Bob hates moving. He should be used to it by now: he’s never lived in the same place for more than a couple of years, but he’s never appreciated it in any way. Maybe that’s because this is the first time this happened without anyone kicking him out of the previous house.
Deena doesn’t seem to think so: she’s admiring the view of the city, and she’s been smiling for hours now.
<This place is so cool! I can’t believe you live here now!>
<I can’t believe this couch is so heavy> Bob complains, struggling to move the furniture.
<Really? That’s your biggest concern now?>
<What is this thing made of anyway, lead? No wonder they left it in front of the door> he keeps complaining, throwing all of his weight to move the couch.
<Y’know, you’ve got a lot of space in here. How many floors did your daughter rent?>
<Top five. I mean what kind of people move a couch up sixty stores and leave it outside the room?>
<Would you forget about the couch!?>
<It’s the most comfortable couch in the world. And the heaviest> he points out.
<Bob…your daughter isn’t going to live on this floor, right?> Deena asks, walking towards Bob who is still struggling with the couch.
<No, I think she likes the top floor better.>
<Well, I don’t want you to feel lonely, all alone up here. You’ve got a lot of free space. And since you’re not going to be a janitor anymore, I think you’ll also find a lot of spare time. I can help with that, too> she says, moving her hands through his hair.
<You wanna move to my place because I’m the sexiest man alive or because my daughter’s a genius millionaire?>
<Uhm…both. Is that a problem, Bob?>
<Not if you help me move the couch.>
<FATHER!>– Noriko shouts, slamming the door open.
Despite being ten years older than her, Deena feels like she’s just been scolded by her mother. She steps back, raising her hands to surrender:
<We weren’t doing anything!>
<Where is the Heart of the Universe?> Noriko asks.
<The what?>
<The spherical rock that teleported us to the Moon!>
<Oh that thing. I put it in the fridge.>
<You put the most valuable device in the world in the fridge> Noriko repeats skeptically.
<Yeah.>
<I’m afraid to ask why.>
<Nobody would search there. Unless it was an hungry thief or something.>
<I knew I had reason to be afraid.>
Max and Vesta enter the room now, both visibly worried.
<You guys may want to watch the news> Max says, pointing at the TV and turning it on.
Deena wants to ask how he did it without a remote, but there’s something far more interesting on the screen.
It’s footage of a black and white robot walking through the city, ignoring the dozen shots from the police officers that are shouting empty threats. The journalist describing the scene is trying to be professional, but this is something straight from a movie.
<This is live from State Street, where a…a man in some kind of battle suit is attacking the city. Several people are reported injured after the man walked right into traffic fired an unknown kind of weapon.>
The footage changes from an earlier scene: the robot blasting a car with an energy beam coming from its hands, splitting it in half.
Bob, Deena and Max are watching speechless. Noriko has a determined look on her face. Vesta looks like she’s going to faint at any moment.
<It’s a Talos. Good Gaea, he sent a freakin’ Talos.>
<You recognize it?> Noriko asks.
<One of my nephew’s automatons. A virtually unstoppable war machine.>
<“Nephew”? You mean that thing was built by Hephaestus?>
<They used to be made of bronze but the design is unmistakable. Why do you have to ask? I thought you knew everything.>
<Only if it’s part of human knowledge. Which apparently doesn’t cover as much as I thought> Noriko answers.
<So what are we waiting for? Let’s go kick some robot butt!> Max shouts, disappearing in a flash of light. Half a second later, he’s on the screen wearing a black mask.
<Not so fast, robot! This city is under the protection of Quantum, the man of energy!>
<Hey Nori, that masked guy on TV looks just like your friend!> Bob says.
<Father, stay here and guard the Heart of the Universe; Vesta and I will deal with the robot.>
Noriko walks away from the screen, but stops when she notices that Vesta isn’t moving.
<I can’t go> the goddess protests.
<Why not? You know this being better than anyone. For the moment, even better than me.>
<I can’t go out there and fight a Talos in broad daylight! People will see me!>
<Didn’t picture you as the shy type, Vesta.>
<I kept a low profile for thousands of years, Nori. Every time someone sees me fly or make fire, bad things happen. Very bad things.>
<You used your powers to rescue me from the Many when we first met. This is the same thing.>
<This is different! The entire world will be watching!>
The girl and the goddess stare at each other. Noriko has seen her smash to pieces a meteor the size of a stadium, but now she looks scared to death.
<Very well. Let’s try a different approach> Noriko says, her silver eyes flashing briefly.
<What…what do you have in mind?>
<Nothing special> Noriko answers, picking up a chair and walking towards the window.
<Your eyes flashed for a second. Your eyes always flash when you’re thinking.>
<Very observant> Noriko says, throwing the chair and smashing the window.
<What are you doing!?>
<You kept a low profile for so long, now you don’t think you’re ready for prime time. I think we’re late for the opening act> Noriko says before jumping out the window.
Noriko falls to her death for more than twenty stories; she can even hear Deena’s screech.
<You know you’re just about impossible, right?> Vesta asks, rescuing her from certain death and slowing her descent. When they’re about ten stories above ground, she just stops mid-air.
<Speaking of impossible, we have an unstoppable war machine to stop> Noriko answers.
Deena is looking down from the crashed window, where she can see the goddess flying away carrying her boyfriend’s daughter in her arms.
<I’ll take the alien doomsday device from the fridge. You want a soda?> Bob asks.
A moment of silence.
<Well I’m not moving the couch now> Deena says.
Discussion ¬