[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/M3SfSt4.png[/img][/center] [color=Violet]"So then I take the fork from my salad, put it up to Lombard's face, and tell him 'if you can't keep your eyes from wandering, don't be surprised when you lose one,'"[/color] Lois says as we head down the stairs of the train platform, about two blocks from Grant Park for her meeting with Dr. Irons. [color=Violet]"I mean, obviously I wouldn't actually [i]do[/i] it, but you should've seen the look on his face."[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"Why didn't you just report him to HR?"[/color] I ask, stepping over a puddle of fresh vomit on the cracked and overgrown sidewalk. [color=Violet]"I've handled mob bosses, terrorists, and Senators, Clark,"[/color] she says with a chuckle. [color=Violet]"I can handle the office creeper. Besides, being raised by a career soldier like my dad had at least one perk: if Lombard ever did try something, I'd snap half of his fingers before he even knew what was happening."[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"I didn't know you were from a military family,"[/color] I say. About twenty paces behind us, a rusty powder-blue van with an idling engine has slowly pulled away from the curb and is now matching our speed. I give Lo a nudge, and without missing a beat, she starts walking faster. [color=Violet]"Army brat,"[/color] she says, not so much as flinching at the thought that we're being tailed. [color=Violet]"The old man's been traveling around the world blowing stuff up in the name of freedom since before I was born."[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"My dad served for a while too, actually,"[/color] I say, looking for an open shop or alleyway we can duck into as the van gradually accelerates. I could just turn around and flip the thing with one hand if I wanted, but I don't want to start making a mess-- not to mention expose my identity-- if I can avoid it. Better to just duck them. [color=RoyalBlue]"Fought in the Gulf War about two years before they adopted me."[/color] [color=Violet]"Huh, so chances are your dad worked for my dad,"[/color] says Lois, reaching into her bag for what I assume is her can of pepper spray. [color=Violet]"Small world, isn't it, Smallv--[i]*whuh!*[/i]"[/color] While I'm focused on the approaching van, as soon as we pass a row of boarded-up stores, an arm shoots out from around the corner and pulls Lois into the alley. The van hits the gas, intent to either herd me into the alley with her or run me over. I lunge forward, and am met with the muzzle of a pump-action shotgun pointed at my face. [color=Tomato]"All right, asshole, don't try nothin' stupid,"[/color] says a man to my left, wearing grungy sweats and what looks like a respirator over his mouth and nose, and holding a knife to Lois's throat. [color=Tomato]"Wallet an' phone, [i]now[/i], or I cut this bitch and then my pal blows your fuckin' head off!"[/color] Behind me, the van screeches to a halt, blocking off the alleyway from the street. Two more guys with respirators over their faces step out, one with a crowbar, the other with a bike chain. [color=Violet]"So, what's with the hardware-store masks, guys?"[/color] Lois asks, completely unfazed. [color=Violet]"Are you trying to go for a sci-fi look? Or were you stripping out some old asbestos when you saw us pass by?"[/color] [color=Tomato]"Shut your fuckin' mouth!"[/color] the knife-wielding mugger barks. [color=Tomato]"You won't be makin' jokes when the 'Cutioner turns your friend here extra fuckin' crispy!"[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"'The 'Cutioner?'"[/color] I ask, fumbling for my wallet as a fifth figure emerges from the van. Like the others, he's got a mask covering his face, and is wearing some kind of high-tech suit. [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/nOpE9uwm.png[/img][/center] [color=Yellow]"That's the [i]Electro[/i]cutioner, you idiots,"[/color] he says, cerulean arcs of artificial lightning crackling across the surface of his suit. [color=Yellow]"And you should feel thankful. You two are gonna be the first in a [i]loooong[/i] line of people in this city who are gonna feel the thunder."[/color] Putting my wallet on the ground, I then stand up slowly, my hands up, and look the 'Electrocutioner' in the eye. [color=RoyalBlue]"You don't have to do this,"[/color] I tell him. [color=Yellow]"Maybe you're right,"[/color] he says with a shrug. [color=Yellow]"Maybe I just [i]want[/i] to. Maybe I don't like out-of-towners telling me what I do and don't have to do. Maybe I'm gonna fry you because I don't like your attitude. Maybe I wanna make a name for myself by fryin' people who tell me I 'don't have to do this' til I get the Bat's attention, then I fry [i]him[/i] too!"[/color] He opens the palm of his hand, several thousand volts dancing across his fingertips. I don't break my glare as he places his palm directly on my forehead. [color=Yellow]"Cops don't come to this part of town,"[/color] he snarls. [color=Yellow]"And it's broad fuckin' daylight. So even the Bat-Man ain't comin' to save you today, pal."[/color] He triggers the weapon, sending enough voltage to incinerate an average man in seconds through my body. It tingles a little bit. [color=RoyalBlue][b]"About Bat-Man not being here,"[/b][/color] I say, taking off my glasses. [color=RoyalBlue][b]"I've got some good news, and some bad news."[/b][/color] Placing my own palm on his chest, I give him a light shove, which slams him into the side of the van hard enough to tip it over. [color=Tomato]"Wh-what the--"[/color] the henchman with the knife sputters. [color=Tomato]"Y-you're, you're not--......ohhh, [i]shit![/i]"[/color] [color=Violet]"'Oh shit' is right,"[/color] Lois sneers, then grabs the man's pinkie finger while he's distracted and pries it away, dislocating the finger and taking the knife away from his throat. She follows that with a hammer-fist to the man's groin, and as he doubles over, she smashes the point of her elbow into the back of his head. The one with the crowbar swings as hard as he can at my head. I don't bother trying to avoid it, and instead let it bounce harmlessly off my skull. The vibrations from the impact resonate up the man's arm and he drops his weapon. I chuck the chain-wielding mugger into him, and both men crash hard into the brick wall of the alley. In a panic, the man with the shotgun points his gun wildly, and fires. For a fraction of a fraction of a second, I grin, knowing that the buckshot might as well be spitballs. Then I realize it's not going to hit me at all. It's going to hit Lois. Time slows to a crawl as the buckshot pushes through the air across the two feet or so between the gun and Lois. I'm about four feet away now, closing as fast as I can. In one of her first articles about me for the [i]Planet[/i], Lois described my top speed rather dramatically as "faster than a speeding bullet." And if it were just a bullet, I might be able to get there in time, to pluck the bullet out of the air. But not that many of them. Most of them are going to hit, and when they do.... Diving headlong, I try to put myself in between Lois and the buckshot. Inches stretch like miles between me and her, the shot growing ever closer. I'm not going to make it. Oh God, I'm not going to make it. In the few millimeters she has left, I reach out as far as I can, and my fingertips brush against her hand. I'm sorry, Lois. I'm so sorry. My hand takes hers for the last time as I see the buckshot shred through her shirt and connect with her chest..... .......then bounce off harmlessly. It might as well have been a handful of birdseed. As time speeds back up, Lois staggers back in shock as I crash on the ground in front of her. [color=Violet]"....the hell?"[/color] she says, as surprised as everyone else that there isn't a ragged hole through her torso. The mugger with the shotgun stands gobsmacked, the gun clattering in his hands as he trembles, still pointed at the both of us as I stand up and glare at him. [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/vuqOTJB.png[/img][/center] [color=RoyalBlue][b]"Start running,"[/b][/color] I order, and he obliges, dropping his weapon and scrambling away like the devil himself was after him. The 'Electrocutioner' and the rest of his goons are still lying on the ground around us, groaning in pain, as I turn to Lois. [color=RoyalBlue]"Oh my God, you're...you're okay?[/color] I say, the bravado in my voice fading now that the fight is over. [color=Violet]"Yeah, I...I think so?"[/color] she says, patting herself down to inspect for injuries while I try not to notice the huge gaping hole in the front of her blouse. [color=Violet]"[i]How[/i] I'm okay I have no idea, but--.....wait, let me see something."[/color] Picking up the knife from the first mugger, she places the blade against the back of her hand. [color=Violet]"Ah!"[/color] She winces as she gives herself a small cut, drawing a thin trickle of blood. [color=RoyalBlue]"Lois, what are you--"[/color] [color=Violet]"Conducting an experiment,"[/color] she says, placing the same hand on my chest. She places the knife against the back of her hand a second time....and this time, the blade itself scratches. [color=Violet]"Huh,"[/color] she mutters. [color=Violet]"Now [i]that's[/i] interesting."[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"I guess it has something to do with my abilities,"[/color] I say. [color=RoyalBlue]"I've been able to expand my gravitational field around objects I'm holding so I can move them without damaging them. I didn't realize it worked on people, too."[/color] [color=Violet]"So, in theory,"[/color] she says, taking a moment to suck on her wound, [color=Violet]"as long as you're touching someone, they can't be hurt."[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"I guess so."[/color] She looks at me for a moment, raising a curious eyebrow. [color=RoyalBlue]"What?"[/color] [color=Violet]"Nothing,"[/color] she says, catching herself. [color=Violet]"Just...opens up some possibilities. But we'll deal with that later. Right now, we should probably get going before the cops arrive. Besides, I still need to meet with Dr. Irons."[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"You, [i]*ahem*[/i], might want to get a new top first,"[/color] I remind her. [color=Violet]"What's--oh, oh [i]Jesus![/i]"[/color] she exclaims, finally aware of the damage done to her clothing and pulling her jacket closed. [color=Violet]"Well, thanks for telling me [i]now[/i], Boy Scout! Hope you enjoyed the show."[/color] [color=RoyalBlue]"Hey, I didn't look,"[/color] I say, taking off my own jacket and giving it to her so she can cover up. [color=RoyalBlue]"Wouldn't be right."[/color] She gives me another curious glance, then laughs. [color=Violet]"Hah! Your loss,"[/color] she says. [color=Violet]"We're not too far from the commercial district, there's gotta be a decent store around here somewhere. C'mon."[/color] Holding my jacket closed with one hand, she grabs my hand with the other and leads me back out into the street. She's taking this all in stride now, but looking back at the would-be super-villain lying in the wreck of his overturned van, and the shotgun lying on the asphalt, I can't help but start thinking of how much worse that could have gone. If I wasn't, well, [i]me[/i], we wouldn't have survived that. They would have killed the both of us, and who knows how many other people before someone stopped them. Even [i]with[/i] me and my abilities, Lois very nearly didn't make it out of there. That's Gotham City, I guess. Makes a hell of a first impression.