Seven Wonders (37 page)

  "SMART! Stand down and deactivate, pending system check." Aurora's voice boomed in the echo chamber of the workshop. SMART did nothing but gear up a powerful leg to take another step forward into the Dragon Star's shield.

  "Confirm!"

  SMART took another step.

The Dragon Star and Aurora were the two most powerful of the Seven Wonders, Conroy knew that. But the way they worked together really was breathtaking. Each wielding a different spectrum of energy, the two worked with a synergy that was almost telepathic. Even as Aurora began raising his fists, ready to soften SMART up with low-energy plasma balls, the Dragon Star deftly stepped to one side, yanking the powerstaff up and providing a window in her shield, through which Aurora could direct his fire. Backed into a corner, away from Aurora's radiance, Conroy gasped in appreciation. The initial move took a second, and for the next minute the two superheroes danced around their target, moving the shield and throwing energy at the robot's exposed weak spots. Conroy had no real idea what he was expected to do except stay out of the way.

  Eventually, inevitably, one bolt found its mark. One of SMART's legs failed, the machine hitting the workshop floor on one broken knee servo.

  That was enough for the heroes. The Dragon Star deactivated her shield, allowing Sand Cat a clear run. The muscular, translucent animal swept into the air with a roar, landing with two heavy front paws on SMART's domed head. Sand Cat's supernatural claws penetrated the covering and tore the dome off, revealing a black, square processing unit, surrounded by wires. SMART's main optics, six rotating red lenses of various sizes, swam on their servos, scanning the attacking enemies. A green laser sight stabbed a target on Sand Cat's muzzle but passed straight through her ghost-like form. Aurora saw his moment and flew in, arm outstretched, and removed the laser and the six optical sensors with a superheated punch. The impact knocked SMART backward, but the robot caught its fall with an arm. Rotating gears switched the damaged knee mechanism for the agile stealth system, and SMART regained proper footing. It swung up both gun arms, the square ends of which flashed blue for an instant as the power coils charged, then kicked back as two violet-blue laser beams caught Sand Cat square. This time at least some of the energy spectrum was absorbed by her form and the hero spun backward through the air, unhurt from the blast but rendered unconscious. By the time she hit the floor she was back in her human form.

  Aurora floated himself into the beam, catching one with each hand, waiting for SMART to stop the onslaught before shooting forward with another atomic punch. This one impacted the robot in the center of its curved white chest, but in testament to Hephaestus' mystical blacksmithing, the world's most powerful fists could only cause a shallow dent. But it was enough at least to send SMART sliding backward, sparks cascading from knees and knuckles as it gouged out a path in the workshop floor.

  Conroy moved to the stirring form of Sand Cat. The warrior moaned back to consciousness, bright red blood trickling from her nose. She was aware enough of her surroundings to acknowledge Conroy's assistance, but it was pretty clear that she wouldn't be fighting again today.

  Aurora lowered himself to just a foot above the floor, the Dragon Star at his side, her powerstaff now pulsing with a radiant intensity, fully charged and ready for a refreshed attack. Aurora held his arm out across her front, however, shaking his head.

  "We can't risk it," he said, addressing the Dragon Star but keeping his eyes fixed on the sparking chassis of SMART. "One stray blast and we'll tear out a wall. All of the base control systems are being routed through SMART – we wouldn't be able to contain it in time."

  The Dragon Star said nothing, but lowered her staff, just a little. Overhearing, Conroy called out across the workshop.

  "If SMART controls the base systems, why hasn't he just shut the life support down and voided the base? It would be an easy way to get rid of us."

  There was a pause, a beat of just a second, then the lights went out. Aurora flared his aura and the Dragon Star cracked her staff on the floor, the high metallic ring sounding out across the workshop as a brilliant white glow emitted from the weapon, re-illuminating the room. Aurora took a breath to berate Conroy before the room shook and the sound of rushing water filled the workshop. No, not water. Air. Conroy swore under this breath.

  Aurora's comm beeped. He flicked it on. Bluebell.

  "Aurora, the power is out up here, and it's getting cold. Are you OK? Has the base been breached?"

  "Affirmative, Bluebell." Aurora had to raise his voice against the steadily increasing roar as the base atmosphere began to equalize with the vacuum of the lunar surface. "SMART is still in control of all systems, and has compromised the integrity of the base. We must regroup."

  The comm buzzed as SMART again attempted to override the link. Conroy could hear Linear talking in the background, and Bluebell agreeing to something. "We're on our way," came her final communication.

  Conroy jumped, and turned. Standing directly behind him was Linear, Sam and Joe, Bluebell, and a powercuffed Blackbird. Sam looked around in bewilderment, her blonde hair still moving in the breeze brought up by Linear's speedy delivery. Conroy slapped the speedster on the shoulder. "Nice trick."

  "It's getting cold," said Sam, stating the obvious and absently rubbing at her arms. Conroy glanced around the room. The Dragon Star's light threw odd shadows upward, while Aurora's red swirling aura projected organic, rippling shapes across the walls. He nodded.

  "Indeed. We don't have much time."

  Aurora and the Dragon Star looked at each other, then he nodded and she turned away. She floated backward, head down and hood completely hiding her features. She raised her powerstaff up over her head, holding it at one end like a gigantic battle-axe, poised over SMART's frame.

  Bluebell reached out to her husband, apparently immune to his fiery radiation. "Aurora! We can't risk it. Even the workshop isn't that strong."

  Aurora's mouth twisted below his half-mask. SMART had remained motionless, apparently locked into a crouch position, gears sparking as it struggled to regain movement. But even paralyzed, the machine operated all base systems remotely. It was a threat that needed to be eliminated.

  Aurora began to speak, but was cut off as a beam of blue light struck his head. He cried out and was floored, dropping vertically. His aura dimmed and cooled to a deep burnt orange.

  Linear sped forward, catching his leader before he touched the ground. But Aurora was already regaining his footing, shaking his head to clear it.

  "Bluebell, Sand Cat is hurt – see to her. Linear, Dragon Star, it's time to end this. Paragon, maintain vigilance on the prisoner."

  Conroy's mouth pursed, half in surprise, half in embarrassment. Blackbird fluttered her eyelids at him and smiled coquettishly, before spitting in his face.

  SMART rose, leg gears grinding as they found a happy medium between regular systems and the agility/stealth setting. The robot wavered slightly with each step, but soon compensated for the altered balance. Swinging its guns around to cover the heroes, it opened fire with everything it had.

  The Dragon Star's shield stopped the initial blasts, allowing Linear to fly in, spinning a silver blur around the robot as he attacked weak points and attempted to find gaps in the armor plate. Distracted, SMART took several hits from Aurora's plasma blasts before the hero came to touching distance and threw a right, then a left, then a right again.

  The first two punches landed with awful metallic clangs, but on the third the robot ceased fire and blocked Aurora's attack with its own armored fist. Aurora's knee came up and connected with the underside of SMART's arm, forcing the robot to release him. Advantage on his side, he lifted up a few feet, then brought his elbows down onto the exposed head unit. SMART shook, but this time a waist servo snapped and it fell sideways. Linear's silver glow changed trajectory, avoiding being crushed by the immense machine and turning his attention to newly exposed weaknesses.

  Aurora pummeled SMART's casing again and again, each blow weakening the robot, just a little bit.

  "Aurora!" Bluebell called out over the cacophony of sound. When he turned to look at her, she indicated Joe and Sam, who were beginning to suffer in the increasingly rarefied atmosphere.

  Conroy wasn't doing much better, but found the strength to be heard. "She's right. We can't last much longer. We have to regain control of the base and turn that damned robot off."

  The Dragon Star flipped her shield off for a moment, collapsing the energy shell into a series of powerful blasts that struck SMART, causing the robot to rock but apparently inflicting little damage, then turned the shield back on as another volley of blue laser bolts flew towards her and the civilians.

  "Paragon speaks the truth, heroes." The Dragon Star spoke for the first time in the fight. Even Aurora backed away from the robot and came closer to the hero, interested in her appraisal.

  "We can only destroy the robot if we use maximum effort, which will breach the workshop," the Dragon Star continued.

  "There is another way."

  Everyone turned. Blackbird waved her powercuffed arms toward SMART. "If he's linked to the system, the system is linked to him. Five minutes." She waggled her cuffed wrists. "If you want us all to live, of course."

  Aurora looked at her, then Conroy, his face lit by another barrage from SMART, held in check by the Dragon Star's shield.

  Conroy stepped forward. "She's right. Jeannie's primary expertise is electronics and computer systems." Aurora remained silent. Conroy searched his expressionless face, then sighed in exasperation. "She patched us into your secure satellite system, for goodness' sake! Do it!"

  Aurora tilted his head toward the prisoner, then nodded curtly. Bluebell moved to release Blackbird from the powercuffs, tapping out a sequence on its keypad. The cuffs clicked open and Blackbird let them drop to the floor.

  "Control room?"

  Bluebell nodded. "Hephaestus' lab. This way."

The lab was an annex to the workshop, and was cast in deep shadows. The only light came in from a large reinforced viewing window that looked out into the main workshop. The glass was thick and tinted, but there was enough illumination cast from the Dragon Star's powerstaff in the other room for Blackbird as she tore at a control panel on the wall. Bluebell kept her distance, watching the now-freed prisoner but ready to knock her out with a psychic punch if she tried anything. But soon Blackbird was peering into the wall cavity up to her shoulders, and Bluebell couldn't resist moving in for a closer look.

  "What are you going to do? And
how
, exactly, do you know what to do?"

  Blackbird's head emerged from the access panel. She reached in deep with both hands and dragged out a thick, weave-bound cable, joined at the middle with a bulky metal screw connector. She began twisting its collar to separate the leads.

  "The
what
is to turn your lovely robot off, from here." She gestured to the currently inactive main control deck. "SMART and your whole computer system are not two separate units, a computer operating system and a controller, they're the
same
system. There is no separation." She pulled the lead apart then scanned the array of inputs that studded the next wall panel along. "Which is either a very clever way of designing your entire computer infrastructure, or a very stupid one." She glanced at Bluebell, one eyebrow raised, waiting for a retort, but Bluebell didn't say anything. She clearly wasn't the technical brains behind the operation. "Well, just for today, I'll go for clever.

  "The
how
is easy. We've got a complete systems readout of the Citadel of Wonders. Well,
had
a complete systems readout. We needed it to patch into the satellite system, and it was also useful for monitoring every move the Seven Wonders made. The moonbase is a carbon copy. I even know your electrical wiring system like the back of my hand."

  Locating the required port, she screwed one end of the cable into the wall. The second lead she left dangling from the opened access panel. Blackbird turned to the main control desk under the observation window. Through the glare, she could just make out the red haze of Aurora as the hero pumped his energy up a notch and took another swing at SMART, which had managed to stand again and had both arms raised as it advanced on its former leader.

  "Let's get this party started," said Blackbird, depressing a key combination on the control panel, which bleeped in response, a constellation of LEDs lighting all at once.

This was it. Sam was pretty sure of the fact. The environment was too far gone, quickly heading towards being completely incompatible with life. Her face, arms, chest and thighs burned with heat as, in front of her, Aurora maintained his assault on SMART. The two colossi clashed in hand-to-hand combat, while the small, almost frail form of the Dragon Star flitted around, keeping the room lit and her large elliptical shield up to protect everyone from the seemingly random blue laser of the robot.

  But the back of her legs, her shoulders, they were as cold as ice. With the moonbase life support off, it was only the heat of Aurora's battle that kept her, Joe and presumably the Cowl from freezing to death. She presumed that the superheroes were immune to the cold anyway, although it crossed her mind as to how Blackbird was managing to stay alive in the workshop control room. She and Bluebell had vanished into the annex and had been gone for what seemed like hours while the superheroes fought to keep their robot − and former member − in check.

  There was a brief blast of siren, the squawk of an emergency PA, and the workshop lights came back on. Immediately the Dragon Star quenched her own light and redirected the energy back into the offensive. Her shield began to pulse as she used the excess power to fire round after round of pink fizzing energy bolts at SMART. Most were absorbed by its miraculous white armor, but it proved to be an admirable distraction. Momentarily confused, assessing the new threat, SMART paused, allowing Aurora in closer for a colossal underarm charge. Aurora and the robot swept backwards, colliding with the rear wall of the workshop. Aurora pressed the machine into the wall, crumpling a large area with a fingernails-on-blackboard screech.