Previous Story: 79. The Betrayal
"Is it really necessary to wear the flying jacket and gloves? It’s not like you’re a World War I ace."
Flyboy turned to Kuklacı. "Is it really necessary to wear those dresses every day?"
"This is my identity. I’m Turkish."
"And this is my identity. I’m a pilot."
The tension continued for a moment, until they both cracked up and started laughing. Flyboy was glad; he respected the robotics expert and was continually impressed by the variety and capability of her innovative designs. The pair were standing in the driveway of Cyborg’s mansion, waiting for Flash of the Peacemakers to arrive.
"Dr. Altmann seems to have perked up," said Flyboy. "He was so quiet at first."
"All those weeks on his own," replied Kuklacı. "Very intelligent man. He put that Entropic Field Nullifier together in just 10 hours."
"Is it finished?" asked Flyboy, who’d been busy that morning checking the mansion perimeter with Hiko.
"Just about. He’s adding some finishing touches with Cyborg and Threads."
"Ah, that must be Flash," said Kuklacı. At the bottom of the drive, Plate had just waved in an Edison electric truck. Plate swiftly shut the gate; he was on guard duty for the day. The truck drove slowly up the drive, then stopped.
Flash was dressed in a grey suit and spotless white shirt. "Morning, guys. Delivery’s in the back."
He led the way and opened up the rear doors. "This is my drone, Telemetry Measurement Instrument. I call him Timmy." He nodded down at the drone, a chunky but powerful model. "Old design, but he’s got it where it counts."
Flyboy’s drones were lightweight; not powerful enough to carry the load of Altmann’s device. He gave an approving nod. "Looks good to me, Flash."
"It’s also pretty heavy — you want to give me a hand?"
"Sure." As he was at least 20 years younger, Flyboy jumped up into the back.
Flash turned his attention to Kuklacı, nodding politely. "You must be our robotics expert. Pleased to meet you."
"Likewise," said Kuklacı. "Thanks for helping us out."
"My pleasure."
Flyboy had his hands under the bulky drone but Flash suddenly seemed more interested in Kuklacı. Flyboy cleared his throat.
"OK," said Flash. "So, where are we going?"
-----
They were going to Kuklacı’s temporary workshop, situated in the mansion’s basement. Dr. Altmann delivered the EFN not long after Flash arrived. He wanted to stay and help, but when he almost fainted, Cyborg insisted that the aged scientist get some rest.
As soon as they began considering how to attach the device to Timmy, the razor-sharp Kuklacı took the lead, even though the men ostensibly knew more about drones.
Flash, however, knew nothing about the EFN, so Flyboy explained how Altmann’s Electronic Field Nullifier worked: The device generated a bubble about 10 feet in diameter that could potentially protect one or two humans while they tried to disable the entropic disruptor field. It had already been tested using one of Kuklacı’s spiders, but now they needed something with more size and range.
While she and Flash developed the plan, then began work, Flyboy realized something else was going on.
"You’re very quick," said Flash.
"People tell me that," replied Kuklacı, making an adjustment to the EFN housing. Altmann’s creation was a rectangular device that weighed 10 pounds.
"But you’re the one called Flash," she added. "How’d you get that nickname?"
The detective gave a wry grin. Before he could say anything, Kuklacı smiled. "Relax. I know how you got it — anyone that looks as good as you during an apocalypse deserves to be called Flash."
"Should I leave you guys to it?" asked Flyboy, earning an embarrassed smile from the other two.
-----
Three hours later, their work was done. All three of them felt confident that Timmy could help them disable the entropic disruptor. As they proudly displayed their work to the other Creators, Flyboy noticed Flash once again talking to Kuklacı in a corner. He was secretly writing some numbers on his hand. When he saw the furtive smile that passed between the cop and the designer, Flyboy had no doubt that Flash now had Kuklacı’s phone number.
It was nice to see something positive among all the sadness and suffering.
Good for them.
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