'Twas the night before Yule, and all through the clinic, scarcely a creature was stirring. The superheroines were snug in their stalls, though no visions of sugar plums danced in their heads! The garbage bags were hung in the cellar in hopes the Yule Dragon soon would be there.

In the family living room, beside the huge Yule Tree, now purged of any untroll-like angels, Elfrieda, von Richtofen, her nieces Morganna and Leticia, and Leticia's two children, Billy and Wendy were enjoying the roaring Yule log fire after an excellent dinner.

Aunt Elfrieda commented. "I must compliment you on dinner, Leticia, it was delicious! If I'd known that cow, Superlady was such a gourmet cook, I might have kept her, myself, when I had her!  She would be a terrible nuisance to drag around with me, though! You do a wonderful job keeping those lazy Superheroine bitches in line, Letty! I don't envy you that job!"

Leticia gushed. "Oh thank you Aunt Elfy! Coming from an expert like you, that's a real compliment!"  She was still beaming, as she took down a well worn book from the book case, knowing her stern Prussian aunt did not bestow praise lightly.

As was her Yule Eve custom Leticia was about to read Yule Spirit and The Blue Elves. ( Yule Spirit and the Blue Elves )

As Morganna had explained to her Great Aunt Elfrieda. "The children are really getting rather too old for Letty to be reading Yule stories to them, but it's such a tradition, that Billy and Wendy insist on it every year!  And it is a real Troll favorite at this time of year!"

"Oh I love that story myself!" Elfrieda admitted.

"Me too!" Morganna agreed a little sheepishly, and the two adults listened as avidly as Billy and Wendy.

Leticia concluded the story to her rapt audience. "Yep! Here's to Christmas and Old Scrooge! As was ever said of him, if any man knew how to keep Yule, old Scrooge did!"

As Leticia regretfully closed the book, Billy said, "The part I like best is where Tiny Tim uses his crutch to boff that dumb Yule Spirit up the behind!"  describing the scene in graphic detail.

Looking perplexed, Wendy said. "I don't remem...oh you Moron! That's not in the story! You made that up!"

"Heh, heh! Gottcha!"  Billy crowed, adding, "It shouda' been in the story though!"

"You idiot! I don't know why I even bother talking to you!"

As Leticia put  the book away, Aunt Elfrieda said. "I've put all your gifts under the tree, for tomorrow morning, but there is one special gift for the whole family, that I thought you'd like to open tonight! I had Green Cow bring it in from the van before Leticia put the cattle in their stalls for the night!"

"I know how much you all admire our Cousin Gerda! I don't know whether you knew that Gerda kept a trophy board in her living room, displaying the costumes of all the heroines she'd destroyed, much like Morganna's rogue's gallery of captured crimefighters! Well, last week in Doctor Klinkhausen's private quarters, I found something that almost brought tears to my eyes! The old man had always been in love with Gerda, although his love was unrequited, to say the least! "

"Somehow, Old Klinkhausen got hold of that trophy board after Gerda was murdered! He not only had it on display, almost like a shrine, but he'd completed it! He even added Mighty Maid's costume although she died only minutes before Gerda!" Elfrieda said, opening the package with a small flourish.

"Oh I love it!" Leticia said in near awe.

"It's a wonderful present for the whole family!" Morganna added almost as awe-struck as her sister.

Billy and Wendy examined the board in minute detail, for once in agreement in their admiration for the treasured bit of family history.

"I know most of them," Wendy said. "from Mom and Aunt Morg's stories! Like, that blue and red one is Superwoman! She was Supergran's mother! Sometimes, me and Billy make the old cow tell us the story of how she watched Fraulein Power cripple her mother! Old Goofy always breaks down in tears half way through!"

Billy laughed. "Yeah but she's usually bawling about something or other anyway, for some reason!"

"The only one I don't know is who that  funny red hat belongs to?" Wendy went on ignoring her brother's interruption.

Even Morganna and Leticia looked puzzled.

"That's a memento from Gerda's earlier career during World War II, long before she became Fraulein Power!" Aunt Elfrieda explained.

"Oh tell us, tell us!" Wendy and Billy begged.

"Oh yes! Please do! I'd love to hear that story!"  Morganna agreed.

"Oh yes, please, Aunt Elfrieda!" Leticia wheedled.

"Yes, yes!" The others joined in.

"Well!"  Elfrieda said, as she settled  down again in the comfortable chair by the fire. "The hat belonged to an American crimefighter, who called herself 'Lady Destiny'! During the War years she devoted herself to fighting spies! Back then, this Lady Destiny was quite famous! There was even a comic book for American children based on her exploits! Of course, in the comic book, they changed her name and gave the character a green outfit instead of  red, but every one knew who it was supposed to be!"

"Things weren't going too well for Gerda in those years! In 1941, she was sent to Africa to deal with Drusilla, the 'Jungle Goddess', but instead Drusilla captured Gerda! Most embarrassing for her, poor Dear! Of course as you see on the trophy board, Gerda evened that score in 1949! (See Fraulein Power On Safari By GW  Fraulein Power On Safari. )

Gerda was in the bad graces of Reichsfuhrer Himmler for almost a year, but finally he relented and sent her on another mission! In all kindness to Gerda, I don't know what the SS high command was thinking! They sent her to the United States, even though she could barely speak English! Her accent was positively comical! She'd easily have been cast as the German Spy in a bad Hollywood 'B' Movie of those years!"

Elfrieda took another sip of fine old brandy from Morganna's excellent cellar, and settled herself more comfortably in the large chair by the fire.

"Well, they sent Gerda here to the United States to steal the plans for a new American tank, intended to replace that laughable Sherman tank of theirs! The designer of the new tank was an industrialist, a woman named Doctor Susan Carter! Gerda found out that the woman's secretary, a little twit named Lisa was a lesbian!

Now of course you have to remember, that in those days, being gay wasn't chic! If it became known, the girl's life would have been ruined! Naturally, Gerda didn't have much trouble seducing the silly, little twit!

Surprisingly, the girl had a little more gumption then Gerda gave her credit for! Gerda burned her and put the pressure on and instructed the girl to come the next night to her safe house, and turn over the plans! Instead, the girl went to her boss and tearfully confessed her indiscretions! A most touching scene I'm sure!"

After another sip of brandy, Elfrieda continued. "Now, neither Gerda nor the secretary knew it, until later, but, by a fantastic coincidence, this woman, Doctor Carter, was, herself, actually the vigilante crimefighter, Lady Destiny!

Like all of those do-gooders, this Dr. Carter, or Lady Destiny, was soft and sentimental! She didn't want to ruin the girl's life! She decided she'd handle the situation herself, as Lady Destiny, rather than notify the authorities! Naturally she didn't want to reveal her secret identity to the girl, so she told her she knew how to contact Lady Destiny! Later, she told the girl, that Lady Destiny would go with her that night to meet Gerda!

That night, as promised, Lady Destiny met Lisa, and they confronted Gerda, together!

Gerda, of course, was a street brawler, and possessed no finesse! This Lady Destiny was an expert at Jiu jitsu and at first, she tossed Gerda all over the room!

Gerda told me she was sitting on the floor so dizzy she couldn't see straight! Then the arrogant American made a mistake! She thought Gerda was finished and hesitated a moment, long enough for Gerda to get her bearings; then Lady Destiny came too close to her! Well, now, Gerda was playing possum, as they say! Still sitting on the floor, she threw a punch, and got the uppity bitch right in the gut, with her big, right fist!

Now, once she nailed that bitch, Gerda didn't  waste any time! She jumped up and just about pulverized the 'celebrated' Lady Destiny with her fists! Gerda always did have fists like battering rams! There was no science to her fighting, but she was a real brute in a brawl!  Before Lady Destiny could get her breath, Gerda knocked her silly!"