by S. J. Delos
He slipped his arms around me and gave me a soft kiss on the lips. “I understand. I also know that, if he gets free, you’ll be there to put him right back into his cage.” He laughed, then slowly let go. “I called Greg while you were in there.”
“Oh? What did you and Mister Manpower have to discuss?”
A smug smirk formed on his face. “He agrees with me that you could use a little downtime. He thinks you need to take the rest of the day off. Probably the whole of tomorrow as well.”
I tilted my head, looking at him through my eyelashes. “Is that so? Well, whatever will I find to do during this ‘downtime’?”
“I can think of lots of things. Starting with dinner, drinks, and that dress from the banquet.”
I shook my head, grinning from ear to ear. “I get the feeling that I won’t be wearing it long.”
He took my hand, lightly kissing the back of it. “You should listen to that feeling. It’s probably right.”
“Okay, it’s a deal. I’ll zoom back to headquarters, grab some stuff, and be waiting at your place with my high heels. Maybe with something sexy beneath the Rumpet.” I winked at him. “Or maybe nothing at all.”
He cast me a dubious look. “Think you can get all that done before I get home?”
“No doubt about it.” I pointed at the hovercraft sitting nearby. “You still have to return that thing, then drive across the city.” Then I planted my hands on my hips, striking a pose. “I’m supersonic, remember?”
Kurt held up his hands in mock surrender. “Fine then, Supergirl. I’ll see you when I get home.”
I gave him another kiss, this one less family friendly. Then I turned around and leapt into the sky.
Only, instead of rocketing up into the clear, blue afternoon sky as planned, I tumbled head over heels down the concrete steps of the Max. When I hit the flat at the bottom, I both heard, and felt, something in my left arm snap. I lay there on my side, paralyzed with multiple bursts of pain scorching my nerves. My arm, knees, and back were all screaming bloody murder at the same time, overwhelming conscious thought.
I couldn’t even scream.
“Karen!” Kurt yelled as he bounded down the steps two at a time to where I lay. He dropped to his knees beside me, holding out his hands over my prone form as if scared to actually touch me. Then he scooped one arm under my shoulder, slowly raising me into a sitting position.
The motion set off another round of sirens from my arm, with my back joining in a duet. I moaned as vertigo and nausea wracked me, and I felt some saliva drip out of my open mouth.
“Karen?” He asked again, looking at the empty lot around us. “What happened?”
Trembling, I turned my eyes down to my hands. The nails on the left one were chipped, and an ugly patch of road rash took up most of the palm. Dropping my gaze further, I realized that one of the knees of my uniform was ripped open, revealing a bloody gash that oozed.
I knew what was wrong in an instant. Right on the heels of that revelation was a voice asking me how I could have been so stupid. I had fallen for his sad routine, let my former feelings about our relationship cloud my judgment. In that moment of weakness, Martin made me his victim.
Skin to skin. That’s what I told Warden castle. Keep his hands contained. Because I had only ever seen him use his power by touch. I never considered the possibility that he could make a change with a simple kiss.
Kurt was still hovering over me, as if trying to decide if he should pick me up. Or call for help. The worry on his face struck a nerve, helping me finally find my voice.
“My powers,” I said looking from my damaged knee to the front door of the Max. By now, Martin was probably being escorted to his cell, grinning that damned superior smirk of his.
“What’s wrong with your powers?” Kurt asked.
I slowly turned to look into his eyes. Already I could feel the wetness spilling over the lower lids to slide down my face.
“They’re gone. They’re completely gone.”
EPILOGUE 2
MEANWHILE,
ON A PARALLEL EARTH
It was the sound of the approaching sirens that led me to go hunt down Martin. It was expected that the authorities would be on their way, but from the decibel level screaming through the broken window, it seemed that every available first responder in the Chicago Metro area was rushing to the scene.
A section of the ceiling had fallen at some point during the fight, blocking the door. I sank my fingers into the jagged chunk of durasteel and reinforced timber, then tossed it aside, sending a cloud of dust swirling around me. Even though I could have just powered through the wall nearby, there was a more than fair chance that might actually be the last straw holding the rest of the ceiling up.
Almost instinctively, I held my breath as I stepped through the door back into the grand ballroom. Sure, it was possible that the debris cloud wouldn’t hurt us, but why take the chance?
The ballroom was still in as bad a shape as the last time I’d been in it. Smoldering holes—some still glowing around the edges—randomly dotted the floors and walls. Remnants of serious ion cannon use.
In addition to the smoking holes, there were three actual fires flickering on the far side of the room. The body lying prone on the floor near them looked like it might have been either Flare or Sunburst. The missing head made identification a little difficult.
Planting my hands on my hips, I swept my gaze slowly from one end of the room to the other. The last I had seen of Martin, he was standing on the stage laughing at the audience of surprised and shocked heroes. All of them without the slightest clue they’d been socializing with the infamous Doctor Maniac for the better part of the evening.
It was my suggestion to crash the Heroes’ Ball. I thought it would be a fun way for us to spend date night, especially since it wouldn’t be much longer before my sabbatical.
At first, Martin was resistant to the idea.
“There’s too great a risk to innocent bystanders, dear,” he said, stroking my cheek. “The service and catering staff, for example.”
However, when I promised to do my best to make sure that only registered superheroes were the evening’s casualties, he had relented. Martin never could say “no” to me for long.
The festivities were already in full swing when we arrived. In addition to the beautiful green dress, Martin gifted me with a gorgeous diamond necklace that covered my entire head in a holographic disguise.
After all, Crushette was a notoriously famous super-villain, immediately attacked on sight.
Dinner had been a real treat. While the food itself was sub-par, the fact that we sat among the clueless, self-righteous heroes was totally delicious. Martin, an artist when it came to blending in, was able to laugh at the appropriate times, appearing completely engrossed as one caped moron after another spun idiotic tales of their accomplishments.
Heroes and their boasts.
I played the role of a hero’s demure spouse, unaccustomed to the grandiose displays of powerful machismo. I kept my mouth shut, for the most part, spending the majority of the evening in reconnaissance mode. I identified those Enhanced who might give me the most trouble and formulated a plan for taking them out quickly when the moment presented itself.
After dinner, several of the heroes took to the stage to brag about the most dangerous villains they’d each faced over the previous year. Each tale was as boring as the last, until Martin stood up and approached the podium.
“My fellow attendees,” he said as he held aloft a glass of champagne in a toast gesture. “I have to say you’ve all been very entertaining. With your exciting tales of saving the day and bringing the bad guys to justice.” Several people around me clapped. A few even whistled.
Martin made eye contact with me and winked. “However, I have to admit that you’ve all fallen short and are found to be wanting.”
A murmur flew through the crowd as they looked at each other before they turned back to the stage. I placed my hand on the hologra
m’s power switch. I wanted them to see the real me when the time came.
“You’ve gone after criminal elements. Dragged them from their lairs and hideouts into the harsh light of Justice Served. Tracked them across cities, states, and even countries. You’ve beaten them into submission as they cowered, pleading for mercy.”
The murmur became a buzz of whispers. I heard more than one hero ask another just who did Martin think he was.
“But how courageous must a villain be to hunt one of you? How much conviction must one of your nemeses have to bring the fight to the hero?” He paused, lowering his head for a moment before coming back up with a grin on his face that I knew all too well. “I’ve heard so many stories of the fear you put into your quarry, how you lorded righteously over them. You must all think so well of yourselves. Of course, you’ve only dealt with little troubles. Opponents you already knew you could beat.”
He reached under the jacket of his tuxedo, pulling out the weapon hiding there all evening. The Nucleartron.
“Until now, you’ve never been forced to face… Doctor Maniac and Crushette!” At the last syllable, he brought out the pistol-shaped device, opening fire on the assembled crowd.
Right as Martin revealed our presence, I turned off the image inducer, then to grab a handful of Scarlet Star’s hair. I yanked the Amazonian out of her seat as I flung her across the room into a crowded table of her fellow do-gooders. A heartbeat later, Silver Scarab morphed into her metallic form and tackled me through a wall. A couple of other heroes followed, choosing the option of taking on Crushette rather than Doctor Maniac.
Not that they fared any better.
The spot where I had last seen my genius paramour standing had a warped appearance. It took me a second to realize the omni-plex stage was partially melted. I didn’t worry, though. I knew that Martin was far too smart to be killed by something as mundane as a plasma beam.
I crossed to the center of the room before turning around again, this time even slower.
I spotted him sitting at one of the tables in the back, one that didn’t look like a set prop from a disaster movie. He sipped from a glass of wine, watching me. The Nucleartron rested on the table in front of him, under the fingers of his free hand.
I smiled, sauntering slowly over to him, trying to be alluring while taking care to not trip over any bodies. Or step in any disintegrated remains.
“Hey, lover,” I purred. “Looks like you made a bit of a mess while I was gone.”
Martin’s shoulders lifted in a disinterested shrug. Then his gaze moved down slightly, from my eyes to my waist. “Your dress is completely ruined, my darling. Run into a bit of trouble?”
I glanced down before answering. The dark teal gown was scorched and ripped. From about mid-thigh down to the hem, it was nothing more than dangling satin rags. The bodice was mostly intact, though there was a large burnt hole in the left side from where Superior Man’s atomic-vision beams had hit. The flesh visible through the opening was bruised, but otherwise undamaged.
If I hadn’t turned to the side at the last moment, allowing my ribs to take the hit rather than my abdomen…
I shuddered at the thought, and looked back to Martin, smiling. “Actually, it held up nicely. Especially after dealing with Silver Scarab, Miss Amazing, and Superior Man.”
Martin’s lip curled up into a sneer of disdain. “Superior Man,” he snorted. “That fool is nothing of the kind.” One of his brows glided up into an inquisitive arch. “Or should I be using the past tense?”
I nodded, brushing a lock of grease-stained hair out of my eyes. “I threw him right out the window. You’d think someone with a name that pretentious would at least be able to fly.” As if to prove my point, I floated up, bringing the heels of my matching teal pumps a few inches off the blood-stained carpet. I hovered there before my lover, grinning deviously.
Not all that long ago, the thought of someone dying by my hand would have caused me incredible grief. Of course, that was before some of these same self-proclaimed “heroes” killed my entire family.
He smiled up at me, eyes beaming with something akin to love. Or maybe it was pride. I honestly didn’t care. Whatever the source, it was without question a reflection of his happiness. I would do anything and everything to keep him looking at me like that. I couldn’t imagine where I might have ended up if Martin hadn’t been there for me when things were at their darkest.
He glanced around the room twice before tucking the Nucleartron safely back inside his tuxedo. “I believe we’ve had all the fun we’re going to have this evening, my dear. Shall we be on our way?” He pushed back his chair, standing up.
I nodded, then drifted down to the floor, landing next to him. “That’s a good idea. We told the sitter we would be back before midnight. Besides, I have a feeling that this place is going fall down and go boom sooner rather than later.”
Martin reached out to brush the backs of his fingers against my cheek, sending a tremble running down my spine. “You truly are amazing, darling.” He leaned forward as if to kiss me, but his eyes flicked up to gaze over my shoulder. He quickly away, taking a step backward. “Table incoming,” he said.
I whirled around just in time to see one of the banquet tables sailing through the air at us. I brought my arm up in a backhanded swing, slamming my fist into the makeshift missile. The heavy wooden circle released a splintering crack, then ricocheted off in another direction. It hit the ground on its side, rolling another twenty feet to bounce to a stop against the corpse of another dead hero: Mister Manpower.
The last living member of The Good Guys was finally with his fallen teammates in the hereafter. I had wanted to just snap his neck all evening, but Martin repeatedly insisted I be patient.
Now, from the angle of his splayed limbs, and the fact that half his head appeared to have been scorched off, it seemed as if one of his own acquaintances had done him in.
A brief moment of outrage rolled through me. It wasn’t really fair that I didn’t get the chance to kill him myself. I had planned on making his death slow and extremely painful.
“You killed them!” someone screamed from behind me. “You killed them all!”
I turned around to see a lone hero standing in the open doorway I’d cleared earlier. One side of her youthful face was covered in burned tissue all the way up to the top of her scalp. The eye above the ruined flesh was milky white and wept a clear pus. It seemed that my side wasn’t the only thing to be hit by Superior Man’s eye beams.
Despite the damage to her appearance, I recognized her as the youngest member of the Justice Brigade: Phantasm.
“To be fair,” Martin said as he moved to stand beside me. “We didn’t kill everyone. Plenty of your esteemed colleagues decided to flee in order to save their own skins.”
“You’re going to pay! Both of you are going to pay!” The girl grabbed another table, turned it intangible, then lifted it over her head.
I started to take a step forward, intending to beat the teenager down before she could throw the table at us. However, Martin placed one hand on my arm, shaking his head. Then he whipped out the Nucleartron and fired.
The two-inch beam struck Phantasm’s left elbow before she could react, ripping apart the nuclear bonds holding the atoms in her limb together. She screamed an ear-piercing wail and dropped to the floor, cradling the cauterized stump that remained. The table returned to its solid state and landed next to her, clattering on the hardwood.
I glanced at Martin to see if he was going to finish her off. Instead, he gave me a little nod, lowering his new toy. One finger on his free hand tapped on the back of his wrist, where a watch would be located. “Tick tock, darling. I want to be gone before the Norm authorities arrive.”
I nodded, then stalked toward the downed hero, keeping alert for any more last minute surprises from her. I didn’t need to have bothered. The combined shock of two grievous injuries and seeing all her friends die had reduced her to a babbling mess content to hold
her half-arm against her body and rock back and forth on the floor.
It would have been sad if it wasn’t so pathetic.
She glanced up at me, tears streaking from her good eye. There was a lot of pain in that look. A mountain of hurt and despair that seemed as if it might burst free to rush over her cheek, and across the floor. Like a river after a dam burst. Trembling, she gave a final glance to the carnage around the room before looking back up at me. “Why?” she asked between chattering teeth.
I smiled down at her. On one hand, it was a shame that her life was going to end so soon. On the other, she had chosen to put on a uniform, so she was responsible for whatever happened to her. Besides, Tomiko had been even younger than her.
“I would like to say this was all just for fun. That we destroyed you and your associates merely for the fun of it. Just for something to do.” I punctuated with a little laugh. “But the truth is, I wanted to let you all know that you’re accountable.”
“A-accountable?”
I nodded. “You put on those capes and masks, sailing around, pretending that you’re better than everyone else. That the good you do outweigh any collateral damage born of your actions.”
“We… we help people.” Her eye twitched, and I could tell she was trying to force herself not to look at the bodies around us again.
“Help people?” I shook my head. “You know, I once thought like that. When I Activated, I wanted to become a superhero.” My jaw clenched tightly at the memory, my own eyes blurring. “Then Photonic dropped a fucking building on my little brother. He didn’t even care that he did it. No one cared.” I leaned over, staring into her functioning eye. “One of you goddamn heroes killed a boy, and none of you gave a shit!”
“I’m sorry,” she blubbered. “I’m sorry that happened. But that was just one per-”
“No!” I yelled as I stomped my foot, the heel of my shoe puncturing effortlessly through the concrete floor. “It wasn’t just one hero. It wasn’t an anomaly or just a freak accident!” I knelt down in front of her, glaring through the tears. “A few years after that, I was visiting my parents. Just a simple visit to see how they were doing, you know? While I was sitting in my mother’s kitchen, talking to her over a cup of tea, a couple of The Good Guys decided that would be a perfect time to apprehend me.”
