Counterparts

by Lucas Flint

  “Hi, Rime,” said Bolt, waving at Rime somewhat awkwardly. “How do you feel?”

  “Uncomfortable,” said Rime. “Th-these chains aren’t exactly soft.”

  “Yeah, but you need to keep them on so you don’t kill us,” Stinger pointed out. “Speaking of killing, we came in here to find out why you’re trying to kill Bolt.”

  Rime looked away, a pained expression on his face. “What’s the point? It’s probably too l-late by now. And if it isn’t, it soon w-will be. I failed in my mission and now my family is going to s-suffer because of it.”

  “Maybe they won’t have to suffer, Rime, if you’d just let us know what is going on here,” said Bolt. He stepped forward carefully. “The last time I saw you, you said you were going back to your wife and daughter, right? The wife and daughter that you hadn’t seen since you went to jail over a decade ago?”

  “Y-Yeah, that’s right,” said Rime, still without looking at them. “Still doesn’t matter. They’re p-probably dead now, all because of my failure to kill you.”

  “How do you know?” said Bolt. “Maybe they aren’t dead yet. Maybe there’s still time to save them if you would just tell us how you got into this situation in the first place.”

  Rime did not look at Bolt, Stinger, or Talon for a couple of seconds, but slowly, he turned his head toward them, though he was still frowning. “When President Plutarch pardoned me several m-months ago, I tracked down my wife and daughter f-first thing. I found t-them in F-Florida and they were h-happy to see me, even t-though I had been in prison for so long. I-It was almost like we had never been apart at all, though th-there was a lot of catching up to do after a decade apart, obviously.”

  “What happened after that?” said Bolt.

  Rime’s frown grew even more pronounced. “F-For months, life was peaceful and even seemed to b-be going back to normal, the w-way it was before I went to prison … until she came.”

  “She?” Stinger repeated. “Who is ‘she’?”

  “I d-don’t know her real name,” said Rime. “B-But she called herself Colombina. She wore a strange mask and a red dress. V-Very tall, b-but quite thin, though that didn’t mean she wasn’t a threat.”

  “Colombina,” Bolt repeated under his breath. “Where have I heard that name before?”

  “What did this Colombina lady do?” said Stinger.

  “S-She kidnapped my family,” said Rime. “T-That was a month ago. I returned home one night to find my wife and daughter m-missing. T-There was a video left, however, b-by Colombina, outlining w-what I n-needed to do in order to see my wife and daughter alive again. S-She said that if I d-didn’t kill Bolt, I would never see my family again.”

  “And you believed her?” said Talon. “You didn’t even try to find out if she was lying?”

  “W-What choice did I have?” said Rime. “I knew she had m-my family because she showed them on the v-video. I even know where s-she is keeping them, but I didn’t go there because I d-didn’t want her to kill them.”

  “Did this Colombina lady say who she was?” said Stinger. “Or why she wants Bolt dead?”

  “N-Nope,” said Rime, shaking his head. “I didn’t t-try to find out, because I didn’t want to waste time.” His head fell on his chest again. “B-But I failed. And now m-my family is going to die.”

  Stinger felt sorry for Rime, even though Rime had just tried to kill him a couple of hours ago. He had no idea who this Colombina lady was or what her plan was, but Stinger wanted to help Rime, even though he didn’t know how.

  Suddenly, Bolt looked up, as if a realization had just dawned on him. “Now that we know what you’ve gone through, we’ll help you save your wife and daughter.”

  Rime also looked up, a look of disbelief on his face. “R-Really? Why? I w-was just trying to kill you. W-Why would you help me?”

  “Because you helped me break out of Ultimate Max and defeat Mastermind,” said Bolt. “And now that I understand that you were forced to try to kill me, I am not going to hold it against you. I see this as paying you back for helping me even when you didn’t have to.”

  “T-Thank you for the offer, Bolt, but it’s pointless,” said Rime. “Unless you’re willing to let me kill you, t-there’s nothing y-you can do to help me.”

  “There’s got to be something I can do to help,” said Bolt. “I don’t want to get murdered, but I don’t want your family to die, either. There’s got to be a way we can save your family and take down Colombina.”

  “I-If there is, I don’t see it,” said Rime. “B-But you shouldn’t b-be worrying about me. My f-family is my responsibility, not yours.”

  “Yeah, but you’re one of my friends and I always help my friends,” said Bolt. “I have to admit, though, that this is a tricky situation. If we do one wrong thing, your family will definitely get killed.”

  Stinger thought about this. Like Bolt, he wanted to help Rime, if only because saving Rime’s family would keep Rime from trying to kill them. His mind kept drawing a blank, however, because he had never rescued a kidnapped family before, much less from a female supervillain. He had no idea what kind of defenses Colombina’s base had, but if this woman was smart, then she had probably set up all kinds of defenses in order to keep people from breaking in.

  And that’s if we can even find out where she is hiding, Stinger thought. Guess it’s one of those situations we’ve just never had to deal with before.

  All of a sudden, a possible solution to the problem appeared in Stinger’s mind. It seemed like a very simple solution, but at the same time, Stinger was loathe to bring it up, especially in light of Talon’s story about the death of her father. Yet it seemed like the best solution to their current problem at the moment; the woman he was thinking of contacting, after all, had experience breaking into and out of places, including places as heavily guarded as Hero Island. There was always the possibility that she might reject their pleas for help, but given Stinger’s connection to her, he figured that increased their chances of getting her help.

  “Hey, uh, guys,” said Stinger, drawing the attention of Bolt, Talon, and Rime to him, “I think I know someone who could help us save Rime’s family.”

  “Really?” said Talon, leaning in a little too close to him for comfort. “Who would that be? Someone in the NHA, perhaps?”

  “Actually, she isn’t an NHA member,” said Stinger, carefully avoiding meeting Talon’s gaze.

  “An independent superhero, then,” said Talon. “Like that Triplet fellow, right?”

  “She’s independent, yeah, but not a, uh, superhero,” said Stinger.

  “So she’s just a normal superhuman who maybe has the powers and experience necessary to help us save Rime’s family?” said Talon.

  Stinger rubbed the back of his neck, now starting to wish he’d kept his mouth shut, but he kept talking. “Her powers and experience would certainly help, but she’s … well, not just a normal superhuman.”

  Talon frowned in annoyance. “Well, then what is she? You’re not being very clear or helpful, you know.”

  Stinger took a deep breath, prayed to God to protect him from Talon’s inevitable rage, and said, “She’s my mother. And she’s the supervillain Electrica.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  “Your mother … is a supervillain?” said Talon. “Did I hear you right?”

  Stinger nodded reluctantly. “Yes.”

  “And she’s Electrica,” said Talon. “The woman who killed my father, Silver Wind.”

  Once again, Stinger nodded in a deeply reluctant fashion. He also looked like he wanted to run away, but to his credit, he stayed put. “Yes. There aren’t too many other female supervillains with lightning powers who call themselves Electrica, after all.”

  Talon stepped away from Stinger and Bolt. She still hoped that Stinger was joking, but he looked completely serious, if a bit hesitant. She didn’t want to believe that one of her friends was the son of a supervillain. She looked at Bolt, hoping that this might be some elaborate pract
ical joke that Stinger was playing on her, but Bolt looked every bit as surprised as Talon. Rime looked surprised, too, though less surprised than them for some reason, probably because he did not know Stinger as well as them and therefore did not have any reason to be as shocked as them.

  “But you guys don’t need to worry,” said Stinger hastily. “My mom may be a supervillain, but I’m still a hero through and through. I’ve totally rejected her ways and have no intention whatsoever of joining or helping her at all.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us this before?” said Bolt. He sounded slightly dazed, as if his mind was still trying to process what Stinger said. “Now that I think about it, I don’t think you’ve ever told us who your parents are.”

  “I just didn’t see any reason to,” said Stinger with a shrug. “I mean, if your mom was an infamous supervillain, would you want to tell everyone that fact? I don’t think so.”

  “Does Mecha Knight know?” said Talon. She glanced over her shoulder at the one-way mirror; she couldn’t see him, but she knew that Black Blur stood on the other side of the glass, watching them intently, although he obviously couldn’t hear them. “And the rest of the Leadership Council, too?”

  “Yes,” said Stinger, nodding. “Everyone in the Leadership Council knows who my mom is.”

  “Yet they still allowed you to join the Young Neos?” said Talon. Her fear was starting to be replaced with anger. “Even knowing who your mother is?”

  “Because I wasn’t raised by my mother,” said Stinger in an impatient voice. “My grandfather—who isn’t a supervillain, by the way—raised me because my mother abandoned me when I was young.”

  “And what about your father?” said Bolt. “Is he a supervillain, too?”

  Stinger shook his head. “No, he was a normal human, a police officer who married Electrica but divorced her when he learned who she really was. He died when I was just a few years old, got himself killed by a criminal he was chasing. And Electrica was never a really good mother, so she dumped me with her father, that is, my grandfather.”

  Talon rubbed the side of her face, unsure of what to say or how to react. She had worked with Stinger for nearly a year now, having teamed up with him to complete many missions and fight many villains as a team, but he had been the son of her own dad’s murderer the whole time and he had never thought to mention it to her even once. It left a bad taste in her mouth and made her wonder what else Stinger was hiding from her and the other Young Neos. “Your mother was the villain who killed my father, but you never saw the need to tell me?”

  “Hey, I didn’t know Silver Wind was your father,” said Stinger in a defensive voice. “And, like I said, I am not walking in her steps, I—”

  “D-Does any of this r-really matter?” Rime interrupted, his voice cold and harsh. “I-I want to k-know what you mean when you said that your m-mother could help us.”

  “And why would she help us in the first place?” said Bolt. “We’re superheroes, she’s a supervillain. Superheroes and supervillains don’t work together. Usually we’re trying to kill each other.”

  “Because I’m her son,” said Stinger. “She was never a really great mother, but if we went to her for help, she might be willing to help us, especially if I ask. And she has experience breaking into nigh impenetrable locations without getting caught. Like the time she broke into Hero Island, for example, and stole something from the Neohero Alliance Museum. She could help us rescue Rime’s family.”

  “I can’t believe this,” said Talon. She folded her arms across her chest. “You’re suggesting we work with my dad’s murderer like it’s a good idea. Do you even hear yourself talking right now?”

  “Hey, I wouldn’t be suggesting this if I didn’t think we had any other choice,” said Stinger. “I know we can’t trust my mom completely, but she is the best person for the job, at least in my opinion.”

  “Can’t we get help from the NHA?” said Talon. “Surely there are many members of the Neohero Alliance who can do what your mother can do, but better, and without being a supervillain, aren’t there?”

  “Talon has a point,” said Bolt. “I doubt the Leadership Council would be okay with us working with a supervillain even to help other people. I can already imagine Mecha Knight’s emotionless response as I try to explain this idea to him.”

  “Mecha Knight always looks emotionless, though,” said Stinger.

  “The point is that we are not going to be working with any supervillains,” said Talon. “At least, I certainly won’t, especially ones who killed my father.”

  “And that’s assuming that Mecha Knight will even allow us to help Rime,” Bolt said. “I mean, I think he will, since Mecha Knight is pretty understanding of these sorts of things and we don’t have anything else to do at the moment, but—”

  “I can give you permission to help him,” said a voice behind them, causing Talon, Bolt, and Stinger to look over their shoulders at whoever had spoken.

  It was Black Blur. He stood in front of the room’s exit, his arms hanging at his sides. Talon had not heard him enter, which made her wonder just how long he had been standing there listening to them. For some reason, that made her feel creeped out, even though Black Blur was a member of the Leadership Council and therefore on their side.

  “Really?” said Bolt in surprise. “You mean you don’t think it’s a waste of time?”

  Black Blur huffed. “Saving the lives of innocent people is never a waste of time. Besides, now that we know that Rime was not attacking Hero Island as part of some nefarious supervillain plot, I see no reason to keep him locked up here any longer than we have to. If you three wish to go with him to save his family, then you have my approval.”

  “What about Stinger’s mother, Electrica?” said Talon. “Do you think we should work with her?”

  “Of course not,” said Black Blur. He looked at Stinger with a sharp glare. “Members of the Neohero Alliance and the Young Neos are not allowed to work with supervillains except under exceptional circumstances. That includes supervillain family members; besides, I doubt you will need a supervillain’s help in rescuing Rime’s family.”

  Stinger looked rather ashamed of suggesting that they team up with his mother. Talon, however, felt good about it, because she thought that he should feel ashamed for making such a stupid suggestion. She was determined not to work with the woman who had killed her father; indeed, she’d prefer to kill that woman herself if possible.

  “Don’t I need to get Mecha Knight’s approval before we do anything, though?” said Bolt, scratching his right ear. “He’s the team supervisor, so—”

  “Mecha Knight may be your team’s supervisor, but he’s not the only member of the Leadership Council with any authority over the Young Neos,” said Black Blur. “According to the NHA Constitution, any Leadership Council member can grant permission to the Young Neos to perform any mission they request. We can do it without having to run it by the team supervisor first, who, in this case, happens to be Mecha Knight. And if Mecha Knight has any problems with that, he can come and talk to me about it as co-equal members of the Council.”

  Talon had not known that, and based on the surprised expressions that Bolt and Stinger wore, neither had they. Then again, Talon had not read the entirety of the Constitution that governed the inner-workings of the Neohero Alliance; she had only read the parts pertaining directly to the Young Neos, and that had been nearly a year ago when she first joined the team. Talon was not much of a bookworm, like Shell was, but she decided to take some time to read through the Constitution herself at some point in order to see if she could find out anything else in it that she didn’t already know. That would be later, though, after they helped Rime and Talon figured out whether she was going to become the CEO of a major multinational corporation at the young age of seventeen.

  “Thanks, uh, I guess,” said Bolt. “That’s awfully generous of you to do.”

  “It’s not a problem,” Black Blur said, waving off Bolt’s grat
itude like it was nothing. “As I said, saving innocent lives is never a waste of time. As superheroes, it is our duty to save the weak from those who would prey upon them. I don’t want the blood of innocent lives on our hands simply due to a legal technicality.”

  Though Black Blur sounded sincere, Talon thought this all seemed a little too convenient. Black Blur was notorious for his dislike and distrust of Bolt in particular and the Young Neos in general. Getting his approval to help Rime save his family seemed almost too easy, but Talon supposed that she was being too harsh. After all, if Black Blur was a member of the Leadership Council, he could not be an untrustworthy man.

  “Great,” said Bolt. “We’ll talk to Rime some more, figure out where his family is being held hostage, and then leave as soon as we can.”

  “Good to hear,” said Black Blur. “Since you kids have this all figured out, I am going to return to the Tower and inform the rest of the Leadership Council about what you will do. You don’t need to report in to Mecha Knight or anything; I’ll handle that.”

  With that, Black Blur turned and left the room. Talon thought, however, that she caught a smirk on his lips before he turned around, but it was probably just her mind playing tricks on her.

  “All right,” said Bolt. He looked at Rime. “Tell us everything you know about Colombina and where she is keeping your family. Don’t leave out any details, because if we’re going to save your family from this foe we’ve never faced before, we’ll need to go in with as much information as possible.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Stinger knew that telling Talon and Bolt about his mother was a bad idea. Even before he knew that Silver Wind was Talon’s dad, Stinger knew that suggesting that they team up with a known supervillain—the only supervillain, in fact, who had ever successfully attacked Hero Island—was not going to go down well with them anyway. And that was not even taking into account the reaction of the Leadership Council, who would undoubtedly have rejected the idea outright if it was presented to them.