The Jade Dragon and her companions had watched in stunned amazement as Brick had tortured the heroine that he and his henchmen had referred to as "Nova." It seemed quite incredible that anyone could stand up to the terrible lashing Brick meted out. Their amazement then turned to incredulity when Brick’s flogging had produced almost no effect at all. More importantly, however, was the fact that the black and white costumed heroine completely distracted Brick and his thugs. The incredible resistance displayed by the new heroine seemed to fixate everyone’s attention upon her. It was the chance that Sun Lin needed, and she took advantage of it.

Lin was still suffering greatly from the effects of the Rapemaster, but she knew that she would not get another chance like this. In spite of her previous struggles she was still tightly bound to the top of the table, and she was unbelievably sore in the area between her legs. Brick’s thugs had done an excellent job of tying her up. Their efforts would have been worthy of the great escape artist, Harry Houdini. Nevertheless, after straining at the ropes that bound her wrists, Lin felt them stretch ever so slightly. It was all that she needed. Concentrating all her efforts, Lin gradually worked her right arm free.

She glanced quickly over at Brick and his assembled goons. Had anyone seen the ropes slip from her wrist?

Brick brought the whip down for the ninth time since removing the Dragon’s Eye from Natassia. He was having far too much fun to pay any attention to his other victims. He gave no thought to the other three heroines, believing that the Rapemaster had finished them. Before him, the new heroine screamed in agony as his whip ripped her flesh from her body.

Thwack! Brick brought the whip down again. Natassia’s exquisite body was crisscrossed with bloody stripes. A sort of frenzy had come over him. Again and again he lashed the shrieking young female, taking out all of his frustrations and cruelty on the helpless girl. For too long he had been hounded by superheroines. He would destroy this one as a warning to any others who might dare to challenge him.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! He stopped. Natassia was no longer screaming. She had gone limp, blood streaming from her many wounds.

Brick took the Dragon’s Eye from his pocket. He seemed to regain some of his control. A thought had just entered his primitive criminal mind. What if he put on the pendant? It might make him invulnerable to harm. It might make him the strongest and most powerful criminal on earth. He raised the gleaming gem before his eyes. The pendant was far too small to fit around his bull neck, but perhaps he only needed to wear the stone and not the rest of the ornament.

He caressed the green stone. To his surprise, it was not cold, as he expected it to be, but rather warm as if radiating some sort of energy. Even as he looked the stone seemed to brighten, glowing with an eerie light.

"It’s the stone," he thought. "I don’t need the rest of the pendant."

He reached into his pocket and took out a large jackknife. Inserting the blade into the gap between the stone and its gold setting, he pried it loose. He turned to one of his henchmen. "Give me your tie," he ordered.

"Sure boss," answered the thug, stripping off his brightly colored necktie.

Brick cut a small slit between the folds of material making up the tie and placed the glowing stone into the cavity. "This oughta do it," he said.

He tied the two ends of the tie together. "I’m gonna be the most powerful man on earth!" he shouted, as he slipped it over his head.

The result was not what Brick expected. There was no feeling of strength flowing from the stone. Instead, he felt weak and nauseous. He swayed unsteadily, and then suddenly buckled over clutching his stomach. Retching, he spewed his guts over the concrete floor. His throat seemed to be constricting. Soon it was so tight he could hardly breathe. Gasping, he tore the tie from his neck, and fell to his knees. He could no longer stand. Pitching forward, he sprawled semiconscious onto the floor.

Around their fallen boss, pandemonium briefly reigned as Brick’s henchmen ran to help their fallen boss. None of the thugs had much love for the brutal crimelord, but all of them saw his collapse as an opportunity to curry favor with him.

The confusion gave the Jade Dragon the extra time that she needed. She used her free hand to untie the ropes holding her other hand, and then bent forward and swiftly untied her ankles. Free from her bonds, she rolled off the tabletop. A few feet away was a long counter. On its surface were a number of sharp instruments of torture. It was but the work of a few seconds to grab one of these and use its sharp blade to free Suzi and Kyla.

None of the heroines felt much like taking on Brick Henson and his goons in the condition they were in, but there was no way that they were going to leave without making some attempt to rescue the new heroine that Brick had so brutally assaulted. It was at the moment that they were considering their next move that one of Brick’s henchmen suddenly noticed them. In a voice bordering on panic the thug screamed the alarm. Now there was no choice, they would have to fight!