Azakor, Sasha, and Maksim all stepped to the side as their mother tugged on the arm of Padamir.
“Come dear, we must try to calm down the Oshiros and get you prepared for the coronation.”
He smiled at her as they walked out of the room and the three siblings heard him say, “I can't wait to choose my robes. Perhaps something red.”
Sasha slapped Azakor across the chest. “What are you thinking? We can't put my father in charge. We might as well prop up Konstantin's corpse on the throne. There's just as much going on inside his head as there is in my father's.”
“And what do you suggest, dear sister? How would it look if I took the throne?”
“It would look like we knew what we were doing! It would look like we could at least identify who was capable of ruling this empire, instead of putting the crown on the first person that shows up. You're going to look like a fool, Azakor. We all are.”
Azakor adjusted the clasps on his cape and said, “You don't need to worry about this, Sasha. You should focus your attention on your new family. How is your husband, anyway?”
Sasha stared back at her half-brother, trying to resist falling into the trap of playing his game.
“I'm not sure how you did it, allowing a fleshless man inside of you,” Azakor said without trying to hide his disgust as he looked down at her pregnant belly. “Or does he have a machine that takes care of all that messy business for him?”
Sasha's small fists clenched and she turned to Maksim, ready to fight them both. “What about you? Have anything to say about my marriage or my baby?”
Maksim looked confused for a moment as he considered his response before saying, “I think being a mother will suit you.”
Sasha clapped her hand to her face, rubbed her eyes, and said, “That's either the nicest thing you've ever said to me, or the cruelest,” before she shot through the air and out of the room.
Maksim turned to Azakor. “I was only being honest.”
Azakor couldn't help but smile as he put his arm around his brother. “Of course you were.”
There was a moment of silence between the two brothers before Maksim asked, “Are we going to be okay?”
“The family? Or the empire?”
Maksim spent a few moments considering before he said, “Both.”
Azakor considered his answer before looking into his brother's eyes. Maksim's simplicity, his straightforwardness, his earnestness, made it impossible for Azakor to lie to him. He hated that as much as he loved it.
“I honestly don't know, little brother.”
10
ANDRE
Walking through the front door of Cleo's Place, he let out a sigh of relief when he saw Victor, Mickey, and Wesley sitting at the bar. What surprised him was seeing Carmen sitting next to them, ordering a drink for Lucy Grae. The jukebox was loud, playing some hard rock song with squealing guitar chords meant to tear a hole in the air, so no one noticed him enter. He walked toward his friends, raising his hand to wave at them, when a rock-hard hand clamped down on his shoulder. Andre spun around to see Pavement, the stone-skinned bodyguard of Bobby the Bull.
“Boss needs to see you,” Pavement said, his throat sounding like a tumbler of loose rocks.
The seven-foot-tall wall of a man motioned behind him, toward one of the various tables that were always covered in shadow, no matter where the light was. Bobby was sitting behind the table with his back to the wall. There was a tall blonde standing next to him, resting her hand on his shoulder. The half-bull, half-man raised his martini glass and bowed his horned head toward Andre. Andre glanced at his friends, who still hadn't noticed him, as he walked over to Bobby's table.
“Andre! I thought I might find you down here,” Bobby said, snorting as he talked, the bull-ring in his snout wobbling as he did.
Andre pulled out a chair and sat down, uncomfortable seeing Bobby in his bar. It wasn't strange to see his type down there, crime bosses and henchmen alike enjoyed Cleo's Place, but Bobby usually flaunted finer tastes than tap beer and rail liquor.
“What can I do for you, boss? Another loser didn't pay up?”
Bobby sipped his martini and made a face as if he just tasted gasoline, sucking air through his teeth to cool his tongue. “Not this time. I wanted to talk to you about an opportunity.”
Andre sat up straight. He had been waiting for this for a long time. Maybe Bobby had finally recognized his talents and found a place for him in the organization.
“What do you need, Bobby? I'm your man.”
Bobby chuckled. “I know you are, Andre.” He leaned forward and spoke in a hushed tone. “Here's the deal. There's this fella, right? And this fella has done something that I find most distasteful. The kind of thing that fellas just don't do, you understand?”
Andre nodded. “I think so.”
Bobby reached over and picked up his martini, took a sip, and spit it on the floor.
“Does that old supervillain piss in her booze?”
The blonde wiped his mouth.
“So anyway, this fella,” Bobby continued, “he came to me and he apologized. But this thing this fella did, it doesn't just go away. You can't just sorry away this kind of thing. You understand?”
Andre nodded. “You need me to put the hurt on this guy. Is that it?”
Bobby glanced around before he said, “Not exactly. See, I need this guy gone. Ended.”
“You want me to kill him?” Andre sighed. “Gotta say, boss, when you said 'opportunity' I was hoping for something a little... bigger.”
Bobby smiled. “What do you mean 'bigger?'”
Andre shrugged. “I don't know. More important, I guess.”
Bobby leaned back in his chair and the blonde next to him started polishing his horn. “This is important. To me.”
Andre caught a quick breath of bravery and crossed his arms over his chest. “Sure. But, I've been a loyal employee of yours for four years. I've broken more legs for you than I can count. And every debt you put in front of me, I've collected.”
Bobby raised his hands in front of him to slow down Andre's defensiveness. “That's exactly why you're the guy I'm asking to do this thing for me.”
“I gotta gift, boss. I'm fast. I'm tough. I'm strong. And all you're asking me to do is go kill a guy?”
Bobby's smile evaporated. “Keep your voice down, kid.”
“I'm just saying, this is bullshit. No offense.”
Bobby scowled back at Andre. “Get to the point, Andre. And do it fast.”
“The point? The point is: you're wasting me. You're wasting my talent. If all you're going to do is keep me around to bust heads, then...”
“Then what?”
Andre glanced over at Carmen, who was laughing at something Victor had said.
He turned back to Bobby and said, “I'm done. I'm out.”
Bobby glanced at Pavement, who shrugged his shoulders in reply.
“And what exactly are you going to do if you don't work for me? You're a villain, kid. You can't use your powers for nothing straight. The Alliance catches wind of you using your powers unregistered? You'll be in the Pit in no time. That's why you work for me. I pay the right people to look the other way, delete reports, do the things that need to get done so our little organization can keep working. Without me, you ain't nothing.”
“That's where you're wrong, Bobby.” Andre stood up from his chair, ignoring Pavement, who took a step closer. “Now, my friends are waiting for me over at the bar. So if we're done here...”
Bobby snorted and straightened his tie. “Oh, I have a feeling we're far from done, Andre. See you around, kid.”
Bobby stood up, his massive body knocking over the table as he did, his glass shattering on the floor. He grabbed his coat off the wall and stormed out the door, Pavement and the blonde following him. When the door closed behind them, Andre let out a breath and turned around to see all his friends staring at him.
“Everything okay there, mate?” Victor yelled ove
r the music.
Andre smiled. “It will be once I'm drunk.”
Victor laughed and raised his glass. “Well then, let's get this boy pissed!”
Andre stepped up to the bar and Cleo set an empty pint glass down in front of him. Wesley grabbed the pitcher of beer and filled the glass. Andre took a few large gulps and slammed the empty glass down on the bar.
Carmen leaned over and whispered, “You sure you're okay?”
He looked into those big, brown eyes and considered telling her the truth, but he just smirked.
“Sure. I'm great.”
He glanced past Carmen at Lucy, who was sipping her beer with both hands wrapped around the pint like a little kid learning to drink without a sippy-cup for the first time.
“What's she doing here?”
Carmen slapped Lucy on the back. “She's celebrating!”
Lucy gave him a drunken thumbs up and mumbled, “Imma gonna be a shooperhero.”
Cleo leaned in close and said, “I don't mind the kid being in here tonight, someone from the neighborhood making it big is something to celebrate. I get it, but just make sure this superhero doesn't get too drunk, okay? I don't need an underage girl puking on my bar.”
“So the rumor's true?” Andre asked.
“Looks that way,” Wesley said as he leaned over to join the conversation. “She got a visit from Mermaid and Replica today.”
“Replica.” Victor set his chin on the bar. “Oy. What I wouldn't give fer a few shags o' that bird.”
“She punched me once,” Cleo said as she wiped a rag across the bar.
“Y-y-you're serious?” Mickey asked, drinking his beer through a straw so that his shaking hands wouldn't spill it. “You f-f-fought Replica?”
Cleo smiled. She loved telling her stories. “I actually fought about seven Replicas. And I kicked all their asses, too.”
Everyone laughed and the gray-haired old lady winked at them. Her body was still huge, muscles rippling every time she pulled the tap or carried a keg up from the basement with one arm, but the wrinkles that ran across her forehead and the bags that hung low under her eyes made it hard to see her as the same supervillain in the pictures behind the bar.
“Don't get me wrong,” Cleo said as she flipped the dirty rag over her shoulder, “that bitch can throw a mean left hook, and when there's seven mean left hooks, you walk away with more than a few bruises. But this was back when my Staff of Osiris was still working.”
Cleo nodded her head to the far wall where the staff hung over the door to the restroom. Dust covered it now days, but you could still see the ram's head at the end of the bronze rod.
“I slammed that thing into the sidewalk and sent out a shock wave of energy that knocked them all to the ground. I walked out of the bank with nearly a hundred grand that day.”
“Wow,” Andre said, his eyes glittering with dreams of doing something that amazing. “It must have been amazing to be alive back then.”
Cleo laughed. “Way to make a lady feel old.”
Andre's eyes opened wide. “No! No, I didn't mean it like that! I just-”
“Calm down. I know what you meant.” Cleo let out a heavy sigh. “It certainly was a different time. Before that damn Super Power War, when the buildings were falling on top of us and everyone was just trying to stay alive while the gods punched each other.”
“That doesn't sound much different than today,” Wesley mumbled.
“Bah. The powers today are nothing compared to back then. They were shaking the world. The SPMDs could have broken a lot more than just the United States.” She took a moment, as if the memories might overtake her, but then she continued. “But before all that? It was... better. We were all just having fun. The villains would try to steal some jewels or some money or some... whatever, and the heroes would try to catch us. Like one big game of tag, or hide and go seek. Or something. We were kids. Most of us.”
“I wish I could have seen it,” Andre said, staring down at his beer.
“Don't get too sentimental, kiddo. Because that golden age didn't last long. Soon after was when the real nasty guys started popping up. The psychos. The ones that didn't want money or rare pieces of art. They wanted to rape and murder the world. They'd even keep the other villains up at night, scared to close our eyes.”
“I've read that most people actually supported the Super Power War when it started,” Wesley said as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Not only to stop those kinds of creeps, but because the governments were either corrupt or powerless. People just wanted somebody in charge that could keep the peace.”
“It's true,” Cleo said. “Even I thought it was a good thing at first. Things had gotten out of hand. We told the superheroes, 'Hey, time to take the kid gloves off.' So they did. And, well, you know the rest.”
They all nodded, giving the moment the silence it deserved.
“Now days,” Cleo said, “I'm not so sure we're better off with the Zharkovs running everything.”
“Maybe things will change now that Konstantin is dead,” Wesley said. “Though I suppose there's just as good of a chance it'll change for the worse.”
“I'm just g-g-glad we live in the R-R-Republic,” Mickey said. “A-a-at least we still have our f-f-freedoms.”
Victor groaned. “Oh, shut yer mouth, ya wanker. We ain't no more free than those sods in the Hive, all walkin' round with the same bit o' thoughts in their heads.”
“He's right,” Wesley said. “They want you to think you're free, with the Alliance of Heroes and the council running things, but it's only the illusion of democracy. Just because the council don't call themselves domini, doesn't mean they aren't under the thumb of the Zharkovs. We're a domain of the empire like everyone else. When's the last time you saw a church? When's the last time you bought a gun? When's the last time you got to vote for who sits on the council?”
“You kids don't know what yer talkin' bout.”
Everyone turned to the end of the bar and saw an old guy swaying back and forth, hanging on to the bar to keep himself upright. He was wearing a cone-shaped metal helmet. Andre recognized him as the old supervillain, Bullethead. He was a joke, even back in the day.
“Go back to your drink, Phil,” Cleo said, rolling her eyes.
“No!” he yelled again, stumbling toward the group. “You can't sit there and tell lies 'bout the empire and get away with it.”
“No one's telling lies, old man,” Andre said, stepping in front of Carmen. “Just calm down.”
Bullethead poked his finger into Andre's chest. “You kids. You think you know everything. But you got no idea. You never fought in a war. You didn't know how bad it was. Before the empire. Before they brought us peace and-”
“Floating castles in the sh-ky!” Lucy yelled into the air and raised her glass before crumpling into a ball of laughter.
The rest of the group couldn't help but chuckle. Bullethead sneered at the young girl.
“You think uniting the world is funny? You think you'd be able to survive without them running things? We'd starve if they didn't have a trade agreement with Gaia. What would we do if they didn't arm the soldiers that patrol the streets, or... or... all the other stuff they do for us? You don't even know. We're lucky to have them, damn it! You don't know nothing 'bout nothing, you little bitch.”
“Hey! Phil!” Cleo said, leaning over the bar. “You watch your mouth or I'll toss you out of here.”
Bullethead ignored Cleo and gave Lucy's shoulder a shove, “Hey! I'm talking to you.”
Lucy was still laughing, completely ignoring Bullethead. The fact that she wasn't taking him seriously was infuriating him more, as if that girl, in that moment, was epitomizing everyone in his life. He reached out, grabbed onto her shoulder, and ripped her off the bar stool. She landed hard on the floor with a tiny yelp of pain.
Andre lunged at Bullethead. Cleo was yelling for them to stop, but no one could hear her over the roar of the rest of the group. Victor, Wesley
, Mickey, and Carmen were all right behind Andre, ready to back him up. But no one jumped in. They knew the rules. Andre got to Bullethead first. He got to finish it.
Andre tried punching the old man in the head, which was a dumb idea. Bullethead just laughed and grabbed Andre by the shoulders, headbutting him as hard as he could. It surprised Andre how much it dazed him. He stumbled backward, but as the old man bent over and charged at him with his pointed head, Andre stepped to the side and tossed him into the row of bar stools. The gang cheered as Bullethead fell onto the floor.
Andre stepped toward him, ready to continue the beat down, but Cleo was right there, placing her enormous hand on his chest.
“It's over,” she said, staring into his eyes.
“Aw, shite,” Victor said, setting his bar stool upright and plopping back down in front of his beer. “We was just gettin' riled up.”
Cleo used one hand to lift Bullethead up by his belt. She hurled him out the door and into the snowbank. Then she tossed his coat out after him and slammed the door shut.
Carmen bent over to help Lucy stand up. She was wobbly, but smiling.
“Thanks, Andre,” she mumbled. “Yer my hero.”
“No problem,” Andre said. “Guy had it coming.”
She smiled and when they sat back down on their bar stools, she leaned her head on his shoulder.
Victor grinned. “Uh oh, Carmy, looks like someone's takin' a fancy to yer ol' man.”
Carmen waved her hand in the air as if she were tossing the idea away. “He's all yours, kid.”
Wesley laughed. “Pretty sure that's how Carmen fell for Andre, isn't it? You got too drunk and he punched some guy to 'protect your honor?'”
“That's how Andy gets all his dates!” Victor said, howling with laughter.
As Lucy's eyes slowly closed, Andre gently set her head on the bar and turned toward Victor, leaning in close and speaking through his teeth. “Say that again.”
Victor almost fell off his bar stool leaning away from Andre. “Just takin' a piss, ol' boy. Calm yerself.”
Andre kept glaring at him.
The Super Power Saga (Book 1): Super Powers of Mass Destruction Page 9
