How to Date a Superhero Ch. 02

Apollo blinked and his face softened.

Rapture watched her power take hold, "Love me, God of Light. I want you to love me with every fiber of your being."

"I do," Apollo murmured. "I love thee with all mine heart, Lauren Smith."

Rapture smiled at how easy it was to put a god under her control. "I don't believe you," she lied.

Apollo's mouth twisted in frustration as he stepped away from her, "What!? The God of Light is no base liar! My love for thee cannot be questioned."

"Prove it," she said. "Prove to me how much you love me - with a deed."

"Speak thy task," Apollo puffed his bared chest out, confident he could carry out any request.

"There is someone who has caused me great pain," Rapture wove her deception. "Someone who seeks to do me even further harm."

"Name this miscreant," Apollo demanded. "I will put them before my spear!"

"She is one of this city's masked heroes, the one known as Mega-Girl."

Apollo scoffed, "A mortal child? She will fall to me like wheat before the scythe."

"I've been studying her habits," Rapture told him. "She patrols the city every morning just after dawn."

Moving towards his armored mannequin Apollo declared, "Then I will be waiting for her."

"Do not underestimate her, she is no mere child," Rapture bent to pick her towel back up, replacing it around her form. "She's every bit as strong as you, and nigh-invulnerable. You will need your bow."

Apollo paused and glanced at the weapon sitting on the counter.

"You said it will pierce any armor," she reminded. "Any flesh. You could use it to deliver the killing blow."

"Thy words carry the ring of wisdom," Apollo conceded.

"Use the bow," Rapture prompted. "Kill Mega-Girl and prove your love for me. Then we can be together forever."

Apollo's upper lip curled with determination, "Aye."

Travis woke up the following morning to find he had Penny's bed to himself. He glanced around through squinty eyes until he saw a note resting on the nightstand. It was from Penny; she said she needed to go to the library early but would be back in time to cook him breakfast. Travis smiled at the little heart she drew at the bottom of the page.

He arose from bed and stretched his lean form before wandering out of Penny's room. The apartment was quiet and Jordan was nowhere to be seen; Travis assumed she was still sleeping. He wondered if anyone would mind if he used the shower. Looking around he tried to figure out where he might find a clean towel, spotting a linin closet near the bathroom door.

The closet shelves were cluttered with feminine products that Travis neither understood nor wanted to. He spotted a stack of towels on one of the lower shelves and squatted to retrieve one. As he pulled the towel out a hint of red underneath caught his eye. Pushing some other towels out of the way his eyes widened at what he saw.

At first Travis thought it was a red one-piece swimsuit, but then he noticed the long sleeves and how it was trimmed in blue and black. Digging further down into the closet, which had a false-bottom, Travis found more costumes, masks, and boots.

"Holy shit," he whispered at the hidden cache, a sudden realization washing over him. "My girlfriend's roommate is secretly Mega-Girl...!"

Mega-Girl flew casually over the city, scanning the streets and rooftops for any signs of trouble. Mornings were generally calm but she wanted to make sure no more giant robots would make an appearance. She was nearly ready to quit her patrol when something struck her from above and behind. Something hard and strong!

She landed on the downtown street below with such momentum that it crumbled the concrete beneath her. A morning commuter bus slammed on its brakes and swerved to a stop in order to avoid hitting her.

"What in the world....?" she rose and looked upwards.

Apollo hovered above her, dressed in gleaming armor with his bow and quiver strapped to his back. His golden spear was held firmly in his right hand. "Mega-Girl!" he hollered, "Thy death is at hand!"

Though they had never encountered one another, Mega-Girl certainly recognized him; he was the most famous super-powered individual in the world, after all. "Apollo?" she sounded confused. "What are you doing? Why did you -?"

He answered by throwing his spear. It transformed into a shaft of pure golden energy, accelerating to incredible speeds, before impacting against Mega-Girl's chest. The force of the blast hurled her petite frame backwards until she smashed into the bus, its metal frame crumpling around her.

"It's Apollo!" someone on the bus said.

"Why is he fighting Mega-Girl?" another passenger asked.

Mega-Girl had to literally peel herself from the side of the wrinkled bus, still dazed by Apollo's vicious weapon. But he offered her no respite. Landing on the street before her, Apollo struck with a mighty uppercut that sent Mega-Girl hurling into the air. She crashed through a window of a tall building, smashed through another wall within, and landed on an office desk which finally stopped her momentum. Fortunately the office was vacant.

"Damn it," she cursed, regaining her feet. "That actually hurt!"

She flew out of the building through the broken glass window and spotted Apollo below, still on the street. He was picking up his re-formed spear and hadn't expected her to recover so quickly. Mega-Girl aimed her flight directly towards him, leading with her fists. If Apollo wanted a fight, she would give him one!

The impact was titanic.

Apollo careened through the air after the blow, bouncing off a taxi, knocking over a mailbox, and crashing through the window of a coffee shop. His rolling form took out no less than three tables and knocked over two early-morning customers.

"...Jesus...!"

"Ohmigod, it's Apollo!"

"Who hit him...?"

Apollo was slow to his feet, lifting a hand to his forehead and shaking his head to clear the cobwebs. "Neptune's beard!" he exclaimed. "Never have I felt such strength!"

He staggered out of the coffee shop to find Mega-Girl standing on the street waiting for him.

"Why are you attacking me?" she demanded to know. "We're both heroes, we're on the same side!"

"I will avenge mine love, mortal." Apollo snarled. "Never again will I allow thee to harm Lauren Smith."

Mega-Girl's mask covered the top half of her face and most of her confusion, "Who?"

"Lauren Smith!" Apollo bellowed.

Mega-Girl shrugged bonelessly, "Never heard of her."

"Liar!" Apollo charged.

Mega-Girl managed to avoid Apollo's first punch but he followed that up with another, which glanced across the side of her face. She tried to punch back but Apollo blocked her fist with a forearm and struck her again. Back and forth they fought, with Apollo deflecting or dodging most of Mega-Girl's attempts.

But his punches were landing seemingly without effort. Apollo was an immortal who had been alive for thousands of years. He had fought in hundreds of wars, defeated countless enemies, and had trained with the finest warriors throughout history. In contrast, Mega-Girl was a twenty year-old who had been wearing her costume for less than a year and hadn't taken so much as a self-defense course. She had always relied on her strength and invulnerability to overcome her lack of fighting skills, but Apollo possessed as much power as her and then some more.

She quickly recognized the superiority of his fighting ability and leapt away from him, slamming her palms together to create a massive wave of concussive air and forcing the angry god back. With Apollo staggered, she flew upwards and away trying to buy some time.

"Harbinger!" she called, lifting a hand to the Bluetooth cellular device curled around her earlobe as she flew. "Harbinger, are you there?"

There was only silence.

"Harbinger," she tried again. "Harbinger, come in."

There was another moment of silence before Harbinger's voice finally transmitted.

I'm here, MG. What's going on?

"I'm being attacked by Apollo!" Mega-Girl exclaimed, relieved to hear Harbinger's voice.

What?!?

"He just attacked me," Mega-Girl explained as she flew quickly around and between the downtown skyscrapers, trying to put some distance between her and Apollo. "He came out of nowhere."

Why would he do that?

"I don't know, but I've never fought a three-thousand year-old god before; I need to figure out a way to stop him. I need your help."

I'll get into it right away, but it might take me some time. Can you hang in there?

"I'll certainly try," Mega-Girl tried to sound confident as she landed in Byrne Park, an 800 acre oasis of grass and trees west of the downtown core. She knew Apollo would be right behind and hoped to contain the fight where there would be fewer pedestrians and structures. Her fear was that if the fight continued her and Apollo could destroy half the city. She turned towards downtown and waited for him to fly after her, but there was no sign of the mighty god.

Suddenly, slightly above, a globe of pure light appeared in mid-air. Mega-Girl stepped backwards as it sizzled and crackled. Apollo appeared in a brilliant flash, hovering twenty feet in the air, his spear raised for a throw.

Mega-Girl dove out of the way as Apollo's weapon exploded on the ground where she was standing, "Crap. He can teleport, too?"

She stood and ripped a lamp post out of the ground as easily as picking up a toothpick. Spinning, Mega-Girl swung with all her strength and hit Apollo squarely. He flew backwards, impacting against a tree. The collision sundered the thick maple with a loud crack, splitting its trunk.

"Thy power is impressive," Apollo rose slowly, yet unharmed. "But the son of Zeus is not so easily felled."

Mega-Girl balled her fists, "Neither is the daughter of... ah, never mind. You wouldn't have heard of him."

Apollo stepped forward and unslung the bow from his back, reaching for an arrow with his other hand. He notched and drew back on the bowstring.

"Seriously?" Mega-Girl scoffed, unafraid of the weapon.

He took aim.

"You realize I'm bullet-proof, right?"

Apollo let loose.

"An arrow hardly has a chance of -"

The arrow pierced Mega-Girl's left shoulder, digging deeply into her flesh. She cried out in pain and staggered backwards, lifting her right hand to clutch at the protruding shaft. Glancing down at the wound she realized she had never seen her own blood; the sight of it leaking out of her shoulder made her truly fear her own mortality for the first time in her life.

Apollo drew another arrow from his quiver, "You have fought well, mortal. But thy days have reached their end."

(To be continued.)