Well, that's one match is this tournament down, and 3 to go. And it was easier than I expected.
I mean, I kinda expected more out of Becky and Casper, but whatever the reason was for Becky's lack of involvement, it served to help Gabriel and myself win. But, I'd rather not have to deal with a scare like that with Gabriel again.
Don't worry Gabriel, that's not a shot at you or anything, I know what it's like to have to save people you care about. It's my line of work. I totally understand your head not being completely in the game because of it. I believe that last week was a fluke thing. I know, from hearing you earlier, that you will indeed be even better than last week. And that's very re-assuring. In fact Gabriel, I dare say we can actually win this thing.
That is, unless what Misty said ends up happening. I may be getting ahead of myself, but I don't expect you to choose me over your girlfriend, even in the ring, but I hope it doesn't come to that. But that's the future, this week it's Max Burke and Laura Jackson.
I know Laura is one half of tag team champions, and that's awesome. She has to have some skill to hold a belt, even if it is a tag team title. But I can't let that stop me from taking her down. I even like some of her tattoos. Yeah, unlike some heroes I could mention, I don't have a hangup about tattoos. What of it?
But you see Laura, I'm not going to judge you, like you did to me. Like everyone seems to be doing. Oh, she thinks she's a superhero what a crazy person. Crazy, like a fox. Wait, what does that even mean? Whatever, the point is you can judge me like everyone else, and you'll just fail like everyone else has so far. Yeah, that kind of stuff can happen if your not careful. Or if you underestimate me. A lot of people have been doing that lately too. Like I'm just some crazy person who dresses up for fun. Is that what you think, Laura. Well, we'll see who saves you when you're hanging from a burning building. Hmmph!
Ah, who am I kidding, I'll save you anyway. Because that's my job.
But what I won't do, is go easy on you or Max come Sunday.
Speaking of Max, don't really know much about him. Maybe Gabriel has, I don't know. But he seems to be part of the young lions, and have a problem growning facial hair. And while that's too bad, it's not really my problem. But as far as I can tell, the Young Lions are just two guys who...do stuff. Well, whatever, that's not going to stop me and Gabriel from advancing.
Gabriel, all I ask again is that you hold up your end, and I'll hold up mine. If we do that, I don't think we'll have a problem.
Things are going to keep looking up.
Ta-ta.
[ She breaks through a wall with a sick thud. Her body bounces as she tries to gain her baring. ]
Ugh...Ribs....broken....Shoulder separated...
[ Haven walks through the opening, smiling the whole time. Roxi gets to her knees slowly, allowing Haven to stand over her and drive her elbow into Roxi's spine. Roxi yells at the impact and drops flat onto the ground. ]
Ss...spine...spinal...spinal shock...
[ Her uniform mostly in tatters, Roxi makes a vain attempt to crawl, but her lower body is not responding. Haven cockily strolls up and kicks her in the ribs. Another yelp, but this time, more muffled. ]
Mistress Haven - I told you, little girl, You couldn't win...
[ Laying flat on her back, Roxi is in no position to argue. ]
Roxi - ....*huff* ...Just...spare...spare me...the villain speech...
Mistress Haven - Hahaha. Defiant til the end.
Roxi - *Huff* *Huff*....Do...it...already...
Mistress Haven - Foolish girl, The fun is just starting.
Oh god...
[ Haven scoops Roxi up by her hair, which is not jutting out of her torn mask. Throwing her over her shoulder with ease. Haven walks out of the room and down a hallway. She enters another room, with Sgt. Hate, Blood Priest, and Fury waiting]
Mistress Haven - Well, Gentlemen, I give you Lady Bedlam.
No...no..
[ Haven effortlessly tosses Roxi onto the ground, she lands with a thud. ]
Can't... move..
Mistress Haven - I wonder how she gave you all so much trouble. Here she is, defeated.
[ The villains surround her on the ground, she gazed up at them, struggling to breathe, barely conscious.]
Blood Priest - Are you sure this is even her? The one I unmasked had black hair.
[ Haven chuckles.]
Mistress Haven - A simple dye job. That red mane you see, is her true hair.
Blood Priest - How do you know?
Mistress Haven - Because I pulled it out by the roots!
Blood Priest - Now, remove the mask.
[ Haven reaches down and snatches the mask of Roxi's face, revealing her identity.]
Oh god no!
Fury - Ha! Roxi Johnson is Lady Bedlam?
Mistress Haven - It appears so. Send the mask back the guild, let that be a message to them. Now, Kill her.
Fury - Of course.
[ Fury pulls a handgun from his pocket. ]
Fury - I hate to mess up a face as pretty as yours, but for all the trouble you caused...
Not...like this...
[ Fury notices tears running down her bloody face. ]
Fury - Sadly, crying will not save you.
[ He pulls the trigger....
BAM! ]
<HR>
[ Roxi sits up, breathing heavily, and instantly begins checking herself for injuries. When she finds none, and realizes where she is, she lays back down.]
A dream. Just a dream.
[ She rubs her face with her hands, then rolls out of her bed. She looks over at the clock...4:50 am. ]
I gotta lay off the late night spicy food.
[ She stands, yawns and stretches. She walks to the bathroom and runs the water, she splashes it on her face to help wake up. Afterwards, she goes to her window, opens it and stares out. ]
It's becoming really hard to concentrate on so many things now. A mixed tag team tournament, and some issues with Gabriel and Odette. Not to mention there are Villains coming out of the woodwork. Sure, I plan on winning this tournament, but just the same, I'll be glad when it's over. There just seems to be so much happening so fast, it's hard to keep up. Ugh. Let no one ever say that being a superhero and a celebrity is easy.
[ She slowly scans outside, finding a large amount of cop cars headed off into the distance.]
It's true that it's been hard t focus on the match I have coming up lately. The folly of being a hero is, a lot of the times, you can't be everywhere at once. It's one of the things I envy about Warp. He's as close as you can come to that. I hope they don't think I've forgotten. I've just been...distracted, but I will get to them all. It's match that will take a great amount of skill to win. And a little bit of luck. Also, a person willing to sacrifice anything to accomplish their goal. Does that sound like a superhero or what?
[ Her thoughts are interrupted by Vision, appearing on the screen. ]
Vision - Hey....Rox what are you doing awake?
Roxi - The same thing you are Vision.
Vision - You don't look so hot, you getting enough sleep?
Roxi - Don't ask.
Vision - Yeah, sorry to bother you, but there's...been a murder in your area. The guild wants you to check it out.
Roxi - That's not my department, Vision.
Vision - The victim is Jim Dudley.
[ She freezes in her tracks. Hey eyes widen, and fill with...sadness... ]
Roxi - Give me the address.
Mr. Dudley was my 8th grade science teacher. He was respected within the community. He was great with kids, a great educator. And one heck of golfer. The guy didn't have an enemy in the world.
Until now I guess.
What did they always call it? the never ending battle?
[ Arriving after the Police have made their crime scene, Roxi surveys the area. ]
Let's see what we got.
[ She swoops down and walks under the tape, she is stopped by a detective. ]
Detective Stone - Whoa there, Can I help you.
Roxi - Yeah, you can get out of my way.
Detective Stone - Easy there Supergirl, this is a crime scene and I cannot
Roxi - Shut up.
[ She moves past him and further into the house. ]
Detective Stone - Hey!
[ Moving further in, she runs into another cop. ]
Roxi - Lieutenant?
[ Lieutenant Murphy, a tough, hard-nosed cop, stands with a smoke in his hand, staring at the spandex clad heroine. ]
Lieutenant Murphy - Who are you supposed to be?
Roxi - Lady Bedlam, with the Guild. Now that we have the introductions out of the way, you mind telling me what happened?
Lieutenant Murphy - You got a smart mouth, you know that? This is Police business, I don't need you so-called heroes barging in.
Roxi - I'm here to help, not take over.
Lieutenant Murphy - Yeah? You wanna help, take off the costume and become a cop.
Roxi - Look, I just want to know what happened, I was sent here to help.
Lieutenant Murphy - Who says we need your help?
Roxi - The fact that this guy is dead and you're sitting here smoking tells me that much.
[ He snarls, and throws down the butt. ]
Lieutenant Murphy - Yeah? And where were you, Super woman? Huh?
Roxi - I....I...
Lieutenant Murphy - Exactly. Now get out of here.
Roxi - Fine, I'll conduct my own investigation.
Lieutenant Murphy - Yeah, you got any leads?
[ He and his buddies laugh it up. ]
Roxi - Actually, yes.
[ They stop laughing. Her eyes dart around the room and at the crime scene. ]
Roxi - Judging by the broken glass over there, and where the body...presumably fell. Jim Dudley was shot by a sniper.
Lieutenant Murphy - Look at the big brain on this one fellas. Too bad that contradicts the footprint we found outside, and the dirt tracks inside the house.
[ She smirks to herself, having gotten the info she needed. ]
Roxi - No, he was shot by a sniper....
[ She crouches down and noticies the footprint: heeled shoes. ]
Roxi - And by his lady friend.
Lieutenant Murphy - There was only one bullet.
[ She stands, staring at both of them. ]
Roxi - Then one of them missed.
[ She turns to leave.]
Roxi - Either that, or Dudley wasn't the target.
[ She walks away, still angry and saddened by the death of her friend. But she stops suddenly, and sniffs the air. Her eyes narrow and she leaves]
I recognized that smell. That perfume. Unmistakable.
Sister Shadow.
Great. Just great. There's a million different ways this could have gone. Was the sniper aiming for Dudley, or Shadow? Did she shoot before the Sniper? Did Dudley get shot on accident? Did he take the bullet for her?
I'm sorry Mr. Dudley. Sorry I wasn't there.
But I will find out why you died.
And Sister Shadow is going to pay.
[ In her apartment later in the day, Roxi sits, out of costume, but doing nothing. She stares out the window, fighting back tears. Vision pops up on the screen.]
Vision - Hey...how you holding up?
Roxi - ....
Vision - I'm really...sorry about Jim.
Roxi - Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything wrong.
Vision - Neither did you.
Roxi - I wasn't there! I didn't save him!
Vision - Rox, there was nothing you could have done.
Roxi - I could have been there!
Vision - And gotten yourself killed too?
He's right. But I don't care.
Roxi - I...I could have saved him.
Vision - Rox, I know it's hard, but I think you've done everything you could have. The police are looking into it. I think you need to just...get some rest.
Roxi - No. I need to find out who killed Jim Dudley. And what Sister Shadow had to do with it.
Vision - Shadow was involved.
Roxi - She was there. Her perfume was still there. I have to figure this out.
Vision - You haven't slept all day. You need to take it easy. You're going to make yourself sick.
[ She sighs and throws her arms up in an exasperated manner.]
Roxi - Then what do you suggest I do?
Vision - Just...sit down and relax.
[ She stares at the scree, after all SCW the promos air..]
Roxi - Is that it?
Vision - For now, what'd you think?
Roxi - I'm not about to pull a Misty, I got work to do.
Vision - Roxi? Where are you going?
Roxi - The construction site, look for clues.
Vision - You need to rest.
Roxi - There's no time.
Vision - Wait!
I'm sorry Mr. Dudley, got a little distracted. I hope I can find something here.
[ She sits at the construction site, and climbs to the top, finding the right spot. ]
Ah-ha! This is the spot where the shot was taken from, It has to be.
[ She looks around, the immediate area, and tries to piece everything together. ]
Ah, there's the spent shell casing. So our sniper did fire a shot, but who was the target, and did they hit it?
[ She takes aim for what she suspects is the firing spot. ]
Wait...
[ Before she can finish her thought, a sharp pain enters her arm. ]
Ow! What the?
[ She looks down at her arm, a large dart embedded in it. ]
Traq...dart...
[ She looks around, trying to find the shooter, but cannot. Her eyes start to get heavy... ]
Gotta...get ...outta here...
[ She takes two steps, then sinks to the ground. ]
[ Roxi is now tied to a pole. Her belt has been taken, but she still has everything else. She slowly starts to stir, but then is brought back by a cup of water being thrown in her face. ]
Roxi - Gah! *cough* *hack*
Man - Good. I wanted you to be awake for your death.
Roxi - *Hack* What are you trying to do? Drown me?
Man - Shut your mouth.
Roxi - Who are you?
Quickscope - I am Quickscope.
Roxi - So you're the sniper.
Quickscope - I am. And you, your my new target.
Roxi - You killed Jim Dudley
Quickscope - Because of you!
Roxi - Me? I wasn't even there!
Quickscope - Of course you were...Sister Shadow.
Roxi - What? I'm not Sister Shadow! I thought you bad guys all knew each other?
Quickscope - I am not a Villain.
Roxi - Well, you're no hero.
Quickscope - I am a professional. For hire.
Roxi - You're garbage who kills for money.
Quickscope - I am lead by my faith, to do what I do best. Keep Heaven packed with those wicked.
Roxi - Well killing me won't do you any good.
Quickscope - Save it. I have tracked you for days, how you moved that man in my way is moot. I will fulfill my contract and kill you now.
Roxi - I am NOT Sister Shadow.
[ He walks up to her, smelling. ]
Quickscope - You have the same scent.
Roxi - I was in the house, after you killed Dudley.
Quickscope - A likely story.
Roxi - She's Russian for crying out loud. Do I look Russian to you?
Quickscope - I don't know, let's see.
Roxi - Okay! Forget I said that. I'm not Shadow, because I'm looking for her too.
Quickscope - Are you?
Almost there.
Roxi - Yes. Got a bit of a bone to pick with her.
Quickscope - What has she done to you?
Roxi - She's evil. I beat up evil people.
Quickscope - Why beat, when you can kill?
Roxi - Because then, I'm no better than them.
Quickscope - You are a fool for doing so. But...for some reason, I believe you. I will let you live, if you can show me Sister Shadow.
Roxi - Fine.
Got it!
Quickscope - What?
[ With a razor hidden in her glove, she cut the ropes and broke free, taking Quickscope by surprise. She punches him in the face, dropping him to the ground. ]
Roxi - Now you listen to me, regardless of who you were aiming at, you still KILLED an innocent man. That's not God, that's greed, and carelessness! You wanna hunt, hunt animals, not people.
Quickscope - You stupid girl.
Roxi - Shut up!
[ She punches him again.
Roxi - You murderous piece of trash!
[ She picks him up, knees him in the gut, and runs him into a wall. After grabbing her belt, She looks down at him, and pauses, regaining her composure.]
Roxi - ...You're not worth the effort.
Quickscope - What?
Roxi - Oh, trust me, I'll be back for you. And when I come back, you may not be this lucky. Killing Jim Dudley, an innocent man, is low...really low. Even if you weren't aiming for him. I'm going to take down Shadow, then...I'm coming for you.
Quickscope - You will not rob me of my contract! I gave my word!
[ She had turned to leave, but stops, and looks down at him.]
Roxi - Your word? Your word means nothing. As a matter of fact, if I even see you anywhere near Shadow, I'll take you out. You understand me?
[ She leaves, firing her grappling hook out of the window and swinging away.]
I hope that worked.
[ She checks her body, looking for something. ]
Aha! Found it.
[ She reveals a tracking device that Quickscope had planted on her. ]
Just what I needed. He'll follow me to Sister Shadow when I find her.
