If it's Tuesday, it must be Hamburg

A Tale from the Lost Journals of the Hyperion Society
by Lucinda (Edith's Player)

It was a dark and stormy night. Doctor Vortex strode quickly down a quiet street in Hamburg, alert to his surroundings and moving fast. There weren't many people out - a few soldiers on liberty, some laborers on their way home for the night. A short man in a bomber jacket and a slouch hat walking slowly with his eyes on the ground passed him and turned the next corner. As soon as he was out of sight, the man chuckled gleefully and started pacing swiftly to the south. It was Edith Odinsdottir in disguise.

After a mile, she ducked into the anonymous doorway of the Hyperion Society's Hamburg safe house.  As she walked in the door, Jack Flash stepped out of a doorway. "Did you find him?" he asked eagerly.

Her grin gave the answer. "Yeah. Your intelligence was spot on. Finally! And yes, I learned what we need to know. They have Doctor Harris here. They're trying to turn him but it hasn't worked yet. We have to move quickly, though - they're going to try to torture the schematics out of him soon. He's being kept in one of the Thule Society homes on Falckweg in Othmarschen. I didn't get a floor plan but he's upstairs." Doctor Harris was an internationally recognized expert in missile guidance systems.

Jack called Hiroshima Overdrive and Bodak Danger into the room and Edith got them up to speed. "I'm not tired," said Hiroshima. "Why not go grab him now?" Everyone agreed.  "Grab your gear, then, and let's go," said Edith.

The four friends got to the end of the block on Falckweg unobserved. Hiroshima pulled out a grappling hook with a propeller and a rope attached to it and tossed it into the air. He guided it cautiously using a radio controller until it hooked onto the roof with a soft "clunk". They quickly swarmed up the rope, pulling it up behind them, and slipped along the roof until they got to the Thule Society house.

Jack slid cautiously down the roof and peered in a window. He pulled out a slim piece of metal and jimmied it open. Silently, the four dropped into the room.

Edith crept to the door and reached out with her mind. "There's one guard, about 10 feet down the hallway. He doesn't feel all that smart, if you know what I mean. I'm going to try something. Bodak, be ready to take him out." She spoke into the guard's mind. "Doctor Vortex wants you to check out a disturbance in the room down the hall. You're the only soldier good enough to do this." She made a soft scuffling noise and stood back.

Sure enough, a second later the soldier charged into the room, pistol drawn. Bodak dropped him with one hard punch to the face. They searched him for keys but he had none. They tied him up and crept down the hall.

The door was locked, of course. "I've got this," said Hiroshima. The others, used to his wizardry, wisely stood back. He pulled out a probe with a large power supply attached and inserted it into the lock. After a minute, the lock grew red; with a hiss it melted. They opened the door.

Doctor Harris leaped up from his bed. "Don't worry, sir, we're here to rescue you," said Jack. "Come quickly!" He nodded and joined them.

As they filed into the room with the soldier, they heard boots coming up the stairs. Edith and Hiroshima guided Doctor Harris to the roof while Jack and Bodak quickly dispatched the guards with fists and sword as they ran in the open door. The five retreated back to the end of the block and slid down the rope.

They got halfway back to the safe house before they saw a patrol. Fortunately, they were able to duck down an alley and hide behind some dustbins. The patrol followed them but it was only two soldiers. Once again, Jack and Bodak were able to dispatch them without raising further alarm. The rest of the trip was uneventful.

Once they were back in the Hyperion Society house, Jack poured whiskey all around. "You're safe now, Doctor Harris, and we've blacked Doctor Vortex's eye again."