Patreon LogoYour support makes Blue Moon possible (Patreon)

Icy Winds of Change(Dr. Freon and Gunner)

Nick nodded and greeted the doctor that led through the lobby. It was so odd how welcoming everyone was being, but not unpleasant. Nick responded to Jenny once the woman turned away and began to lead them through the corridor. "Well, seeing as I have amnesty all day, would you like to get some dinner with me?"

Hospitals didn't disturb Nick as much as they did other people. Though his doctorate wasn't exactly valid, he understood a thing or two about medical science and thought hospitals were a place of comfort and perseverance, though he couldn't really blame anyone for being a bit unnerved by them. A weak smile overtook his face seeing all the kids' artwork, flowers, and cards. Though the outlook was sometimes bleak in a place like this, he found an optimism in it, more than most people did.

Tommy's room was especially captivating; not to mention a little flattering. Though there weren't, to Nick's knowledge, any posters, toys, or other merchandise of Dr. Cryonic. (In fact, if there were, he'd have a good mind to get a layer on the phone.) He could tell, though, that the room- and probably Tommy's room at home, too - was something of a shrine to him. Scanning the room, mouth agape, he was just about as much in awe of it as the young man was in awe of him, there at the center of the room were his gaze came to a halt.

"Thank you," Nick told the doctor as she stepped aside to let him in. Then he turned back to Tommy and approached him, stopping at the foot of his bed and giving him a gentle smile. "Hey, bud," he greeted, softly but sure and confident, "I heard a little rumor that you're my number one fan. I wanted t come and ask if it was true." Really, his only fan, but the kid didn't need to hear about that. "Well, I'm extremely honored that such a tough kid is a fan of me."

He turned to the McDougals and asked, "May I?" before he got down on both knees next to the kid's bed, putting both arms atop the comforter and resting his chin on them. He gave a grin that was mischievous to present his villainous nature, but still playful to demonstrate that the kid wasn't in any real danger. "So, even a villain as big and bad as me wouldn't dare pull a heist here at a hospital. That's just not chill. Buuuut," he held up his index finger, and a tiny swirl of cold, snowy mist spiraled upward. "...I suppose I can show off a little bit." The mist, being cold in nature, fell back down, fading in the warm air before it could hit the floor. However, standing on the tip of Nick's finger was a snowflake. It was larger than a real one by nearly 1000%, looking like a glass sculpture. Nick held out his hand for Tommy to grab it. "You can keep that if you want, but you'd better get it to a fridge soon."
 
Tommy's eyes never left Dr. Cryonic as he approached. A heavy mix of disbelief, awe, and excitement blending on his face. He leaned forward as much as he could at the villain approached his bedside. "Biggest fan," he croaked with a wide grin. He beamed at the compliment at being called brave. If Dr. Cryonic said it then it must be true! At the request to kneel down the parents were surprisingly quick to nod. The villain didn't seem to pose a danger to their son and they hadn't seen so much color in his face, so much light and life, in months. Though, truth be told, they were curious too and leaned forward some as the doctor knelt down beside the bed. All the while Jenny was watching with a bright grin on her face. The reactions from Tommy and his parents, even the calm gentleness Doc showed. She thought back to his offer and it set a light pattering in her heart. Of all the things he could do he wanted to go to dinner. Funny really. For a villain he was actually a pretty sweet guy.

Everyone in the room stared as Dr. Cryonic lifted a hand, though only Tommy got to see that mischievous grin. They waited to see what he wanted to show off. First just a gentle cloud of snowy mist. Slowly, very slowly, forming into the massive snowflake. Eyes went wide at the sight along with fascinated 'ohhhs' of appreciation. Tommy reached forward and carefully took the snowflake from Dr. Cryonic. He was very careful, very gentle with it even with how still his arms felt. So hard to move as if filled with snowflakes themselves. "Wow..." he whispered with a low hiss, examining the snowflake. "Tommy, honey, want mama to put that somewhere to keep it cold?" His mother asked. Tommy looked up and nodded, holding the snowflake up.

Jenny stopped the mom, "here please. Stay with them, enjoy this time." Tommy's mom gave a painful, thankful smile as she handed the snowflake over to Jenny. She was ever so careful with it as she left with a nurse. No need to hang out right in the room with all of them. Give the family some time with Doc alone. So long as she didn't go too far everything would be find. Part of her also trust that Ultraman, Gladatrix, and Igenous were outside keeping watch as well. This were going ridiculously perfect.

"I love snow," Tommy said in his low croaking voice. "And pranks," he added with a wheezing laugh. "How did you get....your powers?" He asked curiously as he leaned forward, a hand reaching to Dr. Cryonic's hair curiously, wondering how he got such a color. While plenty of other 'origin stories' were about not much was known about the icy doctor. He was newish to the scene after all and only very recently, the last 30 minutes recently, had he really exploded on social media. He was attracting all kind of questions that no one had the answers to. Nothing but speculation and rumor.
 
Nick watched Tommy take the snowflake, his friendly smile widening, surprised at how gentle the kid was being with it. He only glanced away from Tommy momentarily to appreciate Jenny's kindness, but his attention was pulled back to the boy when he spoke up again. "I love snow, too," Nick replied. "Well, obviously." He made a flick of the wrist, and a puff of winter air came out of his glove, as if someone had swiftly wipes a thin powdering of snow from a surface above. It speckled part of the room, but was quick to melt away without leaving too much wetness behind. "And I love pranks! The doctor said not to let you talk to much, or I'd ask you to tell me some of the stories about your pranks. Oh, that reminds me..."

He reached to his side and pulled out his gift bag, setting it on Tommy's lap. The boy managed to through the tissue paper inside around, fishing out a tablet device. "I figure you could use something to help pass the time, if you don't have one already. You can play games, draw, and if your parents say it's okay, you can use it to watch videos. And write down your prank stories to email me me. But you gotta promise me, only use it when you're feeling okay. Don't strain yourself." Tommy nodded solemnly. "Promise," the child said with a final, slow nod. "Okay, then, it's all yours."

He leaned in when the kid reached for his hair, letting him muss it up a little. "It's, it's okay, it's just dyed," Nick chuckled. He looked around, as if the room were much bigger and more crowded, then leaned in and whispered. "I can tell you how I got my powers, but, you gotta keep it secret, alright?" Tommy nodded again. "I made my powers!" Nick smiled proudly and took off one of his gloves, showing off the small nozzles on each finger tip. "See? The ice comes out of here..." He knew he really shouldn't, but the kid was reaching for it, so he handed the glove over. Tommy slipped it on.

Though it was comically huge on his much smaller hand, he was able to fit his index finger into the glove's pinkie. "Okay, Tommy, please be careful-" Tommy pointed at one of the helium balloons tied to the foot of his bed, covering it with frost. "Wow," Nick said, impressed. "Nice shot, but I think maybe that's enough of that." The balloon, now brittle, popped (well, more like shattered) causing everyone to jump, and Tommy to giggle. "Well, okay," Nick said, stifling a giggle himself. "Maybe one more." And so Tommy froze another. Then another. "Okay, I want to try!" Nick said, throwing some ice at a balloon with his other hand. After the other four balloons at the foot of the bed had been obliterated, they both looked at each other, though their giggling hadn't stopped. Nick gently took the glove from Tommy as they continued to talk.

About an hour later, or maybe two for all Nick knew, the stories and showmanship wore on Tommy, and he dozed off. A smile still on Nick's face, but his eyes welling a little, he pulled the covers a little tighter on the kid. "Th-thank you," Mr. McDougal said, approaching him. "We, you know, we told him you probably weren't going to come, and we didn't really believe it ourselves. It's just such a bizarre idea...like hiring Jesse James for a birthday party."

"I had to come, " Nick shrugged. "Even I'm not going to disappoint a kid. Plus, I was curious as to why? Why me?"

"Well," Mr. Dougal started, glancing over at his sleeping son, then back to Nick. "Even before it was, uh, bad... He looked up to you." He whispered the next part, embarrassed and apologetic, "He was kind of a problem child. We think he was scared, and he wanted to be tough, maybe seem like a bad boy in front of everyone." Nick, knowing that little truth was coming but dreading it and its relatability, bit his lip, looking back at Tommy, then Mrs McDougal again.

"Well, thank you for letting me stop by. This meant a lot to me, too." He pulled a blank money order for $30,000.00 from his pocket, and held it out firmly for Mr. McDougal to take. "This is, uh, this is for you guys. For Tommy's medical bills, and whatever else you think you might need with it. If you don't want this money - because, I'll be frank, it is stolen - please donate it. I'm doing the same for another hundred-k anonymously."
 
Mr. and Mrs. McDougal's eyes went wide the the gift their son pulled out. While they had barely expected the villain to even visit a gift was even more surprising. More important was what Dr. Cryonic revealed, about how his powers were not natural. Instead he had made them. Their trust in the 'doctor' was apparent as they stood by and let Tommy play with the glove. Giggling as he coated the balloon in frost. Grin were shared all around as Tommy delighted in the mildly destructive behavior. They were just balloons after all. Sometime during the balloon assault Jenny reappeared, slipping the coat on over her dress. She had learned not to play with ice. More or less anyways. She was quiet and just hung back to watch. Though she could feel her phone vibrate as if possessed. She wasn't about to stop the joy in the room by letting Doc know what was going on outside of their little, temporary, sanctuary.

Time passed and even the doctors and nurses didn't stop them. Though it was Tommy who ultimately decided it was over by falling asleep. Jenny stood by at the parents thanked Doc for the visit, admitting to their son's less than admirable behavior in the face of his illness. Yet part of her didn't entirely want to think his fascination with Doc was so superficial. Sure he might be a villain but maybe there was more there that Tommy idolized. Though everyone's jaws dropped at Doc's final gift. Both parents were a stammering mess as he handed over the money order and proclaiming his anonymous planned donation. Mrs. McDougal couldn't seem to take in any more. She collapsed into tears and nearly yanked Doc into a tight hug. Words were beyond her so she just held Doc tight for a moment, crying quietly. Eventually Mr. McDougal joined in. Jenny moved back a little but was grabbed by the missus and dragged into the teary group hug. Her own throat constricted and her eyes burned. She was quick to wipe the tears away as they were finally released, the McDougals finally managing verbal thanks to Doc and to Jenny.

It was time to go. When they left the room they were met by the flash of cameras and a swarm of reporters being blocked by more police and the hospital staff. Jenny blinked away the bright spots and took Doc's hand to help lead him out and away as quick as possible. A barrage of questions were hurled at Doc. "Why visit the boy?" "What made you turn to crime?" "Will you rethink being a villain?" "Are there other children wanting to meet villains?" "Were villains good role models for children?" Questions blended and overlapped, being shouted in the ringing halls. Though as they approached the doors a very different scene from earlier awaited them. They could hear it before even getting there. A massive crowd had gathered at the hospital, not split between two factions. One side screamed their approval and adulations, the other hollered about corruption and justice.

"Yeah...I couldn't keep this down apparently..." Jenny said awkwardly as the large glass doors slid open. Still she held tight and close to Doc, her hand clutching his. Cameras blinked and flashed, phones glinted in the sun as they emerged. Igneous, Gladatrix, and Ultrman met them as they exited along with six of Metatroplis's finest. "Things have gotten a little out of hand," Ultraman shouted over the crowds which were being held at bay by more police and barriers. "We need to get you both out of here quickly before-"

As if his words heralded the arrival a great gust of wind swept through, the sky overhead darkened. The three heroes groaned and looked up, Jenny followed their gaze. High above their heads floated Stratus. A hero decked in sky blue and stormy grey with a lightning bolt across his chest. A massive cape fluttered and flapped behind him. Something zipped through the crowds, a blur of crimson. Speedster slid to a halt in-front of the group. Ultraman, Gladatrix, and Igneous closed ranks around Dr. Cryonic and Jenny, who's heart was beginning to thunder in her chest. "Speedster...Stratus...stand down!" Ultraman shouted, his voice ringing clear as the crowds silenced.

"Are you defending a villain now?" A voice purred from above and behind them. Panthera, a cat-like woman, dropped down elegantly to the side walk, blocking a retreat into the hospital. "Not a good image Ultraman. Maybe you should stand down."

Ultraman growled low in his throat. "There are too many civilians here...."

Jenny's fingers gripped even harder at Doc's arm. She had sworn not to leave his side, assuming heroes wouldn't attack if a civilian was caught in the mix. Apparently her assumption wasn't entirely accurate. Everything was suddenly still. The calm before a storm. Literally given the storm cloud gathering around Stratus. Jenny gave a sudden shriek of surprise, her grip on Doc's arm like a vice before being yanked away. Up into the air while she screamed, wrapped up with sticky webs. Right up to the top of the hospital building and next to Wreckluse in his terrifying suit of brown and green with fanged pincers at his jaw. Stratus took the opening and sent a bolt shooting at the remaining group of four: Dr. Cryonic, Ultraman, Gladatrix, and Igneous.
 
As they were leaving, Nick saw the reporters about to close in, like a flock of seagulls on the horizon that sensed somebody on the docks dropped a French fry. He felt a tug on his hand and saw that Jenny's arm was reaching back. His eyes had to follow her arm to confirm, but it made him exhale a few bashful giggles when he did. Now feeling a little more confident with the press. "Because he asked me," Nick shrugged in a very matter-of-fact way, replying to the first reporter, but before he could address any of the rest, Jenny already had through the crowd, leaving the front line of journalists in the dust.

"It's okay..." he told Jenny. "I.... I don't know that I mind it so much anymore."

Before much more could be said, Nick found himself squinting to shield his eyes from the literal dust being kicked up by a hardy gust of wind. Standing on air, as if leading the wind into battle, was Stratus. Nick had never encountered this guy, only saw the occasional news ticker about his exploits. But he looked pissed. Another angry-looking super, Speedster, zipped around, and it was clear that this had become some kind of standoff. Jenny was holding onto him more tightly now, so he slid his free arm in front of her, gripping her farther arm to hold her comfortingly as he looked on. From above, a third heroine, the feline Panthera, dropped into view to block any attempts of retreat back into the building.

It was pretty reassuring, Nick had to admit, to have Igneous, Gladatrix, and Ultraman on the defensive. He would have shrugged off anyone who predicted this team-up as delusional. He turned to Jenny. "Thank you for trying to keep this under wraps, but you have to go- Jenny!" Before he could advise her to find safety, she was ripped from him, flung to the roof. He could barely make it out, but it looked like she had been safely caught in a net of webs by Wreckluse. Big shocker that the guy named after a necrotoxic spider turned out to be an asshole, but at least Jenny was safe for now.

"Look, I know they're here for me," Nick softly spoke to the other three heroes, "but maybe they'll hear me out... Hey!" he shouted up to Stratus, shifting his gaze to the airborne interloper. "You realize I have amnesty, right? If you take me to the cops, they'll just let me go, so let's all save ourselves the embarrassment, alright? There are kids in this building. Do you really want to do this right outside?" His answer came in the form of a lightning bolt, causing him to dive to his left to dodge it, grunting as his side slapped the pavement. "Didn't you just hear me?! This is a hospital!"

In spite of everything, he was trying to mind his P's and Q's, so he stood up and prepared himself with a defensive pose, both hands outstretched and ready to put the freeze on anyone who tried again do anything crazy. "Aren't you supposed to be the good guys?"
 
Jenny wriggled and struggled against the banding, icky webs. "Hey...stop," said the familiar voice of Wreckluse. A low, guttural voice that had a gurgling, whispering quality to it. It was really lucky he had decided to be a hero because he would make a pants-shittingly terrifying villain. He gave a light pull and unbound the girl. "What are you doing? They were standing back because I was-" She was cut off from the large hand clapping over her mouth to stop her. "You don't understand. Stratus and Panthera and not like some of us. Stay and watch." He released her mouth and gesture for her to gaze off the roof with him. Jenny made a little noise of irritation before a fearful groan. She wanted to see what was happening but didn't like the idea of leaning off the edge of a ten story building. Wrecklus glanced back and chuckled. "I won't let you fall," he said as he reached out a hand for support. She took it and stepped forward, her balance wavering despite holding onto the hero. She gave a startled yelp at the lightening strike.

The gathered crowds took the hint and scrambled to flee after the lightening strike. Ultraman gave a grunt of annoyance while Gladatrix tsked. "You're amnesty means jack shit here kid. I don't think Stratus is here to take you in," Igneous said as his rocky skin slowly wreathed in flame.

"These others might stand with you, villain, but we don't think it is right! Encouraging the corruption of a child," Panthera hissed behind them. "If people start thinking you might be good then they might think the crimes you commit are good. Then what? They start committing crimes just like their idols."

"That's stupid," Gladatrix snapped. "And you're just a dumb pussy following Stratus like this." Gladatrix was sick of waiting. She lunged and grabbed Panthera. Reeling back she flung the cat-like woman away from the hospital, jumping up to fly after her.

"Try and draw Speedster away, I'll take care of Stratus," Ultraman said to both Igneous and Dr. Cryonic. With a short salute Ultraman took off after Stratus who flung another bolt at Ultrman. The bolt struck but Ultraman was hardly affected by it. "That's not enough to stop me!" Rather than stay and get the daylight punched out of him Stratus took off and Ultraman gave chase.

It was just Igneous and Dr. Cryonic against Speedster. The crimson hero smirked, the dark skin around his mouth the only skin visible. He darted forward, a blur to the naked eye and circled Igneous. He threw some fast punches that hardly hurt Igenous. Taunting and goading him into shooting the lava that oozed from his stony flesh. "Come now! Hit me!" The supersonic hero taunted. Igenous growled in annoyance and flung a glob of lava on the ground. Speedster avoided easily and changed up his tactic a bit, going after Dr. Cryonic with his super speedy punches.
 
"Look, Igneous, I know we've had some problems in the past but... I wasn't trying to turn things ugly here today..." he tried to explain before Ultraman the molten warrior told him the plan of attack. He hid his uncertainty, but while he had gotten into a couple of scuffles with Igneous, he had never really been in a full-blown, balls-to-the-wall superpower clash before.

"Got it," he affirmed with a nod before being swept away by Speedster. Though he was supposed to be drawing the faster man away, in the end he stood in place, ducking his face to shield it against a rapid volley of punches. He began to cough as some of the hero's punches struck him in the gut, back, and sides. Thankfully, the rapid speed of the ppunches prevented them from landing the same impact of a stronger, more forceful one, but they still hurt like a bitch. "Argh! Okay... ughn... let's see how good your brakes work, asshole."

Holding his elbows out and forearms down to keep his face somewhat still blocked, he glanced up to see that Jenny wasn't stuck in the web any longer, but couldn't get good enough look to find her. Once he was done with this clown, he could start looking for her. Trying his best to gage where Speedster was but the placement of the blows, he raised his leg and snapped it forward to push the alleged hero back with a kick to the stomach. Then, palms pointed down, he sprayed a flash-freezing mist on the ground in front of him, fanning it outward. Soon, several meters of the pavement between himself and red-clad lightning bolt of a man where glossed with a sheet of shimmering, slick ice. If the asshole tried to charge, he'd better have some good tread on his shoes.
 
Speedster was undeterred by the lava Igneous threw down, able to avoid the bubbling piles. Especially as they quickly hardened to rock once separated from his body they were even easier to dodge around. "Gonna have to try harder than that!" Speedster shouted as he leaped in and out to land punches. His hits quick enough the heat from Igenous didn't even harm him. He was getting cocky. Taunting them as he dashed in and out. His cockiness was his downfall. He dove in for another strike but Dr. Cryonic had coated the surrounding ground in ice. "Woah!" Speedster slipped on the ice, landing hard on his tailbone and skidding right to one of the rocky mounds left by Igneous's lava. Right in the balls. Speedster gave a strangled squeaky and toppled over, hands clutched between his legs.

Even Igneous cringed in sympathy despite being made of of stone. He didn't feel too much pain but the speed Speedster was going, hell, he would have felt that. "Well that's hum taken care of..." He said slowly and turned. "Now where'd that creepy spider go?"

From so high up it was almost impossible to see what was really going on. She saw Gladatrix launch Panthera up, up, and away before giving chase. Meanwhile Ultrman had shot off after Stratus. Speedster left with Igneous and Dr. Cryonic. Though that fight she couldn't see. Not very well. Hanging onto Wreckluse she leaned further and squinted hard to see. There was some kind of blur around Igneous and Doc, she assumed it was Speedster, but she couldn't make out what was really going on. "I...can't see...what's happening down there?" She grumbled some. Leaning forward any more wasn't exactly going to help.

"Oh? You want a closer look?" Wreckluse said with a devious grin in his voice. His hand released hers.

Thin air. That was all Jenny had to grab on to. She scrabbled for something, anything, but there was nothing. Face first, eyes wide, guts completely gone as she toppled forward. It took a moment for the scream. Though it wasn't long as suddenly Wreckluse was right there falling with her. He chuckled darkly and grabbed her waist, shooting a web up to arrest their fall with only about a story left before the ground. Jenny's chest was heaving as they hung there a moment, Wreckluse laughing like a madman. He was clearly having the time of his life with torment.

"Here, take this," he said as he gestured to the thick, sticky bit of web. Jenny eyed him suspiciously, her hair a tousled mess though she reached up and grabbed the bit of webbing. Wreckluse formed a neat little handhold to make it easier and a bit more comfortable before dropping away. He landed with ease and glanced up. "Girl's all yours boys. If you can get past me," he said as he stalked toward Igneous and Dr. Cryonic, cracking his neck and knuckles.
 
Nick winced as he saw Speedster zoom into a spread eagle position and collide with ball-busting mound of cooled magma. Ouch. Not a place any guy wants to find himself. It was almost enough to make him feel bad for the guy. Almost. He was broken away from the agonizing sight by a scream, which made him dart his eyes toward the source. Jenny! He ran forward to her, not being particularly cautious, eyes not leaving her sight as he watched her fall. There was almost nothing he could have done to be there in time to catch her, but damned if he wasn't going to try. Thankfully, the same dickhead who threw her decided to scoop her up. He could hear Wreckluse laughing at the sick joke almost as clearly as he could hear Jenny's scream. If Tommy liked pranks, maybe he'd picked the wrong guy to idolize.

"Don't worry, Jenny. We're going to get you down..." he called out to the frightened charity worker. Nick skidded to a halt as he watched Wreckluse abandon Jenny in the air, joining the two fighters on the ground to challenge them. He looked over to Igneous, then back at Wreckluse.

"The whole horror act was a lot cuter when you weren't terrorizing innocent people. I'm a bank robber. What's your excuse?" As he was talking, Nick was also waving his palms around each other, letting the icy smoke expelling from both hands collide in the middle, building up a hunk of ice between his hands. When it was a good enough size, he thrust both arms forward, using another blast of cold to propel the stone made of ice like a frozen cannonball at the arachnid man. Maybe not the most subtle attack, but if Wreckluse could dodge it, it could either distract the douchebag while Igneous made a move, or give Nick time to slip past and get Jenny to solid ground.
 
Jenny looked over and down at Doc and his promise to get her down. "It would be appreciated," she called back before turning a glare on Wreckluse. "Just you wait I'm gonna smoosh that creepy messenger when I get home," she grumbled from her odd position. The drop wasn't so far but she would probably break a leg if she tried to get loose. Already her arm was starting to get sore from hanging by it, the blood running out of her hand. Even worse was the wind. She hand to keep wrangling her dress so the whole world didn't see her undergarments. The day was certainly not turning out like she expected. It really shouldn't have gone so damn sideways. What was wrong with these 'heroes?'

Wreckluse was stalking towards Dr. Cryonic with a devious chuckle. His expression were mostly marred by the mask he wore but his voice was quite expressive. Dr. Cryonic's little speech didn't see to phase him in the least and he didn't deign to respond. Instead he kept stalking forward as if unaware that Dr. Cryonic was prepping an attack. Though when the launched block of ice was shot his way the creepy-crawlie hero dove out of the way with a seemingly casual roll. Though the moment he got to his feet a jet of lova shot his way, forcing him to dodge once again. Igneous pressed forward, shooting molten lava to drive the spider-like man away.

"Hey kid, go get Jenny. I'll handle this one," Igneous called as he tossed another globbing stream of lava. Wreckluse wasn't even using his ability, just dodging out of the way, laughing on occasion. He didn't seem to have a care in the world despite lava being spewed his direction. Igenous growled some as the spider kept dodging the attacks but did nothing else. "Look here, I don't wanna fight you, not really. How about ya just get the hell outta here, huh?" Igenous demanded of the other hero.

Wreckluse stopped a moment and tilted his head at Igenous. "But this is so much fun."
 
Wreckluse's dodging steered the spider hero further away from Nick's path to the damsel. At Igneous' order, Nick gave his newfound brother-in-arms an affirmative nod and darted for Jenny. He stared up, examining the height. Great. How was he supposed to get up there? It wasn't too far up, but in the open air, he didn't have much of a boost. Unless...

"Hold on, Jenny! I'm coming!" he called, and ran backward a few yards. He got into a starting stance, both hands on the ground as if waiting for the gunshot to start a sprinting race. Then he took off. Literally. Instead of running forward, he leaped into the air, sprung up by the sudden blasts from his freezing gloves like icy rocket thrusters. On the pavement around his site of liftoff, there was a giant ripple of frosting crystals, branching outward from a bare patch of pavement in the middle.

He raised both arms again as Jenny grew closer and closer. He fell into her, careful to collide his chest with her side so that she wouldn't get hit with the blunt of any of his arms or legs. He wrapped one arm around her, and tightly clasped the other hand around the web rope. The impact cause both of them to swiftly swing toward thew building, so he was forced to quickly kick off of the concrete fall before either of them could break their backs. They swung away, but back toward it again. This time, Nick kicked at an angle, so that they were swinging along side the building instead of away from and toward it, which they continued to do until the momentum of their swings weakened and they were moving at a safer speed.

"Hey..." he sighed, smiling with relief, as he finally was able to relax for a second and get a good look at her face, especially her bespectacled eyes. "We're going to have to let go of this in a sec, okay? But trust me..." He looked down to the pavement below, then back to Jenny. "Okay, one... two... three..." He expelled a little flash-freeze from the hand holding the web, which made the now-brittle strand snap. But then, he pointed his hand downward, careful not to ice his or Jenny's legs as he sprayed a much larger jet of freezing mist to give them a slight boost, cutting it off so that they both landed safely on their feet.
 
"Oh don't worry....not even sure I could let go if I tried," she called back to Doc as he ran back. Partially a joke to keep from freaking out, dangling a story high by her arm, and partially true. She wasn't sure what Wreckluse was playin at, he didn't exactly just leave her to dangle and fall. He had fully wrapped her wrist and hand in the web so even if her fingers released she couldn't fall. Honestly she wasn't sure if she should be angry of grateful. Both perhaps. Craning her head around she watched Doc as he crouched down, her head tilted curiously. Then the sudden shot forward she gave a little 'eep' as he flew right for her. She squeezed her eyes shut and tensed for impact.

It wasn't as bad as she had expected when Doc collided with her but they both swung right at the building. He was quick enough to kick it to swing the other way. Her free hand wrapped around his waist as they swung on the web. Thankfully he grabbed the sticky web too, her arm was quickly going numb and she wasn't sure it could support his weight too. For a minute they swung there until he changed their direction and finally they began to slow down. She cracked her eyes open and turned to look up at Doc as they slowed. Well well, a villain coming to the rescue. The rescue needed because a hero pushed her off a damn roof!

"Hi," she responded quietly with a small smile. For a moment they just hung there, it wouldn't be so bad if her arm wasn't fully of cold knives. "Yeah ok, I trust you," she said with a nod. The arm around his waist tightened and she took a deep breath as he counted down. She didn't scream that time. Her freed arm flopped onto his shoulder, unwilling to move. Their decent was slow enough and with a gust of cold air, a little right up her dress, they were safe on the ground. Once her sandals touched the pavement she huffed a relieved sigh, her forehead plopping onto Doc's chest. That was the most terrifying shit she had ever done and would definitely never have chosen to in the first place.

"Thanks Doc, I-" she began, lifted her head off his chest but was interrupted by shrill cheering from over head. Jenny's head whipped around and up to see hundreds of children above them. Windows thrown open and sticking their heads out to watch. Of course the glint of cellphone were out too. Jenny cleared her throat awkwardly and removed herself from Doc. "Uh....yeah thanks again," she said as her face turned red and she rubbed her arm awkwardly.

In the meanwhile Wreckluse saw Dr. Cryonic had gotten the girl down. "Alright well I'm leaving now. Se ya around old man," he said ti Igenous with a dark chuckle. Flinging a web he yanked himself up and away, slinging through the city until he was gone. Igenous stared with a slack jaw, baffled by the spider's behavior. Shaking his head he lumbered back to Jenny and Dr. Cryonic. "Seems quiet now. Nice job kid," he reached up to pat the villain but stopped. The flames disappeared and his body quickly cooled down. Despite his rocky skin his approving pat was gentle enough. "Why don't you get out of here? Lay low for a while," he said as he lifted his eyes up to all the phones overhead.
 
Jenny's forehead rested on Nick's chest as she signed in relief. He hoped she didn't feel his heart spike. He was about to assure her it was nothing when she tried to thank him, but she didn't get to finish, as what seemed like an army of patients were looking out, waving, clapping, like it was a parade. Nick smiled widely at them. Feeling Jenny's nervous hold leave him, he turned and waved shyly and humbly to the celebrating kids. This was not the attention he was used to getting in the slightest.

"Don't mention it," he told Jenny, turning to face her again. His gaze shifted at movement in the corner of his eye, and watched as Wreckluse fled. Nick found it odd that as soon as Jenny was safe, Wreckluse cut and ran. What was the game here? Had the humanoid arachnid gone to all this trouble just to put on a show and make Nick look good? Had they all, or was it a genuine fight? Did they really find it so awful that we visited a sick kid? Was it really something to be out for blood about?

Nick flinched when Igneous readied a pat, but as his hand cooled and solidified, Nick became more at ease. "Uh, thanks! And thanks for being here, and having my back. But what was all this about?" Igneous told him to lay low, to which he shrugged. "Kinda what I'm good at." He stepped over to Jenny. "Are you okay?" He scratched the back of his head and shrugged again. "I, uh, I don't suppose you need a drink after all that?" he asked, eyes widening in an attempt to look a little more innocent.
 
"Beats me kid. The other three were just pissy about a Villain appearing to do good, daring to show up in public after some crimes. Wreckluse though? Pffft got me baffled. Does his own thing for the most part really," Igneous said and finished with an annoyed sigh. "Got a few like him, off the cuff kinda heroes. Does good but...in their own way I guess. So long as they don't do crimes." He gave a shrug. Though he noted the villain was already checking back on the girl. Igneous gave a chuckle before turning and went on his own way to meet up with Gladatrix and Ultraman. Odd were they had driven the others off. Given Dr. Cryonic and Jenny a chance to get the hell out of there.

Jenny was a little busy giving awkward waves to the kids who were nearly flailing their arms when Doc approached her. She whipped around to look up at him. A tiny smile spread across her lips and she gave a short nod. "Just fine," she said. Though the smiled quickly dropped to mild surprise at the offer. For a moment it seemed like she was going to decline it, just ready to get home. A relaxing bubble bath sounded nice. Though she did have a lot of paper work to get done it could honestly wait until the next day. With pursed lips she pondered over the offer before finally huffing a tired sigh. "Actually yeah, a drink sounds really good. You might night believe it but I'm not used to being thrown off buildings. Weird right?" She added with a small laugh.

With the scene clean the small squad of escorts approached the pair. "Listen, the amnesty still applies until tonight but I'd get out of here. Last thing we want is more angry heroes showing up at the hospital. Do you need an escort away? We can take you home Miss Calhoun," he offered to Jenny.

Jenny shook her head at the officer. "Thanks but I'm good, got all the escort I need," she said with a cheeky grin before linking her arm with Doc's. "Alright, where are we going? Hopefully not some like...creepy villain bar or something. If that's even a thing," she said with a small laugh. "I'll even buy the first round. Consider it a thanks for doing this. Oh...and, ya know, getting me down from that mess." Despite being thrown up and down far too many times that day she was in surprisingly good spirits.
 
Igneous' response puzzled Nick. Even the lava-covered man didn't know what was going on in everyone's heads. Nick almost tried to argue that trying to attack them all technically was a crime, but he reasoned that he couldn't do much about it. Unless the speediest trial in history went down later this afternoon while he still had amnesty, he couldn't exactly testify against the gang of rogue heroes. As for the others, their vigilantism had likely cost them a few rights. If they tried to file a report for being attacked in public while in their costume alter-egos, they would have to fess up to their real identities. So, as much as Nick hated it, Wreckluse and the rest likely wouldn't face any consequences for this (though he would love to be there when they have to see Igneous, Gladitrix, and Ultraman at the next superhero mixer.)

His mood lightened significantly once he was flirting with Jenny again. "Heck, I chose this line of work, and I don't do it much either," Nick chuckled. His smile showed his teeth when she actually agreed to the drink, and even brushed a cop off for it. Nick pulled his arm closer to him to tighten the link with Jenny's, then laughed off her quip. "Oh, no, I don't think I can show my face at the villain bar anymore." In truth, if one existed, he probably never would have been welcomed. The one person a criminal trusts less than a cop is another, un-enfranchised criminal. His original plan was a rooftop bar down town, but then he considered the predicament Jenny had just been through and reconsidered. "I know a sushi place with a pretty decent bar uptown. Just let me grab my bag and change so we'll be a little less conspicuous."

About an hour or so later, he held the door open for Jenny at a very dim but modern place called Ishii. He was now wearing a gray blazer, black jeans, and a white button-up shirt with small, black dots printed all about it. To cover up his blue hair, he had it tucked under a newsboy cap. A waiter led them to a secluded little booth lit overhead by a hanging pink light. He ordered a vodka tonic before asking her, "So, not to force you to bring work out of the office, but how did you get into a job like this?"
 
Jenny nodded some at the offer of sushi, liking the idea. It didn't take her long to note the ice villain liked to eat cold fish and then her mind jumped right to toilet penguins. The thought made her snort a little in amusement as they headed off for dinner. "Sushi sounds good. Maybe you can bring some back to your toilet messenger penguins," she said, unable to hold the hilarity to herself and laughed with her arm still in his. She didn't argue with him changing before going, only assuming that dining out in his costume was just asking for more trouble. It wasn't until he returned in the new clothes that she realized she had never seen his face without those goggles on. She was genuinely taken aback. He was quite handsome. Her face reddened some and she glanced away in slight embarrassment.

She had never been to that particular restaurant. It was really nice, so she thought anyways. Very modern, sharp and clean lines everywhere. A little dim but that wasn't uncommon. In their quiet little booth she glanced over the menu ordering some hot sake. His question raised her eyes from the list of rolls to order. Why she bothered looking she didn't know. She always got the same thing for sushi. California rolls.

"Well...I have my MBA. In undergrad I had dual majors, business and marketing. So I've also got a degree in marketing with the MBA. School isn't cheap, loads of debt. Grant a Dream hired me on, decent enough pay and my loan payments are determined based on my salary so I don't have to pay back as much a month. I mean, don't get me wrong, I actually really love this job," she said with a bright smile. "Guess that's evident by standing in a certain someone's big, dumb, freezer for almost an hour," she added with a small laugh as their drink arrived. "I've been there for almost two years and don't think I plan on changing any time soon. It's really rewarding, seeing the kids and how they react. The joy that just a little visit can bring." Jenny smiled to herself even if her throat felt a little tight. "But...it never gets easier...I've been to all their funerals too...Not all of them of course, some manage to pull through. A lot don't."

Jenny leaned back and took a sip of the sake. "I'll stop with the sad things. What about you Doc? I mean...why...uh..." she paused and glanced around to see if anyone was nearby and listening. "Why go for evil and not good? You're surprisingly good at the whole rescue thing," she added with a wry grin.
 
Nick felt especially saddened by the end of Jenny's story, thinking of Tommy. He wanted to mention that he hoped Tommy was one of the lucky few she mentioned, but he felt that might only make the conversation more depressing. He smiled bashfully when she changed the subject and complimented him on his hero skills.

"Well, good doesn't pay the bills," he lamented, pausing to sip at his clear, icy drink. "I was a chemistry student at Meta-U a few years ago, developing my freezing solution for more practical purposes. Say, someone has a rare blood type or other donor match. We could be using this breakthrough to preserve human tissue without any breakdown or cold damage for years. But..." he winced with embarrassment, "There was kind of an... incident? I was trying to demonstrate what my formula could do and I..." he scratched the back of his head, darting his eyes away "...I kind of froze all the pipes in the building. They burst, the place started to flood. Needless to say, I was 'excused' from the school and my academic reputation and career was down the toilet with the penguins." He took a larger gulp of his drink to keep the memories at bay.

"And, I guess I didn't want my work to go to waste. So I developed these gloves and went out to act all evil." He shrugged again. "I dunno, I was never a very big or popular kid, so that, combined with feeling like I lost control when I was booted out of school made being the bad guy had a certain appeal to me. Like I'm the one calling the shots now. The good guys still have to obey the law, but I do anything I like." He considered the statement in relation to everything he'd been up to that day. "Not that, you know, there's too many evil things I want to do but, I suppose living the outlaw lifestyle seemed like it would make me feel more free and powerful."

He was briefly interrupted when their food arrived. Once their server was gone, he immediately plucked up a piece of fried calamari roll and plucked it in his mouth. After he chewed it, he continued, "Sorry, I'm starving after all that mess."
 
Jenny rested her chin on her hand as Doc lapsed into his own tale. Origin story really. What he was working on sounded amazing and fascinating. She wasn't particularly good at science but she could see how useful such a chemical could be. Though the incident and dismal from the school seemed so strange. One single incident led to expulsion and a life of crime? She questioned the review board that let it happen. Such an advancement seemed like it would not only help millions of people but make the institution a hell of a lot of money. Her heart gave a pang of sympathy. It didn't seem fair to her. Clearly not to Nick either. Though as he dug deeper her eyebrow raised. Honestly she was impressed he could admit that to himself.

The food arrived before she could respond and she gave him a small grin as he started in right away. "No I get it...crazy afternoon," she said as she picked up her own sushi and started in on it. "Im...actually really impressed," she said after a few thoughtful chews and picked up another roll. "I mean, not a lot of people....sorry, but, men especially, would even admit that about themselves." She gave him a grin before popping a second roll into her mouth. "I mean...it's not like you're hurting anyone really, except that bank I guess. But you did a lot of good today. Maybe you're just kind of proof that not everything is black and while. Good and bad. Hero and villain. Don't get me wrong, I totally don't endorse stealing and stuff but...it doesn't make you a bad person."

An understatement really. As long as she had known him, hell even knew of him, he had done far more good than bad. "You know...there were a lot of cameras around today. I kinda wonder what is being said about...well...all of this. The heroes attacking right outside CHKD? A villain spending time with a sick kid and doing a rescue? I bet this is blowing up on the internet." Of course she had put her phone on silent for the visit, very much unaware of the notifications currently trying to melt her phone. She was, however, being polite and not pulling it out while at dinner. "Maybe the little push towards going straight huh? There's other places to sell your invention to. Bet you'd make way more than busting a few banks." Her grin was almost teasing even if part of her kind of wished he was more hero than villain. Besides the handsome face he was actually kind of sweet. A decent enough guy really.
 
Nick couldn't help but admire her enticing green eyes as she looked on attentively with her hand in her chin. He had thought, initially, she meant she was impressed by the sushi, but it took him off guard that she meant him. "No need to be sorry. Men have egos made of glass, so, I get it. That's, I guess, why I started this little business enterprise." He didn't really consider what he did to be that big of a danger. He only targeted bigger banks, ones that he knew would be insured. Banks were becoming less and less popular, and it wasn't a stretch to argue that some of them stole from their account holders far more frequently and in greater quantities than he had.

"Maybe..." he mused at her notion that perhaps the super game wasn't as black and white as the world made it out to be. He took another sweet and savory bite of fried squid drizzled in eel sauce before continuing. "I never really doubted that it was more complex than the papers say, but even I was surprised that Igneous stood up for me. If nothing else, I hope this shows everybody that it isn't just a big game of cops and robbers. Especially those kids. I don't want any of them to get the wrong ideas, but, you know, good people can be bad, and bad people can be good."

After she went on to suggest his going straight, he grinned. "I honestly would really like to. Maybe I should give it a little more effort." He raised his drink up to toast, then downed the rest of it. "Maybe I can strike some kind of deal with the city. I haven't killed anyone. Maybe they'll give me a kind of 'community service' sentence and let me work my crimes off by fighting other crime. Nothing's impossible. They gave me amnesty today, didn't they. Thanks you you, I might add. I owe you for that. For, uh, you know, believing in me in general. At least, another shot of sake..." As chance would have it, the waiter was coming over, and he ordered them some more to drink.

"Hey, I don't think I ever told you my name, by the way." He put a demonstrative hand to his chest. "I'm Nick." Then another idea occurred to him. "Hey, why don't we check and see if we really did blow up the internet." He left his side of the booth and joined her on hers, pulling out his phone and tapping an internet browser to see if they made the news ticker.
 
Jenny was genuinely surprised when he marginally agreed about going straight. At least that he would like to anyways. Had to be easier than skirting the law, hiding out in some creepy warehouse. He made some good points on the possibility. Sure he had done something bad but perhaps doing good might ease a sentence or something. Though he didn't spend long on that thought, lapsing over to a a thanks. Jenny grinned at him, somehow both shy and pleased. Tommy's case had been the hardest one to date, even harder than Wreckluse. "Well no matter how bad someone might appear or try to be I figured no one would say no to a sick kid," she said with a flippant wave of her hand. Of course there might be quite a few who would say no if more kids got the idea in their head to see villains more.

For a moment she blinked when he gave her his real name. Somehow she hadn't realized she'd just been calling him Doc the whole time as if that was his name. "Nick," she repeated with a small nod and a grin. It was almost weird to actually meet his alter ego. His actual ego really, seemed the doctor was more the alter. Despite all her work with the heroes she didn't know any of their secret identities. Funny the first she learned was Nick's. Though the train of thought was quickly derailed as he mentioned checking the internet to see what was going on. Not just that but moving to her side of the booth to sit beside her. Jenny felt her ears warm as he tucked himself next to her in the booth. "Yeah sure," she said as she grabbed her purse and pulled out her phone.

"Holy donkey shit..." she breathed. Every social media app had no less than twenty notifications, she had received ten missed calls, twenty four texts, and eight emails. The story had really blown up. News outlets reported wildly different accounts of what had happened. Some of the more outlandish ones tried to say Dr. Cryonic had tried to attack CHKD. Three hashtags were trending on the incident: #NotAllVillains, #ZeroHero, and #SoHotSoCold. Grant a Dream already released a statement that Dr. Cryonic had gone to visit a sick child though made no comment on the heroes attacking. "This is fucking wild....look at all this! Man I've got a lot of calls to make tonight..." she said with a small laugh. Nick was clearly and suddenly revered and reviled. Comments ranged from praise to condemnation. A few fan pages already cropped up.

There were a few comments about her but she swiftly scrolled past. The internet could be wonderful but also painfully cruel and she didn't want to torture herself by reading any comments about her. Though the thought gave her pause and she looked up at Nick. While there were plenty of glowing praises and admiration there were negative remarks too. She put a hand on his arm. "Hey, ya know....try not to read the bad stuff. I mean there's always going to be shitty people, especially on the internet. You did a really good thing Nick. Try to remember that at least."
 
"Holy donkey shit indeed..." he trailed in amazement. Scooting in and leaning over for a better angle at the screen of Jenny's phone, Nick's now-wide eyes blinked in shock. Not at any particular article or comment he saw her scroll through - he hadn't even processed the content of any of them yet. No, his amazement was at the shear number of the comments. Oh, sure, he had gone viral before in the reports of his robberies, but absolutely nothing like that. He was the subject of hashtags for Christ's sake! (His favorite was easily #notallvillains) Once the shock wore off, he turned to Jenny, mouth still agape, and laughed a little in joyful amazement.

His smile sank a bit. "Er, if you need to cut this short to take care of your calls..." he offered, knowing that she was a representative of an organization that would get a lot of attention due to today's events. But before he could offer the rest of the notion, the waiter came by with their pitcher of warm sake. It was great that most of the positive blurbs were mixing in at the top of the search, but Nick was starting to notice more and more speculations that what he was doing was too good to be true, as well as a lot of headlines that misconstrued the entire event and focused on the fight. Gradually though, Jenny's reassuring words helped to mellow him out. After a few minutes processing the worry over the more negative opinions, he put his opposite hand (now much warmer without his gloves) on the one she placed on his arm and decided that right now, her opinion mattered more. She had been there. She was the only person hanging out with him now. Not the reporters, or bloggers, or commenters, but her. He turned back to face her again.

"Yeah," he said, giving another humble laugh. "I guess I did do a good thing, didn't I? Here..." He slowly moved his arms away from her gentle grip and poured them each some sake into their small, ceramic cups. "I wouldn't have without you. You did, too. I know this is your job, but, you're amazing at it. You must be a really decent person, you know, following through like this for sick kids." He raised his shot. "To today! It was fucking amazing..."
 
Jenny couldn't help a small smile at his offer. Let her go to make the necessary phone calls. Though she knew it was more than likely her superiors had already seen everything she wanted to give any head wind, try and get ahead of things. Honestly she didn't know where it would all go from there. While there was plenty of good press there was some bad as well. People condemning the organization for allowing a villain to meet with a child. Idiots and jerks in her opinion. He had never been in any danger. Not from Nick anyways. The insane heroes maybe. Self-righteous jackasses that wanted to pick a fight right outside of a children's' hospital. Still she was having a good time and just shook her head a little as the waiter came by with a pitcher of hot sake. Despite being a villain Nick seemed like a decent enough guy.

HIs response to her praise was adorable. Humble but clearly pleased with it. His hand over hers was warm to the touch. Surprising given his villain power type. Jenny gave him an almost shy grin at the touch. Brief though it was as he released her hand to pour them some sake in the tiny cups. Her nearly shy grin beamed a little more at the returned praise. She had told him that it was a good feeling. She loved to see that look of pure joy. Maybe a little selfish in a way but doing some good for the world really did make her feel good even if the money wasn't that great.

"To today," she echoed with a grin before taking a drink of the sake. Luckily the building was cool and the sake warmed her up to her toes. "So fucking amazing," she added with a laugh. It was her turn to pour for both of them after the first cups were finished. By the end of the pitcher she was feeling quite warm; her fingers, toes, lips and nose all a tingle. "Well,,,I hate to be a dull Debby but I really should get home and get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a pretty busy day at the office I think." Once the check was settled she was ready enough to be out in the warmth of summer. Nick might have a different opinion but she did like the warmth. "So...yeah...I guess this is...goodbye then," she said with an awkward tucked of hair behind her ear. "I mean...maybe I'll...see you again?" She asked, a tiny bit of hopeful, certainly helped by the alcohol, in her voice. "For, uh, work or...or something. Who knows, maybe the whole 'kids meeting' villains thing will be the new trend," she said with a quiet laugh.
 
"Oh, yeah, sure!" Nick complied, hiding his disappointment that this pleasant evening had to end. He scooted out of the booth to let her slide out after him. He gave a sympathetic half-smile as she called their parting "goodbye", but when she brought up the possibility of seeing each other again he added "Well... I mean... you do have my number.... If, you know, you ever need me for anything, or... something." He laughed with her. "I hope it becomes a trend. It was honestly the best day of my life. Thanks again for that." He reached forward, slowly sliding both arms around her waist and pulling her close. As he held her for a few moments, he argued with himself about kissing her, too, but when they pulled apart, he chickened out. He'd only met her the other day and the circumstances of their meetings hadn't been exactly orthodox. It wouldn't be right to just randomly kiss her, even on the cheek. Maybe, if she called him, he would get a fresh start, but at the end of the day, he still felt like it would be overstepping his bounds for the villain to kiss the girl.

US Government Outpost, Antarctica...

The night wind blew wildly into the open doorway, clicking up the dusty top of a growing mound of snow pouring in. Every surface of this entry room looked to have been exposed to the elements for some time, covered in frost and ice even thicker than the layers in Nick's warehouse. Despite the significant damage from the weather, the lights still worked, serving as a beacon back into the shelter. And it did just that, just then. In from the night, a lone figure entered the base, carrying a net slung over his left shoulder. He was dressed in a getup that seemed dangerously inappropriate for the South Pole's harsh conditions- a skin tight, lightweight costume making him look like a superhero. Yet, abnormally, he didn't seem the slightest bit bothered by the lethal winds outside, strolling into the building and down a brief hallway.

"Alright, everyone. Dinner!" he proclaimed, coming to a much wider room at the end of the hall. The furniture shoved to the walls of the room suggested it had originally been an office, but now housed a sofa made of tightly-packed snow. Upon entering the room, the man poured the contents of the net- a large heap of fish - onto the floor, and from a few other doorways, a dozen or so penguins waddled in. Their human keeper walked past them, plopped onto the snowy couch, picked up a laminated remote, and switched on a large flatscreen TV mounted to the wall the couch was facing. Almost immediately, he wanted to scream.

According to the news reports on several channels, some ice-wielding alter-ego had fought alongside the likes of Igneous and Gladatrix after making an appearance at a children's hospital. craziest of all, he was evidently a criminal, not a hero. The watcher's eyelid began to twitch as he saw a few clips of the villainous cold-based character being let out of the building by a scrumptious redhead, and later even rescuing her from a fiasco involving Wreckluse. The report abruptly ceased when a spire of solid ice slammed into the screen, causing the TV to spit a few sparks then fade to black silence.

"Oh!" the watcher exclaimed, "So after almost five years of applying, Emperor Penguin gets nothin', but this guy makes one public appearance, and he gets a spot on the team and the girl?! Horseshit! Vincesno!" A particularly tall penguin waddled over and let out an obedient caw. "Laptop! I need to research this some more!" The penguin waddled off, returning with a laptop computer, already turned on and ready to go. Reading further into the story only made the human more angry. The photos and articles seemed to point to Grant-A-Wish as the facilitators of this moral perversion. Delving deeper into the organization's photos of their events, that same red haired woman seemed to be clapping and enjoying herself in the background of many of them. But in none was she seen holding a hero's hand or letting them manhandle her under the paper-thin guise of it being an alleged rescue. She was this "Dr. Cryonic's" girl. And since this Dr. Cryonic guy's glory should belong to the Emperor Penguin, so should this damsel. The lady fair, just like in knightly tales of old.

"I always told you we'd be going to see America one day..." he told Vincesno, though his eyes were still glued to the computer screen. "If we hurry now, we'll be there in maybe ten, fifteen days tops. Get everyone ready!" He hopped to his feet, head held high in an ambitious dream of triumph. "I'm going to prove myself, get my rightful Empress, and if that 'Cryonic' asshole tries to stop me, I'm going to defeat him and prove my rightful place on Igneous' team! Let's go!"

He and his entourage headed outside, walking for about a mile to where the ice met an ocean that spanned out into the horizon. Extending his hands and curling his fingers, Emperor split a nearby mountain of ice in twain, and from it floated a middle-sized ship, the very same that the man who would become emperor floated in on some ten years ago. "Everyone on!" he ordered, and the penguins trotted up a ramp of ice onto the ship's deck. An hour later, it was off to sea.

Twelve days later, the ship itself was docked at a neglected stretch of the Metatropolis waterfront, surrounded by long forgotten barges and fishing boats, where no one would pay it any mind for now. Wasting no time, Emperor immediately ordered a moving van to meet him at the dock. After bludgeoning the driver with the blunt end of an icicle, Emperor loaded his slick, feathery subjects into the van and made his way to the Grant-A-Wish office.
 
Jenny could tell Nick was hesitant to leave but agreed anyways. It made her quietly smile and beam on the inside. At least he was a gentleman and didn't pout about leaving. Shame there weren't more guys like him in the world. More shame he was a villain she still believed he'd make a pretty decent hero. The farewell was awkward for both of them but she grinned brightly as he agreed to possibly meeting again. As he said, she did have his number after all. Though she froze up a little as he reached out and wrapped his arms around her waist. It surprised her some, a little display of affection. Just a hug, that was all. Though she couldn't stop the rush of blood to her ears and cheeks at the light hug. Still she smiled and returned it. "I'm glad it all worked out. Mostly," she added with a small laugh before they pulled away. Another moment of hesitation before finally parting and she stepped back. "Well...see you," she said with a little smile before turning to head to the train station. Time to get back to reality.

The next day at work she arrived to streamers, balloons, and confetti tossed in her face. Their company was a viral sensation. The phones had been ringing off the hook, emails flowing in, donations spiking to record highs. There were, of course, dissenters but they hardly mattered. Jenny beamed as her efforts were applauded. Liam was the only one at the office who seemed sullen. He had been painfully wrong though he didn't quite hold up his bargain to quit. Of course Jenny hardly minded that she knew he wouldn't do it and, honestly, she wouldn't want the work environment to be governed by silly bets. Once the celebrations settled she dove back into work though a lot of it was simply trying to reply to emails. She cringed at the sheer amount and it would take weeks to even try to respond to them all! Trouble was she had to weed out the scathing damnations of what she did from the flowery praises to find actual requests.

Each day seemed later and later. She wasn't able to leave before dark! Not that she minded. It wasn't like the streets weren't safe. Mostly anyways. The hardest part was keeping her mind focused. Every so often it would drift away from her. Drift right to Nick. Small flashes of little things. The warm blankets and gentle care, the rescue, their dinner and drinks. Especially the parting. So weird to think of comfortable and warm she had felt hugging the ice villain. Every so often she could be seen suddenly shaking her head to clear away the thoughts to get back to work. There was always something to do. Not every child wanted something difficult or extravagant like meeting a villain or even a hero. Though with her contact list it was easy enough to set up hero meetings. Sometimes she just had to plan vacations and call the visited locations about the situation, set up fun surprises. She didn't attend every single event of course, she'd never been home if she did and while she loved Disney World she couldn't go there every month, she was already well enough in debt and couldn't stop herself from buying souvenirs especially if they had Bambi on it.

Yet despite how often her mind drifted to Nick she was hesitant to call. With her long hours she hadn't a clue when they could meet up. Besides, there was part of her that worried about continuing anything with a villain. Even days later she believed Nick could be a good guy if he wanted. Still, did she want to pursue anything with someone who could end up in jail at any moment? It was gut wrenching. A few night she just stared at her phone, Nick's contact information pulled up, ready to dial, but she chickened out. The spider was back and hanging out in his usual spot. Sometimes it felt like he was watching her as she scrolled social media, watching videos about Nick that had sprung up suddenly. A lot of women certainly had suddenly found themselves in love. Ugh and she was, kind of, one of them. Maybe not love but...twitterpated.

Nearly two weeks passed and she hadn't contacted Nick at all. After five days she figured it was a lost cause. He probably wouldn't agree since she had pretty much spurned him already. Not on purpose, not really. Work had slowed down only marginally. She was only receiving thirty emails a day about Nick and Tommy rather than fifty or more. The hastags were falling on the trending markers. The world was going back to normal, onto the next big thing. Once everything settled she wondered what people would think of the event. Once the newness and craziness had come off. The hollow veneer of the new and exciting. That condition had only seemed to worsen in society with social media.

It was still late, well after dark, when Jenny finally stood up from her desk. She had been finalizing travel arrangements for a family with a little girl who had Leukemia. With a wide yawn she dragged a finger through her wavy red hair. With a huff she pushed her glasses up and slung her bag over her shoulder. As usual her short heels clicked on the polished floor as she headed out of the office. The night janitor had already arrived.

"Hey Antony," she said with a bright smile and a wave. The older gentleman gave her a smile and wave back but, as always, said nothing. She'd never heard a single word from him in her life. Outside the city was still bustling as ever. Cars speeding by on their way to whatever urgency made them drive so fast. Taking the train was a little inconvenient but she was sure she'd get in a wreck and die if she tried to drive with these crazy city people. As habit her mind drifted to Nick as she started on her path to the train station. She wondered if he was angry with her for not calling. Maybe he moved on. Phones worked both ways right and she had called him once so he should have her number. But she had been the one to agree. The back and forth was making her just a little crazy.

"Think of kittens," she said with a huffing sight. Her heels clicked on the pavement, the knee length, light purple, cotton skirt swirled gently in the soft breeze. She had chosen an off the shoulder peasant blouse for that day, another hot summer day. Honestly she couldn't wait for fall and break out her boots again. Call her basic but she loved her fuzzy boots. Nick would probably like them too. "Stop that," she growled to herself, digging the heel of her hand into her temple.
 
The Emperor Penguin had spent the afternoon in the Grant-A-Wish office's parking lot, binoculars in hand as he leaned against the dashboard, watching the employees shuffle out at the end of their workday, a keen eye out for a face that matched the woman who had gotten friendly with Doctor Cryonic in the news reports. He was just about to call the whole operation quits until tomorrow when a young woman finally exited the doors. He waited patiently for her to enter one of the few remaining cars in the lot, but instead, she let her heels carry her down the sidewalk, toward the train.

"Vincesno! Quick!" he shouted to the penguin in the passenger seat. "Map!" Vincesno help up at map of this district of the city, and Emperor scanned a few streets with his finger. "Okay! Thank you!" He looked through a partition window to the back of the van, where the rest of his most elite agents sat or laid about, then peeled out of the lot and down a lane the opposite direction of his target.

A few moments later, as the street became lonelier and more empty, a light blue rubber ball slowly rolled out of an alleyway a yard or so in Jenny's path. There were a few seconds of the sound of a wet flapping noise on the asphalt in the alley until eventually, a penguin poked its head out from behind the brick wall. It scanned the sidewalk a moment before locating its ball, then headed toward it, scooping it between its narrow, damp wings. Then it jerked its head over to make eye contact with Jenny, giving her a "Mwarah!" before waddling back into the alley, where the rest of the penguins eagerly watched from the opened back of the van, the ones in front holding a fishing net at the ready in hopeful waiting that their mark would possess the curiosity to follow their ball-bearing teammate.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom