Super Replaceable

20251006

Written for Bradley Ramsey's "First Indulgence" event.

In a more primitive era, being zapped to another timeline would leave one disoriented, but these days every superhero had a phone widget for that. Though, to Caroline’s surprise, there was no answering ping from this timeline’s Zapgirl.
She must be out of town. Or… maybe we switched places?
Either way, no biggy. Just needed to head to the heroes registry and get zapped back.
Up, up, and away!
Yep, the registry was at the same address. Fab. Caroline waved to the security guard from the designated touch-down zone.
With how surprised he looked, the local Zapgirl was definitely out of town.
“Hi!” She held up her ID and phone, with the “super locator” app open.
“…Oh.” Security guy muttered, accepting the ID.
“Got displaced by that dang Uber-loser.” Caroline scoffed with a jaunty grin. “Just need help zapping home.”
“Right. Let me summon the professor.”
Good ol’ Professor Magniffick. He’d sort this in no time. No, wait, shouldn’t assume - Magniffick might be a girl in this timeline. They’d get it sorted, regardless.
“So, where’s my local self at?” Caroline asked. Maybe they could meet up. You rarely got a chance to talk with someone so well placed to understand you, after all.
“Um. She, uh… she died three years ago.”
“…What?” Caroline’s smile went slack. Her head spinning. “That… that can’t be right! Everything’s just the same.”
If she’d died three years ago, the city should be a war zone! Or already fallen under the crushing grip of Uberman, or the Sewer Surfer, or any freak she had to beat back every other week.
“Uh, p-perhaps the professor would-”
“Zapgirl!”
Caroline spun around and found herself face-to-face with a cyborg Magniffick, whose eyes were flashing happy emotes. She was enfolded in a chilly metallic embrace.
“It’s lovely to see you again! Even if only briefly. One portal back to timeline 1083S, correct?”
“Yeah, but… um…” Caroline stepped back to scrutinise his(?) face. “What… happened… to your Zapgirl?”
“Oh. It was tragic.” The eyes immediately turned teary. “Assassination. That scoundrel Uberman could never have taken her in a fair fight!”
“Yeah, no way.” Caroline rubbed her arms. “Can I visit her grave?”
“Er, her remains were cremated. And scattered in Central Park.”
“Then I’ll visit our favourite spot.” Caroline managed a lopsided smile. “That’s ok, right? It’ll probably take a while to get the portal tuned anyway…”
“Well… that’s true. But I must ask you to go incognito - you’ll have caused enough stir as is!”
“Yeah.” Caroline winced. “I’m sorry. Really sorry. If you can get a bulletin out…?”
“Of course.”

“Well now.” Uberman drawled, one finger pushing his fedora out of his eyes so he could roll them. “I see the professor has taken up cloning.”
Caroline tilted her chin up and crisply said “I’m from another timeline, actually.”
“Oh? What, did you run out of people to bother there?”
“You zapped me here!”
“I did nothing of the sort” Uberman flapped a hand dismissively. “I’m not a taxi service. Go bother your dear professor.”
“I’m not asking for help. I just want to know what happened to this timeline’s Zapgirl.”
“What, did they tell you I had something to do with it?” Uberman pursed his lips, then snorted. “Of course they did. Sure, why not. I killed her. Tremble at my power, or whatever, and piss off.”
Caroline stepped closer, her eyes narrowing. Sparks crackled across her bangs. “I want the truth.”
“Pff, then why’re you talking to a pathological liar?” The bastard had the nerve to laugh in her face. “You won’t believe me.”
“Did…” Caroline took a deep breath. “Did she kill herself?”
“…Huh.” Uberman blinked and sat up. “O…kay? Maybe you would. How’d you…?”
Caroline turned away and buried her face in her hands, the sheer injustice of it all melting her rage into tears.
“You were right.” She whispered. “Nothing we do matters.”
“Huh??” Uberman gawped. His goal finally achieved, that shining obnoxious optimism finally snuffed, by means he didn’t understand. More than bewildered, he felt robbed. “Wh-what’re you-”
“I remember it. Three years ago.” Caroline scrubbed at her eyes. “The stress was… I couldn’t… so I nearly… then I told myself I couldn’t, because terrible things would happen if I did. But no! The Registry just assigned someone new here, and everyone… got on with their lives.”
She waved her phone, a furious flush staining her face. “Steven started dating my cousin Gwen a year later, none of my friends commemorate the anniversary or my birthday, the city didn’t even put a fucking plaque on a bench, it’s…! All those late nights, injuries, disappointing people while putting myself last… and calling it quits back then wouldn’t have mattered??”
“…You were faking it the whole time?” Uberman sat back and shook his head. His perpetual smirk gone.
“What,” Caroline scoffed, “you really didn’t see through the ‘Miss Peppy’ routine?”
“Nope. Congrats?”
“Thanks?” Caroline brushed her hair back with a helpless giggle. Sparks dropping off her like rain.
Uberman snagged a whiskey bottle from the sidebar and poured a second glass, which Caroline accepted and knocked back without hesitation.
“So…” He scratched the back of his head. “I guess I oughta try swaying you to villainy?”
“Go on.”
“Er… I-I didn’t have a spiel ready…” He flushed and glowered as Caroline laughed.
“Come on, where’s your ‘nothing matters so just have fun’ rants? Normally you won’t shut up about it!”
“This isn’t normal, dammit!!”
“Pff. Whatever.” Caroline flapped a hand and turned away. “I guess I should head home and… figure stuff out. I’ll tell my ‘you’ you said ‘hi’.”
“More like tell him not to dump his problems on me!”
“Suuuure.” Caroline shot him a smile over her shoulder. A real smile, without polish filling the cracks. “Thanks, though. You’re a big part of the reason I’m still here.”
In a flash, she was gone. Leaving him to slump and grumble “Wow, that bitch really knows how to hurt me.”

Prompt was “You find yourself in a different timeline, one where you have died, and the world moved on without you”.