Wanted

By C.M. Rich (Magnetman)

Episode 18 - Vital Signs

May 31st, 20XX, 4:59 PM , PST

“BREATHE!”, Gauntlet demanded. “We need you!”

Needle’s eyes were rolled back into her head, and she was convulsing as SparkChan administered small shocks to her system as Gauntlet pressed his hands against her abdomen, trying desperately to keep her vital fluids from leaving her body.

Many people may wonder why the Mechs would be so worried about one of their robotic teammates “dying”, when it was common knowledge that robots and androids were able to be resurrected, even after long periods of time.

Those people don’t know what a “memory wipe” is. Memory wipes can occur infrequently once a robot’s vital systems go offline, unprotected from electromagnetic disturbance. It’s a well known fact that computers and magnets don’t mix very well, and robots’ brains are no exception.

SparkChan knew this. Like Magnetman, she was sensitive to electromagnetic disturbances, though not to his degree. The fact that she could feel the erratic magnetic waves told her how severe they were. This meant their current situation was all the more urgent.

This was, as she described it, a “death zone” for robots.

If Needle’s vitals failed, she was at the complete mercy of the erratic magnetism around the endless pit a few feet away. They could destroy chunks of her memory, or the entire storage bank.

And with their base completely ruined by the riot, no doubt, the Mechs’ back ups were more than likely destroyed.

NeedleGal was as close to the edge of death as any Robot Master could be.

“Damn it! Don’t die!”

“We’re losing her!”, SparkChan cried out.

“NEEDLE!”

The other Mechs stood above the duo of Spark and Shadow, helpless. All of them brandished looks of horror and anguish.

But especially Lennon.

“Don’t…Don’t you die, Needle…”

“She don’t deserve this…”, Hardman muttered.

“She’s…fading…”, SparkChan said, helplessly, realizing her electric shocks weren’t doing enough to keep Needle’s auto repair systems going. It was all she had out in this wasteland, with no help for miles around.

“Don’t say that…Don’t you say that! I won’t let you give up on her…”, Gauntlet insisted, grabbing SparkChan’s conductors, forcing them to continue.

“Shadow…Gauntlet…I…I can’t…feel her anymore…She’s…”

“Keep going!”, Shadowman pleaded.

“Her systems…They’re getting burnt out…If I keep it up, they’ll be gone for good…”

“What about the magnetic fields?! Can we take that chance? I don’t want to!”, he yelled.

“Hey…Gauntlet…”, Lennon said, placing a hand on his commander’s shoulder. “Classi…She’s a professional. She knows what she’s-“

“Get AWAY!”

“Gauntlet…”, Classi whispered through her sobs. “I’m…I’m so sorry…I can’t…I’ll kill her…”

“Classi…The magnetic fields…”, he uttered.

“Leave them to me.”

Gauntlet looked up, never more happy to see the stern face of the latest bearer of the Magnetman mantle. He knelt down above Needle’s head, placing his hands on her temples.

“I’ve…let…I’ve been responsible for too many deaths. I won’t let her die…”, he assured his leader. “Take a rest, Classi-yan. Let Needle-san’s systems cool down as well.”

“Kenta…Thanks…”, Gauntlet said. “But, do you have enough control to keep the fields in check?”

“I’m positive, Gauntlet-san.”

“…Kenta. I…Thank you.”

“I…”, Magnetman started. “I don’t want her to die either, Gauntlet-san. I l-…I care for her.”

The Mechs’ collectively sat down, exhausted, relieved that Needle would be safe, for now, but vexed with their other major problem.

“Alicia’s gone…”, Hardman said.

“That’s…a problem.”, Topman elaborated.

“If they get her on that chopper, we’re finished.”, the battle-weary Lennon further added.

May 31st, 20XX, 5:07 PM , PST

“Target acquired, sir.”

The Dusk handed off his prize to the white-clad, heavily armored warrior, flanked by three other men wearing the same kind of armor, each in a different color scheme- black, red, and silver.

“Good work, son.”, the white-wearing Victory commended. “Hell of a job.”

“When’s that chopper coming back around, Vic?”, the red-helmeted War asked.

“ETA is twenty-six minutes. They had to refuel a few hundred miles away to avoid the White House’s puppets.”

“And the Maniacs? Last stat check revealed they were still active. We also haven't heard from Deal Breaker for quite some time.”, the silver clad Death also chimed in.

“As if they’re a problem. This crater will give them a hell of an obstacle to overcome. Even if they’re fast enough to run around it and reach us in time, we’ve got more than enough firepower to deal with them. Remember- the Pale Riders may have fallen to them, but not without taking most of the wind out of their sails.”, Victory said with confidence.

“You’d be wise not to underestimate them…”, The Dusk warned, leaning against a crumbled building. “Many have, and look at where it got them.”, rubbing his remaining hand over his bandaged stub.

“He’s right”, Famine agreed from within his onyx black helmet. “They could be a problem if that chopper doesn’t hurry…”

“Are you forgetting something? We have the trump card. They have nothing. They have no idea what’s really going on here, so even Alicia will do them no good. Besides…”, Victory said, holding up his gun towards the cowering Alicia, whom was sitting beside her unconscious, beaten father amongst the rubble, “even if worse comes to worse, we’ll kill them both, and then they’ll really have nothing. I’m sure our scientists can continue Enstehung’s work without him, though at a slightly slower pace.”

“Then why not just kill them now?”, Famine asked, pointing his gun at the father-daughter combination.

War marched over, shoving the barrel of Famine’s specially-designed assault rifle ground-ward. “You always were the chicken shit of the unit. Killing civilians was a bad habit of yours.”

“Enough.”, Victory waved the both of them off. “Let’s keep our minds focused here, gentlemen. We’ll be expecting company, one way or the other, very soon. Stay frosty.”

May 31st, 20XX, 5:12 PM , PST

As soon as she showed signs of life, Gauntlet held his sister tightly. The other Maniacs breathed a sigh of relief, a few of them giving a little applause. Classi wiped her brow, exhausted, and mentally worn out. Kenta fell back slowly, rubbing the bridge of his nose, also showing signs of fatigue.

“Thank you…”, Gauntlet commended.

“I’m so glad she pulled through…”, SparkChan stated, exasperated.

“Uh, I’d hate to be the one to ruin the moment, guys.”, Topman interjected. “But we still have a major problem that needs to be fixed ASAP.”

“You’re right…”, Shadowman said, helping a weary NeedleGal to her feet, who was still too dazed to say much of anything. “First, we need to relocate them.”

“Easier said than done. It took us an entire day to find her. I mean, who’s to say she’s even in the city still?”, Lennon laid out.

“I am.”

The group’s attention was snapped up by a returning Snakeman, who at some point ventured to the edge of the crater to look for Alicia and the remaining Pale Riders using the scope of his rifle.

“Rai…You’re alright…”, Needle whispered, her voice weak.

“Yeah. Glad to see everyone’s still alive.”, he answered. “In any case…I found them. They’re directly across the crater.”

“Damn.”, Gauntlet rasped. “Are they near any transport?”

“No. Not yet, at least. It looks as though they’re waiting. There’s…six, no…seven bodies over there, including the little girl and an additional hostage.”

“Another hostage? It’s gotta be th’ doctor himself!”, Hardman proclaimed.

“Probably. That’d be really convenient for us IF we had a way over there. It looks like we’re out of luck.”, Geminiman lamented.

“Iie…There’s one way over there quickly.”, Kenta offered, jumping atop Hardman’s frame.

Gauntlet took but a few seconds to understand what Eigen was trying to say.

“No…We can’t. It’s too dangerous.”, he declined.

By then Hardman realized what Kenta’s plan was. “Boss…It’s th’ only way. We ain’t got time ta argue.”

Classi interjected; “But…But you might be…”

“S’ a’right. I wouldn’t be able ta get over there fast enough anyways. I gotta do my part.”

“He’s right…Shadowman, we can’t dawdle. Time is of the essence.”, Geminiman argued, though in a more civil fashion than he had for the past few weeks. Perhaps the near-death of one his teammates once again returned to him some of his chivalrous nature.

In fact, even Kenta’s expressions seemed to be less bitter and angry than the rest of the group had remembered. There seemed to be a newfound clarity in his eyes.

“Please. We have to take this chance.”, the dusty red robot pleaded once again.

“I…I don’t like this.”, Shadowman declared in a rare display of indecisiveness. “But…Lennon, can you use your geometry skills to calculate all of the angles?”

“Without question.”

“Alright…Guys, are you sure you’re okay with this?”, Shadowman asked of the magnetic master and the resident walking battle tank.

“You bet.”

“Absolutely.”

“…Maniacs…We’ve got a flight to catch.”