Avenging

by DB Sommer

It's a fusion of Ranma 12 and Marvel's Avengers. Chapter 1 lays the groundwork for what's to come and deals with several of the heroes origins. It is a bit dry and serious compared to the rest of the story. Chapter 2 is more like the rest of the story if you want to skip to it. Book 1 is complete and Book 2 is the sequel.

62. Act V Chapter 9: Bitterfrost Part 1

Avenging

Act V

Welcome to Bitterfrost

Part I

Chapter 9

Any and all C+C appreciated. You can contact me at:

tsommer

All the previous chapters and my other works are stored at:

At :

Standard disclaimer: I don't own any of the Marvel characters or other characters from the numerous animes which are within.

Here's a great reference guide for many character and objects in the Marvel Universe.

www. /Appendix /index. htm

Previously: Some of the aftermath of the Avengers' battle with Kang and the Dead Parade was dealt with. Juna is forcing Kerberos into action. Biko's Master Mold is nearing completion. Master Vamp gave out adamantium steel weapons as door prizes. And Whiplash and Blacklash kicked Daredevil and Hawkeyes' posteriors.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Irie and Narusawa watched a short distance away as emergency crews dealt with the smoldering ruins of what was once part of the underground network of tunnels beneath Tokyo's streets. Actually, a good bit of the streets were now part of the underground network since they had collapsed as well. Most of the fires were out, though the air was thick with smoke. Sinkholes were still an issue as the damage underground was extensive, and not everything that was going to collapse had bothered doing so. Condemning everything was going to be required to some degree. This operation was, as most political figures would dub it, a fiasco.

Even as her eyes surveyed the damage, Narusawa spoke to her superior. "Final casualty total is 12 dead, 18 injured. Five of the injured are bad enough they can start drawing on their pensions. As to hostile SPBs, confirmation of 7 dead and 2 more buried under several tons of rock. So, unless their super powers enabled them to survive being entombed, all known SPBs we encountered are accounted for. I'll add our casualties would have been significantly higher if Orland hadn't shrugged off nearly five hundred pounds of rock and shot that gravity user in the head."

"I'll give him a commendation. Civilian casualties?" Irie's voice was as steady as if he was enquiring about the number of staplers that had to be ordered for the office.

"Difficult to estimate, since the Tokyo Underground was acting as champions for the homeless around here. There were a lot of them around, and between the explosions and tunnel collapses, it's impossible to say. Even recovering bodies is going to be a nightmare since the whole area is unstable. This was a royal clusterfuck thanks to Miss High and Mighty insisting we needed to go in right away."

"What should we have done differently?" Again, Irie's voice held the same emotion as if had said, 'Maybe the office cubicles should be bigger.'

"Lots of things," Narusawa used a lot more emphasis in her speech, as in holding most of it back and still borderline snarling. "Way more recon on the abilities of the Tokyo Underground. We'd never have taken on a gravity user underground. That would have been the disaster it turned out to be. We'd have lured them above ground and ambushed them there in a controlled environment with all escape routes covered. I'm not conceited enough to say we'd have had no casualties, but they would have been limited. Wider variety of armaments to deal with the threats, since being underground limited what we could use as well. A feasibility study on a gas attack on their living quarters would have been good. Even if it didn't work, they would have thought it was a gas leak rather than an attack and it's unlikely they would have been on guard when we hit them again. Lots of other things I would have preferred doing. I'll write it up in a report."

Irie nodded. "All good recommendations, and you won't write a word of them down anywhere. I could think of a half dozen ways to talk around those sound points, which the Councilwoman would do if they were pointed out. Then she would see you aren't prepared to 'play ball' and reassign you somewhere that you couldn't do damage to her career, like the deep-sea kelp farming that's going on. Seaweed can end up in the most interesting of places that far down. I'd prefer you remain here since you are very good at your job."

"It's nice to know you care about me so much," she said dryly.

"Would you believe me if I said I wanted you around because of your charm and personality since it so brightens my day?"

It was possible someone could have made a more derisive snort than the one Narusawa made, but only after years of practice.

"And now you know another reason I have to keep you around. I won't have to break someone new in to understand I don't waste time with unnecessary pleasantries." He returned to the matter before them as they continued observing the crews working to mitigate damage. "I'm going to recommend to the Councilwoman that we fall back on the old standby of a cover story over this incident. I'm thinking gas explosion, which is responsible for 90% of the damage. True, it was caused by an SPB, but that's just an omission rather than an outright fabrication."

"Why? I thought she wanted an incident like this to show why we're needed."

"If things had gone better, like if we'd followed your recommendations, perhaps. But the body count among our ranks was too high. Others will either site it as a shortcoming of the program, or her inability to run it. Neither scenario would be all the desirable in Ariyoshi's eyes. Instead I will emphasize her of the need to advance the timetable on the formation of Panther Brigade to prevent these sorts of setbacks from happening again."

Narusawa nodded. "Power armor would have gone a long way to minimizing causalities. They would have been a liability when taking on Phantom Cats like we used to, but now they're nothing but a plus."

"We won't have unlimited numbers. We'll need to utilize them in more surgical strikes against more difficult opponents. They'll be a worthy supplement to our abilities, the way armored vehicles are to the military. Wolf Brigade isn't going to be replaced any more than ground troops anywhere are. I trust in my ability to convince her its time to move on to the next stage of the operation. You need the correct tools if you want the job done right."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Juna Ariyoshi ground her teeth as she read the report Irie had submitted before their actual face-to-face meeting, a necessary delay since he was on the ground coordinating repairs and cover up. The outcome with the Tokyo Underground had been unacceptable. Ordinarily a few heads beneath her would have rolled to show her fellow assemblymen she wasn't to blame, but not this time. Irie was too valuable, and no one less than him would suffice. Instead she'd keep things quiet and make it seem bad fortune had been to blame. Irie was correct. Gas lines could be accurately blamed for the damage and casualties. She'd include pictures of the charred bodies. Once you showed those to people, they tended to let matters lie. SPBs didn't always choose ideal locations for their bases of operation, and it wasn't like the government were going to do away with gas lines. These things happened, and better luck next time.

And that rationale would only work once. Kerberos' next operation had to be successful or there was a realistic chance everything would fall apart. It hadn't been her fault they had to move their operation up: it had been her contemporaries' fault for not being patient and forcing her to take chances.

She really needed to be prime minister so she had more power and less need to listen to those that couldn't keep up with the changes that had to be made for society. To correct the mistakes it constantly made, both when it came to SPBs and other matters. Japan had never lived up to its potential to its own people or to the world. That would all change once she was in charge.

But it was time to focus on the trees rather than the forest, or she wouldn't have a forest to shape and mold. Power armor. She wanted it eventually, but the plan had called on Wolf Brigade having a few trophies on the mantle to highlight the need to make it bigger and better. Translation: more funding. Lacking that, and with the questions she was getting about the necessity of the program, she couldn't make a sale pitch yet. That meant using what funds she had to purchase enough to ensure success of the next operation. Then she could expand the budget and buy more. For now the money would be tight which meant the number of units purchased would be limited. She needed to get the most bang for her buck.

She'd go to Stane-Daitokuji. The girl had been very willing to make the tools necessary for the future for a reasonable price, with the understanding the government would turn to her first for its weaponry needs. Juna was willing to concede it, though there would be no puppeteering on the part of a military industrial complex. They were the ones that would be dancing to her tune. Government was the solution to everything: corporations a tool for the government to utilize when needed. Though she'd be certain to keep that ideology to herself. Corporations flocked to those that could be bought and rallied against those that couldn't. Once she was properly entrenched into a near unassailable position, then they'd be made to cow rather than coo.

And as long as Biko didn't exceed her role as one who made money by providing services, rather than manipulating events so her services would be needed, she could be left to her own devices.

Juna called some people who could be trusted to whisper in the right ears about what was going to be needed to Biko so she could be ready to supply Ariyoshi's needs.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Sunset Bain, aka Madame Menace, watched in delight as the ship sank into the ocean's depths. She stood on the bow of her new pirate vessel, which had been purchased from A.I.M.. It had originally been commissioned by Commander Kraken and Captain Barracuda, a submarine designed to look like a giant squid of all things. But one couldn't disagree the pair had a certain flair for flamboyance, and this was all them. However, after putting a down payment on it the pair had been captured by the Avengers, and so the vessel had lain in drydock since. A.I.M. had tried to sell it. But high seas piracy had never been a big thing among the super villain set. It was a lonely existence near nothing, travelling far, and if you got motion sickness you were toast. Most people that bothered with piracy couldn't afford the thing, or in many cases didn't want to attract attention to their crimes, which going around in a kraken did. A.I.M. simply couldn't unload the thing.

Then the information came to Madame Menace which necessitated hitting on a target on the open seas. So, she had talked the weapon manufacturer into parting with it for a song. They had probably been losing money with having to house and maintain it and were quietly glad to unload it.

Bain had needed the ship because she had discovered that bitch, Biko, had Baintronics design a large number of specialized parts for power armor to be shipped to Japan. Bain had only known it because she still had access to Baintronics main computer systems thanks to some back doors she had put in. Actually, they had discovered one of her secret access points, but her second one had been undetected thus far. And so she had the inside line on torpedoing, in every sense of the word, another of Biko's schemes. No one manufactured that many high-priced specialized parts unless they had a contract on the line. And a failure to live up to her end of the contract was going to damage her reputation. This was going to piss the thieving assassin off to no end, and Bain might even find a use for the parts she had hijacked before sinking the ship.

She also made certain no one she had allowed to leave the ship knew a woman had been the one to hit them, let alone that it had been the criminal 'Madame Menace'. She didn't want to tip Biko off that someone was out to get her. Oh, she'd figure it out in due time, but Bain would postpone it as long as possible. There were some that had divined her dual identity as businesswoman by day and illegal arms dealer by night. Word might trickle back to her rival. No sense in allowing Biko to think she was alive, though just because a Madame Menace was around it didn't mean Biko would assume it was Bain, whom she was convinced was dead. When a super villain died, ofttimes someone else would pick up the name, especially if it was good. Sometimes multiple people used the same name. There was at least a half dozen Smashers, Crushers, and similar simple names operating at the same time. There actually had been a New Orleans crimelord that went by the title of Madame Menace as well, though the Maggia had muscled her out of her turf and she was missing. Since they had operated in different fields, Bain hadn't bothered to kill the woman. In a way it was flattering someone used the same name, and no one had ever confused the pair. Even if Biko learned of a Madame Menace attacking her, and discovered Bain had been the first, it wasn't necessarily true she would assume Bain had escaped her death. There was some room to maneuver on that front.

The success of the operation made Bain smile. Who knew, maybe she'd start taking to piracy on top of everything else. With Kraken and Barracuda on the shelf, there was now an opening in this niche market which she could potentially dominate. And she already had a ship which she should really use for other things to offset its costs. Might even turn a profit in the long run.

"Gyar," she said, giving piratespeak a try. Maybe a tricorn hat and robot parrot with laser eye beams might be called for. A second name could be taken on for those ventures. 'Calico Jane' had a nice ring to it….

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

Kin Ono, aka The Imperial Hydra, supreme leader of the terrorist organization and mother to the former Avenger known as Giant Man, prepped her master computer for yet another long-range puppeteering job with the robot that was supposed to be her, or rather the identity her husband had formerly held before his passing away.

Despite having manipulated the controls too many times to recall, she found herself making mistakes since she was distracted. For some reason her son had seen fit to travel to the United States and visit a bio-chemist named Bill Foster. For what reason she still hadn't figured out, despite assigning a number of agents to tail him and investigate the matter. The pair were locked up in a lab, and security on it quite good. Whatever it was had been taking a while. It was a pity her son wouldn't confide in her, but lately he'd been quite surly, to the point of being nasty. She didn't mind. If anything his weenie self was tiring, and it was nice to see him grow a set.

He'd also been bitter and angry, though that had been evident for some time. It had started out small, but had blossomed into a sight to behold before all but exploding. He was even drinking, like his father would do when he grew frustrated. It was probably a woman. Nothing drove a man to drink faster than that. That actually made her feel wonderful. That attitude was the same one held by many a member of Hydra. A lot of the rank and file were angry at the world and happy to take said anger out on it by blowing things up or shooting people. It was therapeutic. Maybe her son was becoming the right stuff to inherit the family business. It wasn't like she was getting any younger, and she wanted to hand off the reigns of power to a son that could handle them. Maybe she could hook him up with the new Madame Hydra she had recruited, since the old one had developed a hole in her head and was made into compost. This one was somewhat less psychopathic than the last one; a plus in any relationship.

But that was for later. She'd keep a close eye on that situation while working on this other. Hydra had been treading water too much of late. With Fury gone, and Ono feeling her age, it was time to take on a major enterprise. Like when they went with Hydra Island and the Death Spore Bomb. They'd have ruled the world with that one, at least if Fury hadn't activated the protective dome around it and set the bomb off while it was inside. The only people that died from the Death Spore were every agent on the island. Ah well, couldn't take over the world without losing a lot of minions. You could ask Dr. Doom about that one.

This plan was different. More behind the scenes backstabbing. But in order to initiate it, she'd have to contact someone to get the ball rolling.

She finished setting up the robot in her headquarters. Once she activated it, she ordered her personnel to make the call. It took them about five minutes before the viewscreen in front of her screen flared to life.

It was MODOK, the big-headed leader of A.I.M.. He was the sight to behold: a hideous sight that was. His head was monstrously huge, about twenty time larger than a normal head, which housed his giant brain. And he hadn't exactly been Steve Rogers the Third going into the experiment. His body had in turn been shrunken down to the size of a ten year old or so. Compared to the head it looked infantile. That was why he always went about in that mechanical high-tech flying chair of his, to support his form while boosting his mental abilities.

While she wanted to denigrate him, she knew better than to open a conversation with him that way. She'd do plenty to piss him off in a less obvious manner. Besides, she needed to talk with him, rather than have him tune out in a pique of anger. "Greetings, MODOK."

"Greetings Imperial Hydra," he said obligatorily. "To what do I owe this communication?"

Best to cut to the chase. "I know you're supplying weapons to the government of Rumekistan. I need you to stop that. I'm taking a page out of A.I.M.'s book by running my own nation, the way you do with Boca Caliente. I like the idea of being able to do whatever the hell I want in my own borders without that pesky U.N. doing anything other than lodging official protests, which I can use to wipe my ass with. Now in order to do that I'm going to be backing the rebels by striking a deal with them in exchange for making facilities for human experimentation and that sort of thing. Then when they're in charge I'll stab them in the back and make them my puppets dancing to my tune."

"And I am going to give in to your demands why?" he asked, irritation in his voice. Probably because she wasn't in front of him in person so he could lobotomize her with a mind-bolt.

"Because Monica Rappaccini and her A.I.M. splinter cell have been making overtures toward me about helping them overthrow you in exchange for access to cutting edge weapons at no charge. You're not exactly loved by your own men, you know. If a charismatic former high-ranking scientist of A.I.M. showed up with a small army of troops on your doorstep, your best option is a bloody civil war which will leave you vulnerable to every criminal organization what wants to take you down. The Magnificent Ten would do it in a heartbeat considering your histories and hostilities. Blowing up their giant robo, Red Ronin, put you on their hit list. Your worst case scenario is your own troops turning on you and you being strung up an hour after she made her offer."

A look of rage passed MODOK's features, and for a moment she thought he might send a brain blast at the screen. He had a reputation for doing that when he couldn't unleash it on his actual target. But then he regained control. "I'll want Rappaccini in exchange."

"No deal," she said quickly. "I don't care who runs your little organization. I don't operate under the delusion Monica wouldn't be as big a pain in the ass as you if she was in charge. But I don't have an axe to grind with her either, so you do your own dirty work. I want my own country, and I mean to have it."

Another look of anger passed his features, then he was so calm it was like he really was nothing more than a human computer, like he had originally been created to be. "Very well. We weren't making much money there anyway." And the screen went off.

Kin Ono smiled to herself. The only part of her plan she was concerned about was the first stage. Had MODOK not taken the bait, she wasn't sure what she'd have done. But now that he had, a chain of events had been set into motion which would inevitably lead to her true goal.

Running Rumekistan? She wasn't that stupid. Its principle export was sand, and its people had been constantly killing each other over hundreds of years over every imagined slight. She was pretty sure at least one of their wars had been caused by a neighbor's dog taking a dump in the wrong yard. But people were vain, stupid, and petty enough to think they could run a place like that for the reasons she stated. If MODOK had really used his head, he'd let her have the country just so it would drive her crazy trying to run it. But no, she had deliberately damaged his pride by starting off things by ordering him like he was a lackey. Wounded pride meant he'd want revenge by undermining her plans. And she'd provide him with the perfect means to do it.

While she had no intention of running the country, she was going to stir the pot there until it attracted the attention of the U.N., and through them SHIELD, which was her real goal. With Nick Fury finally retired, as the U.N. had wanted, the organization was an ineffective parody of what it once was, especially when it came to infiltration. Back in the day, you had to work hard to get anyone past Fury. Oh, it could be done, he couldn't be everywhere and couldn't do everything, but he was good at sniffing out spies. Nowadays anyone could do it with little effort. She wagered as many as half the personnel there now owed their primary loyalty to some other organization. Another country, terrorist organization, hell, the Lower Downtown Tokyo Small Business Owners Union might have people in it.

Once SHIELD was called in, they'd go for the PR image of sending in the helicarrier to take care of things, especially when MODOK had his A.I.M. spies calling for it. Why try to ruin her plans directly when he could use SHIELD as a cat's paw? It was the most sensible solution, which he would take.

Which she was counting on.

When Fury was in charge, if he sent the Helicarrier into action, he'd make certain a significant number of high-ranking members of SHIELD were not on it in case of disaster. But now assignment to the Helicarrier was considered a prestige position, so all the highest ranking personnel wanted on it, especially when they were about to see some action since the craft was thought of as invincible and they could brag to people at parties about how they had engaged in personal heroics when they stopped some terrible thing from happening flying into battle on it. It would be a real tragedy as, once the airborne fortress's flight plan was known, the quartet of Cobalt Cannons (constructed from Damocles' single one that had been reversed engineered by Fixer) that were already hidden in the country, would be waiting in position to shoot it down. A tragedy to be sure.

Naturally none of Hydra's spies would be on the Helicarrier. Rather they would be ready to move into the key positions vacated by this tragedy. And once in those positions other Hydra agents would be put into other key positions, like hiring personnel. Then they could infiltrate as many other Hydra agents as they wanted, while doing their best to keep everyone else's spies out. By the time the U.N. had the next wave of loyal flunkies assigned to the management positions (assuming anyone wanted them after the massacre) it would be too late. Hydra would be everywhere in the organization.

SHIELD would become another head of Hydra. It would be their greatest coup yet.

It would be her legacy to the next leader of Hydra.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Councilwoman Juna Ariyoshi was furious, though she didn't openly display it. Biko had promised her eight suits of Raider armor at a reasonable price, with the understanding a much larger purchase at a higher price would follow. It had been ideal. She'd seen the schematics on Raider armor, and thought them quite ideal, especially since they could be outfitted with a wide array of weapons packages to deal with a variety of situations. That was exactly what Panther Brigade needed when it was officially its own branch. Unfortunately some idiot had sank the vessel with key components for manufacturing them. Now it would take time to fabricate more of the parts. Either that or the price had to go up. Neither outcome was desirable. The only other manufacturer who could manage to produce that much power armor in that short of a time given budget considerations was Kodachi Kunou, whom Ariyoshi would never do business with thanks to her financing the Avengers. Hell, she would sooner, make that quite eager, to shut down Kunou Enterprises and throw the stupid girl in prison for that crime. Well, it wasn't a crime yet, but there were ways government could achieve the same results. Can't make it directly illegal? Regulate it in such a fashion that a person would go broke trying to do it. Regulations were wonderful things. If you couldn't make someone do something, you simply prevented from them doing everything else, until the only thing they can do is what you wanted them to do in the first place.

But there was no regulation which could generate power armor for her to use. Who else was there that could fulfill her requirements?

She was still preoccupied with the issue when she received a call from one of her top level aides who was aware of her dilemma and had been keeping their ears open for potential solutions. Apparently, some stranger had approached him with a business proposition about low cost power armor, and lots of it. The timing was too convenient to be coincidental. Someone had a spy in her midst. Or Biko's. Or maybe it was in Wolf Brigade. Actually, despite being low key in her approach, Juna had been forced to communicate with a lot of people about the issue. The leak could have come from anywhere. That was a problem when you had to operate through official government channels as well as personal ones: everyone could never be relied upon to always keep their mouths shut. It was why she no longer confided details that could get her into serious trouble with anyone since the Ayako incident. She couldn't afford to silence people whenever they betrayed her. She'd become something of her own island, unable to fully trust anyone. But her shoulders were broad and back strong. She'd bear the weight of the world if necessary because she was the only one that could.

Upon listening to the basics of the proposition, it sounded too good to be true. However, if accurate it would be the solution to all her problems, so she agreed to meet this person for an 'arrangement' as he put it, the next day.

The day passed, and she became anxious to resolve this issue. She had spent the time until the meeting trying to find an alternative solution, but none came to mind. Rather than being wary about the proposition, she found herself becoming eager for it to be true. A terrible mindset in this situation.

Her secretary informed her the gentleman had arrived. Upon entering he looked as much a non-descript Japanese salaryman as she could envision. Perhaps a bit young, mid 20's, but aside from that he was unremarkable. He introduced himself as Rokuro Okajima.

Again Juna wanted to get this over with, and decided to be direct, almost to the point of being brusque. "So, my aide tells me you have a business proposition regarding power armor."

Rokuro nodded. "I represent a co-op of Japanese, Russian, and even Southeast Asian business concerns. When we heard you were in the market for reasonably priced power armor, we knew you'd want to hear our offer. Allow me to show you field tests involving them." He pulled out a laptop from his brief case and set it up so she could watch a video.

What unfolded on the screen was very much a standard demonstration of power armor in action. While the devices were not widespread, there tended to be a certain format which manufacturers usually followed. Strength, offensive weapons, ability to absorb punishment and maneuverability were displayed.

As the demonstration continued, she was not terribly impressed. The armor itself was extremely bulky. The helmet was attached to the trunk of the armor, rather than being a head like just about every armor she had seen. It was also very bulky, with the arms and legs almost like pylons. If anything, it appeared to be an early model of power armor at least a generation or two behind the current ones being offered.

When it came to its abilities, she was a bit more impressed. What it lacked in appearance it made up for in combat potential. Still it appeared at least somewhat inferior in most aspects to the other armors she has seen demonstrated.

Upon finishing the video, Rokuro continued. "I know what you're thinking. Yes, the armor is dated by today's standards. However, it has a number of pluses which you'll find to your liking and making it ideal. It's easy to maintain and inexpensive to repair. Its interface is also very easy to use. Sometimes simpler is better depending on the job. Also since it is more basic in design, we're offering them at 30% of what Stane-Daitokuji is asking for their Raider units. And perhaps most importantly of all, we can ship a hundred units to you by the end of the week."

Juna was too much a professional to show the shock she felt. No power armor was close to that low in price. And those numbers. "So, you've already manufacture that many units?"

"The Co-Op was confident in our ability to market the armor," he provided in explanation.

This was perfect. Too perfect. There had to be a catch, but she was uncertain of what it was. The only drawback was the tech of the armor, but the price couldn't be beat. "We would need to personally assess the armor, of course. You can provide some for firsthand testing purposes?"

"With your permission, we'll import five units for you to utilize and make certain they are what you're looking for. You'll have to okay it through customs, of course. Once they are here test them to your heart's content. We'll even sell you licensing rights to manufacture your own if you're so inclined."

"I'll get right on it." The pair shook hands. Juna was delighted at the first bit of good news she received in quite a while.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

To the staff that were familiar with Biko Stane-Daitokuji, they could tell she was furious. Not that she was raging about. The title of 'Ice Queen' of the business world was well-earned in her case. Rather it was the complete lack of emotion which gave away her state. In actuality it might be more accurately stated that she was absorbing emotions around her. Anyone in her presence could almost sense their own feelings being drawn into her as her fury consumed them.

The first event that had set her off was some damnable pirate calling herself 'Calico Jane' had sunk her shipment of power armor parts from the Baintronics branch, delaying her ability to show off her Raider armor to the government for the contract. Because of that delay the problem that really caused her rage had an opportunity to slip in.

Word had been passed to her by Ariyoshi that someone else had fielded a better offer for power armor. The cost was ridiculously low. No armor could sell for so little. And that so many of the units were on hand? There was no company in the world that could achieve that without taking large financial losses. Some scheme was afoot, and it was undermining her lucrative contracts. She *needed* the government to buy her products. It would be disastrous if they pulled out. She was counting on not just the power armor and armaments to the military, but Project Wideawake had to be bought by them. She needed to get to the bottom of this mystery company that was trying to undercut her.

Luckily, she had been passed copies of the name of the go-between and the video presentation of the armor. Now Fuytusuki had a report, and Gargoyle was waiting his turn on giving his observations about the armor.

Fuyutsuki spoke. "We've learned Rokuro Okajima is better known as 'the Arranger'. He is a member of a small company called Black Lagoon that operates out of Madripoor. As with all things involving Madripoor, its dealings are questionable."

"Oh." Now things were starting to make a little sense. This was some illegal enterprise. Everything out of that corrupt little island state was. It was so corrupt, all the major conventional criminal organizations operated out of there, the local government turning a blind eye so long as the bribes were made. The Russian mob. The Maggia. The Triads. The Cartels. Everyone had territory, though the parties frequently went after one another in an effort to increase their piece of the action. She had feelers in the area in case she required some private contractors from outside her organization to deal with certain matters, like the late Ghost. There were many powerful freelancers that operated out of there as well, looking for any kind of work. It was arguably the most dangerous land in the world.

It also meant she was limited in what she could do against them. A regular company could have a few members of its board bribed or dealt with permanently. She had acquired enough companies using those methods. But actual gangs were another problem altogether. They had no proper structure and she had no idea who was doing what. It was simply not an area of her expertise. All she knew was this behavior was not common amongst this type of criminal element. A.I.M, Hydra, The Magnificent Ten, power armor was more up their alley. These were drug pushers and flesh traders. Why had they involved themselves with this kind of tech?

She turned to Gargoyle. "What can you tell me about this armor? How can they have so many units and afford to sell them at such low cost? Do they work like they claim? Are there any weakness that can be exploited?"

He gave her a sober look, a bit difficult to discern for most given his deformities. "I can tell you everything about them. I designed them."

That broke even Biko's icy demeanor. "What do you mean?"

Gargoyle braced himself for a long talk. "As you know, I was recruited at a very young age by the Soviet Union when my genius was recognized by Stalin himself. However, given my appearance, the government would just as soon I was nowhere near them. I was given a base in the middle of Siberia named Bitterfrost and a free hand to develop what I wanted, as well as what they wanted me to make. At one point the military asked me to develop power armor. Something that could be mass produced which meant cost was an issue. So, I made a basic unit which was both effective and inexpensive. The leaders liked them so much I made a run of a hundred units."

"I don't recall power armor being a part of the Soviet war machine," Biko said.

"That's because they were never put into the field. The generals who had requested the program fell out of favor by the time I had finished. The new regime wanted nothing to do with the 'past failures of their predecessors,' and the program discontinued. I stored all but the five units that had been given to the military for field testing in Bitterfrost. To the best of my knowledge there are still there."

"That matches with the numbers they were throwing around, and why they can unload them so cheaply," Biko mused. "Why did you leave such valuable material behind, or not inform us of them?"

"When the Soviet Union fell, I decided to 'go independent,' and parted company with a country that no longer existed. Besides, I was mostly feared by the government for my genius. Always in the back of their minds they were afraid I would overthrow them or something. Mostly they treated me like a freak, so I was content to be on my own. When I left, well let's just say I thought it unwise to take what the government considered their property with me. I did lock down the base, and there are very powerful safe-guards there to prevent an intruder breach. Only the highest ranked members of the military had the codes necessary to enter the base. And even then, well let's just say anyone that went there wouldn't find everything I made. In fact, they would discover very little of it, thanks to fate giving me access to resources even the government didn't know about. I left a great many powerful devices behind. I had a lot of time on my hands and created many things even they didn't know about."

Biko considered that. "While I wouldn't mind collecting such things myself, I am reluctant to risk an international incident. Besides, you should be able to recreate anything you made there, yes?"

Gargoyle nodded. "As long as you gave me the resources, though keep in mind most of what I designed would be regarded as outdated by your standards, much like the armor. I was a younger man then, and technology has improved since my days in Bitterfrost. As to the things that would still be useful, I did have the backing of an entire government, which gave me more raw materials and access to things only governments can provide. For instance, I had my own satellite that would cost you far too much to make yourself, as well as the need to create launching facilities. Also it had only one primary purpose which, while impressive, would not be regarded as cost effective for your intentions. But when you have an entire government financing you, well there's a reason most of them operate in debt. Even my genius would have been hard pressed to dig them out of that hole, and they would not have been enthused with the measures necessary to do so." The diminutive man shrugged.

Fuytusuki, who had been looking at Gargoyle in confusion, spoke. "You met Stalin? How old are you?"

Gargoyle smiled. "The one benefit of looking like an old man from birth is that no matter how old you get, you still look the same."

Unconcerned with ages and who met which dictator, Biko remained focused on the issue. "This puts my mind somewhat at ease. It will have to be enough that this is a one-time deal with whomever Black Lagoon is working for, and not a new entity trying to steal my share of the market. Clearly they cannot make more suits of armor, and eventually the government will want more than the hundred they get off these petty gangsters. We do not have another player in the game to deal with, rather it is a fly by night operation, and of no consequence in the bigger picture." The mood in the room lightened slightly, as in Biko was more annoyed than angry now. "Still, I want to be kept aware of the situation. If we get the opportunity to sink this deal, we'll do so. Make the necessary arrangements."

Which was to say slightly mollified Biko Stand-Daitokuji was still a murderous thing to those that stood in her way.

Xxxxxxxxx

Kodachi Kunou was physically trembling in excitement. Everything she had paid for, and she had paid Chameleon a lot, was now worth every yen.

For a while she had been concerned about her spy since he had failed to contact her shortly after he'd been hired. He had warned her in advance he'd only update her if he had gathered important intelligence. Minimizing contract made compromising his cover less likely. If he hadn't had such stellar credentials she'd have assumed he bailed on her or worse, was dead. But her patience had paid off. Chameleon had come through in every way she needed.

First he'd found out about the teleportation ring. It was a unique item since only one had been created before its inventor had met a rather untimely demise when the second ring he made had teleported him into a wall. Since he hadn't trusted anyone, he hadn't written anything down on how to actually make the ring, apparently keeping all the important information in his head, which had melded with a concrete block and wasn't useful as much of anything, including being a load bearing structure.

The ring was not quite as all powerful as it seemed. It could teleport vast distances, but was limited to two people and a small amount of additional weight. The most limiting factor to it was that it could only be used once every 54 minutes and 27 seconds. And Kodachi was glad Chameleon had been that specific. If he had simply said 'an hour' she would have made plans accordingly. She would have felt no urgency at the 55 minute mark in her plan, and then would have discovered it all for nothing when her brother teleported away. That would have made her exceptionally upset. You needed precise information with precise things. And she had a feeling she was only going to get one shot at bringing Silver Samurai to justice.

The other important bit of information was time dependent, and that meant she had to act fast. This crimelord, Mantis, that Tatewaki worked for had struck some sort of deal with a Russian crime syndicate, Hotel Moscow, that operated out of Madripoor. Chameleon wasn't certain of what the deal was about, other than it was a large amount of some kind of product, but apparently Mantis had gotten her hands on some vital piece of information that enabled her to get a cut of the action. So Silver Samurai was not just personally delivering the information to the Russians, but he was staying on as hired muscle for the outfit, as well as ensuring that Mantis received whatever else she was getting paid in. And since the distances involved were great he would be teleporting in. Meaning he wouldn't be able to leave for nearly fifty-five minutes. All she had to do was defeat her brother, then this detail which could ruin her life would come to a close and she could rest easy.

And the most vital piece of information Chameleon provided her were the coordinates of the location. It was some abandoned research facility in the middle of nowhere: Siberia. With them in hand, she'd see to it the Avengers gave her brother a hearty welcome to Bitterfrost.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

[End chapter]

Yes, this was mostly a buildup chapter as you can tell by only Kodachi appearing at the end. But it was either break this up into two or have a really big single one that wouldn't be released for a considerable amount of time. And now you can look forward to getting straight into the meat of the story next time out rather than have a bunch of buildup.

And hey, you got to hang with Mrs. Ono, Imperial Hydra one more time. Been close to ten years since she popped up, I'd wager.