Nighthawk: A Superhero Story (closed for Siobhancan99)

[Halcyon638]

This time, Killstreak shifted his entire defensive stance at the feint. The jab landed in his abdomen, hitting hard once again despite the armor underneath. He let out another grunt and hunched over for a second, then rolled to the side of Monica, attempting to catch her with a powerful, upward kick. “Wouldn’t count on it, babe,” he retorted, but she easily slapped it away with her palm.

 

[siobhancan99]

Monica felt like she had the upper hand for now, and so she went in a little more straightforward. Stepping in she was about to kick when her knee reminded her that wasn't happening. She growled, looking the man over as he circled, she stepped in, trying to smash his face with a fist. She had to be fast, and she had to get him taken out before he decided to get his weapons back our or move over to Knapp. she hated not being defensive as badly hurt as she was, but taking him out had to be the best defense.

 

[Halcyon638]

“Well, all, I hope you’re all hanging in there ‘cause I’m not so sure about the signal down here, sadly,” Killstreak said, voice regaining a bit of his irreverent swagger. He coiled backwards to barely avoid Monica’s fist, going into a tight roll and then standing again.

“Don’t you worry, Nightie—this is getting recorded, in any case. I’ll make sure to upload your heroic last stand next time I’ve got a stable connection.” He stepped toward her with a low kick followed by a powerful roundhouse. “Ooh, what song should I play over it? ‘The Final Countdown?’ ” The kick connected with Monica’s upper arm, but her Centauri mesh weave armor absorbed the impact, leaving her unscathed and ready to return the favor.

 

[siobhancan99]

"oh you don't think Would've Could've Should've isn't more appropriate?" She braced to take the hit, then stepped in. She grabbed for his arm, trying to flip him over her and smash him into a nearby wall. "Im partial to my girl Taylor Swift."

 

[Halcyon638]

“And risk getting into another flame war with Swifties? I defo don’t need that,” the killer stated just as Monica managed to snag him by the forearm. She could feel him struggle, but her Centauri strength was too much. She easily hefted him over her shoulder. The athletic assassin nearly managed to avoid any injury, landing on his feet.

However, his momentum was too much, and his back, rear, and the back of his head struck one of the pillars, bringing another groan. “Alright. I love a good challenge as much as the next bloke, but you are really starting to piss me off. Why don’t you lay down like a good girl and die?” She could heard him breathing a bit hard. He came at her hard with a leaping kick meant for her head, but she easily avoided it with just a swerve of her neck, barely needing to move otherwise.

 

[siobhancan99]

"I'll make you a deal. If you surrender right now, I'll take you in alive without hitting you again. You make me keep hitting you, no promises." Monica snapped her head to the side to avoid the kick, glad she didn't ahve to move too much. her knee was complaining. Not quite screaming, yet, but definitely super unhappy about being up and about. Also getting back without fresh injuries to Gabi might save her a lot of long term grief. She stepped in again, then drive a hard fist for his head, aiming to knock him out. "Once chance, buddy."

 

[Halcyon638]

Monica’s fist smashed straight through the front of Killstreak’s helmet, colliding with the stubbly, pale face of someone in their early 30s who resembled a soccer hooligan. A spray of blood shot out of his nose and she felt a tooth crack as he stumbled backwards for a few seconds, registering the impact of the blow. He tucked himself into a roll and put some distance between them now, but she could tell he was unsteady on his feet.

Producing his phone, he spat some blood and pressed a button, then fell on his back, hand still clutching the device. Above Monica, a massive, brand new screen came to life. “Hello, Nighthawk,” a strange, distorted voice greeted her. On the screen, a pixelated face with a cityscape in the background undulated with each syllable. “If you’re seeing this, this means you’ve succeeded in beating my latest would-be champion. Congratulations, sincerely,” the voice said, now recognizably AI-modulated, neither masculine nor feminine, vacillating just enough with every word to make it unnerving. “I may have underestimated you. For that, I hope you can forgive me.”

 

[siobhancan99]

Monica froze "the Imperial I presume?" she made her way over to killstreak. She wasn't going to let him play possum and she painfully knelt down to poke him pretty hard to see if he would react "I mean, the drama nerd in me appreciates the theatrics of all of this but... You know I was pretty content beating up rapists and muggers right? you didn't HAVE to be on my radar. " She straightened, looking over at the Imperial. or the screen rather. Clearly some sort of rendering, carefully done to remove any trace of the person's original identity. Part of her wondered for a minute if it was secretly knapp and this was all a recording, but he'd have to be psychic to know she'd be outside that bar at just the point he was getting his ass handed to him so... probably not Knapp. Good twist though. She'd store that away for an a-ha moment later. "So where do we go with this thing now?" Realizing this was all a recording, Monica cleared her throat "uh. err."

 

[Halcyon638]

“I’m making you two promises today,” the voice said after a slight delay. “Firstly, you can be certain that I’ll never underestimate you again. I have to admit, I was a little skeptical at first. There’s an old saying: ‘That which thunders does not rain.’ You have definitely brought the rain.” The flickering of the screen reflected, drawing Monica's attention to something she hadn't noticed before. What were those wires running into one of the subway cars where Knapp was seated, facing away?

“Secondly, I promise you that you won’t win." She noticed more wires, hanging from the inside of the train, focusing her night vision. She broke into a full on sprint. "I’ll see to it. You have definitely scored some impressive victories, but I’m in it for the long haul, let me tell you that. And I swear, I will destroy everything that means anything to you. Your reputation, your friends, your loved ones, your allies."

Monica made it through the glass-free window of the train, hauling Knapp and the chair.

"And in case you’re doubting my ability to bring the rain—”

The screen suddenly went dark. Monica hefted the detective through the window, her knee screaming out with every second that passed. Just moments after they were clear of the car, a thunderous explosion burst out of it, instantly obliterating it and decimating the support pillars closest to it. The blast tossed her forward and Knapp took the worst of it, flying out of her grasp and tumbling head over chair across the hard, musty concrete. The vaulted ceiling above Monica gave an unsettling rumble, and some of the other pillars began to tremble and shimmy.

Killstreak was already making his way into an adjoining tunnel, though clearly slowed by his wounds.

 

[siobhancan99]

Monica gritted her teeth. She couldn't, in her wounded state, take Knapp out of here and pursue kill streak. Plus if she killed killstreak and the imperial had video... She threw Knapp over her shoulder and limped to the exit, making her way as best she could. If she died down here with Knapp it would be preferable to saving her own ass at his expense. the thought of facing Hadley over getting her dad killed. Hads did sort of owe her one and all but it was hard to expect that would work out as it should. At this point she assumed Killstreak knew the way out though, and she could at least follow him.

 

[Halcyon638]

As Monica followed the assassin, chunks of the ceiling began to break off and come crashing down, massive clouds of dust in their wake. The detective was breathing, but had been burned along the left side of his body, and was bleeding from the top of his head. She pressed on as the rumbling continued, debris crashing down around her. At one point, a gigantic concrete block smashed just a few steps ahead of her.

Killstreak headed down winding, darkened tunnels, but tunnels that seemed to be leading back to the surface, at least. She was just seemingly pulling herself and Knapp out of immediate danger when she heard the roar of a motorcycle starting and driving off into the distance. The middle-aged man was still unconscious and her arms and shoulders were now coated in his blood as she finally reached the surface.

 

[siobhancan99]

Slumping against a nearby wall, Monica took a moment to rest. She didn't want to risk moving Knapp any further. She dug out her burner and called 911, letting the dispatcher know Knapp needed an ambulance and that he was a cop. She called in the sliver and waited till the sirens were close before getting into the ship. Still, she owed Knapp and she waited till the vehicles arrived before taking off. She texted Gabi "I'm fine. no new hits on me. OMW home. Love you. Sorry. Had to rescue Hadley's dad. couldn't leave him."

 

[Halcyon638]

Once the ambulances had arrived for Detective Knapp and Monica had climbed back in the Sliver, all of the adrenaline began to wear off and she began to feel every jolt her body and knee had taken, every extra step, every extra pound she’d put on it as she saved Hadley’s father from the subway car. All of it was coupled with a wave of fatigue. Gabi hadn’t texted back, which was a little odd considering she typically responded quickly when Monica was out on patrol and she wasn’t asleep.

Monica was hobbling toward her apartment, cold air ripping through the campus, when she received a text from Ian. “Hey. Gabi said you’re out with some friends. Call me as soon as you can.”

When Monica called, he picked up immediately. “Hey. Gabi’s…she’s—I’m pretty sure she’s fine. She’s—we’re over at Braeburn,” he said referring to the hospital nearest to the campus. “Can you—are you nearby?”

 

[siobhancan99]

"yeah. I need to change." She couldn't just stride in in full battle armor unless she wanted the world to know her secret. She painfully changed, then called an uber and made her way to the hospital. The crutches were definitely not for show this time. She texted ian "admitted or in the ER?"

 

[Halcyon638]

Ian texted back. “She’s in a room now.” He texted Monica the room number. “It sounds like she’s fine. I think it was a panic attack. My mom gets those sometime.”

Monica was stepping out of the Uber, moving as fast as she could to the hospital when Gabi finally texted. “Hey carino. I’m glad you’re okay. Sorry for not texting.” She texted her the room number again and said, “You should stay at home and rest, okay? I can get a ride home from Ian. Love you.”

 

[siobhancan99]

Monica did not reply. Instead she went up to the room. It was faster for them all to get home together, and she wanted to see Gabi and let Gabi see she was ok. She made her way around, avoiding the stares of the night nurses and the attending physicians, then sank gratefully into a chair next to Gabi's bed, nodding to Ian "thanks for taking her. I was obviously not in a position to do so myself" she reached for Gabi's hand, squeezing it "and no I was not going home babe. Not while you were here."

 

[Halcyon638]

Gabi, sitting up on the examining table, smiled when she saw Monica, though her skin was pale and her eyes puffy. “Hey, sweetie,” she said softly. A digital clock in the room displayed the time as 3:17.

Ian nodded, giving Monica a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. “She took an ambulance over. She just called me because…it sounded like everyone else split town." He stood up from his chair. "I’ll leave you two alone.”

The doctor, a white-haired, tiny woman, entered a moment later. “Hi. Is this--?” she asked with a slight Latin accent.

“My girlfriend,” Gabi said, holding onto Monica’s hand tightly.

“Hello,” the woman said. “What happened?” Monica realized she was looking at her crutches. A moment later, she returned her concerned maternal gaze to Gabi. “So, it does sound like you most likely had a panic attack. We’re going to give you some medication to help you sleep,” she said, though the dark-haired girl looked to be on the verge of consciousness already. “Do you need me to write you a note for your exam tomorrow?”

Gabi nodded. “That’d be great,” she said, glancing at her girlfriend momentarily.

The doctor took a few moments to review possible treatment steps. “It’s important that you find a better way to manage stress and limit your stress. Obviously, there are some stressful situations you can’t avoid—taking your exam, for example, so we want to make sure you have strategies for doing that. But if there are other stressors that you can avoid or eliminate—that’s another thing you can discuss with a counselor. Okay?”

Gabi nodded again, almost robotically now. “Okay.”

She handed Gabi a bottle with 3 sedatives rattling around the bottom. “Okay, mija. Take care.”

“You, too. Thanks.”

When the doctor left the room, Gabi threw her arms around Monica, pressing her face against her shoulder. “Can we go home?”

Ian reappeared at the entrance, hands stuffed into the pockets of his jeans.

 

[siobhancan99]

Wrapping Gabi up in her arms, she kissed her temple. "yeah we can go home" she was tempted to pick her up and carry her, but her leg would have other plans. Also Ian maybe wasn't ready for the truth of what she was. "and we... should talk about what stressed you out. and if it has to change." She ran her fingers through Gabi's hair and tugged her in closer "but for now you're gonna have to walk up out of here on your own baby." She squeezed her close, then looked to Ian "thanks for driving. Thanks for coming for her. I really appreciate it."

 

[Halcyon638]

Gabi hugged Monica closely, her body almost limp against the older girl. She, Monica, and Ian made their way out of the hospital. “No problem,” he said. “You guys ever need anything, I’m here. Also, if either of you want some cold Vietnamese food, there’s a pretty good-sized Grubhub order in the backseat that I don’t think the customer’s going to want.”

“I didn’t get you in trouble, did I?” Gabi asked as the chill air swept across the parking lot.

“Doesn’t matter.” Monica and Ian helped steady Gabi as she got into the car, then he gave her a hand with the crutches as she lowered herself in. The dark-haired girl curled against Monica as best she could while still being buckled in.

It was just past 4:30 when they made it back to the apartment. It didn’t take long for Gabi to fall asleep, even before the sedatives would have kicked in.

 

[siobhancan99]

Monica put herself on the couch as best she could and closed her eyes. She felt like she'd be up forever, but even in spite of the knee she passed out. Physically destroyed, emotionally wrung out she just quit. She woke hours later, stiff from sleeping sitting up, and made her way slowly in to shower, trying not to wake Gabi. There were hard conversations ahead. She couldn't be picking Gabi up from the hospital every time she went out... and she wasn't about to stop going out. She tried not to think about it further, but juggling the nighthawk and a relationship was going to be next to impossible.

 

[Halcyon638]

Gabi rolled out of bed sometime around quarter to eleven. “Good morning, querida,” she said, before making her way to the kitchen and starting on some breakfast. According to local news, Knapp was in “serious” condition at a local hospital. The two girls ate together, with the Latina attempting to make some small-talk before the conversation wrapped around to Hadley’s dad. “I’m sorry you…about last night,” she said, sipping her coffee. “You—you had enough to deal with without having to come…make it over to the hospital on, like, literally your last leg.”

 

[siobhancan99]

Monica inhaled, then exhaled slowly "Don't ever apologize for needing me." She reached over and squeezed Gabi's hand "This is about protecting the people that I love. About... making things safe. If I can't make things safe for you. Fuck" She sighed and closed her eyes a moment. She needed Gabi and she needed to be the nighthawk and she didn't want to lose either "I had to come. Not for you, but for me."

 

[Halcyon638]

Gabi squeezed Monica’s hand back. “It’s not…it’s not your fault, baby,” she said. “I was…it’s just been…a bit too much for me to handle lately. At first, I was doing okay with everything. I mean, it was a little exciting—‘holy crap, my best friend’s this world-famous superhero.’ Okay, very exciting.” A slight smile crossed the younger woman’s lips. “And I was doing okay. I was like, ‘oh, you know, I’m worried, but this is like, what the wives of cops or soldiers go through.’ And you were totally up front with me about it. You asked me if I could handle it, and…and I could.”

With her free hand, Gabi tugged on the fabric of her other sleeve. “It’s just…when your dad got kidnapped, and now…and then seeing you come home last night, and then Hadley’s dad. I…I haven’t been sleeping much. Even after you come home, sometimes I’ll just lie in you arms…loving being next to you but…too nervous to sleep. I thought about seeing, like, a psychologist or psychiatrist or whatever but…like, I can’t tell them about you. I can’t tell anybody about you. I almost…broke down and told Ian tonight. I just lie awake worrying about you with no one to talk to and…it’s getting to me. And none of it is your fault, carino.”

 

[siobhancan99]

"It is though. You worry because of me. You're isolated... because of me." She squeezed Gabi's hand "that's no way to live" she thought for a long moment "look. Melanie sort of owes me. I put paige to rest. I'm sure she's probably figured out by now how I knew what was going on. She's smart. Maybe you could talk to her. I mean if its weird cause you know. she wanted to fuck me I get it and I'm not saying you have to. I'm saying that its an option because you can be honest with her. There's no way she hasn't figured it out with all the free time she's had to think about it."

 

[Halcyon638]

Gabi shook her head at Monica blaming herself, wrapping an arm around her. “I made a decision, baby.” She touched her forehead to Monica’s, her dark eyes still looking filled with turmoil.

The younger girl listened. There was something in her eyes—maybe the first flicker of hope Monica had seen since she’d found her girlfriend in the ER. “R-really? I could…talk to her about this? But isn’t there like…some legal thing where she has to…report crimes and stuff?”

When Monica noted that Melanie wasn’t currently officially practicing, Gabi nodded. “That would…would you feel okay asking her? If she says no, that’s okay, but…” She kissed Monica softly on the lips. “I would appreciate you just asking.”