“The team technically voted for her, but Mr. Awesome, who is, after all, the team leader, voted against her, Dr. Sterling, who, might I remind you, is the operations director, stated her disapproval, and Dr. Hodges abstained. Plus White Knight voted against her, and he certainly knows power armor. So in my opinion, it’s still something of an open issue.”
“You’ve got to be kidding!” Seawolf was starting to get angry. “The vote was four-to-two among the team members and Dr. Hodges stated his approval for whoever I picked.”
Gabrielle shrugged. “True, but still. Mr. Awesome and Dr. Sterling made a pretty good case for why we need to bring on someone with some speed. Thank God though we didn’t go the wizard route that Meltdown was pushing for.” She shuddered. “At least Danny’ll be a strong PR asset. Teen Orlando knows how to train their kids to handle the superazzi and fans. I won’t need to do much work there. And she brings over a good set of sponsors, which helps the team out financially.”
Seawolf rolled her eyes. The fact that Gabrielle could deride Danny’s super abilities in one breath and then praise her publicity credentials in the next struck her as having totally misplaced priorities.
“And another thing,” Gabrielle continued. “See if you can get a straight answer about the origin of her power armor suit. The Orlando Sparkle puts out this fairy tale crap about how when Danny was young, she saved the life of some dolphin and then a mermaid showed up to give her the NMX as a reward. Do they even have dolphins in Alabama?”
“Mississippi.”
“Whatever. If mermaids handed out power armor suits to everyone who saved a whale, then Greenpeace would be going around with aircraft carriers. The point I’m trying to make is that if it’s actually alien tech or on loan from Argos Corp, we need to know before she joins the team and someone sues us for royalties or some such bullshit. Speaking of which, when was the last time you tried to get a new endorsement?”
“We’re not talking about me,” Seawolf growled.
“We are now. How long have you been with Waverider?”
“Long enough to know that I like them.” Seawolf had become sensitive lately about her age. She’d noticed that the webbing between her fingers and toes seemed to be sagging. What had Jason said? There are no old mermaids, are there, Seawolf? The fur on the back of her neck bristled at the memory. “What does this have to do with anything anyway?” she demanded of Gabrielle.
“You stay with a sponsor long enough and they start to take you for granted. They’ve probably been rolling out the same endorsement contract that you originally signed a decade ago! When we get back to West Pacific I’m going to pull your contract and see if we can renegotiate.”
Seawolf stared at her blankly. “I like Waverider. They give me first pick of their clothing line each year. They send me custom-made wetsuits.”
“They’re hardly the only manufacturer of wetsuits or even your precious lycra shorts and rash guard tops. I’ll have a competitor analysis run and see if anyone else is willing to offer you a better deal.”
“No, you won’t!” Seawolf yelled, surprising the taxi driver, who cursed under his breath - something about the city being overrun with costumed freaks. Seawolf glared at him in the mirror and he hunched down and kept on driving.
“What’s with the hostility?” Gabrielle asked. She sounded genuinely surprised. “Look, I’m just trying to help you out. You don’t even have to leave Waverider, but going through the motions might inspire them to pay you closer to what you’re worth.”
“And that’s exactly what Keystone’s agent is telling him.”
Gabrielle frowned. “That is not the same situation!”
“Of course it is. You want me to renegotiate a contract I’m perfectly happy with just because I might be able to get more money. Isn’t that exactly what Keystone is doing?”
“What Keystone is doing… ” Gabrielle began angrily as the cab pulled up to the Taj Mahal restaurant.
“See you later,” Seawolf called as she quickly stepped out and closed the door behind her.
The taxi drove away only after Seawolf had actually entered the restaurant. There was no going back now.
The maitre’d, a chubby woman in a maroon sari, seemed quite flustered when Seawolf informed her that she was half of the West Pacific Supers party of two. “Wow,” she said.
“May I be shown a table please? Preferably something in the back or in a corner…”
“Oh no!” the woman said excitedly. “For a superhero, we will put you in the window seat!”
“Window seat?” exclaimed Seawolf, horrified.
It was too late. The woman was already chattering away in some other language to a younger version of herself in an orange sari, who stared at Seawolf for a few moments and then grabbed two menus and led her across the restaurant to a table set in a bay window overlooking a busy sidewalk.
“No,” said Seawolf ineffectually as the woman smiled at her and gestured for her to sit. “I would much prefer… ” Her voice trailed off as she saw two shoppers stop to look at her. One said something to the other, who laughed, and they continued walking. It was like a nightmare. The waitress had already left. Seawolf studied the menu. She recognized nothing and looked around in hopes of seeing something decent that someone else was eating, but all that happened was that her eyes began to water from the strong spices in the food being eaten at neighboring tables. She looked up to see the waitress returning with a thin young woman with short brown hair, green eyes, and a freckled face, a young woman who was beaming at her: Danny Chase. Seawolf stood and forced a smile, feeling self-conscious in her red and blue ultimesh costume. I would have been less conspicuous in a wetsuit…
“Danny, it’s good to finally meet you in person.”
The girl shook her hand almost reverentially. “Seawolf, I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to be here! You’re one of my biggest heroes – did I ever tell you that I have a poster of you from the 2002 team?” She blushed as she sat down. “I sound like a teen fan girl, don’t I?”
“It’s flattering,” said Seawolf with a smile. “2002 was a great year. West Pacific Supers took the West Coast Conference and Supersonic Cat was named Best League Super.” She shook her head.
“The team should’ve taken the League title!” Danny exclaimed. “I swear the Paragons rigged that somehow. I actually defaced my commemorative copy of the 2002 League awards - I drew horns on Count Courageous. Not very mature, but then again, I was seven.”
Seawolf laughed. It was hard to believe she was 20 years older than this bright-eyed young woman who was just starting her career. “It was the most incredible experience of my life to be part of that team,” she told Danny, remembering. In 2002, when they’d won the West Coast Conference and come so close to taking the League title, it felt like they could do anything. And then 2003, Sarah was killed and everything imploded… She shook her head. “You could say all we’ve been doing ever since is trying to get back what we had then.” She frowned. She shouldn’t be getting caught up in the past; she was here to discuss the future. “How are you finding the Super Draft so far?”
“Well, I just came in yesterday, but so far I can say it’s pretty stressful. Not the crowds or superazzi - we deal with more people than this in Orlando on a daily basis - but the level of competition is going to be intense. Not that I’m outclassed or anything,” she quickly added. “It’s more the personalities. You get this many high-powered teens in one place and encourage them to show off and well, it gets snarky sometimes.” She shrugged. “I’m sorry, it probably sounds like I have trouble getting along with people - it’s not like that.”
“Relax,” said Seawolf, realizing that Danny was actually more nervous than she was. “I would never think that Neo-Mermaid, the famed Lifeguard Princess, has problems getting along with people.”
Danny blushed. “I guess the movies and everything must seem pretty corny to a real superhero. It’s how things are done on the Orlando Sparkle, but I know it’s a l
ot different on most teams. Believe me, I get plenty of flack about it from the other teens.”
“Don’t let anyone make you feel bad about your team,” Seawolf said sternly. “Teen Orlando may spend a lot of time working on your star skills, but they do plenty of heroics training too. The NMX is an excellent power armor unit and the fact that you can handle it comfortably in combat, plus deal with intense publicity situations – that makes you valuable.”
“Thanks. I can use the pep talk. Some of the other teens, well, you know how it is.”
Seawolf shrugged. “I never went through the Draft myself, but I’ve known teens who have. Do you know Desert Rose? She’s with the Firebirds now, down in Phoenix. She came through our teen team, back when we had one, and was in the Draft in 2004 or 2005 I think. Anyway, she was really unhappy with the whole process. She said it’s counterproductive to set up intense competition between super teens right before they join teams where they’ll have to work together. Really, the whole League system just seems to foster more rivalry than’s healthy.”
“It’s true. At least they added the team trials a couple years ago.”
Seawolf had almost forgotten. “That’s right – you have that tomorrow?”
“In two days. There’s six of us and right before the event they divide us into two groups and we have to finish some timed challenge before the other team. It’s pretty fake. I mean, when are you going to be in a situation that you and two other supers are randomly assigned to solve some crisis better than some other randomly determined group of three?”
“It sounds like the inter-League face offs that they started last year. Thankfully, we haven’t gotten picked for those yet, but I’m sure it’s coming. The whole thing’s just a giant publicity exercise so that the Super Channel can make more money,” said Seawolf with disgust.
The waitress returned for their order and, with Danny’s help, Seawolf selected something bland, at least by Indian standards. Danny seemed excited to be eating here, so perhaps Gabrielle had had a point after all. Seawolf just wished they had a different table. People kept stopping to stare through the window at them. Danny didn’t seem to mind but Seawolf was finding it very distracting.
“So who all from the team is here?” Danny asked, propping her elbows on the table as she drank some sort of iced mango yogurt drink.
“Just me and Gabrielle Fox, our public affairs director. Everyone else is back in West Pacific getting ready for the Season and the Costume Launch.”
“That’s right! That’s this week, isn’t it? How do you like the new costumes?”
“I hate them,” said Seawolf.
Danny laughed. “It’s the same on Teen Orlando. We each have our own costume designers, but the Sparkle sets annual themes that we all have to coordinate with. My least favorite was last year’s Western theme. Thankfully, I do my heroics in the NMX, so I didn’t have to wear one of the red-fringed white leather action suits with matching Stetson hat, but my parade costume and ballgown were all Western, which was annoying.”
Seawolf chuckled. “Don’t tell Gabrielle that the Orlando Sparkle requires ballgowns and parade costumes - or that they call the team uniform an ‘action suit’. We don’t need her getting any more new ideas.”
“No worries,” said Danny. “So what’s the team like? I mean, I know all about the supers, of course, but how about support staff?”
“They’re excellent. Our operations director you may have heard of… ”
“No kidding!” Danny broke in excitedly. “Dr. Annie Sterling is legendary! Best Operations Director for the West Coast Conference for like what - five of the last 15 years? And Best Operations Director for the whole Super League in 2007. But what’s she really like to work under? I mean, I’ve heard some stories… ”
“Probably all true,” said Seawolf with a wry smile. “Dr. Sterling is committed to West Pacific being the best team in the nation. Her training exercises are - well, brutal. The worst thing you can do with Annie is blow off a team practice or get a bad report from your physical trainer. I’d especially warn you as a power armor pilot that you’d better take physical training seriously. Annie will want you in the best shape of your life and she’ll expect you to be able to contribute to the team whether you’re in or out of the NMX. There were some issues with that when White Knight first joined the team, so definitely keep it in mind.”
“I will,” said Danny with a nervous smile.
“As for the rest of the staff, they’re solid. Gabrielle is new to the position of public affairs director, but she’s been working her way up through the team PR staff for years. Actually, I guess we’re in a transitional period across the board. Our team leader, Mr. Awesome, is getting ready to retire from active duty next year and take over as team president.”
Danny raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Wow – I hadn’t heard that. Dr. Hodges has been team president for a while now, hasn’t he?”
“Yeah, well, he’s been talking about handing it over to Awesome for years, but he keeps coming up with reasons to stick around for just one more Season. I think it’s finally happening though – Awesome’s getting some family pressure to get out of the field and I think Hodges is ready to step back and enjoy his role as the father of the West Pacific’s biotech industry. You know – mutant genetics conferences and honorary degrees, that sort of thing.” Gabrielle would kill her if she heard this conversation, Seawolf thought with some amusement. Like she cared. If Danny was coming on the team, she’d learn all of this soon enough. Might as well give her a head’s up.
The food arrived and there was a brief silence until Seawolf remembered what Gabrielle had told her to ask. “Can you tell me anything more about how you got your power armor suit? It’s an impressive piece of technology.”
Danny looked like she had been expecting this question. “All I can really tell you is that the NMX was a gift, she does legally belong to me, and she was made using technology that’s not readily available on Earth. And yes, there were mermaids involved.”
“Mermaids?”
“Yep, honest-to-goodness mermaids!” Danny laughed. “I’m really sorry I can’t go into more specifics. If it helps, Sparkle legal cleared up a bunch of issues since I’ve been on the teen team and we’ve never had any problems using the suit in my movies.”
“What if it gets damaged?”
For the first time in their conversation, Danny looked uncomfortable. “Well, fixing her is a little challenging. She has a pretty sophisticated onboard computer that can provide instructions on common repairs and so far we’ve been able to jury-rig replacement parts. Thankfully, the NMX is very strong and durable as well as quick, so I don’t usually take a lot of damage.”
“So no chance of mermaid technicians coming back to fix it?”
“No, not really,” Danny said with a nervous laugh. They ate in silence for a few minutes.
“So what’s it like to live in West Pacific?” Danny finally asked.
“Wet,” said Seawolf. “They call us the Seattle of California, though we get twice as much rain as Seattle does. October to March is the worst of it. Of course, since the Supercrime Season runs from May to September, it’s not too bad. A hell of a lot better than March in Milwaukee,” she added as an afterthought. Last night she’d gotten stuck talking to Breakwater, who had been traded from Savannah to Minneapolis in the middle of winter and kept going on about some sort of “lake breeze” that supposedly moderated the surrounding climate. It was 25 freaking degrees last night! She shivered just thinking about it.
“West Pacific’s one of the New Tomorrow cities, right?”
Seawolf nodded. “Yes. West Pacific was laid out and built on the ashes of a town in Northern California that the Vanghel used as a staging base when they invaded in ‘73. Just like they did with Cosmopolis, though West Pacific has a much more beautiful location, right on the Pacific. The old breakfronts are about all that’s left of the original town, though the harbor has been significantly expanded.”
>
“Do you guys get a lot of water action?”
“Enough to keep me busy. West Pacific does a booming trade with the Pacific Rim and a lot of that’s by ship so you’ve always got to keep an eye out for Celestials sneaking in. Plus the coastal location of the city makes her a prime target for water-based supervillains. The Coast Guard put up a small boat station about a decade ago and I work closely with them. The current liaison’s real good about informing us right when they find out about something. It’s really helped to have the extra set of eyes and ears out there.”
“Do you do any land operations?”
Seawolf shrugged. “Not as much as Annie would like. Starfish is the other water-friendly mutant on the team, but he actually prefers ground pounding. He’ll help out whenever there’s a water crisis, of course, but I’m primary on water. You’ll be helping me out on that angle though.” She gave a crooked smile and Danny grinned back.
“I sure hope so. I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to working with you. It’s like a childhood dream come true.”
Seawolf nodded, uncomfortable with the girl’s praise. The team was in more of a transition phase than she’d let on; the fact of the matter was that in a couple of years she was going to retire. Professional supers rarely managed to stay on top-tier teams past the age of 40, especially in the case of brawlers like Seawolf. Someone with energy expulsion could make it longer, but even then the work took its toll. Sure, she could try to move to a smaller team or join up with the Portland Legends, but that would mean leaving West Pacific and she couldn’t imagine doing that. Leaving the team would be hard enough. Danny was her hand-picked replacement, the future of West Pacific Supers.
The girl was still smiling at her in a way that approached hero-worship. Truth be told, it was kind of nice to have someone look at her that way rather than as a mutant freak.
“Tell me about the time you fought Typhoon.”
Seawolf was surprised. She hadn’t thought about that battle in years. “Typhoon was a real pain in the ass. He’s got wind and water control – similar powerset to Whirlpool of the Stormfront team. He was holding a cruise ship for ransom and no one could get near him. Nova Girl flew in and he tossed her around like dry leaves in a tornado.” She smiled, relishing the memory. “I approached underwater while the others kept him occupied. Once I got a hold of him, though, it was all over. He could put on a good show, but he wasn’t much of a brawler. He’s still in Yucca Mountain, I think. Of course, if you want to hear about a real fight, you should ask me about Captain Caecilian – but you should know better than to get a super started on war stories.”
West Pacific Supers: Rising Tide Page 4