"It's none other than Hyper-Man! In fact, he should be here momentarily."
You breath got caught in your throat. Hyper-Man himself? The shining beacon of heroism? World's strongest superhero? THAT Hyper-Man?
You had no time to process this revelation as a loud WHOOSH was heard from nearby, and in a flash a muscular man in white skintight spandex appeared, wind ruffling his short brown hair, his piercing blue eyes surveying the scene.
"Ah, Alex, great that you could make it." Chief greeted him.
Hyper-Man nodded back. "Naturally, Max. How could I say no to your pleading cry for help? I almost felt like I had to bring napkins for you to cry your tears of despair!"
The two men stared at each other intently before they both burst out laughing, leaving you to witness the strange sight from the side.
"You... know Hyper-Man? By name?" You finally managed to pipe out as the men were calming down.
"Aaaah... Oh? Of course I know him! Alex and I have been close ever since supers emerged! Do you have any idea how much he owes me?" Maxwell responded. Hyper-Man scoffed.
"Not as much as you owe me, old wolf."
"Ah, shut it, Golden Boy. Who's keeping count?"
"By all accounts, you are." The superhero shot back.
"Ugh! Fair. Anyway, I trust you've been briefed?"
"Naturally," he said, now turning to face you. "This is her?"
"Yep, our newest trump card, fresh out of the streets."
Hyper-Man nodded and stepped towards you as you still stared at him, bewildered. He grabbed your hand and shook it enthusiastically.
"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Hyper-Man, but I somehow think you already knew that," he chuckled. "Who might you be, missy?"
It felt like syrup had been poured on your brain, and it took you several seconds to realize that Hyper-Man, the greatest hero, bane of villains, was actually talking to you.
"I-I'm Springtime! No, Wellmade, I-I mean Springtrap, no, it's..." you stumbled over your words. Hyper-Man seemed quite amused to see your stuttering. Finally you managed to gather your wits and stand tall in front of him.
"Wellspring. Call me Wellspring."
"Well, most excellent to have you onboard, Wellspring. I'll be placing myself in your care."
"But..." you turned to address Maxwell. "If Hyper-Man is going, do you even need me? Isn't he invincible?"
The men shared a look, raising eyebrows, seemingly having a mental conversation. Could Hyper-Man use telepathy? Or were they just that well acquainted?
"Well, the truth is..." Maxwell finally said. "He's not completely invulnerable. It's just that very few things can hurt him. And because we're dealing with a Level 11 biohazard..."
"Better not take any risks," Hyper-Man continued. "Besides, this isn't about me, it's about you!"
"M-Me?"
"Yep. This is the start of your superhero career, isn't it? And what better way to make a debut than to go in with an established pro and beat up a brand new baddie?"
He did have a point. Press presence around them only seemed to increase by the minute, and you could see many reporters trying to glimpse past the police to get a better look at you. As much as you would've preferred to work from the sidelines, it seemed that wasn't an option this time around.
"So, when do we go in?"
Hyper-Man and Maxwell both grinned, throwing a high five. You couldn't help but scoff a bit. Like two frat boys.
"In about five minutes. Get ready.
***
Five minutes went by alarmingly quickly, and soon you found yourself standing on the stairs of the DNACE headquarters, flanked by Hyper-Man. Both of you had donned thick hazmat suits, but Hyper-Man could fly you both to move more easily. Comms were checked, area had been secured. All was clear for the operation.
"Nervous?" You heard Hyper-Man's voice crackle through the intercom.
"I'm about to walk into a highly contaminated building with the world's greatest hero while quite literally the whole world is watching, in order to stop a monstrous supervillain. All on my first day on the job. So yeah, I'd say I have some nerves."
You felt a hand on your shoulder and saw Hyper-Man standing there, holding onto you.
"It'll be alright. I'll get us both in and out safely."
The knot in your chest eased a little, and you grabbed his hand. You hung on for dear life as you both lifted off the ground, slowly floating into the cloud of smog.
"Just... keep close, okay? This stuff is nasty, and even I don't want to know what it feels like if it really takes root."
You could detect just the faintest bit of worry in his voice. It comforted you somewhat. Despite his godlike power, Hyper-Man still wasn't above fear.
"You've got it... boss."
And then the cloud enveloped you.
Immediately you could feel it against your hazmat gear, aggressively pressing against the material as if a thing alive, trying to find an opening. You concentrated your power. Soon, you both were glowing faintly, even beneath the suits. The energy seemed to form a thin aura around you, effectively repelling the harmful gases.
"Woah! This stuff feels great!" Hyper-Man exclaimed admiring his glowing hand. "Well, hold on. We're going up. Scanners say she should be on the fifth floor."
The inside of the building was even thicker with the smog, your suit light piercing into it. Thick particles were floating in the air, horrifically coating the deceased bodies on the ground. The didn't even resemble people anymore, more like blobs of meat bubbling on the floor.
You could hear a faint grunt, and looked at Hyper-Man who seemed to be vibrating slightly.
"Are you... okay?" You asked carefully.
"Yeah, I'm great, it's just... I have all this newfound energy in me, and..." he didn't need to finish his sentence as you could visibly see his suit getting a bit more snug around his muscled frame.
"Yes, that is the... other aspect of my power," you explained, a bit embarrassed. "You're experiencing a temporary boost in your powers. You'll return to normal soon after I stop touching you."
He was still grunting, but his erratic movements slowly died down. You couldn't help but wonder how much your powers affected the already godlike Hyper-Man.
"Power boost, huh? Not bad. You'll go far with a skillset like that."
He grabbed you more tightly, and you blushed a bit as you could feel his rock-hard body underneath the suit.
"Hold on, we're taking a shortcut."
Hyper-Man flew you towards the elevator shaft, where he let you go for a moment to wrangle the doors open. His glow dimmed, and you immediately heard him cough. As soon as the door was open you clung to him again, and he nodded in appreciation as you flew up the elevator shaft, opening a small hatch beneath the car to fly through it. The elevator was stopped at the fifth floor. The villainess had probably used it to go up.
Fifth floor was R&D Labs. It wasn't hard to guess that the villain was after some top secret data. How long she would take to access it, was a mystery. DNACE had top-notch security systems, but the villainess had been in there for a while. The offices were eerily quiet, and covered in even more former humans. Some were sprouting something akin to... fungal growths?
"Well, well, well... Finally. I was starting to get bored over here."
A rich, female voice echoed through the abandoned office. You both frantically looked around, but couldn't spot her. You thought you saw movement out the corner of your eye, but as you turned to watch there was nothing there.
"Quite the light show you have there. Something against my little pretties? Tsk, tsk, tsk. How rude. Why don't you take those suits off so we can talk like civilized people?"
"Halt this foolishness about civility, villain!" Hyper-Man, shouted out forcefully. "Hundreds are dead because of you, and we're here to bring you to justice!"
A cackling laughter echoed, and finally you could spot your adversary. Right in front of you, as if she had appeared out of thin air. Green hair, green eyes, green outfit. Her whole appearance blended perfectly into the green-tinted smog your were submerged in, the silky ribbons that made up her dress flowing as if in an invisible wind. Very little was left to the imagination, and you could see her uncovered skin secreting more and more bacterial mass into the air. She was a walking chemical weapon.
And strangely familiar. Her voice was deeper, her appearance more refined, she even carried herself with more poise. But she mannerisms reminded you of a certain escaped patient.
"Pestilence?" you asked.
Her haughty look turned shocked, only for a second, before reverting back to her confident outlook.
"Well, someone seems to know me. I thought this would be my debut, but it world seems to be full of surprises."
As they watched, she stepped back, and almost seemed to melt into the mist. Hyper-Man tried to reach her, but as his super-fast hand grabbed the air where she had stood, it found only emptiness. Suddenly you felt thin fingers dancing along your shoulder. Your blood froze.
"You're a curious one, you. And your power could prove problematic. Still, I can't help but feel fascinated. Maybe I'll keep you if you survive this."
You couldn't shake her off as she grasped the clasps of your helmet, releasing them with a sharp hiss. You helmet fell off, your body now vulnerable to the toxic air. Immediately you began to gag, the smog burning your eyes, your lungs, your whole being as it ferociosuly attacked you.
"Wellspring!" Hyper-Man cried out as you collapsed, kneeling on the ground. He tried to hit Pestilence, but once again she disappeared.
You grunted, and pushed harder. Your healing aura intensified, sizzling against the toxic air as the disease was repelled. But at the same time you felt something new. Exhaustion. Seems you had a limit after all, and it was approaching.
"Hyper-Man! We need to finish this fast!" you yelled, straining to keep the disease out as you fumbled for your fallen helmet.
"Got it!"
Suddenly you felt yourself be pulled along, Hyper-Man starting to frantically fly around the office. The taunting face of Pestilence appeared and disappeared, narrowly avoiding his hits each time he spotted her.
"Come on, catch me if you can! Or can you, before my pretties finish off your pretty friend!" Her cackling laugh echoed, the smog getting thicker by the second. Soon you felt impacts as Hyper-Man hit various chairs, tables and scientific instruments in his pursuit of their adversary.
"Oh, I LOVE them all, each and every one of my babies holding a special place in my heart! Ebola, Malaria, Spanish Flu, Smallpox, all the classics! But I haven't stopped there, you know..."
Pestilence was toying with them, and they were running out of time. She saw their frantic chase and relished in it, saw you trying to pull on the helmet you'd somehow managed to grab amidst the chaos.
"Like this! I call it... "Boompox!""
Without warning, the flesh mounds littered throughout the office exploded violently, showering the room with blood, pus and bits of melted meat. You cried out as the mass hit you, burning through you aura and your energy. You wiped it off, but it was no use. That little stunt had drastically lowered your remaining time.
But from the explosion, you got an idea. You'd never tried it, but it was your only shot.
"Hyper-Man! When the smog is gone, be immediately ready to take her down!" You yelled out.
"What?" he asked, but you didn't stop to explain. Focusing on your diminishing well of healing, your focused on the steady stream that kept you both alive, and tore the floodgates open completely.
The room was bathed in a blinding flash as your power was released, burning away the disease. Darkness gave way to light as the room was fully cleansed, revealing Pestilence right beside you, watching you both, amused. Her amusement turned to shock as her protective covering was dispelled and she was left there, standing right next to Hyper-Man who wasted no time, launching himself onto the villainess and pushing her into the drywall headfirst. And again, and again, as he pushed her through multiple rooms until finally sliding to a stop, the unconscious villainess plopping to the ground.
"Seems like your career... is diseased," he quipped.
A moment of silence, followed by the crackling of the intercom.
"God, that was horrible. That's not even a oneliner, that's just stupid."
"Not as stupid as your pep talk of the week, Max!" He shot back.
"And the girl?"
"Oh shit!"
Hyper-Man turned around and flew back to the room, where you were just getting up from the floor. The room had cleared up nicely, which you were grateful for since you didn't even have the energy to put on your helmet anymore. You did manage to turn to your side as Hyper-Man approached, to prevent your loose hood from slipping off and revealing your face.
"Wellspring! Are you okay?" he asked as he flew to your aid, stopping to inject for any signs of injury.
"I'm fine," you grunted. Just a bit... tapped out. Think you could help me out?"
He grinned.
"Anything for the hero of the day. A helluva show."
The rest after that was blurry, as you struggled to keep awake. You felt the helmet being pushed back on your head, and you felt as Hyper-Man carried you out, along with the unconscious body of Pestilence. You could barely make out as the toxic smog slowly began to clear with its mistress out of the commission, and you dulled senses were greeted to a cacophony of lights and sounds as the press saw you emerge from the building. Microphones were pressed towards you, cameras flashed and reporters tried to push past the police to get a better glimpse of you. Hyper-Man carried you straight to the medical camp where you were laid out on a bed. Maxwell appeared at some point, smiling at you.
"You did good, lass, real good. Rest up now..."
Mission complete. You had done it. Everyone was... safe... now...
You slowly felt unconsciousness claim you as utter exhaustion set in. But you managed a small smile beneath your hood before the darkness claimed you.