“At least that’s something. What are the odds of the intruders being taken down by Dreamer and Ebon Dragon?” he asked, adding his jacket and pulling on a pair of shock gauntlets. “Also, activate the defense bots.”
“Activating defensive systems now. Precise odds incalculable, due to insufficient information on the abilities of those involved,” Eve told him, her voice growing more serious as she continued. “When basing information on previous encounters, I give no more than even odds of a successful defense. I recommend evacuation, Doctor.”
“Damn it. Well, if that’s how it’s going to be…” Doctor Johnson said, pausing by the door and scowling. “Insure that things are backed up and initiate a data wipe, Eve. Do you want to risk transferring to your new chassis? It’s almost completed.”
“No, Doctor. The time and risk that would require are not worth the potential improvement in my abilities,” Eve replied promptly. “Beginning backup scan, Doctor. What do you wish for me to do with Jade Serpent? Her conditioning has only barely begun.”
That made Doctor Johnson pause and frown in frustration. He didn’t dare allow the heroine to join him in the escape sub without question, but he also didn’t want to give her up. Not after the effort he’d put into building her appearance and the like. In the end, he decided to go with the safe option, no matter how much he regretted it. He could always find and modify a new servant later.
“Upload a backup of yourself and delay any pursuers as long as possible. Ensure they don’t get their hands on Jade, Eve,” Doctor Johnson ordered. “I’m going to go dismantle the genetic manipulator and destroy the components save for the critical pieces before evacuating. Be prepared for the self-destruct sequence, Eve.”
“Yes, Doctor,” Eve agreed, then paused and continued. “They’ve encountered Dreamer.”
“I’d better hurry,” Doctor Johnson said, opening the door and breaking into a jog. Two of his combat robots had been waiting and flanked him as he jogged down the hallway.
Chapter 31
Saturday, January 12th, 2031
Dr. Johnson’s Lair, Santa Cruz
“Ooh… I had wondered what had the alarm squawking like a scared little bird, but never did I think it’d be the two of you… and a pretty one. Mm… I can smell her innocence from here,” Dreamer crooned, grinning as she stood up from her chair, her crimson eyes fixed on Lilith as she licked her lips. “How did Shadowmind ever make someone like you? You’d be so incredibly tasty to toy with…”
Something about Dreamer looked different, Morgan thought, her eyes narrowing as she looked the villain over carefully. Something felt different, too, but she couldn’t put her finger on what. Maybe it was Dreamer’s attitude… the woman sounded more confident than she normally did. The content of her words irritated Morgan, but not nearly as much as it seemed to bother Gina.
“Shut up and get out of our way, Dreamer,” Gina replied, her voice flat. “Unless you’re really wanting to get your ass handed to you.”
“Oh, did the pretty doll dressed up in her armor not like that?” Dreamer asked, swaying back and forth as she almost caressed the back of a chair. “Mm… you want to keep her all to yourself? Yes, I think that’s what you want… just like the impulsive little blue boy wanted to have you all to himself.”
Gina took a sudden step forward. “You—”
Morgan grabbed Gina’s shoulder and opened her mouth to speak when she suddenly found herself… unsure of what she was doing. Why was she so tired? And what was she doing here again? She could hear the white-clad, swaying woman speaking, could understand her words, but they didn’t really register.
“Yes, he did want you for himself. When I pried open his tiny, selfish mind, I got to learn all of his precious desires, Warden, including everything he was planning to do to you. Every last one of the sordid deviancies he desired. I could make them come true, too. Or I could open your mind, learning of what it is you desire and making those dreams come true,” Dreamer purred, circling the table slowly. “Yesss… I think that’s what I’ll do. All of those precious dreams will become—aah!”
Dreamer jumped back as a crimson beam lanced out from Lilith’s pistol and barely missed her. Lilith spoke firmly, the sensation of her offering Morgan strength washing over her. “Morgan, Warden! Snap out of it!”
Morgan accepted the power almost instinctively, and she felt the fog over her mind ripped away like cobwebs. She shook her head, slightly unnerved by the experience. She’d never been hit by Dreamer’s power before, so what she’d experienced was surprising.
“You… how did you break free?” Dreamer demanded, her eyes wide.
“I don’t know how you could use your power on them that easily, but I’m not going to allow you to control my thoughts. I don’t have much, but my mind is my own,” Lilith replied calmly, frowning slightly. “I won’t allow you or anyone else to touch it.”
“Ugh, thank you, Lilith. That was… shocking. But now I know what she’s doing, and I can block it,” Morgan said, weaving magic to reinforce her mental shields against the aura she now detected from Dreamer. “I’m surprised. You’re more powerful than I anticipated, Dreamer.”
“She is. That was… unpleasant,” Gina added, frowning. “Let’s take her down.”
“You’re welcome to try, you unpleasant miscreants, but if you do, you’re going to have a harder time than you’d think!” Dreamer suddenly snarled, her eyes spitting malevolence as she reached out as if grabbing the air to either side, and Morgan’s eyes widened as the very air around the villain seemed to warp.
The air twisted, and darkness enveloped Dreamer’s crimson eyes, turning them pitch-black and the veins up and down her arms slowly turning dark as well. From looking almost seductive, she turned frightening in a moment, and flickering white energy poured out of her hands into the warping air. Two figures took form to her sides that seemed to be made of light and shadow, and as they did, Morgan felt her shock deepen.
The first figure was barely recognizable due to the pattern of his outfit, but it was definitely the figure of Blue Impulse, and Morgan could feel the fluctuations of magic off of his figure. They were much weaker than normal, but she could feel them. The other figure was the tall shape of Heavy Metal, but it seemed more translucent, almost weaker. By the time they took form, Dreamer was sweating hard and panting.
“What in the hell?” Gina exclaimed, taking a step back as she stared at the figures. “Who… how did you do that?”
“Dreams reflect reality! I may not be at full strength yet, but I’ll make you pay for looking down on me!” Dreamer spat out.
“Shit, I’ll—” Gina began, but Morgan held out her hand and shook her head, smiling slightly.
“No, Warden. We have other enemies to face. Dreamer is pushing herself, and these… creations of hers aren’t at the strength of the ones they’re based on,” Morgan told her friend, putting a hand behind her back and beginning to concentrate a spell in it, one which would be able to pierce defenses. With non-living beings, she didn’t have to hold back. “You two go search for Johnson. Take him down.”
“Morgan?” Lilith’s use of her superhero name was slightly odd, as if Lilith didn’t like the sound of it, but she continued softly, “Are you certain?”
“Completely. Go, both of you. I have this,” Morgan replied, smiling slightly as she spotted a scowl on Dreamer’s face.
“Come on, Lil,” Gina replied, grabbing Lilith’s arm and darting away. She knew better than to stick around when Morgan was insisting, at least.
“Don’t you dare!” Dreamer exclaimed, and at her gesture the figures beside her moved, Heavy Metal’s footsteps sounding like thunder in the large room.
The copy of Blue Impulse mostly mirrored his teleportation, flickering out of existence in flashes of white light and launching bolts of white magic at Lilith and Gina. Gina’s shields were even more powerful than before though, deflecting the attacks easily. Morgan’s confidence grew as she realized that the bolts of
magic Blue Impulse was throwing were barely half their normal strength, so instead she turned to Heavy Metal as she pointed the hand gathering magic at him.
“Catch!” Morgan called out, just as the orb of swirling, near-black magic launched out of her hand at the lumbering figure of the villain like a cannonball. She was amused that the figure actually did attempt to catch her attack, but it was far too slow.
The orb of magic sent Heavy Metal flying backward into the wall without almost any other effect. Dreamer began to laugh, then cut off as she seemed to notice that Morgan was smiling.
With a tremble, the orb suddenly burst open into a screaming torrent of purple magic, twisting and tearing at everything within ten feet. The metal wall screamed as it began to tear, and a nearby chair was reduced to crumpled, broken wreckage in mere moments. The figure managed to resist the attack for a few seconds, but then it abruptly, suddenly collapsed on itself, bleeding white liquid that shone with internal light across the floor before the spell died.
Morgan tapped her lips, grinning as she spoke. “Oops. I think I broke it… next, please?”
“You…!” Dreamer growled and inhaled sharply. The white liquid on the ground swirled and rose into the air, flying over to coat her skin in a gleaming layer of light, hiding most of the black shadows of Dreamer’s veins, and Morgan’s smile faded slightly.
Nothing that she’d ever read about Dreamer had indicated that the woman had the power to do anything like this. Dreamer was known for being able to lull people to sleep with uncanny ability and to be able to do so much damage to someone’s psyche that they were trapped in comas for years or even died from the effect. This was new and frightening.
A blast of energy from Blue Impulse distracted Morgan, and she flinched as it bounced off her shield. He launched a dozen more attacks, each of which she deflected easily. Finally, Morgan asked, her tone biting, “Where did this power come from, anyway? You’ve always been too emotional to hide something like this for years, Dreamer. Did you finally go through puberty or something?”
“You’re a bitch, Morgan. I’m not… not going to let you get away with looking down on me!” Dreamer replied, panting as she absorbed the liquid, shuddering as gleaming light began to collect in her hands. “Just because… I was at a fragment of my strength for years, it means nothing now. I can take you down even if I’m not fully recovered yet!”
Her words caused Morgan’s blood to run cold. The thought that Dreamer had been weakened for years was terrifying, and Morgan’s eyebrows knitted as suddenly the figure of Blue Impulse was ripped apart into the same glowing liquid and sucked into Dreamer’s hands.
Feeling danger from the villain, Morgan coalesced her magic into a bolt of energy and launched it at Dreamer’s shoulder hard. To the heroine’s shock, Dreamer didn’t dodge, hissing as the bolt hit her, shredding her dress where it impacted. Instead, the villain looked up malevolently, grinning.
“You heroes, so predictable. None of you are willing to make hard choices,” Dreamer hissed. “I am willing. You should have hurt me while you could, Morgan. Instead, face this!”
The light in her hands flashed out, the world in front of her warping again. This time the figure that took form was very different, though. Clad in full plate armor and wielding a sword in his left hand, the man was handsome yet cold, in a monochromatic way. Morgan backed up a step, suddenly worried as she felt the magic rippling off the copy of a man she’d seen pictures of before.
“Sir Gareth? You… how?” Morgan gasped, her eyes wide as the man gave a wide, cruel smile.
The unique ability of England’s most powerful hero, King Arthur, was his ability to bestow the mantles of thirteen Knights of the Round Table on others, granting even mundane humans power that approached his own strength. Sir Gareth had been one of the first to be granted a mantle and had become famous due to his skill and honorable nature. Unfortunately, he’d also succumbed to Dreamer’s powers nearly seven years before and was even now in a coma. While his mantle had been passed on to another, Morgan had mooned over the handsome man more than a few times when researching her namesake. The problem was the suffocating power she sensed from him.
“Haven’t you guessed? My power allows me to consume the dreams of others,” Dreamer replied, panting and sweating as she staggered against the wall. “The more of their dreams I consume, the more powerful of a spectre of them I can manifest. Assuming I don’t metabolize their dreams to heal, at least. What makes you think I’d ever allow myself to lose the service of the most powerful victim I’ve ever had, though? Gareth, kill her.”
Morgan inhaled sharply as the man moved like lightning, putting up a shield to block his attack. Even so, the force of his sword hitting her shield was like a wrecking ball that cracked her shield and sent Morgan flying.
The door she hit gave way with a squeal as Morgan hit it, sending her flying out into the hallway. Two wandering robots, each blocky humanoids carrying energy rifles, beeped and began to fire at Morgan. The bolts bounced off her shield, but it was a cold comfort.
“Ah, shit,” the heroine whispered, thankful for the improved armor she’d been given. But then she didn’t have time to think about her armor. Not when she was facing a near-perfect copy of a hero who’d specialized in close range combat.
Chapter 32
Saturday, January 12th, 2031
Dr. Johnson’s Lair, Santa Cruz
“Are you sure we should leave her on her own?” Lilith asked as she followed Warden down the hall. Glancing back at Lilith, Warden smiled slightly.
“If Morgan says she’s got it, she’s got it. Oh, she might have a bad day, but unless there’s something like what happened with Pyroclasm, she’ll be fine,” Warden replied, pausing at an intersection as a small turret popped out of the ceiling to fire at her and a group of robots turned the corner. She put up a shield as they opened fire, continuing without pause. “If anything, she’d be annoyed if we didn’t take her at her word. She has that new armor, you know.”
Lilith fell to a knee and took careful aim before shooting the turret’s sensor, causing the machine to lose some focus, Warden noticed. She started manifesting spears across the surface of her shield as Lilith replied, her tone still betraying worry. “Yes, and it took some damage in the fight the other day. I’m not nearly as confident as you are.”
“I know, Lil. Just… remember, that was Destruction Corps, not posers like Johnson and Dreamer,” Warden replied, focusing her magic and launching the spears downrange like a golden rain, one lancing into the turret and the others shredding the three robots mercilessly. “Dreamer had some new tricks, sure, but that copy of Impulse was at less than half strength. When Morgan’s done with it, she’ll take down Dreamer hard.”
“I suppose so,” Lilith said, seeming a little more relaxed than she had before. “I still worry.”
“Of course you do,” Warden replied, deciding to go left again. “I just—”
Suddenly Warden skidded to a stop, her eyes narrowing as she looked at a door to her right. It wasn’t any different than the others that they’d passed, but she could feel magic beyond it, magic which felt very, very familiar. After the agonizing time she’d spent with her power twisted into a pretzel by the magic in question, it’d be a miracle if she didn’t recognize it.
“Warden?” Lilith asked, stepping up next to her. “What is it?”
“Lil, I think you’d best go on ahead,” Warden said softly, anger slowly rearing its ugly head as she stared at the door. “I sense magic in there. Ebon Dragon’s magic. He’s fast and powerful, and I really, really don’t want you to get caught in the fight.”
“You’re sure? No, of course you’re sure. What about Orchid, though? Or Johnson?” Lilith asked, frowning. “I’m not certain what I can do. You know that.”
“Lil, you’re stronger than Johnson. He’s a tech specialist, and you saw those bots. Get in close and you can rip them apart. Just…” Warden paused, then gave Lilith a quick, firm kiss before cont
inuing breathlessly. “I trust you. Rescue Orchid and beat him into a pulp for me? I have to do this, Lil.”
“If you say so. I’ll do what I can, G—Warden. Be safe,” Lilith replied, swallowing hard before she hesitated and said, “I’m going back. The robots were coming from the other direction, so I think that’s where he’s more likely to be.”
“Makes sense. Be safe,” Warden replied softly, watching as her girlfriend turned back the way they’d come, just as the faint sound of ripping metal echoed down the halls. The fight with Dreamer must be rougher than she’d anticipated, but Morgan hadn’t called for backup.
With Lilith gone, Warden turned to the door and hit the key, only to be startled when it opened. Standing in the center of a nearly bare bedroom was Ebon Dragon, his face impassive and his hands behind his back. His eyes narrowed slightly at the sight of her.
“Warden. You sent your companion away.” His words were oddly clipped, but he didn’t move to attack her.
“She is here for another matter entirely. On the other hand, I have unfinished business with you,” Warden replied, stepping into the room as she studied him. “You attacked us two days ago, and you worked with Blue Impulse. Why aren’t you attacking me now?”
“In both cases I was hired for a job. Regardless of what you may think of me, I am not the type to hold grudges. I seek power, heroine, and many things that I require are expensive. You have intruded here, but I was not hired to defend the doctor’s abode,” Ebon Dragon replied calmly, watching as she circled to the side, a slight smile on his face. “Your magic is inspiring. Even more now that you have absorbed some of Blue Impulse’s power. I do not believe that women should be heroines, but you impress me.”
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