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04

"In Heat"

By Ed Ainsworth

 

"We have to stop doing this Traci." Martin Stein sat up in bed, and swung his legs out. He looked at his feet and shame was written on his features.

"Why? Doesn't if feel good anymore Martin?"

"I've been to Dinner parties with your Father; he's well respected in the realms of science, Traci." Martin shot a look at her whilst she wriggled through the covers in his shirt.

"Traci, please. Doesn't this feel strange to you?"

"Why should it. You're a man of science, Martin; and I'm a being of Magic. You're supposed to repress your feelings and look for the empirical evidence behind them, and I'm supposed to ride them and use them as power."

"But.Traci, look.This is just so strange for me. You're.looking that way, and I'm looking this way.How you can even..?"

"Martin, you can't see the forest for the trees."

"And Traci, you can't see that this is insane!"

"Why is it insane? Martin, you were a fire elemental for the entire planet!"

"And you talk to cities! Insane! See? Completely insane!"

"Why is it insane? That cities talk to me, or that you embodied the element of fire for an entire planet?"

"Oh, this isn't getting us anywhere, Traci. We're still avoiding the question here."

"What's the question?"

"Why are we doing this?"

"That was more of a statement Martin."

"Traci for godsakes.."

"Look, we're doing this because it feels good. It feels right, when we connect it feels like forever and a second rolled into one. It's not just physical, it's mystical and emotional and almost religious on its experience. Martin, you're my soul-mate, and I am yours."

"Traci.Please that's just.that's just crazy."

"No, Martin. That's just life." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him softly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Buddy. It's James, please pick up, I've read what you want me to do, and after weighing it in my mind, I've decided I'll go with you on this. So please, supply me with the samples, and we'll begin. Call me back."

Buddy smiled, as the first of his messages blurted out in the air.

"What was that about honey?" Ellen asked, biting the nape of his neck gently.

"Ellen! Honey, I'm trying to work my life out here, and you're trying soft core porn moves on me? Honestly. Give me a minute."

"But you were away for so long, and I have to get all of this anger out of my system." She smiled mischievously.

"You are possibly the sexiest and most disturbing woman I've ever come across."

Buddy waited and pressed the button again.

"Bernhard, it's Platinum. We need to speak again; I've located the second and third items on your "list". The First has been delivered already. Speak to you soon."

Ellen's eyes locked onto Buddy's as he slid his hands behind his head.

"Something you want to share with me?" She asked, gently poking his side.

"No, Not really, Ellen. There are some things that are better left to leave a certain amount of sexy mystery to your husband."

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The Swamps were dark, dank and dripping with moisture, which was exactly the way that the Black Orchid preferred it. She was most comfortable in this sort of environment. Her fingertips absorbed the moisture, sucking it up through her Xylemic cardiovascular system. She let loose a raged breath through the thick swamp air, pressing her Purple toes against the edge of the Mushroom Ringer Swamp.

"Smells like Shitake." She said softly, a smile passing over her Chlorophyll tipped lips. She leant down gently to the mushroom ring and placed her fingertips against the largest, releasing a large pheromone spore cloud into the air.

The spore particles danced around her head and around her body like a purple sparkling glow.

"Mushroom King, Lord of the Fungi Phyla, I beseech you, bring forth your representative. The Ambassador of the Gray."

The water of the swamp bubbled; something under its surface was thrashing around, spraying Orchid with water and algae. She brushed some mulch from her eyes, and locked them firmly on the hulking figure in front of her.

"Born On a Monday.DIED ON A SUNDAY!"

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"Freedom Beast. I trust your flight was comfortable?" Director Bones of the DEO blew a few rings of cigar smoke from his stogie.

"Something to that effect." The African man sat down at the desk, and removed his helmet, looking directly into Bones eye sockets.

"What do you want from me, Director?" He asked, laying his hands flat against the table top.

"We want you to help us with.a certain environmental problem I believe you've encountered before." The director spoke, blowing another smoke ring into the air.

"What's in it for me?"

"Well, for one thing, we know you're politically motivated, so we could easily provide you with a way to, lets say, clean up the corruption in your government?"

Dominic looked intently at the Director.

"If you had the power to do this, to prevent the suffering of Capetown and everyone in it, WHY wait until now to do anything about it?"

"How would that benefit us, Mr. Mindawe?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Yes, Yes. I understand. I know, but this is for the best for both myself and the world. No, I do understand. Yes, the tone of my voice does include a certain amount of resentment. Goodbye."

Rita put down the phone and laid flat on the bed of the Bakers spare room. She stared at the ceiling and let out a long sigh.

"What's the matter, Giant Lady?" Maxine asked, standing in the doorway.

"Oh, I just got fired, Maxine. The Adult world isn't a nice place to be." Rita sighed, smiling to Buddy's younger daughter.

"Why'd they fire you, Rita?" Maxine asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Said I couldn't be a superhero and work at the hospital anymore. Apparently, despite my powers being used for ground breaking research, I am unable to return to that job, after causing the scene I did outside of the hospital. Seems some higher ups were disturbed by the fact that I can change size both ways. Not really sure how it works to be honest, or if it was the fact that I provided a danger to the hospital. Either way, that's over now and I'm with you guys for good." Rita smiled and ran a hand through her hair, as Maxine looked up at her.

"You wanna go feed my Triceratops?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was known as"The House". A gambling ring that used human beings as the chips, pitting Superheroes against each other. The Japanese New Guardian known as RAM had fallen there, his blood spilt like so many others.

There was but one difference that separated him from the other super-heroes who had fallen.

"The plan is brilliant in its simplicity, my fellow Guardians." Extrano stood in front of the small gathering: Gloss, Betty, and Floro.

"We bring back the other members of our little group, contract some more, and restructure the world away from the man who broke it. The elemental forces of the planet were entrusted to humans who were naught but fragments of DNA, with childish minds. This time, those who were designed by Evolution and higher powers can guide the world. This time, we can finally fulfill our purpose."

"And how do we get the others back, Extrano?" Gloss questioned.

"Well, My dear that is the brilliance of it. Floro, if you please."

"I may be a plant now, Gloss, but I used to be a man. And I know what desire is like, I know the longing and the pain and the joy of what you mammals call Sex. I know that it can be faked, and watched and ruined and corrupted. It is everything and nothing at the same time."

"I'm not sure I follow you, Floro."

"Sex is the same as Magic, and Science and everything else that's important in the world, Gloss. Its part of the structure of life, it's so important that every living thing on the planet has some variation on it. The more complex the organism, the more it wants to shoot its DNA."

"Extrano.Floro.you're starting to scare me. Please. I don't understand."

"We're the New Guardians, Gloss. Our original manifesto was to create and gestate Mankind's new evolutionary state. But our numbers have dwindled. RAM, Harbinger, and Jet are dead, and Tom has left with the Deviants created by that idiot racist."

"Oh. Oh My God. Please, Extrano, you can't.Not with me."

Extrano's face hardened and he stared at the Raven haired Chinese woman intently, Floro had chlorophyll dripping from the corners of his mouth, spores flooding the air around him.

"Brilliant in its simplicity, Gloss. Brilliant in its simplicity."

"Please God, No."

"Floro. Begin."

Next Issue: What the Hell is up with the New Guardians? More on Martin Stein and Traci 13; Black Orchid and Solomon Grundy! Stay Tuned Readers, this is just the beginning!