Opperculus woke up to the light of a small, dim room.
He yanked the various tubes connected to his arms and chest. A green liquid was pouring through them. Mutoxin? It couldn't be. It was something else.
Whatever it was, it made him feel stronger, more energetic, and worse…
Angrier…
Angry at the fact he lost to that group of humans so easily. That he lost to that creature so easily. The fact his spear couldn't save him. The fact he relied on it so much in the first place.
He walked to the edge of the room and opened the door. He stepped into the large hallway of an old warehouse. There, his boss, King Kobra, and his teammates, Anaconda and Mamba, stood in front of a large supercomputer poorly nailed to the wall.
Anaconda was a large, bulky figure. Opperculus was already taller than most humans, but this guy was twice as tall as him. He wore a black and orange spandex costume covering his whole body. Opperculus had never seen his skin, but after a day of training with him, he could tell it was harder than anything Opperculus had hit before.
He was the silent type, so Opperculus tolerated him the most out of the group. Hell, Opperculus tolerated him the most out of all the humans he had the displeasure of meeting.
Mamba, on the other hand, was small and slender. She wore a bright green costume that covered everything apart from her mouth, a mouth partially connected to a series of tubes entangled throughout her body. She was a sly yet capable fighter and one of the very few humans he could tolerate.
King Kobra, his boss, needed no introduction.
"What is this?" Opperculus asked, a sign of rage building in his voice.
"Ah, you're awake." Kobra sighed and turned his attention back to the computer, ignoring Opperculus's question.
"I asked you a question! Answer me!" Opperculus yelled. Kobra still had his attention on the computer. He motioned to Mamba and she walked toward him.
Opperculus hated being ignored more than anything, especially by a human, no matter how powerful they were.
Mamba walked close enough to Opperculus as to not upset him and spoke.
"The boss doesn't like to talk to screw-ups."
"Screw-ups?"
"He sent you on a simple mission to rob a bank. A simple job. Go in, take hostages, get the money, and leave. If the police arrive, take care of them. Not only did you kill your hostages, you attracted a group of supers to your location. Supers who took you down. The boss was so pissed he decided to go in alone."
"Well, he easily beat them so I don't see the problem."
"I didn't." Kobra interrupted angrily.
Opperculus looked at him in silence for a moment.
"You're joking, right?" He asked.
Mamba snickered.
"I did beat the group that fought you. The one that defeated him was called the Blue Shadow. Obviously, they were nothing to me, but there was another one. He called himself the Red Shadow. Blue Shadow's mentor, of sorts. He was different."
"So he was on your level?"
"No, he was beyond that. The last time I fought an enemy of his caliber, it was Canman. Fucking Canman!" Kobra said, starting to lose his composure.
He immediately focused on the computer again.
"That's why if our plans are to continue, we'll need help."
"Help? Who the hell are you suggesting-"
Before Opperculus could finish his question, though, the picture of a familiar face appeared.
"Old Shen, co-leader of the Dragon Clan. I've contacted him and we'll be meeting in this base a few hours from now."
"What? Are you insane? Wasn't our plan to take him and his gang down? Weren't we trying to earn the trust of all the lesser gangs?"
"It was, but like all things, plans change. This little group of four isn't capable of taking them down completely just yet. Plus, we have problems like the Red Shadow. If the Super Society has access to supers like him that aren't members of the Elite, then we can't continue our plans in peace. The Dragon Clan has plans of their own, and they can't proceed due to the same problem."
"But I remember you telling me their organization is huge. Why would they need our help?"
"Because Red Shadow continues to be a problem for them as well. A few days ago, one of their top-ranking members, Dragon Lee, was taken down by none other than Red Shadow himself. Now the Clan realizes they aren't so invincible. We can use this."
"So we want to form an alliance with them." Mamba chimed in.
"That's insane! Who's to say those fools won't betray us the moment they've dealt with Red Shadow?" Opperculus shouted at her.
"Who's to say we don't betray them first?" Mamba added with a smirk. "The boss has it all planned out. Trust us, it'll work. In just a few hours, all our current problems will be solved." She said to him, smiling.
Opperculus looked back at Kobra. His attention was on the computer again. He was trying to call Shen about the meeting. He turned to Anaconda. He was docile, as usual. He didn't make a single sound during this whole conversation.
Par for the course in his case.
He gave Opperculus a look, one he doesn't usually give. He didn't know what it meant but nodded in agreement anyway.
Opperculus thought for a small moment. This was his chance to make Blue Shadow pay. To make them all pay.
And he wasn't going to waste it.
Meanwhile, Max watched from the edge of a nearby roof.
He was eating a Snickers, the fifth one this night. He had been watching the Kobra Klan for a few hours now, and it seems their plans are coming to pass, just like Milten predicted. Thanks to the piece of himself he placed on King Kobra, he managed to listen in on their conversation.
Now was the time to strike.
"Milten." Max said under his breath, holding the communication device placed under his left ear.
"Yeah. Milten here. I'm at a meeting, Max. Make it quick. Any news on the Kobra Klan?"
"I'm on a rooftop outside their base. I'm using my powers to make myself invisible to them. You were right, they are planning a meeting with the Dragon Clan. If we mobilize now, this may kill two birds with one stone." Max told him.
"Excellent. I'll call Luthor now so he can mobilize the team. In just a few hours, the Danger Squad makes their debut." Milten said with a small chuckle. It would have been a belly laugh if it wasn't in public.
Max sneered and kept watching, listening.
Kobra watched and listened too. Turning his head to a nearby window, he stared at the clouds for a moment and smiled.
Because he knew Max was there. Watching, waiting.
"Just you wait, Red. I never lose." Kobra thought to himself and focused back on the computer once Shen picked up.
To be continued...