“The name tag,” Lilith murmured, quickly stepping back into the front room and going over to her purse. She’d kept the name tag separate, and couldn’t help being thankful that she’d bought a 3D printer. It’d made producing the tag a lot easier, and it fit over the edge of one of the top’s pockets well, proclaiming her name in simple black text.
With that done, Lilith perched the cap on top of her head, then slipped on the heels. Those she was much less thrilled about than the entire rest of the outfit, but she’d learned to walk in them. With that done, Lilith put her clothing back in the bag and picked up her purse. While it didn’t match her outfit, Lilith was willing to deal with that under the circumstances.
Lilith slipped through the door once she was sure she was ready, taking the shorter steps that the skirt forced, which honestly made it slightly easier to walk, and the next moment Emily came back around the corner and stopped suddenly, gawking. Lilith paused, heat rising in her cheeks as Emily stared, then looked down at herself.
“Does it not work for me?” Lilith asked, reaching up to toy with her necklace nervously.
“Not work for you? Of course it works for you! A little too well, if you ask me,” Emily replied immediately, her eyes shining. “I just didn’t expect a nurse outfit!”
“Well… I am more of a support type when it comes to my powers.” Lilith replied, smiling as she relaxed a little. “I looked at being an elf instead, but the dress was too complicated for me to make, and I decided that even if I bought the rings for chain mail, it’d take too much time to make beforehand. So… I went with this.”
“I’d like to see you in any of those,” Emily replied, grinning. “Anyway, it sounds like Archon is about done, so we’ll be getting out of here in a minute. Want to come see her? She’s pretty embarrassed about the whole thing.”
“I feel like a peacock.” Archon replied a split-second later, her voice echoing down the hall. “I don’t know why I thought this was a good idea.”
Both of Lilith’s eyebrows rose, and she resisted a grin as she glanced at Emily, whose smile had only widened.
“Well, a peacock is a bird,” Emily said, gesturing Lilith forward, and she carefully walked around the corner… then stopped, stunned.
Where Emily had gone for simplicity, Archon hadn’t. Not in any way Lilith could imagine, as she gaped at the woman, who was looking back at Lilith in embarrassment.
Archon’s wings had been dyed, with the feathers at the leading edge being a variety of yellow and orange, then they faded to a fiery red and yellow, then to purple and blue toward the bottom of the wings, like they were made of fire like her hair and eyes. Beyond that, she was wearing an elaborate red, orange, and yellow dress that was all flowing silks and gold fastenings which suited her bronze skin tone perfectly. It was an incredible sight, and it was only belatedly that Lilith spotted the woman beside her, a thin, blue-eyed woman with sandy blonde hair who had an expression of mingled satisfaction and annoyance on her face.
“You look absolutely amazing,” Lilith said after a moment, wishing that she’d managed something equally striking. “I never expected you to choose something so… elaborate.”
“I have wings, and those limit my options.” Archon said, letting out a heavy sigh as she glanced back. “I’ve gone as a fallen angel and a harpy before, this time I thought a phoenix would be good. I didn’t realize how difficult it would be to have my feathers dyed like this. You have Phillida to thank that I even finished the process, as I’d never have finished.”
“Your complaints did not make it any easier,” The other woman said tartly. “I was working as fast as I could.”
“I know, and I appreciate it. I just regret making the decision,” Archon said, her voice softening slightly. “Thank you very much.”
“You’re welcome,” the woman replied, a bit mollified, then looked back at Lilith. “However, might I get an introduction?”
“Sure!” Emily said, stepping forward, and said, “Lil, this is Phillida Hanley, a makeup artist who works in the area. She mostly works for small films, but she also does work like this on occasion. Phillida, this is Lilith Carpenter, who I think everyone in the world knows of, at this point.”
“I don’t know, there is that one island off India’s coast,” Lilith replied, giving a slight smile, but nodded politely to the woman. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Phillida. If this is an example of your work, you do an excellent job.”
“Thank you, Ms. Carpenter,” Phillida replied, seeming to relax slightly as she smiled. “I wish I could take all the credit, but I’m not responsible for the outfit, and it’s a lot easier when you have excellent material to work with. Even she does complain a lot.”
Archon sighed, and Lilith couldn’t help a soft laugh.
“I think I understand.” Lilith told her. “You still did excellent work.”
“She did!” Decarin said, and Archon moved to the side, allowing Lilith to see the man coming, and her smile widened. “I half wish I’d thought to ask for help!”
Decarin was wearing the sort of lab coat she associated with mad scientists, and he had black rubber gloves that reached all the way up to his elbows. Along with those, he had a white wig with hair that reached out almost six inches in all directions, and enormous glasses with soot on them, while one of them had a dial on it as well. He looked completely ridiculous, but it was likely on purpose.
“I don’t think you needed it. You seem to have managed quite well,” Phillida replied dryly.
“Well, I have had plenty of good examples over the years. Too many villainous inventors giving live performances of how to look and act,” Decarin said cheerfully, then nodded. “That said, I think it’s about time to go. You know how Shade hates being late, so…”
“True,” Emily agreed, and nodded to Phillida. “Thank you again! I love seeing your work.”
“You too, Emily,” The woman replied with a warm smile. “Now, I’d best go get into my costume if I want to get there at a reasonable time. Thanks for the invitation.”
“You’re welcome,” Archon said, and with that they started moving.
They were in the elevator, which was fortunately spacious enough to allow all of them to fit without too much trouble, when Lilith asked the question that she’d been pondering for the last few hours.
“So… if we’re all going to be at this party, and tons of other heroes are going to be there… do we need to worry about there being a villain attack somewhere else?” Lilith asked, a tiny bit of worry sneaking its way through her anticipation.
Emily laughed, grinning at Lilith as she shook her head. “Oh, that isn’t likely.”
“If anything, we should be more concerned about them crashing the party. I swear, I about had a heart attack the time Platinum Grace decided to show up and ‘raid the punch bowl,’” Decarin added, grinning wryly. “I think it’s largely an unwritten holiday for both sides. Too many civilians dressed up as heroes or villains, so it isn’t worth the hassle for anyone.”
“And if they do, the jerk who interrupts everyone’s holiday is going to get their ass kicked thoroughly,” Archon added dryly. “Who likes working on their days off?”
The other two nodded in agreement, and Lilith considered them for a moment, then shrugged, accepting that they were likely correct. She didn’t think that it was going to go as well as they obviously did, but her worries settled down a little.
Lilith really hoped she’d enjoy the night.
Chapter 38
Friday, October 31st, 2031
Memorial Hall, Paragon City
Lilith hadn’t expected the party to be held where it was. The convention center was attached to a museum dedicated to Megadeath’s destruction of Salt Lake City, which Paragon City had been built on the ruins of. It seemed a little odd to her, but the others took it in stride, explaining that it was one of the venues best suited to hosting dozens of superhumans, including some with impressive weights, while still being a relatively small
building.
She also hadn’t expected what their arrival would be like. As the hover van settled down by the curb, the sight of the media cameras gave her a clue of what was coming, along with the security guards and red carpet leading into the building. There were also huge crowds of civilians on either side of the guards, which made Lilith want to rub her forehead. She took one look at it, then glanced at the others, arching an eyebrow skeptically.
“You didn’t mention this part,” Lilith said, keeping her tone mild.
“We have two choices. Try to keep them out, and deal with all the media trying to sneak in, or let them get some pageantry in for our fans, which will hopefully keep most of them outside,” Shade replied, his scythe held close to his chest. “I think this is the right choice.”
“That doesn’t explain why you didn’t tell me,” Lilith said, closing her eyes for a moment and inhaling slowly.
“I was afraid it’d scare you off,” Emily said, sounding a little guilty. “Sorry?”
Lilith inhaled, rubbing her forehead as she ran through some mental calculus, trying to remember the lessons Circe had given about her public image, as well as the more recent advice she’d gotten after Las Vegas. The answers she came up with weren’t encouraging, as showing up with the Sentinels would cause all sorts of assumptions. Whether she was in the lead, in the back, or in the middle of the group, it was going to cause all sorts of difficulties, let alone if she went arm-in-arm with anyone.
“You realize that if I go out with all of you, there’s going to be speculation that I’m either dating one of you or that I’m joining the team,” Lilith said at last.
“True… but you realize that we’ve been seen in public several times, and the tabloids have already been talking about us like we’re together,” Emily replied, now grinning.
Lilith opened her mouth, then shut it as she realized Emily had a point. Then she looked at Archon. “Well? Am I letting her escort me, you, or both of you?”
“I believe that it’s time for me to take the lead in at least one regard,” Archon replied, prompting a blink of confusion from Lilith, and she opened her mouth to ask what Archon meant.
That was when Archon opened the van door and stepped out, accompanied by gasps from the crowd, cries of adoration, and lots of flashing cameras. Then Archon turned around, and before Lilith really understood what was happening, she picked Lilith up, one arm slipping under her legs, and the other behind her back, holding her securely.
“W-what are you doing?” Lilith demanded, flustered enough that she actually stammered.
“Archon!” Emily protested.
“I’m carrying you into the building,” Archon said, glancing down at Lilith, her cheeks slightly rosy and with a hint of embarrassment on her face as she admitted, “I thought it was time I stopped hesitating… and it is a shame you didn’t finish the princess outfit. It would have been appropriate.”
“You could have warned me,” Lilith replied, clearing her throat as she averted her gaze… which was something of a mistake, as she saw the gawking spectators. This was going to be all over the news the next day, she was certain of it. Or maybe even in a few minutes.
“If I’d made the decision before doing it, I would have. I suspect that I’m going to be inundated with questions for tonight, tomorrow, and all of November,” Archon said, a hint of resignation in her voice, then she glanced down to meet Lilith’s gaze as she hesitated, then admitted. “It’ll be worth it just for the look on your face, though.”
That shut Lilith up, and she blushed, doing her best not to shift her weight. She couldn’t help being startled at how easily Archon held her, holding her securely despite the position she was in, and she moved smoothly enough that Lilith barely felt her footsteps. It was hard to ignore the crowds, though that changed a moment later.
“Archon! Don’t ignore me, that’s just rude!” Emily exclaimed in outrage, racing around so she was just ahead of them, backing up furiously as she spoke, and the green light was flashing as she did so. “That’s not fair!”
“Then you should have picked her up yourself,” Archon replied, her tone much more measured than it had been a few moments before.
Behind them, Lilith barely heard Decarin mutter, “Uh, oh…”
“It’ll be an interesting night,” Shade agreed.
“You… you…!” Emily sputtered, and Lilith sighed, raising a hand to cover her eyes.
She didn’t disagree with the two men at all.
“So… are you and Archon together, then?” Astral Core asked, sneaking a peek at Archon.
The heroine was currently fending off several male and female heroes near the refreshments, which brought a wry smile to Lilith’s face. One of them was a man she didn’t know who was wearing a loincloth and had long, braided hair, along with an odd necklace that looked like it was made of animal claws. He was quite handsome on the whole, and since they’d arrived he’d had an entire bevy of admirers, primarily female, but with several men among them, but then he’d… what had Rachel said once? Ah, yes, he’d decided to tilt at the windmill that was Archon. Lilith didn’t know what the reference meant, but it seemed as good as any to her.
Astral Core amused Lilith, as she was dressed up as Nyx, the goddess of night, complete with an eerie black cloak and a bodysuit that was festooned with tiny stars. The rest of the room was filled with a huge variety of costumes as well, with people dressed as doctors, thugs, movie characters, astronauts, mummies, ghosts, and more.
One of the doctors had jokingly tried to draw Lilith away by claiming he had a patient for her to attend to, but Emily had pointed at the red light that’d been lit and said he had a red light. The man had given up with relatively good graces. Not that it had anything to do with Astra’s question.
“Nope,” Lilith said, still holding her cup, along with Archon’s. She hadn’t realized it had alcohol in it the first time she’d gone through the line, so Archon was attempting to get her a non-alcoholic version. “We’re dating, but so are me and Spark. It’s a question of whether or not things are going to work out with one of them. I did not expect her to pick me up and carry me into the building, though. That seems like an excellent way to make her fan club angry, given my history.”
“Oof, yeah, I hadn’t thought about that.” Astral Core said, wincing visibly. “I’ve heard they can be vicious. Have you been keeping track of what they’re saying?”
“Nope. I don’t have any social media accounts, and after a few things I’ve seen in the news, I don’t want one.” Lilith said firmly. “I’d rather deal with the occasional angry email that gets through my filters, or the rare confrontations.”
“If you say so. I won’t be surprised if your car gets wrecked one of these days.” Astra replied, shaking her head.
“Considering what happens to it when villains show up, I don’t know that they can do much worse.” Emily chimed in, meandering up. “Hey, Asty! What’re you up to?”
Astral Core gave Emily an annoyed look and sighed loudly before replying. “I’m chatting with Lilith, if it wasn’t obvious.”
“Oh, it was, but I was meaning everything else. I heard you took care of a big group of drug dealers last week.” Emily replied cheerfully. “Sounds like it wasn’t the most fun, though. Did they really have a rocket launcher?”
Astral Core’s annoyance seemed to fade slightly, and she straightened, looking at Emily in surprise. “Wait, you heard about that?”
“Yeah? I mean, you did some really good work, and it was on the news. You’re doing well, at least from what I’ve seen.” Emily replied, her smile widening. “I suspect you’d do better if you could take down a bigger villain, but those… it’s all dependent on if they attack somewhere you can get to.”
“Yeah, that’s true.” Astral Core admitted, her expression turning a bit guilty as she added. “I have to admit, I was a little frustrated when I heard about the attack on the disposal site, and that all of you got there before me. I thought it was a g
ood chance for me, but I was too late. Way too late.”
“Hey, you were there before me!” Emily protested. “I was busy with the whole alien thing!”
“We both were.” Lilith interjected, finally feeling like she had a good opportunity to talk, and a little intrigued by how quickly Emily had set Astral Core at ease. “Plus, it isn’t like it was a situation that could have waited. If those chemicals had been let loose…”
“True enough. It just can be frustrating sometimes, when you hear that you were near a huge incident but didn’t find out until it was too late.” Astral Core said, letting out a sigh.
“Hm… that’s a thought,” Emily said, her expression turning thoughtful. “I’ll have to talk to the others, but maybe we could set up some sort of comm link so that if something goes wrong in your neighborhood, we can let you know. Or heck, maybe I could actually get a proper vacation one of these days!”
“Maybe so,” Astral Core replied, giving Emily a dubious look, and Lilith couldn’t help a laugh. Then she spotted Archon on her way back, a cup in hand and an annoyed look on her face.
Lilith was barely opening her mouth to welcome her back when there was a flash of light, a rumble as if from thunder, and a booming voice echoed through the room. “Hark, heroes, for thy doom has come at last! Look upon me and—ack!”
“Ember, if you don’t shut up, I’m going to ignore the truce and shove your staff up your arse!” a man in a cheap sentai costume threatened, looming over the intruder.
The man who’d been interrupted looked quite taken aback, which amused Lilith. He had a staff with a large glass globe atop it that glittered with lightning, likely from the miniature tesla coil inside it, he was wearing an elaborate gold and copper outfit that looked quite expensive, and he had dark hair in cornrows that hung down his back.
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