Post by lawrenceliberty on Jun 7, 2017 17:28:39 GMT
he Squadron of Justice The Lamp of the gods
By Libbylawrence
Two forgotten heroes team-up to heal an old wound!
1
The Payton house was haunted or at least that's what people said. The more
perceptive observers might have added that any ghosts found within the Virginia
mansion were not necessarily sinister as much as they were lonely. There was
something solitary and romantic about the silent structure. It rested quietly in
the middle of a neglected field and sad looking trees loomed on every side of
the Antebellum home.
No one visited the place. No one disturbed its perpetual solitude…except for the
local grocer that retained enough of traditional small town courtesy or respect
for the Payton name to make annual deliveries to the house.
On one October day, a fat man with thinning gray hair and a thick mustache made
his way slowly up the drive toward the house. He carried a small box of
groceries and he made the trip uphill with no apparent effort in spite of his
weight and age. As if suddenly realizing this fact might be noticeable he began
to slow down and his breath became heavier and gasping.
Having caught his breath he resumed his trip and approached the house. Before
he could knock, the massive front door opened to reveal a rather odd looking
man. He was tall and gaunt with light brown hair, large sensitive eyes, and a
rather nervous mouth. He was youthful looking and appeared to be in good
physical condition. He wore a red jacket with gray slacks and a slightly
crooked and wrinkled tie.
"Mr. Gore, you are a few days early. Are you going away and closing the store
next week? No matter. I have your usual payment right here!" he said slowly.
The elderly grocer smiled as he recognized the occupant of the old house and
then he did a remarkable thing. The fat old man dropped the box and executed a
perfect acrobatic flip from the edge of the porch and through the door! As he
knocked the startled owner backward and landed on his feet with the agility of
an Olympian he gasped and collapsed a few feet inside the door.
The gaunt owner of the house rolled over and leaped forward to examine the
stricken grocer.
"Dead! The curse worked its foul magic as I always feared it one day would!"he
said as he bent over the still form of the fallen grocer.
Suddenly, the dead grocer smiled broadly, sat up, and said, "Don't worry, old
fellow! I was dead but I'm much better now!"
2
The man in the red jacket gasped in surprise as the "grocer" stood up and
casually began to remove skillfully applied make-up including a thinning gray
wig and heavy padding. He stood taller than before and in seconds the old grocer
was transformed into a handsome dark haired man with a thin dark mustache and an
athletic built. He removed his outer clothing to reveal a tuxedo which had
somehow remained unwrinkled by its concealment beneath the garb of a grocer.
"Zoro the Mystery Man! I can't believe it! I thought you were Mr. Gore! I don't
understand this at all! You should be dead!" stammered the home owner.
"Actually, I prefer to be called Zoro, Man of Mystery. It is a bit more elegant
but why quibble over semantics? We're old friends, aren't we, Warlock?" he said.
Warlock answered almost automatically. "I have no friends."
Zoro smiled charmingly and said, "Don't be silly. You and I are more than
friends. We're comrades forged in the heart of battle. Remember, how you and I
and El Carim and Lance O'Casey fought those Nazi Aztecs during the war? It was
glorious! Why, Lance's monkey Mr. Hogan was as smart as a man. No, make that
smarter than some men I've encountered!"
Warlock said, "I was afraid your pet cheetah was going to eat the monkey but you
had trained him superbly! Wait! I'm rambling. It comes from not having spoken to
anyone but a grocer in over thirty five years! Let me collect my thoughts. I
have questions for you!"
Zoro sat down in a plush chair and crossed his legs- carefully adjusting the
crease in his tuxedo pants.
"Ask me anything. I owe you a few answers after the fright I just gave you!" he
said.
Warlock said, "Zoro, you haven't aged since I last saw you back in 1944. I
don't understand. Why are you here? How did you survive the curse? I saw you
die!"
Zoro said, "Sit down, old chum. This is a bit shocking. I am sorry. I'll
explain. First of all, my perpetual youth is explained easily enough to a man of
your magical talents. One day in 1945 I was visiting Lance O'Casey on his South
Sea island home. It was a beautiful place! I met a teacher there who looked
exactly like Betty Grable… but I digress…pleasantly! My pet cheetah Cheeta
became ill. O'Casey's medicine man friend S'Ville tried to save Cheeta's life
but his magic went wrong. Poor Cheeta died but I was somehow given the
proverbial 9 lives of a cat! I haven't aged a minute since then."
Warlock nodded slowly.
"S'Ville was a bumbler! El Carim and I tried to warn Lance not to trust the old
islander with anything more serious than card tricks but Lance was always too
good hearted to doubt anyone!"
Zoro shrugged and said, "I mourned for Cheeta. You know how close a man can
become to a pet. No doubt you feel the same about your bird Hugin! Still,
Cheeta was devoted to me and I'm sure he wouldn't begrudge me the 9 lives. I
suppose I used one of them up moments ago when the curse Andrea placed upon you
or your home temporarily ended my life!"
Warlock said, "How do you know about Andrea? How do you know about the curse
that trapped me inside this house back in the forties?"
Zoro said, "Your magic made it almost impossible for anyone to find you. You
never told me or any of us your true name. Warlock was the only name you ever
used in public. Still, as you may recall, I have my ways. I think most of us
thought you had vanished of your own volition. We respected your right to
privacy even though we missed you and felt the need of your powers on more than
one occasion!"
Warlock said, "I've felt helpless as well! I wanted to use my powers to help
people but I was trapped!"
Zoro said, "Once I realized that your disappearance was not voluntary it took a
bit of work to deduce what had happened to you. I did a bit of travelling and
even consulted Kid Eternity. I also realized that breaking the curse might free
you and my unique nature made it perfect for me to be the one to try to do so!
After all, what is one life more or less between friends?"
Warlock said, "I've wanted to talk about the curse for so long! Andrea placed a
curse on me in 1945. It occurred on V-E Day! While others were celebrating the
new freedom the world was going to gain because of Germany's defeat, I lost my
own! Ironic, isn't it? "
Zoro smiled and said, "You've kept your rather sardonic sense of humor! Good for
you!"
Warlock said, "Andrea and I were in love. I had never felt that way before about
anyone. You know how isolated and out of place I always felt. I suppose these
days they call it social anxiety phobia. I always felt like an outsider. I'd use
my magic to help people and they would be so grateful but I never made the
mistake of confusing gratitude for friendship. In public when I first approached
people, they would recoil. They would whisper about how weird I was or how
strange I seemed! I suppose it was because of my magical powers. I don't know.
I've brooded over it a lot. I did feel a bit more accepted when I worked with
you and El Carim and the other heroes during the war. He's dead, you know? I
commune with his spirit at times. He was a good man. You all were… or are!"
Zoro grinned and said, "We did our part! You did too! Why, during the war,
Hitler and his bully boys trembled at the very name of Warlock the Wizard!"
Warlock said, ""Thank you. Andrea and I met in Ireland during the war. She was
beautiful and wild. She had raven black hair, dancing green eyes, and a pale
but flawless complexion. I loved her and I thought she loved me! When I
realized she was just after my magical relics, I defied her and she placed a
curse on me! It was almost like a modern version of Merlin and the Crystal
Cave!"
"You may not leave this property until a life is lost! No one may enter this
house without dying!" she said. Her eyes flashed with passion and her musical
voice was full of hate! I still recall every detail!" he said.
Zoro said, "Easy, old fellow! It must be painful to talk about. It is over now!
I suppose being a hero, you used your magic to repel people and you made certain
no innocent person ever tried to enter the house! You'd blame yourself for their
death!"
Warlock nodded and clutched his hands together nervously.
"Yes! I suffered so! I was afraid someone would get in and die! She knew hurting
others would torment me! She was cruel!" he added as he stared off into space.
"Your magic could not free you but it kept you from aging."
Warlock nodded and said, "I did thwart Andrea though. I dispersed the lamp of
the gods
and hid the parts where she could never find them!"
Zoro said, "Well, we just broke her evil curse too. You can leave this place
now! I sacrificed one life and entered the house. We've beaten her!"
Warlock said, "That's why you used your remarkable talents for disguise to
emulate my grocer. You knew his regular deliveries would not arouse my
suspicions and would allow you to get past me! I was always amazed at how good
you were at so many things! How can I possibly thank you for freeing me?"
Zoro said, "As I said, we are friends. No thanks are needed!"
Warlock's troubled expression changed into a slight smile.
He said, "I can't wait to see the world again! I want to locate the scattered
parts of my lamp of the gods and deal with Andrea once and for all!"
Zoro said, "I could give you a lift. My personal pilot is waiting nearby. You'll
like her. She's a rare girl!"
Warlock hesitated. He started to say that he preferred to work alone and then he
decided to make a change!
As his pet raven Hugin suddenly swooped down from above to perch on his
shoulder, Warlock turned to face Zoro and accepted his offer.
"I would appreciate it. In fact let me start my new life with a new candor."
He adjusted his tie and nodded slowly as if to boost his own confidence.
"I guess you already know this since you found my house but my name is Edmund
Payton!"
he said.
Zoro smiled and said, "Let me return the favor! My real name is Carter Sloane.
Back in the early 1940s when I went into action at a New York night spot a
society columnist admired my agility or perhaps just noticed my mustache! She
referred to me as Zorro after the Douglas Fairbanks swashbuckler from years
before! Old Doug and I both had a talent for swordplay! The poor dear spelled
Zorro incorrectly. She only used one r. The name stuck in the society circles I
frequented. I valued my privacy although I rather enjoyed the reputation I
acquired as a man of mystery. I hated taking attention from the men I viewed as
real heroes- our men in uniform- soldiers, police, and so on but I used the
talents I'd acquired to travel around and do good. The world knows me only as
Zoro Man of Mystery but I'm glad to share my real identity with you. I actually
allow the public to think that I'm the son or grandson of the original Zoro
since I prefer not to let on that I don't age or that I have nine…eh…eight
lives!"
The two men shook hands and for the first time in decades, Warlock walked out of
his house and into the brisk October air!
It was a new beginning although as the two heroes would learn it would turn out
to be a deadly one!
3
Warlock stopped as he and Zoro made their way through the rather overgrown
backyard to a secluded field below the hill upon which the old Payton house sat.
A sleek aircraft rested incongruously in the middle of the field!
"Is that your plane? How did you land it there?" asked Warlock even as he
savored every detail of the outside world after his many years of confinement.
Zoro said, "It is a remarkable craft. It was designed by my pilot Warbird who
in turn trained under Midnight and Spy Smasher. There is nothing Warbird doesn't
know about flying any kind of craft. Why I'd say that beauty could easily travel
beyond our solar system! Midnight certainly helped Warbird to equip it for such
travels! I have thus far confined my own adventuring to this world!"
Warlock said, "Warbird! Your pilot must be an incredibly skilled and capable
pilot to deserve such a name! Wasn't that the name of a war hero as well?"
Zoro said, "Colonel Tom Sharp was the grandfather of the current Warbird who is
as skilled and tough as the original!"
He gestured to the side of the advanced craft which slid open to reveal a petite
blonde woman who wore a bright pink sundress beneath a dainty white sweater. She
wore matching low heeled Mary Janes and carried a wrench in one hand.
"This is my faithful pilot Priscilla Warbird Sharp. She and I have seen some
amazing sights around this wonderful globe of ours!" he said.
The blonde woman smiled demurely and extended one hand after hastily switched
the wrench to the other hand.
"Nice to meet you. Mr. Warlock, is it?" she asked in a shy but interested
manner.
Warlock said, "Just Warlock will be fine. I'm pleased to meet you as well, Miss
Sharp!"
"Prissy prefers to be called Warbird!" said Zoro with a shrug.
Warbird nodded and said, "Right. Shall we prepare for departure?"
Zoro started to answer when all three noticed a strange sight. Several weird
figures were approaching the plane from a wooded area just beyond the field.
Each figure was clearly humanoid but their features were marked with decay and
skeletal fragments protruded in a disturbing manner.
"The Undead! I haven't fought any of those things in well over eight years!"
cried Zoro.
Warbird almost giggled as he shoved the wrench into a pocket and reached within
the plane to produce a compact but odd shaped gun.
"Oh good! I can test the Vibro gun on them! "she squealed.
As Warlock looked at her with a strange expression on his face, she frowned and
said, "What? You know how focused vibrational force can kill a normal human?
Well, I don't have to worry about that with supernatural beings!"
Warlock felt suitably chastened and he nodded as if to placate the odd woman as
he gazed at the monsters.
"This must be Andrea's work! She must have sensed the breaking of the curse!" he
thought.
He smiled grimly.
"I've been looking forward to something like this for a long, long time!" he
said.
Zoro glanced at his friend with approval.
"He's bouncing back from his ordeal. I'd rather hate to be this Andrea when he
finally meets her!"
he thought.
As the animated corpses closed in on the trio, Zoro deftly extended a small
cane into a sword.
He swung it around a few times and Warlock recalled once more exactly how
skilled his friend was with a sword.
"I suppose my blade won't do a lot of good against the bones so I better make do
by using the flat to simply smash the things!" he said in an almost apologetic
manner.
He ran forward and brought the blade down across the skull of the nearest
corpse. A few swift strikes left the thing in ruin at his feet.
"I want to say something like they don't make the Undead like the used to but
that would be a bit obnoxious!" said Zoro as he dodged a clutching corpse and
spun around to smash it to fragments of bone.
Warbird aimed carefully and fired her gun at one corpse after another. True to
her hope, the vibro gun shattered the creatures with ease!
She smiled broadly with a look that mixed girlish delight with the confident
swagger of a proven warrior.
"What a very strange creature! I suppose she had a rather peculiar family life!"
thought Warlock as he moved closer to the battle.
He frowned as he noticed the nearest corpse swerve slowly away from him.
"Odd! They aren't attacking me. They seem to be focused entirely on the others!
Does Andrea want to keep me alive for some warped reason?" he mused.
He noticed dozens of additional Undead creatures were making their ponderous way
toward the plane.
He held up a golden staff that ended with a knob shaped like a small intricately
carved hand.
"Crush them!" he said loudly.
The staff suddenly glowed brightly as a giant golden fist materialized from out
of thin air and began to shatter the creatures with super human force!
"Well done! This type of thing would have become tiresome after a while! I'd
say you ended it at precisely the right moment!" That kind of thing really can't
be taught!" said Zoro as he clapped Warlock on the back.
Warlock surveyed the scene with a studious gaze.
"There is a cemetery beyond the woods. I suppose they were drawn from their
natural rest and sent to stop us. Of course, I was battling vampires and other
monsters back in the thirties so this was certainly no challenge…or was it ever
really meant to be one?"
Warlock whispered some arcane words and the field became devoid of the monsters.
"I've returned them to their proper graves and sealed them. Their rest won't be
interrupted again!" he said.
Zoro thought, "I'd rather forgotten how powerful a chap Warlock really is!
Beneath that rather solemn demeanor lies the heart of a champion!"
Warlock said, "Ironically enough, we need to go to the cemetery itself to where
my family tomb sits. Within the Payton Mausoleum, we will find what I am
seeking"
They made their way out of the field and approached a gated cemetery where an
impressive structure dominated the windswept and now darkening skies.
"That's where my ancestors are buried. I used to go there to think when I was a
boy!" he explained.
Warlock continued to speak softly as if to himself. The golden hand reappeared
and reached within the Payton Mausoleum and grasped a stone lion. It lifted the
statue and began to pry up a stone and reveal an odd object concealed beneath
it.
"This is the handle of the Lamp of the gods. When Andrea tried to steal it, I
scattered the parts and let my magic hide them where I pleased! I also made sure
no one but me could ever locate them again no matter how powerful a spell they
cast!"
He displayed a gleaming curved piece of metal.
"As you may recall, the Lamp was my greatest weapon. The wand could do wonders
as you just saw but the Lamp could actually invoke the power of the Ancients!"
he said.
Zoro said, "I seem to recall you used it during that Aztec case to conjure the
Caduceus that once belonged to Hermes himself!"
Warlock smiled and said, "Exactly. I have been the guardian of the Lamp for
years. I earned the right to its power by successfully completing a rather
perilous quest across more than one dimension back in the mid thirties!"
Zoro said, "I'd like to hear that story someday. It sounds like what they used
to call a ripping yarn!"
He noticed Warbird was studying her gun with something of a pouting expression.
"Why so glum, dear?" he asked.
The blonde said, "Oh, just a bit of a glitch. I may need to rework some tiny
details if I want the gun to be self-generating as far as energy goes. I
suppose I'll need to spend another long night in the workshop. There goes my
sewing circle meeting!"
As she climbed into the plane, Zoro stopped Warlock and whispered.
"Priscilla was raised by her grandfather. Her parents died when she was a baby.
The original Warbird taught her everything he knew. He made her into a crack
pilot and a capable fighter. Believe it or not she can knock out a teamster
should she choose to do so. He even arranged for her to have some lessons from
Midnight and Spy Smasher. She's a brilliant woman. She does lack social graces
though.
She tries to overcompensate for being raised like a brawling boy by wearing
deliberately feminine clothing and taking part in traditionally womanly
activities like sewing and flower arranging. I think the world of her. You'll
come to love her too!" he said as they boarded the plane.
"Where to?" yelled Warbird from the pilot's chair.
Warlock said, "Would you believe Las Vegas?"
Zoro laughed as he replied.
"I would both believe it and relish it!"
4
Warlock admired the way Warbird handled the plane as it soared through the skies
and made its way toward Las Vegas.
"She is a gifted pilot. I'm equally impressed with how the plane was able to
take off from my field. I suppose Midnight or Spy Smasher helped with that
feature. I seem to recall both of them had nearly futuristic crafts of their
own!"
He thought of Andrea once more. He had hated her for years but he also knew that
during all those long years of imprisonment, he had also dreamed of her as well.
He had recalled her silvery laugh, her silken touch, and her beautiful singing.
He had longed to hold her and he had burned with anger at what she had done to
him.
"I certainly could have given a therapist many a troubled session!" he mused.
"If I had not had the spirit of El Carim to talk to during part of those years I
would have gone mad! Of course, good old faithful Hugin was always there for me
too!"
The raven perched on the back of his chair and watched everything with dark but
all seeing eyes.
Zoro said, "Why did you hide the Lamp in Las Vegas? It was always a den of
mobsters even back in the forties!"
Warlock said, "It appealed to my sense of humor to hide part of the Lamp of the
gods, an ancient talisman, within a truly modern and garish locale!"
Warbird yelled back, "You'll see when we get there! He told me to take us to the
resort called Merlin's Cave!"
Zoro shook his head. "You didn't? You didn't hide part of the Lamp in a casino
called Merlin's Cave?"
Warlock said, "It had just been built and you have to admit the irony is
fitting!"
They reached a huge compound dominated by flashing lights and large crowds of
well dressed pleasure seekers. The dome-like roof was designed to mimic the
features of a craggy cavern and Zoro smiled as he recognized the famous sign.
"I wonder who is performing tonight. After we retrieve the fragment of your
lamp we could catch a show! I always had a bit of a weakness for showgirls."
said Zoro.
Warbird said, "The sign says Princess Prism is in the Camelot Lounge until
midnight."
Zoro sighed as he said, "Oh, yes. She's a leggy beauty but I don't really enjoy
magic shows. No offense to you, of course!"
Warlock smiled and said, "Don't worry. I gave up stage work before the war!"
As Warbird made some rapid adjustments, the ship landed slightly above a nearby
flat skyscraper roof.
"I put it on auto hover. Shall I cloak it just in case?" asked the petite
blonde.
Warlock said, "Certainly. I doubt this will take long unless …!"
His words trailed off as he spotted several ominous shapes swooping down from
above.
"Great Scott! I think those things are Harpies or a modern approximation!" he
cried!
A dozen beautiful woman wearing brightly colored pink feathered costumes were
swooping down at them from all sides. They were clearly showgirls but they had
been altered by magic until they also possessed the deadly talons and broad
wings of mythological harpies!
Warbird said, "I'm supposed to me the only bird around here!"
She glanced at the two men and softly added, "It's a joke! You know
WarBIRD…never mind!"
She pulled an expanding pack out of her purse and carefully assumed a defensive
stance.
Zoro said, "That was a charming attempt at humor, my dear. Clearly, you are
making strides in the jesting while in peril technique!"
Warlock said, "I have a feeling those poor women were transformed purely to be
used as weapons against me. This is one more debt I owe Andrea!"
Zoro deftly sidestepped an attacking harpy and then connected with three swift
blows that left the woman stunned at his feet.
"I do hate to strike a woman! I supposed I'm old fashioned that way!" he said as
he ducked beneath a slashing talon and rolled acrobatically away from his foe.
Warbird dived forward at the nearest harpies and slapped two of the thin packs
she was carrying on their chests.
They shuddered and then collapsed in a heap.
"Traq. Packs always work!" thought the petite blonde as she prepared to continue
her fight.
Warlock had held back again with a purpose. He wanted to see if their attackers
would avoid him again as had the Undead foes back at his house. He was correct
in his assumption.
"Andrea either wants to kill my friends and preserve me or she has some twisted
plan for me. These pawns of hers are not directly attacking me!" he mused.
"Contain them!" he yelled.
The gleaming staff projected the huge golden hand and it enveloped nine of the
altered woman.
They were pinned beneath its magical grasp and their best efforts to kick or
claw their way free failed!
Zoro was doing well in his own effort to stop the harpies. He was so incredibly
agile that the women could not reach him before he had returned their attacks
with precisely placed martial arts blows.
Zoro frowned as he saw the flock of women regroup for a renewed attack.
"I was the one who foolishly asked for showgirls wasn't I?" he said.
Warbird was too busy to reply to her mentor as she found herself surrounded by
the harpies. She kicked out at one even as she elbowed another in the face. She
grabbed one by its long hair and flipped it over her shoulder. AS a harpy raked
across her torso with its talons she slapped a Tranq pack on its face. It
collapsed and she dived to freedom.
"I'm sure glad all my clothes are made out of synthoderm. I knew it was great
protection against temperature extremes but I never expected to need it to
shield me from feathered furies from Vegas!"
she thought.
Before the second wave of altered showgirls could attack, a newcomer joined the
fight. She was very beautiful with long cascading black hair, dark eyes, a
lovely face and a curvy figure. She wore a black evening gown with matching high
heels. The dress sparkled with countless tiny sequins and one side revealed a
daring slit. She wore a gleaming tiara in her thick luxurious hair and her
dazzling earrings flashed in the night lights.
"Princess Prism!" said Zoro as he recognized the stunning stage magician!
"A fan! Cool! I don't suppose these rather tacky women are irate because my
show was sold out?"she said with a rather throaty laugh.
She raised her hands and posed dramatically as the tiara she wore blazed with
white light and bolts of mystical energy radiated out to strike every remaining
harpy!
The furious women returned to normal and landed on a flashing cushion of crystal
formed by Princess Prism's tiara!
She wiped her hands together casually and fluffed her hair as if to signal that
a good day's work had been accomplished.
"Now, back to the stage! I need to have Babs retouch my make-up!" she said.
Warlock said, "Wait! You just performed real magic. You are far more than a
stage magician!"
Princess Prism said, "You're Warlock. I've heard of you. Daddy mentioned you.
He's Jack Lancing. You knew him as Diamond Jack when he was a mystery man. I'll
tell him you said hello! Ta ta!"
Zoro said, "You're Diamond Jack's little girl! Not so little anymore!"
The black haired beauty smiled winningly and said, "Daddy said you were always a
charmer Zoro!"
Warlock said, "I know your father used a mystical gemstone. That gem in your
tiara has magical power too. Are you carrying on his crusade?"
She frowned and gazed down at her nails as if she was bored.
"No! I use my magical gemstone to make me a star! I want to be famous. If I can
do some good with it like I just did, that's fine but this girl is strictly in
it for the fame!" she said.
Warlock stepped in front of her and said, "Wait! That's a selfish and spoiled
attitude. You have strong magical powers. How can you waste them on such trivial
matters?"
She said, "You were a stage performer once as was El Carim. Don't give me
attitude! I've had a hard life. I was seven years old when my mother and I
joined Daddy at the ceremony honoring the Marvels. We were all caught in the
Suspendium Trap. As hard as it was for the adults to deal with waking up
twenty years later, it was terrible for a child! My Dad started behaving
strangely. We later figured out that his mystical gemstone had been tainted by
a Priest of Set. He started to become violent. My mother sent me away to
boarding school so I wouldn't see his madness. Later, I was given my own
gemstone only mine is free of any curse. I do use it for good but I also use it
to boost my act. I'm not ashamed to say I want to be a star!"
Zoro said, "Lance O'Casey told me that he and Ibis helped your mother free your
father of the dark magic that had taken him over. Lance says your parents are
happily reunited and Jack has given up the heroic life."
Princess Prism nodded slowly.
"Yes, they are happy now. Why shouldn't I also be happy? I love being Princess
Prism. My stage act makes audiences forget their troubles. Is that really so
bad?"
Warlock said, "You have great potential I wish you well. I only feel like
prancing on a stage is a waste of that talent! Should you ever wish to talk with
me or to learn more about magic, I will be happy to help you!"
Princess Prism gave a dazzlingly smile and said, "I appreciate that!"
She floated down to the resort on a crystalline platform as Warbird suddenly
shouted, "What a witch!"
Zoro placed one hand on Warbird's back and he said, "Don't judge her too
harshly. I think beneath all those sequins and sparkles, she has a good heart!
She certainly helped us!"
Warlock nodded as he watched the girl depart.
"I sense nothing tainted about her or her gem. She just needs to grow up a bit!"
he said.
He spoke softly and a golden object appeared from within the resort below.
"This is the base of the Lamp! I can joined it to the handle like so and the
Lamp will soon be complete!"
he said.
Zoro said, "You know of course that these threats are not meant to harm you.
Someone wants to stop you from completing your task but he or she doesn't seem
overly serious about it!"
Warlock nodded. "You're no wizard but you have to be the smartest man I've ever
met. Nothing escapes your keen powers of observation! I begin to suspect Andrea
wants me to find her!"
Zoro looked at him intently.
"If she wants to see you, she may also have wanted you freed from the curse.
Could my arrival and subsequent actions have been compelled by some spell? I do
not like the thought that I've been used by some unknown mystical being!" he
said.
Warlock said, "You are under no spell now. I checked as soon as the idea
occurred to me. I have to admit that the circumstances that brought someone with
your unique condition directly to me at this particular time made me ask the
same questions you're having now!"
Warbird said, "If Andrea wants to meet you perhaps she also wants you to
retrieve the Lamp. She couldn't do so on her own and she must still want it!"
Warlock said, "Warbird, I think you may be right! That would even explain why
our opposition has been less than overwhelming!"
Zoro smiled proudly.
"See? She is a brilliant woman! I told you!" he said.
Warbird briefly smiled with pleasure before frowning again.
"Do you think I could ever wear my hair like Princess Prism? She was a brat but
she sure knew her way around a mirror!" she added ruefully.
5
Later as the plane soared over the southeastern corner of Norway Warbird said,
"What kind of mythical beastie will come after us here? I bet it'll be
something Norse!"
Zoro smiled and said, "I trust your instincts. No doubt we'll see soon enough!"
Warlock said, "This time I'm going to summon the final part of the Lamp
immediately!"
He gestured abruptly and a golden construct in the shape of a lamp appeared. He
joined it to the handle and base and smiled approvingly.
"This is it! The Lamp of the gods!" he declared.
The plane lurched sharply and Warbird cried, "Something is taking control of the
plane! It's not responding to my controls!"
Zoro said, "Ah, this must indeed be magical threat number three!"
Warlock said, "Let the plane go where it wants. I can cushion any impact. I'm
eager to end this!"
His eyes flashed with passion as he held the Lamp and Hugin perched on his
shoulder.
"I agree. This must be the denouement!" he said.
Warbird said, "I don't like this! I'm not used to being helpless in a plane!"
Zoro said, "Don't worry! Just relax and leave the flying to our unseen foe!"
Warlock nodded and said, "It is fine, Warbird. I am picking a rather familiar
mystic vibration. It is indeed Andrea who is behind all this and I have no doubt
that it has all been orchestrated so that she can steal the Lamp and use it for
conquest! She will regret ever crossing my path!"
The plane was brought down safely on a barren field but the supernatural power
was clearly disrobing to Warbird. The petite blonde had been a prized pupil of
Midnight's and she had in fact traveled through space. She was a scientist and
what might be called a futurist and she had no love for magic. She had seemingly
enjoyed the bizarre battles with the Undead and the harpies but those battles
had not forced her to look at herself in her favored role of superb pilot and
find herself lacking!
"I've battled space pirates on Pluto and I've outwitted the Cybernetic Web. I
can't be a plaything for some witch!" she thought as she gritted her teeth and
gripped the controls with a firmer hand.
Zoro said, "We're near the head of the Oslo Fjord. The city of Oslo is nearby."
Warlock said, "I allowed the final part of the Lamp to be hidden in a place of
its own accord. I felt it best that not even I knew exactly where. It was only
by assembling the other two parts that I was able to ascertain the location of
the third. It was a bit of extra protection!"
As they climbed out of the plane, Warbird said, "It's rather pleasant here."
Zoro nodded and said, "Oslo is a wonderful city. A fleet of ferries connect it
to other smaller towns and the city has a number of fine museums! It is
certainly not a crude or primitive place!"
Warbird smiled and she said, "Of course, you speak the language. Is there
anything the Man of Mystery can't do perfectly?"
Zoro said, "I can't explain that!"
He gestured to where a weird outline of a woman seemed to burn its way across
the skyline.
"Andrea does love to make an entrance. She should join up with Princess Prism!"
said Warlock.
The feminine outline approached them and the burning nimbus grew brighter until
the interior of the humanoid shape filled in and revealed a lovely Irish woman
with flashing eyes, pale skin, and sensuous lips. She wore a simple black dress
and boots.
"Edmund, you are a welcome sight! I have missed you!" she said.
Warlock smiled as his hands trembled at his sides. He was fearless but he was
also nervous and wracked with emotion. He felt so many different emotions as he
gazed at his captor and former lover.
"Andrea, you will have all of eternity to miss me when this day is done! You
will have time to recall in intimate detail every nuance of this most happy
reunion!" he said.
His gaunt body seemed to grow larger as his mystical powers manifested as a
flashing aura that surrounded his body.
Andrea smiled coldly and said, "Then let us preserve this moment and retain our
old privacy!"
Cords materialized and bound Zoro's hands at the same moment similar ropes bound
Warbird.
Seconds later Zoro had freed himself from the ropes. Though conjured by magic,
they were but ordinary rope and his mastery of such escapes was legendary.
Warbird casually dissolved her own ropes with a pellet of fluid that she had
produced from a small ring on her right hand. She was well equipped with such
gadgets as befitted a pupil of the great Midnight's!
Zoro caught her eye and shook his head slightly. This had to be Warlock's fight.
They would help if needed but they would not interfere until that moment
arrived!
Andrea said, "You know I freed you! I manipulated that fine man there into
finding you. I knew his heroic nature would enable him to give up one of his
extra lives to save you! I have regretted trapping you. I was a spirited girl
with no thought for what I was doing. I've wept over it since that hateful
night!"
Warlock suddenly towered over her. His magic had made him a giant.
" I won't shed a tear over this!" he shouted.
He grabbed her and raised her into the air. She twisted and kicked in his grip
but she could not break free.
"Andrea, I loved you! I loved you and you hurt me! You can't know how badly
you've ruined my very life!" he said.
Andrea said, "I deserve your hatred! I am in your power now! End my life! I will
not try to stop you….indeed I doubt I could!"
Hugin screeched loudly and flapped his black wings as he circled his master.
Warlock gently lowered his arms and began to assume his normal size and shape.
"You are right, old friend! I won't be as cruel as she was. I won't become the
very being I've dedicated my life to stopping."
Zoro sighed with relief. He was indifferent as to what happened to the Irish
witch but he feared his friend would suffer greater torment afterward had he
killed her.
Andrea fell into Warlock's arms and he gasped for breath as though he was
choking.
"You're crying!" he stammered as he gazed down at her face.
He wiped a tear off her cheek and he stepped away from her.
"Andrea, you wanted me to kill you. You freed me so I could reassemble the Lamp
and use its power to end your life didn't you? That's why the only resistance
you made was a token one! You hoped I'd be duped into killing you!" he
whispered.
She hesitated for a second and then as sobs shook her body she nodded.
"I don't want to go on living this way! My desire for power has made me empty!
I'm young and possibly immortal. I can't face an eternity like this. I can't
live without love!" she said.
Warlock said, "You've alienated everyone. Your thirst for magical power drove
everyone you ever cared for away. You lost your humanity when you gained your
magical talents!"
He sighed heavily.
"I've felt alone too. I've felt like an outsider. I could easily use the Lamp
to kill you. You tricked me before when I was lovesick and vulnerable but I'm
in control now I can't be beaten by you… possibly not by any mortal magician.
I can read your heart. You no longer have the malice you once embraced so
proudly. I won't help you die… but maybe together we can help each other to
live!"
He took her hand and nodded as she looked up at him in surprise.
She wept on his chest and he held her for what seemed like hours but was in fact
mere moments.
"Zoro, Warbird, I want to thank you both for helping me as you have. Should you
ever need me I will be there for you!" said Warlock.
He said, "Warbird, you are a special lady. You make your teachers proud and you
combine their skills with your own rare gifts! You are a true heroine!"
He bent down and kissed her cheek and then turned to face Zoro.
"You gave me more than freedom. You gave me a friend!" he said.
He shook hands with Zoro and the Man of Mystery smiled warmly.
"Well done, friend. It has been my pleasure!" he said.
Warlock rejoined Andrea and said, "We'll be going now by our own means of
travel. May your futures be blessed and may we all meet again!"
He took Andrea's hand and they vanished as he whispered an arcane command.
Zoro stared into the empty skyline for a moment and then turned to face Warbird.
"I do wish him a happy ending. Now, why don't we go find a few perils out our
own to conquer?"
he said.
The dashing Man of Mystery and his capable partner walked back to the plane and
prepared to depart.
Zoro glanced back again and thought, "I truly do wish them both well!"
The End
By Libbylawrence
Two forgotten heroes team-up to heal an old wound!
1
The Payton house was haunted or at least that's what people said. The more
perceptive observers might have added that any ghosts found within the Virginia
mansion were not necessarily sinister as much as they were lonely. There was
something solitary and romantic about the silent structure. It rested quietly in
the middle of a neglected field and sad looking trees loomed on every side of
the Antebellum home.
No one visited the place. No one disturbed its perpetual solitude…except for the
local grocer that retained enough of traditional small town courtesy or respect
for the Payton name to make annual deliveries to the house.
On one October day, a fat man with thinning gray hair and a thick mustache made
his way slowly up the drive toward the house. He carried a small box of
groceries and he made the trip uphill with no apparent effort in spite of his
weight and age. As if suddenly realizing this fact might be noticeable he began
to slow down and his breath became heavier and gasping.
Having caught his breath he resumed his trip and approached the house. Before
he could knock, the massive front door opened to reveal a rather odd looking
man. He was tall and gaunt with light brown hair, large sensitive eyes, and a
rather nervous mouth. He was youthful looking and appeared to be in good
physical condition. He wore a red jacket with gray slacks and a slightly
crooked and wrinkled tie.
"Mr. Gore, you are a few days early. Are you going away and closing the store
next week? No matter. I have your usual payment right here!" he said slowly.
The elderly grocer smiled as he recognized the occupant of the old house and
then he did a remarkable thing. The fat old man dropped the box and executed a
perfect acrobatic flip from the edge of the porch and through the door! As he
knocked the startled owner backward and landed on his feet with the agility of
an Olympian he gasped and collapsed a few feet inside the door.
The gaunt owner of the house rolled over and leaped forward to examine the
stricken grocer.
"Dead! The curse worked its foul magic as I always feared it one day would!"he
said as he bent over the still form of the fallen grocer.
Suddenly, the dead grocer smiled broadly, sat up, and said, "Don't worry, old
fellow! I was dead but I'm much better now!"
2
The man in the red jacket gasped in surprise as the "grocer" stood up and
casually began to remove skillfully applied make-up including a thinning gray
wig and heavy padding. He stood taller than before and in seconds the old grocer
was transformed into a handsome dark haired man with a thin dark mustache and an
athletic built. He removed his outer clothing to reveal a tuxedo which had
somehow remained unwrinkled by its concealment beneath the garb of a grocer.
"Zoro the Mystery Man! I can't believe it! I thought you were Mr. Gore! I don't
understand this at all! You should be dead!" stammered the home owner.
"Actually, I prefer to be called Zoro, Man of Mystery. It is a bit more elegant
but why quibble over semantics? We're old friends, aren't we, Warlock?" he said.
Warlock answered almost automatically. "I have no friends."
Zoro smiled charmingly and said, "Don't be silly. You and I are more than
friends. We're comrades forged in the heart of battle. Remember, how you and I
and El Carim and Lance O'Casey fought those Nazi Aztecs during the war? It was
glorious! Why, Lance's monkey Mr. Hogan was as smart as a man. No, make that
smarter than some men I've encountered!"
Warlock said, "I was afraid your pet cheetah was going to eat the monkey but you
had trained him superbly! Wait! I'm rambling. It comes from not having spoken to
anyone but a grocer in over thirty five years! Let me collect my thoughts. I
have questions for you!"
Zoro sat down in a plush chair and crossed his legs- carefully adjusting the
crease in his tuxedo pants.
"Ask me anything. I owe you a few answers after the fright I just gave you!" he
said.
Warlock said, "Zoro, you haven't aged since I last saw you back in 1944. I
don't understand. Why are you here? How did you survive the curse? I saw you
die!"
Zoro said, "Sit down, old chum. This is a bit shocking. I am sorry. I'll
explain. First of all, my perpetual youth is explained easily enough to a man of
your magical talents. One day in 1945 I was visiting Lance O'Casey on his South
Sea island home. It was a beautiful place! I met a teacher there who looked
exactly like Betty Grable… but I digress…pleasantly! My pet cheetah Cheeta
became ill. O'Casey's medicine man friend S'Ville tried to save Cheeta's life
but his magic went wrong. Poor Cheeta died but I was somehow given the
proverbial 9 lives of a cat! I haven't aged a minute since then."
Warlock nodded slowly.
"S'Ville was a bumbler! El Carim and I tried to warn Lance not to trust the old
islander with anything more serious than card tricks but Lance was always too
good hearted to doubt anyone!"
Zoro shrugged and said, "I mourned for Cheeta. You know how close a man can
become to a pet. No doubt you feel the same about your bird Hugin! Still,
Cheeta was devoted to me and I'm sure he wouldn't begrudge me the 9 lives. I
suppose I used one of them up moments ago when the curse Andrea placed upon you
or your home temporarily ended my life!"
Warlock said, "How do you know about Andrea? How do you know about the curse
that trapped me inside this house back in the forties?"
Zoro said, "Your magic made it almost impossible for anyone to find you. You
never told me or any of us your true name. Warlock was the only name you ever
used in public. Still, as you may recall, I have my ways. I think most of us
thought you had vanished of your own volition. We respected your right to
privacy even though we missed you and felt the need of your powers on more than
one occasion!"
Warlock said, "I've felt helpless as well! I wanted to use my powers to help
people but I was trapped!"
Zoro said, "Once I realized that your disappearance was not voluntary it took a
bit of work to deduce what had happened to you. I did a bit of travelling and
even consulted Kid Eternity. I also realized that breaking the curse might free
you and my unique nature made it perfect for me to be the one to try to do so!
After all, what is one life more or less between friends?"
Warlock said, "I've wanted to talk about the curse for so long! Andrea placed a
curse on me in 1945. It occurred on V-E Day! While others were celebrating the
new freedom the world was going to gain because of Germany's defeat, I lost my
own! Ironic, isn't it? "
Zoro smiled and said, "You've kept your rather sardonic sense of humor! Good for
you!"
Warlock said, "Andrea and I were in love. I had never felt that way before about
anyone. You know how isolated and out of place I always felt. I suppose these
days they call it social anxiety phobia. I always felt like an outsider. I'd use
my magic to help people and they would be so grateful but I never made the
mistake of confusing gratitude for friendship. In public when I first approached
people, they would recoil. They would whisper about how weird I was or how
strange I seemed! I suppose it was because of my magical powers. I don't know.
I've brooded over it a lot. I did feel a bit more accepted when I worked with
you and El Carim and the other heroes during the war. He's dead, you know? I
commune with his spirit at times. He was a good man. You all were… or are!"
Zoro grinned and said, "We did our part! You did too! Why, during the war,
Hitler and his bully boys trembled at the very name of Warlock the Wizard!"
Warlock said, ""Thank you. Andrea and I met in Ireland during the war. She was
beautiful and wild. She had raven black hair, dancing green eyes, and a pale
but flawless complexion. I loved her and I thought she loved me! When I
realized she was just after my magical relics, I defied her and she placed a
curse on me! It was almost like a modern version of Merlin and the Crystal
Cave!"
"You may not leave this property until a life is lost! No one may enter this
house without dying!" she said. Her eyes flashed with passion and her musical
voice was full of hate! I still recall every detail!" he said.
Zoro said, "Easy, old fellow! It must be painful to talk about. It is over now!
I suppose being a hero, you used your magic to repel people and you made certain
no innocent person ever tried to enter the house! You'd blame yourself for their
death!"
Warlock nodded and clutched his hands together nervously.
"Yes! I suffered so! I was afraid someone would get in and die! She knew hurting
others would torment me! She was cruel!" he added as he stared off into space.
"Your magic could not free you but it kept you from aging."
Warlock nodded and said, "I did thwart Andrea though. I dispersed the lamp of
the gods
and hid the parts where she could never find them!"
Zoro said, "Well, we just broke her evil curse too. You can leave this place
now! I sacrificed one life and entered the house. We've beaten her!"
Warlock said, "That's why you used your remarkable talents for disguise to
emulate my grocer. You knew his regular deliveries would not arouse my
suspicions and would allow you to get past me! I was always amazed at how good
you were at so many things! How can I possibly thank you for freeing me?"
Zoro said, "As I said, we are friends. No thanks are needed!"
Warlock's troubled expression changed into a slight smile.
He said, "I can't wait to see the world again! I want to locate the scattered
parts of my lamp of the gods and deal with Andrea once and for all!"
Zoro said, "I could give you a lift. My personal pilot is waiting nearby. You'll
like her. She's a rare girl!"
Warlock hesitated. He started to say that he preferred to work alone and then he
decided to make a change!
As his pet raven Hugin suddenly swooped down from above to perch on his
shoulder, Warlock turned to face Zoro and accepted his offer.
"I would appreciate it. In fact let me start my new life with a new candor."
He adjusted his tie and nodded slowly as if to boost his own confidence.
"I guess you already know this since you found my house but my name is Edmund
Payton!"
he said.
Zoro smiled and said, "Let me return the favor! My real name is Carter Sloane.
Back in the early 1940s when I went into action at a New York night spot a
society columnist admired my agility or perhaps just noticed my mustache! She
referred to me as Zorro after the Douglas Fairbanks swashbuckler from years
before! Old Doug and I both had a talent for swordplay! The poor dear spelled
Zorro incorrectly. She only used one r. The name stuck in the society circles I
frequented. I valued my privacy although I rather enjoyed the reputation I
acquired as a man of mystery. I hated taking attention from the men I viewed as
real heroes- our men in uniform- soldiers, police, and so on but I used the
talents I'd acquired to travel around and do good. The world knows me only as
Zoro Man of Mystery but I'm glad to share my real identity with you. I actually
allow the public to think that I'm the son or grandson of the original Zoro
since I prefer not to let on that I don't age or that I have nine…eh…eight
lives!"
The two men shook hands and for the first time in decades, Warlock walked out of
his house and into the brisk October air!
It was a new beginning although as the two heroes would learn it would turn out
to be a deadly one!
3
Warlock stopped as he and Zoro made their way through the rather overgrown
backyard to a secluded field below the hill upon which the old Payton house sat.
A sleek aircraft rested incongruously in the middle of the field!
"Is that your plane? How did you land it there?" asked Warlock even as he
savored every detail of the outside world after his many years of confinement.
Zoro said, "It is a remarkable craft. It was designed by my pilot Warbird who
in turn trained under Midnight and Spy Smasher. There is nothing Warbird doesn't
know about flying any kind of craft. Why I'd say that beauty could easily travel
beyond our solar system! Midnight certainly helped Warbird to equip it for such
travels! I have thus far confined my own adventuring to this world!"
Warlock said, "Warbird! Your pilot must be an incredibly skilled and capable
pilot to deserve such a name! Wasn't that the name of a war hero as well?"
Zoro said, "Colonel Tom Sharp was the grandfather of the current Warbird who is
as skilled and tough as the original!"
He gestured to the side of the advanced craft which slid open to reveal a petite
blonde woman who wore a bright pink sundress beneath a dainty white sweater. She
wore matching low heeled Mary Janes and carried a wrench in one hand.
"This is my faithful pilot Priscilla Warbird Sharp. She and I have seen some
amazing sights around this wonderful globe of ours!" he said.
The blonde woman smiled demurely and extended one hand after hastily switched
the wrench to the other hand.
"Nice to meet you. Mr. Warlock, is it?" she asked in a shy but interested
manner.
Warlock said, "Just Warlock will be fine. I'm pleased to meet you as well, Miss
Sharp!"
"Prissy prefers to be called Warbird!" said Zoro with a shrug.
Warbird nodded and said, "Right. Shall we prepare for departure?"
Zoro started to answer when all three noticed a strange sight. Several weird
figures were approaching the plane from a wooded area just beyond the field.
Each figure was clearly humanoid but their features were marked with decay and
skeletal fragments protruded in a disturbing manner.
"The Undead! I haven't fought any of those things in well over eight years!"
cried Zoro.
Warbird almost giggled as he shoved the wrench into a pocket and reached within
the plane to produce a compact but odd shaped gun.
"Oh good! I can test the Vibro gun on them! "she squealed.
As Warlock looked at her with a strange expression on his face, she frowned and
said, "What? You know how focused vibrational force can kill a normal human?
Well, I don't have to worry about that with supernatural beings!"
Warlock felt suitably chastened and he nodded as if to placate the odd woman as
he gazed at the monsters.
"This must be Andrea's work! She must have sensed the breaking of the curse!" he
thought.
He smiled grimly.
"I've been looking forward to something like this for a long, long time!" he
said.
Zoro glanced at his friend with approval.
"He's bouncing back from his ordeal. I'd rather hate to be this Andrea when he
finally meets her!"
he thought.
As the animated corpses closed in on the trio, Zoro deftly extended a small
cane into a sword.
He swung it around a few times and Warlock recalled once more exactly how
skilled his friend was with a sword.
"I suppose my blade won't do a lot of good against the bones so I better make do
by using the flat to simply smash the things!" he said in an almost apologetic
manner.
He ran forward and brought the blade down across the skull of the nearest
corpse. A few swift strikes left the thing in ruin at his feet.
"I want to say something like they don't make the Undead like the used to but
that would be a bit obnoxious!" said Zoro as he dodged a clutching corpse and
spun around to smash it to fragments of bone.
Warbird aimed carefully and fired her gun at one corpse after another. True to
her hope, the vibro gun shattered the creatures with ease!
She smiled broadly with a look that mixed girlish delight with the confident
swagger of a proven warrior.
"What a very strange creature! I suppose she had a rather peculiar family life!"
thought Warlock as he moved closer to the battle.
He frowned as he noticed the nearest corpse swerve slowly away from him.
"Odd! They aren't attacking me. They seem to be focused entirely on the others!
Does Andrea want to keep me alive for some warped reason?" he mused.
He noticed dozens of additional Undead creatures were making their ponderous way
toward the plane.
He held up a golden staff that ended with a knob shaped like a small intricately
carved hand.
"Crush them!" he said loudly.
The staff suddenly glowed brightly as a giant golden fist materialized from out
of thin air and began to shatter the creatures with super human force!
"Well done! This type of thing would have become tiresome after a while! I'd
say you ended it at precisely the right moment!" That kind of thing really can't
be taught!" said Zoro as he clapped Warlock on the back.
Warlock surveyed the scene with a studious gaze.
"There is a cemetery beyond the woods. I suppose they were drawn from their
natural rest and sent to stop us. Of course, I was battling vampires and other
monsters back in the thirties so this was certainly no challenge…or was it ever
really meant to be one?"
Warlock whispered some arcane words and the field became devoid of the monsters.
"I've returned them to their proper graves and sealed them. Their rest won't be
interrupted again!" he said.
Zoro thought, "I'd rather forgotten how powerful a chap Warlock really is!
Beneath that rather solemn demeanor lies the heart of a champion!"
Warlock said, "Ironically enough, we need to go to the cemetery itself to where
my family tomb sits. Within the Payton Mausoleum, we will find what I am
seeking"
They made their way out of the field and approached a gated cemetery where an
impressive structure dominated the windswept and now darkening skies.
"That's where my ancestors are buried. I used to go there to think when I was a
boy!" he explained.
Warlock continued to speak softly as if to himself. The golden hand reappeared
and reached within the Payton Mausoleum and grasped a stone lion. It lifted the
statue and began to pry up a stone and reveal an odd object concealed beneath
it.
"This is the handle of the Lamp of the gods. When Andrea tried to steal it, I
scattered the parts and let my magic hide them where I pleased! I also made sure
no one but me could ever locate them again no matter how powerful a spell they
cast!"
He displayed a gleaming curved piece of metal.
"As you may recall, the Lamp was my greatest weapon. The wand could do wonders
as you just saw but the Lamp could actually invoke the power of the Ancients!"
he said.
Zoro said, "I seem to recall you used it during that Aztec case to conjure the
Caduceus that once belonged to Hermes himself!"
Warlock smiled and said, "Exactly. I have been the guardian of the Lamp for
years. I earned the right to its power by successfully completing a rather
perilous quest across more than one dimension back in the mid thirties!"
Zoro said, "I'd like to hear that story someday. It sounds like what they used
to call a ripping yarn!"
He noticed Warbird was studying her gun with something of a pouting expression.
"Why so glum, dear?" he asked.
The blonde said, "Oh, just a bit of a glitch. I may need to rework some tiny
details if I want the gun to be self-generating as far as energy goes. I
suppose I'll need to spend another long night in the workshop. There goes my
sewing circle meeting!"
As she climbed into the plane, Zoro stopped Warlock and whispered.
"Priscilla was raised by her grandfather. Her parents died when she was a baby.
The original Warbird taught her everything he knew. He made her into a crack
pilot and a capable fighter. Believe it or not she can knock out a teamster
should she choose to do so. He even arranged for her to have some lessons from
Midnight and Spy Smasher. She's a brilliant woman. She does lack social graces
though.
She tries to overcompensate for being raised like a brawling boy by wearing
deliberately feminine clothing and taking part in traditionally womanly
activities like sewing and flower arranging. I think the world of her. You'll
come to love her too!" he said as they boarded the plane.
"Where to?" yelled Warbird from the pilot's chair.
Warlock said, "Would you believe Las Vegas?"
Zoro laughed as he replied.
"I would both believe it and relish it!"
4
Warlock admired the way Warbird handled the plane as it soared through the skies
and made its way toward Las Vegas.
"She is a gifted pilot. I'm equally impressed with how the plane was able to
take off from my field. I suppose Midnight or Spy Smasher helped with that
feature. I seem to recall both of them had nearly futuristic crafts of their
own!"
He thought of Andrea once more. He had hated her for years but he also knew that
during all those long years of imprisonment, he had also dreamed of her as well.
He had recalled her silvery laugh, her silken touch, and her beautiful singing.
He had longed to hold her and he had burned with anger at what she had done to
him.
"I certainly could have given a therapist many a troubled session!" he mused.
"If I had not had the spirit of El Carim to talk to during part of those years I
would have gone mad! Of course, good old faithful Hugin was always there for me
too!"
The raven perched on the back of his chair and watched everything with dark but
all seeing eyes.
Zoro said, "Why did you hide the Lamp in Las Vegas? It was always a den of
mobsters even back in the forties!"
Warlock said, "It appealed to my sense of humor to hide part of the Lamp of the
gods, an ancient talisman, within a truly modern and garish locale!"
Warbird yelled back, "You'll see when we get there! He told me to take us to the
resort called Merlin's Cave!"
Zoro shook his head. "You didn't? You didn't hide part of the Lamp in a casino
called Merlin's Cave?"
Warlock said, "It had just been built and you have to admit the irony is
fitting!"
They reached a huge compound dominated by flashing lights and large crowds of
well dressed pleasure seekers. The dome-like roof was designed to mimic the
features of a craggy cavern and Zoro smiled as he recognized the famous sign.
"I wonder who is performing tonight. After we retrieve the fragment of your
lamp we could catch a show! I always had a bit of a weakness for showgirls."
said Zoro.
Warbird said, "The sign says Princess Prism is in the Camelot Lounge until
midnight."
Zoro sighed as he said, "Oh, yes. She's a leggy beauty but I don't really enjoy
magic shows. No offense to you, of course!"
Warlock smiled and said, "Don't worry. I gave up stage work before the war!"
As Warbird made some rapid adjustments, the ship landed slightly above a nearby
flat skyscraper roof.
"I put it on auto hover. Shall I cloak it just in case?" asked the petite
blonde.
Warlock said, "Certainly. I doubt this will take long unless …!"
His words trailed off as he spotted several ominous shapes swooping down from
above.
"Great Scott! I think those things are Harpies or a modern approximation!" he
cried!
A dozen beautiful woman wearing brightly colored pink feathered costumes were
swooping down at them from all sides. They were clearly showgirls but they had
been altered by magic until they also possessed the deadly talons and broad
wings of mythological harpies!
Warbird said, "I'm supposed to me the only bird around here!"
She glanced at the two men and softly added, "It's a joke! You know
WarBIRD…never mind!"
She pulled an expanding pack out of her purse and carefully assumed a defensive
stance.
Zoro said, "That was a charming attempt at humor, my dear. Clearly, you are
making strides in the jesting while in peril technique!"
Warlock said, "I have a feeling those poor women were transformed purely to be
used as weapons against me. This is one more debt I owe Andrea!"
Zoro deftly sidestepped an attacking harpy and then connected with three swift
blows that left the woman stunned at his feet.
"I do hate to strike a woman! I supposed I'm old fashioned that way!" he said as
he ducked beneath a slashing talon and rolled acrobatically away from his foe.
Warbird dived forward at the nearest harpies and slapped two of the thin packs
she was carrying on their chests.
They shuddered and then collapsed in a heap.
"Traq. Packs always work!" thought the petite blonde as she prepared to continue
her fight.
Warlock had held back again with a purpose. He wanted to see if their attackers
would avoid him again as had the Undead foes back at his house. He was correct
in his assumption.
"Andrea either wants to kill my friends and preserve me or she has some twisted
plan for me. These pawns of hers are not directly attacking me!" he mused.
"Contain them!" he yelled.
The gleaming staff projected the huge golden hand and it enveloped nine of the
altered woman.
They were pinned beneath its magical grasp and their best efforts to kick or
claw their way free failed!
Zoro was doing well in his own effort to stop the harpies. He was so incredibly
agile that the women could not reach him before he had returned their attacks
with precisely placed martial arts blows.
Zoro frowned as he saw the flock of women regroup for a renewed attack.
"I was the one who foolishly asked for showgirls wasn't I?" he said.
Warbird was too busy to reply to her mentor as she found herself surrounded by
the harpies. She kicked out at one even as she elbowed another in the face. She
grabbed one by its long hair and flipped it over her shoulder. AS a harpy raked
across her torso with its talons she slapped a Tranq pack on its face. It
collapsed and she dived to freedom.
"I'm sure glad all my clothes are made out of synthoderm. I knew it was great
protection against temperature extremes but I never expected to need it to
shield me from feathered furies from Vegas!"
she thought.
Before the second wave of altered showgirls could attack, a newcomer joined the
fight. She was very beautiful with long cascading black hair, dark eyes, a
lovely face and a curvy figure. She wore a black evening gown with matching high
heels. The dress sparkled with countless tiny sequins and one side revealed a
daring slit. She wore a gleaming tiara in her thick luxurious hair and her
dazzling earrings flashed in the night lights.
"Princess Prism!" said Zoro as he recognized the stunning stage magician!
"A fan! Cool! I don't suppose these rather tacky women are irate because my
show was sold out?"she said with a rather throaty laugh.
She raised her hands and posed dramatically as the tiara she wore blazed with
white light and bolts of mystical energy radiated out to strike every remaining
harpy!
The furious women returned to normal and landed on a flashing cushion of crystal
formed by Princess Prism's tiara!
She wiped her hands together casually and fluffed her hair as if to signal that
a good day's work had been accomplished.
"Now, back to the stage! I need to have Babs retouch my make-up!" she said.
Warlock said, "Wait! You just performed real magic. You are far more than a
stage magician!"
Princess Prism said, "You're Warlock. I've heard of you. Daddy mentioned you.
He's Jack Lancing. You knew him as Diamond Jack when he was a mystery man. I'll
tell him you said hello! Ta ta!"
Zoro said, "You're Diamond Jack's little girl! Not so little anymore!"
The black haired beauty smiled winningly and said, "Daddy said you were always a
charmer Zoro!"
Warlock said, "I know your father used a mystical gemstone. That gem in your
tiara has magical power too. Are you carrying on his crusade?"
She frowned and gazed down at her nails as if she was bored.
"No! I use my magical gemstone to make me a star! I want to be famous. If I can
do some good with it like I just did, that's fine but this girl is strictly in
it for the fame!" she said.
Warlock stepped in front of her and said, "Wait! That's a selfish and spoiled
attitude. You have strong magical powers. How can you waste them on such trivial
matters?"
She said, "You were a stage performer once as was El Carim. Don't give me
attitude! I've had a hard life. I was seven years old when my mother and I
joined Daddy at the ceremony honoring the Marvels. We were all caught in the
Suspendium Trap. As hard as it was for the adults to deal with waking up
twenty years later, it was terrible for a child! My Dad started behaving
strangely. We later figured out that his mystical gemstone had been tainted by
a Priest of Set. He started to become violent. My mother sent me away to
boarding school so I wouldn't see his madness. Later, I was given my own
gemstone only mine is free of any curse. I do use it for good but I also use it
to boost my act. I'm not ashamed to say I want to be a star!"
Zoro said, "Lance O'Casey told me that he and Ibis helped your mother free your
father of the dark magic that had taken him over. Lance says your parents are
happily reunited and Jack has given up the heroic life."
Princess Prism nodded slowly.
"Yes, they are happy now. Why shouldn't I also be happy? I love being Princess
Prism. My stage act makes audiences forget their troubles. Is that really so
bad?"
Warlock said, "You have great potential I wish you well. I only feel like
prancing on a stage is a waste of that talent! Should you ever wish to talk with
me or to learn more about magic, I will be happy to help you!"
Princess Prism gave a dazzlingly smile and said, "I appreciate that!"
She floated down to the resort on a crystalline platform as Warbird suddenly
shouted, "What a witch!"
Zoro placed one hand on Warbird's back and he said, "Don't judge her too
harshly. I think beneath all those sequins and sparkles, she has a good heart!
She certainly helped us!"
Warlock nodded as he watched the girl depart.
"I sense nothing tainted about her or her gem. She just needs to grow up a bit!"
he said.
He spoke softly and a golden object appeared from within the resort below.
"This is the base of the Lamp! I can joined it to the handle like so and the
Lamp will soon be complete!"
he said.
Zoro said, "You know of course that these threats are not meant to harm you.
Someone wants to stop you from completing your task but he or she doesn't seem
overly serious about it!"
Warlock nodded. "You're no wizard but you have to be the smartest man I've ever
met. Nothing escapes your keen powers of observation! I begin to suspect Andrea
wants me to find her!"
Zoro looked at him intently.
"If she wants to see you, she may also have wanted you freed from the curse.
Could my arrival and subsequent actions have been compelled by some spell? I do
not like the thought that I've been used by some unknown mystical being!" he
said.
Warlock said, "You are under no spell now. I checked as soon as the idea
occurred to me. I have to admit that the circumstances that brought someone with
your unique condition directly to me at this particular time made me ask the
same questions you're having now!"
Warbird said, "If Andrea wants to meet you perhaps she also wants you to
retrieve the Lamp. She couldn't do so on her own and she must still want it!"
Warlock said, "Warbird, I think you may be right! That would even explain why
our opposition has been less than overwhelming!"
Zoro smiled proudly.
"See? She is a brilliant woman! I told you!" he said.
Warbird briefly smiled with pleasure before frowning again.
"Do you think I could ever wear my hair like Princess Prism? She was a brat but
she sure knew her way around a mirror!" she added ruefully.
5
Later as the plane soared over the southeastern corner of Norway Warbird said,
"What kind of mythical beastie will come after us here? I bet it'll be
something Norse!"
Zoro smiled and said, "I trust your instincts. No doubt we'll see soon enough!"
Warlock said, "This time I'm going to summon the final part of the Lamp
immediately!"
He gestured abruptly and a golden construct in the shape of a lamp appeared. He
joined it to the handle and base and smiled approvingly.
"This is it! The Lamp of the gods!" he declared.
The plane lurched sharply and Warbird cried, "Something is taking control of the
plane! It's not responding to my controls!"
Zoro said, "Ah, this must indeed be magical threat number three!"
Warlock said, "Let the plane go where it wants. I can cushion any impact. I'm
eager to end this!"
His eyes flashed with passion as he held the Lamp and Hugin perched on his
shoulder.
"I agree. This must be the denouement!" he said.
Warbird said, "I don't like this! I'm not used to being helpless in a plane!"
Zoro said, "Don't worry! Just relax and leave the flying to our unseen foe!"
Warlock nodded and said, "It is fine, Warbird. I am picking a rather familiar
mystic vibration. It is indeed Andrea who is behind all this and I have no doubt
that it has all been orchestrated so that she can steal the Lamp and use it for
conquest! She will regret ever crossing my path!"
The plane was brought down safely on a barren field but the supernatural power
was clearly disrobing to Warbird. The petite blonde had been a prized pupil of
Midnight's and she had in fact traveled through space. She was a scientist and
what might be called a futurist and she had no love for magic. She had seemingly
enjoyed the bizarre battles with the Undead and the harpies but those battles
had not forced her to look at herself in her favored role of superb pilot and
find herself lacking!
"I've battled space pirates on Pluto and I've outwitted the Cybernetic Web. I
can't be a plaything for some witch!" she thought as she gritted her teeth and
gripped the controls with a firmer hand.
Zoro said, "We're near the head of the Oslo Fjord. The city of Oslo is nearby."
Warlock said, "I allowed the final part of the Lamp to be hidden in a place of
its own accord. I felt it best that not even I knew exactly where. It was only
by assembling the other two parts that I was able to ascertain the location of
the third. It was a bit of extra protection!"
As they climbed out of the plane, Warbird said, "It's rather pleasant here."
Zoro nodded and said, "Oslo is a wonderful city. A fleet of ferries connect it
to other smaller towns and the city has a number of fine museums! It is
certainly not a crude or primitive place!"
Warbird smiled and she said, "Of course, you speak the language. Is there
anything the Man of Mystery can't do perfectly?"
Zoro said, "I can't explain that!"
He gestured to where a weird outline of a woman seemed to burn its way across
the skyline.
"Andrea does love to make an entrance. She should join up with Princess Prism!"
said Warlock.
The feminine outline approached them and the burning nimbus grew brighter until
the interior of the humanoid shape filled in and revealed a lovely Irish woman
with flashing eyes, pale skin, and sensuous lips. She wore a simple black dress
and boots.
"Edmund, you are a welcome sight! I have missed you!" she said.
Warlock smiled as his hands trembled at his sides. He was fearless but he was
also nervous and wracked with emotion. He felt so many different emotions as he
gazed at his captor and former lover.
"Andrea, you will have all of eternity to miss me when this day is done! You
will have time to recall in intimate detail every nuance of this most happy
reunion!" he said.
His gaunt body seemed to grow larger as his mystical powers manifested as a
flashing aura that surrounded his body.
Andrea smiled coldly and said, "Then let us preserve this moment and retain our
old privacy!"
Cords materialized and bound Zoro's hands at the same moment similar ropes bound
Warbird.
Seconds later Zoro had freed himself from the ropes. Though conjured by magic,
they were but ordinary rope and his mastery of such escapes was legendary.
Warbird casually dissolved her own ropes with a pellet of fluid that she had
produced from a small ring on her right hand. She was well equipped with such
gadgets as befitted a pupil of the great Midnight's!
Zoro caught her eye and shook his head slightly. This had to be Warlock's fight.
They would help if needed but they would not interfere until that moment
arrived!
Andrea said, "You know I freed you! I manipulated that fine man there into
finding you. I knew his heroic nature would enable him to give up one of his
extra lives to save you! I have regretted trapping you. I was a spirited girl
with no thought for what I was doing. I've wept over it since that hateful
night!"
Warlock suddenly towered over her. His magic had made him a giant.
" I won't shed a tear over this!" he shouted.
He grabbed her and raised her into the air. She twisted and kicked in his grip
but she could not break free.
"Andrea, I loved you! I loved you and you hurt me! You can't know how badly
you've ruined my very life!" he said.
Andrea said, "I deserve your hatred! I am in your power now! End my life! I will
not try to stop you….indeed I doubt I could!"
Hugin screeched loudly and flapped his black wings as he circled his master.
Warlock gently lowered his arms and began to assume his normal size and shape.
"You are right, old friend! I won't be as cruel as she was. I won't become the
very being I've dedicated my life to stopping."
Zoro sighed with relief. He was indifferent as to what happened to the Irish
witch but he feared his friend would suffer greater torment afterward had he
killed her.
Andrea fell into Warlock's arms and he gasped for breath as though he was
choking.
"You're crying!" he stammered as he gazed down at her face.
He wiped a tear off her cheek and he stepped away from her.
"Andrea, you wanted me to kill you. You freed me so I could reassemble the Lamp
and use its power to end your life didn't you? That's why the only resistance
you made was a token one! You hoped I'd be duped into killing you!" he
whispered.
She hesitated for a second and then as sobs shook her body she nodded.
"I don't want to go on living this way! My desire for power has made me empty!
I'm young and possibly immortal. I can't face an eternity like this. I can't
live without love!" she said.
Warlock said, "You've alienated everyone. Your thirst for magical power drove
everyone you ever cared for away. You lost your humanity when you gained your
magical talents!"
He sighed heavily.
"I've felt alone too. I've felt like an outsider. I could easily use the Lamp
to kill you. You tricked me before when I was lovesick and vulnerable but I'm
in control now I can't be beaten by you… possibly not by any mortal magician.
I can read your heart. You no longer have the malice you once embraced so
proudly. I won't help you die… but maybe together we can help each other to
live!"
He took her hand and nodded as she looked up at him in surprise.
She wept on his chest and he held her for what seemed like hours but was in fact
mere moments.
"Zoro, Warbird, I want to thank you both for helping me as you have. Should you
ever need me I will be there for you!" said Warlock.
He said, "Warbird, you are a special lady. You make your teachers proud and you
combine their skills with your own rare gifts! You are a true heroine!"
He bent down and kissed her cheek and then turned to face Zoro.
"You gave me more than freedom. You gave me a friend!" he said.
He shook hands with Zoro and the Man of Mystery smiled warmly.
"Well done, friend. It has been my pleasure!" he said.
Warlock rejoined Andrea and said, "We'll be going now by our own means of
travel. May your futures be blessed and may we all meet again!"
He took Andrea's hand and they vanished as he whispered an arcane command.
Zoro stared into the empty skyline for a moment and then turned to face Warbird.
"I do wish him a happy ending. Now, why don't we go find a few perils out our
own to conquer?"
he said.
The dashing Man of Mystery and his capable partner walked back to the plane and
prepared to depart.
Zoro glanced back again and thought, "I truly do wish them both well!"
The End