(story copyright E.N.Boyd)

"She passed out. This isn't going well at all.", Torpedo Man said.

"Nyoka will you please take Blue to the ranch house? I think she needs to recuperate. Don't know what she was going to say, but we need to let her recover.", Liberator said.

"Sure.", Nyoka said, and picked Blue Lady up, cradling her in her arms. Nyoka's statuesque frame shadowed Blue as she carried her to the ranch house,

"Now what? I mean, do we wait for Captain Flag to somehow escape this? We obviously can't touch him or else we'll end up like Pat did. We still have that mission in Chicago in just a few hours. Blue is the one to transport us there.", Torpedo Man asked.

"Well, I think almost all of us can fly and make the trip although it will take us longer than Blue's immediate teleportation would. I would imagine Red Hawk would carry Nyoka, as she is the one of us who can't fly. Is that correct, Hawk?", Liberator asked.

"Yes. Provided she doesn't activate her mass growing powers that is. But yes, I can transport her if needed. Still, shouldn't we just wait on Blue? Nyoka has some healing herbs which may be of assistance.", Red Hawk said.

"OK. I think that is a reasonable thing to do. I hate waiting but we have no choice. In the meantime, I will place Captain Flag in a force field, in the event anyone should unexpectedly show up.", Liberator said. He extended his arms and the air pressure around the men changed slightly. Captain Flag, still frozen in the stasis field, was now enveloped in an invisible but nearly impenetrable force field.

"This is odd. I guess we will have to leave him like this if we can't free him?", Torpedo Man asked.

"Yes. We really don't have much choice. Captain is the most powerful superhero in the world after all and we have to trust somehow we will be able to figure out how to free him.", Liberator said.

"Captain, if you can hear me, please know we don't want to leave you. Please understand our position. You should be all right, but we have that mission to find and apprehend Jaspar Crow and his Deadly Dozen in Chicago.", Liberator said, standing not too far from Captain Flag, who stood motionless in the cascading red light.

"Well, let's go back to the ranch house. Not much we can do now except discuss some options we have to pursue Crow. I've been to Chicago a few times but I know none of you men have, so I need to try and familiarize you with it best as possible with the maps. Let's go to the house.", Liberator said.

The men walked to the ranch house, as Captain Flag still remained motionless, the red light casting an eerie glow in the desert night.

.........................................

"She's waking up.", Nyoka said. " I rubbed some healing oil on her forehead, and it seems to be doing the trick.", Nyoka said, holding Blue Lady's hand as she lay in bed. The rest of the group had gathered in the bedroom to check on Blue after discussing their plans for Chicago.

"That's great. When she's fully awake, please ask her if she can participate in the mission.", Liberator asked, as the men began to file out the door.

"Liberator. Yes, of course, I can.", Blue Lady said, propping herself up. "Sparky. He was...he was my lover.", she said, holding her head down, looking at the blanket.

"What? What do you mean? I thought Dempsey was married?", Liberator said, standing at the bedroom door.

"Yes. He was. Up until last year. He got divorced but didn't want anyone to know. We'd been together since then. His wife, Myrna...his ex-wife...she fell into some deep depression and mental illness. Pat did all he could for her but she denied him everything, rejecting him, hating him for his role as a superhero. It was..complicated. I met Pat after his divorce when he was on a Goodwill tour in the Midwest last year.", she explained.

"OK, I am sorry, Blue, I shouldn't pry or ask such questions. I am terribly sorry for your loss. He was quite the character and of course, one of America's best heroes.", Liberator said.

"No. It is OK. The divorce thing, he wanted to keep things secret not because of the divorce but for Myrna. Despite it all, he wanted her situation to be kept private. I will ask you all do the same for her. Please.", Blue asked, looking at each man in the eyes, clutching the bedspread.

"Naturally. You don't even have to ask, but we will.", Red Hawk said. Liberator and Torpedo Man nodded in agreement.

Nyoka patted Blue's hand, and said, "You still need some rest. You're healing now, but you went into shock. Let us know when you think you can get up and about.", Nyoka said.

"Just give me a few minutes. I know we have to read the maps concerning Chicago and where to possibly find Jaspar Crow and his men. Once I read it all I should be able to teleport us there soon. But, what about Captain Flag?", Blue Lady asked.

"We have no choice but to leave him where he is. He should be all right for now. I took the additional precautionary measure of placing him in a force field which I can psionically keep in place for a few hours. After that, he will be on his own until we return.", Liberator stated.

To Be Continued

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The Freedom Guard Files. Introduction.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter I.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter II.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter III.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter IV.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter V.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter VI.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter VII.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter IX.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter X.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter XI.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter XII.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter XIII.

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter XI

The Freedom Guard Files. Chapter XV.