#15- "Up Close and Personal"
The sounds of battle were drawing closer and closer. Weapons discharge and the screams of dying men could now be plainly heard. The man known as Lord Abyss paced nervously back and forth in his private chamber. Every indication was that his forces were losing and rapidly giving ground. It was only a matter of time before he would have to personally enter the fray. This fact annoyed him to no end.
"Curse that witch!", Abyss shouted to the empty room. The Morbane wore a midnight blue hooded robe with silver trim that obscured his features. Together with Lady Bale, Lord Abyss was the co-ruler of the Los Angeles branch of DEMON. Abyss was more content to follow the directives of Lord Thorne to the letter while Bale played fast and free with the situation. She always put her own personal ambitions ahead of those of DEMON. Lord Abyss knew that would be her eventual undoing.
Unfortunately, Abyss never realized that it would be the source of his own downfall as well. Lady Bale had allied herself with the fearsome Black Paladin in recent weeks. The witch had been laying the seeds of rebellion for the last few days. On this night, her forces moved in backed by the power of the Black Paladin himself. The DEMON Base was now the site of a battle for control between Lord Abyss and Lady Bale. Only one would be the absolute master of the base when this struggle was resolved.
Abyss's morbid thoughts were interrupted as the door to his chamber was thrown open and one of his lesser Morbanes rushed in. "They're coming, master!", the man panted. "More and more of our men are defecting to the wench's side! They are approaching!"
"The weak-willed fools!", Lord Abyss cursed of his men. "I'll see them all burn in Hades for their betrayal! The time for action has come. Attend me!"
The lesser Morbane obediently followed after Lord Abyss as he started out of the room. The cloaked Demonpriest didn't have to travel far as the sources of his annoyance were drawing closer and closer. After a short walk down a curved hallway, Lord Abyss and his subordinate entered the command chamber.
The battle was still being fought as Lord Abyss scanned the circular room. His hate-filled eyes locked in on the Lady Bale. His fellow Demonpriest was a most fetching female who made the most of her looks and charms. Her choice of costume was a tightly laced leather black bustier that left much exposed skin. Matching leather bikini briefs, short gloves, thigh high boots, and full-length cloak finished what little clothing the woman wore. Lady Bale was cutting a swath into the opposition with her magical sword.
The fearsome Black Paladin dominated the battle, easily dispatching any Demon warrior that strayed too close. The man was larger than Abyss could have imagined. His battle armor was jet black in color and seemed to not reflect any light in the least. His helmet obscured his face with the exception of his eyes which glowed an eerie green. There was a tangible aura of evil from the dark knight. Lord Abyss knew instantly that the Black Paladin was a powerful, self-assured man.
"At last!", Lady Bale gleefully announced as she stabbed another foe. "That slimy toad Lord Abyss does finally show himself! Finally he decides to come out of hiding and take defeat like a man?"
"You dare to challenge my authority?", Abyss spit out, trying to sound confident. "You will pay for your treachery witch! Our masters will see to your torment!"
Black Paladin turned to face the Morbane. "My charming consort should be the least of your worries, worm. It is I that you should fear and with considerable cause."
"Whatever the witch promised you for helping her, I will make it double! I can offer you power and wealth that she can not!"
The Black Paladin reared back his head and let out a hearty laugh that chilled Lord Abyss to the bone. The fighting around him suddenly came to a halt as both sides turned to observe what was transpiring. All eyes locked in on the trio of Black Paladin, Lady Bale, and Lord Abyss.
Lady Bale smiled malevolently as she drew closer to Abyss. "You pompous windbag! You cannot make bargains with that which you do not possess. The only man I call master is the Black Paladin. I serve him truly and willingly. You would be wise to do the same."
This revelation made Lord Abyss pause. He had assumed that Lady Bale was the one in charge, not the Black Paladin. It was a costly error on his part as he was confident that he could defeat Lady Bale in combat. Black Paladin was another matter entirely.
"The choice is a simple one," Black Paladin explained with more than a hint of threat in his voice. "Serve me or see your lives' blood spilled on this chamber floor."
"I will not surrender without a fight! Challenge me if you dare, evil knight!"
"As you wish, 'worthy adversary'." The Black Paladin bowed to his enemy and then advanced to do battle.
"Beware his mental powers, my beloved!", Lady Bale cried out in warning. "Abyss can dominate your will with his own."
This brought a small smile to the dark knight underneath his helmet. "The worm is welcomed to pit his pitiful powers against my own."
Lord Abyss threw his hood back revealing his face. "You fool! Stare into the face of Abyss and be lost in it! Your will is mine!"
Black Paladin did look into the mesmerizing face of Lord Abyss and did pause in his approach, but only for a moment. Raising his mace once more, the Black Paladin brought it violently down on the head of the man called Lord Abyss. There was a bone crunching sound and then the Morbane collapsed to the floor in a bloody heap.
"Victory is yours, milord!", Lady Bale cooed, breaking the stunned silence. "This base is now yours to command."
Paladin leaned down and cleaned the blood off his mace with the dead Morbane's cloak. "You were a fool to challenge me, Abyss. With the Emerald Eye in my possession, your mental powers were as nothing to the Black Paladin." Not sparing Lord Abyss another thought, the Black Paladin turned away.
In the center of the chamber was a raised platform with two chairs on it. From here, Lord Abyss and Lady Bale did command their charges. Black Paladin strode up those stairs and stood before the makeshift throne. "Does anyone here challenge my claim to this place?"
Those Demonwarriors who had been fighting for Lord Abyss in the room quickly shook their heads 'no' and dropped their weapons. "We serve you, milord," one of the men answered, as he fell to one knee. The others did likewise. "Give us your command."
Lady Bale advanced on Lord Abyss' assistant, who had remained silent and stunned over the events that had transpired before his very eyes. Bale pointed her sword at the man's throat with glee. "What of you, lackey? Whom do you call master?"
"I serve the new master," the man croaked out as he prostrated himself on the floor. "All hail our new master: the Black Paladin! My glory be his!"
"You've chosen wisely." Immensely pleased with herself, Lady Bale climbed the stairs to join Black Paladin on top of the platform.
The dark knight sat himself down with a flourish, letting his cloak fall behind the chair. He then shoved away the second chair before Lady Bale could arrive and claim it. It crashed to the floor with a thud. Paladin left no doubt to those assembled just who was in charge. "Kneel beside me, my consort. Let us bask in the glow of this victory for it is but the first of many to come."
Total obedience showing in her brown eyes, Lady Bale did as requested. She sat herself down on the floor beside the Black Paladin and lovingly stared at the dark knight.
"See to it that refuse is removed," Black Paladin instructed to his men as he gestured towards the remains of Lord Abyss. "I find his stench most unpleasant."
#15- "Up Close and Personal"
"What a night," Spectrum remarked offhandedly with a loud yawn. As usual he was wearing his colorful costume that broke colors down into primary and secondary combinations. "I'm beat. Physically and emotionally."
Last night had started off simply enough with X-Factor invading LA's Viper's Nest. The attack had gone mostly as planned with the base falling, but the capture of the Serpentine Crystal and the Nest Leader had eluded the heroes. Both of these had been top priorities of the team during the raid.
What had been unexpected was Spectrum, aided by Morning Star, being able to convince Icicle to surrender to PRIMUS authorities. The Nest Leader played a significant role in this outcome as he assaulted the icy mutant when she hesitated to attack X-Factor. Convincing PRIMUS of leniency for her was an entirely different matter.
Spectrum and Morning Star were instructed to remain in the Nest with Icicle while the rest of X-Factor was sent home. While they waited for word on Icicle's fate, the forces of Terror Unlimited raided the base in an attempt to acquire VIPER weaponry before it could be taken away to a more secure location. Scorpia slashed a bloody trail through PRIMUS agents with her trademark claws. The mentalist Mind Slayer and Irish powerhouse Shamrock accompanied the terrorist in her assault.
Morning Star and Spectrum were drawn into the fray and quickly overwhelmed. In spite of his better judgment, Silver Avenger Joseph Gray permitted Icicle to help out and was able to drive off Terror Unlimited, saving Morning Star's life in the process.
While PRIMUS was originally going have Icicle stand trial for her crimes, her invaluable assistance helped secure a lesser sentence. Icicle would be on a long period of probation with Spectrum and Morning Star essentially being her guardian. Unfortunately, part of the bargain involved X-Factor inheriting the VIPER's Nest to use as a base for the team. Icicle would also be housed here as well. (Editor's Note: A quick recap of X-Factor #11-14)
"I think we all could use some rest," Morning Star added wearily. "It's been a long time since I've stayed up all night." The heroine wore her trademark purple and lavender costume. Her outfit showed signs of the night's battles against VIPER and Terror Unlimited and her long dark brown hair was a mess.
"I'm too excited to sleep!", Icicle said in a giddy voice. "I can't believe that this is all happening. It hasn't really sunk in yet. My life has finally taken a turn for the better."
"You know I'm happy for you, Jen," Spectrum responded, "but I desperately need some shut eye. I'll stop back later and see how you are doing."
"I understand," Icicle answered as she gave Spectrum yet another hug. "I should get cleaned up and try to rest myself. I hope my room didn't get trashed in the attack. Thanks for everything."
"Don't thank me just yet, Icy. We've got a long road to travel yet."
"Good night," Morning Star stated as she put her hand on Icicle's shoulder. "I'll check up on you tomorrow as well. Let me know if you need anything and I'll see what I can do."
"Thanks," Icicle beamed. "I never imagined that someone like Morning Star would ever be concerned about my needs before."
"It's better than having her try to punch your lights out," Spectrum added with a laugh, "but I know what you mean."
Spectrum and Morning Star said their good-byes and departed the wrecked VIPER Command area. Wearily they made their way towards the exit. The pair stepped over rubble from the night's conflict and past PRIMUS operatives hard at work.
Silver Avenger Joseph Gray soon came into view. He was passing out orders to yet another group of PRIMUS Technicians. "Calling it a night you two?", he inquired once dismissing with his charges.
"Finally," Morning Star answered. "Icicle has retired to her room."
"I hope to have all non-essential equipment stripped from the base by Monday morning. You can figure on taking over that afternoon. We can iron out the final details then."
"Sounds like a plan," Spectrum responded with a wave as the two heroes continued on. "Later."
Moments later, the pair were walking down the long monorail tunnel towards the distant motor pool. Once reaching the motor pool, they continued on towards the exit. Outside the first rays of morning sunlight were beginning to illuminate the Los Angeles skyline.
"I guess I owe you my thanks," Spectrum stated after a time. "Yet again."
"Think nothing of it," Morning Star answered with a yawn. "In the short time that I've known you, I've come to respect you as a kind, considerate, and compassionate man. Those are highly desirable traits. Icicle is very lucky that she met you. We can talk later and figure out how we're going to explain this to everyone."
The praise coming from Morning Star caught Spectrum off guard. He stood there in momentary stunned silence. "Uhm, thanks for the compliment," the colorful mutant responded sheepishly. "High praise coming from someone of your stature. But, you are correct, of course. We can work things out later on. Good night or morning as the case may be." Spectrum waved goodbye as he took off into the air towards his distant home.
"Bye." Morning Star responded in kind before heading off towards her waiting car. Spectrum was just full of traits that the heroine found to be interesting in a man.
Angie Szymanski and Thomas Steward stepped out of The Hideout, one of the current trendier dance clubs in Los Angeles. The beautiful people would come out to party until the wee hours of the morning and last night was no exception. Arm in arm, the couple shared a laugh as they emerged to find the dawn of a new day.
Angie drew the stares of those men still in the area at this hour of the morning. Her attire was calculated to attract such attention and that was exactly what she had got. She wore skintight lavender colored vinyl capri pants with a matching top that left her midriff bare. High-heeled platform sandals clunked as she walked.
Thomas was far more casually dressed in a sports jacket and slacks combo. "Man, what a night! We celebrated all night long, babe."
After assisting X-Factor in the defeat of the VIPER's Nest, Blizzard and the Empress had decided to go out and celebrate. Even though they had started late, they managed to make the rounds quite successfully by now. They had closed out their third club.
"Now this is what a Saturday Night is supposed to be all about. Out having fun with my favorite guy and partying 'til dawn!"
"Well, looks like the party's over now," Thomas noted. "Everything's shut down."
"Oh, I don't know," Angie answered seductively. "What say we grab some breakfast and then head back to my place and keep the festivities going?"
"That is real tempting, but..."
Before Thomas could say anything further, Angie leaned over and gave him a long, wet kiss on the lips. The action left Thomas speechless. Angie smiled seductively "You were saying, Blizzie?"
"Uhm, I was saying how about I buy breakfast and we go back to your place for a while."
"That's what I thought." Placing her arm around Thomas, Angie headed towards his waiting car, her mind filled with the expectation of what was yet to come. She still had lots of partying left inside her just waiting to get out.
"How fascinating. A far more aesthetically agreeable harmonization of hues to the visual receptors."
The comment shook Sara Redmond out of her slumber. She groggily sat up and tried to take stock of the situation. Sara had crashed the night before on a cot she kept stored at her laboratory for those nights when she worked late and didn't feel up to driving back to her apartment.
Sara had been up very late the night before, first taking part in the sacking of the VIPER's Nest and then later re-painting her Shockwave armor. The latter had been spurred on by derogatory comments made by the Empress about Shockwave's dull mousy appearance. It had been past four when she finally called it a night. By that point, Sara had been too tired to attempt the drive home.
Nearby, stretched out on a small couch fast asleep was Lisa Horton. Lisa, better known as Mockingbird, had assisted Sara in the painting of her armor. Mockingbird had only been with X-Factor for a few days and had grown the closest to Shockwave as both had a strong scientific background when compared to the rest of the team. Their temperaments were also similar.
"Who's there?", Sara finally managed to say as she tried to focus in on the speaker while trying to locate her glasses. It took several beats for her to finally make recognition once she donned the spectacles. "SIMON? What are you doing? What time is it?"
The robotic major domo of X-Factor turned to face Sara upon hearing the query. "A thousand pardons, madam," the construct stated apologetically in his not quite human sounding voice. "It was not my objective to interrupt your slumber. I was merely commenting on the color modifications made to your armored ensemble. The current time is 9:48 AM."
SIMON was a gift from Captain Lightning of the Superior Seven based out of Dallas. The robot was constructed in the same design as DUKE, the Seven's own major domo. Both mechanical men had the basic humanoid shape, but no attempt had been made to make them look human. Their arms and legs were pipe thin, their trunks more rectangular. Headlights served as optical sensors, a speaker grill a mouth.
Since none of the other members of X-Factor quite knew what to do with SIMON, Shockwave had kept the mechanical man with her. It was simpler to keep him at her lab at LawTech than take SIMON back to her apartment. There would be fewer questions that way. Her employers knew that Sara was secretly Shockwave and had set up her lab to be more private and isolated than would be typically normal. This also included a small living area off to the side to be used when necessary.
"I distinctly remember requesting a noon wake up call," Lisa grumbled as she had been woken up by the conversation.
"Pleasant morning to you, Ms. Mockingbird," SIMON greeted. "My apologies for disturbing you." Mockingbird's reply was an unintelligible grunt.
Sara tried to pull herself together and move her unkempt hair out of her face. "What brings you here this early?" Her query was directed towards SIMON.
"I had received word that the junior Mr. Lawrence was on his way to pay a visit. I am here to alert you to his impending arrival."
"TJ is coming here?" Once that sank into Sara deep enough, she was off her cot in a flash and into the bathroom to make herself more presentable for her employer. While not the vainest of people, Sara first thing in the morning was not an image she wanted to project to anyone. She wanted to at least brush her hair and wash up.
"Who?", Lisa mumbled trying to keep up with the conversation. "Who's coming?"
"The son of the proprietor of LawTech," Simon advised. "The lad is also the controlling force behind Vindicator."
"Oh, right." Groggily, Lisa rose from the couch stretched and yawned. A moment later there was a knock on the door.
"I trust that is him now." SIMON ambled over to open the door. "Good morning, sir."
"Hello SIMON," a good looking man stated as he stepped into the lab. TJ Jr. had short brown hair with a mustache. He was casually dressed in shorts with a coordinating polo shirt. TJ was looking chipper this morning. "How are you this morning?"
"Functioning within acceptable parameters, sir."
Moving deeper into the lab, TJ approached a still half-a-sleep Lisa. "Ah, you must be Mockingbird. We weren't formally introduced last night. I'm TJ Lawrence Jr. How do you do?" The young man offered his hand towards a startled Lisa.
"Um, Hi," Lisa managed to stammer out. She had been unprepared for just how handsome TJ was. She suddenly became very self-conscious of her appearance. "I just woke up."
"No need to explain. I understand perfectly. My apologies if I disturbed you." TJ flashed his pearly whites as he apologized.
"It's quite alright, I assure you."
"'Morning," Sara said in greeting as she came out of the bathroom. She had managed to subdue her hair into something somewhat presentable. "Is there something on your mind?"
"Yes there is," TJ told Sara. "I was hoping that you would do me the honor of accompanying me for brunch in, say, two hours? It would give us some time to chat. Unless you have other plans of course?"
"Uhm, no I'm free," Sara answered. "Two hours is fine. That'll give me a chance to freshen up a bit. What did you want to talk about?"
"I was hoping to get your review of Vindicator's performance from last night. We have our own scans, records, and observations, but I was hoping to get an outsider's point of view."
"Unfortunately, I was not in the same group as Vindicator, if you recall. It would be difficult for me to make a review on something I didn't actually observe."
"If you don't mind a third for brunch, I was there and I'd be happy to share my observations on Vindicator's functions," Lisa spoke up hopefully.
"It's a date then," TJ answered with a laugh. "I'll pick you both up in two hours." TJ said his good-byes and departed the lab.
"Why didn't someone tell me that was so cute? I must have made a real wonderful first impression," Lisa complained.
Were he able, SIMON would have shrugged in response. "I am not programmed to respond in that area, madam. Corporeal splendor is in the optical receptors of the viewer."
Miles away in Marina del Rey, the ringing of the phone roused Samuel Carstairs out of his slumber. Groggily, he reached for the phone on his nightstand. The bedside clock told him that it was just after 11:00 AM.
"Sam here," he spoke into the receiver. A moment later, he realized that he was holding the phone backwards, flipped it back around, and repeated his greeting.
"Hi, Sam, it's Jackie Carter. Did I wake you? You sound like you just woke up."
As Sabre, Sam had been up very late the night before. First participating in the raid on VIPER's Nest and then later on buying his sister a new custom made heroine costume designed by Spinnerette herself. After that, he drove his sister back to his parents' San Fernando Valley estate before finally retiring to his own apartment.
"Jackie! I was just having the most pleasant dream about you," Sam answered, becoming more coherent. He threw his cover off and rose up to a sitting position along the side of the bed.
"Oh, that's sweet. What say we make your dreams come true?"
"You have my full, undivided attention, dear lady."
"It just happens to be a gorgeous, sun drenched day and I have a brand new bikini that I've been dying to try out. So I was thinking that perhaps some time at the beach, some dinner, maybe a movie, and see what happens from there."
"A most intriguing invitation," Sabre responded. "And one that I cannot let pass by. How about I swing over and pick you up in say one hour?"
"I'll be ready," Jackie answered excitedly. "See you then."
"Tori!", Denise Long complained as she opened the front door. As Morning Star, Denise had never gotten home until after 7:00 AM. She had gone straight to bed and was blissfully asleep until drawn to the front door by the ringing of the doorbell. It was now a little past noon and Denise was still half asleep. She had thrown a robe on to answer the door and pushed the hair back out of her face. "What are you doing here?"
"Now is that anyway to say hello to your best friend," Victoria Lacey wondered as she stepped into Denise's racetrack apartment. The young woman was dressed in a bright yellow short-sleeved top, black capri pants and matching yellow sandals. Her short black hair perfectly offset her sparkling green eyes. "You're going to make me feel unwanted."
"I'd invite you in, but you're already inside."
"Aren't we grouchy this morning," Tori observed with an amused grin. "Or should I say this afternoon? What time did you get home last night?"
As Tori spoke, Denise shuffled her way towards the kitchen. Coffee and toast were the first order of business for the day. "Seven this morning."
"Ouch. That explains your grouchiness." Tori easily kept place with Denise and even beat her to the kitchen. "So come on, give. What happened after we left? What's going on with Icicle?"
Denise explained as she groggily tried to make her breakfast. Tori curled up in a chair at the kitchen table and listened intently to her friend's tale. First about how PRIMUS was going to send Icicle to jail until her intervention against Terror Unlimited. Also covered was the price she and Spectrum were going to be paying for Icicle's limited freedom and the new base X-Factor had suddenly acquired.
Disbelief was clearly written on Tori's impish face. Upon hearing the end of the story, Tori began to shuffle around the knickknacks on the table and look under the place mats.
"What are you doing?"
"Looking for your mind," Tori explained in a serious voice. "I think you've lost it."
"Very funny," Denise responded between sips of her coffee. The strong brew had awakened her fully. "Just wait until I con you into helping me re-paint the base."
"I am good at painting ceilings," Tori laughed. "Don't even need a ladder. But seriously, why are you doing this?"
After taking a bite of her toast and chewing, Denise answered. "Because it's the right thing to do. I believe that Icicle can be helped and turned from her criminal ways. Isn't rehabilitating her far better than repeatedly sending her to prison? Who knows, she might even be a heroine someday."
"Villains changing sides? That'll be the day."
"You might be surprised," Denise countered. "After all, given how little we know about the local supers, who's to say that some of them weren't criminals at one time?"
"Point taken, but moving into a VIPER Base is just plain nutty."
"That was not my idea. Still, I think it's a step in the right direction. Things in X-Factor are definitely not dull."
"So I've noticed."
Denise finished up her breakfast and placed the dishes in the sink. "Any news on the Guardians?"
Spinnerette's teammates had disappeared under mysterious circumstances a few days earlier. Evidence suggested that they had traveled to another dimension to help out a kingdom they had once visited in the past. Spin had apparently missed the boat for going on that mission. Since then, there had been no word from her teammates.
"Nothing yet," Tori answered dejectedly. "Who knows how long they're going to be gone."
"Well, if you've got nothing better to do, how about joining me for some shopping."
That picked Tori right back up. "Now you're speaking my language! Where did you have in mind?"
"The paint shop. I've got lots of paint to buy to get rid of that hideous VIPER Green."
Wearily, Thomas pulled himself out of bed. The clock on the nightstand said that it was nearly 3:00 in the afternoon. He quietly stretched and scratched his back. "I'm getting too old for this," he thought to himself after having stayed up all night.
Angie still lay sleeping, finally having run out of energy. They had shared a hearty breakfast before returning back to her apartment for more intimate relations. "Man, I wish I had her stamina," Thomas wistfully thought to himself. As quietly as he could, Thomas began to collect his clothes. In spite of his best efforts to be silent, Angie began to stir.
"Blizzie?", Angie sleepily called out. "Where you going?"
"Duty calls, babe. I'm going to head back to my place and crash for a couple more hours. Don't forget we've got guard duty again tonight at LawTech. I'm going to have Impact tag along. He handled himself pretty well last night, so I'll give him a try out."
"Do we have to? I'd rather just party some more."
"Well, we do have to pay for all that celebrating, babe," Thomas noted as he slipped into his trousers. There's just a couple more nights left on this contract. I'm sure something will come up after that."
"Why don't you crash right here with me?", Angie wondered with a yawn.
"'Cause sleep is probably the last thing I'd end up getting. Hard to keep my hands off such a pretty lady as yourself."
"That makes sense. Call me later."
"Count on it, babe." Thomas leaned over and kissed Angie one more time. She then rolled over and fell back to sleep. Once dressed, Thomas tiptoed out of the bedroom and then departed for his own apartment.
"Thank you for a most delightful afternoon," TJ Jr. stated as he said made his goodbyes to Sara and Lisa. The trio had brunched at Chez Melange and talked for almost two hours. The girls had been given a ride back to Sara's apartment in a chauffeured limousine.
"We simply must do it again some time." TJ waved once more as he climbed back inside the spotless car and was driven off. Lisa and Sara waved back as the car moved away.
"Handsome, charming, and rich," Lisa sighed dreamily. "What a winning combination."
"I suppose," Sara answered nonchalantly, trying to maintain a serious look on her face. "Provided you go for that sort of thing." Lisa burst out laughing a moment later, quickly followed by Sara. "What am I saying?"
After managing to regain control, Lisa added, " I think he likes you."
"What makes you say that? You heard him, he wanted to talk about our observations of Vindicator in action."
"That was just a good excuse to get you to go out with him. And I had to butt in and tag along. Sorry I threw a monkey wrench into things."
"There's nothing to be sorry for," Sara answered. "I think you're making more out of this than is really there. Rich guys like that can have just about any woman they want. I'm just a scientist who occasionally runs around in a suit of armor trying to right wrongs."
"Don't sell yourself short, Sara. Beauty comes from within, not necessarily from out. If you'd pry yourself away from your lab and your life as Shockwave more often you'd discover that you are an attractive woman. Trust me, TJ is interested in you, and not just for your observations on Vindicator. Some times the hardest thing to do is believe in yourself. I know, I've been there."
Sara shifted uncomfortably as Lisa spoke to her. "Thanks. You've given me something to think about."
"Hey, if you ever want to talk, you know where to reach me," Lisa offered. "I don't mean to pry, but if I were to guess I would say that something tragic made you become Shockwave in the first place. Is there some great debt that you're trying to pay off? You don't seem to be in this for the fame or the glory."
"That's amazingly perceptive of you," Sara noted.
"Like I've said, I've been there. You have your little secret and I have mine. Perhaps when both of us are a bit more comfortable with each other, we can share them. But not just yet."
"Thank you again. I think I'd like that very much."
"Well, I should get going home," Lisa stated. "I'll seeya around."
"Bye."
Sara watched Lisa as she walked away for a few moments before entering her apartment building. A slight smile came to Sara's face. "Sorry, Lisa," she thought to herself, "but I already know your secret..."
Sam eased his sportscar onto Hollywood Boulevard, merging into the flow of traffic. After spending several hours relaxing on the beach, Sam and Jackie were on their way towards a late afternoon dinner.
The temperature had risen into the mid-eighties by now. It was a perfect day to be out and about cruising down the street. The top was down, allowing the sunshine to bathe those in the car. Sam was wearing a tank top and sunglasses. Seated beside him wearing a light blue silk sundress was Jackie Carter. She leaned back in her seat, letting the breeze blow through her short dark brown hair.
The flow of traffic, running smoothly for a change, began to slow down to a crawl.
"What's going on?", Jackie wondered aloud. "Maybe there's an accident up ahead."
"Hmmm," was Sam's reply. "I'll check."
Sam became to concentrate, summoning up his Blood vision. He began to see further up ahead and through solid objects in an attempt to find out what was causing the traffic snarl.
"Ah, there is our answer. Sheila Grace is getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. There's a crowd I would estimate of over one thousand people in attendance."
"Figures," Jackie grumbled. "Some big Hollywood flavor of the day bringing things to halt for their fifteen minutes of fame."
"You have never heard of Ms. Grace?" Sam was surprised to hear that. He imagined that everyone had heard of her by now.
"You mean the world famous supermodel, pop recording star, and if that wasn't enough, movie actress? You mean the Sheila Grace who was voted the most beautiful woman in the world? Only the most downloaded woman on the Internet? Nope, never heard of her," Jackie answered sarcastically, her arms folded across her chest.
Sam just laughed in response. "You're not jealous, are you?"
"Me? I don't get jealous; I get even."
Before Sam could question Jackie further, an explosion rung out in the distance. "I suspect that was not part of the planned festivities." Cries of alarm from hundreds of people quickly reached the couple's ears. Sam brought his Blood Vision into play once more. "Pulsar just showed up. I doubt that he's there for an autograph."
"We better investigate." Jackie reached her into bag and pulled out her service revolver and her LAPD badge. Sam watched as she did so. "Hey, just because I'm dating a superhero doesn't mean I don't also have a job to do. Beside, Pulsar might have armed goons on hand."
"Of course," Sam answered as he scanned the traffic around him. Spying an opening, Sam gunned his convertible onto a side street and away from traffic. Shutting the engine off, Sam got out of the car and opened the trunk. Inside was his Sabre costume and namesake sword. "Unfortunately, it will take me a few moments to change."
"I'll go on ahead." Without waiting for an answer, Jackie rushed off towards the distant commotion. "But you get the butt heads with Pulsar."
"Deal," Sam answered as he slipped into his Sabre costume.
