Grog the Big

Chapter 15 is up. Lies and misdirection!

Defining Moments - Chapter 15 The first time Crystal was led into the presence of The Lady Grey, she felt as though she was being hauled before the high school principal to account for some infraction of the school rules. Irrational as it was, she was unable to shake the feeling until she actually met and spoke with The Lady Grey. This time, however, she didn’t have the advantage of not having been involved with anything irregular. Her screw-up, as she considered the situation with Tetsu Sensei, would most certainly come out, and she was equally certain she would have to answer for it. As Jenny suspected she would, while she marched behind the color sergeant she tried to think of an explanation for the departure of the obnoxious ninja lord that would deflect any unpleasant attention from her friend. Staring at the back of the stocky color sergeant wasn’t helping. His precise and measured stride, spare speech, and nigh-mechanical adherence to his prescribed tasks were, to her mind, the hallmarks of a man who had not only met or exceeded the requirements of his duty throughout his career, but also managed to avoid any semblance of failure. This view was reinforced when he performed the steps to access the secure portal to the administrative and living quarters section of the Vanguard base and ordered her through with the exact same motions and voice inflection he had used previously. Either he’s a Nemesis automaton, or he’s the most self-controlled man in existence. Is that what’s expected around here? I’m so dead! A tiny whisper of rational thought reminded her that she was a special volunteer, and the most that could happen to her was that The Lady Grey would tell her that she was no longer welcome in the war zone. This whisper blossomed into a full-scale shouting match of inner voices. One welcomed the idea of leaving the war zone and all the associated violence and suffering behind. The other, the one that usually won these kind of arguments, didn’t want to quit the job if it looked like she’d failed, especially if she hadn’t had a chance to put things right. Not that she could think of a way to rectify the situation; it seemed unlikely that Tetsu Sensei would respond positively to any request from her to rejoin her team. But she still hated the idea of reporting to Lady Grey that, while Penny was safe and with her father again, she had returned without one of her own team, especially after promising that she’d bring them all back. Each step brought the moment of truth closer, and Crystal couldn’t think of a solution to her dilemma on her own. Her mind drifted back to her earlier meeting with Lady Grey. She recalled the color sergeant’s advice, and tried to think of a way to get some more assistance from him without revealing any embarrassing details about Tetsu Sensei’s departure. On her first attempt, she squeaked out “Excuse me, Color Sergeant Barnes” so quietly that he did not respond. Crystal cleared her throat and repeated herself more forcefully, trying not to blush in the process. It was enough to get his attention. “Yes, miss?” he inquired over his shoulder. Crystal was relieved that he did not turn around to see her red face. “Umm… Tetsu Sensei is no longer with the team.” Without interrupting his pace, Color Sergeant Barnes pulled out his PDA and tapped at it. “Indeed.” “That’s not going to be a problem, is it?” Color Sergeant Barnes halted and partially turned to face Crystal. “I expect not. Our special volunteers come and go as they please, and Vanguard does not usually plan any operations that require a stable group to remain in zone for any length of time.” “Oh,” Crystal replied, simultaneously greatly relieved and slightly insulted. The color sergeant resumed his trek. After a few more minutes, he halted again at a familiar door and held it open for Crystal. “Inside, please, miss.” “Security again?” she whined. It might have been her imagination, but Crystal thought she detected an upward curl in the corners of his mouth. “I’m afraid so, miss,” he deadpanned. “I tried to be careful, and the ice is pretty good at keeping me from picking things up by accident, but it’s possible I might have some Rikti bits stuck to me. Will that affect the scans?” She could not see it because of the helmet he wore, but Color Sergeant Barnes examined her closely for the first time since picking her up. The torn, burned, and bloody clothes presented an odd contrast to her unblemished skin and undamaged hair. The only outward sign of the ordeal she’d been through was the fatigue in her eyes. Inwardly, he marveled at the reality-defying powers of the supers, as well as Crystal’s nonchalance towards her own abilities. “Do mention that at the security station,” he advised. “Yeah, it would be so not funny to have survived fighting my way through the Rikti tunnels on Vanguard business only to be disintegrated by a Vanguard security checkpoint inside the Vanguard base.” Color Sergeant Barnes bit the inside of his cheek to maintain his straight face. “Quite so. The Lady Grey awaits you, miss. Inside, if you please.” Crystal obediently entered, surrendered her possessions, and passed through security. The transition from the checkpoint to Lady Grey’s office was less jarring this time. The sunlight struck the gardens outside at a steeper angle than before, much steeper than it hit the ground outside the base. Crystal guessed the local time from the angle, and deduced that Lady Grey was working from the comfort of her own home on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. That’s so cool! Where can I get one of those doors? I’d never have to rush to class again! Lady Grey motioned towards the ancient wooden chair in front of her desk. “Sit down, Miss da Silva, and tell Us about your mission.” Crystal did as she was told. Her re-telling of the mission was as short as she could manage; normally a detail-oriented person, she could easily have consumed as much time elaborating on mission events as it took to complete the original mission. She did not mention any of the internal drama that transpired, especially where Jenny was concerned. Throughout the exposition, Lady Grey remained silent, giving only non-verbal indications that she was still paying attention. An eyebrow arched at the mention of the Clockwork King’s interference. The other eyebrow joined the first as Crystal recounted Tetsu Sensei’s demands and accompanying threat. Crystal was unsure of how to proceed after mentioning the ninja lord’s dire threat, and her pause gave Lady Grey an opportunity to inquire, “We presume you rebuffed his ultimatum?” Rebuffed? Ultimatum? Note to self: bring thesaurus to next meeting with The Lady Grey. Guessing that Lady Grey was expecting a positive answer, Crystal replied, “Uh, yes ma’am. I was still iced up, and hoped that, if he tried to make good on his threat, I would have plenty of time to talk him out of the idea before he and his minions succeeded in critically injuring me.” Lady Grey paused to scribble something on a nearby pad of paper. Once finished, she passed her hand over the writing, causing it to fade and vanish. With a racing heart and dry mouth, Crystal squeaked, “I, uh… he, um… left the team shortly after that.” As subtly as she could, she dropped the temperature in her face to counteract the incoming flush. She hoped the humidity in the room wasn’t too high; condensation would have looked like perspiration, and been as sure a sign of her emotional state as a red face. I just told a half-truth to one of the most powerful people on Earth! I’m gonna die! Why couldn’t I have gotten invisibility instead of ice armor and energy fists? “Indeed.” Lady Grey’s response was flat and emotionless; either she didn’t believe Crystal, or she didn’t care that Tetsu Sensei was gone. Before Crystal’s overclocking heart burned out and failed over nothing, she managed to inquire, “Is that a bad thing?” “Perhaps,” Lady Grey intoned in a bored voice. “This was only the opening play of the Rikti’s plan. The struggle has just begun, and there is still much that must be accomplished. His absence, and the absence of his steady supply of reinforcements, will undoubtedly be felt by you and your team.” Fallenz, how did you know? And why haven’t you called me? “We have learned that, despite the loss of Miss Yin, the Rikti Lineage of War is using the power of other captured psychics to stabilize the gateways to their homeworld.” “That was fast,” Crystal interrupted with surprise. “Very. Doubtless our adversary formulated this contingency plan before kidnapping Miss Yin, and enacted it immediately after her liberation. While our agents search for the installation responsible, we cannot sit idly by, for we have learned that four of the Rikti’s most fearsome warriors have crossed the dimensional barrier. They must be repulsed, and We must ask you to do it!” Probably came through the portal we saw. Shoot! We weren’t fast enough! Oblivious to Crystal’s internal scolding, Lady Grey continued, “The four warriors are known as The Riders. Fortunately, Vanguard forces have pinpointed the location of the dimensional portals. You objective shall be to destroy those portals, and defeat any of these Riders that have made it into our world!” Yuk! A ‘seek and destroy’ mission. Where’s Grog when I need him? For that matter, where’s Fallenz? What happened to you? “You may return now, Miss da Silva. Assemble your team and dispatch The Riders post haste.” “Yes, ma’am.” Crystal stood and swiftly exited through the enchanted doorway. She waited until she arrived back in the Vanguard base before sighing with relief. Dodged that problem. It’s too bad I can’t keep doing that. Things will be much harder from here on out.

Chapter 14 is up. We jump back to the other team for a moment for some philosophical discussions and some fierce action. What is the nature of a hero? Some are born to it, some have it thrust upon them, and some... really belong on the other side of the War Walls. Which character belongs in which category?

Defining Moments - Chapter 14 “So, Fallenz… what’s she like?” Inwardly, Fallenz groaned. He’d expected the question ever since his team started their trek to meet up with the other heroes. With Warbow injured, they could only limp along, leaving nothing for the group to do but talk, and after Fallenz’ admission of romantic activity, he knew MonochromeMolly would want more information. Indeed, it was only the skirmish with the Nemesis patrol and the aftermath that prevented her from pursuing the matter straightaway. Fallenz considered the topic. Revealing personal information wasn’t something he often did; secrecy was second nature to him, and he relied heavily on information control to protect people close to him. Still, given that his feelings toward Crystal hadn’t yet developed into a relationship, this wasn’t something he believed would compromise anyone’s safety, and MonochromeMolly was a good friend. He decided a few hints wouldn’t hurt. While Fallenz pondered the matter, MonochromeMolly pressed, “Did you meet her in the line of duty? Is she someone you rescued or-” “No, she’s one of us. A fellow hero.” “Oh. So what’s she like? What is it about her that appeals to you?” “Well… for starters, she’s hot!” Fallenz laughed softly. “Though, if you knew her, you’d know that’s a strange way to describe her. Let’s say she’s OFFICIALLY hot.” “I… see,” MonochromeMolly replied, clearly dissatisfied with Fallenz’ explanation thus far. “There must be more to her than external appearance, especially in our line of work. Do you have anything to say about her character?” “She’s… well… hmm…” Fallenz thought silently for a moment. Finally, he finished his sentence: “She’s True Blue.” The capitalization was clearly evident in the way Fallenz spoke. One perfectly formed eyebrow arched on MonochromeMolly’s forehead. “True Blue? Really?” “Yeah.” “I’m surprised.” Now Fallenz returned the puzzled look. “Why?” “The hero most often described as True Blue is Statesman, and you and he don’t get along. What’s different about this woman, aside from her sex and external appearance?” Fallenz grunted. “I don’t get along with The Man ‘cause every time I deal with him he’s got me doing his heavy lifting for him. I’m tired of carrying that man’s water! For someone who’s supposed to be the world’s greatest hero, he sure does a lot of delegating, especially where Recluse is concerned.” “You are aware of the personal connection between the two men, aren’t you?” “I know it. I still don’t care. He should just twist Recluse’s head off and be done with it instead of sending ME to deal with his brother-in-law’s schemes. This “war by proxy” thing isn’t much fun for us proxy types. “But I think that’s one of the best things about this woman: she’s practically trouble-free! She’s friendly in the extreme, yet she’s embarrassed about the attention she gets in return. She can handle herself in a fight, but is one of the meekest and gentlest people I know. And you wouldn’t believe how easy it is to make her blush!” “If she’s so trouble-free, why are we out here in the Shadow Shard attacking a Nemesis Army base with one of the most notorious arch-villains in existence in tow? Though MonochromeMolly’s point stung, Fallenz replied, “We’re after Nemesis because that’s what we do, and he needs to pay for his scheming. We’re here with Flog because I made a promise. And she was only barely responsible for that situation.” MonochromeMolly shook her head and turned back to the path. “I don’t understand your reasoning. But, I don’t understand romantic love, so I suppose that’s expected.” “Huh? I thought you had full emotions! I distinctly remember you saying you understand love!” “All true, Fallenz, but romantic love is something different. I believe there’s some biological component to it, and, being inorganic, I don’t have the same needs humans do. I do feel love, or what I think is love, but I don’t feel any need to engage in the activities you do when pursuing that kind of relationship. And, from my own observations, the reality of romantic love closely resembles a bipolar mental disorder.” Fallenz laughed. “I guess there’s something to that, but when things go right, it’s the best feeling ever.” MonochromeMolly smiled. “Then I hope it goes all right for you.” “Thanks, Molly.” “And, if you really wanted to keep her identity a secret, you probably shouldn’t have told me anything about her.” “Hey! Don’t go telling!” “I don’t gossip; that’s gauche. But you should know that after analyzing your details and cryptic clues and comparing them to my database of known heroes, I believe I’ve established her identity with 67% confidence, and am 95% confident she’s in a list of five potentials I’ve formulated.” Fallenz shot her a brief warning glance. “Don’t jinx it.” “My lips are sealed, in a manner of speaking.” She smiled sweetly. The rest of the conversation would wait; a series of horrible screams were carried by the still air to Fallenz’ ears. Warbow, MonochromeMolly, and Fallenz glanced at each other, then quickened their pace. In minutes, they encountered the rest of the heroes. Captain Glacier, the Phoenix of Syrinx, and Lucius Quintus clustered around a large rock formation jutting out of the ground. The Phoenix and Captain Glacier looked traumatized and pale. Lucius was more composed, though something was clearly unsettling him as well. Grog was nowhere in sight. The screaming came from behind the rock. Fallenz broke away from his companions and sprinted up to the rock formation. “What’s happening?” he cried. “Where’s Grog?” Captain Glacier croaked out, “Hahrible…just hahrible…” The Phoenix made another pass of her hands through a ritual gesture. She pleaded, “Fallenz! Please, help! I can’t keep this spell going for much longer!” “What?” Concerned about Grog’s fate, Fallenz started to round the rock. Lucius barred his passage. “I don’t recommend you see this. Not unless you have a strong constitution.” Fallenz eyes bulged, and he pushed past the older man, fearing the worst. He was not disappointed. The rock screened a field littered with scrap metal and body parts. Several of the human Nemesis soldiers had been hacked apart in the most gruesome manner possible. Their innards, limbs, and heads had been removed and piled around a shimmering green force field. Inside the force field was the source of the screams; a lone Nemesis soldier, weaponless and cowering on the ground, scrabbling against the rock in a desperate attempt to escape the horrific vision before him. That vision was Grog the Big, apparently uninjured yet covered in blood and gore, squatting in a ring of entrails and skulls. His left hand held the severed head of a human Nemesis soldier while he worked at it with his sword, slowly slicing through the top of the skull to expose the brain. He completed the cut, reached inside, and scooped the brains out with his bare hand, all the while explaining the process by which he intended to turn the man’s skull into a goblet. Shocked, Fallenz could only stare in disbelief. This was never anything he expected to witness; another superhero desecrating the dead. His will was insufficient to force his voice work properly. The overwhelming revulsion locked his body into a catatonic state while his mind desperately tried to process the image. Even though Fallenz used a sword himself, in deference to the sensibilities of the citizens and government of Paragon City and the public image of his profession, he tried to keep the body count as low as possible. Accidents happened, but the mediport system and the facilities in Ziggursky prison were typically sufficient to catch the few that didn’t survive fighting. To see a fellow hero so casually killing, dismembering, and mutilating the bodies of his foes… The burly warrior finally broke from his reverie and noticed Fallenz standing near. In a disturbingly casual tone, he said, “Oh, hello Fallenz! I was just making a skull goblet. Would you like one, too? There’s still an intact head left.” He pointed to the trapped Nemesis soldier, who screamed piteously. “Once the Phoenix drops her spell, I can get started on it.” Fallenz still couldn’t move, but his voice began to function. “Grog,” he gasped, “I thought you were just joking about drinking from human skulls.” “Not at all! I’ve made dozens of skull goblets, but the silly laws of Paragon City make it difficult for me to engage in the practice. But, rejoice! We’re not in Paragon anymore, and the mighty Grog can once again do as he pleases!” With an evil grin on his bloodstained face, he turned back to the Nemesis soldier, who screamed even louder. Fallenz shut his eyes. It didn’t help; the scene was burned into his brain. With his eyes still closed, he asked, “Did he tell you where the base is?” “He did, but I’m not sure he was honest. I need more time with him.” “Oh please dear [censored] NO!” the Nemesis soldier howled. “Back off, Grog! I think he’s told us everything we need!” With a dissatisfied grunt, Grog stood and backed away from the soldier. He glanced at Fallenz’ face, noticed that his eyes were closed, and took the opportunity to dig the toe of a boot under a pile of entrails and fling them at the Nemesis soldier. They impacted wetly on the force field and slid down to join the collection of internal organs that ringed the base of the field. The soldier screamed louder still. Fallenz raised his gaze to the heavens and opened his eyes again. The screaming and smells still assaulted his senses, but he could no longer see the gore. He relied on his memory and outstretched arms to advance on the force field. Once he made contact, he slowly brought his gaze down just low enough to look the soldier in the eyes. He stared at the soldier while he slowly calmed down. This had gone horribly awry, and as the one responsible for putting this mission together, Fallenz felt obligated to say something to his prisoner. “Umm… sorry.” “Please!” he begged. “Release me! I’ll do anything you want!” “Yeah, all I want to know is where your base is. Tell me.” The Nemesis soldier pointed up the undulating slope of the hill. “That way! Around to the left once you clear the rock outcropping! You can’t miss it! Please, let me go!” “Uhh, look, I’m not going to kill you, or keep you prisoner, but I can’t let you go free and warn your buddies either, so we’re just going to knock you out and leave you here on the other side of the rock.” “Oh, thank you! Thank you! I beg you, render me unconscious and let me forget this gruesome affair!” “Yeah… sorry about…everything.” In a louder voice, Fallenz shouted, “Phoenix! You can drop the force field now.” The green field popped like a soap bubble, and Fallenz put his hands on the Nemesis soldier and dragged him to his feet. “You want a hand with rendering him unconscious?” inquired Grog. “No! It’s under control. You stay here and get cleaned up. Seriously, you have GOT to get clean. Stay here and take all the time you need. We’ll handle the base; you catch up when you’re not covered in carnage anymore!” Fallenz and his prisoner swiftly scooted around the rock formation to join the rest of the team. “Warbow! Get your heavy arrow and knock this guy out. No arguments!” he added, seeing the look on his face. “The base is up the side of the hill. I want to get there as soon as possible.” Warbow silently drew and fired. The Nemesis soldier let out a whoosh and doubled over as the arrow hit him in the gut. He collapsed to the ground and lay still. From nearby, over his shoulder, Fallenz heard Grog exclaim, “Hmph. He’s not bleeding! How disappointing.” Fallenz waved a hand over his shoulder at Grog. “Dude! Get back behind the rock!” “Hmm?” “Fallenz, what’s wrong?” MonochromeMolly asked. “It’s Grog! He was covered in blood and gore, and I told him to clean up before he joined us. It’s gonna take at least a half hour for him to clean up. Seriously, dude, you’re grossing us all out.” “He’s clean,” said MonochromeMolly. “What?” Fallenz turned around. Sure enough, Grog was spotless, looking cleaner than he had in a long time. His plate mail, horned skull cap, and leather boots shone as if brand new and freshly polished. Fallenz was no less shocked than he was at Grog’s grisly interrogation, though far less horrified. “It’s a simple spell,” explained Grog, as if he could hear Fallenz thoughts. “But I prefer to leave some evidence of past adventures on my armor. This spell works too well for my taste.” Fallenz shook his head. “I don’t know about you, man. Let’s go.” “This way!” shouted Grog. He waved to direct everyone around the rock. “NO!” Fallenz howled. He pointed up the hill and away from the scene of Grog’s interrogation. “Go THAT way, and if you value your sanity, do NOT look behind that rock as you go! Up the hill, to your left, and you should see our target.” The group moved out. Grog went around the rock anyway. Fallenz put a hand on Lucius to stop him. With his other, he pointed to the other side of the rock. Staring hard into Lucius’ eyes, he growled, “What part of, ‘quit torturing the guy’ was unclear?” Lucius coolly replied, “Though I did communicate your wishes to him, Grog did not consider his actions to be torture as he was unable to get his hands on the Nemesis soldier. I happen to agree. “The Phoenix refused to drop the spell to allow access. That man had information we required, and we were without leverage other than intimidation. The soldier was physically unharmed, and would remain so until the spell faded, so… a more creative interrogation was required. “The members of the Nemesis Army only reveal accurate information under two circumstances: either they tell you because they believe that Nemesis is too powerful to be threatened by your interference, or they crack. And Nemesis troops do not crack easily! Yes, it was barbarous, it was grisly, but it was necessary, the man remains uninjured, and it worked. Exitus acta probat.” “[censored], this is…inhuman!” “On the contrary! This is very human!” Lucius softened his tone. “What would you say if I claimed to have lived as many centuries as you’ve lived years?” “I’d say you look pretty good for a guy who should have died a hundred times over.” “It’s closer to fifty lifetimes, actually. The point is, what happened here is not outside my experience with human behavior. Nor were Grog’s interrogation methods especially gruesome. That’s why I remained composed; not because mutilating the dead is something I approve of, but that I’ve seen this sort of thing before.” “You must have the most amazing stories,” Fallenz sarcastically speculated. “Not all of which are worth repeating,” Lucius replied sincerely. “What’s most important is to remember what has passed as it was, not as we would like it to be. Shall we go?” he finished, gesturing up the side of the hill. Fallenz turned and started walking. “This is not how I expected this to go down!” he grumbled. “I’d be more concerned if you did expect Grog to torture the living and butcher the dead.” Fallenz snorted. The rest of the journey up the hill passed in silence. Fallenz and Lucius joined the rest at a rock wall. In view around the wall was the entrance to the Nemesis Army base. The scene was a steampunk fan’s dream: brass and blackened steel were liberally used in construction, the decorating scheme was late Victorian with prominent rivets and baroque trim, and tall stacks belched smoke and steam into the air. More than just a monument to the ancient madman’s dated sense of aesthetics, the walls also sported walkways and crenellations for men to fight from. Curiously, there were no gates, only an open portal under the wall. Even more curious was the absence of guards. The Nemesis automatons did need to be periodically resupplied with water and fuel, but, as they didn’t get bored or distracted, they made excellent guards, and were the worst possible scenario for any hero to encounter if stealth was required. That was the choice that Fallenz wrestled with now. On one hand, he wished to capitalize on Nemesis’ inattention to defensive measures by storming in immediately. On the other, he could be storming into an ambush; when dealing with Nemesis, one could never take anything at face value. Sending in a Tank or a scout would be the most prudent tactic. Choosing the safer option, he turned to MonochromeMolly and asked, “Molly, you up for a quick peek inside?” “Of course,” she agreed. She vanished from view, her holographic systems bending the light around her. “Careful!” Fallenz urged the spot where she had been standing. “Don’t forget about their snipers! They might spot you through the cloak!” “I’ll be careful, Fallenz,” she replied from nowhere. “Will you look at that?” said Captain Glacier as he nodded his head in the direction of the base. “It’s the kind of thing only a mechanical engineah could love!” “It’s like some demented architect had an unlimited budget and a client with no taste,” Warbow speculated. Lucius responded, “Nemesis stubbornly adheres to the nineteenth-century. His worldview, his plots, and even his sense of aesthetics; it’s all from a time gone by. I wish he’d grow up and abandon this romanticized fantasy.” Warbow turned to Lucius. “He’s over a hundred years old! How much more growing up could he possibly do?” “You’d be surprised,” Lucius dryly quipped. A flash of purple light preceded the arrival of the mighty Grog. The teleport spell complete, he rubbed his hands in glee and asked, “So, when does the massacre begin?” Fallenz snapped, “It doesn’t! Molly’s on recon, and we’ll wait to hear from her before moving in. And no massacring allowed! We still might need to ask some questions, so take it easy in there. Just do what you do when you’re back in…” His voice trailed off as he finally noticed the new design prominently featured in red on his breastplate. “Nice skull and crossbones, Grog.” “Thanks! I made it myself!” Indeed, the skull and crossbones design was surprisingly clear considering that Grog was most likely still wearing the armor when he painted it on. On further inspection, Fallenz noticed that the red paint was fresh and wet, and the dirt that Grog was rubbing into his hands was absorbing the remaining paint from his fingers. Fallenz considered the possible sources of red finger paint in the Shadow Shard, and his stomach knotted. “Dude, no more trophies from the fallen. OK?” “Does that include plunder?” “Uh, no, you can still plunder, just…you know…no body parts or bodily fluids.” Grog sighed mournfully. “As you wish.” The look of horror returned to Captain Glacier’s face. “Oh my [censored], Grog! You didn’t!” Fallenz cut off Grog’s response. “Do you REALLY want the answer to that question?” Captain Glacier shook his head and turned away from Grog. The team waited several minutes. The Phoenix of Syrinx used the time to weave a series of protective spells around every member of the team, and refreshed them when they faded, ensuring the team would have some protection no matter when they had to move out. “I’m back.” MonochromeMolly reappeared after the brief warning. “Good,” said Fallenz. “What’s in there?” “I think they’re getting ready to move out. There’s more Nemesis than I’ve seen in a while listening to one of the big automatons deliver a mission briefing and pep talk. It sounded as though they’re still trying to contain whatever information that defector possessed. That’s probably why we don’t see guards at the gate.” “How many are inside?” “About seventy. I didn’t want to get too close, so I don’t have a more accurate count.” Grog announced, “I’ll take half of them. You all can deal with the rest.” “FLOG SMASH!” “Let’s be a little smarter about it,” said Fallenz. “Phoenix, try and take someone prisoner early on, just like you did back there. Warbow and MonochromeMolly will provide cover for us as we advance, and help soften the Nems up during the fight.” He turned to Captain Glacier. “Sorry, man, but I have no idea what you can do.” “I freeze things. I also fix and prevent injuries.” “Good, we’ll need it. You fought Nemesis before?” “A few times. Mostly I swept the streets of Peregrine Island.” “In numbers like this, if you’re not that tough, you gotta stay away from anyone catching fire. That means Grog, Flog, myself, and probably Lucuis. You stand too close, and the explosions will tear you to bits. Hang back and help where you can without getting chopped up. Got it?” Captain Glacier nodded. “Let’s go. Molly, ladies first.” Holographic evening dress shimmering in the sunlight, MonochromeMolly entered the open gateway of the fortress, closely followed by the others. Once past the exterior walls of the fort, there wasn’t much to see. A handful of buildings in the same ghastly style as the perimeter walls were scattered through the spacious interior grounds. The base backed up against a jagged wall of rock several stories tall, most likely the edge of this island of ground. Roughly central to the layout was a huge elevated platform. The Nemesis troops stood there in parade formation and listened to a huge Fake Nemesis automaton. Infantry, Jaegers, Warhulks, and officers filled the platform, leaving little room to stand. “Anyone hear what they’re saying?” Grog asked. After a pause, the Phoenix answered, “Some of it. The big one is talking about the traitor… what does “slanderous calumnies” mean?” She looked at everyone’s face in turn, and received only a shake of the head or a shrug. Warbow’s face lit up, and a huge grin split his face. “Yes!” he exclaimed, “There is a God, and He is good!” Fallenz gave him a funny look. “What brought that on?” “Don’t you see him?” Warbow inquired. “Towards the rear of the mobs. He’s short, so you have to look for a spot where you don’t see one of those funny Nemesis helmets. Right there!” “Who, God?” “No! Manticore!” Manticore was indeed in with the Nemesis soldiers. His height made him difficult to spot, but the bright red costume made him hard to lose once you spotted him. He stood in perfect formation with the soldiers around him as if he’d done it all his life. “You know how long I’ve wanted to match my skill against his?” Warbow crowed. “You think it’s really him?” MonochromeMolly inquired. “Doesn’t matter. Either way, this is an opportunity I’ve wanted-” Confronted with one of his nemeses, Flog could hold back no longer. With an ear-shattering roar of “FLOG SMASH MANTICORE!” he leapt into the air on a high ballistic arc aimed straight at the famed hero. Fallenz swore. “Go!” He spread his wings and rode a trail of fire onto the crowded platform. Dropping down in front of the Fake Nemesis, he drew his Talsorian sword and thrust the tip of the blade into the face of the huge automaton. “A lot of good people died because you started the Rikti invasion,” he snarled. “I’m here to make sure everyone learns what a lunatic you are!” The towering machine-man gave Fallenz a condescending smile. “Trying to steal our invasion plans? How droll! Have at them, my Nemesis Army!” The roar of the opening salvo caused Fallenz almost as much pain as the projectiles themselves. Fallenz’ vision was temporarily obscured by smoke and flying shot. His bio armor had already thickened in anticipation of the fight, but even its protective abilities could not counter all the incoming damage, and fiery pain coursed through Fallenz’ body as shrapnel lanced his armored hide. Deafened, blinded, and seriously wounded, it was all Fallenz could do to remain in place. The sound of a car crash heralded an abatement in the oncoming fire. The smoke and poison gas cleared, and Fallenz caught a glimpse of Grog the Big standing over the prone form of the Fake Nemesis. Bullets and explosive projectiles ricocheted off his glimmering armor as he smugly inquired of the Fake Nemesis, “Dare mess with Grog, eh?” The huge automaton gave no reply. It slowly stood as the surrounding infantry and Jaegers switched targets, giving Fallenz the time he needed to catch his breath. Towards the rear of the parade ground, Flog landed with the force of a bomb. Deck plates flew into the air along with several Jaegers and infantry. Many of those who landed did not get up again. The savage fury with which he swung his stone mallet seemed to increase with each blow, and, in seconds, Manticore and the rear soldiers were fully occupied with the enraged caveman. Explosions and reports from the Nemesis weapons mixed with crunching sounds and loud bellowing. Behind Fallenz, Lucius vaulted onto the raised platform with an agility that belied his elderly appearance. He lashed out with his own Talsorian sword, sending man after man to the ground in a spray of blood. The return fire blasted his clothes away and ripped into his flesh, but the injuries seemed to heal as fast as they were inflicted, and he would not be brought down. Yet another group halted their fire when swing lines appeared out of nowhere, and Errol Flynn and his band of privateers swung onto the platform and engaged the Nemesis Army with rapiers and cutlasses. A ghostly apparition joined the black and white privateers and blasted the Nemesis troops with waves of force, sending Jaegers and men sprawling and further adding to the chaos and confusion. Captain Glacier took advantage of the confusion to run in and coat everything with a thick layer of ice. Very few of the Nemesis troops remained able to move afterward, and the phantom privateers had free reign. It took Fallenz less than a second to take all this in and identify his next targets. One last group of Nemesis soldiers remained untouched. They broke from their parade formation and took up a firing line. Unchecked, it would be the end of his less durable teammates, but only he remained to handle their fire. Thinking quickly, he barked, “Grog, you handle things here! I’m moving on!” Grog’s gigantic sword trailed a shower of sparks as it scored a deep gash into the torso of the Fake Nemesis. “Huzzah!” he cheered. “A whole army for the mighty Grog to fight by himself!” “Captain Glacier! Heal me up; I’m taking on those guys there!” “You’ah covahed!” he replied. A green stream of healing nanobots flew from his outstretched hands to Fallenz. They did their job as well as those of the portable medical patches, almost instantly closing Fallenz’ wounds and blunting his pain. Even before the healing process was complete, Fallenz charged forward, right into the teeth of their guns. Fewer weapons were pointed at him than before, and the damage that worked its way past his bio armor was not enough to slow him down. With a cry of, “Fall before the Four Winds!” he barged through the front line of the mob and began a deadly ballet. He parried a bayonet thrust and smashed his elbow into the face of the Nemesis soldier. Quickly reversing his grip on the sword, he plunged it straight down through the top of a Jaeger, pinning it to the deck plating. He followed the move up by ripping the sword free and slashing through two adjacent infantry, continuing the cut up until he was airborne, then suddenly landed and put his full weight and momentum into a downward swing that severed the arm off of a Warhulk. All the while, his wings worked furiously to keep his balance and prevent anyone from getting too close to the rear. His pain and fury transformed him into a whirlwind of doom that swept away all foes before it. A translucent green globe of sorcerous energy descended and exploded around Fallenz. It knocked the infantry and Jaegers off their feet. Fallenz whipped his head around in time to see the Phoenix draw back on her bow and rapid fire a swarm of arrows into a high arc. They curved overhead, dropping straight down onto Fallenz and his opponents. The Talsorian sword was a blur as Fallenz deflected the incoming rain of arrows from himself. That same rain of arrows pierced men and machine alike. Once it was safe to do so, Fallenz scowled at the Phoenix of Syrinx, who now had a sheepish look on her face. “Watch it!” he howled. “My apologies, hero.” “Let me show you how it’s done,” said Warbow. He drew his bow and fired another swarm of arrows. Cursing furiously, Fallenz once again dodged and parried to avoid falling victim to the deadly rain. The second barrage finished off the remaining Jaegers and infantry, leaving only the one-armed Warhulk standing. The Phoenix and Warbow coordinated their shots, stitching the war machine until its boilers ruptured. Fallenz rolled to escape the blast. Once righted, he shouted at Warbow, “Are you trying to kill me?” “If you held still, I’d have missed you. I can’t help it if you’re going to dodge INTO the arrows!” “You’re crazy, you know that?” Warbow shrugged. “I’m a guy with light body armor and a bow hanging around a crew of super-powered bad-[censored] tangling with one of the best-equipped armies in existence. Doesn’t sound like a sane man to me.” “We’re not done yet,” the Phoenix reminded the men. “That was only one squad of several.” It was easy to see the truth of that statement. MonochromeMolly and Grog were still busy with their mobs. Captain Glacier was hopping back and forth between Lucius and those two, frantically providing support wherever and however he could. Even though he was out of sight, Fallenz could hear Flog still fighting. “Warbow, you help Molly finish off her group. Phoenix, go support Flog. I’ll help the big guy.” Fallenz continued to give orders as the trio moved to their respective tasks. “Glacier! Stay on Lucius! Help is on the way!” “Rogah that!” He switched back to Lucius and his group. The deck plates under the hero glistened as Captain Glacier lay down a slick coating of ice. Lucius remained on his feet, but many of his foes slipped and fell, making easy pickings of themselves for the sword-wielding hero. Right before Fallenz reached Grog’s foes, MonochromeMolly broadcast a warning: “Shut your eyes!” Fallenz blinked just in time. MonochromeMolly overloaded her holographic projectors and dazzled a huge swath of the platform with a flash of blinding light. Human troops stopped whatever they were doing to clutch at their eyes. The automatons fared little better as the pulse temporarily overloaded their processors. Every single foe that MonochromeMolly faced had been neutralized by her combined attacks. The Fake Nemesis took note of her actions. Temporarily ignoring Grog, he pointed his staff at her and blasted her off her feet with a powerful force bolt. “Simpleton! Your cheap tricks are no match for the lord of technology!” it boasted to her prone body. Enraged, Fallenz launched himself into the air. In a repeat of his attack on the Warhulk, he put his momentum and weight behind a downward slash that severed the Fake Nemesis’ staff hand from its wrist. “That’s for MonochromeMolly!” he shouted. He slashed at the back of one knee. The blade bit deep and severed the servos that kept the leg straight. The Fake Nemesis fell forward onto one knee, head bowed. “And that was for Sefu Tendaji!” “And this is for booze!” roared Grog. He swung his massive sword, connected with the Fake Nemesis’ neck, and took its head clean off. The head bounced and clattered across the platform. Grog shouted, “Someone catch that! I want to keep it!” “Dude,” Fallenz admonished, “you can’t use ‘This is for booze’ as a battle cry.” “Why not?” the gargantuan warrior inquired. “Battle cries are supposed to be about stuff that’s important!” “Booze is very important to me!” “Look,” Fallenz explained, “the Fake Nemesis hurt Molly, a good friend of ours. And Sefu Tendaji died because of Nemesis’ murderous scheming.” “And if Nemesis weren’t a threat, and I didn’t have to deal with him and his evil plans, I’d still be back in Paragon City, drinking!” Fallenz threw up his hands. “Oh, have it your way! Go finish off the guys Molly was fighting! I’m going to help Lucius.” Grog teleported into the fracas. His swordplay sent bodies flying everywhere, and in moments he finished off that group of foes. Meanwhile, Fallenz roared into the next group. He stayed airborne and slashed down at any soldier unlucky enough to stay on his feet. Once finished with the taller human troops, he hovered lower to take care of the Jaegers. The two swordsmen, with support from Captain Glacier’s ice work, whittled the mob down to nothing. As the last Jaeger collapsed, Captain Glacier moved in close and bathed the two men in swarms of medical nanobots. Fallenz felt almost good as new. “Thanks, Captain, that’s just what I needed. Flog could probably use some of your attention now.” “He needs a bath moah than he needs medical attention, but I’ll go fix him.” “Great, thanks.” As Captain Glacier walked off, Lucius grabbed Fallenz’ attention. He asked, “I’ve never seen that style of sword fighting before. What is it?” “Four Winds sword style. Slightly modified ‘cause, you know, I fly, and most people can’t.” “Once this is over, I’d like to hear more about it.” “Yeah, sure. Hey, do me a favor and help me with Molly.” The two men moved to help the fallen hero. The blast did a number on her; it knocked down the holographic generator that covered her body and put a sizable dent in her torso. She was slowly picking herself up when they arrived at her side. “Yo, Molly, you OK?” “In a moment, Fallenz. I need to reset a few systems before I can rejoin you. Sorry.” “No problem. Take your time; it looks like there’s not much left for us to deal with.” Lucius quietly observed MonochromeMolly’s true form. Her dull gold body bore only a slight resemblance to the female form she preferred to show. Segmented plates covered her housing. Her head was without nose, mouth, ear, or eye. Instead, three green optical ports arranged asymmetrically in her face provided all her visual data. MonochromeMolly noticed his attention and commented, “It’s not polite to stare at a lady, especially when she isn’t decent.” “Of course, forgive me,” Lucius immediately replied. “I’m just surprised, that’s all. It’s one thing to be told your true form, and quite another to witness it firsthand. A pity about that dress.” “It’ll be back in about twenty seconds. Would you boys mind giving me some privacy?” Lucius put an arm around Fallenz’ shoulders and pulled him away. “Come along, young man, let’s give the lady her space.” Despite his indignation at Lucius’ patronizing tone, Fallenz allowed himself to be herded away. “Hey, you can quit trying to impress her, man!” “Being a lady is a matter of behavior, not a matter of biology. There are many women, but precious few ladies, and any we find should be honored.” “Yeah? You know something about ladies?” “I like to think so. Why do you ask?” Fallenz eyes narrowed slightly as he said, “How about a trade? My knowledge of Four Winds sword style for your knowledge of the ladies.” Lucius’ gray eyebrows rose. “Not an even trade, but I accept nonetheless.” “Good. Once this is over. Now, let’s finish this fight.” The two men raced up to the last remaining combat. Manticore had lost his entourage, but none of his fighting spirit. Flog swung at him over and over with his stone mallet, and Warbow, the Phoenix, and Captain Glacier heaped their own firepower onto the famed hero, but he refused to go down. Fallenz paused by Warbow. “So, who’s winning the archery duel?” he inquired. Warbow fired another salvo of arrows at Manticore, and grunted in disgust as they skipped harmlessly off his body armor or missed the rapidly dodging hero entirely. “He’s a lot tougher than I thought he’d be.” “Save the regular arrows for the riff-raff. We’ll handle the damage now.” Fallenz launched himself into the air for another finishing stroke, but Manticore noticed the attack and dodged out of the way, and Fallenz hacked into the platform instead. With that trademark smug grin, Manticore observed, “You call that fighting? I call it ERROR IN SARCASM DATABASE!” Fallenz was so surprised he stopped swinging. “Say what?” “He’s a robot duplicate!” Warbow observed unnecessarily. “And a crappy one at that!” added Captain Glacier. “That makes this much easier,” said Lucius. “We don’t have to hold back. Have at thee, Shamticore!” He darted in and took advantage of the automaton’s preoccupation with Fallenz to slash across his back. In response, Manticore turned and fired an arrow into Lucius’ chest. The broadhead pierced the chain mail, and the shaft sunk deeply into his body but, after a slight cough, Lucius resumed his onslaught with no adverse effects. Lucius, Fallenz, and Flog took turns whaling on Manticore. With the three melee combatants working in concert, the fake Manticore couldn’t dodge as well as he had before, and the damage started to work its way through his armor. Captain Glacier and the Phoenix supplied the three men with whatever protection and healing they needed, while Warbow cycled through his stores of trick arrows to weaken and hamper Manticore. Eventually, MonochromeMolly arrived and blasted him with radiation, further degrading his systems. Grog joined the fray soon after, but the fate of the mechanical imposter was already sealed, and after a particularly furious combo of hits, he sagged to the ground, uttering at the last, “Oh yeah, well SARCASM ENGINE FAILURE. SHUTTING DOWN SYSTEM.” Grog left to pillage as soon as the mechanical Manticore ceased fighting. All the others stood around his immobile form and caught their breath. Captain Glacier was the first to speak: “Nemesis may be a whiz with steam, but he’s a lousy programmah. How could anyone think this was Manticoah?” Fallenz reminded him, “If this was sent to the Rikti home world to start the war, they probably didn’t have a basis for comparison.” “Maybe so. Now, what do we do with this thing? If it weah electronic, and I had it in my lab, I could read its memory, but you probably need a plumbah to figuah out how it woahks.” “We take it with us. Vanguard can do what they want with it.” “So that’s it?” MonochromeMolly inquired. “We’re finished here?” Fallenz considered the question in silence, weighing his knowledge of Nemesis’ nature against the mission requirements. He had a mostly-intact robot duplicate of Manticore and the confession of the Fake Nemesis, but he still wasn’t sure if this was it. Invading the Rikti world must have taken more than just one automaton, and the word of a Nemesis stooge wasn’t very reliable. The more he thought about it, the more certain he was that there was still more to discover in this base. At last, he announced, “No. There has to be something else. The- what did you call it, Lucius?” “Shamticore. A play on words regarding this creation: a sham of a man.” “That was clever,” MonochromeMolly said. Lucuis gave her a gentleman’s bow in return for the compliment. “Shamticore can’t be all that’s left. Nemesis invaded another world and set up the invasion of ours. He’d have to have used more than this. There’s got to be plans, or a portal, or something else. We need to find everything that might remain here that could support that defector’s story.” “Unless there’s nothing else left, and this is a trap, or a distraction from one of his other plans,” Warbow interjected. “Not everything is a Nemesis plot, man.” “That’s exactly what Nemesis wants you to think!” Warbow shot back. “And you call ME the conspiracy theorist!” Smiling, Warbow replied, “I’m just messing with you. You’re still the champ, Fallenz.” “Thanks, [censored]. Anyway, we gotta get this thing back. Grog!” The hulking behemoth ceased pulling copper tubes from a wrecked Jaeger and trotted over. “We need to take this with us,” Fallenz explained. “Can you do it?” “Of course!” Grog thundered. He knelt by the feet of the fallen automaton and pulled a leather sack from his belt. He unfolded it into a wide mouthed sack roughly the size of a kitchen garbage bag and pulled it over the feet of Shamticore. Fallenz watched dubiously as Grog tugged at the bag. “Bro, there’s NO way you’re…” His voice trailed off as the rim of the bag passed the knees, then the hips, then his waist, and showed no signs of stopping. Stunned, he asked, “Is that a Bag of-” Simultaneously, Warbow whispered, “He’s got a Bag of-” Both men stopped at the same time and eyed each other warily. “What kind of bag is that? Do you recognize it?” the Phoenix asked. “No idea,” Fallenz lied as he stared suspiciously at Warbow. “Never seen anything like it,” fibbed Warbow as he stared back at Fallenz. The two men stared at each other until Grog stood. Shamticore, if it was indeed inside the bag, made a bulge roughly the size of a child’s doll. Grog held the bag up to his eyes, scrutinized it, then announced, “Plenty of room left! I’m going after my Fake Nemesis head, unless you want something else collected.” “No, we’re good. Happy pillaging. Wait!” he corrected himself. Grog returned to the circle. Addressing everyone, Fallenz continued, “OK, this is good, but there has to be more here that supports that defector’s claims. The Fake Nemesis mentioned something about invasion plans. Pillaging will have to wait. We need to find the evidence first. Tear this base apart until you find those plans! And bring me the prisoners; I want them alive! Let’s get this done!” “At once, Darth Fallenz,” MonochromeMolly quipped as she turned and began searching the wreckage of the battle. “I always knew you’d join the Dark Side!” Warbow crowed. “I’ll bet you’ll get that Talsorian sword tinted red now, won’t you? “I could tune youah rebreathah to make rasping sounds, if you want,” Captain Glacier volunteered with a laugh. Without rancor, Fallenz shot back, “You [censored]! Shut up and get to work, or I’ll use The Force to choke you all!” The group merrily dispersed on their respective investigations.

Chapter 13 is up. How did I let this go so long without an update? Credits aplenty for this one: @BlackSun17 for The Doomsday Chicken (first soldier story). The chicken wasn't played for laughs, but he always left me in stitches. Thanks, BS17! @Grandpa Wisdom for topical storm (second soldier story). Grandpa was an odd duck but a solid player, except when he played topical storm (Mind/Storm controller). He was the kind of stormy who give stormies a bad name, once causing a party wipe becuase he scattered an entire mob away from an AV and saved them all from our alpha strike. Still worth teaming with, just make sure he isn't playing a stormy. @Quantum Storm for Quantum Storm. My RL brother, he created Quantum Storm for Shining Crystal to duo with. Didn't take long before we realized two support toons working together still need help...

Defining Moments - Chapter 13 Yuk! After the journey back to the Vanguard base, the meal was, at best, anti-climactic. The team had either skirted around or plowed through the Rikti in their way, and Penelope Yin had been safely delivered to the main Vanguard base, where a squad of soldiers in full combat gear was dispatched to return her home. Crystal took a moment to verify that Tetsu Sensei had safely arrived at the Vanguard base and to report the success of the mission before joining her companions in the canteen. Now, she once again led her team in their next great challenge: identifying which of the day’s entrees was the most edible. Crystal unhappily scrutinized the offerings. In one tray sat fried chicken, half-heartedly breaded and most likely baked instead of fried, wallowing in a shallow pool of oily water and soggy crumbs. The other contained roast beef that had been cooked well done, sliced, then probably cooked again, served with a small cup of beef broth that couldn’t possibly provide enough moisture to rehydrate the meat to the point where it was safe to chew. Even the Paragon City University cafeterias did a better job of making the meals look fit for human consumption. After careful deliberation, Crystal selected the chicken, mostly because the bones protruding through the breading indicated that the meat had at one point been attached to a real live animal. The meat was joined on the plate by mashed potatoes and watery gravy, as well as a scoop of unidentifiable greens that had been steamed until they disintegrated. She glumly accepted the plate from the man behind the counter, placed it on her Vanguard purple meal tray, and shuffled down the line, all the while scanning for something to add to the tray that would keep her stomach from making good on its threat to leave. It wasn’t just the prospect of an inedible meal that was upsetting her stomach. Crystal also had to deal with her frustration with Jenny. Her friend’s ears had remained plastered to the side of her head ever since they left the Rikti hideout, and the anger was palpable. Even now Crystal could feel her eyes boring into her. Still, the emotions radiating from Jenny weren’t nearly as intense as the ones scrambling her own mind. The pain of betrayal from Jenny scheming behind her back, understanding at what she’d tried to do, fear at how this would impact related missions, relief that the abrasive ninja lord was gone, the corresponding shame she felt, and a tug of war between her desire to just make peace and move on versus the need to resolve the situation rattled her nerves and churned her guts. It was the focus on her own innards that finally broke through the mental turmoil. Crystal realized how the tension was wracking her body, the clenched muscles torturing her physically in concert with the emotional anguish. She forced herself to relax, unclenching one muscle group at a time, deliberately breathing deep and slow, and focusing her attention outside herself. The background mutter resolved into a few audible threads of conversation, and Crystal concentrated on them to distract her own thoughts. “…had me dead to rights. I mean, my gun’s in pieces on the ground, the rest of the squad’s busy on the other side of the wall, I’m flat on my back, and the big Rikti’s taking his time winding up with his sword. It’s like he was enjoying the whole thing! Then, right before he cuts me in half, the chicken jumps him! It was just like I heard! Five to six feet tall, white feathers, yellow legs, bright red comb, and covered in fire! The chicken tackled the Chief Soldier, squawking and pecking and scorching, and before I could move it just ripped the Chief apart and fried him in his own juices! Then, when it was over, it just looked me over with those evil red eyes. It stared and stared, didn’t say a thing for the longest time, then, finally, it spoke. ‘Eat more beef,’ it said. …I’m not making this up! I swear, on my mother’s grave, the chicken is REAL! And it’s here in the war zone! …Guys? Why are you all looking at me like that…” “…all [censored] night lugging those heavy-[censored] rocket pods into position, getting them under camouflage, wiring up the triggers, all without getting our own [censored] noticed and shot up. [censored], I was so sore from humping those rockets all the way from the base I didn’t get a wink of sleep. Anyway, morning comes, and Mars squad gets the duty of winkling the [censored] Rikti out of the hole and luring them into the kill zone. So there we were, ready to bushwhack ‘em and blow the whole lot of those [censored] straight to [censored] and open up a major tunnel network to be cleared. We might have secured the War Wall and kept ‘em out of the city for good! But as soon as Mars squad got ‘em into the kill zone, right as I was about to pull the trigger and stick those rockets up their [censored], that little [censored] runs in. Some girl in a black and blue suit, yellow hair, bright green mask, and green and blue wings… [censored]! It was so ugly she HAD to be one of the heroes! Recluse would have killed someone with that poor taste! Anyway, the [censored] starts off with a blast of wind that knocks the Rikti to the ground. Then she sets off a hurricane, summons a tornado, and while the winds are tossing the Rikti COMPLETELY out of the kill zone she stands right in my crosshairs, laughing. She’s laughing! The whole [censored] night from [censored], Mars squad sticking their [censored] on the chopping block, the bigger plan of clearing the tunnels, she [censored] up the whole [censored] thing in seconds! I was so [censored] pissed I pulled the trigger anyway! …What? It’s not like I could have killed her! Not unless I got her transponder, and I’m not lucky enough…” Crystal reached the cashier and indicated that the next six in line were hers. The rest of her team passed, one at a time, everyone but Thunder Dragon sporting a sour expression. Jenny was in the back. When she got up to the register, she was tensely silent. Crystal knew she was being glowered at but did not look at Jenny. Don’t glare at me; you’re the one who messed up! The group filed through the tables. It was late for lunch, but the war zone didn’t operate on business hours, and most of the tables were full of Vanguard personnel. Fortunately, there was an unoccupied table for eight against one wall, and the team claimed it for their own. Jenny and Crystal got the seats against the wall opposite each other and continued to pretend the other did not exist. Down Jenny’s row sat Supa Fly, Harm, and Bellona. Thunder Dragon perched himself on the chair next to Crystal, and StarDust sat on his other side. Crystal glanced at the empty chair, frowned, and then bent her head in silent prayer over her food. “Sorriest [censored] fried chicken I ever laid eyes on,” Supa Fly grumbled. He went to dig in, but noticed Crystal praying and stopped. He elbowed Harm to halt him as well. Bellona, StarDust, and Thunder Dragon started eating immediately. Once Crystal finished, Supa Fly quipped, “Baby, I hope you asked for divine help to keep this [censored] from making us sick.” “Seriously,” echoed Harm. “I do NOT want to puke while my helmet’s on!” “Eww!” the three women at the table howled simultaneously. Harm laughed. “It don’t look like puking’ll be a problem for you, unless you gonna take that helmet off or shove that [censored] in through a straw,” Supa Fly observed. “It’s covered,” Harm replied. He undid the catches on the side of his reinforced faceplate, pulled it off, and uncovered his mouth. The faceplate went onto the table. “You still have to eat this [censored]. You got that covered, too?” “Sort of.” Harm produced salt and pepper shakers and a bottle of hot sauce. “I swiped these from the line. I learned a while ago: you can eat almost anything if you put enough salt, pepper, and hot sauce on it.” The group passed the condiments around. Crystal ignored them and attacked her food right away. After taking her turn with the salt and pepper, Bellona said to her, “With an appetite like that it’s no wonder you’re packing all that weight.” “I am not fat,” Crystal huffed. “Just big boned?” “I’m not big boned, either!” she snapped. “The ice adds, like, another eighty pounds, and it doesn’t carry itself! I can’t help it if I have an athletic build.” “Oh, it’s called “athletic” now? Whatever you say, Chubbo.” Harm stood, interrupting Crystal’s icy glare. “Before this conversation degenerates any further, let me propose a toast.” He raised his glass. Everyone but Thunder Dragon followed suit; while he paid close attention to Harm, he ignored his own drink and continued to gnaw the last scraps of meat and cartilage from a drumstick. “To the success of our mission, and victory over the invaders! Earth for humans: let’s keep it that way!” “[censored] A!” crowed Supa Fly. “I’ll drink to that,” said Jenny. CRUNCH! All heads turned at the sound of Thunder Dragon deliberately splintering a drumstick in his maw. He impaled Harm on his unblinking, reptilian stare as he continued to crush the bone into jagged splinters and swallow them. “Oh…[censored],” breathed Harm. He stammered, “Uh, look, man-” Crystal interjected, “I can’t toast to that either, Harm.” His head snapped around. “What? Why?” “Well, it’s unfair to the Kheldians who’ve come to help protect Earth, and I also have a more personal reason to object.” “I always thought you were a space case, but I didn’t know it was because you’re an alien,” Bellona quipped. Crystal spared only a brief glance at Bellona before continuing. “Do you remember Quantum? Quantum Storm?” “Vaguely. She was a Controller, wasn’t she?” “Yes. We both registered at the same time and worked together right from the start. She was my friend, my partner, and my roommate for years, but she got tired of taking a beating doing hero stuff and went home.” “What does this have to do with-” “Home wasn’t Sweden, like she told everyone. Home was off world. She was a space alien.” “The he- uh, really?” Crystal nodded. “You know that platinum blonde hair of hers? There was real platinum in it! I had to use my connections in the chem department to get powdered platinum for a dietary supplement.” “Platinum hair?” Bellona asked, incredulously. “Yeah,” Crystal sighed. “She could do anything with it, and it never went limp or frizzed. And the shine! Wow! It was really something.” “What planet?” inquired StarDust. The question took Crystal by surprise. “Hmm?” “What planet is she from?” he repeated. Crystal frowned as she thought. “Mmm, I don’t remember exactly. She might not have told me. I do remember her saying she was a Talazkian moon princess. Does that mean anything to you?” “No.” StarDust went back to his meal. “Well, speaking of off-world visitors, how about telling us why you’re here, Thunder Dragon?” He did not answer immediately as he was swallowing his second drumstick whole. Everyone else at the table winced at the sight of it distending his throat as it passed into his stomach. When he finished, he remarked, “Perhaps there is something to chewing, after all.” “Uh, Thunder Dragon? You OK?” He turned to Crystal and gave another of his nasty, tooth-filled grins. “I am. I do not need to eat or drink. I do it for the sensation.” “Yeah…so…what are you, where did you come from, and why are you here?” “Ahh.” He settled on his haunches and leaned back. “I am the Thunder Dragon. It is my name, my title, and my function. I come from another plane of existence. I’ve found few similarities between this world and mine, so there is little about it you could comprehend. I can tell you that I am a being of great power and authority, and have many responsibilities to go with it. “There exists a relationship between my world and this one. Those with the proper knowledge and resources may send requests for aid and open gateways. This is most often how we travel here. In the past, some humans have even visited my world, though they did not live to return to theirs.” The matter-of-fact way he stated that unpleasant detail made everyone squirm. “I have visited this world before, drawn by beacons, rituals, and sacrifices. Typically, someone wishes me to bring death and destruction to their enemies, and then return home. My latest trip to this world was no different at first. I’d answered the Oranbegans’ call before, and expected nothing unusual. This time…” He growled, and skinned back his lips. Lightning arced along his teeth. “This time the incompetents botched the transit spell! I materialized in this world one one-hundredth my actual size!” Everyone’s jaw dropped. Supa Fly swore. Thunder Dragon relaxed some, though the way he began inspecting a claw made everyone else more anxious. “I killed most of those responsible for this insult. It was not easy; my power had diminished as well, and some escaped my wrath. I hunt them to this day. Each of the feeble sorcerers who called me here will have their bodies destroyed and their souls imprisoned. Once I return to my world, I will visit further agonies on them until the next request for my services comes from your world. Their tortured screams will be most instructional to the next group who calls on me.” “You’re a demon?” Jenny asked. Thunder Dragon regarded her through slitted lids. “The other creatures you call “demons” do not come from my world. Moreover, I understand they can be forced to do the bidding of the ones who summon them. I retain my free will when called. However, much like the pacts used to summon those creatures, the one that brought me here specified terms of service that would have to be completed before I could return home. Only by fulfilling the pact or by killing all those who participated in the ritual that brought me here can I return.” He flashed another nasty grin. “I believe you know which method I intend to use.” “So, you’re stuck here? Trapped in our world?” Crystal asked. “Yes, but it matters little. I am the immortal Thunder Dragon. There is no need to speed my return. I also enjoy the time away from my responsibilities. This tiny body has given me an opportunity to interact with humans that I have never had before. So many new sensations to experience! For example: I have never, in all my existence, shared a meal with mortals. This has been very entertaining.” Supa Fly interjected, “I gotta ask: Tokyo, 1954. Was that you?” “Perhaps. When I last visited your world, there weren’t any signs large enough for me to read, and they would not have been written in my language.” He shrugged his wings. “If any humans survived my rampage, they may be able to identify me.” “But why rampage at all?” Crystal asked. “I mean, now that you’re seeing things at our level, why continue doing what you’ve done before? There’s more to life here than fighting and destroying things. You could learn the joy of friendships and alliances, or the pleasure of working to better the world. With your power, the-” “Oh, for [censored]’s sake!” spat Bellona as she tossed her silverware down. “Not this [censored] again! The food’s already making me sick; you don’t have to add to it!” Jenny stopped eating and directed a fearsome sneer at Bellona. Crystal shot Jenny a warning glare, then redirected her attention to Bellona before Jenny could sneer at her, too. “What’s really bothering you, Bellona? I thought we were getting along at first, but that didn’t last, and you’ve been taking shots at me almost non-stop since we left the base!” “Can’t take the heat, Cheerleader?” Crystal cocked her head to one side. “Was that a joke?” Bellona rolled her eyes. “You’re a caricature! All the sunshine and roses, peace and love; no one’s really like that! I’m just waiting for you to start being honest.” “I like to think that it’s possible to be nice all the time.” “[censored] no! Even a preacher’s daughter isn’t as good as you pretend to be!” “My parents are doctors. What do your mother and father do?” One eye twitched, and Bellona’s face clouded over. “They throw unwanted mutant children out on their [censored] and try to murder them.” “With an attitude like yours, I’m not surprised!” Jenny blasted. Bellona turned on her and flipped her off. “[censored] you! I didn’t do [censored]! I was born this way!” “You’ve got the mutant gene for obnoxious bi-” “Stop it!” Crystal snapped at Jenny. Addressing Bellona, she continued, “Well, that wasn’t right, throwing you out and all. Was the emergence of your power a surprise to them? I hear that when-” “Oh, what would you know, growing up in Doctorville? They knew something was up as soon as I popped out! Once they established that no cheating was involved and that I really was their daughter, that started a lifetime of fights over who was to blame, and the only thing they could agree on was that I wasn’t what they wanted!” “That’s ridiculous! You’re not responsible for your genetic makeup!” Bellona snorted. “Tell that to them! They had plans for their perfect life, where they were the perfect couple with the perfect children, pillars of the perfect community, and it didn’t include mutant daughters. “When my powers first emerged, I couldn’t control them. I’d start little fires by accident. I went from being the unwanted mutant freak to the unwanted troublemaking mutant freak, and the hate grew as my powers became harder and harder to cover up. One day I started a fire I couldn’t put out. While the house burned, they told me that, as far as they were concerned, I’d died in the fire. Dad went for his gun and… “From then on, I didn’t care. I’m through with your society and it’s [censored] rules. I use my powers for my benefit, and to [censored] with the whiny [censored] who get in my way! I’m one of the most powerful supers on the Rogue Isles, and I like it!” “This is a joke, right?” Jenny stared at Bellona, an exaggerated expression of puzzlement on her face. “You burned down your house and got tossed onto the street, which sucks, but then you turned to the life of a human predator?” “Why not? Rejecting the [censored] idea of right and wrong meant I could finally stand out, not because I looked different from my folks, but because I had power and wasn’t afraid to use it!” “That’s [censored]!” Jenny snapped. She jumped to her feet, knocking her chair over. “Take it easy,” Crystal growled at her. “Easy, nothing!” Jenny shot back. “You hear this [censored]? She starts preying on people ‘cause she’s too lazy to pick up the pieces and make something positive happen in her life!” Jenny leaned in on Bellona, teeth bared, ears pulled back, her whole body quivering with rage. “Go on!” she screeched. “Tell us again how your freakish appearance ruined your life! Cry us a river, you weak, self centered-” “ENOUGH! SIT DOWN!” Crystal’s scream brought the whole room to complete silence. She pulled herself together and, in a remarkably calm voice, said, “Bellona, I’m sorry.” As before, Crystal’s attempt to soothe Bellona achieved the opposite effect. Revulsion filled Bellona’s face and voice. “Don’t you dare! And don’t you [censored] look at me like that!” she shouted, jabbing a finger at Crystal. Smoke wafted from her extended hand. “I can’t help it!” Crystal wailed. “To be rejected by your mother and father, the very people who should have loved you and cared for you and supported for you…” She took a deep breath. “That’s so sad,” she whispered. Bellona hurtled the tray before her through the air with all the force her rage could muster. Dishes shattered, silverware clattered on the floor, and food showered the opposite table, provoking several indignant cries from the Vanguard soldiers. Bellona’s chair joined the mess on the floor as she tossed it out of her way and hopped to her feet. “[censored] this [censored]!” she cried. “I’m outta here!” “No! Wait! I’m sorry!” Crystal howled. She jetted out of her seat, somersaulted in the air and dropped down in front of Bellona, blocking her exit. “I didn’t mean to upset you! Please don’t go!” Bellona squared off in front of Crystal. Smugly, she said, “Oh, now it all comes out. I threaten to leave, you’re worried about losing someone whose powers you need, so you’re going to do what it takes to keep me around. I knew it!” “No! I really am sorry for upsetting you, and I don’t want you to go away at all, but especially not with any hurt feelings. Please, forgive me.” “Ugh! Just shut up.” “I’m sorry-” “I said SHUT UP!” With a startled yelp, Crystal clamped her lips together and cut her response off. Bellona continued, “I’ll give you credit, Cheerleader; you hide it better than anyone I’ve ever met. But I learned long ago that there are no good people. There’s only those that haven’t yet used you and stabbed you in the back, or those that want to but are too afraid to try. You’ve got a heart of darkness, just like everyone else. I’m sick of listening to your act, so I’m leaving, but, unlike the Napoleon-wannabe, I’m not quitting. Sooner or later, you’re gonna crack, and I want to be there when it happens. Now, get out of my way!” Despite her size and weight disadvantage, Bellona muscled Crystal out of her way and stomped out of the canteen. Crystal watched in silence as Bellona retreated. Only after she was out of sight did she turn back to her table. Thunder Dragon was standing on his seat. He leapt into the air, flapping his wings, and started for the exit as well. As he passed near, Crystal asked, “You leaving, too?” The wing beats intensified as he hovered and pivoted to face her. “I’ve eaten all I care to. Call on me when we must again do battle.” “What about your dishes?” Thunder Dragon chuckled, a low rumble of thunder sounding from his throat. “You can’t fool me, human! Those aren’t food!” He flapped off, still chuckling. Crystal stared at his retreating form for a moment, then dropped her head and dejectedly shuffled back to her table. As she scooted back to her chair, she quietly mumbled, “What a mess! Maybe you were right, Harm. This looks like a day I should have stayed in bed.” “The trouble with those days is that you can’t tell them apart from the rest without first getting out of bed.” Crystal sighed and plopped down into her seat. She stared at the lunch she had only begun to eat, trying and failing to make herself continue. So engrossed was she in the staring contest with her meal that she failed to notice a commotion spread through the room like a wave. The Vanguard personnel paused their conversations, straightened up, and murmured respectfully to Color Sergeant Barnes as he entered the canteen, his gaze scanning this way and that as he sought his objective. The rest of the team noticed. Harm whispered, “S. C. Check six.” Crystal gave him a puzzled look. “What was that?” “Look behind you.” She turned to investigate, and immediately spotted the color sergeant. She quickly turned back around and ducked. “You think he noticed us?” “[censored], girl, even if I weren’t stylin’, we’re the only table in the joint that’s not full of purple and gray,” Supa Fly observed. “Ain’t none of us hidin’ around here.” “Ohh! I barely touched my food!” she whined. “How fast can you eat?” Harm joked. “Looks like you’ve got about ten seconds to finish!” “I’m not going to spend that time cramming my face!” Crystal sighed again. “Seems like the rumor was true. There’s more going on than we were first told.” “SNAFU. Sometimes, it’s a way of life.” Jenny stood. “We’d better get going.” Crystal tried to keep her voice even as she asked, “What’s with this “we” stuff?” “I assume sooner or later someone will ask about what happened with Tetsu Sensei. I’m going with you to explain.” “That’s not necessary. You stay here. I’ll handle it.” “You’ll handle it?” Jenny repeated. “I know you! You won’t volunteer anything, and if asked about what happened, you’ll just fall on your sword! Lady Grey, or whoever, has to know what he did, and why he had to go!” “She might even agree with your reasoning, but that doesn’t change anything! She put me in charge, and I’m the one who has to answer for what happened, one way or the other!” “Stop being such a Tank! There’s no call for you to take the hit!” Crystal slowly stood. Her face flushed with anger, and she tried to keep her hands from powering up. Through gritted teeth, she hissed, “When they give you the shiny gold star, they take away your excuses! Someone has to be responsible if the job’s got to be done!” “You’ve got an overdeveloped sense of responsibility!” Jenny growled. Crystal noisily took a few deep breaths while she glared at her friend. She did not respond to the accusation. “Keep an eye on your team roster. If things don’t go well, I expect you’ll notice soon.” Color Sergeant Barnes reached the table at that moment. He did not comment on the tense confrontation before him, nor did he pay any attention to anyone else at the table. In a restrained, almost bored tone, he ordered, “Come with me, miss, if you please. It’s time you were debriefed.” Crystal reluctantly turned away from her glare-off with Jenny. “OK. I’m right behind you.” The color sergeant turned and strode off. Crystal flew up and away from the table, landed, and stiffly marched behind him as if he were leading her to a firing squad. Jenny clenched her jaw and leaned on the table with her fists as she watched Crystal leave. The longer she watched, the more her ears folded back and her body trembled with suppressed fury. Once Crystal was out of sight, she could contain herself no longer. A wordless cry of frustration filled the canteen as she slammed one fist onto the tabletop. All the trays jumped, and the rattle of glasses, plates, and silverware amplified the crack of her knuckles on the hard surface. She barged her way past people and chairs and stomped for the other exit, flames licking over her clenched fists. The crowd parted for the angry Blaster. Dozens of gray and purple helmets tracked her nervously. StarDust, Supa Fly, and Harm remained silent and still until Jenny left the room. They looked at each other for a time, trying to gauge the other’s reaction. The silence was broken only when Supa Fly flatly observed, “This [censored]’s [censored] up.” Harm exhaled noisily. “Yeah.” After a few more contemplative moments, he inquired, “Coffee?” “Solid!” With a smile, Harm responded, “I assume that means yes.” The remaining trio of supers got to their feet.

Chapter 12 is up. As mentioned in my original post, I owe @Blue Battler a debt of gratitude for his excellent fan fiction (on Live forums) about Peneolpe Yin, the Clockwork King, and his vision of a relationship between them. His work inspired much of this installment. Enjoy!

Defining Moments - Chapter 12 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. “He’s not evil!” Penny whispered. “Well, maybe he is, kind of, but he’s more lonely and unhappy than evil. And he’s always been nice to me!” Oh, right. Psychic. Crystal inclined her head to Penny as she slowly advanced on the Clockwork King. “While we’re on the subject, how on earth did you two meet? I didn’t think you were registered.” “It wasn’t like that. I can hear people think. The more intense the feeling, or the more powerful the mind, the easier they are to hear.” She paused. With a quiet voice, the kind used when telling secrets, Penny continued, “I first heard him when he was screaming.” “Well, he does get beat up a lot.” “No, it wasn’t while someone was beating him up. It was from remembering what he’s lost, and how he lost it. “He remembers being a man. But now, he’s a brain and a pair of eyes floating in a jar perched on top of a metal body. His body can’t feel pain, or hunger, or cold, but it can’t feel anything else, either. He can’t eat, but he remembers food and drink, and he misses it. He remembers creating with his hands, like a normal man, but his hands can’t feel. Everything he touches gets crushed or slips out of his grasp. He can’t see too well. His hearing comes and goes. He can’t yell or whisper except with his mind. Everything he says out loud comes through a speaker, and it’s all flat and monotone. His Clockwork built that body for him so he could live. They didn’t think about meeting more human needs. The memory of the life he used to live haunts him.” Crystal’s eyes involuntarily flicked to her glowing hands, and she thought of all the things she’d ruined after undergoing Professor St. John-Smythe’s treatment, as well of all the gloves she’d destroyed trying to avoid doing the same to other objects. “On some level, I can relate. But he brought most of it on himself when he used the Clockwork for crime. I heard he was building an army, and the Clocks killed people when they tried to stop the thefts of supplies.” “That’s not exactly the way he remembers it. At one time, he believed he was an inventor, like Positron, and the Clockwork were created like any other machine. He didn’t know that it was his will that made them work, and he was a long way from discovering the degree of autonomy some of them possess. Sometimes, they’ll do funny things. It’s only when he concentrates on them that he has total control. “You know how some of his Clockwork started killing? They didn’t understand right and wrong. When someone interfered with them, or try to destroy them, they did what anyone would do when threatened. Things got out of hand, and CK didn’t know how he controlled them so he couldn’t rein them in. There was a fire in the warehouse he was working in, he was hurt, a lot of people died, and the Clocks pulled him from the burning warehouse and carried him back to his house in Boomtown. Blue Steel found him there.” “I know what happened next. I guess that’s when he became the Clockwork King as we know him. That’s sad.” “That’s why he hates heroes. He tried to help Paragon City. But, he couldn’t control his powers, and he paid for it with his life. Most of it, anyways. I really feel sorry for him.” Crystal returned her attention to the Clockwork King. “Yeah, I guess I would, too. Trapped in your own body, unable to speak or feel, just a spectator of the world around you…” “Oh, jeez!” Penny exclaimed. “Oh, jeez! Look, I’m really, really sorry, it’s just that, well, I can hear YOU think, too, and you were thinking of-” “I don’t like to talk about it.” Crystal’s voice was flat. “I don’t even like to think about it.” “Yeah, OK. I won’t say any more, just…jeez!” The pair continued in silence for a few more steps before Crystal spoke again. “OK, Penelope, this is how I want this to go down-” “Please call me Penny. Only Sister Psyche and my dad call me Penelope, and Dad only calls me Penelope when I’m in trouble.” Crystal smiled slightly. “Penny, then. I want you to stay behind me. Keep me between you and the Clocks. I know you said he would never hurt you, but accidents happen, and I’m the Tank. Let it happen to me. “Also, if there’s anything you can think of to convince him you’re safe and that he should let us leave peacefully, I’d really appreciate it. You know him better than I do.” “Hmm…have you ever met him before?” With an embarrassed voice, Crystal replied, “Just…once.” “Uh oh.” “That was a long time ago! I’m sure he’s forgotten all about me by now!” Well, I HOPE he’s forgotten about me! “…” “Do you think it would help if I called him “your majesty”?” “It wouldn’t hurt. He’s serious about that royalty thing.” “OK. We’re getting close. Time to get ready.” Crystal recalled the mental shielding techniques she acquired during the second Rikti invasion. Everyone who learned the trick had a different way of going about it; Crystal’s method was to concentrate on a thought or phrase and repeat it over and over. She selected a familiar song, and began to sing softly to herself. “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found. Was blind, but now I see.” That was as far as she got. Whether from the quiet singing, the psychic presence of Penny, or a moment of proper operation by the neglected light system, the Clockwork King noticed the pair advancing on him and his retinue. His massive body pivoted to face them. The rest of the Clockwork reformed around him with perfect synchronicity. Dozens of heads followed their every movement as Crystal and Penny slowly walked towards the assembled host. Crystal ceased singing out loud, but kept the rest of Amazing Grace going in her mind, sparing as much mental focus as she could to the song. The Clockwork King and his minions did not move as Crystal and Penny moved closer, save to track their progress. Eventually, Crystal felt she’d gotten close enough and stopped, reaching back with her right arm to make sure Penny was still behind her. She bowed slightly. “Good afternoon…uh…your majesty.” There was no sign of acknowledgment from the Clockwork King or his minions. “Listen, I…uh…” Leaning around Crystal, Penny broke in with a, “Hi, CK! It’s me!” She waved to the arch villain. The Clockwork King croaked, “PENNY.” There was no inflection at all to the buzzing utterance. Crystal’s anxiety ratcheted up another notch. “Yes, it’s Penny. She’s safe now.” Crystal warmed up to her topic. “Vanguard knew the Rikti kidnapped her. They sent my team and I on a rescue mission. It was a hard fight in, but she’s free now, and undamaged. See? “We were probably going to have to fight our way out through the rest of the Rikti, but then you showed up and took care of them, giving us a clear path to the exit. We’re really grateful for your help. Thank you, your majesty. “I understand that you may not have known what we were doing with her earlier, so it’s OK that your Clockwork attacked us. I know it was just an innocent misunderstanding. I wanted to meet you and show you that there’s no reason to fight any more. We’re both here to save Penny. Given that we both want the same thing, and she’s already safe, would you please stand aside and let us leave peacefully? I’m sure Penny just wants to get home as soon as she can. Let’s work together and see that she does.” Throughout Crystal’s speech, the Clockwork King made no movements, save for his brain sloshing around in the fluid reservoir. Even after she finished, he remained silent and still. Crystal could barely concentrate on her song due to the anxiety that tickled and clawed its way up her spine. Finally, he spoke. “I SEE…” Yes! I did it! Crystal beamed. “…YOU”RE TRYING TO KIDNAP MY PENNY!” Her smile died instantly. Her eyes widened in shock. She waved her hands to ward off those unpleasant words. “What?! No! NO! It’s not like that-” Heedless to her protest, the Clockwork King gestured imperiously at Crystal. “I HEREBY DECLARE YOU ENEMIES OF THE CLOCKWORK KINGDOM!” In unison, every Clockwork raised its hands to its temples. “Oh no!” Crystal howled. She turned around and tackled Penny, layering on the ice as fast as she could. Encased in the protective cocoon, the two bounced off the wall, slid along the floor, and clattered through the mob, coming to rest in one of the side hallways. Though it was not a perfect defense, rapid healing plus the mental shielding technique prevented Crystal from suffering a repeat of the fight in the portal room. No sooner had Crystal and Penny ceased sliding than a huge explosion of fire filled the space occupied by the Clockwork. It was almost immediately followed by a sonic shockwave that dismantled or disoriented the remaining mechanical foes. Plan B literally started with a bang. So cold. Can’t move. Can’t breathe! It took Crystal a second to figure out where those thoughts were coming from. Oops. Sorry! Crystal shattered the ice and freed Penny from its frigid embrace. The young girl hugged herself and shivered violently, scattering fragments of ice across the floor. “Sorry, Penny. I’m sorry for freezing you, I’m sorry I couldn’t talk your friend down, and I’m sorry for what’s about to happen to the Clockwork King. Please stay out of the way. We’ll warm you up after we’ve…you know,” Crystal finished sadly. She stood, iced up, and positioned herself between the Clockwork King and the exit. Most of the royal court was lying in pieces or slowly dripping into puddles of incandescent liquid metal. The Clockwork King himself was missing a few parts, and more fell off as Crystal watched the brilliant yellow energy signature of Supa Fly’s radiation weaken his metal body. Thunder Dragon was fixed on him, flapping in circles around the towering arch-villain, darting in and out of arm’s reach to rip something loose. StarDust cleaned up the remaining Clockwork entourage. Supa Fly and the ninjas supported his efforts. Harm and Jenny savaged the Clockwork King from short range, while Bellona and Tetsu Sensei used their powers to further weaken him. The sight of the Clockwork King relentlessly attacking her team despite her diplomatic efforts tore at Crystal’s heart. “Clockwork King, why do you do this?” she pleaded. “You gain nothing, and my friends are more than happy to beat you up for it!” He turned away from the other supers to answer her challenge. “THE CLOCKWORK KING SHALL NOT FAIL!” he boasted. “Penny’s already safe, your minions are all broken, and you’re next on the list! You didn’t have to fight us! This whole fight is just a waste of time and energy!” The last of his Clockwork creations defeated, the pounding the Clockwork King took increased dramatically, and it was beginning to tell. He staggered and stumbled as the attacks increased tempo, but mustered enough strength to raise his arms and cry, “COME TO ME, MY MINIONS! WE SHALL PREVAIL!” Jenny’s ears perked up. “Looks like we have some more party-crashers coming in from behind!” “No doubt the remnants of those we fled from earlier, caught up to us because we were delayed unnecessarily!” Tetsu Sensei snapped. “Nice going, Cheerleader” snarked Bellona. Outwardly, Crystal ignored the barbs, but in her heart she couldn’t deny the reason for the villains’ unhappiness. Their frustration was matched by her own, brought on by the Clockwork King’s stubborn refusal to acknowledge obvious facts. “Take care of the newcomers. I can hold the Clockwork King by myself for a while.” Her team shifted to greet the incoming Clockwork entourage with a torrent of attacks that turned one mechanical attacker after another into a pile of scrap. The Clockwork King himself took advantage of the distraction to close with Crystal. Hands that could crush steel and concrete pounded impotently on her ice armor. Physical attacks thwarted, he summoned a potent whirlwind of psychic and telekinetic energy and hurled it at Crystal from point-blank range. The deadly vortex engulfed her completely. The swirling telekinetic tornado clawed at the ice, but failed to find purchase; Crystal stood her ground and weathered the storm. However, as before, her ice armor provided no defense against the psychic energies, and her whole body was wracked with agony. Crystal gritted her teeth, not only to keep from crying out in pain, but also to keep from slugging the Clockwork King. Penny’s exposition was still fresh in her mind, and, despite the way things had turned out, Crystal was determined to maintain the moral high ground. After what seemed an eternity, the psychic tornado faded and dispersed. As soon as Crystal felt that her self-control was where it needed to be, she told the arch villain, “I wanted this to go down peacefully. I’m sure Penny wanted to get out of here and go home as fast as possible, but YOU didn’t think of HER, did you? Look at her!” she commanded, gesturing to Penny. “You’re embarrassing yourself in front of Penny!” The Clockwork King paused and turned partly to look at the young girl. Crystal’s voice rose as she blasted, “She said you cared about her! She vouched for your humanity! And all you did was launch into an unthinking, unwarranted assault! Those aren’t the actions of a man; those are the actions of a monster!” The brain case sloshed as the Clockwork King turned back to face Crystal. His eyes lazily drifted until they focused on her. He stood stock-still and regarded the Tank. Crystal silently stared back at him. Without a face, it was impossible to tell what the Clockwork King was thinking, but, unlike earlier, it didn’t make Crystal nervous. Her irritation at the arch villain pushed her thoughts beyond fear for her own safety. The stare down didn’t last long; Thunder Dragon slammed into the Clockwork King’s back and knocked him face down onto the floor. The rest of the team surrounded him and unloaded with everything they had. Molten gobs of brass and slivers of steel cascaded off him as his hulking metal body ablated under the assault. Pinned to the floor, he could do little but thrash as the combined might of the supers tore him apart. His speakers croaked what seemed at first to be defiant shouting, but soon resolved into more articulate speech: “PENNY!” Penny howled, “Please stop! He’s had enough!” “OK, you heard her. He’s beaten. Lay off,” Crystal commanded. The heroes ceased fire, as did Bellona and Tetsu Sensei. Thunder Dragon continued to rip into his back. “I said back off!” she snapped at him. She boosted her freezing aura to full and hovered over the body of the Clockwork King. Thunder Dragon flew a short distance away to escape the cold, landed, then turned and glared in annoyance at Crystal. The bitter chill also caused the superheated metal body of the Clockwork King to hiss and crack. Crystal winced as the sounds of splintering metal intensified, and quickly powered off and resumed her place in front of the downed arch villain. The shattered remains of one of the Clockwork King’s arms scraped along the floor, the massive hand at the end questing for Penny. He pried enough of his body off the floor to uncover his speakers. “ARE YOU SAFE, PENNY?” he inquired. “Yes, CK. I’m all right now.” She reached for his hand with one of hers, but did not touch the scorchingly hot metal. “THAT’S GOOD…THAT’S GOOD…” With that, his body sagged and collapsed back onto the floor. The Clockwork King was down for the count. The heroes silently regarded him for a second. “Am I imaging things,” asked Harm, “or was he was actually concerned for her?” “Who cares?” Bellona replied as she circled around the fallen arch villain. “He’s down. Let’s make sure he stays that way.” She shot a bolt of flame at the brain case. “What are you doing?!” Crystal shrieked. She countered the fire blast by encasing the brain case in ice. The ice sizzled on contact, and quickly melted away, but removed enough heat from the case to prevent damage to it, or to the brain inside. “I will not let you assassinate him!” Bellona gazed evenly at Crystal. “I’ll bet I have more fire power than you have ice power,” she said with a smirk. Crystal didn’t respond to Bellona, but instead faced the heroes, her urgency evident in her voice. “I didn’t bring my Zig Stick!” “Zig Stick?” echoed Bellona. “I got it,” said Harm as he reached to his belt and withdrew a stubby cylinder. “Dibs!” Jenny shouted. With a fluid motion, she swiped her hand at the top of one of her thigh-high boots, knelt down, jabbed a stubby cylinder of her own into one leg of the Clockwork King, and then dragged it along the surface. The cylinder deposited a small piece of tape that broke off at a predetermined length with a snap. Seconds later, the Clockwork King vanished, leaving only slivers of metal to show he had been there. Jenny dramatically blew on the tip of her cylinder like an old west gunfighter and tucked it back into her boot. Harm just shook his head and returned his own to its resting place on his belt. “The official name is Prisoner Retrieval Beacon,” he explained to Bellona. “Once a subject has been subdued, we plant the beacon on him, or her-” “Or whatever,” interrupted Supa Fly. “-and the city’s teleport network sends the target to Ziggursky Prison for processing. The dispenser looks like a stick, and the targets go to the Zig. Hence, Zig Stick.” “Well, la dee da.” “Shut up, you,” said Jenny. “You shut up!” blasted Bellona. In a weary voice, Crystal cut them both off. “Stop it. Let’s just get out of here.” “That may be the first thing you’ve said since this whole wretched affair began that makes good sense,” Tetsu Sensei griped. Crystal armored up in preparation for re-entering the war zone. As Jenny passed her on the way to collect Penny, she whispered, “That could have gone better.” “I had to try.” Jenny rolled her eyes knowingly. “The next time you try to talk some sense into a villain and it works will be the first! What is it about you that makes the bad guys want to kill you?” Crystal could only shrug helplessly. The deadly struggle of the war zone was audible but not visible outside the building’s exit. No Rikti lurked in hiding to ambush the team and reclaim their captive psychic. Still, the incautious did not last long against the alien aggressors. All the team formed into a protective circle around the young girl and strained their senses to detect any incoming hostiles. After a minute of tense silence, the rescuers began to relax. Penny was the first to break the silence. “Well, I’d better get home. I’m sure my dad is worried sick!” “Your safe return is no concern of mine, girl,” said Tetsu Sensei. “This mission was to free you from the Rikti, and free you I have. Feel free to make your own way back to Paragon City. I have more important matters to attend to elsewhere.” Crystal responded, “Actually, Tetsu Sensei, would you mind staying with us? There’s a possibility that this was only the beginning of a more comprehensive plan to re-open the portal to the Rikti homeworld. It would be best if we all stayed together and saw this through to the end rather than swapping you out for someone who didn’t know what you’ve already learned.” “The only thing I’ve learned for certain is that you are the sorriest excuse for a leader it has ever been my displeasure to encounter!” he raged. “You had one of your city’s most notorious foes barring your exit yet, instead of laying into him, you stepped forth to negotiate! Furthermore, after he lay helpless at your feet, you acted to preserve his life instead of doing what was necessary to accomplish the mission!” “We’d already beaten him and cleared the way out. There was nothing necessary about murdering the Clockwork King!” “He’s got a point, Cheerleader,” Bellona volunteered. “You’re stuck in a never-ending cycle of defeat-arrest-escape. If you’d killed him, he’d never hurt anyone again.” She paused. “Come to think of it, you never even laid a hand on him.” After a snort of derision, she continued, “You’re too weak. Someone gets between you and what you want, you put ‘em down and don’t think twice!” “I believe that my objectives, as well as the methods used to accomplish them, must be pure.” Jenny chimed in. “Yeah, and before you get all bloodthirsty, keep in mind that it may someday be YOU lying helpless at a hero’s feet. Should they “do what’s necessary”, or would you rather go to jail?” Bellona turned to face Jenny. “If you think you have what it takes to put me down, then bring it!” “Oh, stop!” Crystal cut in. “We still haven’t gotten Penny to safety, and we’re a mile away from the base. This is a poor place to have an argument.” “Getting back on topic, was this the bit of intel you mentioned earlier?” Harm asked. “I just reviewed my chat logs.” “Yeah, that’s it,” Crystal replied, grateful to get off the previous topic of conversation. “I have reason to believe that Vanguard has something else going on that’s related to our rescue, and we may be called to follow up.” “How’d you come across it?” “A little bird told me.” “This little bird,” Jenny asked slyly, “did he have blue and white wings?” Crystal did her best to keep her face and voice even. “Why do you ask?” Tetsu Sensei coldly inquired, “And you didn’t think to share this information until now?” Crystal spread her arms dramatically. When she spoke, her annoyance at the constant badgering by the ninja lord was evident. “I got shot on the way here! Then things were a little busy once we got inside! You’ll just have to forgive me for my lapse.” “So we hang at the crib until Vanguard quits jivin’ with us?” asked Supa Fly petulantly. “Well, I don’t know about the rest of you, but I missed lunch, and since we can’t leave the zone and stay connected, how about lunch at Chez Vanguard? My treat!” The comment elicited a chorus of groans. By the standards of the heroes, the Vanguard canteen served the most inedible food in all of Paragon City. It was unfathomable why the cuisine was so horrible despite having a whole city filled with top-notch eating establishments right on the other side of the War Wall. Speculating on reasons for this was a popular pastime for those who had endured the experience. Thunder Dragon had apparently not eaten there. Either that, or he had not eaten any other food and therefore had no basis for comparison. “A communal meal inside the Vanguard base? I accept your offering, young human.” “Good thing we had that ice cream earlier,” Jenny observed. “At least we have the memory of real food!” “Yeah,” Crystal agreed, ruefully. “Did you enjoy the ice cream?” Tetsu Sensei’s question caught Crystal off guard. So much so, in fact, that she missed the silky undertones of menace. “Um…yes. Why do you ask?” “Because if you do not surrender the Vanguard communication codes to me this instant, it will be your last meal!” He snapped his fingers and smiled broadly. The shock of hearing Tetsu Sensei’s threat temporarily paralyzed the group. Crystal gave a strangled cough before squawking, “WHAT?!” “You will surrender the codes or your life. There are no other alternatives.” “Oh, son of a [censored],” said Supa Fly, “you did NOT just-” “Are you [censored] stupid? You know what I’ll-” blasted Harm. “About time,” Bellona mumbled. Jenny’s reaction took everyone by surprise. She smiled, then threw her head back and laughed. As everyone ceased speaking and stared, her laughter grew and grew. Tetsu Sensei looked around briefly, a trace of confusion on his visible features, before glaring at the Blaster. “This isn’t funny!” Crystal howled. “It is if you know what I know!” Jenny replied, a huge grin on her face. “That was an empty threat!” “Do you wish to wager your life on that, doomed one?” Tetsu Sensei growled. “You think it’s for real, but it’s not!” Jenny laughed again. “Your minions are smarter than you. They bugged out as soon as you got outside. You’re all alone!” “WHAT?!” Tetsu Sensei raised a hand to summon his ever-present minions. Nothing happened. “They’re not coming. Oh, they’re still nearby, just in case something else happens to you, but they’re not going to jump into this fight.” As the ninja lord’s eyes widened, Jenny continued, “Unlike you, they recognized me for what I am, and what I represent. They don’t have massive egos driving them to suicidal confrontations with kitsune. You can wave your hand all you want, but they’re not going to do anything to anyone under my protection.” She stepped closer to Tetsu Sensei and used her size to try and intimidate him. “You’re not so tough without your ninjas, are you? Unless you think that piddly bow can stop me?” Jenny flicked one finger against the weapon as she named it. “I’ve exhausted my patience with you, you arrogant little man, so let me tell you what you’re going to do next: you’re going to run. Run fast!” Jenny made a shooing gesture at him. “Run back to the Rogue Isles! Run and hide, if it makes you feel safer, but there is no place you can go that I cannot see you. Every shadow is my spy. Every whisper of wind will carry news of your evil deeds to my ears. Every stranger you meet will be my kin in disguise, following you around, watching your every move and reporting to me. You won’t know friend from foe. Nothing you do will be hidden from my sight. I’ll be watching you, forming my own plans, and when I move on you, you’ll never see it coming.” Wide eyed, Tetsu Sensei stood stock-still and stared. “RUN!” One hand flicked towards the ground. An instant later, a cloud of smoke erupted around Tetsu Sensei’s feet, completely obscuring him from sight. “Form on Penny!” Crystal cried. “Don’t let anything get to her!” All the heroes minus Jenny moved into a protective circle around the girl, who had been paralyzed with fear the whole time. Bellona and Thunder Dragon looked about and tried to spot the ninjas who were doubtless about to launch an assault. The smoke cleared quickly. The ninja lord was nowhere to be seen. Jenny stood her ground, a huge smile still plastered to her face, and took no action to prepare for attack. The rest of the heroes frantically scanned their surroundings to find the most likely hiding spot for Tetsu Sensei and his entourage. “Where is he?” Crystal shouted. Jenny pointed to the east and casually replied, “That way, and fading fast. I thought he’d never leave!” She laughed again. The heroes stared quizzically at her. “What the [censored] just happened?” Supa Fly howled. “What the [censored] is goin’ on?” “We’re done with that jerk,” Jenny replied. “I scared him off.” As confirmation, each phone beeped simultaneously as the icon representing Tetsu Sensei disappeared from the team roster. “I know that ain’t the lowdown. How’d you do it?” “Oh, that. Well, he’s Japanese, and I know something about Japanese folklore. There is a belief that foxes are mystical creatures. Some make trouble for people, and others are powerful guardians who defend the poor, humble the arrogant, and avenge the just. The good foxes have such power that even a statue of one is supposed to provide fool-proof protection from evil. Among other things they’re said to be able to do, they can change shape into people, and have powers of fire. I used some of the legends of kitsune as inspiration for myself. I figured he was aware of the legends, too, so I played on his superstitions to “persuade” him to take off. Guess it worked!” “So you’re not really a kitsune?” Harm asked. “Nope, but he thought I was, and that was what mattered.” “Nice.” Both Harm and StarDust nodded their approval. Even Bellona appeared to be glad the ninja lord had fled. Supa Fly was more enthusiastic. With a huge smile on his face, he pronounced, “Smooth move from the foxy lady!” He sauntered over to Jenny and held out his right hand, palm up. “Gimme some skin!” Jenny looked uncomfortably at the proffered hand. “You want what?” “Slap his hand,” Harm clarified. As Jenny and Supa Fly performed the celebratory ritual, Crystal walked close to her friend. She asked, “You were messing with his head to get him to quit?” “Yep! That guy had to go. Don’t worry, there’s no need to thank me!” Jenny beamed. In a very quiet voice, Crystal replied, “No, I suppose not.” She turned on her heel and strode away, stopping after a short distance to face the remains of her team. “OK, we’re a mile away from the Vanguard depot, and there’s a lot of trouble between us and the base. Take a pyramid formation around Penny. I’m on point, Firefox and StarDust are in the rear. Harm, can you give us a view from above without making yourself a target?” “Yeah.” The paint scheme on his armor changed to closely match the rubble-filled courtyard. “Adaptive camouflage. It’s not perfect, but it’ll help keep me hidden while I’m up there.” “Good. Supa Fly, Bellona, and Thunder Dragon, please stay close to Penny, and try to keep in the center. Let’s go.” Crystal turned and led the group out into the street. Following in back, Jenny replayed Crystal’s comment over in her mind, and grew more troubled each time she reviewed it. She thumbed her phone over to a private channel and beeped Crystal. “Hey, what’s wrong?” “I should have suspected something,” came the cold reply. “The way you kept whispering at him, how his ninjas grew more and more timid around you. And then there was how you kept volunteering to locate the Rikti for us. I know you can hear someone yawn through two walls, but I don’t even ask you to do recon because I know you’re sensitive about calling attention to yourself. When did you start messing with him?” “Right after he smacked you, while you were still in the ice. I told you, remember?” Crystal sighed through the link. “Yes, you did, and I should have put a stop to it there. That wasn’t right of me to let your antagonism slide. And you know better than to needle the people we work with.” The ears folded back. “What are you talking about? We don’t work with the villains! We fight them! And letting him run his mouth off was toxic for the team.” “That wasn’t your call to make!” “What is this, the “Crystal and Friends” show? I’m not your sidekick! You’re not the boss of me!” “This isn’t about being boss, this is about doing the right thing with the right methods for the right reasons! We’re supposed to be the good guys! Not just when it suits us, not when it’s convenient, but ALL the time! And you picked on him, preyed on his fears until he couldn’t take it anymore and left! How is that being a hero?” Jenny jerked her head to the side, away from StarDust, so he wouldn’t see the anger on her face, or hear her fury as she hissed back, “That’s [censored] and you know it! The guy backhands you, picks fights all through the mission, and threatens to kill you once it’s over! He had to go, and you know it! Just be glad he left on his own and I didn’t have to send him to the hospital!” Crystal’s hair shook under the ice as she, too, attempted to conceal her own fury from the others. She spat back, “You can’t make things right by doing wrong!” “I was trying to protect you, protect the team, and get the job done! I would have thought a friend of mine and a fellow hero would understand what I did and be grateful!” “And I would have thought that you, of all people, would know what it’s like to have others attack you, and pick on you, and judge you to be unfit to associate with them and drive you away! You know how much that hurts! You know that’s WRONG!” Jenny’s retort was cut off as Crystal continued, “I don’t want to hear it! I don’t want to talk about it anymore. You know you’re wrong! I’m really mad at you, and I don’t want to be, so don’t talk to me for a while! You think about what you did while I try to calm down.” Crystal broke the private link. Jenny stared at her ice-encrusted back, eyes blazing, features contorted into an ugly mask of rage. She could not see it, but a similar expression also distorted Crystal’s face. The two women marched stiffly through the war zone, and the greatest stress each encountered on the return trip was caused not by the Rikti, nor by the devastation that marked their journey, but by their own anger and frustration.

Chapter 11 is up. We're back to the main team! How will they fare against the surprise assault of psychic Clockwork? You'll see! Have a happy New Year!

Defining Moments - Chapter 11 “Don’t just stand there!” Harm yelled. “Light ‘em up!” The room rocked as everyone unleashed their most powerful attacks upon the advancing horde. Clockwork burned, melted, and shattered, yet more arrived to take their place. Oscillators and Cogs made easy pickings, but the Knights required concentrated fire to blow apart, and the Dukes and Princes were tougher still. In no time, they forced their way through the opening and filled the room. The fight degenerated into a chaotic, swirling brawl. Only Penelope Yin remained uninvolved in the fray; the Clockwork scrupulously avoided engaging her in combat. “We’ve got to get out of here!” urged Harm between blasts. “No [censored], Captain Obvious!” Bellona shot back. “What do you think I’m trying to do?” Jenny shouted, “What about Crystal? She’s still down in the entrance!” “An unfortunate occurrence,” Tetsu Sensei responded between commands to his minions. “Were she still upright, she could cover our escape.” Jenny snarled, “You black hearted-!” “Wouldn’t help much,” Harm interrupted. “She’s got almost nothing to stop psychic attacks.” “I do,” Thunder Dragon announced smugly. If proof was required, he provided it by rampaging through the Clockwork with few ill effects. “We have to save Penny as well!” Jenny added. Tetsu Sensei sneered, “If the Clockwork King wants so badly to rescue her, he’s welcome to the girl!” Supa Fly replied, “[censored] you, [censored], I finish what I start! If any of you cats want to get your groove on, gather ‘round!” The heroes immediately moved into close formation with Supa Fly. Bellona and Thunder Dragon joined only moments later, and shared in the power as Supa Fly hit everyone in proximity with a mild dose of radiation that accelerated their metabolism. Fatigue melted away. “We need not flee now,” intoned Thunder Dragon. “I have enough energy to destroy all these.” He swiped at an attacking Knight, ripping its head off in a shower of sparks. “No, you don’t!” Jenny countered. “The Clockwork King creates his minions from scrap using the power of his mind! He can use everything in this room as materials, even defeated Clocks, and if we stay, he’ll just grind us down!” Tetsu Sensei began to issue orders. “Bellona! Give us some of their strength!” Bellona did as she was told, and, in a swirl of colored lights, she collected the collective strength of the Clockwork and transferred it to the team. The heroes’ and villains’ blasts and blows struck with greatly magnified force. “Harm! Use your explosive punch to clear a path! Once the way is clear, you will all fall back! Thunder Dragon will hold them off as my ninjas and I set up a barrier to pursuit! Once the barrier is complete, we will join you. If any of you softhearted heroes wish to save the girl, do so on your own! I will not aid you!” Jenny effortlessly scooped up Penny Yin and tossed her over one shoulder. “Your arrogance will cost you more than you can imagine!” she spat at the ninja lord. She turned to Harm and said, “I’m ready. Plow the road!” Harm launched forward as Thunder Dragon charged deeper into the room. Simultaneous thunderclaps were soon followed by the sounds of Clockwork and Clockwork parts caroming off the walls of the room and pattering to the ground. Jenny charged for the exit through the opening in the mobs of Clockwork. Supa Fly infused an area with doses of radiation high enough to disintegrate the Clocks’ metal parts, thereby slowing them down. Bellona contributed to the escape by siphoning energy from the Clocks to heal Thunder Dragon and the remaining ninjas. Harm and StarDust took positions by the exit and unloaded into the room, providing a withering cover fire for the team’s retreat. Jenny slid to a stop by Crystal. A lone Oscillator hovering over her body was contemptuously punted into the wall. It bounced off and slid to the floor. With her free hand, Jenny blasted the Oscillator until it lay in a smoking pool of molten brass. As she wrestled Crystal onto her other shoulder, Supa Fly and Bellona ran between the other Blasters and took up positions to support them. “Yo, how bad they [censored] her up?” Supa Fly inquired. “I think she’s still breathing,” Jenny answered, “but I’m not checking further until I’ve gotten her away from here!” She secured Crystal as best she could and ran off in a low crouch. While Jenny was more than strong enough to carry both Penny and Crystal at the same time, she was too light to ignore the effect of the altered center of mass, and so kept her speed low to deal with the balance issues. No sooner had Jenny reached the bend on the other side of the command center than a foreign thought popped into her head: Stop! I’m gonna hurl! “Not while you’re back there, you won’t!” Jenny halted and let Penny down against the wall. The teenaged girl looked green. Jenny pointed to the wall and commanded her charge, “Focus your attention on a point on the wall and take slow, deep breaths.” As Penny complied, Jenny redirected her attention to Crystal. She laid Crystal on the floor, then brought her own head low and turned it to the side, listening closely with her right ear. The ear twitched this way and that. Jenny heard an elevated heartbeat and shallow breathing. She returned to a normal crouch and gently patted Crystal on the side of her face. “Come on,” she urged, “wake up! We have to get out of here!” No response. “Please don’t make me perform CPR on you!” Still no response. Jenny bent over and whispered into Crystal’s ear, “Or maybe you’d prefer I call Fallenz to give you mouth-to-mouth?” Crystal blushed and quietly groaned. “You’re so mean!” Despite her profound sense of relief, Jenny smiled a devilish grin as she sat up again. “There’s nothing wrong with pushing buttons, so long as one of them is labeled 'ON'. Are you all right?” “Everything hurts,” she whimpered. “You’ll have to work through it on the way out. We’re in a fighting withdrawal, and you need to be on your feet. Come on.” She pulled Crystal to her feet. Still too weak to stand, Crystal nearly flopped back down onto the floor, but Jenny caught her and propped her up against the wall. Crystal mustered enough strength in her hands to clutch onto the support arches and hang. Jenny released her, but hovered nearby just in case she collapsed again. Crystal squinted as she looked around. She finally noticed Penny standing next to her, who had lost most of her green tint by now. In a weak voice she said, “Oh, hello Penelope. You made it out, that’s great. How are you feeling?” Puzzled, Penny replied, “Better.” She turned to Jenny. “After getting mind-blasted and monkey-stomped, she’s worried about me?” “She does that,” Jenny responded. “Crystal, you hang out here and take five. I’m going to clean some Clocks!” Jenny turned and sprinted back to the portal room. The bend in the hallway that led to the portal room had been converted into a deathtrap. Caltrops littered the floor, jamming the foot mechanisms of any Clockwork that tried to walk through them. Harm and StarDust had fallen back to new firing positions, and were savaging any Clockwork foolhardy enough to exit the portal room with thoughts of pursuit. Jenny joined them and added her own firepower to theirs. Wings flapping, Thunder Dragon hovered over the fields of caltrops and loosed lightning on the metal menaces. Bellona, Tetsu Sensei and his ninjas, and Supa Fly stood around the corner, out of line of sight. Tetsu Sensei readied another arrow. The ninjas formed into a human shield wall and stepped out into the corridor. Tetsu Sensei stepped behind them and fired his arrow through the gap in their formation. It exploded on impact with one of the larger Clockwork, a Prince, and showered the mechanical host with glue, further gumming up their works. Tetsu Sensei barked orders rapid-fire as he retreated. “Blasters, fall back to the corners of the command center! Bellona, join them and provide cover fire! Supa Fly, Thunder Dragon, move to the bottom of the ramp and stay out of sight!” Thunder Dragon’s voice filled the team’s communication channel. “I will withdraw when I tire of this sport, human, and not before!” He alternated between blasting the Clockwork with evil red lightning and swatting Oscillators from the air. “So be it!” spat Tetsu Sensei. He backed down the ramp while facing the oncoming Clockwork. A net arrow brought down an Oscillator that snuck past Thunder Dragon. Bellona and the Blasters caught it in a crossfire and blew it apart before it could free itself from the net. Another Oscillator flew past the glue and caltrops and fired a purple bolt of psychic energy at Tetsu Sensei. One of his ninjas jumped in between the Clockwork and Tetsu Sensei and took the attack for him. The ninja convulsed and dropped to the floor. In reprisal, the Oscillator was blasted out of the air, falling as a rain of incandescent metal. Tetsu Sensei didn’t so much as spare a glance at his fallen minion as he readied another arrow and waited. When enough of the attacking Clockwork had advanced to the near side of the puddle of glue, he loosed the arrow at the floor. On impact it opened and sprayed oil in a wide radius, covering the entire floor between the command center and the portal room. Tetsu Sensei commanded, “Fire Blasters! Ignite the oil!” A trio of fireballs answered his call, and the short hallway immediately filled with fire and smoke. Thunder Dragon flew out of the billowing smoke clouds, giving Tetsu Sensei an irritated look as he passed overhead. “Retreat!” Tetsu Sensei called. The entire team fell back through the command center. Through gaps in the smoke and flame, some of the Clockwork could be seen struggling to pursue the humans, but, for the moment, they could not force their way through the glue, caltrops, and flaming oil slick. The team collected again as each member reached Crystal and Penelope Yin’s position. Harm was the first to speak. “Hey, Shining, you OK?” “Yeah, I’m fine now. I just needed a rest and some space. Thanks, Firefox, for dragging me clear!” “Aww, what are friends for?” Jenny replied with a huge smile. “Apparently, for making the rest of us go into diabetic shock from all their sugary drivel,” Bellona snapped. Crystal and Jenny both frowned at her. “That’s not diabetic shock,” Crystal corrected, “that’s hyperglycemia. Diabetic shock is when--” “We have no time for this!” Tetsu Sensei howled. He thrust one end of his bow towards the exit. “Cease your insipid female prattling and move!” “What a jerk!” exclaimed Penny. Jenny gently escorted Penny towards the exit and away from the ninja lord. “You don’t have to be psychic to see that, but I guess now it’s official.” Supa Fly said, “Still, the little [censored] is right. We gotsta skitty!” He took off for the exit. The rest of the team moved with him. Jenny and Crystal ran on either side of Penny to keep her from getting lost in the twisting passageways and series of rooms. The retreat proceeded without incident. If any Rikti had teleported in behind the team to ambush them, the swarm of psychic Clockwork had already defeated the aliens and forced them to withdraw. The Clockwork King had not bothered to post guards; his attention was focused solely on rescuing Penelope Yin, not on seizing the facility for his own use or defending it from invaders. Even the elevators remained free from vandalism from the metal hordes. Though the team was prepared to have to fight their way out as they had to fight their way in, nothing moved to bar their way. It was just after the team cleared the large room on the first floor that Jenny stopped suddenly and hissed, “Stop! Hold up! They’re right up ahead!” Everyone slowed, advanced along the wall of the narrow hallway, and peered around the corner through the open doorway. Jenny’s information was accurate; standing there, surrounded by his mechanical entourage, was the Clockwork King. He held court on the same spot the first squad of Rikti occupied when they were defeated by Crystal’s team. Most of the debris from that fight had already been converted into Clockwork, but there remained an almost inexhaustible supply of wreckage from the neglected building to fabricate new minions. The Clockwork King and his Assemblers did just that. A horde of Clockwork nearly equal in number to the group that assaulted the portal room surrounded the towering form of their monarch, and more were created with each passing minute. Harm retreated back into the hallway, out of line of sight of the Clockwork, and slumped against the wall. “Perfect. The exit’s less than fifty yards away, but we have to go THROUGH him to get there! Some days it doesn’t pay to get out of bed.” “We did rescue Penelope from the Rikti,” Crystal reminded him. He shrugged. “There is that. So, how do we do this?” “We can’t use the distract-nuke-cleanup plan,” said Jenny. “Crystal won’t survive the distract part.” Tetsu Sensei produced one of his flash arrows and dramatically held it for all to see. “This will be our distraction,” he intoned. “Only the most sensitive of detection systems or the most perceptive of foes can ignore its effects.” He pointed the arrow at Jenny and StarDust. “Once the arrow has done its job, you and you will take up positions near the Clockwork and ‘nuke’. See that your explosions overlap! All the Clockwork must be incinerated!” “And then the survivors get to smack us around? Great plan.” Jenny carped. “It makes little difference to me at that point-” Jenny gave him a dirty look. “-but to ensure our victory, Thunder Dragon and Shining Crystal will engage the Clockwork King and his retinue to interrupt their reprisal. You will both stand in proximity to the Clockwork King for Bellona to transfer his energy to you. Harm, Supa Fly, and I will join the fight against the Clockwork King while you two destroy any of his remaining creations. He and his followers will rue the day they challenged me!” During the monologue, Crystal examined the plan, as well as the willingness of her team to carry it out. The scheme was tactically sound, and she didn’t notice any objections save for the usual dislike for the ninja lord, but when she looked over to Penny, she sensed the young girl’s growing discomfort as the attack plan was formed. Penny met Crystal’s gaze. Her eyes silently pleaded for an alternative. “Except for the part about ‘ruing the day’, it sounds good to me,” said Harm. Supa Fly agreed. “Ain’t no lie, that plan is fly! The punk-[censored] mofo is goin’ down!” Still locked with Penny’s gaze, Crystal quietly said, “Well…why don’t we call it Plan B?” Enraged, Tetsu Sensei clenched his hands into fists, nearly snapping the arrow in the process. “Insolent whelp! You’ve impugned my tactical expertise for the last time!” he thundered. Impugned? Anticipating their master’s order, the four remaining ninjas readied themselves to attack. Jenny moved to Crystal’s side and glowered at them. They slunk back behind Tetsu Sensei and cowered. “Come on,” Harm wearily said. “We ground our way in. We had to flee out. Now, all that’s between us and home is two nukes and a short fight. There’s nothing wrong with blasting our way clear. It’s a solid plan.” “Yes,” Crystal agreed, her gaze still locked with Penny’s, “it’s a solid attack plan, but that’s what I don’t like about it; it’s an attack plan. We’re all here for the same reason: to rescue Penelope Yin. Now we’re fighting over, what, who’s going to rescue her? We can do better than that.” “Listen, Crystal,” Jenny gently argued, “We didn’t start the fight. He did. And we’re not fighting over who’s going to rescue Penny, we’re fighting to get out of here alive.” Crystal turned and faced Jenny. “Haven’t you ever wondered what it would be like to have one of the threats in Paragon to go away? I don’t mean like that Fifth Column takeover, I mean go away for good, and nothing pops up to replace it.” She waved a hand at Penny. “For the first time, we have a common purpose with the Clockwork King! A rescue mission! He didn’t come here to kidnap, or steal, or kill! He came to save his friend from the Rikti! Maybe he is crazy and obsessive, but he put himself at risk for her. He wouldn’t have bothered leaving his lair if he was completely devoid of compassion! We can’t let this opportunity pass by! Just… let me go talk to him.” Supa Fly objected. “Get real, girl! That’s crazy talk!” “To a crazy man, no less,” finished Harm. “If it works, we can all walk out of here together peacefully, and maybe we’ll remember this as the beginning of the end of the Clockwork King’s reign as an arch-villain. If I can’t convince him to step aside…there’s always Plan B.” “Your version of Plan B starts with you lying dead on the floor!” Jenny howled. “You can’t handle psychic attacks! Be reasonable!” “They surprised me earlier. I wasn’t expecting psychic Clocks! Now I know what I’m facing. When I know it’s coming, I can handle…some…psychic damage.” Jenny’s ears drooped, and her face fell. Crystal turned to Penny. “Penelope, are you sure he won’t hurt you?” Penny shook her head. “No way. He wouldn’t ever do anything to hurt me. Neither would any of his Clockwork,” she finished, answering the next question Crystal was going to ask. Crystal nodded. “I can’t do this without your help.” “You’ve got it.” “This is a bad, bad, bad idea,” said Harm. “Don’t do it,” StarDust quietly urged. “It’s not safe.” Jenny sagged in resignation. “She’s going anyways. And we don’t have time to argue; those other Clocks are going to show up soon and sandwich us.” In a voice filled with malice, Tetsu Sensei said, “I wholeheartedly endorse your efforts! Go forth, young peacemaker! I have no doubts that a stern lecture from you will succeed in persuading him to turn from his wicked ways!” Bellona pulled out her cell phone. “When you die, I’m gonna get it on camera and put it on the Internet. Think I’ll call it “Stupid Hero Tricks”. Ooo, I have a better one: “Wait Here, I’ll Go Talk To Him”.” “[censored] all you [censored]!” Supa Fly turned to Crystal. “Baby, I ain’t digging this plan!” “But we’ve got your back. Some of us do, at least,” Jenny finished, glaring at Bellona and Tetsu Sensei. Crystal took Jenny’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “I never doubt it.” Bellona rolled her eyes. Jenny resumed glaring at her. Crystal took a deep breath, let it out, and then stepped over to Penny. “Let’s go.” Penny nodded, and the two women started for the hallway. Supa Fly stepped in front of them and said, “Hold up for a sec, girl.” “Supa Fly, I’ve already made my decision!” “Chill out, sweet mama, it ain’t what you think!” He waved his arms and enveloped Crystal, Penny, and the other nearby members of the team in an aura of benevolent radiation. As before, Crystal felt more energized. “Probably won’t do [censored],” he said as he stepped aside, “but I can’t let you go without doing somethin’.” Crystal nodded. “I understand. Thank you, Supa Fly.” “Good luck!” Harm called out as the pair once again made for the hallway. “I try not to believe in it, but thanks, Harm.” Crystal and Penny stepped into the hallway, and into full view of the Clockwork King.

Chapter 10 is up. Some high jinks, some cultural clashes, and some love for a superhero archer. A bit of a lighter episode this time. I hope you enjoy!

Defining Moments - Chapter 10 A point of light appeared against the background of an orange sky. It grew and twisted, expanding into a cornucopia composed of light and motion. Swiftly it snaked through the air, all the time increasing its diameter as it grew steadily longer. When the shape touched the ground, it ceased its motion and folded back into itself, forming a tunnel. The inside of the tunnel contracted back into a point of light. It was no more than a few minutes before the interior point pulsed, discharging eight people into the tunnel. Each slid on the swirling vortex and was expelled onto the grassy earth. The group stood up and distanced themselves from one of the figures. Captain Glacier was wracked by a coughing fit. When it was finished, he gasped, “How can one man generate so much stink and live?” “It smells like a stable that hasn’t been cleaned in weeks,” Lucius choked out. “More like a battlefield in summer, the day after the fight, with all the bodies bloating and decaying in the hot sun,” mused Grog. “Ahh, memories.” “What a lovely image, Grog,” MonochromeMolly snipped. “I wish I’d deactivated my chemoreceptors before I stepped into the portal.” “That’s why I put my faceguard back on,” said Fallenz. “I’ve encountered that stench before.” “You could have said something to us!” Warbow wheezed. “My eyes are burning!” howled the Phoenix as she wiped the tears away. Totally ignorant of the fact that he was the focus of the conversation, Flog panted as he looked around for something to smash. There was precious little in sight. Thanks to Lanaru the Mad, the world of the Shadow Shard had been broken apart, and now existed only as islands of land floating in infinite space. Some were barely large enough to stand on, while others were nearly the size of Paragon City. This was one of the larger chunks. Short grass punctuated by alien flora covered the rolling terrain. Here and there, towers of rock burst through the regular surface, a silent testament to the violent act that shaped the world of the Shadow Shard. The air was hot and still; without a planetary body to create wind patterns, nothing moved at all unless under its own power, and the brief periods of night were ineffective at cooling land masses hit on all sides by the sun. Fallenz scanned the view as well, giving his teammates time to recover from their intimate proximity to Flog. He also checked the team’s communication links back to the Vanguard base. Something odd caught his eye. “Hmm. Our connection to the teleport network isn’t secure. It looks like we’ll have to make our way back to this portal to get home.” “I’ll bet Flog’s reek damaged the pohtal equipment,” Captain Glacier grumbled. “A trans-dimensional stench?” the Phoenix speculated. “If things get dicey, we might be able to take a shortcut to Oroborous to get out,” Warbow volunteered. “True that, but I’m not leaving without rooting out and destroying every Nemesis soldier and robot!” “My favorite kind of mission!” crowed Grog. “Where’s my first victim?” Fallenz flipped through his mission data again. “I don’t see anything more specific in here about the location of the base, just that it’s on this island somewhere.” He pocketed the phone. “We’ll have to split up and search. Grog, take Lucius, Glacier, and the Phoenix. The rest are with me. Find the base, or find some Nemesis soldier and make him talk. That means they need to be alive and conscious, Grog. Questions first, skull splitting after. Got it?” It was hard to imagine the sword-swinging behemoth looking more forlorn than he did now. Fallenz pointed one direction, then another. “You go that way, we’ll go over here. First one to find the base, sing out and wait for the rest to join. Let’s move.” Lucius drew his Talsorian sword, activated the slim energy blade, and held it up in salute. “Nos morituri te salutamus!” he shouted to the sky. “What he said!” thundered Grog as he produced his man-sized sword and held it aloft in an identical salute. Weapons in hand, the two swordsmen sprinted away, closely followed by Captain Glacier and the Phoenix of Syrinx. Fallenz and his crew took off at a more leisurely pace. “So you put all the crazy people on the same team, Fallenz?” Warbow quipped. “Yeah, that’s why you’re with me.” Warbow laughed, as Fallenz continued, “No, it’s ‘cause you, Molly, and me have worked together a lot. I also didn’t want Grog anywhere near Flog. I don’t like the way they were looking at each other earlier.” “Seriously, Fallenz, why is he here at all? I can read a wanted poster as well as the next. He’s a full-fledged arch-villain!” Fallenz absentmindedly rubbed the back of his shaved head as he sheepishly replied, “It’s…complicated.” Warbow stopped and faced Fallenz. “Complicated, huh? What’s her name?” Fallenz glared back. “[censored] it, Warbow! How do you do that?” “Without any superpowers of my own, careful observation of my surroundings is literally a matter of life and death.” “Congratulations, Fallenz!” MonochromeMolly gushed. “Who’s the lucky woman who stole your heart?” “Aww, c’mon, Molly! You know my heart belongs to you!” She gently scolded, “Fallenz, we both know what I am, and that there’s no possibility of a romance. I do like the attention, but nothing will ever happen, and you know it!” Fallenz sighed. “Yeah, I know. I guess that’s what makes it fun: it’s totally harmless.” With a dramatic flourish of his hands, Warbow announced, “And now, with my amazing powers of deduction, I will divine the identity of Fallenz’ girlfriend! Let’s see…” “Forget it!” Fallenz snapped. “Still too early to call her a girlfriend. I’ll tell you why I brought Flog along with us, and that’s it! He was hassling her earlier, and I-” he paused to glance at the savage man. “-t…r…i…c…k…e…d him into leaving her alone. I sent him out into the war zone, but she wasn’t happy with that. She said I should pull him out of danger and set him straight. Well, I got a little distracted, and I only had time to pull him in from the zone. He still thinks we’re on that mission I told him about.” Much louder, he added, “So, if you see any mastodons, those are the ones the Nemesis Army stole from the Rikti. Save them for Flog.” “Food!” grunted Flog. MonochromeMolly groaned, and buried her eyes into one hand. “You’ve outdone yourself this time, Fallenz. What a whopper!” Warbow observed, “I could tell you hadn’t set him straight yet.” “Yeah?” asked Fallenz. With a mischievous grin, Warbow said, “Yep. He isn’t fully erect.” Fallenz groaned. MonochromeMolly groaned again. Flog stopped and sniffed the air. “Smoke!” he grunted. A thunderbolt of realization struck. The three heroes looked at each other. “I can’t believe we didn’t think of that!” Fallenz exclaimed. “The steam engines! We can track them by smell!” “And no one smells quite like Flog,” quipped Warbow. MonochromeMolly groaned a third time. Fallenz asked Flog, “You smell smoke?” “Smoke!” “Can you find where it’s coming from?” “Flog find smoke!” The caveman bounded off. Fallenz and MonochromeMolly flew into the sky in hot pursuit. Warbow ran as fast as he could to catch up. They didn’t have far to go before the patrol of Nemesis soldiers and automatons was in sight. Two Warhulks provided heavy escort for a group of human soldiers, officers, and the smaller, ball-shaped Jaeger automatons. Fallenz was surprised to see Flog stop out of range of the patrol and hide behind a bush. He and MonochromeMolly joined him. A minute later, Warbow arrived on foot. Fallenz jibed, “You tired from all that running, Warbow?” “Please! That wasn’t even a warm-up!” More seriously, he inquired, “So how do you want to do this? The usual?” “Yeah, why not?” As Warbow readied a flash arrow, Fallenz directed his attention to Flog. “Flog, we need prisoners. Don’t smash the men in uniform.” Flog stared back, giving no sign of comprehension. Fallenz sighed, and took a different tack. “OK, Flog, see the big things there?” He pointed at the Warhulks. Flog grunted wordlessly. “After you see a bright light, go smash them. Don’t smash anything else!” “FLOG SMASH!” He charged. Fallenz winced, and flew off after him. Thankfully, Warbow was ready. He loosed the flash arrow. It streaked past Flog, stuck into the ground, and fired off a brilliant strobe of light. The Nemesis patrol was blinded to the charging supers. A second arrow flew into the enemy mob and detonated, hitting everything with an electromagnetic pulse. The human troops were merely dazed, but the automatons suffered severe damage. Several of the smaller robots began to leak steam. On the Warhulks, rivets popped and armor plates sagged. The patrol was nearly helpless. While still inbound, Flog pulled a huge stone mallet from under his ratty furs. He swung the hammer up over his head and, as he landed in the midst, smashed the business end into the ground with supernatural force. The ground heaved and convulsed. Stone chips and dirt burst from the point of impact, blasting the patrol. The human soldiers were toppled, and the smaller automatons had to splay their legs to avoid being tipped over. The Warhulks rode out the tremor and fired explosive shells at Flog. One of the shells ricocheted harmlessly off a previously invisible energy shield. The other slipped through and exploded at point blank range. Fire and smoke temporarily obscured Flog, but when they cleared, the caveman was still standing, even more filthy and mad than before. Flog threw himself at the offending Warhulk with an incoherent scream of rage and a whirlwind of hammer blows. Nemesis engineering proved no match for primitive violence; the Warhulk fell onto its back, and Flog leapt on top to continue pounding away. The human soldiers managed to clear their heads, but before they could bring their long rifles to bear on Flog, Fallenz dropped from the sky into their midst like an avenging angel. His blue-white energy blade struck as swift and deadly as lightning. Neatly carved sections of rifles soon littered the ground. Bayonet thrusts were expertly parried away. Troops foolhardy enough to shoot into melee witnessed bullets and shells either glance off Fallenz’ Impervium armor, or the few wounds that were inflicted get covered and healed by his bio-armor. Fallenz moved through the squad like a shark through the sea, selecting the Jaeger automatons as his prey; they weren’t good candidates for interrogation. MonochromeMolly was not idle during the assault. With the patrol’s attention fully occupied by Flog and Fallenz, she maneuvered close enough to blast mega doses of radiation at the remaining upright Warhulk. The towering war machine glowed a sickly yellowish-green, and flakes of metal spalled off the surface as the energies wreaked havoc. Nearby automatons suffered similar fates, their mechanisms slowly disintegrating from proximity to the Warhulk and its radioactive aura. A variation of the same holographic technology that gave her a human appearance now projected an apparition over the heads of the Nemesis troops. More than an insubstantial illusion, the humanoid apparition blasted away at the squad with real force, scattering men and robots alike. “Vile curs!” snarled one of the Jaegers. “Though we are battered, your impudent assault will profit you nothing. Now, face the full might of the Nemesis Army!” The upper housing of each spheroid robot rose to reveal the guns contained within. They swiveled to target MonochromeMolly, Fallenz, and Flog. Before they could fire, the skies darkened, and a rain of arrows fell, stapling the upper housing to the lower and denying them a clear field of fire for the internal guns. They made easy targets for Fallenz’ sword. The arrows also ruptured boilers and steam conduits, causing several of the stumpy automatons to explode. Men caught under the deadly rain fell cursing as arrows pierced their flesh. Though turned into a pincushion, the irradiated Warhulk was still upright and fighting. In retribution for Warbow’s devastating salvo, it lobbed an explosive shell at him, and stomped in his direction. Warbow rolled out of the way, but still caught a portion of the blast. Footsteps booming on the broken earth, the Warhulk closed on Warbow as he dragged himself to his feet. It taunted, “Pathetic vigilante! Your primitive weapon is no match for the technical genius of Lord Nemesis! You cannot avoid his wrath!” “Yeah, you’re right,” gasped Warbow. “I mean, you’d have to be a real moron to bring a bow to a gunfight, wouldn’t you?” With a fluid motion, he palmed an arrow into his bow, drew, and loosed it at the Warhulk. The arrowhead’s casing burst just before impact, showering the Warhulk with a mix of cryogenic compounds that seeped into joints and openings, and then froze. The huge machine ground to a halt, unable to move or fire. As he casually nocked another arrow, Warbow deadpanned, “You just can’t take these archers seriously. What’s skill and clever tactics compared to heavy armor and firepower?” He loosed the arrow. An acid spray hissed as it turned armor plating into something resembling Swiss cheese. Warbow produced an arrow with a fat warhead. “There’s no room on the modern battlefield for such old-fashioned concepts like honor, personal skill, and perseverance.” He pulled back on the bow and paused a moment to stare down the impotent war machine. “I should just give up and go home.” The arrow flew straight and true, detonating on the weakened hull with a deafening explosion of flame. The explosive force and thermal stresses exceeded the durability of the weakened armor. With a tremendous roar, the Warhulk detonated, scattering flaming wreckage over the landscape. Warbow surveyed the smoking crater. “You were right, man. I totally suck.” “Hey, Warbow!” Fallenz shouted. “If you’re done patting yourself on the back, get over here and help find someone to interrogate!” Warbow limped back to ground zero. In addition to the crater Flog made, there was another smoking hole where the first Warhulk once lay. Smaller blast marks ringed with smoldering grass bore witness to the fate of the Jaegers. The human troops lay in various states of injury. Some were still, while others thrashed and moaned. Fallenz stood in the middle of a field of Jaeger scrap. Arrow shafts protruded from the ground like stubborn weeds. He gestured to the arrows as he spoke. “I was in the middle of the pack when you dropped the hammer on them.” Warbow asked, “Did I hit you?” “No. Was that luck, or skill?” “Skill, naturally. Where’s the walking stink bomb?” Under the mask, Fallenz smiled broadly, though the only outward sign was the skin around his eyes wrinkling. “Flog? Heh heh. He was on top of the Warhulk when it blew up. Man, you should have seen him fly! There was a smoke trail and everything! How’d you miss that?” “I had my own to deal with.” It was then that Fallenz noticed the shredded trench coat and the trickle of blood running down one leg. “Dude! You OK?” “It won’t affect my aim, though it’ll be a while before I do any heavy lifting, or run any marathons.” MonochromeMolly announced, “Gentlemen, I have good news, and I have bad news. The good news is that none of the people thrashing around in pain are human. They’re humanoid automatons.” Warbow sighed with relief. “So what’s the bad news?” Fallenz inquired. With a frown, MonochromeMolly replied, “All of the ones who aren’t moving are flesh and blood. Once the arrows are pulled out, I can accelerate the healing of the surrounding tissue to close the wounds, but they won’t regain consciousness for quite a while no matter how much I alter their DNA.” “[censored]!” Warbow swore. “You think they’ll make it to the Zig infirmary from here?” Fallenz checked his phone again. “Doubt it. The connection is even more jacked here than at the portal. I wouldn’t be surprised if we didn’t have access to our mediport system, either. You and Molly get started on the arrow holes. I’m going to call the other team. Maybe they had better luck.” While Warbow and MonochromeMolly began their unpleasant task, Fallenz switched to the team channel. “Fallenz to the other team, have you had any luck finding the base?” “Lucius here. We happened upon a Nemesis patrol. Thanks to the Phoenix and her spells, we managed to take one of them captive. He’s alive, alert, and giving Grog the location of their base even as we speak.” Fallenz heard hideous screams in the background. “Uhh, that’s…great. Stay there, we’ll join you. And quit torturing the guy. Fallenz out.” “Food?” Flog grunted. Fallenz turned to face the caveman. He was singed, and even filthier than before, but looked none the worse for his short flight out and long walk back. “Maybe. The others may have found the Nemesis base where they took the mastodons. We’ll leave to join up with them once we’re done here.” “FLOG SMASH NEMESIS!” He pounded his chest as he roared his challenge to the sky. “You’ll get your chance, Flog.” To himself, Fallenz whispered, “He’s got a lot to answer for, and I’m going to make sure he pays for every [censored] one of his evil schemes!”

Chapter 9 is up. It's another episode from the Fallenz sub-arc. You'll see this a lot. Creidts to: @Mister Coyote for Captain Glacier. The player has a thick New Hampshire accent, and I had fun writing that in. @MonochromeMolly for Monochrone Molly. @Warbow for Warbow. @Pheonix of Syrinx for Phoenix of Syrinx. Almost all his toons had the name Pheonix of Syrinx (yes, I know it's misspelled, I corrected the spelling for the story) with punctuation added to distinguish the names in the system. It wasn't easy inviting him to a team by name... @Ziggy Stardust for Flog, who makes a repeat appearance. Sorry I forgot to guive credit the first time! @Lucius Quintus for Lucius Quintus All HUB members on Triumph. Miss you guys!

Defining Moments - Chapter 9 “Come on, dude,” Fallenz pleaded. “Say ‘chowder’! Just once!” “Up youahs, Fallenz,” Captain Glacier replied. Fallenz burst out laughing. Captain Glacier smiled despite the teasing. Still laughing, Fallenz told him, “Man, I’ve lived in Paragon most of my life, and I almost never hear that accent!” A wry grin on his face, Captain Glacier shot back, “I’m from New Hampshah, and it’s the Rhode Islandahs who have the accent. We talk nohmally up theah.” Fallenz began a fresh round of laughter. When he recovered sufficiently, he shook his head and, more subdued, asked, “We cool, man? I didn’t mean nothing by the chowder thing.” “Yeah, it’s fine.” Captain Glacier extended a hand. Fallenz grasped and shook it while he looked the other man over. He was almost a head shorter than Fallenz, and wore a sleek metallic suit in pale blue, with lighter blue patterns etched on his chest and legs. The smooth suit covered his entire body minus the head. A metal-link belt with round buckle, gauntlets, cape, and shoulder pads were the only adornments. Dark brown hair topped a handsome, middle-aged face that showed his patient humor with the younger hero’s teasing. “It’s not the first time someone heah has taken a shot at me.” “Cool.” Fallenz released his hand, then turned his attention to the massive form of Grog the Big. “Yo, Grog! How many more coming from your crew?” The mighty warrior’s eyes flicked to Fallenz. “Two more,” he intoned with a bored voice. “Lucius said he’d be here once he changed, and the Phoenix is already on the way.” “Phoenix?” “One of the Phoenixes of Syrinx. The one with the protective spells and the bow, I think. They all look the same, and I can’t keep them straight.” His gaze returned to Flog, who stood behind Fallenz. The caveman stared back at Grog. “Yeah…” Fallenz’ voice trailed off as he followed Grog’s stare. “Molly should be here soon. We’ll probably have to wait for Warbow, unless he was in the same zone as a Vanguard depot when I called.” He faced Grog again. “Man, quit staring at him!” “I’m just trying to figure out how much drink his skull will hold after I take it and fashion it into a goblet.” Grog’s chiseled features split with a feral grin. Fallenz moved close to Grog and, in a low voice so Flog would not hear, informed him, “You know, a caveman’s brain is smaller than ours. It won’t hold much.” “Really?” Fallenz nodded his head in affirmation. Crestfallen, Grog sighed, “Oh.” He turned his attention away from Flog. The four stood in the corridor next to the portal that would take them to the Nemesis base in the Shadow Shard. Vanguard personnel and supers alike passed through the loose group, paying just enough attention to avoid tripping over Grog’s boots, or to bypass Flog’s aura of stench. Flog continued to stare at Grog. Grog tried to stay awake. Captain Glacier and Fallenz kept one eye on the portal to Paragon City, and another on the traffic. They watched in silence. Suddenly, Grog perked up. He raised his sword arm in salute and shouted, “Huzzah!” Fallenz turned to look, and spotted MonochromeMolly descending the short stairs from the Paragon City portal. Her long, wavy blonde hair spilled down just past her shoulders and partly covered the right side of her face. She wore a silken evening gown that perfectly accented her womanly figure. It caught the light and shimmered as she slunk down the steps. Traffic stopped. All eyes turned her way. They marveled at her grace, beauty, and that she had no color at all. Every part of her, from skin to hair to clothes, was a shade of gray. She was a classic black and white beauty in a color world, a pinup girl in a video-vixen age. MonochromeMolly sashayed over to Grog. “Grog, dear! So nice to see you again!” “Molly! It’s been too long!” He extended a beefy hand and gave her a surprisingly delicate handshake. “You’re too kind.” MonochromeMolly turned to Fallenz next. “Hello, Fallenz.” “Hey, Molly,” he replied. “Fashionable, as always. You still have a talent for entrances!” As a reply, she struck a sultry pose more suited to a movie star than a superhero. “When you’ve got it, flaunt it!” While Fallenz laughed, she glanced at Captain Glacier. “Aren’t you going to introduce me, Fallenz?” “Of course. Captain Glacier, this is MonochromeMolly. MonochromeMolly, Captain Glacier.” “Pleased to make your acquaintance,” said MonochromeMolly. Captain Glacier had the presence of mind to shake her hand, but remained silent as he continued to deliberately blink his eyes in an effort to clear them. Fallenz noticed, and leaned over and explained, “There’s nothing wrong with your eyes, Captain. That’s a holographic overlay. Molly’s what you call-” “A robot!” interjected Grog. “An autonomous machine intelligence!” Fallenz corrected sternly. “Robots don’t have brains, or class, and Molly is one classy lady.” “Why, Fallenz,” she purred, “Aren’t you the charmer! What’s gotten into you?” “Some other time, Molly.” His smile faded has he noticed Flog out of the corner of his eye. Breathing heavily, the caveman was staring at MonochromeMolly with the same covetous look he had cast on Crystal earlier. Fallenz nodded his head at the savage man. His embarrassment was obvious as he explained, “Uh, that’s Flog. He’s, uh, coming with us.” MonochromeMolly arched an eyebrow at Fallenz. As Fallenz feared, Flog drew himself erect, beat his chest, and shouted, “FLOG DRAG MONOCHROMEMOLLY BACK TO CAVE!” “That’s no way to talk to a lady, buster!” she indignantly shot back, jabbing a slender finger at the caveman. “Yeah, you’re right,” Fallenz said as he ushered MonochromeMolly away from Flog. “But he’s missing a few thousand years’ worth of manners.” Once he’d maneuvered MonochromeMolly to relative isolation, he shrugged. “I don’t think we’ll have the time to educate him.” “There’s a whopper of an understatement,” MonochromeMolly replied. “I’ll cut him some slack, for your sake, but if he gets fresh…” “Feel free to call up one of your boyfriends and have them adjust his attitude. So long as he makes it back to base, I don’t care what else happens to him.” From over Fallenz’ shoulder, Grog boomed, “Huzzah! The Phoenix has landed!” Fallenz turned to greet the new arrival. This Phoenix of Syrinx shared the common traits of the others. She was about eight feet tall, slender, with large wings with fiery orange plumage. Tiny flames danced over her body. For a costume, she wore an orange leather bustier with leather pants that turned from orange to black at the knees. Straps and buckles kept both bustier and pants attached. Pointed elven ears protruded from under her short, orange hair. She had the classic elven look, with large green eyes, narrow nose, and wide lips. Before anyone spoke to greet her, Grog piped up, “Wait, which one are you, again? I can’t remember who I called.” By way of an answer, the Phoenix produced a bow with her left hand, waved her right hand at Grog, and encased the humongous man in a scintillating green force field. Grog grinned. “Good, I called the right one.” “No, Grog, you called my sister. If you hadn’t included a description of what you wanted, she’d have come instead.” Her soft voice carried an exotic accent. Fallenz teased the burly warrior. “Geez, Grog, over four years in Paragon and you still don’t know how to use your phone?” “Bah!” Grog responded, waving his hand to dismiss Fallenz’ barb. “The mighty Grog has more important things to do than push buttons or read instruction manuals!” Once again, Fallenz chuckled at Grog’s stubbornness. He looked the Phoenix over, paying special attention to her bow. “An archer, huh?” “I am. Learning the use of the bow was not just martial training, but also for meditation and purifying the spirit.” “Yeah? Warbow’s gonna love that. I’m sure you two will get along just fine.” “Whoa-ho-ho! Archer alert!” The group turned in time to witness Warbow jumping out of the teleport room. He was a tall man with blonde hair and pale skin. He wore sunglasses and a half mask to conceal his identity, and sported a Vanguard armored bodysuit in gray and blue. Covering it all was a black trenchcoat. In his left hand he carried an expensive-looking compound bow, complete with stabilizer and laser sight. Though his eyes could not be seen, his interest in the Phoenix’s longbow was evident. Warbow ignored the group and circled the Phoenix, checking out her weapon from all angles. When he completed his appraisal of her bow, he stood in front of her, looked up into her face, and inquired, “You any good with that?” The Phoenix nodded in assent. Warbow smirked. “We’ll see.” “Hey, Warbow!” Fallenz called his attention away. The two men met and shook hands. “Glad you made it so quickly!” Warbow released his grip on Fallenz’ hand. “Good thing I was hunting in Founder’s Falls when you called.” “You bag anything good?” “No, just the usual trash. I hear you have a challenge for me!” “You’re right, but let’s get the introductions over with.” Fallenz pointed at each as he named them. “Phoenix of Syrinx. Grog the Big. Captain Glacier. MonochromeMolly.” “Duh, Fallenz!” Warbow quipped. “Yeah, I know you know her, but I didn’t get to introductions with the Phoenix. That was for her benefit.” “Right, gotcha.” Continuing, Fallenz pointed at Flog and said, “That’s Flog. He’s coming, too.” Warbow said nothing. He just looked at Fallenz. Fallenz did his best to ignore the unspoken accusation. Turning to Grog, he inquired, “Where’s Lucius?” Grog shrugged. Fallenz sighed and fished his phone from a pouch on his belt. “All right, what’s his full registered name?” “Lucius Quintus,” came the reply from the direction of the portal room. The man that stood in the opening was of average height and build. He was armored with a chain mail shirt and leggings. Plate gauntlets, shoulder guards, and greaves completed his protective ensemble. He wore a burgundy kilt and sporran over the chain leggings. A Talsorian sword similar to the one Fallenz carried hung from his belt. He sported a gilded victory laurel in his closely cropped gray hair. A stylishly trimmed beard of gray gave him a distinguished, gentlemanly look. “My apologies for the delay,” he said as he descended the stairs. “No matter how much practice one has, donning chain mail remains a time-consuming affair.” “Hail, Lucius!” boomed Grog. “Ave, Grog!” Lucius and Grog clasped forearms like warriors of old. “Side by side again, swords in hand. What manner of evil has reared its head?” “Some Nemesis miscreants. It’s Fallenz’ mission, he’ll explain.” Grog nodded his head at Fallenz. Lucius released Grog’s arm and extended a hand to Fallenz. Fallenz didn’t take it; he couldn’t stop staring at Lucuis’ gray hair. Noticing the track of his eyes, Lucius demurred, “I assure you, young man, the color of my hair has no bearing on the strength of my arm or my skill with a blade.” Fallenz blinked. “Right, sorry ‘bout that.” He shook Lucius’ hand. “I’m used to superheroes being young.” Captain Glacier loudly cleared his throat. Fallenz cringed. Grog snickered. “Before I make an [censored] out of myself again,” Fallenz announced, “let me introduce everyone and get this party started. The guy who cleared his throat is Captain Glacier. That’s the Phoenix of Syrinx. This is Warbow, that’s MonochromeMolly, and… that’s Flog.” Lucius nodded at each as they were named, lingering only when introduced to MonochromeMolly. He moved over to her and gave her a formal bow. “Veronica Lake, if I’m not mistaken, though I see some influence of Rita Hayworth as well.” “It’s so nice to meet a proper gentleman, and one versed in classic cinema to boot!” MonochromeMolly extended a delicate hand. “You’ll be hard pressed to find a man more “classic” than I.” Lucius took her hand, brought it up to his face, and brushed his lips against her knuckles. His body shaking with a silent chuckle, Fallenz admonished, “OK, you two, save it for later. We’ve got work to do. First, let’s link up our phones.” Most everyone started punching buttons. Flog cocked his head and curiously studied the group. Fallenz locked eyes with him. “I’ll just yell real loud at you, Flog.” “Oh my [censored], Grog, what the [censored] ah you doing?” Captain Glacier’s exclamation drew everyone’s attention to the mighty warrior. Grog clutched his cell phone in his left hand, holding it away from his body at arm’s length. With the other hand he pointed a large wand at the phone. The tip of the wand hissed as eldritch energies gathered into a small point of shadow. Passersby stopped dead in their tracks at the sight and reversed course. “Programming my phone,” Grog casually replied. Fallenz objected, “Man, you can’t do that with the Blackwand! You’re gonna blow it up!” The Phoenix of Syrinx rapidly cast a series of protective spells over the team. A tiny bolt of ebon lightning arced from the wand to the phone. Fallenz’ phone beeped as Grog joined the team’s network. The Blackwand vanished into nothingness. Grog clipped the phone to the outside of his wide leather belt and grinned smugly at Fallenz. “I know what I’m doing. I’m an Archmage!” “Grog, they give that badge for arrests, not for magical studies!” “Doesn’t mean I didn’t learn anything in the process,” Grog harrumphed. Fallenz briefly massaged his forehead. “OK, now that that’s done, let me lay it out for you all. Some Nemesis guy wanted to defect to Vanguard. Well, the Nemesis Army killed him, but not before he passed on what he had to say. Seems Nemesis started the first Rikti War, and the proof is in the base we’re going to.” “Or so he said,” Warbow interrupted. “Nemesis is pretty cagey. I wouldn’t be surprised if he gave the defector false information as part of some trap.” “If it’s for real, and the proof is there, great. If not, a whole lot of Nemesis soldiers and robots are getting trashed in the most expensive and least successful trap he’s ever laid. We’re going either way. “One more thing, Nemesis tried to cover his tracks by attacking the Longbow base in the War Zone. With Longbow unaware of the plot, they’d continue to restrict Vanguard’s portal activity and make the trip impossible. Obviously, his troops got their [censored] kicked, and Longbow’s cooperating now, but in the process they managed to kill Lieutenant Sefu Tendaji.” Several pairs of eyebrows raised in shock. Fallenz growled, “We’re going to get that evidence, and remind Nemesis that when he makes bad things happen to good people, other good people make bad things happen to him!” “YES!” Grog howled. He pumped his fists in the air. “FLOG SMASH!” roared the caveman. “That’s right!” Fallenz shouted. He hopped onto the platform, turned to his assembled team, and pointed to the portal that was prepared for their use. With a wolfish grin, he declared, “Time to send Nemesis a message written in blood and steel. Let’s head to the Shard and hand-deliver it.”

New chapter is up. This is a long one!