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Life without Blonde Blazer was, to put it lightly, an adjustment.
Mandy didn’t regret giving her amulet to Chase, not for a moment. Not only had it saved his life, but she’d been vocal, to herself and Robert at least, about wanting the opportunity to live a normal life. Well, as normal as she could get while keeping a position at SDN.
Except, Mandy knew herself. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she would never have stopped being Blonde Blazer, would never have been able to give up the borderline toxic work-life balance she’d created, unless she was forced to.
Well, now she’d been forced to.
Mandy was surprised by how little she missed the amulet. Maybe it was because she knew it was temporary - a team at SDN had been studying the augments created by Shroud, hoping to find a solution in the machinery. The man had been evil, but nobody could deny his genius.
Unfortunately, along with his arrest, the augments seemed to have stopped working. Mandy doubted they’d find the solution for Chase’s predicament there, but from what Royd had told her, they were still hopeful.
It lessened the fear of uselessness; sure, she wasn’t Blonde Blazer now, and she was enjoying the opportunity to find Mandy. But sooner or later, she’d be back at it. Mandy was using this time to prepare for the day when she finally grew strong enough to shed the mantle for good.
Robert helped a lot.
Whenever Mandy felt the sting of longing for the amulet, for her powers, he was there. At first, she’d been worried that he would be disappointed, but his eager reaction to her identity reveal had put that to rest.
Mandy snorted, remembering his words. I actually prefer brunettes, so this is a win for me.
Her boyfriend was a ridiculous man, and she loved it. She loved him.
They’d been dating ever since Shroud was defeated a few months ago. Sometimes, Mandy worried they were moving too fast; Robert spent most nights at her place, even though she’d finally convinced him to buy a bed. He’d already taken over a drawer in her bedroom, and he had his own toothbrush in her bathroom.
She didn’t really care if they were. It felt right with Robert, and Mandy had spent so long being stagnant, never moving forward. She wasn’t going to let her fear of not being good enough get in the way of such a good thing.
And Robert loved her, too.
The sound of her phone chiming shook Mandy out of her thoughts. She was unsurprised to see a text from the man in question, asking her if she was on her way to SDN.
He hadn’t spent the night at her place, last night. He’d gone out drinking with Z-Team, and had gotten drunker than intended. An equally drunk Malevola wasn’t able to remember Mandy’s address off the top of her head, and so had decided the best solution would be to open a portal into Robert’s apartment and shove him in.
Mandy woke up to a string of near-intelligible messages and voicemails from her boyfriend and the team of heroes. They’d even sent photos.
She shot off a quick response, letting him know she was on her way, before locking her door behind her. She’d take a quick detour to the cafe near her house to grab a no doubt hungover Robert some breakfast, since it was almost guaranteed that he hadn’t eaten yet.
It didn’t take long to walk to the cafe. Mandy picked up two breakfast muffins for herself and Robert, forgoing the coffee since SDN had it for free. As she was balancing the food on one hand so she could order a taxi, the rare twinge of sadness made itself known.
If there was one thing Mandy missed, it was flying.
She could be at work right now, in the cubicle next to Robert, since Chase had no need for it right now. Or in her office, which she’d been keeping her distance from. But she had to wait for a taxi to drive her to SDN because she didn’t have a car. Even more tedious, it would be a little conspicuous for Mecha Man to pick her up and take her to work.
He’d done it before, but that had been recreational. Mandy blushed down at her phone. There wasn’t much room at all in the suit, so she’d sat in Robert’s lap as he’d flown the suit over the city. It hadn’t taken them long to get carried away.
“Excuse me,” a breathless voice caused Mandy to look up from her phone. “Do you work for SDN?”
A woman, red-faced and breathing heavily, was pointing at the logo on Mandy’s shirt.
Her identity was a closely guarded secret to the few who knew it at SDN. The Z-Team in particular had surprised Mandy with how fiercely they kept the identities of Blonde Blazer and Mecha Man to themselves.
Robert wasn’t always a dispatcher - on the days he was out as Mecha Man, the team only trusted her or Royd to fill in, and even though he’d never said it out loud, Mandy knew it calmed Robert’s fear to have her on the comms.
He’d had her shadow him for a few weeks, since she had been so rusty. The first shift had been mortifying. She was getting better every day, though. Dispatching wasn’t her main job, of course. She still ran the branch, but the days where she sat next to Robert’s cubicle were a lot more enjoyable.
“Yes, I’m a dispatcher,” Mandy replied. “Are you okay?”
“There’s a man, over there,” the frantic woman pointed down the street, to the alley between the cafe and the next shop over. “He’s collapsed and isn’t responding. Nobody is helping me!”
Mandy shoved her phone in her pocket so she could have a free hand to put on the woman’s shoulder. “It’s okay, you did the right thing. I have training in first aid, and we can call the proper people for help. Can you take me to him?” She tried to keep her voice soothing and was relieved when the woman’s shoulders began to relax.
The woman led her to the man, who was slumped on the ground about halfway into the alley, unresponsive. Mandy knelt on the ground next to him, checking for a pulse.
“Sir, can you hear me? My name is Mandy.” She tilted his head back, but still, no response.
He didn’t seem injured, and he was breathing fine. Mandy frowned. Had he taken something? Before she could reach back into her pocket to dial either 911 or SDN, a laugh sounded out from behind her.
“What sort of fucking idiots are they hiring over at SDN?”
Mandy’s head whipped around. The woman who had grabbed her for help stood, giggling, pointing a gun directly at her head.
“What -”
“Take her out, big man.”
Something hit Mandy hard in the back of the head, and everything went black.
***
Mandy awoke to the feeling of her feet dragging against the floor.
Her hands were tied behind her back, and two men had her by the arms, lugging her across a grimy floor. Mandy had no desire to know what the stains were, but her unhelpful brain filled in the blanks with the most likely answer.
The back of her head throbbed in time with her heartbeat, pulsing so hard her ears were ringing. The back of her neck felt wet, and she didn’t need to be able to see it to know it was blood. How hard had they hit her?
Hard enough that her vision was fuzzy. Concussion, probably.
The two men stopped dragging her so they could force her to stand upright. They ignored the pained gasp the movement ripped from her as her head was jostled. In front of her stood the man and woman from the alley, the ones who’d tricked her.
I can’t believe I fell for it. Mandy eyed the woman. She was so convincing.
Mandy’s vision swam, black spots darting in and out of sight. The woman didn’t look so frantic now. She looked smug, eyeing her up and down with a cruel grin twisting her face into a sneer.
The man who had pretended to be unconscious, the one who presumably had knocked her out, took a step towards her. He opened his mouth, but was cut off by Mandy forcing her legs into action. She kicked him, hard, between his legs, and he fell with a pained squeak. As soon as his knees touched the ground, Mandy kicked him in the nose.
She may not have powers anymore, but she’d worked hard to match Blonde Blazer’s physique as closely as a mere mortal could. Mandy may not be able to fly, but she could fight.
Taking down everyone in this room would be impossible, especially with her head injury. But she wasn’t weak.
The man from the alley crumpled to the floor, nose clearly broken. He groaned, dazed and near unconsciousness. Mandy didn’t have time to gloat before she was thrown to the floor.
Her hands were still tied, and so she was unable to shield herself from the impact. She cried out as her head hit the floor, tears burning in her eyes.
The woman - clearly their leader - tutted condescendingly as she approached. She kicked Mandy in the stomach, laughing as the force of the blow forced the air out of her lungs.
Mandy curled in on herself, bringing her knees up as best she could while lying on her side. The people around her waited as she caught her breath, though not silently. She caught a few impatient, anxious mumbles before she forced her head back to look the woman in the eye.
“Who are you?” Mandy asked. The words were quiet, forced out against the pain that seemed to pulse from every part of her body.
The woman shrugged. “You don’t need to know that, dispatcher.”
Dispatcher?
Mandy had been certain that they’d come for her because they knew she was Blonde Blazer, had somehow figured out her identity and wanted to settle a grudge. But they didn’t even know her name.
She settled, somewhat, as a hint of relief steadied her heart. They didn’t want to kill Blonde Blazer, so they probably saw her as someone they could use. Mandy racked her brain for a possible answer, but her head ached too much to come up with anything solid.
“What d’you want?” She asked, giving in to her curiosity. The woman seemed content to sit in silence, but at her question, hummed thoughtfully.
Finally, she shrugged. “Shroud is gone. Do you know what that means?”
Mandy didn’t respond.
The woman smiled, meanly. “Figures. It means there’s a power struggle happening in the city right now, dispatcher. Surely you’ve gotten plenty of calls about it?”
She had. The Z-Team, and any other team Mandy dispatched for, had been spread thin recently trying to deal with all the gangs and organisations that saw Shroud’s defeat as the perfect opportunity to jump to the top of the ranks.
Mandy just didn’t think it would come to this.
Her incredulous expression was mistaken for confusion, as the woman laughed once more. “I guess dispatchers aren’t the brightest, huh?” She flicked Mandy’s head, causing a hiss of pain to escape through her clenched teeth.
“Shroud is gone, but Mecha Man is back. Shroud couldn’t have been that dangerous if he couldn’t even steal a little power source. That is where you come in.”
Mandy’s foggy thoughts finally clicked into place. They want the Astral Pulse. They weren’t after her because she was Blonde Blazer, no. They were just so sure of Robert’s - of Mecha Man’s - heroism. They knew he’d come if they used a dispatcher as bait, knew he would put literally anyone above himself if it meant being able to save them.
Unfortunately for them, they’d kidnapped Mandy.
She couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out of her throat, even though it made her head pound something fierce.
The woman frowned, standing up. “What’s so funny?”
Mandy giggled. She kept giggling until she was cut off by another kick to the stomach. Even then, she was unable to shake the grin from her face.
“You guys,” she whispered, breathing through the pain. “Are so fucked.”
***
Robert frowned at the empty cubicle next to him, ruining the cap of his pen with his teeth.
Mandy was never late. In fact, she was the most punctual person he knew. It was nice. Whenever he spent the night at her apartment, Robert was dragged into a functional morning routine just by being in her proximity.
If he knew his girlfriend, and not to brag, but he did, she’d stopped at the coffee shop on her way to work. Mandy had messaged him that she was on her way to work over an hour ago, and it did not take that long for her to grab her favourite breakfast muffin.
Robert tapped his pen against his desk, turning to stare at his computer screen. He hated feeling paranoid, but this was Mandy. He’d never met anyone who thrived on organisation like her - if she was going to call out of work, she’d have let him know.
“Oi, Bob Bob, you there?” Flambae sounded annoyed. Robert blinked at his screen, the dispatching system coming back into focus.
“What? Of course, I’m here.”
“Of course, I’m here.” Flambae mimicked, though he somehow managed to make it sound less annoyed and more concerned. “You haven’t spoken in over five minutes.”
Robert raised an eyebrow. “Aw, Flamebae. You really care enough to count the seconds?”
The rest of the team laughed down the line, and Robert could perfectly imagine Flambae throwing his hands up in the air. “Well, fuck me for caring, right?”
Unable to stop the snort, Robert didn’t try. He quickly sobered, though. “Mandy still hasn’t come into work. I’m a little worried about her.”
Sonar cooed. “Dad’s worried about Mom, guys, isn’t that sweet?”
“Miss Blazer still isn’t here?” That was Prism, who sounded shocked, which was simply more fuel to add to the fire of Robert’s paranoia. His sigh was answer enough, and Prism didn’t mute her own comm quickly enough to hide her own concerned mumbles.
Robert shot Mandy another text, which was maybe pointless, considering he’d sent seven, now. He didn’t care. As predicted, it went unanswered, and he threw his head back with a groan that echoed down the comm.
“Jesus, man.” Invisigal said. She sounded torn between being mocking and sympathetic. “Codependent much?”
Probably. Robert agreed. He did, in fact, never get bored of being with his girlfriend. This was different, though. He’d been a hero for fifteen years, and that had been plenty of time to learn to trust his gut when it told him something was wrong.
“Do you think she’d get mad at me if I tracked her phone?” He asked his team. Mandy had tracked his phone to rescue him from Shroud, but he’d been kidnapped and was quite literally strung up like a butchered pig.
If it turned out she was only running late, and Mecha Man touched down in front of her apartment, Robert figured that would look like an overreaction. And creepy.
“Fuck, I hate this.” He muttered. “I need to get a grip, she’s only an hour late.” He looked at his watch. She was over an hour late. His foot started tapping in time with his pen.
“Miss Blazer is never late, Robert.” The worry in Prism’s voice was evident. She seemed to be an echo chamber for Robert’s own thoughts, and seemed to offset the rest of the team, who grew quiet as they waited for him to make up his mind.
“Fuck it.” Robert dropped his pen, fingers typing a little frantically as he accessed SDN’s tracking system. It was probably illegal, the things SDN had access to, but he was grateful for them right now.
Before he could, Galen’s voice echoed down the comms.
“Robert, we’ve got a problem.”
“What is it?”
“We just got a call - you remember The Vipers?”
“I remember thinking what a dumb fucking name that is,” Robert muttered.
Galen didn’t laugh, though. That was enough to clue him in that this was serious. “Galen, what’s going on?”
“They’re claiming to have one of our dispatchers. They want Mecha Man to come to these coordinates. They want him to trade the Astral Pulse for their hostage.”
The comms hushed; Galen had been broadcasting his voice to the entire team. They were all thinking the same thing. The empty cubicle next to Robert was suddenly impossible to ignore, and yet he couldn’t bring himself to look at it.
“Robert, are you there?” Galen asked.
“They have Mandy.” He forced the words out, but his voice didn’t sound right. His vision was blurring a little, and his hands were shaking. “The dispatcher they took is Mandy.”
“Fuck, are you sure?”
Galen probably wasn’t fueled by paranoia like Robert. Galen also didn’t know Mandy as well as he did.
Maybe it was a little hasty to be saying this without confirmation, but Robert knew. And so did the Z-Team. They were all scrambling over each other to try and get him to share the coordinates with them.
Robert forced himself to calm down, without much success. He clenched his hands into fists to stave off the shaking and tried to convince himself that he wasn’t wasting time by tracking Mandy’s phone.
It didn’t take long, ten seconds at most. But sure enough, her phone pinged from the same location as the coordinates Galen sent, a warehouse in an industrial estate.
“It’s her. Fuck. Okay, I’m going.” Robert sent a frantic message to Royd, asking him to cover the rest of his shift.
A cacophony of shouts assaulted his ears before he could take the headset off. Robert forced himself to take deep breaths as he responded to their obvious displeasure - he understood they wanted to help, he did, but every minute he wasn’t in the suit was another minute Mandy was in danger.
“Anyone who isn’t here in ten minutes is getting left behind, got it?”
He didn’t wait for a response, shutting the computer down to prevent any calls coming through before Royd finally arrived to take over, and took off in a run. As he suited up, his fear settled into a familiar rage, stilling his shaking hands.
Robert was unsurprised to see the entire Z-Team waiting for him as he flew out of the building in his mech suit. Some looked more out of breath than others - Invisigal was hunched over, her inhaler in her hand.
She and Mandy were friends. They’d gotten a lot closer since Courtney had taken a bullet for him. When she straightened up to look into the eyes of the mech suit, Robert saw a familiar anger burning in them.
“Okay, just before we go, you do realise this is a trap, right?” Malevola asked. She was holding her sword ready, though, and had her arm raised, ready to open a portal.
“Obviously.” The modulator of the suit did little to hide the state he was in; he was forcing the words out, his throat choked up.
The gang - The Vipers - wanted the Astral Pulse. Who did they think they were? Did they honestly believe they posed more of a threat than Shroud? It would’ve made Robert laugh if his mind wasn't so focused on getting Mandy out.
“You got a plan, Robert?” Golem asked. The lack of any of his usual nicknames was evidence enough for how the team was just as worried about Mandy as he was.
“Yeah. We get her out before we fuck them up.” He waved the mech suit’s arm at Malevola, telling her without words what he wanted her to do. She nodded.
The Z-Team whooped, each of them seeming a little feral with the intensity of their agreement. Malevola silently opened a portal, far enough away to avoid being spotted.
As the team crept through, careful despite the distance from the warehouse, Invisigal looked over her shoulder, once again peering into the eyes of the suit.
“She’s gonna be fine, Robert. We’ll get her out.”
“Yeah.” He agreed, unable to say anything more.
We’re coming, Mandy.
***
Mandy felt as if she were underwater. Her head thumped in time with her heartbeat, and her eyes kept drifting shut without permission.
Stay awake, she forced her eyes open. You can’t sleep with a concussion.
She’d heard the woman make the call, and now they were all waiting. The group had left Mandy laying curled in on herself. The wound on her head was still bleeding, though it had slowed to a sluggish crawl before she’d even woken up the first time. The woman had kicked her hard enough in the ribs that every time she shifted, she gasped in pain, so she tried her best not to move.
They’d contacted SDN not even ten minutes ago. Everything would be over soon. Robert would come, and the people who’d taken her would be apprehended. Mandy would be fine.
She winced as her head throbbed. It was getting difficult to be optimistic with her own blood soaking through her hair.
Mandy startled involuntarily as a hand settled on her shoulder. She forced her head to turn to the side, making eye contact with a smiling Malevola. She’d known the half-demon could open portals quietly, but her entrance had been practically silent. The entirety of the group hadn’t even noticed her enter.
“Hiya, babes.” Malevola whispered, shifting Mandy effortlessly into her arms. As she stood, Mandy tried to stifle the whimper that escaped her lips, but it was useless.
The sound drew the attention of the woman who’d kidnapped her. She shouted, rallying her lackeys to attack, but it was too late. Malevola gently shifted Mandy into just one arm so she could flip the group off as she backed into her portal.
“Okay, guys. Fuck ‘em up.”
The portal hadn’t even closed before the doors of the warehouse were blown in, and the Z-Team descended.
She didn’t see Mecha Man, though. Her question about her boyfriend’s whereabouts was answered as fast as she thought it, when she saw him jump out of his suit and run over to them as soon as the portal closed behind them.
His suit was dark, meaning he had the Astral pulse in the special pocket that Royd had built into his suit. Maybe it was careless, since it was the main motivation of the group that kidnapped Mandy. Or maybe it showed how little of a threat they were to the Z-Team.
Mandy, not for the first time since she was knocked unconscious in that alley, ached with the loss of her amulet. She hadn’t felt this useless since she gave it away.
“Oh, thank god.” Robert’s voice was shaky as he ran over to them.
“Hey,” Mandy whispered, feeling a little more coherent. She opened her eyes, seeing Malevola’s glowing slightly as she transferred Mandy’s pain to her own body. “Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.” Malevola smiled.
Robert’s hand was gentle as it settled against Mandy’s cheek. He looked so sad as his gaze tracked over her injuries.
“Let’s get you back to SDN, okay? You are way overdue a visit to the infirmary.” His words were light, but his voice was tight with worry, and the look in his eyes was angrier than she’d ever seen.
Mandy smiled. Despite the pain that Malevola had helpfully dulled, she wanted to lean towards Robert, wanted him to take her into his arms. He must have seen it on her face. He glanced darkly at his suit’s chest plate, where the Astral Pulse was tucked safely away.
“I can carry that for you, mate.” Malevola offered. Robert closed his eyes and breathed out a thank you before he took the chest plate off so Mandy could be gently transferred into his arms.
“What happened to ‘fuck them up?” She muttered the question into his neck, where he’d gently tucked her head to rest.
Robert huffed a strained laugh at her question. “Yeah, well, I had something a lot more important to worry about.”
Mandy tried to focus on not throwing up all over him as the Z-Team enacted vengeance on her behalf. She heard Flambae cackle wildly and wished she could see just how damage they were causing. Malevola kept Mandy’s hand entwined with her own, continuing to take as much of her pain as possible. Her ribs were already starting to feel better.
“The others can make their own way back.” Robert said. Mandy couldn’t see him face, which made her realise she’d closed her eyes again. “We need to get her to SDN.”
A portal was quickly opened, Robert muttering something about coming back for the suit as soon as she was settled, but that was the last thing Mandy heard before she was taken into an empty, dreamless sleep.
***
When Mandy next startled awake, it was to the feeling of SDN’s infirmary sheets against her skin. She was in a hospital gown, and the blankets were tucked up to her chest, keeping her warm but leaving her arms free.
How long had she been out?
Her hair was also washed clean of all the blood, which was a pleasant surprise. As soon as she’d felt it soaking her head, she’d dreaded cleaning it up.
She breathed in deeply, surprised that her ribs didn’t hurt. Her head was still the source of most of her pain, but even that didn’t throb as severely.
“Malevola was able to take most of your injuries.”
Mandy tilted her head, slowly, to where Robert was sitting next to her bed. He’d scooched the chair as close as he could feasibly get it, and had her hand in a careful grip, rubbing his thumb back and forth over the back of it.
“The concussion is all yours to heal, though.” He raised his free hand and stroked a finger against her cheek reverently. His eyes were a well of emotion as he looked at her. She leaned into his hand, her stomach clenching as tears welled up in his eyes as she did.
“Did you clean my hair?”
He blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah. Malevola healed the cut on your head, and I figured it’d be more painful for you to clean the blood out while you were awake, so she helped me wash it.”
She felt such an intense rush of love for him that it took her breath away. She felt the release of all the stress, and it forced tears to her eyes. Mandy tried to hold back the pathetic whimpers that bubbled up and out of her throat, but it was no use.
She felt Robert’s hand cup her cheek, wiping away the tears and giving her a moment to hide. He murmured under his breath as she tried to regulate her breathing.
You’re okay. I have you, Mandy. You’re safe.
After a while, Mandy had no tears left. She felt better for it, like she’d shed the terror she’d been forced into, earlier. She hadn’t doubted for a second that Robert and the Z-Team would come for her, but it was difficult to stay coherent enough to believe it while she was actively a hostage.
Robert continued to look at her, guilt plainly written on his face.
“I’m okay,” Mandy whispered, hesitant to speak any louder.
Robert breathed out a shuddering sigh and pressed a feather-light kiss to her forehead. He then leaned his head against her shoulder, allowing Mandy to settle her hand in his hair.
“I love you,” Robert whispered against her hospital gown.
Mandy smiled and tugged on his hair, forcing him to look at her. She hated the guilt she saw on his face. “I love you, too.”
Robert smiled, but it wasn’t long before his face twisted back into a look of self-loathing. “I’m so sorry.” Mandy frowned.
“It wasn’t your fault, Robert.”
“Yeah, well. Agree to disagree.”
“Can we not do it while I’m in a hospital bed? I have a good argument for why it’s not your fault, and I can’t debate properly while I’m concussed. It’s not fair.”
Her boyfriend grinned, some of the guilt leaving his expression, involuntarily replaced by amusement at her words. “Okay, deal.”
“God, you guys are fucking dorks.”
Robert threw his head back with an exaggerated groan as Mandy startled. Invisigal raised her hands apologetically as she winced. “Sorry. I forgot you were concussed.”
“How do you forget someone is concussed?” Robert’s voice was incredulous.
“Oh my god, dude, shut up.” Invisigal turned on her heels and headed towards the doors of Mandy’s infirmary room. “Guys, she’s awake!”
Robert sighed. Mandy turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow. His free hand was covering his eyes, but his other still had hers in a steady grip. It was ridiculous, really; nobody was going to force him out of his seat. But still, it made her face flush as her stomach fluttered pleasantly.
“Just tell me when they get too much for you, okay? I’ll kick them out.”
Mandy hummed noncommittally. She wanted to see the Z-Team, wanted to tell them thank you for finding her.
“Wait,” she frowned. “How did you know it was me that they’d kidnapped?”
“Well, aside from the fact that you are the most punctual person I know and I live in a constant state of paranoia,” Robert shrugged. “I tracked your phone.”
“Oh. Well, I guess we’re even now, babe.”
Robert laughed, his shoulders finally relaxing. As he did, the Z-Team filed in, each holding a ridiculous ensemble of balloons, alcohol, and get well soon cards. Robert was right, their level of volume instantly made her ears ring, but Mandy kept it to herself.
She tried to sit up slightly, but Robert ultimately had to help her most of the way. Mandy patted the side of the bed, both to have him closer and to use him to lean on, and he complied without complaint.
Robert wrapped his arms around her as Golem brought up the rear, the entire team somehow managing to fit into her infirmary room.
Mandy settled her head against her boyfriend’s chest and closed her eyes as the Z-Team regaled her with their tale of vengeance, warmed by the sound of Robert’s soft laughter.
It didn’t take long for her to grow tired once more, leaning heavily against Robert. Everyone stayed, though they did quiet down, cowed by their dispatcher's shushing.
“Get some rest,” he said, pressing another gentle kiss to her head.
Mandy smiled, relaxing as his words washed over her, and let sleep take her.