Adventures in Parodyverse:  Choices Part 6


    Hatman had just put on his Jets cap, and he glanced at Anna.  “How are we going to do this?”

    Without saying a word, Anna hopped onto his back, and held on with her hands clasped together across his chest, and her legs pressed against his sides.  She was surprisingly light for her size, and much more surprisingly strong.  He didn’t have to worry about her falling off as they flew.

    The plan was formulated quickly.  Once they were airborne, they realized that the male android had rocket boots, but hadn’t used them because they had limited fuel.  Evading Hatman and Anna was enough incentive to burn some of it, though.

    Hatman responded by quickly switching to his Rockets cap to catch up.  Anna held on tighter, and began firing low power laser blasts from above Hatman’s head to try and destabilize the other android’s flight pattern.

    She looked down at one point, and he looked up.  They both shared a quick laugh as they realized the two of them together were the most agile, powerful, and advanced airborne fighter Earth has ever seen.

    Anna had much faster reflexes than Hatman, and could predict the android’s next moves, so she devised a system to warn him to strafe right or left by shifting her weight and leaning one direction or the other.  He quickly picked up the cues.

    While much of his concentration was on flying at high speed, Hatman was quietly thinking to himself that Anna’s strategy reminded him a lot of Yuki’s, only with a lot less commentary.  Her sense of humor, though, made him forget he was fighting close with someone who was artificial.  At least until he heard the signature high-pitched whine from her head, and lasers fire from her eyes.

    Anna’s opponent was as quick and even more agile in the air as the Anna and Hatman duo.  He was evading her laser blasts like a pro, and keeping a respectable distance away at all times.  She wondered if he would run out of fuel at some point.

    As they approached Downtown, Hatman felt Anna’s legs tense at his sides, and her arms tighten around his chest.  It was such a human reaction, to hold on tighter in response to worry about diminishing space to maneuver.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“If we’re going to crash.”  Anna whispered to Jay, her voice sounding a little worried, “Try to land on top of me, I can take a lot more abuse than you can.”

    Hatman nearly argued, but then he figured out what prompted her worry - the android flying in front of them could easily survive a crash, and may think to do so purposely to take Hatman out of the equation, and ground Anna.

    But neither of them expected the android to climb rapidly, headed straight vertical.  Hatman gave chase at first, but then began leveling off gradually.  “I can’t make that climb, Anna.  I can’t pull those kind of G’s.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Okay.”  she replied, sounding disappointed.  “Can we circle a bit in case he comes back down very nearby?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Sure.”  he replied.


---


    Herbert Garrick paced nervously in the green room at the White House.  There were six dark suited Secret Service people waiting with him, and they didn’t look happy.
    
    He had a ‘Visitor’ pass attached to his civilian clothing.  When he received the call to come in, it was in person - those Secret Service men came to his home to pick him up personally.  He didn’t have time to change.

    One of the President’s intern aides also waited with him, and looked very nervous.  She was chewing her fingernails, and her hair was becoming undone more and more the longer she waited.

    Finally, the old soundproof wooden door opened, and two more Secret Service men stepped out.  Directly behind them was Yuki Shiro, of the Lair Legion.  She wore a leather biker jacket and matching pants, which was completely out of place.

    The purple-haired Yuki said nothing as she eyed Garrick and walked by slowly, escorted out by the suited men.  There was no speaking or sound, just a quiet shuffling like a funeral.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“The President will see you now.”  Another intern announced from behind the door, aiming her comment at Garrick.  He frowned, straightened himself, and followed her in.

    Out of respect, Yuki waited until she was in a more public area of the White House to slip her Lair Legion comm-card out of her jacket.  “Hallie, can you patch me through to Anna?  I have a message for Hatman...”


---


    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I just got a message from Yuki.”  Anna told Hatman as they flew a wide circle over the section of Paradopolis where they last saw SPUD’s latest android construct.  “She says she took the Lairjet and broke into the White House--”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What??”  Hatman asked loudly.  He felt Anna hold on tighter as he almost lost control of his flight.

    Sounding more strained as she held on, Anna tried to finish her sentence rapidly.  “He let her go, once she told him about SPUD spending billions of their secret budget on a single android to balance the Lair Legion.  And then he called in Herbert Garrick.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Oh.”  Hatman responded, sounding calmer now.  “The President probably knows already.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I don’t think that’s the point.”  Anna smirked as she realized.  “I think Yuki meant to embarrass him a little.  Like I know that you know.  That’s why Garrick got called in.”

    Hatman laughed slightly, and kept smiling.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What’s so funny?”  Anna asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I was just thinking.”  Hatman replied, “This is exactly why we hired Yuki.  She has this almost evil cleverness, and no boundaries.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“There!”  Anna pointed suddenly.

    Hatman aimed directly where she was pointing, and went into a full speed dive.

    She made a frightened squeak that sounded so uncharacteristic for her, and suddenly Hatman was dodging the male android flying directly at them, now fighting more aggressively.

    He blasted Anna with a precisely aimed laser, and then ascended past the two of them.

    Hatman nearly turned to follow until he realized that Anna was no longer holding on to him tightly.  Before he could reach up, she went limp, slid off of him, and started falling.  Hatman clenched his teeth and dove with all the speed he could muster.

    He switched to his Steelers cap just in time to snatch Anna out of the air and curl up to protect her before he hit ground, hard, sending broken concrete from a deserted parking lot airborne.

    Then he reached for his Lair Legion comm-card, his metallic hand slipping off of it as he forgot to take off the cap.  He removed the hat, and then quickly said, “Hallie, emergency evac!”

    Out of his Hat-tility belt came two caps at once.  It always selected the best for the job to use at the moment, so he was surprised at the confusion.  One was a Paramedic cap, the other, NASA.  He opted instead to check out the damage first.

    A quick check revealed that her body was still intact, and no fluids were leaking out.  He then realized his own face was burned, like a bad sunburn.  Energy started to sap from him as he realized the Paramedic cap was for him, not for Anna.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Hallie--”  he choked into the comm-card.  “Need help.”

    He then passed out.


---


    When Hatman woke up, he was wearing an oxygen mask, and his skin felt like it was on fire.  He was in a small metal room that echoed as he breathed.

    He looked over to his left, where Anna lay there unconscious, also wearing an oxygen mask.  Then to his right, where Liu Xi Xian in the same condition.  He tried to sit up, but only made it partially before a wave of dizziness hit him.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Take it easy, Hatty.”  he heard the familiar voice of Yuki, but somewhat mechanical, like through a telephone.  He squinted at its source, from somewhere beyond where his feet lay.  She was behind a thick window, talking to him through a speaker.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What happened?”  he asked, sounding muffled through the mask.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Liu Xi brought you back home, to the infirmary.”  Yuki said.  “Then she passed out.  Hallie did some scans and found all three of you were highly radioactive, Liu Xi probably got it from touching you two.  I put on a suit and loaded you all into decontamination.”

    Hatman sighed sadly, and closed his eyes.  “How bad is it?”  he asked.

    There was a pause while Yuki looked at the readings beside the door.  She then opened it, and stepped inside.  “Aside from some burns, the three of you should be radiation free now.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Is Anna going to be okay?”  he asked, sounding worried.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yeah.”  Yuki replied way too calmly.  “She just went into emergency sleep mode so the radiation wouldn’t degrade her circuits.  Now that’s she’s in the clear she should reset and wake up any minute now.”

    Then Yuki sat down on the edge of Jay’s bed.  “There’s another concern,”  she said.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What’s that?”  he asked.

    The purple-haired legionnaire looked down and shook her head.  “That it worked.  SPUD’s new android did the job it was supposed to do, it incapacitated the Lair Legion.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I wouldn’t say that.”  Hatman replied weakly.  “You’re still here, and so is Hallie and CSFB!”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That level of radiation would disrupt Hallie.  Same with me, and CSFB! wouldn’t fare much better than you.  Besides, it’s the strategy that worked better than the weapon.  Use its own abilities to force us to split up, so it can break us down.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“He has a nuclear battery.”  Anna pointed out, having just woken up.  “That radiation can only be used a limited number of times before he renders his battery useless and kills himself.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Either way,”  Yuki said with a smirk, “It’s too bad SPUD’s going to have to lose funding for the project.  This new android will also be the last of its kind.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“We’re not going to adopt another android are we?”  Hatman asked.  He turned his head and smiled affectionately toward Anna.  “We’re just getting used to this one.”

    Anna smiled briefly and blushed.  Then she sat up slowly - Hatman had to envy her ability to return to full capacity so quickly.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“We have to leave this one with SPUD.”  Yuki replied.  “It was part of the deal I made.  I agreed as long as they don’t destroy it.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That was...kind of you, Yuki.”  Anna commented.  “To spare his life in spite of his purpose being to destroy you.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I spared yours too, Anna.”  Yuki pointed out.  “And I never regretted the decision.”

    Anna nodded, and slid off of her bed.  “I suppose now that I’m awake, I can offer some help.  How is Liu Xi?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Liu Xi has a bad headache.”  the Chinese girl replied, having just awakened, and removed her mask.  She tried to lift her head, but then groaned and laid back down.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What happened with that cult?”  Hatman asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I scolded them and sent them home.”  she said quietly.  “I’m hoping they’re smart and learn something, but they’ll probably be back.”

    He then looked at Yuki.  “Do you and Anna mind if I talk to Liu Xi for a moment?”

    Yuki gave him a strange look, but then looked at Anna and motioned for her to follow.  She then left the room with the android, and the door shut behind her.

    Hatman was smart enough to realize that Yuki could still sort of hear, most likely, so he tried to speak cryptically.  “You know that choice Faite gave me?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yeah?”  Liu Xi answered.  “I guess you did just nearly get killed again--”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That’s why--”  he began, interrupting her.  “That’s why I can’t do it just yet.  I also think I’ll take her offer of giving me more time...so I won’t decide for now.  But I also want to make the Lair Legion less dependent on me to save them...you know, just in case.”

    Without any more words, she reached one arm across the gap between the two beds, and he reached out too.  She took his hand tightly, squeezed it, and held on tightly.  She didn’t have to hear the words to know he was a little scared.  He always tried to be strong for everyone else, so she would try to be strong for him too.


---


    Ã¢â‚¬Å“So spill it.”  Yuki prompted Anna outside the infirmary.  “You hooked up with the SPUD android before it shut down that first time.  You obviously saw something.”

    Anna looked at Yuki warily, and then quickly looked away.  She sighed finally, and whispered, “I...did see something.  I gave all the information to Hallie.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Why Hallie?  Why keep it secret from me and Hatman?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I wanted to protect you.”  she replied more confidently.  “Hallie is...accustomed to handling secrets.  She’s very good at deciding when and how to release them.  I always say too much and get people in trouble.  Plus, Hallie really wants to save him somehow.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Oh?”  Yuki was curious now.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yeah.”  Anna chuckled nervously.  “I thought it was crazy too, but she’s determined.  Hallie said she won’t have an intelligent artificial life form enslaved like that.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Well, since you’re here,”  Yuki pointed out, “that means she’s right.  Think about that.”

    Anna nodded quietly.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I need some downtime, Anna, I’ve been awake for a very long time.  Can you look after things for me?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“No problem.”  she agreed with a nod.


---


    Dreamcatcher Foxglove woke up feeling warm and comfortable, curled up in a dimly lit room.  When he opened his eyes, he saw Lara Night lying on her back next to him, her hands lying across her stomach, staring at the ceiling like she was worried about something.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I was just tired.”  he quickly said, anticipating what she might be worried about.  “Healing up uses a lot of energy.  Got any...?”

    He didn’t finish the sentence before she reached down below the queen sized bed they were lying on, and lifted up two large aluminum cans of Rocket Fuel Soda, her fingers barely holding on to them both.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Cool!”  Dream grabbed them quickly, opened one, and drank half the can before he paused to say, “Thanks.  Want any?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Nah, I won’t sleep for three days.”  she absentmindedly responded.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What’s wrong?”  he asked, as he finished off the second can quickly.

    She summarized sadly, “I got you hurt.  I lost my temper.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“But it all turned out okay, didn’t it?”  he pointed out.  He looked around, and realized that he was in Lara’s quarters at the Lair Mansion.  “How come you brought me here?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I didn’t want to have to explain how you got hurt.”  Lara replied.  “At least not till I got over it myself.  So I brought you here and kept an eye on you.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You’re so sweet!”  Dream said enthusiastically, now that he was full of sugar again.  He turned over and hugged Lara tightly, drawing her close to him.  “Sweet like Rocket Fuel Soda.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Okay, okay.”  Lara said, laughing slightly nervously.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Y’know, with me on a sugar high, and you on an emotional high--”

    She felt his hands subtly trace the curves of her back and waist, and she squirmed a little.  “I...don’t think that’ll...work out.  The last time, it didn’t go so well for you, remember?  Or for me, later on.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Maybe it was all about you.”  he said.  “You liked it, didn’t you?”

    She shrugged, seeming a little embarrassed.  “Yeahhh,”  she replied distantly.  She sat up partway to ask, “What do you see in me, anyway?  I’m totally inexperienced compared to the two girls you’re used to.”

    With a shrug, Dream replied like a child might when pressed for an explanation.  “I dunno.  We’re in tune with each other, I guess.  You give off some kind of vibe that makes me--”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Okay, I get it.”  Lara interrupted him.  “I can tell that part.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“If there’s one fault you have, Lara, it’s that you’re tied down by fear.”  Dream told her.  “You’re afraid of what someone else is going to think or do.  If it’s not gonna kill you, or put you in jail, or hurt someone, why not enjoy what you can?  I mean, dude, you just kicked the Chronicler’s ass!  What about a reward for that?”

    Lara sighed sadly, and shook her head, sitting up the rest of the way.  “I’m not afraid, it’s just that...the pleasure of it is fleeting, you know?  Then you go back to April and Betty, and I’m left to face Jay’s disapproval and general mocking from everyone else.  It’s not fair to me.”

    Dream’s response was to shrug, without losing his smile, and say, “You’re probably right.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I’m glad you’re not upset.”  she responded quietly.  “I was so worried about telling you that, it sounded so rude in my head.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Nah, don’t worry about it.”  he said, hugging her tightly.  “I’m happy just hanging with you, too.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Cool.”  was all she could think to say.  She laid back again, and put her hands behind her head.  After that, they just quietly kept each other company for a while.


TO BE CONTINUED
    

-- Story written and copyrighted (C) 2009 by Jason Froikin, and may not be 
--    reprinted without permission.  
-- Yuki Shiro designed by Jason Froikin, based on designs by Masamune Shirow
--  Liu Xi Xian and the Psychic Samurai are original design by Jason Froikin
--  Lara Night is an original creation by Jason Froikin