The nimble little
RSX Type S
pulled into the parking structure on Orange Grove Avenue. Typical for this time of evening, the place was jammed. Between
Elephant Bar, Islands,
and the
AMC 16
Multiplex – not to mention all the businesses along adjacent San Fernando Road - you just couldn't
get
a space in here, or its companion garage across the street. Parking the newly-rechristened
Aurora
in geo-stationary orbit,
cloaked,
had been easier. The magnificent blonde had realized then she was famished – and had already promised herself a decent cheeseburger.
She had crossed through the portal into her apartment, peeled off her bloody fatigues, showered, did a little makeup (it always amazed her how a little thing like that could make a girl feel like a million bucks), then fluffed her hair with the blow dryer. She slipped into something comfortable – jeans, Nikes, and her favorite "I Run With The Big Dogs" T-shirt, then gotten into her car and hurried over. She wondered, briefly if she should have worn something a little snazzier for her first night back. Nah, why bother? In this town, who would notice?
Fortune smiles on the foolish. She had taken a chance on the garage and was rewarded. Coming around the near turn on the second level, she nearly collided with a minivan backing out of its space. The family within had no doubt just enjoyed
A Shark's Tale
and was now on their way home. She bade them Godspeed, then zipped into the beckoning slot.
Upon exiting the coupe, Giselle once again admired the Acura's clean lines. She liked the car, its elegant simplicity and stunning performance –
and
, it was a Honda product. Around here, you couldn't throw a stone in any direction without hitting one. For now, she would revel in that added layer of anonymity. That was why she had returned to Burbank instead of going home to Chicago after so many years. Here, she was just another six-foot Blonde in Tinseltown. Anyway, she already had an apartment here, a life – such as it was. Until she could reunite with the one who meant more to her than Life itself, this existence would have to suffice. For now, Giselle would just
blend in
– and attempt to shut out the horror of the last few days.
*****
Sadie had been in constant communication with '1jb' - now
Aurora
- since taking control of the Praetor's console. Adapting to the command systems of the great starship was merely an extension of what she had already accomplished with the master console. She had brought the disrupters online and aimed them dead-center at Arcturus Prime's capital city. At the end, she had uplinked herself to the starship's mainframe, then used its personnel portal to whisk Giselle aboard with seconds to spare. Even as the S.A.D.M. was laying waste to the Control Chamber and planetary shields, Sadie was firing the main disrupter bank to administer the
coup de grace.
Giselle had watched dispassionately as Arcturus Prime died. She could imagine those tens of billions of 'civilized' beings crying out in horror and... utter astonishment, to have been beaten at their own game by a semi-civilized savage, her mate, her laptop computer – and the Arcturans' own ultra-modern, ultra-lethal weapon of mass destruction, of which they had lost control.
She tried not to imagine the hundreds of billions of others, over countless centuries, whom the Arcturans had callously erased in the name of 'entertainment'. She idly wondered how many Arcturans, when faced with their own death, had been perverse enough to cum – and how many had simply peed their pants.
Jerk THAT, you bastards!
Lorelei had never been intended to lay waste to an entire race or planet?
Sue me! Say hello to the new, improved Lorelei 2.0 –
Planetary
annihilatance
.
Upon arrival in Earth orbit, Giselle had one final duty to discharge. Using the portal's time displacement capability, she would arrange a series of 'visitations'. First, she would greet an astonished little boy who, moments before, had been peeing in the North Woods. Next would come a badly burned Ranger lieutenant. She would scoop him out of Haiphong harbor, where he had been blown by the force of the first exploding gasoline drum. Finally, she would chat with a soon-to-be-beautiful spy, just coming into her own. Giselle would tell each of them a story – at least, their part in it.
The lieutenant would require medical care; a very special 'inoculation'. She would then send him back to Japan. Dr. Hatsumi and Mike's surrogate 'family' would welcome him home, care for him while
Lorelei
healed his body. At the same time, he would have to face the most difficult phase of his mission and life.
Lorelei
would change him in other ways, ways few men ever contemplate.
Certainly,
Lorelei
's
designers had never considered the effect of their powerful mutagenic agent on a person born with Klinefelter's Syndrome. The extra X chromosome Mike Blair carried within his genetic matrix had a bizarre 'wild card' effect on the
Lorelei
process. He survived his 'inoculation' – at the price of his gender. He –
she
– would be strong enough to deal with that, knowing it was that transformation that would enable her to infiltrate The Tournament and wreak a bloody vengeance no other human could.
At last, 'Giselle René Du Mont' would return to the United States. She would re-join her old world in a new identity and capacity and secure the position with
Project Lorelei.
Then, she would take the fateful injection that would, among other powers, enable her to morph at will. Lorelei's originators had made that ability the showcase of the project; the 'ultimate Stealth technology'. She had been testing the limits of her morphing ability when her spirit guide had first manifested itself in physical form, causing Swifty Pike such shock and awe.
Finally, Giselle established herself in the apartment in Burbank, within the urban swell of Los Angeles – The City of Angels. Thus, she would be in the right place at the right time, where the Arcturans would find her – exactly where
her
'angel' had told her they would look. At that time, she would have exactly the right skills and tools to get the job done. Her angel had made certain of that, too.
*****
Giselle had wanted to contact Geoffrey
first thing;
tell him she was home and safe, how much she loved him and wanted nothing more in life than to be with him. With her laptop gone – left behind on The Arena - she had been unable to e-mail him right away. She had a desktop computer in her apartment, but it was in her closet, not even hooked up. She had used her laptop exclusively since purchasing it. Besides, there was that pesky eight-hour time zone difference. He likely wouldn't check his e-mail until morning, anyway.
She would return home after dinner, plug the older system back in, and send the most important electronic message of her life. She would have to tell him
everything,
but not over the Internet or phone; he deserved better. She would want to do that in person. Then, he could make an informed decision about the future of their relationship. She prayed he would still feel the same for her after she told him.
She skipped down the stairs and entered
Fuddruckers
through the promenade entrance. She had been looking forward to this for a
week
. What a break; for once, there was no line. OK, she would splurge; the half-pound Bacon-Cheddar burger, with fries – and one of Fuddies' signature chocolate shakes, the kind you had to eat with a spoon. She already had the ten-dollar bill in her hand when she stepped up to the counter.
"Gina", as the nametag read, was futzing around with something below counter level. She straightened up and... you could
feel
the shock radiate from her, as though she had been physically struck.
"W-w-welcome to F-F-Fud...rucker's. C-can I t-take y-y-your order?"
Giselle calmly placed her order, added a smile, and handed the girl the ten-dollar bill. The flustered order taker managed a weak smile of her own and handed the Blonde her change and the little coaster-thingy that would light up and buzz when the order was ready.
Giselle picked up her shake at the bakery/confectionary counter, then went to find a table. The big wood-and-plaster room with its stuffed-to-the-gills Rock 'n Roll memorabilia felt comforting. The Elvis booth was available. Aw, what the Hell? She walked up the short flight of stairs and across the room, placed her shake on the table, slid around the semi-circular red vinyl bench and gratefully leaned back against the high rear cushion.
The exhausted woman was troubled by Gina's reaction. It wasn't like Giselle was some big-time Hollywood star. Burbank was pretty blasé about that anyway. People in 'The Business' frequented stores and restaurants in this town
every day. Hell, she herself had once run into Julian McMahon from Nip/Tuck in CompUSA! As far as Gina was concerned, the tall Blonde should be just another nobody like her. What had spooked the girl? Giselle glanced down at her T-shirt with its dated pop-culture legend and decided she should have put on something a little more presentable after all. She didn't even want to think about it – or anything else – anymore. The glad-to-be-ex-warrior just closed her eyes and let her mind drift....
"Giselle? Giselle? I have your cheeseburger."
Her eyes flew open, even as her body jerked bolt-upright. Gina jumped back, nearly dropping the serving basket. The coaster-thingy was merrily vibrating across the tabletop, lights blinking. Giselle quickly flashed a reassuring smile.
"I'm sorry I startled you. I must have dozed off."
The girl stepped forward again, placing the basket on the edge of the table and sliding it forward gingerly. She then carefully lay a few dollar bills and coins on the tabletop.
"That's OK. If anybody deserves a little shut-eye, it's you. The Manager asked me to give you your money back. This one's on us."
"Uh... thank you."
"No, thank
you
, from all of us, for –
everything.
"
Gina had been thorough. She had added slices of tomato, onion and pickles to the side of the plate, plus the little paper cups of ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise from the condiments bar. Giselle plopped a slice of tomato, a few pickles and some mustard on her burger, picked it up, and took a bite. She chewed thoughtfully. Which had surprised her more? That she had dozed off? That the girl had brought her order to the table? Or that she had called Giselle by name? The concerned blonde had a
really bad feeling
about this.
The televisions were on; all of them. Each was tuned to a different network, but the story was the same. It was all about The Tournament. Every network anchor, plus all the correspondents and studio analysts, were hashing, re-hashing, and re-re-hashing the details. There were video clips and sound bites, too; Giselle and Geoffrey together, their battles with the Golganthans, her demolition of the ant, Leatherface and the Raptors, plus Geoffrey's duel with the Night Stalkers (the latter two via night-vision imaging), the ambushes in the forest, the final showdown with the Praetor and Arcturan warriors in the Control Chamber, even a from-space shot of Arcturus Prime shattering.
The Arcturans had had a macabre sense of the theatrical. Earth was transmissions-capable? Fine; enjoy the show! The signal from Arcturus had hit Earth's network of communications satellites even as Giselle arrived on The Arena. It had overwhelmed the native protocols and repeated the feed to all ground stations and receivers. The Arcturan feed had flooded the airwaves and cable networks, being broadcast on every channel. In a final, ghastly bit of showmanship,
Aurora
