by Eden Redd
Syndra stood, energy reaching out to her hands as she tried to absorb it. The witch cried out as her will began to crack.
Skorp stood, rage in his eyes as his shield continued to drain. He stepped forward, his menacing glare on Jon and his mother when a blast hit him in the chest. Skorp looked up to see the bartender walking toward them with a shotgun in his hands. Behind him, Cora stood on the bar top with knives in her hands and determined fury in her gaze.
“I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” the bartender shouted before he pumped the shotgun, aimed and pulled the trigger.
The blast forced Skorp back a step. Cora’s hands moved in a blur, pairs of knives launching from her hands with power and accuracy. The shield flickered, knives sinking into synthetic flesh.
“Enough of this!” Skorp screamed as he lifted up his hands.
Energy pulsed before it blasted out. Lilly pumped her legs toward the bartender. He tried to run for cover when an energy blast nicked his arm and sent him spinning and crashing to the floor. Cora leapt into a sideways somersault, her arms blurring forward. Knives melted to nothing and energy streams blasted them from the air.
Sandra helped her son up during the chaos.
Skorp continued to feel the draining of his power. Turning his gaze, he glared at Syndra as she was down to one knee.
“My victory will not be robbed by an elf!” Skorp pointed his hand and unleashed a stream of energy.
Syndra stood her ground, accepting her fate as she continued to drain Skorp’s power. Shortly before the energy blast reached her, Zelda stepped in and blocked it with her body. The blast stuck Zelda and she grunted as sea elf flesh burned.
“NO!” Jon screamed as he charged into the fray.
“Jon!” Sandra called out.
Skorp turned his attention to the incoming Jon and smiled.
Push my luck!
“You pathetic whelp,” Skorp growled.
The shield flickered as Jon’s hand formed a point. Adrenalin fueled him as his hand reached past the flicking field. Jon pushed every bit of power into his arm. Fingertips jammed into Skorp’s throat, puncturing synthetic flesh. Skorp’s eyes widened a hair. Jon felt two of his fingers break but he continued into the android’s throat and gripped the insides with his remaining fingers. Coiling his fingers, he pulled a few wires and caused tubes of black liquid to break and spurt.
Skorp laughed. “That was your plan? I have redundant systems and your gambit was a miss.”
Jon pulled back his hand, pulling anything he could with it as Skorp clamped a hand on his shoulder and held him close. Skorp looked into Jon’s eyes as the young man smiled.
“You lost. Why are you smiling?”
A shotgun barrel slid over Jon’s shoulder and touched the front of Skorp’s throat. Lilly’s eyes were cold as ice as her finger touched the trigger.
“I trusted my girlfriend to be there for me,” Jon grinned.
Lilly pulled the trigger. The shotgun blast ripped through Skorp’s neck, sending black fluids and metal flying out of the back of his neck. Skorp’s head flopped to the side as Lilly’s arm whipped around Jon’s waist and pulled. The couple went flying back but stopped abruptly as Skorp took hold of Jon, the shotgun hitting the floor.
“You!” Skorp’s voice came out robotic with edges of rage.
Skorp’s head barely stayed connected to the neck. Sparks flashed as fluids dripped. Jon felt the power of his luck turn. He knew bad luck was coming for him. Glancing up, he saw one of the larger lights hanging by a single wire. It snapped and began to fall toward him.
“Bad luck,” Jon smiled and allowed his body to become deadweight.
Skorp bent forward, his mechanical body trying to compensate for the damage and keeping his balance. The shift of weight caused him to be over Jon as the spotlight fell silently down. Jon watched with amused eyes as the light struck the back of Skorp’s head, the edge slicing through the remaining bit of his neck.
Energy sparked and exploded as Skorp’s head came off. He let go of Jon as Lilly grabbed him and pulled him back. The elf turned her body as Jon fell on his back. Lilly covered his body with her own.
“Now!” William shouted as a barrage of air bolts blasted out from his hand.
Sandra was airborne, lightning streaming from her hands. Cora threw almost every blade in her hand. Syndra crawled to Zelda and laid her body onto hers.
Air, lightning, and sharp blades sank into and struck the trunk of the headless body. Skorp’s android form shuddered and shook from the damage. Cora leapt down from the bar and darted forward, screaming. Sandra bolted down, energy claws flashing. Both women reached the shuddering android, a blade slicing across the side of a knee and energy claws slicing along the midsection.
Sandra and Cora were on the floor, kneeling side by side as the android shuddered again, sparked and fell down.
William stepped closer, aimed his hand at the downed robotic body and unleashed another barrage of air bolts, shattering the thing to pieces and scattering them along the floor.
Lilly lifted her upper body and looked down on Jon. The young man was cut and bloody, but he had a wide smile on his face.
“How did you know?” Lilly asked with a whisper.
“I didn’t. I just trusted you,” Jon whispered back.
Lilly’s eyes trembled before she kissed him.
Tears filled Syndra’s crimson eyes as she lay on Zelda. A webbed hand reached up and hugged her. The witch looked down with wide eyes to Zelda’s sharp grin.
“I thought…” Syndra began and looked to the burnt flesh at Zelda’s shoulder. It was slowly beginning to heal as the wound closed.
“It’s my duty… to protect the ones I love,” Zelda smiled.
“You beautiful pirate!” Syndra laughed before kissing her friend and holding her close.
Skorp’s head lay on its side, eyes opening.
“You may have won this round, but…” Skorp’s words stopped as William slammed his foot down, crushing the head in.
“He always does that when he is defeated,” William said as he turned to Jon and Lilly sitting up.
Sandra rushed to them, hugging them both. William stepped over, fell to his knees and hugged all of them in his big arms.
Cora stood up and turned around. Tears streaked her cheeks as she saw everyone was safe. Falling to her knees, she sobbed tears of happiness as the sounds of sirens could be heard in the distance.
Seven
Thunder Scales and Blue Claws wore their masks as they spoke to several detectives. The club was filled with witnesses, paramedics and police officers. The bartender filled plastic cups with water as several remaining strippers picked them up and handed them out. The bartender smiled as he worked, a bandage wrapped around his arm and he whistled a happy tune.
Jon sat in a chair by a table. Paramedics applied healing gel to his two broken fingers before wrapping them in a bandage so they could heal. The elves stood by him, looking down with smiles.
The young man turned his gaze to Zelda. The blast she took to the arm had begun to heal. The sea elf grinned as she told him a few moments earlier that her species regenerates fairly quickly and she should be fine in a day or two. It didn’t stop Jon from kissing her in relief that she wasn’t hurt too badly, considering the circumstances.
“Quite the exciting evening,” Lilly smiled as she put her hand on Jon’s shoulder.
Jon nodded and winced as the paramedic finished bandaging him up.
“The gel should do its job. Your fingers should be completely healed in two days. Three days if you try to use it,” the paramedic informed with a small smile.
“Thank you,” Jon said as he held up his bandaged fingers and looked them over.
Thunder Scales left the detectives and walked over to Jon and the elves. When he reached them, he gave a reassuring smile.
“We spoke with the detectives and informed them of the situation and what happened here. They were glad to have our statements and si
nce we did Southvale a favor for taking down Skorp’s killer android, they said all of you are free to go. They will run the information up the chain of command and they will decide what to do next with Skorp when they find him.”
“Can we stay and help?” Jon asked.
William looked down on his son with proud eyes. “You all have done an amazing job. I can honestly say that without all of you, it would have been a harder fight and more citizens could have been hurt in battle. You’ve done your city a great deed. I think you’ve earned your rest for tonight.”
Zelda’s eyes watered before she rushed Jon’s father and hugged him tight. William hugged her back and nodded.
Jon stood up. Lilly, Cora, and Syndra moved closer to him. Zelda and William pulled back from their embrace as Jon’s father faced them again.
“Go home. We’ll finish with cleaning up here,” William smiled.
Jon nodded. Lilly took Jon’s hand and led him to the front doors. The rest of the crew followed. Stepping through the corridor and into the street, camera’s flashed as reporters begged with questions.
“What happened in there tonight?” one reporter shouted.
“Was this some sort of elf attack like on the Boardwalk last week?” another shouted.
“Is it true that a supervillain was behind this attack?” a third yelled.
Jon said nothing as he, Lilly, Zelda, Syndra, and Cora left. The SHPD made a hole and lifted the yellow caution tape to let them through. Reporters were about to follow them when Thunder Scales and Blue Claws emerged. The crowd went wild as they clamored for the two superheroes.
Thunder Scales lifted his hands, “We will answer your questions the best we can. This is an ongoing investigation and we need to keep some of it confidential.”
Jon looked back at his father and mother. Blue Claws gave him a smile and a wink before addressing the crowd.
The small group quietly slipped away as the front of The Temptation became a news feeding frenzy.
The walk back to the car was quiet. Jon’s smile slowly faded as a small nagging pain ran up his hand and arm. It mingled with the small pain in his heart. Images of the last hour played out, touching him in horror. The thought of losing any of them burned and he knew yet again that he was deeply in love with the elves with him.
Reaching the car, Jon stopped in his tracks. The elves stopped and looked to him as he turned around to face all four of them. Shadows covered his eyes as he stood.
“I’m deeply sorry about how the evening ended. I was mistaken in thinking we would be safer downtown. I thought if you carried your weapons and we were stopped, the police might detain us and ruin the evening. I didn’t even think that there would be other threats, especially from my past. I was wrong and I hope you can accept my apology,” Jon said as he bowed to the four beautiful elves.
Lilly reached forward with a pale hand, touched Jon’s chin and lifted his head so he could see her. The elf gave him a loving gaze before a smile formed.
“Darling, even if we had our weapons, there is no guarantee it would have turned out any different. The important part is we all survived and are here together. I know I will not hold it against you for wanting to show us a normal date night here in Southvale. I don’t believe the crew will hold it against you either.”
“It made the date a lot more exciting,” Zelda said with a sharp grin.
“I’m sure I can think of several ways you can make it up to me,” Syndra said with a sly grin.
Cora’s eyes trembled before she burst forward and hugged Jon around the waist.
“You were so strong! I’ve never seen someone so determined!” Cora cried.
Syndra crossed her arms and closed her eyes. “I thought basic emotions were bred out of the royal family. This is going to take some time getting used to.”
Zelda curled her arm around the witch’s neck and hugged her close. “You were stiffer until that first night with Jon. I think we are all getting mushy.”
Syndra struggled as Zelda playfully held onto her.
Jon hugged Cora, pressing his face to the top of her head. He drank in her scent before lifting his head and looking at the others. Despite the danger, they were all pretty relaxed. Jon was surprised he wasn’t freaking out. Instead, he felt calm himself, like everything was going to be okay.
“Let’s go home,” the young man smiled before he broke his embrace with Cora and reached for the door handle to the car.
“Can you drive?” Lilly asked with a questioning brow.
Jon nodded. “It’s just two fingers. Besides, I want to give you all the whole dating experience. Sit back and I’ll drive our chariot home.”
The crew entered the car. Cora sat in front as Lilly, Syndra, and Zelda sat in the back. The three elves struggled in the back seat as Zelda lifted her head through the now open moonroof. Syndra leaned into the sea elf, being closer and more comfortable. Lilly sank into her seat, watching as Jon turned on the ignition and Cora watching him with warm eyes.
The drive back home was quiet. When they arrived, Jon drove the car into the garage. The garage door closed behind them as they all stepped out. Exhaustion sank into weary bodies as they entered the home and closed the garage door behind them.
Jon’s shoulders sank down as he shuffled toward his bedroom. The adrenalin and excitement had finally paid its toll. A deep weariness cascaded down his body as the only thought in his mind was passing out in bed.
Zelda and Lilly plopped on the couch. The pair watched as Jon walked into his room and closed the door behind him.
I’ll say goodnight, after I brush my teeth.
Jon walked like a zombie to the bathroom. In moments, toothpaste was on his brush and began brushing his teeth. He got in there, cleaning his mouth while two fingers bandaged together stood up like he was trying to point at something on the ceiling. A drained feeling sank lower as Jon finished up. He quickly spit out the toothpaste, wiped his mouth on a nearby towel, yawned, turned and walked back into his bedroom. He stopped short when he saw Cora sitting on the edge of his bed.
The thin elf had her hands in her lap, looking at him with wide eyes. Her fingers laced between each other as she barely blinked.
“I had a great time tonight,” Cora said shyly.
Jon smiled weakly. “I did too, except for the life and death battle. You were amazing.”
Cora nodded.
“Jon…” Cora began.
Jon closed his eyes and shook his head. “Cora, I know you read about dating, but we don’t have to do exactly what tradition dictates. We had a great time tonight and we can simply…”
Cora cut him off, “No, I want to be here, not because of Urth tradition, but because I already made up my mind the moment you fed me cheesecake.”
Jon let out a small, tired laugh. “Cheesecake was your weakness.”
Cora smiled. “No, it was you, treating me like a friend and not royalty.”
The sun elf looked down to her hands. “You know no one is allowed to touch royalty and the ones who can are eunuchs. For me and my family, it was about power and purity. Being part of Lilly’ crew and spending time with you, only showed me that I was living a controlled lie. My blood didn’t want us to be like everyone else because it could destroy the very foundation created for us.”
Cora looked up with bright, purple eyes, “I left my family and royalty to be part of the people. My life has become so much more since I left those royal chains behind, but I have one last chain I must break.”
Cora’s purple eyes trembled for a moment before they became still like frozen ponds. “I want you to take my virginity.”
Jon kept his stance and eyes relaxed. “I’m honored.”
Cora blinked. “You… you don’t feel odd at my request?”
Jon shook his head. “Cora, it may have taken me a moment or two longer to understand what was happening with you earlier today, but once I got it, I got it. You are beautiful and strong. I would be honored.”
The sun e
lf was on her feet and rushing Jon. Her arms wrapped around his midsection as he hugged her back. The two stood, the warmth of their bodies mingling into a fiery touch.
Cora pulled back and looked up into Jon’s kind eyes. “There is one more thing you must agree to.”
Jon raised an eyebrow.
Cora continued, “I don’t wish to be ravaged, at least not yet. I need to be in control. I need for it to be on my terms and I need for you to understand.”
“Anything to help,” Jon smirked.
Cora nodded. “Syndra!”
The door to the bedroom opened. The witch stepped in, an incantation spilling from her dark lips. Cora let go and stepped back. Jon’s eyes widened as he didn’t understand exactly what was happening.
The faucet in the bathroom turned and water spilled out. Syndra’s words echoed with mystic power before she said the trigger phrase. Ropes of water flashed from the bathroom and toward Jon. The young man could barely react as water coiled around his arms and legs. Syndra lifted her bent fingers, crimson eyes flaring with arcane power. Jon was hoisted into the air, floated over his bed and fell directly into the middle of it.
Streams of water worked, forming rudimentary hands. They held his arms and legs out while the other ends grabbed blankets. Jon barely struggled as the blankets were coiled around his wrists and ankles, tying him to the bed. Watery hands grabbed at his clothes, unbuttoning them, pulling them off and tossing them aside. When Jon was down to his boxers, Cora shook her head. The hands complied and left them on. A pillow case was pulled off one of the pillows and spun around until it formed almost a loose rope and lay by his head.
When the watery hands finished, they surged back into the sink and down the drain.
Jon expected the blankets that were now makeshift ropes would be wet, but they were bone dry. He struggled in the middle of the bed, but the blankets held him down fast.
“Thank you Syndra,” Cora said as she turned out the main light and left only one bedside lamp on.
The witch bowed. “Will there be anything else, my sister?”
“I think we will be fine,” Cora smiled as she stepped closer to the side of the bed.
