Chapter 3 Resurrection
Kara
hung in the center of the room. She had
thought that things could not get much worse, but they had. She was surrounded by about twenty men she
had never seen before and Kink was talking.
“Well, gentlemen, what am I bid?
What’s it worth to be able to say that you screwed a superheroine?”
A
small well-dressed man wearing glasses spoke up. “It would be worth a lot, but how do we know
she’s the real thing?”
“Yes,”
agreed another. “You could have dressed
anybody up in that outfit. If she’s a
heroine how come she doesn’t try to escape?”
“You’re
kidding, right?” replied Kink. “Look at
that body. You think any ordinary woman
is built like that? And the uniform –
it’s indestructible.”
“I’ll
admit she’s built like a brick shithouse,” said the first man, “but that don’t
mean she’s a heroine. I want more proof
than your word and the fact she’s got a colourful costume on.”
“Alright,”
said Kink. “I’ll give you proof. Take her down boys.”
Kara
groaned with relief as the chains suspending her from the ceiling were lowered,
allowing her feet to reach the floor.
She had been hanging there for several hours and the strain on her arms
was terrible. She was wearing her
costume once more. Kink had ordered her
into the bathroom and while he watched, had forced her to clean herself
up. Then he had allowed her to dress. He had also not given her the kryptonite
tonic that day. As a result her strength
had returned and with it an ability she did not know she had. The bruises, lacerations, and other physical
signs of her brutal treatment had disappeared.
Incredibly her marvelous body possessed the power of super healing. Within minutes of regaining her strength she
was whole again.
That
did not mean, however, that she was able to escape. Kink had placed her in a room that was coated
with kryptonite based paint. As long as
she stayed away from the walls and ceiling she had her superpowers, but as soon
as she tried to break through her strength faded. The floor was similarly treated, although
Kink had covered it in lead foil to protect her. Thus she was trapped, even though she no
longer was drugged with the kryptonite potion.
Kink
had been very pleased with her recovery.
It was part of his plan to recoup the cost of the kryptonite and to
further humiliate her by selling her body to the highest bidder. And that was why she was the center of attention
at the special auction he had arranged. She
was still helpless, of course. Kink had
secured her by placing kryptonite alloy shackles on her wrists and ankles. The radiation given off by these restraints
kept her weak and in considerable anguish.
Kryptonite did not just rob her of her powers, it was also agonizingly
painful. By now, however, Kara was
almost used to being in pain, and it certainly would have done her little good
to complain. She was forced to endure.
Now,
however, Kink seemed to have something else planned for her. The various prospective customers wanted
proof of her superheroine status and Kink was somehow going to give it to them. Just how Kara wasn’t sure, but she had enough
respect for the inventive criminal by now to expect that he would find a
way.
“Bring
her over here,” he ordered, pointing to a cage-like enclosure. It wasn’t exactly a cage, being almost open
on four sides. The bars of the so-called
cage were so widely spaced that she could easily walk between them and that is
precisely what Kink ordered her to do.
She stood in the center of the semi-enclosure waiting for further
instructions.
“Take
off her manacles and leg irons,” Kink said.
Kara
was mystified by this command, but understood immediately as soon as the
shackles were removed. From the metal
framework of the cage she could feel the distinct and painful sensation of
kryptonite radiation. As long as she stood
in the center of the “cage,” she was almost free from pain, but any attempt to
move brought instant agony. She was
still helpless to escape.
Kink
handed the man with glasses a Glock 31. “Shoot her,” he said. “I think you’ll find the results
interesting.”
“Shoot
her?” said the man. “I came here to fuck
her, not put a bullet through her.”
“You
wanted proof that she’s a superheroine didn’t you? So shoot her.”
“Wait
a minute. How do I know the gun’s not
loaded with blanks?”
“For
Christ’s sake,” Kink swore. “Shoot
something else first. And then shoot
her.”
The
man with the gun smiled. “How about that
potted plant over there?”
“Be
my guest Kink,” answered.
Boom!
The sound of the shot reverberated around the
room and the potted palm exploded into hundreds of pieces.
“OK,”
the man with glasses said. “It’s got
real bullets. Where should I shoot her?”
“Anywhere
you want. She’s a superheroine. She won’t care.”
Actually
Kara did care. There were limits to her
invulnerability. Being hit with a .357
slug was not an enjoyable experience even if it did not penetrate her
skin. And she was not at full
strength. The radiation from the bars of
the cage might weaken her enough that she would experience severe injury. However, there was little she could do about
it. She turned to face the man with the
gun.
Boom! The slug
knocked her off her feet, hurling her across the cage. Kara lay on the floor gasping, the breath
knocked out of her.
Kink
rushed over to look. “Get up, bitch,” he
said. “You’re not hurt.”
Kara
struggled to her feet. The bullet had
torn a hole in her costume, right between her breasts. She was still alive and her Kryptonian skin
had saved her from the bullet, but she was not as Kink claimed, unhurt. There was a nasty bruise where the heavy
bullet had hit her. She was not entirely
invulnerable and being shot at point blank range had strained her body’s
resistance to the utmost. Even as she
clutched the place where the bullet had struck, however, the bruising faded as
her incredible body healed.
Kara
grimaced and fought to regain her breath.
That had hurt! She had never been
hit by a bullet before and the experience was definitely not pleasant. Her eyes filled with resentment she stood and
faced Kink. “That make you happy?” she
asked. “You’ve found another way to hurt
and humiliate me.”
Kink
laughed. “Still got some spirit left I
see. Good.” He turned to the man who had shot her. “Now what do you think? Quite a prize isn’t she? And she even talks.”
Kara
bit back a retort. Kink was just tying
to make her angry and he was certainly succeeding. No doubt a feisty heroine would get a better
price. Well, she wouldn’t give him the
satisfaction of further humiliating her in front of such an incredibly depraved
lot as the men who had gathered to bid for her.
“Alright,”
Kink said, turning his back on her and facing his prospective customers. “What am I bid? How about $20,000 for an hour?”
“That’s pretty steep,” said one of the
men. Kara gasped when she saw him. She had seen his picture before on the
internet crime link. He was Carlos
Vincenna, a notorious and brutal drug lord, responsible for dozens of murders
and acts of terror. His face was
horribly scarred due to someone having thrown acid into his face early in his
crime career. Legend had it that he had
managed to keep the man who had thrown it alive for two weeks before he died of
torture.
Vincenna
pushed his way forward. “I want her for
more than an hour. She’s buggered up
several of my operations.”
“No
problem,” replied Kink. “Just bid more
than everyone else and you can have her for as long as you like.”
“How
much to buy her?”
“More
than you’ve got. I figure this little
babe’s worth millions. You’ll have to be
satisfied with just a few hours.”
“Son
of a bitch,” said Vincenna.
“Alright. I bid $100,000. That should get me five hours, right?”
“Not
so fast,” came a voice from the back.
This man was in stark contrast to
“Just
a minute, gentlemen,” Kink said. “The
bid is per hour. “You’ve both bid the
same. Mr. Roper you have to bid more
than $20,000.”
“Alright,”
said the stout man, wiping his brow. “I
bid $25,000.”
“That’s
better,” said Kink. “Now let the bidding
begin.”
Vincenna
swore. Clearly he was used to getting
his own way. “$30,000,” he countered.
The
bidding became rather intense with most of the men assembled getting in on the
act. Vincenna finally won with a bid of
$45,000, but he reduced his time to only four hours. After that she was divided up among the
various bidders. Kink was well
satisfied. His superheroine captive had
earned over two million dollars and that was just the total for the first
auction. He grinned. A few weeks and he would be way ahead. What had been a liability would turn out to
be his most profitable venture.
Kara
grunted as Roper thrust into her. She no
longer screamed when she was taken. She
was beyond that now. Her life had been
one of continual sexual servitude ever since the auction. She didn’t have much choice. A blindfolded Sylvie had been parade before
her soon after Vincenna had won the bidding.
The girl could barely walk and her slender body was covered with
bruises. “See what sort of trouble you
cause, superbitch?” said Kink. “This
girl was happy as a lark until you came along.
Now she’s been entertaining my men for the past two days. However, I’m not one to shift the blame to
others. I’m quite prepared to let her go
if you promise to cooperate. Of course,
if you don’t…
He
didn’t have to finish the sentence. Kara
nodded in dumb agreement. “Thought you’d
see it my way,” Kink grinned. He turned
to the two men guarding Sylvie. “Give
her back he clothes and let her go. Oh,
and give her $5,000 dollars. I think she
deserves at least that much for her services.
She was a mighty good fuck.”
Sylvie
burst into tears as she was led from the room.
She had no way of knowing why she had been taken from her cell, having
never laid eyes on Kara, but the humiliation and terror hat she had endured
caused her to break down. Kara wept
too. If only she had been more
careful. She should have known better
than to drink something in a place like the Raging Duck without checking it
first. Now her best friend had paid the
price for her stupidity. She would do
anything to spare her further harm.
Her
session with Vincenna had been horrendous.
The badly scarred villain seemed much more interested in brutally
assaulting her than he did in sex. She
had been allowed to wear her costume. As
a matter of fact, Vincenna had demanded it.
But she really wasn’t much of a superheroine without her powers, and
Vincenna had delighted in giving her a severe beating.
He
started with a blow to her ribcage, just below her left breast. She tried to dodge the punch, but the villain
was much bigger and more skilled in street fighting than she was. She came to regret depending on her
superstrength and superspeed to solve all her problems. She had never learned any real martial
skills; she hadn’t needed to. She
resolved that if she ever escaped from her perilous predicament she would join
a martial arts club and learn to properly defence herself.
Vincenna
had followed up his first punch with a fist to her jaw. Staggered by the two blows, she had almost
fallen, but the brutal thug wouldn’t let her.
Catching her as she swayed he forced her again the wall and then rained
blow after blow upon her.
She
managed to catch the majority of the punches on her arms and shoulders, but
many got through. Within a very short
time she was sagging helplessly as the vicious hoodlum continued to beat
her. Only when she was close to
unconscious did Vincenna stop. “I’ve
always wanted to do that,” he grinned, his face distorted by the terrible scars
that disfigured most of it. “You bloody
superheroines are so damned arrogant. It
is time you learned what it is like to come up against someone stronger than
you are.”
Kara
did not reply. Her lip was split open
and her nose bloodied. All of the teeth
on one side of her mouth had been loosened and the area around one eye was so
badly swollen that she could no longer see out of it. Her breasts had received a severe
mauling. They felt like a pair of
punching bags that had had the stuffing knocked out of them. Swaying, her knees buckled and she almost
fell.
Vincenna,
however, caught her, and dragging her over to the bed lay her down and
proceeded to strip her costume from her battered body. “Now superbitch, you’re going to get a real
workout.” He quickly undressed,
revealing a well-muscled body and a formidable erection.
“Ungh!” Kara grunted as he yanked her legs apart. Had she not been raped so many times before
she would have been positively terrified. Even as it was it she found it a most
unpleasant experience. “Unngghhh!”
she grunted again as he mounted her; and again as he sank his shaft deep within
her. But she did not scream, not then
nor during the next three hours as he raped her repeatedly. But at the end she was moaning softly from
the protracted ordeal.
Vincenna,
however, took her lack of response as a personal insult. “Bloody whore. I’ll have you screaming next time. I’m not through with you yet. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately,
depending of the point of view, Vincenna had run out of time. A knock on the door alerted him to the fact
that that another customer was waiting.
“Times up Vincenna,” said Kink’s voice.
“Anymore time and I charge you double.”
“Bitch,”
said Vincenna. “I’ll be back. And Next time I’m booking eight hours.”
The
door opened and Kink entered. “Christ,
I’ll have to clean her up before the next customer. From now on I’m going to charge extra if you
want to beat her up.”
“I’ll
pay it,” the scarred villain replied.
“It will be worth it.”
Kink
was forced to return Kara to the cage where she had been auctioned so that he
could give her partial recovery of her superpowers in order to allow her to
heal. Then it was the next client’s
turn.
Kara
couldn’t remember who that was. Her
memory was a bit blurred. Her life was
one round after the other of serving as someone’s sex toy. She only remembered the clients who made her
life a bit more “interesting,” such as the strange little man who wanted her
smeared with custard and applesauce before her had sex with her. Or the brute who insisted on suspending her
upside down while he raped her.
Roper
was also memorable, but for a different reason.
The flabby crime boss was so overweight that his bulk crushed her into
the bed, and he sweated profusely. Unfortunately,
his lust was almost insatiable. He was
capable of sustaining an erection for hours, and took her every way he knew
how. He had already raped her orally,
vaginally, and anally, and was now pounding her vagina once more. There wasn’t much she could do about it. A few feet from the bed were several
kryptonite-coated bars. They kept her
too weak to defend herself. She had no
choice other than to endure.
Kara
was exhausted. How much longer was this
going to go on? For that matter how much
longer could she stand up under the repeated sexual servitude? Surely, Kink must have made his money back by
now. Of course, that fact did not
matter. He no doubt intended to keep her
as his prize whore for as long as there was a demand for her services. Every now and then when things were quiet –
which was almost never, Kink would bed her.
He wasn’t as violent now, and he never used a condom which was something
he insisted that his clients do. There
seemed only one meaning to what he was doing.
He was trying to impregnate her.
What his motive might be for that she could only guess, but none of the
scenarios that passed through her mind were even remotely pleasant.
She
certainly did not want to become pregnant in any case. Not at her age. She was barely eighteen and completely
unsuited for motherhood. She had too
much else she wanted to do. A child
would be a terrible burden, especially since it was very likely to have
superpowers. That meant only she could
look after it and her crimefighting career would be on hold for several
years. And in any case, the thought of
having a child by a man like Kink filled her with disgust. Somehow she had to escape. The alternative was just too horrible to
contemplate.
“Uuunghh! Uuunnggh!”
Roper was almost finished
now. His passionate grunts signaled that
he was about to spurt his load into her.
He did not, of course. He was
wearing a condom and that would have contained his heavy cream. Rather than waste his orgasm, however, he
pulled out of her at the last second and jetted his thick white sticky ropes over
her exhausted body.
Kara
did not react. She expected such
disgusting behaviour from the thugs that violated her. Her only reaction was to wrinkle her nose in
revulsion. Roper stank, especially after
three or four hours of sweating over her helpless body. “Oh,” he gasped, “you sure are a great piece
of tail. You’re worth every penny.”
Kara
said nothing as was her custom. She did
not want to give these sadistic thugs any more pleasure than necessary, and
bandying words with them would certainly have done just that. But then she got an idea.
I
was an idea born of desperation. Kara
suspected that there was little chance of success, but her situation could
hardly get much worse. The only problem
was that if her scheme failed she would probably not get another opportunity. She decided to gamble anyway.
“I’m
glad ja got ya money’s worth,” she grunted, adopting the most lowbrow accent
she could devise. “It’s what I get paid
for after all.”
“Paid
for?” Roper asked. “You get paid? I thought you were a prisoner.”
“That’s
what you’re supposed to think. Ya
wouldn’t bid so much for my services if ya didn’t.”
“I
don’t get it. You’re a
superheroine. Why would you do this?”
“Superheroine? Me? I
break a nail just brushing my teeth.”
Roper
lifted himself off her. “But I saw Kink
shoot you. The bullet just bounced off.”
“Yeah;
pretty convincing wasn’t it. Took me a
couple of hours of practice to make that look realistic.”
“You’re
lying. You’ve got that indestructible
costume I peel off you every time. And
your body it’s incredible!”
“Yeah;
spent a lot of time in the gym working on that.
Course Kink paid for the time and the trainer.”
“But
you look just like her!” Roper shouted.
The flabby thug seemed to be getting excited.
“Of
course I look like her. How do ya think
I got the job?”
“The
costume. I can’t tear it.” An element of doubt had crept into Roper’s
voice.
“Kevlar. I can’t tear it either. Pretty tough stuff.”
“But
the kryptonite bars,” Roper said, gesturing to the metal bars placed
strategically about the room.
“It’s
just luminous green paint,” Kara said.
Forcing her features to remain absolutely impassive she placed her right
hand on the slightly glowing bars that robbed her of her powers. The pain that surged through her was
excruciating, but she managed to pretend to be unconcerned. She held her hand there for a few seconds and
then withdrew it casually. She hoped
Roper wouldn’t notice the way her skin had suddenly beaded with perspiration.
Roper
seemed convinced. “Alright slut; if
you’re not Supergirl then why are you telling me this?’
Kara
sighed and slumped down on the bed. “This
is harder work than I thought. When Kink
hired me he said I’d only have to fuck a half dozen men a day. But he’s got me screwing day and night. I’m exhausted and I want out.” She cringed at using such unheroine-like
language, but she needed to stay in character.
She could sense that she almost had Roper.
“What
am I supposed to do about it?” Roper said angrily.
“I
need a protector. Kink is making too
much money from this scam to let me go.
If he ever found out what I told ya I’d be dead meat. And I like ya. You’re more of a man than any of my other
customers. Ya know, yer kinda cute.” Fighting back her revulsion, she reached out
and gently caressed Roper’s sweat-streaked face.
Roper
started pulling his clothes on. “That
God-damned prick. I’m gonna kick his
ass. I should have known that no one
could capture a real superheroine. Got
to admit though, you really had me fooled.”
He looked over Kara’s magnificent body and then started for the door.
“Wait,”
said Kara reaching out and touching his shoulder. “I don’t want ya to get hurt. Now that I’ve told ya, yer life is in danger
too. You’ve got to find a way to help me
get out of here.” She gave him what she
hoped was her best ‘helpless female’ look.
Roper
returned her look and licked his lips.
It was obvious that he was taken with her. “Alright, babe,” he said. “What do you suggest?”
“Yer
free to come and go as you please. Take
a break. Tell the guards that you’ve got
to take a leak or something. Then find a
way to distract their attention. I’ll
sneak out then.”
“What
should I do?”
“Oh,
Kara smiled. “I’m sure a criminal of
your caliber will be able to think of something.” She pursed her lips and kissed him longingly
on the mouth. It was something she had
gotten pretty good at the last week or so.
Roper
grinned foolishly and waddled toward the door.
“I’ll be back he said. “Stay
tuned.”
Kara
breathed a sigh of relief as he left.
Her gamble seemed to have worked.
Now she would have to wait and see what transpired.
The
next half hour was the longest of her life.
Was Roper cooperating? Did he really
believe her story? Perhaps he had just
taken off, leaving her stranded. Perhaps
he had gone to Kink and told him the whole story. At any second the vicious crimelord might
come storming through the door ready to give her a brutal beating. Pacing back and forth Kara waited. She had put her costume back on, but until
something happened to distract Kink’s guards all she could do was wait.
Sylvie
huddled in her tiny room. It was not a
cell exactly, but it might as well have been.
It contained a bed, a toilet and sink, a dresser that doubled as a
make-up table, and a single chair. She
had never been so frightened in her life.
Kink had not released her as promised.
That was just for the benefit of the “superheroine.” Sylvie didn’t really think the girl was a
real heroine. After all if she was how
had Kink managed to capture her?
Her
time since the episode with the blindfold had been the most terrifying and
humiliating experience of her existence.
She had been raped repeatedly by men she had never met all the while
taunted about being the friend of a superheroine.
She
had no idea what they were talking about.
She knew nothing about superheroines.
The closest she had ever come to one of them was when Supergirl had
flown by high above her on some superheroine mission.
She
wondered what had happened to Kara. The
last she could remember before her imprisonment was being in a nightclub with
her and having something to drink. After
that her memories were a bit vague.
A
noise in the hall outside her door sent a chill of fear through her. Since her capture she had been taken out of
the cell for one purpose only and that was to be sexually molested. She had heard of places like the one she was
in. Young women were tricked into
prostitution and then “broken in” by being repeatedly raped until they became
compliant sex slaves. She wondered how
long it would take for them to break her.
Not very long if what had happened in the last few days was any example
of what was going to happen to her.
A
key turned in the lock. Sylvie pressed
herself against the wall trying to get as far away from the door as
possible. The door opened. Two men stood there, sneering smirks
plastered on their faces. Sylvie
recognized them as two of the men who had raped her.
“Let’s
go, twat,” said one of them. “The boss
wants to see you. I expect he has
something special planned for you.”
Sylvie
got stiffly to her feet. She was having
a great deal of trouble walking now that the parts of her body that had been ravaged
had been given a chance to swell. She
tried to cover her nakedness with her arms and hands. Both of her escorts laughed. “Ain’t you the shy one?” the second man
asked. “Don’t worry babe, I’ve already
had a real good look at your cunt and tits.
Up close you might say.” Both men
laughed again.
Sylvie
dropped her hands. They were right. What difference did it make now? Her body had been on display for all to see. Crimson with embarrassment, she stepped from
the cell.
“Look
at her blush,” said the second man.
“What do you say we give her a quickie before we take her to Kink?”
“I
dunno,” said the first man. “Kink asked
for her. He doesn’t like to be kept
waiting..”
The
second man shrugged. “Albright, I can
wait. We’ll fuck her later.”
Sylvie
trembled in fear as she forced herself to walk between the two men. The horrible nightmare just kept on getting
worse. They followed the corridor and a
flight of stairs to a large room.
Sylvie’s dark eyes widened as she was escorted through the door. In the center of the room was the tall
dark-haired man who had been the first to rape her. “Glad
you could make it,” he said sarcastically.
“I think it’s about time you and I had a little talk.”
“What
do you want with me?” she quavered. “I
don’t know you and I’ve done you no harm.
Please let me go.”
“Information,“
the dark-haired man replied. “I need to know more about you and your friend.”
“Kara?”
said Sylvie. “You’ve got her here? What have you done to her?”
“You’ll
see,” the dark-haired man smiled. “Go
get the superbitch,” he said to one of the guards. “Roper should be finished with her by now.”
“What
is this?” Sylvie asked. “Did you hurt
her? “She’s just an innocent girl. She never even goes out.”
“Think
there’s more to her than you…”
The
dark-haired man never finished his sentence.
At that moment the building shook and thunderous blast filled the air.
“What
the fuck?” yelled the dark-haired man.
Drawing a gun from his waistband he sprinted from the room followed by
the remaining guard. Sylvie was left
alone.
Roper
entered the room. He was sweating
profusely, but that was not unusual.
Kara had never seen him when he wasn’t sweating. “I did it,” he said. “Get ready to leave.”
“Did
what?” Kara asked. “I don’t hear anything.”
“You
will,” he said. “I disconnected the gas
line. It’s only a matter of time until
it goes up. I turned up the thermostat.”
“Aren’t
you clever,” Kara said. She found the
flabby thug repulsive, but she thought she might still need him.
Roper
grinned. “I see you got your costume
on. I’m looking forward to undressing
you again.”
At
that moment the room shuddered. It was immediately
followed by a tremendous explosion.
“Let’s go,” said Roper. He took
Kara’s arm.
The
hallway was full of smoke. If there were
any guards around Kara couldn’t see them.
Roper guided her away from the room where she had been held. She had to admit that for the first twenty or
so feet she was glad of his assistance.
But as she was hurried down the hallway she felt her strength
return. A few more steps and the smoke
didn’t matter any more; her X-ray vision penetrated the gloom as if the air
were clear.
Kara
swept her gaze through the building. She
found what she was looking for and something else besides. Sylvie.
Why did it not surprise her that her friend had not been released? Just as important, however, she had found
Kink’s supply of kryptonite. It was
locked in a steel safe in a room in the basement. Kara set her lips. She would make sure that it stayed
there. She halted and focused her X-ray
vision. The intense beam welded the safe
door shut. Nothing short of high
explosive would get the deadly element out of there now.
“”What’s
going on, babe?” asked Roper. “We’ve got
to get out of here.” The corpulent thug
was mystified as to why Kara seemed to be staring so hard at the wall. He was even more mystified as to why he could
not move her. She seemed solid as a
rock. A terrible suspicion came over
him.
Kara
turned to look at the criminal who had helped her to escape. “That’s right Roper. I am Supergirl. And you helped me escape. I can’t thank you enough.”
The
obese thug paled. “Christ, I’m dog meat!”
“Not
yet, but you soon will be,” Kara said. “She
was in a bit of a hurry. She had seen
something else in Kink’s office that sent chills through her. Reaching out she grabbed Roper by the
collar. The thug squealed like a pig as
she lifted him from the floor. “I’d like
to spend more time with you,” she said, “but I’ve got other place to go.”
Roper’s
face turned bright red as his breath was cut off, but Kara didn’t put him
down. Instead she hurled him against the
wall. It was unfortunate that that wall
was constructed of concrete blocks, because as Roper slammed against it the
blocks did not shatter – but Roper did.
As he slid to the floor unconscious he left a smear on the wall.
Kara
did not wait until he reached the floor.
She was halfway to Kink’s office and she went in a straight line.
Sylvie
fell to the floor. The room was full of
smoke and just outside the door she could see the red glow of flames. Already the heat was unbearable. As soon as Kink had left the room she had tried
to follow, but another tremendous explosion had rocked the building and thrown
her back into the room. Now she was overcome
by the deadly fumes given off by the fire that swept through the building. Her eyes streaming tears and with coughs
racking her body she struggled feebly toward the door. But she knew that she was not going to make
it. Her head swam and black spots danced
before her eyes. She didn’t even notice
as the floor exploded beside her.
Kara
swept Sylvie up in her arms. Kink was
nowhere in sight, but she knew that he was in the building somewhere. She would find him. In the meantime she would take Sylvie to
safety. Moving straight up she tore a
hole in the roof of the building, shielding Sylvie with her body as she did
so.
Outside
Kara discovered to her surprise that it was night. She had completely lost track of time while
undergoing her ordeal. She carried
Sylvie to the roof of a nearby building.
Ascertaining that the girl was breathing she lay her gently on its
surface. She would be safe enough there
for awhile. Then she returned to the
burning warehouse.
It
didn’t take her long to find Kink. He
was in the basement where the safe was, trying futilely to open the securely
welded safe. His brother Mike and
Dirkson were both with him.
“Son-of-a-bitch,” he swore. “I’ve
got to get it open. All of the cash is
in there.”
“Perhaps
I should open it for you.” Kink almost
jumped out of his skin as he whirled toward the sound. Standing in the doorway was the superheroine
he had captured and raped.
“You!”
Kink exclaimed. “How did you…” He went for his gun, as did Mike and Dirkson.
Kara
had little fear of bullets. But she didn’t like being shot. And she had a score to settle with the three
men who had ravished and tortured her. It
was a reasonable excuse. Or so she would
tell herself later. Superheroines
weren’t supposed to kill criminals, just render them helpless and turn them
over to the police, but something came over her when confronted with the trio
in front of her. Earthlings would have
called it rage, but she felt no surge of hatred, merely a sense of icy calm and
a feeling of purpose. These thugs would
not molest anyone else again.
She
caught Dirkson first. He was just
squeezing the trigger when Kara’s hand closed upon his wrist and crushed the
bones as if they were matchsticks. He
screamed horribly and then his shriek was cut off as Kara’s fist crushed his
larynx. His body had not hit the floor
before the blonde superheroine had hurled Mike across the room. Then she turned on Kink.
“You
can’t do this,” the crime boss protested.
“Superheroines don’t kill. It’s
against your stupid rules.”
Kara
did not reply. Slowly she moved toward
him. “Get back,” he cried, “I’ll
shoot.”
Kara
laughed. The sound sent shivers down
Kink’s back. It was the most chilling
sound he had ever heard. But even more
frightening was the look in the superheroine’s startling blue eyes. “No,” he said. “You can’t.
Please have mercy.”
“The
kind of mercy you showed me and Sylvie?” Kara replied. “I’ll show you mercy.”
Kink
pulled the trigger. But as he did so
Kara’s hand flashed out. She moved so
quickly that Kink did not even know she had done anything. He only knew that somehow the bullet he fired
went straight into the heart of his brother.
Mike’s
body jerked once as he died. Kink’s
mouth opened in disbelief. “Oh God, what
happened?”
“Now
look what you’ve done,” Kara said.
“Didn’t anyone ever tell you how dangerous guns are?”
“You
superheroine bitch,” Kink screamed. “You
made me do that.”
“Don’t
be silly,” Kara said, her voice flat and unemotional. “That would be a violation of the
superheroine code.” She turned toward
the door. “I’m going to leave you
now. I hope your conscience doesn’t
bother you too much.”
Kink
watched her leave. With some relief he
saw the door close behind her. He could
hardly believe that she had left him alive.
But now it was time to get out of here.
He gave the safe one last longing look and glanced quickly at his
brother. It was too bad about Mike. “But better him than me,” he thought. He approached the door. The superheroine bitch should be gone by
now. He touched the door handle.
“Aahh!”
He yanked his hand back. The handle was burning hot. “God damned bitch.” She had to be responsible. The fire wasn’t that close yet.
Going
over to Dirkson’s body he ripped off the dead man’s shirt and wrapped it about
his hands. Then he tried the door handle
again. Nothing happened. “What the hell?” he said aloud. Using both hands he twisted the handle using
all of his strength. It wouldn’t
move. It was as if it was welded
shut. “No! I can’t die here!” Leveling his semi-automatic he emptied the
gun into the locking mechanism of the door.
The bullets bounced off. Kink
remembered that he had ordered the door built strongly enough to withstand
forced entry. He was trapped by his own
security system. With a scream of rage
he attacked the door with his bare hands, hammering at it until his fists were
bloody. He had to get out. The section of the building where the cocaine
was further processed was filled with forty-five gallon drums of ether. If the fire reached them… Weeping with fear and frustration he fell to
his knees. Another explosion shook the
building. Beyond the door he could hear
the roar of the flames as the fire surged closer.
Kara
carried the unconscious Sylvie away from the burning building. It blazed brightly in the darkness and then a
series of massive explosions literally tore it apart, sending flaming debris in
all directions. Kara’s eyes
widened. She had not expected such a
holocaust. It was very unlikely that
anyone in the building would still be alive.
Arcing high into the air she increased her speed and soon gained Sylvie’s
brownstone walk-up apartment. She
entered by way of the window and gently lay the still
insensible Sylvie on her bed and sat beside her. The girl seemed to be sleeping quietly. Kara was glad of that. The longer her friend slept the better her
chance of recovery.
She
sighed deeply. She had survived by using
her brains more than her superpowers but she felt no sense of triumph. Rather she felt emotionally dead. She had defeated her enemies, and eliminated
a dangerous criminal organization, but she had paid a heavy price. She had been captured, tortured, raped, and
humiliated. Her best friend Sylvie had
also suffered terribly. But most
depressing of all, she had killed. It
was a serious violation of the superheroine code. She had no idea how she was going to resolve
the latter issue.
And
there was still some unfinished business.
There were a number of criminals who had “visited” her while she was
held prisoner in Kink’s warehouse.
Vincenna was still out there somewhere and she had a real score to
settle with him. On the positive side,
however, she still had her secret identity.
Sylvie
let out a low moan. Quickly Kara crossed
to her friend. In a few seconds she
would probably regain consciousness. Kara
was torn between leaving her friend to recover on her own and staying to
help. There was always the chance that
Sylvie might recognize her. Sylvie appeared
to be alright physically, but she had suffered a terrible ordeal; one that Kara
shared intimately. She decided to stay.
Sylvie
awoke. Completely disoriented she
starred about her in confusion. When she
spotted Kara her eyes widened in terror.
“It’s alright,” said Kara, using her superheroine voice, “you’ve suffered
a terrible nightmare, but you are safe now.”
It
took Kara awhile to explain what had happened.
Of course, she made up most of the story. Fortunately, Sylvie had never laid eyes on
her while she was in Kink’s clutches.
She managed to convince her friend that she had been kidnapped into the
white slave trade. It wasn’t a hard
sell, considering what had happened to Sylvie. Before she left she helped the girl get
dressed, and then gave her the thrill of a lifetime by flying her to the
nearest hospital. The girl appeared to
be fine except for some nasty bruises, but there was no sense in taking
chances. She left Sylvie with the
doctors and before returning to her own apartment arranged to take care of the
medical bills.
It
was a subdued superheroine who returned to the familiar and comfortable
surroundings of her own modest apartment.
She was going to have to be much more careful. The face recognition technology that Kink had
employed was something she had not expected.
And it had never occurred to her that she could be drugged through the
use of powered kryptonite. One more
adventure like the one she had just barely survived might be her last. She stripped off her costume and stepped into
the shower. She spent a long time under
the water. Somehow she felt that she was
washing away the pain and humiliation she had suffered. But she was a superheroine after all. And superheroines never gave up. Tomorrow was another day. She would carry the psychological scars of
her ordeal with her for awhile, but eventually she would recover. After all, not all of the men who had
ravished her had died in the fire. She
would find them, and when she did…