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Superia #8: Annihilation pt. 3

by Sigma

Our Story Thus Far: Sidra is dead thanks to the actions of Zankuro, the evil spirit that possesses Iron Crane’s sword, but now Daggermaw is rampaging and destroying Delta City. Not wanting the monster to terrorize the rest of the country, Director Escher has called in a bomber to drop nuclear weapons on the beast. The heroines are running out to time to save the city.

VI

Superia stopped her run and slid to a halt. “Del...are you fucking serious…?”

“I wouldn’t joke about something like this, Naomi…”

“Wh...what the fuck?! They’re gonna level the whole city?!”

“I need everyone to either get to one of the safehouses, or a subway station, whichever is closest.”

“Fuck that!” Naomi said. “We can kill this thing! I’m getting the kid!”

“Naomi!”

Superia ripped her comm out of her ear, threw it away, and kept running.

***

“The clock ticks. Move swiftly, little bird,” Zankuro taunted.

Iron Crane ignored his mocking and picked up her speed. Her heart raced her in her chest and legs burned, but she could feel Zankuro stirring. She could feel the brand on her body stinging.

“Asa, wait!” Thera pleaded.

Crane stopped. “Thera, we do not have time…”

“I know…” Thera said, catching her breath. She then pressed her finger to her ear. “Everyone, please listen. I know a spell to teleport people away from the city.”

“What?!” Delphi said. “Thera, why didn’t you say something before?!”

Thera looked at Crane. “Because it won’t save everyone. The wards I set up earlier will do most of the work, since they’re spread about the city, but I can only teleport 100,000 people.”

“H...how many people live here?” Blaze asked.

“Just shy of 1.5 million…” Mantis answered.

“The spell will choose people at random, and it will transport them outside of the city, but they will be safe. I can’t guarantee any of you will make it, or even me…” Thera said.

“Fuck it, Thera. Do it,” Superia said.

“I agree,” Delphi said.

“I’ll need time for the incantation, but it should work before the planes attack the monster.”

Crane watched Thera and walked up to her. She put a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “Good luck, Thera.”

“You’re still going after the monster?”

“We have to try everything we can,” Crane said. She then turned and left Thera to her spell.

***

“C...Cindy…”

Blaze turned and looked at Thorn. The two of them stood on an empty, ruined street.

“Are we gonna die?”

Blaze walked over and hugged Thorn, holding her head against her chest. “I don’t know, Bex…I think we should...” Blaze then paused, long enough that Thorn looked up at her.

“What’s wrong…?”

Blaze stepped back. Her necklace glowed. “It’s Adros...he’s saying...he’s saying he’s willing the fight to the monster, even if it destroys part of the city. It’s better than a nuke.”

“That’s great!” Thorn said.

Blaze wiggled out of her bikini bottoms, spread her thick legs and licked her fingers. She then shoved her fingers into her pussy, up to her knuckles and began flicking her clit with her thumb. She moaned softly, cupping her tit with her free hand.

“Cindy, what the hell are you doing?!” Thorn asked.

“You know I have to orgasm to make Adros show up! Come on, Bex, help me!”

“What?!” Thorn blushed

“Bex! If you don’t help me get off, people are gonna die!”

“I...wh….god dammit!” Thorn cursed and ran over. “Why the hell am I friends with you people?!” She then stood on the tips of her toes and grabbed the sides of Blaze’s face. The two of them kissed, with Thorn tangling her tongue with Blaze’s. She gripped Blaze’s other tit and began playing with the soft skin.

They moaned, breathed heavily, as Thorn’s hands played with Blaze’s flesh. After a few moments, Blaze pulled back, her pale face flush. “Bex, don’t you have any of those aphrodisiac plants, like that time in Miami?”

“I didn’t think I’d need them today! Just hurry up and cum, already!”

“I can’t! It’s too much stress!” Blaze said.

“Ngggh!” Thorn growled. She then wrapped her arm around Blaze’s waist and squeezed her ass while continuing to kiss her. Blaze had to kneel slightly because of their stark height difference and Thorn pulled back. “You’re too tall for us to be doing this standing. Lay down!”

Blaze got down on the ground, on her back and Thorn lay on top of her, straddling her waist with her lean, green thighs. Thorn then shifted, dropping her panties around her legs and sat on Blaze’s face, positioning her pussy over her teammate’s mouth. She gasped and moaned as she felt the warmth of Blaze’s tongue inside of her, and she began grinding her hips while gripping Blaze’s pale, freckled tits.  She spread her legs slightly, played with the soft flesh, and rocked back and forth. At the same time, Blaze continued fingering herself, making muffled sounds of pleasure under Thorn’s tight snatch.

Thorn felt herself getting warm as Blaze continued licking and eating, and with her thighs, she squeezed the sides of Blaze’s head. She bit her lip, biting back the pleasure to try and hold out as long as she could until Blaze would cum and summon Adros. With one hand, she cupped her own tit while digging the nails on her other hand into Blaze’s. “Fuck...Cindy….Fuuuck!” Thorn whined as the pleasure mounted. She could feel herself getting closer, but didn’t know if her friend was there yet. Blaze’s tongue pushed in deep, and Thorn gasped in response. She felt Blaze’s hands on her hips, and even Cindy’s touch was proving to be too much for Becky to handle. She fought to hold it, unsure of how much more she had left and unsure of how close Cindy was.

So Thorn tried to put her mind elsewhere, focus on anything else to hold out a bit longer until Blaze was ready. She steadied her breathing, pinched her hardened nipple, and closed her eyes. She settled into a steady rhythm, confident she could hold a little longer when she suddenly felt a small hand tap her on the shoulder.

“Excuse me, miss…”

“AH!” Thorn screamed and fell off of Blaze. She sat on her ass and stared at a little girl, no older than 6 or 7, who stood there holding a stuffed turtle. Her clothes were covered in dirt and filth and she looked like she had been crying.

“Can you help me?” the child sniffed.

Blaze sat up and instantly covered her tits and Thorn did the same.

“Wha…?” Thorn looked at the girl and then stood up. “You shouldn’t be out here, honey. Where are you parents?”

“I’m lost…” the girl said. “I saw the monsters and I got separated from my parents when everyone was running. I don’t know where they are. They always told me to look for an adult if I got lost.”

Blaze sat so she was eye level with the girl. “What’s your name, dear?”

“Samantha,” the girl said. “This is Mr. Shell…” she said, raising her stuffed turtle.

Blaze blinked. “Mr. Shell...wait, were in the hospital a few weeks ago?”

Samantha wiped her eyes and nodded. “There were monsters there, too. I don’t like this city.”

“What is happening…?” Thorn asked in a whisper.

“Me and Naomi had to rescue Mr. Shell at the hospital when you turned all those people into monsters,” Blaze answered.

“That wasn’t my fault!” Thorn said. “Look, she can’t stay out here. We gotta get her somewhere safe like Delphi said.”

“Yeah, give me some clothes.”

Thorn went into her pouch took out some small seeds that she made grow into thick leaves. She then fashioned a bikini top for Blaze and gave it to her. Once Blaze had it on, she picked Samantha up. “Okay, Samantha. You’re gonna come with us somewhere safe. We’ll find your mom and dad, okay?”

Samantha nodded. “Thank you.”

Blaze smiled. “My name is Cindy, this is Becky. Let’s get you out of here.”

The heroines then walked off.

“Ms. Cindy,” Samantha said.

“What’s up?”

“Why were you two wrestling? Was Ms. Becky winning?”

***

With several powerful punches, Bombshell buckled the back door of the disabled bus, its front smashed in by rubble. She then ripped the door free and threw it aside. “Come on!”

One by one, a group of frantic preteens filed out of the bus. After they were out, a few adults along with the bus driver were out.

“Is everyone all right?” Bombshell asked.

One woman, in her fifties with short, dyed blonde hair, looked Bombshell over and put her hands on her hips. “Young lady, you need to cover yourself right now!”

Bombshell looked down at her naked torso. Her large, brown, 38Ds hung free for all to see. She scowled at the lady. “I just saved your asses, lady! Be nice!”

“That is no way to talk to me,” The woman said, poking her in the shoulder. “I swear, our church group insisted on coming to this city and it’s been nothing but trouble since we arrived. Giant monsters running around, and now naked hussies poisoning the minds of God’s children!”

Bombshell narrowed her eyes and held her tongue. She turned away when she noticed some of the boys of the group, along with all of the men and one of the adult women, staring at her with smiles and turned back to the woman in front of her. “Look, we don’t have time for this. They’re about to drop bombs on that monster. Get your group down the subway entrance,” she pointed across the street.

“We are never coming back here!” the woman said. “Come along, everyone.” She said, storming off.

Bombshell watched them go.

“It’s a thankless job, Lea. You know this.”

Bombshell turned around to see Mantis standing on top of the bus. “Ronnie, how screwed are we?”

“Very,” Mantis said, jumping down. “We’re scattered all over the city. I don’t know who’s gotten to safety and who’s still in the streets and we don’t have time to look.”

“Fuck…” Bombshell groaned.

“Yeah…Come on, we’d better hunker down too...”

Just as they began to cross the street, there was a rumble overhead. They both looked up to see a large heavy transport plane flying over the city, its propellers making a deafening sound as it moved across the sky.

“Shit...that’s gotta be Sentinel’s bomber…” Mantis said.

***

“Fuck me…” Fox sighed and sat up. All around her, many of the lesser monsters lay dead, riddled with bullets. Fox frowned when she looked at her arm, damaged so badly that large parts of her synthetic skin were torn away to expose the metal endoskeleton underneath. She stood up to gather herself and see who among the cops, soldiers, and Sentinel operatives were still around.

Then she looked up when she heard the sky rumble. The shadow of the bomber filled the sky and Fox went wide-eyed.

“No!….No, no, no, no….Escher, you son of a bitch!” She looked around frantically. “Perkins! Perkins, where the fuck are you?!”

“Here, boss!” Perkins appeared. He walked up to her with a limp.

“Get me Director Escher, right now!”

***

“Agent Fox,” Director Escher said once the called connected.

“Sir, what the fuck?! You called in a city-killer?!”

“It can’t be helped, agent. Delphi’s team cannot stop the monster. The Pentagon doesn’t want it leaving Delta City. This is the only way.”

“We just need more time, sir!”

“I’m sorry it had to be this way. You’re one of my best operatives, Agent Fox. On behalf of Sentinel, thank you for your service.”

“Sir! Sir!!” Fox stared at the communicator in disbelief. “He fucking hung up on me!”

***

“Hmmm…” Sloan said when she spied the bomber flying over the city. “All right...this has gone on long enough, it seems. Meta Woman, you’re up.”

“Finally…” Meta Woman said. She opened the window, leapt out, and took off for Daggermaw in the distance.

***

Superia closed in on the police station, her breath burning in her lungs as she pushed herself. The street in front of her was a ruin of destroyed vehicles and rubble. She was only a few dozen feet from the door of the station and didn’t see any other people.

“All right. I hope you’re still alive in there, kid…” she whispered to herself.

She then took another step when the doors to the station erupted in a violent explosion.

“Holy shit!” Superia screamed. She saw several of the lesser creatures flying out. They all hit the ground in broken heaps, completely lifeless. Superia then froze when she saw a tall, shapely figure in the smoke. When it cleared, Xanthe strode forward. She had one of the creatures by its thin neck and was dragging another by the tail. She dropped both at her feet and looked around at the destruction.

“What happened out here?”

“Hey!” Superia called out to her. She ran to her and stopped just in front of her. “There you are!”

“What are these monsters?” Xanthe asked, pointing.

“...You really don’t know?” Superia asked.

Daggermaw roared a powerful roar in the distance, and Xanthe spun around.

“Ah…why haven’t you all stopped it yet?”

“We can’t! It shrugged off everything we hit it with.”

The two of them then looked up when they heard the bomber rumbling. It appeared overhead in its flight toward the monster.

“And that thing…” Superia pointed. “...Is carrying bombs powerful enough to level the city.”

Xanthe paused and looked down. “Be quiet, child...Of course I’m not going to let the city be destroyed.” She then took a few steps away from Superia.

“Hey, what do you plan on doing?”

“I’m going to kill it,” Xanthe said.

“How?”

Xanthe looked back. “I’m going to punch it in the brain.” 

“...What?”

Xanthe didn’t say another word. Instead, she stretched her long arms over her hand, twisted her back and bent over at the waist, breathing deep. As she did, Superia watched her, admiring every lean, sculpted muscle on her body and the shapely curve of her ass as she bent over. Xanthe wore a skimpy black and white outfit made of stretchy fabric. Delphi had it made for Korina when they got back from Star City so Xanthe wouldn’t always be naked when she took over for the girl. It hugged her body like a glove, showing off every impressive inch of the ancient Aphrodite.

“You don’t have much time left,” Superia told her.

Xanthe bent down and took a runner’s stance. She arched her back, dug her feet in, and exhaled. “I don’t need much time.”

Before Superia could say another word, Xanthe took off in a burst of speed so powerful that it left a crater in the concrete underneath her bare feet. She was gone in the blink of an eye, the only evidence of her passing being the shattering of glass on nearby buildings from the sonic boom she generated.

“What...the...fuck…?” Superia gasped, shielding herself from the sudden blast of wind Xanthe had kicked up. When it died down, Superia looked down the street, unable to see Xanthe. “Holy shit, kid…”

***

The broken streets and shattered buildings of Delta City passed in a blur. Xanthe felt the wind in her hair, the air on her skin as she tore through the streets. Once she built up enough speed, she ran on the vertical surfaces of the buildings to get higher, leaving gouges in concrete and destroying glass with her sheer power. With a push of her legs, she leapt, high above the skyline, and moved across the city. Daggermaw was in the distance, still destroying, and Xanthe judged the distance as she began falling back to the city to continue her run.

“It’d be so much easier if you could just fly,” Korina said.

“Quiet!” Xanthe hissed. She landed, leaving an impact crater and kept running while losing very little momentum. She easily passed the bomber as she powered through winding canyons of steel, glass, and concrete. She passed cars, she passed people, and everything was a blur as Xanthe focused on what was ahead of her. She turned down one street, then another, a few blocks north, then a few more east, all covered in mere seconds. The creature’s rumbling grew louder, closer, until Xanthe reached an area where buildings were knocked over and destroyed by the monster’s power.

With no effort, she cleared a collapsed skyscraper and then pushed off another that had fallen part of the way. Xanthe was airborne, with the rumbling of the bomber behind her and the beast right in front of her.

A smirk crossed Xanthe’s face as she closed in, and she balled her hand into a fist. She came down on another partially collapsed building and immediately pushed off, destroying a good chunk of it as she did.

She closed in on one of Daggermaw’s many eyes, kept her fist tight and pulled back.

As if sensing her, the monster turned its massive head in her direction.

Once Xanthe was close, she pushed through the air, causing another boom, and let her punch fly. She passed through the eye, moved through the space in the monster’s cranium, and burst free on the other side. The wind whipped chunks of gelatinous gray matter off of Xanthe’s body as she flew clear of Daggermaw and fell. She slammed into the roof of a building the monster had yet to touch, partially collapsing it. She then stood, her taut, lean muscles relaxing, and she spun on one bare heel to face the beast.

Daggermaw stood frozen, blood pouring from its nose and mouth. Its other eyes, still intact, rolled back, its massive body shuddered and wavered, and the beast fell, taking down several buildings with it as it collapsed into the streets that it had ruined.

A massive cloud of dust and debris, visible from the city limits, kicked up and the sound echoed to every corner of the city as the monster fell.

Xanthe smirked and opened her hand, her knuckles slightly bruised from the blow.

“Hehe,” Korina chuckled. “Bet the girls have never seen anyone do that before.”

***

Delphi stared in disbelief at what she had just witnessed. “Y...you girls saw that, right…?” she asked. She turned to find Morgan and Alexis gone, and only just then remembered that she had sent them away. She then turned back to the monitor and continued staring.

***

“HQ this is Falcon-1.”

“Go ahead, Falcon-1,” Director Escher said.

“Sir...I don’t know how to explain this but...the monster is dead. Someone, a woman it looks like, beat us to it. She punched it, sir. Really hard.”

Escher stared at the satellite footage of Daggermaw laying in the ruins of Delta City, its body twitching.  “I see. Disengage, Falcon-1. Return to base.”

***

“Please tell me I get to fight her…” Meta Woman said, hovering high in the air above the monster’s corpse. She saw Xanthe standing on the rooftop and folded her arms. “She’s not Star Woman, but I want to fight her…”

***

“Another time. Come back.”

Sloan took a sip of her coffee and stared at the camera footage from a nearby drone that she had in the air. “Brute, could you come here for a moment, please?”

“Yo?” The big woman asked, after taking a big bite of a donut from a plate of them.

“Is that the Aphrodite you saw in Star City? The one that child turns into?” Sloan pointed at the screen.

Brute growled. “Yeah, that’s the bitch.”

“Interesting…” Sloan said. “Very interesting…”

“Shit, she took the monster down, huh? Guess you don’t need us now, eh?”

“No,” Sloan said. “You all are free to go.”

Slowly, Brute, Mach 5, Slate, Umbra, and Riot began to leave. Sloan watched them and then cleared her throat. “Riot, a word.”

Riot paused and looked at her.

“Ooooh, someone’s in trouble with the principal,” Mach 5 taunted.

“Fuck you, 5-second man!” Riot growled before exchanging heated glances with Brute and going over to Sloan. Sloan waited until the two of them were alone and motioned.

“Sit.”

Riot sat on the other side of Sloan’s desk and shifted in her seat while Sloan stared at her. “I’m aware that you and Meta Woman do not get along. To be honest, it doesn’t surprise me...none of you really seem to like her except for Lagoon.”

“She’s a vindictive bitch…”

“Be that as it may, she’s central to what we’re doing here. If we’re to humiliate the heroines and show this city that it needs us and not them, you and the others should stay out of her way.”

“Why are you telling me this?” Riot asked.

“The heroines’ public profile is going to skyrocket after today, exactly as I anticipated. As me move to the next phase of our plan, you and the others are going to be dealing with them directly in short order. From what we’ve gathered, their strength lies in the fact that they work well together. All of you need to do the same, and I want you at the head of that.”

“What? You want me as some kind of leader?”

Sloan nodded. “You have the qualities. It’s why I came to you after your gang fell apart. None of you like Meta Woman, so you won’t follow her. Umbra lacks self-confidence, Slate is too aloof, Brute is, quite frankly, too dumb, Mach 5 just does what Brute says, and Lagoon doesn’t take things seriously.”

“Huh…”

“Do this...and I will personally help you mount Naomi Grant’s head on a wall when we are finished.”

Riot grinned. “You know...you’re all right, Sloan.”

Sloan chuckled.

“Anyway, I’m your girl,” Riot said before getting up. “All right, I’m out.”

Sloan rose from her seat. “There’s one more thing.”

“What’s up?”

Sloan pressed the button on her bracelet and Riot felt the device embedded in her head shock her enough to bring her to her knees.

“Ugghh! Sloan! What the fuck!” Riot groaned, fighting back the pain.

Sloan removed her suit jacket and unbuttoned the top few buttons of her blouse. She slipped her heels off and walked around her desk, getting low next to Riot. “I heard you talking to Slate and Umbra, and how you disapproved of the monster attacking the city. Know this and know it well, you do not get to have a weak stomach. You do not get to express doubt for what we do here.”

Riot breathed deep, refusing to look at Sloan until the woman put a hand on her chin and made her look up.

“You belong to me and Orla, and I assure you my sister is not the only one capable of cracking the whip if you get out of line.” Sloan took off her glasses and undid the bun her hair was tied in. Her long, brown hair fell about her narrow shoulders as she looked down at Riot. Sloan raised her hand and slapped the the tattooed Aphrodite hard. The blow made Riot fall back onto the floor, temporarily drained of her power from the device in her head.

Riot lay on her back and Sloan mounted her waist while undoing her blouse. Her healthy, C-cup tits were held by a red lace bra and Riot could see Sloan’s nipples were erect under the fabric. Sloan ran her hands up Riot’s tits before wrapping her thin fingers around her neck and squeezing slightly.

“Never forget, you mutant trash are good for obeying orders and nothing else. You will not replace us, you will not live alongside us. You will obey, or you will die.”

Riot looked up at her, gagging for breath. She writhed under Sloan’s weight, kicking her legs and trying to get free. She grabbed Sloan’s wrists, trying to force her off, but Sloan leaned in so their faces were mere inches apart. Sloan smiled and moved her hands from Riot’s neck. She then ran them down her chest, squeezing her tits. She played with the soft, ample flesh, and smirked when she heard Riot moan softly.

“You Aphrodites are especially pathetic…” Sloan laughed. “At least Altered don’t become mindless sex objects at the slightest touch.” She then moved one hand up, forcing her thumb into Riot’s mouth and forcing her to suck on it. “Still...you have your uses. Since we are done for the day, you will entertain me.”

Riot whined and moaned under Sloan, taking in the taste of her skin. As Sloan continued toying with her body, Riot simply nodded.

Sloan smiled and nodded before kissing Riot on the forehead. “Good girl.” She reached back, slipping her hand under Riot’s shorts. Riot cried out when she felt Sloan penetrate her and Sloan again clamped down on Riot’s neck to stop her squirming. Sloan moved her fingers around the Aphrodite, and Riot continued moaning as Sloan toyed with her. She could feel herself growing wet, but at being penetrated and when Sloan tightened the hold on her neck. Sloan moved her fingers in a slow and steady motion, and before long, she pulled her fingers out. The tips of her middle and ring finger glistened with Riot’s juices and Sloan licked the tip of her ring finger before smearing Riot’s face with her own juices from her middle finger.

Sloan then stood up, grabbing Riot by her hair and forcing her up. “Let’s take this somewhere more comfortable.”

VII

“Sooo…” Superia said, scratching the back of her head. “I guess that’s it…”

“How the fuck did one person do that?!” Bombshell asked.

It was some time later and Superia, Bombshell, Thera, Crane, Blaze, Thorn, and Mantis all stood near Daggermaw’s corpse, by the monster’s head.

“I had heard ancient Aphrodites were powerful…” Thera said. “But this…”

“It’s a good thing she’s on our side,” Thorn said.

“Indeed…” Delphi said. “The small creatures died when he did. We truly lucked out on this one, ladies.”

“What’s going to happen to the body?” Blaze asked.

“That’s the city’s problem…” Mantis answered. “I imagine Sentinel will want to study it.”

“That isn’t a bad idea, actually...Asa, could you…”

Before Delphi could finish, Asa produced a sharp knife and tried to cut.

“Its hide is like steel...I can’t cut through it,” Crane said.

“Try your sword,” Superia suggested. Thera looked at her nervously.

“No…” Crane said quickly. “It is not used for something like that.”

“Wouldn’t be funny if it tasted like chicken?” Blaze said. “Bex, if we can carve it up, I’ll give you a hundred bucks if you take a bite after I cook it.”

“No!” Thorn objected. “Ugh...I’m leaving…You all are exhausting.” She turned to walk away when a black van rolled up to the the scene and stopped. The doors opened and Fox climbed out, waving at them.

“Hi guys.”

Everyone got shocked looks on their faces, and Superia stepped forward.

“Foxy...what the fuck?!”

“What’s wrong?” Fox asked.

Superia held out her hands in disbelief. “What’s wrong? I should be asking you that!”

“What is it?”

“Your fucking arm!” Superia pointed.

“What?” Fox looked at her damaged arm, which she had covered, and then turned and looked at her other arm, or rather, the space where it should’ve been. Instead, it was just a stump with a mess of torn wiring hanging loose. “Oooh…”

Superia walked over and grabbed what was left. “Fox, you’re a fucking cyborg?!”

“Surpriiiise…” she chuckled nervously. “I probably should’ve opened with that when we met, huh?”

“I don’t know if I should be more pissed about that or the fact that your boss tried to nuke us,” Superia said.

“Yeah, I’m gonna chew him out for that one,” Fox said. “But...I’m happy to see you all are okay! Good work out there, everyone! Where’s the woman of the hour?”

Almost on cue, Xanthe jumped down and landed nearby, leaving a crater when she did. She then stepped up to the rest of the group. “Hello, everyone…”

“That was so…” Blaze started, then paused. “Wait, Adros, what are you….?!”

Before she could finish, her necklace flared and there was a bright flash of light. When it subsided, Adros, the fire deity that resided in her necklace, towered over her, the eyes on his featureless face narrowed.

“You!” Adros’ voice boomed.

Xanthe looked at him in surprise and then grinned. “Adros, The Ruin of Pompeii. I guess I have to kill you again!”

Before anyone could say anything, Xanthe and Adros charged at each other. Before the two could clash, they were each stopped by separate barriers that only became visible when they ran into them. They bounced back and glared at each other. 

Thera stood between them, holding her staff out.

“Whaaat…?” Thorn whispered.

“Oh, I’m sure this story is interesting,” Fox said.

Adros folded his arms and glared at Xanthe. “I’ll be seeing you soon, whore…” he said before vanishing back into Blaze’s necklace.

Xanthe smirked and tossed her black hair back. “I’m finished here for the day,” she said. Her form then shifted and shrunk until Korina stood before everyone, all eyes on her.

“Okay, I have no idea what the fuck that was!” she said to everyone.

Superia shrugged and shook her head. “Ya’ll, this is Korina. Kid, this is...everyone…”

Korina grinned and waved. “I’m starving. We should go get lunch. I really want some wings.”

Before anyone else could say anything, several more vehicles approached, mostly vans. Before long, reporters and cameramen were climbing out and rushing toward the women with microphones out.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, what the hell?!” Superia said.

“Nope,” Mantis said. She took out her grappling gun, fired it, and swung away.

“Veronica has the right idea,” Crane said. She went into her pouch, took out a smoke bomb, and threw it down. When the smoke subsided, she was gone.

Blaze fixed her hair and smiled as the reporters got close. “I’ll handle this,” she said before approaching them with a smile and a wave.

“Sooo...that’s a no on lunch then?” Korina asked, her stomach growling.

VII

“This changes everything,” Delphi said.

Everyone was back at HQ now, several hours later, and she stood with Veronica and Madeline as they watched replays of the day’s events on the news. Some screens showed the monster’s rampage, some showed various reporters talking about what happened. Some showed Blaze talking to the reporters after, with the screens naming her as ‘Cindy Callum, former child actress.”

“This puts us in the public eye,” Madeline said.

“Yeah,” Veronica said. “I don’t know if this is a good thing or not...I already have Morgan putting together a media strategy. We need to control this.”

Delphi nodded. “I agree.” She then looked at Veronica. “Come with me, there’s something I want to talk to you about.”

Mantis nodded knowingly and followed her out while Madeline walked over to the couch were most of the others were. She took a seat between Lea and Korina, who each had plates piled high with chicken wings.

“Oh, hi Dr. Smith,” Korina smiled.

Madeline smiled. “How are you, Korina?”

“Hungry, and a little tired. Xanthe says hello, too,” Korina said while continuing her meal.

“Christ, my hair is a mess…” Naomi said, noting her appearance on the news when a reporter talked to her. Her bare tits were blurred out. “I nailed that interview, though.”

“They had to bleep most of what you said out,” Becky said.

“Yeah, we should probably let Cindy do most of the talking from now on,” Lea said.

“What? I’m fine with talking to the news,” Naomi said.

“Naomi, sweetie,” Cindy said. “You have terrible media presence. I’ll help you fix it.”

“Terrible? How?”

“You can be a bit...abrasive…”

“Oh, what the fuck ever! I’m charming as fuck!” Naomi said, getting up. “You know what, screw you, Cin. I’m going to bed.” She then walked away.

Cindy sighed. “I can’t let her get in front of another camera.”

“So hey, Korina,” Lea said. “How come Xanthe and Adros wanted to kill each other back there?”

“I don’t know,” Korina shrugged. “She won’t tell me. She just said they’re old enemies.”

“Yeah, Adros is being tight-lipped too,” Cindy added. “He says he won’t let it endanger the team, but once he’s sure he can get Xanthe alone, they’re going to settle an old score…”

“Well, whatever it is, it’s a good thing you two are on board. Only two people I know who could do what Xanthe did are Star Woman and Scarlet. We’d have been fucked if Xanthe hadn’t been there…” Lea said.

***

“You need to tell them, Asa…” Thera insisted.

Asa sat on the edge of the bed Thera lay in, looking at the sheathed sword in her hand. “It will be fine, Thera…”

“I know the toll cursed objects like that sword can take on their wielders, no matter how strong. This won’t end well if you keep trying to hide it.” Thera then sat up and put a hand on Asa’s shoulder. “Please...I don’t want to have to keep lying to everyone…”

“I will take care of it…” Asa said. The door opened and Naomi walked in.

“Yo,” she said.

Asa nodded and stood up, taking the opportunity to leave. “Get some rest, Thera,” she said before leaving.

“What’s with her?” Naomi asked.

“Nothing…” Thera said with a sigh. “How are you doing?”

“I should be asking you that,” Naomi answered. “I gotta imagine slinging all that magic around left you drained.”

“It did,” Thera admitted. “I just need to rest for a day or so and then I will be fine.”

“Christ, it’s cold in here,” Naomi said, climbing onto the bed with Thera.

“Wh…” Thera blinked. “What are you doing?”

“Keeping warm,” Naomi said with a grin. She got under the covers with Thera and put her arms around her. One hand gripped a tit while Naomi nuzzled against Thera’s shoulder wrapped a thigh around Thera’s waist.

“Ah! Your feet are cold!” Thera laughed.

“Hehe.”

***

Asa continued through the halls until she passed Delphi and Veronica.

“I’ll be there in a second,” Delphi said to Veronica, who nodded and kept walking. “Asa, I want to talk to you.”

“What is it?”

“What really happened with you and Thera and that sorcerer?”

“It was as Thera said...her spell caused us to pause temporarily.”

“I know what I saw, Asa...that wasn’t Thera’s magic…”

“I assure you it was,” Asa said in a tone that encouraged Delphi to not press the issue. She then walked away without another word.

Delphi sighed and continued on until she reached a room at the far end of the hall and put her palm against the pad. Once it read her print, the door opened. Veronica turned when she walked in.

“Everything all right?”

“Asa is keeping a secret from us…”

“Turnabout is fair play, I suppose.”

They both stepped forward to a tank filled with a thick, pale green liquid. Inside the tank floated several body parts: An eye, parts of a brain, and the very beginnings of a spine.

“We could really use her in case something like this happens again,” Delphi said.

“I know...but it’s not as if we can tell Star Woman to speed up her regeneration. She can’t even hear us at this stage,” Veronica said. “How long is this going to take?”

“I’ve run numbers based on genetic samples of her that we have on file. I estimate it’s going to be 3 years before she’s whole again…” Delphi said.

“When do we tell the others?”

“We should have done it right after V’lirra died and we recovered these parts. They consider her a friend and they deserve to know...but now, with all this media attention...we need to keep this quiet.”

“Right…” Veronica said. “You think Xanthe will cooperate in the meantime?”

“I hope so…” Delphi said. “Korina said she can be stubborn, unwilling to fight an enemy she considers beneath her. I’d rather not have to wait for half the city to be destroyed before she decides to act…”

***

“How long on these repairs?” Fox asked.

The tech stopped his soldering iron and looked up at her. “You’re on the bench for about a week and a half, Agent Fox.”

“Ugggh!” Fox groaned. She looked at her damaged arm, and at the parts of her synthetic skin that had been torn away. She had also learned that some of her internal systems were badly damaged. She let out a sigh as the tech continued to work, when there was a ringing sound from a nearby monitor. She and the tech both looked and the tech put the call through.

“Agent Fox,” Director Escher’s voice came over.

Fox clenched her jaw. “Give us a minute.”

The tech nodded, put his tools down, and left the room.

“How are you doing, Agent?”

“I’ve been better.”

“Speak freely, Agent.”

“I don’t like that you were so quick to condemn us all to death, sir,” Fox told him. “I’m not afraid to die, but there are 1.5 million people in this city and you were ready to wipe the majority of them out with the press of a button. I don’t know if I can trust you now.”

“Your concerns are fair and noted. Please know that it wasn’t a decision I made lightly.”

“Delphi and her team had it handled,” Fox insisted.

“We cannot assume that there is nothing beyond them. Even with this new Aphrodite, this Xanthe woman, it’s foolish to put everything on their shoulders.”

“Even so, sir, to exercise such an extreme option…”

“I know, Agent. I’m going to meet with the directors of the other divisions in the morning. We’re going to restructure, especially in our occult department. That a creature like that existed and we didn’t know was a failing of intelligence on our part. We cannot allow that knowledge gap to be exploited again.”

“Do we know where it came from?” Fox asked.

“Not yet. We’re on it, I promise you. I’ve already dispatched teams to start taking apart the body for transport. You should hear from a liaison in a day or so. I realize I need to rebuild my trust with you, Agent, but I am proud of what you did today.”

“...Thank you, sir…”

“I’ll leave you to it and I will update you on any changes.”

The call then ended and Fox sighed.  She looked over the tools laying next to her and at the spare machine parts around the lab. The door opened the tech walked back into the room.

“Ready to continue?”

“You think I can get a few upgrades?” Fox asked.

“Like what?”

“Well, reinforce the endoskeleton so I don’t break as easily for one?”

“That’s another 2 days of recovery time.”

“Okay, fine,” Fox said. “Anything you suggest?”

“Well, the Aphrodites were on the news and the public’s already got a positive public opinion. The news will probably want to talk to us too. You want bigger tits for the cameras?”

Fox looked at her bare tits, a pair of respectable B cups, and then looked at the tech. “Oh fuck off!”

The tech laughed and got back to work.

“We might need more agents, I’m gonna make sure HR puts “NO COMEDIANS” in the description. Jesus.” 

Epilogue

“This is going to take forever to clean up,” Thera said.

She and Naomi stood in front of Daggermaw’s corpse a few days later. Crews had been working to cut through the monster’s tough hide and reduce the pieces to a size where they could be taken away.

“Glad it ain’t us dealing with it,” Naomi said.

“What’s really troubling is that we don’t know even know where it came from or if there are others.”

“Yeah...hopefully Xanthe gets with the program…”

“Ms. Grant! Ms. Naomi Grant!”

Both women turned around to see reporters coming up to them with microphones up. They all talked over each other, pushing past each other to get access to the women.

“Ugh, Christ…” Naomi groaned.

Thera giggled and put a hand on Naomi’s arm. “Just remember what Cindy said. Try to keep the foul language to a minimum.”

“Yeah, one showed up at my place and the cops had to come when Lex threatened to throw him down the elevator shaft.”  She then leaned in close to Thera. “Let’s just start making out in front of them.”

Thera’s face turned red and she hit Naomi in the arm. Naomi then laughed and stepped forward. “All right, one question at a time.”

Everyone then turned when there was surge of power in the air and a portal appeared.

“Shit!” Naomi said, putting her fists back. “Everyone get back!”

Thera stood next to Naomi and readied a spell.

A few moments later, a tall woman in black with short, white hair emerged from the portal.

“Thera! I finally found you! I’ve been looking all over for you.” She then looked at Naomi. “Oh, hey new girl.

Thera blinked. “Nocturne…? What are you doing here?”

“I came here to see if you and maybe some of the others wanted in on this caper I’ve got going. I need a heist crew. There’s this casino in Fortune City that’s run by demons. We’re gonna punch some guards and steal a…” she looked at the reporters, then turned and noted the destruction, and then turned and saw Daggermaw. “WHOA! What the fuck?! What the hell happened here?!” She looked at the heroines.  “You guys took out a leviathan?!”

Thera and Naomi looked at each other.

“You know what this thing is?” Naomi asked.

“Yeah, it’s one of the old Leviathans, creatures that ruled the earth before humans crawled out of the soup.” She then looked the beast over. “I think this is Razorback...no, it’s Daggermaw, his brother...holy shit!”

“Wait…” Thera said. “Nocturne, do you know a sorcerer that controls this thing?”

“Sidra? Yeah, I squared up with that chump once. Or his soul anyway. The body was sealed away. Long story. Why? He around too?”

“Un-fucking-believable!” Naomi threw her hands up.

“We took care of Sidra…” Thera said.

“You bitches had a party and didn’t invite me,” Nocturne huffed. “What the fuck, dude?”

“We really could have used your help…” Thera said.

“I’m leaving,” Nocturne said, dejected. “I’ll handle this little adventure myself. I thought we were friends, T!” she said before stepping through another portal and vanishing.

“I kinda wanted to go to Fortune City and punch some demons…” Naomi pouted.

“After what happened last time?!” Thera asked.

“Come on Ther, where’s your sense of adventure?” Naomi said, slapping her on the shoulder before going back to the reporters.

“...Right below my sense of not wanting to get eaten by demons…” Thera said with the sigh.

The End