“POWERLESS”
By:
Michael Heitkemper
Published by Lucid Books MMXI
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2011 by Michael Heitkemper
Discover other titles by Michael Heitkemper at Smashwords.com or at
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How do I get myself into these types of situations? I’m dangling, held from the neck by a super powered villain named, Death Lord. My feet are a foot from touching the ground. It’s times like these that I wish I had super powers too. If I did, even just a little, getting out of this type of situation would be a cinch. To bad I’m Powerless; guess that’s why they call me Mr. Powerless.
Death Lord is tall, strong, and has the complexion of a corpse. He’s trying to force me to look into those red beady eyes of his. I’m not falling for it; instant death awaits that gaze. I turn my eyes away from him.
Across the room, I see my trusty sidekick, Stunner. He’s taking on ten of Death Lord’s henchmen all at once. Now that’s power. Super strength that’s off the charts, energy blasts from his chest, wingless flight; Stunner has it all. That’s not to mention his costume. He’s really pulling off the gold and red tights. And look at me, my costume is black cape on black tights with a black utility belt. It’s easier for me to hide in the shadows with this color scheme. But I guess for a guy like Stunner, he never really needs to hide. He wants the bad guys to see him coming.
It’s no wonder the newspapers get it wrong when they call me the sidekick. But Stunner is the one that came to me offering to be my sidekick. Why? I don’t know. Maybe cause he’s messed up in the head. He brought along some messed up story with him. He told me that he was actually a time traveler from the future; wouldn’t tell me how far. He said that in the future, the world was ruled by some super powered tyrant. Stunner was on a mission to travel back in time to prevent the tyrant from coming into power. He said that he had accomplished the mission, but had no way to get back to his time. He explained that a time machine wouldn’t be invented for another fifty years. Needless to say, he’s had a hard time fitting in with the rest of the super hero crowd. Sometimes, he can be a nuisance, but I’ve gotta say, I’m really glad he’s around.
“Look at me!” Death Lord shouts.
I almost forgot where I was. Just in time too, Death Lord is really putting the pressure on my trachea. I take what I’m sure will be my last breath till I’m free, and I weigh my options. Seems to me like I’ve only got one chance. I manage to reach my utility belt with one hand. I grab my miniature cutting torch. I easily pop the lid off the propane container. I can smell the gas spewing up between Death Lord and me. I close my eyes, kiss my eye lashes goodbye, and pray that the armor under my suit will protect me from the burns.
I squeeze the igniter to the torch. He huge ball of flames blow up between us. Death Lord is shocked, and instinctively throws me away from him. I land on the floor about ten feet away. I choke, and gag as my throat expands back to its normal state. Finally, I get a descent breath of air.
“Fool!” Death Lord shouts.
I’m surprised at how fast Death Lord has recovered. I haven’t even made it to my knees, and he’s already marching toward me.
“You may have caught me off guard, but you won’t be so lucky twice,” Death Lord threatens me.
Death Lord grabs my cape. Immediately, I know that this is going to be bad. I try to get away from him, but he’s strong, and easily drags me to my feet. He swings me around once like a sling, and then lets me go. I must have flown through the air for twenty feet before I hit the steel wall. I slide to the floor. Thank God for my armor. All of my joints seem to be in the right place. The only thing that isn’t is my mask. I straighten it so I can see again. Unfortunately, it’s not a great sight. Death Lord is marching my way again.
“C’mon little man,” Death Lord taunts. “At least try to put up a fight.” I can tell that he’s enjoying throwing me about.
“Okay,” I say as I get back onto my feet. “Let’s do this then.”
I pull too fist packs out of belt. It’s a dirty weapon, I know. But when you’re facing impossible odds against a super villain that’s twice your strength, you’ll take anything to help even the odds.
Death Lord is right in front of me. I open up swinging my fists on his face as hard as I can. He steps back some. I start to gain a little ground. But Death Lord is a foot and a half taller than me; I can feel my arms loosing momentum with each upward swing. Finally, my arms are tired. I can’t deliver another blow.
I look at the mass of a man standing in front of me. Death Lord’s face is bloody, and he’s angry. He gives me a devilish grin. He enjoyed the beating that I had just given him. This is the first time I’ve been up against Death Lord; I should have known not to even try. I never use to go after this type of villain. I always kept after the petty crooks and low-lives. I guess that having all of Stunner’s powers in my corner made me a little too confident. Wish I could use Stunner’s time machine right now. I’d go back and change things.
Standing there waiting for Death Lord to make his move feels like a life-time. My arms feel like rubber limbs. I’m utterly defenseless; powerless.
Death Lord draws back his fist. A series of blades instantly protrude out of his glove. His next blow was going to be a kill strike.
Suddenly, one of Stunner’s amber glowing energy blasts hit Death Lord from the side. Death Lord is knocked across the room. I watch as Stunner flies past me, and straight at my opponent. Death Lord is severely stunned by the energy blast. Stunner must have used one of his more lethal shots. He’s said that he can control the blasts intensity.
Death Lord lays helpless on the floor, and Stunner hovers in the air over top of him.
“This isn’t your day, Death Lord,” Stunner says boldly. “You’re going away for a while this time.”
“Your bars can’t hold me, and your courts and rule me,” Death Lord struggles to declare. Even as he’s about to loose consciousness, Death Lord refuses to admit defeat.
I march over to the ailing villain. With my fist pack still tucked tightly, I gather all of my strength and lend one last blow to Death Lord’s head. He’s instantly knocked out.
“P!” Stunner shouts at me. “What’re you doing?”
“That ought to shut him up for a while,” I mumble.
Stunner lands in front of me. “Hey, he was done,” he says.
“And I was done listening to him,” I said as I walk past Stunner. I make sure that I give him a nudge with my shoulder as I pass; it barely fazes him. I look across the room; all of Death Lords men are either knocked out on the floor, or roped to the columns that hold up the ceiling. I had to admit, Stunner was good; too good. He made me jealous.
“Looks like you’ve got everything under control here,” I say in frustrated tone.
“Hey, we did this together,” Stunner says.
“If you say so.”
I decide that it’s time for me to go. I have other places to be, and there’s nothing more for me to contribute there. As I’m walking away, Stunner still tries to console me.
“C’mon man! We’re partners! We’re in this together!” he shouts.
“It’s no sweat,” I say. I don’t even turn around to look at him. “I’ve got some place to be. Contact me on our com.” The com is a radio device that Stunner and I share. It’s the only way that he and I have to get in touch with one another. I don’t know who he is, and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t know who I am either.
An hour later, I’m standing on the roof top of the jazz club that’s adjacent to my apartment building. My apartment is on the fourth floor. I look up and down the street. There are a few cars, and one or two people on the sidewalks, but no one appears to know that I’m there. I throw my grapple hook across the street, and easily snag the railing of the fire escape. I grab the rope and zip line across to the fire escape. It’s my favorite part of the whole super hero gig; the thrill of flying through the air, death just below me, and everything in front of me. If it weren’t for these joys, I’d probably have quit a long time ago.