A hidden base in the Florida Keys…[/I]
Some people have powers and plans, ambitions. Some people choose to become villains for vengeance, or pride, or because they have lost everything. Some people just relish the idea of special effects coming out of their hands or eyes.
And some people just want to destroy everything.
Such was the young woman standing in the middle of a tall plastic tube in this clandestine laboratory now.
They had found her, it was said, in some Chicago slum, eyes full of hate for everyone and everything. Apparently that had fit the psychological profile that was desired, perfectly.
Doctor Helga Jace wondered if that mad Bat-villain Scarecrow had been the one to do the analyzing.
Doctor Jace watched the subject with weary eyes. She had run far from Markovia. Getting transport was only moderately difficult; finding a safe place was harder. And starting over with enough capital to create new experimental facilities had bordered on the logistically nightmarish. But even now she had offshore accounts and favors she could call upon.
Without a government to back her, she had to rely on the sponsorship of the criminal underworld, who were always looking for new advantages in their battle against the ‘Heroes.’
The only thing that chafed Jace about her new arrangement was that she couldn’t truly work to her own agenda. At least the scum that financed her now understood well enough to let her continue her elemental power based genetic surgery.
The young woman in the power conduit tube was a stone cold heartless sociopath. That didn’t trouble Doctor Jace in the slightest; but she was worried about control. Mister Arkazy, her underworld contact, had assured her many times that the situation was under control.
Jace doubted it, but what else could she do?
“Engaging protocols,” she said aloud, for the benefit of the experimentee. This was not like her old genetic therapy lasers on Markovia. It was a more powerful, yet more controlled, process. The result was that the host would, theoretically, integrate the powers into her genetic structure faster. But there was no way to predict what the long term effect would be.
Neither the experimenter nor Jace’s underworld financiers cared about that; and truth be known, Jace didn’t either. She hadn’t gotten into this branch of metahuman experimentation for anything but results. That was why she had been involved with the old Manhunter cult, so long ago now.
The woman in the tube gave no sign of having heard Doctor Jace; she continued to stare up the tube, where the power would come from.
Doctor Jace sighed and pulled the primary power lever.
For a moment, the tube was filled with blinding white light that made Jace flinch and turn her head away. She hadn’t been expecting the energy to manifest in that particular fashion; hadn’t brought her goggles. She cursed herself for not planning for that particular contingency.
The light faded quickly, but when she turned back towards the tube it shattered.in a blast of force. Jace fell back, allowing the concussion to knock her down, so that the shards of the tube would not cut into her. The very fact that the tube had broken was more than frightening; it was made of fiberglass and special polymers that Earth had adapted from Apokolyptian technology after their invasion. Even the power she had been giving the woman should not have allowed her to break it. And to assimilate it so soon! The very notion of such fast adaptation exhilarated Jace. But she was also smart enough not to get up, yet.
Then there was a whirlwind of power that slowly rose. There was a massive tearing sound as the roof ripped free, and then the noise of the whirlwind faded into the open air.
Slowly, Jace stood up.
Three sides of the secure lab were now exposed to the outside, the lab complex beyond utterly wrecked. She could see in the dim morning twilight that a new young hurricane was tearing its way into the Gulf of Mexico. Doctor Jace knew that the metahuman she had helped create was inside it, guiding its path.
Instead of anger, rage, or fear, she only felt a great weariness.
“I have got to get into a new line of work.”
*****************
-1-Cavalier woke that morning with a smile on his face.
So far, his tenure in the squad had gone well; cutting down those racist paramilitaries had been enjoyable, for example. Earning his pardon and freedom was nothing to sneer at, either.
But despite his pardon, he thought he would stay, at least for now. The ability to use his lethal swordplay legally, without fear of consequence, was also a real plus. He suspected similar motivations for most of the members of the Squad, save perhaps their semi
heroic minders, Manhunter and Vixen.
If there were any kind of down side to the whole arrangement, it was something he had experienced during his freelance criminal career before as well; namely, the fact that he had yet to meet a fellow warrior with skill at swordplay.
But somehow he got the feeling that he would, and soon.
He couldn’t wait!
Chuckling to himself, he showered and headed down to breakfast.
*****************
-2-As June Moone walked down a corridor of Belle Reve, the two personalities her body hosted were having a somewhat worried conversation in her mind.
What is it, sister? Erinyes asked Enchantress.
The elder sorceress was troubled.
Our hold on Mitch is strong, at that is good. But ultimately it is doomed to fail.How so?Because, sister mine, he is the Resurrection Man. One day he will die again, probably soon. And when he does, he will regenerate into new powers, and his mind will be cleansed of our influence.Erinyes was troubled by this; she had sacrificed much to make Mitch her own.
What must we do then?We must find the power to control him through his cycle of life and death. For that we shall need an artifact of great power.What artifact?That is just the problem; I don’t know. There are a number of possibilities, but each of them will have to be researched. Some might not be what we need, and some might not be accessible.We’ll….have to leave the Squad?Temporarily, yes. A leave of absence. You’ve more than earned it by Waller’s reckoning. They’re wary of me, but nearly as much as they used to be, and they will believe Mitch will watch over us, when of course the reverse is true.When?Soon, we’ll have to be ready.Erinyes was not reassured. She was still, in many ways, June Moone; a mortal with a mortal’s concerns. Enchantress felt for her, but the time would come soon when she would have to metaphorically step up and become a true power of darkness as the Enchantress herself was.
*****************
-3-Tatsu Yamashiro, also known as Katana. Member of the Global Guardians. Hero, avenger, warrior with the blade that was her namesake. Away from her own team, coming to place she did not want, to deal with a situation she was less than happy with.
Katana scowled. She was on the move; she had little time.
The Suicide Squad. Of all the groups she could go to, why this one? It was bad enough that the Guardians could not be involved as they should with this project, not as a whole considering what had recently happened in Bialya.
* And she had not understood why she had to come to these barely-tamed criminals, now that Geo-Force’s sister was no longer amongst them. Why not the Titans? Or Checkmate itself, who held the leash of these fools?
Across the desk from her, Amanda Waller seemed no more pleased with these developments than she was herself.
“Let me get this straight,” Waller said. “Two days ago, an illegal experiment in the Florida Keys created a new illegal metahuman who will seek to destroy everything in her path.”
“That is correct,” Katana said.
“So the Global Guardians have a lead but not the time or resources to follow it, and you want us to deal with it?”
“I was told to bring it to your attention,” Katana shot back, “And to offer my assistance as well.”
“I wish you hadn’t brought this to us,” Waller said.
“For what it’s worth, I agree,” Katana sighed.
“But Checkmate is passing the buck on this in any case,” Sarge Steel put in. “The Squad has nothing on the agenda right now, anyway.”
“All right,” Waller sighed. “Send Malthus in. We’ll see what he knows.”
“You think he knows something about this?” Steel asked her.
Waller shrugged unhappily. “He’s the only one who might.”
Katana didn’t want to know. “I shall wait outside, then?”
Waller shrugged again.
“Don’t wander off,” Steel put in.
Katana snorted.
{*Editors Note*: Find out what went down in Global Guardians #’s 1-3.}*****************
-4-After Katana had gone, Steel said, “For what it’s worth, weather satellites confirm the existence of a class four Hurricane in the Gulf. It came into being far too quickly, without the usual tropical storm developmental stage, nor any kind of natural build up in the storm currents.”
“How in the world do we fight a living hurricane?” Waller asked bleakly. She felt old. She wondered if maybe she should call Vostok and ask her if she wanted this job back.
“With Enchantress’ magic, I’m guessing,” Steel sighed. “But let’s see if our resident mad scientist has anything to add to the conversation.”
Mere seconds later, Malthus came in. “You sent for me?” he raised a brow.
“You know anything about artificial weather control?” Waller asked him.
To his credit, Malthus didn’t take offense. “Not my forte. Cybernetics and robotics are my thing, as you know. But for certain it’s possible.”
“We know it’s possible,” Steel growled. “We want to know the hows and whys.”
Malthus shrugged. “It would take a genetic research lab with appropriate metahuman surgery techniques.”
“Surgery?” Waller prompted.
Malthus shrugged again. “Surgery takes many forms, not just needles and sutures. Look at what lasers have done to eye surgery, for example.”
“But you have no specific information?” Waller pressed.
Malthus shook his head. “No. But if you want me to research it….”
“No time, we have to deal with this now. Go to the briefing room. If you can figure out anything on the road, let us know.”
“I live….to serve.” Malthus inclined his head, gave them a sardonic smile, and left.
Waller buried her face in her hands. They weren’t really making any forward progress.
*****************
-5-Katana, not knowing what else to do, went into the briefing room, where almost all the Squad had already gathered.
It was a mistake. The enigmatic, almost ludicrous villain known as Cavalier had challenged her to a duel, of all things.
“We don’t have time for this!” Katana sputtered.
“Certainly we do,” Cavalier demurred. “We have not yet left for the mission, whatever it is, and it is rare I get to fight a fellow swordsman.”
“If this is some slur because I’m a woman…” Katana began.
Cavalier laughed. “Not at all! The opposite in fact! You wield the blade with skill, that is all that matters to me!”
Katana wanted none of this. Displaying her swordplay for a criminal—unless he was the target-- was the last thing she wanted.
“Please don’t kill him,” Manhunter murmured from behind her.
She did not turn, keeping her narrowed gaze on Cavalier. “I shall do my best,” she said.
Cavalier smirked and drew his blade. “So shall I,” he promised.
Their blades rang. She was mildly surprised the fool’s weapon did not break in half on the first exchange; western blades were never forged as well. That was not arrogance, but simple fact.
He, too, seemed impressed at her ability. He went high and she met him, low and she met him again. When he tried to make a sweeping cut from the side, she poked him in the shoulder. Not hard enough to draw blood, but enough to show him she could get through his defenses.
She thought he might get angry or back off; instead he grinned dangerously and pressed his attack, faster and faster. This time she could not get through his defense. She had underestimated him; he had been holding back, wanting a longer duel. Now that he knew she was skilled, he did not have to.
So she did not hold back either.
Their blades blurred together and rang with power. Everybody was watching now. Up, over, back down, over, up, and over again, faster and faster and faster.
“You have training and skill,” Cavalier said.
Katana did not answer. She tried several looping cuts at his legs, which he blocked. Then he went for a straight, powerful stab at her chest, and almost got through her defenses. She backed off several steps to try to out maneuver him, but he came right after her, eyes alight.
“Damn,” someone muttered from the side, impressed.
Several more exchanges occurred between them, and both combatants were beginning to sweat.
Eventually she decided she had had enough of this; she went for her favorite disarming move. She saw a flicker in his eyes, and he twisted his own wrist to match her weapon’s trajectory with his own.
There was a rattling noise and Katana felt a numbing sensation in her hand, then a pair of clattering noises on the floor.
For a moment she stared into Cavalier’s eyes, and he stared back. Then they turned and looked down.
Both blades were on the floor; they had each disarmed the other.
There came a slow handclap of applause. They both turned and looked; it was Doctor Malthus. He grinned unpleasantly. “I would say the odds of that were infinitesimally low,” he said.
“Yes, well if we’ve got the song and dance out of the way,” sighed Waller, “We have business.”
*****************
-6-“….so thanks to Katana and her….group….we know that a weather-control metahuman is wielding hurricane powers in the Gulf of Mexico,” Waller finished. “We have no idea where she will make landfall, or what her target will be.”
Dead silence greeted this announcement.
“Now, before one of you picks their jaws up off the floor and thinks to ask what we can do against such a thing,” Waller said, “It is in my mind that Enchantress could use her powers to at least weaken the storm enough for others to move in and target the metahuman.”
June nodded thoughtfully. “It would take all of her concentration, but I think she could do it.” June was very careful not to mention that she could wield the power now as well. One slip was all it would take to rouse suspicion.
“What about the metahuman herself?” Manhunter wanted to know.
“She is, by all accounts, flesh and blood,” Waller said. “So one shot should kill her.”
“But we don’t know that for certain?” Vixen asked.
Everyone looked at Katana.
“No,” the warrior admitted in a frustrated voice, “We don’t.”
“Great,” Frost said with feeling. “Well, at least my powers might counteract hers to some extent.”
“Yes, but be careful,” Manhunter said. “We don’t want her throwing frozen chunks at us and killing us all.
“Yes,” Mitch agreed, “But she might be able to freeze the meta in the water.”
“Mmm, that’s a thought” June agreed.
“The plane is waiting, any questions?” Waller asked.
There were none.
“Then good luck, people.”
*****************
-7-Manhunter silently stared out the window as they flew southwards.
“You’re really worried about this one, aren’t you?” Vixen asked.
Manhunter sighed and slowly nodded. “A living whirlwind of destruction. This is serious. Some of us could die.”
“Risk we always take,” Vixen shrugged.
He turned and looked at her. “I know, but sometimes the risk is greater than others. This is one of those times….and….I don’t want to lose you.”
She smiled and touched his chin. “We’ll make it.”
Manhunter turned back and stared out the window once more. “I hope so. I truly hope so.”
*****************
-8-Gulf of Mexico…[/I]
She floated in the center of the storm
The storm that was her creation, the storm that was her.
She had spent the time, testing and focusing her powers, ripping fish and dolphins and sharks from the sea and flinging them hundreds of miles into the air. It was a good start; and she knew that the power was truly hers, nestled securely inside herself.
Now she could destroy everything.
Oh, heroes would come to stop her, she was sure.
She grinned, looking forward to the opportunity.
Slowly she turned and headed her mighty maelstrom northwards, towards the American coast. She couldn’t exactly see through the storm; but she could sense things. And what she was sensing now was a ship.
She licked her lips and closed her eyes, feeling carefully. Not a mercantile ship, but actual US Navy. So much the better.
She tried to lift the ship out of the water with the power of her winds. She couldn’t quite manage it, but she did carry a number of sailors off. She smiled as she listened to their screams.
But she still wanted to destroy the ship outright.
So instead of trying to lift it up, she tore into it instead, ripping open vulnerable portions of its hull, until finally it began to sink.
She nodded to herself in satisfaction. Her powers were still growing; perhaps before she made landfall she would actually be able to lift a ship of that size. In the meantime she would search for smaller ships she could toss around on the way to the coast.
“This,” she breathed in satisfaction, “Is going to be fun.
Who she had been was no longer important. She was now the living embodiment of destruction.
She couldn’t wait to tear everything apart.
