THE SUPERWOMAN FROM KRYPTON

THE WOMAN OF STEEL. CHAPTER V

[This chapter is the final showdown between Superwoman and the wicked team composed by The Toyman and Dr. Quinzel, It marks the halfway point in this fanfic, the next chapter will be a bonus chapter and then there are four to go!]

20 December 1949

Sentinell Hill

Superwoman glided swiftly and gracefully through the sky, slicing through the low clouds. Her long cape left a faint red line in the soft dawn sunlight that seeped through the clouds. Below, the landscape alternated between forests and farmlands, punctuated by rugged terrain. She flew along the blurry border between New York State and Miskatonic in search of Mr. Sebastian's residence. An ominous foreboding nestled in her heart, anticipating that it was there, or perhaps very soon, that she would confront the Toyman and his band of anonymous, vague, and sinister accomplices. She felt that Roberta was right: the Toyman was manipulating the hapless Mr. Sebastian. Meanwhile, the echoes of the mysterious mass disappearances and craters around the world continued, despite the official version of gas meteor impacts that seemed so ludicrous to the Maid of Might. Clara was overwhelmed by the fear of a possible alien invasion and by the exhausting hours of flying through the sky, the stratosphere or near space in search of a hostile fleet; and yet she feared to be unavailable to prevent a natural disaster, an accident... or to face a mere mortal human psychopath capable of committing unimaginable horrors, as the Toyman was. She should have paid more attention to the Toyman and investigated Dr. Quinzel sooner, but she couldn't do it all.

Below her, along the road and paths, she occasionally made out the red blur and flashes of light from Flash, who was accompanying her on this mission. She expected nothing more than guns and bombs, but she wanted a friendly hand to protect Mr. Sebastian or any other innocent person if she had to confront the Toyman and Dr. Quinzel. Using her telescopic vision, she saw Flash stop at a bend in a hill where a large white and gray slate-roofed wooden house stood on a sloping meadow. Superwoman descended gently. In front of the wooden gate was a small sign that read "Whalton House".

"Well, here we are... you found it so quickly, Barry."

"I'm quite good with maps...and I asked the milk truck," the Scarlet Speedster replied with self-sufficiency.

"Barry! You didn't have to talk to anyone! No one can know we are here!"

"I already told the milkman he couldn't tell anyone; don't worry people do comply!"

Superwoman huffed as she inspected the house with her X-ray vision and super-hearing. Nothing. She didn't detect anyone's presence.

"Barry, I think there's nobody here..." Superwoman's heart raced.

"Let's go inside," They moved towards the porch at super speed and unseen. Barry entered through phasing and opened the door from inside. Superwoman entered determinedly. The lights were off. The house appeared clean and tidy. It was old-fashioned and sparsely decorated but not sinister. They turned on the lights. Barry disappeared for a couple of seconds and then was back by her side.

"I've checked all rooms and didn't see anyone, but there are many toys and small mechanical robots. The house is tidy... there's a workshop with plans in the basement,"

Superwoman meticulously moved from room to room. The drawing room was somewhat clean. There were lots of comics and magazines. In the kitchen, a lot of food was stored but everything was normal. All the phones were disconnected or broken. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw several plush and toy heads impaled on spikes and piled up in the living room.

"What in the world is that?" Barry grimaced as Clara looked at him worriedly.

There were plush toys and mechanical figurines throughout the house. Some were crude and seemed to have been made there, others appeared to be new and recently purchased. Clara inspected them with her x-ray vision; none of them contained any sinister mechanisms. They went down into the basement. It wasn't a dark place, but a workshop with large lamps and painted in soft colors. More toys, more mechanisms... plans. Superwoman pounded frantically on the marble table, which exploded into dust and pebbles as she discovered half-finished mechanisms and plans for toys with bullets and explosive triggers inside.