their metal feet thunking on the steel floor. Ronnie sprang out of the shaft, Brain jumping off her back. She threw a kick at one of the Type II robots, striking its chest, though it scarcely seemed to notice. Then Supersonic flew out, dropping off Katrina and Omen, and fired a powerful wind blast at the Type III, knocking the hulking machine back into a wall. The three robots retaliated by firing plasma blasts from their clawed hands at Ronnie and Supersonic, all of them missing their targets, while Brutus climbed out of the shaft and put Duke down on the floor.

Supersonic saw Nightmunk heading down one of the corridors. He hesitated for a moment, torn between staying to help fight the robots and stopping the brainwashed manimal. Then he set his jaw and flew off down the corridor. Stopping Nightmunk was, after all, the whole reason they were here, and it was his duty as a PRIMUS agent to think of the greater good. Even so, he was riddled with guilt at the thought of leaving the kids—not to mention Katrina—to face those robots without him.

As he raced down the corridor, Supersonic saw that Nightmunk had turned to face him. The fact that the chipmunk manimal had no superpowers did nothing to reassure the squirrel. Nightmunk had been trained by Nighthawk, one of the world's greatest crimefighters, and more than one supervillain had wound up here by underestimating him.

Supersonic's attention was caught by something whizzing down the corridor toward him: a shiny white flying disk about the size of a hubcap, with a silver plasma cannon mounted in the front and a red optical sensor protruding from the top. It was a Type I robot, designed as a scout/fast attack machine. Two of them patrolled the corridors and central core of each of Stronghold's detention levels. They were not especially tough, but they could still be dangerous. As the little robot fired, Supersonic raised a shield of wind before him, blocking its plasma bolt. Then he struck back with a wind blast that completely annihilated it, scattering wreckage across the floor.

As Supersonic turned his attention back to Nightmunk, he saw that the manimal had used the time gained from the robot's sacrifice to run over to one of the cells and press the button beside the door, which promptly slid upward. From the opened cell emerged a creature out of an entomophobe's nightmare. It stood five feet tall, with a bone-white chitinous exoskeleton in a humanoid shape and yellow multifaceted eyes. A pair of mandibles protruded from its mouth, and its spindly arms and legs ended in long, wicked claws. The squirrel recognized the creature from PRIMUS's files. The heroes who had captured it while it had been tearing apart an Air Force base had learned via telepathy that its name was Thok, that it was a prince of an alien species called the Kite, and that it was stranded on Earth and trying to return home. Unfortunately, its extreme pride and arrogance made it incapable of accepting help. It had to do everything itself, which led to it raiding government and industrial facilities to steal the parts it needed to build a spaceship capable of interstellar travel. It was strong, fast, tough, and utterly contemptuous of humanity, which it considered an inferior species. And, Supersonic remembered as it fixed its gaze upon him and clicked its mandibles, it would not hesitate to kill anyone who got in its way.

"I don't think I can hurt these things!" shouted Ronnie as she gracefully dodged a plasma bolt from one of the Type II security robots.

"Not surprising, since they were built to tangle with supervillains," said Brain, firing his phaser pistol at the robot to no noticeable effect.

"But not with the Masked Avenger!" said Brutus, grinning as he charged toward the robot. As it turned toward him, he sprang and bit through one of its arms with a piercing squeal of tortured metal. The robot staggered back, sparks flying from the stump of its severed arm, and fired a plasma bolt from its remaining arm, striking Brutus and sending him flying back thirty feet. Brutus somersaulted in midair and landed on his feet, still grinning, with wires between his teeth.

Unable to leave the guard shack with the elevator doors covering both its entrances, Lucy dissolved into a cloud of darkness and passed through the wall, re-forming on the other side. Once she was solid again, she raised her hands and fired a blast of darkness at the damaged robot, reducing it to a pile of cybernetic junk.

Katrina noticed Omen running off down the corridor that Supersonic had flown into, his turquoise cape billowing behind him. Up ahead, she could see Supersonic, Nightmunk, and some kind of white insect creature. Since her mental powers were useless against the robots' electronic brains anyway, she followed Omen. She tried to read his mind to find out what his intentions were, but ran up against a brick wall of anti-psi shielding.

Lucy was grinning triumphantly behind her mask at having finished off the robot Brutus had damaged, when the other Type II robot hit her with a plasma bolt from behind. She screamed and fell to the floor as the blast seared her body.

"Lucy!" Duke cried as he saw her go down. Gritting his teeth, he sped across the floor in his wheelchair toward the robot, one fist held out before him like a battering ram. He slammed into the machine, his fist plunging through its metal chest and the electronic brain inside and coming out the back. The robot's body jerked, its systems thrown into total chaos. Then its red eye-dot faded, and it went limp.

"The big one's still up!" shouted Brain as he ran toward Lucy's inert form. Brutus and Ronnie both whirled as the hulking Type III robot came pounding toward them, its head swinging from side to side. Brutus howled, hurling himself at the metal monstrosity and taking a bite out of one of its legs. With a sweep of its arm, it effortlessly knocked him away. Ronnie then danced up to the robot and struck it with a flurry of kicks and punches. Seeming to not even notice, it raised an arm and fired a massive plasma bolt at Duke. A forcefield sprang up around Duke's wheelchair just as the bolt hit, and he and the chair were sent speeding backward into a wall, stunning him. A moment later, Brutus leaped onto the robot's back and chomped through its segmented steel neck, severing its head. As the robot flailed about blindly, Ronnie seized one of its arms and executed a judo throw, sending its headless silver form plummeting down the elevator shaft to land on the elevator's roof with a loud thud.

Brutus, Duke, and Ronnie all rushed to where Brain was kneeling over Lucy's still form, using his glasses' X-ray setting to assess the extent of her injuries. "How is she?" Ronnie asked anxiously.

"Not good," said Brain. "She's suffered severe burns. She needs medical treatment, fast. Fortunately, there's a sick bay on Level One. Unfortunately, the elevator is stuck on Level Five."

"I'll take her to Level One!" Brutus said. "I can climb up the shaft, no problem!"

Tying the strap from Brain's satchel around Lucy's wrists, they looped her arms around Brutus's neck, and he began clambering up the shaft with Lucy hanging over his back while Duke, Ronnie, and Brain headed off into the corridor that Supersonic, Omen, and Katrina had entered.

Supersonic flew backward out of reach as Thok swung one of its chitinous claws, slicing at him. The alien was incredibly fast, and the squirrel was far from certain that he could survive even one hit from those claws. Looking past Thok, Supersonic saw Nightmunk running toward the door of another cell. Then Thok charged, and Supersonic was forced to create a vortex of wind around himself to push the alien back. Thok continued pressing forward, clawed feet leaving gouges in the steel floor.

Suddenly, the shadowy figure of Deuce rose out of the floor and flew directly through Thok's body. The alien writhed in obvious pain, its mandibles clicking furiously. It slashed at Deuce with its claws, but they passed harmlessly through her dark form. She flew through it again, and again, it clicked its mandibles with displeasure. Unable to affect Deuce, Thok fled down the corridor toward the elevator, and she pursued.

With one less thing to worry about, Supersonic turned his attention back to Nightmunk, just in time to see him press the button beside one of the cell doors. The door slid open, and from inside emerged a handsome young man with red hair and glowing magenta eyes, wearing a yellow prison jumpsuit. Supersonic recognized him as Simon Poe, a.k.a. Psymon, the official leader of PSI since he'd deposed his father Sebastian several years ago. Psymon looked down at Nightmunk in surprise. "You?" Then his mouth curved into an evil grin. "Oh, that's rich!"

"Back in your cell, Psymon!" Supersonic ordered him. "You're not getting out of here!"

"Try and stop me, squirrel," said Psymon as Nightmunk handed him a teleport ring. Psymon pressed the jewel on the ring, then blinked in surprise when nothing happened.

"You were saying?" asked Supersonic, smirking.

Psymon scowled. "It doesn't matter. I control Stronghold now. Its security robots are mine to command. There's nothing between me and freedom except a bunch of pitiful normals."

"And me," Supersonic reminded him.

"You? You're a cartoon character. You're nothing."

"I'm a PRIMUS agent!" Supersonic retorted.

Psymon laughed. "Sure you are." He turned to Nightmunk. "Kill him."

Nightmunk extended the questionite claws from his gauntlets and began walking toward Supersonic, his face and eyes blank.

Omega materialized in the same men's room that Supersonic and the others had appeared in, surprising a guard who was in the process of using the facilities. As the guard began to protest, Omega activated his jetpack and smashed into the door, ripping it off its hinges, then flew off down the corridor, heading toward the elevator.

As Omega neared the elevator, Warden Kowalski and some of the guards spotted him, and the warden ordered his men to open fire. Several plasma bolts struck Omega as he approached, but they caused him only minor discomfort, as his armor had been built to withstand far more potent attacks. He flew over the guards' heads and dove down the elevator shaft. Kowalski ordered rappelling gear to be brought to the elevator, and once it arrived, he began descending the shaft along with a dozen of his men, leaving his lieutenant in charge with orders to shoot any inmate coming up the shaft.

Reaching Level Three, Brutus became aware of something roaring down the shaft toward him and Lucy, and flattened himself against the wall. Omega shot past them, turned when he reached Level Four, and exited the shaft. Brutus shrugged and continued to climb.

Supersonic waited warily as Nightmunk approached. Psymon appeared to be content with simply observing the contest, so at least Supersonic wouldn't have him to deal with as well. For the moment, anyway.

Nightmunk leaped at the squirrel, stabbing with his claws, and Supersonic created his wind vortex, pushing the chipmunk back. Growling as his taloned boots slid across the floor, Nightmunk removed something from his belt. Supersonic quickly ran down a mental list of his opponent's weaponry. Besides the claws, Nightmunk employed throwing blades, bolos, sleeping gas pellets, micro-explosives, and smoke bombs. He didn't see how any of those would be effective against him. His wind vortex could deflect any thrown object and keep him out of reach of those claws. Of course, there was always the possibility that the chipmunk might have some trick he didn't know about . . .

Nightmunk threw something onto the floor, and Supersonic shrieked as electricity coursed through the metal floor and into his bare feet. Every hair on his body stood on end, and his wind vortex dissipated, leaving him defenseless. Unaffected by the volts due to his insulated boots, Nightmunk lunged, slashing viciously with his claws, and the squirrel dove aside, desperately trying to keep away from him. Supersonic felt a shock of pain as the claws sliced across his right side, leaving a pair of crimson gashes in their wake. He flew up away from his foe, pressing himself against the ceiling and raising his wind vortex again. He had bought himself a moment's reprieve, but he couldn't keep the vortex going for long, as it was a major strain on his body, especially in his wounded state. He looked down at Nightmunk, who stood looking back up at him, waiting patiently.

Running along the corridor, Omen and Katrina came upon the unconscious body of Thok lying on the floor, Deuce hovering silently above it. Ahead, they could see Nightmunk and Supersonic fighting while Psymon looked on. Omen beckoned to Deuce, and the wraith-like creature followed him obediently.

"Psymon!" shouted Omen, drawing his energy pistol and pointing at him. "I am called Omen. I am here to avenge the murder of Paul Trent!"

"Who?" asked Psymon, looking puzzled.

"You knew him as the superhero Mind Master."

Psymon burst into laughter. "That second-rate telekinetic?"

"He was my brother," said Omen. "I am David Trent."

Katrina gasped, staring at him. "David Trent, the actor?"

Omen nodded, and then spoke in a normal voice, no longer trying to sound mysterious. "This slime killed my brother, and now I'm going to kill him!" As Nightmunk hurled a throwing blade at him, he switched targets and fired, blasting the blade apart in midair. "You can't stop me, Psymon. I'm a precog. I know everything that's going to happen before it does."

Psymon frowned, and a field of magenta energy appeared around his body. "Being able to see the future won't help you penetrate my forcefield!"

"Which is why I had Gizmo soup up my gun," said Omen. "It has more than enough power to punch through your forcefield and kill you. Don't try to blast me, Supersonic. I don't want to have to kill you, too."

"Is that what Paul would want?" asked Supersonic, gritting his teeth as blood flowed down his right side, soaking his fur. "For you to kill me?"

"David," Katrina said quietly, "don't do this."

"I have to," said Omen, clenching his jaw. "In three seconds, Omega will arrive and I'll lose my chance. It has to be now." He flipped his pistol to maximum power, took aim at Psymon and pulled the trigger.

Omega came rocketing down the corridor, buzzing over the heads of Brain, Duke, and Ronnie as he shot past them, bearing down on Omen's turquoise-cloaked form. He fired a volley of energy bolts at the precog, but somehow Omen had positioned himself in the perfect spot where none of them would hit him. A beam of brilliant white light shot from Omen's pistol at Psymon, just as Supersonic zoomed down from the ceiling and slammed into the leader of PSI, knocking him off balance. The beam struck Psymon's left arm, piercing his forcefield and boring through the flesh beneath. Psymon screamed and fell to one knee, cradling his wounded left arm with his right one.

"You're dead, rodent!" snarled Omega, landing before Supersonic and pointing an arm at him. Then there was a slick metallic sound, and Omega convulsed as the tips of a pair of questionite blades popped out through his armor's chestplate. He crumpled forward and lay sprawled on the floor. Behind him stood Nightmunk, the talons of his right gauntlet dripping blood.

"—doing?" asked Nightmunk. Then his eyes went wide, staring at the body of Omega lying before him.

"Josh!" cried Katrina, running over to Omega and kneeling beside him, cradling his limp body as Brain, Duke, and Ronnie arrived.

Omen stared down at his pistol in disbelief, then at Supersonic. "How could I not have known you would do that?" he asked.

The squirrel shrugged. "Maybe you didn't want to." He walked up to Omen and held out his hand to him.

Omen sighed and gave him the pistol. "It's empty anyway. That one shot drained it." He glared at Psymon, who looked back at him, swallowing.

Nightmunk stared at Katrina as she knelt there sobbing, holding her brother's body in her arms. "What . . . what's going on?" he asked. He looked down at the blood on his claws. "I killed Omega?"

Brain shook his head. "No, someone else did. You were just the weapon." He looked at Omen accusingly.

"I had nothing to do with it!" Omen protested. "I don't know anything about brainwashing!"

"Brainwashing?" asked Nightmunk, still completely at a loss. "Me?"

"Well, it's a sure bet Omega didn't tell him to do that!" Brain said.

"Then who did?" asked Duke.

"Darke," said Psymon, through clenched teeth.

"Who?" asked Ronnie.

"Nicholas Darke, PSI's chief behavioral psychologist," replied Psymon. "He and I ran PSI together after he helped me oust my father."

Omen nodded. "It makes sense. Omega came up with the plan to break out Psymon and the others, but Darke handled the actual brainwashing. He must have seen this as an opportunity to get rid of Omega while keeping Psymon locked up. He sabotaged Omega's teleport ring, hoping he'd be captured, and programmed Nightmunk to kill him in case that failed."

"But wouldn't Omega's capture mean the end of PSI?" asked Supersonic.

"Only temporarily," Omen replied. "Darke could just start over somewhere else, recruiting new members loyal only to him. And if I know Nicholas Darke, he's already transferred all of PSI's funds to a Swiss bank account."

Supersonic went over to Katrina and put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Kat."

Katrina simply nodded, still holding Omega's body.

A moment later, Warden Kowalski and his men arrived. "What happened here?" Kowalski demanded.

Supersonic sighed. "That's a long story, Warden."

Katrina Werner emerged from the steel-and-glass skyscraper that served as the headquarters for the Millennium City branch of UNTIL—the United Nations Tribunal on International Law—into a chilly December afternoon. Her eye was caught by one of the floating billboards hovering around the Renaissance Center to the west. It was flashing an ad from Ace Burger, attempting to entice her into buying a Triple Bypass—three layers of beef and cheese, dripping with grease. Just looking at it made her arteries harden.

As she contemplated that mouth-watering tower of cholesterol, she noticed a small speck in the air to the right of the sign. It steadily grew larger as she watched, resolving itself into a familiar gray, furry figure that came banking down to land right in front of her, grinning a big bucktoothed grin, huge black eyes sparkling, a large white bandage stuck to its right side.

"I just finished talking to Director Sanchez," said Supersonic Squirrel excitedly. "She got the D.A. to drop all charges against you!"

"I'll have to send her a Christmas card," Katrina said.

Supersonic grinned wider. "It gets better! The attorney general granted her request for a new liaison. Abruzzi is out!"

Katrina smirked. "Couldn't happen to a nicer guy."

Supersonic giggled. "You can thank Nightmunk for that. How's he doing?"

"He's working with one of UNTIL's most powerful telepaths, a Bulgarian cat manimal named Bogdan Danielov."

Supersonic blinked. "A Bulgarian cat manimal?"

Katrina nodded. "He was an UNTIL agent with low-level psi abilities until he was mutated into a cat manimal a couple of years ago. Somehow, the transformation increased his powers. He's removing all the mental conditioning PSI installed in Nightmunk's mind. It'll take a while, though."

"Well, that's good to hear," said Supersonic.

"Any news on Darke?" asked Katrina.

Supersonic shook his head. "He's disappeared, along with all of PSI's money, apparently. On the plus side, Impulse, Lady Mirage, Inquisitor, Soulfire, and Gizmo are all in custody, Lucy is gonna be fine, and Angela will soon be on her way back to Australia to be reunited with her parents." He grinned happily.

Katrina smiled. "I'm glad for both of them."

Supersonic peered up at her, concern on his furry face. "How are you?"

Katrina sighed. "Lousy."

"I know how you feel," came a voice from behind them. They both turned around to see a handsome young man, just over six feet tall, with curly brown hair and blue-green eyes, wearing a white sweater and a blue sports jacket and slacks.

"Hello, Mr. Trent," said Supersonic.

"Please, call me David," said Trent.

"I won't ask how you knew we'd be here," said Katrina. "By the way, why are you not in jail for shooting Psymon?"

"I was Supersonic's deputy," Trent replied. "I shot a criminal who was trying to escape."

Katrina glanced down at the squirrel. "That's a little dishonest, boyfriend."

Supersonic shrugged. "Only a little."

Trent looked at Katrina. "I wish I had some words of comfort to offer, maybe something from Shakespeare. But I don't."

"At least your brother died a hero," said Katrina. "The last thing mine did was try to kill my boyfriend. I don't know if that makes it easier or harder."

"Have you told your parents?" Supersonic asked.

"No, and I'm not going to. There's no reason they need to know their son was a monster."

"You're not thinking about avenging him, then?" he asked warily.

Katrina shook her head. "Nah, he's not worth it."

Supersonic breathed a sigh of relief.

"A wise choice," said Trent. "That path brings no joy. Accept the word of one who knows." He laughed bitterly. "I still can't believe I let you thwart me, Supersonic."

"I'm glad you did," Supersonic replied. "I would have hated to have had to arrest you for murder."

"So, what are you gonna do now?" Katrina asked Trent.

He shrugged. "Go back to Hollywood. Try to resurrect my career. By now, everyone's probably forgotten who I am."

Katrina grinned. "Sounds like you're ripe for a comeback! At least you know what movies to avoid being in."

Trent nodded, and smiled. "It's occurred to me that the events of the past few days would make a pretty good film."

"And you could play yourself!" said Supersonic brightly. "But who would they get to play me?"

"Why not you?" asked Katrina. "After all, you used to be an actor."

Supersonic looked dubious. "Yeah, but I didn't know I was. And I don't think my duties to PRIMUS would give me the time. Speaking of movies, you feel like going out and seeing one, take your mind off things?"

"Actually," Katrina said, "I think I'd rather stay home and cuddle with my favorite squirrel." She grinned as Supersonic squirmed and blushed beneath his fur.

Trent nodded and smiled. "I see a very enjoyable evening ahead for both of you."

Katrina smirked. "Accept the word of one who knows?"

Trent chuckled. "There are some things you don't need precognition to foresee. Take care."

They watched him walk away, then Katrina turned to Supersonic. "Let's go home, fuzzy. But first, I want to stop off at Ace Burger for a Triple Bypass."

"Sounds great!" the squirrel said, grinning.

They left the plaza together.

In a large room lined with books, a man wearing a velvet smoking jacket sat in a voluminous leather easy chair. He was in his late forties, with a lean face, graying black hair, and a thick mustache and goatee. His tie pin bore the Greek letter psi. On the ornately carved mahogany desk before him sat a computer, whose screen displayed a series of dossiers. Beside the computer was a chessboard with a game in progress. He studied each dossier intently, occasionally bookmarking one before moving on.

Into the room came a tall, athletically built man wearing a black skintight costume with copper boots, gloves, and shoulders, his face completely covered by a full copper headmask with white eye slits. He carried a silver tray bearing a teapot and cup, steam wafting from the pot's spout. "Your tea, Counselor Darke," he said. His voice was dull and toneless, almost robotic.

"Thank you, Torment," Darke replied, not looking up from his computer. "Put it on the desk, please."

Torment did so. "Force, Blackout, Displacer, Floater, and Flashback are in the training room, sir, waiting for the next session to begin."

"Tell them I'll be there shortly," Darke said.

"Yes, sir," Torment replied. He left the room while Darke continued reading.