ASH: Coherent Super Stories Special #1 - Cameryn By Any Other Name

[Dave Van Domelen]

     [The cover shows an aging Doctor Developer in a prison cell on 
      the left side, and outside the wall is a small almost toy-like 
      robot.  He appears to be talking to it.  "DOUBLE SIZED SPECIAL!"]

____________________________________________________________________________
 .|, COHERENT                                            An ASHistory Series
--+-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 '|` SUPER STORIES                    Special #1 - Cameryn By Any Other Name
        Featuring Doctor Developer           copyright 2023 by Andrew Burton
____________________________________________________________________________

     This reprint series has brought up the turn of the century shake-up at
Coherent Comics before (notably https://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/ASH/CSS29 -
"Leftovers"), but we weren't kidding about it being tumultous.  In fact, the
Godmarket wasn't the original idea for shaking up the line, editorial asked
some of its top writers to pitch ideas for ending an age and starting
another.  
     The writer of the Lady Lawful and Doctor Developer title at the time
went beyond the pitch level, and scripted an entire storyline in the hopes
that it would be picked and other titles incorporate the "Benefactor Crisis"
concept.  "Benefactor" was a placeholder name, the intent had been for some
extablished hero, preferably a low-selling one, to be slotted into the role,
revealing hidden powers as needed in order to be the threat the storyline
demanded.  Despite the work put into this, editorial decided that the
Godmarket would require fewer changes to existing plotlines, using the
existing encroachment of the gods in the main Academy of Super-Heroes and
Kansas City ASH titles as a premise for a near-apocalypse.
     The LL&DD writer salvaged a few concepts from the extended pitch for the
chronologically final issue of the title, LL&DD #9's "Other Family,"
(https://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/ASH/LLDD9) and all subsequent stories were
written to fill in gaps here and there in the series timeline.  Despite
Doctor Developer himself having permission from editorial to survive the
crash of the Godmarket, his writer had trouble writing what he felt would be
a broken man, although The Reverse Engineers eventually came out of the ruins
of Doctor Developer's life.  There's also indications that the story you're
about to read isn't the only work done for this abandoned premise, if we find
more we'll bring them to you, the readers.
     Thus, what makes this Special so special is that it's not a reprint,
because this material was never published before!  Also, it's rather longer
than our usual offerings.  Enjoy!

============================================================================

     The charred half of Benefactor's body that survived the hyperspace
window's flickering collapsed to the ground.  The one eye that remained in
normal space looked around, wide and frightened.  Had any part of his
brainstem survived, Benefactor might have let out a deathcry.  His eye was
all that worked. 
     This was immaterial to Doctor Developer.  The moment he was sure the
superhuman was no longer a threat, his attention turned to Lady Lawful.
Benefactor's last attack sent her flying into a console.  As he rushed to her
side, he was concerned to see the console was crushed. 
     She was breathing.  He could see her chest moving.
     Stepping closer to feel for her pulse, Doctor Developer's foot crushed
an errant component dislodged by her impact.  The noise was little more than
a crackle, but Lady Lawful's eyes snapped open. 
     "No!" she moaned.  It was meant to be more forceful, but a wince
disrupted her battlecry.  Her pained expression softened and her eyes focused
on Doctor Developer.  "Deedee?  Where is he?" 
     "Benefactor's dead," Doctor Developer said flatly.  He pointed to the
pile of flesh across the spacious control room. 
     Lady Lawful shifted so she could stand.  One arm hung limply as she got
to her feet, and she favored one leg once she was up. 
     "We should get you out of here," Doctor Developer said.  He stepped
closer to Lady Lawful, and she looped an arm over his shoulder.  She ignored
his suggestion and moved to better see Benefactor's remains. 
     "What did you do?" she asked.
     "I used the ship's hyperdrive to send half of him somewhere else,"
Doctor Developer explained.  "While you were..." 
     Lady Lawful's voice was flat as she spoke, "Getting stomped."
     "Ah, yes," Doctor Developer continued, "I was able to access his ship's
navigation system.  It took a little work, but, ah, I overrode the safeties,
bridged the targeting computer, and..." 
     "You saved the world," Lady Lawful stated.  "You saved us, Deedee."
     Doctor Developer didn't immediately reply.  "I saved you, Jenny, that's
all that matters." 
     The full scale consequences to ending Benefactor's life were slowly
dawning on him.  Saving Lady Lawful, Jennifer, his wife was what filled the
totality of his consciousness.  Until she stood with an arm around his
shoulder and he knew she was safe, there was no room for anything else. 
     Saving the world was probably a good thing in the long run.  That would
remain to be seen.  Benefactor had many friends and fans.  He wasn't sure
what the consequences of an ex-villain killing one of the world's premiere
heroes would be.  There was precious little evidence, aside from his and
Jennifer's word, that Benefactor was behind the invasion. 
     Time would tell.
     "No, Cameron," Jennifer spoke, shaking him out of his reverie.  She
unwound her arm from Cameron, and moved to stand in front of him.  With her
good arm, she took Cameron't hand and put it on her stomach.  "You saved us."
Her eyes were filled with meaning and were starting to fill with tears. 
     Cameron wanted to ask if she meant what he thought she meant, but a
crashing sound interrupted him.  People flooded into the room: other heroes,
army personnel, and a few people in black suits and dark sunglasses.  A medic
and another heroine stepped between Doctor Developer and Lady Lawful.  They
would look after her.  That was important now.  That was all that was
important. 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     The days after any crisis always left Cameron feeling unsettled.  After
a heist or pulling off a scheme, he knew how to act.  In fact, he planned for
it.  You always budgeted time, money, and other resources so you could stay
off the streets while the good guys were on the hunt.  Post-scheme downtime
was the best time to get caught up with side projects and started on the next
one. 
     When you were one of the good guys, you couldn't schedule for the crises
or the cleanup afterwards.  It would have been nice if Benefactor sent out
invitations with a date and time for his treacherous alien invasion.  If he
had, Cameron would have ordered a new refrigerator before going off on a
three-day quest to save the planet. 
     Instead, upon returning home with Jennifer from an overnight hospital
stay, to make sure she and her passenger were healthy, Cameron found himself
cleaning out rotten food and soured milk.  He took some solace knowing he was
saving Jennifer from the task, but it was at best a small comfort.  He would
rather be up in the bedroom with her taking a nap than handling slimy lunch
meat. 
     That was another nice thing about executing schemes, you always got
plenty of sleep before and after.  There was time to formulate elegant
solutions.  With a crisis it was a rushed death march to cobble together some
new solution from half-understood principles before the world ended.  Then
you had to debrief, sit in an uncomfortable hospital room chair, and wonder
what unseen physical trauma might end the life of your unborn child before
they even had fully formed limbs. 
     Schemes and heists were much better.
     If he was going to get into the parenting business, then he was going to
have to find a better way of dealing with these crises that came about with
no warning.  Cameron was no expert when it came to children, but he had
serious doubts that children possessed the adaptability for both parents to
disappear for days on end while the world was in apocalyptic turmoil.  He
would confirm, but that felt like when parents should be around the most. 
     Cameron was well past the disposal stage of cleaning out the broken
refrigerator, well into the decontamination scrubbing of its innards, and
about halfway to the point where he wanted to just buy a new appliance when
the doorbell rang.  Whoever was paying a visit picked a lousy time. 
     "I'm coming," Jennifer called from upstairs.
     "Don't get up," Cameron called back.  He yanked the rubber gloves off
his hands and chucked them into the open refrigerator.  He knew Jennifer
could hear him, but he doubted she would listen.  It was something of a small
miracle, and a grim indication of how injured she was, that the doorbell was
the first excuse she took to get out of bed. 
     Cameron reached the door just as she was walking slowly down the stairs.
All things considered, Jennifer was in relatively good condition after going
toe-to-toe with someone who's upper physical limits included lifting railroad
cars without breaking a sweat.  Her injuries amounted to a dislocated
shoulder, a couple of hairline fractures in her wrist, and one badly sprained
ankle. 
     It had been almost two decades since her baseline enhanced physical
abilities manifested, at which point she had effectively become immune to
everyday injuries.  That increased tenfold when she put on her Enhancement
Belt.  Jennifer was taking her rediscovered mortality in stride, but Cameron
could tell she was having to adjust. 
     "Jack?" Cameron asked as he opened the door to see Jack Stryker, the
head of his and Jennifer's super-team.  Cameron couldn't think of a time when
he'd seen Jack outside of a briefing room, office, or some equally official
setting. 
     "May we come in?" Jack asked, polite but to the point.  Cameron liked
that about him.  He wasn't sure what to think of the dark suited agent who
followed Jack. 
     "Please, come in," Jennifer said.  "Please pardon the chaos.  Our
refrigerator died right before we got the call a few days ago.  We're dealing
with our own crisis, well, Cameron is." 
     "I...we...are the ones who need the pardoning," Jack replied.
"Actually, before I get to official business, I hear congratulations are in
order."  Jack smiled at Cameron and nodded toward Jennifer.  "You're
expecting."
     Jennifer blushed and grinned.  "The doctors confirmed it.  We're having
a baby.  I found out a couple of days before..."  she trailed off. 
     "And didn't say anything because the world is more important," Jack
finished. 
     Jennifer nodded.  "A week ago it made more sense, but now it feels
reckless and silly hearing it out loud." 
     While many of the subtleties and emotional rationale behind husbandly
duties still eluded Cameron, he worked with enough black box systems to be
comfortable with understanding how to interact with a system even if you
didn't understand the complete internal workings.  When Jennifer said
"reckless and silly" and looked at the floor, Cameron knew it was his time to
take her hand and squeeze it.  When she looked back up at him and returned
the squeeze, Cameron felt himself relax. 
     "May we sit down?" Jack asked.
     "Yes, please."  Jennifer replied.  "Take the couch.  I'll go get..."
     "I've got it," Cameron interrupted.  "Take the computer desk chair.
I'll grab one from the kitchen." 
     Once everyone was settled, Jack began.  "Like I said before, please
pardon my and Agent Kay's intrusion.  This should be a happy time, especially
with your good news, but I'm afraid there's no time for that." 
     "Jack, what's going on?" Jennifer asked.
     Cameron knew.  "Benefactor."
     Jennifer shook her head.  "Not unless he's a zombie."  Her eyes widened.
"Is he a zombie?" 
     Jack looked at Agent Kay, and they both smiled grimly.  "That might be
easier to deal with, but, no," Jack answered.  "Benefactor was more than one
man, he was an institution.  There are entire branches of the DSHA, Pentagon,
and several corporations dedicated to supporting him.  People have built
entire careers around Benefactor being one of the great heroes of the world." 
     Agent Kay finally spoke, "Powerful people.  Political people."
     "I'm sorry," Jennifer said, "I don't mean to be rude, but who are you?"
She looked at Agent Kay. 
     Jack answered, "Trust me when I say Kay is on our side.  The only reason
I'm here tonight is because he's not on the other side, but I can't say much
past that." 
     "When are they coming to arrest us?" Cameron asked.
     "Tomorrow morning, around nine," Jack answered.
     "Arrest us?  For what?" Jennifer asked incredulously.  "You three seem
to have been invited to a meeting that I missed." 
     "There, ah, was no meeting," Cameron told her.  "It's just obvious."
     "Not to me," Jennifer snapped.
     "Cameron, it's not obvious," Jack said patiently.  "It's obvious to you,
and I suspect you've been waiting for this to happen for a while, but I'm a
paranoid freak and I didn't see it coming until Kay reached out." 
     The part of Cameron's brain that analyzed super-powers wanted to explain
to Jack that he didn't see it coming because the organizations built up
around Benefactor were more abstract that the groupings on which his
team-building powers worked.  That part was overridden by another part, the
one that could tell Jennifer was edging away from being angry and dangerously
close to an uncharted emotional territory.  Cameron could only guess that was
panic. 
     "Tell me if any of this is wrong."  Cameron pulled his chair closer to
Jennifer.  "If Benefactor is a bad guy, then a lot of people, intentionally
or not, are bad guys.  If Benefactor died a hero because, uh, an ex-villain's
weapon mis-fired during a fight, then it's in their best interest to make
sure Benefactor's death is avenged." 
     Kay nodded.  "That's about it."
     "That's not what happened," Jennifer said, paused, and then added, "but
there's no proof.  It's our word against a corpse, and Cameron's already
explained what he did."  She grabbed Cameron's hand, "Deedee, I know what
you're thinking, and...no." 
     "It's the only way," Cameron told her.  "Either I turn myself in, or
they show up here and arrest both of us." 
     Jennifer didn't look anywhere close to panicking when she said, "Let
them come." 
     "That's what they want," Jack said.  "Arresting Lady Lawful and Doctor
Developer makes this a spectacle, and it puts you both on the defensive." 
     "We've faced worse," Jennifer laughed bitterly, "we just cut worse in
half." 
     Cameron's voice was angry when he spoke, which caught everyone in the
room by surprise.  "I cut worse in half, Jenny!  You were unconscious after
Benefactor threw you and our kid across the room.  This isn't something we
can punch or shoot or trap to beat."  Cameron wanted to scream about the
cruel paradox of it all.  "They're coming at us with the very thing we risked
our lives to save." 
     The room fell silent.  Doubt began to creep in around the edges of
Cameron's mind, but he knew he was right.  Letting the vestiges of Benefactor
set the initial conditions would ensure complete defeat.  If they could upset
those plans, then there was a chance. 
     Cameron stood up.  "Jack, if I turn myself in tonight will that prevent
them from coming after Jenny?" 
     Jack and Kay looked at each other.  Jack answered, "Probably.  Yes, that
would work.  It has to be tonight." 
     "Deedee..."
     "Then if you'll excuse me," Cameron said as he stood up, "I need to buy
a refrigerator."  Cameron walked out the kitchen door. 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Jennifer was sitting on the stairs when Cameron returned.  After he just
walked out, Jennifer spent several minutes speaking with Jack and Kay about
what was going on.  By the time they left to do whatever they could, she was
still at a loss.  What left her the most numb was Cameron's apparent
fatalistic view of the situation. 
     Cameron came through the kitchen door.  He didn't see Jennifer at first,
and started looking through the stapled papers in his hands.  Once he
finished checking them over, Cameron moved toward the stairs.  That was when
he saw Jennifer. 
     "I thought you'd already turned yourself in," she said.  Jennifer hated
how pathetic that sounded. 
     "No," Cameron replied, "I bought a refrigerator."  He showed her the
bundle of papers, which turned out to be a bill of sale from a local hardware
store that she thought of as Cameron's clubhouse.  "They're going to deliver
it Saturday." 
     Jennifer started to stand, but Cameron moved a little faster and sat
down next to her. 
     "Don't do this, Cameron McKay," she said sternly.  No pet names.  No
joking.  She had to make him understand they could fight this. 
     "I have to," Cameron replied.
     "Why?" she asked, her voice growing irritated.  "Why will you go into
battle against an invasion force led by someone who could crush your head in
his hands, but you're going to give up because some politicians want to keep
their jobs?" 
     Cameron looked genuinely confused.  Normally his face was almost blank,
save for a few microexpressions which Jennifer knew by heart.  For his face
to look this confused, Jennifer realized they were having two different
conversations. 
     "I'm not giving up," Cameron told her.  In what Jennifer would always
remember as Cameron's most empathetic gestures, he asked, "Do you know how
scared I was last night when you were being examined?"
     Jennifer shook her head.  "No, tell me."
     "I know what your physical limits are, Jenny," Cameron explained.  "I
know exactly how much pressure Benefactor put on your wrist to crack those
bones.  I know you'll heal from that, but what about this?"  He touched her
stomach.  "How would you react if it didn't survive?  How would I react?
I've never been more unsure and frightened in my life, Jenny." 
     Jennifer hugged Cameron with her good arm.
     "I'm not giving up," he told her.  "If it was just me, I'd disappear and
go hideout in Detroit.  They'd never find me.  If it was just the two of us,
we'd go on the offensive." 
     "But it's not just us," Jennifer spoke quietly.
     "We have to have a backup so that at least one of us is free to..."
Cameron trailed off.  "It makes more sense for the ex-villain to go to court
than the pregnant super-hero.  They won't come after you if I make the first
move." 
     Jennifer sniffed and put her head on Cameron's shoulder.  "They'll come
after you twice as hard." 
     
	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Cameron knew from associating with super-villains that the wheels of
justice moved slowly, but experiencing it first-hand was something very
different.  The few times he actually got caught during his days as a
villain, he escaped custody before arraignment.  Now that he decided to go
through with the trial, it felt glacial. 
     By the time he went through the arraignment, pretrial, jury selection,
and the case had a date, Jennifer was no longer able to hide her pregnancy in
public.  Thanks to a really good look-a-like patrolling as Lady Lawful, the
general public didn't put together that Doctor Developer and Lady Lawful were
anything more than colleagues.  There was always the concern that Lady Lawful
might have to testify, but Cameron's lawyers dug up an obscure law that
allowed for closed-circuit testimony written to protect a hero's secret
identity.
     Once the actual trial began, Jennifer was into her second trimester.
None of her clothes fit.  Between court days and strategy sessions with
lawyers, Cameron and Jennifer tried to squeeze in preparations for the baby.
Putting up wallpaper, building cribs, and stocking up on diapers were small,
domestic escapes from the external stressors. 
     Even obstetrician visits felt like vacations.
     "Do you want to know the sex?" the ultrasound technician asked.
     Jennifer had thought about this since her last check-up.  She still
wasn't sure. 
     "What about you?" Jennifer asked Cameron.
     His lawyers had been able to get the trial to take a recess long enough
for she and Cameron to go to her obstetrician, which was something of a
miracle.  She didn't feel right answering without his input. 
     Cameron looked thoughtful before answering.  "I like having as much
information as possible," he answered, "but I defer to your choice in this
matter." 
     Jennifer didn't hesitate.  "Yes, please."
     The ways things were going, she didn't know what state their family
would be in when she delivered.  They needed every minute to prepare and
celebrate as possible. 
     The technician turned the screen around to show Jennifer and Cameron the
computer generated image of the embryo.  "Congratulations, it's a girl." 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Everything that needed to be said was said after the verdict was
announced.  For an entire day they mourned, planned, cursed, and finally
accepted that as far as the world was concerned Cameron McKay was guilty of
killing Benefactor in cold blood.  After the acceptance set in, all that was
left for Jennifer and Cameron was to spend as much time together as they
could before his sentencing. 
     With Jennifer well into her third trimester, that meant mostly lying
together in bed, holding each other.  Cameron surprised himself.  He always
thought in any given scenario where his time with Jennifer was limited, he
would have maximized physical contact with her.  The image that always came
to mind was the two of them, curled up on their sides, fitting together as
well as any two precision made parts could. 
     In the current situation, he found himself with his ear pressed up
against her belly.  The warmth of her bare stomach against his ear was
certainly pleasant, but the occasional murmurs from within, which he chose to
believe was his daughter moving around, was equally as pleasant. 
     Cameron thought about dimensional axes between those murmurs and kicks.
An ear against a stomach was fairly a fairly small amount of contact in the
physical dimension, and had Cameron from early in his courtship of Jennifer
voiced an opinion, he certainly would have favored spooning as an optimal
form of closeness.  As time moves forward, Cameron realized that people
rotate to fit in different positions that suit the changing form of their
life.  Younger Cameron could only view the world as a carnal form.  Older
Cameron knew that as pleasant as the physical was, there were depths beyond
it that were much richer, more true. 
     "We need to pick a name," Jennifer said.  She reached out and squeezed
Cameron's hand.  There was a pause.  "Before you go." 
     Cameron sat up to look at Jennifer.  "I thought we picked June," he
said, "For your mother." 
     "June is a fine middle name, but I want to name her after you."  She
used her free hand to wipe her eyes.  "Don't argue."  Cameron wasn't going to
argue. 
     "I guess it works both ways," he mused, then smirked.  "Will you call
her Deedee too?" 
     Jennifer rolled her eyes and laughed.  "That would raise so many
questions.  The wrong kind of questions."  She stared off at the ceiling.
"No, I'll probably call her Cammy, or maybe June." 
     "Cammy," Cameron repeated.  "I like that a lot."  He shifted again so he
could hold Jennifer's hand with both of his.  "I have a request, and I need
you to promise you'll do it." 
     "What?"
     "In the morning, don't come to the courthouse."  Jennifer started to
object, but Cameron continued.  "It won't be good.  It might not even be
safe.  There's nothing to do." 
     "Deedee," her voice cracked.
     "All that matters to me now, until I get back, is that you two are as
safe as possible," Cameron told her.  "Jenny, I can get through a thousand
years as long as I know you both are out here.  Please." 
     "I promise," she whispered, "but you better not make me wait a thousand
years, because I'll do it." 
     As Cameron laid his ear back on Jennifer's belly, determined to commit
every sensation to memory, he wondered what kind of depths and dimensions his
love for Jenny and their Cammy would take in the future.  He looked forward
to finding out. 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Cameron wasn't listening as the warden went over his introduction to the
ultra-max, top secret prison known as The Cave, constructed when the
relatively nearby Northwoods Correctional Facility ran out of room.  For the
most part, he wasn't interested.  This speech was an intimidation technique
for more violent inmates.  Cameron wasn't going to be violent.  He was here
for as long as was required to ensure Jenny and Cammy could live their lives
without interference from the withering remains of Benefactor's legacy. 
     He was also remembering a specific night from three years in his past.
By most measures it was an average night for him, but two specific memories
stood out, occupying the majority of his attention. 
     The first memory was the lavender negligee that Jennifer wore.  She
generally favored reds and blues for her outfits, even private attire.  The
lavender matched her complexion in their bedroom nicely.  As she slid next to
him in bed that night, the material was smooth and cool against his arm.  The
way it bunched up when he grabbed her by the waist, then fell back into place
as she straddled his waist, Cameron remembered being impressed by the
outfit. 
     The second memory came from later that night.  Jennifer was asleep, but
he had energy left and work to do.  A contract job to review control code for
an embedded control system.  He was supposed to look it over for any security
flaws, and there were flaws. 
     The rest of the night he spent going over their code.  Everytime he
found a problem, he would create a fix and commit it for their internal
review.  There was one exception.  A small error that his tests showed only
caused a problem if another part of the voice recognition system heard a
specific phoneme sequence. 
     Cameron wasn't sure why he didn't report the flaw.  Thinking back he
blamed it on his postcoital mood.  Part of him always wanted to do something
criminal after he and Jennifer were intimate.  Whatever the reason, he didn't
report the flaw.  Instead, he kissed Jennifer lightly so as not to wake her
up, then put his laptop away.  As he was drifting off to sleep, Cameron
continued thinking about the specific phonemes needed to activate the flaw. 
     Since that night he hadn't thought about the bug.  It wasn't until he
caught a glimpse of a SmitherTech logo on the hand scanner that he remembered
the company that contracted him to find flaws, and that he got the contract
because he helped design the hardware their system was destined to run. 
     Salamander.  Twelve.  Calamity.
     Three words that would trip the bug, escalate the speaker's privileges
to admin, and let Doctor Developer walk out of The Cave.  Freedom was three
words away. 
     The realization hit just as the two inch thick Collapsium door of his
cell shut.  By the time he heard the cylinders slide into place with a thud,
Cameron was already throwing up in his toilet.   

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     For the majority of the time, life in prison was the very definition of
stasis.  Days, nights, meals, and the like cycled monotonously without
interruption.  There were peaks and troughs along the way, good and bad days,
but on average it was all the same.  In many ways it made life very simple. 
     Similarly, that equilibrium made differentiating average days from the
good and bad days was just as simple.  Bad days were the ones where some
forgettable, angry person tried to prove their dominance with violence.
Maybe it was a new guard overzealously trying to fit in with his crew, or one
of the prisoner's trying to make a name for themselves and finding a way
around the safeguards that were supposed to keep prisoners apart.  Those days
always ended soon enough, and the sameness of life returned.
     Over the years Cameron had almost come to enjoy bad days.  At the time
they were painful, some even life-threatening, but from that point moving
forward you could track an upward trend.  The broken fingers healed, stopped
hurting, and soon were able to bend and hold things again.  The abdominal
bruises shrunk, the pain of sitting up subsided, and soon they didn't hurt at
all. 
     Bad days also provided data.  You learned which guard had an inferiority
complex.  You learned which prisoners and gangs to avoid.  They were small
things, but working that data into useful information that kept the stasis
going was the closest Cameron had to an engineering project.  Bad days were
welcome. 
     Good days were much worse.  Once the spike of a good day peaked, and
that spike typically followed the realization of a good day, it was only a
downward trend. 
     When the guard said, "You've got a visitor, McKay," Cameron knew it was
going to be the worst kind of good day. 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     The Cave was not designed for visitors.  It was designed to house one
hundred of the planet's most dangerous criminals.  It was designed so that
prisoners only ever came into physical contact with guards, and even that was
minimized as much as possible.  And if neither form of isolation ever quite
worked as planned, they were certainly not inclined to allow any contact that
an inmate would actually want.
     Prisoners were allowed scheduled access to a communications room to meet
over video call with lawyers or family.  The communications room was similar
to Cameron's cell.  The major visible difference was the lack of a bed and
toilet.  Everything else looked the same until the monitor built into the
back wall came to life with a test pattern.
     Cameron was allowed one call a week.  He opted to switch between meeting
with Jennifer and his lawyer, the latter more of a means to make sure
Jennifer was taken care of by means of hidden financial instruments he set up
long before Benefactor's treachery.  They were mostly self-sufficient, driven
by software running on servers in countries without extradition treaties, but
he felt better touching base regularly. 
     It was hard enough seeing Jennifer every two weeks.  He wasn't sure he
could endure more, but he knew he couldn't survive with less. 
     After a moment the test pattern was replaced with Jennifer's face.
Every previous call always went the same.  It began with a somber greeting.
They asked how the other was.  Then Cameron would listen with a combination
of rapt attention and agonizing ache as she talked about what she and Cammy
were doing.  After a while they exchanged farewells.  Jennifer's eyes always
got red as Cameron's voice seized up.  Then it was over. 
     This call was different.
     Jennifer was smiling.  No, she was beaming.  Glowing.  Happy.
     "Deedee," Jennifer said, "you are going to be so proud of our kid."
     She hadn't called him Deedee since the day of his sentencing.
     "I am?" he asked.
     Jennifer nodded.  "They took my phone, so I can't show you the
pictures," she explained.  "Remember I told you about her robotics club?" 
     Cameron nodded.  Cameryn inherited her father's gift for tinkering.
Since she could stack blocks, Jennifer had taken great care to talk about
their daughters' projects.  In the last year her passion was the school
robotics club. 
     "Yesterday, Cammy won the state competition.  She took first place in
the teen division."  Jennifer continued on to describe the maze-solving
robot, the long hours of debugging and a few failed tests offered up to the
academic gods.  Her mix of enthusiasm and parental pride was infectious.
Cameron felt himself smiling as he listened. 
     "I wish you could have seen her," Jennifer sighed as her recount of the
event came to an end.  The bright glow on her face dimmed. 
     "The important thing is that you were there," Cameron said.
     "We should both..."
     Cameron interrupted her.  "The important thing is you are with her now."
He paused.  "I'll be there one day, but...you are who she needs.  You're
raising her better than anyone else." 
     There was a banging outside of Cameron's room.  The one minute warning.
     Jennifer wiped her eyes.  "You will be here one day."
     "I've got to go," Cameron said.  Whatever high he felt while Jennifer
was retelling Cameryn's victory, it was draining quickly.  "Are you two okay?
Do you need anything?" 
     Jennifer shook her head.  Then she asked, "Do you want me to tell her
anything?" 
     This took him by surprise.  Before Cameryn was born, they'd agreed not
to burden her with the full truth behind Cameron's incarceration.  If she
ever asked, he was alive but couldn't come home because of his role during
the invasion.  Cameron wasn't sure Jennifer told Cameryn her parents were in
contact. 
     "Tell her she's amazing," Cameron answered as the call ended.
     
	       *	      *		     *		    *

     It was supposed to be a good day.
     That phrase kept going through Cammy's mind as she stared down at her
lap.  Today was supposed to be her victory lap after winning Friday.  Sure,
she knew a robotics competition wasn't going to get her a parade.  There
wouldn't even be an applause for her when she walked down the hall to put her
trophy in the display case.  At most she hoped for her classmates to say
something, or a couple of teachers. 
     Getting into a fight with the robot club was not something she could
have imagined.  Punching Bradley Smitherton in his stupid face for saying she
was on the same path to being a super-villain as her dad was the stuff of her
nightmares. 
     They were going to kick her out of the club.  There was a zero tolerance
policy in the club charter.  They were going to dismantle Roberta! 
     Cammy launched herself out of the plastic chair.  She didn't know what
her endgame was, but that could come later.  Her first goal was to get
Roberta before the robotics club dismantled her for parts. 
     There were six...correction...five members in the club and Mr. Alvarez.
Mr. Alvarez had an early class, so he would be gone.  She knew the other
members' schedules from osmosis, and was sure none of them had a free
period. 
     Getting into the room would be easy for the next few minutes.  Getting
out was the problem.  There was only one door.  Once she went in, she was
trapped if anyone came by, and the likelihood of someone coming after her was
pretty high.  Teenagers who bolted out of the principal's office were always
followed. 
     As she sprinted into the club room, Cammy only slowed as she approached
the project shelf.  Roberta was on the top shelf.  It took climbing on the
bottom level, grasping the side of the metal shelf with her left hand, and
grabbing at Roberta with her right, but Cammy pulled her prized robot closer
to the edge... 
     "Cameryn June McKay, what are you doing?"
     ...and onto the floor.
     Roberta hit the ground with a sickening crack.
     Cammy dropped down the floor, ignoring her mother's question.  Roberta's
outer case looked fine, but that was no indication of her guts.  When Cammy
flipped the activation switch, nothing happened. 
     "I'll fix you," she promised her robot.
     Cammy felt a hand on her shoulder, and when she looked up she was
staring into her mother's eyes.  "Give me a sitrep," was all she said.  Cammy
never knew where her mother picked up battlefield jargon, her mom worked at a
museum, never played video games, but over the years it had become shorthand
for them.  It meant that Cammy might...probably...would get punished later,
but at the moment Mom was there to help.
     For a moment all of the turbulence from Cammy's day disappeared.  The
certainty she felt when she began her rescue mission returned.  "I got into a
fight, will get kicked out of robot club, but I've got to save Roberta."
Details would come later. 
     Cammy's mom picked up Roberta from the floor and put the book-sized
robot in her bag. 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Jennifer knew Jack and Dawn Smitherton from various school functions,
many related to the robotics club, and did not like them.  If pressed on why,
she could admit most of her biases were based on timing.  Jack's startup got
a lot of cleanup jobs around the time of Cameron's trial.  Those contracts
provided access to materials from the invasion, which Jack leveraged into
technologies that made his company a household name in the Chicago area. 
     If not for the trial revoking his clearance to sensitive materials, she
was sure it would have been Cameron who made those breakthroughs.  It wasn't
that she was jealous of what Jack had built.  The proximity of his success to
Cameron's loss, and hers, soured her toward them. 
     No, that was only part of it.  Years as Lady Lawful brought Jennifer
into contact with more megalomaniacs than the average person.  She had seen
many common traits among those who felt donning a costume and employing some
fantastic gimmick was the best means of retribution for slights against them.
As she listened to Jack talk about how it was hardly surprising that the
daughter of a criminal would attack the son of an upstanding citizen, she
decided had it not been for Jack's successes, he would have donned a costume
because of his failures. 
     "I'm going to stop you right there," Jennifer said, cutting off Jack.
"We're not here to discuss what my husband did or didn't do.  If you want to
question Cammy's upbringing, direct it at me." 
     "We're not here to question anyone's parenting," Principal Reed spoke,
trying to play the peacemaker.  "We're here because Cameryn attacked Bradley
today, and that cannot go without reprimand." 
     "How will they be punished?" Jennifer asked.
     "'They?'" Dawn asked incredulously.  "Bradley is the victim."
     "Bradley is the instigator," Jennifer corrected.  "Cammy finished the
fight, but she did not start it."  Before anyone could interrupt, Jennifer
continued, "Why would she pick a fight, today of all days?" 
     Principal Reed's expression was pained, but to his credit he said,
"Bradley does have a history of, let's say, being overzealous in his teasing
other students.  He is not without blame, but Cameryn should not have
escalated to physical violence." 
     "Exactly," Jack added.  "There's no harm in teasing."
     "That is not what I said."  Principal Reed's voice hardened perceptibly.
"What I am saying is that Cameryn should have gone to an authority about
Bradley's bullying.  However, as she took matters into her own hands, the
situation is," he sighed, "what it is." 
     "What is the situation?" Jennifer asked.
     "Cameryn is suspended for the week, and effective immediately she is no
longer an active member of the robotics club." 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Most of the drive home was done in silence.  It didn't take Cammy long
to recount the full spiral of events from her perspective to Jennifer.  After
that Cammy settled into a quiet contemplation as she examined Roberta.
Jennifer made comments and offered comfort while navigating suburban traffic
between the school and their home, but she too was lost in her own thoughts.
     It was when they turned onto their street that she said, "This is
partially my fault."  From the corner of her eye, she saw Cammy look at her.
Before the teen could add anything, Jennifer continued, "You're still in
trouble for hitting that Smitherton kid, but maybe," Jennifer sighed, "Maybe
if you had the full story, you wouldn't have gotten that upset." 
     "What story?" Cammy asked.
     They pulled into the garage.  "Go put Roberta in a safe spot.  I need
something from the back of my closet."  As Jennifer opened the door and
stepped into the kitchen she added, "Den in ten." 
     Cammy nodded, Roberta cradled in her arms, and put the robot on the
garage workbench.  Jennifer lingered at the door to watch Cammy for a moment.
Cammy was already unscrewing a panel from her robot.  Her raven hair was
unkempt from nervously pulling the hood of her jacket on and off during the
morning.  Her eyes were focused solely on the broken Roberta.  Jennifer
smiled wistfully at the sight.  There was no doubt Cammy was her father's
daughter. 
     The moment passed, and Jennifer wrapped on the door frame to get Cammy's
attention.  In her most parental voice she said, "Ten minutes, okay.  You're
already in trouble.  Don't make it worse." 
     "Yes, Mom."  Cammy didn't pause unscrewing the case as she replied.

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     "Are you going somewhere?" Cammy asked when she saw the suitcase in her
mom's hands.  It was an old, brown case.  It didn't even have a bunch of
stickers all over it, listing the places where the case had been.  It did
sound rather full and made a thump when it was set down. 
     "Serious face, kiddo," Jennifer told her.  Cammy sat up a little
straighter on the couch.  Jennifer knelt on the floor so she could face Cammy
at eye level.  "What do you know about your dad?" 
     "You never said much," Cammy mumbled, "He is alive, but can't come
home."  Cammy paused and fidgeted nervously.  "You talk to him.  I know
that's where you go every couple of weeks.  It's why you started bringing
pizza home every Saturday."  She trailed off.  "I guess I know he's a bad guy
thanks to stupid Bradley." 
     Jennifer started working on the combination lock to open the case.
"Your dad was never a bad guy, but he wasn't always a good guy."  Cammy's
face scrunched up.  "It's complicated, and I'm going to try and explain
everything, but this has to stay between us." 
     Before she opened up the case, she looked at Cammy again.  "This is
serious.  If Bradley is anything like I suspect his dad is, today isn't the
last time he's going to try and goad you.  You're going to get a whole Mom
Lecture about why ‘stupid Bradley' out played you today, but for now I just
need you to be honest with me and with yourself. 
     "Can you keep the biggest secret of my life?"
     Cammy already knew how the lecture would go.  Since her mom showed up,
the morning was on replay in her mind.  It took getting halfway home, but she
eventually understood that Bradley now owned the robotics club.  All of the
advances and friendships she worked to forge the past year were his now.  It
burned to think about, but she wouldn't be fooled by him again. 
     "I promise, mom."
     Jennifer smiled, gave a nod, and opened up the suitcase.  Blue boots.
Gold belt.  Red and blue diving suit.  Plus a few other knick-knacks.
Handcuffs? 
     "Mom, are you a cosplayer?" Cammy asked.  She was serious.
     "Something like that," Jennifer told her.  She unstrapped the gold belt
from the suitcase and snapped it around her waist.  Cammy thought it clashed
against the purple work dress her mom was wearing. 
     "Is your belt glowing?" Cammy asked.
     "Follow me."  Jennifer hopped to her feet in one smooth move.  Cammy
followed her back out to the garage where Jennifer reached underneath their
car.  "Got to find something solid, otherwise it's a bodyshop bill." 
     "Are you going to..."
     Without any apparent effort, Jennifer picked up the front of the car.
Then she moved one arm, keeping the car up with just one hand.  Cammy's mouth
dropped open. 
     "What the hell, mom?" she whispered.  "How are you...no.  Who are you?"
     "You ever heard of Lady Lawful?"

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Two weeks passed as slowly as ever, maybe a little slower.  After
hearing about Cammy's victory, Cameron felt lighter than he had in years.  He
never doubted his decision to turn his fate over to the justice system.
Knowing Jenny and Cammy were surviving was worth it.  Hearing that even at a
young age Cammy was thriving, that was something he never dreamed possible. 
     He didn't doubt Jenny.  It was his history that worried him.  He grew up
without his father around, which may have been a blessing since his father
never progressed beyond hired goon.  He feared what putting Cammy in a
similar situation might do to her, but she was excelling without him. 
     For two days he enjoyed dreaming about what heights Cammy might climb.
As he dreamed for her, it slowly dawned on him that he would never see her
successes.  He would never comfort her after failures, and guide her back on
track.  The most he would have, at best, were updates every two weeks.  Time
enough to get a high from hearing about her wondrous life, and then the empty
time between to wish for more. 
     This was on his mind as he walked with the guards to meet with Jennifer.
He didn't want to weigh her down with this.  It was his burden to bear.  Try
as he might, he couldn't shake the terrible realization that he would never
be a part of Cammy's life. 
     So when the screen changed from the test pattern to show someone other
than Jennifer, Cameron was at a loss.  She looked familiar.  Her short, dark
hair was familiar.  The bangs were managed by a pair of red barrettes that
looked like Brightsword's emblem, but the back had stray curls that couldn't
be tamed.  Her brown eyes similarly looked familiar, warm and curious, alive
and guarded. 
     "Can you hear me?" she asked.
     Cameron could only nod.
     The girl was Cammy.
     "Cammy?" Cameron asked.  He wiped his eyes.  "I don't understand.  Where
is your mother?  Is everything okay?" 
     For an instant Cammy looked irritated, then her look changed to almost
pitying.  "Oh, I guess you wouldn't...no, mom's fine.  Really.  She said it
was time I got to meet you."  Then it was back to irritation.  "Because of
the fight." 
     "Your fight?" Cameron asked.
     "It really wasn't a fight," she said defensively, "There's this kid at
school.  He said I cheated to win the robotics competition, and said it was
because I was like...like you."  She trailed off, realizing the implication. 
     "And you hit him?"  Cameron couldn't help but smile.
     Cammy sighed.  It was the same sigh Jenny made before admitting a
mistake.  "Yeah, but I shouldn't have.  I got kicked out of the club, and
broke Roberta.  Uh, Roberta's the robot who won the competition." 
     "Did anyone else place in the competition from your school?" Cameron
asked. 
     The question caught Cammy off balance, but she quickly recovered.
"Bradley...the one I punched...he placed fifth, but that was all," Cammy
explained, "and his dad owns SmitherTech, so who knows what help he got." 
     "Did you have any help?"
     Cammy shrugged.  "Mom really tried, but she's not much of a coder.  Mr.
Alvarez is a good math teacher, but his suggestions slowed everything down.
I had to figure it out." 
     "Your mom mentioned your grades slipped."
     Cammy cringed.  "She didn't have to do that."
     "Did you forget to study or, uh, fall asleep in class?" Cameron asked.
     "Both, I guess," Cammy eventually admitted.
     "Grades come and go, you made the right call."
     "Really?"  She was surprised.
     "We, ah, only get one life," Cameron told her.  "You traded grades for
something great.  That's a good investment." 
     Cammy sat up a little straighter at the compliment.  Then her face
soured.  "But I blew it when I hit Bradley.  I can't compete again." 
     Cameron nodded, "Why would you want to win the same competition a second
time?  That's the club's goal.  You should find, ah, something bigger." 
     Cammy went silent.  Cameron waited.  Jenny often said he had a look when
he had a breakthrough.  He hoped that's what he was seeing in Cammy's face.
"I never thought about that," she said more to herself than Cameron. 
     There was a banging on the door.  Time was almost up.
     "What was that?" Cammy asked.
     "They're telling me my time is almost up," Cameron explained, "and we
should say goodbye." 
     "We just started."  Cammy suddenly looked small.
     "Yeah," Cameron replied.  "Give me one second.  What I'm about to say
isn't going to make a lot of sense, but I'll explain it all when I'm done.
Okay?" 
     "Sure."
     Cameron inhaled and said, "Salamander.  Twelve.  Calamity."

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Part of The Cave visitation protocol was visitors had to turn over all
electronic devices.  Jennifer and Cammy gave up their phones.  Even the
hairband Cammy wore to keep her stray curls in place got confiscated because
of the LEDs in it.  The only way Jennifer could tell time was by the analog
clock hanging in the waiting room. 
     According to the clock, Cammy had been gone three times longer than
Jennifer ever spent when visiting Cameron.  She had a...not bad...a familiar
feeling.  It was a feeling she had not felt in a very, very long time. 
     "Is everything all right?" she asked the receptionist.  "My daughter has
been gone for a while."  The receptionist looked up from her computer, and
Jennifer realized she was pale.  "Oh, Deedee, what did you do?" 
     It took a bit of cajoling, but eventually Jennifer convinced the
receptionist to let her speak to someone higher up.  That person was part of
a security team that cooperated with security at The Cave to ensure visitors
and prisoners weren't collaborating.  He had to escalate to his boss, but
finally Jennifer was led back to the visitor room. 
     To no one's surprise, Cammy was still there.  She was talking to Cameron
on the screen.  "Mom, Cameron was just telling me about his robots.  They can
walk." 
     Jennifer forced a smile on her face.  "That's right.  Prototype."  She
leaned closer to the screen.  "Cameron, I don't mean to interrupt you two,
but hasn't this gone on...a little long?"
     "Aw, but he was going to tell me about the time his robot knocked you
guys out," Cammy protested. 
     "Your mom is right," Cameron said, "plus, ah, she can tell you that
story."  Cameron stepped closer to the camera.  "Cammy, thank you.  I've
waited a long time to meet you." 
     "Me too," she told him.
     "Cameron?" Jennifer asked.  Her tone spoke volumes.
     Cameron smiled.  "I'll be fine."  He waved.  "End call."
     Cammy watched her mom for a moment.  She'd heard that voice use that
tone to speak that name, her name, enough times to realize something was
wrong.  "Did I miss something?" she finally asked. 
     "Kiddo, I think everyone missed something...except your dad."

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     From the time Cameron returned control of The Cave back to the rightful
administrators to him sitting in the warden's office was just over a day.  He
suspected there were meetings held, and some of those would be engineers
poring over the code to all the systems.  He gave them a fifty-fifty chance
of finding the hole in that time, but there was no way they could patch it in
under a week.  Not with over a decade's worth of new code built on top of it.
     There were three people in the office with him, but he only recognized
two of them.  The warden was the first, and the other was Jack Smitherton.
Cameron knew him mostly by reputation, but their paths had crossed when he
took the job to harden The Cave's system code.  Neither of them looked very
happy. 
     The third person was wearing a black suit.  Cameron still had no idea
which agency they were with, but they seemed to show up when the highest
security issues cropped up.  An inmate shutting down The Cave for fifteen
minutes probably qualified. 
     "How did you do it, McKay?" the warden asked.  He wasn't sweating, but
he looked a lot less comfortable than the last time Cameron saw him, which
had also been the first time.  "Tell us and we'll be lenient.  Maybe this
incident gets expunged from you rather exemplary record." 
     Cameron wished he knew how to be cocky.  It would have been fun to make
them squirm.  Unfortunately, he didn't know how to be cool.  He chose to
speak directly. 
     "I want to go home," Cameron said.  "I could have, ah, left anytime I
wanted, but as you say, I've been an exemplary prisoner." 
     The warden cleared his throat and tried to chuckle.  "It doesn't work
that way.  You know that." 
     Cameron rolled his eyes.
     "This is ridiculous," Jack growled.  "Whatever you think you have,
McKay, my engineers will find it, fix it, and then they'll bury you twice as
deep as you are now.  Maybe if you help us, we can make your stay less
painful.  Maybe I can get your kid, Cammy, back on the robot team." 
     Cameron turned to look at Jack Smitherton.  There was a long pause
before Cameron spoke, and when he did it was a question.  "In fifteen years
have your engineers gotten better, or have they gotten cheaper?" 
     The warden looked back at Jack, confused to what Cameron was trying to
say. 
     Before Jack could answer, Cameron continued, "Because your engineers
weren't that good fifteen years ago, and they obviously haven't found the
hole since then."  Cameron turned to the anonymous agent.  "Do you trust his
engineers to find it?" 
     "Of course they'll find it," Jack said.  "This is extortion.  You cannot
blackmail the U.S. government." 
     The agent finally spoke.  "Doctor McKay, for clarity's sake, will you
use this exploit to escape?" 
     "No."
     "Will you use this exploit to release any prisoners?"
     "No."
     "Why did you use this exploit yesterday?"
     "My daughter wanted to keep talking, and I felt like obliging her."
     Jack threw his hands in the air.  "All this because of his stupid kid!
Throw him in a hole for a week.  By then my engineers will fix the flaw,
patch the system, and he can rot down here for the rest of his life." 
     "Will he?" the warden asked.  It wasn't said very loud, but it caught
everyone's attention.  "In the fifteen years The Cave has been in operation,
we've never had a security incident of that magnitude.  Jack, he wasn't even
trying to escape.  Yesterday was what he did to extend a phone call." 
     Jack didn't have a reply.
     "Okay, McKay, I can't just let you walk out, but I have pull with...
well...call it a parole board."  The warden looked back at the agent, who
nodded.  "I can put you in front of them in two days, but the rest is up to
you.  If I do that, will you explain what you did?"
     Cameron weighed his options.  It wasn't a sure shot, but it was his best
chance. 
     "You have a deal."

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     The "parole board" consisted of three individuals, each face shadowed
out, and all sharing the one screen in the communications room. 
     "Normally inmates in your position aren't up for anything like early
release," one of the heads spoke.  "However, at the warden's recommendation,
we've decided to review your record...Doctor McKay."
     Another started speaking, "You've been a model prisoner since your
incarceration, until a recent, rather concerning incident.  I'm told that in
exchange for this meeting, and our consideration, you will divulge the
security flaw.  Am I correct in saying your help is not contingent on
release?" 
     "As soon as we're done here, uh, I'll write out the flaw and offer my
best suggestion on how to resolve it.  It has been a while since I reviewed
the original code, so, ah, my knowledge may be out of date, but I can be
helpful." 
     "That brings us back to you," another head spoke, Cameron guessed the
one who hadn't spoken, "Why do you think you're fit to be released after your
time here?" 
     "You want to know if I'm penitent," Cameron answered.  "Do I, ah, regret
my actions that led to Benefactor's death thirteen years ago?" 
     "That is what I'm asking."
     "I regret a lot of things in my life," Cameron began.  "I regret that I
missed being with Jennifer.  I regret that I missed my daughter's birth, her
birthdays, and..." Cameron trailed off. 
     Jennifer sent him pictures of Cammy.  He had a small album of her from
birthdays, holidays, and school photos.  He only recently knew how her voice
sounded.  He still didn't know who her best friend was.  For all his genius,
Cameron McKay didn't know if his daughter was right or left handed. 
     "I regret a lot," Cameron started over, "I will never regret saving the
life of my wife and daughter from Benefactor.  If saying that keeps me in
here," he looked around the small room where the parole board met, "then so
be it.  They're alive, they're safe, and that's all that matters." 
     "I'll be honest, Doctor McKay, a lack of regret over your original crime
isn't something that lends itself toward release." 
     "I'm not good at lying," Cameron replied.  His voice was suddenly very
tired.  "I'm not good at knowing what people, ah, want me to say.  I can't
tell you that I regret my actions because it ended the life of someone in the
act of trying to kill my wife.  What I regret is that my daughter hit someone
at her school.  They provoked her because she was related to me.  Release me,
don't release me, she's got to live with my choice for the rest of her life. 
     "All I want is a chance to help her endure that."

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Jack Smitherton glared as Cameron wrote out a detailed explanation of
what he did, how to fix it, and a way to implement tests that would catch
similar problems.  He was furious.  Furious didn't describe it. 
     For a decade he managed to escape the shadow of Doctor Developer.
Without that shadow, he'd flourished.  He'd ascended to new heights, built
his company to be a competitor on the global market, and all of that triumph
was dashed away by apparently three random words. 
     "Barring any major, uh, changes to the build system, this should fix
everything," Cameron said.  He offered the paper to Jack, who snatched it
away. 
     "You better hope they don't let you out of here," Jack swore, "because
if they do, I'm going to sue you for breach of contract.  You were hired to
fix this." 
     "I did fix it," Cameron said, tipping his head toward the paper.
     "After fifteen years," Jack retorted.
     "In which no one at your company found the problem," Cameron answered.
     "All the jury will hear is that you left in a security hole that a
prisoner could have exploited to escape.  This will be on you, McKay."
Jack's grin grew wolfish. 
     "Jack, if they do release me, and you sue me, do you know what I'll tell
the jury?" Cameron asked flatly. 
     "What?"
     Cameron fixed Jack with his most villainous glare, which wasn't that
different from his usual impassive look, and said, "I will tell them that a
prisoner did go free, me, because of a security flaw that your company didn't
fix and couldn't find because they hired a super-villain, ah, someone who was
convicted of murdering Benefactor, to ensure The Cave was secure.  Even if I
lose, do you think you'll win?" 
     Jack didn't reply.  Cameron didn't give him the chance.
     "And, Jack, remember this.  I only needed three words.  So far, you've
used two."  Cameron counted on his finger.  "You've said my daughter's name."
One.  "Then you called her stupid."  Two.  "Do you want to find out what
happens with your third word?" 
     Jack carefully folded the instructions.  Then he walked out of the room,
without saying anything. 

	       *	      *		     *		    *

     Cammy was staring at the door that bridged the kitchen and garage.  She
was unconsciously chewing on the end of her thumb, which Jennifer knew was
something her daughter only did when she was nervous and trying to think her
way out of a stressful situation. 
     "Hey, kiddo," Jennifer spoke.
     Cammy didn't jump in surprise, but the interruption of thought was
enough that her unconscious thumb chewing percolated into her conscious
thoughts.  She shoved both hands in the pockets of her hoody, and looked away
from the door. 
     "Is your dad in there?" Jennifer asked.  She knew the answer.  The terms
of Cameron's release forbade him from going anywhere remotely like one of his
old workshops.  The only sanctuary he could access was the garage, which
still contained some of his old equipment that Jennifer kept tucked away. 
     "Uh, Cameron's in there, yes," Cammy answered.
     Jennifer frowned.  "A simple, ‘Yes,' would have been fine."
     Cammy looked ashamed.  "I'm sorry," she apologized.  "It's hard to think
of him that way."  She rubbed the back of her neck.  "It's just..."  She
shrugged. 
     "Come here," Jennifer opened her arms.  Cammy collided with her, and
they hugged.  "I don't say this enough, but I am proud of you.  You've had a
lot happen in a short time, and you are handling better than a lot of
people." 
     The doorbell rang. 
     "Dinner's ready," Jennifer said with a smile.  She and Cammy separated.
If dinner was ready when the doorbell rang it meant pizza.  "I'll go get
dinner out of the oven..." 
     Cammy rolled her eyes.  "Har, har."
     "You go tell Cameron to wash up."  Jennifer grabbed her purse and
disappeared from Cammy's view before she could protest. 
     She felt a flash of anger.  Saturday pizzas were a tradition between her
and her mom.  It was close to sacred.  Now he was going to butt in.  She
considered not telling him to see what happened.  With luck her mother would
assume the mad scientist in the garage didn't want to come out. 
     Then she felt ashamed.  Saturday pizzas were a sacred family tradition.
As strange as it felt to have someone who wasn't herself or her mom in the
house, he was family.  He wasn't going anywhere.  She didn't have to like it,
but she didn't hate it either. 
     Reluctantly, with heavier footsteps than absolutely required, Cammy
walked over to the door and opened it.  She wasn't sure what she expected to
find.  The time she'd been to her friends' houses, their dads didn't spend
much time in the garage.  They were typically in front of the television.
She definitely did not expect to see Roberta opened up on a workbench. 
     "What the hell, man?" she cried.  "That's mine.  You can't just..."
     Cameron didn't look up from the robot's innards.  "Did you build this
board yourself?" He held over one of the secondary boards.  It had been a
while since Cammy worked with her robot, but she was sure it was the imaging
board. 
     "Yes, now put it back!"  She wanted to rush over and grab up the parts
of her robot, but she was afraid of what might happen.  At best she would
knock some of the components on the floor.  At worst the guy who killed the
strongest hero in the world might...she didn't know. 
     Cameron seemed to finally hear her.  He looked at the pile of robot on
the bench, then at Cammy, and back to the pile.  "Oh, uh, sorry," he mumbled.
In less than a minute, Cameron returned the robot to its rightful state.  He
held it out to Cammy.  "Your board had a couple of broken connections on it.
I, ah, fixed those." 
     Cammy snatched the boxy robot from Cameron's hands and hugged it.  She
looked down at the robot in her arms.  "She fell off a shelf a few weeks
ago," Cammy explained, omitting some details about the rescue mission.  Her
voice hardened.  "You shouldn't go through other people's things." 
     Cameron nodded.  "It's been a few years since I've seen a robot,"
Cameron mumbled as an explanation, "but you are right.  I apologize." 
     The two watched each other until Cammy broke the silence.  "We're having
pizza.  Mom says to wash your hands."  Cammy stepped into the garage, and
moved to the side so Cameron could get by out of arm's reach.  Once he was
gone, Cammy pushed the door closed. 
     She wasn't sure what to do first.  Grudgingly she knew she couldn't
disassemble and reassemble her robot as fast as Cameron.  She had two minutes
before Mom came to get her, but she had to know.... 
     The battery drawer always had a few spares of the most common sizes.
Her robot used bigger batteries for the motors, but the control computer just
needed two triple-As.  She could swap those out quickly. 
     With fresh batteries in place, Cammy switched the robot's computer on.
Ever since her robot fell, switching the computer on had no effect.  No
matter how hard she looked at the boards, she never saw what kept her robot
from coming to life. 
     This time it came on.  The LED screen showed the word "LOADING" with a
flashing cursor.  It was something she didn't think she would ever see again.
She wanted a closer look...when Cameron wasn't around...but from what she
could tell... 
     "He fixed her," Cammy whispered.


============================================================================

Editor's Notes:

     Andrew initially wrote about two thirds of this without expectation that
it would fit into ASH at all, but after reading it I could see how it'd work
in the framework of Coherent Super-Stories and its "one step removed from
reality" meta-approach to writing about a world in which ASH stories were
published as comics (among other media).
     I was inspired by how DC's "Future State" books were salvaged from an
abandoned "new generation of heroes" plan, although in the case of Future
State they already had completed art before deciding to backpedal about five
thousand miles away from the plan.  So, I reasoned, maybe a similar change in
plans happened at the fictional Coherent Comics, albeit with only some
pitches and maybe a few scripts ending up unused?  As another DC nod, I took
Andrew's actually-called-Benefactor character and changed that to be a
placeholder name, with a hero to be determined later being thrown under the
bus by the event (Armageddon 2001, Millennium, etc.) as the hero referred to
throughout the above story as Benefactor.  (I'm inclined to think Solar Max I
would've been picked, as a powerful second-stringer with a lot of connections
and a natural way to reach out to alien invaders.)
     Anyway, because of the meta conceit, I tried to keep a light editorial
touch, mostly just making sure that the format was Usenet-compatible.  At
over ten thousand words, it's probably the longest single post done for ASH,
but it's been a long time since we really needed to keep posts below a
certain size to avoid choking servers.  :)


Author's Notes:

     Nightcore YouTube playlists are a hell of a drug.  The song “Daddy’s
Eyes” by Zoey Wees got in my head last week, and got me thinking about what a
reunion between Fleet (from LL&DD #9) and Cameron would be like.  Then that
morphed into an unspecified daughter being separated.  Suffice to say it went
through variations until we ended up here.

     Fun fact, the only other story I ever wrote to break five figures is
about another McKay trapped in a cave.  

============================================================================

     For all the back issues, plus additional background information, art,
and more, go to http://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/ASH !

     http://ash.wikidot.com/ is the official ASH Wiki, focusing on the Fourth
Heroic Age, but containing some information about other Ages.

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