The superhero duo of Invisolad and She-fly are one of the best teams in MegaCity. They have worked together for the past 2 years as partners against crime. While they do not know each other's secret identity, they do chat and text often over their cellphones to coordinate their movements. The night they tried to stop Mental changed everything. Let's pick up with the epic battle sequence...
She-fly avoided the crate that Mental through at her with his mind. "Can't box me that easy," she says playfully. Invisolad, who had just killed the power to the warehouse and plunged the giant room into darkness, replies, "Ugh, please Fly, leave the puns and jokes to me." With the room dark, She-Fly uses her goggles that Invisolad had designed for her to see in low-light situations. And since it was dark, Invisolad did not need to be invisible, so he could use his power over electricity again now that he was visible to everyone.
Mental paused with the lights out. Thinking quickly, he shouts, "I am not done yet, heroes. I am just warming up for the big finish." Our heroes can hear him grunt as he focuses his energy inward. Not sure what he has in mind, they both say together, "Now or never!" Moving quickly in the dark, they both reach out and punch Mental at the same time in the face, one on either side. The mental energy that Mental had been storing up is released uncontrollably. His unconscious body falls backwards, as his powers bathe the room.
She-Fly and Invisolad follow through with their punch and become disoriented by Mental's blast. "What," She-Fly starts. "Happened," Invisolad finishes, as they collapse to the ground. The three of them lay on the concrete floor unmoving.
The Sun rises as She-Fly stands up rubbing his head. "Ow," he says, "What a headache." Invisolad gets to her feet as well, saying, "Worst brain freeze ever," putting her hand up to her head. With her head down, Invisolad looks at what is on her chest and she screams, "Yikes!" She-Fly turns around to see herself staring at her body. Not sure what to think, he looks down and is equally shocked by his body. They both look up and say together, "We switched bodies!"
Sometime later...
"Look, it is almost 8, and I have not checked in with Mike yet," She-Fly says, "We got to go on as we are now." Invisolad replies, "That is my point, I have to check in with Mike, not you. How am I going to be you?" As if answering that question, Invisolad's cellphone rings. She-Fly looks down at it, "Uh, who is Sherry?" Invisolad smacks his head, "Oh no, I was supposed to meet her for breakfast at 8. You gotta go now!" She-Fly looks at himself, "Like this? and with a woman? I don't think so." Invisolad puts her hands on her hips saying, "You said we have to be each other until we can figure it out, so be me!"
Hesitantly, She-Fly puts the phone up to her ear, "Uh, hello?" Invisolad can only hear part of the conversation. "Right...I know...uh, sorry...you are right...yes, I said you are absolutely right...I can be at the restaurant by 8:30...thank you so much...love you!" Invisolad can only moan, "Love you? I don't love her...well, at least I don't think I do." He can only curse under his breath. "Hey, sorry, it is not like I know your intimate details, you know." Invisolad nods and replies, "My name is actually Brad Styles." "Oh yeah," She-Fly replies, "I'm Stephanie Diggs."
A little more time later...
"Look, you gotta get going," Invisolad tells She-Fly. "Sherry is waiting and you can't fly, you know." It was at this point that She-Fly realizes her powers are gone. Tapping her powers, she wills herself to fly, but instead, he turns invisible. His vision seems distorted, but then she can't tell. "Yeah, it is a little trippy at first, but you get used to it." Grabbing his hand, uh well, actually it is her hand, but really it's...oh this makes my head hurt..."Look, it's almost 8:30. I can try and fly you there, but you gotta go."
She-Fly gives her a look, "you, fly?" And with a smirk on his lips, daring Invisolad to try her powers out, he closes his eyes and begins floating up and up. "I'm flying!" Invisolad yells. "Uh, too high," She-Fly replies loudly. And with that, Invisolad hits his head on the ceiling of the warehouse, falling roughly down and landing on the ground too quickly. "Ow," she says as she rubs her head, "That will take some getting used to." She-Fly states, "I am not flying with you, buddy. I will take your cycle." Still rubbing her head, Invisolad replies hesitantly, "My cycle?"
She-Fly quickly learns the basics to a motorcycle, and leaves the area quicker than she should. Invisolad has texted Mike and heads home. Invisolad's trip home is a little scary, but he eventually finds his way to She-Fly's house. Changing in the detached garage, where She-Fly has a secret room, Invisolad (now Stephanie) exits the room, wearing a floral print dress and flats. "Ok," she says outloud, "Time to meet the -gulp- husband."
Invisolad steps into the kitchen and sees a well kept house. It is rather small, but with an open floor plan, it appears bigger than it is. Mike, who looks like he just stepped out of an Esquire magazine, walks into the room. He is tan, tall, and obviously sexy, because as soon as he walked into Invisolad's view, her nipples began to stick out. Embarrased, and slightly disgusted, she turns to avoid his gaze, but she cannot get far as Mike gives her a big hug. With her back to him, he can only kiss her on the neck, "Long night at the factory?" Invisolad realizes she forgot to ask where She-Fly worked. Playing along she says, "Uh, yeah, overtime, you know." "Well, we can always use the money," he says releasing her, "I'm off to work. Why don't you get a shower and get into bed? I will see you at dinner."
I guess the kiss on the neck counted, because he waves to her and heads out the back door to his car in the driveway. After he leaves, she slumps into a kitchen chair. "Woah," she says, "This is not gonna be easy." I wonder how She-Fly is doing, he thinks.
"You're only eating a bran muffin and some yogurt?" Sherry says to She-Fly. He replies, "Uh, is that bad?" "Well," she starts, "I have never seen you eat less than a half dozen eggs and pancakes drowned in syrup." She-Fly did not even think when ordering, so the best excuse was, "Uh, well, I am not feeling like myself today, you know." Sherry does not smile at that, "Don't try and make another lame excuse this time, you were late and you forgot me!" She-Fly cannot believe the way this woman is acting. It is so childish, so filled with drama, so...well, just like me, I guess. Trying not to chuckle, he replies, "You are right, I really am sorry. I will make it up to you."
It was as if she was waiting for those words, as Sherry says, "Good, I have two tickets to the museum opening tonight, and you are taking me." She-Fly can only nod, thinking that does not sound too bad. But Sherry was not done, "Dinner at the Winter Lodge first and no appetizer or dessert tonight." She-Fly did not get the hint, so when he replies, "Ok, babe, whatever you want," Sherry is slightly taken aback. "You realize what I'm saying, right?" Actually, She-Fly had no idea what she was saying, but he replied again, "Whatever you want babe, it is your night, since I messed up your morning." Sherry sat back, her tight top pulling in some of the cleavage she was showing. Her look was one of disbelief, but the waiter returned with their food, so they set to eating, giving She-Fly a break from the awkwardness.
After a shower in a small shower and dressing in a soft robe, Invisolad gets a call from himself. "Hey," She-Fly says, "Are you alone?" Invisolad replies in his off handed way, "I am, but I'm married." She-Fly does not laugh at her joke, "Well, how did it go?" Invisolad replies as he gets into the full-sized bed. "Fine. fine. He asked if I worked late at the factory, so I said yes?" She-Fly replies quickly, "Yes, that works great. Anything else?" "Uh," Invisolad thinks as he puts his head on the pillow, "He mentioned seeing me at dinner." She-Fly states, "You realize you will have to cook him dinner, right?" Invisolad sits up on the bed, "What? He's big enough to make his own!" She-Fly chuckles at that, "Uh, you are the wife. You cook the meals." Invisolad replies, "But it is women's rights and all that now, right? I mean, I have the freedom, or well, you have the freedom to not cook and clean." She-Fly laughs outloud now, "Yes, that's true, but it is something that I was raised to do. I work outside the home, but I also cook and clean." Invisolad says something inaudible and lays back on the bed. "There is a recipe card box on the counter. Use the first one then move it to the back. Follow it exactly."
Invisolad nods as if she can see him. "So, how about you?" She-Fly takes a deep breath, "Well, Sherry was pretty mad, and I am not very good at being a man," he adds. "Oh?" "Yeah, I am taking her to the museum and dinner." "Oh good," Invisolad says, "I'm so glad not to be going to that museum event. Thanks!" "Oh, well, I guess I did better than I thought, but I need to ask you something," She-Fly begins, "She said no appetizer and no dessert." Invisolad sits up again, "She said what?!" She-Fly, less certain now, restates what he said before. "Why that manipulative---" "She-Fly clears his throat, causing Invisolad to stop. "Ok, she is saying you have to drive the car tonight, no motorcycle," he pauses to add this commentary, "she knows how much I hate driving that thing." "Ok," She-Fly says, "That does not seem too bad." Then Invisolad says, "The dessert is just that...no sex tonight." Before She-Fly can breathe a sigh of relief, Invisolad is off on a rant about that.
Their conversation ends with Invisolad drifting off to sleep on the bed, while She-Fly takes a shower and changes for work. "well," he states, "I don't plan on touching this hairy body, so I guess a quick rinse and I will add some extra perfume...uhm cologne." However, once he is in the shower, he finds he is dirtier than he thought, so he needs to do more than rinse. However, he grabs a rag so as not having to touch himself. She-Fly knows that Invisolad works as the manager of the Best Buy downtown. He feels he can handle it until they figure out how to switch back.
Later that afternoon...
"Well, if you have seen one MegaHertz, you have seen them all, right?" Stephanie says in Brad's body. She had been messing up the words and computers and orders all day. The customer walks away confused, and she says under her breath, "I thought being a manager would be easy, but I cannot seem to do anything right." Walking back across the center aisle, she tries to make it look like he knows what he is doing. Bumping into the endcap did not help, and calling the android cases he knocked over an 'iphone cover' did not help. Cleaning up the mess, she thinks to herself, "I wonder how Invisolad is doing."
And that very moment, Invisolad was still asleep. With dreams of being the most popular superhero in the world, he sleeps comfortably, as his feminine body is wrapped up in the soft bathrobe. No care in the world, as the exhaustion of the previous day continues to hold him fast asleep. She-Fly would do the same thing on a regular basis, except that she sets her alarm to make sure she does not over sleep. Hmm, it does not look like any alarm was set, as the attractive woman continues to snore in the oversized bed.
At close of business...
Stephanie, still in Brad's body, walks slowly out to his car. "Oh," he grimaces, "What a day." Before he can open the car door, his cellphone rings. "Hello?" She-Fly says, without even looking at who called. "Hey, sweetie, are you on your way over?" It was Sherry, She-Fly thinks to herself, I forgot Brad has a date tonight with her. "Uh, well," he stammers, "I just got off work, and..." Sherry butts in quickly, "You said you would take me to dinner and the museum event. Where is that evening you promised?" Brad rolls his eyes, while She-Fly thinks, do all women sound like that? And why do I want to apologize (even though it is not my fault), and hurry home to get dressed to make her happy? "No problem, honey," Brad says with some confidence, "I will change get over there right away."
"Right away?" Stephanie replies to her husband. She hears the phone go dead, and Invisolad thinks, well crap, I over slept. Jumping out of bed, he rushes into the kitchen. The robe flows behind him, causing a rather strong draft on his still naked body. "Ok," she says wrapping the robe around her, "Start dinner first, then get dressed." Rewrapping the robe again, getting her chest tucked away, she adds with a chuckle, "And definitely gotta put these things away, so distracting."
Grabbing the recipe box, she pulls out the first card as instructed. Hmmm, he thinks, 'Parmesan Chicken', that does not sound too hard. She grabs a pan and some spaghetti sauce. "Ok," she says outloud, "I've beaten the toughest bad guys...I can beat this!" And with that, she goes about making dinner.
Brad is dressed in a polo and khakis after a quick shower. One thing for sure, She-Fly thinks, getting ready is much easier as a man. Back in the car, he is headed towards Sherry's place thanks to the navigation system in the car knowing where to go. On the way there, he picks up some flowers and pulls into her apartment complex. Walking up to her door, she opens it with a look of surprise. "Flowers?!" she squeals, "Oh, how thoughtful!" Pulling them out of his hands, he replies, "Well, I thought it might help your mood since I'm late." Setting them on the table, she comes back to him. Pressing up against him, she kisses him deeply. Not really wanting this, She-Fly is repulsed at first, but his body tingles so much from Sherry's touch, that his lips soften against hers. "Now, don't expect too much tonight," she says pulling away, "We have to get to the museum." Brad nods, happy to be separated, yet more unsure than he was when he first came in the door.
Mike, Stephanie's husband, comes home from a day at the marketing office for an automotive company. His once-crisp clothes are much more wrinkled from the day. As he walks in the door, he expects to smell dinner, but he doesn't. Hmmm, he thinks, that seems odd. But, he reasons, it may be something that does not smell much. Shrugging his shoulders, he walks into the kitchen to see his wife trying to cut something up on the counter. "Hello?" he says awkwardly. Obviously, she did not hear him come in, so she quickly whips around, causing her robe to open and reveal her naked body under her robe.
Trying to recover, Invisolad puts the knife down and tries to cover up, "Oh, I did not hear you come in...I was, you know...then I thought I would..." Mike puts his briefcase on the counter and walks closer to her. Putting his arms around her, he says, "Oh, baby, it is okay. I know what is going on." Invisolad is still in shock, and does not notice Mike opening her bathrobe more. "I must say, you look hot in that robe." Invisolad finally figures what is going on and replies, "Oh, yeah, I mean, I doubt it. I forgot to...you know," trying to pull back from him. Oh, gross, he thinks, this guy thinks I did this on purpose, which probably means he wants some.
Mike starts at her neck and works his way up to her ear. Her body reacts just as he expected, causing her body to shiver a little, goosebumps forming all over her. Pulling her in tighter, he kisses her full on the mouth. He can feel her nipples press tightly against his cotton shirt. He smiles on the inside, nice to know I haven't loss my touch. He slips his hands under her robe, and starts rubbing her back.
On the other side of this show of affection, Invisolad's brain is in a state of overload. His mind keeps screaming 'no', while her body keeps screaming 'yes'. He is trying to willing her body to stop and push him away, but he cannot seem to summon enough will power. Part of the reason, his brain is starting to connect the broken connections from the mind swap this morning. Her brain is making the physical match the mental, meaning that Invisolad is fighting the first battle of his superhero life that he cannot win. He wants to push him, yet her arms go around him instead. Holding him tighter, she can feel his warm body through his clothes. She can't help but release a soft moan in reaction to this sudden rush of hormones.
Mike reads that as a sign she is ready, so he scoops her up in his arms and walks towards the bedroom. As he does, she continues to kiss his neck and run her hands through his hair. Laying her down, she does not move, waiting for him to make the next move. With little effort, he drops his pants and removes his shirt. He notices that she is staring at him like she has never seen him naked before. Her face gives a strange look, but then her legs open slightly. Figuring he is more tired than he thought, he goes ahead and climbs on the bed.
'Oh my' is all that she can think. 24 hours ago, he would have been discussed by what he is seeing. But now, he can only think about how much he wants more and more. She moans again, almost a whimper, as Mike comes on top of her. She moves to say something, maybe to ask him to stop and that she is not ready. However, he enters her quickly and begins sending wave after wave of pleasure throughout her body. Each thrust just makes her moan more and more. Seconds become minutes, and Mike seems to be showing some fatigue as she enjoys every thrust more and more. Just when he thinks he cannot hold it in any longer, she screams loudly and passionately. As he enjoys her enjoyment, he grunts loudly, unloading his package in her. She climaxes again when he does, making her tear up with excitement.
Her eyes had been closed throughout, but in that last climax, she opens them. She sees his face staring at hers, and in that moment of pleasure, her brain makes several key connections. I will do whatever it takes to be able to do this again, she thinks, I want to be his forever. And with that simple sexual event, she has physically solidified what had been slowly working in her mentally. Any fear or confusion she had earlier were now gone, and life seemed much simpler to her now than it did just a few hours ago.
That night, She-Fly and Invisolad pay a visit to the master of magic: Dr Mystery. They had planned this as a back-up if they did not switch back after 24 hours. Both were dressed in their regular costumes, meaning that Invisolad flew there as She-Fly, while She-Fly rode there as Invisolad. They went late at night to avoid anyone seeing how awkward they looked, as neither were used to traveling that way.
Once inside, Dr Mystery was quick to diagnose the problem: "You switched bodies...fascinating." His calm demeanor did not help their nervousness about being in his house. It was an old house that looked even older. It seemed small from the outside, but the inside seems to go on forever. No one else seemed to live there, but Dr Mystery seems to talk as if other people were listening. Both of them were so taken back by him and his mansion, that they never asked any questions about him or his place. They just wondered in their minds about it, making their own conclusions,
and using the word "seem" more than ever before.
"Yes," She-Fly states in her new male voice, "So, can you just wiggle your fingers and change us back?" Invisolad, who might have jumped on that notion, remains quiet, letting She-Fly do all the talking. "Well, it is not that simple, I'm afraid." He begins. "The one who did this knows exactly what he is doing, and though I could conjure a spell to swap you back, there is no guarantee I will be able to swap back the right memories." The superheroes look at each other, "So, I might not like chocolate chip ice cream anymore?" Invisolad says in a feminine voice. Dr Mystery nods his head, "And more! If I do not remove the right memories, then I could alter your personality completely." None of them wanted that, so She-Fly suggests, "If we bring you Mental, then you might be able to help us." Dr Mystery nods after thinking that over for some time.
"Let's go," She-fly says loudly. Invisolad does not react immediately, causing Dr Mystery to say, "Just a moment." Rummaging through his pocket, he asks, "Could you hold this, my dear?" Holding out a small purple rock, Invisolad holds out her hand. "Uh, sure, but w--" As the stone touches her, she turns into a marble statue. The once-living superheroine is now solid-rock, captured in the pose of reaching out her hand, holding a purple, now-glowing rock. She-Fly rubs her male eyes and asks, "What did you do that for?" Dr Mystery touches the statue's face, satisfied, then turns to She-Fly. "It is clear that she does not want to exchange bodies again." She-Fly scoffs at that, "Ha! He wants out of there more than I want out of here," pointing down at himself.
Dr Mystery shakes his head. "No, I do not think so. Something has happened, and I think it is the Paradox Principle." Folding his arms, She-Fly asks, "What is that?" Dr Mystery continues, "When someone sees something out of the ordinary, they know it. But, if you are thinking everything is fine when it is not, unless someone tells you, you believe the paradox. For Invisolad in there, he is starting to believe he is a woman, and for what ever reason, his body and mind are in agreement. If you want to swap again, you cannot trust him to help you."
"I had not considered that," She-fly remarks, "I mean, I know I have had some definite male thoughts, but I also know I do not belong here." Dr Mystery nods his head and says, "I would suggest that you do most of the searching for Mental, and you should suggest he not be you the superhero unless it is an absolute emergency." As She-fly looks at him quizzically, he adds, "The more he acts like you, the more he wants to be you, so let him just be Stephanie, nothing more." Bowing her head in frustration, She-fly replies, "If you think it best, I will."
Once Dr Mystery has his purple rock back, the superheroes head back to their normal lives. Invisolad is fine with laying low, and letting She-fly do most of the work. Since She-fly can take off from work easier than Invisolad can now, it makes sense to them both. Going their separate ways, She-fly as Invisolad goes on patrol in the evening on his motorcycle, while Invisolad as Stephanie goes to work at the factory. The question that needs answering is: where is Mental?
Epilogue: in a darkened alley, not too far from their current location, a thin man in a tattered trenchcoat walks slowly to its end. He appears to be in no hurry...almost as if he is searching for something.