Story of Lion Man

Chapter 14

This is the fourteenth chapter. Hope you enjoyed it.

The group got some more sleep, especially Ryan, (still in Lion Form) who had been up for a while. Then, at sunrise, they all got in the car and drove out of the forest. "All right, now that we've back in the game, what's the plan?" Ryan asked, sitting in the back, next to the twins. "Me and Jess managed to hack into the Leonez Chemistry computer system, and we found that Dan has moved all production of the serum to a facility in Devon. We can be there by sundown." Hannah answered as she drove. "We've got several explosives in the boot, along with a specialised EMP. We can use the explosives to to blow up the production line, and the EMP to destroy disable the servers and the hard drives, which would destroy all the data they hold, along with disabling all the facility's computer systems." Jess explained. "Explosives?!" Tom asked loudly in shock. "Try not to think about." Ryan said, though he too just knew about the explosives.

Most of the day later, after a few stops to stretch their legs, and go to the toilet (at a service station along the way), they made it to Devon, as the sun was going down, as the car went over the top of a hill, and ahead/below of it stood the Leonez Chemistry facility. It stood over a large open area, with several buildings, one with a helicopter pad, and a large car park, surrounded by a wire fence. The five then got out of the car and knelt down on their stomachs on the ground. Jess looked through a pair of binoculars. "Guards. Too many for a chemical factory, especially in the U.K. Wait a second, that's Uncle Dan's car. What's he doing there?" She asked as she looked. "He's probably there to watch the launch of his plan." Ryan said, unsure. They then saw several trucks drive down the other road at the bottom of the hill which broke off from the road they were using to the right. The gate was opened as the trucks came up to it, and after they were driven into the facility, around a dozen men got out of each. Jess looked through her binoculars again. "What are they, the Army?" Mark asked. "Wait a minute. Those two, their the guys Ryan tried to figth 2 days. The drug dealers!" Jess answered. She handed the binoculars to Ryan, who looked into them and saw Joseph, Pete, and their buyer walk from one of the trucks, having gotten out. "What's the plan? You guys do have a plan, right?" Tom asked the group. "Oh, um... some of us distract the guards. The others set the explosives and the EMP." Ryan explained. "That's not really a plan, Ryan." Hannah said. "Oh,... its the most decent plan I could come up with! We'll just have to improvise!" Ryan exclaimed, slightly annoyed. "She's figth. I mean, how do we get past the fence?" Mark asked. Ryan looked down at his left hand and extended the claws. "We cut through it." Ryan answered, before he got up on his feet and starting running down the slope towards the fence. He got back on his stomach when a pair of guards walked past. He waited until they were gone to get back on his feet and sprinted the rest of the way to the fence. He knelt down and used his extended right hand claws to cut a line through the fence in front of him, big enough to crawl through, after which he looked back and saw the others come up to him, Jess carrying a duffel bag in both hands.

Once they all crawled through the fence, they had to split up from there. "Ok. Tom, Mark, you set up the explosives. Jess and Hannah, you set up the EMP. I'll deal with the guards." Ryan explained. "Are you sure you're up for this?" Hannah asked him. "Never been so sure in my life." Ryan grinned confidently, as he handed the two duo's their labelled equipment. "We rigged timers for the explosives. You just have to pull those cords on the bombs to start the clock." Jess explained to the twins. "Got it." The twins both said in reply. And with that, the group then scattered. Ryan moved towards the open area, looked around the side of the building, and saw the men from the trucks were loading several crates into the trucks. He also saw the 3 dealers from before talking to a man in a suit who, from the description's Martin had given him during his training, was Daniel  Leonez. A blonde haired woman in a lab coat the approached them. "You sent for me, sir?" Heather Mcranson asked. "Where's the rest of that first batch? That's half of what we asked for. Your scientists are not doing their job." Dan said coldly at her. "Sir, their following my orders. We're not making any more of it, especially to these people. I don't trust them." Heather said boldly. "Now, now, that's a dangerous move. Your Job is to follow my orders, not to question company buyers. Your job is the only thing keeping you afloat, especially since your husband died. Would you throw that all away?" Dan asked back. "If it's betters than doing whatever it is your doing, which is selling potentially dangerous stuff, to these men, then yes. If you were half the man your brother was..." Heather began saying before Dan snapped. "I am 10 times the man Martin was!" He yelled as he slapped her in the face, Hannah holding her left hand to her Left check, her upper body bend downwards. Seeing this caused something in Ryan to snap, making him jumped away from the side of the building, out into the open, growling before he tried to roar, but it was the same as those he did the other day. The people in the area all turned to look at him, Daniel and the 3 crooks the most. "Is...is that... it can't be... He's the very image of my dead brother. Is this a ghost? A demon sent to torment me?" Dan thought in his head, despite not being superstitious, but was scared. "Leave her alone!" Ryan yelled as he run up to Heather. As Ryan stopped in front of her, Heather was flabbergasted. "Wha-who-who are you?" She stammered. "It's me, Mum. Ryan. I'm all right." Ryan spoke to her softly. "You're not Martin," Dan said in realisation. "Ryan? You're alive? What's happened to you?" Heather asked softly, before she then embraced her son. "I'm all right, Mum. It's not permanent." Ryan said, accepting the hug, as after all that he'd been through, he had missed her and Molly.

After a few seconds, Ryan got out of the hug and stared at Dan and the crooks. "Well, well, well. So you must be the new Lion Man. I'm so very happy to meet you. I must admit, I never thought my brother would ever think of finding someone, let alone a kid, to replace him." Dan said. "Daniel, what are they doing here?" Ryan asked, gesturing at the crooks. "In a way, it's kind of because of you I met these fine gentlemen here. The third is a representative of HYDRA." Daniel answered with a smirk. "HYDRA? Of course, only people like them would want something like the Lion Serum!" Ryan thought in his head. "Why did you come?" Dan asked him. "I came to stop you from doing this. Because I had to. Because I'm the one worthy for the mantle." Ryan spoke bravely. "Oh, he's the worthy one!" Dan mocked, he and the crooks snickering. "You're trying to destroy everything your brother stood for!" Ryan blurted. "He was nothing! He was an pompous, arrogant, overbearing fool! He got all the credit while I rotted in the shadows! But I showed him... by killing him." Dan then said. Hearing this made Ryan's mouth gap open slightly. "You killed your own brother..." he said softly. "Yes, I did. Along with all those who attempt to meddle in my plans, like that mischief making journalist some years ago. Found out what I was planning, sneaky fella. Um... John, his name was, I think. John Mc-something. Made the death look like a car crash." Dan added, grinning. Ryan's eyes widened. "John. Like my dad's name. He was also a journalist. Wait a minute..." Ryan's heart almost stopped as he then realised because of what he'd just heard, it was no coincidence. His heart rate increased as he scowled. "You... KILLED MY FATHER!!!" Ryan yelled, extending his claws. Heather stared in silence, fiddling with her wedding ring, which she still wore. "Oh, so he was your father, eh? Oh, well, soon you'll be joining him. Kill him, boys!" Daniel cried, the crooks and their henchmen scrambling for their knives and guns.

And that's the fourteenth chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. Some of the words in the Daniel and Ryan argument we're inspired from deleted scenes I've seen on YouTube from the 1994 "The Lion King". So, Daniel killed Ryan's father!  The fight continues in the next chapter, which will be out soon.