Ordinarily I don't like to do this, but since a signifigant number of people
have indicated they didn't get the first half of chapter 9 (which ironically
includes me, since I didn't recieve a copy of it when I sent it out to the
list last week) I'm going to post part A again. This is an updated version
using some of the C+C I did get. Sorry to clog the list if you did get it
the first time. Not really any big changes to merit rereading this.

Avenging chapter 9
Ten Rings to Rule Them All II

Any and all C+C is appreciated. You can contact me at
sommer@3rdm.net

All of my fics are stored at the following:

Larry F's new address at:
http://www.rakhal.com/florestica/

Or R+C books at:
http://dbsommer.rcbooks.org

And also Angcobra is now storing all of my fics, at
http://dbsommer.web1000.com/dbsommer.html


Standard Disclaimer: Various anime characters are owned by their respective
creators. The super heroes are owned by Marvel Comics Company

xxxxxxxxx

"Are you done yet?"

"No." Idiotic bishonen playboy. The Iron Rose used the retractable cutting
torch in her finger to complete a connection to the stealth system.

"Art thou done yet?"

"No." Oversized gaijin harlot. More relays were fused to their various
systems. The prototype quinjet had only been test flown twice and even then
it was over short distances. It wasn't outfitted for proper
inter-continental flight yet.

"Aren't you done yet?"

"No!" What statement was that idiotic robe and devil mask supposed to make
anyway? Was it red to hide the fact that he bled easily, or was the twit
color-blind? She grit her teeth in annoyance as she rechecked the monitors
in the cockpit.

"Yo, Shellhead, this is taking a while."

"Forgive me, Captain-sama." The Iron Rose broke off her work and returned
ponderously to her feet. She gave a deep bow, formal despite the bulky armor
she wore. "The modifications necessary for our impromptu flight are
extensive to assure our safe arrival in these uncharted waters. I shall
endeavor to hasten my work so we can set upon our foes all the quicker.
There is but one more system I need to check, then we shall be off on our
merry way. Fighting alongside you shall be an honor, Captain-sama.
Ohohohoho!" She laughed maniacally covering her mouth with her gauntlet.

Captain Japan laughed nervously in return and backed away. Suddenly, putting
his life in the walking stove's hands, or armored gauntlets in her case,
didn't seem like a good idea after all.

"Why does he get a 'sama' while I just get a snarl from the tin can?"
Daredevil mumbled to himself as he turned away from the work.

Iron Rose picked up the 'tin can' reference with her audio sensors. In
response, she adjusted a device on her armor's waist, bringing her magnetic
projector online. She used it to send an extra nut lying near her workplace
flying through the air and towards the back of Daredevil's head.

At the last moment, the red-garbed adventurer effortlessly reached behind
him and snatched the nut out of mid-air without turning around. "You dropped
this," he calmly stated as he tossed the nut over his shoulder. The Iron
Rose caught the unerringly thrown projectile out of mid-air.

"Not bad," Captain Japan admitted to himself. He would have sensed the
object's approach as well with his highly trained martial arts senses, but
Daredevil made it seem even easier than he could have managed.

With his heightened senses, Daredevil easily picked up his new
comrade-in-arms words and could not have cared less. He wasn't here to
impress anyone other than himself. The opinions of all involved, from cocky,
shield-slinging clods, to armored hulks, to oversized self-proclaimed
goddesses, meant nothing.

Boredom threatened to consume him while Iron Rose fiddled around with the
vehicle. Daredevil used the extra time to focus his senses on the people
upon whom his life might very well depend. Only Thor really impressed him.
By the way the ground vibrated wherever she tread, Thor was far heavier than
a normal human. Earlier at the Iron Rose's request, she had lifted the
quinjet up so that the armored warrior could gain easier access to the
engines at an angle that she claimed would help with an adjustment to the
gyroscopes on the vehicle. That display of strength probably surpassed Power
Man's, and Daredevil didn't even want to think about the hammer and the
weird vibes it gave off. Whatever power flowed through it set his teeth on
edge when he focused on it.

The one called Iron Rose remained a mystery, one he didn't care for. The
armor hid the woman beneath. Nothing about her true form could be sensed,
Even her voice was distorted by machinery. It was like communicating with a
giant toaster instead of a person the way his senses were blocked. He
decided to have as little to do with her as possible.

His attention turned to Captain Japan. There was nothing unusual about him,
save his physique, which was as close to human perfection as Daredevil had
ever sensed. Heart rate, blood pressure, perspiration, everything was in
peak condition. It was unsettling to meet someone who was in superior
physical shape to Mousse, who had trained as hard as possible for the
majority of his life to be the best that he could be. Of course there was
more to a fight than mere physical conditioning. There was skill, as well as
heart and will, which Daredevil possessed in abundance. He was secure in the
knowledge he could take the arrogant super-hero in a straight fight, but
that perfect physique added to the list of the Captain's qualities that the
blind youth disliked. It was becoming a long list.

At last, he turned his full senses to Hawkeye. Now that he focused
exclusively on the archer, Daredevil began to suspect that all was not right
about him. Something about the bishonen youth was odd. It was in the small
details rather than in any overt manner. The way he walked, the way he
talked, even how he breathed was peculiar. They didn't indicate superhuman
abilities like Thor, but something else altogether. He trained the totality
of his senses to the archer.

Somehow, Hawkeye seemed to pick up on his interest and approached. That took
Daredevil aback; he had wanted to examine him surreptitiously. He sensed
Hawkeye was going to speak, and concentrated on the words and the reaction
the archer's body gave.

Hawkeye said, "Is something wrong? I noticed you staring at me pretty
intently."

Daredevil cursed his tendency to actually face people when he focused on
them. It had been necessary to learn to put people at ease by looking at
them when communicating. Others didn't like it when the person speaking to
them appeared to have their attention elsewhere, even if they knew they were
talking with a blind man. He always did it out of habit now, and
unfortunately Hawkeye had noticed and was questioning him.

"Not really. I was just thinking of things," Daredevil said quickly.

That seemed to assuage the archer. "Well, since we got a minute, I thought
you might want to trade notes on super-heroing and stuff."

Daredevil tensed up at the suggestion and what followed. He went no further
than feeling Hawkeye's heart rate leap slightly at the conversation and the
archer's voice became slightly raspy. The blind youth recognized this first
couple of signs and tuned out the rest. He wished he had paid less attention
to Hawkeye. Now the obviously gay archer misinterpreted Daredevil's interest
as being sexual instead of professional. Oh, on the surface that was what
Hawkeye contended, but Daredevil could feel the archer's body betraying him
by becoming aroused and knew better.

It was best to end it quickly, before Hawkeye got any ideas. "Sorry, I have
some serious planning to do before we run into our playmates again."

"We can come up with an attack plan together," Hawkeye said.

There was way too much hope in that voice. Uncomfortable beyond all measure,
Daredevil backed away. "No, it's all right. I'm sure you'd rather make plans
with the Captain over there." And Daredevil didn't want to know what any of
those plans were. He deliberately turned his sense away from Hawkeye in
order to dwell on anything other than homosexual super-heroes.

Hawkeye's disappointment at Daredevil's standoffish behavior was quickly
defused by Thor. She moved closer to the archer and placed an arm around her
shoulders. "Thy suggestion has merit. Let us make plans to war on those
villains who harmed thy fair personage."

Hawkeye darted out from under the grasping shoulder. Thor was getting a
little too friendly again. It was the sort of reaction she would have
preferred from Daredevil or that hunky Captain, but instead, thanks to her
choice of camouflage, she was once again fending off the advances of a
woman. "Sure we can, but let's not get too close. I like to use... ah, lots
of wide hand motions when describing things and wouldn't want to smack you."

"Ah, right," Thor said hesitantly. "Describe again these villains abilities.
>From the sounds of things, methinks it would be best if I strove against
this Power Man."

As the two began to come up with a battle strategy, Captain Japan held back,
watching Hawkeye intently. This was bizarre, almost surreal, in a way. It
made him wonder what kind of world it was where two people that were great
shots with arrows had the same nickname. The first time he heard the archer
called "Hawkeye" by Thor, he nearly fell over in shock. His first instinct
was to run over and hug the purple-garbed adventurer, but then he recovered
his senses. Of course it was only natural that his first instinct would be
to assume Hawkeye was his best childhood buddy, and that had taken on the
guise of a super hero. But then common sense returned and the Captain nearly
kicked himself for causing a spectacle by hugging another guy. The others
would think he was gay. And it was silly, really, the idea that this Hawkeye
could be the same person from Ranma's own past.

After all, Ukyou had been a girl, and it was obvious Hawkeye was a guy,
especially with how he was reacting to the obvious advances of Thor. The
only way the archer could have been good ol' Ucchan was if she had not only
decided to become a super hero, like Ranma, but had also traveled to
Jusenkyou and just happened to fall into the spring of drowned guy. Now that
was stretching coincidence impossibly far.

Still, maybe he would find some hot water and 'accidentally' spill it on
Hawkeye, just in case. It never paid to take chances.

"Finished!" Iron Rose declared as she reattached the last plate to the
exterior controls. "Everyone get on board. I've already got the tracking
information logged into the control system. It will take us on the most
direct course that their plane traveled."

Eagerly, all five heroes boarded the high-tech transport. The last one to
board was Daredevil. Just as he was about to enter, he paused and tried
tuning his senses to the bottom of the vehicle.

"What is it?" Captain Japan, who had been right in front of Daredevil,
asked.

The roar and heat from the quinjet's engines started up, drowning out
Daredevil's ability to sort through the stimulus around him. He shook his
head and paused on the steps leading inside the vehicle. "For a second, I
thought I heard something near the landing gear. It was about the size of an
insect."

"So what?" Captain Japan asked.

Daredevil was about to explain, but changed his mind and entered without
another word. He had been beaten soundly, was trying hard not to pay
attention to Hawkeye, and the engines had distracted him. It was small
wonder he was imagining things. After all, the idea that a person could be
the size of a wasp was absurd.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Concealed within the compartment for the landing gear, the Wasp flew into an
area that appeared to be safe, or at least where nothing would crush her and
her unconscious companion. Her wait was over quickly when the quinjet rose
vertically and the landing gear went up and into the craft. A moment later,
the main engines provided forward thrust and the jet took off. For a moment,
the Wasp was afraid they would not make it in time, but one last burst of
speed enabled her to hide in the landing gear without any of the other
heroes noticing her presence.

She looked down at the man she had carried with her. It was peculiar that
when Tofu shrank down to her size, he became incoherent and the goggles on
his mask fogged over. It was probably some side-effect from the shrinking
gas. At any time she could use one of the enlarging gas canisters on his
belt to return him to normal size, and hopefully more coherent, but she
thought better of it. Coming up with a different plan, she flew up with
Giant Man in a fireman's carry cross her shoulders, and headed for the
quinjet.

She wondered if she was doing the right thing. Being a superhero had
suddenly become more difficult than she had originally thought. Upon
arriving at the scene, she and Giant Man had discovered the villains had
already departed. At first she was depressed, but then she overheard the
heroes discuss tracking the villains down. The excitement of fighting for
justice filled her once again, and she vowed to go along to help. But Giant
Man had been knocked senseless by his gas and kept calling Kasumi by her
proper name rather than 'Wasp.' There was no way she was sharing her real
identity with a group of strangers. Also having an incoherent partner was no
way to approach the group and offer to join. Likewise, she was uncertain
they would accept her and Giant Man. They had no reputation, like most of
those assembled, and perhaps they would be cynical about her size, thinking
her a liability in a fight.

Rather than taking the chance of being rejected, she decided to stowaway.
Once they arrived at where the villains were located, she and Giant Man
could appear out of the blue and save the day. Then the group would see them
in combat first hand and have to accept them.

Course set, Wasp knocked out the still-incoherent Giant Man with a light
zap, then carried him into the landing gear. Perhaps flying inside the
passenger area of the quinjet would have been safer, but she didn't want to
chance getting caught and thrown off the vehicle, ending her adventure
before it had begun.

Now they were comfortably ensconced in the landing gear. She could hear the
wind howling outside, but still felt safe with all of the armor between her
and the skies above. The pitch blackness was a problem, but one she could
live with. She kept a close hand on her partner as she let the slow hum of
the vehicle lull her into a relaxed state, eventually falling asleep shortly
after the quinjet took off despite her excitement at what was to come.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The gentle hum from the jet engines rumbled throughout the plane. The
vibrations flowed through the entire aircraft, and she could feel them all
the way through her seat. Her eyes were closed, and she tried to refocus her
center. The combat had not been extraordinarily difficult, but despite the
relative ease with which matters had been resolved, she felt inexplicably
out of sorts. With the time she had before their arrival in the mountains of
China, she sought to re-center herself using some of the meditation
techniques her mentor, Matsuo Tsurayaba, had taught her.

But she could not find the concentration necessary to use the technique. The
reason for that was very simple. It was the eyes, those merciless orbs that
seemed to bore into her mind. Even with her own lids closed, she could still
feel them penetrating her and burning her with their unrelenting fires from
within.

Her eyes whipped open. "Would you quit staring at my breasts?!"

Both Power Man and Mint, who now refused to be called 'Whizzer', continued
staring.

Mint said, "I can't help it. They're so... there."

"Are they as soft as they look?" Power Man leaned forward to try to touch
them again.

In response, Elektra darted out of the way of the way and moved forward so
she was next Power Man. She then brought both of her palms hard across his
ears. The result was a bellow of pain from him as the seeking hand returned
to cover the abused ears.

"I'm satisfied with just staring at them," Mint assured her, pushing away
the idea that he might be able to get a quick feel with his super speed. She
would probably notice it, and in the closed confines of the jet, he would
have difficulty making use of his super powers. There was no way he could
outrun her, and with her reflexes she might have been fast enough to do
something that involved a great deal of pain to him.

"What fools you foreigners be," Swordsman said dramatically. "To leer at
such a bastion of beauty shows how crude and barbarous your nature is. Truly
you are not worthy to be in the presence of such a flower of femininity."

"But you were staring too," Mint said.

"I was simply admiring the design of her garments."

"Do you usually drool when you do that?"

Swordsman stood up and drew his weapon from its sheath. He pointed it in
Mint's direction. "You sir, are a cad."

"No, I'm a Musk. It says so right on my passport." Mint pulled it out and
showed him.

Before he could reply, Swordsman discovered a sharp metal object pointed
under his chin. There was just enough pressure to push the skin inward
without actually breaking it.

Keeping the sai pressed against his jaw, Elektra hissed, "As amusing as it
would be to watch you punch a hole in the side of this plane and the three
of you get sucked out at four thousand feet, I, unfortunately, would end up
being ejected as well. Since I have no intention of dying today, I suggest
you put that sword back where you found it, or they are going to have to
reupholster the seats since I doubt they'll be able to wash out that many
bloodstains."

Swordsman sheathed his weapon. "I merely wished to express in opinion.
Harming my new comrade and teammate was the furthest thing from my mind."

Elektra sat back in her seat, deliberately keeping the sai out and idly
pointing it in the others' direction. If she had to put up with these three
morons for another hour, she might draw the Swordsman's blade and blast a
hole in the side of the plane herself.

Showing a remarkable resilience, or a remarkable ability to delude himself,
by not being intimidated in the slightest by the assassin's display,
Swordsman began talking to her yet again. "I feel compelled to point out
that Elektra is an unusual name for someone not of Grecian decent. Is it
your real name, or just a working moniker, and if so what should I call you,
oh sweet beauty, when we are on our date?"

"You can call me insane if you think for one moment I'd date with you."

Mint said, "Insane's a pretty unusual name too. Is it because you're
psychotic or something?"

"I didn't mean it was my actual name!" Elektra snarled. Taking a moment to
compose herself, she said, "Look, if I answer your questions, will you leave
me alone, or at least stop looking at my breasts?"

Mint said, "Probably not, but there is a minuscule chance I will if I find
the story really interesting or it puts me to sleep."

"I would never engage in such deplorable behavior in the first place,"
Swordsman assured her.

"Did she say something about spot hooking a chest?" Power Man asked Mint;
the ringing in his ears still made it impossible to hear anything outside of
a bell clearly.

"No. She said she wants us to stop looking at her chest."

"Hop skipping a mess?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I said." Elektra nodded her head to make sure the
big man wouldn't misunderstand her agreement as something else and continue
making inane misinterpretations.

"So, where did you get the name?" Swordsman continued.

Reluctantly, Elektra decided it would probably be best to tell them the
story. Once they knew the truth, it might serve to silence them, or at least
leave her alone for the rest of the journey. "It is the name I selected upon
my ascension to the rank of Assassin Prime. It was chosen as a way of
honoring of the best friend I ever had, may her soul rest in peace."

Swordsman removed his hat and placed it over his heart. "It is such sweet
sorrow when the ones we care for fall before their time. My heart goes out
to you in your pain. If I may be so bold, what ill wind claimed her life?"

"I ran my sai through her chest."

"I... see," Swordsman said, actually shocked at the admission.

Mint said, "I take it you don't have many friends."

"No. None, really." It was a casual admission. She could have been
commenting on the weather for all of the emotion in her voice.

Having collected himself, Swordsman pressed on. "And what, pray tell, was
the cause of this terminal falling out? Did you engage in some blood feud
over the attentions of some dashing, sophisticated man like myself?"

Seeing Mint and Power Man were also eager to listen, Elektra found herself
surprised that they would press on. Either they were more stolid or more
stupid than she had originally suspected. She knew which she would have bet
upon.

"The Hand set us up to kill one another. I was with the organization
since... since I was very young. Elektra Natchios came along many years
later, a reject from our accursed rivals, the Chaste. Our superiors sensed
as much potential in her as they did me, so we were trained together. We
became fast friends, especially due to the mutual trauma of our pasts. The
man who served as our mentor encouraged out friendship. Despite an age
difference, Elektra and I did everything together and soon we became
inseparable. We were happier in each other's presence than at any other time
in our lives.

"After a year of this, there was a surprise. I was informed I had advanced
far enough that I only needed to pass one last test to graduate to the rank
of Assassin Prime. It was unexpected, since no one as young as myself had
ever been offered the opportunity to attain that high rank. I had assumed it
would be another two to three years before that day would come, but my
teacher assured me I was as ready as I could be. After training me for a
full decade, he would be the one to know.

"The test was a battle to the death, the survivor graduating, the loser
feeding the rats in the sewers. I knew this day would come and felt
confident I would win. I was led to the combat pit right after the
announcement. I admit, I was surprised to discover Elektra was already in
the pit and prepared for the test. She appeared just as astonished it was me
that had been chosen as her opponent. But being what we were, we calmed
ourselves just as quickly and prepared to fight.

"It was not a particularly long battle; assassins are taught to kill
quickly, and we were two of the best. The difference came in a mutual
forward thrust. She hesitated for a split second. I did not. She only
claimed the lower half of my ear." Elektra pulled aside some of her dark
locks to show that part of her right ear was missing. "I claimed her heart.
It was a perfect blow."

For the first time since the start of the story, the trio of men appeared
chilled. There had been no emotion whatsoever in her voice. What she had
stated was a pure analysis of the fight and carried nothing else. No
regrets. No hesitation. No doubts.

The Swordsman's voice was heavy with shock. "How could they make you kill
one another? You were friends."

"That was the whole point. I later learned we were intentionally trained
together and our friendship was encouraged specifically for that fight so
that we understood what was really expected of us. It was the second half of
the test. It was to show us that there is no greater loyalty, no greater
thing, than the Hand. All that I am, all that I may ever treasure or
possess, is theirs. And when they tell me I must sacrifice the things I
cherish, if for no other reason than their whim, I will do so without
hesitation. My friendships, my lovers, even my life, all belong to them.
That is reality. I am not an individual thing, like a finger. I am part of
something greater. I am one of the Hand from now until the life has left my
body and nothing but ashes remain."

"Oh," was all Swordsman could manage to say. Even Power Man and Mint were
struck silent. All three went to looking pointedly out the windows of the
plane, silence reigning.

Satisfied they would give her some measure of peace until they landed within
the next half hour, Elektra considered what she had not told them. It was a
little thing, hardly important, or at least that was what it should have
been. Yet the fact had stayed with her. It was a private thing she had
noticed right after the fight, and she took an odd sort of comfort in it.

The blood was still dripping from her sai when Matsuo informed her that she
had been reborn for the second time and earned the right to have a new name.
Her first rebirth had occurred when the Hand had taken her in after gaining
her from the gang of slavers that had initially captured her when she had
arrived in Japan. The gang had operated in the area without the Hand's
consent and had paid the ultimate price for their defiance. Rather than
dispatching a child who had witnessed the Hand in action, as would have
normally been the case, the commander of the death squad had seen some
hidden potential in her and claimed the right to test her for
indoctrination. She had survived the initial test, confirming Matsuo's
suspicions. Her previous name was taken from her, her past dead in their
eyes as well as her own. She was reborn merely as 'Student,' and Matsuo her
sensei. He personally trained her in all the skills she would need to serve
the Hand. From hand-to-hand combat, to weapons, to stealth, and even the
more carnal arts she might be required to employ to get close to her
targets, he taught her everything. And she learned well, for there was
nothing else in her life but service to the Hand.

And in that pit, when the only friend she had in ten years lay dead at her
own 'hand', Student looked up to Matsuo and informed him that from that day
forward she would be known as Elektra in honor of the fallen warrior. Upon
that declaration, the almost inscrutable Matsuo Tsurayaba, one of the most
lethal and dangerous members of the Hand, allowed a flare of anger to enter
his eyes. It was a subtle thing. Had she not spent over half her life in his
presence, she would not have recognized the brief flash for what it was. The
look disappeared as quickly at it came, but it was too late. She had
witnessed the brief loss of control.

And it had made her happy.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Things were not happening the way Hawkeye had hoped they would.

While it was true that the quinjet flew fast, far faster than any commercial
jet liner, and that they had taken off in pursuit of their long departed
assailants, this was not the happy-go-lucky group she had hoped it would be
as the quintet of heroes had agreed to join forces and bring those
super-villains to justice.

Her head still ached from the pounding she had received at the Whizzer's
hands. It was probably a minor concussion, which she had suffered on a
number of occasions during her training and early days as a super hero, but
this one was lingering longer than it should have. She hoped it would fade
by the time she encountered the speedster and his cohorts again. She hated
to think what would happen going up against them, even with the Iron Rose,
Thor, and Captain Japan at her side this time.

To frustrate her further, her number of arrows was slightly depleted, and
there was no way to replace the shafts she had used. The Iron Rose's quinjet
might have had many elaborate devices, but a supply of arrows lying around
was not one of them. Still, she should have enough to finish off the
urine-colored jerk, and help her comrades if they needed it.

And then there were the passengers themselves. Iron Rose was flying the
vehicle, which was as expected, but for some odd reason she seemed insistent
Captain Japan remain near the cockpit with her. Curiously, Hawkeye found she
didn't care for that and decided to stay close by. At the moment she was
maintaining a position to the Captain's right. It was a difficult location
to maintain, considering the number of times Thor seemed to pop up between
the two and rubbed shoulders with both of them. It made for an uncomfortable
situation.

The only bright side to constantly being jostled by the goddess was the
close proximity to a major hunk like Captain Japan. Being near him seemed to
counteract some of the odd feelings that affected her when she was near
Thor. Hawkeye had never been interested in women before, even if she did
crossdress, and had no intention of starting now with a six-foot,
five-hundred pound (yet unquestionably feminine) gaijin who proclaimed
herself a no longer worshipped deity. Still, there was something about Thor
that made Hawkeye feel very peculiar. She just hoped the feeling would pass
in time.

Only Daredevil seemed content to remain where he was, sullen and brooding as
far back in the passenger compartment as he could manage. Hawkeye was torn
between trying to strike up another conversation or staying by Captain
Japan's side. Ideally, she would like to talk to the Captain about being a
super-hero, but there was something odd in the way he looked at her. It was
almost as though he found her some sort of enigma, and she found the stare
unsettling instead of flattering. That, combined with the fact she was
really turned on by his physique, made talking with him awkward. She felt
she couldn't risk starting a conversation without sounding like an idiot or
blowing her cover. Or worse, managing to do both.

However, talking with Daredevil seemed an unlikely prospect as well. The
first time she had tried to start a conversation she had been rebuffed. His
rude behavior irritated her and made her want to try again, just to show she
could force him to open up. But again she was uncertain of how to go about
it, and didn't want to risk further alienating someone that she would be
fighting alongside in a little while.

Unable to decide, Hawkeye turned her attention to the pilot and more
important matters. "So you're certain they flew this way?"

"Of course. My tracking unit has had an unbroken signal this entire time. I
guarantee you this is the course they took. Even if they were flying at
maximum speed, they could not escape. We should be coming upon them
shortly." Iron Rose continued flying the quinjet and watching the tracking
computer at the same time.

The archer persisted. "We're over China, aren't we?"

"For some time now. What of it?"

"Isn't that a violation of their airspace?"

"Again I say, what of it?"

"We didn't exactly get clearance to do that. They might shoot us down since
we are sort of here illegally."

Iron Rose placed the back of her armored gauntlet against her helmet.
"Ohohohoho! How naive of you. This aircraft is the epitome of modern
technology, designed by the most brilliant genius of our era, and
constructed using the best materials in the world. It has the most advanced
and sophisticated computer systems ever designed by human beings, including
electronic countermeasures that make us invisible to every tracking system
on the planet. We could fly over Beijing all day and they wouldn't have the
faintest idea we were there, unless they visually spotted us."

"Well, if you say so," Hawkeye reluctantly conceded.

"Are we not there yet?" Thor asked.

"Don't start that again!" Iron Rose warned. "For your information, the
tracking computer has indicated the aircraft ceased flying somewhere in this
area."

"Where are we exactly?" Captain Japan asked as he looked at the rocky
mountains below.

"Somewhere in the Bayan Han Range," Iron Rose said as she double-checked
various maps of the region with her computer. "This is peculiar. According
to this, there are no known airstrips in the area. Not even one for
crop-dusters."

"Maybe there's a secret military installation the Chinese don't want anyone
to know about?" Hawkeye suggested.

"Why would the Chinese military want to recruit Japanese super villains?"
Iron Rose asked back.

"I don't know," Hawkeye conceded.

"Exactly. So before you open your mouth, perhaps next time you should think
before you speak."

Captain Japan inserted himself between the two. "Hey, ease off there, Iron
Fern."

"That's Rose. Iron Rose," the armored warrior corrected.

"Ah, right. Anyway, the guy was just trying to help. So just relax."

"Of course, Captain-sama," Iron Rose cooed.

"Thanks for sticking up for me," Hawkeye added with a broad smile, and
placed her hand on the Captain's arm as a show of appreciation.

All sorts of warning senses went off in Captain Japan's head. The sort of
attention the Iron Rose had been throwing his way was bad enough, but now
Hawkeye was acting far too friendly for comfort. He darted away from both as
quickly as he could. Too quickly, as his foot hit the edge of one of the
seats and he began to topple backward. With reflexes at the peak of human
condition, he spun and grasped out for something to keep from falling. His
hand clutched onto an object and remained upright. The handhold was soft,
yet firm, and not altogether uncomfortable to handle.

At least, not uncomfortable to him. However, Thor was not terribly amused at
the Captain grabbing onto her breasts to keep from falling.

Once he had regained his footing, Captain Japan realized what he had used to
balance himself and instantly paled. He gave a cry of fear jumping back and
nearly colliding with Daredevil, who was shaking his head sadly at the
display.

Thor scowled, placing her arms under her ample bust. "See here. If thou
wishes to fondle the Goddess of Thunder, it would be in thine best interest
to do so under more private circumstances."

Once the words settled in, every person on the aircraft looked in either
surprise or shock at Thor, including herself.

Captain Japan hastily apologized and claimed it was all an accident and he
had absolutely no intention of fondling her, while both the Iron Rose and
Hawkeye muttered expletives about gaijin of loose morals. Only Daredevil
remained silent, the lone show of his disapproval a sad shaking of the head.

The goddess could scarcely believe her own words. She was certain she had
intended to say, "Thou art a pervert, and will be smited by mine hammer!"
and was going to do so. But somewhere on the neural pathway between brain
and mouth the words got very twisted. Though now that she thought about it,
would it be so wrong to have such a strapping example of mortal flesh to
wile away the time with?

"I am not a pervert," Thor reassured herself, slapping her face and hoping
she could knock some sense back into her head.

"Sure you're not," Hawkeye said coolly. She was about to make another acidic
comment when something outside the front of the cockpit window caught her
attention. She turned just in time to see a flash of crimson light emit from
an ancient stone fortress nestled on the top of a mountain they were
approaching. The beam disappeared under the body of the quinjet, only to
reappear a moment later by lancing through the middle of the floor of the
passenger area and continue on its way through the ceiling and into the sky
beyond, destroying everything in-between.

And then Hawkeye became aware of the sensation of falling.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Perched in the middle of a trail leading up that self-same mountain, Ryouga
watched in horror as the beam of light shot through the unusual aircraft. It
was followed instantly by the aircraft initiating a downward dive,
eventually going out of sight behind the side of the mountain. A trail of
smoke marked the arrow-like plunge, followed by the cacophony of metal
impacting on rock that reached Ryouga's ears

"We have to help them!" Ryouga shouted to his two companions.

Yun-Lo was already praying the soul would find eternal peace. "There isn't
going to be anyone to help, I'm afraid. There's no way anyone could have
survived that crash. It was the will of the gods they were to meet their end
this day."

"It was the will of whoever shot them down with that beam of light."

"Around here, it's much the same thing." Yun-Lo made another prayer, this
one for protection.

"Well, I'm going to check it out for myself."

Yun-Lo began backing away from Ryouga, making sure to take Lin-Mei with him.
"In that case, I think it best we part company here. You can keep going on
up the mountain on your own."

Ryouga misinterpreted the man's fear as concern over his granddaughter's
safety. "I understand. Thanks for helping me as much as you have."

Seeing such heartfelt thanks, Yun-Lo felt as though he had been kicked in
the gut. Not that that it would make him warn the boy about his impending
death. Being kicked in the gut hurt far less than being reduced to a pile of
ashes.

Ryouga bid the pair farewell and kept his eyes riveted on the trail of
smoke. As long as he kept it in sight, he would hopefully head straight for
the crash site, rather than ending up in Russia or someplace equally
distant.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I thought you said that thing was invisible to any tracking system on
Earth!" Hawkeye shouted from her position in Iron Rose's arms as the armored
warrior landed safely on the ground.

"It is! I mean, it was!" she shouted back.

"Then how was it we got shot down?!"

"Maybe the tracking system isn't from Earth. Maybe it's from outer space,"
Captain Japan offered as Thor landed with both him and Daredevil clinging to
her. He made absolutely certain his hands were nowhere near her breasts.

"Bah!" the Goddess of Thunder snorted. "The next thing thou wilt claim is
that there really are Stone Men from Saturn. All know there are not such
things as beings from outer space."

"They also know there aren't such things as gods," Hawkeye added dryly.

Thor considered that. "Perhaps thou dost have a point. Mayhap I shall
believe only when mine eyes lay upon hard evidence of such life from other
planets."

Now safely back on terra firma, Daredevil breathed a sigh of relief. He
hated to admit it, but he owed his life to Thor. When the ship had been
struck by what the others said was a beam of light, it immediately began to
plummet to the ground far below. Completely disoriented by the unexpected
attack, he was at a loss until Thor snatched both he and Captain Japan in
one mighty arm and with her other threw her hammer. Her grip on the strap
propelled them through the side of the craft. His radar sense allowed him to
perceive the side of the craft being torn as though it was made of tinfoil.
Thor made certain to interpose her own body between her passengers and the
side of the craft, shielding them from the jagged pieces of metal that the
hammer had left behind in its passage through the wall. Even now Daredevil
could smell a small amount of blood trickling from a few scratches on her
shoulder and arms.

"Let me help. I have a first aid kit." Daredevil pulled a box with a Braille
red cross on it from out of the confines of his robes.

Thor looked down at the small injuries on her shoulder and arm. "Thou hast
my thanks for thy gesture, but it would take far more than these mere
scratches to affect mineself. With mine own Asgardian heritage, it should
take but a few minutes for them to heal fully. Save your medicines for one
of the more fragile members of this company should they suffer injury."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Captain Japan said dryly.

Now back on land and with her fear of plummeting to her death under control,
Hawkeye reconsidered her admonishment of the woman who had prevented her
from becoming mountainside okonomiyaki. While Thor had grabbed Daredevil and
Captain Japan, Iron Rose had reacted by grabbing the archer and flying out
the cockpit window as the aircraft plummeted downward. Even a cable arrow
couldn't have saved Hawkeye's life under those conditions.

"Thank you," she muttered to Iron Rose.

"They must have detected the quinjet to fire upon in the first place.
Somehow the fault must lie with me," Iron Rose reluctantly admitted.

"Did anyone see who shot the plane out from under us?" Captain Japan asked.

Hawkeye said, "I saw it right before it fired. It looked like it came from
some old style stone fortress on the top of the mountain. It's really weird,
since you wouldn't think one of those old kind of fortresses to be equipped
with a laser."

"No, there was too much kinetic energy for that to be a simple laser
weapon," Iron Rose informed the others. "I'm uncertain what kind of device
it was, but its sophistication is far beyond that of all but the most
technologically advanced of societies or industries."

"The Chinese government?" Daredevil inquired.

"Doubtful. It was far more advanced than anything I've heard them
developing," Iron Rose said.

"It matters not," Thor boasted. "I shall take the fight to these base
attackers and raze this fortress for having the audacity to fire upon
mineself."

"And get shot down just like the quinjet did?" Hawkeye mentioned.

"I bet it wouldn't be the first time the braggert's been shot down," Iron
Rose quipped.

"What did thou just say?" Thor waved her hammer in the armored companion's
direction.

"Enough of this!" Captain Japan shouted, interposing himself between the two
before another fight erupted. "Hawkeye's right. It's too risky to try to
just fly up there and do a frontal assault on this place. That's where their
defenses are going to be heaviest, if getting shot down once we got in sight
of the place was any indication."

"So what do you recommend we do?" Hawkeye asked.

"It's easy," the Captain said nonchalantly. "We just find the secret
entrance to this place."

Daredevil finally entered the conversation, "I'm sorry, but I seemed to have
missed something along the way. What secret entrance would that be?"

Captain Japan looked the others over, as though they were stupid for even
asking the question. "Come on, don't you guys know nothing? All these evil
bad guy types always have secret entrances to their places. That way when
guys like us come storming in to kick their butts, they can escape through
them and harass us some other day."

The quartet just stood there, gaping at his declaration. Then all four burst
out in laughter.

"Surely thou dost jest."

"It is quite the humorous idea."

"Right, like there's some sort of handbook all of these bad guy types
follow."

"Or better yet, a training academy where they learn how to become evil
overlords. Hahahaha!"

"Well, that's what my old man taught me when I was training to become a
super hero." Seeing his 'allies' all laughing at his idea made Captain Japan
consider ditching them altogether and finding the secret entrance on his
own. That would show them.

Not content to leave things alone, Thor went up to a part of the
mountainside and said, "And how wouldst we go about finding this, 'Secret
Entrance'? Perhaps we would but knock, and they would open this door for
us." She tapped her hammer against the side of the mountain.

Daredevil's laughter abruptly stopped. "Wait, do that again."

"I didst not think the joke was so amusing it need be repeated."

Daredevil shook his head. "No, no. I meant hit the side of the mountain
again. But not too hard."

Confused at her companion's odd request, Thor considered it for a moment,
then decided she had nothing better to do. She tapped the side of the
mountain, just like before.

Daredevil strode up to the side and placed his ear against the rock. "I did
hear something. Do it again."

Slowly becoming irritated, Thor did so again. "Art thou happy?"

Daredevil took several steps to his left. "There's a hollow place in the
side of the mountain here, and it sounds pretty big if the echo is any
indication."

Thor looked at the patch of rock he was indicating. "It looks the same as
any other to me."

"Yes, how is it you can tell? I heard nothing," Iron Rose said.

"Let's just say I have very good hearing and leave it at that. If one of you
powerhouses wants to try pounding on the side of the mountain here, you can
probably break through to the hollow area."

Moving over to the spot that Daredevil indicated, Thor drew back her hammer.

Right before Thor could bring it forward, Iron Rose shouted, "Wait! You
might collapse whatever is on the other side if you just go pounding on it
like a giant wrecking ball."

Thor found she did not care for the comparison. "And hast thou a better
idea?"

In response, Iron Rose moved forward to stand next to Thor. She twisted the
left upper arm of her armor. Several pieces of metal unfolded from their
previously concealed housing on the arm. Each piece was long and fairly
thin. All of them became progressively narrower until they tapered to a
point. A second adjustment, and all the pieces bent slightly near the arm. A
third one, and they moved outward again towards the end of the Iron Rose's
arm, coming together to form what appeared to be the head of a very large
drill.

"I incorporated this specifically for digging and excavation. I believe it
will fulfill our needs. You might have raw power, dearie, but I possess some
degree of versatility that simply can't be matched. Ohohohoho!"

Thor scowled as Iron Rose went to work. The remaining trio made certain to
steer clear of both women. They could practically feel the sparks jumping
from the pair of heroes. And they weren't always metaphysical as Thor tapped
her hammer to the ground and sparks were actually leaping from it.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Thirty minutes later, the quintet found themselves inside a complex of
caverns and passages.

"I'm no geology expert, but I don't think these were formed naturally,"
Captain Japan stated.

"Mayhap, but neither are they recently made. This place reeks of age."

In a soft, almost reverent voice, Daredevil said, "Legends say that dragons
once inhabited this part of the Bayan Han, and that they would move through
the earth at will. Whenever anyone found tunnels such as these, they called
them 'Dragon Lines' and would seal them up, lest the dragons came out and
devoured them and all they cherished. The greatest and most powerful dragon
of all was Fin Fang Foom, and only death awaited those that would dare
disturb him in his lair."

"There are no such things as dragons, superstitious plebeian," Iron Rose
said, using her chest beam to light the way for the party.

"I can personally assure thee dragons are real. Many are the number I slew
in mine time." Thor began reminiscing. "I do remember upon one occasion I
did have to rescue fair Idunn from a rather pernicious dragon. One of
Fafnir's brood, as I recall. He was a particularly vexing beast. It took me
four blows to dispatch him, and he did strike me with his tail once. Though
with the affections Idun showered upon me afterwards, it made the fight
truly worthwhile."

"Affections?" Hawkeye asked with a lifted eyebrow.

"Eh?" Thor turned to see she had become the center of attention. She held
her hand to her eyes to block out Iron Rose's light as it shown directly
upon her face. "Err, did I say affections? I meant gratitude. She was most
grateful for my rescue. She did bequeath unto me... Hmm. I don't remember
exactly what she did give to me. I do remember Fandral being quite irate for
whatever it was. He was dating her at the time. I think it had something to
do with apples. She was the keeper of the Golden Apples of Immortality.
Perhaps it was an apple pie she did bestow upon me." Thor wracked her mind
for the memory. She was just about to give up when she remembered something
about apples being mashed into a sauce. It was a good sauce, as she
recalled. And there was something about how it was served. Oh yes, it was
served upon a most unusual, but very delicious platter, specifically Idun's
nude-

Thor hit herself in the head with her hammer. Hard.

The others stared at her in shock. Captain Japan said, "What was that
about?"

"I seem to have forgotten what it was," Thor said quickly, relieved that
whatever it was she had almost remembered had escaped her, even if there was
now a swelling upon the top of her head.

"I think we're still heading up," Hawkeye said, changing the subject largely
because she did not want to know what that was all about.

"We've gone upwards precisely fifty-three point four meters from our initial
starting point," Iron Rose informed her.

"Got an altimeter in there?" Hawkeye asked.

"Of course. It would be foolish to go soaring about while being unaware of
my altitude."

"Oh, I uh... knew that," Hawkeye said. "But I bet you don't have a CD player
in there too."

In answer, the words "Yappa pan, yappa pan, ish a ten," began blaring out
over her speakers.

"I was only kidding," the archer said, all too aware there was no way to
recover from that one.

Daredevil saved her from further humiliation as he said in a loud voice,
"Did you guys feel that?"

"Feel what?" Captain Japan asked.

"I thought I felt a breeze."

"So?" the Captain asked again.

"We're underground."

"Oh. Maybe we'd better be more on guard." Captain Japan shifted his shield
from its carrying position to one where he could bring it up to deflect an
attack in an instant.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The master of the citadel sat back in his throne of stone as he listened to
his minion's report.

Mint said, "I found those intruders, all right. They managed to survive the
crash and ended up in that old complex of caverns we found in the mountain.
There's the two guys whose butts we kicked and three others that operate out
of Japan. I think one's a bodyguard for Kunou Industries. She's called the
Iron Rose. I saw her on some press conference on the way over there. I don't
know the other two, although the blond girl with the hammer has nice looking
breasts."

"Five, then. It appears we'll require the full attention of my forces." He
turned to Elektra and the Swordsman. "This sort of thing is exactly why I
hired you. Show me your worth. Bring me these meddlers."

"Alive?" Elektra asked.

"I would prefer them that way. If they have power, I would unlock their
secrets and take them for myself. One can never have too much power. Though
that is a secondary objective. If you need to kill them in order to prevent
them from interfering, so be it. We are less than half an hour away from
seeing my years long plan reach fruition. That is what is paramount. The
launch must go off unhindered."

Swordsman gave a sweeping bow. "It will be as you say. I will see to it that
all of them are brought to you intact."

"Then go, my Lethal Legion. Bring me these meddlers, or bring me their
heads. Either way, see to it they are brought to me."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ryouga looked at the hole leading to the interior of the mountain. He hadn't
seen any bodies in the wreckage of the aircraft. That meant it was probably
an unmanned plane. On the other hand, it didn't appear as though any debris
had caused the recently made breach. He was at something of a loss as to
what to do.

Sticking his head in the hole, Ryouga called out, "Hello, is there anybody
in there?"

Only his voice echoed back.

It was possible there was someone in the craft and they had been hurt and
couldn't respond. But it was dark, and from the sounds of it, the cavern was
vast. Still, he couldn't just walk away from someone who was injured,
leaving them alone to die. He pulled out a flashlight he had discovered
among the debris (when he was actually looking for some shoes, and maybe a
shirt or two), and turned it on. Carefully scanning what was visible from
the opening and the range of the light, he could see no signs of anyone
injured or otherwise.

"I'll just go in for a quick peak and come right back out," Ryouga said to
himself as entered the tunnel to try his hand at spelunking.

xxxxxxxxxx

"I hear something," Captain Japan told the others. "I think it's water.

"That's what I've been telling you for the last ten minutes!" Daredevil
shouted, then immediately winced as loud echoes assailed him. The close
confines of the tunnel they were in played havoc with his enhanced sense of
hearing. Every sound was magnified and bounced back at him, almost like an
auditory version of his radar sense, save that it was proving uncomfortable
whenever there was a loud noise. Like someone shouting.

"Well excuse me, but some of us don't have your inhuman hearing," Captain
Japan shot back. Under his breath, he mumbled, "What kind of power is super
hearing anyway? It's as stupid as having super breath."

"I heard that!" Daredevil snapped back.

"I heard that," Captain Japan mocked. "I think we've pretty much confirmed
you hear everything."

"Including you farting twenty meters back," Daredevil retorted.

"You said you didn't do that!" Hawkeye snapped.

Captain Japan held up his hands in a warding gesture, "It wasn't! It was...
Umm... Mine gas."

"It was not mine gas," Daredevil retorted. "Mine gas smells very different
from processed anchovies and beans." It was times like these that the blind
adventurer wished he didn't have enhanced senses.

"Even Volstagg the Voluminous could rarely create a stench as repulsive as
that," Thor added somberly.

"Oh, like I'm so sure none of you have ever cut one," Captain Japan shot
back, giving up all pretenses of a defense.

"Not in the presence of others. I have some sense of class," Daedevil
snapped.

"Praise be I had the foresight to build my own internal air-supply," Iron
Rose said to herself.

"Were we outside, I could summon a wind," Thor said.

"I think our dear Captain already did a good job of that," Daredevil stated.

Captain Japan turned around, his stance one of tensed up aggression. "Look,
Smell Man, you've been riding me ever since we first met. I'm tired of it.
If you want to have it out now, we can Hey!" Captain Japan spun around and
held his bottom. He pointed an accusatory finger at Thor, who stood directly
behind him. "Why did you grab my butt?"

In completely innocent tones, she said, "Thou didst have a wedgie. Twas most
unseemly."

"I did not!"

Hawkeye said, "She's right, Sugar. You did have a one. It was real
noticeable. I almost pulled it out myself."

"And exactly why were you staring at my bottom? Thor I can understand, since
she's a girl and all, and I'm me. A lot of girls can't keep their eyes off
of me, not that I blame them."

Daredevil let out a snort.

Captain Japan let it pass. "But you're a guy. So exactly why are you staring
at my butt?"

Before Hawkeye could think of how to respond, Daredevil blurted out, "It's
because he's gay, stupid."

For a moment, Hawkeye almost let that go as an excuse, which was better than
telling the truth. But seeing the look of surprise on Thor and Captain
Japan's faces, she quickly said, "No, I'm not! I'll prove it! Watch this!"

Hawkeye moved next to Thor, grabbed the taller woman's face, stood on her
toes, and proceeded to suck face with the startled goddess for several
moments before breaking off the kiss.

"He is truly a man among men," Thor declared with a somewhat stupid grin.

"There you have it," Hawkeye stated satisfactorily, surprised the whole
thing wasn't as unpleasant as she thought it would be. Of course, right
before she actually did it, she figured she would throw up in doing
something as revolting as kissing another girl in order to maintain her
cover. With that kind of expectation, it wasn't difficult to fall short and
be happy about it. Not that she had any intention of ever kissing Thor
again. Just that there were a lot of things that were worse, like breaking
her hand and not being able to shoot arrows or cook okonomiyaki, or having
to smell another one of Captain Japan's farts.

Captain Japan turned on Daredevil. "Now who's the dummy? How could you think
poor ole' Hawkeye is gay? I think you're projecting your own tendencies or
something."

"The only thing I'm going to project is this billy club into your head!"
Daredevil pulled out one of his stick like weapons and drew back.

"Bring it on!" Captain Japan brought up his shield in anticipation of
deflecting the attack. Once the weapon was batted aside, he would proceed to
give the loud-mouthed jerk a sound beating.

"Ahem," Iron Rose said, catching everyone's attention. "As much as the show
of one-upsmanship is terribly important, need I remind you all that we are
here to bring that host of super-villains to justice? As powerful as I know
I am, even I am reluctant to take on all four of them on my own. So I
believe it would be in our best interest to settle our differences another
time. Besides, I do believe I see a light coming from the tunnel in front of
us."

Reluctantly, Daredevil and Captain Japan turned away from one another and to
the rest of the tunnel that lay before them. Sure enough, there was a faint
glow of light some meters ahead.

"Another time," the Captain told him.

Daredevil nodded in agreement.

With the differences solved, the group continued, Iron Rose shutting off her
chest light once they drew near the opening. The sound of rushing water grew
louder and filled the air as the quintet emerged from the tunnel to see
where it had led.


















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