The woman shuffled down the filthy alley where she lived, her emaciated body shuddering from the cold. Wheezing she clambered into the makeshift shelter she had constructed and curled up under the tattered blanket cradling the remains of one of her arms, silently crying as she looked out towards the bright neon lights that glowed at the end of the street she lived in. Los Angelus she thought, was a town of paradox’s, just one hundred meters away from her hovel was a fancy cinema showing some new movie premiere every other week, celebrities walking past her huddled form. Turning over to face the wall Andrea Costanza stared at the dirty brick work, crude graffiti and the cockroaches waiting for their moment, waiting for her to die and claim what was left of her. She knew she had lost everything; her husband, her son, her powers and her arm, all gone, all lost and never to return. Closing her eyes, she felt her stomach, she hadn’t eaten for a week and already her body was beginning to show signs of starvation, she knew it wouldn’t be long know.
Andrea slept as well as she could, the noise around her creating a cocoon of sound, she had long since adapted to the cacophony of sound that came with living on the street. There was a crunch as somebody stepped into the alley, opening her eyes and turning over Andrea saw a silhouette move towards her, it was a slim person, hair gelled into a Mohawk and judging from the sound somebody wearing heavy boots. Squinting in the twilight she also noticed that the person was armed with a Micro-Uzi pistol, something that screamed thug as more foot falls joined the first intruder, the group heading down the cut-through like a pack of sharks, deliberate and on the prowl for easy targets. The first walked passed her and Andrea held her breath, there were five more all armed with firearms and knives to pass. The second and third moved past but the fourth stopped and sniffed, rat like to go with his small physique, his hands clutching a Desert Eagle that was far to big for him.
“That homeless tart is in here.” he squeaked taking a long deep sniff, “The freak with the missing arm and the powers.”
“How can you be certain?” a larger well-built man asked, as he pumped the shotgun he was carrying.
“I can smell her, she used to steal from the ‘sparklies’ out there.” the rat like man replied jabbing a finger at the end of the alley. “I’ve seen the freak’s nest in here.”
“What kind of powers does she have?” a third gang member asked, his voice calm although the way he clenched onto the P90 suggested that he was terrified.
“She was super magnetic.” the second man announced, “I saw her on the news fighting the Scarlet Spiderman.”
“It’s just the Scarlet Spider.” the first man corrected, he seemed like the leader of the group, and he defiantly didn’t have good intentions on his mind, “Besides she lost her powers, burnt away by that kid who used to roll with the Thunderbolts. Nothing to worry about Riggs?” he told the man with the P90.
“So, what’s the plan Boss?” Riggs asked.
“We kill the little bitch.” the rat like leader announced, “You and Doss set those P90s to Auto and shoot anything trying to get out. Garth will check out the structures and flush her towards you. The rest of us will get onto one of the fire escapes and keep her pinned down so you can catch her in the crossfire and kill her. No way are we letting a mutant squat on our territory.”
Andrea released her breath, she wasn’t a mutant and had always hated being called one, everyone compared her to Magneto, Polaris and every other being that could manipulate metal like she could or used to do. It was something she hated but she was in no state to fight the hood’s congregated outside her shelter so she lied still and tried not to draw attention to herself. The effort came too little too late, the big man with the shotgun, Garth, by what Rat Boy had revealed turned and fired two shots into the shack she was in, the blasts flying over her head with a few stray pellets nicking her skin. Her cover blow Andrea got to her feet and wobbled out of the entrance, her purple hair scraggly and covering her eyes, causing all the gang members to flinch and back away despite knowing that she wasn’t really a threat. Concentrating Andrea narrowed her eyes and clenched her remaining fist, the usual routine that came with activating her former powers and while they were now limited to what she could lift physically with her one remaining arm it had worked well enough to scare away potential muggers in the past.
Riggs panicked and dropped the P90 he was carrying and ran along with a formally silent man who had been wielding an old-fashioned hunting rifle, the others regained their composure. “Ventilate that bitch.” Rat Boy screamed as Andrea hobbled past him in an attempt to escape. At the first click of the trigger she collapsed, a hail of automatic fire and pistol shots whizzing over her head, the thugs emptying their magazines in seconds with not a single shot hitting her. “I got her boss.” Garth yelled as the fire stopped, the noise replaced by the pumping of a shotgun as he headed towards her as she desperately tried to claw her way forward.
“Excuse me gentlemen but what are you doing?” a new voice asked, his tone accented, possibly German or Austrian, Andrea mused as she saw another figure enter her alley accompanied with the click of a walking stick on loose concrete slabs. Looking up she saw an old man heading towards them, moving quickly and with purpose, one of his cane’s brandished at the thugs, most of who were trying to stifle snickers as he came towards them. “Now what are you doing?” he asked again.
“None of your business you senile old basted now fuck off and leave us to our business.” the thug with the Micro-Uzi yelled, “Go back to you assisted living quarters before we blow you away.” he added firing three shots over the old mans head.
“Gunfire doesn’t bother me.” the old man replied, “I fought in the second world war.” he added. One of the hoods gasped, he had obviously put two and two together and realized what the old man had been or still was. Andrea had made the same connection, she had heard about LA’s thriving Neo-Nazi scene and had decided to keep away from them. “Now I suggest you leave.” the German announced. One of the men, the one who had gasped made a move to leave before looking at Rat Boy and then the old man before making running his number one priority.
“Fucking coward.” Rat Boy screamed, “We’re going to hunt you down and rape your mum and sister in-front of you before killing you.”
“He made the right choice.” the German announced, “You’re talk of raping and killing is so vulgar, so crude there are more horrific ways to ruin a foe, ones that should never be mentioned.” on the final word he slammed the shotgun wielding Gath with his stick leaving a stinging welt on his face before spinning and jabbing him in the stomach, causing him to wince in pain. The Micro-Uzi Thug let out a single shot before his elderly assailant slapped his weapon away, the gun clattering over the floor. Both he and Garth looked at each other and silently agreed that this strange gentleman was not the kind of easy target they enjoyed taking advantage of and followed their former comrades out of the alley leaving Rat-Boy alone. The young hood moved in to pistol whip the German, ducking under a cane strike before being stopped from moving any further by the second. The old man smiled and whispered something in his ear before Rat Boy backed off, “You can keep the girl, we don’t even want the freak.” he squeaked before scuttling away leaving Andrea alone with the old man.
“Valarie.” the old man called as he lowered his sticks, “Come quick we found another one.”
“Another one?” Andrea asked, “Who the hell are you?”
“I am Baron Wernher von Blitzschlag” the German told her, “Don’t worry Ms. Costanza you will be safe with us.” he added as a woman in a chauffer’s uniform came running down the alley with a big black man, at least seven-foot-tall and built like a barn door, a bodyguard, Andrea thought, not that the old coot seemed to need it. Blitzschlag bent down, his joints creaking and pulled out a tissue rubbing some of the grime of Andrea’s face before placing his hand on her shoulder, “We will fix you my dear.” he told her as his hand sparked with electricity the ambient discharge running down Andrea’s body, for a brief moment she felt something stir within her but then it died as she collapsed onto the concrete. “Load her up and keep her sedated we have much work to do with this one.” Blitzschlag ordered his staff as the chauffer and the bodyguard carefully lifted Angela and took her to the blacked-out Jeep at the end of the alley before placing her inside and taking her away.
Blitzschlag sat in his office carefully writing down some notes as he listened to the Boys from Brazil on Audio Book, chuckling as he made some minor calculations to the experiment he was working on. The room he was in was quite Spartan; the large mahogany writing desk and padded chair the main features save for a few books on the shelf along the back wall and a security screen currently tuned into the room where he and his men had placed Angela, the woman still sleeping as the nurse entered and changed the intravenous drip. For the last week his ‘patient’ had remained asleep, probably a good thing as it allowed her body to heal now that it was getting regular feeding.
“Baron,” his secretary announced over the buildings PA system, “Your three o’clock is here.”
“Send him in.” Blitzschlag stated as he looked at the wall, he had removed the clock shortly after buying the premises, the monotones tick of the hands moving were a sure distraction. The door handle turned and a man dressed in a paramedic’s uniform entered his arm handcuffed to an organ transplant container. “Baron, I have the samples you requested.” he said as he scratched his face before pulling off the prosthetic mask to reveal a man with cropped hair dyed white and a targeting visor over his left eye, the lens stylized into a cross. “Now let’s see the money.”
“Ah ever the mercenary Mr. Cross.” Blitzschlag stated pulling out a suitcase before flipping the latches and revealing rows of non-sequential hundred-dollar bills. “Now let me see the solution.” he asked Cross. The mercenary nodded and flipped the lid of the case up and pulled out a sack of granite grey fluid before placing it back into the case.
“I will take only what will cover my expenses.” Cross told Blitzschlag, “You can keep the rest.”
“How generous.” Blitzschlag announced, “I suppose you want something else instead, I’m afraid I don’t have much but cash.”
“Oh, you have just what I need.” Cross replied, “Like files on Project Welsturm for example.”
“Wh…where did you hear about Welsturm.” Blitzschlag said his voice losing it’s cool for the first time.
“The CIA, they still keep the old OSS files under lock and key, I happened to come across it and memorized the names. I know you oversaw the final stage before activation.” Cross growled, “Now tell me or your blood for that transfusion gets vaporized, you see I’ve been trying to get hold of you for years and I figured that you might try and slip out of my fingers so I implanted a tiny amount of C4 in the case, enough to destroy the sample.”
“Veronica get the files from the archive marked Welsturm.” Blitzschlag sighed, “It’s spelt W-E-L-S-T-U-R-M.” he told her. “I knew I should have hired the brunette.” he groaned. Two minutes later the secretary emerged clutching a file, her large breasts bouncing under the tight nurse’s uniform she wore. Cross smiled and took the file and flicked through the pages. Placing it on the table he unclipped the case and handed Blitzschlag the bag of blood, the Nazi doctor peering at it before placing it back into the case and handing it to Veronica. “Have Hobs prep Ms. Costanza for surgery, we have the last piece of the puzzle.” he ordered as Cross took the money and the files.
“Good Luck Baron.” he told Blitzschlag, “And thank you for the Intel.” he added as he walked out the room. Blitzschlag rubbed his forehead with his hand before reaching under the desk and removing the mobile phone he kept there. He had never used it before and it only held one number, typing in the digits he waited, the recipient of the call picking up on the third ring. “It’s me, you may want to step up your timetable.” he told the person on the other end of the line, “Someone else is searching for the same prize.” he flicked the off button terminating the call before electrocuting the phone reducing the device to ash and plastic. “What have I done?” he moaned as he reached for his canes, “What have I done.”
Blitzschlag’s mood had not improved by the time he arrived at the surgery dressed in scrubs while his two assistants monitored Andrea, her vital signs stable, as the bag of grey blood was hooked into a stand ready for the transfer. “It’s up to you know doctor.” the first assistant announced handing the baron a scalpel. Blitzschlag nodded and made the first incision cutting away to reveal Andrea’s rib cage. “Bone Saw.” he ordered as he held out the scalpel, the assistant taking it away and replacing it with an electric saw. Powering on the tool Blitzschlag chipped away at the rib’s, splinters of bone flying off before turning off the tool as he created a clear route to Andrea’s heart. “Neodymium Magnet.” he ordered holding out the bone saw, the assistant once again taking the tool and replacing it with the desired item. Blitzschlag sighed, this was the tricky part, he would have to insert the magnet soaked in the blood sample that Cross had brought him. If it went right then they could begin the large-scale transfusion, if it went wrong then Ms. Costanza wouldn’t wake up ever again, possibly even die. “Has this magnet been soaked?” Blitzschlag asked his assistant’s.
“Yes Doctor, everything was prepared before you arrived.” the second assistant announced, her voice muffled by the face mask.
“Very well, watch the heart rate monitor Sandra.” the Baron told her, “Joel get the second stage ready, we need to act quickly as soon as the magnet is embedded.” he ordered the male assistant before stabbing the disc into Andrea’s heart. Within seconds the monitor begun to beat franticly announcing that the patient was entering cardiac arrest. Blitzschlag looked down, the metal seemed to be melting over the surface of the heart just like he planned, unfortunately Andrea did seem to be strong enough to take the strain. The beeping stopped as the machine flat-lined, the heart no longer beating.
“Doctor she needs…” Sandra begun but Blitzschlag waved his hand, a minute passed, two minutes, the metal had stopped oozing over the heart but there was still no beat. Suddenly there was a tiny beep, a minor flutter on the machine as Angela’s heart took it’s first contraction under it’s new skin, the next beat came stronger this time, strong enough to cause the scalpels and bone saw in the tray by the operating table to bounce along. Blitzschlag smiled as Joel moved the drip with the grey blood round to the cauterized stump and stuck the needle into the vein. “As soon as I have closed the rib cage and put the skin back over the top open the valve.” Blitzschlag ordered, “Sandra get the Lodestone and ready it for grafting.” he added as he took the rib cage and forced it back together. “Careful now.” he told the other’s we are not out of the woods yet.”
Days later Angela stirred, her long sleep coming to an end, carefully she opened her eyes, the white ceiling brightly illuminated by the powerful light. Groaning she pushed herself up, instinctively going for a one-handed push stumbling forward as she got up, her legs stiff and unresponsive. Desperately she put out both hands to stop herself falling and caught herself with both her left and right hands. She stopped, her hands were both there, both covered with a smooth black skin. She touched her cheek, feeling the sensation of human flesh under the new coating that had spread over her arms. Looking down she saw her legs were encased as well; her entire body under the neck was made of some kind of stone. Panicking Andrea backed away, hoping that she was just in a nightmare, her heart beating faster causing her hands to glow with a purple aura.
“My powers.” she whispered, “My powers are back.”
“Yes, they are.” Blitzschlag announced as the plasma screen sprung to life on the wall. “We were able to return your abilities, even improved them by channelling them through the new skin we grafted onto your body.”
“But how this is amazing.” Andrea gaped reaching out for the metal clip holding her medical chart, her powers dragging the entire board to her hands.
“We inserted a powerful Neodymium Magnet into your heart, one coated with blood obtained by a free lance employee. The reaction caused the metal to spread over your heart turning it into a powerful magnet that restored your powers. We then gave you the rest of the blood in the form of a transfusion and attached a slither of the mineral lodestone to your stump, the ore spread coating your body up to the points we wanted as well as reforming your hand.” Blitzschlag announced as a Nurse entered the room and dropped off some clothing, “The ore amplifies your power and prevents the blood we obtained from SHIELD from changing your skin’s form. Unlike the original donor you need this outer coating to prevent the magnet from bursting out of your body when it encounters more powerful magnetic forces.”
“Not that I’m grateful but what’s the catch?” Andrea asked, “Because I’m sure my health insurance doesn’t cover this kind of treatment.”
“All I ask is a favour in return.” Blitzschlag announced, “Mercenary work no doubt after that your debt is whipped clean.”
“It’s a deal.” Angela announced pulling off the hospital gown and looking down at her lodestone covered skin. Pulling on the white leather tank top and combat trousers Angela felt more powerful then she ever had before, she was harder, meaner looking deadlier. She laughed, the first time for what felt like an age as she finished fitting a pair of boots, her dark body contrasting against the white leather she wore. Levitating off the ground her eyes darted round before settling on the metal door, before ripping it off its hinges and crushing it into a metallic orb. With a single thought she sent the ball smashing through the wall before watching it crash through three empty wards and the atrium barrelling through Blitzschlag’s secretary causing her to detonate in a shower of blood. Angela floated past not really noticing or caring about the mess she had made. Emerging from the doors she saw that beyond the asphalt car-park were mountains of red stone gleaming under the sun. With a final look behind, her she took off propelled by her powers and sped on heading west towards the sounds of the city in the distance.
Emerging from his office Blitzschlag looked around and noticed his former secretary’s implants shredded on the floor, blood splattered across the walls, desk and phones. Behind him the massive body guard emerged and surveyed the mess, “Shall I have Rosita run the advert in the Times again boss.”
“Yes, tell her to alter the criteria so we get some intelligent applicants.” Blitzschlag stated, “And phone O’Shay and the boys and tell them we have a mess to clean up, usual kind and usual payment.” he added slinking back to his office before cursing, “Americans they are so bloody messy.” under his breath before closing the door.
Andrea slept as well as she could, the noise around her creating a cocoon of sound, she had long since adapted to the cacophony of sound that came with living on the street. There was a crunch as somebody stepped into the alley, opening her eyes and turning over Andrea saw a silhouette move towards her, it was a slim person, hair gelled into a Mohawk and judging from the sound somebody wearing heavy boots. Squinting in the twilight she also noticed that the person was armed with a Micro-Uzi pistol, something that screamed thug as more foot falls joined the first intruder, the group heading down the cut-through like a pack of sharks, deliberate and on the prowl for easy targets. The first walked passed her and Andrea held her breath, there were five more all armed with firearms and knives to pass. The second and third moved past but the fourth stopped and sniffed, rat like to go with his small physique, his hands clutching a Desert Eagle that was far to big for him.
“That homeless tart is in here.” he squeaked taking a long deep sniff, “The freak with the missing arm and the powers.”
“How can you be certain?” a larger well-built man asked, as he pumped the shotgun he was carrying.
“I can smell her, she used to steal from the ‘sparklies’ out there.” the rat like man replied jabbing a finger at the end of the alley. “I’ve seen the freak’s nest in here.”
“What kind of powers does she have?” a third gang member asked, his voice calm although the way he clenched onto the P90 suggested that he was terrified.
“She was super magnetic.” the second man announced, “I saw her on the news fighting the Scarlet Spiderman.”
“It’s just the Scarlet Spider.” the first man corrected, he seemed like the leader of the group, and he defiantly didn’t have good intentions on his mind, “Besides she lost her powers, burnt away by that kid who used to roll with the Thunderbolts. Nothing to worry about Riggs?” he told the man with the P90.
“So, what’s the plan Boss?” Riggs asked.
“We kill the little bitch.” the rat like leader announced, “You and Doss set those P90s to Auto and shoot anything trying to get out. Garth will check out the structures and flush her towards you. The rest of us will get onto one of the fire escapes and keep her pinned down so you can catch her in the crossfire and kill her. No way are we letting a mutant squat on our territory.”
Andrea released her breath, she wasn’t a mutant and had always hated being called one, everyone compared her to Magneto, Polaris and every other being that could manipulate metal like she could or used to do. It was something she hated but she was in no state to fight the hood’s congregated outside her shelter so she lied still and tried not to draw attention to herself. The effort came too little too late, the big man with the shotgun, Garth, by what Rat Boy had revealed turned and fired two shots into the shack she was in, the blasts flying over her head with a few stray pellets nicking her skin. Her cover blow Andrea got to her feet and wobbled out of the entrance, her purple hair scraggly and covering her eyes, causing all the gang members to flinch and back away despite knowing that she wasn’t really a threat. Concentrating Andrea narrowed her eyes and clenched her remaining fist, the usual routine that came with activating her former powers and while they were now limited to what she could lift physically with her one remaining arm it had worked well enough to scare away potential muggers in the past.
Riggs panicked and dropped the P90 he was carrying and ran along with a formally silent man who had been wielding an old-fashioned hunting rifle, the others regained their composure. “Ventilate that bitch.” Rat Boy screamed as Andrea hobbled past him in an attempt to escape. At the first click of the trigger she collapsed, a hail of automatic fire and pistol shots whizzing over her head, the thugs emptying their magazines in seconds with not a single shot hitting her. “I got her boss.” Garth yelled as the fire stopped, the noise replaced by the pumping of a shotgun as he headed towards her as she desperately tried to claw her way forward.
“Excuse me gentlemen but what are you doing?” a new voice asked, his tone accented, possibly German or Austrian, Andrea mused as she saw another figure enter her alley accompanied with the click of a walking stick on loose concrete slabs. Looking up she saw an old man heading towards them, moving quickly and with purpose, one of his cane’s brandished at the thugs, most of who were trying to stifle snickers as he came towards them. “Now what are you doing?” he asked again.
“None of your business you senile old basted now fuck off and leave us to our business.” the thug with the Micro-Uzi yelled, “Go back to you assisted living quarters before we blow you away.” he added firing three shots over the old mans head.
“Gunfire doesn’t bother me.” the old man replied, “I fought in the second world war.” he added. One of the hoods gasped, he had obviously put two and two together and realized what the old man had been or still was. Andrea had made the same connection, she had heard about LA’s thriving Neo-Nazi scene and had decided to keep away from them. “Now I suggest you leave.” the German announced. One of the men, the one who had gasped made a move to leave before looking at Rat Boy and then the old man before making running his number one priority.
“Fucking coward.” Rat Boy screamed, “We’re going to hunt you down and rape your mum and sister in-front of you before killing you.”
“He made the right choice.” the German announced, “You’re talk of raping and killing is so vulgar, so crude there are more horrific ways to ruin a foe, ones that should never be mentioned.” on the final word he slammed the shotgun wielding Gath with his stick leaving a stinging welt on his face before spinning and jabbing him in the stomach, causing him to wince in pain. The Micro-Uzi Thug let out a single shot before his elderly assailant slapped his weapon away, the gun clattering over the floor. Both he and Garth looked at each other and silently agreed that this strange gentleman was not the kind of easy target they enjoyed taking advantage of and followed their former comrades out of the alley leaving Rat-Boy alone. The young hood moved in to pistol whip the German, ducking under a cane strike before being stopped from moving any further by the second. The old man smiled and whispered something in his ear before Rat Boy backed off, “You can keep the girl, we don’t even want the freak.” he squeaked before scuttling away leaving Andrea alone with the old man.
“Valarie.” the old man called as he lowered his sticks, “Come quick we found another one.”
“Another one?” Andrea asked, “Who the hell are you?”
“I am Baron Wernher von Blitzschlag” the German told her, “Don’t worry Ms. Costanza you will be safe with us.” he added as a woman in a chauffer’s uniform came running down the alley with a big black man, at least seven-foot-tall and built like a barn door, a bodyguard, Andrea thought, not that the old coot seemed to need it. Blitzschlag bent down, his joints creaking and pulled out a tissue rubbing some of the grime of Andrea’s face before placing his hand on her shoulder, “We will fix you my dear.” he told her as his hand sparked with electricity the ambient discharge running down Andrea’s body, for a brief moment she felt something stir within her but then it died as she collapsed onto the concrete. “Load her up and keep her sedated we have much work to do with this one.” Blitzschlag ordered his staff as the chauffer and the bodyguard carefully lifted Angela and took her to the blacked-out Jeep at the end of the alley before placing her inside and taking her away.
Blitzschlag sat in his office carefully writing down some notes as he listened to the Boys from Brazil on Audio Book, chuckling as he made some minor calculations to the experiment he was working on. The room he was in was quite Spartan; the large mahogany writing desk and padded chair the main features save for a few books on the shelf along the back wall and a security screen currently tuned into the room where he and his men had placed Angela, the woman still sleeping as the nurse entered and changed the intravenous drip. For the last week his ‘patient’ had remained asleep, probably a good thing as it allowed her body to heal now that it was getting regular feeding.
“Baron,” his secretary announced over the buildings PA system, “Your three o’clock is here.”
“Send him in.” Blitzschlag stated as he looked at the wall, he had removed the clock shortly after buying the premises, the monotones tick of the hands moving were a sure distraction. The door handle turned and a man dressed in a paramedic’s uniform entered his arm handcuffed to an organ transplant container. “Baron, I have the samples you requested.” he said as he scratched his face before pulling off the prosthetic mask to reveal a man with cropped hair dyed white and a targeting visor over his left eye, the lens stylized into a cross. “Now let’s see the money.”
“Ah ever the mercenary Mr. Cross.” Blitzschlag stated pulling out a suitcase before flipping the latches and revealing rows of non-sequential hundred-dollar bills. “Now let me see the solution.” he asked Cross. The mercenary nodded and flipped the lid of the case up and pulled out a sack of granite grey fluid before placing it back into the case.
“I will take only what will cover my expenses.” Cross told Blitzschlag, “You can keep the rest.”
“How generous.” Blitzschlag announced, “I suppose you want something else instead, I’m afraid I don’t have much but cash.”
“Oh, you have just what I need.” Cross replied, “Like files on Project Welsturm for example.”
“Wh…where did you hear about Welsturm.” Blitzschlag said his voice losing it’s cool for the first time.
“The CIA, they still keep the old OSS files under lock and key, I happened to come across it and memorized the names. I know you oversaw the final stage before activation.” Cross growled, “Now tell me or your blood for that transfusion gets vaporized, you see I’ve been trying to get hold of you for years and I figured that you might try and slip out of my fingers so I implanted a tiny amount of C4 in the case, enough to destroy the sample.”
“Veronica get the files from the archive marked Welsturm.” Blitzschlag sighed, “It’s spelt W-E-L-S-T-U-R-M.” he told her. “I knew I should have hired the brunette.” he groaned. Two minutes later the secretary emerged clutching a file, her large breasts bouncing under the tight nurse’s uniform she wore. Cross smiled and took the file and flicked through the pages. Placing it on the table he unclipped the case and handed Blitzschlag the bag of blood, the Nazi doctor peering at it before placing it back into the case and handing it to Veronica. “Have Hobs prep Ms. Costanza for surgery, we have the last piece of the puzzle.” he ordered as Cross took the money and the files.
“Good Luck Baron.” he told Blitzschlag, “And thank you for the Intel.” he added as he walked out the room. Blitzschlag rubbed his forehead with his hand before reaching under the desk and removing the mobile phone he kept there. He had never used it before and it only held one number, typing in the digits he waited, the recipient of the call picking up on the third ring. “It’s me, you may want to step up your timetable.” he told the person on the other end of the line, “Someone else is searching for the same prize.” he flicked the off button terminating the call before electrocuting the phone reducing the device to ash and plastic. “What have I done?” he moaned as he reached for his canes, “What have I done.”
Blitzschlag’s mood had not improved by the time he arrived at the surgery dressed in scrubs while his two assistants monitored Andrea, her vital signs stable, as the bag of grey blood was hooked into a stand ready for the transfer. “It’s up to you know doctor.” the first assistant announced handing the baron a scalpel. Blitzschlag nodded and made the first incision cutting away to reveal Andrea’s rib cage. “Bone Saw.” he ordered as he held out the scalpel, the assistant taking it away and replacing it with an electric saw. Powering on the tool Blitzschlag chipped away at the rib’s, splinters of bone flying off before turning off the tool as he created a clear route to Andrea’s heart. “Neodymium Magnet.” he ordered holding out the bone saw, the assistant once again taking the tool and replacing it with the desired item. Blitzschlag sighed, this was the tricky part, he would have to insert the magnet soaked in the blood sample that Cross had brought him. If it went right then they could begin the large-scale transfusion, if it went wrong then Ms. Costanza wouldn’t wake up ever again, possibly even die. “Has this magnet been soaked?” Blitzschlag asked his assistant’s.
“Yes Doctor, everything was prepared before you arrived.” the second assistant announced, her voice muffled by the face mask.
“Very well, watch the heart rate monitor Sandra.” the Baron told her, “Joel get the second stage ready, we need to act quickly as soon as the magnet is embedded.” he ordered the male assistant before stabbing the disc into Andrea’s heart. Within seconds the monitor begun to beat franticly announcing that the patient was entering cardiac arrest. Blitzschlag looked down, the metal seemed to be melting over the surface of the heart just like he planned, unfortunately Andrea did seem to be strong enough to take the strain. The beeping stopped as the machine flat-lined, the heart no longer beating.
“Doctor she needs…” Sandra begun but Blitzschlag waved his hand, a minute passed, two minutes, the metal had stopped oozing over the heart but there was still no beat. Suddenly there was a tiny beep, a minor flutter on the machine as Angela’s heart took it’s first contraction under it’s new skin, the next beat came stronger this time, strong enough to cause the scalpels and bone saw in the tray by the operating table to bounce along. Blitzschlag smiled as Joel moved the drip with the grey blood round to the cauterized stump and stuck the needle into the vein. “As soon as I have closed the rib cage and put the skin back over the top open the valve.” Blitzschlag ordered, “Sandra get the Lodestone and ready it for grafting.” he added as he took the rib cage and forced it back together. “Careful now.” he told the other’s we are not out of the woods yet.”
Days later Angela stirred, her long sleep coming to an end, carefully she opened her eyes, the white ceiling brightly illuminated by the powerful light. Groaning she pushed herself up, instinctively going for a one-handed push stumbling forward as she got up, her legs stiff and unresponsive. Desperately she put out both hands to stop herself falling and caught herself with both her left and right hands. She stopped, her hands were both there, both covered with a smooth black skin. She touched her cheek, feeling the sensation of human flesh under the new coating that had spread over her arms. Looking down she saw her legs were encased as well; her entire body under the neck was made of some kind of stone. Panicking Andrea backed away, hoping that she was just in a nightmare, her heart beating faster causing her hands to glow with a purple aura.
“My powers.” she whispered, “My powers are back.”
“Yes, they are.” Blitzschlag announced as the plasma screen sprung to life on the wall. “We were able to return your abilities, even improved them by channelling them through the new skin we grafted onto your body.”
“But how this is amazing.” Andrea gaped reaching out for the metal clip holding her medical chart, her powers dragging the entire board to her hands.
“We inserted a powerful Neodymium Magnet into your heart, one coated with blood obtained by a free lance employee. The reaction caused the metal to spread over your heart turning it into a powerful magnet that restored your powers. We then gave you the rest of the blood in the form of a transfusion and attached a slither of the mineral lodestone to your stump, the ore spread coating your body up to the points we wanted as well as reforming your hand.” Blitzschlag announced as a Nurse entered the room and dropped off some clothing, “The ore amplifies your power and prevents the blood we obtained from SHIELD from changing your skin’s form. Unlike the original donor you need this outer coating to prevent the magnet from bursting out of your body when it encounters more powerful magnetic forces.”
“Not that I’m grateful but what’s the catch?” Andrea asked, “Because I’m sure my health insurance doesn’t cover this kind of treatment.”
“All I ask is a favour in return.” Blitzschlag announced, “Mercenary work no doubt after that your debt is whipped clean.”
“It’s a deal.” Angela announced pulling off the hospital gown and looking down at her lodestone covered skin. Pulling on the white leather tank top and combat trousers Angela felt more powerful then she ever had before, she was harder, meaner looking deadlier. She laughed, the first time for what felt like an age as she finished fitting a pair of boots, her dark body contrasting against the white leather she wore. Levitating off the ground her eyes darted round before settling on the metal door, before ripping it off its hinges and crushing it into a metallic orb. With a single thought she sent the ball smashing through the wall before watching it crash through three empty wards and the atrium barrelling through Blitzschlag’s secretary causing her to detonate in a shower of blood. Angela floated past not really noticing or caring about the mess she had made. Emerging from the doors she saw that beyond the asphalt car-park were mountains of red stone gleaming under the sun. With a final look behind, her she took off propelled by her powers and sped on heading west towards the sounds of the city in the distance.
Emerging from his office Blitzschlag looked around and noticed his former secretary’s implants shredded on the floor, blood splattered across the walls, desk and phones. Behind him the massive body guard emerged and surveyed the mess, “Shall I have Rosita run the advert in the Times again boss.”
“Yes, tell her to alter the criteria so we get some intelligent applicants.” Blitzschlag stated, “And phone O’Shay and the boys and tell them we have a mess to clean up, usual kind and usual payment.” he added slinking back to his office before cursing, “Americans they are so bloody messy.” under his breath before closing the door.