Now...
Another bullet whizzed past her head. Jean ducked on reflex. Most bullets couldn't harm her but she didn't want to ignore one of the few that could and she never knew which was which.
The staccato beat of shoes was closing in. She just had to make it a few more blocks to a clear jump point.
She turned the corner and as luck would have it faced a blind alley. They expletive that followed the discovery was not lady like. She spun back to quickly assess her opportunities. This time she was greeted with several bullets. Jean withdrew behind the corner. Masonary flew.
"So much for stealth" she angily muttered. "Why does this always happen to me when I am trying to be quiet?"
The surrounding three walls remained silent. The guns however continued their barrage and got steadily closer.
"Fine." Jean smoothed back her long red hair. "Fine! I didn't want to do this. Damn you Eric."
...
Earlier...
"Dr Doe!" the lab technician's voice was tense and urgent. "Dr Doe!"
The man, gasping for breathe, staggered to Jean's feet. "Dr Doe!"
Jean finally turned away from her computer. It wasn't that she was ignoring the man. She was engrossed in her calculations. The matter was further complicated by the fact that she was not Dr Jane Doe as everyone here at ASTRO Labs thought. Jean was still getting used to the idea of having a secret identity, particularly one that was different from her true identity. Jean, Genesis, Dr Jane Doe. Three women in one.
"It's doing it again Doctor," he panted.
Jean dashed past the man who turned and sighed. He was going to have to follow as soon as he caught his breath.
By the time he had caught up Dr Doe was already absorbing readouts from the large holgram in the centre of the room.
"No, no, no, no, no." It was chant like.
In the centre of the room the large blue hologram slowly swirled. It resembled nothing so much as a strange solar system with erratic orbiting blips. As Dr Doe watched a number of small orbiting blips turned red and were swallowed by what appeared to be a voracious star in the centre of the display.
Dr Doe continued to dash around the room. "Cascade collapse! 50 plus entanglements."
The man watched as Dr Doe appeared to be lecturing herself.
"How many incursions? Right. Full mergers? Ahuh. Collapses? No, no. I'm getting 17."
As Dr Doe spun the lab technician finally caught sight of an earpeice. He breathed a sigh of releif. She was conferring with someone and not dellusional... well, no more than normal."
"I'm not arguing with you. Count again!" Dr Doe paused thoughtfully. "Oh. My bad. You were right. 18."
Pause. "We'll I'm not as smart as you, am I? There's a lot going on right now."
Pause. "What? NO!!"
The technician could only wonder who was on the other end of the line. Dr Jane Doe was supposed to be the world's foremost expect on multidimensional physics and yet here she was speaking to someone who would appear to know far more.
"I can't do that anymore. It's just too dangerous." Dr Doe paced and shook her head.
"We both know what could happen."
"You may have faith in me but I don't. If I screw this up..."
The technician watched as the sentence trailed off.
"This is why you recruited Pulsar as my replacement. Remember?"
"Whattaya mean you LOST HIM?"
"How do you loose a omniversal... someone... like him?"
Pause followed by a resigned sigh.
"Fine. You win. Happy?"
...
Now...
With a wave of her hand a segment of wall peeled off and closed alley off. Jean used the confusion it caused to quickly run through options and ideas on her fingers. Concerningly her ring finger trembled and crackled with a coruscating flash of red flame.
"Damn it... I warned against this. I tried to tell them. I really did."
She shook her hand and flickering light vanished.
Suddenly there was a kaleidoscope of colour and Eric Eastwood stepped from the light. The young man had concerned look as he desperately reach for Jean.
Jean's own hand shot towards his. "Go, go. GO!"
...
Later...
The small apartment was dimly lit. Jean sat on the couch watching the setting sun. As birds flew by she angily muttered to herself.
"Go get him she said."
"You'll be fine she said."
"One last time she said. Just like last time. And the time before that.... and before that too."
"Didn't need me at all. Turned off his damn comms."
"Gone dark he said."
"Needed to throw off pursuit he said."
Jean stopped and stared into the dying light. "The End coming he said. He said the End's coming."
Another bullet whizzed past her head. Jean ducked on reflex. Most bullets couldn't harm her but she didn't want to ignore one of the few that could and she never knew which was which.
The staccato beat of shoes was closing in. She just had to make it a few more blocks to a clear jump point.
She turned the corner and as luck would have it faced a blind alley. They expletive that followed the discovery was not lady like. She spun back to quickly assess her opportunities. This time she was greeted with several bullets. Jean withdrew behind the corner. Masonary flew.
"So much for stealth" she angily muttered. "Why does this always happen to me when I am trying to be quiet?"
The surrounding three walls remained silent. The guns however continued their barrage and got steadily closer.
"Fine." Jean smoothed back her long red hair. "Fine! I didn't want to do this. Damn you Eric."
...
Earlier...
"Dr Doe!" the lab technician's voice was tense and urgent. "Dr Doe!"
The man, gasping for breathe, staggered to Jean's feet. "Dr Doe!"
Jean finally turned away from her computer. It wasn't that she was ignoring the man. She was engrossed in her calculations. The matter was further complicated by the fact that she was not Dr Jane Doe as everyone here at ASTRO Labs thought. Jean was still getting used to the idea of having a secret identity, particularly one that was different from her true identity. Jean, Genesis, Dr Jane Doe. Three women in one.
"It's doing it again Doctor," he panted.
Jean dashed past the man who turned and sighed. He was going to have to follow as soon as he caught his breath.
By the time he had caught up Dr Doe was already absorbing readouts from the large holgram in the centre of the room.
"No, no, no, no, no." It was chant like.
In the centre of the room the large blue hologram slowly swirled. It resembled nothing so much as a strange solar system with erratic orbiting blips. As Dr Doe watched a number of small orbiting blips turned red and were swallowed by what appeared to be a voracious star in the centre of the display.
Dr Doe continued to dash around the room. "Cascade collapse! 50 plus entanglements."
The man watched as Dr Doe appeared to be lecturing herself.
"How many incursions? Right. Full mergers? Ahuh. Collapses? No, no. I'm getting 17."
As Dr Doe spun the lab technician finally caught sight of an earpeice. He breathed a sigh of releif. She was conferring with someone and not dellusional... well, no more than normal."
"I'm not arguing with you. Count again!" Dr Doe paused thoughtfully. "Oh. My bad. You were right. 18."
Pause. "We'll I'm not as smart as you, am I? There's a lot going on right now."
Pause. "What? NO!!"
The technician could only wonder who was on the other end of the line. Dr Jane Doe was supposed to be the world's foremost expect on multidimensional physics and yet here she was speaking to someone who would appear to know far more.
"I can't do that anymore. It's just too dangerous." Dr Doe paced and shook her head.
"We both know what could happen."
"You may have faith in me but I don't. If I screw this up..."
The technician watched as the sentence trailed off.
"This is why you recruited Pulsar as my replacement. Remember?"
"Whattaya mean you LOST HIM?"
"How do you loose a omniversal... someone... like him?"
Pause followed by a resigned sigh.
"Fine. You win. Happy?"
...
Now...
With a wave of her hand a segment of wall peeled off and closed alley off. Jean used the confusion it caused to quickly run through options and ideas on her fingers. Concerningly her ring finger trembled and crackled with a coruscating flash of red flame.
"Damn it... I warned against this. I tried to tell them. I really did."
She shook her hand and flickering light vanished.
Suddenly there was a kaleidoscope of colour and Eric Eastwood stepped from the light. The young man had concerned look as he desperately reach for Jean.
Jean's own hand shot towards his. "Go, go. GO!"
...
Later...
The small apartment was dimly lit. Jean sat on the couch watching the setting sun. As birds flew by she angily muttered to herself.
"Go get him she said."
"You'll be fine she said."
"One last time she said. Just like last time. And the time before that.... and before that too."
"Didn't need me at all. Turned off his damn comms."
"Gone dark he said."
"Needed to throw off pursuit he said."
Jean stopped and stared into the dying light. "The End coming he said. He said the End's coming."
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