“Reprogrammed? He’s resistant to Maestro’s stuff!”
“TO MAESTRO’S STUFF, YES. NO TELLING WHAT OTHER MINDRAPERS THEY HAVE ON STAFF.”
“Shit. We gotta get over there, now!”
“ON THAT WE ARE AGREED. YOU HAVE TO GET OVER THERE.”
“What?”
“ALPHA, UP FOR A SPIN IN THE BRUTE SUIT?”
“You’re not coming?” Último asked.
“THINK IT OVER.”
He did. And a grin spread out over his face, showing every one of his rather-crooked teeth. “Unless they drug me again, I’m pretty much unstoppable, yeah?”
“THAT NAME’S TAKEN, BUT YES. ALPHA WILL BACK YOU UP IN HER ARMOR, GO AHEAD TO MAKE SURE YOU DON’T ACCIDENTALLY KILL ACERTIJO.”
He sobered up at the thought. Then he put his mask back on, and took a breath.
“SO THE ONLY QUESTION REMAINS, ARE YOU UP FOR THIS, ÚLTIMO?”
“That’s not my name no more.”
“OH?”
“I am Señor Responder.”
“MISTER ANSWER. THE RIDDLE AND THE ANSWER. HA! YES, THAT WORKS. NOW GO AND SAVE YOUR BOSS.” My armor came roaring up from below, and I gave them a jaunty wave. “AND COME STRAIGHT BACK, AFTER YOU DO. WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO, AND NOT ENOUGH NIGHT TO DO IT IN.”
They flew off, Acertijo’s sidekick in my suit’s arms, and I headed back down into the fort.
It was nice to be able to delegate important things, for a change. Got to admit, this whole tyrant business had some perks going for it.
CHAPTER 19: GLUTTONY’S GRIM FEAST
“I like fighting heroes. Just the thing to ensure your palate gets enough variety.”
--Quote attributed to Maneater, Scottish villain wanted for three counts of murder, missing since 1994
By the time Alpha and Responder returned with a groggy but living Acertijo, I was arms deep in files.
A gentle cough caught my attention, and I looked over to see Responder, arm around a tall, handsome man wearing the most godawful Hawaiian shirt and Bermuda short combo I’d ever seen. It would have been hilarious if his face wasn’t lined with bruises all up and down the left side.
“RIDDLE. GOOD.” I tossed down the file I was holding. “GOT ONE FOR YOU. YOU UP FOR IT?
Acertijo smiled. “Always.”
“WHEN IS A LUXURY MOUNTAINSIDE RESORT NOT A RESORT?”
“You’ve found his base of operations?” He patted Responder on the arm, stumbled forward to lean on the table. “How?”
“WHEN SHE ASCENDED TO RULERSHIP, SHE APPOINTED A NEW MINISTER OF THE INTERIOR. DIRECTED HIM TO QUIETLY LOOK INTO THE RESORTS OUT ON THE BAY. HE DID SO. FOUND THAT THEY WERE QUIETLY PAYING THEIR TAXES, UNLIKE MOST OF THE OTHER FOREIGN-OWNED COMPANIES AROUND HERE. ALSO FOUND OUT THAT THEY WERE LOOKING TO DO SOME RENOVATIONS TO ONE OF THEIR PROPERTIES OUT IN THE NORTHEASTERN HILLS.”
Acertijo rubbed his chin. “From this, you determined the answer?”
“NO. FOR A WHILE SHE DIDN’T MAKE THE CONNECTION. IT WASN’T UNTIL TONIGHT, THAT SHE FOUND OUT THE SERPENT SUMMONER WAS ONE OF MAESTRO M’S MINIONS.”
“The assassination attempt...”
“THERE WERE ACTUALLY TWO GOING ON AT THAT ASSEMBLY. ONE AGAINST DIRE, BY THE CIA. BUT THE SECOND ONE, WHICH DIRE ALSO BLAMED ON THE CIA, WAS BY THE SIN-DICATE. AND IT WASN’T AGAINST DIRE, OR EVEN RICIO. IT WAS AGAINST POOR JULIAN.”
“Moreto. Your Minister of the Interior—”
“WHO THEY CAUGHT SNIFFING AROUND, DIGGING INTO THEIR SECRETS.” I tapped the permit, which he’d signed as one of his last living acts on this world. “THEY KILLED HIM OVER THIS.”
“Seems kind of dumb,” Alpha commented.
“No,” Acertijo said. “It fits how they think. Maestro M is paranoid. And with some reason. If you’d put this chain in my lap, I could have put the pieces together. I knew about the beach resorts, but not this location.”
“SPEAKING OF THOSE BEACH RESORTS, ALPHA? WHAT’S THE SITUATION THERE?”
“We’ve got guard-bots holding them under lockdown right now, under the cover story that there’s a wanted weapons smuggler staying in them. All obvious bullshit to the bad guys, but it’s keeping the innocent bystanders calm.”
“NO GUARDS? NO DEATHTRAPS? NO SURPRISE METAHUMANS?”
“They had guards, yeah. Me and Responder took care of those. And some traps on Acertijo himself, but nothing I couldn’t disarm.”
“For which I thank you,” Acertjio said. “The bomb would not only have killed me, but the floors above and below me.”
“De nada, compadre.”
“THEN THAT CONFIRMS HER THEORY THAT LA CODICIA WAS RUNNING THE SHOW IN THE RESORTS. IF IT WAS UNDER MAESTRO M’S DIRECT PURVIEW, HE WOULD HAVE INCLUDED THE FULL GAMUT OF CLASSICAL SUPERVILLAIN LAIR DEFENSES. UP TO AND INCLUDING A REMOTE KILLSWITCH.”
“La Codicia was running the show?” Acertijo caught my words, and studied me with black, intelligent eyes. “Past tense?”
I nodded “DURING RESPONDER’S RESCUE. SHE HAD HIM AND SPETTA CAPTIVE. DIRE ENDED HER.” Technically true.
“Would that I could have broken her damned neck!” Responder muttered.
Acertijo rubbed his chin. “Then that leaves one.”
“ONE?”
“You know the Maestro’s Sin-dicate, yes? He is Pride. Greed was in charge within the city. Wrath died when he came for me. But there is one more.”
I did some math. “NOT FOUR MORE?”
Acertijo shrugged. “Mariposa is only one part of his business. I expect there are three more wherever he might be.”
“HE TRIED TO RECRUIT DIRE AS A NEW WRATH.”
“I am not surprised. There is a lot of anger within you. But the one we must keep an eye on now, is the one filling the position of Gluttony.”
“GLUTTONY...” I paced, folding my hands behind my back. “DO WE KNOW ANYTHING MORE ABOUT HIM THAN THAT?”
“I am not sure it is even a ‘him.’ Maestro M applies the words in broad strokes. They’re not even always powered people. He tries to fit people to the job who match the sin, but it’s an imprecise label.”
“OR HE CHANGES THEM, MESSES WITH THEIR MINDS AFTER THEY STEP UP TO THE ROLE.”
He nodded. “Precisely.”
“THEN WE’RE GOING IN BLIND. IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE.” I tapped the permit, and waved my hand. “ALPHA, MAP.” Instantly a holomap of the island sprang into being, wavered above the table. “THE FACILITY IS HERE.” I tapped the jungle road, traced it up into the hills northeast of Malo Verde. “NOT MUCH OUT THERE BUT A SMALL FARMING VILLAGE, AND A PRIVATE DOCK. THIS RESORT WAS BILLED AS A LODGE FOR THE ELITE OF THE ELITE. HEAVY SECURITY, TOTAL PRIVACY.”
“Miles of jungle all around,” Responder observed.
“GETS WORSE. DIRE CAN’T USE HER AERIAL DRONES TO SCOUT THE PLACE. RIGHT NOW THE US FORCES HAVE A DIRECTIONAL JAMMER POINTED AT THE AREA NORTH OF MARIPOSA. WHICH WORKS BOTH FOR AND AGAINST US.”
“Maestro won’t be able to remotely detonate the place, or communicate with it while the jamming is up,” Acertijo said.
“THAT’S A ‘FOR’ POINT. IT ALSO HINDERS OUR COMMUNICATIONS, BUT DIRE HAS A SOLUTION, THERE.” I waved a hand, and yellow lines traced up through the city, up to Malo Verde, and north. Then a solitary one arrowed northeast, straight to the lodge. “THIS IS THE FORMER GRIDNET TRUNK OF MARIPOSA. STILL FUNCTIONAL, AFTER DIRE RESTORED IT. DIRE MAPPED IT OUT MONTHS AGO. SHE CAN SEND HER TUNNELING CONSTRUCTORS ALONG THE SAME ROUTE, POP UP A SERIES OF EXTREMELY SHORT-RANGE VOX NODES THAT WILL LET US COMMUNICATE SO LONG AS WE STAY WITHIN A FEW HUNDRED FEET OR SO OF THE CABLE.”
“That will do. We’ll have to go now, you realize?”
Refreshing, to be dealing with someone who saw the angles I did. “YES. DIRE THWARTED THE REBELS EARLIER TONIGHT. ONCE THEY LEARN THAT, THEY’LL REMOVE THE JAMMER. NO NEED FOR IT. SO WE NEED TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY, WHILE IT’S HERE.”
“Your tunneling constructors. Can they aid the assault?”
“IF WE KNEW WHAT WE WE
RE GETTING INTO, YES. BUT TO DO ANYTHING BEYOND THAT THEY’D HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE JAMMING. CAN’T PRE-PROGRAM THEM WITHOUT KNOWING WHAT THE SITUATION IS. AND WORSE, SHE CAN’T RISK THAT THEY’LL DAMAGE WHATEVER REACTOR HE HAS SET UP THERE.”
“Wait. Reactor?”
“DIRE FOUND THE SAME SIGNATURE OF EASTMAN-LAIRD RADIATION ON ALL THE MUTANTS IN THE SEA CAVE. HE IS USING RADIATION TO MAKE HIS METAHUMANS.”
The room went silent.
“Oh boy,” Alpha whispered. “Nothing about this in the future logs—”
“AH DA DA DA. NO NEED TO MENTION THOSE. ACERTIJO, ARE YOU READY TO GO NOW?”
“Give me and Responder half an hour to get to a secondary safe house and costume up. Meet you at the Cabildo?”
“DONE.”
Forty minutes later we were soaring over the bay, the two heroes nestled snugly in the arms of the Brute Suit. I’d used the time to set the constructors in motion and manufacture vox headsets for the two of them.
Our channel hissed to life now, as they tested them out. “So he is making his own powered people, then?” Acertijo asked.
“Yes. You didn’t know about that?”
“Suspected. I’ve broken up some of his smuggling operations, stopped human trafficking shipments before. Always hints of something deeper, though. Stories of certain people the Sin-dicate kidnapped being separated out, and never seen again.”
I gnawed my lip. “That’s almost more disturbing. It suggests that they’ve managed to isolate metahuman potential.” That was supposed to be impossible. I’d talked with one of the smartest men in the world, a centenarian who’d been close to the start of the rise of superpowers, and studying the effect ever since. And unless he was lying to me, he’d never managed to isolate the factor. Not for lack of testing both legal and illegal. If Maestro M had cracked the code, then no matter what we did here tonight, he’d remain a threat in the future.
“We’re going to have to track him down and end him,” I said. “After all this is done, she means.”
“I still can’t get over how you sound when you’re not shouting like a mad robot,” Responder said. “I tell you, that screechy voice of yours knocks a year off my life every time I hear that jabber. Strange to think there’s a woman behind that death machine you got on right now.”
“Gender is irrelevant to Dire’s goals, methods, or capabilities. Get over it.”
Acertijo laughed. “The woman is no less deadly than the armor, my friend. And yes, we must talk about the Sin-dicate if we succeed here. But first we must succeed.”
True. I focused upon the matter at hand. We were ten minutes out, so I went down to the treetops, flew along the canopy. Birds scattered, but aside from that, we were running mostly silent. I couldn’t use my sensors due to the jamming, but I knew that they were operating under the same constraints. They shouldn’t know we were coming, they shouldn’t know they were in danger.
Which was good, because there were innocents in there, and I didn’t want to risk them being used as hostages, or killed out of hand. Kidnapped people ripped out of their lives, innocent Mariposans taken to be tortured and mindwiped.
For a time, for a little while at least, they were my people. And I would protect them.
It was that simple.
The vox crackled, and Alpha spoke. “Testing, testing, testing—”
Then we were out of range. I slowed, turned around, and picked up the line. “We’ve got you.”
“Good! Using the tunneler nodes to get a fix on you... now. Sending a flight plan along the wire. You’ll want to land a mile out, give or take.”
“How’s the approach?”
“Dunno. If we knew what kind of defenses they had we might be able to risk an ultrasound echolocation or two, map them out. But as it is, I thought I’d err on the side of caution. You want one anyway?”
I considered. “Once the assault starts. Until then we’ll deal with it as it comes.”
“You’re the boss.”
Once we saw lights, I slowed. The canopy thinned, as the soil got rockier, and the cliffs rose up. Gave us a bit of an occluded approach, at the cost of hazardous terrain. “All right, this is it.” I slowed, stopped near the bottom of the steepest cliff. “Unless you have a better plan, she’s going to give you a ten minute head start to get into position then she’ll come in guns blazing.”
“We can work with that,” Acertijo said. “Got your grapple line ready, Responder?”
“Yes, but... if it doesn’t work right I’ll kill you. Or her.”
“You won’t kill either of us. You’re a hero now, amigo. You got this. Remember how we practiced.”
They hopped out of my arms, and headed toward the cliffs, pulling grapnel guns as they went. Of course they had grapnel guns. Why wouldn’t they?
Despite Acertijo’s vote of confidence I nudged the suit back until I was well away. Optimally neither of us would be killed if Responder fucked up, but if it came down to a choice between me and him, well, I liked me better.
Nobody fell; nobody died, and nobody sounded an alarm, so I counted it as a success.
The minutes crawled by, and no alarms went off, no guns fired, and nobody screamed. For a moment, for a brief, shining moment I dared to hope that everything had gone to plan, that for once luck was smiling on me.
I shouldn’t have tempted fate. Eight minutes in, my sensors started coming back online. “Shit. Shit!” I cursed, even as I rolled up my passive radar, and watched vox connectivity go through the roof. The US had chosen now, of all times, to end the jamming.
“Uh, boss, we’ve got a— ”
“She knows, Alpha! Do the pulse! And then...” Possibilities flashed through my mind. Yes, yes, I could work with this. “Suru, cut the gridnet access to Mariposa again.”
“Affirmative, Doctor.”
“Also the broadcast gridnet. Both temporarily. Acertijo, Responder, are you in position?”
“We’ve come as far as we can. Took down two guards on the outer perimeter,” Acertijo whispered. “We’ll need your distraction to go any farther.”
I had to admit, some small part of me was thrilled to hear a hero admit he needed my help. Tempered a bit by the fact I knew damn well he was capable of stealth beyond any logical or reasonable limitation. He was probably being held back by Responder, but too polite to say so.
So I jammed the gravitics to full, shot over the hillside like a bat out of hell, and roared towards the lodge, firing concussion rockets as I went.
I was past the building’s outer wall and crashing through the roof in a heartbeat, then my rockets struck home all around me, shaking the building and blowing chunks out of the walls.
I looked around, as the floor groaned under me. A wide ballroom, empty at this time of night. Shouts of alarm below me, and a rising siren as they realized they were under attack.
Down sounded good. I plunged a fist into the floor, peeled it back as rubble cascaded down. I was hovering so I didn’t plunge down and kill anyone who didn’t need killing.
But the folks below me had no such hesitation. And to my utter shock, damage readouts flickered, as purple beams blew through the floor, some catching me, spraying armor away with each shot.
I cursed, pulled back out of the hole, and got on the vox. “Lasers!” I yelled. They’d go through flesh like butter. My suit wasn’t optimized against them, either. I looked at the readouts, swore, and when the jerks below kept firing blindly into the ceiling, I popped out a screamer, dropped it down the hole, and followed it in as it wailed.
This looked like a guard room of some sort. I didn’t stop to sightsee, homing in on the staggering, puking guards, and battering them down with swift slaps that tossed them around the room like ragdolls. Bones broke, flesh burst, but by then I was out the door, blasting it from its frame with my bulk, and glaring down the wide halls. Sterile here, white like a hospital, with tiled floors to boot. I turned on thermal vision, peered through thin walls to see people within twitching and lying on
what were presumably beds. Saw more people approaching, arms cocked like they were carrying weapons.
One of the things that a lot of people take for granted in superpowered battles, is that almost every piece of terrain in the battlefield can be destroyed. It’s just a question of how much force you can bring to bear.
I was Dire. I’d built myself all the force I needed.
My thermal sight found the guards as they came for me, and my particle beams punched through walls between us, as I aimed around patients and drilled guards with blasts that would have cored tanks.
Overkill? Yeah, but at this point I needed them down, posthaste. Their weapons could shred me, given time. I would not give them that time.
It seemed like an eternity, but it was done in minutes. A few guards tried returning fire, but aside from a few new scorch marks, I escaped mostly unscathed.
Which was good, because the first volley of pounding had ripped up my armor pretty badly. I was down to the lower layers in spots. And after that was, well, me.
No time to contemplate. “Alpha, you there?”
“Yeah! The sonar pulse... eh, it’s weird.”
“How?”
“There’s tunnels under there, no surprise, but there’s no reactor emissions. No large bodies of water for dispersion pools. Nothing to suggest a reactor setup.”
I chewed my lip, flipped up the Geiger counter. It chattered every time I got near one of the rooms that hosted reclining people. “Everyone here has traces. They have to be using a reactor.”
“Well it’s not here!”
Was this just another way station? Damn! No, no, I had to get to the bottom of this. Literally.
I bent down, punched through the floor, and dropped into the basement.
Boilers, machinery that supported a resort... and a sealed vault door.
A sealed vault door that resisted my suit’s raw strength.
“Forget it, it’s trapped,” Acertijo said behind me. I managed to avoid blasting him down, eased my finger off the trigger.
“HOW DO YOU DO THAT?”
“Trade secret. Responder, come!” He turned and called up the stairs.
Dire : Wars (The Dire Saga Book 4) Page 29