Broken Hero

Chapter 15

“So, what’s so important that you needed today off?” Warfalcon asks, grunting as she kicks him back.

She rolls her eyes as she blocks his fist. “You’ve survived without me for how many years? One day is not going to hurt.”

“That’s what you think. “He laughs as she grabs him and pins him to the ground. “Alright, you win. Let me up.”

She stands, offering him a hand with a grin. “If you must know. I’m going to clean out the house, so the realtor can sell it.”

“Really?” He looks at her in surprise.

She nods as she removes her hand wraps. “It has way too many memories. I think it would be better for me to stay here in my dorm for a while. I can always buy another one.”

“I just remember how excited you had been when you first bought it.” He sighs as he starts towards the door.

She follows him with a smile. “Yeah, I remember too. It was fun going house hunting with you, even if we had very different ideas about what I should get. What about you? Aren't you going to get a house of your own?”

“Yeah, someday. I want to get married first, though.” He shrugs as they part ways to shower and dress for the day.

It didn’t take long for her to get to the house; shivers ran down her spine as she remembered the last time she was here. She takes a deep breath to settle her nerves before she opens the door and lets out a groan. The place was trashed, but that's fine. She doesn't plan on keeping much anyway, besides some keepsakes that she has hidden. The next few hours were spent getting rid of the trash and packing everything else into boxes for her to donate. She wipes her forehead with her arm as she looks around, checking each room before opening a hidden door in the kitchen.

Dust kicks up off the stairs, making her cough a bit. She flips the light on and makes her way downstairs to her private lab. Beakers with different colored liquids sat on some of the tables, while dead, potted plants sat on the others. She went to work clearing the dead plants first to get rid of their smell. As she clears the last pot, the front door opens and Warfalcon’s voice rings out.

“Eclipse?! It’s me.” His heavy footsteps were accompanied by a set of light, unsure footsteps.

Curious about who’s with him, she walks into the kitchen while wiping her hands.

“I’m in here. Get lonely?” She smirks as he rolls his eyes.

“No, we just came to see if you wanted some help.” He motions to Anna behind him.

“Well, I’m almost finished, but you’re more than welcome to join me.” She motions toward the lab and walks downstairs.

Warfalcon and Anna follow her.

Warfalcon shoots her a suspicious look. “And what are you doing down here?”

“Cleaning it out, so the new owners don’t accidentally poison themselves.” She gives him an unamused look.

Anna looks between the two of them. “Did I miss something?”

“Oh yes, why don’t you tell her what I caught you doing down here the last time?” Warfalcon smirks at her.

She groans, rubbing her forehead. “I was experimenting with different poisons and creating antidotes.”

“I don’t see why that would be an issue.” Anna looks even more confused.

Warfalcon picks up a beaker, swirling it around before taking a step towards the sink. “Oh no, let her finish.”

She glares at him, taking the beaker from his hand. “Unless you want to pay to replace the plumbing, don’t put anything down the sink.” She sighs as she checks the bottom and then sets it with another group of beakers. “I didn’t have any way of testing the antidotes safely, so I started testing them on myself. Then one day, I miscalculated and couldn’t get to the antidote in time. Warfalcon came to check on me when I was late and found me unconscious. He got the antidote for me and then threw me in the Psych ward.”

“Don’t try to turn it on me.” He glares at her.

She sticks her tongue out at him, making him roll his eyes. “I’m just teasing. I would have done the same thing.”

“But why were you...” Anna looks at her with a mixture of hurt and confusion.

Eclipse shrugs. “A combination of things. Do you know the Serpent’s Tongue? That periwinkle blue plant that lures its victims in, latches onto their faces, and then forces poison down their throats?” Anna nods, so she continues. “I had a fiancé, someone who was also a friend of my brother’s, die from its poison. When I was feeling at my lowest, I decided to find a cure for that poison. However, I had no experience in that field, so I decided to try some less potent poisons first. As I was experimenting, I realized that I was gaining immunity to the poisons. Which made me wonder if I could find a way to become immune to Lindsey’s as well. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible since her abilities change their chemical makeup every time.”

“So how many poisons are you immune to now?” Anna looks intrigued now.

Eclipse finishes sorting the beakers and starts stowing the unsafe ones in her pocket dimension while dumping the rest down a designated sink. “All known poisons but Hero’s Bane. The poison that I had messed up was the last one, the Serpent’s Tongue."

Now Anna looks impressed, but then she frowns. “That’s cool, but a bit worrisome. You won’t be doing it anymore, right?”

Eclipse shoots Warfalcon a glare as he grins cheekily. “No, I won’t be doing that again. I already promised Warfalcon, and I don’t break my promise.”

“Ok, good.” Anna looked relieved.

Eclipse gives her a small smile as she opens her safe and pulls out her research notes, stashing them in her pocket dimension before turning to the other two. “Alright, let's head back. We can take my car.”

“No, thank you!” Warfalcon immediately pulls his keys out. “I am not letting you drive me anywhere. Anna, you should come with me too.”

Anna laughs but nods and follows him to his SUV while Eclipse makes her way to her black Mustang. She smiles as she pops the hood, checking to make sure the engine is safe, and then carefully manipulating the dirt out of the valves.

She jumps in the car and turns it on, listening as the engine roars to life. “Alright... let’s go home.”