Erica was planning everything, but they had had to hire some outside ‘muscle’. There was some gun-toting moron named Cliff, a techno-path mutant named Gregory who could control machines mentally, a psychotically quiet mutant named Yuri, who was some former Russian super soldier, and Kill O’Watts, a supervillain with electrical powers and an incredibly stupid name. Then there was Larry, who was some old drug-addled actor who would be pretending to be Dr. Wraith, the notorious supervillain who was the one they were going to blame for the whole thing. Dr. Brandeis was posing as Dr. Wraith’s assistant. He hadn’t wanted to come, but the sad truth was that he knew the QHRA better than anyone and thus had to be a part of the heist team in case something developed that needed his expertise.
They had also hired a criminal team known as Bad Luck; they were a nasty bunch of mercenaries with some deadly powers. They didn’t know about the Plan or the mission to steal the QHRA; they were hired to bring down the power to the Dynamic Solutions complex and to perform industrial sabotage of a major research project, something to do with a self-recharging generator powered by gravity or something. That project had actually proven quite the failure and Ian figured he might as well use the attack to recoup some of the project’s funding through insurance. Bad Luck would provide a much-needed distraction and hopefully cause enough damage to occupy both the compound’s security as well as the Cosmopolis Police Department and the Ultimate League, the city’s superhero team.
The QHRA weighed 7.8 tons and that made removing it difficult. It was however already loaded on a special tractor-trailer that was to take it down to New Orleans, where it would be put on a freighter to be taken to Antarctica for testing. It would be moving in three days. They couldn’t target it while it was in transit, because the security arrangements were actually tighter then. There would be Dynamic Solutions and Consolidated Technologies security forces and also members of the Space Defence Corps, chimeras – the animal/human genetic monstrosities that defended the Earth. In that situation, it was pretty likely the QHRA would be damaged; chimeras were supposedly quite trigger-happy.
The plan was simple. The team would waltz in, secure the QHRA, and then drive out of the complex. A few blocks away they would transfer the QHRA to another truck and drive it to a small airport outside of Cosmopolis where it would be loaded on a cargo plane and flown to West Pacific and then shipped out by barge to Avalon One. The complexity was infiltrating the compound, hacking the security system, reaching the loading area, and then driving the tractor-trailer with the QHRA out of the compound. There were dozens of complications that had to be mapped and memorized along with their solutions. He considered himself pretty intelligent, but lately it seemed he was forgetting stuff more and more. Dr. Brandeis had even forgotten his and Pam’s anniversary last week. She had been quite upset, though he felt that was a little unfair. He was coordinating the Plan and planning a super heist. Pam was always wrapped up in her own little world and problems.
“I don’t think the diversion is a good idea,” said Dr. Brandeis as he and Erica went through the whole plan again.
“Why?” asked Erica with a raised eyebrow.
“Well…it will sort of put security on alert and might lead to the Cosmopolis Police Department and maybe even the Ultimate League coming on the scene earlier than we hoped.”
Erica smiled. “You’re learning very well, Noah, you have the mind for this sort of thing. What do you think of Bad Luck’s odds of being discovered?”
“Well, we gave them a good plan, but I bet they’ll decide to modify it. They’re more destructive than cunning, so…I don’t see them being able to do it. All that will happen is that they’ll start shooting up the place. Worse, we get caught in a crossfire between them and the cops.”
“Exactly, they’ll run up against security and cause a ruckus. They will likely flee the premises. Security will give pursuit as will CPD and maybe the Ultimate League,” said Erica. “In fact, we won’t make our move until they are fleeing. They’ll draw off the pursuit which we would otherwise encounter. They’re a loud and obnoxious group of supers, but they’ll give the CPD and Ultimate League a heck of a fight.”
“Okay, but what if they succeed?” asked Dr. Brandeis. “They could quietly plant the explosives and get out. We won’t have the distraction we need to get the tractor-trailer out of the compound.”
“You’re right that it would make our exit more difficult. Of course, they won’t succeed.”
“They might. I mean they’re idiots, but they might still pull it off.”
“No, they won’t. Now tell me why,” said Erica with her mischievous smile.
“Because… because,” Dr. Brandeis racked his brain for WWED, What Would Erica Do, and then it came to him. “You’ll alert security to them!”
“Very good, Noah, very good. Remember – the first rule is to leave nothing to chance.”
“But we met with them – if they’re caught, they could identify us!”
“No, they aren’t talkers. That’s why we hired them,” said Erica.
“But they’ll go to prison! They would sell us out to avoid prison. I mean, I would sell everyone out to avoid prison.”
Erica smiled. “Yes, I know.” Dr. Brandeis realized he probably had spoken too freely and once again remembered that Erica was psychotic. “Relax, Noah, your honesty is refreshing,” she told him. “Yes, you would sell us out, because you’re afraid of prison. Bad Luck will be paid regardless and if they’re smart and don’t kill anyone, they’ll be out of prison in 4 to 12 years. With a good lawyer, they might not go to prison at all, even if they do kill some people. The money they’ll be paid is more than you would make in a lifetime working in academia.”
“I know that, but is there really honor among thieves?” asked Dr. Brandeis skeptically.
“No, but there is fear. There is no cruel and unusual clause for thieves dealing with snitches,” said Erica.
“So you wouldn’t tell me if you were behind the Boardwalk attack?” Dr. Brandeis figured that Erica had arranged the explosion to get vengeance on Mr. Awesome.
“No I wouldn’t, but it wasn’t us.”
“Was it the Governor?” he asked.
“No, beyond her limited skill set. Superhero teams have lots of enemies.”
Dr. Brandeis considered this. “So…is it really necessary for me to go on the mission? I mean, I could wait at the truck transfer for the QHRA,” he suggested.
“You just said you would betray us if you needed to, which I can respect, but I need to keep you close so you aren’t given that opportunity, Noah,” said Erica with her evil smile. “Anyway, it happens tonight, so take some sleeping pills and get some sleep this afternoon so you’re as fresh as possible.”
“Right,” said Dr. Brandeis as he headed off to his hotel suite. He wasn’t going to use sleeping pills; they’d just make him groggy during the mission.
They were staying at the Cosmopolis Hilton, which seemed a little odd. He thought they would be staying in some flea-ridden hotel in a slummy part of town. As it was, besides planning the heist, he had plenty of time to sightsee. Pam thought he was attending a conference, which was sort of true, but he did feel a little guilty visiting the sites of Cosmopolis; Pam loved the city. If it wasn’t for the fact it was in Iowa, they probably would move here. Even more exciting was that yesterday he had gotten to be an extra for a movie. It was some action adventure movie. He really wasn’t sure what it was about, but he got $50 to run around like everything was in chaos. It had actually been quite therapeutic.
Erica had even arranged for him to have an escort visit him last night to ‘calm his nerves’. Mostly he just talked with her. Candy was a much better listener than Pam. Fortunately, he hadn’t let slip any of his nefarious dealings. They mostly talked about his relationship with Pam. Candy was pretty understanding and also surprisingly insightful.
She told him, more or less, that he loved Pam, but was bored with her. The two had grown apart, which meant two
things: either they tried to rediscover each other or they went their separate ways. Candy suggested they do something completely different, like go dancing, ice skating, or hiking – something to shake things up. After talking it over with Candy, he decided that maybe a cruise would be the way to go. They hadn’t been on a cruise for years and there were ones leaving West Pacific every day. If this heist went well, then he would get a week’s vacation from Ian; he really needed a break. Heck, if Pam didn’t want to go, he could always fly out Candy to go with him. She said that would be fine with her. Like Erica said: ‘never leave anything to chance.’
“You know, it doesn’t smell as bad down here as I thought it would,” said Dr. Brandeis as he walked down the underground corridor that housed the countless pipes used by the various Cosmopolis utilities to handle power, water, and sewage for the city.
“It’s a modern sewer, not something out of Les Mis,” chided Gregory, who was covered with electrodes sticking out of his body, including out of his head. The skin that you could see had a sickly looking tint. He was the definition of a freak, but Dr. Brandeis kind of liked him – he was surprisingly personable. “The Cosmopolis utility network was actually laid out by the Vanghel and they did a pretty bang-up job with it.”
“At least we got something from the bastards,” said Cliff as he checked his sidearms for the hundredth time and squinted into the darkness ahead.
“Well, actually, thanks to salvaged Vanghel hardware we advanced decades in science and technology - and the Vanghel who were resettled in Australia have really contributed in areas of science and medicine,” said Gregory.
Cliff snorted. “We should have executed them all.”
“It might have sparked an interstellar incident, though since we are already blockaded by the interstellar community, I guess it wouldn’t have mattered much,” said Gregory.
“She comes back,” said Yuri in his thick Russian accent. Although he was behind all of them, he was the first to sense Erica’s return.
“Yes, I’m here,” said Erica crisply. “The way is mostly clear; Dynamic Solutions doesn’t have any monitors down here.”
Dr. Brandeis smiled. He already knew that, but they had to pretend for the rest of the group. “Alright, let’s move into position!” He was sort of enjoying being in charge, he could see the appeal of being Ian and calling the shots.
“Wait!” hissed Larry, who was dressed in black robes and wearing a gothic mask to conceal his face. Dr. Brandeis had doubted Larry’s ability to pull off posing as Dr. Wraith, but he was hamming it up well. Of course, Larry thought that they were doing some reality TV show or something and kept peering into gratings and the like where he probably suspected there were hidden video cameras. “I think this is too easy – we must be wary and have all six senses attuned if we are to succeed in our diabolical plan!”
“Yes, of course…everyone keep your…six senses attuned,” said Dr. Brandeis with a worried look to Erica.
The group moved quickly underneath the Dynamic Solutions complex to the tertiary access tube which rose up into the complex carrying electricity and water, and removing sewage.
“They’ll have some monitor in the tube,” said Gregory. “I should probably go first to neutralize it.”
“Aye, but I should go with you,” said Kill O’Watts in a fake Irish accent, which was apparently part of his secret identity. Dr. Brandeis found him moronic, but he had potent powers, which apparently meant he could get away with being a moron. Ian actually thought he was amusing and kept him around as a bodyguard when expecting trouble.
“Yes, that sounds like a plan,” said Dr. Brandeis amiably. Gregory nodded and rather agilely bypassed the lock on the gate into the tube and then started climbing up the ladder. “Cliff, Erica, you’re next. Yuri, you follow me and Dr. Wraith up.”
Dr. Brandeis felt confident as he gave the order, not only because Erica had made him memorize reciting it with a confident voice, but also because he had gotten her to explain most of the orders he would be giving. Cliff was a wildcard and Erica wanted to be near him, whereas Yuri had a reputation for reliability and thus could anchor the rear to protect Dr. Brandeis. He was beginning to understand the rules of the game, who you kept close and who you kept far. It was all about position with supervillains, who stood where and all that. Kill O’Watts was loyal to Ian so Dr. Brandeis figured he was a check on Erica. At any moment you could be betrayed, but at least with this job it wasn’t like robbing a bank where once everyone had the money things could fall apart quickly. Still, as Erica said: never piss off someone with guns or super powers that can hurt you, but also don’t look weak. Dr. Brandeis was unsure how you could do both at the same time, but he was trying hard, especially as everyone here could probably kill him easily, well, except for Larry.
“The game is afoot, my lads, and we are closing on our quarry,” said Larry in an English accent that was more like an impersonation of Sherlock Holmes than Dr. Wraith who had a slight Southern drawl. Apparently, Larry hadn’t studied the videos Dr. Brandeis had given him to prep his performance. There was nothing worse than a lazy actor.
The climbing of the ladder was easier than Dr. Brandeis expected, but he had started working out a few months ago. Ian was a stickler for healthy living. Soon the group was lined up at the gate that led into the lower basement of the complex. Gregory overcame the camera system with but a thought and picked the lock with a sonic tumbler. The group was soon in the subbasement level and spreading out.
“Alright, Gregory – there should be an access point to the security system over there,” said Dr. Brandeis. He noticed a disapproving glare from Erica. Gregory was supposed to ‘find’ the access point, but no one seemed to notice the slip, at least that they showed.
“You are correct, Boss,” said Gregory who starting cutting through the wall. “I sense the circuitry behind the wall.”
Cliff had moved over to watch the nearest door. Yuri was standing, waiting for instructions, and Erica was trying to keep her eye on everyone. Kill O’Watts was doing the same, though he was watching Erica the most. Dr. Brandeis felt he should say something to break the tension. “We are doing well, team. Obstacles are dropping one by one and soon we shall have our prize!”
It was corny. He was worried that Larry’s Dr. Wraith was rubbing off on him poorly. Erica raised her eyebrow and subtly shook her head, but it didn’t matter. Dr. Brandeis was the real evil mastermind here and loving it. Soon Gregory had a hole in the wall and was mentally manipulating the security system. “We’re in! The system won’t notice us.”
“I hope you’re right about that,” said Cliff grimly.
“Fear not, Gregory is here,” quipped Gregory.
“Yeah, whatever,” said Cliff. “Are we going yet?”
“Yes,” said Dr. Brandeis. “Out the door and then to the first corridor that goes right to the second staircase, which is our ticket up.” The group exited the basement and moved quickly down the hallway. Erica was checking her HoloBerry. She nodded at Dr. Brandeis as she hit a few buttons, which meant the end of Bad Luck’s good luck.
Dr. Brandeis jumped at the sound of two gunshots from the staircase that Cliff had just entered; they were quiet shots as they were all carrying Argos-baffled firearms, but it was loud enough to startle him.
“What the fuck?” hissed Erica as she slammed opened the door and looked up to where Cliff had just dropped a security guard. Dr. Brandeis followed quickly and was stunned to see the two dark red stains on the chest of the security guard lying down on the stairs, a guy with gray hair wearing a Dynamic Solutions Security uniform.
“I got him,” said Cliff, who sounded satisfied with himself. “We can use his keycard for the rest of the doors.”
Dr. Brandeis felt ill, but he had to say something. “Ah, right. Good job, Cliff.”
“There’s a storage closet down here,” said Erica, gesturing to Yuri who dutifully headed up the stairs and lifted the security guard like a sack of potatoes, actually a
fairly light sack of potatoes for Yuri, and then shoved him in the closet.
“Very realistic,” muttered Larry. He then stared straight at a security camera and loudly announced, “and this is why people shouldn’t mess with Dr. Wraith and his minions. Soon we will have our prize and the world will tremble in fear!”
“Someone might have heard the gun shots and that speech,” offered Gregory.
“Yes…let’s get going,” mumbled Dr. Brandeis who was transfixed by the blood stains on the stairs. Cliff was already moving forward and Erica was following him up. Kill O’Watts followed them and was now watching Cliff more than Erica. Gregory nudged Dr. Brandeis who lurched up the stairs. Yuri was still stuffing the security guard into the closet but he caught up quickly, bringing up the rear.
They finally arrived at double doors, which opened with the guard’s keycard, leading them into the loading area, which was a cavernous area with loading platforms and trucks, that was connected to the labs and offices behind and also the larger assembly yards to the north.
“Oh shit!” yelled Dr. Brandeis. The QHRA was on a loading platform, but hadn’t been loaded onto the tractor-trailer that was parked next to it.
Erica growled. “It was supposed to be loaded.”
“Apparently not,” said Gregory.
“Yuri, can you lift it?” asked Erica.
“How much it weigh?” asked Yuri.
“Almost eight tons,” said Erica.
“English or metric?” asked Kill O’Watts.
“Does it matter?” snapped Erica.
“No…I don’t think I can lift that much,” said Yuri. “I can handle five American tons.”
“We’re screwed,” said Erica, who looked like she wanted to kill someone.
West Pacific Supers: Rising Tide Page 15