Chapter One
May 20th, 11:20 PM
The young man crouched behind the slot machines, his gloved hands scratching at the red carpet, his masked eyes scanning the smoky, boozy, stain-soaked scene. The main room of the Paradise Casino was nearly empty, with hardly a patron or staff member in sight. Everyone had fled once the gunshots started. Everyone except for the gorgeous girl in cerulean spandex who had swooped in, seemingly out of nowhere, to interrupt the heist. The Blue Lynx.
The man had been watching her for ten minutes now: her brilliant entrance; the cocky, sultry way that she pronounced "You boys better surrender"; her initial attacks on the Rattlesnakes, the cowboy-boot wearing, pistol-packing gang of thieves that had been hitting up casinos and banks all summer. She moved with incredible grace and speed, disarming the gunmen and making quick work of half the baddies. But reinforcements had come from another room-- the Rattlesnakes seemed to grow in numbers each time they went out-- and formed a circle around her. They closed in, and though she had held her own for a minute, they rapidly wore her down. They knocked her to the ground, picked her up, seized her. She was now struggling in the clutches of three men, each of whom had at least seventy-five pounds on her.
"Hold 'er still, boys," crowed the Rattlesnakes' leader, a short, mustached man in a ten-gallon hat. He strolled toward the Blue Lynx with patient, spur-jingling steps, his thumbs tucked into his jeans.
"So..." the Blue Lynx said, breathing heavily, tensing her muscles. "You must be Tex."
"You bet your sweet, sweet booty I am, little lady," Tex replied. "So pleased to make your acquaintance, Mrs. Blue Lynx."
"Your men have met me," the Blue Lynx said. "I've had the pleasure of punching a few of them in the face."
Tex chuckled. "That I had heard. Which is why I brung in the cavalry tonight."
The goons had her secured tightly: the tall man behind her had looped his arms around hers, so that his hands pressed down on the back of her head, locking her in place. There were two additional men keeping her feet to the ground, one for each leg. The young man watched from behind the slot machines as one of these men slid his fingers up the back of the Blue Lynx's thigh.
"Fiend," the young man thought. But he couldn't help but think, too, that the henchman was a lucky son of a gun.
"We're gettin' sick and tired of you showin up and interferin," Tex said.
The Blue Lynx grinned at him. "Don't you know? Taking out the garbage is my job."
Her eyes were glimmering with arrogance and power. Her smile was a simply beautiful thing, especially as framed by her long, black locks. She knew what she was doing. She was a true superheroine.
Tex coughed. "I think I've had just about enough of yer lip, missy."
He pulled a rag from his pocket, and the Blue Lynx's eyes flashed. She knew what this was, as did the young man. Tex placed the chloroform on the superheroine's face, and her arms and legs jumped, fighting desperately against her captors, but finally unable to create any separation. The young man watched as the Blue Lynx's fists gradually unclenched, as her body slowly fell back into her detainer's torso, as her eyes rolled back into her head. Tex removed the rag, and the superheroine's mouth hung open, her arms drooped to her sides, her boots pigeon-toed, without a hold on the floor.
Tex nodded at his men, and they let the Blue Lynx drop to the floor. Her face was now invisible, lost in a thicket of long, dark hair. In minutes, she had gone from being completely in control to completely at her foes' mercy. And Tex knew it.
"Alright boys," he snarled. "Let's go ahead and take off the little lady's mask."
Tex stepped down and reached for the Blue Lynx's face, and the young man decided it was time to step in.
He charged toward the group. By the time the Rattlesnakes noticed, it was too late: he knocked two of them down, dealt a massive hook to Tex's cheek, spun around, shoved away two more, gingerly stepped around the Blue Lynx, tripped a man, uppercutted another. No one could touch him. When Tex went for his revolver, the young man knocked it away, and then knocked Tex out. Just moments after he'd had arrived on the scene, the show was over. He was surrounded by unconscious bodies: of Tex, of his booted goons, and of the Blue Lynx, peacefully asleep on the filthy red carpet of the casino.
He crouched down to look at her. He had been watching her tonight, had watched her for many nights: taking notes, of course, but also just taking her in. She was a gorgeous woman, even with her goofy blue mask on. Seeing her on the floor, her eyes closed, her lips open, her head nested in her thick hair, he had a sudden compulsion to take her mask off.
He reached for it, brushed her cheek, and brought his hand back.
No. It wouldn't be right.
Her eyes were fluttering now; his touch had brought her back to life.
"What?" she mumbled. "What's happening..."
"You were fighting the Rattlesnakes," the young man said, pulling the Blue Lynx up to a sitting position, resting his arm behind her back. "They chloroformed you."
"Ugh," she said, holding her head. "Go figure."
She looked around, noticed the other unconscious bodies.
"What happened to them?"
"I did," the young man said.
"You did?" the Blue Lynx said, with more than a hint of sarcasm. "And just who the hell are you?"
The young man stood up, brushing himself off, letting his golden spandex uniform shine in the light of the casino.
"I'm the Spaniel," he announced.
And before the Blue Lynx could respond, he was gone, had sprinted away from the casino, running into the night, the city's newest superhero.
On to Chapter Two
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Two
Chapter Two
May 21st, 10:14 AM
"So how was last night?" Margot asked, sipping her coffee. She sat across from her friend, roommate, and partner, the mayor's fetching, perky daughter, Erin Steele, in a booth at Lucky's, the girls' favorite brunch spot.
Erin laughed. "It was pretty insane."
"Okay," Margot said. She had figured that part out. Ever since the adventure in the "Gauntlet," Erin had asked her partner to monitor her from home. Margot didn't like it, but she understood the idea: if Margot was ever captured, then Erin's hands were tied, and her secret identity would be one step closer to being discovered For the past month, she watched her tracker from the comfort of their apartment, essentially crossing her fingers and waiting for Erin to come back. Last night, Erin hadn't gotten home until two in the morning, which was pretty late even by the Blue Lynx's standards.
"I was in the Casino, right? Just hanging out. In a cocktail dress. Trying to fit in, you know?"
Margot nodded. "I know." She had been researching the Rattlesnakes since their first attacks on the city. She had asked Erin to scope out the Paradise Casino, being fairly certain it would be the next place where the gang struck. But she hadn't expected them to attack so soon.
It was a different world, this city, now that Hammerson was out of commission. The merciless beatdown the Speaker of the House had experienced at the hands of Steve had left him in a coma. The surviving members of his crew, Sunny and Todorov, hadn't been seen in weeks. At first, this had all seemed like great news. But a fresh crop of criminals had appeared in Hammerson's absence, like new acne spread from a popped pimple. The Rattlesnakes were the fiercest, and most intriguing, of the lot.
"Anyway," Erin continued, "The Rattlesnakes showed up at around eleven. Shooting around, threatening people, marching staff off to the safe. Everyone was running around screaming. I ducked into the bathroom and changed into costume."
"Wow," Margot said. "You decided to fight them?"
Erin nodded. "Oh yeah."
"Didn't I tell you not to do that?" Margot said. "These guys are dangerous, Erin."
"I know, I know," Erin said, waving her hand. She took a long sip from her coffee. "Anyway, I ran at them, and I was kicking their asses. And then, uhh, some more guys showed up..."
"And?"
"Well, they caught me. They surrounded me, put me in a headlock."
"Erin!" Margot yelled. "You need to stop being so reckless!"
"Jesus, Margot, I know," Erin said. "I know."
She didn't. The Blue Lynx had "defeated" Hammerson, and now she thought she was invincible. Margot knew better. Erin was strong, fast, smart, tireless... But she was also just one young woman. She didn't stand a chance against a gang of twenty men, even with her gadgets.
"So they caught you. Then what?"
"Well, umm... " Erin said, blushing. "They chloroformed me."
Margot put her coffee down and frowned. "Erin."
Erin brushed her hair back. "You don't have to lecture me. I know I screwed up. But it all ended fine."
"They could've unmasked you," Margot said. "Maybe they did. If you were knocked out, you'd never know."
Erin shook her head. "No, they didn't. A man rescued me."
"A man?"
"A fellow superhero," Erin said, grinning. "A young guy. Handsome. Golden suit."
Margot stared at Erin. "And does this beautiful young savior have a name?"
"Oh yeah," Erin said with a snicker. "The Spaniel!"
Margot shut her eyes.
"The Spaniel?" she muttered. "Really?"
"When I woke up, I was staring into his eyes. And I looked around, and everyone, the whole Rattlesnake gang, was on the floor..."
Erin paused as the waitress came to the table. The middle-aged woman set down a veggie omelette in front of Erin and a stack of pancakes in front of Margot. The girls thanked her and she left.
"So, yeah," Erin said, cutting up her breakfast. "He must have beaten them all. And then he woke me up. And then he left."
Margot swallowed a bite of pancake. "You seem pretty excited about all this."
Erin blushed. "No. I'm not, umm, excited. But this is something new, Margot."
"How do you know he wasn't trying to unmask you, himself? And why was he there, anyway?"
"I don't know," Erin said, shrugging. "I'm just saying, he just seems like a good guy."
"But you know nothing about him," Margot said. "Just because he beat up the Rattlesnakes doesn't make him your friend."
"Sheesh, Margot, lighten up. Stop trying to be my mom."
Margot shook her head and took a sip of her coffee. She could feel a change coming over her the last few weeks. Ever since she had been relegated to "home duty," she was becoming more and more critical of Erin's choices. She knew this wasn't totally fair: it was impossible for her to judge a superheroine's decisions, many of which had to be made spontaneously. But in a situation like this, how could Erin not be more skeptical of this "Spaniel" guy? He didn't sound like an obvious ally, to Margot. Another superhero in town seemed more like a threat.
"I'm going to look him up online," Margot said. "Make sure he's legit. It's possible the media's already reported about him and I just didn't notice."
Erin nodded. "Okay. But listen to me, Margot: I looked into his eyes. I think he's trying to help us."
Margot smiled at her friend. "You amaze me sometimes, you know that?"
Erin grinned, and the girls ate their breakfast.
On to Chapter Three
May 21st, 10:14 AM
"So how was last night?" Margot asked, sipping her coffee. She sat across from her friend, roommate, and partner, the mayor's fetching, perky daughter, Erin Steele, in a booth at Lucky's, the girls' favorite brunch spot.
Erin laughed. "It was pretty insane."
"Okay," Margot said. She had figured that part out. Ever since the adventure in the "Gauntlet," Erin had asked her partner to monitor her from home. Margot didn't like it, but she understood the idea: if Margot was ever captured, then Erin's hands were tied, and her secret identity would be one step closer to being discovered For the past month, she watched her tracker from the comfort of their apartment, essentially crossing her fingers and waiting for Erin to come back. Last night, Erin hadn't gotten home until two in the morning, which was pretty late even by the Blue Lynx's standards.
"I was in the Casino, right? Just hanging out. In a cocktail dress. Trying to fit in, you know?"
Margot nodded. "I know." She had been researching the Rattlesnakes since their first attacks on the city. She had asked Erin to scope out the Paradise Casino, being fairly certain it would be the next place where the gang struck. But she hadn't expected them to attack so soon.
It was a different world, this city, now that Hammerson was out of commission. The merciless beatdown the Speaker of the House had experienced at the hands of Steve had left him in a coma. The surviving members of his crew, Sunny and Todorov, hadn't been seen in weeks. At first, this had all seemed like great news. But a fresh crop of criminals had appeared in Hammerson's absence, like new acne spread from a popped pimple. The Rattlesnakes were the fiercest, and most intriguing, of the lot.
"Anyway," Erin continued, "The Rattlesnakes showed up at around eleven. Shooting around, threatening people, marching staff off to the safe. Everyone was running around screaming. I ducked into the bathroom and changed into costume."
"Wow," Margot said. "You decided to fight them?"
Erin nodded. "Oh yeah."
"Didn't I tell you not to do that?" Margot said. "These guys are dangerous, Erin."
"I know, I know," Erin said, waving her hand. She took a long sip from her coffee. "Anyway, I ran at them, and I was kicking their asses. And then, uhh, some more guys showed up..."
"And?"
"Well, they caught me. They surrounded me, put me in a headlock."
"Erin!" Margot yelled. "You need to stop being so reckless!"
"Jesus, Margot, I know," Erin said. "I know."
She didn't. The Blue Lynx had "defeated" Hammerson, and now she thought she was invincible. Margot knew better. Erin was strong, fast, smart, tireless... But she was also just one young woman. She didn't stand a chance against a gang of twenty men, even with her gadgets.
"So they caught you. Then what?"
"Well, umm... " Erin said, blushing. "They chloroformed me."
Margot put her coffee down and frowned. "Erin."
Erin brushed her hair back. "You don't have to lecture me. I know I screwed up. But it all ended fine."
"They could've unmasked you," Margot said. "Maybe they did. If you were knocked out, you'd never know."
Erin shook her head. "No, they didn't. A man rescued me."
"A man?"
"A fellow superhero," Erin said, grinning. "A young guy. Handsome. Golden suit."
Margot stared at Erin. "And does this beautiful young savior have a name?"
"Oh yeah," Erin said with a snicker. "The Spaniel!"
Margot shut her eyes.
"The Spaniel?" she muttered. "Really?"
"When I woke up, I was staring into his eyes. And I looked around, and everyone, the whole Rattlesnake gang, was on the floor..."
Erin paused as the waitress came to the table. The middle-aged woman set down a veggie omelette in front of Erin and a stack of pancakes in front of Margot. The girls thanked her and she left.
"So, yeah," Erin said, cutting up her breakfast. "He must have beaten them all. And then he woke me up. And then he left."
Margot swallowed a bite of pancake. "You seem pretty excited about all this."
Erin blushed. "No. I'm not, umm, excited. But this is something new, Margot."
"How do you know he wasn't trying to unmask you, himself? And why was he there, anyway?"
"I don't know," Erin said, shrugging. "I'm just saying, he just seems like a good guy."
"But you know nothing about him," Margot said. "Just because he beat up the Rattlesnakes doesn't make him your friend."
"Sheesh, Margot, lighten up. Stop trying to be my mom."
Margot shook her head and took a sip of her coffee. She could feel a change coming over her the last few weeks. Ever since she had been relegated to "home duty," she was becoming more and more critical of Erin's choices. She knew this wasn't totally fair: it was impossible for her to judge a superheroine's decisions, many of which had to be made spontaneously. But in a situation like this, how could Erin not be more skeptical of this "Spaniel" guy? He didn't sound like an obvious ally, to Margot. Another superhero in town seemed more like a threat.
"I'm going to look him up online," Margot said. "Make sure he's legit. It's possible the media's already reported about him and I just didn't notice."
Erin nodded. "Okay. But listen to me, Margot: I looked into his eyes. I think he's trying to help us."
Margot smiled at her friend. "You amaze me sometimes, you know that?"
Erin grinned, and the girls ate their breakfast.
On to Chapter Three
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Three
Chapter Three
May 23rd, 9:14 PM
It was a warm night in the city, and a gentle breeze blew through the Blue Lynx's long black locks as she stood high above the crowds, on the roof of fifteen story parking garage, looking down at the Prickly Pear Hotel.
She placed her hands on her hips and scanned the resort's empty rooftop, licking her lips in anticipation. Erin and Margot had determined that it was here, on the tenth level of a barely-financially-viable, Southwestern-themed hotel, that the Rattlesnakes met. It was a blindingly obvious hideout, but then, the Rattlesnakes weren't known for their subtlety. When they struck, it was with brute, dumb force, as Erin had learned the hard way during their previous encounter-- the Blue Lynx's first-- at the Paradise Casino.
"I was being... reckless," Erin thought to herself, using Margot's new favorite word for her nightly superheroine exploits. "But they won't get the drop on me this time."
Tonight, stealth was the plan. Erin would swoop down onto the Prickly Pear, enter through the old rooftop door, and slink around until she discovered the precise location of Tex and his men. She'd lure them out one-by-one, taking them out quietly and efficiently, and then take pictures of the lair for the police.
"You know," Margot had said, "You could always just call the police. And tell them you've found the Rattlesnakes' hideout. Let them do the work."
Erin had laughed. "Where's the fun in that, Margot?"
Fun. That was definitely a big reason for why Erin continued to do this Blue Lynx stuff. Yes, the city needed her. Yes, she was doing her father a big favor, even if he'd never know about it. But it was the thrill of it all that kept bringing Erin back, despite all of the disasters... the near-misses... the punches to the gut... the deathtraps... the taunts... the lascivious looks and touches. She could erase all of those negative memories with just one successful night of crimefighting.
Erin's reverie was interrupted by a BANG. She looked at the Prickly Pear and saw the rooftop door swing open. From the depths of the hotel, a figure had emerged, running; a lithe young man clad in gold, his spandex shimmering in the night.
The Spaniel.
He was holding his arm, maybe in pain, and moving with long strides across the roof. He reached the hotel's edge, a three or four foot high brick wall, and turned around. He watched-- and Erin, too-- as a stream of men flowed from the open door, large men with hats, spurs, vests, and pistols.
The Rattlesnakes.
Erin gasped. The Spaniel must have figured out the Rattlesnakes' hideout just minutes before she had. He'd gone inside the hotel, probably looking to do what Erin had planned to. And now, the Rattlesnakes had forced him back out. They were spreading out from the doorway, surrounding him, pinning him down against the wall edging the roof.
He didn't stand a chance on his own.
Erin stepped up to the lip of the parking garage, pulled out her grappel, and flung the hook across the ten yard expanse separating her level from the hotel. The hook landed, grabbed the edge of the hote roof wall, and Erin jumped, flying into the night, sailing across the cars and people and businesses and traffic lights hundreds of feet below, cutting through the air until she collided with the side of the hotel, dampening some of the landing by hitting it boot first, but still feeling the impact. She scrambled up the line of the grappel, climbing the flat bricks of the hotel and vaulting over the small rooftop wall, where four or five thugs were standing around, waiting for her, grinning mischievously.
"Two fer the price of one!" one of the Rattlesnakes crowed. "That there's a package deal!"
"Blue Lynx!" the Spaniel cried. "Get out of here!"
Erin ducked, heard a shot, felt the bullet whizz over her head. She looked up. There were at least twelve Rattlesnakes within the fifty yard by fifty yard square of rooftop, about half looking at her, about half closing in on the Spaniel. She instinctively pulled a handful of smoke bombs from her utility belt.
"Come and get me, boys," Erin said, coolly, and she flung the bombs across the rooftop. They exploded on impact, and the night was instantly, thoroughly covered in smoke. Erin dashed through the plumes, hearing the familiar sounds of errant gunfire, coughing, and curses. She tripped a Rattlesnake to the ground, and brought her arm across the back of another Rattlesnakes' neck. She was moving toward the Spaniel, could hear his coughing as distinct from the rest-- it was somehow gentler, nicer, more heroic. Two Rattlesnakes gathered near her; she disposed of them with quick punches to their respective guts. She could now see the gold shimmer of the Spaniel's outfit, could see him trying to push through the smoke, as blind and helpless as their foes.
"Spaniel!" Erin called. "Are you hurt?"
"Well, I can't see shit!" the superhero replied. He was facing her now, still waving his arms.
"I'm sorry," Erin said, moving closer. "But they were all around, and..."
"I don't need your help, Blue Lynx!" he yelled. "I was doing just fine before you got here."
Erin shook her head. "No, you weren't. You were surrounded. They could've killed you."
"You have no idea what you're talking about," the Spaniel replied. "Now get out of here. This isn't your scene, Blue Lynx."
Erin paused. What had happened to him? He had seemed so kind when he'd awakened her on the floor of the Casino. But the man in front of her was acting like a whiny, ungrateful brat.
"I'm not leaving," Erin said. "I'm going after the Rattlesnakes too, you know."
"You had your chance," the Spaniel replied. "Now get out of my way!"
He lumbered toward her, reaching out his arms, trying to push her aside. Erin smacked his hands away, and the Spaniel responded with a sudden swing, barely grazing Erin's stomach before she jumped backward.
"You bastard!" Erin cried. "I'm trying to help you!"
The Spaniel didn't respond with words, instead launching another punch in Erin's direction. Erin deflected it easily and countered with a punch of her own. Hers connected with the Spaniel's chin, and he stumbled back, eventually falling to the ground with a groan of pain.
"I guess you're as pathetic as every other man," Erin said, walking toward the Spaniel's toppled body. "I guess I was--"
Before she could finish, a sharp, sudden pain hit Erin in the lower back. She winced and turned around to meet a fist, which slammed into her cheek, forcing her off balance. She looked through dazed eyes at a tall man wearing a gas mask, his dark outline popping against the smoke. He wiggled a raised index finger at her, and Erin could see his eyes glimmering behind their layer of protective plastic.
"We've done read the book on you, Blue Lynx," the man said. "You and yer smoke bombs. Why I made sure to pack my mask. And them, too."
He pointed to Erin's side, and she turned instinctively. There were four other dark outlines in the midst of the dense smoke, each one topped with a mask of its own.
They had prepared for her.
"And that ain't all," the first man continued. "Brought some special tools for the wranglin' of animals."
And Erin saw each of the outlines grow a new appendage... A long, narrow, stick-like arm, with some kind of electric hand on top. No... Not arms...
They were cattle prods.
Erin's hand raced to her belt, desperate for some Lynx Darts. But just as she grasped a handful, she felt it. A searing pain in her left arm that rapidly spread through her whole body. She convulsed, cried out, dropped the Darts to the ground, felt her knees buckle. Then, a second attack, this one to her lower body. She cried again, dropped to the ground, felt nauseous, felt her hands fall out in front of her. She was on her hands and knees, desperately trying to crawl away, when the third prod struck her in the back, making her whinny. Her stomach slumped to the ground. Her body periodically shook with electricity as she laid there, barely holding onto consciousness.
"I seen 'em work on cows," the first man chuckled. "Do pretty good with cats, too, I reckon."
"We good here?" another voice said.
"Nah," the first man replied. "Make sure she and the boy are out, and we'll truss em up. Boss'll be mighty pleased to see 'em."
Erin breathed in and out, trying to grip something, anything. She had to move, but she couldn't. The Rattlesnakes were smarter, faster, better than she thought. She had to get out of here...
But there was more pain. One, two, three more shocks to her upper back, lower back, her butt. Then shocks to the backs of her thighs, her calves. They were prodding her, again and again, their laughter growing more and more maniacal with each spasm of her healthy but helpless figure. It didn't take long for her to lapse into unconsciousness-- just a few minutes-- but as she jolted up and down, pain coursing through every extremity, her blurry eyes watching as more men jabbed the Spaniel with prods of their own, her thoughts seizing on Margot's word-- "reckless"-- it felt like a horrible, humiliating eternity.
On to Chapter Four
May 23rd, 9:14 PM
It was a warm night in the city, and a gentle breeze blew through the Blue Lynx's long black locks as she stood high above the crowds, on the roof of fifteen story parking garage, looking down at the Prickly Pear Hotel.
She placed her hands on her hips and scanned the resort's empty rooftop, licking her lips in anticipation. Erin and Margot had determined that it was here, on the tenth level of a barely-financially-viable, Southwestern-themed hotel, that the Rattlesnakes met. It was a blindingly obvious hideout, but then, the Rattlesnakes weren't known for their subtlety. When they struck, it was with brute, dumb force, as Erin had learned the hard way during their previous encounter-- the Blue Lynx's first-- at the Paradise Casino.
"I was being... reckless," Erin thought to herself, using Margot's new favorite word for her nightly superheroine exploits. "But they won't get the drop on me this time."
Tonight, stealth was the plan. Erin would swoop down onto the Prickly Pear, enter through the old rooftop door, and slink around until she discovered the precise location of Tex and his men. She'd lure them out one-by-one, taking them out quietly and efficiently, and then take pictures of the lair for the police.
"You know," Margot had said, "You could always just call the police. And tell them you've found the Rattlesnakes' hideout. Let them do the work."
Erin had laughed. "Where's the fun in that, Margot?"
Fun. That was definitely a big reason for why Erin continued to do this Blue Lynx stuff. Yes, the city needed her. Yes, she was doing her father a big favor, even if he'd never know about it. But it was the thrill of it all that kept bringing Erin back, despite all of the disasters... the near-misses... the punches to the gut... the deathtraps... the taunts... the lascivious looks and touches. She could erase all of those negative memories with just one successful night of crimefighting.
Erin's reverie was interrupted by a BANG. She looked at the Prickly Pear and saw the rooftop door swing open. From the depths of the hotel, a figure had emerged, running; a lithe young man clad in gold, his spandex shimmering in the night.
The Spaniel.
He was holding his arm, maybe in pain, and moving with long strides across the roof. He reached the hotel's edge, a three or four foot high brick wall, and turned around. He watched-- and Erin, too-- as a stream of men flowed from the open door, large men with hats, spurs, vests, and pistols.
The Rattlesnakes.
Erin gasped. The Spaniel must have figured out the Rattlesnakes' hideout just minutes before she had. He'd gone inside the hotel, probably looking to do what Erin had planned to. And now, the Rattlesnakes had forced him back out. They were spreading out from the doorway, surrounding him, pinning him down against the wall edging the roof.
He didn't stand a chance on his own.
Erin stepped up to the lip of the parking garage, pulled out her grappel, and flung the hook across the ten yard expanse separating her level from the hotel. The hook landed, grabbed the edge of the hote roof wall, and Erin jumped, flying into the night, sailing across the cars and people and businesses and traffic lights hundreds of feet below, cutting through the air until she collided with the side of the hotel, dampening some of the landing by hitting it boot first, but still feeling the impact. She scrambled up the line of the grappel, climbing the flat bricks of the hotel and vaulting over the small rooftop wall, where four or five thugs were standing around, waiting for her, grinning mischievously.
"Two fer the price of one!" one of the Rattlesnakes crowed. "That there's a package deal!"
"Blue Lynx!" the Spaniel cried. "Get out of here!"
Erin ducked, heard a shot, felt the bullet whizz over her head. She looked up. There were at least twelve Rattlesnakes within the fifty yard by fifty yard square of rooftop, about half looking at her, about half closing in on the Spaniel. She instinctively pulled a handful of smoke bombs from her utility belt.
"Come and get me, boys," Erin said, coolly, and she flung the bombs across the rooftop. They exploded on impact, and the night was instantly, thoroughly covered in smoke. Erin dashed through the plumes, hearing the familiar sounds of errant gunfire, coughing, and curses. She tripped a Rattlesnake to the ground, and brought her arm across the back of another Rattlesnakes' neck. She was moving toward the Spaniel, could hear his coughing as distinct from the rest-- it was somehow gentler, nicer, more heroic. Two Rattlesnakes gathered near her; she disposed of them with quick punches to their respective guts. She could now see the gold shimmer of the Spaniel's outfit, could see him trying to push through the smoke, as blind and helpless as their foes.
"Spaniel!" Erin called. "Are you hurt?"
"Well, I can't see shit!" the superhero replied. He was facing her now, still waving his arms.
"I'm sorry," Erin said, moving closer. "But they were all around, and..."
"I don't need your help, Blue Lynx!" he yelled. "I was doing just fine before you got here."
Erin shook her head. "No, you weren't. You were surrounded. They could've killed you."
"You have no idea what you're talking about," the Spaniel replied. "Now get out of here. This isn't your scene, Blue Lynx."
Erin paused. What had happened to him? He had seemed so kind when he'd awakened her on the floor of the Casino. But the man in front of her was acting like a whiny, ungrateful brat.
"I'm not leaving," Erin said. "I'm going after the Rattlesnakes too, you know."
"You had your chance," the Spaniel replied. "Now get out of my way!"
He lumbered toward her, reaching out his arms, trying to push her aside. Erin smacked his hands away, and the Spaniel responded with a sudden swing, barely grazing Erin's stomach before she jumped backward.
"You bastard!" Erin cried. "I'm trying to help you!"
The Spaniel didn't respond with words, instead launching another punch in Erin's direction. Erin deflected it easily and countered with a punch of her own. Hers connected with the Spaniel's chin, and he stumbled back, eventually falling to the ground with a groan of pain.
"I guess you're as pathetic as every other man," Erin said, walking toward the Spaniel's toppled body. "I guess I was--"
Before she could finish, a sharp, sudden pain hit Erin in the lower back. She winced and turned around to meet a fist, which slammed into her cheek, forcing her off balance. She looked through dazed eyes at a tall man wearing a gas mask, his dark outline popping against the smoke. He wiggled a raised index finger at her, and Erin could see his eyes glimmering behind their layer of protective plastic.
"We've done read the book on you, Blue Lynx," the man said. "You and yer smoke bombs. Why I made sure to pack my mask. And them, too."
He pointed to Erin's side, and she turned instinctively. There were four other dark outlines in the midst of the dense smoke, each one topped with a mask of its own.
They had prepared for her.
"And that ain't all," the first man continued. "Brought some special tools for the wranglin' of animals."
And Erin saw each of the outlines grow a new appendage... A long, narrow, stick-like arm, with some kind of electric hand on top. No... Not arms...
They were cattle prods.
Erin's hand raced to her belt, desperate for some Lynx Darts. But just as she grasped a handful, she felt it. A searing pain in her left arm that rapidly spread through her whole body. She convulsed, cried out, dropped the Darts to the ground, felt her knees buckle. Then, a second attack, this one to her lower body. She cried again, dropped to the ground, felt nauseous, felt her hands fall out in front of her. She was on her hands and knees, desperately trying to crawl away, when the third prod struck her in the back, making her whinny. Her stomach slumped to the ground. Her body periodically shook with electricity as she laid there, barely holding onto consciousness.
"I seen 'em work on cows," the first man chuckled. "Do pretty good with cats, too, I reckon."
"We good here?" another voice said.
"Nah," the first man replied. "Make sure she and the boy are out, and we'll truss em up. Boss'll be mighty pleased to see 'em."
Erin breathed in and out, trying to grip something, anything. She had to move, but she couldn't. The Rattlesnakes were smarter, faster, better than she thought. She had to get out of here...
But there was more pain. One, two, three more shocks to her upper back, lower back, her butt. Then shocks to the backs of her thighs, her calves. They were prodding her, again and again, their laughter growing more and more maniacal with each spasm of her healthy but helpless figure. It didn't take long for her to lapse into unconsciousness-- just a few minutes-- but as she jolted up and down, pain coursing through every extremity, her blurry eyes watching as more men jabbed the Spaniel with prods of their own, her thoughts seizing on Margot's word-- "reckless"-- it felt like a horrible, humiliating eternity.
On to Chapter Four
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Four
Chapter Four
May 23rd, 9:50 PM
Erin awoke to the sound of jingling spurs and a low, harsh drawl whispering in her ear.
"Cock a doodle doo," the voice rasped. "That's the rooster crowin', Blue Lynx. Time to wake up."
She blinked her eyes, let them adjust in the dark, and saw a short, mustached man standing in front of her. Tex: the leader of the Rattlesnakes. His thumbs were tucked into the belt loops of of jeans, and he stared at her with a sick, toothy grin. He was short and squat but clearly not to be messed with.
"Lemme see if I can get your durn friend up," Tex muttered, stepping to Erin's left.
"Hey," he said. "Golden boy. Get up. Wake up, dammit."
Erin felt a rustle, and then realized that she was sitting against someone. She looked down, and saw that she had been tied: loops of rough rope stretched across her torso, binding her arms to her sides. The rope wrapped around her and continued around the person resting against her back: the Spaniel.
"Shit," she thought. Her immediate reaction was to kick her legs out, but she couldn't. She looked to her boots and saw why: they too had been wrapped in rope. Several yards worth covered her ankles, tied up into a series of large, tricky-looking knots.
She heard a second voice now. "Tex. You bastard."
It was the Spaniel's voice, and it made Erin feel a surge of emotion. On one hand, she was happy to at least have an ally in this obviously difficult predicament. On the other, it was the Spaniel's arrogance and ingratitude that led to this situation in the first place. The Rattlesnakes wouldn't have been able to catch her if she hadn't been distracted by her "friend's" whining.
She sighed. This night was set to be a major victory for the Blue Lynx. And now, here she was yet again: waking up and finding herself bound and in the clutches of a strange, evil man.
She looked around. They were still on the rooftop. Her body ached from the cattle prods-- she could see red welts forming on her legs, and she felt slightly dizzy. The night was dark; she could hear the sounds of traffic rushing through the streets so many hundreds of yards below. The smoke had cleared, and she could see six other men standing behind and around Tex. How did he get so many men to follow him? He had a small army willing to wear his stupid hats and boots.
"You shoulda put we away when you had the chance, friend," Tex said, to the Spaniel. "Yer not getting a second chance. Not with ol' Tex."
"We'll see about that," the Spaniel replied. He had the superhero cockiness down, that was for sure. Erin decided to let him talk.
Tex chuckled. "Nah, I'm afraid this is the end of the line for you and the lil' miss."
He took a pistol out of his belt and flicked open the chamber. "But how that end's comin... well... that's up to y'all."
He loaded a bullet into the gun. "You know I'm a gamblin' man," he said. "Havin' seen me at the casino."
Erin could hear stirring from the men behind Tex. They were looking forward to this, whatever it was. Erin cringed.
"Games o' chance," Tex continued. "It's what we Rattlesnakes are all about."
"Get to your point," the Spaniel said.
Tex smiled. "Alright, son. Hold on. Lemme explain the game. I'm puttin' four rounds in my six shooter here. And I got each one marked a little different."
Erin shook her head. God, they all had to do this... All of these villains. So into their games. Didn't they know it only bought the Blue Lynx time? She pushed against the ropes holding her arms to her sides. She could already feel them budge, slightly. The Spaniel must have been working at his side, too.
"Now, I'm gonna spin the chamber and fire one of these rounds into that there target," Tex said. He gestured over to where the rooftop door was, and Erin saw a small circular board set up, heavily marked with bullet holes, presumably from previous "games."
"And that there bullet's gonna tell me and my boys what to do next," Tex said.
"And just what exactly will the bullets tell you?" the Spaniel said.
"First one's got a little blue mark on it," Tex replied. His eyes now locked with Erin's, and she could see his mustache twitching with glee. "If it's that one, we unmask the Blue Lynx here."
Erin shuddered. Of course that was one of the options.
"Okay," the Spaniel said. "What else?"
"The one with a little yeller mark's for you," Tex said. "We shoot that one, we take off yer mask."
"Figures," the Spaniel said. He didn't seem worried. Maybe he had less to hide than Erin?
Erin gulped. Just about everyone had less to hide than her.
"Third one's got a little pink mark," Tex said. "It's the boys' idea. I shoot that one, and the boys get a bit of time alone with the Blue Lynx, if ya know what I'm sayin'..."
Erin glared at Tex. She did know what he was saying. And it was disgusting.
"Ugh," she said. "Your boys would have no idea what to do."
"She speaks!" Tex announced. "Hear that, boys? The little miss thinks y'all might be, err, confused when yer alone with her."
The men laughed and whistled.
"Enough," the Spaniel said. "What's the fourth bullet?"
Tex frowned. "Well, that's the sad bullet," he said, solemnly. "It's got an 'x' on it. Because that's the one I put through you and your little girlfriend's brain."
Erin involuntarily tensed up. She twisted what she could of her arms and legs, feeling the ropes turn, but nothing break. Her options in Tex's game were being unmasked, being raped, and being killed. She wasn't thrilled by any of these prospects.
"And what happens if nothing comes out?" the Spaniel asked.
"Welp," Tex said, his face returning to its former smiling self. "If I shoot a blank, I gotta let one of y'all go." He gestured to the Blue Lynx. "And I'm thinkin' I gotta have her stay, since she's so dern easy on the eyes."
"I'd let him go, too," Erin said. "He's less of a threat."
She felt the Spaniel knock against her back. "I was doing fine until you showed up," he muttered.
"Shut up," Erin whispered.
Tex broke out into laughter. "Are y'all havin' a bit of row? Doesn't that just beat all."
"Go ahead and shoot," the Spaniel said, to Tex. "Do it."
Erin tried to slam her elbow into his arm. "You fool," she whispered. "What are you doing? We need time. We've got to get out of these ropes."
"You might need time," he replied, sternly. "I don't."
Erin rolled her eyes. All men were idiots, apparently. They were either perverted evil criminals like Tex or bitchy narcissistic "heroes" like the Spaniel. And she was caught right in the middle of them.
"Alright," Tex said. "I've give 'er one more spin, to show y'all I'm fair." He flicked the chamber around, and then popped it back into the gun. "And we'll get goin."
Erin flexed her muscles as powerfully as she could. There was even more give to the ropes, this time. But still not enough to make a break for it, especially with so many other Rattlesnakes standing around, watching, waiting. She would have to at least endure one bullet-- one chance at being dealt a blow that would make the previous cattle prod assault seem like a pinch.
She took a deep breath.
Tex smiled and lifted his gun in the air. He held his arm straight in front of him, glanced at the target, leveled his aim, and fired. The shot rang out in the night and plunged with a small sound into the circular board on the other side of the rooftop.
Erin's heart sank. It wasn't 'nothing' that had been fried: she heard and saw the bullet. Her chance of escape was nonexistent, this round.
"Alright," Tex said, again. "Now will one of y'all kindly tell me just what mark is on that there bullet?"
Erin watched one of the Rattlesnakes scamper over to the target. He stood in front of the board for nearly half a minute before finding the fresh hole. He extracted the bullet, held in his hand, and started to giggle.
He began to speak, and Erin shut her eyes.
On to Chapter Five
May 23rd, 9:50 PM
Erin awoke to the sound of jingling spurs and a low, harsh drawl whispering in her ear.
"Cock a doodle doo," the voice rasped. "That's the rooster crowin', Blue Lynx. Time to wake up."
She blinked her eyes, let them adjust in the dark, and saw a short, mustached man standing in front of her. Tex: the leader of the Rattlesnakes. His thumbs were tucked into the belt loops of of jeans, and he stared at her with a sick, toothy grin. He was short and squat but clearly not to be messed with.
"Lemme see if I can get your durn friend up," Tex muttered, stepping to Erin's left.
"Hey," he said. "Golden boy. Get up. Wake up, dammit."
Erin felt a rustle, and then realized that she was sitting against someone. She looked down, and saw that she had been tied: loops of rough rope stretched across her torso, binding her arms to her sides. The rope wrapped around her and continued around the person resting against her back: the Spaniel.
"Shit," she thought. Her immediate reaction was to kick her legs out, but she couldn't. She looked to her boots and saw why: they too had been wrapped in rope. Several yards worth covered her ankles, tied up into a series of large, tricky-looking knots.
She heard a second voice now. "Tex. You bastard."
It was the Spaniel's voice, and it made Erin feel a surge of emotion. On one hand, she was happy to at least have an ally in this obviously difficult predicament. On the other, it was the Spaniel's arrogance and ingratitude that led to this situation in the first place. The Rattlesnakes wouldn't have been able to catch her if she hadn't been distracted by her "friend's" whining.
She sighed. This night was set to be a major victory for the Blue Lynx. And now, here she was yet again: waking up and finding herself bound and in the clutches of a strange, evil man.
She looked around. They were still on the rooftop. Her body ached from the cattle prods-- she could see red welts forming on her legs, and she felt slightly dizzy. The night was dark; she could hear the sounds of traffic rushing through the streets so many hundreds of yards below. The smoke had cleared, and she could see six other men standing behind and around Tex. How did he get so many men to follow him? He had a small army willing to wear his stupid hats and boots.
"You shoulda put we away when you had the chance, friend," Tex said, to the Spaniel. "Yer not getting a second chance. Not with ol' Tex."
"We'll see about that," the Spaniel replied. He had the superhero cockiness down, that was for sure. Erin decided to let him talk.
Tex chuckled. "Nah, I'm afraid this is the end of the line for you and the lil' miss."
He took a pistol out of his belt and flicked open the chamber. "But how that end's comin... well... that's up to y'all."
He loaded a bullet into the gun. "You know I'm a gamblin' man," he said. "Havin' seen me at the casino."
Erin could hear stirring from the men behind Tex. They were looking forward to this, whatever it was. Erin cringed.
"Games o' chance," Tex continued. "It's what we Rattlesnakes are all about."
"Get to your point," the Spaniel said.
Tex smiled. "Alright, son. Hold on. Lemme explain the game. I'm puttin' four rounds in my six shooter here. And I got each one marked a little different."
Erin shook her head. God, they all had to do this... All of these villains. So into their games. Didn't they know it only bought the Blue Lynx time? She pushed against the ropes holding her arms to her sides. She could already feel them budge, slightly. The Spaniel must have been working at his side, too.
"Now, I'm gonna spin the chamber and fire one of these rounds into that there target," Tex said. He gestured over to where the rooftop door was, and Erin saw a small circular board set up, heavily marked with bullet holes, presumably from previous "games."
"And that there bullet's gonna tell me and my boys what to do next," Tex said.
"And just what exactly will the bullets tell you?" the Spaniel said.
"First one's got a little blue mark on it," Tex replied. His eyes now locked with Erin's, and she could see his mustache twitching with glee. "If it's that one, we unmask the Blue Lynx here."
Erin shuddered. Of course that was one of the options.
"Okay," the Spaniel said. "What else?"
"The one with a little yeller mark's for you," Tex said. "We shoot that one, we take off yer mask."
"Figures," the Spaniel said. He didn't seem worried. Maybe he had less to hide than Erin?
Erin gulped. Just about everyone had less to hide than her.
"Third one's got a little pink mark," Tex said. "It's the boys' idea. I shoot that one, and the boys get a bit of time alone with the Blue Lynx, if ya know what I'm sayin'..."
Erin glared at Tex. She did know what he was saying. And it was disgusting.
"Ugh," she said. "Your boys would have no idea what to do."
"She speaks!" Tex announced. "Hear that, boys? The little miss thinks y'all might be, err, confused when yer alone with her."
The men laughed and whistled.
"Enough," the Spaniel said. "What's the fourth bullet?"
Tex frowned. "Well, that's the sad bullet," he said, solemnly. "It's got an 'x' on it. Because that's the one I put through you and your little girlfriend's brain."
Erin involuntarily tensed up. She twisted what she could of her arms and legs, feeling the ropes turn, but nothing break. Her options in Tex's game were being unmasked, being raped, and being killed. She wasn't thrilled by any of these prospects.
"And what happens if nothing comes out?" the Spaniel asked.
"Welp," Tex said, his face returning to its former smiling self. "If I shoot a blank, I gotta let one of y'all go." He gestured to the Blue Lynx. "And I'm thinkin' I gotta have her stay, since she's so dern easy on the eyes."
"I'd let him go, too," Erin said. "He's less of a threat."
She felt the Spaniel knock against her back. "I was doing fine until you showed up," he muttered.
"Shut up," Erin whispered.
Tex broke out into laughter. "Are y'all havin' a bit of row? Doesn't that just beat all."
"Go ahead and shoot," the Spaniel said, to Tex. "Do it."
Erin tried to slam her elbow into his arm. "You fool," she whispered. "What are you doing? We need time. We've got to get out of these ropes."
"You might need time," he replied, sternly. "I don't."
Erin rolled her eyes. All men were idiots, apparently. They were either perverted evil criminals like Tex or bitchy narcissistic "heroes" like the Spaniel. And she was caught right in the middle of them.
"Alright," Tex said. "I've give 'er one more spin, to show y'all I'm fair." He flicked the chamber around, and then popped it back into the gun. "And we'll get goin."
Erin flexed her muscles as powerfully as she could. There was even more give to the ropes, this time. But still not enough to make a break for it, especially with so many other Rattlesnakes standing around, watching, waiting. She would have to at least endure one bullet-- one chance at being dealt a blow that would make the previous cattle prod assault seem like a pinch.
She took a deep breath.
Tex smiled and lifted his gun in the air. He held his arm straight in front of him, glanced at the target, leveled his aim, and fired. The shot rang out in the night and plunged with a small sound into the circular board on the other side of the rooftop.
Erin's heart sank. It wasn't 'nothing' that had been fried: she heard and saw the bullet. Her chance of escape was nonexistent, this round.
"Alright," Tex said, again. "Now will one of y'all kindly tell me just what mark is on that there bullet?"
Erin watched one of the Rattlesnakes scamper over to the target. He stood in front of the board for nearly half a minute before finding the fresh hole. He extracted the bullet, held in his hand, and started to giggle.
He began to speak, and Erin shut her eyes.
On to Chapter Five
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Five
Chapter Five
May 23rd, 9:58 PM
"Yeller!" the Rattlesnake called out, holding the bullet in the air. "It's got the yeller mark!"
Erin let out a deep sigh. The yellow bullet. The only one that didn't involve her getting punished. What luck!
"Durn," Tex said. "Not the one I wanted." He stepped over to Erin and the Spaniel, his spurs jingling. "But no one said I just got one bullet."
"Well, unmask me first," the Spaniel said. "And then you can continue your ridiculous game."
Erin blinked. What was he doing? Asking to be unmasked? Did he have a plan, or was this all just talk?
"Don't you tell me what to do, boy," Tex said. He was in front of the Spaniel now, where Erin couldn't see him. She watched as a few of the other Rattlesnakes gathered nearer to the scene, probably curious about who was behind the Spaniel's golden mask.
"You made the rules," the Spaniel said. "Now play by them."
Tex chuckled. "Pretty durn eager to have your little crimefightin' career ruined, ain't ya?" His voice was slightly louder now, and Erin could feel his hot breath wafting past the Spaniel's face.
"Are you going to do it, or what?" the Spaniel said. Erin could feel her respect for him building again. It took courage to do what he was doing. She just hoped he had an endgame...
"Alright, alright," Tex said. "So durn impatient. Don't know why." He had moved even closer to the Spaniel, his face maybe just a yard or two from Erin's.
Tex cleared his throat. "Alright, then. Here goes nothin..."
And then, the Spaniel was up. Erin felt him jump from the ground, pushing off her back, leaving the ropes loose around the Blue Lynx's body. She flicked her head around to see him lifting an uppercut into Tex's jaw. Tex let out a cry of pain as he flew into the air, bouncing off of the Spaniel's fist and then plummeting to the ground.
The next moments were a frenzy. Immediately, the Rattlesnakes moved in. Erin pushed the ropes off her body and tried to get up, but found that the bonds on her ankles were still too tight. She reached down to her boots, tearing at the knots, her field of vision alternating between her situation and the Spaniel's, who was now running at the thugs, taking them on one at a time, incapacitating them with swift punches and kicks. The Rattlesnakes were focused only on him, and Erin found enough time to remove a Lynx Dart, cut at the ankle ropes, and eventually free herself. She kicked the restraints off and leapt to her feet.
"She's free!" a voice said. "Get her!"
Erin turned around to see two men plowing in her direction, both of them wielding cattle prods. Without a second of hesitation, she tossed the Lynx Dart at one of them. The Dart sunk into the thug's wrist, forcing him to squeal and drop his weapon to the ground. Erin pulled her taser from her belt and moved toward the second man, sliding away from a swipe of his prod, and then plunging the taser against the man's neck. He howled out in pain, exposing his body to two rapid gut punches. Erin shoved him to the ground and moved back to the first man, who was still crying out over the Lynx Dart in his arm.
"Come on, it's not that bad," Erin said, before she socked him across the face with a massive right hook.
She looked up from her two defeated foes and saw more bodies lying prone across the rooftop. The Spaniel was making quick work of the Rattlesnakes, spending just a few seconds on each man. They couldn't touch him. He was annoying, and maybe not the sort of ally Erin wanted, but she had to admit: the guy could hold his own in a fight.
Suddenly, she heard a familiar drawl. "Now, now, missy... I suggest you put your hands in the air."
Erin looked to the side to see Tex, climbing to his feet and maybe ten yards away, one hand holding his jaw, the other clutching his pistol, which he now aimed in her direction.
"Guess any of these bullets can be a death bullet, providin' there's a durn fool in front of it," Tex said. He was still trying to talk tough, but he looked off-balance, unsure. The punch from the Spaniel had clearly taken a lot out of him.
Erin smiled, turning her body to face him. "Well, that's only true if you can hit me. And I don't think you can hit me, Tex."
Tex growled, thrust his arm forward, and fired the gun. Erin ducked, but it didn't matter: nothing came out. The only sound the pistol made was a small click.
"Shit," Tex said. "Forgot about that."
Erin raced forward, covering the distance between them in seconds, and pushed her shoulder into Tex's body. The small man took off, floating through the air momentarily, and then striking the brick wall edging the rooftop. Erin dashed off to his body, preparing for another attack, but found that Tex was unconscious, his tongue lolled out, his gun laying on the ground yards away from his outstretched hand.
Satisfied, Erin looked toward the Spaniel, who was dealing with one last Rattlesnake. She scanned the fallen figures behind him: there were probably twenty altogether, most of them unconscious, some whimpering in pain, clutching their abdomens. She heard a final anguished bleat from the last standing thug, and watched as the Spaniel pushed him over with a comically light tap.
"Well done," Erin said, moving casually over to where the Spaniel stood. "You're almost as good as me."
The Spaniel let out a guffaw. "Almost as good? I'm better."
Erin shook her head. "I don't think so, bud. You've only been doing this superhero stuff for... what... a couple weeks? You've still got a lot to learn."
They were standing just a few yards apart, surrounded by inert thugs, the night still warm. Erin felt her heart racing from combat. Looking at the Spaniel, tall and muscular in his golden spandex, didn't help her to calm down.
"You should have some respect," the Spaniel said. "I got you free tonight. This is the second time I've saved you this week."
"The first time, yeah, you helped me," Erin said, knowing-- but not willing to acknowledge-- that he had done much more than that, that night at the Paradise Casino. "But it was I who saved you tonight. Those men would've torn you apart if I hadn't dropped in."
The Spaniel crossed his arms. He wasn't just going to let these comments fly. Which was fine with Erin-- she wouldn't allow anyone to talk to her this way, either.
"I was setting up a trap," the Spaniel said. "I was luring them on the roof so I could take them out and not worry about any distractions. You showed up and blinded me. Because of you, I got hit fifty times with a cattle prod."
Erin laughed. "A trap? Come on. I saw you holding your arm. You were retreating. I bought you time. It it wasn't for me, you'd be lying on the ground next to Tex over there."
Erin saw the Spaniel's muscles tense. "The Spaniel never retreats!" he bellowed. "I never would allow myself to get captured. But you seem to have no problem with that, Blue Lynx."
"Excuse me?" Erin said. She felt her muscles tense, too.
"You're always getting captured, tied up, etc etc etc," the Spaniel said. "Because you never have a plan. I saw you at the Casino. Flying in there, so cocky, trying to take on all those men. I thought I admired you. But thinking about it now, I see that you're just a fool. A little girl trying to play with the big boys."
Erin squeezed her hands into fists. Her face blushed red. "A little... girl?" she stammered, furiously.
"Why don't you just step aside, little lady? I'm the hero. You go get tied up, be the damsel in distress." The Spaniel was enjoying himself. "I'll save you, I promise. So long as you shut up and do what you're told."
Erin couldn't take another second of this. She took a deep breath, let out a yell, and sprang at the Spaniel, lifting her fists high in the air, ready to make him pay for these insults.
On to Chapter Six
May 23rd, 9:58 PM
"Yeller!" the Rattlesnake called out, holding the bullet in the air. "It's got the yeller mark!"
Erin let out a deep sigh. The yellow bullet. The only one that didn't involve her getting punished. What luck!
"Durn," Tex said. "Not the one I wanted." He stepped over to Erin and the Spaniel, his spurs jingling. "But no one said I just got one bullet."
"Well, unmask me first," the Spaniel said. "And then you can continue your ridiculous game."
Erin blinked. What was he doing? Asking to be unmasked? Did he have a plan, or was this all just talk?
"Don't you tell me what to do, boy," Tex said. He was in front of the Spaniel now, where Erin couldn't see him. She watched as a few of the other Rattlesnakes gathered nearer to the scene, probably curious about who was behind the Spaniel's golden mask.
"You made the rules," the Spaniel said. "Now play by them."
Tex chuckled. "Pretty durn eager to have your little crimefightin' career ruined, ain't ya?" His voice was slightly louder now, and Erin could feel his hot breath wafting past the Spaniel's face.
"Are you going to do it, or what?" the Spaniel said. Erin could feel her respect for him building again. It took courage to do what he was doing. She just hoped he had an endgame...
"Alright, alright," Tex said. "So durn impatient. Don't know why." He had moved even closer to the Spaniel, his face maybe just a yard or two from Erin's.
Tex cleared his throat. "Alright, then. Here goes nothin..."
And then, the Spaniel was up. Erin felt him jump from the ground, pushing off her back, leaving the ropes loose around the Blue Lynx's body. She flicked her head around to see him lifting an uppercut into Tex's jaw. Tex let out a cry of pain as he flew into the air, bouncing off of the Spaniel's fist and then plummeting to the ground.
The next moments were a frenzy. Immediately, the Rattlesnakes moved in. Erin pushed the ropes off her body and tried to get up, but found that the bonds on her ankles were still too tight. She reached down to her boots, tearing at the knots, her field of vision alternating between her situation and the Spaniel's, who was now running at the thugs, taking them on one at a time, incapacitating them with swift punches and kicks. The Rattlesnakes were focused only on him, and Erin found enough time to remove a Lynx Dart, cut at the ankle ropes, and eventually free herself. She kicked the restraints off and leapt to her feet.
"She's free!" a voice said. "Get her!"
Erin turned around to see two men plowing in her direction, both of them wielding cattle prods. Without a second of hesitation, she tossed the Lynx Dart at one of them. The Dart sunk into the thug's wrist, forcing him to squeal and drop his weapon to the ground. Erin pulled her taser from her belt and moved toward the second man, sliding away from a swipe of his prod, and then plunging the taser against the man's neck. He howled out in pain, exposing his body to two rapid gut punches. Erin shoved him to the ground and moved back to the first man, who was still crying out over the Lynx Dart in his arm.
"Come on, it's not that bad," Erin said, before she socked him across the face with a massive right hook.
She looked up from her two defeated foes and saw more bodies lying prone across the rooftop. The Spaniel was making quick work of the Rattlesnakes, spending just a few seconds on each man. They couldn't touch him. He was annoying, and maybe not the sort of ally Erin wanted, but she had to admit: the guy could hold his own in a fight.
Suddenly, she heard a familiar drawl. "Now, now, missy... I suggest you put your hands in the air."
Erin looked to the side to see Tex, climbing to his feet and maybe ten yards away, one hand holding his jaw, the other clutching his pistol, which he now aimed in her direction.
"Guess any of these bullets can be a death bullet, providin' there's a durn fool in front of it," Tex said. He was still trying to talk tough, but he looked off-balance, unsure. The punch from the Spaniel had clearly taken a lot out of him.
Erin smiled, turning her body to face him. "Well, that's only true if you can hit me. And I don't think you can hit me, Tex."
Tex growled, thrust his arm forward, and fired the gun. Erin ducked, but it didn't matter: nothing came out. The only sound the pistol made was a small click.
"Shit," Tex said. "Forgot about that."
Erin raced forward, covering the distance between them in seconds, and pushed her shoulder into Tex's body. The small man took off, floating through the air momentarily, and then striking the brick wall edging the rooftop. Erin dashed off to his body, preparing for another attack, but found that Tex was unconscious, his tongue lolled out, his gun laying on the ground yards away from his outstretched hand.
Satisfied, Erin looked toward the Spaniel, who was dealing with one last Rattlesnake. She scanned the fallen figures behind him: there were probably twenty altogether, most of them unconscious, some whimpering in pain, clutching their abdomens. She heard a final anguished bleat from the last standing thug, and watched as the Spaniel pushed him over with a comically light tap.
"Well done," Erin said, moving casually over to where the Spaniel stood. "You're almost as good as me."
The Spaniel let out a guffaw. "Almost as good? I'm better."
Erin shook her head. "I don't think so, bud. You've only been doing this superhero stuff for... what... a couple weeks? You've still got a lot to learn."
They were standing just a few yards apart, surrounded by inert thugs, the night still warm. Erin felt her heart racing from combat. Looking at the Spaniel, tall and muscular in his golden spandex, didn't help her to calm down.
"You should have some respect," the Spaniel said. "I got you free tonight. This is the second time I've saved you this week."
"The first time, yeah, you helped me," Erin said, knowing-- but not willing to acknowledge-- that he had done much more than that, that night at the Paradise Casino. "But it was I who saved you tonight. Those men would've torn you apart if I hadn't dropped in."
The Spaniel crossed his arms. He wasn't just going to let these comments fly. Which was fine with Erin-- she wouldn't allow anyone to talk to her this way, either.
"I was setting up a trap," the Spaniel said. "I was luring them on the roof so I could take them out and not worry about any distractions. You showed up and blinded me. Because of you, I got hit fifty times with a cattle prod."
Erin laughed. "A trap? Come on. I saw you holding your arm. You were retreating. I bought you time. It it wasn't for me, you'd be lying on the ground next to Tex over there."
Erin saw the Spaniel's muscles tense. "The Spaniel never retreats!" he bellowed. "I never would allow myself to get captured. But you seem to have no problem with that, Blue Lynx."
"Excuse me?" Erin said. She felt her muscles tense, too.
"You're always getting captured, tied up, etc etc etc," the Spaniel said. "Because you never have a plan. I saw you at the Casino. Flying in there, so cocky, trying to take on all those men. I thought I admired you. But thinking about it now, I see that you're just a fool. A little girl trying to play with the big boys."
Erin squeezed her hands into fists. Her face blushed red. "A little... girl?" she stammered, furiously.
"Why don't you just step aside, little lady? I'm the hero. You go get tied up, be the damsel in distress." The Spaniel was enjoying himself. "I'll save you, I promise. So long as you shut up and do what you're told."
Erin couldn't take another second of this. She took a deep breath, let out a yell, and sprang at the Spaniel, lifting her fists high in the air, ready to make him pay for these insults.
On to Chapter Six
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Six
Chapter Six
May 23rd, 10:10 PM
The punch came fast, too fast to dodge or deflect. The Spaniel could barely even brace himself for impact. The fist just hit him, square in the cheek, and he stumbled back, almost falling to the ground, but catching himself at the last moment.
He brought his hand to his face, then quickly removed it. "No signs of weakness," he reminded himself. So he spat on the ground, forced out a laugh, and resumed his standing position. He looked at the Blue Lynx, now tensed up in a fighting position, her chest heaving in and out, her eyes blazing with righteous anger. He thought at that moment that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. It made him want to tease her even more.
"Not bad," he said, even clapping a bit for emphasis. "Ten or fifteen punches like that, and I might even form a bruise."
Truthfully, it hurt. He could feel his cheek throb, and he knew that the Blue Lynx was not the sort of weak-willed, limp-wristed woman he had been describing during this rather amusing war of words. She was a superhero, just like him. But he had no doubts that he was the better superhero. He couldn't lie about that even if he wanted to. Pride mattered to the Spaniel. And apparently it did to the Blue Lynx, too.
She didn't try to respond to him with words. She launched another punch, but the element of surprise was no longer hers. The Spaniel strafed the attack, and then tried one of his own, bringing his knee up. But the Blue Lynx blocked it with both hands just before it met her belly.
"Touche," the Spaniel said.
The Blue Lynx spun around, and the Spaniel felt a blow to the back of his neck, the superheroine's arm. He stumbled forward, and then felt another hit, this one to his chest. She was weaving around him now, jabbing him with her fists, and he couldn't stand still, could feel himself pitch this way and that, like a boat at the mercy of a brutal sea.
"No!" the Spaniel cried, extending his fists wildly. To his surprise, he caught something, and heard a cry of pain followed by a crashing sound. He turned, looked down, and saw the Blue Lynx grounded, slowly moving away on her hands and knees, her beautiful blue butt raised in the air. The Spaniel felt a stirring in his groin. He tried to ignore it. "That's how she wins," he thought. "Through the power of seduction."
He reached down and grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her up to her feet. She kicked frantically as he locked his arms around her, securing one around her waist, the other against the back of her head. She was pressed against his body now, squirming in his grasp, emitting small sounds of discomfort, and the Spaniel could feel himself tighten up. "Focus," he thought. "Focus!"
"Sorry, damsel," the he sputtered between breaths. "I'm not coming to save you this time."
"I don't need to be saved!" the Blue Lynx cried, plunging her elbow into the Spaniel's stomach. Immediately, he released her, bringing his hands to his body, squeezing his eyes shut in pain. He didn't see the next kick coming-- only felt the Blue Lynx's boot against his face and neck, only felt himself flying through the air, only felt the cold rooftop as his back slammed into it.
"Looks like you're the one in distress," the Blue Lynx giggled. The Spaniel opened his eyes to see her standing over him, her shapely legs on either side of his lower body, her hands set confidently on her hips.
She was so unbelievably hot. Her voice, her hair, her legs, the way her costume clutched at her breasts and butt... But he couldn't let her beat him. To be defeated by a woman, any woman, even one as gifted as as beautiful as the Blue Lynx... That would be too much to bear.
So he shot his arm out and caught her by the ankle and twisted, forcing her to the ground. "Hey!" she yipped, as he tangled his arms and legs with hers. He wrestled with her, found he was easily her better in terms of sheer strength, eventually grabbed her by the hands and pushed her arms to her sides, using his bulk to pin her in place, feeling her smaller body gradually wilt under his weight, hearing her gasps of protest get louder and louder.
"Ugh!" she cried, coughing. "Get off of me!"
Her volume had increased, but her physical power had diminished, and the Spaniel could now easily hold her in place with his mass and one hand, using his other hand to pull two sets of bolo-bolas from his utility belt.
"I'm finishing this," the Spaniel said, deftly driving the superheroine's wrists together and wrapping them with his bola. She was like putty in his hands now, and he could again feel himself stiffen as he finally took stock of the scene, of the fact that this beautiful, spandex-clad babe was struggling helplessly underneath his legs.
"Spaniel!" she shouted. "Stop this!"
She was losing, and she knew it. She was begging for him to stop. The Spaniel felt like he was about to explode. But she wasn't done yet-- he reminded himself that this woman was cunning, that she was finding ways out of situations like this routinely. So he turned around, sitting himself further up on the Blue Lynx's body, and attended to her long, kicking legs. She was banging her boots against the ground, her muscular thighs jiggling, and the Spaniel had to stop himself from drooling as he lashed the bola just above her kneecaps. With each go-around, he could feel the Blue Lynx's resistance ebbing away, and by the time he was done, she was almost completely still, with just her chest pushing up and down, grazing the Spaniel's lower back.
"I think that does it," he said with a small laugh, checking to make sure he wasn't completely hard before standing up and brushing himself off. He turned around and looked at the Blue Lynx, who was staring at him silently, her mouth arranged in a taut frown, her wrists and legs securely fastened together, her blue and white figure like a neat package in the otherwise chaotic mess of strewn unconscious bodies.
"Do you need me to help you escape?" the Spaniel gloated.
The Blue Lynx was blinking rapidly. She almost looked on the verge of tears. The Spaniel didn't blame her. After all her talk, he had shown her definitively that he was the stronger, smarter superhero. It must have humbling to be laying there, tied up, just another victim of the mighty Spaniel. He almost felt bad for her.
"This isn't over," she finally blurted out. "You think you've proven something, but you haven't. I'm still the city's superhero. You're just a kid in gold."
She was goading him, again. The Spaniel felt his pride roaring back. No... he didn't feel bad for her. Yes, she could fight. But all this crap about being the "city's superhero"? After he had thoroughly beaten her? Oh, he'd show her.
"I don't think you understand," the Spaniel said. "Maybe if you just shut up and listen, you'll start to get it."
He pulled a cloth from one of his utility belt pockets and bent down to the ground. He cradled the Blue Lynx's head in one hand, and she jerked around in panic as he brought the cloth to her lips. "No!" she muttered, but it was too late: he placed the red fabric in her mouth and pulled it across her face, wrapping it around her soft black hair and tying it into a knot at the back of her head.
"MMMPH!" she cried, as he slowly stood up, his eyes not leaving her terrified expression. "MMMPH!"
"There," the Spaniel said. "So, now do you understand? I've won. You're not the city's superhero. I am."
The Blue Lynx could only writhe and make small sounds in response.
The Spaniel laughed. He really was in control now. He had beaten the bad guys, and he'd beaten the good girl. Did he want to take it further? It was his choice to make.
"I suppose I could really end this," he said, with a grin. "By taking off your mask."
A burst of energy coursed through the Blue Lynx's body. She kicked out her legs, thrashed her head around, stared at the Spaniel with a look of utter fear.
"Yes," he said. "Seeing you react like that... You obviously don't want that. Me, I'm just an average guy. If Tex had unmasked me, who cares? But you... You must be someone I know. That the city knows."
She had turned away from him as much as she could, exposing her back, her butt maybe even quivering in horror. She was so... desperate now. The Spaniel felt a tingling again. He really needed to go home and attend to some needs. But this was just too much fun.
"Imagine that. I unmask the Blue Lynx. I suddenly possess our city superheroine's big secret. Think of all the money I could make!"
"MMPH!" she cried. "MMPH! MMMMPH!"
"I could sell it to the media. No... I could blackmail you. I could force you to be my little superheroine slave. Wouldn't that be fun."
He was pacing around now, moving his hands dramatically, rapt with the possibilities of the Blue Lynx's identity.
"Oh man, I think I might do it. It would just be glorious to see your naked face. To know the thing you have so valiantly tried to keep a secret."
She had turned back around to face him. She was shaking her head. In fifteen minutes, she had gone from being an ass-kicking superheroine to his caricature of her: a true damsel in distress.
"Just who is it underneath the mask? A old girlfriend of mine? A cop with dreams of vigilante justice? A mild-mannered reporter? A celebrity?"
The Spaniel stroked his chin. Yes. It would be incredible to know the secret of the Blue Lynx. He wouldn't even have to tell anyone, if he didn't want to: it could be something held between him and her. But as he looked at her, trussed up and gagged, the very picture of helplessness, he couldn't help but feel pity rise in him, again. At the end of the day, he was on her side. They were both superheroes, both enemies of Tex and all other evildoers. Would it be right to rob the Blue Lynx of the very thing that allowed her to do this work?
"Maybe I don't have to rob her of that thing," he thought. "Maybe I can take something else, just to send a message."
"Okay, enough torture," he said, bending down to the Blue Lynx. She tried to roll away, but his hand set on her waist quickly kept her in place. She could feel her tremble against the palm of her hand, realized that this was her biggest fear.
He sighed. "I'm not taking your mask."
Her reaction was immediate. All the tension in her body suddenly relaxed. Her breathing slowed, her shaking stopped, she quit trying to fight off his steady hand.
"But I am taking this."
And with that, he reached around the Blue Lynx's back, found the clasp of her utility belt, and with a click that resounded in the night, removed it from her waist. He tossed the belt over her shoulder, letting its heavy contents settle on his chest and back, and stood up, smiling at the Blue Lynx, who now showed a look of pure anger and resentment.
"Until next time, Blue Lynx," he said, turning around and moving toward the rooftop door, leaving the superheroine alone, still bound in the bolo-bolas, still gagged with the red cloth, still completely defeated by a superior fighter, but also, still in possession of her secret identity.
On to Chapter Seven
May 23rd, 10:10 PM
The punch came fast, too fast to dodge or deflect. The Spaniel could barely even brace himself for impact. The fist just hit him, square in the cheek, and he stumbled back, almost falling to the ground, but catching himself at the last moment.
He brought his hand to his face, then quickly removed it. "No signs of weakness," he reminded himself. So he spat on the ground, forced out a laugh, and resumed his standing position. He looked at the Blue Lynx, now tensed up in a fighting position, her chest heaving in and out, her eyes blazing with righteous anger. He thought at that moment that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. It made him want to tease her even more.
"Not bad," he said, even clapping a bit for emphasis. "Ten or fifteen punches like that, and I might even form a bruise."
Truthfully, it hurt. He could feel his cheek throb, and he knew that the Blue Lynx was not the sort of weak-willed, limp-wristed woman he had been describing during this rather amusing war of words. She was a superhero, just like him. But he had no doubts that he was the better superhero. He couldn't lie about that even if he wanted to. Pride mattered to the Spaniel. And apparently it did to the Blue Lynx, too.
She didn't try to respond to him with words. She launched another punch, but the element of surprise was no longer hers. The Spaniel strafed the attack, and then tried one of his own, bringing his knee up. But the Blue Lynx blocked it with both hands just before it met her belly.
"Touche," the Spaniel said.
The Blue Lynx spun around, and the Spaniel felt a blow to the back of his neck, the superheroine's arm. He stumbled forward, and then felt another hit, this one to his chest. She was weaving around him now, jabbing him with her fists, and he couldn't stand still, could feel himself pitch this way and that, like a boat at the mercy of a brutal sea.
"No!" the Spaniel cried, extending his fists wildly. To his surprise, he caught something, and heard a cry of pain followed by a crashing sound. He turned, looked down, and saw the Blue Lynx grounded, slowly moving away on her hands and knees, her beautiful blue butt raised in the air. The Spaniel felt a stirring in his groin. He tried to ignore it. "That's how she wins," he thought. "Through the power of seduction."
He reached down and grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her up to her feet. She kicked frantically as he locked his arms around her, securing one around her waist, the other against the back of her head. She was pressed against his body now, squirming in his grasp, emitting small sounds of discomfort, and the Spaniel could feel himself tighten up. "Focus," he thought. "Focus!"
"Sorry, damsel," the he sputtered between breaths. "I'm not coming to save you this time."
"I don't need to be saved!" the Blue Lynx cried, plunging her elbow into the Spaniel's stomach. Immediately, he released her, bringing his hands to his body, squeezing his eyes shut in pain. He didn't see the next kick coming-- only felt the Blue Lynx's boot against his face and neck, only felt himself flying through the air, only felt the cold rooftop as his back slammed into it.
"Looks like you're the one in distress," the Blue Lynx giggled. The Spaniel opened his eyes to see her standing over him, her shapely legs on either side of his lower body, her hands set confidently on her hips.
She was so unbelievably hot. Her voice, her hair, her legs, the way her costume clutched at her breasts and butt... But he couldn't let her beat him. To be defeated by a woman, any woman, even one as gifted as as beautiful as the Blue Lynx... That would be too much to bear.
So he shot his arm out and caught her by the ankle and twisted, forcing her to the ground. "Hey!" she yipped, as he tangled his arms and legs with hers. He wrestled with her, found he was easily her better in terms of sheer strength, eventually grabbed her by the hands and pushed her arms to her sides, using his bulk to pin her in place, feeling her smaller body gradually wilt under his weight, hearing her gasps of protest get louder and louder.
"Ugh!" she cried, coughing. "Get off of me!"
Her volume had increased, but her physical power had diminished, and the Spaniel could now easily hold her in place with his mass and one hand, using his other hand to pull two sets of bolo-bolas from his utility belt.
"I'm finishing this," the Spaniel said, deftly driving the superheroine's wrists together and wrapping them with his bola. She was like putty in his hands now, and he could again feel himself stiffen as he finally took stock of the scene, of the fact that this beautiful, spandex-clad babe was struggling helplessly underneath his legs.
"Spaniel!" she shouted. "Stop this!"
She was losing, and she knew it. She was begging for him to stop. The Spaniel felt like he was about to explode. But she wasn't done yet-- he reminded himself that this woman was cunning, that she was finding ways out of situations like this routinely. So he turned around, sitting himself further up on the Blue Lynx's body, and attended to her long, kicking legs. She was banging her boots against the ground, her muscular thighs jiggling, and the Spaniel had to stop himself from drooling as he lashed the bola just above her kneecaps. With each go-around, he could feel the Blue Lynx's resistance ebbing away, and by the time he was done, she was almost completely still, with just her chest pushing up and down, grazing the Spaniel's lower back.
"I think that does it," he said with a small laugh, checking to make sure he wasn't completely hard before standing up and brushing himself off. He turned around and looked at the Blue Lynx, who was staring at him silently, her mouth arranged in a taut frown, her wrists and legs securely fastened together, her blue and white figure like a neat package in the otherwise chaotic mess of strewn unconscious bodies.
"Do you need me to help you escape?" the Spaniel gloated.
The Blue Lynx was blinking rapidly. She almost looked on the verge of tears. The Spaniel didn't blame her. After all her talk, he had shown her definitively that he was the stronger, smarter superhero. It must have humbling to be laying there, tied up, just another victim of the mighty Spaniel. He almost felt bad for her.
"This isn't over," she finally blurted out. "You think you've proven something, but you haven't. I'm still the city's superhero. You're just a kid in gold."
She was goading him, again. The Spaniel felt his pride roaring back. No... he didn't feel bad for her. Yes, she could fight. But all this crap about being the "city's superhero"? After he had thoroughly beaten her? Oh, he'd show her.
"I don't think you understand," the Spaniel said. "Maybe if you just shut up and listen, you'll start to get it."
He pulled a cloth from one of his utility belt pockets and bent down to the ground. He cradled the Blue Lynx's head in one hand, and she jerked around in panic as he brought the cloth to her lips. "No!" she muttered, but it was too late: he placed the red fabric in her mouth and pulled it across her face, wrapping it around her soft black hair and tying it into a knot at the back of her head.
"MMMPH!" she cried, as he slowly stood up, his eyes not leaving her terrified expression. "MMMPH!"
"There," the Spaniel said. "So, now do you understand? I've won. You're not the city's superhero. I am."
The Blue Lynx could only writhe and make small sounds in response.
The Spaniel laughed. He really was in control now. He had beaten the bad guys, and he'd beaten the good girl. Did he want to take it further? It was his choice to make.
"I suppose I could really end this," he said, with a grin. "By taking off your mask."
A burst of energy coursed through the Blue Lynx's body. She kicked out her legs, thrashed her head around, stared at the Spaniel with a look of utter fear.
"Yes," he said. "Seeing you react like that... You obviously don't want that. Me, I'm just an average guy. If Tex had unmasked me, who cares? But you... You must be someone I know. That the city knows."
She had turned away from him as much as she could, exposing her back, her butt maybe even quivering in horror. She was so... desperate now. The Spaniel felt a tingling again. He really needed to go home and attend to some needs. But this was just too much fun.
"Imagine that. I unmask the Blue Lynx. I suddenly possess our city superheroine's big secret. Think of all the money I could make!"
"MMPH!" she cried. "MMPH! MMMMPH!"
"I could sell it to the media. No... I could blackmail you. I could force you to be my little superheroine slave. Wouldn't that be fun."
He was pacing around now, moving his hands dramatically, rapt with the possibilities of the Blue Lynx's identity.
"Oh man, I think I might do it. It would just be glorious to see your naked face. To know the thing you have so valiantly tried to keep a secret."
She had turned back around to face him. She was shaking her head. In fifteen minutes, she had gone from being an ass-kicking superheroine to his caricature of her: a true damsel in distress.
"Just who is it underneath the mask? A old girlfriend of mine? A cop with dreams of vigilante justice? A mild-mannered reporter? A celebrity?"
The Spaniel stroked his chin. Yes. It would be incredible to know the secret of the Blue Lynx. He wouldn't even have to tell anyone, if he didn't want to: it could be something held between him and her. But as he looked at her, trussed up and gagged, the very picture of helplessness, he couldn't help but feel pity rise in him, again. At the end of the day, he was on her side. They were both superheroes, both enemies of Tex and all other evildoers. Would it be right to rob the Blue Lynx of the very thing that allowed her to do this work?
"Maybe I don't have to rob her of that thing," he thought. "Maybe I can take something else, just to send a message."
"Okay, enough torture," he said, bending down to the Blue Lynx. She tried to roll away, but his hand set on her waist quickly kept her in place. She could feel her tremble against the palm of her hand, realized that this was her biggest fear.
He sighed. "I'm not taking your mask."
Her reaction was immediate. All the tension in her body suddenly relaxed. Her breathing slowed, her shaking stopped, she quit trying to fight off his steady hand.
"But I am taking this."
And with that, he reached around the Blue Lynx's back, found the clasp of her utility belt, and with a click that resounded in the night, removed it from her waist. He tossed the belt over her shoulder, letting its heavy contents settle on his chest and back, and stood up, smiling at the Blue Lynx, who now showed a look of pure anger and resentment.
"Until next time, Blue Lynx," he said, turning around and moving toward the rooftop door, leaving the superheroine alone, still bound in the bolo-bolas, still gagged with the red cloth, still completely defeated by a superior fighter, but also, still in possession of her secret identity.
On to Chapter Seven
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Seven
Chapter Seven
May 23rd, 10:25 PM
"Damn him!" Erin thought. "Damn him, damn him, DAMN HIM!"
She wanted to scream, to curse his name aloud, but she couldn't: the gag reduced all of her cries to pitiful little whimpers. She wanted to kick and punch something, but she couldn't do that either: the Spaniel had wrapped her tight, and it didn't like she was going to be able to break these bolo-bolas using her strength alone.
She looked up at the stars, but couldn't appreciate their majesty even the slightest bit. All she could think about right now was the Spaniel: how much she hated him, and how badly he had humiliated her. What had been the worst part of it all? Being so easily overpowered, being pushed around and tied up like she was a helpless child? Him taunting her with removing her mask, forcing her to plead with her eyes, forcing her to shake and shiver in total fear, and then finally deciding not to go through with it? Or was the worst of it this final insult: the removal of her utility belt, the seizure of the one item that might have helped her get out of these bonds, the taking of all of the items that made her a superheroine?
She was beside herself with rage, at the Spaniel for his cruelty and arrogance, but also at herself. How could she have ever allowed herself to trust this... boy? And how could she have allowed him to defeat her so... Comprehensively? How did all of this happen? Why was she here?
A voice in Erin's head told her to calm down. "Relax, Blue Lynx" it said. "You've had a bad night. You've had other bad nights before. You got through them, and you'll get through this one. Just concentrate on getting out of this mess, and then you can get your revenge."
Revenge. The thought of it almost made Erin smile (though the gag would've prevented that, too). She would end the Spaniel, plain and simple. She didn't care that she helped him twice. No one-- no one-- would get away with embarrassing the Blue Lynx. Oh, she'd show him.
But first, she had to free herself from her current predicament, which didn't seem like it was going to be easy. Erin had been pulling at the bolo-bolas for almost ten minutes, and there hadn't been any give. Just like his combat skills, the Spaniel's tools were ruthlessly effective. She'd have to find a tool of her own if she wanted to get free.
She turned her head, scanning the rooftop. She looked from unconscious Rattlesnake to unconscious Rattlesnake, hoping for some kind of sharp surface. And that's when she saw it: a large Bowie knife in the belt of a face-down, motionless thug.
The man was about twenty feet away. Erin considered trying to hop to her feet, but the tightness of her bonds made even that simple movement impossible. "Screw it," she thought. She pressed her arms into her chest, turned her body, and began to roll. She moved slowly but confidently across the rooftop, like an oblong blue and white barrel, her field of vision alternating between the rough cement of the ground and the sparkling night sky. She got within a few inches of the unconscious Rattlesnake and stopped rolling, faced him, and scooted her body bit-by-bit around his, until her hands were nearly touching the handle of his knife.
She reached out, fingered the weapon, and heard a cough. She looked up at the man's head and saw that he was staring at her, a creepy grin stretched across his stubbled face.
"Why hello there," he said.
Erin's eyes widened. She made a break for the knife, but the man rolled away in time, leaving her alone on the ground while he gingerly took to his feet.
"MMPH!" Erin moaned, meaning "Dammit."
"What have you gotten yerself into, Blue Lynx?" the man said, admiring her bound body. "Yer all tied up."
"Mmph mmph," Erin mumbled, meaning "No shit."
"Guess you was goin' for my Bowie knife here," the man said, tapping his weapon. "Well, you ain't gettin' it now."
He moved in a circle around Erin, taking in every part of her-- her thighs, her chest, her fearful expression-- and licking his lips. He tapped at the bare flesh of her legs with his cowboy boot, and Erin squirmed on contact.
"Just you and me here now," he said, quietly. "Just you and me..."
Erin watched him intently, waiting for his next move, knowing she could do nothing to stop whatever he had planned.
"I suppose we should get to know each other better!" the man laughed. He reached down at Erin, and before she could roll an inch away, he had her in his arms, was taking her up by the armpits. He dragged her roughly across the rooftop, pulling her boots across the concrete, making no effort to watch where his filthy hands were holding her.
"MMPH!" Erin said, feeling his fingers slip down her chest and underneath the seam of her V-neck. "MMMPHHH!"
"I like you better already," the man said. They had reached the edge of hotel, and the Rattlesnake threw Erin over the low brick wall, pushing her stomach down so that her upper body dangled perilously over the edge. A prompt fit of nausea gripped Erin as she looked down and the people and cars hundreds of feet below her. She banged her bound hands against the bricks, but couldn't budge: the man was leaning on top of her, his groin pressed against her backside, his hands pushing on her back.
"I guess I should ask for, whaddya call it, consent before we get going," the man chuckled. "So whaddya say, Blue Lynx? You wanna get fucked right now?"
Erin's eyes widened. She tried to turn her head around, wanted to implore the man to stop. But the force of his body left her hanging, and all she could manage was a loud, pained "MMMPH!"
The man laughed. "I'll take that as a yes!"
She felt his fingers pinching at the spandex on her bottom, could feel it as he pulled the fabric up and away from her skin, felt a painful sting as he released his fingers and her costume snapped back, jiggling her ass.
"That was a good one!" the man said. "Say, you wearin' anything under this little costume?"
Erin squeezed her eyes together as he felt him again snatch her spandex, this time pulling it even further up, clearly taking his time observing Erin's underwear.
"A lingerie-wearin' superheroine?" he said. "Ain't that something!"
He let go of the fabric, and it smacked into Erin's rear with a loud CRACK. It felt like being whipped, and Erin howled into her gag.
"Guess I better divest you of said garments if we're gonna get down to it," the man said.
Erin could do nothing to stop him. She stared down at the cars, feeling the wind blow through her hair, telling herself to just not think about anything. She was bound and gagged and completely at this man's mercy, and this man seemed merciless. It was best to just not even try to fight back... To not care when he slipped both hands through the leg holes of her costume, to just look on when he squeezed her ass and chuckled maniacally, to try, try, and try to just... go blank... while he grasped for the lacy elastic band of her panties, pushed aside her spandex, began to pull her underwear down off the ridge of her ass, down, down, down...
On to Chapter Eight
May 23rd, 10:25 PM
"Damn him!" Erin thought. "Damn him, damn him, DAMN HIM!"
She wanted to scream, to curse his name aloud, but she couldn't: the gag reduced all of her cries to pitiful little whimpers. She wanted to kick and punch something, but she couldn't do that either: the Spaniel had wrapped her tight, and it didn't like she was going to be able to break these bolo-bolas using her strength alone.
She looked up at the stars, but couldn't appreciate their majesty even the slightest bit. All she could think about right now was the Spaniel: how much she hated him, and how badly he had humiliated her. What had been the worst part of it all? Being so easily overpowered, being pushed around and tied up like she was a helpless child? Him taunting her with removing her mask, forcing her to plead with her eyes, forcing her to shake and shiver in total fear, and then finally deciding not to go through with it? Or was the worst of it this final insult: the removal of her utility belt, the seizure of the one item that might have helped her get out of these bonds, the taking of all of the items that made her a superheroine?
She was beside herself with rage, at the Spaniel for his cruelty and arrogance, but also at herself. How could she have ever allowed herself to trust this... boy? And how could she have allowed him to defeat her so... Comprehensively? How did all of this happen? Why was she here?
A voice in Erin's head told her to calm down. "Relax, Blue Lynx" it said. "You've had a bad night. You've had other bad nights before. You got through them, and you'll get through this one. Just concentrate on getting out of this mess, and then you can get your revenge."
Revenge. The thought of it almost made Erin smile (though the gag would've prevented that, too). She would end the Spaniel, plain and simple. She didn't care that she helped him twice. No one-- no one-- would get away with embarrassing the Blue Lynx. Oh, she'd show him.
But first, she had to free herself from her current predicament, which didn't seem like it was going to be easy. Erin had been pulling at the bolo-bolas for almost ten minutes, and there hadn't been any give. Just like his combat skills, the Spaniel's tools were ruthlessly effective. She'd have to find a tool of her own if she wanted to get free.
She turned her head, scanning the rooftop. She looked from unconscious Rattlesnake to unconscious Rattlesnake, hoping for some kind of sharp surface. And that's when she saw it: a large Bowie knife in the belt of a face-down, motionless thug.
The man was about twenty feet away. Erin considered trying to hop to her feet, but the tightness of her bonds made even that simple movement impossible. "Screw it," she thought. She pressed her arms into her chest, turned her body, and began to roll. She moved slowly but confidently across the rooftop, like an oblong blue and white barrel, her field of vision alternating between the rough cement of the ground and the sparkling night sky. She got within a few inches of the unconscious Rattlesnake and stopped rolling, faced him, and scooted her body bit-by-bit around his, until her hands were nearly touching the handle of his knife.
She reached out, fingered the weapon, and heard a cough. She looked up at the man's head and saw that he was staring at her, a creepy grin stretched across his stubbled face.
"Why hello there," he said.
Erin's eyes widened. She made a break for the knife, but the man rolled away in time, leaving her alone on the ground while he gingerly took to his feet.
"MMPH!" Erin moaned, meaning "Dammit."
"What have you gotten yerself into, Blue Lynx?" the man said, admiring her bound body. "Yer all tied up."
"Mmph mmph," Erin mumbled, meaning "No shit."
"Guess you was goin' for my Bowie knife here," the man said, tapping his weapon. "Well, you ain't gettin' it now."
He moved in a circle around Erin, taking in every part of her-- her thighs, her chest, her fearful expression-- and licking his lips. He tapped at the bare flesh of her legs with his cowboy boot, and Erin squirmed on contact.
"Just you and me here now," he said, quietly. "Just you and me..."
Erin watched him intently, waiting for his next move, knowing she could do nothing to stop whatever he had planned.
"I suppose we should get to know each other better!" the man laughed. He reached down at Erin, and before she could roll an inch away, he had her in his arms, was taking her up by the armpits. He dragged her roughly across the rooftop, pulling her boots across the concrete, making no effort to watch where his filthy hands were holding her.
"MMPH!" Erin said, feeling his fingers slip down her chest and underneath the seam of her V-neck. "MMMPHHH!"
"I like you better already," the man said. They had reached the edge of hotel, and the Rattlesnake threw Erin over the low brick wall, pushing her stomach down so that her upper body dangled perilously over the edge. A prompt fit of nausea gripped Erin as she looked down and the people and cars hundreds of feet below her. She banged her bound hands against the bricks, but couldn't budge: the man was leaning on top of her, his groin pressed against her backside, his hands pushing on her back.
"I guess I should ask for, whaddya call it, consent before we get going," the man chuckled. "So whaddya say, Blue Lynx? You wanna get fucked right now?"
Erin's eyes widened. She tried to turn her head around, wanted to implore the man to stop. But the force of his body left her hanging, and all she could manage was a loud, pained "MMMPH!"
The man laughed. "I'll take that as a yes!"
She felt his fingers pinching at the spandex on her bottom, could feel it as he pulled the fabric up and away from her skin, felt a painful sting as he released his fingers and her costume snapped back, jiggling her ass.
"That was a good one!" the man said. "Say, you wearin' anything under this little costume?"
Erin squeezed her eyes together as he felt him again snatch her spandex, this time pulling it even further up, clearly taking his time observing Erin's underwear.
"A lingerie-wearin' superheroine?" he said. "Ain't that something!"
He let go of the fabric, and it smacked into Erin's rear with a loud CRACK. It felt like being whipped, and Erin howled into her gag.
"Guess I better divest you of said garments if we're gonna get down to it," the man said.
Erin could do nothing to stop him. She stared down at the cars, feeling the wind blow through her hair, telling herself to just not think about anything. She was bound and gagged and completely at this man's mercy, and this man seemed merciless. It was best to just not even try to fight back... To not care when he slipped both hands through the leg holes of her costume, to just look on when he squeezed her ass and chuckled maniacally, to try, try, and try to just... go blank... while he grasped for the lacy elastic band of her panties, pushed aside her spandex, began to pull her underwear down off the ridge of her ass, down, down, down...
On to Chapter Eight
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Eight
Chapter Eight
May 23rd, 10:37 PM
She could feel the warm night air on her naked butt when a voice called out loud and clear across the rooftop:
"FREEZE!"
The man on top of her turned, his hands slipping out of her spandex, his body peeling away from her thighs.
"Oh," he said, sheepishly. "Evening, officer."
The loud and clear voice rang out again. "Step away from the Blue Lynx."
What was this? The police? Erin slowly tried to roll herself around, but the man's hand quickly arrived on her back again, keeping her in place.
"I said step away!"
"Listen, officer," the Rattlesnake said. "This ain't what it looks like. I'm actually doin' a bit of security myself. This... Woman was up here, err, disturbin' the peace."
The voice was having none of it. "Put your hands in the air!"
The Rattlesnake laughed. "Can't do that, sir."
Erin felt him take off from her back. He was running, whether toward the cop or away from him, Erin didn't know. But she heard the sound of a scuffle, a collision, and then a loud cracking sound. She found she could roll over, so she turned around, sliding down the brick wall, and saw a tall man-- an older man, maybe in his early sixties-- standing over the Rattlesnake, who appeared to be unconscious.
"Jesus," the older man said, wiping the sweat from his brow. "What the hell happened up here?"
Erin saw that he was, in fact, armed, but that he wasn't a cop-- he was dressed like hotel security, actually. A feeling of intense love coursed through Erin. This guard had probably saved her life.
"Mmph!" Erin said, meaning, "It's a long story."
The guard wandered over to her and crouched down. He gently untied the knot of the gag and removed the cloth from her mouth. "You doing okay?"
"I'm fine," Erin muttered, but realized she didn't look fine. Her face was burning red with shame and anger, her costume stretched out of shape, her frilly black lingerie sliding out of her spandex, her wrists and ankles still secured tightly with the Spaniel's bolo-bolas. Had a civilian ever seen her in such a disheveled state?
"Here, I'll untie you," the man said. He flicked a pocket knife out and speedily cut through the bonds on Erin's wrists.
"Thank you," Erin said, barely in control of her emotion. "If you hadn't have come when you did..."
"Hey, it's my job," the guard said, working at the bolas on her thighs. "I saw the Spaniel running through the hotel, and figured I should see what was happening. Didn't expect to find all this, though."
Erin reflexively winced when she heard the word "Spaniel." That bastard. He had almost gotten her raped by a Rattlesnake. He had to pay.
"Listen, call the cops, and arrest all of these men. They're part of the Rattlesnake gang," Erin said. "I've got to leave."
The bola fell into pieces around her legs, and Erin cautiously got to her feet, using the brick wall for balance. She tried tucking her panties back into her costume, but found they had been stretched well past the clinging point. So Erin shook her head, grabbed them tightly, and ripped them away from her lower body, leaving just her tight blue spandex in place.
"Here, take these as a token of my appreciation," she said with a grin, placing the torn panties in the guard's hand.
The guard blushed. "Umm, okay."
"Thank you," Erin cooed, leaning into the old man, planting a kiss on his cheek, and dashing across the roof, through the door and into the hotel.
The guard stood there, blinking, alone on the rooftop, turning around in the circle. "Jesus," he whispered.
He balled the Blue Lynx's undies up and slipped them in his pocket.
On to Chapter Nine
May 23rd, 10:37 PM
She could feel the warm night air on her naked butt when a voice called out loud and clear across the rooftop:
"FREEZE!"
The man on top of her turned, his hands slipping out of her spandex, his body peeling away from her thighs.
"Oh," he said, sheepishly. "Evening, officer."
The loud and clear voice rang out again. "Step away from the Blue Lynx."
What was this? The police? Erin slowly tried to roll herself around, but the man's hand quickly arrived on her back again, keeping her in place.
"I said step away!"
"Listen, officer," the Rattlesnake said. "This ain't what it looks like. I'm actually doin' a bit of security myself. This... Woman was up here, err, disturbin' the peace."
The voice was having none of it. "Put your hands in the air!"
The Rattlesnake laughed. "Can't do that, sir."
Erin felt him take off from her back. He was running, whether toward the cop or away from him, Erin didn't know. But she heard the sound of a scuffle, a collision, and then a loud cracking sound. She found she could roll over, so she turned around, sliding down the brick wall, and saw a tall man-- an older man, maybe in his early sixties-- standing over the Rattlesnake, who appeared to be unconscious.
"Jesus," the older man said, wiping the sweat from his brow. "What the hell happened up here?"
Erin saw that he was, in fact, armed, but that he wasn't a cop-- he was dressed like hotel security, actually. A feeling of intense love coursed through Erin. This guard had probably saved her life.
"Mmph!" Erin said, meaning, "It's a long story."
The guard wandered over to her and crouched down. He gently untied the knot of the gag and removed the cloth from her mouth. "You doing okay?"
"I'm fine," Erin muttered, but realized she didn't look fine. Her face was burning red with shame and anger, her costume stretched out of shape, her frilly black lingerie sliding out of her spandex, her wrists and ankles still secured tightly with the Spaniel's bolo-bolas. Had a civilian ever seen her in such a disheveled state?
"Here, I'll untie you," the man said. He flicked a pocket knife out and speedily cut through the bonds on Erin's wrists.
"Thank you," Erin said, barely in control of her emotion. "If you hadn't have come when you did..."
"Hey, it's my job," the guard said, working at the bolas on her thighs. "I saw the Spaniel running through the hotel, and figured I should see what was happening. Didn't expect to find all this, though."
Erin reflexively winced when she heard the word "Spaniel." That bastard. He had almost gotten her raped by a Rattlesnake. He had to pay.
"Listen, call the cops, and arrest all of these men. They're part of the Rattlesnake gang," Erin said. "I've got to leave."
The bola fell into pieces around her legs, and Erin cautiously got to her feet, using the brick wall for balance. She tried tucking her panties back into her costume, but found they had been stretched well past the clinging point. So Erin shook her head, grabbed them tightly, and ripped them away from her lower body, leaving just her tight blue spandex in place.
"Here, take these as a token of my appreciation," she said with a grin, placing the torn panties in the guard's hand.
The guard blushed. "Umm, okay."
"Thank you," Erin cooed, leaning into the old man, planting a kiss on his cheek, and dashing across the roof, through the door and into the hotel.
The guard stood there, blinking, alone on the rooftop, turning around in the circle. "Jesus," he whispered.
He balled the Blue Lynx's undies up and slipped them in his pocket.
On to Chapter Nine
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Nine
Chapter Nine
May 24th, 12:15 AM
Laying on the couch in the relative comfort of her and Erin's small apartment, Margot set her book down on the coffee table and looked at her phone again. The red dot on her tracker had stalled.
"What the hell is going on?" she said out loud, sitting up and staring at the dot, trying to probe into its secrets. Erin's progress tonight had been bizarre. Margot had watched her move into position near the Prickly Pear Hotel, then saw the dot rapidly dart around during what Margot could only assume was a skirmish. It had took a disturbing halt, then moved again, and then stopped again. Just when Margot considered getting into costume to investigate, the dot took off, again zipping around in a contained area, before once again coming to a complete stop. This pause only lasted a few minutes before the dot quickly sped away, several blocks away from where Erin had started, finally coming to a rest at a point not far away from their apartment.
She could make sense of the previous movement: Erin had probably been incapacitated at some point, probably been knocked out and/or tied up. This was not an uncommon situation for the Blue Lynx, though it never failed to freak out Margot. Still, Erin had obviously escaped, as she typically did, only to... What? Get knocked out again? Why the sudden trip away from the hotel? Was she being transported by the Rattlesnakes?
"I've got to go get her," Margot said. But the moment she stood from the couch, she heard the sound of the front door. Into the apartment walked Erin, dressed in the tight jeans, T-shirt, and boots she had been wearing some four hours earlier, when she had left for the hotel.
"Erin!" she shouted, running to meet her friend. "What the hell happened?"
"Nothing," Erin said, refusing to look Margot in the eye. She left the door open and beckoned at Margot with an open palm. "I need to borrow your phone."
"What?" Margot said. "Why?" But she was quickly putting things together. If Erin was here, and the Blue Lynx's red dot was across town...
"You lost your tracker, didn't you?" Margot said.
Erin turned to face Margot. "I didn't lose it," she said, with a touch of anger. "It was taken from me."
Margot noticed Erin's hair was badly mussed up, that her face was red, that she had a few bruises on her arms.
"Taken from you? By who?"
Erin shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it, Margot. Just give me your phone."
Margot stuffed her phone in the back pocket of her jeans. "No, Erin. You need to sleep. You've obviously had a bad night. You need to rest."
"Margot, listen," Erin said. "If I don't get my belt back, my whole career could be in jeopardy."
"Your belt?" Margot said. "You mean, someone stole your whole belt?"
Erin blushed. "Yes. Someone stole my belt. I've got to go get it back."
Margot went to close the door. "I'm not giving you my phone, Erin. Not until you tell me what's going--"
Suddenly, Erin had her arm, was twisting it behind her, was pushing Margot up against the wall.
"Oww!" she cried. "Stop! That hurts!"
She felt Erin grabbing at her phone, sliding it out of her back pocket.
"Thanks, Margot," she said, releasing her friend. Margot collapsed against the wall.
"You bitch," Margot spat. "You better know what you're doing, Erin. Because if you get in trouble and I'm not tracking you, well, that's it for the Blue Lynx."
"We'll talk later," Erin said, stepping back out of the door, slamming it behind her.
Margot held her twisted wrist with her hand, making small sounds of pain.
Erin was doing okay, for now. But her anger, her need to get at Margot's phone, her willingness to even hurt Margot to get what she wanted: they didn't bode well for the rest of the night.
Margot sat back on the couch, looked at her book, and sighed.
On to Chapter Ten
May 24th, 12:15 AM
Laying on the couch in the relative comfort of her and Erin's small apartment, Margot set her book down on the coffee table and looked at her phone again. The red dot on her tracker had stalled.
"What the hell is going on?" she said out loud, sitting up and staring at the dot, trying to probe into its secrets. Erin's progress tonight had been bizarre. Margot had watched her move into position near the Prickly Pear Hotel, then saw the dot rapidly dart around during what Margot could only assume was a skirmish. It had took a disturbing halt, then moved again, and then stopped again. Just when Margot considered getting into costume to investigate, the dot took off, again zipping around in a contained area, before once again coming to a complete stop. This pause only lasted a few minutes before the dot quickly sped away, several blocks away from where Erin had started, finally coming to a rest at a point not far away from their apartment.
She could make sense of the previous movement: Erin had probably been incapacitated at some point, probably been knocked out and/or tied up. This was not an uncommon situation for the Blue Lynx, though it never failed to freak out Margot. Still, Erin had obviously escaped, as she typically did, only to... What? Get knocked out again? Why the sudden trip away from the hotel? Was she being transported by the Rattlesnakes?
"I've got to go get her," Margot said. But the moment she stood from the couch, she heard the sound of the front door. Into the apartment walked Erin, dressed in the tight jeans, T-shirt, and boots she had been wearing some four hours earlier, when she had left for the hotel.
"Erin!" she shouted, running to meet her friend. "What the hell happened?"
"Nothing," Erin said, refusing to look Margot in the eye. She left the door open and beckoned at Margot with an open palm. "I need to borrow your phone."
"What?" Margot said. "Why?" But she was quickly putting things together. If Erin was here, and the Blue Lynx's red dot was across town...
"You lost your tracker, didn't you?" Margot said.
Erin turned to face Margot. "I didn't lose it," she said, with a touch of anger. "It was taken from me."
Margot noticed Erin's hair was badly mussed up, that her face was red, that she had a few bruises on her arms.
"Taken from you? By who?"
Erin shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it, Margot. Just give me your phone."
Margot stuffed her phone in the back pocket of her jeans. "No, Erin. You need to sleep. You've obviously had a bad night. You need to rest."
"Margot, listen," Erin said. "If I don't get my belt back, my whole career could be in jeopardy."
"Your belt?" Margot said. "You mean, someone stole your whole belt?"
Erin blushed. "Yes. Someone stole my belt. I've got to go get it back."
Margot went to close the door. "I'm not giving you my phone, Erin. Not until you tell me what's going--"
Suddenly, Erin had her arm, was twisting it behind her, was pushing Margot up against the wall.
"Oww!" she cried. "Stop! That hurts!"
She felt Erin grabbing at her phone, sliding it out of her back pocket.
"Thanks, Margot," she said, releasing her friend. Margot collapsed against the wall.
"You bitch," Margot spat. "You better know what you're doing, Erin. Because if you get in trouble and I'm not tracking you, well, that's it for the Blue Lynx."
"We'll talk later," Erin said, stepping back out of the door, slamming it behind her.
Margot held her twisted wrist with her hand, making small sounds of pain.
Erin was doing okay, for now. But her anger, her need to get at Margot's phone, her willingness to even hurt Margot to get what she wanted: they didn't bode well for the rest of the night.
Margot sat back on the couch, looked at her book, and sighed.
On to Chapter Ten
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Ten
Chapter Ten
May 24th, 1:05 AM
The young man was getting into bed, clad in only his boxers, exhausted from a long night of work, when the doorbell rang.
"What the fuck," he grumbled. Probably just some kid. There were quite a few kids in his apartment complex, and they'd done this sort of thing before... though never at this hour.
He set his head down on his pillow and shut his eyes. All in all, it was a good day, and a very, very good night. He felt his hand inching down toward his groin, when the doorbell rang, again.
"Okay, come on," he muttered, kicking off the sheets. He jumped out of bed and pulled a shirt on, walking out of the bedroom with confident steps. He'd show those damn kids.
He stood by the door, silently lowered his hand onto the knob, and waited.
A minute later, the doorbell rang.
In a flash, he opened the door.
"Get out of here you damn kids!" he yelled.
But there were no kids standing in front of him; just an attractive young woman in a blue mask with tight blue spandex and white boots. A familiar face, and a familiar figure. His sometimes partner, sometimes rival: the superheroine known as the Blue Lynx.
"Good evening, Spaniel," she said.
Before he could react, he felt her fist in his stomach, followed by her hands on his shoulders, driving him into this apartment and shoving him to the ground.
"You have something that's mine," she said.
She stepped over to him and laid a hard, quick kick into his side. The young man bent in half, clutching at his stomach, crying out in pain.
"Nice place," the Blue Lynx said, looking around at the apartment. "You said you were an average guy, but I'd say this is an above average apartment."
The young man gritted his teeth. "How did you... get here?" he said, trying to fight off the discomfort.
"I've got a tracker in my belt, you fool," she said, setting her boot down on the young man's hand.
"Now," she continued, applying pressure to his palm. "Are you going to tell me where my belt is?"
The man convulsed under the boot, screaming out. "Ahh!" he yelled. "It's! Ahhhh! It's right over there! On the sofa!"
The Blue Lynx looked to her left. He hadn't lied: the belt was just laying there, lazily strewn on the couch like it was any other old article of clothing.
"Good boy," she said, and delivered another powerful kick to the young man's exposed flank.
He held his body, rolling up into a ball, watching the Blue Lynx as she sashayed toward the sofa. She grabbed the utility belt and wrapped it around her delicate waist, letting it click in the back. Once her tools were again safely resting against her lower body, she turned to face the young man.
"You left me tied up," she said, walking back toward him. "Tied and gagged. With all of those Rattlesnakes."
The young man shook his head. "They were... unconscious..."
"Not all of them, you idiot," she said. "One of them tried to violate me. And he would've succeeded, too, if the damn security guard hadn't shown more courage than you ever have."
The young man looked at her sincerely. "I'm... sorry..." he moaned.
"Not good enough!" the Blue Lynx responded, and once more kicked him in the side. The young man gasped in agony, his body turning left way and right, seemingly unsure of what pained part to attend to.
"You're a bastard," she said. "You call yourself a superhero. You're nothing."
She paused, evidently noticing something. The young man looked up and saw her staring at his kitchen table.
"A wallet," she cooed, moving toward her place of interest.
He watched on, painfully, as she opened the flaps of the wallet and stared at its contents.
"Brian Nelson?" she said, casting her eyes back and forth between his face and the face on his driver's license. "That really is an average name."
The young man exhaled. The Blue Lynx had learned his secret identity. It gave him an odd, sick feeling, but it didn't really matter, in the end. No one cared about Brian Nelson. She seemed to think she had made a more important discovery than she actually had.
"The Spaniel... Cool name," the Blue Lynx went on. "Brian Nelson? Lame name."
She was having fun, now. She didn't seem to realize that the young man was slowly regaining his strength-- that he clutched his stomach now not because it hurt, but because if he appeared hurt, he might get a chance to strike back.
"You got your belt," the young man said. "And you got my name. Now get out of here."
The Blue Lynx clicked her tongue. "No, Spaniel. I'm not leaving yet. Not until you feel as bad as I did up on the rooftop."
The young man already felt bad. He hadn't meant to leave the Blue Lynx in the clutches of the Rattlesnakes: he'd only wanted for her to lay there tied up for a bit, to reflect a little on what a weakling she was. But for her to come into his house, learn his secret identity, and now act like some sort of hotshot? The young man's indignation started to bubble underneath his guilt.
"I'm going to tell everyone who you are," the Blue Lynx said. "I'm going to drive you out of town."
"Don't do it, Blue Lynx," the young man replied. "I could've done it to you. I stopped myself."
"Such restraint!" the Blue Lynx said, with a sarcastic laugh. "I guess I'm not as principled as you, Mister 'Leaves Young Women Alone in the Company of Sadistic Rapists.'"
The young man smiled. "Don't give me that, Blue Lynx. I thought you could take care of yourself."
He watched the flash of color dart across her face.
"You bastard!" she yelled, winding her leg back to kick him. She brought her boot forward, but this time, the young man was ready. He swatted away the boot, spinning the Blue Lynx around, and sprang to his feet. He lowered his head and barreled into her, bringing her down on to the couch, landing on top of her with a heavy flop.
"This seems familiar," the young man said, pushing his bulk against the superheroine.
"Argh!" she cried. "Get off of me!"
She brought up her fist and caught him in the chin. The young man stumbled back, stepping away from the couch, allowing the Blue Lynx to regain her feet. She struck a fighting pose and looked at him, a mischievous glimmer in her eye.
"Playing dead," she said, derisively. "Pretty sneaky. Just the sort of low tactic I'd expect from a scumbag like you."
She charged at him, flinging a punch at his face. The young man swerved around it and moved to counterattack, but was met with a cross to his body. He grimaced, lost his footing, let her get near him and deliver a punch to his side. She shoved him away with a two handed push to the chest, driving him to the wall, shaking a framed picture off of its hook.
"Ugh," he said, bringing his hand to his head. He was dazed, but could feel his adrenaline pumping. The tiredness was sliding off of him, his body slowly adjusting to a fighting mode.
"You've got a lot of nerve," he said. "Coming into my house, one in the morning, knocking my pictures off my walls."
He stepped forward, putting his fists out in front of him. "Come on," he said. "Try to hit me."
The Blue Lynx smirked, and once again charged, now leading with her right knee. The young man grabbed her leg, spun her around, and threw her against the wall, which she hit with a BANG and a loud "Oof!" She tried to push herself away, but the young man caught her, placing her hand on her chest and shoving her back. Her head smacked against the wall, and now she was dazed, her steps suddenly uncertain, her hands waving around. Sensing an opportunity, the young man's hand darted toward her chest, snatching the fabric near her cleavage. He clenched the spandex, twisted it, and hurled the Blue Lynx from the wall and down to the ground.
"You can't beat me," the young man said, watching her prone figure, anticipating a reprisal. "Even when I'm not in costume, I'm the true superhero."
The Blue Lynx had rolled over onto her back. The young man made a move for her legs, and she responded by kicking up, nearly catching him in the face. He dodged and waited, standing still while she got to her feet.
"You're no hero," the Blue Lynx said. She had begun to sweat, but was clearly still a threat. The young man decided to get this over with fast. He had to sleep, after all.
"I'm still waiting for you to hit me," he jeered.
Taking the bait, the Blue Lynx leapt at him. The young man met her in the air, grabbed her, and threw her over his body, perfectly launching her into his kitchen table, which exploded into cinders as her body crashed into it.
It was totaled, the table: snapped in half, its legs splayed out, pieces of wood strewn all over the young man's kitchen. But it was worth it to the young man; worth it to see the Blue Lynx, her eyes fluttering, her consciousness barely holding on, sprawling in and around the shattered furniture.
"Uhhh..." she mumbled, her head rolling on her shoulders. Her body lay motionless on the floor, her arms and legs settled on top of table pieces.
"You look about ready to pass out, Blue Lynx," the young man said, grinning. He sat down on the ground next to her head and began to stroke her hair. "Maybe you should take a nap."
"No..." she whispered. "No..."
The young man's smile grew wider. An evil thought had popped into his head.
"Yes, go to sleep," he said, moving his hand from the top of the Blue Lynx's head and down to her face, placing his fingers awkwardly on her nose and cheeks. "By the time you wake up, your world will have changed... Completely..."
And as her eyes shut, as her willingness to fight abandoned her, as she became totally relaxed and unaware of what he had planned, the young man grasped her mask, held it for a few seconds, took a deep breath, and plucked it off her face, revealing the unmistakably gorgeous features of the Mayor's daughter, Erin Steele.
On to Chapter Eleven
May 24th, 1:05 AM
The young man was getting into bed, clad in only his boxers, exhausted from a long night of work, when the doorbell rang.
"What the fuck," he grumbled. Probably just some kid. There were quite a few kids in his apartment complex, and they'd done this sort of thing before... though never at this hour.
He set his head down on his pillow and shut his eyes. All in all, it was a good day, and a very, very good night. He felt his hand inching down toward his groin, when the doorbell rang, again.
"Okay, come on," he muttered, kicking off the sheets. He jumped out of bed and pulled a shirt on, walking out of the bedroom with confident steps. He'd show those damn kids.
He stood by the door, silently lowered his hand onto the knob, and waited.
A minute later, the doorbell rang.
In a flash, he opened the door.
"Get out of here you damn kids!" he yelled.
But there were no kids standing in front of him; just an attractive young woman in a blue mask with tight blue spandex and white boots. A familiar face, and a familiar figure. His sometimes partner, sometimes rival: the superheroine known as the Blue Lynx.
"Good evening, Spaniel," she said.
Before he could react, he felt her fist in his stomach, followed by her hands on his shoulders, driving him into this apartment and shoving him to the ground.
"You have something that's mine," she said.
She stepped over to him and laid a hard, quick kick into his side. The young man bent in half, clutching at his stomach, crying out in pain.
"Nice place," the Blue Lynx said, looking around at the apartment. "You said you were an average guy, but I'd say this is an above average apartment."
The young man gritted his teeth. "How did you... get here?" he said, trying to fight off the discomfort.
"I've got a tracker in my belt, you fool," she said, setting her boot down on the young man's hand.
"Now," she continued, applying pressure to his palm. "Are you going to tell me where my belt is?"
The man convulsed under the boot, screaming out. "Ahh!" he yelled. "It's! Ahhhh! It's right over there! On the sofa!"
The Blue Lynx looked to her left. He hadn't lied: the belt was just laying there, lazily strewn on the couch like it was any other old article of clothing.
"Good boy," she said, and delivered another powerful kick to the young man's exposed flank.
He held his body, rolling up into a ball, watching the Blue Lynx as she sashayed toward the sofa. She grabbed the utility belt and wrapped it around her delicate waist, letting it click in the back. Once her tools were again safely resting against her lower body, she turned to face the young man.
"You left me tied up," she said, walking back toward him. "Tied and gagged. With all of those Rattlesnakes."
The young man shook his head. "They were... unconscious..."
"Not all of them, you idiot," she said. "One of them tried to violate me. And he would've succeeded, too, if the damn security guard hadn't shown more courage than you ever have."
The young man looked at her sincerely. "I'm... sorry..." he moaned.
"Not good enough!" the Blue Lynx responded, and once more kicked him in the side. The young man gasped in agony, his body turning left way and right, seemingly unsure of what pained part to attend to.
"You're a bastard," she said. "You call yourself a superhero. You're nothing."
She paused, evidently noticing something. The young man looked up and saw her staring at his kitchen table.
"A wallet," she cooed, moving toward her place of interest.
He watched on, painfully, as she opened the flaps of the wallet and stared at its contents.
"Brian Nelson?" she said, casting her eyes back and forth between his face and the face on his driver's license. "That really is an average name."
The young man exhaled. The Blue Lynx had learned his secret identity. It gave him an odd, sick feeling, but it didn't really matter, in the end. No one cared about Brian Nelson. She seemed to think she had made a more important discovery than she actually had.
"The Spaniel... Cool name," the Blue Lynx went on. "Brian Nelson? Lame name."
She was having fun, now. She didn't seem to realize that the young man was slowly regaining his strength-- that he clutched his stomach now not because it hurt, but because if he appeared hurt, he might get a chance to strike back.
"You got your belt," the young man said. "And you got my name. Now get out of here."
The Blue Lynx clicked her tongue. "No, Spaniel. I'm not leaving yet. Not until you feel as bad as I did up on the rooftop."
The young man already felt bad. He hadn't meant to leave the Blue Lynx in the clutches of the Rattlesnakes: he'd only wanted for her to lay there tied up for a bit, to reflect a little on what a weakling she was. But for her to come into his house, learn his secret identity, and now act like some sort of hotshot? The young man's indignation started to bubble underneath his guilt.
"I'm going to tell everyone who you are," the Blue Lynx said. "I'm going to drive you out of town."
"Don't do it, Blue Lynx," the young man replied. "I could've done it to you. I stopped myself."
"Such restraint!" the Blue Lynx said, with a sarcastic laugh. "I guess I'm not as principled as you, Mister 'Leaves Young Women Alone in the Company of Sadistic Rapists.'"
The young man smiled. "Don't give me that, Blue Lynx. I thought you could take care of yourself."
He watched the flash of color dart across her face.
"You bastard!" she yelled, winding her leg back to kick him. She brought her boot forward, but this time, the young man was ready. He swatted away the boot, spinning the Blue Lynx around, and sprang to his feet. He lowered his head and barreled into her, bringing her down on to the couch, landing on top of her with a heavy flop.
"This seems familiar," the young man said, pushing his bulk against the superheroine.
"Argh!" she cried. "Get off of me!"
She brought up her fist and caught him in the chin. The young man stumbled back, stepping away from the couch, allowing the Blue Lynx to regain her feet. She struck a fighting pose and looked at him, a mischievous glimmer in her eye.
"Playing dead," she said, derisively. "Pretty sneaky. Just the sort of low tactic I'd expect from a scumbag like you."
She charged at him, flinging a punch at his face. The young man swerved around it and moved to counterattack, but was met with a cross to his body. He grimaced, lost his footing, let her get near him and deliver a punch to his side. She shoved him away with a two handed push to the chest, driving him to the wall, shaking a framed picture off of its hook.
"Ugh," he said, bringing his hand to his head. He was dazed, but could feel his adrenaline pumping. The tiredness was sliding off of him, his body slowly adjusting to a fighting mode.
"You've got a lot of nerve," he said. "Coming into my house, one in the morning, knocking my pictures off my walls."
He stepped forward, putting his fists out in front of him. "Come on," he said. "Try to hit me."
The Blue Lynx smirked, and once again charged, now leading with her right knee. The young man grabbed her leg, spun her around, and threw her against the wall, which she hit with a BANG and a loud "Oof!" She tried to push herself away, but the young man caught her, placing her hand on her chest and shoving her back. Her head smacked against the wall, and now she was dazed, her steps suddenly uncertain, her hands waving around. Sensing an opportunity, the young man's hand darted toward her chest, snatching the fabric near her cleavage. He clenched the spandex, twisted it, and hurled the Blue Lynx from the wall and down to the ground.
"You can't beat me," the young man said, watching her prone figure, anticipating a reprisal. "Even when I'm not in costume, I'm the true superhero."
The Blue Lynx had rolled over onto her back. The young man made a move for her legs, and she responded by kicking up, nearly catching him in the face. He dodged and waited, standing still while she got to her feet.
"You're no hero," the Blue Lynx said. She had begun to sweat, but was clearly still a threat. The young man decided to get this over with fast. He had to sleep, after all.
"I'm still waiting for you to hit me," he jeered.
Taking the bait, the Blue Lynx leapt at him. The young man met her in the air, grabbed her, and threw her over his body, perfectly launching her into his kitchen table, which exploded into cinders as her body crashed into it.
It was totaled, the table: snapped in half, its legs splayed out, pieces of wood strewn all over the young man's kitchen. But it was worth it to the young man; worth it to see the Blue Lynx, her eyes fluttering, her consciousness barely holding on, sprawling in and around the shattered furniture.
"Uhhh..." she mumbled, her head rolling on her shoulders. Her body lay motionless on the floor, her arms and legs settled on top of table pieces.
"You look about ready to pass out, Blue Lynx," the young man said, grinning. He sat down on the ground next to her head and began to stroke her hair. "Maybe you should take a nap."
"No..." she whispered. "No..."
The young man's smile grew wider. An evil thought had popped into his head.
"Yes, go to sleep," he said, moving his hand from the top of the Blue Lynx's head and down to her face, placing his fingers awkwardly on her nose and cheeks. "By the time you wake up, your world will have changed... Completely..."
And as her eyes shut, as her willingness to fight abandoned her, as she became totally relaxed and unaware of what he had planned, the young man grasped her mask, held it for a few seconds, took a deep breath, and plucked it off her face, revealing the unmistakably gorgeous features of the Mayor's daughter, Erin Steele.
On to Chapter Eleven
Rival Hero: The Spaniel Strikes: Chapter Eleven
Chapter Eleven
May 24th, 8:32 AM
The sun had begun to streak through the window, and a ray caught the eyes of glamorous, enchanting Erin Steele, who felt refreshed after a good night's sleep in her own bed...
Wait. This wasn't her bed. Or a bed at all. This was a couch.
She blinked her eyes, sat up, groggily trying to take stock of her situation. There was a blanket on her, a red and black quilt, one she had never seen before. She pushed it down, and saw that she was wearing an oversized white T-shirt, the word SOFTBALL emblazoned across her chest.
This wasn't her T-shirt.
She kicked off the blanket and set her feet on the ground, looking around at her surroundings. This wasn't her couch. This wasn't her room. And that definitely wasn't her kitchen table, busted into shards like a bomb had gone off underneath it...
No.
She knew where she was. The Spaniel's apartment. Brian Nelson's place. They had been fighting. She had tried to attack him, and he had thrown her... Into that table... Where she had fallen unconscious...
She looked down at the shirt, again, and then brought her hand to her face. She tapped her fingertips around her eyes, but couldn't feel it...
"Looking for something?"
Erin turned her head in the direction of the sudden voice, and saw Brian, dressed now in jeans and a tanktop, his hands stuffed in his pockets. He was leaning against a doorframe, cool and casually, trying to keep his face straight but evidently having some trouble.
"Looking... For this?" He pulled something from his pocket, and Erin didn't have to see it to know what it was. But he pushed it against his face, regardless, grinning at her through her own blue mask.
"Did you forget to go to sleep with your mask..." He paused for dramatic effect. "Erin Steele?"
Hearing him pronounce her name almost flung Erin back under the blanket. Her head suddenly erupted into a vicious migraine, and her arms and legs turned to jelly. She blinked rapidly, hoping to wake up from this horrible new nightmare. But deep inside, she knew that this was all real... That she was definitely in the Spaniel's house... That this boy had discovered her secret...
"Nothing to say, for once?" Brian said. "Good. It's about time your learned some humility."
He sauntered over to a kitchen chair and pulled it up to the couch. He plopped down in it and set his hands on his knees, keeping the Blue Lynx's mask in his fingers, making sure Erin could see it.
"I didn't want to do this," Brian said. "You and I... We didn't have to be enemies. But when a person comes into my house in the middle of the night and threatens me, well... You didn't leave me much of a choice, Miss Steele."
"Miss Steele." Her own name made Erin nauseous. She leaned forward, gripping her head with her hands, trying to avoid Brian's gaze.
"So yeah, I took your mask. And I can see why you needed it. A face like yours... Everyone in town knows it. You wouldn't have much of a superheroine life if your secret got out. You're not exactly an anonymous nobody, like me."
Erin's body shook with disgrace. Her eyes were closed tight, trying desperately to hold in tears. "He knows," she thought. "He knows... He knows... He knows..."
"After I took your mask and saw your face, well, I decided I wanted to see more. So I peeled your your gloves, and then your boots, and then your costume. Don't worry. I didn't touch you or anything. Well, maybe a little bit, but you'll be fine."
Erin didn't care about that. Her thoughts were entirely occupied by the knowledge that... He knew.
"Do you like the shirt? It's kind of ugly, but it fit you good."
Typically, this would have been a golden opportunity for a one-liner. But Erin didn't feel up to it, this morning. She didn't want to fight. She just wanted to leave.
"I figure I'll keep your costume for a bit, you know? Until you fully understand that, well, it's over for you, Erin. Your life as the Blue Lynx? It's finished."
"What do you plan to do?" she sniffled, keeping her head down. She couldn't bear to face him, not like this.
"For now? Nothing," Brian responded. "I'm letting you go, because I'm a nice person. But mark my words, Miss Steele: if you ever try to appear in public as the Blue Lynx again-- if I think you're adopting any kind of superheroine persona-- if I so much as see you in the vicinity of a crime scene-- I'll tell every media outlet in town what I know. I'll send them all the pictures I took of your beautiful unconscious face. I'll make sure you end up in prison, Erin Steele."
"But..." Erin pleaded. "Brian, listen to me..."
"I'm not Brian," Brian said. "To you, I'm only the Spaniel."
Erin gulped. "Spaniel. Listen. I'm on your side. You can't just... Hold me hostage like this. Think about the city. Think about..."
Brian shook his head. "This is for the good of the city, Miss Steele. You're a menace. A poor crimefighter. A liability. You're more likely to cause trouble for me than not. It is I who have the best interests of the city at heart. I who have proven, on multiple occasions, that I am your physical and mental superior."
He crumpled the mask in his fingers and stuffed it back in his pocket. "Yes," he said. "I, the Spaniel, have beaten the Blue Lynx."
It took everything Erin had to stay even a bit composed during this utterance. Because she knew it was true. He had conquered her, vanquished her, ended her superheroine existence. There was nothing she could do about it now. She could only fade away.
"Now get out," Brian commanded. "I'm tired of wasting my time on you, Erin Steele. I've got criminals to fight."
Erin choked out a sob as she stood up from the couch. She turned around, letting the oversized shirt drape over private parts, and walked away, leaving the apartment, gently closing the door behind her, hearing the low sounds of Brian's laughter as she stepped into the hallway.
She was barefoot. Beltless. Costume-less. Unmasked.
She hung her head, fell to the ground, sat on her knees, and cried.
The Blue Lynx... was over.
THE END
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May 24th, 8:32 AM
The sun had begun to streak through the window, and a ray caught the eyes of glamorous, enchanting Erin Steele, who felt refreshed after a good night's sleep in her own bed...
Wait. This wasn't her bed. Or a bed at all. This was a couch.
She blinked her eyes, sat up, groggily trying to take stock of her situation. There was a blanket on her, a red and black quilt, one she had never seen before. She pushed it down, and saw that she was wearing an oversized white T-shirt, the word SOFTBALL emblazoned across her chest.
This wasn't her T-shirt.
She kicked off the blanket and set her feet on the ground, looking around at her surroundings. This wasn't her couch. This wasn't her room. And that definitely wasn't her kitchen table, busted into shards like a bomb had gone off underneath it...
No.
She knew where she was. The Spaniel's apartment. Brian Nelson's place. They had been fighting. She had tried to attack him, and he had thrown her... Into that table... Where she had fallen unconscious...
She looked down at the shirt, again, and then brought her hand to her face. She tapped her fingertips around her eyes, but couldn't feel it...
"Looking for something?"
Erin turned her head in the direction of the sudden voice, and saw Brian, dressed now in jeans and a tanktop, his hands stuffed in his pockets. He was leaning against a doorframe, cool and casually, trying to keep his face straight but evidently having some trouble.
"Looking... For this?" He pulled something from his pocket, and Erin didn't have to see it to know what it was. But he pushed it against his face, regardless, grinning at her through her own blue mask.
"Did you forget to go to sleep with your mask..." He paused for dramatic effect. "Erin Steele?"
Hearing him pronounce her name almost flung Erin back under the blanket. Her head suddenly erupted into a vicious migraine, and her arms and legs turned to jelly. She blinked rapidly, hoping to wake up from this horrible new nightmare. But deep inside, she knew that this was all real... That she was definitely in the Spaniel's house... That this boy had discovered her secret...
"Nothing to say, for once?" Brian said. "Good. It's about time your learned some humility."
He sauntered over to a kitchen chair and pulled it up to the couch. He plopped down in it and set his hands on his knees, keeping the Blue Lynx's mask in his fingers, making sure Erin could see it.
"I didn't want to do this," Brian said. "You and I... We didn't have to be enemies. But when a person comes into my house in the middle of the night and threatens me, well... You didn't leave me much of a choice, Miss Steele."
"Miss Steele." Her own name made Erin nauseous. She leaned forward, gripping her head with her hands, trying to avoid Brian's gaze.
"So yeah, I took your mask. And I can see why you needed it. A face like yours... Everyone in town knows it. You wouldn't have much of a superheroine life if your secret got out. You're not exactly an anonymous nobody, like me."
Erin's body shook with disgrace. Her eyes were closed tight, trying desperately to hold in tears. "He knows," she thought. "He knows... He knows... He knows..."
"After I took your mask and saw your face, well, I decided I wanted to see more. So I peeled your your gloves, and then your boots, and then your costume. Don't worry. I didn't touch you or anything. Well, maybe a little bit, but you'll be fine."
Erin didn't care about that. Her thoughts were entirely occupied by the knowledge that... He knew.
"Do you like the shirt? It's kind of ugly, but it fit you good."
Typically, this would have been a golden opportunity for a one-liner. But Erin didn't feel up to it, this morning. She didn't want to fight. She just wanted to leave.
"I figure I'll keep your costume for a bit, you know? Until you fully understand that, well, it's over for you, Erin. Your life as the Blue Lynx? It's finished."
"What do you plan to do?" she sniffled, keeping her head down. She couldn't bear to face him, not like this.
"For now? Nothing," Brian responded. "I'm letting you go, because I'm a nice person. But mark my words, Miss Steele: if you ever try to appear in public as the Blue Lynx again-- if I think you're adopting any kind of superheroine persona-- if I so much as see you in the vicinity of a crime scene-- I'll tell every media outlet in town what I know. I'll send them all the pictures I took of your beautiful unconscious face. I'll make sure you end up in prison, Erin Steele."
"But..." Erin pleaded. "Brian, listen to me..."
"I'm not Brian," Brian said. "To you, I'm only the Spaniel."
Erin gulped. "Spaniel. Listen. I'm on your side. You can't just... Hold me hostage like this. Think about the city. Think about..."
Brian shook his head. "This is for the good of the city, Miss Steele. You're a menace. A poor crimefighter. A liability. You're more likely to cause trouble for me than not. It is I who have the best interests of the city at heart. I who have proven, on multiple occasions, that I am your physical and mental superior."
He crumpled the mask in his fingers and stuffed it back in his pocket. "Yes," he said. "I, the Spaniel, have beaten the Blue Lynx."
It took everything Erin had to stay even a bit composed during this utterance. Because she knew it was true. He had conquered her, vanquished her, ended her superheroine existence. There was nothing she could do about it now. She could only fade away.
"Now get out," Brian commanded. "I'm tired of wasting my time on you, Erin Steele. I've got criminals to fight."
Erin choked out a sob as she stood up from the couch. She turned around, letting the oversized shirt drape over private parts, and walked away, leaving the apartment, gently closing the door behind her, hearing the low sounds of Brian's laughter as she stepped into the hallway.
She was barefoot. Beltless. Costume-less. Unmasked.
She hung her head, fell to the ground, sat on her knees, and cried.
The Blue Lynx... was over.
THE END
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