Chapter 26: Charlie The Not So Useless Lesbian

"Charlie, you better not leave this room!" Beatrice said as she stumbled up, wiping her sleeve across her wet cheeks as she did so.

Charlie ignored her, quietly rummaging through her belt as she hummed a jaunty tune.

"Charlie, I'm serious!" Beatrice said, her tone becoming more sharp.

"Ah ha!" Charlie said to herself as she pulled the short range teleporter out.

As she saw what Charlie was about to do, Beatrice's eyes narrowed even more.

"Charlie—"

Charlie waved and slapped the button.

"Bye!"

There was a flash of bright light, and in one nauseating moment, she was outside the elevator door.

Unfortunately, they were quite a few floors below where they started, and Night Thief was nowhere to be seen.

Shit. I probably should have thought this through a little better. Maybe I can make her come to me somehow.

Charlie cleared her throat.

"Hey, Night Thief!" She shouted as loud as she could manage. "I think the only the only thing super about your powers is that they're super lame!! Aha!!"

There was a viciously loud banging, and Charlie instantly jumped and let out a high pitched yelp.

"Charlie!!"

Oh, it was just Beatrice.

"Charlie, get back in here right now!!" Beatrice's yelling was impressively loud. Charlie could hear every word clearly even though she was muffled by the elevator.

"No!" Charlie yelled back, "I've made the decision to beat up your mom, and I'm sticking with it!"

"Charlie! I swear to God—"

"Why do I have to go back in there anyway? Can't she teleport whatever she wants anyway?"

"As long as it's within a certain range, yes."

Charlie yelped and spun around at the sound of Night Thief. She immediately and clumsily attempted to deck the older woman right in the jaw, but her fist was caught mid air, and Night Thief quickly kicked out a leg from under her.

Panic filled Charlie as she fell to the ground, flat on her back. The wind was knocked out of her, and she groaned and coughed as Night Thief walked over to loom over her.

She placed one of her boots on Charlie's stomach to pin her down and started slowly adding more pressure.

This is how I always thought I would die. Charlie thought bitterly. Crushed beneath the leather boot of an attractive older woman.

"Aren't you a little too soft to be playing heroics?" Night Thief mocked.

Hurry Charlie, at least think of a witty comeback!

Charlie sucked in a wheezing breath.

"Aren't you a little too old to still be a super villain?"

"What?!" Night Thief hissed, pressing down even harder.

Charlie coughed more, struggling to reach her hand down to  her belt.

"Uh, I mean—" she grabbed the first thing her fingers could get ahold of and aimed it towards. "Grappling hook!!"

Night Thief's pale eyebrows knitted together.

"Wha—"

Charlie pulled the trigger. The metal claw shot out and hit her straight in the jaw. The pressure on Charlie was relieved as she stumbled backwards, clutching her face.

"What—" She seethed as blood dripped from between her fingers. "What is your goddamn problem you little shit?!"

"Never underestimate the power of somebody who doesn't know what they're doing!" Charlie said.

She clenched the trigger of the grappling hook gun and the claw retracted back into place.

Night Thief screamed waved her arm.

Charlie was caught off guard as she was thrown to the ground, and sent rolling against the wall. It probably would have been worse without the suit on, but she could already tell she was going to be bruised up pretty bad just from that.

As she tried to get her bearings and pull herself up, she noticed that Night Thief was already coming at her again.

She cursed, eyes darting around for some other heavy object she could possibly throw at the woman.

Just when she started to get close enough for Charlie to panic, she was thrown to the ground.

"Stay away from her!" Beatrice yelled.

Night Thief started to stand but Beatrice screamed and threw her back to the ground.

Beatrice ran at her, and tackled her where she laid on the ground. Night Thief squirmed and thrashed, and Beatrice did her best to keep her hold on her.

Charlie took a step back, not sure if she should join the brawl or if she would just get in the way and make things worse.

Suddenly her ears perked up at the sound of sirens and screeching tires. She glanced back at Beatrice and Night Thief, still wrestling on the ground, before dashing over to the window.

Outside, law enforcement was already gathering. Men and women in tactical gear were surrounding the building, and ambulances and firetrucks were pulling up as well.

In the center, Charlie could make out a figure that gleamed a metallic copper color in the sunlight.

"Linton!!" She yelled down to him.

He turned to look up at her, but at the same time, so did the dozens of agents, along with the barrels of their guns.

Charlie could feel the color drain from her face as the idea of getting shot by forty people all at once entered her mind.

Linton held his hand out and shouted.

"Hold your fire! Hold your fire! That's Charlotte Delaque!"

The agents kept their guns ready, but Charlie found herself noticeably free of bullet wounds.

"Charlie, do you need help?" He asked.

"Uh—" Charlie glanced back at the scene unfolding behind her. Beatrice hand her mother by the hair and was trying desperately to pin her down. "Beatrice, do you need Linton's help?"

"No—" Beatrice hissed in pain as she was elbowed in the nose, but quickly recomposed herself. "I can do this myself."

Charlie nervously turned back to the window.

"Beatrice said no." Charlie shouted back down.

"Well, I'm coming up anyway, alright?" He said.

"Uh, okay. I mean, I can't really stop you anyway." She said.

He pulled out a grappling hook of his own, and Charlie watched as he sailed through the air and gracefully landed on the concrete window seal.

His eyes widened at the scene unfolding in front of him.

"Charlie, are you crazy? Go hide!" He said.

"No!" Charlie said stubbornly. "I'm saving my girlfriend!"

"Wha- Charlie!"

She ignored him as she noticed Beatrice was starting to get overpowered.

She pulled out the grappling hook and aimed it at Night Thief.

"Grappling hook!" She shouted as she pulled the trigger.

The metal claw shot out and hit Night Thief in the stomach. Charlie smiled with satisfaction as she reset the gun.

"You don't have to shout out your attacks before you make them, you know." Beatrice said, regaining her stance.

There was a bit of blood running down her bottom lip.

Night Thief stumbled back towards them, angrier than ever.

"Shit!"

Charlie snatched the grappling hook gun from Linton's waist and aimed them both at Night Thief.

"Double grappling hook!" She shouted.

This, it turned out, was a mistake.

The force of both of them shooting forward only pulled her forward onto the ground, and the guns retracted and flew across the room.

"Fuck!" She coughed out.

She moved to pull herself back up, but Night Thief quickly pressed her down with her foot once more.

"Really Beatrice?" She said, gesturing down at Charlie. "This is what you're fighting me over?"

"Fuck you." Charlie grunted.

"Get off of her!"

Beatrice started to run towards them, but was suddenly pulled to the ground her arm.

"I'm not going to kill you." Night Thief said. "I'm your mother, after all, and I still have a lot of hope for you. I think you have a lot more hate inside of you than you realize."

"You don't know anything about me!" Beatrice shouted.

Then Night Thief wrenched her arm to the side, and Beatrice's arm twisted back with a sickening crack.