Beyond The Impossible

An apartment in New York City

Max Black a.k.a. Quantum doesn’t use the front door frequently: most of the time, he just enters as a beam of light from the window and turns back into flesh and bones. But right now the African-American man is in civilian clothes and carrying a couple of grocery bags, when he finds someone unexpected on his couch: a blue alien woman.

<Lily, what are you doing here!?> he asks, trying to close the door behind him as fast as possible without dropping the bags. She helps him by rapidly moving one of the blue bat-like wings that come out of her back: the resulting gust of wind closes the door.

<Kari’s hotel is too crowded with her duplicates. Do you mind if I hang out?> she asks, without moving her eyes away from the tablet where she’s scribbling something.

<Did somebody see you? I’m trying to keep a secret identity here, you know!>

<Come on, I’m a spy remember? I used the holographic projector to look human.>

<How did you get in?>

<I picked the lock. Again, spy. Do you think I should have a human name? I mean, I know Lily is also a human name, but should I have a different one for my disguise?>

<I’m terrible with names, so please no. You’re working on something?> he asks, pointing at the laptop and sitting next to her after leaving the groceries on the floor. She’s sitting rather strangely: to make room for her wings, she’s crouching on the edge of the cushion.

<Null liked my idea about weather-resistant crops, so I’m putting down an algorithm to maximize the efficiency of its distribution on the market. What about you? Getting ready for the tournament?>

<What do you mean? I thought it was only for gods.>

<I don’t know, what are the chances that Null won’t find a way to participate?>

<Yeah, that’s a good point. But how do you prepare for something like this? I mean, it’s not like you can train to fight gods, right? The only one I know is Vesta, and I don’t want to hurt her.>

<Could you hurt her? Who’s stronger?> Lily asks, throwing away the tablet: her eyes are completely on him now, as is her focus.

<Oh, it’s not even a contest, Vesta could incinerate the planet or kick it into the Sun if she really wanted. That doesn’t mean she’s invincible: fighting smarter is better than being stronger.>

<That sounds like something Null would say.>

<I guess she’s rubbed off on me> he shrugs.

<You seem to care a lot about her. Even more than about your other teammates. Were the two of you… uhm… close before she met Voron?>

<We’re still close, Noriko is like a little sister to me> he nods. Lily reacts with a very confused and very puzzled look on her face.

<You’re close to a sister who is a relationship with another male? But I thought Earth humans were primarily monogamous and against incest.>

<Wait wait wait, I thought you meant “close” as in…> Max begins to explain, stopping when he sees the Lampyrian burst into a laughter.

<Now I’m completely lost with you> he admits.

<You should’ve seen the look on your face! Oh gods, that was priceless!> Lily says between laughs, wiping away tears and then adding:

<I’m a spy, Max, not a Demon. I know what you meant.>

<You’re really quite something, Lily. You didn’t need to crash at my place, did you?>

<Nah, not really. I’m just trying to figure you out… the other members of the Vanguard are easy to understand, but you Max? You’re the weirdest one.>

<How’s that? Vesta’s a goddess, Noriko is a super-genius, Torn is some kind of alien demon Jedi, Kari is a martial arts prodigy, heck even you are a space science superspy… I’m a dude who happens to have powers. Just a normal guy.>

<The best thing about you is that you don’t realize how awesome that is> she confesses, coming close enough to kiss him. Max doesn’t resist, and while he enjoys her touch he’s still trying to understand the meaning of her words.

 

Mars, 127 million miles from Earth

One of the largest impact craters known in the Solar System, Hellas Planitia may look like a desert to a human but it’s extremely cold. Adding the absence of breathable atmosphere and the lethal dose of radiation, it’s no wonder that there is only one person to look at the spectacular view.

Vesta’s bare feet hover an inch above the Martian dust, and she savors the indescribable scent of its iron-rich surface. She closes her eyes, mentally activating the Neural Transmitter, and when she opens them again she can see an image of Kari Zel.

<Wow, look at this! It’s like I was really there with you!> the Myridian girl exclaims.

<It’s about time we found some use for the Transmitter’s remote imaging system. I’m not sure if it does it any justice… it’s really beautiful.>

<Don’t get distracted, Vesta. You’re there to train with me, remember?>

<I still don’t understand why I couldn’t go to Hell with Torn to do this.>

<Look, I’ve trained with Torn, and his style doesn’t match yours. Besides, Hell is inhabited: I don’t want you to go all-out anywhere near a populated area.>

<I figure that’s why you’re still on board the Ragnarok.>

<Exactly. Now, let’s start with the basics. Try to punch me> Kari invites her. Vesta reluctantly agrees, throwing a half-hearted punch which goes through the immaterial hologram.

<What the Hades was that? You won’t hurt me, I’m not here. Punch as hard as you can.>

<If you say so> Vesta shrugs, throwing a second punch. This time it’s not just her hand that phases through Kari’s image: it’s also the dust storm summoned by her punch, which despite the very low atmospheric pressure of Mars hits with the power of a hurricane.

<Who taught you how to fight?> Kari asks, her signal flickering for a moment thanks to the dust.

<Nobody> Vesta answers.

<I can see that: your punch had the worst form I’ve ever seen… I refuse to believe that’s really how strong you can hit. You’re still holding back, aren’t you?>

<I’ve trained myself to do as little damage as I possibly can. You can’t ask me to forget thousands of years of self-discipline in a few months!>

<I’m not “asking”. I’m TELLING you that you WILL learn how to throw a decent punch.>

<There’s no way of making you give up, isn’t it?>

<You know me. Now let’s get to work> Kari incites her, positioning herself in a battle stance that Vesta copies to the best of her abilities.

 

Midgard Station, Antarctica

With the installation growing in size each day, it’s hard to find a place that isn’t filled with Nullbots doing the grunt work. The exception is the launching bay of the second Earth warship, still unnamed and still under construction: Noriko Null is alone there, working in the engines.

The Gravity Gauntlets she’s wearing keep her floating in mid-air, but they don’t compromise her dexterity: she’s still able to weld the delicate circuitry together.

The insistent beep of her N-Phone gets her attention. She lifts the welding mask and mentally activates the phone’s holographic projection, finding herself facing the image of a man in uniform.

<Lieutenant Liosthenes. How can I help you?> she asks to the officer of the HDS Demosthenes.

<I should ask the same question, Lady Null. If you need assistance, the Captain would be more than helpful to provide it; there is no need to act on your own.>

<I’m not sure I follow, Liosthenes.>

<Then I’ll be more direct: why did you try to access our ship’s database?>

<What? I didn’t do anything like that!>

<Our sensors are very precise, Lady Null. The signal was transmitted from this very facility.>

<But I didn’t… Dammit. I know what happened. I can assure you, Lieutenant, that this attempt was not authorized by me. And you have my word that it won’t happen again.>

<The Captain will be most pleased to learn that. You can be sure he will ensure that you will keep your word on the matter> Liosthenes says, abruptly ending the conversation.

Noriko takes off the welding mask and throws it against the ship’s hull; her silver eyes shine in anger as she watches it fall to the ground.

 

A few minutes later, in a different section of the station

Dmitry Voron is focused on the lines of code on the holographic screen, when suddenly the door to his laboratory is opened very loudly by a very upset Noriko Null.

<What were you thinking!?> she shouts.

<Can it wait? I’m in the middle of something> the Russian scientist asks, reacting to Noriko’s outburst only when she reaches for the screen to shut it down.

<Do you want to start a diplomatic incident with the Athenian Federation!? You can’t access the Demosthenes database without their consent!>

<Sure I can. I just need a little more practice.>

<No, what you need is do what I asked for and stopping wasting time on these side projects!!!>

<If you mean the God Eraser, I have found its weak point> Voron explains, pointing at the prosthetic arm laying on the table and connected to a plethora of wires.

<It’s you. The device is perfectly able to operate at far higher efficiency; the problem is that your brain can’t sustain the stress without causing massive neurological damage.>

<You don’t have to sound so excited about it> she complains, crossing her arms and pouting.

<It is an interesting field of study. Certainly far more stimulating than anything else you have provided me during my stay.>

<You’re supposed to help me restructure Earth’s socio-military-industrial structure for the twenty-first century, and you think it’s boring!?>

<Yes. Yes it is, especially given the opportunity to study a more advanced civilization. Your experience with alien ships resulted in the construction of the Ragnarok; if only I could properly study the information contained in the Demosthenes…>

<If you love that ship so much, why don’t you ask to work there?> Noriko says, still upset at Voron’s behavior. She can see that he’s visibly shaken by the suggestion.

<I’m sorry, that was uncalled for. I didn’t mean to…> she apologizes.

<I never thought of that! That would be a truly unprecedented opportunity!!!>

<What!? You’re not serious, are you!?>

<Why didn’t I think of that!? You’re truly a genius!> Voron tells her, grabbing her by the shoulders and kissing her forehead. She’s more confused and shocked than when she tried to explain the Electoral College to Torn.

<Earth is a dead end for me as long as you’re around, but the possibilities are endless on a Federation ship! I can learn so much from them! I should’ve come up with this months ago!>

<But… what about me?> Noriko timidly asks.

<What do you mean? You don’t really need me. You don’t need anybody when you’re the smartest person in the universe.>

<Is… is being smart the only thing that matters to you?>

<What else is there?> he asks sincerely, oblivious to the shocked look in Noriko’s silver eyes. She seems completely drained of energy as he hugs her.

<Thank you for the opportunity! I’ll make the necessary arrangements!> he adds, rushing out of the laboratory leaving her behind with a bewildered expression.

<Did… did I just get dumped?> she wonders. Then her eyes become brighter, she clenches her fists, and turns towards the God Eraser.

<FINE. I’ll show him what I can do alone> she says, wiping away tears with one hand and accessing the device’s schematics with the other.