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| Nomad 2099UG Issue #4 "Silver & Gold" 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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| NOTE: Nomad takes place prior to 2099: The Fall of the Hammer! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Somewhere in the United States a dark man sits and watches various reports scroll by on the monitor. Most of the reports are routine and the man barely glances at them. Suddenly, a small man bursts into the room. "You're late," the dark man says. "I know, sir," Morey breathlessly replies. Knowing he won't get a response from the man, Morey begins his report. "There's not much to report, sir. They've stopped in Silver City. Just for a few hours, we think. They'll be stopping again in Fort Apache." "Is that all?" "Yes, sir." "Then leave. On the way out, send in Lt. Sylvia." "Yes, sir," Morey says almost backing into the doors. The doors open again, letting a tall athletic woman into the room. She is drenched with sweat, her red hair plastered to her face and shoulders. "I hope you didn't hurt the boys too much, my dear." "No, sir." "I have an assignment for you and your team. It's a covert operation so I want this handled personally. I think 6 members should suffice. This disk contains all of the specifics." The Lieutenant takes the disk and asks, "Where will the operation take place?" Having already turned back to the monitors, the man distractedly answers, "New Phoenix." It takes all of the Lieutenant's willpower to just nod her head and leave the room. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The black motorhome settles next to the service outlet. Multi-colored tendrils snake out of the silver box and attach themselves to the side of the motorhome. A red light blinks on a panel of the box to show that everything has connected properly. A door opens on the opposite side of the vehicle and 3 men exit. "God, it feels good to get out of that thing. I didn't think we'd ever get to Silver City," Bob says. Earl just nods in agreement. "How long are we going to be here, Bob?" Jack asks. "Only a few hours. Just need to pick up something and see a couple of people." Bob moves to the back to help Earl unload some crates. "You guys need any help? If not, I'm going to look around for a bit." "Fine. But there's not much to see. It's just a mining town." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jack quickly learns that he should listen to Bob. The whole town is on one street at the bottom of a hill. The service station that the RV is parked at sits at the top of the hill, along with a little motel/diner. The mining town looks like every mining town from every bad Saturday afternoon western, with a dash of sci-fi b-movie. Jack doesn't see any horses, or any animals he's familiar with. There are a number of hover cycles clogging the streets, making Jack wonder if a biker convention is in town. Jack stares at one creature that seems to be used as a pack animal. It resembles a lizard, if the lizard was the size of a Clydesdale. Spikes run along the sides of the body and tail. A harness is attached to the spikes and a hoversled is being pulled by some of the animals. Jack chuckles and thinks, "I am definitely not in my own time." Something else about the town that Jack notices is that a number of mutants are openly walking the streets. Jack stops and watches the flow of the people. After a few minutes, he detects a subtle tension in the air. Both groups, humans and mutants, covertly move in separate groups and avoid eye contact. "Wonder if this is what that Professor X guy meant by living in harmony," Jack thinks, as he resumes moving through the tiny town. Jack walks around the town, stopping at a few of the shops, and generally ignoring what's going on around him. That is until a tiny man in a robe runs into Jack as he's coming out of the town's only bar. Jack almost trips on the man's robe but manages to keep his balance. However, the little man isn't so lucky and lands in the street, right in front of one of the lizard creatures. The creature spooks and rears up on it's hind legs. Jack reacts, jumping down and grabbing the little man before he is smashed. He sets the man down, then suddenly thinks, "I should go back to that rock shop I saw." He turns away from the little man, walks to the shop and enters. The little man follows him. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lt. Sylvia pops the disk into the player and sits back. She ignores the details of the operation, knowing she will probably have to improvise anyway. She prefers it that way, especially where they're going. "I can't believe we're really going after one of the Lost Heroes and of all of them, the Nomad." As if reading her thoughts, the player displays a picture of Jack Monroe and recites his history. "Why did he put this on here? Anyone who's taken Introductory 20th century mythology knows the story of the Nomad." She studies the picture of Jack for a minute. "Never seen a holograph of him before. Why do I have this feeling I've seen him before?" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "May I help you, sir?" The lady behind the counter closes the display case and looks at the man who has just entered. Jack looks at the lady, confused, then says, "I . . . I'm not sure. I . . ." Jack's eyes blank out again and he looks through the lady, "I'm looking for some andacrite." "Andacrite? I have some in the back. Follow me." Without hesitation, Jack follows the lady through a curtain into a small storage room. Moments later, the small, robed man walks through the curtain. A dry, raspy voice comes out of the hood, "Hello, Mr. Monroe." Jack doesn't respond at first, still dazed then he looks around the room and at the two people standing in front of him. "Where the hell am I? For that matter, who are you people?" The lady speaks first. "You're in the storeroom of Doreen's Mineral Emporium and I'm Doreen." Jack nods and says, "And you're Wraith. A telepath too, I see." The little man bows, "Yes, but I'm more of an empath. I can't read minds, but I feel suggestions from other people and vice versa. For instance, think back to when we ran into each other. I suggested the whole incident, from me falling into the street to you walking into this store." Doreen sits down on a crate and gestures for Jack to do the same. Both men remain standing. Doreen just shakes her head and says, "We're members of the Underground, Mr. Monroe. I'm sure you're aware of us." "Should I be?" "Epuerer warned us that you could be . . . what was the word he always used . . . hard-assed?" "Jack is taken aback, though he doesn't show it, at the mention of Giscard's name. "So, you knew Poo-Poo?" The woman startles Jack by letting out the loudest, hardiest laugh he's ever heard. Wraith even makes a noise that Jack assumes is a chuckle. Doreen keeps laughing for a few minutes, then she manages to compose herself. "By Odin's beard, it really is you. Giscard also told us that only you would know his pet name. I never thought I would meet the Nomad. To answer your question, none of us knew him. Personally, that is." Doreen reaches into a pocket on her dress and pulls out a small gold disc. "I'm sure you know what this is. This is how we knew him. They're somewhat like the discs you're collecting, but ours are for training." Sensing that the two people can be trusted Jack finally sits down. "Giscard told me a little about your group. He neglected to mention how I was to contact you. Which raises a question. How were you supposed to find me? He did say that you guys would have no idea when to look for me." Wraith answers, "You are correct. We didn't know when or even where you would show up. I found you today only because you happened to walk by me and I sensed your presence." "But how did you know it was me? This is a small town but there are a lot of people out on those streets. Judging from your use of passwords, I'm guessing that you don't have pictures of me. If you did, you couldn't be sure I hadn't changed my looks." The little man sighs, then looks at Jack quizzically, "You are correct. We weren't sure of what you would look like. That's where I come in. Like I said, I not only give suggestions, but I also feel them. Normally, I feel hatred, fear, or sympathy coming from other people. But you were different. What were your thoughts when you saw mutants and humans walking around together?" "I don't know. Puzzlement, I guess." "I'll tell you what you felt, since it's what singled you out from the other people. Disbelief, Mr. Monroe. You were actually looking at everything in complete amazement, like a little child in a toy store. It didn't show on you're face, but I felt it all the same." Jack says nothing, just stares at a spot that's ten miles beyond the wall. Wraith gets up and fills a glass with water and drinks deeply. He fills another glass and offers it to Jack. "Thanks." Jack drinks half of the water. "Anything wrong?" Doreen asks. "No, everything's fine. It's just that . . . I've been described every possible way. Some positive, mostly negative, but never like that." Jack looks right at Wraith eye's,. "Thank you. I wasn't sure about this mission of Giscard's, but I think I can handle it now." A comfortable silence falls over the group. Doreen finally breaks the silence when she says, "Are you ready to find out what that mission is?" She takes another disk out of a pocket and hands it to Jack. "I don't have my player. I left it back in my bag." "You may use mine," the robed man says, pulling a player similar to Jack's out of the robe. Doreen and Wraith stand up to leave. "Where are you going? I don't mind if you hear this." Doreen shakes her head, "No, the fewer people who know why you're here, the better. We'll wait for you out here." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On the 17th floor of a nondescript office building in the downtown part of New York, a man sits and studies some papers in front of him. A fast rapping sound interrupts his thoughts. Before he can answer, the door swings open and two men come rushing in. "Ben we've got it. We've finally got it!" "What do we have?" Ben asks. "Proof. Odin's burning eye, I can't believe we've got it." "What Johnson means is that we have finally received physical confirmation of Jack Munroe's appearance." Ben stops shuffling his papers and looks at the two men. "Howard, are you sure? It came from one of our own people?" "Yes. A Doreen Wilkinson contacted our regional office in New Phoenix. Monroe used the codeword. He is watching the mission disk right now." "Fine. Do we have any people in the area that can bring him in, if needed?" Howard and Johnson exchange a glance before Johnson replies, "Unfortunately, our resources in the West are very limited. It was sheer luck that he wandered into a town that still had one of our people in it." Howard speaks up, "As you know, most of our people fled New Phoenix. Again it was lucky that someone was at the relay station. We do still have a few people in Las Vegas, but the mobs are beginning to crack down on those people without sheriff's cards again. Basically, we don't have the manpower to watch Monroe, let alone bring him in." "Unacceptable. I want you gentlemen to draw something up and present it at the next meeting. Thank you." With that the two men leave. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Fascinating?" the dark man asks. "Yes, sir. I've given the personnel and equipment list to Morey. We should be ready to go in 36 hours." "Good. Make sure your men understand this is strictly a covert operation. They are not to do anything to compromise the situation. It's tense enough in New Phoenix as it is." "Yes, sir." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The holographic image of Giscard forms in front of Jack. "Well, Jack, if you're seeing this you must have decided to go to Las Vegas. I'm sure you're wondering what I need you to do. I told you back in the cave that you would be searching for something. Well, it's actually someone. I want you to find an old friend of Steve's." The hologram pauses. "I need you to find Rachel Leighton, a.k.a. Diamondback." Jack listens to Epuerer, but none of it registers. "I'm not the only refugee from the 20th century?" Epuerer says nothing else. Instead, the image fades out and the player goes silent. Jack takes the disk out and puts it in a pocket. He stands up and walks out of the storeroom. As he returns the player to Wraith and thanks the two Undergrounders, Bob bursts into the shop. "Hel Jack, we've been looking all over this town for you. Course, we figured you'd be in the bar starting fights again. Ready?" Bob holds the door open. "Yeah. They didn't have what I wanted anyway." As Jack walks past Bob, he feels suspiciousness coming from Wraith. The feeling evaporates just as suddenly, leaving Jack un sure if he really felt it at all. |