Chronicle 63

Cartelito called for his top sicario, Angel. He said into Angel's ear, " Don't let the captives escape.” 
As Angel ran off to fulfill the command, Cartelito whipped out a golden revolver and put a bullet in the back of his head.
He then met eyes with Mex.
"Trust no one. '
Borderline visibly shrunk away, having wriggled out of the poncho he was trapped within once it was released. Mexcellente, already irritated, readied his axes and flew forward at top speed. Cartelito grinned. Then his face went blank for two deep inward breaths.
"Ahh... CHOO."
Mex lost sight of the criminal inside a thick fog of white powder. It filled the air. It filled his lungs. He slashed around where Cartelito was last standing. Gone.
Through the fog, Mexcellente saw something zip by. The pure white was joined by bright red and majestic blue.
"WOOO." The sound finally came.
"FreeDom!" Mex shouted.
"Toss me a burrito, Mex.” FreeDom said in eagle form in his most serious bird voice.
Mexcellente's lonche opened and a girthy burrito launched at the soaring symbol of justice. It was caught by a human arm.
FreeDom flapped his one wing hard to clear the air. Then he saw the chrome-bodied cartel boss at the center of a dirt crossroads. He flew at Cartelito, losing speed having only one arm transformed into a wing. Upon reaching him, FreeDom smacked his sunglasses off with the burrito. 
"How DARE you!?” Cartelio scrambled to retrieve his glasses.
Dom turned fully human beside Mex and wiped flour off his hands. "These head honchos are always worried about looking pretty.” he chuckled.
"Thought you were just hungry." 
"Always." FreeDom plunged a hand into the lonche and ate whatever he pulled out.
"How'd you get through, by the way?" Mex asked, looking back at the crashed plane across the border, where the Emancipator still stood.
"Easy. I figured if his plane is immune, I'd just take a piece with me." He pointed to a wing on their side of the barrier.
“Nice. I thought you went down with the plane. Glad to see you’re still in the fight.”
“Same here. This Cartelito guy is a problem on my side of the border, too. Been smuggling all kinds of nastiness. I say we bring him to a pawn shop and see how much he’d be worth melted down.”
“Him first. Then Borderline.”
“That’s a plan!” FreeDom hollered, entering bird form.
Cartelito stood in the crossroads still, now surrounded by an army of his sicarios. “What happened to Angel?” The question was heard being thrown around by multiple people. Cartelito shrugged.
Mexcellente and FreeDom landed in front of them, prepared for war. Guns were pointed at them everywhere they looked. Two trucks were parked behind all the men. Within them, hostages were held at gunpoint. Mexcellente could see through the window Lisa and her father, bound and gagged. To make matters worse, they all started to hear a loud whirring above their heads.
“This guy…” FreeDom sighed.
Borderline flew liesurely in a seat with a single propeller. His short, skinny legs protruded and dangled from a rounded love-seat looking vehicle.
“YOU WILL EXIST WITHIN THE CONFINES OF MY BORDER!” he shouted. The pseudo-helicopter made a quick circle around the crossroads as he dropped his border devices. Lasers shot up in a large area to trap the heroes in with Cartelito and his goons. This was no war. This was an arena.