The cover shows a woman in a blue and white bodysuit, smiling confidently as she stands in the illumination cast by a street light. However, one foot is standing in something nasty-looking, a newspaper has wrapped itself around her leg, her mask is slipping, and figures in the shadows around her are rolling their eyes and making dismissive gestures. //|| //^^\\ || || .|. COHERENT COMICS UNINCORPORATED PRESENTS // || \\ || || --X--------------------------------------------- //======================= '|` ASH UNIVERSE ONE-SHOT // || \\ || || "Unbeatable" // || \\__// || || Copyright 2008 by Andrew Burton ___________________________________________________________________________ [March 12, 1998 - Chicago, IL] Anne Abell watched as the man with dark purple-blue hair followed Nurse Martin down the hallway of the after hours clinic, toward one of the exam room. From the way he was holding his left arm, Anne guessed that it was either a sprain or a dislocation, but that would really be up for doctor to decide...that's why they got paid the big bucks and she was just a nurse. When Nurse Martin squared her patient away in an exam room and returned to the nurse's station, Anne quietly asked, "Florence, who's 'tall, dark and injured' back there?" Anne thumbed in the general direction of the exam room to better indicate who she meant. "He looks familiar, but I didn't get a really good look at his face." Florence raised an eyebrow. "You don't know?" she retorted. Anne smiled disarmingly. "I'm the newfie, cut me some slack." She'd only started at the clinic a few weeks prior, and was still getting a handle on all the names of her fellow employees. Remembering regular patients was going to come next. "Do you want his name on the chart or the one he's famous for?" Florence asked. "Famous for?" Anne asked. "Is he a celebrity?" That fact felt almost right in the back of Anne's head. Famous name...blue hair...if only she'd seen his face. "That," Florence nodded toward the back, "is Doctor Developer." Anne's eyes bugged out and her hand flew to cover her mouth. Before she could say anything else, Florence pointed through the sliding window that separated the registration area of their nurses station from the waiting room. "And that's his wife, Lady Lawful. They don't ever come out and say it for 'non- business' injuries like this...some DSHA protocol, but it's them." By the time Florence finished speaking, Anne was sitting in a chair. Her face was an ashen grey, and she was taking deep breaths through her nose. "He found me," Anne whispered. "Found you?" Florence asked. She waved a hand. "I don't know what you mean by that, but those two come in here every few months. Her super- strength and their enthusiasm get the better of him more than's probably healthy." That statement seemed to calm Anne a bit. Her breathing slowed, and her hand moved away from her mouth. "Thank Athena," Anne sighed. "Now, just why did you think he was after you?" Florence asked. Anne glanced through the window and watched the woman Florence told her was Lady Lawful. As far as Anne knew, Lady Lawful really was one of the good guys...the whole married-to-Doctor-Developer thing kind of threw her, but a good guy was a good guy. If he was here to get her, Lady Lawful would have to protect her. That's just how it worked, as far as she knew. "You may find this hard to believe, Florence," Anne began, "but I wasn't always a nurse...." * * * * [August 3, 1994 - Detroit, MI] "Stop where you are, criminal!" a voice echoed across the ranks of self-storage units, "you've just been beaten!" Doctor Developer looked from the lock he was working on and his two henchmen clutched their weapons a bit tighter. From above, a lithe body dropped to the ground in a crouch. The body, obviously a woman's, stood up. It was a hero, definitely a hero. Her white uniform covered her from neck to toe, matching blue gloves and boots covered her feet and hands, and her face was obscured by a white mask. The only ornament to her costume was the golden "U" on her chest, which didn't seem as professionally made as the rest of the costume...which, on closer examination, seemed to be a modified "Halloween costume" version of the second Brightsword's outfit. Chestnut brown hair cascaded around her face, clashing with the suit and mask. "Beaten by Unbeatable!" she declared. The two henchment looked at each other, then down at Doctor Developer. He only looked away from the lock once the mechanism was sprung. "Hey, hold on a second!" Unbeatable cried out, "I said you were beaten. You've got to stop...or at least, I don't know, attack me." "Why?" Doctor Developer asked. He pulled the lock out of place, and rolled up the metal door of the U-Stor-More shed. "Because, I caught you breaking into someone's property!" Unbeatable explained, "and because you're a villain...Doctor Developer, right?" The henchmen nodded. "And because I'm a good guy." Doctor Developer reached into the storage shed as he began to speak, "I am a villain, and if you're to be believed, you are a hero...not that I have any reason to believe, as we just met..." "I'm kind of famous around town," Unbeatable interrupted him. "Super agility, enhanced speed, super jumps," Unbeatable explained, "I rescued five people from a fire last week. Unbeatable." She pointed the fingers of both hands at the "U" on her chest. Doctor Developer shrugged. "Well, I *am* a hero!" "Oh, yeah!" one of henchmen said. "The factory fire last week. I think that was one of Mekanique's jobs." "That's the one!" Unbeatable beamed, "So you have heard of me." "Well," the henchmen said, "I heard Mekanique's guys talking about some rookie showing up, bustin' one of Mekanique's drones, and starting a fire..." "The Fire Marshal concluded the fire was a result of villainous actions," Unbeatable replied a bit too quickly. "It probably would have started with or without me there!" The henchmen raised his arms in a mock surrender, "I'm just telling you what I heard, lady." Unbeatable glowered. "Don't shoot the messenger, okay." "Fine! Whatever!" Unbeatable said, punctuating her second word with a stamp of her boot. "The point is, I caught breaking and entering, and I'm going to stop you!" "Breaking and entering into my own storage shed," Doctor Developer explained. He held up a key on a plastic key ring. "I was clearing my stuff out, and locked the keys in," he explained. "You have to turn these in, or you don't get your security deposit back." Unbeatable's face fell when she saw the keys. After a moment, her face shifted to a more resolute, determined look. "No matter! You're still a wanted villain, and I'm here to take you in, Doctor Develop...!" Mid-word, Unbeatable felt three points of tightness wrap around her body: one around her chest, one around her knees, and another around her ankles. Moments after being struck, the sudden lack of balance, combined with the force of the impacts, sent Unbeatable falling backwards onto the pavement, momentarily stunning her. She struggled feebly as the henchmen dragged her into the storage shed. "It'll probably take a bit of work," Doctor Developer said to Unbeatable as the henchmen laid her out in the center of the now empty unit, "but even like this, you should be able to build up enough momentum to break through the door." Doctor Developer dusted his hands off as he leaned back on the balls of his feet. Unbeatable squirmed as much as the binding cables would let her, which she figured was probably about as much as an inchworm could manage. "But... if I break through the door, won't I have to pay for it?" she asked meekly, looking up at Doctor Developer. "Mmm," Doctor Developer thought, "doesn't the DSHA have an insurance fund for those kind of damages?" "What's the Deesha?" Unbeatable asked. "Rooooookie," one of the henchmen chuckled to the other. "The Department of Super-Human Affairs," Doctor Developer answered, ignoring the henchman. "Oh...the NSSA," Unbeatable realized, using the organization's unofficial nickname. National Super Security Agency. "Aren't you registered?" Doctor Developer asked. Unbeatable shook her head. "I'd heard it was optional, and my dad always told me never to give the government any information you didn't have to." "Oh," Doctor Developer mused. He rubbed his chin, thoughtful for a minute. "Yes, you look about the age to have parents like that." "Are doors expensive?" Unbeatable asked, sounding much younger than she had before. "About five hundred dollars, I think," Doctor Developer answered. "But if you're not registered, that also counts as private property damage, since you're not protected under the emergency responder laws, just the good samaritan ones. That's a bit more serious." "What?" Unbeatable gasped. "Yeah, it's a crime, maybe not jailable offense, but if the owner decides to sue...." "Sue? I can't afford a lawyer," Unbeatable choked, "I don't even know if I can afford a door!" Tears began to well up in Unbeatable's eyes. "Look, Mister Developer...." "I actually *am* a doctor, you know," Doctor Developer said, sounding a bit miffed. "Please, Doctor Developer, can't you just let me go this once? I won't arrest you if you'll let me go." "I can't just let you go," Doctor Developer replied, "and I don't know why I should; I was minding my own business, you started all this, and now you want me to let you go. No, no, no...no. You're the hero in all this. You get loose on your own." Unbeatable shook her head. "How? I can't untie myself. I'm not strong enough to break these cables, or I would have by now. If I break the door down, they'll sue me!" She let out a sob. "Oh, please. I won't tell anyone if you just let me go." Doctor Developer stared at Unbeatable for a full minute before speaking. "You're not very good at this, you know." Unbeatable looked shocked, then her face fell, and in no time she was sobbing. "What are you doing?" Unbeatable sniffled, then snapped, "I'm crying you jackass! You don't think I know how bad I am? I started a fire last week. I'm tied up, crying my eyes out to a super-villain. And I'm going to get sued for breaking down a door if I try to escape...yeah, I know that I'm no good at this." Doctor Developer seemed to be taken aback by Unbeatable's retort. "Then why do you want to be a hero?" Unbeatable twisted slightly, doing the best shrug she could while lying on her side on the ground. "Isn't there something you *are* good at that you could do? Are you in school or anything?" Unbeatable nodded. "Kind of," she answered, "I'm trying to get into nursing school." She let out a sad laugh. "Not that I'll be able to go if they sue me for breaking down a door." Doctor Developer stood up and walked around to Unbeatable's front. Once there, he knelt back down. "What...what are you doing?" "You're going to get killed if you keep this hero thing up," Doctor Developer said, "so you're going to stop." He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the storage key. "I'll leave a note saying I left the key in here, which is the truth. Someone will be around during business hours to collect them, and you. Go be a nurse, or whatever." He dropped the key on the floor. "But don't ever let me see you again...or else." * * * * [March 12, 1998 - Chicago, IL] "And then he left," Anne said. "The next morning, some kid who was sent to get the keys found me and let me go. After that, I hung up my tights and I became a nurse." Florence was laughing. "It's not funny," Anne insisted. "Yes, it is!" Florence replied. She brought her laughter under control, with only a few bursts slipping out along the way. "You should come meet him," Florence said, "I want to see the look on his face." "I couldn't..." "You are," Florence insisted. She grabbed Anne's hand and dragged her out of the nurse's station. "No, you know you need to meet?" Florence changed directions, pulling Anne into the waiting room. As they stepped into the waiting room, Lady Lawful looked up from the magazine she was trying to read, although she'd probably read it when she was last there...it hadn't been particularly new then either. She smiled politely at the nurses as they stepped toward her. "Mrs. McKay," Florence smiled, I would like you to meet Anne Beatrice Abell." "It's nice to meet you, Anne," Lady Lawful said, extending her hand for Anne to shake. "Uh, the pleasure...honor...it is...is mine," Anne stuttered, finally taking the hand. If she squeezed a little too hard out of nerves, the other woman didn't let on...after all, she was at least as strong as Anne, if not moreso. "Anne, why don't you tell Mrs. McKay what you told me," Florence suggested, "I'm going to go check on Mr. McKay." Anne raised a hand, correcting Florence, "Actually, he's a doctor." As Florence walked away laughing, Anne turned back to Lady Lawful and did her best to explain her story. When she was done, Jennifer McKay was smiling, but it was a kind smile, not a cruel or condescending one. "It's not often I meet one of Cam's old 'girlfriends.' I'd say I'm sorry your date went so horribly, but if it hadn't...well, you might be Mrs. McKay instead of me, and I can't say I'm at all sorry about that," she winked. ============================================================================ Author's Notes: I credit this idea to Dave, who prompted me to consider why there were so few real heroes in Detroit during Doctor Developer's stint as the kingpin of crime. His answer: heroes tend to go where the action is. However, in thinking of that, the idea for a wannabe hero, Unbeatable, popped in my head, and thus this was born. Editor's Notes: The framing sequence is the same hospital visit as seen in the second vignette of LL&DD #7. Had Unbeatable stayed active much longer, the DSHA would have sent someone to have a chat with her. But with Detroit not being a supernormal hotspot in 1994, it probably didn't have more than a single desk worker responsible for keeping track of the lower-level paranormals who stayed in town. The basic "enhanced everything" package like Unbeatable had wasn't considered enough of a threat to have sent someone after her right away. But they'd eventually have gotten ahold of her to point out the sorts of advantages they offer (which Deedee largely covers, although he's missing the merchandising and medical insurance parts), had she not retired. To expand on my "heroes tend to go where the action is" answer: at least in the ASH Universe, hotspots develop and move around over time. As I explained it to Andy, it's like the music scene...any sizeable city is going to have a bunch of local talent, but anyone serious about making it big is going to move to whatever city is a big deal for their style, be it Nashville or New York or Seattle or whatever. Detroit in 1994 was not a hotspot, the nearest one was in Columbus OH (due mainly to the presence of the Raiders), and supernaturals with any serious amount of power or skill would tend to have left Detroit in favor of Columbus or some other city. Yeah, even the villains. Maybe I'll write a longer essay on the reasons for that someday. The upshot is, though, that people like Doctor Developer and Mistah Mekanique are the top dogs in Detroit pretty much by default. And even Deedee moved out once he became higher profile. Finally...yes, there's some similarities here to other recent works, like Adam Warren's Empowered or Eric Burns's "Interviewing Leather" (although Unbeatable took a rather different path than Dynamo Girl). I only mention this so people don't feel compelled to point it out to me. ;) And Andy tells me he's deliberately holding off on reading "Interviewing Leather" until he finishes LL&DD #12, so as to avoid inadvertantly ripping it off. Empowered, though, is another story. Heh. ============================================================================ For all the back issues, plus additional background information, art, and more, go to http://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/ASH ! To discuss this issue or any others, either just hit "followup" to this post, or check out our Yahoo discussion group, which can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ash_stories/ ! There's also a LiveJournal interest group for ASH, check it out at http://www.livejournal.com/interests.bml?int=academy+of+super-heroes ============================================================================