Archive of Our Own

Jerrica sighed, sipping from her cocktail. Another mind-numbing industry event. The same few faces from the music industry, movies, TV, modeling, radio….but it was necessary. She had to schmooze to make sure Starlight Music was on steady ground. The Holograms were still big, but she knew not to put all their eggs in one basket. They were busy signing newer artists and reaching out to older ones in search of more creative freedom.

Yet Starlight was a minnow in the pond. They weren’t the size of the industry titans like Warner, Universal, EMI, CBS/Sony and others. Most other music companies were diversified or part of larger conglomerates. They had more pull with retailers, radio programmers, and talent management. Even when her parents ran the company as a boutique label it had been a struggle. As much as she was loath to admit, Jerrica knew that Eric Raymond’s sleazy style had been instrumental in ensuring Starlight Music’s survival during those earlier days.

The one saving grace was that he wasn’t at this particular gathering. It was an event at the famed Capitol Records building in Hollywood, organized as a congratulatory dinner for some ancient record executive she couldn’t recall the name of. Jerrica needed to be seen there, needed to mingle and ensure some of the companies that supported Starlight would still have her back as they headed into the next fiscal year.

“What I wouldn’t give for the Misfits to spoil the party….” Jerrica muttered as she took an Hors d'oeuvre from a passing waiter with a remarkable beard. Little did she know fate was conspiring to do something worse.

She perked up at the sound of…jet engines? Others in the vicinity also looked up in curiosity. Then the sound got closer. A fleet of jets were visible on the horizon; a cluster of short red jets leading, with squadrons of blue jets and black attack helicopters.

Before anyone could react, what appeared to be a white hang-glider headed for the roof and dropped a pair of bombs. An explosion rang out, causing the open bar to catch fire and topple into a pile of flaming debris, fueled by the alcohol.

Everyone began to panic, trying to reach the elevators or the stairs. The jets were bearing down, revealing a familiar snake-shaped sigil. Crashing through the sky…came a fearful cry….

“COBRAAAAAAAA!” The mass battle cry could be heard as the jets strafed the streets below with both machine gun and blue-tinted laser fire; the combined armament splintered the sidewalks and ripped up the roads, with numerous cars either being hit or smashing into each other as the drivers attempted to brake. People on the sidewalks attempted to dodge the fire and debris; some fell from being hit with the hail of fire. 

Jerrica was frozen to the spot. She could handle rival bands and corrupt executives. But a ruthless terrorist organization determined to rule the world was out of her wheelhouse. They’d been active for years and still were a thorn in the side of everyone, even in the face of greater threats that had arisen since.

“C’mon, we’ve gotta get out of here!” Jerrica was shaken by someone, and she quickly began to run as fast as she could towards the stairs. A woman she didn’t recognize, wearing a vivacious red dress, was herding people towards the exits as the attack continued.

As Jerrica joined the crowd trying to escape, they found their route cut off as a burst of fire from a Cobra Mamba struck one of the staircase doors, cutting off the escape route. The other staircase entrance was also hit. The elevators were active, but Jerrica knew they were a death sentence in a scenario like this.

“Crap! Alright, everyone stay calm!” The woman who had been trying to help evacuate pulled a gun from a concealed holster in her dress, then pulled a radio device from her purse. “Cover Girl to base, the snakes have slithered in, spring the trap!” 

On cue, the elevators opened up, and a squad of motley soldiers and experts poured out of them. “YO JOEEEE!” They yelled in unison as they opened fire against the attacking forces.

GI Joe -- named after the famous general from Rhode Island -- was America’s daring, highly-trained special mission force. Evidently they’d seen the attack coming and had squirreled themselves away in the crowd and among the waiters, chefs and bartenders; Jerrica could pick out one of the waiters, now dressed in a sailor’s outfit.

She and the other civilians had been herded behind a makeshift barricade by the woman called “Cover Girl”. The woman looked familiar, but Jerrica could figure that out later.

Jerrica had never been in a situation like this. It always seemed so far away. All of the insane battles over the fate of the planet seemed to avoid Los Angeles. She wanted to help, but didn’t know how.

Wait. Synergy! She could help…but whispering into her earrings while others were around wasn’t the best idea. She looked around -- the Joes were still busy attempting to repel the attack. Fortunately, there was a nook behind a pillar that was isolated and hadn’t been damaged.

After crawling over, peeking her head from behind an overturned table, Jerrica promptly put one hand to her Jemstar. “Synergy, we’ve got huge trouble!” 

“Yes, Jerrica. I am aware of the situation, I am monitoring news broadcasts and radio communications,” the familiar synthesized voice intoned, worry dripping from every word.

Some distance away, Cover Girl’s radio briefly crackled with interference. She briefly took note of it, but quickly reloaded her gun and opened fire on one of the Cobra CLAWs, sending the attack glider crashing into the canopy of a Rattler, which careened out of sight.

“We got an ETA on reinforcements?” Low-Light asked over his radio, using his sniper rifle to take out the pilot of a Cobra FANG II. 

“Still five minutes out!” Shipwreck said, cursing that he’d snuck too much food while waiting. The caviar was not agreeing with him (the irony).

Up above, the Cobra pilots were relishing in the unabated destruction they were causing. Sure, it was only one part of the plan, but they could torment the people beneath while buying time.

The pilot of one Rattler in particular was locking his sights on the building’s distinctive, needle-esque spire. As he locked on his missiles, something appeared to be flying towards him. Namely a Cobra Firebat! Panicking, the pilot pulled the ejection cord and bailed out. Spinning through the air disoriented him, so he didn’t notice the Rattler phasing through the Firebat as if it wasn’t there, before plummeting onto the roof of a nearby building.

Jerrica grinned. At the least, she was able to covertly assist the Joes, using Synergy to help confuse the Cobra pilots. And just in time, as the Joes’ jets and aerial vehicles made the scene. A mixed squadron of Conquest X-30s and Skystriker XP-14Fs, along with Tomahawk helicopters.

“The cavalry’s here! YO JOE!” Slip-Stream announced before opening fire with the Conquest’s 25mm “double blast” Vulcan cannons. His chosen target was the Firebat nearest the building, which promptly went from a Firebat to a fireball!

Cobra’s assault began to wither under the Joe’s counter-attack. “Cobra, fall back!” Squadron leader and Cobra’s top pilot, Wild Weasel, knew when they were licked. Sure enough, the battered remains of the squadron limped away towards the Pacific coast, attempting to get out of dodge. Some weren’t so lucky, as the Conquest’s “Light Sparrow” air-to-air missiles brought several of the remaining Cobra aircraft down.

Assorted Joes and civilians cheered as Cobra retreated. Jerrica sighed in relief. She was out of danger… 

“LOOK OUT!” 

Jerrica suddenly got tackled by someone, before a tremendous CRASH shook the building. A confused Jerrica was staring up. It was Cover Girl. “C-Courtney Kreiger?!” She remembered the face now. A model who’d attained huge fame before she got sick of it all and entered the military. (Shana had used old pictures of Courtney to assist in drafting sketches of her clothing designs.)

“Yes, and you’ve gotta be more careful.” Jerrica looked to where she had been sitting; a loose piece of debris had fallen. “You…you saved my life,” Jerrica stated quietly as she sat up. She couldn’t stop staring at this woman.

“Cover Girl, help make space, we gotta get the civilians out of here!” Sure enough, GI Joe Tomahawk helicopters were beginning to swarm the roof.

The next few minutes were a blur as Jerrica and the others were taken away. Jerrica’s life had flashed before her eyes. All of the things she’d gone through seemed….so pointless. These people were fighting to defend human freedom every day. All she was dealing with was little more than exaggerated industry and family drama.

She just stared ahead at Cover Girl. Courtney. This woman had saved her and the others. She felt like she needed to pay her back somehow.

For Cover Girl, her main concern was trying to figure out Cobra’s motive for the attack. They didn’t try to kidnap anyone, so that left other possibilities. Were they just doing it to say they could? Was it part of a larger plan? 

As the Tomahawk flew towards LAX, the two women had very different concerns.

-----

“ Oh, Jerrica! ” 

A flying hug from Kimber marked Jerrica’s re-entry into the Starlight Mansion. Everyone else was gathered in the foyer, clearly worried about her. 

“Yeah, I’m fine, Kimber, now get off!” she exclaimed as she pried her sister off. (Kimber’s flying hugs could be a pro wrestling move, in Raya’s opinion.)

The Starlight Girls were probably asleep by now, but Shana, Aja, Raya, Rio and Mrs. Bailey were all accounted for. “Jerrica, I can’t believe you survived that! Cobra doesn’t take prisoners!” Shana pulled Jerrica in for a less-close hug.

“I know. It was a miracle that GI Joe was there. They must’ve known Cobra was going to attack,” Jerrica said.

“But why ? Why did they attack?” Aja speculated. 

“Because they’re a bunch of crazy wackjobs out to take over the world! I heard they’re really run by a race of snake people from the Himalayas!” a wound-up Kimber stated, before hissing like a snake. 

Rio pulled Jerrica in for a hug, then kissed her cheek. “Jerrica, I wish I had been there to help. I feel—” 

“No.” Jerrica’s curt response caused Rio to take a step back. “You couldn’t have done anything but needlessly risk your life for me. I don’t… I just…” Jerrica didn’t want to deal with his bravado. Not now.

She quickly rushed up the stairs, tears beginning to well up. The others looked at Rio sourly. 

“What did you say to her?” Aja knew she had to act as Rio’s restraining influence; he had anger problems and often didn’t know when to stop. Growing up with each other, they arguably knew each other better than anyone else. Rio’s heart was in the right place, but he just didn’t know what he should say and what he should only think.

As the Holograms and Rio began to argue among themselves, Mrs. Bailey headed up the stairs. Everyone seemed to forget she still worked here, even if she was often absent now, having taken a second job to help pay the bills.

She found Jerrica in her room, crying into a pillow. No words could be made out among the sobs. Having a near-death experience like that… Jerrica was clearly not in a good place.

“Jerrica, come here.” At Mrs. Bailey’s voice, she looked up from her pillow. “Mrs. Bailey, I don’t—” She was breaking down. The antics of the Misfits and the others were nothing compared to what she had just been through. 

Jerrica continued to cry into Mrs. Bailey’s shoulder as she leaned into her arms. Mrs. Bailey was a constant in her life, she always had been. Being in her arms like this….it was the closest Jerrica could get to the arms of her mother or father. 

“It’s alright, Jerrica. You’re alive and still with the people who love you,” Mrs. Bailey said soothingly. She had been there for Jerrica, whenever Jacqui was busy signing or Emmett had been too caught up in lab work. She was Jerrica’s third parent, an honorary family member. She had always done her best to help Jerrica and Kimber as the two grew up.

“I just feel so guilty.” Jerrica opened up to the one person she knew she could trust. Mrs. Bailey pulled out a handkerchief, and she wiped the tears and runny makeup away from Jerrica’s face. “I’m here, doing all this music stuff and being among rich people who wouldn’t care about anyone but themselves, when the woman who saved my life chose to forsake all of that to help protect people…” Jerrica lamented.

“Nonsense, Jerrica. You do all of this for the Starlight Girls. You’ve donated money to countless charities and do community work. You care about others, and your effort and work ethic shows it.” Mrs. Bailey knew that Jerrica’s morals were first-rate. It set her apart from many others in the oft-soulless entertainment industry.

“But it feels to me like I’ve been spinning my wheels. How much is enough? I’m trying but we’re still barely breaking even! I don’t want to see anyone become homeless because I wasn’t able to get new singers or won’t do business with someone!” Jerrica was letting it all out. It was all on her shoulders, the immense pressure to succeed. The pressure of being a young girl who hadn’t been able to grow up without having to take on responsibilities she wasn’t ready for. Mrs. Bailey had been witness to it. A young woman, sacrificing her happiness time and again to ensure others could be happy.

“I was in your shoes, Jerrica.” Mrs. Bailey pulled out her wallet and opened it to reveal a picture. Jerrica saw Mrs. Bailey as a young child in the 1960s, along with her two parents and a younger brother. “My parents died in a car collision when I was 14. I was suddenly thrust into having to earn money to keep feeding myself and my sibling. I had to take on any job I could to keep food on the table. But we also got help. My relatives took us in and helped us when it became clear we just couldn’t survive by ourselves. You need help, Jerrica. It’s not entirely up to you. The entire world will not collapse without you working. You can take time off. It’s a good thing to ask for help,” Mrs. Bailey went on.

Jerrica looked at Mrs. Bailey with sympathy. She knew Mrs. Bailey was often absent from the Starlight Mansion because she was working another job. But she hadn’t been aware that Mrs. Bailey was just like her.

“I know it’s difficult. But I’m here for you. The rest of us are here for you. Don’t push us away and try to handle everything yourself. Spend time doing things that aren’t work. Find a hobby, relax, play with the Starlight Girls,” Mrs. Bailey advised. 

Jerrica nodded shakily, before returning to Mrs. Bailey’s comforting arms. “Thank you, Mrs. Bailey. For everything you’ve done.” 

“Please, Jerrica. Call me Hazel.” 

This was the first time Jerrica had ever heard Mrs. Bailey use her first name. (Jerrica knew what her name was before; after all, she was the one signing Mrs. Bailey’s checks.)

“Hazel. Like the maid on TV?” Jerrica asked, memories of reruns on WTBS rushing up from the depths.

Mrs. Bailey chuckled. “Trust me, I heard all the jokes from your parents,” she said warmly. “Do you want to talk about them?”

“No. Honestly, I need some sleep.” It was already past midnight; the party had begun at 9:00. “Again, thank you, Hazel. For being here.” Mrs. Bailey nodded, then got up and left the room, closing the door gingerly.

Jerrica just flung her shoes off and stared up at the pink canopy overhanging her bed. She was exhausted. A long day at work, a near-death experience and a breakdown. Before she knew it, she was out like a light.

----

“I want a full report on this atack by 1200 hours tomorrow. Dismissed.” Cover Girl sighed as the post-battle debriefing led by General Hawk and Chuckles wrapped up. Chuckles had gotten intel from a contact that Cobra was planning on attacking the Capitol Records building in Hollywood; they’d infiltrated the building in disguise. It had been up to Cover Girl to attend the party. She had hoped nobody would recognize her. The trick to successfully changing your look was as simple as a wig. After all, nobody ever recognized Clark Kent as Superman despite him only wearing a pair of glasses. Less is more -- the more you try to be inconspicuous, the more you stick out.

Of course, they still had no idea why Cobra had decided to attack the building to begin with. It seemed unlikely they would do it without some kind of larger goal in mind, as attacking a famous building in the middle of LA wasn’t exactly sound military strategy. Since the defeat of Cobra-La and the restoration of Cobra Commander to a humanoid form by his supporters (known as “The Coil”), they’d reasoned Cobra wouldn’t give up on some of their more insane plans.

Courtney exited the base. Sunset being so late in the Western Time Zone, it was around 1:00 AM now. She stared up at the stars as she left the base and headed back to her private apartment down in town. Despite having plenty of cash from her modelling days and the endorsement deals that came with it, she lived her life modestly. She drove a Plymouth Reliant K, lived in a one-bedroom apartment and generally didn’t spend much on hobbies or friends.

She had friends from her modelling days, but she hadn’t seen any of them in a while. Even more distant were her friends from her days growing up in Peoria. She hadn’t seen any of them since leaving for Chicago back in the 70s. 

Courtney was reluctant to admit it, but she was lonely. She had friends on base, but with GI Joe getting as big as it was she still felt like she might lose them too eventually. Especially since there were definitely people she cared about she feared might die in battle against Cobra. That formed another piece of her solitude. She worked in an organization literally built around the idea you would die battling those who wished to do you harm.

Would she be proud to die against Cobra? Probably. But she also didn’t want to die in vain, for something that ultimately wound up being pointless in the long run. She wanted to do something that mattered. Modelling was fun, but it was so temporary. Years from now, nobody would remember Courtney Kreiger the model. Maybe they would remember Cover Girl as a part of GI Joe.

Courtney looked out from her apartment balcony, at the stars above. The starlight was almost enchanting. It soothed her soul whenever her self-rumination was getting too deep into philosophical territory.

Someday, Cobra would be defeated. Then what would she do?

----

The next day, Jerrica found herself aimless. The other Holograms had locked the office and the recording room as motivation to not work. They’d also hidden the keys to the cars so she wouldn’t be tempted to drive to the Starlight Music building. Instructions were given to Joanie, the CFO of Starlight Music and the woman who helped keep it running when Jerrica wasn’t around, to not answer any phone calls from Jerrica.

Instead, Jerrica instead watched TV, played pool, even jumped rope with some of the Starlight Girls out in the yard. Her brain and body were screaming at her to do something, anything , that was even vaguely productive. She just couldn’t. It was impossible for her to relax in this way, it was being forced. Yet she still couldn’t figure out what to do with herself.

She found herself in Shana’s room, looking at some of the designs she had. Jerrica was trying to remember something from last night. She knew it had something to do with fashion. Looking in a drawer, she found an old issue of Fashion World magazine, which had gone under back in 1980. She gasped as she saw the Cover Girl— literally. “Courtney, that’s right!” 

She'd seen that face hovering over hers. If it hadn't been for her, she would've been crushed by a falling chunk of debris. She owed Cover Girl her life. How was she going to repay her? How could she? And more importantly, it wasn't like she could easily contact someone in a special forces unit. Jerrica thought of this, then began staring out the window at Countess DuVoisin’s mansion next door. That gave Jerrica a brainwave.

“Jerrica! I am so glad to see you!” Countess Danielle stated after Jerrica appeared over the hedges. She gave Jerrica a hug before opening the side gate. “I heard what happened last night. Those horrible snakes!” Jerrica nodded along as Danielle raved about Cobra.

“Danielle, can you help me find someone?” Jerrica asked. 

“Well, that depends on who you seek.” 

Jerrica handed Danielle the old copy of Fashion World . “The woman who saved my life.”

Soon enough, Danielle was on the phone with some of her contacts in the modelling business, rifling through old files and taking notes. “Oui. I shall inform her posthaste. Thank you.” Danielle hung up and found Jerrica distractedly reading a book.

“Excellent news, Jerrica. We have found Miss Krieger's address!”

----

A week later, Courtney was training at the base’s exercise center. Weight machines were nothing compared to lugging around the huge parts for the tanks she loved to fix. But all of their tanks were, at the moment, in good running shape. That didn't mean she would stop lifting. She loved the sweat, the adrenaline, the rush.

“Mail call!” A Greenshirt (the nickname for the support crew) announced over the PA system. Courtney decided now was a good time for a break. She grabbed a towel and her water bottle, heading for the rec room.

Various Joe operatives were crowded around Dial-Tone, who had an entire armful of mail and packages blocking his view. “One at a time, before I spill it all!” He just managed to dump it all on an empty table before it slipped out of his hands.

“Let's see…Leatherhead, you've got a letter from Sheila McDermott, Shipwreck’s got a package from Montgomery Ward…” Dial-Tone began handing things to people. He was a communications officer, and mail was communications after all.

“You got anything from your girlfriend , Mainframe?” Shipwreck taunted. They still weren't letting him live down his short-lived romance with Zarana. 

“Go drink some bilge!” Mainframe countered. 

Courtney rolled her eyes. The romantic entanglements of her teammates were one of the reasons she didn't date at all. Shipwreck was in love with a mermaid who’d defected from Cobra, Lifeline had that Van Mark woman besotted with him… the only stable relationships were Scarlett and Snake Eyes (which was incredibly stable, given Snake Eyes was a mute ninja) and Flint and Lady Jaye.

“Cover Girl, you've got a letter.” She disinterestedly took the envelope, figuring it was just junk mail. Then she saw the cursive writing in purple ink. “Jerrica Benton…hmm.” The name sounded vaguely familiar.

She sat in a quiet corner of the room and opened the envelope. 

Dear Miss Krieger….

You saved my life when Cobra attacked the Capitol Records building. I wanted to express my gratitude towards you. Me and everyone else there had no combat experience and no chance of staying alive. You and your fellow soldiers put your lives on the line to save ours. I recognized you because my friend Shana uses your old pictures as a basis for many of her ideas. I recognized you. You decided to do something more important than modeling. I try every day to help orphaned girls grow up with a loving family. If you weren't there to defend us against threats like that, we wouldn't have a world to live in. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

Jerrica Benton

The letter brought a tear to Courtney's eye. It had all been worth it. Someone had gone to the length of writing her for something she had done on instinct. And to someone who ran an orphanage, no less (maybe the one Shipwreck had helped rebuild?). She'd have to write back. Still, the name Jerrica Benton was ringing a bell somewhere. 

For now, the letter was going into her locker. It was probably the most important item she had now.

----

Listening to Linda Ronstadt was something Jerrica did when she wanted to relax. Her voice was melodic yet sweeping, even haunting. 

Just lying in the middle of her giant bed. Her brain just couldn't relax. Sure, she could try to think about other things. Her brain would inevitably go back to work topics. It was so ingrained by this point. 

Then her thoughts wandered to Courtney. The woman who had rescued her. She hadn't gotten a response back. Jerrica hoped she would. She couldn't get this woman out of her head.

She'd secretly taken some of the old magazines from Shana's room just to look at the old pictorials of Courtney. Jerrica tried to reconcile those images with the resolute woman who had brought down a hang glider in a few shots. The one who tackled her and got very, very close in the process.

It made Jerrica feel things. A feeling she wasn't able to pinpoint or even describe. It felt like what she had with Rio or Riot, yet it still felt like a new feeling. 

Jerrica and Rio hadn't gone on a date in a while. He'd been spending more time with Aja. And honestly, that was a good thing. Jerrica was looking at her and Rio’s relationship and…what had she been thinking? Going undercover as a third person just to see if he was more interested in her or Jem? Hell, dating him in both identities just wasn't a good idea to start.

Rio had been their friend for years. Someone reliable who would stand with them when the chips were down. Yet his anger issues meant on some level she was terrified. Especially if she ever told him the truth about Jem and Synergy. Would he accuse her of being a liar, of disloyalty? How many more plants would he destroy?

Aja didn't have to deal with having another identity. Jerrica felt like maybe Rio should just date her instead. They were platonic enough that you might think they were already. The two spent hours fixing cars and messing around with recording equipment. They often worked late nights at Starlight preparing music mixes and tracks.

Then there was Riot. So charming, yet he could manipulate her and others almost effortlessly. The Stingers were a trio who arguably had a bond stronger than anything. He only wanted Jem. Not Jerrica. Jerrica in her regular form had barely interacted with him.

The whole dual identity was getting tiring. She wondered if there were days that Clark Kent didn't want to be Superman. It was a headache to juggle both her packed schedule as Jerrica and Jem. She was an icon, a flawless pop starlet. And she had to work hard to maintain that appearance, especially in the face of the Misfits and Eric’s constant scheming.

Yet the music tides were ever changing. For all they knew, Jem’s popularity would collapse tomorrow and the Holograms would only be remembered nostalgically. A part of her wanted that. To leave Jem behind. When she looked in the mirror as Jerrica, there were all these flaws. Sure, she looked pretty enough. Yet she couldn't ever be as attractive as Jem was. Jem didn't exist technically and yet she wanted to also be her so damn much.

She half wondered if dyeing her hair pink could achieve the effect. Then maybe she would have an endless series of plastic surgeries to get her close to the perfection of Jem. 

Jerrica shook herself from that line of thought. She again wistfully stared at Courtney. A woman who had plenty of natural beauty who'd forsaken it all for getting down and dirty in the military. Jerrica imagined her crawling through a muddy trench in green fatigues, and her face grew very warm.

She was shaken by her thoughts by Mrs. Bailey paging her on the intercom. “Jerrica? You have mail!”

Coming down the massive staircase of the mansion, Jerrica sighed. This mansion was wonderful, yet it still didn't measure up to the original Starlight House and the good memories it held. That thug of Eric's had burned it down. If she ever saw Zipper again…she growled internally.

“You've got something here, from a Courtney Krieger.” 

Jerrica's eyes widened. “Thanks, Mrs. Bailey.” She hadn't been able to call her Hazel. It still felt weird to her.

The letter was postmarked from Flagstaff, Arizona. “Guess that must be close to where the Joes’ base is…” Though she took the letter back up to her room, trepidation filled her gut. What would Courtney have said? 

----

Dear Miss Benton:

Thank you for the kind words. It’s rare a civilian is able to express gratitude for my actions, as much of the work I do is classified. I chose to do something with my life rather than experience the inevitable loss of popularity as I aged. The modelling business was fun for a while, but it simply didn’t challenge me. Meanwhile, my family has always been skilled in mechanical fields. I had that knack and used it on giant vehicles that fire missiles. It’s just plain fun to get dirty, spend hours trying to fix things and lift heavy objects. That’s what drew me to the military. The arrival of Cobra changed things. I wanted to put my skills to use in stopping an insidious band of terrorists from taking over the world. It wears on me at times, the endless war against them dragging on for years. It’s the small things like this that make it all worthwhile.

Specialist Courtney Kreiger

----

Jerrica felt like a huge bubble of anxiety had just popped. Ms. Kreiger appreciated her gratitude, and Jerrica’s own actions had an equally kind reaction. She just hugged the letter close to her chest, before something poked her. She then noticed a paperclip at the bottom, keeping something attached.

It was a military-style pin-up of Courtney, but instead of being dolled up, she was greasy and sitting in an old open-top military Jeep, amid a pile of parts. She looked so sloppy….yet to Jerrica it was like a magnet. She felt drawn to the picture. Then she noticed the autograph in the corner (“To Jerrica! I’ve got work to do! Cover Girl!”) and she toppled back onto her bed.

It was all making Jerrica feel a little light-headed. This woman was the opposite of what she thought she wanted. Yet she was craving more of her. It felt nice.

Maybe she should send a letter back….

----

Over the next few weeks and months, Jerrica and Courtney became penpals. The vagaries of the postal system and their different schedules meant they’d get the letters while Jerrica was performing or while Courtney was out in the field.

Jerrica looked forward to it, as one of the few hobbies she had been able to make time for. Kimber and the others had relented and let her go back to work. She tried to make more time to relax, and Jem was making fewer appearances. The Misfits had, surprisingly, kept up their end of the truce they had called back in May. Aside from Stormer’s regular visits, she hadn’t seen the Misfits or Eric in a while…yet she couldn’t completely let her guard down.

The Stingers had also been concentrating on their own music, probably out of gratitude for helping Riot and his father reconcile. In short, it was a quiet period. Jerrica was taking more days off to try and relax. She went to the beach, to amusement parks, to sporting events. Sometimes with the Holograms or the Starlight Girls, but often just by herself. She needed alone time.

She and Rio had grown further apart. She secretly dreaded talking about their relationship now. He didn’t even spend the night with her anymore. The flame on her end had been extinguished. 

All the while, Jerrica was concentrating on Courtney. Perhaps a little too much, by her standards.

Then a letter came with good news. “Courtney’s coming back to LA! I’m going to meet her in person!” Jerrica was tripping over her own heels in excitement. She was in the kitchen, having rushed from outside once she got the letter.

“So maybe we can finally meet this mystery woman,” Kimber said, looking up from a jigsaw puzzle she and one of the Starlight Girls were putting together. 

“Yeah. I know she’s a GI Joe and a former model, but I still wanna actually see her with my own eyes,” Aja said, still somewhat skeptical about the whole thing despite its clear importance to Jerrica.

“I’d love to meet her. Her photoshoots were some of what drove me to create all my fashions,” Shana stated, arms full of the numerous fashion magazines she got in the mail every month. (She loved to use them as fodder for fashion inspiration scrapbooks.)

Only Raya remained silent, but that had more to do with her chowing down on some leftover meatloaf and reading the latest issue of Archery Today than anything else.

Mrs. Bailey entered and put her hand on Jerrica’s shoulder. “Whatever happens, we’ll be here for you.” Jerrica relaxed and continued to grin from ear to ear. She had help, and a loving family. The Misfits and Stingers had upheld the truce. She just had to get through this one meeting.

----

Courtney coughed. The exhaust from a tank and LA’s trademark smog were very different but still irritating all the same.

Jerrica’s letters had been heartfelt, and she apparently was a workaholic who needed time off. Courtney could empathize with her. Everyone had been on alert, since as far as their intel could figure out, Cobra was falling apart at the seams as a multitude of factions including Destro’s MARS, Cobra Commander’s Coil, the Crimson Twins’ Extensive Enterprises and Crimson Guard, the Dreadnoks, and Serpentor’s handful of remaining loyalists were all now in barely-concealed open warfare. There was a siege of some kind being waged on Cobra Island and rumor was Destro had the Baroness with him and his Iron Grenadiers.

Amid all the stress of working in double shifts, she put in a vacation request. Fortunately, General Hawk approved it (“Cobra is a threat, but so is pulling double shifts and running on nothing but coffee. I should know.”). She’d written to Jerrica about meeting up somewhere to meet in person and hang out.

Pulling into her hotel (perks of working for GI Joe included the GI Joe Express Card, so she could stay at a decent mid-level hotel), she glanced out across the LA skyline. It was a long, long way from Peoria. Sometimes, Courtney wondered about how her life would’ve gone if she hadn’t become a model. The choices made in life would lead in unexpected directions.

Jerrica had given her home phone number in the last letter. “Here goes nothing….” She dialed the number, then waited patiently. 

“ HELLO THERE! ” a young female voice screamed into the end of the phone. 

Courtney practically jumped out of her skin, startled by the sheer volume. 

“ Kimber!… Yes, this is the Starlight Mansion, Jerrica speaking. ” 

“Oh, hi, this is Courtney Kreiger. Good to hear your voice for the first time.” Courtney listened as the line seemed to go dead, but she could hear muffled talking.

“ Sorry. I, uh, had to switch to my office phone. My sister got to the phone first. Hope she didn’t blow out your eardrums, ” Jerrica said, hoping she didn’t sound as nervous as she felt. 

“I’ve heard louder. Tank engines, laser fire, missiles, Serpentor and Cobra Commander shouting at the top of their lungs….” Courtney wore ear protection whenever she could, but the ham levels of Cobra’s leaders could be heard even despite that.

“ Well, uh, when and where do you want to meet? ” Jerrica wondered. 

“How about bowling? We can talk, bowl, indulge in that greasy food…” Courtney suggested. 

“ Sounds great! Let me look up a good bowling alley in the Yellow Pages. Do you need a ride, or— ” 

“I’ve got my own car, thanks.” Having a K-car meant a trip from Flagstaff to LA wasn’t particularly wearing on the internals. Though K-cars were the least tricky thing she’d had to repair.

Jerrica’s voice sounded familiar to Courtney, but she couldn’t quite place it. 

----

Your average bowling alley was filled with numerous sights, sounds, and scents. The clatter of pins falling upon hardwood. The flashy arcade and pinball games trying to get your quarters. The scent of greasy yet tantalizing food and drink.

To Jerrica, it could all be a bit overwhelming at times. She could handle one of her own concerts filled with loud music and flashy special effects, but something like this could be near-impossible to handle.

In fact, the main reason she could handle it was because her mind was elsewhere. “C’mon, Courtney….” she whispered. She was sitting at the nearest table to the doors, constantly craning her neck, looking for the woman she owed her life to. The alley was fairly busy for a Wednesday, so she couldn’t be sure if she’d somehow missed her.

There were inexplicably no bowling centers close to eastern Malibu, meaning the closest one to the mansion was the AMF Woodland Hills. Having to go all the way over the Santa Monica Mountains by way of Topanga was a rather annoying route, even if it only took about a half-hour. LA traffic and geography sometimes combined into an unholy nightmare. Jerrica rued having Starlight Music’s offices in Century City, the commute was outright murder sometimes. (She’d looked at moving their offices to a smaller facility in Westwood.)

Jerrica sighed, distractedly watching the bowlers and sipping from a foam cup of 7-Up. 

“ Jerrica? ” 

Jerrica whirled around in her seat. Her face lit up in excitement as Courtney approached from the front, carrying an army backpack in her hand. She was dressed in a rather unfashionable pair of beat-up denim overalls, a Chicago Bears T-shirt, a blue baseball cap and ratty-looking sneakers.

Despite being scruffy and unfashionable to the third degree, Jerrica couldn’t help but admire how real it was. No makeup. This was the real deal Courtney Kreiger. She arguably looked more attractive than she did wearing that red dress Jerrica had seen her wearing before.

Jerrica herself had come in an old, slightly flattering outfit: a baby blue cardigan and simple black pencil skirt. “You must be Cover Girl…uh, Courtney,” Jerrica tried to say without stammering from nervousness. “Nice to meet you again. Under better circumstances.” She shook Courtney’s hand. Courtney’s grip was strong. Unexpectedly so.

“That I am. Likewise, it’s nice to have a friend who isn’t involved in saving the world on a daily basis.” Courtney said as she sat down across the table. Her eyes wandered all across the concourse. This wasn’t exactly where she pictured meeting Jerrica, but it was an inconspicuous place. 

“I still want to thank you profusely. If you hadn’t been there, the Starlight Girls, my sister Kimber, all of my friends would be in mourning. I never expected to be in the middle of a terrorist attack. I froze up and ran for cover.” 

Jerrica did genuinely feel like that. She simply omitted the more inexplicable part of the story.

“I want to thank you, actually,” Courtney admitted. “You’re the first person to tell me anything like this. It makes the work I do feel worthwhile. Day in and day out, it can feel like Cobra is a giant grindstone wearing us all down.” At least she was able to briefly escape with this.

“Trust me, it’s not easy for me either. I’m trying to run a music company, and manage a private orphanage, all while dealing with rival musicians and executives. It’s a very cutthroat business.” Jerrica then took another sip from her 7-Up.

Courtney nodded in sympathy. “Well, since we’re here, may as well bowl to forget our troubles.” 

Jerrica got out her wallet and approached the front desk. “Size 7 for me, and…”

“Size 9.” Courtney supplied. 

“You’re at lane 3,” the clerk said, pointing to an empty lane at the far end of the concourse. 

“Neat, they’ve got one of those new computer scoring systems,” Courtney said as she eyed the computer console. “I always hated scoring myself.” 

Jerrica raised an eyebrow at the unintentional double entendre before turning her attention to the rack.

“You come here often?” Courtney asked as she watched her cohort pick up one of the ten-pound balls.

“Actually,” Jerrica began, “I haven’t gone bowling since I was about…seven. Let’s hope I can still remember how.” She wound up her arm, released the ball, and hoped for the best as she tried to steady herself.

The ball only clipped one of the outer pins. “Well, I tried,” Jerrica shrugged. Sitting on the tiny plastic seat in front of the scoring console, she saw how Courtney bowled. She zoned out as she stared at Courtney’s back and arm muscles, flexing as she sent the ball down the lane…

“ Woo! Got a spare! ” 

Jerrica shook herself from her trance. It was her turn. She had to do better. As she picked up her ball, she began to imagine the pins as people. Namely, the people who tormented her on a regular basis. Eric. Pizzazz. Riot. That clerk at Ralph’s who always crushed fragile stuff while bagging her groceries.

She hurled her ball with significantly more force and power. She stared hard at the end of the lane, watching as each pin was felled.

“Nice strike!” Courtney said, giving her an approving look.

It almost felt like Zen. She simply imagined the pins as the people she hated, the ones who caused her so much stress. Before she knew it, she was racking up points and handily beating Courtney.

“Wow, I had no idea you were so good at this!” Courtney’s head was spinning from Jerrica’s great game. She saw the sweaty Jerrica, just staring into space. “Jerrica, you in there?” Jerrica jumped out of her skin at feeling Courtney’s hand on her shoulder. 

“Oh, uh…sorry. I’m actually not that good at bowling. At least I didn’t think I was,” she apologized. “I was in a trance. I imagined the pins as all the people and sources of stress in my life. Just knocking them down over and over again.”

“C’mon, let’s go eat. I’ve worked up an appetite.” Courtney then led Jerrica over towards the food counter. “Two slices of cheese pizza, some chicken fingers, a 7-Up and an RC Cola.” Being from Illinois and a fan of their sports teams, Courtney loved the combo of RC and deep-dish pizza. This would be close enough.

----

“So, uh, what else do you like to do besides being a music executive?” Courtney asked, trying to break the ice. 

“Oh….I spend so much time at work. Usually if I’m home I’m still doing work or just spending time with the Starlight Girls,” Jerrica said before sipping from her 7-Up.

“GI Joe tends to take up a lot of my time. If I’m not off on a mission, I’m busy fixing tanks. I can at least keep myself busy…but there are times even that slows down.” Courtney and Jerrica both seemed to be the type of person who felt empty without something productive to do.

“I also work out a lot. Helps to at least keep a regular diet and exercise.” Jerrica knew that if it wasn’t for Mrs. Bailey, she’d be running on coffee and In-N-Out exclusively.

“So what’s it like being in GI Joe?” 

At this question, Courtney sighed. “It’s taxing, but to know we’re trying to defend the whole world, it’s nice to have a relatively noble goal.” The fight against Cobra certainly wasn’t anything like Vietnam. “My colleagues…well, there's so many of us now. I was one of the originals, there were less than 20 of us. Now there’s well over 100 people, not including our support staff.” Courtney couldn’t keep track of how many had joined anymore.

“What about the lasers?” Jerrica blurted out. She’d always been fascinated by where in the heck those came from. 

“We started out with normal guns. Then the Cybertronians woke up. We started working together with them, and they allowed us to reverse-engineer some of their weaponry. Then Cobra stole some of those and before we knew it, lasers were everywhere.” Cover Girl remembered the first time she fired a laser rifle. It felt like the recoil wasn’t even there.

“There was one time where Pizzazz from the Misfits somehow got her hands on one and went around hang-gliding. She nearly killed me when she fired on a Jem billboard mounted right above my office.” Jerrica had immediately forbidden any more billboards from being placed on the Starlight Music roof after that.

“How did she even…?” Courtney decided not to follow that up. “Those girls are always after you and Jem, aren’t they?” 

Jerrica nodded morosely. “They claim to have called a truce with us. It’s surprising they’ve actually held to it,” she said, trying not to glance over her shoulder in search of the familiar bright-green hair and wondering what she might be plotting.

“You think I could arrange to meet Jem? I mean, she’s got a few fans on base, Rock N Roll especially,” Courtney asked. Jem was still very much an enigma to the general public. She almost never got scoped out by the paparazzi. Nobody knew anything about what she did when she wasn’t singing.

“Maybe. Jem is… a very private person.” Jerrica always had excuses. Nobody could know she and Jem were the same. Another round of paranoia— this one about someone exposing her identity— made waves through her head.

The two continued to talk for some time, gradually finishing their lunch. “Well, I’ve got an appointment back at the office. Hopefully you’re still free later this week?” Jerrica said, walking back to her company car (unlike many who chose Cadillacs or other luxury barges, Jerrica opted for a smaller, less luxurious Buick).

“I’ve got time, yeah. I have some old modelling friends I’m hoping to see. Nice to meet you again, Miss Benton.” 

As Courtney walked off, Jerrica realized she just couldn’t stop staring at Courtney’s retreating form. She shook herself out of the trance and started the Buick.

----

That night, it was the usual dinnertime chaos. When you had an entire band and a whole bunch of children to feed, it was often very loud. So loud that Jerrica would often retreat to another room until the Starlight Girls were finished.

“So, how did it go with Courtney?” Mrs. Bailey asked, stirring a pot of pasta. 

“It went great! We’re gonna try to do something else, maybe go to the Long Beach Pier.” Jerrica was still tossing ideas around in her brain.

“Well, I’m glad you’re making a new friend. You’ve needed some outside your sisters.” Mrs. Bailey knew that Jerrica had difficulties with making friends and socializing. She’d gotten a lot better about that in the last few years, but making and keeping friends was still a challenge.

“Jerrica, you think maybe we could hire her as a bodyguard or something?” Shana wondered, putting down a Danielle Steel novel she’d been reading. 

Jerrica’s mind went into interesting places, before she tried to clear her thoughts. “No, she’s still an active member of GI Joe. I believe the military frowns on deals like that.” Jerrica had, as always, done lots of research into her newest pursuit. That meant reading up on military procedures, rules and laws.

“Well, I hope we get to meet her eventually. She sounds cool!” Kimber hoped, eating from her own bowl of pasta. “So Stormer said she wants to try out roller derby. Anyone else interested?” A discussion about the merits of rollerblades vs. skates took up all the oxygen in the room for the next half an hour.

Jerrica usually felt anxious at the end of the day. Gazing out at the stars above from her bedroom window, the thought of meeting Courtney again made her calm. Yet it also set off butterflies in her stomach, the kind that Rio and Riot used to trigger. She still wasn’t sure how to even approach that feeling.

----

The second meetup (not a date, definitely not) was at the famed Santa Monica pier. If Courtney was here, she may as well experience one of the area’s best attractions. (Obviously a trip to Disneyland or Universal was out of the question.)

Jerrica was wearing a baby blue sundress with a big, floppy sun hat. Given it was only September in Southern California it was still quite warm, though down from the peak summer heat. It was a nice, sunny day with plenty of big, fluffy clouds around; the exact weather conditions Jerrica loved.

“Hey, Jerrica!” Courtney was in an army-green tank top and cargo shorts. “Good to see you again.” 

“Likewise.” 

Even shaking Courtney’s hand was causing the butterflies to recur. Then she felt the grease. 

“Oh, sorry. Was adding some oil to my car and had a small spill,” came the apology. 

Jerrica winced at the sticky sensation. This was why she had wet wipes in her purse.

“So I’ve been to LA before, but it’s generally been on business. So I’ve never gotten the chance to check out a lot of the attractions.” Courtney said, looking at the rest of the pier before them. 

“ I was once ticketed for operating an illegal lemonade stand here. ”

Courtney turned to Jerrica in complete confusion. “Uh, what?” This didn’t sound like her at all. 

“I was 7 years old, and I figured I could make more money selling lemonade not in my neighborhood, but in a high-traffic area. I didn’t realize I needed permits to operate here. Fortunately they understood I was simply a child who…didn’t quite think her plan through,” Jerrica recounted.

Courtney snorted in amusement. “You sound like you had an interesting life.” 

“Oh, you have no idea,” Jerrica replied. “Now c’mon, we’ve got rides to try!”

----

Even as they took in the views of Los Angeles on the roller coaster and ferris wheel, Jerrica couldn’t look at anything but Courtney. Her medium-length auburn hair, her simple army outfit, her unshaved legs….it was an image. Of someone who had forsaken high fashion for the inversion of beauty. This woman had probably killed people.

To Jerrica, she looked like Athena in human guise.

“That view was great! Now, we’ve got a midway to check out!” Courtney was hoping there would be some of those rigged carnival games. She loved using her military skills and strength to actually win the games; she often gave away her prizes to children who hadn’t been able to win anything.

----

“ Miss Benton! ” 

That voice was unmistakable… and so was the giant mane of blonde hair. It was Riot (though without the other two Stingers, she noticed). Jerrica sighed in disappointment. 

“Mr. Llewelyn.” She greeted Riot professionally— as far as she was concerned, Jem was a million miles away. 

“Sorry, Miss Benton. I just thought you’d want to know before it hits the papers tomorrow.” 

“Know what?” 

Jerrica’s question was promptly answered as Riot handed her a thick folder. “Eric’s being sued by me and Harvey Gabor.”

Jerrica’s eyes couldn’t get any wider. “On what grounds?” she asked, trying to keep the happiness out of her voice. 

“Seems that Mr. Gabor was in truth the half-owner of Misfits Music. Eric made the deal to give me a majority stake in the renamed Stingers Sound without informing me of this. When I ran into Harvey at a company function, we learned of this deception. Naturally, we’ve agreed to bring suit against Mr. Raymond for numerous charges.” Riot sounded entirely serious. There was no manipulation present.

Jerrica couldn’t shake the feeling of rising hope that was enveloping her very soul. “Mr. Llewelyn… Riot …thank you for this news. If you want me to join in this lawsuit, I’ll gladly provide testimony and evidence of his crimes.” She meant it sincerely. 

“We’ll see what happens. We aren’t going to stop until we’ve wrested majority control from his hands,” Riot affirmed.

“Hey, Jerrica, there you are! Look what I got you!” Courtney shouted, walking up to the two with a giant purple pony toy in her hands. “Won it at the ball toss game!” 

“Oh, thank you, Courtney!” Jerrica gasped. The pony was quite soft and cute. It very much appealed to Jerrica.  “Who’s this?” Riot wondered. 

“I’m Courtney Kreiger. I saved Jerrica’s life some time ago and she’s repaying the favor while I’m in town.” 

As Cover Girl looked at the singer, she couldn’t help but think he seemed familiar.

“Well, good to know. I owe her too. If it wasn’t for her and Jem’s assistance, my mother, father and I wouldn’t have reunited.” 

Courtney nodded along, already well acquainted with Jerrica’s brand of help and how she seemed to always put everything on the line to help others.

“Jem helped Riot to mend fences with his father, an army general.” 

Courtney suddenly looked way more interested. “His dad’s a general?” Something was tugging at the edge of her mind.

“Yeah, Brigadier General Wallace Llewelyn. Army Intel I think is his thing?” Riot recalled. 

Courtney’s eyebrows seemed to raise so much, they were flying off her head. “That’s a very bizarre coincidence. He’s one of the Jugglers!”

Jerrica and Riot both looked at Courtney in confusion. “I know my father. He doesn’t juggle. He doesn’t like any kind of fun, period,” Riot bluntly said. The mental image of his father, the uber-serious army man who derided his music career, juggling like a clown -- it didn’t make any sense!

“What I mean is, he’s one of the high-ranking generals who oversees my team. They call them ‘Jugglers’ because they juggle so many responsibilities at once.” Jerrica and Riot went “Ohhhh” in unison.

“I’ve actually met him a few times. I work on intel-gathering missions every so often and that’s his purview. There’s also General Austin, Hollingsworth, and even our own namesake, Joseph Colton.” Just then, it clicked, “So then that makes you his son, Rory,” she said, remembering hearing about her superior’s recalcitrant son who got dishonorably discharged.

”Yes. I assume you know my service record. I….I just wasn’t fit for the military,” Riot admitted.

Courtney normally detested deserters like him. But given his family situation, she was inclined to give him a little more leeway. From her interactions with his father, he was an emotionally-stunted man who didn’t know how to deal with changes well. She suspected his service in World War II and Korea played a role. He was good at his job, always analyzing the latest intelligence information despite his high rank. Having a parent like that had to be very stressful.

“I can see that. Well, I’m glad you and the general have patched things up. And that this Raymond guy may be getting tossed in the slammer. Now, me and Jerrica have got a ferris wheel to ride.” Courtney then turned around and started walking towards it; Jerrica quickly followed her, hoping not to get lost in the crowd. 

“I’ll see you later!” she called out over her shoulder.

Riot nodded, then began to search for Minx and Rapture. Last he’d seen, they were getting funnel cake.

----

“And here, in her native habitat, we have the rare green-haired shrieker…”

“Jetta, can it,” Pizzazz snapped as she looked towards the ferris wheel with a pair of binoculars. “I’m trying to focus here.”

Dropping the nature documentarian shtick, Jetta scoffed. “On what? The gulls?”

“No, on Benton and the redhead!”

Stormer let out a groan. “What about Jerrica and her friend?”

“ Friend?! You think that giving someone a plush pony is something friends do? No, there’s something more going on there! I just know it!”

“You’re not jealous of her then, are you?”

Pizzazz’s face promptly went red as a beet. “J-J-Jealous? Me?” she sputtered. “I mean, for all we know, m-m-maybe they are just friends after all!”

Jetta rolled her eyes. “I swear, you’ve been like this since we agreed to Jem’s bloody truce!”

“What are you getting at?” Pizzazz snarled. “That maybe you miss Little Miss Pink Hair,” Jetta taunted.

“As if!” came the retort.

Roxy snorted. “Ten bucks says the next time you and her meet, you’ll kiss her!”

“ WHAT?! ”

“You’re on!” Jetta replied. She might be a con artist, but she couldn’t resist a good bet.

----

Courtney (whenever she wasn’t driving a tank or fixing a mobile missile launcher) worked to gather intelligence. She was experienced at noting how people acted in their day to day lives, how they interacted with others, and taking copious notes for intel analysts.

Spending all this time with Jerrica had made a lot of her quirks come into focus. The public believed she was a successful, driven businesswoman, and that was quite true; Jerrica’s business acumen was unparalleled for someone her age.

Yet that was only one part of her. Courtney had witnessed her constant fidgeting. She always seemed to be clicking a pen, tossing a squeezable stress ball around, or just doing something to keep her hands occupied. Her legs were always moving in some fashion, even when seated at her desk.

There was Jerrica’s frequent withdrawal from situations when things got too loud. She always seemed to wear sunglasses outside, or at least carry a pair in her purse. Her aversion to certain fabrics, like polyester.

She also was particularly picky about what she ate. She requested hamburgers without the pickles, tried to wipe mustard off a hot dog on the grounds that there was too much (if the amount left on the hot dog was anything to go by, then her idea of “enough” seemingly amounted to the contents of just one of those squeezable packets) and generally seemed reluctant to try new food.

There was also Jerrica going on about what she seemed to intensely focus on. Beyond the media business, she was fixated on trains. (She’d even written a song for Jem that was part of an intended promotional campaign for Amtrak.) Insects, too; she stopped in her tracks whenever she saw some kind of odd insect.

Asking Mrs. Bailey (the closest thing Jerrica had to a parent now), Courtney learned that she had always been like this. A girl who was a virtual ball of energy at times, would carry out half-baked ideas as kids often did, and could be someone who didn’t know when to stop. Someone who was different from everyone else; it hadn’t gone well for her growing up, as many of her schoolmates made fun of her for her quirks.

It all added up to…something. Courtney wasn’t any kind of doctor or psychologist. She couldn’t exactly make a formal diagnosis. Jerrica was definitely different in a way not even Jerrica herself could potentially articulate.

There was also something else Courtney couldn’t figure out. Some kind of secret Jerrica was holding close to her chest. She often seemingly had to leave at random times; whenever this happened, she always saw her tugging at the star-shaped earrings she always seemed to wear.

That didn’t mean Courtney still didn’t like her. In fact, she liked her a lot. Maybe too much. She’d gone on dates with Thunder, even a disastrous one with Shipwreck (the result of a lost bet with Bazooka). She’d never felt that spark that people described love as being like.

Jerrica provided the spark. Like a Zippo lighter. Courtney loved her intelligence, her drive, her fashion sense. She was a refreshing change from the military people she’d been surrounded by for years, and she definitely wasn’t as vapid as the models she used to hang around with. Courtney couldn’t get Jerrica out of her head now— by the time she returned to Flagstaff, she was mentally drafting future letters.

----

Jerrica, meanwhile, was in the same boat. In the time since Courtney had left to return to duty, she’d become a recurring presence in her thoughts. Elaborate schedules had been drafted and discarded alongside letters yet to be penned, potential meetings had been rehearsed— on one occasion, she’d even been the subject of a dream that sent Jerrica rushing for a cold shower at 2 in the morning for reasons she didn’t quite understand. Daydreams, though, were the primary place where she’d become a fixture.

“It’s official,” Shana said one morning as she, the other Holograms, and Mrs. Bailey gathered for breakfast. “Something’s up with Jerrica.”

“Probably just loneliness,” the older woman replied. “Can’t say I blame her— if the first new friend I’d made in years suddenly had to leave, I’d be right in her shoes.”

Shana shook her head. “Doesn’t feel like it to me. If anything, it’s more like she’s…pining for someone.”

Aja shrugged. “Well, the best thing I can think to do is try and get her mind off it.”

“How?” Kimber asked.

“Remember that upcoming tech expo I’m going to?”

“What about it?”

“Think I might have Jerrica be my plus one.”

----

A few days later

“So, why did you bring me here again?” Jerrica asked as she and Aja wandered through the convention hall. They passed by a booth from General Instrument, showing off their C-band and Ku-band satellite equipment, including the VideoCipher encryption systems that had become the bane of dish owners nationwide.

“Because you’ve fallen into a rut again,” came the blunt reply. “Go to work, come home, spend some time with the Starlight Girls and then spend the rest of the evening trying to write letters to Courtney.”

“So?” Jerrica didn’t see a problem with her new routine. Aja sighed. “Ever since she left, you’ve been acting weird.”

“And this pertains to you bringing me here how ?” If her schedule had to accommodate this, then it meant she had to reschedule a lot more.

“I figured you could use a change in scenery. Plus, one of the exhibits is Earth Corps’ exosuits, and considering how many times I’ve heard you say ‘I wish I had one of those’…”

“Should’ve led with that,” Jerrica replied as she and Aja approached the crowd forming around what she presumed was the exhibit in question, run by Shoretec Engineering.

Aside from two of the Earth Corps’ strange looking vehicles, their exosuits were on display. They weren’t being used; instead, panels were open to showcase a portion of the complex network of powerful hydraulics and servo-motors that helped the suits to move around; the scanners capable of pinpointing everything from geological anomalies to ore deposits through foot upon foot of solid rock; and other various portions the true nerds were drooling over.

Just in front, most of the Earth Corps were talking about the capabilities of the suits. “Since we figured you might be bored by our endless prattling, we’ve arranged a short demonstration. Sandra and Herc here will showcase just how much one of our suits can take!” Dr. Derek Bright said into a mic. “Auger will help.”

The bald-headed man grinned as he chucked one of his shoes at a TV displaying an image of everyone’s most hated newsman, Hector Ramirez as he went on about some overblown story.

Before the shoe could impact the tube, it was intercepted by the Earth Corps’ financial backer, Sandra Shore, but she was in her own suit of armor — a smaller, more barebones model that had been hastily repurposed from an older unit they’d previously used for testing and training.

“Sorry, Auger. Time to play pickle in the middle!” She tossed the shoe towards Herc Armstrong, the leader of their pack, in his own, even bulkier armor. It bounced off the flat top of his strange-looking helmet. “Alright, Sandra. Time to see how you do with this!” He hefted a cinder block with his manipulation claw, then chucked it straight at Sandra!

“No thanks, that’s not in my diet plan!” she shouted as she moved to intercept. They’d done some upgrades to her suit since she joined— one of them being more armor— but it was still comparatively small in comparison to the bizarrely huge units that her teammates were located vaguely inside of. (Without their helmets, it could look comical how tiny their heads were in comparison.)

She caught the cinder block without missing a beat, earning cheers, applause, and what Jerrica assumed was a wolf whistle from the crowd.

“Alright, time to get this off me.” Jerrica and others in the crowd watched as Sandra doffed her helmet, then began to remove the rest of her bulky armor. Auger handed Sandra a bottle of Gatorade. “I think I’ve lost 5 pounds just from all the sweating I do wearing this thing.”

Bearing witness to a dark-haired woman, drenched in sweat and generally looking like a mess, emerging from a suit of armor….it hit Jerrica like a mortar blast. No man had ever turned her on looking like this. Women did.

She liked women.

She liked women.

“ Miss, are you alright? ” 

Jerrica was again snapped out of a trance and jumped. It happened so often, she didn’t count anymore. She turned to see the other members of the Earth Corps standing around. “Uh, yes. Sorry. I was simply fascinated by Miss Shore’s armor.” Jerrica hoped what she was feeling was sweat.

Auger and Dr. Bright both seemed to be looking at her. “What’s your name? I could swear I’ve seen you somewhere…” Auger asked. 

“Jerrica Benton, CEO of Starlight Music.” 

Auger and Derek looked like they’d had the light switch flipped on.

“Emmett’s daughter? Oh my goodness, we haven’t seen you in years!” Dr. Bright said in awe. 

“Wait, you knew my father?” Jerrica asked, flabbergasted.

“We all went to MIT together!” Auger said before drawing Jerrica into a hug. “I can’t believe you never knew! We used to visit your parents all the time when you were just a kid!” Auger, for once in his life, sounded genuinely happy.

Jerrica was internally trying to adjust from a life-changing realization to suddenly finding old family friends she had no idea about. “Uh, can you let me go now?” she asked, voice muffled by the closeness to Auger.

“Heh, sorry. Just…we lost touch with your dad after Jacqui died. He got all withdrawn. Too into his grief.” Auger remembered visiting a few times after. Emmett had changed. He became too obsessed with that supercomputer of his. Auger gave him the key with that bit of tech he’d found on a dig in Oregon. (Auger wondered where exactly it came from for years. The eruption of Mount St. Hilary answered that question pretty well.)

“Yes. We saw you and your sister, Kimberly, every so often. I was your Uncle Derek, and he was Uncle Eddie.” Dr. Bright recalled fondly. Unfortunately, between the formation of the Earth Corps and Emmett’s shutting himself off, they had just stopped visiting.

Jerrica tried to search her memories. But as with a lot of her younger memories, it was all something of a foggy blur. 

“I actually have much of your father’s work and personal mementos stored at an off-site facility we rent. Would you be interested in seeing it?”

Jerrica couldn’t agree with Dr. Bright fast enough. The next thing she knew, they were all in the Earth Corps’ Trappeur vehicle. 

“This is so exciting! You’ve been storing all his blueprints and things? I thought we lost almost all of it in the fire that destroyed our old house!” She looked to Auger for an explanation. 

“Your dad wanted to be sure his work could be carried on if he couldn’t continue. So he made copies for us to safeguard,” he explained, remembering seeing some of that stuff when they’d been looking around for some kind of document Sandra needed.

----

“Well, here we are.” 

The “off-site storage facility”, as it turned out, was little more than a large storage unit in an industrial park. The large garage door unlocked, and Jerrica gasped as the lights turned on. In addition to prototype versions of the Earth Corps’ suits and vehicles….

”What’s with all the TVs?” she asked as she looked upon rows of smashed-up TV sets.

“That’s what happened before we began to set up a volleyball net in front of our TVs,” Herc snarked. 

Auger rubbed the back of his bald head sheepishly. “Uh, yeah. At least I haven’t smashed a TV since,” he tried to point out in his defense. The net had in fact been a successful deterrent.

“We use some of the TV sets to salvage electrical components,” Dr. Bright explained. “Now, your father’s things are in the back here.” 

A couple minutes passed before they were able to start extricating some of the boxes labeled “BENTON”. 

“This one’s light, I wonder what’s in here….” Sandra unlatched the top and found a large white dress within. 

“My mother’s wedding dress!” Jerrica exclaimed, rushing over to examine the dress. “I always wondered what happened to it…” It had been a beautiful dress in the few pictures they’d saved from the fire.

“Got all kinds of pictures in this one,” Herc reported. 

Jerrica switched to this box and couldn’t believe it. All the pictures that had burned…and so many more! Even ones from the relatives they didn’t keep in touch with.

“I think this is the one with the blueprints. Let’s see….” Auger promptly dug up a large tube of paper. “Bingo!” He rolled it out. “It’s a plan for Synergy….” There were several differences to what she knew Synergy as now, but it was clear this was the basis. It appeared to take up much more room than Synergy ultimately occupied.

“So, you know what Synergy is?” Jerrica asked cautiously. 

“We had the basic idea, but we never got to see the finished version,” Dr. Bright said. “Why?“

“Can you keep a secret?” 

“I think we can do that for you, Jerrica,” Auger replied.

She took a deep breath. “Are you familiar with Jem and the Holograms?”

“Little bit. Why?”

“First off, the band name? It’s from how they do both the effects and Jem.“

Herc blinked. “How?”

“There’s a performer on stage who has the necessary equipment on their person, and the Jem hologram is projected over them.”

“Who’s the performer?”

“You’re looking at her.”

Everyone else’s jaw went slack, and a stunned silence settled over the facility.

“I knew this system was advanced, but not this advanced!” Dr. Bright exclaimed once he had managed to regain enough of his composure to speak again. “Can you move around and keep your holo-form in one place? What about changing into other people or objects?” 

“Yes?” Jerrica hesitantly replied. How Synergy worked at times seemed to verge on magic, given the feats her holograms could do.

“I’ve got another question— how’re you able to juggle all those responsibilities?” Sandra piped up.

“…come again?”

“Being the CEO of Starlight Music, running the Starlight House, and performing as Jem. How do you manage?”

“…manage?”

“What I mean is, do you have anyone, say, running the company for you?”

“Our CFO Joanie keeps things running when I’m not there, if that’s what you mean.” 

“And the rest of the time?”

Jerrica nervously scratched the back of her neck. “Well…I…uh…”

“You’re still running it yourself, aren’t you?”

The only reply was a morose nod. “After seeing what Eric did during his time at the helm, I…I wanted to make sure everything was going smoothly myself. You know, make sure it’s all on the level, that nobody’s stealing from the till, that Starlight doesn’t get swallowed up by one of the bigger labels or go bankrupt or otherwise go under.”

Sandra sharply exhaled. “Miss Benton…”

“You can call me Jerrica, Miss Shore.”

“Jerrica, take it from a fellow businesswoman who’s involved in a major time sink when I say that you can’t keep doing this all on your own.”

“But…”

“Look at me— do you think I’ve got time to oversee Shore Industries’ day-to-day operations in addition to Earth Corps business?”

“No, I don’t see how you could.”

“Precisely. That’s why when I decided to bankroll these guys, I handed the reins to someone who I knew and trusted well enough to do the job in my stead.”

“What’re you suggesting?”

 “That maybe you need to step back a bit.”

“…come again?”

Sandra took a deep breath. “If you want my personal opinion,” she began, “if you keep going like you currently are, then you‘re going to burn out.”

----

If you keep going like you currently are, then you’re going to burn out.

Sandra’s words—along with the image of her emerging from her armor— continued to rattle around in Jerrica’s brain as she and Aja drove back home.

“So,” the latter began, “what’s on your mind?”

“Nothing! Just…just thinking is all!” Jerrica reflexively answered.

“About what? The expo?”

Jerrica let out a resigned sigh. “Yes,” she plainly said. “It’s…it’s…”

“Sandra.”

“How’d you know?”

“One— the last time you were this quiet, it was after Gloria told you that you needed a vacation. Two— when she came out of that armor, it was like you couldn’t take your eyes off her.”

“I-I-I…”

“The last time I saw you like that, you were staring at the cheerleader captain with the dopiest look on your face I’ve ever seen.”

“What?”

Aja sighed. “You know exactly what I’m getting at here.”

“You’re not…I mean, just because she looked hot as Hell…err, I mean…it’s not like…”

“Jerrica.”

“I mean, there’s no way that I’m…”

“Jerrica.”

“It’s just a…thing is all. Yeah, just a thing…”

“ Jerrica! ”

She snapped to attention. “Yes?”

“Are you okay?”

“Y-Y-Yeah. Why do you ask?”

Aja sharply exhaled. “You were slipping into one of your panic spirals again. Now, I’m saying this as a sister, but once we get home, maybe we could talk some more about all this.”

“I…I can’t,” came the reply. “Not tonight.”

There was a long silence.

“Okay then,” Aja finally said. “Guess we’ll pick this up in the morning.”

----

It was late by the time Jerrica finally got to sleep, even by her standards. The expo, Earth Corps, the storage unit, Sandra — all of them had come together to help form a mighty tempest whirling within her, keeping her awake and staring at the ceiling well into the wee hours of the morning until, eventually, fatigue won out and she nodded off…

“Jerricccaaaaa…”

Her eyes shot open. There, standing near the foot of her bed, was Courtney, once again wearing her tank top and cargo shorts. Meanwhile, on either side of the bed, she could see Danse and…Pizzazz?

“What’s going on?” she asked.

“Whatever you want,” Courtney purred, a sultry look in her eyes. “After all, it’s your fantasy.”

“I…I…”

Jerrica shot upright, her nightclothes dripping with sweat.

“Oh God…oh God…” she whispered to herself, panting and catching her breath. “This isn’t just a thing after all.” She shuddered. “What the hell was Pizzazz doing there, though?”

You know you love me, baby! a voice that sounded suspiciously like her arch-rival’s proclaimed from somewhere within the recesses of her mind.

----

“Miss Benton, I’m glad you’re here. Simply put, I’ve been checking your records, and…frankly, it’s not good.” Dr. Alexandra Wilkins -- the Bentons’ longtime family doctor -- didn’t like to mince words when her patients' lives were at risk.

“What do you mean? I eat healthy, Mrs. Bailey makes sure of that. I get plenty of exercise—” Dr. Wilkins shook her head. “It’s not that simple. It’s your heart rate and blood pressure. Based on your history of visits, they’ve been going up steadily in the past few years, most likely linked to stress.” She laid it all out before Jerrica. The rise had begun in November 1985 — not coincidentally, when Emmett had died. The numbers kept rising until they got to today. “These levels are risky, especially for someone your age.” That simply reminded Jerrica of how many years she’d spent having to be responsible.

“As your doctor, I would immediately urge you to start cutting out all stress from your life. Don’t work as often, try to delegate. I know you’re trying to keep your family business afloat, but there are others who work for you. Use them. Also, cut back on the caffeine intake, that’s a major factor.” Jerrica winced. She couldn’t function without coffee. It was practically half her blood by now.

“You don’t understand, Doctor. I have to be vigilant, constantly working to ensure a good future for my family. And to keep on guard. I just…I can’t stop watching over my shoulder, wondering when Eric or the Misfits are going to ruin my day,” Jerrica admitted.

“That sounds like a job for a psychiatrist. I’m not qualified for that. I do know some good mental health professionals, however; I’ll give you their business cards.” Dr. Wilkins looked at Jerrica with sympathy. She knew the girl had been through so much from an early age. Even when she was a tyke, she’d seemingly been a child possessed of knowledge, yet bereft of social skills — or, more crucially, when to stop.

Jerrica’s mind felt like a battlefield driving home. Her instincts, her very soul arguably, was oriented towards working hard. Working to keep a roof over their heads. Trying to prevent any of Raymond’s plans from actually succeeding. Hoping to stop the Misfits before they pied her in the face.

Jerrica was feeling the stress sweat. Any time she was truly feeling overwhelmed, her body felt like it was an overheating boiler. She cranked the A/C to max to try and counter it.

If only Courtney was here. If she wasn’t driving, she could just daydream about her. Just the mere sight of her helped get her mind off the stress.

Of course, that was an entirely different issue. Jerrica now couldn’t help but blush when she saw even a moderately attractive woman. Her awakening was playing havoc with her inner self. How long had she been deluding herself into liking men? Sure, intimate times were fun…yet in the long run, her only real relationship had proven unhealthy at best.

Jerrica pulled up into the driveway of the mansion. She didn’t even park the Buick in the garage. She simply walked out into the huge amount of lawn, absently looking around. The threat of wildfires meant trees weren’t really viable. Maybe some flowers could work.

Sitting down and laying out in the grass, Jerrica simply stared into the sky. Full of fluffy white clouds that slowly drifted by. An airplane or two could be seen higher, leaving their own temporary tracks along the edges.

----

“Sir, can you please run that by us again?“ Courtney asked as she and a number of other Joes sat gathered in a briefing room. “Because I swear I thought I heard you say…”

“That Cobra’s finally falling apart?” General Llewelyn finished. “Yes, I‘m as surprised as you are, Cover Girl, but those are the facts of the matter. It could be an all-out Cobra civil war. The Crimson Twins and Extensive Enterprises, Cobra Commander and his Coil, MARS, Serpentor’s handful of loyalists, the Dreadnoks…they’re all busy taking Cobra bases and equipment for their own ends. Now, according to one of our more reliable sources, the Baroness— and by extension, the rest of MARS— appears to be planning some sort of arms fair or auction somewhere near Tijuana.”

A hand shot up.

“Yes, Lady Jaye?”

“If I may, sir, why Tijuana?”

“It’s close enough to the coast for some naval hardware demonstrations, it’s within driving distance for any CGs in San Diego, and an arms fair in Mexico isn’t going to draw nearly as much attention as one held on American soil. Any further questions?”

Another hand shot up.

“No, Shipwreck, we’re not looking for volunteers. Besides, this is going to be an undercover operation, and that parrot of yours is a tip-off of its own.” He turned to face Courtney. “Cover Girl?”

“Sir?”

“You’ll be posing as a buyer named Allison Gunn, a mercenary commander looking for reliable hardware for upcoming operations in East Africa.”

----

Tijuana

Cover Girl stepped out of the armored BMW that she’d been given as part of her assignment. According to the dossier she’d been given, it was “Allison Gunn’s” preferred brand. As per usual, no details had been spared— a little black dress with surplus jungle boots as her main outfit, notes on wine preferences (reds as opposed to whites— preferably port), and mentions of both a summer house in Tuscany and annual tickets to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. In other words, the ideal face for a bunch of elite hired guns looking for quality hardware.

Suddenly, the place began to shake as very loud music began to play, overriding any other sounds. The source was — well, it wasn’t anything Cover Girl had seen before. It was a rather bizarre-looking vehicle that seemed to be a mixture of an extremely wide tank and some kind of mobile missile battery, bristling with laser cannons and rocket launchers. Destro himself was atop the vehicle, surveying the crowd from some kind of crow’s nest-type structure. Meanwhile, the vehicle’s floodlights were pulsing to the beat of the music, which seemed to be 1970s funk, of all choices. Its tank treads then compressed together, elevating the entire vehicle as it slowly halted.

“Welcome, one and all, to the first annual MARS Bazaar!” Destro shouted, before, to everyone’s astonishment, the crow’s nest detached and flew off as an air vehicle! As it soared over the crowd of assorted miscreants, Destro was laughing it up. He rarely got an opportunity to truly cut loose and enjoy himself.

As he landed the Despoiler, Cover Girl’s eyes were bugging out. Instead of his usual silver mask, Destro had opted for gold. And that was just the beginning. He wore a burgundy version of his usual black suit, only with added leopard-print across the inside of his collar and across his waist and thighs. This paled by comparison to the entire leopard pelt he was wearing for a cape. The ostentatious look continued as Destro had even opted to carry a golden gun and briefcase. He also inexplicably wore a pair of purple sunglasses, despite it being the late evening.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is the DEMON — one of my new Iron Grenadier battle vehicles. Now that we’re no longer working with Cobra, I felt the need to expand my product range. Cobra’s loss is your gain!” Destro said, swaggering forwards. He then proceeded to reach into his golden briefcase and extract a stack of cash. “Down payments for a DEMON unit start at $50,000 American. If you have money to burn, I would highly suggest you start!” He then proceeded to literally light the stack of cash on fire with a gold lighter. “Well, we’re off to a great start, James,” The Baroness purred as she approached. She was dressed in a much more elegant evening dress.

“I don’t normally flaunt, but with Cobra now at its weakest, I wanted to live a little.” Destro had loved seeing Anastasia’s reaction to him wearing this outfit. (“James, you look like some kind of…. pimp !”) This MARS Bazaar would hopefully be the first of many. Free from Cobra’s obligations, Destro felt much happier than he honestly had been in the last few years. No more ranting and raving from that lunatic Commander, no insane plans to take over the world, no strange ancient civilizations….just pure, unbridled lust for money and power. To Destro, war brought out the greatest in humankind. He was itching to lead the Iron Grenadiers into battle somewhere, whether it be the Middle East, Central America, East Africa, or wherever else his services were required.

Cover Girl, meanwhile, was imagining just how she’d be able to describe Destro’s gaudy new ensemble without earning disbelieving comments from her superiors.

A few minutes passed as Cover Girl mingled amid the crowd. She made sure to keep away from Destro and the Baroness, lest they somehow recognize her. She made careful mental notes of everything MARS had for sale. Everything from spare ammo to surplus HISS tanks to ration packs. (That being said, there was a plentiful amount of food from a high-quality catering service– clearly, Destro sure knew how to throw a party. The gift bags, meanwhile, were full of ammo, a tin of Scottish cookies and even coupons for MARS equipment.)

“Attention please!” The Baroness’ voice echoed over the loudspeakers. “Please turn your attention to the coast, where our anti-gravity pods and new Bull Shark attack boats are putting on a show!” The Bull Sharks (in reality, heavily-remodeled Cobra Morays) were busy opening fire against the nimble pods. When one was hit, an Iron Grenadier bailed out by parachute.

The show lasted only a few minutes, but soon enough there was a line for orders. Several Iron Grenadiers were busy taking down details and payments; quite a few bags full of cash, diamonds, drugs and other items of varying legality were being exchanged. To make a token effort, Courtney put her assumed name down for one Dominator helicopter/tank hybrid vehicle, plus a Bull Shark. a set of BATs, and about a dozen crates of various small arms (all to be delivered to some unused address that Chuckles had found).

“First one of these I’ve seen all day,” one of the Grenadiers commented as Courtney handed him a business check from “Excalibur Security Contractors” (another one of Chuckles’ fabrications). “Though out of curiosity, why’re you springing for a Bull Shark instead of something more suitable for riverine ops?”

“We’re looking to expand into blue water anti-piracy operations,” she lied. “Though now that you mention it, any recommendations for something more suited for shallower waters?”

The Grenadier handed her a catalog. “Look for the Monitor -class speedboat under ‘Watercraft’,” he said. Just then, the speakers turned on. “ And now, the top attraction at our bazaar…. ” 

As Destro’s voice filled the air, a couple of Iron Grenadiers turned on some spotlights, illuminating a very familiar machine. “ No way! ” Cover Girl thought. “The reconstructed Weather Dominator!” The crowd oohed at the sight.

The machine was still somewhat damaged from the last time it had been used several years prior. “Trust me, we’ve had to do a lot of reconstructive surgery to get the Weather Dominator back into operable condition. We do offer a money-back guarantee, as we do with all our products. When you buy MARS, you buy quality ,” Destro informed the crowd.

Courtney was sweating up a storm now. This was a serious curveball. If they’d truly managed to get it working again, then any nutjob with the cash could potentially wreak meteorological mayhem!

Luckily, the nearby row of restroom trailers were well positioned to let Courtney do a little creative eavesdropping. (Plus, she needed to wipe the sweat away and make sure her makeup was still good.)

“Hmmm….” The Baroness looked over the Weather Dominator’s battered control panels. “James, we may not be able to demonstrate it. There seems to be some kind of interference.” Curious, Destro walked over to take a look for himself. He pressed some buttons to try and isolate the transmission. “It doesn’t seem to match either GI Joe or Cobra electronic frequencies.” He then further narrowed the search to exclude Cybertronian frequencies, as well as those used by the Earth Corps, M.A.S.K, and even V.E.N.O.M.

“This frequency doesn’t match anything I’ve seen before.” It took a lot to stump a McCullen. “Then where is it coming from?” Anastasia took over the controls. “The origin point seems to be from somewhere in the Los Angeles area.” 

What could be the source? Cover Girl thought.

----

Synergy could feel it. Someone out there was attempting to home in on her specialized, wide-band holographic signal. It couldn’t be done with civilian technology; only advanced, military-level tech could pick it out, much less attempt to trace it.

Unfortunately, with the signal currently being used, there was no opportunity for Synergy to initiate her I.C.Es (intrusion countermeasures), like flooding the data stream with garbage to overwrite whatever could identify her.

Said signal was being transmitted to an outdoor theater near the U.S-Mexico border.

At Coronado Beach, the Holograms were taking a quick break from their setlist. “Ooh, I dunno how you do it, Jem. Seriously, all that singing, dancing, it’s gotta be draining.” Danse had opted to fill in when one of their usual backup dancers had another commitment. She was in great shape, but doing an entire concert like this, as opposed to more limited bouts of dancing during the filming of a music video, was out of her wheelhouse.

“I dunno how I do it either, someTIMESAAGH!” Jem suddenly shrieked in pain, as some kind of strange feedback caused audio issues. Kimber rushed to Jem’s side, and noted that for a moment, the hologram of Jem seemed to flicker and reveal Jerrica. “Uhh, maybe we should have Jem sit down for a few.” Kimber hurriedly helped Jem to a nearby couch.

“Jerrica, what happened?” Kimber whispered. “I’m not sure. Agh!” Jerrica rubbed her ears. “It was some kind of feedback, it caused the Jemstars to static shock me, I guess.” Aja then rushed over. “We could make some excuse and end the concert early if there’s a problem with Synergy,” she suggested.

Jem shook her head. “No. These fans paid for a concert, they’re gonna get one. Now let’s get back out there and sing our butts off.” Jerrica hated to disappoint her legions of fans. She couldn’t— she wouldn’t — let them down.

“It’s the flu incident all over again…” Aja wearily said as she picked up her guitar. 

----

Okay, let’s review, Courtney thought as she reapplied her makeup. Signal unlike any other, it’s screwing with the Weather Dominator, and it’s coming from L.A. She pondered. It’s not one of ours…wait, not one of ours. Her eyes lit up. Last time we used our frequencies in L.A, it was during the Cobra attack. That bit of interference right before that Rattler hit that other building…could that be our mystery signal? Because if it was, then that means the point of broadcast would’ve been either near or potentially in the combat zone, and considering that the only people who I know brought in comms gear in were us and Cobra, it’d have to be some sort of covert device…which means the user would’ve had to get out of the thick of things in order to send the signal out without tipping everyone else off— like, say, from behind a pillar!

She cracked a sly grin. Oh, yeah— it’s all coming together.

If her suspicions were correct, Jerrica had something to do with this. That still left Courtney with only one piece of the puzzle. Namely, how was Jerrica doing this?

She exited the bathroom and decided to check out some of the other Iron Grenadier vehicles, still pondering just how Jerrica could be connected to all this. A mystery involving her definitely not-girlfriend.

Wait a minute, she thought, realization hitting her like a boot to the head. All those times she had to duck out, she was tugging on those earrings…could those be how she’s broadcasting the signal? And come to think of it, doesn’t Jem wear an identical set in all her publicity stills?

As if on cue, it dawned on her. Could Jerrica and Jem be one and the same? Because if they are, then that means…oh my God, how could I do this to her?! If only…wait a minute. Wasn’t there something in the paper about a Jem concert in San Diego today? She took a deep breath. 

“Hang on tight, Jerrica— I’m coming to the rescue,” she murmured.

----

Jem was performing flawlessly on stage. Suddenly the holographic special effects seemed to fizzle out. The roar of the crowd quickly became confused, especially as the Holograms ceased to play. “Uh, folks it looks like we--AGH!” The feedback again, and it was stronger this time! It caused Jem to clutch her ears in pain and stumble.

“Jem!” Kimber and Aja rushed to support Jem and usher her off stage. “Uh, we’ll be back as soon as we can!” Raya said to the now-concerned audience. Already, photos were being snapped of Jem being rushed off stage.

She had to try and keep her heart rate down, but it was difficult for Jerrica to do that when her Jemstars were crackling with energy. She quickly moved to get them off her ears. “Synergy? Synergy, what’s going on?” She spoke into the Jemstars.

“M---ologies, Jerr---” Synergy’s voice kept being obscured by static. “Signal--ference. Attempting to--” The sound cut out. Jerrica turned to Aja in alarm. “Aja, what do we do?” Aja was the expert, she could fix anything. 

Aja herself looked over the Jemstars. “I’d assume now that the Jemstars are off, Synergy can try to stop the interference. I didn’t think anything could interfere with her signals.” Aja had studied how Synergy’s long-range systems worked. They used a specialized, wide-band datastream transmitted over a unique frequency that only the Jemstars were keyed onto. Someone -- or something -- had evidently decided to use that frequency.

Back in LA, with the Jemstars now inactive, Synergy was free to retaliate against the rogue signal. “Whoever you are, get off this frequency!” She proceeded to broadcast a special data stream— one that would cause a voltage spike in whatever was on the other end.

----

“Get back, get back!” Destro yelled as the Weather Dominator had begun to suddenly malfunction. Whatever had been broadcasting the interfering signal had tried to send it back. With the Weather Dominator in the state it was in, that caused several of the failsafe systems to go offline.

“Anastasia, we must get out of here! If this damned thing explodes again…” He really didn’t want to go to the trouble of tracking down all those pieces again. 

It didn’t explode, however. Instead, it began to activate of its own accord. “ Activating thunderstorm program .”

Courtney had barely made it across the border when the storm materialized in all its glory. Hail, gale force winds, what looked like a twister forming out over the ocean— all in all, something she was very well acquainted with from her Midwestern childhood. 

“When you buy MARS, you buy quality ,” she muttered under her breath. “Now if only this was the exception!”

Right on cue, there was a distinct THUD! as a hailstone hit the roof.

“God, would I hate to be at that concert right now…”

----

Jerrica flinched as the hail battered against the tour bus roof, each strike seemingly punctuating the panicked screams of the crowd of concertgoers currently being evacuated from the venue.

First something messes with Synergy, and now this! she thought, pulling a travel eiderdown comforter over her. What else can go wrong today?!

As if on cue, she heard the honk of an unfamiliar car horn outside. 

----

“What the…” Aja asked as she watched a BMW pull into the parking lot like a bat out of Hell. No sooner had it stopped than the driver’s door opened to reveal an auburn-haired woman wearing a little black dress and…were those Army boots? emerging with what looked like a small gift bag in her hand and a magazine rolled up under her arm.

“Who’re you and what do you want?” she asked.

“Cover Girl, GI Joe,” came the reply. “I need to see Jem about something.”

“Define ‘something’.”

“This storm? I know what’s causing it, and I think she’s involved.”

Aja gestured to a nearby bus. “I’ll take you to her.”

----

Jerrica startled as the bus door opened. A moment later, Aja stepped in, followed right thereafter by…

“Courtney? What’re you doing here?”

“I could ask the same about you,” came the reply. “Especially since your friend—”

“Sister,” Aja corrected.

“Your sister told me that Jem was here.”

Jerrica sighed. “Well, you’re looking at her.”

Courtney raised an eyebrow. “How?”

“Jem…she’s a hologram projected over me.”

“What sort of equipment…”

“My earrings? They’re projectors keyed in on some sort of…unique wide-band frequency transmitted by a sentient supercomputer called Synergy that I keep in my house.”

Courtney blinked.

“You’re not freaking out?” Jerrica asked.

Courtney simply shrugged. “Trust me, this…Synergy thing isn’t even in the top 10 weirdest things I’ve seen as part of GI Joe,” she replied. “In fact, I’m kind of surprised that you…” She trailed off. “Where did you say you kept that computer again?”

“At the mansion. Why?”

It was Courtney’s turn to sigh. “Short version— Cobra’s gone to pieces, Destro’s faction is selling off surplus tech including a rebuilt Weather Dominator, and whatever frequency it—”

“She.”

“Whatever frequency she uses was messing with it.”

“Guess that explains the interference from the Jemstars,” Aja said.

“Anyways, Destro and Baroness traced the point of transmission to the L.A. area, and I’m pretty sure they’ve probably narrowed it down since. Questions?”

“Yeah— how do you know all this stuff?”

Courtney unrolled the magazine, revealing it to be a MARS Industries catalog. “See this? Got it at Destro’s little shindig about half an hour away,” she said.

“Wait, what were y—”

“I’ll explain on the way.”

----

The Starlight Mansion was empty. With the girls — supervised by Mrs. Bailey — out on a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium for much of the day, they hadn’t gotten back home yet.

Within the walls, however, Synergy was very concerned. “Whoever these people are, they’ve traced my signal.” It was rather worrying that someone might finally uncover the secret of Jem. Of course, then the radio transmissions of the Iron Grenadiers and a rogue band of Crimson Guardsmen began to filter through. “Jerrica, if you can hear me, you must do something!” Synergy pleaded, hoping her transmission would be heard.

The Mansion was now surrounded by an array of war machines. “COBRAAAAAAAA!” The Crimson Guardsmen’s battle cry was heard all over the neighborhood as they opened fire on the Iron Grenadiers. “Grenadiers, forward! Weir Ayebidin !” The Scottish brogue of Destro sounded off, taking over combat operations alongside the Baroness. The sooner they figured out whatever the source of the transmission was, the sooner they could sell the Weather Dominator and make a hefty profit.

Destro relished in the feel of his personal army putting up the best fight they could against the elite of Cobra. Humiliating the Commander (or whoever was in charge) would be a great slice of humble pie— not to mention something to boast about to his cousin Darklon at the next family reunion. “Once these CGs are dealt with, we shall secure the building and find the signal source!” Destro roared over the sound of his Demon’s numerous laser cannons unleashing green pulses against several crimson-hued HISS tanks.

The Baroness, firing her own weapon, provided cover fire for a squadron of Grenadiers; they quickly breached the front doors and escaped into the foyer, using furniture to form makeshift defense barriers as they advanced. The Crimson Guard quickly rushed their own unit in. “Radio the Crimson Twins, we’re inside. Still tracking the transmission,”  a CG Commander reported, as their lasers began to reduce the furniture to splinters.

As the fighting raged, Courtney wove her armored BMW through traffic at maximum speed. “If I know Destro, he’ll probably take Synergy for his own and try to reverse-engineer the tech. It could easily be used for all kinds of warfare applications.” The potential for Synergy’s holograms in warfare was unlimited….and it made Jerrica sick to her stomach.

“Can’t you call in for backup?” Aja wondered. “Already have. But at max speed they’re still about an hour out.” Courtney hadn’t ever thought Jerrica could be this enmeshed in her job as a Joe.

“Synergy? Synergy, do whatever you can to try and distract people away from the Mansion!” Jerrica was holding the Jemstars and shouting into them (she couldn’t put them back in her ears, not wanting to risk another shock). “ I am attempting. The invaders are fighting each other! ” Synergy was quite alarmed at being unable to properly defend herself. (Having no actual limbs made it somewhat difficult.)

“Luckily this thing has a car phone…” Courtney passed the receiver to Aja. She quickly began to dial a number. “Riot, this is Aja. Jem needs your help! It’s a long story, but the Starlight Mansion is being invaded by Destro and—” Aja paused as Riot swore a blue streak.

“He’s getting his gun and the Stingers, he’ll meet us there.” Aja hung up. “Better than nothing.” Courtney knew that any help was appreciated. Even if General Wallace probably didn’t want his son rushing into an active battlezone.

By the time they’d pulled up to the Mansion, most of the Crimson Guard units had been either killed or heavily wounded; some had fled. The Iron Grenadiers had locked the area down. Courtney brought the car to a stop nearby and assessed the situation. “You think you can use those Jemstars to make us invisible?” Courtney asked Jerrica.

“Synergy?” There was no response. Jerrica’s feeling of dread deepened.

----

“We’ve just about found the signal, Lord Destro.” A feeling of accomplishment was rising through the masked arms magnate. “Excellent. Now we can finally see what’s been causing all this trouble.” He said it casually, as if he’d tracked down the source of a leaky pipe.

“So who does this house belong to, anyway?” one Grenadier wondered aloud. “Jerrica Benton, a music executive. She runs a foster home out of this place.” The Baroness couldn’t come up with more details, as they were irrelevant.

“The signal seems to be coming from here, sir,” another Grenadier stated as they opened the door into an average-looking sitting room. “If this room is in the basement, then why is there a fireplace here?” The Baroness knew something was off just by that visual clue.

“Maybe it’s an electric one,” one of the Grenadiers replied, earning no response.

“I do not know. It does seem odd that—” Destro halted as his hand somehow went through the wall! “What in blazes…” He passed his hand through. The wall was intangible. “This is most curious…” Destro drew a breath and stepped through.

Within lay an extension of the room beyond. There was little furniture, but there was something tantalizingly close. Some kind of supercomputer. An oddly-shaped one, resembling some kind of futuristic player piano or pipe organ, given the keys seemed to resemble piano keys more than computer keys. 

“If you know what’s good for you, stay away from me,” the image of a purple-haired woman spoke in a tinny-sounding synthesized voice, emanating from the central monitor.

“Well, isn’t that something?” the Baroness commented wryly. Destro was intrigued. “Who or what are you?” After all, with all the purple coloration, this thing could easily be some kind of Decepticon.

“I am Synergy, programmed to provide holographic entertainment. I will not let myself be used for warfare.” Synergy glared at the duo of war profiteers. “Like you have any choice in the matter,” the Baroness boasted. “We will crack you open for the secrets of your technology. Many would pay handsomely for such cutting-edge equipment,” Destro stated. 

“Holographic entertainment….” the Baroness mused. Why did that ring a bell?

Her line of thought was interrupted by a radio from one of the Grenadiers outside. “Some civilians have arrived and --WHOA!” The sounds of punches and gunshots could be heard. 

“ EAT HOT KNUCKLES, SNAKE-FACE! ” a shrill voice screamed into the radio, prompting the Baroness to cringe from the sheer volume.

----

“Always wanted to go up against these jerks!” Pizzazz was no saint. Far from it. She drew the line at Cobra, though, and vowed to punch their lights out if she ever encountered them. When Riot had called her up and told her Cobra was invading Jerrica’s house….well, she and the other Misfits had sprung into action. She’d even called Techrat for help; he’d contributed that laser pistol she’d used while hang-gliding.

“Stingers, spread out!” Between Riot’s Army training and their closeness, the trio acted like a well-oiled machine. Riot had opened fire with something his father had given him: an old Army-issue Colt .45! Meanwhile, Jetta — acting on her kleptomaniac instincts — was sizing up some dropped enemy gear (with a particular eye on a dagger with a maple handle and what looked like a copycat of Sonny Crockett’s Bren Ten).

“We need to get back up there!” Destro and the Baroness quickly scrambled out of the room, with two Iron Grenadiers left behind to guard Synergy.

As the IGs attempted to stop the Misfits and Stingers’ double trouble, Courtney, Jerrica and Aja were able to slip past some of the guards and into a side door of the mansion. “We need to get to the basement without alerting anyone.” Courtney saw that the kitchen was relatively untouched, though one Iron Grenadier was standing watch.

Before anyone could do anything, one of the windows was broken by Stormer tossing a hefty rock through it. The rock hit the Grenadier in the back, knocking the wind out of him. “Well, that works too.” Courtney said, shrugging. “ Sorry, Jerrica! ” Stormer whispered. Of course, insurance payments were the last thing on Jerrica’s mind. The trio hurriedly rushed to the basement door (as the basement was large enough to have multiple entrances).

“Doubtlessly Destro left some IGs behind. Luring them out of Synergy’s room is our next goal.” Courtney wasn’t the best at on-the-fly tactics, but she was giving it her all. What gave her an advantage was her meticulous attention to detail. The basement, putting aside Synergy’s room, was fairly large. There were plenty of objects and niches to hide behind. There had to be something they could use to bait the Grenadiers out.

Just then, Rapture suddenly appeared. “Leave it to me, girls. My allure should make short work of these meatheads.” Indeed, it was less than 5 minutes before Rapture re-emerged from the room, dragging the two unconscious IGs out of the room. “I’ll make sure they won’t cause any more trouble,” she assured them, taking one of the IG’s rifles. Courtney quickly picked up a pistol and took it for herself.

The trio nodded at Rapture and rushed into the room. “There’s nothing in here.” Courtney looked around. Nothing seemed out of place…. “Wait. There’s no chimney that could be linked to this fireplace.” It dawned on her. “Either it’s electric or that’s a false wall.” Jerrica then stepped through and vanished.

Aja followed, with Courtney bringing up the rear. Stepping through a holographic wall felt…indescribably odd. When she got through, she saw what everyone was fighting over. “Courtney, meet Synergy. A supercomputer with full artificial intelligence and wide-range holographic projection technology. Created by my late father, and modeled partially after my late mother.” Jerrica introduced.

“So you’re the girl she’s fallen in love with. Nice to meet you, Courtney,” Synergy greeted. “Likewise. I just wish it wasn’t in the middle of a firefight,” Courtney replied before taking out her radio. “Assault force, this is Cover Girl. We’ve secured the object of interest. What’s our ETA on your arrival?” The Misfits and Stingers could only buy them so much time.

“ Still enroute, ETA 10 minutes. ” The distorted voice of Flint could be heard over the muffled sounds of the battle above. “Acknowledged.” Courtney then ensured her pistol was loaded. “Alright, we just have to hope those other bands can hold their ground.” “Trust me, if the Misfits are good at anything, it’s causing chaos.” Jerrica, for once, felt like that was a positive thing.

Up top, the Iron Grenadiers had reformed their line under Destro’s command. “Capture these interlopers!” he roared before taking off in his Despoiler. He needed to get back to Tijuana and ensure the Weather Dominator hadn’t been stolen. Before he could, however, a blue laser pulse struck the side! “Gotcha, you crazy metal-headed cyborg!” Pizzazz crowed, brandishing a rifle taken from a fallen Grenadier. Destro cursed as smoke spewed from one side of his air chariot.

“Hey, you bloody Scotch wankers! OLD FIRM SUCKS! ARSENAL FOREVER!” Jetta wasn’t going to let a bunch of Irn-Bru-and-Mars Bar-fueled Scots get the better of these girls. Her words enraged a couple of the Iron Grenadiers and they quickly rushed after Jetta. Before they could even get close, they were suddenly knocked aside and went flying across the lawn! “Alright, Roxy!” Roxy and Minx were in the Misfits' van, which now had something of a large dent in the front bumper.

“Techrat, you think it’s time?” Minx asked over walkie-talkie. “Yes, use my jammer!” He rasped. Minx promptly did so, aiming the small EM-jamming device dubbed the “black box” at the Iron Grenadier’s vehicles. It promptly caused the already-damaged Despoiler to fall towards the ground, Destro leaping out at the last moment before landing face-first on the lawn. The rest of the Iron Grenadier vehicles, as well as whatever Crimson Guard vehicles were still present, suddenly stopped functioning. “Someone’s using a portable EMP device, ma’am! We can’t--” The Grenadier was cut off by a shove from the frustrated Baroness. 

Helping Destro up, the Baroness surveyed the mansion grounds. The Iron Grenadiers were the best-trained soldiers in the business…and some punk musicians were making fools out of them. Even the best-laid plans couldn’t account for factors like this. “James, I hate to say this, but…we must retreat.” “At least you sound better saying it,” Destro said ruefully, trying to suppress a voice that sounded suspiciously like Cobra Commander howling with laughter in the recesses of his brain. “We must try and get at least one of our vehicles back into working order before--” 

“ YO JOE! ” 

“Damn it.”

A cadre of Joe vehicles were making their way up the hill, with further aerial support also inbound. “Sometimes, it just doesn’t pay to be in the war business,” Destro said dryly. Their vehicles were inoperable, soldiers scattered, and tactically speaking, they were up against a wall. It was more than a defeat. It was humiliation . Of the kind he thought he would no longer suffer from, now that he wasn’t working with Cobra.

“Do you mind if I borrow this?” Before Destro could react, the leopard pelt suddenly slipped off his back. Roxy quickly rushed off grinning, dreaming about wearing it during a concert or on the town. Destro simply hung his head, sighing in disgust.

----

Several minutes later, Flint looked around at the absolute chaos. “So, Cover Girl. You mind explaining just how your undercover job led to an assault on the mansion of a music executive?” He needed some kind of context for why the infamous Misfits had apparently been causing no small amount of pain for one of the world’s best PMCs. Let alone one of the Jugglers’ wayward children!

“It’s…complicated. There’s some things we need to keep secret on Miss Benton’s behalf,” Courtney explained. Flint nodded. “Well, at the very least we were able to bust his arms fair. We sent a separate squad down to Tijuana to take care of that loose end.” Capturing all the fancy new MARS weapons and equipment was yet another success for the Joes.

“What about the Weather Dominator?” Courtney asked, acutely aware of its status as a major threat. “The thing shut off after about 15 minutes. The voltage spikes did a number on it and it blew several fuses. We don’t think it can work again, not without Cybertronian tech.” Flint would make sure the Weather Dominator would be reduced to nothing but non-working scrap. Perhaps he’d call in that giant Autobot who was both a tank and a rocket to smash it; Optimus Prime owed him a favor or two.

“Well, that’s a relief,” she replied.

“Not to sound ungrateful,” Jerrica piped up, “but who’s going to pay for everything the Grenadiers broke?”

“We’ll pitch in to help cover any damages your insurance doesn’t cover, Miss Benton,” Flint said. “Now, why exactly did Destro do this? What was he after?” He couldn’t make sense of it. There was usually some kind of goal when Destro was involved. He subscribed more to logical reason than arguably any other Cobra higher-up.

----

“Wow.” Flint was astounded as Synergy created a life-like hologram of himself. “So your father created this? It’s a miracle it took this long for someone to figure out there was something going on.” It was eerie to look at himself and be able to wave his hand through his own duplicate body.

“I would suggest that we work out some kind of protection detail for Synergy here. We definitely don’t want a situation like this to happen again.” Courtney knew that if word continued to spread, everyone and their brother would be out to take Synergy for themselves.

“I’ll speak with General Hawk…and with General Llewelyn. He’ll be mighty interested to hear how his son was involved.” Flint then yawned. It was around 1 AM and it was still going to be a long night ahead of everyone. “Hopefully there’s a working coffeemaker.”

Jerrica herself was completely tapped out. She simply sat at the foot of Synergy’s main console, sighing. “Hey. I know it’s been a lot, but we can--” Jerrica held her hand up. Talking about anything with Courtney was…she simply didn’t have the energy for it.

“C’mon. You need some food.” Jerrica didn’t fight Courtney, as the latter dragged her out and towards the kitchen.

By the time the two reached the mess that was the kitchen, the other Holograms, along with the Misfits and Stingers, had already gathered around the surprisingly intact table. Mrs. Bailey had just arrived with the Starlight Girls (who she’d quickly ushered upstairs; luckily, they’d eaten earlier and were dead tired), and was aghast at the situation. “Why in the world would any of this happen?” she asked, already trying to prepare a large, late meal for everyone. “Because our lives are magnets for chaos,” Shana wearily remarked.

“The real reasons are…complicated,” Jerrica admitted. “I’m just glad nobody was hurt.” (Not counting the IGs and CGs.) 

Flint had left the interior to help supervise the cleanup, while Courtney had remained behind with Jerrica and the others. Across the table, Pizzazz was riding high on adrenaline (even if it was fading). “I can’t believe I got to save the day for once!” she whooped, elated to actually be the hero.

“Hey, don’t count us out. We did as much as you to help everyone,” Riot pointed out. He hadn’t done it for glory, but rather for the long-neglected part of him that had wanted to make his father proud by serving his country. By doing his duty. This time around, though, his friends were there to assist him.

For once, all three bands were actually getting along, especially once everyone began to chow down on the meal Mrs. Bailey was able to cobble together. For a few merciful moments, silence reigned. Which suited Jerrica just fine.

“So,” Courtney began; “...can we talk about us now?” Jerrica sighed. “I don’t know what you mean.” “You know. I know. And I know that it’s still a crime to be…what I am in the military.” Courtney dropped to a whisper. She only hoped General Hawk would be willing to look the other way like he did with Gung-Ho.

“And it’s just as much a risk on my side. If we do anything, we’re going to have to keep it incredibly secret,” Jerrica pointed out. If word got around in the industry of her…preferences, she’d find herself a pariah, her reputation as radioactive as Bikini Atoll. Of course, by this point, both women were well-versed in keeping secrets to themselves.

Half-an-hour later, the three bands, Courtney and Mrs. Bailey had all moved into one of the living rooms that hadn’t been wrecked. “I dunno about you, but I think we’ve got enough room for everyone here to crash tonight,” Jerrica announced, grateful to both the Stingers and the Misfits for their earlier assistance.

“Thanks for all this, Jerrica,” Jetta stated, sitting next to Rapture on the loveseat and brainstorming potential future scams. “You’re….welcome?” Jerrica replied, her mind now grappling with having the Misfits (barring Stormer) genuinely thanking her.

Pizzazz was sitting in front of the window, looking out at the assorted battle debris. “Your landscapers are gonna have a hell of a time cleaning all this up. Reminds me of that rager we went to in Van Nuys,” she reminisced fondly. That party had been a particularly…active affair.

“So, was it just me or was Destro wearing a leopard skin cape?” Riot wondered if that wasn’t a great idea for live performances. “Already snagged it. Asking $500 for it,” Roxy replied, still weaning the cape.

Shana chuckled. Destro was one of the more obvious fashion disasters Cobra had walking around. She’d once seen a picture of Dr. Mindbender. That so-called doctor clearly owed more to pro-wrestling than any actual academic profession.

Kimber and Stormer were sharing a sleeping bag on the floor, already asleep in each others’ arms. Jerrica was honestly envious of those two. They could be together without as much trouble.

Someone knocked on the door. “We’re done with the removal of all the vehicles and debris,” Flint reported. “Cover Girl, are you coming back to base with us?” Courtney shook her head. “I think leaving me behind as a sentry would be a logical course of action. In case anyone else tries something.”

Flint nodded. “Very well. I’ll expect you to report in for debriefing as soon as you come back. Yo Joe.” With that, Flint left. Courtney exhaled. “Anyone else feeling like a piece of roadkill?” Even as a GI Joe who trained every day, she was still a normal human. She was fading.

Before she could even think, Jerrica suddenly grabbed her head and kissed her! Courtney almost screamed, before her instincts remembered this was the girl she loved. She couldn’t deny it anymore.

“Sorry, I just….wanted to do that the moment I could.” Jerrica knew it was now or never. Most everyone else who wasn’t asleep was taken off guard. Mrs. Bailey, however, had a knowing smile on her face.

“No no no! This isn’t how it’s supposed to be! I should be the one making out with Benton, not her!” Pizzazz whined from across the room. “Just let the two have their moment!” Roxy whispered.

“Jerrica, I…I…” Courtney was tongue-tied. “I know. J-Just…let me enjoy this.” 

----

The next morning, light shone over the ruined yard. Courtney looked over the lawn with a skeptical eye. How are any of the neighbors going to take this? she thought as she noticed that the nearest clock read 10 AM.

Wandering into the kitchen, it was yet again a scene of chaos. Namely because everyone was clamoring for breakfast. Most of the Misfits (excepting Stormer) had taken off (doubtlessly Pizzazz was in a snit about the kiss), as had the Stingers; Stormer, however, was together with Kimber, eating bowls of cereal at the foot of the grand staircase.

Weaving her way around the countless Starlight Girls, Courtney tried to find Jerrica, but couldn’t. “Has anyone seen Jerrica?” She asked openly. “She left about a couple hours ago,” Kimber casually replied

“Where?”

“The family cabin up at Big Bear Lake,” Mrs. Bailey explained.

On the road, Jerrica had been able to partially clear her head. She desperately needed to relax. Try to get her typhoon of thought together.

Fortunately, the cabin was unoccupied, it being close to winter. They generally only went up a few times a year. This meant Jerrica had the place to herself. It brought back memories of family vacations…before Mom died and everything gradually fell on her shoulders.

Checking to make sure the heat was still working (and that the pipes hadn’t frozen), Jerrica wandered around. The smell of pine, cold water, and the absolute lack of sound meant she could finally relax. The Misfits were holding up their end of the bargain, the lawsuit against Eric had begun, and Cobra’s attempt to take Synergy had been thwarted.

To Jerrica, it seemed like things were going well…but she was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. As far as she was concerned, if there was some deity or other cosmic power out there, it liked to watch her slowly crumble under the pressure.

She took the phone off the hook, then simply plopped herself on the somewhat-dusty couch and began channel surfing. Thank goodness for Ted Turner, she thought. Right now, watching some forgotten old movie was just what she needed to drain her excess thoughts to.

Time became a blur. She didn’t know how long it had been before a knock at the door startled her. She opened the door to find a concerned Courtney. “You drove all the way here after me?” Jerrica asked before letting her in. “Yes. I’m a GI Joe operative, after all. Not giving up is in our vocabulary…no matter how tempting this traffic makes it seem.” Courtney then sat down in an armchair nearby; all that driving had left her butt numb.

“I just…figured I could be here for a few days to decompress.” Jerrica had basically fled. She wasn’t saying this, but it was true. Her very home was the site of a bloody battle. Who wouldn’t want to leave for a while?

“Maybe I can help.” Jerrica sank back onto the couch. “I know you, Jerrica. You’ve got to destress before it kills you. You have to let other people handle your workload,” Courtney advised.

“It’s so difficult for me not to work. I’m so used to having to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders. I always have.” It was hard to stop an ingrained habit. “Then I’ll help train that out of you.”

Courtney and Jerrica spent some time going over a plan to delegate her multiple workloads. Joanie would take over as CEO of Starlight, while Jerrica would remain chairwoman. This meant she wouldn’t have much day-to-day work to do outside of leading board meetings. They’d hire more housekeepers to help Mrs. Bailey out around the Starlight Mansion, maybe even a childcare professional. 

Finally, there was the topic of Jem. “I can’t be her forever. Yet she’s still so popular.” So popular, she’d even encountered a girl from Wisconsin who, alongside her friends, had won a contest backed by another record company and found herself virtually transformed into a Jem clone. This hadn’t been her idea, and sought out Jem herself to explain it. (Jerrica knew that she’d most likely want to work with Starlight as soon as her existing contract expired.)

“Well, look how you left the stage last night. We can always claim Jem’s private because she’s had medical issues and has to put her career on hold to deal with them,” Courtney theorized. Jerrica nodded with eyes wide. “That could work.”

“Also: if there’s anyone else you haven’t let in on the secret of Jem, you might want to do so.” This caused Jerrica to remember Rio. She’d already forgotten about him in the midst of the chaos. He hadn’t even shown up to help during the battle. Just how out of the loop was he?

Jerrica exhaled. She then felt Courtney gently squeeze her hand. “It’s gonna be alright. You have lots of friends and family who are willing to help. It’s just a matter of not believing the world will continue to turn without you working.” Jerrica smiled faintly. 

Maybe this could work out for everyone. She then felt Courtney gently kiss her cheek. A blush spread across her face. “Cover Girl as a Hologram? Or Jem as a Joe?” Jerrica commented. “Who would’ve thought it possible?”

The two stared out the window at the stars above. It seemed like that, at long last, the universe was granting them a reprieve.