AkazilliaDeNaro
2015-09-19, 03:58 PM
So, I occasionally have ideas pop into my head, so here are a few i have put to paper, so to speak.
A Bad Day
A tall, slender, blue skinned woman in a blue uniform, stood in front of a desk containing a large purple man, who seemed extremely upset.
“The Squad is closing in on him now, Sir.” Vice Commander of the ChronoGuard, Alai-Kaya, said to her superior, a man called Ghoro-Vashna.
“They, better catch him this time. We don’t need another Al-Omega on the loose, especially with what happened last time.” he spat.
Suddenly an alarm blared, and a red light flashed across the screen in front of them.
“What the hell just happened!” He shouted.
“Checking now, Sir.” Alai-Kaya replied, looking at her tablet in her hands. “He appears to have executed a TimeShift.”
“So! Tell the Squad to TimeShift after him!” He shouted.
“They can’t, Sir. They’re dead.” She said, her face completely composed, “He executed the TimeShift at the precise moment he set off a ZX-7 Eon Class Dreadbomb.”
“My God!” he said slumping back in his chair. ”How many casualties?”
“A ZX-7 Eon Class Dreadbomb, Is meant to destroy planets, Sir, all life that was on that world is gone.”
At this point a serviceman raised his hand. “Uhm, Vice Commander, you are missing something” he said uncertainly.
“Yes, what would that be?”
“He TimeShifted, while, the bomb was exploding, meaning the explosion probably has reached other planets, and time periods, as well.” he said, more confidently this time.
“Oh, that is a good point Serviceman. Anything else?”
“He probably died in the blast?” He said shrugging.
“Unlikely, Serviceman, Al-Omegas are supersoldiers, capable of withstanding multiple Supernovas. He’s alive.”
Commander Ghoro-Vashna sighed and looked at the ceiling, “This is not my day.”
A Song of Creation
Let me tell you a story, young one.
In the beginning, like all other beginnings, there was nothing. Then a song was played, a song of creation, a song to make all the nothingness into perfection, but knowing this a group of people sent back through time, a wave of force strong enough but subtle enough to alter a note, corrupting it, and in doing so create all the impurities in the universe, but the song could not work with the corrupted note so to fix itself, it cast out the note giving it shape and form and mass and thought, never to be seen or heard of again. You see young one the reason I tell you this is because you are that note, though you may not remember it, but I am here to help you remember and fix the universe to what it is suppose to be.
Endings and Beginnings
He stood there just staring at his hands, hands that had just previously annihilated a being so powerful and so terrifying that it had conquered several galaxies. and he had destroyed it with such ease, with hardly any effort at all. As he stood there, a strange thought popped into his head, “Why shouldn’t I rule. Why should I be king, or god?”
“John, we’re leaving, it's time to go.” Melina said to him.
He look over to the broken obsidian throne, “No.” he replied as he used his powers to reforge the throne.
“What?” she asked.
“You don’t understand, you never understood. Did you think that just because you found me, that I would work for you forever? I just killed the biggest evil this universe has ever seen, with hardly any effort. Did you really think that once he was gone everything would just be sunshine and rainbows? No, you should have known by now, even on my planet, once the greatest evil is destroyed another rises up to take its place, stronger than before. So here I am taking my rightful place as ruler.” He said as he sat down on the now repaired throne.
“But, John, you-”
“NO! That is not my name anymore. My name... is... Deus Rex.”
Temporal Judgement
"The willful alteration of the chrono-temporal flow is a second level crime against reality, a violation of the fourth law of magic, and is specifically outlawed in the alpha codex. Yet you willingly went against the laws set down by the Forerunners, and attempted to change both the past and the future. What say you in your defense?"
“I did what was necessary, for the continued survival of my species. I make no attempt to deny my actions, if put in the position i would gladly take the same measures, albeit with less hesitation. So, you make your judgments. My conscience is clear.”
Temptation Denied
A voice called out, “What do you desire, mortal? Power? Wealth? Knowledge? Status? I can give it to you, for a pri-”
I interrupted and responded, “You try to tempt me, in an attempt to make me let you into my Soul, and in exchange you would give me power, but the amount of power you could give me is not the amount that I want, it’s not even close. Maybe if you and 107 of your buddies came together you might measure up to a fraction, but you can’t. The amount of power I want is enough to reshape WORLDS, to crush GODS. But that amount of power is beyond your ability to comprehend, much less give. So thanks, but no thanks, I’ll find it on my own.”
The Test
“Sir.”
Hmm, a voice, someone is speaking.
Gender? Male.
Age? Between 25 and 28.
Race? Unknown, insufficient data
Language? Descendant of Middle English, most likely a North American variation.
Location? Acquiring data.
Sounds: Beeping. Indistinct voices. Squeaking shoes.
Smells: Disinfectant.
Feelings: Laying on a cushioned surface. Slight pressure in my wrist. Wearing strange clothing.
Conclusion? Hospital room, hooked up to heart monitor, on I.V. drip.
Threat Level? Green: Safe.
Opening eyes slowly.
Examine surroundings. Standard hospital arrangements.
Man sitting on a stool. Must be the speaker.
Examine speaker.
Race? Caucasian. Irish-German descent.
Age? 28.
Name? Badge says, Paul Rauthbauer, RN.
He has noticed my eyes are open.
“Oh, good, you are awake.”
Language? American English.
Accent? Moderate German. English is not his first language.
“Sir, do you know what day of the week it is?”
Standard question to check my mental faculties. Made useless by him having a digital calendar on his watch.
Calendar reads: Mon. 7/23/13 5:34PM, easily read as Monday, September, 23, 2013. Calendar setup confirms I’m in America.
Respond with correct date, and comment on watch.
Unable to move mouth. Problematic.
Attempt to move fingers.
Movement capabilities confirmed..
Attempt to move hands.
Movement capabilities confirmed.
Point to mouth.
Movement successful.
“Ah, you cannot speak? Das is gut. Yes. Now you will not be able to scream.”
Assess intent.
Verbal indication to do bodily harm.
Reassess threat level.
Threat level? Red: Danger to physical form.
Request access to weaponry? Access granted.
Generate arm cannon.
Arm cannon generated.
Initiate non-verbal warning toward threat.
Arm cannon leveled at threat.
Activate auto-repair sequence on speech functions.
Speech function Auto-repair started.
Rise from lying position.
Rising.
Stand on floor opposite threat.
Leaving bed via sliding.
Speech function auto-repair finished.
Load arm cannon with a thermal tracer and a stun round.
Arm cannon loaded.
Tag threat with thermal tracer.
Threat tagged.
Stun threat.
Threat stunned.
Activate Shielding.
Shielding activated.
Leave room via window.
Jumping through window.
Falling, ground impact in 3 seconds.
Brace shielding for impact.
Impacted.
Systems check? All green.
Generate locator beacon.
Locator beacon generated.
Call transport.
Transport arrival in 7 minutes and 42 seconds.
Activate camouflage.
Camouflage activated.
Hide.
Hidden.
Wait.
Waiting.
Enter surveillance mode.
Entered.
Transport arrived.
Board transport via Jump.
Boarded.
Leave world.
Leaving.
Simulation end.
Allotted time. 9 minutes, 21 seconds, 14 milliseconds.
“Yes! New record”
Grade assessment.
Delayed threat analysis. -3 points
Destruction of Property. -12 points
Waste of resources. -17 points.
Grade: 68% D
“Aww, man.”
“Better luck next year.”
“Easy, for you to say, you passed.”
Madness
“You know we can’t let you do this Zether” A man said. He was wearing a strange outfit. It was, at one point, a suit, but it was torn in over a dozen places and had several different colors of paint splattered on it. The man’s face was strange as well. It was covered in a strange design. It looked like something approaching a black and white spiral that had been pixilated and spattered with random splotches of color.
“And you know that you can’t defeat me, James.” the man addressed as Zether said. He was wearing a more reasonable ensemble. It was a full suit of metal plate armor and a sword at his hip. The armors chest piece was emblazoned with a lion raised up on its hind legs attacking a Sun.
“Saichen.” James says, turning toward the girl next to him. She was wearing an immaculate white Kimono robe. The long sleeves flowing despite the lack of wind.
“I probably won’t see you after this, but I want to give you something,” he says taking the key off his necklace. ”It’s a key to a box in my room, take it and go.”
“What are you talking about? We can beat him!” Saichen says.
“No, ‘we’ can’t. Trust me.” he says turning back toward Zether, and raising his hand to just beneath his face.
“True, I can’t beat you.” James says, laying an almost imperceptible stress on the word ‘I’, “But I am not the only one who inhabits this body. ” he says sliding his hand vertically across his face.
Almost immediately, he starts laughing, a high-pitched warbling cackle.
“He let me out! The seal is broken!” He says in a fluctuating, high-pitched voice.
“I don’t know what game you're playing but it's not going to work, James, you have never beaten me before-” Zether starts saying but is cut off before he can finish.
“James? Oh, he would choose an unassuming name like that.” He looked up, “James isn't here right now, in fact, he won't ever be here again.”
“If you aren’t James anymore, then who are you.“ Zether asks mildly surprised.
“Oh I have oh so many names; Chaos, Doombringer, Asylum, Brother Madness, The End, Anti-Life, Apocrypha… you get my point. But I guess this time I will go with something a bit less orderly. You may call me, Khyrak. Well, for as long as you have left anyway.”
“Khyrak, James, it makes no difference, you still are no match for me.” Zether said, nonchalantly.
“Oh, is that so?” Khyrak says placing his of his hand on his chin. “Well, then I guess there is nothing to it.” He continues, just before snapping his own neck. His body goes limp, but does not fall, his arms dangling loosely from his shoulders.
He starts to fall forward, but before he could hit the ground he lunges at Zether. His lunge turns into a spin by rotating his body. His arms are forced outward by the force.
Zether barely manages to get his sword up to block in time. Sparks fly from the contact between his sword and Khyrak’s hands. Khyrak reverses rotation and for a second you can see the skin of his hands is covered with the same swirling pattern as his face.
As Zether goes to block, Khyrak’s foot sweeps across the floor tripping him. Zether begins to fall but catches himself by planting his sword in the ground. Wings of fire erupt from Zether’s back as he gets back up.
“Well this is certainly new. I haven't had to use Seraph’s wings before, but regardless this ends here.” Zether says as he begins to fly upward, the fire from his wings growing.
“Sanctus Infernus!” He shouts as fire bursts from his sword and envelopes Khyrak, boiling the ground.
“Oh, isn’t this just adorable. Seeing as you use a magic insulator I shall do the same.” Khyrack says unphased by the flames.
“Gravitatis Veritatum.”
Suddenly, Zether is slammed against the ground at an incredible speed. The flames surrounding Khyrak dissipate, revealing him standing in a perfectly untouched circle surrounded by molten rock.
Zether tries to get up but is slammed against the ground by an unseen force.
“Well that was fun, but time to end this little game. Any last words? Oh, that’s right you have a couple thousand G forces on you right now. That’s unfortunate. Well, buh-bye!” He mocks.
Khyrak snaps his fingers and Zether’s body vanishes.
“Huh. Well what to do now? Actually, where am I?” Khyrak says looking around. Since the battle is over he finally notices the condition his suit is in.
“Okay, first things first: Find a tailor.”
Level Up
“Then who called this meeting?” An italian crime boss asked the others in the dark warehouse.
“I did.” A man said, as he entered the room. He looked about 16 and was wearing a pair of baggy cargo pants, and an oversized red hoodie. To his left and right were two men in black suits, both carrying large silver cases.
“And who the hell are you?” One of the colombian leaders said as the guards all pulled weapons on the newcomer.
“I am known as ‘Skill Tree’, but that is unimportant, whereas, what I have to offer, is. And can you put down your guns, I wouldn’t want you getting hurt.” He said, casually.
“Arrogant little ****, Sergio, teach this brat some manners.” One of the Italians said.
“Wait!” One of the other Italians said, “Kid’s got enough know how, resources, and balls to pull a meeting between all of us. Maybe we should hear him out?”
“I agree.” One of the chinese says.
“Fair enough. But if it doesn’t pan out kid, you will be in a world of hurt.” The first italian said.
“Oh-kay, down to business then.” Skill tree said, sitting down at the table, “I have in my possession, a compound, that when injecting into the bloodstream, activates the latent connection to Yggdrasil, inside the human body, and manifests it for 24 hours.”
“What?” Most of the members present said.
“I have a drug that gives you superpowers for a limited time.” Skill tree explained.
“Bollocks” One of the Irish members said.
“I figured you wouldn’t believe me, so I came prepared to give a demonstration.” He said pulling out a cell phone and pressing a button. After a few seconds a third man in a suit came in dragging another man behind him. The man was shriveled, half dead, and constantly mumbling.
“Now, most of you are probably feeling, a mixture of disgust, pity, and possibly sadness, towards #713 here. But just watch and see what happens next.” Skill Tree said, before he pulled out a vial, and an injector gun, from his pockets.
He held up the vial and said, “One dose of the drug I designed, I call it ‘Level-Up’.” He placed the vial in the injector gun and used it on the half dead person, who immediately started to recover.
Color return to his skin, and his body started to regain its shape as his atrophied muscles started to grow back. He stood up, now that his body could support his weight. His body had returned to average fitness, and continued to grow more muscle, until he was at peak human condition.
“But wait there’s more!” Skill Tree said, holding his hand toward the third guard, who then handed him a combat knife. “#713 isn’t just at peak physical condition.,” Skill tree said slashing out #713’s throat with the combat knife, “He also has a regenerative healing factor.” He continued as #713 got up off the ground and his throat healed.
“So what do you think of #713 now?” Skill tree asked
“Madre de Dios!” One of the colombians said.
“Yeah, I figured as much. But this power doesn't come without a cost. The powers granted by the first dose of Level-Up only last for 24 hours, while withdrawal symptoms occur only a few hours after it wearing off. The drug is highly addictive, both psychologically and physically, and the user builds up a tolerance fast. Most people can only handle six or seven uses before it stops working on them.” Skill tree explained.
“And you want… what? To sell it to us?” One of the Italians asked.
“Ideally? Yes.” Skill Tree said calmly.
“How much you want?” One of the Russians asked.
“Well, considering what you can do with this, I’d say… 10 million US dollars for a case of 13 doses.” Skill tree said with a smile.
One of the Irish leaders started laughing, “Well you have some solid brass balls on you to demand that much. How ‘bout a counter offer lad, you leave the cases here and we give you, hmm… 10 grand for the laugh.”
“Oh, Wow, you guys really have no imagination. Let me spell this out for you. Say you give this drug to one of you goons and he gets super speed. Suddenly you have a thief that could rob all the banks in Paris in under 2 hours. Boom, just made half your money back with one dose. Or what if you give it to another goon and he gains Super Strength, boom great enforcer. I mean come on the possibilities are endless! It’s a steal for 12 million!” Skill Tree said
“12 million? Earlier you said 10 million” one of the columbians said.
“Yeah, that was before you insulted my intelligence.”
“Okay, kid.” One of the italians said, “How about you give us the doses before you get hurt.”
“Oh, Did you just threaten me? I should probably have mentioned this earlier, but, whatever.” Skill Tree said as he sat at the table making a steeple with his hands.
“You see, when I designed this drug, I designed it for myself, to give me superpowers. It wasn’t until later that I realized it worked on others. Any time I take a dose of this drug i get A different super power. Permanently. With no side effects. So far I have taken upwards of 200 doses. That’s almost 200 separate powers.” Skill Tree explained.
“Now, with all that in mind, do you really think you are in a position to threaten me?” He asked.
“Yeah, I didn’t think so. But, back to the matter at hand, 12 million for 13 doses. Take it or leave it.” he said at their blank faces.
“H-how many cases do you have?” One of the Colombians asked.
“On me? Just the 2, but I have about 30 cases back at the lab. First come, first serve, as it were. But, after tonight there will be plenty to go around.” he said.
After a minute of silence, he said, “What no one wants to take the first leap? Ah , oh well, here’s my card incase anyone wants to buy later.” he said throwing a stack of business cards onto the table, before he walked out, his guards following him.
Iconic Phrasing
It’s funny how iconic a single phrase can become, if said at the right time.
“You will not escape me again, Simurgh! For you are in God’s Domain now!”
Well, then again maybe its the events that transpire around the phrase, that cause it to become so iconic.
An angelic figure speeds by, her asymmetrical wings damaged, her alabaster skin leaking white blood from her 15 foot form. She flies with abandon, yeah easily evades any and all attacks and obstacles as if she can see them coming. When she finally stops flying it’s only to float in place, while parts of the surrounding float up to protect her.
Another figure arrived, flying across the shattered battlefield that is Canberra, Australia. His deep blue cloak rippling in the wind, concealing the white body suit beneath. He raises his arms to be horizontal from his sides with his palms up, and tilts his head back.
Or maybe it is a combination of both, timing and events, that cause memorability.
“QUID LAVA QUOST EST SODOM!”
As he shouted the phrase that would become questioned the word over, lightning struck his body from all angles, pulsating on each word.
After the light show was over, showing him unharmed, he thrust his hands forward in a grasping motion toward the angelic woman.
The angelic figure was suddenly assailed by an invisible force, tearing at her body, shredding her wings, slicing her flesh and funneling away her blood. It continued to rip, tear, and slice, until all that was left was a perfect sphere of dark material, about a foot across, which was shattered like so much glass.
The silence that followed lasted several minutes, until the first cheer which was taken up by all those present.
After all, The Simurgh, The Hopekiller, The Third Endbringer, was no more.
Well that's all I have so far.
So, tell me what you guys think.
A Bad Day
A tall, slender, blue skinned woman in a blue uniform, stood in front of a desk containing a large purple man, who seemed extremely upset.
“The Squad is closing in on him now, Sir.” Vice Commander of the ChronoGuard, Alai-Kaya, said to her superior, a man called Ghoro-Vashna.
“They, better catch him this time. We don’t need another Al-Omega on the loose, especially with what happened last time.” he spat.
Suddenly an alarm blared, and a red light flashed across the screen in front of them.
“What the hell just happened!” He shouted.
“Checking now, Sir.” Alai-Kaya replied, looking at her tablet in her hands. “He appears to have executed a TimeShift.”
“So! Tell the Squad to TimeShift after him!” He shouted.
“They can’t, Sir. They’re dead.” She said, her face completely composed, “He executed the TimeShift at the precise moment he set off a ZX-7 Eon Class Dreadbomb.”
“My God!” he said slumping back in his chair. ”How many casualties?”
“A ZX-7 Eon Class Dreadbomb, Is meant to destroy planets, Sir, all life that was on that world is gone.”
At this point a serviceman raised his hand. “Uhm, Vice Commander, you are missing something” he said uncertainly.
“Yes, what would that be?”
“He TimeShifted, while, the bomb was exploding, meaning the explosion probably has reached other planets, and time periods, as well.” he said, more confidently this time.
“Oh, that is a good point Serviceman. Anything else?”
“He probably died in the blast?” He said shrugging.
“Unlikely, Serviceman, Al-Omegas are supersoldiers, capable of withstanding multiple Supernovas. He’s alive.”
Commander Ghoro-Vashna sighed and looked at the ceiling, “This is not my day.”
A Song of Creation
Let me tell you a story, young one.
In the beginning, like all other beginnings, there was nothing. Then a song was played, a song of creation, a song to make all the nothingness into perfection, but knowing this a group of people sent back through time, a wave of force strong enough but subtle enough to alter a note, corrupting it, and in doing so create all the impurities in the universe, but the song could not work with the corrupted note so to fix itself, it cast out the note giving it shape and form and mass and thought, never to be seen or heard of again. You see young one the reason I tell you this is because you are that note, though you may not remember it, but I am here to help you remember and fix the universe to what it is suppose to be.
Endings and Beginnings
He stood there just staring at his hands, hands that had just previously annihilated a being so powerful and so terrifying that it had conquered several galaxies. and he had destroyed it with such ease, with hardly any effort at all. As he stood there, a strange thought popped into his head, “Why shouldn’t I rule. Why should I be king, or god?”
“John, we’re leaving, it's time to go.” Melina said to him.
He look over to the broken obsidian throne, “No.” he replied as he used his powers to reforge the throne.
“What?” she asked.
“You don’t understand, you never understood. Did you think that just because you found me, that I would work for you forever? I just killed the biggest evil this universe has ever seen, with hardly any effort. Did you really think that once he was gone everything would just be sunshine and rainbows? No, you should have known by now, even on my planet, once the greatest evil is destroyed another rises up to take its place, stronger than before. So here I am taking my rightful place as ruler.” He said as he sat down on the now repaired throne.
“But, John, you-”
“NO! That is not my name anymore. My name... is... Deus Rex.”
Temporal Judgement
"The willful alteration of the chrono-temporal flow is a second level crime against reality, a violation of the fourth law of magic, and is specifically outlawed in the alpha codex. Yet you willingly went against the laws set down by the Forerunners, and attempted to change both the past and the future. What say you in your defense?"
“I did what was necessary, for the continued survival of my species. I make no attempt to deny my actions, if put in the position i would gladly take the same measures, albeit with less hesitation. So, you make your judgments. My conscience is clear.”
Temptation Denied
A voice called out, “What do you desire, mortal? Power? Wealth? Knowledge? Status? I can give it to you, for a pri-”
I interrupted and responded, “You try to tempt me, in an attempt to make me let you into my Soul, and in exchange you would give me power, but the amount of power you could give me is not the amount that I want, it’s not even close. Maybe if you and 107 of your buddies came together you might measure up to a fraction, but you can’t. The amount of power I want is enough to reshape WORLDS, to crush GODS. But that amount of power is beyond your ability to comprehend, much less give. So thanks, but no thanks, I’ll find it on my own.”
The Test
“Sir.”
Hmm, a voice, someone is speaking.
Gender? Male.
Age? Between 25 and 28.
Race? Unknown, insufficient data
Language? Descendant of Middle English, most likely a North American variation.
Location? Acquiring data.
Sounds: Beeping. Indistinct voices. Squeaking shoes.
Smells: Disinfectant.
Feelings: Laying on a cushioned surface. Slight pressure in my wrist. Wearing strange clothing.
Conclusion? Hospital room, hooked up to heart monitor, on I.V. drip.
Threat Level? Green: Safe.
Opening eyes slowly.
Examine surroundings. Standard hospital arrangements.
Man sitting on a stool. Must be the speaker.
Examine speaker.
Race? Caucasian. Irish-German descent.
Age? 28.
Name? Badge says, Paul Rauthbauer, RN.
He has noticed my eyes are open.
“Oh, good, you are awake.”
Language? American English.
Accent? Moderate German. English is not his first language.
“Sir, do you know what day of the week it is?”
Standard question to check my mental faculties. Made useless by him having a digital calendar on his watch.
Calendar reads: Mon. 7/23/13 5:34PM, easily read as Monday, September, 23, 2013. Calendar setup confirms I’m in America.
Respond with correct date, and comment on watch.
Unable to move mouth. Problematic.
Attempt to move fingers.
Movement capabilities confirmed..
Attempt to move hands.
Movement capabilities confirmed.
Point to mouth.
Movement successful.
“Ah, you cannot speak? Das is gut. Yes. Now you will not be able to scream.”
Assess intent.
Verbal indication to do bodily harm.
Reassess threat level.
Threat level? Red: Danger to physical form.
Request access to weaponry? Access granted.
Generate arm cannon.
Arm cannon generated.
Initiate non-verbal warning toward threat.
Arm cannon leveled at threat.
Activate auto-repair sequence on speech functions.
Speech function Auto-repair started.
Rise from lying position.
Rising.
Stand on floor opposite threat.
Leaving bed via sliding.
Speech function auto-repair finished.
Load arm cannon with a thermal tracer and a stun round.
Arm cannon loaded.
Tag threat with thermal tracer.
Threat tagged.
Stun threat.
Threat stunned.
Activate Shielding.
Shielding activated.
Leave room via window.
Jumping through window.
Falling, ground impact in 3 seconds.
Brace shielding for impact.
Impacted.
Systems check? All green.
Generate locator beacon.
Locator beacon generated.
Call transport.
Transport arrival in 7 minutes and 42 seconds.
Activate camouflage.
Camouflage activated.
Hide.
Hidden.
Wait.
Waiting.
Enter surveillance mode.
Entered.
Transport arrived.
Board transport via Jump.
Boarded.
Leave world.
Leaving.
Simulation end.
Allotted time. 9 minutes, 21 seconds, 14 milliseconds.
“Yes! New record”
Grade assessment.
Delayed threat analysis. -3 points
Destruction of Property. -12 points
Waste of resources. -17 points.
Grade: 68% D
“Aww, man.”
“Better luck next year.”
“Easy, for you to say, you passed.”
Madness
“You know we can’t let you do this Zether” A man said. He was wearing a strange outfit. It was, at one point, a suit, but it was torn in over a dozen places and had several different colors of paint splattered on it. The man’s face was strange as well. It was covered in a strange design. It looked like something approaching a black and white spiral that had been pixilated and spattered with random splotches of color.
“And you know that you can’t defeat me, James.” the man addressed as Zether said. He was wearing a more reasonable ensemble. It was a full suit of metal plate armor and a sword at his hip. The armors chest piece was emblazoned with a lion raised up on its hind legs attacking a Sun.
“Saichen.” James says, turning toward the girl next to him. She was wearing an immaculate white Kimono robe. The long sleeves flowing despite the lack of wind.
“I probably won’t see you after this, but I want to give you something,” he says taking the key off his necklace. ”It’s a key to a box in my room, take it and go.”
“What are you talking about? We can beat him!” Saichen says.
“No, ‘we’ can’t. Trust me.” he says turning back toward Zether, and raising his hand to just beneath his face.
“True, I can’t beat you.” James says, laying an almost imperceptible stress on the word ‘I’, “But I am not the only one who inhabits this body. ” he says sliding his hand vertically across his face.
Almost immediately, he starts laughing, a high-pitched warbling cackle.
“He let me out! The seal is broken!” He says in a fluctuating, high-pitched voice.
“I don’t know what game you're playing but it's not going to work, James, you have never beaten me before-” Zether starts saying but is cut off before he can finish.
“James? Oh, he would choose an unassuming name like that.” He looked up, “James isn't here right now, in fact, he won't ever be here again.”
“If you aren’t James anymore, then who are you.“ Zether asks mildly surprised.
“Oh I have oh so many names; Chaos, Doombringer, Asylum, Brother Madness, The End, Anti-Life, Apocrypha… you get my point. But I guess this time I will go with something a bit less orderly. You may call me, Khyrak. Well, for as long as you have left anyway.”
“Khyrak, James, it makes no difference, you still are no match for me.” Zether said, nonchalantly.
“Oh, is that so?” Khyrak says placing his of his hand on his chin. “Well, then I guess there is nothing to it.” He continues, just before snapping his own neck. His body goes limp, but does not fall, his arms dangling loosely from his shoulders.
He starts to fall forward, but before he could hit the ground he lunges at Zether. His lunge turns into a spin by rotating his body. His arms are forced outward by the force.
Zether barely manages to get his sword up to block in time. Sparks fly from the contact between his sword and Khyrak’s hands. Khyrak reverses rotation and for a second you can see the skin of his hands is covered with the same swirling pattern as his face.
As Zether goes to block, Khyrak’s foot sweeps across the floor tripping him. Zether begins to fall but catches himself by planting his sword in the ground. Wings of fire erupt from Zether’s back as he gets back up.
“Well this is certainly new. I haven't had to use Seraph’s wings before, but regardless this ends here.” Zether says as he begins to fly upward, the fire from his wings growing.
“Sanctus Infernus!” He shouts as fire bursts from his sword and envelopes Khyrak, boiling the ground.
“Oh, isn’t this just adorable. Seeing as you use a magic insulator I shall do the same.” Khyrack says unphased by the flames.
“Gravitatis Veritatum.”
Suddenly, Zether is slammed against the ground at an incredible speed. The flames surrounding Khyrak dissipate, revealing him standing in a perfectly untouched circle surrounded by molten rock.
Zether tries to get up but is slammed against the ground by an unseen force.
“Well that was fun, but time to end this little game. Any last words? Oh, that’s right you have a couple thousand G forces on you right now. That’s unfortunate. Well, buh-bye!” He mocks.
Khyrak snaps his fingers and Zether’s body vanishes.
“Huh. Well what to do now? Actually, where am I?” Khyrak says looking around. Since the battle is over he finally notices the condition his suit is in.
“Okay, first things first: Find a tailor.”
Level Up
“Then who called this meeting?” An italian crime boss asked the others in the dark warehouse.
“I did.” A man said, as he entered the room. He looked about 16 and was wearing a pair of baggy cargo pants, and an oversized red hoodie. To his left and right were two men in black suits, both carrying large silver cases.
“And who the hell are you?” One of the colombian leaders said as the guards all pulled weapons on the newcomer.
“I am known as ‘Skill Tree’, but that is unimportant, whereas, what I have to offer, is. And can you put down your guns, I wouldn’t want you getting hurt.” He said, casually.
“Arrogant little ****, Sergio, teach this brat some manners.” One of the Italians said.
“Wait!” One of the other Italians said, “Kid’s got enough know how, resources, and balls to pull a meeting between all of us. Maybe we should hear him out?”
“I agree.” One of the chinese says.
“Fair enough. But if it doesn’t pan out kid, you will be in a world of hurt.” The first italian said.
“Oh-kay, down to business then.” Skill tree said, sitting down at the table, “I have in my possession, a compound, that when injecting into the bloodstream, activates the latent connection to Yggdrasil, inside the human body, and manifests it for 24 hours.”
“What?” Most of the members present said.
“I have a drug that gives you superpowers for a limited time.” Skill tree explained.
“Bollocks” One of the Irish members said.
“I figured you wouldn’t believe me, so I came prepared to give a demonstration.” He said pulling out a cell phone and pressing a button. After a few seconds a third man in a suit came in dragging another man behind him. The man was shriveled, half dead, and constantly mumbling.
“Now, most of you are probably feeling, a mixture of disgust, pity, and possibly sadness, towards #713 here. But just watch and see what happens next.” Skill Tree said, before he pulled out a vial, and an injector gun, from his pockets.
He held up the vial and said, “One dose of the drug I designed, I call it ‘Level-Up’.” He placed the vial in the injector gun and used it on the half dead person, who immediately started to recover.
Color return to his skin, and his body started to regain its shape as his atrophied muscles started to grow back. He stood up, now that his body could support his weight. His body had returned to average fitness, and continued to grow more muscle, until he was at peak human condition.
“But wait there’s more!” Skill Tree said, holding his hand toward the third guard, who then handed him a combat knife. “#713 isn’t just at peak physical condition.,” Skill tree said slashing out #713’s throat with the combat knife, “He also has a regenerative healing factor.” He continued as #713 got up off the ground and his throat healed.
“So what do you think of #713 now?” Skill tree asked
“Madre de Dios!” One of the colombians said.
“Yeah, I figured as much. But this power doesn't come without a cost. The powers granted by the first dose of Level-Up only last for 24 hours, while withdrawal symptoms occur only a few hours after it wearing off. The drug is highly addictive, both psychologically and physically, and the user builds up a tolerance fast. Most people can only handle six or seven uses before it stops working on them.” Skill tree explained.
“And you want… what? To sell it to us?” One of the Italians asked.
“Ideally? Yes.” Skill Tree said calmly.
“How much you want?” One of the Russians asked.
“Well, considering what you can do with this, I’d say… 10 million US dollars for a case of 13 doses.” Skill tree said with a smile.
One of the Irish leaders started laughing, “Well you have some solid brass balls on you to demand that much. How ‘bout a counter offer lad, you leave the cases here and we give you, hmm… 10 grand for the laugh.”
“Oh, Wow, you guys really have no imagination. Let me spell this out for you. Say you give this drug to one of you goons and he gets super speed. Suddenly you have a thief that could rob all the banks in Paris in under 2 hours. Boom, just made half your money back with one dose. Or what if you give it to another goon and he gains Super Strength, boom great enforcer. I mean come on the possibilities are endless! It’s a steal for 12 million!” Skill Tree said
“12 million? Earlier you said 10 million” one of the columbians said.
“Yeah, that was before you insulted my intelligence.”
“Okay, kid.” One of the italians said, “How about you give us the doses before you get hurt.”
“Oh, Did you just threaten me? I should probably have mentioned this earlier, but, whatever.” Skill Tree said as he sat at the table making a steeple with his hands.
“You see, when I designed this drug, I designed it for myself, to give me superpowers. It wasn’t until later that I realized it worked on others. Any time I take a dose of this drug i get A different super power. Permanently. With no side effects. So far I have taken upwards of 200 doses. That’s almost 200 separate powers.” Skill Tree explained.
“Now, with all that in mind, do you really think you are in a position to threaten me?” He asked.
“Yeah, I didn’t think so. But, back to the matter at hand, 12 million for 13 doses. Take it or leave it.” he said at their blank faces.
“H-how many cases do you have?” One of the Colombians asked.
“On me? Just the 2, but I have about 30 cases back at the lab. First come, first serve, as it were. But, after tonight there will be plenty to go around.” he said.
After a minute of silence, he said, “What no one wants to take the first leap? Ah , oh well, here’s my card incase anyone wants to buy later.” he said throwing a stack of business cards onto the table, before he walked out, his guards following him.
Iconic Phrasing
It’s funny how iconic a single phrase can become, if said at the right time.
“You will not escape me again, Simurgh! For you are in God’s Domain now!”
Well, then again maybe its the events that transpire around the phrase, that cause it to become so iconic.
An angelic figure speeds by, her asymmetrical wings damaged, her alabaster skin leaking white blood from her 15 foot form. She flies with abandon, yeah easily evades any and all attacks and obstacles as if she can see them coming. When she finally stops flying it’s only to float in place, while parts of the surrounding float up to protect her.
Another figure arrived, flying across the shattered battlefield that is Canberra, Australia. His deep blue cloak rippling in the wind, concealing the white body suit beneath. He raises his arms to be horizontal from his sides with his palms up, and tilts his head back.
Or maybe it is a combination of both, timing and events, that cause memorability.
“QUID LAVA QUOST EST SODOM!”
As he shouted the phrase that would become questioned the word over, lightning struck his body from all angles, pulsating on each word.
After the light show was over, showing him unharmed, he thrust his hands forward in a grasping motion toward the angelic woman.
The angelic figure was suddenly assailed by an invisible force, tearing at her body, shredding her wings, slicing her flesh and funneling away her blood. It continued to rip, tear, and slice, until all that was left was a perfect sphere of dark material, about a foot across, which was shattered like so much glass.
The silence that followed lasted several minutes, until the first cheer which was taken up by all those present.
After all, The Simurgh, The Hopekiller, The Third Endbringer, was no more.
Well that's all I have so far.
So, tell me what you guys think.