#cir has never wanted to hurt a fly

[jez-bez]

"I'm a robot. A machine bound by commands."

'Cir is a stalker!' 'Cir is a red flag!' 'Cir is manipulating!'

Sorta novel spoilers:

Cir, in fact, is mentally ill and a victim of abuse.

He doesn't know how to human. Does he make mistakes because of that? Yes. But he does so because he doesn't know the healthy way to do it.

Cir's never had anything of his own. His life wasn't even his own. He calls himself a robot and it's true because that's what he was raised like. His life has been nothing more than following orders. A tool used for revenge in his parents' divorce. Used for nothing more than power and control. Stretching, stretching, stretching the rubber band that symbolizes his life and sanity.

He had no autonomy. None. Zero. Because of that, he's never allowed himself anything.

But all humans (even those who are just 'tools') have hopes and wants. Ways that they wish they could be like, live like, act like. There's no way around the want aching deep in your very core. At some point, that rubber band will snap and they act out.

Is it then weird that Cir doesn't know a healthy way to do so? No. No, it is not. Cir doesn't know how to human, but he's trying. For the first time in… well, probably ever he's allowing himself to want something (someone!) He's just going about it the wrong way. But I can't fault him for that because he never a healthy example.

[writingfromkitchenator]

Queen of the Crossroads

Chapter 14: A Break for the Broken

Chapters:  One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten | Eleven | Twelve | Thirteen

Crowley had expected to hear from Sarah soon after the incident, had expected things to quickly go back to normal.  However, after several days and several messages in which there was no response, he realised that something else must be going on.

He sent several demons out looking for her at first, but he could tell they were reluctant and gave nothing short of poor reports that were inconclusive, so he knew his only choice would be to find her himself and it wasn't until he got frustrated that he realised, chances were, there would only be one spot where she would be.

Appearing before Sarah's house, Crowley knew he was in the right place when he heard the loud music coming from within.  He tried not to let his distaste show at the AC/DC playing, but he knew it was only going to be worse once he went inside.

He appeared in the kitchen, only to be stopped dead in his tracks, Sarah there, playing air guitar to the song, her hair out, dressed only in shorts, a t-shirt and socks as she slid around the kitchen, alternating between cooking on the stove, the coffee pot and back to air guitar.

Crowley tried to take a step forward, only to find himself blocked, and he looked up to find himself in a devils trap that had been carefully painted to the ceiling, and he glares at her, annoyed.  "Sarah."

Sarah ignores him, continuing on until the song ends, no matter what he said, and he eventually folds his arms, his eyes narrowing.

She finishes the song with a long guitar solo, leaving her kneeling on the floor and breathing hard, as if it had taken a lot of effort, and she snaps her fingers as the next song starts, leaving them in silence.

She grins at him as she gets back to her feet.  "Crowley."

"Are you quite finished?"  He asked angrily.

Sarah chuckles, turning her back to him as she pours out two cups of coffee.  "Well, it's been a pain in the arse avoiding it, but I was trying to ensure that I'd be left alone."

Crowley watched as she slid the cup across the table to him and moved to start plating the food.  "Are you going to let me out?"

"Well, in all fairness you have interrupted my time out, so maybe if you agree to leave me alone again, I'll consider it."  She sits at the table without looking up, her plate piled with eggs, bacon and toast.

"Seriously?"

She looks up as she eats a mouthful of food, eyebrows raised.  "What?"

It took a lot of effort for Crowley not to snap.  "You're not going to let me out of here unless I agree to leave you alone?"

Sarah shrugs.  "I get it defeats the purpose, but if I was in the mood for company, I would've messaged back."

Crowley growls a little.  "Sarah, you will let me out of this right now or so help me, no matter what deal we have-"

"Keep your pants on Crowley," Sarah throws her knife at the roof, effectively cutting the outer line of the circle.  "In all fairness, it wasn't meant for you, it was for any idiots that you sent after me in case they managed to find me.  Would much prefer to still be left alone though."

Crowley breathes hard for a moment before sitting at table, still frowning at her.  "All you had to do was reply to one of my messages."

She doesn't look at him, still eating away at her meal.  "Yeah, and if I said that I was taking a break for a little while, that would've brought you here sooner."

"We don't get the luxury of breaks love."

Sarah pauses for a moment, glancing up at him.  "Honestly, I don't actually care.  Doesn't change the fact that here I am and you are going to get out of my hair."

Crowley stares at her, as she looks back at her meal before pushing it away, looking annoyed, her body tense.  "One little incident shouldn't set you off like this."

"Little incident?"  She bit, her eyes flashing.  "I would hardly see the men that killed me as a little incident, but I guess I can't expect you to get that."

"You're right, I wouldn't."  Crowley lent forward on the table.  "After all, I got here through a deal and then worked my way up, where as you were virtually given gifts right from the get go, virtually given whatever position you wanted, so we are on very different pages."  When she just glares at him, he continues.  "What you are failing to understand Sarah, is that I've gotten incredibly good at reading people, it's how I worked my way to where I am, and you, my dear, have allowed yourself to be very easily read."

Sarah makes a noise of disapproval.  "Sure, let yourself think that."  She stands and takes her plate to the sink.  "I'm not in the mood Crowley."

Crowley absently taps the side of his mug, still watching her.  "All that research into souls love, it wasn't hard to work out."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

In a blur of movement, there is a small struggle before Crowley has Sarah pinned to a wall, eyes flashing red, hand around her throat, body pressed against hers.

"There's no point in playing coy," He said in a low voice.  "You've made it fairly obvious what you are up to.  Now, what exactly did Lucifer do to you?"

Sarah's hands were tight on him, but she doesn't struggle.  "I thought that would be obvious.  He tortured me till I damned well did what he wanted."

"And yet you are not a little demon practically begging at his feet."  He said lightly.  "So what else happened?"

"That's none of your concern!"

"Which is where you are wrong."  Crowley said.  "I'm the King of Hell love, and as much as you fascinate me, I know a threat when I see one, interested in the throne or not."

Sarah growled, her eyes shifting black.  "Get off me Crowley."

He smirks.  "Going to try and bring out the guns are we?"

There was a shift of energy and Crowley let his eyes bleed red, the lights shattering overhead, but he doesn't move.

"You still have a lot to learn love, powerful or not."  He said quietly.  "So there's no point in even trying that against me.  In this situation, it is easier to talk."

"I'm not interested in talking," She snapped.  "So you will get off me now!"

There was another flair of power, one that actually managed to push Crowley away a bit, his expression momentarily shocked as she goes to push him away, except he manages to grab her again, another struggle ensuing before he slams her hard onto the table, sending the coffee cups flying.

Crowley has her hands pinned to the table this time.  "Not wise love, you're only going to succeed in getting yourself hurt."

Sarah struggles this time, trying to arch up to free herself, but to no avail, growling, her eyes still black.  "This is not funny Crowley."

"Of course it's not,"  He said lightly and shifts so her hands are pinned under one of his, his other resting on her stomach, making her freeze.  "However if you won't tell me, then I'm just going to have to find out for myself."

"Don't-" A gasp leaves her as a twist of power curls through her stomach from his hand and she grits her teeth in pain, letting out a low growl, her foot finding purchase on the table to try and get him off.  "Stop!"

Crowley had found what he was looking for though, pushing further against it.  "Now, isn't that interesting."

What broke from Sarah was almost a sob and Crowley back off his power instantly, her body slumping as she breathed hard, eyes closed.  He watched her, curiousity in his gaze, even as he let his eyes return to normal.

"Are you satisfied yet?"  She growled, opening her eyes to glare at him.  "Did you find the answer you were looking for?"

"While it certainly answers my theory, satisfied is not a term I would use love."  He smirks a little, his hand having not left her stomach.  "How on earth did you manage to protect such a thing?"

"With great difficulty," She said.  "Now get off."

Crowley chuckled and backed off, allowing her to sit and straighten herself up, glaring at him.  "I'm glad you find this so amusing."

"Amusing?"  Crowley raises an eyebrow.  "Sarah, do you have any idea what sort of power you have managed to maintain?"

She grunts and looks away from him, eyeing the spilt coffee on the floor and snapping it away as she moves back to the coffee machine.

Crowley watches her closely.  "It's fading isn't it?"

He knew by the small shudder that went through her, that he was right.  "What?  Couldn't tell that by the little fun you had?"

"I could, but again, I'd much rather hear you tell me."

Sarah sighed, leaning on the bench for a moment before turning and facing him, folding her arms, her gaze hard.  "Fine.  I managed to keep a part of myself hidden from Lucifer, I knew it was the only way to help protect myself against whatever he had been playing, and it damned well worked and as far as I know, the bastard never figured it out.  When I was...possessed by Saphriel, I had to both bury it and use it to get out of that situation, unfortunately it seemed that it had consequences that I couldn't have predicted."

She turns her head and watches the coffee.  "At first it was hardly noticeable, like a tiny itch in the back of my mind, but eventually things started to change, I noticed that I could still feel particular things and that this could influence decisions being made.  Then, not long before I first came to see you, I noticed that it could cause pain and that pain would come with the feeling of it fading, of it dying.  I used every resource I had gathered to try and figure out what to do, but when I came up short, I knew that there had to be something more."

"Which is why you came to me."  Crowley stated.

Sarah nods, not looking up.  "I knew Hell would have resources I didn't, what I didn't expect was a faster decline that what I could've thought.  Killing...killing those three..."  She shuddered.  "Does that answer your questions?"

"More or less," Crowley said.  "And I hope you realise love, that had you simply asked, I could've provided a solution."

Her head snapped up to look at him.  "What?"

He raises an eyebrow.  "I've been in this game a long time dear and my business was in dealing with souls, and as unique as your circumstances are, there is a solution that I could provide."

"And you expect me to just trust you like that?"

"We both know you do, Sarah, despite what you tell yourself."

Sarah scowls and she rolls her eyes even as he smirks.  "I don't trust anyone Crowley, I assure you, and I certainly wouldn't trust you with this.  Just tell me what I need to do and I'll handle it myself."

Crowley shakes his head.  "If it were that simple, I would, but you're going to need my help whether you like it or not, especially if you want to keep this quiet, which I recommend."

Sighing in irritation, Sarah turns to make another cup of coffee.  "Whatever, I don't currently have the patience to deal with this."  She pauses as she feels Crowley approach.  "I mean it Crowley, I'm not in the mood."

When his hands rest either side of her on the bench, she turns, finding him barely inches away from her, grinning.

"You are unbelievable, I hope you know that."  She said quietly.  "I should've left you in that damned trap."

"And where would the fun in that be?"  He asked.  "I've been wanting to see what you were properly capable of for a long time and once we've dealt with that little issue, I have a feeling you're going to understand just how powerful you can be."

"If you're not careful Crowley, I may just end up kicking your arse."  She growled.  "And after today I'm of half a mind too."

Crowley looks at her before a slow smile comes to him and he chuckles, stepping back.  "Enjoy your break Sarah, I wouldn't recommend taking too long though, people might start to talk."

With that, he vanished, leaving Sarah glaring at where he'd been before she let out a long breath and poured her coffee, snapping her fingers to let the music come back on, sitting heavily at the table, looking tired.

Taglist

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Add yourself here.

[americanalien-a-blog]

INTERVIEW MEME         

★ pick one of your muses. ★ fill in the questions as if you are being interviewed for an article and you  were your muse. ★ tag some friends to do this meme! tagged by: @sonofsuperman (Thank you <33) tagging: @b-atmans, @perfectforayear, @elextrospeed, @futuresuper, @circuitboardskin and anyone else who wants to do it!

1. What is your name? “My name is Clark Kent, although most people know me as Superman.“

2. What is your real name? “My birth name, you mean. Because Clark Kent is still a real name. My birth name is Kal-El.”

3. Do you know why you’re called that? “Kal-El means ‘star child’ in Kryptonian. El is the House I belong to, which means ‘star’. Kal is ‘child’. And... I’m called Clark because of my ma. Clark was her surname when she was single.”

4. Are you single or taken? “Taken.” (Verse dependent: Lois Lane, Batman @b-atmans) Or, “Single.”

5. What are your powers and abilities? “... many. I mean... let’s start with my Kryptonian powers. Kryptonian physiology, solar radiation absorption, superhuman strength, invulnerability, longevity, superhuman stamina, flight, superhuman speed, superhuman hearing, super smell, self-sustenance, super breath, heat vision, super vision which includes electromagnetic spectrum vision, telescopic vision, microscopic vision, x-ray vision and thermal vision. My abilities are that I’m an expert combatant, genius level intellect, indomitable will which has Torquasm Vo and Torquasm Rao, investigation, journalism, leadership and ventriloquism.“

6. What color are your eyes? “Ma used to tell me my eyes has a shade of blue which she couldn’t describe. Very alien. But yes, they’re blue.”

7. Have you ever dyed your hair? “No.”

8. Do you have any family members? “My family is big. And, I’m really proud of them. Starting with my wife Lois and my son, Jon. Then, I have Pa and Ma, Jonathan and Martha, and my biological parents, Jor-El and Lara. My cousin Kara and her parents, Kara ‘Power Girl, Kon-El and Chris, my foster son. Cir-El, my daughter from another time and Krypto, my dog. Mon-El, my friend. And, so many others.”

9. Do you have any pets? “My loyal dog, Krypto.”

10. Tell me about something you don’t like. ‘Many things, but especially disorder and chaos. I don’t like injustice either. Also, dishonor.”

11. Do you have any hobbies or activities you do in your spare time? “I like farming, reading, writing, spending time with my family and friends, flying around, helping people.”

12. Have you ever hurt anyone before? “Yes, and sometimes to protect the innocent. But, emotionally, also yes. I’m not proud of that, I think violence is never the right option.”

13. Have you ever… Killed anyone? “... I try not to. It’s one of my moral codes. But, I’ve killed already. Not proud of that.”

14. What kind of animal are you? “I believe I’m a dog. I’m loyal, friendly, full of love to give.”

15. Name your worst habits. “Ah... I tend to sleep in the air, floating while asleep. Thank god Lois doesn’t mind that. I also have the terrible habit of lecturing people.”

16. Do you look up to anyone? “Everyone. It doesn’t matter whether it’s an innocent citizen or a criminal. A human or an animal. An alien or a Terran. I look up to everyone.”

17. Gay, straight, or bisexual? “I... well, I like guys and girls.”

18. Do you go to school? “Not anymore. I used to, though.”

19. Do you ever want to marry and have kids someday? “Well, I already have.” He smiles heartily. (Verse dependent)

20. Do you have any fans? 'Yes, and I love them. Especially the little kids I visit at schools.”

21. What are you most afraid of? “Failing everyone. I mean... the worst thing that can happen to me is fail someone. Not being able to save a person... I...” He thinks of his father, and shakes his head. “That’s why I try to do my best.”

22. What do you usually wear? “Besides my classic red-blue-yellow outfit? Suits, fedoras, ties, glasses, social shoes, jeans, etc. The usual stuff.”

23. Do you love someone? “Of course I do. I love everyone, I love this planet. I love being alive, and serving people.”

24. What class are you? “I believe I’m middle class, and I’m happy with it.”

25. How many friends do you have? “Many. Besides my family, I have the Justice League members, in special Bruce and Diana, the Daily Planet crew, Bibbo, Captain Sawyer, and many others.”

26. What are your thoughts on pie? “I love PIES! Ma’s apple pie is the best!”

27. Favorite drink? “Milk. Fresh milk is amazing.”

29. What is your favorite place? “Besides my home? My home.”

30. Are you interested in someone? “Yes.” (Verse dependent)

31. What’s your bra size?

32. Would you rather swim in the lake or the ocean? “Lakes. I like how quiet they are.”

33. What’s your ‘type’? “A person who’s good in essence, who wants the best for the others, who enjoys helping people. Someone who fights for the greater good.”

34. Any fetishes?

“Erm... reserved to lovers only.”

35. Top or bottom? Dominant or submissive?

“Depends on the circumstances.“ He clears his throat. “Usually, I’m top and dominant.”

36. Camping, or indoors? “I love camping, but being indoors is good too.”

37. Are you waiting for this interview to be over? 'Not at all. I love talking to people, and I’m really happy to tell more about myself to everyone.”

[sonofsuperman-archive]

INTERVIEW MEME (Long Post Warning)            

★ pick one of your muses. ★ fill in the questions as if you are being interviewed for an article and you  were your muse. ★ tag some friends to do this meme! tagged by: @the-amazing-amazon tagging: @americanalien, @vcspertiilio, @perfectforayear, @dawnofspeed, @licn, @error1nmycode, @ironmaidenfan, @dxntlikebullies, @prodxgaliron, @telekinctics

1. What is your name? “Superboy, ma’am,” he quickly responded, hand reaching up to bow his cap in greeting but since he was in costume, the boy was forced to comb his hair to act ‘normal’, “pleasure to meet ya.”

2. What is your real name? “Ah... umm...” alien blue eyes darted to the side, glancing around in hopes to figure out what to say. Chewing on his bottom lip, the young hero shrugged before making his excuse, “well... that’s a secret. I ain’t allowed to say it. Sorry!!”

3. Do you know why you’re called that? “Well...” he started, eyebrows scrunching up in thought, how was he named Superboy again? “Dad decided to call me Superboy when I first dawned the costume and it kinda stuck enough that when he introduced me to uncle Br-Batman” Oh Krypton, uncle Bruce would kill him for that slip up, “and aunt Diana, that became my hero name.”

4. Are you single or taken? “... I’M A KID!!” why would they even ask that?? Jon had panicked and shouted a response, hands clutching his chest and staring widely at the interviewer, “I’m single of course!!”

5. What are your powers and abilities? “Uhh..” fingers slowly lifted up as the super son tried to say all of his powers, “I have super strength, super speed, super hearing, heat vision, freeze breathe, x-ray vision, telescopic vision, super well- I can smell really good and from a far distance, I don’t have flight mastered yet but I can hover... uh uh.” Clutching his head, his eyes squeezed shut trying to remember, what else did he have, “Oh I have that super breathe thing where I can shout really loud like Aunt D-Canary and break glass!! So I have 10 I think. Abilities well, I’m great at Kryptonian technology and science, especially aerospace stuff, I can calculate really really fast since my mind processes faster.. is that more of a power than an ability? I dunno.. oh! and I can operate heavy machines, like trucks, tractor, etc. I’m gonna learn how to fly an airplane though. Robin says he might teach me if we could ‘borrow’ uncle Batman’s batplane... don’t tell him though.”

6. What color are your eyes? “They’re blue, I got ‘em from my dad, I think. I mean mom has a human-like blue while I have the same blue as dad, supergirl, and powergirl.”

7. Have you ever died your hair? “Nahh..” he answered, running a hand through his hair and grabbing a few strands to look at it, “I like my hair color. When ya have eyes like mine, ya see each hair’s different color and they look amazing. Dyed hair though, ya’d see the chemical and all.”

8. Do you have any family members? “Yepp!!!” he grinned wide, leaning forward to the interviewer, excited to talk about his family, “I got my dad Kal-El who’s Superman, I got mom who hasta remain a secret, I got my two aunts Kara Zor-El and Kara Zor-L, there’s a difference with one not having the E in El, they’re Supergirl and Powergirl, I got my sister Cir-El, she doesn’t have a hero name yet, and I’ve got my brothers, Kon-El and Lor-Zod, they’re Superlad and Nightwing. Pretty cool, right?!? Not to mention my aunts and uncles in the Justice League and the Batfamily!!”

9. Do you have any pets? “Yepp!! I have two but I can’t name the other one. The first one, ya might know. His name’s Krypto the Superdog.” Placing a cupped hand against the side of his mouth to hide it from the audience, he mock-whispered, “he’s definitely better than Ace the Bathound.”

10. Tell me about something you don’t like. “I DON’T like bullies,” his lips formed a frown to reassure his statement, remembering the bullies in his school and the bigger bullies around the world. “Just cause someone’s smaller, weaker, disabled, a minority, doesn’t mean ya’re allowed to bully him or her or xe!! We should all love everyone and take care of each other!”

11. Do you have any hobbies or activities you do in your spare time? “Yeah! When I’m not trainin’, doin’ missions, learnin’, or doin’ homework, I’m usually watching tv shows, playing video games, or just using the internet. I also take care of a lot of animals in our place and cook or bake. Sometimes I create flying saucers and other things for fun too.”

12. Have you ever hurt anyone before? “I have,” he quietly confessed, looking to the side to avoid the interviewer’s eyes, his hands rubbing up and down his arms for his own comfort, “when I was learnin’ how to use my heat vision, Dad forced me to use it and I accidentally hit him causing him to bleed.” His dad was suppose to be invulnerable against most things but his heat vision was more powerful than his dad’s and so he was able to harm him. “Also I punched Robin a few times before we teamed up cause he was being mean and kidnapped me.”

13. Have you ever… Killed anyone? “Nope. and I don’t wanna. I may be new in this hero business but.. well.. I think every human being is precious and I’d never want to kill one.” Not to mention that the first time he’d seen and smelt blood, he had panicked and ran away, what more trying to kill someone who could be loved by someone and missed by people.

14. What kind of animal are you? “PUPPY!! Definitely!” there was confidence in his voice as he once again smiled, glad that they were out of the topic of harming people. “My sis tells me that I’m like a puppy, so do my aunts. It fits cause dad’s described as a dog.”

15. Name your worst habits. “When mom and dad leave me alone at home, I kinda sorta... eat all the icecream at home. I mean, they’re just there.. expiring.. it’s my duty as an ice-cream lovin’ boy to make sure they don’t go to waste, y’know?”

16. Do you look up to anyone? “Of course!! Dad definitely. He’s the ideal superhero, kind, strong, smart, values equality and justice. I wanna be like him someday and when I become Superman, I’ll make sure to be like him.” Not to mention his siblings, the whole justice league, and every hero he fawns over but that should be kept quiet for now.

17. Gay, straight, or bisexual? “Wait.. wha...” he was speechless, why would they ask this, he was here as a hero and not just any hero, a kid hero. In fact, he didn’t even know that there was such a thing called labels until he was put into school. His whole life, his mom and dad taught him that love is love, no matter which gender the person you loved is. Why would it be needed. “I dunno, nor do I wanna label myself once I grow old. Love’s love and I’ll be open to whatever my heart wants.”

18. Do you go to school? “Yeah, I do. I’m in grade 5 actually. I can’t say which School though but..” he chuckled at his own thoughts, “it’s on Earth, don’t worry. I’d graduate in Earth standards.”

19. Do you ever want to marry and have kids someday? “Hm....” elbows placed on top of his legs, hands cupping to hold his head up high, he’d never thought of such a question before, nor was he asked. Jon’s only started having crushes and was more focused on figuring out how to keep his cool and charm the person. “I guess?!? I mean I’ve always wanted a big family so if I can have kids and someone with me like mom is with dad, that would be awesome.”

20. Do you have any fans? A small embarrassed chuckle left the super’s lips, cheeks turning red, and a hand messing his hair, “yeah,” he spoke in a soft and quiet tone, glancing away from the interviewer and looking at a wall, “I actually just found out recently that I do. I was looking through the internet and found them talkin’ bout me. Conspiracy theories, experiences, etc. They’re pretty nice!! and really sweet.”

21. What are you most afraid of? “Dying.” It was a quick reply, one that weighed heavily in his heart. After that scare with Ruppletat, one where their whole house was being burned down by white flames and him slowly being erased, he had thought that he was going to die and had been to scared to cry. The stress of being in the 5th dimension kept him calm for the most part and angry at the imp but once they got home, Jon had cried his heart out in fear. Unable to stop himself from gulping, he nodded to confirm his answer before quietly whispering, “... being forgotten.”

22. What do you usually wear? “Well I usually pick comfy jeans, white socks, and rubber shoes but... for shirts I go long-sleeves, often white, and some jackets.”

23. Do you love someone? “Of course!! who wouldn’t?” he couldn’t live without loving someone, from his parents, to his siblings, to his many aunts and uncles, even the bat family and classmates. “

24. What class are you? “Ya mean like in richness? Um.. I’d like to think we’re middle class, not rich but not struggling,” they had a farm, had all the eggs, meat, milk, etc. they could have and so they could live by even with dad working as a hero and mom just gaining her Daily Planet work. The truth was, they could easily be rich, dad could make diamonds out of coal easily and Jon plans on learning the same trick soon, but they didn’t do that and it counted.

25. How many friends do you have? “I got a few close ones around my age,” since most of his classmates were just acquaintance or bullies who didn’t like him standing up for those ‘weak’, “and several that I’m friendly with, especially teen heroes.”

26. What are your thoughts on pie? “Dad makes a really good one! I think he got that recipe from Gramma. I like apple pie the most!”

27. Favorite drink? “ROOTBEER!” Jon immediately answered only to cough, welp, there goes his coolness, all due to his excitement of rootbeer. Playing it off, his lips pressed together and formed a smile, nodding at himself, “rootbeer’s the best drink ever! I drink it all day really.”

29. What is your favorite place? “Definitely the Fortress of Solitude!” the crystal-like palace was amazing, even so with his super vision and his ability to pick up colors that normal humans couldn’t see. “I mean, Uncle Batman’s moon cave is great and all but nothing beats the Fortress.”

30. Are you interested in someone? “Interested? Like I wanna learn more about them? or is it the romantic sense? If it’s just interest, well, I find every being interesting, they all have a different life story and its great to hear them. If it’s romance, wait a few more years, or once I’m 20.”

31. What’s your bra size?

32. Would you rather swim in the lake or the ocean? “Lake. It’s safer than the ocean and I haven’t learned howta properly swim yet. Uncle A-Aqua’s gonna teach me once he has a free schedule though!” He was far too excited at talking about Aquaman teaching him how to swim, who could say that the King of the Sea helped them learn how to swim?

33. What’s your ‘type’? “Type? Ya mean what I’d like on a person?” yet another question he never thought about before, his mind started drifting to his crush and quickly talked about what made him like her, “she... or he, I dunno,.. has to be someone I can trust and are friends with, they hafta know how to make me happy, they hafta be happy spendin’ time with me, they hafta be really really pretty, oh and they hafta know how to bake or cook!”

34. Any fetishes?

35. Top or bottom? Dominant or submissive?

36. Camping, or indoors? “Indoors, I like havin’ a good bathroom, internet, and a comfy bed but if I need to camp, I would enjoy the moment too.”

37. Are you waiting for this interview to be over? His grin was a tiny bit forced to hide his embarrassment once more, he could lie but this interview made him nervous and weirded him out... a lot. Why would they ask him about romance? Unless he had preteen fans.. blue eyes widened at that thought before trying to answer, “I.. well.. ya know hero work is never done and I kinda need to do my math homework if I wanna patrol Metropolis later so... yeah kinda. Sorry!”

[aj22writes]

Chapter nine...

...is the most important so far. I made it clear a while back that this story would have villains. Here, I make it clear how powerful those villains are. The one who fights in this chapter is only the second strongest of the three, as well. Keep that in mind for extra surprise value.

Chapter Nine

The Sol Takers Attack

Jen scrutinized Lawrence carefully. He gave off a level of confidence that bordered on arrogance and overconfidence. Jen had known a lot of fighters who were as confident as Lawrence, but Jen got the impression that Lawrence was actually deserving of that confidence. Jen couldn’t get what Karen had said out of her head. She’d claimed that her group represented an organization. The Sol Takers. Jen didn’t know of any team with that name, and the name itself was unsettling. If Karen was serious, if she wasn’t just making things up to sound intimidating, it meant that there was more to this than a simple challenge taken too far.

“Tucker,” Jen said, “I think there’s more to these guys than meets the eye. We need a plan.”

“Oh come on,” Tucker replied, grinning, “he’s just one guy. He doesn’t stand a chance against both of us. In fact, I want you to hang back and let me take a swing at him myself.”

Jen opened her mouth to protest, but before she could, Tucker rushed Lawrence. His attack was straightforward, and he didn’t take the time to back it with Sol. It was the same kind of move that Jen had seen him use many times to test the waters of a fight at the Old Park. Normally an attack like this wouldn’t be a problem for someone as resilient as Tucker, but Jen just couldn’t shake the feeling that, this time, it wasn’t at all appropriate. She sighed, and charged forward a few steps behind him. He threw a punch at Lawrence’s face, which Lawrence blocked casually with his left hand. So Tucker struck again. Lawrence deflected this strike as well, and stepped in close, thrusting his left palm forward, striking Tucker square in the center of the chest with enough force to send him tumbling.

Jen tried to use the exchange between Tucker and Lawrence to get inside Lawrence’s guard, coming at his from his right side. She’s assumed that his left hand was his dominant hand, but as Jen drew close, Lawrence shifted his stance, and raised his right hand to defend. He stepped around Jen’s reaching fist, and then elbowed her in the side of the head, knocking her to the side. She reached deep, calling upon the energy of her Sol, lowering her own personal gravity. She fell lightly to the ground, and sprang back up instantly, sailing high into the air, hanging there longer than she should have. She shifted her weight, turning to face Lawrence again, just in time to see him form his reptilian avatar arm again, over his left arm, reach across the width of his torso, and grab Jen by the leg. Lawrence, with virtually no effort, pulled Jen back down out of the air, and slammed her into Tucker, who had just found his feet again.

The two Dueling Hearts tumbled over each other. Lawrence was on them. His glowing golden arm swung downward in a wide arc. Jen and Tucker rolled apart just before they were hit. The impact of Lawrence’s avatar first against the ground was enough to crack the asphalt, even through the rubberized padding that cushioned it.

Tucker was on his feet first. He threw himself at Lawrence, lunging inside Lawrence’s guard. He threw an uppercut at Lawrence’s chest, as Lawrence was still falling in the wake of his attack. The impact of Tucker’s strike would have been huge anyway, but in that instant, Tucker forced some of his Sol into his arm, increasing his offensive strength. Lawrence, at the last second, dissolved his avatar arm, crossed his arms over his chest, and then reformed his arm, letting it absorb most of the force of Tucker’s blow. Lawrence was knocked back, through the air, but he landed square on both feet, unharmed.

Lawrence counterattacked. He raised his avatar arm up over his head, and lunged forward, bringing his arm down toward Tucker’s head. Tucker darted to the side, and rushed at Lawrence, but Lawrence swung his avatar arm wide and knocked Tucker effortlessly to the side. Then Lawrence turned toward Jen, who had just finished tracing her gravity control sigil with her toes. She’d used Tucker’s insistent attack to buy herself time, but it was no use. She kicked the sigil at Lawrence, but he lifted himself up using his oversized arm, and threw himself out of the sigil’s path. It flashed to life several yards from his position, lighting up the fighting stage with purple light.

Lawrence shot Jen a wicked smile. She wrapped herself in purple light, lowering her personal gravity again, just as Lawrence rushed her at his full speed. Jen could barely track his movements. The light from her sigil filling the back lot helped. She was able to twist out of the way of Lawrence’s right fist just in time, and then leap clear over his sweeping giant arm. She rolled in the air, and landed behind him, but by the time she did, he’d turned to face her again. He thrust his claws toward her, and it took all of her strength to deflect them to the side. As she had with Mike in the exhibition match, she left some of her energy in the glowing light of Lawrence’s avatar, and it suddenly increased in weight, it’s hand dropping heavily to the ground.

Jen hopped up onto Lawrence’s glowing, golden arm, and ran up it. She actually managed to catch Lawrence by surprise. He dissolved his arm again, but just before he did, Jen sprung up and launched a quick front kick at his face. He ducked, and Jen’s foot sailed over the top of his head. He reached up and grabbed Jen’s leg, twisted, and threw her to his right. She wrapped herself in purple light once again, cushioning her fall, but she was still sent tumbling, and left winded.

This time, though, it was Jen who managed to buy time for her partner. Tucker was on his feet again, and as soon as Lawrence threw Jen, Tucker was on him. He didn’t have time to defend. Tucker threw three punches in succession at Lawrence’s ribs, and then a final full strength right hook to Lawrence’s face. The Sol Taker was caught in the jaw, and knocked off of his feet. He picked himself up quickly, but by the time he was on his feet again, the makeshift arena was alight with flashes of fiery red and orange.

Tucker had forced his Sol and his life energy to mix, and seized the energy that it produced, wrapping his body in it and awakening his aura. He shuffled forward, and threw one final attack at Lawrence, with force enough to topple buildings, but Lawrence only looked amused. He shuffled back, and both of his arms became wrapped in golden light that took the form of different arms, stubbier than the last, covered in thick bony plates instead of scales. These new avatar arms had no long claws, but they were durable enough to stop Tucker’s strike dead.

Tucker stepped back, surprised, his aura falling away. Jen, back on her feet, was just as taken aback. Lawrence relished in their confusion. “You didn’t think that my offensive avatar was the only one that I could make, did you?” he asked. “Even that amateur that your team fought in the exhibition match could make more than one avatar, and I’m far beyond his meager levels of skill.”

He lowered his arms, and while the armored avatar over his right arm persisted, the one over his left arms disappeared. He raised his left arm, and the oversized, clawed arm reformed around it.

“You can make them both at once,” Jen remarked.

“You assume that I only have two,” Lawrence replied cheekily. He lowered his left arm again, and both of his golden avatars disappeared. Golden light spread out like streamers from his back, and formed huge wings, like bats’ wings. They flapped once, and then twice, and again and again, lifting Lawrence clear off of the ground. He didn’t rise much further than a foot or two, but the display had the intended effect. Jen and Tucker were shocked.

Their opponent could fly.

Lawrence flapped his glowing golden wings once, as hard as he could, and shot up several more feet. He dropped toward Jen and Tucker, his wings dissolving, one of the offensive avatars forming around each of his arms. He slashed with both. Jen and Tucker dove to either side, but they were too slow. They were each struck with a glancing blow. Jen was caught in her right side, and Tucker was caught in his left arm. Both were left with open wounds that, while not nearly as deep as they could have been, dripped blood and left the two fighters in excruciating pain.

From the sideline, both Jo and Sara had to restrain themselves from leaping to the defense of their friends. Meanwhile Jen and Tucker both, despite everything, struggled to their feet once again. They looked up at Lawrence, just in time to see him strike the claws of his avatar arms against the ground, sparking waves of Sol that traveled along the ground toward his opponents, tossing them both like ragdolls into the air. Tucker landed on his injured arm, and cried out. Jen, who had managed to land on her less injured side, wasn’t much better off. Lawrence approached them, his claws raised.

“That’s enough,” Jo insisted, drawing Lawrence’s attention to herself, “you’ve made your point.”

She was blown away. Never in her wildest dreams could she have conceived that Lawrence might be this strong. That he might be able to take down Jen and Tucker with so little effort. As far as she was concerned, the first round was over. Jen, however, has a different idea.

“No, Jo,” she said, pushing herself to her feet, with a huge amount of effort. Just looking at her hurt, but she stood against Lawrence anyway, and declared, “I’m not finished yet.”

Lawrence looked her over, and said, “Interesting. I might have underestimated you after all. You have zero chance against me, and still you keep fighting. I’d find it respectable, if it weren’t so pointless.”

“You literally just said that you underestimated me,” Jen replied, circling Lawrence slowly, “and here you are doing it again.”

Lawrence chuckled, and dissolved his arms. He lunged at Jen, and threw a series of punches. Jen, acting on instinct, managed to dodge and deflect them all, but she was left wincing in pain, having jostled her wound. She stepped to the side, turning her wounded side away from Lawrence, and he stepped in closer, shuffled in place, and threw a kick at her torso, aiming for the very region that she was trying to protect. Jen knocked his foot away, and retaliated, but the pain of her injury made her slow. She missed by a mile, and Lawrence socked her square in the jaw. She almost crumpled, and stumbled back and to the side, but she managed to stay on her feet. She gasped, and doubled over, clutching her side. Her face was shrouded in the shadow of her body, but Jo thought that she could hear her cousin crying.

Lawrence stepped forward again, and faced off with Jen directly. “You came so close,” he told her. “You almost earned my respect, but in the end, you’re just another pathetic wannabe. It’s disgraceful, that someone as weak as you could actually be one of the fighters that we’re looking for. I didn’t want to believe it, but fighting you myself, I can’t deny it anymore.”

“What do you mean?” Jo demanded. She looked from Lawrence to Karen.

“We’ll explain once the match is over,” Karen promised, “but long story short, the leader of our organization thought that you and your friends might be something special. It’s why we were watching the four of you in the first place. Even after seeing you fight, we couldn’t be sure if you were the ones that we were after or not, so we decided to test you ourselves.”

“And despite how pathetic they were,” Lawrence added, still glaring at Jen, “these two passed.”

“Which means it’s likely that the rest of you will as well,” Karen concluded, never taking her eyes off of the fighters in the makeshift arena. To Jo’s surprise, Karen didn’t seem to think that the fight was over. It took a moment for Jo to realize why. All of Jen’s movements, as unplanned as they had seemed, had actually accomplished something. Lawrence was turned completely away from Tucker, and Tucker was steadily sliding himself closer and closer. Suddenly, Jo realized what Jen was planning, and she realized that her cousin wasn’t crying. She was laughing.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Jen told Lawrence with a chuckle, “about us being special, or whatever, but I don’t care. You, Lawrence, are the most arrogant person I’ve ever met. You’ve underestimated me and Tucker at every turn. You thought that you were in complete control of this fight, but you don’t even realize that you’ve made a fatal mistake. That you forgot something important that’s going to cost you this match.”

She looked up at him, smiling, and asked, “Hey Lawrence, remember that sigil that I made earlier? What exactly happened to that?”

Lawrence’s smirk turned to a scowl, as he realized that the sigil’s purple light was nowhere to be seen. It had faded away minutes ago, during his last exchange with Jen. He hadn’t even considered that it might still be active somewhere, and he’d completely lost track of where she’d initially put it. Jen, however, had not. Taking advantage of Lawrence’s brief moment of confusion, she rushed him, and tackled him, shoving him backwards. In that same moment, Tucker sprung up, and threw a spin kick at Lawrence’s sternum, knocking him back further. He stumbled, and before he could rise again, he was bathed in purple light. The sigil flared back to life, with Lawrence dead in its center, pulling him back down before he could straighten up.

Tucker moved to stand next to Jen, cradling his bloody arm. Despite everything, Jen had managed to get Lawrence inside her sigil. She’d won, with Tucker’s help. She’d proven once again that intelligence trumps power.

“You can’t do this,” Lawrence said, his voice low, almost like a growl.

Jen ignored him. Her body became wrapped in purple light, and she stepped casually into her own sigil, completely unaffected by the increased gravity within. She planned to finish Lawrence the same way that had James in the exhibition match, but unfortunately she never had the chance.

“You can’t do this,” Lawrence said again, this time loud, like a roar. His entire body was wrapped in golden light, and a huge avatar formed around him, lifting his actual body several feet off of the ground. Jen shuffled back, as suddenly Lawrence filled the entire sigil. He’d donned a full body avatar shaped like a squat, wingless dragon with bulging, muscular legs, and armored plates like those found on his more defensive arms earlier in the fight running from it’s flat-nosed face to the tip of its tail. In fact, the arms of this avatar were the same as those defensive arms. This was the body that went with them. Lawrence raised his arms, and he slammed them into the ground with so much force that the ground beneath his shattered and exploded outward. The sigil beneath him broke, and he rose to his full height of fifteen feet.

“You lectured me about underestimating you,” Lawrence said, “while you were underestimating me. You never even considered that I was holding back the entire time.”

He stomped his dragon avatar forward, covering more distance than either Jen or Tucker would have expected on the merits of his size alone, and spun, slapping Jen with the back of his massive hand, sending her flying. She would have hit the back wall of the dojo, but Jo Shadow Stepped into her path and caught her. She was unconscious.

Tucker looked on the monstrous form of his opponent with something between disbelief and horror. Jen had underestimated Lawrence at the end, but Tucker had underestimated him from the start. If he hadn’t, they might have been able to work together to beat him before coming to this point. Now Jen was hurt, maybe badly hurt, and it was all his fault.

Lawrence turned his avatar to face Tucker, as Tucker, acting on impulse, forced the energy of his Sol to mix again with the life energy at the core of his being. He forced those energies together and held them together for as long as he could stand, for much longer than the second or so that he normally did. Energy poured from him, melting the rubberized surface beneath his feet, and he bore down on that energy, molding it, shaping it into an aura that reached above the street lights. Tucker, his eyes shining with literal fire, turned that aura away from him, launching himself toward Lawrence with the speed of a rocket. He drew back, and he punched Lawrence in his avatar’s chest with an energized fist. Fire exploded from the point of impact, filling Tucker’s field of view, but he didn’t need to see Lawrence to know that he’d failed. He could tell just from the feel of the impact that he hadn’t managed to break through Lawrence’s armor this time, either.

As the smoke and fire died down between them, Tucker collapsed at Lawrence’s feet. Between his final outburst, and all of the blood that he’d lost, his energy was spent. Lawrence let his avatar dissolve, and stepped toward Tucker with the same calm resolve that Jen had shown only moments before. The difference was that, where Jen had assumed that she’d won, Lawrence actually had. He drew back his right foot, and kicked Tucker square in the jaw with all of his strength. He was knocked out cold, collapsing on the spot.

Jo and Sara were flabbergasted. They couldn’t speak. They could barely think. They had heard of fighters as powerful as Lawrence before, but to them, people like him had always been stories. Legends told by enthusiastic students in schoolyards who didn’t yet understand what the typical limits of the human body actually were. Lawrence was practically an impossibility, and if he was this strong, it made sense to assume that Monty and Karen were at least as powerful. Jo looked once again at Karen. Surprisingly, she could believe it. She could believe that Karen was even stronger than Lawrence had proven to be.

With a deep breath, Jo forced her fear and her surprise out of mind. She stepped into the center of the back lot, where Tucker lay within the debris of the ground that Lawrence had shattered with his attack, and she picked Tucker up and carried him back to the Dueling Hearts’ end, next to Sara. Then Jo returned to where Jen lay, and carried her back as well. All the while, Lawrence watched her with amusement.

“It’s a shame,” he said to her, “that my time in the arena is over. I imagine that fighting you would be much more interesting than fighting them.”

He shrugged, and walked over to stand next to his companions. Jo watched Karen, for some reason expecting her to step up next, but of course, as the leader of her group, she planned to fight last. Instead, Monty stepped into the makeshift arena, and Sara stepped up to face him.

“Wait,” Jo told her sister, speaking quietly enough that she hoped their opponents wouldn’t be able to hear, “I’ll go next. I might be able to use my Shadow Step to take this guy out fast and put an end to this.”

Sara didn’t answer at first. Then she turned to look at her sister, and Jo was taken aback to see fear flashing half-hidden in her sister’s fierce eyes. “One of them beat Jen and Tucker without taking a single major hit,” Sara said simply. “Do you really think that they’ll leave if we win one fight? Do you think we’ll be able to make them?”

Jo was shocked. She hadn’t even thought of that. Meanwhile, Sara looked toward Monty, and told her sister, “As much as I hate to admit it, you’re the strongest out of the four of us. If these guys want something from us, you being at your best when they try to take it is our best shot. That means that you have to wait to fight for as long as possible. That means that I have to fight next. There’s no other choice.”

Jo couldn’t argue. She wanted to deny it. She wanted to insist that Sara was just as strong, but she couldn’t bring herself to say it. She knew that Sara was right. On any other day, she would have been secretly proud of that fact, but today she hated it, because it meant that she had to stand off to the side and watch her sister fight a battle that she might not be capable of winning.

No, Jo thought, that’s ridiculous. This is my sister that we’re talking about. There’s no one she can’t beat!

Sara might lose. That was a possibility, but Jo, in that moment, refused to count her sister out. She refused to assume that the outcome was already decided. She gathered up all of her stubborn resolve, and projected it into her words as she said, “In that case, good luck. Go and get this guy.”

Jo wasn’t sure in the low light, but she thought she saw Sara smile. The air between Sara and Monty became charged with energy, and the two fighters faced off. Without another word, the second fight between team Dueling Hearts and the Sol Takers began.

Onward to Chapter Ten