🚀 go-pugleaf

    Summer stood outside the door to Dr. Science's laboratory, waiting
impatiently.  She had been standing around watching inside the lab,
until Dr. Science had kicked her out so he could concentrate.  She
couldn't really blame him, but at the same time it made her all the
more anxious to know exactly what was going on.
    Ever since that accident, Summer had harbored a secret worry that
her nanomachines, "nanites" to use the term a popular sci-fi TV show
had coined, might someday be the source of a problem.  She'd even had
the occasional nightmare about it--she'd dream her nanites melted her
down into a puddle of goo, or crept into people and started taking
over their minds, or even expanded uncontrollably to cover the entire
planet.  These weren't things she liked to think about.
    And now it looked as though at least some of her fears were being
realized.  She didn't _want_ to believe that it could happen, but all
the evidence pointed to it, and when he had this kind of evidence to
work from, Dr. Science was seldom wrong.  Summer chuckled, struck by
the irony of the situation...she'd just been brought back from the
dead, almost literally, but all she could do was worry about her life.
    Also in the lab, assisting Dr. Science, was Phobos, who was also
worrying.  Summer had called him as soon as Dr. Science had told her
his suspicions, and he had immediately dropped everything to rush up
here and help.  Dr. Science had accepted his assistance grudgingly,
perhaps because he knew it would speed the process up, but said no
more to him than was necessary.  Phobos suspected that he still blamed
himself for all that had happened...and given that his experimentation
had infected Summer with the nanomachines in the first place, Phobos
couldn't in good conscience think of any way to say he was wrong.
    Would they be able to find whoever..._whatever_ Lita had become?
Would they be able to do anything about it when they found it?  Phobos
threw himself into the task at hand to try to keep from thinking about
it, but there was still that niggling little uncertainty in the back
of his mind that just wouldn't give him any peace.
    As Summer paced and waited in the corridor outside the lab, Adam
Douglas and Alex Meadows came walking along it from the direction of
the Xolchaportaton chamber.  "Hey," Adam said.  "You look worried
'bout something."
    Summer looked up.  "And _you_ look like you've been through a
war."  She noted the blood dripping off of Alex's chin and making a
little puddle on the floor.  "Eww.  What happened to _you_?"
    "I fell off a wall."  Alex paused.  "What, don't you believe me?"
    "We're taking him down to the infirmary to get patched up," Adam
explained.  "Is Doc S. around to do it, or should we trust the
autodocs?"
    Summer paused.  "I...um...think maybe I better tell you what's
up."
    "Tell me on the way.  Gotta get my pal here bandaged while there's
still some blood left in his body.  C'mon."
    Summer glanced at the door one last time, then nodded.  "I...still
haven't told Mike yet, anyway..."
    "Oh?  Well, come to think of it, neither have I," Adam said.
"Maybe we should swap stories and tell him together."
    "Um...I hate to be a bother, but I'm the one who's bleeding here?"
Alex said.  "Not that I _mind_ or anything, but if we don't hurry,
this is _never_ coming out of these clothes..."
    Adam nodded.  "Right, right.  You coming?"
    "Sure.  Who's your friend?"
    "Oh, I almost forgot.  Summer, this is Alex Meadows; Alex, Summer.
She's taken."
    "Darn!"


            T E A M
                      ######  ######
                    ###### ###### ######   EPISODE
                  ######  ######  ######     #94
                ######   ######   ######
              ######    ######    ###### E . C . H . A .


                         A SUMMER TO REMEMBER

                               Part Ten

   A Story of High Technology and Low Supplies of Original Taglines

                        (_That's_ for sure...)

                      By Christopher E. Meadows


    Mike looked calmly back and forth between Summer and Adam.
"You...did _what_?  And you're _doing_ what?"
    "Well, P'Person (TM) ain't gonna be a problem anymore, Mike," Adam
said, leaning against the doorframe.  "Leastaways his army ain't.  I
found and scattered 'em.  Boom."
    "I helped," Alex said.
    "And we think we can _find_ Lita, but we have to act fast," Summer
said.  "Dr. Science should have the sensors ready within the hour,
then we just have to fly up to Springfield and--"
    Mike shook his head.  "Nobody tells me _anything_ anymore."
    Summer blushed.  "I'm...sorry, Mike.  It was just...we had to act
fast, and--"
    "And this was _personal_," Adam said.  "Besides, I haven't told
you what we figured out yet.  I think the people who experimented on
Lorrie are backing PenumbralPerson (TM)."
    Mike blinked.  "Huh?  How you figure that?"
    "Think about it.  You honestly believe there'd be two big
supervillains in a town the size of Springfield without them at least
knowing about each other and more than likely being in cahoots?  I'm
telling you, just when we were about to start to check into Lorrie's
abductors, this Penumbral (TM) guy popped up and started making
trouble for us.  There can't be any other answer.  It's too pat."
    Mike looked thoughtful.  "You may be right.  But I kind of wish
you'd at least let me _know_ first instead of just going off on your
own?  We all know what happened the _last_ time you went off by
yourself."
    Adam winced, but didn't say anything.  "Mike, that was uncalled
for," Summer scolded.
    Mike nodded.  "Yeah, you're right.  I'm sorry, Adam.  It's just
that I kind of like to think I'm a leader in more than name, and when
everyone under me starts going off on missions of their own it makes
that just a bit hard."
    "Yeah, I can see that," Adam said.  "I'm sorry...next time I'll
let you know."
    "Yeah, well," Mike said nervously, wanting to put his blunder
behind them.  "Let's get moving on this sensor situation, and you can
fill me in as we go.  Summer, can you see to loading a full complement
of mecha into the jet, including the X.N.?  Stuff that can take those
sensor modules of Dr. Science's."
    "Right!"
    "And get everyone together.  I don't know what we'll find when we
get there, but we'd better be ready for anything."  Mike turned to
Adam.  "As for you, I want to hear everything that happened on that
raid you mentioned--"
    "I fell off a wall," Alex volunteered.
    "Yeah.  Anyway--"  Mike was interrupted by the loud beeping noise
coming from the comlink on Adam's belt.
    "'Scuse me."  Adam grabbed the communicator and held it to his
face.  "Yeah?  What?  Waitaminnit...lemme get this down."  He tapped
the "hold" key on the side of the comlink.  "Paint?  Record my other
comlink channel, starting now."  He switched back.  "Yeah?
G'wan...okay...you're sure?  Right.  Got it.  Thanks.  Check's in the
mail."  He switched off the comlink.
    "Who was that?" Mike asked.
    "One of my informants," Adam replied.
    "Informants?"
    "Yeah," Adam replied.  "I figure, hey, we've got the government's
budget backing us, might's well spread some of it where it'll do the
most good."
    "Adam, remind me to introduce you to the concept of budgeting at
some point," Mike said.  "But you're looking pretty excited...what did
you find out?"
    "Oh, nothing much...just the probable location of Alex's
brother..."  Adam grinned.
    "Don't just sit there, play it back!" Mike said.
    "Remind me to introduce you to the concept of patience at some
point," Adam said, still grinning.  "But whatever, here y'go.  Paint,
pipe it through to the command center commpanel?"
    There was a burst of static, then a scrambled voice spoke through
the speaker grate.  "The laboratory is located in a warehouse not far
from the Southwest Missouri State University campus, south of Mister
E's Magic Shop on East Pershing Street, not far from Park Central
Square.  They won't be expecting you...better hurry."
    "Hmm...it could be a trap," Mike said.
    Adam shook his head.  "Doubt it...same guy told me about PP(TM)'s
warehouse, and it turned out to be for real."
    Mike nodded.  "Well...looks like we'll have to divide our
attention, then.  Get everyone together, we'll decide what to do on
the way."

    Dr. Science slowly made his way through the narrow crawlspace in
the nose of the M.E.C.H.A. jet, heading for the fore sensor cluster to
install the new nanite-detecting sensor suite.  This could have been
done more easily on the ground, but it would have taken time that
would be better spent in the air.  Phobos had volunteered to do it for
him, but they both knew that wouldn't work; the crawlspace was rather
small, and Phobos didn't do well in confined spaces like that.
    The jet was indeed in the air, and by now it would be halfway to
Springfield.  Dr. Science had promised to have the sensor in place
time by the time they reached the city limits, and he saw no reason
why he shouldn't be able to do so.  This was hardly rocket
science...and even if it had been, Dr. Science would still have been
able to handle it.
    Being alone like this gave Dr. Science plenty of time to think.
It would have been nice, though, Odd reflected, if he could keep his
thoughts from going around and around on the same track.  The track
that reminded him it was all his fault, for playing with fire, for
letting Lita join Team M.E.C.H.A., for exposing her to the situation
in the first place...that kind of thinking was hardly conducive to
solving the problem, but it was also nearly impossible to exorcise.
    The comlink at Dr. Science's belt buzzed.  "Yes?"
    It was Mike.  "We're all ready up here...you about to plug it in
down there?"
    "I am...urgh...almost there now," Dr. Science replied.
"Approximately three more minutes..."
    "Right."  Mike signed off, and Dr. Science returned the device to
his belt, grumbling about constant interruptions.  Just one more yard,
and there it was: the sensor cluster access panel.  Dr. Science
flipped the panel open and pulled the sensor processing board out of
his satchel, then gently slid it into place.  It was easier than
installing an internal modem...but then, Dr. Science _had_ designed
it, after all.
    Dr. Science keyed the comlink and said, "This is Dr. Science; the
sensor is installed."  Then he began the difficult task of turning
around in the cramped crawlspace for the journey back.

    "He says it's ready," Mike reported.
    "Gotcha."  Lincoln Douglas swivelled his chair back to face one of
the flight deck utility workstations that had been configured to run
the sensor sweeps.  "Let's see what these new sensors of Odd's can
do."
    "Right," Phobos said from the seat next to him.  "Hey, you okay?"
    Link gritted his teeth.  "Just fine, Phobos.  Nothing that a few
dozen Tylenol won't cure."
    Phobos chuckled and shook his head.  "I'll never understand why
people drink.  Anyway, I'm setting up for the wide-angle probes now,
and Adam, Sarah, and Summer are standing by in the launch bay to head
out for the close-in calibration."
    "Yeah, and I'll be joining them once we've gotten everything
settled," Mike said.  "What about the warehouse attack group?  Are
they in place?"
    "Last report indicates they're ready to move on our orders,"
Phobos responded.
    Mike nodded, and looked worried.  "I hope the Irregulars will be
able to handle it."
    "They _have_ gotten better since we put them together, Mike," Link
pointed out.  "Alex seems to have what it takes, and Lorrie is
definitely not going to blow her shot at revenge on the guys who did
that to her."
    "Yeah, I know...I just feel, well, kind of guilty about not
helping out."
    "Isn't that why you put the Irregulars together in the first
place?" Phobos asked.  "So they could handle things like this when you
had another call?"
    "Mason, the reason we put the Irregulars together in the first
place was to get rid of all the hero-wanna-bes who had started
gathering at the door," Mike said, rolling his eyes.  "Secondary
response had nothing to do with it."
    "Anyway, it's kind of academic now, don't you think?"  Link
entered the last set of commands, then stabbed his finger down on a
button.  "Nanoscanning commences now."
    For several seconds, silence reigned on the flight deck, save for
the hum of the air conditioners and the occasional beep from the
avionics.  Then the sensory information began to scroll up on the
screen.
    "This...shouldn't be," Link said.
    "What is it?"  Mike asked, getting up.
    Link keyed some more commands and squinted through his headache.
"The sensor's pinging...an entire square _block_ region."
    "Let me see," Dr. Science said, striding onto the flight deck.
"Perhaps you have it calibrated improperly."
    Link shook his head, and winced at the throbbing sensation.  "No,
no...I _know_ I did everything just as you told me to."
    "He did.  I checked," Phobos added.  Then, as he caught sight of
the data on the screen for the first time, he blinked.  "You're
right...that _is_ a rather large area to have nanites, isn't it?"
Phobos realized only _after_ he said it just how inane it sounded.
    "Wait a minute," Mike said, looking over Link's shoulder.  "Can
you get that in 3D?  Just the area of infection?"
    "Ow, not so loud."  Link tapped a key, and manipulated a joystick.
The green raster-graphic representation of a street map zoomed in,
then swung up vertically so that the outlines of buildings were
visible.  "There...they're underground.  I guess in the sewers."
    Mike put his finger on the bluish-white glow representing the
nanopresence, then traced up to the buildings above it.  "These look
familiar to you guys?"
    "Hammons Tower...the convention center..." Phobos mused.  "Wait a
minute...Doc?  Wasn't that where you had your Convention that started
all of this?"
    Dr. Science gripped the back of Link's chair until his knuckles
turned white.  "Yes...yes, it is."
    "Then...maybe some of them could have leaked out, after the
canister got blown up, and made their way to the sewers, and, um,
reproduced?" Phobos asked.
    "It is certainly a possibility," Dr. Science murmured, still
staring at the screen.
    Link brought up the city view again.  "I'm not reading any other
nanotech presences in the area.  She must be there, or very near
there.  If she's anywhere near at all."
    Mike returned to the pilot's seat.  "Then it looks like we're
heading in, doesn't it?"

    Eris melted and slipped through the sewer grating, into the
darkness below.  She could sense them, feel them calling to her.  They
were here.
    The silver streamer of Eris splashed into the turgid nanite sea,
blended into it leaving only the smoothly rippling surface behind.
With a thought, she dispersed herself, heeded the siren song of these
billion billion tiny machines, to merge with them, become one with
them.
    So many different thoughts forced themselves upon her
consciousness.  Tiny thoughts, thoughts of squirrels and mice and rats
who had fallen into the goo and been patterned and absorbed.  Thoughts
of food, thoughts of mating, thoughts of trees and dark holes.
Unimportant thoughts that Eris's expanding consciousness sifted
through and stored away.
    Other thoughts came from the machines themselves.  Mathematical
equations, most of little import, that she could also let slip
away...they meant little to her.
    The sensation was indescribable...a multitude of sights and sounds
and smells and touches, and the complete absence of all sensation, all
at once.  The warmth and darkness, the voices of lovefaithhappiness-
acceptancecertaintygoodnessstaywithusbepartofusweareyouareweareyouare-
us...
    But Eris's own awareness remained, despite all these voices urging
her to cast it away.  She slowly spread it across the nanite sea,
until she was one with all of it, then began to draw her mind back in,
bringing it and all it encompassed back to her.  The myriad
semiconsciousnesses and microconsciousnesses that swam in the sea
objected, but she was stronger, more complete.  She overcame them one
by one, and incorporated them into herself, where their individuality
vanished and they faded into her subconscious mind.
    Moments (hours? days?) later, the nanite sea receded, drained,
flowed together into a humanoid form...and Eris stood within the empty
sewer tunnel.  She looked more solid, more clearly-defined...she
wasn't so unsure of herself anymore.  It was starting to make sense
now.  The nanites attracted each other--like called to like.  And most
of them were in her, now.
    Except...there were some others, elsewhere.  They were nearby, and
coming closer...
    Eris leaped up, flowing back through the grate in apparent
defiance of gravity before resolidifying into herself on the other
side.  The last piece of the puzzle was almost within her grasp...


                      LAST PIECE OF THE PUZZLE?

                           WHAT LAST PIECE?

                             WHAT PUZZLE?

                   WHAT ABOUT PENUMBRALPERSON (TM)?

                 WHAT ABOUT AARON AND THE SCIENTISTS?

                        WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT?


                 I BET YOU'LL KEEP READING SUPERGUY.
--
Chris Meadows aka  | Author, Team M.E.C.H.A., Crapshoot & Co.
Robotech_Master    | on the Superguy Listserv (bit.listserv.superguy)
robotech@jurai.net | With a World Wide Web homepage located at
robotech@eyrie.org | http://www.jurai.net/~robotech/index.html