"...it's up to us to stop them. So who are 'they'?"
"The Bringers of Ragnarok," Chief West said.
"With a name like that, they must be lunatics. Are these guys for real?"
"More real than anything you might think, Lieutenant," Edwards said. "They're notorious for causing havoc in every highly populated star system."
Robbins looked at Schwirian's group, then turned to look at her own. "Dangerous enough to require two groups?"
"Yes," the chief said. "Without question."
"Our informants told us that they already have two pieces," Stewart said. "Luckily for us, one of the remaining pieces is well-hidden in one of the dozens of flame tunnels around the old Field Fortress, and the other one is locked in a vault in the fortress."
"We can find the pieces more easily," the chief said. "We have the combination to the vault, and we have a tracking device that can pinpoint the location of the other piece." He handed the device to Stewart and said, "You guys had better get going."
"Right here, Robbins." Stewart read the display on the energy tracker carefully. The tunnel should be--"
"Right below us," Robbins finished. "I see it. I'm taking her down."
Robbins eased the craft down about fifty meters from the tunnel and peered at it. "They built those things really well," she remarked. "Solid stone walls; flames protruding from every surface except the floor, and only part of that; and trip wires to cause bigger flames. Can you imagine the energy expenditures?"
"Yeah," Stewart said. "It's incredible. Rumor has it that the staff piece charges the tunnels. So, who's going to brave the heat and get it?"
"Me," Robbins said. "I'm faster than any of you, so I can more easily avoid any traps I accidentally trip."
"It's all yours."
"Damn, it's like an oven in here. I can feel the heat through my armor."
"Are you all right?" Stewart asked.
"I'm sweating like there's no tomorrow. It's starting to smell like Milligan's socks in here. And I'm talking about after he gets done working out."
"Are you all right?" he repeated. "Should I come after you?"
"Oh, she's fine," Milligan said. "If she's complaining and cracking wise, she's doing just fine."
"You know me well, Mark," Robbins said, chuckling. "Charlie, don't come after me unless I stop bitching to you about what you made me do."
"You volunteered," Stewart pointed out. "How far are you?"
"I'm getting close," she panted. "I can see the stone. There's an inscription on it."
"What does it say?"
"If I could make it out from here, I'd tell you, genius. Give me a second." She reached the stone, on which the piece of the staff laid, and brushed off the dust.
"What does it mean?"
"Oh, suddenly I'm the expert on cryptic Field Staff writings." She looked up and saw a sculpted eagle's head on the wall. "Actually, I think I know. There's an eagle on the wall here, and its mouth is open. I'm willing to bet that this tunnel will get even hotter if the staff piece is taken."
Suddenly two Ragnarok ninjas teleported into the tunnel, one on each side of her. "We'll take that," one said.
"Locked on to our position, huh? Well, no way!" She snatched the staff fragment off the stone and sprinted for the exit. The eagle's head came alive, spraying a great flame that began to engulf the entire tunnel.
"Charlie!" Robbins shouted into the communicator.
"Something wrong? Do you need help?"
"No! Just clear everyone out of the way of the exit there. Don't ask me anything else."
She slid the communicator back onto the clip on her waist and picked up the pace, running as fast as her legs would allow. The blaze chased after her, tickling her heels as she approached the exit. The fireball finally caught up with her as she reached the mouth of the tunnel, and the force expelled her and flung her across the plain. She landed hard and rolled to a stop.
Stewart and Schwirian raced up to her. "Are you okay?" Schwirian asked her.
She panted and laid there, too breathless to reply, and Schwirian knelt by her with a look of fear crossing his face. "Alicia?"
Robbins lifted her arm and opened her fist, showing the other two the piece of the staff. "I'm okay," she gasped. "Hold on."
Stewart took the fragment and waited as Robbins caught her breath. After a moment she slowly rose, pulled her helmet off her head and shook her golden-red hair down around her flushed face. "I'm done for the day," she sighed. Schwirian handed her his portable fan, and she took it and blew it in her face. "Thanks, Coyote."
"Look," Milligan said, pointing. "Those ninjas are trying to get the last piece. They're going into the Field Fortress."
"You guys, follow them, and make sure they don't get the other piece. Robbins and I will watch this one and the ship."
The sextet was already in the fortress and had the ninjas in their sights when the hall unexpectedly branched in either direction. The ninjas had split evenly to continue their search for the staff piece.
"Payton, take Milligan and Heidelberg that way," Schwirian said. "We'll go this way. If you find the staff, call us."
"More ninjas!" Stewart said. "They weren't kidding when they said these guys were dangerous."
"I haven't seen their leader yet." Then Robbins peered at them. "One of them has a staff piece! Gutsy sons of bitches..."
"I'll relieve them of that. Stay here and watch the ship."
"No problem!" She grinned. "I'd rather not work up another sweat."
Stewart leapt up and fired upon the ninjas. They spun around to look, then turned and ran from him. He pursued them to an empty well. "I've got you now," he muttered as they jumped inside.
He followed and jumped into the hole, only to watch them teleport before hitting the bottom of the well. Stewart cursed as he passed through the energy remnants of the gateway and landed at the wet clay bottom, sinking about a meter into the mud.
"Robbins, I need some help here," he said into his communicator. "Grab some rope and pull me out of here."
"Charlie, I'm not sure I can do that, even with my armor's extra strength. That's a long way to pull someone."
"I think I can do it myself, since I'm stronger than you. Tie the rope to the ship and I'll see what I can do."
"Okay." She hurried to grab the rope and secure one end of it to the ship, then tossed the other end down the hole.
By this time, Stewart had partially dug himself out of the mud and was only ankle-deep. He grasped the rope and pulled it taut, then began to pull himself out.
Robbins scanned the horizon and saw a ship approaching. She went into her own ship and looked out the cockpit window as the ship came closer. She saw that it had a small bomb attached to its underside, and realized what they were doing.
She raced to the cannon, hoping that Stewart didn't look up and panic as the ship came to a stop over him. Robbins made it into the seat and swiveled the cannon to see the ship carefully positioning itself over the well. She aimed the cannon directly at the explosive and squeezed off a shot. The recoil from the cannon made it impossible to see the effect of the blast, but she heard the explosion and knew that the bomb hadn't dropped.
"What the hell was that?" Stewart asked her through the comlink.
"Trust me, you'd rather not know." She chuckled and made her way back outside the ship, looking at the now-destroyed craft.
Stewart returned to the surface. "Bomber?" he asked, pointing at the downed Ragnarok ship.
Robbins nodded. "I told you that you didn't want to know. Okay, now I'm done for the day."
"Yeah," Stewart said, taking his helmet off. "Me too."
The separated trios inside the castle reached rooms that were joined to each other by a short hallway, almost a small room set in between them.
In the room that Schwirian, Edwards and Proudstar were in, there was also a small safe in the corner. The trio arrived to see a few Ragnarok soldiers and ninjas trying to break into it.
"You know, guys," Proudstar said, "there's an easier way to get in that safe."
The soldiers turned and attacked the cops without a word. The three cops stood their ground and fought right back.
A similar battle was already being engaged in the other room. One combatant was an almost crustacean-looking humanoid that had sharp tendrils sticking partway out of his arms. He had been thrown against a wall and momentarily forgotten.
Suddenly the beast came up from behind Heidelberg and extended a tendril quickly, jabbing it through his armor and his chest, then just as quickly retracted it. Blood instantly spurted from the wound, gushing quickly as Heidelberg sank to the ground.
Payton raced over and grabbed the creature from behind by the arm. He twisted his body, snapping the limb off, and drove the beast into the ground.
Payton took one of the spikes and used it to defend himself, continuing the battle alongside Milligan. Soon there were no more soldiers left standing.
"Not half bad, huh?" Payton asked Milligan.
"Not bad at all." He glanced at the downed Heidelberg lying in a pool of blood. "Dead?"
"Yeah. Those Crustenoids have pinpoint accuracy."
Suddenly another soldier raced into the room, knocked Milligan and Payton over, and raced towards the small room. Milligan was the first to recover, and charged after the criminal.
Milligan arrived in the room to see the other man step on a floor switch that slammed and locked the doors. He looked and saw that this inner room was mostly softwood, where the outer halls had been of stone and hardwood.
"These floor switches are handy," the crook said. "Too bad you guys had to come here--this is a lousy place to die."
Milligan cocked his cannon. "I'm not the one who's going to die."
"Oh, I don't know. We didn't really care about the staff that much anyway, we just wanted to take out a few members of the infamous I.P.F."
"You still won't make it out of here."
"Neither will you, Sergeant." He opened his coat to reveal a bomb strapped to his chest.
Just then, a shout came over the communicator. "Eagles, Coyotes, we have success!" Schwirian said. "Piece two secured!"
The soldier frowned, then continued. "It's really too bad that you're still wearing your armor. When the bomb goes off, you'll be protected by it--but I'm banking on the fortress being unstable enough to collapse. Guess we'll find out soon, won't we?"
Milligan could only stare frozen with fear at the timer, which quickly counted down to its inevitable conclusion.
The blast flung Milligan into the large room, and he smashed through a weak section of the far wall. Chunks of rock came raining down on him; a particularly large piece landed squarely on his ankle, causing him to howl in pain.
Robbins heard the blast and whirled her head around, then grabbed a pair of scope-binoculars to survey the damage. A quick skim caused her to get a look of concern on her face, and she called out on the communicator.
"Coyote! Dan! Get the hell out of there! That thing's going to collapse on you any second!"
Payton scanned the room. There was Milligan, trapped under the section of wall, and Heidelberg down on the ground. Payton ran over to Milligan and pulled him out from under the rock.
"No, Payton," Milligan moaned, "leave me. Save yourself."
"I'm not leaving anyone behind, damn it," Payton replied. He pulled Milligan up to a standing position and supported him on his shoulder.
"Payton, my leg--the wall landed on it--the armor bent--it hurts a lot."
"You'll make it." He stopped briefly at Heidelberg, and looked down at him. After a moment he sighed heavily and waveringly, and resumed assisting Milligan, trying to get out before the building collapsed.
"Let me go," Milligan gasped, his strength waning. "I'm just dead weight."
"No. Come on. Work with me. Walk!"
Milligan found a final burst of energy and staggered alongside Payton. "I can't make it," he gasped.
"You'll make it! Focus!"
"I'm too weak--I--" he suddenly slumped over.
"Shit!" Payton lifted Milligan up onto his shoulders and carried him towards the exit.
Schwirian looked around the room he was in. This one had suffered most of the damage, and pieces were already falling from the walls. Proudstar and Edwards looked at the walls and suddenly charged at them.
"Captain, get out of here!" Edwards said. "We'll try to hold up the wall long enough for you and the other three to get out."
Schwirian looked at them. "No. I'll help you!" He ran over toward them, then paused and scanned the wall.
"We've got it, Captain," Proudstar said. "Go. You have a family now. Your responsibility is to your wife."
"But--"
"No buts. We've got it. Go."
Then Schwirian heard the communicator scream at him. "Coyote! Get your ass out of there NOW!"
"Captain," Edwards said, "even though I'm technically under you, consider this a direct order--Get out!"
Schwirian looked at the other two for a moment. He then saluted them and said, "Goodbye, my friends." He then turned, sprinting down the hall.
Schwirian caught up with Payton and Milligan at the junction of the hallways. "Where's Heidelberg?" he asked as he took half of Milligan's weight on his shoulder.
"Dead," Payton sighed. "A Crustenoid spiked him."
"Oh, man." He plucked the communicator from his waist and spoke into it. "Alicia!"
"Hey, hunk. Have you left yet?"
"Yeah, we're on our way. Heidelberg's dead; Proudstar and Edwards soon will be."
"Damn. How close are you?"
"We're almost out, hon. I can see the door up ahead--!"
Suddenly there was a loud, long rumble as the building finally collapsed on itself, sinking very slowly to the ground. Robbins and Stewart covered their ears to muffle the sound, and averted their heads to keep dust from flying into their eyes.
When the thunderous sound had subsided, Robbins and Stewart looked over the rubble. The dust still had not settled, and they couldn't see if the other three had made it out. For an agonizingly long minute, they tried to peer through the haze, trying to catch a glimpse of one of their friends.
Robbins felt sick to her stomach as the smoke cleared and she still saw no sign of the others. She scanned the wreckage carefully, hoping that she was missing something, and then she saw it. A glimmer. Metal. Armor!
"Charlie!" she gasped out. "Over there!"
"I see it. It's an arm."
"Hopefully it's still attached to a body," she deadpanned, walking over to the pile. She dug around the arm and uncovered a crest of an eagle, overlaid on a Roman numeral IV, on the shoulder-piece of the armor.
"It's Milligan," Robbins mumbled, digging around the armor with Stewart's help. They cleared most of the rocks from Milligan and pulled him out of the pile. Laying him on a flat spot, they looked back in the newly formed hole and saw two more armored figures inside. Working diligently, Stewart and Robbins cleared the remaining rocks around Schwirian and Payton, and helped them up.
"You guys okay?"
Schwirian groaned. "Am I still alive?"
"Of course..."
"Then I suppose I'm okay."
"Milligan's hurt really bad," Payton groaned. "We had better get him to a hospital, and quick."
The mood in the waiting room was somber, as the four remaining cops waited to find out how Milligan was. Stewart was reading a poster on the wall, Payton was sitting there with his hands folded, and Schwirian and Robbins kept looking at each other across the table.
"We failed," Payton muttered.
"No, we didn't," Schwirian said, looking over at him. "We may only have two pieces of the staff, but it's enough to keep the Ragnaroks subdued for a while."
"Each part of the staff is powerful in its own right," Robbins pointed out.
"But together, they exceed the sum of their parts. Besides, the way I see it, each side having two puts us about even."
A doctor came out and said, "Captain Stewart?"
"Yeah," Stewart said, his gaze still fixed on the poster, "that's me. How is he?"
"Mark will be okay. His right tib-fib and ankle are broken, but we set them so they'll heal properly. Other than the fractures, he's just a little shaken up. Nothing major."
The group sighed, relievedly and collectively. "Can we see him?" Robbins asked.
"Sure," the doctor said. "Right this way."
"It's good to know you're okay," Stewart said, clasping Milligan's hand.
Milligan smiled at the captain. "I'd never let you down, sir." He then looked at Payton. "Thanks for not leaving me behind. I owe you."
"I told you I wouldn't leave you behind. I never go back on a promise."
Milligan grinned at Payton, then turned back to look at Stewart. "Captain, the guy who blew himself up told me that the whole thing with the staff was just a cover. They were trying to kill us; the staff was secondary."
Stewart's eyes widened. "We've been set up?"
"No," Chief West said, coming into the room. "You weren't set up, the whole force was."
"Who did this?"
"One of our informants was a member of the Ragnarok forces. He knew that we'd send our best group, and figured that it was the easiest way to get rid of the top of the field."
Stewart seethed. "What happened to this informant?"
"He's gone. He killed himself."
"We have to strike the Ragnarok forces and bring them to justice. No one kills three cops and seriously injures a fourth and gets away with it."
"If you think that's best."
"I do. This isn't over yet."
Robbins, Schwirian, Stewart and Payton made their way to the ship and prepared to lift off.
"So explain to me again why we're going to Ragnarok headquarters," Robbins said to Stewart.
"We have to," came the reply. "We scattered a good deal of their forces back at Field Prime. This is the perfect time to strike and get rid of them for good."
"Never mind the fact that you want revenge for the other four."
Stewart looked at her. "We all do what we have to do."
"Yeah, I know. Where is their headquarters, anyway?"
"It's on a planet called Phonare."
"Phonare? I know where that is! My sensei lives there."
"Lythia?"
"Yeah. She's one of my oldest and dearest friends; she taught me nearly everything I know. She taught me how to fight."
"She did a good job. So do you know the coordinates of the planet?"
"Yeah." She typed on a keyboard set in the control panel, and the ship took off.
The quartet landed on Phonare and picked their way through the forest to the Ragnarok fortress. They had just come to the clearing in which the castle was located when a group materialized in front of them. This group consisted of some Ragnarok soldiers and ninjas surrounding a platform. Their leader, a powerful mage named Firecue, was standing on the platform.
The mage raised his arms and cut a wide swath of energy through the air, which hit the quartet and stole their armor's power. The ninjas then attacked them viciously, dropping the three males to the ground quickly. Robbins managed to evade their attacks and escape, fleeing into the woods.
The ninjas began to follow her, but Firecue called them back. "She is a mere girl. She can do nothing against me."
We'll see about that...your overconfidence will be your downfall.
Robbins had not gone far when she saw a large boulder amidst the trees. She decided this would be a good place to collect her thoughts and hide in case anyone had ignored the mage's orders and gone after her. She gave the area a quick glance, then squatted behind the rock and considered her options.
After a moment, she heard a rustling in the bushes nearby. Instantly her body went into alert, and she leapt up, pointing her pistol at the movement.
"Come out from there, hands where I can see them," she barked. The figure hesitantly rose, but not fast enough for Robbins. "I SAID OUT! HANDS IN THE AIR!"
An old woman timidly peeked her head out from the bush, and Robbins relaxed, lowering her pistol. "Lythia," she sighed at the familiar figure. "I'm sorry. It's just that those damn ninjas--"
"It's all right," the woman said. "I understand."
"I need help, Lythia. You can teleport, right?"
"You know I can. Why?"
"Can you transport others? I need to get in the Ragnarok fortress and rescue my partners, but I can't get past the guards on my own."
"Of course. Hold on a moment." She closed her eyes. "Yes, I can see the room where they are being held. They are chained to a wall in the throne room--I'm sending you there now."
Robbins felt her body become light and airy, and was dimly aware that she was no longer in the woods.
Robbins re-materialized in the middle of the throne room, and instantly all the guards in the room turned toward her. She fired a few rounds from her pistol at them, but two came up from behind her and grabbed her by an arm. They then forced her to her knees.
Rookie mistake, stupid, she chided herself. Come on, Alicia! You have half the freakin' staff, why didn't you use it? Too bad I can't do anything about that now...
The mage walked over and backhanded Robbins square in the face, and the soldiers dropped her roughly to the ground. She growled and rose with fire in her eyes and blood dripping from her nostrils. "Please. Did you really think that would stop me?"
The guards advanced on her again, but Firecue waved them off and reached towards the heavens to pull in a trail of energy, which he fired at Robbins. Robbins took a defensive stance and blocked the shot with her arms, but felt the energy seep into her body slowly. She felt herself become lightheaded, and suddenly realized that it was some kind of magic spell to attack the mind. Just then, she lost control and looked as though she were struck dumb.
Firecue cast a steely glare into Robbins' eyes. "You are under my control," he said. "Kill your three partners. Kill them with your bare hands. Prove your loyalty to me."
"Sure, no problem," Robbins muttered. She advanced on the shackled trio, reaching Schwirian first.
"Alicia, snap out of it," Schwirian said, feeling her warm hands pressing against his neck and beginning to squeeze. "Please, Alicia, it's me, Coyote, your lover, your husband." He felt her hands closing around his neck, and began struggling. He looked deep into her eyes pleadingly, and gasped out, "Alicia..."
Robbins blinked a couple times, then closed her eyes tight and opened them a second or two later. She shook her head slightly, released her grip and turned to Firecue. "You know, boss-guy, I have a better idea."
"Do tell," the wizard said.
"Slicing them in the gut so their visceral organs fall out would be so much more entertaining to watch. It's not as cruel as strangulation, but it'd look better." She could hear Schwirian gasp behind her.
"You know, you're right."
Robbins nodded and walked over to one of the guards, holding out her hand for his sword. The guard looked at Firecue, who nodded, and handed the sword to Robbins.
"Thank you," Robbins said, smiling sweetly and walking over to the mage. "Do you think this will be sharp enough, Master?"
"Yes," Firecue said, tapping the blade with his fingertip, "that will cut nicely."
"Good." She smiled, hefted the blade in her hands and suddenly took a vicious slice at the wizard's stomach. He screamed, more in shock than in pain, and Robbins watched his organs fall free as his body dropped to the floor.
"What do you know, I was right. Definitely more entertaining." She scooped up the two pieces of the staff and joined them with the two she had, then whirled around and glared at the guards.
"Don't even think about challenging me," she warned, waving the staff around and staring at them coldly. The guards looked at her in fear, then fled from the room.
Robbins grinned at her cohorts, wiped blood from her face and walked towards them. "Not bad for a 'mere girl,' huh?" She used the power of the staff to release them from their bonds.
"I'm impressed," Stewart said, lifting her chin to examine her nose. "Does it hurt?"
"Nah. He didn't break it; he didn't hit me hard enough. Coyote, you okay?"
"Yeah," Schwirian said, massaging his throat. "I'll be all right."
"Good." She looked at the staff, frowning. "This thing is far too powerful for anyone to possess. I'm going to destroy it."
"You think that's best?"
She simply nodded. "Now what was that incantation again? Oh, I remember.
She held the staff away from her body as it disintegrated in her hands. "It's done," she sighed. "Let's head out."