Bad Beat - Chapter 47 - Turbulence (Patreon)

Gabriel crawled away from the wall, not even caring where he was going. The only thing he knew was that he had to get away.

Rocks dug into his skin, even through his clothes, and while he registered the sensation, he didn’t feel the pain thanks to the adrenaline coursing through his body.

The two supers, meanwhile, continued their little spat.

Several cars were ripped apart and flung at the wind-wielding super, who used blasts of air to deflect or outright destroy the twisted metal and plastic, scattering the debris everywhere. Surprisingly, his green outfit, seemingly made from ordinary fabric, remained completely intact, without so much as a rip or tear.

For a moment, Gabriel wondered why his brain had latched onto something so insignificant before another car hood was crumpled by a blast of compressed wind and hurled in his direction. Thankfully, he was still crawling along the ground, so it passed overhead and slammed into the already decimated brick wall, showering his back with even more debris.

Letting out a string of curses, he stopped his blind crawl for a moment and looked up. He blinked the dust from his eyes and took in the situation.

He couldn’t really see anyone else besides the two supers duking it out.

However, he knew without a doubt that at least a few dozen, maybe even a hundred, people were recording the fight. Which was important, because he wanted nothing more than to dip into his energy reserves and unleash a beam powerful enough to send those two assholes straight to the netherworld.

Which, in turn, would result in him being outed in about one-tenth of a second.

His brain worked furiously, trying to figure out a way out of the situation.

Glancing around, he spotted the corner of the street and knew that if he could make it around it, he’d be able to get to his feet and run.

With a quick glance at the sky, he spotted the drone clinging to the underside of a windowsill like a metallic spider, silently taking in the situation.

However, he immediately realized it was utterly useless to him. There was no way Sparky could communicate with him in his current situation. Taking out his phone would be suicidal, as even that brief distraction could get him killed.

Cursing his luck once more, he turned his attention back to the supers and tried to figure out why the fuck they were fighting.

The massive metallic giant slammed into the ground after being hurled backward by a gust of wind that roared like a hurricane.

The other super was standing on a small pile of debris, the remains of a wall and window from a small store that had been destroyed during the conflict.

“Hah, Scrapheap, you think you can get away with it?” the green-clad super yelled, one hand resting on his hip while the other pointed at the metal giant.

The metal giant straightened, showcasing its frightening height, and a deep male voice echoed from within it, as if coming from an empty metal tank.

“Devil Wind.” His voice was measured, but Gabriel could hear the barely contained anger beneath it. “You will pay for what you’ve done.”

The now-named Devil Wind simply scoffed. “I don’t see you doing anything, Scrapshit.”

Scrapheap growled, the sound reverberating through the street. Aside from the distant sirens and alarms, it was the only thing Gabriel could hear.

Devil Wind simply laughed. It was not a happy laugh.

“You think you can take what belongs to us?” he asked as he casually descended from the pile of debris and walked forward. Gabriel could finally see his face, which, even partially covered by the green mask, showed nothing but fury. “You and the monkeys you call a gang will pay for this!”

Scrapheap growled again. “You think we would steal from a gang of miserable windbags?”

Gabriel blinked as his brain worked through the implications.

‘Both think that the other did something…’ he thought with growing despair.

He would have laughed at the situation if he wasn’t currently in the middle of it.

Curiously, he looked around, raising himself slightly from his position on the ground. He saw a few people hiding behind debris and half-destroyed cars, or crawling along the pavement like him. Smartly, none of them were yelling or crying. People in Los Angeles had long since learned that gaining the attention of brawling supers was never a good thing.

At best, you become a hostage…

And at worst... well... nobody liked to think about that.

Instead, people kept their heads down and left the area as quickly as possible.

Devil Wind scoffed again. “I don’t fucking care what you monkeys do. You stole from us, you pay for it,” he declared coldly.

Scrapheap stepped forward hard enough to crack the concrete beneath his feet. “Fine. If that’s what you choose, then I’ll show you what happens when someone fucks with us!”

The last words were a roar, and Scrapheap launched himself forward, one hand pulled back and ready to unleash a devastating punch.

Devil Wind laughed mockingly. “Come and get it!”

Wind burst from him in all directions, sending lighter debris flying and slowing Scrapheap just enough for Devil Wind to dodge the blow that slammed into the ground, shattering it further.

Devil Wind immediately countered, blasting Scrapheap in the side with a concentrated burst of wind that staggered the metal giant. He then pulled his hand back into a similar punching stance, wind swirling around his fist.

“Take this!”

He punched forward, directly into the side of the metal construct.

The wind spiraled around the metal, grinding against the armor ripped from cars and generating a deafening screech as it tore away the material, slowly working toward the man inside.

Scrapheap, however, wasn’t idle. He instantly turned and swung at Devil Wind, who, while focused on tearing the metal apart, didn’t have enough time to dodge. The only thing he could do was blast wind outward from his body, trying to lessen the impact.

“Argh!” he grunted as the blow sent him flying backward.

He landed on his feet, skidding backward, one hand touching the ground to steady himself. His head snapped up, a vicious snarl visible on his face.

“You’re going to pay for that!”

He raised both hands, fists clenched, before spreading his fingers apart and unleashing a directed blast of wind toward Scrapheap.

Gabriel covered his head as hurricane-force winds rolled over him, small pieces of debris striking his arms as the blast carried them through the air.

Looking up as the wind subsided slightly, Gabriel saw the two of them once again standing opposite each other, though their positions had been reversed. Scrapheap stood with his back partially turned toward him, and Gabriel could see that several sections of the armor, seemingly made from car doors and hoods, were buckled inward where the wind blasts had struck.

For a fraction of a second, he considered raising his own hand and firing a beam of energy at the damaged spots. Instead, he used the lull in the battle to continue crawling toward the corner, keeping one eye on the fight.

Alas, it was not to be.

As he crawled toward salvation, another exchange of blows erupted, sending Devil Wind flying through the air after Scrapheap caught him mid-leap with a powerful swing of his metal hand.

The wind-wielder hit the ground and somehow bounced back into the air, tumbling even farther before landing directly in front of Gabriel.

“Agh!” the man gasped as the impact drove the air from his lungs, his eyes meeting Gabriel’s.

For an eternal moment, the two of them stared at each other.

Gabriel lay on the ground, leaning on his forearms, covered in dust and who knew what else, probably asbestos if America was true to itself. The other man was dressed in green, his cape torn, with a thin trickle of blood running from his scalp.

Then his slightly confused expression shifted into something cruel.

Before Gabriel could react, Devil Wind used the wind under his control to launch himself upright. He immediately reached down, grabbed Gabriel’s arm, and wrenched himself to his feet.

Gabriel couldn’t help himself and let out a yelp of pain.

Devil Wind ignored him, pulling him closer as he turned back toward Scrapheap.

The metal giant also turned toward them, though Gabriel couldn’t tell how he reacted as the entire person was hidden beneath layers of metal.

Devil Wind used the distance between them to pull Gabriel in front of him, his arm surrounded by swirling wind as a silent warning not to do anything foolish.

The urge to blast the man was growing stronger.

‘Fuck my secret identity!’

“Come and get me!” Devil Wind yelled, cruel laughter dripping from his voice.

Scrapheap growled, but to Gabriel’s alarm, the metal giant didn’t look like someone worried about avoiding harm to the hostage.

Devil Wind leaned closer and whispered into Gabriel’s ear, “Be a good boy, and maybe you’ll survive.”

Gabriel glanced back at the villain and, despite himself, scoffed. “Yeah, sure...”

Apparently, it was the wrong thing to say.

The villain’s grip tightened around Gabriel’s arm, while his other hand drove a fist into Gabriel’s kidney, sending him hunching over.

“Shut the fuck up,” Devil Wind growled.

THUD

THUD THUD

THUD THUD THUD

Scrapheap began charging toward them, his feet pounding against the concrete street and sending cracks through the pavement every time his entire weight hit the ground.

Devil Wind cursed, then, to Gabriel’s horror, grabbed him with his other hand and, before he could react, threw him forward.

At first, Gabriel thought he would simply hit the ground in front of Scrapheap’s elephant-sized feet. Then he felt the blast of wind behind him, catching his body and launching him through the air.

As the world slowed down, he could do nothing but calculate that his parabolic trajectory would intersect perfectly with Scrapheap’s body barreling toward them.

His body felt weightless as his arms windmilled uselessly, desperately trying to find something to push against, despite knowing there was nothing there.

He watched in slow motion as Scrapheap’s head moved upward, the metal giant seemingly radiating uncaring annoyance, though Gabriel suspected he might just be projecting. The giant raised his right hand, preparing to slap Gabriel away like an annoying fly.

Gabriel was about to throw caution to the wind and blast the villain in front of him, hopefully saving his own life, before he was smashed into the ground.

But as he reached the apex of his flight, his descent suddenly stopped.

For a precious moment, he hung there, confusion written across his face, before he registered the force holding onto the back of his clothing. The material strained under his weight as the force pulled him upward, sending him flying once again.

He let out a surprised squeak as his body flailed, hanging in the air for another moment before gravity reasserted itself.

However, before he could begin falling, something caught him from below.

He blinked in surprise as the world righted itself and he found himself being held by the coldly smiling Bombshell, cradled in her arms. The air around her visibly vibrated with familiar tectonic power.

“Fancy seeing you here...” she remarked as she rose higher into the air, while the sounds of the clash between Scrapheap and Devil Wind continued below them.

Gabriel opened his mouth to answer, but nothing came out.

The entire situation had given him such severe tonal whiplash that his mind was completely blank.

“Don’t worry, citizen,” she said with a bloodthirsty grin. “I’ll make sure to protect you.”

This was the moment both villains realized who had appeared.

“Fuck, it’s the Explosive Bimbo!” Devil Wind yelled.

He raised both hands above his head, summoning a massive sphere of wind before violently slamming it down in front of him. The compressed air destabilized instantly, expanding into a hurricane-like blast that picked up dust and debris, creating a thick screen of obscuring dust.

A few seconds later, when the cloud dissipated, he was nowhere to be seen.

Scrapheap said nothing, but the heavy thuds of his footsteps could be heard fading into the distance, leaving behind a destroyed street, blaring alarms, and civilians finally beginning to peek out from behind their hiding places.

Gabriel could see Bombshell’s expression from up close as she frowned, her arms tightening slightly around him.

“Damn...” she said. “And I was so looking forward to destroying them...”

Gabriel wisely said nothing.