Cupcakes: Part 5
From the Gotham Gazette Online - Monday, June 01, 2009 (7pm)
UPDATE 6pm: It is now confirmed that fifteen are dead and over fifty are injured as a result of this afternoons explosion. Damages are expected to exceed $6 million and may cause permenant closure of the already troubled development.
Included in the casulties are women and children who were present in the Cupcakes Indoor Playcentre at Entertainment Mile when the bombs were detonated although authorities stress much of the damage to this area was superficial and most of the occupants have been evacuated safely.
One rescue worker, Samuel Harris is also confirmed to be have died in hospital as result of his injures. Harris, 52, was one of the first rescue workers to arrive on the scene.
Kara and Adhra Osborn, daughter-in-law and granddaughter of Norman Osborn, Director of HAMMER have been confirmed as among the injured in the attack. It is confirmed that both were present in the most damaged area of the Cupcakes Playcentre when the explosion occurred. The extent of their injuries is yet to be released but inside sources say that Kara Osborn, 19, has suffered extensive internal injuries and is in a critical condition.
UPDATE 615pm: Norman Osborn, Director of HAMMER, has issued the following statement:
"These acts of senseless violence only serve to make me more committed to eradicating the evils at large in our country. Gotham has long been a hotbed of corruption and the city has been under my radar since I came into this position -- my family live there, my grandchild was targeted. This is now my first priority."
Does this statement herald an unprecedented focus of HAMMER into the affairs of Gotham City? What will this mean for Gotham’s own vigilante the Batman?
UPDATE 6:45pm: Sources are now indicating that as result of cost cutting during the current economic crisis there have been significant security lapses at Entertainment Mile that may have contributed to both the extent of this disaster. It is rumoured that the complex may have had adequate time to evacuate the premises before the explosions occurred but a breakdown in internal communications and negligent security protocol and training prevented this from happening.
UPDATE 7pm: Inside sources in the Mayors office and Gotham MCU have both indicated that the Brotherhood may have taken responsibility for this attack. The development company for Entertainment Mile Entertainment Complex is a subsidary of Retzinger Inc. Retzinger has a history of discriminating against Mutants in their employment practices and it has been rumoured that they provided substantial funding in the campaign against the Mutant Hate Crimes Bill passed earlier this year.
Cupcakes: Part 5
It’s the smell that disrupts the scene - or rather the fact that the smell doesn’t make sense. You see, she’s in Greece (isn’t it the place to be these days?) and she’s lying on the beach on that white, white sand in a tiny bikini that is the only thing whiter than the sand itself. She’s lying there on the sand and Angel is beside her in horrible Hawaiian shirt with shorts to match and there lies Darla on the other side wearing a bright red bikini that manages to be even smaller than Kara’s (somehow).
It’s so warm and calm; eyes closed Kara listens to the tide as it moves in and out. This is what it is to feel at peace. She knows, somehow, that there is nothing more she can do - the struggle is over - she’s done her part (whatever it was - there is no more wisdom to be found in this place than there was in the last) and now she can let go. Moving on - isn’t that what they call it? It’s time to move on.
She lies there enjoying the warmth, the peace. She can smell the sea, but it doesn’t smell like the sea, it smells like… chlorine, bleach… antiseptic?
“Darling boy,” Darla says. “I told you that you’d burn.”
And Kara turns to look and sees the smoke coming off him, sees the sun burning through him, hears him screaming. She looks at Darla and sees her smiling and she sees Darla is not alone, Connor is there and Connor is smiling as well.
Angel burns and Connor laughs.
Darla is smiling.
Connor is laughing.
The smell, she can smell him burning, but the smell isn’t right - it smells of… disinfectant?
“Daddy?” Kara says. “Daddy - ”
I’m sorry. She wants to say. I love you, I miss you, I need you, I’m sorry.
“Don’t make a scene, Kara.” Darla says. “You always make everything so fucking difficult.”
Connor’s lips are on his mother and Darla’s arms reach around him. They’re closer than mother and son were ever designed to be.
And the sun keeps shining and the waves move in and out. She can smell the sunshine - it’s the smell of clean laundry and fresh linen - she loves the smell of fresh laundry, she’s always loved it, as a child she’d smell the fresh towels and sheets and she’d lay in the laundry basket on top of the clean clothes - and now, years later she’s noticed Adhra will climb into the laundry basket and hide beneath the ---
Adhra.
There is no peace. It is no longer warm and the sun is no longer shining.
The sand underneath Kara feels wet, it’s red, there’s so much blood spreading out from her to the white sand beneath. There’s so much rain. They’re driving down the freeway and the cars rush past, a horn blares, everyone is eager to be home. Kara can barely see through the windscreen the rain pours down with such ferocity that all you see are objects mutated into blurs of light and colour. Nothing makes sense. There is no shape or order - it’s chaos - a chaos she has to accept.
“Mommy loves you, Adhra.” Kara tells her.
Adhra is laughing. Kara laughs as well and she doesn’t know why. A horn blares and the rain keeps pouring and Adhra keeps laughing and Kara knows how this story goes.
“Everything ends, Adhra.” She says. “But that’s OK.”
Kara looks in the rear-vision mirror and sees her mother sitting beside her daughter. Her mother is touching Adhra’s hair. She’s smiling.
“It’s OK, Mommy.” Kara says.
And her mother smiles.
A horn blares, tyres skid on wet concrete and he car in front of her brakes.
Kara hits the accelerator.