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Cara Lace
Cara Lace
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Joined: 29 Dec 2011
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re: Cara Part 15: Carastar the Legendary Outlaw Part I

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Carastar the Legendary Outlaw Part 1

Staring:
Carastar, Legendary Outlaw
Deeps
Professer Styger
The Clockwork Angel
Colonel Doyle
Fraulein Uhrmacher

Special Guest star … Comanderette America

Prelude…

“It’s no good… there’s no way to stop the Vanishing Point from… well, vanishing… without the Occulus Wellspring.” An exhausted and exasperated voice states in the dim emergency lighting. “The Time Masters are finished.”

“DEEPS DEEPS!” A nearby hovering drone of some type responds. Roughly the size of a 20th century football with stabilizer fins and large red eye, it almost bounces in the air as it repeats…

“DEEPS DEEPS!”

“Well that’s as useful as the first hundred times you said it!” The figure responds, rising from a smoking console to look down a smoke filled corridor. She is a pretty humanoid female with a strikingly youthful appearance. Her short brown hair only slightly disheveled due to the current events, and she wears a very plain looking prisoner’s uniform. “I really thought my end would be more epic, you know. Not winking out of existence with a floating robot that can only say one word, twice!”

Down the corridor behind them an explosion rocks what is left the massive structure and sends a huge fireball hurtling towards them.

“Ok...RUN!” The girl yells.

“DEEPS DEEPS!” The drone responds and zips up the smoke filled hallway. It turns on a bright flood light that shines from the large eye on its front and illuminates the way for the woman following close behind. Just ahead of them a large metal bulkhead door begins to descend and as the drone slips through the woman dives forward and slides along the floor narrowly making it to the other side as the thick metal door clangs shut. The roar of the fireball on the other side slowly fades as the spry young woman stands up, panting just like a marathon runner.

“That was exciting, so where to now?” The woman asks.

“DEEPS DEEPS!!” The drone chirps as it whisks down new hallway before them.

“Oi…” she says annoyed and then starts to run after her companion when she stops suddenly before a door labeled ‘Quartermaster’. The door is stuck half open and the sound of grinding metal gears can be heard trying to close it in vain. The woman grins and ducks inside the doorway.

Further ahead, the drone stops and spins around in mid air. It emits a series of odd chirps as if calling for the woman, before it starts back in the direction it came. It stops suddenly as the woman steps once more from the door, though no longer clothed in a prison uniform. Instead she wears a long brown trench coat that flows like a cape off her back. A pair of matching armored gloves covers her hands and on her feet is a pair of very futuristic looking power boots. Dual blaster guns rest in holsters slung on her back and she stands before the little robot with a grin.

The drone makes no sound but slightly tilts in mid air to the left as if it were in disbelief at the sight of her.

“I know, I know…. But if I’m going to blow up then I’m going to look cool doing it.” The woman says admiring herself. “Never seen Time Master Garb like this before, must be new.”

“DEEPS DEEPS!!” The drone screams and another tremor throws the woman off balance.

“Oh yes, right… RUN!” The woman says as the odd pair continues once more down the corridor. They soon come to another much larger door marked ‘Repair Bay’ which the drone opens by interfacing with its sparking controls. Rushing inside they see the room is massive with all manner of machines and equipment laying scattered around, most of which is on fire from the cataclysm that has hit the gigantic station. The only thing still in place is a dilapidated old ship of some kind secured in its bay. Carbon scoring decorates most areas of its worn looking hull while several other areas are missing hull plating altogether and revealing internal components.

“DEEPS DEEPS!!” The drone chirps with urgency as it races up the gangplank and into the old ship.

The woman stops in her tracks on the bay floor looking over the huge vessel for a moment in disbelief.

“Oi! You’ve got to be kidding me!? That thing is the most…..” Her sentence is abruptly cut off by another large explosion at the far end of the Repair Bay. The force of the blast ruptures the integrity of the large hangar bay doors there and they explode outward into the vast nothing of the collapsing Vanishing Point. “…beautiful ship I’ve ever seen!” The woman finishes as she dives for the ship’s open gang plank, but the rush of the escaping atmosphere catches her and blows her past the ship and sends her tumbling towards the open void.

“Please be standard issue please be standard issue please be standard issue…” She repeats while frantically searching the pockets and compartments of her new outfit as she’s blown with rest of the debris towards the gaping opening. Finally, in the lining of her coat she finds what appears to be a small breather device. Just large enough to cover her mouth and nose, she places it over her face and the device latches on securely. To her surprise, the device materializes an entire mask that wraps around her head leaving only a crown of her brown hair visible. The eyes glow bright orange as inside the mask complex images and readouts appear as a Heads Up Display before her. An aura of orange energy surrounds her entire body keeping her oddly warm in the sudden vacuum of space and she breathes as easily as she does in a normal atmosphere.

Unfortunately this does not change the fact that she is tumbling end over end through the void and away from the slowly disintegrating station.

“What’s the point of breathing in space just to drift and die anyways? There’s got to be….” She says out loud to herself as she keeps searching the pockets and compartments of her strange new clothing. Still falling head over heels through the void, she notices a small yellow light blinking on the ankle of both her boots.

“Hello, what are you for?” She asks innocently and suddenly two energy disks appear from nowhere underneath each boot. Instantly the young woman stops tumbling and steadies herself, literally standing upright in space as if she were on solid ground. With her balance restored, her first thought is of how to get back inside the hangar to the waiting space craft. As if by magic, the discs under the woman’s feet whisk her forward through the void towards the open hangar doors.

“Woaaaahh!!!” The woman yells inside her breather mask as she heads for a large piece of floating debris. By sheer reflex she adjusts her feet as if she were on a pair of skis and zips effortlessly around the tumbling machinery.

“Ha HAH!” She laughs as the discs carry her to the waiting ship and up its gangplank. She hovers for a moment as the plank retracts and the hatch closes. The sudden hiss of air exploding into the interior fades as the discs disappear from under her feet and she almost steps down on to the decking. She reaches a hand up to her face mask but before she can do anything a familiar voice sounds in her ears.

“DEEPS DEEPS!”

“I know, I know but better late than never right?” The woman answers while simultaneously realizing she understood the little drone. “Oh! Integrated Universal Translator, those are cool… Which ship is this anyways?”

“DEEPS DEEPS.”

“The Timecutter? Well that’s not very exciting, and it makes no sense. You can’t ‘cut’ time. That would be unacceptable.” The woman responds.

“DEEPS DEEPS!” The drone chirps as it zips up ahead of her to the main corridor towards the ships bridge.

“What? Oh yes, right…” The woman follows her little companion, noting the crew area complete with a small bar and recreation area. As they turn right down another corridor they pass the crew quarters and medical bay which are cramped and cluttered with various pieces of mechanical junk just strewn about. It is obvious no one has actually occupied the ship in a long time.

The station is rocked by another explosion that lurches the young woman off balance slightly as she emerges from a hatchway into the ships small hangar area. Two time spheres sit in various stages of disarray. They resemble simple platforms that are surrounded by a transparent dome. To her right is the Ready Room, a small cubby where the ships’ Captain would strategize with the officers. To the left, just on the other side of the Time Spheres is two sets of stairs; one leading up to the Bridge and one going down into the Engine Room and Cargo Bay. As the odd pair race passes the Ready Room, a third stairway lays before them which also leads to the Bridge.

“I estimate about two minutes until this place collapses.” The woman says, more to herself than to the drone. “Two minutes to check and prep the ship for launch, provided its space worthy; then pilot it out of a hangar bay spinning uncontrollably out of control; devise a way charge up long dead time engines; plot temporal coordinates and navigate out of here and into the time vortex…. Whatever shall I do with the remaining thirty two seconds?”

“DEEPS DEEPS.” The drone chirps as it floats up one of the stair ways.

“... My name?” The woman questions as she sprints after her little friend. “I’m surprised you don’t recognize me, I’m kind of a big deal. My name… is Carastar.”

As the two burst onto the bridge the little drone briefly turns to Carastar. “Deeps?”

“Really? C’mon, Captain Carastar? Legendary outlaw?” She says with extreme indignity.

Another violent tremor shakes the ship and the Legendary Outlaw looks out the front windows to see the remains of the Vanishing Point station falling away. “Oi forget this!”

Carastar leaps into the pilot’s seat and straps herself in. She starts throwing all manner of switches and pushing buttons. While she does, colorful lights illuminate on panels all across the bridge like a city after the sun has just gone down. Various hums and buzzing sounds start up all around them, and a few control panels begin throwing electrical sparks.

“DEEPS DEEPS!!”

“I saw, I saw… Let’s just hope we don’t have a burnout. Hang on!!” Carastar commands as she guns the Timecutter’s throttle to full. With surprising force the ship breaks free of its moorings and blasts out of the open hangar bay. The area outside is full of huge chunks and entire sections of the immense station as it breaks apart, and all are spinning wildly out of control.

With uncanny skill, Carastar maneuvers the old ship like a well seasoned professional. She dodges the deadly debris with a series of daring barrel rolls and hair raising turns that almost seem to defy the laws of physics. Finally they clear the debris field and Carastar turns the ship around to watch the final death throes of the gigantic former headquarters of Time Masters.

“DEEPS DEEPS.” The little robot says in an almost relaxed tone.

“Not quite...” Carastar says jumping up from the pilot’s seat and turning behind to the center of the bridge. There stands the Orrery of the Multiverse, a large glass chamber filled with what appears to be planets, millions of planets, overlapping each other and stretching into infinity. Technology invented by the Time Masters that is beyond the comprehension of most and the central device that allows their ships to travel not only in space, but in time as well. Surrounding it at its base is a vast array of controls, levers, switches, monitors and gadgets of every imaginable type. Many appear to be disassembled and laying haphazardly in pieces atop one another.

“DEEPS DEEPS!!” The little robot’s chirps sounding anxious again.

“Oi! Don’t swear.” Carastar scolds as she moves around the circular console pushing buttons and pulling levers. “The thing about the Vanishing Point is that it’s not just a station, it’s folded piece of space time… a loop if that helps… outside the fabric of the time stream. The Time Masters created it by tapping the time stream with a dimensionally contained artificial super-nova. Since the Legends of Tomorrow decided to blow it up the whole thing is collapsing in on itself, and us.”

“DEEPS DEEPS!?”

“Well, it’s impossible but that’s never stopped me before. If I can create a quantum feedback loop in the ancillary vortex manipulators it should be enough to jump start the Time Drive. I just hope these old anti-matter coils can contain the reaction.” Carastar responds never ceasing her button pushing and switch throwing.

“DEEPS?”

“Well if it works, it will punch a hole into the fabric of space time and slingshot us into the time stream. If it doesn’t work then it will implode the engines and collapse us into non-existence.” Carastar answers placing her hand on a final lever.

“DEEPS DEEPS?!”

“Of course I’m sure, mostly sure, fairly certain, and I am because before I was an outlaw….” Carastar pulls the final lever. “… I was a Time Master.”

The ship lurches violently as a loud groaning begins from the engine room beneath them. The interior lights dim and flicker as the ships power is diverted into the Time Drive. Sparks erupt from multiple areas on the circular console around the Orrery and causing Deeps to bob and weave in the air to avoid their scorching touch.

Carastar also ducks and covers her face to avoid the shower of sparks as she races around the console trying to address each system emergency all at the same time. Suddenly the Time Drive engages, instantly propelling the aging ship into the vortex of time itself, and flooding the interior with temporal distortion effects. Each movement Carastar or her little companion makes leaves a trail like a drug induced hallucination.

“Hull’s got too many breaches… we’re taking on quantum radiation from the Time Stream.” The Captain says as she looks out the main viewing port at the twisting green tunnel spiraling out before them. “Unless you want to end up an antique in the course of a few seconds I’ve got to put us down somewhere.”

“DEEPS DEEPS?!”

“I have absolutely no idea… isn’t it exciting?!” Carastar replies as she pushes the big lever back into its original position. “We’ll find out together.”

The ship lurches to port and careens toward the energy wall of the time stream tunnel and plunges into it with such force that it rips it open. Huge arcs of pure energy erupt from tear as the ship disappears into it. Normally a time ship can enter and exit the Time Vortex with ease, but a malfunctioning one can create a tear and alter the flow of what was and what must be, leaving a crack in the very universe itself. The ripple effect from such an event can not only change the past but the future as well.



May, 1942
Somewhere off the coast of Norway…


Weeks of travel on merchant freighters culminates into twelve soldiers, one Colonel and an aged but fit looking Professor being dropped in a rowboat miles out at sea in the dead of night. The soldiers sit in silence, each deep in their own various thoughts while the Colonel and the Professor search the coastline of a distant island with binoculars for any sign that their top secret mission has been discovered. They find none and the Colonel signals with his hand for his men to start rowing.

In a few hours the group finds itself trudging up from the beach through the dark and a sudden torrential rain that soaks each of them to the bone. With relief, they finally reach a wide opening in an ancient wall and the Colonel motions for his men to enter. They file inside without question and each take a position along the tunnel wall. They crouch down quietly and begin to rest for just a moment while the Professor fumbles through the pockets of his long trench coat and produces a map which he unfolds on the ground before the Colonel, who motions to one of his men for a lamp.

“Right where you said it would be.” The Colonel says as he removes his combat helmet and crouches down, shining the lamps light down. “That doesn’t mean you’re right about the rest of it. So far all I’ve seen are a bunch of rocks on this God forsaken island.” He is a middle-aged man, not old by any standard, yet his face shows the wear of experience and the sadness of loss. His soaked combat uniform is slightly different than those of the men in his company, indicating his rank.

“They’re ruins, not rocks.” The Professor corrects. “And the men will need to be extremely careful not to damage anything. The historical significance alone could be quite substantial not to mention that we do not want to disturb anything that may be resting here.” A much older man in appearance, yet the Professor is far from frail. His grey hair matches his neatly styled mustache and goatee, while his face also displays an almost terrible wisdom. His long brown trench coat shows the wear of the last year and a half’s worth of adventure.

“I thought you were an Atheist.” The Colonel says as if a matter of fact.

“No I’m a Catholic, among several other things.” The Professor corrects again. “But I’m not talking about the paranormal. You know what we are here for.”

“And you still won’t tell me how you know it’s here.” The Colonel counters.

“I could tell you Colonel Doyle…” the Professor smiles. “…but I wouldn’t want you to think me mad.”

“Heh!” the Colonel laughs and returns a smile to his friend. “You’re about two years too late for that, Professor Styger.”

The men stand as Professor Styger folds his map and tucks it back into his coat. Colonel Doyle turns off the lamp and hands it back to the soldier, then motions for his men to move out. Like a well oiled machine they fall into line and begin to march up the tunnel. A short while later they emerge once more into the steady, soaking rain and onto the grounds of an ancient ruined courtyard that is littered with the collapsed debris of the many monuments and statues that once stood here. Slowly the squad files out of the tunnel in twos, each taking cover behind the various huge chunks of stone.

Colonel Doyle signals his men to hold position as he pulls his binoculars from their belt pouch and peers into the dark at the gigantic temple ruins that stretch out before them. As he slowly pans from left to right, a sudden bright flash of lightning illuminates the area for just a moment. Long enough for Colonel Doyle to see the banners, and flags of the German Army draped over the façade of the ruins. The Swastika displayed over and over again like some perverted attempt to claim this area in the name of pure evil.

As they observe from their cover, the rain slows and finally stops altogether. The clouds begin to pass and let the moonlight filter down between them and revealing the German Troops patrolling the area around the temple ruins. Large trucks parked in rows outside the entrance indicate a large presence of German Soldiers and equipment must be inside. The sounds of generators starting up rumbles for a moment and lights from all around an area within the ruins turn on like a Hollywood premiere.

“Sweet Jesus…” Colonel Doyle utters softly.

“Yes, they must be here for the rocks.” Professor Styger says dryly.

“Staff car approaching…” Colonel Doyle says, ignoring the Professor’s sarcasm as he watches the car pull up. It’s a type he has never seen, long and elegant looking in its metallic black color yet powerful like a Hot Rod with an array of exhaust pipes that run the length of its hood. Narrower in the front save for the two sleek exterior fenders, it was clearly designed with aerodynamics in mind. The small Nazi flags on each side at the front indicate that it carries someone of very high importance. It rolls up to an entire company of soldiers who instantly stand to attention and salute as the driver door opens and the only occupant exits the vehicle.

“Who the hell…WHAT the hell is that?” The Colonel says in disbelief at the sight of the new arrival. Its form is female, dressed in an all black uniform. Shined black leather boots and belt complete with pistol, black slacks complete with slightly oversized hips and a black uniform shirt with a thin black leather tie. All covered by an intimidating looking long black leather trench coat. A black officer’s cap bearing the insignia of the Nazi research and development division rests on her head. Her face however is anything from normal as her skin is literally the color of blood mixed in with patches of metal, like she is half flesh and half robot. A swath of dark red hair hangs across the right side of her face from under her cap while the side is cut very short and does very little to hide her appearance which is as she wants it judging from the frightened obedience of the troops saluting her as she strides up the temple steps and disappears into its interior.

“Fraulein Uhrmacher.” Professor Styger says almost in dread. “She is the commander of Hitler’s Occult Research Division... otherwise known as The Order. No one knows where she’s from, or where Hitler found her but for almost two years she has been advising Hitler on all sorts of matters, including mysticism and black magic. Many believe it was her that acquired the Spear of Destiny for him, and if she is here then this is far worse than I thought.”



Inside the ancient temple ruins…

Rows of soldiers stand at absolute attention, somewhat out of respect but mostly out of fear. Either way, the troops under Fraulein Uhrmacher’s command are loyal to her, bordering on the fanatical. Calling her division ‘The Order’, she has cultivated them since they were given to her by the Fuhrer himself as a reward for delivering to him the mythical Spear of Destiny. With the power it posses at his fingertips he wages war on Europe unopposed by any super powered intervention. Any heroes entering into Europe could, and would, be swayed to Hitler’s control and set loose against the Allied Forces that sent them there.

Rows of lights powered by multiple portable generators illuminate a path down a long walkway that leads to the open door of some ancient mausoleum. Fraulein Uhrmacher stops and gazes at the site with a chilling sinister grin she holds her right forearm up and makes a single circular gesture. Several of her troops immediately respond by breaking formation and disappearing into the many shadows of the ruined temple.

Within the ancient mausoleum, another squad of German soldiers rushes about in a flurry of activity. Their uniforms are standard German issue, as they are not members of The Order. Three men in officer’s uniforms watch over the scene with one nervously barking orders at the soldiers who are straining to open an ancient stone sarcophagus.

“Open it!!” The young officer shouts feigning confidence. “Quickly before she gets….”

His sentence is cut off, frozen in sudden fear as Fraulein Uhrmacher enters the chamber and stands silently observing the surroundings for just a moment. The soldiers stop as well and stand at attention as the very air in the room seems to have become thick with fear.

“It has taken me a long time to find this place.” The sneering frau says as she slowly swaggers towards the sarcophagus. “I should commend you for securing it so quickly for me… yet I am forced to wonder why.”

“We are here on orders from the Fuhrer himself...” the oldest of the three officers’ protests. “… Since you have failed to respond to his last four attempts at communication! The Fuhrer is not accustomed to being ignored.”

“Herr Hitler already enjoys the Spear of Destiny.” Uhrmacher responds. “This project is mine alone and does not concern him.”

“Bah! The Fuhrer feels differently. He only funds your research because you spoke of weapons.” The man says as he straightens his uniform in an attempt to display bravado. “Yet you have not delivered as much as a rifle in over a year. You serve at his pleasure, Fraulein Uhrmacher.”

“He gave you command of the research division and its facilities to further serve the Reich, not your own ambitions.” The third officer contributes, emboldened by the tough talk of his companion. “The Fuhrer feels you have been indulged long enough.”

At this, the Fraulein stops short of the sarcophagus in the middle of the room and turns to face the three German officers with a slight smile on her blood red lips. It causes them all to suppress a wince at her appearance of machine and flesh.

“Gentlemen, though uninvited you are hoping to discover the results of my research, to see what I have found, yes?” she begins gently, almost pleasantly as she turns back to the heavy stone sarcophagus before them. “Then let me show you.”

With a shove from both her hands she pushes the heavy solid stone lid off the top of the sarcophagus with ease, something the group of large soldiers could not budge moments before. It crashes to the floor breaking into several large pieces. The generator powered lights glint off the surface of something metallic in the large stone container.

“Behold the past becomes the future.” Fraulein Uhrmacher says in a tone that chills the officers to the bone.

“And what is this Uhrmacher? More of your ‘magic’?” The older officer mocks.

“Alchemy is not magic. It is science, although I understand your confusion.” Fraulein Uhrmacher responds still gazing upon the contents of the sarcophagus as the three officers’ approach slowly to peer inside as well. “Primitive, ignorant men are always baffled by great power they cannot understand.”

The men look into the open stone box to see what appears to be a bronze statue of a woman lying prone on her back, tucked neatly within her folded wings. The craftsmanship is remarkable and although this sarcophagus and room and the very temple that surrounds them has been abandoned and undisturbed for thousands of years, the statue appears as if it had been thoroughly cleaned just this morning.

“Beautiful, is she not?” Fraulein Uhrmacher says gazing upon the bronze colored figure as if she was in a trance, or thoughts were suddenly far away.

“What is this, Fraulein? Some sort of statue or machine?” The oldest officer asks, captivated by it already.

“Clockwork Angels spread their arms and sing. Synchronized and graceful, they move like living things. Goddesses of light, of sea and sky and land, Clockwork Angels, the people raise their hands... as if to fly.” Frau Uhrmacher finishes almost as if she doesn’t realize she spoke the words out loud.

The officers shuffle their feet and give uneasy glances back and forth at one another and the Frau returns her attention to matter at hand, smiling mockingly at their confusion.

“Forgive me, gentlemen. I had hoped that you were men of great vision and in this way we would be much alike.”

“We are nothing like you!” The youngest officer shouts.

“No, of course not...” The Fraulein agrees. “What you see as superstition, I know to be a science. As enchanting as she may be, this angel is a component to a weapon that will allow me to destroy my enemies, where ever they are, regardless of how many forces they posses, and all in a matter of hours. Herr Hitler will not even be a footnote in history when I take my rightful place as master of this world.”

“Thank you, Fraulein.” The oldest officer says.

“…For what?” She questions bluntly.

“For showing us the truth…” The officer answers. “…of how utterly mad you are.”

“You will be relieved of your command and taken before the Fuhrer for your insolence!” The youngest officer barks believing he is taking a cue from the oldest. “Arrest her!!”

Their collective confidence visibly fades as none of the surrounding soldiers, theirs or the Frau’s, makes any move toward her. The three look around in all directions with nervous anger, but still not one soldier moves an inch. When they finally return their gaze to the Fraulein she is smiling at them; a smile that fills each of them with dread beyond their experience.

“Mad am I? Perhaps…” She says softly. “Though, I seriously doubt your expertise on madmen as you have served one for years. It was child’s play to manipulate Herr Hitler into doing my will, all for his childish belief in myths of the Spear of Destiny. He desired the spear’s power to control the minds of others, so I built him one. A simple perception field device in the shaft to control the wills of others and with a range of thousands of miles, and what does he do? He squanders it like an idiot and hides behind it like a coward.”

The Frau walks menacingly around the sarcophagus towards the three officers and looks at them with disgust for their pathetic attempts to hide the fear on their faces.

“This great power I gave to him and with it he speaks of a thousand year Reich, yet his armies are starving within a month of being deployed. He foolishly spreads his forces to spill their blood over every field in Europe only to see them bogged down in pointless battles. He is a military imbecile and he will fail.”

“Your words… are treason!” The oldest officer finally says.

“Are they? Treason depends upon who is in power and currently that is me.” Fraulein Uhrmacher scolds and as the last word leaves her lips she simply waves a hand across all three of them. As her hand passes before each of the officers a small brightly glowing ball of light appears and drifts toward its man. Before they can even beg for their lives, the balls’ strike and the men simply collapse inward on themselves. Flesh, bone, organs and blood all erupt and then compact into a black crystal no bigger than an ordinary marble. They each clink as they hit the floor beneath where each man was standing.

With a sinister grin, the Fraulein bends down and picks up the crystals. Holding all three in her open hand she stares into them with a cold look of satisfaction.

“My apologies, Gentlemen…” She says to her three prizes. “…but there is no longer any need for me to conceal myself in Hitler’s shadow. His ignorant and childish ego will keep the Allies busy and by the time they win the war against him, they will have already lost against me.”



Meanwhile, in the courtyard…

“It is, Professor.” Colonel Doyle says slowly lowering his binoculars and then handing them to his friend. “It’s another Angel.”

The Professor gazes on the scene and watches as Fraulein Uhrmacher single handedly carries the Angel down the stairs from its crypt and drop it on the muddy ground before the temple ruins. It is an exact duplicate of the Angel the Professor himself found years ago in the deserts of Egypt. Bronze colored and beautiful even now as the mud refuses to cling to any parts of the Angel’s surface.

“She’s going to awaken it.” The Professor says dreadfully. “We have to stop her.”

“That’s an entire division of fortified German troops, Professor.” Colonel Doyle says grabbing the Professor’s arm. “We have twelve soldiers with us…”

“And if Fraulein Uhrmacher activates that Angel, it will be under her control and you know the devastation that will cause.” Styger cuts in sternly. “Besides you forget we have thirteen soldiers with us.”

A sudden gust of air behind them reminds Colonel Doyle of the thirteenth soldier the Professor was referring to as their own Clockwork Angel descends on silent metal wings to join them.

“There you are my friend; as punctual as ever.” The Professor says with a smile which the Angel almost seems to return as it gazes at him for just a moment. The moment however is quickly shattered when gunfire erupts all around them. Soldiers of The Order emerge from the shadows all around the band of Americans and continue raining bullets down on them. Colonel Doyle’s men are battle hardened and they dig in to their positions and return fire.

“We cannot let them pin us down out here…” Professor Styger says to his silent metallic friend as he ducks beneath a spray of gunfire. “They’re going to wake your sister! Do you understand?! We’ve got to stop them!”

The Angel hesitates for a moment and stares upward into the night sky. Confused, the Professor follows her gaze to see a bright fireball streaking through the darkness and heading directly for them.

“What in the name of…” Professor Styger utters. “This isn’t right.”

Colonel Doyle and his squad see the approaching fireball as well and in that split second of a moment the troops of The Order move in. By the time the Americans realize it, The Order has already surrounded them and all are left to wonder, will it be surrender or slaughter.

“No! This isn’t right at all…”

Aboard the Timecutter…

“DEEPS DEEPS!!”

“I know we’re falling!” Captain Carastar shouts back at her drone companion as she struggles with the Timecutter’s pilot controls. “Temporal Magnetic Pulse from the Time Drive has killed the main engines and we’re caught in the gravity well of that planet.”

On the ships main view screen the familiar blue and green planet looms before them, growing ever closer. The orange hue of flames begins to flicker on the Timecutter’s hull as it enters the atmosphere and the entire vessel begins to shake violently. Carastar looks up and recognizes the land masses and smiles a bit.

“Oh Earth, didn’t expect that, fun place though depending on the time period.” She says trying to hold the ship steady as it careens through the upper atmosphere.

“DEEPS?”

“Ten minutes to heat the coils up enough to start a chain reaction in the core to power the main engines.” Carastar answers the little drone.

“DEEPS?”

“Four and a half minutes to impact.” The Captain answers bluntly. “Aren’t YOU supposed to be telling ME these things?”

“DEEPS DEEPS!!”

“A plan? Of course I’ve got a plan; I’ve always got a plan. Well, it’s more of an idea really; like twelve percent of a plan, like a tick above a hope.” Carastar rambles. “So just in case, you may want to get to the back of the ship.”

“DEEPS DEEPS?!!”

“Because the front crashes first; …think it through.” And with that, Carastar pushes forward and angles the ship down in a sharp descent. Slicing through the atmosphere like a flaming lightning bolt with the friction causing the very hull to begin to glow red hot and engulfing the entire ship in a blazing inferno of flames. They rocket across the upper layers of the atmosphere and cross the terminator from day to night.

“DEEPS DEEPS!!!!”

“I did say twelve percent!” Carastar shouts over the roar and shaking of the Timecutter.

The interior of the ship is washed in a burning orange light from the fire dancing over the skin of the ship. On the view screen, through the flames, a landmass appears with hundreds of little islands dotting its coast and the vast blue ocean beyond. Carastar wrestles with the controls to try and tries to steer the ship over the water as she watches a particular monitor on her console.

“Deeps! Standby and on my signal open all hatches and extend all flaps and drive fins.” Carastar commands.

“DEEPS DEEPS!?” Deeps chirps as it floats over to the control station to the left of the pilots chair and extends a small metallic cable into an interface port there.

“No…” Carastar answers as the small island in the center of the fiery view screen keeps getting bigger and bigger.

“DEEPS DEEPS!?”

“No…”

“DEEPS DEEPS!?”

“What exactly about ‘on my signal’ was unclear?”

Finally the screen Carastar has been watching displays the information she’s hoping for…

…’ENGINE IGNITION’…

“NOW, Deeps!!” Carastar shouts.

“DEEPS!”

Instantly every exterior flap and drive fin extends as Carastar pushes the engines into full reverse and pull back with all her might on the flight wheel. The ship slowly begins to level but continues plunging towards the island. The night sky over the island is lit up as bright as day as the Timecutter’s red hot hull plating begins to cool. Carastar continues to strain against the flight wheel and barely notices the forest canopy they are about to rip through, nor does she give much thought to the ancient temple ruins they are headed directly for.

“Landing thrusters….. NOW!!” The Captain shouts to Deeps.

The Timecutter’s landing thrusters erupt in brilliant and roaring flame just as it smashes through the ancient outer wall of the Temple.

“ErrrrrrrAAAHHH!!!” Carastar grunts with one last yank on the flight wheel and the front of the Timecutter lurches up violently as the back end cuts into the ground. It slides across the courtyard leaving a giant trench in its wake until it finally comes to a halt and teeters on its back end for just a moment until the front finally falls forward and crashes through the main building of the Temple itself, collapsing it into rubble on top of the front of the ship and many of the surrounding ruins as well.

When the dust settles, Carastar takes a deep sigh of relief and leans back in her chair then glances to the station on her left where the little drone she now calls Deeps hangs from its connection cable which is still plugged into the console.

“Deeps?”

“Of course.” Carastar answers. “Was there ever any doubt?”

“Deeps Deeps.”

“Oi! I know the front didn’t crash first! Besides, we didn’t crash… we crash-landed, there’s a difference.” She says reaching up to flip a switch that activates the main view screen. “I used the friction from re-entry to heat up the coils enough to sustain an engine ignition. Now, let’s see where we are…”

The view screen flickers back on to show a very close up view of underneath the stone rubble covering the front of the ship.

“Well that’s not helpful.” Carastar grumps and hits another switch.

The angle changes to the port side of the ship revealing a vast complex of ancient ruins. They stretch off into the distance beyond the trees and into the forest interior, but most of the ones closest to the ship are now smashed from the Timecutter’s crash landing.

“Ruins! Good, I like ruins. Ruins are cool, and usually abandoned. You can’t mess up the time stream too much when no one’s around to be messed up. But the question is where, the question is when ….” Carastar stops suddenly when checks the readout on one of her monitors. “Well the auto repair systems have kicked in but the ole’ Timecutter is in pretty bad shape. We’re going to need to need help getting her fully operational again.”

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK…

Carastar and Deeps both pause at the sudden sound and stare at each other in wonder until the sound repeats…. KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

“Are you expecting company?” Carastar asks her little floating friend.

“Deeps…” He responds softly.

“Me neither.” The Captain says as she moves down the stairs from the bridge and heads for the crew area. As she and Deeps emerge from the Timecutter’s bar and into the main airlock they hear the sound again only much louder… KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

“Oi! Just a minute!” Carastar says pulling one of her blaster pistols from its holster on her back. She takes position on the far side of the door and motions Deeps to standby the hatch release. With a nod, Deeps opens the hatch and almost immediately a tall and stocky blonde woman steps inside carrying what appears to be a bronze statue of an angel. The stranger lays the heavy metal figure down on the deck with ease and stands before Carastar in a natural and almost noble pose. Her uniform is red, white and blue and a matching shiny, round shield with a bright white star at its center rests on her right forearm.

“What?!” Carastar starts.

Before the stranger can answer, three enemy soldiers rush up the gangplank. One fires their machine gun at the woman who deflects the bullets with her shield. They ricochet back and strike one of the other two soldiers down. Then, in a single fluid motion, the star spangled woman hurls her shield at them, striking the first head on with enough force to send him flying back down the gangplank and then with perfect precision, bouncing it into the second one and dropping him to the deck. The shield then returns to the woman’s arm as she delivers a single, solid kick to the downed soldier as he tries to stagger to his feet and literally launches him out of the hatch and into the cold night air.

“What?!” Carastar repeats as Deeps shuts the hatch with a loud clang.

The woman turns to Carastar and removes her combat helmet. Her wavy blonde hair falls to her shoulders and she looks at the outlaw Captain with a grim seriousness…

“Ok kid, It gets complicated from here.”

To be continued…




Last edited by Cara Lace on Sat Sep 17, 2016 5:27 pm; edited 1 time in total


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re: Cara Part 15: Carastar the Legendary Outlaw Part I

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Now this. Was. Just. Plain. Epic.

Ze Fraulein ist ein truly terrifying adversary. *shivers*

Oh, and DEEPS!
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