Oh-No Sally: Parts 2-5

by Dru

2

Sally only just saw the halted traffic ahead in time to screech to a halt.

"Not again!"

This was the third time this year she'd been parked on the freeway. And she only had like ten minutes to play with … she didn't want to think about the consequences of being late. She picked up her phone and checked the online traffic report.

"Shit."

A truck carrying an oversized yacht had gotten stuck under an overpass. How had the driver not seen the signs? Sally fumed. This was so annoying. There was no exits nearby, either. She was stuck, and probably for the next several hours, until the yacht was carefully removed from under the bridge. 

Then Sally slapped her head.

"Of course!"

Sally opened her door and got out of her car, leaving the tiny yellow vehicle as she ran into the bushes beside the road.

"What's that lady doing, Daddy?" she heard a little boy ask as she darted around a big SRV.

"I do believe she's off to relieve herself."

A few seconds after the odd woman had vanished into the shrubbery, there was a deafening boom accompanied by a painfully bright and colourful flash of light, and then to the astonishment of all onlookers O Girl smashed through the treetops sending branches large and small flying in all directions.

"Wow!" Daddy declared, suddenly seeing dollar signs before his eyes. "Honey, get the licence plate of that car she ran out of will you? We might be able to get some of that reward money …"

Sally soared over the standing queue of traffic and took in the scene. There were policemen, firemen, and a two truckloads of council workers. It looked like they were still thinking about what to do. Sally smiled, knowing how much faster she could sort out their problem for them. She swooped down toward the biggest cluster of workmen, pulling up a few feet off the tarmac and quite close. The rushing air knocked the whole group over.

"Never fear! O Girl is here! I'll get your traffic jam sorted out in no time!"

"Oh no!"

"Listen …" the man in charge shouted out desperately, waving his arms about as he got back to his feet. "We've got this! It's all under control!"

Sally smiled. 

"Never be too proud to ask for help! No job is too big, or too small for Super O Girl!"

"And I … we … really appreciate that, um, O Girl … but …"

Sally laughed, making those in front of her cover their ears.

"Silly little man! Don't you know? I always have time for the little people!! Have you not heard of the unstoppable, mighty O Girl! Relax, Citizen! O Girl's got your back!"

Sally hovered up and regarded the truck wedged beneath the overpass for just a few moments before seeing a clear solution. Of course, the workmen would never have considered doing what she was about to do, but then, it wasn't really an option for them.

She disappeared under the concrete bridge, and everyone expected to hear some crunching as she forced the truck back out from it's trap. None was able to stop themselves taking a step back when their was a much more terrible noise than expected, and the entire section of the overpass smoothly tore itself from the rest of the bridge and rose into the air.

Using her strength felt terrific. O Girl's only regret as she hoisted the steel and concrete over her head was that the task did not require at least the use of two hands. She looked down at the awed faces, and waved with her free hand before approaching them. Most ran as the massive load she bore so effortlessly loomed overhead, chunks of concrete raining down from the busted edges.

Unfortunately, that particular span had two sections, and the remaining one without its mate had collapsed, crushing the foreman's executive ride. He looked at where he had foolishly parked his luxurious car, safely out of the sun … it was certainly out of the sun now.

"See?" Sally asked pleasantly. "Easy!"

She flicked her wrist, and the section of overpass flew several hundred feet to come crashing down in the nearby wilderness with an earth shaking impact. 

"Now then! Who's truck is that?"

None moved, except for one … and he wasn't exactly stepping forward. The truck driver broke into a run, but didn't get far. Sally touched down in front of him, the impact shattering the side of the road.

"Now now! What's the hurry?" 

Sally picked him up with her left hand, ripping his collar as she held him aloft by his shirt, and flew back to the truck. She dropped him, and hovered over next to the cab.

"You should know better than this. As a driver of a big rig, it's your responsibility to know the size of your load. Now … let me show you the difference between big and small."

Sally reached for the cab with both hands, driving them both into the bonnet and grasping the engine. With a terrible squeal the engine was torn free, the entire cab lifting for a moment until she wriggled the huge engine free of its mounts.

"This … is big."

The metal started to glow as she worked her hands over it. The driver gulped when he realised just how tiny the hot ball of steel she presented him was. Where did it all go?

"This is small."

She reached out again, going low and taking a hold of the chassis. Hoisting the truck overhead she waved it about.

"This is big."

It wasn't big for long. In the space of five second, Sally reduced it to the size of a bowling ball that bore no resemblance to the truck it had once been.

"And this: this is small." She looked at him, considered his vacant expression, and turned to the trailer. She showed him once more, just in case he didn't get things as quickly as she did.

"I … my truck …"

"I hope you understand. And next time you're taking a load: check that it fits through the gaps, douchbag!"

Satisfied that she had once more accomplished a good deed, Sally returned for her car. Taking her Honda into the city and depositing it on a rooftop car park, she landed in an alley and changed back to everyday Sally.

A few minutes later, and with a few more to spare, Sally walked into the beauty salon. The receptionist smiled, and pointed Sally toward the waiting area. Sally sat down and picked up a magazine … glad that she hadn't missed her appointment.

3

Sally didn't like watching the news. Whenever she did put the news on, she knew she wasn't going to be able stay on her couch for long. And this evening was no different.

"In breaking news just handed to me, a gunman has walked into a high-rise office block this afternoon and taken hostages in what has become a tense standoff. It is believed the man is armed with a high-powered rifle and there are reports he has strapped explosives to himself, and is threatening to blow up the building. As of yet, his demands have not been made public. Let's go now to our reporter on the scene."

"Thanks Bill. I'm standing outside the Jynks Tower in the CBD, and behind me yyou can see police have cordoned off the entrance to the building and in that white van just over there hostage negotiators are trying to difuse the situaton by talking the gunman down. The SWAT team is geared up, and just went into the lobby but there has been no official statement as of yet. Power to the building has been shut off and right now it looks like this is going to drag out for several more hours. The number of hostages is unknown, and the motive of he gunman remains a mystery. It seems we have a standoff at this time."

Sally got up. This was clearly a job for O Girl. Within moments she was in her backyard, and with a boom and a blinding flash of light she was gone. Back inside her house, the reporter kept talking.

"The last time we had a situation like … what's that! Up there! It looks like … O Girl has just swooped onto the scene. Quick! get a shot of that!"

Sally landed behind the negotiators van, sending up a small cloud of dust as her feet crushed the tarmac. She reached out and tore the rear door off the van.

"Hello! I'm here!"

The team inside the van looked at her in silence for a moment.

"Never fear gentlemen, O Girl will resolve this for you!"

"It's alright O Girl," the cheif negotiator told her firmly. "This is a delicate situation and we've got it under control!"

O Girl looked around.

"I don't mind helping, you know that! Now, give me a few minutes and I'll bring this crazy fellow to justice!"

"Wait!"

But O GIrl was gone, soaring into the sky as she searched for the hostages, and the men in the van were knocked into their expensive equipment by the force of her departure. A few seconds later there was a sharp crash from above and glass rained down on the sidewalk.

"She's gone in!"

The head negotiator jumped down out of the van and looked up.

"Oh no."

With perception that surprised his superior officer, a beat cop nearby wondered "Why did didn't she just use the door?"

The gunman and his hostages picked themselves up as O Girl hovered before them. 

"What the …"

"Just what exactly did you think was going to happen?" O Girl demanded, raising her voice a little too much.

"O Girl!" a hostage called out in warning, "He's got a bomb!"

The gunman aimed his rifle awkwardly with one hand as he pulled open his large uncomfortable jacket to show two rows of TNT taped to his torso.

"This is not your concern, O Girl!" he told her, in a surprisingly calm voice for a crazed gunman. "See this? This my justice right here. Either I get my justice from these people, or they make shit righteous again on their own. And if you interfere, or if I'm taken out, the deadman switch will kill every last one of you."

O Girl, completely unphased by the revelation of explosives. "Well. It will kill all of you. That's true." She tilted her to the side in curiosity. "Justice for what?"

"These people tell me my boy's gotta die because my policy doesn't cover his condition. They even suggested that it was my fault."

O Girl looked around and realised where she was. This was one of the offices of a small but fast growing insurance company. She examined the cowering hostages and noted their executive attire. She didn't like executive types. She'd been fired several times by people in executive attire.

"What is he talking about? What boy?"

No one was game to answer.

"The boy they're gonna let die," the gunman answered on their behalf. "My boy."

O Girl's eyes narrowed. She could always tell when people were lying. And this crazy person with a TNT vest sounded like he was telling the truth, and the nervous shuffling among the hostages was not helping their case.

"Is he telling the truth? Is his son dying?"

"He's … we … um. You have to understand, O Girl, that his man's policy clearly states in line …"

Suddenly O Girl had the terrified executive dangling from her Armani-tearing grip.

"Don't … Don't do that. I think you want to sign whatever piece of paperworks you need to to save that boy."

"But …"

Suddenly, and without warning, something whizzed through the air and buried itself in the wall. Then a shot rang out. The gunman, a fresh hole in his head, fell forward. For just a split second, O Girl wondered what the beeping was. Then her eyes went wide as the bomb exploded. She had time enough to save the man she held, pressing him up against the wall with her body to protect him from the explosion, while the wall all around them was destroyed, the booming detonation tearing it away.

Sally stepped back and turned to instantly lay her powerful eyes upon the sniper responsible for killing everybody. The other survivor, amazed to be alive and stunned to see how clean the mighty O Girl was in the blackened destruction all around him, cupped his agonised ears and fell to his knees in shock. But he found new depths of concern when the air suddenly became alive with energy and O Girl started to glow softly. As the surviving hostage looked on she began to change. The cheerful colours of her skimpy costume darkened, and she started to fill it even more. Tiny hair-like arcs of unknowable energy danced over her flesh as it hardened further still and stretched over her body.

Sally couldn't believe the sniper had done that. Why? Surely the gunman had told them about the deadman switch … he was sure quick to mention it to her. She was already feeling terrible about the plight of the little boy that was at the core of today's events, and now that little boy was without a father. The rage grew quickly within her, and with it came that reassuring rush of unadulterated power that seemed to come with it when she was O Girl. It felt wonderful as the strength she had before became a mere drop in a new ocean.

There was a blinding flash as she released blinding beams from her eyes that shot across the street and blasted a huge hole where the sniper had been just an instant before.

She turned to the man behind her and spoke softly, which made her words more menacing.

"You wait here. Try and escape me and I will kill you."

Leaving him, accepting his incontinence as a reply, Sally hovered out over the street. People were screaming and running about all over the place.

"Hey down there!" Sally boomed angrily, descending slowly. "Just what the hell do you think you're doing?"

The officer in charge gulped. He'd never seen anything more terrifying, or been so unsettled, in all his days working the force. O Girl hovered above them, eyes full of rage, and she had grown another foot taller.

"That man was trying to save his son! Who ordered that shot?"

No one moved except one. Quick as a flash the OIC was in his car and tearing down the street. He knew he was dead whether he stayed there and let he calmly tear him apart (he'd read reports of some her drug busts), or if he ran. He wasn't the type to sit and do nothing.

Without hesitation, O Girl soared down from the sky and crashed into the road before the fleeing vehicle. She reached out and gripped the front of the car with one hand, and caught the escapee with the other as his body was thrown through the windscreen. The ripple of destruction from her impact reached the shopfronts on either side of the road, and a huge plume of dust and debris was sent up and down the wide avenue.

"You killed all those people," she told him coldly. Unfortunately, the man was unconscious and therefore unable to offer an apology. O Girl sniffed at his weakness, and tossed the man callously back into his car. If he had survived that, there was certainly no way he would have survived the impact when she lifted the wrecked car and slammed it into the ground. Nothing remained of the car, and the destruction of the shopfronts was complete when she took to the air and returned to the surviving hostage.

He was just slumped in the hot rubble, a look of resignation on face. But the resignation became total terror when O Girl reappeared in the room. He stared at her, drinking in the souped up supergirl with new appreciation. Even her beauty seemed to have taken a massive boost from her anger, and he found himself as deeply aroused as he was afraid.

"Now then. You're going to tell me every fucking thing you know about that little boy. And you're going to do it right now."

4

The four dark figures stood silently over the sleeping woman. They all knew the risks, and they had all agreed it was worth it.

The woman slept soundly, a blissful smile on her beautiful face as she cuddled a large teddy bear, holding it tightly against her mouth watering breasts.

One of the group waved ahand in front of her colleagues face, annoying by his blatant saving of the scene to his highlight reel. He snapped out of it, and raised the syringe he held. Giving it a quick squirt to remove all traces of air, he gently took hold of the deeply sleeping woman's forearm and pressed the needle in. In the darkness they could see a faint glow where the needle touched her, and the man was unable to pierce her skin.

Sally woke with a start. The four jumped back in terror as the sleeping beauty let out a gasp of fright and pulled the covers up.

"Now, now … just give us a …"

Before he could finish, Sally's adrenaline kicked in. There was a vicious boom, and all four saw a blinding light come from every pore of Sally's body. The blankets were vaporised, a charred outline releasing tendrils of smoke now highlighted a new improved Sally. All four intruders got back to their feet

Sally seemed to relax into her new bulk, letting out a contented and deeply stirring sigh before frowning at her ruined bed and scatted items.

"And just what do you think you're doing in my bedroom?"

Sally hovered up off her bed and, before they knew how, she had them all gathered up in her powerful arms, ignoring their puny efforts to escape. They all tried to speak at once, but found the air quickly driven out of their lungs by a powerful squeeze of Sally's arms.

"I don't know who you are or what you're up to, but I guess you know who I am."

Sally held the group for moment, considering what to do. If they knew she was O Girl before or not, they certainly did now.

"Does anyone else know about me?" she asked. They all nodded.

"Are there more of you here now?"

"Outside …" one managed to croak.

As Sally caught a glimpse of the syringe on the floor, she felt angry. They had snuck into her room and attempted to drug her. Bastards. Unfortunately for them, the surge of power made her involuntarily tighten her hold. Annoyed with them for pissing her off and making her kill again, Sally got angrier still and her usually bright O Girl outfit became dark. With great care Sally hovered through her house and out onto the lawn. Fortunately the intruders had left the door open, so she didn't have to damage any more of her house.

On the street were three large black SUV's and a big black van. All around stood men in dark suits, none of them appearing to be too happy to see her.

"She's gone black again," someone observed despairingly.

"Oh no."

Sally hovered up over them and let her anger give her another boost, gaining another six inches and allowing the energy to dance in the air around her.

"You guys know who I am, and you know what I can do …"

One brave soul stepped forward.

"Wait, O Girl! We can expl … .."

"Shut-UP!" O Girl commanded, knocking half of them off their feet. "I don't fucking care who you are! You come to my house, sneak into my room while I'm asleep …"

"You don't understand …"

"I said SHUT-UP!"

All the men and all the cars that brought them here were sent tumbling over the road and into the houses across the street. Sally couldn't help but feel a little satisfied as she watched them all being scattered by just her angry outburst alone.

Only one man remained, having managed to hold onto a street light. 

"Looks like it's just you and me, pal," she told him, lifting him to his feet before he even knew she'd moved in beside him. 

"O Girl! Listen …"

"What did I say before?" she asked quietly, giving him a quick shake. "I don't know what criminal mastermind sent you here, scumbag, but you go back and tell him what happened here today. You tell him his days are numbered: I'm coming for him. And no matter who he his or where he's hiding … he's gonna be mine. Go tell him."

Sally dropped the man and watched him run away as fast as he could. 

Half an hour later, the surviving man sat in the debriefing room trying to explain what happened.

"They got in. I don't know what went wrong."

"Did they inject her or not?"

Someone else entered the room with a laptop and popped it open.

"Here's the feed we got back from the van wreck."

The screen showed the sleeping Sally and her Teddy, seeming to dwell on the incredibly perfect breasts as they heaved. A hand waved across the image a few times, and the picture shook for a second before refocusing on a forearm being deftly held by a hand in a black glove. A syringe entered the shot, the needle quickly yet expertly pressed up against Sally's flesh. Then something remarkable happened. There was a gentle glow on Sally's skin that formed a small one inch disk around the tip of the needle. The man only had moment to realise the needle could not peirce the skin before the arm was pulled from his grasp.

"I think you'll find this most interesting," the man who had brought the computer in told everyone.

On the screen Sally was recoiling on the bed. Then there was a flash and the picture went dark.

"That's it?"

"What the fuck was that glow?"

"It seems even in her normal form she has … protection … of some sort."

"Then we've got a real problem."

"And that's not the worst of it, gentleman. Didn't anybody else notice?"

They all looked at the speaker, waiting impatiently.

"She never said her 'magic' word."

"Then we're fucked. We have no control over this woman at all, and she's far too dangerous to leave running around."

"Then we really don't have a choice, do we?"

"What are you saying?"

"We have to make her want our help."

"And how do we do that?"

"She's just lost her anonymity. Let's offer to give it back to her."

"It might be the only thing we have to offer. I'll call Langley and tell the Director what we're doing."

Sally sat in her bedroom and wondered what the hell to do now. They knew who she was. Her secret identity was no secret anymore. 

And then it suddenly occured to her. It seemed so obvious that she felt a little silly for not seeing it sooner. She picked up the phone and dialled.

"Hello? Yes? CNN? I want to speak to Barbara Walters …"

5

"Are you sure about this?"

"I can't believe you'd ask that. There's a lot of people who want answers from this girl, and I intend to get them."

"Well … if you're sure, Barry."

Barry checked himself in the mirror one more time, and prepared for the interview of a lifetime.

"Um … sir, I think you might want to be made aware of this."

Everyone went silent as the woman on the television continued her enthusiastic announcement.

"… and so that little boy was saved. Well, here in the studio … and willing to share all her secrets … is O Girl herself. And so let's go live now, to Barry Hopkins. Barry … ?"

The screen filled with a serious middle-aged face.

"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. I'm Barry Hopkins, and with me tonight is a young woman who has made herself known to all of you quite recently. Though she has only been around for three months, she has gained a large media profile than the President … even though nobody even knows who she is. Well, tonight … tonight we're going to lift the lid and reveal the real identity of self proclaimed "Protector of the weak and helpless", the mighty O Girl."

The camera angle switched, and revealed that he was sitting in the classic Johnny Carson show interview position. On his couch was a startlingly beautiful woman.

"You better get back on the phone to Langley," someone observed, getting up to increase the volume.

Sally wasn't happy, but she still offered the Barry Hopkins fellow her best smile before showing her pearly white teeth to the wrong camera.

"Hello, um, Barry."

"Yes." Barry shifted in his chair. He hadn't introduced her yet. "Hello, O Girl. Let me start by pointing out to the audience that you are currently in your normal form, is that correct?"

"Well … that's one way to put it, Barry."

"Which is why you look so different. Because you are in fact just a normal person for most of the time, is that so?"

"No. I'm pretty much a super version of the old me now. But when I'm O Girl, I'm like super-super-me. It's more like that."

"Before we get to O Girl, I think everybody would like to know who you are. Who is this woman I'm speaking to right now?"

Sally thought about that. "I'm Sally Clarke."

"And what do you do?"

"I work as a waitress part time. I get good tips. And I like to cook shi … I mean … cakes. I like to cook cakes and stuff."

"I see. And now, if you don't mind, could you prove to everyone watching that you really are O Girl?"

"Sure."

Covering her mouth to not let anyone see, Sally whispered her secret word and triggered the explosive change. The cheap set around her was almost completely demolished, two panel of Barry's fake desk were ripped away to show him picking himself back up. 

"Whoah!" the producer's voice rang out. "We lost everything! Get a another camera in here!"

"Sorry." Sally giggled. "I'm pretty powerful, huh?"

"Yes, Sally," Barry told her, allowing three people to fix his hair and make-up while Sally sat on the smouldering couch looking pristine and perfect. 

"Okay! On three! Two!"

"Sorry about that folks. We appear to have had technical difficulties."

"That was my fault," Sally explained cheerfully. "I release so much raw power when I change … you know … it's just one of those things."

"Um. Sure. That's fine, O Girl. Now then. How long have you had these powers?"

"About three months ago, I just … changed."

"Can you tell us how?"

"It just happened. One minute I was getting fired. The next minute I was O Girl."

"You know there's a reward out for you?"

"I know. But I don't want their money."

"It's not for you. The reward is for information leading to your arrest. There's a lot of people unhappy with your methods, O Girl."

'Excuse me?"

"In the last two days alone you have cost this city tens of millions of dollars. I believe you came forward now only because you destroyed several of your neighbour's homes. Isn't that true?"

"I didn't mean to," Sally told him. "What are you getting at?"

"Sally, there's a lot of lives that have been destroyed because of your methods. Can you tell us what gives you the right to do so much damage?"

Sally tried to stay positive, but she didn't like where this was going.

"I've saved lot's of people too. I've prevented crime all over the place, and I haven't asked for anything in return. You're being very negative."

"You've killed people."

"Bad people die sometimes. Police shoot baddies every day."

"But you killed police."

Sally gave Barry a warning glare, her eyes glowing for just an instant.

"I killed bad police. And only after they pissed me off. Are you trying to piss me off, Barry?"

"I'm trying to get to the truth.'

"I tried to get Barbara Walters. We don't always get what we want."

"Why do you think the city needs you to help?"

"Because all of you are so pathetically weak."

"I happen to think the citizens of this city are strong."

"Really? If I wanted I could kill every single one of you one by one, and take my time doing it."

Barry shuffled nervously.

"But I won't!" Sally declared. "I think I've proven that I'm here to help! And I always will be."

"But Sally … you're help costs too much. The city can't afford to keep building overpasses every time there's a traffic jam."

Sally scratched her chin.

"You're right, Barry! I need insurance!"

"Hang on …"

"Thank's Barry! Now I see how I can prove to the city how much I love it. I'll pay for all the damage I've done, and get myself some insurance! I don't know why I didn't think of it before."

"Um. I didn't mean …"

"It's alright, Barry. I know just where to get the money, too!"

Before Barry could say anything else, Sally was gone. The whole set was covered in dust and debris as it rained down from the huge hole Sally had torn in the ceiling. She had one thing on her mind: Money. It was time she sorted her finances out, and she knew of a very wealthy man who might be able to help her out. It would also be the perfect way to introduce herself to the rest of planet Earth.

"Well? Where did she go?"

"We're tracking her … she's still moving."

"I think she's lost."

"She's stopping in China."

The men sat silent for a moment, fearing the worst. 

"She's moving again. Is that …?"

"Yep. And she's going in."

"Do we warn them?"

"Who gives a fuck what she does to the North Koreans?"