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Henry watched as Captain Man and AWOL battled Drex. Well, as Captain Man battled Drex. There wasn’t a whole lot for AWOL to do. Right now, the kid was just circling the fight, looking for an opening.
Part of Henry felt bad for not helping his boss, for keeping Brainstorm here with him, instead of in the battle. But his mind was swirling with memories of ambushes in Dystopia and lessons learned the hard way.
“Captain Man can manage Drex by himself,” he reminded himself sternly. “Those two were fighting each other for years before I showed up. Just keep Ray and the kids safe from whatever trap is going to be sprung.” So Henry waited with Brainstorm, watching for any signs of an ambush.
He didn’t have to wait long for an evil Shoutout to appear. Henry moved, but not fast enough. AWOL and Captain Man slammed into the far wall, unconscious. Henry grabbed Shoutout, restraining her and covering her mouth so that she couldn’t use her superpowers against him.
Her elbow slammed into his gut. Henry grimaced but he didn’t let go. She was too much of a threat until he could reverse whatever Twilter had done to her to get her to attack her teammates.
She thrashed against him, and it took most of his concentration just to keep her restrained. “Damn, Mika,” he muttered. “How are you this hard to hold? You’re supposed to be the small one.”
Brainstorm trailed behind him, looking unsure and bouncing on the balls of his feet. Right. They still had a job to do.
Henry scanned the rooftops and shadows, looking for enemies. He moved in front of Brainstorm just slightly, dragging Shoutout along with him. It wouldn’t do much if they were ambushed, but he could at least try to keep the kid safe.
“Why is Shoutout evil?” Brainstorm asked, anxiety lacing his voice.
“I don’t know,” Henry said, trying to keep his tone as reassuring as he could. “But if there’s an evil Shoutout, there’s bound to be an evil-”
His sentence was cut off as white hot pain radiated through his chest, sending him flying back. He only caught a glimpse of Volt’s electricity before his vision went black. He was unconscious before he hit the ground.
When he came to, he was swaying slightly. The skin on his chest felt tight from where the electricity had connected with him. Probably burned, if he had to guess. Against his ribcage, his heart beat in a slow, steady rhythm. Good. That meant there were no major injuries. None of that changed the fact that he still didn’t know where he was.
He could feel someone’s shoulder digging into his sternum, and a warm hand on his back. Maybe Ray had grabbed him after Volt had knocked him out? His brain supplied the familiar image of Ray’s face and a quiet, “I got you, Kid.” Some of the tension went out of Henry’s shoulders. He pushed away the note of bitterness that laced the image of Ray babying him like he used to. He was safe right now, right? He could enjoy that.
The swaying stopped, and somewhere an elevator dinged. Henry’s heart sank. The entrance to the Man’s Nest wasn’t an elevator. This wasn’t Ray. He wasn’t safe. Which meant…
As soon as his captor started moving, Henry acted. He flipped upright, relying on muscle memory to carry him as he tried to place where he was. He landed on his feet, fists raised in defense. Before him was Drex, standing in the elevator doorway, grinning in triumph. Next to Drex stood Volt and Shoutout, their stares blank and vacant. Behind him, Rick Twitler leaned against some strange metal contraption. Shackles were attached to it. Shackles that were probably meant for him.
Mentally, Henry ran through the list of all the swear words he knew. Then, he forced himself to focus on Drex. He was the one who could actually hurt the girls if he got bored with fighting Henry.
“Drex,” he spat.
“Glad to see you’re awake, Henry.” He tone dripped with condescension. “Or should I say Kid Danger?”
Henry’s fist slammed into his jaw, Drex’s head snapping back. That stupid grin stayed plastered on his face. “Kid Danger’s dead, actually,” Henry ground out. “You should know. You’re the reason he went down with that damn blimp.” He shook his hand out. Was he really this out of practice dealing with his old villains?
Drex turned to look at him, that same grin on his face. There were no signs of damage. Henry’s heart sank.
“You’re indestructible again? But we got rid of your powers!”
“Yeah. I got better.”
Drex’s fist connected with Henry’s abdomen and he stumbled back a few steps. He curled around himself, already feeling the bruise forming on his stomach. It was times like this where he really missed his hypermotility.
A boot cracked against his ribs, sending Henry flying into the concrete barrier around the roof with a dull thud. He slid down to the ground, dazed. His mouth tasted like copper. He blinked, trying to get the spots out of his eyes. He couldn’t black out. Not now.
“Focus, dude,” he muttered to himself. “Still in the middle of a battle.”
He needed to keep Drex distracted. Maybe find a way to get him off the tower so he could get Volt and Shoutout out of here. Twitler was still a threat, of course, but he seemed content to watch the battle for now. Besides, the guy was a strategist, not a fighter. If Henry could get Drex out of the picture…
Drex kicked him in the face. His neck cracked with the force of the blow and Henry blinked the stars out of the eyes. “Focus.” He had a job to do.
He pushed himself to his feet and swung at Drex blindly. The blow connected, and it bought him enough time to regain his bearings. He was standing at the edge of the tower, the back of his knees pressed against the barrier. Drex was still smiling.
“Okay, dude. That smile's starting to get seriously unnerving.” Henry drove a knee upward, aiming for anywhere Drex might be vulnerable, but the guy barely reacted.
“Indestructable, remember?”
By now, Henry’s ribs were throbbing with pain. “You suck, dude.”
Drex didn’t dignify that with a response. Instead, he just wrapped a clawed hand around Henry’s throat and lifted him into the air. Henry’s feet dangled above nothing. The only thing keeping him from plummeting a hundred stories was the hand currently squeezing the life out of him.
Henry clawed at Drex’s arm, gasping for air. A drop of blood bubbled up as Drex’s grip tightened. Beneath him, the wind picked up.
Henry was big enough to admit that he was scared. It didn’t stop him from trying to fight back, though. Even if none of his kicks connected.
His vision was beginning to go black around the edges. Distantly, he heard Twitler’s voice snapping, “Drex! We need him alive!”
And suddenly Henry could breathe again as Drex threw him to the far side of the tower. He went sprawling across the concrete, landing at Volt’s feet. She just stared at him indifferently.
“You’re right,” Drex was saying. Henry forced himself to pay attention as his opponent stepped closer to him. “I want to see the look on Ray’s face as I kill his little sidekick. But you promised me revenge, Twitler.”
“And you’ll get it. I just need Henry alive for this plan to work. Afterwards, you can do whatever you like with him.”
Henry pushed himself up to his knees. Drex crouched down beside him.
“Just because you need him alive doesn’t mean you need him unharmed.”
Drex grabbed Henry’s wrist. Oh. Oh no.
Henry tried to pull away, something desperate grabbing hold of him. He wasn’t fast enough.
Snap.
This time, Henry’s vision did actually go black. He couldn’t focus on anything except the pain. He’d broken bones before, sure. It had been a whole thing when he’d broken his arm fighting Dr. Karate. But that one hadn’t felt so…intentional.
He couldn’t breathe. All he could focus on was the white hot pain radiating through him.
Eventually, his awareness returned, the hero part of him reminding him that he was still surrounded by two of his most dangerous villains and two very brainwashed, very powerful, superheros.
“What the hell, Drex,” he muttered. He doubted it was loud enough for Drex to hear, but it still felt good to say.
“I do apologize for my partner’s lack of manners,” Twitler said. And, oh, the guy was standing over Henry. Okay. That was new. “But I’m afraid I don’t particularly care to attend to your injuries. I’m kind of growing short on time here.”
Twitler grabbed Henry by the back of his jacket and began dragging him toward the strange machine. His boots were useless against the concrete as he tried to regain his footing. Every movement sent a jolt of pain through Henry’s wrist. Fine. He’d do this the undignified way.
Henry sent a sharp kick to Twitler’s ankle and the guy dropped him with a yelp. Twitter grabbed his ankle, muttering a few choice words under his breath. Henry scrambled to his feet, ignoring the feeling of bone moving beneath his skin. He dropped into a fighting stance.
“I’m not doing anything for you, Twitler.”
“Oh, really?” The man tilted his head, a sardonic grin on his face. “Shoutout, if you would be a dear?”
Henry watched as Shoutout moved towards the edge of the tower, leaning dangerously far over the railing.
“Now,” Twitler said. “Perhaps I’m wrong here, but she’s not the one with telekinesis or teleportation. If I order her to go off the edge of that tower, she’ll obey. And she’ll have no way to save herself before she hits the pavement at terminal velocity. So what do you say? Still refuse to cooperate?”
“You won’t kill her.” Henry’s heart was pounding in his chest. “You still need her for whatever your plan is.”
“Actually, I don’t. Her part in the plan was simply to lure you back to Swellview. Having her provide Drex backup and act as an additional hostage is certainly a plus, but at this point, it’s not much of a loss if I send her over the edge of the tower.”
Henry swallowed. Twitler might be bluffing. But…the guy had a point. He had already taken down Danger Force so easily, and him springing Drex couldn’t have been a coincidence. Even if it was a bluff, Henry couldn’t risk being wrong.
He held up his hands in surrender, and allowed Twitler and Volt to shackle him to the machine.
At least the cuffs were thick enough to keep his wrist somewhat supported. A proper splint would have been better, but he would make do for now.
Twitler moved over to his control console and began punching in commands. “By the way, you and Captain Man really should get Shoutout some acting lessons, if you all survive this. The poor girl is terrible at it. I knew she was on a phone call with you the whole time.”
“What do you want from me, Twitler?”
“Oh, not much, really.” Twitler entered his final command and turned to face Henry, his arms crossed. “Technically, I don’t even need you for my grand plan. But I had to promise Drex something enticing if I wanted him to work with me on this. And, I’ll admit, your forcefield will be useful for keeping Captain Man out of the way while I take over the internet.”
“I’m not going to let you use my forcefield.”
“Oh, Henry, you don’t get a choice.”
Twitler flipped a switch and electricity coursed through Henry, searing his skin and sending fireworks up his nervous system. On instinct, his forcefield activated, bathing the tower in green light.
With a scream, Henry dropped to his knees.
Twitler simply smiled as the electricity surged.
Drex grabbed Henry’s face with his clawed hand. “You know what, Twitler, I gotta hand it to you. I didn’t think you were gonna keep up your end of the bargain. But this definitely looks a lot like revenge.”
“Dude,” Henry muttered, teeth gritted. “You’ve gotta stop with the dinosaur hand thing. It’s seriously starting to get creepy.”
A flick of Drex’s wrist left blood trailing down Henry’s cheek. Henry barely felt it.
“Not so high and mighty now, are you, Kid Danger?”
“I told you, Drex. Kid Danger is dead. Had a funeral and everything. Not that we’d have invited you.”
“Mmmm.” Drex’s hand dug into Henry’s hair, yanking his head up. Henry bit back a yelp of pain as the electricity surged through his arms and chest. This really sucked.
“What?” Drex taunted. “No bravado? Where’s all that spunk from when you were a kid? What happened to it?”
“That kind of thing gets you killed in Dystopia,” Henry muttered, forcing himself to meet Drex’s gaze. “Can’t afford to be a smartass. Still happy to beat the snot out of you like I used to, though.”
“Heh. Good luck getting out of those chains.” There was silence for a moment. Then, Drex spoke, a strange note to his voice. “Kid Danger really is dead isn’t he?”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, man. And Ray. Not that he listens any better than you do.”
Drex let Henry’s head drop. “Way to kill the fun.”
“Oh, yes, I’m so sorry it’s not fun for you to beat up an unarmed prisoner anymore.”
“You really are pathetic without Kid Danger, aren’t you?”
Henry snarled, lunging for Drex. Metal dug into his wrist and he bit back a yelp of pain. He wasn’t going to give Drex the satisfaction.
“Oooh,” Drex taunted. “Did I hit a nerve? But wait a minute, isn’t Kid Danger dead? Why would you care if you aren’t him anymore?”
Henry opened his mouth to say something, before realizing he had no retort. And wasn’t that just great. He couldn’t even keep pace with the whole witty exchange thing anymore. But…why did he care if he felt pathetic without Kid Danger?
That part of him had died for a reason. Henry was his own person now. His own superhero. And a pretty damn competent one if he said so himself. What did he care if he wasn’t Swellview’s beloved sidekick anymore?
Unbidden, thoughts of Blackout sprung to mind. The crime family he’d managed to piss off enough to send a bounty hunter after him, the false bravado Henry tried to maintain as the scariest guy he’d ever fought closed in on him, the desperate flight back to Swellview and Ray in the hope that it would keep him safe.
Because the minute Henry had gotten in over his head, he’d fallen back on his time as Kid Danger. And now, here he was, helpless and in over his head once again, hoping that Captain Man would come save him.
Maybe Drex was right. Maybe he really was pathetic if he wasn’t Kid Danger.
Twitler didn’t give him much time to dwell on the matter though, as with a flip of a switch, electricity surged through Henry. He screamed as the skin around his wrists began to burn. The smell of burnt flesh and leather filled the air.
Twitler simply leaned over, a smug grin on his face. “You know, if Kid Danger were really dead, we’d have no reason to come after you.”
Eventually, Twitler turned down the intensity of the electricity. It was still coursing through Henry, surging at random intervals. But at least this way, he could focus.
Green energy surrounded Nakatomi tower, humming with power. Probably no more than a radius of ten feet or so. Henry tried to stand, to do anything to feel less useless than he was, but his knees buckled under him
“Great. Perfect. No, this is fine, actually. I love being helpless.”
Okay, so Henry couldn’t do anything to get himself out of here. but maybe…maybe if AWOL could teleport Ray and Brainstorm to the tower, they could rescue Henry and the girls.
Right now, though, the forcefield was too small. The omega radiation that the forcefield generated would short out Danger Force’s powers and keep AWOL from getting in. But, if Henry could find a way to make it bigger…well, Ray almost certainly knew where he was by now, given that the bright green forcefield wasn’t exactly subtle.
Yeah, yeah that might work. The only problem was that the three of them would have to fight four very powerful opponents, all while Henry sat there, useless. And Henry would once again be relying on Captain Man to come save him, just like he had when he was Kid Danger.
His gaze drifted towards Volt and Shoutout, who were standing near the elevators, waiting for their orders. He wasn’t the only one relying on Ray to come save him.
So, he swallowed down his pride and began figuring out ways to expand his forcefield and get Ray over here so he could rescue the girls.
Twitler seemed to notice his thoughts and abandoned his tinkering to drift closer to Henry. He stood just out of range of Henry’s kicks, his arms crossed, simply observing him.
“What do you want?” Henry growled.
“What, a guy can’t talk to his old adversary?”
“You kidnapped me. I’m not all that interested in what you have to say.”
“You know,” Twitler carried on, uncaring. “You spent all of your teenage years defending Swellview, working to stop crime and lock the supervillains behind bars. And yet, here we are! All because Shoutout over there let us out. And now everything you worked for as Kid Danger, all your sacrifices, everything you gave up in the name of stopping us, it all means nothing. I imagine it must feel pretty awful.”
Henry’s jaw clenched. Twitler had a point. He didn’t blame Mika, of course. She’d only been doing the hero thing for a year by now. When she had released everyone, she’d only been doing it for a few months. Henry hadn’t been much better, at that point in his career. So he really didn’t blame her. But that didn’t mean it didn’t sting that every single thing he’d worked for meant nothing now.
He couldn’t pretend like it didn’t sting that the guy he’d sacrificed his Hyper-Motility to stop was standing in front of him. That the guy Kid Danger had sacrificed his life to stop was standing in front of him, torturing him, because someone had let him out of prison. So, yeah, Twitler had a point.
Henry didn’t realize he’d been sagging until Twitler patted his cheek patronizingly. “Now, now, it’s not all bad. At least your powers are still worth something. Although, I’ve gotta say, I’m surprised you managed to get another one so soon after giving up your Hyper-Motility to stop me. I won’t complain, though. At least, not while I’m using it to my benefit.”
And something in Henry snapped. Twitler had already taken away one power. He wasn’t going to let him take another. And Henry certainly wasn’t going to let them besmirch Kid Danger’s legacy like this.
He pushed himself to his feet, ignoring how sore he was after spending nearly an hour kneeling on the concrete, and braced himself against the metal poles.
Electricity shot through him once again, making his hands and arms go numb. A jolt shot through Henry’s broken wrist and he clenched his teeth together in an effort to keep a noise of pain from escaping.
Twitler winced in mock sympathy. “Oh, I wouldn’t have done that. I’m still not sure if you’re gonna pass out from the electricity the manacles carry. I definitely don’t think you want to touch the metal poles.”
“You know,” Henry said, teeth gritted against the pain. “You and Drex keep saying all these things about Kid Danger, keep implying that without him, I’m nothing. That I’m pathetic and powerless. You insist that Kid Danger’s death destroyed some part of me. But you’re not going to get under my skin, no matter how hard you try.”
“Oh, really?” Twitler’s grin widened, clearly enjoying every part of this. “Because from where I’m standing, a boy got in over his head and killed the only part of himself that was ever worth a damn to try and get away from all of it. He ran off to some city halfway across the world to try and find out who he was without Kid Danger, and he really thought he’d done it. But the minute he comes back and tries to be a hero, he ends up captured and used as a battery for the villain’s scheme. Face it, Henry: without Kid Danger, you’re no hero.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Twitler.” Henry’s grip turned white-knuckled. “Maybe I’m not the hero I used to be, but I’m still a hero. I save lives every day in Dystopia. I give people hope that someone will be there when they need it. I’m not Kid Danger anymore. But it’s because of his legacy that Danger Force and Captain Man aren’t doing this all by themselves anymore. You want to pretend like Kid Danger’s death was meaningless, like it wasn’t worth making that sacrifice, but it’s because of his death that Swellview and Dystopia are in a better place right now. So you can pretend all you want that Kid Danger’s death meant nothing, or that I’m nothing without him. But underestimating me like that will be your undoing.”
Twitler’s foot slid back. Henry grinned in triumph.
“Uh, Twitler?” Drex called. “Why is Henry’s forcefield expanding?”
Twitler’s head whirled around, staring at the forcefield that now encompassed three city blocks.
“Oh no. He’s making it big enough so that-”
Right on cue, Captain Man, Brainstorm, and AWOL appeared in the middle of the tower.
Henry tried to keep pace with the battle, he really did, but Twitler hadn’t been wrong about the whole “passing out from the electricity” thing. The electricity that he was still in contact with because of the stupid manacles and the stupid contraption he was stuck in.
So Henry just focused on trying to stay conscious, and hoped that neither Twitler nor Drex realized they still had a viable hostage while he was chained to the machine.
Something yanked on one of the chains, pulling it clean away from the machine. Henry glanced up to see Captain Man standing in front of him, shielding him from Twitler, Shoutout, and Volt’s attacks and having torn off one of the manacles.
“Ray!” Henry didn’t bother hiding his relief at the sight. “You’re here.”
“Course, kid. I wasn’t going to just leave you-”
A blow from Volt sent Ray stumbling. Electricity surged through the remaining manacle.
Henry tugged at his bonds fruitlessly, ignoring the pain in his wrist. It really was starting to hurt, by now. The adrenaline must have finally started wearing off.
Another yank, and he yelped as the bone in his wrist shifted. His vision turned black around the edges once again. He might have blacked out, too, because the next thing he knew, Ray was tearing the manacle away from the machine and catching Henry.
“Th-thanks.”
“No problem, kid. But you’d better pick up my calls from now on.”
Henry muttered a few choice words under his breath, cradling his limp wrist against his chest. Ray noticed immediately.
“Are you-”
He was cut off as Drex grabbed Ray and tossed him over the edge of the tower.
Henry sucked in a breath and dropped into a fighting position. Ray was otherwise occupied, and AWOL and Brainstorm were busy trying to…unbrainwash Mika and Chapa? Whatever, it didn’t matter. The point was, they were vulnerable, and it was up to Henry to keep Drex and Twitler away from them.
Part of him felt like that scared sidekick from all those years ago, the one who would hide while Captain Man fought the actually scary villains. But now Henry was the adult hero on scene, the one responsible for protecting the kids and keeping them safe. He couldn’t afford to hide. He had to focus on the battle.
Twitler had Drex advanced towards him. His wrist still hurt, and his muscles were sore and fatigued from being electrocuted. He wasn’t in any shape to fight. Henry’s jaw tightened. There was no one else who could fight back against Drex and Twitler.
The three of them launched into battle. A punch here, a kick there, anything to keep his opponents off of him.
Drex lunged for him and Henry activated his forcefield, pushing Drex to the edge of the roof. Henry shoved Drex with his good hand, sending him flying off the edge of the tower and watching as he slammed into Ray on the way down. Henry winced apologetically. “Sorry, dude!”
Henry glanced over to see AWOL and Brainstorm removing the strange device from Volt and Shoutout’s heads. Clarity had returned to their eyes. Good. That meant they were safe. That meant they could fight off Twitler.
Someone grabbed Henry from behind, immobilizing his arms. A hand squeezed his broken wrist and Henry’s knees buckled.
“Well, this wasn’t exactly my plan,” Twitler muttered. “But I suppose I can always try again.”
Danger Force advanced on Twitler. Twitler stepped back, pulling Henry along with him.
“Let him go, Twitler.”
“No, thank you, Shoutout. Henry’s power is far too useful to me.”
Volt’s hands crackled with electricity.
“Uh-uh-uh. Can’t hit me without hitting Henry.”
Henry made eye contact with Mika, and she nodded. He clenched his jaw and swung his leg back, kicking Twitler in the nuts.
Twitler dropped him on instinct, and Henry hit the deck as Shoutout and Volt blasted Twitler into his own machine. Henry’s wrist scraped against the concrete, and this time he didn’t bother biting back the cry of pain.
He stayed like that for a moment, just catching his breath. Then, Brainstorm was pulling him to his feet and dusting him off.
“You okay, Henry?”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.” He smiled, plastering on his old reassuring expression. Brainstorm, bless his heart, bought it instantly. “Go make sure Shoutout and Volt are okay.”
Brainstorm nodded and bounded off. Henry pulled away from kids and limped over to Twitler. Twitler tried to give a smug smile, but it fell flat.
“Well, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by all this,” he said. “Kid Danger did always win in the end.”
“Yeah. I did. Except this time, it wasn’t Kid Danger that defeated you.”
“So, you really are just Henry Hart, then?”
“Always have been.”
It only took a single kick to knock Twitler unconscious.
Henry cradled his broken wrist and slumped against the remains of the machine. It was only now that he realized electrical burns stretched across his hands and forearms. He grimaced. Those were going to be fun to explain to Jasper. And Charlotte, too, now that he thought about it. Yeah, he was getting an earful from both of them when he got back to Dystopia.
Warily, Henry scanned the tower. There was no sign of Drex. Danger Force stood huddled in the corner, relief at their reunion leaking off of them. Captain Man was pulling himself over the edge of the tower.
Danger Force dropped their huddle and swarmed Ray.
“Where’s Drex?” Brainstorm asked.
“He got away,” Ray said. “But we can talk about that later. Are you kids okay?”
All four of them nodded, and after a moment, Ray accepted the answer as true. He moved over to Henry, pulling him into a gentle hug. Henry leaned against Captain Man’s chest, letting the tension and adrenaline from the fight bleed out of him.
“We need to splint my wrist,” he muttered, more out of habit than anything else. “And wrap my hands and forearms before the burns get worse. I don’t think I have any injuries from when Volt knocked me out, but she hit me right in the chest, so a check up probably isn’t a bad idea. Especially since that stupid device was also electrocuting me.”
Ray laughed humorlessly. “You were always better at dealing with injuries than I was. But yeah, we’ll get you some treatment, kid. For now, you just focus on feeling better. You’re safe.”
“Yeah. I’m safe.”
The two of them stayed like that for a while, just appreciating each other's company. Then, after a moment, Henry spoke.
“Ray?”
“Yeah, kid?”
“Can you carry me to the Man’s Nest? I think I’m about to pass out.”
Ray’s eyes widened, but he quickly schooled his expression and scooped Henry into his arms. “Yeah, kid, of course. Whatever you need.”
Henry’s eyes began slipping closed. This time, he found he didn’t mind Ray’s more protective tendencies. It had been smothering back when he was a teenager, back when Ray only saw him as Kid Danger.
But now, it felt good. This time, it just felt like Ray was taking care of Henry Hart. And maybe, just maybe, that was okay.