The Adventures of Star
Eagle
Episode 1 Birth of a
Superheroine
by L'Espion
Chapter
2
Adjustments
Melissa checked herself out in the
mirror. She had spent enough
time in orienting herself to Earth
society. Tomorrow she reported
for work at Grand Centre’s largest department
store. Tonight, she was going
to venture out into the night for the first
time. Karla was
asleep. The Russian girl rarely
kept late nights, rising early for classes and then studying for half the
evening. By the time
Melissa had taken it upon herself to do the cooking. Her first few efforts had been a real eating adventure, but she had improved with practice. Karla had shown her a few recipe sites on the internet and that had helped considerably. Cooking was really nothing more than a form of chemistry. Various organic chemicals called food were mixed together, resulting in edible dishes – most of the time. When she failed completely there was still the fallback plan known as Kraft Dinner. But lately Mr. Kraft had remained on the shelf. Karla had even gone so far as to compliment her on her last culinary effort, much to Melissa’s delight.
Working would cut down on the time she had to prepare meals, but she was determined to carry on. Karla needed all her spare time to master her studies. It was, therefore, up to Melissa to keep KD at bay. Fortunately, unlike Terrans, she needed no sleep. Working a 24 hour day was no challenge for her at all. And tonight she was going to look for criminals.
She adjusted the crotch of her costume. The material obediently obeyed. That was one of the virtues of her costume. Short of a nuclear blast, nothing on earth could destroy it and it was obedient to her every whim. She could shape it to her body to her heart’s desire.
“There,” she thought, “Perfect.” The costume fit her like a second skin. It hid nothing of her supple curves. Less that half a millimeter thick, it appeared to have been sprayed on. It was a simple one piece outfit that started at her throat and extended to her thighs, ending just above her crotch. Her shapely shoulders and arms were bare, emphasizing the smooth muscles that flowed beneath the satin smooth skin. Her legs were bare except for a pair of calf-length blue boots trimmed with red at the top.
In colour the rest of the costume was predominantly neon blue, trimmed with red piping at the neck, shoulders, and thighs. A thin band of red also crossed where her impressive breasts began to swell. Below this narrow line the costume changed to a wide band of white that extended to and just covered her nipples before the blue took over once more. Another band of red, double the width of the one over her breasts, encircled her waist an inch or so below her navel. This was followed once more by white before it ended with the red piping outlining her thighs and crotch. Melissa was pleased with the over all look. Red, white, and blue; the colours of the country she had adopted as her own. With any luck it would help win her the support of the population.
It was an incredibly revealing ensemble, but Melissa’s research showed her that all superheroines dressed that way. It was as if some unwritten law required them to advertise their sexual attributes. It made no sense to Melissa, but then, she was not the least bit offended by nudity. No Traxtronian ever wore clothing, and it had been difficult for her to understand the emphasis Terrans placed on concealing their body parts in public. Probably that was because she still did not understand sex. She knew that the decision to wear or not wear clothing was definitely related to sex, but she wasn’t sure exactly why. Perhaps over time she would understand.
She brushed her hands over her body, enjoying the sensation as her fingers swept down over her breasts and belly all the way to her mound of Venus. “Oooh,” she thought. That felt good. She had been experimenting a bit lately in the privacy of her bedroom with the sensations of touching her body. Traxtronians never had those sorts of feelings, being capable of reproducing without the need of a sexual partner. She could understand a bit better why humans were so fixated with touching themselves and one another.
She had changed her hair to the dark colour of her Star Eagle alter ego. It was shoulder length and framed her face perfectly. Interesting how human females grew their hair long on their heads, but removed hair from other parts of their bodies. She had known nothing about that until Karla had pointed out to her that if she wanted to attract men it might be wise to shave her legs and armpits.
Melissa did not want to attract men, at least not yet. She wasn’t ready for sexual interaction with Terrans yet, not understanding enough about the process. However, she took Karla’s advice, not wanting to attract any undue suspicion. She didn’t have to use the razor that Karla gave her. She simply eliminated the hair that covered her legs and armpits and ordered her body not to grow any more. Having finished that simple task she had then asked Karla if there was any other place where hair was considered undesirable.
To her surprise, the Russian girl had seemed rather embarrassed. That was another emotion Melissa did not fully understand, but she had learned to recognize it. Karla had turned quite pink, but had recovered quickly, admitting that she also removed what she called “excessive hair” from between her legs. Not sure exactly what amount would be considered “excessive,” Melissa had removed all of it. After all, she could always order it to grow again if she had overdone it.
In any case, she decided she was ready. It was time to stop admiring herself in the mirror and get on with fighting crime. Tiptoeing from the bathroom so as not to wake Karla she went to the balcony of the apartment.
Karla’s apartment was located on the twenty-fifth floor, but Melissa needed a way of exiting the building without being seen. She checked the area below her. Fortunately, the balcony overlooked the parking lot of a large shopping mall. At this time of night it was almost deserted. Without a second thought she placed her hands on the balcony railing and vaulted into space.
She was halfway down when she heard a shrill scream. “Oops,” she thought, “someone must have seen me.” Then she hit the ground.
Her powerful muscles and super strong bone structure had no difficulty in absorbing the shock of her descent, especially since she landed on the edge of a flower garden. Quickly she melted into the shadows at the base of the building, while above her excited voices shouted down in her direction. She didn’t wait around to attract any more attention, but moved off into the darkness before anyone showed up.
She was on foot, but she wasn’t planning on going very far. Lately there had been a number of break-ins in the area near her new home. The police had investigated of course, but they couldn’t be everywhere at once. Nor with their limited resources could they place a guard in the area. Melissa hoped that with her enhanced senses she would be able to detect criminal action and do something about it. She did have some help in this area. It was another reason that made Karla such a perfect roommate. Karla had a top of the line computer – at least top of the line by Earth standards. Melissa had improved it a bit while Karla was asleep. It was now possible though the use of a password that would have been incomprehensible to any human to communicate with a Traxtronian spy satellite. No larger than a marble, it was impossible to detect from Earth. Twenty four hours a day the satellite monitored as many human actions as it could, enabling Melissa to home in on certain areas of criminal activity. It was not a perfect system. If it had been there would have been no need for Melissa, but it served to get her on the right track. Hoping she was headed in the right direction, Melissa set out into the darkness. It worked out better than she had hoped.
Just behind the mall there was an area of smaller businesses and a few warehouses. Moving into the deserted streets of this section of the city, she slipped silently from building to building, keeping her ears tuned and her eyes sweeping the darkness. A movement near a loading dock caught her attention. Crouching, she watched for a few seconds, certain that she had seen something. A dark clad figure stepped into view, and then another. They were both carrying several boxes and the stealthy manner in which they worked told her she was witnessing a crime in progress.
Her heart accelerated and her breathing quickened. Finally she was about to take her first step in making a name for herself. Stepping from her hiding place she advanced quickly toward the loading dock, making no effort to hide herself.
“What the … Christ, it’s some dumb broad in a swimsuit.” The outburst from the surprised criminal told her she had been spotted. A few seconds later three other men crowded onto the dock.
“Must be one of them dumb-assed superheroines,” said a second member of the gang.
“Maybe we better get out of here,” said a third; a note of panic in his voice.
“Maybe we should just kick her ass,” said a fourth. He was the largest of the five, and probably the leader, Melissa guessed.
“Surrender peacefully, and none of you will be hurt,” Melissa said. She had to exert her utmost control to keep her voice from trembling. “Nothing you are stealing is worth risking personal injury.”
“Goodness, this is so exciting,” she thought. Her heart was beating like a trip hammer, but she disguised her exhilaration, stepping steadily toward the five men.
“Chas is right,” said the first. “I’ve never seen her before and she is walking. If she had superpowers she would have flown in. Let’s get her.”
As one the five men surged off the loading dock and came at her. Melissa went into action.
“You dare to challenge Star Eagle?” she said clearly. It was her first encounter with criminals. She wanted to make sure that they knew who had defeated them. On her reputation she would earn the respect and loyalty of the people of Grand Centre.
Her sense of precognition went into action. Although only able to predict events a second or so in advance, it gave her a huge advantage in a situation where split seconds mattered. She knew even before the first man threw his punch exactly what he was going to do.
She dodged the blow easily and stepping inside his punch delivered several vicious blows to his ribs and kidneys. Her fists hit like hammers, and there was the crack of a snapping rib. With a scream of pain the man folded like a house of cards and lay groaning on the ground clutching his injured ribs. The entire encounter had lasted perhaps two seconds. But now the other four were on her. Forming a semicircle they attacked all at once. Even her ability to anticipate what was going to happen could not save her from such a coordinated assault.
But now her second power came into effect. Drawing on her energy reserves, she activated her energy burst. Suddenly the four criminals were fighting a blue blur. In just a second she hit the attacking thugs no less than twenty times, her devastating punches leaving her adversaries strewn around her like pins struck by a bowling ball.
Gasping, Melissa looked down on her defeated foes. She was utterly exhausted and would remain so until her liver recharged. Implementing the energy burst was the equivalent of running a mile in under three minutes. She was completely drained, and could not have defended herself had any enemies had remained.
Forcing herself to move, she went to the truck and opened the door. A quick glace inside showed her what she hoped was there. Picking up the cell phone she punched in 911. “Hello,” she said. “This is Star Eagle. I have just prevented a robbery at Biltmore Electronics. You can pick up the criminals at the loading dock.” Leaving the phone on, she replaced it on the front seat and moved away. If the police had any brains they would arrive in a few minutes and she wanted to be far away by then. Already, she could feel her strength returning.
Star Eagle was elated. She had passed her first test. In her first encounter with crime she had emerged victorious. From now on the name of Star Eagle would mean something. She intended to make it even better known. She felt no remorse or pity for the men she had mangled. They had deserved what they had received. Perceiving her as a weak and helpless woman they had attacked her. From now on they would show her more respect.
Returning to the apartment complex, she got a bit of a surprise. Several police cars and an ambulance were pulled up near the entrance. Standing back from the light of the entrance, Melissa listened in.
“I saw her fall,” said a young blonde woman, her voice on the edge of hysteria. “I was smoking on my balcony and she went right past me. I’m not making it up.”
“Yes miss,” said a rather tired looking police officer. “But we have checked and there is no body. Are you sure you saw someone fall?”
A few feet to one side another uniformed officer, grinned. “She probably saw something alright, but maybe we should ask her what she was smoking.”
At that moment a young officer came from behind the building. Motioning to the senior officer questioning the blonde he indicated that he wanted a private conversation. Melissa, however, had no trouble hearing everything.
“You won’t believe this,” the younger man said, “but there are footprints six inches deep in the soil below the blonde’s balcony. Someone did jump. And they hit with one hell of a lot of force. The ground is completely dry. From the size of them they are a woman’s prints. It looks like the blonde is telling the truth.”
“Alright,” the senior officer said, “we’ll check it out. In the meantime get everyone back to bed.”
Melissa waited until the police had cleared everyone away from the entrance before going in. She was no longer wearing her costume, having taken the precaution of stashing a change of clothing in a park a block away. She was just a young blonde returning home after a late night on the town.
No one stopped her or even noticed her. Why would they? She did not match the description of the woman who supposedly had jumped from the building. But she got another surprise when she entered the apartment.
“So, vhere haf you been?” asked Karla. She was seated on the couch where she could watch the door as Melissa came in.
Ah, I, ah…stepped out. C…couldn’t sleep,” she stammered.
“Neither could I,” Karla replied. “Too much noise from the police and some screaming voman.”
“Vhat you buy?” Karla continued, pointing at the empty shopping bag she had stowed her clothes in.
“Ah, nothing,” Melissa lied. “I took my rain cape just in case.”
Karla narrowed her eyes but said nothing. “Vell,” she said finally. “I going back to bed. Have classes in three hours. You too. You have job to go to.”
“Err yes,” Melissa replied.
She had not expected the uproar that would be created from the simple
act of leaving the building. She
would have to find a less dramatic way of going on her
The next evening, Melissa was ready to try again. She had completed her first day on the job successfully. It had even been fun. She had learned an enormous amount about department stores and it was all so fascinating. She had never realized how many different brands of soaps and cosmetics there were. She had memorized every one.
Karla had gone to bed even earlier. Her interrupted sleep of the night before had left her very tired and she had excused herself at ten and gone off to her room. Melissa watched television for an hour. It was one of her favourite Earth shows, Big Time Wrestling. She never got tired of the drama and skilled acting of the participants. At eleven, she had collected her costume and tiptoed from the apartment. This time she would change after leaving the building and exit by way of the elevator and front door.
She waited until she was in the shadows of the warehouse district before changing. A dark alley provided a convenient place to shed her clothes and don her costume and then she was off once more. She had to go farther this time before detecting anything. This time it was her enhanced sense of hearing that clued her in. She heard voices where there should not have been voices.
They were coming from a large grocery warehouse. Curious, Star Eagle investigated, going to the loading area. Sure enough a large truck was parked there, its doors open and backed up to the elevated loading dock. Standing just outside the door, she listened long enough to determine that none of the men inside were supposed to be there.
She entered the warehouse. Inside it was almost completely dark except for the flashlights of the burglars who were busy loading a variety of the more expensive goods onto several large carts. From there the carts could simply be rolled into the truck eliminating the work of having to unload them and cutting the time of the operation in half. The nine men involved were so preoccupied with their tasks that they all jumped a foot when Star Eagle announced herself.
“Keeping busy boys?” she asked calmly. “I’m sorry to disturb you at your work, but I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to lie down on the floor and stay there until the police arrive.”
A half dozen flashlights were turned on her, but Star Eagle merely reduced her light intake. She could see every man clearly. Even the one reaching around to pull the gun from behind his back.
He never got the chance to pull the trigger. Even as the gun swung toward her, her foot lashed out, striking the semi-automatic pistol so hard that it sailed out of sight, clattering to the floor several isles over. With a surprised yell the astounded crook shook his numbed fingers.
“Don’t so that again,” Star Eagle cautioned. “You’re dealing with Star Eagle. The next man that draws a weapon will end up with a few broken bones.”
She easily dodged the heavy crate that one of the men tossed at her. “You apparently have a problem understanding English,” she said, crossing the floor in three quick strides. Before the startled thug could evade her, she gripped his wrist and with a quick twist snapped the bones of his forearm.
The thug’s scream of pain resulted in two simultaneous but opposite reactions. Five of the remaining men charged at her. The other three fled. She charged fearlessly into the melee. None of her opponents showed much skill in fighting, and her precognition gave her an overwhelming advantage. To her opponents it was like trying to come to grips with a wraith. One instant she was there and the next she was gone. She danced among them, striking at will. And her punches were formidable, delivered with precision and with the power of an individual much larger than her five foot eleven. Within seconds the floor was strewn with her opponents’ injured and unconscious bodies. But there were still three men left.
She took off after the closest one. The gloom of the warehouse mattered little to her. Collecting what light there was, her eyes saw as well in the dark as they did in daylight. The burglar she pursued glanced back at her and saw her coming. With a frightened yelp, he ducked into an isle stacked with boxes of goods. Hard on his heels, and closing the gap fast, Star Eagle dashed after him. And then her legs turned to rubber.
Her collapse was so sudden and so unexpected that she slammed into one of the heavy metal posts supporting the industrial shelves on either side. The shock of the impact ran through her entire body knocking the breath out of her. She found herself on the cold concrete floor gasping for air like a fish out of water.
What had happened? One second she had been in pursuit of a criminal and the next she was lying helpless as her quarry escaped. As her breath returned, she tried to get up, but had no strength. Using all her strength she managed to raise her body so that she was on her knees, her body bent forward so that her forearms were on the floor. She tried to raise herself, but that was as far as she could get.
She felt hot. Her costume was soaked with sweat, and beads of perspiration dripped from her forehead onto the floor. She was aware of a strange odor. It penetrated the air about her. Through eyes that no longer pieced the darkness with the same intensity she made out the block lettering on the cardboard boxes about her. VENUS CHOCOLATE COMPANY. “Zentoc,” she gasped. A poisonous substance, that in sufficient quantities was fatal to Traxtronians. And she had run right into it. The vile smell of the deadly substance permeated the air. She had to get away before she was completely overcome.
But the zentoc was not her only problem. The man she had been chasing had seen her fall. Cautiously he moved toward her, shouting to his friends. “Hey, the superbitch is in trouble! Come on back and help me deal with her.”
The thug slowly stepped toward her, the way a hunter might approach a bear he has shot, but is not sure is dead. He shone a flashlight over her as he approached. As he neared her the other two men who had fled came up behind him.
“What happened, Wolf?” asked one of them. “How did you get her?”
“Damned if I know,” Wolf replied. “She was hot after me and slammed into the shelving. Maybe she knocked herself out.”
“Looks conscious to me,” said the other thug. “She’s trying to get up.”
“Yeah,” said Wolf, “but she looks like she’s in a lot of pain. Look at the sweat pouring off her.” Stepping forward more confidently, he kicked Star Eagle hard in the ribs.
The blow knocked her over on her back. Too weak to respond, Star Eagle lay sprawled in the isle, her helplessness clear to anyone who saw her. That was all the trio of thugs needed. Closing about her they took their boots to her, driving their feet into any part of her body they could reach.
“Bitch,” Wolf said, as he made contact with her cheek. “Goddamn bitch. How do you like it?”
The second and third men hammered her ribs, kicking her so hard that each blow lifted her body from the floor. Unable to defend herself, or even to scream in pain, Star Eagle gasped and grunted as she was beaten black and blue. The savage beating would have killed any human female, but not all of her powers gone.
Her skeletal structure resisted any attempt to break her bones and her powers of healing began to mend the damage done to her even as she was brutalized. It did not stop the three thugs from trying, however. They kicked her until her features were bloody and her body pocked with bruises. Only when exhaustion set in did they stop.
“Let’s see what the bitch did to the others,” Wolf gasped. “She’s finished. Leave her.”
Barely conscious, Star Eagle lay in a pool of her own blood and sweat. Several times during the vicious beating she had come close to passing out, but her powerful constitution brought her back from the edge of oblivion each time. Her body was racked with pain. Her powers of healing did not prevent her from being hurt, and every breath she took was agonizing.
Slowly, however, the pain faded as did the numerous contusions that decorated her body. And with the cessation of pain, awareness returned. A short distance away she could hear the three thugs cursing as they saw what she had done to the rest of the gang. She had to get away, but the zentoc still paralyzed her. After the going over she had received from Wolf and his friends, she was weaker than ever. She could not even raise a finger to save herself.
There was just one chance. If it failed, she would not be able to defend herself. When the criminals returned, as she was sure they would, they would be able to do anything they wanted to her. But she had no choice. She triggered her energy burst.
This time she was not searching for speed, she wanted strength. Enough strength to escape the zentoc. The extra energy surged into her, but it would last only seconds.
Gasping with exertion, she managed to roll onto her hands and knees. She trembled with the effort, and almost toppled over. And then laboriously began to crawl away from the debilitating influence of the zentoc. Time was not on her side. The energy burst would sustain her only for a few seconds, but reaching deep down inside, she moved her arm forward, and then her leg, followed by her other arm. Inch by inch she edged away from the zentoc, sweat pouring out of every pore and her head hammering with an agony she found almost impossible to comprehend.
She made five feet before her strength gave out. A wave of blackness swept over her and she drifted into oblivion.
“Wolf!” There was a hint of excitement in the thug’s voice.
“What the hell is it, Darrell?” He was running out of patience. He had wasted ten minutes loading the truck with the men the super bitch had beaten into submission. He wanted to load the cargo and get the hell out of the warehouse. The cops could show up at any time and he didn’t want to be around when they did.
“It’s that bitch we beat up, Wolf. She’s moved.”
“Moved?” Wolf said incredulously “What do you mean? She’s dead.”
“I don’t think so boss. There’s not a mark on her. She’s sleeping like a baby.”
Wolf scratched his head. The beating they had laid of the superheroine should have left her dead or so badly injured that there would be little chance of recovery. He had to see this for himself. “Show me,” he said, following Darrell.
Even in the light of the flashlight the unconscious heroine was a
knockout. Darrell had turned
her over so her face was clearly visible.
She was a real beauty.
Moving the light over her body he
whistled. “Got a real set
of tits on her. Must be D cups
at least.”
He stood thinking for a minute. This bitch had really screwed up tonight’s operation. It was supposed to be a simple break and enter. He had bribed the watchman to disable the alarms, and had brought enough men with him to fully load the truck. But six of them were beyond doing any loading now. He would be lucky to break even on the night’s take. But what if he took the superheroine as compensation? He had heard that there were men who would pay big bucks for the privilege of having a superheroine sex slave. And looking at that splendid face and body had given him ideas about her himself.
“Tie her up,” he ordered. “We’re taking her with us.”
Star Eagle groaned as she regained consciousness. Her head still ached from the effects of the zentoc. As she opened her eyes she was greeted by a sarcastic comment. “Well, the superbitch has rejoined us. How do you feel, twat?”
The comments came from a heavyset man sitting on a bench a few feet from her. She recognized him as the man she had been chasing and one of the thugs who had beaten her senseless. She also saw that she was inside the back of a truck, riding amongst the cargo looted from the warehouse. She tried to sit up. It was then that she realized she had been tightly bound.
Someone had spent a good deal of time making sure that she could not escape. Her arms were pulled behind her back, and tightly bound at the wrists and elbows. Rope had also been looped about her upper arms and then tightly wound around her torso, pinning them to her sides. The ropes crisscrossed her breasts several times and were also tied above and below the impressive hemispheres. Her legs were secured at the ankles, mid-calf, her knees, and mid- thigh. And then to make doubly sure she could not escape, her ankles had been pulled up toward her backside by running a rope all the way to her neck. It made it very difficult to breathe, and she had to arch her back to keep from suffocating.
It took her only seconds to take in her situation. She knew even without testing the ropes that she was too securely bound to have any chance of breaking her bonds. Even with her enhanced strength, there was no way she could overcome the multiple strands of thick rope that had been used to bind her. Nevertheless, she tried, flexing her muscles in a vain attempt to snap her restraints.
“That’s right, bitch,” sneered the hoodlum who had spoken to her. “You ain’t going anywhere. At least not until I decide who is willing to pay the highest price and I’ve had a little bit of fun with you.” As he finished the last comment he placed his hand on her right breast, leaving no doubt at to his meaning.
For the first time in her life, Star Eagle experienced fear, and more than just normal fear. It was fear of what this crude thug might do to her. Traxtronians had no fear of rape, not requiring an exchange of cellular material to reproduce. When she had studied Earth customs Star Eagle had been intrigued by the complexities of sex. It had been something she had always wondered about. In her studies she had also come across the concept of rape. It was a confusing idea and one that she had not properly understood. She understood now, her all too human emotions responding in fear and revulsion as the hoodlum massaged her breasts.
“Don’t do that!” she ordered.
“Why not?” laughed the thug. “You gonna beat me up? Well go ahead. I’d like to see you get out of those ropes.”
Star Eagle arched her body, contracting her smooth powerful muscles as she fought against the ropes in an effort to get free. Her actions were all the more frantic due to the fact that her tormentor continued to molest her.
“Stop,” she said, her voice a bit more agitated. “Why are you doing this?”
“You must be as dumb as you are beautiful if you can’t figure out what I’m up to. But don’t worry; I won’t take your virginity. It will increase your price.”
“You… you… thing.” Star Eagle said, lamely. Unfamiliar with the Terran custom of cursing, she could not think of anything to call the villain. His reference to her virginity made her suddenly aware of the fact that the part of her costume covering her nether region had been eased aside, exposing her genitalia. While she had been unconscious the thug had obviously taken liberties with her.
“That’s right, baby,” the hoodlum jeered. “I had a real good look down there. You’re going to make some man real happy when he tries to squeeze into that slot.”
“Villain!” she cried. “How dare you defile me?”
“Shit, who taught you to talk? Sounds like you been reading too many romance novels. Villain she calls me. What a laugh.”
The last comment was delivered to another thug who had wandered up from the front of the truck. The new arrival laughed as well and the first man continued. “I was just discussing with the superheroine what my plans are for her. Seems she ain’t too happy about them.”
“It’s OK, bitch,” said the second man. “I’m sure your new owner will take real good care of you.”
Although horrified by the two thugs’ appalling use of English, Star Eagle was even more concerned about her own fate. She did not yet, however, fully comprehend what the men planned for her.
“I don’t understand,” she said. “What new owner? I’m not a possession.”
“I wonder if all superheroines are this damned stupid,” said the first man. “Don’t you get it, bitch? When we get to the hideout we are going to string you up and sell you to the highest bidder.”
At that point a change in motion told Star Girl that the truck was slowing down. Guessing that they must be at the burglar’s hideout she protested. “You can’t do that,” she said. “Selling people is illegal. You’ll never get away with it.”
“Tell it to the
Organizatsiya,” said the second
man. “We’ve already
arranged for a Russian crime boss to take a look at you
today.”
Star Eagle felt the truck stop and then back up. A sense of helplessness came over her. This was something she had not anticipated in her crimefighting career. She had expected danger, but she had never thought that creatures as primitive as Earthlings might ever defeat her. And to be threatened with sexual degradation was something that had never occurred to her. Only now was she beginning to understand what might happen to her.
Rape. She would be forced to have sex against her will. It all seemed so unreal. It had never occurred to her that she might actually be sold into sexual slavery.
Wolf continued to fondle the superheroine even as the truck backed up to the dock. Christ she was gorgeous. A body and face like a goddess. She was a little tall for him, but what the hell; it was a small price to pay for being able to slip between those beautifully rounded thighs. He sighed. But that was not going to happen. He had promised Dmitri Vlasov that he had a virgin for sale. A superheroine virgin. The Russian had sounded very interested in his merchandise. He couldn’t afford to spoil her. But perhaps there was one way he might get his money’s worth.
The truck stopped and he and Darrell loaded the heroine onto a trolley and wheeled her into his warehouse. The inside was stocked with rows and rows of stolen merchandise. Tomorrow with any luck it would be empty. The Russian had promised to take it all.
While his men attended to the unloading of the truck he wheeled the helpless heroine into the center of the large room. He glanced up. A huge crossbeam right overhead would make an excellent support. Now the trick was to get her into position without allowing her to get loose. She had been unconscious when he tied her up, but she was fully awake now. He had no idea what had incapacitated her at the warehouse and he didn’t really care. But she was dangerous in the extreme. After seeing the way she had torn into his men he knew he had been very lucky to escape.
Her costume was a bit of a puzzler too. He had tried to remove it when she had been out, but had been unable find any zipper or any other way of removing it. Since it was skin tight the best he could do was to fondle her tits a little and pull aside the part covering her crotch so he could investigate her tight little cunt. He had not been surprised to discover her virginity. It was rumored that it was mandatory for superheroines to be virgins, but he wasn’t sure how true that was.
Star Eagle continued to fight her bonds, with little success. She had seen the thug that had captured her glance up at the ceiling, but she had no idea what he was up to. She felt a sense of apprehension when he moved behind her, however.
Thump! A wave of blackness washed over her. Shaking her head he tried to fight it off. But a second blow sent her into nothingness.
“Christ!” exclaimed Darrell. “You’ll kill her hitting her like that!”
Wolf shook his head, stuffing the blackjack back into his pocket. “Not damned likely. You should have seen the way we kicked her ass when she collapsed. I thought we had killed her, but in a few minutes she didn’t have a mark on her. Now instead of arguing with me help me change these ropes before she comes to.”
“Alright,” said Darrell doubtfully. But he could see that although the heroine was clearly unconscious, her breasts rose and fell regularly, indicating that she was definitely still alive.
Quickly Wolf and Darrell unwound the numerous ropes binding the arms of the heroine. While Darrell finished Wolf disappeared for a few seconds. “If she comes around give her another smack. I’ll be right back.”
Darrell nodded, keeping his eyes on the heroine. She had an enormous bump on her head, but to his amazement even as he watched the swelling began to subside. One of her fingers moved. Picking up a length of pipe he prepared to carry out Wolf’s orders.
“Hold off a sec,” said Wolf returning, his arms loaded with a length of chain. “Pull her arms over her head while I secure them.”
“Half ton chain,” said Darrell. “That ought to hold her.”
Wolf was thorough. He wrapped the chain about the heroine’s arms from her biceps to her wrists, securing it with several adjustable links used to join chain. Then tossing the end of the chain over the crossbeam, he pulled her into a sitting position. Just as her eyes popped open.
Star Eagle’s vision swam for a few seconds upon regaining consciousness. When her senses returned she took in her new situation. She was kneeling on the concrete floor of the warehouse, her arms stretched over her head and secured with heavy lengths of chain. Her legs had been tied so that she could not straighten them, her calves roped tightly to her thighs. To her relief, her captors had not figured out how to remove her costume. Although still struggling with the concept of nudity, she understood that to be stripped in front of room full of leering criminals would be a degrading experience.
Her two captors stood in front of her, their waists level with her mouth. “Well, sweet cheeks,” the heavyset man said, “I think we should have a closer relationship. I’m Wolf; this is my partner, Darrell. We run a ‘warehouse supply’ business. What do you call yourself?”
The heroine looked coldly at her captors. She had been happy to announce her name to the bunch of thugs she had defeated, but this was different. She wanted her name to be feared by criminals and admired by the public. If the news got out that the new heroine Star Eagle had been captured and strung up like a side of beef she would lose any respect she had gained. She decided that the best answer was to say nothing.
“Not so talkative now?” said Wolf. “Well maybe I can change that.” He tapped one end of a length of electrical wire into the palm of his hand.
Star Eagle’s eyes widened. She had not yet learned to control her emotions, reacting openly to everything she felt. It made it very difficult for her to conceal anything from anyone. She knew that Wolf could read the fear in her eyes.
“I see this has got your attention,” Wolf said. “How’d you like to feel it on your sweet little ass?”
“You can’t do that,” she protested. “Torture is against the law.”
“So is tying women up and hanging them from the ceiling, you dumb bimbo,” Wolf replied, joining Darrell in a laugh at her naiveté.
“What would such a thing gain you?” she asked. “Surely hurting me cannot profit you in any way.”
“Sometimes,” Wolf replied, stepping close to her and looking into her mahogany brown eyes, “it ain’t about profit. Sometimes it’s just about having fun.”
“Fun?” she asked, confused once again. “How can causing pain to someone be fun?”
“She must be from Mars,” Wolf said to Darrell. “I’ve never come across any broad as dumb as this one.”
“Give her a couple of swats,” said Darrell. “See if she changes her tune.”
Wolf nodded. Stepping behind her he raised the length of wire. It was a nasty contrivance; he had peeled off the last eighteen inches of insulation, exposing the wires within.
Star Eagle took a deep breath and tried to compose herself. She would not beg Wolf to show mercy. She doubted that he would in any case. Nor would she tell him what he wanted to know. She would die first.
Thwack! Star Eagle grunted at the force of the blow. Wolf had delivered it right across the middle of her back. She was surprised at how much it hurt. Had her costume been constructed of normal Earth fabric the impact would have shredded it.
Wolf’s eyes widened. He had expected the heroine to scream in agony. He would have, but she had barely made a sound. “Tough bitch, huh?”
“You can hit me all you want, but I’ll never give in to you.”
“Famous last words, cunt,” Wolf swore. He brought the whip down again.
By the twentieth lash, Star Eagle was breathing hard, her breasts rising and falling rapidly. Every blow of the lash sent excruciating waves of pain through her and the repeated blows outpaced her ability to heal. The floor of the warehouse around her was splattered with her blood. It suddenly dawned on her that she could not keep on losing blood indefinitely. She needed time to heal and rebuild her reserves of energy. And she could not do that suspended from the ceiling of the warehouse. For the first time she began to realize that she might not survive the ordeal she was being subjected to. Fortunately, Wolf was tiring as fast as she was. With a curse her threw down the lash and stepped in front of her.
“Fucking bitch,” he cursed. Raising his fist he struck her hard in the face. She had beaten him. In spite of being subjected to the most brutal beating he had ever administered, she had done no more than gasp in pain. And she had told him nothing. He could go on beating her, but he wasn’t sure of how much more she could take. He expected to get a fantastic price for her, but she would be worth nothing if she was permanently damaged. And the Russian was going to show up in two hours. With another oath he turned and stalked away. “Put a guard on her,” he said to Darrell. “We’ll let Vlasov tame her.”
Star Eagle slowly calmed herself. She knew she had been close to the breaking point, not because of the pain or the brutality of the flogging, but because she was close to using up her biological resources. Healing took energy from her body and she did not have an indefinite supply. But she felt triumphant nevertheless. She had achieved a victory of sorts. The crude villain who had captured her had done his best to bend her to his will and failed.
Wolf and Darrell left the room, replaced by a thug she had never seen. He was of normal height and trimly built, wearing a pair of jeans and a sleeveless T-shirt that exposed his muscular arms. Without a comment, the man sat down on a stool and watched her. After awhile he licked his lips. “Russians are coming for you, baby,” he said. “Too bad. I’d like to have had some time with you. It’d be a lot of fun trying to squeeze Albert into your tight pussy.”
Star Eagle was about to express her contempt for the thug’s crude suggestion when she realized she hadn’t understood anything he had said. It was the lascivious tone of the man’s voice that told her that his comment was supposed to be vulgar. Assuming her most innocent expression, a job that wasn’t too difficult seeing as it was the face she wore normally, she asked him a question.
“I don’t understand,” she said, quite honestly. “Who is ‘Albert’ and what is a ‘pussy?’ I thought it was some sort of cat.”
“Funny, sweetbuns,” he replied. “This is Albert.” He stood up and unzipped his fly.
Star Eagle was familiar with the male organ; she had studied its structure and function when she had trained for the mission. She seen numerous diagrams and many pictures of the subject, and her foot had made contact with several during her recent altercations with the criminal element. But she had never actually seen one in the wild so to speak.
As she watched the thug expose himself, the germ of an idea came to her. “Ohh,” she said, “that’s a big one.”
“Sure is,” the hoodlum said proudly. “Nine inches when it’s real angry.”
He moved closer, stroking his member as he approached. His phallus was on a level with her mouth. “How’d you like to try it out? You’re all set up for it.”
“I…I’d like that,” she said. Lowering herself to this lout’s level was humiliating, but it offered a possible chance to escape. “But,” she continued, “I’m exhausted from the beating your boss gave me. I don’t have the strength to have sex with you.”
“Oh, you don’t need strength for this,” the thug replied. “Just open your mouth.”
“You mean suck it?” Star Eagle asked, truly horrified. She suddenly realized that a good deal of her education regarding human sexual practices had been neglected.
“What would be the purpose of that?” she asked. “You can’t exchange genetic material that way.”
“Genetic material?” the goon said, clearly confused. “What the hell are you talking abut? I just want you to suck me off.”
Star Eagle sagged; letting the chains support her weight. “I’m so tired,” she said. “I don’t think I could do it.”
“Christ,” the man said, waving his slowly inflating phallus at her. “All you have to do is purse your lips.”
Star Eagle gave a low moan, and went completely limp, her head falling forward.
“Jesus,” said the thug, clearly agitated. “I’m stiff as a board and she faints.” He looked both ways. “No one around,” he murmured. “The Russian won’t show up for an hour. Who will know?”
He stepped up to the unconscious heroine. He had been told to watch her carefully, but he was damned if he could understand why. The boss had given her quite a beating from the looks of the blood splattered about. The floor was sticky with it. He’d just take her down from the chains and put her back up when he was finished with her.
“Almost finished,” he thought. “Just one more link to…” His eyes widened in surprise when the heroine suddenly awoke and finished the job for herself.
“Thank you,” Star Eagle said. “She didn’t hit the thug too hard, just enough to bounce him off a stack of packing crates ten feet away. After all he had released her.
She contemplated what she should do next. She was loose in the middle of Wolf’s operation. Should she go after the thugs herself? It was tempting after what they had done to her, but she was in less than prime condition. Nevertheless, she felt that the criminals who had kidnapped her deserved to be taught a lesson. She looked about her. So much stolen property. It seemed only proper that it should be returned to its rightful owners. She decided to handle the situation herself. But she needed an advantage, and she knew just how to get one.
Finding the main power supply wasn’t hard. She just followed the electrical cables back to the point of origin. It took her only a few seconds to throw the main switch shutting off the power to the building. For good measure she tore off the metal lever of the switch. It would take awhile to put it back on again.
The warehouse was plunged into darkness, but that suited her. She needed very little light to find her way around and there was just enough that she could see without difficulty. She was also helped by the shouts of Wolf’s gang as they reacted to the sudden blackout. She moved behind a stack of crates and waited.
“Two down,” she thought as she turned away from the unconscious form of the two men she had ambushed. They had walked right by her on the way to the switchbox. It had been a simple matter to come out behind them and knock them on the head with her iron-like fists. How many more were left she didn’t know, but she intended to find out.
“Why aren’t the lights back on yet?” Wolf complained to Darrell. It had been fifteen minutes and he was tired of trying to read the cargo manifests by the light of a lantern.
“Maybe it’s a general outage,” suggested Darrell.
“Then why the hell are the traffic lights still working?” Wolf replied. From his office he could see a nearby intersection.
“Because I didn’t turn them off, scum,” said a calm voice from the doorway.
Both Wolf and Darrell turned in shocked surprise, the hair standing up on the backs of their necks. Standing in the doorway, looking as cool and composed as ever, was the superheroine they had captured and chained.
“How the hell did you get away?” gasped Wolf. His hand moved slowly toward the desk drawer where he kept his gun.
“Let’s just say I sucked in the guard you left to watch me,” Star Eagle answered. She was proud of that joke. It was her first attempt at Earth humour, but of course, it was lost on the two hoodlums.
Wolf yanked the drawer open, closing his hand around the butt of the gun. His scream of pain when the heroine leaped across the desk and slammed the drawer shut could be heard outside the building.
“Goodness, you’re noisy,” Star Eagle said, as she slapped the thug into unconsciousness.
Darrell made a bolt for the door, but he never made it. “The police are on their way,” Star Eagle said. “It would be a shame if you were not here to meet them. I expect these cargo manifests might be of use to them.” Picking him up by the scruff of his neck she hurled him bodily across the room. He landed in a heap, bruised, but still conscious. “Your partner wanted to know my name. Well, it is Star Eagle and I intend to become even better known.” With that she calmly slapped the cringing thug into oblivion. Outside she could hear the wail of police sirens. It was time to leave.
As she made her home Star Eagle reflected on the events of the past night and day. She was learning a great deal about herself and Earth society. She had also learned that she would have to make adjustments. She couldn’t go dashing about warehouses full of goods she knew nothing about. Her episode with the zentoc had almost led to the loss of her freedom. Next time she might not be so lucky.
She had also learned that she was vulnerable to threats of rape. She had been truly terrified when she had been captured and strung up. If the thugs who captured her had known how to remove her costume her fate might have been different. They might not have waited for the Russian buyer.
And that was another thing. The depth of crime Earth went beyond the mere theft of material possessions. It also involved selling people into sexual servitude. That was something she had known nothing about. But she intended to remedy the situation. From now on she would specifically target the sex trade. The vile degradation of human females could not be allowed to continue. Her brief experience as a potential victim of that trade had shown her that there could be few things worse than being sold into sexual bondage. Starting today she would research the subject and tonight she would try to do something about it.
She was almost home. She had taken Wolf’s keys and “borrowed” his car. She was sure that he would not miss it. Pulling up to the clump of trees in the park near her building she retrieved her street clothes and put them on. It took her only a few seconds to change. Then changing the colour of her hair and eyes she entered the building.
It was good to be home she thought, even though she had only lived in the apartment for a few weeks. She was looking forward to a shower to clean the sweat and blood from her body. She opened the door to the apartment. Sitting on the couch, her eyes like gimlets was Karla. “So,” the Russian girl said, “you back from your night out. Care to explain vhere you been?”
“Uh oh,” Melissa thought. “This looks like trouble.”
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