Beyond The Impossible

Olympian Galaxy, undisclosed location

This used to be an underwater laboratory; it’s been scrubbed clean, but somehow it still feels damp.

The Vanguard assembles in this strange place, sitting around a table quickly built from discarded metal pieces. This used to be Roxiana’s base, and it’s been drained from water just hours ago.

Noriko Null wastes little time, activating a holographic projector that creates a map of the Olympian Galaxy as she starts speaking.

<I have some good news: Athena has not been able to crack the security codes of the Yggdrasil weapon. The fact that she can’t fire black hole warheads is a plus on its own, but that also means that Hell will be free from retaliation for helping us.> she explains.

<Even she would not dare to attack Hell.> Torn comments.

<See, this is the exact mistake that I made. First rule of how we’re going to take back the Galaxy: nobody here is ever going to make any assumption on how far Athena is willing to go. And while I’m at it, second rule: we’re not going to trust anyone without guarantees of their good faith.>

<Didn’t you just recruit Roxiana, Hermes and Persephone? All people who have tried to kill us multiple times?> Kari points out the hypocrisy.

<Did Persephone try to kill us?> Quantum whispers to Vesta.

<I’m not sure, it’s hard to keep track of how many people tried.> the goddess whispers back.

<I have taken my precautions and personally vetted them, Kari.> Noriko reassures her.

<Like you did with Athena.> Torn points out.

<Okay, I guess I deserve that. Look everyone, let’s just get this out: Athena outsmarted me, big time. I knew she was a snake and I still let her bite me. And since she spilled all of my secrets for all the freaking Galaxy to know, you’ve heard and will hear things about me that will make you question my judgment. Probably even more than I question it myself. But I give you my word: I will either set things right or die doing my best. Will that be enough for you?> Noriko asks.

The seconds of silence following her little speech feel like an eternity. Until Quantum asks:

<I have a different question: are there other good news?>

<Yes… and no. Earth is under complete quarantine, but I did intercept communications about the transfer of a few prisoners to a maximum security complex on Argos. And I’ve managed to hack into its systems enough to find a few VIP prisoners.> Noriko explains, using the projector to change the hologram. It shows the mugshot of ten people, arranged in three separate groups.

<All the prisoners of the facility who were there before the coup have been transferred off-planet, leaving only the ten new prisoners transferred there from Earth and Myridia.>

<What have they done to my kids?> Kari asks with a mother’s worry in her voice, seeing the images of her three daughters Ariel, Imani and Azure, as well as her husband Kiros.

<I believe they are fine: the energy readings indicate the presence of technology to block Myridian duplication powers, as well as to negate other powers.> Noriko explains.

<Because Kayla is also in there.> Quantum says, recognizing his sister.

<Yes, I believe Athena segregated all her powered hostages in the same wing. The other wing holds my father, Dr. Kalama and my sister Nalani: they don’t require specialized cells, but their cells are heavily guarded; they’re likely assumed to be the most valuable hostages. Security is extremely tight in general, except for the only two cells separated from the others…> Noriko explains.

<Jane and Miranda.> Quantum interrupts again, seeing his fiancée and his sister’s wife.

<Why aren’t they with Noriko’s family? They also don’t have powers.> Vesta wonders.

<It could be because Athena thinks I value them less, or…> Noriko hypothesizes.

<Or it’s an obvious trap. The Oracles pulled this trick during the Demeter occupation: make a hostage so easy to liberate that the rest of the resistance couldn’t help themselves.> Kari says.

<But can we free them?> Quantum asks.

<I know what you’re thinking, and you’re the last person who can go there: do you think it’s a coincidence that the bait includes your relatives? I guarantee that the second you show up there as neutrinos, you’ll end up trapped inside.> Noriko explains.

<How secure is this place? I could melt the walls and fly them out.> Vesta proposes.

<Or we could have Hermes do it in the blink of an eye.> Kari suggests.

<Normally I would agree, but Athena knows all these methods are at my disposal. If this is a trap, I have to assume that she’s ready for anything I’ve tried before.> Noriko shuts them down.

<We can’t just leave them there!> Quantum protests.

<I didn’t say that… just that I need to do something new.>

 

Argos, 100 light-years from Earth

It’s the middle of the night on this side of the planet, but Jane Blake can’t get any sleep.

Kidnapped by Athenian soldiers and thrown into a ship without even being told what she was accused of, she has feared for her life every waking moment.

Even though… or perhaps because… she’s been treated exceptionally well. The cell is almost as big as her old apartment, she gets regular meals of surprising quality, and nobody has laid a finger on her or has even raised their voice, and her green prison uniform is neatly pressed.

Still, aside from guards delivering her meals or the doctor who gave her a checkup on her arrival, she has not met anyone else since she came here.

She’s so on edge that when the room is illuminated by the glow of a strange triangle of white fire she immediately screams… and she’s freaked out when she can’t hear a single sound.

She’s a bit relieved when she recognizes Torn stepping out of the Aether portal, but that doesn’t last long: he unceremoniously grabs her and drags her through the portal.

 

Undisclosed location

She’s even more disoriented when, on the other side of the portal, Torn drops her on the floor… not as gently as she would have preferred… and steps back on the others side.

Adding to her confusion, Torn returns holding someone she has only met once: a Hispanic woman wearing her same uniform. She recognizes her as Miranda, the wife of Quantum’s sister, and she seems just as confused as Jane.

Once the portal disappears Torn tries to say something, without a single word coming out of anyone’s mouth. Jane realizes she hasn’t heard a single sound since he showed up, and in fact doesn’t immediately notice Noriko stepping into the room because she’s similarly silent.

She sees her adjusting some device attached to Torn’s belt, with the sound returning mid-sentence:

<…the relay should restore the… ah yes, it’s working.>

<Noriko, you’re alive? What the f##k just happened!?> Jane exclaims.

<The Sound Nullifier was stuck; I had to build one out of junk.>

<Where are you? Where’s Kayla?> Miranda asks.

<One sec. I have to check on something before you’re clear to go.> Noriko tells them, holding what is unmistakably a highly modified N-Phone and scanning the two women.

<Dammit, sometimes I hate being right. You both have nanites in your blood: had I tried to take you out of there with a teleporter, you would have exploded. And you’re currently retransmitting our location: this place isn’t safe anymore. We have to neutralize the nanites and find a new base.>

<But you can save the other prisoners first, right?> Miranda insists.

Noriko analyzes the data she has gathered and runs dozens of simulations in her head, to the point that her silver eyes become almost blinding due to the increased brain activity.

<Not this time. Even with an extraction so fast, Torn triggered the sensors; Athena has either traps for all the Vanguard, or she will just kill the hostages. I can’t risk it.>

<Please, my wife is in there…> Miranda pleads.

<And I will free her. My family is there too: you have my word. They can’t afford recklessness.>

<Is Max here? I want to see him.> Jane says.

<I bet you do. But first we have to check those nanites and leave this base… not to mention that once I told him I could free you, Quantum was very insistent on respecting the tradition.>

<The tradition of what?> Jane asks, perhaps even more confused than when she was in prison.

 

Middle Galaxy, 163,000 light-years from Earth

Jane looks at her wrist: if the device she’s wearing were a watch it would be too big for her, but the reading it shows is reassuring… at least for what she can understand.

<Ready for your big moment?> Noriko asks, coming up behind her. This time Jane can see her, thanks to the reflection she’s been using to look at her own dress.

<As much as I be, I guess. This thing wasn’t designed for people without wings.> Jane complains; in fact, the elaborate blue dress leaves almost her entire back exposed.

<I tried talking to the locals about a white dress, but apparently among Lampyrians a white dress at a formal occasion is bad luck. Hey, at least you’ve already got something blue.>

<And something just borrowed, I hope; I don’t want to wear this thing for the rest of my life.> Jane complains, looking at the device again. Noriko checks the reading, reassuring her:

<You’ll be free from nanites in a week or so. Here, Torn got you something old.> Noriko tells her, attaching as a brooch something resembling a six-bladed shuriken.

<Don’t stab yourself with this. He said it was his mother’s “wedding weapon” and I have no intention to ask him what that even means.>

<Noriko… what the hell are we even doing?>

<You’re getting married. In like five minutes, so I hope you’re not having second thoughts.>

<I absolutely want to get married to Max, yes… in a real church, on my planet, not in a pressure chamber in another Galaxy!>

<And you will, when we’ve won Earth back. The pressure chamber is a necessity… Lampyria’s atmospheric pressure and composition are lethal to humans. It might not be a church, but a marriage doesn’t get any more legitimate than when officiated by a goddess.>

<Noriko… we went to school together. You’re no goddess.>

<I know. But an awful lot of people need to believe I am, now more than ever. And the whole Galaxy needs a message of hope: to see that even out of power I still care about my friends. Plus, y’know, it will make Athena absolutely mad.>

<You’re going to show a video of my wedding to the whole Galaxy, aren’t you?>

<Multiple galaxies. So, you know, no pressure. Here’s the last piece missing: something new I just built.> Noriko says, helping her friend wear the metallic necklace she was just handed.

<It’s a miniature forcefield emitter with an integrated Soul Relay synchronized with Quantum’s: you will be able to communicate with him whenever you want. Consider this both my wedding gift and my apology for ruining your life.>

<Noriko, you’re… the most bats##t crazy person I know, but… you made me meet the man of my life and showed me life on other worlds. I wouldn’t want anyone else to be my best friend.> Jane tells her, hugging her best friend for a few seconds… until Noriko recedes.

<Okay okay, that’s enough. I have a reputation to keep up.> she complains.

 

Minutes later

Max Black a.k.a. Quantum feels uneasy. It’s a combination of things: wedding anxiety, how tight a tuxedo sewed by people who never weaved clothes for a male before, and the hologram of the chapel that is being projected over the pressure chamber.

Most of it is out of necessity: they can’t let Athena know that the wedding is taking place on Lampyria.

But it also makes it feel a bit more like a wedding, even if he never expected he would get married while wearing a superhero mask… or that his boss would officiate.

It’s a small ceremony to be sure. Max waits at the altar, next to Torn who agreed to serve as his best man despite not truly grasping the meaning of the concept.

Jane approaches the altar escorted by Miranda serving as the maid of honor. Besides them, the only other people attending the wedding are Kari, Vesta and Gilgamesh as guests. The room is too small for any seating arrangements, and they have to awkwardly just stand behind the others.

Noriko Null is on the other side of the altar, wearing her usual green leather jacket. The only microscopic steps she took to make this look even slightly official are zipping it up and applying a silver medal in the shape of her Ø symbol over her chest.

Feeling his heart missing a beat, Quantum removes his mask.

<Are you sure you wanna do it?> Jane thinks, her thoughts transmitted by the necklace.

<Of course I do! Should I tell them to stop filming?>

<I meant your mask. What about your secret identity?>

<I don’t want to hide that you’re my wife. Besides, apparently you’re still a target even when I have the mask, so there’s no point in trying to Superman and Lois Lane this.>

<Superman doesn’t wear a mask. This is more of a Spider-Man thing.> she corrects him.

<God I love you.>

While Noriko can’t intercept those messages, she interpreted their body language enough to wait a moment before she starts speaking.

<We are gathered today between friends, family and allies to witness the marriage of Maximilian and Jane. As the Goddess of Mortals, I bless their union and their journey towards a long, happy and healthy life together. A union of two people, voluntarily entered for life in the pursuit of mutual happiness. A union symbolized by these rings: unbroken circles, with no beginning and no end, just as your unending and everlasting love towards each other. You may now exchange the rings.> Noriko says, trying her best not to speed through her own speech: after all the ceremony was already designed to be as short as possible. As much as she hates playing the role of a goddess, she does genuinely believe these two deserve a future together.

Once the rings have been exchanged, she continues.

<Maximilian Black, do you take Jane Blake to be your lawfully wedded wife; to have and to hold, in good times and bad, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health; will you love, honor, and cherish her for as long as you both wish it to be so?>

<I do.> he says.

<Jane Blake, do you take Maximilian Black to be your lawfully wedded husband; to have and to hold, in good times and bad, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health; will you love, honor, and cherish him for as long as you both wish it to be so?>

<I do.> she says.

<It is my pleasure to pronounce you, by my power as the Goddess of Mortals, married. This holy union shall be binding under all mortal and divine laws, under the lights of all stars of any galaxy. And what this Goddess has put together, let no mortal or god put asunder. You may now kiss the bride.>

The couple exchanges a kiss that will soon be seen by nearly every single person in the Olympian Galaxy, and while she would never admit it in a million years Noriko Null struggles to keep back a few tears.

The whole team needed this moment of happiness. She knows there won’t be many until they have given the Galaxy back to mortal rule.