´ 4 Í plowed through the prickly holly bushes and pointed my finger. Flames arced outward, and a line of fire roared up between the ubervillains and the crowd. A few people snapped out of their trances, but most just stared at the flames. I pointed my other finger. Another line of fire sprang up, cutting off the ubervillains’ escape route. I sprinted forward through the flames toward the evildoers. Siren and Intelligal froze. The chair hovered in midair, and their heads snapped around to me.

“You!” Siren screamed.

Her voice morphed from sultry and simpering to sharp and jagged in an instant. It felt like cold razors slicing into my brain. I clapped my hands to my head, trying to block out the horrible sound.

A bluish energy ball popped into her hand, and Siren reared back to throw it at me. But a streak of lightning cut through the air and slammed into Siren’s back. Shocked, the H o t M a m a

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ubervillain flew off the arm of Intelligal’s chair and hit the ground. Behind her, Carmen waved at me and smiled.

“Get her, Intelligal!” Siren shrieked through a mouthful of dirt. The harsh tone in her voice cut through me again. Intelligal zoomed up over the dancing flames and punched some buttons on her floating chair. Two flaps opened on the front of the metal contraption, and missiles rocketed out—

straight at me. I waited until they were in range, lobbed two fireballs at them, and rolled out of the way. My fireballs slammed into the missiles, and they exploded in midair. The thunderous roar and resulting shockwave jolted the rest of the crowd out of its sheeplike state. People screamed and stampeded and sprinted down the lawn toward the metal gates a mile away. Smoke, soot, and ash darkened the spring sky.

Siren scrambled to her feet and sent a lightning bolt my way. I ducked it and retaliated with a fireball. Intelligal zipped back and forth over us, trying to get a clear shot at me with some more of her pesky missiles. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Johnny Bulluci. He ran through the wall of flames and launched himself onto Intelligal’s chair like it was something he did every day. What the hell did he think he was doing? I was the hero here, not him. The fool was going to get himself killed, and me along with him.

But I was too busy trying to dodge Siren’s energy balls and fry her alive to pay much attention to Johnny. I tried to get close enough to touch Siren, but she kept flinging lightning bolts at me. She was too smart to let me get within arm’s reach. Siren knew I could crush her to goo with my bare hands. I would, given half a chance. I’d wrap my hands around her neck and squeeze her like an orange. After a few minutes of back-and-forth action, I started 38