Silent Jury
Issue #18
by Tom Zjaba

Chapter 22
Paradise Lost

    Vanessa looks into the large mirror in the bathroom and brushes her hair. She is wearing only a towel that she has wrapped around her. Robert comes behind her and begins to kiss her on the neck. "I think I have recovered if you want to go another round?" She looks at him in the mirror and says "How long has it been? Most men would be sleeping after two hours, but you still want more." He kisses up to her ears as he says "With a body like yours, I cannot get enough." She turns around and kisses him on the lips. "For someone who wouldn't even touch me, you sure changed your tune." He puts his hands around her waist and kisses her back. "I didn't know the proper procedures for dating in a super hero group. It's not like Superman was dating Wonder Woman." She laughs as she looks up at him "Yeah, but Mister Fantastic was definitely giving it to the Invisible Woman." He laughs at that. "Yeah, I guess so. " She then pushes him off and says "Tell you what, I am starving. If you take me out to a really nice restaurant and then stop and get some more condoms, then maybe you can talk me into it tonight." Robert looks at her and says "Condoms? Don't you have the sponge or something." She laughs as she adjusts her towel "No, it is the guy's responsibility. It is not my problem if you go to paradise with a beautiful woman and only bring two condoms." He laughs as he thinks about it. "Well, I wasn't really sure if anything was going to happen." Turning back to the mirror, she rolls her eyes as she starts brushing her hair again. "Most guys would have brought a case of condoms and you bring a measly two. You obviously weren't a boy scout as you are not prepared Mr. Robert Vanderpool."

    Robert heads back to the other room as he thinks about how wonderful it was to make love to her. It has been awhile since he was intimate with a woman. He had a few flings in college, but never anything serious. He was never sure if a woman wanted him or his money. He even wonders it about Vanessa. Does she really care for him as a man or is it the lifestyle he can offer her? Or is it that he funds the money that allows her to fly around in her armor? He tries not to think about that right now as he is enjoying the time with her. He decides to call down to the front desk. "Front desk? This is Robert Vanderpool in the penthouse suite. Can I have someone get me a box of condoms and have them sent to the room? What kind do I want? Wait a minute." He then puts down the phone and goes into the bathroom. "Honey, I am having the front desk send up a box of condoms, what kind do you want? Ribbed? What?" She turns around and glares at him. "What? Are you nuts? Tell them you don't want any condoms. I don't want everyone person who works here know that we are having sex." He is completely stunned by this. She then points towards the other room and says "Go hang up that phone now." She slams the bathroom door in his face as he stands there with his jaw agape. He then walks over to the phone and says "Just cancel that order." As he hangs up, he shakes his head. Why can't they have a book that says all the rules of dating.

    Sitting in darkness, Gadget and Mr. Smith ponder what to do. Neither one can speak and they are locked up in one of the cages. While the situation is pretty grim, they at least share the same cell. Gadget is sitting on the bed and Mr. Smith is sitting in a chair. They look at each other, wondering what to do next. Gadget pulls out his cell phone and texts a message to Mr. Smith. He points to his phone and then to Mr. Smith. This prompts him to pull out his cell phone and check for a message. He waits and waits, but it does not come. Mr. Smith then pulls out a small notebook and a pen out of his shirt pocket and begins writing "Don't think we can get a signal with all this rock above us." He hands it to Gadget who reads it and nods in agreement. He then writes another note "If you don't mind sacrificing your phone, I think I can make the signal stronger." Gadget reads the note and hands his phone to Mr. Smith. Reaching into his pockets, he pulls out a mini toolkit that he always carries. Opening it, he pulls out a tiny screwdriver and proceeds to open up the phone. Tinkering around inside, he does a few modifications. He also takes some spare parts out of his toolkit and expands the size of the antenna. He the pulls out his phone and proceeds to take it apart as well. He begins taking the parts of both phones and using them to make one stronger phone. He crosses his fingers as he turns on the new phone in hopes that it at least turns on. When it lights up, he smiles at Gadget. He then proceeds to write a text message and send it out to Charlie "Held hostage. Fortress. Dr. Warlock. Help." He then hits the button and sends it. They look at each other and hope for the best.

    Charlie is examining some medical charts from the examinations they did on The One. The One is standing in the room, waiting to hear the results. "This is incredible. Whatever technology makes up your metal skin is also the reason you are alive." The One looks down on the charts as he asks "What do you mean?" Charlie looks over the data again as he answers "It looks to be some kind of nanotechnology. These nanobytes not only repaired the damage done to you, but they also modified your skin to make sure you are not harmed by a lightning attack again." The One looks down at his hand and imagines the millions of nanobytes that are crawling around on him. "Is there anyway to remove them?" he asks. Charlie looks at his charts and then back up at The One "Anything is possible, but it is not probable. They are already fusing with you on a cellular level. I am not sure what kind of technology it would take to remove them, but it is way beyond anything that I have seen." The One hangs his head as he feels in his bones that he will never be human again. While he has powers beyond anything he could imagine, to never be normal again is a steep price to pay.

    As Charlie is looking over the test results, his cell phone alerts him to a text message. At first he ignores it, but then he decides to look at it. Very few people know of this phone as he keeps it for his closest friends and business associates. As he pulls out his phone, he looks down and sees there is one message. He reads it and stops for a moment. A look of dread creeps over his face. The One sees the look and quickly inquires "What is wrong?" Charlie is silent as he tries to send a text message back. "Received message. Is anyone hurt?" He waits for a response but after several awkward and silent minutes, he receives nothing. Not knowing what to do, he thinks about the situation. It should not have come as a surprise as Doctor Warlock did escape and they knew they would hear from him again. But so soon? They are still licking their wounds from the last battle. He then looks up at The One and says "Doctor Warlock has taken over the headquarters and kidnapped the rest of the group." The One looks right at him and says "We need to go back to America." Charlie nods in agreement and says "But we lack the manpower to defeat him." The One smashes his fist together, which makes a booming sound "You said the nanobytes have changed me, made me immune to his lightning attacks." Charlie nods in agreement "Yes, they have. But we do not know what other powers he has. And what if he has his team of villains? What chance would you and Connie have against them?" The One looks around as he asks "Do we know if Robert and Vanessa are captured?" Charlie scratches his head. "I do not know." He then starts to leave the room. "I will have Connie call them and see. Maybe they were not in the headquarters when it happened." As he starts to walk away, he turns to The One and says "I have to go see someone. Let Connie know what is going on and prepare to leave.

    The One walks out of the room and heads back to see Connie. The thought of more nurturing is upsetting, but he has to let her know the situation. As he walks back into the room where she is waiting, he is quickly greeted by her. She brings over a blanket and wraps it around him. "You must be cold, I made you some hot tea." He pulls the blanket off and tosses it aside. "We do not have time for this. Doctor Warlock is back and he has taken over the headquarters and taken the others hostage." Connie freezes in her tracks as she hears this. Her first reaction is dread. What if the others are already dead? The One quickly continues "We received a text message but it did not say who was there or anything else." Connie quickly pulls out her cell phone and says "I need to call Robert. I have to see if he is alright."

    Robert and Vanessa are sitting at an expensive restaurant for dinner. She has a whole lobster and a steak in front of her. Robert has prime rib and crab legs. They are both drinking wine. She is smiling at him as she says "This is so good. My father never went to expensive restaurants. The fanciest we ever got was Denny's." Robert laughs as she tells him that. As he is cutting his prime rib, his cell phone vibrates. He pulls it out and looks at the who is calling. He sees it is Connie and pauses for a second. Vanessa looks at him and says "If that is my father, tell him to leave us alone." Robert shakes his head no and says "No, it's Connie." Vanessa pauses for a moment. For the first time, she is feeling a bit jealous. Why is Connie calling him? Is she coming back? Does she want Robert to go to see her? Robert looks at her and asks "Should I take it? You said no work." He has put her in an awkward position. If she says no, it will look like she is jealous. But if she says yes, then he may be thinking of her. Not knowing what to say, she finds herself saying "Go ahead and take it."

Robert - "Hello Connie, what's up?"
Connie - "I am so happy to hear from you. Are you alright?"
Robert - "Yes, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"
Connie - "Then you don't know."
Robert - "Know what?"
Connie - "I am sorry to tell you this, but Doctor Warlock is back and he has taken over the fortress."
Robert - "What? How did you find out?"
Connie - "We received a text message, we think from Gadget."
Robert - "Oh my God, what should we do?"
Connie - "We will be flying over tonight, but it will take awhile for us to get there."
Robert - "Yeah, we can meet you at the airport."
Connie - "Let's meet at your house. Oh and by the way, The One is alive."
Robert - "What? How can that be? I saw him dead."
Connie - "I do not understand it either, but my father can explain more.
Robert - "Wow, talk about mixed news."
Connie - "Do you know where Vanessa is?"
Robert - "Yeah, she is here with me."
Connie - Oh, I see."
Robert - "We were just eating dinner."
Connie - "You don't need to explain. I will call you when we arrive."
Robert - "Great. See you then."

    Vanessa is looking at him with a concerned look on her face. "What's wrong? I have never seen you so serious." Robert puts his phone away as he looks at her. "I don't know how to tell you this, but Doctor Warlock as returned and he's taken over the fortress." A shocked look comes over her face. "What? How about daddy? Is he...?" Robert tries to muster a smile "He sent a text message to Charlie letting him know, so he is alive." She stands up from the table and says "We need to go and rescue him." Robert stands up and gently pushes her back in her chair. "The last thing we can do is go in there half cocked. All we will do is get ourselves killed." She sits back down and takes a long drink of her wine. "Well, we can't just sit here and do nothing." Robert takes his hand and puts it over her hand, showing his concern "Connie and The One are coming tomorrow. We will figure our next move then." A shocked look comes over her face. "The One? But he is dead." Robert smiles as he continues to how her hands "I know, I saw his dead body too. But he somehow came back to life." Vanessa grabs the bottle of wine from the middle of the table and fills her glass back up. She then takes a long swig and says "Guess our vacation is over. Aren't you glad I didn't wait for you to make the first move?" Robert laughs as he says “Guess I don’t need to go buy anymore condoms.” She smiles and says “Not yet, but don’t think you don’t owe me another vacation.” He smiles at her and says "Next time, I will be more prepared." They both laugh out loud, which helps lighten the mood.

    Charlie gets on his video phone and calls someone in the United States. As he waits for the call to be picked up, he looks at the picture of Connie and her mother on his desk. He looks at how much Connie now looks like her mother. Suddenly he is pulled from his daydreaming. "Hello! What can I do for you?" Charlie smiles as he says "I am inquiring if you still have the warehouse worker who they call the Magic Man?" The guy laughs "Yeah, we still have him. We still do not know how he does it, but he gets all his work done and then some. Yet, we always see him sitting around and playing video games." Charlie laughs "Yeah, he is a mystery. Listen, I am coming to America and I want to meet with him. Alone if possible. Please send me his work schedule." The man has a stunned look on his face. "You want to come all the way to America to talk to him? Whatever for?" Charlie smiles and says "I have other business to attend, I am not coming to just see him. But I want to meet with him when I arrive." The guy smiles back and says "You are the boss. I will make sure you get to meet with him." Charlie bows and then hangs up the call. He stands up and heads to his private jet.

    Doctor Warlock and The Mob head down to the dungeon to see Gadget and Mr. Smith. As they enter the room, Gadget tries to hide the cell phone. "Open the cell and check it." he says to The Mob. Suddenly, there are a dozen Mobs, two of which take the men out of the cells, while the other ten search it from top to bottom. One of them brings over the modified cell phone to Doctor Warlock. "Look boss, they had a cell phone." Doctor Warlock laughs at it "So what? I put a silence spell on them. They cannot use any phone." The Mob brings it over and shows him "Yeah, but they can text. Look, they sent a message to someone and they responded." Doctor Warlock looks at the phone and is amazed at the technology. "I am sure they sent a message to the members of their group. Let them come, we will be ready for them. Ready for them to die!" He then crushes the cell phone in his hand and tosses it at the feet of Gadget and Mr. Smith. "Throw them back in the cell and tell everyone else to be ready for an attack."

    As The Mob becomes one and heads out of the room, Doctor Warlock walks over to the two men and says "You know that you just sent your friends and family to their death. They may have beaten me last time, but not this time. This time I will make sure to kill every single one of them." He then breaks out laughing in a most sinister laugh.

Silent Jury © 2006-2009 Tom Zjaba