The cables to her head were attached to the left and right side at the base of her skull, temples. Wires ran into both the left and right ear canals. Cables were attached to the left and right side of her chest above her breasts, the left side of her waist and both ankles.
The cables trailed away from her body in different directions. Some trailed upward toward the bright and gigantic overhead light shining down on the table and into the darkness. Others trailed down to the ground and away in different directions towards various power junctions and instruments whose functions can only be guessed at by the casual observer. It was a scene that Dr. Frankenstein would have been familiar.
Dr. Ayani was standing at the foot of the table, looking over the various cables and wires one more time. The laboratory was dim and hushed with expectation. Dr. Brandon, the only other occupant of the lab, was stationed a few feet behind her. He was standing next to the control box of the power generator, one hand poised over a knife switch. The control box had two rows of mechanical dials at eye level, to give the operator a view of the power output.
Dr. Ayani was finally satisfied with the arrangements and turned over her shoulder to look at Dr. Brandon.
“Let’s begin. We shall start the first round of current to the heart first.”
Dr. Brandon nodded and threw the knife switch. The sound of compressors and motors broke the silence in the lab. The dials glowed and the needles slowly crept upward as Saki’s body began to glow with light green phosphorescence. The light bathed Dr Ayani’s face as she watched with an intense expression.
It was bright and cold early in the morning when the two scientists appeared with the General and his aide at the Imperial Army testing grounds. A stiff breeze whistled through the trees and buildings surrounding the test site. The General and his party were on an observation tower located at the edge of the test site.
The test site was devoid of anything except for a two items. Item one was a lone white storage silo. Item two were 2 Kongos positioned at some distance in front of the silo. The 30-ton tank/mecha hybrids were armed with an arm ending in a spiked ball attachment and a rotary barrel 57 mm auto cannon on the other arm.
With binoculars sighted on the silo, the General gave the order.
“Commence the attack”
“Commence the attack!” his aide relayed.
The Kongos began firing once the sirens began blaring. Their auto canon played a stream of high explosive and armor piercing shells across the base of the silo. The structure collapsed with a roar and a cloud of dust under both its own weight and the impact of the shells. The general looked on through his field glasses with intent as the hybrids continued their assault. Doctor Ayani looked on with an apathetic expression while Dr. Brandon wore an enigmatic smile on his face. The general decided to let the cloud of dust and debris dissipate to observe the results.
“Cease fire” ordered the General, who was still looking through his binoculars.
“Cease Fire!” relayed the subordinate. The cloud began to disperse.
“Huh?” grunted the General as the wind dispersed the smoke and dust. A figure started to take shape. It was a female figure dressed in a variation of a maid’s uniform. She was dressed in a skintight dark navy body suit, which showed off her physique.
A small apron was tied around her waist, over a white overcoat of unusual design. The chest area was exposed, emphasizing and contrasting her breasts. The coat was flared wide open at front, giving the observer a good view of her lower limbs, ending in a long wide tail with a rounded end. The shoulder pads were unusually long and narrow, looking like the over wing shoulders of the formal wear worn by the Tokugawa samurai. Two big gold colored buttons on the left side secured the coat. . The same type of buttons also fastened the shoulder pads to the sleeves of the overcoat.
The entire ensemble was capped by light blue navy tie around the collar and a white maid’s cap. She also wore elbow length gloves with blue fingertips, over white fingerless gloves with glue trim. The calf-length boots worn was also white with blue trim. The uniform allowed for complete freedom of movement.
The face became visible as the last of the dust cloud dispersed. It was Saki, her expression hard and cold. Her eyes were glowing deep red. No damage was visible, save for dust smudges on her uniform.
Dr. Amagi ‘s face wore a smile of victory. The General resumed the test.
“Resume fire”
“Resume fire!”
With a roar of diesel engines, the Kongos advanced toward Saki who waited patiently. Once of the Kongos launched a 5-ton steel spiked ball with a chain attachment at her. Saki calmly caught the ball with her right and allowed the ball to push her back, her boots digging furrows into the soil. Once stopped, she casually dropped the ball and sprang over it toward the offending Kongo’s head. She grabbed and jerked upward, tearing out the hybrid’s head in a shower of sparks. Its companion drew a bead on Saki and opened fire.
Saki leaped up into the sky, out of the line of fire. The shells instead hit the other Kongo in the chest, exploding it. The tank/mecha frantically tried to lock on to Saki. The Steel Angel stooped down from the sky like a peregrine falcon, left leg fully extended and right leg cocked back. She punched thru the behemoth’s thickly armored chest and back area like twelve inch battleship plating was tinfoil. She emerged from the back and bounded clear.
Electrical arcs of electricity played out of the hole created by Saki before it exploded. The mecha exploded into a mushroom-shaped cloud of flame and smoke. The general was ecstatic. Lowering his field glasses, he stood up.
“Wonderful! She’s more powerful than we could imagine! If we have others like her, it does not matter what enemies we face. We will be one of the most powerful nations in the world! The General cried jubilantly as Doctor Ayani looked out onto the field. The smoke dissipated, showing Saki standing alone. The General turned to the two scientists.
“Thank you Dr Amagi. Good work Doctor Brandon”
“I only assisted. Dr Ayani was the one who activated Saki”, Dr Brandon remarked modestly.
The General nodded gruffly. “Yes, Dr. Amagi. Will Saki follow orders?”
“Yes, we have equipped her with an obedience circuit. It would be impossible for her to disobey orders.” replied Dr. Amagi.
“I see.”
“Yes”
There was an awkward pause in the conversation. The General sidled up to Dr. Ayani and whispered.
“Then…will…she…do?”
She looked at him with a disbelieving expression and replied, “Yes, if I order her to” in a cold tone of voice. The General was pleased.
“It’s that so. Well, let’s go”
“Yes, Sir” replied the General’s aide, as the pair departed the observation tower, leaving Doctors Brandon and Ayani behind. She turned her attention back to the training field, to Saki who was standing passively. She grew pensive as her thoughts turned to one man.
“Dr. Ayanokoji”
Dr Brandon, upon observing the play of emotions on her face, gave a small smirk.
Dr. Ayani was striding down a dark hallway in the Imperial Army HQ basement next day, her footfalls echoing in the darkness. She came upon the room where Saki was stored. The door slowly opened, letting in light from a light bulb in the hallway. The light showed Saki standing on a platform, seemingly asleep.
“This time I will capture Dr. Ayanikoji without fail this time” breathed the female scientist as she slowly walked toward Saki’s platform. She stopped in front of the platform and spoke her next thoughts out loud.
“But when that time comes, Kurumi is sure to get in the way”. Doctor Ayani gave the order to Saki in a firm voice.
“Saki. This is an order. Destroy Kurumi.”
Saki came back to life with a cold and ferocious expression on her face, her eyes glowing red.
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(Posted Thu, 22 May 2003 20:50)
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