Turn 12

With Heisenberg and his charges safely on their way, Gaslight turns his attention back to the last remaining sarcophagus and its entombed occupant. Sliding his thumbs over the eyes of the figure carved into the sarcophagus, GL activates the mechanism to open the lid and then hastily leaps back, raising his bloop gun to the ready.

Etheric vapor plays off of a haunting ghostlight as the stone coffin opens. After a moments pause, waiting for an attack that does not come, the Silent Scourge steps forward to better observe the phenomenon. His detective's gaze bears witness to something that even he would find difficult to explain.

A feminine form is building itself before his very eyes. The heart he heard earlier is still beating, this much he can even see. A muscular system is generated soon. In short order after that skin and hair. A beautiful woman lies motionless in the sarcophagus.

Her eyes open in a start. "Mon Dieu," she says in a timber that creeks. It's as if her voice hadn't been used in decades.

Gaslight averts his eyes, quietly thankful that his mask masques the crimson blooming in his cheeks. In fluent French, Gaslight says, "I beg pardon, miss. Please accept my cape to cover your.. ah... shame."

The young madamoislle within the sarcophagus blinks uncertainly, but accepts GL's offering nonetheless. Sitting upright, her modesty barely concealed by Gaslight's opera cape, the young woman blinks uncertainly at her would-be rescuer. Though GL seems sincere enough, the doffing of his cloak reveals an assortment of guns, knives, spikes, rods, hooks, grenades, and assorted hardware sufficient to give the young woman concern regarding her night-clad ally.

"Come with me if you want to live," Gaslight growls, extending one gloved hand.

She accepts the gesture. Within seconds seconds she is standing upright. Thankfully she's shorter than Gaslight so the opera cape covers her to the knees. Beams of sunlight from the sundered ceiling reveals dust that dances about her finely shaped ankles. She drapes a long strand of luxourious jet black hair behind her left ear. She has a classic beauty. Hollywood, whether in black or white or technicolor, would kill to have her signed. She resembles Rita Hayworth of yesteryear or Monica Belluci of today. Gaslight can't help but think of how furious Moonlight would be for missing this rescue now.

Gaslight tightens his grip on her hand and runs as the sundered ceiling begins to cave in even more.

As Gaslight races through the collapsing tunnels of the Duat edifice, the cinema comments from his initial entry into the chamber of sarcophagi combine with his pretty charge's "star quality" in bringing to mind yet another movie reference... side-stepping away from a falling block of stone, the Martian adventurer finds himself humming the theme song from "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

"Mademoiselle, I hope you will not think me too forward..." Gaslight begins in French, as The Machine idly deflects another piece of falling stonework with a well placed roundhouse kick, "...but may I ask who you are and how you came to be trapped in this awful place?"

"My name is Marguerite. I cannot say how I came to be here. Only that I had traveled to this place in my dreams many times as a young girl in the '30s."

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Marguerite. You may call me Gaslight..." GL shrugs his shoulders "...if you will pardon the dramatacism." Expertly wrapping the end of a bullwhip around the snout of a half-buried beast-headed statue hanging over the edge of a newly created sinkhole and sweeping the girl into his arms, Gaslight swings to the other side as he asks, "Were you, by any chance, a spirit medium, madamoiselle?"

"Qui. My father was very much influenced by Blavatsky's Theosophists. When he realized my gifts he used me as a parlor game for his friends. I spent more time in seances instead of on the tree swing in the backyard."

Untangling the whip with one quick flip of the wrist, Gaslight seizes the young woman's hand again and resumes guiding her through the pyramid's maze of narrow tunnels. "What is the last thing you remember before I awakened you in that tomb?"

"I don't ...know. I remember a man. More of a boy really. Regardless what his swaggering self-confidence may have suggested." Her memories are hazy and broken. Gaslight can tell from her body language that she's holding back something bitter and painful.

"I don't mean to dredge up painful memories, miss," GL apologizes, using his free hand to illuminate the crumbling passage ahead with a micro-strobe, "but understanding the circumstances behind your entombment may be the key to defeating the master of this otherworldly prison. Please go on."

"He was new to Mars. I think he must have loved me terribly. Despite my years past him, or perhaps because of them."

Gaslight quirks his brow quizzically, though his expression remains concealed from his companion by his cowl. 'New to Mars'...? She was an emigrant to Mars? And yet, had she not stated that she was a "young girl" in the 1930's? That being so, she could scarcely have been any older than she appears to be now when Mars first opened to general colonization. And yet she speaks of a man many years her junior, "new to mars"... GL concludes that she must have been much older when she was entombed than she appears to be now, her mysterious "rejuvenation" having acted as a youth restorative somehow.

Or, she could just be flat crazy....

"I aided him in his quests whether they be for money or power. His abilities were even more unique to the world than my own. We had the time of our lives. It was the start of his ...and the end of mine."

The pain of her death washes over her once more. She falls to the ground in a fit of phantom pain. Gaslight's mind is briefly touched bt an image of a woman in her fifties hooked to many life support machines and a stocky young man no older than his mid-twenties weeping at her bedside. Her hand gingerly caresses his hair. She raises his chin up so that his eyes make contact with her's one last time. She smiles. Machines wail.

and then nothingness.

The image breaks. Marguerite's new body spasms on the floor. Tears streaming down her face.

Gaslight simply stands and stares down at the young woman's sobbing form for several long moments, stunned by the shared experience of her death vision and oblivious to the danger of the crumbling edifice around the duo. When at last he springs into action again, it is The Machine that directs his efforts, sweeping up the weeping woman into his arms and charging headlong down the nearest darkened passage.

It takes several moments longer before Mason recovers from the transcendent shock of experiencing oblivion second-hand sufficiently to form a coherent conscious thought. He gazes at the tear-stained face of the young woman in his arms, wondering if what he had experienced was everything it seemed to be. Had she truly died and been reborn in this place? What then will happen is she is taken from here, sent back through the trans-dimensional gate back to Mars? Will her new lease on life be cut short by the return trip? Having shared that most intimate of experiences with the young woman -- death -- Mason realizes that he could not bear to see this woman die again; the realization is a shock to him and snaps his attention back to the task at hand.

Gaslight silently berates himself for having indulged in a moment of rank sentimentality amid the current danger. Reassuming a professional demeanor, he says, "This man you were involved with... you spoke of his having unique abilities. Could you elaborate?"

"He was magical if you..." The French Spiritualist's answer is cut short. Another explosion, this one different then the others, rocks the already distressed building. Gaslight gets a brief impression of Eleanor being at the center of the chaos.

* * *

The Supreme Silicate smites The Mock Mage to the ground with a mighty uppercut. A metallic "KWA-TANG" sounds across the dunes of Duat as Mancer's enlarged PDA and stylus collide into one another, knocked free from his pockets by the force of Bfmaat's blow. The Ersatz Enchanter rolls to one side supported by his massive elbow and uses his free hand to see if his jaw is still connected to the rest of his head.

The Massive Mancer loomed into the air with the grace and mass of a Flying Fortress. With speed made awesome at his scale, Pavel arcs up and around Bfmaat, lining the silicate up with his fallen PDA. "A PRIMAL PRESENCE, EXISTING IN THE RECESSES OF HUMANITY'S COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS WITH ALL THE MYTHIC SYMBOLS OF POWER AT ITS FINGERTIPS...AND I GET RECESS BULLY TACTICS. WHAT A LETDOWN." The sorcerer reached the apex of his flight path. "COULD WE END THIS IF I JUST GAVE YOU MY LUNCH MONEY NOW? NO? ALRIGHT THEN, NO HAIR PULLING OR I'M TELLING YOUR MOM." With that, the Enormous Enchanter roared at full speed in a truly flying tackle.

Pavel careens through the massive colony being just as he expected would. The Mancer's enlarged body digs a massive trench spewing sand into the sun drenched sky. His plan all along had been to reunite with his digital crutch. Mission accomplished. If he had more time he'd hug and squeeze her and call her Ms. Norris.

"YOU WANT A DISPLAY OF MY POWER, FLESHLING? HAVE IT THEN! YOU FOOLISHLY SEEK TO ATTACK ME WITH TECHNOLOGY BORNE OF THE SANDS?"

Grains of sand pour like water out of the Mancer's PDA. Bfmaat has seemingly transmuted the silicon components of the handheld back into their original state. Pavel feels his heart skip a beat at the thought of having to rely on his own conjurings.

"YOU ARE IN SUCH TROUBLE WHEN YOUR MOM HEARS ABOUT THIS," the Mage blusters as he crushes the useless double-door-sized PDA case in his massive paw, sand streaming between his fingers. With an earth-shaking bound, the Mancer again takes to the air. sand cascading like a downpour beneath his ascent. It was clear that physical blows, the main weapon at his current scale, were ineffective. Without the PDA, his spells were cast in parlor-time not combat-time. *Psyche, you listenin', girl? Without my digital friend I'm at least half a minute from any spell that falls between an insulting tickle and cratering the League with him. I'm pretty sure I can keep his attention at this size, but until the rest wade in I'm neutralized.*

From her sheltered position safely behind some rubble Psyche is suddenly very aware of the limitations of their modern equipment and is very relieved that they have their own abilities to rely on. *I understand Pavel, I'm going to try a diversion of my own*

Nearby Zach's body is vigorously breathing to hyper-oxygenate his blood, and he's chewing and stretching his jaw to get his ears to pop - things that might be taken for goggling fear at the size of the thing if one were not familiar with the good doctor's Indestructible nerves.

*Uncle, throw me at him. It should change the odds of this considerably.*

Zach waits for his uncle's enormous hand to engulf him, and endures the inevitable "THIS IS THE PART WHERE I MAKE A CRACK ABOUT TAKING MY BALL AND GOING HOME, ONLY I'M GETTING BORED WITH THE SCHOOLYARD THING," before finding himself flying directly into the heart of the silicon monstrosity. As expected, he enters the body with little resistance, curled up into a tight ball. In the second between entry and exit, his personal force field explodes out to a hundred times it's normal diameter. The temporary vacuum is jarring, but he hopes his advanced preparations will protect him from any ill effects.

A thought occurs to the Enlarged Enchanter. *Psyche -- I can probably lay a bigger hurt on him with some covering attacks. Just tell me -- those critters he's absorbed for his body, their consciousness is gone, submerged right?* An empath far less sensitive than the newest Leaguer would have read Pavel's plan depended on Bfmaat controlling unconscious silicon bodies.

Having quickly scanned the oversized silicate facing down her fellow Leaguers she is able to confirm the Mancer's supposition. *He's apparently just one entity now as far as I can tell & boy is he angry - and he's not the only one...*she adds taking careful aim with the EM pulse generator. *Doc, is this going to hurt you if I blast this annoyance to smithereens?* she checks before firing - not wishing to be responsible for even accidental damage to her friends.

*Negative. Turn it all the way up, get somewhere when you can find shelter immediately after firing and...don't miss. We may only get one shot with it.* Zach has picked himself up and is moving as best he can on temporarily wobbly legs to get to Eleanor's position. *Partial vacuum hasn't thrown off my balance a bit. I'm on my way to you now. No need to wait, though* Zach is prepared to shift his force field from himself to Psyche if it looks like the silicon menace is about to sandblast the english ESPer.

"Dammit. 'buns is gonna beat me on points if I don't get out there faster than this." Dee kvetches to no one in particular as she races through the pyramid.

Her body tingles. The shimmering scales that defend her from harm appear, seemingly without provocation. They spiral about her body easing down her form. A snake shedding it's skin occurs to her for some reason.

Dee's vision goes blank for a moment. When it is regained once more she finds herself inexplicably on the battlefield. The glow of the scales disappearing once more.

Thankful that his IF powered physique isn't at risk for contagion from carrying the Fungal-Eliot, Shatterman soars through the collapsing stone structure. Rocks bounce from his invulnerable skin as he makes token effort to protect his charge.

With a sigh of relief the hero breaks into the open air, leaving the dust of the tomb behind. Shatterman drops Eliot unceremoniously on the sand. He spies Bfmaat across the open space quickly reforming himself.

"Hey, Bathmat!" yells Shatterman. "You're in trouble now that the Hurt Squad has arrived!"

"YOUR COMBINED POWERS ONLY DELAYED MY WRATH WHEN THE GREAT SERPENT BROUGHT ME INTO YOUR WORLD. YOUR DEFEAT IS INEVITABLE. DO YOUR WORST."

Before anyone can say anything, a cool CRT blue radiates from Psyche's location. Bfmaat takes notice and begins to prowl toward the source. The fillings in her teeth feel as if they're about to pull free. The EMPcannon hums ever louder as Eleanor squeezes the trigger resolutely even as Bfmaat bears down upon her. At that moment the hum turns into a whine and the contraption begins to shake violently before exploding! The resultant smoke obscures Psyche's condition but a portion of Bfmaat's arm is discorporated painfully and he howls in pain.

* * *

The silicate terraforming unit was a nanotechnology success story. The science fed into the engineering and a base structural unit (BSU) was finally constructed. This structural unit was comprised of several silicate based grains upon which charge could be inlaid. When these were chemically bound together in a particular fashion and supplied with energy the structural unit became active.

Depending on the coding for the unit, it would either scavenge for new silicate material to repair worn grains or do other work such as chemical reaction catalysis and/or analysis. The limitations for single units were rather severe, only very basic tasks could be accomplished and even then under close supervision and with constant energy supplies close to hand.

The major breakthrough came when it was discovered how to combine units into a greater whole and impart more complex programming to the amalgamate. Units within the amalgamate were able to specialise more and the complex programming required less supervision.

Over time the amalgam became capable of greater and greater size and sophistication. So great that it was easy to forget that the amalgam was little more than millions of tiny structural units. The scientists were delighted to discover emergent behavior from the amalgam but rather horrified to discover that the amalgam had achieved consciousness and sentience, Terry was born.

Terry cannot remember much of his birth but he was now experiencing what he could only equate to death. He was lost within the being of Bfmaat, physically and mentally and retreated before the psychic onslaught. Eventually he found himself able to consolidate himself within a few structural units that still responded to his thoughts rather than Bfmaat's. He had some time, but there was little chance that so few units would be able to support all his higher functions. He wondered whether, even if he survived that he would be 'brain damaged'.

However he has respite, Bfmaat seems too distracted to notice a small passive presence within his being, even if it is foreign. Terry knows that he cannot access sight or hearing functions of the amalgam and motor control would be too much to hope for. Bfmaat is too strong. He is like a ghost in the machine, more like a bug in the system he corrects himself.

The bug analogy stirs his thoughts. What if he could be a bug, like one of those he learned that could give his human family a cold. Those creatures were tiny and yet could radically affect the way that the humans could function. If Terry could similarly cause a disfunction in Bfmaat then his friends might have a chance. Bfmaat probably wouldn't even know what was happening to him, he disdained the 'fleshlings' and probably disdained knowledge of how they worked too. Terry was made to learn biology and medicine. He has to strain his memory to work out how such things worked.

With some trepidation Terry alters one grain of a BSU he controls. This could be squandering one of the very few he has left to him. He sends that grain to a nearby BSU controlled by Bfmaat. Under the changes it looks like a repair grain, sent to replace a worn grain in the BSU. However, once incorporated into the BSU it began to rewrite the remaining grains of the Bfmaat unit to respond to the Terry persona but retain the Bfmaat appearance to the system. This allows the infected unit to move undetected within the Bfmaat system. The infected BSU has been instructed to code more 'repair units' until it cannot maintain its integrity and bursts apart. The repair units then 'infect' nearby BSUs.

While growing the infected BSUs are open to Terry's commands. He works stealthily to avoid alerting Bfmaat that something was awry. Patience is necessary. He cannot allow himself concern over his family and friends and what Bfmaat might be doing to them. He'll do no good by getting caught again.

He waits and monitors. Exponentially, the number of infected BSUs grows. Slowly Terry begins to give commands, nothing suspicious to begin with. He uses some disabled Bfmaat BSUs to provide himself with a larger core to sustain his personality - a core that has to break free from the mass of Bfmaat before he can function independently again. Thoughts of birth fill his mind.

By making the infected BSUs take on a darker hue he can migrate them to the surface of Bfmaat and cause patterns to appear there. He intends to form a favourite target of Shatterman, hopefully encouraging his friend to attack an area where he can control a larger proportion of BSUs, weakening Bfmaat's defences and allowing Shatterman to shatter the silicate creature. Enough damage might throw his core self clear.

In the meantime he sits and thinks and watches his silicate viruses grow and infect more BSUs.

* * *

Thrown backwards by the blast but fortunately unhurt, Eleanor shakes her head in disbelief, "Just my luck, 'she exclaims in self disgust, "I can't even successfully hit something the size of a small mountain!" Anyone tuned into her thoughts are surprised by the string of very unlady like epithets colouring the ether as she vents her annoyance. Unbeknownst to the ESPer she owes her life to Zach's efforts and indestructible force fields.

"'Do your worst.' I love it when they say that," Dragon grins ferally.

Without hesitation, she glides closer to the silicon behemoth, refusing to be daunted by mere size. "Hey, Shatter, make mine a double!" She hopes he reads her suggestion for a simultaneous attack while the thing is distracted by the damage Psyche did it.

The Rock and Roll Ravager acknowledges the request, "shaken not stirred, right?"

Silver Dragon hefts a portion of Mancer's discarded PDA over her head. The fragment, nearly the size and weight of a large motorcycle, rises easily in her grip. She begins to aim the makeshift projectile and notices something odd...a portion of his surface, just left of where his heart would be if he were human, has gone three shades darker.

"This could be the tequila from last night but do you see what I see? Did "Enter: Sandman" just go two tones on us? He might as well be wearing a kick me sign."

The two heroes time their attacks in perfect unison. Gaslight would be proud of their professionalism, and so naturally he's not here to see it. Dee's impromptu weapon slices through the air just as a Shatterbolt singes the sky. Both attacks find their mark.

...and still it's not enough to fell the monstrosity. Bfmaat roars his defiance. "I AM ONE WITH THIS LAND. HOW CAN YOU HOPE TO DEFEAT ONE SUCH AS I?!?" He slashes his remaining arm with a ferocious gesture that creates a sudden and powerful sirocco.

Shatterman, despite his invulnerability, lacks the strength to remain aloft. He careens at rapid speeds into what little remains of the pyramid. The violent winds drown out the cannon like sound of his collision.

Barely audible over the shrill winds the comms carry a rarity, Shatterman saying "ouch."

Mancer is forced to spend all his might trying to walk against the wind. Fortunately the sandstorm is obscuring everyone else vision otherwise he'd be chagrined at the obvious mime jokes. Unfortunately, he has more on his mind as the sands rips across his body. His greatcoat torn to tatters and his rough-hewn flesh not faring much better.

Dee and Zach manage to find their way to what passes for shelter guided by Eleanor's telepathic voice.

"Good heavens Deirdre! You've undergone a spontaneous biological metamorphosis, engendering a remarkable physical similarity to your empathically bonded companion!"

Her laugh has a distinct hissing undertone. _Indestructible composure; should have known._ "It's kind of weirder than that, but I think it's something to do with being here."

Meanwhile, back inside the pyramid...

Gaslight curses loudly. He'd been forced by a collapsed tunnel to find an alternate route out of the pyramid and had used his highly honed sense of direction to ensure that he and his charge ultimately traveled in the same general direction as the face of the pyramid whence the League entered, hoping to intersect with one of the tunnels near the entrance carved by Shatterman. Now, however, he finds himself confronting a dead-end, with the tunnel he'd come down rapidly filling in behind him. No doubt he'd taken the proverbial wrong left turn at Albuquerque.

Gaslight gazes down uncertainly at the young woman in his arms. He'd promised himself that he would not allow her to die again, but now it appears that not only will he fail to protect her, he'll also be joining her in that final night.

The entire pyramid quakes around him, as the legion of enraged psychics continue to wreak destruction, and the Shrouded Avenger looks suddenly up as a large block of stone shakes partially loose from the wall in front of him. There are wisps of sunlight seeping in from the cracks around the block!

The Machine is in motion before GL cognizant mind has fully finished processing the information. Setting the young woman down on the tunnel floor, Gaslight quickly sets several shaped plastique charges around the block and at the base of the wall. The charges are shaped to provide a uni-directional explosion outward from the tunnel, but Gaslight nonetheless throws himself on the girl's still mostly insentiate form just in case, and thumbs the detonator...

Outside...

Just as they reach their makeshift shelter, Dee and Zach are momentarily surprised by the sound of a violent explosion. A dozen meters to the right of the tunnel carved by Shatterman, several stone blocks from the pyramid suddenly fly through the desert air, accompanied by a thick cloud of sand and debris. A large, crumbling hole becomes visible when the dust begins to settle.

An instant later, Gaslight plunges through the hole. Getting his bearings, Gaslight bolts instantly for Dr. Z's position, his karumi-jutsu skills allowing him to effortlessly run on top of the sands as though on hardened concrete. His companions see that he is carrying a woman in his arms, a young and pretty brunette, apparently clad in nothing more than Gaslight's opera cape.

Reaching Zach's position, Gaslight wastes no time. "What's the situation Z? And where the deuce are Moonlight and Heisenberg?"

Zach is equally fast, indicating that the masked marvel set the young woman down on the remarkably solid sand in their surprisingly sheltered alcove, thanks to Zevon's force fields, and exploring her physical condition while he fills the others in.

Relieved that the team were back in the same place, at the same time Eleanor acknowledged their arrival with a small smile. Other than raising an eyebrow at the sight of Gaslight arriving with a girl in a state of undress and Silver Dragon's current form Eleanor made no other outward sign of her feelings, those she would keep private for analysis at a later date. Reassured that the girl did not need immediate assistance from her she turned back to face Bfmaat to consider her options.

"Moonlight and Heisenberg have conducted the Norrises back to Martia Firma. Terraform is still incorporated in the Bfmaat entity, though I suspect the static we're generating in that physical form should give our teammate a chance to reassert himself shortly. Bfmaat's control of sand has generated this temporary kinetic manifestation, as well as destroyed Pavel's PDA and shorted out the EMpulse generator before it could have full effect."

"Hold on a second.

*Pavel, let yourself get blown away by the storm for the moment, then be prepared to return at full speed as soon as the wind stops. Histrionics to strengthen Bfmaat's ego would be helpful as well. Jack, Dee, likewise prepare to act once the wind stops. Eleanor, I'll need your psychic support.*

Aware that her actions were limited by her human frailty Eleanor had already discounted several ideas when Zach explained his plan. Knowing that the Doc would only ask for assistance if it was within her capability she readily agreed to his request.

Zach then waits a few seconds for the others to follow his plan, knowing his uncle's penchant for theatrics will add to the verisimilitude.

His nephew's call for strategic retreat was music to his scalding skin. "AAAARGH! SO I'VE CHANGED MY MIND. CAN I HAVE THE SCHOOLYARD BULLY BACK, YOU SANDY &@$#*! FREAK?!" With a final ear-splitting "RAAAAH!" the Martian Mancer again slung his massive form free from the maelstrom and away into the distant burning sky.

Once the oversized figure of the Martian Mancer goes flying across the extradimensional landscape, Zach calculates the distance Pavel would need to recover and return to full velocity, and acts at that moment, shifting his force field from around himself and his teammates to around their adversary, compressing it so it not only holds him, but insinuates into his very body, serving to bind the sand into a thicker, more viscous form.

The sudden silence of the sands is unsettling, as the sirocco stops in a split second, leaving Bfmaat momentarily confused, then raging, trapped by a field whose near liquid state is matching his own. His only comfort is that he won't have long to worry about it.

*Liberty League, hit him.*

*With pleasure,* Dee replies across the link.

Gaslight gazes upon the enormous form of Bfmaat, instantly discarding the idea of using his "surprise package" on the creature; his weapons were not designed to deal with a terra-entity of Bfmaat's dimensions. Still, an alternative plan does spring to mind.

"Z, if Terraform's consciousness can be freed sufficiently for some degree of independent action, I may have a plan that could bring this creature tumbling down." Drawing his silver "laser baton" from its holster, Gaslight twists a ring at the base of the inset crystal cap, points the crystal at Bfmaat, and sub-vocalizes the command to activate the weapon. Though his laser is normally invisible to the naked eye, this time it is accompanied by a beam of crimson light, marking the laser's path through the air to help ensure that none of GL's allies accidentally stray into the path of the deadly heat ray. "How fares his efforts to liberate himself? And, did you see Heisenberg and Moonlight, or are you merely assuming they went through the portal based upon their radio transmission?"

Before Zevon can answer he steels his focus on the matter at hand as the others join the attack with Gaslight. The cacophony thunders across the scarlet sands. Shatterbolt after senses-shattering shatterbolt strike in rapid-fire fashion at Bfmaat from the rejuvenated Shatterman who had darted from the tomb the second he heard Zevon's command. The Silver Dragon hurls stone after stone from the crumbling structure at their enemy.

and then it happens

Pavel had stopped his retreat about a mile off. He uses the distance to achieve maximum velocity. The strange sun is blotted out as a red streak slams into the self-styled God.

Pavel, barely conscious from the collision, doubts his own power for the first time in decades. Unabashedly he pleads across the link, "Fall damn you. Why won't you fall?"

Steps away from the combat a war wages simulataneously for Dr. Z and Psyche. The feedback from the attacks show their effect on the Smartest Man on Mars. Beads of sweat race down his strong jawline. Blood drips from his nose. His very form itself is paying the cost of this devastating last-ditch assault.

It was hard to touch Zach and actually will him her life-force, even though she had agreed to the attempt. The memory of the sensations she had experienced whilst healing Mancer alongside the fear of being pulled into the abyss of pain caused her to hesitate for a fraction of a second. Timing the contact to coincide with Dr Z's command, Psyche can be heard to say, "If this goes wrong someone may need to intervene..." as she places her bare hand on Zach's.

The pain etched across Zach's countenance begins to abate as Eleanor begins accepting it to her own body. Still the two fall, both exhausted from the effort. Both minds echoing Pavel's sentiment as Dr. Z's field breaks from the onslaught.

*No need to maintain the field. Eleanor, thanks. As you may have guessed, it's not _quite_ indestructibility... Three...two...*

Red eyes flash disdain at the assembly of heroes. A mighty fist reels back to rid itself of the Ersatz Enchanter once and for all. "DIE," the single word that escapes the lips of the monster shaped as a man.

*...one...now.*

...and then Bfmaat teeters. His body spasms and lurches. Eyelids flutter for a moment. And then he falls back and stutters for an instant. He begins to topple backward. Shatterman begins to utter "Timbeeeeeeeer" but then all hope is dashed as the creature rights himself!

The hard-rock hero screams across the com link, "what now, Z?!?"

The team begins to fear the worst. The thought of the one woman he ever truly loved dances across his mind as Pavel begins to weave what may be his last spell, the other-worldly syllables and gestures rumbled from him, as he prepared a reanimation spell. The Machine calculates what effect the the payload secreted on Gaslight's form would have the creature despite it's augmented size. New thoughts and strategies race through the foremost mind of Mars in an attempt to answer the young man. He could swear Terry was working at some level to undo Bfmaat from within. The target that appeared on his chest earlier had to be the youngster's efforts.

*Hold off, leaguers. The signal to noise ratio has to be high enough now. I know he can do it...I know he can...*

...and then, as if on cue to prove Zevon right once more, Psyche receives an empathic flash from Terry....

Bfmaat seems attacked as if by invisible hands. A gritty noise rumbles from within his body. Terry is commandeering a portion of Bfmaat's mass to create a new body for himself. A face begins to appear and writhe across Bfmaat's enlarged form. A hand grows from the back of his own. Two new legs spring forth and steady themselves. In moments a larger than usual Terraform begins to pull himself free from the colony governed by the consciousness of his so called brother.

Zach activates his comlink. "Hello, Terry, nice to have you back."

Heisenberg steps through the portal once more. He quickly observes the battlefield. The Master of The Improbable takes flight. His arc deposits him on Mancer's over-sized shoulder. "Speak up and speak faster, old man. You're mumbling." Time, which had felt subjective here in the first place, seems to speed up allowing the mage's spell to take immediate effect.

Zach takes Heisenberg's presence into account, turning to Gaslight and dabbing his brow with a handkerchief. "Yes, I expect Terraform to be able to free himself." He returns the every so slightly damp and bloody cloth to his pocket and casually brushes invisible flecks of sand from his costume.

Terry makes a couple of quick steps away from Bfmaat before falling onto his face. He tries a swift change into a millipede and makes all of those legs take him as far from Bfmaat and as close to the others as he can get.

"Don't want to do that again..."

"Is Dee OK? What about Mom and Dad??"

Dee is very clearly okay - though a bit hard to recognize at the moment with the ebony scales and so forth - because she's yelling "*TERRY!*" and giving him the biggest hug of his life, combat situation be damned.

Terry is very worried about getting close to Bfmaat again. He has experienced quite intimately the power of the being and isn't sure that what worked once would work again.

"Uncle?? I gave him a cold. Maybe you could make him sneeze himself apart."

*Terry's out, so we can take off the kid gloves. Jack, it's viscosity is back to normal, spread it around a bit, give my dear uncle a chance to wreak whatever havoc he has in mind.* he sends through the comm-link before turning back to Gaslight.

"You better, you better, you bet," Jack replies. Mustering up what little energy he has left, he unleashes two quick blasts of raw kinetic fury. Bfmaat shrugs them off with the palm of his massive hand.

With only an in-cadence grunt of acknowledgment to both their escaped teammate and the perched villain, the Massive Mancer's rumbled, arcane syllables resonate through the bones of his companions in a way that makes their skeletons feel corrupt. His enormous paws take on an unearthly sheen. With a cry that is part martial "KIYYA" and part exhausted exhale, the mage thrusts both splayed, shimmering hands into the chest of the still towering god. Bfmaat mockingly and painlessly accepts the shaking claws.

The spell was one of corporeal animation, and limited to whatever unconscious body the mage could actually touch. With the bodies of countless sentient sand critters hopelessly interwoven to form Bfmaat's bulk, each of Pavel's giant, splayed fingers contacts dozens at once. All of those dozen dozen or more instantly become extensions of Pavel's will. From beneath a shaking, sweaty brow the Mock Mage's eyes glaze cruelly. His white extended mustache contorts in a grimacing grin. "AH. AH. AH...." To the interwoven pieces of Bfmaat's body, he wills *AWAY*

"...CHOOO!"

Terry's splintering from Bfmaat robbed the monster of a slight portion of his height. Mancer does the youngster one better by liberating many of the other silicates trapped in the gestalt. Sand creatures scatter and flee in all directions. The self-styled God quickly begins the process of converting mass from the dunes to augment his form.

Horrified to see that that the silicate savage is still standing despite all their efforts Eleanor grits her teeth and sends all her pain and & the sheer exhaustion she's feeling to Bfmaat, hoping that her attempted attack will allow Terry to be more effective in whatever he tries himself. - *it hurts _very_ badly*.

In an ironic twist, Eleanor sends the pain she experienced from Zach's stunt earlier back to where it belongs. Bfmaat grabs his head and arcs backwards for a moment. At the very least the ESPers effort has bought the group time.

There are few people alive whose mind's Zach trusts as much as his own. "Gaslight, what's your plan?"

"I have prototype weapons that were developed for use against silicates." Gaslight does not mention against whom these weapons were originally designed to be used, nor does he need to. "They're canisters that use vibration to cause the target to lose cohesiveness and continue to vibrate to keep the target in an incohesive state." GL's gaze flickers momentarily over towards Bfmaat. "However, they were not designed for use against such a large target. They may still be effective if they penetrate deeply enough and can be guided to the center of the Bfmaat entity's mass. I think the best chance of the devices finding the appropriate spot, would be if Terraform were to merge with the entity again and carry them in. Can he retain independent conscious control of his own form under those conditions?"

Terry is obviously terrified of going back into Bfmaat.

"You want me to go back? I didn't think I was going to see anyone ever again. I couldn't see anything, or hear anything. He said it was joining but he ate me.

He looks at the devastation around him.

"If you really need me to do it though. I 'think' that there are bits Of me left in there that I might use." Terry looks at the silicates racing off in the distance and can tell his comment has more hope than fact to it.

Eleanor's listening to the ideas being thrown around by her comrades but is totally horrified when the suggestion that Terraform should allow himself to be merged with Bfmaat again comes up. Hearing him consider it she begins to tremble with emotion as her vision reasserts itself in her memory "Terry, you can't do that, its not safe for you!" she exclaims and, just to ensure her words carry weight with the others, she shares the vision of Bfmaat with Terry within that had so unsettled her earlier...

Gaslight glowers at Psyche beneath his mask -- now is not the time to erode Terraform's confidence with negativity! Dispassionately, even remorselessly shoving aside the disquieting effect of Eleanor's shared vision, he boldly reassures Terry, "I have every confidence in your ability to get the job done, Terraform. You opened the pathway between worlds, you broke the yoke of Bfmaat's domination; you're stronger than you think." GL's words belie his concerns; he is not at all certain that Terry will be able to retain control once inside Bfmaat's bosom, but, given the dire circumstances, there is little choice but to risk it. "There's another power at work here, Terraform. Bfmaat, I am certain, serves a higher master, one that must not be loosed on our world. It's up to you to save us. I know you won't shirk your duty... Terry."

Terry disengages himself from Dee. Maybe it is exposure to Bfmaat or the near brush with absolute nothingness but his response is tinged with suspicion.

"I'll do it. What I want to know is would you ask Dee to do it?? Or anyone else that wasn't silicon based?"

Terry looks at the changed Dee. "I'm pleased you aren't lost any more. I was worried that you'd get into trouble with Mom."

Mason knows he's being a right proper bastard, but there would be time enough for recriminations later only if they survive this encounter. All other concerns must be pushed aside for the moment. Modifying his grenade-like vibro-canisters to accommodate a timed detonator even as he speaks, Gaslight says, "Eleanor, bolster Terraform's consciousness as much as possible once he goes in. Heisenberg can help you. The woman, Marguerite, is a psychic of some kind. Perhaps she can aid you if you can rouse her."

Gaslight hands the modified vibro-canisters to Terry. "Plant these in the center of Bfmaat's mass, then press the red buttons. You'll have three seconds to make good your escape before they detonate. Do your family proud, boy."

Terry looks once more at Dee. He makes a small manikin appear from his hand. "Keep a hold of it. So I can find my way back."

He then forms egg shaped covers for the bombs and secretes them within his body. "I have some chores to do. See you later."

GL unsheathes his laser baton. "Now, as perhaps the only one here who doesn't look like a chewed up cat toy, I think it's up to me to provide a little distraction..."

The Machine charges into the fray...

Terraform follows quickly behind him. It is unlikely Bfmaat will be distracted for long, he might as well get this over with, one way or another.

A thunderous ~BOOM~ sounds as the psychic beings finish demolishing the pyramid. The pink-purple energy forms hang motionless and silent in the air. As if waiting for another task....

Heisenberg gently touches down at Eleanor's side. He tips his hat to the young woman. Impossibly composed he does not rush her but waits for her signal to add his own considerable power to her own.

She nods and bends down to revive the mysterious woman. She attempted a laying of hands on the nubile woman just as she had with Pavel earlier and Zach even more recently. Surprisingly, the frenchwoman's lithe hand grabbed her's first!

The touch triggers a mental communion. The experience is not dissimilar to what she felt at the start of this very long day - a mind layered with others. This time instead of Eliot's and then Bfmaat's it is Marguerite's and the chorus of etheric essences. In an instant she discovers that these psychic voyagers laid waste to the structure not only out of spite but as a way to weaken Bfmaat by hindering his connection to The Great Serpent. That they have awaited, some for millennia, for the coming of ATAMANON ZEG to signal the end of their psychic slavery and send them onward through the cycle of Khepri.

They would very much like to spend the last vestiges of their power to aid their liberator. Like the Liberty League and the marvelous mountebank fighting at their side today, they too would gladly give their all to save Mars from the mass destruction and carnage Bfmaat would surely herald for the serpent. Eleanor weeps openly as the sacrifice is made all the more poignant by the fact many of the voyagers never made it to Mars itself, instead being trapped in this demonic analog on their way to the red sands.

Eleanor reaches out her mind to Terry's once more. She's careful to hide her fear that it is for the last time. Contact with him was always pleasant...the innocence enlivened her, made her feel young again herself.

The Machine ignores the pain that Gaslight endures as Bfmaat savagely attacks the Nemesis of The Night. The tally currently stands at three broken ribs. The flesh is weak but the Machine is willing. If it's plan works then the pain is worth it. If it doesn't then the pain is negligible.

"RETURN TO ME GRANULE AND ALL WILL BE FORGIVEN. THIS FLESHLING'S DEMISE WILL BE THE FIRST OF MANY IF YOU DO NOT!" Just as the two fists are about to hammer down for the coup de graces Terraform arcs unseen, moving through the sands themselves to appear behind the preoccupied Bfmaat.

He lashes his great arms about his brother, another time and another place this would have been a loving gesture. The last thing Terry hears is Bfmaat screaming "NOOOOOOOO." The blending goes quickly after that. In the void of the gestalt the two siblings, the warring sides of the same coin face off once again for the first and last time.

The Machine relinquishes control of Mason Roth's body to the Gaslight persona. He lurches off the ground and moves quickly away from the impending blast. Feeling more empathy for what Terry is going through at the moment than any other the others could fathom a prayer creeps from his lips even as he is thrown into the air from the force of the blast.

Nothing remains where the Mad God and Noble Child once stood in union....

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