Chapter One
Sparkling rays of light flickered across the tops of the white caps as she flew in close, a light spray jetting into the air as she dipped a foot into the rolling water. It wouldn't break until it got closer to shore, but she wasn't interested in seeing that.
Her presence would inevitably draw a crowd, and she didn't feel like being worshiped as a sun goddess. This time was for
her
to enjoy.
Spinning around in a circle, she sloughed off the water, letting out a joyful laugh as a spray of droplets bounced off the sleek form of her bodysuit. She really
was
looking quite nice today.
Bracing a heel into the notch of her other foot, she floated gently upwards, stretching out her arms to welcome the warm rays of the sun.
She immediately felt reinvigorated, which was only natural. She
was
one of this city's premiere heroines, the sun hero Solaris, ready to blast any evil intruders to smithereens!
Her lip curled. None of
those
rats had deigned to show their faces after she had fried the last bunch, more's the pity. She was feeling pretty bored lately, and could use the exercise.
Not that she was feeling particularly athletic at the moment. Resting her hands behind her head, she closed her eyes as she slowly rose into the sky, enjoying the fading rays of the evening sun. It wasn't quite low enough yet for the cool breeze to creep in, but the heat was no longer quite as intense at this angle.
Just right.
A tickling scent curled into her nose, tugging at her nostrils. She took a deep breath, trying to clear it, but the cloying sweetness refused to budge.
That was odd
.
Opening her eyes, she turned around languidly, inspecting the closest section of shoreline.
Ah
. She had floated a few miles, and was now passing close by the botanical garden where she had attended a lavish opening ceremony a few days ago.
There were still a few areas that needed to be cleaned up, so the general public wouldn't be able to enjoy the lush greenery for another week or two. They would probably get lost in it when they were allowed in, as it looked ridiculously massive from
this
height.
Her fellow superheroes had seeded this place from their own private headquarters, and there would be plenty to see and do once the crowds arrived. Solaris had seen most of the specimens before, so she wasn't all
that
interested, but there was plenty of unique flora to attract the discerning visitor.
There was that
smell
, though! She didn't recall anything of the sort when she had visited with Violet, and that was unusual in and of itself.
Her friend was a bit of a mad scientist, and Solaris had never known her to hold back if she thought that she had discovered something exciting. There was no filter with that one.
Turning over, she scanned back and forth, trying to locate the source. There was too much undergrowth at this height to see much of anything, so she folded her arms and dropped into the open pavilion near the center of the garden.
She much preferred to patrol from the air, but her skintight bodysuit would provide just as much protection on foot as well. Worrying about getting it dirty wasn't a good excuse when villains could be lurking!
She squinted, adjusting her mask to make sure that the lenses were aligned properly. She wasn't too worried about being ambushed.
She could vaporize any threat that might appear, as long as she didn't lose her specialized goggles. Without them, she couldn't focus enough to give anyone much more than a nasty sunburn.
There didn't appear to be anything to worry about here, however, other than a light breeze rifling through the large leaves of the banana trees surrounding her.
Frowning, she leaned back and forth, but couldn't see much of anything. She
did
catch another whiff of that curious smell however, and shrugged. She might as well find out what all this was about. She'd snap a picture or two and see if she could get Violet to identify the plant for her.
Stalking off down one of the radial paths, she craned her neck, trying to make sure nobody was creeping up on her. Despite how she had speculated, she didn't seriously think that the garden had been infested with baddies. On the other hand, she didn't like the thought of being startled by a groundskeeper, either.
Becoming the butt of someone's joke definitely wasn't on her list today. She was a regal, powerful hero, and that's how she wanted to remain.
Dignified.
She clutched a hand to her chest and let out an embarrassingly loud burp as she tripped over an imperfection in the pavers.
When she had regained her poise, she spun her head around, ready to shoot down any observers with an indignant stare. Fortunately, it appeared that nobody had seen her little indiscretion.
She was safe!
There was a buzzing motion somewhere in the undergrowth, however. A large bird?
She was already tired of sneaking around. Bracing herself, she rammed a shoulder into the thick leaves, pushing them aside to make room for her slender form. Reaching her hands in front of her, she swept the remaining leaves aside, ready for anything.
What appeared was less exciting than she had anticipated. There were several large plants overlapping each other, with wide pitchers arrayed at different levels, filled to the brim with a dark, brown fluid.
Perhaps it was some form of unusual pitcher plant? The smell seemed stronger here, as if it was meant to attract the plant's next meal.
She leaned over the top of one of the burbling pitchers, looking at it with a skeptical eye. She wasn't certain she wanted to touch the contents. It was probably a sticky mess that would stain her clothing.
She needed a sample somehow, though. Maybe she could cut off one of the pitchers and use it as a container?
Getting down on her knees, she grabbed at a large, curled one she had spotted farther in.
There, she'd only need a little for a proper spectral analysis. It smelled so
