Even the truck was freezing. She’d prayed she might get some relief from the crushing freeze, instead Allie was escorted in chains right into the back of a refrigerator on wheels. It was a struggle not to lose all hope then and there, sitting on a metal bench, arms and legs chained, collar digging into her throat. The reality of her situation grew more real every moment, it was impossible to ignore where this truck was bound. What that meant for her if it were allowed to arrive at its destination.

Every day since the twins came to visit her Allie had practiced. She nursed that smoldering ash of warmth that glowed inside her, fed it desperate hope, naive hope. But if Elaine and Lexi didn’t attack soon that hope would have meant nothing. The deluded fantasies of a stupid girl that finally believed the world had stopped shitting on her. She would be taken away to one of the most secure locations in the world, rescue would be impossible. But they were coming, they had to be. If they weren’t then -- tears froze to her face as the Twins, dressed in elaborate fluffy parkas lounged, relishing in her despair. That private smirk they shared was a kernel stuck in her teeth, impossible to ignore or dislodge, only growing in irritation. It screamed that  they knew something she didn’t. And that only spelled doom.

“Oh my, did she really think anyone was coming to save her?” Siren’s voice seemed deliberately hushed, just loud enough to be heard over the hum of the machinery as she murmured in her brother’s ear.  

“They always do.” Kraken sat up, looking directly at Allie now as he leaned forward. “It’s always my favorite part, watching that hope die for the last time when they realize it’s too late for them.” Allie wanted to shout him down in response, to be resilient, defiant, but she couldn’t. What if he was right? They hadn’t come for her yet, and how would they even know to come today? How would they know that this was the car she was in, that this was the day, this was the time. The tiny voice in her head telling her they might still attack the truck was drowning, held under waves of doubt by that other voice, the one who whispered to her that hope was just a setup for more pain. It was best she let herself accept that this would just be her life from now on.

“Let me ask you something, villain, did it ever occur to you that we just wanted to watch you squirm? Watching the seeds of hope we plant in scum like you wither and die is sweeter than honey. Nobody’s coming for you. Especially not your sister or girlfriend.” Upon hearing that Allie shivered, the warmth in her was suffocating. The twins shared another look, one which screamed to her that they still basked in some sadistic secret yet to be relieved. All her doubts, all her insecurities came home to roost in that moment. She knew they had been lying that day. She knew believing in her rescue was stupid and naive. 

And why would Lexi have come through, anyway? The sister who left her behind, who never called or visited. The sister who abandoned her to those abusive monsters. Her violent father, her manipulative, vindictive mother. It had been so long since she had thought about the disgust that burned in their eyes when she told them who she really was. She thought she’d left such things behind, but no, clearly it was just a temporary respite, a taste of something sweet to make the filth that life would shove down her throat all the more rancid.

And Elaine, who was she kidding? It was a stupid idea in the first place, she should have smothered her crush on Slipspace in it’s infancy. She shouldn’t have hired Elaine, should never have indulged in the feelings those ropes gave her. Maybe she deserved this. Allie had a mission, Arcadia a purpose. She was going to end those stupid greedy fucks, bring the whole thing down. Instead she let her selfish desires get in the way of her goals. She let her feelings for Elaine blind her to the reality of who that scab of a hero really was. 

It was her fault. They never would have been caught had Allie just listened to Lexi when she suggested they get the parts from her black market connections. Instead she had to be stubborn and insist on stealing to spite the greedy fucks at the top. And even though she didn’t want to, Lexi came in case there was trouble. Lexi who crashed through the front door of their parents’ house when she caught wind of how they were treating her little sister. Lexi who worked tirelessly to find a way to give Allie the body she needed. Lexi who was willing to kill to protect her. Who set aside her anger and teamed up with Elaine to save her.

Fuck it, she was going to believe that was true too. The twins were lying liars. They saw her as a toy, but she wasn’t here to play. Lexi could and would do anything, she’d proven that time and time again. She was stronger, more dangerous than any of these assholes ever realized. And she was working with Elaine, the woman who could melt her with a look. Who made her feel safe and cared for in ways nobody else ever had. Who was misguided, but also way too obviously falling in love with her. They would both come, they would both save her. Today, tomorrow, the day after, it wouldn’t matter. 

No walls would keep them out. And Allie would not let these disgusting authoritarian fucks break her resolve. No, when they came she would be ready and waiting. The embers inside her would never be extinguished, and she would light a fire within her fellow inmates to tear the place apart, to tear down the system that locked them inside piece by piece. And oh, how she was going to revel in watching the sadistic pair in front of her burn with it, in a fire so hot it would melt away all the frigid moments she’d had to endure.

And so Allie found herself, sitting on a freezing bench, dressed in barely anything, with a grin on her face just as violent as the rippling, convulsing shivers that rocked her whole body. Her gaze bore into Kraken first.

“Oh sister, I think this one still has some fight left in her, shall we tell her the good news?” He was lying, Allie knew that. This was just another attempt to break her will so when the moment came she wouldn’t have it in her to rend them limb from limb. 

“Normally I’d say we let her bask a little longer. But frankly that smile she’s giving us is just creepy. Let’s put her into her misery.” Siren began fiddling with one of the pouches in her jacket, as Kraken leaned inward to address Allie. He glanced around conspiratorial, before continuing in a hushed whisper.

“Here’s the thing, Arcadia. We weren’t lying that first time. Your sister and girlfriend really were plotting to save you. In fact, they would be waiting to ambush us,” he paused, fighting a smirk as though he were a child who couldn’t get to the punchline of his joke without breaking into giggles, “tomorrow. We leaked false info on your transit date.” No, they couldn’t have. “But wait! It gets better. Remember I said they would be waiting for us. But you see, my sister is a genius. And she did this.” Siren handed a little envelope to Kraken, and as he held it toward her he removed a polaroid photo. Allie whimpered. Before her very eyes were Lexi and Elaine; Lexi dressed in her classic skimpy power armor, Elaine in her slipspace costume, both dead, a bullet hole in each forehead. 

“These are fake! You altered them somehow! Staged them.” Allie reached a trembling hand to swat the photos away,, Kraken withdrew his hand. 

“Believe whatever you want to believe. Nobody is coming for you. The only people who cared about you are dead.” His words became muffled as Allie closed her eyes, trembling.

When they’d first started their careers in villainy, Lexi had lectured Allie at length on her theories of the origins of the delta human. In short, she still had no clue. There was, however, one kernel of information Allie always came back to. It was that, overwhelmingly, the deltas with the best grasp over their powers were those who could overcome their own mental hurdles, their doubts, their inhibitions. They did not hold back, because they did not need to. There was no doubt they might lose control, no concern over the justifications of their actions, their powers were a tool, and they wielded them with authority over themselves.

In that little truck, surrounded by frozen air and horrible people, overcome with grief and hatred, she let go of all that. There was no longer any concern, no doubt. She had no nagging questions in her head about if she really was doing the right thing, if her ends justified her means, if she was being selfish or needlessly cruel. Allie knew one thing: she was going to fucking kill these goddamn fascist pieces of shit. 

Her shock collar roared to life, but she didn’t feel it, she didn’t feel the cold, she felt white hot anger and roiling grief. The walls of the truck shook, the collar disintegrated, and a pale blue glow filled the room, illuminating the fading grins of the monsters before her. The noise was deafening, the light blinding, and the truck stopped moving.

* * *

“Sentinel, do you have eyes on the truck?” Elaine’s voice was strained with impatience.

“Still no, Slip. But don’t worry, by no means is this outside our projected timetable.” Sentinel was a professional to a fault, but even she couldn’t mask the anxiety which dripped from her every word. Elaine threw her arms into the air in frustration. 

This was excruciating, somewhere out there was Allie, going through god knows what kind of horrible shit and all they could do was stand on a rooftop watching a road as hundreds of cars which weren’t the right one passed them by. Never had she realized just how hard it was to look for a specific kind of car from above until the life of someone she cared about depended on it. 

She turned away from the street, it was doing her no good calling Sentinel up on the comms every single time she saw something that even remotely looked like a truck. She needed to trust her teammate, Sentinel was their eyes in the sky. She would find Allie. Not that Lexi seemed to be faring any better. Elaine watched her with growing trepidation as she frantically paced the rooftop, fiddling with her armor at every chance she got.

“Lexi you’re sure the info you had was correct? What if they were on to us and leaked false information?” Her teammate stopped short, glancing at her with her trademark incredulity.

“Well yeah, duh. Of course they leaked false information. Which was why before I set our meeting I tracked down one of the higher ups at the prison and planted a chip in his brain that would explode if he told a lie. It made getting the actual time of Allie’s relocation a cinch.” A wide, proud smile crossed Lexi’s face as she puffed her chest in satisfaction. 

“Wait, but like, not actually right? That’s just a lie you told him to get him to talk?” 

“I don’t make empty threats, Elaine. Best remember that.” At the very least, Lexi seemed to calm down with the recounting of her tale, as though saying it outloud reminded her that she believed in it. Thankfully the effect was contagious, at least a little bit, and Elaine found herself relaxing a bit. This was going to work, she was working with two of the most competent deltas she knew of. 

“You know Lexi, you can be pretty fucked up sometimes.” In spite of her words Elaine was grinning. Lexi shrugged apathetically.

“Shouldn’t have taken a job in the prison industrial complex.” In the quiet that followed their comm pieces crackled to life.

“Uh, hey guys? I think I see the--” Sentinel was interrupted by a flash of blue and an explosion that shook the entire block. Elaine and Lexi sprung into action, dashing to the ledge to catch the source of the sound. In the middle of the intersection below was the smoking wreckage of an armored prisoner transport truck. The entire top had been blown clean off, along with its right side wall, and the vast majority of the left one as well. Lying in the wreckage were three bodies which clearly belonged to Allie, Kraken and Siren. All three started to stir at more or less the same time, and Elaine had to quiet the relief in her heart as Lexi began barking orders into the comm.

“Okay, shit. I’m gonna have to improvise a bit, but stick to the plan. Once I get down there, Sentinel, you’re on me, Elaine--” Their eyes met. “Save her.” Lexi leapt onto the rooftop’s ledge, extending a shoulder mounted cannon and, in a booming projected voice shouted. “Tremble! It is I, Dr. DeLEXIous, I’m the one who shot that truck with this deadly laser! I will now continue this terrorist attack which I am responsible for!” She looked back to Elaine, winked, and leapt downward onto the street below.

SapphicSounds

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