Ultrahuman 01 - Ugly Read online

  June had said it was down to not being herself. Literally. Penny was not herself so she could be outrageous and there would be no comeback. It had sounded like a reasonable sort of assertion. It was like going on holiday where no one knew you, and going crazy because no one knew what you were usually like. Penny was having a holiday from being Penny.

  The club June had decided upon was called Huntress’ Den, because it belonged to a retired Ultra, the Red Huntress. Rumour had it that the True Powers people had asked her before creating a character called ‘Red Hunter’ for the show. She still ran the place, and appeared there most nights. Other Ultras went there on occasion since they knew the owner would not get worried about them being there. That meant that if someone twigged that Penny was one, no one would kick them out. She was also pretty certain they were not going to run into anyone they knew.

  There were two bouncers on the door, both in pristine suits, one with the exaggerated muscle of at least a low-level Ultra, and they were turning people away in a manner that suggested getting in was not going to be easy. The big one took one look at Penny and June, and opened the rope in front of him without a word.

  ‘That was you,’ June commented as they passed through the foyer.

  ‘Huh?’

  ‘The bouncer. He let us in because of you. I could see it in his eyes. I probably could have got us in, but not with just a look.’

  ‘Uh…’ Further conversation became unviable as they entered the main floor and the throbbing beat of the music hit them. The light was dim, with a lot of red in it, but Penny’s new eyes took it all in their stride and she could see as well as in daylight, even if the colours looked odd. Everything had a grayscale overlay which brightened the light, but tended to wash the colour out.

  June mimed drinking at Penny and then headed through the crowd to the bar. Penny followed, squeezing past men and women in expensive, often revealing, clothing. What she was not quite ready for was her reaction to these people. They were attractive, often very attractive, and now so was she, and she wanted to flirt. She had never had a desire to flirt with anyone before, as far as she could remember. She wanted to be noticed, talked to, appreciated… Flustered, she hurried after June and waited while her friend bought drinks for them.

  ‘You’re new. I haven’t seen you around before.’ The voice was not loud and when Penny turned her head she found herself face to face with an attractive, blonde-haired woman who was aging exceptionally gracefully. She looked to be in her late thirties, except for a few lines around the eyes which suggested greater age. Penny recognised her from documentaries; the Red Huntress had decided to pay the new girl a visit.

  ‘I… You wouldn’t have,’ Penny replied.

  The blonde’s eyes flicked toward June, who was still facing the bar. ‘Does your friend know?’

  ‘She’s the only person who does. Until now.’

  ‘Bring her then. We need to talk. Just a chat. I like to know who’s in my club.’

  June chose that moment to turn around, her hands full of wine glasses. She blinked a couple of times and then her jaw dropped open. The Huntress gave her a smile and waved for them to follow her.

  ‘What does she want?’ June hissed in Penny’s ear.

  ‘To talk,’ Penny replied.

  ‘This should be interesting.’

  The Red Huntress had an office at the back of the club, through a door marked ‘Employees Only’ and down a short corridor which served to dull the noise. The room was less office and more home-away-from-home, as far as Penny could tell. There was a sofa as well as a large desk. An intricately carved longbow hung on the wall behind the desk, the owner’s signature weapon from her active days. She waved at the seats in front of her desk as she walked around to sit down behind it.

  ‘I’m sure you’re wondering how I knew,’ the blonde Ultra said. ‘I can smell Ultrahumans from a hundred yards, but you’ve got a scent… It’s hard to describe, but it’s not like anything I’ve ever met before.’

  ‘Oh,’ Penny replied, taking a gulp of wine from her glass. ‘I only… Uh, I’m not sure how to describe it, but this is all new to me. It happened just before Christmas.’

  ‘Ah. So you’ve probably not registered, or really found out what you can do?’ Penny shook her head in reply. ‘You don’t really seem the type to start robbing banks.’

  ‘She isn’t,’ June stated flatly.

  The Huntress nodded. ‘Don’t suppose you’ve come up with a name yet either. You’re going to need one if you’re planning to use all that power.’

  ‘I… do,’ Penny replied, ‘but I don’t really know how much…’

  ‘You’re powerful,’ the Huntress interrupted. ‘I can tell that much. Maybe in potential rather than actual power at the moment, but you smell of a lot of power. That’s why I got you in here. Had to be sure you weren’t going to be trouble.’

  ‘We just came to have some fun at New Year,’ June said.

  The Huntress grinned. ‘Far be it from me to deny you that. No conspicuous use of powers. That’s the only rule.’ Her gaze shifted to sweep over June, taking in the short, leather skirt and the black, cropped T-shirt with V-shaped mesh insert which showed off a lot of cleavage. ‘Maybe I’ll see you later.’

  June smiled back. ‘Okay,’ she said.

  ~~~

  It was almost midnight. There was a general atmosphere of anticipation which Penny could sense even through the slight alcohol haze she had developed. She could also sense the hand gently stroking her thigh and was doing nothing to discourage the young man whose hand it was. She considered that the height of impropriety, and she was loving it.

  Her companion was no older than she was. Maybe a little; no more than twenty-five, she was sure of that. He was handsome, ruggedly so, with carefully tousled, black hair and blue eyes you could drown in. He worked out, possibly a little too much, but Penny was not worried about that right now. She was far more interested in the way his hand was moving and the way his eyes were watching her.

  They had been chatting vaguely for thirty minutes after bumping into each other on the dance floor. Not literally. June had been right: Penny was elegant. June had nodded encouragingly when Penny had led him to a table to sit down, though Penny did not really feel like she needed the push. She was feeling hyper again, wound up, impulsive, and Jon was currently holding her attention with his stroking hand and his steamy eyes.

  He leaned toward her. His breath was hot against her ear. ‘You’re incredible.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  ‘Maybe we could go back to my place after…’

  Words came into her head and she said them before she could change her mind. ‘Why wait?’ She could not believe she had said it, but she had and she could not take it back now. ‘Maybe there’s somewhere we could go…?’

  ‘It’s almost midnight,’ he said, though he was definitely not saying no.

  ‘You can think of a better way to see in the New Year?’

  He took her hand and stood up, leading the way toward the rear of the club as though he was afraid she would change her mind. He found a door and pushed it open; she saw a male symbol on the door suggesting this was the men’s toilets, but everyone was out in the club; the room was empty. A second or two later they were in one of the cubicles; she was pressed up against one of the walls, and his tongue was in her mouth.

  She felt his hands pulling at the hem of her dress, while her own were at work on the belt of his designer slacks. His pants were definitely a little tighter than they should have been. She giggled softly as he pushed her thong down her thighs, pulled one sandaled leg from them as they fell around her ankles and put one foot up on the toilet seat. It was hardly a romantic setting, but she was not interested in romance. She wanted him in her, and he obliged as soon as he was able, pushing deep and then pausing at her gasp.

  Their eyes locked for a second. Her hips shifted and he let out a groan. ‘Do it,’ she whispered.

  His hips began to work again
st hers. She could feel every inch of him sliding within her and her head rolled back against the cubicle wall. She became dimly aware of the chanting from the club.

  ‘Ten…’ So close.

  ‘Nine… eight…’ It had been so long and this body seemed so responsive.

  ‘Seven… six… five…’ She could feel energy swelling within her, and it seemed as though he could feel it too.

  ‘Four… three…’ His thrusts grew faster. She could feel that energy she was exuding powering him onward.

  ‘Two… one…’ The cheers were drowned out by the rushing sound in her ears and she was lost to the sensations coursing through her body.

  What a way to see in the New Year indeed…

  1st January 2013.

  Penny slipped into the apartment through the window from the balcony, alone. Somewhere over in Uptown the Red Huntress was making sure that June celebrated the turn of another year in a manner similar to the way Penny had done.

  She headed for the shower. She could still feel her midnight activities on her inner thighs and, while she did not regret anything, she did want the evidence to be less sticky. Starting the water running, she discarded her clothes and climbed into the tub, pulling the curtain around her. The water felt good. Being clean felt better.

  Dry and warm, and feeling satisfied in a way she could not recall ever having felt before, she padded through into June’s room and looked at herself in the mirror there. Okay, so she did look amazing, and she could have any man she wanted. She was hardly a skilled lover, but Jon seemed to have gone away happy. The energy within her had had something to do with it, she was sure of that.

  ‘But,’ she said to her reflection, ‘you have to go. I’m pretty sure you can go too, and come back when I need you. What do I have to do? Is there a magic word? No, that’s silly. I think…’

  She closed her eyes and concentrated, willing herself to change back into the Penny she usually was. There was a tingling sensation in her fingers and toes, which seemed encouraging, and she concentrated harder. The tingling spread, enveloping her body and becoming almost uncomfortable. There was a rushing sound in her ears and then…

  Penny opened her eyes and looked at the blurred image in the mirror. She could not entirely see herself, but that in itself suggested it had worked. Where had she left her glasses?

  It took five minutes of searching and one stubbed toe before she located the offending eyewear, and then she was back in front of the mirror. June had been right: her skin and eyes were the same, but the rest of her was back to the boyish, slightly chubby, Penny. She looked at the body she had always been resigned to and smiled. Okay, so she was the ugly duckling again and not the swan, but she was almost positive she could change back and this was the perfect disguise. No one was going to believe that Penny was the elegant, beautiful… She frowned and started for her own room. She was going to need a name.

  Dressed in the oversized T-shirt and flannelette pants she wore to bed normally, she curled up on the sofa and put the TV on. There was still a buzz in her head from the alcohol and the sex, but she would find something to watch and try to come up with a name for her alternate persona. Her swan form. That made her giggle. Maybe some more wine was in order.

  ~~~

  June arrived back at the apartment just before midday with a dreamy smile on her face. She looked vaguely confused for a second when she saw Penny curled on the sofa looking happy.

  ‘You’re back to normal,’ June said, stating the obvious.

  ‘Uh-huh. In a bit we can see whether I can turn back. For now I’m happy being normal me. I take it you had a good night?’

  June fell onto the couch, beaming. ‘Oh God yes! She’s amazing! We were up until sunrise and she gave me a fantastic wake-up call.’ Her eyes narrowed. ‘Where were you at midnight? I looked for you…’

  Penny felt her cheeks flaring hot. ‘I was in the men’s restroom, pinned up against a cubicle wall.’ Now that she was Penny again, and not drunk, the whole experience seemed a little sordid.

  June’s eyes widened. ‘Penny Worthington! You didn’t!’

  ‘I so did.’ Penny broke into a fit of giggles at the look on June’s face.

  ‘Well fuck me sideways. You don’t believe in doing things by halves. Did you even get his name?’

  ‘Jon. Don’t know the rest. He didn’t get mine.’ She paused, one hand lifting to touch a reddened cheek. ‘Kind of slutty, really, but it felt like… I just wanted to and I’ve never been the kind of girl who could…’

  ‘I think, as long as you’re not planning to make a habit of it, you’re allowed to go crazy once.’

  ‘Well, I don’t plan to. On the other hand I was getting kind of fixated. I think the other me might be a bit of a letch. I’ll have to watch that. Maybe it’ll be less pronounced when I’m used to it.’ She grinned. ‘So the Red Huntress is into girls. There were rumours…’

  June grinned back. ‘She’s into girls.’ She shuddered. ‘She’s so into girls.’

  ‘I guess we both had a good evening then,’ Penny said, smiling happily.

  ~~~

  ‘So what’s with the ratty T-shirt and panties?’ June was watching Penny from the doorway of her bedroom. Penny had requested that she keep a safe distance and given that they did not know what might happen, June was happy to oblige.

  ‘Last time my clothes got turned into scraps and the strap on my bag was obliterated,’ Penny replied. ‘I want to know if that happens every time.’

  ‘Good idea. You can’t go around wearing a costume under your clothes if it’s going to disintegrate when you change.’

  Penny giggled. ‘I wasn’t planning to anyway, but I do want to know if I need to strip before changing.’ She took a deep breath. ‘Here goes…’ She closed her eyes and concentrated.

  To June it seemed as though nothing was happening. Penny was just standing there with a constipated look on her face. No changes, no flashes of light, no… There was an odd sort of buzzing noise and Penny’s features seemed to blur. Her legs stretched suddenly, pulling out like taffy. Her breasts swelled under the T-shirt as her body began to lengthen. The buzzing grew louder and was joined by a sudden burst of sound like ripping fabric, and Penny’s clothes were floating to the carpet in fragments.

  Penny opened her eyes, blinking at June. ‘It worked.’

  ‘Uh-huh, and you did end up naked again.’

  ‘Sorry.’

  ‘Don’t apologise. After last night your boobs are less distracting than they were.’

  Penny giggled again and picked up the wrap she had bought along with the dress for New Year. Short and silky, it fitted her new persona as well as her new body. ‘So, it takes a few seconds, but I can swap between the two without too much difficulty. So I guess I have a choice to make.’

  ‘Do good or do nothing?’

  ‘Basically. Not every Ultra goes out and fights crime. Some of them, especially the less powerful ones, lead normal lives.’

  June stepped aside as Penny walked out of the room. There was a noticeable swing to the woman’s hips which was not there when she was in her normal form. Watching the hem of the wrap twitching from side to side, June swallowed and said, ‘But you said you had this… urge to do something.’

  ‘And I didn’t when I was me, and now it’s back again.’ Settling onto the couch with her legs crossed in front of her, Penny turned the TV on and found the Discovery Channel.

  ‘Then unless you’re going to stay as Penny, I think you’re going to have to learn how to be a proper Ultra.’

  ‘Well I could. Stay as the old me, I mean. I don’t have to be this.’

  ‘Maybe you should try it for a while. A few days at least. See how that works out before you decide.’

  ‘Good plan. It’s back to work tomorrow anyway. I’ll give it until Saturday and see how things are going then.’

  June grinned. ‘That sounds like a plan. What are you going to do about Sean?’

  ‘Nothing,’ Penny said,
her tone bland. ‘Major.’

  2nd January.

  ‘Uh… Penny… hi.’

  Penny looked up at the doorway of the office they kept her in to answer the phones. Sean was standing there, all carefully groomed, blonde hair and immaculate suit. He was an accountant, like many of the people at Leighton and Thorpe, but he was one of the ones who actually went out to visit clients, hence the suit. Penny said nothing, just looked at him and smiled. The sight of him made her want to throw something and there was an odd whispering sound in her ears, but she was determined not to show how much he had hurt her.

  ‘I… missed you at the party,’ he said to break the silence.

  ‘I didn’t miss you,’ Penny replied, still smiling, ‘and you didn’t seem to be missing Tina. Hitting with every stroke, I’d say.’

  ‘Uh… right.’ He looked decidedly uncomfortable, which suited Penny just fine.

  ‘Don’t worry about it, Sean. I don’t mind. I got very expertly laid a couple of days ago so I don’t really need you anymore.’

  ‘You’re dumping me?’ Sean said, his eyes widening. ‘You are dumping me?’

  ‘Let’s call it an amicable separation.’

  She saw his fists clench, and then he turned and left without a word. Penny grinned at the space left by his departure. And then she heard something, like a voice in the distance behind her. She turned her head to look, but there was nothing there but the wall of her office.

  ~~~

  ‘Sean’s been telling people he broke up with you,’ June said as they walked toward the subway.

  ‘I kind of expected that,’ Penny replied.

  ‘Supposedly you confessed to sleeping with someone else over the holiday.’