Darala Starr, Superwoman – Earth Mission Alpha – Chapter 4

Written by Darala Starr :: [Thursday, 13 June 2019 16:35] Last updated by :: [Saturday, 29 June 2019 00:40]

CHAPTER 4 – TAU CETI PHYSICS

Darala glared hopelessly around the cell, taking in the solid walls and those very imposing looking metal bars. A sense of dread began to fill her, slowly, like a bleeding wound. She shook her head, and just then her wrist communicator lit up. The ship’s computer was calling.

“Darala, I need a mission update from you,” it said. “Tau Ceti is demanding an update. What is your status? Mission timing and launch window are critical. Do you have the missing transponder?”

Darala said, “Not yet. Where were you? I lost communication, I needed you!”

“I’m sorry, Darala,” the ship’s computer answered, “but there was interference and our connection was cut. A strange energy is present here.”

Darala took a deep breath and said, “Yes. It’s a Torellian.”

“A Torellian? Here?” the computer asked.

“Yes,” Darala said.

“Has he detected you?” the computer asked.

Darala hesitated and then said, “Um, yeah, you might say that. Actually he captured me and I’m detained.”

“Detained?” the computer asked. “Explain.”

Darala began, “Well, he almost killed me with a gun, then he locked me in some kind of detention chamber. If I don’t tell him who I am, where I’m from, and about the mission, he’s going to kill me.”

“Describe the chamber,” the computer said.

Darala said, “There are three very solid walls and a barrier of bars. It looks like they are forged of terrestrial steel.”

“Earth steel,” the computer replied. “Darala, you should have read the entire report I prepared for you concerning Earth. Have you forgotten basic physics?”

Darala stomped her foot in exasperation.

“I know, okay!” she exclaimed. “I’m sorry, I screwed everything up! I can’t believe I got myself into this mess. What am I going to do?”

The computer replied, “No, Darala, you don’t understand.You are from Tau Ceti Alpha. And you are presently on Earth.There is a conversion you should apply in this situation.”

Darala thought about it and it took a moment longer for it to sink in. With a dawning realization Darala exclaimed, “Of course! I can’t believe I didn’t remember the ratios! Tau Ceti Alpha has over thirty times Earth’s gravity which means I have over thirty times….”

Her gaze fell intently on the bars and she began to wonder.

“I’ll call you back,” she said and closed her wrist communicator.

Slowly, Darala approached the bars and wrapped her fingers around two of them for a firm grip.

Okay, Darala, she thought,just concentrate. All the training back home increased your physical abilities. Use all your strength!

Darala tightened her grip on the bars and closed her eyes. She concentrated. She took a deep breath, rocked her hips back and forth for a strong stance and pushed her chest out. Darala pulled against the bars, exerting her prodigious Tau Ceti strength. And to her surprise, the steel bars succumbed instantly! A terrible creaking groan came from the bars as she pulled them apart.She was bending steel!Feeling an almost euphoric rush, Darala pulled even harder, exerting more of her strength, the steel now howling and screeching as she bent the bars wider and wider!

“I have super strength!” she exclaimed.

The bars were now bowed apart in a widened gap. But she’d have to make it wider still in order to escape. And besides, the feel of her strength was intoxicating.

Cocking her hips to one side, Darala repositioned her grip on the bars and re-applying her awesome strength, continued to bend them slowly as the steel unleashed a tortured howl. She never imagined the bars would cry audibly, but the effect only added to the impressiveness of her strength.

Darala smiled with great pleasure as she now had the bars rounded open in a massive elliptical gap and she easily stepped out through them. She was free!

She dropped her fists on her hips, examined the conquered bars of steel and felt the rush of euphoria from using her strength.

“This is incredible!” she said. “I can bend steel. I wonder what else I can do on this planet?”

Just then the outer door slammed open, and the Torellian man burst into the room, his gun pointed.

“Time’s up, miss scientist….”

He lost his words as his glowing gaze fell upon the massive, bulging gap in the steel bars. He simply could not believe what he was seeing. Darala appeared suddenly at his side, fists on her hips.

“You did that?” he asked, astonished. “It’s impossible!”

Quickly, Darala grabbed his wrist of the hand that held his weapon. She squeezed and he felt the immense pressure of her grip. The pain was instant and he dropped the gun.

“Not impossible,” Darala said. “I’m a scientist and it’s simple physics.”

She picked the gun off the floor. After examining it for a moment, she decided in order to sufficiently render it unusable, she would bend the barrel so no projectiles could be fired. Having just pulled the steel bars of the cell apart, she was confident this would be possible with only her bare hands.

Darala tightened her grip around the long barrel and squeezed. With what felt like little resistance, the gun barrel began to bend in her grip, the metal giving stress related creaks and cries in protest. The euphoric feel of her strength, the overpowering of the steel in her grip, was tangible and electric.

         The Torellian man could not believe what he was seeing and his glowing eyes bulged in his head.

 Darala gave the gun a final squeeze to which the steel cried loudly. When she opened her hands, the gun barrel was folded almost flat against itself, now half its original length.

         Darala threw it aside and planted fists on her hips, pushing her chest out.

“I’m from Tau Ceti Alpha,” she said. “And my strength here is far greater than any terrestrial human… as you can see.”

He was dumbfounded, staring at her, examining her body. And then he said, “I underestimated you Tau Ceti woman and I should have killed you when I had the chance….”

Darala said, “Enough games, Torellian! Where’s the transponder?”

His face turned red with frustration, his eyes glowing more brightly than before.

“It’s not here. Many years ago I decided I wasn’t going to caught off guard or killed like some expendable asset. I knew one day someone was going to come looking for the device and so I blended with the humans and hid it.”

Darala stepped up to his face, tightening the muscles in her shoulders and chest—don’t mess with me.

“Where is it,” she asked.

The Torellian man swallowed hard and began to sweat.

“No matter what you do to me, Tau Ceti woman… I won’t tell you.”

“My name is Darala Starr,” she said. “Doctor Darala Starr.” She grabbed him by the shoulder and led him toward the bowed cell bars.

“Now,” she said, “Get inside.”

“I suppose I don’t have a choice,” he replied.

Darala shook her head. Reluctantly, the Torellian man did as she said, and stepped through the gap and into the cell.

Darala grabbed hold of the two gaping bars.

Hardening the muscles in her chest, shoulders and arms, Darala applied her strength once more and the bars quickly submitted with more sustained creaks and cries as she bent them slowly back together.

The Torellian man looked on in shock, his jaw unhinged in silent awe.

That euphoric feel returned to Darala. The feel of her suit, her muscles, the steel bars bending to her will, made her smile. With a final squeeze and one last cry from the steel, Darala finished straightening the bars. Satisfied, she took a step back and planted fists on her hips.

“Well, Torellian, I’m sorry you didn’t want to cooperate with me. But don’t worry, I’ll find the transponder and complete my mission.”

The man lunged forward and grabbed the bars, attempting to move them, but the steel was pitiless in his grip.

Darala smirked and said, “Since you don’t possess any remarkable strength, I believe this cell is more than strong enough to holdyou,” she said. “Indefinitely if need be.”

“Wait,” he cried. “You can’t just leave me here!”

Darala grinned at him.

“Watch me,” she said, turned and walked outside, closing the door behind her.

Outside Darala quickly activated her communication channel on her bracelet.

“Computer, can you hear me?”

That familiar voice responded, “Darala, yes. What happened? Are you all right?”

Darala said, “Much better than that. I can’t believe how strong I am here. I can bend steel! Can you believe that?”

“Yes, Darala, of course you can. You’re strength here is unmatched. Remember, it’s simple physics. However, there’s still the matter of finding the transponder.”

Darala thought about it and slowly flexed her bicep which responded instantly, forming that beautiful, hard peak beneath her suit.

“I’m sure I’ll find it soon enough,” Darala said. “But I was wondering if I should take a little time and see just how mighty I am here. You know—as a science experiment. After all, I am a scientist.”

The ship’s computer responded, “Darala Starr… if you don’t complete the mission on time, our launch window will be compromised. Thinking better of it, Darala agreed.

“Okay,” she said. “How much time do I have?”

“You have seven earth days. But you would have known that if you’d read the report.”

Darala chuckled. “Yeah, I know. And I’m sorry. I’ll find the transponder and we can go home.”

“I’ll look forward to that,” the computer said. Darala punched in the coordinates once again, now seeing a new route to where it seemed the transponder might be.

“That’s going to be a long walk,” she thought. “I wonder how fast I can run?”

Darala took a deep breath and sprinted off. To her amazement, she felt rushing wind against her body. Her strides were massive and her hair blew back past her shoulders. The world around her became a frantic rushing blur.

I’m fast,Darala thought.Really fast.

Darala raced on into the horizon, heading toward an unknown place… a place that likely had terrestrial humans. And she guessed her experience would be nothing short of remarkable.