Anything But Ordinary
Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Tess stood over the body of the guard she’d just terminated, no longer requiring his services; her pistol still aimed at the prone figure lifelessly sprawled face down on the ground. She lifted cold eyes to the two remaining guards, who stood rooted in disbelief at what they’d just witnessed. They were hardened men, but neither of them could ever recall seeing anyone they’d ever worked for react in such a way. Even in the predawn dimness, bearing witness to the wildness in her eyes had them more than just a bit alarmed. The Green Arrow and the blonde woman had escaped. Tess was beyond livid. “Anyone else have ideas about disobeying my orders?” she snapped. Each of them shifted lightly on their feet, but neither one of them spoke. “Get rid of him,” Tess indicated the fallen guard with a disdainful inclination of her head, then turned at the sound of another guard approaching as the two remaining guards did her bidding, lifting the body and carrying it away.
He was out of breath. Tess couldn’t tell if it was from running or from fright. “Ms. Mercer,” he panted, stopping for a moment to collect himself. “The beast is gone. Mr. Bloom is inside, he’s demanding to see you.” The beastly screeching, screaming sounds emanating from the facility had stopped, yet no one wanted to enter until now.
“Well done.” She murmured. This guard was worth having around if he was willing to brave a chance at encountering the beast. “Tell him I’ll be there shortly. Have a crew clean up any messes he’s made, and notify the team of doctors that we’ll need to resume our experiments soon.”
“Ms. Mercer, if I may…” he began, his breathing now under control. “We’ve already lost three…”
Tess lifted a brow waiting for him to continue.
“This just seems too dangerous, even for Luthorcorp, ma’am. Whatever it is… this thing is uncontrollable and unstoppable.”
She tipped her head to the side, regarding him. Perhaps she’d been wrong about him. “Mr… what is your name again?”
“Belton.”
“Mr. Belton, I appreciate your concern, but these are drastic times, and they call for drastic measures. We’re building something here, an army of our own, so that we may defend ourselves from the impending war that’s about to begin. You’ve seen it coming; you’ve seen the talents of others I’ve recruited. This creature will be our most valuable asset, our most powerful ally against the Traveler and those like him. Luthorcorp will lead the way in defending our world. It starts here, now.”
“With all due respect, Ms. Mercer…”
“Lex wouldn’t give up!” Tess silenced him, moving rather menacingly into his personal space. Her eyes hard, she peered up at him. “Either you are with us, or you are against us. The two that escaped tonight are part of a team who’d see us defeated.” She lifted her arm, pointing toward the building entrance. “That creature in there can stop them. All of them.”
The guard was not intimidated, something Tess immediately noted. He stared down at her for a long moment, assessing her, pausing as though he wanted to say more, but deciding against it. He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he did so. “Well then, let’s hope for all our sakes, you can control it,” was all he said. He turned then, and strode toward the building entrance, leaving Tess to ponder his words. A tinge of worry passed over her features ever so briefly before the hardened, determined expression returned. She’d find a way to control the creature inside Davis Bloom. Lex wouldn’t give up, and neither would she.
She’d convinced Bloom to come to the facility, and he’d reluctantly agreed to submit to testing by her team of doctors. The experiment went horribly awry, and Bloom transformed into a hideous creature before their eyes, breaking out of the confines of the lab, killing two technicians and a guard, crushing bone, and tearing their bodies to pieces. They’d all run for their lives after that, gathering up other ‘guests’, as Tess was wont to call those living in the facility, and finally retrieving the Green Arrow and Chloe. Not wanting further complications from either of them, she’d wanted to put her plan in motion, having Chloe shipped to a facility out west, and keeping Oliver locked up nearby, to deal with him at her leisure. She hadn’t expected their escape, and now she not only had the creature to contend with, but the addition of trying to anticipate the Green Arrow’s next move was like trying to fight a battle on two fronts. It was a chess game she’d usually enjoy, and Tess steeled herself for the conflict to come, knowing she’d face the Green Arrow again soon.
* * * * * * *
They slept soundly, feeling warm and more content than either of them had ever remembered, arms and legs entwined, wrapped up in each other. After their first lovemaking, they’d lain together, unable to keep wandering hands from caressing and sliding over smooth skin as they talked in quiet tones. They wouldn’t talk about what had happened. Not now. It was as though each of them didn’t want to taint the moment with discussion of Tess or Bloom. They’d deal with those things later. This moment was for Chloe and Oliver and nothing else.
To say the night had been eventful was an understatement, and though each of them was tired in these early morning hours, after some moments of soothing and touching, Chloe could feel that he was aroused again. Oliver held her close, reveling in the feel of her as he cradled her with his body. He was already hard for her, wanting to taste her again. Desires rose, passion filling them, and after finding delicious completion in each other once more, breaths heaving, their eyes met, and they broke into laughter from their utter exhaustion, able to forget the events of the night for awhile, capturing some bit of joy in each other. When their laughter subsided, Oliver pulled her close, and Chloe fell asleep almost immediately in the comfort and safety of his arms. He smoothed her hair between his fingers as she slept warm and soft against him; pondering the many ways fate had changed his life. She shifted in his arms, snuggling closer to him, and he saw his future so clearly. Having her in his arms was like coming home. Emotions swept through him as he pushed concerns about the night’s events away. He’d think about Tess and Bloom later. Right now he wanted to enjoy some moments of peace and drift into sweet slumber with the woman he loved.
Hours later, Chloe awoke to the sound of the buzzer. She blinked, her mind still swimming around in a fog for a moment, wondering if it had all been a dream. A strong arm around her waist, a large warm body curved protectively at her back, his soft, even breath at her neck confirmed it. It was no dream. She was in Oliver Queen’s bed, wrapped lovingly in him. The penthouse buzzer sounded once more and Chloe attempted to leave his arms. Even as he slept, she felt his muscles constrict, resisting, not wanting to let her go.
“Chloe? Oliver?” It was Clark. He must have decided to super-jump onto the balcony when no one buzzed him in through the elevator. If he came in through the bedroom, he’d see them.
“Ollie,” she whispered, fingertips stroking the arm at her waist, and then nudging him gently.
He lifted his head, then pressed a kiss to her hair. “Hmm.”
“Clark’s here.”
“Chloe?” Clark called again, this time his voice sounded from just outside the bedroom door. There was a pause. She heard Clark clear his throat uncomfortably. “Oh…uh… sorry…” his voice trailed off, and Chloe couldn’t stifle the blush that crept up to her cheeks, or the smile from her lips, knowing Clark must have just used his X-ray vision to peer into Oliver’s room.
They both sat up, Oliver rubbing sleep from his eyes and ruffling a hand through his hair. “Uh… hang on Clark.” He and Chloe turned to one another, wide-eyed and grinning. Her face was now completely healed of all injury. Oliver couldn’t stop himself. Eyes full of love, he reached over, cupping her cheek in his palm, the smile still on his face as he leaned in and kissed her forehead. Chloe threw an arm around his neck, as he then nuzzled her, rubbing his lightly stubbled cheek against hers. It wasn’t as though they could pretend they hadn’t just spent the night together. Oliver shrugged inwardly. Oh well. They all would just have to get over the awkwardness.
“I didn’t think you’d still be… sleeping, it’s almost noon,” Clark’s voice drifted to them from beyond the door.
“It was kind of a rough night…” Oliver offered, as he rose from the bed, hastily throwing on his sweats, searching the floor, and handing Chloe the white t-shirt she’d worn. They dressed quickly, feeling like two kids caught with their hands in the proverbial cookie jar.
“I’ll bet.”
“No, really Clark. It was a rough night,” Oliver said, opening the door to the room once Chloe was covered in his knee-length t-shirt.
Clark expected to see a smug expression on Oliver’s face at the joke, but was surprised to find his expression quite serious.
“The Fortress?” Chloe asked, coming up to stand just beside Oliver, peering from behind his bare arm. Clark blushed profusely once more, glanced at the floor between his feet, his eyes then darting to the side as though he wasn’t certain where to put them. “Clark?” she prodded, noting his discomfort, but now was not the time. They had a killer to stop, and the matter of Tess to deal with.
Clark nodded, a sigh of relief leaving his lips. “It’s back.” He lifted his eyes once more to hers. She was tousled and sleepy and beautiful. She literally glowed. It was the look of a woman who’d been loved well. “And I’ve got some important information from the AI.”
Chloe smiled. “Good. We’ll exchange stories of our adventures… well, not exactly every detail,” she added quickly, lifting her shoulders, her grin turning sheepish. Oliver wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her against his side. Chloe lifted her eyes to his in silent communication, her palm lightly stroking his chest; Clark witnessing the look of deep love and affection that passed between them. She turned her gaze back to Clark. “But…. Um… Just give us a few minutes.”
A crooked grin appeared on Clark’s handsome face. “I’ll go put on the coffee,” he murmured, rolling his eyes, gesturing toward the kitchen before he turned away.
Chloe grabbed Oliver by the wrist, pulling him to the shower.
Oliver emerged before Chloe, fully dressed now in blue jeans and black t-shirt. He took a seat at the counter, Clark placing a steaming mug in front of him. “Hey… Clark, I’m sorry about… that,” he gestured toward the bedroom. “I didn’t realize how late it was. Things didn’t go exactly as planned, and Chloe and I didn’t get home right away.” At Clark’s questioning look, Oliver went on to explain what happened after Clark left for the Arctic.
The anxiety on Clark’s face grew with each detail; he barely noticed when Chloe came to sit beside Oliver wearing another one of his shirts along with her jeans. He turned to her concernedly. “Chloe, are you sure you’re all right?”
“I’m fine, Clark,” she assured him with a small smile. “You left me in good hands.” She slipped her hand in the crook of Oliver’s arm, and he immediately covered her hand with his. They exchanged glances, and Clark tried to keep from rolling his eyes again, wondering if he’d be able to keep them in their sockets. Truthfully though, he was happy for them. In fact he hadn’t seen either of them this happy in some time.
“You were pretty brave, Sidekick,” Oliver murmured, returning the compliment.
Chloe smiled shyly shrugging it off, then turned to Clark once more. “Tell us what happened in the Fortress. What did Jor-El say?”
“You were right about one thing. This creature is a Kryptonian experiment gone wrong, long before my people became the dominant race on the planet. The AI gave me some information about a creature that had been cloned and destroyed repeatedly. Each time the creature died, some DNA was taken from it to create a new being, so that eventually after repeated deaths, it would become unstoppable, because it adapts to overcome what killed it in its prior life, making him stronger each time. Jor-El says that because of its many deaths, the creature grew to hate all life, and sought to destroy life wherever it existed.”
“Can we stop it?” Oliver asked, his expression anxious. “I mean this thing was in that facility. We don’t know why. Either it’s following Chloe, or Tess knows about Bloom.” The hand covering Chloe’s clasped her fingers.
A chill ran up Chloe’s spine. “It’s unstoppable. Clark, what if this thing is out there, and not even you can stop it?”
Clark shook his head. “This thing was created to be the ultimate life force. Able to survive the most hostile environments.”
“So basically we’re dealing with a mindless, unfeeling, unthinking killing machine.” Oliver was nearly breathless with the thought.
“Maybe not.”
They both looked up at Chloe, gazes expectant.
Her lips thinned and she glanced away, not wanting to voice the words. “I mean, maybe he’s not completely unfeeling.” She lifted green eyes to Oliver. “And… and if he is capable of feeling anything, … love. Then maybe, just maybe he can be stopped.”
“You can’t be serious, Chloe,” Oliver said. “You’re not thinking of putting yourself in his way, on some chance that he feels anything for you, other than wanting to procreate.”
Chloe glanced from one man to the other. “I don’t like the idea any more than you do. But if this creature can hate and be capable of emotion, could he not also love? And if he can feel love, compassion, couldn’t we stop him?”
“Who has time for monster therapy sessions, Chloe?” Clark insisted. “This thing is a killer. Cold blooded, thoughtless…”
“He hasn’t hurt me in any encounter. He knows it’s me, I’m sure of it.”
“Yes, but you can’t be certain what will happen…”
“No, you’re right, I can’t be certain…
“Forget Rosemary’s Baby,” Oliver quipped, yet anxiety filled his voice. “This is sounding more like some alien version of Beauty and the Beast.”
“Ollie…”
“No, Chloe. I won’t let him take you; I won’t let you put yourself in harm’s way like that. It’s just plain reckless. You’ve seen what he’s capable of. There has to be another way.”
Chloe grew silent. She couldn’t blame him, or even be irked at his over protectiveness, heck she wasn’t certain any plan involving using herself as bait would work either. Suddenly she had another thought. “Clark, do you think he’s weakened by Kryptonite? You said he was created there, maybe we can use that.”
“It’s worth a shot, and better than using Chloe Sullivan as a potential weakness, wouldn’t you say?”
Chloe lowered her eyes staring into her coffee mug; both men could almost see the cogs turning in her head, making them both nervous. “Yeah,” she whispered. She lifted determined eyes first to Clark, then Oliver. “But first I’m going to find out why that creature was at the facility, and just how much Tess Mercer knows about Davis Bloom.”
End Chapter 17
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