SteelStar

Episode Three: Part Ten

"Biomaster," said Speedclaw over his communicator. "Please tell me this thing is stable."

"Currently," said Biomaster. "All readings are normal. Just try to keep it from..."

"Getting jostled," said Speedclaw irritably. "Yeah, I know."

As the feline supervillain turned off his communicator, he looked around. He stood with the organic bomb in first class, watching the organic bomb pulse before him. Gaia-born had stolen and repaired a decommissioned plane years ago. They'd just never gotten around to using it. The plane was currently running on autopilot, so all Speedclaw had to do was keep any heroes away from the bomb and then high tail it out of there once the bomb was ready.

That didn't make this job any less nerve wracking. The idea that the bomb could blow prematurely like this made his fur stand up on end. He took solace that the superheroes were probably not stupid enough to jostle the plane, but that didn't reassure him as much as he would have liked.

This job couldn't be over soon enough, but there was still one thing Speedclaw needed to do before the heroes arrived. Quickly, he reached to a seat to pick up a case he's stored there. The contents of that case would be vital for this mission.

###

"A plane?" asked Silent in his mind. "They can't possibly be that desperate."

Silent stood in the center of the room communicating with Paramount as Speedshock and Elementus kept watch over the hostages as they evacuated the building. SteelStar stood in the center of the room, keeping an eye on the henchman's electromagnetic signatures, just in case one of them woke up. In particular, he kept a careful eye on Sister Nature, who still lay where she'd fallen, unconscious. Neither SteelStar nor Elementus heard Paramount's telepathic signal, but they heard Silent speak out loud. A moment later, Silent turned to them.

"It's true," said Silent. "They're going to crash a plane with a second Tholatite bomb."

"Are they insane?" asked Elementus. "That can't be safe even for them."

As they talked, a small, blue, leechlike creature crawled through Sister Nature's robes and attached itself to her chest, right above her heart. It quickly started pumping something into her, like a living syringe.

"Here's the plan," said Silent. "Elementus will take Sister Nature to custody while I fly SteelStar and Speedshock to the plane. I've already contacted the police, and they should be able to handle the henchmen. Speedshock, remove the weapons, please."

"Roger that," said Speedshock, speeding around to pick up the guns and relocate them.

Right at that moment, Sister Nature opened her eyes.

###

Demigoddess clung onto Paramount's back as they flew to meet the plane. The two of them flew fast, the wind rushing by with a deafening sound. Paramount's face was set in determination while Demigoddess looked eager.

"How much longer?" Demigoddess asked with her mind.

"Not much longer," Paramount replied.

Before long, they could see the plane, little more than a white speck in the distance.

"Finally," Demigoddess muttered.

"Be careful," said Paramount. "We'll have to get you on that plane gently."

"Yeah, I know," said Demigoddess irritably. "I know."