Corpies (Super Powereds Spinoff Book 1) (49 page)

“Must be my imagination.” Owen looked at Juiced and Deadlift, who’d put down their rope and seemed to be stretching. “Good luck to you all. I’m not sure how the bracket system on this thing works, but if we face each other, I hope it’s in the final match.”

“Same here. Though ideally someone else will take you out, and we’ll capitalize on some fatal flaw in their team dynamic,” Kaiju replied. “But yes, barring that, here’s hoping we meet you in the finals.”

He turned and jogged back toward his team, and Owen headed toward Galvanize and the others. Already he could hear the excited chatter of the large crowd coming from outside the gates. In minutes, they’d come pouring through.

The show was about to begin, and Owen knew he had to be ready. If he was going to leave his team soon, then the least he owed them was a moment in the glorious spotlight of victory.

94.

              “Ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to thank you all for coming to today’s main event at the Supers Care Charity Spectacular. We, and more importantly, those in need, greatly appreciate all the funds you’ve helped us raise so far.” The voice crackled through the stadium, audible over the static, but not by much. Thankfully, someone had turned up the volume, as the woman talking now had to compete with a nearly-stuffed stadium. Admittedly, it wasn’t a very large arena, not much bigger than what would be built for a high school football team, but it was still packed full of people eager to witness Supers testing their might against one another.

“Today’s event will be three-person teams in a single elimination tournament, meaning once your team loses, you are out of the running,” the voice continued. “There are white painted lines indicating where to start, and where the midway point is. The first team with a participant to cross that middle line immediately loses, and the winners will move on. Since we’ve got such strong competitors, plus we don’t want to see broken ropes everywhere, the contestants will be using specially fortified ropes. They might weigh upwards of ten times more than the usual kind, but they won’t break easily, and that means you all will really get to see these Supers strut their stuff.”

“I swear I know that voice,” Zone said, peering up at the speaker from next to Owen.

“Yeah, I had the same thought,” Owen agreed.

“Really? Neither of you have placed it yet?” Galvanize had an uncharacteristically smug grin on his face as he looked between his teammates. “Come on, now, I know she didn’t talk much during her player days, but she’s been doing commentary on SAA games for at least five years now.”

“Hoooly shit.” Zone stared up at the speaker with new found respect, and for once he and Owen were on exactly the same page. The secrecy of their revelation was short-lived, as seconds later the voice spoke once more, this time announcing to the crowd what it seemed only Galvanize had figured out.

“And I’ll be down on the field, doing interviews and providing color-commentary throughout the whole event.” From a nearby entrance, a woman which short brown hair and an athletic build stepped into view. No sooner was she visible than the ever-present roar of the crowd escalated, forcing her to raise her voice. “For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Jade Norris, though they called me The Comet back when I used to-”

The rest of her speech was drowned out by cheering from the stands. While not everyone seemed to know who she was, those who did were clearly overjoyed by the surprise celebrity commentator. She quickly gave up trying to speak over them, instead just waving politely as she waited for the crowd to cheer itself out.

“Damn, is that what it’s like to be A-list?” Hexcellent asked, admiring the crowd’s reaction more than the woman who had triggered it.

“Pretty much,” Owen told her. “Just remember: as loud as they cheer for you, that’s exactly how loud they’ll be when they’re shouting for your blood.”

“Well, that’s a bummer,” Hexcellent muttered.

Owen nodded in agreement. “That’s fame.”

Eventually, the cheers of the crowd faded and Jade was able to get the event underway. The system was well-organized, with three tug-of-war areas set up for the teams to use. Only one match would take place at any given time, but the other spots would minimize any delay in the action. As soon as a team’s match ended, referees would descend on the area, fixing any of the chalk marks that were smudged and dragging the rope back to the starting point. Then the next set of teams would get into position, squared and ready to go as soon as the signal was given. It was a rotation that kept the action constant and the crowd thrilled, never leaving a dull moment in the show.

The team from Mordent Holdings was in the fourth match, set against three players from the Orlando Krakens. Owen recognized two of the three men set on the opposite end of the rope, albeit one was easy, given his distinctive shifted form. The man looked like a cross between a gorilla and a bull. He easily lifted the rope from the ground and handed it to his teammates. While his shifted form wasn’t pretty, it did make him an excellent receiver on the field, and he was no slouch in the muscle department either.

Reaching down carefully, Owen lifted the fortified rope. By human standards, it was probably damn heavy, though in his hand the difference was barely discernible. As the other team hefted their side of the rope, Owen matched their movements and pulled it taut. Logic had dictated he take the anchor spot at the rear, since that would allow him to make sure there was no slack in the line. It would have been embarrassing for the rest of his teammates to struggle at even lifting the rope they were supposed to pull. This way, at least, they could hold it and appear to be contributing.

Galvanize and Zone got into position, gripping the bundle of woven fiber as tightly as they could. Galvanize was in the front, of course. He was the team leader, and if anyone was going to bear the shame of being pulled across the line, it would be him. In another life, with another power, Owen imagined Galvanize could have been a damn fine leader for a team of Heroes. Then again, he’d found a calling with a team that helped save people, so maybe Galvanize had gotten the right power after all.

Then, with almost no warning, the referee blew the starting whistle and the match began. Owen braced himself as he felt the pressure increase; all three Supers on the other side of the chalk line were pulling with everything they had. The strain increased steadily, taxing Owen’s muscles a bit more every second, until finally it leveled out. They’d reached the point where they were pulling with all of their strength, and aside from a few fluctuations of grip and adrenaline, it wasn’t going to get any stronger. That was too bad for them, as they were still nowhere near pulling with enough might to actually drag Owen forward, let alone beat him.

With methodical movements, walking backward foot by foot, Owen dragged the other team forward. They struggled, first shocked, then angry, and finally determined as they realized one man was easily beating their combined strength. Digging in with everything they had, the team managed to eke out a bit more power, which was no small feat given how hard they were already working. Sadly, it made no difference as Owen’s steady pace continued. Seconds later the first foot was pulled across the chalk line and the referee blew another whistle. The match was over, and the Mordent Holdings team had won.

As Owen lowered the rope and prepared to shake the other team’s hands, he noticed something odd. Though the crowd was cheering, Galvanize and Zone were smiling woodenly, their usual charisma absent as they accepted the kind sentiment. Glancing over to where the others were resting, Owen noted that Bubble Bubble and Hexcellent looked much the same. The act was still there, but that’s all it was. None of them were happy to be there. If anything, they were embarrassed.

The more Owen considered their situation, the more sense it made. Everyone knew he was strong. No one was really cheering for them, and they knew it. They were just set-pieces, and much as Mordent tended to prop them up like display models, at least when they did shoots or rescues they were working under their own power, no one liked to feel useless. Especially in such a public venue.

If Owen wanted his team to get any enjoyment or meaning out of the day’s activities, he was going to have to think of a new strategy, and soon.

95.

Owen won his team’s way through two more matches before an idea finally struck him, and it came from his opponents. In their third match of the day, he was once again up against a hefty shifter and a strongman, but the third member of their team was something a little different. Instead of actually grabbing the rope, he held up his arms and moments later giant energy duplicates of his hands appeared, floating a few feet away. Those massive hands reached down and gingerly picked up the rope as if it weren’t even the slightest bit unusual, a wide grin across the projector’s face.

“Oooh, and here we see legendary receiver for the Fort Worth Juggernauts, Douglas Fairbanks, using his famous phantom grip,” Jade said, hurrying over to be near the action. “For those of you wondering, this is perfectly allowable. The rules state that a Super can use any method at their disposal to move the rope, so long as they move with it and don’t interfere with the other team. We thought it would keep things interesting.”

She certainly wasn’t wrong about that; people’s excitement was rekindled as they prepared to watch the strange showdown. Credit where it was due, Owen had to admit this team was probably the strongest they’d faced so far, though it was impossible to tell how much was due to the energy hands. Still, they weren’t strong enough, and he dragged the rope backward just as he had all the others before. This time, when he won, the cheers seemed a bit muted. They’d been rooting for the guy with the interesting power, not the one who was slowly plowing through every opponent without putting on a spectacle.

Well, if the crowd wanted to cheer for something unique, they were about to be in a whole mess of luck. Owen headed back over to where the rest of his team was waiting, Zone and Bubble Bubble trailing behind since they’d come out for this match. They were rotating through, not because anyone was getting tired, but because it gave everyone equal time for camera exposure.

Owen motioned for everyone to gather around him, which they did, although there was little enthusiasm in their steps. All wore fake smiles, even Hexcellent, which were obviously as much for his benefit as the cameras. They knew he hadn’t chosen to be here and make them suffer through being glorified props; Mordent had forced this upon them, there was no point in throwing blame around on one another.

“Okay, we’ve got a few minutes until the next match,” Owen said, keeping track of how things were going on the field. “Time to figure out who is going in.”

“That’s not really difficult,” Galvanize said. “Zone and I were first, then Bubble Bubble and Hexcellent, followed by Zone and Bubble Bubble, which means it will now be myself and Hexcellent.”

“That’s a good start,” Owen agreed. “But what about your third?”

“Uhhh, that would be you, dipshit,” Hexcellent said, jabbing a finger into his oversized chest.

“Nah, I’ve gone in for the last three matches. I think it’s time to switch things up.” Owen looked his teammates up and down, ignoring the perplexed stares they were shooting him. “Bubble Bubble, I think you should be their third. With your spheres you can create some solid footholds for everyone.”

“Titan,” Galvanize said, lowering his voice as understanding finally sank in. “What are you talking about? You play in every match. You’re the only way we win this thing. That was the plan all along.”

“That was Mordent’s plan, sure,” Owen said. “But we only agreed to show up and compete. No one said I had to be a part of every match. And, come on, do you really want to keep doing more of this shit?”

“Fuck no.” Hexcellent looked surprised by her own words; evidently they’d been meant as inner monologue. Having released them into the world, even if by accident, she steeled herself and opted to own them. “This is embarrassing as hell. We’ve all got our own strengths, but from just watching this contest, you’d think we were fucking useless dickbrains that you carried along everywhere.”

“But we’re winning,” Zone pointed out.

“No, Titan is winning. We’re just there.” Bubble Bubble turned to look up at the crowd, all cheering for the current match and ignoring those on the sidelines. “He’s the only one here they care about.”

“And, if you haven’t noticed, that’s starting to wane,” Owen added.  “This isn’t any fun. Not for them, and sure as hell not for us. So I say we change things up and actually try to enjoy ourselves.”

“You realize that we’re going to lose the moment we try to compete.” Despite the pessimistic words, Galvanize actually seemed rather cheerful at the prospect of public defeat.

“Maybe you will, maybe you won’t. Like Hexcellent said, you’ve got your own strengths. Really though, it doesn’t matter. There’s nothing on the line here but pride, and we might be the team with the least of that to lose. Besides. . .” Owen paused and pointed to the stands and the cheering people within them. “Everyone loves the underdog. Win, lose, it almost doesn’t matter. Just put up a good fight, and the people will clap for you. You might even get some decent publicity out of this.”

“Mr. Greene still won’t like it,” Galvanize said. “But he can’t say we didn’t do as the company ordered, so perhaps he can just deal with it.”