Forging Hephaestus (Villains' Code Book 1)

by Drew Hayes

  “Well... I suppose that happened.” That darling smirk was back in place as the woman moved her platform shoes closer to Chloe’s splayed form. Behind her, Beverly was fighting for all she was worth, slowly getting the upper hand. The other two criminals would probably be down soon. Just not soon enough for Beverly to help save Chloe.

  Desperately scanning her surroundings, Chloe looked for anything she could use to defend herself. All that was in arm’s reach was the parasol fancy-dress lady had dropped when her legs caught fire. If it had been powerful enough to stop Beverly’s claws, it might be enough to ward off one of those deadly kicks.

  “I can see what you’re thinking, but don’t bother.” The woman’s voice was sickly sweet and teasing, like she was explaining things to a toddler. “That weapon will only serve its master. In fact, I think I’ll—”

  Just as she reached toward the parasol, which had begun to float up from the ground, her wolfman accomplice was hurled away from his fight and slammed into the back of her knees. She windmilled her arms, trying to catch her balance, but the ground beneath her had been shattered by the earlier fighting and gave way, tipping her forward.

  Warning forgotten, Chloe grabbed the nearby floating parasol and tried to use it as a shield to keep the powerful meta from falling on top of her. For all she knew, the lady in the dress weighed ten thousand pounds and that’s why she was so strong. The parasol refused to open, though Chloe kept struggling with it until she felt a sudden pressure slam down on top of her.

  Staring down at her from only a foot away was the heavily made-up face of the woman, whose pink and black dress was now stained with fresh blood. She’d fallen forward, directly onto the unopened parasol, which had run straight through her chest. Over the woman’s shoulder, Chloe could just make out what appeared to be most of a heart wedged on the parasol’s tip.

  It was impossible to say which of them was more shocked by the turn of events. The woman’s shaking hands began to rise, curled into claws meant to grab Chloe’s neck.

  “You... bitch... kill... you...”

  As the hands grew closer, Chloe tried to twist away and accidentally succeeded in the task she’d failed before. The parasol opened, seemingly unbothered by the body wrapped around it. Instantly, the woman was gone, replaced by a rain of gore as her torso was disintegrated by the suddenly-expanding parasol. Chloe clutched the murder weapon over her head, trying to stay safe from the brief downpour of blood and organs. Somehow, she succeeded, and when the last of the splattering stopped, she pulled the parasol away to see that she, and somehow it, were both unstained.

  “Holy shit, Chloe.” Beverly slammed the bug-eyed meta down on her knee, eliciting a loud snapping from its spine before tossing it to the ground. “Do you have a phrase for making people explode?”

  “N-n-no.” Chloe’s body was so full of adrenaline that her teeth were chattering. The urge to vomit kept rising from her stomach; only force of will and a healthy amount of denial kept it in check. “I-I just got lucky. I was bold.”

  “Yeah, I’m going to want some explanation on that later. For now, are you okay?” Beverly stepped over the bloody legs that were all that remained of the woman and the unconscious wolfman to kneel next to Chloe. “Did you get hurt?”

  “Just my arms a little, when I shoved her.” Chloe could barely feel the pain anymore, though she knew it would come shooting back when she finally calmed down. “I think I want to go home now.”

  “Probably a good idea,” Beverly agreed. “Are you okay to get there by yourself?”

  “Sure, it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump away.” Chloe slowly pulled herself to her feet, using the parasol as a cane. When had it closed up again? She didn’t remember pulling it down. Then again, her mind wasn’t exactly running on all cylinders at the moment. “Do you want to come too?”

  “No, I can hear more fighting going on,” Beverly said. Her green scales were beginning to turn white, and already her body was shifting in size. “I’ve got a guild to look after.”

  “Be careful,” Chloe warned, though seeing as Beverly had actually won her fight and Chloe had just gotten lucky, she wasn’t sure why she was worried about the dragon.

  “You too,” Beverly replied. Then she leapt into the sky, newly grown wings catching the air. In a few flaps, she was gone.

  Chloe looked down at the parasol still in her hands. It was oddly comforting, but also a reminder that she’d accidentally killed someone. Gently, she laid it down near the legs of its original owner, and then did her hop, skip, and jump back to her apartment.

  She made it back safely, which was nice. Somewhat less comforting was her discovery that her entire apartment building was currently engulfed in flames, with a whole section already caved in. She stood on the street, staring up at her burning home, racking her brain for a saying that would put out fire. When her eyes finally left the building, they found a new, somehow more disturbing sight.

  Resting against a busted mailbox, just within arm’s reach, was that same pink and black parasol.

  * * *

  “Down!”

  Cyber Geek fell to the concrete seconds before the laser blast burned through the air above him, saved only by Medley’s warning. He jerked his gun upward, trying to find the automated cannon that they’d caught sight of, only to discover it was already frozen in an unmoving hunk of ice. Just for good measure, he squeezed off a few shots to destroy it completely, then got back to his feet slowly in case any more traps had been activated.

  Between the energy fences, automated cannons, sizable attack-robots, and sonic tasers, their group was looking pretty roughed up. It was only by luck and persistence that they’d made it so far—at least one of them had had the power to handle every trap they’d encountered so far, which had bailed the less-well-equipped out. Cyber Geek was beginning to see why the defenses worked the way they did: almost every meta had some weakness, which the traps would eventually hit. But if a team came through, they could cover each other, which meant AHC members could eventually power past if needed. Of course, that worked off the assumption that criminals were loners, which was proving to be shockingly untrue in light of the day’s events. Still, the guild might be more anomaly than rule.

  “We’re getting close.” Hat Trick limped as she spoke; the large tear in her sparkling pants almost hid the burn mark on her leg where she hadn’t quite dodged fast enough. Cyber Geek’s esteem for their newest teammate had risen; in the time since she was injured, not once did she hint at the idea of turning back.

  “Which is both good and bad. There’s a reason we had to keep civilians several blocks back. The farther in we get, the more dangerous it is.” Medley was largely unharmed, though that was thanks only to his healing and toughness. The truth of the matter was that he’d easily taken more blows in their trek than anyone else, throwing himself in harm’s way to keep everyone else safe. Without Medley, Cyber Geek doubted they would have ever made it this far—not with all of them still breathing, anyway.

  “At least we’re alone,” Pest Control pointed out. He was right, too. While the gang members might be spread across town causing trouble, none of them were stupid enough to actually try and approach the AHC headquarters.

  Nope, only Cyber Geek and his friends/temporary non-enemies were idiotic enough to take on that sort of task.

  They reached an intersection that marked the last street between themselves and the AHC headquarters. While the dome stretched down around the building, the outer fences and gates were still unshielded. No one needed to say what they all knew: the lesser defenses were the ones that had been tucked away on public streets. On their own property, the AHC had no doubt constructed one hell of a counterattack system. As soon as they got closer, something was going to trigger, and none of them had the faintest idea what it would be or if they could survive it.

  “You could shoot from here,” Cold Shoulder suggested. “I mean, you’re obviously close enough to hit.”

  “If this thing w
orks, the most it will do is make a hole,” Cyber Geek told her. “We’ll still have to get up to the dome to go through. So I may as well be right next to it to give the charge as much oomph as possible.”

  “How many of those barrier breakers do you have?” Hat Trick asked.

  “The game only gives you one because that’s all you’re supposed to need.” Cyber Geek cycled through his ammo options, confirming the lone shot as he spoke. “Technically, I can get more by dismissing this blaster and pulling out a new one, but that’s going to take a lot of time. Way more than we probably have.”

  “In that case, let’s make sure your first shot does the job.” Glyph walked over to Cyber Geek and held up his wand with the glowing purple tip. “With your permission, I’d like to put a rune on your gun.”

  “What will that do?” Medley didn’t actually step forward, but the slight lean to his stance made it clear that he could be on Glyph in the span of a heartbeat.

  “It should give his shots extra power, though I confess I’ve never tried using a power-augmentation rune on a gun summoned out of a video game. It’s supposed to be for weapons, brute strength, and spells. But it works on mundane firearms, so the principle is sound,” Glyph said.

  Cyber Geek considered the offer, carefully examining the weapon still clutched in his hands. Even aside from the risk of treachery on Glyph’s part, which was a very real possibility, mixing meta abilities was dangerous stuff. Technically, neither Cyber Geek nor anyone else at the AHC had figured out what made his power work, and if it was some method that reacted poorly to magic, then adding a rune could dissolve the gun, or blow it up, or any other outcome. However, it could also make the difference they desperately needed. Maybe he could punch through the AHC’s dome on his own, but that seemed pretty unlikely. If Glyph could give them even a slightly better chance of succeeding, then it was worth taking the chance.

  “Go for it,” Cyber Geek said. Glyph didn’t hesitate, drawing a strange symbol on the gun. It began to glow in mere seconds. When he stepped back, Cyber Geek cycled to the blaster’s standard destructive ammo and let off a few test shots into the street a few feet away.

  The ground exploded into miniature craters, sending dust and debris spraying up into the sky. “Looks like it works on the small scale,” Cyber Geek noted.

  “We’ll have to hope for the best on the barrier breaker,” Glyph replied. “Thank you for trusting me, by the way. Right now, I don’t even think many members of my own guild would do that.”

  “You keep doing right by us, and we’ll keep giving you the chance to prove yourself,” Medley replied, though it was hard not to notice the way his claws flexed as he spoke.

  “All right, time is against us, people; we need to get a move on.” Cyber Geek did a quick sweep to make sure everyone was ready and found that all five of the others were attentive and resolved. All they were waiting for was his order. For a moment, he wondered when exactly he’d become the default leader of their group; Medley seemed like a far better fit for the role. It was something he’d have to contemplate later, though, as right now, they were looking to him. He had to fulfill the role.

  “Everyone stay safe, prepare for anything, and watch each other’s backs. Now, let’s move!”

  * * *

  A soft blue glow surrounded Miss Teresa, matching the one that those with the right sort of meta-senses could see surrounding Helen’s house. Her eyelids slowly pulled themselves apart, and she gave a weary nod to Helen and Penelope.

  “The barrier is created. Only you, I, and Penelope will be able to pass through, at least until someone manages to overpower it.”

  “Which has almost never happened in our world’s history,” Helen replied. She laid a hand gently on the older woman’s shoulder. “Thank you so much for this, Teresa. I know it takes a lot out of you, but I couldn’t... with the way the city is, I had to make sure she was safe.”

  “Silly girl, how many times have you saved the entire planet?” Teresa said, swatting the hand away in a manner that somehow still managed to be affectionate. “I owe you my life and the lives of everyone I love. If I can help, I must. And what’s more, I take pleasure in it. Even if I wish it were for a happier occasion.”

  Helen nodded. On the television, news crews had stopped showing the fight between Fornax and Apollo, which she hoped meant Ivan was back under control. Regardless, it didn’t change the essence of her duty. Capes, guild members, and common meta-criminals were all brawling in the streets. Professor Quantum seemed to be giving as many shits as usual when a situation didn’t directly affect him, and Quorum was stuck in the headquarters building. Ivan had done a good job for a long time, but the day had finally come. There was no getting around it, no one to cover for her. The world needed a hero.

  It needed Lodestar.

  Bending down gently, Helen took her daughter by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “Penelope, Mommy has to go out for a while. And when she... when she comes back, she’s going to look a little different. But I’ll still be me, okay? I’ll still be me, and I’ll still love you more than anything. So don’t be scared.”

  For all the cheerful flippancy Penelope usually showed, her face was abnormally serious. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Helen’s neck, hugging her with all the strength her tiny body could manage. “I won’t be scared. I’ll never be scared of you. I love you, too.”

  Helen wanted to cry, but instead she just embraced her daughter, savoring the last moment of normalcy they would ever truly have. Then it was over, and the hug broke apart. “Go over to Miss Teresa, honey. She’ll keep you safe while I’m gone.”

  Penelope did as she was told, making her way slowly over to Miss Teresa, who gently took the small girl’s hand. Helen looked at them both and smiled with a joy she didn’t really feel. She took several steps away. It had been a long time since she did this; she needed room to work in. Standing ten feet away from Miss Teresa and Penelope, Helen reached into herself for the power she’d been pushing down for nearly a decade.

  It flowed through her instantly, suffusing her body with the same energy that the comet had crackled with as it came down on top of her. Her skin glowed as her chestnut hair turned a translucent-white. Beneath her closed lids, her irises shifted to a stark lavender that was both gorgeous and terrifying to see. Most striking of all, however, was the change that rippled through her actual flesh. Her muscles toned, her spine shrank, and small details altered all over her face as the last seven years melted away. Helen could age normally if she didn’t call on the power, but Lodestar was forever nineteen, trapped in the day the comet hit her, and when the power faded, that’s where Helen would be again. Just one use of the power, and her whole body reset.

  As she gazed out about the room, she saw Penelope peeking in wide-eyed wonder at her. Part of Helen had been terrified that no matter what promises were made, Penelope would be afraid when she saw who her mother truly was. Instead, her daughter looked awestruck, like a priest given a glimpse of their god.

  “Be good for Miss Teresa, and you two stay safe,” Lodestar ordered. She took a few steps, noting that once again her costume fit perfectly. “There are people out there that need Mommy’s help, and she’s already kept them waiting for much too long.”

  Chapter 88

  Putting together this much chaos had, humorously enough, taken a ridiculous amount of forethought and planning. Gathering the guild members who could be trusted, secretly reaching out to the most vicious meta-human gangs that hadn’t been wiped out, and, of course, getting everything coordinated with Apollo… all of it had just been so much work. Yet as Balaam made his way through the streets, watching buildings lit on fire and capes struggling to beat back a horde of destructive criminals, he felt the warm glow of satisfaction that told him it had all been worthwhile.

  The glow was aided by the ripples of power that were flowing into him, coming faster by the minute. Hunting down the Brand of Kurmtis had taken him years—he’d begun the tas
k long before the signal was ever given to actually start the ball rolling on today’s festivities—and it had been time well-spent. Even the effort of convincing the gangs to let him use it on them, annoying as it had been, was paying off. And he hadn’t lied when he said that being branded would give them a bit of an increase in their power. He’d just skipped over what the other, more important side effect was.

  Nearby, a cape that Balaam recognized as Kicknominal delivered a strike that sent an acid-breathing meta-human in a leather jacket careening through the air to where they landed hard on the ground. Though Kicknominal didn’t notice, the impact broke the acid-breather’s neck. On the exposed flesh just below the break, Balaam saw one of the countless Marks of Kurmtis flicker as its true purpose took effect. Moments later, the power of the dead criminal flowed into Balaam, and he suppressed a shiver of delight.

  All these criminals killing themselves off, just for him, and with every death, his magic grew a little bit stronger. It was a ritual sacrifice, one they didn’t even know was taking place. Only a few minutes into the fray and Balaam’s skin was already tingling with new power. By the time the guild finished wiping out all his pawns, Balaam would be the most powerful meta in history: stronger than Fornax, or Doctor Mechaniacal, or even Lodestar. He would be unstoppable.

  It would be good to be so powerful when presiding over his new guild. If things were going to plan, the true members were getting their recruitment speech right about then, and while everyone would agree to join, there would doubtlessly be a power struggle. With this new fuel, he would easily crush any opposition and take his rightful place as their ruler.

  Kicknominal, having finished with the lesser criminals, took off toward Balaam, no doubt intent on doling out more physical punishment. Balaam gave a minor wave of his staff and Kicknominal literally exploded from the inside, sending a spray of his internal components across the street.