Sword held up high, I struck through the door with my foot and burst in. I was ready for them.
But I was not ready to see Mayor Mills beside his desk, clutching his chest.
“Help me,” he managed as he wheezed. He saw me as the door opened. “Help me, please.” He gasped, groping his arm with a pained expression.
“Mayor Mills?” I rushed over to him. “What’s wrong? Are you having a heart attack?” Kneeling down beside him, I took his arm, looking for a pulse. “Do you want me to call—”
The instant before his thick hand grappled for mine, I put it all together.
He was moving when Time’s power had ceased; he could not be a normal human.
Stefano was also the head of the entire city government. He had power. He had class. He had money.
He was a prime target for a Sinister.
No wonder he seemed so weird before, talking about how Patricia Rookwood’s soul had been ripped out. Stefano wouldn’t talk like that, unless he knew of the Sinisters’ powers …
“Augh!” I hollered as a new pain ran up through my body while Stefano twisted my arm.
“So, Wingdinger,” he practically sang, “we meet again.”
Elektra’s voice suddenly came out of the depths of his body. “Did you miss me?”
I grappled with Stefano’s/Elektra’s grasp, quickly jerking myself free and finding a secure grip on my sword. “Yes, I did miss you, as a matter of fact,” I replied. “But I won’t miss you again.”
“Careful.” Elektra giggled. “You wouldn’t want to kill the mayor, would you? As I understand it, he has enough of a case against you.”
I gritted my teeth. She had a point. I would have to free Stefano from her power first.
Stefano found his voice again. “Please, help me,” he said. “She promised me power if I let her in, but she’s done nothing but pain me.”
Elektra laughed, making it seem as though Stefano was having a conversation with himself in two different voices. “That’s what you get for falling for vague promises for power from someone you can’t trust.”
“How is he moving?” I asked. “Asteropy wasn’t able to control Patricia when Time stopped before. She wasn’t even able to escape her.”
“So, you’ve seen my sister, have you?” Elektra laughed. “I had a feeling that reporter was housing her when I heard of the incident.”
She waved Stefano’s hand wildly, as if to prove the extent of her power. “I can move him because he willingly let me give him power, and I’ve been in here long enough that his Soulfire is saturated with my essence.”
“Ew.” I cringed. “That’s gross.”
“The truth hurts,” Elektra assured me. “Just like this will.” Working Stefano’s body like a puppet, she flung him at me.
I dodged to the side and quickly sent a stream of power out the window, calling for Aleia and Elysian, and possibly SWORD.
How am I supposed to get her out of Stefano’s body? I scrambled to find an answer, wracking my mind apart, as Stefano once more turned to face me.
I had no answers.
Regardless, Elektra had a point; I put my sword away, letting it hang at my side.
“Hey, Mayor Mills,” I called. “Can you hear me in there?”
His body jerked and stalled, almost as if it were being pulled in two different directions.
I had to stop myself from making jokes about The Exorcist. Sometimes, being a superhero is amusing—amusing in a morbidly, absurdist sort of way, of course.
“Can you hear me?” I called again.
“He can,” Elektra said, “but I’m not letting him reply. Such a hard thing for a politician, too, isn’t it?”
“Save me,” Stefano cried, his voice whimpering in pain, even as he headed toward me once more.
Elysian came flying through the door, roaring loudly. I clasped my hands over my ears as Stefano stumbled and fell over.
“Get up, you oaf!” Elektra cried.
“Thanks,” I yelled at Elysian. “I hope I didn’t go deaf from it!”
“No problem,” he said with a grin, clearly mishearing my sarcasm as volume.
I shrugged it off for the moment. I had to move as Stefano regained his standing. I was just thinking about knocking him out when he started to scream, loudly, clearly traumatized.
“What’s wrong?” I yelled.
“Augh!” His eyes, full of tears, went wide, and his mouth dropped open as a powerful ball of energy formed between his palms. “I … can’t … take the pain!”
The energy, burning and blazing with orange-tinted fire, exploded at me. I ducked, and Elysian moved quickly to block the rest of its wave from me.
I watched as his skin licked it up and seemed to redistribute it across his scales. “Cool,” I said. “Thanks.”
“I got your back, boss,” he said.
Stefano collapsed onto the floor, and Elektra was fuming. I could see her power wriggling around inside of him, almost like she was trying to chase down his non-existent willpower.
“I need to get her out of him,” I told Elysian. “How are we going to do that? She told me that she’s overtaken him.”
“This is similar to Mikey’s situation, by the looks of it,” he said. “How did you heal him?”
“I used my power,” I said.
“That’s what you’ll have to do now,” Aleia said, stepping in behind Elysian. She pulled out her twin daggers. “Elysian and I will try to pin him down,” she said. “And then you’ll have an opening.”
“Okay.” I nodded. “I think I can do that.”
I shifted off to the side and let Elysian position his long body around Stefano as we waited for our best chance to strike.
“You’ll have to be careful,” Aleia called. “Elektra’s the one who has control this time, not one of her minions.”
As she met my gaze, I knew she was thinking about our earlier conversation.
Before I could assure her that Elektra was no match for me and the Sealing Sword, Stefano managed to stand up. Another ball of energy began forming between his palms. I took a tentative step back.
He wasn’t screaming this time; his human consciousness had fainted from the pain. Elektra was in full control of his body’s movements.
“Take this!” she screamed, once more flinging her power free.
“Duck,” Aleia called, jumping up and slicing her dagger down the middle of the energy bomb. It separated and bounced, ricocheting off into different directions.
The power of the explosion sent all of us reeling.
I grimaced as walls were punched right through and massive holes appeared. I’d known from the start of this battle that taxes were likely going to go up as a result, but I sincerely hoped that City Hall’s insurance would cover most of the bill for the damage.
“Go,” Elysian called, shaking me out of my thoughts.
“Going,” I remarked, running hard toward my target. Aleia managed to pin Stefano down to the floor using her daggers, while Elysian tangled himself around his limbs.
I grabbed his hand and pressed forward with my power, seeking a way inside the Realm of the Heart, where Stefano really resided, trapped by Elektra’s power.
This time, I thought I heard her scream as I passed onto the plane of a different existence.
*☼*
It didn’t take me long to realize, as I was standing around in what was essentially his heart, that I didn’t know Stefano very well.
It took me even less time to figure out I actually didn’t like him very much.
Stefano was a robust man, easily capable of coming off as a man with purpose. I’d thought he was a classy man—a man of the people, and a man dedicated to defusing hate, settling debts, and working with people for the better.
Turns out most of those phrases are vague enough for superficial judgments.
Muck and slime swathed the otherwise regal setting before me. There was a throne-like chair sat in the middle of the room, flanked with draper
y. Beside it, chained, was a ghost of a figure in the corner; it looked like an old man, scraping the carpet with worn, brittle fingers. The closer I got, the more I realized the man looked like Cecil, the county clerk who doubled as a greeter for our office; the biggest difference was this man was frail enough to be a skeleton in addition to a ghost, while the Cecil I knew was much more robust and rounded.
“Cecil?” I asked, coming up next to the man. “Is that you?”
The ghost-man didn’t hear me; he just kept scraping away at the carpet.
“He’s got Cecil under his thumb quite nicely,” Elektra said. “You might as well give up on trying to talk to him. He’s not able to hear you, in this world or the other.”
I whirled around to see her sitting on the throne, with Stefano’s body lying face down and flat before the chair, and propping up her legs like a human ottoman.
“What do you mean?” I asked, trying to keep Elektra busy.
“He’s been blackmailing Cecil for years,” Elektra said, thumping her foot down on Stefano. “Why do you think he’s never quit and never moved up the ladder?”
“What kind of blackmail?” I asked.
“Let’s just say he’s the son of someone with a less than spotless reputation,” Elektra said, her smile appropriately sinister. “Not the kind of person you’d want in charge of government, that’s for sure. Cecil tried to hide it, but Stefano found him out.”
“It’s not his fault who his parents are,” I objected, instantly incensed.
“No, but we all have little caveats to achieving our dreams,” she spat back, her tone bitter.
For a moment, the briefest moment imaginable, I wondered what argument had won her over to Orpheus’ cause.
Before I could ask, she shrugged off her offended demeanor. “He’s just one of Stefano’s favorite victims. Over the years, Stefano’s collected quite a few.”
I made a mental note to have someone secretly check into that when I got out of his heart.
I was disgusted to hear of Stefano’s practices. It put everything he did in this corrupt, calculated light; settling with the protestors earlier in the year gave him a reputation with the public as a peacemaker, while the protestors would be indebted to him and his policies. Running the Flying Angels case put him in a position to influence the courts and the media. Even going around and convincing Rachel to supply the city’s offices with her coffee suddenly seemed like a menacing move, though I didn’t know how he was using it to his advantage.
“No wonder this place is covered in slime,” I muttered, glancing around again. I wasn’t that worried when I saw Stefano had his face planted in it.
Elektra laughed. “Yes, it is fitting,” she said, relaxing back in her chair.
I whipped out my sword and pointed it at her, feeling a rewarding rush of pleasure at the finer movements of my form (Aleia and Raiya had been working with me to hone my fighting skills over the past months). “Even so,” I said, “his life has value.”
As much as I’m having a hard time believing it at the moment.
“And I won’t let you keep him under your power,” I finished.
I was perturbed when Elektra yawned. “I could suck him dry at any moment,” she told me.
“Then why are you … ?” My voice trailed off.
Elektra leered down at me. “I haven’t been able to forget the last time I had you at my mercy.”
“If you think,” I muttered, “I’m going to let you get to me, you’ve got another thing coming.”
“We’ll see,” she said. “You might not be the toughest fighter of your little band, but for some reason you have the brightest soul. Orpheus was a fool to want to kill you.”
I scowled at her.
Stefano’s head peeked up from his mud casing. “Help me,” he sputtered. “Help me, please.”
My attention snapped back to him. “Mayor Mills, you need to—”
I should have known better.
Elektra shrieked in anticipation as she lunged at me. I hurried to roll aside from her attack, but she still managed to claw me.
Turning, I lashed out a feint with my sword, before launching out a roundhouse kick. She stumbled, surprised, and I was able to regain the upper hand.
“Help me,” Stefano cried out again.
“Just shut up for a moment,” I said, pushing Elektra away again.
“She’s killing me!”
Exasperated, with only seconds of free time, I turned to face him. “Then maybe you shouldn’t have let her use your soul for fuel,” I snapped. I turned back to where Elektra was once more taking a fighting stance.
An idea suddenly popped into my head.
Maybe I can cut off her supply if I can get him cut off from her.
I ducked Elektra’s attack and slid over to where Stefano’s body was stashed inside his sewage-filled mind. “Hey!” I called, grabbing his head and trying to pull him up. “Hey, get up.”
Elektra cackled. “You won’t convince him to leave me.”
“I can’t,” Stefano said. “She’s promised me what I can’t resist—power.”
“So, she’s giving you power, and you can’t use it to break free from her? Yes, that seems absolutely logical.” I wasn’t sure if Stefano was aware enough to recognize the disdain was in my tone or not, but it made me feel better.
Another attack launched at me. Calling on my own power, I tried to use it to protect us.
A thought occurred to me. If Elektra were to attack Stefano, she might weaken him enough that her own power would dissolve.
But that would allow Stefano to get hurt. And generally speaking, that was supposed to be a bad thing.
For a long moment, I considered it anyway.
Eventually, and inevitably, I discarded the idea. I was supposed to capture the Sinisters, yes, but I doubted that it was to be done at the expense of others.
Even when someone like Stefano deserved it.
“I will defeat you!” Elektra unleashed a storm of energy, and I went on the defensive, still somewhat disgusted to be protecting a man who, if our roles were reversed, would likely not hesitate to throw me to the wolves.
A memory popped into my head—Stefano listening to the protestors outside of City Hall.
I cringed. Is he really that bad of a guy?
Yes, he is.
But I’m not that good, either.
I thought about how I’d “listen” to some of my friends, or humor some of the less popular kids while I was in school. If our roles were reversed, I realized, I would be just as undeserving as Stefano when it came to being saved.
At best, I was only slightly better. But that was not comforting—not at all, not in the least.
“You can’t outlast me,” Elektra said.
I knocked over Stefano’s throne, using it as a barrier between Elektra and the two of us as she inched closer.
Okay, so what would I do to save myself in this situation?
“Come on, come on, think!” I yelled at myself.
I couldn’t break her power over him. I couldn’t make him break it. I couldn’t seal her away without worrying he would get sucked in, and that would be less than ideal if he did.
The last time I had this issue, I thought, my own power forced back the fenfleal demon inside of Logan. Would it be possible to do that again?
“It’s worth a shot,” I said with a groan. This is going to hurt some.
I was never good with fear, but I had to have faith that it would be okay. I could survive this. Courage, please, I prayed.
As I leapt to my feet, I kicked away from Stefano and pulled out my sword. “This is it!” I yelled as I charged forward.
Elektra took the bait.
She reached for me, clipping her arm on my sword but never faltering as she grabbed for my heart once more.
At the sudden and forceful onslaught of power, I nearly collapsed. My sword fell from my hand as I grabbed hers with both of mine and held her there.
“Too painful f
or you, Wingdinger?” she asked, goading me.
I had to grin through my pain. “Funny, I was just about to ask you the same question.” And then, grasping her even more tightly, my own power—the power of my heart, mind, and soul—all rushed at her, sweeping her under a tidal wave of light.
Now it was Elektra’s turn to scream, as the blood-colored flame inside of me sprouted forth, rushing into her. I watched as her power diminished and crumbled. Her orange-tinted skin turned into a glaring red and dulled to ash-black as I cried out, terrified to see the extent of my own capabilities.
I felt the moment that Stefano was freed from her control. I saw into Elektra’s mind as she gave away her power in love and kindness in her previous form as the Starry Virtue of Generosity. I knew of her doubt and fear as she looked away from the Celestial Kingdom toward a fallen Earth. I mourned the second she agreed with Orpheus, that such things needed power in order to be done.
And when Elektra felt her own remorse, I no longer felt my own power causing her pain; rather, it was her own knowledge of her choices that started to cause her to implode.
I stepped free from her and saw her tears of regret. “I’m sorry,” I said, not sure what exactly what I was sorry for. Maybe it was just because I didn’t want her to cause pain to others anymore, and it had to end this way because she couldn’t stop. Or maybe it was because she gave up her power to do any good when she tried to take a shortcut.
Stilled, Elektra said nothing else—nor did she speak ever again. I picked up my sword and slashed through her. She allowed me to, with no resistance.
I breathed in and out, hard and silent, as I watched her own soul wrap around her and send her into a crystalized version of a black hole.
“Is she gone?” Stefano’s voice broke through the quiet of the moment.
“Yes,” I said, grabbing a hold of the blackened orange crystal before me and tucking it into the pocket at my shoulder.
All the world would be a better place if we just admitted we’re terrible at not being terrible.
I thought it was odd, for just that moment, that I’d been christened the Star of Mercy, yet sent to capture the Sinisters. What was I doing to offer mercy to those who, if they’d only felt the sadness their actions caused, would change?