“Yeah, we couldn’t miss this,” said one of his companions, a willowy young blonde with a wicked scar that cut across her right eye. Dressed in a floor-length gown, she gave me a hug and a quick peck on the cheek. “Thanks for inviting us.”
“And my thanks again for inviting me,” said Li, who was the third member of the newly-arrived trio. “Kane and Gossamer” – he indicated the youth and the blonde, respectively – “were kind enough to allow me to travel here with them.”
“Actually, we insisted,” said Kane.
“And it was no problem to swing by Alpha League HQ and scoop him up,” Gossamer added.
I merely made a grunt of acknowledgment, as I now found myself looking at Gossamer almost in disbelief.
“What is it?” she asked, noting my attention and giving herself a once-over. “Is there something wrong with my clothes?”
I shook my head. “No, I–”
“Is it my weapons?” Gossamer continued, as if she hadn’t heard me. At the same time, she reached towards a couple of ceremonial daggers that she always wore at her waist. “Because I can–”
“No, no, no,” I insisted, cutting her off.
“Then what?” she asked imploringly.
“It’s nothing,” I declared. “It’s just that…I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a dress before.”
Kane burst into laughter. “I know, right? But you have to admit that my girl cleans up rather nice.”
Blushing slightly, Gossamer’s response was to punch her boyfriend lightly on the arm, causing Kane to mutter an exaggerated, “Ow.” This was typical behavior for them, along with regular squabbling (which had initially begun as a way to mask their growing mutual attraction).
Gossamer turned back to me. “So it’s not my daggers?”
I shook my head. “No. To be honest, I barely noticed them.”
It was a sincere statement on my part. Although Gossamer was indeed wearing them, the daggers subtly and effectively blended in with her ensemble. Also, the fact that she seldom wore dresses was not a reflection on her femininity, but more indicative of the fact that she was always ready to spring into action.
Plainly speaking, Gossamer was an elf and incredibly beautiful – even with the scar across her eye. (In fact, the scar, which was a souvenir from a run-in with a supervillain, gave her a certain appeal, in my opinion.) As to the daggers, they were not just weapons, but one of the ways in which she wielded magic. This had resulted in a friendly rivalry with Kane – who employed sorcery – as to whose magical abilities were superior.
“Everything good here?” asked a familiar voice, bringing my attention back to the present. I turned and saw that my father had joined us without me even noticing. (In fact, I hadn’t even realized he was in the room.)
Of course. The magic that my friends had used to come here had drawn some attention. At this point, it was clear that it had been an innocuous event, as most of the nearby guests were going back to their prior conversations, but my father had come over to investigate anyway.
“Everything’s fine,” I assured him. “You remember Gossamer and Kane.”
“Yes, of course I do,” my father said, then greeted the two of them, as well as Li. “I hope you’re all enjoying the party.”
“We only just arrived,” Gossamer stated, “but this place seems beautiful. Do you know who it belongs to?”
“Some nouveau riche lout who thinks that money equals taste,” I quipped facetiously.
“I’ll pass your comments on to the owner.” My father deadpanned, but I could tell that he was amused. “Anyway, you kids have fun, and stay out of trouble.”
With that, Alpha Prime left us, winding his way through the throngs of those present.
“So when do we meet your grandmother?” Gossamer asked, her voiced laced with excitement.
I laughed. I had almost forgotten that Gossamer was a big fan of Indigo.
“Soon,” I promised. “After she finishes with the receiving line. But in the meantime, there are some other people you guys should probably meet.”
With that, I led Kane, Gossamer, and Li back to where I’d left Vela and Myshtal. A few minutes later, they had all become acquainted and were chatting amiably. (I didn’t need to introduce the newly-arrived trio to Vestibule – who was still present – as they had previously met. The same was true of Avis, who had disappeared without me noticing around the time my friends showed up.)
Unexpectedly, Vela excused herself. Stepping in my direction, she motioned me aside, overtly indicating that she wanted to have a word with me.
“Where’d Avis go?” she asked without preamble.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. She was there one second, gone the next.”
Vela let out a sigh of frustration. “That’s just great.”
My brow wrinkled in confusion. “What’s the problem?”
“I’m supposed to be keeping an eye on her,” Vela stated, looking around. “She’s kind of vulnerable right now.”
“Vulnerable?” I repeated, somewhat shocked. Did Avis have some weakness I didn’t know about?
“Emotionally vulnerable, dingbat,” Vela said playfully. “Her boyfriend recently dumped her.”
“He dumped her? She made it sound mutual.”
“Yeah, well, when you’re ranked as one of the world’s top supers, you don’t have the privilege of moping over failed relationships or lack of closure.”
“So what do you do?”
“In my sister’s case, she tends to rebound – usually quite quickly, but not always with the right kind of guy.”
Nodding, I followed Vela’s lead and began scanning the ranks of nearby guests, saying, “In that case, I think I might know where she…there!”
I inconspicuously pointed to an area on the opposite side of the room, where – unsurprisingly – Avis was engaged in deep conversation with Nobaxlin. Suddenly, she threw her head back, laughing gaily at something the Fleodin had just said.
“Okay, that’s my cue,” Vela declared. “Later, cuz.”
Giving me a short wave goodbye, Vela began making a beeline towards her sister. However, she had barely stepped away before I sensed a sharp flare of excitement and elation coming from my rear. Having been privy to this scenario before, I knew what was about to happen. Therefore, fighting the temptation to turn around, I decided to play along and stayed in the same position. A moment later, someone stepped directly behind me and placed a hand over my eyes.
I felt the person behind me lean in close, then grinned as a soft, feminine voice murmured, “Guess who?” next to my ear.
Chapter 22
It was, of course, my girlfriend, Electra. Smiling, I spun around – and then blinked as I took a good look at her.
She had her hair pinned up in an intricate, luxurious chignon that incorporated braids, layered curls, and waves. (I could tell just by looking at it that adopting this particular hairstyle had taken a significant amount of time and effort.) With respect to attire, she wore a strapless, full-length black dress. It was an exceptionally form-fitting little number, with a beaded, sweetheart neckline and a wide slit on one side that showed an ample – but not excessive – amount of leg. As to makeup, she’d stuck to her habit of using very little, with the most prominent application thereof being an alluring shade of deep red lipstick.
All in all, it was a more suggestive ensemble than she’d ever worn before, and I found it completely bewitching.
“Well?” she said, plainly inviting me to comment on her appearance.
Rather than respond verbally, I leaned in and kissed her.
A few seconds later, she pulled back, beaming, and said, “I’ll take that to mean you approve.”
“What, his drooling wasn’t enough of an indicator?” Kane joked, causing me to note that he, Li, and the others had come closer during the few moments when Electra and I had been…distracted.
Laughing along with everyone else at Kane’s comment, Electra patted me on the cheek and r
emarked, “Well, my baby only drools for the best.”
This elicited another round of chuckles, but I noticed that as she spoke, my girlfriend had cast a sharp but almost imperceptible glance in Vestibule’s direction. At the same time, I picked up on a pleased and self-satisfied emotional vibe coming from Electra, making it clear to me that her statement was only being made partially in jest. However, the overall message being conveyed was plain enough to anyone paying attention: fashion model or not, Vestibule was out of her league when it came to my affections.
Internally, I let out a sigh of relief. Based on what I’d heard about the last time those two had met (which had involved my girlfriend releasing a ball of electricity over Vestibule’s head), I wasn’t exactly sure they’d avoid locking horns at the party. Thankfully, both seemed to be in relatively affable moods. More importantly, if innuendo and intimation were all I’d have to deal with (especially on Electra’s part), it suggested that everyone would at least be civil to one another.
Sadly, all hopes for comity hit an abrupt speedbump a moment later when Myshtal said, “Hi, Electra. Your dress is lovely.”
*****
Later, when I replayed the scene in my mind, I should have realized there was a reason why Myshtal had been spared getting the same severe look from my girlfriend that Vestibule had received. It was because she wasn’t in the immediate vicinity at the time. (Apparently my betrothed was actually a few feet away from our little group, talking to someone with her back to us.) She had presumably stepped away for a few moments while I was talking to Vela, or around the time Electra had crept up behind me. Regardless, it seemed obvious that Electra had not initially noticed that the Caelesian princess was nearby.
Upon rejoining us, Myshtal had attempted something that she’d seen women on Earth do to break the ice when they met other females: compliment each other’s appearance. Needless to say, it’s probably more effective when the ice in question is more like a cube in size. What was between Myshtal and Electra was absolutely glacial in scope, as evidenced by the emotions the latter was broadcasting (which were far more intense than her feelings about Vestibule).
As if to confirm this, Electra muttered a chilly, nigh-inaudible “Thanks” in response to Myshtal’s comment.
Her remark was followed by an uncomfortable silence – a blatant indication that the mood of our group had definitely been altered. Of course, I hadn’t contemplated a scenario whereby Electra, Myshtal, and Vestibule would be in close proximity to one another, and it was a lot like transporting nitroglycerine and dynamite in a keg full of gunpowder. Basically, it felt like simply breathing the wrong way would set something off.
Seeking to reestablish the jovial atmosphere that had existed just moments earlier, I racked my brains for something to say but came up empty. As luck would have it, however, we were saved from having the situation become too awkward by one of my friends.
“So, Jim,” Gossamer intoned, “any chance you can make good on that promise to meet your grandmother?”
“Uh, sure,” I answered, trying to keep the relief out of my voice. “It might take us a minute to make our way through the crowd to get to her.”
“No need for that,” Electra chimed in. “Here she comes.”
I looked in the same direction as Electra and noticed that she was correct. My grandmother was indeed headed our way, walking with purposeful determination.
“There you are,” Indigo said when she reached us. From the way she said it, I got the impression that she had been looking for me.
“Did you need me for something, Sxahnin?” I asked.
“It can wait a moment,” she replied. “Who are your friends?”
Taking that as my cue, I introduced my grandmother to those among us that she didn’t already know (which was essentially everyone except Myshtal and Electra). Indigo then spent a few minutes chatting amiably with everyone, which actually did a lot to ease the tension in the air.
“Anyway,” she said after a minute or two, “I’ve got to get back to meeting-and-greeting folks, but it was very nice meeting you all.”
“Wait,” I said, almost too eagerly. “I think you mentioned needing me for something?”
“Actually,” she replied, seeming to contemplate, “I believe I’d prefer to take the girls with me.”
I frowned, nonplussed. “The girls?”
“I think she means us, genius,” Electra replied. “Me, Myshtal, Gossamer, and Vestibule.” She then turned to Indigo. “How many of us do you need?”
“All of you, to be honest,” my grandmother replied.
You didn’t need any special powers to know that Electra was a little crestfallen at Indigo’s response. My girlfriend had obviously been hoping to get rid of her rivals (for lack of a better term) – at least for a little while tonight. Unfortunately, it appeared that she and Gossamer would be going with them, and a moment later they were off, following close behind my grandmother as she worked her way through the crowd.
Indigo said telepathically, not bothering to turn around as she led the others away.
I smiled as Indigo, Electra, and the others headed back to the receiving line, now understanding that my grandmother’s arrival hadn’t been completely fortuitous. Apparently she’d been keeping an eye out to some extent.
“So,” Kane droned, bringing an end to my musing, “what should we men-folk do while the women are preoccupied?”
“There is much we could do to entertain ourselves,” Li noted, “but should we not include Smokescreen?”
“Smokey can join us when he gets here,” Kane stated firmly.
“I think what Li meant to convey is that Smokey is already here,” I said, pointing.
Kane looked in the direction indicated, where I assume he saw what I did: Smokey working his way towards us. After realizing we’d seen him, he gave us a quick wave. At that point, I noticed that Smokey had his other arm extended behind him, as if leading someone by the hand – presumably his girlfriend, Sarah. Thus, it came as somewhat of a shock to me when they cleared the crowd and I realized that his date was someone else entirely. Even more telling, they continued holding hands as they headed in our direction, not letting go until they reached us. Last but not least, Smokey’s date was actually someone I knew – a powerful teen super called Atalanta.
I kept silent as Smokey introduced Atalanta to Kane and Li. Truth be told, seeing her again was a little awkward for me, because the first time we met I was operating under a love spell that caused me to become wildly infatuated with her. Thankfully, very few people (including Atalanta herself) knew about the spell that had been cast on me, but I still found it embarrassing. Thus, I simply stood by quietly while the others chatted and probably would have been content to remain that way indefinitely had not Atalanta unexpectedly engaged me in conversation.
While Smokey was busy explaining something to Li and Kane, she suddenly turned to me and – speaking with a slight accent – said, “So, it appears that you’ve had some type of adventure lately.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Your aura. It’s changed significantly.”
I nodded. Atalanta had the ability to sense auras around other people – an atmosphere which she claimed reflected their inner qualities in the form of a few basic colors. My aura, however, had been different in that – per Atalanta – it pulsed through a wild kaleidoscope of chroma, among other things.
“So what’s different?” I asked after a few seconds.
She seemed to spend a moment looking me over before responding. “There’s still a wide range of colors, but they’re richer, more vibrant, than before.”
“What does that mean?”
She shrugged. “Your aura is still unlike anything I’ve ever seen, but at a guess I’d say that some new power or purpose has taken root in you.”
I fought to keep a look of surprise off my face. In truth, I actually had developed a new power on Caeles – a healing ability that I’d used to save Queen Dornoccia after she had been poisoned and shot. My new talent had not only made her hale and hearty, but also seemed to rejuvenate the queen – making her years younger. It was, without question, a unique ability; it was also a power that I hadn’t been unable to manifest since. Still, the idea of discussing it with someone who wasn’t part of my inner circle wasn’t that appealing to me, so I desperately wanted to change the subject.
Letting out a slight chuckle, I said, “As far as I know, I’m still the same guy. But enough about me. What have you been up to? I didn’t think the Argonauts spent much time away from home.”
Now it was Atalanta’s turn to be circumspect. She hailed from a small but wealthy island nation called Argo, and was a member of the Argonauts – her country’s team of supers. In the past, she had been incredibly judicious regarding the information she shared about her home and her teammates, so I assumed she would stay true to form and clam up. Much to my surprise, she gave what felt like a sincere and unrestrained response.
“I believe there’s an adage in your country about all work and no play,” she said, smiling. “We Argonauts work hard, so we play hard as well, taking downtime when we need it.”
“So this is downtime for you? Attending stiff formal events?”
She let out a slight giggle. “Actually, I like to travel, and my visit just happened to coincide with this party. But don’t members of the Alpha League do something similar in terms of taking time off to unwind?”
I reflected on her question for a moment before responding. “Different people do different things. Like you, some travel. Others might take up a sport, like golf. A few simply just look for a quiet place to retreat from the world for a little while.”
That last comment brought my father to mind. Alpha Prime had a secret base that he used as a refuge of sorts when he wanted to get away from everything.
Replication: A Kid Sensation Novel (Kid Sensation #6) Page 14
