Hour of the Devil
"Hour of the Devil" is a story that delves into the psychological struggles of Samantha Grey, a refugee from Dimension Delta Zeta 17-46, as she grapples with the trauma of her past. The story is set in Paragon City just a few years ago, where Samantha is now a superhero, and explores the lingering effects of the catastrophic event she experienced during her escape from her home dimension. Dimension Delta Zeta 17-46. That story is told in The Montana Incident.
Bridge
Captain Jameson: "Command assault squads, readiness check."
Major Medina: "All teleport teams are ready-green. The 203'rd is ready to go."
Captain Jameson: "Navigator, give me our distance from the wormhole."
Navigator: "520 kilometers away from the wormhole, sir, approach vector nominal, one quarter Gee."
Engineer: "Field stabilization activated and holding steady, Captain."
Captain Jameson: "Professor, your last call."
Doctor Philadelphia: "The gate equipment is functioning as I promised. Proceed, Captain."
Captain Jameson: "Cag, Red Leopards?"
Commander, Space Group: "All our F-39's are ready to fly. Combat Space Patrol will launch at exit plus ten seconds."
Captain Jameson: "Targeting?"
Strategic Weapons Officer: "Hyperband search radars and passive neutrino detectors energized. We'll have lock on their space infrastructure, nuclear arsenals, and major cities within six minutes of transit."
Targeting Officer: "Clear traffic. No vessels detected beyond the wormhole."
Captain Jameson: "Bring the drives up to maximum military power. Weapons hot. Bring the catalytic wave canon to standby."
Navigator: "Engines read 110%, Captain. Interlocks ready. Thorium plasma is hot and contained."
Captain Jameson: "Guns, release Authority Jameson Alpha-Mike-Niner-Seven."
Strategic Weapons Officer: "Hypervelocity missiles are go with twenty megaton area denial payloads and hundred kiloton bunker busters"
Captain Jameson: "Engineering, comms, final checks."
Engineer: "Stabilizer fields holding strong, sir. No signs of dimensional shearing. The planar membrane ahead has no visible harmonics."
Communications Officer: "Approaching the wormhole now, Captain. 3.2 Gee. Estimated time for transit into Primal Dimension is 24 seconds and counting on the clock."
Captain Jameson: "All right then. Let's be about it. ALL HANDS, secure for battlestations. Ten seconds! ... Five seconds! ... Red Alert! ... Tra--"
Teleport Assault Pod
Lieutenant Grey was in the cramped assault pod with her team of cybercommandos. Their space suits were buttoned up. Ground service duffles ready. The air stale and metallic. Her head pounding from the combat stims. The shuttle shook from the merciless acceleration of the Montana's main drives. It was on its deployment arm, ready to be dropped off the ship, to accelerate at ten gees towards a target, a primal defense command center, to be assigned after transit. She struggled to keep her fires down, and focused her power on her commandos. They would act fast and decisively, neutralizing and securing enemy command and control.
Samantha felt the ripple in reality as they passed through the membrane between the dimensions. It burned like a dagger in her heart. The command comm and data channel filled with static, squeeled, and then cut off. An impossible light started shining from behind her. The Montana ... was exploding.
Major Medina's voice called out on their company comms. "All teleport Squads! Plan Omega! Emergency bail to the surface! Execute!" Samantha acted instantly, summoning all her power, gathering her cybercommandos in her power's embrace, and teleported into the black of primal space, away from the plasma fireball that had been the Montana, screaming out in agony from the effort.
0300 EST
She sat up abruptly in the darkness. The clock at the side of her bed in her apartment in Overbrook read 0300.