Get things set up first, and a bit of conversation

“Shit, Giz we got ourselves a problem!” the big bruiser, Mammoth, calls out as Blackfire glides into the room and positions herself opposite the door where you’re standing, effectively drawing the H.I.V.E. teams’ attention away allowing you to sneak in unnoticed.

“Nice move”, you think to yourself admiring her display of tactical savvy, “we may just be able to pull this off.” You slide across the wall until you reach a group of the clubs patrons clustered together near one of the exits.

“What the fuck?! What the hell are you doing here?” Gizmo balks at Blackfire’s sudden arrival.

“Nice to see you too baldy”, Blackfire deadpans, “is that any way to greet an old comrade?”

“Stow it ya space skank”, he shoots back, “last time we saw you, you were hightailing it after that Brotherhood cluster fuck. So if ya think you can hone in on our score here you can forget it.”

As Gizmo vents at Blackfire you take another pull off the whiskey bottle to help loosen you up. Normally you can only project one of your invisible doppelgangers at a time, but you had discovered awhile back that if you really pushed it you could create a second one, but there were a few drawbacks; one was that the second doppelganger was somewhat unpredictable, it was just as likely to hit your opponents in the face with a pie as a punch. The other was you were usually so drained afterwards that you could barely stand. But considering the odds you were about to face it seemed like a worthwhile risk.

You feel someone nudge you with their elbow and turn to see the waitress that had served you and Blackfire. “You going to share that?” she whispers out the side of her mouth. You take another pull and pass her the bottle as you check her out. She’s a cute petite thing with short black hair shot through with red highlights. Her skin is very pale, almost silvery in color. Somehow she seems vaguely familiar, but before you can really think about it she asks you another question and hands you back the bottle.

“So what’s the deal, were you and Tinkerbelle there casing the place before these guys showed up?”

You chuckle as you take another pull off the bottle and begin to project the first doppelganger behind the eye guy, “Psyeyeman?” you think trying to remember his name, before answering. “Nope, we were just minding our own business but apparently the universe decided that I hadn’t had enough surprises for one night. Nice accent by the way, Australian?”

“Close, New Zeeland”, she replies with a grin as you begin to feel a little buzz coming on as you to start projecting your second doppelganger. “So what’s the deal, she joining their little party?”

“Actually”, you respond as your second doppelganger begins to materialize behind the D.J. booth, completely out of position making you frown, “we were thinking about showing them the door.” Mentally you ask your second doppelganger why the hell he’s out of position, but you the only response you get is the feeling of maniacal glee. “Aw crap, not again,” you think to yourself.

“Wait you’re telling me”, she says inclining her head toward Blackfire, who’s still trading verbal jabs with Gizmo, “she’s one of the good guys now?” she asks clearly surprised.

“Like I said, night of surprises,” you respond nonchalantly.

“And the two of you are going to take on all of these guys by yourselves” she says and you can see her arch an eyebrow out of the corner of your eye.

“It’s only five of them” you shrug and take another drink.

“If you don’t count the clones,” she points out taking the bottle from you.

“Eh details,” you wave dismissively, “but if after we kicked things off some concerned soul happened to put in a call to the authorities….”

“Hedging your bets?” she asks with a grin.

“Hey mama’ didn’t raise no fool”, you say signaling your doppelgangers to get ready.

“Says the guy whose trusting Blackfire to watch his back.” The waitress says handing the bottle back to you and reaching into one of her boots. “I’ve got some friends that could….”

But before she can finish, the eye guy whirls around to face the two of you. “Hands where I can see ‘em!” he bellows at the girl, and then to you, “and put the bottle down!”

This draws the attention of the rest of the H.I.V.E. team and Blackfire as all eyes turn to you.

“Hey relax,” you say holding up your hands and grinning, “the lady just had to fix her boot is all.” Just then you nod to Blackfire and your doppelgangers giving them the go signal.

Suddenly the sound system kicks back on and the opening for Razed in Black’s cover of ‘A **** Against War’ starts.

“What the hell…” is as far as the eye guy gets before your first doppelganger grabs a chair and smashes it over his head, knocking him out cold.

“How’d you, eh screw it,” Mammoth growls looking at you, “you’re not gonna get the drop on me.”

Suddenly there’s a flash of purple light behind him that sends Mammoth flying across the room, crashing into the bar hard enough to break the brass rail on the front. “Nope, I believe that’s my job” Blackfire says grinning menacingly.

“Shit”, Gizmo yells scrambling for his controller “Scrag ‘em! Scrag ‘em both!!”

Spinning quickly you kick the door behind you open breaking the lock and turn to the waitress. “You might want to run now”, you say shoving her out the exit before turning back to give Blackfire a hand with the rest of the H.I.V.E.