Natassia was in a very tough part of town. She was dressed in an attractive pink frock. It set off her gorgeous figure without being too provocative. She did not want anyone to think that she was a woman of easy virtue. One of the advantages of being unnaturally strong was that she did not have to track criminals in some exotic costume the way that the Jade Dragon did. She could go into dangerous areas dressed normally and wait until the criminals came to her. In the last few weeks she had surprised many a thug seeking an easy victim. Dressed the way she was, she resembled an attractive, but defenseless female who had wandered into the wrong part of town. The ploy had worked so well that she had made it a permanent part of her routine.

She preferred, of course, to change into her Nova costume whenever possible. That way she could preserve her anonymity and use the same trick over and over again. Most of the time she managed to see an attack coming soon enough to make a quick costume change. At other times she had to go along with the criminal for a time and wait until he was off guard. When this happened she found that the crooks were usually most cooperative. They had no inkling that the beautiful girl in the pretty pink dress was actually a formidable crime fighter. On one occasion she had actually let a couple of thugs take her prisoner. That had been quite exciting as they had bound her hands behind her back. They were most surprised to be attacked from behind by a superheroine the moment they turned their backs on her.

There were quite a few Chinese merchants in this part of town. These immigrants were quite often targets for criminals, as they rarely went to the police. Most of the time Natassia just listened to them while she pretended to shop. She had picked up quite a bit of information about criminal activity that way. She had surprised a few shopkeepers who she felt she could trust by addressing them in their own language. Her judgement had been proved correct. These men made valuable allies in her attempts to ferret out crime in one of the most lawless parts of Metro City.

In the guise of Nova, Natassia was slowly gaining a formidable reputation, but she had still not been able to establish contact with the Jade Dragon or any of the other superheroines in Metro City. She found this a little frustrating, as she believed that she had quite a bit to offer. But, she was prepared to be patient. Sooner or later she was bound to make contact with one of the other female crimefighters.

Today was a bit slow. Perhaps it was because criminals were becoming more cautious since so many of them had been apprehended in the last few months or perhaps Natassia was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. In any case, she wandered throughout the streets of Chinatown for quite some time before deciding it was time to head back home. It was at that moment when her eye caught a furtive figure hiding in the shadows of an alley.

It was a petty criminal and bagman called "Thimbles" Malone. She had no idea where the hoodlum had gotten such an unusual nickname, she only knew that he was a rather nasty piece of work. Wherever he was, foul play could not be far behind.

Quickly, Natassia ducked into another alley across the street from where she had spotted the villain. A few seconds later she reemerged, dressed as Nova. She had gotten rather good at making the quick change from naïve innocent to dynamic crimefighter.

Thimbles was still in sight. Silently, Natassia swung in behind him, keeping out of sight but following closely enough to make sure that he did not give her the slip.

Thimbles entered one of the shops. Natassia hovered near the entrance. She was close enough to hear what was going on in the store without being observed by her quarry.

"…a bit behind in your payments," said Thimbles. Natassia had caught him in mid-sentence. The hoodlum was talking to a Chinese shopkeeper. "The interest is climbing every day. Pretty soon you’ll owe too much to pay me."

"Please Mr. Thimbles," the shopkeeper begged. "it has been a bad week. I no have the money now, but next week be better. I pay you then."

"Next week you’ll owe me triple. No deal. I want payment now. It’s obvious you ain’t got the cash. And you know what that means." Thimbles had taken a blackjack out of his pocket and was slapping it into his palm for emphasis.

"Please no, Mr. Thimbles. No hurt me. I can no pay if you break my leg."

"You’re out of time, Wong. Normally I’d break both your legs. But I’m a reasonable man. I’m prepared to cancel the debt. We can start over. Just hand me over your daughter."

"No!" shouted Wong, his voice full of indignation. "You no can have her. You take me instead."

"Have it your way," said Thimbles, hefting the blackjack. "Maybe a short session will change your mind."

Natassia stepped into the doorway. She had heard enough. "You’re a little far from your rathole aren’t you, Thimbles?"

Thimbles almost wet himself. He knew that voice! Whirling, he turned to face the heroine.

Nova stood in the doorway, her hands on her hips. "I caught you shaking down someone last month. I told you then that I only give one warning. You’ve had your chance."

Thimbles cringed, falling to his hands and knees. He knew what happened to those who crossed Nova more than once. Their bodies usually turned up in the streets as a warning to others.

Natassia stepped forward. With one hand she picked up the shaking criminal by the front of his shirt and took him outside.

"Please," he pleaded, "don’t kill me. I have news. I can tell you something no one else knows."

Nova hesitated. "I’ll give you tens seconds to give me a reason why I shouldn’t wring your neck."

"I know where your friends are. I can help you save them."

"Friends," said Natassia, "what friends?"

"Why, the Jade Dragon and Scarlet Falcon, and that invisible broad. Brick has them."

Natassia was stunned. She had not suspected that anything had happened to the heroines she idolized. "Tell me more."

"Brick caught ‘em yesterday. He’s gonna play with them awhile, and then kill ‘em."

Natassia relaxed her grip. "Where are they?"

"In Brick’s HQ," the small time thug answered. "You know, the old police station."

Natassia released him. "You’ve saved your life. Next time you won’t be so lucky, so stay out of my way."

Thimbles scampered off before she changed her mind. Natassia re-entered Wong’s store. "I don’t think you’ll be bothered by that clown anymore. But I need some help. What is the fastest way to get me across town?’

Wong took both of Natassia’s hands in his. "I help you gracious lady. I have car. I take you."

Wong’s car turned out to be a very beaten up old Model A Ford. Natassia had grave doubts about whether or not it would make it any distance, but it started after a couple of tries and they were on their way. An hour later the dilapidated old vehicle came to a grinding halt in front of Brick’s HQ.

Natassia thanked Wong and got out of the car. Without hesitating, she headed straight up the stairs into the building. It was a most dangerous act. She might have super strength, but a bullet would kill her just like anyone else. Fortunately, the entrance seemed not to be guarded. She wondered about this, but was in too much of a hurry to think long about it.

A short way into the building she came to a large foyer. A pair of elevators was off to her right and to the left was a flight of stairs. Here she encountered her first opposition. A couple of Brick’s henchmen were lounging near the center of the room. Probably they were supposed to be guarding the main entrance to the building, but instead they were playing cards. Natassia was upon them before they even knew she was there. She grabbed the nearest thug by the scruff of his neck and bounced him off the wall of the room. He hit with a satisfying crash and slumped to the floor. The second thug made a vain grab for his gun, but Natassia seized his wrist in a crushing grip.

"Where is everyone? This place seems deserted. Tell me the truth or I’ll do more than break your arm," Natassia said icily.

"They’re in the subbasement. Two levels down," replied the panic-stricken crook. He whimpered as Natassia increased the pressure. "The super babes are there. Brick is having fun with them."

"Thanks," said Natassia, smacking the side of his head lightly. The impact knocked the thug ten feet across the room.

The subbasement. It looked as if there were two ways to get there. She could take the elevator, which seemed like a rather poor idea. It would be too easy to get trapped. That left the stairs. If they were as poorly guarded as the rest of Brick’s fortress she should be able to surprise the thugs before they knew she was there. She had to act quickly, Natassia could guess Brick’s idea of fun.

As she had hoped the staircase was not guarded. She quickly made her way to the lowest part of the building. The door at the bottom of the stairs opened into a dark concrete corridor. To her right the corridor appeared to end in a blank concrete wall. To her left the corridor went on for about 30 feet and was blocked by a large steel door.

Natassia moved toward the door. It looked new and very heavy. If it was locked it might be beyond even her strength to move. A massive wheel controlled the locks that closed the door. Natassia seized the wheel in both hands. To her relief it turned easily. Swinging noiselessly on well-oil hinges, the ponderous door swung open. To her surprise all that was revealed was a continuation of the hallway. About twenty feet father on was another steel door. Natassia was reminded of the watertight bulkheads found on battleships.

"Strange," she thought, "surely one door would be enough to seal off this section of hallway." Why Two? There must be something mighty important down here to install such security.

She moved toward the second door. Like the first, it was controlled by a large wheel lock. Unlike the first, however, this was securely locked. Even straining her magnificent muscles to the full produced no result, other than to warp the heavy metal of the locking wheel. Disappointed, Natassia turned back only to see the door behind her swinging silently shut. Too late, she lunged at the closing door. It closed with a dull thud, followed by a clicking sound as the locks were moved into place. She was trapped!

Stunned, the heroine simply stood in front of the door for several seconds. Then like a caged animal she attacked the steel barrier, throwing all of her strength into the assault. She knew before she started, however, that her efforts would be futile. Not even her strength could move a metal barrier a foot thick, provided it was properly anchored. For several minutes she beat fruitlessly at the door striving in vain to move it, but she made no headway.

Breathing heavily, more from frustration and fear than exertion, she finally gave up. Instead she began to survey her prison for some sign of weakness. Perhaps the doors were too strong to move, but the walls might be another matter. With painstaking care she investigated every inch of her prison, running her hands over the walls and even getting down on her hands and knees to examine the floor. But there was no way out. The only opening in the steel and concrete box she was trapped in was a small air duct in the ceiling. She was glad of that, at least she would not suffocate.

Frustrated, she sat down to think. Perhaps if she pondered the situation long enough she would think of a way out of her dilemma. It was at that moment when she was overcome by an overwhelming desire to sleep. She was very tired. Probably it was the emotional effects of being so easily captured that had brought on the spell of drowsiness. She shook her head and tried to stand up. Whatever happened, she could not allow herself to fall asleep. To her amazement, she was too weak to stand. Only as her eyes closed and sleep overwhelmed her did she suddenly realize that she had been gassed!