In This Country Act 01 Ch. 01

"Wait, wait," the man gulped. "I can turn back into a human?"

"You might, but we'll never know if you reject my offer," Dr. Genie smirked.

He knew he shouldn't, but he didn't want to end up like what this lady was saying, nor did he want to end up negatively in her other scenarios. He really didn't have a choice but to advance from where he was right now.

"I accept," he agreed.

"Good, then go meet the entomologists downstairs," Dr. Genie ordered. "They'll help you with upgrading your physical wellbeing, armor, and a new design for people to fear you by."

He left the doctor's lab with mixed feelings fighting for dominance about his predicament. On one hand, he's a monster who may or may not be able to revert back to his human form. On the other hand, he's fucking rich but now in debt to the one who gave it to him, the one who made him a monster.

It was a tie.

Putting it off to the side for a moment, he struggled to find whatever scientists the doctor told him to find until he saw a group not doing anything and looking at him. That must be them, he thought as he walked towards them. For a moment, he thought they were going to reel back in disgust. However, the closer he got, the closer he could see the grin on their faces and awe in their eyes.

"What is the first thing you want us to do?" one of the scientists asked, who the man guessed to be the team leader.

"Um, well, the doctor said you guys were supposed to upgrade my physical wellbeing," the young man recited, "my armor and make me a design."

"Then we'll do the easiest first with the design," the leader nodded as he snapped his fingers. The rest of the team rushed around their own designated room while the leader led the young man to a platform to lay on. "Oh, and before we get started, what shall we call you by?"

He thought about it for a second, but the answer was already there. The DNA samples in his body, the clothes that he was wearing, hell, even the way his body looked was a distinct giveaway to what his name should be.

"Yellow Jacket!"

*****

By the end of the day, Crystal had nothing but time to waste away. The good thing was that the islands of Cavalanchee were safe from crooks and criminals for the day, but that also was a bad thing for her. Even though she went against Acrobat, that was more of a chase and capture mission than an actual fight. She wanted fists to fly, kicks to connect, heads to bash, and bodies to fall.

She wanted a fight . . . and she knew where to go get one.

She marched through the Heroic Headquarters entrance and headed down to the Sparring Basement below. The Battle Basement was the size of the entire foundation of the Heroic Headquarters. As such, it was a vast space for the heroes to really let off some steam and better enhance their skills in multiple ways.

That's where she found Osprey looking over his training results he just received. From what she could see, he had just completed a virtual scenario simulation and was now ready to hit the showers.

"How'd you do?" she asked as she walked up to the simulation computer.

"I could've done better," Osprey frowned.

"That's unfortunate," Crystal replied as she set the simulator to her profile. "What did you do wrong this time to lower your score?"

"I made a wrong decision earlier between saving a civilian and getting a crook," he explained. "Initially, I was going to get the crook, but I believed the civilian's life was more important and went to save them. Because of that, one the criminals got away."

"I bet the civilian was happy though," Crystal shook her head.

"They may be, but you know the Commander," Osprey replied.

"Him and his 'What If's'," Crystal nodded as she stepped out the control room into the arena.

She walked into the center of the arena where a rectangular case arose out of the floor. In it were a set of virtual gear that could be scanned by the computer's light scanners. Once she put them on, the case returned back to the ground from whence it came and the virtual simulation began.

The setting looked to be the center of an abandoned city, a well in the middle, and a row of buildings behind her and to her left. As the countdown began from twenty seconds, Crystal watched criminals and crooks appear in front of her and no doubt behind her as well to meet her level of difficulty. Honestly though, Crystal didn't see this as difficult.

It was more of an annoyance.

Sure fighting crooks and criminals was just as important as fighting the major villains, but it didn't bring Crystal any satisfaction because she'd have to tone down the violence if she was fighting anyone but the villains. And if there was anything to be said about a heroine like Crystal, it was that she was a brutal fighter.

The timer hit zero and Crystal charged straight for the fountain. In her rampage, she tossed, whacked, smacked, and beat down the criminals in her way. Of course they didn't stand a chance as most were defeated from a single hit, but she wasn't paying them any mind. The ones she was focused on were the crooks in the buildings.

She knew they had long ranged weapons and were waiting for their men to either move out of the way or fall from Crystal's charge. Either way, they needed a clear shot and Crystal was just making it easier for them.

The moment she was close to the well, Crystal leapt over the crook in front of her and dived feet first into the well. A few seconds later, water was blasted out of the well, flushing the bad guys to the wall and knocking some unconscious. Crystal climbed out of the well shortly thereafter and the shooters in the buildings were quick to pull the trigger in her direction.

With the water around her, it wasn't hard for a cylinder of ice to rise up around her to protect her from their lasers. Despite the ice being a bit thick as well, the lasers were still making cracks in the ice, weakening Crystal's shield she had constructed. Fortunately for her, she didn't mind them shooting at her shield and cracking her ice. It made doing what she was about to do much easier.

Thrusting her hand out before her, Crystal propelled a dulled piece of ice in a shooter's direction, hitting him square in the face. No time to celebrate, she was already spinning in a circle, hitting the next targets one after another in a fluid motion. As she took out the last shooter, Crystal saw a few of the criminals on the ground creeping near her, probably trying to catch her off guard. She drew the ice closer to her body, and then blasted them off towards her enemies, defeating them all with a single hit.

For a few minutes she stood by the well, panting and trying to catch her breath. Despite her being short of breath, Crystal knew that was the easiest part. The medium part should be starting in any moment now.

Knowing they couldn't hide any longer, the second part of the mission came out of the buildings' doors. The medium part was at least ten criminals in damage resistant suits made by the Committee. Not only did they provide extra defense for the wearer, they were also good at dealing damage as well.

Cracking her knuckles, she gathered up the remaining water available and lightly covered herself with it, freezing the water around her head, arms, body, legs, but not her joints; she did have to move of course. It wasn't as defensive as the crooks' suits, but it was all that she had. Besides, she wanted it as hard as possible.

The group of criminals charged at her a bit earlier that she expected, but that wasn't a problem. Running at them as well, she got close enough to the first criminal and spun around him and clothes-lined criminal number two behind him. Of course the guy wasn't completely defeated, so Crystal stomped on his face a couple of times to seal the deal.

For that she got a red mark.

Turning, she barely had enough time to dodge out of the way from criminal number three tackling her to the ground. Rising up, she blasted a chunk of her ice arm at the crook and hit him the knee. While he was the ground, she turned her focus to the rest of the group.

Criminal number four stepped up to attack her received a boot to the gut followed by an elbow between the shoulder blades. He moved to grapple her, but Crystal was having none of that. She picked him up by his midsection and hoisted him up over her head before slamming him down on the base of his neck.

For that she got another red mark.

Criminal number one actually managed to grab her from behind but that was a bad choice. As the other crooks moved closer, Crystal raised her leg and stomped on her captor's foot, hopefully fracturing it, if not breaking it completing. While he screamed in her ear, she elbowed him in the face then head butted him in the face as well. Off balance, he tried to move away from her, but Crystal grabbed him and began to knee him in the face until she got yet another red mark.

The rest of the criminals knew they couldn't face her on their own so they paired in groups and tried to take her down that way. Unfortunately for them, she didn't care how they came at her, they were still going down. Criminals five and six approached her from two different directions, hoping to attack her from both sides.

Crystal decided to take the initiative this time and tackled criminal number six like a pro. Holding him still, she pounding her fist in his face until criminal number five came over to save him. He aimed a kick at her head but she caught instead and slammed her fist right at his knee joint. He cried out in pain and shock and fell to the ground clutching his leg.

Before he could be registered as defeated, Crystal grabbed his head and kneed his head from behind, earning herself yet another red mark. Criminal number six moved to get his revenge but Crystal quickly removed the ice from her arms and made a thick pole of ice. Thankfully, it was long enough as Crystal whacked the crook on both sides of his body and then slammed the rest of the ice pole on his head.

Again, she got another red mark.

Criminal number three came back with criminal number seven to at least try to weaken her a little bit. Being the weaker of them both, criminal number three moved in to take most of Crystal's attention while criminal number seven catch her off guard like the first criminal did. Regrettably, his decision only helped Crystal as she grabbed him and threw him into criminal number seven. As criminal number three started to rise to his feet, he met an ice hammer as it smashed him in the face faster than his eyes could track it.

As expected, she got another red mark.

Of course, criminal number seven had to fight her as well, but he didn't even get a chance to make up his mind what to do to her. She grabbed him faster than he could grab her and threw him against a building. As he grimaced in pain, Crystal ran up to him with more dangerous intentions in mind. He covered his head to avoid a hit to his face, but that was what Crystal wanted.

Grabbing him again, Crystal threw him over everyone's head and he landed on the roof of the buildings behind them. As he struggled to hold onto something, everyone watched him fail and fall to the ground below, resulting in Crystal getting another red mark.

"How is that my fault?" she grumbled.

Criminals eight, nine, and ten had no doubt it was up to them to finish her off. They charged at each other, meeting right by the well. Crystal quickly put a foot right into criminal number ten's gut and sent him to the ground while she dealt with criminals eight and nine. The difference between criminals eight and nine and their comrades before them was that they weren't simultaneously fighting her. Criminals eight and nine decided to go with that option, hoping for positive results.

They didn't get any.

Criminal number eight grappled her abdomen while criminal number nine swung for her face. Blocking his attacks, Crystal then made a wild swing and slightly connected with his chin. As he stumbled back, Crystal drove her elbow into eight's back, making him falter for a bit as his body registered the pain he just received. Criminal number nine came back with number ten a few feet behind him, but that didn't worry Crystal.

As criminal number nine swung at her again, Crystal ducked and nine and flipped him into the well behind her. Upon impact, she got another red mark. Criminal number eight retried to hold onto her, but Crystal managed to break out of the grapple and maneuvered eight between her and ten. Before either of them could move, Crystal grappled eight from behind and suplexed him over her head. As he groaned in unimaginable pain, Crystal earned herself another red mark as she kicked him in the head to make sure he was officially defeated.

And with a threatening look, she turned to face criminal number ten. They slowly walked around in a circle, drawing closer and closer as they measured each other for weaknesses while being wary of each other's strengths. Finally, when they were close enough, they both lunged and grappled the other.

Surprisingly, Crystal was caught off guard when the crook managed to grab her throat and pushed her to the wall. However, that's where the surprise ended. She kicked him in the leg and, while he was off balance, she drove her fist straight into his face. Immediately, the criminal scrambled to put distance between them but he had her undivided attention now. She threw him to ground and hurriedly put her knee on his chest so that he couldn't move.

Changing tactics, the crook tried to hit her again, but none of them connected while she smashed her fist into his face like she did with six. However, unlike before, there was no one else left to distract her and she continued to punch him until the criminal stopped moving and she got another red mark.

Rising triumphantly, she looked up to see her final opponent: The Boss. Of course, The Boss had a bigger, higher defensible, and completely different suit than his lackeys, so Crystal knew this fight was going to be the toughest part yet.

THIS was her favorite part.

No words were needed and no words were wanted. Without a second thought, they ran at each other to pound the other into the ground. Just as she was about to leap up and attack him, The Boss whipped out an object and hit her midsection, sending her flying past the well and against one of the buildings. Groggily, she attempted to make out what the fuck he just hit her with.

Once she got her bearings, Crystal realized she just got hit with an electronic baton . . . and he had two. She had no water, ice, or any other useful things to help her get the upper hand against The Boss save for her mind. Quick and calculating as it was, her mind immediately came up with a solution to defeat The Boss.

For a moment, her body was still unsteady while The Boss began making his way towards her. As he got in front of her face, he thrust the baton in her face, but she quickly rolled out of the way to avoid being electrocuted. Looking back, she flipped back just in time as The Boss swung at her again. Moving in, she ducked underneath his next attack this time and slid between his legs. As he began to turn around, Crystal jumped onto his back and drove her elbow into the glass dome covering his head. The Boss attacked her with the baton again but Crystal was ready for it. She jumped from his back to the upper part of his arm and swung beneath it. Letting go, she somersaulted and kicked him in the face simultaneously. As she landed, The Boss spun around as he struggled to get back on balance. Running at him from behind, Crystal grabbed the leg and pulled it from beneath The Boss, effectively putting the crime lord on the ground.

Jumping on the suit, Crystal ducked underneath the incoming baton and kicked it away. As for the other one, she grabbed his arm to hold it steady while concurrently kicking, and successfully breaking, the glass dome covering his head. The Boss released his control of the arm Crystal currently held to cover his head from the glass shards falling towards his face. Holding it carefully, Crystal shoved the arm forward, driving the electronic baton at The Boss. At the last second, she leapt off the suit as The Boss was violently electrocuted which, of course, earned her another red mark.

The word COMPLETED flashed before her signaling the end of the virtual mission. Crystal removed the virtual training gear that she wore and returned them to the rectangular case before going back to the control to look at her results. As it turned out, Osprey was still there, albeit with an appalled look on his face.

"What?" she asked.

"Were you trying to get as many red marks as possible?" Osprey replied.

"What do you mean?" Crystal frowned.

"You know the red marks means that the crook is put in a life threatening position, right?" he reiterated.

"Yeah, I know," Crystal nodded.

"So, was all of that was on purpose?" Osprey continued to inquire.

"No," Crystal answered.

"This wasn't on purpose?" Osprey glared as he played the scene where she kicked criminal number eight in the back of the head. Then he played the scene where she most likely broke criminal five's knee and kneed the same criminal in the back of the head in one fluid motion. "This one wasn't on purpose either?"

"You asked if all of it was on purpose," Crystal crossed her arms.

"You know what the Commander would say," Osprey sighed.

"Him and his 'What If's'," Crystal repeated herself from earlier.

"The only thing I'm saying is to turn down the violence," Osprey suggested.

"That's easier said than done, Osprey," Crystal rolled her eyes. "Those guys are giving it their all to put me down and everyone says I should hold back from finishing them off."

"No one's saying not to defeat them," Osprey said, trying to make her understand. "We're just saying don't act like everyone you're fighting is Asphalt."

"I'll try, but don't expect to see any progress any time soon," Crystal smiled. "See you tomorrow."

Leaving the basement, Crystal went to the elevator and stepped inside, pushing the floor that her room was on. For the duration of her journey to her room, she thought back on what Osprey said. And not just Osprey, but Commander Shinobay as well as the media and the individuals who spoke of how her brutal fights could spark reactions across the country of Cavalanchee. In her room, her mind switched over to getting ready for bed, deciding that she'll think over the subject in the morning.

*****So I know it's just the beginning but I hope you enjoy the story so far. Again, please let me know if there's something you have any questions about anything. I do have a PowerPoint presentation about all the characters and other information regarding the story, so if you want to know all the characters that are in the story and that will be arriving, please send me your email. I look forward to hearing from you and look forward to more chapters to come. - DM23*****