Dark Hunter (15 page)

He had no time to react before the horde of chrome spiders surrounded him, scuttling up his legs and burrowing into his clothes. He felt hundreds of pinpricks across his body as they bit him, and he prayed that they weren't poisonous. The onslaught of so many tiny attacks was much worse than anything he'd
encountered before and he dropped to his knees screaming, only to have one of the metal spiders crawl into his mouth.

Jake's entire body suddenly flared with a bright green radioactive wave, streamers peeling away from him in a ghostly corona. The Legion was struck, some melting on the spot, others flung across the island. Jake roared and swung the green blast at a startled Chromosome. It was as if a solid weight had struck her. The villain was thrown nearly five hundred feet before slamming down just below the three arches on the statue's pedestal. Stonework cracked around her.

Jake used the lull to unfreeze the president's men. The Secret Service guys acted immediately and drew their sidearms, firing a dozen shots at Jake. He wasn't expecting that. His force field caught the shots, but the impacts made him reel backward.

“Stop shooting! You're free! The president went that way, make sure he gets off this island in one piece!”

The group hesitated, clustering around their only other important charge, the secretary of defense. One weaselly man chirped up. “You heard him! Let's go!”

They ran for cover among the trees. When Jake turned back to Chromosome he saw that she was pushing herself away from the crumpled stonework, assisted by numerous long insect legs that had unfolded from
her rib cage and now pushed against the plinth. Free, she dropped thirty feet onto the star-shaped foundation and advanced.

Jake hoped that flying was not one of her abilities and would be his advantage. He took to the air and flew full speed into her. He grabbed her waist and they slammed into the corner of the plinth, knocking gray stones loose.

When he looked back up at Chromosome he didn't recognize the face. The perfect features had warped into a hideous and fanged snarling beast with mottled black skin. Her hands had become clawed talons; the insect legs protruding from her back were actually double-jointed and folded around to the front, gripping Jake in a tight bear hug. He felt and heard a rib crack.

“How dare you challenge me, boy!” she screeched in an unrecognizable voice.

Without being aware of what he was doing, Jake's body enveloped itself in a radioactive aura and he smelled burning flesh. It was Chromosome's. She screamed and released him. Jake shot straight in the air and landed on the tarnished green copper base of the statue to catch his breath.

He saw an emergency flare go up from the west pier and hoped that it was the president signaling for help. Across Hudson Bay he saw a coast guard cutter swing
around, its searchlight focusing on the pier, highlighting a group of figures.

When he looked back down he saw the remains of Chromosome's legion scuttling up the plinth. Chromosome herself was writhing as something grew from her back with the sickening sound of crunching bone and tearing flesh. She was
evolving
the limbs she needed to fight Jake.

He backed away, stumbling around to the front of the statue as his injured body regenerated. He was feeling unusually exhausted, and he found it difficult to catch his breath. He backed into a giant chain protruding from the statue's feet. It took him a second to realize that it was part of the statue, a feature that couldn't be seen from the ground. He remembered learning in school that it symbolized the broken chains of repression. He glanced farther down at the viewing balcony that ran around the top of the stone plinth and considered hiding inside the statue.

Then he saw the silver flurry of the Legion scuttling up. He tried to fly, but managed only a few yards—he was too weak to climb any higher. He latched onto the side of the statue like a spider and looked down.

The Legion was reproducing around the feet of the statue like bacteria. One spider would pull itself apart to reveal another. Then he saw Chromosome. She was still at the base of the plinth, but now Jake could see
that the protuberances on her back were transforming into wings, growing out larger and larger. She experimentally flapped them like a baby bird.

Jake scurried up the front of the statue to get away from the monstrosities. The copper folds of Liberty's gown made progress difficult. He was halfway up when he heard a clanging sound like a metal barrel being pelted by stones. When he looked down he saw the entire base of the statue had turned silver as the Legion's members scuttled up in pursuit. The Legion had also changed form, morphing into a combination of a spider and a scorpion. Curved tails quivered in anticipation of the kill.

Jake headed sidelong to the wide surface offered by the book in Lady Liberty's left hand. He caught his breath and wondered why he felt so weak.

A quick look around revealed that the coast guard cutter was speeding toward the pier and a swarm of helicopters was buzzing in from the opposite side.

The Legion flooded around him and Jake unleashed his radioactive blast. Most of them were flung aside or melted on the spot. The energy was so intense that it ripped through the hollow copper bodywork of the statue and severed the iron structural beams beneath. The sound of groaning metal reverberated through the statue. Jake stopped in horror, aware that he was defacing a national treasure.

The break in his attack was enough to give ten creatures a chance to climb onto the smooth surface of the statue's book. Jake's fingers gripped the ruts of the engraving on the book beneath him as the scorpion tails extended and lashed around both his legs, pulling him down the slope. Another positioned itself at his head, the tail suddenly transforming into a spike that struck at his face.

Jake jerked his head aside, but felt the spike slice his cheek and puncture the copper. Though his shield prevented him from getting hurt by explosions, bullets, or other dangers, it was useless against this attack. It offered zero resistance against a slower-moving sharp blade. On top of that, Jake was blinded as several spotlights picked him out when the helicopters neared. He caught sight of a jumble of letters on the side of one chopper and realized that they were news crews. They buzzed around him like flies.

Jake no longer cared that he might be recognized. He picked up the critter near his face and crushed it with his superstrength. After brief resistance it was like smashing an egg, and gloopy innards covered his hand. He had no time to feel sick. He blasted the two Legion creatures climbing up his legs, then managed a short flight up to the statue's crown, where he had to rest again. The searchlights took a few seconds to find him as they weaved across Lady Liberty.

A rustle of leathery wings caught his attention and Chromosome rose into view, mighty batlike wings beating to keep her airborne.

“What's the matter? Feeling weak? Did you not know that I have the ability to negate your powers or evolve myself to fight you in
any way
I need?” Chromosome knew that the effects only lasted for a minute, and could only affect a handful of powers at any one time. But that was not a weakness she would admit to.

Jake lashed out a stream of green energy. It flowed like colorful ribbons, just missing Chromosome, who twisted aside. But it struck one of the helicopters. The tail rotor blew off and the chopper spun out of control. The other news choppers banked aside, relocating to safer distances. The helicopter splashed down into the black water below.

“If I can't have you join me, I'll see if your corpse can offer any assistance to my cause. And I'll still take the president! You lose either way.”

She swooped toward the western jetty. Jake glanced down; one of the news helicopters had fixed its beam on the surviving crew of the crashed chopper, who were treading water.

Jake gritted his teeth. Chromosome may be able to nullify his powers, but Jake's were stronger than she imagined. He leaped like a diver off the crown and willed his flying power to take hold.

Instead he plummeted toward the earth like a rock. She had even negated his ability to fly.

The president watched the coast guard vessel bank around to dock with the L-shaped pier. He turned when he heard the helicopter crashing. Seconds later a winged monstrosity swooped across the island toward him. The Secret Service team had spotted the danger too. The president was tackled roughly to the floor as they threw themselves in front of him, guns blazing.

Bullets hit Chromosome, but they had no effect. She soared in low and plucked one of the Secret Service men into the air. She struggled for altitude with the increased weight—then threw him to the ground. The president looked away to avoid the upsetting sight. When he risked a glance back he saw that Chromosome was swooping in again. This time the coast guard crew, armed to deal with any terrorist attacks, unleashed machine guns on her. Again they had little effect. Time seemed to slow as Chromosome's screaming jaws, lined with jagged teeth, bore straight for the president.

BLAM! A fireball hit Chromosome like a sledgehammer and threw her against the military boat with such force the craft rocked in the water and she tore a hole through the steel deck.

The president looked around, expecting to see
Jake—instead he was looking at somebody else, hovering in the air. The president's eyes widened with relief.

“Chameleon!”

“Mr. President! Sorry I'm late.”

Two coast guard crew members were thrown off the deck as Chromosome heaved herself out of the gash in the vessel. Her eyes narrowed when she spotted the hero.

“You! You will die here!” she screamed. Her muscles cracked as she increased mass right in front of them—doubling her size in seconds.

Chameleon expected an attack from her—what he didn't expect was the horde of surviving Legion that suddenly ran out from the undergrowth. They fused together in a bubbling mass of flesh that formed a single tentacle. Anchored to the ground, it whipped around Chameleon's waist, plucking him from the air.

Chromosome turned to face the president, oblivious to the shots still being fired by the Secret Service guys.

“Now, Mr. President, you will come with me.”

“I'd rather die!”

“That can be arranged.”

With heavy footfalls, Chromosome climbed onto the pier. The wood cracked underfoot. The president and his retinue began to run back to the island—but they stopped when they saw a massive shape flying toward them. Once more the president was wrestled to the
ground by his entourage as a huge disk-shaped craft shot over their heads.

Chromosome watched in amazement as she saw her Council of Evil shuttle being hurled at her like a discus. It smashed into her with colossal force, ramming her back into the coast guard ship. The collision was so violent that the shuttle exploded around Chromosome, pinning her to the side of the boat. The combined weight rolled the cutter over with a massive splash. Chromosome's screams turned into gurgles as the bright red keel of the boat was revealed when the boat flipped completely over.

The president looked back to the end of the pier to see Jake wiping his hands after the incredible throw. Jake gave him a brief nod.

“You okay?”

Before the president could answer, there was an explosion from Chameleon and the Legion tentacle was blown into its component spider pieces, each one aflame and scuttling randomly around before dying.

“Mr. President! Down!” yelled Chameleon as he unleashed a fireball at Jake.

“Wait a minute—” Jake started, but the fireball punched him through a line of trees, the boughs catching fire. Chameleon ran in pursuit.

Jake propped himself up on his elbows in time to see Chameleon hurl another ball of flame. He didn't have
time to move. It felt as if a bomb had gone off in front of his face. He was blown nearly three hundred feet back against the base of the Statue of Liberty.

Chameleon hesitated as a police helicopter circled around, stabbing its searchlight on him. He gestured frantically toward the president. The pilot must have understood because the searchlight then fixed on the president and his group.

Jake saw the police helicopter land across the island and knew the president would be taken safely on board. He turned to see Chameleon flying down the concourse toward him. He also became aware that he was no longer feeling weak now that Chromosome was out of the picture. He saw flames burst from Chameleon's hands—and he launched himself straight up to avoid them. His flying power had returned.

Jake corkscrewed around the statue to make himself less of a target. Chameleon flew in pursuit, hurling small volleys of fireballs that hit the statue harmlessly.

“You made your last mistake, Hunter!”

“I don't think so,” Jake shouted back—then immediately regretted opening his mouth when he realized how stupid that comment was.

Jake reached the Statue of Liberty's head and landed before he fired straight down on Chameleon. It was a radioactive strand that punched Chameleon forcibly onto the statue's right shoulder. Chameleon rolled across
the copper shell, slamming into the raised arm that held the torch aloft, and prevented him from falling off.

“I was coming for you next, Chameleon!” Jake ran to the edge of the crown to look down on his target, who was groaning softly. “There's no way you're taking me back to Diablo Island to be your guinea pig.”

“Who said anything about bringing you in alive? You've proved too much of a threat for that. I'm going to have to kill you.”

Jake felt uneasy. It was all very well for a villain like Chromosome to threaten his life, but Chameleon was a hero, somebody who had just helped rescue the president. It didn't seem
right
for him to say that. Once again Jake felt the line between hero and villain blur.

He dropped down onto the shoulder and walked toward Chameleon. This close, he could see Chameleon was hit pretty badly, and bleeding from a burn wound to his left arm.