Cara LaceCara LaceDiva
Joined: 29 Dec 2011
Posts: 350
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re: Cara Part 8: Iron Beauty Part IV
 by Cara Lace on Fri Apr 24, 2015 6:31 pm
Iron Beauty IV
It begins with a painful tingling at her toes and slowly works up her body to the top of her head. She then falls to the floor with a ‘Thud’ as the full force of gravity sets in. She opens her eyes to a dull yellow blur, as if she is viewing things through cheese cloth. She feels around with her hands, trying to identify her surroundings.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. There are some live contacts still in that chamber.” A female voice says, startling her.
“Who’s there?! Identify yourself!” She says with authority.
“Relax Spangles, you’re safe for the moment. It took me the better part of a day to figure out how to free you without killing you.” The voice answers.
“My name is not ‘Spangles’. It’s….” She begins.
“Comanderette America.” The voice interrupts. “Also known as Maggie Doyle, the daughter of Colonel John Doyle.” The voice interrupts.
“I won’t ask again! Who are you!?” She says ominously.
“Jenny Styger. Genius, billionaire and snappy dresser.” The voice responds.
“Styger? Of Styger Industries?” She asks.
“The one and only.” Jenny says with her trademark swagger.
“I can’t see. Where are we?” She asks fumbling her way around the open container that held her prisoner.
“I figured that would be a side effect. Your sight should return to normal in a few minutes, as to where we are, well… still in the ship that captured us. You remember all that right?” Jenny asks.
“I was… trying to stop Brainiac from capturing the Angel. THE ANGEL! Where is she??” Maggie asks while her memories catch up to the present.
“Somewhere still on the ship. I imagine Brainiac is still trying to assimilate her but eventually, once he accepts that he can’t, he will try to destroy her.” Jenny replies.
Maggie rubs her eyes as her vision begins to clear up. “I can’t let that happen. I have to save her.”
“Woah there, Majorette…” Jenny says.
“Comanderette.” Maggie corrects.
“Whatever.” Jenny quips back. “The point is, I have no intention of leaving the Angel here.”
“I understand you want to help, but I can allow a civilian to be put in harm’s way, even if she is a genius.” Maggie says flatly.
“Has your sight returned yet?” Jenny asks.
Maggie rubs her eyes and opens them once more. Her vision clears and she looks over her surroundings. Her companion is sitting on a concrete block soldering the circuitry of some small device before her. She slowly looks around the room, which resembles more of a cave but is clearly the remains of a human made building. The floor, walls and ceiling are all rubble held up by debris or Jenny’s handiwork. There is a large opening leading outside into a larger chamber and a second smaller opening leading deeper into the buildings remains. Maggie can feel waves of heat emanating from the smaller passage.
Scattered around the room is a variety of machines, equipment and even computers all of which appear as if they were assembled from junk parts by a two year old and yet they are all working at some task that Maggie does not understand. Two devices sit just inside the larger opening and Maggie can see a shimmering field of energy emanating from them and covering the entry way.
“What is all this?” Maggie asks.
“Well, those are holographic emitters I pieced together.” Jenny says nodding in the direction of the devices by the large opening. “From the outside, it’s just a solid wall. I hacked the ships lower functions enough to have the environmental sensors reporting everything is normal down here to the central intelligence. I’ve re-routed power, heat, lights and even got your assimilation chamber sent here by re-labeling you as, well….trash. No offense.”
“None taken.” Maggie says stretching her arms and legs like an athlete.
“The rest is a little surprise I’m putting together for Brainiac, and our ticket out of here.” Jenny finishes.
“You said it took you the better part of a day... so how long have you….we, been stuck in here?” Maggie asks.
“Three weeks, five days and seven hours. Give or take a minute or two.” Jenny says as she closes the lid of the device she was working on and gives a grin as it lights up and begins a soft humming sound. Behind the pair another beat up looking machine that resembles a microwave oven dings and Jenny walks toward it.
“You did all this in less than a month?” Maggie asks with some astonishment.
“I’m a genius. Remember?” Jenny says as she opens the little oven and takes out a plate of what looks like runny green mashed potatoes. “Want some Goo? It’s a pretty good batch this time.”
Jenny hands the plate to Maggie and walks over to one of the tinker toy computer terminals. Maggie sniffs the plate of ‘Goo’ and winces. “What is this stuff?”
“Nutritional paste basically. Brainiac feeds it to his assimilated slaves to keep their organic parts alive.” Jenny answers with revulsion. Glancing at the computer screen she notices something in the display and gives it a ‘WHACK!’ on the side. Checking the readout again she smiles. “That’s better.”
Maggie forces herself to swallow a bite of the food paste and looks around the room again. “Where did you get all the parts for this and what is this building doing here?” She asks.
“The building is what’s left of the Styger Robotics Plant. Shortly after we were brought on board, Brainiac transported the whole thing into this bay. I suspect he was looking for data on the Angel; his little minions scoured it for hours then just left it here. I found much of the tech that was stored inside was still salvageable, and the reinforced assembly bay for the Styger Drones is still mostly in-tact. So I decided to do what I do…tinker.”
“So it was you inside the Angel. How did Brainiac get her but not you?” Maggie asks then takes another bite of the Goo.
Jenny turns and cocks an eye at the soldier. “You’re pretty perceptive.”
“I’ve seen it before.” Maggie replies with some sadness in her voice.
“So I’ve heard.” Jenny says. “Brainiac thinks the Angel is just a robot and when he brought her on board he wasn’t expecting you. He hit you with a neural inhibitor…”
“A what?” Maggie interrupts.
“It’s a beam that turns off your brain temporarily.” Jenny explains. “While his minions were distracted securing you, the Angel kind of ‘ejector-seated’ me into a pile of trash. He never found me, because he wasn’t looking for me. I snuck around for hours before the Robotics Plant was transported up here.”
“So from there you pieced all this together, set up this little camp, and freed me from Brainiac’s hold? That’s quite impressive Jenny.” Maggie says finishing her meal.
“Not really. Brainiac’s biggest weakness is his over confidence or he would have a more sophisticated security program set up for his systems. I had the lower functions hacked in like ten minutes.” Jenny says patting herself on the back.
“Well, your service to the cause is admirable but now it’s time to do my part. I will get you out of here and come back for the Angel. Did you happen to see my shield anywhere?” Maggie asks looking around the room.
“Cool your boots, Yankee Doodle. I didn’t free you just to get myself out of here; I could have done that on my own.” Jenny says sternly. “I have no intention of leaving here without the Angel, or anyone else we find. No one steals my property and gets away with it.”
“This is most likely a ‘No Win’ scenario and I am not letting a civilian get herself killed.” Maggie responds sounding more like a drill sergeant.
Jenny stands up and walks over to the smaller tunnel that leads deeper into the plant. She motions for Maggie to join her and says, “I wouldn’t exactly consider myself a civilian anymore, Maggs.”
Maggie grudgingly walks over to the opening and looks inside. Immediately her eyes open wide and her jaw drops just a touch as she gazes on what Jenny wanted to show her.
“Holy cow!” is all she can exclaim.
“Yeah, I don’t believe in the ‘No-Win’ scenario.” Jenny says with a very mischievous smile.
“What is it?” Maggie asks amazed at the sight before her. Suspended weightless in a chamber of some kind, with wires and cables hooked up and multiple different panels open on its exterior, was some sort of red and gold armor. Maggie noted how it reminded her of her father’s suit of armor he displayed in their front room, in what it means if not in how it looks. The open panels reveal complex circuitry like none Maggie has ever seen, even in the present day. Its exterior gives the feel of a Sherman Tank with legs. Huge and heavy looking feet and hands, armored shoulder mounts, and twin engine jets on its back.
“I call her ‘Iron Beauty’.” Jenny says with pride in her voice.
Maggie walks around the chamber, examining the machine from all sides. “It’s made of iron?”
“No, she’s made of clockwork metal.” Jenny corrects.
“Come again?” Maggie asks with a confused look.
One of the various other machines strewn about Jenny’s makeshift facility begins an annoying and incessant beep. Jenny glances over her shoulder at it and then back to the Comanderette. “Hold that thought.” She says then jogs over to it, picks up the device and presses a button.
“I thought I said radio silence?” Jenny says to the device.
“My apologies Madame for this breach in protocol but I have urgent news that may complicate your current course of action.”
Maggie instantly recognizes the voice of Jenny’s digital butler, DANIEL.
“What now?” Jenny asks.
“The invasion has begun. Brainiac is landing forces all around the world including Metropolis.” DANIEL says in his usual unimpressed tone, despite the dire news he just reported.
Jenny and Maggie exchange the same look between themselves. No jokes, no false bravado. Maggie’s fists ball up as her teeth clench and suddenly out of nowhere her shield explodes through a nearby wall into the room. It flies straight at Maggie who holds up her arm at the last second as the shield slips comfortably in to place on her forearm.
A brief grin crosses Jenny’s lips, and then she continues. “How bad is it, D?”
“Brainiac has deployed his heavier forces to targets specific to the Justice League. The Fortress of Solitude, Themyscira, and the Batcave are all currently under siege. Superman, with Lex Luthor, is leading the battle at the Fortress while Wonder Woman and Circe defend the Gates of Tartarus. Batman gathered a team to liberate the Batcave however we have lost contact with them.” DANIEL reports.
“What about Metropolis?” Maggie blurts out.
“Good afternoon Miss Doyle. With the Justice League divided across the globe it appears the defense of Metropolis has fallen to the Justice Girls.” DANIEL answers.
“How are they holding up?” Jenny asks concerned.
DANIEL spends a split second calculating and responds. “They are holding their own in position directly beneath you, however their chances for survival diminish exponentially at a rate of .023 every minute the battle continues.”
Jenny looks past the Comanderette towards her invention. Her eyes narrow into a look of sheer determination. “Prep her for launch, D.”
“Madame I still have terabytes of data to process before actual combat is attempted.” DANIEL protests.
“We don’t have a choice, D.” Jenny says back as she marches towards her creation.
A new screen flickers to life on the apparatus that houses the Iron Beauty; a progress bar begins a torturously slow journey across it as Jenny strides toward her waiting armor.
“Commencing systems upload. Estimated time to completion is seven minutes.” DANIEL reports.
“WARNING! Intruder detected in storage bay 2. All units respond!” Brainiac’s voice suddenly blares from everywhere.
“Crap! I was afraid of that!” Jenny says turning to Maggie. “Maggs, activate protocol nineteen on the third enviro-console. That will kill the magnetic field locks holding….”
“Speak english!!” Maggie shouts frustrated.
“See that red button on the box over there?” Jenny says pointing to it. “Push it!”
Maggie springs into action leaping to the console and pushing the button as Jenny instructed. Outside of the ruined plant the low hum of some large machine powering down fills the entire chamber followed by the clang of the huge storage bay doors slamming down with such force the room trembles and debris falls from the shabby ruined ceiling of the robotics plant. She turns back in time to see that the armor has opened itself up from head to toe and Jenny slipping her nude body inside. As the panels begin to close around Jenny, Maggie notes how fit she is and watches the panels and plates close around her until only Jenny’s face is visible.
“That won’t hold them long,” Jenny begins. “Once DANIEL is uploaded into the armor’s systems we….”
BOOOOM!!!!!!
“Speak of the devil.” Jenny quips.
BOOOOM!!!!!! CREEEEEEEEEEEK!!!
“We aren’t gonna have enough time.” Maggie says looking at the progress bar.
“We’ll be fine. DANIEL?” Jenny asks.
“My apologies, Madame but bypassing the encrypted
communications barrier is slowing the upload process. Four minutes remaining.” DANIEL answers.
BOOOOM!!!!!! CRRREEEK!!! RIIIPPPPPPP!!!!
“I’m going to buy you some time.” Maggie says, and then in a blue flash of her teleport ability she vanishes and instantly reappears outside in the main storage bay chamber.
“They have to find someone or they will storm us both before you are ready. I’ll draw them away until you get suited up and then you get out of here!” Maggie yells back into the plant.
“We already had this discussion.” Jenny’s voice echoes
back.
“It’s NOT a discussion, it’s an ORDER soldier!” Maggie shouts with authority.
“Pfft! Like that’s gonna work!” Jenny grumps back at her.
Before the soldier can protest any further the massive door to the storage bay collapses inward. It crashes a mere few feet from the Comanderette who doesn’t flinch an inch. She watches as the dust and smoke settle to see a wall of Accumulators march into the room on their spidery legs. They open fire and Maggie reflects the first few bolts back with her shield as she lurches forward, sprinting down the line of killer robots and away from the ruined robotics plant. Bolt after bolt slam into the floor around her as she jumps and dives and twists and rolls herself out of their deadly path. Those that find their mark strike only her shield and bounce right back at the robots that fired them, shredding them. She is truly poetry in flight, fluid and forceful with no wasted motions, a product not only of training but of dedication.
Before long, Maggie closes in on the far wall of the storage bay with a small army of killer robots on her heels. With a powerful throw she sends her shield flying out in front of her, striking the wall and bouncing straight back at her. She ducks her head slightly and lets it soar right over her. The soldier in her gives a small grin when she hears metal ripping as her shield tears through the robots behind her. As she approaches the wall she leaps into the air and continues running letting her momentum carry her halfway up it and at the same time she hears her shield clang off the opposite wall behind her. Her legs spring with the strength of twenty men, launching her backward off the wall and into the air high above her pursuers. She flips and twists her body in mid air, catching her shield at the last second as it returns to her, then bracing behind it as she flies headlong into the huge mob of robots.
Inside the ruins of the robotics plant, Jenny sits in her new armor watching with grinding teeth as the progress bar indicating DANIEL’s upload continues its slow march across the computer screen. She hears the sound of the Comanderette’s battle in the main bay begin to recede, as if it is moving farther and farther away.
“C’mon Spangles hang in there!!” Jenny says to herself. “DANIEL!!?”
“Forty seven seconds, Madame.” DANIEL responds.
Jenny watches anxiously as the progress bar nears its end….. Twenty, fifteen, ten, five, four, three, two, one……
“Game on!” Jenny says to herself as she summons the massive amount of energy deep within her, feeding it directly into the armor. Her metallic face plate closes and Iron Beauty’s eyes light up with an intense white light as the zero gravity field switches off. Jenny’s feet hit the floor with a loud crash as inside her helmet a HUD lights up before her face. Targeting reticules, status indicators, communications displays all appear and hover superimposed on her field of view.
“How’s it look D?” Jenny says.
“I have indeed been uploaded to the suits mainframe and all systems show ready, Madame.” DANIEL responds. “Initiating virtual walk around and systems check of control surfaces.”
Externally, Iron Beauty stands and slowly tests the range of motion for her arms and legs and head as a symphony of flaps, panels and hidden devices opens and closes across her every surface.
“ALERT!! A second intruder has been detected in the storage bay.” Brainiac’s voice again announces and another smaller group of four Accumulators march into the storage bay, stepping on and crushing the many destroyed remnants of the first group. They march in unison towards the ruined robotic plant but stop short and brace themselves as the very front of the structure explodes in a storm of debris and smoke.
The robots scan through the settling dust with red beams until a lone figure emerges, standing defiantly before them.
“Knock knock.” Jenny says to them arrogantly. “Hiya. I’m looking for a friend of mine. Maybe you’ve seen her? Short and stocky? Blonde hair? Dressed like a flag?”
“ELIMINATE THE INTRUDER.” Their voices echo in unison as their weapons lock onto Jenny and begin firing.
Their beams hit the Iron Beauty repeatedly across her chest, legs and shoulders. Inside the armor Jenny doesn’t even feel their impact as they ricochet off of her in all directions. She smiles a devious smile as her HUD identifies them all and locks on.
“Ya try to be nice...” Iron Beauty says out loud and holds up her right arm, pointing it straight at them. A small projectile launches from her forearm and strikes the two middle bots with a loud crackling electric pulse. The bots twitch and writhe, unable to move while arcs of electricity dance between them.
“Alright DANIEL, set thrusters to 10 percent max capacity. Let’s see what she’s got!” Jenny says excited.
“Very good, Madame.” DANIEL responds.
The jets on Iron Beauty’s back roar to life for only a brief second, propelling Jenny forward at a startling rate of speed, much faster than she had anticipated as she slams into one of the Accumulators, taking it with her.
“WOAHHHH!!!” Jenny yells inside her helmet as she and the Accumulator tumble end over end until smashing into one of the storage bay walls. The sound of scraping metal fills the room as Jenny and the now demolished shell of the Accumulator slides down the wall and collapses in a heap. Unharmed, Jenny stands up and looks back at the other three robots.
“Ok, let’s make that two percent max thrust.” Jenny says
already targeting her remaining adversaries.
“I did mention there are still terabytes of calculations to be made.” DANIEL says to her with an ‘I told you so’ tone.
“Remind me to program less snarky-ness in your next update.” Jenny grumbles.
Iron Beauty’s thrusters’ fire again for a split second, this time propelling Jenny forward at a rate she can control. She brings her armored right fist crashing down on the next Accumulator and immediately follows up with a mighty uppercut from her left fist. The force from her blows lifts the Accumulator off the ground and sends it flying into its remaining two counterparts. The robots quickly try to regain their composure and turn towards Jenny just in time to see both of her palms raised and pointing at them. Beams of pure energy burst forth from them, burning thru the robots armor plating and exploding out their backs. Sparking and sizzling, they fall in a heap together on the floor.
“I’ll tell ya what, you all go ahead and grab a 10 minute oil change. I’ll look for my friend.” Jenny says smugly as she turns towards the exit. Her jets fire again and maintain a small amount of constant thrust, gently lifting her into the air where she hovers for a moment.
“DANIEL, locate the Comanderette.” Jenny orders.
A schematic appears on her HUD displaying the layout of the Harvester ship. Still hovering, Jenny maneuvers Iron Beauty out into the corridor where a trail of smashed and twisted robots of all different types stretches out before her.
“I am unable to pinpoint the Comanderette’s exact location however I am detecting motion just ahead.” DANIEL states.
“Well, there’s no question she came this way. That girl sure knows how to party.” Jenny surmises as Iron Beauty glides thru the air down the hallway with an ease and grace that one would never expect from something so bulky and solid.
She rounds the corner into another short corridor with a heavy looking door at the end. Four subjugators guard the door and simultaneously point their weapons at Jenny as she kills power to the thrusters and lands on the floor with authority.
“Pretty sure none of these are the Comanderette.” Jenny says.
“Stop the intruder!” The subjugators announce as theyanime open fire. Their energy bolts striking Iron Beauty all over, each one bouncing harmlessly off her.
“Well, you gotta admire their persistence.” Jenny says in an almost bored tone. She starts walking toward the robots as they continue to fire on her, her armored boots clanging on the metal floor. She walks unimpeded through the hail of blaster fire as her HUD identifies each one and displays various bits of data on everything from power output to vulnerabilities.`
“Alright, enough is enough. DANIEL, deploy sticky bombs.” Jenny orders.
Compartments on Iron Beauty’s shoulder mounts open and fire four projectiles, one at each of the bots. They strike their targets and begin blinking as the bots scramble to remove them. Suddenly a series of explosions rips through each of them until their smoldering carcasses lay in pieces. Jenny wades through their remains, kicking them to the side until she stands before the armored door.
“Sheesh, can we just get to the boss fight already?” Jenny asks annoyed.
“I’ve located the Comanderette’s energy signature, Madame.” DANIEL tells Jenny. “Eleven yards beyond this door.”
“Alrighty then, let’s see just how strong we are.” Jenny says and slams both her palms against the door, her fingers digging into the metal. The sound of servos whirring fills the hall as she lurches back and rips the door right off its frame. She chucks it down the hall behind her and marches into the room.
“Maggs? You in here?” Jenny calls out. She scans the room seeing it is large and circular with four pylons situated around the center. Robot parts litter the floor and Jenny see’s two more assimilation chambers across from her along the far walls and her red, white and blue companion fighting a single Brainiac robot of a type Jenny has not yet seen. Humanoid in form, it stands over fifteen feet tall and towers over Comanderette America with its almost insect like head.
Distracted for a second by Jenny’s abrupt arrival, the Comanderette takes a blow from her opponent that sends her flailing through the air and straight into Iron Beauty. The two collide and tumble to the floor with the Comanderette laying atop the armored bombshell.
“There’s easier ways to get close to me Maggs.” Jenny jokes.
“Are you nuts?!...Busting in here like that?!...I told you…to get out of here.” Maggie huffs at Jenny.
“Where’s the fun in that?” Jenny says as the pair stands up together. “Besides, you look like you could use some help and so far these guys are no problem.”
“This one is different, it’s stronger.” Maggie says. “I think it’s the ship Protector and it’s smart.”
“FOOLISH HUMANS, YOU CANNOT STOP THE CONVERSION.” The bot announces slowly rising above them to hover in the center of the room.
“I’ve got this.” Jenny says seriously, targeting the Protector.
“No, Jenny. Don’t!” The Comanderette shouts only too late. Iron Beauty’s thrusters launch her straight at the hovering Protector but with speed that startles the genius CEO, the Protector grabs her outstretched fist and uses her own momentum to throw her away behind him. She slams into the wall and crashes between the two assimilation pods.
“Errrgh, even through my armor, that hurt.” Jenny says shaking her head.
“Madame, I have located the Clockwork Angel.” DANIEL says suddenly in her helmet. “It is captive in the chamber on your right.”
“Awesome! What’s in the other one?” Jenny asks.
A sudden flash of blue energy above the Protector is followed by the instant appearance of Comanderette America on its back. She wails repeatedly on the back of its head with her shield as it flings its arms around wildly trying to remove her. She dodges its swipes at her and keeps hammering, sparks flying with each blow of her shield. Finally, the Protector manages to grab Maggie by the leg and throws her straight down, slamming her on the floor in the center of the four pylons there. Then quickly, the bot turns and brings a fist crashing into Iron Beauty, completely foiling Jenny’s attempt at another thruster powered sneak attack. The Iron Beauty crashes to the floor next to the bruised Comanderette.
“ENOUGH, HUMANS. YOU WILL NOT STOP THE CONVERSION.” The Protector again announces as a horde of Subjugators, Bounders, Overseers and Sentries teleport into the chamber from pads all around the perimeter of the room. They march to the center and surround the pair of heroes with weapons drawn.
“Got any other bright ideas, genius?” Maggie asks Jenny as they stagger to their feet.
“Just one, and it’s more like a gamble.” Jenny answers as she opens a panel on her right forearm and presses a button.
At that moment, the two assimilation chambers along the wall begin to spark and their force field covers dissolve away. The Clockwork Angel emerges from the first one as the army of bots turns to watch along with Maggie and Jenny. The Angel leans forward slowly until falling like a statue face first to the floor.
“That was your idea?” Maggie asks, bracing behind her shield in preparation for another attack.
“I’m working on it.” Jenny says back indignantly.
Brainiac’s forces turn back to the duo as they ready themselves for battle when the resounding BOOM of a foot hitting the floor echoes in the room from the second assimilation chamber. All eyes and sensors turn as the tremor from it ripples across the floor.
“Rrrrrrrrrrr…” a low growl begins rumbling and a huge grin crosses the Comanderette’s face.
“Well I’ll be damned.” She says almost giddy.
“I told you I was working on it.” Jenny says with satisfaction.
“RRRRRRRAAAAAAWWWWWRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!” Cara Terra explodes from the capsule, literally shredding it and leaps fists first straight into the army of Brainiac’s warriors. The bots are startled only for a moment as she crushes a Subjugator with a single punch. She joins her hands together in a single massive fist and whips around, colliding with an Overseer and sending it flying through its fellow bots and knocking them everywhere around the room. As the army tries to readjust to this new enemy, they shift enough for Cara Terra to see the two heroines in the center of the room. She recognizes the Comanderette immediately.
The stone juggernaut smashes a path through the bots sending many flying through the air in every direction to slam against the walls and ceiling. She reaches Maggie and Jenny with stomp of her foot and looks down at them.
“Cara help flag girl!!” she says in a gravel voice.
“I’m glad to see you too, big girl. And you’re just in time.” The Comanderette says as she holds up her fist, her index finger pointing straight up. “…Cara….smash.”
The smile is only visible for a brief moment before… “RRRRRAAAWWWRRRRR!!!”
Cara Terra extends her arms and with incredible force slams her palms together. The sheer force knocks several of the closest bots away with one crashing into the nearest of the pylons surrounding them. Sparks and flames ignite from it and the lights in the entire chamber change to a soft but deep red color. Alarm klaxons sound and Brainiac’s voice announces to the entire ship…
“ATTENTION ALL UNITS. HARVESTER SHIP V I ZERO TWO ONE ONE TWO, HAS BEEN COMPROMISED. FIELD INTEGRITY IS DOWN TO SEVENTY FIVE PERCENT. STOP THE INTRUDERS AS FURTHER DAMAGE TO THE POWER COUPLINGS WILL DE-STABILIZE THE SHIP. PREPARE THE MAIN GUN TO CLEAR THE LANDING POINT OF ALL ENEMY RESISTANCE AND DEPLOY ALL MY REMAINING FORCES TO METROPOLIS. ”
“He’s going to wipe out the Justice Girls! We’ve got to destroy this ship!” Maggie shouts almost as a command while deflecting a sudden beam of energy from the Ship Protector bot still hovering high above the fracas.
“Madame, I’ve analyzed the power couplings.” DANIEL interrupts in Jenny’s ears. “They not only provide power to the main gun but they are also the superstructure of the gun itself. Therefore, destroying the pylons…”
“...will sever the main gun from the ship!” Jenny finishes excitedly. “Maggie! Take out the pylons!”
The Comanderette nods and looks over the pylons. “Cover me!” She orders.
“What am I supposed to do?” Cara Terra’s deep gravelly voice barks while she continues bashing bot after bot as waves of them pile on her from every direction.
Jenny’s thrusters lift her up into the air and she turns for a second to point at the stone giant, then changes to a thumbs up. “You’re doing it.”
“Grrrrrrr! Was hoping you’d say that!” Terra growls as she raises both fists above her head and roars. “CARA SMASH!!!” She slams the deck and a shockwave races out twisting and bending the very floor itself and sending ten or so bots to their destruction.
Jenny turns back to the Protector which is still firing on the Comanderette. On her HUD a large targeting circle appears, superimposed over its image. The circle begins to flash red and the young genius smiles, marveling at her ingenuity.
“The Bunker Buster is ready to fire.” DANIEL informs.
“This is the part where I escort YOU to the ground.” She says to the Protector inside her helmet as a series of launchers appear along the sides of Iron Beauty’s back jets.
Fifty mini-missiles launch in groups of ten and fly straight at the Ship Protector bot. They slam into it from every direction in wave after wave, their explosions rippling across its surfaces from top to bottom. When the smoke clears the bot is still in place, scorched and with sparks jumping from several spots across its outer shell.
“Uh oh.” Jenny utters.
The bot fires a row of softly glowing balls of energy in an expanding arc. Before she can react, one of them strikes Iron Beauty on the chest and detonates, hurling Jenny end over end until her back makes an impact impression in the wall. She lays there imbedded and goes completely limp as Iron Beauty’s eye slits flicker and go dark.
“WARNING! FIELD INTEGRITY DOWN TO TWENTY FIVE PERCENT. STOP THE HUMANS!” The Protector calls out when the Comanderette destroys the third pylon. Three smaller bots break off from the main group and maneuver around Cara Terra, who is crushing or ripping or smashing every bot she can lay her hands on. The lead unit meets Comanderette America’s indestructible shield crashing into its chest plate with such force that it is knocked back into the other two bots following it. That one, and another, lay sparking and motionless on the floor while the third leaps in front of the remaining pylon, blocking Maggie from it. Her shield returns to her and just as fast, she whirls around and uses its momentum to slingshot it at the pylon, but her throw goes wild and misses it completely.
“YOU MISSED, HUMAN.” The Protector bot seethes from above.
“Did I now?” Maggie asks, holding up her hands in mock surrender.
“NOW, YOU DIE.” It says while its minion levels its guns at the blonde patriot.
“Yep, looks like you got me.” Maggie says sarcastically.
Suddenly, the last pylon explodes as the Comanderette’s perfect aim had bounced her shield around the circular room until it struck its target on the opposite side of the pylon. The force of the explosion sends another huge shockwave that shakes the entire vessel. The sounds of machinery powering down fill the air. Then an awful groaning and shrieking sound begins from underneath them and without warning the center section of the floor gives way to open air as the main gun tears away from the ship.
The Comanderette watches the Harvester ship grow farther and farther away as she plummets to earth like the rest of the ships debris. The army of Brainiac’s robots begins to pour out of the ship above her as well.
As graceful as any bird she flips herself over and summons her Quantum powers over gravity, making herself lighter as she extends her arms behind her for stability. Beneath her she watches the main gun smash into the huge crater left behind by the Styger Robotics plant. A huge plume of dust and smoke rises and engulfs Maggie, choking her and blocking her vision of the rapidly approaching ground. Disoriented and blinded, she smacks into the ground much harder than intended. Not enough to injure her but more than enough to hurt and knock the wind out of her.
Slowly, Maggie lifts herself off the ground and her normally colorful uniform is now dulled with dust and soot. She turns and sees the debris of the main gun scattered and smoking in the massive crater when the first of Brainiac’s remaining forces lands amidst it. Then another and another until it seems as if it’s raining killer alien robots, each one slamming into the ground and then immediately taking position in a platoon like formation until there are hundreds standing before the battered soldier.
“YOUR EFFORTS HAVE BEEN POINTLESS. ALL WILL BECOME ONE WITH BRAINIAC, AND THOSE THAT RESIST SHALL BE DESTROYED.” Brainiac’s voice proclaims through his robot army.
Comanderette America assumes her fighting stance and shouts, “I wish you had lips, Brainiac. So you could kiss my star spangled a…….”
“RRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!”
It echoes through the air and down to the streets. It rumbles like the approach of an earthquake. Plowing into the ground between Maggie and the platoon of robots, Cara Terra stands up and flexes her massive frame.
“Rrrrrr…as if I didn’t have enough to SMASH!!” she yells and launches herself full bore into the middle of their formation. Individually, the robots are no match for Cara Terra’s unbridled strength but together they threaten to overwhelm even her.
A sound, or maybe just a feeling, catches the Comanderette’s attention from behind. She turns for a moment searching the deserted streets behind her and then she suddenly smiles. Turning back to the attacking horde she points a gloved finger at them. “Justice Girls, MOVE OUT!!”
Like angry hornets, a huge group of Justice Girls swarm out of the evacuated buildings and begin taking up positions to counter Brainiac’s army. Some cover the air above while other ground teams cover the flanks. The Comanderette quickly locates the Justice Girls leader, Super Power, as she sends a beam of pure ice into the robots covering Cara Terra and yanks many of them off the stone behemoth. The helpless bots are dragged through the air straight to the JG Leader where she crouches down into a block as they land at her feet. A sudden storm of electric energy forms over head as the robots attempt to hammer away at Super Power’s nearly indestructible body and utterly fries them, leaving their smoking husks to litter the street. The purple and white clad Burst Angel lands softly next to Super Power and the two bump fists.
Another line of bots marches up the street towards the battle. From around a corner, Arwen Skywalker sprints straight at them dodging their blaster fire with jumps, rolls and somersaults. Her trademark zip line fires and strikes a nearby wall. It pulls her straight through their ranks as her fantastic dual sabers cut many of them to ribbons. When she lands, she turns back as one by one they explode in a line.
“Bruce Lee.” She softly says and ‘zip lines’ away.
The battle truly joins as Super Power finds the Comanderette and lays a hand on her shoulder. “Good to have you back, Soldier. What’s the story upstairs?” She asks Maggie.
Maggie looks up at the Harvester Ship as it begins to wobble in the air. She gives a serious look back at her commanding officer. “We are still missing two.”
Aboard the Harvester Ship, Jenny’s eyes open suddenly and her HUD flickers back to life slowly until her view is fully restored. Still wedged into the wall and hanging like a marionette with its strings cut, Iron Beauty pushes herself free and with her thrusters holding her aloft, she hovers for a moment.
“Uhggg… Note to self, reinforce the inertial dampeners.” She says shaking the fog from her mind.
Below, she sees the jagged and gaping hole in the ships floor and the streets of Glenmorgan Square below. The smoke and explosions of the pitched battle raging there dot its normally beautiful appearance.
“Ok, that’s new.” Jenny says. “DANIEL, what’d I miss?”
“Comanderette America was successful in destroying the power couplings for the ships main gun. However, when it fell from the ship it unfortunately took a large piece of the floor with it.” DANIEL informs her.
“Did everyone get out ok?” Jenny asks with concern in her voice.
“The Comanderette and the large stone woman have made it to the ground below and have joined the Justice Girls in battle. Unfortunately the bulk of Brainiac’s invasion forces followed. Only we, the Clockwork Angel and one enemy target remain on the ship.”
Jenny looks down along the perimeter of the room where the floor is still intact and sees the Angel, still laying face down and motionless.
“We’ve got to get her.” Jenny says and begins to fly down to the winged mechanical marvel. “Unnnnnnggghfff!” she coughs out as the Protector bot slams into her from nowhere and clamps its hands around Iron Beauty’s throat.
“YOU CANNOT STOP THE CONVERSION.” The bot repeats in Jenny’s face.
Jenny’s HUD indicators turn red and alarms begin sounding in her ears. An image of Iron Beauty appears and the throat section is flashing red. The pair lands on their feet upon the unstable remnant of the deck. The Protector increases its pressure and the Iron Beauty drops to one knee.
“I… have had… enough of… YOU!!” Jenny yells as Iron Beauty’s hands grab the Protector by its midsection. Servos deep in her suit surge with power and generate an incredible burst of strength, throwing her attacker off of her and sending it flailing into the air above the jagged hole in the floor. After a few seconds it stops and rights itself, turning back to Iron Beauty in time to see her palms pointing straight at it.
“All right good lookin’, time to say good night!” Jenny says with a cocky grin.
The first pulse beam hits the Protector square in its face. It tumbles backward in a somersault as the second beam slams into its chest and throws it against the wall. Then, a huge sustained blast of pure power pins it there. It struggles against the flow of energy as the metal in its chest plating starts to glow red hot. It starts to slowly move forward against the beam and Jenny grits her teeth.
“No… you don’t...ugly!” She grunts at the Protector and pours on the power. Her pulse beam suddenly doubles in size and It only takes a few seconds before the Protector explodes in a brilliant flash and showers the area in its tiny pieces.
Just then, the sound of another explosion deep within the ship causes it to lurch to one side. Jenny turns and looks down to the Angel and sees her lifeless body begin to slide towards hole, and open air. Iron Beauty fires her thrusters again and in a flash she lands next to her fallen companion. Holding up her right forearm, metal panels begin to fold and slide and collapse into themselves until Jenny’s bare hand is exposed. She lays her palm flat on the Angel’s chest, and like a defibrillator on a heart attack victim she pumps several pulses of power into her.
“C’mon Grampa, wake up!” She says.
Slowly, the Angel’s eyes flicker on and her limbs begin to twitch.
“Jennifer? Oh thank you, my dear.” The Angel responds with Professor Styger’s voice as the pair suddenly feels the floor beneath them begin to drop. As the loose debris and the remaining scattered robot parts float up to the ceiling, Jenny grabs onto the Angel with one hand and the floor with the other.
“Madame,” DANIEL suddenly interrupts, “the ship has lost all power and is losing altitude rapidly.”
“Yeah… noticed! Time?” Jenny asks.
“Impact will occur in fifty seven seconds. The blast radius will wipe out all of downtown Metropolis.” DANIEL states calmly.
Jenny feels the Angel’s hand on her shoulder and she looks down into its eyes. “Jennifer, there is so much I want to tell you. So much you need to know.” The Professor laments.
“And you will tell me, I promise. Right after I take care of this little problem.” Jenny says and pushes the Angel into the hole and out into the open air. She watches as the Angel’s wings extend and carry her away.
“Forty five seconds, Madame.” DANIEL says.
“Scan the ship! Find me the current center of gravity and the point of highest structural integrity!” Jenny commands as she rockets out of the ship and into the air outside. The ship appears on Jenny’s HUD and an indicator highlights an area on the second module of the tri-form ship. The area that is closest to the rapidly approaching ground.
“Located and locked, Madame.” DANIEL responds.
“That’s it!” Jenny says excited and like a missile she flies to the area indicated. Placing both her hands on the ship’s hull, she braces herself. “DANIEL, put everything we’ve got into the thrusters NOW!”
“Thrusters set to maximum capacity.” DANIEL responds.
“errrrrrrr….RRRRRRRRRR….RRRRRAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” Jenny yells, pumping every ounce of her power into the Iron Beauty. Status indicators on her HUD shoot up to read one hundred percent, and then beyond.
In the streets below, the battle pauses for a moment as all eyes are drawn above to the huge ship crashing down on top of them. Before Super Power can shout an order to get clear, the combatants are blown to the ground by the force of an eruption of pure power that ignites beneath the hulking, ruined vessel.
Scrambling to their feet, the Justice Girls watch as a smokeless jet flame the size of a space shuttle launch fires from a tiny figure on the underside of the massive ship.
“Jenny…” Maggie whispers to herself as she and Super Power gaze upward.
Stunned, shocked and bewildered the various Justice Girls watch in awed silence as the ships descent slows and eventually stops a thousand or so feet above their heads. It hovers there a moment, bobbing up and down in mid air when suddenly DANIEL cuts into their comm sets.
“Pardon me Justice Girls but I recommend you all get clear.” He announces.
“Everyone clear out!!” Super Power immediately shouts as she and Comanderette America watch their team suddenly break off their attacks and speed away in all directions leaving their robot foes confused and disoriented. Only Cara Terra remains still smashing in the center of a huge group of bots and with their opponents gone, the other bots converge on her as well.
“Not again! Cara NO!!!!” The Comanderette yells, leaping forward but is yanked back by Super Power’s hand grabbing her arm.
“She’s a Justice Girl. I will get her!” Super Power says.
Suddenly, like a flash of light, the Clockwork Angel swoops down from above and over the growing pile of Brainiac bots. She snatches Cara Terra from the center of the horde, plucking her from their very grasp. She banks and heads straight for Super Power and the Comanderette, scooping them up as well and with a mighty flap of her mechanical wings she carries the trio over the buildings to the very top of Lexcorp Tower where the Justice Girls are regrouping.
“Madame, the Justice Girls are clear of the area.” DANIEL tells Jenny.
Inside Iron Beauty, Jenny Styger struggles. Grunting, gnashing her teeth and concentrating, she is now oblivious to everything but her own power coursing into the body of her metallic alter ego. Until deep within her, something snaps.
“……rrrrrRRRRRRRRR…” she gasps as her power suddenly surges and exceeds its maximum inside her suit. It rages into the systems of the Iron Beauty and her entire HUD flashes red, unable to measure the amount of electrical current surging into it. Beeping alarms sound unheard as all along Iron Beauty’s back, shoulders, legs and feet, panels and flaps open to reveal even more thrusters.
“…rrrrRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!!” The thrusters erupt all at once with an impossibly sized flame that belches out from her and reaches the ground directly over top of Brainiac’s army. Most are vaporized; many are blown in every direction smashing into whatever they hit as smoldering molten wrecks. Parked cars flip end over end and windows shatter in every building within a mile radius.
Atop the Lexcorp Tower, everyone watches stunned as the Harvester Ship slowly begins to move skyward. The roar is deafening as it picks up speed, moving higher and higher, shooting straight up.
“Fifteen thousand feet……Twenty thousand feet….. Thirty thousand feet… Structural integrity at fifty eight percent, Madame.” DANIEL reports.
“Keep going!!” Jenny orders.
Iron Beauty pushes the ship higher still and ice begins to build up but then melts off the armor as fast as it appears.
“We are approaching the thermosphere, Madame. Altitude is seventy kilometers and climbing. I recommend powering down. Iron Beauty is not equipped for space flight.” DANIEL advises.
“No! Keep going! If we let it go now it will just fall somewhere else and kill people!” Jenny shouts back. “Access the Watchtower’s defense grid, target this sucker!”
Almost immediately aboard the silent Watchtower as it floats in Earth’s orbit, the targeting systems activate. Gun emplacements spring from compartments along its massive exterior and train in unison to a specific point and begin powering up.
“Watchtower defense grid accessed and weapons are targeting. We will be in range at eighty kilometers, Madame.” DANIEL reports.
Jenny’s HUD continues to flash red and the beeps of several different alarms ring out. “Kill the alarms, D. Keep going!” She says.
“Altitude is seventy five kilometers and climbing. Madame, I strongly recommend that you power down. You will be unable to reach minimum safe distance from the blast.” DANIEL implores in his emotionless tone.
“..Ye…have little…faith.” Jenny pants as her oxygen supply thins to dangerous levels.
Far below and atop the Lexcorp Tower, Super Power stands surrounded by her fellow Justice Girls. Cara Lace, the Comanderette and Cara Terra all gaze skyward. Their eyes follow the wispy column of vapor up and out of site. From behind them the various voices of their team mates can be heard.
“Shouldn’t we help?” Sister Rose Marie asks.
“It’s too late. They’re already too high.” Kirsten Stomper answers.
“That’s bad ass, though!” Kharyzma shouts.
“Whoever it is, they are a warrior born!” Mermaid concurs.
“Wait, what happened? I just got here, did I miss the fight?” Sun Godess asks.
“I’ll fill you in, Sunny.” Hawk Woman replies.
“Giggiddy.” Kharyzma says.
“Khar! Honestly! What are you, twelve?” Cara Lace chides.
Suddenly a bright flash in the sky silences them all, as several seconds later the feint echo of an explosion follows. They all stand, peering intently, watching.
“Maggie. Who was that?” Super Power asks the young super soldier.
“She’s…a Justice Girl.” Maggie says softly.
They all continue to watch the sky, somber and yet anxious. Almost desperate to see some sign, some trace of a survivor. Then, just as some begin to turn away…
“LOOK!!” Captain Unohana yells pointing to a mere speck high in the air.
“I don’t believe it!” Aquatica Siren exclaims.
“YEAH!!” Atlantis Girl and Mermazon shout in unison as they high five.
The plummeting speck grows larger and larger into view until the form of a body can be clearly seen tumbling widely as it falls.
“She’s not slowing down!” Maggie shouts as several in the group prepare to launch themselves to the rescue.
Suddenly the Clockwork Angel appears again, soaring headlong towards the helpless figure. The lanterns in the group take to the air as well, and as the Angel catches the armored figure she extends her powerful wings like flaps on an airplane. It slows their fall considerably but the pair continues to plunge towards the Earth.
Using their rings, Kryssma and Kharyzma create two constructs, one of a huge green energy air mattress and the other a giant scooping slide. The Angel and her cargo hit the slide and are guided into the air bag until they both finally come to a gentle stop. Then the constructs disappear leaving them softly on the ground.
“Jennifer…JENNIFER!?” Professor Styger’s voice says from within the Angel as it kneels over her motionless form.
“..Gra…Grandpa?” Jenny whispers weakly. “Ungh,… you can…have your suit back.”
“No my dear child, my time has passed. This technology…this power now belongs to you. There was so much I wanted to say.” The Professor says sadly.
“No, Grandpa, I’ll get you out of there somehow…unghh…I’ll find a way…” Jenny stammers and tries to move.
“You cannot, child. I must pass as the one before me passed, but I have given you all the knowledge on the Angel and how to make the metal she is forged from. It’s up to you to carry on our work now, my beloved grandchild.” The Angel’s eyes begin to flicker and she stands straight as her wings fold neatly behind her back, assuming a beautiful pose. “..And tell Maggie that her father is very, very proud.”
“I will, Grandpa. And we’ll speak again, I swear it!”
The Angel’s flickering eyes finally fade to black. Unable to move, Jenny lays in the street until the blackness of unconsciousness again washes over her. The Iron Beauty armor is scorched and smoking, sparks leaping from its joints but she came through when the world needed her.
Epilog
One Week Later
“.. four ninety eight……four ninety nine…..five hundred..” Maggie huffs as she finishes her set of one arm pull ups.
She hangs for a moment from one of her acrobat rings high on the ceiling then in a flash of motion she exchanges one hand for the other.
“..one…..two…..three…” she continues until her doorbell sounds from the front room. She drops down some twenty feet or so to the floor, landing as soft and as quiet as a cat. She wraps a white gym towel around her neck and walks to the door panel. Touching a few buttons makes the image of a waiting delivery man standing patiently and she opens the door.
“Hi. I have a delivery for a Margaret Doyle?” he says to her.
“That’s me.” She replies growing curious.
He hands her a clip board and she signs it and hands it back. She opens her door wide and he pushes a dolly in with a large, military looking foot locker. He lays it flat on her foyer floor and two exchange pleasantries as he leaves. Alone with her mysterious gift, she sees an envelope taped to the top with the word ‘Maggs’ written across it.
“Jenny.” She says with a smile and pulls the envelope from the lid.
Opening the envelope she finds a letter…
Hi Maggs,
I wanted to catch up with you in person but things have been crazy around here since I’ve been back. After the incident last week I took a day to recoup but then got back to work getting Styger Industries back up and running. We’re even breaking ground soon on our new plant!
Oh and don’t worry about Cara Terra, she didn’t exactly fit in the quarters she was given on the Watchtower. She blew out an airlock in her first ten minutes there, but I put her up in a perfect place. It’s on Styger property so people will leave her alone and it’s a cave so she can feel right at home. I gave her a full set of gear to choose from but all she took was a domino mask. She seems to love it because she never takes it off.
The Clockwork Angel is safely tucked away at one of my facilities but I can’t get her to activate anymore. The best I’ve been able to do is some half-assed remote control but there’s no personality in it, no mind, but I’m not going to give up on her. Anyways, a final shipment of my Grandfather’s estate arrived yesterday and it contained this foot locker. I think he was saving it for you.
Ring me if you need me,
Jenny
Maggie folds the letter and puts it back in the envelope with a smile and looks over the footlocker. She gasps out loud when she sees the stenciling on its side….
Property of COL. JOHN DOYLE
To be continued in
The Sub Mariness
Last edited by Cara Lace on Sat Apr 25, 2015 5:55 am; edited 1 time in total
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