Chapter 2608: 33
Chapter Thirty-Three—Shiva Ascending
Chapter Thirty-Three—Shiva Ascending
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
"Do they seriously expect us to wear this shit? What am I? A fucking Disney princess?"
Theo winced at Stephanie's expletives, while next to him, Jessica laughed in amusement. Then it got worse when the other girl said with a grin, "I doubt it. Disney princesses don't have asses like that. Maybe a Disney hooker. Am I right, Theo, or am I right?"
Theo, who had been struggling not to stare at Stephanie, or how the thin, white material hugged her slim curves, made sure not to meet the other girl's eyes. He knew that they would be both dark blue and full of anger, as their owner looked for a fight with the only male present. Instead, he carefully focused upon his own image in the full length mirror that covered one entire wall of the locker room.
Trying to do his best to ignore the trickle of sweat that ran down the middle of his back, Theo winced yet again as Jessica's twin Nessa called, "Jess, get in here. I can't get the girls tucked into this top. They keep wanting to pop out!"
Unfortunately, his eyes betrayed him as Jessica sashayed by in her own tight spandex-like outfit, a sliver of bare tan skin showing at her midriff. Then his eyes flashed to Stephanie's butt, then to her chest, before finally arrowing back to his own face in the mirror, which was as red as a beet. Please, don't let me throw up, he begged. Or get an erection in his own formfitting pants. Either would be a disaster that he would never live down.
"Cut the crap, ladies, before you kill my stepson. You okay, Theo?"
He nodded quickly, while thinking, 'Please just shoot me.' It was bad enough that he had to deal with girls who were his own age or just a bit older wearing these tight spandex-like outfits. Now his erstwhile mother, Kayden, stepped into view from her stall wearing pretty much the same thing. At least hers wasn't that far off from what she usually wore so he was almost used to it. Almost being the operative word.
So far every costume except his own was pretty much the same, made of a white spandex-like material with some symbol upon the chest that hugged the wearer's body like a glove. Or in some cases, far tighter. Fortunately for Theo's ego, his own more pudgy body wasn't being given the spandex treatment, although for the most part his costume was white as well. It just wasn't spandex, although in his opinion, just like the girls' outfits, it, too, was far too snugly fitting.
Instead of spandex, his costume was some kind of strange, white, leather-like material with a faintly pebbled finish that squeezed him in enough that he looked at least a little heroic rather than like the chubby young man that he actually was. He already knew what Brad would say about the costume: that it would show blood too easily, exposing the far too human frailty of its wearer. Fortunately, the man wasn't here to say the words to Theo's face. So he counted his blessings.
The only thing that excited him about the costume that he'd been given was how across the chest piece and up and down both arms were set bands made up of thin patches of various materials ranging from metals to asphalt to a dozen things he didn't even have names for yet. Those bands would allow him to use his powers to create various shapes using his hands with far more flexibility than anything he'd ever envisioned.
Theo tapped one of the patches, but removed his hand before his power activated. He didn't want a hand sticking out of the wall or the floor. He just knew that Jessica or Nessa would make something dirty out of the sight. Or even just sit on it, which would actually be worse.
Unfortunately, this train of thought paralleled too closely what he'd been thinking about earlier, and Theo found himself checking out Stephanie's shapely butt again. Of course he got caught, flashing blue eyes in the mirror staring into his. "Theo! Stop staring at my ass! I swear, Kayden, you had better get your stepson under control or I'm gonna punch his lights out!"
Giving him a look of amusement, Kayden ushered the girl back into her stall, speaking in low, soothing tones. Then she walked back over to stand next to him. "It's okay, Theo. She's not really mad. Stephanie's just feeling insecure. It's the first day on a new team with a new and different costume and identity. She'd probably be twice as mad if you didn't stare at her ass at least a few times."
Theo croaked, "Please, Kayden, don't help."
Eyes shiny with mirth, she nodded, then mimicked zipping her mouth closed, locking it, and throwing away the key.
A moment later, Theo heard one of the twins' voices say, "I don't know if I can fight in this. As tight as the fit is, it might split completely when I do one of my signature moves, flashing whoever I'm fighting. What do you think, Theo?"
Theo's eyes were pulled her way for about one second, registered the pose she was in, before he decided that he was dressed and looking as good as he was going to get. Face blazing scarlet, he escaped from the estrogen filled locker room and headed at a run out onto the field where they were supposed to assemble for training today. Feminine laughter trailed after him.
Looking around while his face cooled from its current lava-like condition, Theo noted with interest the dozens of rings ranging in size from perhaps twenty feet in diameter to less than three over at the far end of field. Deciding that he needed a nice long walk to cool off, he headed across the quarter mile distance. By the time he was halfway there, Theo wished he had the hang of using the controls on the supposed flight belt he wore. Finally, after a few minutes, he arrived, having put the time to good use in studying the rings carefully. A moment later, he shook his head. He was well and truly stumped as to what they could be for.
A confident female voice sounded from behind him. "They're to practice precision flying."
He spun, shocked that someone had managed to sneak up on him. Being alert had been one of the first lessons that Brad had taught him after he'd triggered, one that Theo had learned by bleeding profusely any time he failed. It only took one glance for him to notice that the girl who'd spoken was hovering at least a foot off of the gently waving grass. Another registered her identity, making him tense up.
It was Glory Girl who was floating just a few feet away from him, filling Theo with a desire to make a move. Not because of how hot she was, although she was indeed stunning, but because the look she wore was far too reminiscent of the one on Stephanie's face a few minutes before. In fact, the move he wanted to make was a backward one.
Glory Girl snarked, "Don't worry. I'm not going to kick your ass. I just came over to check out one of my new 'teammates'."
Theo could hear the air quotes over the last word and returned the girl's frown. He almost replied in kind, but decided he didn't need to increase the tension level any further. Instead, he turned his back on the girl and ignored her. It was probably the bravest thing he'd done since becoming a cape, he decided, torn between amusement and trepidation.
"Hey! I was talking to you."
Without turning around, Theo shrugged in exasperation. "No, you were being a bitch. I don't have the time or desire to deal with it so why don't you take off."
"Asshole."
Then was the faintest whirring of air and he knew the girl was gone. He gave out a faint sigh of relief. A moment later, he heard a familiar voice as his teammate finally arrived.
"Nice job of putting that blonde Barbie doll in her place, Element."
Turning back around, Theo saw Stephanie standing before him. Or Orbit, rather, he instantly corrected himself, glad she hadn't gotten there in time to put her own two cents in. He also noted that he needed to get used to using the new code names for his teammates. The last thing he wanted to do was screw up and use the wrong name at the wrong time. Of course that wasn't as bad as constantly staring at his teammates' private parts.
Shit, he thought. He just had to think that last bit. Now he was once again struggling to not stare at Stephanie in the skin tight white spandex outfit she was wearing.
The girl in question scuffed her foot, then sighed. "Go ahead. Stare as much as you want. Get it out of your system now, but if you're still doing it tomorrow, I'm seriously going to kick your ass."
"Sorry, St- err... Orbit. I don't mean to be disrespectful."
"It's okay. It's probably why we don't wear costumes like this back home. Well, except for 'Blaze' that is."
Theo nodded contritely. Then he took a real look at more than just Stephanie's ass and boobs to the actual costume itself. Now that he was actually looking at the material, he could see that it definitely wasn't spandex. Instead, it seemed to almost shed the light that hit it, in a way that he'd never seen before. Equally interesting was the four inch wide metal belt that encircled her waist, colored the same violet hue as the orbital symbol on her chest. He tentatively asked, "Have you figured out what any of the stuff on your belt does?"
Stephanie's eyes traveled to where his finger was pointing toward her waist and the various shapes and controls on the belt there. Chewing her lip, she said, "Not yet. I figure it might be some kind of forcefield generator or something, since that's part of Next Wave's shtick. Or maybe it's how we're supposed to be able to fly?"
A synthesized voice sounded from behind them, making them both jump. "Actually, it's both a flight unit and forcefield generator. You both have one. As do the rest of the team."
The two teens spun around to face the voice's owner. Theo paled as he realized that Iron Man was hovering soundlessly less than a dozen feet away from him, the second time someone had managed to sneak up on him in less than five minutes. The glowing crimson eyes in the silver face unnerved him, something that he was quite certain that Stephanie felt the same way about from the way she moved just the tiniest bit closer to him.
He forced himself to respond, "Thank you, sir. When will we be learning how these work?"
Despite the fact that the armored figure remained motionless, Theo couldn't help but think that Iron Man was intently studying them both. Finally, the Tinker answered him. "Later today. You'll be pulling drills with Lady Photon and the other members of Next Wave to work on team cohesion. Synchronized flying is just one of the things you'll be learning."
Daringly, Stephanie stepped forward and challenged, "Why do the other members of Next Wave get to keep their cape names but we have to change ours?"
There was a surprising lack of indignation at what one of their Empire mentors would have likely deemed insubordination as Iron Man patiently explained, "When a villain receives a pardon, one condition of that pardon is that the former villain will change their public identity. It's a bit naïve, as everyone knows who that person really is, but since it's the accepted social convention, we have to play along."
"You couldn't come up with anything better than Orbit?"
Despite the almost disrespectful way that Stephanie was speaking to him, Theo got the impression that Iron Man was more amused by the girl than anything else. "Well, Debris was one of the names being bandied around. As was Junkyard."
Theo stifled his own amusement as Stephanie made a face. "Ugh. No thanks. I'll stick with Orbit. But did you have to go with spandex?"
Iron Man nodded. "Pretty much, although your costume's not actually spandex. It's a complex polymerized material that's not only resistant to most forms of high energy particles, but from impacts up to a light machine gun's as well. It's also intended to make you look harmless, even if you aren't. How about you, Element? Is the name and costume to your satisfaction?"
He nodded. "It's fine." It really was better than what his father had him wearing to represent the Empire. Those swastikas had been a bit over the top. Theo hesitated, then asked, "May I ask you a question, sir?"
They both ignored the muttered "suck up" from Stephanie. Iron Man gravely nodded. "Of course, Element. Ask away."
"Why are you doing this? Taking us in? I mean, we're villains, not heroes. You have to know that Kaiser's offer is double-edged. That we all could be plants intended to sabotage your idea for a new hero organization. What makes you think that you can stop that from happening? Somehow change us?"
There was a long silence, during which Theo could almost feel Stephanie frantically trying to come up with a way out if Iron Man took umbrage at what he'd just asked. It was likely that the only reason she hadn't interrupted him earlier was because she was just as curious as he was himself, although she would never have broken the party line to ask. Well, that and she likely hadn't known how far he'd push it. But Theo needed to know what kind of man he'd signed on with. That one particular bit of knowledge meant everything to him and he'd risk a great deal to discover it.
Finally, Iron Man stated, "Of course I knew. It wasn't exactly a subtle plan. Okay, here's the thing: I don't think I can change you. Any of you. Change can only come from within, not from source exterior to the person. So it is up to each and every one of you to decide if you want to change. The thing is, I believe that people deserve an opportunity to change. Not a dozen, mind you. Not even three or four. An opportunity. Each of you deserve that opportunity. If you want it. After that, whatever you do is up to you."
Stephanie murmured, "Platitudes."
Of course Iron Man heard her. "Maybe, Orbit. The battle for the hearts and minds of Parahumans is a very real one. It's one that will decide whether we'll be mired down in prejudice and hate for the next hundred years, or if we'll all find a way to live together in peace. Jack Slash knew that. And so do I, which is just one of the reasons why I killed him. The other being that he was a raging psychopath.″ He paused a moment, as if giving them time to absorb his words. That second from the last statement had made Theo's gut clench and he found himself almost fidgeting under that soulless stare. Point seemingly made, Iron Man continued, ″I'll do my best to make sure that each of you discover there's another path for you. One that doesn't require you to hate three fourths of the human race. Maybe to figure out that there is someone you can count on to take that journey right alongside you."
There was a moment's silence. Then Iron Man finished by saying, "Because if we fail here, the only future I see for any of you is the Birdcage, or worse."
Theo almost winced. Since the other Parahuman had wiped out the entire Slaughterhouse Nine in less than five minutes, the 'or worse' that he'd just mention was a far from toothless threat.
He nodded tensely. "I appreciate your honesty, sir."
"Element, I'll always be honest with you. Even if its just to tell you that I can't tell you something. But I won't lie to you. Ever."
That last word had a hint of finality to it, as if it had just been carved into granite. Theo didn't dare glance over at Stephanie in case she was sneering or something. Instead, he just stood there until Iron Man said, "I need to coordinate things with Lady Photon. I'll see you both later."
Only when Iron Man's figure had receded enough that he could be absolutely certain that the other cape couldn't hear their conversation did he turn toward his teammate to see her still staring after the armored cape. To Theo's surprise, there was no hint of derision anywhere on the girl's face. Instead, if anything, Stephanie looked thoughtful.
Of course, as soon as she caught him looking her way, her sneer returned two fold. "What do you think you're looking at, suck up?"
Ignoring the jibe, Theo asked, "What do you think?" Scuffling his foot through the grass, he clarified, "About Iron Man, I mean?"
She threw her hands up in the air. "How the fuck do I know?"
Theo's brow went up at that. The very real emotion in Stephanie's voice betrayed her agitation. As did the fact that when he remained silent, she seemed unable to.
Almost against her will, she expounded, "Look, he's impressive. I'll give you that. But you're not buying any of that Mickey Mouse shit, are you?"
Trying to be as honest as he could, Theo said, "I don't know."
"What the fuck, Theo? What do you mean, you don't know?"
Both hands on her slim hips, Stephanie glared at him in disgust. It was the first time since Iron Man had spoken to them that he was again aware of her as a girl. But he pushed his libido down to try to give her an honest answer. "I mean, I don't know. I want to believe. Fuck, you have no idea how much I want to believe. But I don't know if I can. I mean, I can't afford to be wrong this time."
It was a lot more than he'd meant to say and Stephanie seemed conscious of that fact as she stood silently next to him. If any of this got back to his father, there's be hell to pay. Not that Max would kill him. Oh no, he wasn't that merciful. Instead, it was far more likely that he'd instead find a way to tear out what little was left of the real Theo. Lobotomize him, in a way. He feared that loss of self far more than mere physical pain.
"I won't say anything."
Not daring to speak again lest something even more apostate slither forth, Theo just nodded. He was more than a little relieved when there was an announcement for all of them to gather at the other end of the training field.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Taylor looked out over her mixed group of Parahumans, the core of what was supposed to be Brockton Bay's defense. She was neither disheartened, nor even really worried about the dichotomy already showing between the members as they stood in two clearly defined groups. If only these people had any idea how tumultuous the first few years of the Avengers had been, she thought in amusement. At least all of the people in front of her had only tried to kill one another before they'd become teammates.
In a crisp tone, she announced, "I wanted to thank each of you for coming today. It's the first day of training for the entirety of the Human Defense Initiative, Brockton Bay. Or as most of you will come to know it, Next Wave.
"Each of you has your own reasons for joining, reasons that likely mean a great deal to you. I respect the privacy of those reasons. However, I want to make sure that you all understand something."
Taylor slowly paced back and forth in front of the two groups, her eyes upon their faces. She found it interesting who was able to meet the crimson gaze of her armor and who struggled to do so.
"I will accept failure. I will accept mistakes. I will accept the occasional act of sheer stupidity. However, what I will not accept is a lack of effort from any one of you at any time."
Abruptly, she was hovering five feet above ground. Deliberately magnifying her volume, Taylor stated, "You are the Human Defense Initiative. You are the first and last line of defense between humanity and those who would harm it. That means that you are going to work your asses off. Put your lives on the line. Push yourselves harder than you ever dreamed you could until you wish more than anything else you could just go cry to your mommies and daddies."
Settling down back in front of them, Taylor walked right up to Brandish. Staring right into the woman's eyes from a foot away, she said, "Because I will accept nothing less."
Slowly Taylor made her way through the entire group, doing the something similar for each of them as she spoke. She talked of honor, courage, and fidelity. She talked of holding the line, even if that line was one made up of the blood of you or one of your teammates.
Over a period of about ten minutes, Taylor poured out much of the anguish and pain of Tony Stark, while avoiding using any of the tricks he'd learned to use over a thousand speeches, with but one exception. The one trick that she used over and over again was speaking from the heart, using sincerity and honesty as a weapon as lethal as any knife or gun.
At the end, she had a group of men and women who at least were engaged, whether or not they truly felt like they belonged. For now, it would have to be enough.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Sarah cursed as another shot by her dark alter ego went astray. It was an odd way to think of someone who was a brilliant, blazing white when using their power, but it was how she felt about the other woman. She pulled up and called out, "Blaze, you need to tighten up your groupings. Focus on accuracy, not volume or force."
The woman nodded back to her, appearing not an iota less than one hundred percent professional. She still irked Sarah, as if the other was an irritant that made her skin itch incessantly. But it went far deeper than that.
Sarah, in her guise as Lady Photon, had never been a match for Purity of Empire 88. When the other woman had shown up in Brockton Bay nearly seven years ago, already a part of the Nazi gang, she had faced her one on one on multiple occasions. The results had been dismal at best.
Sarah had been soundly beaten, once even literally, as the almost percussive nature of Purity's energy beams had injured her badly enough to require her niece's healing. Her response to those defeats had been to use teamwork to fight her, which had been fairly successful. Still, her failure left a bitter taste in her mouth, as her weakness twisted at her very soul, echoing deeply into her past.
Now the woman was ostensibly on her own team, not something she would have believed possible even a few days ago. She was trying to give Taylor the benefit of the doubt on her decisions, but wasn't too happy with this particular one. At least the girl had shown up today in person to help keep tensions down. It was a brave cape that would push her in her guise as Iron Man, especially after the way she'd wiped out the Slaughterhouse Nine.
She, herself, privately admittedly that even she looked a bit askance at Taylor, especially after having watched the fight now on several occasions. Because it hadn't been a fight. Not really.
Instead, it had been an execution. The sheer ruthlessness that the fifteen-year-old displayed made Sarah wonder if there wasn't something actually wrong with her beyond merely having the mentality and memories of a genius from another reality.
Sarah shook her head, forcing the distracting thoughts back. It didn't solve anything to dwell on the past or problems that couldn't be solved. No, better to focus on right now and trying to get Pu- Blaze's accuracy up.
Fortunately, her counterpart's second run was a lot better, which was a relief. And the synchronized flying earlier had gone a lot better than she would have every imagined. Even her niece, Amy, had run the rings in a respectable time. Afterward, the bright smile on her face showed just how much she enjoyed flying.
Sarah admitted that she sometimes worried about the girl. Her sister had never really warmed to Amy, something that she should have realized would happen. After all, they both had scars from their shared past. They just showed in different ways. She-
Sarah's train of thought was interrupted by Iron Man waving at her from further down the practice field.
He floated closer, then said, "Lady Photon, I have some things for you and the rest of the team. Can you gather everyone for me?"
"Of course, Iron Man."
Sarah activated the subdermal communicator she wore that allowed her to speak to everyone on the team no matter their distance and calmly announced, "Everyone, gather around me, please. Iron Man says he needs a moment."
Within a few minutes, the entire group was together. Fortunately, they were already starting to lose that two group separation as Orbit and Element stood next to her kids, whom they'd been sparring with, while Hammer, Anvil, and Glory Girl stood in a different group, chattering animatedly about some move or another from the way their gestures paralleled their speech.
Even Uptick and Panacea were staying close, quietly discussing something that drew a smile from her niece.
As soon as they were all gathered there, Iron Man floated forward with a couple of large, black cases hovering next to him. Sarah sighed as she wished that she could just think of the armored Tinker as a girl instead of having to switch sexes every time she thought about Iron Man versus Taylor Hebert. It was damn confusing at times. With an effort of will, she focused her attention back on his words.
"Okay, good first day, folks. As a reward for all of your hard work, I wanted to give you some items. First up, Lady Photon. Here you go."
Sarah took the gleaming, inch thick wristbands that Iron Man handed her, surprised at their lightness. "What are these?"
There was almost a tone of glee in the the other's voice as Iron Man said, "Well, I had the idea of providing team members possessing energy projection abilities with wristbands that provide an augmentation factor ranging from one to twelve, depending upon their native output."
Sarah was stunned. "Seriously?" She stroked the wristbands she was holding almost reverentially. Then something occurred to her. "While I can probably handle this, as I've been a Parahuman for many years, I don't see this working out nearly as well for the kids."
With an admirable smoothness, Iron Man said, "Which is why I'm giving your overall control over the augmentation factor of Shielder and Laserdream's bands. You can start them at one and increase them from there as they grow used to their greater output."
Sarah nodded, watching as Iron Man passed out the bands to both of her children and Blaze. To the former villain, Iron Man said, "Blaze, your bands only augment by a factor of four. Sorry, but that's the best I could do since you already have a pretty significant output."
The wide smile that showed beneath the three-quarters face mask echoed her own joy. It was also present in her voice as Blaze said, "That's no problem, Iron Man. Being four times as powerful as I was is amazing. Especially when coupled with the force fields you already gave me. Thank you for these."
Of course, even as two of them spoke, both Crystal and Eric were practically begging Sarah with their eyes. In a very firm tone, she said, "We'll discuss this later."
"Don't worry. I have more goodies. Hammer and Anvil, front and center, please."
The blonde twins, who even Sarah had to admit looked good in their new white costumes, walked forward. There, they stood, looking almost uneasy under Iron Man's lambent gaze. "Hammer, I have this for you." He handed her a large shield with her symbol upon it, and an equally large hammer, the head oddly ornate. "Use these instead of the ones you were previously issued. The hammer has a kinetic amplifier that can increase your hits up to twenty times. The shield not only does the same, but can absorb blows up to a kiloton equivalent, perhaps even more when you are at your maximum growth."
The blonde twin stepped back, holding her new acquisitions, obviously pleased. She stammered out, "T-thank you."
"Anvil. I have this for you." Iron Man handed the girl a gleaming metal object that somewhat resembled an elongated anvil with hand grips about shoulder width apart. The surface away from the hands was flat with the center colored azure "It has many of the same augments as both of Hammer's items, but adds a powerful particle cannon on the blue area. Be careful."
Again, the girl looked pleased as she stepped back. She even managed not to stutter as she murmured, "Thank you, Iron Man."
The armored figure waved it away. "You're welcome. Glory Girl."
"What do you have for me?"
Sarah almost rolled her eyes. Her niece would be bouncing on her toes if it wasn't for the fact she was already floating a foot above the ground. There was a sense of amusement from Iron Man as he said, "Here you go."
Sarah caught a glimpse of the items he was handing Glory Girl. They looked like nothing so much as oversized brass knuckles. Iron Man confirmed her guess a moment later. "They're kinetic energy impactors. When you hit something, it will increase the force of your blow by up to twenty times while protecting your hands from that same force. So use them wisely."
"Oh I will. Watch out, bitches!"
That last was aimed at the former Nazi twins, who shook their own items at her in return. It also drew a hissed, "Language!" from her sister, which Glory Girl ignored.
Sarah's eyes narrowed as she realized that this ceremony of gift giving, timed as it was after their first practice together, was likely meant to increase camaraderie and cohesion among the new team. Even her own bands, which put her far closer to par with Blaze, were likely meant to do the same. Damn that girl, she thought, half in fondness, half in exasperation, how does she keep doing things like this?
Sarah watched as the rest of the items were handed out. Some esoteric piece of technology for Element that allowed him to animate his figures for up to a minute. For her sister, there were goggles that would allow her to see the outside world when she was in her hard light form, with the possibility of movement with later upgrades. She shook her head at the thought that had gone into that particular item even as she avoided staring at the look of almost avarice on her sister's face as she clutched her gift.
Panacea received a wristband that gave her a virtual HUD that would track all of their team members' vitals, and allow her to locate them if they needed healing or dispatch reinforcements as needed. Uptick received the same. Manpower received kinetic projectors similar to Glory Girl's, while Flashbang received wristbands that would augment his grenades' force by several factors.
"What about me?"
Sarah noticed that everyone had received something except Orbit, who looked a bit forlorn. Iron Man silently stared at the girl, an act which she didn't understand. If this was intended to bring everyone together, why tease her like this?
"Well, let's see. Mmm..." Iron Man seemed to be rummaging around in the second case he'd brought. Finally, he pulled his hand out with a gleaming silver belt held in it. "Well, well, I guess I do have something for you after all, Orbit."
With that, he tossed the belt to the girl, who stood there holding it in a tentative grip. Finally, she hesitantly asked, "What does it do?"
"Well, it might create a section of non-Euclidean space around you so that all points within a range of fifty feet are in constant contact with your skin. If it did that, it might mean that you could use your telekinesis on anything within fifty feet as if you were touching it directly."
Sarah was still trying to puzzle that one out when Orbit startled her by shrieking, "Oh My Fucking God!"
Stunned, the girl stared at the belt in her hands for several seconds, before abruptly struggling to fasten it around her slim waist. She was having limited success, when the boy, Element, stepped over to help her. Together, they quickly managed its attachment. Once around her waist, it merged with the belt that was already there, one clicking into the other as if it had always been meant to be that way.
Once it was equipped, Orbit turned toward a heavy piece of equipment designed for Brutes to play keep away with, and it obediently rose into the air. It settled back to earth with a surprisingly gentle sound as she turned back toward Iron Man. "Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou."
"You're very welcome, Orbit. Okay, folks, you've got your toys. Enjoy them. I'll let Lady Photon wrap things up here. I'm off to take care of something important. Have fun."
Like a missile, Iron Man darted up into the air so fast he should have left a massive shockwave behind, but the air just seemed to swell for a few seconds, then subside. It was a weird effect, one that Sarah hadn't encountered before from a flying cape. She suddenly realized that everyone was staring at her. She hurriedly said, "Okay, everyone. Good job today. We'll all meet back here at three pm tomorrow for another practice session. Dismissed."
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Taylor shifted nervously as she got out of the back of the limousine. "I'll be back in about three hours or so, JARVIS."
"Of course, Miss. I'll be here to pick you up. Feel free to stay longer, if you want."
Rolling her eyes at the AI's antics, she said, "I'll keep that in mind. However, I don't think Dad wants me out that long with a boy, even one who has to keep a mask on when he's with me."
Taylor walked across the neatly tended grounds toward the tall glass doors leading inside. She pushed her way through the revolving doors, absently noting the containment foam nozzles and tasers that were built into the frame above the door, ready to be dispensed in the event of an attempted breach. There were also myriad sensors, ranging from metal detectors to sonics to UV and Infrared lights, as well as another dozen that defied such easy identification.
It wasn't a bad set up, but she'd seen better. SHIELD under Tony Stark's leadership had things so locked down when dealing with potential hostiles that it was rare for anyone to even attempt either a covert or non-covert infiltration. Not that any had actually been successful, but even the attempts had been few and far between.
Approaching the attractive and attentive girl sitting behind the expansive desk at the back of the large lobby space, Taylor said, "Hi. My name is Taylor Hebert and I'm here to see Kid Win."
"Of course, Miss Hebert. Kid Win left word with us that you were expected. If you'll follow Corporal Higgins, he'll escort you to Kid Win's laboratory, while I call ahead for you."
Taylor followed the indicated guard, who wore the typical mirrored glass visor of the PRT's front line troops. He held open a door that lead into a long corridor. "This way, Ma'am."
"Thank you, corporal."
"You're welcome."
From there, they took an elevator that was quite smooth, but Taylor could still feel the upward movement. Then there was a brief walk down another corridor, until finally they arrived at what must be her destination, something she could easily tell as Kid Win was standing outside, uneasily shifting his weight from one foot to another as he waited.
He waved nervously. "Hi, Taylor. I've got it from here, corporal."
The trooper waved an acknowledgment and left, leaving the two of them alone.
Taylor smiled at him, suddenly glad she'd come. "Kid. How goes it?"
"Umm... pretty good, I guess. Can you stay long?"
There was a certain eagerness in his voice that a voice in the back of her mind whispered was because of attraction. Refusing to allow Tony to ruin things, Taylor nodded and said, "Three hours at least. Unless there's an emergency."
He waved Taylor inside of the room, shutting the door behind her. "You get called in for many emergencies?"
Taylor shrugged. "General notification, actually. They tell everyone who might be affected. Me because of Dad."
"That's cool, I guess. Where would you like to start?"
"How about with those hard light pistols that had the fluctuations in their power coils? I want to see how you fixed them. And what you've been studying."
Kid Win started to scratch his head, but when his hand touched his helmet, it dropped to his side. "Funny thing, that. Once I read the Dr Little's work, it was as if the answer just came to me. A little later, I was able to figure out my specialty. Lately, I've been reading Feynman. I'm kinda hoping he unlocks something else neat."
Taylor smiled at him. The boy really was sweet, once you got past his overly enthusiastic nature. "Cool. I can't wait to see it."
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Chris was feeling surprisingly happy as he and Taylor worked together on yet another item, his earlier nervousness forgotten. Currently, they were designing yet another potential power system for his modular equipment system, or MES as Taylor called it. She seemed to have a fondness for acronyms. The most recent power system was a micro-fusion unit that used heavy water to stabilize a HE3-based reaction. Studying it, he was feeling a bit daunted by the sheer complexity of the thing. It might end up becoming something he could actually build, but if it were, it would be a near thing.
He might be better off sticking with the simple nuclear power cell they had already drawn a very basic schematic of that was based upon the radioactive decay of plutonium. Hesitantly, he said, "What about sticking with the nuclear power cell? I'm not so sure about the tech behind this micro-fusion reactor. It's pretty cutting edge."
Taylor waved away his concern. "Look, it's fine. We can even simplify it." Pointing to one particular area of the rough schematic she'd drawn out, she said, "See there? Cut out the thermal overrides on the containment unit and you can send any fluctuations in the temperature of the reactor directly to a thermocouple which will then send it back into your energy containment system in the form of usable power."
Chris started to rub his head, then remembered he was wearing his helmet. He stopped, then twisted his hands together, before stopping that as well. He hated nervous habits, especially his own. "Taylor, the thing is, that's some pretty risky stuff. Even if I could get it to work, I'd run into issues with the PRT's Technology Monitoring Division. They could hold this up for over a year if they deemed it necessary. When it comes to really complex stuff from young Tinkers like me, they often do."
The girl, whose personality was so much more forceful than even what she'd shown that day at her dad's company, scoffed, "Seriously? That's utter bullshit. Sorry for my language, but they'd really hold something like that for a year? Not let you use it at all?"
He nodded. "Well, yeah. They have to make sure there's no possibility of it malfunctioning and hurting someone. Most notably, myself, so I can kind of appreciate their point of view. It's why I haven't shown them my Alternator Cannon. They'd have fits over it." Chris stilled as he realized that he had just told someone else one of his most closely guarded secrets. Closing his eyes, he waited for the hammer of doom to fall. Of course, it turned out that he was totally underestimating the girl sitting next to him.
Taylor's only response to his statement of rebellion was to say, "I want to see it."
Chris lit up, his voice a little too eager as he chirped, "Really?" Taking it down a peg, he managed to be a little cooler with the rest of his response. "I mean, sure. If you want."
Reaching for the button on his armband that activated the short range beacon-based teleportation system, he was just about to press it when Taylor grabbed his hand, hard. "Just how big is this cannon of yours?"
Chris looked around. Shit! If he'd sent it in here, it would have crowded them badly, maybe even hurting one of them. "Umm... maybe a little too big for this area. I built it in the other room."
Releasing him and apparently not noticing him surreptitiously massaging that hand, Taylor suggested, "Then let's go into that room."
He nodded. "Okay. It's through that door."
Chris walked ahead of Taylor, aware of her presence of her presence behind him, like a cloud of oppositely charged particles, pricking his skin. He mused that she should wear a warning label which said, 'Beware, Forceful Personality.' Feeling guilty at the thought, he glanced back at her, then away.
After all, despite possessing what someone else might describe as a personality with its own gravitational pull, she was a really cool girl. As Chris unlocked the door of his secondary lab, really just a glorified storage room, he marveled anew at how comfortable he felt talking about his work with a girl. Well, this girl. And it wasn't just technology that they discussed. They had talked about a lot of other subjects as well, from politics to his classes. Even video games. It turned out she could be just as big of a nerd as he was himself.
Plus, while Chris still didn't have a good grasp on everything about his companion, he had figured out a few things.
Taylor was smart. Really, really smart. She knew things that a lot of Tinkers didn't. At the same time, she clearly wasn't a Tinker as she seemed to lack the intrinsic understanding of many of the things he showed her. She'd said she wasn't, but Chris honestly hadn't been sure he believed her before. Now he kinda did. Well, mostly. Regardless, she was a seriously quick study on anything that he put in front of her.
Taylor had understood his modular equipment system in a way almost no one else had, after only studying it for a few minutes. Her questions about it had been insightful and interesting, showing a comprehension of the tech that he hadn't expected. So far, only Armsmaster had truly grasped what he was doing in his specialty. Unfortunately, the dour, older man wasn't always the best person to talk to, even when he made the token effort to be personable.
Chris shook himself from his reverie and gestured for his guest to check out his single greatest creation thus far, one that had taken an experimental ADHD drug to help him create.
His Alternator Cannon, all fifteen feet of it, lay in front of them. The barrel, which was approximately three feet thick, was built into a turret that in turn sat upon a circular platform, allowing it to rotate three hundred and sixty degrees. The controls for its operation were behind the protection of the turret, which meant an opponent needed to take down the protective shielding there to get at the operator. All in all, it was one awesome piece of equipment.
Taylor, on the other hand, seemed less than impressed. In a voice that almost seemed meant for herself, she muttered, "Why build in the heat projector? Especially in that format? If you had just focused upon one form of energy projection instead of putting in, let's see... seven different types, you would be able to increase the output over five hundred percent."
What on Earth? Staring at the slim girl who was intently studying his device, her nose only inches away, Chris demanded, "How the hell do you know that?"
Taylor gave him a quizzical look of confusion, as if she'd momentarily forgotten he was there. "Huh? Well, it's obvious. I mean, look at this." She pointed to the selection system relay input. "See how delicate it is because of the need to channel hard light, like your pistols? You've got both percussive force on this thing, as well as, umm... a pure LASER system. Either could have been so much more powerful with more robust power relays. Instead, you went with a set up possessing a failure point that is set far too low. See what I mean?"
Chris felt a cold shiver travel down his spine as he saw what she was pointing at. He whispered, "If I pushed the cannon, it'll blow up."
"Of course it won't. I mean, it would if you hadn't toned down the output of the other weapons to match. But you wouldn't have... oh. Shit."
Chris leaned forward, placing his hands on the Alternator Cannon to keep himself erect. He sighed. "Yeah, I didn't realize what I did. The thing would have blown up on me after just a few uses."
He stared blindly ahead. "I really meant to go back and check everything. But I didn't. I was just so happy to figure out my specialty. To know how to make things in a way I never had before. To read about advances that people had made before Tinkering ever started. I just never got around to it."
He started when a strong slim hand squeezed his shoulder. He looked up to meet Taylor's sympathetic brown eyes. "It's okay, Kid. How about we fix this thing together?"
Chris shifted his weight uneasily. "I'm not sure that I want to involve you in this, Taylor. You could get into real trouble helping me."
She shrugged, a look of utter confidence on her delicate face. Then she sent an urchin grin his way. "I'll take my chances. Now, let's make this bitch burn!"
Chris laughed helplessly, unable to stand against such a forceful personality, or even sure he really wanted to. He paused, as he wanted badly to do something, but wasn't sure he should. Diffidently, he asked, "Taylor, would it bother you if I took off my helmet? It's a pain to wear it while working on stuff, and I've had it on this entire time."
The girl hesitated, then with a diffidence equal to his, said, "It won't, but are you sure you want to?"
This was one thing that Chris felt completely confident of. "You won't betray my identity?"
It was more of a statement than a question, but he could tell that Taylor got what he meant. She shook her head. "No, I won't betray you. Go ahead if you want."
Chris felt incredibly nervous despite his earlier words as he reached up and unlatched his helmet. Then he carefully moved to pull it up over his head, not wanting to spaz out and drop it. As his face was fully revealed, he finally saw Taylor's face with just his own eyes instead of his camera's display. Her eyes were wide open, as if startled, as she stared back at him.
Of course, he knew exactly what she saw, a boy with sandy brown hair cut short with a thin face and pale grey eyes. Not a particularly memorable face, but at least he was wasn't completely ugly. Or out of shape, thanks to the physical training that Wards received. Setting his helmet next to his cannon, he stuck out his hand. "Hi, I'm Chris. It's nice to meet you."
Taylor shook his hand, her own grip a strong one. "Hi, Chris, I'm Taylor. Nice to meet you, too."
Aware of the pounding of his heart, Chris asked, "Ready to get to work?"
Her eyes already moving back to his cannon, Taylor nodded. "I'm ready."
"Then let's do this."
Two hours later, they'd torn down two-thirds of his cannon's systems, rebuilding several of them almost from scratch. At least Taylor was happy about the quality and amount of components and raw materials he had available, although he did hear a couple of mutters about the PRT hogging everything good. He pretended not to hear her and just kept working.
He ran one last diagnostic on the short distance teleportation system, only a little surprised that Taylor had somehow figured out a way to increase the range more than two hundred percent just through tuning. Sitting there, feeling as mentally exhausted as he was exhilarated, Chris couldn't help but notice that Taylor looked completely fresh, her long, curly hair still hanging in an immaculate braid down the middle of her back. It was like this was just another walk in the park for her.
Almost absently, she reached over and changed several settings on the weapon's output, then, using a micro-soldering iron on the circuit board, casually bridged two connections. Just like that, the device's output increased fourfold, something Chris confirmed with another quick diagnostic, trying to keep it low key so his companion didn't notice. Once done, he sat back, a strange feeling of bemusement spreading through him.
The level of competency Taylor had just demonstrated boggled the mind, and Chris sat there, a feeling like he was experiencing a low voltage shock throughout his entire body, as it all fell into place.
A suspicion that had been gradually growing more and more obvious suddenly crystallized, and he knew. Knew who Taylor had to be. Although why she'd claimed not to be a Tinker, or felt the need to hide who and what she was, was something that he still didn't understand. After all, that person was already being proclaimed as the greatest Tinker to have ever lived.
In the end, it didn't really matter. He wouldn't be betraying her secret. He-
The harsh wail of the Endbringer sirens going off completely derailed Chris' thought process. What the hell was happening? An Endbringer here? Now?
He quickly checked a status monitor on the wall, which told him to report immediately for orientation. Chris immediately turned toward Taylor, only to find her addressing the thin air directly in front of her.
"JARVIS, what's going on?"
Chris nearly jumped out of his skin as a cultured, British voice answered her from the same location, "Miss, Armsmaster and Dragon's predictive program has borne fruit. They've discovered that Leviathan is incoming to Brockton Bay, ETA under an hour. They've already contacted Director Costa-Brown, who is directing forces here. I was about to contact you when they triggered the sirens, making it moot."
Taylor seemed remarkable composed for someone who had just been notified that Leviathan was heading toward her home town. In an eerily calm tone, she asked, "I take it that there's no time to waste getting things set up?"
"No, Miss. You're needed immediately."
"I'm leaving now. Have the car meet me at the wall." With that, she turned toward Chris, an almost sympathetic look in her clear, brown eyes. "I had fun, Kid. We'll have to do this again sometime. If we can. Okay?"
Chris spoke rapidly, "Taylor, let me help you. I can help you with whatever you need if you'll let me. Unless..."
She didn't answer, merely crooking an eyebrow in gentle amusement. Then she walked right through the wall in front of her. Chris watched, completely stunned, as the wall seemingly rearranged itself behind her. Seconds later, it was as if she had never even been there. It also cemented his theory as fact in his own mind.
Grabbing his MES harness, as well as the new, revamped controls to his cannon, Chris ran out of the room, heading for his team's rally point.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
"Miss Militia, have you notified the city's civilian leadership about Leviathan?"
The woman nodded. "Yes, Armsmaster. I gave them a heads up just before the sirens sounded. They're on their way to the shelters, as is the general populace. With the lead time you've given us, it's almost a certainty that casualties outside the shelters will be minimal."
Colin harrumphed. "As good as that is, we need to focus our efforts on stopping the creature before we end up another Newfoundland. I'll stay here, organize the different Protectorate branches that are sending heroes here. If you could focus your attention upon the PRT troops, accepting volunteers for search and rescue."
"Of course. I'll head over to the PRT HQ and check how things are going. I'll rally the troops while I'm there."
Colin nodded a dismissal, then turned when a voice at his back said, "You should have thanked her for going."
Tersely, he stated, "She was just doing her duty, as we all are." As you did when you helped me create this program, he said silently.
Dragon, her image on the monitor one of a woman in her late twenties, shook her head. "It doesn't hurt to be polite."
Colin disagreed, but refused to waste time in argument. Still, he hesitated a moment, before saying, "Dragon, if I don't make it..."
The AI's voice was filled with absolute conviction as she said, "You will survive this, Colin. You have no idea how strong you are. And when you do, I'll be waiting."
Colin felt his pulse rate slow as a sense of calmness filled him. "I know you will."
With that, he cut the channel between them, and opened more to Protectorate branches all over the country. Speaking into the first, he asked, "Legend, how many heroes are you bringing from New York?"
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Trish felt her guts clench when the ceaseless howl of the sirens sounded. She'd been right, after all. It had been between Brockton Bay and Boston, but she had been almost certain Leviathan was coming here. She was pretty sure that Taylor had believed her, but without a time line for the Endbringer's arrival, she hadn't felt there was any reason not to go about their day to day activities. Her friend also had infinite belief in Garden Spot, not something that Trish was sure she, herself, shared.
The nanobots were amazingly dangerous in their own way, but she couldn't see how they'd be able to stop an Endbringer. Worse, JARVIS had refused her requests to run simulations on how the nanotechnology would respond to the increasing strength of an Endbringer's structure, as they penetrated deeper and deeper within. He'd merely indicated that it had been accounted for. She suspected that Taylor had some convoluted plan to deal with things, but wasn't willing to push her power at this late date to try to figure it out.
At least she had armor of her own now, Trish thought, running a loving hand over the lavender and silver frame of her suit. Moving over a bit, she set her feet and allowed the armory program to begin suiting her up.
Once it was done, Trish took a step forward, wishing she had full length mirror to check herself out. Unfortunately, JARVIS hadn't deemed it necessary when he'd been designing the room. She'd have to go back and retrofit one, Trish thought, trying to ignore the fear and worry that gnawed at her from within.
It wasn't working, though. Trish knew the odds, how many heroes died every time an Endbringer attacked, even when it was successfully driven off. They weren't good.
She also knew Taylor too well to think that the girl would stay back and just use her drones to engage Leviathan. No, the stupid girl would have to get her licks in, taking out her frustration over not being able to make things go quicker on one of the sources of that frustration. That it might get her killed was something she seemed to lack all fear and understanding about. The girl never thought.
At least she'd be there to watch Taylor's back. And if her best friend, who was feeling suspiciously like a sister these days, got into trouble, she would be the one to get her back out of it even if she had to flog her own power like a slave owner of old in order to accomplish the task.
Grimly determined, Safeguard strode forward before rocketing up into the sky.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Daniel Hebert stood still as the blue and silver armor wove itself around him. Once it was done, his HUD lit up and he was able to access the com channel. Of course there was no response from Taylor when he sent her a chime. Well, there were ways around that. In a tense voice, Danny muttered, "JARVIS, please call my daughter for me. Now."
"Of course, Danny. Miss Taylor will be with you momentarily."
A second later, Taylor's voice came on. "Hey, Dad. Sorry about that, I was wrapping things up with Adamant. He's on his way with all three of the Australian teams."
Her breezy apology did little to assuage Danny's anger. "I thought you were going to wait for us, so that we could go as a group."
Taylor's voice sounded a lot more serious as she said, "Dad, I get that you're worried, but please relax. It's a small change to the plans. I was still at the PRT when things went down, so it was faster to leave from here. I'm not planning on going off on my own or anything. Don't worry, you'll be right there to see how I handle things."
Handle Leviathan was what she was really saying, Danny thought, a feeling as if his guts were being cut out of him filling him. His little girl was going up against yet another of these monsters, again with armor that even she deemed inadequate to truly fight one of them. Then she told him not to worry, as if that would work.
Trying to get a grip on his emotions, Danny said, "I want you to promise me you'll be careful, Taylor. Promise me."
There was an uncharacteristic subdued tone to Taylor voice as she said, "I promise, Dad. Now I have to go, okay?"
"I love you, kiddo."
"I love you, too."
With that, the line went dead. Danny stood there a moment, flexing hydraulic muscles, then with a sound like thunder, launched himself skyward. His armor felt visceral and responsive around him. With a thought, his weapon systems went live. Danny methodically checked each weapon, making sure it was at its lethal best, despite the fact that he knew JARVIS had already done so. Finally, he finished, and started a continuous diagnostic, as he roared through the skies. War Machine was ready for battle.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Sherrel felt close to the edge of tears as she spoke into her microphone. "I'm so sorry, Taylor. I really tried to finish. If I had just one more week, I could have completed him."
As she spoke, Sherrel couldn't help but look at her creation, well, mostly hers. Standing more than fifty feet tall, the Mecha Iron Man suit towered over her own diminutive form. When finished, it would be able to move every bit as fast as Taylor's own much smaller suit, the miracle of inertial compensators teamed with momentum cancelers achieving the near impossible.
It would strike with so much force it literally beggared the imagination, using weapons so robust and powerful that Sherrel wasn't sure that they were actually safe to use on the surface of a planet. But she was very interested in helping Taylor to find out.
Fortunately, her boss and mentor didn't sound that upset as she responded, "It's okay, Sherrel. The Mech was a long shot anyway. Until I can synthesize a version of Adamantium and get the anti-matter reactor going, it won't be as useful as I'd hoped. Just get suited up and over to the rendezvous point."
Sherrel spoke with a forlorn eagerness, "I will, Taylor. I'll be there as fast as I can."
With one last look of regret for what might have been, Sherrel headed toward the armory system, stripping off her overalls as she walked. A moment later, she stood in her underwear in the middle of a whirlwind of machines that soon had her clothed in a stunning suit of crimson and silver armor.
Sherrel glanced at her image in the mirror she had set up in her lab. Not bad, she decided, the look of her armor bringing a smile to her face. She didn't bother to run a single diagnostic, having kept part of her attention on maintaining her armor (with JARVIS' help), despite the crazy work and study load that she'd kept up with these past several weeks.
As whisper quiet as a hummingbird, Sherrel rose into the air. She was filled with a fervent need to protect the people who had become her family in such a short time, to show them that they had made the right choice in picking her. She cared so much for all of them, even that bratty Trish. She was equally determined to prove to the rest of the world that she was worthy. Floating out of the building, Knockout blasted off in the direction of the rendezvous point.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Sarah closed her eyes in fear and anguish for just the briefest moment, then reopened them before anyone around her could see. She didn't dare allow her teammates to see any weakness, either the new or the old.
But she did feel weak. In a short time, they would be facing Leviathan, arguably the most dangerous of the Endbringers. In their own way, each of the Endbringers were incredibly dangerous, whether that danger happened now, or sometime in the future. But this was today, not some nebulous future. It was today that her children would face Leviathan, and it almost made Sarah's heart break at the thought.
They were protected, though, more than they had ever been before. Still, if she'd had one wish, more than anything else, Sarah would have wished for more time. Time to train them in the use of their new gear. Time to integrate these new, possibly unreliable teammates into Next Wave. Just... time.
But it wasn't to be. So with a prayer for a merciful God that she no longer really believed in, Sarah crisply ordered, "Listen up, people. This is how it's going to go. We'll be meeting up with Iron Man and the other HDI teams at the rendezvous point. From there, we'll stop in at the main Protectorate meeting before engaging in combat. Other than myself and Blaze, none of the team will be fighting. Instead, you'll engage in search and rescue of other capes. Remember, these orders override any you may receive from Protectorate members."
There were looks of doubt and worry visible on more than a few faces, even those with masks on, but Sarah didn't let them affect her as she soldiered on. "Iron Man has assured me that there will not be any civilians left in the city, so don't worry about helping them. He also has a plan to deal with Leviathan, so let him. Nobody acts like a distraction, understood?"
There was a chorus of ayes, albeit some reluctant, then Sarah finished. "I want each of you to comport yourself with courage and dignity. Facing an Endbringer, even in a support role, is a dangerous proposition. Stay focused, do your jobs, and by God's mercy, may we all emerge from this alive at the end of the day. Now let's go."
A moment later, thirteen capes dressed in white, each of them filled with their own doubts and fears, rose into the air and headed off to battle.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
His guts churning, Adamant stood in front of his team, while the other two teams that were to accompany him formed a rough semi-circle just past them. "All right, mates, it's confirmed to be an Endbringer. In Brockton Bay, over on the east coast of the United States. We'll be heading there as a group using the portal tech that Iron Man left me."
One of the other groups' capes, who went by the name Rapunzel for obvious reasons, asked, "Why are we answering the call, Adamant? It's usual for a country who just got hit to be exempt from the next call up, right?"
Adamant frowned slightly at the smooth, cosmopolitan tones of the other cape. Most of the other two groups were from either Brisbane or Perth, and sounded like it, lacking the rougher speech he was used to. It made him feel unpolished and backward by comparison. He tried not to allow his feelings to affect his tone as he stated, "Righto, Rapunzel. But I knew that you'd all want to go when you found out that Brockton Bay is Iron Man's home port. He's going to be there and so are we. It's time to put the Human Defense Initiative on the map."
There were murmurs of both assent and dissent from those around him, but the former far outnumbered the latter, Adamant was relieved to realize. "If you don't want to go, stay here. But my team and I are going. We're going to kick Leviathan's arse, right mates?"
"Damned straight!"
"Righto!"
"Fookin' oath, mate!"
Adamant felt pride at the support from his group. Catching Free Fall's eye, he saw her pink tongue teasingly touch her lower lip and fought down the surge in his groin. Instead, he made himself watch as the other groups fell in line, following his lead. So this is what being a leader feels like, he thought. It must be how Iron Man felt all of the time.
Facing the portal, he activated it remotely via his HUD. Approaching the circle that showed a completely different city than the one around them, Adamant refused to dwell upon the dangerous task he was about to embark upon. Truth be told, he didn't care that much about the danger. In fact, he'd rather die than fail. With that old Shakespearean adage of 'A coward dies a thousand times before his death, but the valiant taste of death but once', front and center in his mind, Adamant walked through, his steps firm and undaunted.
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
Stepping through the last wall, Taylor's foot landed on the open door sill of the car floating just outside. Sliding inside and sitting down, she said, "I'm in, JARVIS. Let's go.″
"Acknowledged, Miss. We're being hailed by PRT guards and being told to leave the airspace. I'm blocking their targeting systems."
"Then we'd better do what they say." With that, they took off, the intense acceleration gently pressing her into her seat despite the inertial compensators.
Taylor sat there a moment relishing her seat's comfort, then triggered a switch on the virtual HUD that floated before her. A moment later, she sank into the seat as the car turned into a mobile armory system. With surprising speed, she was soon fully armored in the latest version of her suit.
Running a quick systems diagnostic, she asked, "Do you think that was enough to recruit Kid Win?"
JARVIS sounded uncertain as he responded, "Perhaps. He was certainly taken with you, Miss. He was also well on the way to figuring out your identity before you mailed it in."
She argued, "I didn't mail it in. Did I?"
"Just a bit. Don't worry, Miss. One thing I am certain of is that the boy will not betray your identity."
Taylor nodded her acknowledgment. "You disabled all of the cameras and microphones, right?"
"Of course I did, Miss. And substituted prepared footage as well. Not to change the subject, but is it still your intention to engage in hand to hand combat with Leviathan?"
Taylor sighed. "I have to, JARVIS. It's a way of counting coup, even if it's probably the least necessary thing I have to do from a victory point of view. As long as we get that information on the dimensional pathways it's utilizing for matter and energy transfer, I'd consider this a success. But our people need to see me successfully fighting Leviathan if they're to continue to believe in the HDI, if we're to increase recruitment."
"As you say, Miss."
Taylor sat there pondering, as the car flew toward their destination nearly as fast as she, herself, could have. At the forefront of her thoughts was the star of this little shindig. Garden Spot had proved to be a success beyond her wildest dreams, and for that alone, she was thankful.
It was funny, but it had never been her intention to nanotize the entire world. Doing so would be incredibly dangerous to the very fabric of society at the very least, and cataclysmic at worst. She didn't need Reed's social dynamics to figure that out. Tony's real world capitalist know how was more than enough to figure that out.
No, nanotizing Brockton Bay had merely been part of an experiment carried out on a grand scale. A way to bring an Endbringer into a controlled environment where it could be studied by her best technology as it was run through a maze and slowly destroyed. The city had become a honey trap, an irresistible lure to attract an abomination.
And like a honey trap, it had brought Leviathan here, where she would work her will upon the Endbringer and teach it why man was really the most dangerous life form in the entire universe, able to contest with actual gods, not just poorly named monsters.
In a voice soft and hypnotic, Taylor whispered, "Come into my parlor, said the spider to the fly." Her lips slowly curved into a smile as cruel and merciless as an Antarctic winter as she contemplated what she would shortly be doing to the monster that had terrorized her world for so many years. "Enjoy what time you have left, beast, for I am coming for you."
In the back of Taylor's mind, there was a chorus of agreement overlaying a seething rage. She'd ride that anger, using it to empower herself until she stood over the creature's dead body. Only then would she allow herself to be a person again. Until then, she had to be something more than human, the epitome of destructive force. One final phrase, made famous by Robert Oppenheimer all of those years ago, entered her mind. Taylor whispered, "Now I have become Death, the destroyer of worlds."
~~~Memories of Iron~~~
AN: Next chapter, Leviathan rises.
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