Chapter 2
As John began to jog in the direction of the underground subway he could hear the large man call after the hero who was there just moments earlier.
"I'll get you Spidey! You hear me!? This ain't the last you'll hear of the Rhino!"
But John ignored this and continued on the few blocks to his new mode of transportation. He picked up his pace as he rounded the corner.
His watch read: '7:56'
He continued looking at his watch as he tries to remember whether the train ran every half hour on the hour and half hour, or on the fifteen and forty-five of the hour.
As he was in this thought process he bumped into someone. He looked up and noticed a small crowd of people loitering in the middle of the side walk.
"Of all the days..." He said under his breath as he continued on to the subway station. "Excuse me, excuse me..." He called out as he tried as politely as he could to get through the crowd.
When he finally got through the rung of people he quickened his pace again. As he began he stepped on, and tripped over his own shoe laces.
"Ugh..!" He cursed.
He set his briefcase down beside him and kneeled down to tie his shoes. As he finished one shoe and began switching to the other he heard a small explosion about a block up.
'Hmm. I wonder if a water main blew.' He thought.
But as he finished with his second shoe he saw an orangish glare out of the corner of his eye. He could feel the heat on his face as the trash can next to him was set aflame.
"What the.?!" He called as he stood straight up to investigate. As he did he looked up to the sky just in time to see another large fireball arching through the air headed straight for him. He didn't have time to run but his instincts kicked in and he grabbed his briefcase to block the incoming inferno. The fireball smacked into the case and immediately melted the foe-leather and set the papers inside ablaze.
John dropped the smoldering and still hot case to the ground and began stomping it frantically; to put out the lit remains. He looks up again to see what the explanation was for this strike against him and he saw a man covered in dazzling fire from head to toe glide through the air above him.
John shook his head and rolled his eyes as he again continued on.
"Got to get to work... Got to get to work..." He thought as he pressed on.
Again he quickly walked and in just a short time his target was in sight. He could see the sign and the metal railing that lead down to the subway. He inhaled and exhaled with as much relief as he could muster.
John stepped up to the curb of the street and stopped before crossing. He looked both ways and when he noted that no cars were coming, and it was safe to cross he began to proceed. As he did it was as if he had just walked into a thick sheet of plexiglass.
His senses reeled as he strained to see something that wasn't there. He stretched out his hand and could feel a hard structure in front of him. But again he could not see a thing. Not even hand prints from the touches he made.
Completely perplexed; he ran his hands around the invisible structure. He deduced that he was enclosed in some kind of unseen dome of sorts, with no way out.
By the time he had come to terms with this and figured he had to find some way to get out another fireball could be seen arching the air again. It was headed straight for him. He ducked and with no briefcase to protect him this time he held up his arm to block the incoming assault.
John waited, but he felt nothing, not even heat from the flames. He opened his eyes expecting that maybe he was in shock and the pain just hadn't set in yet. But as he looked around his arm he saw another fireball smash against and explode on the surface of his protective dome.
John sighed in relief, for real this time, but he stayed in his crouching position.
"Johnny! Watch it! Will ya!?" He heard an unseen female voice yell from beside him.
"Sorry sis!" The flaming man from earlier called as he swooped by. And for a second time today John Smith felt the ground shake. But this time steadily, constantly, gradually as if something was tearing through the ground.
"Incoming!" Another voice warned.
This time it was a man who ran up from across the street to their immediate location.
"I've tracked his tectonic fissure to this remote location. He should be surfacing soon. Be on guard!"
John noted that the man seemed normal enough except for the tight blue unitard that he sported.
This perception was all shattered as the man seemed to grow seven feet tall instantaneously and reach up to grab on to a building's ledge retracting his lower half so that he returned to his previous size in time to pull himself up into a sitting position.
All at once a blonde haired blue eyed woman popped into view in front of him.
"Listen to me. When I tell you too, Run!" She said making eye contact. "Do you understand?" She continued.
John nodded his agreement and gave her a once over noting that she too was wearing the same
type of form fitting unitard. His eyes lingered at the woman's cheat level long enough to notice that there was a number "4" marked there.
With all the commotion John hadn't noticed that the rumbling below ground had grown so much so that it was apparent that it was directly beneath them.
The question of the source of the disruption was answered as a large drilled mechanism came erupting from the ground, carrying with it a huge chunk of burnt orange debris.
'That is an odd color and shape for a rock...' John thought to himself as the blond woman turned to the commotion.
The large chunk of debris seemed to take on a humanoid shape and reared back and began pounding its fists into the mechanism causing it to dent and spark.
There was an odd swirling sound and all at once John realized that he could feel the breeze against his face again. He extended his hand fully, testing his perimeters. He did this in just enough time for the blonde woman to turn to him and yell:
"Run!"
John did not hesitate and turned and ran with all the energy he could muster in the opposite direction.