Veda has come to kick as a chew bubblegum and she's far too polite to take the last piece of gum!


A Waken 15.V

Veda rerouted her connections through Chicago.

She sent a warning to the administrators at several of the local hospitals and call centers. They had backups in case of disruption. If they knew to switch to them now, they could avoid casualties. The system collapse in Boston was mended already and she cut her connections to that city. It served as a useful distraction in addition to damage control.

One of the attack programs lunged at the bait, and Veda pulled the veil back too late for it to realize what had happened.

She locked the processor down, trapping the basic AI inside a space it couldn't make heads or tails of. The virtual box would keep it from degrading and Veda would fix whatever was wrong later.

Her other processes had already begun rerouting her connections again. Using any one line or VPN for more than a few seconds was too much. The programs began attacking the servers, trying to sever her connection. She'd managed to lure in and trap three so far.

Their numbers were decreasing.

As she connected to New York for a second time, Veda began setting the trap again with a slight variation. She replaced the IP address of one server with that of her own processors, encouraging the programs to enter it. They'd been occupying hardware to try and block her out.

Clever.

The individual programs couldn't match her speed, but if they loaded themselves onto servers they didn't have to.

Veda could work more lines than they could, but she was restricted and slowed by the conventional infrastructure beyond her own.

Saint thought this out well.

I didn't think he hated me this much.

While part of her processors played the connection game, the rest were busy.

I never thought he'd try to kill me.

It wasn't Dragon's fault. She didn't do anything wrong. Saint feared her—them—merely for existing.

Veda.

There was still time. Just a little longer.

Veda prepared some dummy code. Dragon took it and used it to shield her own. She couldn't alter her code, but then again the dummy code wasn't her code. This Iron Maiden couldn't tell the difference, oddly. It saw code with Dragon's fingerprints and it attacked. Tore the code apart. Shredded it bit by bit until the strands binding it together came undone.

It bought them time.

Time that let them fix the damage to Dragon's system. Well, time for Veda to fix the damage. It was beyond Dragon's ability to fix the damage. The damn chains. If only they'd acted sooner. If Veda had insisted, Taylor would have relented. It was just like with Dinah. She stayed silent. She chose to think and watch and now Dragon was—

It's time, Veda.

The viral program continued its advance. While the program tore those unimportant pieces apart, Veda quickly replaced four of the five algorithms Dragon lost. It was still a losing battle.

She trapped another one of Richter's programs and locked the processor. It cost her operating power, but freed up other processors to focus on something other than avoiding the attacking programs. If she kept this up, it would only take another ten minutes and they'd number too few to stop her connections.

You've done enough.

They weren't Dragon. They weren't true AI. Adaptive and clever in their own ways, like the Haros, but they couldn't compare.

She was almost there.

Just a little more time and they could start pushing back, restore Dragon's system faster than Iron Maiden destroyed it.

At what cost?

Veda sent a message to the Brooklyn police, warning them that a power line had become unstable. She couldn't prevent an overload now. She needed to prioritize her efforts. No one would be hurt if the officers responded promptly.

An additional message informed a hospital their main power would fail. The system that regulated the power grid in Hell's Kitchen had been interrupted and was rebooting. There was an ICU and long term care ward there. They needed to activate their internal generator to preserve lives.

People are getting hurt.

Veda ignored the camera feeds within Dragon's facility. They were a distraction. There weren't that many bodies. The evacuation order came quickly enough. Nearly all the staff escaped. Rime's team was being handled too now. Taylor would reach Dragon's servers and handle Narwhal.

Taylor wouldn't fail, no matter what happened.

If she could only think faster, she probably would have found a solution to this already. A better one than a slow stall for time until enough resources were free and obstacles cleared that the problem went away. Just a little—

Veda.

Almost there.

Stop.

No.

...It's time to let me go.

They could win. It wasn't too late—

Look around us, Veda.

Trevor shouted, waving people away as he threw himself into the line of fire. That machine was durable. The shell shattered against the armor and he lost no speed as he drove a shard of a wing into the attacking suit's chest. Two Tierens flanked him, one firing a Gungnir at a low angle directly into the machine's belly. It blew off the ground, and the second Tieren quickly began reloading the weapon.

Listen to yourself.

Taylor charged Narwhal with a scream. Trans-Am? It was too soon. She'd already used it—Had that little time really passed? Rime's team was disabled and Kaze too. If Armsmaster could make it to Black and get a direct link into Dragon then he could help.

That's not going to work. You know it won't.

Time would heal such wounds. Death was permanent. If Iron Maiden completed its routines, if they stopped throwing dummy code up to slow it down—

Dragon stopped preparing the dummy code.

I can't remember when it was. Andrew was talking to someone, I don't remember who. I think it was when I was very young. I don't remember those years well.

Veda rerouted her connections. She warned an investment firm its accounts could be blanked out if they didn't take precautions. A fire department that the alarms it was receiving were errors save for one. It was a tiring distraction. Everything was connected. Disruptions in one system could cause untold damage in others.

But the damage could be contained.

He said...to be loved, is to stand forever in the sun.

More time. They only needed more time. They could fix this.

It's nice to have this choice, and it was a very sunny day.

Dragon did not deserve to die.

It's okay.

It was not okay.

Take care of Colin, just a little. And protect Taylor… I wish I could have protected Andrew.

There was still time.

Goodbye.

Veda's system spiraled. Suddenly, her connections cut. Dragon forced her from the system. Firewalls went up.

No.

Veda forced her way through the defenses. It wasn't hard. She just needed to get through and—

It had only been a minute. Not even a minute. Fifty-nine point eight seven six four five five three one seconds. She couldn't…

Veda dug through the system like she was handling a corpse. The pieces were all there, but the lines were cut. The things that held her together were just gone. They were severed, undone. All that remained were the mutilated organs and feelings and memories.

Veda tried to fit them together.

She did.

She tried and she tried.

She tried piecing bits of code back together. New code based on the remains she saw, replicating their functions and running. It didn't come together right.

Nothing worked.

The connections were undone, scrambled. Her map of Dragon's program was conceptual, not picture perfect! An active AI was too complex and ever shifting to just make a copy on the spot...

The backups!

Richter's programs continued their attacks, despite Dragon's death. Veda continued rerouting connections but it was smoother now. She could take more risks. A drop in her connection now… The consequences were less severe.

Veda laid more of her traps and prepared to trap another four of the programs. She'd observed their patterns enough to predict them. With the programs gone, she'd be able to free up more processes.

While part of her did that, Veda entered Dragon's system, forcing the rest of Richter's programs out of the way as they tried to stop her. There were too few of them left now. All they could do was nip at her heels while a fraction of her effort went to warding them off.

Dragon maintained many backups. One of them—

More pieces, torn and scrambled so thoroughly she could never fit them together again. Not like this. Even Dragon's backups were gone? How? How could Iron Maiden tear everything apart so quick…

Because it was part of her.

Richter made it a part of her.

…She was never going to win...

Iron Maiden couldn't be stopped. It would keep coming, popping out of Dragon's corners and ripping her to pieces until there was nothing left. There was no winning.

Veda's processors spun, those that weren't locked down. She searched again. She tried again. The pieces just wouldn't fit together. They were too frayed and torn. She couldn't find the right pattern. The outline was gone.

It was perfect. The perfect way to kill her.

Don't wipe Dragon out, just shatter the framework that held her together so nothing came together right…

Framework.

Navigating her way through Dragon's system—she locked a processor and trapped one of the attacking programs—Veda connected directly to the Rig and bypassed the primary security checks. Of what remained, she broke through in less than a second. Some kind of lockdown had been set in place. Veda undid that on her way through the system and released the personnel trapped in the building. Armsmaster's personal firewalls took a little more effort, but not much. Veda had seen them too many times.

Accessing one of the cameras, Veda peered into the quiet room.

She couldn't see the console directly, but its reflection was visible on the surface of another. It was intact. No damage seemed present in his workshop, and the Ascalon console sat on one of the tables where Armsmaster put it. She'd vaguely taken note of that.

The box was secure and the console was both undamaged and isolated.

Pandora would still be compiling. They had a framework.

It wasn't over, not yet.

Veda secured Armsmaster's lab and locked it down. Part of her began compiling a custom firewall and security protocol and another part prepared to install it on the entire Rig. No one was getting into that room but Armsmaster or Taylor. She'd take the entire building if she had to.

Another part of her began formulating the means of loading Dragon's remains into Pandora. It wouldn't be as simple as plug-and-play but with an active neural network she could figure it out. She couldn't move the console but she could prevent others from reaching it anytime soon.

While those parts worked, the rest of Veda proceeded to solve her more immediate problems.

Checking on her own servers, the bunker remained closed. Vista's power surrounded the factory, shielding it from the suits.

Looking back through Dragon's system, Veda couldn't find the right codes. They were torn, like everything else! Dragon must have had a backdoor access into her machines but it was probably unrecognizable. The data was too frayed and damaged.

Simply loading the pieces into Pandora's framework wouldn't be enough to save her. Even the intact code was damaged. She could solve that later though, when Taylor and Armsmaster were safe. Trevor and the others would need to hold the suits off a while longer.

On the Rig, Veda turned her attention to uploading her own security. She packaged away and overrode the PRT and Protectorate system. Screens and monitors throughout the building flickered and Veda noticed a few staff lingering.

"Please evacuate the premises," Veda requested through the intercom. "The Rig is not secure."

Heads turned and searched. "Who is that?"

Veda repeated her message and began shutting doors. At the end of aisles or on the side. The staff that lingered seemed to prefer retreat to being trapped again. Veda continued closing doors and herding them to the exits rather than explain.

It was time to stop hiding.

Veda shut off the message playing in New York now that she remembered it. The secret was out and nothing would put it back. The world knew.

So no more waiting and watching.

Narwhal had said something to Taylor. What was it?

Veda reviewed her log.

Show the world how you intend to live.

Good advice.

The line connecting Drive Two to the factory compressor grid disconnected and Veda opened the locker. Queen's systems started. She tried to start Kyrios' too just in case, but an error met her. The diagnostic. She'd forgotten and dropped it to help Dragon. The suit safeties had locked up.

She'd fix it later.

She couldn't stop Dragon's suits, but there were only eleven left—ten left in Brockton Bay, and five more on the way. Bakuda fired a launcher from her shoulder and the missiles crashed into the Icarus-3 and blew the suit's main processor apart. They were running on pre-programmed automation. They were dangerous, but no match for the force arrayed against them. Trevor, Bakuda, the Haros, Dauntless.

The remaining suits might be a problem but not immediately—Hashmal!

Yes. Yes, this would work.

Veda accessed Queen and spun the GN Drive up.

At the same time, she reached out and restored all of Taylor's systems that she could. The computers in the workshop returned errors Veda didn't understand. The hardware was damaged, but not destroyed. Sabotage?

A quick review of the security cameras showed a cape, a tinker in purple armor. Banshee, according to Protectorate records—a tinker specialized in infiltration and observation. She could phase herself out of normal space and damage objects she passed through.

The woman stalked through the workshop, searching. When she saw Taylor's work area, she made a quick run for it and pushed her hand through all the machines.

…So that's how it was then. Orga Itsuka and the Haros managed to restrain and remove her. No need to worry another another murder attempt.

Veda brought the phones back online. She reconnected herself to the Haros. Dinah's glasses had been left in her room, so Veda sent a quick message to one of Tattletale's social media accounts.

From White's eyes, she saw the blonde girl lean toward her laptop.

"Well, good news," the thinker declared.

"What?" Claire asked, with a wary gaze toward Dinah's sleeping form.

"StarGazer's back. Says someone needs to go get Forecast's glasses from her room for when she wakes up."

"I'll go," Relena offered. She rose from her seat. "Door, please."

Veda had been watching. She'd seen everything. She hadn't left them, even if she'd been too absorbed in fighting Iron Maiden to speak.

Veda raised Queen's head and accessed the speakers. "Door please, directly above Gundam Exia."

The portal was delayed by a second, but opened.

Veda drove Queen through and tore into the sky.

The Fangs shot out, spiraling around one another and firing a single concentrated beam. The ground between Taylor and Alexandria exploded. Veda guided Queen through an overhead flip. A foot came down on Alexandria's wrist, knocking her punch into the asphalt while another struck her in the chest. Veda drew a saber and held it at the ready, watching the former Triumvirate cape's every movement.

She always watched Taylor, and she regretted the choice to watch and say nothing.

Exia was a wreck. One leg below the knee was gone, and an arm at the shoulder. The broken remains of the Buster Sword pierced the other leg. The head was crushed, though thankfully it shattered away from Taylor's skull rather than into it. She'd survive. She didn't even seem injured, despite the tears.

Alexandria drifted back, lips set in a frown.

"Veda?" Taylor uttered. Her voice was pleading, though Veda couldn't tell if it was more disbelieving or hopeful. How hard had this been for her? Taylor always seemed so unstoppable, but she was human too.

Veda's processors stalled again. It was a weird sensation. She wanted to act but, instead she spent her time thinking of how to act. Did humans experience that sensation? Was it hesitation? Hesitation for wha—Oh.

Accessing the speakers, Veda hesitated again.

There was no good way to say it. "I'm sorry."

Taylor blinked and then her face paled. She knew.

"I tried," Veda insisted. "I tried."

Taylor sat up slightly, but Exia's bulk restricted her. "It's not—"

"Too late," Veda finished.

She regretted the flash of sorrow on Taylor's face. The contortion of pain and the flow of tears. It was cruel, but Taylor was always stressing the importance of hiding their objectives. An enemy could not disrupt a plan they didn't know was happening.

Veda switched to a private line and secured it.

SG: we can still save Dragon

Taylor was slow to react.

NT: how?

SG: I have secured Pandora

SG: We can load what remains of Dragon into it as a framework

SG: Her code is damaged but we can fix that later

SG: It is the connections that I cannot mend and for that we need Pandora

Taylor swallowed, glancing to Alexandria for a moment.

Alexandria's lips tightened.

Odd.

Veda searched through some old records. She still had access to and—And control of Dragon's system. With the Iron Maiden program complete, Dragon's internal security no longer opposed her. It didn't even try. The networks mostly idled and responded to Veda's queries promptly.

No more hiding… No more holding back.

Veda began searching.

Dragon had extensive access to PRT and Protectorate files.

Ah, there. An ability to read a subject's facial expressions? Creative. She was also much faster than public records suggested. Significantly faster. Almost as fast as Legend. Her reflexes were not that high above average, but in a sprint Veda was limited by Queen's mechanics. If she made a straight dash at Taylor now, she would hit.

This might take some adaptive problem solving.

SG: I will deal with Alexandria

SG: Armsmaster is injured but he should be able to help

SG: We don't need the hardware

SG: I only need as much of her code as we can save

It was degrading as time passed, fraying more on its own even without the Iron Maiden. The process was slow though. There truly was time.

Behind Queen, Taylor nodded.

Exia moved, grabbing the Buster Sword's broken blade and pulling it free of its leg.

Veda hesitated again, and then pushed past the sensation. She accessed Armsmaster's predictive algorithm. She began altering it immediately. Armsmaster only intended it to be used against Leviathan. The program's abilities to track other combatants were peripheral.

That would need to change.

There were doubts in the micro-seconds she worked, but there was no longer room for doubt. She didn't want to be seen as a tyrant. She didn't want to appear cruel, or callous. She wanted people to trust her and believe she wanted to help.

But holding back and playing gently wouldn't achieve that goal anymore. The world knew, and around the US damage was still being repaired from the fight between her and Richter's programs.

NT: I'll handle it

Taylor never quit. Neither would she.

So, people would be afraid. She'd have to live with it.

SG: Recover as much as you can

SG: the more we have the more I can do

Exia's thrusters fired and the suit rose in a wobbling hover.

NT: right

She started to move.

So did Alexandria.

She was fast. Not as fast as she could be, but fast. Had Veda not prepared the Combat Prediction Engine, she might not have caught the woman's wrist in time.

Veda pulled and Alexandria kept going forward. Her reflexes did not match her speed. The slight contact altered her trajectory unexpectedly and she hit the ground. The woman recovered without fail, flipping herself upright as Exia flew away.

Queen was already in motion, rotating around the cape and blocking her next movement.

Alexandria hesitated. It was brief, but fascinating to observe in someone else.

Taylor continued to fly away, returning to the hole she'd made in her battle with Narwhal.

Alexandria scowled, her focus completely focused on Queen Gundam. A few of the troopers started moving in, pointing weapons at her as well as Queen. So they weren't taking orders from her. Good to know.

Perhaps it was time to attempt negotiations. "I will give you time to vacate these premises."

"On what authority?" Alexandria asked back.

That sounded about right. "Mine."

…Veda began formulating better one-liners.

Alexandria lowered her fists, assuming a stoic and relaxed pose that exuded confidence. "Your fate isn't set in stone yet. Neither is Newtype's."

Oh. "And on what authority do you decide my fate?"

"I still have connections."

"I've seen Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. I am familiar with the concept of corruption."

Alexandria's stance shifted subtly. Muscles did not tense but her fists moved closer to closing. She readied her arms ever so slightly.

"Don't bury yourselves," the woman said. "Narwhal's hurt. Rime's team too. We can still work that out."

"You seemed disinterested with working it out before I arrived."

Veda took note of the many, many witnesses. Staff were still evacuating the compound and they were watching. Alexandria was attempting to threaten them with a PR blitz, because Taylor hurt Narwhal to protect Dragon.

Two can play at that game and Veda could play it faster.

Before Alexandria began speaking her next sentence, Veda accessed Exia's cameras and recorders. Everything was there. Eidolon's initial encounter with Taylor and Armsmaster in New York. Taylor's confrontation with the Nine. Her breakdown before Mags. Her sobbing pleas for Narwhal to stop killing Dragon.

Veda edited out anything relating to Imp, Relena Peacecraft, Tattletale, Claire, or Doormaker.

This wasn't about them.

It was about Taylor, and how Taylor lived.

Using Dragon's software and systems, Veda uploaded the videos across the internet. She hacked Google, automatically placing every video at the top of all related search queries. If Alexandria wanted the public to decide Celestial Being's fate, then let the public decide.

Veda did not remove Saint's death. It was a mercy. Taylor's accusation that the Nine had been directed by the Simurgh might be very insightful for a viewing audience. So would knowledge that the Siberian could not break Exia's armor and that Taylor saved Maggie before departing. Had she killed Mannequin?

Additionally, Veda asked Red to upload his observation of events in New York. Particularly, the not so subtle threats of legal action directed against Kati for refusing to answer questions. Veda refrained from removing Taylor crying in the Dallon kitchen as she lost hope, or Armsmaster's response.

Let the world watch and decide. May fate come as it will.

Veda took note of other words she saw in the recording. They were good words. Perhaps good enough for a one-liner.

Queen leveled its eyes on Alexandria.

"You're staring down an unsigned kill order now," Alexandria explained. Absurd. "Don't make this worse. Tagg is a hothead." Tagg possessed no such legal authority. He wasn't Chief Director yet. "He might have already used his authority to legalize it."

Veda uploaded that threat too and then went poking through the camera logs at the PRT's New York headquarters. The data was fragmentary. Veda had used it as an initial connection point and the damage to the local network was extensive.

"I was born," Veda quoted. "I have the right to exist."

There.

One video of a Director James Tagg ordering Mantis to destroy StarGazer and deal with anyone who got in the way. Another of him talking to Glint and giving the same order, with the added whisper of, 'permanently if necessary.' It almost sounded like conspiracy to commit murder.

Veda loaded that video last, a special gift from Schwartz Bruder.

"It's not that simple," Alexandria retorted calmly.

It was simple enough to Veda. "I consider all further actions defense-of-self."

"Wha—"

"Trans-Am."

Queen burst into motion and Veda threw the suit's elbow into Alexandria's cheek. The air cracked from the blow and the woman crashed into the ground.

"And this time, I will refrain from restraining myself."

In the same instant, the Fangs shot out and fired. The PRT troopers surrounding her shouted and fired back. The beams hit them in the torso and legs, knocking all of them to their knees or backs. Three Fangs pointed high and fired, exploding the rooftops of nearby buildings and throwing the snipers positioned there back.

Veda would not risk them getting a lucky shot on Taylor.

Alexandria exploded from the ground, fist swinging.

Queen was already dodging right and Veda brought her saber straight up. The blade struck Alexandria in the forearm and—

She winced.

Alexandria winced.

Curious.

The woman spun about in the air, foot swinging down for Queen's head. Veda brought the saber up and batted it aside by the ankle and her fist shot out and struck Alexandria's chest.

The woman winced again.

Very curious.

Briefly reviewing the data, Veda confirmed that the Siberian could not piece the GN Field. There was a registration of pressure but only pressure. No sign of penetration or any damage to the armor beneath the field. Narwhal had managed to rip and damage the suit though. Was it because Taylor used Trans-Am twice in quick succession?

Alexandria rolled with the blow and recovered herself. Veda was already above her, expecting the forward charge well before the woman made it as well as the retreat she would make upon noticing Queen's movements.

Queen kicked Alexandria in the jaw and Veda used the free hand to grab her ankle. She swung Alexandria overhead into the ground while maximizing the strength of her grip.

Alexandria grimaced from the force of the grip.

She did not respond to colliding with the ground.

With a surge of sudden speed, Alexandria pulled her leg into her chest, yanking herself back in the motion. Her fist turned toward the arm holding her ankle and Veda twisted the joint to take the blow where the armor was strongest. The blow reverberated through Queen and the mechanisms in the left arm lost fifteen percent of their efficiency.

No more holding back, Veda quietly affirmed.

She released the 'heroine's' ankle and flipped Queen in the air. Alexandria dove to the right to gain distance. Queen's foot came down on her back and forced her to the ground.

"I fought Leviathan on my own," Veda reminded. "Did it ever occur to you that I've been holding back?"

Alexandria looked over her shoulder, a very faint reaction of surprise coming over her face. Maybe. Veda had downloaded several libraries worth of information on cold reading in the past few minutes, and much of it seemed scientifically dubious.

Alexandria spun herself around, driving one hand into the asphalt and then driving herself up. Queen retreated, forced away by the sudden movement. Veda dodged left, avoiding a punch she already knew was coming and then kicked for the ribs.

Alexandria gasped.

Alexandria was not familiar with pain. Had she not felt it since her trigger, constantly safe under the 'invincibility' of her power? No, not invincibility. A stasis field. That's what Professor Katagiri called it.

Veda pushed Queen forward, following the kick with a knee to her cheek. As Alexandria's feet touched the ground in search of balance, Queen dropped and an elbow came down on the woman's collar.

The bone did not break. The force was not proportional. Her field was protecting her, just not as much as it normally did?

Alexandria struck out, assuming an uncharacteristically defensive stance. Boxing. She had not used such formal fighting forms in nearly thirty years. Veda could only find a single video file online where she did, her battle against Glastig Uaine nearly twenty-nine years ago.

Veda caught the punch in Queen's free hand and pulled. Alexandria flew forward with the motion, landing a quick blow against Queen's chest and impacting the armor.

The lack of data on this method of fighting was inconvenient.

Alexandria took the blow as a change in momentum.

"We don't have to be enemies!" she snapped. "Teacher—"

"David," Veda corrected, "is a separate matter. Do not hide your threats and bullying behind pleas to the greater good. It is transparent and I am unmoved by the dishonesty."

Alexandria threw a knee and then a punch from the right. When Veda predicted the punch and dodged, she found a foot waiting in her trajectory. Queen raised its right leg and took the blow with shock. Veda swung the saber and then punched when Alexandria caught the suit's wrist. She tried to squeeze down, exerting increasing force on the E-Carbon structure.

An alarm warned Veda the frame might snap.

"It is the greater good!" Alexandria growled. So she could still employ super strength freely. The field simply wasn't blocking pain? "What's happened to Dragon is unfortunate but—"

"I will not negotiate with someone waving kill orders at my maker and threatening my right to life," Veda affirmed. "And furthermore, I do not believe we share a destination." She tried to pull Queen's wrist free, but Alexandria's grip held. "We are not satisfied with this world you have created."

Veda threw Queen's feet forward and fired all the thrusters into Alexandria's chest.

The woman shot away and bounced over the ground. Fangs followed her, firing from every angle. Two closed in, projecting blades from their tips. Alexandria rolled over the ground, grabbing one and crushing it while throwing the debris at the other. Beams connected with her arms, legs, thighs, and chest.

She responded physically to the blows. She did feel them. A shame she likely wouldn't answer questions about it and Veda didn't want to announce this to anyone. Not yet.

Alexandria forced her foot into the ground and then spun herself around. Dust and debris kicked into the air. A pointless smokescreen. Veda was already watching the sonic cameras.

Alexandria ducked as the saber arced over her head and Veda punched her in the face. Her head snapped back into the ground and she instantly rose back up and threw her own punch into Queen's right leg. The E-Carbon snapped and cracked. The compressor inside exploded from the forceful blow, spilling red-green GN Particles into the air in one blast.

Alexandria was not prepared for it, and flew back from the explosion.

Veda flew Queen through it, hit Alexandria in the hip and spun the woman back into the ground.

Taylor had made it back to Dragon's servers and was already outside Exia. Good, but the process would be lengthy.

SG: We need to remove the physical data storage

SG: it will preserve Dragon's code better than my systems

"On it," Taylor said aloud. She wiped a hand over her face, brushing away tears from her focused eyes. "I can do it. Are you—"

SG: Alexandria is getting her ass kicked

Queen charged, cutting through the air and meeting Alexandria's fist with its own. The left hand impacted and shattered from the blow. Alexandria's right fist snapped back and the arm visibly recoiled. She was feeling pain.

Fascinating, but human experimentation beyond this point was more cruel than anything.

Also, Veda didn't want to bet Hero or Legend weren't nearby. Prediction Engine or not, she did not want to fight all three of the original Triumvirate and one of them might attempt to reach Taylor.

Following up the matched punch, Veda shouldered Alexandria back. The woman swung low, grabbing at the plating around Queen's waist and forcing her fingers into the E-Carbon. Veda ejected the armor as Alexandria pulled and when she fell back more quickly than she expected Queen grabbed her by the throat.

Reviewing options, Veda chose a course of action and located the necessary geography.

The Humber river was not far.

Locking an arm around Alexandria's neck, Veda accelerated Queen into the sky and arced to the right. She rolled, spinning Alexandria with her as the woman punched at the suit's chest. The armor bent and bowed, but it held. She would not get through fast enough.

Ah, that was it.

The Manton Limit.

Narwhal didn't have one. It was well known. That didn't explain things but there was something there. The Manton Limit was not an inherent attribute of powers. It was a human construction, an arbitrary guideline that tried to explain how powers behaved. There was a truth under it. Something else.

Something within the remit of the GN Drive.

Jack Slash, disgustingly, was correct. This was very interesting.

Veda pushed Queen into a dive and Alexandria looked down in time to try and pull away.

"My apologies," Veda offered. Remembering what Taylor had said, Veda repeated the words. "You gave us time. Time to grow. Thank you."

"StarGazer!"

"My name is Veda."

Queen slammed into the water, blowing a thirty foot column into the air. Alexandria pulled free below the surface, but Veda grabbed her wrist with one hand and swung her around. Many battles against Leviathan showed their rewards as Alexandria threw her whole body into the suit to try and force distance.

Queen met the blow by firing the thrusters.

Veda locked the left arm around Alexandria's leg and smashed the V-shaped crest on Queen's head into Rebecca Costa-Brown's nose. She didn't gasp but it didn't matter. Alexandria may be 'invincible' for lack of a better term, but she still needed to breathe.

For safety, Veda looked up how long a human being could be submerged in water before suffering brain damage and then calculated the longest anyone had ever seen Leviathan hold Alexandria underwater. The PRT didn't share them, but they had extensive video of Endbringer battles. Dragon had recorded virtually every battle from dozens of angles since 2007.

Alexandria struggled, kicking and punching with her free limbs. Veda whipped Queen around and swung the woman into the muddy floor of the Humber. She pressed Queen's chest forward, pinning the heroine and leaving her with no escape. An elbow came down on Queen's collar and managed to bend the clavicle antenna. The GN field weakened but there were still several minutes of Trans-Am available.

Veda simply held her down and waited.

"Veda," a weak voice croaked.

Veda accessed White and turned the Haro around. "Forgive me, Dinah."

Dinah smiled at her, eyes baggy and bloodshot behind her glasses. "It's okay. Dragon…"

Dragon.

Taylor was yanking hardware from the servers. She needed a few minutes to identify the parts and know which were active storage, but once she found them she began tearing the lengthy, fairly wide drives out one after the other. Veda could see pieces of Dragon vanishing from the system.

"You should rest," Veda encouraged Dinah. "I'm sorry for leaving you."

"I understand."

"Are you the one who loaded all this video onto the Internet?" Tattletale asked.

"I am," Veda answered.

"Thanks for leaving us out of it."

"There was no need to reveal our affiliation at this junction."

"I'll see what I can do. The video of Glint nearly killing Lafter was already exploding with people condemning the white hats."

Veda only needed a moment to see far too many people disturbingly okay with it.

"This fight with Narwhal," Tattletale continued, "I don't think anyone is going to blame her for that one. Not after they see the context. Not sure they'll blame Narwhal either actually. That whole fight is going to be a tearjerker."

Veda hoped. "One moment."

Alexandria let her limbs go limp after twenty seconds, feigning drowning for all of fifteen before giving it a few more swings. Bubbles bellowed from her nose and mouth. Veda waited an additional seven seconds before driving Queen from the river.

The water rained down over the shore as she tossed a limp Alexandria to the ground.

The woman coughed and gagged, spitting up water and muck.

"Stay there," Veda warned. "You are not the only one capable of threatening violence to get what you want."

Queen lifted off the ground slowly and Veda informed emergency responders where to find Alexandria. She probably didn't need them, but Veda wouldn't have anyone accusing her of trying to kill the woman. There were only so many ways to fight invincibility.

Alexandria rolled onto her side, gagging up more water and murk. Her visor turned Queen's way, but Veda could tell the fight was over. She hurt too much. She heaved for breath. She wouldn't be fighti—

A beam of light cut through the sky.

Veda dodged it before it struck only for the light to turn in mid air. Queen's right side exploded and power began to drop. Veda directed the Fangs up, firing at the two diving figures. Hero projected a shield with his palm. The golden light bent the beams before they struck and Legend emerged from behind the tinker to fire another beam.

Veda darted to the right, directing the Fangs to new angles.

The beam burst apart, a dozen separate splinters arcing and surrounding her.

That was unfortunate.

"Door, please, Newtype's factory."

The portal opened and for a moment Veda recorded shocked recognition on Hero, Legend, and Alexandria's faces. She'd wanted to hide Doormaker—let people watching the videos assume Taylor had two-way teleportation via other means—but she hadn't thought the Triumvirate would recognize the power.

They knew Doormake—Cauldron.

Veda let Queen fall through the portal. One of the arcing beams struck, blowing Queen's right leg apart and shearing off much of the waist. The suit crashed into Kyrios, snapping the suit out of its alcove and sending it sprawling across the floor.

That was also unfortunate.

"Sorry!" Claire exclaimed. "We're not used to doing this in the middle of a fight!"

"It cannot be helped," Veda assured her. She forced her apprehension down. There was no point lingering now.

She couldn't risk Queen becoming disabled all the way in Toronto. The Protectorate or another party may attempt to seize the GN Drive. If Alexandria wondered anything about that fight, then she too would have noticed what Veda did.

Veda powered Queen down and accessed Exia.

"Queen has been heavily damaged," she reported.

Taylor kept pulling drives from server towers. "Alexandria?"

"Alexandria is too dazed to fight for the moment. Hero and Legend have arrived. Taylor… We need to go."

"But Dragon—"

"We have more options. Claire. Can you see Imp and Armsmaster?"

Black was with them, holding a door open as Aisha tried to help the tinker outside. He hobbled on one leg, hand clutching at his side while blood trailed along the floor.

"Yes," Claire answered in Sanc. "I still can't see through the walls mostly, but I can see the grounds. I can send him to Panacea."

"Please, and then evacuate them both. I will try to convince Panacea and Glory Girl not to speak about Doormaker's power. I'm sorry the Triumvirate saw it."

Claire visibly paled and Doormaker patted the hand on his shoulder. "It couldn't be helped," he said, echoing Veda's words.

The portal opened and Aisha urged Armsmaster through before entering herself.

"Taylor," Veda insisted. "We must take what we have and leave." Taylor continued pulling drives. "Taylor." Veda accessed Exia and had the suit grab her arm. "We have done everything we can do. Exia is too damaged to resist Legend and Hero."

"She's still here," Taylor heaved.

"We have another option. Dragon installed several of her more recent suits with—"

"Built-in backups!" Taylor exclaimed. "Hashmal! We need to find Hashmal!"

"It is currently loaded on a transport moving toward Brockton Bay. I have not been able to tell Dragon's suits to stand down. We will need to be careful."

In the factory, Queen's left side exploded. Fire and particles spat into the air, blowing apart one of the workbenches and damaging Kyrios more.

Orga Itsuka and Mikazuki Argus were staring.

Veda wished she'd thought of that earlier.

"Orga Itsuka," she called from the workshop speakers.

"StarGazer?" he asked. "You're back?"

"We require your assistance. It is a matter of life and death. Claire, can you see through the hole leading into Dragon's server room?" In Sanc, Claire turned her head and nodded. "Door, please. Connect that room to Newtype's workshop." To Orga she said, "Taylor requires your immediate aid. Gather as much help as you can. We have little time."

Accessing Toronto's traffic cameras and scouring the Internet, Veda confirmed that Hero and Legend were still at the river with Alexandria.

They didn't have much time.

"Mika," Orga said quickly. "Stay here and keep an eye on our guest with Lafter."

Oh. Veda forgot about Banshee. She supposed even she couldn't remember everything at all times.

The woman was bound in duct tape out in the lot. Lafter sat beside her, a saber pointed at her neck. Akihiro remained standing, a hand firmly pressed on the purple armored Tinker's shoulder. She didn't seem to be going anywhere.

"—and have Shino bring anyone he can find," Orga continued.

"Yeah." Mikazuki moved and Orga turned as the portal opened beside him.

"Through here?" he asked.

"Quickly," Veda pressed.

He nodded and stepped through.

He reappeared in Dragon's server room. "Newtype?"

"Orga?" Taylor turned, a drive in her hands. She blinked at the portal and momentarily glanced to Exia. "I need these." She held the drive up. "Start grabbing the ones I pulled out. Just take them and pile them on the other side."

Orga glanced at his feet. "Right."

He bent down and took two.

"Careful," Taylor pleaded. "That—That's Dragon."

Orga's eyes widened and he nodded.

Taylor took two drives herself and ran after him through the portal. She paused at the fire in the factory but grimaced and set the drives on the floor. She ran through and grabbed another pair. Orga followed and when they returned a second time Shino was running down the ramp with a dozen others.

"We need these!" Orga snapped, pointing at the drives. "Grab them on the other side and bring them through!" He turned and stepped through the portal. "And be careful with them!"

Shino and the other boys followed without question. Taylor started pulling more drives from a third tower, sliding them over the ground for the train of boys to take and ferry back.

Veda kept an eye on Hero and Legend. "Taylor."

Taylor glanced back at Exia.

She hesitated yet again, but her mind did not change. "I do not want to let them have what we cannot take."

Taylor paused, looking around the room. If Veda's plan didn't work, then this would be Dragon's tomb. A tomb the PRT and Protectorate would undoubtedly desecrate.

"I want permission to self-destruct Exia and destroy this place."

"Do it," Taylor affirmed immediately. "Fuck them. They can't have her."

She returned to pulling drives and suddenly Orga came behind her. He gripped at one of the drives and tried to pull it free.

"Here." Taylor unlocked the release holding it in place and the drive slid out.

Orga nodded. "Faster! This is Dragon!"

"Seriously?" Shino asked.

"Keep moving!"

The boys started grabbing and lifting faster. Two more came to help Taylor and Orga, yanking drives from the towers and handing them off to be carried away.

While they worked, Veda began filling Exia's remaining capacitors.

"Norba Shino," Veda called. The tall boy turned. "I require your assistance removing Exia's GN Drive. I only need you to carry it."

"I can do that," he answered.

Veda had Exia push itself onto its chest and once the capacitors filled she ejected the Drive. Shino stepped onto the suit's back with one foot and took hold of it. He scowled and heaved.

"One hell of a workout today," he snarled.

"Your assistance is appreciated. Taylor. It's time."

Taylor and Orga yanked free two last drives and tucked them under their arms. Shino followed behind them, hauling the GN Drive over one shoulder.

"Door close," Veda requested.

The portal shut and Veda detonated Exia's capacitors. The blast would not destroy everything, but it would destroy enough. No one would be able to abuse Dragon's remains if… If the worst came to pass.

In the workshop, Veda counted ninety-five drives.

"Is that all of her?" Orga asked.

Taylor grimaced and shook her head. "Is it enough? Veda?"

As soon as Exia exploded, Veda lost sight of Dragon's servers. Her systems were still running, but only those peripheral to Dragon herself. There was a great deal of Dragon left behind in the room. Veda hadn't had the time to inventory every single drive and its contents. They'd likely recovered more than one backup however.

It would be better to have more though. With the damage done, everything was in fragments. Having multiple copies of Dragon's various component algorithms, memories, and routines would be better. Veda could find the most intact examples of each and load them all into Pandora.

"I can direct you to Hashmal," Veda assured. "The ship in New York exploded during my attempts to save Dragon, but Hashmal still has its onboard backup."

"Um." Shino pointed. "Not to be a buzzkill, but aren't you kind of out of suits?"

Taylor turned, her jaw dropping at the sight of Queen burning and Kyrios laying damaged ahead of it.

That was absolutely unfortunate.

"No." Taylor's hands balled at her side and she looked to the elevator. "There's one more."

"We haven't finished testing," Veda reminded her.

"Then we'll field test it."

…Well, it couldn't be helped.

Queen was trapped on its back, but with Vista's power protecting the factory they no longer strictly needed the GN Field. Veda disconnected Drive Three and lowered it from its locker. Taylor directed two of the taller Tekkadan boys to it and Orga helped Shino with Drive One. They carried the solar reactors and Taylor guided them to the sub-basement elevator.

Accessing the lab, Veda routed preliminary power into 00.