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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Supernova: Chapter 17

I just finished 20 and started 21 where the hell did this motivation come from...

Don’t know, don’t care, gonna ride this bomb to the bottom screaming yippe-kay-yay and waving a cowboy hat to oblivion.

(I had to watch Strangelove in high school, it stuck with me.)

Anyway, thanks for the patience during my depression hiatus. I am still very depressed, but at least I can write again. 21 needs a metric shit ton of research for me not to screw up, but I’m hoping to get that done in two weeks. We’ll see.

Next chapter is up on March 20... which means I get my birthday off this year. Hooray, I can turn 29 in complete solitude and depression like I want!

Anyway, thanks again for being patient. I won’t keep you longer. Be safe, remember to wash your damn hands and wear a mask!

Yeah... that hurt. Were there bones in your ass to break, or was that just residual rib damage?

Angel groaned as stars danced before his eyes. The last few seconds had been pretty chaotic. He was all but certain that at least one nurse was looking for him, and his flight through the hospital had definitely caught attention. When trying to save a friend, subtlety went out the window.

That was the second hero motto, right after never be caught with your mask off.

When he could see again, it wasn't a pretty sight. Two guys in dark suits, flanked by his least favorite person, were standing in the room. One of them had a weird looking device that made his stomach flop just looking at it. It wasn't doing anything, but... he got the feeling there was nothing nice about it.

Andy was practically trying to hide in the wall at the sight of it, so he was probably on the money.

“Well, it looks like half the Union is here.” Claire was to the point as always. “Unfortunately, there's not much you can do. Andromeda's custody was voided as of ten minutes ago. Unless you want to argue with the US government, it be wise to hand her over.”

He managed to stand, rubbing his neck. “We're superheroes, arguing with the US government is part of our paycheck.”

The aura in the room shimmered as the psychic turned to face him. It was hard to miss the once-over he got in his – admittedly – odd attire, but Angel didn't care then. Once he was up, he was with Leo and Scanner to keep them from getting to their newest member.

Andy was... well for a big alien, she was looking small then. Her eyes never left the device in the man's hand, and she pressed against the far wall to give herself plenty of room. A pile of debris from where her fingers were digging into the wall without her realizing was starting to form.

Yep, that settled it – she wasn’t going anywhere. Protecting those in fear was part of his job after all.

“Sky Rider, I see you forgot our agreement.” Her tone was neutral, as always. “Well, I suppose the felony warrant will help me know your name.”

Of course, Leo wasn't about to take any of this lying down. He was at the front, cane drawing the proverbial line in the sand. For a little old man getting his ass beat by cancer, he was looming large. Might've been a trick of the light, but Angel swore he saw the flutter of a cape.

But of course, he didn't. Nobody wore capes anymore; it was a crime against fashion and logistics that got left in the 70's.

“I'm afraid you're too late. Andromeda has taken the Union oath.” There was a twinkle in his eyes for a brief moment as Claire eyed him over. She flinched – good, they were teaching about him on the west coast still. “I assume you know the rules about keeping us from our duties?”

Scanner rolled up with their eyes glowing. “She's already in the database, so don't try to say it doesn't count if she's not in the book. I've already forwarded you the outside copy.”

Even better, dealing with the paperwork made things easier on Ember for when she was lucid. At least her issues about filling that spot left by Richter were solved, though the whole alien thing might put a damper on things. Well, how did the song go about not always getting what you wanted?

…

Did aliens count as something you need?

Something in the agents' pockets beeped in a tone Angel was definitely sure they weren't set to make. Claire pulled a phone out of her pocket – huh, so the FBI used iPhones. He always knew the US government was fucked up, but there was all the proof he needed – and scowled as she read whatever was on the screen. It was a brief moment, but her aura filled the room.

It was a weird sort of mad, a blend of a dedicated bounty hunter furious that their mark was out of their reach mixed with the pants-shitting terror of knowing you couldn't grab the alien standing right in front of you. It made his stomach turn, and judging from how white Leo's knuckles got, the old man felt it too. Only Scanner didn't seem affected – lucky bastard. Their affinity with tech made them a natural block to psychic energy.

“Anyway, the details are all there so it would be best if you left. This is a hospital, and there are people in need of rest.” the old man was definitely eyeing him as he recovered from the sudden blast of energy. “Now... as the children say... yeet?”

…

Scanner and Angel exchanged pained glances as Claire returned her phone to her suit pocket. She had reigned in her emotions, but she wasn't done yet. Neither for that matter was the guy with what he could only guess was an alien cattle prod based on how Andy was reacting.

Speaking of...

He glanced back. Andy looked like she was made of stone. Well, she kind of was, but he had never seen her look so still. She was frozen in place, hands dug deep into the wall. Explaining that later was going to be fun...

Angel reached back to tug at her hand. “Don't worry about it. They can't get you now that you're with us.”

It was hard to read emotion on a face projected by a necklace. Yet he watched as she started to come back to life. Her shoulders dropped, and the debris stopped raining down from the wall. Maybe it was his broken ribs hoping this would end soon, but he saw life in those masked eyes.

“I know.”

Claire wasn't finished yet. She dug a paper from her pocket, holding it out. From what Angel could see, it looked like a custody agreement, only the parents were the US government and Bear Paw labs. It was old, yellowed a little. Still, that was an impressive looking seal.

“Not quite. The arrangement says Andromeda has to stay with a person approved by both agencies. The only one left in the state was Amanda, and she gave up her right to custody. So, since no one's left, that means custody falls to us.”

The man stepped forward, and the aura of the room changed. Andy tensed behind them, and her hand flexed. Light wasn't gathering, but it was a fine precursor. If digging a hole in the wall was bad enough, blasting the hospital was the worst idea of all.

But shit... that was... bad. How did he keep them from not dying by lethal blast from a rookie?

---

No. No no no no no...

Andy's mind was racing as she stared ahead of her. There stood a woman in sunglasses, flanked by some intimidating looking henchman. Both of them were armed, and the sight of their weapons brought her mind back to dangerous places.

The lab had stopped using them once they realized how sentient she was. Apparently, it was against IRB protocol or something to cause mind numbing agony by touching her with it. Apparently, these guys must've gotten what they had tossed into the trash, because one of them had an awfully familiar line cut into it when she had almost bit someone's hand off.

She had lost a tooth that way – it had grown back even sharper within two days.

Her body acted on its own, she ducked behind Uncle Leo and all but molded herself to the wall. Her fingers dug into it, bracing for if she would need to kick off from it. Once she was touched with one of those, motion was going to be hard. She needed to prepare herself.

Her mother had given up custody.

She knew it had been coming, but hearing it was another story altogether. Her mind flicked briefly to her sisters – would she ever be able to see them again? Would they even know what had happened? There was no way her mother was going to handle that well, especially when it came to telling Jen. When she gave up on somebody, she just didn't care.

Where were they going to take her anyway? Bear Paw Lab was probably out – they liked her too much and treated her like a person instead of a test subject. More likely than not, if the government had her it was to some secret facility that would keep her from ever seeing the light of day again. With that came things she didn't want to remember, dark days and bright overhead lights on a cold table. She could still remember gazes, whispers, sharp tools that couldn't cut any of her away.

She had been a small thing then, unable to fight back. Now... she had options.

Andy glanced down at her hand briefly. If she squinted, she could see the point in her palm that the light came from. Three blasts had changed the texture, making it smoother than the already mirror-like surface surrounding it. When she had held it up to the light in the hospital, it had caught the harsh glow and refracted rainbows back onto her palm.

Her body was adapting. Maybe that would make things easier. She could probably get off a small blast and make a run for it before they had time to catch her. Maybe if she angled it right, it wouldn't hurt anyone...

No, it probably would. She might hit Uncle Leo...

Before she could do anything to fix her plan, Sky Rider nudged her hand. Her gaze met his visor. He was saying something, but it was hard to catch with her brain going in frantic circles. Then he squeezed – mostly useless honestly.

“Don't worry about it. They can't get you now that you're with us.”

…

Well, technically they had never gotten her, but their damn stunners had.

It was a vague contradiction of fact that brought her mind back from the brink. Thinking was a little easier now, though her core still bubbled like a pot left on the stove too long. At least they were keeping the goon squad off her.

“I know.”

Andy was surprised at how strong her voice actually sounded, though it wasn't anything special to the people around her probably. Her entire world seemed to be falling apart, but she kept standing. Even terrified, she was there.

Maybe it was the Halloween mask. It had to be something special if it survived a few rounds of plasma blasts.

The lady at the front didn't look impressed. She did look familiar though, but those were from memories Andy had problems accessing. Maybe they had met under those harsh lights, or before that time, when she hadn't really... it was hard. The best way she could call it was emerging from whatever had created her. Those memories were hazy and foggy at best, and most of the time they didn't make sense. She just could recall shapes and unfocused words that she couldn't understand, all enrobed in a persistent sensation of uneasy floating.

So... maybe she was from the floating time.

Andy's core dropped 10 degrees when she saw the custody arrangement. It was the old original one, the one her mother kept in a folder and often had brandished at her when she had been angry about something. She knew the details by heart – someone had to hold custody of her if she was going to remain in Bear Paw.

Her mother was out. Her father had never been included on that list, and he was in New York anyway; she wasn't allowed to cross state lines unless a federal agent was with her. That left the labs and the guys in black. Dr. Sakamoto wasn't there to contest it, so... that left the men and their stunners, flanked by a lady she was quickly remembering she didn't like.

That left a literal fight for custody stretching out before her. She had wanted to avoid collateral damage, but she wasn't going over to the feds without a fight.

“Now, Andromeda, if you could please come with us?”

The woman motioned to one of the men. He advanced, his scarred stunner flicking on and catching the light. She could feel the pulsations even from across the room. They started slow, but would build until it was impossible to think, and the second it touched her the vibrations would start. Then... well there was little she could do as her body vibrated out of control, sending spasms throughout her rocky surface and molten core.

So... kill him first then.

“I'm not going with you.” Her palm started to collect light. “I'm staying here.”

The lady's expression never changed. “I was hoping you'd be reasonable now that you're an adult. Very well, we'll do things the hard way.”

Before her goons could advance, one had to move aside. Into the room, sitting in a rather uncomfortable looking wheelchair, was Miri. She was bandaged like a mummy and one eye was covered, but the other was on fire. With her arm in a cast, pushing was hard. Luckily, Ember was there to help out.

The boss lady was on her feet – good sign.

“Get away from my niece.” Miri grimaced as she suddenly held her head. “Damn concussion...”

Ember handed her a bucket from the side just in case. “We could've done this by video, you know. You-”

Her aunt answered after voiding her stomach contents with a rather impressive projection. “Someone has to physically take custody over her.”

Then she put the bucket aside, visible eye almost glowing. Even in a wheelchair, beaten up as she was, she looked ten feet tall and made of pure steel. Just looking at her gave Andy the strength to stand a little straighter.

Sunglasses lady turned to face her. “Ah. Miriam. I didn't realize you were still alive.”

“I live to dance on you grave.” She pointed to the order. “You can put that away. In case you forgot, I'm on the custody arrangement too. Andy's coming home with me.”

Something like hope sprang into Andy's chest. She could remember seeing that line, added at the last moment by a much younger version of her aunt who was glaring at her now ex-mother like she had stolen the last cookie. Over the years it had been mentioned, but never acted on. There had never been an opportunity to – her mother was a control freak who would've never let her go.

Now... well, disowning her was a pretty heavy form of letting go.

Sunglasses frowned. “Last I checked, you're not home-”

“I don’t care if we both have to move into the Union House, she’s coming with me.” Miri was smiling now, a weird thing on her bandaged face. Yet at the same time, it was beautiful. “After all, I'm hearing she's one of us now.”

Ember was smiling too, though she looked tired. Hell, Andy couldn't blame her – her brain had basically been hijacked into almost committing suicide by plasma to the face. She was made of some damn strong stuff, no doubt about it. “I hope you got it on camera, Scanner. I hate missing out on these things.”

Hope kept building and bubbling into Andy's chest as she glanced around the room. Once she would have considered herself alone. Yet even though they were battered and bruised, she had friends and family here that had her back against even the federal government. While she couldn't cry... she certainly felt like it as she stood there.

If this was how their team was going to work out, she was going to be happy there.

Sunglasses' expression was hard to read but judging how the psychics in the room winced she wasn't happy. Then her pocket started to buzz, and she picked it up. The voice on the other end was to the point, and her expression returned to neutral.

“You're going to have to meet with the handler to draft a new agreement.”

Miri nodded stiffly – she was probably going to need more bucket time after that. “Yeah, I'll get right on that. Now get going before someone other than me shows you the business end of their powers.”

Sunglasses put her phone back in her pocket. Now she was looking directly at Andy, eyes burning. She remembered those eyes now, in a younger face staring at her from the other side of a tank in the floating days. There had been a hunger there then, and she could still see the remnants there now.

Looks like someone wasn't getting what they wanted again.

“We'll meet again, Andromeda. You'll slip up eventually, and then nobody will be able to protect you.”

Andy wished then she had the ability to scowl. Instead, she straightened up to her full height and leaned forward. Her hands creaked as they forced themselves into an uncomfortable but all too familiar gesture any human would know.

Of all the human gestures she had struggled to figure out, flipping someone the bird was a personal favorite.

“Better follow Supernova on twitter then, cause I'm not going anywhere. Now, like my aunt suggested, get out before I figure out how to blast you with this.”

She could hear snickering in the background as the agent bristled. Yet there was nothing she could do. Eventually, they had to pull back and return to whatever lair they crawled out of. That left the room abandoned by the feds and stuffed to the brim with superheroes who probably needed to get back to their hospital rooms.

How many nurses had they pissed off?

Miri was smirking at her though as she adjusted in her chair. “Supernova, huh? Can’t say I saw a legacy title coming from you…”

Oh... she was definitely going to regret that name choice. But at least she had the ability to regret it as she listened for the sound of approaching hospital staff coming to reclaim their patients. Finally, she could think clearly.

Hopefully, her mother would allow her to go get her shit. She wanted her teddy bear back, thank you very much.

---

Like what I’m reading and want to help supply me with after-therapy candy? I have a ko-fi!

#Supernova Collision Trilogy #Writing #novel #I'm back for now #I need to research shit like whoa tho

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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February Hiatus pt. 2

Yeah... I got nothing.

I wish I had more to tell you guys, but it's been bad. My therapist is worried about me and made me ask my friends what I'm good at because I hate myself so much I can't honestly answer my own skills. It was very cringeworthy, let's just say that.

I don't want to be here anymore... but I'm not allowed to say that (my therapist gets kinda frowny) so I'm stuck here. Might as well try to write I guess... bit hard to do that right now, but I'm going to try to have something ready for March.

Not much else to say besides I'm writing up a pitch for Nanowrimo and the Book Doctors Pitch-a-palooza. Long time readers will know I've done Nano since 2008 and never missed an event. It's why you have anything I write... Nano is my zero draft. Might as well use Nano to motivate myself to take the next step. Obviously I'm going to lose, but... *shrug* this is where my therapist says it's good practice I guess.

I don't really have anything else besides the growing exhaustion of having to draw a room in two point perspective. Next update is coming out March 6. See you then I guess.

#hiatus update

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Supernova: February Hiatus

Sorry, guys... I need to take some time off.

It's not because of the weather or my family... I'm just really depressed. I haven't written anything all year and I'm just not able to get out of my funk. It's hard to write when you don't want to be alive, I guess. Normally I can write while feeling that way... but not at the moment. Guess it's just a really bad depressive episode.

I'm taking February off so I don't have another club to beat myself with. I have enough. If I feel better in late February, maybe. We'll see.

I'm going to go to sleep now with the deep dissatisfaction that I'll wake up in the morning and continue my shitty life. Hope your lives and days suck less than mine.

See you in late February. (I have to say that so you don't think I'm going to try something stupid. I'm bad, but not that bad.) Maybe Tuesday therapy will help... IDK anymore.

Thanks. See you on February 20th.

#hiatus #Yeah I'm real depressed rn

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Supernova 16

Bad news, I didn’t get any writing done!

Good news, I’m halfway through 16! Let the good times keep rolling... until I run out. Then I’m in trouble.

Anyway, life sucks. I am a bad caregiver and an even worse student of the arts. All I want to do is sleep, but there are pants that need washing and cans that need cleaning. Please let me sleep...

Good news though, I finished editing my other novel. Now it’s time to let my readers read it to tell me what I did wrong and the countless things that need fixing. Can’t you tell I’m thrilled?

...

Right. Anyway, next chapter goes up February 6. I’m going to go sit down until I have to get dinner ready. Then I gotta get laundry ready... and then I can do my homework. This is why I don’t want kids.

Thanks for reading, see you in two weeks!

“I already told you, you're not getting my damn helmet off.”

“But you might have-”

“If a psychic doesn't know their own brain, we got bigger problems. It’s staying on.”

It was bad enough that they'd made him take his damn clothes off. Angel had done his best, but cracked ribs were cracked ribs that needed x-rays. Among other things, that had meant shrugging out of his binder. It had been made easier by the fact the damn thing ripped in two when he tried to shuffle it off.

Guess he'd need another one... good thing he had all that overtime from working with Andy.

“I'll come in with the form stating you turned down an MRI.” there was a chill to the tech’s – nurse? Fuck if he knew right then – voice as they turned to leave the room. “Don't try to move, we still need to suture your wounds.”

Yeah, he had a lovely case of road rash that was going to need some serious antibiotic lotion, and his back was kind of fucked up. He had seen it in the mirror – looked kind of burned to him. No doubt it was going to leave some kind of nasty scar when it finished healing. Oh well, it was where nobody would see it.

Unlike his old facial ones. Pro-tip for young heroes: wear a mask before learning to fly. Birds are nasty.

“God, it's good to hear you snark at somebody.”

A comfortingly annoying voice buzzed in his ear. Scanner's link was open still, had been when the nurse had come in with the crazy idea of getting his helmet off. They had been going over the footage while waiting to hear about Ember and PT. From the sounds of things, everyone was going to make a full recovery. That was the important part, though if it took too long they might need outside help.

God, he hoped it wasn’t going to come to that. The Toledo Union was asshole city, and don't even get him started on Pittsburgh... he may not have liked football, but tossing them a 'go birds' just to make them froth at the mouth was worth it.

“Good to be able to do it.” He adjusted his helmet. “So, what's the damage?”

Keys clicked in his ear. “PT's got a nasty concussion, but that's nothing new for her. Don't know if she'll make it to the synagogue this weekend, but I think her rabbi will understand. Ember's completely lucid, so whatever Blasto did to her wore off. They're still doing a brain scan anyway, though. Apparently, they can do those with disguises on now.”

There was a note of teasing to the tech's voice that made Angel roll his eyes as he leaned back in the hospital bed, waiting for someone to tell him when he could go the fuck home. No doubt the attack was all over the news now, even at the late hour. How could it not, when one of their own had turned on them and nearly gotten half the city killed?

Maybe that was why he hadn't pulled his punches with that rock. Asshole.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. A cloth one's a little different from my setup.” He sighed in relief at the report. “Well, that means we'll only be down two. I'm no HR expert, but I think Richter's fired.”

He should've been on fire, but that was a different matter entirely. Oh well, once Ember and PT were better, they could handle that. He hadn't been around much anyway, so him going to jail for being an asshole – and you know, threatening to kill a bunch of people and almost getting away with it – didn't cramp their style too badly.

At least the overtime would pay for his GRE scores. He really needed to get his math percentile up if he wanted a shot at grad school.

“That's putting it mildly.” Scanner's tone shifted. Maybe it was the exhaustion talking, but they sounded softer the next time they spoke. “By the way, I appreciated the jerk ex comment but let's keep it on the DL around Andy. She doesn't need to know.”

Angel nodded – oww, big mistake. He might not have a concussion, but the overuse of his powers had given him one hell of a headache. That was enough to make him close his eyes as he bumped the back of his dirty helmet against the bed frame.

“Mum's the word, Scan.” He frowned. “Where is she anyway?”

There was a pause in the typing. Scanner didn't say anything for a good couple minutes, causing Angel's blood to run cold. Despite his pounding headache and the sudden urge to throw up, he sat straight up in his temporary bed.

“Scanner, where is Andy?”

“Paladin's got her in one of those rooms they use to tell people their grandma didn't make it. The FBI's en route now to pick her up.”

His feet hit the floor – oww. “Damn it, Scan, give me a location. We can't let them get her!”

Images flashed through his mind, stolen from the psychic he had thrown down with days prior. His imagination ran wild with it, showing off steel tables and knives sharp enough to cut through rocky surfaces. It made his stomach churn as his battered brain tried to come up with a way out.

“I'm two blocks from the hospital now. Paladin asked me to bring the book.”

Angel stopped moving. Time stopped too. The only thing that convinced him that the universe was still spinning was that his heart was beating. He was alive, but right then the only thing he could focus on was the thought of the book.

“You're serious?”

“Sounds like it's our only option. She's on the third floor and we need a witness so get there ASAP.”

ASAP was a little hard when he was under observation, but Angel didn't care. He made a grab for his pants, head spinning as he pulled them on over his hospital gown. At least he wasn't attached to an IV as he booked it out of the room, a nurse yelling in the background.

If Scanner was bringing the Book, it was as serious as he thought.

---

Though it was her first time in the hospital, Andy already knew she didn't like them very much.

“You've caused quite a stir on Twitter. People already like you.”

Uncle Leo was in the chair next to her, absent-mindedly scrolling his phone. The case was covered in pictures of his family – a present for his last birthday. With his brain he didn't need it, but it wasn't like they had ever really covered how much they knew about his pre-cancer days. It had never really been her business to question what they knew about him anyway.

Normally, Andy would have been dying to get a glance at the internet, especially if nobody was going to be monitoring her. But she stayed there in her chair, flexing her fists back and forth. She could still feel the power radiating from her core, making the air shimmer. At least she wasn't giving off heat, though – that might've made the old man uncomfortable.

She had done it.

“Mom's not coming, is she?”

Honestly, the alien wasn't sure why she was even asking. Once her mother made up her mind, she didn't change it. Their final words had probably been just that, especially after Twitter had gotten a hold of it. If the internet knew about her, that probably broke just about every rule they had set for her from the time she had first emerged.

Leo's eyebrows knitted as he put his phone aside. His warm hand found hers, squeezing gently more so he didn't break anything. For humans, that was probably a comforting gesture. Thanks to the lack of skin, it didn't really do much for her, but it was the thought that counted in the end.

“I tried to call her... she hung up on me.” He frowned. “I'm sorry, but I think she meant it.”

How was she supposed to feel during a moment like this?

“Andy?”

She supposed she should have been upset really. After all, her mother had finally broken and abandoned her like she had always threatened to when things got difficult. In a way, it was amazing she had stuck it out for almost 21 years. Had she had money to put on it, Andy would've bet after the divorce for sure. In a way, she was surprised she had lasted so long. Could you congratulate a parent for not giving up on you until you were over 20?

So… maybe she wasn’t all that upset when it came to her case. Really, she was worried about the ones she had left behind. After all, Amanda was going to take it out on someone eventually. Her oldest sister was the prime target for sure, but Jen was still just a few doors down. That thought made her core bubble up as she sat there, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

It wasn’t that either, though…

Despite everything... Andy had to admit her biggest feeling was that of relief. Threats of turning her over to the lab – or worse – for bad behavior no longer hung over her head. If Amanda was washing her hands of her, then in a way she was free. Of course, that kind of made her property of the federal government... but that wasn't the first time either. Now that she was bigger, maybe she could go toe to toe with them if they tried anything funny.

Or hell, they might just turn her over to Sakamoto. She could handle her.

“Are you alright?”

Uncle Leo's words brought Andy back down to earth. She wasn't sure how long she had been out, but the man looked concerned. She shook her head, more for his benefit than her own, and shrugged her spiky shoulders in the universal sign of 'beats the hell out of me' before sitting back.

“I mean... everyone's ok, right?” She shrugged again, as if it would tease more emotions out of her molten core. “And I managed to get two shots off. I guess I can be happy about that?”

The psychic nodded. “But you're worried. I can't say I blame you. You did the right thing... though the FBI might disagree.”

Had she been human, this was where Andy would have snorted. “That's putting it mildly. I bet they’re on their way to get the custody pissing match started.”

With her... she supposed ex-mother? Out of the way, that left the feds and the lab. Talk about ugly – she would've winced at the thought if she was capable of doing it. While they whipped it out and measured, she was left in limbo. Luckily for her, that was nothing new either. Being an alien made her all kinds of flexible.

Bear Paw or... wherever the FBI wanted to keep her. She had so many lovely options.

“About that...” There was a light in the man's eyes. “You know, you did a good job out there. A little rough, but... you have promise. And we're down a man now that Richter is going to be doing hard time.”

Andy's head picked up. “Wait... you're not serious, are you?”

Leo smiled, and for a brief moment she saw someone who had long since retired to old newsreels and still pictures archived in the annals of history. It made her sit up a little straighter in her seat as her core began to bubble with what could only have been anticipation.

“We both know it was going to come down to this eventually, Andromeda.” Another smile. He never used her full name. “You're too much like Cassiopeia, including hating when I use your entire name.”

Her core bubbled again. “Can you even do that? I mean... I'm not human. Isn’t that the basic requirement of joining up?”

“It wasn't when we had Nova. Besides, who’s going to know if we don’t tell them?”

Right... she forgot sometimes about that sometimes. If Nova had hidden it… maybe she could too.

Before Andy could answer, someone knocked on the door. Leo stood to cross the room and opened it without a sound. On the other side stood Scanner, breathing hard as if they had wheeled at top speeds to get there. In their lap was a large book, bound in dark leather that gave it the feel of an ancient tome. This they handed off to her quasi uncle as they wheeled to the side, finally putting on the breaks.

“We better hurry, I blocked the elevator on some assholes in suits as I got up here.” They looked towards the window. “Is that SR?”

The psychic appeared as well, still wearing a hospital gown and motorcycle helmet. He slid in behind Scanner – at least he was wearing pants under his gown. At least he nodded to the room as he made no excuses for his weird attire.

“I'm with Scan, they're gonna be on my ass for breaking out soon.”

Leo shook his head, but he was smiling. “Not exactly what I expected for the two witnesses, but you're right. Time is of the essence. Even Scanner cannot stop an elevator forever.”

Andy felt the air in the room shift as the attention turned to her. This was probably where humans would have swallowed past anxiety or felt their hearts pound in anticipation. All she had was the bubbling of her core as she stood, dwarfing the room.

Her uncle was wrong, of course. She had never expected this day to come, not even in her wildest dreams or in the faded time before she was truly conscious of her situation. Yet the fact it was actually there still pressed down heavily as the man approached her, book in hand.

She had seen it once when she was a small child, though she forgot the circumstances of the visit that had caused it. It was a heavy looking book, bound with the Union's logo. Normally, it was kept at the base, given what was written inside.

After all... you kinda needed to keep the record of secret identities, well, a secret. It was probably the only book she could think of that didn’t have a digital copy. Sometimes, it was good to be analog.

And now it was her time to join them.

“Andromeda Nobel.” The old man’s voice had more energy in it than she had heard since his diagnosis. He held out the book and walked to an empty space in the room. She met him halfway, placing her hand on the cover like she had seen others do on TV. Maybe if they hadn't been rushing to beat the FBI, they would've done it too. Oh well, she had started this at 3 AM so maybe it was apt. “Do you swear to protect the people of Bear Paw?”

“I do.”

Outside, she could hear the elevator dinging. The agents were coming – they had a lock on the room. The door rattled violently, but Sky Rider's visor glowed as he held it firm. Someone was pounding on the wood now.

Leo remained unflapped. “Do you swear to use your powers for good and never evil?”

The words came from her mouth without thinking. “I do.”

“And no matter what, do you promise to uphold the ideals of heroism, bravery, and service both in and out of your secret identity?”

Andy didn't even need to think of this one. She nodded, almost knocking her chin to her chest. “I do.”

The rattling was getting stronger now. Sweat was starting to drip from under Sky Rider's helmet as he held the lock as hard as he could. Even Scanner was gearing up now, a glowing drone appearing to reinforce the fragile joints that kept the door to the wall. Both of them were giving it their all, even though one of them was still technically a patient.

Clearly, doing dumb shit was a point of pride here. If that wasn’t a sign she’d fit in, Andy didn’t know what was.

Leo's voice was stronger now. “Then, given the current leader is going through a medical workup, I use my power as the retired head of the Bear Paw Union to officially swear you in. You will now take up the mask and title to protect the city...”

His voice faltered. “We can add the superhero name later, unless you figured one out on the way over.”

Got one? Of course she had one. Andy had held it ever since she had first felt the power in her hands. Maybe it was a little cliché, but it felt right to her as she nodded towards the old man. She removed her hand, clenching her fist as she did.

“Call me Supernova.”

After all, she was Nova's kid in a roundabout way. If anyone got to mess with the title, she had the right.

“Supernova, eh? Never expected you to be one for a succession title, but I can't say it doesn't fit.” He smiled, and there was something wistful there as he nodded. “Then, welcome to the Union, Supernova. Serve it well.”

The door slammed open and Sky Rider was knocked on his ass as two agents in dark suits appeared in the room. As the psychic on the floor groaned at his bruised ass and ego combo, they entered, gunning for her.

Well… apparently it was time to test if the Union’s rule about active duty kept her from getting taken in. Talk about having one hell of a proving ground.

---

Want to support my snack pile so I get through art class alive? I have a Ko-Fi!

#writing #novel #Why yes I am incredibly depressed

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Supernova: Chapter 15

I wish I had better news for y’all than the hell year I’m currently living in.

Sorry, I’m tired. My mom broke her foot Monday so I’ve been the primary caretaker for both her and my uncle. Not a lot of time to do anything but that, especially with my blood sugar issues. I haven’t gotten a lot of writing done, and I don’t see that improving for at least 6 weeks when she’s back on her feet. Might need to take another hiatus, I don’t know...

Also our heater is leaking and yeah, that’s great in the middle of winter. When it rains it pours I guess...

Anyway, I’m not in a great mood. I was busy getting clothes together to wash and then cleaning soiled pants. You know it’s bad when I want to go back to work...

But, whatever you don’t wanna hear about that. Next chapter is going up on January 23, aka the 5 year anniversary of EVERYTHING WENT TO HELL at my old job that led to me developing diabetes. Yay. I’ll see you then I guess... probably with more clothes for the laundromat.

I hate laundry. I hate everything. Just let me sleep.

Was that someone knocking on the door?

Andy was groggy as she sat up in bed, mind dull. It was still dark outside, and the house was quiet except for the pounding sound coming from the first floor. She could hear people waking up in the bedrooms below, and her curiosity got the better of her. Within seconds, she was sliding down the ladder to the second floor.

Jen was standing in front of her open door, rubbing her eyes and yawning. “Did Sara get locked out or something?”

“I'm right here, squirt.” Their older sister was in a similar state, though more used to sleep deprivation. “Maybe one of mom's clients broke out of prison again.”

All three winced at the thought – Amanda was even worse when she got woken up for work. Lucky she wasn't there to see it; as soon as the knocking had started, she had probably launched out of bed to go check things out. No doubt she had her pistol too – she had gotten it after the last client had paid a late-night visit.

Andy was already awake, and she crept towards the stairs with slow, even steps. She could see the front door from the top of the steps. Her mother was talking with someone in low tones, but it wasn't anything pleasant.

“You're out of your mind.”

“We don't have time to discuss this.”

The voice made Andy's core bubble. Uncle Leo rarely came out after dark, and she was amazed he had the strength to pound. That was why she took a few more steps, slowly edging her way down the stairs. She was still hidden in the shadows, but she had full view of the door.

The old man was leaning hard on a cane, and his forehead was dotted with sweat. He was breathing hard, like he had run to their house. In his hand he clutched a device she had used once before – way back when she had first gotten herself into trouble.

What did the Union want?

“Holy shit...” She heard her older sister’s voice from up the stairs as a video clip played.

“Is that P-”

“Don't watch that!”

The video died abruptly, but she had heard enough of the chaos on the other end. Her core turned icy as she looked back down to the stairs. Her brief moment had given her away. Amanda was standing at the bottom of the stairs, and Uncle Leo wasn't far behind.

Oh... shit.

“Get back to your room, Andromeda.”

Leo shook his head as he edged closer. “Andy, you need to come with me.”

What a place to be, frozen at the top of the stairs between the two people who she listened to without question. Her mother's eyes were burning, and her grip on the banister rock hard. Her uncle's knuckles were just as white on his cane. His breathing was getting worse.

“They're gonna win, right? There's no way they'd...”

Jen's voice brought her back to reality. Andy shook her head and made it the rest of the way down the stairs. She met her mother on the last step, towering over the woman as she tried to look for a way past. Amanda may have been small, but she had a presence that made her feel ten feet tall. Yet at the same time... she was small.

Did she always look like that?

The woman grit her teeth in response. “I told you to go back to bed.”

“What do you need me for, Uncle Leo?”

Silence echoed across the entryway. The old man smiled, but it was in a sad way she had seen him do before on TV. Something about it made her insides ache, but she didn't care. Whatever was inside her, it needed to be ready.

“I had hoped never to ask this of you. Forgive me.” His posture stiffened. She got an image of a man in armor briefly, before it disappeared. “Andy, we need your powers to stop Mr. Blasto from killing the rest of the Union.”

Amanda let out a harsh bark of laughter, almost as if she couldn't believe it. “You need an untrained teenager-”

“She's the only one who is fully immune to his effects. It didn't work on Nova when they faced off years ago.” He kept going, despite her flinch. “Now, are you going to let her come with me or not? We're running out of time.”

Andy didn't even wait for her mother to answer. She hit the bottom of the stairs without thinking, pushing past the woman to join her uncle near the door. The only thing that stopped her was Amanda's hand clenched tightly around her wrist. Had she had skin, she probably would have been bruised.

Then again, if she had skin she probably wouldn't have been woken up at 3 AM to save people.

Amanda's eyes were solid and hard as she glared Andy down. “Andromeda, if you don't get back into bed-”

Andy slipped her wrist free as she moved further away. “Mom, they need me. I gotta go.”

“If you walk out that door-” her anger abated, and she straightened. “I can't be responsible for what happens to you. Whatever fallout, you face it yourself.”

Funny, she would've thought she had a few more years before getting to that point. It didn't matter. Andy nodded as she continued her walk, pausing only to slip into her sneakers. Once they were on, she and Leo left the house, closing the door behind her.

“I've got her, Scanner.”

She hadn't noticed he was wearing an earpiece. That probably came from years of wearing one discretely. It didn't matter – her core was beginning to bubble as she waited for whatever was to come next.

“You're going to drop down a few clicks from the drop zone. SR's been holding them off, but he's losing ground.” Scanner was speaking through a device the old man handed her – it wasn't like she had an ear for a mic anyway. “Once you're down... just get them out alive.”

The tension in the tech's voice only made things bubble more. Andy at least managed a nod as she waited for... whatever was to come. Leo was already stepping out of the way, leaning hard on his cane. However, at the last moment, he reached into his pocket.

“You need this. We’ll think of something better later.”

He tossed her a length of cloth with two holes cut out of it. Andy's mind went blank as she held up what look to be a blue Halloween mask, the kind a child might have worn over their eyes if they wanted to be a ninja turtle. Maybe if it hadn't been 3 AM, she would've argued. However, his face was serious, so with shaking hands she tied it over her eyes.

Not that it really mattered – nobody knew she existed anyway.

“You can do this, Andy.” Leo's eyes were kind, but she could see the ache. More than anything, he wanted to be down there with them. “I believe in you.”

“That makes one of us.” She shook out her shoulders. “Well, drop me down. Here goes nothing.”

Andy didn't get the chance to say anything more. There was a flash of bright light, and suddenly she wasn't at home anymore. Her core bubbled as she dropped down into the city proper, feeling as though she had just been placed into the middle of an apocalyptic war zone. Given what was going on, that was appropriate.

She stepped over a particularly large pothole, glancing around. “Scanner, how close am I?”

“Almost there. I would've given you more space to acclimate, but-” there were explosions in the distance. “Shit, we're running out of time. Get over there and take him out!”

Andy didn't need to be told twice. She broke out into a run, following the spray of destruction. It wasn't long before she got a proper view of the goings on. She could see Ember, glowing behind the psychic's erected shield that was beginning to waver. Her stomach dropped at the sight of her aunt, unmoving and barely breathing. Then there was Sky Rider himself, shaking so badly he looked like he might just fall apart at the seams.

Richter was looking pretty tired, but he was still hauling rocks against another shield. He wasn't the point, though – Mr. Blasto barely had a scratch on him, and his tank was half full. His blaster still bubbled, ready for another round.

And there she was... an idiot in a Halloween mask with no idea what she was doing.

“You're strong, Sky Rider. It's a pity you're going to die here. Are you sure I can't-”

“Bite me. Unlike some people, I don't join up with serial killers.”

Good sign – he could still snark. Andy felt a little better, but she could hear the strain in his voice that made her core bubble. She should have been moving... but it was like her feet were frozen to the ground.

Had Richter stuck her there? Looking down confirmed she was fine to move. The issues were coming from inside the house, or so her sister would have put it. Andy, half asleep and barely aware of herself, couldn't feel fear like a human could. That didn't mean some primal urge in her strange body wasn't telling her to run the hell away. Apparently, even across species and galaxies, some constants remained the same.

Dr. Sakamoto would love to hear that if they got out of this alive.

Mr. Blasto sighed and cocked his blaster. “A pity. I could've used a psychic of your caliber. Oh well... best to end things. I've been told this only hurts for a moment, miss Ember.”

He leveled the blaster with her head again as time seemed to slow. Andy's body reacted before her brain did as she broke out into a run. She cleared the cars, even Richter's barrier. In the corner of her eye, she saw Sky Rider's body tense. But then she was past him, into the space between the stunned hero and her would-be killer.

Then she was getting hit with a face full of plasma.

“Well, you didn't mention you had an idiot speedster.” Blasto almost sounded amused. “But it doesn't matter, I still have-”

He stopped talking as Andy wiped the still boiling plasma from her face and shook it off. It was a miracle the mask still stayed on her face, but maybe Halloween costumes were made of stronger stuff. Even if she wasn't burning, it wasn’t a pleasant experience. After all, she had swallowed some of it. Talk about gross. Give her quartz crystals any day...

“What the hell?”

Richter sounded like he was about to piss himself. Then he wasn't doing anything at all – his own rock zoomed at breakneck speeds to hit him in the temple. He went down hard, not moving. Sky Rider let his fist relax. Even exhausted, he could manage some telekinesis.

Andy was pretty sure that had made her bait, but she didn't care. One down, one to go.

“You ok, Rider?”

The psychic was breathing hard. “No, but we'll live as long as you stay standing. Kick his ass.”

She didn't need to be told twice. The would-be vigilante turned to face Mr. Blasto, plasma still dripping from her body. Her new opponent was checking his blaster, a confused expression briefly crossing his pale face.

Well, at least she got him thinking.

“I don't know how you managed that, but you're very lucky.” The blaster was up again, and his eyes were glowing now with that honeyed power that had more than five bodies to its name. “Now stand there and let me see if you can survive a double hit.”

Andy could feel something slide over her, like a thin sheet pulled over a bed. For most people, it would’ve strangled them and bound them to his will. For her, it just kept sliding to the ground, where it puddled and disappeared.

Guess she didn't need sheets on her bed. Nice.

“Nah, that shit tastes terrible.” She jerked her head towards her unconscious aunt. “You do that, or the big guy?”

The man in front of her went from calm to frustrated as he realized his other little ability didn't seem to work on her. His brow furrowed, and then he tried it again. The sheen was almost oily now, but it rolled off her like a wave and splashed at her feet. At least it didn't get her sneakers dirty.

“It doesn't work on you.” He cocked his head. “You're the second...”

But then his mouth closed. Mr. Blasto shook his head. A smile crossed his features once more, but there was nothing friends about it. Her core bubble at the sight of it. It was like he was looking past her then. At what?

She didn't hear anyone, at the very least. Even a total newbie like her knew better than to turn her back on her opponent to chance a look. At least it wasn't Richter, so she didn't need to worry about a blitz attack.

Just on the frontal nightmare she was dealing with.

“It doesn't matter. I can tell from how you're standing that you're new at this.” He cocked his blaster. “Once I tear through you, I can go back to finish the rest of the team. Why don't you be a good girl and just die? It'll be less painful if you accept it.”

Her core went ice cold. Andy glanced around – her aunt, unmoving. Ember, fighting with everything she had to keep her brain to herself. Sky Rider, practically dead but still trying to protect her. They were all stretched thin, betrayed by their former teammate and at the mercy of a man who could wipe them out.

And she was the only one left.

The city was quiet, but she could hear the helicopters in the distance. Someone was watching somewhere. Were her sisters seeing her there, standing like an idiot? Was it going to reach as far as New York even? All she could think about was Uncle Leo, watching and regretting ever sending her out there. Her mother, knowing she had been right.

So many people...

“I can't let them down.”

Blasto cocked his head to the side. “Excuse me?”

Her voice grew stronger as she straightened her posture. Her core was bubbling now, like someone had filled her full of baking soda and vinegar when she hadn’t been paying attention. “They trusted me to bring the team home alive. So, I can't die here.”

In the dark of the night, she saw colors with a sharper edge and clarity that humans probably never noticed. Blasto's strange ability was a greasy oil slick on the road, gathering in a nearby sewer. It coated Ember like a thick film, but she could still breathe.

Her hand had a light in the palm.

“Well, you definitely talk a good game. I should put you down before you develop the skills to back those up.” The blaster was leveled again. “It's nothing personal.”

Andy was out of the way before he could fire, moving faster than she ever had. Before, she would have considered her body heavy and slow, but something was pushing her on. The plasma hissed where she had once been, eating away at the sidewalk. She stood off to the side, staring. The light was still in her hand.

Just had to get him away from Ember before she fired...

“You know, for a big-time villain, your aim sucks. I thought rookies were supposed to be easy to take out!”

His head swiveled, and again Andy had to duck out of the way as another ray of plasma splashed past her and started to eat a light pole. When it crashed to the ground, it hit her in the back and reverberated dully across her entire body and made her vision swim.

If she had been a human, that probably would've hurt a whole lot.

“Ok... look where I'm going before I catch wise.” She shook off the sensation ringing across her torso, still feeling it in her toes. Had she been a real hero, that probably would've been all over twitter as a super fail, or so she had heard the scientists in the lab talking about on their break. Lucky for her, she didn't have a hashtag attached to her name.

“Valuable advice, too bad you won't be around to use it.”

The plasma hit her hard in the back, knocking her onto one knee as it gushed to the ground. Warmth flowed across her entire body, but it didn't hurt her. Instead, it just kind of pissed her off. Talk about hitting a guy in the back.

“Guess you haven't gotten the idea that doesn't hurt me.”

She rose to her feet, shaking it off. Blasto was in front of her now, and she had a clear street in front of her. The light was even brighter in her fist. Andy steadied herself, briefly wishing she had the sensation of being outside her body back. Then, she had known what to do. Now...

Well... time to figure it out.

“Nova, hope I'm doing this right. They're counting on me.”

Andy wasn't sure why she said it as she brought up her fist. The light was even brighter now, sparkling in colors she couldn't name. She could feel the heat between her fingers as the pressure built up, until it was too strong to hold back. That was when she threw her fist forward, aiming the punch right for Blasto's stomach.

Her fist connected and exploded into light as he was thrown back with the force of a bomb explosion. Night turned briefly into day as she was pushed back a few inches, her feet dragging deep into the broken street. Later, the streets department would have to take those deep cuts out, but at least they'd have a city to work on in the morning.

When the light cleared, she saw Blasto thrown almost across a city block, laying in a shallow depression. He wasn't moving, but she saw his burned chest falling and rising with labored breaths. Alive, but just barely.

“Shit.”

Andy's trembling body fell to her knees as exhaustion took her over. It was hard to keep her eyes open, much less move out of the way. She was still conscious, however, so she pressed the device she had stowed in her pocket.

“Scanner, did I do it?”

The tech's voice sounded like they were about to cry from relief. “They're all showing vital signs still. You did it alright, you crazy asshole.”

“Good... I think I'm gonna take a nap. Don't let the FBI get me.”

And with that, she fell face first onto the earth, her mind and vision going blank. Her last thoughts were that in a few hours, the dawn was going to rise and with it would be a lot of traffic. Hopefully they would have gotten her out of the road by then.

---

Angel had a perfect view of everything as he fought through what felt like a punctured lung and some broken ribs.

Andy, dripping with plasma that burned the ground below, rose from the ground like some kind of mythical deity. She had leveled her fist, and with it came the brightness of high noon. Blasto went flying, and then it was over as he hit the ground and didn’t get back up.

“Don't let the FBI get me.”

That was the last thing she had said before going down. Then it was night again, and he was left with a team that had somehow survived with a full count. He could already hear the ambulances rushing for them, leaving them to figure out how to get everyone help without secret identities being exposed. Just thinking about it made his head ache as he leveled into a sitting position.

But they had survived... and that was the important thing. Question was, were they going to survive the fallout?

#Supernova Collision Trilogy #writing #novel

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Supernova: Chapter 14

Hope y’all had a lovely holiday if you celebrated. My Christmas sucked, so... here, have a chapter. I gotta go back to working on the one I lost because my new laptop doesn’t know how to save things.

Thanks, Baby Boy.

Anyway, next chapter is going up January 9th. I’ll see you then, hopefully with another chapter. I’m going to go back to writing now... because I can’t play video games yet.

Ugh.

Thanks for reading as always, and I’ll see you later.

(Also, happy *number redacted* birthday to my mom!)

A week passed, and before Andy knew it, she was back in that room, staring at the screen being projected for her. Images flashed before her eyes as she sat there, soaking in the information she hoped would get her... something. Anything, at this point.

Desperate was putting it mildly, let’s just say that.

This week's double feature was Nova and probably one of their toughest opponent's. The 90's had been all about spandex and crazy ideas, and Mr. Blasto was first among them. It was hard to ignore a guy in bright orange spandex wielding a massive arm-mounted cannon that sprayed plasma whenever anyone got too close.

Honestly, she wasn't even sure why he was being handled by superheroes. Maybe cops were just scared of plasma.

“This dude was messed up.” Sky Rider had decided to take a break from his homework to watch with her. She was getting used to his presence. “Think this is the third time he broke out of jail.”

Andy would've probably cocked an eyebrow then if she had any. “How? Without his blaster he seems pretty harmless.”

“Yeah, he seems it. Problem is, he had this weird ability over people's minds that we've never been able to figure out. He could just get someone to stand there and...” the psychic made a motion with his fingers. “It was nasty. He killed like five heroes before Nova managed to put him down.”

From the looks of the screen, he was trying to make it six. His blaster was glowing as he stared the hero down in that street surrounded by melted metal. Somewhere in the distance, a sniper was poised if the figure in red didn't take him down. The cops always tried to butt in that way.

“You're either brave or stupid to face me down without a shield.” He cocked his blaster. “Oh well, both melt the same. Now, why don't you stand down and let me see how fast it takes to get through that spandex.”

His eyes glowed faintly, though Andy got the feeling normal eyes probably wouldn't have been able to pick that up. She had already read through the reports – none of them mentioned the subtle orange shimmer that made his entire face look like neon, or how it sought out his targets and tried to fill their eyes. Maybe that was his true power.

Nova blinked it off. “How about you put the blaster down instead?”

Their hand was already glowing with the familiar rainbow energy Andy had long since come to identify with the power they both shared. If she closed her eyes, she could pretend she still felt it gathering in her palm. Throughout their training, she hadn't managed it once, but maybe next time would be different. Regardless, the hero was raring to go.

“Oh, he's about to get pissed off, he didn't expect this.” Sky Rider pointed at the screen. “See, look at his eye twitching. He's about to pop off.”

Indeed, Mr. Blasto was looking a little on the twitchy side as he stared Nova down. That didn't last long – his blaster was up, and soon the red-hot plasma was hitting against the ground. Some of it splashed against Nova's feet, but the hero never flinched as they stood against him.

“Now I get they were an alien. Before I figured it was some coating the tech had come up with to face down Mr. Blasto.”

Sky Rider shrugged his shoulders. “In hindsight, dumb idea. If they had that, they could've saved a couple other heroes from getting fried.”

“Well, admitting aliens exist is a little hard for some people.” Andy watched as Nova's hand glowed. Soon, Mr. Blasto was getting blasted into a wall, his gun still melting holes into the road as he slumped over, chest burned from the close contact. He was practically sizzling. “And he's down.”

While it was cool to watch, it didn't provide much in the way of information. Nova's blasts were the same as they were in every other video – bright, shiny, and probably full of heat that cooked as much as the energy did. None of it really hinted to what made it work. She could go through the motions as many times as her body could handle, but she just didn't have the trigger.

Maybe the one time had been a fluke.

Sky Rider might not have been able to read her mind, but he must've picked up on something because he turned the screen off. “Alright, I think that's enough for the day. Beating yourself up isn't going to make it work.”

“We've still got an hour.”

He shrugged, standing. “We'll sit around and call it meditation. I get the feeling you don't exactly want to go home.”

That... was on the nose. Andy's core felt cold at the thought of heading back to her house after training. Lately it seemed her mother was more on edge than usual. She figured it had something to do with Cryojack – his trial was coming up. That involved a lot of long hours and short remarks when they passed in the mornings.

If only the asshole would take a plea, maybe that would give her house some peace.

“You must be psychic.” Andy heard him snort as she settled against the wall, allowing her eyes to close. “And I don't. My mom is driving me nuts lately.”

She heard him move – thank you, tight pants. “Ah, parental drama. This is why I'm glad I don't see mine often.”

“I'm sure the Sky Riders are thrilled of your ability to fit into those pants.” She knocked against his shoulder. “You must be their pride and joy.”

The psychic didn't answer. Instead, she felt him sag a little. It was just a moment, enough for her to get the point: don't talk about his family. She wasn't going to push that boundary anytime soon, so she let the matter drop. Whatever it was, he had the right to keep it to himself.

Maybe they weren't as different as she thought.

---

Waking up in the middle of the night was never something Angel was a fan of, especially when it was because of his work phone.

Still groggy with sleep, he reached for it with eyes closed and held it up to his ear. He could hear Scanner typing at triple speed on the other end, all of their systems blazing. That woke him up more as he sat up.

“How bad is it?”

Scanner's voice was hard as stone. “He got out.”

Angel felt a weight drop into his stomach as he started to locate his work clothes around the room. Still half asleep, he began to pull into his pants and special work binder. Both were still damp with sweat, but it didn't matter as he continued to suit up.

“Who, Cryojack?” He pulled on his shirt, then his jacket. “Doesn't seem like so-”

“Mr. Blasto tunneled out of prison two days ago. Got in on a Greyhound an hour ago.”

Angel's helmet hit the ground and his phone almost joined it. It took him a few seconds to scramble, but he caught it in the end. His heart was still pounding in his ears as he felt the panic start to set in over the words.

“How? He’s gotta be on like… every government watch list by now!”

Scanner was still typing. “He had help. Richter went rogue.”

It was impossible to miss the scorn that leaked through the tech's words. It was the second time Angel's heart stopped in the span of a few seconds. Anymore, and he was probably going to need a pacemaker. A cold sweat started to drip down the back of his neck as he pulled on his boots and gloves, then made a grab for his abandoned helmet.

The screen was awash with alarm bells and sightings of the pair pulled from social media. It was practically glowing red as he banished them to be able to sleep. Already, it was shaping up to be one hell of a night.

“Are you serious? I knew-” he stopped. No need to read salt into that womb. “Never mind. I'm heading out. Where were they last spotted?”

Scanner was still typing in his ear as he left the room. His roommates were deep sleepers – neither of them was out. In the morning they were going to get one hell of a story. That was what he had to look forward to as he closed the apartment door behind him, locking it and leaving his day life behind.

It was a hot night, and his leather jacket made it even hotter.

“It's hard to pin them down, there's gotta be a third member covering-” A beeping drew the tech's attention. “They're heading towards Bear Paw labs. Ember and PT are on their tails but they've both taken damage. I'm beaming you up now, just get away from anything electronic and we'll deal with it later.”

Angel almost wished Richter was on their side as he felt the feeling in the pit of his stomach that came along with being beamed up. No doubt someone saw it, but right then he didn't care. His mind was still streaming with possibilities.

Richter was tough, but he was getting lazy. A few good hits to his weak ankles, get him on something metallic, and he was easier to deal with. They had trained together enough times to know how to deal with them. Maybe that was why they did it, in case something like this happened.

Mr. Blasto, though? Now that made his stomach drop.

When the light cleared, he knew where he was. Scanner had dropped him off on the same path he had taken with Andy and PT to get past the FBI. That time, it had been clean and slightly busy. Reality was far different from his memory as he glanced around, wide eyed.

“Shit...”

The road was ripped to shreds in places, jagged blacktop poking up towards the sky like stalagmites. Plasma burns marred building surfaces and melted cars to scrap metal soup. Everything had a less than healthy coating of earth, and the sizzle of melting elements made his stomach turn. Forget the city, it looked like a war zone.

The path of destruction was heading towards the lab. Angel turned on his heel and followed it, barrier glimmering in case they tried to hit him from behind. His scanner wasn't picking anything up – hopefully because people had been home due to the time of day. He didn't want to think about the alternatives as he passed another melted car, avoiding the puddles in case they were still burning.

'You're getting close. Take Richter out first, then focus on Blasto. I'm working on hacking his blaster now.'

Easier said than done. The closer Angel got to the active zone, the louder the noises got. He could hear the pop and sizzle of acid against pavement, and the crackle of flames. They paired with the smashing of sidewalk and the blood-chilling hiss of plasma. His instincts said to run away, but his feet kept going until he finally caught up with the fight.

“Shit, I thought prison would've softened this guy up!”

PT was hidden behind a car, bleeding from a nasty cut above her eye. One hand was lobbing acid whenever she got the chance, the other was holding her side. She had probably broken a few ribs, no doubt from the rock laying near her, shaped to the perfect projectile. Her eyes were practically glowing she was working so hard.

Ember actually was glowing, using 100% of her power as she kept blocking waves of plasma from encroaching on them. Sweat trickled down her brow as she ducked behind the building to regain her strength. She had a small supply of empty canisters by her feet – emergency glucose tabs to keep her sugar up. Without it, she would go into hypoglycemic shock and risk a coma. She too was bleeding, but the real worry was the burn over her arm. After all, pyrokinetics didn't burn.

And there he was... an asshole in a leather jacket at 3 in the goddamn morning, trying to throw down with a former ally and the worst guy the Union had ever faced.

“Hey, quit hiding and join the party SR! I didn't take you for a wallflower!”

A boulder shoved hard against his barrier, catching him off guard. He turned, strengthening it just in time to block a second round. Even then, he was pushed back under the brunt of the attack. Sweat was already starting to drip down his forehead, and he hadn't even done anything yet.

Richter appeared, tossing a rock up and down like it was a baseball. He was grinning in a way Angel hadn't seen in two years, not since he had started working solo. Yet it was all wrong. His eyes weren't in it. The spark in them was gone, filled with a cold sort of malice that made the psychic's skin crawl as he reinforced his barrier for round three.

He had seen those eyes before. What the hell was he on?

“You know I can kick your ass six ways to Sunday, Richter! How about you put the rock down-” He didn't get the chance to finish that- the rock and a wall of earth was heading straight towards him, far too much for his barrier to block. The energy sizzled in the air as Angel pushed off against his own projection and used it to push him out of the way. He rolled to a stop behind the same building Ember was currently taking solace in. The heat leaking off her was almost too intense to bear, but it beat getting the shit beat out of him.

Shit... oww. Damage check... nothing serious.

“The hell is up with him?” Angel stood, double checking his limbs weren't broken. A little sore, but functional. “He's gotta be on PCP or something.”

Ember grunted as she tossed a fireball into the darkness – blinding hot plasma met it halfway. “We can run a blood test later, let's focus on taking them down.”

She wasn't looking at him – she needed her focus. “You and PT need to double team Richter. I'll keep Blasto off your back.”

The mentioned bad guy was acting weird too, now that Angel was thinking about it. In all the old videos, he usually had some quip to throw with his plasma. There had been plenty of opportunities for it, but all he heard was sizzling pavement and dripping acid. Something about that made his stomachache even more as he peered into the darkness, trying to find a better angle to team up with his partner.

Had she needed to use so much acid? All the safe spaces were practically glowing.

“Cover me, I'm going back out there...” He frowned under the mask. “I don't like this.”

“Neither do I.” Sweat trickled down Ember's brow as she prepared her attack. “Get back here alive, you hear? We don't need more than one vacancy!”

And then she launched it as he sprinted. Overhead, plasma arced and turned the night sky blood red. Ember's orange flames worked to keep the worst at bay, but flecks sizzled against his barrier and made his head ache. He kept running, eventually coming to rest behind another building. PT was within sight, and he had visuals on Richter.

It wasn't perfect, but it would work.

He clicked his headset to the private channel and whispered. “PT, I'm going to lift the car near you and slam it into him. Get ready to light him up, I don't care if you melt his feet off.”

“Don't use the one I'm hiding behind again.” Her voice was strained, and he could hear the acid sizzling. “On three.”

He barely had time to prepare, but Angel breathed and nodded. Then he felt his entire body tense as he extended his fist towards the car. It shimmered under his influence as it began to lift, inch by inch, until it was hovering off the ground. Then it was airborne as he slammed it straight into Richter's side.

The ex-hero didn't have time to react – it crashed through his wall of earth and pinned him against the wall. As he struggled to move, PT leapt from her spot, acid dripping from her fingers. Without mercy, she began to hit him with everything she had left as Angel held the car into his opponent's side. Richter was fighting to get away, and it became a tug of war between the two forces.

Luckily, he had always won at that game.

“You're strong, but you can't beat steel you asshole.” He clenched his fist tighter. “This is for making Scanner upset like the shitty ex you are!”

It would have been a perfect victory, except for the fact Angel found himself airborne. Something hot hit him from behind and launched him from his hiding spot. He skidded to a stop into the middle of the broken road, groaning as he felt something internal break. That was at least one rib.

No plasma though.

“What the-” PT's acid stopped abruptly as Richter gained control of his arms and pulled the ground out from under her. Her head hit the pavement, and as she struggled to get to her feet, her ex-teammate shoved down hard with tectonic force. She gasped, and then she didn't move.

“Shit, she's still alive but you gotta – shit, Ember get out of there!”

Angel, still stunned and trying to get to his feet as his back burned, turned to face where he had left his teammate. She was no longer hiding behind the wall. Instead, she had walked away like she was taking a stroll on a sunny afternoon. Her fires were out, and she was getting close to the no man's land between the two parties.

Mr. Blasto was finally in his sight line, blaster cocked and dripping plasma as he watched. “There. You took more than most to get you to listen, but they all do in the end. Now, why don't you come a little closer... I've got something for you.”

“Ember, if you can hear me get the hell away!” Angel's voice cracked as he tried to reach her, but she was under the same thrall other heroes had faced. “Damn it all...”

The blaster was leveled with Ember's head. Blasto was smiling, eyes cold and dead. He cocked the trigger, and the stream became a jet. It splashed and sputtered, and all Angel could do was watch in horror.

She was still standing when it was all over.

Ember's eyes might have been dulled, but her hands were up and burned. The last second jet of flames had protected her from the worst of it. She was alive, but there wasn't much chance she was going to get more out of it.

“Told you that you needed to put her under deeper. She's a pain in the ass.” Richter's voice was strangely mocking as he shoved a rock down hard onto PT's lower body – bones cracked from the force. “Let me finish her for you.”

Blasto turned to face him, eyes blank. “She would wake up. Her kill is mine.”

The ex-hero rolled his eyes. “Because you're doing such a great job.”

“SR, can you block the next shot?”

The villains arguing were giving them time to regroup. Angel grimaced as he checked in with his reserves. He was shaken, maybe concussed, but he had enough in him for two barriers that could take the worst of it. After that...

“We need help, Scan.”

He could hear the tech grinding his teeth. “I can’t get out of this damn chair for more than a few seconds, SR, or did you forget that?”

Angel shook his head as he tried to muster his forces – Blasto was starting to go back to business. “No. Get Andy. She's the only one who's going to be able to go short range with this guy.”

That was probably the concussion talking, but it wasn't like they had any options as his barrier glowed around the stupefied hero still under the throws of Mr. Blasto's real ability. He could still hear Scanner in his ear, frantically typing out commands to the computer.

All he could hope was that Andy was an insomniac, or they were risking a complete Union wipe that night.

---

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#Writing #Supernova Collision Trilogy

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Chapter 14 will be up shortly!

Just sighing in relief that I didn’t lose the log on for this when I crossed over to a new laptop.

Phew...

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Supernova: Chapter 13

Yeah, I’m here... have a chapter. It’s gonna get fun soon.

Next chapter will be going up on December 26. It’s my holiday gift to you. Happy holidays, all that jazz.

...

Yeah I’m still really depressed but I wanted to try and get back in the swing of things. Maybe it’ll help, I don’t know.

Anyway, thanks for reading. See you in two weeks.

A week of being stuck at home had not done wonders for her mood.

“You sure you're ok, kid?”

Aunt Miri didn't normally look worried. She joked it was part of her makeup to look like a permanently pissed off pincushion. That was of course a lie – she had plenty of emotions that she was just good at hiding from most people. That didn't work on Andy, though – she knew the woman from years of seeing her at her bedside.

They were in her car once more, on what was probably the hottest day of the year so far. The newscaster had said before she had left that it was going to get up to 100, and that was before the humidity was factored in. For the humans, that meant they would be sweating their damn skin off and hoping for shade. For her, it just meant the outside was a little closer to her core temp.

Just a little bit though – she ran pretty hot.

She shrugged as she glanced out the window. It was good to see other sights than the tiny view from her attic room. Here she could at least make out the details of the people walking down the street. They all looked pretty sweaty, and most of them had water. After all, humans could die of dehydration, or so she had heard responsible parents tell their children.

Funny, her mother had never told her sisters that. Maybe she had just assumed they would figure it out on their own after collapsing.

“I mean, I went a little stir crazy up there.” She looked back to her aunt. “Thanks for busting me out.”

Her favorite punk pincushion grit her teeth as she turned onto the street the Union kept their hideout. “She was out of line there. Besides, the deal is you get once a week. You already missed one, which means you get two this time.”

Andy would've rolled her eyes at that. “I bet Sky Rider is happy for the overtime.”

It wasn't as though she had spent the entire week in her room staring through the floor to see if she could watch TV – she couldn't, by the way. Seeing through two floors was impossible even for her weird vision. Part of that time had been spent sitting up, staring at her fingers in the hope to see... something... happen.

Was it smart to attempt to use her powers in a residential area? Most likely that was a strong hell no, but it wasn't like anything had come of it besides the vague feeling of being stupid. Had it happened... well, she would've dealt with that later. It was neither here nor there, it hadn't worked so she was just someone staring at her hand for the better part of a week.

“I think he likes you. He kept asking if you were ok.” Aunt Miri shrugged. “Or he wanted the overtime. He's a psychic, they're all hard to read.”

Well, didn't that make her core bubble? Her teacher missed having her in the classroom so he could do his homework.

“Probably harder with that visor on...” Andy watched a dog pass by. She liked dogs. “Does he ever take that thing off?”

The woman next to her let out a sharp bark of laughter as she started to park the car. “Not as long as I've known him. He takes the whole secret identity thing seriously, I don't think even Ember or Scanner know.”

Well, someone had a stick up their ass about that...

It was faster this time to get into the Union house, or maybe it just felt that way to Andy as they made their way up. She still hated the damn elevator that threatened to press in on all sides on her, but it was at least a shorter ride than the first time. Maybe it was like exposure therapy. She should ask somebody about that later...

“Well, here we are, top fl-”

Miri's words died as the doors slammed open in front of them. A man was attempting to barrel his way through, shaking with rage. Given it was a very small elevator... he was kind of left standing in the door, staring at them like a quivering ball of jello.

A very dirty ball of jello...

“Get out of my way, PT.” He had a deep voice that boomed like an explosion. Apart from being very dirty, the only thing Andy could say about him was that he was probably white, probably around 40, and his eyes were the color of mud. They matched the earth that absolutely splattered his clothes and what little skin was uncovered. Normally, she saw him on TV in his often dirty hero gear, glowering at the screen as he stomped off camera.

So... Richter existed after all.

Miri responded by rolling her eyes. “You need to get the hell out of our way first, you know. Little hard to walk around a mountain of a man.”

Richter growled, but a few seconds later he took some steps back. Andy and PT stepped through the dirt he left behind. It wasn't like he made the stuff – that would be neat – but he wasn't terrakinetic. Rather, he just got his power from being around the earth and throwing it around. If that meant he needed to be a little dirty, he didn't seem to mind.

Made him not very fun to be around, though.

“Always with the jokes.” He entered into the elevator and slammed the button with a dirty fist. Soon the doors were closing on his clenched jaw and burning eyes. Then he was gone, with a dent in the wall and a bunch of mud the only proof he had ever been there at all.

Silence descended over the room as Miri brushed some dirt off her jacket. “And here I am, surprised he still works here.”

A warmth crackled from the room as Ember came back to her senses. “He may not after the talk we just had.”

“Jerk off thinks he can just take shifts whenever he wants. Wasn't in the damn agreement I signed.” Scanner sounded particularly annoyed as they pounded at the keys. “He'll get over it or he'll stay pouting.”

Something about their tone made the entire room wince. Andy didn't really see why, besides coworkers being mad at coworkers. That was really none of her business, so she left her aunt's side to enter the training room.

Time for more boring shit...

---

Well, leave it to Richter to know how to kill the mood.

Angel's ears were still ringing as he watched Andy set up for her training session. She went straight back to the same Nova videos she had been watching the last time, focusing in on what was probably her favorite at this point. It wasn't committed to his memory yet, but it was starting to transpose itself to the inside of his eyelids.

“So, what's up with that guy?” She kept her eyes on the screen. “Is Richter always that pissed off?”

The psychic snorted as he looked up from his sociology notes – yay minor classes. “He's mad because Ember told him to stick to his damn work schedule like the rest of us. We've been busting our asses covering for him and now he's mad he's not getting paid. The rules are pretty simple: if your ass isn't in the spandex, you don't get covered.”

It was on the paper they all signed when they first came up with their stupid nicknames that followed them for the rest of their careers. Somewhere, Ember kept them all to pull out and probably hit people with if they forgot. No doubt Richter got a few staples to the head when he tried to pull what he had. Too bad he hadn't noticed it, would've made the overtime and late nights with little sleep almost worth it.

Almost; he needed his sleep or shit got weird with his powers.

“Sounds like a dick.” She kept watching. “Never really liked him. Auntie's the coolest, but you and Ember are alright too.”

Angel would have been offended by that, but even he had to admit it was impossible to measure up with a butch lesbian in a leather jacket.

He finished scratching down some notes, pausing to check his student's progress. She was still sitting there, watching. Once in a while, her fingers would twitch as if she was trying to mimic whatever Nova was doing on screen. Nothing came off it except what probably would've been one hell of a cramp had she had normal fingers. Just watching her made his hurt as he continued to work.

“Is that actually helping?”

It took Andy a few seconds to respond – she was still doing the finger twitch. “No.”

Only his own blank face kept him from hitting the floor as she leaned back. “But it's not like I have any better ideas. You got any suggestions besides trying to make like Goku?”

Ah, so that had pissed her off more than he had thought. Angel felt his face heat up as he placed his books aside to join her in the middle of the room. That close, he would've been able to sense her aura if she had one. Instead, there was just the void that came with hanging out with an actual goddamn alien. In a way, it was kind of soothing. He didn't have to worry about picking up her thoughts.

Of course, that meant he couldn't get a handle on her powers either. With others, he could get hints if he read their auras. Without that key, they were both flying blind.

Great.

“Well, it's a blast, right? Try focusing on gathering energy in your hand. See, like here.” He tapped the frozen screen. Nova was center screen, holding out their glowing palm as they prepared to unleash one of their famous attacks. “I saw you were trying the whole palm thing, but really focus on imagining and gathering energy there.”

Andy shot him a blank look. “Gathering energy I've never seen.”

“Last I checked you don't have any better ideas.”

The blank stare he got in return would've melted steel. Andy didn't say anything after that, though. She just turned away from him and looked down at her outstretched palm. Of course, it wasn't really her palm. That was just the projection she used to get around.

…

Huh. Maybe perception was the thing.

---

“Have you considered trying to do it when you're blue?”

Andy picked up her head. For the last couple minutes, she had been staring down at her upturned palm in the hopes it would actually do something. The only thing that had changed was the fact Sky Rider was trying to help her, rather than losing himself to his books. Maybe he had finished his homework while she was attempting to train. She could respect those priorities.

He'd probably get along great with her sister. Maybe they had classes and she didn't even know it.

“What was that?”

Sky Rider gestured to her necklace. “Maybe you can't see your powers because the necklace is blocking it. There might be a hint when you're blue.”

Even thinking about her necklace made it feel heavier. Andy normally didn't even notice it, but now it was like having a boulder around her neck. She made a grab for it and felt the stone slip through her fingers. Every time she touched it, it felt like the tuning fork was being struck. When she was little, her mother had told her never to touch the stone while she was wearing it. While the woman had never elaborated, she got a feeling that may have been why.

And now she had to take it off?

Sky Rider must've taken her quiet for hesitation, because he rose and crossed the room. “Hey, Scan? Can you shut the cameras off for a second, I think they're gonna blow with the energy she's about to put out.”

“Not really supposed to do that...” she could hear the buttons clicking as the tech turned whatever was in there off – the electricity crackled as it faded out. “But it saves on having to make you replace the equipment for me. The one in there is a pain in the ass to reach, even if you can stand up for more than ten seconds.”

The psychic nodded as he backed away. “Thanks, I'll let you know when it's all clear in here.”

Then he was back at her side. Andy probably should have thanked him for that, but she had never been good at gratitude. Instead, she carefully gripped the necklace by the chain and pulled it over her head. As she did, she felt the energy field crackle as it was disrupted. It still held as long as it was touching her, but the moment she hung it up on a nearby chair, that field popped and died. No more extra fingers, she was back to how the universe had made her.

This was probably the part where she should have taken a deep breath. Couldn't quite manage that, but she could feel her core bubble and calm as she focused on the dead center of what she would have called her palm. At the moment, it was reflecting the overhead lights rather than making any of its own. A few seconds passed, and that didn't change.

“Well, this is productive.” She shot Sky Rider a blank look. “Got any better ideas?”

He shrugged – she hated humans could do that. “Keep trying. MegaFist didn't become MegaFist in a day.”

“No, she became MegaFist in about 12 minutes after being exposed to-” Andy stopped talking and shook her head. “Never mind, I don't think I'm affected by gamma rays anyway. Back to looking at my palm I guess.”

Sky Rider flashed her a thumbs up. “Just don't blow a hole in the wall, our neighbors have no idea they live next to superheroes.”

…

Yeah, she didn't even want to think about how that worked.

Andy looked back down at her palm, trying to picture the light she had seen that day. Of course, that was hard with her memories feeling like half cooked soup. They kept sloshing around inside her head, refusing to stay put long enough for one to make sense. She could only see bits and flashes of holding her hand up, of the heat and light that followed. None of that came with the activation instructions, though – just a cool light show.

Not exactly useful, but... at least she remembered seeing light first.

“Alright, stand back... I'm going to give it a try.”

Sky Rider jumped back so fast she swore he must have flown. That left her alone in the center of the room, facing the wall the exact way she had watched Nova do it time and time again. In her head, she mirrored the long gone hero as she held up her hand, palm stretched out. Then it was a matter of clearing her mind...

Andy watched her palm, hoping to see the light that would gather there. After a few seconds, she threw it out in the hopes it might be motion activated. Instead, she just managed to whack her hand into the wall when she leaned too far in.

It was a good thing she didn't bruise, or she was pretty sure she would've broken something from the solid collision she made with the wall.

“Are you two doing ok?” Ember's voice called out from the main room. “Sounds like you have jackhammer in there.”

Andy waved her hand to dissipate the vibration running up her arm. “Fine! Just experiencing some technical difficulties.”

That was putting it mildly. How the hell was she supposed to get this damn thing working? Now more than ever she wished Nova had left a manual behind... but until they found it, it was back to the drawing board.

Hopefully... she wouldn't put another dent in the wall. No way they'd be getting any kind of security deposit back now. Though, could someone do that with a bunch of superheroes? That be something she could ask her aunt about on the ride back.

But that was later. Fruitless practice came first.

---

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#Supernova Collision Trilogy #writing

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Sorry... the days kept getting away from me.

Still depressed. Still mildly suicidal. Not even sure why I’m writing this, I don’t think anyone comes here anymore. Anon wherever you are, hope you’re living your best life cause I’m certainly not.

Anyway. Nothing got done. Not sure if anything is going to get done. I’m going to try, but no promises. All my energy is kind of going into resisting the urge to look at the subway platform when there’s no train there.

Yeah... it’s getting not so great. But I’m trying.

I guess I’ll see you in two Saturdays. Maybe I’ll have something other than proof I probably need to be on medication.

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Late update

Sorry, guys. Still depressed and unable to process being alive.

I'm probably going to extend my hiatus until December at this rate. I just haven't had any energy to write or even think about Supernova as of late. My health hasn't been great, and I've been missing a lot of low blood sugars to the point I dipped below 20 a week ago. That's... bad if you don't know what sugar should be. Could I have died? Maybe. Should I be worried? Probably.

Most of my energy is going to make sure I get to work and do my job. I need to call the diabetic company people to see if I can get approved for a CGM so I can avoid the above. Problem is... no energy for that either. I'm just drained and exhausted and all I want to do when I get home is go to bed.

My therapist tells me I probably need meds so that's another call I have to make tomorrow... but at least he recommended Persona 5. Sadly the PS4 is not under my control so shrug emoji there.

I don't know. I don't have a lot to say and I was honestly avoiding coming back. I know you want more... I'm just burnt out and sick anymore. I hate having to go to work every day, even the 2 days I get to work from home don't help. I'm just... done. Really done and I don't know what will fix that.

Maybe I'll have better news at the end of the month. Keep your fingers crossed I guess.

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agentwallflower · 3 years

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Supenova Hiatus Update

Happy Halloween... I still want to die. Ooh, scary.

I’m going to be honest, I don’t know if I’m going to write Supernova beyond book 1. I love you guys... but I’m burnt out and depressed. This moved from something I want to do into a complete obligation that I hate doing. Maybe I need some more time off, maybe I just need to give up. This isn’t working, and I feel tired.

Anyway, tomorrow starts Nano and N7 challenge month. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to write in November, but we’ll see. I’ll let you know next update if I’m coming back in November. Right now, I’m not feeling it...

That’s really it. Have a good night. I’m going to go back to bed.

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agentwallflower · 4 years

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Supernova: Hiatus Update 1

Sorry it’s late… I forgot what day it was and was too tired to get my computer when I remembered.

Hey, everyone. Hope you’re having an alright October. I’m not. The depression is still going strong, but I’m doing my best to keep… existing, I guess. Me and a certain thing nobody likes to talk about are old friends thought-wise… he has his room in my brain, let’s just say that so those thoughts don’t really scare me as they probably would someone else. That’s not a good sign, I know… but that’s why I’m in therapy for the 5th time since turning 21.

I’m going to try to start updating in November. Sorry you didn’t get a 3 month update this go round, but… depression is painful and kills my motivation. I needed some time to not hate myself for avoiding the novel, because that would just turn into a club I could use to beat myself with.

Honestly, updating Supernova is hard. The question of “why bother” hits me frequently. Last time that happened I stopped updating my novels for like 2 years… but I’m going to try to avoid that this time. Not going to lie, still hard to face this thing. It definitely feels like I’m screaming into the void, but I’m used to that. My whole hobby is turning into a fruitless screaming into the void, might as well accept that.

…

I didn’t mean to get that dark, but you might as well see what’s going on behind the screen. That’s what I’m working with on a daily basis – and have been for a couple months. I don’t really remember what it’s like to be happy (thanks, alexithymia!) so… I do the best I can to keep existing even though I personally have no reason to do so. Maybe I’ll find one, but… I doubt that.

Anyway. I’ll see you on Halloween to update you on my terribad mood. Stay safe, wash your hands. If you have to call about your benefits, don’t be a dick to the people on the phone. I work with those guys.

#Supernova #Writing update #Yes I am really fucking depressed

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agentwallflower · 4 years

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Supernova: Hiatus

Hi, everyone. Yep, it’s happening.

Now, it’s not my wrist. Not really... though as I’m writing it’s twinging a bit. The problem, as always, is in my head. No doubt you’ve noticed through my notes before the chapter, but I’ve not been doing well. My depression is switching from regular to seasonal, which means I’m pretty down. On top of that, I’m just burnt out. It’s been impossible to get myself to write, even though I want to do it.

So... I’m taking October and possibly November off from posting. I’m still going to try writing more of the chapter, but I won’t be at the same pace I was before. With luck, I’ll have the energy to keep going. I’m sorry it has to be this way, but I just can’t get myself to write. I need to step away and catch my breath.

I’ll still write an author’s note in two weeks for when the other chapter was supposed to go up, but that’s about it. By the end of October, you’ll also know if I’m taking November off as well. Maybe Nano will give me the will to live again.

Thanks for reading. I’ll see you in two weeks.

#hiatus

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agentwallflower · 4 years

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Supernova: Chapter 12

I just finished 17 all of 20 minutes ago, so writing is happening lol...

Anyway, so... I might need to take hiatus in October. My dominant hand is hurting pretty badly from work, and I don’t know if that’s going to get better. I might need to rest it for a while to make sure I don’t develop carpal tunnel (or push it even further if I do have it) so we’ll see. If I have to take hiatus, I’ll let you know at the start of the month.

If I’m not taking it, you’ll see me on... October 3rd, which means I am going to be hyped up on Nijigaku energy and useless to everyone. Get excited for that I suppose...

Anyway, thank you as always for reading and I’ll see you when I see you. Think happy thoughts for my poor, sore hand...

“Having fun yet?”

“Shut up, I hate you.”

A few hours had passed since the two had begun their training. Angel got a front row seat to it all, and in the end he found he wasn't too impressed. What sat before him was hardly a force of nature waiting to destroy anything that stood against it. Instead, she just looked like a frustrated 20 year old who didn't know how her powers worked.

Which... was pretty on the nose, he supposed. Hey, it wasn't like he was an English major or anything.

He had managed to get through a few chapters in the time it had taken Andy to go from standing to laying face down on the floor. It was a position he knew well from long nights of cramming during finals week. It wasn't a good look on anyone, but when your knees – did she even have those? - bent in weird ways, it took something familiar to the level of a rather pathetic horror movie. Honestly, he kind of felt bad for her.

Kind of – it was helping him get his homework done after all.

“Do you want to wrap it up for the day?” He closed his book to get a better view. Andy wasn't moving. She wasn't even breathing, not that he knew where to look. “Uh... you're not dead are you, cause you're not b-”

Andy's response oozed through the floor. “I don't.”

She rolled over onto her back, face blank. “And if I was dead, you'd be vaporized. So I guess you wouldn't be worrying about your homework.”

Maybe it was because they were spending time together, but Angel was starting to get the hang of figuring out her moods even without the tone behind them. This one, he figured, was clearly pissed off. That was something he knew well too – dare he say she was sulking over not being able to figure it out?

For an alien, she was being very human.

He shrugged his shoulders as he rose from his sitting position – oww, sitting in his work pants on hard floor was never fun. “You had a bad first session. It happens.”

“Did it happen to you?” Oh, there was some spite there. She was definitely acting rather human. He could only imagine what that would've sounded like had she been able to regulate tone. It would've probably been something fantastic to hear. She was a young 20 for sure.

He shrugged again. “No, but I was trained by Paladin and we shared a skill set. Just keep doing your weird Goku stuff, something should -”

In the blink of an eye, Andy was standing too. She was suddenly way too close for comfort. If she had been human, he would have picked up on her aura. The fact she didn't have one still set him off. He took a half step back – probably shouldn't have. She had him against the wall now, with very little distance between them.

“That's easy for you to say, you know what you're working with!” She grit her teeth, far too hard for any human without breaking something. Maybe the cover wasn't that fool proof after all. “I'm flying blind and all people can tell me is-”

Before she could say more, the door opened. Angel looked past Andy's solid shoulder, relief mixing with shock. There was an old man there, leaning on a cane he hadn't needed months prior. He was thinner, but his smile was still the same as he entered the room.

It had been three months since Paladin had come back to base.

“Are you two having fun?”

Andy let him go in favor of all but running to his side. “Uncle Leo, you're out of the hospital!”

“And you're out of the big house, I see.” He was smiling at her like she was his favorite grandchild. Something about that made Angel's stomach roll as he regained his bearings and defense aura. It was setting him off in the worst way.

Focus... his mentor could be friendly with anyone he wanted to be with. That was one of the perks of being an old man with cancer.

Andy's tone never changed, but her movements weren't as jerky. “Almost didn't get there. They actually shot me this time.”

“Well, they must've had a nasty surprise when that didn't work.” One eye focused straight on Angel. The psychic straightened under the gaze of his mentor. “Did they try to shoot you as well, Sky Rider?”

The man felt his face color under his helmet as he looked to the side. “They had a psychic, didn't really need it...”

Ah, projectiles. They had never been his friends, especially when he was stressed. Luckily Leo wasn't his teacher anymore, so he couldn't get a lecture over his piss poor control. Still, standing there with the feeling seeping over him, Angel very much wished he could vanish into the floor. That wouldn't happen of course; it wasn't in his skill set, just his wildest dreams when he managed to embarrass himself.

He did that a lot – it came with the territory.

“So, why are you here Uncle Leo? Did you need something?”

That monotone did wonders to drag him out of his pity party. It was as good a question as any, he figured. Maybe the old man was getting bored hanging around the hospital? It wasn't exactly fun, even when you were a psychic. In fact, being able to read minds tended to just make things worse.

“I figured I would stop by to see how you first day of training was going before you left.” He was gripping his cane pretty tightly though “And to encourage you to keep at it. We all have our rough beginnings. No doubt Sky Rider could tell you plenty of his if mine wouldn't suffice. After all, hovering a cow is hardly interesting now.”

The old man laughed, but it was weaker than it had ever sounded. It didn't take a genius to see just how pale he was, or how much he needed to lean on his cane. The only thing that had never changed was his smile. That was always like a thousand suns, no matter how sick he got.

Ever the hero... did he ever worry about himself?

They locked eyes, briefly. The smile that Leo wore on his face didn't quite reach his eyes, which were just so... exhausted. Angel's stomach fell at the sight of them, but he said nothing as he watched the two interact.

So... it was getting worse then. Then why let him out of the hospital?

“Kid, we gotta get you back before your mom gets home.” PT's voice called through the room. Andy was soon waving goodbye to them both – mostly Leo, he noted – and then it was just the two of them in the room. There was a tension there that he hadn't felt before. Maybe it had been there all along.

Shit.

Angel bent to pack up his books, very much aware of the man behind him. He swallowed hard as he stood, bag slung over his shoulders. He was the picture of a normal college kid if you took the gear out of the equation. With it... well, he was never known for being fashionable out of costume. Why worry about it when he was geared up?

“I see you were getting some work done with Andy.” There was humor in Leo's voice as he took a seat in the only chair. Briefly, his hand touched his side. However, he stopped the second he realized his protege was watching.

His face heated up under the visor. “I can't really help her. She's...”

His words fell as he made a vague gesture at the door. Leo nodded in time with his motions, face knowing. At least the two of them were on the same page. Lately, that was happening less and less as he grew into his own form of hero. It was nice to call back to it at least one before...

He shook his head. Wasn't going to put that into the universe.

“She needs a friend too, you know. You're probably the first person out of a lab coat to know.” He smiled again, and it came close to his eyes but missed by a metaphorical mile. “That'll help more than anything else.”

Angel shrugged his shoulders as he crossed the room to be with his former teacher. “Be nice if I understood the mechanics. I don't get anything off her. It's worse than being around you.”

“Welcome to what the rest of the world deals with!” Leo let out a short laugh, but then it turned into a brief, hacking cough that made his fellow psychic's stomach fall. He eventually had to grab a tissue from his pocket to cough into for a long couple seconds. Whatever it contained, he stowed it in his pocket before Angel got to see. “Sorry about that.”

He finally stood, but his footing seemed weak. When Angel offered his arm, he took it. Together, they entered back into the main room. Here, the mood was somber. Scanner was at their rig, but something about the set of their shoulders and the way they were typing gave the psychic pause. Not only that, Ember was there, smiling in a way that reminded him of glass that was about to shatter. When had she gotten back, and why?

Andy and PT said their brief goodbyes, and then headed towards the door. The moment it slid behind them, the room dropped five degrees as the boss lady sat down on the couch. Summer had turned to winter in the span of seconds, and he could feel the chill in his mind rather than his flesh.

Leo noted the shift and sighed. “I'm sorry to have upset you all.”

“Upset is putting it mildly.” Ember's voice cracked. “You're-”

Angel's stomach dropped into his shoes as he watched her lift her mask to dab at her eyes. It didn't work. Hot tears rolled down her face at a rapid pace, and her chest heaved with the effort. Scanner's shoulders were shaking now, and he was pretty sure he heard the tech choke back a sob.

Leo sighed as he leaned harder on Angel's arm. “Jocelyn... Sam...”

“No, Leo, we're not going to be ok!” Her golden eyes were burning with more fire than Angel had ever seen from her. “We thought you would be coming back after the chemo!”

Angel's stomach turned to pure acidic ice. A thousand possibilities flitted through his mind, landing on the one suggestion he had never wanted to give to the universe should it be listening. A cold swear formed on the back of his neck.

For a moment, the world stood still.

“You'll be ok without me. You're doing fine now.” Leo looked so much smaller than he had in the previous moment. “Jocelyn, you've become a wonderful leader. Have faith in yourself.”

The old man let go of his arm to reach for her shoulder. The two shared a moment, one that Angel an Scanner couldn't see. A thousand unsaid things passed between the two, from leader to leader. The set of her shoulders sagged, then straightened under the permanence of her new burden. Yet tears still trickled from her eyes.

He should've realized the whole 'not in the hospital' thing wasn't a good sign... but there was difference between bad and... this.

How much time did the old man have left anyway?

---

“I was studying, mom!”

“You were studying all night?!”

Andy could hear the argument through the floor, even though she was on the bed with a pillow over her head. It was more the symbolic concept than the fact that it could do anything that helped her – it was the sort of thing you were supposed to do when upset, right?

Well, she wasn't upset... but it was certainly aggravating.

Her sister and mother were going at it again. Since both could argue until the metaphorical cows came home, both would probably go until they were hoarse. With any luck, the older of the two wouldn't be able to talk tomorrow.

Of course, that just made her glances nastier. It was kind of a lose-lose situation they found themselves in.

“Hope Jen's ok.” Andy frowned as she pulled the pillow off her face. She technically wasn't banned from leaving, but she was pretty sure she was still grounded. Should she have disobeyed, that was definitely at least another week under house arrest.

But...

Her hand found the door that would open up to the ladder below. The arguing covered up her descent, and her heavy feet were masked by scream of where her older sister had been and whether their mother wasn't being a little too overbearing about things. For once, she was grateful for it as she crept to her younger sister's room and carefully knocked.

Jen all but pulled her in.

“You're going to get in so much trouble if mom finds out.” Anxious eyes darted, but Jen sighed in relief as she closed the door. “I hate when they get like that.”

Andy settled into a spot on the floor. “Me too. You going to be ok?”

Her sister took a spot back on her bed, where her phone was charging. “Yeah, I had my music playing. I didn't realize they were arguing until they overpowered the screaming.”

Well, Aunt Miri would be pleased in her niece's taste in music at the very least. Andy's shoulders shook at the thought as she lay on her back to stare up at the ceiling. Here, at least there were more things to look at. Jen liked putting star stickers on her ceiling. They were pale now, but tonight they would be absolutely glowing.

She had done a good job with the Big Dipper, but Sirius looked a little suspect...

“Are you feeling better?” Jen's big eyes were on her as she texted on her phone at supersonic speeds. “You were in the hospital for a long time again.”

Andy shrugged her shoulders as she vaguely pieced her cover story together. “Yeah, I'm doing better now. They have me going back for checks regularly though, so I'll be gone in the afternoons a couple days a week. You going to be ok with that?”

“I have practice, I'll be fine.” Jen frowned. “You're not getting sicker, are you? Uncle Leo hasn't been looking good lately...”

That got Andy sitting up as she waved her hands to dispel the thought. Her cover story was decent, but that was the downside. Go to the 'hospital' enough times, and someone's bound to wonder how far you were from death's door. She had definitely wracked up the hours and then some to say the least.

But damn, as bad as Uncle Leo?

“It's fine, just part of my condition.” She stopped waving. “Yeah, he's looking kind of rough. He stopped by to see me before he left.”

Jen's cheeks puffed slightly. “No fair, he didn't mention he was getting discharged! I was planning to go see him.”

Had she been able to, Andy would have laughed at her sister's puffed out cheeks. Instead, she felt her insides bubble happily as she sat there in the house's one safe area. They may have been screaming downstairs, but it was ok here.

“Sorry, I'll let him know to give you a call if I see him when I go back.” Her shoulders sagged. “Which... yeah I'll be back there a lot. They have me on a new process and the guy monitoring my process is a real a-.”

She paused. “He's a jerk.”

“I know the word 'asshole', Andy.” Jen's matter of fact tone gave the alien pause as the teen kept scrolling. “Whatever it is, you can do it. You're awesome.”

A thump downstairs meant Andy didn't get a chance to answer. Out the window, they could see that Sara had left the house and was rapidly heading to her car. The argument was over for now, which meant her mother would be on the war path.

The two exchanged glances. Jen spoke first, quietly. “I thought they would be arguing for a few more hours.”

“Guess even big sisters have a breaking point.” The alien winced as she heard footsteps. The afternoon was about to get a lot more annoying.

Better make that two extra weeks of house arrest at this point... but at least it had been worth it to help Jen feel a little better. Andy would have to remember that as she steeled herself for the fallout that was soon to come.

Maybe she should've let the FBI take her after all...

---

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#Supernova Collision Trilogy #writing #novel

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agentwallflower · 4 years

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Supernova: Chapter 11

Guess who didn’t write anything the last couple weeks?

*raises hand*

Depression is fun like that. I’m going to try harder this month to get content out, but I don’t know how well things are going to go. I’m starting therapy again, so I’m hoping that’ll help my energy levels...

I don’t really have much to say other than that. No energy to do much other than go to work and come back. Life in the time of plague is... rough I guess.

Next chapter is going to go up September 19. I’ll see you then. Remember to wear a mask and wash your hands.

If something was supposed to be happening, it wasn't – the place still looked like a normal house to Andy as she glanced around as she walked. With any luck, they didn't have neighbors or they were in for one hell of a noise complaint.

“It's right over here, just have to turn everything on.”

Sky Rider directed her to a door that looked like it might lead to a closet. Andy shot him a blank look as she watched him access a panel on the side of the wall. He stood there for a while, typing things in. Then something beeped and he groaned.

Well, they were getting off to a good start.

“Password got changed to Kryptonite this month, SR.” Scanner's voice called from their computers. The hero didn't start typing, however. “Alright, it's K-”

He held up a gloved hand to stop the spelling bee. “No, it's asking what to register Andy as so it can set the parameters.”

That got the tech to actually back up from their setup and roll over to the pair by the door. Andy stepped to the side to give them space without needing to be asked. One thing she was painfully aware of was just how big she was. Even if they had been standing, she dwarfed them by at least a foot, maybe more, and that was without the frame differences. Her limited experience let her know people tended not to like loomers, so there was some breathing room between them.

Scanner muttered to themselves as their eyes glowed. That close, she saw one was brown and the other was blue, though it looked too sparkly to be normal. Artificial, or at least augmented. It matched the silvery hand, and the bit of shoulder peeking out from the loose shirt they were wearing.

“Right, don't want her blowing the whole place up. That be a pain to explain to next door, we barely have them fooled.” They turned to face her, briefly. “I guess we could put Nova's data in for her. You said she's related, right?”

Andy felt her core bubble as the tech quickly put the details in, though it took a little gentle analog persuasion in the process. Apparently, it was a pre-Scanner design that didn't like them very much if the grumbling was to be believed.

Nova had lived here once.

“Thanks, Scan. I'll let you know if we need anything else.”

“Please do before you take a wall out. We already get yelled at when we break the city apart.” They were already rolling back to their rig, muttering about how they needed to gut that damn system to replace it sometime. From the way it sounded, it wouldn't have been out of place with a lover's quarrel. Hopefully nobody asked her to hold a wrench.

This left her alone with Sky Rider, who finished up tapping something into the wall. The panel beeped, and then covered itself up. He motioned for her to follow, and they were soon opening the door and walking through.

It... yeah it looked like an empty room.

“Scanner's predecessor came up with the idea for this when Ember was a trainee.” He knocked the wall, and a rainbow glittered across its surface. “Barriers, coded with details of hero abilities. I could blast for days and not even leave a scratch.”

Well, then she probably wasn't going to take a wall out then. That was a relief.

“So that's why you were trying to figure out what to register me as.” She gave him a blank look. “What do you do if someone has a new power, though?”

Sky Rider shrugged his shoulders as he took a seat against the wall. “Download info from the closest match, mostly. They used Paladin's data for me, even though I have a different profile. Once you've used it a few times, we'll have a special profile for you too. Makes it easier to keep the place together.”

Andy nodded, but after that she was kind of lost as she looked down at her hands. Memories of when she had first used her powers were vague at best, and none of them were pointing at how to turn the damn thing on.

Maybe it was motion activated? She swung her hand down hard, like she remembered. The only result was that the air moved and she felt a little stupid. At least Sky Rider didn't laugh at her when she tried it a second time with her other hand.

So... not motion activated.

Andy felt her core go a little cold as she turned to look at her trainer. “You do kind of a blast thing, got any ti-”

The words died in her mouth. Though Sky Rider was physically in the room, he was more focused on the large book spread out in front of him. Apparently, he liked pink sticky notes – the pages were covered in them. The book next to him had a similar treatment, and there was pink highlighter all over his written notes.

She would have been impressed if he hadn't been training her.

His visor moved up, but he made no move to hide his work. “Focus on a target and try to imagine your energy flowing out. Not sure if it's going to work for you though, cause... you know.”

His highlighter motioned to her necklace. “You should probably keep that on, by the way. Scanner says they don't have cameras in here, but something records the data well enough.”

“You're the best.” Andy didn't have the tone for sarcasm, but she hoped it got across as she turned back to the task at hand. “Hey, speaking of data... you guys wouldn't happen to have anything from Nova, would you?”

That got the psychic to stop writing notes, at any rate. What was he studying anyway? It was hard to tell, since she wasn't exactly a master of reading books in human-friendly orientation. The fact there were no pictures didn't help much either. She could at least rule out medicine – not enough angst.

“Yeah, I think we do. Why, do you think watching her might help you figure it out?”

This time, it was Andy's turn to shrug. “Even if it doesn't, it's not like I've ever really got to see them much. We can't talk about Nova at home, and my sister was too young to remember much anyway.”

Before he could ask, she added “Adopted sister, I'm the only weirdo around here.”

If Sky Rider had anything to say about that, he kept it to himself in favor of getting up from his study spot in order to cross the room. They were much closer as he started to type details into the computer, the screen reflecting back in his visor.

If she had to wear a helmet like that all day, she'd go insane.

“Can I ask what you're studying?”

Andy wasn't sure why she was asking him that. He seemed to think about it for a few seconds before the machine beeped- there were records coming up, or at least she thought there might be. It was hard to tell with their orientation, but they had gotten results. They probably even said what was on them, but it wasn't like she could read any of it.

Ah, the joys of strange vision.

“Psychology.” He backed up, probably to return to the books. “Nova's logs are in date order. I would say start with the older stuff, might give you a better foundation.”

And like that, she was alone again. Andy sighed as she turned back, poking with an experimental finger. Probably because she didn't have skin, the damn thing didn't respond to her. No doubt she looked like an idiot.

What else was new?

---

Ugh, he was never going to learn this in time for the exam. Even his brain couldn't keep up.

Angel could feel the sweat trickle down the back of his neck, and it wasn't from the heat. His pile of notes was growing by the second, and his deadline was looming. Add in the fact the class was with his adviser, and he was feeling the heat.

Or... it actually was kind of hot.

“You're not overheating, are you?”

He looked over his textbook. Andy was still poking at the screen, grumbling. It wasn't going anywhere fast, to say the least. Part of him wondered if she had broken the damn thing, but then he watched as her finger prodded the screen.

Right. Not made for aliens.

“I can't read what it says, can you help me here?”

Andy's voice was as monotone as always as he got up again to help her. That close, he could feel the hum of whatever was keeping her looking like a human being. It wasn't a bad feeling, just an odd one that made his teeth itch. Since nobody was reporting a dentist visit, that was probably just him. Hooray for being psychic.

“I'll set it up on a loop for you.” He cocked his eyebrow under his visor. “They didn't teach you to read at the lab?”

Andy shook her head. “I can only read stuff that's upside down and backwards to you. Something about how my eyes are structured I guess.”

“Huh, that's gotta be a pain in the ass for reading your phone...” He mumbled that to himself as he set up the loop sequence. Nova's oldest video was soon on the screen, showing the hero in their 80's glory. Just seeing the spandex made him wince, even with the leather jacket. Nothing like 80's superheroes to make him glad he wasn't born then.

Though, he had to admit it was a rare treat to see a younger PT looking even more like a punk nightmare next to them. Talk about blackmail.

“I don't have one, not -” Andy fell silent at the sight of Nova. Her hand stretched out to touch the screen. “That's... it's Cass.”

Angel frowned at the reaction. “Hey, are you -”

“I've never really seen them before.” her hand traced the outline. “It's hard to tell with their disguise... but we don't look anything alike, do we? Why else would they wear red...”

The alien's voice trailed off as she watched the figure on screen. Her face was unreadable, but Angel got the sense this was something private he shouldn't intrude on. He backed up, content to return to his notes. But he kept one eye peeled as he went back to his notes. Maybe she might need a little of his day job when she was done.

---

Andy wasn't sure how long she sat there, staring at the screen. Nova's clips kept looping and returning to that first screen, even as they burned into her memory. Simply put, she was transfixed by the person on screen.

She was so... red.

Honestly, that was the weirdest part of all this. Part of Andy had just assumed her parent would have been blue like her – wasn't that how it worked with genetics when it came to humans? She may have been from a different planet, but there should have been a link.

She couldn't find any as she watched the disguised alien on screen. Every movement Nova made was so fluid and graceful that it made her nonexistent joints ache. If she had ever tried to move like that, shit would've broken. Yet the hero walked silently, as if they weren't there at all. Maybe they weren't; maybe she was just dreaming this.

Andy's core bubbled as her favorite clip queued up. Nova was up against some small time villain, their name garbled by the digitization. It didn't matter who it was, though – she was only focused on the hero in red spandex and leather jacket as they prowled onto the screen, their very presence making the news camera waver.

They said something, but the camera wasn't able to pick it up with the inference. Then they held up their hand. Light in every color, even ones humans couldn't see, began to build up in their hand. Then they threw out a fist, and the light went with it. The moment it made contact with the person on the other side of the screen, light exploded in a rush of sound. The whole screen went white, and then when it settled it was over. Nova was the only one standing, flexing their fist.

“We're live on the scene at 5th Street where Nova-”

The clip cut out after that.

“That looked like the Starburst.”

She looked over her shoulder. Sky Rider had abandoned his books in order to study the screen. The second clip was playing on the reflection of his tinted visor, giving her a perfect view of Nova in action in reverse. Apparently, that was more interesting than studying for psychology.

“What?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Naming your attacks was big in the 80's. Sometimes PT almost starts to do it before the cringe knocks her back. Nova's big ones were the Starburst and Big Bang. The next one should be that.”

Through his visor, Andy got to watch as the alien in disguise started to glow as bright as a star, then throw all the energy with a yell of focus. There were the colors and lights again, twinkling against the glass. Did he even see it the same way she did, or was it just white light?

Sky Rider reached for his notebook, and the image vanished with the shift. “I don't recommend the Big Bang in here. Leave that for field work. Just focus on making the hand blast.”

Then he left her to her own devices. Andy shrugged it off as she backed away from the screen. Now she faced a blank stretch of wall, almost as if it was daring her to mess it up. Just like she had seen on the screen, she held out her hand as if she was getting ready to blast.

And then it stayed there for a good thirty seconds as she waited for something to happen.

“Maybe try throwing it.”

Andy shot him a blank look as she wiggled her fingers in exasperation. “Now you're trying to train me?”

“Nobody can train you, you're – you know.” He shrugged. “Just making a suggestion. Might need a little motion to get things going. Think back to how you did it the first time.”

Yeah, the gap in her memory was great for that. Though, gap wasn't the right word for it. Now that Andy was trying to reach back to remember, it felt more like a wall between herself and whatever had happened. Right then, she was banging up against that wall, trying to break it down. Damn thing wasn't budging, unfortunately.

So, back to the wall she went, with the feeling that this wasn't going to end with anything interesting. Oh well, if training was supposed to be easy there would be more super-powered humans in Bear Paw. Back to work it was.

---

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#Supernova Collision Trilogy #writing #novel #Yep I sound depressed alright

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agentwallflower · 4 years

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Supernova: Chapter 10

Hey, I made it to the end of August. Yay.

Good news on the writing front, I’m up to 16 out of planned 27 chapters. Just 11 more to go and this will be done! The back end of the book moves pretty quickly, so I’m probably going to get through it faster. Then again, that’s all new material so... I don’t know what the hell is going to happen.

That’s what happens when you’re rewriting the rewrite of something you wrote in 2012.

Also, I finished second round edits of my other novel. That’s right, I did it. I got past where I stopped in Blister. Maybe there’s hope for me yet. I’m going to let it sit a month before doing some more edits. Once it’s done, off to my readers it goes. Not y’all. This one’s a secret project the internet doesn’t get to see.

I gave up on my anthology draft, but not because I was frustrated. A friend pointed out it would do better as a longer work, so I’m going to possibly use it for my fall Nano material if I don’t feel like writing book 2 of the trilogy. I should probably do that one tho... we’ll see.

Anyway, I have strep throat and I should be in bed so I’ll stop blabbing. Next chapter is going up on September 5. You’ll get it in time for Labor Day if you’re in the US, yaaaay....

Thanks for reading as always, and I’ll see you in the next chapter.

“So, are you ready for your first training session?”

He was still getting used to being awake at this hour, forget being ready for anything at this point.

Angel yawned underneath his visor as he wished he could rub the sleep from his eyes. It wasn't really all that early – just after 9 in the morning. Problem was, he was a college student. He was pretty sure those hours were against the Geneva convention.

Across the table from him sat Ember, geared up despite the fact it was her day off. Normally around the base she could be a little more casual, but something about a new face had everyone pulling out the stops. Even Scanner had their mask and visor on, which had become something of a rarity since stopping on the ground duty.

Honestly, it was kind of weird. Being paranoid about masks was his thing.

“I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be.” He yawned again, eyes watering. “Whose bright idea was it to make this so damn early?”

His team leader frowned, and the room felt a little cooler. That was typical with pyrokinetics, even with one as well trained as she was. Their emotions were often tied to their powers, so it didn't take a genius to figure out something was bothering her. It wasn't big enough to cause an ice age, but it was something.

“That... would be Andromeda's mother.” Ember hesitated as she spoke. “She is...”

Angel didn't even need to read minds to finish that one. “A massive control freak?”

“A lawyer.”

Same thing.

Scanner was already pulling up family records on screen. “The lawyer who defends the idiots we have to beat up, to be exact. It's a miracle she let the kid come in at all. Don't you know her from when Nova was around?”

There was that name. Ember winced and the temperature took a sudden spike before settling down. It was enough for sweat to bead on the back of Angel's neck as he adjusted his position. Scanner didn't exactly look comfortable either – they rolled back a bit.

“Sorry, I know - “

Ember shook her head. “It's been 20 years, it's time to adjust I suppose. And yes, I know her from back then. She wasn't nearly as bad as she was now, but I guess dealing with a marriage breakup and being stuck in Bear Paw can't be pleasant.”

Oh, Angel could see plenty of arguments about that as the psych part of his brain overloaded the psychic center. His adviser would have had a field day with that one, it was practically her research topic. Then again, to even bring it up he would have to explain a lot of weird shit. That was probably off limits.

Damn, and he loved giving Dr. B something to chew on for her next book. He was so close to getting some credit.

“So she's deflecting her bitterness over her career goals onto her kids, good to know. Bet that's why she's a defense lawyer.” Angel shrugged. “Whatever, as long as she gets Andy here on time I don't care.”

Thanks to the visor blocking his line of sight, he got an eyeful of Ember looking at him as though he had two heads. Scanner was used to this shit by now, so they kept typing on the keyboard like they always did. They were a good friend that way.

“Speaking of, I spotted her and PT on a nearby cam. They should be coming up soon.” Scanner was grinning at him. “Have fun schooling the newbie, SR.”

Oh, loads. He was only dealing with a alien, how hard could it be?

---

“Did you sleep at all last night? And don't give me that thing you do when you're trying to avoid revealing biological facts to those scientists, I know you. I've stepped on your leftovers.”

Jeez, you leave crumbs once...

Still, Andy shrugged her shoulders as she adjusted her seat belt. It wasn't bothering her, but her shoulder spike was definitely sharp enough to cut through the material. Honestly she didn't need it either; if she got thrown from the car, she'd break the road rather than actually damaging anything. The only reason she kept it on was the fact her aunt was a sticker about this sort of thing.

“Not really. I kept thinking about today.”

Her innards were bubbling up in a way they didn't often do. It wasn't the way she felt when faced with the scientists and their tests. If she had to guess, she was excited. It was understandable, given what was waiting for her.

Though... how were they going to control her?

Andy looked down at her hands as her aunt continued to drive. Miri was probably saying something, but it wasn't registering. She could still feel the power coursing through her entire body, and just how explosive the shot had been. Then she had been outside, with plenty of room to aim. As far as she knew, the Union was inside.

And what if that feeling came back?

That was really what had kept Andy up that night. If she could avoid anything, it would be the numbing sensation of being out of control of her own body. Something about that just left her feeling cold in a way she couldn't put words to then. Maybe she would learn them in time, but until then... cold worked just fine.

“You paying attention?”

Miri's voice broke Andy out of her thoughts. She picked up her head and turned to face the hero. Somewhere in the midst of her mood, they had stopped driving. They were in the city now, in a part she sometimes saw on aerial shots. It looked... normal. There were buildings and sidewalks, with people walking by and cars driving past. Nothing about it hinted at what it held in one of those fronts.

Leave it to the Union to design their base well.

She shrugged her shoulders and unleashed her seat belt. “Sorry, did I miss something?”

“It's rare for you to be acting like a space cadet.” Miri smirked a little as they left the car. “I was saying we're here.”

She wasn't wearing her mask, but she did have something in her hand. Andy followed along as they walked down the sidewalk, eyeing the buildings. One of them had to be it, but which one was it? Maybe it was the one with the red flowerpot, or the closed windows. It could have been the one that looked darker than the rest. That seemed thematic, right?

“Here we are.”

Or maybe it was the completely freaking normal looking one that didn't stand out at all, smack dab in the middle of the block.

Her aunt smirked as she stopped moving. “I love when people do that.”

She slid her hand down a lock near the doorknob – Andy caught the flash of a white plastic card with her motion. The lock beeped, and then the door swung open. Inside, it looked like any normal entry way; there were heavy looking winter boots lining the side, left over from the winter. Someone had left a bright blue umbrella there, and a mirror on the wall reflected back at Andy as she stepped through the door.

And then all that went away the minute the door closed behind her.

'Yep, she's your niece. Must have ice in her veins or something.'

They were in an elevator, one that was rising quickly. A voice from a speaker brought Andy back to the present. She had heard that voice before, usually calling her aunt away from their time together. The tech; it had to be them.

“She's got a killer poker face.” Miri's tone was bland, but there was a light in her eyes that the camera wouldn't pick up that was just for her. Andy's shoulders shook a little as she waited for the door to open to wherever they were going. It was easier to focus on the joke than the closed space.

Unsurprisingly for someone of her size and background, but she really hated small spaces. Elevators were probably her worst nightmare. She wouldn't start hyperventilating like a human with claustrophobia, but her core was bubbling uncomfortably as she kept her eyes on the door.

Just a few seconds... she could handle that. The walls weren't totally closing in or anything.

It felt like a lifetime, but the door eventually slid open. Andy was probably a little too enthusiastic to get off, which was what earned her a frown from the woman behind her. A comforting hand snuck around her spike to find her hard, bony shoulder.

“You ok?”

Her concerned face and tone made Andy's core stop bubbling as much. The alien nodded as she carefully turned to face her aunt. Had she been a little too rough, the woman's hand might have been shredded. Not a good look, especially when she was still playing human.

“Yeah. I'm still not big on small areas.” She shrugged. “Of course when you're me,all areas are kind of small.”

Miri patted her shoulder as she pulled her hand back. “There's stairs you can go up next time once we have you keyed into the system.”

“I hope that's not by DNA or anything...”

The silence was deafening as the two walked the short hall. Andy probably would have been sweating by then if she was able to do that. Instead, she kept her eyes focused on the door in front of her. On the other side was the Union.

She was so close.

Miri opened the door for her. Just as she thought, on the other side were the heroes, waiting for her. The one by the computer wall had to be Scanner – they were smaller than she expected, even with the chair. And they didn't turn to face her, just kept working.

“Good to see you PT.”

A woman approached, in her full hero gear. Even if she had been in plain clothes, Andy would have known who she was. Her amber eyes were practically glowing, and she seemed to radiate warmth in a way that the alien couldn't manage. Hers was just hot – this was authority and self-assured know how in one.

Just what the leader of the Bear Paw Union needed.

“Took us a while getting here with construction and all. Nice not to be the one causing it for once.” Miri gave her a nudge forward. “Got her here in one piece so you can make the introductions.”

Ember smiled at her, and Andy felt a weight in her nonexistent gut dissolve. One thing she hated was being a burden – she was unfortunately good at doing that. “Nice to finally meet you, Andromeda.”

“Just Andy is fine.” She nodded her head. “Nice to meet you too. Aunt Miri says a lot of good stuff about you.”

Seeing her aunt turn pink and duck out was worth it, as was the smile she got from the pyrokinetic. The room felt a little warmer, but it was in a comforting way. People on the news had said Ember's ability was linked to her emotions, but feeling it was completely different.

Definitely someone nice.

“Probably nothing she'd repeat in front of me.” She laughed a little – it sounded like a bell. “You can call me Ember. I'm afraid I can't give you my actual name at this time per the rules.”

Andy nodded at that. “I know, I grew up around Aunt Miri and Uncle Leo. They drilled it into me.”

Even mentioning the man got the whole room to straighten up. She swore she heard the tech's spine snap into place like Lego bricks, and Ember grew a half inch even though she was standing pretty straight. The only one it didn't seem to affect much was the one on the couch. Sky Rider was still sitting there, like nothing was going on.

He... looked ok, at least by her guess. In full costume it was hard to see if he was bandaged or in pain, but he was at least in one piece. Whether or not he blamed her for all this she didn't know, but she was probably about to find out. If he tried to slam her into a wall during their training, that was probably a pretty good sign.

No pressure, right?

“Well, then we won't have to go over much then.” Ember was good at moving things along. “You know Sky Rider, and this is our tech Scanner.”

The figure in the chair never turned, but raised a hand. “Don't get mad I'm not looking at you, I don't do new people well.”

That made two of them. Andy nodded her head in their direction, before turning back to Sky Rider. He had gotten of the couch and was walking over to them with a laid back pace. His steps were even, so at least he wasn't limping.

Then again... she had heard gun shots. Maybe they had missed him?

Sky Rider was still short, but she was used to people being shorter than her. The lack of visible emotions because of the helmet was honestly helpful in this situation. With all these people, her head was starting to spin a little.

Ok, it wasn't a lot of people... but it wasn't like she got to meet a lot of people. Most of the time, anyone new was wearing a lab coat and trying to get data out of her. They could forgive her for being a little people shy.

“Don't worry, Scanner only eats Cheetos.”

Scanner's typing got a little harder. “Very funny, SR.”

“Just trying to make the new guy comfortable.” His body language suggested he was enjoying this. “I can take it from here, Ember. You can get going if you want.”

Ember's body language relaxed a little. “Are you sure? I can stick around if you want.”

Ah... someone was in on their day off. Andy hadn't considered that. A weight dropped into her gut once again as she tried to figure what the woman might have been missing. Miri's days off were rare and far between, so... she had given up a lot.

Was there a family waiting for her? Shit... she was already screwing things up.

Sky Rider gave them both a thumbs up. “Get out of here and enjoy your day off. We'll let you know if she blows anything up.”

That was probably the least likely way to get anyone to leave, in Andy's opinion. She opened her mouth to assure the woman she wouldn't do anything like that, but there was no need. Ember was chuckling a little as she headed towards the door.

“I'll hold you to that. It was nice meeting you, Andy.”

And then she was gone, leaving a very confused alien in the grips of a bunch of weirdos. Still, she was there. It was probably better to just make the most of it. She still didn't feel entirely comfortable as the masked hero motioned for her to follow him towards a door off to the side.

How the hell could they keep her contained in a residential building anyway?

===

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#Supernova Collision Trilogy #Writing #novel #Ember's gonna go home to her girlfriends now #Gee Ember how come your mom lets you have two- shit sorry

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