Category Archives: The Legion of Nothing

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 16

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Larry zoomed in on Lim’s feet, and realized why Lim and Cheryl hadn’t run away. Their feet were surrounded by the concrete.

He supposed that qualified as earth somehow. Could be elementals weren’t fussy about the difference. He shook his head. It didn’t matter. What mattered was that Lim and Cheryl were hostages until he took Sloan down.

He was about to tell Alexis more when a deep voice from behind them said, “Rhino. Come down to the hangar, and bring your friend.”

Larry checked the helmet screen. The creature behind him appeared to be made of concrete, and vaguely human-shaped.

As he watched, it sank into the sidewalk next to the hangar, leaving an odd indentation that reminded him of a face. Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 16 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 15

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The beauty of the panoramic view in his helmet was that he didn’t have to turn around to check—just let his eyes dart to the edges of the screen. He didn’t see anyone, and decided not to wait. Having your enemies too far behind you to see them was a good thing.

At the moment he stepped inside the hall, he did see them—a security guy followed by one of the black and white striped referees.

He’d suspected that the ref models were more than just protection, and hoped that Armory hadn’t put as much work into them as he had in his own suit. Otherwise this might be a short fight.

He took a few steps down the hall, Alexis close behind him.

“Turn!” Alexis said, and whipped around, assisted by the jets built into his armor’s arms and legs. The Frog suit didn’t let Larry turn as quickly, but he came around as the person in security armor stepped through the door.

Each of Alexis armor’s arms made popping noises, and the security armor fell backward into the ref. Larry hit them both with the black goo, covering them and sticking them to the armor, and the doorway. Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 15 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 14

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Bounding through the doorway and into hall, Larry kept control of the suit, stopping from sliding across the concrete floor. The Frog suit’s claws left scratches, but Larry doubted that anyone would care.

Assuming he survived and got away, the worst the arena’s management could do would be refusing to return his room deposit.

He accelerated and the Frog suit moved, lifting a few feet into the air with every leap. Larry kept it at a steady pace, expecting to face the security team at any time.

They didn’t appear.

He met up with Alexis a few hallways down. Alexis wore his armor—red, white and blue. It could have passed for a odd version of the Rocket suit except that most of the chest was red with a single white star. Blue and white stripes alternated to the right of the red section.

Alexis said, “I expected them to be chasing you by now.” Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 14 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 13

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A man opened the door. He didn’t give Larry the impression of being a brilliant inventor, superhero, or villain.

Len’s combover was painfully obvious, and his small moustache reminded Larry of Hitler’s. It was wider, but had a similar look. Larry pegged the man as being in his mid-thirties, and guessed that his clothes dated from the late 70’s. His shirt’s collar seemed a little too wide.

Len looked up at Larry, and tried to close the door.

Larry didn’t let it shut. He put his foot in and pushed forward, stepping into the room.

Len’s room was a bigger version of Larry’s suite—except Len’s main room included a hot tub. Plus, a significant part of Len’s workshop had migrated inside. Most flat surfaces held tools. A mech’s arm lay across the coffee table.

Len let go of the door as Larry pushed his way in, beginning to turn, and probably to run. Larry grabbed his arm. Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 13 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 12

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Walking quickly down the hall, he tried to remember how long it had been since he’d talked to her. Hopefully she’d wait five minutes—if he’d only talked to Cannon for five minutes. It might have gone longer.

All that really mattered was that she hadn’t spent enough time waiting for him to get bored and leave.

He passed through the suites, and into the arena’s halls. It wasn’t like it had been the day before. The arena’s halls were crowded with people talking, some of them carrying food and drink.

Larry considered grabbing a beer, but didn’t. The lines were too long. Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 12 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 11

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Larry thought about it for a second, and then opened the door.

Cannon was almost, but not quite his height, and less muscular. To judge from the tightness of his face, he also wasn’t happy. Larry held the door open, “Come on in, man.”

Cannon started to open his mouth, stopped and then said, “My suit was the last, and I mean the last thing I expected to see here today.”

He stepped around Larry, and started walking toward the workshop.

Larry put his hand on Cannon’s shoulder, and stepped in front of him. “Wait a second. What are you doing?”

“It’s my property in there. My design. My ideas. I’m not leaving them with you.”

Larry stared down at him, and didn’t let go of the man’s shoulder. “I don’t want to hurt an old guy, but if you try to take the suit, I’m going to deck you.”

Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 11 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 10

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Larry hit Rook with enough force that he felt it inside the armor. It wasn’t concussion-inducing force, or even particularly painful, but solid. He grabbed for a good hold on Rook’s armor, but missed the wings. The Frog suit’s claws scraped all the way down Rook’s sides, and for a second Larry thought he felt the armor give, but then it ripped out of the suit’s grip.

He fell, and hit the ground. It wasn’t a big deal.

The suit could easily take a forty foot drop. It was made for it. The hind legs hit first, absorbing the hit. The front legs followed, doing the same while all the legs adjusted position to balance. Larry hit a button, sending the suit after the glowing red dot that indicated Rook.

The suit twisted and turned quickly enough that Larry couldn’t remember if the suit was designed to prevent the user from turning so quickly he blacked out. If not, he thought, that would be something to add. Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 10 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 9

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Ten minutes later, the crowd started screaming.

The announcer shouted, “The Murdilator wins! The paramedics are taking Electroman out of the arena, and in five minutes you’ll be able to see the next round—Rook versus Frog! That’s right, the up and coming Rook versus a brand new opponent in powered armor. All that, in just FIVE minutes. Get your drinks and snacks now because you won’t want to miss a second of it.”

Larry took a breath, realizing that he actually felt nervous. And how crazy was that? It was just a fight. How many of those had there been in the last few years? This time his opponent would at least be human, and a kid at that. He’d seen worse.

No denying though, that Rook probably hated him, and wouldn’t hesitate to kill him. Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 9 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 8

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Lim’s eyes narrowed. “I can’t tell you what to do, but I can’t ignore it if what you do helps our enemies either.”

Larry shook his head. “I’m not going to do anything to help the Russians, but if I’ve got to help my friend a little to get your job done, I’d say that’s okay. He’s not going to get anything he wouldn’t have gotten on his own–if I hadn’t been here–and he’s probably getting less. I don’t want to hand anything over to the Russians either. Hell, if it’ll make you feel better, Alexis and I are planning a mission to get Abominator artifacts away from the Russians after we finish this.”

Isaac’s eyes widened. “What kind of Abominator artifacts?”

“I don’t know. Nothing good, I bet. Alexis told me that the Kremlin sent a team up to the moonbase, and grabbed stuff. I don’t know what they grabbed. It could be anything.”

“What’s going to happen to them?” Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 8 →

Arc 5.6: Enter the Larry

Enter the Larry: Part 7

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Alexis snorted. “When is it not complicated? The last time we fought together we faced the Abominators on the moon, and had to convince the Xiniti that we weren’t the Abominators’ servants. At least here we can breathe.”

Larry looked out at the arena. People were still training. “Yeah, this time around we only have to worry about your people and my people instead of both of those plus evil aliens. That’s progress.”

Alexis laughed. “A little progress. Very little.”

“So,” Larry said, “we’ve got to arrange it so you get enough that you don’t get in trouble. Technically all I was supposed to do is talk to the guy. There’s nothing stopping you from asking him afterward. It’s just that if I do it right, he’ll be too scared to take orders for a while.” Continue reading Enter the Larry: Part 7 →