The Closed Circle! (IC)

[Raveled]

Ironclad grunted as the incoming fire impacted her armor harshly. Her display flickered and buzzed for a moment as a connection came loose within her armor; it rerouted itself almost instantly, but it was still a sobering moment. "I remember these guys," she said as she took to the air. "Shoddy work the first time, shoddy work all the time, Weiss!" Once against panels popped free of the smooth surface of the armor, revealing numerous small missiles that zipped out and buried themselves in the robots. A moment later the line of weissbots was engulfed in rippling explosions that blew dust out and against the force field engulfing the tower. The heroine landed near Weiss and put one armored boot on his chest. "Barely worth the cost of scraping them, frankly."

[Shofet]

"Now don't taunt the unconscious psychopath, madame, you'll only waste your energy." The Penitent grinned, and his eyes caught the rapidly moving robot.

"Well lookit what we have here. I am afraid that it is in fact quite rude to just run out on us like that. I am forced to reprimand you."

The Penitent summoned up a ball of Brimstone Flames, and then whipped it at the fleeing robot, chuckling softly. "You know, despite having the tar kicked out of me just a little while ago, this is going surprisingly well."

[Ari]

GM

The missle massacre left a haze of dust over the skyscraper roof, and for a moment it appeared from the stillness where the missles had been sent that all the metal contraptions had been destoryed. However, as the dust cleared from the explosions and drifted away over the city, two blue lights slowly coalesced int being, and the shattered, twisted corpses of the Weissbots accentuated the survivors of the assault, they having managed to activate their force dispersion fields in the nick of time, their durable shells only slightly dented from the flying shards of their compatriots. They looked both imposing, and rather scared.

The ball of sulphurous flame hissed through the air, brimstone's vile smell reeking from it as it collided with the dashing silvery automaton. However, just before it made contact, the thing reached out a slender arm, a shimmering blue field hummed into being around the limb, and with a shriek the clashing energies destroyed each other, the robot standing with a smoking plam, quite unharmed. Flicking its blue eye from its attacker to its round target, the thing tensed its artificial muscles, preparing for another dash toward its goal.

[VideoGeek]

"Might've spoke too soon, huh?" snarked Corporal Cosmos, as The Penitent's fireball washed over the ambulating Weissbot without effect. "Don't worry though, let me show you how it's done!" Corporal Cosmos shot down from his out-of-the-way spot overlooking the battlefield, and flew forward to intercept the robot before it could reach its destination. Cosmos cocked a fist back as he went, and a large, transparent green fist coalesced over his own, before he clocked the automaton for all he was worth. He then hovered far enough above the ground to stay eye-level with the bots, in case another shot would be necessary.

[Ari]

GM

The running robot's head went sailing clean off, traveling in an arc to crash into the force field where it disinitegrated in a red flash.

It's two comrades followed the trajectory of the flickering metal cylinder, marked its destruction, and took up combat stances once more. Bracing their legs against the ground, their eyes locked onto the starry Corporal, the panels slid back, and the hail of energy pellets shot out like a salvo of bullets, several of the green bolts striking their mark on him.

[Raveled]

Ironclad tracked the robots and raised both arms, each gauntlet tracking a different target. She powered the blasters up -- and frowned as a flashing warning popped up in front of her eyes. Her blasters were overheating and threatened to explode; she dialed the power back incrementally until the heat levels fell back to acceptable levels. The entire process only took a fraction of a second and she fired off two gilded bolts at the remaining robots... Who both took the shots and still stood. Ironclad's jaw dropped open and she simply stared. "What? WHAT!?" She looked down at Weiss, still dumbstruck. "How... what are... I am going to beat those robots with your unconscious body!!"

[Shofet]

"Oh, fer cryin' out loud." The Penitent grunted, and stared down the robots.

"Well, if fancy weaponry won't knock y'all down, well, we'll just have to see if some good ol' fashioned brute force will."

The Penitent surged forward, going from still to full-speed in a matter of a couple seconds, before craning his head down and levelling the point of his horns with the Weissbot's "chest". After mere instants, the Penitent rammed his horns into the Weissbot, then rapidly craned his neck upward to get them nice and in there. The robot shuddered, and then fizzled out, before the robot was shaken off the Penitent's horns. It was then that the robot erupted into flames, much to the Penitent's alarm.

"Well that was darned lucky.". He looked at the other robot. "I don't suppose you're smart enough to what surrendering and that this would be a good time fer it?"

[VideoGeek]

Corporal Cosmos saw the success of his and The Penitent's attacks, and it was good. "Penny, that's the best plan I've heard all day," he shouted, before charging the final Weissbot and putting his giant green fist where it's face was. "Was" being the operative term, since Cosmos had just put his arm there with enough force to cause the bot's head to quickly find another place to be. Unfortunately, this exchange did not seem to cause the bot any particular distress, and Cosmos was left face to face with a lone battle-bot and a dangerously exposed torso.

[Ari]

GM

Bouncing quickly back from the cosmic punch it had just sustained, the robot glanced almost witheringly at Corporal Cosmos before stepping slightly forward and lashing out with a lean arm...and missing by at least four inches, its hand whizzing harmlessly past Steve's head. The robot showed many signs of concern over this.

Meanwhile, the force-field continued to flicker and cast its pall over the scene, and several helicopters, flying heroes and more dimly-perceived flying objects clustering around the shimmering barrier, distant cries and the heavy thuds of the whirling blades softly traveling through the hermetic shield.

[Raveled]

Ironclad routed power away from the blasters and towards her servo muscles, letting the former cool down and making a mental note to replace that insulation. "Right, Weiss. Your 'bots are proving way more annoying the second time around." She bent down and lifted the unconscious villain, hefting him above her head. "So it seems fair that you help us with them!" She threw the armored villain and struck the remaining robot's chest. It bent back, then farther back, and then finally snapped in two with a shower of sparks. She took a deep breath and posed with her hands on her hips. "Right, then! Now that we've got some peace and quiet, time to take this force field down."

[Shofet]

The Penitent nodded to Ironclad, before sitting down and running his fingers through his sweat-soaked hair, sighing to himself.

"You go ahead and do that, missy. I'm afraid I'm only muck things up for ya."

Relaxing against the ground, he sighed as he looked at the remains of his shirt and sunglasses over by the stairwell.

Dangit, there goes one of my very few shirts.

He rubbed at his throbbing head, pulling back to see he was indeed bleeding from the wound, and then paused for a moment, hoping he could detect if he had been concussed. Of course, he wouldn't actually ever be certain with no medical training, but he knew it made you dizzy, right?

Oh, well. Better just try and get a grip on things.

[VideoGeek]

Corporal Cosmos dismissed his fist-shaped armament and instead crafted a large dumpster that he began tossing the ruined robots into. Getting to Weissnacht, he hesitated a moment, but eventually created a pair of handcuffs and put them on the rogue robotocist before tossing him in as well, maybe a little less gently than he could have. Once the area was cleared up, Cosmos flew over to The Penitent to check on his ally. Putting a steadying hand on The Penitent's shoulder, Cosmos inquired, "You okay? That one downstairs got me earlier, it was less than pleasant."

[Shofet]

"Weissnacht was plannin' on killin' me, and that hit rattled my brains a little is all. Nothin' much to worry about, I think. I can handle it."

The Penitent slowly rose to his feet, holding his hand against the wound for a moment, before letting go of it, looking down at his hand, then at Corporal Cosmos.

"You did good, Corporal. Got the people to clear out when there was a threat of danger in that hallway, and danged good fighter, too." He gave a brief grin to the Corporal.

"By the way, call me Bram. Don't worry, I don't expect any reciprocation, s'just I don't have an off-mode for this, so... Y'know, no point in keeping my name from anyone."

[Raveled]

"Like I said earlier," Ironclad said off-handedly, walking towards the bound Weiss, "I'm Jessica. But you could know that already, so it's no big deal." She leaned over the unconscious villain and pulled out a pair of short metal probes, then quickly began stripping Weiss out of his armor. "If one of you could go downstairs and make sure that the civvies aren't panicking, I'll see what I can do about getting this force field down."

[Shofet]

"Well, I'm kind of bleeding and missing my shirt, so I don't think I'm first pick for that. Corp, looks like it's up to you." He grinned at him. "And thanks for seeing if I was alright."

He went over, grabbing his shirt and looking it over.

"Gosh darnit, this one was nice, too." No, it wasn't. "Seems a cryin' shame that he had to go an-- Oh? What's this?"

He looked on the inside of the shirt, and found a small pocket. Fumbling around inside, he pulled out some cash.

"Well, jeez, how did that get in there? That's... Mmm... twenty three dollars and fourteen cents. I could buy a lot of hot dogs with that... Well, I know what I'm doing when this is done. Anyone who wants to join me is quite welome to do so." He looked back at Jessica. "Oh, and if you need me to do anything, just ask. I like to be useful."

[VideoGeek]

Corporal Cosmos hung his head for a moment, feeling a little bad about keeping secrets from people who helped him out. Again. After a moment though, a thought occurred to him and he lifted his head back up and grasped Bram's hand and gave it two firm shakes. "I am trying to do the secret identity thing, but hell, my first name is common enough it can't be of much help to you anyway. I'm Steve," Cosmos replied. He continued, "I can't stick around here forever, unfortunately, but we should do this again sometime. There a way I can get ahold of you if something comes up? I've got a radio set in here somewhere," Steve tapped his helmet at the last statement. "Meantime, we probably should get downstairs, one of the big brains can probably patch you up, anyway."

[Ari]

GM

Weissnacht turned out to be rather handsome(besides the bruise from the Penitent's attack) and impressively-built man of mixed Persian and German descent, head mostly shaved to accommodate the helmet's internal sensor array, which worked by attaching wires to one's head.

Downstairs the visitors and exhibitors had begun to worry as the battle raged on the rooftop, sending thuds and rattles and groans to filter down, but by the time the three heroes had captured Wiessnacht and came down, they erupted into cheers of joy, the rep. of Ajax having quickly worked with the man representing Samara to program the carebots to clap and cheer along with the humans.

However, they were barricaded from the adoring civilians by a small tide of reporters, cameramen and sound technicians who had come to cover the event, and who surged towards the trio with the usual endless barrage of questions:

"Carl of WNTW, Channel 3. Ms. Ironclad! Did Weissnacht have anything to do with Dawes Tech...?"

"Are you a demon sir? Do you have anything to do with Hellon...?"

"Excuse me! Are you from outer space? What are you called? What...?"

"Hey! What circle are you from?"

"Have you heard from Dark Star...?"

"Who was he working for? Was he working with Omega?"

And on it went. At last, however, their questions were at least slightly satisfied, the police arrived shortly with a small AEGIS detachment who secured Weissnacht and took him into an armored car.

Just as he was being dragged in, Weissnacht awoke partially from his unconscious state. Shaking his head furiously he turned his dark eyes on the three dim figures wavering familiarly before him, and gathering himself he yelled out "I'm not...Swedished Mr. Craget! You haven't felt the last scene of me! The metals will not prevail against me this time...I hate...starry demons..." his head sank back on his breast, and with a rattle and clang he was locked inside.

The officers thanked the heroes profusely, as did the even organizers, who had managed to spin the publicity for a contrast between their technology and Weissnacht's, already gathering dozens more to the expo. The distant silhouettes of the Freedom Leaguers waved to the trio below, and shot off for other duties, the helicopters trundling away swiftly through the sky.

[Raveled]

Ironclad walked through the crowds, holding the battery core from Weissnacht's suit. It was n interesting design with a rather ingenious tertiary backup system. It definitely bore investigating for a future suit. At the very least the materials involved would serve to make an interesting coffee cup...

Once outside she was surrounded by the usual mass of reporters who congregated at any interesting sight in the city. As usual she put her head down and prepared to barrel through the morass when one question in particular caught her attention. Her head snapped around and she focused on an older, balding man thrusting a microphone at her face. "Dawes Tech? He had nothing to do with Dawes Tech! He calls himself Weissnacht, and he's just a lone kook."

[Shofet]

The Penitent laughed at some of the questions, walking with a broad grin.

"I'm not a demon. And as fer where I'm from, well, definitely not a Circle o' Hell. I'm from a little town in West Virginia. I just happen to look like a demon is all." He seemed unphased by the constant wondering of a demonic nature, something he had grown accustomed to by now.

Finally, he cleared the line of reporters, telling them he was going to go buy himself some hot dogs with all the fixin's, save relish.

He looked on as Weissnacht was carried off, and sighed. "Seems a bit of a shame a mind like his went sour like that. Maybe he'll turn around... Eh. Oh well. Well, he definitely wasn't a nerd."

He looked back at his fellow heroes. "Anyone still interested in hot dogs? My treat."

[VideoGeek]

Corporal Cosmos shook a couple nearby hands, and gave his name a few times, and said a silent prayer of thanks to whoever built his armor that no one could see his face. When someone asked if he was from space, Steve stopped for just a moment, before replying, "What gave it away? Was it the suit? It was the suit, wasn't it? See, they told me this was just how people dressed here, and I knew that couldn't be right. I mean, no one on 'Happy Days' wore a helmet, except the Fonz sometimes."

Once he'd gotten away from the crowd, Cosmos stood with the other heroes for a moment longer as they watched Weissnacht get carted away. "I've known a couple good nerds in my time, and no sir, that was not one of them." At the mention of food, Steve's stomach lurched, but he knew he couldn't leave. Instead he simply replied, "Sorry, on the clock. Rain check?" Not really waiting for an answer, Corporal Cosmos took to the skies once again, and shot visibly away from the building, heading out several miles before doubling back to re-enter through the highest empty room he could find. Once he was back in the building and out of sight of any people or cameras, he deactivated his armor, and went in search of his boss for the day, ready to have the riot act read to him for disappearing in a crisis.

[Ari]

GM

The heroes went their separate ways, the potential kidnapping averted, the villain captured and on his way to Blackstone for imprisonment, and hopefully persuasion to give up whatever lunatic ideology he held. AEGIS and ASTRO Labs didn't get much from the robots(a rather primitive design compared to some of Doc Otaku's work), and only their oddly emotional AI presented much of interest. The expo enjoyed a surge of popularity from the attack, especially from the medical tech presented. THe show-runners were so pleased they managed to secure a deal with most of their exhibitors to return next year.

Weissnacht(or Hamilcar Kramer, as he declared himself to be) was surprisingly subdued upon his incarceration, quietly polite and agreeable to his captors, and making sure to do as they instructed as he was interred into the available cell. Only when he was alone, when the footsteps of the guards were receding and the prisoner opposite him(a woman who had tried to send everyone on her street to a Hell dimension) stopped asking questions about what he had done and retired, did he let himself punch the cold wall of his cell with enough force to leave the imprint of his knuckles.

"Failed. I hope that girl knows what she's doing, or we'll all end up in here" he muttered grimly to himself, sinking onto his cot and glaring at the ceiling, arms behind his head as he prepared for the long wait...

END