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Chapter -10- Rules of the System

December 22 5:00 pm PST San Francisco, California Aboard the "Busty Belle" ...

** Karla looked up from the nail file she used on her left hand** and tilted her head somewhat at the sound coming from the bathroom.

A moment later, Reno emerged from within, rubbing his face. "I've not been this hung-over since I was a teenager."

"Pedialyte is in the fridge. It'll make you right as rain."

"Ever get killed in a rainstorm?"

"Okay. It'll make you righter-than-rain. Don't be a sourpuss." She opened her hand, spreading apart her fingers, which sent the nail file away and, at the same time, telekinetically moved a shoe across the deck before Reno could trip on it. "How you feeling?"

"I don't remember much, except that you were flirting with me. We didn't ... bang did we?"

Karla rolled her eyes. "No. You got all whiny and started to cry."

"I what?"

She folded her arms then stood up from the sofa. "You were saying that you now had high hopes that if Vincent is alive, Nichole might be alive. And you didn't want to cheat on her. Sweet, really, but you were too drunk to say it like a man ... the booze reduced you to a child. Sad stuff. Lucky for you, it was in my room and Eric was passed out on the floor. So no one heard you sob. Let's keep it that way. You would have embarrassed yourself."

Reno wordlessly walked to the kitchen, opened the fridge and took out a large cup of orange liquid. "I see you've got two for everyone, here. If you don't count Evan."

"Evan didn't drink," she called to him from the living room. Her voice suddenly sounded a great deal closer, coming from over Reno's shoulder. "He got lovey-dovey with Patience, though. Sweet kids. They fell asleep together. They're snuggled up on the guest bed right now. Foreheads pressed together, nose to nose."

"Seriously? That close? Like, face to face?" he asked and rummaged through the fridge to see what kind of food he could find.

"Mmhmm. I don't know how anyone can enjoy that. I usually get claustrophobic when I do that with someone. I hate someone breathing against my face. I feel like I'm going to breathe in their carbon dioxide or something. I need my face space."

"Well then." Reno closed the fridge, took off the saran wrap and guzzled down the Pedialyte then flinched. "This stuff is weird."

"It's aspirin powder, caffeine powder, and Pedialyte. Be glad I didn't piss in yours."

"What? Why? Because I turned you down last night?"

She grimaced in reply. "Because you waited until I got your pants down before you started whining like a baby. It wasn't very becoming."

"How come I don't remember any of this?"

Karla turned away and broke into silvery peels of boisterous laughter. She sauntered out of the kitchen, cackling with glee.

"What?! Now what did I do?"

"Oh chill out, Nevada. I was just messing with you! God. You didn't cry, okay? I was trying to see how long I could keep a straight face." Her voice faded somewhat as she returned to the living room. "I was hoping you'd freak out from having your masculinity called into question. So relax, you held it together." She looked to the left, regardless of the fact she was alone in the next room.

Reno cleared his throat from the kitchen. "I do remember the flirting. I do remember being in your bedroom with Eric passed out. Look, if something happened, just tell me."

"Truth is ... no we didn't fool around. We started to, but you put your hands on either side of my face, and told me it wasn't right because there is a chance your fiancée is still alive. So I let it go. Went down on Topaz instead."

Reno finished the last of the orange drink then put the cup into the sink and came back to the living room. "Did you really?"

"Yes, really. First I got Eric. He's sleeping on the floor. Then Topaz. I asked Fox's permission first. Heh. I was trying for a hat trick, but it wasn't happening. But I respect your reasons."

"Well, uh ... thanks. I'm hoping Nichole is alive."

"Keep your anger close, though. Just in case she's not. That way you can channel your rage and use it to fight." Karla dropped back onto her sofa and stretched out. "Days like this, I wish I didn't give up smoking."

"Who can even afford that?"

Karla grinned inwardly at the fond memories of her past. "I liked the smell and taste of kissing someone after they smoked," she said.

"I never cared to try it."

"Mm. I used to love cigarettes. The taste. The smell. It reminded me of all those secret shags I had to sneak back in the 50's, when everyone was trying to behave all the time. It was always the boys with a pack of smokes that got me through the day."

"...Great." Reno glanced at his watch then said, "So what's the plan?"

"Don't have one," said Karla, adding, "Lance thinks if we bring enough attention to ourselves, Falcon will come out of hiding. So, for now, we 'fight crime' or whatever. That's between you and Evan. Find some thugs to interrogate so he can practice."

Nevada folded his arms. "He does need to practice his abilities and his interrogation skills. He comes off as nerdy to people. They won't tell him anything useful."

"And you need to find that Romanian girl."

Reno nodded. "Abigail Chase."

"Krenyenko," Karla corrected. "Chase isn't her birth name. She changes it every now and then to keep people from getting close."

"I see."

"What time is it?" The voice belonged to Evan, who came from the guest room. He stretched in the doorway, still wearing his clothes from the previous night. "And when do we start catching criminals and leaving the cops some presents on their doorstep?"

Reno thumbed a clump of sleep from his right eye. "You can't just leave bad guys on the front stoop of the police building for the cops, Evan."

"What? But we'll catch'em red-handed; we'll put all the evidence together so the cops don't have to. Heck, we can even give them a way to contact us _and we'll do the hard work _for them. Then we'll..."

Reno rubbed his hand on his pants and said, "This is real life, not a superhero comic, man. You can't just do cop-work for the cops."

"Why not?" Evan looked to Karla. She remained quiet. His tired gaze shifted back to Reno. "Well?"

"Look up the 'State Actor laws' and tell me what you think of that." Nevada stretched a bit then rubbed his face with his palms. "It's too early to talk about this stuff."

"It's five in the evening. Besides, it's never too early to talk about our torch carrying. So instead of looking it up, tell me what it means?"

Reno sighed and walked back into the kitchen. A moment later, he emerged with the second glass of orange liquid. "Karla Juice." He lifted the glass with a nod towards her, took off the saran wrap, and took a sip. "Nasty. Anyhow, once the bad guys get in front of the judge for their arraignment, the judge would toss out the case. That's if the D.A. took the case, because that case would be a violation of the badguys' civil rights."

"But if we could just waltz in and take down a few drug lords, we could clean up the streets."

"We don't have the right to yank some 'crime lord' out of their penthouse, Evan. Legit law, man. Comic books don't teach that."

"Oh. And to think John Gresham books would make such good comics. Seriously, Reno, if that's the situation, then what do we do about the guy we got yesterday?"

"That's different," said Nevada. "I gave my information to the security guard. They'll contact me as a witness to testify. You didn't arrest anyone yesterday. You stopped an attack in front of a bunch of bystanders who witnessed the robbery attempt."

"They pulled guns and discharged their weapons repeatedly!"

"Yes, they did," said Reno, adding, "They did that crap in front of security cameras. That's evidence against them. All done. You never arrested anyone, man. That's a whole different ballgame."

"So what's different about what we did yesterday?"

"Evan, you defended yourself and your fellow bankers. You turned around and handed the perpetrator over to the cops, with the bank security guard there to verify everything. The police will sequester the security footage and label it as evidence to be turned over to the court. The prosecuting attorney will handle the rest. That's the system we have in place. It works. It's not perfect, but it's made that way for a reason."

"So how do we create evidence to stop serious crimes?"

"If we catch someone in the act, you whip out your phone and record people doing a crime. You have a camcorder handy, you record a crime in progress, and then you bust them and turn them over to the authorities as a citizen's arrest. But you need proof, witnesses, all that stuff."

"But what if you stop a car jacking and turn them in?"

"Cops have twenty-four hours to detain the people you turned in. They have that long to find concrete evidence, else they cannot charge the person with a crime. They have to let the car thief go free. That's why it's easier for cops to let the thug steal a car then track them down and capture them. Because they're caught in the act. Look, I get it. You want to make the world a better place. But it's simple. We're not state actors. We don't have any legal power."

"This makes it harder to be a superhero," Evan groused. "Well, despite what we talked about yesterday, maybe we should talk about donning a hood or something. I mean, if we have to go to court and testify, these people are going to see who we are on the bench or whatever. I know last night we didn't do it. But we didn't have a lot of attention on us yet. And now we will. We really should cover our face."

Reno sighed and shook his head. "No, man. You can't show up to court with a mask on, Evan. Sixth Amendment, man."

"Okay, you know law. You're a cop. I don't."

"There's a Confrontation Clause, bud." Nevada shook his head again and said, "In criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to be confronted with the witnesses against him. Or her. You can't be testified against from an anonymous witness. It's unfair."

"I don't follow."

"It prevents witch trials," Karla said. "If someone points me out and said I'm a witch, I'd have the right to see who made the claim, so I can counter-claim that I've never seen them before."

Reno shook his head. "Not exactly, Karla. But close. If someone showed up to court in a mask they could be anybody. They might really be a witness, or they could be some joe-shmoe hired by the prosecution, or by another criminal to anonymously testify against you."

Evan frowned. "I think I'm starting to get it now. I could be innocent of murdering John Doe, but the person who really did it could claim they saw me do it to take the heat off of themselves without ever revealing their identity."

"A bit melodramatic, but yes. That sort of thing would be possible without the laws we have in place. If you weed out all the bad cops, corrupt politicians and everything in between, the system has the potential to work really well."

"This country is messed up. It's hard to lock up the bad guys."

Reno rubbed his face. "Yeah? Think about it the other way, Evan."

"I'm listening."

"Basically, you don't want laws that make it hard to prove your innocence because then the system would become corrupt and they'd start locking up all the wrong people on purpose just to close cases. Then the criminals would run the streets."

Karla scoffed. "The system is corrupt. The system is already being run by criminals, Top Cop."

"That's a whole separate issue. They got in power legally. If they're doing illegal stuff, you just gotta bring it to light and expose them without getting yourself killed."

"Man, law is making it really tough to be a good guy, I swear."

"Ah quit'cher bitchin'." Reno paused, receiving a nasty look from the boy then said, "Evan, man, the best way to do this isn't to seek out justice on every street corner."

"So what are my options?"

"You tape something going down, you call the cops. You wait until they arrive. Boom. That's it. That is how you save the day. If they the 'bad guys' do something that causes grief to the police, and you wield the power to protect the officers better than they can protect themselves, then yeah ... you step in and create a huge bulletproof glass shield or something. You wave your hand and turn the bad guy's bullets to glass or sand. Or you create a glass panel and Karla telekinetically moves it forward and we advance until the bad guys are backed into a corner. Simple."

"Or I drop the big 'glass panel' on the thugs' heads," Karla said with a grin.

"Now you've just killed or injured people that haven't yet been proven guilty in court," Reno said, taking another quick drink of the Pedialyte. "They have the right to due process. The smartest way to do this stuff is to come up with tactics that are safe and legal. You don't just kill someone because they pull a gun. In some states, there are "Stand Your Ground" laws, where they have the right to defend themselves if they think they're being attacked. Do you guys even realize what you're trying to get yourselves into?"

"A big mess," Karla murmured.

Evan frowned. "So we catch them in the act, we call the police, we let law officers handle it. Then we give the authorities our information and they call us to testify later on. Without covering our faces our disguising ourselves. See? I listen. I want to do the right thing, Reno. But why is it so hard to save the world, you know?"

"Evan, dude, that's how it works. Yes, it's hard to do this sort of thing legally on purpose."

"But why?" Evan exclaimed.

Nevada took a deep breath to calm his nerves. "Because! You don't want every Tom, Dick and Harry out there blasting up the streets and calling it, 'justice.' People get overzealous with that cowboy justice crap, and then there's chaos. You got it?"

"Got it." Evan frowned. "This guy, Lance, says we need to bring a lot of attention to ourselves to lure Falcon out of hiding. So how do we do that legally?"

"We don't go after people robbing liquor stores," said the ex-inspector with a chuckle. "We go after big crooks. We go after crime syndicates. We go after mafia bosses. We go after the scrum of the city and leave the petty crimes to the police."

Evan's eyes gleamed with delight. "Really? I'm down with that. How do we do it? Wait, did you just say scrum?"

"Simple," said Reno, shrugging off Evan's last question, still a little drunk. He finished the glass then handed it to Karla. "Sink, please."

She teleported the cup to the kitchen and leered at Nevada.

He ignored her glare and said, "We hurt their money-making operations by getting in the way without getting killed. We guide the cops to the right places at the right times. We stand in the way of a major drug shipment, for example."

"How do we do it legally?"

"If we design tactics and stick to a playbook, the bad guys can't hurt us. These people don't want witnesses. So we make sure we witness these crimes. Sure, a few thugs might get away, but if those drugs don't get sold, the organized crime bosses go broke."

"Yeah, but Reno, those crime bosses will get upset and come looking for us."

"Yes, they will. But we have the ability to defend ourselves. Let them shoot their guns and try to kill us until they're red in the face. We alert police, who show up and catch them in the act. We testify, they go to jail. That's the system. Until a better one is in place, we gotta stick with the current law."

"I see, now."

"Sometimes, we have to take an even _more _passive approach. We use our abilities to get us into their business. We use it to build a case for the police then hand it over, kind of like a Private Eye. Karla and Topaz could come in handy for that sort of work. When the criminals want to shut down our operation, we'll turn around and shut down theirs. Turnabout is fair play. The truth is, being a superhero isn't going to be without its problems. It won't be easy. We won't just walk in and start blasting. It takes patience and understanding. In the end, we're not trying to stop every petty crime anyhow."

"We're not?"

"No! You said so, yourself! We are only trying to get some media attention to lure Falcon out of hiding. He's the one who needs to pay for murdering a hundred thousand people. He doesn't answer to any Government. So he's different. He's got to answer to us."

"Alright. Law is your area. So we'll play the game by your rules."

"Don't worry, Evan. If we do everything the right way, we can walk away from this alive and we can save the world in our own way."

"I hope so. I have all this power, it's only right that I use it proactively." Evan turned to the bathroom, opened the door then quickly closed it. He waved his hand in front of his face with a moue of disgust and headed up the hall towards another bathroom.

Reno grinned in amusement. "Sorry, kiddo, that was me from earlier! That's what happens when I drink!" Reno turned to Karla and smirked. "No pithy quips?"

"I'll leave the 'potty humor' in your capable hands." She rolled her eyes and vanished.

Back in her room, Karla picked up her hairbrush and began brushing her hair. She saw Eric's reflection in her mirror. Loupe sat up on the floor. He climbed up onto the bed and stretched with a soft grunt.

"You look exhausted," she said.

"Jesus. How long was I out?"

"The sun is starting to go down on a brand new day."

"Go down? Seriously?"

"I have that effect on people sometimes. They sleep off what I steal from them."

"No, I doubt you did that to me," Eric said. "I think it was from all the alcohol."

She watched him in the mirror's reflection with a grin. "Oh just keep telling yourself that, sweetums. Everyone sleeps after a night with me."

"Karla, trust me, I don't think it was you. I still don't know a lot of things about myself, but in the last four months I have learned one thing: I sleep deep when I drink."

"Okay, dear. If you say so."

He grumbled softly then picked up a pillow and threw it across the room. Eric snatched his phone from beneath it and checked it for messages then sighed. "Great. Dead battery."

"Goodness." She glanced back at him then rolled her eyes. "Who pissed in your DayQuil?"

"Yeah ... good morning to you, too. How'd everything go after I went out?"

"Just fine hon. I made anti-hangover drinks. They're in the fridge. Two for everyone. I'm going to check on Topaz. Try to get yourself into a better mood before you come out of the bedroom, please." She disappeared.

Karla reappeared in Parker's room then leaned down and nudged the girl gently. She held her hand out and one of the drinks from the fridge appeared in her palm. She helped Topaz sit up using her telekinesis.

With Topaz elevated, Karla brought the drink to the girl's lips. "C'mon, honey. Time to get over this funk everyone is in."

Parker opened her eyes with a soft groan. She took the drink into her palms and sipped from it in a semi-childish looking way. It brought a smile to Karla's face.

Topaz drank for a moment then looked up over the rim of the glass. "Thanks for last night. Did Reno remember his emotional breakdown?"

"Nope. I told'em and he got defensive."

"I noticed a few things about him after spending a few weeks at his folks' old place. After losing everything and having everything stripped from him, he clings to what little control he has on his life. Maybe I shouldn't be profiling him. He's not so bad. So he got defensive when you told him he turned into a huge crybaby huh? What happened?"

Karla grinned. "I fibbed: I told him I was only joking about the whole incident. Then Evan came in and thankfully changed the topic. It's probably better that we never mention his drunken sobbing ever again."

"So even Evan didn't bring it up?"

"He's a good kid. Reno's secret is safe from Reno; his masculine self-confidence is preserved."

Topaz sighed. "At least Reno was that in love with someone to get emotional in the first place."

"How do you mean?"

"Aunt Nicky would have been happy to hear how he reacted." Topaz brought the glass back to her lips. "So he honestly didn't remember sobbing with his pants around his ankles, huh?"

"Not even a little bit." Karla grinned. "To paraphrase Rick James, Everclear is a hell of a drug."

Parker shook her head. "That's so weird. I remember everything I do when I'm drunk. No matter how crazy, I'll remember it the next day."

"Oh, good, so you remember what you said to Fox. That's good since you had a lot more than Reno, considering your body weight difference."

Topaz's eyes widened. She brought her free hand to her forehead and nodded shamefully. "I do. Dammit. Yeah, I remember every little detail. Fuck my life."

"Oh relax. At least you'll also remember last night when I brought you back to your room." Karla looked over at the candles, burned out and cold. She glanced back at Parker and grinned. "Boy, you were out afterwards. Oddly, everyone slept all day. Even Evan, who didn't drink a drop. He was so comfortable, snuggled up with Patience, that he slept all day. Didn't even get up to take a leak. From seven in the morning until five in the afternoon." The demoness reached forward and tucked a bit of hair behind Topaz's ear. "How'd you sleep, gorgeous?"

"Like a rock. Thanks, I needed that."

"No problem."

"How'd Eric take it?"

Karla laughed. "He told me it wasn't my ability that knocked him out. It was the booze. Guess I'll have to shag him sober to prove my point."

Topaz chuckled with a shake of her head. "You're incorrigible. So what've you done all day while everyone slept?"

"I went into town at one point and looked for Kuda. I don't know what to tell Sinopa when she comes back. Then again, the little guy found _me_on his own, at the beginning of October. So I guess he can handle himself. I'm just worried Sinopa might be upset. She asked me to look after him."

"If that little guy really is some sort of magic spirit animal that serves a messenger god, and if he really did bring you and Sinopa together ... yeah, I'm sure he's fine. You miss him, huh?"

"Yeah. I just need something to get my mind off of the little guy until he finds me again."

Topaz finished her drink then put it on her nightstand and said, "I'll take this to the sink later. C'mere, you." She reached up and wrapped her arms around the demoness' neck and pulled Karla into an affectionate kiss. She slanted her lips over Karla's and eased her tongue forth, until she felt the kiss returned.

Their tongues dueled and danced over one another, swirling about furiously. Parker reached for Karla, drawing her close. Karla, in return, leaned forward, moving atop of Topaz until their bodies pressed together.

Karla guided her hand down, beneath the blankets, pleased to find that Topaz still wore nothing from the waist, down. Her hands moved between milky thighs, playfully exploring her previous night's lover all over again.

Topaz parted her legs and shivered at the sensation of two smooth fingertips, as they moved down the warm slit of her creamy sex. She cooed softly. With a groan of delight, she broke the kiss and held her breath and gently bit her lower lip.

In reply, Karla grinned. She leaned forward as if in chase, until her lips brushed Parker's once more.

With no warning, the muffled sound of gunfire came from the aft section of the yacht. The sound caused both girls to freeze, break their delicious kiss and look at one another in confusion.

After a moment to process the sound, Topaz narrowed her gaze. "Whoever they are, I'm going to kill them for ruining my morning fun."

Karla grinned and eased up from her luscious toned lover. "It's going on five-thirty, hon. C'mon, let's go see what the fuss is." She eased from the bed then brushed the wrinkles from her clothes. "Take a minute to get yourself dressed and put together. I'll handle this mess." She disappeared.

With a huff of indignation, Karla tugged at the hem of her skirt then her blouse and marched forward, towards the living room. "Whoever comes to my boat looking to scrap is in for a big surprise!"

Seconds later, Reno emerged from his room with a toothbrush in his mouth. Evan was next, but already showered and dressed.

Karla opened the door leading out to the deck then folded her arms, face to face with men in suits, kneeling before her. They looked up from their lock-pick kit then quickly went for their sidearm.

The demoness waved her hand as if in a dismissing fashion and threw them all onto their backs, spread out across the aft deck. They tumbled out as far as the large 'H' stamped into the rear section. The large letter was surrounded by a white circle, which covered the entire rear deck of the yacht.

She walked out onto the helipad and folded her arms. "You cunts picked the wrong boat. What're you doing here?"

"She's the one from the hotel!" cried one of them. "That was forever ago! She's a lot worse than the other two!"

"Aw Christ," exclaimed another.

"I said," Karla cracked her knuckles. "What're you doing here? Who sent you morons?"

One of the men got up slowly and lifted his hands, displaying his empty palms. "We were sent here by Krys Monroe. She said she had a message ... she saw you all on the news last night. She wanted the job finished. We were sent here to kill everyone on the..."

"Christ." Karla waved her hand again, throwing all of them away from her. The men stopped at the edge of the deck, nearly cast overboard.

Karla rubbed her hands together. "You guys are so lame. Why does Monroe have you guys dress like fake Mafioso thugs, with suits and ties?" She paused then laughed. "Wait, you boys remember me from Millbrae in August? You guys worked for Falcon? You used to dress up in those stupid black gear suits? What changed? Why the pinstripes and fancy shoes?"

No one spoke.

"Fine. Whatever. That armor wasn't going to help you guys against me anyhow." She stretched melodramatically then opened her stance and held her fists out. "Okay, let's go. Who is up first?"

Everyone got to their feet. The first one up adjusted his longcoat. He tossed his tie over his left shoulder. "Okay, lady. You won't fight fair, so why should I...?"

"Because if I wanted you boys to go overboard, then all of you would be overboard. So. Are you first? C'mon, squirt."

The man eyed her. "You're like ... a kid."

"Oh shut the fuck up and fight me, you pussy."

The man blinked. He looked back at his peers then un-holstered his pistol. He pointed it at Karla but it disappeared. "Wait, what the...?"

"It's in the water," she said. "It wasn't fair fighting and we don't have enough room for 'Gun Fu.' So c'mon. Put up your dukes." She began to move lively on her feet. "Move like a butterfly, sting like a bee, right? Show me what'cha got."

"Go on," said one of the men. "Fight her, then."

The guy in the longcoat removed his tie then stuffed it into his pocket and said. "I'm ready." He brought his fists up and approached Karla. They exchanged glances, then nods.

He drew his fist back and swung at her.

Instead of teleporting, she ducked her head to the left. Karla brought her right hand up and struck him inside of his elbow. She closed her hand over his forearm, grasped his shirt, brought her knee up into his gut then rolled back and threw him into the bulkhead adjacent to the elegant wooden door.

He slumped down the wall and rolled over. With a grunt he got to his feet again. "This 'woman's self defense' crap they teach down at the 'Y' isn't going to help you. You're going to wear yourself out doing throws." He went for another punch.

Making it seem effortless, Karla evaded his swing. She struck him in the ribs with her palm, kicked at the side of his knee and grabbed his arm. She pivoted him around and in one quick maneuver she bent him over.

The demoness offered a pelvic thrust, bumping her hips against his backside.

Caught off balance, he stumbled forward to his hands and knees.

She smiled. "How's it feel to get bent over and butt-humped by the Alpha Dog, huh?"

Some of the other men chuckled amongst themselves.

The man in the longcoat ground his teeth together, took his coat off and threw it to the side. "Oh that's it."

Another man moved to the port, flanking Karla. She smirked. As soon as her opponent rushed forward again, the other man came at her from behind.

Her right palm illuminated with a brilliant pink glow. She picked up the attacker in front of her by his neck. Karla swiveled. Holding the man by his throat, she swung his body as if it were a blunt object. The man's feet struck the other man approaching her from behind. They both went to the deck.

"This isn't a tag team event, boys. There are ten of you. There's one of me."

Topaz opened the sliding door on the second level and came to the rail, peering over. Meanwhile, Reno opened the wooden hinged door directly behind Karla. "You're going to take them on all at once?"

Karla grinned. "Oh let me have my fun."

Topaz dropped in from above, landing in a crouch at the center of the deck. "Can I cut in?"

"Guys?" Karla looked to the remaining eight men. "You okay with fighting another girl?"

"I won't give them a choice," Topaz said. "I'm not sure if I believe in this whole ... having abilities thing. The rest of you, sure, but not me. I think Aunt Nicky is right ... mine is training." She stretched her arms. "However, I am confident that I can handle myself against these losers."

"You want the floor?" asked the succubus with a smile. "The catsuit looks hot, by the way."

Topaz grinned then stretched, causing her leather one-piece suit to creak. "It's my sneaking suit. But it's the easiest thing in the closet to put on in a hurry." She motioned for Karla to move back. "I'll need some space. Please."

Karla nodded then disappeared. She reappeared sitting on the railing in front of the sliding glass door directly above, her legs dangling over the side. "We'll need survivors as bargaining chips."

Parker eased her hands out into a defensive posture, middle fingers both straight, but the rest of her fingers curled slightly. "Someone tell Evan that we need a bulletproof panel to protect the boat. They'll start shooting when they realize they're all screwed." She turned to the remaining eight men then sprinted towards the nearest two.

Topaz dove forward, put her hands on the deck then bound back up and opened her legs. Her feet met both men in their face. She pushed off of them and arched her back, flipping away. Her feet met the deck directly in front of a third man, with her back towards him.

She reached behind herself, took his pistol from his hip holster, and in one smooth motion, released the safety, pointed it forward and shot a fourth man off the side of the yacht.

Parker brought her foot up behind herself, caught the third opponent in his crotch then turned around while he doubled over. She put her foot up on his shoulder, boosted herself off his semi-crumpled body and performed a smooth jump-kick into gunman number five.

The man fell backwards, off the side, and hit the water.

She dropped into a crouch with one leg out and turned about, sweeping the sixth opponent to the deck. Topaz saw he had his handgun out. She reached for it and, using a palm thrust, caught the barrel. The strike turned the weapon around in his grip.

Using his gun in her left hand and the previously acquired handgun in her right hand, she shot the seventh and eighth remaining attackers. Coming out of the sweeping pivot, she was on one knee, facing the sixth attacker. She head-butted him in the face before he could get back to his feet.

Topaz dropped back onto her shoulder blades and kicked her legs, doing a reverse roll then came to her feet in front of the injured 'number three' attacker. She kicked his weapon just as he pulled the trigger.

His gun went up in a reverse-chopping motion, striking the sixth attacker in the shoulder, over near the edge of the deck.

Topaz hopped up and kicked the third attacker in the chest. He went down to the ground. She leaned over him, put her foot on his throat and both guns against his forehead. "Stay down."

Karla, above, offered a soft golf-clap. "That was showy. You little minx, you."

Topaz's lips twitched. She paused then broke out into hysterical laughter. "Minx, huh? That's a new one." She kept her left pistol against the forehead of the third attacker, still on the ground, then raised her right handgun at the injured man across the deck. "You're lucky. I thought that kick was going to make him put a bullet in your forehead. You were supposed to die. Behave, or else I'll correct my mistake."

In reply, the injured number-six attacker lifted his free hand above shoulder height and his other hand moved upwards, even with his collarbone, both palms held outwards in surrender. Topaz nodded to his body language. "Good choice."

Evan came out the first level door, past Reno, and put his hands on each of the two slumped men that Karla attacked earlier. He pulled their hands behind their backs and created dense glass handcuffs to connect each of their wrists. "So, uh, Reno, do we call the cops?"

"Technically we can call the maritime police," Reno said. "But it's our word against theirs." He raised his voice so the four surviving attackers could hear. "So if we were to throw them all overboard, no one would be any-the-wiser."

Eric Loupe came through the sliding glass door on the second deck then shut it behind himself. "Any-the-wiser huh? Sounds like a punkband." He leaned over the edge next to Karla and said, "Sorry I missed the fun. We should use them to have this woman, Monroe, come out of hiding. I'm not quite sure I understand why she would attack us."

Karla glanced over her shoulder. "The crazy bitch saw us on the news and wanted to send us a message."

Evan stood up and clenched both his hands into fists. "Message received."

Reno sighed and leaned in the doorframe. "Okay, I know that sounded a whole lot cooler in your head, Evan, but ... really? 'Message received?' C'mon, now."

Patience eased by Reno and approached Evan. In a soft voice, she said, "Don't listen to him, Evan. Is everyone alright?" She glanced about at the assembled cast then smiled. "Very good. I can't begin to tell you all how impressed I am that you were able to work together as a team in this fashion. You haven't even trained as a group. You simply have chemistry together."

Reno grinned. "Some of us just watched."

"Yes, even those of you who didn't directly influence the fight ... 'teamwork' is the ability to work as a group. You didn't step on one another's toes. You were all in fine form. I'm honestly impressed that you gentlemen didn't interfere with the spotlight. That shows control and humility, which, to me, shows that you all have character, integrity and respect for your fellow team members."

The injured sixth man, across the deck, discretely withdrew another handgun from his ankle holster. He pulled it up and fired towards Evan and Patience. The bullet turned to glass. By the time it hit his shirt, it turned to sand. Everyone turned to face Evan with a look of concern.

"Wait!" Evan erupted. "Topaz, no."

Parker glanced to the side, peering at Evan out of the corner of her eye. "Why? I've got him targeted and he made an attempt on you."

"But I turned the round to sand. We were never in any real danger. And now he knows he can't hurt us. That's a pretty potent message to take home."

"You're going to let them go?" Topaz quipped. "Seriously?"

"Yes. These four guys are going to take us right to their boss."

Reno moved towards the man beneath Parker's foot. "Who're you working for?"

Evan cleared his throat. "For whom do you work?"

"Krys Monroe," the man grumbled in reply.

Reno looked up and chuckled. "We could easily kill'em all. I know where she's hiding at - Pages Lost nightclub."

"That's what you think," the attacker grumbled.

"No need to kill anyone," Evan told the group. "Please, let's not disagree over this." He waved his hand. The handgun held by the number-six gunman turned to glass, shattered, then became sand before it hit the deck.

A soft breeze crossing over the aft of the yacht caused the dirt to disperse across his lap and part of the deck. The gunner looked up and pinched his lips together. With slow movements he brought his good hand over to favor his injured shoulder.

"Reno, can you destroy their boat?"

Nevada came the rest of the way out onto the deck, passed Topaz and moved to the starboard side. He untied two ropes from mooring cleats, pushed the Bayliner motorboat away from the yacht then said, "Karla, give that thing some distance from us, would you?"

As per his request, the motorboat moved away from the yacht, powered by telekinesis.

Reno rubbed his hairless head, took a deep breath and concentrated on the boat out in the water. He tensed his body. "C'mon," he murmured softly.

Eric eased over the rail then dropped to the main deck and approached Reno. "Does it really help to tense up like that? For me, it's better to relax."

Karla appeared adjacent to both of them. "Just visualize it, Reno. See the lightning bolt hitting their boat. I know it's a clear day, we're out in the water ... but you can still strike it."

Eric asked, "Are you trying to have something come down from above and hit it, or are you trying to have the electricity come from your hands like with that trick you pulled on the news camera last night?"

"Let me concentrate," Reno told them both. "He rubbed his hands together then tensed up again. He glared at the boat but nothing happened.

After a moment, Karla shook her head and said, "You need to channel your anger, babe. Visualize it like I said before. You don't have to be angry to strike it, but you definitely want to channel whatever brings you rage. Remember, you told me last night that your buddy at the old job said it was a cellular thing. Emotions can trigger stuff that causes..."

"JUST GIVE ME A SECOND, WILL YOU?" He turned around to face them and threw his hands up in the air. "You guys are both telling me how to do what I do, but maybe my ability doesn't trigger the same way as yours! I'm still figuring this thing out, okay? I just need to focus and try until I figure out a way to..." He stopped and looked at everyone staring over his shoulder. "I ... I did it already, didn't I?" Reno turned around.

Out in the bay, a hundred yards from the yacht, the Bayliner was on fire and beginning to sink. A soft rumble came from above, despite the clear sky. The thunder lasted for several seconds then tapered off.

Karla cleared her voice in an expectant manner. "Great. Your trigger is 'being argumentative when people are trying to help.' Neat."

"I just..." Reno stared at the boat for a moment.

The succubus grinned then opened her left hand. The empty glass that Topaz left on her nightstand from earlier appeared in her grip. She handed the empty cup to Reno and said. "Here. Put this in the sink."

"I..."

She waved her hand in a dismissive fashion and teleported Nevada to the kitchenette adjacent to the living room. "That'll teach'em." She turned back to the rest of the group and in a louder voice, said, "I say we call the big boss, Krys Monroe, and tell'er we got her pals. We tell'er that she's next and there are a lot more of us than just Reno Nevada. Evan, since you're the big hero on campus, you make the call."

"Me?"

Patience smiled at Evan. "We believe in you. You can do it."

"But, wait, why me? What do I say to a mob boss that will make her feel like I'm in control of the situation?"

Topaz grinned inwardly. "Evan, you just need to find your inner confidence."

"Yeah, if I knew where to look," he replied with a frown.

Patience took Evan by his cheeks, leaned forward, easing up on the tips of her toes, and pressed her lips gently to his.

He appeared to tense up but didn't break the kiss.

Karla grinned at Topaz and Eric. She waggled her brows playfully but remained otherwise quiet and respectful. After a moment of watching the two, Karla wiggled her right index finger, discretely, and used telekinesis to guide Evan's hands up, so that he cupped Patience's face in return.

Ubysh wrapped her arms around Evan's neck.

The gunman on the deck beneath Topaz's boot groaned. "Are you idiots serious? It's just a stupid kiss, and..." He suddenly groaned, receiving a swift kick in the jaw from Parker. No one else spoke.

Finally, Patience relinquished the lip-lock then gazed into Evan's eyes. "Feeling a little more confident now?"

He swallowed then nodded. "I'll do it."

Karla grinned at them then announced, "Hey! I was thinking ... what if that light at the end of the tunnel we see when we die ... is really just the opening of another vagina, as we're about to be born again?"

Everyone froze and turned to face the succubus.

Reno, back in the doorway, brought his palm to his face.

Eric furrowed his brows.

Evan rolled his eyes.

Patience offered a sly smile and said, "Every so often, Karla, you say something deeply profound, thought provoking and philosophical."

Topaz offered a grin. "I don't think now was one of those times."

Karla beamed. "Sorry. I have this psychological complex where I need to have all the attention. I blurted out the first random thing that came to mind."

Topaz pulled out her phone and handed it to Evan. "I get service out here. Go get'em Tiger." She mashed the barrel of her weapon against the man's forehead beneath her and said, "Tell us Krys Monroe's number. Now."

X

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Next Chapter: https://www.sofurry.com/view/650744