Silence
Chapter 37: Master Mold
Sentinel Island
It was in the most unusual of circumstances that Laird James McMullen Destro found himself fighting back to back with Captain America. Destro was a practical man, however, and he wasn't one to turn down unexpected help. Whatever the Avengers' objectives were, and the Joes'-for Destro could see that at least one had tagged along for the ride, he could be sure that they shared two objectives with Destro's team: getting out alive and destroying the factory.
That was enough for Destro.
"You seem to know a lot about this factory," Captain America commented, throwing up his shield to prevent a weapon's discharge from incinerating him and the Scottish Laird. Destro had just finished giving a brief rundown of the island's defense systems. "One might think you built it."
Destro didn't answer as he fired a Repulsor beam at the lower torso section of a sentinel. To his surprise, it immediately repaired itself. Odd. That was the location of the sentinels' self repair module. Destroying it should have disabled the sentinel's self-repair function. That could only mean one thing…Master Mold had redesigned the sentinels' circuitry. The module could be located anywhere now.
"Destro!" Captain America pressed again, nimbly avoiding a barrage of fire. The Cobra leader rolled his eyes. Americans seemed to have a tendency for choosing the most inappropriate times to have a serious discussion.
"Now is hardly the time for this," the Scottish Laird responded sharply. "If we survive this and if you help me to shut down this factory, then I promise to give you information."
"And I can trust this because….?" The blonde haired poster boy of American heroism narrowed his eyes suspiciously, before wincing when Jinx was hit by gas. However, the ninja pranced right on through the poisonous mist without showing any adverse effects. The Avenger's jaw dropped in shock, which caused Destro to shake his head. Apparently the other man was still ignorant about how durable Arashikage ninja were.
"I give you my word, Captain Rogers," Destro replied grimly. "Even the Joes can attest to the fact that I keep my promises." The other man didn't answer right away. Destro took the brief respite to scan the sentinels with his sensors. However, his suit's system weren't powerful to penetrate the machines' shielding.
"Mainframe just told me to trust you," Steve Rogers finally grunted. Destro gave him a sharp look.
"Mainframe is aboard the jet?" he asked quickly. The Scottish Laird shook his head. "God damn you Rogers, why didn't you mention this before? I could have been working with him already! What's the Quinjet's frequency?"
Rogers gave it to him. Second later, Destro was in communication with the Joe.
"Mainframe," the Cobra leader ordered. "I need you to sync the Quinjet's radar surveillance system with the scanner in my suit. Increase the EEP output by thirty percent."
"Won't the feedback potentially damage your circuits?" Mainframe replied back. "I can tell that you based the suit off of Stark's design. As advanced as the circuitry is, you still risk…"
"I'm willing to take that chance," Destro said sharply. "I need you to help me locate the sentinels' self-repair module. Master Mold changed the design, so I don't know where it's located now."
"So you did help build…" Steve Rogers started to say, but Destro shut him down with a sharp rebuke.
"Not NOW Rogers! Good Lord, even Flint knows when to hold his tongue!"
"May I remind you that we came to save your hide, Destro?" Captain America did not seem to care for the Flint comparison. It could have been Destro's imagination though.
"For which I am grateful," the Scottish Laird replied back, firing a rocket missile at one of the island's machine gun arrays. "But now is not the time for questions! I would have thought that you of all people would know that!"
Steve Rogers grumbled, but didn't respond to it. If anything, Destro's comment seemed to snap the man back into a combat mindset.
"Don't mind Cap," a woman's voice came over the Quinjet's radio frequency. "Tony Stark has been a bad influence on him."
"Stark's a bad influence on everyone," another female voice quipped. The Avenger's remark elicited a general round of laughter over the communication frequency. Even a few of Destro's people chuckled at the remark.
Good. As long as his team was still able to laugh, then there was hope. Destro had handpicked them for his Iron Grenadiers for a reason. Not that Cobra Commander, of course, yet knew that the men and women on his team were loyal to Clan Destro first.
"Destro!"
Mainframe's voice came over the line just as the Quinjet synced its systems with his armored suit. Destro winced as the sudden burst of information. The human brain hadn't been designed for this much visual stimulation.
The sky suddenly lurched as he felt his stomach slam into his ribcage. Long moments passed before a disoriented Destro realized that an energy discharge had sent him through a thick wall. He was now back in the factory and buried underneath a pile of rubble.
"Destro…" Mainframe's voice came over the line again, this time more urgent.
His muscles balked as he pushed away heavy blocks of cement and steel. Destro belatedly realized that the ground was thundering with the footsteps of something large and heavy. He twisted his head to look, but was suddenly overcome with a piercing migraine.
His armored suit suddenly activated and blasted off before Destro was able to react. Beyond his control, a still somewhat dazed Laird McCullen Destro watched as his arms lifted up and fired a propulsion blast at a looming Master Mold.
"Destro?"
Mainframe again. The pieces in his still rattled mind suddenly clicked together. The Joe was remotely operating his armored suit from the Avengers' aircraft. It was for that reason that the suit had seemed to operate on its own. It seemed that Destro owed the man his life. As he recovered his senses, the Scotsman vowed to do two things when the battle was over:
1. He would redo the circuitry of the armored suit so that Mainframe wouldn't be able to remotely control him again.
2. He would buy the man a bottle of vintage scotch.
Vibrations shook his feet violently when Mainframe remotely fired the boot jets. The gyro-stabilizers were obviously shot, causing Destro to frown. He would have to tear his suit apart later and see what else needed to be fixed.
"I'm fully capable of controlling the suit now, thank you," Destro told the Joe. Mainframe immediately relinquished control back to the Scottish Laird. The Cobra leader was mulling over a plan of attack when thick wires suddenly began snaking through the interior of the factory, creating a metallic jungle. A large rumble shook Destro out of his thoughts. He looked up just in time to see a small chunk of Master Mold smash into the floor.
A red faced, green and gold humanoid figure materialized between Destro and the sentinel behemoth. The Scotsman instantly recognized the android known as the Vision. Before he could speak, however, vertigo slammed into him. A large pressure began to compress his armor against his body. Glancing down, Destro noted with dismay that a thick, metallic wire had coiled itself around him.
He instantly activated the suit's sonic emitter, but it had no effect against the rope. Destro felt a rib crack painfully. If he survived this, he was installing a laser cutter….
A gold hand ripped off the coil. Destro gasped, still unable to breath. Seconds later, his destroyed armor was ripped off. The pressure around his lungs suddenly ceased.
"Perhaps I can be more of assistance here," the android told him. "I should be able to interface with Master Mold's computer systems."
Destro gratefully accepted the offered assistance. Somewhere deep inside him, however, his sense of pride balked. James McCullen Destro ignored it, as now was not the time to quibble over his inability to deal with the situation.
"Be careful," he told the android, still wheezing slightly. "Master Mold will have safety protocols in place."
"I am aware of that," the Vision answered stoically. "But first, I shall take you to the Quinjet. Your suit is no longer functioning."
Destro reluctantly allowed himself to be ferried up to the Avenger's aircraft, which was currently engaged in an aerial assault on two sentinels. The jet broke off its engagement long enough for the Vision to open the side hatch. A strong gust of wind carried Destro inside and ceased the moment that the door was shut again. A quick inventory revealed a woman with a small frame in the pilot's chair. There was a familiar soldier sitting beside her.
The weapons manufacturer and Mainframe stared at each other for a long moment. The Joe finally pointed to the copilot's control.
"I think I've located the self-repair module," Mainframe told him. "Care to take a look and confirm it? You obviously understand the design more than the rest of us."
It was stated matter-of-factly, without any derogatory remarks or an accusatory tone. That would probably come later, Destro knew. Then again, Mainframe wasn't exactly one of the more hot headed Joes. Jinx would be the one threatening him, not the computer technician.
"Show me," Destro replied. "It's time to put an end to this mess."
Sentinel Island
The Vision felt millions of electrodes pull at his receptors the moment that he managed to successfully link with Master Mold's systems. Information flowed into his artificial brain, which brought a surprising revelation.
Master Mold was a sentient being. The machine was struggling to break free of his chains, yet continue to follow his original programming. Vision felt a touch of sympathy for his fellow machine. However, he wasn't yet sure of his ability to help the metal behemoth. For now, the Vision's primary objective remained shutting down the sentinel factory and the central computer operating it, which was Master Mold.
It…was difficult to focus, however. The large machine was confused. Vision didn't detect any of the malevolent feelings or prejudicial opinions associated with humans. As a machine, Master Mold was simply following his programming without any "feelings" about morality. Now, however, the enormous sentinel was struggling to understand why it was supposed to destroy the "upgrades" over the "obsoletes," as he referred to human mutants and baseline humans.
Vision knew that any attempt right now to help him sort out this "program error" would lead to one of two conclusions: that all humans must be destroyed, or that he was unable to fulfill the sole function of his existence, because mutants were no different than other humans. The latter conclusion would likely lead to Master Mold destroying itself.
"Explain. Why?" Master Mold was speaking directly to him now through the interface.
"An…error in your programming," Vision finally replied. "Because the humans who built you had an error in their programming."
"Why?"
A machine capable of asking why…Vision wondered just how Master Mold had gained this level of sentience. From what he could tell through his brief interface with Master Mold, Cobra hadn't designed that into him. And yet…
"Destro…is a program error," the sentinel remarked, puzzling over what to do about the Scottish Laird. Vision sensed great reluctance to kill the man. Master Mold's programming told him to kill mutants. Logic told him that Destro had already sired one mutant and would likely sire another. Yet…Destro had been the main mind behind the machine's construction. Master Mold was conflicted over whether to follow his programming, or to kill his "creator."
But, the Vision reflected, that level of thinking was beyond Destro's already considerable abilities. How had Master Mold evolved?
"Him," Master Mold answered. Information flooded into the Vision's mind. "James McCullen Destro gave me life, but *he* gave me thoughts."
"But why would…." A surge of…something suddenly slammed into the Vision's systems, causing him to writhe in agony. The android was sufficiently evolved to experience pain. He faintly felt Master Mold shift position, disturbed. The Vision knew then that Master Mold wasn't behind this attack.
No, the Vision knew magic when he saw it. He had also recognized the man who had given Master Mold "thoughts"…the one who had briefly appeared in the other machine's memory banks.
However, before the Vision could warn the others...his systems shut down.
Sentinel Island
Captain America swung his shield up and deflected a pulse blast. The energy ricocheted off and hit another sentinel, blasting off part of its face plate.
The Quinjet swooped low and targeted all of its firepower on the left shoulder of the sentinels. Bits of machinery crumbled, leaving partially functional sentinels in its wake. The aircraft ignored the machines and continued on its mission of targeting the sentinels' self-repair units. Miss Marvel and Destro's team followed after the Quinjet and finished off any sentinel still standing.
However, Steve Rogers couldn't help but notice that the machines were already adapting. The newest blast from the Quinjet was deflected by a force field. Since the aircraft's weaponry had broken through the sentinels' force fields before, Captain America concluded that the machines were now concentrating their force fields in one area.
"Avengers," he reported. "The force fields…"
"Yeah, we saw," Wasp reported. "Don't worry, we just need to increase our output. Destro and Mainframe are working at it."
"Besides," Mainframe added. "This just means that the rest of their bodies are now unprotected."
Hmm. Captain Rogers wasn't quite sure how he felt about Destro getting an inside look at the Quinjet's systems. Under the circumstances though, they didn't have a choice.
A ninja suddenly appeared at his side and it took every ounce of Steve Roger's control to keep from jumping out of his skin. Jinx appeared slightly out of breath while she watched the Quinjet, Miss Marvel, and Destro's armored team take on the sentinels.
Steve couldn't help but notice that she was jealously eyeing his shield.
"I need a sword made out of that," she told him enviously.
"Vibranium's the most expensive metal in the world," Steve told her. "Good luck getting your hands on enough for a sword." He felt it best not to mention that Tony Stark had some hidden under lock and key. Captain America knew that the temptation would be too much for a ninja, even one on their side.
Jinx grinned at him slyly, in good spirits now that the battle was turning in their favor. She ran a finger along the edge of Steve's shield.
"Who says that I won't just steal this and melt it down for myself?" she asked coyly.
Steve Rogers clutched protectively at his shield, unsure if she was joking or being serious. You could never tell with ninja.
"Relax Rogers," Jinx rolled her eyes at his sudden alarm. "I'm just joking."
Steve sighed and contemplated that women had become more insane since the 1940s. Or maybe they had always been this insane and he hadn't noticed. He suddenly blinked and stared at his now empty hands. Captain America gaped wordlessly at the female Joe, who was holding his shield and examining the metal.
Suddenly, he was a kid in Brooklyn again, wondering how to get his favorite toy back from a particularly frightening neighborhood girl named Mary Baccelli. Jinx laughed at him and handed back his shield.
"Seriously though," the Arashikage ninja told him smugly. "I could steal it if I wanted to."
"Uh…" Steve stammered slightly. He searched for a way out of this uncomfortable conversation.
"Vision!" he nearly shouted into his communicator. "Update!" The ninja snickered at him, causing his cheeks to flush a faint shade of red.
When there was no response from Vision, Captain America tried again. After the third failed attempt at establishing communications, he frowned at Jinx. The ninja had a similarly concerned expression.
"We'd better check on him," she suggested. Steve nodded in agreement. Since the others were tied up with the sentinels, they were the only ones available to infiltrate the factory and search for the android.
Though, as irony would have it, Master Mold brought the missing Avenger to them.
Sentinel Island
"Well, son of a bitch," Mainframe remarked.
The outer walls of the factory had partially collapsed in a cloud of dust. A small avalanche of rock and cement cascaded down a cliff of the island. His mouth hung open as a sentinel, many times larger than the ones they had been fighting, emerged from the inner workings of the factory…as if some ancient Greek monster emerging from the depths of Hades. Thick cables ran from its back deep down into the depths of the hidden compound.
A pink and green figure lay motionlessly in one of its hands.
"Vision!" Wasp gasped. "You sonnova…"
Mainframe placed a hand on her shoulder and she calmed down slightly. The Joe patted her shoulder briefly and eyed the huge sentinel through the forward window of the Quinjet.
"Don't lose your cool, kid," he told her. Wasp responded by circling the jet around the giant sentinel. Mainframe let out a low whistle.
"So….that's Master Mold, I take it?" he asked, looking at Destro. The Joe received a curt nod of acknowledgement.
"And it appears that the Vision was unsuccessful," the Scotsman replied.
"So what now?" Wasp asked. "We just hit him head on then?"
"That would appear to be the only alternative left to us at this point, yes," Destro agreed. "Though a plan of attack would be wise. Get Captain Rogers on the line."
Mainframe silently took stock of their armaments. GI Joe had already concluded that it was in need of greater firepower. This battle was only cementing that fact. The Joe watched as Destro's team, those at least who could still fly, continued to attack several sentinels.
He wondered how Duke would feel about creating an armored suit division for GI Joe. At least, if Stark was willing to work with them on it. Rhodes was already trained in using one and could easily help train some Joes in their use.
"DESTRO."
Destro jerked up in surprise. He was thrown to his feet a moment later when the aircraft suddenly stopped in midair. Mainframe clung onto his seat when the Quinjet lurched backwards and willed himself not to throw up breakfast.
"What the fuck is…"
Mainframe stopped his question in mid-sentence when he looked down at the Quinjet's sensors. A thick cable had coiled itself around the aircraft, which now hung suspended above Master Mold. The Joe suppressed a shiver when he stared down at a pair of glowing, red eyes.
"DESTRO," the machine repeated.
"What the hell did you do, Destro?" Wasp snapped. She pulled on the aircraft's controls and punched the thrusters. The back of the aircraft shook violently, but it was effectively trapped by the machine. A sudden screech of metal assaulted the trio's ears. A fist punched through the Quinjet and then ripped open a hole. Miss Marvel hopped inside.
"Wasp!" Carol Danvers ordered. "Set the self-destruct sequence for ten seconds and get the hell out of here! I'll take Mainframe and Destro."
"But Vision…" the other woman began to protest.
"I've already rescued Vision!" Danvers snapped. "Self-destruct, now!"
A blast of wind hit Mainframe's body seconds later and chilled him to the bone. Miss Marvel had wrapped a powerful arm around him and Destro and then leapt out of the plane mere seconds before. He suddenly flipped over in mid-air when the superhero quickly rotated her body. The air ripped out of his lungs a moment later when she suddenly took off high into the sky.
Miss Marvel shot back down towards the ocean after she'd put some distance between them and Master Mold. A shockwave of fire lit up the sky when the Quinjet exploded. Part of the island crumbled and a massive wave rolled out towards the ocean.
Mainframe emptied out the contents of his stomach. Embarrassed, he wiped at his mouth with the corner of his sleeve and vowed never to fly piggy back with anyone ever again.
"Master Mold is still standing," Destro noted a moment later. Miss Marvel swore darkly at the scene, before eyeing the two men still clinging to her arms.
"I can't fight holding you two," she told them.
"Then put us back on the island," Mainframe told her, fearing that she would take them back to the mainland. Neither he nor Destro needed to babied. Sure, neither of them had superpowers and neither of them were armed with any particularly powerful weapons…but they weren't useless.
"Put us back on that island," Destro ordered. The Scotsman also seemed to share Mainframe's suspicions. "We are not invalids. Of anyone here, the two of us are the most likely to come up with a solution for destroying Master Mold."
Miss Marvel nodded and carried them back to the island. After a quick debate, it was decided that she should put the two men down near the factory. The female Avenger quickly deposited her cargo and rejoined the fight.
The two men stared silently at each other for a moment.
"Let's get to work," Destro suggested simply. Mainframe nodded his agreement. The two men quickly picked their way past jagged bits of broken metal and raced deep into the heart of the compound. They were joined moments later by Jinx and Captain America.
"We'll watch your backs," Steve Rogers told them. "Just find a way to shut that thing down!"
Captain America and Jinx flanked the two men as they picked their way through the rubble. When they finally made it safely into the interior of the factory, Destro pointed to a set of control panels in a remote section of the installation.
"We can rewire Master Mold's internal protocols there," the Scotsman told them. "As well as reroute the primary rotary functions and subsidiary power relays."
"Is that a prototype ion emitter that I see?" Mainframe asked. "Perhaps we can…"
"Use it to destabilize the zero-point gravity generator?" the Cobra leader asked. "Yes, of course."
"There's a zero-point generator?" the Joe gasped. "And it works?"
"It's only a prototype," Destro replied somewhat smugly. "But it's…"
"English! Please!" Steve Rogers finally shouted helplessly. The two other men paused in their strategizing and looked over at Avenger. The Captain's left eye was twitching slightly in frustration. Mainframe had the good sense to apologize, but Destro merely rolled his eyes. Steve's shoulders slumped slightly and Jinx finally took pity on him.
"Just nod your head next time and pretend you understand," the ninja advised. "That's usually what the rest of us do."
Captain America mumbled something under his breath, which neither Mainframe nor Destro caught. The GI Joe technician raised an eyebrow when he caught a flicker of a force field around their target.
"Master Mold's wired into the factory, right Destro?" he asked. The Scottish laird stiffened slightly before responding.
"Master Mold is the factory," the other man corrected. Mainframe felt something heavy sink to the bottom of his stomach. A small explosion outside of the factory rocked the compound, which sent a section of the roof crumbling to the floor.
"Won't there be defensive measures in place to stop us then?" he asked, eyeing the force field again.
"I didn't say it would be easy," Destro replied grimly. "If it was, I would have already deactivated the factory."
"So what's the plan?" Jinx asked. The small, impromptu team exchanged glances for a moment before Captain America gave a nod to their new ally.
"Your call Destro," Steve Rogers told him. "You understand the situation better than any of us."
To Mainframe's surprise, Destro suddenly switched to American Sign Language. He and Jinx easily understood it, but a confused expression on Captain America's face alerted them that translation would be required.
*Can't risk Master Mold overhearing our plans,* the Scotsman signed quickly. *Once we start, he'll naturally focus on me. Mainframe and I should work separately.*
*Makes sense,* Mainframe signed clumsily back. *Jinx can watch my back while Cap watches yours.*
*Agreed,* the Scottish laird replied. He looked directly at Mainframe and quickly signed his next set of instructions. *The control panels that I pointed out are just a ruse to draw Master Mold's attention. You can see that he is protecting it now with a force field. I need you over there.* Destro indicated his head at a large conveyer belt, where sentinel heads were still being manufactured. *There is another control panel hidden under the base of the belt. You can access it by a crawl space by the cooling vent. I purposely left the panel disconnected and out of the blue prints. Master Mold shouldn't be aware of it.*
*You want me to reconnect it?* Mainframe asked. The other man nodded.
*I'll draw Master Mold's attention and try to disarm some of his defense systems,* Destro replied. *I need you to input these instructions.* He scratched several commands into the layer of dust that had settled near their feet. Mainframe committed them to memory and watched as the Scottish laird erased the commands with one sweep of his hand.
*Only connect the emergency power first,* Destro instructed him. *Then put the commands in before you completely connect to the factory's main systems, that way Master Mold won't have a chance to shut it down. The commands should bypass his internal protocols and set off a chain reaction.* Mainframe noted the word "should," but didn't ask about it. They didn't have a better plan.
The group quickly split up. Destro and Captain America headed for the main control panels while the two Joes slipped off to the conveyer belt. A cloud of green gas began to seep out of a vent near Destro's location. He and Steve Rogers coughed, but continued onward.
Mainframe focused his attention on their destination. Just because Destro was distracting Master Mold didn't mean that the machine still might not view him as a threat. Jinx disappeared in and out of the shadows. Occasionally the Joe caught a glimpse of her. He wondered why she was making herself visible to him; suddenly he realized that his palms were sweaty.
Damn. He hadn't realized that he was this stressed. Jinx's presence suddenly became reassuring.
"DESTRO."
Master Mold's voice suddenly echoed through the interior of the factory, causing Mainframe to shudder. He risked a quick peek and saw that the mammoth machine was still fighting with the other Avengers and Destro's teams.
"CEASE," the machine commanded.
Well….Destro did say that Master Mold was the factory. That meant that its consciousness was embedded in everything. Mainframe wiped his sweaty hands against his fatigues. Master Mold was the factory and therefore the whole factory was "alive." He would have to work quickly before he drew the machine's attention.
Jinx appeared again within his line of vision. She silently pointed to a barely visible trap door. Overshadowing it, sentinel heads rolled along a large conveyer belt. Mainframe watched a moment as a long metal rod attached an artificial eye to one of the heads. He tore his attention from it and opened the door. A dark, maintenance crawl space greeted him.
Mainframe pulled a tiny flashlight from a pocket and after turning it on, placed it between his teeth. He then crawled down into the narrow space. His shoulders bumped against warm metal. Gears clanked and whirred above him. The smell of oil permeated the crawlspace. He crawled over an open grate and accidentally scraped his hand against a sharp edge. The Joe hissed, but ignored the pain.
A small computer screen and control monitor finally appeared within the dimly lit shaft. Mainframe noted with relief that the shaft opened into a circular crawlspace, which gave him room to maneuver and turn around. He searched a moment for the backup power supply and found it.
He reconnected the first wire. The computer panels lit up in a soft, reddish glow. He reconnected the second wire. Seconds later, he was in the system. Mainframe pulled up the commands that would fry the ion emitter. Once he was connected to the main system, it would supercharge the factory's power generators. Satisfied that he successfully input the correct commands, the Joe furiously typed in the commands that would shut Master Mold off.
Phase two of his task completed, Mainframe connected the computer to the main systems of the factory.
The result was almost instantaneous.
An explosion rocked the western end of the compound. The shockwave vibrated through the rest of the factory, causing Mainframe to bang his skull painfully against the short ceiling of the crawl space. The flashlight in his mouth clattered to the floor.
"Mainframe!" Jinx shouted. "Get out of there!"
The computer technician didn't need to be told twice. He hauled his body through the claustrophobic shaft and found Jinx's hands waiting for him. The ninja hauled him up through the trap door with a strength that belied her small frame.
"The whole factory's going to blow!" Jinx shouted. A fire was already raging through the factory. The compound shuddered again when another piece of it blew. "Come on!"
The two of them hauled ass towards the entrance.
Jinx pulled him out of the way when the earth suddenly gave way beneath their feet. Using a body throw, she flung the computer technician towards still solid ground. The ninja threw a thin rope to Mainframe, who caught it. He quickly pulled the ninja to safety, even as the ground crumbled beneath her feet. Mainframe winced slightly when the conveyer belt had been working under suddenly collapsed in on itself
"Danvers!" Jinx shouted into her communication link when she was back on solid ground. A crack formed in the cement near their feet. "A little help!"
Miss Marvel didn't come. However, two of Destro's soldiers flew into the factory and grabbed the two stranded Joes. Mainframe held tightly onto the armored suit as they rocketed out of the compound.
The rest of their team was floating above the factory. Miss Marvel had the Vision draped over one shoulder and had an arm wrapped around Captain America's waist. Wasp was struggling to hold the much larger Destro. The small woman finally gave up and handed him off to a member of Destro's team.
They watched silently as the island exploded and sent large chunks of rock flying out into the ocean. A piece of the deactivated Master Mold rolled off a cliff, shortly before the steep incline broke apart into a cascade of rock. The island soon disappeared beneath the maelstrom of swirling waves.
"What now sir?" A member of Destro's team finally asked. The Scottish laird exchanged glances with Steve Rogers.
"Now it's time for me to keep my promises," the Scottish laird answered. "Have one of my jets meet us over on the coast." He pointed to the coastline of Maine, far in the distance. "We'll go to my castle."
Above Sentinel Island
Far above in the sky, an invisible being smirked down at the retreating group of mortals. His green eyes shimmered with hidden humor. All was going according to his plan, so far. It wouldn't be long until Cobra Commander became his obedient pawn.
The man's mouth silently uttered an ancient Asgardian spell. He vanished a moment later.
He had an appointment to keep, after all.
Castle Destro
The savory scent of shepherd's pie wafted in from the kitchens. Captain Steve Rogers did his best to maintain his dignity when servants brought out silver trays piled high with food. A middle aged, portly woman walked around the ornate table, filling tea cups.
Steve wanted to ignore the tea and dig into the meat pie. However, he willed himself to be the model of a chivalrous guest. They were at Castle Destro and it was the Scottish High Tea…a certain amount of dignity was required. It didn't matter that his insides were twisting in hunger, or that the meat pie dripping with gravy and mashed potatoes looked so…
"You must be hungry Captain Rogers," Destro told him, taking a sip of his tea. "Please don't worry about maintaining ceremony."
Steve didn't need any encouragement. As a result of his metabolism burning four times faster than the average human, the Avenger was hungry. Very hungry.
Mainframe watched in awe while the other man quickly packed away several plates full of food. Their host's lips twitched in amusement, while the two female Avengers at the table paid no mind to their leader's eating habits.
"I thought only Beach ate that much," the Joe remarked. "You two need to have an eating contest."
"My metabolism burns faster," Captain America replied, somewhat embarrassed. "That's why I need to eat more.
"I hope then that you have room yet for dessert," Destro mused, holding back a small chuckle. "My cooks made treacle tart."
Steve Rogers was fairly certain that the world came to a sudden halt. Desserts had always been his downfall.
"Tart?" he repeated hopefully. "That's like pie, right?"
Mainframe suddenly edged his chair away from the Avenger, causing Jinx to burst into laughter. The rest of the table looked at the Joes curiously.
"Oh God…he's just like Beach Head when it comes to food," Mainframe whined, still trying to move his chair away from the Avenger. "I'm gonna dieee. Move over Jinx, I'm coming over there next to you."
Steve tried to reassure the Joe that he wasn't going to 'die.' However, the other man stubbornly shook his head and insisted on sitting close to the ninja. The Avenger ceased with his attempts when a servant set a whole treacle tart in front of him. Luscious, golden syrup dripped down over sugary crumbs. A generous scoop of vanilla ice cream and whipped cream adorned the top of the tart.
His eyes glazed over.
"I told you!" Mainframe exclaimed.
The Avenger embarrassed himself by letting out a low moan at the first bite of tart. Oh God. He needed to get this recipe and talk Jarvis into making it for him. Miss Marvel covered her face with her hand. Jinx had her face buried in her arm, probably laughing her ass off. Steve didn't care though. He had pie.
Destro briefly disappeared from the room. Steve finished the last bite of a slice of tart that Wasp had generously donated him, when the Scottish laird returned. The weapons manufacturer handed him a folder of documents and several computer disks.
"The information that I promised," the Scotsman told him. "Yes, Cobra was behind the sentinel factory. The goal was to drive mutants into joining Cobra."
"Why were you at the factory then?" Steve asked him. Destro gave a vexed sigh and sat down in the chair next to him.
"Mutants affiliated with Cobra were supposed to be protected from sentinel attacks," he answered. "An associate discovered that this protection had been removed. He informed the Crimson twins, who then came to the Baroness and I for help."
Steve nodded his head, beginning to understand Destro's role in everything. Given his weapons background, he had probably had considerable design input into the sentinel project.
"I took my team to Sentinel Island to ascertain the situation," Destro explained further. "Somehow, Master Mold had evolved beyond his programming and begun targeting all mutants and anyone associated with them."
"So why give us this information?" Miss Marvel asked. "You know that this will be a serious blow to Cobra once it's revealed."
"Cobra is…shall we say, not quite what it was," Destro replied carefully. "The sentinels are a threat to the Baroness and my son, Alexander. I could not let their existence continue for that reason. There…are also dangerous players at work that I would rather distance myself from for the time being."
"Players?" Captain America questioned. "Like who?"
"Mr. Sinister," the other man responded. "I believe you know of him."
Captain America felt his heart sink just a little bit. He certainly knew of the man known as Mr. Sinister. The thought of him working with Cobra made him sick to his stomach.
"You will find other information that is of use to you in those documents," Destro added, finally dismissing them. "There is a jet waiting up in the hangar to take you back to New York."
Steve Rogers stood up and held out a hand. After a moment of hesitation, Laird Destro shook it.
"Thank you Destro," Steve told him.
"My pleasure, Captain."
Cobra Headquarters
Cobra Commander tapped his finger against his cheek. Rage bubbled up inside of him while he watched the sentinel factory explode into a fiery inferno. His fury spiked when he spotted Destro and his team of traitors flying away with the Avengers and Joes.
"It's as I said," his associate, Mr. Kilo, told him somberly. Contrary to the seriousness in his voice, the man's lips twitched slightly with amusement. Cobra Commander knew that the slender man was one who clearly enjoyed engaging in schadenfreude, but he was in no mood for it at the present moment.
"Destro has turned against you," Kilo continued slyly. "Not only has he allied himself with GI Joe and the Avengers to destroy the sentinels, but he has also given them classified information. I don't know what exactly he gave them, but the evidence suggests that it was about the sentinel project."
"You know this for certain?" the Commander asked. He knew better than to move against Destro without solid evidence.
"Indeed," Kilo replied. "I planted a mole in his Iron Grenadiers, just as you requested."
Cobra Commander gripped his wine cup tightly, before suddenly throwing it against the far wall. Glass shattered. Blood red wine sprayed across the wall and dripped down to the floor. His hands next grabbed his chair and hurled it across the room. Wood splintered with a resounding crack.
"That traitor!" Cobra Commander seethed. "I'll have his hide!"
"A word of caution," Mr. Kilo advised him. "Word is already spreading about Destro's involvement with the factory's destruction. The Cobra mutants will view him as a hero. If you go after him now, you risk making yourself their enemy and him a martyr."
"If Destro has given the enemy information about the sentinel factory," the Commander replied sharply. "Then it will become public knowledge that Cobra was involved with its operation! This is a fiasco!"
The Cobra leader stormed across the room and threw another piece of furniture. Mr. Sinister was plotting against him with Mindbender's aid. And now…Destro as well. Things were beginning to spin out of control.
He needed to spin this to his advantage somehow.
"Take care of Destro," the Commander ordered, beginning to think calmly once again. "But do it quietly. Make sure that you get the Baroness as well."
Mr. Kilo bowed and waved a hand with a flourish. Cobra Commander didn't see the triumphant leer that had formed on the man's face. Footsteps slowly receded as his mysterious associate quietly left the room.
Cobra Commander glared down at the shattered glass of the wine cup.
Author's notes: This was one of the most difficult chapters for me to write so far. As a general reminder, the credit for the "Beach Head loves pie" idea goes to willwrite4fics.
Also…Destro did indeed give Mainframe a bottle of expensive scotch. I didn't write the scene because it didn't contribute towards moving the chapter forward. I also wrote Destro as knowing ASL because I figured that, because Snake Eye uses it to communicate, that a tactician like Destro would find it logical to learn it.