by S. J. Delos
Omega-Girl was running out of gas.
Without another moment’s hesitation, I gave her a nod as I took off, flying straight up until I was high above the battle. I twisted around, flew over the rising clouds of steam, and passed over Princess Snow’s head.
I couldn’t be sure if she saw me zoom above her, but that really didn’t matter. If she tried to bring her attack around to bear on me, the plasma from Darla would cook her alive.
Diving down at the street, I flipped around just before impact, slamming feet-first into the asphalt right behind Snow. A half-second after landing, I grabbed her arm, nearly recoiling from the coldness, and yanked with super strength.
“Why don’t you just cool it?” I said as I swung her around to fling her at one of the ice-cubed cars.
She hit with a crunching thud, landing on her side. She was stunned, but not out. Before she could recover enough to act, I marched over to where she lay and jerked her off the ground. I drew back one arm, fist already primed to start pounding.
The roar of the EAPF transport arriving on the scene cut through the desire to crush the ice queen into drink-sized chips. I gave her a rough shake before dropping her onto the ground.
“If you so much as lift a pinky in my direction,” I warned her. “I will kick your head off your shoulders.”
She looked up at me, a trickle of red marring the porcelain flesh of her chin. “This isn’t over, Crushette. I’ll have my revenge someday.”
I nodded, glancing up at the six agents rushing toward us. “I’m sure you will. You know, after you serve your twenty-five to thirty.”
The police officers surrounded the prone villain. One of them leaned down to put a pair of shackles on Snow’s wrists. He stepped back, pulled out a small remote, and pressed a button on it. Instantly, the cuffs turned a light reddish color, causing Snow to hiss in apparent pain. The thermal bands would make her focus her power on keeping from getting burned, rather than trying to escape.
Two of the officers hauled the icy woman to her feet, dragging her toward the awaiting vehicle. The rest spread out to work with the CPD on making sure the InBees were okay. A crowd gathered, congregating behind the recently erected barricades.
I walked over to Darla, who leaned against a mailbox looking as if she’d not slept in about a month and a half.
“You okay?” I asked.
She nodded, pushing herself to shaky legs. I put my arm around her before she could fall over, and moved her into the street, stopping right in the middle of a patch of bright sunlight.
“Ah,” she said as the solar radiation bombarded her body. “That is just what I needed.”
I stood there holding her up while she recharged. “I’ve never seen you run dry like that before,” I told her. “You look like you just finished back to back triathlons.”
“Well, I used to soak up more energy than I needed. Now, with the new costume plus unreliable powers, if I expend too much all at once, it drains me.”
I frowned, but didn’t respond. Martin had fixed what Daniel had done to Darla as best as he could. Or so he claimed. However, the more I thought about his abilities, especially the things I witnessed with my own eyes, I couldn’t help but wonder if he just repaired her enough to satisfy our agreement. Especially considering how quickly he admitted that he had done all he could.
Doctor Maniac had never shown the inability to do exactly what he wanted to another Enhanced’s DNA.
Darla straightened up, standing on her own. “I’m good now, Karen. Nothing a little sunbathing won’t fix.” She shrugged. “Extra weight be damned.”
I smirked. “I promise to rip off the arms of anyone who comments on it.” I placed my hand on her forearm. “Darla, thanks for saving my ass. I thought I was done for.”
She nodded, then punched me in the shoulder. The blow didn’t hurt, of course, but it conveyed her thoughts all the same.
“Don’t go getting all mushy on me,” she said with a little grin.
“Perish the thought,” I responded, shoving her lightly with my palm.
“Ladies?” A voice from behind us spoke. “A moment?”
We turned around to see two of the EAPF agents standing there, one with a tablet in her hand.
“Uh,” the man said, “Some of the witnesses say they think that was Princess Snow you two were fighting. However, she doesn’t look like the same Princess Snow we have on file. Was this a copycat or something?”
I shook my head. “No, it’s her. She, uh, had a makeover. Of sorts.”
When he arched a brow, Darla backed me up. “We think her previous appearance was a disguise. To allow her to blend in with Norms.”
“I see,” the agent said, nodding to his partner. The girl tapped rapidly on the screen before her.
The lead officer pointed around at the damage. “Was all of this from the fight?” The accusatory tone in his question stroked my nerves the wrong way.
“No,” I snapped. “Most of it Snow did before we got here. You can blame me for the holes in the street and sidewalk if you want.” I pointed at where Darla’s plasma had blasted the ground to save my ass and to the spot where I’d landed behind the villain.
He tapped on the screen, mumbling something about the cost of fixing the damage. “Not trying to assign blame, Kayo. Just trying to get all the information on what went down.”
I took a step toward him, but Darla put her hand on my arm.
“If you officers have any further questions,” she said more politely than her face showed, “You can review the incident reports we’ll be filing.”
He rolled his eyes. “We’ll take what’s in them under advisement.”
I was at my last bit of patience with the agents, their shifty looks, and dodgy questions.
“You do that,” I spat, shaking my head. “Now, if you think you guys can do your part of the job, we’ll be on our way.”
The girl looked away so fast I thought she was going to get whiplash. Her partner, however, glared at me as the skin around his collar reddened. He tightened his hands into fists and opened his mouth to respond. I cut him off before he could.
“Great,” I said quickly, throwing in a big smile. “Later.”
Darla and I jumped into the air. The blonde shot off toward headquarters, but I stopped about twenty feet above the crowd.
I smiled as I waved at the citizens below, most of whom were probably happy they wouldn’t be spending their evening being dead or hospitalized for frostbite. I hoped the adulation would serve to remind the police jerks—as well as their superiors—that the people still liked their heroes.
But most importantly, they still liked me.
CHAPTER 20:
THE THICK BEGINS TO PLOTTEN
After I arrived back at the Paulus Building, I headed downstairs with the intention of writing up my report—where I would be sure to thoroughly document the condescending attitude of the inquisitive agent—before I went into the gym to see if I could actually punch a hole through a force-field.
However, right as I was sitting down at the computer in my room, the intercom next to the door squawked.
“Karen,” Greg said. “You need to come down to the briefing room right now.”
Something in his voice spurred me to hurry so I ran down the hall into the room to find the rest of the team standing in front of the largest monitor. The channel was set to one of the local news stations where an attractive guy with awesomely perfect hair—and eerily straight teeth—was talking.
“… the validity of the footage cannot be ascertained at this time. However, multiple sources have examined it, concluding that it is, in fact, genuine.”
I looked at the gathered, strangely quiet, group, then cleared my throat. Everyone turned around simultaneously, all Stepford-like. I took a half a step backward, just in case they all decided to attack at once.
Alexis grinned, pointing at the television. “You have got see this.”
I walked over to stand beside her as the
anchor continued.
“Once again,” he said, flashing that unnaturally pristine smile. “continuing this breaking news story. Video footage just released to this station, as well as several others, earlier this morning seems to show what actually took place last week at the Museum of Discovery.”
I looked from the screen over at Greg. “What the hell is he—”
“Shh,” he replied, nodding at the broadcast. “Watch.”
“As you may recall, during that particular battle with the Quartet of Doom, it appeared that the Good Guy known as Kayo lost control during her altercation with the criminal known as Carbonado. The official report from The Good Guys claims that Carbonado’s threat to harm a group of elementary school children, as well as his attempted murder of an EAPF agent, was what prompted Kayo to attack him so severely.”
The newscaster vanished, replaced with the all too familiar footage of me slamming my fists into Carbonado over and over again. The video zoomed in close, focusing on my face. The barred teeth, narrowed eyes, and crinkled brow gave silent testament to the unbridled fury running through me as I hit him.
The images cut back to the newscaster. “While the EAPF did confirm that an agent was injured during the incident, they have refused to comment on whether any civilians were in actual danger.”
“So much for that pile of lies,” Alexis said, giving me a sideways smile.
“However,” the man on the television continued, “This additional footage reveals additional details about the incident. Details which appear to contradict the EAPF’s official statement. We must warn sensitive viewers that what you are about to see is graphic.”
The screen cut away to video again. This time from the vantage point of someone standing right outside the gigantic hole in the side of the building. The footage focused on me at first, showing in high definition the giant piece of ceiling I held over my head. Then the camera panned over to show the kids huddling around the unconscious teacher on the floor.
It was crystal clear to anyone seeing the footage to understand that I was the only thing keeping the InBees from getting squished.
Then the camera panned over to Carbonado. However, unlike all the other pieces of video shown concerning the fight, this one came wired with sound.
Déjà vu slammed into me like a physical punch as the villain on the screen gestured at the kids and said, “But first, I’m going to make you watch me gut every single one of those brats.”
The camera moved away, back to the kids, before snapping over as George charged into the room, ordering Carbonado to freeze. I watched, unable to look away, as Carbonado grabbed my friend, taunting me, asking me to choose who I was going to save. Then those talons stabbed into George, blood streaking across the screen. The camera turned away for a moment. When it came back, it was just in time to see the last child and the prone form of the woman vanish before I launched myself at the miscreant with a scream of rage.
The perfectly coiffed anchor reappeared. “As previously stated, the process of verifying the authenticity of this footage is still underway. But if it is real, then it would seem The Good Guys’ version of events is true. We have reached out to the EAPF to get their statement on this new footage, with no response from the agency’s leadership.”
The newsman placed a finger beside his ear, listened for a moment, then smiled at the camera.
“Folks, we have Captain Awesome on the line. Let’s hear what he has to say about this new development.”
We all turned around to see Richard standing on the far side of the room, his phone next to his ear. His words were barely audible live, but came through clear as a bell from the television.
“I want to restate to the public that The Good Guys already knew what took place inside the museum between Kayo and Carbonado. All of the details were in our official report to the EAPF. We are thankful there is finally some concrete evidence that supports our position. Kayo has been an exemplary hero since her recruitment, and we are proud of the work she has done.”
I looked back over at Richard, who gave me a little wink.
“In addition,” he continued. “We would like to thank the heroism of Officer George Braddock. His timely intervention, while disregarding his own safety, allowed another member of our team to get the InBees to safety. It is our understanding that Officer Braddock is recuperating from his injuries at Charlotte General, and all of us here at The Good Guys would like to wish him a speedy recovery and a heartfelt thanks.”
It was all I could do not to fly across the room, hugging Richard until his innards spilled out. Now that the truth was out for the whole world to see, not just about what had happened, but also what George had done, there was no way for the EAPF to cover it up. Or spin it to make George the bad guy. Hell, I bet there would be two dozen reporters in the lobby of the hospital within the next ten minutes, all clamoring to get an interview, or at least a picture, of the brave officer.
Richard hung up the phone, and I looked over at Greg. He grinned at me, then we all turned our attention back to the television. The anchor kept that award-winning smile in place as he summed up the conversation.
“That was Captain Awesome, leader of The Good Guys. We here at WCHT are going to be following this story as it progresses. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get a statement from either Officer Braddock or one of his superiors at the EAPF soon.”
Greg switched off the screen, then turned to look at me.
“Well,” he said. “This will go a long way to reestablishing the public trust in us. It’ll also serve notice to whoever is aligning against us at the EAPF.” He tapped one finger against his bottom lip. “The biggest question is, who took that footage? I don’t recall seeing anyone from the press inside the barricades.”
I shook my head. “Neither do I. They must have used a camera with a long-range lens and one hell of a directional mic.”
“But why sit on this for days?” Sonya asked. “Think about it. This is a huge story. Why wait until now to show it?”
My phone buzzed silently inside my suit. When I pulled it out, I saw it was Kurt. A grin climbed onto my face as I put the device to my ear.
“I guess you’ve seen the news?”
“Yes,” he said. “I got just got a call from one of the people in the agency I know I can trust. He said that the guards outside George’s room have been withdrawn. Plus, Internal Affairs are packing up their things, ending their investigation.”
I did a fist pump. “So, we’ve won?”
Kurt hesitated for a moment. “This particular battle? Yeah, I think we did. But whoever is behind all this isn’t going to give up that easily. We’re going to have to be ready for whatever comes next.”
“Agreed.” I walked away from the rest of the team, lowering my voice. “So… does that mean the moratorium on our bedroom activities is over? I mean, there’s only so much itching I can scratch on my own.”
“I think we can arrange a little fun time.” I could hear the grin in his voice. “How about we get some dinner from Chang’s and stay in tonight?”
“Oh, you sweet talker. How could a girl resist—”
My phone beeped, letting me know there was another call coming in. At first guess, I would have expected my father, perhaps to tell me that he’d seen the news story. However, when I looked at the screen, it was a number I didn’t recognize.
“You still there?” Kurt asked.
“Yeah. Listen, someone’s trying to call me. See you at seven?”
“Seven it is. I’ll get the food. Bye, babe.”
“Bye,” I said, then clicked to the second call. “Hello?”
“Hello, Kayo,” Maximilian King said in a silky-smooth voice. “How did you like my gift?”
“Gift?” I looked around the room to see if there was a package anywhere that I might have missed in all the excitement.
The excitement about the mysterious video footage clearing mine and George’s name.
“Wait,” I said. “The video…�
�
“You’re welcome. I told you that I could be helpful.” He laughed in my ear, as if he were an old friend rather than who made money selling embarrassing pictures of me in my underwear. “It was helpful, wasn’t it?”
As much as I didn’t want to give the slimeball the satisfaction, I couldn’t very well disagree. “Yes,” I said with a sigh. “It was helpful. How in the world did you get it? None of us remember seeing the press near the museum.”
“Oh,” he said, giving another of those nerve-scraping titters. “I have a cameraman on staff who has invisibility. It’s how I got those photos from the cemetery. As well as the Omega-Girl/Captain Awesome sex tape.”
“There’s a sex tape?” I said, much louder than intended. The others turned to look at me, with Darla glancing over at Richard. I spun around, putting my back to them. “Never mind. I really would rather not know.”
“Not to worry. Captain Awesome paid a lot of money to make sure it never sees the light of day.” Another chuckle. “Anyways, I just called to let you know how that tape got to the news stations.”
“What about the EAPF? Any news there?”
There was a moment’s pause. “Not much, to be honest. Just some whispers indicating whatever is going on there is being orchestrated from the top.”
“But no names?”
“No,” he said. “I may have a few more stones I can look under. If I find out anything, I’ll let you know.”
“Thanks,” I said, clenching my jaw as I drew in a slow breath, dreading the next words I knew were going to come out of my mouth. “So, what do you want in return?”
“Your story.”
I blinked a few times as I pulled the phone away from my face, looked at the screen, then put it back. “I’m sorry? What do you mean by ‘your story’?”
“Well, technically, I want Crushette’s story. The whole thing, I mean. What was your Activation like? Why did you turn to a life of crime? Why with Doctor Maniac of all villains? What went on between you two? Stuff like that.”