"LUNAR: Tales From Crystal Tokyo"
LUNAR:
The Lost Episodes
By
Jeffrey C. Branch
Volume
20: Episode 2-14.14 "Skepticism"
Rating:
PG-13
Philadelphia,
Planet Earth, Sol system, 8 February 2738
In a side tunnel of the city's subway system, twenty-five yards from the
City Hall station, Karmella, having changed back to her beautiful humanoid form,
looked on as Jonathan Grant stared intently at a panel in the wall, activating
the retina scanner built into it. A soft double beep acknowledged his identity
and a door hissed open.
Grant turned to grin at his partner. "Enter freely, and of your own
will."
Karmella chuckled as she picked up the unconscious Dark Kingdom agent,
who lay slumped against the wall, and brought him inside, followed by Grant, who
pressed a button on the inside wall to close the door.
Grant's safehouse actually was an office beneath the three-century-old
City Hall building that was connected to an old underground bomb shelter
complex. It was very spacious, yet spartanly furnished, consisting of an office
area with a desk, chair, computer monitor and full bookshelf, a living area off
to the side with a couch, coffee table, a loveseat and a wall mounted 3v system.
To the rear of the space were a kitchenette and a sleeping/bath area, and next
to that was a metal table with arm, leg, and head restraints.
"Very nice, darling," said Karmella in an appreciative purr as
she unceremoniously dropped the goon and looked around her. This was the first
time she had visited Grant's primary safehouse. "How do you manage this?
And in your city's seat of government to boot?"
"My father, Serenity rest his soul, was a very influential
politician in this town... well, as influential as a politician can be in this
day and age," answered Grant. "This was
where he did all his business. He
bequeathed it to me in his will when he died ten years ago. I refurbished the
place, then added the secret passage from the subway."
Walking to the kitchenette, Grant opened the refrigerator and removed two
tall bottles of Lunar spring water and popped the caps. "My cover identity
is a lawyer working for the city. Actually, I'm a member of the bar and do work
for the City Council of Reps when I'm not playing James Bond."
"Hide in plain sight. I like it," Karmella replied as she
accepted a bottle from Grant and sipped from it. "What about the people
outside? Things could get rather
loud when we start questioning this weasel."
"Not to worry, kitten. I've got that covered." The LISA agent
slid open panels near the front door of the office, revealing a series of six
buttons. As Grant pressed each button, a bank of corresponding lights beneath
them winked on, glowing a bright green. At the same time, a green light in each
corner of the room flashed on as well.
"Soundproofing generator. One of the whiz kids at Skunk Works is a
drinking buddy and he fixed this up for me," Grant explained. "I've
played the 1812 Overture on my music system full blast at high noon
without disturbing anyone outside. Let's get started. Bring him over to the
table."
With a nod, Karmella dragged the DK agent over to the table and hoisted
him on it. Grant then secured the
thug's arms and legs in the restraints. After securing the thug's head, the LISA
agent placed a sensor pad wired to a box at the head of the table to each
temple. Satisfied with his work, Grant flicked a switch on the box, which
hummed, while a small monitor screen winked on, revealing a jagged line,
indicating the goon's brainwaves.
"Our guest is wired up and ready for questioning," Grant
pronounced.
Karmella shook her head and smirked. "Boys and their toys."
Her
expression then turned serious. "Jonathan, I've been your partner for three
years now and shared many adventures with you, including the most outrageously
wonderful bedplay I've ever had with a non-Isbanni. But this is the first time
I've heard that you were in the military. Why did you leave?"
"Two reasons. One: I've always been something of a rogue, even as a
kid," Grant replied, as he removed his suit jacket and rolled up his
sleeves. "While I loved the prestige and the power that came from being a
magic user in the Army, it was too structured, had too many rules for my liking.
Being a spy, however, getting down and dirty to fight the bad guys, fit my
rather nefarious personality much better."
"And the second?"
"I didn't want to be immortal. Call me crazy, but the idea of living
for hundreds of years like the Senshi and Sorcerers repulsed me on every level
imaginable. Bottom line: I don't want to outlive family or friends," Grant
paused to place a hand on Karmella's cheek. "Or lovers. To me, that would
be the absolute worst kind of torture. I have no qualms about living a normal
lifespan, then dying at a ripe old age when my time is done."
Karmella purred sweetly from Grant's touch, which she always enjoyed.
Then, her bright golden eyes twinkled mischievously and she chuckled. "Unless some DK scumbag kills you first."
Grant laughed. "Tsk. Such a pessimist. Okay, let's play twenty
questions with our guest. Time is short."
Skunk
Works, in orbit of Luna, Sol system, 8 February 2738
Skunk
Works Research Facility Cryonics Department
As the Planetary of Ice, Sailor Mercury's pride and joy was the cryonics
section at Skunk Works, where she performed vital research on the interaction of
flora and fauna at arctic and sub-zero temperatures.
Sailor Mercury's extensive studies on the relationship of lifeforms,
metals, and plastics to extremes of cold over the last two hundred plus years
helped lead to the development of the RSN's current generation of environmental
protective suits used by starship crews throughout the fleet.
Without such suits, the exploration of planets with atmospheres harmful
to humans would have been impossible. And knowledge of other worlds would not
have been gained.
The place where Sailor Mercury conducted her experiments was a specially
designed, ten meter square chamber constructed of duranium reinforced crystal
one meter thick all around. Nicknamed 'The Fridge' by Sailor Mercury in one of
her moments of levity, the chamber used a shielding system to protect
people on the outside from the intense cold generated inside via a modified TPA
unit Sailor Mercury used to produce sustained sub-zero temperatures.
Inside the chamber, Sailor Mercury, Lieutenant Janeway, and four
technicians, all garbed in enviro-suits, stood around a reinforced steel biobed
on which a Slasher lay. Modular force field units, rated at being able to
restrain up to five thousand foot-pounds of pressure per square inch, bound its
wrists, ankles, torso, and neck in place. Yet, everyone, including the
Planetary, was apprehensive about the creature being out of its container.
Sensor pads attached to the creature's chest and head monitored its vital
functions. Sailor Mercury looked at the readouts on a nearby monitor screen,
what she saw made her frown as, even unconscious, the beast's pulse and heart
rate were eight times greater than that of a normal human, while its brainwave
activity was almost non-existent. Sailor Mercury, having never seen anything
like this before, found the inconsistency extremely puzzling.
"Heightened pulmonary functions, yet barely negligible brainwave
activity. Most curious," muttered the Planetary, shaking her head.
"All right, people, activate your suit atmospheres. I'm going to lower the
temperature to keep the creature insensate while we draw fluids."
While the technicians pressed a green button on the control panel
attached to their left wrists, that activated the atmospheric generators in
their suits to keep them warm, Sailor Mercury walked over to a far corner of the
chamber and sat down at a console where the TPA unit was. After pressing several
buttons on the console, Sailor Mercury slid her arms into the sockets and
gripped the handles. She closed her eyes, cleared her mind and concentrated.
Moments later, the temperature in the chamber dropped quickly and
dramatically as Sailor Mercury focused her power into the amplifier. As ice
formed on the walls, Janeway stared up at another screen, which monitored the
interior of the chamber; the digital readout went down swiftly, finally stopping
after only a minute at thirty-two degrees below zero.
"Lady Mercury, we're at thirty-two below," Janeway announced.
Sailor Mercury nodded and disengaged herself from the TPA. Unlike the
standard units used onboard RSN starships, which greatly amplified a magic
user's
power in one brief, yet concentrated blast, the modified unit inside the Fridge
stored Sailor Mercury's ice power and released it over a predesignated period
through a timer so the Planetary could conduct her experiments. A benefit of
this amplification method was that it didn't weaken the user as severely as the
standard units did.
The Ice Senshi stood from the console and returned to the biobed, where
the others waited. "Everyone okay?" The technicians nodded in
response. "Good. Let's start
with a blood draw. Ensign Sisko, you'll monitor the creature's vitals.
Inform us
at once if there are any deviations from the current readings. This thing is an
engine designed for one thing and one thing only: destruction. I don't want it
waking up in here."
Ensign Sisko, a tall, clean-shaven black man, nodded. "Yes,
ma'am," he replied in a deep voice.
"Laser scalpel. Power level at four," ordered Sailor Mercury,
holding out her right hand. The
technician standing next to her placed a long, thin, tubular instrument in the
Planetary's waiting hand. Pointing the tip of the instrument at the creature's
left arm, Sailor Mercury pressed a button, and a pencil thin red beam shot out
from the tip. Upon striking the creature's arm, the exo-skeletal surface began
smoking, but the beam failed to penetrate it.
Sailor Mercury frowned. "Increase power level from four to
seven."
The technician standing next to Sailor Mercury slowly twisted a dial on
the bed's equipment panel. The beam widened slightly and smoke wafted upwards
from the burning exo-skeletal surface.
"This is going to be quite a challenge," Sailor Mercury
muttered.
Philadelphia,
Planet Earth, Sol system, 8 February 2738
The DK thug, strapped to the table in Grant's safehouse, screamed like a
girl from pain he had never known in his life. Tears rolled down his cheeks as
it felt like the torture had gone on for weeks when it was only seconds.
Grant, pressing a nerve in the thug's left temple that resulted in the
pain that ravaged his body, released it and the screaming stopped. The LISA
agent's knowledge of the anatomy of DK humanoids from captives interrogated in
past operations came in handy as he used his spell enhanced physical skills to
expose the alien to unimaginable torment without spilling blood. And Grant, who
prided himself on being neat, didn't want a mess in his safe house.
Yet, Grant hadn't learned much from the goon, other that his name was
Brak, and that he knew nothing about the mysterious DK operation set to take
place on Luna. No matter how much
pain the LISA agent inflicted on Brak, his answers, between screams, remained
consistent.
"Not much fun, is it?" said Grant. He grudgingly admired Brak's
refusal to cave in. "So, you want to tell me the truth before I really get
rough?"
"Fool! I've told you all I know!" the thug said in a hoarse
croak. "If that isn't good enough for you, then kill me!"
Karmella leaned over and leered menacingly at him. "That, scumbag,
can be arranged."
"You're both so pathetically hypocritical," Brak growled.
"Your bitch of a queen boasts about how peace loving and nonviolent humans
are, yet you indulge in torture and make a game of it. How do you answer
that?"
"Easier than you think, pal. Not all of us simply turn the other
cheek," Grant replied. "Every
civilization, even the most benign, has soldiers willing put aside their
pacifism in order to protect the peace. That's what we do. If there wasn't a
Dark Kingdom raising endless havoc, there wouldn't be a need for Senshi,
Sorcerers, or spies."
The DK goon chuckled. "But there is a Dark Kingdom. And do you want
to know why? Because we maintain the balance in the universe. Evil cannot exist
without good, and good cannot exist without evil. Face facts, human, you need
us. And we need you."
"Need you? What an incredible, stinking load of horseshit!"
growled a suddenly furious Karmella. "Nobody needs filth like you!
All you
contribute is pain and sorrow, death and destruction! Believe this, the universe
would be better off without you!"
"I'm inclined to agree with my partner," said a grim faced
Grant. "Enough philosophizing, back to work.
If you don't answer my questions, I'll exposure you to such torment that
you'll beg for death before I'm done."
"And if you're still breathing after all that, I'll skin you
alive!" Karmella snarled, flashing her long, pointed, blood red fingernails
at the thug. "You've already seen what I can do when I morph into my combat
form, and it isn't pretty. Unless pain is something you enjoy, I strongly
suggest that you give us some real answers! Who's your superior? Who sent you
after us?"
Brak glared defiantly at the agents. "I have no idea."
Grant frowned and checked his chronometer. The clock was ticking, and he
and Karmella had traveling to do. "Tigress, there's a flight leaving for
the coast in an hour. Call the shuttleport and book us on it. Use our LISA
credentials for priority status if you have to." He paused to glare at the
thug. "I'll finish things up with Mr. Brak."
"Do your worst, human!" growled Brak, resigned to his fate.
"I'm prepared to die for the glory of the Dark Kingdom!"
Grant smirked and cracked his knuckles. "Is that a fact?
Well now, I'll be only too happy to accommodate you."
Crystal
Palace in Crystal Tokyo, Planet Luna, Sol system, 8 February 2738
Lunar
Training Center
Sailor Ivory was in an extremely foul mood as she and Sailor Cerebra
trekked through an amazing simulation of a heavily wooded area in the Combat
Simulation chamber.
Jeez! This sucks to the nth degree, the Senshi of Light groused.
Why
did I get stuck baby-sitting the rookie this time out? Somebody upstairs
seriously hates my guts!
Five feet behind the disgruntled Sailor Ivory, Sailor Cerebra, moving far
more stealthily than her partner for this training session, couldn't help but
sense the extremely bitter thoughts of the blonde ahead of her. The Chinese
Senshi didn't need to be telepathic to determine that Sailor Ivory didn't think much of
Sailor Cerebra because of her lack of experience.
If that was the case, then why did Sailor Magneta pair me with Sailor
Ivory? Sailor Cerebra wondered.
As the pair neared a clearing, Sailor Cerebra's ears perked up and she
stiffened slightly. "Stop," she whispered to Sailor Ivory.
Sailor Ivory turned around to glare at her partner. "Why?"
"Our quarry is close."
"How do you know that?"
"I hear them."
Sailor Ivory was unimpressed, and it showed on her face. "Yeah,
right."
As Sailor Ivory started towards the clearing, the sudden rustling of
foliage heralded the bull rush of four Infiltrators who came at the duo, hissing
and snarling as they zeroed in on their prey.
"Holy shit!" a startled Sailor Ivory yelped as she barely
dodged the frenzied charge of the menacing creatures. Two of the beasts broke
off from the group to chase the blonde Senshi.
Sailor Cerebra, unfazed by the creatures, calmly assumed a combat stance
as the other two came at her. The brows of the Chinese woman furrowed as she
concentrated on her power. As she did, a golden nimbus of light surrounded her
head. "Cerebra Telekinetic... BURST!"
At her command, twin beams of gold hued mental energy shot out from
Sailor Cerebra's tiara gem at the speed of thought itself and struck the
incoming horrors with brutally devastating effect. Sailor Cerebra's powerful
mindblast blew the beasts off their feet and sent them flying like missiles,
where they landed in the middle of the lake, a hundred yards away. Sailor
Cerebra allowed herself a brief, small grin, pleased with the results of her
attack.
In the clearing, Sailor Ivory saw the two creatures that attacked Sailor
Cerebra hurtle through the sky like they had been shot out of a cannon, and
scowled. She then focused on the beasts that flailed at her with their fearsome
claws and barely missed tearing into her.
"Do you need help?" asked Sailor Cerebra as she walked into the
clearing.
"NO!" shouted Sailor Ivory, angry that Sailor Cerebra
dispatched her opponents with disturbing ease. "I can take care of myself!
Ivory Light Daggers... FLY!"
Extending her arms outward, Sailor Ivory unleashed a barrage of razor sharp,
white light energy daggers that shredded the two beasts into bloody ribbons.
After crumpling to the mossy ground, the creatures vanished. Sailor Ivory smirked at
the Chinese Senshi. "See? Nothing to it!"
"I beg to differ. Behind you."
Sailor Ivory whirled around to see four more Infiltrators emerge from the lake
and charged at her and Sailor Cerebra. Seeing the beasts, Sailor Ivory's teeth
clenched.
"Dammit! I hate these things! Ivory Blast of Light!"
The creatures stopped dead in their tracks and howled from pain as they
were blinded from a searing burst of light Ivory hurled at them. The blonde
Senshi turned to her partner. "You take two and I'll take the rest! If you
can manage that!"
"I can." Sailor Cerebra held her right hand high and
concentrated. From her pocketspace, she summoned an ornate, bright red sword
hilt and brought it down into a two-handed grip. "Cerebra Telekinetic
Sword!"
As Sailor Ivory looked on, a golden energy construct, shaped like a one
meter long sword blade, emerged from the hilt. With a fearsome kai scream,
Sailor Cerebra leaped high into the sky, did a picture perfect somersault, then
landed in the middle of the stunned creatures and swung her sword in a wide arc.
The blade, consisting of Sailor Cerebra's concentrated mental energy, sliced
completely through the torsos of the creatures in one fluid motion. Where there
was once four beasts, eight sections, perfectly cauterized at the cut, fell to
the ground. And all before a slack jawed Sailor Ivory moved so much as a step.
"Son of a bitch!" whispered Sailor Ivory, her eyes wide.
Sailor Cerebra straightened from her combat stance and stared at Sailor
Ivory, her face impassive. "Nothing to it."
"Nirvana, end simulation," called a German accented voice with
a note of amusement. The wooded setting instantly changed to a large, dark and
featureless grid. A door off to the side whooshed open, and Sailor Magneta
entered the huge space. She walked
up to Sailor Ivory and Sailor Cerebra, who returned her sword to her pocketspace.
"Well done, Li Mei, Cathy. The both of you handled that sim quite
well."
Sailor Cerebra nodded her head slightly. "Thank you, madam."
Sailor Ivory shrugged, trying her best to act nonchalant. The blonde
Senshi then turned to Sailor Cerebra. While she hated to admit it, she was
greatly impressed with what she had seen from the Chinese woman. "Not bad.
I take it you used mental energy to compose that blade?"
"Yes," Sailor Cerebra replied. "My will power gives the
blade full solidity."
"And the sharpness to cut through anything," Sailor Magneta
added.
The Senshi of the Mind nodded. "Exactly."
"Well, that's all for now. Thank you for your time, ladies,"
said Sailor Magneta.
Sailor Cerebra nodded, and then turned and left the space while Sailor
Ivory remained behind. "Got a minute, Ronni?" the blonde asked.
"Of course. What's on your mind?"
"Why'd you pair me with Sailor Cerebra on this training
session?"
"Call it, constructive team building," Sailor Magneta replied
earnestly. "I wanted to see how well you worked with Li Mei after Beth told
me you said some rather... disparaging things about our new teammate in the
lounge."
Hearing that, Sailor Ivory folded her arms over her chest and scowled.
"Hmph! My darling sister runs her mouth too fucking much!"
"Perhaps. But seriously, we were all novices once: raw, nervous,
error prone, uncertain of our abilities and ourselves. But we grew out of that
awkward phase," Sailor Magneta said. "It's unfair to think poorly of
Li Mei because she doesn't have the centuries of experience we possess. I see
enormous potential in Sailor Cerebra, otherwise, she wouldn't be part of
Omega."
Sailor Magneta paused to put an arm around Sailor Ivory's shoulders.
"I need all of us to work together, as a team, in order to perform our
mission. Our lives depend on that very sort of unit cohesion. Give Li Mei a
chance, Cathy. Please. I have a feeling she'll surprise all of us in the long
run."
With a sigh, Sailor Ivory nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I was being a bitch,
and Serenity knows we sure as hell don't need two people on this team who act
like Alison. Okay, boss. I'll be
kind to Li Mei."
"Thank you. I appreciate it."
"No prob." Sailor Ivory's lips then curled into a wicked grin.
"But that doesn't mean Beth's off the hook for ratting on me! And my
vengeance against her will be a terrible thing to behold!"
"Given your occasionally crude demeanor, I shudder to ask what you
have in mind."
Sailor Ivory cackled fiendishly. "Beth's got a terrible weakness for
chocolate covered cherries. She keeps the cupboard in our condo stocked with 'em.
Guess what's gonna be lifted from the kitchen tonight! Heh, heh, heh!"
Sailor Magneta rolled her eyes and smiled. "Sisters. I swear the two
of you will be the death of me."
TO
BE CONTINUED...