DISCLAIMER: I own absolutely none of the properties you will see here. All rights go to their respective owners.
Infinity Verse Spotlight
SheZow: Bloodties
"So, how have you been since our last session?" Jazz asked.
Guy shifted uncomfortably in his seat upon hearing that question. On paper, there wasn't anything that he should be feeling uncomfortable about, but beneath the surface, it was a much different story. Since his last session with Jazz, [1] the secretly male hero had begun to get in touch his feminine side, and while he felt a bit more at peace with himself by accepting that part of himself, it was a side that he still had to hide from his parents, or better specifically, his father, who would disown him in a heartbeat if he ever confronted him about this. But aside from that, there was a bigger problem on the pink-powered heroine's mind at the moment. One that was the major reason as to why he was here in the first place.
"Fine doc, I guess..." SheZow began halfheartedly. "I've doing as you've suggested and have been getting in touch with my more feminine side and it's taken a load off my mind, but..."
"But?" Jazz repeated questioningly.
"Well, in case you're not in the know, I've been seeing one of the staff members in the P.R. department," the Glamazon warrior admitted. "Her name's Heidi. I actually met her during that whole mess with Krang and his rock warriors in Norrisville a little while back. [2] I even helped her get the P.R. gig."
"That's good. I'm glad you're getting out there. Having a partner could prove to be what you need during this fragile time for you," the psychiatrist replied.
"Yeah, well, that's the thing," SheZow corrected. "We're having a date tonight, and a part of me want's to tell her something about myself that I probably shouldn't tell her."
"I see," Jazz understood. "You want to reveal your secret identity to her."
"...Yeah..." the pink powered heroine confirmed slowly.
"Are you scared that she'll reveal your identity?" the ginger reasoned. "Or are you scared that she'll reject you once she sees the real you?"
"The latter," SheZow answered. "I'm afraid that, if I show her who I really am, she won't accept me."
"And what makes you think that?" Jazz asked.
"Let's just say that I'm not always the woman I claim to be," SheZow replied. "I feel like I've been lying to her all this time, and if she knows the truth about me, she'll turn her back on me."
"Well, you obviously care about Heidi, that much is clear," the superhero psychiatrist concluded. "But it seems to me that you're more scared of the idea of revealing yourself to her because even you're not ready to accept that part of yourself. If she does reject you, then that'll be excuse for you to keep that side of yourself buried."
Guy hadn't thought of it from that angle. True, he had been more willing to indulge in his own inner feelings by buying women's clothing for his own personal wardrobe, but he wasn't quite exactly showing it off in public either. Whenever he was alone at home and not distracted by his duties with the League, Guy would dress up in the clothing he had purchased and would look at himself in the mirror, and while a part of him would feel at peace with what he saw, there was still another side of his mind that wasn't 100% on board with this new him just yet. If Heidi rejected not only his true identity but also his secret desires, then would that mean he wouldn't truly accept himself anymore?
"So, what should I do?" the secretly male hero wondered.
"If you're still not fully on board with telling her who who you really are, then maybe now isn't a good time to talk about it," Jazz advised. "If you can't accept yourself, then how can you expect others to do the same?"
"That's a bit blunt don't you think?" SheZow pointed out.
"I'm a psychiatrist, SheZow, sometimes I have to be blunt," Jazz explained before looking at her watch. "I'm afraid that's all the time we have. I'd like to pick up on this next Thursday. If that's okay with you, of course."
"Sure," the Glamazon warrior agreed glumly. "I'll see you next week, Doc."
With that, the pink-powered heroine stepped out of Jazz's office. But just as Guy opened the door, he found the Ninja standing in the doorway, no doubt here for his own private session with Jazz.
"Oh, hey dude, how was your session?" the defender of Norrisville asked.
"It was...insightful," SheZow answered before asking "I'm headed to your neck of the woods tonight by the way. Thought I'd give you a heads up."
"Oh, really? What for?" the Ninja asked curiously.
"I've got a date with Heidi tonight," his teammate answered.
"Oh, so you guys are official now, huh?" the protector of Norrisville gathered.
While SheZow and his/her girlfriend wanted to keep their relationship on the down-low, it was hard to do so when their friends and co-workers could easily see how close they had gotten in such sort amount of time. No doubt the moment that showed the others that they were more than just friends was when Heidi visited Guy in the infirmary after the beating he and the other leaders took during their fight with Brightburn. [3] Since then, they had been all but official among their peers, though they kept their dates strictly on the Tower so as not to be hounded by the media like the Ninja and Rena were.
The other reason was that, if they did go public with their relationship, they'd be demonized for their love, and while SheZow was really a man under the skirt, to the rest of the world, and his beloved, he was a woman. The only reason they were doing this date in Norrisville was that Heidi was sick of all the hiding and wanted to get over the anti-LGBT BS as soon as possible. It was this fear of going public that was another reason Guy was fearful of his true gender being revealed, for he feared that his status as a trans-superhero would have the general public look poorly on the League, and while Guy's team was quite accepting of all people, he knew that the outside world didn't always share that view.
"Yeah, I guess we are," SheZow confirmed before asking. "Hey, Ninja, you've known Heidi longer than I have, so maybe you can answer something for me."
"Sure, dude, what's up?" the Ninja assured.
"Well, it's like this, you see," his friend began. "I want to tell Heidi my secret identity, but I don't know how she'll take it. You think she'll accept me for who I really am?"
"It's kinda hard to say, really," the Ninja admitted. "I mean, I didn't even know she was into girls until she started dating you. But as far back as I can remember, she's never really liked surprises. On the other hand, she does really care about you, so maybe she'll be cool with it. Look, I know it's corny to say this, but you just gotta be yourself and hopefully she'll accept you for who you really are."
'Easier said than done,' Guy thought to himself.
"Besides, it's not like you're really a dude underneath that skirt, so I think you're good," his fellow League leader added jokingly, effectively killing any remaning trace of confidence Guy had left in his body.
"Heh-heh...yeah," SheZow laughed nervously in agreement. "Well, I need to go get ready for tonight. Wish me luck!"
"You don't need luck, you're SheZow!" the Ninja assured.
Guy didn't answer. Instead, he only walked away, all the while wondering what his next move should be.
Kelly and Maz had been watching Guy pace back and fourth in the She-Lair for nearly ten minutes now while still in his superhero persona, all the while he had a look of utter distress on his face. They already knew what was on the trans-hero's mind, and even though they were supportive of him, they knew that this situation was going to happen at some point.
"If your this stressed out about telling Heidi who you really are, then don't do it," his sister suggested. "It's kinda obvious that even you aren't ready to tell her."
"I know, but if I don't tell her now, then when?" Guy answered. "I can't be SheZow around her 24/7!"
"I don't see the big deal here," Maz interjected. "Heidi's bi, right? So, she'll still be into you even if you tell her you're really a dude."
"That's not the point, Maz," his friend corrected sharply. "The point is that she's in love with Shezow, who, need I remind you, she thinks is a woman!"
"...So?" the sidekick asked, still not getting it.
"So, I've been lying to her face this whole time!" Guy exclaimed.
"Oh," Maz understood. "Then it's gonna be real awkward when she finds out that she got a hotdog when she ordered a taco."
Kelly swiftly popped Maz over the head for that crass remark.
"I deserved that," the sidekick admitted.
"Look, if Heidi truly loves you, then she'll accept you for who you are," his twin sister advised. "But if you deiced to do this, then you should at least consider everything that goes along with revealing your secret identity. Even if she rejects you, then she'll still know who you really are, and that could be dangerous for both you and her. And I don't think I could stop her from leaking the information even if I fire her."
"I doubt she'd turn on me even if she didn't accept that I was a boy. She has too much respect for the hero community to do such a thing," SheZow reasoned. "But you're right, Kelly. If I tell her, it puts a target on her back for all my enemies to exploit no matter what happens between us."
Guy crossed his arms as he stopped mid-pace while he mentally weighed his options. He didn't really give much thought about what the ramifications of telling his lover who he really was might ensue until those words left his mouth. He didn't take into account that, regardless if Heidi embraced his true gender or not, she'd still be in a world of danger. For now the world, or better put, his enemies, would know that the great and powerful SheZow now had lover that they could use to get to her. True, Heidi was by no means a damsel in distress, as was clear during Krang's attack on Norrisville, but Guy still didn't want to run the risk of putting her in danger.
Just then, SheZow's Infinity League communicator went off. As he took it out to answer it, Maz and Kelly remained silent so as not to let anyone on the other end of the line discover the secret connection they had with Shezow. Guy checked to see who was calling him and saw that it was Kim.
"What's going on, Kim?" he asked in his fellow leader in his SheZow voice.
"We just got a hit on a break-in at Axiom Labs in Amity Park," Kim said, "It was SheZap."
Guy's breath was caught in his chest as fear took hold of him. SheZap was his dark clone that he inadvertently created when he bit off a broken nail and accidentally spit it into a vat of chemical waste. The toxic waste mixed with the magical energy that SheZow was endowed with gave birth to the evil version of the Glamazon warrior, SheZap. As a clone of SheZow, SheZap was endowed with most of the powers and gear that Guy had, along with a few new abilities that she learned through self-training. SheZow had quite the list of villains, but none scared him the way SheZap did.
"We've been going over the footage. Looks like SheZap managed to sneak past the labs security systems via her shadow travel," Kim continued. "The guards that were on duty tried to stop her, but they didn't stand a chance. Thankfully, she didn't kill any of them, but she did put at least five of them in critical condition before making off with some tech."
"Wait, Shezap stole something?" Guy questioned. "That's not like her at all."
"What do you mean?" Kim asked.
"SheZap's only ever been about spreading chaos, she's never been about stealing anything before," SheZow explained. "It's just not her M.O."
"Well, it is now, apparently," his teammate confirmed. "We're still trying to figure what exactly she stole. All we know is that it's some old tech from back when Vlad Masters owned the facility."
"You guys need me to come in and help out?" SheZow inquired. "I can have Wheeljack teleport me to your current location."
"Don't bother, SheZap's already long gone and was pretty good at covering her tracks," Kim declined. "Besides, I don't want to spoil your date tonight or I'd never hear the end of it from Heidi."
"Well, keep me posted if you find out anything new," the fellow League Leader insisted.
"Will do," Kim assured. "Have a good time tonight!"
With that, Kim hung up, leaving Guy with a new moral dilemma: Either stay on the date and let SheZap run free, or cancel it and go look for his evil clone. On one hand, if he took off to help in the hunt for SheZap, Heidi would be understanding of his actions. She knew what she was getting into when she got into a relationship with the superhero and wouldn't condemn her lover for doing her job. But on the other hand, Guy hated the idea of standing up the woman he loved, and a part of him only wanted to hunt down SheZap just so it could use an an excuse to avoid his talking with her lover.
"I know what you're thinking," Kelly spoke up. "And you're NOT ducking out of this date."
"Wait, your telling me NOT to go after Shezap?" her twin sibling replied, generally confused by the comment. "That's so not like you."
"You heard Kim. You couldn't find Shezap even if you were there with them," Kelly reminded him. "Besides, the League can handle this."
She then placed a hand on her sibling's shoulder.
"And you need this," Kelly continued. "Because you're right. If you don't tell her now, then you never will."
"Thanks, Kelly," Guy replied before embracing her for a tight hug.
He then took out his commutator and handed it to her.
"Just so I won't be tempted," he said.
With one more hug between the twins, the pink-powered heroine walked over to her vehicle before getting in and switching it to its jet form. SheZow then fired up the rockets and launched into the sky. At the speed the She-C-10 flew, it would take Guy roughly an hour and a half to get to Norrisville. Not wanting to sit in silence and be left with his thoughts, Guy turned on the radio to listen to some music. However, it would seem that the universe wanted to have its fun with him.
THAT, THAT, DUDE LOOKS LIKE A LADY-
"That's not helping," Guy mentioned as he switched the station.
I MET A BOY WEARING VANS, 501'S AND A DOPE BEASTIE TEE, NIPPLE RINGS-
"Are you kidding me?" SheZow growled before switching the station again.
I'M JUST A SWEET TRANSVESTITE FROM TRANSSEXUAL, TRANSYLVANIA-
"Oh, fuck you!" Guy exclaimed before switching off the radio.
It was going to be a long, silent, flight.
Heidi couldn't keep herself from smiling as she straightened her hair in front of the mirror. Despite the fact that she had gone on many dates with her super-powered lover, this would be the first date they would have that would be in public. The redhead would be lying if she said that wasn't nervous about tonight, considering that this would mean that the world would discover that one of the leaders of the Infinity League was gay, which would no doubt rub certain people and religious groups the wrong way. Heidi could hardly care about what the ignorant had to say, but she was well aware that the public's opinion on SheZow may change for just her sexual orientation alone. However, it might not be all bad, considering that perhaps SheZow coming out would do some good for people who truly needed it.
In the time she been with the Glamazon warrior, she had come to learn things about her lover that were not known to the general public. For instance, the ring that gave the line of SheZow their powers was not only magical, but also cosmic in nature. While the pink-powered heroine didn't know the exact details, what was known was that millions of years ago, the first SheZow found a meteorite that fell to Earth and was endowed with its power. It wasn't until much later that the meterorite was forged into a ring. The ring also was able to unlock the wearer's latent meta-gene, thus giving them their array of powers. Not only that, but the ring managed to download and save the powers in unlocked from previous SheZows' and pass it onto the next generation. For instance, the SheZow Heidi was dating had unlocked the power to talk to animals, so when the time came for her to retire, or worse, die, her niece would also gain that power when she put on the ring.
Heidi always found it odd that the ring was only passed down from aunt to niece, but according to her lover, it didn't necessarily have to be that way. The ring was coded to the bloodline of SheZow since the cavewoman who was their ancestor was the first to touch the rock those centuries ago, making the ring useless to those who didn't share the first SheZow's bloodline. As for the reason for the ring being passed from aunts to nieces, it was the niece of the first bearer of the ring that took it after her childless aunt had died from her wounds sustained from a brutal fight with a monster. From then on, it became a tradition that the aunt would pass the legacy down to the niece and so on and so fourth. However, SheZow did say that it was possible for anyone who shared the same DNA as her to wear the ring.
Just then, Heidi's train of thought was stopped when she heard the sound of a knock at her door. Her parents were out for the night, which only meant one person who would be disturbing her at the moment. With an angry sigh, Heidi turned away from her mirror and stormed over to her bedroom door before throwing it open to reveal her brother, Howard, standing there.
It had been a few months since her brother had merged his soul with the psychotic red-clad reaper known as Grell Sutcliff, [4] and the young reporter still had a hard time wrapping her head around it. As the other protector of Norrisville whenever the Ninja was away, Grell was the city's more brutal guardian, usually leaving criminals in the ER with a few limbs missing. Heidi wanted to tell the League, as well as their parents, about Grell and his violent actions, but due to his connection to her younger brother, she feared that he'd be punished for the reaper's actions.
"What the juice do you want, Howard?" she demanded. "I'm kinda in the middle of getting ready for a date here!"
"Grell asked if you wanted, ugh, beauty tips," Howard forced himself to say.
"Well, you can tell that psycho living in your head that I don't need his help!" his older sister declined sharply.
'Hmph, well I never!' Grell snapped angrily from within Howard's mind.
'And you never do,' Howard mentally replied.
'Quite you!' Grell snapped back.
"Anyway, don't you have a patrol tonight or something?" Heidi questioned.
"Nah, we decided on a personal day," Howard answered before asking. "So, when are you going to be back home tonight?"
"Why do you care?" his sister demanded.
"Well, shockingly, I do care about your well being," Howard said. "You are dating a chick who's basically a goddess. Kinda cause for some alarm if you ask me."
Heidi was taken aback by that statement. The relationship between the Weinerman siblings had always been an antagonistic one, what with them constantly picking on one another every chance they got. But to hear that Howard was genuinely concerned about her well-being touched her heart. Aside from the League, who managed to figure out her relationship after the battle with the villain known as Brightburn, [3] Howard was the only other person who knew about her relationship with SheZow. She wanted to tell her parents time and again about her pink-powered lover, but she couldn't bring herself to come out to them out of fear of how they'd react.
"Thanks, Howard," she said gently. "But I doubt SheZow's the type of woman to break a person's heart."
"Well, if she does break your heart, then Grell and I are gonna rip her's out," her brother swore, as his eyes flashes red for a moment. "I'm deadly serious."
"Relax, you two, it's not going to come to-" Heidi attempted to say.
The young reporter's words were cut off when she saw a pair of black and green gloves reaching out from the shadow on the wall behind Howard. Heidi screamed in horror as the the arms suddenly grabbed Howard by his shoulders and tossed him down the hall, knocking him unconscious upon hitting the wall. With her brother out of the way, the rest of the villain's body emerged from the wall.
"Oh my god..." Heidi gasped. "SheZap."
"Bingo, toots," the dark clone said with a dark smile as she stepped closer to the young reporter.
"W-what do you want?" Heidi stammered out.
"Ain't it obvious?" the villainess replied.
Suddenly, the twisted clone lunged forward, making Heidi scream in terror.
As Guy transformed his vehicle into its car form so he could park in front of the Wenierman's house, his danger sense, or as it was called, his She-SP, went off like a fire alarm in his mind. Wasting no time, SheZow jumped out of the car and flew up to Heidi's room where he threw up the bedroom window and climbed inside. As he surveyed the room, Guy didn't see any signs of a struggle, but he could sense that something as wrong.
"Heidi!" he called out. "Where are you?!"
The Glamazon warrior was so focused on finding his lover that he nearly ignored his She-SP warning him that danger was creeping up behind him. Acting quickly, SheZow activated his laser lipstick and blocked the sudden chainsaw that was coming down on him. The owner of said chainsaw appeared to be a red-clad woman, though it was clear that it was really a man making himself look like a woman, something Guy was very familiar with.
"Who the hell are you?!" the pink-powered heroine demanded. "And what have you done with Heidi?!"
"I should be asking you the same question, pinky!" the red-clad maniac answered. "I find you here in her room after some freak from the shadows blindsided me!"
Guy's eyes widened in horror upon hearing those words spoken. He instantly knew who had come and taken his girlfriend. His worst nightmare had become reality, and now she was at the mercy of his clone.
"Oh god, SheZap has Heidi!" Guy voiced his realization.
"Uh, She-who?" the stranger inquired, backing off as he did.
"My evil clone," SheZow clone. "She must have found out that Heidi and I are together and kidnapped her in order get to me!"
"So, in other words, this is your fault," the red dressed stranger pointed out.
"I can do without the criticism right now!" the heroine snapped back. "Who are you anyway?"
"Why, I'm Grell Sutcliff: reaper extraordinaire!" the stranger introduced.
"Gonna go out on a limb here and say that you're the nut-job who's been putting people in the ER around here," SheZow surmised. "How do I know that you aren't working with SheZap?"
"Because he's attacked the innocent, and while I could hardly give a shit before, I've had something of a...new lease on life," Grell explained. "Besides, something tells me that you're going to need some backup."
Guy hated to admit it, but the reaper was right. The one time he didn't bring his communicator was the time he needed it the most. True, he couldn't trust Grell, but right now he couldn't be picky with his backup right now.
"Fine, but we do this my way, got it?" SheZow ordered.
"Fair enough," Grell agreed with an eye roll. "Lead the way, fearless leader."
Just as the new team were about to leave the room, Guy stopped when he made another realization.
"Wait, where's Heidi's little brother?" he asked.
"Oh, that kid?" Gell answered a bit to quickly. "I saw him running down the street when I got here like a chubby little coward."
'Wow, fuck you to,' Howard mentally commented dryly.
SheZow only nodded in response to that. He didn't have time to check on Howard, but at least he was safe.
"So, do you have a plan?" the reaper question. "Kinda hard to catch a guy who can travel through shadows."
"I have an idea," the Glamazon warrior assured. "And I think you might like it."
Heidi didn't know where she was due to the fact that once SheZap had grabbed her, he blindfolded her before taking her into the shadows. Even though she couldn't see her surroundings, she could smell a foul stench in the air, like raw sewage. Suddenly, her blindfold was ripped off to reveal her new surroundings. It was deep in a sewer system, but the the room she was currently inside had been remodeled as a twisted version of SheZow's HQ. Heidi tried to move, but quickly discovered that she was unable to move due to the fact that she was tied down to an old wheelchair. It was then that SheZap stepped in front of her, all the way having a dark smile on her face.
"Sorry if the place is a mess, I've been remolding lately," SheZap said.
"Whatever you're up to, SheZow will stop you!" her captive proclaimed.
"Wow, right out the gate with that nonsense, huh?" the clone commented. "Do you even know what I'm up to?"
"It doesn't matter, because you won't-" Heidi attempt to say.
"Won't what? Get away with it?" SheZap cut her off snidely. "The only thing I'm trying to get way with trying is live to see the next day!"
"What are you talking about, you sicko?" the ginger demanded.
Before SheZap could answer her, someone stepped out of one of the sewer tunnels within the make-shift lair. It was a portly, middle-aged woman wearing glasses with short black hair and dressed in a brown coat with tan pants. Heidi instantly recognized the newcomer as one of Kim Possible's enemies known as DNAmy. A mad geneticist with a knack for creating hybrid monstrosities.
"I told you not to leave the base while I was working," the woman began. "If you wanted my help, then you should at least heed my advice."
It was then that the madwoman saw the new addition among them.
"Uh, who's this?" she asked, confused.
"This, good doctor, is SheZow's girlfriend," SheZap answered.
"SheZow's what?!" DNAmy exclaimed. "Do you WANT to bring your better half down on us before you're ready for her?"
SheZap suddenly grabbed her partner by throat and lifted her into the air.
"You should be less worried about what SheZow's going to do you and be more worried about what I'm going to you if you don't follow my orders!" the clone threatened.
"Got it, boss!" her cohort managed to choke out before being tossed to the ground.
"Good," SheZap snarled. "Now then, take our guest to your lab and get what you need from her. But I want her unharmed, understood?"
"Wait, what do you need me for?!" Heidi asked in a panic.
SheZap was about to answer, but before she could, she suddenly doubled-over and began to cough furiously. As she did, dark green veins began to form around on her face and neck. After the coughing fit was over, SheZap finally addressed her question.
"You think I'm a sicko, right?" she asked back. "Well, I'm sick alright. Very sick, in fact."
She then leaned into Heidi face.
"And your girlfriend is gonna help me, or else she'll be burying what's left you," she furthered in a dark tone.
Heidi was too scared to make a sound as DNAmy began to wheel her away. However, at the same time, she felt a strange sense of pity for the clone.
If SheZow and her new partner were to get the answers they sought, then they had to go to the one person who might have an idea as to where SheZap would be hiding. While SheZap had a preference to work alone, there was a brief time that the darker side of the Glamazon warrior allied herself with another one of SheZow's major enemies, Tara. Tara was a mentally unstable woman who use to be a former heroine who worked with Guy's aunt when she still wielded the ring. Sadly, jealousy and fading into obscurity took its toll on the woman's mind, driving her mad. In her quest to destroy SheZow, she allied herself with her dark counterpart in several attempts to destroy her, but the alliance didn't last long and Tara was soon captured and sent back to the asylum.
The trip required the duo to return to to Megadale, but SheZow's jet made it a quick trip back to Australia. The trip was silent. (well, at least on Guy's end anyway. Grell wouldn't shut up for thirty seconds.) The secretly male hero could only think about finding Heidi alive. He could only imagine what SheZap would want with her or what she was doing to his lover now. How could she have known about Heidi at all? They had kept their relationship a secret from the public, so how could have his most dangerous enemy discovered his girlfriend? He couldn't get an answer at the moment, but he was certainly going to get them out of Tara, even if he had to beat them out of her.
Once they arrived at the asylum, SheZow put the plane in a stationary mode before opening up the cargo hold to allow the unlikely team to leap out before smashing into the wall of the cell that was holding Tara, who was laying in bed reading a book when they broke in. Before Tara could register what was going on, SheZow yanked her out of her bed and pinned her up against another wall by her shirt.
"Here's what's going to happen, Tara," Guy began in a fierce voice. "Either you tell me where SheZap is hiding, or my red dressed friend here is going to take a lot off the top! And that's after I break every bone in your body!"
To get the point across, Grell revved up his chainsaw deathsyche to show they weren't playing games. But, rather than opt for silence, Tara was quick to answer their demands.
"She said you'd show up," Tara said. "She told me to tell you where to find her."
"Then tell me," the Galamzon warrior demanded.
"She's living in an old sewer system underneath the Megadale city limits," Tara answered.
"You think she's lying?" Grell asked. "I can really get her to talk."
"No, she's telling the truth," SheZow confirmed, dropping her enemy as she did. "Let's go."
"Oh, one more thing, SheZow", Tara mentioned. "She told me to send you a message."
SheZow stopped and turned to hear what her enemy could possible say to her.
"The SheZow who laughs is the SheZow who wins," Tara said. "And she beat you before long before you even realized it."
Guy glared at the madwoman before turning away and heading back to his jet, all the while Tara cackled madly the whole time.
After being wheeled into DNAmy's lab, Heidi was still trying to wrap her head around the whole situation that she was currently in. She still had no idea has to how SheZap figured out about her and SheZow's relationship, but right now she was more concerned with what the two villains wanted with her. It was then that she saw the mad scientist approach her with a rather large syringe.
"Now don't worry," DNAmy assured. "SheZap said not to hurt you, so you're safe."
"The giant needle in your hand says otherwise!" Heidi said as she began to panic in the wheelchair. "Let me go!"
"Now don't struggle. Wouldn't want me to hit something vital by accident, would we?" her captor advised, making Heidi stop "Good girl, now then..."
DNAmy then stuck her needle into Heidi's arm to draw out a small amount of blood before carefully removing the syringe.
"See? that wasn't so bad, was it?" the geneticist said.
"Why does SheZap want with my blood?" her hostage demanded. "And why is she sick?"
"Well, she's not so much sick as she is dying," DNAmy pointed out. "Her genetic make-up is breaking down on a cellular level. Every time she uses her powers, she speeds up the process."
"I guess that's what happens what happens when you make a freak of nature out of magic and toxic waste," Heidi coldly chided before adding "I don't see what that has to do with my blood."
"Oh, it has nothing to do with your blood. SheZap has something else in mind for it," the madwoman answered.
"I still don't understand how you got tied up into this," Heidi noted. "If I remember right, you make monsters, not fix clones."
"I know, and that's what I told her," DNAmy replied. "But I guess since she couldn't get her hands on someone like Anton Sevarius or Dr. Paradigm, she settled for me instead."
"In other words: She kidnapped you," Heidi surmised.
"Well, it's not like I'm doing all this because I like her," the madwoman noted.
"So, she's forcing you to find a way to cure her," the ginger reasoned.
"She's not curing anything," came a voice.
The two women turned around to see SheZap enter the lab. The dark green veins had vanished for now, but Heidi could still see a smear of blood tickling down from her lips.
"Now, admittedly, I did 'recruit' Amy to find a cure at first, but sadly, there was no way I could be saved. Even if I had a transfusion from my better half, it would only prologue the inevitable. But during her research, we made a rather interesting discovery. It turns out that my blood can alter the physical and mental state of anyone it comes in contact with, driving them as crazy as me!"
Heidi was horrified by what she was hearing from the mad clone. She knew that SheZap was insane, but she didn't think she'd go to such lengths as these.
"It was in that moment I had an epiphany. Since I'm walking bio-weapon, and not meant for this world much longer, I decided to go out with a bang, baby! I'm going to infect the entire Infinity League with my blood and then kick back with a dry martini and watch as the the world's greatest heroes tear this whole fucking planet apart like a bunch of rabid weasels!"
"You're a monster!" Heidi shot back defiantly. "SheZow will stop you!"
"Stop me? he couldn't even stop me from stealing his girlfriend!" SheZap said with a wicked laugh.
Before Heidi could could answer back, the clone's words caught her off guard.
"Why are you referring to SheZow as a guy?" she asked.
"Oh that's right, she didn't tell you, did she?" SheZap said slyly with a wicked smirk. "Well, get ready, toots, because I'm about to drop a massive spoiler!"
With a sudden flash of bright green light, SheZap revealed her true self to Heidi. Instead of a woman standing before her, it was a boy with sickly green skin and green highlights in his brown hair. SheZap smiled wickedly as he allowed the young reporter to take in the sight before her.
"No! This is a trick!" Heidi denied, shutting her eyes to keep from looking at him.
"I'm a near perfect copy of SheZow, remember?" SheZap reminded her. "This isn't a trick, babe, this is reality."
Heidi couldn't stop herself from letting tears fall from her eyes as the truth stood before her. She hated to admit it, but SheZap was right. SheZow, the woman she loved, had been lying to her all this time about who she truly was. Suddenly, the villain's lair shook violently, a clear indication that SheZow had arrived.
"Right on cue," SheZap mentioned as she switched back to her superpowered self. "Get out of here, doc. You've got work to do."
Not wasting any time, DNAmy quickly gathered up her equipment and the vial of Heidi's blood before making her way down one of the many tunnels within the sewer system, all the while the villain's liar continued to shake violently as the superhero tore her way though wall after wall to get to her enemy. Finally, with one last punch through a wall revealed SheZow with a deep, pensive glare at her wicked doppelganger.
"Oh, you made it, I'm so thrilled," SheZap greeted with a dark chuckle before gesturing to Heidi. "Here's your lovely lady. Completely unharmed, though I say that in the sense that's she's psychically unharmed. Mentally speaking might be a different story."
"I am going to rip you in half!" SheZow shouted furiously.
"Oh, now that I'd love to see," her dark doppelganger teased. "Let's see if you can back it up!"
In a blink of an eye, SheZow rocketed toward her clone at a speed not even Heidi though possible before grabbing SheZap and slamming her into a wall. With her enemy pinned, Guy attempted to deliver a punch toward SheZap face. However, before the blow could connect, SheZap sank into the shadows of the wall, leading to Guy only punch a hole instead. SheZap then re-materialized behind her better half with her own energy sword in hand. Thankfully, Guy's danger sense warned her of the oncoming attack, allowing him to block the sword with her own. The two clashed with their blades again, sending sparks from their swords with every strike as they did. As they dueled, SheZap kept a sly smile on her face while Guy's visage was one of pure rage and fury. Shezap then ended the sword fight with a swift kick to SheZow's torso that sent her flying backwards. Guy quickly jumped back to his feet and unleashed a sonic scream that knocked his clone off balance, giving him enough time to dart forward and deliver a series of devastating punches that probably could've killed a normal human being.
However, as SheZow was so wrapped up in her rage, SheZap managed to block one of the punches before countering with one of her own that struck Guy in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him in the process. With her enemy stunned, SheZap then grabbed her better half by the hair before striking Guy in the face with one punch after another. SheZap then finished the assault by slamming SheZow's face into her knee and tossing her to the ground. SheZap attempted to stomp her boot through Guy's face, but thankfully, the Glamazon warrior managed to grab her boot and push it off his person, allowing him to get back to his feet.
As SheZap tried to regain her balance, Grell suddenly leaped out of the shadows with his chainsaw in hand, laughing maniacally as he did. SheZap narrowly avoided a swipe of the reaper's deathscythe as she jumped back away from the unlikely partners.
"Well, look at the three of us, a regular drag show," SheZap mocked. "Who's your new friend?"
"The name's Grell Sutcliff!" the reaper declared. "And who are you calling drag show, skank?!"
"Couldn't fight me without some back up, huh?" SheZap asked her enemy. "I'm little disappointed in you."
"Your not getting away this time, SheZap!" SheZow shouted as she reignited her sword.
"Like you haven't said that before," the clone answered, reactivating her own sword as she did.
Grell and Shezow rushed toward SheZap with their weapons at the ready. The duo attacked in unison, trying to get the clone off balance, but SheZap managed to keep to keep pace with them, blocking and parrying every slash from the sword and chainsaw. However, as the duel went on, Guy noticed that something was different about dark counterpart. He could see beads of sweat drop from her face as dark green veins started to form on her face and neck. No doubt feeling the change, SheZap suddenly used her own sonic scream to knock SheZow and Grell away from her. It didn't long for SheZow to figure out that something was seriously wrong with her dark clone.
"I hate to cut this sort, but I need to sit down before I pull something," SheZap said before coughing. "Besides, I've got something big planned, and I want you to see, sis!"
Shezap then began to sink into the shadows, to which Guy attempted to rush over and try to grab her before she could do so. But just before he could reach her, SheZap managed to slip into the shadows, leading to SheZow to let out an enraged cry as she began to violently punch the ground where her enemy had escaped into. With his clone once more in the wind, Guy focused his attention to Heidi, who was still tied up. Calming himself down, Guy went to her side and untied his lover, who all the while had a look of betrayal in her eyes.
"Did she hurt you?" he asked.
"N-no, I'm fine," Heidi assured weakly. "DNAmy is working with SheZap. She had her take some of my blood."
"For what?" SheZow asked.
"I don't know, but right now we have to warn the Infinity League," his lover informed him. "Shezap's going to try to infect the League with some kind of virus made from her blood!"
"Then let's get going," the pink-powered heroine said before taking her hand into his. "I'm just glad you're safe."
Heidi instantly pulled her hand away from Guy's like she had touched a hot stove, leaving her over confused.
"Are you okay?" the heroine asked.
In that moment, Heidi was speechless. There was so much that she wanted to say to the woman that she thought she knew. How could she betray her like this? She may have been bisexual, but that didn't negate the fact that the person she was in love with was someone who had been lying about her gender all this time. However, there were more things at stake to her that mattered more than her relationship.
"It's...it's nothing," she finally said. "We need to get back to the Tower and warn the League."
Still feeling as though something was wrong, SheZow only nodded in agreement before looking back at Grell.
"Let's go, nut-job," she ordered.
"Ugh, finally. All this dry air is making my hair frizz out," the reaper whined before asking. "So, does this mean I'm a part of the League?"
"Not by a long shot," SheZow denied. "Your reward is that I forget to mention you in my report to the League and let you go this time out of thanks for helping me. But don't think for a second I won't haul your ass to prison the next time we meet."
"Fine! I didn't want to be a part of your club anyway!" Grell spat. "I'll find some other team to be a part of!"
'Way to be mature, Grell,' Howard noted in the reaper's head.
As the trio left the remains of SheZap's base, neither Guy nor his girlfriend could shake the uneasiness that they both felt about the future. Not only because of the revelation that Heidi had, but also of the fear of the unknown as SheZap had gotten away to make her next move.
The moment SheZap rose from the shadows of his true lair, he immediately coughed up a mouth full of blood. He knew that it was a bad idea to try and fight his better half, but he needed a sample of SheZow's DNA to make a vaccine to slow her degeneration. Plus, it was just too much fun not to try and get in a few blows before running off.
Once the coughing fit ceased, SheZap made her way into the base where she found DNAmy working on her latest project. The equipment that SheZap had stolen from Axiom Labs was the cloning tech that Vlad Masters once used to try and create a perfect clone of Danny Phantom, which in turn lead to the creation of a heroic, female version of him instead. However, rather than try to clone something superhuman, the doppelganger had something different in mind for cloning pods.
"How's it looking?" she asked.
"Excellent! The samples took to the DNA sequencer better than I expected," DNAmy answered.
"That's good," SheZap said. "And here I was ready to rip your head off."
Amy gulped at that before speaking again.
"Well, everything's ready if you want to get started," she informed her.
"Not yet," the doppelganger declined as she showed her the blood of her enemy on her glove. "First, I need you to synthesize another vaccine for me."
"But you know these aren't curing you!" Amy pointed out.
"I know, but I wanna be at least live long enough to see the fruits of my labor," the clone explained. "I didn't spend months putting my plan in action for nothing."
"Your still planning on infecting the League?" Amy inquired.
"Oh, there's no 'planning,' Amy," SheZap replied "I've already started!"
DNAmy stood in stunned silence as Shezap began to laugh wickedly. SheZap wasn't just the SheZow who laughs, but now she was the SheZow who won.
[1] - As seen in the seventh Spotlight centered around Jazz.
[2] - As seen in the eighth Spotlight centered around Heidi.
[3] - As seen in the previous Spotlight centered around Brightburn.
[4] - As seen in the ninth Spotlight centered around Howard.
