ic Zip Zap

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Ah yes! Serving King and Country, what what!" said Mr. Goose with a smile. Even if his wife seemed impressed. 

 

This Greenwich park had, like most alternate realities, differences - albeit in this case, minor ones. The observatory of Earth Prime was bigger, bolder, and dominant. It was, in this reality, the Institute of Metaphysical Engineering. A massive institution of brick and marble, with several smaller buildings on the outskirts. It was more like a tiny university than a building. And splendid architecture, too!

 

"I am most pleased to hear of your valiant efforts, Sir!" said Mrs. Esmeralda Goose, now quite taken with Delta. 

 

"Fickle!" muttered Zip under his breath. 

 

"Let us to the Institute go!" declared a rather spiffy and cheerful Mr. Goose, setting off at a pace that seemed to, admirably, be both brisk and relaxed. 

 

"And please, your companions may join. Even the little dwarf fellow! What is that helmet, Sir? I pray it does not mask some hideous deformity?"

 

Zip seethed. "No, Sir, Just the enormousness of my enormous brain!" he said. 

 

"I...see...." said Mr. Goose, before sidling up to Delta as they walked. "Curious little fellow you have there...what's his story?" he asked, a little concerned, a little suspicious. 

[Tarrakhash]

Delta nodded at the Goose couple, mildly amused at the swing in her attitude, even more so if they knew who he had been fighting for.

 

Zip's comment only made his mood shift a little higher walking off towards the building he almost chuckled when Mr. Goose asked about the helmet.

 

The next question made Delta pause, he really wanted to say that he'd only ever seen the creature fail at doing scientific things. First the robot glitched, then the dimension hopper failed...multiple times.

 

Yet Delta was hoping the creature could still get him back,"He's a scientist, the brightest mind in the place that I found him."

 

Also the only person he had met,"I'm sure he is going to find a way to repair his device and get us back where we need to go."

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Ah! A scientist!" replied Mr. Goose knowingly. "Well, I suppose the poor little fellow, being so diminished in his physical nature, might well devote his energy to intellectual development" he pondered. 

 

"Veritably, better than the other way around!" mocked Zip. 

 

The walk was relatively short at their brisk pace, and soon they were at the Institute which was really rather splendid. Copper and brass pipes conveyed steam and parcels from one building to another in a feat of wondrous engineering. They went to the main building, where, it seemed, luncheon was being served. 

 

"May I help you?" said the attendant in the hall, dressed in black tie, slicked back hair, and an attitude that he was quite uncertain about whether he desired to help this riff raff at all. 

 

"Why, my good man, I am Mr. Arthur Goose, member of the Etonian Amateur Engineering Society" said Mr. Goose quite proudly. "I would like, if I may be so bold, to take advantage of my annual luncheon at the institute, and mayhap have words and discourse with some of the good Professors during our meal!"

 

The attendant raised an eyebrow. 

 

"We do have a dress code, Sir..." he said, eyeing up Agent Lulu, the ASTRO scientist, Delta, and Zip....

[Tarrakhash]

Delta was recording the place, he was rather impressed by the style of the building and the feel of the steampunk like setting....steampunk, a term spat out by his database and one that made him smile just a little. He listened as Mr. Goose arranged a way in, loving the titles of the various societies even more, and then the attendant threw a spanner in the works.

 

Sighing Delta shook his head, stepping closer to the people who had become his companions he focused his mental energy for a moment and there was a shadowy flicker around the four of them for just a moment before they were draped in an illusion created by Delta's mind and maintained by his core processor. Delta himself was in a black suit with long tails, a top hat, a cane with a red gem in the hilt and a lovely red bow tie tied around the starched collar that was immaculately pointed. Lulu was dressed in a lace and satin black dress with just a barely acceptable cut to her bosom and a little bit of a train, the Astro scientest was dressed almost identically to the attendant and Zip was in a long tailed coat, blue in color with a top hat that was tall enough to make him equal in height to Delta normally, just a touch absurd.

 

Apparently his database contained period specific clothing.

 

Offering his arm to Lulu he looked at the attendant and smiled,"Is that better? I would hate to offend anyone at this prestigious place of learning."

[Supercape]

GM

 

The attendent blinked, then blinked again. 

 

"Do forgive me sir. Quite a remarkable act of prestidigitation, if I may so Sir. Quite remarkable indeed" he said, level headed and impressed at the same time. 

 

"Indeed, why, I dare say even the Fellows of the Institute would have a hard time beating that!" chuckled Mr. Goose. And on this, everyone was quite agreed. Why, a little light applause circled around the entrance hall. 

 

"Let us find out, then!" said Mr. Goose, beckoning them into the luncheon hall.

 

What splendour! For there was sparkling crystal glass around the walls and, yes, in the ceiling too. Strange plants from distant lands grew in the four corners, and a marvelous long table with white sheets, silver knives and forks, and twinkling chandeliers greeted them. Roast beef was being served, and many men (mainly old, mainly rotund, mainly white haired, but all most certainly well dressed discussed this and that. The science of this reality was obviously different, for it seemed that Steam was a hundred times, or more, more powerful than in their home reality, whilst electricity was erratic, and nuclear energy essentially unheard of. Yet, even despite these variables, it was clear that these were learned men. 

 

"May I suggest the associate Dean of Abstract Concepts?" suggested Mr. Goose. "Personal friend of mine. I play Bridge with him at the Royal Scientifics Society" he suggested, giving a subtle nod towards a red nosed elderly gentleman of generous girth who was pontificating with his colleauges on whether truth was non false, of falseness was not true. 

[Tarrakhash]

Delta nodded, clearly starting to enjoy himself if the smile on the still flesh part of his face was anything to go by, giving a little bow when the applause was given. This society was so different, at least externally from what he knew from the Terminus and the battles he had waged, obviously not so much once you started digging if Mr. Gooses comments on War Veterans was anything to go by.

 

He took in the splendor as he walked, listening to what Mr. Goose was saying and identifying the Gentlemen that he was speaking about. Turning slowly he made his way through the crowd towards the Dean, stopping in front of him and waiting to be noticed when he caught the attention of the Dean of Abstract Concepts he gave a little nod of his head,"Dean, I do hope I am not interrupting, I am Delta, and these are my companions, Mademoiselle LaWelle and Mr. Zip. We were traveling with an interesting device, of Mr. Zips most fabulous creation, and wanted to see if he could run some ideas for recharging it past you?"

 

He glanced at Zip, gesturing with one hand towards the Dean,"Possibly even somewhere he could look at re-calibrating it?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Why there, Mr. Goose! Pleasure to see you? Port?" rumbled the Dean. His breath was ripe with port, and it was fairly clear that he was either a superb actor or at least moderately drunk. 

 

"Not for Lunch, dear fellow!" said Mr. Goose politely with a smile. 

 

"Mr...Delta, was it? Why, what a splendid hat you have!" said the Dean happily. "I am always at the servce of a man with a hat like that!"

 

He took out his reading glasses. 

 

"Well then, lets see your contraptiontamation!" he bumbled, keen to get on with demonstrating his mastery of concepts. "I am the Dean of astract concepts, my good fellow. I doubt there is something I cannot give my expert eye to!" he said proudly. 

 

Zip pulled at Delta's illusionary coat tails. "_{This buffoon is president of the royal society of buffoonery!}" he hissed quietly. "_{I'm NOT giving a dimensional hopper into his fat fingers. He will break it!}"

 

 

[Tarrakhash]

Delta's smile slipped as the Dean and Zip spoke and he took a deep breath and sighed ever so slightly and then forced another polite smile,"Dean, if you will forgive me, Mr. Zip is a little lacking in his construction abilities so it is very fragile...as such he would be happy for you to look at it, and discuss it's flaws, but he would suffer an apoplectic series of anxiety attacks if you touched it. You know how Genius is some times....just a little different."

 

He looked at Zip, acutely aware of his inability to glare as he clenched his teeth and spoke softely,"I'm sure you won't mind letting him look will you, Mr. Zip?"

 

There was a definite edge to his tone as he spoke to Zip, he was definitely starting to lose patience with the little man.

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Very well" said Zip, gingerly unclipping the dimensional hopper from his belt and cautiously offering it up for the Dean to examine. 

 

And examine it, the Dean did. He peered at it with his monocle, and made clucking devices. 

 

"Why, Sir! What I remarkable piece of engineering!" he said to Zip. "Your small stature obviously hides an intellect of the finest calibre! Come fellow, take a look at this!"

 

The surrounding professors came to look at the hopper much to Zip's irritation. 

 

"Yes...yes...look...well I never!"

 

The Dean took off his glasses from his nose. 

 

"Why, I would scarsely believe such technology was possible outside the very particular walls of this institute. I do believe sir, that it runs on Electricity!" he said dramatically. 

 

There was much gasping and awe amongs the professors. 

 

"A novel idea, surely" said one. "But electricity has no real practical applications in modern society! Why, only Professor Ether was ever foolish enough to think it might be of use!"

 

"Or mad enough!" chortled another, to much qluiche like laughter. 

 

The Dean gave a little nod to Zip. "Why yes, electricity! What a clever little trinket you have there, Sir! Might even get you an undergraduate position!" he added. 

 

He gave Delta a more friendly smile. "Why, poor Professor Ether. Went quite mad with his experiments, you know. Confined to his laboratory now, under medical supervision. Had to be sedated. Quite heavily, I regret to say...."

Edited December 25, 2018 by Supercape

[Tarrakhash]

Delta was not to surprised by the various comments, and discussion of the power source, he suspected that might be the problem getting home. He raised an eyebrow at the offer of an undergraduate position to Zip, clearly it was a fairly complicated device.

 

Yet it all lead to the person he suspected could help them,"What was he experimenting on and what kind of madness did he display?"

 

Sighing he leaned forward into the group of distinguished gentlemen,"The problem is, that device, even though powered by Electricity is important for us to get home. A matter of national security you might even say...and if Professor Ether is our only option, however unconventional, then I think we may need to speak to him. Unless you gentlemen have something steam-powered that could have a similar function?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Oh, Professor Phineas was a strange one. Influenced by that woman, Henrietta Wells" he sighed, lamenting the history. "He was experimenting with electricity for the purposes of inter-dimensional travel..." he started. 

 

"Now then Dean..." stepped in a thin, short man with a rather splendid moustache and rather dull clothes "...the Ministry of Extraordinary Affairs has quite clear rules on this matter. And discussing them in open..."

 

The Dean did sober a little, but he was still drunk, and his tongue still wagged. "...Nonsense!" he mumbled. "Professor Phineas Ether was driven mad but his experiments. Probably sent his mind to a different dimension! He is of hardly any use to anyone, the poor soul. Rather deranged to begin with, but now his mind has veritably snapped" he explained. "We have at least kept him out Bedlam. Confined to his own quarters, as I said"

 

This seemed to pacify the thin man, although there were certainly beady eyes and beady ears on the whole business. 

 

"I am not sure it is worth your time seeing Professor Ether, but he is certainly the man who used to know all about this electricity fad" he conceded. 

 

"Professor Ether...I saw him last time I was here..." hissed Zip. "He was the one I told you about. I showed him the dimensional hopper before!"

 

 

[Tarrakhash]

Henrietta Wells.

 

That name stayed in his head as the other man tried to stop the Dean talking. His eyes irised opened and closed before he focused on what was being said again and then Zip started hissing.

 

Sighing he waited till Zip was finished and then nodded,"Thank you very much, I appreciate your help. I think Zip and I need to figure out what works best and then go from there."

 

He looked at Mr. Goose and smiled,"Thank you very much for your help, thus far, it is much appreciated."

 

To Zip he leaned forward and whispered back,"And relax, I think I know who we need to see...unless you've figured out how to fix it?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

"It's not broken in the first place!" complained Zip. "Just a little bit glitchy, that's all!" he said, proudly. He carressed the dimensional hopper lovingly, then slotted it back into his belt buckle. 

 

"Fat lot of good these lot are" he added, indicating the slightly intoxicated and often glutinous professors that circled around the tables, food, drink and each other. "Abstract concepts indeed. What does that mean? Sounds like modern art if you ask me..."

 

He shook his head in contempt. 

 

"Who do you suggest seeing? Professor Phineas Ernest, who last examined the hopper?. It sounds like he has gone quite mad...."

Edited December 28, 2018 by Supercape

[Tarrakhash]

"No."

 

Delta frowned and shook his head,"We're going to find the person they seem to be avoiding talking about."

 

Delta's hands stretched as he shrugged and gestured for Zip, Lulu and the ASTRO scientist and headed to the door.

 

Once he was out of sight he smiled,"Henrietta Wells....now do you know anything about her from the last time you were here?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Ah, who has not heard of Henrietta Getrude Wells?" replied Zip. "Only damn woman they let into the Institute of Metaphysical Engineering, and smarter than the lot of them. She developed, in this dimension, a machine that could traverse dimensions" he said. "Thats when the Ministry of Extraordinary affairs stepped in. It deals with all...ah....extraordinary affairs" he explained, not very eloquently. 

 

"Look, I don't come from this dimension. Its silly. I mean, steam powered zepplins with difference engines coordinating their gatling guns? silly silly silly!" he said, petunlantly. 

 

"So I don't know everything" he conceded, vexed at the reality. "But the ministry make sure she is on a tight leash. They don't want any trans dimensional hopping without them knowing"

[Tarrakhash]

Delta listened and shrugged,"Steam powered Zepplin's have a certain amount of charm....but I know what you mean about things being silly. That said all my various devices still seem to work so Nilihus Energies still work...."

 

Thinking for a moment he frowned,"Well, we can try and track her down, or see if she has some communicator I can speak to and then if that doesn't work maybe you'll let me at least look at the stupid machine of yours to see if I have a solution?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

And so...

 

Ms. Henriette Getrude Wells lived not far away (by design of all parties). Walking distance, in fact. Another little jolly walk through Greenwich park until one came to Blackheath, where Ms. Wells lived in a rather small, but still expensive, house. It had a neat garden, neat bricks, and smoking chimney. Steam pipes wiggled their way elegantly over and through the architecture, much as creeping vines did. 

 

"Thats rather clever" said Zip, a little begrungingly. 

 

Upon ringing of a rather spiffy copper doorbell that hissed and dinged and trumpeted, Ms. Wells opened the door. She was a middle aged woman with a robust kind of build - full of solid energy whilst being neither fat nor slim. Her face was plain and inoffensive, bar an enthusiastic energy that seemed to spark from her eyes. 

 

"Good afternoon...my, this is an unusual set of house callers! What a day! Why, I was already entertaining! I hope Professor Ether will not mind a little disruption!"

[Tarrakhash]

Delta's eyebrow would have risen if he had one, but he was rather surprised by Zip being impressed by anything someone else had built.

 

The woman answering the clever little doorbell made him do a double take, he was getting used to all the amazing super hero's in Freedom city, she looked...well...ordinary.

 

"Sorry to interrupt, Ms. Wells, we are actually looking for your expertise...although it is a marvelous that Professor Ether was my back up plan. Do you think we could come in?"

 

He waited till they were inside for just long enough to be polite and then he cleared his throat,"Ms Wells, we are dimensional travelers, looking for our way home. I understand you are something of an expert in this field?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Good golly. Dimensional travellers! Well that is interesting!" said a smiling Ms. Wells. "Always nice to hear about them. I am afraid...ah....my activities in dimensional exploration are...ah....discouraged" she said, delicately "...unless sactioned by the Ministry of Extraordinary Affairs" she added with a touch of sadness. 

 

"But hearing about other dimensions is quite another matter! Delightful! Always such extraordinary stories! Why, on my first hop, I ended up in a dimension where America had declared independence from the British Empire! Haha, unbelievable!"

 

She ushered them in. Delta noticed a silent man in a rather nice tweed suit who looked rather like he was a guard for Ms. Wells. Or possibly a minder. 

 

Professor Ether was a tall man with a pointed chin, pointed nose, and a face that was angular in a most remarkable way altogether. He was dressed in a jacket and shirt, with a bow tie. There was a touch of eccentricity about his atire, though. As if he could not quite conform to usual dress codes. 

 

"Good afternoon. Why, this is a most remarkable day!"

 

He gave Delta a good long look to the exclusion of the others. 

 

"You, sir, have a most unique look about you. Not, I think, steam powered, despite your glorious melding of steel and flesh. Pray tell, Sir, what is your story?"

[Tarrakhash]

Delta's lenses whirred open and closed, diodes flickered in red and green light on the black metal of his skull as he took in information, schematics of Ms. Well's house resolving before his eyes as his scanner filled his databanks with more information. It was a constant process but it was, at times more distracting than others, one metal hand reached up to stroke his chin and he shook his head.

 

"No Professor Etherics, I am not steam powered. I an from Terminus, an escaped soldier fighting against Lord Omega. I have been altered and 'improved' without my permission and consent so I fight them with all I have. I am soldier, cyborg and super hero as much as I can be. All I want to do is get back to my dimension."

 

He looked at Ms. Wells and smiled,"I suspect you have visited it, America is very much independent where I come from. We don't want you to travel, we just need some assistance getting back to where we belong...."

[Supercape]

GM

 

Professor Phineas Ether could not contain his excitement. "The Terminus!"

 

Zip groaned. "Here we go...."

 

Professor Ether turned to Zip with a cruel but interested look. "I see you have brought....what was your name again....Zop? It was rather a short name, if I recall...."

 

Zip looked up at Delta. "I should have warned you. He is a total A..."

 

"More tea anyone?" interrupted Ms Wells, giving Zip a hard look. No swearing! This is a respectable house!

 

Professor Ether waved his hand away. He was not, for the moment, interested in tea but in Delta "Terminus energy! Fascinating! Your little friend was most illuminating on the matter! I have conducted much research on this over the years since Zop first demonstrated its properties!"

 

"Its dangerous" muttered Ms Wells. 

 

"Nonsense. Everything is dangerous in principle. It just needs to be understood and utilised correctly!" disagreed Professor Ether. 

 

Ms Wells moved the disagreeable subject to one side. "So you wish to return to your quaint dimension do you? Cant say I quite understand, but there were some very interesting gentleman and ladies there, I can't deny. Edge, Silhouette, Grimalkin, and...why I do believe the Ministry even sent an ambassador there, Lord Steam. What a rascal!"

 

"That's classified, Ma'am" interrupted the observing agent of the Ministry who up to now had only looked and not spoken. 

 

"In any case, we would not want you stranded here" continued Ms. Wells. "Perhaps we can get the Brit Machine running again, although it might be...ah....politically sensitive...." she said, raising her eyebrows at her minder. 

 

"And I have been examining it myself. Running experiments" said Professor Ether, both excited at the turn of events but irritated that his own experiments might be disrupted. 

[Tarrakhash]

There was a charm to this world, the manners, the dignified dress and attempts at behaving. The steam powered equipment, the way the British Empire held itself...and then there were people like Professor Ether.

 

Zip was annoying, Professor Ether was just nasty and he agreed with Zip's assessment, even as he smiled at the glare Ms. Wells gave him,"I'd love some more tea, Ms. Wells, thank you."

 

Delta wasn't prepared to leave Terminus Energy just hanging there,"Ms. Wells is correct, Nilihus Energy is dangerous. It is experimintation on it that left to us being stranded, almost killed by a killbot, zombies, a rogue super-hero and then here. Be careful, Professor, the physics you are toying with will always have a negative side effect..and it will not discriminate."

 

Delta watched Ms. Wells eyebrow rise and felt the useless temptation to do the same, not that he had eyebrows and he shrugged,"What is the Brit Machine? I am happy to work with the powers that be if we need to get permission. I understand in a situation like this proper protocol should be followed."

 

He had no idea what the protocol was, but he had a strong suspicion that in this place where manners were so important that protocol would be even more so, particularly paired with political sensitivity.

 

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Poppycock" replied Professor Ether. "All it requires is the right finesse...." he said, insidiously. 

 

Ms. Wells gave a proud smile. "The Brit Machine is my invention. A dimensional - transportation - vehicle" she explained, with excellent elocution. 

 

"Let me show you!"

 

And thus...a moment later...in the basement. 

 

the Brit Machine was now half dismantled, with pipes and tubing feeding in and out of it like a man on life support. It probably was, at some point, a modified car, full of horns and copper and brass. But now, after years of experimentation, it was more like a cobbled together Frankenstein of a machine. 

 

Whilst Ms. Wells and Professor Ether did not much care for each other, they appeared to be collaborating on research. Under the watchful eyes of the Ministry, of course. 

 

 

[Tarrakhash]

Delta stepped into the basement, a faint whirring noise as his eyes flickered through the different spectrum to learn all he could about the machine in front of him.

 

He walked around it slowly and carefully, letting his senses and mind absorb what lay before him, frowning he asked,"What happened that it isn't working anymore? Lulu, Zip, you guys think you can add something to fixing this machine?"

[Supercape]

GM

 

Delta scanned the Brit Machine - or more precisely, its corpse. It was a work of art, really, even in its rather chaotic state. Understanding a new dimensions very strange physics was extremely hard, but from what Delta could tell, it was indeed a dimensional transport. Inoperable now, in that it could not directly transport itself. However, it seemed perfectly capabale of projecting matter or energy into new dimensions and it might well be able to shove Delta and comrades into a new one. 

 

"Beats me" sighed Lulu. "This isn't regular science"

 

"Primitive! Steam power! I told you this was a silly dimension!" said Zip. 

 

One rather worrisome feature of the Brit Machine. It seemed hooked up to the Terminus. 

 

It was alive with Nihilus energy!