Burn Out

by R. J. Ross

“Honey, are you okay?” a woman asks, running over to Crashtastic. I see Skye go still, looking shocked.

  “YOU!” Skye shouts, pointing at her.

  “Hello, Skystep,” the woman says. “It’s been a while.”

  “You two know each other?” Crashtastic asks, looking from one to the other in surprise.

  “You’re that…” Skye stops, frowning, and then walking around the woman, just as she had Crashtastic. I stare at her, as well, seeing something wrong with her energy levels. Without thinking I walk over.

  “What is this?” I ask Skye, silently.

  “Well, I heard that they took her powers,” she whispers back. “But… I don’t remember actually meeting anyone that’s had their powers taken, so I didn’t know…”

  Phoebe gives us both a dark look before her eyes focus on my uniform, and her expression changes to a thoughtful one.

  “She’s still…” Skye says, completely ignoring her.

  “Yeah,” I say, stunned. “Do you think they’re all like this?”

  “I think they might be,” she says. “We need to tell Nico. I’ll go call him.”

  “You might be behaving, now, Skystep, but I’m watching you,” I say. By this point, Phoebe has a sketchbook in her hands and is drawing.

  “I suppose your little silent conversation is over, now? Either way, I love your outfit… Burnout, wasn’t it?” Phoebe says. “For the next movie I’m going to have to look into the latest progress in glowing effects. I’m sure you’ll be in it. So, what seems so interesting about me?”

  “Is there a certain place you don’t mind us wrecking?” I ask the director in a whisper, ignoring her question.

  “Is there… is there some sort of problem with Phoebe?” he asks. “We were told she would be a great asset, and she has been—”

  “No problem at all,” I say, smiling at him.

  “Ah, then we should get to the arranged fight spot,” he says, looking at Phoebe with worry. I nod, and motion to the rest of the group as we start to follow. “Oh, should we wait for Skystep?” he asks.

  “She can find us,” Ariel says. “She can ALWAYS find us.” I glance over, seeing her with her arm over the shoulder of the actress that’s playing her. “I LOVE your hair,” she says to her.

  “I love yours!” the actress says, “but how do you keep it floating like that? We have to use CGI to do mine.”

  “It’s natural,” Ariel brags, only to shove the strand out of her face again.

  I would laugh, right now, but my mind is still stuck on what I just learned. The image of super energy inside of Phoebe’s body is almost burning in my retinas. She’s still a super. That power stripping potion that the Hall has is not what they think it is. And… I swallow, feeling worried, it wouldn’t take much for a high-level super with healing abilities to overcome it. Of course, I’ve heard stories of people dying when they use it, but only the really ancient supers, like Mimic, right? Their bodies probably weren’t equipped for the shock at the beginning.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  *Cape High Central*

  “So they’re not really NOT supers, and there’s a pretty good chance that if they have really, really good healing abilities, they’ll be not NOT supers in a very super way,” Skye finishes up. “Oh, I need to go, I’ve got to work, but we had to tell you that because it wasn’t just me that saw it! I’m paranoid and all, but not THAT paranoid. Jimmi saw it, too! Maybe she’s just as paranoid as I am?”

  “No, I believe you. That explains why it was so easy for her to give the sisters their powers back, as well as a few read-outs I’ve collected. I was just hoping it wasn’t something they could fix on their own,” Nico says, running a hand over his face. “Go do your work, Skye, I need to tell the Hall.”

  “I feel guilty for telling the Hall anything important, though,” she says, frowning.

  “But you’re NOT telling them, I am,” Nico says. “One thing, Skye, did Phoebe hear you two?”

  “I don’t think so? She got distracted drawing pictures of Jimmi’s outfit and going on about glowy effects. I want a glowy uniform, Nico! You can make me one, right?”

  “Yeah, sure, why not? Next time you come up for a visit I’ll see if I can’t throw something together. It might make sneaking into places harder, but you don’t sneak, do you?”

  “There should be an off switch, duh! You always put off switches on things… well, not always, but most of the time!” Skye says. “Gotta go! Bye, Nico!” The screen goes black, leaving Nico sitting there staring at a blank wall. He curses, waving a hand and bringing up every Hall leader on the screen. They all look shocked, and Century even lets out a curse. The world around him goes perfectly still.

  “Son, I’m at a very important luncheon, and you just created a hologram over my watch, so this had best be important,” he says.

  “I really don’t appreciate this, either,” Marigold says. “I’m supposed to go on stage in five minutes!”

  “Jimmi and Skye just ran into Phoebe Woods,” Nico says, going straight to the point.

  “Who?” Isotonic asks. “Is this really important enough to interrupt all five of us?”

  “Phoebe Woods, daughter of Massteria, the woman that gave up her powers in exchange for her freedom,” Mastermental sums up, “And what did they find?”

  “Skye says that she’s still a super,” Nico says. “That formula we used didn’t get rid of their super energy. My best guess is that it stopped the part of the brain that allows the body to USE that energy.”

  “I see…” Negatia says.

  “So what you’re saying is that there might be a possibility of them regaining their abilities?” Mastermental asks. “If there is a way to stop it, there should also be a way to restart it. That explains how the Beht sisters regained their powers so easily.”

  “And my niece is right there?” Century asks.

  “She is,” Nico says, “of course, we’ve had one run-in with Phoebe since we stripped her powers. I’d hoped that she would give up on regaining them…”

  “I see,” Mastermental says.

  “I’m going there,” Century says, standing.

  “Aren’t you in the middle of a luncheon?” Marigold asks. “If you suddenly disappear, they’ll KNOW exactly who you are instead of just having a suspicion.”

  Century slumps down in his seat again, groaning. “What about the ones in the Cape Cells?” he asks. “Massteria, Deathblow, Herold? All of them have been power stripped. What happens if they suddenly recover? Can they recover on their own?”

  “I don’t know,” Nico says, “but if they have even a bit of their old healing capabilities, it’s a very possible thing.”

  “We should have never used Star Born’s dirty work,” Negatia says. “Well, the ones in the Cape Cells are still highly guarded. If they do recover it shouldn’t make much difference. Just make sure they’re always wearing their collars, and we’ll be fine.”

  “But if Phoebe recovers, it might,” Nico says. “She’s still her father’s daughter.”

  “We’ll double the security on the Cape Cells,” Century says, “and I’ll send more black suits to the set. All we have now is a worry, not a problem, not yet. And while we’re having this discussion, why did you tell me to let the mad scientist boy go?”

  “What mad scientist?” Isotonic asks. “I’m in the market for another villain. I would like to hear this.”

  “I’m hanging up,” Marigold says. “Tell me if something pops up involving that tank boy of yours. I might be interested in knowing.” She hangs up before he can reply.

  “Don’t you think she has enough tanks out there already?” Isotonic complains. “She should branch out.”

  “I’m perfectly fine with her taking all the tanks, too much power takes away from the balance of a good show,” Negatia says.

  “We can discuss Davis later, Century,” Nico says. “Don’t worry, I’m watching the situation like a hawk.”

  The group hangs up, except for Masterme
ntal, who suddenly has Max in the background. “We will speak with Star Born about this,” Double M says. “I think she has been left to herself for long enough.”

  “She could have TOLD us that it wouldn’t last,” Nico complains. “Well, it’s lasted this long, at least. That says something about its power.”

  “Is Jimmi safe, though?” Max asks, frowning.

  “Jimmi?” Nico repeats. “What are you thinking, Max?”

  “I’m thinking that there’s always the possibility that Phoebe Woods was the one that caused Skye to attack me that day,” Max says. “If that’s the case, if Phoebe suddenly gets her powers back, Jimmi is the one that could be in trouble. When Skye attacked me, it was because she thought I was my father.”

  “And… Jimmi wears Voltdrain’s colors,” Nico says, frowning.

  “We are jumping to conclusions, gentlemen,” Mastermental says.

  “We’re supers, that’s how things work for us,” Nico says.

  “I’m going down there,” Max says. “Nico, can I get their coordinates?”

  “There’s no need,” Nico says. “I’ll call Vinny. He should be acting as a hero, anyway.”

  ***

  *Skystep the Movie Set*

  “Hello, Skystep the Movie people!” Skye declares, appearing on top of one of the trailers. “I’m here to make sure you all do me and my girls justice!” She does her best “justice” pose, before hopping off of the trailer and running straight through the black guards that move to block her. She stops in front of the woman acting as her, giving her a brilliant smile. “That’s why I’m going to take… you!” she tells the woman, picking her up. The look of shock on the actress’s face almost makes me laugh.

  “Oh, oh, are we kidnapping our doppelgangers?” Ariel asks. “I want to take mine! We can go swimming together!”

  “Do I have to?” Doris asks.

  “YES!” Skye says, posing one-handed. “They need to know exactly how to be us! I am a METHOD ACTRESS!”

  “You’re not an actress at all, Skystep, so put the real one down,” I declare, doing my own little “justice pose.” Also, that was just a total lie. Skye is an excellent actress. She couldn’t pull things like this off, if she wasn’t. We have an audience and several cameras on us. Oh, sure, the HTV-S drones are flying, but we’re talking the huge, made-for-movies sort of cameras. This entire thing is being filmed.

  “If they’re filming this, I can’t shrink everything,” Dolly whispers over the commlink. “What do I do?”

  “Aim and miss,” I whisper back.

  “Got it,” Dolly says.

  “Ruckus, go on in, Doris is ready to stop you,” I go on, looking at Doris. Oh, she’s grabbed her actress, or should I say that her actress has grabbed her? The woman is clinging to Doris’s arm, looking excitedly up at her.

  “Do you work out? My gosh, these arms are solid, aren’t they?” I hear her ask. “Oh, I heard you had a bigger Devil version, can we see it?” Doris looks at Ruckus, almost pleadingly.

  “On it,” Ruckus says, stepping forward. “Jersey! Let the actress go!”

  “Well, if you insist,” Doris says, struggling just a bit to get the actress off of her without hurting her. Wow, she’s got quite a good hold on her, doesn’t she? I thought for sure that actresses as famous as these three wouldn’t be fangirls, but I guess I was wrong. I look over at Ariel and her actress, seeing them looking at pictures on Ariel’s phone.

  “And this is our seventies party!” Ariel says. “We LOVE seventies outfits, because then we get to make Jersey’s hair this massively huge afro, and then she starts throwing stuff at us!”

  “So you guys live together?” the actress asks.

  “We have a secret base! And a pool and a lake and a hot tub and trips to the ocean and SO MUCH WATER!” Ariel says, blissfully.

  “RAINDANCE! We’re kidnapping them!” Skye yells at her partner. “You can show her pictures AFTER we get rid of the goody-two-boots heroes!” Skye says, only to point at me. “You! You little glowy girl! You’re mine!”

  I glance over, seeing Ruckus and Doris duking it out as the Jersey actress stands to the side, looking worried. Which one she’s worried about, well, no, I have a pretty good idea. Skye appears right in front of me, booping me on the nose. “Boop!” she says, grinning widely. I glare at her, and she giggles. “Your eyes get brighter when you’re mad!” she says. “So glowy!” She wraps her arms around me, hauling me into the air. “Burnout! I can give you ALLLLL OF THIS!” she declares, motioning with her free arm to indicate the ground below. “Come to the dark side!”

  “I will never be one of your lackeys!” I say angrily.

  “I’m not a lackey! I’m upper management!” Doris yells over her shoulder, only to get hit in the face by Ruckus.

  “Am I supposed to be offended now?” Ariel asks, only to jump as the chair next to her shrinks dramatically. “OOOH! Dollface! I get you, today?” she asks, holding her actress several feet above the ground. I think she’s forgotten that she’s still holding her.

  “Put the actress down, Raindance!” Dolly says, posing. “I don’t want to hurt her!”

  “I think being put down now might hurt me more than you would,” the actress says, looking down apprehensively.

  “But I like her! She’s ADORABLE!” Ariel says, rubbing her cheek against the actress’s. “Skystep! Skystep! Can I keep her?”

  “Only if you promise to feed and water her, Raindance!” Skye says. I punch her, and she lets out the most dramatic “OOF!” I’ve ever heard, jumping back several feet. I stay there, floating with my fists up. Once she’s done her little show, she looks at me, grinning. “Ohh, the little glowbug has learned to fly!” she says. “How exciting for you!”

  “These people are not pets, Skystep! They’re professional actresses!” I say.

  “Oh, come on, we’ll take them and then we’ll take their places! I can star in my own movie!” Skye says. “Cameras, on me!” she commands them, posing in a way that’s supposed to be “sexy” but looks ridiculous. “See? The cameras LOVE ME!” She rushes forward, slamming into me and sending me flying, this time. I fall to the ground, hitting so hard that I skid for a bit. The first couple of times we fought, she was constantly checking that she didn’t hurt me, so I’m not surprised to find her floating above me, now, watching me closely. I get to my feet, launching myself at her, again. I want to dust off, sure, but that would ruin the fight. Instead I wind up going straight through her, almost losing my balance, for real.

  She’s going to do her flip kick, just like she always does. I turn, my hand lighting up with power, and grab the leg as it starts to come down. There’s an honestly surprised look on her face.

  “You caught me?” she says. “Oh my gosh, girls! Girls! She caught me!” she says. “Our baby nemesis is growing up so big and strong!” She pretends to wipe a tear away.

  “That’s not a GOOD THING, Skystep!” Doris shouts before being flung across the area by Ruckus. “It means she’s growing up to be able to BEAT YOU!” she finishes after crashing into a plastic table.

  “Of course she’s going to be a problem,” Ariel says, dancing around another shrinking object, “she’s the daughter of Voltdrain, right?”

  “That’s right, I am!” I say, proudly. I shove the leg I’m holding up, trying to toss Skye, but she goes with the motion, doing a flip in the air and lashing out with her other leg to kick me hard in the side. I go flying, this time not on purpose, and hit a wall, hard, crashing through it. There’s a tiny tinkling sound, but I barely notice it. That HURT! “Owwww.” I take a few extra seconds to get to my feet and dust the rubble off of my clothes. I have to get back into hero mode, quickly, because all of the cameras are aimed at me, right now.

  “Skystep! Your devious plot to take over the movie ends here, now!” I say, pointing at her. She gives me the little hand motion that means, “Did that hurt? Should we end it early?” I shake my head ever so slightly. I’m fine. I can take a way harder hit than that
and keep going.

  “But it’s MY MOVIE!” Skye says, petulantly. “I should be in it!”

  “Leave the acting to professionals!” Dolly says, posing. It’s sort of ruined by the fact that Ariel is copying her pose, right behind her. Dolly turns, pointing a finger at her, as well. “That means you, too, Raindance!”

  Doris grunts, and we all look over to see her surrounded by broken plastic furniture, with a water tank on her head. Ruckus looks quite proud of herself as she stands over her.

  “Jersey!” the Jersey actress cries. She starts forward, only to get blocked by Ruckus’s arm.

  “She’s a dangerous villain, ma’am, you shouldn’t get too close,” Ruckus says, completely straight-faced. I think she’s saving Doris more than she is the actress, but I’m not about to say a word. Doris has a lot of experience dealing with airheads, she would survive.

  “But she might be hurt, right?” the actress asks, hesitantly, looking at Ruckus, who’s in her metal form. “Oh, wow, that’s amazing. Have I mentioned how grateful I am that there are women tanks? I know this is awkward, but… can I touch your skin?”

  Ruckus stares at her.

  “Skystep, you’re going down, here and now!” I say, more to distract them from Ruckus than anything else. Doris shoves the water tank off of her head and gets up, wobbling slightly.

  “I’m done,” she announces, stretching her wings and taking to the air.

  “Jersey! You can’t run away, now! We were about to take over the movie!” Skye complains, jumping into the air to chase her partner.

  “It was fun!” Ariel says, waving at her actress, “But it’s time to go!”

  “I never WANTED to take over the movie!” Doris says, loud enough to be heard. “We’re super villains, not actors!”

  “We would be actresses, not actors! And everyone knows that actresses are better than actors!” Skye goes on, even as they fly off.

  “Shouldn’t you be chasing them?” the director asks us.

  “We apologize for anything that’s been broken,” I say.

  “They’re getting away,” Ruckus says, pulling away from the actress that’s moving closer and closer while trying to stay discreet. “We need to leave. Send any bills to South Hall.” She races off, leaving me to scoop up Dolly and chase after her. Dolly doesn’t run well in heels. Oh, she does it better than I would, but not fast enough to keep up with Ruckus when she’s running like that.