She soon decided that she had little choice. She would be destroying the entire colony soon, and everyone left would perish. She had to trust to mercy, and the only humane choice was to let people go.
She entered, and was soon shocked at what she saw. She was no stranger to confinement, or to unpleasant surroundings, but this place was a category in itself. The prison was, in a word, disgusting. It was dark, with dim and inconsistent lighting. The walls were stained with water and possibly blood. The floors were flooded, ceilings dripping with a liquid she dared not identify. There were many competing smells, all strong and unpleasant.
She ran through the prison, conveying in the communication of Center that she was there as a liberator. She tore the enclosures apart, one by one, motioning to the prisoners to go. Many of them were confused at her appearance. Some were apparently not sure whether she was there to rescue them, or if she was in league with Misery, and they feared a trick.
It was clear that her message in her native language was of little help. The prisoners came from many different worlds, and spoke many different languages. The process turned out to be complicated, and required patience. After a while, she learned to depend on each group to communicate her message to each other, which was at times a tricky thing to accomplish.
The foray into the prison was proving arduous. The living conditions in the prison were deplorable. With each room she found more unpleasant surprises. But her greatest shock came in the deepest reaches of the prison.
There in a dark corner, in an especially desolate and cramped cell, was someone she knew from her distant past. It took her a moment until she recognized him, dark and haggard as he looked. He was perhaps seventy years old in Earth years, fair-skinned and bearded, much thinner than he had been in her youth. He was chained to the wall, looking desperate. Realizing that he would not recognize her, she communicated to him who she was. Upon this revelation, he communicated, That is a surprise.
It is, she answered, And it is you, General Imperial. I dare not guess how you might have become the prisoner of Misery.
This was my colony. She attacked us with her army.
I might wonder then why you were so far away from ‘Center of the Universe.’
That is a long story. Since I have last seen you, I was exiled. You should not be surprised. I was lucky it was not worse. Still I had done well until Misery arrived.
Ms. Infinity found herself in a difficult position. She certainly did not want him to know her present business. Yet she felt that she had a responsibility to him. As she looked hard at him she explained, I have a debt to you, so I will free you.
She tore apart the man’s chains, and he marveled at her strength. You are even more powerful than before, he remarked.
She questioned him for some time. He had been banished from Center many years ago. He now had a colony on a planet not far from where they now were. It was part of an extensive colonial project in the region. This space station was his main base of operations.
The men who Ms. Infinity had scared away had come with Misery. General Imperial actually did recognize them. They lived on a moon in the outer regions of Center’s own solar system. The reason they were so obscure was that they had few natural resources, and there was little interest in colonizing them.
He seemed unable to deliver any other valuable answers. Indeed he seemed as confused by Misery’s mission as Ms. Infinity was. It seemed unlikely that they would profit from a colonial mission on a single, isolated inhabited planet so vastly distant from Center. After all he himself had only come this distance because he had been exiled, and knew he would not return. He also didn’t understand why Center would be using a female for an attack, or why they would be employing such a ragtag group to go with her.
Ms. Infinity thanked him, but then informed him, You must leave. This now settles my debt. This place will not be here much longer. There are ships for all of the freed prisoners. You must go.
Ms. Infinity left the prison, then continued to search the colony. After further searching she found one building that was significantly larger and more extravagant than the others. She knew what that meant, “Misery’s place.”
The rooms were enormous, with an extravagance that seemed to convey power and importance. Many were large halls with high ceilings, yet were nearly empty save for furnishings in the deep center. It said a lot about her relationship to the army she was working with.
Yet nothing she saw prepared her for the surprise that met her in Misery’s sleeping quarters. It had many creature comforts, including media such as people used from Center. But when she looked on a table near the center of the room she was stunned to see dozens of materials in English. These were all from Earth!
There were books and magazines of all types. There were even some superhero comic books, though none were of her particular taste. Many of the items before her could easily be found in the checkout lines at The Big Box, among many other places. These things were a long way from their point of origin. She could draw some obvious conclusions. Misery had been to Earth, or at least one of her underlings had. She had also learned English. Clearly she intended to be a permanent part of Earth, probably as much more than a customer service associate.
Finding a bag, Ms. Infinity collected a few of the items, letting out a sigh of disappointment that there was no candy. Once again she would have to wait for her chocolate fix.
There was one more thing that interested her. On a desk was a communication device, such as they used on her native world. Yet she could tell from looking at it that it was much more advanced than any that she had ever seen. It reminded her of discussions from the days just before her departure from Center. There was much rumor of the advance of technology. One such advance that was said to be in development was a communication device that could work across many, many light years. She wondered if this was that very item. She decided she would take it with her as well. Placing it in the bag, she took leave of the building.
Upon leaving, she was alarmed when she saw the man she had freed, wandering around, seemingly without aim.
Why are you still here? she asked, You are free, and you must leave.
Where is she?
Where is who? There is only me, but be not deceived. That is enough. I have destroyed the entire army on my own. If you were thinking of attacking, I can certainly defend myself.
But she must be here somewhere. She always has been, whenever you have been free. This is a secret I have known when others have been deceived.
Ms. Infinity was both confused and alarmed. She was also beginning to suspect that General Imperial might know more than he had let on. She reached in her bag and took out one of the magazines from Misery’s quarters, a copy of Cosmopolitan. Then she looked at him in the eye and asked in English, “Do you recognize this thing?”
He looked back blankly, giving no reaction at all. It was not clear that he even knew that her speech was an attempt to communicate.
She then asked him in her native language, Do you recognize this?
That is not whom I seek, yet she is fair. Is she near?
The woman on the cover is not the concern, explained Ms. Infinity, trying not to be amused, Have you seen this publication before?
I have not. I do not know that thing.
I found this in Misery’s quarters.
I have languished in captivity. I have no knowledge of things since I was imprisoned.
Have you told Misery anything?
I have told her what I know, though that is not much.
I think it is enough. You will not find whom you seek. You must leave immediately. My debt to you is now paid. You will find a spaceship for yourself. You may go where you will, but you will leave Earth alone at all costs. You shall never even enter its solar system. You will not follow me. You will have nothing to do with me, or any of my family or friends. Be assured that I am greater even than you have seen, and you will not do well if you defy me.
General Imper
ial looked at Ms. Infinity once more. Instantly, she turned back at him with a threatening look. He finally turned away. She watched intently as he entered a ship, and pulled away into space.
Ms. Infinity decided to take Misery’s space ship back with her. She flew to the ship, and placed in it the materials she had found in Misery’s quarters. She then flew it just out of range of the colony.
Exiting the ship, she scanned the colony once more to assure that no living souls remained. She then began her labor of destruction. Many times she flew into space, then smashed into the abandoned colony at super speed, crashing it into pieces. She repeated this effort many times. Quickly the buildings were destroyed. Soon after the ground beneath crumbled. Finally, the entire structure came apart. When she was done, there was nothing but many piles of debris, floating around in space.
Ms. Infinity took Misery’s spaceship and began the journey back. It felt very much like her own ship before her many alterations, before its transformation into Starship Infinity. In other words, it was like any from the military of Beacon of Freedom, cold and metallic, large and standardized. It was perfectly efficient, but it made her uneasy.
Seeing General Imperial’s fall was a profound realization. The tyrannical leaders of Center had always seemed so invincible. It was now clear to her that they were anything but. Like any bullies, they lived to make others miserable; it seemed sometimes that they had nothing better to do than to push people around. But she now understood something about bullies. In truth they were operating out of fear, for behind the façade lay profound weakness. Once you saw past the curtain and saw the inner workings, it was clear that their rule rested on a house of cards.
The many threats and punishments the public faced prevented almost everyone from knowing this reality. Yet the corruption that the despots hid was a secret that was very dangerous to them. There were security personnel who were misused, and who knew many damaging things about the leaders they served. There were many other actors who were bribed or threatened, or both. Anyone could turn on anyone else. The status quo depended on a steady stream of secrets and manipulations. A tyrant often had to live day to day.
Then of course, nothing was more dangerous to a tyrant than a truly informed and empowered subject. That was why speaking out was such a risk. A person who knew the truth, and would speak up, was someone a tyrant would want to silence at all costs. Sadly, they usually could do just that. Yet, if the people only knew it, the real weakness was with tyranny.
She had to admit that she had some good memories, even back in Center. When she was in hiding, there had been many kind people who had helped her. At different times, she and her mother had been taken in and cared for by many good and decent people. Indeed they were risking their own lives by protecting them. Most of them were extremely generous, even though some were of modest means. She remembered how kind they were, and how her mother had always reminded her to be kind to them in turn. She wondered what had become of these people.
Looking back now, it was a marvel that she had not become cynical or criminal, considering her past. When she thought of it, her mother deserved a great deal of credit. Betty Boring, as she was now known, had gone through heroic lengths to see that her daughter experienced love and caring, and was taught morality; most importantly to value herself and others. All of this was done under very difficult and hostile circumstances.
Still, even the best of memories contained a bitter taste for her. Her childhood was not a happy one. And yet there was more than a silver lining in that her life today was vastly improved. Not long ago, she had been lying in bed, feeling disappointed in life. Now that she thought about it, a major reason for that feeling was simply that she had the luxury to feel that way. She certainly had never had any such thoughts when she was locked up, or in hiding, or fleeing for her life.
But now she was safe, and free, and living in a nice comfortable home with her mother. She had good friends, one “bestie” in particular whom she loved dearly. And this alias of Ms. Infinity was created for her own purposes, not because of a need to escape anyone. How great was that! She was living a dream! Life was good, and it was time to appreciate what she had.
She also seemed to have a relationship blooming. Perhaps it was time to stop neglecting it.
Hal’s protocol was to carry out “Plan B” in two scenarios, if Ms. Infinity didn’t return in an undefined “long time,” or if any number of enemy ships approached. Hal had waited and waited, putting off the decision as long as possible. But now as he looked out the window, he saw something he could not ignore, an enemy ship.
“Oh no!” he said to himself, “No! They must be here to get Misery. Bonnie must have lost. I’ve been putting this off and putting this off, but this is it. Now I’ve finally been a coward for too long, and if I don’t step up now, RIGHT now, all will be lost!”
Hal sat down for a moment and collected himself. Then after a deep breath, he prepared for the inevitable.
“Alright,” he said to himself, “This is it. I wish it hadn’t come to this. I love you, Mom, Dad, Stacy. Oh, Bonnie, I’m sorry this has happened.”
He ran to the bridge and began to work the controls. He began his erratic path into the nearest star.
“Where’s my ship?” shouted Ms. Infinity, “Oh no! If Misery has done anything, she will die!”
She looked outside for any sign of Starship Infinity. “Why did I have to make it invisible?” she said. It was only a moment before she discovered a vapor trail. It was brand new. It had only just moved.
She flew Misery’s ship in the direction of the vapor trail. The path was erratic. “Okay,” she said to herself, “The pilot must be someone who doesn’t have a lot of experience. So that would mean that Misery is probably not running it. It must be Hal. But why?”
She thought another moment, then it came to her. “Oh no. I know why. It’s my own stupid fault. Why didn’t I think of this? How long has this been for him? He must think I was gone for…Oh! And now I’m in an enemy ship, so he thinks… No! I have to catch him!”
She flew after the vapor trail as fast as the ship could go. However, try as she might, Misery’s ship just could not keep up. Starship Infinity had benefitted from many improvements over the years; Bonnie’s genius with space technology was well beyond even the best of Center’s scientists. Even flying in a straighter path could not make up for the difference. She instantly stopped the ship. Then in a fury of action, she opened the hatch, and climbed outside. She tried to use her telepathic control to call the ship, but the distance was too great to be effective. It now became clear that Ms. Infinity had but one choice if she was to catch up. And so she flew.
Way back in the early stages of the mission, Hal had wondered how fast Ms. Infinity could fly. He had experienced her flight halfway around Earth in only a minute or two, and wondered if she could fly to distant planets at a comparable clip. Truth be told, she herself had not seen the outer limits of her speed. She knew that she could not stay in space forever; she would eventually need to breathe. But she had indeed flown a great distance into space, indeed considerably beyond the limits of Earth’s solar system, at speeds well greater than that of light, such that are thought impossible by human science. Yet as she saw Starship Infinity flying into the nearest star, about to be taken into its gravity, she was not sure. For an instant, she wondered if this task was beyond her.
But there was no time to wonder. She simply flew. She disappeared from all visibility as she shot across space. Immediately her speed far surpassed that of Misery’s ship. But that was just the beginning. With all of her will bent toward her goal, she gained immense velocity with every second. Within a few seconds, she was flying many millions of miles per second. No spaceship from any world could have kept up, let alone overtaken her. Still, every ounce of her energy went into increasing her flight.
“I know it’s ahead,” she thought, “I see the vapor trail, getting fresher. I have to keep pushing. Hal, please! Sit tight! I’m comi
ng for you!”
It may have seemed impossible to fly faster than she was already flying. Already she was making short work of the vast distances of a remote solar system. Yet it was not enough for her; the impossible task of reaching her distant target was all that mattered. And still she burned forward with immense, ever-increasing speed and power. She passed one planet after another, some of them inhabited. The people of these worlds would certainly have been enthralled by the sight of the mysterious object shooting across their skies, had she been large enough to see, and had she not been going so fast she was rendered invisible.
Still she challenged herself to ever more mind-boggling speeds. So great was the power of her flight that even if a tremendous natural body such as moon had been in her way, she would easily have knocked it out of its way, or maybe even plowed right through it, though it were not there.
And then, against all odds, she at last reached her ship, only a few million miles from the star. She could just make it out with her super senses. Yet even as she began to overtake it, she saw that it was speeding up too, trapped in the star’s immense gravity.
With one final, immense burst of energy, Ms. Infinity sprinted forward one more time. With an immensely powerful force, she leaped forward, using the power of the star’s tremendous gravity to increase her own flight. And so she reached her goal at last. She finally flew around and put herself in front of it. Then she stopped. This too required a force greater than the human mind could comprehend. Her own power to resist the gravity of the sun behind her was indeed tremendous, far beyond any other living creatures known to humans, or indeed even to those of Center. And so she placed herself in front of the ship, and held forth.
Ms. Infinity (Book 1): Earth's Greatest Hero Page 19
