Hero by Day

Chapter 15 - Unexpected Saviors

"There isn't much justice in this world. Perhaps that's why it's so satisfying to occasionally make some."

~J'onn J'onzz (Martian Manhunter)

Andromeda was just toying with me, I knew that now. I had no idea what goal she actually had in mind. She wasn't robbing a bank or trying to kidnap an important figure of government – she wasn't even trying too hard to kill me yet. So, as to what her real motives were, I was clueless.

After her fight with Delinquent, she didn't run away, which meant she had been waiting for me to show up. Whatever she wanted, I was a part of it.

I thrusted my hand out at her and another beam of electricity missed her by inches. Whoever Andromeda was, and wherever she must've come from, she was one hell of a fighter.

"Why are you here, Andromeda? What do you want?" I asked, blasting another beam at the tree she was hiding behind.

Andromeda walked back out into the open, smirking. "I want you. Preferably dead."

At her words, all the discarded objects around her flew into the air and straight at me, including a couple park benches and a heavy branch. Trying to blast those objects away would do no good, so I ran to the nearest tree for cover. But the heavy tree branch fell on me before I could make it.

Now, I know a couple of you might be scoffing it off. "Oh, it was just a branch, he should be alright." But, no. You've never been hit by a fifteen foot branch that was two feet thick and covered in shards of bark and smaller stick branches that stuck into your sides. It had my upper body pinned to the ground, and I could feel what might've been a couple broken ribs under the spandex of my costume. My breaths were coming in short spurts, seeing as the branch currently had my lungs and diaphragm squished to the limit.

I was trying to push the branch off, honest, but the blow had taken a considerable amount of my strength with it, and I was just too tired to push it off. Also, one arm was pinned under the branch. I was not in the best situation to get out of my current predicament.

Andromeda's face soon shadowed my own, blocking the sun. She smiled viciously and brought her hand out. "It really is such a shame you have to go, but my employers will be glad to see you dead, White Lightning." I was reminded of something the clown-faced villain said right after forcing the poison into Daniel's mouth, "Nothing you can fix, White Lightning, and you're next." And as Andromeda's hand clenched and my throat was constricted, I knew this was my time.

I saw dark smoke behind Andromeda and accustomed that to my vision going dark as my body struggled to find air, until a familiar voice rang out.

"Let go of him, you bitch!"

Suddenly the sun was shining again and the pressure around my throat was lifted. I greedily sucked in as much air as I could while the branch was still crushing my lungs. I heard yells in the distance and assumed Delinquent was fighting Andromeda.

I was confounded as to why Delinquent was helping me after our last encounter when I basically blamed Daniel's murder on her and scolded her for attacking Richard Head, even if it was indirectly. So why she was helping a hero and fighting a villain? I had no idea.

Delinquent's figure suddenly filled my vision, blocking out the sun like Andromeda had. "Help me push this stupid thing off of you, Lightbulb."

I smiled at her attempt at humor and pushed with my free arm. With Delinquent's help, I was soon free from the branch and sucking in as much air as I could. I silently vowed not to ever take breathing for granted again and slowly got to my feet. I leaned on Delinquent's arm so I could stay upright. The possibly broken ribs and my many bruises were starting to catch up to me now.