Free Average Joe and the Extraordinaires by Belart Wright Page A

was an eerie quiet, five men in black suits, Joe,
and whoever had fired that shot.
    Joe had
taken cover behind a trash can that was close to the kitchen door.  He wasn’t
sure if he was the intended target but took no chances.  He saw the men around
him rise up and point their guns into the alley.  The alley was silent; Joe was
only able to hear the breathing of the men around him.  In a sneaking instant,
Joe heard a groan and then something hit the ground and he heard a yell.
    He turned
to his rear to catch the commotion, and immediately saw the black suit writhing
on the ground and another black suit with his arms in the air.  There was a gun
near the side of his head, but behind that gun was a welcoming sight.  Borland,
and by the look of it, he had taken a hostage.
    Borland:
“Put your guns down.  Everybody!”
    His voice
was strangely low, but everyone could still hear him.  The hush in the alley
was resounding.  No one made a move, and no one followed Borland’s orders
either.  Borland motioned for Joe to join him.  Joe walked towards Borland, but
was grabbed by the man in black standing near him mid-stride.  The man held
Joe’s arms behind his back painfully tight.
    Man in
Black: “You’re not getting him.  Now let my partner go and we’ll let you leave
with your life.”
    There was
a standoff.  It didn’t look like Borland was taking the bait.
    Man in
Black: “Heh!  No matter.  We’ll blow you away regardless.”
    The men
all lifted their guns at Borland.  Borland stood still and unflinching.  He
didn’t utter a word and only held tight to his human shield, who had begun to
squirm.
    Man in
Black: “Heh!  Well, fine, old man.  If that’s how you want it.”
    The man
grabbed Joe by the neck in a chokehold.  With his free hand, he lifted his gun
and pointed it at Borland.
    Man in
Black: “Last chance.”
    Time was
running out.  But it seemed to stand still for a moment.  Joe spared a glance
at the other shooters to see if Borland stood a chance.  He saw something way
behind the group, in the shadows.  The shape was quickly approaching though,
much faster than a man.  It was blue, but that’s all Joe could make out.
    “Oof!”
    One man
in black went down.  The others tried tracking the noise.
    “Ahhh-uugh!”
    Another
hit the ground with a blunt thud.  The blue blur was now in their midst, but
Joe could still hardly see it.  As the blur closed in, more gunshots rang out. 
The blur had taken on the shape of a man, and a large one at that.  As close as
he was now, Joe could see more red.  Red hands crashed against a black suit’s
face.  Red feet were thrust into another’s gut.  No, they weren’t just hands
and feet, they were boots and gloves, Joe thought.
    The blue
clad man was now close enough that Joe could make out his features and that
left him astounded.
    Joe:
“This can’t be real.”
    Man in
Black: “Who is this freak?”
    The man
in black holding Joe turned his aim towards the approaching fighter, pointing
it dead center of the white star at the man’s chest.  His grip on Joe loosened
just a little, and only briefly, but it was enough for Joe to wriggle free and
elbow the man in the face.   Joe ran a little distance away and the man aimed
at him.  Joe turned in enough time to catch the sight of a huge red and white
spinning disk as it sailed through the air and crashed into the side of the
man's face that had held him just moments before.  The disk hit the ground
afterwards. Upon closer glance, it was just a regular old metal trashcan lid. 
He could have sworn that it had had white and red stripes around it and a star
in the middle.
    Those
thoughts were interrupted when the blue blur leaped upon the man in black and
landed two clean knockout punches to the man’s jaw.  The black suit crashed
into the brick wall behind him and slumped to the ground, where he slumbered.
    The blue
clad man approached Joe and smiled at him.  He gave him the thumbs