Lexi winced and looked away as she was all too aware of the needle piercing the flesh on her arm. She'd let out a weak gulp and whimper, close her eyes and exhale as the calming voice of Mr. Hilfmann helped her through the ordeal. He'd soon remove the needle and disinfect the site of the injection as Lexi had a seat, rubbing her sore arm for a moment.
"Th-Thank you Dr." Lexi replied humbly, "I really mean it ... I don't know where I'd be without you"
"Well Lexi..." Trevor sighed, discarding the used syringe which had just injected potentially curative nanites into the young woman, "There is no gaurantee this is going to work long term, if it works at all"
Lexi nodded, already knowing the risks. She hadn't had any super bad electrical attacks (as she called them) since her time at the fairy colony but her powers and her body still didn't seem exactly normal. That's to be expected however when one is exposed to the amount of experimental voltage that one Alexis Cole was that fateful afternoon at Enormo Enterprises.
"On the brighter side of things..." Trevor continued, walking over to his lab bench and removing the cloth which covered the round shiny medallion that would be ShrinkGirl's iconic purple and gold SG metallic belt buckle. "I was able to make those modifications you wanted ... not sure how it'll translate when you change sizes but check it out"
The resourceful engineer of sorts removed the letter "S" carefully from the inset he had carefully crafted, soon doing the same with the G before putting them both back.
"The S works as a sort of grappling hook to help you out of tight spots ... the G, as you requested..." Trevor stated with a bit of hesitance and a great sigh of desperation, "can be thrown at enemies like a ... batarang..."
"Score!" the spunky Lexi giggled, quickly rebounding from her injection.
Trevor would ignore the young woman's juvenile reaction, chalking it up to immaturity as he walked over towards a lab bench with more gadgets and gizmos.
"So... you had mentioned some other potential equipment?" Lexi asked
To that end, the kindly former engineer would show Lexi just what he had been working on.
"Working with ... well, that place..." Trevor cringed, refusing to fully acknowledge his past, "I worked a lot on miniature mechanations of sorts ... this time, I believe they'll be used in the right hands"
Lexi would lean down and marvel at the various metallic looking creations the doctor had whipped up, one in particular really piquing her interest.
"Is that a jetpack?" Lexi asked in a silly manner
"It is, yes ... in a way" Trevor responded, "it's a high speed propulsion momentum based ... uh ... yeah, it's a jet pack..."
"Awesome!" Lexi chuckled, "although not sure ou wanna see this girl get airborne, I'm clumsy enough on my feet..."
"Yeah ..." Trevor sighed, "I'm still trying to find all my microchips that you knocked over"
"I'm sorry..." Lexi pouted, hanging her head for a moment, "I offered to shrink down and take a look for em"
"No no, it's fine..." Trevor shrugged, "I'm sure they'll turn up ... most of them anyway"
"So ... can this stuff be spray painted purple maybe?" Lexi grinned, looking it over.
"Y'know I can't help but think I'm enabling you here" Trevor lamented while Lexi got more and more ideas in her head of how to become more "superheroic" based on comics she had read.
"Oh, 100%" Lexi chuckled, "you totally are, but I really appreciate it... are you sure you don't want any money or anything?"
Trevor would shake his head
"Appreciated but not needed and probably not a great idea either..." Trevor replied, "I'm trying to stay off the grid and that's all I need is receipts showing I'm helping a superhero"
"Superheroine, technically" Lexi corrected the doctor.
"Whatever..." Trevor sighed, shaking his head. Despite his reservations, there was something wholesome and joyful about the young Alexis Cole that made him willing to put up with the antics. The fact that she was using her newfound abilities the way she was had been admirable to him.
Lexi glanced down at her watch and realized she was running a little late.
"Anyways, I've gotta go if I hope to catch the bus down to the Mini Mall" Lexi said, still rubbing her arm a bit as she headed for the exit, "thank you again, Doctor..."
"You don't have to keep calling me that ..." Trevor sighed, shaking his head as he watched his young charge depart.
----------------
Later that night, Chrissy would be beholding quite a scene indeed, just slouching a bit while watching the young Alexis Cole dance, or at least she was convinced the bubbly brunette THOUGHT it was dancing while they had been in a summerwear store checking out swimsuits together. Or at least Chrissy had. Lexi had started as well until a popular song came on the store's PA and she'd begin shuffling through the aisles with a bit of an extra swagger in her step and sway in her hips.
"You always so energetic?" Chrissy giggled, "I mean, I work with you so I kinda know the answer but it's like, where does it all come from?"
"Not really sure to be honest" Lexi responded with a chipper tone, shrugging a bit while backing up, throwing her elbows to the beat of the music before accidentally striking something, or rather somebody from behind. She noticed she had jabbed the lower gut of Chrissy's friend, Rachel and instantly her smile turned to a look of regret. "Oh my God ... no, I am SO sorry!!"
"So.... nice to see you again Lex" Rachel winced in a tiny bit of pain. The elbow had hit her like a javelin, jabbing her swiftly but it was more the suprise of it and some additional pressure put on her that seemed to bring a harder impact. She took it like a sport as much as possible, shaking it off after a few moments while Lexi, now joined by Chrissy came over to look in on her, "I'm fine ... basically just like missing a cheer routine"
"Ooof, yeah, I've fallen off a number of human pyramids" Lexi chuckled, scratching her own head while attempting to move the topic away from her own clumsiness just there. "Also ... usually been RESPONSIBLE for them falling ..."
Chrissy would roll her eyes, looking over at Rachel with concern before addressing Lexi real quick again, "By the way, do you plan to try out for the team next semester??"
"I might" Lexi nodded, "I'm not sure why I didn't try THIS semester to be honest ... just been real busy with stuff..."
"Heh, I know how that goes" Rachel chimed in, seemingly over the hit, "Been working at the computer place downtown..."
"You're working there too?" Chrissy asked
"Too? What else do you do?" Lexi asked, "if you don't mind my asking"
"I work as a vet assistant at the animal hospital too, although that's only on weekends" Rachel shrugged, "I love animals"
"That's sweet" Lexi smiled, "but I hope you get some time for yourself"
"Oh yknow ... I do ... here and there..." Rachel shrugged with a nervous grin
"You okay hon?" Chrissy asked Rachel while the trio would continue sauntering throughout the store. Chrissy had at least picked out a tie-die bikini while Lexi hadn't really decided on anything rather than the fact that she shouldn't be so outgoing with her dancing in a spot with such little room to move about.
"Eh, not really..." Rachel groaned, clutching her stomach very briefly, which Lexi took as a cue that she had bruised the girl more than initially thought, "My mom and I had a fight before I left ...."
"Again?" Chrissy asked
"She expects me to be supergirl, y'know? Like she wanted me to fix her security system because of some security protocol not working or something? I don't know ..." Rachel rolled her eyes, "I just started working for Aztek, it's not like I'm this tech expert..."
"Oh, you work for Aztek?" Lexi added cheerfully, "I know the guy in charge there"
Lexi then realized why that might not have been a good idea to say
"Oh, Mr. Hilfmann? I think he's mentioned you a time or two, yeah" Rachel nodded
"You know the computer repair guy?" Chrissy raised an eyebrow, "I don't think I've ever seen you on a computer in all the time I've known you"
"W-Well yeah ... because it always needs um... repairs" Lexi shrugged
"Is that why your name doesn't appear in our client database?" Rachel teased, "...not that I look at those things, mind you"
"Can we change the subject please?" Lexi sighed, rolling her eyes.
Around this time, a group of young guys was also at the mall, although unaware of the females. They would be Chris, Will and Trent, 3 guys that Lexi knew from school, although out of the three, only 1 knew of her superhero identity ... okay so technically 2. But Trent didn't really count. He just saw her tiny once. That could've been ANYONE named Alexis Cole ...
These guys would be going about their evenings in a similar fashion having just wrapped up at a gaming store, while arguing about which Call of Duty game was better. All but Will who was more of a Legend of Zelda guy. The group would eventually find themselves at the food court which was quite the coincidence as Lexi, Chrissy and Rachel would be doing the same.
"But yeah, that's why I was late tonight..." Rachel sighed, eyeying her watch with some derision. She usually prided herself on being punctual, something that was both ingrained in her by her mother but also something that was important to her innately. "Just family drama and stuff..."
"Why don't you just tell your mom to back off?" Chrissy shrugged, almost matter of factly about it, while the girls sat at a table, Chrissy with her lone bag from the Summer Shack, along with a small purple satchel around her shoulder, Lexi with a bigger, more traditional style handbag and Rachel with more or less just her cell phone, slim wallet and keys in her pocket. What the other 2 weren't privy to of course was that inside Lexi's large purple handbag dwelled the SG medallion, said to protect her from dark magic, and was now enhanced by Trevor's technological augmentation.
"Heh yeah, that wouldn't exactly go over well ..." Rachel shrugged, her plate of food relatively untouched as her hands shook a bit. Lexi took a moment or two to observe this and would frown a little, thinking that Rachel seemed like too kind a soul to be under such crushing pressure, especially at such a young age. "...as it is, I think she wants me to get a third job"
"Oh that's ridiculous!" Chrissy scoffed, casually going for a fry on the edge of Rachel's plate, "S-sorry, you didn't want that, right?"
Rachel would nod and acquiese the fry while the two continued to talk. Lexi would listen with one ear but be drawn to the TV mounted on one of the mall's pillars overlooking the food court. The news was on, speaking of a series of small fires breaking out on a city block in Minitropolis.
The superhero side of Lexi took over for a brief moment while she narrowed suspects in her head based on her growing knowledge of Minitropolis and their crime ring.
"...Pyro Pete...." Lexi sneered, not thinking she was being too loud but apparently it was at least loud enough for Chrissy to catch and pick up on.
"I'm sorry, what?" Chrissy would giggle a bit
"Um... Peet... Peet's Coffee... Starbucks!" Lexi blurted out, as she perused the surrounding area with her eyes in haste in an attempt to divert attention away, plus she COULD go for a fruity frozen drink or something. Still, not her smoothest exit strategy.
Lexi would stroll at a methodical pace, not too fast or slow, just enough to get her mind on something else and try to refocus on what should've been a calm evening out with friends, although her mind was anything but calm ever since taking on the responsibilities of a superheroine, which to be fair, was something she was never formally tasked with doing. She could've kept her secret powers to herself but it didn't feel right. At the very least it certainly made life more interesting. Yeah ... that's it... Lexi thought to herself, the positive thoughts flooding her mind once more like a waterfall. Sometimes she just needed a little ...
"Chris!" she blurted out, being the first to greet him since she could already see him and his cohorts in tow, she recognized Will from the card shop but couldn't quite place the name to the face, "and uh....?"
"Will" Will would say in a very friendly tone, offering to shake her hand despite the fact that they had met a few times before, albeit for short times at the Crazy Jester. "and you're Lexi, right?"
"Heh yeah..." Lexi responded, bowing her head a bit in embarassment, "S-Sorry, not good with names"
While she kept her eyes on the group of guys, including a brief nod to Trent, she also turned when she realized it was her turn in line at the small Starbucks stand to order, she'd address the barista in a friendly tone and ask for a strawberry ice tea, continuing to chat with the guys now.
Meanwhile back at the table, Chrissy would suddenly get a bit quiet, ducking down so that only a small portion of her head was visible behind her shopping bag which she thrusted suddenly onto the table to serve as a barrier.
"Everything okay??" Rachel asked
"That guy ... over there..." Chrissy muttered, her voice down to a whisper, as she shifted her eyes in the direction, "near Lexi ... no, don't look, don't look... okay look real quick ... that guy over there ... name is Trent ... he's my ex"
"Oh I didn't know you guys broke up, I remember seeing you on campus with him a few times ... although come to think of it, I didn't think you were all that serious with him" Rachel commented, scanning the area briefly before returning to her talk with Chrissy
"We weren't ..." Chrissy sighed, continuing her hiding efforts by putting her hand over her forehead as if she were getting too much sunlight "We went to the Valentine's Dance together and I agreed to a date with him after that but it just ... didn't go anywhere ...? I thought he was a nice enough guy but he kinda took it hard ... I just ... ugh ..."
Lexi herself was in the process of finding out this information while the quartet talked and she accidentally asked the wrong question.
"So you and Chrissy still...?" Lexi asked Trent
"Hmmm?" Trent murmured before realizing what she meant, "Oh well uh ... no, I guess not"
Chris gave Lexi a look like "please no, don't say anything", shaking his head and trying to divert the trajectory of the conversation but the awkward damage had already been dealt. Lexi knew it too, and a quick glance would show that Chrissy was no longer there. She was a bit worried by this but a more in depth scan of the area would find her heading towards the restrooms in the corner, likely to get out of obvious sight while Rachel had been a bit behind her, taking her phone and raising it to her ear. Lexi frowned and just returned to the current conversation.
"S-Sorry, I uh ... didn't know" Lexi sighed, feeling like a total jerk now, albeit unintentionally. She didn't know the background of the guys hangout and how part of it was to help their friend get over the blonde with whom Lexi was currently spending some time with.
"Nah it's cool, stuff happens" Trent nodded, trying to shake things off with a smile. Will tapped his shoulder and gave Lexi a bit of a friendly look as if to nonverbally forgive her for the social mishap.
"Hey, we still gotta get to Best Buy before they close, see if your computer's ready" Will said with a nod, bringing Trent along, while Chris still lingered behind for a bit longer to talk to Lexi as she sipped on her now ready strawberry drink.
The rush of fruit flavor and sugar hit her with an exciting burst. It was definitely needed, as simple as it was, she even gave the girl behind the counter an overly giddy smile as if to nonverbally thank her. It was amazing in a way how many things could be communicated without words.
Rachel waited patiently for her friend, her phone at her waist. After a time, the woman's room door would slide open and Chrissy would offer a sheepish wave, not having to actually utilize the restroom but simply using it as a faked opportunity to get away.
"Sorry about that..." Chrissy started
With a burst and a clamoring, the men's restroom door would flutter open and out would dart one of the most generically dressed criminal types anyone could imagine, complete with black mask that covered most of his face, save for a tuft of orange hair.
Rachel would give him a shocked look and that was all before the aggressive young man, likely in his 20s shoved her forcefully to the ground, noticing her wallet, which had been loosely in her skirt pocket to this point was now sliding across the tiled floor of the mall. Like a running back scooping up a fumble, he would quickly grab it up while the commotion continued, some shouting after the assailant but doing little else as he looked like the type who would resort to violence if challenged.
"Rachel!" Chrissy gasped, watching as the brute criminal was on the run, wasting no time in cutting through the food court and heading into the main atrium of the mall.
"Shit" Lexi shook her head, going briefly over to her purse to fetch something. Chris watched with a bit of concern.
"You're not thinking of ...?"
"I'm not thinking ... I'm doing" Lexi sneered, taking the whole purse with her and ducking down behind a pillar, fishing out the iconic SG belt buckle she packed for such an occasion. It's a good thing she also had her belt modified and ready to go to accept the belt buckle in place as if it were a normal part of her wardrobe. After all, a good Batman like superheroine had to be prepared for such things.
Chrissy would duck around the corner to see where Lexi had gone off to her but she wouldn't see her. Only her purse.
"You sure this is a good idea?" Chris sighed, running as best he could to keep up with the criminal but losing ground to him quite quickly even as some brave bystanders had made the effort to shove him back and keep him from advancing. The man seemed unarmed but had enough strength to bully his way through the crowd with little exertion.
"Oh I know it's not" the tiny Lexi squeaked from inside Chris' clenched hand, "how far is he from us?"
"Still pretty far..." Chris sighed,
"It'll have to do ... throw me!" Lexi squeaked commandingly
"I'm sorry, what?!" Chris asked
"Why is this always such a point of contention with people, THROW ME!!" Lexi squeaked
"I really don't think this is a good ... ugh!!" Chris yelped, being jumped by another in a black jacket, sending Lexi sliding onto the floor like a wayward bread crumb. She'd slide across the tiling on her side, scuffing her thighs a bit and then stand up and shake her head, about to grow back before being startled by the thunderous black boot of a third thuggish figure who entered the fray, the 2 of them seemingly ready for this as they had Chris surrounded. Lexi would dart behind a garbage can and grow back, looking to Chris for a moment and nodding to let him know she had his back but he shook his head and pointed towards the first running badguy who still possessed Rachel's wallet.
"You guys don't want to do this..." Chris sighed, remaining remarkably calm as the two simply closed around him in a tightening formation.
Lexi meanwhile took advantage of the confusion to chase down the guy with Rachel's wallet. She knew this all too well now. One guy in a black jacket and mask? That's unlikely enough but more than that? This was a Chaos Crew operation and they seemed to have planned it in advance. But was that really all they were after? One wallet? Or was this a distraction for something bigger?
Lexi wouldn't have much time to ask that question as she saw the guy quite a few yards away but she had a way to close the distance. She'd pull carefully onto the S of her belt, feeling it with her fingers to make sure it fit snugly the way it should. She'd tug on it lightly and a fishing rod wire would keep it tethered to the buckle but have enough pull for her to get it up to her shoulder as she took aim at the railing up on the second floor just above her.
"Here we go ... field test" Lexi thought, hawking the S-Grapple and watching as it spun around and eventually took hold on one of the thin metal spires of the mall railing. With that phase completed, she'd let gravity, or the opposite thereof run its course, launching her up towards the second floor, but before getting fully up there, she'd release the hook from it's perch, leaving her feeling weightless for a moment before landing a lot further ahead on the first floor again, essentially having slingshotted herself to gain a sizeable distance on the thug.
"I'm going to need some backup here..." the criminal holding Rachel's wallet in his breast pocket would say to what appeared to be a small wireless mic tucked behind his ear.
"Backup is coming" another gruff voice would respond.
As Lexi reached the atrium of the mall, a central area with 4 diverging paths, it appeared she may have succeeded in surrounding the robber, but just in case she reached for the G on her belt, preparing to throw it if necessary.
"Tell me when ..." the voice on the headset would say, sounding a bit tense now that it was known Lexi was involved in their plan.
"NOW!!"
With that, there'd be a horrible ear piercing screech emanating from the spacious ceiling above, the result of several support cables. As Lexi arrived in the near center of the decorative tile floors to confront the thief there would be only seconds before a shadow quickly grew larger from above. The mall's iconic crystal chandelier was about to make a crash landing. She'd come to a brief stop, her legs spread apart in a defensive pose.
A good distance away, but not too far to see what had been happening was Chris, simply dodging the men's attacks while they tried to throw punches and pin him down.
"I told you guys... we don't have to do this violently..." Chris shrugged, seizing a punching fist from one of the men, "in fact I'd prefer we ... didn't!"
Chris finally let his temper get the best of him a little bit, twisting the fist this time instead of just passing it back as he had the past few punches. While his attacker cried out in pain, he'd bound over him and push him towards his associate, ready to aid Lexi before hearing the glass shattering and the screams of horror.
"LEXI!!"
Giantess World
