Science
Island
Senshi knocked
loudly on the open door to Dr. Brachis' office. He
could see his direct superior sitting at her desk,
staring down at the small screen of her laptop
computer - in fact, Senshi realised, he rarely saw
her doing anything else. He had never questioned what
it was she did with the machine all day, although he was
curious about it. They were security officers,
after all - not scientists.
"Come in,"
Dr. Brachis said.
Senshi stepped into
the room and snapped off a salute, then slowly
allowed himself to relax a little. Normally, he would
have waited patiently until given the order to stand
at ease, but he was excited. He had a plan, a good
plan, and he wanted Dr. Brachis to know about
it.
"Yes?" Dr.
Brachis prompted him.
"Dr.
Brachis," Senshi said. "We have
confirmation that the pixie dust was spread no
further than the Black Battalion squadron sent to
Blizzard Base Zero and the guards keeping watch over
Sorceress Miko."
"That's good
news. We can allow transport to and from the island
now."
"There's
something else." Senshi almost started to jump
up and down as he spoke, he was so excited. He caught
himself, calmed down, and hoped that Dr. Brachis had
not noticed the slip in his usual calm and
professional demeanour. "I spoke to Commander
Henderson."
Dr. Brachis frowned.
"I did not ask you to do that."
"... sorry, Dr.
Brachis."
"Well? What did
he say?"
Senshi smiled.
"Not very much. His memory was weak. That's why
I think I should go to Blizzard Base Zero
and investigate firsthand."
Dr. Brachis stared
directly at Senshi for several long moments.
"You're joking."
"No, I - "
"Senshi, I
asked you - no, I ordered you - to make sure
the spread of Miko's pixie dust was controlled. You
have done that. Now you will return to your regular
duties."
Senshi opened his
mouth to speak, but thought better of it. He
straightened his back and saluted Dr. Brachis again.
He was not happy with the way she was speaking to
him, or her decision not to allow him to use his
initiative, but she was his commanding officer and he
knew he had to do whatever she told him to
do.
A soft buzzing noise
caught Dr. Brachis' attention, and she pressed a
button on a small panel set into the surface of her
desk. "This is Dr. Brachis," she said.
"Doctor,"
a woman's voice came through the panel, "there
is a situation in New Orleans - some sort of monster
is attacking the city. The EDD has asked that we
deploy our security teams to handle it while the
Black Battalion elite are recovering. Specs on the
creature have been uploaded to your terminal."
"New
Orleans?" Dr. Brachis repeated.
"Damn."
"I can have a
team there in fifteen minutes," Senshi offered.
"No!" Dr.
Brachis responded quickly. "You have your
duties. I will send Sinclair to take care of
this."
"Yes, Dr.
Brachis," Senshi acknowledged the order.
Dr. Brachis spoke
into the panel. "Tell them we're on our
way." She released the button and crossed the
room. "Senshi, don't come to me about Blizzard
Base Zero again. That incident is not your
concern." She left the room and turned off the
light behind her, leaving Senshi alone with the
bright screen of her laptop.
New Orleans
"Let's
go, Robo!" Ikku shouted. His stolen
pants and hooded top were torn to shreds as jagged
pieces of metal emerged through almost-invisible
openings in the tight-fitting red jumpsuit he wore
beneath them. A moment later, Nagura Ikku was Red
Robo, clad in his powerful armoured form - a silver
chestplate, gloves, boots and a helmet covering his
entire head and face.
Feeling
somewhat safer, Ikku stared through the two-way
mirror set into his helmet, which allowed him to see
out but made sure anyone looking at him saw only
black. He wasn't crazy - the giant turtle he had seen
swinging a lamp post at him and throwing around
mailboxes was still there, and it did not seem to
care about his sudden transformation.
"Big
turtle?" Ikku said. "I really don't want to
fight you, because I can make a really cool sword
appear out of nowhere, and that might hurt you. Do
you think you could maybe surrender?"
The
turtle shook its head.
"The
name is Shellshock!" it said. "I was created
to kill you. Take your best shot - I guarantee
you won't hurt me."
Ikku
shrugged. "Chaos Sword." There was a
brief blue flash, and when it faded, Ikku saw his
black-and-silver hilted, translucent red-bladed sword
become solid in his right hand. He swung it slowly
back and forth, making sure that Shellshock could
clearly see he was armed.
"Sure
you don't want to surrender?" Ikku asked again.
Shellshock
charged. He lowered his head, bent forward, and ran
directly at Ikku. Ikku raised his sword and swung it
hard against the beast, but found that it did no
damage. Shellshock's hide was simply too thick.
Uh-oh,
Ikku thought. He scrambled backwards to avoid
being crushed as Shellshock continued to run towards
him, and tried to think of a new plan. What do I
do now? Stabbing at it didn't work... hitting it
won't work... what don't turtles like?
Ikku
noticed that the street around him had become
deserted, and he allowed himself to breathe a sigh of
relief. He wanted to stop Shellshock - the monster
was causing too much damage. But if no-one was going
to be physically harmed, he did not feel as much
pressure. It made it easier to think, to plan -
WHUMP!
Shellshock
swung a massive fist at the pre-occupied Ikku, who
barely managed to roll to the side and send the
turtle's hand smashing through the wall of the pizza
store in which he had, only minutes earlier, been
placing an order.
Do
turtles like pizza? Nah... only on TV...
Shellshock
turned and swung at him again, but Ikku was expecting
the strike and easily stepped out of the way.
Shellshock was clearly strong and apparently
impervious to blows from the Chaos Sword but, Ikku
slowly realised, that strength came at the cost of
speed and agility - still, he had no idea how to use
that knowledge to his advantage.
Ikku
made his way behind Shellshock and, after making sure
he had a firm grip, he used the Chaos Sword to hack
at one of the many bony protrusions he saw sticking
through Shellshock's shell. Each blow was met with a
lad clang! and the sensation of strike
vibrations passing through the sword, suggesting to
Ikku that the spikes were actually made of metal
rather than bone but, futile as the attack may have
been, without another plan to try he figured he had
nothing to lose - he struck again and again, keeping
behind Shellshock as the beast tried to face him.
"I
hope you realise that does not hurt," Shellshock
said. "However, this will."
Ikku
kept up his assault even as Shellshock pulled his
head, arms and legs into his shell, which fell and
clattered against the ground. The sword swung low and
hit one of exposed spikes - but instead of a clang!,
Ikku heard a bzzzt! and pulled back as
a spark of energy ran down his sword and into his
hand.
"Ouch!"
he shouted. The pain was excruciating. It felt almost
like a severe burn. Since when can turtles shoot
electricity from their shell? I wish Sei and Miss
Sato were here...
Inside
their Black Battalion safehouse, Sei and Kiko closely
examined online reports of the fight between
Shellshock and their teammate. Most of what they saw
was ground-level footage, filmed by amateur cameramen
from such a distance that it was unclear precisely
what was happening - but they did find one
useful source, a video stream taken from a news
helicopter watching the fight from above.
They
clearly saw Ikku continue his futile attempts to
pierce Shellshock's shell with his Chaos Sword - and
they also saw Shellshock emerge from his shell, wrap
a massive hand around Ikku's right arm, and throw
their red-clad ally clear across the street. He
struck a lamp-post - hard - and dropped onto the
asphalt road.
Shellshock
slowly walked over to Ikku's barely-stirring body and
kicked him hard in the ribs; Ikku could do nothing to
defend himself.
"Sei..."
Kiko began.
"I
can anticipate what you are going to say, Sato
Kiko," Sei said. "I cannot consent to -
"
Kiko
nodded and stood up. "If this is about what Ikku
said before he left, I am sure he didn't mean it. He
was just angry, and shocked that you were keeping
things from us. I'm... not sure I blame him."
She paused. "I won't argue with you. I am going
to help our friend. You look into your heart - I'm
sure you will figure out the right thing to do. Let's
go, Robo!"
Yellow
energy cascaded over Kiko's yellow-suited body as her
silver breastplate, gloves, boots and helmet emerged
from within her suit. Yellow Robo nodded to Sei and
quickly made her way out through the door.
She
ran through the streets of New Orleans, which were
more crowded than anywhere she had seen before.
Dozens of people pushed forward, trying to see the
fight between Shellshock and Red Robo - but many, many
more hurried in the opposite direction, fearing
for their lives, trying to get to safety.
As
she hurried on her way, Kiko felt that the people
around her were blurring together. She arrived at the
battle site, several miles from the bunker in which
she and Sei had been talking, in only a few minutes -
her speed surprised her but, she knew, determination,
drive, and fear can be powerful motivators.
"Electro
Blaster," she said calmly. There was a bright
flash, and a small, handgun-sized energy blaster
appeared in Kiko's hand. She raised it, aimed
carefully, and fired several small bursts of yellow
energy at Shellshock's chest.
Shellshock
slowly raised his head and, when he saw Kiko, began
to lumber towards her. His movements seemed slow and
sluggish, even compared to his earlier, drawn-out
attacks against Ikku. Kiko had no trouble backing
away from and keeping out of the reach of the giant
reptile.
"So,
monster," she asked. "What is it you
want?"
"My...
masters... sent... me... to kill... the red
one..." Even Shellshock's speech was slow and
slurred, but it was quickly returning to normal.
"I am happy... to kill you too."
"Hyaa!"
Kiko
looked up and saw a sight that both surprised and
amazed her: Sei, transformed into Blue Robo and
carrying his Vertex Shield, leaped from a nearby
rooftop and extended one leg ahead of him. The
armoured sole of his foot struck the back of
Shellshock's head hard and he slumped forward.
Kiko
nodded her approval and rushed to Ikku's side. His
body was limp but, through his chestplate and helmet,
she could not tell if he was breathing. She tried to
gently shake him into activity, but nothing happened.
"Sei!"
she thought for a second. "Blue Robo! I need to
de-henshin him!"
"Only
Ian can deactivate his henshin," Sei replied.
"Give him a moment. He is merely
concussed."
Sei
slowly walked around Shellshock's unconscious body,
debating what to do. The watching crowd had gathered
closer to the scene of the fight, eager to see
exactly what Shellshock was. He debated whether to
usher the crowd away for their own safety or
permanently incapacitate Shellshock to prevent any
further attacks, but the decision was taken out of
his hands before he could act.
Half
a dozen soldiers wearing Black Battalion uniforms
pushed their way roughly through the thick crowd,
each armed with a small handgun and a long rifle. Sei
recognised the rifle's unique design - it was created
to serve a specific purpose; one not friendly to
anyone wearing a robosuit.
"Robo
Yellow. Is Robo Red conscious?" Sei asked.
"Yes,"
Kiko replied. Ikku had finally managed to sit
upright, but did not speak. He turned his head,
wobbled, fell into Kiko's arms, and finally stood.
Kiko turned and saw the Black Battalion soldiers
moving into position around them. "What's going
on?"
"Come
here," Sei said. Kiko helped Ikku stagger his
way to stand behind Sei. Together, the three stepped
forward to meet one member of the Black Battallion,
who had broken their circle and walked quickly
towards them.
"My
name is Captain Damien Sinclair," he said.
"I know who you are, but I don't think these
good people - " he gestured at the listening
crowd " - need to. We are taking that creature
back to Science Island, and you need to come with
us."
"Captain?"
one of Sinclair's men spoke up. His captain did not
respond.
Sei
glanced at Ikku before speaking. "Why did the
Black Battalion attack Blizzard Base Zero?"
Sinclair
looked surprise. "I don't know. We're not -
"
"Captain!"
"What?"
Sinclair,
Sei, Kiko and Ikku turned as one to see what the man
was so concerned about. He was pointing at
Shellshock's body, which was surrounded by a cloud of
green mist. The guards raised their handguns and
opened fire, but their ammunition did nothing.
The
mist dissipated and, as it did, Shellshock stood up.
The spikes on his back were longer and sharper; his
shell was visibly thicker; and his skin was covered
by the same hard substance as the spikes. He seemed
disoriented and did not move, but it was clear to
everyone that if Shellshock did attack, a
simple kick to the head would not bring him down a
second time.
"Captain,"
Sei said. "We can defeat Shellshock, but we need
you to call off your men first."
Sinclair
thought for a moment, then raised his left hand. His
team lowered their weapons. Sei quickly removed the
Vertex Shield from his right arm and held it in front
of his body.
"Red
Robo, please pass the Chaos Sword through the Vertex
Shield."
Ikku
was confused. He had dropped the Chaos Sword while
fighting Shellshock, but he saw it resting near the
feet of one of Sinclair's men. They picked it up,
tossed it to him, and he approached the Vertex
Shield.
In
its centre he saw a thin opening, equally as wide as
the widest point of his blade. He carefully slid the
Chaos Sword through the slit, and felt it lock in as
the hilt touched the shield's surface.
"Robo
Yellow," Sei said.
Kiko
could guess what he wanted. She lifted the Electro
Blaster and slid its barrel over the exposed hilt of
the Chaos Sword. It, too, locked in; the trigger
began to glow, and two small triggers appeared, one
on the Vertex Shield and one near the tip of the
Chaos Sword's blade.
Sei
quickly wrapped his finger around the trigger on the
Vertex Shield and Ikku grasped the Chaos Sword's
trigger tightly.
"Guys..."
Ikku said. "Is it just me, or is the fact that
Shellshock isn't moving really creepy?"
"Its
body is adjusting to the energy to which it was just
exposed," Sei explained. "Whoever
engineered Shellshock did not do an effective job.
Red, Yellow - it is time for the fourth command on
your list."
"Robo Defender, Slash Containment Burst!"
Ikku,
Sei and Kiko squeezed their triggers in unison as
they spoke the fourth command on the list presented
to them inside their helmets. In the split second
that followed, blue energy streamed from the Vertex
Shield, washing back over them even as it burst
forward and struck Shellshock.
The
immediate area turned pitch black and Captain
Sinclair, his men and the crowd disappeared from
view. A spark of yellow energy sped from the Electro
Blaster along the Chaos Sword and hit the giant
reptile, who started to move - but before he could
attack, the Chaos Sword glowed brightly, almost
illuminating the area and allowing a bright red
fireball to strike Shellshock.
The
darkness was lifted in time to see Shellshock stagger
backwards, fall, and be consumed by a fiery explosion
so large that it knocked Captain Sinclair's team off
their feet.
"Is
it gone?" Kiko asked.
"It's
gone," Ikku replied.
"Whew...
I think?"
"Yeah...
Sei... er... Blue Robo? Why are we the only
ones moving or speaking?"
Sei
looked at the crowd. They were frozen while
performing a variety of actions; several were even
floating in the air, in the middle of cheering.
"The
Electro Blaster must have malfunctioned," Sei
said. "The effect will be temporary, but if I
can examine it, I should be able to - "
"This
is my fault?" Kiko muttered.
"No!"
Ikku shouted. "No, don't help them! You heard
what that Sinclair guy said... the Black Battalion...
they want to take us back to Science Island!"
Sei
nodded.
"Don't
you see? They kidnapped my father, and now they want
to take us! We can't go with them! Leave them stuck -
we'll get away, make a plan - !"
Sei
and Kiko looked at each other. They knew Ikku was
right, at least to some extent - they had to wonder
why the Black Battalion had attacked Blizzard Base
Zero. Until they knew that, they could not trust
them.
"Why
didn't they use their rifles against
Shellshock?" Kiko asked.
"The
rifles are designed for us," Sei replied. He
looked at Ikku. "I agree with Ian. We should
leave until we have the opportunity to analyse all
the information. Robo Yellow?"
Kiko
nodded. Sei lifted the Robo Defender, and it split
into its component parts. He returned the Chaos Sword
and Electro Blaster, and reattached the Vertex Shield
to his right forearm. He took hold of his teammate's
hands, focussed, and the three Robomen vanished in a
rain of sparkling blue energy.
NEXT: Muteki
Robo!
