The inner circle of the Legion of Righteousness had gathered for their post-battle follow up. Five of the most powerful individuals on the planet were inside the legendary Heroes Headquarters, sitting around their meeting table, listening with rapt attention. There was the strong Primal Force, the brash Sunburst, the kind Helperman, the calculating Umbris, and the stoic Peacemaker. Their sixth and final member was standing at the head, a wide grin on her face as she explained her new teammate. 

“So you know how Sunburst has been bugging me to get a sidekick for a while?” Miss Magic was in her element, acting like she was standing centre stage. “Well I finally did. While she may not be good enough to join our elite group, she’s still eager to introduce herself to everyone. Let’s give a big round of applause for Purity!”

There was a puff of smoke in the room, with a silhouette forming in the middle. As it began to clear, out stepped Purity, the bright lights from above reflecting off her silver hair and shiny outfit. “Ta-daa! Here I am, ready to save the day.” Purity struck a pose, lifting her leg while doing the peace sign with her hand. 

The room was silent for a moment. Everyone was staring at the woman who had just appeared, with her fetish outfit and exuberant mannerisms. Finally, Primal Force broke the silence with a guffaw of laughter. “Holy shit, WOW,” she yelled between breaths. Primal Force slammed her fist on the table, causing the room to shake. “What kind of weird-ass fangirl did you recruit? And how did you convince her to show up wearing that?”

Helperman and Sunburst were chuckling as well, and even Peacemaker cracked a smile. The only member unamused was Umbris, who took a deep sip of coffee before opening a tablet. “Please tell me she was already within the perimeter when you teleported her in here. Otherwise I’m going to have to rewrite the entire defensive grid program.”

“Purity used to be bad, but now she’s a good girl, ready to help those in need.” Miss Magic’s response changed the subject while carefully dodging the question. “Purity, why don’t you tell us about who you used to be.”

Purity’s face lit up like a beacon. “Of course! I used to be a mean nasty villain, someone who caused all sorts of problems for the good people of Central City. I called myself Nightshade, and I went around trying to poison people.” A holographic display appeared on the central table of Nightshade in her former glory. Everyone gaped at the stark difference between the dark brooding woman with claws and venom and the bright bubbly magical girl in front of them.

Purity shuddered at the memory. “Thankfully, I wasn’t very good at it. So when I insisted that Miss Magic go all out against me, she was nice enough to give me a new direction. So here I am now, the cute and loveable Purity!”

A deep sigh of frustration came from Umbris. “Ugh, mind control? Are you kidding me? You already have the widest spread of powers of anyone here and I’m just now learning you have mind control as well?” She rubbed the perpetual bags under her eyes. “I’m going to need some more coffee for this.”

Miss Magic winced as her teammate got up to leave the room. “Um, are you alright? Do you need help with anything?”

“No, it’s fine. It’s fine!” Umbris waved her arms about as she spoke. “It’s just the usual, all your magical superpowers keep getting stronger and stronger. And every time I have to update the files to account for new scenarios.” She turned around, muttering to herself more than anyone. “Gonna need new contingencies for this… completely rewrite her agamemnon protocol, as well as most of the others… all this after some dumbass broke into my testing facility…” She was still muttering under her breath as she left the room.

Purity was the first to speak up as she left. “She looks stressed. Is she going to be okay?”

“Nah, she’ll be fine.” Sunburst conjured a fiery hand to pat the sidekick on her back while she spoke. “Umbris is the smartest one of the group here, perhaps too smart for her own good. I think she’s actually more stressed out if nothing’s going wrong.”

“I can still hear you, you know.” Umbris’s voice called out from the intercom, causing Purity to jump.

Helperman leaned forward, examining the magical girl. “Enough about that loner, I want to know more about you. Here I thought I had the most risque outfit.” He looked down at himself for comparison. Helperman’s “outfit” consisted of her boots, a cape, a speedo, and some pasties over his nipples. The rest of his slender frame was completely exposed. “In any case I must say that you’ll be a welcome addition to this group. Even if you won’t exactly help the skewed gender ratio, I’m always happy to see a new face, especially one so friendly.”

Purity gasped and raised her hand to her mouth. “Oh no, I don’t think I can join the Legion of Righteousness. All of you are so strong, and I’m just a girl who likes to help people. All of my powers are just a fraction of Mistress Magic anyway.”

There was a soft chuckle from Sunburst. “I’m well aware of where your powers come from. In fact, that’s why I know you’re guaranteed to pass the initiation, at least for the lower circles. However powerful you think your mentor is, I can guarantee she’s far beyond that. Even if you don’t become a core member like us, surely you can wear the badge and be an ancillary member. The only question really is how much of that power she gave you.”

The inside of Purity’s mouth went dry. Although she was being offered a generous gift, really she wanted to stay within Central City. It was her responsibility to help the people she’d caused so much trouble. Thankfully, her Mistress stepped in to help her. “Purity’s actually not going to be joining the Legion. She may be my assistant, but her responsibility is to help the small people first and foremost.” She put a protective hand on Purity’s shoulder. “Besides, she’s not actually all that great in a fight. The abilities I’ve given her aren’t all combat focused.”

Primal Force cocked an eyebrow. “Then what exactly can you do?”

Now it was Purity’s turn to show off her beaming smile. “I can provide excellent oral support.”

“Um, do you mean moral support?”

“Yeah that too.”

There was a brief silence, broken by a low whistle from Sunburst. “Well, I guess now I know why you call her ‘Mistress.’ She turned her stare towards the magician. “Not really what I had in mind when I told you to get a sidekick, but I’m not gonna complain either. I mean, it’s not the first I’ve heard of heroes boning their rivals, but it’s probably the strangest.”

“Oh don’t worry about that, Mistress doesn’t let me have sex.” Purity lifted her skirt, showing off the steel chastity belt to the entire room. There was a wave of gasps as they saw how she was restricted. “The powers Mistress gave me stem from keeping myself pure, so I’m not allowed to touch my naughty bits.” She tapped the metal plating. “The more I can keep my mind pure, the more magic I can channel. Mistress Magic had to lock me away for my own good. Even so, I used to be a naughty girl so my magic isn’t very strong yet.”

The members of the Legion of Righteousness had various reactions. Primal Force was struggling to hold in a fresh bout of laughter, while Helperman looked horrified at the thought of chastity. Peacemaker kept the stoic silence she was famous for. Sunburst had a hungry stare, one strikingly similar to a predator stalking its prey. “Well I suppose we can find some other uses for you. Even if you don’t join our team in full, you can always be the group stress relief. I know I wouldn’t mind putting that cute mouth of yours to use.”

Before Purity could respond, Miss Magic stepped in. “Maybe later, but for now I’m going to keep her services for myself. Since she’s still in her, um, training period as my apprentice.”

There was a mix of groans from the crowd. Sunburst let out a sigh and shrugged her shoulders. “Well, I suppose we won’t be having any fun this time. Such a shame though, we really could’ve used her to wind down between the real fights. Umbris in particular needs to get laid like you wouldn’t believe.”

“I can still hear you, you know.”

“Yeah I know you’re listening, you little voyeur. And remember my offer from earlier still stands. I literally have a strapon with your name on it at my place.”

There was no further response from the intercom. Miss Magic looked at her watch, then back to her apprentice. “Well that’s all the time we have for now. I hope you all enjoyed meeting Purity, and hopefully you’ll get the chance to know her far better later on.” Purity waved her arms in an excessive fashion, bidding the Legion of Righteousness farewell. The two of them disappeared in a puff of smoke, vanishing the way they came.

Primal Force looked around the room at the few remaining members. “So y’all wanna go fuck in the breakroom? If we do it on top of Umbris’s mic she’ll have to listen to everything.” There was a general consensus of nods and agreements before their meeting descended into a small orgy, as it did surprisingly often for a group of heroes.

“It’s okay, you can do this. I believe in you.” Miss Magic’s kind words brought little comfort to Purity. She was on her way to fight her first villain, alone, without any sort of backup. The last few days she’d been fighting petty criminals, and even then she had her Mistress by her side. Now she was on her way to fight a fully fledged supervillain. Sabersmith wasn’t the deadliest villain in Central City, but she was a key part of the black market arms deals that went on underground. She was the one who had forged Nightshade’s signature talons. Not to mention she was quite talented with a sword herself.

Purity felt her nerves building up inside of her. “But what if I’m not ready? What if I end up losing to her?”

“Don’t worry too much about losing. You’re a good girl, and you’re fighting on the side of righteousness.” Miss Magic put a hand on her sidekick’s shoulder. “So long as you’re fighting for the cause of good and to help others, there’s no way you can lose. Now you go out there, and you show that evildoer what being a hero is all about.” 

Before she could protest, Purity was teleported to a dark alleyway. A grizzled woman with a leather trench coat and an eyepatch startled as she realized she was no longer alone. “What? who are you-” Sabersmith’s voice cut off as she got a good look at her opponent. 

Purity drew her bejewelled wand, brandishing it while twirling around in her shiny pink skirt. “By the power granted to me by all that is good, and in the name of helping those who cannot help themselves. My name is Purity, and I’m here to stop your wicked ways!” She finished her speech, one hand on her hip while the other pointed her wand. 

Sabersmith stared for a moment before a few bursts of air escaped from her nose. These soon turned into barely restrained chuckles and finally unbridled laughter. She put a hand on the nearby building to support herself, almost doubling over. “Oh fuck, are you seriously the new hero in town? I’d heard the rumours, but I never thought you would look this goddamned stupid.” She gestured a hand towards Purity. “I mean, what are you planning to do here? Whisk me away to a comic convention? Bore me to death with friendship speeches? Don’t tell me, maybe you just get off on being out in public like that.”

An indignant pout was all Purity was willing to give. This was her first real battle, and she refused to be baited into acting mean. “I know what you’re doing, Sabersmith. The people you’re making weapons for are evil. You need to be stopped!”

Sabersmith rolled her eyes. “Yeah, of course I make weapons for villains, dumbass. Evil people pay better. And I’ve got a pretty big reputation, so don’t act like you’re hot shit for knowing my business. The only impressive thing you’ve done so far is track me down here. I’m not sure how you found me, or how you teleported in here.” She grabbed the hilt of her sword from under her coat. “But I doubt it’ll take long for me to beat it out of you. I mean, you look like you belong in one of those hentai mags where the sexy magical girl gets fucked by a tentacle monster.”

“Ha, shows what you know!” Purity had a triumphant smirk as she lifted the hem of her skirt up. “Thanks to this I’m completely immune to any sort of tentacle monsters. Not even I can get through my steel cage of protection!” 

There was a look of absolute bewilderment on Sabersmith’s face. “Okay, so you’re definitely a pervert of some sort. I mean don’t get me wrong, I”m into some weird shit as well, but this is a whole different level.” She relaxed her posture and turned to walk away. “Anyway, you enjoy your little roleplay gig. Just make sure you don’t get hurt in the process. There are some baddies out there who would just have a field day with you.”

Purity giggled at the mention of other villains. “Of course I know that. I’m here to fight for what’s good, and I know all the villains of this city. After all, I used to be one of them. 

Sabersmith paused mid-step. “What did you just say? Are you trying to tell me that you used to be a supervillain before this weird-ass getup?”

“I was, and in this very city. You forged my iconic weapon yourself. You said it was some of your best work, although I suspect you say that to all of your clients.” Sabersmith was facing Purity again, her eye squinting as she tried to recognize her. Purity raised her wand and a golden orb emerged, lighting up the dark alleyway. She stood under her personal spotlight to give the blacksmith a perfect view of her face. “Come one, Sable, don’t you recognize me?”

The arms dealer spent a full minute scrutinising the former villain. She examined every aspect of her face from her jawline to her cheekbones. And she thought of the small handful of people who knew her nickname. Finally it hit her. Sabersmith’s jaw dropped as she began to comprehend who she had been talking to this entire time. 

“Nightshade?”

“Actually, it’s Purity now. I’ve given up on my mean and angry ways, and I’m done with hurting people. Now come with me, so we can-”

She was interrupted by the thrust of a sword. Sabersmith had drawn her weapon and charged, lashing out with a series of furious swipes. Purity yelped as she jumped back, the frills on her outfit flying around as she was pushed backwards.

“I don’t know what you’re playing at, Nightshade, but if this is some sort of a joke it’s not funny.” She took an extra hard swing, and her sword embedded itself in a wall. “Anytime word gets out I made something for a villain who went soft, I have to work twice as hard to repair my reputation. And whatever the hell it is you’re doing is so much worse than going soft.”

Purity scrambled away, raising her wand to the sky. “Mana shield, protect my soul!” A light blue barrier formed between the two women just in time to protect its creator from a harsh swipe. Sabersmith growled as she tried again, but the shield held firm. 

The blacksmith glared at Purity through the translucent shield. “Worst of all you’ve insulted my work.” She smashed the barrier, and while it didn’t break, it began to crumble. “I wasn’t lying when I said your claws were some of my best work. All ten of them were expertly made, perfect for your elegant yet savage fighting style.” She took another whack, and this time a few cracks formed in the barrier. “But now you’ve tossed them away. Cast my work aside like it was nothing, so you can dance around with this silly wand. And nobody insults my babies like that.” She hit the barrier one more time, and small chunks of it began to fall out. One more hit and it would crumble away.

“I guess I’ll have to take you back to the underground myself. You wanna be some perverted slave? Then that’s what I’ll treat you as, until you’re either back to your old self or mine forever. I don’t really care which.” Purity raised her wand with both hands and aimed it towards her assailant. A powerful energy beam was preparing. Sabersmith took one final hit, smashing the mana shield to pieces, and began charging through.

“Rainbow-heart love beam!” A colourful blast emerged from her wand, shining in a wide spectrum towards Sabersmith. The blast knocked her off her feet, sending her flying away until she landed on a trash bag across the alley. She groaned, trying to get on her feet again, before falling in place.

“Yes, I did it!” Purity jumped for joy at her victory. However, when she landed she wobbled in her Mary Janes. She felt unsteady on her feet, and the ground swirled below her. “Woah, what’s…” her voice trailed off as she fell to the ground. Dark spots were eating at the edges of her vision. The last thing she noticed before passing out was the familiar hand of a certain magician superhero.