Heroes Rising Fiction: Mythic Chase part 1

Something's coming. Legion was only the beginning...

Part 1

“THIEF!” A man yelled at the top of his lungs.

A woman in black dashed over an assembly line and then slid under a large container suspended from the ceiling. She flung two small knives and pinned a pair of guards against the wall by their clothes.

“Stop her!” More guards came rushing over everything.

The woman stood up and produced a new set of knives, “I’m not here to steal anything!” She threw the blades and pinned down more pursuers. She executed a perfect flip and bounded off of several surfaces until she was on the upper walkway.

A man holding a fighting staff ran at her, “Stand down!”

“I was invited!” She swept her leg across the ground, but he avoided falling with a simple jump and then swung his staff at her. She caught it and yanked him forward, punching him in the face.

“STOP!” A deep, rumbling voice brought all to a standstill.

The woman stood back, ready for another attack, “What’s going on?” she asked.

The man with the staff explained, “Santa Claus, Sir, she came right through our defenses outside and got in here. I don’t know what she stole so far.”

“Nothing!” she protested.

Santa Claus smiled, “I asked her to come.”

“You...did?”

“Yes. Now, get back to work, please.”

The woman didn’t relax, “What am I doing here at your workshop?”

“I asked you to come here, Angela, as a personal favor.”

She relaxed, “I don’t go by that name any longer. I’m Chase.”

“I know since you discovered your powers you’ve altered your identity...slightly.”

“What does Santa need with a master thief?”

“Much. Come with me.”.

They walked down a long hallway. Santa turned a corner, and they stood in a room that had barn doors to the far side. In the middle of the room was the famous Sleigh.

“You brought me to see your sleigh?”

“Yes, but with good reason. The one who stole it is still at large, this was only the first part of his plans.”

“But, they kicked Krampus’s butt so hard he’s in another dimension.”

“Krampus isn’t the one behind this, he’s nothing compared to this villain.”

Far away from the North Pole:

A winged man stumbled through a village in Italy. People dodged his aimless stride as he seemed to lost in his thoughts. More than one person gasped and called him by his name, “Cupid!” When they said this he would look up and focus to recall why that sounded so familiar.

“Who are you?” A man stopped him and held him when he almost fell over.

Cupid looked up and realized that the color of the world in his eyes had faded to grays. “I...I don’t remember. I am angry, sad, lonely, what is in me!” He pushed the man over and ran.

A block down the road he stopped by an outdoor artist working with metals for an audience. The half-naked, winged man startled the gathered crowd. He reached out when he saw a couple holding hands. His blood boiled at the sight of their affection. He pulled them apart and then threw them away.

“HEY! STOP!” The blacksmith yelled.

Cupid screamed incoherently and released a wave of gray energy. Everyone fell back and then sat on the ground wailing and crying. All happiness and joy had left them. They no longer cared about this stranger.

Cupid picked up a new, shiny metal ax and looked at it. He used a finger to draw a heart on the ax head; the metal burning under his touch. As he drew another heart, the whole ax fumed with a strange smoke.

“HOLD YOUR HANDS UP!” A group of local police arrived, all taking aim with their guns.
Cupid swung the ax over his head and then slammed it into the ground, releasing a more powerful wave of gray energy. The officers flew back and were in the same state of despair as the others.
Just then something hit Cupid in the back of the head. He crashed into the ground, face first.

A hero landed, “What is going on? Who are you? What have you done?”

Cupid slowly got to his feet, he growled, “The heart should ache.”

“What?” The hero shook his head, “Okay, you're nuts. Come with...”

“YAH!” Cupid launched himself with his ax and planted it in his chest before the hero could respond.