John’s Hot Take - Part 5

John came to, standing knee-deep in a strange, shimmering liquid. He was inside a carved-out alcove of rock, surrounded by silver mirrors embedded into the jagged edges of the stone. Just beyond the ledge ahead of him flowed a river of lava. It was the main light source in the larger cave outside the hole in the cave wall.

Farther in the distance, a group of scientists bustled around a series of computers, typing furiously, mixing chemicals, and monitoring live experiments. They had on thick goggles and gloves, protecting them from the various things they were up to.

Above them on a second-floor balcony stood Jade, his sister. She was leaning against a metal railing. It was the only thing separating her from a steep drop. Behind her were large ventilation ducts and industrial machines blinking with lights.

Suspended above them all, hanging from the ceiling, was a giant laser apparatus. When she noticed that John was awake, she whistled loudly and everyone stopped. They all turned and looked at John. A big smile came across Jade’s face.

“What do you think?” Jade yelled from the other side. “This is where it all happens.”

John rubbed his head, still trying to wake up. The last thing he remembered was getting hit from behind. How long ago was that? “What the hell are you even going on about? Why can’t you just kill me and get it over with?”

“Well, for one,” Jade said, “you may have actually changed my heart.”

“I… I changed your mind? How?”

“Yes!” she said, clapping lightly. “Can you believe it? A buffoon like you made a great point! I’ve taken my family too lightly. You’ve made me better. You gave me a real challenge, one I haven’t had in years. And for that, I thank you. I love you.”

John scoffed. “If you love me, how about you get me out of this radioactive kiddie pool? What is this crap anyway?”

Jade wagged a finger. “I love you, but I’m not crazy.”

She paced along the upper level, pointing toward the pool. “This liquid is the base component of our reflective crystals. In about thirty minutes, the laser in the sky will fire and leave the White House a crater thanks to the help of my homemade crystal lenses.”

John looked up at the behemoth of metal and wires hanging ominously from the ceiling.

“These lenses,” Jade continued, “not only refine the beam of the satellite in space, they also amplify it. The amplification is key. We need it to collapse all those pesky underground tunnels beneath the White House.”

John sighed. “I can’t believe we’re related.”

“Believe me, I’ve thought the same. I was shocked when the DNA test I took when you were 6 came back positive.”

She leaned on the railing and smirked. “Now, I bet you’re wondering more about how we make our amazing crystals, right?”

“Not really, but I’m sure you’ll talk about it anyway. At least Peter’s psychotic rants were interesting.”

Jade pouted mockingly. “Try to pay attention with that goldfish brain of yours. Look above you.”

She pointed toward the laser.

“This volcano is rich in natural crystalline materials, but we need to process them fast. We can't just sit around waiting for the Earth to grow our crystals. That’s where I come in. When that laser hits the liquid you’re standing in? Boom! Instant crystal formation.”

“Great. I become your personal frozen souvenir.”

She grinned. “Exactly. A little brother memento. I designed the whole thing myself. The most expensive paperweight anyone will ever own!”

John’s heart pounded. This was way worse than he thought. There was no fall to survive, no fight to win. Just slow suffocation inside a crystal tomb.

Still, he forced a shrug, trying to play cool. “Doesn’t matter. Even if you go through with this, it won’t help you. Mango’s probably halfway to safety. Noreen’ll get her to the Lea or the Chief, and they’ll change the codes before the laser even fires.”

“Oh? You mean this Mango?” Jade gestured behind her.

John's eyes widened in horror as Laz dragged Mango into view, gripping her by the hair. She was limping as her foot left a trail of blood.

“Mango? Michelle!” John shouted. “Don’t touch her! I’ll kill you!”

“Michelle?” Laz said, raising an eyebrow. “That’s your real name? Huh. Still starts with ‘M.’ That’s dumb.” Laz took the knife he stole from Mango and put it in his pocket.

“I hate you,” Mango spat in his face. He wiped it off nonchalantly.

Laz smirked, reached into her bra, and pulled out the ring. He handed it to Jade, who slid it onto her finger and admired it in the lava’s lights.

“Beautiful,” she said. “That blue crystal? Almost as beautiful as the one I’m about to create.”

John gritted his teeth. “So that’s it. You fire your laser, crystallize me, and then blow up the White House?”

“Wait, WHAT?” Laz snapped, turning toward Jade. “You’re blowing up the White House?!”

Jade didn’t even look at him. She was still admiring the ring.

“That wasn’t part of the deal,” Laz said, straightening his posture.

“Yes,” said Jade, “that wasn’t part of the deal. But what is part of the deal,” she continued, gesturing to John, “is the heroic Laz! The man who took down the terrorist behind the White House attack and the destruction of Tokyo. The same man who, oh, just so happened to be a mafia boss turned CIA agent turned back to crime. The heroic Laz tried to stop him. In the end, he got there just as ‘Agent Raven’ pressed the button. He took him down, acquired the laser and found a new hidden target for the CIA.”

She beamed theatrically. “Can you believe it? A tale for the ages. Not even Agent Eagle could beat that.”

Laz scratched his head. “What’s the director going to say about me letting the president die?”

Jade waved dismissively. “Please. You act like he matters. They get replaced every four years anyway. Say what you want. The truth is what we make it.”

“Please,” Mango begged, turning to Laz. “You can’t let her do this!”

Laz shrugged indifferently. “Well, she’s got a point. I didn’t vote for him.”

Jade dusted her hands theatrically. “Well, this has been fun and all, but it’s time to get the party started.” She turned to John. “Any last words?”

John’s mind raced. What could he say? What should he say? Nothing clever came. No grand declarations or cool lines. No threat that held any weight. Just silence.

A pane of glass slid up in front of him, sealing off the cove except for a narrow slit where the laser beam would pass through.

He pressed his hands to the glass. For the first time in a long time, he didn’t want to die. Not like this. Not without saving Mango.

“What do you want from me?” John begged. “I’ll do anything! Jade! Please! I know things about the CIA. Is that it? What do you expect me to do? Talk?”

Jade smiled coldly. “No, John…I expect you to die.” She pressed a button.

Above, the laser charged, its hum growing to a shrill whine. It fired into the rock and slowly rotated toward John’s position.

“See you soon,” Jade smirked, giving him a mocking wave.

Suddenly, Mango laughed bitterly.

“I hate you, Laz,” she said. “I hate you, Jade. You’re exactly the kind of people I ran away from. People who think they can look down on others and do anything they want! John has done nothing but try to do good, but you two are so obsessed with beating him, you miss the obvious details of the little people.”

Jade turned. “Details like what?”

Mango pulled out a knife from behind her back. Laz quickly checked his pocket. She had stolen her knife back!

Mango smiled. “Like remembering who’s the pick-pocketing thief!”

She flung a knife through the air! It headed straight toward the laser’s entranceway.

Time slowed. John’s eyes widened. Then the laser fired.

The laser struck the reflective blade, redirecting wildly. It blasted into the ground, then bounced off the lava, sending streams of molten fire splashing upward. Alarms blared as the beam ricocheted again, smashing control panels, and even hitting the upper platform, which burst into flames. The upper-deck explosion sent everyone upstairs flying.

The lava splashed onto the glass in front of John, melting it and freeing him. Jade woke up first and saw that John was free.

“No!” Jade screamed.

“Mango!” John cried.

Mango threw herself onto the floor, crawling toward him. He leapt out of the glowing pool, flinging himself across the lava stream.

Guards rushed in, opening fire. John flipped over a metal table. He ducked behind the metal table, bullets clinking off its silver surface.

“Handle this,” Jade barked at Laz, turning to flee. Before she left, she grabbed Mango by the hair and yanked her close, shoving a pistol to her side.

“You’re coming with me,” Jade said. “To the command center. I have to win! I will win!”

“Michelle!” John shouted.

“John!” Mango cried as she was dragged away.

The guards closed in, their rounds bouncing off the table shielding John. He scanned the floor, spotted vials of chemicals, and flung one at the nearest guard. It exploded on impact, melting the man’s face. Screaming, the guard collapsed.

John snatched the man’s rifle, kicked him aside, and combat-rolled to another table, flipping it over as cover.

He fired back. One clean shot took a guard down with a headshot.

Then Laz opened fire.

“What do you expect to do?” Laz called. “You’re surrounded.”

“Maybe,” said John, reloading. “But I’m a fast learner.”

“Oh, yeah?” Laz snapped. “What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”

John popped up and fired not at Laz, but at the hanging laser above them. He aimed at the rock surrounding it, and the bullets knocked all the rock loose. The giant laser knocked loose and fell out of the ceiling. It dropped down to the ground and then crashed down on top of the guards. The guards tried to dive out of the way, but they were caught in the crash. The laser went off, and one was hit, and part of his body was vaporized instantly.

John broke into a sprint during the commotion. He sped upstairs and fired his gun up at Laz. Laz dove behind a desk.

"You think you're clever, huh?" Laz called from behind the desk. Laz stood up and tried to return fire.

John dove behind a tall cabinet. "Smarter than you," John said. "I'll make sure I bury you with the rest of the trash!" John fired back at the desk.

"I have years of experience," Laz said, returning fire. "Thanks to you, I'm leagues above anyone else in hand to hand combat! When you run out, this is going to end with my hand around your neck!"

John stayed behind cover. Laz was right. There's no way he would beat him in hand to hand combat. He learned that the last time. Even if he wasn't tired, his Underworld Legacy wouldn't upgrade his combat against someone who wasn't a criminal. Without that, there's no way he could beat him. He peeked around the side.

"What? No snappy comeback?" asked Laz. "It's better you die here! You won't have any friends in the CIA when I get back!"

John peeked out of cover. He noticed that Laz was right under one of the ventilation tubes. He took a deep breath. He popped out of cover and shot at the ventilation tube.

POW! It busted loose and fell. Hot steam and smoke erupted onto Laz.

Laz screamed and stumbled out of cover. John quickly shot at Laz. He hit him twice in the chest and once in the hand. The force of it made Laz flip over the railing. Before he fell over, he instinctively grabbed the railing with his other hand and dangled.

"You cheated!" Laz screamed.

John approached him cautiously. "Don't you know? Smoke is a spy's best friend."

A grin grew across Laz's face. "You won't kill me. Your morals will stop you. You're not strong enough."

John shrugged. "Yeah, but I'm trying to do better."

John kicked Laz's hand off the railing, and he fell down screaming. His body burst into flames before it landed on the river of lava. His face and skin boiled away as it landed hard on the molten rock. It just sat there, stuck, bubbling. Steam and smoke screamed as it left from the pores on Laz’s body. Laz's eyes bubbled out of his head like fried eggs. His cooked skin was instantly peeled away by the steam escaping from his bones.

John grimaced. "Gross! I thought it would sink like in that old movie, Lord of the Rings."

<<<>>>

[The human body is not dense enough to sink in lava.]

[That is a myth.]

<<<>>>

"No time to lose!"

John took the same exit Jade used. He wasn’t leaving Mango. Not now.

Not ever again.