The warehouse looked empty from Lady Marvel's perch across the bay. Using her enhanced vision made the details of the run down waterfront facility clear. Lights on the inside of the building revealed little else but motion as the windows were mounted high on the walls and they had been blacked out over the years due to grime and fumes.
"I know Dr. Destructo is in there, no one else is on the wharf at this time of night." She said to no one in particular. Hours before the last wharf rats had gone home and silence had fallen on the night. It was only a few minutes ago had any action resumed on the wharf and in warehouse that she now studied intently.
A slight breeze came off the water and fluttered her long dark hair, a slight smile came across her face as she remembered her mentors words, "No capes Julia, they're dangerous in combat and can move when you least want them to giving away your position."
Her costume followed form over function, a dark grey one-piece leotard with her clutched fist emblem in matte black on her chest. Matching gloves and boots along with a simple mask and utility belt completed her attire and ensured that in the dead of night she would only be seen when she wanted to be.
She had been on her own for many years now and had established herself as one of the premier crime fighters in the city and Dr. Destructo was the next villain on her list to take down.
Across the bay one of the warehouse doors opened and Lady Marvel could finally see clearly inside, the robots of Dr. Destructo were easy to identify and gave her all the reason she needed to take action.
******
Dr. Destructo sat in his comfortable control chair watching the security camera pointed directly at Lady Marvel, the infrared enhanced view showed a clear image of her.
Lady Marvel was a marvel to behold, a svelte frame which with her supernatural strength would have given any supermodel a run for her money.
"Probably was a model before she gained her powers, the hero's backstory is always better than the villains."
His own history was much less glamorous than any hero's; he didn't have any powers, just the scientific mind to raise himself up to the rank of super-villain. Dr. Destructo, how he hated the name, just because the first generation of his destructobots had tended to explode, taking out complete buildings as they did, was just the evolution of the technology. But alas, once the media had named a hero or villain, there was no going back.
Returning from his thoughts he noticed Lady Marvel's hair wave in the breeze on the monitor. She had been there the last several night and still had not made a move on his facility, perhaps she needed some encouragement. From his computer he opened the warehouse control panel application and engaged one of the warehouse loading doors.
******
As the warehouse door opened Lady Marvel stood up and leapt from the building's roof and flew across the bay in a matter of seconds. The first destructobot she flew directly in to and it burst in to pieces.
'A good thing Dr. Destructo figured out how to stop these things from exploding!' she thought to herself.
"I know you're here Dr. Destructo, you might as well come out now and surrender!" Lady Marvel shouted as she landed. Executing a quick right hook to the head of another destructobot, causing it to collapse in to a pile Lady Marvel started to work through the destructobots.
Her speed, agility and strength would make quick work of the dozen or so destructobots in the warehouse, she only hoped that Dr. Destructo was here too.
As she casually landed another blow to the closest destructobot she started to look around the warehouse for any obvious control rooms as that would be where Destructo would most likely be found.
******
Dr. Destructo watched Lady Marvel tare through his destructobots quickly and efficiently, she was in the prime of her career and would only take a few minutes to clear the room.
Once more turning to his computer, Dr. Destructo entered several commands for his destructobots and then started a new application before he stood up and walked towards the door.
******
Lady Marvel clobbered another destructobot just as a flash of light caught her attention, in the back of the warehouse she could see a door opening and someone on the other side.
"You can't run from me Dr. Destructo!" she shouted towards the now fully open door.
The remnants of the previous destructobot still in her hands she hurled the pieces towards the last two bots still standing and then leapt from the ground and flew towards to door.
As she approached the door at breakneck speed she could clearly see Dr. Destructo now waiting in the room beyond. Her mind quickly raced to the logical conclusion that it was some kind of trap, but not before her body had made it through.
******
Lady Marvel cruised through the door and then promptly tumbled to the ground. Regaining her composure she looked up to see Dr. Destructo standing before her, with a wicked smile on his face.
'Must be some kind of enhanced gravity field, everything feels heavy.' she thought to herself.
"At last Dr. Destructo, I've been looking forward to this!"
"I as well Lady Marvel, but I doubt for the same reason."
"Ha, your gravity field or whatever it is may have me grounded, but I'm still more than a match for you!"
"Oh it's not a gravity field, why don't you try that enhanced vision or hearing of yours?"
Lady Marvel started to feel uneasy with Dr. Destructo's brazen confidence. Trying her enhanced sight and hearing she found neither seemed to be working.
"I can see by the look on your face you are beginning to realize the trouble you're in. You're not in Kanas anymore Dorothy" he said with a smile.
"In fact you're not even in our universe any more, but a small pocket universe I've created. It's just the one room and it takes a lot of energy to keep it in existence. Because of this I try and use it for as short as time as possible, but it does have one or two interesting properties to it.
The first I'm sure you've noticed is that super powers don't work here, so no flight or super strength for you."
Lady Marvel quickly reached towards her utility belt and pulled out the Eye of Marvel, a magical charm she had acquired that placed those around her it to a kind of trance like state. She rarely used it, but it was very useful against some magical beings that didn't respond to her normal tactics.
"Oh no, the Eye of Marvel, whatever shall I do?" Dr. Destructo said mockingly, "Oh wait, magic doesn't work here either."
Lady Marvel once more went to her utility belt, this time pulling out the sonic scrambler. It generated a high pitched sound that confused and disoriented those around her. Of course she always wore her protective ear pieces that rendered her immune to the sound.
The click of the sonic scrambler was followed by silence.
"Did I forget to mention technology doesn't work here either?"
Now Lady Marvel knew it was down to the most basic decision heroes had to face, fight or flight. She was more than a match for Dr. Destructo, her years of combat training were certainly enhanced by her super strength but none the less she knew she could take him.
She surged forward throwing a hard right hook towards his head. Dr. Destructo didn't seem to move until after it was too late but then in a blur he caught her hand just inches from his face and stopped it in mid strike.
"Oh, one more thing I should mention about this universe, just as you don't have any powers, I do." He said matter-of-factly and then rotated his body in a full circle dragging her along by her hand in which he still had a firm grip on. Once the rotation was complete he released her and she flew across the room slamming in to the wall beside the door to the warehouse.
The pain in her shoulder where she hit the wall was immense but she managed to rise once more, realizing she could not fight Dr. Destructo here, she looked towards to door and started to make a run for it.
As she took the first step she immediately felt a familiar sensation, that of flying. But unlike every other time, she had no control over it.
"Come now, we're just getting started, no need to run out the door just yet. In fact let's get that rid of that distraction right now."
With a wave of his hand the door to the warehouse disappeared.
"Now Lady Marvel, I'm sure you have some more verbal quips to hurl at me so let's get them over with..."
"You won't get away with this Destructo, you said it yourself, you can't keep this universe going forever and when we have to return to ours, you're mine."
"Actually I said I only keep this universe for as short as time as possible, which is usually only 20 or 30 minutes but that should be lots of time to complete my task here."
Lady Marvel had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach; one that only came around when things had gone so far downhill that she usually needed one of the other heroes to get her out of it.
"The Justice Brigade will come to help, they know I've been tracking you down. You won't escape them."
"True enough, but I won't have to escape them. While you destroyed all my destructobots you could see in the warehouse, there were several waiting in a truck outside. They have placed a cloned copy of your body and your attire in the warehouse and cleaned up any trace of my presence there. They will promptly detonate an explosive device in a few minutes that is in no way traceable back to me.
An investigation will confirm your death and no one will be looking for Lady Marvel after that."
Now Lady Marvel knew she was in deep trouble, Dr. Destructo may be an insane super-villain, but he was a genius and if he had taken this much care in planning this, it did not bode well for her long term fortunes.
"What do you want Destructo, information on the other heroes?"
"Oh nothing so mundane my dear, what I want is you. Well, let me be more specific, I want your powers.
As you know, I don't have any powers in our universe and I have grown tired of the villain game. I have however, found several other villains who want to move up the ranks and will gladly pay me to make them various items for their own schemes.
This however has caused some resentment with the other super villains and several have tried to remove me as a competitive threat to them.
This of course necessitates having some protection for these threats and walking around with a destructobot or twelve is a little bit too conspicuous."
"I won't help you Destructo, go to hell!"
