Origins

2 hours later

When Nikki Johanson arrived on the scene at the warehouse all the other officers stopped their duties to see her reaction. Kathryn watched as Johanson stared at the pile of child-corpses. She knelt down and touched some cloth with a pen. Everyone saw the sneer on her face. She stood and surveyed the area until her eyes found the Scarlet Scorpion. She walked up to Kathryn and whispered the order:

”Kill her. That’s all you have to do.”

---
2 days later

The assassin stood in the darkness of a cleanly kept house. The porch light revealed the dismal scene before her. Filling the backyard were rows upon rows of roadside crosses stabbing into the soft earth of the abandoned backyard. Some were simple constructs; others looked as if they were made professionally. All of them were made to memorialize a loved one. The Scarlet Scorpion’s fury rose to a new level. The scene was an abomination to her.

“Do the gods have no mercy?” Kathryn caught herself acknowledging the deities she has been associated with for the first time.

“No.”

The Scarlet Scorpion instantly spun to face the source of the voice and released a burst of sound waves. In the darkness a form shifted just as quick. As the sound bubble hit, the target became visible for a brief second. Nyxen anticipated the attack and had a katana blade ready. The sonic effect was cut and deflected away, blowing two chunks of wall inward. Sheetrock and wood splintered in every direction showering the near invisible form with debris.

It was all the Scarlet Scorpion needed. She cartwheeled into the dust shower and came up within reach of Nyxen. Knocking the sword out of the way her other hand came up to plant a fist into Nyxen’s face. The anti-hero dodged the blow by releasing the sword and spinning away from the fist. Sharp metal clattered to the ground and Nyxen ducked Scarlet’s high kick.

Leaping away from Nyxen’s return sweep kick, Scarlet landed on the coffee table. She concentrated her will to prepare for another sonic attack but her enemy raised a hand and Scarlet was compelled to pause.

“What do you plan to do here?”

Scarlet sneered at the form silhouetted by the white crosses in the yard outside. “Kill.”

“Do you really think you can do such a thing? Is it in your nature?”

“You killed those children. If you can do it, then so can I.”

“Kathy, c’mon. I am your polar opposite.  As you are the zenith, I am the nadir. I can kill because it is my nature to do so. It is why the gods chose me.”

“Did the gods choose for those kids to die?!” Her anger was rising; her will to hold the sonic bomb around her was fading.

“You need to reach your full potential. The only way to do that is through conflict. There is no one else who can help you but me, which is why I am here.”

“SHUT UP!” Kathryn released the sound energy around her. The power swelling invisibly moved forward and landed at Nyxen’s feet. The blast shredded the carpet and exploded the ceiling through the floor above. Windows shattered, furniture collapsed, and the walls of the room buckled outward. Scarlet raised her hands to shield her head from the violence of the vibrations emanating from the center of the room.

Floating in the middle of the sonic vortex was Nyxen with arms outstretched as if she were bathing in the destruction. Smiling. “Kathryn Selena Beringer, you will have to do better than that,” she taunted.  The fallen katana was back in Nyxen’s hand with its companion blade, the wakizashi, in the other.

Scarlet literally flew into a rage as she collided into the floating form. They ruined the remains of the porch glass door and landed among the memorial crosses sharing fists and kicks against each other. Scarlet used a cross to parry sword slashes. Nyxen cut into sonic attacks. They paused, gulping air as sirens could be heard in the background.

“You are … a very … skilled fighter … Kathryn.” Each pause filled with gasps for air. “Athena chose well.” 

Scarlet stood. “Will you shut up with that nonsense?!” She was still breathing heavy and the sirens got closer. 

“Will you shut up with your denials,” Nyxen retorted.  She pointed the short blade to Scarlet. “You need to accept who you are: a servant of the gods, a harbinger of a new era! One of a legion ever since the beginning! You’ve gotten this far on your own; you need a mentor to carry you to the next level of your powers.”

“I already had a mentor! I have been given a gift. I choose to protect the innocent and punish the wicked. Much. Like. NOW!” The Scarlet Scorpion attacked. She rushed forward, knocked the sword aside and raised both hands into a cupped fist. Striking from under the chin, Kathryn’s doubled fists slammed hard into Nyxen’s jaw and she followed through with a high kick into the torso that threw Nyxen into the wrecked house. Debris exploded from the impact and Kathryn leaped into the cloud feet first.

Crashing a knee where she expected Nyxen’s head to be, the floor surrendered and splintered further. Kathryn was caught by surprise as an armored boot found the back of her head and threw her to the floor.

“You fight with a passion that crosses over into anger.  I wonder if you are indeed the zenith.”

Kathryn could taste the iron-rich blood forming around her teeth. “You don’t know me. I chose this path. You just follow.”

A boot pressed into Kathryn’s back and kept her flat against the floor. “My sister, with your abilities no one could stop you. Think about the power you can acquire with just a whisper! You are a goddess among men; transformed into an incarna of the gods. Their will, your voice … your fist.” The words seethed through clenched teeth.

The Scarlet Scorpion surrendered struggling against the leverage on her back. She heard the screech of tires and car doors opening outside the building. “Kill me now – sister – or you will have to deal with me and the police. I’m already a match for you by myself.”

“I’m not here to kill you, just show you what your abilities can do for you. Humanity is slaves to the gods and you must show them their place upon Creation. Find out for yourself the truth of my words, if you dare.”

Kathryn could feel the pressure on her back lighten and she spun around. Nyxen was already vanishing like in the warehouse. With a “pop” and a small vacuum, Nyxen was gone.