Need For Speed Heat: Flames of Retrobution

by Thunder--Dash

Need For Speed Heat: Flames of Retrobution

The police...made to protect and serve the community...created as a force to eliminate dangerous people from society and serve justice to those who ultimately dare to challenge the law...have been terrorizing the lives of street racers all around Palm City for decades ever since Lieutenant Frank Mercer rose to power. Over one hundred racers have been put out of the game since Mercer became leader of the Palm City PD, and the remaining racers have become sick and tired of being at the mercy of Mercer.

The daytime was perhaps the only option, yet the cops were still out roaming. The remaining street racers formed sanctioned leagues sponsored by tuning companies from all around the world. However, the night...was where every racer risked it all...and sadly...would mark the end of some of their careers. The roads were open, the street lights glowed. This was the opportunity to let freedom roar through the night. Weaving through traffic and sliding around turns, the sound of engines filled the city...and so did the sound of wailing sirens…

SOUTH DOWNTOWN PALM CITY

“This is unit 324 I have the group of street racers headed south towards Palm City Speedway.” A police unit stated over the radio.

“We’ve gotta shake these guys off and fast!” Ana called out.

“Roger that Ana, I’m doing the best I can here. I’m pushing this 240sx you loaned me to its limits.” Thundy replied as he avoided a collision with the cops. He looked at Ana. Her poor Plymouth Cuda was severely damaged.

“Ana, you have to get back to the garage. I can handle the rest of these guys.” Thundy suddenly said.

“No! I’m sticking with you! What if something happens to you?” Ana asked.

“But look at your car. It can’t take that much more!” Thundy called out over the radio. Suddenly a killswitch cop pulled up beside Thundy.

“Oh shoot! Go go!” Thundy called out as he used what was left of his nitrous. The killswitch was charging. Thundy had to do something desperate. He rolled down his window and gathered some electricity.

“Thundy what the HECK are you doing?!” Ana screamed over the radio.

“Giving those pesky cops a taste of what I can really do.” Thundy answered. Suddenly...a black Camaro sped out from a corner and slammed into Ana’s car.

“What the?! What was that?” Thundy quickly asked.

“Hmph! It’s time to teach you little twerps a lesson about what happens when you mess with the Palm City PD.” A voice said. Ana gasped.

“Shaw!” She said over the radio.

“Yea, it’s me! Now do me a favor and pull over so I can haul your petty little butt off to jail!” Shaw demanded.

“Never!” Thundy screamed over the radio. Shaw pulled up in front of Thundy, but Thundy managed to speed up and pull a PIT maneuver on Shaw, causing him to spin.

“Crap! Crap! No! You will NOT get away with this, you hear me?!” Shaw roared over the radio.

“Now’s our only chance! Let’s get back to base!” Thundy said, taking the lead.

Thundy and Ana made a dash back to base before Shaw could recover and find them. When Thundy and Ana arrived back at base, Lucas was there to greet them.

“Well I’m just glad you two made it back safely.” Lucas said.

“But now we’re on Shaw’s hit list…” Ana said with a sigh.

“You...what…?” Lucas suddenly asked.

“Ugh...you heard the woman…” Thundy said. Lucas sputtered on his words. He was clearly getting angry. He had trusted Ana to stay safe, but it was apparent that his trust for her was on the line.

“That’s it! I’m taking the keys away.” Lucas said.

“No! You can’t! This is the only shot I have at getting in the league!” Ana pleaded.

“But I can’t afford to lose you to this police force that’s taking over the city!” Lucas yelled. The two went back and forth.

“HOLD EVERYTHING!!” Thundy screamed at the top of his lungs. The two stopped and looked at Thundy, who pointed to the television. Though it was almost midnight, a breaking news story had come on the TV.

“We’re live reporting from the Palm City PD HQ where Lieutenant Mercer has just called for an emergency press meeting.” The reporter said.

“I want street racing gone. I want it outta my city! This is why I created the Palm City PD, to keep every citizen safe. Those racers are reckless, those racers are selfish and those racers shouldn’t even have a driver's license.” Lt. Mercer ranted on.

“Well...we did get their attention alright…” Thundy said.

“But now what? They’re gonna get stronger, they’re gonna try to get more tech on us, it’s gonna be nearly impossible to take them on now.” Ana said.

“Oh...we haven’t seen anything yet. It’s only just the beginning.” Thundy said.

“Anyway, I’m gonna get some shuteye for the night.” Thundy said walking towards the sleeping quarters.

“Look out for a surprise tomorrow morning!” Lucas called out before hearing a door close.

The next day, a generous racer brought over three brand new cars, but Thundy could only choose one. Thundy got up and saw the cars. There was a mustang, a 240sx and a Miata. He immediately went for the mustang. On the table beside the cars was a check for $18,000.

“Sweetness.” Thundy said. Just then, Lucas walked in the shop.

“Well morning Thundy, quite the surprise right? A very generous racer dropped these sweet babies off but you could only choose one.” Lucas said.

“And I already picked it.” Thundy said pointing to the 1965 Ford Mustang.

“Ah, a muscle car fan I see.” Lucas said.

“Yep...it’s been like that forever.” Thundy said.

“We got some fresh mods from the sponsors.” Lucas stated.

“Sweet, that means I could start modifying this ride of mine to make it the ultimate build.” Thundy said. He then equipped everything that he could on to his mustang until he was low on cash. He upgraded the intake, ECU, headers, exhaust and nitrous.

“Why not head to a day race to rack up some more cash. I heard that groups of racers are holding sanctioned races. Glad the cops don’t interfere with those...but they still keep a watch.” Lucas said.

“Well as long as they don’t interfere…” Thundy said.

“Oh wait until you really get out in the night. It’s gonna be utter chaos now that you’re on Shaw’s list.” Lucas said.

“I’ll trust your word on that.” Thundy said.

Thundy went out and racked up quite a bit of cash from some of the races. He then stopped back at the garage and put a few more upgrades on his car. Soon, the night had fallen.

“Thundy, I gotta introduce you to the crew. We’re all trying to get into the league and I feel you’d get along perfect.” Ana said getting into her 350z. Thundy smiled but his smile soon faded as he went into deep thought. Ana looked at Thundy.

“What’s wrong?” She asked.

“Gah...I just hope that stupid jerk Shaw doesn't come and spoil the party.” Thundy said as he eyed the yellow and black striped 1969 Camaro that belonged to Ana’s father.

“Yea...I’ve always wanted to take Papi’s camaro out for a spin...but he’d whoop me hard if anything happens to it.” Ana stated as she started her 350z. Thundy got in his Mustang and waited for Ana to take the lead. Ana drove out the garage.

“We always meet close to the speedway, since it’s so close to the safehouse.” Ana said as she drove towards the meeting place.

Meanwhile, Shaw and Mercer were having an altercation.

“I’m telling you Shaw, you’re not up for the job! You let them get away. I wanted them arrested and jailed! This is my force and no one is gonna fail!” Mercer hissed.

“I’m your best man! You ain’t gonna just shove me under the rug after one mistake!” Shaw barked back. Mercer glared into Shaw’s eyes with a raging fire.

“You better catch them and bring them to me by tonight, or you’re off the force.” Mercer growled.

“Hm, they won’t live another day when I come for them…” Shaw said under his breath. Mercer didn’t catch it as he walked away.

The next day, Ana and Thundy were on their way from an event, until they saw a police car turn a corner and drive towards what seemed to be a hidden garage.

“Hey Ana, did you see that? That looks like a garage of some sort, but why is a cop going there? I think we should check it out at some point…” Thundy said.

“Now won’t be a good time. Let’s lay low and wait until the cop goes away.” Ana said.

“Right.” Thundy said as he parked in a hiding place where he could still see the cop. The cop was seen apparently talking to the boss. A worker in a jumpsuit appeared.

“Wait a second? Is that…?” Thundy asked, looking at the worker. It was Evy, one of the fastest racers in the crew.

“Oh heck no! It’s Evy! We’ve gotta do something about this. This doesn’t feel right.” Thundy exclaimed.

“Shoot! If Evy’s working for the cops, then she must’ve gotten busted…” Ana said with a sigh. Soon, the cop left.

“Let’s enter through the back.” Thundy said. Thundy parked and then snuck in the back of the shop. What the two saw was quite the sight. There were cars in the shop being prepared for something.

“Holy…” Ana said in utter disbelief.

“This is just unbelievable. So the cops have these racers working for them, but what about the cars…?” Thundy asked. Ana then spotted what looked like a small laptop on the desk. Ana gasped and pointed while hiding under a table.

“That, see that over there?” Ana asked.

“Yea, looks like a laptop. Could have the data on this whole operation. Let’s see if we can snag it.” Thundy said scampering under the tables, getting close to the laptop. Just then a racer spotted Thundy. He gasped.

“Thundy what are you doing here? You gotta get outta here. I’m supposed to report any intruders…” He said.

“Listen...I’m trying to break you guys outta here. This is much bigger than you think.” Thundy said as he beckoned Ana to grab the laptop. He then gathered some electricity and made a decoy appear. It looked exactly like the laptop but it was fake and simply had the login screen.

“Can you trust me?” Thundy asked.

“I do.” The racer said.

“Good, we have the laptop and we’re gonna figure out what’s going on here.” Thundy said.

“I wish I could sneak out with you guys...heck, I’d tell Evy but I’d get in serious trouble.” The racer said.

“Now you guys gotta get outta here. It’s too dangerous.” The racer said walking away. Thundy and Ana snuck out with the laptop in hand. They drove away from the shop.

“Well now...this is really gonna help with uncovering all this stuff.” Thundy said. Suddenly, Thundy had a worried expression on his face.

“Dang...what if this thing has a tracker on it…?” He said.

“Lucas can disable it remotely.” Ana said as she phoned Lucas.

“Hey Lucas, guess what? We’ve got some valuable stuff that can really help us uncover the crap going down with the Palm City PD.” Ana said.

“Great, what do you got?” Lucas asked. “Well, it’s a laptop, not just any laptop, but one that apparently contains all the data for this secret operation that the PD is performing.” Ana stated.

“Well then, need me to hack it remotely?” Lucas asked.

“Oh yes, and disable the tracker while you’re at it.” Ana said. Suddenly, a motorcycle pulled up in front of Thundy and Ana.

“Give the laptop back now!” A voice said over the system.

“Oh great...who’s this?” Thundy asked.

“Ugh...it’s Torres, she’s Mercer’s third in hand.” Ana said.

“That’s right, now pull over and give the laptop back now and surrender.” Torres commanded.

“Pft, not until I figure out the mysteries of your sorry little police force.” Thundy scoffed and accelerated off. Torres immediately took chase. Ana had opened up the laptop and Lucas was hacking it remotely. Thundy gathered some electricity and let out an electromagnetic pulse that cut off Officer Torres’s bike as he turned a corner, finding a hiding spot close to the base. Torres slammed her hand on her bike in immense frustration. Meanwhile, Thundy and Ana had gotten into the laptop, and what was on the laptop was making Thundy angry.

“Corruption...this police department is going down.” Thundy said.

“I just can’t believe this. They’re selling all the racer’s beloved rides for money and even using them for their own purposes.” Ana stated. Thundy then opened a page to find...Mercer’s secret stash of cars.

“Wait a second...take a look at this…” Thundy said.

“I knew it...that snake!” Ana hissed. “He’s keeping the cars and using some for his own purposes, wow...we’ve gotta take him down.” Thundy said. Suddenly Torres had pulled up behind them.

“Now give up the laptop. You two are going down.” She said angrily. Ana looked at Thundy. Thundy looked at Ana. There was no way they were gonna give up. Thundy revved his mustang loudly, and pulled the handbrake making a huge burnout, covering the place with smoke. He then quickly shifted into reverse and backed out. Meanwhile Torres was trying to clear the way of all the smoke, coughing in her helmet.

“Dang you little jerks!” She grumbled loudly.

Thundy made a dash for the base still with the laptop. When he arrived, Lucas was ready to take a look. Thundy opened the laptop and the three looked at it.

“Look at all this corruption. I knew there was something about that Mercer guy...I hate to say it, but maybe one of his top officers has a lead…” Lucas said.

“We were just chased by Torres trying to get this laptop here…” Ana said. “I would say we should ask Torres but I really don’t trust anyone associated with the Palm City PD…” Thundy said.

“Ohhh, I wish Applejack was here…” Thundy thought to himself.

Thundy, Lucas and Ana looked through the laptop.

“So the PD is taking racers’ cars one by one, basically enslaving the racers to work on cars for them for the cops to use? This is just absolute craziness!” Lucas exclaimed.

“Okay, we’re gonna have to gather up all the racers we can find. We have to make sure that we are off the grid for when that happens.” Thundy stated.

“We have to act fast. The PD is strengthening their forces and we won’t go down without a fight.” Ana said.

“In fact we’ll win the fight against this corrupt force.” Thundy said.

“But it will take a lot to do...where do we even start with this whole thing…?” Ana asked. Thundy looked at the laptop. Cars were planning to be exported that night.

“We start...by intercepting the export that’s gonna happen tonight. We need more than just us.” Thundy said as he got a large piece of paper and laid it across the table.

“Alright, so the shipment trucks are of course going to be escorted by cops, and those cops are most likely going to be in armored vehicles. We have to find someone with a blacked out ride that could make us fit in with the escort.” Thundy said.

“Wait a sec...I see what you’re gonna do here. You’re gonna try to fire one of those electromagnetic pulses at the armored vehicles to disable them.” Ana said.

“Exactly, by firing the pulse, it also takes them off the tracking system as well.” Thundy said, pulling up the map for the shipment vehicles.

“Wow...and now we know the truth…” Lucas said with a sigh.

“Makes me wonder what Torres has to do with all this…” Thundy stated.

“We’ll find out sooner or later. For now, I’ll round up the group.” Ana said.

“And I’ll be searching for a car that can fit in.” Thundy said as he went to his car lot. He thought for a moment, and headed to the dealership. He came back with a brand new 2014 Dodge Viper and upgraded it to the max. He upgraded it the best he could and added sturdy bumpers that could take a beating.

“Sick ride.” Lucas complimented.

“Yep, gotta go big or go home.” Thundy said as he made sure things were working right.

Soon, the big night was upon the group. Lola, Eazzie, Ty and Sid all had come to the garage.

“Just in time.” Thundy said as he looked over the laptop.

“Alright, the shipment is on its way. Let’s move!” Thundy proclaimed as he rushed to his Viper. The rest of the group headed to their respective rides.

“This is it everyone, it’s time to expose this corruption for good.” Thundy said over his communicator.

“Let’s do it!” Sid shouted happily.

The group drove towards the shipment escort.

“Alright, everyone diverge.” Thundy said over his communicator. Everyone split up and the only other with Thundy was Ana.

“Okay, here goes.” Thundy said gathering some electricity. He then released an electromagnetic pulse that disabled both escort cars.

“Sweet, now let’s see if we could get those rides off of that truck.” Ana said.

“Hey Lucas, are you watching?” Ana asked.

“Sure am, lemme see if I could do that remote hack again.” Lucas said. Lucas tried to hack in remotely, but, the system detected interference and notified other users nearby.

“Dang it no!” Lucas exclaimed.

“What’s wrong?” Ana asked.

“There’s some sort of detector program on the server. Now it knows I’m trying to hack into it!” Lucas exclaimed.

“Shoot!” Ana exclaimed. Cops suddenly appeared along with Torres.

“I got you!” Torres exclaimed.

“Wait a second...it was a setup! Torres must’ve sent out the shipping truck, knowing we would take the bait.” Thundy said.

“It’s over for you.” Another deeper voice said over the communicator, as what appeared to be a BMW M3 appeared.

“Hold on...it’s Mercer! So you were behind this whole setup!” Lucas said over the communicator.

“Always one step ahead of you reckless pieces of trash.” Mercer sneered.

“What the heck are you doing out here Mercer?! This was my job to take these racers down!” Torres shouted.

“You took too long. Do I have to do what I did to Shaw to you?” Mercer asked.

“You DARE do that to me…” Torres hissed. Mercer ended up slamming into Torres, causing her to lose control, but still recover.

“That’s it! I’ve had it!” Torres exclaimed.

“Gah, so much hate…” Thundy said over the communicator. Suddenly, some other cars joined in.

“But the only thing that counters hate...is unity.” A female voice said over the communicator. Thundy gasped.

“Evy? Is that you?” He asked.

“And all the others from the chop shop.” She said. Mercer roared over the communicator.

“Looks like we got ourselves one angry lion to take down…” Another racer stated.

“Calling for backup!” Mercer said over the communicator. More cops appeared.

The shipping truck was still on its way to the port.

“We still gotta take care of that shipping truck.” Thundy said.

“There’s no way you’re gonna mess with my toy!” Mercer exclaimed.

“Congratulations Mercer, you just gave me one more reason why I should really take you down!” Torres sneered. “Wait what? So Torres was going after Mercer too?” Thundy asked.

“Stay out of it you stupid bird!” Torres barked.

“Who the heck you calling stupid?” Thundy asked as he slowed up to go eye to eye with Torres.

“Hm, the stupid bird right next to me.” Torres said.

“This is exactly the reason why you’re not worthy to be a cop. All you exhibit is hate and hunger for power!” Thundy retorted.

Meanwhile, Lucas somehow was able to somehow hack into the system. The holds for the shipment container released and the crate began to wobble on the truck bed.

“Oh no you don’t!” Mercer exclaimed as he called in for assistance with the shipping truck. Evy had jumped ahead of the pack and was trying to slow down the truck. Mercer tried to jump in front of Thundy to cut him off, but Thundy pulled a block. The truck made a left and the shipping ports were straight ahead. Suddenly, racers blocked the road ahead, causing the truck to stop.

“You bugs are persistent, but you are no match for the Palm City PD!” Mercer exclaimed as he slammed into the racer’s cars creating a pathway for the truck. Lucas however was able to get the last of the locks free, and the crate slid off of the truck. Ana pulled over and got out.

“Careful Ana!” Thundy exclaimed. Mercer slammed the gas and was headed straight for Ana. However, at the last second, Thundy fired a pulse at Mercer’s car, sending it into a wall. Ana opened up the crate...only to find...nothing. Ana yelled in fury. Suddenly, a yellow 1969 Camaro could be seen driving away.

“Ana! Papi’s Camaro! Mercer has it!” Thundy called out. Torres shot past the group and headed for Mercer. Ana ran back to join Thundy in his car. A fellow racer who had lost his car to the blockade jumped into Ana’s 350z.

This was it. The biggest decision yet. They couldn’t let Mercer get away, and Ana certainly didn’t want anything to happen to her Papi’s beloved Camaro.

“What should we do, Thundy? I mean, this is Papi’s and soon to be my ride. We can’t wreck it…” Ana said as Torres was trying to slam into Mercer.

“Here, you drive…” Thundy said as he prepared to switch seats.

“This is awkward.” He said as he and Ana switched.

“Ana, get me close enough so I could fire one of my disabling shots. I promise this disabling shot will be temporary.” Thundy said.

“Cross your heart?” Ana asked.

“Cross my heart...and hope to fly...stick a cupcake in my eye.” Thundy recited.

“Wait, where’d you learn that?” Ana asked.

“Long story.” Thundy simply replied.

He then opened the window.

“Keep it steady…” Thundy said as he lined up his shot. Torres had moved out the way for a split second. Thundy took aim and fired. The camaro began to slow as the engine could be heard sputtering. The car slowed to a halt. Thundy slowed up and maintained a distance. Torres got off her bike and opened the door, yanking Mercer out of the car.

“What the? Is everyone seeing this?” Thundy asked.

“Oh dear...I have a bad feeling…” Lucas said over the communicator. It looked as if Mercer was pleading with Torres.

Then...it happened, Torres took out her gun and aimed it at Mercer. In the blink of an eye, Mercer was down on the ground, his motionless body lay on the damp pavement. Thundy and Ana look at the scene horrified at what Torres had done. Could Mercer truly be gone?

Torres got back on her bike and called for a tow truck, driving away. Ana accelerated hard, her heart pounding. How could Torres just shoot Mercer like that and get away? Thundy opened the door and flew by Mercer’s side, listening for breathing or a heartbeat. Mercer was unconscious. Thundy saw the bullet wound, and looked for something to cover it to prevent any further bleeding. He went inside the Camaro and came out with a rag. He pressed the rag into Mercer’s chest, before starting CPR. At the fifteenth, compression, Mercer suddenly took a big gasp of air, his eyes shooting open.

“Where am I? What happened? What the heck are you doing here bird?” He asked, confused.

“I’m here, because justice hasn’t been served just yet.” Thundy asked.

“Why would you give yourself up that easily? I still have my handcuffs, gun…” Mercer stopped to cough as he tried to move.

“Whoa, easy officer, easy.” Thundy said supporting Mecer so that way he wouldn’t agitate his body further.

“I’m not talking about myself, I’m talking about...Torres…” Thundy said.

“And that stupid monster almost killed you. We can’t let her get away…” Ana said.

“You should’ve just left me here to die…” Mecer said.

“Well we won’t let you die.” Thundy said.

“Because one act of friendship can go a long way.” Thundy said, helping Mecer up. Mercer put his right hand over the rag that covered the bullet wound.

“Ana, you got yourself Papi’s camaro. Meet us at the hospital.” Thundy said as the other racers pulled up to witness the scene.

“What the heck are you doing with Mercer?!” Evy exclaimed.

“Being a friend. I’ll tell you more on the way to the hospital.” Thundy said.

After loading Mercer into the Viper, Ana got into her Camaro and waited for Thundy to take the lead. The drive to the hospital was rather quiet, except Mercer talking to himself.

“How could I be worthy of such...kindness after all I put these racers through…” He said softly. Soon, the troup arrived at the hospital. Thundy decided to stay for the night.

Back at the garage, Ana pulled in with Papi’s Camaro, which had only very minor damage.

“Ana, thank goodness you are safe. Where’s Thundy?” Lucas asked.

“He’s at the hospital...with you won’t believe this but...Mercer…” Ana said.

“Wait...what?!” Lucas exclaimed.

“How did…?” Lucas asked.

“Thundy taught me something tonight, it’s that even a small deed of kindness can open the eyes to your worst enemies...like a ray of light.” Ana said.

“Hm…” Lucas simply said.

News broke in that Torres was now the chief lieutenant. She vowed to end street racing for good.

“Well, that’s our next mission...gotta get Torres on attempted murder charges.” Ana said as she went to her private room to go to sleep for the night.

“Well, I’m hitting it for the night.” Ana said.

“See you in the morning.” Lucas said.

The next day. Thundy woke up at the hospital. He knocked on Mercer’s door. When he opened it, a nurse was there. The wound was wrapped up well with gauze and Mercer seemed to be pretty stable. The news was on the TV in the room.

“Morning officer.” Thundy said respectfully.

“Thundy? Did you…?” Mercer asked.

“I did, officer, for you. I’m not gonna let Torres get away with this.” Thundy said.

“But...did you at least have witnesses? Did you get the deed on camera?” Mercer asked.

“Oh I had witnesses alright.” Thundy said.

“But that won’t be enough...you know how it is...Torres’s defense will try to fabricate some lie that would get her off the hook.” Mercer said.

“Hmmm, you know...I do know a guy…” Thundy said as a nurse gave Mercer his discharge papers.
Leaving the hospital, Thundy and Mercer had a deep conversation.

“But how can you just call me a friend just like that? I put all of your lives at stake. I could’ve had all of you jailed...or even killed.” Mercer stated.

“It’s what I do, officer. Life is short, and holding hate and grudges will only wear you down.” Thundy said as he arrived at the garage.

“Ah, there’s my griffon Thundy.” Lucas said. Thundy got out...and so did Mercer. Ana and Lucas both looked at Mercer.

“Mercer...what are you doing here?” Ana asked.

“I’m here because we need to take down Torres for good. Your friend Thundy here taught me something...it’s that I’ll never win in life if all I have is hatred. I may have been helping to keep my city safe, but I was hurting your community, taking something away that you were passionate about, and for that...I want to make things right.” Mercer stated extending a hand out. Lucas hesitated, but ended up shaking Mercer’s hand.

“So...I heard you had some footage from that attempted murder…” Mercer stated. “Oh, right.” Lucas said as he got the laptop to show the footage.

So….in the end, Torres was booked on attempted murder, with a life sentence without parole. Thundy felt sorry for Torres, as she still had hate in her heart for not only being charged, but the changes in Mercer. As for Shaw, he was fired. Shaw vowed to get his revenge, but he would have to go through Thundy and the Palm City Racing League first. And thus, the deed was done. The Palm City PD and The Palm City Racing League had formed an alliance. And so...the magic of friendship prevails once again.

Meanwhile…

“I will get you outta here.”

“You’d better, you’re the only shot I’ve got.”

“Together, we will take back our city and those racers will be gone...for good…”