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The sound of a thousand voices in unison was music to the young man's ears. This old building that was once home to a disgrace, was now the HQ of a new movement. These people were waiting for him to speak.
The back stage was crowded with his friends and collegues. The beautiful Rosy was handing out drinks from the Smoothie Panthenon. Aegis loved the taste of raspberries after a speech. Everything was in order except for one thing.
They never announced his cue. The stage hands and assistants were nervous. The broadcasters were getting confused, and a producer wondered if it was worth filming at all. Before he could make a call, the young man took a chance and march across the stage. He walked up to the podium and the audience began to quiet down.
He said, "Thank you all for attending. The opposition thought that taking me out would weaken the position of humanity. Our opponants fear our potential, and they believe humanity is ruled by fear. That is the tool they chose to use the day I was caught in that explosion. They hoped my father would resign from the Senate.Then the aliens would be free to take over our economy, and then our planet. They were wrong."
This drew a loud cry from the audience.
"I have been reborn. Humanity will no longer remain stagnant and let other races conquer us. We shall use our knowledge and skills to obtain a level superior to them. Then we can regain our rightful place as rulers of the galaxy. Let me demonstrate to you." He continued. A man stepped onto the stage and fired a gun at him. The bullets simply bounced off his exterior. The audience was silent and stunned.
"I am now a cyborg. What you are looking at...is the magic of holoprojectors." He signaled to stage hands to turn them off. This revealed a form that was part human, part machine. His face was the same, but they could clearly see chrome-color metal gisten under the hot lights. A few drew backed in fear, but more looked on in hope.
"I am transhuman, the next step in our species. I do not wish to become a god or reign over you, but to guide everyone into this stage. In this stage the laws that bind nature are broken, and everything in possible." He finished. "Any questions?"
One woman raised her hand, "What of the threat the Legion of Super-Heroes presents?"
He answered, "I am assembling a team of volunteers to confront the Legion of Super-Heroes and give them my demands..." His microchip interface came in contact with the security cameras. They were telling him that a threat was present in the room. Aegis remained calm, answered a few more questions, and let the room clear out.
Aegis noticed the camera crews were about to pack up. He would not allow this to happen, and mechanically commanded the lights to turn off. The news crews paused in their packing.
One said, "It must have been a glitch."
Another said, "Maybe it's a city-wide blackout."
Aegis answered, "It's neither of those. Let me see...it is a spy. Hello, Sensor Girl." He mechanically commanded the doors to lock, and the lights to slowly flicker back on. Aegis believed everything was in his control.
It was at this precise minute that images of destruction began to enter his mind.
[ August 01, 2010, 02:29 PM: Message edited by: Red Arrow ]
-------------------- Go with the good and you'll be like them; go with the evil and you'll be worse than them.- Portuguese Proverb
From: Illinois | Registered: Jun 2010
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posted
Very nice introductory piece. Engaging and to the point, without giving too much away.
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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I am fascinated with cyborgs and transhumanism. In a way I feel really bad for DC humans, because they are surrounded by species that could destroy them. Some may point to mutants or genetic engineering as the answer, but so many Legion members fit that description. The xenophobes would not like that these humans jump at the chance to serve aliens in a universal agenda. ~~~ Aegis' mind was filled with horrors. It was like a scene from Dante's Inferno, complete with pictures by Gustave Dore. There were shrieking banshees leaning towards his face. He turned to see a medusa behind him. The young mand held up his hands to avoid the fiends's gaze. However, the illusion simply ran through him.
These were her illusions. Maybe a secondary power? He thought, and his thoughts interfaced with the chips in his body. They began blocking the images. They became paler until they disappeared entirely. The young man passed through the illusions and hit a security button.
At this moment, he felt a sharp jab in his left arm. He turned to see a masked woman. She said, "Dumb cur! I have already called the others."
Aegis replied, "They won't interrupt a peaceful rally. Am I right, Cosmic Boy?" He smiled at the ring on her hand. There were may rumors about their capabilities and uses. He knew there was some way they communicated together.
Sensor Girl replied, "Our leader told me to retreat until further notice. You are lucky this is not my world, for I would punish you for being pretenious. Now if you would be so kind to unlock the door, I will be on my way."
Aegis commanded the doors to open. The Legionnaire left silently, using her powers to blend in with the corridors. The reporters, who had been hiding under a table in the back, followed her in a hurry. Aegis then heard a familiar voice.
"Here's your smoothie, Mr.Hallow,"Rosy said. The young man took the smoothie and forgot about his troubles for a minute. Tomorrow would be a busy day, full of interviews and monotony.
[ August 01, 2010, 04:55 PM: Message edited by: Red Arrow ]
-------------------- Go with the good and you'll be like them; go with the evil and you'll be worse than them.- Portuguese Proverb
From: Illinois | Registered: Jun 2010
| IP: Logged |
posted
Aegis looked through the records of the potential recruits. Nine down, two more to go. The next one was very interesting. This one was a member of a Suicide Slum street gang. Maybe a fool, but fools are useful.
The door open revealing a young man that was no older than 19. His blond hair and blue eyes sparkled under the bright lights. He did not look like a former street gang member. He looked like a super-model. There was something very wrong here.
Aegis asked, "Who are you?"
"I am Maju Bravas from Metropolis, Earth. My record speaks for itself," The boy said. Aegis could sense an attitude...he wondered if this was a prank. The boy didn't even seem to be a cyborg. He directed his interface in the direction of Maju, and it connected with Maju's interface.
Maju was startled, What is this?
The future, Aegis answered. The boy rolled his eyes.
Aegis gently severed the link. He asked, "Why did you come here?"
Maju answered, "The alternative was to spend the rest of my life in a hospital, to be experimented on until I die. The cops didn't press charges because they saw my fate as punishment."
Aegis asked, "What is your ability?"
The boy began to hover above the floor, minorly manipulating gravity with the implants in his feet. He flew seven feet, then dived down before Aegis. His face mirrored Aegis' exactly.
Aegis said, "You are in, Cadeucus on one condition."
"What's that?" He asked.
"Show me your real face," He smiled.
Maju sighed. He turned off the holographic imagery that provided him with normal looking faces. It revealed a a white, blue, and silver "face" with artificial yellow eyes. There were faint outlines of where ears and noses began. His mouth was stuck in an O shape. Maju hung his head in shame.
Aegis said, "Do not be ashamed. You are no longer human, do not accept their judgments. Now, Rosy will give you a tour of the facility and lead you to your rooms. Congradulations!"
Cadeucus walked out the door to left, looking behind to see a huge man enter the room. He went forward and was greeted a beautiful woman.
"Welcome to the team!" She smiled. The halls were a strange mixture of styles and colors. Aegis' tastes changed often, reflective of the many women that have lived there. All of it was linked to Earth culture and history, and a majority of it was made on Earth. He looked at the sculptures and paintings, wondering how much they were worth. At least this will pay well no matter what.
The young man was led to a door marked Relaxation. He could see two older men playing a game of cards. One of the men had cyborg implants around his head, and Caduceus noticed some metallic coils around the neck and upper body. The other man clearly had an artificial arm. Rosy opened the door and said, "This is where we play games, watch movies, and hang out. Those two men are Leister and Stahhelm."
The two men didn't even bother to look up. Trident did not look very happy. His co-player only noticed them when they turned to leave the room.
"You will be working with me," He said matter-of-factly.
Caduceus replied, "I look forward to it." The nod face told him Stahhelm didn't have a sense of sarcasm. Rosy led him out of the room into another hallway. She was excited as she approached the next room.
"This is really impressive," She said, as she pressed the lock. The doors opened, they entered, and the doors quickly sealed behind her. The room was small and cylinder shaped, and aside from blinking lights on the walls and some comfy chairs, it was bare. Caduceus could make out a young man with headphones in each ear, and an older woman who appeared to be in a trance.
Caduceus walked up to the woman and waved two fingers in front of her face. She did not blink. He noticed a dollar in her left hand and tried to take it. The woman immediately became alert and disabled his grip.
She said, "Do not interrupt Ergane. Rosy, take this illiterate boy somewhere else."
Rosy nodded and left in a hurry. She decided to take Caduceus to the laboratory. They walked into a room with dimmed lighting. There were many curtains and drapes, concealing objects from guests and curious residents. They ended at a spot where an older woman was examing a large cannister.
She said, "Parthos? Is that you? I am honored to work with such a fine..."
Rosy answered, "No. This is Caduceus, our newest recruit. Parthos is still recuperating from his demonstration. He will be here in five hours two minutes and 26 seconds."
She replied, "Thank you. I am Hearth, the chief mechanist here. I was assistant under Rosy's father, who is responsible for most of our upgrades. Don't let our opponants fool you with their talk of Coluns."
Caduceus asked, "What do they say about the Coluns?" He asked this question as a distraction to get closer to the large cannister. Inside was a young man...no boy covered with an exoskeleton on 12% of his body, and hooked up to tons of wires.
Hearth answered, "That we are simply stealing their philosophy, which makes us hypocrites. It doesn't because the Coluns haven't done anything original in two hundred years." Her interface was intune with the specimen containers, and she sensed he was inspecting the child. Hearth added, "That is the son of our member Girdle. Aegis has given him the privilege of joining our species. His name is Agape, and he will be an empath."
Caduceus asked, "What happened to him?"
Hearth smiled, "No accident, dear. That is why it is a privilege. All his parts work fine, I just coated him in external hardware. We will continue to add parts as he grows. But don't worry about him, when are you going in for an upgrade?"
Caduceus said, "Maybe tomorrow." He turned to leave, and Rosy quickly said bye to Hearth and followed him. She decided to show him to his room.
Rosy said, "I must get the last member of the core team. His name is Martial and his room is across from yours. Maybe you will have something in common."
[ August 02, 2010, 09:23 PM: Message edited by: Red Arrow ]
-------------------- Go with the good and you'll be like them; go with the evil and you'll be worse than them.- Portuguese Proverb
From: Illinois | Registered: Jun 2010
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Rosy left the arrival and went to gather Martial. This man was very different from Cadeucus. He was a stock broker whose company was targeted by Khund agents. He was living, but at a sore price. His wife declared him dead and took his assets. There was nothing for him to love about humanity.
As he passe through the hallway, he saw one woman smile at him, before she blended into the shadows. Rosy said, "That is Delphi. She is going into the gardens. Do you want to see them?"
Martial replied, "No. Where is Aegis?"
Rosy replied, "He is busy."
Martial wasn't impressed by the technology. All he wanted to do was rest and await orders. He was tired of being on the sidelines of life and wished to be in battle. He followed Rosy until he accidently bumped into a woman turning into another hallway.
"Watch where you are going!" The woman shouted. Her hair was long and dark with blond highlights. Her eyes were green and her skin was a perfect tan. Martial didn't understand how she could be a cyborg.
Rosy said, "Sorry. This is Girdle. Girdle please meet Martial, our final recruit." The woman smiled at the young man and simply said, "Pleasure. Now if you will excuse me, I must see if Parthos has finished upgrading my son."
Martial was sorry to see her go. Rosy said, "The only members you have not met is Eleuis who is on a special assignment, and Cadeucus who is in his room."
-------------------- Go with the good and you'll be like them; go with the evil and you'll be worse than them.- Portuguese Proverb
From: Illinois | Registered: Jun 2010
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