David Dee
10th February 2005, 04:06 PM
*Ahem*
First, I'd like to apologize for the wait between
chapters--I had this one written, but getting a good
text version took some time, and I always had other
projects I was writing, and anyway, I figured I could
send it in tomorrow...
Well, anyway, I'm sending it in now. I hope you
enjoy. Once again this is set in DB Sommer's
"Avenging" universe. On the sidelines. The Ranma 1/2
and Inu-Yasha characters are owned by Rumiko Takashi.
The Marvel characters are the creations of Stan Lee,
Steve Ditko, Steve Englehart, Roy Thomas...
Well, a lot of people. But Marvel owns them all. In
both cases, I've got no permission to do this, and may
only hope that this escapes the notices of them and
their lawyers, and that if it does not, they do not
sue me, as I'm very, very poor.
And there's a few characters who I'll reveal at the
end of the chapter, because this one supposed to be a
surprise.
And since it's been a while--a recap!
Synopsis
Hikaru Gosunkugi was a young man like most others.
Except more pathetic. Living a sad existence of quiet
desperation, and getting extorted almost daily by
Nabiki Tendou, Hikaru wound up on the docks, making a
rather poor suicide attempt, when he overheard a
sailor talking about the Ancient One, Master Magician.
Deciding that at the very least, it wouldn't make
anything worse, Hikaru went to India to visit the
Ancient One, and try to convince him to--well, make
things better for him. Somehow. Surprisingly enough,
the Ancient One took him on as his apprentice, and
Hikaru wound up helping him foil an assassination
attempt by one Baron Klaus Mordu, his senior
apprentice. The Ancient One then explained to Hikaru
that their world was in very bad shape--something had
occured to weaken its mystic defenses, with the result
that it was now facing more and more invasions from
hideous entities from beyond time and space. The
Ancient One needed someone to handle these
disturbances (most of which were happening in Tokyo)
for him, and Hikaru happened to be the one around when
he needed him.
Thus, Hikaru's visit in many respects HAD made his
life worse, a fact he found surprisingly easy to
believe.
Arriving back in Tokyo after a brief but intense
apprenticeship, Hikaru was surprised to discover that
his native land was in the middle of a superhero boom.
Deciding to take advantage of this to perform his
mission with minimal disturbance, as the Ancient One
had saddled him with some truly unfortunate clothing,
Hikaru created a superheroic identity for himself as
"Dr. Strange". On his first night out, he handled
quite a few nascent demonic invasions, earned himself
a lifelong enemy by beating supervillain Pastepot Pete
(well, I didn't say it was much of an enemy) and
acquired a pair of allies in the forms of eager
superhero wannabe Hellcat (real name: Kagome
Higurashi) and time-displaced half-demon Son of Satan
(real name: Inu-Yasha), a decidely less eager
superhero. The group were joined shortly thereafter
by Miroku the Devil-Slayer, another time-displaced
associate of Kagome, who is presently lodging with
Hikaru.
There is some story of how these three wound up in
their present situation, but Hikaru really isn't all
that eager to hear it.
Recently, this small not-quite-a-team of superheroes
faced an organized gang of supervillains called 'the
Masters of Evil', led by the mysterious Crimson Cowl.
The battle between the two groups was fierce, and
ended with Hikaru recieving the first clear defeat of
his superhero career.
Now, as the heroes continue their mission to keep bad
things from happening, the wheels of destiny turn once
more...
-----
She'd been running so long, she'd forgotten what it
was like to be still—if she'd ever known in the first
place. She was tired—her feet were sore—and she needed
to eat—but she couldn't stop. They would catch her if
she stopped. She knew that.
Even if she didn't know who they were.
-----
"And I say," noted Hikaru, "the 'brain in a tank
method' of immortality is severely lacking in appeal."
"Oh come on!" said Inu-Yasha. "Ya get ta live forever.
That's a hell of a better deal than ya mortals usually
get!"
"Ahh, yes, an eternity as an immobile organ that has
to be hooked up to machines in order to use even
rudimentary versions of the senses," said Hikaru
dryly. "Sounds marvelous on reflection. Sign me up
immediately."
Inu-Yasha crossed his arms. "Well, you don't have to
be so sarcastic…"
The waitress brought them their order. "That sounds
like my uncle," she noted. "They've got him hooked up
to ten different machines in order to live."
"How's he holding up?" said Hikaru.
"Aside from trying to smother himself with his pillow,
not bad," she stated.
Hikaru sipped his coffee. "You know, I never thought
I'd say this, but the dry spell is getting to me." He
gave his head a rueful shake.
Inu-Yasha glanced at him. "When's the next—?"
"Still three days, Inu-Yasha," sighed Hikaru. "Just
like the last time you asked."
Inu-Yasha grumbled to himself.
Hikaru glanced at Miroku. "Still no word on the
Masters of Evil?"
"They're lying low," replied Miroku. "However, I have
found something out about the Crimson Cowl."
Hikaru's eyes perked up, his interest obvious. "What?"
"He has no criminal record. Nor does he even have an
extensive reputation in the criminal underworld. On
the contrary, he seems to have popped up out of the
blue, and begun gathering supervillains around him."
"So in fact, what you've discovered is nothing,"
muttered Hikaru snarkily.
"Some kinds of nothing are a form of something,"
replied Miroku. "An enigmatic supervillain arriving to
gather Shinken shards at precisely this time is highly
suspicious, you'll agree…"
"You're thinking it's that Naraku fellow," said
Hikaru. "I don't think that works. Someone as powerful
as that guy is—if even half of what you say is
true—wouldn't waste time trading fisticuffs with
me—not if he had the advantage. He'd just kill me and
be done with it." Hikaru took a very long swallow of
coffee. "And then there were all the gizmos. Demons
and technology generally don't mix. They really lack
the patience to learn how to program a VCR, much less
outfit themselves with the latest in combat
equipment."
"So you're saying there's no connection," sighed
Miroku.
"I'm saying we don't know enough to be sure about
anything," said Hikaru. "And definitely not enough to
follow theories that may send us after red herrings
because we want them to be true."
Miroku glanced at Kagome. "What about you, Kagome?
What do you think?"
Kagome fixed Hikaru with an icy stare. "I think the
Kid Commandos is a brilliant name, no matter what
certain people think about it."
"Not having that conversation, Kagome," said Hikaru in
a singsong voice. "Just not going to happen."
Kagome mumbled something that sounded like her
equivalent to swear words.
"Pardon me," came a voice, "do you have some salt?"
Hikaru groaned. "Yes." He picked up the shaker.
"Hey, I know you!"
Hikaru turned. Sayuri stood there. He gulped. Sayuri
was a classmate who'd seen him as Dr. Strange, and
despite the Crimson Cowl's revelation that Hikaru was
subconsciously using some sort of hypnosis to protect
his identity, he was still worried about it not
taking.
"You're Hikaru Gosunkugi! The weirdest kid in school!
And I was—talking to you!" Sayuri's eyes widened in
horror. "And—this—this must be—your infamous manga
club! A collection of the most socially undesirable
freaks in Tokyo! And I've been—exposed!" Her face
blanched. "Okay, Sayuri—take a deep breath, and back
away slowly…"
"Sorry for disturbing your placid existence," muttered
Hikaru.
Sayuri burst out screaming and ran from the café.
"You forgot your salt, miss…" shouted Kagome after
her.
Hikaru slouched back in his seat. "I don't know what's
more depressing—the fact that I've saved her life
several times, or the fact that since I became a
superhero, my reputation has declined—something I
didn't even think was possible."
"Cheer up, Hikaru!" said Kagome. "We may have our
different opinions about my brilliant ideas for names,
but I would never insult you the way she just did."
She gave a cheerful nod. "I'm much too scared of you."
"Likewise," noted Miroku.
"I'm more kinda nervous 'bout ya, myself," said
Inu-Yasha.
Hikaru sighed. "Thanks for the sentiments." He
grimaced. "The concept that I move you to absolute
terror is such a joy to me that I am lost for words."
A pair of policewomen entered.
"And I'm telling you, Kei, he was checking me out."
"He's gay, Yuri. He doesn't check women out, except
maybe every now and then for makeup tips."
"Hmmph," muttered Yuri.
The pair sat down at the counter. The waitress glanced
at them. "Let me guess—two donuts."
Yuri glared at her. "That is a rude and unfounded
stereotype. I'd like a garden salad, with a light
vinaigrette dressing."
Kei smiled. "I'd like a donut." Yuri's glare shifted
to her. "What?" said Kei defensively. "I like donuts."
The pairs' walkie-talkie blared on. "Attention all
units. We have reports of a monster rampage in Kanda
district. Repeat—a monster rampage in…"
Yuri blinked. "Sounds serious."
"Probably a kook or a crank," said Kei. "And if it
isn't, we're just going to go through the usual
'monster call' routine."
"There's a usual routine?" asked the waitress.
"Yep," said Kei. "We go in and wind up firing at the
usually bulletproof monster. When we run out of
bullets, Yuri usually winds up throwing her gun at it,
apparently under the impression that if a large number
of accurate speedy projectiles don't do the job, one
clumsily thrown slow projectile will."
"I might luck out," grumbled Yuri.
"At that point, either a superhero, or a SWAT team
comes to save our sorry asses." Kei shook her head.
"So, I'm really in no hurry to go there."
Inu-Yasha glanced at Hikaru. "Interested?"
Hikaru stood up. "Are you kidding? Given my options
right now, the only reason I didn't bolt out the door
is I want to finish my coffee."
-----
She fell to the ground, her knees giving out beneath
her. Her breath came in unsteady gasps—she felt
miserable. She glanced at a small puddle. The face
that stared back at her was a mask of desperation and
exhaustion. Her eyes gazed at her reflection with the
fury of a frantic animal.
A slight despairing moan escaped her lips, despite her
best efforts to hold it back. Her hands reached out to
the puddle on pure, base need, and splashed some water
on her face. A feeling of relief came over her. Her
tongue darted out, and licked some of the moisture off
her cheeks.
That was when she heard the clatter of footsteps. They
were coming.
She stood up and ran, determined to use what energy
remained to her to get as far away as possible. As she
ran, she whispered a prayer to gods whose names she
could no longer recall. Send help, please I beg you!
-----
Hikaru glanced around the city neighborhood in
distaste. "Oh, come on! This is a monster rampage?
Some battered garbage cans! A few over-turned cars!"
He shook his head. "Absolutely nothing that can't be
explained by rowdy teenagers!" He raised his fist.
"This is the result of overly-specialized hotlines!
The average citizen is affected by a monster rampage
perhaps once every seven years, and then only
peripherally. But due to media saturation, everyone is
convinced they're an imminent threat, and so we get a
hotline that is promptly abused by elderly women to
put the fear of God into teenagers who play their
music too loud…"
Kagome blinked. "So you want there to be a monster
attack?"
Hikaru gave a dismissive wave. "Oh, I don't know what
I want. Let's go—it's clear we're not needed here."
There was a low rumble, the sound of many bricks
smashing to the ground. Hikaru turned. "On second
thought, our presence is clearly necessary."
The four ran towards the din. A dark, ragged figure
was running towards them. "A-after me!" it shouted
nervously. "P-please help!" Hikaru gestured for the
others to stop, and then was nearly bowled over by the
figure as it ran towards him, and more or less
collapsed on him.
The figure was, Hikaru noted rather awkwardly, a girl.
Her skin was a dusky brown—her hair was a very dark
shade of black. She was slender, but the feel of the
muscles under the skin suggested she lacked nothing
for strength. She seemed very faint at the moment—her
eyes were fluttering weakly, and her head was tossing
as if she was in a state of delirium.
She was quite possibly the most beautiful woman that
Hikaru had ever seen.
He blinked. Second most beautiful. Definitely second.
He had no idea where that ‘most beautiful' impulse had
come from.
"Umm—miss…?" Hikaru cleared his throat. "Miss? What's
wrong? Miss?"
She shook her head as if trying to clear it, and
opened her eyes. Hikaru noted with some surprise that
they were green. They seemed unfocused—he had the
distinct impression she couldn't actually make his
face out right now. That was probably a good thing.
"T-they're after me. Need—shelter. Please help…"
"Don't worry," Hikaru murmured in tones he hoped were
comforting, but were probably just distressing and
awkward. "You're among friends now, miss…" Hikaru
blinked. "Umm, what's your name? If you don't
mind—this is starting to get awkward…"
Her head shot up nervously. "N-name…?" She blinked as
if trying to recall it. "N-Nadia. I—" An odd
expression came over her face. "Why are there hands on
my breasts?"
Hikaru gulped. He had been planning on moving those it
had just—slipped his mind. As he lowered his hands,
glancing around awkwardly, Nadia did him the great
disservice of going limp as a rag doll. "Umm, a little
help here?"
Miroku stepped forward. "Of course, sir, I'll just—"
"Step right back and let Kagome help," stated Hikaru
evenly. Kagome nodded, rushed forward and took Nadia's
left side. "There's a bench over there…" she noted.
Hikaru nodded. They walked the unconscious girl over
to it, and sat her down. Kagome began to look Nadia
over as Hikaru glanced at Inu-Yasha and Miroku. "All
right," he began, "it seems our ‘monster'—which might
be plural—is after Miss Nadia. We don't know why—"
"Umm, Dr. Strange…?" asked Kagome quietly.
"Where is the damn thing…?" muttered Inu-Yasha. "It
smashed up a wall, and then—nothin'."
Miroku shrugged. "Maybe we spooked it."
"Or maybe it's playing a waiting game…" said Hikaru
bleakly.
"Umm, Dr. Strange…?" asked Kagome quietly.
"Maybe I could check my sources," said Miroku. "A
homeless gaijin with her… striking appearance would
leave a pretty clear trail…"
"That's as much a problem as it is a help," noted
Hikaru.
"Dr. Strange!" said Kagome loudly.
"Yes, Hellcat?" said Hikaru, his fingers starting to
rub his temples. "What is your pressing concern?"
Kagome sputtered quietly. "It's—ahh—her feet," she
finally got out. "She's barefoot, see…?"
Hikaru began to rub his temples. "That's because she's
poor, Hellcat. When people are poor, sometimes they
can't afford niceties the rest of us take for granted,
like shoes, or regular meals…"
"Yeah, but—" Kagome gestured to Nadia's ankles.
"They've got little wings on them. See?" She tugged
lightly on a little green wing that rested perfectly
on the heel of the foot.
Hikaru blinked. "Oh." This was definitely—unique.
-----
Defending
Chapter 5—"Never Met a Girl Like You Before"
An "Avenging" Universe Spinoff
David Dee
-----
"How is it you're allowed to feel her up, but I'm
not?" asked Miroku.
"Once again, I didn't ‘feel her up'!" snapped Hikaru.
" ‘Feeling up' both implies and requires a conscious
effort on the part of the feeler that I lacked."
Miroku grinned slightly. "So your hands sought out her
chest of their own violation. Understood."
Hikaru slapped his forehead. "No, it was an accident,
like this conversation. A hideous, horrible accident
we will all try to forget."
"I see." Miroku nodded. There was an awkward silence.
"So—what were they like?"
Hikaru shuddered in rage. "I don't know why I even
stay within a speaking distance of you sometimes!" He
glanced at Inu-Yasha. "Picking up any scents?"
Inu-Yasha glanced up at them, and shrugged. "Just
hers." He frowned. "Actually, it's pretty weird. Human
but—saltier…"
Miroku glanced at Hikaru. "Any idea where she's from?"
Hikaru sighed. "India? Africa? Brazil? The Caribbean?
Idaho?" He shook his head. "The world's a lot smaller
than you two remember—the best I could do is take a
guess at her ethnicity and even that would be a wild
stab." He walked over to the edge of the alleyway. The
brick wall that stood at the end of it had a huge
gaping hole in it. "Maybe she can tell us when she
comes to." He kneeled, and placed his hands on the
bricks.
Inu-Yasha glanced at him. "Musta been pretty big ta do
this, eh?"
Hikaru shut his eyes. "Hard to tell. If you hit
anything just hard enough and in the right spot, it'll
shatter…" He took a deep breath. "Hmm…"
Miroku blinked. "What are you doing?"
"Psychometry," replied Hikaru. "Inu-Yasha tried to
pick up as scent—now I am…"
"Eh?" muttered Inu-Yasha uncomprehendingly.
"I'm scanning the area for psychic residue. I might
find something—and the Ancient One has been suggesting
I practice my mental powers."
"Sorta like when Kagome and Miroku pick up evil
spirits…"
"More or less. Think of it this way—they're using
their naked eyes, I'm going over things with a
magnifying lens."
Miroku stared at him. "What are you getting?"
"Not much," answered Hikaru. "Fear—that's probably
hers—pain—a great deal of hostility, and—" He
shuddered. "Eww."
"What?" asked Inu-Yasha mystified.
"Let's just say a lesson not to probe to deeply into
the past of old alleyways and leave it at that," said
Hikaru uncomfortably.
Inu-Yasha gave a puzzled nod.
Hikaru shook his head. "Well, that's that—I lost the
thread." He sighed. "Whatever our ‘monster' is, I
can't find out anything about it…" He stood up, and
walked away, Inu-Yasha and Miroku followed him.
A pair of eyes were following him in the distance.
"Why, look, sister! It's that old meanie, Son of
Satan! I hate him, don't you?"
"Waah!" cried her kneeling sister. "That nasty tramp
bruised my hand when she broke free…"
"Oh, we'll get back at her. Just like we'll get back
at Son of Satan and that nasty Hellcat woman." She
giggled. "Come on! The boss will want to know about
this."
-----
The first thing Nadia heard when she came to was,
"Well, this is new! Usually I'm the comatose one…"
Her eyes shot open. She found herself staring at the
gaunt, pale face of Hikaru Gosunkugi. This was not a
comforting sight, a fact that Hikaru was aware of
through years of experience. Thus he didn't blame her
for narrowing her eyes in suspicion. "Who are you?"
she aksed commandingly. "And where am I?"
Hikaru gave a polite cough. "I'm Hikaru Gosunkugi. You
are in my house." He smiled in what he hoped was a
charmingly disarming manner. "We've—met earlier."
Nadia's eyebrow shot up slightly. Her eyes remained
very narrow. "I think I vaguely remember that. Are you
the one who felt me up?"
"Oh, for the last time, you weren't felt up!" snapped
Hikaru.
This answer was in many respects unfortunate, as it
caused Nadia's eyebrows to arch higher. "What do you
mean, ‘for the last time'?"
Hikaru's eyes widened in stark terror. "Something that
has nothing to do with the subject at hand?" he
suggested hopefully.
Hikaru was something of an expert in withering
glances, due to a combination of natural disposition,
and extensive training. He was quite capable of making
a brave man whimper, then wet himself with one
screwfaced glance. And with such expertise, he could
say that Nadia's gaze was the visual equivalent of
thumbscrews, being fully capable of making an utter
sociopath break down and confess to years old crimes.
Hikaru gulped, and managed a soft laugh. "I really
think we should leave vague uncertain happenings in
the vague uncertain past, where they will continue to
be vague, uncertain, and never spoken of again. Ever!"
He smiled broadly, then glanced nervously away.
Nadia took a deep breath. "Listen, I can sympathize
with your—difficulties, but realize this is not a
situation that engenders trust."
"Oh, come on!" said Hikaru, annoyed. "Do I look like
the kind of man who preys on helpless young women he
finds on the street?" He winced, "Don't answer that."
Nadia screwed up her mouth. "Actually the fact you
asked had me looking for a blunt object."
"You've given that up?" asked Hikaru with a note of
hope.
"You don't look that formidable," replied Nadia. "I
think I can take you."
Hikaru blinked. "How courteous of you to tell me
that."
"Please step back. I don't want to have to hurt you."
Hikaru looked at her. She had an odd way of speaking,
actually—a slight accent, which was to be expected,
though Hikaru couldn't for the life of him place it,
and a very formal tendency in her diction that was
very—off-putting.
He had no idea why he'd thought she was so amazingly
attractive. It had clearly been a momentary lapse of
reason.
Especially comparing her to Akane.
Not that he had done that.
He had no idea why he suddenly felt so guilty.
Nadia stared at him. "Are you always so fidgety?"
Hikaru fidgeted awkwardly. "What are you talking
about?"
"That would be a yes," murmured Nadia.
Hikaru blinked, then glared at her. "You know, I face
a lot of trouble, and a lot of annoyance, so you'd
think I'd be used to it, but in fact all that happens
is I get more and more irritated," stated Hikaru,
gesturing emphatically. "And now you come along, ask
me for help, and then start picking me apart like a
freaking game of Jenga, and it's all I can do to not
lose my temper—"
"What was that?" asked Nadia, startled. "Before the
part about you losing your temper?"
"Jenga," said Hikaru. "It's a game where you stack
these blocks, and you start picking them out of the
stack, and putting them on top of it—"
"No, before that. I asked you for help?"
"Yes, and I felt pity, and gave it to you, an action
for which the universe has seen fit to mock me once
again," said Hikaru.
Nadia stared at him for a moment, then glanced away.
"I see. My apologies, My remarks were—unfair."
"Also catty, sarcastic, and cruel," noted Hikaru. "But
thanks for the apology."
Nadia placed her hands on her hips. "I'm starting to
regret it." As Hikaru opened his mouth, she gestured
that she wasn't finished. "But please—I have been on
the run for some time now and it has damaged my
courtesy. Also, you're appearance doesn't exactly
inspire trust."
"Oh, thank you," muttered Hikaru. "People are just
bowling me over with compliments today…"
Nadia took a deep flustered breath. "Look, let's just
this out on different footing." "Sounds reasonable."
Hikaru shut his eyes. "So, Nadia—"
"How do you know my name?" she snapped.
"You told me earlier," he stated calmly. "Now, where
do you come from?"
"I'd rather not say," Nadia answered curtly.
"What's your full name?"
"That's really not important."
"Is there someone I should contact?"
"I really don't know."
Hikaru frowned severely. "Well aren't you a kettlepot
of useful information? I already feel my hostility
dissolving in the face of your open nature and
exceptional trust."
Nadia shut her eyes. "I couldn't tell you even if I
wanted to," she said quietly. "The truth is, I don't
remember."
Hikaru blinked. "Amnesia?"
Nadia stared at him. "You seem skeptical."
"It's greatly overrated," noted Hikaru, "People forget
things for awhile, but rarely the vast tracks that
tradition grants to amnesiacs." Hikaru thought that
over. "Except the senile, and they lose most of their
faculties. It's not a pretty sight." He glanced back
at her. "So, what do you remember?"
Nadia thought that over. "I know my first name but not
my last. I know a great deal about your culture, but I
don't know how I learned it, and I don't recall my
own. I know your language, and though it sounds
idiotic, I know it isn't my language, but I don't know
how I know that, and I don't know mine." She blinked.
"The only thing I can recall about my family is that I
had an uncle who died before I was born…" She glanced
at Hikaru. "Does the name ‘Namor' ring a bell?"
"It doesn't even register as a name," said Hikaru,
"though since the sixties, anything is possible."
"Hikaru! We're back!" came Kagome's voice.
Nadia glanced at Hikaru. "Who—?"
Hikaru sighed. "My associates. You can trust them." He
shook his head. "Though if you're going to jump at
everything, I can just check you into a nearby
asylum..."
Nadia shut her eyes. "I was being chased by people!"
Hikaru nodded. "You mentioned that when I picked you
up." He glanced at her. "Any idea who they are? Or has
that also been conveniently blanked from your mind?"
"They haven't introduced themselves," stated Nadia
flatly.
Hikaru seemed to be about to reply to that when Kagome
burst in holding a platter. "Ta da!" She placed the
platter in front of Nadia. "Your dinner is served!"
She yamked off the cover.
"Well, that certainly took you long enough," groused
Hikaru. "Hey, wait is that—"
Kagome beamingly displayed the meal. "Your very own
sushi platter!"
"You blew the money I gave you on sushi?!!" screamed
Hikaru.
Kagome recoiled nervously. "You said to get food…"
"I was thinking ramen! Soba! Something cheap, and
noodle-based! Not a very expensive sushi platter!" He
looked the platter over. "You even got fatty salmon…"
"Hikaru?" asked Kagome quietly.
"That was my food money for the next two weeks…"
muttered Hikaru. "If I want to eat, I'm going to have
to dip into my personal savings, which are not in the
best shape right now."
"Um, we'll help…" offered Kagome.
Hikaru stared at her in disbelief. "No you won't. You
guys don't have any money. That's why you leech off
me."
"I can't eat this," announced Nadia.
"What?" said Hikaru suddenly.
Nadia glanced at him awkwardly, then glanced down at
the platter. "I can't eat this. I'm a vegetarian."
Hikaru blinked. "Even for fish?"
Nadia's jaw clenched. "Especially for fish." She
looked Hikaru. "I'm a pacifist, Mr. Gosunkugi, who
holds all life sacred."
"Oh, come on!" yelled Hikaru. "They're just fish! They
don't feel pain! I know—I've been fishing! I hooked
the same fish five times! And had to keep throwing it
back!"
Nadia scowled "They do too feel pain! They just lack
long-term memory! Can you imagine what that's like? To
be in horrific pain, and have no idea why?"
"Very easily," muttered Hikaru. He rubbed his temples.
"Look, you claim that you can't remember where you
come from and what happened to you, but you do recall
you're a pacifistic vegetarian who's inordinately fond
of FISH!"
The pair glared at each other for awhile. Finally,
Nadia turned away. "I'm going to take bath. I need
one. And I'm not going to eat that fish. That is the
end of our discussion." She walked out of the room.
Hikaru watched her leave, then sat down and helped
himself to the platter.
Kagome blinked. "Hikaru?!"
"She doesn't want it, I paid for it—I will eat it
then." He scowled. "I am going to get some enjoyment
out of this, because frankly, I've had enough
trouble."
Kagome nodded slowly. "Oh." She coughed. "Can I have
some?"
"No."
-----
"So," said the silky, accented voice, "she is being
sheltered by Hellcat and Son of Satan."
"That's right, boss!"
"Give us candy!"
Grandis moaned. "Come on grandfather! Don't spoil
them!"
Maynard Gravna Tiboldt turned towards his
granddaughter imposingly. "Granddaughter, Lin Lin and
Ran Ran were promised candy by me if they did as I
asked, and CANDY THEY SHALL HAVE!" He handed the twins
two suckers.
"That's right! Candy!" shouted Lin Lin.
"Meanie lady!" shouted Ran Ran. The twins darted
around Grandis, wrapping her legs up in silken
scarves.
"You little—OOF!" cried Grandis as she toppled over.
"I'LL PUT YOU IN THE BOX!!"
"Now, now, granddaughter, the twins are merely
following their villainous shtick." A dashing smile
touched Tiboldt's face. "Indeed, we of the Gravna and
Tiboldt families have always prided ourselves on the
gimmickry of our underlings, who traditionally come in
matched sets of two." He stood up to his full height.
"And using those underlings we have created—THE CIRCUS
OF CRIME!" He struck his chest and immediately started
coughing.
Grandis scowled as he hacked up a large bit of mucus.
"Honestly, grandfather, that is disgusting."
"What?" asked Tiboldt. "I'm old. I've got loads of
phlegm. When you get to be my age, granddaughter, it
will probably be what's holding you together."
Grandis wrinkled her nose. "Grandfather, that is the
most repulsive thing I've ever heard."
"What? You will be old one day. I'm to blame for
this?" He frowned at her. "Also, it was unsuitable of
you to threaten them with the Box. That is the Tiboldt
family punishment, to be given by the Tiboldt family
head, which you are not." Tiboldt stared at her
imperiously. "Instead I am, and I shall remain so
until you do as I have long wanted you to do…"
"I'm not killing you, Grandpa," sighed Grandis.
"Oh, come on—I'm an old man. All it would take his a
pillow and a few minutes!" He crossed his arms. "I
killed my grandfather when I was half your age!"
"We're not talking about this, grandfather," said
Grandis tiredly.
"Hmmph," grumbled Tiboldt. "What a miserable protégé
you've turned out to be. I blame your father. His
coddling ruined you. Instead of a sadistic maniac, you
are merely a slightly vicious neurotic."
"Grandfather—don't we have a target to seize?"
Tiboldt nodded. "You are right. We cannot waste time
in petty arguments. Gather our forces—we strike
immediately!"
"What forces? All we have right now is the twins.
Everyone else is either in prison or going solo." She
looked at the walls of their tent. "Hell, I hear the
Clown is recruiting for some other organization." She
shook her head. "I think we should wait, and get some
more help. I mean, Hellcat and Son of Satan took us
down at full strength by themselves."
"A Tiboldt never waits child! We strike at once! Like
lightning!" Tiboldt raised his fist and started to
cough.
"But this time they've got friends! And little Miss
Marked-for-Death!"
Tiboldt stared at her. "Huh?"
"Our target," groaned Grandis, "I was trying to be
witty. You do recommend that as a supervillain trait."
Tiboldt nodded awkwardly. "Yes—well—I prefer less
obscure quips…"
"Right," muttered Grandis, teeth clenched.
"For example, ‘Pardon me for dropping in' after one
has entered by smashing a hole in the ceiling."
Tiboldt gave a deep satisfied chuckle. "That one is
always a classic."
Grandis took a deep breath. "I think our client would
want us to get the job done…"
"Of course," smiled Tiboldt. "Granddaughter, I think
we can handle these ‘superheroes'. Or rather the
Ringmaster and Princess Python can!"
Grandis groaned. "You want me to get the snake, don't
you?"
-----
Nadia leaned back in the tub, allowing the water to
stream over her skin in calming rivulets. This had
most certainly been what she'd needed. Plenty of rest,
relaxation and water, with no irritating distractions.
There was an angry knock on the door. "Nadia?" came
the shrill croak of Hikaru's voice. "Are you finished
with your bath yet? Or reasonably close to being
finished?"
"No," answered Nadia. "Why should I be?"
"Maybe because you've been in there for three hours."
There was a sharp cough. "No—my mistake. Four hours."
Nadia's eyes opened nervously. "Oh." She laughed
apologetically. "Umm, perhaps I will be getting out of
here soon."
"Take your time," said Hikaru wearily. "Mostly I was
making sure you hadn't drowned."
"I don't drown," said Nadia with surprising quickness
and assurance.
"Well, most of us do," noted Hikaru snarkily, his
voice fading away, "so don't blame me for checking."
Nadia blinked. Why had she been so sure she couldn't
drown? It was, when you thought it over, not a very
reasonable thing to assume. Dear Gods, was she going
mad? Or even already there? She nodded quickly to
herself. She had to check this. Nadia knelt forward,
and stuck her head in the water. She took a deep
breath. As she'd expected, she breathed perfectly well
under water. Sitting up, she shrugged. It was unusual,
but, she noted with a glance at her winged feet, she
was an unusual girl.
-----
"Her Royal Majesty will probably be joining us
shortly," muttered Hikaru.
"Wow!" exclaimed Kagome. "She's royalty?"
Hikaru blinked. "Ahh—no. I was joking."
"Oh," said Kagome. "You were being ‘sarcastic' again."
She squinted thoughtfully. "You do that an awful lot."
Inu-Yasha glanced at him. "Where are yer folks?"
"They're attending a reunion tour of some old metal
band called ‘Black Heaven'. They'll be back in a
couple of weeks." Hikaru shrugged. "I notified them
that the manga club is hosting a—visitor from a
foreign branch…"
Miroku shook his head. "I still can't believe your
parents trust you with the house."
"My parents trust me with weapons-grade plutonium,"
said Hikaru ruefully. "It's rather unnerving,
actually…"
"I never figured your parents for metal fans," said
Kagome.
"Their inner hippies require nurturing every now and
then. Dad's firm tends to humor him—he's the one
banker who's not under indictment at the moment…"
Hikaru shrugged. "It gives him a surprising amount of
leeway."
Miroku glanced up. "I think I have an idea about Miss
Nadia's amnesia. You—"
"No, Miroku," stated Hikaru.
"You didn't even—"
"I'm not going to read her mind to verify her story."
Miroku stared at him. "Did you just—"
"I didn't have to," said Hikaru. "You really are that
predictable."
At that moment, Nadia glided silently around the
staircase. "So, what was that bit about reading
minds?"
Hikaru could actually feel the breeze being produced
by the mutual gasps. "It's—nothing…"
"Right!" said Kagome. "We're not superheroes!"
Hikaru glared at her.
Nadia gave the group a puzzled look. "So—your
superheroes?"
Hikaru glanced away. "Yes."
Nadia stared at them for a moment then burst out
laughing.
Hikaru's eyes narrowed. "I'm glad you find us amusing.
It warms my heart that we lift your spirits."
Nadia stifled a chuckle and then did her best to put
on a more serious face. "I'm sorry. It's just that—I
always saw superheroes as more—formidable."
"Hey!" shouted Kagome. "We're a darn formidable team
of superheroes!"
Nadia, despite herself, started laughing again.
Hikaru glanced at Kagome. "We're not a team…"
Nadia recovered, and looked. "So what exactly are
you?"
Hikaru thought that over. "More a loose corresponding
circle."
"And you can read minds?" stated Nadia.
"Among other things. I'm exceedingly versatile."
Hikaru shrugged. "Actually I'm practically omnipotent,
given ideal time and circumstances."
"So your God on a shoestring budget?" commented Nadia
amusedly.
"Good analogy," stated Hikaru.
"So you could check my memories," she noted.
"Including the ones I don't—remember…"
"If you want me to," answered Hikaru gravely.
Nadia nodded, her eyes shut. Hikaru stepped forward,
and clutched her face loosely in his hands. Nadia's
eyes snapped open. "What are you doing?"
"Physical contact makes mental scans much easier,"
replied Hikaru.
"Do you expect me to belie—" Nadia's face went slack
midsentence.
"What'd you do to her?" asked Kagome.
"They also work better when the subject is under a
trance," answered Hikaru.
Inu-Yasha glanced at Hikaru suspiciously. "That so?"
"Yes. It minimizes distraction, though I won't deny
quieting her down as a certain satisfaction all it's
own." Hikaru's eyes shut in concentration. "Now,
quiet. She asked me to do this, and I've no intention
of giving her a cut-rate job."
Hikaru sent his psyche deeper into Nadia's mind.
Hunger… Fear… They are after me… The jumbled
impressions shot through Hikaru's consciousness,
making him almost wince in pain. He was surprised by
the wave of pity that went through him. The confused,
panicked thoughts that were most of Nadia's immediate
were strong, but carried little actual information.
Steeling himself, Hikaru plunged deeper into her mind.
What he saw surprised him.
It also knocked him unconscious.
-----
"Are you certain this is the place?"
"Yes, boss!"
"That's it!"
Tiboldt shook his head, "Curious. Superheroes
traditionally have more—impressive abodes."
"Grandfather," said Grandis in choked tones, "the damn
snake's trying to strangle me."
"Do not call him a ‘damn snake'," said Tiboldt curtly.
"Mr. Scales is a valuable member of this family."
Grandis's eyes began to twitch. "More valuable then
your granddaughter and heir?"
Tiboldt stroked his chin speculatively. Grandis
screamed. "Don't be so impatient, child!" he said.
"I'm thinking about it!"
"No grandfather," intoned Grandis slowly. "Mr. Scales
is trying to ingest my foot."
Tiboldt sighed. "Is that how a supervillain acts? You
are Princess Python! You dominate the snake!"
"Princess Python may dominate snakes—Grandis Gravna
Tiboldt gets the ever-lasting shit scared out of her
by them."
"Honestly, sometimes I don't know why I chose you to
take over the Gravna Tiboldt criminal empire."
"Because you've killed off every other member after
tricking them into trying to kill you!" screamed
Grandis.
Tiboldt scratched his head. "I think there maybe a few
distant cousins in Carnelia."
Grandis narrowed her eyes. "Nothing I say particularly
sinks in, does it?"
"Of course, they are tailors a profession not exactly
known for flamboyant evil," muttered Tiboldt.
"I thought so," said Grandis sadly.
"Still, I hear one of them has gone into public
relations, so per haps there is hope."
"Any orders, boss?" asked Lin Lin.
"We really want to break things!" said Ran Ran
eagerly.
"Do just that—but leave the target to us!"
"Gotcha boss!" said the twins together, rushing off.
"Now that is how a minion should act, granddaughter,"
said Tiboldt satisfiedly. "Did you not note the
obedient inclining of their heads?"
"Snake's getting frisky, grandpa…"
-----
Hikaru came to groggily. "I've got to stop this—it's
getting to be a habit." He glanced at Kagome. "How's
Nadia?"
"She passed out the same time you did," Kagome
replied. "Miroku went to help her."
Hikaru blinked. "That was a bad idea."
"That's what I told them," said Nadia, leaning against
the wall.
Hikaru nodded. "And Miroku?"
Nadia shut her eyes. "He's mildly concussed."
"Good," said Hikaru. "Very good."
"Where are the bells?" said Miroku dazedly. "I hear
them, but I don't see them…"
Hikaru looked at him meditatively. "In fact,
excellent." He looked at Nadia. "All right—someone has
apparently sealed off most of your personal memories.
Neither you nor I can get to them."
"I see," said Nadia quietly. "Can't you just—unseal
them?"
"Only if you don't mind being a vegetable," answered
Hikaru. "Whoever put them up had a lot of power and
skill. Only they can lower them at will. Anyone else
is going to have to put a lot of effort into getting
them open, and I'm afraid I lack the finesse to do so
without damaging you."
"I thought you were ‘practically omnipotent'," snapped
Nadia.
"Sister, it's a big ‘practically'!" shot back Hikaru.
"The human mind is very delicate. You can't just go
charging in at will. I don't care if you can breathe
underwater—some things still aren't going to go your
way."
"Stop being so patronizing," said Nadia.
"I can't help my nature," replied Hikaru. "Though the
fact you used the word ‘patronizing' will cut down on
my condescending."
"What if I use the word ‘hemorrhage'?" asked Nadia.
"It almost vanishes."
Nadia glanced at Kagome and Inu-Yasha. "Is he always
like this?"
"Sometimes he's worse," answered Inu-Yasha.
"You breathe underwater?" asked Kagome.
Two brightly colored figures crashed into the room.
"Give it up!" shouted one at Nadia.
"You'll never escape us!" shouted the second, who was
nearly identical to the first.
"The Chinese Twins!" gasped Kagome.
"Damn," muttered Hikaru. "Now I have to fix that
window."
Nadia stood very still for a moment, then screamed.
"LEAVE ME ALONE!!!" She charged forward.
Through the wall.
"After her!" cried the twins, somersaulting in
pursuit.
Hikaru stared at the gaping hole Nadia had left behind
her, then coughed. "Say… Inu-Yasha—remember how I said
that a huge hole isn't proof of a huge monster?"
"Yep," said Inu-Yasha.
"I'm just saying this because it appears we're going
to have to abandon the whole ‘monster pursuing Nadia'
theory…"
-----
Nadia raced out onto the street, mentally cursing. She
should have known. Safety was an illusion—one she
could ill afford. A grim smile rose to her lips. They
could try to catch her! She was recovered—back to full
strength!
Her stomach growled at the same time as her knees
buckled.
Except f or the niggling little fact of having not
eaten anything.
"So. Miss il Karthon," came the accented voice. "I am
pleased you could—drop in." Nadia glanced up to see a
chuckling man in a gaudy green suit, topped by a
purple top hat with some sort of medallion in it.
Behind him stood a statuesque woman struggling with a
snake. "See, granddaughter? That is a supervillain
quip!"
The woman nodded while trying to brush the snake away.
"Right, right!"
Nadia stood to her feet. "Careful," she said through
clenched teeth. "I'm a lot tougher than I look."
"Such defiance," muttered the man. The large medallion
began to spin. "It will not do…" Nadia began to
stiffen. Stare into the nullatron. Let the circles
carry you away. Let your will—become my will. The will
of—THE RINGMASTER!"
-----
Hikaru soared through the air as Miroku, Kagome and
Inu-Yasha rushed after him.
"I wish I'd brought the Hellcat-cycle," muttered
Kagome.
"Ain't it got a flat?" scowled Inu-Yasha.
Kagome glanced at him. "I don't recall telling you
that…"
Inu-Yasha gulped. "L-lucky guess…"
"Supervillain up ahead!" shouted Hikaru touching down.
"The Ringmaster!" gasped Kagome. "So the Circus of
Crime is behind this!"
"Say what now?" asked Hikaru.
"The Circus of Crime!" intoned Kagome ostentatiously.
"A circus where the clowns don't cause laughter, the
animals don't amaze, and the acrobats don't fill the
heart with wonder."
Hikaru frowned. "Kagome, that's every circus."
"They also steal stuff," she hastily added.
"Indeed we do, Hellcat," said the Ringmaster. "Indeed
we do."
"Wow. Good hearing for a septuagenarian," noted
Hikaru.
"I have no idea what that means, but thank you," said
the Ringmaster silkily. "Welcome to the Circus of
Crime! Our show-stopping acts are guaranteed to knock
your socks off!" He chuckled to himself, and then
gestured to a corner. "May I present—the Twin Chinese
Acrobats!"
Lin Lin and Ran Ran tumbled into view.
"Princess Python!"
A woman walked into view waving a stick at a snake
that was following her. "You want a piece of me?" she
muttered threateningly. "Do you want a piece of me?"
"And our new star attraction—the Flying Fish Girl!"
Kagome's expression was troubled. "That's odd. I don't
remember a Flying—"
Nadia dived at them from above. "Oh, wow," said
Kagome.
"You're telling me," said Hikaru. "There's no way
those tiny wings she has can support her weight."
Inu-Yasha stepped forward. "I'll handle her." Nadia
collided with him.
Inu-Yasha tumbled backward, leaving several large
craters in the pavement. "Wow again!"
Hikaru nodded. "I knew she was surprisingly muscular,
but that borders on the impossible…"
Miroku rubbed his chin speculatively. "A hard body,
eh?"
Hikaru gave him a quick jab to the side. "Down boy."
He glanced at Kagome. "So—the Ringmaster's put a
whammy on her?"
"Umm, yeah—how'd you guess?"
"I'm just lucky that way."
Nadia grasped Inu-Yasha's fist mid-swing and flung him
backwards. "Guys, a little help here?"
Hikaru nodded and looked at Miroku and Kagome. "You
help him—I'll take care of the Senior Citizen."
Miroku nodded and rushed at Nadia, hefting his staff.
She ducked down and tripped him with a swing kick.
Kagome laughed. "Don't worry, Son o' Satan! Hellcat is
on the case!" She drew her bow, and quickly fired.
She missed by a sizable margin.
"Ya know," shouted Inu-Yasha, "there's this guy,
Hawkeye, who also does the arrow thing—only he hits!"
"Hey, I hit too!" whined Kagome. "Most of the time."
She bit her lip. "It's over fifty percent!"
The arrow let loose a shockwave that knocked three of
the four people near it to their feet.
Nadia was the exception.
The Ringmaster gave a dry chuckle. "Well, hero, it
appears that I will soon be adding a dog-faced boy and
several new clowns to my act."
"Right," noted Hikaru. "The awesome might of a woman
under your mental thrall threatens to overwhelm us."
He thought that over. "Unless I beat you, which as a
young man in surprisingly good shape facing a gouty,
arthritis-ridden old man with respiratory problems, I
can probably manage."
The twins tumbled before him. "Oh, no you don't!" said
Lin Lin.
"Nobody gets through us!" shouted Ran Ran.
They quickly wrapped Hikaru up in ribbons. Hikaru
sighed. "Oh, now you've done in it." As the twins
watched, the ribbons burst into flames and burned to
cinders. "You annoyed me." He raised his hands. The
pair went flying backwards.
The Ringmaster blinked as Hikaru strode forward
majestically. His medallion began to twirl. "Very
well, hero. Stare into the nullatron, and feel—"
Hikaru punched him. "You know, I'm officially against
evil now," he stated. "I find it irritating."
"Owww!" cried the Ringmaster. "My brittle old man
flesh!"
"My heart bleeds for you," said Hikaru calmly. "Still
it was a bad idea to try and hypnotize me." He pointed
to his head. "I'm such a master of the field that my
mind is firmly locked and hermetically sealed." He
glanced at the Ringmaster's hat. "While you are a
silly old man using a spinning circle on your hat—and
thanks for showing me just what I needed to break." He
gave a quick jab, causing the nullatron to make a
satisfying crunch, then rubbed his knuckles. "I'm
obliged to you."
Nadia's eyes cleared. She glanced down at Inu-Yasha,
who she had clutched by the kimono. "What am I doing?"
"Beatin' the crap outta me," answered Inu-Yasha.
"Ahh," said Nadia. "I shouldn't be doing that, should
I?"
"Nope," gasped Inu-Yasha.
"Right," she said, releasing him.
Hikaru gestured at the Ringmaster. "If you should hit
anybody it's this guy. He raped your free will with
the casual aplomb of a practiced sociopath."
Nadia's eyes narrowed. "I see." She rushed forward and
lifted up the elderly supervillain. "I think I'll
follow that advice."
Hikaru blinked. "I thought you were a pacifist who
holds all life sacred?"
"I find my pacifism does not preclude self-defense,
and reasonably justifiable ass-kicking," stated Nadia.
"Does that offend you?"
Hikaru shrugged. "No, but I'm an ethical realist."
Nadia glared at the Ringmaster. "All right, I want
answers…" A pistol cocked.
"Let my grandfather down," said Princess Python,
leveling a Luger at Nadia. "Nobody gets to kill him
but me!"
"Grandis!" said the Ringmaster. "A gun? That is so…
tacky!"
"I'm saving your ass, old man!" screamed Princess
Python. "Is a little gratitude too much to ask?" She
fired.
The bullet bounced off Nadia's skin.
Wide-eyed, Grandis emptied the gun into the girl.
The bullets all ricocheted off her.
Grandis stared at the gun in disbelief.
"Don't bother throwing it," said Hikaru. "I have it on
good authority that never works."
Grandis gulped as Nadia threw the Ringmaster at her.
"All right you two—you will tell me what I want to
know," she began. "What did you do to me? Why can't I
remember anything?" She choked back a sob. "WHY?"
The pair blinked. "W-we don't know," said Grandis
quietly. "We only know your named Nadia il Karthon,
and that the person who hired us wanted you very
badly. That's it."
"You—you're lying," seethed Nadia raising a fist.
"No," said Hikaru, grabbing her fist lightly. "They're
not."
Nadia lowered her arm, and shut her eyes. "Who hired
you?"
"We don't know," said Grandis. "We never met him in
person, and he never gave us his name. He said he'd
contact us after you were caught, and that he'd know
when that happened."
"Which means it will never happen now," said Nadia
quietly. She gulped. "Hell's bells. Another dead end."
She bit her lip, and began to quietly weep.
Hikaru stared at her awkwardly. He took a deep breath,
and patted her on the shoulder. "I'm sorry," he said
softly. There was a shuffling behind him. "Miroku, if
you take two more steps, I'll have you singing in the
Vienna Boys' Choir."
"Umm, right," said Miroku. He glanced at Nadia. "You
have my condolences."
Hikaru coughed. "You know we're—stopping a demonic
invasion in two days. You could help—if you wanted
to."
Nadia choked back a sob. "I don't—want to harm—living
creatures at the moment."
"Technically, they aren't alive."
"Oh." Nadia bit her lip, and smiled slightly. "It's a
date."
-----
In a small ship by the docks a man shut off a radio.
"Damn," he muttered. He sighed and shook his head.
"Well, just goes to show you—you can't subcontract."
He shook his head again, and went below to inform h is
employers that there'd been an insignificant delay.
-----
Maynard Gravna Tiboldt watched as his granddaughter
brewed his tea. "So neither you or the twins can
remember what we've done for the last few weeks?"
Grandis nodded. "No idea."
Tiboldt gave a hearty chuckle. "Ahh—lost time—an
eternal factor in supervillainy. Entire years of my
life are missing, did you know that?" He coughed into
his handkerchief, looked at the results, then tucked
it back into his vest. "Of course," he noted candidly,
"my hard-living gigolo days may have something to do
with that."
Grandis tensed, then handed him a cup. "Your tea,
grandfather."
"Thank you, my sweet," he said, then sipped it down.
"Ahh, excellent. The arsenic adds just the right touch
of piquancy. It makes me glad I developed a tolerance
for it."
Grandis slapped her forehead.
-----
Nadia stared silently out the window. Someone cleared
their throat behind her. "You want another blanket?
Another pillow? A complimentary mint?"
"No. Thanks for asking, Hikaru."
Hikaru nodded, then started out. He paused, then
glanced at her. "How was the yogurt?"
"It was fine."
"That's nice." He started to head out, then paused.
"Look, do you want to talk? About anything?"
Nadia shut her eyes, "No, I—" She took a deep breath.
"I don't know who I am, Hikaru. I have no idea about
anything. You have no idea what that feels like.
Nobody does."
Hikaru chuckled. "If you think that's true, you must
have been living a sheltered life." He shook his head.
"Don't worry. We'll find out what's happened—who you
were. I'm pretty much a magnet for trouble and
coincidence, and that way lies the answer." He started
to leave.
Nadia turned. "I'm sorry about your house."
"Don't worry—it's fixed. ‘Practically omnipotent with
ideal time and circumstances', remember?" He smiled.
"Actually, I consider myself amply rewarded by your
mere presence."
Nadia blinked, startled.
"You're the first person I've met who's honestly more
depressed than I am." He walked out. "I find that
awfully reassuring."
Nadia, despite herself smiled. Things might not be so
bad, after all.
-----
The spaceship stopped behind the moon.
"So this is the place?"
"Yes, Captain. Third planet in the Sol system. The
inhabitants call it—Earth."
"It is strangely lovely, is it not? I wonder if it is
ready for—THE HERALD OF GALACTUS?"
"Your chocolate milk, miss."
"Ooh, goody! Teeheeheehee-tcha!"
--NEXT CHAPTER--
NADIA: Well, now I join the cast as—well take a guess.
And next chapter, seven ramshackle companions join
forces to save the Earth from—CAPTAIN ONI!
Guest-starring the big green dynamo—
-dinosaur growl-
NADIA: No not Godzilla.
HIKARU: Oh, thanks for giving away the twist…
NADIA: Hikaru, the twelve people who can figure it out
knew who the villain was the moment the laugh ended…
MIROKU: Umm…
BOTH: Shut up, Miroku.
CRIMSON COWL: Just wanted to say, I'm not in this
chapter either…
HIKARU: Join us next time for ‘Third Stone From the
Sun' people.
NADIA: Oooh, a Hendrix reference.
-----
....
To continue my discussion, Nadia and Grandis Gravna
are the property of Gainax. The Sub-Mariner is the
creation of Bill Everett.
I'm aware that some people may not like the story
choices I've made in this chapter, though the ongoing
war between Confidence and Paranoia that I think all
writers face means my opinion on that changes from
hour to hour. In the combining of Nadia and
Sub-Mariner, I've taken a bit of Character A, a bit of
Character B, coupled them with my own story needs and
what I think the logical progression of a character
having those personality traits would be, and wound up
with Character C. If it helps, consider this Nadia
the descendent of this universe's equivalent of the
series Nadia.
And as the fact that I've written an extraordinarily
large amount of notes for such a little chapter
probably shows you, I'm a bit nervous about this one.
Well, really, what can I say? I'm one neurotic
bugger, when you get down to it.
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First, I'd like to apologize for the wait between
chapters--I had this one written, but getting a good
text version took some time, and I always had other
projects I was writing, and anyway, I figured I could
send it in tomorrow...
Well, anyway, I'm sending it in now. I hope you
enjoy. Once again this is set in DB Sommer's
"Avenging" universe. On the sidelines. The Ranma 1/2
and Inu-Yasha characters are owned by Rumiko Takashi.
The Marvel characters are the creations of Stan Lee,
Steve Ditko, Steve Englehart, Roy Thomas...
Well, a lot of people. But Marvel owns them all. In
both cases, I've got no permission to do this, and may
only hope that this escapes the notices of them and
their lawyers, and that if it does not, they do not
sue me, as I'm very, very poor.
And there's a few characters who I'll reveal at the
end of the chapter, because this one supposed to be a
surprise.
And since it's been a while--a recap!
Synopsis
Hikaru Gosunkugi was a young man like most others.
Except more pathetic. Living a sad existence of quiet
desperation, and getting extorted almost daily by
Nabiki Tendou, Hikaru wound up on the docks, making a
rather poor suicide attempt, when he overheard a
sailor talking about the Ancient One, Master Magician.
Deciding that at the very least, it wouldn't make
anything worse, Hikaru went to India to visit the
Ancient One, and try to convince him to--well, make
things better for him. Somehow. Surprisingly enough,
the Ancient One took him on as his apprentice, and
Hikaru wound up helping him foil an assassination
attempt by one Baron Klaus Mordu, his senior
apprentice. The Ancient One then explained to Hikaru
that their world was in very bad shape--something had
occured to weaken its mystic defenses, with the result
that it was now facing more and more invasions from
hideous entities from beyond time and space. The
Ancient One needed someone to handle these
disturbances (most of which were happening in Tokyo)
for him, and Hikaru happened to be the one around when
he needed him.
Thus, Hikaru's visit in many respects HAD made his
life worse, a fact he found surprisingly easy to
believe.
Arriving back in Tokyo after a brief but intense
apprenticeship, Hikaru was surprised to discover that
his native land was in the middle of a superhero boom.
Deciding to take advantage of this to perform his
mission with minimal disturbance, as the Ancient One
had saddled him with some truly unfortunate clothing,
Hikaru created a superheroic identity for himself as
"Dr. Strange". On his first night out, he handled
quite a few nascent demonic invasions, earned himself
a lifelong enemy by beating supervillain Pastepot Pete
(well, I didn't say it was much of an enemy) and
acquired a pair of allies in the forms of eager
superhero wannabe Hellcat (real name: Kagome
Higurashi) and time-displaced half-demon Son of Satan
(real name: Inu-Yasha), a decidely less eager
superhero. The group were joined shortly thereafter
by Miroku the Devil-Slayer, another time-displaced
associate of Kagome, who is presently lodging with
Hikaru.
There is some story of how these three wound up in
their present situation, but Hikaru really isn't all
that eager to hear it.
Recently, this small not-quite-a-team of superheroes
faced an organized gang of supervillains called 'the
Masters of Evil', led by the mysterious Crimson Cowl.
The battle between the two groups was fierce, and
ended with Hikaru recieving the first clear defeat of
his superhero career.
Now, as the heroes continue their mission to keep bad
things from happening, the wheels of destiny turn once
more...
-----
She'd been running so long, she'd forgotten what it
was like to be still—if she'd ever known in the first
place. She was tired—her feet were sore—and she needed
to eat—but she couldn't stop. They would catch her if
she stopped. She knew that.
Even if she didn't know who they were.
-----
"And I say," noted Hikaru, "the 'brain in a tank
method' of immortality is severely lacking in appeal."
"Oh come on!" said Inu-Yasha. "Ya get ta live forever.
That's a hell of a better deal than ya mortals usually
get!"
"Ahh, yes, an eternity as an immobile organ that has
to be hooked up to machines in order to use even
rudimentary versions of the senses," said Hikaru
dryly. "Sounds marvelous on reflection. Sign me up
immediately."
Inu-Yasha crossed his arms. "Well, you don't have to
be so sarcastic…"
The waitress brought them their order. "That sounds
like my uncle," she noted. "They've got him hooked up
to ten different machines in order to live."
"How's he holding up?" said Hikaru.
"Aside from trying to smother himself with his pillow,
not bad," she stated.
Hikaru sipped his coffee. "You know, I never thought
I'd say this, but the dry spell is getting to me." He
gave his head a rueful shake.
Inu-Yasha glanced at him. "When's the next—?"
"Still three days, Inu-Yasha," sighed Hikaru. "Just
like the last time you asked."
Inu-Yasha grumbled to himself.
Hikaru glanced at Miroku. "Still no word on the
Masters of Evil?"
"They're lying low," replied Miroku. "However, I have
found something out about the Crimson Cowl."
Hikaru's eyes perked up, his interest obvious. "What?"
"He has no criminal record. Nor does he even have an
extensive reputation in the criminal underworld. On
the contrary, he seems to have popped up out of the
blue, and begun gathering supervillains around him."
"So in fact, what you've discovered is nothing,"
muttered Hikaru snarkily.
"Some kinds of nothing are a form of something,"
replied Miroku. "An enigmatic supervillain arriving to
gather Shinken shards at precisely this time is highly
suspicious, you'll agree…"
"You're thinking it's that Naraku fellow," said
Hikaru. "I don't think that works. Someone as powerful
as that guy is—if even half of what you say is
true—wouldn't waste time trading fisticuffs with
me—not if he had the advantage. He'd just kill me and
be done with it." Hikaru took a very long swallow of
coffee. "And then there were all the gizmos. Demons
and technology generally don't mix. They really lack
the patience to learn how to program a VCR, much less
outfit themselves with the latest in combat
equipment."
"So you're saying there's no connection," sighed
Miroku.
"I'm saying we don't know enough to be sure about
anything," said Hikaru. "And definitely not enough to
follow theories that may send us after red herrings
because we want them to be true."
Miroku glanced at Kagome. "What about you, Kagome?
What do you think?"
Kagome fixed Hikaru with an icy stare. "I think the
Kid Commandos is a brilliant name, no matter what
certain people think about it."
"Not having that conversation, Kagome," said Hikaru in
a singsong voice. "Just not going to happen."
Kagome mumbled something that sounded like her
equivalent to swear words.
"Pardon me," came a voice, "do you have some salt?"
Hikaru groaned. "Yes." He picked up the shaker.
"Hey, I know you!"
Hikaru turned. Sayuri stood there. He gulped. Sayuri
was a classmate who'd seen him as Dr. Strange, and
despite the Crimson Cowl's revelation that Hikaru was
subconsciously using some sort of hypnosis to protect
his identity, he was still worried about it not
taking.
"You're Hikaru Gosunkugi! The weirdest kid in school!
And I was—talking to you!" Sayuri's eyes widened in
horror. "And—this—this must be—your infamous manga
club! A collection of the most socially undesirable
freaks in Tokyo! And I've been—exposed!" Her face
blanched. "Okay, Sayuri—take a deep breath, and back
away slowly…"
"Sorry for disturbing your placid existence," muttered
Hikaru.
Sayuri burst out screaming and ran from the café.
"You forgot your salt, miss…" shouted Kagome after
her.
Hikaru slouched back in his seat. "I don't know what's
more depressing—the fact that I've saved her life
several times, or the fact that since I became a
superhero, my reputation has declined—something I
didn't even think was possible."
"Cheer up, Hikaru!" said Kagome. "We may have our
different opinions about my brilliant ideas for names,
but I would never insult you the way she just did."
She gave a cheerful nod. "I'm much too scared of you."
"Likewise," noted Miroku.
"I'm more kinda nervous 'bout ya, myself," said
Inu-Yasha.
Hikaru sighed. "Thanks for the sentiments." He
grimaced. "The concept that I move you to absolute
terror is such a joy to me that I am lost for words."
A pair of policewomen entered.
"And I'm telling you, Kei, he was checking me out."
"He's gay, Yuri. He doesn't check women out, except
maybe every now and then for makeup tips."
"Hmmph," muttered Yuri.
The pair sat down at the counter. The waitress glanced
at them. "Let me guess—two donuts."
Yuri glared at her. "That is a rude and unfounded
stereotype. I'd like a garden salad, with a light
vinaigrette dressing."
Kei smiled. "I'd like a donut." Yuri's glare shifted
to her. "What?" said Kei defensively. "I like donuts."
The pairs' walkie-talkie blared on. "Attention all
units. We have reports of a monster rampage in Kanda
district. Repeat—a monster rampage in…"
Yuri blinked. "Sounds serious."
"Probably a kook or a crank," said Kei. "And if it
isn't, we're just going to go through the usual
'monster call' routine."
"There's a usual routine?" asked the waitress.
"Yep," said Kei. "We go in and wind up firing at the
usually bulletproof monster. When we run out of
bullets, Yuri usually winds up throwing her gun at it,
apparently under the impression that if a large number
of accurate speedy projectiles don't do the job, one
clumsily thrown slow projectile will."
"I might luck out," grumbled Yuri.
"At that point, either a superhero, or a SWAT team
comes to save our sorry asses." Kei shook her head.
"So, I'm really in no hurry to go there."
Inu-Yasha glanced at Hikaru. "Interested?"
Hikaru stood up. "Are you kidding? Given my options
right now, the only reason I didn't bolt out the door
is I want to finish my coffee."
-----
She fell to the ground, her knees giving out beneath
her. Her breath came in unsteady gasps—she felt
miserable. She glanced at a small puddle. The face
that stared back at her was a mask of desperation and
exhaustion. Her eyes gazed at her reflection with the
fury of a frantic animal.
A slight despairing moan escaped her lips, despite her
best efforts to hold it back. Her hands reached out to
the puddle on pure, base need, and splashed some water
on her face. A feeling of relief came over her. Her
tongue darted out, and licked some of the moisture off
her cheeks.
That was when she heard the clatter of footsteps. They
were coming.
She stood up and ran, determined to use what energy
remained to her to get as far away as possible. As she
ran, she whispered a prayer to gods whose names she
could no longer recall. Send help, please I beg you!
-----
Hikaru glanced around the city neighborhood in
distaste. "Oh, come on! This is a monster rampage?
Some battered garbage cans! A few over-turned cars!"
He shook his head. "Absolutely nothing that can't be
explained by rowdy teenagers!" He raised his fist.
"This is the result of overly-specialized hotlines!
The average citizen is affected by a monster rampage
perhaps once every seven years, and then only
peripherally. But due to media saturation, everyone is
convinced they're an imminent threat, and so we get a
hotline that is promptly abused by elderly women to
put the fear of God into teenagers who play their
music too loud…"
Kagome blinked. "So you want there to be a monster
attack?"
Hikaru gave a dismissive wave. "Oh, I don't know what
I want. Let's go—it's clear we're not needed here."
There was a low rumble, the sound of many bricks
smashing to the ground. Hikaru turned. "On second
thought, our presence is clearly necessary."
The four ran towards the din. A dark, ragged figure
was running towards them. "A-after me!" it shouted
nervously. "P-please help!" Hikaru gestured for the
others to stop, and then was nearly bowled over by the
figure as it ran towards him, and more or less
collapsed on him.
The figure was, Hikaru noted rather awkwardly, a girl.
Her skin was a dusky brown—her hair was a very dark
shade of black. She was slender, but the feel of the
muscles under the skin suggested she lacked nothing
for strength. She seemed very faint at the moment—her
eyes were fluttering weakly, and her head was tossing
as if she was in a state of delirium.
She was quite possibly the most beautiful woman that
Hikaru had ever seen.
He blinked. Second most beautiful. Definitely second.
He had no idea where that ‘most beautiful' impulse had
come from.
"Umm—miss…?" Hikaru cleared his throat. "Miss? What's
wrong? Miss?"
She shook her head as if trying to clear it, and
opened her eyes. Hikaru noted with some surprise that
they were green. They seemed unfocused—he had the
distinct impression she couldn't actually make his
face out right now. That was probably a good thing.
"T-they're after me. Need—shelter. Please help…"
"Don't worry," Hikaru murmured in tones he hoped were
comforting, but were probably just distressing and
awkward. "You're among friends now, miss…" Hikaru
blinked. "Umm, what's your name? If you don't
mind—this is starting to get awkward…"
Her head shot up nervously. "N-name…?" She blinked as
if trying to recall it. "N-Nadia. I—" An odd
expression came over her face. "Why are there hands on
my breasts?"
Hikaru gulped. He had been planning on moving those it
had just—slipped his mind. As he lowered his hands,
glancing around awkwardly, Nadia did him the great
disservice of going limp as a rag doll. "Umm, a little
help here?"
Miroku stepped forward. "Of course, sir, I'll just—"
"Step right back and let Kagome help," stated Hikaru
evenly. Kagome nodded, rushed forward and took Nadia's
left side. "There's a bench over there…" she noted.
Hikaru nodded. They walked the unconscious girl over
to it, and sat her down. Kagome began to look Nadia
over as Hikaru glanced at Inu-Yasha and Miroku. "All
right," he began, "it seems our ‘monster'—which might
be plural—is after Miss Nadia. We don't know why—"
"Umm, Dr. Strange…?" asked Kagome quietly.
"Where is the damn thing…?" muttered Inu-Yasha. "It
smashed up a wall, and then—nothin'."
Miroku shrugged. "Maybe we spooked it."
"Or maybe it's playing a waiting game…" said Hikaru
bleakly.
"Umm, Dr. Strange…?" asked Kagome quietly.
"Maybe I could check my sources," said Miroku. "A
homeless gaijin with her… striking appearance would
leave a pretty clear trail…"
"That's as much a problem as it is a help," noted
Hikaru.
"Dr. Strange!" said Kagome loudly.
"Yes, Hellcat?" said Hikaru, his fingers starting to
rub his temples. "What is your pressing concern?"
Kagome sputtered quietly. "It's—ahh—her feet," she
finally got out. "She's barefoot, see…?"
Hikaru began to rub his temples. "That's because she's
poor, Hellcat. When people are poor, sometimes they
can't afford niceties the rest of us take for granted,
like shoes, or regular meals…"
"Yeah, but—" Kagome gestured to Nadia's ankles.
"They've got little wings on them. See?" She tugged
lightly on a little green wing that rested perfectly
on the heel of the foot.
Hikaru blinked. "Oh." This was definitely—unique.
-----
Defending
Chapter 5—"Never Met a Girl Like You Before"
An "Avenging" Universe Spinoff
David Dee
-----
"How is it you're allowed to feel her up, but I'm
not?" asked Miroku.
"Once again, I didn't ‘feel her up'!" snapped Hikaru.
" ‘Feeling up' both implies and requires a conscious
effort on the part of the feeler that I lacked."
Miroku grinned slightly. "So your hands sought out her
chest of their own violation. Understood."
Hikaru slapped his forehead. "No, it was an accident,
like this conversation. A hideous, horrible accident
we will all try to forget."
"I see." Miroku nodded. There was an awkward silence.
"So—what were they like?"
Hikaru shuddered in rage. "I don't know why I even
stay within a speaking distance of you sometimes!" He
glanced at Inu-Yasha. "Picking up any scents?"
Inu-Yasha glanced up at them, and shrugged. "Just
hers." He frowned. "Actually, it's pretty weird. Human
but—saltier…"
Miroku glanced at Hikaru. "Any idea where she's from?"
Hikaru sighed. "India? Africa? Brazil? The Caribbean?
Idaho?" He shook his head. "The world's a lot smaller
than you two remember—the best I could do is take a
guess at her ethnicity and even that would be a wild
stab." He walked over to the edge of the alleyway. The
brick wall that stood at the end of it had a huge
gaping hole in it. "Maybe she can tell us when she
comes to." He kneeled, and placed his hands on the
bricks.
Inu-Yasha glanced at him. "Musta been pretty big ta do
this, eh?"
Hikaru shut his eyes. "Hard to tell. If you hit
anything just hard enough and in the right spot, it'll
shatter…" He took a deep breath. "Hmm…"
Miroku blinked. "What are you doing?"
"Psychometry," replied Hikaru. "Inu-Yasha tried to
pick up as scent—now I am…"
"Eh?" muttered Inu-Yasha uncomprehendingly.
"I'm scanning the area for psychic residue. I might
find something—and the Ancient One has been suggesting
I practice my mental powers."
"Sorta like when Kagome and Miroku pick up evil
spirits…"
"More or less. Think of it this way—they're using
their naked eyes, I'm going over things with a
magnifying lens."
Miroku stared at him. "What are you getting?"
"Not much," answered Hikaru. "Fear—that's probably
hers—pain—a great deal of hostility, and—" He
shuddered. "Eww."
"What?" asked Inu-Yasha mystified.
"Let's just say a lesson not to probe to deeply into
the past of old alleyways and leave it at that," said
Hikaru uncomfortably.
Inu-Yasha gave a puzzled nod.
Hikaru shook his head. "Well, that's that—I lost the
thread." He sighed. "Whatever our ‘monster' is, I
can't find out anything about it…" He stood up, and
walked away, Inu-Yasha and Miroku followed him.
A pair of eyes were following him in the distance.
"Why, look, sister! It's that old meanie, Son of
Satan! I hate him, don't you?"
"Waah!" cried her kneeling sister. "That nasty tramp
bruised my hand when she broke free…"
"Oh, we'll get back at her. Just like we'll get back
at Son of Satan and that nasty Hellcat woman." She
giggled. "Come on! The boss will want to know about
this."
-----
The first thing Nadia heard when she came to was,
"Well, this is new! Usually I'm the comatose one…"
Her eyes shot open. She found herself staring at the
gaunt, pale face of Hikaru Gosunkugi. This was not a
comforting sight, a fact that Hikaru was aware of
through years of experience. Thus he didn't blame her
for narrowing her eyes in suspicion. "Who are you?"
she aksed commandingly. "And where am I?"
Hikaru gave a polite cough. "I'm Hikaru Gosunkugi. You
are in my house." He smiled in what he hoped was a
charmingly disarming manner. "We've—met earlier."
Nadia's eyebrow shot up slightly. Her eyes remained
very narrow. "I think I vaguely remember that. Are you
the one who felt me up?"
"Oh, for the last time, you weren't felt up!" snapped
Hikaru.
This answer was in many respects unfortunate, as it
caused Nadia's eyebrows to arch higher. "What do you
mean, ‘for the last time'?"
Hikaru's eyes widened in stark terror. "Something that
has nothing to do with the subject at hand?" he
suggested hopefully.
Hikaru was something of an expert in withering
glances, due to a combination of natural disposition,
and extensive training. He was quite capable of making
a brave man whimper, then wet himself with one
screwfaced glance. And with such expertise, he could
say that Nadia's gaze was the visual equivalent of
thumbscrews, being fully capable of making an utter
sociopath break down and confess to years old crimes.
Hikaru gulped, and managed a soft laugh. "I really
think we should leave vague uncertain happenings in
the vague uncertain past, where they will continue to
be vague, uncertain, and never spoken of again. Ever!"
He smiled broadly, then glanced nervously away.
Nadia took a deep breath. "Listen, I can sympathize
with your—difficulties, but realize this is not a
situation that engenders trust."
"Oh, come on!" said Hikaru, annoyed. "Do I look like
the kind of man who preys on helpless young women he
finds on the street?" He winced, "Don't answer that."
Nadia screwed up her mouth. "Actually the fact you
asked had me looking for a blunt object."
"You've given that up?" asked Hikaru with a note of
hope.
"You don't look that formidable," replied Nadia. "I
think I can take you."
Hikaru blinked. "How courteous of you to tell me
that."
"Please step back. I don't want to have to hurt you."
Hikaru looked at her. She had an odd way of speaking,
actually—a slight accent, which was to be expected,
though Hikaru couldn't for the life of him place it,
and a very formal tendency in her diction that was
very—off-putting.
He had no idea why he'd thought she was so amazingly
attractive. It had clearly been a momentary lapse of
reason.
Especially comparing her to Akane.
Not that he had done that.
He had no idea why he suddenly felt so guilty.
Nadia stared at him. "Are you always so fidgety?"
Hikaru fidgeted awkwardly. "What are you talking
about?"
"That would be a yes," murmured Nadia.
Hikaru blinked, then glared at her. "You know, I face
a lot of trouble, and a lot of annoyance, so you'd
think I'd be used to it, but in fact all that happens
is I get more and more irritated," stated Hikaru,
gesturing emphatically. "And now you come along, ask
me for help, and then start picking me apart like a
freaking game of Jenga, and it's all I can do to not
lose my temper—"
"What was that?" asked Nadia, startled. "Before the
part about you losing your temper?"
"Jenga," said Hikaru. "It's a game where you stack
these blocks, and you start picking them out of the
stack, and putting them on top of it—"
"No, before that. I asked you for help?"
"Yes, and I felt pity, and gave it to you, an action
for which the universe has seen fit to mock me once
again," said Hikaru.
Nadia stared at him for a moment, then glanced away.
"I see. My apologies, My remarks were—unfair."
"Also catty, sarcastic, and cruel," noted Hikaru. "But
thanks for the apology."
Nadia placed her hands on her hips. "I'm starting to
regret it." As Hikaru opened his mouth, she gestured
that she wasn't finished. "But please—I have been on
the run for some time now and it has damaged my
courtesy. Also, you're appearance doesn't exactly
inspire trust."
"Oh, thank you," muttered Hikaru. "People are just
bowling me over with compliments today…"
Nadia took a deep flustered breath. "Look, let's just
this out on different footing." "Sounds reasonable."
Hikaru shut his eyes. "So, Nadia—"
"How do you know my name?" she snapped.
"You told me earlier," he stated calmly. "Now, where
do you come from?"
"I'd rather not say," Nadia answered curtly.
"What's your full name?"
"That's really not important."
"Is there someone I should contact?"
"I really don't know."
Hikaru frowned severely. "Well aren't you a kettlepot
of useful information? I already feel my hostility
dissolving in the face of your open nature and
exceptional trust."
Nadia shut her eyes. "I couldn't tell you even if I
wanted to," she said quietly. "The truth is, I don't
remember."
Hikaru blinked. "Amnesia?"
Nadia stared at him. "You seem skeptical."
"It's greatly overrated," noted Hikaru, "People forget
things for awhile, but rarely the vast tracks that
tradition grants to amnesiacs." Hikaru thought that
over. "Except the senile, and they lose most of their
faculties. It's not a pretty sight." He glanced back
at her. "So, what do you remember?"
Nadia thought that over. "I know my first name but not
my last. I know a great deal about your culture, but I
don't know how I learned it, and I don't recall my
own. I know your language, and though it sounds
idiotic, I know it isn't my language, but I don't know
how I know that, and I don't know mine." She blinked.
"The only thing I can recall about my family is that I
had an uncle who died before I was born…" She glanced
at Hikaru. "Does the name ‘Namor' ring a bell?"
"It doesn't even register as a name," said Hikaru,
"though since the sixties, anything is possible."
"Hikaru! We're back!" came Kagome's voice.
Nadia glanced at Hikaru. "Who—?"
Hikaru sighed. "My associates. You can trust them." He
shook his head. "Though if you're going to jump at
everything, I can just check you into a nearby
asylum..."
Nadia shut her eyes. "I was being chased by people!"
Hikaru nodded. "You mentioned that when I picked you
up." He glanced at her. "Any idea who they are? Or has
that also been conveniently blanked from your mind?"
"They haven't introduced themselves," stated Nadia
flatly.
Hikaru seemed to be about to reply to that when Kagome
burst in holding a platter. "Ta da!" She placed the
platter in front of Nadia. "Your dinner is served!"
She yamked off the cover.
"Well, that certainly took you long enough," groused
Hikaru. "Hey, wait is that—"
Kagome beamingly displayed the meal. "Your very own
sushi platter!"
"You blew the money I gave you on sushi?!!" screamed
Hikaru.
Kagome recoiled nervously. "You said to get food…"
"I was thinking ramen! Soba! Something cheap, and
noodle-based! Not a very expensive sushi platter!" He
looked the platter over. "You even got fatty salmon…"
"Hikaru?" asked Kagome quietly.
"That was my food money for the next two weeks…"
muttered Hikaru. "If I want to eat, I'm going to have
to dip into my personal savings, which are not in the
best shape right now."
"Um, we'll help…" offered Kagome.
Hikaru stared at her in disbelief. "No you won't. You
guys don't have any money. That's why you leech off
me."
"I can't eat this," announced Nadia.
"What?" said Hikaru suddenly.
Nadia glanced at him awkwardly, then glanced down at
the platter. "I can't eat this. I'm a vegetarian."
Hikaru blinked. "Even for fish?"
Nadia's jaw clenched. "Especially for fish." She
looked Hikaru. "I'm a pacifist, Mr. Gosunkugi, who
holds all life sacred."
"Oh, come on!" yelled Hikaru. "They're just fish! They
don't feel pain! I know—I've been fishing! I hooked
the same fish five times! And had to keep throwing it
back!"
Nadia scowled "They do too feel pain! They just lack
long-term memory! Can you imagine what that's like? To
be in horrific pain, and have no idea why?"
"Very easily," muttered Hikaru. He rubbed his temples.
"Look, you claim that you can't remember where you
come from and what happened to you, but you do recall
you're a pacifistic vegetarian who's inordinately fond
of FISH!"
The pair glared at each other for awhile. Finally,
Nadia turned away. "I'm going to take bath. I need
one. And I'm not going to eat that fish. That is the
end of our discussion." She walked out of the room.
Hikaru watched her leave, then sat down and helped
himself to the platter.
Kagome blinked. "Hikaru?!"
"She doesn't want it, I paid for it—I will eat it
then." He scowled. "I am going to get some enjoyment
out of this, because frankly, I've had enough
trouble."
Kagome nodded slowly. "Oh." She coughed. "Can I have
some?"
"No."
-----
"So," said the silky, accented voice, "she is being
sheltered by Hellcat and Son of Satan."
"That's right, boss!"
"Give us candy!"
Grandis moaned. "Come on grandfather! Don't spoil
them!"
Maynard Gravna Tiboldt turned towards his
granddaughter imposingly. "Granddaughter, Lin Lin and
Ran Ran were promised candy by me if they did as I
asked, and CANDY THEY SHALL HAVE!" He handed the twins
two suckers.
"That's right! Candy!" shouted Lin Lin.
"Meanie lady!" shouted Ran Ran. The twins darted
around Grandis, wrapping her legs up in silken
scarves.
"You little—OOF!" cried Grandis as she toppled over.
"I'LL PUT YOU IN THE BOX!!"
"Now, now, granddaughter, the twins are merely
following their villainous shtick." A dashing smile
touched Tiboldt's face. "Indeed, we of the Gravna and
Tiboldt families have always prided ourselves on the
gimmickry of our underlings, who traditionally come in
matched sets of two." He stood up to his full height.
"And using those underlings we have created—THE CIRCUS
OF CRIME!" He struck his chest and immediately started
coughing.
Grandis scowled as he hacked up a large bit of mucus.
"Honestly, grandfather, that is disgusting."
"What?" asked Tiboldt. "I'm old. I've got loads of
phlegm. When you get to be my age, granddaughter, it
will probably be what's holding you together."
Grandis wrinkled her nose. "Grandfather, that is the
most repulsive thing I've ever heard."
"What? You will be old one day. I'm to blame for
this?" He frowned at her. "Also, it was unsuitable of
you to threaten them with the Box. That is the Tiboldt
family punishment, to be given by the Tiboldt family
head, which you are not." Tiboldt stared at her
imperiously. "Instead I am, and I shall remain so
until you do as I have long wanted you to do…"
"I'm not killing you, Grandpa," sighed Grandis.
"Oh, come on—I'm an old man. All it would take his a
pillow and a few minutes!" He crossed his arms. "I
killed my grandfather when I was half your age!"
"We're not talking about this, grandfather," said
Grandis tiredly.
"Hmmph," grumbled Tiboldt. "What a miserable protégé
you've turned out to be. I blame your father. His
coddling ruined you. Instead of a sadistic maniac, you
are merely a slightly vicious neurotic."
"Grandfather—don't we have a target to seize?"
Tiboldt nodded. "You are right. We cannot waste time
in petty arguments. Gather our forces—we strike
immediately!"
"What forces? All we have right now is the twins.
Everyone else is either in prison or going solo." She
looked at the walls of their tent. "Hell, I hear the
Clown is recruiting for some other organization." She
shook her head. "I think we should wait, and get some
more help. I mean, Hellcat and Son of Satan took us
down at full strength by themselves."
"A Tiboldt never waits child! We strike at once! Like
lightning!" Tiboldt raised his fist and started to
cough.
"But this time they've got friends! And little Miss
Marked-for-Death!"
Tiboldt stared at her. "Huh?"
"Our target," groaned Grandis, "I was trying to be
witty. You do recommend that as a supervillain trait."
Tiboldt nodded awkwardly. "Yes—well—I prefer less
obscure quips…"
"Right," muttered Grandis, teeth clenched.
"For example, ‘Pardon me for dropping in' after one
has entered by smashing a hole in the ceiling."
Tiboldt gave a deep satisfied chuckle. "That one is
always a classic."
Grandis took a deep breath. "I think our client would
want us to get the job done…"
"Of course," smiled Tiboldt. "Granddaughter, I think
we can handle these ‘superheroes'. Or rather the
Ringmaster and Princess Python can!"
Grandis groaned. "You want me to get the snake, don't
you?"
-----
Nadia leaned back in the tub, allowing the water to
stream over her skin in calming rivulets. This had
most certainly been what she'd needed. Plenty of rest,
relaxation and water, with no irritating distractions.
There was an angry knock on the door. "Nadia?" came
the shrill croak of Hikaru's voice. "Are you finished
with your bath yet? Or reasonably close to being
finished?"
"No," answered Nadia. "Why should I be?"
"Maybe because you've been in there for three hours."
There was a sharp cough. "No—my mistake. Four hours."
Nadia's eyes opened nervously. "Oh." She laughed
apologetically. "Umm, perhaps I will be getting out of
here soon."
"Take your time," said Hikaru wearily. "Mostly I was
making sure you hadn't drowned."
"I don't drown," said Nadia with surprising quickness
and assurance.
"Well, most of us do," noted Hikaru snarkily, his
voice fading away, "so don't blame me for checking."
Nadia blinked. Why had she been so sure she couldn't
drown? It was, when you thought it over, not a very
reasonable thing to assume. Dear Gods, was she going
mad? Or even already there? She nodded quickly to
herself. She had to check this. Nadia knelt forward,
and stuck her head in the water. She took a deep
breath. As she'd expected, she breathed perfectly well
under water. Sitting up, she shrugged. It was unusual,
but, she noted with a glance at her winged feet, she
was an unusual girl.
-----
"Her Royal Majesty will probably be joining us
shortly," muttered Hikaru.
"Wow!" exclaimed Kagome. "She's royalty?"
Hikaru blinked. "Ahh—no. I was joking."
"Oh," said Kagome. "You were being ‘sarcastic' again."
She squinted thoughtfully. "You do that an awful lot."
Inu-Yasha glanced at him. "Where are yer folks?"
"They're attending a reunion tour of some old metal
band called ‘Black Heaven'. They'll be back in a
couple of weeks." Hikaru shrugged. "I notified them
that the manga club is hosting a—visitor from a
foreign branch…"
Miroku shook his head. "I still can't believe your
parents trust you with the house."
"My parents trust me with weapons-grade plutonium,"
said Hikaru ruefully. "It's rather unnerving,
actually…"
"I never figured your parents for metal fans," said
Kagome.
"Their inner hippies require nurturing every now and
then. Dad's firm tends to humor him—he's the one
banker who's not under indictment at the moment…"
Hikaru shrugged. "It gives him a surprising amount of
leeway."
Miroku glanced up. "I think I have an idea about Miss
Nadia's amnesia. You—"
"No, Miroku," stated Hikaru.
"You didn't even—"
"I'm not going to read her mind to verify her story."
Miroku stared at him. "Did you just—"
"I didn't have to," said Hikaru. "You really are that
predictable."
At that moment, Nadia glided silently around the
staircase. "So, what was that bit about reading
minds?"
Hikaru could actually feel the breeze being produced
by the mutual gasps. "It's—nothing…"
"Right!" said Kagome. "We're not superheroes!"
Hikaru glared at her.
Nadia gave the group a puzzled look. "So—your
superheroes?"
Hikaru glanced away. "Yes."
Nadia stared at them for a moment then burst out
laughing.
Hikaru's eyes narrowed. "I'm glad you find us amusing.
It warms my heart that we lift your spirits."
Nadia stifled a chuckle and then did her best to put
on a more serious face. "I'm sorry. It's just that—I
always saw superheroes as more—formidable."
"Hey!" shouted Kagome. "We're a darn formidable team
of superheroes!"
Nadia, despite herself, started laughing again.
Hikaru glanced at Kagome. "We're not a team…"
Nadia recovered, and looked. "So what exactly are
you?"
Hikaru thought that over. "More a loose corresponding
circle."
"And you can read minds?" stated Nadia.
"Among other things. I'm exceedingly versatile."
Hikaru shrugged. "Actually I'm practically omnipotent,
given ideal time and circumstances."
"So your God on a shoestring budget?" commented Nadia
amusedly.
"Good analogy," stated Hikaru.
"So you could check my memories," she noted.
"Including the ones I don't—remember…"
"If you want me to," answered Hikaru gravely.
Nadia nodded, her eyes shut. Hikaru stepped forward,
and clutched her face loosely in his hands. Nadia's
eyes snapped open. "What are you doing?"
"Physical contact makes mental scans much easier,"
replied Hikaru.
"Do you expect me to belie—" Nadia's face went slack
midsentence.
"What'd you do to her?" asked Kagome.
"They also work better when the subject is under a
trance," answered Hikaru.
Inu-Yasha glanced at Hikaru suspiciously. "That so?"
"Yes. It minimizes distraction, though I won't deny
quieting her down as a certain satisfaction all it's
own." Hikaru's eyes shut in concentration. "Now,
quiet. She asked me to do this, and I've no intention
of giving her a cut-rate job."
Hikaru sent his psyche deeper into Nadia's mind.
Hunger… Fear… They are after me… The jumbled
impressions shot through Hikaru's consciousness,
making him almost wince in pain. He was surprised by
the wave of pity that went through him. The confused,
panicked thoughts that were most of Nadia's immediate
were strong, but carried little actual information.
Steeling himself, Hikaru plunged deeper into her mind.
What he saw surprised him.
It also knocked him unconscious.
-----
"Are you certain this is the place?"
"Yes, boss!"
"That's it!"
Tiboldt shook his head, "Curious. Superheroes
traditionally have more—impressive abodes."
"Grandfather," said Grandis in choked tones, "the damn
snake's trying to strangle me."
"Do not call him a ‘damn snake'," said Tiboldt curtly.
"Mr. Scales is a valuable member of this family."
Grandis's eyes began to twitch. "More valuable then
your granddaughter and heir?"
Tiboldt stroked his chin speculatively. Grandis
screamed. "Don't be so impatient, child!" he said.
"I'm thinking about it!"
"No grandfather," intoned Grandis slowly. "Mr. Scales
is trying to ingest my foot."
Tiboldt sighed. "Is that how a supervillain acts? You
are Princess Python! You dominate the snake!"
"Princess Python may dominate snakes—Grandis Gravna
Tiboldt gets the ever-lasting shit scared out of her
by them."
"Honestly, sometimes I don't know why I chose you to
take over the Gravna Tiboldt criminal empire."
"Because you've killed off every other member after
tricking them into trying to kill you!" screamed
Grandis.
Tiboldt scratched his head. "I think there maybe a few
distant cousins in Carnelia."
Grandis narrowed her eyes. "Nothing I say particularly
sinks in, does it?"
"Of course, they are tailors a profession not exactly
known for flamboyant evil," muttered Tiboldt.
"I thought so," said Grandis sadly.
"Still, I hear one of them has gone into public
relations, so per haps there is hope."
"Any orders, boss?" asked Lin Lin.
"We really want to break things!" said Ran Ran
eagerly.
"Do just that—but leave the target to us!"
"Gotcha boss!" said the twins together, rushing off.
"Now that is how a minion should act, granddaughter,"
said Tiboldt satisfiedly. "Did you not note the
obedient inclining of their heads?"
"Snake's getting frisky, grandpa…"
-----
Hikaru came to groggily. "I've got to stop this—it's
getting to be a habit." He glanced at Kagome. "How's
Nadia?"
"She passed out the same time you did," Kagome
replied. "Miroku went to help her."
Hikaru blinked. "That was a bad idea."
"That's what I told them," said Nadia, leaning against
the wall.
Hikaru nodded. "And Miroku?"
Nadia shut her eyes. "He's mildly concussed."
"Good," said Hikaru. "Very good."
"Where are the bells?" said Miroku dazedly. "I hear
them, but I don't see them…"
Hikaru looked at him meditatively. "In fact,
excellent." He looked at Nadia. "All right—someone has
apparently sealed off most of your personal memories.
Neither you nor I can get to them."
"I see," said Nadia quietly. "Can't you just—unseal
them?"
"Only if you don't mind being a vegetable," answered
Hikaru. "Whoever put them up had a lot of power and
skill. Only they can lower them at will. Anyone else
is going to have to put a lot of effort into getting
them open, and I'm afraid I lack the finesse to do so
without damaging you."
"I thought you were ‘practically omnipotent'," snapped
Nadia.
"Sister, it's a big ‘practically'!" shot back Hikaru.
"The human mind is very delicate. You can't just go
charging in at will. I don't care if you can breathe
underwater—some things still aren't going to go your
way."
"Stop being so patronizing," said Nadia.
"I can't help my nature," replied Hikaru. "Though the
fact you used the word ‘patronizing' will cut down on
my condescending."
"What if I use the word ‘hemorrhage'?" asked Nadia.
"It almost vanishes."
Nadia glanced at Kagome and Inu-Yasha. "Is he always
like this?"
"Sometimes he's worse," answered Inu-Yasha.
"You breathe underwater?" asked Kagome.
Two brightly colored figures crashed into the room.
"Give it up!" shouted one at Nadia.
"You'll never escape us!" shouted the second, who was
nearly identical to the first.
"The Chinese Twins!" gasped Kagome.
"Damn," muttered Hikaru. "Now I have to fix that
window."
Nadia stood very still for a moment, then screamed.
"LEAVE ME ALONE!!!" She charged forward.
Through the wall.
"After her!" cried the twins, somersaulting in
pursuit.
Hikaru stared at the gaping hole Nadia had left behind
her, then coughed. "Say… Inu-Yasha—remember how I said
that a huge hole isn't proof of a huge monster?"
"Yep," said Inu-Yasha.
"I'm just saying this because it appears we're going
to have to abandon the whole ‘monster pursuing Nadia'
theory…"
-----
Nadia raced out onto the street, mentally cursing. She
should have known. Safety was an illusion—one she
could ill afford. A grim smile rose to her lips. They
could try to catch her! She was recovered—back to full
strength!
Her stomach growled at the same time as her knees
buckled.
Except f or the niggling little fact of having not
eaten anything.
"So. Miss il Karthon," came the accented voice. "I am
pleased you could—drop in." Nadia glanced up to see a
chuckling man in a gaudy green suit, topped by a
purple top hat with some sort of medallion in it.
Behind him stood a statuesque woman struggling with a
snake. "See, granddaughter? That is a supervillain
quip!"
The woman nodded while trying to brush the snake away.
"Right, right!"
Nadia stood to her feet. "Careful," she said through
clenched teeth. "I'm a lot tougher than I look."
"Such defiance," muttered the man. The large medallion
began to spin. "It will not do…" Nadia began to
stiffen. Stare into the nullatron. Let the circles
carry you away. Let your will—become my will. The will
of—THE RINGMASTER!"
-----
Hikaru soared through the air as Miroku, Kagome and
Inu-Yasha rushed after him.
"I wish I'd brought the Hellcat-cycle," muttered
Kagome.
"Ain't it got a flat?" scowled Inu-Yasha.
Kagome glanced at him. "I don't recall telling you
that…"
Inu-Yasha gulped. "L-lucky guess…"
"Supervillain up ahead!" shouted Hikaru touching down.
"The Ringmaster!" gasped Kagome. "So the Circus of
Crime is behind this!"
"Say what now?" asked Hikaru.
"The Circus of Crime!" intoned Kagome ostentatiously.
"A circus where the clowns don't cause laughter, the
animals don't amaze, and the acrobats don't fill the
heart with wonder."
Hikaru frowned. "Kagome, that's every circus."
"They also steal stuff," she hastily added.
"Indeed we do, Hellcat," said the Ringmaster. "Indeed
we do."
"Wow. Good hearing for a septuagenarian," noted
Hikaru.
"I have no idea what that means, but thank you," said
the Ringmaster silkily. "Welcome to the Circus of
Crime! Our show-stopping acts are guaranteed to knock
your socks off!" He chuckled to himself, and then
gestured to a corner. "May I present—the Twin Chinese
Acrobats!"
Lin Lin and Ran Ran tumbled into view.
"Princess Python!"
A woman walked into view waving a stick at a snake
that was following her. "You want a piece of me?" she
muttered threateningly. "Do you want a piece of me?"
"And our new star attraction—the Flying Fish Girl!"
Kagome's expression was troubled. "That's odd. I don't
remember a Flying—"
Nadia dived at them from above. "Oh, wow," said
Kagome.
"You're telling me," said Hikaru. "There's no way
those tiny wings she has can support her weight."
Inu-Yasha stepped forward. "I'll handle her." Nadia
collided with him.
Inu-Yasha tumbled backward, leaving several large
craters in the pavement. "Wow again!"
Hikaru nodded. "I knew she was surprisingly muscular,
but that borders on the impossible…"
Miroku rubbed his chin speculatively. "A hard body,
eh?"
Hikaru gave him a quick jab to the side. "Down boy."
He glanced at Kagome. "So—the Ringmaster's put a
whammy on her?"
"Umm, yeah—how'd you guess?"
"I'm just lucky that way."
Nadia grasped Inu-Yasha's fist mid-swing and flung him
backwards. "Guys, a little help here?"
Hikaru nodded and looked at Miroku and Kagome. "You
help him—I'll take care of the Senior Citizen."
Miroku nodded and rushed at Nadia, hefting his staff.
She ducked down and tripped him with a swing kick.
Kagome laughed. "Don't worry, Son o' Satan! Hellcat is
on the case!" She drew her bow, and quickly fired.
She missed by a sizable margin.
"Ya know," shouted Inu-Yasha, "there's this guy,
Hawkeye, who also does the arrow thing—only he hits!"
"Hey, I hit too!" whined Kagome. "Most of the time."
She bit her lip. "It's over fifty percent!"
The arrow let loose a shockwave that knocked three of
the four people near it to their feet.
Nadia was the exception.
The Ringmaster gave a dry chuckle. "Well, hero, it
appears that I will soon be adding a dog-faced boy and
several new clowns to my act."
"Right," noted Hikaru. "The awesome might of a woman
under your mental thrall threatens to overwhelm us."
He thought that over. "Unless I beat you, which as a
young man in surprisingly good shape facing a gouty,
arthritis-ridden old man with respiratory problems, I
can probably manage."
The twins tumbled before him. "Oh, no you don't!" said
Lin Lin.
"Nobody gets through us!" shouted Ran Ran.
They quickly wrapped Hikaru up in ribbons. Hikaru
sighed. "Oh, now you've done in it." As the twins
watched, the ribbons burst into flames and burned to
cinders. "You annoyed me." He raised his hands. The
pair went flying backwards.
The Ringmaster blinked as Hikaru strode forward
majestically. His medallion began to twirl. "Very
well, hero. Stare into the nullatron, and feel—"
Hikaru punched him. "You know, I'm officially against
evil now," he stated. "I find it irritating."
"Owww!" cried the Ringmaster. "My brittle old man
flesh!"
"My heart bleeds for you," said Hikaru calmly. "Still
it was a bad idea to try and hypnotize me." He pointed
to his head. "I'm such a master of the field that my
mind is firmly locked and hermetically sealed." He
glanced at the Ringmaster's hat. "While you are a
silly old man using a spinning circle on your hat—and
thanks for showing me just what I needed to break." He
gave a quick jab, causing the nullatron to make a
satisfying crunch, then rubbed his knuckles. "I'm
obliged to you."
Nadia's eyes cleared. She glanced down at Inu-Yasha,
who she had clutched by the kimono. "What am I doing?"
"Beatin' the crap outta me," answered Inu-Yasha.
"Ahh," said Nadia. "I shouldn't be doing that, should
I?"
"Nope," gasped Inu-Yasha.
"Right," she said, releasing him.
Hikaru gestured at the Ringmaster. "If you should hit
anybody it's this guy. He raped your free will with
the casual aplomb of a practiced sociopath."
Nadia's eyes narrowed. "I see." She rushed forward and
lifted up the elderly supervillain. "I think I'll
follow that advice."
Hikaru blinked. "I thought you were a pacifist who
holds all life sacred?"
"I find my pacifism does not preclude self-defense,
and reasonably justifiable ass-kicking," stated Nadia.
"Does that offend you?"
Hikaru shrugged. "No, but I'm an ethical realist."
Nadia glared at the Ringmaster. "All right, I want
answers…" A pistol cocked.
"Let my grandfather down," said Princess Python,
leveling a Luger at Nadia. "Nobody gets to kill him
but me!"
"Grandis!" said the Ringmaster. "A gun? That is so…
tacky!"
"I'm saving your ass, old man!" screamed Princess
Python. "Is a little gratitude too much to ask?" She
fired.
The bullet bounced off Nadia's skin.
Wide-eyed, Grandis emptied the gun into the girl.
The bullets all ricocheted off her.
Grandis stared at the gun in disbelief.
"Don't bother throwing it," said Hikaru. "I have it on
good authority that never works."
Grandis gulped as Nadia threw the Ringmaster at her.
"All right you two—you will tell me what I want to
know," she began. "What did you do to me? Why can't I
remember anything?" She choked back a sob. "WHY?"
The pair blinked. "W-we don't know," said Grandis
quietly. "We only know your named Nadia il Karthon,
and that the person who hired us wanted you very
badly. That's it."
"You—you're lying," seethed Nadia raising a fist.
"No," said Hikaru, grabbing her fist lightly. "They're
not."
Nadia lowered her arm, and shut her eyes. "Who hired
you?"
"We don't know," said Grandis. "We never met him in
person, and he never gave us his name. He said he'd
contact us after you were caught, and that he'd know
when that happened."
"Which means it will never happen now," said Nadia
quietly. She gulped. "Hell's bells. Another dead end."
She bit her lip, and began to quietly weep.
Hikaru stared at her awkwardly. He took a deep breath,
and patted her on the shoulder. "I'm sorry," he said
softly. There was a shuffling behind him. "Miroku, if
you take two more steps, I'll have you singing in the
Vienna Boys' Choir."
"Umm, right," said Miroku. He glanced at Nadia. "You
have my condolences."
Hikaru coughed. "You know we're—stopping a demonic
invasion in two days. You could help—if you wanted
to."
Nadia choked back a sob. "I don't—want to harm—living
creatures at the moment."
"Technically, they aren't alive."
"Oh." Nadia bit her lip, and smiled slightly. "It's a
date."
-----
In a small ship by the docks a man shut off a radio.
"Damn," he muttered. He sighed and shook his head.
"Well, just goes to show you—you can't subcontract."
He shook his head again, and went below to inform h is
employers that there'd been an insignificant delay.
-----
Maynard Gravna Tiboldt watched as his granddaughter
brewed his tea. "So neither you or the twins can
remember what we've done for the last few weeks?"
Grandis nodded. "No idea."
Tiboldt gave a hearty chuckle. "Ahh—lost time—an
eternal factor in supervillainy. Entire years of my
life are missing, did you know that?" He coughed into
his handkerchief, looked at the results, then tucked
it back into his vest. "Of course," he noted candidly,
"my hard-living gigolo days may have something to do
with that."
Grandis tensed, then handed him a cup. "Your tea,
grandfather."
"Thank you, my sweet," he said, then sipped it down.
"Ahh, excellent. The arsenic adds just the right touch
of piquancy. It makes me glad I developed a tolerance
for it."
Grandis slapped her forehead.
-----
Nadia stared silently out the window. Someone cleared
their throat behind her. "You want another blanket?
Another pillow? A complimentary mint?"
"No. Thanks for asking, Hikaru."
Hikaru nodded, then started out. He paused, then
glanced at her. "How was the yogurt?"
"It was fine."
"That's nice." He started to head out, then paused.
"Look, do you want to talk? About anything?"
Nadia shut her eyes, "No, I—" She took a deep breath.
"I don't know who I am, Hikaru. I have no idea about
anything. You have no idea what that feels like.
Nobody does."
Hikaru chuckled. "If you think that's true, you must
have been living a sheltered life." He shook his head.
"Don't worry. We'll find out what's happened—who you
were. I'm pretty much a magnet for trouble and
coincidence, and that way lies the answer." He started
to leave.
Nadia turned. "I'm sorry about your house."
"Don't worry—it's fixed. ‘Practically omnipotent with
ideal time and circumstances', remember?" He smiled.
"Actually, I consider myself amply rewarded by your
mere presence."
Nadia blinked, startled.
"You're the first person I've met who's honestly more
depressed than I am." He walked out. "I find that
awfully reassuring."
Nadia, despite herself smiled. Things might not be so
bad, after all.
-----
The spaceship stopped behind the moon.
"So this is the place?"
"Yes, Captain. Third planet in the Sol system. The
inhabitants call it—Earth."
"It is strangely lovely, is it not? I wonder if it is
ready for—THE HERALD OF GALACTUS?"
"Your chocolate milk, miss."
"Ooh, goody! Teeheeheehee-tcha!"
--NEXT CHAPTER--
NADIA: Well, now I join the cast as—well take a guess.
And next chapter, seven ramshackle companions join
forces to save the Earth from—CAPTAIN ONI!
Guest-starring the big green dynamo—
-dinosaur growl-
NADIA: No not Godzilla.
HIKARU: Oh, thanks for giving away the twist…
NADIA: Hikaru, the twelve people who can figure it out
knew who the villain was the moment the laugh ended…
MIROKU: Umm…
BOTH: Shut up, Miroku.
CRIMSON COWL: Just wanted to say, I'm not in this
chapter either…
HIKARU: Join us next time for ‘Third Stone From the
Sun' people.
NADIA: Oooh, a Hendrix reference.
-----
....
To continue my discussion, Nadia and Grandis Gravna
are the property of Gainax. The Sub-Mariner is the
creation of Bill Everett.
I'm aware that some people may not like the story
choices I've made in this chapter, though the ongoing
war between Confidence and Paranoia that I think all
writers face means my opinion on that changes from
hour to hour. In the combining of Nadia and
Sub-Mariner, I've taken a bit of Character A, a bit of
Character B, coupled them with my own story needs and
what I think the logical progression of a character
having those personality traits would be, and wound up
with Character C. If it helps, consider this Nadia
the descendent of this universe's equivalent of the
series Nadia.
And as the fact that I've written an extraordinarily
large amount of notes for such a little chapter
probably shows you, I'm a bit nervous about this one.
Well, really, what can I say? I'm one neurotic
bugger, when you get down to it.
__________________________________
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