A Momentary Lapse of Ethics 01

"Hey," he murmured. She stirred to wakefulness not sure how long she'd been asleep. He was looking up at her.

"You didn't die!" Lady Dynamic squealed and pulled his head up into a mighty embrace.

"Mmmphf," he mumbled. She gave him some air. "Nice breasts Lady Dynamic," he grinned weakly. Seeing as he's not going to die, she got back to smothering him in her over-sized tits.

"Hey, you aren't gay are you?" it suddenly dawned on her ask. She'd never thought about him in a sexual way because of their misunderstanding, but now that he was laying there all weak and vulnerable she see him in a different light.

"No, but I am more than twice your age," he sighed.

"Seriously; you don't look a day over twenty-five," Lady Dynamic noted with some admiration.

"Hello; Life Force manipulation. Learning to regenerate myself on a cellular level was one of the first tricks I picked up. Learning to actually grow up came later," he informed her.

"How long were you thirteen?" she wondered.

"Four years," Dr. Life confessed. "Let's leave it at my senior year being a growing experience."

"That's adorable," she grinned. He looked less than amused.

"Can I take a shower now? I have a ton of toxins I'd like to purge from my system."

"Okay," Lady Dynamic moved so that he could sit up. He moved slowly with deliberation as he headed into the back of his house.

While he was gone, Lady Dynamic called the Crimson Veil and told her the good news. She promised to come by as soon as she could. She went to the kitchen to get some food for both of them when the doorbell rang.

'Man,' she thought, 'Crimson must have been right around the corner. She must really have been worried'. Lady Dynamic was eating a turkey sandwich when she opened the door.

There was a woman at the door in a trench coat and her long red-hair pulled back in a ponytail. That was Lady Dynamics's reason for not recognizing her, she later swore. The stranger opened her coat and Lady Dynamic was looking right into the rack of Princess Bloodstone. If she was more on the ball she would have been putting Princess Bloodstone through the porch – across the street.

Instead a bolt of blood-red energy was slamming down the hall. She felt like her lungs were on fire – that would be the blood-side of her bloodstone powers; she sets your blood on fire. Lady Dynamic got back up but not soon enough to dodge the second blast. She went through the wall into the kitchen and did a number on the refrigerator. There was no way her student loans were covering that.

Lady Dynamic rolled aside when the third bolts wrecked that side of the kitchen. That reminded her how tough she was. Lady Dynamic lunged back down the hall toward Princess Bloodstone but the witch rose up a dome of force to block her. The barrier fractured but held. Princess Bloodstone lashed out but Lady Dynamic managed to cross her arms in front of me to absorb the impact. She was still pushed back.

"My house," growled Doctor Life as he entered the room. Lady Dynamic could tell he was in no shape for a fight.

"Run," she screamed. He did the opposite; he came across the den toward the entryway. Princess Bloodstone lashes out with both hands. Lady Dynamic tried to block again, but The Princess wrapped her up in a glowing snake of energy. She grabbed hold of Dr. Life too.

In Lady Dynamic's experience she knew she could break through these bonds in a little over ten seconds. She didn't think she would have that much time. Princess Bloodstone created a swarm of Blood Knives and aimed for her eyes.

"Don't!" Life shouted.

"Would you prefer to take my blades yourself?"

"Okay," he responded with icy calm.

"If it is any consolation, Dynamic-Slut, you led me right to him," Princess Bloodstone grinned. Her knives transformed into a hammer. Right as Lady Dynamic broke free of her bonds she got pummeled through the back wall of the kitchen. All she could think was that she'd left a drained Dr. Life to face that psycho-witch alone.

There is no one there when she got back. She went for her phone; it was not there, so Lady Dynamic thought it had probably been pulverized. She found Dr. Light's phone in the wreckage and called Crimson Veil. Crimson Veil took the news stoically and told her to sit tight. The cops beat Crimson to the ruins of his house but not by much. All they were left with was wondering why him and not one of the more established members.

(Dr. Life)

"Strapped to a table; seriously?" Doctor Life said softly when he woke up.

"Would you prefer to be on your knees before me?" Princess Bloodstone sneered.

"Lying on a sofa actually, but a chair would do," he smiled.

"You find this amusing do you?" she snarled.

"Are we alone?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered.

"Then yes, I find this amusing," he joked. Princess Bloodstone clenched her fists and blood red energy crackled from them.

"We could go on for hours about your overwhelming power and superior intellect but why don't you tell me what you really want," Doctor Life sighed. Princess Bloodstone looked ready to kill.

"I want you to do what you did to me before," she seethed.

"Oh ... crap," he breathed painfully. "How about you give me a few days to recover?"

"Why should I?" she growled.

"Well, you did put me and most of my team in the hospital, Princess Bloodstone," Dr. Life explained. Bloodstone stomped in frustration. "I do know the nature of your problem," he continued, "and I know what I can and can't do for you." She eyed him suspiciously.

"Your body is wracked with pain from absorbing the bloodstone energy. You think I can find a way to override that pain."

"Then do it," she insisted.

"I can't right now ... all the things you've put me through today," Dr. Life pointed out.

"You are lying to me," she snarled.

"Princess Bloodstone, why would I lie to you? I'm the one strapped to the table, and I know you will no doubt torture me if you so desire," he said patiently. The brought her up short.

"I'll make you do this for me," she threatened. "I can break you."

"So you are going to rob me of my precious life energy healing myself in order to make me use my precious life energy to help you ... have you thought this through?" Dr. Life pointed out. Princess Bloodstone screamed.

"I think can manage a little relief though. It will probably knock me out, but it will give you some peace," Dr. Life offered.

"Do it," she barked.

"Release me," he sighed. Princess Bloodstone looked suspicious. "I have to touch you."

"Do something wrong and I'll kill you," she answered.

"If thinking that makes you feel better," Dr. Life quipped. Princess Bloodstone released him with a flick of magical might. He sat up and stood on wobbly legs. He studied Princess Bloodstone for several seconds.

"Come here," he whispered. She did so carefully. He placed his hands on each cheek softly and took a deep breath.

"You are going to lose the ability to work complex spells," he informed her. Princess Bloodstone flinched.

"Why?" she asked with concern.

"I'm going to remove the effects of the Bloodstone magic on your head which will ease your headaches and nightmares, but will also cause you to lose your ability to access more complex Bloodstone magic," he explained.

"No nightmares," she murmured.

"I can give you about twelve hours. Normally I can't work anything this long but since you are allowing it, I can do more," he said. "By the way, expect me to pass out."

"Do it," she whispered.

His powers coursed through him and into her replacing her pain with his contentment. He staggered back and slumped down. Princess Bloodstone grabbed his shoulders before he hit the ground. She was dumbfounded with the quiet in her head. For the first time in years she felt totally in control of her own mind. She curled up with him and revealed in the peace and quiet.

Sometime later something had changed in Princess Bloodstone's wards allowing Jackal Girl to pinpoint her location. She and Crimson Veil closed in and ghosted through her defenses to find her lying on a table arms wrapped around a still Dr. Life. Jackal Girl gave a curious look to CrimsonVeil before closing in.

Princess Bloodstone and Dr. Life woke up simultaneously. She rolled off and had blood-red energy aching off her hands.

"Doctor Life?" Crimson Veil asked. She noted he looked like hell warmed over.

"She can't full defend herself. Let Princess Bloodstone go," he rasped.

"What?" Princess Bloodstone and Jackal Girl said as one. Jackal Girl looked to Crimson Veil.

"Let her go," Crimson commanded. Princess Bloodstone back out of the large room and ran away. Crimson Veil went over to Dr. Life and helped him stand up.

"Why did we let her go?" Jackal Girl inquired.

"If I block people's life energy I feel it is wrong to exact vengeance on them," Dr. Life answered weakly.

"But she's a bloodthirsty murderess," Jackal Girl seethed.

"Jackal Girl, we each live with our own limitations because of what we do. You obey the dictates of entities that have existed for thousands, I follow the ethics that the Midnight Mask taught me, and Doctor Life has developed his code after years of difficult experience," Crimson Veil pointed out.

"I think this is a mistake," Jackal Girl griped.

"All this talk is nice," he yawned, "But I really need to crash." Crimson Veil helped him to the door. Jackal Girl wove a shadow portal to the Egyptian Halls of the Dead and from there they made the short trek to the team HQ.

(One week later)

Jackal Girl was in her antique shop when she felt the mystique wards she placed on the Tri-City Alliance HQ triggered. She sent out a warning to the various members because at the time no member was actually present at the building. Lady Dynamic was teaching a course at the university when she got the call, but was trapped by her secret identity for ten more minutes.

Crimson Veil was asleep at her home in Old Town, T-Rex was also teaching, and Techtronic was running his financial empire, and Doctor Life was at the hospital. Lady Jackal slipped through reality and arrived only a few rooms away from the intruder. She ghosted to the door, opened it and came into contact to a pacing woman in a hat and trench coat.

With her Eye that Pierces the Veil she stripped away the illusions around the stranger and knew her invader as Princess Bloodstone. Jackal Girl's first thought was why she wasn't flying painfully through the door propelled by a Bloodstone blast.

"Hi?" Jackal Girl asked. She needed to stall for time.

"I need to see Doctor Life," she blurted out to Jackal Girl.

"Ah, well, I'll see what we can do," Jackal Girl responded. "Can I get you ... something to drink," she added, "like human blood," she finished with a whisper.

"Just him," Princess Bloodstone answered.

"Can I ask why?" Jackal Girl inquired.

"No. It is between him and me," Princess Bloodstone snapped. Jackal Girl was thinking about her next option when Techtronic arrived. The odds had shifted.

"Why are we still talking with this crazy bitch," he grinned.

"She's here to see Dr. Life," Jackal Girl explained. Princess Bloodstone didn't take the 'crazy bitch' comment well.

"Why?" he asked Jackal Girl.

"I haven't a clue," Jackal Girl answered him. They both looked at the villainess who glared back.

Crimson Veil arrived, took one look at the situation and said,

"She's here for Doctor Life?" she asked. Everyone nodded. "Okay, Princess Bloodstone, come this way." The two Alliance members cast a glance to their leader.

"Why?" Princess Bloodstone questioned.

"Well, do you really want to meet Dr. Life in our lobby?" Crimson pointed out. Princess Bloodstone followed along cautiously. There was an awkward gathering until Doctor Life arrived.

"Hello ... Princess Bloodstone?"

"We need to talk," Princess Bloodstone insisted.

"Fine, promise me you won't start anything while you're are here," he asked. She resisted but when he turned to leave she nodded her agreement.

"I've got it," he told his teammates.

They had to drag Jackal Girl from the room but once in the hallway Crimson Veil reminded her that they could monitor the setting from the Control Room. Once the other were gone Dr. Life looked the Princess over while she impatiently waited.

"I might as well ask," he sighed. "Why?"

"I want you to do it again," she told him.

"The whole thing? It will leave you powerless," he pointed out.

"Only for a little while right?" she asked.

"Of course," he answered.

"Take off your clothes," he instructed.

"What?" Princess Bloodstone said while back in the Control Room Jackal Girl and Techtronic said the exact same thing.

"I find it much easier to influence bodies with the fewer clothes in the way," the Doctor said while Crimson explained the same thing to her two compatriots.

At that moment Lady Dynamic came flying in. She took one look at the monitor and said 'WTF?' Crimson brought her up to speed. Meanwhile Princess Bloodstone was stripping out of her costume. Techtronic whistles and Lady Jackal

shot him a dirty look.

"One line and he gets a girl out of her clothes," he commented.

"It gets better," Crimson Veil joked, "next he gets to run his hands all over her body."

"When do we jump her?" Lady Dynamic urged.

"Do you remember that whole part at the beginning when we asked him to join that there would be problems, well this is one of those problems he was trying to warn us about," Crimson Veil stated.

"We can't pass up this opportunity," Jackal Girl pleaded.

"Is taking Princess Bloodstone worth making Doctor Life our enemy? I don't mean him leaving the team but a down right enemy, because we will have betrayed his trust," Crimson Veil countered. Lady Dynamic thought about her experiences with the healer.

"He's got a plan," Lady Dynamic suggested. "I've never known him to act without one."

Crimson Veil secretly grinned to Lady Dynamic. Meanwhile back with Doctor Life Princess Bloodstone had finished stripping down to her panties. He brushed her hair off her shoulders then ran his fingers along her scalp line. Princess Brimstone began to moan and wobble. Jackal Girl was fascinated by the transformation of the Princess into a 'normal' person. Lady Dynamic noticed the other side of the exchange.

"Doctor Life is really beginning to sweat," she noted.

"He's taking on her pain," Crimson Veil clarified.

For Princess Bloodstone it was a wave of coolness washing away the raging flame that constantly consumed her.

His touch was magical in its own way. Even though she felt her Bloodstone magic fade it was a small price to pay for the first real peace she'd felt in almost ten years. Her burning sensation coursed down her neck and into her chest she felt his hands caressing her body. She felt arousal for the second time from this man.

When she opened her eyes he was kneeling before her running his hands along her waist, hips, lower back and buttocks. She sensed his gentle touch where it excited her the most but he did not linger; something she found almost disappointing. He ran down each leg in soft strokes before finishing with each foot.

T-Rex came into the Control Room.

"What the hell?" he asked when he saw the monitor.

"Doc," Technetronic grinned, "we are in the wrong line of work."

"Why is she ... almost naked?" the paleontologist asked.

"Best one liner ever," Jackal Girl sighed. "He told her she had to strip for him to use his powers properly."

"And it worked?" T-Rex gawked.

"Like a charm," Lady Dynamic pointed out.

Back in the room with Princess Bloodstone Dr. Light stood up and looked at her.

"What now?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" the panting sorceress responded.

"Princess, you are powerless in the headquarters of your enemies; certainly you have planned ahead," he stated. Princess Bloodstone looked uncertain. She reached for her clothing.

"I don't suggest that," he said. Princess Bloodstone didn't care for his tone.

"Princess," he explained, "If some policeman sees you like that he will shoot you and now that you are powerless he will either wound you or kill you." Her mouth gaped. "Maybe I can get Lady Dynamic to give you some of her civilian clothes. She is the only one in your size. "

"I don't want anything from that idiot," Princess Bloodstone snapped. Back in the Control Room Lady Dynamic growled in response.

"Princess, your only other option is to wear the string tied underwear you are wearing, which I guarantee you will get you arrested. Nice choice in underwear by the way," Life smiled. Princess Bloodstone glared then sighed.

"Get me some clothes," she commanded.

"Please," he added.

"What?" she asked.

"It helps if you say please," Light pointed out. The Princess seethed at him but Doctor Light wouldn't flinch.

"Please," she growled.

"I'll be right back," he said. Doctor Life stepped out in the hallway and waited. Crimson Veil chuckled at the fact that he knew they were listening in.

"Lady Dynamic, go get the Doctor some of your spare clothes; he's waiting," she told her protégé. Lady Dynamic muttered as she headed off to obey.

"I'm going down to see if she's okay," Jackal Girl said. Crimson Veil gave her the nod and the team mystique was off in a flash.

"Guys, do you have something you could be doing besides ogling Princess Bloodstone?" Crimson Veil asked T-Rex and Technetronic. They had good sense look busy elsewhere.

Doctor Life had gone back into the room with Princess Bloodstone when Jackal Girl stepped in. The Princess shot Life an evil look before turning on her magical nemesis.

"Oh please make a move," Jackal Girl glared. Bloodstone eyes shone with hate.

"Are you going to let her kill me?" Princess Bloodstone brutally asked Doctor Life.

"She won't do anything to you," Doctor Life assured her. "She respects me and my work." The Princess gave Jackal Girl a disbelieving look.

"He's right," Jackal Girl snapped, "but if you step out of line I will drag you off to the Sunless Realm."

"I won't forget that threat," Bloodstone promised.

"Princess please don't abuse my hospitality," Doctor Life cautioned. "You asked me for a favor and I delivered. If you appreciate my help I ask you to respect those I call friends." Once more the Princess seethed but didn't say anything. There were several moments of intense glaring before Lady Dynamic showed up with some clothes and there was another awkward moment.

"We'll exit the room while Princess gets dressed," Doctor Life commanded while making sound like a request. He held the door as they left.

"Doc, you can't trust her," Lady Jackal warned him.

"I'm not worried," he smiled. "I'm sure you and Lady Dynamic will be following at a discreet distance."

"Are we that transparent?" Lady Dynamic said.

"This is not the first group I've been in and this is not the first questionable decision I may that I needed to be saved from," Doctor Life joked.

"You can count on me," Jackal assured him. "I've got a lifetime of payback with her name on it."

Princess Bloodstone stepped out looking out of sorts. She had worn tennis shoes, faded blue jeans with holes in the knees and a cut off gray tank top with 'Property of Westside University' on it. It barely covered her ample bosom. Princess Bloodstone kept yanking it down while simultaneously trying to keep her costume in the clothes bag.

"Are these clothes a joke?" Bloodstone accused Lady Dynamic.

"Hey, these are my spare clothes. I didn't plan for anyone else to wear them," Dynamic grinned.

"Princess, I think you look nice. Now why don't we take a walk out in the world," Life said.

"Fine," groused Princess Bloodstone. Doctor Life put a hand on Princess Bloodstone's arm and led her away. The Princess glanced down at the hand with hostility.