Cosmic Combination [A Superheroine Merging Story] - Issue #4

Tier Reward for EB18

Issue #4

Tristan’s feet ached, and Lucie’s did too, if her constant sighing was any indication. The walk back to Cosmeta took them most of the day, and she’d long given up begging him to just let them fly. By the time they reached Lauren’s lab, he was about ready to weep for joy. 

“Where have you been?” She cried. “I thought you were going for a quick fly and then coming back!”

“Sorry, we got distracted.” Lucie groaned. “Then we unmerged, and this stubborn asshole refused to merge again so we could fly back.”

“So you walked?”

“Yup. My feet will ache for a whole week, not to mention my damn leg.” Lucie groaned. “I’d ask what happened to it, but I know he won’t tell me.”

Lauren just blinked in confusion for a moment, glancing back and forth between them before saying,

“Why didn't you just get a taxi?”

The silence was palpable until Lucie smacked herself in the forehead. Tristan did his best to hide the redness in his cheeks. He’d been so busy moping that it hadn't even occurred to him. Lauren put her hands on her hips and shook her head in disbelief.

“Really? You two are acting like children.”

“It’s all him!” Lucie complained. “It’s like he’s determined to be unhappy even when amazing things are happening!”

Tristan scoffed; he knew it. One hard walk, and she’d turned on him, so much for being friends and wanting to talk.

“I’m a realist, that’s all.” He said, arms crossed, then uncrossed when the pressure made his breasts hurt. “I’m not having delusions of being a superhero. I just want to get this fixed.”

“And yet you’re sabotaging every chance we get!” Lucie said, throwing her hands in the air. “The Guild was the perfect chance to learn to use these powers, maybe even get leads on finding whoever stole the meteor, and you messed it all up. If I didn't know any better, I’d say you were delaying things on purpose.”

Tristan felt his temper starting to flare again.

“Trust me, the sooner I am free of you, the better.”

“Alright, enough!” Lauren yelled, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Lucie, calm down. Tristan, stop being an ass. Like it or not, you are stuck together, and Lucie is right. Your best option right now is to learn how to use these powers.”

“And the fact that you can study us and write the paper of the century has nothing to do with it, I’m sure,” he muttered under his breath. Lucie glared at him, but Lauren didn’t seem to hear.

“Tristan, why don't you go cool your jets? I’ll get Lucie's information about your transformation.”

Despite everything, he felt oddly left out when she said that, but Tristan forced himself to his feet and headed for the safety exit. He could use a drink. He flopped down against the wall outside, grateful for a moment's peace, before reaching for his flask. Only to meet smooth, wide hips. Of course, he was in Lucie’s body, which meant no flask. 

“Dammit.” 

The sun was setting, and his ass was getting cold sitting on the concrete, but he still didn’t move. A feeling of self-loathing settled over him like a familiar blanket. Lucie was right; most people would be jumping for joy at having superpowers or if not, working towards fixing things. He’d let his temper get the better of him again just because he had been feeling sorry for himself. Looking back, it was so obvious Lucie hadn't been making a joke, but when he spent every day feeling sorry for himself, it was hard to believe people weren’t always whispering behind his back. 

“Why are you like this, man?” 

He stared down at his empty palms, smooth, no scar tissue. 

“Injury-free for the first time in years, and all you can do is complain about having tits. Pathetic.” He sneered. 

Now that he thought about it, Lucie hadn't really complained about having to deal with his pain at all. She really had drawn the short stick in this deal; he got a hot, fully functional body with a nice sister and home to go back to. She got his shitty apartment and injuries. 

“We’re all done.” 

Tristan looked up to see his own sorry face looking at him. 

“Apparently, the costume is designed to merge and unmerge with us, so wear that while I wear this, and we’ll have our hero outfit when we become Clara again. I suppose we’d better head home and try again tomorrow.” Lucie continued. “If you want to, that is.”

“Yeah, I do.” Tristan got to his feet. “Look, Lucie…I’m sorry. I was a dick.”

“Yeah, you were.”

Tristan felt his eyebrow twitch but forced his irritation not to build; she was right after all. 

“Let me pay for a taxi to take you home, I know from personal experience how much that leg hurts after a long walk.”

“That would be appreciated.” Lucie smiled. “The offer is still on the table, to talk I mean. I might be able to manage these a bit easier if I knew what the actual problem was.”

She held up his injured hand and Tristan sighed.

“I used to be into boxing.” He shrugged, trying to keep his voice casual and failing. “Really into it. I was good, but…I got cocky. I picked a fight with a guy outside my weight class, and I won.”

“You won? So why did you get hurt?”

“I…never let him forget it. I was an ass, so he challenged me to a rematch and well, that fight didn’t go so well for me.”

“Didn’t the referee stop things when he hurt you?” She asked brow knitted together in concern.

Tristan felt his cheeks burning with shame and embarrassment, and he looked away.

“We…we weren’t in the ring. It was a street fight. No gloves…I thought I would win again. I didn’t, and there went my career and any hope for my future in one go.”

“Oh…”

“Yeah…”

There was silence for a moment before Lucie fixed him with a hard look.

“So you ruined your life because you were arrogant and now you’re just…moping about it.”

“Hey! I just bore my soul to you and now you’re the one being an ass.”

“Hey, you’re the one who said you’re a realist,” Lucie said slyly. “Tough love time, Tristan. Is moping helping? Does it make you feel good, make your life better?”

“Well, no-”

“Then stop it!”
 She gripped his shoulder with her good hand and smiled; her eyes were bright and full of warmth. Despite her words, her tone was gentle, and to his surprise, Tristan realised he wasn't angry at her. In fact, after years of people saying it wasn’t fair, trying to make things better with soft, kind words. Lucie being so harsh felt…good. It was the kick up the ass he didn't realise he needed. It felt…nice to have somebody who wasn’t bullshitting him. 

“Come on, grumpy bum, let’s get home. You have movie night tonight.”

Tristan couldn’t help it; he snorted and burst into laughter.

“What did you just call me? What are you five?”

Lucie just grinned.

“Made you smile, though, didn’t it?”

“You sneaky bastard.” He snickered. “Alright, I take it back, you’re not all bad.”

He walked a few steps before looking over his shoulder.

“Just mostly.”

Lucie swatted him playfully as they made their way to the street, and he called her the promised cab. They stood together waiting, Tristan knew he didn't need to, but appearances aside, Lucie was still a woman, and it didn't feel right to leave her waiting under a lamppost alone. 

“Did you say something about movie night?”

“Yeah, Jilly and I watch a movie together once a week, based on her days off,” Lucie explained. “When I was younger, it was her way of making sure she could check in on me, but once I was an adult, I think we just kept it so we wouldn’t lose touch.”

“You live together, how could you lose touch?”

“Inhabiting a space isn’t the same as living together. Jilly and I….we clash sometimes. If we didn't still live together those fights might go on for longer if forced proximity didn’t cool us off. It’s harder to stay mad at somebody when you see they’ve made your bed or kept your coffee warm while you were out…”

Tristan had never thought about little touches like that; those tiny reminders that somebody else was in your space. That you weren’t alone. It sounded nice. The car pulled up, and they rode together, with him getting out first at her apartment. For a split second before the car drove away, Tristan was sure he spotted Lucie looking up at the apartment wistfully, and guilt tightened in his gut. 

Even after being warned, he wasn’t ready for the smell of popcorn when he walked in. Jillian was already on the couch, two mugs of hot tea steaming and the opening scene frozen on the screen in anticipation. She looked over her shoulder and smiled. 

“There you are! I was worried your tea might get cold.” Her brow knitted together for a moment. “Are you alright, you look exhausted.”

“Yeah, I…missed a bus and had to walk a lot today.” He lied, and Jilly rolled her eyes. 

“This is why I keep telling you to be more mindful of the schedules. Come on, dinner is on the stove. Serve yourself up a bowl, and let’s watch. I haven’t seen The Mask since we were kids.”

Tristan felt a lump in his throat as he spooned hot curry into a bowl and sat down. It was such a simple thing, coming home and having a hot meal and company waiting. He thought about Lucie, going back to that cold apartment exactly as she’d left it this morning, and the guilt in his stomach tightened even further.

~

The next morning he made his best fake sick call into Lucie’s work and headed back to Cosmeta. Lucie was waiting for him, and Tristan almost fell over when he saw himself.

“What did you do to me?!”
 “I shaved.” Lucie snickered. “And bought some proper shampoo, conditioner and lotion. Fifteen minutes in the bathroom has done you a world of good.”

Tristan felt himself pouting; he wanted to argue with her, but honestly…she was right. Even the bags around his eyes didn’t look so prominent. 

“Alright, let’s see if we can have some more luck today.” Lauren smiled. “Can you two merge?”

Lucie met Tristan's eyes and nodded before holding out her hand. 

“Let’s just focus on what we want, to fix this. If we both have a common goal, maybe it’ll be easier to be one person rather than two stuck in the same body.”

Teamwork had never been his forte, but he knew she was right. With more effort than he would ever admit, he pushed aside his pride and took Lucie’s hand, focusing on their mission. The pulling sensation came, but it wasn't so unpleasant this time. It felt more like falling into the arms of a familiar lover, safe and comfortable. Tristan felt their minds merge, and then, he wasn’t himself anymore, nor was he a ‘he’. 

Clara blinked; she’d never felt so…whole before. Her two halves were in perfect harmony, and she felt like her own person. 

“Oh…wow!” She whispered before turning to Lauren. “This is amazing! They aren’t arguing!”
 “That must be nice.” Lauren laughed. “Now, I imagine Lucie only has so many sick days, so let’s get cracking.”

Lauren had her lift weights, fly as fast as she could around the building and test her agility. Furiously writing down everything in her notebook. Every time Clara exceeded expectations, Lauren would gasp and smile in a way that made Clara’s stomach flip. She had the strangest urge to reach out and pull Lauren’s hair free from the high bun that was pinching her face but managed to hold herself back. 

“This data is amazing.” Lauren beamed. “Your power set is quite simple really. The merging is the only thing which seems out of left field...I have this theory that perhaps powers are somehow linked to the subconscious desires of the people who get them. People who feel weak or powerless get super strength, as an example.”

“And you think my merging might have something to do with that?”

“Maybe…I will need to think on it more.” She sighed. “If only I still had the meteorite. Maybe I could test any latent connection you have with it.”

Clara’s heart ached; Lauren looked so frustrated all of a sudden, and she wanted nothing more than to help. Without that meteor though, she could only do so much. She looked to the window, the open sky was calling.

“If you have enough data, would it be alright if I went to the Guild? I need to apologise for yesterday and maybe see if they can help find your meteorite.”

“Sure.” Lauren smiled sadly. “You know, it’s been nice having company in the lab for once. I don’t get out much.”
 She blushed. 

“Well, Jilly and Lucie love movies, maybe we could watch one sometime. Technically, I have never seen one myself…though I remember every movie they have watched, finding something new might be hard.”

“Like a date.” Lauren laughed nervously. “No, of course, I know what you mean. Not a date, just…sorry, my mind is elsewhere, you get going, but this time, don't walk back.”

Clara shuddered, remembering two sets of very sore feet. 

“Not likely.”

She opened the skylight and took to the skies, enjoying the wind in her hair as she streaked across the city. For a moment, she was tempted to close her eyes and just feel the pure bliss of being totally free, but after how that went last time, she decided against it. The Guild stood, glittering against the afternoon sun as she set down and Clara took a deep breath before taking her first step inside. Only to immediately be knocked off kilter as a force rushed past her at breakneck speeds. If it weren’t for her ability to fly, she’d have fallen straight on her ass. 

The blur that had knocked her over appeared again, stopping an inch away, and Clara felt her heart stop. A sleek, silver, form-fitting costume, dark black hair and eery white eyes. She knew who this was.

“Silverwind…”

“Oh my goodness, so sorry about that. Here, let me get you back on your feet. Oh wait, you are, well, sort of, you’re floating. How wonderful! Normally, I am better at looking where I am going, but I dropped my goggles, and I couldn't find them, so I thought, hey! Why not rush back and get a spare pair, I have sixteen after all, well, fifteen now that I have these on!”

The words shot out of her lips like bullets, so fast and hard Clara could barely follow, and she continued to explain her situation before abruptly realising her words weren't being responded to.

“Oh, Gosh. I did it again, didn't I? Sorry! I’m Silverwind! And looking at you…”

She zipped around Clara a few times, making her hair fly with the speed.

“You must be that new girl Thunder Clap mentioned! I was so hoping you’d come back!”

“You were?” Clara smiled, getting her first words in. “You wanted to meet me?”

“Yes, yes! I am always excited when new women join the team. It’s such a sausage fest in there some times. Especially with the brawlers, but from what Thunder Clap mentioned, you can fight with the best of them. Not just anybody would pick a fight with Valkyrie, no, no, no!” She wagged her finger back and forth so fast it was just a blur. “Come! We should tell him! Let’s go!”

She grabbed Clara’s hand, and the next thing she knew, she was flying through the corridors, no, not flying, she was being dragged, but so fast her body was horizontal. Only to suddenly stop and find herself flung into a wall. 

“Ow…”

“Oh no!” Silverwind was at her side in a second. “I’m so sorry! I always forget I move too fast for people. You’d think I would remember after all these years, but my mind works faster than most people, I can't keep my thoughts straight unless I am running. That’s how I got my powers, you know, I used to go running to clear my head. ADHD is such a thing, and now my body moves at the same pace and-”

“It’s fine.” Clara coughed, trying to get the wind back in her lungs. “Could you give me a minute?”

“A minute? That’s a long time. Sort of, for me. Only me, I guess. Yes! A minute is fine, I will go find Thunder Clap! Okay!”

“No, wait I didn’t mean you have to leave!”

And just like that, she was gone before Clara had even gotten the second word out. 

“Oh…Okay. I haven’t expected her to be so…scatterbrained.”

In the streams and newsreels Lucie had watched, Silverwind was always so focused, she saved people without ever stopping to rest and was always so busy she barely spoke to the press. After meeting her, Clara could see why. After finally getting air back into her lungs she realised that she was alone in the Justice Guild’s headquarters. Alone and unsupervised. 

The Lucie part of her was buzzing; this was a dream come true! She had always wanted to come here, and there was nobody to stop her from doing a bit of exploring! Like a kid in a candy shop, she skipped down the hall, her Tristan side wincing a little at the weight of her curves as she did so. 

“I wonder if they have a report on the robbery from the other night…” She wondered. “That would probably have some useful information in it…”

Clara spent a few minutes walking the halls, looking for any kind of signage but there was nothing; apparently, the people who worked here just knew where everything was, which wasn’t helpful. She was about to try and find her way back to where Silverwind had left her when a sound pricked at her sensitive ears. Voices were yelling in worried tones and an innate sense of justice she didn't know she had unlocked in Clara’s mind. Without hesitation, she flew through the halls, past a few confused looking heroes, until she arrived at a balcony overlooking the lobby. 

Silverwind was there, as were Thunder Clap and a number of other A-grade heroes. Clara didn’t have time to fangirl over them, though as she spotted what had caused the commotion. There was a hole in the window and glass on the floor. Valkyrie was lying on the ground, having obviously just smashed through the window and was looking more than a little worse for wear. A man in a white and red costume with glowing hands was leaning over her, Remedy. 

“There, that’s all the life-threatening injuries taken care of.” He announced, much to the relief of the rest of the room. “But she’ll need to rest for a few days, maybe have another healing session.”

Thunder Clap reached down and helped Valkyrie to her feet before she quickly shrugged him off. Her gaze was on the floor, but even from the Balcony Clara could see her cheeks burning with embarrassment at how many people saw her injured. 

“What happened?” Thunder Clap asked. 

“It wasn't my fault!” Valkyrie muttered. “I saw some new villain trying to break into the back of the national museum; it was just one woman….I thought I’d be able to stop her but before I could think, she’d spotted me, and the next thing I knew, I was flying halfway across town! It was only one or two hits, but she was so strong…”

People immediately started to mutter, and Clara felt her jaw drop. One or two hits did that? She’d had to strain to break through Valkyrie’s shields, and she had more than the usual amount of super strength. For somebody to do that sort of damage in only a few hits…it was unheard of. Clara racked her brain, tapping into Lucie’s knowledge of heroes and villains, but couldn’t think of any known villains with that sort of power. Male or female. 

“It didn’t feel like her fist hit me, more like a wall.” Valkrye continued with a wince.
 “You’re not supposed to engage with villains on your own yet.” Thunder Clap chided. “A lesson you won’t be forgetting any time soon, I am sure.”

Valkyrie stretched, finally looking up, and Clara gulped as their eyes met, and the other woman scowled.

“What’s she doing here?”

Thunder Clap turned, and his face broke into a wide smile. 

“You’re back!”

“Yes!” Silverwind spoke up. “I found her outside, and I was going to come and get you, but then the window broke, and Valkyrie needed helping, so I got distracted and-”

“Yes, thank you, Silverwind.” Thunderclap chuckled. “I think I can put the pieces together. Come down, Clara!”

Heart beating in her chest, she stepped up onto the balcony and began floating down. She could feel people’s eyes on he,r and she blushed. She watched as one hero quietly excused himself after looking up at her ass. This outfit was pretty revealing; it was so skin-tight in places it felt almost like a second skin. She’d forgotten just how much of her new self was on display. Perhaps she should have felt self-conscious, but she didn’t. If anything, watching people’s eyes widen made her feel powerful. 

“You got to your oven then?” Thunder Clap asked, face totally genuine. 

“Uh, yeah.” Clara blushed. “Sorry about that.”

“Now that we know Valkyrie is okay, we can welcome you to the Guild as well!” Silverwind bounced. “Thunder Clap says you have great potential!”

“You’re joking.” Valkyrie groaned. “She’s not Justice Guild material! Look at her! Why would somebody who’s serious about hero work dress like that?”

Clara looked down at her bust and hips and smirked.

“Wouldn’t you?” 

Valkyrie baulked, and Silverwind cleared her throat a little awkwardly, but Thunder Clap just threw back his head and laughed. 

“Confidence! That’s what we like to see!” He clapped her heavily on the shoulder. “But, let’s make sure it isn't arrogance, eh?”

“It isn’t.” Clara nodded, bouncing on her toes in excitement. 

Now that things were a little less hectic, that child-like wonder at her new situation was settling in. She was a hero, about to be welcomed as a junior member of the Justice Guild! She’d been dreaming about this since she was a little girl! Well, Lucie had, but that wasn’t the point. 

“If I am a member of the Guild, maybe that means you can help me. I want to find the man who stole from Cosmeta Inc.-”

“The one you failed to stop in your debut,” Valkyrie said slyly, and Clara shot her a look.

“Yes, but I am going to catch him now and find that meteorite he stole and-”

“Woah, not so fast!” Silverwind giggled. “You’re not in the Guild yet! You have to be trained, and background checked, and examined, and ushered in, and given security clearance-”

“What Silverwind means to say,” Thunder Clap cut in, “is that we have a lot to get through. I admire your enthusiasm for justice and fighting villainy, but let’s just start with getting you settled.” 

Clara swallowed and did her best to smile.

“Did you say…background check?”