I can’t believe it... Meltdown
thought as she looked out from inside the old, abandoned building.
The three dozen Exterminators that had chased her into the city were
now split up into smaller groups, patrolling the streets as they continued
their search. Five of the Exterminators were just outside of the building
Meltdown was hiding in, methodically walking back and forth along
the street that held her only exit out of the city. Meltdown cringed
slightly as an Exterminator Sword came close to where she was hiding,
his sword gleaming in the small amount of sunlight that broke through
the clouded sky above Recluse City.
There’s no way I could defeat
that many Exterminators... Meltdown thought bitterly as she turned
away from the dusty window and crouched down onto the filthy floor
of the abandoned building. She placed her head onto her folded arms
and wept slightly. I’ve been able to do hide for a whole year, and
one mistake... A tear ran down her face.Damn you, Recluse...
The tear
landed on the arm of her red leather jacket, which had the black insignia
of a Spider on it’s back. Under the red leather coat, she wore a black
spandex one-piece outfit that stretched down from her neck and covered
her whole body, save her hands and feet. Her feet sported black boots,
and her hands black, fingerless leather gloves. Raising her head once
more, her long, purple hair fell onto her shoulders, still quite filthy
from dirt and sweat. The look of desperation and fear in her green
eyes seemed unfitting for such a young beauty; and Meltdown was quite
young indeed, only 20 years old.
I’ll have to find another way out
of the city... Meltdown thought as she slowly rose to her feet. And
if they do find me...She clenched her fist, which glowed slightly
with green radiation.I’ll make sure to take as many of them down with
me as I can!
The "Origins" Saga: The Deadly Beauty, Meltdown
"Listen, Mr. Dimentid,
you must understand our position..." The diplomat said, his face red
as he sweat bullets, his uneasiness clearly visible as Mr. Dimentid
eyed him on his monitor. "Our nation is not powerful enough to protect
ourselves; and yet, at the same time, the rest of the world would
condemn us if we sided with Lord Recluse."
"Then perhaps you should
simply side with Lord Recluse." Mr. Dimentid smiled, taking a sip
of his red wine. "After all, you’ve already donated large sums of
resources to our Empire in exchange for our cooperation in dealing
with your... oh, how did you phrase it?" Mr. Dimentid chuckled slightly,
adjusting his glasses. "Your ‘worthless slave rebels’, I believe?"
Mr. Dimentid took another sip of wine as he adjusted himself in his
seat, the computer monitor in front of him providing the only illumination
in his luxurious office room.
The Diplomat sweated harder. "Listen,
IF I was to suggest to the politicians about siding with Lord Recluse...
well, you must understand, we’d lose all of our previous alliances;
alliances that have thus far provided us with valuable goods and equipment
that would otherwise make us... BENEFICIAL to your cause." The diplomat
narrowed his eyes.
Mr. Dimentid chuckled again, and turned away from
the screen for a moment to look out of his office window and into
the thriving metropolis that was New Recluse City. "Well, naturally
you’d receive... compensation... for your aid." Mr. Dimentid turned
back to the screen. "What exactly are you asking?"
The diplomat shifted
nervously on the screen. "Several thousand assault rifles... as well
as 10,000 tons of food and water to support our troops and populace..."
The diplomat took a deep breath. "And we’ll no doubt want to remain
an independent nation after the War’s conclusion."
Mr. Dimentid chuckled
again. "I’ll discuss it with Lord Recluse." He said, smiling as he
took another sip of wine. "He’s the one in charge, after all." He
moved to sever the connection. "Be sure to keep in touch." He tapped
a key on the touch-pad computer screen, and the diplomat’s image disappeared.
"Another third-world nation come groveling to our feet?" Risk asked,
stepping out of the shadows from the corner of the large room.
"Of
course." Mr. Dimentid said, looking up from his computer.
Mr. Dimentid,
though only 18 years old, was already quite powerful in the Recluse
Empire. His expensive black leather suit, complete with extravagant
shoes, cost more than the majority of the citizens in the Empire had
spent on their entire living arrangements. That wasn’t even including
his designer glasses and the price to keep his short, brown hair slick
and professional. Even though his profession didn’t call for much
activity, he was in fairly good shape for his age, being the youngest
member of the Athletics Club that all of the highest business owners
in New Recluse City belonged to. He also had his own, personal trainers
at his beck and call when need be. He rose from his seat and walk
over to Risk, holding her lightly with his white-gloved hands.
"Everyone
has their price, Risk." He said, caressing her shoulders as he led
her back to his desk. "You know that."
"I do." Risk said, smiling
as she stood next to Mr. Dimentid and looked over his shoulder at
the computer. "But I just LOVE the way you string them along to get
what you want out of them." She leaned down and whispered into his
ear. "It turns me on."
Mr. Dimentid smiled as he observed Risk. She
was wearing a black, transparent night-gown over her incredibly provocative
black two-piece underwear, exposing her incredibly gorgeous body.
Her long, blonde hair fell neatly across the sides of her unbelievably
beautiful face as he stared into her blue eyes.
He reached over and
grabbed her left breast, causing her to moan slightly. He began to
massage it, causing the most pleasing sounds to begin to utter out
of her mouth. Oh, yes... Mr. Dimentid thought, smiling. She was worth
every penny.
"Ahem!" Lord Rampage’s face appeared on the computer
screen, observing the actions between Mr. Dimentid and Risk with a
small grin on his horrible face. "I hope I’m not interrupting, General."
"Not at all, Rampage." Mr. Dimentid sighed, turning back to the computer.
"What does Lord Recluse want NOW?"
"It seems like we’ve finally tracked
down Meltdown." Lord Rampage said, his voice eerily cheerful. "We’ve
sent several Exterminators to deal with her, but Lord Recluse wants
you to send those Spine Mercenaries on your payroll after her, as
well."
"Hmph!" Mr. Dimentid sneered. "Why should I send the Spine
Brethren to deal with a task that Recluse’s Exterminators could take
care of easily?"
"Well, our latest report tells us she’s fled into
Recluse City." Lord Rampage explained. "And as you know, there are
some other... pests... we have to deal with there, as well."
"I see."
Mr. Dimentid smiled. "So, you’re expecting Meltdown to lure the last
remnants of Chance’s little resistance group out of the woodwork of
Recluse City, where the Spine Brethren can finish them all off at
once." He laughed. "That’s pretty sly of Lord Recluse. Alright." He
moved his hand to the screen. "Tell Recluse it’s as good as done."
He touched a button on the computer screen, and Lord Rampage’s image
was replaced with that of four Villains with Spines coming out of
their bodies as they ate around a table. One of them looked up as
he saw Mr. Dimentid.
"Oh, hey boss!" The Villain said, smiling. "Haven’t
heard from you in while! I hope you’ve got some people for us to kill,
caus’ I was just telling Gash about how-"
"Yes, yes, you can tell
me that some other time." Mr. Dimentid said impatiently. "I need you
to go to Recluse City. You should find some Heroes there, about 5
or 6 all together. Do what you do best, then report back to me." He
pressed another button on the screen, and the image of the four Villains
disappeared.
The Spines Brothers looked to the leader of their group,
Slash, who rose to his feet and smiled. "Well, this is what we get
paid for." Slash finally said, and the four immediately headed out
to Recluse City.
All of this time, Risk had been waiting patiently
by the door to Mr. Dimentid’s private bed chamber, which just so happened
to be adjacent to his office room. She smiled as Mr. Dimentid got
up and joined her.
"Sorry about that." Mr. Dimentid said, kissing
Risk as she opened the door, revealing the luxurious bedroom. "You
know I have a lot of work to do, and it gets in the way sometimes."
"Let’s talk in here." Risk said seductively, leading Mr. Dimentid
into the bed chamber. "You know when you’re with me, you can forget
all that, if even for a moment."
"Right." Mr. Dimentid said, closing
and locking the door behind him. "After all, I know those Heroes in
Recluse City almost as much as Lord Recluse does, and they don’t have
a chance against my mercenaries. Besides," He turned back and kissed
Risk again. "It’s not like there are any other Heroes we need to worry
about."
"This place is a dump!" Daisy yelled, kicking a can on the
filthy street. She turned to Ken. "Why would your girlfriend be in
a place like this, anyway?"
"You sure yell a lot for such a little
girl." Dan said, smiling as he leaned against one of the many abandoned
buildings in the city.
"DON’T CALL ME THAT!" Daisy yelled, trying
to charge Dan but being held back by Ken. "YOU’RE ONLY ONE YEAR OLDER
THAN ME, YOU KNOW!"
"One year makes a pretty big difference." Dan
said smugly.
"NO IT DOESN’T!!!" Daisy yelled.
"Please calm down, both
of you..." Ken pleaded as he held Daisy.
"In any case, if we’re going
to be finding your girlfriend, we’ll cover the most ground if we split
up." Dan said.
"She’s not my girlfriend!" Ken said for the millionth
time. He then lowered his head a bit. "Besides... we’re not looking
for HER, exactly..."
Dan and Daisy ran over to him and yelled in Ken’s
face. "WHAT?!" They both cried.
The Pain of Team Legacy
By Unknown_Hero
"What I mean to say is, we’re looking for a group that will be able
to find her." Ken said defensively, trying to calm them down. "There
are four Heroes here that should be able to help us, and THEY are
who we’re looking for."
"Oh, well you should have said that earlier."
Dan said, kicking some dust up on the filthy road they were on. "And
here I thought-OOF!"
Dan fell face-first into the ground as he was
knocked over by a young woman who had run into him as she rounded
the corner of the building he was leaning against. She also fell onto
the concrete street, rubbing her back as Ken helped her up.
"HEY!
WATCH WHERE YOU’RE GOING, YOU-" Dan began, getting up quickly. He
stopped when he got a good look at Meltdown. "You... uh... you..."
"Are you alright?" Ken asked once Meltdown was back on her feet.
Meltdown
noticed the swords that Ken and Dan were carrying, and quickly got
an idea.
"Oh, you have to help me!" Meltdown said, throwing herself
into Ken’s arms, which was quite a surprise for both him and Daisy.
"There are Exterminators all over the city that are after me! Would
you two big, strong Heroes please protect me from them?"
Ken’s face
began to redden in embarrassment. Daisy’s face was also reddening.
But not from embarrassment.
"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU, YOU LITTLE HUSSY?!"
Daisy demanded, dragging Meltdown off of Ken. "AND GET YOUR HANDS
OFF OF KEN!!!"
"Oh, my..." Meltdown said, looking at Daisy. She then
turned to Ken. "Ken, was it?" She pointed to Daisy. "Who is this crazy
girl? She can’t be your girlfriend, can she?"
Daisy’s anger redoubled.
"WHY YOU! I’LL KILL YOU, YOU LITTLE-" Her voice was muffled as Dan
grabbed her arms and held his hand over her mouth to stop Daisy.
"Don’t
mind Daisy, she just gets a little upset when she sees another woman
with Ken." Dan smiled mischievously. "It’s because she secretly loves
him."
Daisy shouted in muffled protest as Dan now found himself under
attack. In the meantime, Ken turned to Meltdown.
"What exactly does
Lord Recluse want with you?" He asked.
Meltdown gasped in fake shock.
"How dare you ask a helpless woman something like that!" She said,
folding her arms. "I can’t believe you’d assume that a helpless young
woman in need would have ANYTHING to do with that monster! Shame on
you!"
Ken sighed. "Fine, we’ll protect you." He turned to Dan and
Daisy.
Dan shrugged. "I guess it would be wrong to leave her to the
Exterminators."
"THAT WITCH CAN ROT FOR ALL-" Daisy began, but stopped
when Dan lightly tapped her in the shoulder, and Ken looked at her
pleadingly. Daisy clasped her hands in anger, then sighed. "FINE!
We’ll help her." She then stuck her tongue out at Meltdown.
"OK, first
it would be nice if we knew your name." Ken said.
Meltdown threw herself
into Ken’s arms again. "You can call me Meltdown." She said, placing
her arms around Ken’s neck. "I’m so glad you’re willing to help me!
Maybe tonight I’ll show you how much I appreciate your-"
"YOU STAY
AWAY FROM HIM, YOU-" Daisy’s outburst was once again stopped by Dan.
"It’s no trouble, really..." Ken said, pushing Meltdown off of him.
"Now, how many Exterminators are-" Suddenly, he grabbed Meltdown and
jumped to the right, carrying her with him. A grenade exploded where
they had been standing a moment earlier.
"What the...?!" Dan looked
around him and noticed over 30 Exterminators coming from all sides
as they surrounded the small group of Heroes. Meltdown stood back
to back with Ken as Dan unsheathed his sword. Daisy put up her arms
in her fighting stance, looking around nervously at all of their opponents.
"Well, now I can see why she was so scared..." Dan said, looking around
the crowd of Exterminators. "I can take on about a dozen of these
guys; Ken, how many-"
In that instant, there appeared to be a flash
around the Exterminators, and Dan saw what looked like a blur systematically
go from one Exterminator to the next, moving faster than the human
eye could follow. In the next instant, Ken appeared in the air in
front of Dan, his sword unsheathed and glistening in the small amount
of light in the city. Landing in front of Dan, Ken looked back at
the Exterminators, sheathing his sword as he did so. The moment Ken
sheathed his sword, all of the Exterminators fell down, each one split
into two pieces. Ken then turned back and walked over to Meltdown.
"If Lord Recluse sent so many Exterminators after you, you must be
pretty important." Ken said nicely as Dan, Daisy, and Meltdown stared
at him in amazement. "And I’m sure that no matter where you tried
to hide, Lord Recluse would find you." He stared into her eyes. "You
will be much safer if we leave you in the protection of the Heroes
here in Recluse City." He led her back to Dan and Daisy. "Lord Recluse
will probably send more of his minions once he finds out that his
Exterminators have failed." He turned and began to walk down the street.
He stopped for a moment and turned back to Meltdown. "I see that you’re
wearing the same uniforms that Recluse’s Elite Soldiers wear." Meltdown’s
gasped as she heard this. "Despite what you said earlier, I know that
you’re associated in some way with Lord Recluse. But, since Recluse’s
minions did indeed attack you, I imagine you’re desperately trying
to escape from his grasp at the moment." He then turned back and began
to walk down the street again. "We should hurry."
"What... what is
he?" Daisy asked, stunned.
To take down all those Exterminators like
that... Dan thought. How did he do that?
He’s incredibly strong! Meltdown
thought. But... how did he know... that this is one of the outfits
that Recluse’s Elite Soldiers wear?
"Hey!" Daisy had finally snapped
out of her trance. "Wait for me, Ken!" She yelled, running down the
street.
Meltdown looked down at the ground, concentrating. But I’ve
done such horrible things... Meltdown looked up, tears forming in
her eyes. If I tell him the truth... if he knew... She closed her
eyes.
"Hey, what are you still doing standing here?" Dan asked, surprising
Meltdown as he grabbed her arm. "Are you waiting for Lord Recluse
to come after you again? If we don’t catch up with Ken right now,
we’re going to be lost in this god-forsaken city!" He began to drag
her across the street.
"I can walk just fine by myself, thank you!"
Meltdown said sharply, wrenching her arm out of Dan’s grasp and then
running down the street.
Dan sighed. "I just don’t understand girls."
He ran after everyone else.
The
Pain of Team Legacy
By Unknown_Hero