XLIX
The white light of the portal fills the poorly lit lobby signaling as a beacon of hope for the girls.
Given the weak condition of Casta, Polterghoul has no choice but to move her with her powers, an of sight, like carrying around an inflatable witch doll attached to a chain.
On the other side of the portal, the ghouls appear with their rescued hostage, Cat Tastrophe battle scarred but standing, Polterghoul hovering with a gloom aura of grief and rage, and Emerald Enchantress barely conscious but free.
"Where are Webarella and Wonder Wolf?" the ghost girl asks.
"Uuuh… they haven't requested an exrraction yet," Ms. Dead Fast, the leader of the Power Ghouls answers, watching her friends lost in the joy of glorious combat on a computer screen. "I'm guessing she really wants to see if she can take on a Leviathan."
Here inside the makeshift base of operation, she has been able to command the rescue mission which, even if lacking finesse, is nonetheless a success. Who knew drones would be so useful? She did, and because she's a genius, building a few improvised surveillance drones that stream directly into this rigged computer, or computers? Is one of those big ass multiple screens all science-based heroes always have.
Having the proportional speed of a hummingbird helps building those things. She's got a really nice operation going on here, really. A supercomputer assembled from the normal computers, tablets and smartphones she found in the building that doesn't really look like cobbled together unless you know what you're looking for. Totally lost in her role as Ms. Dead Fast, by the way, with all the powers of her greatest hero Dead Fast.
In a black and red blur, she reaches to the witch who in her medical opinion, humble as that of a would-be doctor with a super brain still in senior year can be, looks like shit.
"She's physically fine, but they did something to her. I'm guessing magical. Take her to Keith, he's the one who knows how to deal with it, and you come with me. I got some pain killers for you, but don't dare make an insipid joke regarding me providing you drugs without recipe or any related comment."
"Well, you just like sucking the fun out of everything," remarks Cat Tastrophhe.
Drugs provided, she sits back on her computer screen to check on her friends.
"Webarella, are you ghouls ready? I mean the mission is over, we got Emerald Enchantress a while already."
"Oh yeah? Care to tell that to Wonder Wolf yourself? I mean, I already had my fair share of fun hunting these creeps, but she doesn't look like she's anywhere near that point." Webarella explains watching at her friend lost in a frenzy, all wild and somehow still fashionable — "I mean, seriously, how the bloody hell is her hair still done? It should be a mess by now and is still a perfectly tied ponytail!" She complains.
"A ponytail? She didn't —"
"She stopped in the middle of the fight to pick up her hair in a perfect ponytail because it was getting in her line of sight, while I was riding a skeletal dragon made of skeletons with a lasso. She made me ride that thing, F.Y.I."
"I guessed I missed that part… sounds like it was clawesome."
"Too bad, it was very fun to watch," she reckons, yet not without exhaustion dragging down her voice.
"I can extract you now if you want."
"Thanks, but I think I'll be sitting here for a while and wait till she's done. Feel like a total cunt leaving her behind. Do you know if she can even get tire?"
"When I tested Wonder Wolf's powers in the past, she yielded the highest physical results. Her stamina levels in a full moon night are off the charts, capable of exerting herself at peak capacity for as long a there is a shining moon bathing her in its light so…"
A deep sigh hits the comlink "So I gotta wait for sunrise —"
"And there isn't such a thing as a sunrise here." She cuts in.
"Or I gotta wait for her to finish with every single one of them —"
"And we know there isn't a finite number to them. Or at least that is the way it seems, this might actually be an opportunity to see if my former hypothesis stands correct, or if they just have a very large number of minions. Also, I would like to see what her true upper limits are, her prior tests are not fully —"
"Sure, sure, baby, sure, you keep her body count. I'll spin myself a nice hammock and wait here, maybe take a nap. I'll dial you in if she's over."
"Roger."
Well, this isn't quite how I had envisioned the plan, but I cannot argue with the results seeing how Enchantress is here safe and hale… mostly hale, the x-rays show nothing broken, but with her being a witch, I can't say that is all there is, better leave it to an specialist — and what a chance this is to test the full limits of Wonder Wolf. When I first recruited her, it always seemed as if she were holding back, which can hardly be said this time. There is also the flight, that's new. At first I thought she was just jumping really high and fast, but seeing her float steady in the air, then move and even shift her trajectory as she needs is enough confirmation to debunk my initial hypothesis. Wonder Wolf can fly, for some reason, which is a good thing I guess, since it has proven really useful for her in combat. The question still stands, though — how and why did she develop this power?
Well, that is not important anyway, what matters is that she can do more than any of us can against those… overgrown minions.
I just wish I could have been more useful in combat like she is… all I could do when we got here was saving the regular denizens from danger and barely on time, but I can't really stop them and if they happen to find us in here… I'm not sure I'll be fast enough to save everyone should the worst come to happen. Those golems are tough looking, but worse, good thing they're not the crystal and metal kind. Never thought I could hate being a fragile speedster instead of a flying brick. My power is no good for offensive but at least thanks to Enchantress's charms everyone is safe here… for the moment, which means I must do what I do best: lead my team even if is from behind scenes. The other heroes are doing fine on their own, luckily, which means I can focus solely on my team.
That's the difference here, isn't? With Ghoulia now as Ms. Dead Fast. The second she realized what was happening she just shifted into leader-mode almost on instinct.
"You need men in these buildings. Quickly! There are people on the streets and they can be running right into the line of fire. You look inside these buildings and see if we can take them to the basements, if we can't, go through the subway, you keep them off the streets. I need a perimeter as far back as 6-26th," she commanded, assessing the situation and ordering Polterghoul and Webarella to help her take care the civilians while others — possessed by their costumes — fought the immediate threats, and then pretty much benched herself when she realized how much of a liability she was on the field. Those are just the most obvious moments.
If only I were faster. Even with the proportional speed of a hummingbird I am too slow, too bad Voltageous isn't here with us.
Too bad that she's forgetting this reality is fake and the dreams are real.
"Ghoulia, baby… mind coming here?" Morningstar asks from the improvised infirmary.
"Sure," moans, reaching the wide distance between her chair and the door in a dark and red blur. "What's the matter?"
"We got a situation here," he whispers in her left ear. "I need you to call back all the ghouls, specially Clawdeen — Wonder Wolf. We'll need her for this."
"That might prove difficult, considering she's now — how can I explain this? — fully invested into dwindling any and all enemy forces with absolute violence. Honestly, I don't believe is any way wise to interrupt her now, I saw her punch down a Leviathan the size of three city blocks with just one fist," she utters quickly, getting a disapproving glare from him. "Are you sure you can't wait about five or ten minutes? This seems the last one, and I believe she can dispose of it in —"
"We might not have ten minutes," he cuts her off. "Bring me Wonder Wolf here, now." Keith orders in such a dire tone she feels not only compelled to oblige, but shuddering in her spine.
Running to the computers, she calls for Wonder Wolf, who so blissfully replies.
"No way! I'm not done! I still got one more of this suckers to kill!"
"I told you," Ms. Dead Fast turns to Keith, calmly striding at her side.
"Clawdeen, deary mine… milochka, would you mind please be done with it quickly and get back here?" asks kindly and patiently, as a father would with a child that wouldn't understand is time to leave the park, rather than a lover.
An exasperated sigh sounds through the comlink. "When you put it like that… fine!"
On the screen, they see how she swiftly carves her way into the Leviathan's skull, digging out the large though surprisingly small brain of the creature, or perhaps is just a portion of it.
With the first blow, the creature began to fall, and as soon as the large mass of brain material is gouged out, Ii plummets onto the streets, slithering to the side of Webarella and Selina who just watch calmly swinging in the hammock, protected from any harm by her charms. Turns out having a magical cat can be useful.
"That was a good hunt!" Wonder Wolf says jumping off the Leviathan.
Well, that surely sets her strength level on a whole new scale. Her file must be updated as soon as possible — her threat level most definitely ranks higher now. It will take more time than anticipated for me to prepare for her, concludes Ms. Dead Fast.
Moments later, Wonder Wolf and Webarella walk through their portal.
" — guts out and still not a single spec of blood on your hair, you barely got any on your body and armor! How is that possible!?" Webarella rants madly.
"Being super fabulous is part of my power set, can't be super fabulous with ruined hair or bloody stains on me. Just roll along with it as I do with anything here." Wonder explains, calmly.
"I'm just saying is not fair," she whines as Selina jumps off of her head.
"I see you had your fun fighting the forces of evil," interjects Keith.
"Yeah, it was quite a blast. Havne't had a hunt like that since forever! Wanna see whoever the big bad guy is trying to trash every building to find us now I trashed his army."
"Heh, good work there." Polterghoul says.
"Yeah, nice way to spell overkill," Cat Tastrophe says from behind, somehow her costume is now good as new, which seems to happen with all their costumes, worst they have gotten is an hour with obvious handsewn stitches before repairing themselves magically. "I love your hair, so smooth and shinny, like a lamp I can sleep sleep on," utters mesmerized by her green glowing hair, reaching out to touch her.
"What? No…" replies confused.
"Can you be my night light?"
"Why —?"
"The night is dark and full of terrors… and that's scarry…" she whispers, scratching her hair.
"Da fuck?" Wonder wonders wildly confused.
"Ignore her, she's under strong medication." Ms. DF explains.
"Lovely. Remember the conversation we had earlier about this place being safe because this place isn't real?"
"Good news and bad news. Good news, you finally were right about something, bad news, is not the something you wanna be right about."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well, I will try and make myself sound stupid enough for you all to understand. I had my gauntlet scanning the — big-complicated-word-you-won't-understand — structure of this bubble, not as hard as I thought, and the result indicates that in about an hour or so, this whole bubble will implode, collapsing under its own weight and crushing everything inside as a magical supernova that could take the whole school with it, leaving a whole in reality."
"What!?"
"I know, right? The chances of it happening are so slim as it only happened once, yet my initial assertion that this place would safely collapse soon as sunrise came in the real world were wrong. But worry not, remember my second rule, always get back to the first rule. I can get us all out safely, without any harm and maybe do something about their memories of tonight as soon as I can get Casta's magic inside me."
"How —"
"A comp!icated and surgically precise procedure that has no business being explained to the minds of non practitioners. What I need you all to do is, get ready to hold the fort while I do what I have to do."
"Why do we have to hold the fort?" Polterghoul asks.
"Because as I just found out, the big bad guy of the movie, whom she wanted to show at the end of this should-have-been-teaser, has become fully sentient and was not pleased with finding out he isn't real and reality is out there. Now he is actually planning on making his next move here now we have stolen his golden ticket to the real world, that is what he would do considering who he is and that he had tracking parasites inside her. Already had them out of the patient, thanks to my lovely assistants, I knew I could find some use for pretty plant chick and Lady Steam, but he has a rough idea where to start looking for."
"WHAT?!"
He drops that bomb just like that, we're all going to die by the greatest evil of all, spoilers, and just like that Ghoulia's greatest fear comes true.
"What? You can't just drop something like that!" Wonder Wolf nags him.
"Well, there is no easy way to put it." Keith retorts without the slightest concern.
"Hey, looks like she's about to have a nervous breakdown," Polterghoul points out, looking at Ms. Dead Fast.
"It can't be! It can't be! IT CAN'T BE! IT CAN'T BE! None of this is real! NONE OF THIS IS REAL!" Ghoulia shouts, hands on her head, shaking frantically.
"So this is what it looks like when a cartoon character finds out the truth about its fictional reality," Keith murmurs into Wonder Wolf's ear. "I always preferred them when they get all Deadpool or Bugs Bunny."
