Issue Six, Jewel
The White Knight's interest was picqued by the series of jewelry store
robberies in the city, and he had added a sweep through the diamond
district to his patrol. One night, it paid off. As he was driving
the KnightCycle through the darkened city, he caught a sudden
flare of light out of the corner of his eye.
He wheeled around and came to a stop and took a closer look. Perhaps
forty meters down the street, outside of "Haversham and Epstein Fine
Jewelers" a man was standing with one hand resting against the
door frame. As he watched, there was an actinic flash from
the doorway.
The White Knight dismounted, and cautiously approached the premises. He
activated the record function on his vision system. He didn't want to
alert the suspects to his presence yet until he'd had an opportunity to
assess the situation and their actions.
As he began to approach, the figure stepped through the door into the
darkened shop.
The White Knight alerted the police to the burglary in progress, on his 2-way
helmet radio, then entered through the door. He activated the bright flash
lights mounted in his helmet. "The police are on the way. Surrender now and
it will go much easier for you!"
"Surprise," said a voice from just off to one side, and a massive blast
of electricity arced out toward the White Knight. The Knight had reflexively
turned toward the voice and the lights must have blinded the man, because
the arcing voltage went wide and blasted the entire front wall of the store into
flinders.
In the light, the White Knight could see a man dressed in a blue bodysuit with
yellow lightning emblems on the arms and legs. "Damn," said the man
blinking his eyes.
The White Knight took a half step in and swung at the villain, a quick jab
connected and the villain was flipped over a display case by the force
of the blow. He managed to roll with it, and keep his feet. The
White Knight followed and swung again, but the villain ducked down behind
the case.
He popped back up, "Feel the power of Volt!" he cried, and raised his
hands. Having seen the power of the energy blast, the White Knight dodged
away, he backed into a display case though and was caught dead to rights.
Now it was the White Knight's turn to flip over a display case. His
gyroscopes kept him upright, but a warning light flashed on his internal
monitors -- the servos operating his lower legs had been shorted out.
The auto-repair systems were on it, but at the moment, rather than enchaning
his strength, his leg systems were so much dead weight.
Volt fired again, and again the Knight ducked. Or tried to, his dead
servos slowed him down and he was unable to get clear. The impact
was much less this time, though, and the Knight's armor stopped most of it.
Damage indicators flashed, though, and he knew he couldn't take much more.
Once more the villain raised his hands, this time, though, the Knight was
ready and dropped down out of the path of most of the energy.
"Let that be a lesson to you," said Volt. He moved a few metres away and
grabbed a tray out of a shattered display case.
Volt smiled, "This looks promising." He turned back and brushed past the
Knight on his way to the door.
"Goodbye, you fool,"said Volt as he moved out the door.
The White Knight hurried toward the KnightCycle, calling IPAC as he did
so. He gave a quick description of Volt and his location to the
dispatcher. The operator told him that an IPAC team would be dispatches
as fast as possible.
The Knight repeated the process with the police dispatcher, adding that
extreme caution should be used.
By the time WK had reached the cycle, his leg systems were back on line.
Volt had
dissappeared around the corner, so he kicked the bike into gear and went
around the corner as well.
A car was just pulling out of a spot right around the corner, and
the WK identified Volt as the driver.
Volt drove a block or so, then WK saw him check his rear-view mirror.
A moment later Volt brought the car to a squealing halt and popped out of the
door shouting, "You never learn, do you?"
The White Knight aimed his bike straight at Volt, then dove off to the right.
Volt aimed at the incoming bike and sent a bolt of lightning searing into
it. It exploded with a satisfactory sound.
The White Knight had rolled to the side of the car, and Volt came around
after him. "You can't hide, hero!" yelled the villain as he sent another
blast of energy towards the White Knight. The White Knight ducked
away, but was still off-balance from his roll.
The electrical blast arced through his system and everything went black.
When he awoke a second later, it was to see the car starting to move off.
The White Knight reached out and slapped a tracer onto the bumper of the car,
then watched ruefully as the car sped off into the night.
* * * * * * *
Glory, or as she was calling herself now, The Iron Maiden, was
roused from as deep a sleep as she was getting these days, by
the buzzing of the videophone installed in her shielded quarters.
"Rise and shine, Agent Blessing," came the voice of Wilkins. "You
wanted to know if you were still on active duty? Well you
are, starting now. We just got a call from the White Knight
that he's engaged a powerful supervillian in the diamond district.
Get dressed and be at the motor pool in 5 minutes."
Blessing stood from her bed and stretched. She
still wasn't used to the size of her "new" body. Her
arms were the size her thighs used to be. She looked
herself over in the mirror. She wasn't totally
crushed by her transformation. She still retained the
look of a woman, just now a massive one. Perhaps if
her career with IPAC came to end she could adopt yet
another identity and assume a career in wrestling.
Then the room she was in, and the glow she gave off
stopped her thoughts in that direction like a car
crash. Inwardly she groaned, but a life time of
military training and the discipline she still told
her self she maintained allowed her to shut all her
concerns away and muster up the courage to return to
duty.
She donned her armor in four minutes flat. She'd been
practicing and had cut it down from ten. She'd try to
cut it in half. It might be pushing it, but it gave
her something to practice.
"Iron Maiden reporting for duty, as ordered!"
The IPAC response team roared into the night.
It raced to the White Knight's last reported position and
found him sitting on the curb looking at the remains of a motorcycle.
"Hi Glory, how're you feeling these days?" asked the White Knight,
after peering through Blessing's helmet and identifying her.
He continued without really waiting for a response,
"Just to bring you up to speed, I was patrolling the Diamond District. There
have been a spate of unusual jewellery thefts of late and I was hoping to
catch someone in the act. Boy, did I! He calls himself Volt. Shoots out
electrical energy. Wears a Blue bodysuit with Yellow lightning motifs on the
limbs."
"He blindsided me as I followed him into Haversham & Epsteins Jewellery
store, and shorted out my Suit. I called in you guys and followed him on
this bike while he made his getaway. He clocked me after a block or so, and
stopped to finish me off. I knew I couldn't take him solo... I was almost
out on my feet after the earlier ambush... so I distracted him by aiming the
bike at him and diving off to the side to try and slap a tracer on his car.
He got me... but not before I got the tracer on. I've also got all the
action on digital video, along with the plates on his car. It's probably
stolen, but you never know..."
"I've been following the tracers progress on my HUD. After leaving here
about 30 minutes ago he went into Commerce City, and my maps indicate
that the car is parked in the parking lot of the CommerceDome."
"He was in a black Lincoln Continental with the plates BH-1145, medical
plates."
"White Knight, I'm Iron Maiden now. Let's track this man
down...we can catch up later."
IM thought a moment, then added, "IPAC can provide an
unmarked van...a little stealth couldn't hurt two
armored types."
She smiled weakly, but it was very hard to see her
face through her visor. Perhaps the tone of her voice
gave her away. Courage in the face of the
ever-present reminder that she was trapped in this
armor. For the rest of her life.
The two heroes piled into the IPAC van and the driver looked at them
expectantly.
After quickly stowing the remains of the "KnightCycle" in the back of
the van, the White Knight got in and said "CommerceDome, and step on it!"
He then
radiod the police to be on the look-out for Volt, or anyone of
appropriate height, weight, hair/eye colour in the vicinity of the CommerceDome. They are not to endanger
themselves or bystanders by closing in but should report in and tail the
suspect.
The van moved off quickly into the night and the trip to the CommerceDome
was uneventful. As they approached, they could see that the Lincoln
had been abandoned near one of the entrances to the Dome.
Iron Maiden studied the Dome and peered into the
shadows at its base. She then moved over to the car and began
to check it out.
"Knight, did you tag him or just the car?"
Above her, unseen by the heroes, a hawk circled lazily looking down
with unnatural intelligence.
"Just the car, I'm afraid, Maiden. The opportunity to tag Volt wasn't
present," replied the Knight.
"By the way," continued the White Knight, "Your voice is very familiar, as
indeed is that suit you're
wearing. Or, at least, the bulk of the body. I assume IPAC has recycled
BlockBusters armour. Have we met at the IPAC facility?"
"It was his armor," Iron Maiden said. "Looks better
on me, don'tcha think?" It was forced, but she had to
get the focus away from herself.
The car stood empty and unlocked not far from one of the staff
entrances to the CommerceDome. The Iron Maiden saw little to
catch her interest in the abandoned vehicle.
"I suggest we try the entrance by the car," said
the White Knight. "If Volt is inside we can try to
detain him. If not, we may be able to find a security guard who saw him
switch cars or find the Car Park CCTV tape."
WK switched on his HelmLights and Digital Video and looked toward the
entrance. He walked over to examine the door.
"Sounds like a plan." IM crouched down on one knee
before peering around the corner of the doorway.
Here, villain, villain, she thought. No one could
really see her smile at the thought of getting into a
brawl. She could feel the power in her arms, her legs
and at this moment, nothing felt better than her
balled fist.
Above them, the hawk made a decision and swooped down to an open
window. It darted down a corridor, then out into the interior of
the CommerceDome. It dove down towards a few figures standing at
the 50 yard line ...
The staff entrance stood ajar, and a closer inspection showed that
the door had been forced open by brute strength; it was buckled a bit
in the middle. Next to it was a loading dock door, which was still closed.
In the CommerceDome, dim service lights glowed in the corridor, which led
in past branching corridors and out to the field. In the distance, from
the playing field, a stronger light spilled into the end of the corridor.
Iron Maiden took the corridor toward the field,
staying in the shadows. Her time as Glory had led her
to be cautious. She hadn't worn armor then, and still
didn't feel entirely at home in the suit she was
wearing.
She paused. "At home." Now that was not the best
choice of words, she scolded herself.
The White Knight turned off his HelmLights and followed Glory along the
corridor towards the field, quickly checking at each intersection or door
for signs of Volt passing that way.
When the two heroes approached the large entrance alley to the field,
it was like looking down a tunnel. They could see only a narrow slice
of the field, right around the fifty yard line. Visible in that slice
was a small raised platform of some kind with what looked like a
podium or something on it. Standing on the platform were two figures,
one which looked to the White Knight like it might be Volt, and another
which was larger and bulkier.
Iron Maiden hunkered down to a vantage point, and whispered to White Knight,
"How do you want to play this? You're the witness...do we charge in an
open a can or threaten them with the power of the government and tell
them they should surrender like the bad little boys they are?"
WK noted the excited tone in her voice; it was pretty
clear what her preferred course of action would be.
"Ok," said the White Knight, "Volt has had an opportunity to come quietly and
was...
'uncooperative'. We charge in. Remember, Volt generates electrical
energy blasts which can probably get through our armour. We can probably
take a couple of hits each at most. We split up so he has to divide his
attention. The other guy is an unknown quantity. I'll call in a SitRep
with IPAC, then we charge. You go left. I'll go right, and we
concentrate our efforts on Volt until he's down, or the unknown proves
to be a greater threat."
The White Knight updated the IPAC agents in the car park with the
situation, and told them to handle co-ordinating backup and the police and
to be prepared to follow either of the suspects if they attempted to
get away.
The IPAC team acknowledged and told him that they'd continue to
monitor the channel.
That done, WK activated the record facility on his vision system, turned
to the Iron Maiden and said "Good luck! Ok, on 3. 1... 2... 3..."
The heroes charged out of the shadows, armoured feet clattering on the
concrete. A look of some surprise crossed Volt's face, "You again?
Don't you ever learn?" He raised his hands and a blast of energy arced
toward the White Knight. The Knight was expecting it, and rolled
partially clear.
As he rolled, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. On
either side of the entrance alley, up a few rows into the seats,
stood a man. On the left side was an older man, dressed in brown
robes with an archaic looking head-covering. The man on the right
was clad in simple loose-fitting garments with a vaguely Oriental look
to them, although he himself was clearly occidental, and over the clothes
he wore a beautiful high collared cloak, which seemed to shimmer
in the light.
The man on the left, the White Knight's side, raised his hands and
chanted something in a vaguely Gaelic sounding tongue, then, "And let
the Fires of Vermithrax sear your flesh!" Bolts of green fire erupted
from his hands and leapt toward the Knight. The Knight continued his
roll and managed to avoid the right hand bolt of fire but not the left.
The other man chanted in some harsh unknown tongue, and power gathered
at his fingertips, "The Cold of Daemonus shall teach you not to interfere!"
A frigid blast shot out toward the Iron Maiden. It struck and the
woman felt chilled to the bone.
Iron Maiden's mind slowed with the intense cold. Her eyes rolled up in
her head and she nearly passed out.
"It's a trap," she said, but realized White Knight probably couldn't
hear her. Forcing it out at the top of her lungs, she yelled, "IT'S A
TRAP!"
Struggling to make her body cooperate, IM made a bee-line for some
cover: the bleacher walls under her assailants. Not much cover, she
quickly thought...her flank would be open to Volt and his partner.
She made it to the lee of the wall without taking any further fire.
Once there, she activated the radio in her suit and called IPAC asking
for backup.
With devastating force, she shredded a hole into the concrete
wall, entering the space under the seats above.
The White Knight pulled out of his roll and landed on his feet facing the
Black Druid. He charged straight for the villain, calling out "You are all
under citizens arrest. Surrender now, or there will be.... trouble!" as he
did so.
Volt drew a bead on the White Knight and blasted again, with much less
in the way of pyrotechnics. The blast slapped the hero in the back
and sparked around his force field.
"Blaz, get them," shouted Darkspell, and
the creature beside Volt started to lumber forward. As it came on,
the heroes got a better look at it. Large and humanoid, its skin was
reddish and it sported a fine set of horns, as well as cloven feet.
Any school child would tell you that it looked like a devil or demon.
The Black Druid raised his hands, "I think not," he said, "by the Green
Bonds of Gilganesh!" From out of the ground around the White Knight
creeping vines erupted and lashed out and around him, bringing his charge
up short and binding his arms and legs.
"Well done, Black Druid," said Darkspell as he sighted on the nearly
immobile White Knight. "The Cold of Daemonus shall purge you as well."
A frigid blast struck the helpless hero.
The White Knight sent all the power he could to his servos and strained
against the vines which held him. First one gave, then another, then
he ripped the last few from the ground.
I've got to get to them before they can take the Knight out, IM thought.
She opened a channel to the Knight. "Keep dodging them, Knight, I'm
going to try to flank them. Keep 'em busy. We don't stand a chance in
a frontal assault."
The demon Blaz closed the last few meters between himself and the
White Knight and smiled an unpleasant toothy grin. He swung a massive
fist, the White Knight rolled with the punch and seemed more or less
unharmed. The second part of the one-two punch was an overhanded
blow, but the White Knight had moved so far clear that the blow whistled
down the overbalanced demon smacked the earth, leaving a small crater.
"You don't... uh-oh... have to... *ooof*... tell me... whoah! ...
uhhhnnff... twice!" the White Knight replied to Iron Maiden.
Darkspell waved his hands and again invoked the Cold of Daemonus as Volt
simply stood and watched. The blast struck the Knight, but
he was moving quickly enough that it didn't catch him full on and
his force shield seemed to deflect most of it.
Darkspell moved down from the bleachers leaping down and landing lightly
on the ground.
Black Druid's form shimmered slightly and then the man was no more, but
in his place was a great eagle. With a scream the bird soared out toward
Volt and the centerfield line.
Blaz continued swinging at the Knight, showing little finesse but
good power, several punches landed on the wildly dodging Knight, but not
with any solid impact. Black Druid, in eagle form, circled above Volt's head
a few times looking around, and Darkspell seemed content to watch
Blaz pummel the White Knight.
Blaz swung again and this time the blow struck something critical it seemed,
since there was a flare of energy at the site of the blow. Lust for
the kill appeared on the demon's face, and he also appeared to
be getting the White Knight's measure, his next punch was dead on, knocking
the Knight back nearly 10 feet. The Knight's gyro-stabilizers took over and
he landed on his feet -- but right in front of Darkspell.
With a fastidious sneer, Darkspell stepped in and swung a fist, he misjudged
the Knight's momentum though, and only hit a glancing blow.
Suddenly, up in the stadium seats, the Iron Maiden appeared.
"Damn it," Iron Maiden swore. So much for tactics, she thought. She
sprinted down the stairs to the railing and jumped down to the ground
below, continuing to sprint to where the Knight was getting his hat
handed to him.
She took the railing in a bound and was on Darkspell before he could
really react. With a startled oath, Darkspell leapt back, turning the
motion into a backflip that took him clear of Iron Maiden's swinging fist.
Blaz ignored the new arrival and kept swinging at the White Knight,
but the surprise of the Iron Maiden's entrance had ruined his rhythm
and he missed.
White Knight swung a fist at Darkspell and the mage and the punch
caught him flatfooted. Darkspell visibly braced for the impact
and seemed a little surprised when he didn't go sailing across the
field.
The Iron Maiden moved in with that unusual speed she had lately been
displaying, and swung a left hook. Darkspell flipped clear of the
attack and landed ready, shouting, "Blaz!"
Darkspell seemed to be concentrating on Iron Maiden and so the White
Knight was able to hit him again. Iron Maiden was follwing up
her left hook with a right-cross, but Darkspell ducked below it.
That left him in the path of White Knight's next jab.
The Iron Maiden moved around Darkspell in a quick blur of motion, then
charged him in a sort of flying tackle. Darkspell agilely slipped to
one side, and into the White Knight's roundhouse.
By now, Blaz had moved to where he wanted to be and he lauched a
quick set of jabs at the White Knight, the first two set up the White
Knight nicely and the third landed dead on. The Knight flew back about
4 meters and fell to the ground. He started to stagger to his feet as
Blaz closed in on him.
Blaz laid a boot into the White Knight like he was kicking a football.
The Knight flew back another few meters, landed in a heap and didn't move.
"Enough!" cried Darkspell. "Let Cold of Daemonus end this charade!"
At this range, there was little way the mystic blast of cold could
fail to strike the Iron Maiden. She staggered back a step then slumped
to the ground.
The segment ended with the villians gloating over the fallen forms of the
armoured heroes.
Flashback a short time ...
The Wanderer was woken out of a sound sleep. He was uncertain what
had woken him, and looked around him for the cause. With a slight
pop, a tiny figure appeared in front of his face. The figure looked much
like a man, only smaller and with a slight grayish cast to his skin.
The figure spoke with a voice much deeper than one might expect from such
a tiny body, "Wanderer, I apologize for this intrusion. There is great evil
afoot this night, and your help is needed. Will you come?"
Sitting upright The Wanderer snapped back, "Why yes, yes indeed. One moment."
The Wanderer shot back to a prone position and closed his eyes for an instant,
then bolted to his feet reaching for his clothes. "Supermodels do hate to be
left mid-dream, you know?" said The Wanderer to the diminutive figure.
"Thank you, I am waiting for you on the docks, Pier 11. I understand
you prefer the docks," the figure said. "Please hurry." With a soft
pop, the figure vanished.
The Wanderer got dressed and after a stretch disappeared, only to materialize in
an instant in the boathouse. A nighttime stroll down the pier and The Wanderer
was zipping across the calm Port Alexander waters into a raging sea of evil.
Minutes later, with a rush of crackling atmosphere The Wanderer appeared on the
docks to learn more about this imminent threat.
A moment after he had appeared, a man stepped out of the shadows nearby.
Of medium height, the man had light brown hair of shoulder length, and
a pleasant if unremarkable face -- except for the eyes which showed a depth
rarely seen. He wore a simple and loose fitting pair of pants tucked into
low boots and a simple shirt, both of white cloth. Surmounting it all
was a high-collared cloak of iridescent blue. "Welcome Wanderer, I am The
Mystic," he said.
With a sweeping bow The Wanderer greeted the man, "It is a pleasure to make your
acquaintance, tis always nice to meet a man who shares the same first name as
I." The Wanderer then adopted a rarely seen tone -- that of seriousness. "You
summoned me here to address a threat of great evil. Tell me more."
"I shall," replied the man. "There is an artifact of great mystical power,
known as the Jewel of All-Devouring. It is referred to in ancient tomes
of power with reverence and circumspection. The ancient Priest-Kings of
forgotten Alan-Tor are said to have used it to command unswerving obedience
from their subjects.
The Wanderer perked up a bit, "I've heard tell of this, but thought it merely
folklore from among the many travels of my people."
"It is not folklore," came the reply, "but it was lost for eons, and thought
merely a myth. But it is real and it is here, in
Port Alexander. Even worse, it is in the hands of a man called Darkspell.
If he can discover how to unleash its power, he will not hesitate to enslave
the city and even more if he can."
"How he came about the Jewel of All-Devouring is not important at this time, the
more pressing matter is stopping him," pondered the man in black. "Do you know
where or how I can find him? time is of the essence."
"He has already begun to attune the Jewel, and its emanations are traceable
to those with the proper skills. They come from West of here, in Commerce
City. I shall lead us." So saying he set off. The Wanderer followed
and the men spoke as they travelled.
"Do you have some knowledge of the Jewel that could assist in stopping this
Darkspell? or in retrieving it? To even attain such a legendary treasure tells
me that this man is not one to trifle with. He didn't just stumble upon it, he
knows what it is capable of."
"Very true. If studies are correct, then if we can halt the attunement
before it is completed all is well. If not," a grim expression crossed
The Mystic's face, "I may well have to battle him for control of it on
another plane."
"And after I get the Jewel of All-Devouring? it is far too powerful to be
entrusted with the opportunisitic nature of these humans," asked the
Wanderer.
"The Jewel is a tool, and as such can be used for good or for ill. It is
also a source of knowledge. Finally, I do not think it can be destroyed.
Best would be to capture it before its attunement by Darkspell, for such
attunement would would consecrete the Jewel to his purposes. If we
fail, then I shall have to attempt to re-attune it to more cleanly
purposes and that shall take time. Once the Jewel is taken, I would
like to secure it from those who would use it for ill, and study it.
What a resource it could be! What a force for good and for the improvement
of human knowledge and conditions."
"But to the point, I have prepared a place for it at my retreat," The Mystic
named an address on the river Port Alexander. "Once the Jewel is installed
there the main threat will have been blunted."
"Darkspell will be stopped. Because, quite frankly, the alternative is
unthinkable," stated The Wanderer as he began to wonder aloud. "I wonder if
this has any connection with the series of jewelry store heists reported in the
newspaper. Does attuning the Jewel require any resources? and how will I be
able to identify it? There has been very little recorded about its appearance,
to my knowledge; mostly speculation and fantasy."
"If the jewel is attuned, recognizing it should provide little difficulty since
it should glow green," replied the Mystic. "As for the rest, the only
resources it requires is concentration." He considered, "It is possible that,
should it come to that, I might be able to serve as a focus and if you,
and others even, were to concentrate on me, it might help. It certainly
couldn't hurt."
"Anything to share about this Darkspell fellow? How will I recognize him? and
does he have any weaknesses like jelly doughnuts which may prove useful?"
inquired The Wanderer as they came closer and closer to the Jewel of
All-Devouring.
"Only that he has great skill in the mystic arts and is a dangerous
foe. When you meet him, he will doubtless be wearing the Cloak of
Daemonus, which is similar in design to my own garment, the Cloak of
Vieltoor. The Cloak of Daemonus, however, is green or black as the mood
suits it, rather than the blue of this cloak."
"Gotcha. Dangerous, bad dresser, and likes jewelry...there can be only one
place that fosters that kind of behavior...." trailed The Wanderer.
The two men looked up to see where the trail had led them, and saw before
them the towering CommerceDome.
Meanwhile ...
Fervor's IPAC beeperphone lit up like a Christmas Tree waking him out of
a sound sleep.
Fervor reached over and hits the snooze twice before realizing what was
beeping and then forced himself alert as he took the call.
On the other end was Wilkins, "Fervor we've got a situation!
It looks like both White Knight and Iron Maiden -- that's Glory's new code-name -- are down, and I just lost contact with the support team. They're out
at the CommerceDome. I'm en route, can you join me? And do you know
how to contact the Wanderer?"
"What do you mean they're down? Glory should still be in the hospital and
you've got her out on a mission." Fervor made no attempt to quench the
heat in his voice as he makes his reply.
"I'm heading out the door now and I'll get to the CommerceDome as soon as I
can. No I can't get in touch with the Wanderer...Wait I have an idea. Maybe
if we're both lucky. Fervor out."
Fervor, still in his civilian guise, hoped that there were no police out as he
one-handedly squealed around a corner, one hand on the wheel and the other
reaching into his daytimer. "How the hell do normal super heroes get
around!" He said to himself as he tried to get another 10mph out of his
Mercedes. He finally found the card he was looking for and slowed down
briefly to call the number.
"Come on Peters answer your phone..."
A groggy voice answered, "Peters, this better be good."
"I hope it will be Ms. Peters. This is Fervor. Do you have a way to contact
Wanderer NOW, as in this minute? I know he gave you a card and I don't have
time to put an ad in the personals."
Fervor tried not to drop the phone, though it was held only with cocked head
as he ran another red light. Though through this one, he did slow down
enough to make sure that the way was reasonably clear. Being roadkill was
not going to help anyone. **Damn Wilkins** He thought to himself.
"Fervor? Ok, now I'm awake," came the voice down the line. "No,
I've got no way to get a hold of the Wanderer, you mean you don't?
I thought you guys would have, like, a Wanderer signal or something."
Tires squealed and horns blared as Fervor continues his flight towards the
CommerceDome. Every few seconds he sent up a silent prayer of thanks as he
passed one of the few cars on the road.
"It would make things a lot easier if there were a Wanderer signal. That's
one of the drawbacks of being enigmatic. He get's to sit home and have
mysterious dreams tonight. Well, Sorry to wake you and thanks. Got to go."
Fervor racked his brain trying to think of some other method of contacting
the Wanderer but he couldn't think of anything that had a reasonable chance of
succeeding. "Time to close your eyes and throw the long pass and hope a
receiver gets there," he thought.
With that thought in mind he called the city's most popular Oldies station,
KOLD -- Kay-old, All Oldies, All the Time.
At this time of night, he hoped there wouldn't be a wait on the request line.
Luck was with him, and he got through quickly.
"Hey,
I've got an important request for you. It may sound strange but I need you
to play 'The Wanderer' and dedicate it to 'That Mysterious Guy from a Hot
Date, Meet me at the CommerceDome.' It's for my sister. It's her first
anniversary and he husband got pulled in for a double shift tonight. They
met at the Commercedome and she want's to do something special with him,
even if it's going to an all night diner. I get to call you because of some
argument she had with him about the double shift and the fact that she's
eight month's pregnant. I've learned that for another 6 weeks I'm not going
to question her or argue with her, So PLEASE, I don't want to spend the
rest of the night hearing my hysterical sister tell me how much nobody
loves her because she's fat. Thanks."
After the call he concentrated on getting to the Commercedome.
Without too much further ado, he arrived at a place not far from
the CommerceDome where he could park the car, change into his Fervor ID
and approach on foot.
Issue #7
Last Updated 29 May 2000
