Tag Archives: Chris

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 2

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Kayla blanked for a moment, wondering why Chris would ever bring his grandfather into it, and why he’d think his grandfather would be able to help. She barely remembered Chris from high school. She’d seen him with Nick, and in the robotics team’s yearbook picture.

She’d only noticed him when he helped Nick make her mobile armor.

She knew the real names of everyone who’d been in the original Heroes League now, and Chris wasn’t related to any of them.

She texted back, “Your grandfather?”

It took at little time before he texted back. “I know he was a supervillain, but he wants to help now.”

Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 2 →

Arc 6.6: The Battle of Grand Lake

The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 1

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Kayla sat in a chair in front of a computer screen inside one of the most famous secret bases in the world, and tried to stay awake.

It had sounded more fun when Cassie pitched it to her last summer. Cassie had been grinning the whole time. “We need someone back in the base to do research or call for help or whatever. You need money for college. This way you’ll be able to help, but you won’t have to be in danger, and we’ll be able to hang out all the time like we did before.”

“Before” as in before Cassie got her father’s superpowers, turned cape, and revived the Heroes League.

It was also “before” (though Cassie didn’t know it then) as in before the Nine targeted Cassie, forcing her to relocate to Washington D.C.

Continue reading The Battle of Grand Lake: Part 1 →

Arc 6.4: Stardock

Stardock: Part 15

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I’d noticed clouds forming since the fight started, and as I was about to press Theo on exactly how bad he felt, lightning erupted in front of the building.

Travis had told the glass cannons (mobile artillery, if you wanted to be formal) to help us, and now they were. I’d have taken help earlier, but Daniel was in the group, and he’d probably been responsible for the timing. That meant that this was probably the best possible moment, whatever I might think.

Thanks to my observation bots, I had three different perspectives available. All of them showed essentially the same scene.

As our group dived behind the old factory to get out of the machine race soldiers’ line of fire, the remaining robots split into two groups, some of them heading for the building that we’d started at, and the rest spreading out as they aimed for our building. No matter what direction we turned toward we’d be in some robot’s sights.

At least that’s the way it would have gone. Continue reading Stardock: Part 15 →

Arc 3.6: Targets

Targets: Part 24

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I didn’t even think about what I’d be hitting. I fired, holding the button down even though I knew it used more power.

I don’t think I panicked, but I can’t say I was thinking clearly.

Being rushed by someone who you know can kill you does that. Continue reading Targets: Part 24 →

Arc 3.6: Targets

Targets: Part 22

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Haley parked the car by the side of the road. As we got out, I couldn’t help but notice who wasn’t there–Jaclyn, Cassie and Julie. And that sucked because Cassie could have chopped them to pieces, Julie could have told them to stop, and had a pretty good chance that they’d listen, and Jaclyn…

Jaclyn could have done something. Physically, she was the only one of us who was in Prime’s army’s league. Plus she was a whole lot faster than any of them.

I couldn’t say that we were doomed, but part of me would have felt better knowing they were with us.
Continue reading Targets: Part 22 →

Arc 3.6: Targets

Targets: Part 3

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“OK,” Chris said. “Let’s see what he’s got in the inventory. I don’t even know half of what’s here.”

He opened up another program, some kind of parts database, and we scrolled down the list. It felt weird at how ordinary it was. Like a whole lot of businesses out there, Man-machine’s database program appeared to be based on Microsoft Access.

Along with more typical parts categories like cables, and chassis, it included the category “weapons” with subcategories like “standard,” “lasers,” and “special.”

I didn’t recognize half the guns. The lasers included a few interesting things, but the “special” category was crazy. Continue reading Targets: Part 3 →

Arc 3.5: War

War: Part 13

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I read the transcript and then played back the entire recorded conversation for everybody. Russell Hardwick stood in his home office, pacing the hardwood floor, cursing, and talking on his cell phone.

“The Impregnator disappeared? How did that happen? And why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

From there it devolved into shouting at the person on the other end, and Hardwick never did say where he’d kept it, or anything useful.
Continue reading War: Part 13 →