The starlit sky above the wide open plain glimmered with the promise of distant worlds and times long gone. Two of those twinkling lights chose that moment to streak down from the heavens with a howling cry that split the tranquility of the scene. One star left a trail of flame in its wake, while the other screamed in terror.

Jessica, the flaming star, raced downward and caught up with the humanoid beetle that served as her current opponent. The beetle, the other shooting star, shrieked and flailed at the air. It was a lesser version of its species. It possessed no wings, and even less hope for survival.

Fist covered in bright hot flame, she launched a hard-driving punch that shattered the creature's carapace and sent it hurtling toward the ground with even greater speed. Still, she caught up with it once more before it could strike the earth and reversed her position. She slammed both feet into the hapless monster's back and sent it crashing to the ground with far more force that it could withstand. Fire erupted from its shattered flesh scorching the remains of the once proud bug man.

A short distance away, Cassidy and Electra played a friendly game of toss and shoot. Electra bull-rushed a beetle man and threw him upward high into the air. Cassidy gestured with her hand and several shards of ice shot out toward it.

Most of her attacks missed since she currently aimed at a dark colored enemy during a nocturnal battle. However, every shard of ice that struck the beast coated its carapace in frost. When the creature slammed into the ground, one of its limbs snapped off. Electra finished it with a leaping monkey stomp that crushed it into the ground using both of her feet to drive the lesson home.

Jessica joined them after making sure her opponent was finished. The beetle men were simple to fight at this level, but they possessed decent statistics. If they were facing versions that used weapons or were stronger members of their race, the difficulty would increase drastically.

They did not get long to rest as a loud impact reached their ears. A beetle man flew into the area, not under its own power but due to the actions of the fourth member of the group. Scott unleashed his burst punch ability to set up for a team building exercise.

Electra ran in and caught the flailing monster. She moved with its momentum and spun quickly in place. With a quick twist of her body, the beetle was launched high into the air. Cassidy pelted it with ice shards even as Jessica powered up her flame ability.

The red haired girl rocketed into the air timing her movement just right to send herself racing downward in a powerful flaming dive-kick. Just as several of its hapless predecessors had previously been treated, the monster was sent hurtling to the ground with incredible ferocity. However, she did not press the attack this time. She allowed herself to jump away.

The moment the beast slammed into the ground Scott flew down with all the speed that he could muster, and launched a powerful burst punch that finished destroying the beast. Heavily stressed by the previous attacks, the creature's carapace exploded apart with a gooey green fury that sent beetle vital fluids flying around the area. Luckily everyone was outside of the splash zone, and Scott's burst punch forced the fluids away from him. Still, it was a disturbingly violent image.

Scott floated over to a point beyond the splatter zone then whirled around to face the girls. He raised his thumb up and said, "One punch."

"Oh please," said Jessica with a laugh. "We didn't help at all, right?"

"I'm pretty sure that was two punches from you," said Cassidy with a laugh of her own.

Electra looked at the laughing girls then to Scott's cocky expression. She laughed politely, but it was obvious that she was uncertain about the situation.

The foursome chatted briefly while they took a moment to rest. With the exception of Electra, the team used their acquired powers liberally in the previous fights. None of them were at the point where they could use them without restraint, and so cool down periods and short rest breaks were necessary.

"Is this place getting to be too easy for us?" asked Jessica after a few minutes.

"Well, maybe, but this is the highest setting our training devices will allow," said Scott. "I think we're just a good team so far."

Cassidy nodded her agreement and spoke before Jessica could. "Yes, we have a powerful physical fighter in Electra. A flying brick in you, Scott."

She looked to Jessica. "Serious firepower with Jessica, and she has limited flight capabilities, too."

"My own addition is useful for slowing or weakening the opposition. I don't want to sound cocky, but this place really is too easy for us if we work together properly," said Cassidy.

"That's good to hear," said a new arrival. The foursome turned to the sound of the voice and smiles broke out all around.

"Hey Maxine," said Scott.

The blond bombshell smiled at Scott sweetly then at the others in turn. "I'm glad to see you all working out so well. It makes my job much easier."

"Yeah, I heard team Alpha's been having a fairly bad time of it..." said Jessica.

Scott snorted lightly and could not avoid the sly grin that crossed his lips. Alice was no doubt giving those bitchy girls a lot of helpful training tips, whether they might survive them or not. A brief moment later a conflicted expression bespoke his inner turmoil. It was hard to think well of Alice after what she did to him, but there was something to be said about her dedication.

He could understand her motives to some extent. It did not excuse what she did, but at least it wasn't based on pure snotty bitchiness like with those idiot mean girl cliches.

"I really shouldn't talk about other teams, but..." she leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, "They are having a hard time of things."

"Oh no... Those poor girls," said Scott in a flat monotone voice.

"Right, because you are so concerned for them," said Jessica with a grin.

He laughed a little then waved his hand in the air in a magnanimous manner. "I'm a man. We aren't allowed to feel feelings."

"Mhmm," replied Jessica.

Scott offered her an attempt at a sincere expression. However, halfway through the effort it became condescending and smug. "Clearly, I weep for them on the inside."

"Anyway..." said Maxine with a laugh of her own. "We need to call it a day for VR training. It's time for dinner."

She shook her finger at them lightly. "No dawdling. We need to head out to the special training area as soon as possible today. The final test is this weekend, after all."

"We're ready," said Scott.

The others nodded their agreement. So far the dungeon they trained in currently was easy enough for them to navigate and battle in that they were confident of success when faced with a real one.

"Good. It's a little more dangerous in a real dungeon. The opposition could come from anywhere, and even from floors further down," said Maxine.

"To complete training and selection, we only need to complete all of the mission assignments on the first floor, though. Correct?" asked Cassidy.

"That's the plan. Of course, the first floor is roughly one hundred square miles of terrain. You'll go in with a twenty man military strike team, however," said Maxine. "Completing it is not as easy as it seems, though. You'll have to get a recommendation from a strike team officer."

"You said you'd explain that to us before we went?" asked Jessica. "How do we get a recommendation, again?"

"Work well together, follow directions from the task force leaders, and everyone on your team has to come back alive. Resurrection is difficult, costly, and doesn't always work. You won't receive it, if you can't be counted on as an important future asset," explained the team chaperone.

"So, if we die here, the government will just wipe their hands of us?" asked Cassidy.

"Yes, you need to at least prove that you aren't a waste of time and resources by completing a simple task like this one," admitted Maxine candidly.

Electra flicked her tail to one side and then the other. "From what I know of the dungeon that you mentioned, it should be weak and easily conquered..."

The Minotyran girl's eyes shifted downward slightly as her words trailed off. Scott noticed the change in her overall demeanor, but kept his own counsel. If she needed to say something, it was her business to say it.

"It's been subjugated for years now. The floors are allowed to build monsters for the purposes of farming materials. It's not a particularly profitable dungeon, but it is consistent in the types and amount of loot dropped," said Maxine.

Electra nodded her head lightly, but said nothing. Whatever her thoughts were on the matter she chose not to share them.

They chatted amiably for a few minutes before breaking up to prepare for dinner. In the dining room later, Scott looked around for a place to sit. It did not take long for him to spot Electra sitting by herself. She looked up at him and nodded lightly. He joined her for dinner, sitting next to her at the table.

"Hello," said Scott casually.

"Hello," she responded without much emotion.

Neither spoke much for most of their dinner. Every time Scott looked over at her, she would casually look away. The silence was as much of an indicator of their supposed relationship status as anything they might have actually said.

Eventually, Scott decided to speak. His topic of discussion was one that caused Electra to glare at him briefly. "Are you serious?"

"Of course," said Scott. "I know nothing of your culture, but now that I've had time to think about it, I want to know why."

"It... is not done," she said calmly.

"Women in your culture can't divorce their husbands? I'm pretty sure you implied that they could before..." said Scott.

She sighed softly. "It is understandable that you would not know."

Electra looked to Scott then shook her head. "In order to divorce you, a superior male must challenge and defeat you in an official challenge battle. I would then legally be allowed to abandon you and become his wife if I did so choose."

"Wouldn't that make you happy, though?" asked Scott.

"In truth?" she asked him.

"Yes. The truth." Scott stopped eating long enough to look her in the eyes. "Neither of us really wanted this, after all."

The Minotyran girl shook her head. "From a few days after our bonding, to only a few days ago, I would have gladly abandoned you for a superior male who proved himself."

It should have hurt to hear it, but strangely Scott was unmoved. Electra made it abundantly clear early on that she would prefer to have never met him.

"So, what changed?" he asked.

"I became more coherent and realized that I have been needlessly cruel to you," she said.

Electra dabbed at her lips with a napkin then sighed. "I was in my first heat. My hormones are out of balance, and only now are they properly settling."

"I suppose I can understand your side of things, at least." Scott reached over and lightly patted her on the shoulder. "Probably spent the last few decades dreaming about what sort of alpha bull your husband would be, but you ended up marrying a sexy goat instead."

"What—?" she asked him, a bemused expression on her lips. "Do you claim to be a sexy goat?"

He leaned toward her and looked her in the eyes. Casually, he quirked his left eyebrow and said, "Baaa-a-aaa."

She slapped her hand to her mouth to prevent the laugh that threatened to explode from her lips. He was so ridiculous!

"Was that a smile?" asked Scott in a curious tone.

"Surely not," she replied coolly.

Silence reigned for a moment. Neither of them was interested in making the next move.

"We're both to blame, really," said Scott after the moment of silence passed. "If I didn't let my anger get the best of me, we could have probably discussed this more easily. Instead, we both lashed out at each other."

"You are quite magnanimous husband, but that isn't the truth," said Electra.

Scott tilted his head to the side and looked into her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"I was the one who initiated everything. I was merely too prideful to admit it," she said.

"I see." Scott took a drink of his juice and considered her words.

"So, what now? I don't plan to cut my nuts off. Do you plan to find some random guy to attack me?" asked Scott.

"Not at this time," she said enigmatically.

"Gotta keep your options open, huh?" asked Scott sarcastically.

"Any proper wife would do so," she said.

"I see. Better stay on my toes then..." said Scott.

Electra blinked then looked at him closely. "That was almost sweet of you to say."

"Almost," agreed Scott with a nod.

They looked at each other carefully for a moment. Scott coughed and they both looked away at the same time.

She took a bite of her food and chewed thoroughly for a moment, a contemplative expression evident on her face. After she swallowed her mouthful, she sighed softly and looked down at the table. "Your face..."

"Yes?" asked Scott quietly, while refusing to turn his head to look at her.

"It is of average quality and lacking in masculinity..." she said in a slow, measured, voice.

Scott blinked then snorted. He started to say something back to her, but she beat him to the punch. "However, it is not entirely... unpleasant to look upon at certain angles given the time of day."

He looked away once more, a slight hint of a red appearing in his cheeks. "Thank you... That was almost sweet of you to say."

"Almost," she agreed softly, before she looked to the side. However, the hint of a smile appeared on her soft pink lips.

Once again, an awkward silence stole over them. They ate without looking at each other. Yet, for the first time in days they did not rush to finish their meal.

Eventually, Scott asked, "Do you need any clothes?"

"No, husband. I have taken good care of the items that you granted for my use," she said.

"I see." Scott looked down at his plate and began to make little tracks in his mashed potatoes with his fork.

Electra noticed what he did, but said nothing of it for a moment. She finished her meal but made no attempt to leave the table. After a few minutes, she quietly asked "Do you hate me?"

Scott unleashed a sad little sigh that was mixed with a self-deprecating laugh. "I really should."

"You should?" she asked. Electra turned to look at him with wide and curious eyes.

"It's probably my own fault, honestly," he said with a loud and obnoxious little laugh.

"What's your fault?" she asked.

He leaned toward her and whispered conspiratorially. "Wanna know a ridiculous secret about me?"

"Certainly," she said.

Scott said, "I've always wanted to be a super hero, most people know that..."

"Ah, yes," Electra nodded gently. "And so...?"

He shook his head at her. "Well, there's also one other thing I always wanted after I reached a certain age."

"What might that be?" she asked curiously.

The blue haired superhero in training chuckled then looked down at his mashed potatoes. "Once I got a little older, I used to think about how cool it would be to be one of those guys who ended up with an alien girlfriend like in the comics."

"Alien... girlfriend?" Electra made a curious noise then bit her lower lip.

Scott looked at her, a ridiculously goofy expression on his face. "Yeah, I'd be like one of those guys in a comic book. A beautiful girl not-of-this-Earth would happen into my life and we'd end up in a relationship."

"Oh! So, something like what happened with—" She blinked then looked at Scott. "You always dreamed of that?"

He laughed once more. "Absolutely! Though, I also dreamt of her being something of a superhero herself."

Scott continued, "What could be better than a sweet and loving alien girl friend who kicks a lot of ass while looking flawless? She wouldn't understand the culture, but I'd be there for her... I dunno... I was a weird kid."

She smiled slightly. "Yes, I suppose that you must have been a strange child."

"Yeah, be careful what you wish for, huh?" he said with another said laugh. "I wonder who was paying attention to the wishes of a weird little kid back in the day."

"So then, would you say that you have both things that you wished for...?" asked Electra.

Scott nodded slowly. "Yeah," he said softly.

He laughed in a sad way and quietly said, "Ain't life just wonderful?"

She looked down at her plate, her nostrils flared slightly. It did not take long for her face to become flush.

"Are you alright?" asked Scott after he noticed her condition.

"I am fine, husband..." she said, her voice trailing off slightly. The color of her cheeks intensified slightly.

He eyeballed her carefully. She was acting strange. He didn't trust it. After a moment, he sighed and started to stand up.

"Husband, are you leaving?" asked Electra quickly. A slight frown on her lips.

"Yeah, sorry for telling you all that. It's embarrassing..." said Scott, while completely missing an obvious feminine signal to cease his current action.

"No, it was fine to tell me," she said. Electra smiled at him, then reached up and curled a little of her hair around her index finger.

"See you in a little while," said Scott before getting up from the table. His previous good humor had evaporated completely after his admission.

"Yes, I will see you soon," said Electra, her smile slipping slightly.

They parted ways after that. One of them remained cheered slightly by the fact that her husband did not hate her for her bitchiness in recent days. The other was saddened by the realization of something that was nagging at the back of his mind since he'd first met Electra. She was the living embodiment of one of his childhood wishes fulfilled, but there was a problem.

Anger issues, and forced relationship issues aside, she was practically perfect. Electra was gorgeous, strong of body and will. She could become the sort of person he could be with even after reaching a high level of power in his quest to be a super hero. She was also capable of great tenderness when she was not a psychotic rampaging murder beast. Any man would be ridiculously lucky to have someone like her in their life.

The problem was not really her. The problem was him. All of his dreams were coming true, but while he'd childishly wished for a hot alien girlfriend he never considered one possibility. What if that wish was granted, but his new love interest found him sorely lacking in almost every regard?

They were not even friends. Until the last few days they were one step above simply hating each other's guts. A beautiful alien girl was tied to him, just like in a comic book, but he was just not her type. It was the sort of ridiculous premise that would drive a lesser man insane.

Stuck in a marriage to a woman who thought of him as little more than an underfed monkey who could speak, Scott's childhood dream was currently a nightmare of awkward words and even more awkward meetings. Whether there was hope for the future remained to be seen. At the moment though, there was work to be done.