SheZow: Reboot

      The wind blew, taking up the snow, as two kids approached the "Summerhill Farm Cornfield" entrance arch. Nothing was out of the picture - same wooden arch, same dry remains of old corn down on the ground, covered in snow... And only the lonely She-Cycle standing nearby, all snowed. Kelly got off the bike as Maz looked for a place to leave it.       "Anything at it?" asked Maz, adjusting the kickstand on his bike as Kelly investigated the control panel on the She-Cycle.       "Nothing, it's just shut off" she replied. "Let's go look over the field. Maybe there we'll have some luck..." kids went on, shivering. It was cold outside, and only running with adrenaline kept them warmer before. Now, as they rather calmed down, the cold made its proper effect on them. They proceeded far deep in the field. No traces were seen at all. It made the two pretty worried. Soon they reached the scarecrow and stopped.       "This is just nonsensical!" Kelly exclaimed. "He had to leave some traces! It can't be that they got all washed off overnight! But no, it's nothing! No footprints, no other traces, not even a single-" suddenly, she noticed a strange thing on the scarecrow. The hole on its clothing, obviously burnt. It could be its normal state, but the straw sticking out of this hole was also burnt. Kelly looked at the ground and noticed another thing - not far from the scarecrow were marks on the snow. Like something heavy was dragged. The marks were so deep that the snow still hasn't washed them off.       "Maz, I think I found something" Kelly said, and the boy approached her. "See the burnt hole on the scarecrow? It doesn't look like it was here before, the straw is burnt as well, and the shape is not like an ordinary burnt hole, but like something burning hit it..."       "Like Laser Lipstick" Maz added, taking the point.       "And these marks on the snow. Looks like they're here from yesterday. Something dragged something... There" Kelly pointed in the marks direction and went there. Maz followed her, looking where the girl did. They soon approached a small pile of hay on the ground.       "The marks end here" Maz said, looking around. "Here it looks like the thing stopped and then... Disappeared".       "Not exactly. See how the trail kinda "slides" into that hay?" Kelly said, looking closely at the marks. "I bet something is under it..." she crouched to the ground and began digging up the hay. Soon something metallic could be seen under it. When Kelly was done, the kids saw a metal trapdoor.       "Wow..." Maz murmured. "You're incredibly smart, hun. Like a real detective..."       "Thanks, Maz" Kelly smiled teasingly. "You know, flattery won't get you too far, mind it," she then crouched again and tried to open the trapdoor. It didn't move - apparently it was shut. Kelly tried her hardest to lift it and pulled the handle many times - but to no avail.       "Okay, let me try..." Maz said, placing the hand on Kelly's shoulder and then approaching the trapdoor. He took her hairclip - much to her confusion, - and looked over the trapdoor. He noticed the small keyhole near the handle and put the hairclip inside, then he fiddled it. Nothing happened, but Maz kept going, sticking out his tongue. Something clicked inside and Maz, after pulling the hairclip out accurately, pulled the handle - the trapdoor opened easily.       "I didn't expect this to work..." he said, looking at Kelly, who was rather shocked to see how Maz managed to break the lock. "I just remember how they did it in movies and decided to try it out..."       "Don't worry, don't worry..." Kelly said, shaking her head and moving hands in reassuring gesture. "Let's just keep going".       The two climbed inside and slowly put the trapdoor down, closing it without shutting the lock. Then both climbed deeper below - behind the trapdoor was ladder going down. Soon both ended up in the corridor, lit by dull LED lights on the walls. It was filled with doors that had electric locks with various numbers on them. The kids went on, despite that the corridor seemed endless.       "It's so quiet in here..." Kelly said.       "Yeah... Too quiet" Maz replied.       "Guess we'll have to cross this whole place if we want to find Guy..." Kelly said before taking a look back. "And hope nothing will mess in..." suddenly she stepped onto something, as it gurgled under her shoe. She almost slipped, but Maz took her hand in time, preventing her from falling.       "Woah, Kel, what was it?" he exclaimed.       "I don't know myself!" Kelly answered before looking down. "Yuck! It's some slime..." the kids then realized that the floor and the walls are now covered in bits of green slime, very familiar one.       "Oh no. Don't tell me it's..." Kelly gulped.       "Something WILL mess in our search I guess..." Maz said. "We must move very carefully".       Kelly just nodded. The kids continued their way, now trying not to make any noises - even steps - and frequently looked at any door, checking if it's shut or open. The dull lights and the total silence put a lot of pressure on the brain. The whole place was like it's trying to make those inside fear and slowly go insane. Each faint sound made the kids shiver and frantically look around - because each time they thought it's a step of a slime blob or another hideous creature sneaking through that gloomy place, hunting... For them. But each time, nothing happened - no monster was behind, only the same corridor. And only their hearts broke the silence - beating at the speed of sound. Soon they approached a supposed end of the corridor - but there was a door before them, seemingly leading to the next part of the place, and on the side was the empty doorframe, leading to the spiral staircase going down. Not like in your typical house kind of "down", but very, very deep below.       "So... Are we heading down or to the door?" Maz asked. "Don't tell me we have to split up to check more ground - I am not leaving you alone".       "However, this seems like the only way now..." Kelly countered. "We can't waste time, so we must go different directions and thus cover more..."       "I said no! We must stay together, to keep each other safe!" Maz grabbed girl's forearms tightly. "I am not leaving you!"       "Maz, quiet!" Kelly shushed at him. "Want us to get caught? Stop arguing and-" at that moment both heard the slurping sounds from the part of the corridor they left. The silhouettes of the blobby creatures could be seen from around the corner.       "Uh oh..." Kelly gulped.       "Eenie, meenie, miney... Door!" said Maz and tried to open the door. He pulled the handle - but it didn't work. He tried pushing it and even banging at it - but looks like it was shut.       "On second thought, stairs!" Maz grabbed Kelly's hand and both rushed to the staircase. Before they crossed the frame, they saw how slimes appear - same green blobs with stubby feet and hundreds of tentacles. Their faces looked bloated and creepy, glowing eyes on different levels, sometimes even more than two, and twisted, molten holes for mouths that emitted the disgusting gurgling.       The kids ran down the stairs, jumping over two steps at once. They didn't dare to even look up and check if the slimes followed them. They ran as fast as they could, the mere sound of slime slurping made them run, like a coachman whipping the horses.       They reached the bottom in seconds, despite the stairs being actually long. They noticed something plummeting from the above. The slime creature splashed over the floor - looks like the slimes followed and one "decided" to get down faster. No guarantee it actually decided something though - who knows if these creatures act on their own or if they have any kind of own will...       In any case, kids didn't plan to stay and watch. They quickly ran away, since no door was at the bottom as well. They ended up in another corridor, similar to the previous one. They thought it's their chance to catch a breath, but as soon as they stopped, they saw more silhouettes at the other end - this time it was not the end of the corridor for them.       "Oh give me a break..." Maz grumbled, panting.       "Keep going!" Kelly screamed and ran to the opposite part. Maz followed her. He was looking back, watching if the slimes are near. He relied on Kelly to watch the front, guessing where she is by the sound of her steps. He didn't know that Kelly, besides getting pretty ahead of him, is also looking back frequently...       Suddenly, he heard a sound of clash and screams - like two people collided.       "Ouch! Watch where you-" Kelly's voice stopped mid-phrase. Maz slowed down and finally took a look forward. Kelly was down on the floor, looking shockedly at the person she clashed with. This person was...       "GUY!" she shouted and rushed to her brother - still in his heroic form, looking like a mess, his neat hairdo barely holding together and suit covered in stains. Kelly hugged him extremely tightly, and Guy responded with the same.       "Dude! You're here!" added Maz, also approaching and joining the group hug.       "Kelly, Maz! I'm so glad to see you two!" Guy said with shaking voice due to overwhelming emotions. "How did you get here?"       "Well, it's a long story..." Kelly began. "What is important here is... Where were you?!"       "Yeah, dude, you've been missing since yesterday, then we saw you - er, well, not you, but some copycat, but still - we saw a likeness of you in school, and then the freaking zombie invasion began!" Maz babbled, speaking very fast due to all the stress. "Sheila told us where you went yesterday, and after that went all glitchy. We just got to the place and found some trails, that led us to the trapdoor in the middle of the field. And... Now we're here".       "Wow... I missed a lot here..." Guy said, rubbing his head. "Well... Looks like all this time I was here. You won't believe me, but... I was forced to "play"..."       "Play? Are you serious?!" Kelly exclaimed. "We survived all the hell outside only to hear that you were forced to play?!"       "Chill, Kelly!" Guy moved his hands in a reassuring gesture. "It was not the playing you may imagine... I went through deathtraps, also trying to survive. Every "round" was marked with weird notes I found lying around. Like somebody is watching me, having fun of the dangers they put me in. I walked in the pitch black corridor, almost getting locked there. Then I walked on the wobbly bridge above the huge tanks of some nasty goo, and almost fell. Then I had to cross the labyrinth, fighting the slime monsters while being barehanded. And now... I am here. Just found by Beautility Belt with only Laser Lipstick available..."       "Sheesh..." Maz said, rubbing the back of his head. "We also encountered slime monsters outside. They turned people into some kind of zombies..."       "I fail to understand what is going on" Kelly clenched her fists and shuddered.      "Everything is so terrible, and it... Just came out of nowhere!"       "Calm down, Kel, we shouldn't panic..." Maz carefully approached her hugged.       "Yes, he's right. I think we should get out of here first" Guy placed his hand on his sister's shoulder. "Then we'll find out how to deal with this..."       "YOU THINK SO?" suddenly, a voice came out of the PA system dynamics on the walls. "WELL, MY DEAR SHEZOW, I'M AFRAID THE PART WITH GETTING OUT OF HERE IS NOT HAPPENING YET! THE GAME IS NOT OVER, YOU HAVE FEW MORE ROUNDS TO GO. ROUND ONE BEGINS... NOW!" the dynamics hissed and turned off, while the sound of the slimy steps came from the corridor.       "You've got to be kidding me..." Maz said. "These uglyheads followed us till here..."       "Whatever..." SheZow grumbled, unleashing her Laser Lipstick. "Stay back, my friends, I'll deal with them..."       As soon as the monsters appeared from around the corner, SheZow jolted at them. They unleashed their tentacles to grab her, but she spun her weapon, cutting the slimy appendages. The monsters screeched, but didn't retreat. SheZow spun between them, slicing their slimy bodies.       Maz and Kelly could only watch the heroine fierce fighting. Maz held Kelly tightly, he felt how heavy her breath is. She snugged to the boy, feeling protected in his arms. He also felt that he must provide the feeling of protection for her. Suddenly, they heard the slurping behind - the door that SheZow shut somehow opened again, and more slimes appeared from there.       "Dang it..." Maz grumbled. "These peeps just can't give any break..." he picked up the piece of pipe from the ground and stood firmly. Slimes reached their tentacles for him, but he struck them with the pipe, making them splash into pieces. He ran to them and hit hardly - and one slime's body divided in two, upper half oozing on the ground. However, other slimes didn't stop, their tentacles already wrapping around the boy.       "Maz!" Kelly screamed, rushing to the boy. She grabbed his shirt and tried to pull him out of the slime grasp. Maz swung the pipe as much as he could, and Kelly managed to pull him out. But the monsters just kept moving forward...       "SheZow! We're surrounded!" Maz yelled. SheZow looked in their direction, seeing more monsters from behind. She glared at monsters attacking her then...       "Now I am mad..." she muttered. Then the heroine pounced at them with her Laser Lipstick ready. One slime got its legs cut, and Zow jumped at its oozing body, using it to bounce off and attack the other slime from above, cutting its head in half. She then spun, cutting the two slimes at once, and then thrust her lipstick forward, piercing another monster. She moved the weapon up, splitting its slimy head in two. Then she dashed to her friends, immediately cutting one slime diagonally. Two other slimes got their tentacles cut off. One of them then was hit by Maz, and SheZow finished it off with a downward slash. The other tried to attack, but SheZow turned around quickly, piercing it with her lipstick and slicing it by pulling it to the side. The last slime reached its arm, but Zow jumped at it, bounced off and landed on its head, thrusting her weapon deep into it. She then slid to its back, pulling the weapon along. Slimes oozed on the floor, seemingly down.       "Whew... We're done!" Maz said cheerfully.       "Not for long I think..." Kelly said. "They'll regain their consciousness - if they have one, - and pull themselves together soon. We need to try something else... Maybe cold... Or simply finding their source and disabling it..."       "CONGRATULATIONS!" the familiar voice sounded from the PA system again. "ROUND ONE IS OVER - AND THE HERO WON! HOW WONDERFUL..." SheZow could swear the voice is extremely familiar, the inhumanly undertone and the crazy manner especially. "HOWEVER, THERE'RE UNWANTED GUESTS, HEROINE'S LITTLE FRIENDS... MY BLOBBY BUDDIES AND THEIR VICTIMS HAVEN'T MANAGED TO HOLD THEM BACK. NOW THE HEROINE HAS GOT A BIT OF DEADWEIGHT... ON THE OTHER HAND, THEY ARE GOOD SPECTATORS, AND MORE - THEY'RE MOTIVATION! GUESS I'LL LET THEM STAY..."       "Who are you?!" SheZow shouted angrily. From the dynamics came the sound as if the one speaking was kinda surprised.       "YOU STILL HAVEN'T RECOGNIZED ME? I AM RATHER SADDENED BY THIS..." the voice spoke, and it was obvious that the emotions are just acting. "OKAY, DOESN'T MATTER. IT'S TIME FOR ROUND TWO, PLUS YOU'LL FIND OUT WHO I AM SOON ENOUGH. BUT FIRST YOU MUST GET TO THE RIGHT PLACE... GO UP TO THE NEXT FLOOR, YOUR FRIENDS ARRIVED EXACTLY FROM THERE. THE DOOR THEY COULDN'T GET THROUGH IS OPEN NOW, YOUR CARD WILL HELP YOU GET INSIDE... AND THERE, EVERYTHING WILL END. I AM WAITING... GUY!" the crazy laughter crackled from the dynamics after the speech, and then they went off once more. SheZow lowered her gaze, thoughts storming inside her head. She had a strike of realization - she knew who is standing behind the voice in the speakers...       "I know what place this freak means" Kelly said, breaking the silence. "Me and Maz actually stumbled at the door before we were attacked and had to get down here. It was shut and we couldn't open it. Looks like this is where we must go now..."       "Alright..." SheZow said, her voice gravely serious. "Let's go then" she steadily headed forward, where Maz and kelly came from before. They followed the heroine. All three soon came to the staircase, and SheZow silently went on. She wasn't even looking back at others, and her face was like of a superhero determined to destroy the threat at all costs.       "Um... Dude? Are you okay?" Maz said, as all this tension began to worry both him and Kelly.       "Yeah, Guy, I've never seen you that serious. Everything's fine?" Kelly added.       "No..." Guy replied with a sigh. "But not with me. I just... I think I know who is behind this all..."       "Oh... And, who?" Maz asked worriedly. SheZow stopped and turned to them.       "It's SheZap..." she replied, spelling the name with obvious hatred.       "Her?" Kelly wondered. "But how? SheZap wasn't that powerful before, when we encountered her first. How could she do all of this?"       "I have no clue... But this voice... Green slime everywhere... It's all her signs" SheZow said, clenching her fists. "Besides, you heard how she called me by my real name. Only SheZap out of all villains I fought knows it..." SheZow then turned around and continued her way.       "Okay, we got it, it's SheZap... So what? Why so serious then? She really kicked your butt last time, but you won. What's different now?" Maz said, barely keeping up. Kelly was at the tail.       "It's nothing, Maz..." SheZow replied. "I just want to end this all. This freaky slimy monster brought too much trouble in very short time... It's time to finish her off..." Maz gulped, rather intimidated by his friend being so serious and even angry.       "Guy scares me, Kel..." he whispered, getting closer to Kelly. "He's usually not that... Dedicated to destroy the enemy..."       "I think he's just... Angry" Kelly replied worriedly. "We told him there's hell outside, and he went through freaky and deadly stuff here... It must have put a lot on his temper, and now he's dangerously mad..."       Soon they arrived to the door. SheZow took the plastic card she kept since the room she woke up in, and swiped it on the lock. It beeped, and the heroine pulled the handle. The door opened.       "SheZow, wait a sec..." Maz said, approaching the heroine. "What's the plan? Do you have any?"       "I do..." SheZow muttered angrily. "You two stay outside and watch the door. I am going in and beating all the brains out of this slime."       "Oh no, we're going in too" Kelly countered. "We can't let you face the danger alone, especially when you're like this..."       "I am totally fine, Kelly" SheZow snarled at them. "Yu can go in, okay, but mind this - I don't need you messing in the fight."       "Why? Again you don't want to share the fun?" Maz said, crossing his arms.       "No, because it's dangerous" SheZow countered. "The last thing I want is you two getting harmed..." she sighed. "Alright, let's go and finish this all..."       She entered, with her two companions following her. They got in the big room with huge metal boxes with screens, buttons and little lights on them. Between them were fat pipes, and the floor was full of wires going from each to each box. On the wall opposite to the door was a huge screen and wide control panel, with a chair before it. The screen was filled with images, showing various parts of the place, including the corridors the three were running across minutes ago. Looks like the place had cameras, images were from them.The chair slowly turned around, and SheZow angrily glared at the one sitting in it - SheZap.       "How glorious..." she began, smiling devilishly, sitting with one leg above the other. "Dear creator arrived, in flesh, and in one piece - that is just perfect condition for our game to continue... And conclude" at last word SheZap chuckled.       "Are you going to talk me to death here?" SheZow growled. "Or are we finishing this already?"       "My, my, the boy's so rushy" SheZap got up from the chair. "You won't even ask what for I did all this?"       "By the way, yeah, what for you did all this?" Maz spoke from behind SheZow. SheZap took a notice of the other two.       "Oh, spectators are also here... Sweet, sweet indeed" she smirked. "Well, I will please your curiosity... Guy, my creator, my... Parent, if you want. And thus, I am your child, Guy. Child wants to play with daddy, child feels lonely without daddy..." SheZap mockingly impressed baby-like crying. "That's why I set that funny game, watching over everything..."       "And what about the slimes? And the possessed people?" Kelly asked confidently.       "Oh, the slimes and people... Merely an addition. They had to hold you two off and just incapacitate everybody who possibly can stand in my way. Thus, me and Guy will have all the time in the world just for us two..." SheZap grinned. "But you still manage to get there... Like I said, it doesn't matter. You'll make great spectators, you will witness everything... And plus, you'll serve as additional motivation!"       Suddenly, slime appeared out of the blue and wrapped Maz and Kelly with its tentacles tightly. SheZow turned to them shocked - even her She-Sense couldn't notify her quick enough this time. She prepared to attack, but the slime suddenly growled, the tips of its tentacles dangerously close to the two's faces.       "Don't even dare to attack, or else this boy quickly get to their brains" SheZap said evilly. "If you want to help them, you do what I say..."       "What do you want?!" SheZow exclaimed, turning to SheZap. The villainess let out a laughter.       "I want nothing big, Zowie, Guy, buddy, daddy, pal!" she walked down from the plate where the giant screen was to the main area, closer to SheZow. "I want to settle our confrontation! Remember how we first met? I said back then that there can be only one... Well, since you have not finished me off, I go for a rematch!"       "Great" SheZow said, taking her Laser Lipstick out. "I want the same - settle this all already, as soon as possible. And by the way, you said my friends are good motivation... No need."       "Oh really? And why?" SheZap grinned, tilting her head theatrically.       "I am motivated enough, because all I wish for is to END YOU!" SheZow screamed angrily, dashing at SheZap. She was blinded by her rage. SheZap only giggled and slid away. SheZow thrust her weapon, but missed.       "How reckless..." SheZap said, appearing behind the heroine. "I told you when we first met - don't let the rage control you, it leads to your defeat" she chuckled. "I think you need a little shake-off. Let's add the challenge to this party!" SheZap walked towards SheZow fast and the heroine did the same, preparing for a strike. However, SheZap dodged the attack and hit the heroine in the gut. That made SheZow stumble, and SheZap pushed her away then, making her fall. Then the villainess stretched her slimy arm to the control panel and pressed a few buttons. She brought her arm back quickly - and thus, avoided her limb being torn off. Because a cage appeared from the ceiling, locking the heroine and the villainess inside a circle.       "Good arena, isn't it?" SheZap said, spreading her arms. "Let's see how you dance now! En garde, Guy!"       SheZow just rushed at her again, not even aiming to hit her with the weapon - it was blind, raging pouncing. SheZap caught heroine's arms during the strike, swiped her foot to make SheZow lose the balance and just threw her. SheZow hit the cage - and felt like thousands of needles prickle her at once.       "The cage..." she muttered.       "Yes, cage with a surprise! If the infiltrator tries to break the bars - they will be purely SHOCKED to find out how not easy it is!" SheZap laughed. "Now come on, stop this already, Guy. You're not fighting, you're simply LOSING! Your emotions blind you, you're weak..." the villainess approached the lying heroine. "And that's why I must be the one to stay. I am not held back by friends, life or emotions. I have the power to change my shape too. I am better than you, I always have been. And you... You'll be gone. Creator must go and let the creation take the place... Let's try you out, Guy, you must be tasty..."       SheZap reached her hand to Guy, turning it slimy, but suddenly Guy pushed himself up the ground, hitting the green clone in the torso. He then unleashed his lipstick and dashed at her. SheZap smirked, ready to avoid the hit, but SheZow changed direction in seconds, slicing the gooey body of the villainess. She backed away, and the heroine stood firmly in place in a battle stance.       "Now listen to me, Zap" she said with a straight, calm and serious voice. "You're right in one thing - I let my emotions control me for a second. It almost destroyed me... But otherwise, you're wrong. My friends are what makes me stronger than I ever am. My life is what makes me who I am. And my emotions... Are what makes me do the right thing. You, however, are just an insane piece of green goo that wreaks havoc and manically wants to destroy. Your destructive nature is your weakness - like emotions can be my mine. But unlike yours, my weakness can be my strength too..." SheZap only smirked at this, and Zow changed the stance, showing that she's ready to battle. "Shall we dance?"       "Now we're talking, Guy..." SheZap also took the stance and transformed her hand into a weapon. "Let's go!"       The two engaged in fight again. But now SheZow was much more graceful and concentrated. SheZap also changed her tactic, now fighting like a real swordsman, not using her slime shape-shifting much. Their laser blades hissed when they clashed. SheZow performed a kick, pushing SheZap away, and tried to perform one more, but the villainess caught her leg and pushed the heroine, making her spin in the air. SheZow haven't fallen though, landing on her feet. SheZap swiped the laser blade, and SheZow ducked, avoiding it, and then jumped, performing a somersault kick. SheZap backed away, and SheZow dashed forward, landing her feet on SheZap's torso and bounced away, making SheZap lose balance. SheZap almost hit the cage, but managed to stay far enough from it.       However, SheZow was not over yet. When SheZap stood straight again, the heroine spun in place with her lipstick, making the villainess sidestep and block the hit with her blade. SheZow got behind her, and SheZap tried to hit back. The heroine grabbed her shoulders tightly and bounced off the ground as strong as possible, thus getting above SheZap, hand-standing on her shoulders. She then bent down, getting in front of the villainess, and, with a few quick moves, took out the Laser Lipstick and stabbed SheZap right in the stomach. SheZap groaned, like she was in pain. SheZow turned around, changing the grip on the weapon, and pulled it out of the villainess' body. She saw rather big wound that was leaking green goo.       "Nice try... But I am not down so easily!" SheZap growled, and the wound began to close, as her slime structure reconstructed. Suddenly, she shuddered and screeched inhumanly, like she felt immense pain. The wound stopped closing and leaked more. SheZap fell on the knee.       Kelly felt that the slime monster holding her shuddered too. The grip of its tentacle loosened. The girl didn't hesitate to use it and freed herself. Maz, noticing it, got out as well and picked up the pipe he dropped when getting caught. The monster tried to catch them, but Maz smashed its head with the pipe. Kelly got to the control panel quickly and began looking through the buttons.       "Come on, come on..." she muttered to herself, calculating the right combination to remove the cage. "Got it!" she exclaimed and tapped the buttons. The cage quickly went up.       "SheZow! You need to somehow incapacitate her! She seems weakened!" Kelly shouted to her brother.       "Any ideas how?!" SheZow shouted back as SheZap slowly regained concentration, and her wound closing again, very slowly and seemingly causing her discomfort.       "The pipe!" Maz screamed, pointing at the fat pipe on the wall with multiple hoses going from it to the floor. "Conditioning, like in your house! If the slimes created by her don't like cold, she must have the same issue!"       "Right, the cold..." SheZow said to herself, and then looked at SheZap. "Okay, freak, it's time to finish this!" she suddenly went calm and spread her arms in a carefree gesture. "Admit it, I am winning again... Who's better after that?"       "MEEE!" SheZap screeched angrily, as her body whole began to ooze. "Creator must die, and I must feed!" she dashed at SheZow like an animal. SheZow dodged and rushed to the pipe. SheZap followed the heroine very closely...       But as soon as she pounced once again, SheZow cut one of the hoses and directed it at SheZap. Strong blow of cold air hit the villainess, and she screeched. SheZow dodged her attack, as she fell on the floor. SheZow kept blowing the cold air at her until the current went very weak. SheZow dropped the hose. SheZap was lying down, shuddering and oozing. It looked like her body is barely holding together.       "I won" SheZow said. "Do you admit it?"       "I… No..." SheZap said desperately, turning at Zow, her face full of despair. "It can't end like this! I want... I want to live!" these words made Guy concerned.       "SheZap..." he said calmly. "What's happening? Tell me everything... I am your creator after all." SheZap sighed, her breath shaking.       "It began after our past encounter..." she began. "I managed to regain my shape after you electrocuted me... But I couldn't attack, I knew I have to wait and make a plan. After all, I share a lot of stuff with you, your occasional cautiousness too..." she groaned suddenly. "But then I felt incredible pain. I couldn't understand what is wrong, so I searched for answers... And I discovered this complex. Looks like it's a military facility they no longer use, and some meta-related stuff was investigated here. In any case... Local equipment helped me explore a lot about my nature... And my condition. I am... Dying."       "You what?" SheZow said worriedly.       "I am dying" SheZap repeated, looking away. "My cell structure is getting unstable, and I am running out of any energy to hold myself together. The more I shape-shift, the more unstable I get... And the more painful it feels. I had to do something, you understand? I want to live after all!" SheZap raised her tone, but it caused her another stroke of agony. "So... I made a plan. Using local system, I sent signals to your supercomputer gal. These signals affected her processor, weakening her. Thus, she must have gone completely out soon enough and couldn't assist you or your friends. At the same time I prepared a way to not let anyone get in the way and made these slimes. They are unstable too, but their life cycle is short enough, so their shape-shifting don't cause them too much discomfort. They also can leave their small pieces, parasites, inside people's brains, thus bringing them under my control - I am their center, so they know only my command. I made it automatic, and my only command is catch as many people as possible. After a few people they simply dissolve, but people remain controlled. People also can leave parasites..."       "Wow, you have the skill, despite being Guy copy..." Kelly said.       "The last step was to lure you out... So I sent an SOS signal to Sheila. It seemed to work, you came. I caught you..." SheZap groaned, clutching the fist. "But I made a mistake. I don't know why I made such decision... I didn't want to kill you immediately, I wanted to..."       "Play..." SheZow said, finishing her phrase.       "Yes... So I set the traps that just activate the security systems or simply wreck the surroundings. Each round was specifically made like that you always have the chance to pass it. I hoped that you survive until the very end, and we fight... And when I defeat you, I absorb your life force. I have no idea how, somehow. Just thought that if you, the original, the source of the DNA that made me after combined with the toxic waste, dies - I live..."       "But... What about the password?" Maz wondered, and SheZap chuckled.       "I share a lot with Guy... Even though I can't know of his memories after the moment of my birth, I figured that he'll make something like this for the situation like me... Simply figured..." she looked up at Guy. "Guy... Please... Help me... I don't want to dissolve into nothingness... I may be a villain by nature... But right now, my only motivation is to survive... Won't you let me simply cease to exist? Give me a hand..." she reached her hand, and Guy seemingly was about to give his hand to her. But...       As soon as SheZap almost grabbed his hand, he retreated. At this moment, an evil grin shined on SheZap's face for a sec - and her arm moved fast. Because she was attacking. Her expression went shocked as soon as she realized that SheZow avoided the attack.       "I will help you..." SheZow said, grabbing few hoses at once. "But not the way you want. I'm sorry..." the heroine ripped the hoses out and pointed all at SheZap. The cold air blew very strongly, and SheZap raised her oozing arms to cover her face. Her body turned solid - it froze. Soon she was frozen whole. SheZow dropped the hoses and delivered a hard kick at the frozen goo with a scream. It shattered in pieces.       "Ugh... That's tough and creepy..." Maz said as SheZow stepped back from the shards. Kelly approached her brother and grabbed by the forearm.       "It's all over, Guy..." she said, seeing how overwhelmed he looks. "It's over..." he suddenly fell on his knees and rubbed his face.       "Let's go home..." he said, breathing heavily.

***

      "Okay, SheZow, thanks for bringing the specimen to us" said professor Slivertin, the head scientist of the meta-prison. "I promise we investigate as much as we can about the nature of it and find a way to turn it stable... And restrained too."       "Thank you, professor" SheZow said. "How are you going to keep her during studies?"       "That's simple" professor said, pointing at the weird construction behind the window. It was two thick metal stands, between which was glass flask filled with green goo. The flask spun repeatedly.       "The container is kept in motion to not let the specimen concentrate and gain shape. When we need a sample, we just make it stop and send prolonged charge of electricity to disable its mind functions for some time. Is that good enough for you, SheZow?"       "Yes, pretty good..." SheZow said. "Thank you, professor" the heroine then left the room. Maz and Kelly waited for her outside the prison building near the She-Cycle, now cleaned from the snow.

***

      After SheZow, Kelly and Maz left the underground facility, with SheZap shards with them, kept inside the container on the Beautility Belt, and handed her to the meta-prison staff, they headed back to the city. Everybody there were gladly okay - after SheZap got disabled, the zombification faded off, plus people couldn't even remember what happened to them during being possessed. For all of them, it was like a sudden time skip. Mr. Merzanovich was incredibly upset that the day got wasted - when he and the class went normal again, the time passed so that all lessons were over. But since no explanation was found, he just let the students go. Maz, Kelly and Guy managed to sneak back to the class and also play like they were there all the time.       When the kids got home, they found out Droosha is okay as well - her only confusions were the sudden change of her chair location and suspicious mark on the wall like the thick needle was stuck there. Kids swore it weren't them.       Kelly had to spend few days before Sheila, using her coding skills at max to help the AI lady to get rid of all glitches and worm viruses she got from SheZap's signals. As the days went on, the day of Christmas was getting nearer and nearer...

***

      "Merry Christmas, everyone!" with these words the host of the Christmas show on the TV waved his hand, and his female assistant pressed the prop giant button that lit the Christmas tree. The fireworks banged outside, as the clock finished ringing twelve. Hamdon family cheered along. They stayed home to celebrate. Before the day came, Guy asked if Maz can come along - he couldn't imagine celebrating the holiday without his best friend. Boxter first said that they planned to celebrate as family, but Droosha brought up two heavy arguments: one - Maz is so close friend of Guy that he's almost a family member, and two - they can just invite Maz's whole family too, the more - the merrier the Christmas is. Boxter couldn't counter his wife's enthusiasm and agreed - and was rather surprised to know that Maz's family is literally Maz himself and his brother. Rex quickly won Hamdon parents' favor, being a very modest and polite young man. When the seniors were kinda carried away by their conversation, kids sneaked away and got to the She-Lair. It also was decorated - Sheila wanted to keep the holiday atmosphere.       "Merry Christmas, kids!" Sheila cheerfully said when the three entered the lair.       "Merry Christmas, Sheila!" each of them said one after another. Kelly got into the chair and rolled closer to the keyboard, spinning cheerfully. Maz followed her, laughing. Guy just stood aside, watching his friend and sister having fun.       "It was a long year, wasn't it?" Guy said, crossing his arms with a smirk.       "Indeed it was..." Kelly said. "You acquired the ring and our life changed forever..."       "Let's quickly run over our adventures! For example, all the big cases, involving supervillains" Maz said. "Sheila, light it up!"       "With pleasure, Maz" the AI said with a smile and her screen changed the image, showing the records about every case SheZow had over the time since Guy first transformed.       "Terra-rist, the leader of the biggest gang in Megadale underground crime empire - our first deal" Sheila smiled, appearing in the corner of the screen. "Meta-human, controls the earth and its elements. Currently is held in meta-proof custody."       "Rude and blunt" Guy said mockingly. "Just a thug, no villain grace. I'd give him 5 out of 10 just for immense strength..."       "Next one - Tim Shiverstein, a.k.a. Coldfinger" Sheila said, opening the record about Timmy. "First time was captured and placed in custody, now the whereabouts are unknown..."       "Have you got any message from him after you let him go after facing Grilla with DudePow?" Kelly asked, and Guy sighed.       "No, I haven't" he answered. "Tim is not a bad guy, just life went hard on him, and he almost broke, taking the wrong path. Right now it seems that he's up for improvement, but needs some time to... Get used to stuff. He needs time alone, so I provide it and don't search for him specifically. My rating for him - not an enemy..."       "Next goes Tara" Sheila opened the record and sighed. "Previous SheZow ex-partner and friend, no supernatural powers except great willpower and extreme level of physical training. Currently free, not caught yet."       "It's sad to know that she had a chance to stay on good side..." Maz said, and Guy looked away sadly.       "Unfortunately, the price was too big to simply find that out. Things better stay as they are, even though it makes her a big trouble. I'd give her... 7 out of 10. Dangerous and has great villainous motivation, enough for such rating."       "Next case - SheZap, our most recent encounter..." Sheila bit her lip. "I still have byte chills from remembering how she corrupted my processor..."       "And I still have flashbacks from how I located and erased them out of you..." Kelly rubbed her forehead.       "For that I am very grateful, my girl" Sheila smiled again. "Anyways... SheZap. Creature made from the combination of unknown toxic waste and SheZow DNA, has slime physique and can shape-shift. Currently is held in the lab of the meta-prison and studied closely. I can see in their database, local tests show that the instability of her molecules affected her memory at some point, and she seems to forget a lot about Guy part of her personality..."       "And let it stay that way, for Holy Onion Sauce sake..." Guy said, rubbing his face. "She showed the vulnerable side at the breakpoint, yes, but otherwise, she's an utter freak. Can't blame her, that's who she's born as. But we're fighting villains, so she's our enemy and that's it. I give her 8 out of 10 - she caused more trouble than Tara..."       "And the last case - Broujah, the witch from the museum" Sheila continued. "With her magic wrecked monster havoc in the city at Halloween, currently encased in stone again, with the sealing gem missing."       "Yeah, that's weird that we haven't found it yet..." Guy shrugged. "Anyways, I don't think anybody can cast the spell to free her, besides it's kinda coded to SheZow level of power. I'd give her 6 out of 10, she didn't manage to cause much trouble to see what she's really capable of."       "Well, that's all we got" Sheila said, closing the tabs.       "But not all we've been through" Guy smirked. "It's worth noting how I traveled in time and faced the mutant monkey that took over the city..."       "And how you met the guest from another dimension" Kelly added.       "And how we had a quarrel, but then saved the day together" Maz joined, blushing from the fact he talked about the time he got starstruck. "You also approved the idea of SheZow Fan-Club of those teens, remember?"       "Oh yeah, I do" Guy chuckled. "I wonder how they're doing..."       "They are doing very well!" Kelly said, opening another tab on Sheila's screen, and Guy saw the website page, styled in pink, black and white. It obviously was dedicated to SheZow and her heroics. "I don't know what you two said to them, but somehow, they contacted me, and asked to be their guide and basically leader. I almost refused, but they sounded so dedicated... I had to agree. And now I am running the club dedicated to you! I provide them the basic information and redact their entries, while they do all the main work on the website itself. We have over 20,000 subscribers already, and this number grows each day. You are getting very popular!" Guy whistled at such a big number.       "And what about SheZow sidekick?" Maz smirked, and Kelly responded it with one of her own.       "And about sidekick we have a whole page entirely dedicated to. All of them, from Ninja-Steak to Simple-Man, one that nobody has seen!" she laughed and Maz laughed as well.       "You're the best, Kel..." he said and smooched the girl, making her blush.       "Yeah..." Guy smirked. "We have gone a long way. And you know what's the best?"       "What?" Kelly wondered, looking at her brother.       "This way we have gone together" Guy smiled, approaching his sister and best friend. "It brought us all closer. And, to tell you the truth..." he sniffed and spread his arms. "I'd go zillion times more, but only with you along. Without you - never... I love you, guys!"       "Aw, dude..." Maz chuckled and approached his friend. "We love you too."       "We really love you, jerk" Kelly smirked and joined Maz. All three engaged in a group hug. Soon it broke apart.       "So, what do you think..." Maz began with a smirk. "Are villains going to have post-Christmas break as well? Or we face some Evil Santa?"       "I have no idea, man" Guy chuckled. "But in any case, they'll be greeted by a warm and fuzzy holiday congratulation by SheZow!"       "Great to hear" Sheila said. "Because I think we're having a She-Mergency right now!" she changed the image to the surveillance camera records, showing how bandits in ninja garments are fighting with poorly dressed bandits at the toy shop. "I have no idea who these bandits are, but they are neither ordinary burglars, nor of Terra-rist gang. Looks like after his gang got weakened by us, others took the chance to try and rise."       "Well, the hero's on her way to get them back down!" Guy said confidently, waving his ring hand. "You go girl!" he transformed and rushed to the She-Cycle. "Maz, are you coming!"       "Yeah, gimme a sec!" Maz replied and turned to Kelly. "Sorry, love, duty's calling" Kelly with a smirk approached him and kissed in the cheek.       "Stay safe, hun" she said. Maz nodded with a loving smile and then ran to SheZow, holding his backpack. Kelly sat in chair and turned to the screen.       "Boys fighting crime, girls are working on the records!" she said confidently. "Ready for some monitoring, Sheila?"       "I always am, my girl" the AI lady said. Meanwhile, Guy and Maz already were riding to the crime scene.       "It's been a long since I acquired this ring..." Guy thought. "Since then, my life changed. I faced challenges, was tested physically and mentally. But I also had my friends and family by my side. I was not alone. And as long as it is, I am ready for more. Ready to fight, to protect them. Because this is the right thing to do. Because this is who I am... I am Guy Hamdon. I am SHEZOW!" THE END