Silver Metal Killer

“Silver Metal Killer”
Wings of Honor episode
Episode no.	Episode 3
Date	1999
Game Master	Carl Cramér
Characters	Diana Dale Madeleine Hazard Rex Reason
Episode chronology ← Previous Next → "A Bear of a Secret" "The Red Skull Gang"
Wings of Honor episode list

Returning to New York, the heroes are invited to a night at the Hellfire Club.

Synopsis

Returning to base they prepared for the return of the boat. The personnel at the base had decided to leave for home. To get all of them back to civilization they had to use the transport the pirates had left in the western hangar. Since no one of the scientists or mechanics could fly they were missing a pilot. The pirate pilot that survived the bale out at the cave was their only choice. He was to fly the other transport closely watched by the others. While the personnel packed, the mechanics worked hard repairing the planes. Early the next day they brought the captured pirates to Hebron and left them to the authorities. They continued their flight back to New York keeping the other transport in the formation. Zach had some discussion on the radio with the pirate and after landing he suggested that he kept the other Mogul, adding it to his "business". The others would get one forth of it's value each, when he could afford to pay them. He also enrolled the pirate to fly it.

They were met by Foxy Lady at the aerodrome. Surprisingly to them Dr. Nooma and Foxy Lady seemed to know each other. They got paid and Diana, Rex and Rebel received a delicately written invitation to a party at the Hellfire club the next night. Diana's invitation had a private note asking her to sing at the party. They all accepted. But before that party they had some things to celebrate of their own. A new partnership, a successful mission and three kills!

They went to a nice but not too expensive speakeasy. At first they sat quietly at a table talking and drinking, but as the night went on they got merrier. Diana asked the band if she could play with them. She got the trumpet and played for all her worth. After her jam session there were a lot of applause and Rex said in the microphone
"Ladies and gentlemen. Diana Dale! Celebrating her first two kills. Two unhappy air pirates. Give her a big hand!"
"Thank you. Rex Reson! He got his ninth kill!" Diana responded leaning to the microphone in front of Rex. After that they were the center of attention for the rest of the evening.
"You've really got nine kills?... Soon two digits then... Ever met the Black Swan?"
"Rebel... Used to fly for Dixie... Six kills... No, none were Empire state."
"So, you're 'King' and you're 'Rebel' but what's your call sign?"
"She haven't got one yet. Still a little wet behind the ears..." Rebel smiled.
"The way she was hammering away with her two guns I'd call her 'Double Down'." Rex stated.
"I'll drink to that!"
Diana drank a little more than she should have, but they all got home okay anyway.

The next day Diana was a little tired from the night before and didn't get up until noon. She got dressed hurriedly and went to a telephone make a call to a Mr. Emanuel to inquire about her performance. He told her that the band would practice at a concert hall from two o'clock. She had just the time to go to a tailor to get a dress. The Invitation card said Georgian/Dramatic as dress code. She wondered what 'dramatic' meant and chose a floor long white glittering dress with a slit to the hip. "Is that dramatic enough for you?" she thought. While the tailor changed the dress she met the band. Their main repertoire was classical music but they also played swing and other contemporary music. When finished rehearsing she went to a hairdresser to get her hair done for the evening.

Rebel went out to look at the town to see the sights. Rex guided her throughout the morning. Her only comment were:
"Big and dirty"
Getting ready for the party Rebel brought out her dress uniform. "If they said Georgian they will get Georgian." the girl, formerly of Georgia's First Air Squadron 'Georgia's Finest' of the Dixie Air Corps thought to herself. Rex put on his own version of "dramatic". A double breasted black flight jacket, blue jodhpurs trousers with yellow piping, black boots and his blue flat top. Rex took a cab and picked up Diana on his way to the party. Rebel drove her own car, a small brightly red MG.

When Rex and Diana arrived, there were protesters walking in front of the club. Diana snuck in while Rex remained to pay the cab. Rebel came along in her car and honking drove straight through the crowd into the parking lot next to the club. When she returned to the entrance they were very upset and a fight was not far away. Then a window opened on the second floor and a very beautiful but chilly woman looked down at the people.
"It's time for you all to leave now." she said with a voice that seemed to penetrate the very bones.
Sirens of police cars grew louder and the crowd began to disperse. As Rex and Rebel entered the club they noticed a plaque by the entrance. 'Hellfire Club, est. 1838' After a few moments the Icy lady greeted them.
"Welcome to the Hellfire Club, I am the White Queen, your hostess for tonight. We are a libertine club, but we have two strict rules. As guest you will not be sworn to them, but we expect you to obey them nonetheless. First, never speak of the club outside the premises. Second, don't ask anyone who they are." With this she ushered them into the club proper

There was a big ball room with a balcony running all around. Halfway across there was a huge fireplace with a coal fire burning, casting an eerie flickering light. At the other end there was a stage with a band playing. A few people danced in front of the stage. They started mingling. It turned out that all members had a member name after a chess piece. Most were pawns, but did not seem to mind.
"After all, I'm not part of the staff."
It turned out that Foxy Lady was the White Bishop and Dr. Nooma had become the Black knight. Emanuel, a Negro, was the white king. The different colors had a meaning: black being the scientific and "old money" and white the more adventurous. Diana met an interesting man, who someone of the big game hunters she met in South America had mentioned as a colleague, and started talking to him.
"You're new here?"
"Yes. I haven't had much time lately. I'm a pilot you know... Yes very exciting... No, I haven't been to any party since that big Howard Hughes party in April. Do you know Mr. Hughes?... A very charming man..."

Emanuel who was the toast master announced the first performance.
"All the way from the west coast, the country of stars, Miss DIANA DALE!"
Diana entered the stage and started singing. Rex noted a man in a black frock looking very nervous. Next to him were a young woman in a cheap yellow dress.
"That's not guests, that's the next act" whispered the beautiful lady on his arm, nodding slightly toward them. The song was much appreciated. After leaving the stage Diana joined the others dancing. Getting thirsty Diana got a glass of water and sat down at a table. A woman walking by seemed quite unsteady. Diana helped her to sit down. She almost fainted but kept on talking, talking pillow talk as if to Emanuel. When she woke up she was as in a trance like state. Rebel came by and sat down. She asked her some questions but didn't get any sense out of her, other than that Emanuel seemed to be a hypnotist. But at least she came to.

Emanuel announced the next performance.
"Also from the west coast, brought here for your enjoyment. A marvel of science and engineering! Please give a big hand for the Scientist DOCTOR HELLION AND HIS MARVELOUS METAL MADEMOISELLE!"
On stage the curtains parted to reveal an intricate machine with two seats back to back. In one of them a young woman was seated. Rex recognized her from earlier. In the other a robotic woman wearing a similar dress was seated.
"My lovely assistant Marguerite and I will demonstrate this new breakthrough science..."
He droned on with a lecture, while the band started playing and Marguerite started to dance. There were a few whistles as the scantly clad young woman moved to the music. Then she sat down in the machine and Dr. Hellion strapped her to the seat. The curtains were drawn. A buzzing and crackling with blue lightning came from within. The curtains parted a little only revealing the robot. The Marvelous machine slowly stood and started dancing the same dance as Marguerite earlier. Then it sat down and the curtains hid everything again. When drawn again it revealed a very tired Marguerite. The performance got some applauds but mostly boos. The audience thought it was too obvious that the girl changed into the robot suit. Dr. Hellion got furious and stormed off the stage. Diana followed him to the dress rooms talking comforting to him.
"It wasn't bad, but I think the audience expected..."
"She got more applause than me. My show was extremely difficult. And they applauded that singer." He apparently talked about Diana not recognizing her.
"They didn't understand your greatness. Perhaps you should work on..." Diana tried.
"Yes, I will certainly work on my vitality unuculator! You are the only one here to understand how great a scientist I am. Do you want to be my assistant instead of Maggie? Here's my card." He handed it over and shut the door to his dress room.
Dr. Jaque Remoux. College of Berkeley.
Diana noted that his room were next to hers. Back at the party she told the others of his strange comments.
"I wonder if it really is a dancing machine. Do you think the dance were predetermined moves made by an intricate mechanical machine. If it's not a costume that is." Rex said, thinking of how it could be done.
"No Way." Rebel stated "That kind of technology lies at least five years into the future."

Rebel followed Diana to her dress room to see if they could over hear anything. Rebel noticed a tall dark stranger, she could hardly get her eyes off, on the way there. In the dress room Diana listened at the wall while Rebel climbed outside peaking through the shutters. She saw the box standing in the middle of the small room. Sitting apathetic next to the window was the young woman. Standing in front of her was the scientist talking to her. "...understand, Maggie?"
"Yes doctor"
The weird scientist turned, got his things and walked out of the room. When passing the balcony in the ball room he stopped, preaching to all.
"You don't understand me! I am a GENIUS! I will return home, and never come back, except perhaps as a conqueror! I will destroy you all!"
He walked quickly out of the building and into a waiting cab. Rebel returned to Diana's dress room after playing a trick on Maggie.
"I just wanted to make sure she was still alive." Rebel explained.
Returning to the party Rex interest grew.
"I have to know. I'll check that machine." seeing Maggie coming down the stairs he added "And now is the time."

Maggie, still wearing the same dress, but now also a veiled hat, cape and gloves, entered the dance floor. To keep an eye on her, Diana followed. Rebel & Rex sneaked up to the dressing room with the machine. Rex picked the lock. They entered the room and started to break open the crate with what little tools they had. On the dance floor Maggie led and threw her partner wildly. She didn't seem tired at all as she was before. Her partner got enough and fled the field. Quickly Maggie grabbed Diana and started dancing. She held her with a grip, hard as steel.
Back in the room there was a knock on the door.
"Who is it?" Rebel said trying to imitate Maggie.
"We've come for the box." a male voice announced from outside unlocking the door.
"I'm not dressed" Rebel tried, sweeping a sheet from the bed around her.
"So what?" the voice answered, mumbling something about "...thinking she is a star?"
Rex hid behind the crate. Five men dressed as stage hands entered and started to hammer back what little they had loosened from the box. Rex sneaked out and appeared in the door.
"What's all this, then?"
After a short argument over the honor of a woman he lifted one of the men outside the room and gave the others a lesson in comme'il faut. They decided to wait outside. Rebel opened the crate again with a crowbar left by the men.
Dancing in the ballroom Maggie led from the beginning throwing Diana around as if a rag doll. Suddenly she slowed down holding Diana hard against her own hard, cold body.
"I believe you are the one who stole my show. They liked you better than me. It is your fault the doctor is upset."
Diana tried to get out of her grip but it only tightened starting to crush her with incredible strength. Rex hearing disturbances from the ballroom walked out to the balcony. Seeing Diana's trouble he leaped down from the balcony. Trying to knock Maggie over with his momentum he hit her hard but only succeeded in removing the hat revealing the robot. Diana managed to slip out of it's hold and ran out of reach. Rex tried to kick the robot but it was to tough.
Upon removing some planks revealing the machine Rebel learned it was running and Maggie was strapped into it. The lever was sabotaged and trying to remove Maggie without shutting it down properly would probably burn her brains. Instead she went after Rex leaping down too, but onto an innocent man.
"Thank you for breaking my fall, Mister."
The robot trying to trick Rex imitated Diana's voice and ran towards the doors. Rex was not fooled by it's simple trick. Diana pleaded to the crowd "That awful evil machine is trying to kill little fragile me, sob..."
"I will protect you!"
The big game hunter stepped up drawing a big revolver and fired at the robot. Rebel yelled to Rex
"Stop the machine upstairs. It probably controls the robot in some way"
Rex ran up the stairs to the dress room. The robot being a slow runner decided climbing up the balcony was the fastest way there. Rebel fired at it's joints but with no effect. She then fired at the railing the robot was climbing on.
Rex looked at the machine deciding he had to turn it off somehow. The lever was bent and the whole mechanism electrified. He isolated the crowbar by wrapping it thickly with cloth. In the ballroom Diana fetched a soda siphon bottle. Rebel fired again and the robot fell down. Diana drenched the robot in soda making it crackle. At the same time Rex used the crowbar to disconnect the handle and managed to shut down machine.

A crowd gathered around the robot with Dr. Nooma bending over the now still robot.
"Don't destroy it! It is very fascinating."
Diana, Rebel and Rex decided that Dr. Remoux must be stopped obviously being completely mad. Asking where crate was to be sent they learned that he probably was leaving the city. Rebel took Diana to the aerodrome the box were to be sent to in her sports car arriving only minutes before Rex. He had called to different aerodromes for departures to Hollywood and to the Hotel Dr. Remoux had been staying at but he had already checked out. Realizing he was getting away he took an autogiro cab to the aerodrome. Together again they asked for aeroplanes or Zeppelins leaving for Hollywood and found out that a Dr, Remoux was booked on a Zeppelin leaving early tomorrow. Many passengers had already entered and there were no tickets left. Realizing they had no formal charges they decide to go to Hollywood to stop the evil genius by exposing his dangerous work. Rex didn't want to. But let himself be persuaded.