Loyalties pt.3
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������Wild Card held up the two fireballs she had just created; Medusa stopped her just short of firing them.
�������What are you doing?!?� She demanded.
�������I am killing them, My Lady. Which is something you failed at the last time!�
�������We will kill them Wild Card� in due time.� Wild Card rolled her eyes as Medusa turned her attention to the Guardians. �We will fight you. Gorgon against Guardian.�
�������Nine �gainst five,� Renegade said with a raised eyebrow, �Gotta love them odds.�
�������Afraid?� Medusa asked the newest Guardian.
������Renegade smiled coyly and shook his head. �No, it gives me more ass t� kick.� He looked from Medusa to Isis. The young mutant had an appreciating smile on her face as she looked Zen over from head to toe.
������Wild Card caught sight of Isis�s expression and rolled her eyes. She formed a small fireball and flung it at Isis, purposely missing her.
�������Hey!� Isis hissed.
�������Focus your attention on the job at hand, not at the pretty face.�
������Renegade instantly formed a set of ER made throwing knives between his long fingers. �That would mean a lot Darlin� if you weren�t on their side!� He then flung the knives at Ace before looking at Cell. �Take who you want but Wild Card is mine.�

������From a safe distance a shadowed figure watched with a smile as the Guardians paired themselves off with random Gorgons. Cell stood in front of Tsunami while Kismet took on It and Isis. Serenity faced Armageddon while Genesis was between Crash and Sniper. From the sidelines Medusa looked on the various fights, using her power of levitation as a shield to block the stray power blasts that headed for her; at her feet was Discord who, at Medusa�s order, remained back in case someone tried to attack her leader.
������The shadowed man sneered when he turned his attention to Wild Card who dodged out of the way of Renegade�s ER knives.
�������It will take more than fancy flying to save you from me Ace� the Guardians will be brought down. I will see to it.�

������Cell looked at Tsunami carefully. He remembered the last time they stood toe to toe. Tsunami had successfully kicked his ass. But Cell has learned the meaning of fine tuned control since that fight.
�������So, boy,� Tsunami said with a sneer as they circled one another, �Ready for another ass whooping?�
�������If you think you can.� With that they each powered up.
������Cell was the first to send a beam of his mutant power at Tsunami. But as easily as it was sent it was deflected by Tsunami�s self-made shield.
�������You�re not the only one who�s learned some new tricks.� Tsunami clenched his fist, pulling the water away from the air around Cell. The latter found it hard to breath in the harsh air. He could feel the blood as it trickled from his nose. Cell looked at Tsunami�s belt. He had a laser cannon in a holster at his hip.
������Cell concentrated on it as he sent a beam at it. The cannon malfunctioned and fired directly into Tsunami�s foot. Tsunami let out a cry of pain as he fell to the ground at the same time his hold on the water particles surrounding Cell stopped. Cell took advantage of the situation to hit Tsunami with as much power as he could without killing his adversary before looking at the fight-involving Kismet.

������Kismet looked between It and Isis carefully as she decided as to her most successful plan of action. She decided just as It�s mass and density grew to be twice that it originally was. Kismet knew, from their last meeting, that it was planning to charge; so Kismet took the proper precautions and moved so that It was facing Discord and Medusa.
������Kismet glanced back them just before It charged. With a move learned from Renegade, Kismet did a one handed side flip out of the charging mutants way and watched as Discord released her haze over It as to stop her teammate from hitting her.
������With It otherwise occupied, Kismet could then focus her attention on Isis who was nowhere to be seen. Using her newly acquired abilities to turn invisible Isis had moved so she was behind Kismet and using a beam of finely focused light hit the older mutant square in the back. As if by instinct Kismet retaliated with her own golden beam of karmatic energy as she tried to gain her balance. With both women dazed there was no way that they could further use their powers, so Isis settled for hand-to-hand combat, something she knew very little of. It only took Kismet a couple of punches, a flip and a kick before Isis was down for the count.
������Kismet gave a nod to Cell before running to aid Genesis.

������As soon as Genesis saw his adversaries he immediately turned his forearms into a laser cannon and a shield. He was thankful for the shield when Sniper, true to his name, began shooting him from a fair distance, all of them were on their mark which would have been between Simon�s eyes had it not been for the shields protection. Yet while he was fending off one mutant he was trying to focus on another, a seemingly impossible task, even for a genius.
������Crash knew that Genesis�s attention was distracted and took advantage of it; for as he sent the subsonic rays from his eyes he also strayed from Genesis�s line of vision. Something that gave him an edge when his ray hit Simon�s self generated firearm the latter let out a cry of pain and the cannon swiftly reverted back into its regular state.
������Genesis immediately found Crash and gave him an evil eye. It was an evil eye that turned to a surprised one when a golden globe hit Crash knocking him to the ground. Genesis quickly gave Kismet a friendly nod before turning his attention fully on Sniper who had misted into Simon�s father who died from cancer.
������Gritting his teeth Genesis, with a newly formed laser cannon, hit his father by way of Sniper in the leg causing the blue mutant to again become blue. Simon sighed when the familiar beam of Cell�s powers came and knocked Sniper unconscious.
������Genesis walked over to Cell, who was bleeding in more places to count at the same time Kismet approached them. She had a limp and her uniform was torn where Isis�s light ray had hit her. They were about to speak when they saw a shadow looming overhead.

*~*~*~*~Moments Before~*~*~*~*

������Serenity was taken aback when she first saw the size of the asteroid matter that Armageddon could create. She wanted to swear when smaller chunks of the asteroid flew towards her.
�������Projectiles,� she thought glumly. She managed to divert as many as she could with her impenetrable blade, but soon her sword was flung from her hand. She fell to the ground. Her sword was out of her reach. Armageddon stood over her with a menacing smile as the size of the asteroid continued to grow. Serenity let out an involuntary scream when she felt the cold heat that the asteroid gave off.

������From not too far away another fight was taking place. Renegade dove out of the way of a fireball and did a back flip to get back to his feet. He then created a set of six more ER knives and threw it at her. They exploded, shredding pieces of her uniform off. He raised an eyebrow as he noticed her peeved expression.
������She had begun to form a fireball when she heard Serenity�s scream. She looked to its source only to find Armageddon ready to strike. She then looked back at her own adversary. Renegade had no other weapons ready to strike her. To Wild Card, that seemed odd, but she didn�t spend too much time thinking about it. She threw the fireball at his feet. The explosion threw him back and gave her enough time to fly to Serenity�s aid.

������Serenity was about to let out another scream when Wild Card showed up. To Serenity�s surprise Wild Card threw a fireball directly at Armageddon�s chest, driving him back several meters.
������Serenity�s eyes were wide when the other mutant, one Hope believed to be an enemy, handed her sword back.
�������I thought I warned you about the kid gloves.� She winked at the confused Serenity. �Next time remember to watch out for the projectiles.�
������Before Serenity could say anything, Wild Card took off in a vertical ascent.

������The shadowed figure laughed shortly. �It is time!�

������Just as Wild Card neared Renegade, who had regained his footing, the figure that had watched from the shadows began his ascent into the air. His dark gray bulk loomed over the gathered mutants, causing all other action to stop.
������He looked at them curiously before pointing at Wild Card. �You!�
������She looked around. �What?�
������He beckoned her with his finger. �Fight!�
������She shrugged. �Ya don�t hafta tell me twice!� She then made a V line straight towards him as fast as her powers would allow.
������He had a smile that continued to widen as she neared him until she was less than three meters away. It was at that time Wild Card knew something was wrong. But before she could do something about it, he exploded.

������The force of the blast knocks everyone off balance. They all shielded their eyes from the light that was produced. When the light had died down, where Wild Card and her mysterious opponent once were, was now nothing.
������Medusa looked around in defeat. She knew that she had lost. She watched as her team got to their feet and helped with the ones still unable to walk under their own power.
�������Let�s go!� She yelled at them. She waited until they were in position before looking at Cell. �I don�t know how you knew, but next time you will fall!!�
������Cell watched them go before looking at the Guardians. �Are you guys alright?� They nodded. �Good. Spread out. Look for any sign of Ace or the man who attacked her.�

�������Any sign of them?� Cell asked into his COM button. He was standing where Renegade and Ace had been fighting.
�������No.� He heard Kismet say slowly.
������A similar response came from Renegade. �None.�
�������Notta one.� Serenity said coming up beside him.
������Cell nodded after a moment. �Okay team lets see if Genesis has found anything on the Custodian�s sensors.�

�������I cannot find a trace of anything out there. Well, nothing either human or mutant located in a carbonate based live form within a six meter radius.� Genesis informed them once they were back in the Custodian. �I have taken the liberty to use Ace�s DNA sample, which is on file, to narrow the search down to the point were it seeks out her, even if she were in molecular pieces; we would have found her. Yet it is as though they were never brought into existence.�
������While he was talking Serenity had traveled to the door of the jet where Garret was. He had informed her that he had found something.
�������They were though.� She said taking what Garret had found from him and showing it to the others. It was a scrap of material, a piece off a uniform to be exact. �And here�s the proof� it�s from Ace�s, well� Wild Card�s,� she corrected herself with a sad expression, �Uniform.�
������She then took it over to Genesis when he wished to see it. �It�s genuine. It was defiantly off of her uniform.�
������Kismet beckoned Cell out of the earshot of the others. �Have you tried a telepathic search?� She asked him quietly. She knew he hated using his telepathic powers but she felt compelled to ask, under the present circumstances.
������Cell nodded. �Yes.�
�������And?� He sighed. �And just like Simon said she�s not out there.�
�������Do you think she�s dead?�
�������I don�t know what to say. There isn�t any blood on the piece of uniform but there is the possibility, and I think we should be prepared to face it if it comes to that. And I think we should prepare the others, so that they�re not grasping at false hopes.�
������Kismet nodded. �Alright.�
������Cell paused a moment before looking at Genesis. �Is there anything else we can do here?� Genesis shook his head. �Alright people. Lets get back to HQ. And don�t mention anything to Jacob until we are all there.�
�������What about Ace?� Serenity asked in a meek tone.
������Cell looked at her. �We hope that she�ll be fine if she�s alive. But with the present evidence, chances are that she didn�t survive the blast.�

������The ride home was quiet.
������Kai left the co-pilot seat and moved to sit beside Hope. �Is something wrong?� She asked the younger woman.
������Serenity looked up at Kai. �She saved me. Armageddon was about to� but she saved me. That means she still cared about me� and about us. Doesn�t it?�
������Kai shrugged. �I guess it does.�
�������Then why do I still see her only as our enemy?� Serenity set her head back against the headrest of her seat. �She died the enemy, not as our friend.�
�������You keep seeing her as the enemy an� that�s all she�ll ever be.� Renegade said as he gripped a dagger tightly. It was in his left hand that was extended over his elevated left knee. He never took his eyes off the front window.
�������That�s nice coming from you Zen.� Serenity said; she was suddenly on the defense. �You�re the one who fought her.�
�������So what if I did? I had to know something, and I found it out.�
�������What was that?�
������Renegade looked down at the dagger he was holding. �That she�s not the person she wanted us all to believe her to be.�
�������How did you come to that conclusion?� Genesis asked, mildly intrigued but mostly just wanted to take his mind off of the look of her as their enemy.
������Zen looked at him with a small smile. �She didn�t kill me when I gave her the chance.�
�������Everyone,� Cell said in a hard tone that lacked emotion, �Prepare for landing. We�re home.�

������The tone within the Briefing Room was that of a somber one. Jacob looked around not knowing what to say or do. No one spoke a word of their mission to anyone until they had all settled down into their chairs and once their clothes had been changed and they had each cleaned up.
������Sampson�s silhouette took form on the screen. �What happened?� He asked. They could tell he was scanning each of them with his eyes. �Did you stop them?�
������Cell nodded. �Yes. They retreated. But not because of us; well, not entirely.�
�������Then who was it?�
�������I don�t know. Someone after Ace.�
�������Where is he now?�
������Cell shrugged. �Dead I think. He challenged Ace to a fight and when she was in range he blew up. We couldn�t find any trace of him�� Cell paused and fought the urge not to say what he knew he must, �Or of Ace.�
������Jacob gasped as he looked at Cell. He didn�t know what to say. He would have never dreamed that Ace could or would ever die.
������He nodded after a moment�s hesitation. �Listen all of you. In light of what happened, I must tell you something so that your opinion of Ace will not be tainted. Ace left the Guardians not because she was angry with the team, but at my request.�
�������What?� The team all said in unison.
�������I asked her to join the Gorgons in hopes of learning their plans. She agreed, knowing the risks involved. She was the reason we were able to defeat the Gorgons and save thousands of lives.�
������They all sat in silence as they pondered what they had just heard.
������Jacob stood and began to leave. He couldn�t believe that Ace was gone. And on some level he felt responsible for it.
�������Jacob!� Kai said, willing him to stay. She began to stand but was caught by Cell.
�������Let him go. He�ll be alright.�

������That night was a quiet one, the members of the superhero team known as the Guardians were all remembering the loss of one of their own.
������Cell sighed as he looked at the enlarged photo on the screen of the briefing room that accompanied the physical stats of their lost teammate. He couldn�t shake the image of her as their enemy from his mind, or the image of her when she first joined the team.
�If you won�t tell us your name what will we call you?� Kai had asked.
A slow half smile had begun to spread on the mutant�s face as she focused on something lying in the gutter. It was a card, the ace of spades to be exact. �Ace.�
�������Well you�ve certainly lived up to the name Ace. There�s no doubting that.�

������Ruse silently entered the garage, his journal entry held in a shaking hand. He looked at the racing bike that they picked up from the bar Ace helped trashed. He then moved his eyes up to the helmet that sat upon it proudly; pitch black with flames traveling back from the visor; the name Ace accompanied with a red spade that was about the black visor was etched forever into his mind. His heart had a great weight boring down on it as he looked down at a sentence that he had written that morning, blind of the events that was happening to those he was writing about:
�I know it will take time for things to get settled and everyone to get used to her not being here but I know that we are better off without her.�
������He crumpled the paper up as he turned away from the motorcycle, eyes clamped shut. He tried to swallow away the growing pit in his stomach. �I�m sorry Ace, I didn�t mean it that way.�

������Serenity followed Garret as he flew towards the cliffs edge. She stood in the spot that Ace had taken so many times in the past as she watched Garret fly over the sea. She could feel the other woman�s energy and strength flow through her. And she smiled warmly when she recalled the number of times she had talked to Simon about her.
�Is it possible to look up to someone who is younger than you?�
He had shrugged. �I guess it depends on the reasons for admiring them. Why?�
�I think I look up to Ace.�
�Its not hard to see why. Ace is the soul embodiment of what feminists have wanted women to be for centuries.�
�������That she is.� Serenity said as her smiled widened. �One thing that made Ace, Ace was her will. She won�t give up until she�s back with us, where she belongs.�

������Kai entered the Locker Room with an expressionless face. Staring her down was Ace�s walk in locker. She walked up to it and ran her fingers over the indented letters that made up her name. Kai sighed as she let her hand drop back to her side.
�������You once told me that a loss will affect you only if you let it;� She told the letters, �And that if you let it, it will rip you apart inside. So for you Ace, I won�t let this affect me, I will be strong, just as you would be if this had happened to anyone else; you would be strong so the others could draw their strength from you. I don�t know if any of them truly understood that, but I did� and now I will be strong for them until you can come back and take your place as our strength, so that you can be strong for us all again.�

������Renegade stopped at his destination. He looked around before opening the door to the room, it was her room and even with her gone, that it always would be. It was simple yet complex with numerous forces, all different, all original and all dangerous, at work within its design. It reflected the women, known only as Ace, to a tee. Renegade remembered the first time he had seen her. He was instantly drawn to her eyes; the yin-yang pattern that held wisdom, a truth and a freedom mixed within hatred, mistrust and an outlook long ago lost. They were intense and focused, and from experience with false fronts, Zen knew right away that she was more than she seemed.
�������And I was right.� He said shutting the door. �You played us all for a fool. If you were most people I would never trust you again, but I seem to trust you even more. You are a riddle, wrapped in an enigma covered in a mystery and protected with a thick coating of an attitude. Come back to us Ace.�

������Simon cleaned up the mess in the Research Lab, trying to keep his mind off of the days events. But his work stopped when Ace�s DNA, sitting proudly on the storage shelf, seemed to shove itself into Simon�s direct line of vision. He slowly went over to it and carefully picked it up in his monstrous hand before he moved towards the chemical disposal pail. She was gone and he didn�t think of a use for it. He was about to toss it out when he paused to look at it. A sudden thought urged him, forced him to stop. He smiled softly before he moved back to the shelf and placed the DNA sample back in its rightful spot. His smile widened as he turned to leave the lab. At the doorway he paused to look back at the DNA.
�������I�ll figure you out someday. We might not know much about you as a person but I will know what you�re made of. I only hope its strong enough to outlive any tribulation.�
������With a last smile he turned out the Lab light and went upstairs, after all he had had a rough day. 1