Triumph - Protectors of Central Illinois University, the city of Stevenson, and beyond!
Dragonfly, aka Aaron Majesky - winged martial arts master; The Adept, aka Rick Pennington - master of mystical movement; Cazmonster, aka Caz Greenbaum, super-strong cyber-werewolf; The Gray Robe, aka Sydney Koenig - Druidic mistress of the Earth; The American Attitude, aka Barry Stills - Hyper-sensory, skateboarding streetfighter; Bill Brown (no alias), super-strong urban defender; Magma, aka Jan Graylin, lava blasting demolisher; and Transcender, aka “Dorado” Estevez, controller of time and space.
Cazmonster began the assault with a powerful hammer-blow to The force field around the Nightmare Engine. The response was equally powerful; an energy blast threw Cazmonster across the lake shore.
Inside the force field, an armored power suit formed around Sampson, and six identical drone suits formed outside. The force field abated for Sampson to exit.
"Careful, newbies," Dragonfly cautioned. "Sampson runs on hate. He'll kill you without a second though.
"Yeah, old guy," said Transcender boldly. "We read the files.". With that, the brash young man ran at one of the drone suits. Just before reaching it, he disappeared, causing the suit to turn and search for its would-be assailant.
The distraction was enough for Magma to fly up and unload a firey blast on the robot, whose systems began to sizzle and melt in the extreme heat.
Dragonfly swooped in and grabbed Transcender who, despite being warned, was now in harm's way as Sampson turned his battle suit's guns on the youth. "Come on, kid, you're killing me here.". Dropping the new hero in a safer place, Dragonfly zigged in the other direction as Sampson's guns tracked just behind him. Flying up to Barry Stills, who looked out of place without his American Attitude costume, he said "Adept's port caught you in class?"
"Test," Barry corrected.
"Want to try an Attitude adjustment?"
Barry nodded. That sounds really good, DF. Borrow your sword?"
"But of course," Dragonfly said, handing the weapon to his friend. Dragonfly thought back to when The Attitude and Triumph had been the new guys. They'd all Bennett through a lot since then, though only two years had passed.
Grabbing Barry under his arms, Dragonfly flew straight at one of the drones firing at Magma. "Bombs away!" He shouted, and released Barry, who flew downward and forward. He slammed into the drone, hitting a vital neck joint, and flipped actobatically back to the ground.
The drone sputtered and sparked, but kept marching on, Dragonfly's sword now lodged in its neck. "I better get that back," Barry said aloud.
Meanwhile, Sampson chuckled evilly as he tracked The Grey Robe with his guns, but stopped when he got to Cazmonster; the bullets bounced off his resilient hide like raindrops. Raising both hands, Cazmonster smashed down on Sampson. The mad scientist's power suit shimmered momentarily, the disappeared. The Adept quickly ran up and blasted Sampson with mystical energy.
Addled from the combined effort, Sampson struggled to his feet. But just as Cazmonster reached out to restrain him, he was suddenly gone. He reappeared a few seconds later back within the safety of the Nightmare Engine's force field.
"Eh, he he he he he!" The villain cackled insanely. "I can reform that suit, or anything I want, as often as I need. But your numbers are limited!".
Suddenly, a blast shot out from the force field, catching Magma unaware. She shot through the sky into the distance. Like a streak, Dragonfly was after her.
Meanwhile, Barry, aka The American Attitude, had climbed back up his robotic foe. Throwing his weight into Dragonfly's sword, still stuck in its neck, he pushed with all his might, then leapt sideways, dragging the razor-sharp blade through the circuitry. The drone shimmered and disappeared, and Barry fell to the ground, sword in hand.
For the Grey Robe, the target was easy. She grabbed a chunk of earth under which one of the drones was standing and flung it into the lake.
Cazmonster began the assault with a powerful hammer-blow to The force field around the Nightmare Engine. The response was equally powerful; an energy blast threw Cazmonster across the lake shore.
Inside the force field, an armored power suit formed around Sampson, and six identical drone suits formed outside. The force field abated for Sampson to exit.
"Careful, newbies," Dragonfly cautioned. "Sampson runs on hate. He'll kill you without a second though.
"Yeah, old guy," said Transcender boldly. "We read the files.". With that, the brash young man ran at one of the drone suits. Just before reaching it, he disappeared, causing the suit to turn and search for its would-be assailant.
The distraction was enough for Magma to fly up and unload a firey blast on the robot, whose systems began to sizzle and melt in the extreme heat.
Dragonfly swooped in and grabbed Transcender who, despite being warned, was now in harm's way as Sampson turned his battle suit's guns on the youth. "Come on, kid, you're killing me here.". Dropping the new hero in a safer place, Dragonfly zigged in the other direction as Sampson's guns tracked just behind him. Flying up to Barry Stills, who looked out of place without his American Attitude costume, he said "Adept's port caught you in class?"
"Test," Barry corrected.
"Want to try an Attitude adjustment?"
Barry nodded. That sounds really good, DF. Borrow your sword?"
"But of course," Dragonfly said, handing the weapon to his friend. Dragonfly thought back to when The Attitude and Triumph had been the new guys. They'd all Bennett through a lot since then, though only two years had passed.
Grabbing Barry under his arms, Dragonfly flew straight at one of the drones firing at Magma. "Bombs away!" He shouted, and released Barry, who flew downward and forward. He slammed into the drone, hitting a vital neck joint, and flipped actobatically back to the ground.
The drone sputtered and sparked, but kept marching on, Dragonfly's sword now lodged in its neck. "I better get that back," Barry said aloud.
Meanwhile, Sampson chuckled evilly as he tracked The Grey Robe with his guns, but stopped when he got to Cazmonster; the bullets bounced off his resilient hide like raindrops. Raising both hands, Cazmonster smashed down on Sampson. The mad scientist's power suit shimmered momentarily, the disappeared. The Adept quickly ran up and blasted Sampson with mystical energy.
Addled from the combined effort, Sampson struggled to his feet. But just as Cazmonster reached out to restrain him, he was suddenly gone. He reappeared a few seconds later back within the safety of the Nightmare Engine's force field.
"Eh, he he he he he!" The villain cackled insanely. "I can reform that suit, or anything I want, as often as I need. But your numbers are limited!".
Suddenly, a blast shot out from the force field, catching Magma unaware. She shot through the sky into the distance. Like a streak, Dragonfly was after her.
Meanwhile, Barry, aka The American Attitude, had climbed back up his robotic foe. Throwing his weight into Dragonfly's sword, still stuck in its neck, he pushed with all his might, then leapt sideways, dragging the razor-sharp blade through the circuitry. The drone shimmered and disappeared, and Barry fell to the ground, sword in hand.
For the Grey Robe, the target was easy. She grabbed a chunk of earth under which one of the drones was standing and flung it into the lake.
Barry and Bill Brown stood back to back against another probe, dodging behind trees and rocks as it fired on them. Barry concentrated on his super hearing for a moment as the two ducked behind a large rock. “Bill, on my mark, aim your shotgun at 1 o’clock, about ⅔ of the way up its chest.”
Bill waiting as the bullets passed, and then quickly lifted his shotgun into place.
“Fire!” Barry shouted.
The shell from Barry’s shotgun slammed into a vital join on the drone, and it began swivelling wildly from right to left. The Nightmare Engine, seeing its creation had lost its usefulness, dissipated the drone and prepared for another attack.
Meanwhile, Dragonfly found Magma’s unconscious form lying under a burning tree in a rut of dried lava. Fortunately, her resistance to fire and heat seemed innate; the flames she’d caused were not harming her. As quickly as he could, Dragonfly grabbed her by the ankles and pulled her out of the flames. It was not the best idea, since she was obviously injured, but he could’t safely get to her without burning himself seriously. As it was, his shirt caught fire and he took a second degree burn on his side. Magma, first name Jan, was seriously injured, a fact Dragonfly could tell looking her over briefly. His sometime girlfriend Nirmala, the doctor he’d met in Tibet, could have told him the specifics if she were here, but it was obvious there were several broken ribs, a broken leg (compound fracture) and an immense abbrassion across her back and side.
“Adept, this is Dragonfly. I’ve got Jan. She’s in bad shape. Really bad. You need to get her to the hospital ASAP.”
“I’ll bring you both back here. Barry and Bill are down as well. You and the others finish this! This guy and this hideous thing need to be taken down, now!”
“I hear you, Rick,” Dragonfly said as he saw the portal open beside him. Fireman carrying Jan through, he found The Adept standing by the unconscious and wounded forms of Barry Stilles and Bill Brown. Cazmonster and The Gray Robe were standing up to Sampson and the Nightmare Engine, while Transcender concentrated on something under cover.
Dragonfly charged his humming bomb up to maximum and, as The Adept carefully levitated Jan, Barry and Bill through the portal to the hospital, grabbed the sword he’d loaned to Barry. Flying directly at the place he’d just seen Cazmonster power-punch, Dragonfly dropped the humming bomb and flew straight up. Cazmonster, knowing what was coming, leapt out of range.
The humming bomb went off, and for a brief moment, the shield around the Nightmare Engine, and Sampson, dropped. That second was all Transcender needed to work with. Time suddenly stopped. The instant that happened, Transcender’s nose began to bleed as he expended more control over space-time than he ever had before. Cazmonster and The Gray Robe found themselves unaffected.
“Way to go, kid,” Cazmonster said. With all his might, he tore into the Nightmare Engine. Every part he could find bigger than a loaf of bread, he either rended or crushed. Simultaneously, The Gray Robe wrapped a sheath of solid rock around Professor Sampson. Time snapped back to reality, and Transcender sighed with relief, flopping back onto the ground.
“Wha?” Sampson hesitated a moment before realizing he was now trapped. Looking to his side, his triumphant look turned to horror as he saw the Nightmare Engine destroyed, completely and utterly.
“”Wha?” Cazmonster mocked. “Wha is ‘you failed’! No more revenge. No more death. Just prison. Prison for you, long time,” he laughed.
“You think I would be caught without an escape route? Wrong!” Suddenly, a dark gate opened behind Sampson, and two winged demons flew out. Snapping The Gray Robe’s stone prison off the ground, they began to carry Sampson back through the gate with them.
“I’m sorry,” Syd said. “I can’t let this happen.” Cazmonster wondered what she meant briefly. Then he, Dragonfly, and Transcender watched in shock as the rocks crushed Sampson to death. “No more; no more sneak attacks of awesome power. No more unexpected demons. Just...no more.”
Cazmonster nodded grimly. The four heroes watched as the demons carried Sampson’s corpse through the gate. And then it closed, and he was gone. There was no evidence. There would be no trial. Justice had been served, and it was cold, and swift.
Three days later...
The heroes of Triumph, wearing their civilian clothes, gathered to visit Jan at the hospital. Barry and Bill had been released the same day as they arrived, having suffered only minor injuries. Jan was going to be here for a few weeks. But she was getting better, quickly.
“So, tell me again how you beat Sampson!” she said, sitting up in her bed as the others crowded around her. Caz told the story, as animatedly as possible. Aaron noted that he left the part out about Syd murdering a helpless Sampson. It had been eating at him since they got back. But what was worse, part of him agreed with her. Sampson was too evil and too powerful. He could be contained or defeated only temporarily, and he’d always be back. And when he came back, people died. Lives were destroyed. Aaron sighed, contenting himself with the fact that, agree or not, there was nothing any of them could do about it now. Confessing or accusing would serve no purpose, and there was no evidence. It was over, and tomorrow, life would go on.
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