*Whoever said 'it takes two' didn't run away fast enough*

(Thanks from many plus Shawhollow for the edit)

Lydia Davies was hanging out after work with several of her co-workers from her mother's boutique when she saw this cute guy that she'd helped with some lingerie shopping a few months back. He'd been awkward in a cute way, shy yet determined to find something for the woman who had everything. She was now curious if any of the two women at his table (along with the three guys) were the recipient of his gift.

"Hey...Ryan is it?" she asked . She remembered his name; Ryan Ferris with his dark grey eyes, thick, tossed black hair, clearly well-muscled physique – yum-yum.

"Hi Ms. Davies," he smiled back. It was nice to see that he was sharp enough to remember her but,

"Lydia," she corrected. "How did your selection work out?"

"Selection?" one of the men asked. Ryan looked highly uncomfortable but for some reason she wanted to keep this boy on edge.

"Yes, I own Leather and Lace on Park Avenue," Lydia informed the table. It was clear that none of the men at the table knew of the place but the women did.

The older of the two women at the table covered one of Ryan's hands with her own – definitely possessive and definitely not the One.

"Is that an S&M store?" one of the guys joked.

"It is a lingerie store," Ryan responded quietly but with authority.

"A high end lingerie store," the possessive woman clarified. "Ryan, were you picking a gift up for someone we know?"

"Oh, it was months and months ago," Lydia interjected. "I swear he barely looked old enough to be in the store." That brought a moment of silence to the table and from Lydia's little group of girls as well.

"This is a little birthday celebration for Ryan," one of the male co-workers spoke up. "We don't get him coming into the office much. Ryan is a stay-at-home kind of guy."

"Oh," Lydia perked up; Ryan had been pretty closed mouth about his background or what he did, "What is it that you do Ryan?"

"He's a graphic designer/artist," the possessive woman answered leaving Ryan unhappy. He was definitely a very private individual and it was an indication of his affection for the gift's recipient that he'd come to her store to pick something out.

"Are you any good?" Lydia asked Ryan. While he shrugged noncommittally, his eyes spoke volumes of for his pride and confidence.

"He's one of our best," the second woman informed her. Lydia translated that over to be 'the best'. "Still he insists on living in this rundown loft in Red Hook. I swear, half the time I go down there I expect to find his place broken into, him dead, or ending up being raped."

"Seriously Tonya?" Ryan asked somewhat alarmed.

"No," Tonya laughed, "after that first time no one has ever bothered me."

"First time?" Lydia was intrigued.

"Oh, the first time I showed up to drop off some work a few of the local wildlife decided to give me some attention. Like a flash, Ryan showed up and they couldn't run away fast enough," she regaled the group.

"Huh?" one of the guys wondered; it must have been the first time most of them heard this story.

"He came running out with nothing but sweat pants and a scowl. He demolished five guys as if they were nothing – I mean broken bones, screams, and grown thugs crying like little babies. I've never been bothered since. In fact, I've seen them scatter when the cab drops me off," she gushed.

"Ryan, are you some kind of ex-military?" Lydia inquired.

"No," he muttered, "I went to a rough high school."

"Where?" the third guy guessed, "Afghanistan or Iraq? Hell, if I knew you were athletic I'd have tried to talk you onto my Urban League Baseball team."

"I don't do competitive sports," Ryan admitted.

"How about one-on-one?" Lydia teased him.

"Excuse me?" Ryan answered.

"How would you like to go out on a date? Consider it a birthday present," Lydia propositioned him.

"Thank you very much but I'm not dating right now," Ryan evaded and Lydia was a little hurt.

"Go on dude," one of his buddies said, "you aren't seeing Hot Dog Girl anymore so what's holding you back?"

"Hot Dog Girl?" Lydia mused.

"Yeah, our monk, who has shown no interest in women since we've known him ... for three years now, suddenly starts talking it up with the girl who works that hot dog cart on 42nd street," the guy told everyone. Only Lydia seemed to note Ryan's smoldering anger.

"Well, we go down one day when Ryan is actually at the shop and he notices she's reading some book by a Polish guy and they get to talking ... in Polish," he grins.

"Yeah, I know, who would have thought Ryan knew Polish. Still, I don't think much of it until a week later I stop by and there's Ryan talking to the girl and Ryan doesn't say much but according to her they've been out a few times to some nice clubs and she's all bubbly. They stay serious until a month ago when – BANG – she says he's pulled a vanishing act. She wants to know if he is doing okay."

"What happened, Ryan? Do you feel like talking about it?" Lydia gently prodded.

"Not really," Ryan moped.

"According to her they are talking like they always do then he suddenly he pops up, looks around and beats feet down the street, never to be seen again," the mouthy friend keeps going on. "So Ryan, what happened?"

"I'm trying to live a normal life," Ryan muttered then stood up abruptly. "Thanks for everything guys, but I should be going." The older woman came around the table one way and Lydia came around the other, catching Ryan right outside the door.

"Ryan," Lydia got out first. He stopped but didn't turn around.

"Ryan," the other woman said, "do you want to talk about it?"

"Melissa," Ryan sighed, "talking about this isn't going to help. Its...fuck it. It is never going to change."

"It won't change if you stop trying," Lydia interjected.

"You have no idea what you are talking about," Ryan replied as he turned and regarded both women.

"Seriously, spend one more day at the office. Go out on one date with me. What have you got to lose?" Lydia challenged him.

By giving him an extra work day she was hoping to buy off the older woman and it seemed to work. Ryan stared down at the ground for about thirty seconds before looking at Lydia.

"Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you," he warned. Lydia grinned; it was a little more work than she was used to for getting a date but hopefully he was worth it.

Three Weeks Later

Ryan had turned out to be a wonderful catch. He didn't talk too much about what he did but he seemed to have been everywhere and seen all kinds of things in his short life. He was patient; maybe a bit too patient, but there wasn't anything he was afraid to try, be it food, entertainment, or less travelled parts of the city.

Lydia decided that date number seven was enough stringing things along. Ryan was definitely heterosexual from all the reactions she was getting off of him and he seemed eager enough so after dinner tonight they were going back to her place to 'watch some Blue Rays' which if he managed to do after she changed into 'something more comfortable' she'd nominate him for sainthood.

The entrees had just arrived and Lydia was savoring the wine Ryan had chosen when Ryan gave a start. For a twenty-one year old he had developed quite a refined pallet.

"Ryan, is there a problem?" Lydia inquired. His eyes remained riveted on the door, angry and electric.

Lydia followed his gaze to the door where a woman with flowing black hair, large sunglasses and a lavender trench coat walked into the restaurant, her gaze locked with Ryan's. She strode toward their table like she owned the place. Ryan rose up, his fists clenched and his jaw set.

"Ryan?" Lydia said in a more guarded manner.

"Hello ... Ryan," the woman greeted Ryan in a too familiar style. She seemed somehow old yet vibrant and young at the same time. She took a seat uninvited and sat down. "So, who is your little friend?" That stung Lydia and she felt like biting back.

"The woman I am here on a date with is named Lydia, 'S'," Ryan snarled as he sat back down.

"She seems awful frail for someone of your energy ... Ryan," the woman spoke as if Lydia wasn't really there, on her date, at her table.

"How about you two have this discussion tomorrow afternoon ... when Ryan isn't on a date with me whoever you are?" Lydia snidely commented to 'S'.

"Accept my advice, Lydia," the woman regard her, "you aren't up to the task. He is far more than you can handle ... I would know." Ryan shot up.

"That's it. Step outside," Ryan snapped.

"Oh come one ... Ryan. Your date had a real night planned for you. You should see what she has laid out on her bed to surprise you with," the woman gloated.

"Bitch!" seethed Lydia, "You were in my apartment?"

"She's ready and willing to put out for you Ryan. So was that little vendor whore. Do you know she'd bought a box of condoms that very morning?" 'S' kept prodding him.

"Outside or I'll put you outside," Ryan seethed. Lydia smelled ozone.

"You are still so impetuous," the woman smiled as she stood. "Very well; I wouldn't want you to make a scene." Ryan started to storm to the door then stopped, stared at the woman then walked over to Lydia and put a protective arm around her.

The woman shot Ryan and Lydia a dark look then led the way outside. Once out in the open, Ryan turned to Lydia.

"You have to get out of here and let me deal with this," he insisted.

"This is our date and we can deal with this together," Lydia stated.

"Oh," the woman laughed. "You've known him what ... three weeks? I've known him since he was twelve. We've fought and bled together. You have no idea what his potential is – what he is capable of." She started walking down the sidewalk and Ryan and Lydia followed. Lydia had a sinking feeling when she turned into an alleyway and Ryan fearlessly followed.

The woman walked half way down then turned and shed her glasses and trench coat. Her skintight costume was made of a synthetic compound more valuable than diamonds and available to only a select few. Lydia turned and hit Ryan with an open-hand to his chest.

"What the fuck! You could have told me your crazy ex-girlfriend is Lady Suprema!"

It is one thing when you learn your current interest's ex has a bigger bra size, or is taller, or runs marathons in their spare time. It is another to learn that his ex is the MOST POWERFUL BEING on the ENTIRE PLANET! Lady Suprema had been the most dominant super-heroic type being for almost fifty years since the death of Valiant. Five years ago she had beaten the most powerful group of super-villains to ever threaten the Earth.

"Stand back," Ryan warned Lydia. Sparks began arching off of him to the walls around them. Lydia jumped back right before a lightning bolt rent the heavens and struck Ryan, caused his body to glow in a blinding light then dissipated. When the spots cleared from Lydia's eyes, Ryan was gone and Storm Surge stood in his place.

"Oh crap," Lydia whispered. Now everything made sense. Five years ago, when a massive villain alliance threatened the world, Lady Suprema had gathered up heroes from across the globe, including a teenager called Storm Surge. He had fought and proven to be quite a valuable ally to the other senior heroes and heroines.

He'd also paid a high price. Not all the villains had been captured. One, Phoebus Sanguine, had located Storm Surge's parents and slaughtered them in a very graphic and gory manner. That is what welcomed a young Storm Surge when he came home from celebrating the victory. After that, he had been made the ward of Lady Suprema and the two had been inseparable until ... a few months ago.

"You can go now," Suprema told Lydia.

"No, I want to know what's going on here and particularly if you actually waited until Ryan was eighteen before you started screwing him," Lydia shot back.

"None of this is your business," Suprema glared.

"I am none of your business either, 'S'. We are done – over – broken up," Storm Surge declared.

"You are confused Storm Surge and I'm willing to wait for you to come to your senses," Suprema said with absolute conviction.

"I've had enough," Storm Surge growled. Lighting arched around his arms and the clouds over the city turned dark and storm charged.

Lady Suprema looked highly aroused by the upcoming struggle; Storm Surge less so.

"Don't do it Ryan," Lydia pleaded, "she'll pummel you."

"Once that was the case, but not anymore; I need to show her that now," Storm Surge promised.

"You are the perfect one for me, Storm Surge. I love you and you love me. I don't see why you are running away from what we have together," Suprema reasoned.

"I'm not some lost sixteen year old kid anymore Suprema; I want to live a more normal life. I want to breathe and you can't wrap your head around that. You fucking wouldn't let me grow up!" Ryan screamed at her. He panted from the rage and emotional turmoil. "Meadowlands," he demanded. Lydia wasn't sure the vacant area across the Hudson had to do with anything.

"Meadowlands," Lady Suprema agreed. "It is about time you learned why you can never go back to a normal life once and for all."

"I'll drive," Lydia declared.

"I fly," Ryan told her . Storm Surge was a kind of really, sorta famous – Master of the Elements, Wrath of Nature kind of guy.

"My date damn it!" Lydia put her foot down. "I think I deserve an explanation and I plan on getting one." Ryan looked torn but finally nodded his head in acceptance. Lady Suprema huffed and floated up into the air.

"Don't keep me waiting Ryan and Lydia," she threatened then took off faster than the eye could follow.

Ryan changed back into 'street' clothes before leaving the alleyway and they quickly made for her car. Before they got in, Ryan stared at Lydia intently.

"You have no idea what you are stepping into. She's not all that stable and ... let's just say our relationship puts a whole new spin on complicated. I'm not sure I can protect you."

"Why are we going then?" Lydia questioned.

"She's going to keep sabotaging my life until I stop her. Any person I get close to, she drives away. She threatened to demolish my home in Red Hook, ruin my clients, destroy my place of work, you name it. I can't keep living like this," Ryan sighed.

"What do you plan to do then?" Lydia worried.

"There is no law enforcement agency that can handle her and I doubt any hero will side with me – she's a living legend, so I guess I'll fight her," he answered.

"Ryan, she's the most powerful being on the planet. She is going to slap you around," Lydia stated the obvious.

"I'm more powerful than I let on but ... I know. I'm either going to beat her or she's going to kill me because I'm not going to live another night like tonight; I'd rather die," Ryan rumbled. All Lydia could think was this had to be the most epic break-up of all times. After all, who could intervene? Anyone capable was dead or in prison and the police had better things to do that be squished in a super-battle.

They were racing over the bridge when an idea occurred to Lydia.

"Is there a mutual friend you could call on to help out?"

"Her last friend was Clockwork and they'd been friends since the seventies. He died in the Thangus Demon War five years ago, sacrificing himself to seal the rift. Since then I've been her only friend and vice versa," Ryan explained.

"I'm a Nova-class sentient which means I'm essentially immortal. Lady Suprema is the only Terrestrial Super-Nova I'm aware of and most Novas can't stand up to her. Only one came close and that was Crown of Flames. He almost took her out but she beat him in the end," he told her.

"Ummm ... did this affair start before you were eighteen?" Lydia asked.

"None of your business," Ryan stated calmly.

"Did she take your virginity?" Lydia persisted. Ryan looked to her and smiled for the first time since Lady Suprema arrived.

"Lydia, I became a super-hero when I was twelve. By the time I hit high school I was scoring like mad. I flew, it never rained unless I wanted it to, and I looked kind of what I look like right now."

"Oh ... point. You come across as so shy at times, sort of innocent," Lydia mused.

"That would be the secret identity Lydia. If I run around acting like Storm Surge everyone will treat me differently and I want to live a more normal life. I'm not giving up being a superhero, but I like dating you, and going to movies and walking in the park," he pointed out.

"And Lady Suprema doesn't want to do that?" Lydia inquired.

"No, she would rather watch the Earth-rise while having sex on the Moon, or walk to surface of Mars holding hands and putting stones into orbit. Occasionally we would fly out past Saturn to catch old radio wave broadcasts of things that happened when she was younger."

Lydia had no good answer to that one. She had hoped to surprise Ryan with the Ghana Dance Company in the Village on Sunday afternoon. Now she felt kind of silly until she thought about that fact that her kind of fun was what he was craving. In a way this made it more her fight than ever. What she could actually do about it was another matter.

They didn't say anything until they pulled off the highway and coasted into the darkness of abandoned warehouses and marshland. It was a lonely place to have a fight but that was probably the point.

"Do you ... people often fight out here?" Lydia asked.

"If you mean do we super-types fight here, then yes, but normally 'Meadowlands' is a code word for taking the fight out of the city. Lady Suprema can topple skyscrapers and shoot planes out of the air. I can flash-fry the power grid or summon an eighty foot tidal wave. Us fighting in a populated area would be very bad," he explained.

"Normally when we go to the Meadowlands we actually calm down enough to not fight and figure another way to resolve issues," he added, "but that's not going to happen tonight. One way or another, this ends here."

"Can you tell me why she is so obsessed with you? Not that you aren't attractive, but damn this seems a bit extreme."

"I can't go into that," Ryan answered then, "Pull over there." Lydia pulled over to the side of the road in the middle of nowhere and Ryan jumped out. By the time his feet hovered inches off the ground he'd become Storm Surge once more. "I would really appreciate it if you got the hell out of Dodge now."

"Stay or go, it doesn't matter to me," Lady Suprema lilted as she came out of the darkness maybe ten meters off the ground. "This won't take long and he's coming home with me when we are done." Storm Surge didn't scream, or shout, but he did charge. For an instance Lydia was afraid that Suprema had goaded him into a rash action but she should have known better; Ryan was angry but he wasn't berserk.

They dodged and weaved, trading punches and blocks that crackled with energy and crack of thunder. Inevitably she hit him but while he staggered back in the air, he didn't tumble and when she came in for more, he countered and landed two telling blows of his own.

"Holy Crap," Lydia whispered, "he might actually stand a chance."

Ten seconds later Lady Suprema landed a powerful roundhouse to Storm Surge; rocketing him to the ground and leaving a deep furrow in the earth. She charged after him once more, but Lydia saw a lightning bolt arch out of the hole. It didn't stop her, but it slowed her down so that when she reached the lip of the furrow, she met Storm Surge's fist and it was her turn to go flying.

Once more they took to the heavens, trading glancing blows and shooting eye beams and lighting strikes until once again Lady Suprema seemed to tire of the game and blasted Storm Surge to earth. This time, the impact threw Lydia off her feet and caused a tidal wave of dirt to rush out in all directions. Lydia heard her car alarm go off.

Ryan barely got back to his feet when Suprema flew straight into him, pile-driving the young hero into the earth with an even greater impact. Lydia was somewhat surprised to hear fighting still going on because that meant Storm Surge was still capable of resisting after that much damage.

Lydia knew her boyfriend needed a distraction. She scanned the area and didn't see a battle tank lying around but she did remember that her grandfather had put an emergency kit in her car and that he said it had something for self-defense in it. She ran back and popped the trunk. Inside was a small green pad. It took her a moment to recognize it as a thumb print ID device.

She touched it and the bottom of the trunk popped open. Inside were some funky looking gun that looked more like a sixteen ounce bottle with a pistol grip attached and a few other silver objects that looked like grenades. She grabbed one of those and the gun then raced back to the fight. Lady Suprema was standing in a low ditch pounding the crap out of someone she couldn't see.

"Give it up Storm," she kept saying between punches. "This is stupid. I'll keep this up until you realize how wrong you are."

'Grenade – gun, grenade – gun; Ryan would be hurt by the grenade, so I shoot her,' Lydia thought. She pointed the gun at Lady Suprema and nothing happened.

On the gun a light was flashing; it read 'Setting'. 'Oh', she realized.

"Do you have a stun setting?" she muttered to herself.

"Weapon set to stun," the gun responded. Lydia could not help but realize how odd that was. Still she aimed at Suprema and shot. A bolt of energy lanced out to Lady Suprema and ... did nothing. The super-heroine hardly noticed.

"I'm fighting the most powerful person on the planet and I set the damn thing on stun," groused Lydia to herself. "Weapon: Full Power!" she commanded.

"Weapon at Full Power," was the voice's dutiful reply. Lydia aimed and fired again. Lady Suprema was lifted off her feet and knocked six or seven feet away. She looked ... annoyed, but not really hurt at all.

Eye beams blazed through the spot Lydia had just rolled away from.

"Oh God, oh God, oh God," she whimpered. "Lady Suprema is trying to kill me. Well fuck that nonsense. Weapon, kill the bitch!"

"Weapon on 'Kill the Bitch,' the feminine mechanical voice indicated.

Lydia popped up off the ground, drew aim on Lady Suprema who was flying toward Ryan once more and shot her dead center. The energy was blinding, Lady Suprema screamed and went tumbling off into the night.

"Oh crap, did I just kill Lady Suprema?" gasped Lydia. She stood up and started walking toward Ryan.

Suddenly there was a rush of air and she was face to face with her female nemesis. There was a nice circular hole burned in her outfit, scooping out the top of both breasts up to the neck. Her skin even looked mildly sunburned.

"No, you did not just kill Lady Suprema, but she's about to kill you," Suprema seethed. "You tried to disintegrate me."

"Oh ... that is what that setting does ... Sorry?" Lydia cringed. Somehow it bothered her that her grandfather had given her a disintegrator pistol and not warned her what it was. Before any such thoughts could percolate through, Storm Surge slammed into the distracted Lady Suprema and he bore her to the ground.

Fists arching with flame and lightning, he pummeled Suprema again and again, shaking the earth and causing rain to flood down from above. On the ninth blow, Lady Suprema caught his fists and pushed him back. She was just too strong. She flipped Ryan over and began squeezing his fists so hard they started to break.

"Get off him, you bitch," Lydia screamed and pointed the pistol. Lady Suprema kept causing Storm Surge pain so Lydia pulled the trigger.

"Weapon Status: Power Cell exhausted. Please reload or recharge."

"Mother fucker!" she howled. Well, she still had her grenade. She pushed down the button on the top of the grenade and both combatants separated as if shocked by some unseen force.

"Don't move," Ryan cautioned Lydia, holding his fist in mid-strike.

"Alright both of you," snapped Lydia. "Calm the fuck down or I'll throw my grenade at you."

"Lydia, you idiot, that isn't a grenade," Lady Suprema, who had also stopped fighting, said.

"That is an Ion Mine," Ryan explained. "If you let up on that plunger it will go off and vaporize everything in a one hundred meter radius ... except Lady Suprema and myself, but we'll still hurt like hell."

Lydia cursed her grandfather for sticking something like this in her trunk. Why couldn't he put instruction on the damn ... and then she saw the bright orange warning on the side of the mine.

'Warning: Ion Mine; disrupts all atomic structures in a 100m radius. Release time: zero seconds. For booby trapping suggestions, consult manual.'

"Thanks Granddad," Lydia muttered.

"I'll take care of the mine," Lady Suprema sighed.

"No; my girlfriend thus my problem. I'll take care of the mine," Ryan countered.

"I can take the damage more than you can," Lady Suprema argued with him.

"How about this; I don't trust you to not rip off her hand," he pointed out. Lady Suprema exhaled deeply and shrugged.

"You want to play grown up then have at it, but our fight isn't over," she reminded him. Ryan nodded and came over to Lydia.

"Okay now, I'm going to slip my hand in next to your and take over the detonator. Then I'm going to fly up on into the upper atmosphere and toss it," he outlined the plan for her.

"Are you going to be able to get far enough away?" Lydia asked.

"Umm ... no. This is going to hurt ... a lot," he confessed. Lydia sighed and nodded her assent.

Ryan deftly made the switch and swept up into the sky and out of sight. Lydia looked down to earth in time to see Lady Suprema standing now only inches away.

"Where did you get an Ion Mine?" the super-heroine asked, her eyes following Ryan. "Oh, and," she put a hand on Lydia's pistol and shattered it into a hundred pieces, "that's illegal tech too. You have some explaining to do."

"That's right," Lydia snapped back, "we can sit down with the NYPD and talk to them about the stuff I found at a rummage sale why you explain what you are doing out here beating up your ex-boyfriend who also happens to be your ex-ward." Their conversation was cut off by a flash of light up on the night sky.

"Well, I had better go finish him off before he recovers," Lady Suprema mused then she raced off into the night after Storm Surge. Lydia sat down on the damp ground and felt like crying. The fight was all but over when the two titans fell to earth once more. Ryan kept struggling but had clearly lost the ability to adequately defend himself. Lady Suprema kept telling him to stay down, but he refused.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Lydia ran up to the greatest power on the planet. "Please tell me why him?"

"I told you, we are perfect for each other. We belong together," Lady Suprema said with worn patience.

"That's girl-talk. What's the real reason?" Lydia persisted. Lady Suprema dropped Ryan to the ground and turned her full majesty on Lydia.

"He does for me what no other man can do; he makes me a woman," she ground her teeth in sexual frustration.

"Wait, seriously? You can't find anyone else to fuck you? Lady Suprema, you are gorgeous. You have fan clubs all across the globe. How hard can it be?" Lydia babbled.

"Men ... cannot survive having sex with me," Suprema muttered softly. "There is no one else but him. There never has been and may very well never be again."

Lydia stepped back and her eyes grew wide.

"Oh ... that sucks." Lydia thought it over then the blocks fell into place. "He took your virginity didn't he?" Lady Suprema nodded.

"Back when I started out, and was weaker, women didn't have promiscuous sex and by the time it was 'okay' I was too strong ... until he came along," Suprema sighed.

"Men," Lydia commiserated. "Let me guess, you didn't see it coming."

"No, I thought it was harmless flirtations until suddenly he was ... in me ... and I felt so alive, but it was only that one time before he turned eighteen," she admitted.

"And then you fucked like bunnies ..." Lydia joked and Lady Suprema actually blushed slightly.

"Don't worry about it; most of us were fighting through high school while you were fighting the Purple Lotus or the Seven Dragon Knights," Lydia told her. "You had adrenaline rushes and we had hormones."

"And now he wants something else," Lady Suprema looked down sadly at Ryan who was pushing himself up off the ground.

"Let him live a little," Lydia suggested. Seeing the suspicion in Suprema's eyes she added, "You made love on the Moon. A guy isn't going to forget that and as far as I can tell he hasn't forgotten you, but he wants to try different things here on Earth that you did decades ago."

Lady Suprema's gaze fell back to Ryan with renewed intensity.

"Besides, do you want to beat him up every week? I've only known him three weeks, but he doesn't seem like the kind of guy who lets people push him around ... even if it is for his own good. Do you see what I'm saying?" Lydia prodded.

"I can't express to him how much I hurt inside when I wake up and he's no longer there," she said bitterly.

"I'm getting the picture," Ryan groaned.

"How about this; you get him two days a week and we – me and his work – get him for the other five? He sort of gets what he wants and you still get something of what you want," Lydia suggested. Lady Suprema seemed to be thinking that over.

"No," growled Ryan.

"Ryan, you are her first and only love, you took her virginity, and how many other girlfriends are you going to find as tolerant as I am? If you want your free life," Lydia lectured, "take your five god-damn days and be happy."

"Diplomacy is the art of compromise that leaves no one happy," Lady Suprema whispered. Ryan stood up and faced Suprema.

"I never stopped loving you, but I needed to make my own way and stand on my own two feet," he related.

"Two days?" she asked him softly. Ryan mulled that over.

"Two days," he agreed with a nod. Lady Suprema grabbed his battered form gave him a huge hug and then a kiss before launching herself into the sky and vanishing.

"We didn't decide on which days," he uttered.

"That could have turned out worse," Lydia smiled mischievously. Ryan cast a look her way and glared. "Wait until you see the lingerie I picked out for you to see me in tonight!" she gleefully informed him. "But first my cars been flipped over; can you right it?"

After picking the car up and putting it back on its tires Ryan started laughing.

"What is it?" Lydia questioned.

"I should have just screwed you on the second date and gotten this over with. I've been keeping her away from you for two weeks now and it all turned out to be a waste of my time," he chuckled.

"What makes you think I would have had sex with you then?" Lydia teased.

"Because I followed her to your place where you pulled out your pink little toy and whispered my name while you pleasured yourself," he explained. "If it is said in the breeze I can hear it."

"Oh ... you are going to be tons of fun in the bedroom," Lydia giggled.

Miles down the road Ryan turned to Lydia.

"So are you ever going to tell me where you got an energy pistol and an Ion Mine from?"

"If you want to have sex with me you'll never ask me that question again," she replied.

"Okay," Ryan shrugged; he clearly had his priorities right.

The next day on the eastern end of Long Island

Lydia liked her grandfather's renovated Victorian mansion out here on the rural side of the island. Her grandfather was a recluse, confined to a wheelchair and alone except for his mute manservant named Gordon. As far as she knew, Lydia was the only one who made regular treks out to see her favorite relative. In fact, she had the impression everyone else was afraid of the old man.

She strode confidently into her grandfather's study as he snapped a look and a smile her way but kept his main attention on the series of monitors around him. He was always reading, or tinkering on something. She came around the desk, hugged him and slipped him a bag of Skittles – Gordon wouldn't let Granddad have candy anymore.

"Grandpa?" Lydia greeted him.

"Yes honey?" he replied somewhat distracted.

"Why did you give me a pistol that disintegrates people and a thingy that levels whole city blocks? I mean seriously; what did you think I would be facing?" she wondered.

"I thought you would be dating Storm Surge who has an enemies list as long as the Empire State Building," he chuckled.

"Oh. Grandpa, I shot Lady Suprema with that pistol," Lydia confessed.

"How did that work out?" he inquired.

"It pissed her off," Lydia informed him.

"Oh well, it is only the pistol model. The rifle model is a bit stronger," he mused.

"Is there something I need to know about?" Lydia inquired hopefully.

"I love you Lydia," he smiled up at Lydia.

"I love you too Grandpa, how did you know Ryan was Storm Surge?" Lydia went fishing.

"Let's not go into that," he smirked.

"Grandpa, are you a super-villain?" Lydia mused.

"Let's not go into that," he cautioned her in a friendly manner.

"Is there something we can talk about?" she asked.

"Sure. Five years ago fifty of Earth's mightiest supers (heroes and villains) gave their lives in defense of this planet," Grandpa changed the subject.

"I knew that Grandpa ... where is this leading?" Lydia answered.

"Three people rose up to save the day; Lady Suprema, Clockwork, and Storm Surge," he continued on.

"Oh, I had never heard that he played a major role," Lydia furrowed her brow.

"Lady Suprema kept him out of the limelight, but many who fought there know how tough he is," he gave some insight.

"That's nice, but wouldn't that make me safer?" Lydia reasoned.

"Of those fifty that died, forty-eight were male," Grandpa smirked.

"Uh-oh," Lydia put it together.

"Yeah, now that word is getting out that he's no longer exclusively with Lady Suprema, female supers are going to start coming out of the woodwork and a good number of those are going to be villainesses," he cautioned Lydia.

"I'm not worried; he puts the bad girls in jail," Lydia asserted. Ryan was, at his core, a good guy. Sure he could be immature at times but Lydia had known men much older who were even worse.

"Lydia, he's a twenty-one year old heterosexual male and have you seen how little super-villainesses are wearing these days? Worry," he taunted his favorite family member.