- Issue #73 – Give Thanks
- Issue #74 – Bit Part Bad Guys
- Issue #75 – Kaiju for Christmas
- Issue #76 – Silicon Soul, Adamantine Will
- Issue #77 – Date Night
- Issue #78 – Delved Too Deep (Une Mascarade Brisée Part 1)
- Issue #79 – Tome of Secrets (Une Mascarade Brisée Part 2)
- Descendants Special #7 – The Curtain Rises
- Issue #80 – Bitter Work
- Issue #81 – Kin, Speed and Ducks
- Issue #82 – What To Do With Your Downtime
- Issue #83 – Avalon Rises
- Issue #84 – Darkness Falling
- Descendants Annual #7 – First Frost
Kaiju For Christmas (Part 2)
“Gustav.” Oscar Gustav, one of Live Metal‘s executive producers, answered the call on the second ring. He was on the balcony of an upscale cafe in Tuscon, enjoying a light lunch. His enjoyment was swiftly crushed when he heard what the party on the other end of the line.
“What?! That’s not possible!” He paused, listening to the response. “No, I mean, it should be literally impossible! I don’t care how good a hacker someone is, the command links in all of our mecha have an extremely limited range for just that reason.”
Another pause and his expression turned haggard. “Well yes, obviously someone figured out how. We’re going to catch hell with… everyone. The only reason we can even do this show is the promise that the mecha can’t operate outside of our events. What did the police say?”
His eyes widened at the answer. “Didn’t call—why did you call me first?! Did you honestly think that a six story robot T-rex is something you could cover up? Call the police, Terry! Call the FBI—hell, call the army—call anyone that can stop it!”
***
Juniper was on the verge of giving up as the wandered the aisles of a men’s clothing store. She’d assumed that inspiration would strike her once she was there: Malcolm liked to dress nice whenever he was off work, so it seemed to her like something to make him look sharp would be the perfect gift.
As it turned out, she had no idea what size he was and without him standing right there, what colors would look good on him. All in all, she’s wasted the better part of an hour.
A hopeless sigh escaped her. At least she’d found Jessica’s gift easily: an articulated model of the Mars Habitation Module, the first manned object to land on Mars, to go with all the other astronomy-related artifacts that peppered Kay’s roommate’s shelves and desk.
While she wanted to get Malcolm something on her own, she was starting to fear that asking her father for help was the best course of action. Even so, it didn’t feel right: a present, in her opinion, should come from the giver. If it was the thought that counted, it should be her thoughts.
Her eyes settled on an orange ascot.
No matter how flawed those thoughts might be.
A hand softly prodded her shoulder and she almost jumped before hearing her father’s voice. “Willow, we’ve got to go.”
She blinked. “Did I really take that much time?”
Pete held his palmtop up in her line of sight. “I just got a call from General Pratt. I’ll explain on the way, but your mom is already prepping The Rook for launch.”
He didn’t need to say more. If her mother felt they needed the extra resources of her airborne carrier, then Juniper knew it was a serious matter. She nodded and followed him out of the mall.
It took them fifteen minutes to find someplace out of sight of the public and of cameras that wouldn’t immediately give away that they older man and young woman who just went by were Zero Point and Zero once they flew off. Once there, a section of a nearby park off the walking path, Juniper reached for the pendant hanging around her neck.
The bauble looked like a green-tinted, tear-shaped crystal, but at a murmured command, she caused the glamor cast on it to fade, revealing her D-icon. Another command activated it, replacing her street clothes with her hooded Zero costume.
Pete shook his head. “Wave of the future, I suppose. But I prefer the old school method of dressing in layers.” With that, he undid the buttons of his shirt, revealing the white suit with the familiar 0-P logo on his chest.
***
“Zero Point and Zero here, General.” Zero Point reported over is comm.
“Majestrix. I’m here too, just getting into the air. What’s the problem and where are we headed?”
After a few moments, the voice of General Pratt came in over all their comms. “I think I’ll leave it to the people on the ground to explain this one. We’re routing your comms over to Shaquille Hardison, chief engineering consultant with Spectacle In Action Entertainment Group for the specifics.”
“Where do I know that name from?” Majestrix muttered mostly to herself.
“Possibly the credits for Live Metal or Impossible Build.” a new voice came on, presumably the aforementioned Shaquille Hardison “Live Metal is the problem at hand, actually. As you may or may not know, we were having an event down at Scattered Lake. Unfortunately, about an hour ago, someone stole one of our robots.”
Zero Point made a thoughtful sound before saying, “I’m going to guess this isn’t all you have to tell us. People don’t get routed to the General and then to us over some stolen property.”
Hardison considered his words for a moment. “Sir, the robots on Live Metal are built by some of the brightest, most ambitious minds in the field of robotics—DARPA candidates, every one of them. In fact, DARPA is a silent sponsor for the show for headhunting purposes.
“Each one of these machines is a fully capable combat machine that isn’t being deployed by the military purely due to cost and efficiency issues. In fact, we have to have seventeen different licenses and special dispensations to operate them at all and have to install regularly inspected range limiters on all equipment as well as cutting edge security approved by the NSA.”
Zero, flying beside her father, looked over at him. “I’ve seen that show a few times.” More than a few; Tink loved the show, so it was on in the upstairs commons at Freeland House quite often. “Some of these robots are as strong as the Queen’s Gambit.”
“Oh, I think we’ll see about that.” Majestrix said from the flight deck of the Rook. “I usually have to hold back because of collateral damage or because the target is human.”
Knowing not to challenge her mother on the capabilities of her war machine, Zero addressed Hardison. “So which robot is it?”
“Rex the Wrecker. I can give you the rundown…”
“That’s not good.” said Zero, missing the last part. “Rex is Tom Simpson’s. His motto is ‘Overbuild for Overkill’. It probably has more weapons than the National Guard!”
Hardison cleared his throat. “I actually have Tom’s last approved load-out for Rex: two five-inch plasma lances, eight Scrambler light ground-to-ground missiles, a single forward-mounted, eighteen-inch PSM generator, three .50 caliber machine guns—on on the back, two slung under the belly,–a tail mounted rail gun firing custom tungsten slugs with an explosive charge that will destroy them if they lose contract with a beacon with a three hundred meter range that comprises the tail, and a pair of thirty-six inch diameter diamond buzz-saws that can extend to mount on the forearms.
“He also equipped it with extended durations jump jets, a pair of ram boosters, and an uni-directional standing field generator.”
Majestrix let out a low whistle. “That’s one tough dino, Mr. Hardison. It must run very hot and need an incredible power plant.”
“Heat shouldn’t be a problem for it, as it has topped off coolant and vent systems. As for the power plant, the Lithium conversion fuel cell will probably give it six hours of operating time—depending on how often it uses its most energy intensive weapons of course.”
“Of course.” said Majestrix, Her tone said that she’d already checked out of the conversation and was putting together a plan.
Zero Point stepped in for her. “So we really only have to minimize the damage it does until the batteries die. Five hours and counting. Do we know where it is?”
“Yes, Sir.” said Hardison. “All of the Live Metal mecha are fitted with a dedicated GPS system so that our camera drones can follow the action across expansive battlefields and through debris. We’ve had a GPS lock on Rex the entire time. That’s why the National Guard elevated up to the Pentagon and then to you.”
The reason for that was obvious: time was of the essence and the military felt that Zero Point and Majestrix could do the job with less chance of casualties—which meant the robot was already in or near a populated area. “Right. So where it is, Mr. Hardison.”
Hardison coughed. “It’s been evading visual confirmation somehow, but GPS has it headed straight for this small city… or large town on the border called Windy Mesa.”
“Feed us the GPS lock, Mr. Hardison.” said Majestrix, surfacing from her gear-filled mind. “And General, have your people start with Windy Mesa: find any known hackers or mechanical experts around those parts on both sides of the border.”
“There is one more thing I should warn you about.” said Hardison. “Rex—all of our mecha—have heavily encrypted wireless control schemes The receiver has an extremely short range and without the connection, the mecha are missing key parts of their core logic. Whoever was able to take Rex over was a master hacker with toys we’ve never heard of.”
Majestrix let that sink in, then suppressed a laugh. “Oh. you’re worried that they might take over the Queen’s Gambit? Not unless they take me over. The only controls for it are the ones I’ll be sitting at. Just keep an eye on your robot, keep trying to jam the control signal… and help us figure out why it went to Windy Mesa.”
***
Food was a priority.
The creature that now called itself Wrex didn’t have an immediate need for sustenance: its host didn’t seem to need any sort of external energy and flowbeasts were ambush predators, designed to go long periods between feedings.
However, it occurred to Wrex that it no longer needed to wait for the opportunity to stumble along. With the mighty body and weaponry of its host, it could eat whatever it wanted, whenever it wanted, and whoever it wanted. Gluttony was a luxury of the truly mighty.
Unfortunately, the desert was lacking in meals fit for a giant such as itself. It sniffed out and consumed a nest of hares and a fox in its den, but those were just appetizers to acclimate itself to the prey available in its new environment. Something much larger was required to give it a proper meal.
So when it came upon what it assumed to be a road (it was made of what appeared to be a single slab of black stone spanning miles rather than the cobbles the hobgoblins near its swamp used to make safe the trails between their settlements), it chose to follow it. As said road was crawling with fast, swarming metal creatures not unlike its host, it chose to conceal itself, changing the color of its skin to match its surroundings and keeping a low profile.
As it hoped, the road led to a settlement—the largest it ever encountered—and not far from it, the welcome scent of food.
There was a sign marking the place and it took Wrex a few minutes to extrapolate from its host’s rudimentary mind that it read ‘Glennway Dude Ranch Resort’. Dude had no meaning, but ‘ranch meant a place where large, domesticated animals were bred.
Perfect.
Keeping its chameleon-like camouflage in place, it stalked through the semi-orderly rows of trees planted around the property. It was as if the local sapient beings had done everything to make its hunt as successful as possible: not only were the trees acting as a screen, but they were arranged to hide large sections of the land from each other. Plus, the entire place had been built upwind of the desert the trees and modified grass were meant to combat.
The prey couldn’t smell Wrex, but it could smell them perfectly.
Soon enough, it could see them as well. Through a windbreak of tall cedar trees, it spied a dozen horses in a corral, getting their daily exercise while a handful of resort staff looked on.
Wrex didn’t know what a horse was, but it did know that they smelled like food. The only thing between it and them were a fence it could easily crush and the trees, which were set too close to one another for it to push through easily—but weren’t anywhere near strong enough to hold it back if it… insisted.
One step followed another, the incredible weight of its host’s chassis and weaponry supported by an internal skeleton of revolutionary composite materials. After a dozen step, Wrex had reached its top speed of thirty miles and hour and came crashing through the treeline.
The fence was a non-issue; a long stride carried Wrex beyond it without even touching it.
Both horses and staffers panicked, and while the later could run for the barn, the former were trapped in the corral with the murderous beast bearing down on them.
Wrex charged into the midst of them, lowering its head to bring its great jaws into play. A yearling was too slow to turn aside and found itself caught in a trap of serrated teeth. As Wrex’s host didn’t have a stomach or digestive system, it engulfed the unlucky creature in a flow of leathery flesh to be digested at its leisure.
It wasn’t done yet; not with so much delectable meat on display for it. With the first horse still struggling inside a deadly cocoon, it lowered its head and made to capture another.
Its teeth came down, only to squeal against a plane of blue force interposed between it and the terrified equine. Orange eyes followed the tangible beam of blue psychokinetic energy to it’s source: Zero Point.
“You’re a real sick on, aren’t you, buddy?” the hero accused. “What do you gain for terrorizing a bunch of poor, dumb animals?”
“Actually horses are pretty smart.” Zero said over the comm.
“Not really the time.” said Zero Point. Then he took a closer look at the thing he’d interrupted. “Are we sure this is a robot?”
Up in the Rook, hovering over the resort, Majestrix was strapping herself into the Queen’s Gambit on the launch deck. “I can only hope so, because I’ve done a full conversion for high-damage weaponry.”
Wrex was regarding Zero Point, trying to take his measure. No mages or sorcerers it knew of would save a random animal and try to speak. Their spells would be geared to harm, not defense. It was caught off guard when a second flying creature surrounded in blue energy flew up close to it.
“It does kind of look like an animal… or a monster and not a robot. Maybe we managed to find a second giant something in Windy Mesa?”
This one was too close for Wrex’s taste. It opened its mouth wide and charged its PSM emitter.
What Zero saw was the beast’s mouth open impossibly wide (with the trapped horse still trying to fight its way free) and the black material at the back of its gullet splitting. Behind it was the projection dish of an absolutely mammoth PSM emitter, which looked like the bastard child of a disco ball and a war crime. The device began to glow green as it charged.
“…Or not.” Zero amended as Wrex fired.
“This flowbeast as ancient among its kind…”
Was.
According to my new headcanon, flowbeasts are so named for their tendency to drop mad rhymes with formidable cadence.
I doubt it can compare to your imagination, but I offer some flowbeast-related rhyming in honor of your awesome idea.
CG
That is some sublime flow you just put down, my friend.
Mighty Wrexus has many gifts; one of them is the power to inspire lesser beings such as myself.
I confess when I saw the name I did think of Urdnot Wrex from the Mass Effect games. Imagining a kaiju-sized version of him was pretty intimidating, even with the stubby arms.
O_O
I am speechless.
The moment I read your comment, I had to take it as a challenge. I had too much fun in the attempt to pass it up. I’m glad my peasant rhymes did not offend (unless you’re speechless because they did offend, I suppose, but I think you meant it in a good way).
CG
Mighty Wrexus is going to stomp into town
He’ll huff and he’ll puff and he’ll bring this house down
When he cuts loose in this world
and the people gather ’round
Faeries and humans best recognize his crown
He’s the king of the beat,
the sultan of smooth
this flowbeast’s sweet
lyrics make ladies go “oooh”
Mighty Wrexus steps up
and climbs right to the top
with his plasma lances
he’s a bio-tech cop
on patrol in his kingdom
looking out for competition
He will be the strongest
That’s his number one mission
Won’t bond with no punks
or serve any demon
Don’t give him no lip
He’ll crash through that glass ceilin’
That keeps flowbeasts in check
serving Faeries and daoine
So step back and look out
Mighty Rexus is out
he’s loose in your dimension
Can you feel the tension?
When he strikes you will learn
Just what it takes to earn
Freedom when you’re from Faerie
So listen close and hail he
who has merged with the machine
Took a name and stole the scene
Mighty Wrexus is here to stay
Say goodbye to yesterday
cause your world is forever changed.
note: Mighty Wrexus doesn’t drop microphones. He drops Best Buys.
Corrections:
more reminiscent of the Fourth of July then Yuletide.
“then” should be “than” (the first concerns time, the second is comparative)
nearby Greenlee where Juniper’s father, Pete used to work.
comma is unnecessary. Alternatively, another comma after “Pete” might also be correct
She didn’t have as good a sense for all things mechanical like her mother,
“as” should replace “like”
“…but none of the others don’t really say much one way or the other about their sex.”
This is dialogue, so incorrect phrasing/word use may be what you wanted. If not, then there’s a double-negative in need of fixing, and “others” doesn’t have a clear referent. Try “…but none of the others’ names really says much one way or the other about their sex.”
No one saw the green haze staring to form in a far corner.
“staring” is meant to be “starting”, I suspect.
It squelched wetly as if hit the concrete floor,
wrote “if” instead of “it” here.
Preying on fish and plants and the occasional hapless foll who became separated from a larger group and became lost,
Repetition of “become” is unnecessary. “foll” was probably supposed to be “foal”, which is a young horse, unless “foll” was defined previously and I forgot.
Other flowbeasts were usually tamed and forced to bond with other creatures
Again, unnecessary repetition. “other”.
Instinct compelled it to bond with those sentient being it caught,
“being” should be “beings”.
No servant of Maeve of her rivals would stand against it,
second “of” should be “or” here.
interfacing a CPU.
should be “interfacing with a CPU”.
It also flowed into an integrated with the optical sensors,
“an” should be “and”
The creature; a fusion of flesh and steel,
semicolon here should be a comma.
Alarmed has started going off in the building,
“Alarmed” should be “alarms”.
Mighty Wrexus was free to roam the strange new world it tumbled into
should be “the strange new world it had tumbled into” for the appropriate tense.
Eww. Didn’t mommy-flowbeast teach not to stuff your food where your gun is?
First off, I have to say that I absolutely love the phrase: “which looked like the bastard child of a disco ball and a war crime”. It made me happy to read that. This whole storyline makes me happy, really.
Second, this:
Mighty Wrexus is back and he’s stalking the streets
He’s the one mighty flowbeast who cannot be beat
He’s never lost a battle or tasted defeat
Among rhyming combatants he’s considered elite
Bonded to the awesome, a mecha machine
It’s a pure wondrous terror that has to be seen
It’s stride is colossal, it’s metallic sheen
Warns idle bystanders to run and to scream
A walking arsenal holding two plasma lances
With machine guns and missiles, the crowds it entrances
Paired diamond buzzsaws and a railgun tail
So supreme that it’s just too up-gunned to fail
Wielding destruction spectacular and ordnance amazing
Bringing high-tech fury with all weapons blazing
Jump jets for mobility and more tech besides
It’s hard to hold the complete specs in your mind
The automaton serves as a mold for the flesh
And combining their strengths, synergizing they mesh
The powers of Faerie with technological design
Form a being whose greatness is hard to define
Shapeshifter and titan, one amorphous and one forged
Look upon them and let your imagination gorge
The possibilities are endless, the future uncertain
The enemies of Wrexus are soon to be hurtin’
That’s the only real guarantee movin’ forward
But know that whatever goal it’s proceedin’ toward
The behemoth’s relentless, a land-bound leviathan
Just to keep it in sight, you’d have to run a marathon
Now it tastes newfound freedom
The choices of the mighty
Wrexus will feed on the prey
And he’ll frighten the flighty
Experts don’t even know what they’re in for
Unable to see through the flesh to the core
The reactor is charging like a furnace that’s stoked
Unless she moves fast Zero might just get smoked
For the time has come and the battle’s beginning
We’ll have to wait and see who ends up winning
You cannot believe how happy that made me,Curious George.
My pleasure. If you missed it, you can catch part one in the comments of Kaiju for Christmas, chapter 1 as well. I have to pass credit for the inspiration to Vaal (for creating Wrexus) and Mazzon (who suggested that flowbeasts might have a gift for such things). It just kind of clicked in my brain after that.
CG
You’re welcome. It started in part 1 of Descendants 75, if you missed it.
CG
Have I told you recently that you’re amazing, CG? Because you? You’re amazing.
His enjoyment was swiftly crushed when he heard what the party on the other end of the line.
what the party… said?
as the wandered the aisles
as she
All in all, she’s wasted
she’d
on on the back
one on
control schemes The receiver
schemes.
but ‘ranch meant
‘ranch’
a real sick on
sick one
“Didn’t call—why did you call me first?! Did you honestly think that a six story robot T-rex is something you could cover up? Call the police, Terry! Call the FBI—hell, call the army—call anyone that can stop it!”
Haha 😛
Additional typos:
that wouldn’t immediately give away that they older man
“they” should be “the”
Zero Point reported over is comm.
“is” should be “his”
if they lose contract with a beacon
“contract” should be “contact”
Dude had no meaning, but ‘ranch
“ranch” needs a close-quote, and if it’s in quotations “Dude” probably should be too
After a dozen step, Wrex
“step” should be “steps”
What do you gain for terrorizing a bunch of poor,
“for” should probably be “from” here
CG
“Giant cyborg dinosaur.” Zero Point mumbled, “That’s a new one.”
Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, 1991.
I own it :p
Part 3:
Mighty Wrexus is here and he’s revving up fast
He’s prepared and he’s going to let off a blast
Anyone who gets hit by him could breathe their last
They’ll be nothing but memory, stuck in the past
To face Wrexus in battle takes bravery and skill
Few have ever fought it, let alone to a standstill
But when great challenges rise, heroes can be born
Or if they’re there already, they make themselves known
Facing the danger without looking back
They head to the future, no stopping to pack
Bear witness to their fitness to lead in the fight
To never stop or give up on what is right
It’s the will to face down even cyber-beast giants
To confront the unknown but stay strong and defiant
Wrexus isn’t quite creature; not just a machine
He’s a merging of two that has yet to be seen
Shifting flesh coats the armor and the two move as one
Guided by a single will and immovable as stone
A family of heroes has flown off to battle
And this is the thing they’ve committed to fight
A two-in-one being armies fear to tackle
With weapons that burn and cast searing death-light
Now they’re battling a creature
that stretches into the sky
If they win there’s no treasure
If they lose they could die
This is what sets the Descendants apart
To go into a battle and make it look like art
Despite the fact that any one fray
Could be their last one if it’s an unlucky day
Wrexus is armed to the teeth and beyond
It devours whole horses and could drink a pond
It’s not truly malicious, just acting on instinct
But to the unlucky victims the two seem indistinct
They’re running and hiding and fleeing in terror
If you think that you’re safe from Wrexus you’re in error
His collateral damage may be quite severe
So you’d be better off runnin’ from here
It’s a creature from Faerie that’s lived in the wild
Always hiding and scavenging, fearful as a child
For its kind’s been used to assist others and serve them
An abuse that has gotten many hurt or killed
But this flowbeast’s unique, it escaped and lived free
Now it’s in our world seeking new destiny
A fate that will let it live life for itself
Instead of taking orders from some demon or elf
Alloy and Occult come back quick with advice
Pinpointing the weaknesses of flowbeast and device
It might just be enough to give Zero an edge
That she needs to hit Wrex the Wrecker like a sledge-
hammer, and maybe she’ll stop him cold
In his tracks, though this flowbeast is pretty old
He’s a survivor, a shapeshifter wily and clever
If they win, then Zero and her parents can brag forever
That they stopped a foe who could go toe-to-toe with Godzilla
This fight will be bigger than the Thriller in Manila
Cause Wrex supersizes every punch and kick
Delivering force in the tons to make it stick
He’s a fully-armed giant and he came here to eat
And maybe drop some rhymes while he’s shuffling his feet
Along the road, heading to grab some food
Interrupting him makes Zero look a little rude
From Wrex’s perspective he was just sitting down
To eat dinner and get to know his new hometown
I want you to know that I’ve decided Wrex will return after this issue solely thanks to these posts.
Those are glad tidings indeed. It’s been pretty fun to try to keep this going without it getting stale. I think I’ll try to make it through the whole issue that way, but it’s more challenging each time, so we’ll see how it goes. I’m glad I can give at least a little entertainment back in repayment for the fun I’ve had reading the story.
As for Wrex, well…it’s his fault for being awesome. And for putting me in the mood to watch Godzilla movies and play MechWarrior games, some of which are awesome.
CG
Note: If “Queen’s Gambit” is italicized, “Rook” probably should be too, right? They’re both named vehicles, essentially.
typo thread:
unsure of whether she was hurt of not within the bubble
“of” should be “or”
Zero Point sat the screen down
“sat” should be “set”
Winy Mesa’s suburbs
Pretty sure it was “Windy Mesa”…although the idea of calling a town “Whiny Mesa” is kind of funny
as if the air itself as moving slower
“as” should be “was”
otherwise she’d have to retire of the public good.
“of” should be “for
while the Majestrix with full weapons was too heavy
I think “Majestrix” is meant to be “Queen’s Gambit” here
newly knocking Wrex over
“newly” is meant to be “nearly”, I think?
There, in the sky was
Either the comma should be removed, or there should be another one after “sky”
There was where the similarities ended
“There” should be “That”
a long cylinder that resembled by wasn’t
“by” should be “but”
to earth on fire pillars of flame.
“fire” seems unnecessary here
beings… or in this case, robots; and
If you lead in with ellipses, you should follow “robots” with one as well. Either way, following a semicolon with “and” is pretty much always incorrect, so at the very least the semicolon should be changed to a comma to fit the list format for the sentence
Very nice. Love to see our heroes thinking about what, why, and how they’re fighting, instead of just punching away blindly.
Wrex is facing Zero Point, Majestrix and Zero
A family who spend their time off as heroes
Now they’re engaged in a battle of gigantic proportion
Against a flowbeast that came through a magical distortion
A newcomer and stranger, semi-sentient but feral
It thinks like a scavenger, not like a general
Its weaknesses known can now be exploited
And if it’s not quick, Wrexus will be deported
Back to Faerie, or if it is even less lucky
It might just get kicked from here to Kentucky
Or wiped out completely and turned into rubble
The enemy’s waiting to pop its bubble
That feeling of power that once it enjoyed
Now seems fleeting, and the flies which annoyed
it as it tried to feed seem a genuine threat
A foe the likes of which it hasn’t faced yet
With powers strange and abilities uncommon
Flying, forming ice, many fights have they won
Cause while battling something like Wrexus is new
To ZP and Majestrix, the reverse is true too
In a fight like this information could win the day
And given what Occult and Alloy had to say
Zero and her parents are pretty well informed
While Wrexus relies on what its guessed and observed
Which gives the humans a decided advantage
No matter how many weapons and appendages
Wrex may use or grow, its still fighting alone
With no backup, no allies, no buddies, no home
And if it meets with success and starts killing
Then it may find the results far too thrilling
Its fighting good guys who are showing restraint
But if it ever eats a human, they ain’t
Gonna keep playing nice, or so I’d imagine
A Zero done holding back could be frightenin’
Now the Queen’s made a gambit and taken a risk
Suckering Wrexus in close with a trick
But it cost her an arm and a mighty pulse gun
If her follow-up fails then she might need to run
But then again no battle is won without taking chances
And a good tactical mind is worth twelve plasma lances
Majestrix has experience fighting odd things
Striving and improvising and pulling the strings
Weaving the plan to outfox her opponents
Rather than relying on some fancy components
She’s a junkyard queen, used to making do
And with will and determination, powering through
Obstacles unexpected and challenges dangerous
So betting against her is financially hazardous
The battle’s well underway and it’s almost time
To find out who’s the victor and who’s doin’ time
Will we see incarceration or will we see death?
Will one of these fighters exhale that last breath?
Will Wrexus escape to go wander the blue?
Or be sent packing to go hide and lick his wounds?
Or maybe he’ll win this and go on a tear
Until someone else inspires in him some fear
“Love to see our heroes thinking about what, WHY, and how they’re fighting…”
Agreed. The usual plot is for the monster to laugh off all attempts by mundanes to stop it, so they bring in the superheroes to kill it.
Here, the military is perfectly able to nuke the monster from orbit, but the superheroes want to see if they can stop it without any death because life is valuable.
Oh, and awesome work on the rapping.
My god, they keep getting more epic!
I’m trying not to settle for juts repeating myself, which is proving to be a bit of a challenge. Glad to hear the results are entertaining.
typo thread:
Wrex let out a coughing grunt and opened fire with its own machine guns, peppering Zero Point, who had to move his wall to protect himself. Once the way was clear, it opened up on the Queen’s Gambit with its own machine guns.
Repetition of “with its own machine guns” seems odd. Second instance should probably be changed to clarify whether fire is being redirected, or additional guns are beginning to fire.
reached over and pulled over the cover
Should be either “pulled off” or “pulled open”
nasally blare
Should just be “nasal”, I think
surrounded by creatures that were much like its host, only smaller that seemed to creep along the ground on four rubbery feet.
Second “that” is problematic here. Maybe “only smaller, and creeping along the ground on four rubber feet.”
her mind as on the start of
“as” instead of “was”
work with other sentient if they
“sentient” should be plural “sentients” I think
while panels slip open to reveal vents
“slip” should be “slipped”
typo thread:
the later of which was t
“later”->”latter”
Seeing and opening
“and”->”an”
where she hang in air
“hang”->”hung”
The end:
The chronicle of Wrexus now concludes
Gather ’round and listen close all you ladies and dudes
To hear tell of the mighty unstoppable giant
Who refused to lie down placid and compliant
He’s a rebel, an icon, inspiring awe
Harbinger of change with a gigantic craw
He cannot be contained, can rarely be thwarted
It’s a testament to Zero that she and her cohort did
Mighty Wrexus is going, his tale now ends
The machine and flowbeast that were closer than friends
Are permanently parted, sundered forever
This is a sad day, for they’ll reunite never
The glory and majesty of the magic-merged mech
And subtle shapeshifter wrapped around the tech
Fueled by an ambition and powerful reactor
Are beaten, defeated, no longer a factor
They were dangerous, large and in charge in their day
But when you come to a new world there’s a price to pay
Cause you don’t know the rules or understand the dangers
You can like Wrexus’ style but you wouldn’t have wagered
That he’d last in the long haul trapped on an Earth
With superheroes waiting, and a definite dearth
Of magic and things a flowbeast understands
Or recognizes, and no helping hands
To be found among humans, no matter how nice
They might be, from the start Wrexus was on thin ice
The Chronicle of Wrexus is a tale melancholy
How an epic battled spawned from a single flowbeast’s folly
All he wanted was a place that he could roam in freedom
What he found was a new world that didn’t really want or need him
We can only hope and pray that one day Wrexus will return
A little wiser to the rules and regulations we all learn
Living in a world of humans, maybe he’ll become a rapper
If he can twist words like his body then he’d be the best, most dapper
Perhaps go on to an eminently successful career
And send word back home that for flowbeasts who come here
There’s opportunity to be had and no enslaving Faeries
The details are uncertain but I guarantee he’s
Going down in history as a creature unique
The first solo flowbeast to come to earth and seek
His fortune and future and find a new type of host
A synthetic creature inspired by the most
Terrifying predator of a bygone age
A dinosaur too mighty to be securely caged
The relentless king, a mechanical tyrant
The mighty thunder lizard, reborn as a tech giant
One of a kind, the top of the food chain
Now more dangerous than ever, with ordnance to rain
Amalgamating into something as if forged by a wordsmith
A combination of poet and a creature out of myth
This story is over but possibilities remain
Wrexus could one day return, once more bringing the pain
Delivering rhyme and rhythm with its own unique zest
Proving once again that he’s unquestionably the best
Hold your breath and say your prayers to hasten the time
When we’ll witness the return of the flowbeast so sublime
*Applause*
*Standing Ovation*
You sir, are an officer and a gentleman. Just…yes.