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| Nomad 2099UG Issue #1 "Truth or Consequences" Written by Travis DeVore |
| The 2099 Underground is a project whereby a group of fans are putting together a series of stories continuing from Marvel's fantastic futuristic 2099! Ignoring the ignoble and inaccurate "2099: World of Tomorrow", we're exploring what we feel is the true spirit of 2099 as envisioned by then Editor-in-Chief Joey Cavalieri. Participation is open to all. Comments about this issue should be sent to the author. Or you can visit our message board and post your thoughts on the issue. Anyone wishing to join the mailing list should do so by signing up at Yahoo! Groups. It's free and easy! Simply type in the keyword "Ghostworks" and you're good to go. |
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| "What the hell is that noise?," the man in the cylinder thinks to himself. "I hate it when the alarm goes off. Let me sleep for just a few more seconds." The alarm ignores the man and continues making its godforsaken noise. "All right. I'll get up." Slowly the man in the small chamber starts to awaken. "Wait a second, why does my body feel like a 300 pound sumo wrestler is on top of me? And why don't I remember what happened last night? Let's see what can I remember. I gave Bucky to Epurer. Then I went to....the capitol building. I'm in Washington D.C. What happened next? I remember standing in the middle of the room. People were screaming and running out of the room. Why? I don't remember." The man tries to move but nothing happens. "Could one of my old enemies have captured me after whatever happened last night? I don't feel restrained. Actually, it feels like my body isn't even here." The man tries moving different parts of his body. After a few failed attempts, he's able to get a foot to move, then a couple of fingers. The man slowly moves his head and struggles to open his eyes. Even though there is barely enough light to make out anything in the chamber, it's enough to blind him. Blinking though the flood of tears that form, the man is able to make out the interior of the chamber. The room is dimly lit, with enough light coming from the equipment to see parts of the room. Directly in front of the man are a row of computers. Since he can only see in front of him the man takes a look at the device that he is lying in. The cocoon that encases him is made of metal with a glass lid. Judging from the his viewpoint, the man figures the cocoon is laying at an angle. The man looks at his feet and hands, confirming that he is in fact not being restrained. "Since the lid is open and no one has checked on me since I woke up, I guess I'll get up." He struggles and, after many unsuccessful attempts, gets himself out, only to fall flat on the floor. Looking around from his new vantage point, the man sees a small table with a couple of chairs around it. Crawling to one of the chairs, the man strains to get into it. Looking around again, the man still sees nothing but computers, some lockers and the cocoon he just left. However, on the table itself, is a tiny machine that looks like a portable disc player. "Wonderful. I have no idea where I am, but at least I have music." Still feeling too weak to even contemplate picking the thing up, instead he punches a button that looks like it would play the disc. To the man's surprise, instead of music coming from the tiny thing, a beam of light shoots out of one side. The beam takes the form of a man standing opposite the table, a man that looks to be in his late sixties. The man at the table recognizes the image and suddenly understands. "I should have known," the man thinks. The man labors to speak, finally whispering something. "Hey-Poo-Poo." "Yes, Jack, it is I: Giscard Epurer. I know how much you would like to hit me, but for your own sake, resist. I am, after all, only a hologram. Before we get down to business, I assume you are thirsty. Just behind me, if the viewer is still where it was to be placed, should be a cabinet with some food packets and bottled water. Go ahead and get something." The man at the table, now identified as Jack, gets up and walks through the hologram. He finds the cabinet, takes out a bottle of water and shambles back to the table. The recording, after a small pause, continues. "See, Jack, I can still be trusted. Anyway, we will start with the easiest question: Where are you? You are in a secret location, somewhere in the southwest part of the United States. New Mexico to be exact. If the equipment functioned properly you should have awoken roughly forty years after this recording was made, which is June 2025." "You are probably saying ‘How did I get here?' Well, do you remember that little conflict you caused in Washington? You know, the one where you blew up the capitol building. I didn't find out until much later, but you survived. It seems that your friend Hatch had it planned all along. When Bart threw the switch on the bomb, you were buried under the debris. Hatch was the ranking S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and threw the other agents a different direction by claiming the body of an unfortunate cameraman was yours. He snuck you out and hid you in a secret facility in Virginia. I'll cover how you got to New Mexico in a bit." Ignoring the recording for a second, Jack thinks, "One minute I'm facing down a childhood enemy in Washington. The next I'm waking up in New Mexico in the year 2065. Giscard you better have a really good explanation for me." Oblivious to the man, the recording continues it's message, "...about Bucky. She received the best education-" "Whoa! What the hell did you just say? What about Bucky?" Jack begins looking for a way to rewind the recording. The image goes through a strange dance as the man frantically pushes the buttons on the little player. "She better be okay. If there is something wrong, I'm going to find your descendants and make them pay for all of the hell you've put me through. I swear-" The man stops when he realizes that the image is talking again. "But before I do, I want to tell you about Bucky. I raised just like I promised you. She received the best education and I was always there for her. Unfortunately, she was too much like her father. Without my knowledge, she snuck out and did a little of her own crime fighting using your name. Once I found out about her nocturnal activities, I tried to put a stop to it, but I soon realized that it was what she wanted to do." If the man at the table had any, his eyes would be full of tears. Jack just smiles and thinks "I know it's too late but thank you, Giscard." "You're welcome, Jack," the Giscard hologram says, with a faint hint of a smile. "Now on to business. Why did I move you to New Mexico? Well, something is building, Jack. I've found out a few leads, but I don't know the whole picture. What I do know is that one of your old enemies has something planned and it is going to come to a head in 2075. I found out that this enemy of yours was getting too close to finding you in Virginia. With the help of my Underground, we kept you on the move long enough for various preparations to be completed, this installation being among them. I also had the machines set to wake you up ten years earlier so you would have enough time to make the necessary preparations. I just hope I've done enough to get you started. There is a group that is supposed to meet you in Las Vegas once you are awake. You need to find transportation to Las Vegas to meet the Underground. They will have the rest of the instructions for you. There should be some equipment that I thought you might need once you leave the relative safety of this place over in the lockers. I've said enough for today. As strange as this may sound, you need your rest. This player will play the rest of the recording in 12 hours. See you then Jack!" "Unfortunately, my body," Jack thinks, "says we are never leaving. Sorry Giscard. Maybe after another forty years, we'll see." Sometime during the hologram's speech the room became brighter and the computers were more active. Now that he can see, Jack looks around at the room. The table, 2 chairs and the cryogenic capsule are the only furniture in the room. Computer equipment lines the walls, all of it suddenly buzzing with activity since he woke. At one end of the room is a doorway, which Jack figures is the way out since the other doorway looks like it leads into another room. Feeling strong enough to attempt a look in the other room, Jack shambles over to the doorway. The other room is as sparse as the main one. A small cot is in one corner and a large flashing screen is in the other. There is an open door to one side of the bed, but Jack can't tell where it leads from his point of view. Already feeling fatigued, he limps over to the bed. Now that he can see what's behind the door, Jack discovers that it's nothing more than a bathroom. Resting for a while, Jack watches the screen. On the screen are numerous smaller screens, each one displaying different image. Before he can sort out any of the images, Jack finally gives up and lets his body convince him that it would be a good idea to sleep. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Like it was always meant to be Jack-- You and Me! I told you a long, long time ago that eventually you'd get yours!" "You haven't gotten me, Bart, and I haven't gotten you-- Sad as it is, we've always had each other." "Pretty pathetic, huh?" KCOOM! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "God, what a dream! I hope I never have that one again. Why would I have a dream that I was in the future anyway? Guess I've been thinking about my own future too much lately. I better go check on Bucky." Jack opens his eyes and before he can shut them, reality suddenly intrudes. "Damn! I wasn't dreaming. The monitor is still there and I'm still on that damn cot. Giscard, I wish you were alive so I could at least have the pleasure of killing you. Well, I wonder if the rest of that message has already played. I better check since it doesn't look like I'm going anywhere." Jack stands up, feeling slightly better already, and walks over to the doorway. Seeing no holograms, he walks over to the table and sits down. Contemplating whether he should try pushing the button on the player again, the decision is made for him when the beam of light shoots out of the player. "Good. I haven't missed the show. I can't wait to hear Giscard's reason-" Before he can further discredit his former enemy, Jack realizes that it isn't the image of the older man standing before him. Rather it's the image of a young woman, wearing a slightly familiar outfit. Although he has never seen her before, Jack has seen someone resembling the woman standing in front of him. Since he knows the other woman is dead, he guesses that the image must be the dead woman's daughter. Just as when he first saw the image of Giscard, the man can only manage a single word out of his throat. "Bucky?" Not allowing the image to speak this time, Jack punches at a button that he guesses is the one to stop the recording. However, nothing happens and the recording continues. "Yes, dad. I know it must seem strange to see me like this but it really is your little girl. And yes, this is a duplicate your old uniform. I modified it slightly, of course, but I kept the same basic concept. Simple but effective. But we need to get down to business. Epurer knew you would be resistant to his suggestions, so he brought me in, despite his own objections. Now, dad, simply put, this world needs you. From what Epurer has told me of what he knows of this plan being laid by your enemy, America hasn't needed you more. I know we're being awful vague, but we need to just in case this disk has fallen into the wrong hands. We've taken certain precautions to prevent that but you can never be too careful. Now, I know you and Giscard had your differences but that is literally in the past. Please listen to him with an open mind and don't judge him on those differences. He changed a lot after you, um, died. The message on this disk is finished. The rest will play on the monitor in the other room. Just take the player in there." "And, dad, I love you." The image stays for a few more seconds and then disappears. The man doesn't move for a long time. "Damn you, Giscard! That was dirty. Despite what my daughter says, you haven't changed. You're still pulling the strings, watching all of your little puppets dance. Well, I'm done with you I am not going to listen to anymore of your lies. Besides, why should I care what this supposed enemy has planned for America. America was never there when I had a problem. In fact, it seems like it was usually stomping on me when I did have a problem. So, you can just go to hell!" Jack grabs the player and throws it across the room at the lockers. It falls to the floor, pointing back at the table. The jolt causes the player to switch on. "...dad, I love you....dad, I love you....dad...love...you....love...you..." The image, standing just to the left of Jack, plays the last part of the message until it flutters and shuts itself off. The man doesn't see it, however, since his eyes are full of tears, causing the room to blur. After a bit, the man stands up, walks over to the player, and heads over to the monitor in the other room. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After recuperating a couple more days, Jack gathers up the equipment from the lockers. After checking one more time to make sure he has the player, he walks down the corridor and out of the small installation. Looking around outside, he pauses before turning to the north, proceeding in the direction that Giscard told him the small town would be in, trusting nothing has changed in forty years. |