Part 19: The Battle Of WOOHP Headquarters

"Go! Go! Push them back!" Screams of anger and fury rang through the air, compounded by the howls of pain and agony from the wounded and dying. Gunfire tore through the air, every bullet cutting through a formerly peaceful and calm atmosphere. Somehow, the tide of the battle for WOOHP Headquarters had begun to turn. The civilians had begun taking the weapons from the fallen WOOHP Officers, turning them on the guards of the building, and trying to break their way inside. The rest of the officers remained holed up inside, firing through the many windows that dotted the walls.

Clover didn't use her Phase Changer Phaser, getting rid of it in favor of using a more traditional assault rifle. Vaporizing parts of the building and bringing it down on top of both sides wouldn't do much good for their cause. Her bullets tore through the windows, occasionally plunging into an officer to send him either to the floor inside, or falling to his death on the pavement before the swelling civilian army.

At last they broke through the front doors of WOOHP Headquarters, the civilian warriors pouring into the building. Clover rushed inside as well, opening fire on anything in a black tuxedo. Her aim was sharp, and most of her bullets struck home, sending them flying up against the cold steel walls. Clover made her way down the hall, gesturing for several men behind her to follow. There was one thing that would end the war now, before it escalated. She had to get to Jerry.

They ran down the hall, ignoring the screams, shouts, and gunfire that echoed through the steel hallways. They reached the stairs and ran inside, taking the stairs upward two at a time in her rush to end the bloodshed, and avenge Sam. Jerry had many crimes to answer for apparently... what else could he have done that she didn't even know about? The thought made her blood boil.

They emerged from the stairwell on the floor of Jerry's office, dodging occasional bursts of gunfire and taking out WOOHP Officers on their way. The men who followed her were surprisingly capable for civilians. They must have been in the army before all of this began, even their expressions were those of seasons warriors. Cold, emotionless.

They fought their way down the hall until they reached Jerry's office. Clover gestured for each of the men to take up a position beside the door, which they quickly complied with. Clover gripped the doorhandle and suddenly pushed it open, jumping inside and raising her rifle's sight to her eye, quickly scanning the room for any sign of Jerry.

The room was completely empty. "Damnit, I should've known he'd turn tail. Probably on the roof." Clover turned to leave, but the door slammed shut behind her suddenly with a soft click. "Wha? Hey!" Clover pounded on the door angrily, though there was no way she could break through the thick steel. "Goddamnit, there's gotta be a way out of here."

She pulled her backpack off and began to rummage through it, looking for anything she could use to break through the solid steel door. "No... no... n..." she stopped when she heard a soft whirring noise behind her, growing louder by the moment, as if approaching her back. Clover waited a few moments, then leapt into the air, narrowly avoiding a metallic tentacle that banged into the door.

Clover landed in a crouch, then cartwheeleed to the side as yet more tentacles surged after her like a nest of pythons. Her backpack flew to the floor across the room as Clover contorted her body desperately to stay out of their grasp, her feet bouncing off the wall and kicking off to send her flying toward Jerry's desk, landing on top of it with a loud thump. She whirled on the tentacles, putting her fists up in front of her, but they didn't advance any further.

"You have been accused of treason." GLADIS said from behind Clover's head. "Turn yourself in quietly, and I will not be forced to implement lethal measures."

"You know GLADIS, there's something I've always wanted to tell you." Clover scanned the room quickly to locate her backpack lying against the far wall. She leapt off the table suddenly, hoping to catch GLADIS off-guard. But of course, GLADIS was a machine, with reflexes far more capable than any human's. In an instant the tentacles were on her, trying to grab or wrap around her.

Clover shoved her way through them, bouncing off of one with her hand and whirling through the others in a series of spectacular gymnastic maneuvers she wished someone was around to witness. She finally kicked one tentacle aside, then launched herself off another to come within reach of her backpack. She thrust her hand inside quickly and whipped out a Magnetron Haircurler, holding it in front of her like a dagger.

Several tentacles whipped out at her, but she whirled, slamming the curler into each one. They twitched as the electromagnetic charge ran through them, disabling them from the inside. She took out each tentacle until there was none left, leaving only GLADIS' core watching her from up on the wall behind Jerry's desk.

"You are a BITCH!" Clover wound up her arm, flinging the haircurler across the room like a dagger. The metal end plunged into GLADIS' camera-eye, shattering the lens and sending an electrical surge through its core.

"You will happy treason faith dead wonder right good..." GLADIS spewed randomly as its systems twitched, its voice becoming more erratic by the moment. Finally it shut down completely, and Clover heard the electronic lock on the door click open, allowing her to exit the room. She ran out into the hall, finding the men who had accompanied her gone.

"Jerry..." Clover muttered darkly. She took off down the hall again, running into the stairs and taking them two at a time up toward the roof, where Jerry would undoubtedly be trying to escape in one of the WOOHP jets. She took the steps as fast as she could, trying not to pant too badly as she reached the top and darted out into the sunlight. A jet was just lifting off from the landing pad, its jets turned downward.

"Damnit! Jerry!" Clover ran out onto the landing pad, trying to catch up, but of course the jet quickly hove out of range, accelerating away from her. Clover reached into her backpack and whipped out a Super Range Biodegradable Spitball Tracker, putting it to her lips and firing a single spitball. The jet moved further and further away, but she cried out in victory as the spitball found its mark, slamming and sticking to the underside of the left wing.

The jet moved off, but Clover wouldn't lose it now. She ran toward one of the smaller helipads, where a Helijet was just sitting, powerless. She ran toward it and flung the door open, only to gasp in surprise when someone kicked her in the chest from inside, knocking her back to the roof of WOOHP Headquarters with a heavy thump.

Clover quickly jumped backward to her feet, facing the Helijet. Pam, Alice, Crimson, and Brittany's former teammates all climbed out of the jet, watching her with deadly serious gazes. "You know what Jerry's been doing, don't you?" Clover growled. "You know he attacked those innocent people! You know he murdered millions more!"

"We know that you betrayed WOOHP, and now you're leading an unprovoked assault." Pam replied coldly. "I didn't want to believe it... but it's true. You're just an opportunistic witch, looking for power." Clover backed away slowly as the five highly skilled WOOHP agents advanced on her. One of the best or not, Clover wouldn't have a prayer if it came down to a fight.

"Unprovoked attack?" Clover exclaimed. "Didn't you see that massacre that took place right out front? WOOHP Officers gunning people down in the streets! Men, women, children! Jerry's gone insane, you have to realize that!"

"Where are Sam and Alex?" Pam asked coolly. "Our orders are to bring you all in... and that's what we plan to do. It's just not a successful mission without the complete set."

"I'm not telling you a Goddamn thing." Clover growled through clenched teeth. She couldn't believe they would ignore what Jerry was doing. He was a murderer... one of the worst villains she'd ever seen in her life.

"We'll get the information from you... one way or another." Pam, Alice and Crimson each fell into a fighting stance. Yuki and Megan followed suit, looking less sure than the three old-time spies did. Clover dropped into a fighting stance as well, knowing that she would get her ass handed to her on a bloody platter. She couldn't just give up however.

"I'll give you one last chance, before I open up a can of WOOHP whoopass on you." Clover bluffed darkly. It didn't seem to phase any of the girls, but it was worth a shot.

"Girls, get her!" Pam shouted. All five girls lunged at Clover at once, moving to surround her. But Clover backflipped away from them rapidly, spinning across the roof. The other WOOHP Agents followed, but suddenly Clover stopped and flipped forward, whirling in mid-air to kick Yuki squarely across the jaw. The girl spun to the roof with a heavy thud, her head snapping painfully around.

Clover landed in a crouch, leaping in a backward spin to avoid Crimson's lunge from behind. She whirled to kick the old-time spy in the back, but Crimson whirled out of the way and spun, lashing out with a furious kick at Clover's face. Clover bent over backwards to avoid it like a limbo champion, spotting Alice's sweeping kick just in time to bring her legs up, catching herself with her hands.

She lashed out with both legs, shoving Alice and Crimson back as well as giving herself leverage to spin backward to her feet. Megan grabbed her from behind, wrapping her arms around her torso and holding tightly. Clover gasped in surprise when the girl heaved, hauling Clover off the roof and slamming her face first onto the concrete in a strange wrestling move.

It took Clover only a moment to get her bearings and bring her leg around to sweep Megan's feet right out from under her. She used the momentum of the sweep to spin to her feet in a graceful ballet move, landing in a crouch as Pam rushed her from the front, whirling in a magnificent roundhouse kick. Clover moved to the side to avoid it, then lurched forward with a return jab.

Clover and Pam dissolved into a furious flurry of traded blows, each blocking and countering the other in a string of lightning fast strikes that would have been difficult for an onlooker to follow. Suddenly Pam wrapped her arms around Clover's punch, whirling and throwing Clover over her shoulder. It was one of the oldest tricks in the book, and Clover cursed herself for falling for it even as her back collided with the cement.

Instantly Clover was moving again, rolling to the side away from her, and trying to climb to her feet. A swift kick to her side from Crimson knocked her back to the ground however, the heel of her boot digging painfully into Clover's side. Clover rolled on the ground again and tried to take out Pam's legs with a sweep of her arms, but the older woman leapt over her arms to land on top of her, her heels digging into Clover's lower back.

Clover howled in pain and clenched her fists, but she wasn't done yet. She pushed herself up slowly, despite Pam's added weight and the sharp pain in her back. Clover pushed herself into a roll, knocking Pam off balance and to the cement roof. By now however the other four spies had recovered and were on her in an instant before she could get to her feet.

Pam and Alice grabbed Clover's arms and pinned them to the roof, holding Clover face down. Megan and Yuki grabbed her legs, holding them on the roof as well. Clover howled angrily and struggled to free herself, but the four spies held so tightly she could barely move at all. Clover's eyes swept upward slowly as Pam's legs appeared in front of her. The woman stared down at her victoriously.

"I've gotta admit... you are very, very good Clover. Just what I would want one of WOOHP's best to be." Pam knelt down in front of her. "Are you going to tell me where Alex and Sam are now? If you all turn yourselves in, I'm sure Jerry would be willing to show you all mercy."

"You can kiss my ass if you think I'm going to rat out Alex and Sam." Clover growled. Pam sighed and pulled a glove out of her pocket to slip it on over her normal one.

"Then we'll do it the hard way, once we get the chance." Pam held her gloved hand down in front of Clover's face, an obnoxious green gas seeping through the palm. Clover groaned in disgust at the smell, trying to turn away from it, but Pam held her face there. It wasn't long before the sheer stench and lack of oxygen pushed Clover into the darkness of unconsciousness.

She had no idea how long it was before she regained consciousness. She was being dragged through a steel hallway, by a pair of rough hands holding tightly to her arms. She tried to move, but her wrists were tightly bound behind her back, as were her ankles. They weren't taking any chances here. A glance to the side showed a pair of gruff looking men dragging her along down the corridor.

"Where... am I...?" Clover asked groggily.

"None of your business, traitor." The man growled at her as he and his partner moved up to what looked like a solid steel detention cell. They cut the bonds on Clover's limbs and threw her in, locking the door behind her quickly. Clover grunted and pushed herself up. Her limbs felt like wet noodles for some reason... what had they done to her exactly?

"Fantastic..." Clover rubbed her head. "Now what am I supposed to do...?"

"Rot... I believe." A familiar woman's voice said from the slit in the door. Clover blinked and walked up to the door to listen. "That's what we've been doing so far. Nice to have new company."

"Lady Luna?" Clover blinked in surprise. "What are you doing here? Jerry said he was going to send you back into space."

"I know, I thought so too, moonbeam." Lady Luna replied. "I was on my way to the shuttle launch site and they just suddenly grabbed me and knocked me out. I woke up here, and the guard won't tell me anything. After what I've heard from Rassy though, I suspect they were paranoid about letting someone so closely associated with the whole incident go free."

"Rassy?" Clover asked.

"Yes, I'm here too." A man with a slight accent said from further down the hallway. In a moment Clover was able to place it... Professor Rasputin Zero, the insane conservationist. "After you girls ran off, Jerry grew paranoid and had me locked in here for knowing too much. Just in case I might decide to tell the truth too." He sighed. "Now my babies will probably whither away..."

"Such irony, really." Lady Luna sighed. "We were the dark stars in the night, and then we turned to the light... only to be dampened by a star grown darker still."

"Not a bad poem." Zero said.

"Thank you." Lady Luna said appreciatively. "Though I fear our stars may be reaching their end soon. If Jerry really is so paranoid about the truth as to never release us, he may simply have us put to death."

"Don't worry, I'll find a way out of here." Clover told them. "I've beaten down plenty of baddies in the last few years, there's no way I'm letting anyone get away with something like this... even Jerry." Clover said darkly.

"Wonderful speech starshine, but do you actually have a plan or just blind determination?" Lady Luna asked.

"Determination, mostly." Clover said honestly.

"I thought as much." Lady Luna sighed. They all fell silent when they heard a pair of footsteps moving down the hallway toward them. Clover backed away from the door as the lock was turned and the door swung open. Several WOOHP Officers with assault rifles were surrounding the other side of the door, and just inside the circle Jerry was standing.

"Come with us, Clover." Jerry told her emotionlessly. Clover watched them carefully, searching for a means of escape. But she couldn't find a course of action that didn't end in her being shot at least ten times, so she complied and silently left the small detention cell. The guards surrounded her, every gun trained on her as they walked down the hallway to another room.

"So where are we?" Clover asked. "A second WOOHP headquarters?"

"That is irrelevant. Lie down." Jerry ordered. Clover didn't protest, lying down on the table at the insistence of the half a dozen assault rifles trained on her. Jerry walked around the table, strapping her in tightly with at least a dozen different thick leather straps. When they were securely fastened the guards lowered their guns and watched in a more relaxed posture.

"Trying to dig through my mind with those machines of yours won't help. I don't know where Alex and Sam are." Clover said.

"You leave me no alternative but to find out." Jerry grabbed a couple of small wires from a table beside the one Clover was lying on and began attaching them to her head. Clover's breathing became a bit more ragged as she realized that he would do whatever he had to do. He would seriously hurt her... he might even kill her to reign in what was happening now.

"I'm telling you, I don't know..." Clover said. Jerry ignored her as he attached the last wire, turning away from her to approach a nearby console. "Jerry, come on! Believe me here! I don't know where they went! Sam got hurt and Alex went to take care of her while I came back! I don't know where Alex took her!" Jerry still ignored her, tapping at the controls in front of him.

Clover grunted when she felt a small surge running through her body. Her muscles twitched for just a moment before the surge subsided. Jerry didn't even looked up, keeping his eyes on the console in front of him. "I can't believe... you would do this to us Jerry." Clover growled. "I can't believe you of all people would try to take over the world..."

"My intention was never to take over." Jerry told her. "But I suppose now I have no choice... the battles across the globe are growing more fierce, thanks to your unprovoked assault."

"Unprovoked?" Clover demanded in shock. "You did NOT just say that! Your WOOHP grunt shot Sam in the stomach! She's paralyzed somewhere right now because YOU ordered an attack on the settlement!" Clover struggled against her bonds, but stopped when the WOOHP Officers standing around the room all oriented their weapons on her.

"I ordered no attack..." Jerry walked back to the table, dismissing her claim with a wave of his hand. "Clover... tell me where Sam and Alex are. I really don't want to hurt you... you're still like a daughter to me."

"Well you can kiss my ass daddy." Clover built up saliva and spat it out in an arc, hitting Jerry square in the chest. Jerry looked down at it, then wiped it off with one hand and walked back to the console. Clover watched him with a sharp, piercing gaze. Suddenly she began to twitch again as the wires against her head began to hum, sending power through her body. "Gggugh..." Clover grunted in pain.

"You can end it now Clover... please." Jerry said.

"Piss... off..." Clover growled through clenched teeth. She instantly regretted it when the voltage turned up, sending her body into a series of painful spasms. "Aaaauuuagh!" She howled in pain.

"Where are Sam and Alex?" Jerry demanded, turning the knob yet another notch. Clover screamed in agony, the fire racing through her veins as if it were about to set her ablaze from the inside.

"I don't know!" Clover howled. Her scream worsened when Jerry turned the machine up again, pumping yet more power through her. Clover's muscles twitched painfully, every nerve ending alight with blazing pain. "I don't know I swear!" She howled. "Alex took Sam... somewhere! ... To... recover! That's all... all I know! Please!" Clover howled.

"You must have a way to contact them, then." Jerry said calmly, walking up to stand beside the table. "Tell me how to find them, Clover. I won't hurt you or them, you have my word." There was Alex's cell phone of course... Jerry could probably trace it if he knew they still had it...

"N... no..." Clover grunted through the searing. "I don't... have any way... please... turn it... off..." Tears were flowing down her cheek uncontrollably.

"You're lying to me, Clover." Jerry said softly. "I know you girls... you would never split up with no recourse for coming back together. Tell me everything you know." Clover refused to respond anymore, struggling to maintain what dignity she could manage as her body twitched and convulsed in a most gruesome manner. She had her eyes squeezed shut against the pain, not that it helped at all.

Suddenly the surge subsided, and Clover's muscles went limp, leaving her lying on the table. Clover opened her tear-streaked eye to look over at Jerry, who was walking back to her from the console.

"We'll resume this later, after you've had time to recover." Jerry told her in a calm, businesslike manner. "I wish you would just help me, Clover. So I wouldn't have to do this."

"I'll never... help you... again." Clover panted painfully. Jerry nodded and turned to leave, leaving Clover strapped to the table. She didn't know how long she could last before she cracked and gave Jerry what he needed, but she would hold on as long as she could. As bad as this pain was, the idea of betraying her best friends seemed even more painful. It was something she would never do...

TO BE CONTINUED