Sonya held a two liter bottle of soda aloft, standing dramatically next to the television. She was feeling more than a little smug. Her performance had gone well, and it seemed only right to celebrate a little. She cradled the bottle and looked down at it before looking up at Amos, Colin, and Marta who had all gathered for what was probably the first time they were all in the same room. Marta was covering her face in second-hand embarrassment, Amos was guffawing as Colin leaned forward with a glint in his eyes and a grin on his face wide enough to match hers.
He’d really come out of his shell since joining up.
“I’d like to thank the Academy,” Sonya began, placing a hand over her heart as she looked longingly down at the bottle, “And of course my dear friends who have supported me up until this point,” She trailed off and wiped a non-existant tear from her eyes, “This is for you guys.”
Colin clapped excitedly while Marta groaned, trying to hide the amusement on her face with her hands. It wasn’t working.
“I still can’t believe she went for it so easily,” Amos snorted, resting his arms on his knees.
Sonya shrugged, “She’s got it out for me, the moment I showed reluctance she doubled down. She doesn’t think very highly of me, obviously. I could tell she was impressed with what we’ve accomplished as far as ASTA is concerned but that’s separate from me as a person,” She explained.
“Still, all we’ve managed to accomplish here is ensuring that she goes to the dungeon that day, nothing much past that,” Marta pointed out, buzzkill. “How are we dealing with her once we get her in there? What about Duong? I was next to the guy and Sonya’s right. He’s way more dangerous. I felt like I was standing next to a live generator and one wrong move would be the end of me even with Baldur’s Body.”
“You’d still survive,” Sonya said, walking over and settling onto the couch, “Though it would hurt, a lot.”
Marta frowned, “All the more reason to figure out a strategy. I’m not a masochist.”
“Plausible deniability is the first and highest priority. You need to make everything that happens while at the dungeon seem to be outside your control,” Colin said, “Get a third party to actually force her into the dungeon. Someone disposable but also strong enough to keep her inside. You can come and go from dungeons, right?”
“Some, not all,” Amos said.
“Oh?” Colin asked, turning to him.
“Yeah, the Times Square Dungeon had a cut-off point according to Firestorm’s team. After progressing to the main level of the building the path back was blocked,” He frowned, “It doesn’t hurt to cover all bases though.”
“They’d need to be able to get past Duong,” Marta added.
Sonya leaned back in her chair and played the drums on her two liter for a few seconds, thinking. She rest her head back and stared at the ceiling, considering all of her contacts. “Blackrazor still hasn’t made contact but I have a feeling he’s still alive, just busy. Kingshark would be cooked in an instant, he’s powerful but slow. I should figure out a fix for that in the future, I don’t want my lieutenants to have weaknesses.”
Amos snapped his fingers, “Veloce!”
Sonya sat up and blinked, “Oh yeah! That’s a great idea!” She laughed, “Veloce could get past him no problem and have Hyunh in the dungeon before he could even blink.”
“But could she hold Hyunh? You said her ability was some kind of magic like Bluestar, right?” Colin pressed, “Not to put a damper,” He nudged Amos’ shoulder, “Just making sure.”
Sonya considered for a moment. Colin was right that it wasn’t entirely certain as to whether or not she could hold Hyunh at bay and make sure the dungeon dealt with her. She rubbed her neck and pressed her lips together. “I could Broker her a power, but I’d need something in exchange from her and the deal has to be willing even if she’s basically enslaved.” She glanced at Marta, “And a powerful enough ability to really make sure we have no problems tends to come at a significant cost, especially for those who already work for me.”
Marta rubbed her chin, “Well, you mentioned at one point you gave me a free sample of my powers being awakened when the flash first happened,” Marta said slowly, “How long does it last?”
“Not long,” Sonya said shaking her head, “It was only about a minute, tops.”
“One Minute is not a lot of time to work with,” Colin agreed.
“At her speed, though, she could get pretty far into a dungeon in a minute as long as there aren’t barriers in her path,” Amos countered, “Also, do we really need more than a minute for things to play out with Duong? Powers don’t work through a dungeon portal, the moment she’s cut off the connection will sever. My drones don’t work with my technopathy if I’m not in with them and I imagine the effect is similar.”
The four of them looked at one another, “This might work,” Marta said hesitantly, “It’s incredibly risky and we still have to deal with Duong once he’s free. He’ll fly off the handle for certain if what Sonya’s told me and what I could feel are any indication.”
Sonya’s expression went dark, “Let him.”
The three looked at her, wide eyed, “What?” Colin asked, “But don’t you want him to die?”
“Yes, but I also have plans for him before that,” Sonya said, not elaborating. “But that requires me dealing with Hyunh first. More importantly, if we kill him too quickly the blowback might be more than we want.”
Amos mulled over Sonya’s words for a moment before looking up at her, “You want him to go berzerk in the middle of Las Vegas and let him run wild for a while?” He said, getting looks from the other two. He squinted and then nodded, “To ruin his reputation by a public act of villainy. You want to make him out into a villain to justify what comes after.”
“Something like that,” Sonya said with a nod.
“More bodies at your feet,” Marta pointed out.
“Yes,” Sonya said and rest her head back on the couch, “You’re right.” She didn’t argue the point, nor did she concede it. It was what it was and she was doing her best to make peace with it. She would have tried to say that she had, in fact, made her peace with it, but that would be a lie. Her own psychological problems were clear enough that there was some fracturing going on that she needed to work through. She huffed out a breath and looked up at the ceiling.
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There was an awkward silence for a moment as everyone sat in contemplation. “I should call Bernetta to get Veloce sent over,” Sonya said, “Then get prepared for the press conference tomorrow morning. The Chairman is really excited.”
“Do that later,” Marta said and exchanged a look with Amos. “Let’s celebrate a little more, we derailed ourselves with that conversation.”
Colin nodded and threw himself to the left, flipping onto his back and flopping down with his head in Amos’ lap. He stretched his arms and legs, letting out a sigh. “Yeah, I came here for a good time.”
Amos looked down at Colin, aghast, “Colin, you!”
Colin tilted his head a little bit and looked up at Amos, “There a problem?”
Amos frowned and looked away, his cheeks rosy, “No,” He grumbled.
“So, elephant in the room,” Sonya said, leaning forward and glad to be out of a scheming conversation into something far more entertaining. She pointed between Amos and Colin, “When did this happen? I noticed it the other day but didn’t say anything.”
Amos cleared his throat and opened his mouth to speak but Colin cut him off with a gesture and a tap on the chin, “We hit it off the night we met. Amos took me out to dinner, it was very nice,” The effeminate lawyer said, “Enough said, the rest is private,” He added with a wink to a very relieved looking Amos.
“Cute,” Marta breathed.
Sonya elbowed her, “Don’t drool.”
Marta gasped and put her hand up to her lips, “Am I?”
Sonya cocked an eyebrow at her, “Not yet, sheesh. You should really get out there and work out some of that tension, it’s good for you. Keeps me clear headed.” Marta frowned and looked down at her lap as Sonya continued. “I could hook you up with Kingshark. He’s a bit thick-headed sometimes but I think there’s a sweet guy underneath the… you know… nightmare sea-dwelling monster crime lord schtick.”
Marta looked at her aghsat, “I’m not that desperate!”
Sonya burst into laughter, “I won’t tell him you said that!” She guffawed, grabbing her ribs as the others joined in.
Marta just tugged at her hair and looked away, flustered.
Sonya reached over and pat her arm, “You’re fine just the way you are, Marta. No worries. I know what happened is a lot to deal with and get over.” More than you know.
“I saw him,” Marta said quietly.
“Who? Your ex-husband?” Sonya asked.
“Yes, at a convention,” Marta murmured, “Protesting.”
Sonya’s lips thinned, she’d always known he was a religious nut. She frowned, “Did he say anything to you?” Sonya asked, a little more darkly than she intended. Even Colin and Amos who’d been half flirting-half arguing looked up in surprise and maybe a little fear.
Marta didn’t seem to notice, lost in thought, “It wasn’t pretty, no.” Sonya’s lip twitched and she met Amos’ gaze. Amos swallowed as Marta seemed to sense the tension finally. She looked up at Sonya and her eyes widened. “You… Sonya please don’t. Just leave him be. I don’t want-”
Sonya’s voice dropped a full octave, “Are you sure?” Ishtar asked. “One word to Kingshark.”
Marta met her gaze and nodded, “This is my problem to deal with and he’s not worth the effort even then, let alone having some of Kingshark’s boys deal with him. I just need to work through it. How about you take me out clubbing instead?”
Ishtar sighed and nodded, her shoulders relaxing. The air in the room seemed to ease a little and both Colin and Amos let out their own breaths of relief. Sonya brightened up with a smile, “Well, in that case, the offer’s still on the table for the big guy. Who knows, you might be into it!” She teased with a tittering laugh before getting to her feet. “I’m gonna go make that call.” She said and stood, walking to her room.
The others watched her go, exchanging looks before Amos just shrugged and gestured to the TV. It flickered to life and the news came on.
“...in other news, the international task force of heroes will be visiting major cities across the United States in a tour to introduce the growing group and expand appeal. The Pandora Committee has indicated that this particular group will be eventually working towards the liberation of the lost Dharan territory.” The reporter said.
“Oh I heard about this,” Colin said, “I’m surprised Firestorm wasn’t invited.”
“Mythics only,” Marta pointed out, “The best and the strongest. Even if Firestorm frankly has more experience than most of them put together.”
“Ah,” Colin nodded in understanding.
“Recently added to the new team is Lian Chunhua also known as Black Lotus, a swordswoman from China who is currently being considered for a leadership position in the group given her military background and sizable monster kill count,” The screen changed to a woman with black hair standing with a sheathed sword in her hand speaking with a few other heroes and shaking hands. “The Mythic-tier hero has a confirmed count of over seven hundred monsters and single handedly defended a small town after a sizable wave of unusual monsters appeared. There is some question as to whether or not the wave was a result of a smaller version of the Dharan incident.”
The three of them exchanged looks, “Dungeon break?” Marta asked.
“Sounds like it, she managed it on her own?” Amos muttered, “Holy shit.”
“Probably common tier, even so…” Colin said thoughtfully. “...she’s powerful. Maybe we should-” He turned to look to Sonya who hadn’t quite reached her room when the TV went on. He froze. “Sonya?”
Sonya stood in the doorframe, her eyes wide, staring at the screen in a mixture of fear, confusion, grief, and something else. She was shaking, breathing hard, and gripping the frame of her door so tightly that her fingers were digging into the wood down to her knuckles. The others looked up in worry as the TV kept going. “We received word this evening that the Chairman of the Pandora Committee will be in Las Vegas next week and has made arrangements to meet the leading members of the international task force during that time. More details as they come,” The reporter trailed off, “Speculation about tomorrow’s press conference hosted by Sonya Chernovna has…”
“Sonya?” Marta called out to her, “Sonya are you okay? What is it?”
Sonya turned away in silence, shakily stumbling into her room and shutting the door behind her. The three just looked at one another then back at the television. “What the hell just happened?” Amos asked, “Was it that Chunhua woman?”
“I don’t know, but let’s look into it,” Marta said and got a nod from Amos.
–
She’s going to be there.
Sonya staggered towards her bed before immediately changing direction and rushing to the bathroom. A moment later she was rinsing her mouth out and gripping the sides of her sink with white knuckles. She looked up at her own glowing eyes. She could see the dim, broken eyes of the woman who had stumbled through the apocalypse even as they glowed brightly back at her in reality.
That bastard, this changes everything, I can’t face her. She snarled inwardly and ran the water again, splashing it over her face. He’s going to make me meet her. What should I do? What should I say? What can I do? She panicked.
“Fuck!” She swore and turned away, glancing at the toilet again and covering her mouth, nausea boiling up again. She crouched down and covered her head, her shoulders trembling. She felt Marta approach the door to her room and with an effort of will engaged the electronic lock. She didn’t want to see or talk to anyone right now. She felt bad, but she just couldn’t deal with it. Her mind was reeling. She hadn’t seen Chunhua’s face since laying eyes on her corpse before the funeral. Now she saw her alive and well, young, stern, fresh, beautiful.
God damn it, why now? She croaked as she curled up on the cold bathroom floor, holding her head. Calm down… calm down…