by R. J. Ross
"Who the hell are you?" he asks, looking shocked. "I don't remember drinking last night--"
She waves a hand and he goes perfectly still, his eyes glazing over. "Darling, how could you forget me?" she asks, putting her coffee down so she can walk over and fix his tie. "You're taking me to work with you, today," she says.
"Yes," he says, nodding. "We need to get to work," he goes on, almost snapping out of it. "I'm already an hour late."
"Then let's get going, shall we?" she says, heading out the door. "Today was a very important day, wasn't it?"
"It's the parade," he says.
"So everyone will be outside?" she asks eagerly.
"Well, yeah, that's the whole point of a parade."
"Wonderful!" she says. "While we're heading there, you can tell me all about your special job," she adds as he joins her in the truck. "I can't wait to see it in action."
***
The crowd is eating this up. I know and they know that they're supposed to be scared right now, but no one cares. The dance music is blasting, Ace's dragon is flying overhead and doing tricks, Jack's float is shifting forms, creating amazing sculptures in rapid succession, and Skye and her group are throwing candy everywhere. Right now they should be recording Carla and Dad starting to release the capes from "my power." We need to make the most of this party--it will be a short one. I grab my mic and wave to Rocco. The music stops, abruptly.
"Quiet, quiet!" I call, waving a hand. "I have an announcement to make. Those of you that came yesterday already know this, but I'd like to repeat it. I am Mastermental's only son." The crowd watches, bringing out their phones to record this. "So now that he's out of the picture, it's my right, no, it's my DUTY to take over Central Hall."
"Where is he?" someone shouts. "Where's Mastermental?"
"He's retired," I say, grinning evilly.
"Why didn't he tell us that he was retiring?" someone asks.
"It was a short notice sort of thing," I say cheerfully. "He didn't notice until it happened, that is." The screen on my float lights up and the video of me taking Dad down starts playing. The sound echoes over the crowd so those that can't see can at least hear it. The crowd boos as the video stops and I let out my most evil laugh. "Did you really buy that line about not having heroes or villains anymore?" I ask. "How naive can you be, people? I've been planning this for months, now! I've been acting like the good son so everyone thinks I'm switching sides. Why in the world would I EVER want to be a hero?"
They start booing even louder, and I love it. "Really, people, I have an entire parade of VILLAINS here!" I taunt them. "Do you really think I'm not biased?" The dragon that had been entertaining them so much lands on the Hall building, looming there dangerously. "You'd better get used to this," I tell them. "You're looking at the members of the new Central Hall."
Panther shifts into his massive panther form and Jack takes to the air on his surfboard, buzzing right over the tallest heads. "Let me introduce you to the New Super World Order!" I say, my voice echoing. "With years of experience and a family lineage all the way from Africa, our second-in-command, and my personal mentor, PANTHER!" I yell into the mic. Pan shifts again, this time into his hybrid form, and several little kids let out squeals of fear and excitement.
"Next is our master illusionist, the man of a million faces AND teeth, the one, the only, DRAGON!" I go on. The dragon bows his head, revealing that Ace is riding on its neck. "And give it up for our metal manipulator, the man that shines so bright all of K.C. has to wear shades, COLD STEEL!" Every piece of metal in the area screams as he twists them with a flick of his hand. "And then there's our newest member, the king of shadows, and apparently a lover of dubstep, NIGHTSTEP!"
A heavy bass starts pounding over the speakers. I go on, as the sound lowers a second later, "We also have a very famous trio visiting us from South Branch for this little party. You know their leader, and I'm sure you'll get to know her new partners soon--Skystep and her ladies!"
That actually gets a roar of approval. "I'm sure that you all will be very comfortable under--" The screen on my float blinks, flickering a few times. "Wait," I say. "what's going on? I don't have any new videos planned for this!"
There's static for a moment before Dad's face appears on the screen. "Hello, everyone," he says. "I apologize for this slight... interruption in your festivities, but I have to make a small announcement."
"How did you get free?" I demand.
"With a bit of help from Hypersonic Rainbow," Dad says, looking straight at me. Carla peeks over his shoulder, grinning and waving. "She's a very promising new member of our Hall, don't you think?"
"I told you that she wasn't under," Rocco calls over to me.
"That's why I expected YOU to take care of the problem," I tell him. "You're the one that was flirting with her, you should have a cute little speedster girlfriend by now!"
"I don't date villains!" Carla declares proudly.
"So cruel," Rocco complains. "I thought we had something!"
"Regardless of personal... affairs," Dad says, "I'm afraid the rumors of my retirement are greatly exaggerated. I haven't retired, and I don't agree with a Hall of villains. Technico," he says. Nico, who's just been floating with a lifeless expression on his face, looks up. "You really shouldn't indulge him so much."
Nico starts laughing. I make my most shocked expression. "Wait--you weren't--" I say.
"I'm always up for a parade," Nico says with a grin. "But it looks like I've been found out, so..." He pauses, looking thoughtful for a moment, "how does that go, again... MAXIMUM!" he declares dramatically, striking a pose and pointing at me, "your wicked deeds stop here!"
I stare at him, and then slowly bring the mic back up to my mouth. "Am I the only one that thought that was totally fake looking?" I ask quietly. The audience roars with laughter.
"America's Son," Dad says, making Ken look up sharply. "Star Spangled, Mega, Firefly," one by one he calls each of the Central Hall, and they "break free" of my mind control. "It's time to take back our Hall," Dad says. They all, turn, looking at me.
"Hey, hey, can't we all just get along?" I ask, holding up my free hand. "Violence never solves anything, you know!"
"Technico," Firefly says sweetly, "You just stood back and LET him brainwash me?"
"Well, sis, you know how it goes--you train a kid up right and you want to see him shine!" Nico says with an evil grin. "He almost got away with it, too. I have to admit, I'm a bit proud right now."
"Thanks, Principal Technico," I say, grinning shamelessly--only to find myself surrounded by super heroes. "Oh well, it was fun while it lasted," I say, slamming down on them with my gravity power and taking to the sky. It doesn't work. Soon we're in a free-for-all of showy brawls, and I'm face to face with Ken--until he punches me, sending me flying miles straight up.
"Ow," I say, rubbing my jaw. I stay there for a moment, watching the brawl and the crowd's reactions--and I see her. "We've got Phoebe Woods in the audience," I say, touching my earbud. "I repeat, Phoebe Woods in the audience, heading straight for--" I let out a curse, "My family," I finish, racing straight to the ground again. I don't know when she got here, or how, but I know how I plan on her leaving if she hurts one of my siblings.
It very well might include a body bag.
***
"Where have you been?" his supervisor demands as Bob walks into the room. "You were supposed to be here over an hour ago!"
"Sorry, sir, it won't happen again," Bob says, heading for the locker room to put away his things.
"Some of the boys said you went home with a woman."
"A woman?" Bob asks, his mind feeling fogged all of a sudden. He doesn't remember going home with anyone... "No, sir, no women, I went home and slept. I was doing double duty, remember?"
"That's true. I'm surprised you made it back when you did," his supervisor admits. "Regardless, get to work. We need everyone on deck."
"Sir, yes sir," Bob says, heading out of the room and down t
he hall. He's supposed to be on guard duty, but he turns down a different hall, going down a set of stairs and pulling out his badge. He slides it down a security slot and then presses his hand to the panel, entering the Satellite Control room. He crosses the room and sits down in his chair, bringing up the screen he's practiced on so many times.
Now... who was he supposed to target again?
Right, everyone with powers, starting with...
***
"This is AWESOME!" Chet yells. It's like the ultimate party. His dad had even bought them snacks and drinks from a vendor on the side of the street. "Hey, they're throwing candy! Layne, look! They're throwing candy!" he says over his shoulder to his sister.
"Who wants candy?!" Skystep yells to the crowd. Chet automatically races forward through the crowd, and waves his hands in the air. His drink splashes over the edge of the cup and spills on his watch. He yelps as the watch sparks dangerously. "Oh crud, oh crud--" he says.
The illusion starts shorting out. One second his skin is dark, the next it's pasty pale. The people nearest him jerk, startled by the change. A hand drops onto his shoulder and a woman leans down, whispering in his ear, "Found you."
"What--who are you?" Chet says, but the look in his eyes says he knows exactly who she is. "Let go of me!" He jerks, but he's no match for her strength.
"No, I don't think so," she says, her hand still firmly gripping his shoulder. "You really should be more careful, Chet, people are starting to stare. We wouldn't want them to realize who you are, now would we?"
"Don't touch me," he says, trying to jerk away. Her hand tightens slightly and he winces. "You're Phoebe Woods, aren't you? You're Massteria's daughter!" he accuses her.
"Do you really think you should be saying such a thing?" Phoebe asks. "You might get your big brother's attention."
"I WANT to get his attention!" he says. "MAX! MAX, SHE'S HERE!"
"You shouldn't have done that, Chet. I thought you liked your brother," she says as she turns, watching the super villain in question racing towards them.
"He's going to take you dow--" Chet says, only to stop and stare in horror as a light shoots down from the sky, hitting Maximum in the back. The look of shock on Max's face is all the warning they get before he falls to the ground, powerless. "MAX!" he shouts, trying to go to his big brother. Phoebe grabs him, hauling him closer and patting his cheek.
"That hard of a hit probably killed him," she says, as if comforting him. "I mean, he did just lose his powers. Too bad, he was pretty impressive for a fake villain." The smug smile on her face says she's lying about it being "Too bad."
"Why are you doing this?" Chet demands. He knows that the others will come and save him soon--"HOW are you doing this?" he demands.
"He should have already shot... ah, there we go," Phoebe says as Technico starts to plummet to the ground. "I love it when a plan comes together," she says with satisfaction. "Now, Chet, you and I are going to take a little walk. I want everyone that thinks they can save you to get a chance."
She hears a woman scream and looks over, watching for a moment. Wendy is shoving through the crowd, trying to get to Max. "Max--" Wendy says, "Max, you--"
"Now!" Phoebe says, grinning broadly. She's taken out Max and the technopath, Bob is fully in control of the satellite system, and SHE is in control of Bob! "What was that stupid phrase, again? Oh, right. Come at me, bro," she says gleefully. One by one the heroes and fake villains will fall, and all she has to do is stand here!
***
"Max!" The voice is familiar, but I can't quite place it. Actually, for a moment I'm not even sure if that's my name. I hit pretty hard, there. I also feel as weak as a kitten and my head is killing me. "Max, wake up! You're not dead. You can't die--you're a super!"
Honestly, dying might be preferable to her incessant screeching. I gasp, trying to get breath into my lungs and failing for a very long moment. When the air comes back, I still try not to move too much because it hurts. I don't actually have much experience with pain. I mean, when you've had powers since you were a baby, you don't have much problem with falling on your head. Not that I haven't fallen on my head, of course. I do it all the time, especially when fighting Trent.
"I said to WAKE UP!" she yells right in my face. I groan. My powers are starting to come back, but it's nowhere near what they need to be. I wonder how-- "Can you... please stop screaming?" I ask weakly. "I've got... a killer... headache."
To my shock, when I open my eyes I find myself looking at my mother. "M--Mo--Wendy?" I correct myself, stunned.
"You're alive," she says, tears falling down her cheeks. "You hit so hard," she hauls me into her arms, hugging me so tightly that I have trouble breathing. "I didn't think you were dead, of course--you're too stubborn to die that easily--"
"Not so tight," I gasp, trying to squirm in her hold. "You're strangling me."
"What?" she asks.
"Strangling me," I repeat, patting her on the arm in an "I give up" move.
"You--you're a norm?" she asks, pulling away to look at me. "You're--you're beat up," she says.
"That's what happens when someone hits you with a power blocker," I say. "HOW did she hit me with a power blocker? Nico?" I say, reaching up and touching my earbud. "What just happened?"
"Sorry, Max, Nico's knocked out at the moment," Taurus says. "She got him a second after she got you. It looks like he hit his head when he fell."
"So we've got no clue?" I demand. "Everyone! She's somehow shooting power blocking from the sky. I don't know how, but stay away from her!"
"She's got a hostage," Ken says, "your little brother."
I let out a curse, trying to get to my feet, only to stagger and almost fall on my face again. I feel like throwing up. The world is swirling in front of my eyes. "I need to save Chet," I say, forcing myself to try again. I fall forward, onto my hands and knees. I thought I was helpless when Layne was kidnapped. This is far, far worse.
"Max, honey," Zoe says over my earbud, "stay down. I've got this."
"Don't--she'll take your powers--"
"If you'd been wearing your E.P.B. like you were supposed to, she wouldn't have taken yours," she lectures me. "Which is why DAD should have been wearing one, as well! He invented the darn things!"
"We were in the middle of a dramatic fight. You don't wear an E.P.B. when you're doing that, it'd be rude to your opponents," I say as I roll over onto my back. "I was supposed to be the one to finish this fight," I complain.
"Oh no, Max, this is definitely MY fight," she says. "Now just stay there and try to look dead, okay?"
***
"I wasn't actually planning on using this," Zoe says as she rushes into the back half of the Hall. She heads into a restroom, pulling her new uniform out of her bags. She changes quickly, strapping on as many belts as Kim would allow. She pulls her mask on last, stepping in front of the mirror and looking at herself. This is definitely worth making a temporary, one-time-only debut, right? Phoebe had almost killed Max and her father!
With that thought she heads out, raising her hand and waving it through the air to call Mastermental. "Double M?" she says. "Do we have any idea how she took Max's powers away?"
"I'm not sure," Double M admits, frowning. "It looked as if the light came from above--we know that her father is still in lockdown, so he can't be assisting her--"
"Do you think Herold left something that we didn't know about?" she asks. "Did she even know Herold?"
"I highly doubt it," he admits. "I'm honestly not sure how she got a hold of a power blocker from outer space--"
It takes Zoe all of a second to look up and think about it. "You don't think Dad would have done something, do you?" she finally says.
"A power blocking pulse from above--a quick and easy way to negate a super's powers..." Mastermental says, dryly. "Does that sound like something your father would do?"
"Really, Double M, why did you allow him to play with the new satellite?" she says, sighing in exasperation.
"Fine, let's see--" she brings up the satellite information, only to groan. "It'd take over twenty minutes to breach this thing," she says, "even for me, his own daughter. What was he thinking?"
"I am almost positive," Mastermental says, "that he was thinking about other technopaths trying to get into his system."
"Fine," she says. "There has to be some sort of control room, do you know where?" she asks, bringing up the Hall systems again and racing through the building.
"Taurus is down," she hears a black suit say over the com-link. "Star Spangled is down. Cold Steel is down--will that kill him? He's not looking so good."
"There," Zoe says, a chill running down her spine as she hears that last part. What WOULD happen to Jack if he loses his powers? She has to stop this. "I've found it." She slams open the door and crosses the room, stopping next to the man with a glazed expression and a finger on the trigger of what looks a bit like a joystick. "Stop right there," she says.
He completely ignores her, lining up another shot and pulling the trigger. She growls and presses her hand to the dash, freezing the entire system. "I said to STOP RIGHT THERE," she says as he finally looks up. He throws himself at her, clearly brainwashed, and she grabs his wrists. "I really don't want to hurt you," she says.
"Bob!" someone says from behind her. "What are you doing?"
"He's under Phoebe Wood's mind control!" Zoe says. "I don't want to hurt him, but we have to get him to snap out of it!"
"Shock him out of it," Mastermental says. "I'm sure you can manage that, Zoe."
"It won't hurt him too much, will it?" she asks.
"Do it very lightly," Mastermental advises.
"Miss Rosenthorn-Masters, we can knock him out for you if you really don't feel... capable," a female black suit says.
"She's the daughter of Technico, isn't she?" Zoe hears someone whisper. "Don't you think she could do it, herself?"
