“Good enough,” Black Emerald said, and smiled as she offered Lilith a hand. “In that case, I’ll wish you luck. I can show you out, teleport you to the edge of my wards, or call a cab, depending on what you want.”
Lilith took her hand, but paused, blinking in surprise.
“I… thought you had difficulty with powerful magic,” Lilith said. “Doesn’t teleportation qualify?”
“I take preparations seriously, Lilith. If I come under full attack, do you really think I want all my employees to die, or Wren?” Black Emerald countered, shaking Lilith’s hand. “That doesn’t seem productive to me at all. No, I have a network of teleportation points almost, oh… half as extensive as Shadowmind’s was. I wanted to be able to evacuate them in case of an emergency.”
“Why does it sound like you don’t intend to leave under those circumstances?” Lilith asked, eying Black Emerald dubiously at this point.
“Because I wouldn’t. If my lair is going down, I’m going down with it,” Black Emerald said, smiling like a shark. “See, I rather want to die, Lilith. I just prefer the idea of dying in combat with someone who finally beat me. Now, which method of exit would you prefer?”
Chapter 39
Saturday, December 6th, 2031
Shadowmind Lair Epsilon-Five, Utah
As the flash faded, Amber found herself in a familiar-looking room with white walls, and she inhaled, then almost sneezed at the musty smell assaulting her nostrils.
“Gah, what is that smell?” she demanded, waving her hand in front of her face. The soft whine of servos accompanied her gesture, but even waving an oversized power armor gauntlet didn’t clear the smell, all it did was make the air move and motes dance in the light around her.
“Isn’t it obvious? Somehow the base developed a leak, and now there’s mold and dust, genius,” one of the other clones retorted viciously, looking back at Amber angrily. “There were significant advantages to having Circe around, you know. You could’ve just lobotomized her, instead of leaving all of us to suffer the consequences.”
“You must’ve been lobotomized. What makes you think that she’d have allowed that? She certainly did her best to destroy every facility she had a node in as it was,” Amber retorted, taking a moment to look over the clones, and her lips pressed together tighter.
Only ten of them were in the room, which made her suspicious, even if fitting more clones into the teleportation chamber would have been difficult. It wouldn’t have been too bad if they weren’t in armor, but they were. Each clone was outfitted in power armor that was twice as thick as anything she’d worn in the past five years, the exteriors shining like a black and purple exoskeleton. Each also had a long, thin cannon on one shoulder, the design stolen from the aliens that she’d beaten late the previous year. They weren’t as powerful as the ones that the aliens used, but that was to make sure they didn’t run out of power in the middle of a battle.
Almost all of the equipment contained designs she’d taken from the aliens, if she was being honest, all but the shield generator. She didn’t know how her generator was more compact and powerful than the alien one had been, but at least she had that, plus her customized control system. Adapting the alien psitech to be useable by her had taken some time but was well worth it. No, these suits were faster, more powerful, more maneuverable, and tougher than the ones she’d used previously … and this time she had nineteen of them, not one. Though she’d have to be careful not to let any of the clones shoot her in the back if they were on their last legs. They thought like her, after all.
“Where are the others?” Amber asked after a moment, glaring at the clones in annoyance. Even if they were her, after a fashion, they weren’t always competent. And they certainly weren’t cooperative most of the time.
“Making sure the exit works, as well as the stealth fields. If we were going to design a third tier of bases, the least you could’ve done is equip them with proper maintenance systems,” another clone said, gesturing over her shoulder toward the door.
“With what time? You all should remember how the time since I was captured was spent. I don’t seem to recall much time spent here at all. Obviously, the systems failed,” Amber retorted. “Anyway, get your asses moving. We’ve got a job to do, and I’m tired of listening to all of you whine. I’ve got a headache, and if you make it worse, I’ll just blow my head off and take one of your bodies.”
“Bitch,” one of them replied, and Amber’s eyes narrowed. She refrained from making a biting comment, though. They knew she was bluffing about killing herself, but she wasn’t joking about the headache. It’d been unpleasant for most of the past day, and she was doing her best to ignore it.
They’d be going after the Sentinels soon enough, and she was looking forward to seeing them kneel before her.
Guardian Compound, Paragon City
“Orchid! Are you alright?” Gina demanded, rushing over as the heroine stepped through the door. “I know it was a long trip—”
“I’m fine, Warden. A bit of a crick in my neck and back, I’m not sure why anyone would frequent motels like the one we stopped at unless they were desperate, but I’m fine. Circe’s the one who drove the entire way, so I had plenty of chances to nap,” Blooming Orchid replied, giving her a tired smile as she pulled Gina into a one-armed hug. “How’re you holding up after yesterday? I meant to be here sooner, but…”
“You were not sleeping well in the car, and if we came under attack, you needed rest,” Circe Beta interjected, following Blooming Orchid while carrying a pair of suitcases. The android looked perfectly poised and unconcerned, which at least made one person Gina had seen over the past day that didn’t look frustrated or worried. “Perhaps you did not rest well, but I believe you did better than you would have in the car. At the very least you were not jumping at the slightest bump on the road.”
“I wasn’t jumping!” Blooming Orchid protested, her cheeks coloring.
“Very well. You were jerking awake and sitting up to check for an attack approximately every two-point-three minutes on average, with your hand reaching the hilt of your sword fifty-eight percent of the time.” Circe replied, her eyes narrowing as she spoke even more precisely. “I believed that it was necessary to allow you to calm down slightly, and that required being in a quiet, safe environment.”
For a few seconds Gina and Blooming Orchid just stared at the android. When Gina began to giggle, Blooming Orchid started to slowly blush, clearing her throat.
“Whether that’s true or not, I did not jump. I would rather—” the heroine began, but at that moment there was a crackling sound, and Spark seemed to just appear in the hallway behind them.
“You’re here, good! We just got a bit of space cleaned up for you. Sorry, but Lilith’s not around to give permission for you to use her room so we had to set something else up,” Spark said rapidly. “Dec asked me if you have any particular needs, Circe? We haven’t had an android visit overnight before.”
“Thank you, but at present I do not,” Circe replied politely, inclining her head. “I charged before leaving and am capable of running without an additional charge for a week, assuming there is not any combat. In a few days I may request a chance to recharge, but it is not an immediate concern.”
“Maybe not, but we do have some information to talk to all of you about,” Blooming Orchid said, frowning slightly.
“Oh?” Gina asked, arching an eyebrow at the two of them. “We’ve also gotten some news from Lilith, and I’m not sure if you got the warning, too? Shade and Rach are busy reinforcing the wards, and it sounds like we’re going to have company in the near future, and not of the pleasant sort.”
“I received her email and briefed Blooming Orchid on Lilith’s warning,” Circe replied, inclining her head slightly. “Personally, I am hoping that Lilith will remain within the defenses of Black Emerald’s fortress while we face Shadowmind. Without power armor, she is highly vulnerable in the face of the attacks we’re likely to encounter. It
is possible that her third awakening will change that, but based on my data, it is rare that an awakening dramatically alters the powers a superhuman possesses.”
“Hm… and what do you think the odds of her choosing to stay there are?” Spark asked skeptically, and Gina gave her a sidelong look. At least on this the two of them agreed fully. Gina couldn’t imagine Lilith sitting back when there was a fight going on. She just had to look at the situation with Omega Code to find that laughable.
“Less than five percent. I believe that it is more likely if Black Emerald puts her under sedation and keeps her in a secure location,” Circe replied simply and let out a faint sigh. “I am fully aware that my preference is unlikely to be realized.”
“Well, at least you’re aware of how unlikely it is,” Gina said, and gestured to the hall. “Shall we get you settled? Or at least as settled as we’re going to get, if you’ve got stuff to tell us?”
“Sure,” Blooming Orchid said, her smile fading as she continued. “Though I think I can get started now. You remember the damage that the alien did up at the air force base?”
They started toward the elevator, and Spark stepped out of the way, rolling her eyes.
“Remember? I was there, if a bit after the worst of the attack,” Spark said, following just behind them. “It wasn’t the best day I’ve had, though it went pretty well considering how much firepower was being thrown around.”
“Yes, well… we have some bad news. Lilith was right about Shadowmind taking the alien ship,” Blooming Orchid said, causing Gina to falter slightly just as she reached for the elevator’s call button. She hit it after a moment, and the doors slid open.
“Crap. I was hoping she was wrong about that. Why did she attack them? Shadowmind, I mean,” Gina demanded.
“They would have called for a full invasion fleet if they had left. While Shadowmind’s reasons for doing so were entirely selfish, she wishes to conquer Earth herself, she prevented a larger disaster from occurring,” Circe explained, stepping into the elevator and taking a position near the back. “However, she also acquired the starship, and has spent months reverse-engineering the alien technology and incorporating it into her own ships and armor suits, according to data I received from Circe Prime before she was destroyed.”
A chill ran down Gina’s spine, and she swallowed hard, following the others into the elevator. Thinking that Shadowmind might have alien technology was bad enough without confirmation. She considered for a couple of seconds while Spark spoke up.
“Well, shit. How bad is it?” Spark demanded.
“We don’t know for sure,” Blooming Orchid said, shrugging helplessly. “Circe said that if the ships and satellite network that she’d had remained fully intact, she would place Shadowmind’s chances of inflicting catastrophic damage on the various countries as extremely high. But after the damage that Circe Prime dealt to them… it depends on how much of the data she retained, and whether she could repair the equipment.”
“Correct. I cannot estimate how likely it is, but I believe it wise to assume that Amber has multiple suits of power armor that retain most of the combat ability of the one Mithtek wore,” Circe said, a slight frown on the android’s face. “Which is further complicated by her clones.”
“Clones?” Gina demanded.
“Yes—” Circe began.
An explosion rocked the building, throwing Gina against the wall of the elevator, just as sirens began wailing throughout the base.
“We’re under attack! Multiple suits of unknown armor are attacking the compound!” Decarin’s voice exclaimed through the speakers, and Gina swore under her breath, reaching out magically for her suit.
Great. Just great.
Chapter 40
Saturday, December 6th, 2031
Guardian Compound, Paragon City
Brilliant blue explosions rippled across the compound’s shield, and Shadowmind cackled loudly, reveling in the way nearby trees exploded or caught fire, and how a car veered off the road as well. The sound of shattering metal, horns, and destruction was exhilarating, and it improved her mood immensely, but only for a moment. Shadowmind’s smile faded as she saw that the blasts hadn’t brought down the shimmering barrier around the Guardian Compound, and she swore.
“Damn it, Decarin must have adjusted the frequency since I last sifted through his mind. Change the settings and keep firing!” Shadowmind ordered the others, mentally flicking the settings of her plasma cannon over to a more general setting, rather than deliberately targeting what had been a weaker frequency earlier in the year.
The clones grumbled agreement, at least one did, but they followed her directions as each of them floated in mid-air and began to unleash more blasts of energy. Of course, it didn’t stay that easy.
A couple of seconds later numerous sections of the building slid to the side, revealing a variety of weapons, and even a couple of sidewalk segments moved to reveal weaponry, causing Shadowmind’s expression to change slightly. While she’d known that the building had defenses, she hadn’t expected that many weapon mounts.
Brilliant beams of energy lanced out from the building as Shadowmind swore and began jinking to try to throw them off-target. She was thankful that Decarin had gone with energy weapons that wouldn’t risk dropping shrapnel on innocents, since shields weren’t quite as effective against physical projectiles, but they were enormously harder to dodge.
Then the doors on a balcony slid open, and Archon emerged, her white wings flaring as the flame-haired woman took flight, sword in hand.
“Ah, it’s the pigeon! So good of you to come out of your roost,” Shadowmind mocked, shifting her aim and firing at Archon, the blast of plasma arcing across the sky viciously.
Her smile vanished when the heroine deflected the shot with her sword, sending the bolt into the sky without even slowing her down. She had no idea how the heroine had zeroed in on her out of all the suits of armor, but Shadowmind didn’t have time to worry about that, not as she zipped backward, trying to hold the distance open as secondary firing ports opened and started to fire rapidly into the oncoming heroine.
“Get her, you damned clones!” Shadowmind snapped, projecting the thoughts to the clones to make sure it reached them.
Their response was far less fervent than she would have liked.
Clone Seventy-Six-dash-Charlie, she was seriously considering names that weren’t Amber for herself and was leaning toward Natasha, was having second thoughts regarding her life choices. Well, not exactly her choices, considering she was a clone, but… well, that part wasn’t important. Sure, it was thrilling to be able to blow up things with abandon, but it’d lost some of its luster when she woke up as a clone and found herself quite firmly lower on the totem pole. She didn’t like being a minion one bit.
Amber had never been one to respect authority figures, and the clones were no different than she was in that regard, even when the authority figure in question was a version of themselves. Not to mention that her powers and intellect seemed to have taken a rather enormous hit in the process of cloning herself. The powers weren’t surprising, but the intellect had been an enormous blow to Seventy-Six-dash-Charlie’s confidence. She’d liked being one of the most brilliant women on Earth, and coupling everything together with the knowledge that Amber might decide to overwrite who she was at any moment and steal her body… it didn’t make her happy at all. Yet she had little choice but to help, since there was no way she was going to be able to free herself fully from Amber. They were too closely linked together.
Which meant that she wasn’t going to rush to save Amber’s ass when Archon went after her. She rather enjoyed watching the original have to frantically squirm and dodge as the flaming sword that had effortlessly shrugged off an alien plasma cannon shot tried to remove some of her limbs. If the sword fully connected, Archon was strong enough to break bones even through an inertial sump.
Of course, the clones didn’t have things entirely their way, either. She’d taken
a dozen bolts from the defenses so far, which was doing concerning things to her shield integrity, when a flash of blue-gold light announced the arrival of someone else.
Warden and Morgan appearing in the flash near the ground didn’t surprise the clone. Spark was a slight surprise, but mostly because she hadn’t come out of the building on her own, like Shade had just an instant before, the man now on the balcony. What gave the clone pause was the sight of Blooming Orchid, who was a sitting duck on the ground, and Circe Beta. She hadn’t realized that either of them were in Utah, last she heard they’d been in California.
The clone’s distraction nearly cost her a great deal, as five more energy bolts slammed into her shield, followed an instant later by a lightning bolt from Spark’s pistols. She flew backward, cursing loudly as she tried to evade, instinctively throwing a psychic bolt at Spark, only to have a pathetic, nearly invisible purple mote drift between them, and bounce off the heroine’s wards without the woman seeming to even notice the attack.
“Damn it!” the clone snarled, aiming at Spark as best she could and firing, but the moment she pulled the trigger, the woman vanished, moving faster than the clone could quite keep up with, and the bolt of plasma left a shallow crater in the concrete.
She was about to dodge when something caught hold of her foot, and she glanced down only to have her eyes widen at the sight of the shadow tentacle that’d caught her leg. Couple that with the bolt of bright purple energy forming in Morgan Le Fay’s hands, as well as the dozens of glowing golden projectiles forming from the shield around Warden and Morgan, and she suspected she was about to have a very bad day.
“Ah, crap,” she murmured. “Maybe I should’ve just run for it.”
Queen's Gambit (Lilith's Shadow Book 6) Page 25