She sat down at an empty section of the the L shaped bar. There were several guys at the other end of it, but she didn't even give them a second look. She sat down on the stool. The bartender came over and gave Alisha a hard look.

"A blue valium", she ordered.

"Sure. Got I.D."

Alisha nodded and reached into her small handbag. She handed him her California driver's license that clearly said UNDER 21.

The bartender looked at it and frowned. "What's this? Says you're 18."

Alisha frowned and looked up at him. "Check again."

The bartender almost threw the ID back at her, but glanced again. The birthdate said 09/29/82 instead of her real birth year. "Oh, my mistake. I swear that said UNDER 21. You said you wanted a blue valium?" Alisha nodded and waited. The drink came a moment later. She sipped at it while she listened to the jukebox change to another song. Alisha knew then why it was so easy to drown sorrows. A few more sips took the edge off her feelings. Hopefully by the end of the night she wouldn't be feeling much at all.

Lisa went to the bar and got another Budweiser. She could have waited for the waitress, but Lisa didn't like sitting and waiting. She was about to go back to her seat when she saw Alisha. Lisa took a drink from her bottle before going and sitting down next to her. Alisha glanced up and exhaled before taking another drink from her glass.

"You're Alisha right?"

"Bingo."

Lisa leaned in. "You're too young to drink. What are you doing here?"

Alisha got annoyed. "You following me? What are you doing here?" She looked around. "This doesn't look like your kind of place."

Lisa was the only person of color in the room. She tipped her beer again before she spoke. "You see the bartender?  He's the bar owner, and we went to high school together. I always come here when I'm in town. Now you're turn."

Alisha almost got up, but looked over at Lisa. "I wanted a fucking drink, so I came to a fucking bar." Alisha saw a flash cross Lisa's light brown eyes. It reminded her of Jan when she got annoyed. She smiled at the thought.

Lisa was usually slow to anger, but for some reason this little girl was getting on her nerves, but she calmed herself down. "I don't really know you, and you don't know me, but I saved your behind a few hours ago. The least you can do is not insult me."

Alisha took another sip. "Sorry. I've got some things on my mind."

"The men you had to...you know the ones you had to shoot?"

Alisha frowned quickly. "I can get over that. No, there's more in my life going on than that."

Lisa wasn't much of a beer drinker, but she downed the last of her bottle. She looked at Alisha and understood. She could see it all. She had been the same way a couple of years ago. "You know I didn't discover my abilities until a couple of years ago. I was vice-president of an advertising firm at that time. It was so hard when I found out about what I could do. It helped when I told someone."

"What are you getting at?" Alisha took another sip of her drink.

Lisa took a deep breath. "I saw your friend change. I saw her change to look like one of those men that attacked the bus. I don't think that's one of her powers. I sure as hell couldn't do it. That only leaves you."

Alisha shrugged her shoulders. "What do you want me to say? Yeah that was me. I did what I had to do."

"Your friends don't know do they?" Alisha didn't say anything. "I'm not going to lecture you, but talk to your friends. I know how you feel and so do they."

"No", Alisha looked up at Lisa quickly. "They grew up with theirs. They've always known. I'm supposed to be the normal one. I have to think my way out of stuff, or into stuff. I can't read minds. I'm not indestructible. I don't want this. I liked it better before."

Lisa wanted to laugh. She had said the same things, but she knew the young lady didn't need humor. "They know how you feel, believe me. They've had to hide part of themselves for their entire lives. Then they find each other and know they're not alone. They trust you. Do they hide themselves from you?"

"No, not really."

"That's because they trust you. They trust you with the most intimate secrets of their lives." Lisa put her hand on Alisha's shoulder. "Trust your friends. Let them help you. Here's my number. Call me if you need me for anything, but talk to Jan and Sara." Lisa left and Alisha still sat there. She finally finished her drink and left a 20 down on the bar before leaving and going back to her dorm. She didn't call her friends and didn't talk to them until the next afternoon, but when she did, she mentioned nothing about her powers.

"There's one more thing that I was told to ask you. Those little children you saved a few months ago are ready to be sent back home. Representatives of their home countries are here but they all requested to see you three before they go back home."

Jan smiled broadly. "Really?"

"Yes, really. As a matter of fact, when the investigators came and asked those children what had happened on that ship, they said that God had sent angels to save them. They want to see you again. If you three want to go."

The three girls looked at each other. "Sure. Where we goin?", Sara asked.

"Memphis"

"There's a refugee processing area in Memphis?"

Agent Wills stood up from his desk. "There's one there of the secret variety. We have transportation for you that leaves Friday. You should be back Sunday."

The Bluff City of Memphis sat on the bank of the muddy Mississippi River and added its own culture to the string of cities that had grown up around that river. Jan, Sara, and Alisha had separate rooms at a nice hotel near downtown. They met the children that same night. They were in a barracks looking building north of town. The children shouted when the three girls walked in.

Sara was paying close attention to Alisha. She had been in a fog the entire trip, but her face genuinely lit up as the children ran up to her. Sara turned away as a group ran up to her. She bent down and wrapped her arms around as many of them as she could. Jan had much better luck there. Her long arms wrapped around a big group of children.

Alisha had a group of children around her and she started speaking Arabic to them. It was a little clumsy, but the children understood.

"When did you learn Arabic?", Jan asked surprised.

Alisha looked up with a smile on her face. "There's a guy in my Psych class from Egypt who's drooling over this girl from Germany. His English sucks and so does her's so I agreed to teach him German if he taught me Arabic."

"So what is that 5 now including English?"

"I guess so, but I wouldn't count Arabic just yet."

The visit with the children was touching and it felt too brief. The government wanted to make sure the children left at night. The girls saw them off and then went back to their hotel. They all had separate rooms, but they ended up in Jan's room. Sara and Alisha watched tv, but didn't say much to each other. Jan was in the bathroom and finally came out dressed to go out.

"Where're you going?", Alisha asked as Jan brushed her hair.

"I'm going to see Bobby "Blue" Bland. He's doing a show on Beale Street tonight."

"Bobby who?", Alisha asked frowning.

"I Pity the Fool and what not", Sara answered.

Jan smiled. Alisha didn't. "You people have weird tastes in music."

Jan shook her head and looked at Sara. "You wanna go?"

For a moment Sara looked like she was going to say yes, but then she looked at Alisha and said no. Jan shrugged her shoulders and walked out the door.

Jan got off the elevator late in the evening with a spring in her step. She hummed the tune from a song she had heard at the show. She had loved it. Bobby wasn't the same as he was on the records she had, but just seeing him in person was enough for her. The guys at the club hadn't been shy either. Jan had a purse full of phone numbers she never intended to call. She pulled her two inch heels off and walked the rest of the way down the hall barefoot. She didn't wear heels that often and these weren't the most comfortable shoes to begin with, but they were so cute. Jan almost skipped as she approached the hotel room door. She pulled out her card key, then stopped and frowned. She hurried and swiped the card key and opened the door quickly.

"Hey, keep it down. I could hear you all in the hall", Jan said as she came in.

Sara and Alisha were no more than five feet from each other, but their voices were raised and slightly heated. "This is the last time I'm going to hear that you think there's something wrong with me!", Alisha yelled. "I'm perfectly fine!"

"Well, Alisha, you have been distant for the last few weeks", Jan interjected.

Alisha looked up. "You too! Why is everybody thinking there's something wrong with me? There's nothing fuckin wrong with me! You know what, I don't have to listen to this." Alisha turned and started towards the partially open door. Jan watched Alisha storming off and didn't know what to do. Sara did. The door slammed shut and locked before Alisha reached it. She tried to turn the knob, but couldn't. "Stop that! That's not fucking fair!", Alisha yelled as she turned around.

Sara took a deep breath and spoke calmly. "Alisha, you've almost become a part of my family in the last year. I know there's something in your mind that's troubling you. I can feel it."

"Why don't you read my mind and be finished with these questions!"

"You know I won't do that", Sara replied. "If this ends our friendship then so be it, but you aren't leaving until you let us know what the problem is."

Jan was totally unprepared for this argument. She still wanted to be happy from the show, but she had to admit that Sara had a point. Jan sighed and folded her arms. "Come on Alisha. We're your friends. Let us help you, please. We don't keep secrets from each other anymore."

Alisha was trapped. She knew she couldn't leave. There was no way she could get out the door with Sara's power holding it shut, and she could probably rush Sara, but Jan was quicker than she was. There was no way she would make it to Sara. Alisha's training kicked in and she started making a plan of attack, but stopped in mid thought. "What the hell am I doing?", she cried aloud and sank to her knees. She couldn't believe what had just popped in her mind. She looked up at her friends as tears started to well in her big brown eyes. Jan went over to her. Sara still stood in the same place and looked at her friend sobbing. Jan knelt and put her arms around Alisha and stood her up. Alisha looked up finally and was smiling through her tears. "Ok, you guys win." She took a deep breath and told Jan that she was ok. Jan took a few steps back. Tears still rolled from Alisha's eyes. "Just a sec. Let me get some tissue." Alisha walked into the bathroom and closed the door.

"Make sure she doesn't harm herself", Jan whispered to Sara as soon as the door closed.

"Already ahead of you", Sara assured Jan. Then Sara frowned and started to look confused.

"Problem?"

"I can't get a clear feeling of Alisha. There has to be something wrong." Jan started towards the door, but then it opened quickly and Mel, the 7' tall former bodyguard walked out. He ducked his smooth brown scalp beneath the door frame and turned with an evil grin on his face.

Sara had never seen Mel, but Jan had. Jan was first to react. She dove back into the bedroom and rolled once. In a instant her pistol was in her hand. Sara had reacted by now and put some distance between herself and Mel. She had stupidly left her gun in her own room, but she didn't need it. She was prepared to use her power against the huge man.

Jan leveled her aim on Mel and prepared to pull the trigger then Mel started laughing. The huge man doubled over in laugher. His deep booming voice filled the room. He went all the way down to a knee laughing. He looked up and saw the expressions on the two girls faces which started another howl of laugher. A soft glow surrounded Mel's massive body. He started to get fuzzy or hazy. Finally the glow went away and Alisha was in his place still laughing. She stopped after another few seconds and stood up.

Jan and Sara came from behind their cover and cautiously approached. Sara was slightly behind Jan, and Jan still held her big .45 pistol in her hand.

"Its just me", Alisha informed them with a smirk on her face. "I won't bite. You guys wanted to know what's been wrong with me. You've been hounding me for three fucking weeks. I had to get you all back."

Jan frowned and made her weapon safe before tossing it on the bed. "What just happened?"

"I can change the way things look. Officially, I can change the way things are perceived. Pick up that ink pen."

Jan picked up the hotel pen and held it in flat in her left hand. Alisha's eyes squinted just a little and the pen turned into a perfect replica of her Springfield .45.

"Man, it feels just like my gun." She turned and saw that her real gun was still lying on the bed.

Sara asked to feel it, and sure enough it was heavy and balanced. Alisha told them to look back on the bed. The pistol was gone. Jan went closer and put her hands on the bed searching for it. She could have sworn that she put her hand right on the gun, but couldn't see it or feel it. Finally she went back in the room with Sara and Alisha.

"Pretty fuckin cool, huh?", Alisha asked. The gun in Sara's hand went back to being an ink pen and Jan's pistol reappeared on the now frumpy bedspread.

"I should have pulled the trigger", Jan said.

"Nothing would have happened. You had a pen in your hand. It helps if you want to write something down, but does no good at shooting bullets."

"It felt so real, and you looked just like Mel."

Alisha smile slyly. "Here look at each other.", Alisha giggled and squinted her eyes in concentration.

Jan and Sara watched as their body's began to glow. Their image of each other became fuzzy and then it cleared.

"What the?", Jan yelled and jumped back.

"You switched us!", Sara yelled in Jan's voice as she looked at herself standing right before her eyes. Sara looked in the mirror, but saw Jan's face looking back. "This is really freaky", Sara said with a laugh. Her body and voice were like Jan, but her mannerisms were still her own. Jan agreed and looked in the mirror too. They began to glow again and they went back to themselves.

Sara turned quickly. "So this is what you've been keeping from us? Why?"

The smile fell from Alisha's face and she just stared. Jan turned waiting for an answer. "I don't know", Alisha admitted. "I guess I kinda hoped it would go away. Fuck it I don't have a reason really. Not a good one anyway. It caught me off guard. It took me forever to get used to you two being freaks, and then one day I find out that I can do all this."

"So you've only known for a few weeks?", Jan asked.

Alisha nodded. Jan approached and wrapped her arms around her friend. "You didn't have to hide this from us. I felt like you did for 17 years until I told you who I really am. You should have trusted us."

Alisha thought back to what Lisa Sanchez had said and the tears started all over again. She cried against Jan's shoulder. Sara came over then. "This is just wonderful. I could understand trying to hide your power if it sucked like glowing in the dark or something, but what you can do is wonderful. Just image what you'll be able to do once you really get good with it."

Alisha cried against both of their shoulders. She couldn't believe she had acted the way she had. She had been so stubborn and selfish. Jan felt the tears start to drop from her eyes. She just smiled. Sara was not one to cry often, but she did now. The tears dropped from her eyes too.

"I guess I'm one of you guys now", Alisha said after her sobs stopped.

Jan frowned and pushed Alisha back away from her. "You were always one of us. We're a team." The three girls cried against each other for nearly five minutes. They talked into the night and Jan finally got to tell about the concert, but mostly they talked to Alisha and about her new found powers.

The next morning all three were up early because they were used to get up for 8 am classes. Instead of having to go to school the three girls went down and did a quick workout before congregating in Alisha's room and talking even more.

"Ok, so who's power do you think is cooler? Personally I think mine is the least cool.", Jan said.

Alisha shook her head. "Are you kiddin?" She looked at Sara. "If we get shot we die. If you get shot, you kill the sonofabitch who shot you. Then pull the fucking bullet out with your bare hands!" The three girls laughed together.

"I think they're all pretty good myself", Sara said softly. "You were already pretty dangerous with your computer skills, but have you thought about how dangerous this makes you now?"

Alisha took a bite of the sandwich they had ordered from room service. "Yeah, I have."

"Do you plan to tell the Agency?", Jan asked.

"I suppose so. I'd like to tell Martha before anyone else, but not right now. I'm not all that good at it."

"You seemed pretty good at it to me. Just be careful."

"What do you mean?"

Jan smiled. "Don't turn anything around me into snakes. I don't like touching snakes."

"I thought you didn't like fire."

"Yeah that too, but if you had turned something into a snake I might have punched you in the face, and felt really bad about it afterwards."

Alisha prepared her response as a knock came at the door. She shook her head and hurried to the door. She was still in her pajama bottoms and white sports bra. She opened the door a little. Two men in dark suits stood out in the hall. A year ago she would have been nervous, but now not even a little.

"Can I help you gentlemen?"

"Agent von Edder?", one of them asked.

"Yes, and you are?"

He reached into his jacket. He saw Alisha reaction and he opened his other hand. He pulled out his badge and ID card. "I'm Special Agent Grissom. Something has developed and I was ordered to find you and the other two agents who are here at the hotel with you, Agents Hewitt and Caufield."

"Meet us in the lobby."

The three girls got dressed quickly and met the two agents. They drove the girls downtown to the federal building. They were put in a small conference room and only had to wait five minutes before several agents walked in. There were FBI agents, DEA, and two from Treasury and Customs.

"We've had a problem develop over the last 12 hours. We talked to headquarters to send help and they tell us to find you three girls. I don't know what you teenagers can do to help us, but here you are", the FBI special agent said as he sat at the table.

Jan sat straighter in her chair and looked the FBI agent in the eyes. "You probably shouldn't worry so much about what it is that we do. You pushed the panic button and they sent you to us. That should tell you all you need to know." Jan paused to let her words sink in before she continued. "What's the situation that has developed?"

The FBI agent thought about it and decided to go with it even though this girl was younger than his youngest daughter. "Three agents have gone missing. We believe they've been abducted. Two from DEA and one from FBI. We don't know if their cover has been compromised or not, but we know they're in danger. They've been undercover in different parts of a drug heirarchy for more than two years. They were getting close. Damn close! There's a big meeting going on here in Memphis this weekend. We had hoped to close the deal and do our raid and nab all the big shots, but now..."

"Give us what you have."

"What about this guy Patrick Schmidt? He looks to be a major fucking cog in the machine", Alisha looked up from the mass of papers on the table.

"Serious player, but dedicated beyond belief. Grew up poor and sends millions of dollars back to his family. The cartel trust him more than they've ever trusted an American. He has two guys who follow him around. Two guys who he hired to follow him around. Their job is to shoot him if he is ever in danger of being captured. They trust him. He knows where all the bodies are buried. I bet he'd know where our agents are, but if we make a push he'll end up dead."

Jan looked over Alisha's shoulder at the file. "Do you know if he's here in town?"

"We're sure he is, but we don't know where he is."

"Do you know anybody who knows where he might be?"

"Yep. He sends his people to score him high class marijuana. Usually, we can tail them, but they know what they're doing."

Sara sat at the other end of the table looking at a stack of files. She scratched her chin then looked up. "He's here in town, but doesn't live here. Does he ride around in a limousine?"

"He sure does." The FBI agent answered understanding where she was going. "But even if you find out where he is, do you think you could get close to him?"

Jan smiled and looked at Sara and Alisha. "We could get close to the President of the United States."

The FBI special agent shook his head. "You're right. I don't want to know what you girls do."

Patrick used a private limousine service that was located in the an industrial part of town. The team had told the FBI to keep clear of the area. They wanted to make sure no one knew law enforcement was involved in this. They were going to do this alone because they didn't look like cops at all. Alisha drove a Chevy Malibu with Sara in the passenger seat through the tough neighborhood. The two girls made sure they looked nervous and lost.

"Ok, there's the garage." They could see the limos. There were some Lincolns, Hummers, Escalades, and even a yellow stretched VW Beetle. Alisha got a kick out of that one.

"Ok, Sara, time to make this car break down."

Sara concentrated and the car started sputtering at once. There was nothing really wrong with it, but she was blocking the gas from getting to the injectors. The car started bucking and right on time, it turned off completely. Alisha tried to crank the engine over and over again. A couple of guys pointed at the car and finally started approaching. Sara smiled and sent a message to Jan.

Jan was dressed in the black urban battle dress uniform with her face painted. The limo company had block wall ten feet tall surrounded the entire place. Jan jumped up and climbed over the wall dropping quietly. She turned her head to the right and left trying to get the lay of the land. She had her pistol strapped to her hip, but she hoped this mission would be quiet. It wouldn't be.

Jan came to the corner of the workshop building and peaked inside. It had a large open area with an office built into one corner. She had hoped the office would be empty, but there were six men in the small office. They were having a discussion and it looked heated. Jan got closer and crouched down below the large window in the shadows. She could hear what they were saying.

"You don't want to see what will happen if I don't get what I want", a man told the boss of the limo company.

"I understand your situation, Mitch"

"Do you? Patrick Schmidt owes me 4 million dollars and not because he can't pay me, but because he won't. He relies on the cartel to keep him safe. He's in my city now, and I plan to collect."

The limo boss, a man named Roger, kept his cool. "You can tear the city apart looking for him, and wish you luck in finding him, but it won't be me who leads you to him. I owe that man a lot. More than 4 million dollars."

Mitch laughed. "Not bad for a stepped up cab company. Not bad, but I think I should let you know something. You see these two gentlemen with me." He pointed at his two large bodyguards. "I picked these guys up on a trip to Chicago last year. Would believe that these guys spent most of their lives in some sort of commune there. It burned down tragically last year. These young men were left without direction in life. I gave them that direction. They follow my every word and I reward them. Since these two young men were very young they took some sort of substance that changed them forever. I'll let you see what I mean."

One of the big guards, a blond one, looked down and picked up a brake rotor from a limousine. The thick piece of shiny metal was made from the hardest steel to resist the heat and friction of stopping the heavy limos. The young man took the rotor in both hands. His face grimaced just slightly. The metal gave a loud shriek before starting to fold like a paper plate. The young man poured on more power and the rotor bent until his knuckles touched. The rotated the hunk of metal and with more effort folded it again before dropping it on the floor and dusting his hands.

"So you see. These young men are big, but that commune made them strong as some sort of comic book character. I'm going to order these two to kill both of your scared ass guards, and then rip pieces off your body until you tell me what I want to know. But this is no comic. There's not going to be any super heroes to come and rescue your sorry ass." Mitch smiled and ordered his men to attack. They did. The two guards reached for their guns.

Jan couldn't let this happen. This man was after the same man she was. She had to do something. Jan jumped up kicked opened the office door. Every one turned. She had her pistol out. She shut the door behind her.

"Easy there. Everybody just take it easy. Go to neutral corners."

"Who the fuck are you!"

"Not important. But we do have a problem. I want to know where Patrick Schmidt is myself, but I don't want you to know. You might beat me to him and I can't have that."

Mitch smiled. "We have no problem. Boys get her!"

The two big men lunged at her in the small space. She leveled her pistol and fired two shots at the blond one and in a blink had turned and fired two more into the chest of the dark haired one. Neither man even slowed. Jan realized too late their they had on bullet proof vests. The two strong men didn't even flinch from the impacts. Jan didn't have time to react again before one of them pulled the gun from her hand and the other one wrapped his thick hand around her neck and lifted her off the ground.

"Big mistake little girl!", Mitch yelled. "Take a look at this Roger. This is in store for you. Kill her, and make it hurt!" He pushed the send button on his PDA as he yelled.

The dark haired one grinned menacingly and started squeezing. His thick fingers dug into her neck. Jan could tell right away that these two guys were stronger than the Series 3's that she had fought a while back. This was going to be interesting. Jan looked like she was kicking helplessly, but she was making her body swing back and forth until she had enough momentum to make this guy sorry he ever touched her.

"I can't find a damn thing wrong with it?", a young black man named Curtis said as he pulled himself from beneath the car.

"Goddamned thing looks brand new. That thing's brand new ain't it?"

Alisha nodded.

"You should take that bitch right back to the dealer and make him give your money back! That's a damn shame how they do people. What are y'all doin' out this way. Ain't no clubs or hotels."

"We got lost", Sara said.

The men laughed. "You don't want that shit on your tombstone! But you'll be all right." He took a breath to say something else, then everyone's head turned. Four gunshots echoed in the yard. Heads turned back and forth in the confusion. Men pulled guns and ran towards the sound of the guns. Curtis reached into his waist band and pulled out a 357. He didn't get a chance to race after the others. Three cars burst through the closed chain link gate. Men hung out the window and started shooting at once. Curtis reacted quickly. The bullets flew in their direction. He dropped his gun and reached up with both hands and pushed Alisha and Sara to the ground. Both girls fell with a thud. He turned and picked up his gun.

"Stay the fuck down!" He turned and started firing.

Sara and Alisha looked at each other wondering how this happened. They had their own guns out now. The mechanics were all toughs and former drug dealers, but they had been nice. This was going to be a slaughter if they didn't do anything. One of the cars pulled to the side of a limo near Sara and Alisha. The girls both opened fire. Their shots flattened both passenger side tires. The mechanics were on the car then letting loose with all they had. The men inside didn't have a chance. There were shouts and curses as men got shot or grazed. Some hid, but Sara and Alisha tried to stay behind cover.

Jan swung her body the last time. She swung all the way up and wrapped her legs around the man's neck. She straightened her legs and torqued her body, pulling the man's hands away from her throat. They both went to the floor. As she fell she put both her legs over the man's chest and pulled against his arm hard using her hips to put pressure on his arm. The big man yelled as Jan's arm bar threatened to rip his shoulder out of socket and dislocate his elbow.

Roger's guards saw their chance. They pulled out their guns and started shooting. They didn't really aim, they just shot. The lights in the office were shot out a moment later and the room went dark. Roger ducked under his desk, and Mitch fell to the floor. The big blond man charged at both men shooting. They couldn't see him in the darkness, but he could see the flashes from the ends of their pistols. He stretched out his arms and crashed into them at full speed. Only the thin walls of the office saved them. They were pushed into the walls with enough force to crack the walls and bring down ceiling tiles. They were alive, but barely.

The blond guard turned to get Roger, but he turned is desk over as he got to his feet. He jumped from the shot out window and into the workshop.

"Get him!", Mitch ordered. The blond guard didn't bother going through the window, he just burst through the wall. Mitch went out too with a gun in his hand.

The desk had rolled over in the Jan's direction actually bouncing on top of her legs and the guy she had in the hold. The desk smashed into the wall next to her head. It didn't hit her, but it was enough. The big man pulled his arm free and jumped up.

"You hurt my arm!", the dark haired man yelled in a rage. He snatched Jan by the collar and pulled her to him. He looked up at her with pure rage on his face and shook her violently before throwing her through the wall.

"That should teach you!", he yelled.

Jan jumped up at once. His eyes went wide as she came back at him. Jan raised her right arm to punch, but faked and sent her long powerful leg at his mid section. It was rock hard like the rest of him, but had never felt a kick like this. He doubled over and flew back five feet from the blow. Jan's own strength had come out and she was pissed and in a hurry. She looked around for Roger, but the area was too big and there was too much in the way. Jan got in the shadows and started searching. She shouldn't have forgotten the guard she kicked.

She heard noise behind her, a loud metallic sound, and turned just in time to see an engine hoist complete with dangling engine flying threw the air at her. Jan dove out of the way, but the dark haired guard was right behind it. He punched her in the side of her head before she had even rolled back to her feet. He grabbed her and squeezed as hard as he could. Jan gasped from the pressure. He threw another punch with his super powered arms and then threw Jan to the ground. He went to kick her, but Jan caught his foot and twisted. He tried to pull free, but fell instead. In an instant Jan was on him. She straddled him and sent blows to his face one after the other. Blood poured from his nose and his busted lips. His arms flailed around. Finally he put his hands against Jan's chest and pushed as hard as he could. She flew through the air, through the open workshop door all the way to a pile of junker stripped down limo bodies and chassis stacked atop each other. The sound of her hitting the cars sounded like an explosion. The dark haired guard stood and wiped his face in satisfaction. He turned to find his boss then stopped suddenly and turned back towards the jumble of fallen cars.

Jan was so pissed now she was seeing red. She could feel the cars pressing in on her, and could only take short breaths. The cars were mostly hollow with no engines or seats or anything, but they had been compressed and they were heavy. Two cars lay on her arm. The pressure on the bone was enough to make Jan wince from the pain, but the bone didn't break. Jan took a breath and snatched her arm. The cars that had been on it tumbled to the ground. Jan could see a bit of sky, but she was stuck. It was time to make herself unstuck. Jan pulled her legs in close to her body and worked to get her feet under her. She then started to extend her arms.

Every muscle in her body began to flex hard. Her delts and traps flexed massively as Jan freed herself. The old cars ground into each other. Rust and metal flakes fell down on her head when the cars shifted. Finally she could get her feet under her. The big limousines shifted above her and fell back on her, but she threw up her arms. Her muscles burst the sleeves of her shirt as three crushed limos fell down on them. Jan put her head down and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes and with a massive super strength burst out. The cars flew into the air before crashing back down fifteen feet away. Jan jumped from the pile of old cars and came rushing out.  The dark haired guard barely had time to react. Jan was on him in an instant.

The man tried to dodge, but she was too fast. She punched him twice in his hard midsection, but it wasn't hard enough. Jan's blows went past his muscles and doubled him over in pain. He went to all fours and coughed. Jan looked down at him and kicked him in the side of the head. Her powerful kick spun him around twice before he landed knocked out. Jan didn't linger long. She started her search again. She didn't have to search long.

"Ok! Ok! I told you where you can find him call him off! Please!" Roger was against a wall begging for his life as the blond guard stood over him holding a massive 5 ton pressing machine over his head ready to toss it down on top of the man.

Mitch stood back and laughed. "I tried to warn you how strong these guys were. You didn't listen. I tried to tell you that isn't a comic." Mitch shook his head and walked around the corner. He didn't want to see the mess this was going to make. "Kill him!", he yelled when he was out of sight.

Jan started running. She was getting closer, but she wasn't sure she was close enough. The big blond man lifted the mass over his head higher and with one final breath brought his arms down. The 5 ton press started down. Roger screamed in terror and closed his eyes waiting to be killed.

The falling slowed in Jan's mind. She was going to make it. She put her feet apart in a firm base and put up her hands. The cold steel of the massive machine hit her with its own weight and with the strength of the throw by the blond man. Jan's muscles were already hard, but she had to flex to the max to catch that much weight.  Muscles burst into sharp striated ridges instantly.   Her legs bent slightly under the strain. Her quads flexed so fast they tore the seams of her pants from hip to knee. The massive weight pressed down on Jan's perfectly chiseled body. Her muscles were so hard, harder than the steel. Jan's face contorted from the effort, but the machine stopped. Jan had to squeeze with her hands to keep balance. Jan's forearm muscles writhed and flexed against each other like cables of pure muscle. Her fingers dented the old hard steel. She grit her teeth under the weight, but she had it. Her sleeves had no chance and barely hung on to the rest of the shirt. Her pecs had swelled and threatened to burst the shirt, but not yet. Her chest heaved up and down as she breathed.  The massive machine hung in the air supported by the super human muscles of one woman. She rolled her body to the left and let the machine fall over to the ground with a massive crash that shook then entire building.

The blond guard didn't know what to do at first, but he attacked Jan. She was ready. She kicked him in the lower leg. That slowed him down enough for her to get her hands on the sides of his head. She brought her knee up and his head down. They met in the middle with a loud crack. He flew onto his back in pain.

Jan turned to Roger who had just opened his eyes. He saw a tall young woman with black and green paint on her face staring down at him. He looked to his left and saw the machine meant to kill him laying on its side. He was still alive, but still scared to death for good reason.

Jan reached down with one muscled arm and lifted the grown man from the floor. She held his feet off the ground and looked him in the eye. "I saved your life. If you try to run, I'll catch you and kill you myself. Understand?"

He couldn't make his mouth open, so he nodded so hard he hurt his neck. She told him to hide and not come out until she told him too. He did.

Jan turned back to find the blond man she had kneed, but only a few drops of blood were there. She turned around and around. She was back near the office where the whole fight had started. She saw a shadow from the corner of her eye, but it was too late. A brake rotor flew at her head like a frisbee. It hit her above the ear on her right side. She went to a knee. The two huge guards were on her a moment later. They lifted her up. They turned her so that she faced the dark haired guard. Their chests touched. The blond guard went to her back so that his chest touched her back. They wrapped their long arms around each other and began to squeeze as hard as their own super muscles could. Jan was caught in the middle of a super powered crusher. Her eyes opened wide under the pressure. The weight of the old limos had been nothing compared to this. The two men seemed to get stronger finding more and more strength deep within themselves to crush her harder. Her own arms were pinned in and being crushed along with the rest of her. Her muscles were no help. Her bones were super hard, but these two combined were compressing her ribs more than anything ever had before. She knew she had to fight or at the very least they would knock her out and then get away with the mission a failure. The lives of 3 men with families hung on her. Jan had to fight. She thought about what Lisa Sanchez had done to her. Jan knew her own body wouldn't flex up that big, but maybe it would be enough.

Jan set her jaw and started flexing. Her body reacted at once. Blood rushed into the muscles. They got harder and bigger. Sweat rolled down Jan's head, shoulders, and arms. Her body shook with the strain. Every muscle in her body flexed harder and harder until every one of them was totally ripped. Every muscle was perfect in proportion. Jan needed more. She dug deeper than ever before and found that she had more left, not much, but she hoped it would be enough. The two men were struggling to keep their hold. They were sweat soaked and tiring. Their own huge muscles had torn their suits, but they held on. They were struggling to hold on.

Jan knew that it was now or never. She thrust her arms out with everything she had. The guards' grips were so tight that Jan couldn't break them, but her power dislocated the dark haired man's right shoulder and broke his left wrist. Jan dropped free. She wasted no time. She turned and punched the dark haired guard in the stomach so hard he started to wretch. She moved her arm and punched him hard on the side of the head. His head went to the ground hard cracking the concrete she he punched him so hard. She dislocated his jaw, but she wasn't concerned with that.

The blond guard kicked at her, but she moved and caught his kick. She pushed him back and got to her feet. She charged him. He took a weak swing. She wrapped her own long arms around his waist and lifted him off the ground. Jan's face screwed up and she squeezed him hard. Her pecs finally tore a hole in the top of her shirt. She didn't hold it though. She threw him down to the ground hard. His elbow went deep into the concrete and the bone in his upper arm fractured from the impact. Jan took several deep breaths and looked around. She noticed her gun sitting on the ground by her feet. She reached down and picked it up. She pointed it at the blond guard who cradled his right arm with his left. She was going to end this once and for all.

Sara and Alisha stood with their guns drawn, but behind cover. The gun fight raged all around them. They knew this wasn't their fight. They were only supposed to be a distraction. This was a fight between rival crime bosses that was getting ugly. The guys who had rushed through the gates had lost some men, but they had the upper hand now. Alisha and Sara could see several of them who had tried to help them huddled behind stacks of tires. They were out of bullets and at their wits end.

Alisha looked across and saw Curtis. He was in a fetal position trying to keep from getting hit by bullets. One grazed his arm and he shouted. His lips moved quickly as he stayed in a fetal position. "We can't let him die. He saved our lives! Sara, do something!"

Sara sighed. "You're right." Sara closed her eyes and a look of concentration came over her face.

The men noticed that the mechanics weren't firing back. They shouted taunts and moved in for the kill. They all leveled their machine guns and pulled the trigger. The muzzle flashes struck out from the barrels. Hundreds of bullets flew towards the mechanics. The bullets slowed and ended up ricocheting away from the mechanics. A moment later all the guns were snatched from their hands.

Back in the workshop, Jan was ready to pull the trigger, but couldn't. The face looking back at her was not the face of a hardened criminal who knew he had coming to him what she was about to do, but it was almost the face of a child looking back at her with the deepest fear she had ever seen. Jan had killed before and if not for the bullet proof vest she would have killed this guard, but not now. She couldn't make her finger pull the trigger.

"You lived in the strength commune in Chicago?", Jan demanded through clenched teeth. She was still mad from the fight and mad from not being able to pull the trigger although she knew she should.

"Yes, yes, I did. Please don't kill me! I'm sorry. I didn't want to hurt anybody!" The man seemed so sincere, so real. Jan didn't know what to do.

"Do you know Moira Kelly?"

"Yes, Miss Moira was always really nice to me, but she's dead."

Jan frowned. "No, she's not. She's alive. If you promise to do what I say, I make sure she knows where you are and can help you. Do you promise?"

"Oh yes, I do."

"What's your name?"

"Andrew", he answered at once.

Jan put her gun away and turned back towards the front of the lot. She noticed the shooting had stopped.

A moment later Memphis PD and federal agents burst onto the lot. The whole thing had only lasted 7 minutes from beginning to end. They caught Mitch trying to scale one of the walls. Jan brought out Roger, Andrew, and the dark haired man she had fought named James. The two super strong men were as meek as lambs as the police put them in a car. Both ended up at the hospital. Roger looked totally broken as the FBI interviewed him. Curtis had been treated and was being put into a police car. Alisha walked up to him. He looked up at her satisfied that she looked unhurt.

"You saved my friend and I. I'm going to put in a good word with the cops." Curtis smiled up at Alisha as they closed the door and drove him downtown.

Jan's clothes made her look like she needed be on a gurney heading to the hospital, but instead she walked out and got in the FBI car. They had the information they needed. They were ready to catch Patrick Schmidt.

to be continued...

Be on on the lookout for the conclusion of New Beginning where Alisha reveals just how powerful she can be and they fight to save lives!

If you want to know more about the world of The Super Secret Agent, and more about the characters, check out my first story Coping with Power!         Part 1   Part 2   Part 3   Part 4   Part 5
                                                                                                                                                      Part 6   Part 7   Part 8   Part 9   Part 10