Cover Girl parked the VAMP as close as she dared. The rest of the trek was to be made on foot. A topographical map of the area was downloaded, and the most tactically feasible route of entry chosen. Only the soldiers left the RV, rifles in hand, and they penetrated the facility in a single file recce patrol pattern, which lent itself for a quieter negotiation under the cover of darkness.

Beach Head periodically checked the device strapped to his wrist; the readout indicated that Roxy's tracker was in the tallest structure in the center of the property. He intentionally chose a less direct route, a zig-zag pattern, that afforded minimal line of sight to the structure.

Rusted water slides, artificial tropical structures that had fallen into disrepair, and popular family entertainment icons faded by years of neglect littered the landscape. Beach Head stopped and raised his arm in the air; the line behind him crouched: even numbers faced East, odd numbers faced West with their weapons at the ready. Beach Head ran ahead to recon the next turn.

"What is it with Zartan and abandoned amusement parks?" Cross Country whispered.

"Technically, it's a water park," Sci-Fi replied.

"Tactically it makes sense," Airtight said. "The land is cheap and semi developed, and being in a remote location, it has excellent visibility in all directions, the only possible way in without attracting attention is on foot."

"Stow the chatter, ladies," Mainframe ordered.

Cover Girl tensed her finger on the trigger of her rifle, "I got movement!"

"So do I," Sci-Fi confirmed.

The rest of Joes aimed their weapons at the foliage that rustled all around them. Ominous red lights peeked through the brush. Beach Head rejoined them, and he gave the order, "Circle the wagons!"

The team obeyed, changing their pattern from a line to a circle. Rifles pointed in all directions, providing 360 degrees of cover. They shouted in unison, "HOOAH!"

"Remember, aim for their optical sensors," Beach Head said, and he gave the order to fire.

Their combined muzzle flashes were bright enough to read by.

The first phalanx of Battle Android Troopers fell easily, awash in sparking circuitry and dismembered limbs.

Beach Head knew it was too early to claim victory. "Reload!"

The Joes obeyed just in time for the second assault. There were more this time, relentless as they marched forward and fearless in pursuit of their common objective.

Beach Head clenched his jaw as the inevitable started to happen:

"I'm out!"

"My battery's dead!"

"That was my last magazine!"

"I'm empty!"

Beach Head likewise burned through the last of his ammunition. "Prepare for hand-to-hand combat!" He rushed the nearest BAT and jumped kicked him. However, the expected impedance of his body slamming into metal never came, and he hit nothing, save for the hard ground. He regarded the rest of his team: Cover Girl swung her rifle, Sci-Fi and Cross Country team tackled a trio of androids, while Airtight and Mainframe employed martial arts. They all hit nothing.

Beach Head cursed. "Stand down! They're holograms!"

The deception having run it's course, the BATs disappeared. The Joes regrouped.

"Does anyone have any ammo?" Beach Head questioned, but as he feared, everyone was empty.

The Dreadnoks stepped out of the brush and approached with their weapons raised.

Ripper grinned. "We got plenty of ammo."

Being outmaneuvered, the Joes had no choice but to surrender. The Dreadnoks lined them up in the center of an open clearing, Monkeywrench and Thrasher covered their rear as Ripper and Torch covered the front. The Stormer and Jetta HARPys collected the Joes' spent firearms and dumped them in a pile. They then stood behind their prisoners and suffered no movement on their part.

Ripper was not happy. "That was no fun. That bloody contraption is gonna put us out of a job, it is."

Everyone tensed as an engine's roar came from the south. The VAMP crashed through an aged concession stand. Its movement, however, was erratic; it banked too sharply to avoid a clutch of trees and ended up falling into a utility ditch. It's tires spun tractionless.

The Dreadnoks laughed, having enjoyed the show.

After a brief minute of stillness, the RV's portal opened. Buzzer stepped out with a stagger; his hands were bound. Techrat held him fast by his ponytail.

Techrat pointed the end of a flare gun at the blond Dreadnok's temple. "Drop your weapons, or I'll shoot him."

Ripper smiled, and he slung his rifle over his shoulder. "Looky 'ere, fellas. Buzzer's been taken prisoner by Boy George."

The Dreadnoks laughed, except for Buzzer.

Techrat pressed the flare gun harder, making Buzzer wince. "I'll do it!"

"No, you won't," Ripper said. He drew his revolver and aimed it at Buzzer.

Buzzer grimaced. "Bugger…"

BLAM!

And he slumped to the ground at Techrat's feet.

"Looks like your prisoner is out of action," Ripper said. "What are you going to do now?" He put his pistol away as Techrat wisely surrendered. "Smart move."

"Bloody 'ell!" Buzzer cursed at Ripper. "You shot me!"

"Relax, you had your vest on, didn't you?"

"Yea, but it still hurts like the dickens!" He scowled. "And, are you drunk? What if you missed?"

"That's why I aimed for your 'ead." Ripper said with a shrug. A hiss from the VAMP stole his attention "Eh, now, what's going on?"

Techrat grinned. "I set it to self destruct. If you don't let us go. We're all dead."

Beach Head narrowed his eyes as he dared to speak, "Hammler, what did you do?"

"I replicated the power spike we had this morning," Techrat replied with arrogance. "It should be spiking into the red about now."

Ripper was not impressed, though his curiosity had been otherwise piqued. "Hammler… where have I heard that name?" He rubbed his chin as he regarded Torch. "Isn't Hammler the name of the bloke that started all this Watchdog crap, the one that Zartan's been going on about?"

Torch shrugged. "I dunno. So, what if he was?"

"Hammler was a Black man, wasn't he?" Ripper said, rhetorically.

"I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know? Didn't you read the mission brief?"

"No, I never read the mission briefs. I don't see the point?" Torch said, annoyed. "What does it matter if he's Black anyway?"

"I don't care that he's Black, it's just that this cunt 'ere is White, and they got the same name. It's unusual 's all." Ripper then approached Techrat, saying, "You adopted, boy?"

"I'm not adopted!" Techrat spat. "I'm a genius, just like my father!" The lights on the VAMP flickered. "The clock is ticking, assholes."

"Don't look like a genius from where I stand," Ripper said, looking Techrat in the eyes. "I'm calling your bluff, because I don't think you have the stones, kid."

The various pieces of the VAMP's armored skin fanned out randomly and the horn blared. A loud pop was heard and the machine went dormant. The air smelled of ozone.

"That's what I thought." He punched Techrat in the face, easily knocking him to the ground. "That's for ruinin' me buzz."

Roused by the noise, Zarana finally came out of hiding. "What's all this palaver about?"

"Nothing worth mentioning, Zarana," Ripper replied. "Although, we've come to find out that Torch 'ere doesn't bother to read the mission briefs."

Zarana pouted. "Aww… But, Zartan puts a lot of work into those."

Ripper snorted. "I know, right? I like the way he personalizes mine: he always adds a flair at the end of my name. The bloke has style."

Buzzer sat up, and he shook his head. "Really, Torch, have you no sense of professionalism at all?"

"Pardon, bloody, me," Torch said, exasperated. "I promise that after we put a bullet in each of these Joes' 'eads, the first thing I'll do when we get back is read my mission brief from cover to bloody cover."

Without moving her head, Zarana glanced in Mainframe's direction. Unnoticed by the rest of the Dreadnoks, they shared a look. "Eh, now, who said anything about putting bullets into their 'eads?"

Torch shrugged. "I took it as a matter of course that we'd be puttin' bullets in 'eads."

Zarana put her hands on her hips. "We're not putting bullets into anyone's 'eads."

"Why not?"

"Because, I said so!"

Ripper frowned. "I'm calling Zartan." And he pushed the button on his transceiver, saying, "Zartan." There was no answer. He tried again. "Zartan, do you read me?" He examined his radio and noticed that it wasn't even powered on. "Bloody thing is on the fritz…."

Techrat spat, clearing his mouth of blood, and he started to laugh.

But, Ripper was not amused. "What's so funny, boy?"

Techrat smirked. "Electro. Magnetic. Pulse…."

Airtight and Mainframe shared a knowing look. They rose and gently nudged the HARPys that had been guarding them; the androids fell straight on their backs, having been deactivated. They then took out Monkeywrench and Thrasher from behind, catching them unawares.

Zarana cursed, but her warning came too late, for Cross-Country and Sci-Fi had already tackled Torch, their combined weight easily taking him out of action.

Ripper cursed and shouldered his rifle, but the Joes had re-armed with his fallen comrades' weapons, so he wisely retreated behind Zarana, popping off a volley of suppression fire to cover his escape.

The Joes quickly regrouped. Beach Head approached Techrat, and he helped the young man to his feet, saying, "You hot wired my VAMP, drove it into a ditch, then you hacked into its subsystems in order to sabotage very expensive pieces of government property…. Well done."

Techrat smiled.

The Master Sergeant then consulted with his computer specialist. "Mainframe, what do you reckon is the radius of that EMP that Techrat just set off? Do you think it reached all the way to the facility?"

"Not a chance," Mainframe replied "On the bright side, they're gonna be blind. They won't see us coming in."

"What do we do with these goons, boss?" Cross Country said in reference to the Dreadnoks.

"Cuff em' and leave them." He then appropriated Thrasher's rifle from him. "Reload from provisions in the VAMP, and catch up to me when you can."

"When we can?" Mainframe frowned. "With all due respect, sir, what the hell do you think you're pulling?"

"Zarana and Ripper are gonna beat us as a group, but I can still get there quicker and unseen by myself."

"I'm afraid we cannot allow that," Airtight said. "Regulations clearly state—"

"Do not quote regulations to me," Beach Head said evenly. "None of you are rangers, and I don't have time to bring y'all up to speed on insertion tactics."

"You're not talking to a bunch of Shake n' Bakes here." Mainframe said with a scowl. "I'm Airborne, you arrogant son of a—" He stopped himself, and he averted his eyes. "I apologize for my outburst, Master Sergeant."

Beach Head placed his hand on Mainframe's shoulder. He spoke softly. "Airborne... that's why I need you to stay here with them. Now, hogtie these asswarts, then come save my hide."

Mainframe regarded Techrat. "Walter, give me your belt." Techrat obeyed and Mainframe disassembled the buckle, wherein he retrieved a tiny transmitter. "I'll be able to track you with this… I hope she's all right."

Beach Head put the transmitter in his pocket, and he left.

"When did you plant that on me, you jerk!"

—oOo—

Zandar looked up from his computer monitor when Roxy stirred. He approached and sat next to her on the bunk to which she was tied. "So, you're awake." He checked her restraints. "You were particularly had to scan."

He retrieved a needle from the tray on the end table. Roxy's gag muffled her scream. "Don't worry, this'll just put you to sleep. I'm not quite done with you yet, so I need you quiet." He placed the tip of the needle to Roxy's forearm, ignoring her futile struggles.

But, he became distracted as his sister Zarana rushed into the room.

She leaned against the wall, winded. "Zandar... I need your help... There was an EM pulse—"

Zandar's eyes narrowed. "What are you on about?"

She regained her composure and spoke slowly. "The Joe's are here, Zandar, and we're down four Dreadnoks and two Synthoids—"

"HARPys." He corrected her.

"WHATEVER!"

Zandar walked back to his workstation. After a few mouse clicks, an alarm sounded. "I'll take care of the clean up here and meet you at our fallback area."

Zarana left. As expected, his transceiver beeped; it was his brother.

"Zandar, what's going on?"

"Our compromise is inevitable."

"Impossible! How!"

"Zarana said something about an EM pulse. I'm about to implement our escape protocol."

"I'm going to be late. I refuse to abandon the asset, and I'm at a… delicate juncture at the moment."

"Do you require assistance?"

"Yes. What's our situation?"

"Four Dreadnoks are out of action."

"What about the HARPys?"

"Two are down in the field. One is with me, but it's currently rebooting to apply some upgrades. The remaining one is guarding the prisoners."

"Send it to me, and take care of the prisoners."

Zandar acknowledged the order, and he left, locking the door to the examination room. The needle remained on the tray, forgotten.

Roxy went to work on her restraints. Zandar wasn't the first person to think she couldn't wriggle out of a tight spot, so it was only a matter of time before she freed herself. She rose from her bunk and first regarded the computer screen. She randomly pushed buttons on the keyboard, but the device no longer accepted any inputs.

She went to the door and tested it. Locked! Using metal fatigue, she tore a metal rod from the bed frame and inserted it between the gap leading to the latch. This is gonna take a while.

Being unsuccessful, she took a break. A barred window separated her from the examination room next door where she saw a HARPy seated, content, in its chair with it's eyes closed.

The HARPy's finger twitched.

—oOo—

Zandar opened the door to the main detention area. He approached the lone HARPy with green hair.

"Report to Zartan."

The automaton obeyed.

He regarded the prisoners. "It's time."

Gabor pleaded.

Pizzazz cursed him.

Stormer sobbed.

But, Jetta was oddly calm.

Zandar pushed the proper sequence on the control panel, and the cages on all the cells unlocked. "Everybody out." There was no movement. "You're free."

Their heads peeked tentatively out of their cells.

Zandar opened the main door, and he waved them out. "The army is on the grounds. They're here to rescue you."

The Misfits held each other, tears streaming from their eyes. Gabor was the first to approach. He shook Zandar's hand, and he left. Stormer, Pizzazz, and Jetta followed single file.

Alone, Zandar returned to the control panel, and he deactivated the system. The lights dimmed; revealing a shadow cast from the door, and he turned to see that Jetta had returned. He arched an eyebrow as she approached.

She placed her hands on his chest and stood on the tips of her toes in order to reach is lips.

They kissed, tentatively at first, then they deepened. He placed his hand on the small of her back and pulled her closer. She shuddered.

Pizzazz's voice echoed from the other side of the hall. "JETTA, LET'S GO!"

Their lips parted, and he released her.

"Thank you," she whispered. "I knew you wouldn't—"

"When you get to the first fork, take a right, after that it's all lefts."

She nodded in understanding and rejoined her friends.