Pit Stop

Grace Smith was stocking toilet paper. Just after graduating, she got a job at the local Wal-Mart as she had few aspirations to go to a university, not that stocking toilet paper in Wal-Mart was what she wanted to do with her life but it was one of her few options at the moment. Alysa Saraki was her best friend in school so she offered to help get her a job in the same department for no other reason than to alleviate the monotony a little. Alysa opted to continue being employed at Farrell Creed’s private investigator firm which she didn’t understand as it sounded far too dangerous and creepy. Since that time, she felt that she saw less and less of Alysa and her mysterious disappearance during the alien attacks made her outright terrified for her, which became one of many distractions for her at work. Considering the recent alien invasion, Grace thought the store would remain closed for a while longer but, in the words of her store manager, “The aliens are gone and Head Office wants us open so suck it up,” so she was at work.

As she stocked the toilet paper on the shelf, she found some packaged meat among the rolls, likely dropped off by a lazy customer who no longer wanted it and placed it on the nearest shelf. She picked it up and began walking in the direction of the meat department when she got a phone call that had a very familiar name attached.

“Holy shit, Alysa!,” she said excitedly, making sure to search the aisle to avoid getting in trouble with a manager.

“Yo, Gracie!”

“Oh my god, my mom said she heard you and Farrell Creed disappeared after that alien showed up in town! Are you in Winghaven now?”

“No, but we’re on our way back.”

“You gotta tell me everything. On TV, they said some heroes turned Rex Robinson over to the aliens or something and that’s why they left?”

“Girl, I’ll tell ya when I see ya. I’m just calling everybody to let them know I’m alright.”

“How is it that shit just got weirder with you? There was a cult, then vampires and now aliens? I hardly even see you anymore.”

“Yeah, I ain’t seen you in a minute, so what’s new with you?”

“Wal-Mart,” she said bitterly, “I work at Wal-Mart.”

Just then, the store manager poked his head around the aisle, “Grace, are you on your phone again?” Alysa could hear the voice of the angry manager on her end and an apologetic expression crossed her face despite no one seeing it.

“Shit! Gotta go. Call me back,” Gracie hurriedly hung up.

Alysa put her phone away and moved through the busy Detroit bus stop. Creed and Alysa were involved in the final battle against the U’ntari along with most heroes of Earth but found themselves stranded in Brussels, just outside NATO headquarters with few options of returning to Winghaven. Military personnel gave them a flight back to the US as commercial flights were grounded in the wake of the U’ntari attacks but they could only take them so far. Because of this, they had to catch a chartered bus the rest of the way. It would be another hour until their bus arrived so they decided to call loved ones to inform them of their safety. Alysa moved past bored commuters to a bench where Creed was on the phone; going by his end of the conversation, she surmised he was talking to Cassandra.

“Yeah, I’m fine, babe. Those aliens ain’t shit. I’ll be home real soon…,” he lounged back with a grin on his face Alysa didn’t see often, “… Yeah, we will… Don’t worry, everything is in one piece… especially your favorite piece.”

“Gross,” Alysa plopped down next to him.

He gave her an annoyed look, “That’s what happens when you listen-in on conversations,” then went back to Cassandra, “I’ll see you soon, Cassie. Love ya.” He put the phone away and took a look around the bus stop, “Crazy last few days. I’m glad that, with all the publicity going around about the Resurgence, no one notices us. Hope it lasts.”

“Yeah, most folks are talk’n about the Cavalier and Ryan Bennings,” Alysa noticed a news program on the bus station TV where two pundits argued over Rex Robinson, “Pretty sure Winghaven is gonna be different, though. People can’t keep our names outta their mouths.”

“Probably but ya know what, I’m gonna be glad when we get back home,” Creed closed his eyes and leaned his head back, “I ain’t gonna be in the office for a few days and I suggest you do the same. Consider it a much-earned vacation.”

“No argument there,” Alysa grew bored quickly and found herself watching people coming and going in the station.

As people criss-crossed her line of sight, she caught a glimpse of a figure between the passers-by. It was difficult to see them as there was only a hint of a person appearing and disappearing over shoulders or behind backs but she knew the figure was looking her way. She focused her mystic senses and could just make out the image of a slender woman with dreadlocks but she lost sight almost immediately. Whoever this woman was, she was hiding herself with a spell, not just from the travellers in the area but she was also actively trying to hide from Alysa. She pushed harder and in a flash, Alysa caught the image of a milky-white eye with a nasty scar, one that was caused by a bullet months earlier. Ince she received enough of a mental picture, she knew who she was dealing with.

“Queen Faith,” Alysa purposefully spoke the name out loud which forced her to manifest. The Iconoclast priestess remained in place, her cruel gaze locked on Alysa and Creed as people walked past, still completely oblivious. “Creed,” Alysa slapped his knee, “You see her?” Creed opened his eyes and Alysa released a small charm to assist him.

“Queen Faith. I was wondering when she was gonna show herself again,” Creed stood up, “Too bad Rex Robinson destroyed my last gun or I’d finish what I started.”

“We’re in the middle of Detroit,” Alysa stood up alongside Creed, “How the hell did she know where we were?”

“Let’s go ask.”

Creed and Alysa walked through the small crowd, not far from where Faith stood. They eyed each other up silently before Creed spoke, “How’s the eye?”

“I had a premonition,” Queen Faith began, “The skies would burn, the two of you would be separated and when you returned to this country, it would be in the Motor City. When the stars were right, I came.”

“So here we are,” Alysa spread her arms out as an invitation.

“I wouldn’t be so arrogant,” Faith told her, “You are both out of your element in this city.”

Creed mockingly leaned toward the scared part of her face, “So can you see straight or…?”

Queen Faith grit her teeth and flung her arms out, sending both of them into the air with a telekinetic push. Creed fell on top of some luggage, which got the attention of the owners as Faith was invisible to them but Creed wasn’t. “Sir, are you okay?,” they asked as he began to get up, not seeing the deranged woman running up behind them with a knife and flailing dreadlocks. Creed ignored them and grabbed Faith’s knife-hand. The passersby stared at the large man seemingly grappling with the air itself and cautiously kept their distance. From their point of view, he raised an unseen object over his head before dropping it to the ground. Alysa rushed to them and seemingly picked up an invisible object from the ground and shouted, “I got the knife,” which promoted many of the on-lookers to vacate the area.

Queen Faith writhed in pain on the ground while Alysa and Creed stood over her. “Did your premonition tell you `bout that?,” Alysa asked as she used a spell to melt the knife in her hand.

Faith said nothing and snatched both of them by the ankles, then they all shifted through the tile floor and disappeared. Alysa and Faith fell onto a sidewalk outside which got the attention of a large group of locals. Meanwhile, Creed dropped into the middle of the street and when he stood up, a set of tires screeched to a halt. Despite the car slamming on its breaks, the impact still hit him hard enough to send him into the back of a bus, cracking the back window in the process. “The hell ya doing in the road, dumbshit?,” the angry driver shouted as Creed painfully stood back up.

Alysa briefly lost track of her foe and in preparation, raised a hand and ignited a fireball. Once she spun around to search for Faith, she noticed the frightened expression of a young woman looking her in the eyes. She paused as she tried to find words to ease her fears but she knew she would only sound as unhinged as she already appeared. Queen Faith rose over the girl’s shoulder, still completely invisible and gave a creepy smile just before pushing her into Alysa.

Creed ran onto the sidewalk to assist but a small group of men stood in his path, “Whoa, easy!,” one shouted. “Back off!,” another yelled. Creed stood back calmly as they began to push against him, knowing that he was one of only two people on the street who could see the deranged mystic attacking them. “Yeah, I get it,” Creed told the two men, “I’m actually trying to help a friend… if ya’ll could just let me pass…”.

Queen Faith used an animalism spell to grant herself a boost in strength as she held Alysa by the throat and shoved her against a wall. Faith leaned in, “Remember when you first faced me at our hidden temple? Remember the last time my hand was at your throat? I remember… I remember the look of fear and hopelessness in your eyes.” Alysa summoned her own animalism spell, taking to the sky as the image of wings briefly appeared on her back. Faith was briefly lifted off the ground with her just before she fell onto a pile if trash bags. “You think I’m still afraid of you?,” Alysa landed a safe distance away, “That shit was last season, bitch!” People began to scramble away from Alysa as Queen Faith sprang to her feet and summoned force winds that knocked her into a few pedestrians. “If you aren’t afraid now, I have ways of reminding you!,” Faith shrieked.

Creed shook his head impatiently as the two men continued to try holding him back. “Okay, time’s up,” he gave one a headbutt which took him to the pavement and then dropped the second man with a punch before rushing to Alysa’s aid. Sensing him approaching, Queen Faith turned and fired a concussive blast but Creed dropped to the ground at the last second. With Faith’s attention diverted, Alysa used her telekinesis to throw the priestess into the air toward Creed who shot to his feet. He raised an arm and as Faith passed by, he clotheslined her to the pavement, which rendered her unconscious.

Alysa and Creed looked down at the unconscious priestess and then at the small crowd that had gathered around them. “This shit ain’t over is it?,” Alysa asked to which Creed replied, “Not by a long shot.” In the distance, they could hear approaching sirens that they both assumed were for them. “So that spell she used to turn herself invisible…,” Creed began and Alysa took the cue. “Yeah, I know it,” she waved her hands and both of them vanished from sight.

Not long after that, they were on the bus, heading back to their state. Along the way, they received a message to their professional email address.

“Ryan Bennings is contacting us,” Creed told her as he curiously gazed at the screen.

“He’s hiring us for a case or someth’n?,” Alysa took out her phone and began to check.

“It’s not a case,” Creed didn’t take his eyes off the email, “Seems like he’s putting together a team and he’s looking for members.”

“So? What’s that got to do with us?”

He gave her a knowing look.

“…Oh.”

Next: Bastard Son of Nelson Creed