Waiting for a Miracle - Chapter 21

I opened my eyes, becoming aware of my surroundings just as the stasis pod door slid open. Leona and Wallace stood in front of me, both of them pouting with anxious postures.  Leona nibble at her nails, her ears and tail both drooping; while  Wallace  played pocket pool, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.

As I got out, I looked toward my work table, where Morgan worked on my suit. Wally watched over his shoulder, an intense scowl on his freckled face as he tried to understand what Morgan was doing.

“How long was I in there?” I asked.

“Two days,” Morgan said. He set down his tools and turned on the stool to face me. “You lost vital signs twice on the way here, but Wallace resuscitated you both times.”

I nodded absently before gesturing at my suit. “You still aren’t done with the repairs?”

“No this is the spare suit. Wallace burned out the flight component and had to walk back to the lab last night.” Morgan shook his shaggy head, spilling brown hair over his unbuttoned collar. “I don’t understand how, though. Theoretically, this kind of damage to the nano-circuitry is impossible, but the components are fused in such a way as to suggest that he’s drawing too much power.”

“Can you fix it?” I asked.

“I already did. I’ve been installing redundant power supplies and backup neuro-pathways to keep the suit from failing in a time of need. I had to, since my inspection of his suit and your collar proved this isn’t a fluke. He consistently burns out equipment.”

I nodded my approval of Morgan’s hard work. “It’s a shame I’m quitting tomorrow. You and I would have been a great team.”

“We would make a great team,” Morgan said and pointed to Wally. “Without Wally, I’d still be running errands to get all the supplies I need. He was also the one who found you when he went out on a parts run. You would have died if he hadn’t spotted your leg sticking out of a dumpster.”

I felt a stab of anger at learning what had happened to me. I guessed that my assailant had returned and attempted to hide my body, but I let the feeling go. I never saw who shot me, and so revenge wasn’t possible.

More important to me was the matter of Wallace burning up the same equipment that I had used without a single problem.

I looked at him, rubbing my chin thoughtfully. “Wallace, have you been doing anything in my suit that I don’t normally do? You seem to be able to control the level of light the suit produces through an amazing range of levels. I’ve always had two states, on and off. Is there anything you might have done to burn out the flight circuit?”

“I don’t think so,” Wallace said. “Leona and I went on different routes when a gang used two cars to get away from a bank robbery. I was flying around to find her after I caught the robbers, and then the suit burned out.”

Wallace laughed as his mouth pulled into an embarrassed smile. “I’m glad the force field was still in place, because I made one hell of a crater when I crashed.”

“Hmmm,” I hummed, and then shook my head. Something was missing from his story. “How fast were you flying to look for her?”

“I…” Wallace shook his head. “I don’t know. I’d already phased to avoid producing a sonic boom, so I guess I was going pretty fast.”

The answer was right in front of him, but his modesty wouldn’t let him see it. I’ve flown fast before, but not as fast as Wallace was probably going, and not for extended periods of time.

I smiled and said, “Since you’ve been able to exploit the technology so quickly, I’m curious. Have you been able to find any new abilities in my suit?”

“As a matter of fact, yes I did,” Wallace said. “Last night, I saw a cop car as I was walking home, and it occurred to me that I was wearing your suit. I looked around for a place to hide, but then a second later, I didn’t need it.”

“Why not?” I asked.

“Because I realized I was invisible,” Wallace answered.

My mouth hung open for a few seconds before I could ask, “How?”

“I have a theory about that,” Morgan said. “It seems that when you built the collar, it never occurred to you that the stealth function was already built into your suit. Wallace had the suit reflect its surroundings, in essence bending light around him. However, in the process he also fused most of the power supplies. If he’d tried to use the suit much longer, it would have failed completely.”

“Sorry,” Wallace muttered.

I barked laughter at this. “You don’t need to apologize.” My smile relaxing, I returned my attention to Morgan. “So, both suits are ready?”

“Yes, but I’d recommend spending tonight testing both suits to make sure they’re safe. I’m fairly confident of my repairs, but Wallace has a talent for burning up components. He’s forced me and Wally to run up some overtime that you’ll need to sign off on. I would have cleared it with you, but you were dead on your feet.”

“It’s okay,” I said and laughed again. “I’m going to retire, and now I learn how to use my suit from a hero. Man, how pathetic is that?”

Beaming a mischievous grin, Leona said, “Hey, at least you got to sleep with Miracle Man.”

I heard a whistle and looked to find Wally staring at me. “You’re kidding.”

“Oh no I’m not,” Leona said. “It happened the day that he got shot.”

“That was the problem, one slip up after another,” I said. “First double M fell into my lap, and then I grabbed the wrong collar because I wasn’t thinking clearly. In a way, I’m glad I had Wallace patrolling in my spare suit.” I smiled faintly at him. “I couldn’t bear the thought of putting you in harm’s way.”

You may wonder why we weren’t using Chet’s name. To put it in two words, hired help. You see, I was retiring, and Chet’s secret was safe with me.

However, Wally and Morgan were still going to be working with super villains, and such a bargaining chip was a power I didn’t want to give them. Leona understood that too, which is why she had been so discreet.

Morgan gave another shake of his shaggy head. “It’s a good thing he’s quitting the hero racket. He’d have to be independently wealthy to cover the cost of maintenance on the equipment.”

Laughing, I smiled wider at Wallace. “I’d gladly pay his bills. I think it’s a shame that he’s quitting the hero business.”

“But I’m not a hero, and I never was,” Wallace insisted. “I’m just a psychiatrist pretending to be a hero.”

“Miracle Man was a regular guy pretending he was a hero too,” I said. “We all believed him. Some of us have even built our lives around him. You came in, and you filled his shoes easily. Besides, you have to admit that it has been fun.”

Wallace’s mouth hung open for a while before he could respond. “Duggan, a lot of people died for this damned game of yours.”

“It’s not my game Wallace, and it never was. I’m just one of the players. Those deaths are the pull, the attraction for villains. I’d wonder if Miracle Man would be fast enough to stop me and save the day. He always did, and that’s what made the game fun for me. After he left, I was able to get away with everything, and the game lost its luster.”

I sighed before reaching for my suit to get dressed. “Even if I stop playing, the game will still go on. You came along, and I’m not the only villain who was willing to play the game with you.”

Now scowling, Wallace said, “It isn’t a game.”

“It is to a criminal,” I reminded him quietly. “I want this plan to be non-lethal, but my gut instinct tells me the villains are going to riot when they see what I’m doing. The instant I publicly ask Miracle Man to return to his role as the city’s hero, every criminal under my control will realize how I’ve been toying with them. Then they and all the other criminals pouring into this city are liable to seek us out for a showdown.

“Leona may not be willing to use deadly force on the criminals who show up there, and I won’t ask her to. For that reason, I need to know where you stand on this matter, Wallace. Will you be able to kill these criminals with me, or am I standing alone?”

“No. I’ll stand by you for anything.” Wallace spoke in a soft, sad voice. “There are too many criminals in the city now. Maybe if we kill enough of them, the rest will retreat.”

“That’s what I’m hoping, but they could very well stay to the last one,” I said and activated my suit. “There’s no telling what will happen.”

“We need to face it,” Wallace said. “This plot is a crap shoot just like all the others. If you roll the dice and Miracle Man doesn’t show, just—”

“Yes Wallace,” I cut him off, tired of going over the same conversation. “I will close out my career whether he shows up or not, so please leave it alone. Now, I’m going out on patrol, but it isn’t going to be pretty. I think it would benefit us to thin out the herd today, so I’m going to be doing all I can in that regard.”

I concentrated on becoming invisible, pleased to note that my body faded out of view.

“Uh, Duggan?” Morgan asked in a low voice.

“Yeah?” I said and turned to him.

“We can still see your head. A mask might be a good idea,” Morgan suggested.

“Hell with it,” I said and smirked. “Today, I’ll be patrolling as the terrible ‘floating head o’ death’.”

I flew up and out of my laboratory window, not too surprised when Wallace joined me. However, I was surprised to find Leona flying on my other side a moment later. Leona despised the collars and swore she’d never wear one, so this was truly an event worth mentioning.

Leona was quicker to speak. “Need a little company?”

“It couldn’t hurt,” I replied and smiled at her.

“There was something I wanted to tell you.” Leona said, her expression becoming whimsical. “Chet has been by my apartment several times in the last two days. I had told him in passing that you’d been shot, and he seemed concerned over how you are. If I didn’t know better, I almost think he was smitten with you.”

Leona laughed, but her smile faded when she looked down. Pointing to a group of motorcycles, she said, “Say, isn’t that the Weasel’s gang?”

“It sure is,” I said, already angling down for a landing. “Let’s go chat with them.”

We landed just a few yards away from the bar where the gang was hanging out on their bikes.

Leona turned to me. “Let me do the talking on this one,” she requested, relieved when I nodded.

Turning to look at Weasel, she smiled sweetly. “Goodness me! You and your boys sure are making yourselves right at home here in our city, aren’t you?” She spoke in a sugary sweet voice that was quite annoying, and I felt sure she was almost gagging on her own words.

Weasel laughed, putting his hands behind his head and leaning back on his bike. “And why not? You guys don’t have a hero who cares about little thugs like us, so it’s been easy pickings in the drug and prostitution circles these days.”

“That’s not the point,” Leona said as the look on her face hardened. “You see, there is such a thing as respect. Not one of you has paid any fees to Light Master, and this is our city, not yours. I’ll give you two chances to get on your bikes and leave the city quietly.”

“Why two?” Weasel asked. He was still grinning like a jackass, though his voice betrayed that he was already concerned.

“I know you won’t take the first chance, but maybe after I’ve killed a few of your guys, you might realize that it’s better for you to leave.” Leona’s voice had shifted to a cold flat tone. “If you blow your second chance, I’ll just have to kill all of you. So, who wants to test me?”

Not one man stepped forward to make that challenge. The only movement was them getting on their bikes and getting out of town.

Leona’s reputation sent many lesser criminals away that night, but they were all common thugs until we were confronted by Icee and Flare.

I had received payment from both kids, and while I really liked Icee, I considered her older brother a pain in the ass.

When I say kids, I mean kids, though at the time I didn’t know how old either one was. The fact that they sought us out angered me, but again Leona insisted that she should handle the situation.

Flare set his younger sister down as soon as he landed, regarding us with an angry scowl. “We heard you’ve been running everyone out of town,” he said and sneered confidently. “You won’t be making us leave.”

“We’ve decided to kill you, and then we’ll run this town,” Icee said coldly.

Sorry.

“City,” Leona corrected her. “We live in a city, not a hick town like the one you two obviously ran away from. I won’t kill you twerps, but I will happily beat the shit out of both your asses if you don’t hop on the next bus home to mommy and daddy.”

“They’re dead,” Flare said hotly.

Geez, I am really, truly sorry.

Flare fired a thick stream of...well, of fire, really. It sizzled as it split the air, passing through Leona and striking the building behind her.

Leona smiled. “It tickles,” she said and leapt forward, grabbing Flare’s arm. Twisting it up and to the side, she backhanded him hard and dropped the crying boy to the ground.

Turning to his sister, she glared menacingly. “Do you want to play patty cake with me, little girl?”

“No,” Icee whimpered, her eyes locked on her big brother.

“The two of you should go home,” Leona said. “If your parents are dead, then move in with a relative.”

Flare shook his head. “The—they’re not really dead. I just said that because it sounds like something a villain should say.”

“No, that’s what villains do,” I said. “I really did kill my father, but then, he was abusing me sexually.”

This revelation caused Flare to look at his sister with a pained scowl, and I suddenly realized why they’d left home.

The anger was gone from my voice as I said, “You two would make better heroes than villains someday, so just...go live with an aunt or uncle and be normal brats for now. Just get out of City before it’s too late.”

“God, when did you become such a pussy?” Flare asked.

“Since he got laid,” Leona quipped. She slapped a hand over her mouth then looked at me apologetically.

Sighing, I said, “Just get out of the city. Tomorrow, I may have to kill a lot of people, and I don’t want either of you to be included in that pile of bodies. You both know I make piles, and tomorrow I’ll be making a mountain of any criminals who get in my way. Does that make this a little easier for you?” I asked, watching both kids nod.

We watched Flare pick his sister up and fly away.

Leona turned to me and smiled. “I’ve got a good feeling about those two.”

“Me too,” I agreed. “I just hope they’re smart enough to listen to us and leave.”

We were flying back to the lab when Wallace spotted a crack addict mugging a man with a blackjack. He chuckled ominously, which surprised Leona and I.

Speaking in a low voice, Wallace said, “I just got a really cool idea. Leona, go invisible. Duggan you too, and fly just a little bit behind me. Try to look dead until I tug on your hair,” he said and laughed evilly.

Yes folks, Wallace laughed evilly. I didn’t even know he had it in him.

He began to descend when it occurred to me to ask for my line. “What should I say?”

“You’ll know what to say when I tug your hair. Now close your eyes, both of you,” he muttered, and then he lit the suit up about a thousand times brighter than I ever would have thought possible.

Even with my eyes closed, I felt a stab of pain from the intensity of it. “Ow,” I grunted.

“Yeah, ease up on the light, Wallace,” Leona muttered.

The light receded enough where I could open my eyes, and through the floaters in my vision, I saw the crack junkie clawing at his eyes to clear his vision. Unlike us, he hadn’t been given a warning.

When his vision finally cleared, he looked right up at Wallace, who was literally turning night into day.

“Jamal, I am very angry with you!” Wallace bellowed.

“Light Master? Is that you?” Jamal asked.

“No, this is God,” Wallace said in a deep voice. “Jamal, I want you to get off of crack. For that matter, I want you to get off your mother.”

“It is God,” Jamal gasped and got on his knees. “What is your bidding, God?”

“I want you to go to college and get a degree in computer programming. Then I want you to make a software company, and I want you to call it Godwarez, with a Z. Can you remember all that, Jamal?”

It was getting harder not to laugh, especially when I could already hear Leona snorting as she suppressed a giggle.

Jamal nodded. “Yes God, with a Z. I got that. What kind of software should I make?”

“Make video games!” Wallace roared, and poor Jamal pissed himself. “Make lousy copies of hit games that try to remove the plot and add memorizing useless scripture for bonus points. Oh, and Jesus should be the hero in all of them!”

I could hear Leona’s laughter fading and realized she was rising to avoid ruining the joke. I was not so lucky, and I still had no clue what part I had to play in this little game.

“So uh, they should be like nice games?” Jamal asked.

“No! Make gory, violent games. The nastier they are, the bigger your spot will be in heaven!” Wallace reached back behind himself. I saw what he wanted and let him grab my hair. He drew me in front of him, tugging my hair. “And remember what Light Master’s head always says!”

I was lost for words. I didn’t have a clue what Wallace wanted me to say, so I blinked blankly at Jamal for several seconds.

“Don’t be shy,” Wallace mumbled.

Then I had my line. “Stop sucking dick for crack,” I moaned.

“Can I still do it for free?” Jamal asked.

“I don’t see why not!” Wallace roared before he tucked my head into his chest and made himself and my head vanish. I got loose in time to find Jamal running down the street, never once looking back as he left a trail of piss behind him.

Wallace chuckled and patted my shoulder. “I know he won’t be a problem anymore.”

“Wow,” I said, awed by his performance. “That was truly impressive. I mean, the audacity...” I remarked, trailing off as I saw the grin on Leona’s face.

“Let’s do another!” she said.

Wallace shook his head. “It’s late, and I have to get up early to drop Greg and his girlfriend off at the amusement park with Maggie.”

“Is she the skinny brunette that lives across the street?” I asked, remembering Greg dashing over to see her.

“She is. I really like her, and her parents are dentists.” Laughing, Wallace added, “That means Greg’s braces will be cheaper if he’s dating their daughter.”

“Hey, wait a minute, you can’t leave now,” Leona whined. “Hell, it’s barely nine-thirty!”

“So find something to do with Duggan.” Wallace offered her no chance at arguing. He flew off in the direction of his house, leaving poor Leona staring after him like a disappointed kid denied a piece of candy.

“I’m not ready to go home yet,” Leona pleaded in a petulant sounding voice.

I laughed as a wicked idea struck me. “You’re right, and the night is young. However, we have to go home to change clothes. After you dress, we’ll head to my place so I can get out of this suit and get into something more appropriate. Then I’ll slip on a collar and you and I will head out.”

“Where are we going?” Leona asked.

“You’ll see,” I said and laughed evilly. “Trust me, I know you’re going to dig this!”

We landed at her apartment, and she looked at me with curiosity as she went to her room. “What should I wear?”

“Something sexy.” I suppressed a laugh as her tail began to whip back and forth.

Minutes later, she emerged from her room in a one-piece black dress, the hem riding high on her legs. She looked very good, or more appropriately, very bad, an effect she helped by giving me a drop dead sexy pout.

“Is this what you had in mind?” Leona asked.

“And then some,” I said, giving her a small kiss before we left.

After dressing myself in black slacks and a black silk shirt, I went down to the lab, finding Morgan hard at work on one of the collars.

Hanging, my suit up in the vault, I asked, “Where’s Wally?”

“Children’s literature, aisle—sorry, I got a flashback from my last job at a book store. He sacked out on your couch right after you left. I can’t blame him. Poor kid didn’t sleep a wink while you were in the stasis pod. Those are LeVeaux’s designs, I take it?”

“No, they are LeVeaux’s old stasis pods,” I said, taking down a collar from the back wall. “He gave them to me as a lab-warming gift when I took over as the overlord.”

“I thought they looked familiar,” Morgan said.

Putting on the collar, I looked toward my couch in the lab, where Wally lay curled in a ball under a lab coat with his face tucked into the crook of his arm.

“Does he have anywhere to go?” I asked.

“I don’t think so. I asked him about his family, and he looked down and pouted for nearly an hour afterwards. He is a good hand though, and he’d make a fine lab technician with the right training,” Morgan said, sounding fond of Wally already.

“Yeah, well when he wakes up, find out if he’d like to work for Bella Monte Carlo. I got you a job, and I’m pretty sure I can sneak him in with you as a package deal. That is, if you don’t mind the kid riding your coat tails?”

“You know boss, you almost sound like a hero.” Morgan set aside his tools and frowned at me. “In fact, if I were guessing, I’d say you’re quitting this business to switch sides.”

I shook my head. “No, I’m done with the game for good.”

“I mean no disrespect when I say this, but that’s a load of bullshit. You know just as well as I do that this stuff gets in your veins,” Morgan said, slapping his arm like an addict for emphasis.

I nodded. “It did, not so long ago. Let me put it to you like this. How many people would you have to kill before you were ready to call it quits?”

“One thousand,” Morgan replied without hesitation.

“I have killed nine times as many on one day.” I paused to let it sink in that I was not joking. Then I activated my collar and hissed as the neural links punched though my skin.

Shivering, I said, “I’ve had enough, and I’m going to leave before I get another ‘brilliant idea.’”

I nodded toward Wally. “He looks pale. Have the two of you eaten anything recently?”

“Uh...” Morgan trailed off, looking at the ceiling. “No, I guess not.”

“Then quit working, and get something to eat. At the very least, order some pizza. Just make sure he eats soon.” I glared to make my point. “That’s an order, Morgan.”

“All right, I’ll wake the kid and we’ll grab something from up the street,” Morgan agreed, holding his hands up as if he were asking for mercy.

I nodded my approval. “Fine. I’m taking Leona out for the evening, and then I’ll be spending the night at her apartment. After you get Wally fed, send him to my room and put him to bed. Oh, and Morgan?”

“Yeah?” He asked.

“You could use a nap yourself, big guy. There’s a road map of Montana on your eye, and that wasn’t there the last time I checked. The couch upstairs folds out into a bed. Again, this is an order. I need both of you to be sharp tomorrow.”

I patted his arm before I returned to my apartment.

I found Leona standing by the door to the lab, a whimsical smile on her face. “You’re really getting soft in your old age.”

I smiled, shaking my head. “I’ll prove you wrong tonight. Are you ready?”

“Of course,” she said and laughed softly.

As we flew side by side under the star-filled sky, Leona took my hand and squeezed it. “Will we have a big cabin?”

Smiling, I nodded. “We need a room for a gym, a room for you, one for my workshop, and a bedroom.”

“Just one?” Leona asked.

“Do we need another?” I remarked, smiling as Leona drifted closer to me.

“No, I was just checking,” she said, her eyes sparkling with glee.

I intentionally landed a block away from our destination, but it became obvious to Leona as soon as she saw the sign. She laughed and pulled me along, almost dragging me behind her as she ran to the strip club.

The sign she read proclaimed this to be the club’s male model revue night.

We had a blast, not to mention having several lap dances. One bulky stripper even tea-bagged Leona.

We both made some beautiful Kodak moments at that club, all of which Leona agreed to hide in a shoebox on the top shelf of her closet for safe-keeping.