25 Years Ago Today
Showing posts with label subway. Show all posts
Showing posts with label subway. Show all posts
20160304
20150707
Crisis In Infinite Plexes - Wave Squared
The dragon is discovered.
The transmission is received.
The powers are merged.
The grave is opened.
The object is decoded.
And Max doses on Plex and enters the Portal.
*
As Aqua was about to throw the first punch there was suddenly light coming in the windows on her right side - a station! But the subway car was not slowing down, in seconds it would clear the platform and return to the dark.
In those seconds one of the windows smashed inwards, Aqua dropped into a crouch, the man turning in surprise, and Akimoto crashed into the car, thudding into one of the poles in the aisle, keeping his footing amidst the sprinkling shards of glass.
The man produced a pistol from inside his jacket and with a smooth, simple motion of his broadsword Akimoto chopped the man's hand off. The subway had passed through the station and was back in the dark of the tunnel. Aqua felt a strange pulse of emotions about having missed a chance to stop and exit the car, but she didn't let it distract her from launching a massive Superman-punch at the man as he watched his hand fall away from his wrist. He quickly joined his hand in a bloody pile on the floor.
"Check on Bishop!" Aqua shouted - the noise of the train was louder through the broken window. She began searching the body of the man. Generic dark clothing, generic weapon and ammunition, no identification or markings. For some reason he reminded her of those agents that Jason Bourne was always running up against in the movies.
"He's breathing!" Akimoto reported.
Aqua adjusted her cowboy hat. "What's going on, big man?"
"I'm on a mission from the gods!" the barbarian roared, a wild look in his eyes. "We have to rally the Dragons!"
"And how do we do that?" She looked at the unconscious body of Bishop.
Akimoto grinned. "Play your favourite song on that tiny music maker of yours and hold on."
He looked at the emergency stop button.
In those seconds one of the windows smashed inwards, Aqua dropped into a crouch, the man turning in surprise, and Akimoto crashed into the car, thudding into one of the poles in the aisle, keeping his footing amidst the sprinkling shards of glass.
The man produced a pistol from inside his jacket and with a smooth, simple motion of his broadsword Akimoto chopped the man's hand off. The subway had passed through the station and was back in the dark of the tunnel. Aqua felt a strange pulse of emotions about having missed a chance to stop and exit the car, but she didn't let it distract her from launching a massive Superman-punch at the man as he watched his hand fall away from his wrist. He quickly joined his hand in a bloody pile on the floor.
"Check on Bishop!" Aqua shouted - the noise of the train was louder through the broken window. She began searching the body of the man. Generic dark clothing, generic weapon and ammunition, no identification or markings. For some reason he reminded her of those agents that Jason Bourne was always running up against in the movies.
"He's breathing!" Akimoto reported.
Aqua adjusted her cowboy hat. "What's going on, big man?"
"I'm on a mission from the gods!" the barbarian roared, a wild look in his eyes. "We have to rally the Dragons!"
"And how do we do that?" She looked at the unconscious body of Bishop.
Akimoto grinned. "Play your favourite song on that tiny music maker of yours and hold on."
He looked at the emergency stop button.
20150701
Crisis In Infinite Plexes - Third Wave
v.Cyber
“We found it. We bleedin' found it.” Trump sits down gracefully on the floor, cross-legged. “I don't generally like to do that much shooting, Max.”
“Simon. I'm Simon right now.”
“Yeah, 'course.”
Three days straight of sneaking, spying, charming, cheating, meshes, meetings, double-crosses, demolitions and then one final quick-cut, hand-cam, techno-soundtracked gunfight. The mooks guarding the penthouse had been outfitted with Hades Cortexes running Guillotine and Plague mods, Spectrum Corp combat tech and that perfectly nasty mix of cold professionalism and crass thuggery. It was as tough as a dystopian, hypercore, noo-mo omniist mythical quest should be.
Who hired the guards, who rented the penthouse, who transported the target here on what occult schedule are all just figments, names and licenses of phantom businesses and agencies, made-up mixed-metaphors like a steady autumn evening rainfall of fabricated data spun like spiderwebs from secret agendas lurking deep in the Grid, whoever is really running things since the Fall of Legacy. All that matters is the object on the table in the middle of the tangle of corpses, a faintly glowing cube like from that old-time movie The Avengers, the port to the most powerful and sophisticated surveillance node in Omegatroplis and maybe the Universe, The White Room.
“You gotta wonder though, who did build it?” Trump asks while Simon stalks the room injecting each of the bodies with Entropeez, dissolving the Cortex links at the synaptic level, just to be sure none of them can be remote-activated. Zombies are in another cycle of popularity lately, and that extends beyond a third reboot of The Walking Dead franchise into some grisly paramilitary applications. “Do you figure it was Horsebreeder?”
Simon, a designer Polysonae identity running in Max's head on the Horsebreeder-engineered Omega Cortex, shrugs. Simon is about completing the mission, solving for x, while it's Mick who's more about the y's/whys/wise. And it will likely take an appearance from Marshal for the final hack into the Room. Likely the toughest Mesh he's ever run, Tatterdemalion-level work, and for that to be anywhere close to a potential possibility then Max is likely going to have dose on Plex...
“We found it. We bleedin' found it.” Trump sits down gracefully on the floor, cross-legged. “I don't generally like to do that much shooting, Max.”
“Simon. I'm Simon right now.”
“Yeah, 'course.”
Three days straight of sneaking, spying, charming, cheating, meshes, meetings, double-crosses, demolitions and then one final quick-cut, hand-cam, techno-soundtracked gunfight. The mooks guarding the penthouse had been outfitted with Hades Cortexes running Guillotine and Plague mods, Spectrum Corp combat tech and that perfectly nasty mix of cold professionalism and crass thuggery. It was as tough as a dystopian, hypercore, noo-mo omniist mythical quest should be.
Who hired the guards, who rented the penthouse, who transported the target here on what occult schedule are all just figments, names and licenses of phantom businesses and agencies, made-up mixed-metaphors like a steady autumn evening rainfall of fabricated data spun like spiderwebs from secret agendas lurking deep in the Grid, whoever is really running things since the Fall of Legacy. All that matters is the object on the table in the middle of the tangle of corpses, a faintly glowing cube like from that old-time movie The Avengers, the port to the most powerful and sophisticated surveillance node in Omegatroplis and maybe the Universe, The White Room.
“You gotta wonder though, who did build it?” Trump asks while Simon stalks the room injecting each of the bodies with Entropeez, dissolving the Cortex links at the synaptic level, just to be sure none of them can be remote-activated. Zombies are in another cycle of popularity lately, and that extends beyond a third reboot of The Walking Dead franchise into some grisly paramilitary applications. “Do you figure it was Horsebreeder?”
Simon, a designer Polysonae identity running in Max's head on the Horsebreeder-engineered Omega Cortex, shrugs. Simon is about completing the mission, solving for x, while it's Mick who's more about the y's/whys/wise. And it will likely take an appearance from Marshal for the final hack into the Room. Likely the toughest Mesh he's ever run, Tatterdemalion-level work, and for that to be anywhere close to a potential possibility then Max is likely going to have dose on Plex...
v.Western
Callan rejoined them at the table. He nodded. The scrape of chair-legs on the wooden floor as they shuffled to make room, Dex grabbing an extra seat from the table beside them, the prospector seated there nodding his assent. The man seated at the table Callan had left started to re-shuffle the cards. The bartender glanced at them, frowning. Everyone tense, these strangers in town, except the man with the cards who was grinning. Callan poured himself a shot from the bottle on the table, the scrape of the whiskey sliding down his throat.
“The gentleman's name is Mister Brogan Mirk, a man of property and interests in a number of businesses, resident of the Canyon for over a decade,” Callan said in a low voice, the music from the piano further masking their conversation. “Once I began buying drinks he started to relax, and once he started winning he started talking.”
“I'm not sure that directly questioning the locals is the safest route to our destination,” Darius said.
“Everyone here knows why we're here, preacher,” Wraith said, glancing at the glances they were constantly receiving from all the other patrons.
“So long as we can keep things friendly,” Dexter said. “For now,” he added with a look to Mags.
So Callan recounted what he had learned from Mirk. The tale as they had heard it was broadly true – Sugarcube had gotten into it with this Logollos fellow and had gotten gunned down. Mirk had known Sugarcube from prior visits to Omega – the drifter had even stolen one of Mirk's horses once but then done some gunwork for him to settle the debt. Logollos had been good for business though, so Mirk had been on the fence when the showdown approached, to the point where he actually refused to place a bet on the outcome.
Another shot and Callan leaned in close to the table. “Now I reckon you'll agree with me that this is where the tale turns conclusively from tragedy to mystery...”
Mirk, one of whose business interests involved gunsmithing, claimed that the revolver Logollos used in the duel sounded different from a regular weapon. Furthermore, Mirk, who also had interests in the Canyon's funeral business, claimed that the corpse buried in Judgement Grotto was not Sugarcube's. The actual body was, apparently, delivered to an associate of Logollos', of whom Mirk knew very little other than that he was renowned for breeding horses.
“And now if someone could kindly lend me five dollars?” Callan asked.
“Excuse me?” Dexter asked.
“Now that losing is no longer profitable I need to win my money back,” he said with a wink.
Mags tossed him a wrinkled bill. “And we need to dig up Sugarcube's grave, and if he's not in residence then we need to track down this horsebreeder.”
Callan rejoined them at the table. He nodded. The scrape of chair-legs on the wooden floor as they shuffled to make room, Dex grabbing an extra seat from the table beside them, the prospector seated there nodding his assent. The man seated at the table Callan had left started to re-shuffle the cards. The bartender glanced at them, frowning. Everyone tense, these strangers in town, except the man with the cards who was grinning. Callan poured himself a shot from the bottle on the table, the scrape of the whiskey sliding down his throat.
“The gentleman's name is Mister Brogan Mirk, a man of property and interests in a number of businesses, resident of the Canyon for over a decade,” Callan said in a low voice, the music from the piano further masking their conversation. “Once I began buying drinks he started to relax, and once he started winning he started talking.”
“I'm not sure that directly questioning the locals is the safest route to our destination,” Darius said.
“Everyone here knows why we're here, preacher,” Wraith said, glancing at the glances they were constantly receiving from all the other patrons.
“So long as we can keep things friendly,” Dexter said. “For now,” he added with a look to Mags.
So Callan recounted what he had learned from Mirk. The tale as they had heard it was broadly true – Sugarcube had gotten into it with this Logollos fellow and had gotten gunned down. Mirk had known Sugarcube from prior visits to Omega – the drifter had even stolen one of Mirk's horses once but then done some gunwork for him to settle the debt. Logollos had been good for business though, so Mirk had been on the fence when the showdown approached, to the point where he actually refused to place a bet on the outcome.
Another shot and Callan leaned in close to the table. “Now I reckon you'll agree with me that this is where the tale turns conclusively from tragedy to mystery...”
Mirk, one of whose business interests involved gunsmithing, claimed that the revolver Logollos used in the duel sounded different from a regular weapon. Furthermore, Mirk, who also had interests in the Canyon's funeral business, claimed that the corpse buried in Judgement Grotto was not Sugarcube's. The actual body was, apparently, delivered to an associate of Logollos', of whom Mirk knew very little other than that he was renowned for breeding horses.
“And now if someone could kindly lend me five dollars?” Callan asked.
“Excuse me?” Dexter asked.
“Now that losing is no longer profitable I need to win my money back,” he said with a wink.
Mags tossed him a wrinkled bill. “And we need to dig up Sugarcube's grave, and if he's not in residence then we need to track down this horsebreeder.”
v.Genderbent
Jiro answered the door and raised his Alien Revolver. The sights auto-scanned the figure standing there, analyzing for evidence of cloning, shape-shifting, holographic disguise, and other standard forms of deception. The gun beeped.
“Mostly normal,” Jiro confirmed and lowered the weapon.
Mackenzie smirked. “That's the nicest thing anyone has ever said about me.”
“I thought we were supposed to be Code White,” Jiro said, moving aside so Mackenzie could enter the apartment.
“I wanted everyone to be safe, in case the object was what I thought it was,” she said, taking a seat on the old, ratty couch.
Jiro sat down beside her. Despite his gruff posture, the kid had missed his friend. “So it wasn't? We're safe?”
Mackenzie looked at him. “On the contrary.” She began talking about the Plureality research that she had stolen from Omega Station 12, about a theoretical state of existence called the Metaplex, and how it had been hypothesized that objects and possibly even entities could originate from within this 'place' and travel to our universe. Mackenzie had suspected that what Magnus had discovered was one such object, and that meant there was an assortment of hypothesized risks associated with coming into contact with it – hyperdimensional infections, psychocellular mutations, and/or being tracked and targeted by Plex entities. That's why she had initiated Code White to keep everyone separated and hopefully safe until she could maybe figure out what was going on.
Jiro rarely understood Mackenzie when she talked about this Plureality stuff, or Omega Magic or Neo-Linguistic Programming. He knew though, and had seen enough weird things, to take her and it seriously. She had told him once about how she had shot and killed a man, part of her program, who had learned too much about it and had become too dangerous. So he listened closely.
“Now I was just going off the pics Mag had sent, and comparing it to diagrams and equations in the research, but I eventually discovered some patterns occurring in the geometry of object that were transcribable as a code.”
“Okay...”
“I think the object is a transmission from the Metaplex. I've managed to turn some of it into English...” Mackenzie pulled out her phone, tapped open a text file.
“And if it is, Macks, then it could be a danger? We could be in danger right now?”
She paused. “You're right, Jiro. I'm sorry. I was excited by what I figured out and wanted to share it with somebody. I shouldn't have-”
“Stop it, doofus. I'm glad you came by. Besides the bank account is almost empty and the landlord is finally starting to notice that there's never any adults around the apartment.” They shared a smile. “Alright, so what's this thing saying exactly?”
“It reads kindof like a mix of surrealist poetry and those bizarre junk emails... Like the first line is 'Beware the horsebreeder'.”
Jiro frowned. “Mackenzie, you know I'm a polyglot, right?”
“Yes, Jiro. You know seven languages. And you're ambidextrous and can play the trumpet and hold your breath for over five minutes.”
“The name of that man you told me about, the one you shot...” Jiro's tone was very serious. “There is a type of horse called 'Morgan', and the Dutch word for breeder is 'fokker'...”
*
Aqua stared at Bishop's unmoving body and watched as a man stepped out of the conductor's booth. Stepped over the body and turned to face her.
Aqua felt very afraid. She stood up though, faced the man. There was something so strange about him. They faced each other in the aisle of the subway car, like a showdown.
“You're him, aren't you?” she asked.
“Who?”
Jiro answered the door and raised his Alien Revolver. The sights auto-scanned the figure standing there, analyzing for evidence of cloning, shape-shifting, holographic disguise, and other standard forms of deception. The gun beeped.
“Mostly normal,” Jiro confirmed and lowered the weapon.
Mackenzie smirked. “That's the nicest thing anyone has ever said about me.”
“I thought we were supposed to be Code White,” Jiro said, moving aside so Mackenzie could enter the apartment.
“I wanted everyone to be safe, in case the object was what I thought it was,” she said, taking a seat on the old, ratty couch.
Jiro sat down beside her. Despite his gruff posture, the kid had missed his friend. “So it wasn't? We're safe?”
Mackenzie looked at him. “On the contrary.” She began talking about the Plureality research that she had stolen from Omega Station 12, about a theoretical state of existence called the Metaplex, and how it had been hypothesized that objects and possibly even entities could originate from within this 'place' and travel to our universe. Mackenzie had suspected that what Magnus had discovered was one such object, and that meant there was an assortment of hypothesized risks associated with coming into contact with it – hyperdimensional infections, psychocellular mutations, and/or being tracked and targeted by Plex entities. That's why she had initiated Code White to keep everyone separated and hopefully safe until she could maybe figure out what was going on.
Jiro rarely understood Mackenzie when she talked about this Plureality stuff, or Omega Magic or Neo-Linguistic Programming. He knew though, and had seen enough weird things, to take her and it seriously. She had told him once about how she had shot and killed a man, part of her program, who had learned too much about it and had become too dangerous. So he listened closely.
“Now I was just going off the pics Mag had sent, and comparing it to diagrams and equations in the research, but I eventually discovered some patterns occurring in the geometry of object that were transcribable as a code.”
“Okay...”
“I think the object is a transmission from the Metaplex. I've managed to turn some of it into English...” Mackenzie pulled out her phone, tapped open a text file.
“And if it is, Macks, then it could be a danger? We could be in danger right now?”
She paused. “You're right, Jiro. I'm sorry. I was excited by what I figured out and wanted to share it with somebody. I shouldn't have-”
“Stop it, doofus. I'm glad you came by. Besides the bank account is almost empty and the landlord is finally starting to notice that there's never any adults around the apartment.” They shared a smile. “Alright, so what's this thing saying exactly?”
“It reads kindof like a mix of surrealist poetry and those bizarre junk emails... Like the first line is 'Beware the horsebreeder'.”
Jiro frowned. “Mackenzie, you know I'm a polyglot, right?”
“Yes, Jiro. You know seven languages. And you're ambidextrous and can play the trumpet and hold your breath for over five minutes.”
“The name of that man you told me about, the one you shot...” Jiro's tone was very serious. “There is a type of horse called 'Morgan', and the Dutch word for breeder is 'fokker'...”
*
Aqua stared at Bishop's unmoving body and watched as a man stepped out of the conductor's booth. Stepped over the body and turned to face her.
Aqua felt very afraid. She stood up though, faced the man. There was something so strange about him. They faced each other in the aisle of the subway car, like a showdown.
“You're him, aren't you?” she asked.
“Who?”
“The one Max talks about. The one he shot and killed. The one who haunts him. Who chases us, who's always messing with us.”
The man stepped forward. Aqua reached down and picked up her gauntlets, began strapping them on. The man kept walking forward. The lights in the car flickered. From her headphones on the seat she could faintly hear a new voice speaking. The man approached, Aqua raised her fists, strained to hear what the voice was saying over the sound of the subway hurtling through the endless tunnel.
The man approaching, the voice repeating: This transmission is coming to you.
The man stepped forward. Aqua reached down and picked up her gauntlets, began strapping them on. The man kept walking forward. The lights in the car flickered. From her headphones on the seat she could faintly hear a new voice speaking. The man approached, Aqua raised her fists, strained to hear what the voice was saying over the sound of the subway hurtling through the endless tunnel.
The man approaching, the voice repeating: This transmission is coming to you.
20150624
Crisis In Infinite Plexes - Second Wave
v.Western
Wraith reined in her horse.
“Why are we stopping?” Mags asked.
Some townsfolk had begun gathering at windows and doorways.
“And what's your plan?” Wraith asked her with a sneer. Marshal Wednesday Wraith was far from your typical lawbringer but she still didn't care much for bounty hunters. It was a matter of discipline, of dedication. But if Sugarcube had been friends with this one, well that counted for something.
Mags returned the look. “We ride straight on to Logollos ranch and settle up.”
Callan was studying the onlookers, trying to get a read... Were they nervous or relieved at the appearance of the ragtag posse? “I'm all for taking risks, but...” he said.
“But there's something more going on here,” Darius finished. The accounts of the duel that had lured Sugarcube's former companions to Omega Canyon, passed on by postal riders, cowboys and travelling salesmen, had all hinted at darker goings-on than a simple showdown.
“It'll take learning the truth to make this justice and not just vengeance,” Dexter said.
Mags shrugged, as if the latter was good enough for her. But she followed the group as they made for The Hanged Man Saloon.
v.Space
The Dragon suddenly lurched, the lights on the bridge flickered. The Captain steadied herself and looked to her First Officer.
“Recommend attack posture,” Comm. Washington said, his tone grim.
“Lokk?” she asked, one last time, looking for an excuse. The Lieutenant was furiously studying the transmissions from the unknown vessel, trying to interpret them, to decode them, to find any hint that they were an attempt to communicate and not a sign of aggression. With every pulse, though, their ship was taking damage.
“Chief Angellus, configure power distribution for combat mode. Commander, begin backing us off, slow and steady, with evasive manoeuvres in queue.”
Lt. Cube's voice broke in over the speakers. “Captain, the Legacy ship just one-eightied. Full-speed in the opposite direction. I'd like to take credit but we were only teasing them with target-locks.”
Magenta frowned. “Give me a full-radius Metawave scan.” It would mean diverting computing power from analyzing the mysterious pulses but Lokk obeyed the order without hesitation. His eyes widened as his screen registered the sensor sweep – the target vessel, Cube's Hangman, Wraith's Reaper, the retreating Judgement-class ship... and an approaching fleet of Ether-type Exo battlecruisers.
Before he could relay the result his peripheral screens flickered with new data. Another incoming transmission from the vessel, three-times the intensity of the last one.
v.Fallen
The Eye had eventually crashed but they had survived. The plan had worked. They crawled from the Gutter, out past Frontline, deep in the Wasteland, and saw the Demon portal.
The sky bright with falling stars. Toxic fumes swirling like dervishes. The earth itself heaving and crashing like the sea against cliffs. Orbs of green and yellow flame flickering then erupting.
At the centre of the frothing tumult, a hole of pure white, like a circular section of a painting had been scraped clean to reveal the canvas beneath.
Darius shouted over the howling, screaming winds. "Max, I'm having more of those visions! For a second we were all together again but we were superheroes! Could we be shifting again?"
Max stared at the chaos before them. There weren't any Demons, they had all marched to Haven. "I don't think so... Maybe it's a time distortion? Maybe the proximity to the portal is letting you see glimpses of our future?" He looked back to his friend, smiling. "Aw hell Darius, you know I don't really know what's going on most of the time! I just guess and try to sound clever!"
Darius smiled back. Wraith stepped between them; she was holding a jury-rigged device that they had salvaged from the Grid when they first hijacked the Eye. Wraith had been convinced that she could use it to send a signal to Haven, to let them know that the Dragons fought on, but so far she had been unsuccessful.
"Did you get it working?" Darius asked.
"I... I don't know," Wraith said. "It suddenly started receiving a transmission."
*
Now Aqua's headphones began making a strange scratching sound. Akimoto's voice getting lost in static, then a high-pitched whine. She took them off. Looked back and forth in the empty subway car.
Sometimes their car was attached to others, sometimes you could see other people in the attached cars, sometimes the windows were blurry. And sometimes, like now, there was only darkness outside the windows. Until they reached a station. Aqua hoped they reached one soon, she had to pee.
Maybe Max or Akimoto or Suki, or one of the others would be at the next station. It worked like that sometimes. She was wishing right now that she paid more attention to how things worked, but it was all pretty confusing, and she was young, and mostly she just liked the action and adventure of it all.
The door to the conductor's booth opened and Bishop's body slumped out onto the floor.
Wraith reined in her horse.
“Why are we stopping?” Mags asked.
Some townsfolk had begun gathering at windows and doorways.
“And what's your plan?” Wraith asked her with a sneer. Marshal Wednesday Wraith was far from your typical lawbringer but she still didn't care much for bounty hunters. It was a matter of discipline, of dedication. But if Sugarcube had been friends with this one, well that counted for something.
Mags returned the look. “We ride straight on to Logollos ranch and settle up.”
Callan was studying the onlookers, trying to get a read... Were they nervous or relieved at the appearance of the ragtag posse? “I'm all for taking risks, but...” he said.
“But there's something more going on here,” Darius finished. The accounts of the duel that had lured Sugarcube's former companions to Omega Canyon, passed on by postal riders, cowboys and travelling salesmen, had all hinted at darker goings-on than a simple showdown.
“It'll take learning the truth to make this justice and not just vengeance,” Dexter said.
Mags shrugged, as if the latter was good enough for her. But she followed the group as they made for The Hanged Man Saloon.
v.Space
The Dragon suddenly lurched, the lights on the bridge flickered. The Captain steadied herself and looked to her First Officer.
“Recommend attack posture,” Comm. Washington said, his tone grim.
“Lokk?” she asked, one last time, looking for an excuse. The Lieutenant was furiously studying the transmissions from the unknown vessel, trying to interpret them, to decode them, to find any hint that they were an attempt to communicate and not a sign of aggression. With every pulse, though, their ship was taking damage.
“Chief Angellus, configure power distribution for combat mode. Commander, begin backing us off, slow and steady, with evasive manoeuvres in queue.”
Lt. Cube's voice broke in over the speakers. “Captain, the Legacy ship just one-eightied. Full-speed in the opposite direction. I'd like to take credit but we were only teasing them with target-locks.”
Magenta frowned. “Give me a full-radius Metawave scan.” It would mean diverting computing power from analyzing the mysterious pulses but Lokk obeyed the order without hesitation. His eyes widened as his screen registered the sensor sweep – the target vessel, Cube's Hangman, Wraith's Reaper, the retreating Judgement-class ship... and an approaching fleet of Ether-type Exo battlecruisers.
Before he could relay the result his peripheral screens flickered with new data. Another incoming transmission from the vessel, three-times the intensity of the last one.
v.Fallen
The Eye had eventually crashed but they had survived. The plan had worked. They crawled from the Gutter, out past Frontline, deep in the Wasteland, and saw the Demon portal.
The sky bright with falling stars. Toxic fumes swirling like dervishes. The earth itself heaving and crashing like the sea against cliffs. Orbs of green and yellow flame flickering then erupting.
At the centre of the frothing tumult, a hole of pure white, like a circular section of a painting had been scraped clean to reveal the canvas beneath.
Darius shouted over the howling, screaming winds. "Max, I'm having more of those visions! For a second we were all together again but we were superheroes! Could we be shifting again?"
Max stared at the chaos before them. There weren't any Demons, they had all marched to Haven. "I don't think so... Maybe it's a time distortion? Maybe the proximity to the portal is letting you see glimpses of our future?" He looked back to his friend, smiling. "Aw hell Darius, you know I don't really know what's going on most of the time! I just guess and try to sound clever!"
Darius smiled back. Wraith stepped between them; she was holding a jury-rigged device that they had salvaged from the Grid when they first hijacked the Eye. Wraith had been convinced that she could use it to send a signal to Haven, to let them know that the Dragons fought on, but so far she had been unsuccessful.
"Did you get it working?" Darius asked.
"I... I don't know," Wraith said. "It suddenly started receiving a transmission."
*
Now Aqua's headphones began making a strange scratching sound. Akimoto's voice getting lost in static, then a high-pitched whine. She took them off. Looked back and forth in the empty subway car.
Sometimes their car was attached to others, sometimes you could see other people in the attached cars, sometimes the windows were blurry. And sometimes, like now, there was only darkness outside the windows. Until they reached a station. Aqua hoped they reached one soon, she had to pee.
Maybe Max or Akimoto or Suki, or one of the others would be at the next station. It worked like that sometimes. She was wishing right now that she paid more attention to how things worked, but it was all pretty confusing, and she was young, and mostly she just liked the action and adventure of it all.
The door to the conductor's booth opened and Bishop's body slumped out onto the floor.
20150617
Crisis In Infinite Plexes - First Wave
v.Super
“What is it?” Seraphim asked. She was typing some calculations into her tablet.
The Shifter looked thoughtful. “Channel is transmitting some live media feeds to me from downtown. It's starting.”
The Tower stood up from the table. His head almost brushed the ceiling of the hidden bunker under the old factory. “Alright team. Remember, this won't be like the regular street gangs, corporate criminals or mad scientists we've tangled with before. The Alliance of Terrorists, Tyrants and Contract Killers is a threat unlike Plex City has ever seen.”
The Silhouette nodded. “Time to counter-attack A.T.T.A.C.K.”
“We need a cool name like that,” The Heretic chuckled.
“The batteries on the Holo-copter are charged and ready,” Seraphim said.
Shifter began focusing on the images of the city that Channel was sending him. “I'll port to the scene and start recon.” And with a crackle of autonic energy he was gone.
v.Dungeons&
Maighread had followed the strange tracks to the ruins of a Spider Temple. The Order of the Spider were famous for laying clever traps, and even though they had fallen years ago to the Children of the Pyre, it was possible that their lethal snares remained. Freeman crouched and conjured a Scrying Eye to search out the way ahead for any hidden dangers. The Faded Knight stood watch while the mage was in trance.
“Let's just charge in,” Hammer said impatiently. “We don't want to let this thing get away again.”
Maighread didn't entirely disagree with the Changeling – this was the third time they had come across the mysterious markings and each time the maker had eluded them. If some new creature was prowling the realm then they needed to learn its nature quickly; if it be foul then to stop it from causing harm, or if it be fair then to protect it.
“There is something strange...” Freeman whispered, his eyes closed, seeing through the Scrye into the shadows of the ruins.
The Lady Dread suddenly dropped nimbly down from the trees. “A patrol of the Ashen Tradition approach from the ravine!”
Hammer grinned and hoisted her enchanted mallet.
v.Space
“Modulating the emitters... There it is! I have the signal, Captain,” Lt. Lokk said from his station on the bridge.
Capt. Magenta stood up from her chair. “Set an intercept course, Commander Washington. Chief Angellus, we'll need full-speed-plus if we're going to beat that Legacy vessel to the prize.”
Lt. Angellus nodded and began tapping and gesturing on the haptic display at the Engineering station, trying to maximize the synchronization of the Plexdrive with the local quantum-gravity conditions to squeeze out whatever extra power that he could.
“Course set,” Comm. Washington said, studying vector simulations on his display. “But it's going to be close.”
Two days ago, Lokk's routine Metawave scans intercepted a Pyro-type Exo probe registering an unknown vessel appearing near the border of a nearby Ether-type Exo territory. Anomalies like this attracted attention, especially Legacy attention, and the crew of The Dragon wasn't about to let them get the first look at it.
Lt. Cube's voice came in over the comm from the hangar bay. “Send us out, Cap. I'll buy us some time.”
The crew awaited Captain Magenta's order.
“You in a Hangman, plus Lt. Comm. Wraith and Ensign Bisaillon in a Reaper. Don't get killed.”
v.Reunion
Angst sprawled on the bed. Kicked off her shoes. They landed on the floor beside the bag from the convenience store. “I made sure to get you some milk duds,” she said, yawning. “Do you still like milk duds?”
Frank and Goner were checking out an old local supply cache, to see if it was still intact. Max was meditating in the bathtub. Suki was peering out the motel window.
Angst stretched. “What are we up to? Fourteen? I'm losing count, I can't remember what's been happening, what changed. After seven years of nothing...”
Suki glanced at the revolver in her hand. She kept hoping each shift would bring back the Godhammer. Maybe some things were lost forever. She thought that she had been, but... “Maybe we should go shopping tomorrow, see if we can find you a cheerleader outfit.”
Angst looked thoughtful. “Hm. I don't know. I don't know if that's me anymore.”
“Is shooting things still you?” Suki asked.
Angst sat up. “Why?”
“Because more of those weird-eyed motherfuckers just showed up in the parking lot.”
v.Cadre
Gauntlet leaned the shotgun beside the door, within easy reach. Peered through the peephole. Opened the door and let in Viking.
“How do you know where my apartment is?” she asked. Then she noticed the blood dripping from his nose, staining his beard red. “What the - ?”
“I saw it, saw everything, is what it felt like...” Viking muttered as he stumbled to her couch. “I ran an invocation of all three of the Trimurti, dosed on Type 1 Mana...”
Gauntlet helped him sit. “You asshole! We had decided to wait!”
“You know we couldn't, Peyton...”
“How do you know that name?”
“Mirk is getting too close, Cube isn't coming back... I had to try something.”
“You tipped our hand, V. He'll know.” She moved to the window, glanced out. “I hope you got some useful intel at least.” Three black SUVs, an MK-Omega cleaner squad. She headed back to the door for the shotgun.
Viking pushed himself back to his feet. Took a deep breath. Held out a flash-drive. “There's an audio file, I tried recording everything that came through the divination. I'll buy you some time. You need to get to the nearest subway station.”
*
Aqua woke up. The rattle and hum of the subway must have lulled her to sleep. Her headphones were still on, but instead of music playing it was the sound of Akimoto's voice. He was rambling about all sorts of things, the kinds of things that he and Max would sometimes talk about.
She looked down the car to where the barbarian-poet used to sit and meditate. Then she glanced back to where Max used to sit and read. The car was empty. It felt like she had been alone here for a long time. The door to Bishop's booth was closed. It felt like there hadn't been a stop in a long time.
“What is it?” Seraphim asked. She was typing some calculations into her tablet.
The Shifter looked thoughtful. “Channel is transmitting some live media feeds to me from downtown. It's starting.”
The Tower stood up from the table. His head almost brushed the ceiling of the hidden bunker under the old factory. “Alright team. Remember, this won't be like the regular street gangs, corporate criminals or mad scientists we've tangled with before. The Alliance of Terrorists, Tyrants and Contract Killers is a threat unlike Plex City has ever seen.”
The Silhouette nodded. “Time to counter-attack A.T.T.A.C.K.”
“We need a cool name like that,” The Heretic chuckled.
“The batteries on the Holo-copter are charged and ready,” Seraphim said.
Shifter began focusing on the images of the city that Channel was sending him. “I'll port to the scene and start recon.” And with a crackle of autonic energy he was gone.
v.Dungeons&
Maighread had followed the strange tracks to the ruins of a Spider Temple. The Order of the Spider were famous for laying clever traps, and even though they had fallen years ago to the Children of the Pyre, it was possible that their lethal snares remained. Freeman crouched and conjured a Scrying Eye to search out the way ahead for any hidden dangers. The Faded Knight stood watch while the mage was in trance.
“Let's just charge in,” Hammer said impatiently. “We don't want to let this thing get away again.”
Maighread didn't entirely disagree with the Changeling – this was the third time they had come across the mysterious markings and each time the maker had eluded them. If some new creature was prowling the realm then they needed to learn its nature quickly; if it be foul then to stop it from causing harm, or if it be fair then to protect it.
“There is something strange...” Freeman whispered, his eyes closed, seeing through the Scrye into the shadows of the ruins.
The Lady Dread suddenly dropped nimbly down from the trees. “A patrol of the Ashen Tradition approach from the ravine!”
Hammer grinned and hoisted her enchanted mallet.
v.Space
“Modulating the emitters... There it is! I have the signal, Captain,” Lt. Lokk said from his station on the bridge.
Capt. Magenta stood up from her chair. “Set an intercept course, Commander Washington. Chief Angellus, we'll need full-speed-plus if we're going to beat that Legacy vessel to the prize.”
Lt. Angellus nodded and began tapping and gesturing on the haptic display at the Engineering station, trying to maximize the synchronization of the Plexdrive with the local quantum-gravity conditions to squeeze out whatever extra power that he could.
“Course set,” Comm. Washington said, studying vector simulations on his display. “But it's going to be close.”
Two days ago, Lokk's routine Metawave scans intercepted a Pyro-type Exo probe registering an unknown vessel appearing near the border of a nearby Ether-type Exo territory. Anomalies like this attracted attention, especially Legacy attention, and the crew of The Dragon wasn't about to let them get the first look at it.
Lt. Cube's voice came in over the comm from the hangar bay. “Send us out, Cap. I'll buy us some time.”
The crew awaited Captain Magenta's order.
“You in a Hangman, plus Lt. Comm. Wraith and Ensign Bisaillon in a Reaper. Don't get killed.”
v.Reunion
Angst sprawled on the bed. Kicked off her shoes. They landed on the floor beside the bag from the convenience store. “I made sure to get you some milk duds,” she said, yawning. “Do you still like milk duds?”
Frank and Goner were checking out an old local supply cache, to see if it was still intact. Max was meditating in the bathtub. Suki was peering out the motel window.
Angst stretched. “What are we up to? Fourteen? I'm losing count, I can't remember what's been happening, what changed. After seven years of nothing...”
Suki glanced at the revolver in her hand. She kept hoping each shift would bring back the Godhammer. Maybe some things were lost forever. She thought that she had been, but... “Maybe we should go shopping tomorrow, see if we can find you a cheerleader outfit.”
Angst looked thoughtful. “Hm. I don't know. I don't know if that's me anymore.”
“Is shooting things still you?” Suki asked.
Angst sat up. “Why?”
“Because more of those weird-eyed motherfuckers just showed up in the parking lot.”
v.Cadre
Gauntlet leaned the shotgun beside the door, within easy reach. Peered through the peephole. Opened the door and let in Viking.
“How do you know where my apartment is?” she asked. Then she noticed the blood dripping from his nose, staining his beard red. “What the - ?”
“I saw it, saw everything, is what it felt like...” Viking muttered as he stumbled to her couch. “I ran an invocation of all three of the Trimurti, dosed on Type 1 Mana...”
Gauntlet helped him sit. “You asshole! We had decided to wait!”
“You know we couldn't, Peyton...”
“How do you know that name?”
“Mirk is getting too close, Cube isn't coming back... I had to try something.”
“You tipped our hand, V. He'll know.” She moved to the window, glanced out. “I hope you got some useful intel at least.” Three black SUVs, an MK-Omega cleaner squad. She headed back to the door for the shotgun.
Viking pushed himself back to his feet. Took a deep breath. Held out a flash-drive. “There's an audio file, I tried recording everything that came through the divination. I'll buy you some time. You need to get to the nearest subway station.”
*
Aqua woke up. The rattle and hum of the subway must have lulled her to sleep. Her headphones were still on, but instead of music playing it was the sound of Akimoto's voice. He was rambling about all sorts of things, the kinds of things that he and Max would sometimes talk about.
She looked down the car to where the barbarian-poet used to sit and meditate. Then she glanced back to where Max used to sit and read. The car was empty. It felt like she had been alone here for a long time. The door to Bishop's booth was closed. It felt like there hadn't been a stop in a long time.
20150409
Neo Static: What May Be, What Might Be, What It Is V
Suki sat there on the subway car, sipping a soda and watching the darkness blend with neon signs as the subway continued onwards. She was unsure what was going on but she knew she was going somewhere where she was needed.
The newly acquired Godhammer rested in her lap; the weapon was as big as her forearm. But it felt natural to wield in her tiny hands. Her new friends were resting as well as the train moved on and that was okay, it was giving her time to think.
Her old life was behind her and she was going to forge a new one in this weird thing called life that she was at. She glanced at Max who had closed his eyes and apparently nodded off, and she knew that she could trust him with her life. Her new life, riding a subway car and visiting various stations where their particular skills were needed.
She took a sip from the soda and thought about maybe catching forty winks herself - that's when Max tapped her on the shoulder.
"You're wanted," he said.
"For?" she asked.
The newly acquired Godhammer rested in her lap; the weapon was as big as her forearm. But it felt natural to wield in her tiny hands. Her new friends were resting as well as the train moved on and that was okay, it was giving her time to think.
Her old life was behind her and she was going to forge a new one in this weird thing called life that she was at. She glanced at Max who had closed his eyes and apparently nodded off, and she knew that she could trust him with her life. Her new life, riding a subway car and visiting various stations where their particular skills were needed.
She took a sip from the soda and thought about maybe catching forty winks herself - that's when Max tapped her on the shoulder.
"You're wanted," he said.
"For?" she asked.
"Not here," Max said; his eyes seemed to have aged a million centuries and he looked at her as if he had known her for decades (when in fact they had just met days before). "Do you trust me?"
"Yes," she told him.
"Okay," he nodded as he reached up his hand and touched her shoulder. "Blink!"
"Yes," she told him.
"Okay," he nodded as he reached up his hand and touched her shoulder. "Blink!"
She blinked and in the moment of time she was not in the subway car but standing before a hovering Max.
20140830
From The Journal of Suki
Dear Diary,
It's been three days since I was brought into this secret club. A club of warriors, fighters, criminals, madmen (and also madwomen as well). What madness have I gotten myself into? I'm scared, I'm happy, I think I'm in a dream world and will wake up soon as well; but I don't want to!!!
Diary I got to admit this to you. The past three days have been awesome! Terrifying as well, but mostly awesome! We've been studying Norse literature in school, and this got me thinking!
I think Max is the god Loki in disguise!!! He has to be. I have discovered three things...
wait... gotta go... subway is finally stopping and it looks like it's gonna be a big one.
Will update later.... maybe...
It's been three days since I was brought into this secret club. A club of warriors, fighters, criminals, madmen (and also madwomen as well). What madness have I gotten myself into? I'm scared, I'm happy, I think I'm in a dream world and will wake up soon as well; but I don't want to!!!
Diary I got to admit this to you. The past three days have been awesome! Terrifying as well, but mostly awesome! We've been studying Norse literature in school, and this got me thinking!
I think Max is the god Loki in disguise!!! He has to be. I have discovered three things...
wait... gotta go... subway is finally stopping and it looks like it's gonna be a big one.
Will update later.... maybe...
20140715
Defrag: The Going Getting Good
Previously...
Maggie pointed to the two poster ads on either side of the steps leading up. On the left one a large green cross was prominently featured, some sort of environmental initiative, and the right was a car ad, a picture of a sun-lit country road. Frank nodded and drew his cell phone as they made for the stairs. Tapped open an app that performed localized location searches. He had a bit of trouble getting a signal at first until he tinkered with the hacked LEGACY code that his phone used for wireless access.
“I've got a hit on a bar called 'The Crossroads' about two blocks from here.” He tapped open the satellite map. “This looks like a pretty standard downtown neighbourhood...” He glanced at the prominently displayed weapons of his companions.
Max shrugged. “The pic Akimoto sent was clearly of a monster.” He fished out his cell, started tapping the screen.
“Does he even know how to use a cell phone?” Frank had his doubts about the barbarian; he was weird even by Plex measures. Frank preferred it when things stayed military, corporate, and he could even handle a little supernatural, but cross-cultural time-travelling holy warriors who may have originated from somewhere in outer-space stretched his comfort-zone. Truth be told, the entire magical subway creeped him out. But Maggie trusted Akimoto, and if Frank started questioning her judgement he would end up doubting his own place here...
Max showed him the pic. It was definitely a giant, horrifying monster. “Alright then,” Frank said. “Stealth mode off.” And he slipped his SMG out from under his coat.
Maggie pointed to the two poster ads on either side of the steps leading up. On the left one a large green cross was prominently featured, some sort of environmental initiative, and the right was a car ad, a picture of a sun-lit country road. Frank nodded and drew his cell phone as they made for the stairs. Tapped open an app that performed localized location searches. He had a bit of trouble getting a signal at first until he tinkered with the hacked LEGACY code that his phone used for wireless access.
“I've got a hit on a bar called 'The Crossroads' about two blocks from here.” He tapped open the satellite map. “This looks like a pretty standard downtown neighbourhood...” He glanced at the prominently displayed weapons of his companions.
Max shrugged. “The pic Akimoto sent was clearly of a monster.” He fished out his cell, started tapping the screen.
“Does he even know how to use a cell phone?” Frank had his doubts about the barbarian; he was weird even by Plex measures. Frank preferred it when things stayed military, corporate, and he could even handle a little supernatural, but cross-cultural time-travelling holy warriors who may have originated from somewhere in outer-space stretched his comfort-zone. Truth be told, the entire magical subway creeped him out. But Maggie trusted Akimoto, and if Frank started questioning her judgement he would end up doubting his own place here...
Max showed him the pic. It was definitely a giant, horrifying monster. “Alright then,” Frank said. “Stealth mode off.” And he slipped his SMG out from under his coat.
20140412
+ PLEX TOURS .5 The Subway
- The Bunker
- The Lab Level Two
- The Cast
- The Bookstore
- The Brownstone
- Metafesto
- The Diner
- Chronoplex
- The Lab
1. Bishop: No two people have ever described the conductor of the Subway in the same way. His physical appearance and personality seem to vary as much as the worlds at each stop on the journey. Bishop once told Max that the Subway was powered by a Mystery Engine fuelled by inputting data about heavily researched but currently unsolved topics like Bigfoot Sightings or the JFK Assassination. The origin of the Subway is its own greatest mystery, a subject Bishop is silent on...
2. Akimoto: Often found meditating or practising his sword forms in the aisle between seats. His worn army jacket draped over a stack of folded tropical shirts.
3. Aqua: Listening to the most current club mixes on her headphones, her signature cowboy hat and battle gauntlets on the seat beside her.
4. Suki: When she isn't bopping and skipping up and down the aisle, or watching the psychedelic blur outside the windows, she'll stretch out on a row of seats and use her school books as a pillow. The Godhammer is always within reach.
5. Max: Usually reading newspapers or comic books.
6. Doors: Always opening onto different platforms, different worlds, different possibilities.
20140126
The Homecoming
Memories and realities seemed to merge for Dan.
He sat down on a bench, he could hear, feel the sudden rush of wind as a
subway was approaching.
"Dan," Suki said. "You might want to brace yourself."
Dan looked up as the subway pulled in. He could see Max in one car and Simon in another car. A cluster of other figures. They were all caught in some frozen 2-dimensional fight.
"Dan," Suki said. "You might want to brace yourself."
Dan looked up as the subway pulled in. He could see Max in one car and Simon in another car. A cluster of other figures. They were all caught in some frozen 2-dimensional fight.
20140121
A Word From Our Sponsor
It's a trap.
Simon looked around. The voice in his head went off, sounding like a freight train. He had a sense of vertigo, a strange feeling of deja vu. His vision was askew.
"They're moving," Donnelly said. "I think they are onto us."
"Element of surprise is over," Scorpio said.
Don't do it.
Simon's head was on fire, like a phosphorus flare burning white. Like the sound of dice rolling across the table, echoing in his mind.
Scorpio brought out his gun and stood at the door to the adjoining car.
Make a saving roll.
Simon looked around. The voice in his head went off, sounding like a freight train. He had a sense of vertigo, a strange feeling of deja vu. His vision was askew.
"They're moving," Donnelly said. "I think they are onto us."
"Element of surprise is over," Scorpio said.
Don't do it.
Simon's head was on fire, like a phosphorus flare burning white. Like the sound of dice rolling across the table, echoing in his mind.
Scorpio brought out his gun and stood at the door to the adjoining car.
Make a saving roll.
Unstationed
Goner leaned out into the aisle, staring. "Hey Frank?"
Frank was looking in the other direction; Akimoto seemed troubled by something that Tatter had said to him. The big man was strange even by their standards. Suki knew the most about him, but she had been gone for so long...
"Did we pick up any other passengers at the last stop?" Goner asked.
Frank tried to remember... Things weren't always clear on the subway. "I don't think so... It was a long time back, wasn't it?"
He saw what had caught Goner's attention. People moving in the car ahead of theirs.
"Angst," Frank said calmly. The cheerleader was toying with her pom-poms while Aqua braided her pigtails. "Get your guns."
Frank was looking in the other direction; Akimoto seemed troubled by something that Tatter had said to him. The big man was strange even by their standards. Suki knew the most about him, but she had been gone for so long...
"Did we pick up any other passengers at the last stop?" Goner asked.
Frank tried to remember... Things weren't always clear on the subway. "I don't think so... It was a long time back, wasn't it?"
He saw what had caught Goner's attention. People moving in the car ahead of theirs.
"Angst," Frank said calmly. The cheerleader was toying with her pom-poms while Aqua braided her pigtails. "Get your guns."
20140120
Open File
The clatter of the tracks suddenly got louder as the car entered a tunnel. Riveta grabbed a railing and stood up.
"Where's Mayganne?" she asked, her voice panicked.
Stone glanced around, blinking. "Ok... calm down..." he said softly, maybe to his former-partner, maybe to himself.
Riveta had the truth of it, though: Mayganne wasn't with them. Scorpio's cell-phone was ringing.
Donnelly turned to them, looking disoriented. "There's some people... in the next car... strange..."
Riveta turned, checking for her pistol under her jacket, relieved at the feel of the steel. Looked past the Father, through the window in the door at the end of the car.
A girl in a tattered sweater talking to a huge man, his blond hair tied in a top-knot. A cheerleader and another teenage girl in a cowboy hat. Two other men.
Simon put a hand out to steady Riveta. "It's okay," he said. He looked exhausted. "We'll be okay."
Scorpio snapped his cell-phone shut, ending his quick call with Greg Logollos. From LEGACY.
"That was the Professor," Scorpio said. "We're supposed to kill the people in the next car."
"Where's Mayganne?" she asked, her voice panicked.
Stone glanced around, blinking. "Ok... calm down..." he said softly, maybe to his former-partner, maybe to himself.
Riveta had the truth of it, though: Mayganne wasn't with them. Scorpio's cell-phone was ringing.
Donnelly turned to them, looking disoriented. "There's some people... in the next car... strange..."
Riveta turned, checking for her pistol under her jacket, relieved at the feel of the steel. Looked past the Father, through the window in the door at the end of the car.
A girl in a tattered sweater talking to a huge man, his blond hair tied in a top-knot. A cheerleader and another teenage girl in a cowboy hat. Two other men.
Simon put a hand out to steady Riveta. "It's okay," he said. He looked exhausted. "We'll be okay."
Scorpio snapped his cell-phone shut, ending his quick call with Greg Logollos. From LEGACY.
"That was the Professor," Scorpio said. "We're supposed to kill the people in the next car."
20140117
The Mind Eyes
Tatter opened her eyes and looked around the
car. Her breathing was shallow and she was in a cold sweat. Her eyes
adjusted to the dim fluorescent light. She glanced around and noticed
everyone resting, sleeping. Trying to catch a few z's before the next
stop, whenever that would be. Her eyes drifted from the blur of the
world through the windows to the back of the car, where Akimoto was
sitting lotus-style. Eyes closed, finger and thumb pinched. She got up
and moved toward the rear of the car.
"Aki," she said after she sat down on a seat facing him. "You up?"
Aki cracked an eye at her and smiled.
"Bad dream?" he inquired. He didn't move from his position.
"Kinda," Tatter replied; she looked up at the ceiling. Her eyes looking at the ads and posters as they melded into other eras and styles. "What do you remember of Citadel?"
Akimoto's eyes opened wide and he looked at her.
"Aki," she said after she sat down on a seat facing him. "You up?"
Aki cracked an eye at her and smiled.
"Bad dream?" he inquired. He didn't move from his position.
"Kinda," Tatter replied; she looked up at the ceiling. Her eyes looking at the ads and posters as they melded into other eras and styles. "What do you remember of Citadel?"
Akimoto's eyes opened wide and he looked at her.
20140102
Breakfast of Champions
"Good
morning," he said.
Alice looked at him. He was blond-haired, thirtyish and looked a little rough around the edges. She had just finished pouring him a cup of coffee.
"Hello," she replied with a smile. "What can I get for you this morning?"
"First of all a name would be nice," he stated with a smile of his own. It was a warm smile, a smile that was shared between good friends guarding a personal secret.
Alice looked at him and chuckled. After all she was wearing her name tag on her shirt.
"No," he said. "I was wondering if you knew my name."
Alice looked at his face and into his eyes. They were like pools of liquid, of warm emotion. His face seemed familiar but she attributed that to being a customer. She knew he was here a few times before. "Can't say that I do."
"Damn," he muttered. He took a sip of coffee. "They only reason I asked is that I've been going about seeing things and little flashes of recognition would just spark then die out. For some odd reason seeing your face and seeing something familiar about it sparked something in me."
Alice smiled and knew how he felt. Sometimes she just had an urge or feeling that things happen for a reason. Lately she'd been getting a lot of them. Like yesterday when she took the subway and she thought that she had entered the last car on the platform but when she got on and looked at the back window she saw another car, and in this other car she saw people. People's faces and clothing that seemed out of place and style, and there was this one cheerleader who looked familiar and...
"I suppose I will have the special this morning," he said.
Alice looked at him. He was blond-haired, thirtyish and looked a little rough around the edges. She had just finished pouring him a cup of coffee.
"Hello," she replied with a smile. "What can I get for you this morning?"
"First of all a name would be nice," he stated with a smile of his own. It was a warm smile, a smile that was shared between good friends guarding a personal secret.
Alice looked at him and chuckled. After all she was wearing her name tag on her shirt.
"No," he said. "I was wondering if you knew my name."
Alice looked at his face and into his eyes. They were like pools of liquid, of warm emotion. His face seemed familiar but she attributed that to being a customer. She knew he was here a few times before. "Can't say that I do."
"Damn," he muttered. He took a sip of coffee. "They only reason I asked is that I've been going about seeing things and little flashes of recognition would just spark then die out. For some odd reason seeing your face and seeing something familiar about it sparked something in me."
Alice smiled and knew how he felt. Sometimes she just had an urge or feeling that things happen for a reason. Lately she'd been getting a lot of them. Like yesterday when she took the subway and she thought that she had entered the last car on the platform but when she got on and looked at the back window she saw another car, and in this other car she saw people. People's faces and clothing that seemed out of place and style, and there was this one cheerleader who looked familiar and...
"I suppose I will have the special this morning," he said.
20140101
Slow Train A Coming
The
car had moved several inches in the last few hours. The wheels
squealing on the tracks, as if pulling away from glue. Something was
definitely happening and he was glad for it. He didn't know how many
more days he could stay couped up on just a platform. A
prisoner lost in time and space. He could hear Bishop in the
conductor car yelling at the train, shouting for it to move forward.
"What's going on?" Aqua inquired. She was bouncing around in her seat, itching to get into combat.
"Looks like whatever is holding us here is trying to keep us here," Frank said. "It doesn't want to let us go."
"Could it be some demonic force? Like a life leech?" Tatter asked. She sat by a window looking out and saw people begin to mill about on the platform, their images ghostlike in appearance. Whatever was happening it was affecting the platform too.
Bishop continued to shout at the train, hurling verbal abuse at the Gods, the earth, the world, his shoes. It was the first time any one of them had heard him become so vocal.
The train lurched forward again, a sudden two feet, sending everyone in the car tumbling over. It was a violent battle that was going on and it looked like Bishop was finally winning. Frank stood up and glanced around at the car to make sure everyone was okay, then as he scanned the platform his eyes widened in shock...
"What's going on?" Aqua inquired. She was bouncing around in her seat, itching to get into combat.
"Looks like whatever is holding us here is trying to keep us here," Frank said. "It doesn't want to let us go."
"Could it be some demonic force? Like a life leech?" Tatter asked. She sat by a window looking out and saw people begin to mill about on the platform, their images ghostlike in appearance. Whatever was happening it was affecting the platform too.
Bishop continued to shout at the train, hurling verbal abuse at the Gods, the earth, the world, his shoes. It was the first time any one of them had heard him become so vocal.
The train lurched forward again, a sudden two feet, sending everyone in the car tumbling over. It was a violent battle that was going on and it looked like Bishop was finally winning. Frank stood up and glanced around at the car to make sure everyone was okay, then as he scanned the platform his eyes widened in shock...
20131229
Shadows Full of Light
"Jebus!"
Goner said shockingly, making Frank jump up suddenly. His
heart picked up the pace a few notches.
Finally some excitement.
"What is it?" Frank asked. He came running out of the car, his hands went into his jacket and onto the pistols that were holstered there. Waiting for a chance to sing again.
"I think I saw Suki!" Goner said as came back excitedly. He had been standing by the exit. It was like a view screen on a wall; no matter what they had done they just couldn't step through it. But it was like the same thing with the vendors and the newspaper; each and every morning the view would show a different location.
"Suki!" Frank said. It could be a sign of cabin fever. "Did she see you?"
"No. Just when I was staring out the exit and looking at the faces going by, I could have sworn I saw Suki. But she looked older!"
Then the subway car hissed for the first time in what appeared to be a long while.
Finally some excitement.
"What is it?" Frank asked. He came running out of the car, his hands went into his jacket and onto the pistols that were holstered there. Waiting for a chance to sing again.
"I think I saw Suki!" Goner said as came back excitedly. He had been standing by the exit. It was like a view screen on a wall; no matter what they had done they just couldn't step through it. But it was like the same thing with the vendors and the newspaper; each and every morning the view would show a different location.
"Suki!" Frank said. It could be a sign of cabin fever. "Did she see you?"
"No. Just when I was staring out the exit and looking at the faces going by, I could have sworn I saw Suki. But she looked older!"
Then the subway car hissed for the first time in what appeared to be a long while.
20131227
Unclearity
Frank
placed the comic book down and stood up. He stretched
to work out the kinks in his body before he walked over to the
food dispenser. He slid a bill into a slot and pushed a
button. Frank watched as the turkey sandwich was shoved
forward and dropped into a little slot. His stomach grumbled a bit in
anticipation of food.
Frank didn't know where the food came from nor did he care. The vendors magically restocked each and every morning. He went over to the coffee machine and pressed the double-cream double-sugar button and a styrofoam cup with a happy face appeared and the liquid poured out. He waited until the last drip before he took the coffee.
"Pretty neat huh?" Angst said. "All this stuff being here for us. As if someone was looking out for us."
Angst had stepped from the subway car and wandered over to the newspaper dispenser; she slipped a coin into the slot and picked out the paper. Today it was the USA Today magazine, yesterday it was Little Feat Chronicle, the day before that the LA Post. Like everything else at 5:59am they renewed.
"Well, at least this coffee is better," Frank said after taking a sip. The coffee was indeed one of the better brands he had tasted in the morning. "That's a bonus."
Angst chuckled a little, though she felt like she was trapped. As if they were on display, like a snow globe on a desk.
"You ever wonder why we stopped here?" Angst asked. She knew the question was a moot point but she wanted conversation. "It's got to be a while now, sitting around and waiting for something to happen. Waiting for an exit to open so we can move on with our merry lives."
"It's day 68 now," Frank said. "We've been caught between shifts like a missing sock in our dryer. But, according to the newspaper it's always the same day over and over again."
Frank didn't know where the food came from nor did he care. The vendors magically restocked each and every morning. He went over to the coffee machine and pressed the double-cream double-sugar button and a styrofoam cup with a happy face appeared and the liquid poured out. He waited until the last drip before he took the coffee.
"Pretty neat huh?" Angst said. "All this stuff being here for us. As if someone was looking out for us."
Angst had stepped from the subway car and wandered over to the newspaper dispenser; she slipped a coin into the slot and picked out the paper. Today it was the USA Today magazine, yesterday it was Little Feat Chronicle, the day before that the LA Post. Like everything else at 5:59am they renewed.
"Well, at least this coffee is better," Frank said after taking a sip. The coffee was indeed one of the better brands he had tasted in the morning. "That's a bonus."
Angst chuckled a little, though she felt like she was trapped. As if they were on display, like a snow globe on a desk.
"You ever wonder why we stopped here?" Angst asked. She knew the question was a moot point but she wanted conversation. "It's got to be a while now, sitting around and waiting for something to happen. Waiting for an exit to open so we can move on with our merry lives."
"It's day 68 now," Frank said. "We've been caught between shifts like a missing sock in our dryer. But, according to the newspaper it's always the same day over and over again."
20131226
The Space Between
Frank
sat on the bench on the platform; he was in the middle of a Dirk Pitt
adventure when Goner plumped down beside him.
"Damn this is weird," Goner said.
Frank chuckled because weirdness was all part of the package.
"Getting bored are we?"
"We've been here for days it seems. The train hasn't moved and there is no freakin' exits here."
Frank had thought about that but he really didn't have an explanation at all, but something was definitely wrong. He was way past the point of worrying. He now knew how Neo felt in Matrix Revolutions where he was locked between worlds. If he got a chance he would hunt up that movie and watch it again.
"Don't you find this uncomforting?" Goner asked. "I have a strange feeling as if someone has pissed off the DM."
That's when Frank laughed out loud whole-heartily.
"Damn this is weird," Goner said.
Frank chuckled because weirdness was all part of the package.
"Getting bored are we?"
"We've been here for days it seems. The train hasn't moved and there is no freakin' exits here."
Frank had thought about that but he really didn't have an explanation at all, but something was definitely wrong. He was way past the point of worrying. He now knew how Neo felt in Matrix Revolutions where he was locked between worlds. If he got a chance he would hunt up that movie and watch it again.
"Don't you find this uncomforting?" Goner asked. "I have a strange feeling as if someone has pissed off the DM."
That's when Frank laughed out loud whole-heartily.
20131222
Real Time Saves Nine
Frank
opened his eyes and stretched; he had fallen asleep. The subway car
was stopped and the doors opened and he glanced around.
Akimoto was sitting in a lotus position in deep meditation, so he didn't want to bother the Norse ronin.
He reached over and touched Tatter on the shoulder; she shot up as if touched with a branding iron.
"It's me," Frank said, leaning back and holding up his hands.
"Sorry," Tatter meekly replied. She hadn't been able to sleep at all. It seemed her functions were still jumbled a bit. "Just that..."
"No worries, Tat," Frank said. He stood up and looked up and down the car. "You know where the others went?"
"Aqua and Dex went to get some food," Tatter replied.
"And Max, Maggie, Suki..." Frank began but then he saw the puzzled look on Tatter's face. "What is it?"
"Max?" Tattered said. "Who's he?"
Akimoto was sitting in a lotus position in deep meditation, so he didn't want to bother the Norse ronin.
He reached over and touched Tatter on the shoulder; she shot up as if touched with a branding iron.
"It's me," Frank said, leaning back and holding up his hands.
"Sorry," Tatter meekly replied. She hadn't been able to sleep at all. It seemed her functions were still jumbled a bit. "Just that..."
"No worries, Tat," Frank said. He stood up and looked up and down the car. "You know where the others went?"
"Aqua and Dex went to get some food," Tatter replied.
"And Max, Maggie, Suki..." Frank began but then he saw the puzzled look on Tatter's face. "What is it?"
"Max?" Tattered said. "Who's he?"
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