THE ANARCHY EFFECT

Part II

By Wesley Overhults

SHIELD Helicarrier

“I’m going to break that bitch in half next time I see her,” growled Finesse.

“You know, you’re really hot when you’re angry,” noted Wipeout with a grin. “I kinda like it.”

“You really don’t want to go there right now,” suggested Composite before Finesse had the opportunity to take out her anger on her teammate.

She couldn’t believe that Locus had teleported her away from the battle so effortlessly. Being useless wasn’t something she enjoyed. It irritated her on a deep level and Jeanne wasn’t the best person to be around when she was irritated or annoyed. She couldn’t wait to get her hands on Locus again because the next time she did, she would break the girl in half.

“What part of covert operations do you kids not understand?” inquired Quake. “Don’t forget that my ass is on the line too here.”

“Then your ass should be out there in the field with us,” retorted Composite. “You didn’t tell us what we were up against and you didn’t tell us what was in that canister. We had to learn it from that AIM guy.”

“These Agents of Anarchy are an unknown quantity and we didn’t have enough intel about the contents of the canister,” countered Quake. “The AIM guys are in lockup right now and we grilled the head technician for hours.”

“So what did you learn?” asked Neon.

“The canister contains a chemical weapon,” explained Quake, her voice taking on a graver tone. “AIM’s biological weapons division has been working on it for months. From what the technician told us, the chemical is designed to stimulate the brain to cause complete insanity. Whoever comes in contact with that chemical becomes completely psychotic.”

“You’re saying that this chemical infects people with madness?” asked Requiem skeptically. “If that’s the case then the death toll from that kind of plague could be catastrophic. It’s worse enough when you have a virus that kills people but it’s infinitely worse when you have a virus that makes you kill other people before it kills you.”

“These people have that kind of weapon at their disposal and they are running loose somewhere,” confirmed Quake. “We know their roster except for their apparent leader. We have files on all of them that are a mile long. All we have to do right now is use that information to help us find where they are.”

“If this chemical does what you say then they would want to expose as many people as they can to it,” noted Finesse. “What’s the fastest way to spread a plague?”

“Airborne,” suggested Requiem.

“No, the water system,” countered Wipeout. “If they tried to release it through the air, they’d have to aerosolize it first and that could take a while. With the water system, all they have to do is pour the stuff in and watch the fireworks.”

“Does water dilute this stuff?” asked Composite.

“We haven’t gotten anything else out of the technician,” admitted Quake. “We’re going to assume the worst until we have solid information on that angle. So far there’s no known cure for this thing. Make sure it never comes to that.”

“They could be anywhere though,” said Neon. “Their leader told the teleporter to ‘go home’ but we don’t know where home is.”

“But we know where they’re going to be,” said Quake. “This city is the most populated one in the country. I’d say that makes for a pretty good start for the ‘new world order’ these people want to create. We’re going to start staking out all the water treatment facilities and pumping stations in the city. Fury’s given me the green light to head this manhunt and you guys are my primary field agents. We need to find these people and find them fast before people start dying.”

Misfit looked at the vial of amber-colored liquid that the canister contained. It was such a fragile place to house such a deadly weapon. He would have to thank AIM for their crucial role in shaping the future of not only the nation but also the world. Whoever created such a chemical obviously had a brilliant mind but, like all brilliant minds, it was clouded by thoughts of personal gain rather than the greater good. Much like he himself was, madness was misunderstood. Misfit often heard that there was a fine line between madness and genius, that intelligence sometimes boarded on insanity. He had a different view of things though. What society labeled as madness wasn’t madness at all, rather it was a sense of clarity about the world. Society as a whole was sick, a diseased, cancer-ridden corpse that continued to rot away in ignorant bliss. Those like him that knew the truth were labeled as madmen but it was the rest of society and its “normal” people that were truly mad.

“And this is the panacea for the cancer,” said Misfit to himself, watching the small bubbles of air inside the chemical concoction. “Madness in a jar? No, freedom in a jar is more like it.”

“How much do you think we’re going to get for that?” asked Locus.

“Somewhere in the millions,” replied Misfit, his eyes never wavering from the liquid in the vial. “Ransom of course. We’re not selling this little beauty.”

“Does it really do what you said it does?” inquired Shriek, the hopeful tone in her voice very apparent.

“I’ve seen the test reports that AIM compiled on it,” said Misfit. “This chemical does exactly what it’s supposed to do and it does it very well from what I’ve read. AIM had one of the deadliest weapons in the world and they just locked it away. I almost think they were too scared of it to use it at all. It’s a good thing for the world that I’m without that fear.”

“Those SHIELD kids will be looking for us,” warned Boomerang. “Maybe we better fence the hot property and take the heat off of us.”

“We’re not selling it,” repeated Misfit. “An opportunity like this only comes once in a lifetime. Go out and find us some suitable test subjects. I think it’s time to let SHIELD and the rest of the system know exactly what they can expect once their entire world comes crashing down around them.”

Flushing, New York

“There’s really no way this can work,” realized Neon as she and Finesse looked at the facility standing before them. “I mean we’ve mobilized tons of people but we don’t have any clue where the Agents of Anarchy are.”

Finesse silently nodded her head and looked at the main office of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. Quake was inside speaking with the manager of the organization responsible for the city’s water supply. So far, the discussion left much to be desired. New York City was huge and, accordingly, its water supply system was huge. It wasn’t as if the manager could flip a switch and shut off everyone’s water for a few days while they continued looking for the Agents. For that matter, who could say that the group of terrorists wouldn’t simply pack up shop and move to another city if their plan dried up in New York? No, the fastest way to eliminate the threat was to find them and take them into custody before they had a chance to infect the entire city with their plague. Any other exercise would be, in Jeanne’s mind, simply rearranging deckchairs on the Titanic.

“I don’t believe the boys will have much luck in that department,” she admitted to Neon. “This department oversees the operation of nineteen reservoirs and three controlled lakes to supply this city with its water. At any one of those locations, the Agents of Anarchy could pour their madness concoction into the water, sit back with smiles on their faces, and watch the city go to hell in a hand basket.”

“You sound like you actually care about what happens to these people,” noted Neon.

“I don’t like watching people die, particularly innocent people,” stated Finesse. “I enjoy taking very nice things from people but I don’t kill them unless I absolutely have to. I have a heart, contrary to what you might enjoy believing. I just don’t give a damn about most people.”

“So you don’t care about any of us?” inquired Neon.

“I feel responsible for what happened to your uncle and to any others that were hurt because of my mistake,” admitted Finesse. “However, I don’t really care about you or the others very much. Frankie is too annoying, Sebastian is too unhinged, Henry is too soft and stupid, and you’re . . . too nice.”

“So what’re you then?” asked Neon.

“Too perfect,” retorted Finesse as Quake came out of the building. “The boys are due to check in any minute now. How did your talk with the manager go?”

“He didn’t give us anything we didn’t already have,” said Quake. “We’re staking out all the places the Agents could strike but he can’t shut off the water supply. That would piss off every single person in this entire city and there’s no way of knowing how long it would have to stay off.”

“We’re not having much luck on this end,” spoke up Composite through the earpieces that all the Warriors and Quake wore. “Sebastian’s trying to track them down using his ‘ghost whisperer’ thing but so far we haven’t turned up anything. I have a feeling that if we don’t find them soon then we’re going to see some fireworks.”

“Something tells me the fireworks have already started,” realized Quake, putting her hand to her earpiece. “I’m picking up something on another frequency. There’s a disturbance going on in Times Square. It sounds like a riot.”

“If I had a virus that I planned to infect the entire population of New York City with, I would want to make sure it worked,” said Finesse.

“We’re in Queens right now,” said Quake. “You boys get over there and do what you can. I don’t want any civilian casualties, be they bystanders or people infected. Are we clear on that?”

“We’re clear, ma’am,” assured Composite.

“You can’t seriously expect no one to die from this,” said Finesse. “That’s an extremely naive position for you to take.”

“No one’s dying if we can help it,” promised Quake, moving to her new car as fast as she could. “C’mon, we need to get to Times Square and help the others out.”

“You’re not a field agent,” reminded Finesse as she and Neon got into the car.

“Desperate times call for desperate measures,” countered Quake. “Trust me, Fury will chew my ass out over this later but right now we need to move. Lives are on the line and we can’t waste any time.”

Both girls knew that Quake was right. If the Agents had set up this disturbance as a field test of their new toy then they had to prepare themselves to face the absolute worst. Things were going to get ugly and both of them just hoped that the rest of their teammates could contain things before they arrived.

An Abandoned Warehouse, Minutes Ago

“I always loved children,” mused Shriek as she looked at the ten-year-old girl cowering in the corner of the Agents’ hideout. “I had a family of my own once, a very nice family.”

“Please just let us go,” pleaded the girl’s mother. “We haven’t done anything to you. We haven’t done anything to anyone.”

“A very nasty man called Spider-Man took my family away from me,” continued Shriek as if she hadn’t been interrupted at all. “Really though, Spider-Man was just a part of the bigger injustice. The world took everything from me. The world and all of its heroes destroyed me so now I help destroy everyone else. I could make you go crazy but you would come to your senses in the end. With this though, there’s no going back.”

Shriek eyed the canister with the chemical weapon inside. Misfit treated her so much better than Carnage ever could. It was true that she could use her power to help those around her manifest their darker natures but Spider-Man and his friends had proven that such an effect was only temporary. This chemical was different though. She could almost feel the madness radiating out from it, could almost taste the insanity it created. She looked around at the motley crew of specimens the Agents had gathered. They came from all walks of life. The homeless man on the street corner, the businessman on Wall Street, the family of tourists from some nameless Midwestern town, a group of gang members from Harlem, all of them little slices of America. Now it was time to show everyone just how diseased America was, just how toxic of a culture it had created for itself.

“What’s in there?” asked the businessman, noting the vial of liquid that Shriek had in her hand.

“Freedom,” replied Shriek as she opened the top of the vial and poured tiny fractions of the chemical on the heads of her captives. “It’s time to take your medicine, children.”

The chemical seeped into the bloodstreams of its recipients and Shriek could sense it starting to work. She motioned to Locus and the young woman engulfed everyone in a portal that sent them somewhere else. They were standing there in the middle of Times Square. It was time for everyone to see what they really were underneath it all. It was time to let the revolution begin.

“You should have a few more seconds if what Misfit told us was true,” said Locus. “The others are waiting for us up there.”

“Let me soak it in,” ordered Shriek, the look in her eyes one of sheer bliss as the chemical finally took hold of the innocent people. “Let me drink all of it.”

She reached out with her ability and amplified that madness, heightening it to a frenzy and watching the people she had infected with the weapon go absolutely insane. They began fighting each other, clawing and scraping at each other like animals. They were trying to kill each other but their rage and madness wasn’t confined to just each other. They were attacking people on the sidewalks who were watching. They were beating them senseless with their own bare hands and Shriek loved every minute of it. The scar on her eye glowed with power, humming with sonic energy as she bathed in the madness around her.

“We need to go,” ordered Locus, noticing that the people they had infected were starting to register their presence.

“The whole world will be like this someday,” realized Shriek as she lifted off with Locus in tow and they scanned the rooftops for the rest of their team. “It’ll be wonderful. It’ll be like home.”

The two Agents landed on the rooftop where Misfit and the rest of his brood were watching the show. A car exploded into flames as the riot began to grow. Misfit smiled and looked at the vial that Shriek handed him. They still had a good three-fourths of its contents left to dump into the water supply. That was enough to turn the city into chaos. If only a few small drops could cause this much of a scene then the rest of the canister’s contents was enough to drive the city mad.

“And this is how the revolution begins,” said Misfit as the riot raged on.

Times Square, Now

“This is nuts,” realized Wipeout as he arrived on the scene and saw the carnage that the Agents of Anarchy had already initiated. “How are we supposed to contain this?”

“You and I are going to have to make some walls,” said Composite. “We need to round up the people that are infected and make sure they can’t do any more damage.”

“I’ll teleport them to you,” promised Requiem as he disappeared in a flash and snagged one of the infected people.

Wipeout nodded and turned into his water form, stretching himself into a ring that circled the area where Requiem appeared again. Sebastian wasted no time in teleporting out of that ring to his next target. Composite absorbed Wipeout’s water form and moved to form a dome over the ring that Frankie had created. However, it seemed that they had underestimated the madness of the infected people. Water, even a large volume of it, wouldn’t hold them back. Henry and Frankie would have to do something to keep the infected people contained while Requiem continued collecting and depositing them. Wipeout realized this and focused his concentration on his body. He turned the ring solid enough so that the people inside couldn’t get through. He could feel Composite mimicking this action and soon there was no way those that were trapped inside the watery dome could get out. Requiem managed to deposit the last of the victims into the dome just as more SHIELD agents arrived.

“Give us a hole,” ordered one of them and Composite complied, opening a hole in the upper part of the dome.

The agents took position and fired canisters of knockout gas through the hole, filling the space inside with enough tranquilizing vapor to down those that the Agents had infected. Requiem saw that everything was in hand but he saw something else as well. He saw the Agents of Anarchy from their perch on a nearby rooftop and he was intent on having a few words with them. To that end, he teleported up to confront them about their actions only moments ago.

“You’re becoming quite the annoyance,” noted Misfit, simply staring at Requiem as he appeared before the Agents of Anarchy. “I trust you and your friends are enjoying the show. It was put on for your benefit after all.”

“Killing people doesn’t benefit anyone,” stated Requiem. “Please refrain from it because it’s only making the noise in my head louder. You have something that doesn’t belong to you. Give it to me or I’ll be forced to take it.”

“What carrot have they dangled in front of you children to get you to jump through their hoops?” wondered Misfit aloud. “The money can’t be very good even if it is SHIELD. So what benefit do you get out of being a child soldier for a system that doesn’t care about you?”

“They promised me freedom,” said Requiem.

“Freedom,” scoffed Misfit, pointing to the chaos he had created down below with a few simple drops of his magic elixir. “That is freedom, my boy. Everything else in this life is just a pale imitation of it.”

Requiem knew he couldn’t waste more time debating with someone who clearly wasn’t going to listen. His hands glowed with magical energy and he discharged it in a blast of concussive force that struck Misfit and almost knocked him off the roof. The other Agents of Anarchy took that as a cue to strike. The air came alive with noise as Shriek struck back at the lone Secret Warrior. Requiem hit the ground to dodge the sonic blasts and though he avoided the blasts, his ears still rang from the noise. It left him disoriented enough to not immediately notice Boomerang flying towards him. The villain tossed two of his razor-edged boomerangs at Requiem and the weapons drew blood when they struck him, opening up gashes in his chest as he tried to dodge them and barely succeeded. Myers hefted an explosive boomerang in his hand and hurled it at Requiem’s feet, blowing the Secret Warrior backwards and knocking him off the roof. Requiem felt like he was floating as he fell through the empty air towards the ground. He closed his eyes and wondered if he would at last get some peace and quiet but he felt something catch him.

“You can thank me later,” assured Wipeout, his watery body shooting up from the ground like a geyser so he could ascend to the rooftop and join the fray.

He looked down to see that Composite was right behind him and then turned back towards his foes and received a blast of fire in his face. Frankie had barely enough time to convert his face back into water before the blast struck. He reformed his evaporated head and then launched blasts of water at the Agents of Anarchy that washed them in different directions. With little room to maneuver on the confines of the roof, the Agents knew that they were at a huge disadvantage. To that end, the members of the terrorist group with flight capabilities took to the sky to circle Wipeout like a pack of vultures. Firebrand cut Frankie’s legs out from under him with a blast of heat and watched him descend to the pavement below before following after him. Shriek and Boomerang were on his heels, eager to cause some chaos of their own. However, they forgot to watch their leader’s back.

“You’re going to pay for what you did to those people,” promised Composite as he landed on the roof and absorbed its concrete before running towards Misfit.

“They’ll thank me later,” assured Misfit. “Give your employers at SHIELD a message. Unless I receive two million dollars from them or the city of New York by dawn then you can expect more of this. You have until dawn to come up with the money. I’ll get in touch with the mayor about where he can send it.”

“He won’t need it because I’ll take you down right now,” said Composite, taking a swing at Misfit.

In a flash of light, Henry found himself standing on the pavement next to where Wipeout was reforming himself after his fall. In a second flash of light, the three Agents of Anarchy that were once on the ground where now on the rooftop again. Locus made one final teleportation that took the group away from Times Square and back to their hideout. Composite cursed and slammed his fist on the ground in frustration. They couldn’t catch the Agents long enough to actually beat them and they still had no clue where they were hiding or where they would strike. All they knew was that they had until dawn to come up with two million dollars or New York City’s streets would run red with the blood of innocent people. If only a small dose of that chemical weapon could cause this kind of damage then Henry shuddered to think of what could happen when the Agents pumped the whole canister into the water supply.

“We saw them just as they were leaving,” said Quake as she pulled the flying car in for a landing. “What happened here?”

“Exactly what he wanted,” said Composite. “This was a demonstration of what we can expect unless we give him two million dollars by the time the sun comes up. Please tell me you’ve got some good news, Daisy. We could sure as hell use some right about now.”

“We can’t shut down the city’s water supply in time,” admitted Quake. “We’ve got to find them and end this nightmare.”

“It’s already started,” said Composite. “You remembered that promise I made you about no civilian casualties? We already failed. Some of those people that were infected are dying. I could tell while they were inside the dome that me and Frankie made to contain them.”

“Get Sebastian,” ordered Quake, realizing that they needed his ability. “If some of those people are dead then he’s the only one who can question them.”

Mount Sinai Hospital

“You look like you got pretty hurt,” noted Neon as she saw the bandages on Requiem’s chest. “I’m sorry we couldn’t get there in time.”

“It was over before we even got a chance to do anything,” said Requiem. “You didn’t need to see a scene like that, Stephanie. You’re much too young for that.”

“You’re only a few years older than me,” reminded Neon. “I’ve already seen death, Sebastian.”

“Not like that you haven’t,” replied Requiem coldly.

The Secret Warriors all sat in the hospital and waited for Quake to get done talking to the doctors in the emergency room. The victims of the Agents’ attack were rushed to the ER as soon as possible to deal with their injuries. Those that had been infected were put in quarantine and were kept separate from each other and anyone else in the hospital. At this point, the Warriors felt less than optimistic about the chances of survival for the victims. Both Composite and Wipeout confirmed that those who were infected had dealt serious wounds to one another and to themselves in their psychotic frenzies.

“You doing okay?” asked Composite as he noticed Requiem shake his head as if to clear it. “I know you got cut up but I thought they patched you up pretty well.”

“I’ve never teleported that much in such a short time,” reminded Requiem. “My fatigue was probably the reason I couldn’t dodge Boomerang’s attack in time.”

“I always assumed you were slow, just not physically,” remarked Finesse with her customary condescension.

“I got the report from the doctors,” said Quake as she came into the hall. “We have at least two of the infected people dead and the others are getting treated while in quarantine but the prognosis is bleak. Without a cure, they’re a complete danger to themselves and everyone around them. We have to stop this and we have to stop it now. Sebastian, are you ready to do this?”

“He’s been through a lot in a really short time,” said Neon. “You could give him a moment to breathe, Agent Johnson.”

“That’s a moment we don’t have,” said Quake. “Every second we waste doing nothing is a second that brings us closer to dawn. This is our best hope of getting even an idea of where the Agents of Anarchy hang their hats when they’re not out terrorizing everyone. You knew this job wouldn’t be easy when you signed up for it, Sebastian.”

“I believe I was coerced into it,” reminded Requiem as he stood up and steadied himself. “Lead the way, Miss Daisy. It’s time I put this morbid talent of mine to some good use.”

Quake nodded and led him into the emergency room. Requiem looked at the body of a ten-year-old girl that was rapidly growing cold on the metal table. She was too young to suffer such a violent death. She could have had a beautiful life ahead of her if only things had turned out differently. In that moment, Sebastian felt like he had failed this girl whose name he didn’t even know. The only thing left to do now was gain justice for the senseless act of brutality that had led to her death.

“I know it must be very confusing for you right now,” said Requiem as he let his fingertips graze against the girl’s forehead. “However, I need to ask you some questions about the people who did this to you. I need you to help us try to find them before they kill anyone else.”

Next Issue: It’s the final showdown between the Secret Warriors and the Agents of Anarchy as “The Anarchy Effect” concludes.