A Date with Destiny

by Sillycritter

There's a stranger in The City...a woman with a past...someone who could hold the key to everything possible. With AEGIS on the hunt for Miss Lint (who's gone rogue) and Superian missing, the City's in trouble... ...and one gallant superhero is going to have to come face to face with his past in order to save it.

19. Chapter 19

Arthur wasn't expecting the return to gravity to happen so immediately. He should have realized it as soon as Dangerboat requested they put on special boots. Apparently, the boots were intended to initiate gravity sequencing as soon as the airtight docking chamber was airlocked and depressurized. As soon as they were inside, Dangerboat announced, "Prepare for Zero-G to return to re-activated 100 G," and Arthur all but would have fallen on his backside if the Tick hadn't caught him first.

"Easy there fella!" the Tick steadied him uneasily on his feet.

"Thanks, Tick," Arthur managed to mumble; he was too busy stumbling around like a drunkard, but finally he managed to find his footing.

Destiny grinned at him. "Weird, outer space—isn't it?"

"You're telling me," Arthur replied, still a little woozy from the transition and already exhausted (and they hadn't even left the ship yet).

"Arthur," Dangerboat said, "I am going to open the big bay doors now—are all of you prepared for immediate departure?"

"Yeah…" Arthur shivered a little; he'd never been on an alien spaceship. "As ready as we're gonna be." Then again, he had never been on a spaceship. This was a day for many firsts—and this first would not be the last of them, he knew. "Dangerboat," he questioned, "do you have any intel on these aliens? Are they as—benevolent as Karamazov claims?"

"Unfortunately I do not have access to profiles for extraterrestrial species," Dangerboat responded, "I am sorry about that, Arthur."

"Oh, it's okay," Arthur lied, "I just wonder if maybe—maybe we should have Overkill join us—just to be on the safe side," he added for good measure.

"We will not be far," Dangerboat reassured him. "You'll be connected to my communications portal at all times."

"Thanks, DB." Arthur smiled up at the eye of the lens. "We couldn't have done this without you."

"Don't forget Arthur," the Tick added as his hand steadied Arthur once again, "I'm nigh-invulnerable and can take on the battle-cry of twenty or more fighting men, as well as an onslaught of shooting bullets all brimming with the oncoming force of a full-speeding bullet train!"

"Right." Arthur nodded, having to admit that this was reassuring. "Destiny—" he looked towards her, "what's your plan for finding Fate?"

"I have received a mental map of what I think the blueprint of the ship might be," Destiny announced, "I'm not sure how or why—but I think Karamazov might have something to do with it—and I think he knows my sister is on board the ship. He's trying to show me how to find her."

"Karamazov sent you a vision?" The Tick was mesmerized by the idea. "Keen!"

"That's incredible if that's true." Arthur couldn't help but show his admiration. "But what will you do once you find her?"

"I'll let them capture me," Destiny said, "I'll tell them to take me to Karamazov. Karamazov will know what to do," she added, "he's my mentor."

"Really?" The Tick looked amazed. "He's my Dad—AND your Mentor—How is that even POSSIBLE!?"

Arthur groaned. "So—Destiny—" He pivoted towards her urgently. "Do you have an idea where they're—"

He didn't have time to finish as the big bay doors opened to reveal a long narrow corridor. It was exactly as Arthur had imagined all his life an alien ship to be—metallic on all sides, almost like Dangerboat's hull, but sparse. And standing at the forefront, facing them, was a fairly normal-looking man—or at least he appeared to be a man—with a beard and wearing shades. The only way that Arthur could tell he wasn't human (as well as by where they were) was the suit he was wearing. It was one piece from head to toe, and was silver on all sides. It glistened in the overhead lights that made the entire corridor shimmer as though with an iridescent surface.

"You are the man named Arthur Everest?" the being greeted him in a neutral tone.

It wasn't clear to Arthur if it was a question or a statement, but he simply nodded. "Yes," he managed to utter, "that's me—and this is the Tick, and Destiny—"

"Come this way." The being gestured towards him, beckoning them forward, and Arthur, the Tick, and Destiny immediately complied; Arthur shivered a little as he could hear the big bay doors closing slowly shut behind him. He forced himself to keep going.

They followed the being through several identical-looking corridors; it felt like one long metallic maze, and the brightness of the endless hallways were dizzying. At one point Arthur realized Destiny wasn't with them, but he knew not to mention it, and thankfully he was the only one who appeared to have noticed. The being stopped them as they reached a doorway. "You are entering a significant and sacred chamber," he announced in the same monotonous, droning tone, "this is the Hall of Judgement. The Galactic Initiatives are in session. Upon entering you will be scanned immediately for the presence of ulterior motives, and if you pass the test, you will move automatically into the status of Advocacy against the one in question, Fugitive 11-X, otherwise known as Superian."

The Tick frowned back at him with displeasure. "But Superian's not a fugitive!" he exclaimed.

"Sir," the Being stammered, "I am just the entrance guard."

"Superian is our friend," the Tick retorted as if he'd been accused of treason himself, "and we're going to make sure everyone here knows he's on our side—"

"TICK!" Arthur hissed, grabbing his arm and pulling him quickly and urgently off to the side, "you can't just go blurting things out like that! There's a legal process to this kind of thing—we've got to let them take the lead—just follow me," he added wearily, "okay? Watch what I do and—just try and do the same—okay?" he encouraged hopefully (while trying to hide his sense of dread).

"...okay, Arthur," the Tick reluctantly agreed, looking pained, "but still, I believe they need to know why Superian isn't a fugitive—"

"That's why we're here in the first place, Tick," Arthur pressed, "and we'll make sure they know! But you've got to understand—there's a time and a place," Arthur reasoned. "Otherwise they might think we're up to something—and get the wrong idea about why we're here," he tried to explain as best he could, "okay?"

"Hey!" The Tick was suddenly looking around as though he'd lost something. "Where's Destiny?"

"Shhh!" Arthur held up his finger towards his lips and pulled the Tick aside. "She's fine!"

"But Arthur—"

"Hush!" Arthur once again placed his finger to his lips—just as a guard, who thankfully had appeared not to have heard the Tick, opened up the large golden doors.

They entered the grand main room. "Wow," Arthur marveled as they walked inside to a room filled from floor to ceiling with pastel-colored marble. "This place is incredible—"

"Quiet please!" the guard snapped, whirling around and startling Arthur into silence. The guard spoke then as quietly as an annoyed librarian might with a disordinant group of kids, "you are entering the sacred space of conduct, and thus you must act in accordance with the law."

"Right," Arthur nodded, nudging the Tick to attention.

As they entered the room, a hush fell over the crowd. There, lined up along the far wall, were five judges—they appeared to be all bald, older men with pointy ears and noses. They looked human, but something about their demeanor told Arthur they were not.

"And what have we here?" exclaimed the tallest of the five in a loud and booming voice.

"I," said the Tick, "am the TICK!"

Before Arthur could add his own introduction, a murmured hum of acknowledgment, excitement, and appreciation began to sound throughout the room. The grandeur of the room's size, and its brightness, made Arthur slightly dizzy; the sound of all five judges humming together in agreement with each other just made it worse.

"Bring them forth!" at once came the cry.

Simultaneously, as if on cue, they all leaned over at Arthur and stared down at him pointedly, as though he were the most inexplicable find of all the Universe. It made him want to disappear.

"Tick," he whispered nervously, "they're staring at me—"

"Easy Chum," the Tick whispered back, "it's all uphill from here!"

"You are here to testify on behalf of one Superian, aka Fugitive 11 X!" the tallest of the five boomed down.

"...yes," Arthur managed to answer weakly.

"Please remain still while you are scanned for ulterior motives."

"But how—" Arthur didn't have time to finish as one of the judges's eyes transformed into lasers, scanning him from head to toe and nearly blinding him in the process. Arthur nearly fell backwards into the Tick's arms.

"Whoa there bud!" the Tick propped him back up on his feet. "You'll have to forgive my moth friend here," he said, "he's a little out of his depth."

"TICK!" Arthur snapped, glaring, but he had to admit the Tick was right- he was entirely out of his depth.

"You have passed the scanning test. You will stand in the center of the room and once we have called you by name, one by one come forth and make your plea to us."

"Where IS Superian?" the Tick asked bluntly, much to Arthur's horror.

"SILENCE!" commanded the head judge, "you will only speak from now on when spoken to—or there will be consequences!"

The Tick glanced nervously at Arthur, who glanced nervously back. They said not a word and waited for instructions.

"Please stand in the center of the Hall of Judgment before the Pillar of Light!" came the command that followed, "once called, you will step into the center of the Light- where the Universe will determine whether your words are worthy of our acceptance!"

Not wanting to waste any time, Arthur quickly nudged the Tick silently in the direction of the center of the large circular room. They stood side by side and waited for one of their names to be called. Sure enough, it was Arthur who was called first. He stepped forward towards the light—it was streaming down from somewhere in the ceiling—and was bright enough he had to squint in order to see the shape of the judges in front of him.

"Speak!" commanded one of the judges. "Tell us your connection with Fugitive 11-X and why we should spare him his freedom."

"Um…" Arthur tried to think of the right words. "Okay…well…Superian—he's—a friend," he allowed carefully, "and—he's a fellow, uh, superhero and—I haven't known him personally for too long but—he's been on the planet for a really long time and, you know, he's always trying to help others, do the "superhero thing"-"

"FOR INSTANCE?" the judge demanded.

"Examples?" Arthur tried to think. "Ok…well…um…I know one year, he…he managed to stop a bunch of tornadoes from destroying peoples' homes—and—he stopped the "Very Large Man" from destroying The City which is our home and—and stuff like that, you know?" Arthur trailed off uneasily. He knew he was leaving out an important historical moment, but he was hoping that nobody would mention The Terror. "Can I ask," Arthur dared to question meekly, "what—you're charging Superian for?"

"Fugitive 11-X was exiled to Earth as punishment for foul behavior on his own planet. The aim was to improve his reputation. He instead unleashed his genetics and they have since mutated with Earthlings. This was not our goal and Superian directly went against our species' ancient values. He betrayed his brotherhood by ignoring protocol—and it is unforgivable—"

"But Dr. Karamazov—"

"SILENCE!" the Judge barked, causing Arthur to jump, "You are not given permission to speak!"

"Arthur Everest, step back and to the side," a second Judge commanded. "You have spoken, and now it is another's turn."

Arthur, shivering, rejoined his initial standing point and said not another word.

"We now call forth THE TICK!"

Arthur felt numb as the Tick took his spot in the center of the room. He seemed gigantic in comparison to even the tallest of judges that were facing him, and even facing them from a half a floor away. Arthur could see that Tick looked ready to take action. He didn't appear to be nervous at all. He faced the row of Judges unflinchingly, with arms loosely at his side.

"One who calls himself The Tick!" began the first Judge who had spoken, "What say you about Superian?"

Arthur held his breath as the Tick began to speak.

"Superian is my brother."

Arthur glanced up with shock. He hadn't realized this but it was true—Superian was in fact the Tick's brother. They were related. Arthur shivered a little in his suit.

"He was brought to Earth against his will," the Tick refrained, "but—all Superian wanted was for Earthlings to look up to him….I for one believe he's done the best for Earthlings that any superhero can do."

"He broke the law," the Judge retorted darkly, "and he betrayed the trust of human species by instilling his DNA in their own—"

"But it's not his fault!" the Tick blurted before the Judge could stop him, "He was part of an experiment—" His antennas twitched, "-Just like I once was—"

"SILENCE!" the Judge commanded so loudly the entire room echoed and vibrated with the sound of his voice.

"I AM THE TICK!" the Tick bellowed out, just as loud, and Arthur groaned inwardly with dread. "I will NOT be silenced!" he exclaimed. "You are accusing my brother of treason—and you have no proof!"

"GUARDS!" the Judge hollered. "Take him!"

"I AM THE TICK!" the Tick continued to holler back even as two guards came towards him, and he began to get into a fighting pose, "and I am NOT afraid of an army of a THOUSAND ARMED AND DANGEROUS MEN!"

"TICK!" Arthur yelled over the din, "Don't fight with them! They're—"

"What have you DONE to my BROTHER?" The Tick pried off the first guard that tried to take him; he went flying across the room, and simultaneously, the second one went flying shortly after.

"ORDER!" The Judge commanded. "ORDER! WE MUST HAVE ORDER HERE!"

"STOP!" a voice rang out before anyone else could move. "I'VE got the proof—RIGHT HERE!"

Karamazov was standing in the center of the room. Arthur and the Tick both froze and stared in shock at the Urmanian doctor, who was now, unexpectedly, his regular size.

"WHERE HAVE YOU COME FROM?" the Judge, nearly hysterical with rage and practically spitting venom, stared in shock at Karamazov. "YOU HAVE NOT BEEN TOLD TO ENTER!"

"I was given permission," Karamazov said, "by Destiny herself." He smiled wanly at the judge, "and the guard who is now unconscious but understood my plea."

"I WILL FIRE HIM TOMORROW!" shrieked the Judge. "I WILL FIRE HIM RIGHT NOW!" To the remaining guard standing, he commanded, "TAKE HIM AWAY!" The guard immediately began to drag the other out the door, leaving the second guard unconscious.

The Tick remained standing in the center of the room, transfixed by the sight of Karamazov; he did not move. Karamazov did not seem to notice him, for he was facing the Judges as though already on trial.

"Please listen for I have all the proof that is needed to release Superian on his behalf," the Doctor urged. "I have papers that will explain why his DNA was requested, and why I was the one who was required to dispense it."

"Bring them forth," came the command, and the Doctor, in his original flowing white robe, came forward and handed the papers up to the Head Judge. He quickly scanned through the papers, then passed them to a second Judge, who scanned them for forgery, and once they had passed, handed them back to the head Judge, who then turned to the Doctor and said, "You speak the Truth…and the Truth will set Superian free….However….you must pay highly for your deeds against our species," the Judge proclaimed, "for you have forever tinged our superior order by mixing our superior DNA with Earthlings', and that is unacceptable in the Galactic Code of Conduct….and for that, you must pay—"

"NO!" the Tick exploded, "I WON'T LET YOU!"

"Tick—" Arthur, trying not to panic, attempted to grab hold of his arm. "Don't—!"

"THAT MAN MADE ME WHO I AM!" the Tick bellowed, pointing at Dr. Karamazov. Arthur and the Doctor—as well as the five Judges—all turned and stared at the Tick in amazement. Arthur was speechless; he'd never seen the Tick raise his voice in such a way. For a moment the Tick stood completely still, chest heaving, and it seemed he was harnessing all of his energy to keep from unleashing the depths of his soul.

The Tick turned towards Dr. Karamazov. "You MADE me who I am," he repeated, his voice soft and almost breaking. "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you…" The Tick walked slowly over in Karamazov's direction, as the Doctor continued to stare back in silent shock. "I wouldn't be ME if it weren't for you," the Tick continued, and this time his voice did break as he stood in front of his Creator, who continued to stare back in speechless silence. "You're the reason I'm even here," the Tick declared. His antennas sagged forward as if with overwhelming relief. "If it wasn't for that experiment…." the Tick looked down and away, then back up into the Doctor's eyes, "...I wouldn't be here to save everyone."

"Tick…." the Doctor was so moved he could barely speak.

"That's right Doc…" the Tick nodded solemnly. "I'M all the proof that's needed to know you're not responsible for the chaos of the world….ME….because I'm proof that you've got a good soul," the Tick declared, "because you wouldn't have created someone like me otherwise."

The Doctor's eyes were so clear and shimmering that the Tick could see his own reflection in them.

"Th-Th-Thank you…." Karamazov managed to reply, and before he knew what was happening, the Tick had grabbed him into a big bear hug.

"NO, Doc," the Tick protested in spite of the crack in his voice, "thank YOU!"

"ORDER!" the Judges were becoming agitated. "This is NOT according to protocol!"

"JUDGE JOHNSTON!" A guard burst in breathlessly—and everyone turned around with astonishment. For one hand gripped the arm of Destiny—and in his other hand, gripped the arm of Fate!

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?" Judge Johnston, the fifth judge, rose, his face purple with teeming rage.

"THERE—" the guard breathed out gasping, " HAS BEEN—A BREACH—OF TREASON!"

"DR. JOHNSON!" Destiny hollered as she struggled against the guard, "DR. EGGABYE JOHNSON—!"

All heads turned towards her.

"YOU," bellowed Destiny as she pointed an accusatory finger in the leading Judge's direction, " are the one who is the TRUE BREACH of TREASON!"

A shocked hush came over the crowd.

Everyone turned to stare with bated breath as the one who was now known to be Dr. "Eggabye" Johnson stood slowly. His eyes grew narrow as well as simultaneously wide with shock. "YOU," he bellowed, "are a PRISONER of my FEDERATION—and YOU have NO PERMISSION TO SPEAK!"

"My SISTER was your prisoner!" Destiny managed to somehow pull away from the guard, and she dropped gasping to the floor, only to stare up tearfully at the Head Judge, silently pleading. "I was your prisoner too—back in Urmania!"

"SILENCE!" the Judge cried, but his commands went unyielded and nobody moved to stop the proceedings.

"You forced us to comply with your every whim," Destiny declared in a trembling voice.

"ENOUGH!" the Judge exclaimed, but he was shaking. "YOU are a CRIMINAL!"

"We are INNOCENT!" Destiny spat. "We were USED by you for the basis of SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTS—"

"SILENCE!"

"—were we NOT!?" Destiny concluded, breathless with exhaustion, gasping with rage.

"DESTINY!" The Tick moved swiftly in her direction.

"HALT!" the Judge cried, "STOP HIM!"

Nobody moved. They remained frozen with stunned silence as the TIck bent down and lent Destiny a hand, which she gratefully accepted. He pulled her into a big hug—and Destiny could do nothing but allow it; she buried her face into his chest and cried. "I know you," he whispered to her in her ear—and in spite of her tears, Destiny smiled.

"ORDER!" Dr. Johnson was pounding the podium. "I DEMAND ORDER!"

"Perhaps," Karamazov had suddenly materialized a new set of papers magically as if from nowhere, "these can bring some order to the situation?"

"WHAT in the NAME is THIS!?" Johnson scanned the papers with hands growing purple with rage. They were papers that Karamazov had kept detailing the escape of Destiny and the Tick, and Johnson's illegal schemes that had resulted in a covert escape mission leading to a mass shooting at the facility, where several escapees had been killed. The doctor read through and was about to finish when the second judge tore the papers away and scanned them for liability. When he found none, all four judges turned scornfully to stare at the one who they had once seen as their leader—Dr. Eggabye Johnson.

"It is true," the second Judge declared with a mixture of disbelief as well as disgust in his voice, "you did not follow protocol—in fact you went against it—you put the lives of innocent civilians in mortal danger!"

"I—" For once in his many lifetimes, Dr. Johnson was almost speechless. "I was seeking to create an ar-army o-of—"

"There's NO EXCUSE for what YOU did!" Destiny strode directly over to the podium. "If ANYONE is worthy of PUNISHMENT," she declared, "it's HIM!"

"I'm INNOCENT!" Judge Johnson growled. "Just ask: the TICK!"

Everyone turned towards the Tick, who stared back equally in shock. "...Sir?" he questioned, blinking rapidly with confusion.

"YOU were the one I TRAINED to KILL!" Johnson grinned wickedly. "YOU were the one who—"

"ENOUGH!" Destiny held her hand up abruptly. "This is insanity!" she exclaimed to the other judges. "You've just read the papers! They speak the truth!" She ran to her sister and grabbed her hand. "Please," she pleaded, "my sister and I are innocent—please give us back our freedom—it's all we seek!"

Fate leaned into Destiny who held her hand tight.

Meanwhile, the Judges had leaned forward in a huddle, congregating together with murmured whispers. Finally, they resumed their original position.

"You have spoken the truth," the second Judge responded, "and Now—JUSTICE must be SERVED—and PEACE must REIGN AGAIN!"

With that, he gave the command to the guard, "TAKE HIM AWAY!"

"B-b-b-but—" sputtered Dr. Johnson as the guards placed invisible handcuffs on him, "I-I-I-I'm INNOCENT!"

Destiny released Fate's hand only long enough to walk straight over to the former Judge. "Think again," she sneered in his face with a snicker, "EGGY!"

"HOW—" Johnson spat in her face, but Destiny kept smiling, "HOW DARE YOU…"

"Let's go, Johnson," the Guard initiated as they began to pull him towards the exit door.

"B-b-b-but—" Johnson sputtered, "NOBODY calls me EGGY!" Johnson continued to exclaim, his voice rising to a near-hysterical pitch as he was dragged forcefully out of the room kicking and screaming, "NOBODY I say!" they could hear him as his voice faded down the hall, "NOBODY!"

---

"Crisis aborted!" Dot breathed a sigh of relief when she received the message from Arthur through the headset. He'd sight texted her. She'd just read Destiny's entire profile—from what she'd read about the woman's past, she had suspected that Destiny had an ulterior plan. Thankfully, everything was working out for the better, and they were closer to success than ever before. Johnson was in custody—but what would become of Superian and Karamazov? She was about to ask Overkill what he thought might happen—but Overkill wasn't there.

She'd been worried about him since the crew had left; he'd been agitated ever since and itching to fight.

"Overkill?" Dot swam towards where they'd last spent a moment. Sure enough, there he was, staring out the window.

"You don't have to babysit me you know," he snapped without turning around. His tone was sharp and it hurt.

"I'm not," she retorted. "Just wanted to pick your brains."

"Oh," he said, but he didn't say anything more. He continued to stare sullenly out the window, watching the Earth's rotation. A sea of bright white clouds were passing by over some stretch of land that seemed to go on forever.

"Quite a view, huh?" she couldn't help but remark with hushed awe as she sidled next to him. He didn't respond. "Penny for your thoughts?" She knew she had to tread these waters carefully.

"Today is a day of victory," he replied grimly, "for everyone—except for me."

"Why not you?" Dot blinked with confusion. "You're a part of this mission too. You showed up. You're here—"

"I failed the mission." He spoke so bluntly she was startled. He turned and looked at her, his crystal-clear cybernetic eyes so strikingly blue that they made her shiver. "I let my partner down."

"No you didn't—" she started to say, but he cut her off.

"Not you." Overkill's expression shifted from one of annoyance to one of great sorrow. It was an expression for him that she'd never seen before. He pointed upwards. "Dangerboat," he clarified his voice low. "I let him down."

"How?" Dot coaxed, trying not to show her concern.

"Something about Dangerboat you might not know." Overkill looked away as he spoke. "When we first met- Dangerboat and I- I was basically bare bones. Just lost my whole squad. Blamed myself. Went rogue. Dangerboat…" Overkill shifted uneasily. "He was the only one who got why I couldn't deal anymore. He'd split from society too, so he got it more than most. We understood each other. He was the one who got me cleaned up. Took me in when no one else did. Let me stay here, no questions asked. Never once asked about the old scars. Never once asked about the new ones."

Dot tried not to look at the scars plain on his face. She'd tried not to see the faded lines along the inner parts of his arms.

"Somehow Dangerboat always knew what to do," Overkill continued. "Sure he showed his concern, like hiding the alcohol when I got myself far too wasted. Mainly he just let me be. Never questioned when I came back with blood on my hands. Never questioned when I came back bleeding. He knew why I wanted to be left alone because he felt the same way. Nobody understood why he couldn't deal anymore—why he couldn't fly or fight in battle like the other Dangerboats—why he couldn't leave the City and why he was marooned with me at the pier—but none of that ever mattered to me. I got why he couldn't do any of it. I knew it wasn't because he was weak—just like he knew I hadn't gone on the run from AEGIS because of weakness. He didn't want to leave the pier because if he did he'd have a breakdown. He felt safer near the pier—everything else was too much, too fast. He was still processing Michael's death and I was still processing everything else. Today, he did something amazing—something I never thought he'd be capable of, and–and I—" Overkill hesitated, avoiding her lingering eyes. "I didn't congratulate him," he confessed to the floor, voice flat, unwavering. "I wanted to but—I chickened out. I just couldn't…" He trailed off in defeat.

"You can congratulate me now," a voice piped up suddenly before Dot had the chance.

"Shit." Overkill looked up with dismay at the eye zooming quickly towards them. "DB…you heard all of that didn't you?"

"I did." Dangerboat replied calmly and patiently, yet expectantly.

"C'mon," Dot whispered with a smile in Overkill's ear, "tell him you're proud of him!" She added, "I'll give you a hot kiss if you do!"

Overkill grunted. "That's blackmail," he accused accusingly—however she could see a small smile playing tentatively across his lips.

"Overkill, if you don't take the kiss," Dangerboat piped up again from above, "then I will!"

"OK OK!" Overkill exclaimed with a groan, "You really REALLY want me to say it?"

"Yes." Dangerboat's voice hid a smile.

"OK FINE!" Overkill hollered blatantly at the top of his lungs, "I'm really goddamned fucking PROUD of you, you overdone and overly arrogant, shamelessly mooching monstrosity of a machine!"

"See?" Dangerboat beamed with pleasure over Dot's roaring laughter, "that wasn't so hard, was it?"