s
Act V
Chapter 2
The Spy Who Killed Me
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Last Chapter: The laughable Locust was easily defeated. Hawkeye and Daredevil started interacting outside of work and revealed their identities to one another. But before following up on that, we're going to hang out with some different characters for this outing.
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Biko Stane-Daitokuji sat at the desk of her office, paying close attention to the two employees as they sat down to give their reports. Kozo Fuyutsuki was the supervisor for her 'Dark Projects' branch of Stane-Daitokuji International. The sort of stuff that no one was ever supposed to get wind of for both legal and practical reasons. Security there was superior to that of many government's covert operations, mostly because she had infiltrated many of those and knew how to keep things secret by not letting people sneak in the way she had with them. That she was ruthless enough to eliminate someone who might become a leak, without hesitation, facilitated secrecy. But of the hundred or so employees involved in the projects, that had only happened twice, and one of them had experienced a nervous breakdown, which occasionally happened no matter what one did. And since the Super Adaptoid could generate enough flame to turn even bone into ash, well, disposal wasn't a problem either.
Chiaki Nakahara was head of accounting. Young for her position, but psychological testing indicated that once she was eased into her new role, she'd be reliable. And had been so far.
While Biko could have kept it simple and read reports, she wanted the heads to know, and let word get back to others working in the Dark Projects branch, that she was keeping a personal eye on what was going on. Not so much lighting a fire under them as much as letting them know she'd be aware if they slacked off. One had to maintain that careful balance of being firm so that the work was done efficiently, but not making everyone so terrified they spent half their time looking over their shoulders. It was about efficiency, not ego, as it was for so many in her position.
Fuyutsuki had been updating her on most of the projects, all of them on schedule to one degree or another. Now he was getting to a project that was of more importance to her. And one of the few that was genuinely problematic.
"There's disappointing news on that front, I'm afraid. Project Wideawake is not on schedule. That's not to say no progress is being made. Drs. Akagi and Ikari have perfected the architecture and motor functions. It's the power that's the problem. Either the Master Mold won't initiate, or it burns out all the circuitry in less than a minute. And since we only obtained six of the parts of the Eye of Avalon, we only have enough to power one unit, so that particular one has to be functional. They are at an impasse as it stands. They feel that if you were to reassign Gargoyle to the issue it could be resolved."
Biko shook her head. "He has his own work with the power armor division, and I'm already sparing him with Dr. Kronos' experiment. Kronos is convinced a multi-dimensional power interface will stabilize his own project, and Gargoyle is the only one with enough technical know how to get it done." She turned her attention to Nakahara. "Give him a 15% raise. He's been exceeding my initial expectations and deserves to be rewarded for his efforts."
Nakahara made a note on her tablet. "By the way, Ma'am?"
And then she stopped, waiting for permission. That annoyed Biko. Nakahara still made the mistake of thinking she had be to totally deferential to her superior, especially when being the bearer of news might not be taken well. She hadn't the experience to know that if her information was important, she could go ahead and ask. Even Biko's father, Obadiah Stane, hadn't cut the head off the messenger. He had been sociopathic, but not irrational. Biko supposed it had to do with him watching her grandfather blow his brains out when he was seven. It wasn't even intended suicide, just stupidity. Playing Russian Roulette with yourself to prove your terrible luck had changed? Darwinism in effect.
"Go ahead."
"Dr. Kronos' experiments have been taking up a large amount of money and equipment, and there's no indication we're close to getting a return on any of them. While funding for the Projects is still well within projections, the resources might be more efficiently used elsewhere."
The delay was for a recommendation? And one that was sound? Now Biko was vexed she was this timid. She'd have to prepare for it when dealing with the girl. Perhaps some encouragement would break her of her terrible habit. "You're probably correct. I don't actually believe Kronos' experiments will bear fruit. However if he does succeed, it's not a game changer; it's *the* game changer. Your recommendation is sensible, so don't be afraid to give voice to them even if I don't follow them." She saw the girl visibly relax. Perhaps she would take it to heart.
To Fuyutsuki she said, "Hire some more people to help Akagi and Ikari. Maybe fresh sets of eyes can look at the issue from a different angle and overcome it. We don't need it operational yet, Councilwoman Ariyoshi has not progressed far enough along in Kerebos to require them. For that matter she'll want power armor before Project Wideawake would need to be operational, so there's no need for anyone there to panic. I'd rather have them intense but alert instead of pulling all-nighters and running around in circles."
"Yes Ma'am." He made a note, then said. "There was another attempt at breaching security. It's Kodachi Kunou again."
Biko's normally cold attitude became icier. "This is going beyond merely annoying. She's trying too hard. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. See if you can step up security with improved measures. I'll release additional funds for your use."
Kunou's attempts weren't unexpected. The Mesmero debacle had put Biko on the Avengers' radar, which meant Kunou knew everything they did, and now Biko was a person of interest to arguably the most powerful super hero team on the planet, as well as a rival industrialist. It was a pity her assassination attempts on Kunou had failed. None of this idiocy would be occurring had she succeeded. But with the acquisition of Baintronics and Roxxon leaning on her, the old ways of acquisition through assassination were over.
On the other hand, when you tried sticking your nose in the farmer's henhouse, like Kunou was doing, it was understood you were fair game for having it shot off. It was time to hire a professional for the job. And since Iron Rose might end up being involved, that meant hiring someone that specialized in that sort of work. Two names were on the top of the list for that type of work. She'd never hired either, and both were held in equally high regard. She'd flip a coin to see which one she chose. While Biko didn't believe in fate, if she was wrong and it did exist, why not give it a chance and see what happened?
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Kodachi Kunou read the report her head of security had given her. A threat on her life. How gauche. Normally her guards dealt with the 'hate mail' of this nature on their own, or forwarded it to the police if it seemed legitimate, but this one was signed, "The Ringer', which possibly meant a super villain of some sort. Under those conditions the mail would be forwarded to Kodachi where she would decide if Iron Rose would be required or not. So far she hadn't, but one never knew.
The death threat itself was quite vague and generic. The author had no imagination. At least it was hand written rather than tacky cut out letters from some magazine. It was along the lines of death was coming to deal with her evil ways and rambled a bit about what a terrible person she was deserving of her fate. Though there was something about the wording that tickled at her mind. He referred to her as a 'greedy corporate pseudo-fascist.'. And now that she thought about it, something about rings was coming back to her.
Ah, that was it! She remembered exactly who had used that phrase…
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Several months ago.
The intercom chirped, "Ms. Kunou, there's a Szayel Aporro Granz to see you. He has an appointment."
Ah yes, the very eccentric inventor with the even more eccentric name. She wasn't sure what nationality the name was supposed to be. Or maybe it was completely fabricated. He had reached out to Kunou Enterprises claiming he had a device which could remove smog from the air by concentrating it into solid forms in the shape of rings. It sounded impossible, but Kodachi had allowed one of her low level people to observe a demonstration, which he claimed had been successful. So she arranged another demonstration with higher ups and they too said it appeared to work as claimed. That had gotten him a personal visit with her so she could see the device in action.
"Send him in," Kodachi said. He entered, carrying a rather large plastic container with a handle. He looked painfully average save for pink hair. Now she thought she understood him. A man this plain had probably longed to be remarkable, hence the stupid name and idiotic hair. How sad he possessed such terrible judgement. Ridiculous hair color didn't make one interesting, unless one considered appalling taste intriguing.
His lack of judgment was irrelevant, she supposed. All that mattered was firsthand observation, and if the results were satisfactory, deciding on the price for what would be an invaluable piece of equipment. An equation devoid of personality, as most business transactions should be.
They greeted each other formally, and Granz took the offered seat. Kodachi assessed him from her position behind her father's desk. A seat from which he had made Kunou Enterprises what it was until she had gained the reins of power. It was times like this she would prove she was better suited for a role he once considered her unworthy for.
"So, Mr. Granz, My subordinates inform me this device of yours works as advertised. Once I've seen it in operation and judged for myself, we can discuss entering a business relationship."
"Of course," he said in the most deferential voice she had ever heard, and nearly everyone who worked with her used it, so that was saying something.
He placed the container on the desk and opened it. He pulled out an item that appeared, to her eyes, to be some sort of battery with wires leading to a boxy metal item with a ring on it. The ring was revealed to be a bracelet so he could wear the item on his wrist. It looked heavy, and he did not wield it with ease. She used her own scientific eye to try and discern how the device worked, but she only had a vague idea and certainly nothing specific. Either he was a crank or had a not insignificant degree of intellect.
He examined the device thoroughly, then activated the battery. "Observe," he said.
Kodachi felt the air shift in some indescribable way. A moment later a large ring appeared in the scientist's hand, apparently out of nowhere. It was similar in size and shape to the type of interlocking rings magicians used in their acts, save that it was dull in color. If it was some type of sleight of hand, she'd be damned if he knew how he did it.
He placed the ring on her desk. "You can examine its chemical composition. You'll discover it's consistent with any sampling of air, just highly concentrated."
"Why a ring?" Kodachi asked.
He shrugged. "I didn't design it to do it. It just seems to naturally form it. I made it adjustable so you can control the size of the ring with the device."
Kodachi stared at it. This was big. She'd have to contain her excitement so it never occurred to him to shop it somewhere else. A bidding war was the last thing she wanted. "Impressive. I'll have to have my people examine it and extensively test it to make sure it works as you say, but this demonstration is encouraging. I believe we can do business with one another. What price were you thinking for the rights to the patent?"
Granz's head jerked slightly. "What do you plan to do with it?"
"Market it as an anti-pollution device. I doubt we'll have a use for the rings, but the whole Green Energy movement is popular these days. We can market the device to anyone espousing it in the hopes they'll eat it up. At least with the proper advertising." Her head began swimming with ideas. She decided to share them, since they probably occurred to the man himself. Even if she had to pay a bit more, it would be worth it. "Who knows? Perhaps someday your device will be made mandatory by the government for every business." She could even stomach Ariyoshi if she passed that legislation. Well, for about five minutes.
Granz's eyes narrowed. "I see how it is. You intend to sell it to people."
Kodachi stared at him, her assessment of genius slowly being replaced by stupidity. Very slowly she said, "Yes, that's how businesses stay in business. They sell things and make money."
He slammed his fist on the desk. Not the strongest of men, it barely made a dull thud. "Ha! I should have known! You're a typical greedy corporate pseudo-fascist trying to crush the little people! You'll probably hide my revolutionary technology like the gas companies, who hide engines that get a thousand miles to the gallon, or Microsoft, who hides perfectly working OS's in favor of ones that need constant updates to not crash!"
"That last conspiracy theory makes no sense," Kodachi pointed out.
Granz heard nothing, already in full rant mode as his eyes glazed over. "You'll hide it because you make too much money creating pollution! Then you make everyone pay you to clean it up!"
She pushed a button hidden out of sight under the edge of the desk. "Actually governments make the companies that create the pollution clean it up, and fine them on top of it. And then there are the lawsuits. There are always lawsuits. It's only when you have no money that no one bothers to sue you."
Too late, he was practically frothing at the mouth. "You can't fool me with your honeyed words! You'll never get your hands on my device!" And with that he began pulling out the wires and interior of the item. He was still doing it when security showed up and he had to be forcefully removed from the premises….
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….yes, it had to be him. That deranged lunatic. So, he fancied himself a super villain that wanted revenge. No doubt he planned on using his large rings to… what in the hell did you use large rings for anyway? Circuses? Giants looking to propose? It didn't matter. Just another idiot in spandex. She should tell him Daredevil was a corporate lawyer slumlord, and send the loser after him. He'd fit right in with the Masked Matador and Stuntmaster.
Wait! An idea occurred to her. A brilliantly fabulous one. Well, all of them were, except maybe W.H.O.. Why not have her Captain protect her? Yes, she could tell him about the letter and claim some dangerous super villain only he could deal with was after her, since Iron Rose was on an overseas mission and couldn't help. And it had to be him since he did such a wonderful job of stepping in to guard her body at the dinner party that had been crashed by Hydra. He was the only man for the job. And when he defeated the incompetent lunatic, she'd take him out for a celebratory dinner on the family yacht. Oh, to be on a cruise with her Captain where he'd show off his magnificent body, glistening in lotion and wearing only a pair swimming trunks. Or better yet, a banana hammock. To see her Captain adorned in nothing but a thong….
Oh dear, she was drooling. How unbecoming. She wiped it off and began to work on the exact details of her plan, which was not a scheme since schemes were underhanded. Plans were for the noble, which she was. It was very noble for Captain Japan and her to become a couple. Once they were, he'd thank her for it.
It was time to make a call.
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"So, you got any idea what this Ringer guy can do?"
"I think it has something to do with… rings," Kodachi admitted.
Captain Japan held his hand to his chin in consideration. "Maybe you should bring Daredevil in on this one instead. Guys using rings sounds right up his alley. He fought a guy with stilts once."
Kodachi shook her head fiercely, making her long pony-tail whip back and forth. "Oh no. I need the best to protect me, and you're it. What if he has trick or two up his sleeve besides rings?"
The hero reconsidered. "That's true. Ole Daredevil can't think on his feet the way I can. Wouldn't want to see the poor guy lose to some idiot call the Ringer. And I did save everyone at that party that Hydra crashed."
Kodachi internally swooned that he recalled their (sort of) date in an enjoyable light. While this time she didn't require rescuing, it was his being heroic for her that really counted. If only they could skip over the silly super villain business and go directly to their real date this time. But there was a necessary order of progression for events to unfold before the desired outcome was achieved. Besides, having an icon of manliness like Captain Japan triumphing over a foe to protect her was like an aphrodisiac. She hoped she could control herself and not yield too many of her womanly virtues to him.
At least not on the first date.
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The Ringer stood outside the eastern side of the headquarters of Kunou Enterprises, where there were no buildings or entrances close by, outside a rather tall security fence. But tall fences were no impediment to one who could make rings out of thin air. Or rather very smoggy air, since he needed airborne particulate matter to create them.
The tension in him built as he prepared to strike down one of the monolithic, soulless, corporate entities that sucked the life out of society, like those creatures that clung to sharks and ate off them. Remoras. That was it. They were corporate remoras on the shark of society. But today was the day the remoras would be scraped off with a ring shaped scraper. Which in literal terms was a terrible thing to scrape things with, but since it was a metaphor it was all right. Or was he using a simile? He could never remember which was which.
He reexamined his suit again. Only his genius could have constructed the fearsome outfit which would strike terror into the hearts of the guilty. Well, the green cloth bodysuit was from a liquidation sale Hydra held on selling off their old style uniforms, the ones they hadn't used since the 50's. But there was something about the classic design that appealed to him. He infinitely preferred it to the newer style. They didn't make them like that anymore.
But the additions to the outfit were all his. Like all the metal rings along the arms, legs, and torso. Even around the top of his head was a metal ring. Those rings was where he had embedded the circuitry of his ring making device. Just wait until he wrapped that evil CEO in constricting rings. She'd be taught the error of her ways using the very pollution her plant created.
He took a step forward and a ring appeared under this foot. A second step put the next ring on top of that one. He repeated the process until he created a staircase of rings that allowed him to walk over the fence. Then he walked down to the other side. Truly his rings made him the most unstoppable force on the planet.
He was forced to walk normally across the grounds to the main building. A pity he had no idea how to build a ring that would allow him to fly, or he'd do so. Maybe he'd buy a vehicle and name it, 'The Ringermobile' so he could get around faster. He could use his rings as tires to save money.
Fantasies about what model car would make the best vehicle, probably a Volkswagen Beetle, died abruptly as he saw a powerfully built super hero in front of the doors to the headquarters.
"So, a jack booted Stormtrooper acting as a flunky for the military industrial complex makes his appearance."
Captain Japan made a rude noise. "Buddy, you clearly have never seen Star Wars if you think this is a Stormtrooper outfit. I'm Captain Japan." He flexed for the villain and made sure the rising sun symbol was clearly seen.
"Damn pop culture eradicating actual history!" Ringer shouted. "Stormtroopers were Germanic forces from World War I originally. Star Wars appropriated the word. And I don't mean you look like one. I mean you act like one for fighting for a corrupt corporation that would steal my inventions and make money off not cleaning up pollution."
Captain Japan scratched his head. "Did the German ones wear white armor?"
"No!"
"Weird. I wonder why they called them that in the movie then."
"It doesn't matter!" the Ringer raged. "I am destroying this place with my ring technology."
"One more question, and I promise it's the last one," Captain Japan said.
The Ringer hesitated. "All right."
"Are any of your ring powers based on the Mandarin?"
"Never heard of him."
"All right then." Captain Japan hurled his shield at the villain.
A moment before it could strike him the Ringer held out his hand and a large metal ring appeared. The shield impacted with enough force to dent the ring and knock it out of his hand. However the disc was deflected enough to hurl it off target. Rather than returning to Captain Japan, it landed ten meters away, near a car.
The Ringer grabbed his hand. "My wrist! I can barely feel it! Were you trying to kill me by throwing it that hard?"
That made him indignant. "Captain Japan doesn't kill."
"Well you're about to get ringed." The Ringer created another ring with his good hand and threw it in the same manner the shield had been tossed at him.
Captain Japan snatched it out of mid-air. "That's not how you do it. You need more snap to the wrist, like this." And he hurled it back at the Ringer with far more velocity.
The ring caught the villain in the jaw, hard enough to make him recoil in pain, though he remained conscious. Instead he held his jaw shouting, "You bastard! I just had a bridge put in! It cost 200,000 yen!" He began forming and throwing more rings at Captain Japan.
The hero casually dodged every one of them. The Ringer switched tactics by creating a large number of rings and throwing them in the air. At first Captain Japan thought his other wrist might be hurt if he was off target that badly, but then he realized they had been thrown up like a ring toss game, and he was the projection they were to land on.
Captain Japan made an acrobatic leap through the rings before they could land. He then did several somersaults toward the Ringer, not because he had to, but because he was bored and he could use the exercise. What would have been an Olympic grade gymnastics floor exercise finished up with a somersault into the villain's head.
As the last vestiges of consciousness fled the Ringer, he gasped out, "Should have… known. Megacorporations always… crush the… little guy." And he passed out.
Captain Japan felt relief. Not because the Ringer was dangerous, but due to him finally being silent. The fight had been ridiculously easy, mostly because the Ringer had been ridiculous. This chump should have been handed off to Daredevil. Captain Japan was certainly refusing to acknowledge him as his foe. Since El Ringer had hit Kunou Enterprises, that made him an Iron Rose foe. He was a stand in and it didn't count towards his rouge's gallery of impressive foes. He had a reputation to maintain after all.
What a waste of a day.
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Masato Kanemoto, twenty year security guard of Kunou Enterprises, was seated at the main console of the central security room, thinking about his nagging wife who would be waiting for him when he got home. He thought longingly how he'd rather drop in on his mistress instead. Then he recalled how she'd been nagging him of late as well. When you couldn't tell the difference between your wife and mistress, it was time to replace one of them. And ditching the mistress wouldn't cost him half of everything he owned.
Then he noticed the new guy seated next to him was going for the general alert button. He snared the man's wrist to prevent him from pushing it. "What do you think you're doing?"
"There's an intruder entering the main administration building." He pointed at one of the security cameras lining the panel.
Masato sighed. "We're supposed to let intruders in so the super hero can stop him."
"I thought we already let the intruder in."
"There's more than one, obviously. Relax." Clearly this new kid was an idiot and not going to work out. It was probably best to transfer him to something more his style, like crossing guard or something. Masato went back to wondering what his wife would nag him about this time.
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Kodachi Kunou sat at her desk, thrilled beyond measure. Soon her Captain would defeat the incompetent moron, then they could go on a thrilling date. She still hadn't decided if they should go with the cruise, or fly somewhere on her private jet. Flying meant an exotic location, like Monaco where they could play baccarat or pai gow.
Kodachi was still pondering her dilemma when a woman entered the room by literally walking through a wall. She was on the tall side and well-built, wearing a tight grey bodysuit that showed off some very feminine attributes, and had on black gloves and boots. Her black hair was cut short, and she wore a mask that covered the upper half of her face. Criss-crossing bandoliers were loaded with ammunition magazines. A belt held a few pouches and an empty holster on her hip, empty because a submachinegun was in her hand. An identical weapon was strapped to a holster on the opposite thigh. From her angle, Kodachi could just make out a plastic pack strapped to the intruder's back.
"Oh dear," Kodachi said. Someone whose existence involved fewer life and death situations might have stared an amazement as an almost spectral figure entered the room in an unearthly manner. But once the information was processed, the Avenger raced for an open doorway across the room.
Her speed and agility was such that she was nearly there when the intruder opened up with her firearm. Kodachi hurled her body toward the aperture as hard as she could, nearly evading the barrage. But only nearly as a bullet hit her in the leg, going clean through. She cried out in pain and hit the floor, but momentum carried her through the doorway and she shouted a command which caused the door to swing shut.
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Nancy Makuhari, once an agent of the Secret Empire known as Ms. Deep, but now better known as the Ghost, laughed as her target darted into the adjacent room with the door automatically closing behind her. She could hear the locks slam into place, sizeable ones judging by the sound. Most likely a safe room reinforced to withstand anything. Useless to a woman who could walk through walls. It might as well have been open air. A pity Kunou had wasted so much money on what she had thought was a security measure that would save her life. Maybe her heirs could sue the safe room manufacturer for a defective product.
The Ghost switched to a fresh magazine, then concentrated on shifting her molecules so she could move through things, like her namesake. It always took a bit of focus to switch to solid or intangible, though once she completed it she'd remain in that state until she switched back.
She moved through the door. For some reason the psychological impact on a foe seemed stronger rather than walking through a wall, though both would jar a person who had never seen the effect before, or sometimes even if they had. She was a master of many things, but psychology wasn't one of them, nor did she care to learn. She was content to scare the piss out of someone before she shot them.
As she entered she saw Kodachi Kunou curled into a ball on the floor. While it made the Ghost's work easier, a part of her was disappointed at the pathetic sight. It wasn't the first time a target lost it and just shut down. Still, she had fared better than most in making it this far. Maybe the shock from the gunshot wound had been too much for her psyche to bear.
Now Kunou was an easy target. As sitting a duck as one could get without actually being a waterfowl with broken limbs. Best to put her down and collect the considerable sum of money Stane-Daitokuji was paying her.
As the Ghost solidified and walked over to get a clear shot into the skull, Kodachi came out of the ball and raised an arm toward the assassin.
One encased in an Iron Rose gauntlet.
The repulsor blast caught the Ghost in the chest, knocking her back into a wall so hard she bounced off it like a rubber ball and hit the floor. It was all instinct on the Ghost's part as she focused her thoughts enough to switch her state of being again and sank through the floor to the room below.
Upon reaching her goal the Ghost solidified. She hissed in agony as she once again interacted with physical matter and felt a sharp pain in her chest. A light touch told her at least two ribs were cracked, hopefully along old breaks rather than new ones. The pain would be a distraction, an unacceptable one for someone whose powers relied on concentration so much. It would be the ultimate handicap. Drastic steps were called for.
From a pouch in the small of her back she pulled out a first aid kit. Purchased from A.I.M., it was their top of the line model with the best medical supplies money could buy, and prohibitively expensive to mass produce. Luckily she made prohibitively excessive amounts of money and could afford such merchandise.
She pulled out a cylinder with a small needle in the tip. She twisted the handle to prime the contents, then plunged the needle into the area of pain. Within seconds the painkiller took effect, numbing the area so she couldn't feel a thing from it. Also there was no euphoric side effect, which would have been nearly as bad as the pain when it came to affecting the focus she required. She'd pay for using the drug later when it wore off. She'd probably be incapacitated for nearly an entire day if she had as negative a reaction as she had the first time she used it. But the discomfort later was worth the combat readiness required for the present.
Now that she was mostly recovered she assessed the situation. So the inventor of the Iron Rose armor had a set nearby. In hindsight it was a likely possibility and she should have anticipated it. Kunou would almost certainly have some degree of skill in utilizing it as well. Fortunately the Ghost had anticipated the real Iron Rose showing up and had armed herself accordingly. The same weapons could be used against anyone using the armor. She switched out the magazines on her weapons and phased through a wall.
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Kodachi finished donning the Iron Rose armor. Her leg was in bad shape, as most legs that had a bullet go through them would be. She couldn't believe the excruciating pain coming from it, and she'd been soundly thrashed on numerous occasions.
Who was this person? Obviously not Granz, not unless he went to Thailand for gender reassignment surgery. And given the wording in the threat, and the name Ringer, it had to have come from him. Perhaps Granz was someone's cat's paw, though it seemed an overly complicated plan if that were the case. Why put Kodachi on edge by announcing an attack when a person who could walk through walls could have taken her totally by surprise at any time? It made no sense.
What she did know was she was dealing with someone incredibly dangerous. Luckily, there seemed to be some limits to her intangible nature, namely she had to solidify to attack. Otherwise her blast would have gone through the woman. Kodachi wagered her intangible abilities were somewhat limited. Obviously she could shift a bit of matter with her, such as clothing and firearms, but probably not much more. Why not just phase the floor Kodachi stood upon and solidify it when she was partway through for instance? She might have had other abilities, but none so deadly as firearms, or else why bother using them, along with the rest of the equipment she bore? While it wasn't proof, Kodachi felt confident this was a one-trick pony, as the Avengers were wont to call a super villain with only one power.
But what a power it was. Kodachi had nothing in her own arsenal that could affect someone intangible, and she wouldn't know where to begin in creating something to stop them. An omni-directional energy weapon perhaps? Sadly, she hadn't access to anything like that, and certainly no time to make one.
So that meant exploiting this 'ghost's weakness….
Oh hell! That was almost certainly who it was. She had read about the Ghost in her father's files regarding corporate spies, and she was near the top of the food chain of that. At least top five, and arguably number one. This was not good. Still, she was going up against a tried and true Avenger who had saved the world, not some industrialist who never used anything more dangerous than an army of lawyers to defend themselves. She knew how to fight people with super powers. She just hadn't run into someone with this ability. Well, if the Ghost had to solidify to attack, that was something she could use.
Kodachi decided to choose the battlefield. Since she was the target, the Ghost would have to come to her. Unless she got smart and blew up something on the grounds that would force Kodachi to defend them. Steel Lily had used that stratagem with some success. But hopefully she was fixated on coming after Kodachi rather than formulating a roundabout attack plan.
So Kodachi moved the battle into the largest open area in the building where her foe would have fewer things to dart through and obstruct the hero's line of sight. Thanks to her father, the center of the corporate headquarters was devoid of anything from the ground floor all the way to the glass covered ceiling of the roof. Due to his obsession with pineapples, he had grown a small grove in the center of the building so he could enjoy the tropical atmosphere whenever he wanted. It was absurd, but when it came to the South Seas, he was just as absurd. She had come to dislike the fruit so much she had the grove completely removed and replaced with pricey modern art sculptures. Still the area was wide open and the best battleground to be used against an opponent of this nature.
Kodachi remained airborne, partially for maneuverability, but mostly because her leg ached from the wound, which she could feel was still bleeding. She envisioned taking off her boot, holding it upside down, and having a gallon of blood come out of it. She needed to end this fight as quickly as possible and get medical treatment.
She flew slowly around in circles in the open, hoping to draw out her foe, but the Ghost wasn't rising to the bait. Best to go with a Captain Japan tactic. She activated her speaker function. "I thought you wanted to kill me. Have you given up so soon? One of your pedigree?" Her voice echoed through the room.
The attack came from behind as Kodachi felt multiple impacts in rapid succession from a firearm. She spun and fired a repulsor, but it missed as the Ghost had already shifted and leapt through the floor, no doubt where she had come from in the first place.
Kodachi examined the impact points of the bullets and was stunned to see a number of chips and even tiny cracks in the armor. Clearly whatever rounds she utilized were not the kind one purchased on the open market. Actually most black market weapons couldn't have managed that. The Ghost clearly had access to the finest in illegal hardware. She'd have to upgrade her foe's danger level.
A second hail of bullets struck Kodachi in the back again. She spun and fired producing the same result. The impacts had been different this time, nowhere near as hard as the first volley. Then the smell hit her: highly concentrated acid. The bane of her armored existence.
She brought her hands behind her and used a wide dispersal beam with little power, something to knock off the acid without striking with enough force to hurt. Readings on her armor indicated the first layer had holes in it, partially exposing some of the internal workings of her suit, while the rest was weakened. Her foe had prepared well. This was going to be far more challenging than she wanted. But she had to end it now, rather than let an assassin who could walk through walls come back later since she could strike at any time and anywhere. Although now Kodachi was finding it increasingly difficult to think.
The Ghost came up through the floor right in Kodachi's line of sight and aimed at her. Before the villain could fire Kodachi unleashed repulsor blast after repulsor blast in a continuous steam of fire, but each shot went through the woman, destroying parts of the building and some of the precious artwork in the atrium. The monetary cost meant nothing to her as she kept up the barrage. Her power levels were sufficient she could do it for an hour or longer. The moment the Ghost solidified, she was history.
Kodachi became aware of something flying behind her. She turned just enough that the self-guided missile struck her in the side rather than the more damaged back which might have ruined the armor, and perhaps her back as well. The force was sufficient to jam her shoulder and thus weaken her arm, to say nothing of the effect on the rest of her body. From all that and the bullet wound, she was forced to the floor. Clever, setting up an automated defense behind her while distracting Kodachi from the front. More damage she could ill afford. The Ghost was living up to her deadly reputation, unfortunately for Kodachi. She wondered if this gentle Black Rose was destined to wither on this battlefield.
As the errant thought crossed her mind a small box shot up above her head and exploded, releasing a net which fell over her. For a moment she thought the Ghost had lost her mind in thinking some basic weapon could tie her up, but the she felt a tremendous force from the net pin her to the ground. When she tried ripping it, the force only increased.
Blast, she heard Tony Stark had developed something like this for the Americans. His tech was not something to be trifled with. She tried remembering what she had read about it through the haze of her thoughts. Only kinetic force increased the pull. It would have been ideal to use against Hulk, but she had far more resources at her disposal than her emerald ally.
A laser shot out from her chest mount, cutting through the netting and destroying it. Now it was time to deal with the Ghost, and perhaps in the same manner.
A metal ball rolled toward her. She had a moment to think, 'grenade' when it exploded not with concussive force, but rather light. Kodachi stood there a moment, motionless, then fell over like a cow that had been tipped over. She hit the floor rigid with an audible thud, faceplate pointed at the ceiling.
The Ghost slowly walked over, gun at the ready and aimed at the prone figure, but still her foe made no move, remaining rigid. She aimed at the helmet when a sudden burst of light from the chest mount blinded her. At the same moment ribbons of metal shot from the gauntlet nearest the Ghost, wrapping around her ankle and sending enough electricity to knock out a small elephant. The Ghost fell to the ground, twitching.
Kodachi slowly rose to her feet and smiled at her handiwork. In the early days an EMP grenade would indeed have crashed her systems and left her helpless, but she had long since reinforced the armor to endure a discharge like that, though it had been a bit dicey with some of her systems exposed. But she had endured, and came up with a spur of the moment inspiration that had been nothing short of brilliant. Since she had to get the Ghost to drop her guard and remain material, that meant making her think Kodachi was helpless, which was what the grenade should have done. So the hero had faked the effect, and sure enough, her foe fell for it. If she wasn't the most brilliant Avenger… well she was, so the rest of the thought was of no real importance.
As she went to collect the Ghost, and give her another shock just to be thorough, she noticed the room was suddenly spinning. Now what weapon caused that? She couldn't seem to think of much of anything as she struck the floor, limp rather than rigid this time.
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The Ghost was semi-conscious rather than being sent into an electric slumber land thanks to her uniform being insulted from shocks. Iron Rose had used enough amperage to send her for a loop and left her helpless, but then Kunou collapsed and lay unmoving. There was no reason to fake unconsciousness now, quite the opposite, which meant this time it was probably legitimate. But what had happened? It took a moment to recall what probably had done it: blood loss had caught up with her. Kunou hadn't the time to have the leg treated so she'd have been slowly bleeding out all this time. How ironic that it was the first blow in the fight that proved triumphant.
Full motor control returned, though the Ghost felt painfully tired. Even with the painkillers counteracting a lot of it, she had taken more abuse than any other job in recent memory. It was time to end it.
She rose to her feet, keeping an eye on Kunou this time in case it was yet another trap, and switched over to her special armor piercing rounds. If an eyehole on the helmet was still open, she'd stick the barrel through it and pull the trigger. A few bullets bouncing around in the helmet like ping pong balls would do the trick. If for some reason it was shut, she'd fire into the chest plate weapon where the armor was weaker. Enough rounds into the same spot would get through eventually and finish the job.
As the Ghost approached the prone figure she caught a movement out of the corner of her eye. It was a security guard, a gutsy one, since Kunou had been smart enough to order them away for the fight. Either it had been an exceptionally conscientious decision, or she hadn't wanted the rates to go up from all the life insurance claims that would have been filed.
The Ghost shifted as the guard drew his sidearm. She'd let him empty his gun ineffectually before finishing him off with a few bullets of her own. They always fired over and over again, especially if they hadn't seen her abilities in person. They'd swear their bullets were hitting and keep firing until the slide locked back or hammer clicked on a spent shell. Not that many used revolvers these days.
She remained motionless so he'd get a good bead on her. He fired twice, both bullets going right where her heart was located, if in an intangible state.
And there was pain like she had never felt before. No amount of painkillers could negate this level of agony as she fell backward writhing in agony, clutching at her chest. She could barely think, though was vaguely aware that she'd become solid, writhing on the ground instead of going through it.
The security guard walked up to her slowly, weapon on her the entire time. He said in a very calm voice. "Huh, I thought for sure those super dense rounds would finish you off. A.I.M. said they were effective against people who could move through things. Looks like they had some effect, though." He nudged her with a foot, proving she was solid.
He took careful aim at her head, then paused for a second. "Professional courtesy compels me to tell you my name.
"I'm Spymaster."
And he pulled the trigger three times.
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Light. She was able to see it again. It took a moment to focus through the fuzz for Kodachi Kunou to come around enough to move. She was light headed, almost like being drunk. What had the Ghost done to her at the moment of her triumph?
It took all the focus she had to concentrate and take in her environment. She was where she had been, and not dead. Curious since that had been the Ghost's goal. Had only a second or two passed? She rose to her feet, only to feel the throbbing in her leg nearly make her pass out. Blood loss. That had to have been it. If she didn't finish the fight now, it was over for her.
Then she spotted the Ghost lying next to her. Oh yes, the fight was over. Her face was… all over the place really. If one wanted to know what the inside of a skull looked like, this was it in all its gory glory.
She averted her eyes and radioed her personnel to take her to a hospital for a gunshot wound and accompanying blood loss. She slumped to the ground and desperately tried to stay awake. There was something nagging at her. Something about the situation, besides who had killed the Ghost. Clearly that was not a case of suicide, which meant Kodachi had a guardian angel. Or the assassin an enemy. Or both. Whatever it was, she had gotten lucky. When her people arrived and took her to a hospital, they could talk about how Kodachi's bodyguard had risked life and limb to save her employer… limb?
That was it! Kodachi Kunou and Iron Rose could not appear with identical leg injuries. It would be too much of a coincidence. Kodachi had to appear in public and would have to show the wound. She had a better chance of hiding it with Iron Rose. She had to ditch the armor before her people got there.
After becoming Iron Rose and inheriting the business, she had renovations made throughout the complex, and secret rooms where she could collect, or stash, armor in case of an emergency. All of them were accessible to her and only her. Fortunately, the main atrium was one such location, since she had had the pineapple grove removed and had plenty of space.
She limped her way to the secret panel behind a work of art that was still intact. It had been so well designed and blended into the wall no one would know it was there unless they were told beforehand. It actually took her a moment to find the three places that had to be touched within seconds of one another, along with a retinal scan, to open it. She had barely finished stowing the armor when emergency personnel showed up.
Right before she passed out again, Kodachi noted that being hospitalized was going to put a wrinkle in her date with Captain Japan later.
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Sunset Bain laughed uproariously once Spymaster finished his call, though it was a cold thing full of venom. She hadn't laughed in months, not since she had to go into hiding. Finally, she had one upped that bitch who had taken nearly everything from her. Foiling her plans wasn't enough, but it was a start, and few things worthwhile began and ended with a single event. True victory was the culmination of extensive effort and planning. It had always been that way when she was working as an arms merchant on the side of her real business of running Baintronics.
Her path of vengeance had begun a few weeks ago when she had finally talked Hugh Jones into giving her some slack on her leash. She had gone out as Madame Menace and visited on old arms cache she had sequestered away. The problem with dealing illegal arms was you couldn't have direct links between them and your legitimate business, which was why when Biko had grabbed Baintronics many of Bain's under the table resources hadn't fallen under the bitch's control.
To make matters better, there was a lot of movement among criminal organizations now that Nick Fury had officially resigned from S.H.I.E.L.D, which was what the U.N. had wanted for a while. Certainly the organization had become increasingly incompetent once government bureaucrats stepped in and insisted they could do a better job of running an intelligence network, but now S.H.I.E.L.D. was basically another sub-division of the U.N. which meant they weren't doing much of anything other than running around in circles and occasionally leaning on some country that wasn't doing what the others wanted it doing. Through her sources she heard the Supreme Hydra had actually given everyone a day off to celebrate his departure.
In any case black market weaponry was a seller's market, and she had gotten top dollar for everything. Now that she had some seed money she had decided to hire the best industrial espionage agent there was: Spymaster, to do what he did best and spy on Biko. He was one of the handful, perhaps only, one who could pierce her security. It had cost Bain most of the money, but she needed intelligence more than anything so she could plot her next move.
When he had gotten wind of Biko hiring Spymaster's rival, the Ghost, for an assassination job he had reported to Bain and asked what she wanted done. As professional as he was, when she gave the kill order he had actually sounded delighted at being given the opportunity to knock off a business rival and get paid for it. She'd hoped he had better success than when Biko had tried to kill Bain.
And now he had reported the results of his mission to her. Kodachi Kunou was still alive and the Ghost dead, which meant Biko had been foiled. Not in a major way, but Bain's hatred meant petty vengeance was better than none. And that she had finally gotten enough traction to get on the path of vengeance herself.
As a bonus, Biko had no reason to think it was anything other than a counter-measure on Kunou's part that had cost her the Ghost and ruined her plans. She had no idea Bain survived the assassination attempt, and so wouldn't be looking for her as a culprit, nor preparing for her when she chose to strike. Bain would have to be careful, but over the course of her career she had taken down more than one foe who had tried to kill her.
She wasn't some helpless lab tech like Kodachi Kunou. She knew how to handle herself. Let that Stane-Daitokuji bitch beware. Madame Menace was back in the game.
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[End Chapter]
Well, I never said who the 'me' was in the title that the spy had killed. I always liked that phrase for the Iron Man book, as well as it being one of the high points in the title's run. And I've always had a soft spot for Spymaster since he was the one foe whom Iron Man never caught, except once, but then he was immediately broken out of jail by Justin Hammer (which was the reason he was captured, to show Hammer's connections). He then promptly turned around and escaped Iron Man again when they fought a few issues later.
Decided to revisit some of the folks that had been on the backburner and yes, some of the main story was moved along here as well. Kodachi hadn't been focused on for a while so it was nice to use her again. And yes, at long last, that guy that for some reason hasn't had his own movie in the MCU, The Ringer, made his on screen debut. He's like Thanos, but with rings instead of stones. Maybe a bit overpowered, hard to say.
