LOCATION UNKNOWN
Tamara Jones finally yielded to weakness. To despair. To hopelessness. The woman in red
asked her for a final time, “what is your name?” And the only answer she could think of was “nothing.”
The woman in red gave her a ladle of water as a reward. This last woman was finished. Her will broken. When her master returns,this one will make an ideal slave.
A monitor crackled and a silhouette appeared on the screen. The woman in red turned, “Mistress, the final-”
“Did I give you permission to speak?”
The woman looked down, cowed, “No, mistress. I beg your forgiveness.”
“Speak, slave.”
“The final enhanced woman is prepared for your subjugation.”
The silhouette made a hissing noise. “Worthless! Breaking their wills and making them into slaves boosted my power at first. But after the first few, I’ve barely noticed any increase at all. These… barely… superheroines. I’ve gleaned as much power from their spirits as the great, elder god will grant me. These slaves are too small, too inconsequential, to appease its hunger now.”
The woman in red looked confused. “Does that mean we’re no longer collecting powered women?”
“A sultry chuckle. “Oh no, I just will be hunting more substantial game from now on.”
The woman in red nodded, “What shall I do with the last slave?”
“Keep her for yourself. Dispose of her. I don’t care.” The monitor powered down. The woman in red pondered what to do with the helpless woman on the ground. A slave herself, she was unaccustomed to making her own decisions.
METROCITY
Commissioner X waited in his office as Emerald entered. She entered almost timidly, as on more than one occasion she had accidentally crushed the door knob or splintered the frame.
“Hey, Chief.”
“Have you decided who you’re going to fight?”
“What, no small talk? No banter?” She eased herself onto a chair which creaked ominously.
“Sorry, Betty. I’m just… preoccupied.”
“About those missing women?”
“It’s been two days since The Tower received any sort of check-in from Jade Detective.”
“You want me to come back later?”
“No, we need to get a press statement and some PR photos prepped. Who you want to fight?”
“I want a shot at Ursa Mega.”
“Done!” The commissioner flicked a switch on his desk and holographic displays surrounded the green superheroine. Multiple profile photos and 3d action sequences of Emerald and Ursa Mega hummed around the desk. Animated text displayed several variations of the headline: “Green giantess Emerald vs Red giantess Ursa Mega.”
She recoiled and took in the images. “You dog! You knew I was going to pick her!”
He half-smiled. “Duh. You’ve been talking about how you’re the strongest heroine in the league since you got here. Nadia is the only one in your power class.”
“No lectures about the stability of the force field?”
“No. After your stunt with that unscheduled fourway, doctor Sanji upgraded the field strength. She’s confident that it can stand up to a fight between two super heavyweights.”
“Hot damn!” Emerald clapped her hands together and the resulting shockwave shattered every monitor, display case and window in the room. As the echoes slowly subsided they stared at each other, Emerald with a strained awkwardness on her face. After a second of silence one of the lenses plinked out of Commissioner X’s shades and neatly cracked in half on his desktop.
“Out.”
“Yessir.” She carefully slinked out the door. “And tell the China doll that she’s next.”
Commissioner X didn’t acknowledge her, but realized that he hadn’t seen Ninjako since her defeat last Sunday.