Vexars: Blackmail
B. Joseph Huffman
Copyright 2012 B. Joseph Huffman
Part One
“How long has it been?” Carl Shneezenbomb asks as he walks into Power Hall, Greenland. The silver dollar sign stands out on his bright green jumpsuit.
“About a week since we last talked,” Roger Hill answers, excited to see his friend. “It's been about eight years since we've actually seen each other.”
“I take it that you two are old pals?” Crystal Jeans asks. The girl looks to be in her early twenties.
“Yeah,” Roger answers, his blue eyes glimmering from the sun reflecting off the snow as it shines through the window.
The President of the United Planetary Council appears on Power Hall's communication monitors.
“What's up?” Roger asks.
“Total destruction,” the U.P.C. President answers. “A group of protestors are destroying national monuments and yelling 'Blackmail for President!'”
“That sounds like a case I've been working on,” Gloria Shvinnkov states, her wavy reddish-orange hair flows to her lower back. The former K.G.B. Agent looks to be in her early twenties. Her green eyes twinkle beautifully in contrast to her pale skin.
“Doesn't our step sister work for her?” Ferarri Jeans asks her older sister. She and Crystal were adopted by the Jeans family when they saved one of them from a river accident.
“Yeah,” Crystal answers. Her brown eyes showing no love loss for their older adopted sybling.
“I read somewhere that Blackmail is leader of the Mob,” Carl states as his brown eyes give the hint that he's thinking. “But no one has ever seen her.”
“We'll start work on the case immediately,” Roger Hill tells the U.P.C. President as he turns off the communications computer. “Let's stop these protestors first,” Roger instructs his team. “We can worry about the Mob later.”
Roger Hill presses a button on one of the computers and a destroyer comes up through the floor. The ground begins shaking and the five Vexars run to look out the window to see that they're ten feet in the air.
“What do we do now?” Ferarri asks. Her straight blonde hair comes to a point behind her knees. Her brown eyes, against her chocolate colored skin, hide the hint of fear that is obvious in her voice.
“We jump for the ground,” Roger Hill answers with confidence.
“I didn't know this was a national monument,” Carl states, his brown eyes gleam to show that he's teasing. His short brown hair looks a little disheveled from the recent earthquake.
“Neither did I,” Roger agrees.
“Are you sure it's bright jumping into the middle of a firing squad?” Gloria asks.
“It may not be bright,” Roger explains, “but it will surpise them.”
“We're talking about people who will attack before they think about what they're doing,” Gloria redirects.
“Alright,” Roger changes his plan. “Everyone into the destroyer.”
The five Vexars climb into the super sleek-looking over-gatchetized car known to the Vexars as a destroyer. Roger presses the button on the dashboard marked 'plane' causing wings to unfold from under the black vehicle.
Roger Hill flies the destroyer out of Power Hall, Greenland and into the firing squad.
“Aren't you going to avoid getting hit?” Crystal asks from the back seat.
“Why?” Roger asks. “This vehicle is invulnerable.” Roger flies the destroyer beside a man with short black hair wearing purple tights. “Take the wheel!”
Carl takes the steering wheel as Roger climbs out the window and jumps on Pluto Man's back, grabbing the man in purple tights around his neck to hold on.
“Get off or I'll fall down!” Pluto Man yells.
“How convenient,” Roger annoys. “If you fall, I'll fall too. But, I suppose you're not used to falling.”
“And you are?” Pluto Man asks sarcastically.
“My best friend is a stuntman,” Roger explains. “I've taken a few falls with him.”
The two crash land into the ground. As Pluto Man lays unconscious, Roger Hill stands up. “I suggest you practice your falls.”
“What have you done!” Glenda Galour demands, her reddish-orange hair glimmering in the sun.
“Nothing,” Roger answers innocently. “We fell out of the sky. Are you his girlfriend?”
“I am his field commander,” Glenda Galour states, the sun reflects off her yellow pantsuit that she has trimmed with a black belt and matching boots and gloves.
“That means you see Blackmail personally, right?” Roger interrogates.
“Yes.” Glenda looks a little confused.
“Call off your troops,” Roger orders. “And, have my building set back down where it belongs.”
“Who are you to give me orders?” Glenda demands.
“I'm Blackmail's boss,” Roger lies convincingly.
“Set the building down,” Glenda orders her team. “Leave that car with wings alone.”
“What's going on here?” Flame asks as he and the others walk up to stand behind Glenda Galour. “We were told to destroy this place. How come we ain't doin' it?” Flame's midnight blue pantsuit shows off his muscular figure, which stands out with his flaming aura. His black hair doesn't look the least bit singed. He wears a midnight blue mask with red eye-slits, a red sash-belt, and red boots and gloves.
“Because this is the boss of my boss,” Glenda answers.
“And, if you tear down my building,” Roger glares, “you will all be out of jobs.”
“I didn't know your boss had a boss,” Talk Back states, her curly brown hair dangliong just below her shoulders. “I didn't even know you had a boss.” Talk Back wears a bright green pantsuit, with matching mask, trimmed with red gloves, boots, and belt. The red eye-slits in her mask barely hide the true thoughts of what she's thinking.
“That's a security measure,” Glenda informs. “That way, if you get caught, you can't accidentally inform anybody of who's in charge.”
“I'm afraid I'm going to have to fire Blackmail now,” Roger frowns, still acting. “Tell your team to go home, then come with me.”
Glenda climbs into the back seat of the destroyer as Roger and Ferarri climb into the front seats. Glenda's team begins leaving.
Roger flies the destroyer to the United Planetary Council building.
“This isn't my boss' place,” Glenda Galour states, infuriated at Roger's deception. “This is the U.P.C. Building!”
“That's right,” Roger states. “As soon as we have you safely tucked away behind bars, we can catch your followers one at a time.”
“You can't do this to me,” Glenda pleads.
“This is what you get for attacking one of our buildings,” Roger informs her as he lands the destroyer. He and Ferarri drag Glenda into the U.P.C. Building.
“Do you believe this?” Roger Hill asks as he and Ferarri Jeans enter Power Hall, Greenland. “Two weeks on the job and we're already being attacked by the Mob.”
Power Hall, Greenland shakes as the U.P.C. President appears on the communication monitors. “Glenda Galour has escaped from us,” he informs.
“That explains our recent earthquake,” Roger states. “Can you tell us anything about her, or the group she's leading?”
“She didn't give us any information before she managed to escape.” The U.P.C. President's image vanishes from the communication monitor.
“What do we do this time?” Gloria Shvinnkov asks.
Roger Hill sits and thinks. “This almost has to be a personal vendetta. The building hasn't been here long enough for too many people to know about it.”
Power Hall, Greenland, continues to shake.
“C
an we stop these people soon?” Crystal Jeans asks. “I'm starting to get motion sick.”
“This might be our chance to discover who Blackmail is,” Roger thinks. “Follow my lead.” Roger takes one end of a garden hose and aims it out of Power Hall's doors. Carl Shneezenbomb turns on the water and Roger hoses down Flame, weakening the super villain, taking him out of the fight.
Gloria Shvinnkov hands a match to Roger, which he strikes and throws out the door. The flame from the match gets larger and hotter, with a little help for Concentratian telekinesis, coming close enough to Talk Back to scare her into unconsciousness. The flame also melts a substantial portion of the ice and snow on the ground before it fizzles out.
“I bet you can't run fast enough to grab the mask off the guy in the red suit,” Crystal gambles.
“The one with the picture of dynamite on his chest?” Roger asks. “Let's make this a bet worth having. Turn on the underground bubble machines that are out there.” Roger smiles, knowing very well what will happen, simply because his telepathic abilities picked it up.
Ferarri Jeans turns on the bubble machine.
Black Boomerang, a taller woman with black hair, gets trapped in one of the bubbles. Her black and green costume shimmers from the sun reflecting off the soapy bubbles.
Kryptonite Man, an average-looking male figure with short, extremely curly, sandy-brown hair, gets trapped in a different bubble. The greens, reds, and yellows of his costume also shimmer.
Roger runs out onto the ice, gaining enough speed to slide right past Dynomite Man, grabbing the villains mask on his slide by. Roger runs back into the building with the mask. “A battery powered mask,” he states. “This could be the explanation to where he gets his powers.”
“All we have left to do now,” Ferarri begins, “is stop the guy in the purple tights.”
Gloria Shvinnkov walks out onto the ice and handcuffs Glenda Galour and Dynomite Man to a fence, without incident.
“Yo! Purple Tights!” Carl Shneezenbomb yells. “Come down here with your hands up!”
“My name ain't Purple Tights! It's Pluto Man!”
“I don't care what your name is,” Carl reiterates. “Come down out of the sky!”
Pluto Man begins blasting his plutonian ray at Carl, but the extremely rich Vexar dodges the blasts by sliding on the ice.
Ferarri and Carl start throwing chunks of ice at Pluto Man until one finally hits him hard enough to knock him unconscious.
“Good work,” Roger congratulates his team. “Let's take these guys to the U.P.C. Building and see if we can track down Blackmal.”
Hours later, after extensive interrogations at the United Planetary Council building, Gloria Shvinnkov and Carl Shneezenbomb enter Power Hall, Greenland.
“What news do you have for us?” Roger Hill asks.
“Christy Read,” Carl answers. “Now, can we use Power Hall's tracking computer to locate her?”
A few minutes leater, after tapping a few keys on a computer, Roger has locatede Blackmail. “Tasmania.”
The five get into a destroyer and fly out of Power Hall, Greenland.