Ember Kilborne stared at the abominable superweapon she had helped create in utter existential terror.
She saw, felt the flashing bracelets within the monstrosity. The hum of the fusion reactor from within the cathedral grew, pulsating in tune with thousands of bracelets embedded within the titan.
Alexa pulled an SCA pen from her vest pocket and clicked it. The recording light came on, Martin noted.
[What. Did you steal one of my dad's pens?] Martin stared at the SCA pen in her hand.
He noticed that the pen had several cracks on it and was held together with several Dora the Terraformer themed band aids.
Martin suddenly realized that this was his pen that she broke in Mr. Canard's office. He totally forgot about it, didn’t even see her pick it up! She must have done it when she distracted him with the “keep your friends close and your enemies closer” speech in which she had confessed hacking the SCA database to spy on his family!
Alexa started to laugh.
"You are incredible!" She yelled up at the enormous skinwalker as she waved the pen at it. "I always dreamed about having a big monster-sister! We are going to have such great fun together and nothing and nobody will be able to tell us what to do! Not even Titanomachy! Mwa ha ha ha ha! Show me what you can do, love?"
The monstrous skinwalker moved one of its limbs, demolishing a three story building as if it was made from cardboard.
Martin idly noted that this was the Superstate Bank which they had previously robbed of its gold. The Super-reinforced metal bent and snapped like toothpicks as Mr. Noodles' massive, black claw went through the building. The letter "S" in Superstate bent and warped, rolling across the street.
"Amazing!" Alexa grinned. "Daddy has really outdone himself for me! I've never expected such an excellent present! I really didn't like that Bank, you know."
Ember heard the intensifying throb of the reactor and she knew that she was to blame for all of this. The bracelets would bring the skinwalker titan to the present and no hero would be able to stop it. She knew then why the future her, Admiral Resonance, had used the orbital ion cannon to take England off the map. Only the full power of the annihilation beam could vaporize, end this thing. In minutes the bracelets would activate and the world would burn, millions would die. Alternatively, if old Admiral Kolchi was too noble or too indecisive, refusing to sacrifice millions to save billions, this titan would easily reach the space elevator and likely pull the entire station from orbit.
Ember's heart throbbed as quickly as the reactor now. This was the ultimate goal of Doctor Terranova! This was the global disaster her mom had been trying to prevent all this time and ex-hero Resonance in her careless, hasty folly was to blame for the coming end of the world.
Ember dropped to her knees onto the ash covered, frozen earth in front of Alexa, beneath the planet-wide supercell storm. Lightning flashed overhead, highlighting the monster and its creator.
"Alexa!" Ember wailed.
"Yes?" Alexa clicked the recorder off and turned to Ember.
"Please! You have to stop it! You have to do something!!! Deactivate the bracelets! PLEASE!" The ex-hero begged.
"Hum?" Alexa looked down at her nemesis. "But my big doombringer sis and I already have such great fun planned. We wouldn't want to disappoint daddy!"
"I am begging you! Don't bring that thing to the present! Millions will die if you do!" Ember wept. "Please don't! I'll be your most obedient, most loyal minion! I'll answer to Dimmy! I'll do anything! Just don't do it!!!"
"Anything? I dunno about that. I'd be ever so lonely without my new big sis in 2024."
"I'll be your big sister, instead! I'll be the best damn sister you've never had! Please!!!!" Ember wept, holding onto Alexa.
"You'll let me use your Hero's credit card to buy sushi?" Alexa inquired casually.
"Yes!!!!!" Ember yelled. “I said anything!!!”
"I don't know if I should believe you. You were kind of a disappointing sister to Martin, from what I hear." Alexa looked at her fingernails.
"I'll be the best sister, I swear!"
"Why don't we make it official?" Alexa asked, waving Martin's SCA pen.
[Dimmy, gimme your thumb please,] Alexa demanded.
Ember complied without questions, not sure how Alexa planned to stop the giant skinwalker from being sent into the present with just a pen.
Alexa brushed the end of the pen against Ember’s thumb. [Say - “Contract maker,”] she commanded.
“Contract maker,” Ember said, looking dazed. [What?]
The pen buzzed, the holo-screen didn’t come on.
[Looks like it’s broken] Martin thought.
A green, thin beam of light, easily visible in the dim surroundings suddenly flashed from the pen. Alexa rotated the pen to point the beam at her own eye.
“This legally binding contract is made between hiree [A] Alexa Terranova and employer [B] Ember Kilborne.” Alexa flashed the pen’s light into Ember’s eye.
[Say these words, Dimmy: I Ember Kilborne, also known as Hero Resonance…]
Ember looked at Alexa, mouth flapping open and closed. The hum of the reactor intensified in the background.
[Go on, we don't have all freaking day!] Alexa prompted.
“I Ember Kilborne, also known as Hero Resonance...” Ember spoke, her voice breaking.
[Do solemnly swear, that I am of sound mind and body.]
Ember said the words, confused, not understanding why this was necessary and fearing the worst.
[From this moment henceforth I declare, take on Alexa Terranova as my future sidekick, apprentice and acolyte selection for Hero Academy!]
“...Hero Academy,” Ember finished, trembling.
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
Alexa clicked the pen and the green light shut off. She looked smug.
“I don’t understand. You just wanted… to be my sidekick?” Ember whispered, looking at Alexa with wide hazel eyes.
“Alright, spit em all out, noodle-chan! We’re done here!” Alexa yelled at the gigantic monstrosity.
Mr. Noodles wiggled and thousands of rapidly flashing bracelets emerged from his insides, raining down onto the rubble covered ground.
“I’m going to miss you, big sis!” Alexa yelled.
[I’ll miss you too, little sis,] Mr. Noodle mentally replied with Alexa’s somewhat distorted voice.
Martin felt that the copy of Alexa's mind that his power had produced was being overwhelmed by the rest of the skinwalker's massive body, becoming lost in the chorus of death once more.
The skinwalker giant stood up, and spun, warped, its head twisting, tentacles rearranging themselves into a simulacrum of human hair. For a second the skinwalker's face looked like a gargantuan statue of a thousand-eyed girl made of black, glistening sludge.
The bracelet on Alexa along with thousands of the others on the ground beeped in unison.
“I love you! Goodbye!” Alexa bowed.
[I love you too,] the titanic Alexa-shaped skinwalker answered, bowing as the last vestiges of Alexa's mind dissolved within the monstrous abomination. [Goodbye.]
Thousands of gigantic hands descended from the sky, punching through the broiling storm. The builders were going to dismantle the aberration and they wouldn't take no for an answer.
Titanic Alexa saluted the real Alexa as the sky-hands struck her. She didn’t try to resist them, embracing her end.
Alexa hugged Ember. Martin and Cottie placed their hands atop them.
The world flashed with blinding white.
----------------------------------------
Four teenagers found themselves in the park in front of the Saint Mary’s cathedral.
Three thousand black bracelets littered the ground in front of them. Alexa lifted the bandaid-taped pen up to the sky, pointing it up at Titanomachy.
Martin saw as a barely visible red laser beam of data flashed from the pen towards the Superstate megastructure.
"With this move, I mark the end of everything," Alexa declared to the sky. "The doomsday of herocracy is nigh. The collapse of the current world order begins thus! The Superstate shall fall and Titanomachy will belong to me! Mwa ha ha ha ha..."
“Supervillain Alexa Terranova! Put your hands up! You are hereby under arrest for your future crimes against humanity and the Superstate!” An ear-splitting voice boomed from all around, interrupting Alexa's villainous laughter.
Every tree in the park surrounding the quartet of teenagers suddenly bent outward as the air itself warped and detonated. Branches and leafs flew away, blasted by a sudden hurricane. The stained glass windows of Saint Mary’s cathedral wobbled in their frames. The bell inside the bell tower began to swing back and forth for the first time this century, producing deep, somber gongs across town.
The pen flew from Alexa’s hand shattering in the air. Her hands were already up.
Hero Nonpareil flashed into existence in front of Alexa with another boom of displaced air. He looked extremely determined, ready to annihilate anything in his way, eyes flashing with terrible, earth shattering power. Five other supers became visible behind Nonpareil. Martin knew of their names, because they were part of the mightiest team of five heroes on the planet. Knight Chalice, The Surgeon, Dora the Terraformer, The Multiplier… and Mr. Canard. The gym teacher was the sixth super present. He was wearing sunglasses and looked spooked.
“Ugh! Where’s the giant monster? I expected to slay a giant monster!” Knight Chalice said, looking around. “I brought my biggest sword and everything!” The swinging park trees reflected off his armor and the unnecessarily long sword. The sword turned, casting a shadow across the city.
Chalice was looking for someone to smite, but only found four small teenagers covered in dirt.
“Maybe it’s invisible?” Dora said with a hissy voice coming from very grimy speakers on a rather large space suit covered in numerous dents and scratches. Barely visible pink paint showed in between the dents, peeling off.
“It’s not invisible,” the Surgeon sighed. He looked tired, dark bags under his eyes. His green, long, unkempt hospital gown fluttered in the wind. “I can see across every existing spectrum. There’s nothing. Those bracelets are extremely suspicious though. They’re full of super-tech and are lightly covered in some sort of... questionable substance. They are likely going to assemble into a transit gate or something for the thing to come through. I suggest we destroy them now.”
“Agreed!” Multiplier put his arm on the Surgeon, magnifying the super's power. “Erase them all.”
“Agreed.” Nonpareil flashed out of where he had been previously. He appeared besides the Surgeon, holding one of the bracelets with freaky, metallic fingers. “Erase them!”
The Surgeon touched the black hexagonal bracelet held by the small, staple-sized arm of Nonpareil. The black bracelet rippled and vanished. Every bracelet on the ground vanished at the same time.
The bracelet on Alexa’s arm vanished too.
Alexa looked at her naked arm.
“I’m free! I’m finally free! Oh thank you! Thank you!” She cried, hugging Martin.
“I said, keep your hands up and don’t move!” Nonpareil flashed, suddenly appearing behind Alexa with a supersonic detonation of displaced air. The blast of air knocked Alexa and Martin apart and down onto the grass. A pair of SCA handcuffs clicked, binding Alexa’s arms.
The hero smacked Alexa face-first into the earth with another powerful concussive blast of air.
“She’s the one in charge. Arrest her!” Mr. Canard said, sunglasses glinting on his face. He pointed a finger at Alexa, accusingly. “I’ve been observing her! She broke into the SCA bank and attacked me with Molotov cocktails when I tried to stop her. She’s been using those bracelets to teleport around and get away from me. She’s a delinquent and a vile supervillain!”
“You’re making a mistake! I've done nothing!” Alexa hissed at Nonpareil, lifting her face. She was bleeding from her mouth, ears and eyes.
“I do not make mistakes, villain,” Nonpareil said coldly. “You’re going away for a very long time.”
“For what?! I’m innocent, you paperclip-shaped-tit!” Alexa yelled. "I've..."
“Silence! We prevented the future in which you destroy the Superstate with a giant monster from another dimension!” Another blast of air flattened Alexa into the ground, tools flying from her belt, backpack ripping apart and things from within it scattering around.
“Argh, come on! That was my third backpack, you asshole! Why do you people keep destroying my things?!” Alexa yelped, trying to grab at her tools.
“Weapons!” Nonpareil flashed and every tool on the ground flew away from Alexa.
“This is super-brutality, damn it! You’re going to be very, very sorry,” Alexa said, wiping blood from face. “I swear to god, I’m going to destroy the Superstate if you arrest me now... and then I'm going find you and make you confess everything! I'll make you cry and beg for mercy, just you wait, you staple-shaped bastard…”
“Threatening me will do you no good.” Nonpareil intoned, slamming a wall of displaced air into her once again. “Who are these other kids? Your hostages?”
“They’re my friends!” Alexa answered, crying in pain as her entire body was quickly becoming one giant bruise.
Martin was lying knocked out in the grass, unable to say anything or to help anyone. Cottie rose from the ground, with a groan, pressing the trigger of her railgun.
“By the 1779 Accord made between Eminence Equality and Sup…” She started to speak as colors drained from the world.
Nonpareil and Alexa vanished before the nullification field reached them, a supersonic boom throwing Cottie’s dark blue hair into the air. A hole appeared in the clouds overhead.
“Bring her back, you fucking bastard!” Cottie screamed at the sky.
Ember turned over, coughing. She didn’t try to say or do anything, deaf and confused from the repetitive concussive blasts. None of the heroes had recognized her and it didn’t even matter to her - she had done it.
[I saved the world. I wasn’t even a hero anymore and I saved the world! Nobody would die today and that’s all that matters,] Ember thought.
The five heroes started to back away from Cottie and her black gun.
“Bring her back! In the name of Equality! I command you to bring her back!” Cottie yelled.
A round drone with the SCA logo dotted with cameras spun around the scene.
A thousand eyes of Titanomachy looked down upon the handcuffed villain girl and the paperclip hero that held her by her orange construction jacket.
"I'm going to dismantle all of you, I swear! Put me down right this instant! I am a hero! I just saved all of you dumb fucks! I'm trying to save the world!" Alexa yelled at Nonpareil as he held her high above the clouds.
Nonpareil simply scoffed at the villain in his hands.
"You'll be the first to fall if you don't let me go right now," she hissed at Nonpareil, silver-blue eyes flashing dangerously.
"You're only adding centuries to your sentence," Nonpareil commented.
Across the world, the faces of Alexa and the five heroes flashed on every news channel, the same thing being rebroadcast, regurgitated on every major live vlog.
“The Five save the world once again! Supervillain apprehended!” Newspapers, vlogs, blogs, S-feed and TV stations announced.
Thousands of professional TV commentators and millions of amateur bloggers in every nation began discussing the arrest of Alexa Terranova, the supervillain that had nearly destroyed the Superstate.