Deathstalker 07 - Deathstalker Return

patiently. "Have you uncovered something new about the Paragon situation?"
    "Well, not really, dear, but I did think we should talk about what we're going to do with what we do know. Especially since it involves You Know Who. Someone's got to get the word out that all our Paragons have been possessed! Apart from you, obviously. People have the right to know things like that. Very especially after what's just happened on Shandrakor. You do know what's just happened on Shandrakor, don't you, darling?"
    "Yes," said Emma. "I have my sources. Thirteen of my brethren are dead. I mourn their loss. They will be avenged."
    "But they're the bad guys now, aren't they? I mean, any one of them would kill us if they knew what we know about them."
    "The Paragons have never been the enemy," Emma said sharply. "They are helpless in the grasp of the minds that control them. And now there are thirteen Paragons that I will never be able to rescue."
    "Oh, yes, of course. Sorry, lovey." Nina looked terribly sad for a moment, but her natural ebullience quickly reasserted itself. "But that just makes it even more imperative that we do something. While we still can!"
    "I've been thinking about it," said Emma. "If all else fails, I think I should assassinate Finn Durandal. He's behind everything bad that happens these days. Cut off the head of the serpent, and the body should wither and die."
    "Well, ten out of ten for gung ho, dear, but let's be real about this—you'd never get anywhere near him.
    He's constantly surrounded by Church Militant bully boys and Pure Humanity thugs these days, and even if by some miracle you could get to him, you'd never get out alive."
    "So?" said Emma, quite calmly.
    "Right… Well, lovey, I think we'll leave the suicidal last charges until we've tried everything else, including closing our eyes and wishing it would all go away. We can't afford to take risks with our lives, Emma, we really can't. Not while we're the only ones who know the truth about what's happening."
    A blast of blindingly bright light exploded in the middle of the room, and both Emma and Nina cried out in shock, covering their eyes with upraised arms. The light seemed to solidify before them, and an overwhelming sense of presence began to sink into the room, as though approaching or descending into reality from somewhere far away. The light began to fade away to the merely painful, but the sense of presence was stronger than ever. Emma rose up out of her chair, gun in hand, while Nina lurched blindly towards the guns on her wall. They were both sharing the same thought: The uber-espers have found us… But when the glare suddenly snapped off, it left behind only a short blond woman in old-fashioned clothing, with a harsh face and disquieting eyes. She nodded easily to Emma and Nina, though her smile was somewhat unsettling.
    Nina clutched her gun to her chest as though for comfort. "My God," she whispered. "I know you. I've seen your face in old holo files. You're Jenny Psycho!"
    "I prefer Diana Vertue," said the new arrival, still smiling. "My other name may be what most people remember, but I was always so much more than just Jenny Psycho."
    "Aren't you supposed to be dead?" said Emma, not lowering the gun she had trained on the newcomer.
    "Only materially," said Diana. "I thought I'd left the world behind me, but it seems I still have unfinished business to attend to."
    "Another exclusive!" Nina jumped up and down on the spot, waving her gun carelessly in the air. "The return of Jenny Psycho! I am going to be so big-time I won't even talk to myself! Oh… pictures! I have to get pictures!"
    She tossed her gun at the nearest chair, and Emma tried not to flinch too obviously. Nina grabbed up her camera from its recharger unit.
    "I wouldn't bother," said Diana. "Cameras can't see me. Only people.
    "Oh, poo," said Nina. "No one's ever going to believe this without pictures."
    Diana looked at Emma. "You haven't put away your gun, Paragon."
    "I'm feeling insecure," said Emma.
    "I get that a lot," said Diana. "But you might as well holster it. It couldn't hurt me anyway."
    Emma sniffed, and put away her gun. "What do you want with us, Diana Vertue? Your old name and reputation don't exactly inspire confidence."
    "There will be a gathering of ELFs and uber-espers tonight," said Diana. "And I'm here to tell you where it's going to be. All the uber-espers will be there, gathered together in the flesh in one place for the first time in over a