The Infinite Chapter 5

Deep under the sea, in the Atlantic Ocean, a beast made it’s home inside a hidden cave.  Locked away for thousands of years, an earthquake long ago destroyed it’s home, leaving it buried beneath the rubble.  It feasts only on the small crustaceans that fall between the cracks, which is hardly enough, but just enough.  In the darkness, not but it’s ten red eyes can be seen, piercing through the black depths.  Each second supplies more rage.  It never ages.

But waits.

-

“I’ve managed to pull out what I could from the broken tablet Freeze found,” Roger told the Infinite in their meeting room.  He pulled out a tall document that fell to the floor.  The layman would look at the characters on the sheet and assume it was a completely different language, maybe one not even known to man.  But Roger seemed comfortable with it.  He was at home with the complicated, with the lonesome scrolls of the unknown.  He was used to being the only one able to understand certain things, and he never quite understood regular people, so it worked out.  He was meant for this sort of thing.  “Most of it is ship building, diagnostics, et cetera.  Useless for us.  Though i will say, Celeste is an impressively sharp mind.  If only we were on the same side…”

“Get on with it, Roger,” stated Americano.

“Oh right,” he stumbled.  “But the thing I do keep seeing is the word Atlantis.  Yes, it appears the reason they have returned, based on the dates of these phrases, has to do with Atlantis, though I’m not sure I fully understand.”

“You mean the city?  The one in mythology that has never been proven to actually exist?” asked Freeze.

“The same,” responded Roger.  “Only it doesn’t mean that is for sure what it is.  Atlantis could easily be a code for something.  Maybe a hidden base?  It’s so hard to decipher with the data I have here.”

“So we know there is something called Atlantis, which could be the lost city, or a code name for just about anything,” repeated Americano, stroking his chin.  “Anything else in that data that could help us?  Anything at all?”

“Nothing too significant.  Most of it, like I said, is information around their ship and some general Changed politics, info about The Infinite, The Collective, The Pirates…”

“The Collective?” probed Americano.  “Would you mind telling us what they were doing looking up the Collective?”

Roger looked at his readout, scanning it for Collective news.  Will was amazed that he was able to read so fast, and do some clearly complex calculations with such skill.  He moved all the way to the end of the sheet, and read off what he could.  “From: Collective.  We have the Lens.  From: Order.  Get… Return shortly.”  The Lens.  Sounds like some piece of equipment or something.”

“The Blue Lens,” stated Americano.  Titania and Freeze both glanced at him.  “When I was eavesdropping on the Collective, I overheard them saying they stole the Blue Lens for The Order.”

Roger ran to the nearest computer and did some quick research.  He clearly had access to some complex databases, he wasn’t using a regular search engine.  Screens were popping up all over, spilling all kinds of data in a dizzying array.  Clearly this made sense to him, which was good, as the rest of them weren’t even close to being able to keep up.  After a few minutes, Roger had found what he was looking for.

“It is Atlantis then…”

Titania butted in.  “But sir, isn’t it just a myth?”

He shook his head.  “It WAS just a myth.  From what I’m reading, the Blue Lens is a powerful tool with a connection with the lost city of Atlantis.  That was supposed to be a myth as well, but if they have found it, it’s clear to me this city is real.  Whether or not the magic within it is real is another question entirely, but there’s something there.”  Will couldn’t believe what he was hearing.  Until only recently, he was just a nothing loser in a crappy apartment.  Now he was standing with superheroes talking about the lost city of Atlantis.  What could possibly happen next?

“We have to do something about this,” Roger stated.  “If there is something there, in this lost city, who knows what they might find?  There could be ancient evils locked away down there, monsters and magic, technology even beyond our comprehension.  Whatever they are hoping to find, they can’t possibly be prepared for everything.”

-

The shaft for the onboarding ramp opened.  Light flooded into the dark room where to the right sat Celeste, to the left stood Brawna, and in the middle sat Synaptico.  The three of them eagerly awaited their guests, Brawna specifically prepared for any trouble.  There were few that could stand up to a woman of her size and strength, but she was always ready and waiting for anything.  Celeste was never without her tablet, clicking and zooming with amazing speed.  Synaptico was always calm, sometimes arrogantly so.  He never seemed troubled with the matters at hand, and sat stoically in his authoritative chair as figures appeared in the doorway.

Man Electric stepped aboard first.  His hood and mask were in some ways a contrast with Synaptico’s helmet, but they both had an air of darkness about them.  Mr. Combustible came behind Man Electric, looking around curiously.  He was less imposing than most villains, and he wasn’t so techy that he truly appreciated the gadgetry surrounding him, but he stood out for his pure neuroticism.  It was all he could do to not create explosions whenever he was put in a compromising situation like this, so he was especially on edge.  He chose not to make eye contact with any of the monsters in front of him, especially Synaptico, who was an elite level Changed within the community, and Brawna, who reminded him of Titania, who had just thrown him through a glass window.  Giganta was last, and seemed to create minor earthquakes as she entered.  She barely fit through the doorway.  Brawna eyed her immediately; Giganta was much larger than her, and she clearly had some muscle, but how much?  In a true fight, who would come out on top?  These are the thoughts running through the amazon as she stood as the tallest woman in the room, taller even than the fat woman.  Brawna’s arms flexed as they got close and stood in the center of the room.  It was a meeting of two factions of Changed, a meeting that would so often result in blood shed.

“Do you have the Lens?” asked Synaptico, breaking the silence.

Man Electric reached one of his gloved hands into his cape, and sure enough pulled out a blue, jagged jewel that glowed with incredible energy.  Synaptico’s dark eyes widened as they took in the glow.  His fingers clenched.  This was the jewel he had been chasing for years, the final piece of the puzzle to defeat the Infinite and secure his place as the true ruler of the world that he knew he should be.  He wished it hadn’t come at the hands of these miscreants, but he wasn’t above getting his hands dirty if the result was there.  He stood up and walked forward, approaching Electric slowly but confidently.

“Excellent,” he said.  He reached forward for the jewel, but Man Electric pulled back quickly.  Brawna cracked her knuckles.

“Not so fast, Synaptico,” said Man Electric.  “You remember the deal right?  We are a team now.  We split everything we find, 50 50.”

“Of course,” replied the helmeted man.  “I’m a man of my word.”  He pointed to a hallway in the surprisingly large ship.  “In fact, Celeste has already built your rooms, just down that hall.  Teamwork is the name of the game.”  He smiled confidently at Man Electric, who nodded back at him.  The two shook hands.

“Well, now that that’s that, I think we have a common enemy to discuss,” Man Electric stated coldly.  Giganta and Combustible walked past them towards the rooms, excited to get off their feet.  Giganta gave Brawna a smirk as she walked by her, clearly not impressed by the amazon’s size.

“The Infinite, I know,” said Synaptico.

Man Electric pulled him close while still shaking his hand.  “Perhaps.  But have you seen that boy?”

-

The light flicked on and the room suddenly looked like a rich woman’s dream walk in closet.  All around them were lines and lines of suits, in all shapes and sizes.  Black, blue, red, green, every color you could imagine.  There were costumes in here that looked like they came out of a comic book from the 50’s, with outside underwear and big logos and capes.  There were more modern takes with body armor, dark colors, very brooding.  There were tons of tech style costumes that looked like they may have nanomachines.  The room was well lit and spacious, and Will couldn’t help but marvel at how fancy it all felt.  Titania nudged him in and he didn’t know where to start.

“What color do you like?” she asked.

“Umm… red?  No, black!  I don’t really know.”

She giggled.  He had never heard her giggle like that in the short time he had known her.  “I think you would look cute in black.”

Will turned red.  “Um… don’t you think I should look cool, or like… intimidating or something?  Shouldn’t my costume strike fear in the hearts of evil, terror in the souls of the tainted, disdain in the-”

“Haha, you’re so funny!” laughed Titania with a big smile.  She bent down to my level with her massive hand on my head.  “We don’t even fully understand your full talents yet, Sweetie.  But I would venture to say that intimidation isn’t really your bag.  First and foremost, we have to make sure you’re durable, so we need clothes that offer protection.”

“But what about you?” asked Will, pointing at her clearly barren outfit.

“Sweetie… My skin is very tough.  I’m naturally very tough, I don’t need clothes slowing me down.  You’re… um… less built, in that way, if you catch my drift.”  She put her huge hand around his bicep and gave it a little pinch.

Will felt humiliated, but he wasn’t ready to show it.  “Okay okay, what do you have in mind then?”

She pondered for a moment, looking around at all of the different outfits.  She approached one on a rack.  It was black and gray, with what looked like semi thick material.  “What about this?  It’s black, like you said.  And it should be fairly flexible while still keeping you nice and safe.  Should be good for bumps and knocks.”  She pulled it off the rack and tossed it to Will, who caught it and was surprised by it’s surprising heft.  It wasn’t exactly heavy, but it was certainly heavier than your average shirt.

“This could do,” Will said, admiring the fabric.

“Now it’s not exactly fitted for you, and it doesn’t have anything to help you put it on quickly.  That stuff will happen later.  So for now, try it on in that dressing room over there.”  She pointed to a traditional looking room in the corner.  “If you need anything, I’ll be out here.”  She stood near the clothing racks and looked through some more.  It was interesting to see a huge amazon flip through clothes like she was at a department store.  It’s not like she wore anything but underwear anyways.

Will opened the door, and noticed the room was small, even for him.  It was certainly tall enough, as most rooms were, but there wasn’t much in here, except a mirror, a bench, and some hooks.  He closed the door behind him.  First, he took off his shoes, then he unbuckled his belt and let his jeans fall to the floor.  Finally, he took off his shirt.  Good lord he was tiny.  He knew he was small, but he realized it more now that he was standing around all these superheroes.  Titania was right; intimidation was not going to be his thing.  But that begged the question, what was his thing?

It definitely wasn’t strength, as he was now struggling with some of the clasps.  He had gotten the legs in fine enough, but the top was giving him some trouble.  It worked almost like a life jacket in that it went across the chest.  This was military grade equipment though, and it was hard for him to push down and pull at the same time.  Clearly it was taking longer than anticipated.

“Everything okay in there?” called out Titania.

“Umm yeah, just struggling with something in here…”

“I’ll come in and help you!” she said.

“Wait I’ll be okay-” Will tried to say, but he was too late.  Titania had ripped open the door and there stood Will in a state of shock.  Even worse, he dropped what he was holding and the whole suit dropped to the floor, including his legs.  He was now completely exposed, with only his underwear covering his… assets.  He was now almost naked, with his face nipple level with a huge, muscular amazon wearing similar clothing looking down on him.  He was shocked to see that she completely blocked out the doorway.  He wondered if she could even fit in this room.  Speaking of, with her intrusion, he was now feeling somewhat claustrophobic in what was a normal fitting room.

Titania seemed entirely unfazed by all this.  “Do you need help, Sweetie?”

“Um… yeah… these clasps are hard to deal with…”

She lowered herself so that her heaving bosom was now directly in his face and her arms were to the floor.  She grabbed the outfit and pulled up, but stopped at about halfway.  He really wished she would hurry up, his face was being smothered by her chest while she was trying to dress him.  “Um… Sweetie… Um… your… uh… thingie is…”

And now Will wanted to die.  These huge breasts in his face were having a very real and very expected effect, and when she was pulling up, she must have hit a road bump.  His hands immediately darted for his underwear, and his little soldier, in an attempt to cover or move aside this embarrassment.  But Titania’s strong hands held his arms in place.

“Don’t worry,” she said softly.  After holding him in place for a bit so he knew she was taking care of him, she pulled out the suit and lifted it over his engorged member.  She stood up a little bit, freeing Will’s face from her breasts.  He wished he had suffocated.  She was still leaning forward, but was no longer pressing her breasts in his face.  They just hung in front of his eyes, each easily larger than his head.  He didn’t even want to look, considering what just happened, and his vision dropped to the floor.

“I am so sorry, I-” he tried to get out, but she put one finger over his mouth.

“It’s okay,” she said calmly.  “If anything I’m flattered.”  She tightened the clasps and the suit was now covering Will’s body.  She gripped him by the shoulders and turned him completely around towards the mirror, and he looked at the way this dark suit conformed to his figure.  It was a bit loose in some of the places, but he knew that was going to be taken care of.  He also saw the imposing figure of Titania behind him, her massive breasts right behind his head, the breasts that had just smothered him.  He wondered if she realized what she had done, and how could she not?  She was starting to feel a connection with her, one that was confusing but powerful.  She seemed to have some kind of kinship with him that she didn’t have with the other heroes, and for that he was somewhat grateful.  She was clearly a powerful ally amidst the Changed he would no doubt face in the future.

“I like it,” said Will.

“I think it looks cute on you!” said Titania.  She noticed Will was about to speak up.  “I mean, tough!”

-

“Brawna, whenever you’re ready, you may proceed,” Synaptico said to the giant amazon to his left.  Brawna was holding a mighty hammer, one that only she was likely able to pick up.  Her muscles didn’t even appear to be straining, which seemed an impossible feat considering the sheer size of the tool.  On the table before here was the Blue Lens, emitting it’s glow throughout the room.

“Are you sure about this?” asked Man Electric.  “All this effort to get this and you’re just going to smash it?”

“To pieces, yes,” replied Synaptico.  “The power of the Blue Lens must be unleashed.  The energy that lies within the crystal is of value, not the crystal itself.”

“Can I at least keep the shards of this priceless artifact you’re about to destroy?” asked Celeste in an urgent tone.

“Do with the pieces what you will.  The path to Atlantis is all I need.”

Giganta and Mr. Combustible stood in the corner.  They didn’t fully understand the deal, and therefore didn’t care much about the outcome.  Giganta was eating a chunk of ham, and Mr. Combustible was trying to get her riled up.

“Brawna looks strong!  I bet she could kick your ass,” he said.

“Yeah right, Skinny Boy,” Giganta replied with a full mouth.  “I could squeeze the life out of her just like I could her sister.”

“I don’t know,” he said.  “Those arms look super cut.  It’s the results that matter at the end of the day, Tubs.”  He tried to grab a piece of the ham, but she swatted it away.

“The day will come where I’ll just have to prove it to you.  And once I do, I’ll smother you with my right tit for trash talking.”  Combustible’s head was at just the right height that her massive right breast was taunting him.  He indeed did fear that one day Giganta would accidentally crush him, but he didn’t even want to imagine getting on the wrong side of the fat monster and have her purposefully do it.

Brawna raised the hammer in the air.  All in attendance looked on with great interest.  Some had worry, others just wanted to get it over with.  All of them had been waiting for this moment, in some form or fashion, for a long time.  This was not just the revealing of a secret path to a lost city; it was a partnership that could change the lives of the Collective forever, and could strengthen the power of The Order.  With one powerful strike, the Hammer collided with the majestic Blue Lens and an explosion of blue encompassed the room.  Everyone had to close their eyes as the light was blinding.  After a moment of chaos, the light returned to normal, save for a trail of blue, maybe a foot wide, leading out of the ship and towards the grand Atlantic Ocean.

Celeste clicked some button on her tablet, and a small mechanical bug popped out of one of the compartments.  It zipped past the group and along the trail.  She pulled out her tablet and watched the bug map out the path of the Blue Lens.  Mr. Combustible looked over her shoulder at the tablet, and was amazed at this little bit of technology she was able to create.

“So what’s next?” he asked her.

“We need to find someone dumb enough to follow it,” she replied with a smirk.