“Did we know my Zero could control fire?” Dana Sharp asked her assistant, Melody, the moment the elevator doors closed. Ms. Sharp sat at her desk in the third-floor office while Melody stood close by. The woman that left in the elevator was named Jana Stevens; Ms. Sharp fired her for taking pictures of classified files. In her panic, Jana revealed she had superpowers. Ms. Sharp remained unfazed and fired the woman anyway.
“We never considered the possibility of the body having its own powers,” Melody answered. “I’ll send Janet out to round up a few Supers and start learning what we can.”
“Start with her,” Dana pointed at the closed elevator.
“But she’s your Zero?” Melody reminded her boss with a hint of hesitation in her voice.
“Exactly. I know she’d study me because I’m going to study her,” she smiled at Melody with a cold, determined grin. “I got here first.”
“Yes, Ms. Sharp,” Melody nodded, then she disappeared into a black portal. She stepped out into a barren, arid wasteland, but continued walking and stepped through another black portal. This time she emerged in a parking lot with Jana Stevens walking towards her. The woman was cursing at the ground and did not notice Melody until she said something.
“Ms. Stevens, Ms. Sharp would like to offer you a different position.” The startled woman jumped but recovered quickly.
“How’d you get down here so fast?” Melody smiled and showed Jana her blue glowing hand.
“You’re not the only one with abilities, remember?”
“Yeah, but how?” She asked, then shook her head. “Forget it, what’s this new position?”
“We’d like to know more about your powers-,” Melody began. Jana interrupted her with a heavy guffaw.
“I thought I wasn’t a UNIQUE SOUL,” she used air quotes around the term. Melody nodded.
“You aren’t, but Ms. Sharp is interested in your gifts.”
“What? Why me?”
“Because she can’t do what you can do,” Melody explained.
“Huh?”
“Ms. Sharp and I are from an alternate universe,” Melody kept talking through Jana’s surprised expression. “You…,” she pushed a sharp finger into Jana’s shoulder. “…are Ms. Sharp’s doppelganger. She’s curious why you have powers and she doesn’t.” Jana took a step back.
“What happens if I say no?” Melody shrugged.
“Ms. Sharp already told you we only experiment on volunteers. If you say no, then you get to start job hunting tomorrow.”
“What kind of experiments?
“Whatever you volunteer for,” she smiled. “We have a long list ranging from simple treadmill tests to exploratory surgery. The more we learn from you the more you get paid.”
“Surgery? She’d do that to her own doppelgangers?” Melody smiled and her eyes sparkled with admiration.
“Ms. Sharp doesn’t let anyone stand in the way of getting what she wants. Least of all herself.”
