Global Protectors – All Fall Down
By Marcus Lycus
Welcome back to the final Global Protectors story. The end is here! Worlds will live and worlds will die and something, something…
Legal Horrors – The Global Protectors and Dynamo are copyright, trademark etc. of Doctor Droid (www.superstories.org/droidzone) and are used with his permission. Other characters and text are copyright Marcus Lycus.
This story is meant for people over the age of 18, please don’t read it if you are younger than that. Any resemblance between characters in this story and any actual persons living or dead is purely coincidental of course.
And finally, please e-mail me with any comments, complaints or suggestions. Remember feedback leads to more stories!
Marcus Lycus
March 2007
Part 7 – Tigress Tamed
What has gone before…
Chapter One – A powerful alien invader named Lord Terminus arrived on the world of Gemma and proceeded to kill every single person on it. He only spared the queen, leaving her stranded on an asteroid overlooking her dead world. He then set his sights on Earth.
Chapter Two – The media tycoon J. Buckley Wolfe was contacted by the mysterious Mr. Senior with a plan to destroy the Global Protectors. First they blackmailed the Japanese heroine Rising Sun into becoming Wolfe’s slave. After months of humiliations her will was crushed and she was possessed by Senior.
Chapter Three – Senior blackmailed the Irish heroine Shamrock into a series of abusive relationships. She was fired from the Global Protectors and left an emotional wreck.
Chapter Four – The sex-demon known as the Incubus attempted to destroy the Argentine heroine La Sola. But even the demon’s sexual appetite was no match for the Latin woman’s. Defeated he was send into exile.
Chapter Five – The young Australian heroine Aussie Girl’s illicit relationship with the supervillain Dynamo turned ugly when he brainwashed her into becoming the villainous Thunder Girl. She was recaptured by the Global Protectors but now is half insane, uncertain who she really is.
Chapter Six – The American heroine Star accepted a top-secret mission to abduct a scientist from Cuba. After Mr. Senior revealed this, UN agents arrested and abused the arrogant American woman. She was found not-guilty but foolishly tried to get revenge. After she was beaten, she was disgraced and imprisoned.
***
Tigress dusted off her hands and looked around with a scary grin. A dozen Villainy eXtreme goons were lying on the ground moaning and bleeding, clutching their broken limbs and crying for their mothers. She hadn’t killed any this time. She found that dead bodies resulted in awkward questions. Injuries could always be explained by the heat of battle, if some terrorist or supervillain said she’d broken his arm after he surrendered, well who would believe that? But the public was less forgiving of heroines who kill. Or, more accurately, heroines who leave bodies to be found.
A whimpering goon looked up at her. She was a tall woman, maybe a bit over six feet, who wore her hair short, just a mess of kinky curls, completely unlike her teammates’ carefully styled hairdos. Her body was made up of lean, strong muscles. She looked like a woman’s basketball player or a kick boxer rather than a thin fashion model or actress. From the way she carried herself it was clear that even without superpowers she would be more than a match for most of the goons, with her super strength she was unstoppable. Like all of the Global Protectors she wore a low-cut bathing suit, high-heeled boots, silver bracelets and a silver choker. Her costume was in the green red and black colors of the Kenyan flag, her chest decorated with a red and white shield and two crossed spears. This alone gave her more savage look than any of her teammates. The snarl on her face and the fire in her eyes completed it. Tigress was not an inspiring or friendly heroine. She was terrifying.
“Pathetic. You barely fought back. Perhaps next time your masters will send someone who presents more of a challenge.”
One of the goons started to rise to his feet, a quick kick to the side of his head ended that. She heard the crack and wondered if she had done any serious harm to the mercenary. She hoped so. She liked the idea of the goon spending the rest of his life with brain damage.
Tigress hates criminals.
She really, really hates them.
***
Growing up in Kenya, bandits were a fact of life. And Kenya was nothing compared to the carnage in neighboring countries like Uganda, Somalia or Ethiopia. Even as a child Kanika Ngala learned that a man with a gun would take whatever he wanted, and that a wise woman knows to give it to him. But as a young woman Kanika became an activist and tried to end the cycle of violence. Until gunmen rewarded Kanika with a bullet in the back.
But unlike so many other victims, Kanika was saved. Dr. Boyd was on hand with his mysterious process that saved her life and rewarded her with incredible powers. At first Kanika was skeptical of this white man’s plan for a team of international heroines but after a battle with Doctor Droid she realized that her powers allowed her to accomplish far more than she ever did a political activist. Their first few adventures were tough, but as Kanika came to realize the extent of her powers, things got easier. Within a year or two Tigress could defeat nearly any foe the team encountered. Training and practice increased her speed and strength and, to be honest, most villains would rather stand around and give a speech than actually fight. Kanika could not understand why the rest of her teammates were always being defeated. Out of the whole team only Valkyrie seemed even close to achieving her potential.
In time fame and fortune came to the Global Protectors, they no longer had to fight muggers and bank robbers to get noticed. This might be part of the problem, for some of the newer members TV commercials and producing albums was more important than battling criminals. And for some of the older ones as well.
Tigress often proposed the team do something more meaningful, such as bringing Somali warlords to justice or overthrowing the generals in Myanmar but Maple Leaf always refused, saying they to work inside they system. Even ideas like a mission to end the genocide in the Sudan were rejected as ‘inappropriate’.
So Tigress gave up.
She remained on the team of course but spent most of her time on her own agenda. It helped that she rarely needed to sleep more than an hour or two a day. Over the last three years boats carrying weapon shipments had mysteriously sunk, some of the more ruthless warlords in Africa had met with violent deaths and corrupt businessmen had simply disappeared. So far no one had linked these events to Tigress.
She did not neglect her adopted home either. Megapolis cops and the team knew Tigress patrolled of the city’s dangerous West Side but just assumed she was just doing normal superhero patrols. Far from it. She regarded the West Side as her personal hunting ground. With all the gangs and low-level supervillains in the West Side’s abandoned warehouse district she was never short of prey. She rarely killed, she found crippling or humiliating her foes much more satisfying. But when she needed to do something more permanent, she made sure no one could find the bodies.
Now it was April of 2006. Tigress knew the Global Protectors were having a bit of a money problem but hardly thought about it. As far as she was concerned money was just a distraction from their real mission. She just wished her seven teammates felt the same way.
***
She looked around and spotted one she had saved for later. He was unconscious but otherwise unharmed. She picked him up, threw him over her shoulder and walked out of the abandoned warehouse. She flew him out of town to the forests north of Megapolis. Her special spot. She loved it. It was so romantic.
She kicked the man in the ribs to wake him up.
“Get up little man with a big gun.”
“Eh? Where…”
“You are Nigerian.”
“What? Yes but…” A savage kick across his jaw cut the VX mercenary’s questions.
“I hate Nigerians. I hate your food, I hate your clothes, I hate the way you treat your women. Do you want to know what I do to men I hate?”
“Um…”
Tigress picked up a rock and crushed it into powder with her hand.
“Please, please, I’ll do anything!”
“You have a lot to make up for Nigerian scum.” She tore out the crotch of his uniform and peeled the crotch of hers to the side. “You’d better do a good job.”
He was barely adequate.
So she made sure no one would ever find the body.
***
Tigress was flying back towards the Gaea Building when her communicator bracelet buzzed.
“Speak” she answered bluntly.
“Hi Tigress it’s me, Shamrock, um, how are you?”
“Speak or be silent Shamrock.”
“I just wanted to let you know there was a murder last night, and um, it’s the kind you asked me to look for, you know, where there was no blood.”
“Continue.”
“Well, this poor lady, they think she was y’know, a “lady of the night” or something, they found her under the Sterenko bridge and her body was all dried out, no blood inside it or anything. I mean maybe it’s nothing but you said if I ever heard of a case like that I should call you right away, so, um, I did.”
Tigress was silent. She was thinking.
“So, should I tell Maple Leaf or something?”
“Tell no one. Erase the record. I will take care of it.”
“But I have to save any records of unsolved-“
“Shamrock, I am your deputy leader. Erase the record. Forget it. I will handle it.”
“But-“
Tigress just growled into the communicator.
“Yes Tigress, OK, um, good luck.”
“Goodbye.”
Tigress smiled and altered her course towards the Sterenko bridge. At last! She knew he would come.
***
It had been two years since Tigress first battled the Dark Count. She’d easily defeated his henchmen, the Fatally Fearsome Five but the Count himself had escaped her. Since then she had tried to track him down several times, both with her teammates and alone, but their battles had always ended with the Count’s escape.
But she knew he was intrigued by her, she knew he wanted her as his own. She knew he would come to Megapolis to battle her. And now he had arrived.
The Dark Count was, of course, a vampire. Some said he was the Count Dracula of legend, other rumors said he was older than that or maybe just a young vampire using the Dracula myth to inflate his image. It didn’t matter to Tigress.
What mattered to her was that he was a worth foe. He had all the powers traditionally associated with his kind: Blood drinking, fangs, claws, great strength, a nearly-immortal and indestructible body, mesmerism, flight, the ability to become a bat and, most frustratingly, the ability to become mist.
But he also had the traditional weaknesses. He feared the cross and other religious symbols (when wielded by one of faith), garlic repelled him, sunlight burned him, silver hurt him and a stake through the heart would kill him.
He was ancient and cunning and more powerful than most supervillains. Even world-class heroines like Stella and Ultrawoman sought help before fighting this villain.
Tigress looked forward to the battle.
At last! A challenge!
***
The first encounter was almost accidental.
Tigress added the Sterenko Bridge to her patrol route just in case and it paid off in less than a week. She found the Dark Count standing on one of the towers with a Japanese tourist in one hand and her bloody heart in the other.
His back was turned. Tigress balled her hands into fists, put them in front of her and shot forward at just under the speed of sound.
The noise of the impact was like a bomb going off. The Dark Count was knocked forward, before he could react Tigress snatched him in mid-air and tossed him again, this time into the abandoned Defiant warehouse. He smashed through the rotting timbers of the roof into a vat of some kind of thick plasm. He crawled out of it irritated at the indignity.
“I hate this country.” He muttered.
Which is about the time Tigress hit him with a 10’ long steel beam.
The Dark Count flew across the room smashing into a crate of trading cards. Tigress broke off a piece of wood and advanced on him grinning. It was almost too easy.
She stabbed!
And he dodged it (barely).
She slashed again with the sharp piece of wood but now the Dark Count was on his feet, leaping and swirling his cape. No matter how hard she tried Tigress could not connect, it was like fighting smoke. But as she pressed the attack harder, she forced the Dark Count back against a steel door.
“Nowhere to run!” She said with a smile and raised the stake. She brought it down with superhuman force. But it just splintered against the steel. There was a rush of cold air and now the Dark Count was behind her! He’s turned himself into mist once again!
“Impressive, most impressive, but you are far too vain to be a formidable foe.” The Dark Count seized Tigress’ curly black locks and sharply pulled her off her feet. With impressive strength he began to spin his captive helplessly by her hair. Tigress bit her lip to keep from crying out, it felt like her scalp was being torn from her skull! The pain and disorientation were too great, she couldn’t concentrate to use her flying powers, she helplessly watched the warehouse spin and spin.
Then the Dark Count let go and she flew through a dozen crates of worthless comic books finally coming to rest in a pile of ‘Good Guys’ tee shirts.
Her mind was still sharp. “I have to get up, I can still fight him, I just have to…” She started to rise but her body did not obey, she stumbled a step or two in her standard-issue Global Protector high heels and fell down face first. She got her hands under her and started to rise when she felt a talon-like hand in her hair again, her neck wrenched and pulled her off her feet until she was eye-to-eye with the Dark Count. She tried to look away but it was too late, she was lost in the infinite depths of his black and red eyes.
She felt him lower her to the floor and stood there swaying gently while he walked around her, she heard him lick his lips in anticipation.
Then came the bite.
There was a second of pain, but no more. The vampire’s fangs sank deep into her neck and she yelped. But after the pain came the numbness. Then the pleasure. Tigress tried to fight it but her mind was overwhelmed. She felt her consciousness drift away floating on clouds of bliss, carefree, happy and content. She felt all those feelings she only had when she was in the Counts arms. She sighed.
The Dark Count dropped her a few minutes later and licked his lips. Tigress slumped to the ground with an idiotic smile on her face and a bit of drool on her chin. There was no blood on her shoulder, even the two puncture wounds closed up. The Dark Count chastised himself, he had drunk a bit too deeply, Tigress would be weak for a while, unworthy prey. But still, her blood had been so delicious. Each time he tasted her it was stronger, spicier and more powerful. Someday soon he knew he would make her his bride. But not just yet, there was still much to enjoy.
***
The Dark Count walked out of the warehouse into the crumbling parking lot around it. The lot was filled with weeds, broken glass, crack vials, rats and the rusting carcasses of stolen cars. The trash was ankle deep. The Dark Count was amazed that places like this existed in the United States, he’d seen war zones that were cleaner. The Count had not planned to return to the US, his activities in Eastern Europe took up most of his time and energy. But then someone named Senior had contacted him, promising him inside information on Tigress and all of the Global Protectors. He’d pondered it for some time. The rest of the Global Protectors were inconsequential of course. They were certainly attractive but for someone whose lifespan was measured in millennia a girl’s beauty was as impermanent as a single flower. But a woman’s spirit… that was something to be savored. Tigress had proven herself worthy in their pervious encounters and had proven herself irritating as well, destroying several cells of vampires in her quest to find the Dark Count. Along with that trice-damned Californian cheerleader, Tigress had risen to the top of the Count’s enemy list.
So he took the offer. Senior’s ‘secret files’ offered him nothing he did not know. He had tasted Tigress’ blood he knew her mind, body and soul better than Tigress knew herself. But the offer still gave him a reason to come to the U.S. and renew this battle. So far it had been invigorating! Not since the Great War had he faced a foe this fast, this tenacious. If she had been a bit faster tonight she might have actually staked him! The Count’s blood was pumping faster than it had in decades.
Four Wulf Pak gangsters lounged on a street corner bored out of their minds. These days few honest citizens dared to enter the Abandoned Warehouse district during the day, much less the dead of night. Even the homeless were avoiding the blighted area. They hadn’t had seen a good victim all day and were flat broke. Without prey these urban predators were beginning to starve.
So when Dennis saw the tall white guy in a mother-fucking cape walking down the street he had to let out a high-pitched laugh.
“Hey, hey, hey, what is going on here?" He poked Mark, who poked Mario, who poked Dustin. They all got up and advanced on the stranger.
“Hey fag! What’s with the fag clothes you fag?”
The Wulf Pak were known for their witty insults.
“I’m talking to you fag!” Mark grabbed the Dark Count’s shoulder. It was a very foolish mistake.
An icy talon gripped his wrist and twisted it. Mario started to reach for his gun but froze in place when confronted with the Count’s blood-gorged red eyes. The Count looked over the four human vermin and considered killing them. But they were unworthy of his effort, their blood too polluted by drugs and poisons for him to even taste.
But he knew someone who might enjoy their company.
“Go!” He hissed. “There in the warehouse there is a woman, helpless and unconscious, waiting for you. Go now and take her!”
“Um… uh… OK… yeah… thanks man…” The four gangsters took off in a panicked run. The Count laughed.
His black cape billowed out like two bat wings and then he was gone.
***
Tigress lay on her back staring blankly at the starry sky through the hole in the ceiling. She was at peace. No thoughts of rage or revenge entered her head. No thoughts at all. A satisfied smile sat on her face as her massive breasts rose and fell evenly as she exalted in the aftermath of a vampire’s bite. The Count’s bite had a narcotic quality and gave the victims peace and serenity, it was this addictive benefit that made so many victims long for more.
Tigress’ keen senses picked up the sound of a door opening, even the soft sounds of four sets of sneakers walking on the concrete floor. But she just didn’t care.
“Holy crap!” Dustin said sounding a corner.
“That’s not really Tigress is it?”
“Shit man, let’s get out of here, you heard what she did to Don and Ralph!”
“She’s not moving though, is she dead?”
Mark, the brave one, crept closer and poked the tall African woman with a chunk of wood. She moaned a bit. He jumped back, Mario turned to run but Dennis grabbed him.
“Hey, hey, hey she’s like totally out of it!”
“Whoa. Check it out guys!” Dustin pointed at Tigress’ breasts, through the thin spandex of her costume her nipples were clearly visible. He pointed lower, there was a small dark patch between her legs. “She’s like… horney!”
The four small-time crooks gathered around. They’d all heard the stories from other crooks, the ones that usually started with “you won’t believe this but one time my cousin’s best friend was in an alley and there was Nightbat Girl, all tied up…” and ended with “…and then he sold her to white slavers on the internet”. No one ever believed these stories of course but they passed the time and made members of the Wulf Pak feel like big men.
And now they were living one of those stories.
They smiled.
Mario took out his switchblade and got to work on her costume.
Dustin took out his camera-phone and started recording the moment.
***
Tigress drifted contently on clouds of bliss. This was different than the last time. The last time the Dark Count had tasted her she had lain happily for an hour or two and then woke up bitter and angry. But this time the pleasure did not end, she felt the warm feelings spreading between her legs and across her breasts and even on her lips. She flailed her arms and wrapped them around a warm neck, she pulled the man closer and felt his tongue intertwining with hers. The dick between her legs pumped in and out, in and out and then became hot and wet and sticky and soft but was quickly replaced by another. Then another. Then… nothing.
Her mind began to stir. Voices penetrated the haze.
“I SAID I’m next yo! We’re taking turns!”
“You already had a turn!”
“That was just a tit-fuck!”
“Well I didn’t even get that!”
“Guys, come on, flip a fucking coin for fuck’s sake.”
“Hey guys, she’s like getting up and stuff.”
“Hey babe, settle down we’ll be fucking you in a just a…”
“Oh.”
“My.”
“God.”
***
The next day Lieutenant Sharpe and the Paranormal Crimes Unit were roused out of bed early to go down to the old Defiant warehouse.
“Holy shit.” The grizzled detective said. “What the hell did this? A fucking grizzly?”
“We don’t know lieutenant. Not even sure how many victims there were. We’re still finding bits and pieces. And the rats ran off with a lot of them before we even got here.”
***
Tigress showered compulsively. Not just to get the blood and other fluids off her but also to scrounge off the memory of that scum.
NEVER!
Never had she allowed such an indignity! The Dark Count would pay. He would pay dearly.
But in order to make him pay she would have to get faster. Faster and better.
She considered her options. The Count’s weakness were well known, they were practically clichés. Crosses, holy water, garlic…
But Tigress suspected they would not work for her. Crosses after all were just symbols, with faith even two crossed sticks were a powerful weapon against vampires. Without faith, a solid gold cross blessed by the Pope was nothing more than a trinket. And after a childhood in the slums of Kenya, Tigress had no faith in anything besides her two hands.
Besides, so far the Count fought fair. He had not taken her friends hostage, he had not attacked her in her sleep, he had not set an army of vampires upon her. So Tigress would fight fairly. Not just out of honor, but also because she knew escalating this battle would make things far worse.
It was up to her to defeat him.
But to do that she had to make changes.
She reached for a set of clippers.
***
Tigress walked through the Gaea building pausing to rub her bare head. It felt good. Clean. Efficient. The Dark Count was right, she had allowed vanity to influence her for too long. Their next duel would be different.
“So then Robyn I the professor said my poem was the most beautiful one he had heard and that I should come by his house tomorrow night to talk and- oh. Wow. Hi Tigress, that’s um, different.”
“STREWTH! Tigress what did you do?”
Tigress allowed herself a smile, it was always fun to scare her teammates a bit. “Good morning Shamrock, Aussie Girl.” She purred. “Do you like it? It is traditional in my village.” Shaving her head was not traditional at all but most people were so ignorant of Africa Tigress knew she could get away with the lie.
“Oh, I guess it’s nice then.”
“Uh, yeah. Nice. Come on Shamrock, we should get going.”
Tigress listened to them whisper as they walked away.
“She looks like a bloody cannibal now, probably start carrying a spear and stuff.”
“Aussie! You should respect her culture.”
“I’m just saying…”
Tigress entered Maple Leaf’s office. “Oh hey Tig-whoa. That’s um, different.”
“Shamrock said the same thing.”
“Say um, Tigress, you know everyone is supposed to clear new hairstyles with the marketing and merchandising people. You remember that fiasco when Rising Sun dyed her hair and we had to recall the action figures.”
“Action figures do not concern me.”
“Um, right. I guess I’ll let them know… yeah. So, uh, what’s up?”
“I will be busy with my own case for the next few weeks. See that I am not disturbed. I will not have time for your meetings and paperwork.”
“Um… okay.” ‘It’s not like you bother now anyway’ she added silently.
“What are working on anyway? Is it the Thunder Girl thing? Cause I have to tell you I’m stuck and I can’t-“
“No. It is not.” Tigress left. Behind her she could hear Maple Leaf muttering “…getting more psycho every year…”
Tigress smiled again.
***
By July there had been a few more inconclusive engagements. So Tigress adopted some new tactics.
Two girls walked unescorted through Gothic Heights. This shadowy neighborhood of Megapolis was filled with ancient decaying buildings festooned with gargoyles and strange carvings. The ancient steam pipe system belched smoke onto the streets hiding everything in fog. It was a neighborhood most residents of Megapolis avoided in daytime, and everyone avoided at night. Bad things happened in Gothic Heights. Everyone knew that. Everyone from Megapolis at least.
“Inga, are you sure this is way to hostel ya?”
“Yes Ula, nice woman say this is short cut.”
“Is good we come to America for massage convention ya?”
“Ya. Is much more exciting than Sweden. Maybe we see big American cowboy-movie star-superhero!”
Unknown to Ula and Inga they were being watched.
By two sets of eyes.
“This is strange cold fog ya?”
“Ya. Not like the fogs we have in Sweden.”
“Is very dark and very cold, my nipples are upstanding ya? Ula? Are your nipples upstanding? Ula? ULA? Ula where are you? Yoo-hoo? Ula?”
Inga stepped in a puddle and slipped, landing on her toned butt. Her foot hit something solid. “Ula?” She said again. She crawled close to it and felt. She felt, clothing, wet clothing. She felt around some more she felt something, soft, and firm, and warm, and wet. The fog cleared. Inga could see her hand now, it was on Ula’s bloody bare breast. She looked up in mute horror. There was a man there, dressed in an archaic costume, all white silk and leather. Blood dribbled down his chin. He smiled a smile with pointy teeth.
“Hello little girl. You and your friend are far from home.”
Inga screamed.
The dark man reached down for her.
“Not this time!” A voice cried out. A green and black blur streaked by the frightened Swedish masseuse and slammed into the dark-clad attacker. The Dark Count staggered back as Tigress unleashed dozens of hammer-blows. Unlike the rest of the Global Protectors the Kenyan heroine made full use of her super-speed and super-strength, her arms were blurs as she pummeled her victim.
But then…
The Count smiled, and his arms began to move, faster and faster, he blocked or deflected each punch, each kick. Tigress’ attack was stalemated. Then he pressed the attack on her. The Kenyan heroine started to lose ground to the pale white man. She started to sweat. Her arms ached. Her breath came in gasps. She pushed herself, trying to be faster, trying to be stronger. The Count just laughed, a dry sound like wind through a hollow tree.
Then in a second it was over. The Count’s long thumbnail drew a crimson line across Tigress’ breasts and shot back to his face where he licked the drops of blood. Tigress took the opening, launching a punch that would shatter steel. The punch struck nothing but mist. There was a moment of cold fog and hollow laughter and then the Count was gone.
Tigress turned to Inga.
“You’re still alive.”
“Ya, ya. You… you are woman give directions ya?”
“Yes.”
“Please to help us? Ula is bleeding!”
“I see.” Tigress walked over to one of the twisted and gnarled trees found throughout Gothic Heights. She pulled off a branch.
“Please? To help?”
“Oh, I’ll help. She was bitten, I can’t be sure if she’s infected or not. Better to be sure.” Tigress’ arm became a blur again and buried the wooden branch in Ula’s heart. The Swedish girl coughed once and died.
Inga screamed!
“Sorry you had to see that, I’m sure you were a nice girl. You were certainly good bait.”
“But.. but… you are heroine ya?”
Tigress snapped Inga’s neck.
“I was. Now I am a Tigress.”
***
The next day Maple Leaf announced Shamrock had been fired. After the tumultuous morning meeting Tigress, La Sola and Maple Leaf met a in the Canadian’s office. Maple Leaf explained the fiscal realities of the situation.
“Que lastima.” La Sola muttered in Spanish.
“No more than she deserved. Her performance has been pitiful.” Tigress sneered.
La Sola slapped her.
Hard.
The room echoed with the sound.
Tigress just smiled.
La Sola and Maple Leaf never even saw her move. One second she was in front of the Argentine heroine, the next she was behind her pulling her hair back and with another hand on a nerve cluster in her shoulder. The Latina let out a low whimper of pain.
“Do not challenge me. You are not worthy of it. Focus on looking pretty and screwing, that’s what you are best at.” She whispered too low for anyone but La Sola to hear.
“TIGRESS! What the fuck? Let her go!”
Tigress released her teammate; La Sola slumped to the floor. Tigress bowed slightly. “Sorry Jillian. Reflexes. Now I have more important things to do.” She turned and left.
Maple Leaf rushed to La Sola’s side and helped her up. The Latin bombshell needed a few minutes to recover. Finally she said “La Tigra is changing. She’s becoming scary.”
Maple Leaf shook her head. “You weren’t here at the start. Let me tell you she was always scary. She just got good at hiding it. And now she’s not bothering anymore. That really worries me. A lot of things worry me… a lot…”
La Sola put a hand on her leader’s back and gave her a hug. “I know it’s hard but we’ll pull through. We will.”
“I… I know.” Maple Leaf did not sound too sincere.
***
A few weeks passed. Thunder Girl smashed up Maple Leaf’s office and they learned the truth about Aussie Girl. Despite Val’s best efforts the Australian was still (at least) half-mad and had to be locked in the basement. Meanwhile Star was arrested, tried, released, arrested again and finally fired from the team. Rising Sun returned from Japan. Tigress played a minimal role in these events as she focused on ending her feud with the Dark Count. Ending it permanently.
Tigress stopped the Dark Count from killing the Brazilian stewardesses but he managed to feast on the high school cheerleaders. She saved the rock groupies but not the nurses. Bloodless bodies appeared on the streets of Megapolis.
Preoccupied with her vendetta, Tigress missed some interesting changes in Rising Sun’s attitude.
***
“Oh Kisume it’s so nice to finally see you!” Shannon O’Sullivan gave her old teammate a peck on the cheek. “I missed you so much!” The heroine formerly known as Shamrock led Rising Sun inside. She’d already set the table with some Thai curry.
“Hai, me too Shannon, I’m so sorry about everything that happened, I can’t help but feel that if I had been here…”
“Oh, it’s OK Rising Sun, really. I mean I was pretty broken up about it for a while but lately I’m feeling better.”
“Feeling better? Really?” The Japanese girl seemed surprised for a second but recovered. “That’s good Shannon, good.” Rising Sun looked around the large airy two-bedroom. “Say, is this a new apartment?”
“That’s one of the bits of good news! I just got it. Just when my severance pay was running out and I had to leave my old studio this lawyer got in touch with me. It turns out my great uncle Shamus left me a trust fund!”
“Great uncle Shamus? You never mentioned him.”
“Yeah, well, to tell the truth I’m not really sure how we’re related, but he left me so much money. More than enough to take care of myself for a long time. So now I’m thinking of being a heroine again.”
“You- you are?!” Rising Run’s eyes went wide and her hands started to shake.
“Oh yeah, I figure I’ll call myself Erin, you know that’s that name I wanted in the first place because that’s the Gaelic name for Ireland but Maple Leaf said I couldn’t use it cause of that movie Erin Brockovich but I-“
“But um, Shannon, are you sure you’re up for that, I know your powers-“
“That’s the best news of all!” Shannon walked over to a book case and lifted it with one hand. “Ever since I broke up with Darren I’ve been feeling so better about myself I read this book called Chicken Soup For the Heroine’s Soul and it’s all about how Nightbat Girl pulled herself together after that white slavery ring-“
“Um… so what are you planning, exactly?”
“Well you know it would be hard being a heroine here in Megapolis with the team around and everything…”
Rising Sun breathed a sigh of relief.
“…so I was thinking of maybe leaving the country, going to the Amazon rainforest, maybe fight some developers who want to cut down the jungle or something.”
Rising Sun tried to fight down the panic in her stomach. She had to put a stop to this now! In her mind she scrolled through files, records of old Global Protector cases picking out the ones to use.
“Sugoi! Oh Shannon that’s great! Maybe I can join you, it will be just like old times, like that time at the museum when we were supposed to fight Caligula but I got caught.”
“Oh Kisume, I’m sorry, I remember that and I really did feel bad but-“
“Oh don’t worry Shannon, don’t worry, it’s all water under the bridge. Like that time you were supposed to rescue me from Blackchrome but you got caught and she made us-“
“Oh Kisume…”
“Or the time you were supposed to watch my back, you know, and we ended up in the Wraith Lord’s dungeons.”
Shannon looked down shamefaced. Rising Sun’s face became stern and cold.
“But who cares about that anymore? Put it all behind you. You have your luxury apartment and money from who-knows-where and now you go around pretending you never failed.”
“Kisume-“
Rising Sun rose to her feet and smashed the table. Splinters and curry flew everywhere. “SHANNON! How can you be so irresponsible! You were a failure as a heroine, that’s why Maple Leaf fired you! And it’s not just about you, when a heroine fails other people get hurt, innocent people! But here you are thinking about trying again, who will you let down this time Shannon? Who?”
Shannon just sobbed.
Rising Sun walked to the window and opened it.
“Goodbye Shannon, don’t call me unless you’ve learned your lesson!” She jumped out and flew.
Shannon O’Sullivan sat and watched for almost an hour. Rising Sun was right. She was completely right. Tigress said it, Maple Leaf said it, Emily said it, and now her best friend said it. So it must be true. She was failure. Finally she got up and walked to her bedroom where she had the Erin costume she’d put together for herself. She’d been planning on showing it to Kisume and going on her first patrol tonight but the Japanese girl was right, she wasn’t worthy. She tossed the costume out the window and watched it blow away in the wind.
Watching the spandex float away made Shannon feel more alone than she had in weeks. She took out her cell phone. Maybe if she begged him, Darren would take her back.
***
Miles away, crouching on a rooftop Rising Sun tried to catch her breath. That had been close, much too close.
Shamrock back in action? Going to the rain forest? It was happening all over again! She took out a cigar and lit it. Mr. Senior’s memories came to her and she remembered how it happened the first time…
Lord Terminus was winning. The heroes of Earth put up an incredible fight, stopping him more than once but the destroyer of worlds kept coming back for more, becoming stronger with each life he took. The heroes tried but they could not be everywhere at once. They saved Miami but lost Capetown. They protected Yokohama but were too late for Moscow. By 2010 it seemed the war could only end one way.
Shamrock had been missing for years by then. No one much cared. She was a third-rate heroine anyway and everyone just assumed she’d died some meaningless insignificant death just like so many others. Great heroines like Ultra Woman, Spitfire, Freedom Girl, and even the Arab heroine Wonder Oman has all fallen. Who could imagine that mousey little Shamrock still lived?
So no one, least of all Lord Terminus, was prepared for what happened when Shamrock came out of the Amazon rain forest.
Rising Sun shook her head.
“Damn. Much as I like seeing that bitch humiliated I might just have to kill her myself.”
***
The three school girls from St. Chastity’s Orphanage and School for Wayward Girls walked home from Chaplain Charlie’s Christian Celibacy rally in Siegel Square. It had been so uplifting, Chaplain Charlie had spoken for hours about the importance of purity and faithfulness and asked all these young people to swear an oath promising to wait for marriage. The songs and speeches and prayers had lasted much longer than planned, it was pretty late by the time they started walking towards the west side. Usually the girls would have shared a cab back to the train station but after the rally everything was full. Besides it wasn’t that long a walk.
A cold fog came up.
“Cynthia? Are you sure we’re going the right way?” The shorter, brown-haired one asked.
“Yes Faith, I’m sure, come on, you’re not afraid of a little fog are you?” The taller one with short black hair answered.
“N-no, but this doesn’t look familiar at all.”
“It’s just the light, it’s a little darker now that’s all. Right Hope?”
“I’m sure everything will work out for the best!” The blond schoolgirl beamed.
All three were in their school uniforms of red plaid pleated skirts, white button down shirts with red ribbon ties and navy blue blazers decorated with the St. Chastity coat of arms.
And then…
There was a rush of cold wind and the fog vanished. But now a handsome mustached man was walking down the street towards the three. His eyes gleamed with their own red light.
“Hello ladies. Rough neighborhood for three little girls to be walking around alone.” He licked his lips. “Especially virgins.” His duels with Tigress had left the Dark Count with little time for feeding, but tonight he would enjoy the sweet taste of corrupted innocence. The foolish heroine would never dream he would dare to strike this close to a Christian rally. And these girls would pay the price. He met their wide innocent eyes with his own dark ones. “Now come to me girls, come to your master.”
The three school girls stopped. Froze. And returned his stare.
“Vampire drill!” Cynthia yelled. The other two jumped into action producing crosses, vials of holy water and stakes from inside their blazers.
“What? This cannot be!” The Count yelled but it was already too late. Three holy water vials flew through the air, the sprinkler tops spreading drops of the anointed fluid all around the Count, stinging him and, more importantly, saturating the air. He did not dare use his ability to turn into mist, there was too great a chance a minuscule drop of holy water would enter his heart or head and end his existence.
He backed away with as much dignity as he could muster. Maybe he should have skipped the Christian rally after all.
“Rosary WHIP!” Cynthia yelled and lashed out. The Dark Count howled like a wounded wolf as the sacred beads wrapped around him. Two more rosaries struck like snakes lashing his arms to his sides. Now Faith advanced towards him with a cross in one hand and a stake in the other. The Count snarled and pulled but the rosaries held him firmly.
“Wow those Defense Against the Dark Arts classes did come in handy, glad I didn’t drop them for Appreciation of Television.” Hope giggled.
“Release me! I command it!” Faith hesitated.
“Don’t listen to his voice girls, he’s using mesmerism, hum the 23rd psalm!” The schoolgirls obeyed Cynthia’s command. The Count screamed threats but he was ignored. Finally he screamed “HELP ME!” But no one answered.
Faith had just placed the stake over the Count’s heart and raised her study wooden cross to use as a mallet when…
“What are you doing!?”
“Huh?”
“What?”
“Wow guys it’s Tigress! Y’know from the Global Protectors!”
“Cool!”
“Awesome!”
“Tigress I like have all of your action figures, and I always play you in Global Protectors vs. Capcom!”
“Yes, that is very nice I am sure, now, release that man! You are not worthy to even touch him.”
Her voice had so much authority the girls dropped their rosary whips without thinking about it. Faith’s stake hit the ground and she took a few steps away.
“Now go!”
“But Tigress he’s a vam-“
“GO!”
They ran.
Tigress tore the bindings and helped the weakened Count to his feet.
“I… I knew you would come. We are too alike you and I, wolves among the sheep, predators who- AHH!”
Tigress causally smashed his head into a lamppost a few times.
“Pathetic. Those schoolgirls would have destroyed you had I not heard your pitiful pleas.” She smashed his head against a fire hydrant until the cast iron shattered. “Are you really the man I once feared?” She tossed him through the windshield of a car. The Count’s once-elegant clothes were rags now and his marble-like skin bruised and cracked. She reached for him again looking into his dark eyes, for the first time ever she saw fear. She smiled. “Or are you just an ancient relic who had lived past your ti-“
The body in her hands became cold mist and flowed around her. She spun but the Count had already returned to human form behind her. His clothing was immaculate again, his wounds gone, his eyes fearless and confident. He lashed out with a talon tearing her costume at the stomach and drawing blood. He casually evaded her blows while licking her blood from his fingers.
“Pathetic am I? Even weakened I am still faster than you.” He clawed her again, this time raking the tops of her breasts. Tigress howled and picked up a car, she threw it at him but the car passed through his misty form and barreled through a storefront instead. The Count reappeared on top of the car. Tigress threw another but once again he easily dodged.
“Still too slow. Oh Kanika, what I am going to do with you? You have such potential but are afraid to realize it.”
Tigress flew at him but he leapt over her.
“Soon my Tigress, soon. We shall settle this once and for all.”
Tigress tossed a billboard at the Count but he was already gone.
She landed and took deep breaths. She had been so close!
She looked around at the city street. Water gushed from the wrecked hydrant. Electric lines were down, the street were littered with rubble and a fire was starting in the store she’d demolished. Shell-shocked residents were just starting to poke their heads out.
Tigress grunted and shot into the air. She did not need care to explain the damage.
She needed to prepare. To become better, strong, faster.
She would do it.
Whatever the cost, she would do it.
***
Just a few feet below her, in a filthy sewer pipe the Dark Count appeared and fell to the ground. His clothes were ragged, his body shattered. He had been lucky, very lucky. Tigress’ rage made her easy to mesmerize, to make it seem he was unharmed. That was what she expected to see. After so many inconclusive encounters she did not even suspect how drained he was. He lay in the muck for a while, as still as a corpse. Finally his twitching hand reached out and snared a rat. He consumed it whole.
Weeks.
He would need weeks to recover.
He wondered if he would get them.
This madness had to end. He had to claim her as his own or kill her. Otherwise these duels would destroy him.
***
Valkyrie paused at her lab door. It was open. She knew she had closed and locked it when she left, she always did that now that tourists were roaming the Gaea Building. In theory her lab was off-limits to tourists but Val was afraid one day some kid from Cleveland would find a way in and get accidentally turned into a supervillain or something.
She heard the sound of something breaking inside. She pulled the door open and yelled “Whoever you are, stop this now!”
“No.” Came the blunt reply. The lab was in shambles, boxes overturned, cabinets opened, safes torn open and their contents strewn across the room. In the center of the mess stood Tigress, in a torn costume with a look of rage on her face. “Where is it?!” She demanded.
“Tigress? What happened to you, what’s-“
Val never even saw her move, but then she was slammed against the wall with Tigress screaming in her face. “The helmet damn you! Where did you hide it this time!”
“What?”
With a snarl Tigress tossed Val to the floor. The powerful heroine couldn’t believe it, she always considered herself Tigress’ equal, if not her superior, in strength but the African heroine had handled her like a doll. Tigress took a few deep breaths while Val got to her feet. Val reached out again but Tigress knocked her hand away.
“The mind control helmet. Where is it? I need it.”
“Tigress what is this about, let me help you-“
“WHERE?” Tigress seized Val’s wrist and squeezed, Val actually winced, how strong was Tigress anyway?
“It’s gone. Destroyed.”
“DAMN YOU!” Val unconsciously fell into a fighting stance. Was this it? Was Tigress really going to attack her?
But Tigress slumped into a chair and held her head. Val heard a sob.
“Tigress? Kanika? What’s wrong, please I want to help you.”
“What’s wrong?! What’s wrong is I’m still too slow! I’ve trained and trained, fought the most powerful foes and it’s still not enough! I thought maybe… maybe with the helmet I could remove whatever is holding me back…” She sobbed again, not bothering to hide it.
“Tigress” Val put an arm around her teammate, this time Tigress accepted the comfort. “Tigress you’re the most powerful of us all, what’s wrong, what are you trying to do?”
“Val… Val I just want to be… I just want to be strong. I want to be strong enough to stop them, all of them, all of the little men with big guns or fancy titles, all the men who hurt us… I just want to get them!”
“Oh Tigress, we all do but none of us can do it alone, that’s why we’re a team so we can help each other. What’s going on?”
“The Dark Count.”
“You took him on alone?”
“Of course. I nearly defeated him as well, several times.”
“Nearly.”
Tigress just scowled.
“We’ll need the whole team.”
“All five?”
Val looked sad. She felt the absence of Shamrock and Aussie Girl and even Star. But there was nothing to be done. “Yes.”
“Maple Leaf is too distracted these days, she is liable to get herself killed.”
“Just the four of us then-“
“And Rising Sun is acting… odd. I do not trust her.”
“What do you mean?”
“I cannot say. But something about her has changed. You must have noticed.”
Val nodded. “Yes but for something this important-“
“We dare not take chances.”
“La Sola?”
Tigress just snorted.
“Just the two of us then?”
“Yes.”
“I… I see. Do you know where he is?”
“I can find him. Meet me downtown at midnight.”
Valkyrie nodded. “I’ll tell Emily she has to stay tonight and cover the monitor room.” She got up and left.
Tigress waited until Valkyrie was gone before reaching into the safe. The loss of the helmet was regrettable but there were other ways to improve herself. She found a small vial of red fluid labeled XLR-8. Val had kept it as a sample after Star’s arrest but never go around to testing it, Tigress recognized instantly from her crusade against Villainy eXtreme. Tigress walked outside and took off. There was a drug lab on the West Side that should be able to duplicate it.
***
Meanwhile just out of town…
“Not only is this installation buried in a mountain, but the only way in or out is through those 3’ thick blast doors.”
“Uh-huh.”
“They lead to a half mile long tunnel guarded with a maze of fifty giga-watt lasers.”
“Yeah.”
“Which ends in these blast doors that are 5’ thick and guarded with an antimatter cannon.”
“Got it.”
“Now let me show you the interior where the real good stuff starts. The place has its own air supply, produces its own synthetic food, even had a dozen robots to keep it running…”
The black limo slowly lowered to ground inside the hidden bunker. Rising Sun opened the door and she and Wolfe got out. She’d been flying the limo from the back seat, using her flight power to levitate the entire vehicle with the both of them in it. It had been such a smooth ride neither of them spilled a drop of scotch. Rising Sun was showing a level of control and sophistication in her powers none of the Global Protectors had ever shown before. Wolfe was starting to get worried. Just who or what was this ‘Mr. Senior’ possessing the Japanese girl?
He looked around. The lab was in a huge artificial cavern and filled with exotic machinery, most of it looked pretty retro, like something out of an old Star Trek rerun. He commented on that.
“Yeah, well that’s cause it is from the 60’s. Weren’t you listening? This is Cladius Crowe’s old HQ, y’know that guy who used to fight Stellar Man back in the day?”
“Oh yeah him. He was the guy who would build a ten million dollar robot to rob a couple of grand from the bank. Never got that.”
“Well he was a scientific genius that that doesn’t mean he’s too bright.”
“So how much of my money did you spend on this joint?”
“It was a steal. After Crowe disappeared Villainy eXtreme took it over, but it was a bit too far out of town for them so they sold it on www.larcen-ebay.com Got it for forty-eight million.”
“Forty-eight mi- mi-, JESUS CHRIST SENIOR! That’s most of my cash!”
“Trust me Wolfe, it’s worth every cent and in a few days you won’t have to worry about money ever again.”
“Hola is that you Sunny?” A new voice cried.
“Yeah Calvin, come down, I want to introduce you to someone.”
“Who’s this guy?” Wolfe muttered.
“Calvin Crowe, you might remember his from Star’s trial, he’s a bit of a mad scientist type, I got the US government to lend him to us, they think he’s working on some new Star Wars weapon for them.”
The skinny scientist emerged from the bowels of some machine covered in grease. He wiped his hands on his overalls and shook Wolfe’s hand.
“J Buckley Wolfe, this is Dr. Calvin Crowe, his dad built this place, including the Tachyon Howitzer that Calvin just finished.”
“Tack-a-what?”
“Tachyon Howitzer” Crowe began “It was going to be my dad’s ultimate weapon against Stellar Man. Tachyons are sub-atomic particles that travel faster than light, the Tachyon Howitzer will impregnate the target’s entire atomic structure with Tachyons causing every atom in the body to fly apart heading for opposite sides of the universe. Nothing can withstand it, not even an ‘invulnerable’ hero like Stellar Man. It really is an amazing achievement, powered by a miniature black hole, and to think my father built it with 60s technology. It still uses vacuum tubes for crying out loud! It’s a shame Stellar Man disappeared before my father got to use it on him.”
“You got it to work?”
“Sure. Just needed a bit of maintenance really. Do you want to see a demonstration?”
Rising Sun took out a small gold ball and held it in the air for a moment. Holographic displays flashed too fast for the eye to see. She lowered it. “Nah, just ran a full simulation and actually powering it up might attract the wrong kind of attention. Good job there kid.”
The forty year old man scowled at the diminutive nickname. “Well I guess we’re done then.”
“Yup.” Rising Sun said.
Her left arm became a blur, there was a sharp crack and Crowe fell to the ground with a broken neck.
“WHAT THE FUCK?!” Wolfe yelled.
“It’s OK. I don’t need him anymore and it’s one less loose end.”
“But-“
“Yup things are going fine.”
Wolfe started backing away slowly towards the limo.
“Now as for you…” Rising Sun turned towards him and started to hover a few feet off the ground. Wolfe squealed like a little girl and ran. Rising Sun just laughed. “Oh don’t be such a pussy Wolfe, I’m not gonna hurt ya. Feel free to run around, see the place. You’re gonna be here for a while.”
He stopped running. Rising Sun was heading for the blast doors leading out. “I figure if this place was designed to keep out the most powerful hero in history it should keep out those Global Bimbos too. There’s food and water and I think I saw some vintage Playboys in the rec room. So you’ll have plenty to keep you alive while I finish off the plan.”
“What plan? Senior! Why are you doing this?”
“Hey, don’t worry, this just for your safety, can’t let anything happen to you after all. My future depends on it.” Rising Sun laughed at her own in-joke. “I’ll see you in a week or two, after I take care of Terminus.”
“Terminus? What the fuck is Terminus?”
“Don’t worry about Terminus, I’ve got him covered. See you later Wolfe.”
She flew through the blast doors and the massive hatch closed behind her. And J. Buckley Wolfe Sr., one of the most powerful media tycoons on Earth, found himself imprisoned in a bunker a half mile under the ground with a dead body for company.
He started to scream.
***
The drunken sorority chicks stumbled out of Frank’s Bar with Miller beers still in their hands. One paused to puke into a mail box while her friends hooted and hollered. They stumbled a few more steps before one of them collapsed to her knees. The girls laughed and doused her with a beer. It was another night on Winick Road, the notorious strip of bars and clubs near Mega University.
The night grew colder and a fog appeared out of nowhere. One of the drunken girls pointed out her nipples were showing through her tee-shirt and the others laughed.
Then one of them screamed.
The Dark Count finished her quickly. He was still weak from his last battle and needed nourishment. Even polluted blood from these drunken whores was welcome. He couldn’t believe he had fallen this low, coming to America and hunting that heroine was certainly a mistake. As soon as he was strong enough he would return to Europe.
The sorority girls were stumbling away as fast as their shaky legs could carry them. He grabbed another one by her teased hair and bit deeply into her neck.
“My… God…” He heard a hushed voice behind him. He turned and hissed at the sound of that hated word. “Who dares-“
The punch almost took his head off and carried him across the street through the window of the VD clinic. His dazed eyes caught a blue and yellow blur but before he could react a strong hand pulled him up by his hair and tossed him towards the warehouse district. He arced through the air and landed in an abandoned lot. He shook his head to clear it and looked up.
This time he could see her clearly. A tall, strong white women dressed in a blue and yellow costume, cut the same as his beloved Tigress’ outfit. Valkyrie then. He wondered if she would prove to be worthy prey. He’d tasted her Australian and Argentine teammates and found them lacking. As she got closer he saw the yellow cross that covered her prominent breasts. He flinched for a second but felt no pain. Long ago, when he was young, symbols like the cross could hurt him but after so many centuries only a cross wielded by one of faith was a threat. The atheist blonde probably didn’t even think of it as a religious symbol.
She was flying towards him shouting something unintelligible into her bracelet. She was strong. She was fast. She was fierce. Almost as powerful as Tigress.
Almost.
Now prepared, the Dark Count faded into mist just as the blond woman’s flying charge connected. Now it was Valkyrie’s turn to be dazed as she flew through him and smashed into the asphalt. She made a four foot-wide crater and was dazed for an instant. Which was all the Count needed.
He materialized on her back and bit down hard on one muscular shoulder. Valkyrie screamed and twisted, her arms swung back and with desperate strength she pulled the count off of her and tossed him over her head.
It had been years since Val was seriously threatened. She was used to winning her battles with icy efficiency but this time… The Count had actually bled her! She could feel her warm blood still flowing down her back. Val couldn’t remember the last time she’d been hurt in fight like this!
The Count gave a dry laugh and rose to his feet. He licked a last drop of her blood from his moustache. The faced each other for a minute. Val’s cold blue eyes locked with the Count’s burning red ones.
She narrowed her eyes with hatred. How dare he? How dare this filthy beast cut her! Not since that terrible bloody night when Red Jack attacked had she been wounded! Well she would show this monster what it meant to challenge a Global Protector. She looked deep into those harsh red eyes… so red… so…
Valkyrie gasped for air, she hadn’t realized she was holding her breath. Those red eyes were coming closer. She tried to look away but could not, everything was so… red. She felt her pulse rate shoot up. It felt like the blood in her veins was burning. She started to sweat. She was panting, but she never panted! She felt a cold hand on her shoulder. She tried to make a fist, to swing at the man who was suddenly behind her, but her arms slumped limply to her sides. She could feel his cold breath on her neck. She turned her head to confront him and looked directly into those burning red eyes. She saw it then. Centuries of blood. Powerful men impaled on his spikes, powerful women at his feet. Her entire career was nothing more than a passing breeze to this creature, who was she to stand up to him? How could she even dare? She’d failed so many times, failed to protect Aussie, Star and Shamrock, failed to control her own impulses, she was such a failure… Why was she even trying?
She lowered her eyes submissively, her knees buckled. She fell into his strong, welcoming arms. He patted her on the back. Val sighed. It felt so good to be in his strong arms, to rest. After all these years of fighting, of obsessing and caring about her teammates she was so, so tired. She nuzzled against the Count’s neck, it was cold and clammy but she didn’t mind. The Count reached up and freed her hair from its tight bun, the golden waves fell to the small of her back.
The smell of the superheroine’s warm blood was intoxicating to the Dark Count. He was still weak, barely able to fight, exhausted from his brief duel of wills with Valkyrie. If the girl had not been so torn by self doubt he would never have won. But he had not lived all these centuries by playing fair. He peeled down her blue and yellow top and licked her shoulder. His teeth extended, he bit deep. This was not a casual feeding, he felt her shoulder blade crack under his jaw, he tore open an artery and drank her superhuman blood deeply. The red fluid ran down his chin onto his normally spotless white shirt. He dimly heard the girl cry out, beg for mercy and then fall silent. His hunger slated, he dropped her like a broken toy. Only her superhuman anatomy kept her alive.
He took some deep breaths and let the fire of her blood pass through him. He’d drunk too quickly, he was engorged, his senses became keener, sharper, he felt new power in his limbs. He felt better than he had in weeks, in months even. Perhaps coming here was not such a mistake after all. He looked down at Valkyrie’s broken body. Perhaps he could bring her to the sewers and bleed her at his leisure. This proud, strong heroine could feed him for weeks. He licked his lips at the prospect.
Her heard the soft sound of high heels landing on asphalt and spun.
“I see you’ve eaten.” Tigress said with a smile. “Are you ready to finish this?”
The Count just smiled.
***
The two faced each other for a time. His red eyes bored into her dark eyes with renewed force; seeking a kink in her psychic armor he could exploit to establish dominion.
There was none.
There was no fear in her eyes.
No remorse for the pawns she had sacrificed.
No doubt in her abilities.
Nothing but desire.
Finally he nodded.
They charged.
Tigress’ roar was lost in the sonic booms as they passed each other. His claws drew a bit of blood from her arm. Her blow broke his neck and smashed his skull. The Dark Count spat and snarled as his bones regenerated.
“You cannot destroy me that quickly” he hissed, licking a bit of her blood from his fingers.
“Do not fear, I plan to take my time.”
They charged again.
And again.
And a third time.
Car alarms went off. Windows shattered. The pavement shattered under their feet. Local residents took shelter, thinking the city was being bombed.
They weren’t even breathing hard yet.
“You are faster.” The Count observed.
“Perhaps you are weaker.” Tigress retorted.
They charged again, this time hitting each other head on. They both went back flying; Tigress into an abandoned car, the Count smashing through the front of a dumpster.
“No, not with your friend’s blood inside me. And yours.” The Count looked puzzled for a second. He licked his finger again and looked at it. “You have taken something? Drugs? I thought you were smarter than that-“
His words were silenced as Tigress tossed the car into his chest. The Count grunted as he pulled himself free. His shirt and cape were torn.
“You know this is a poison. It will kill you.”
Tigress howled and tossed two more cars at him. They passed through the Count’s misty form. He materialized behind her. But too slow, her blow shattered his ribs and shot him through a warehouse wall.
He coughed. “You can feel it now, I can hear your heart pounding, it will explode soon.” He tried to dodge her next blow but the fight was taking its toll, his arm shattered, fragments of bone flew from it, precious blood was spilled on the floor. He howled in pain. Tigress kicked him across the warehouse; he bounced off the far wall and fell onto the hard concrete. More bones broke, they did not heal.
She was upon him again, hitting him faster and faster, harder and harder. The Count reached deep inside himself for his reserves of strength and found…
Nothing.
Weeks of clashes with his relentless woman had drained him.
A final blow shot him across the room. His pulped body was barely recognizable as human.
“I should never have come to America” he thought. His one good eye saw a pair of green and black boots clicking towards him. But now they were shaking, veins on Tigress’ strong legs stuck out like blue spider webs. She gasped and fell to her hands and knees. He could hear her breathing like a broken bellows. He hissed a dry laugh and somehow managed to speak.
“You’re dying now… I can hear it. Your heart was pushed too far.” He hissed another laugh. “I will live on Tigress, but not you. You were so… so… close.”
Tigress crawled another few inches towards him. She mouthed the word “no”.
The Count found the strength to smile. “There is one hope. Come to me Tigress. Accept my gift of immortal life. Know power beyond anything you have ever known before. As my bride.”
Tigress fell again. On her belly reached for him. Her face was contorted in pain, her muscles twitching uncontrollably as the drugs inside destroyed her body. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her close. His fangs were out again. Her neck was so close. He bit down deep.
***
Valkyrie watched from the ruined wall. She could barely walk and was powerless to intervene.
Despairing she watched the Count drink her friend’s blood. But something was different.
As the Count drank Tigress’ hands found his neck. With desperate strength she tore him loose and snapped his neck with one hand.
“Tigress! You did it!” She yelled.
But the Kenyan heroine wasn’t done. She savagely tore the Count’s neck open and drank his blood deeply, sucking at the wound. His blood replaced hers. Her wounds healed. Her muscles stopped twitching and became very, very still. Finally the Count’s broken body crumbled into dust. She tossed it aside and rose to her feet.
She locked eyes with Valkyrie. Her eyes were blood red. Valkyrie looked at her friend, her dark skin was darker still, like mahagony. Her chest did not move. She wasn’t breathing.
“T-Tigress… n-no…”
The mighty Valkyrie was once again forced to her knees by the horrible sight of burning red eyes. Tigress stumbled towards her but then her eyes met the golden cross that covered Val’s ample breasts. She shut her eyes and recoiled in pain. She bent her knees and shot upwards through the roof of the warehouse.
Valkyrie watched helplessly as Tigress disappeared into the night. She heard a low grown all around her. The damaged building had had enough and collapsed on top of the Swedish heroine. Valkyrie’s world went dark.
Afterword
And that’s Chapter Seven. Tigress’ fate was set almost from the beginning and I think everyone will agree it was appropriate. She’ll be back for the final act of course but which side will she be on?
Chapter 8 is still a work in progress so there may be a little while before its ready. In the meantime be sure to write in and tell me what you think.
Marcus Lycus
March 2007
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