TENSEN 2099UG	Writer/Artist/Editor: Gary M. Miller  |  Creator: Peter David  Editor-in-Chief: Michael Shirley  |  AEIC: Chris Lough
Dec. 17, 1997 #2

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John Tensen	Xina Kwan	Halloween Jack	Doom	Meanstreak

After a week's trying voyage from New York to the Nevada desert, Xina Kwan and her passenger, the hitchhiking John Tensen, arrived to find the city of Las Vegas in ruins as result of the former President Doom's EMP waves reverberating Halloween Jack's Virtual Unreality wave back upon the city.  Tensen had hoped to use the VU portal which Jack had built to return to his own place and time.  However, things may not be as bad as they had first seemed for Tensen...

On a deserted isle far overseas, on what was formerly known as Crete, a rather large being strode through. He was tall, definitely very masculine and very built. One thing he also was at this moment was ... angry.

His glowing blue eyes reflected that fact.

His arsenal had been mostly re-built over the last few weeks, using the easily manipulable materials he found on this world. It was easy to make common everyday materials suddenly have such high significance ... especially when designing the laser rifle and shield combo he wanted -- with the correct design emblazoned upon each item. The spear wasn't too difficult to re-make either -- none of it was, and that pleased him. He smiled.

The vehicle had even been reconstructed using his awesome might and knowledge about the items he found here. It had been many months since last he had been here, fashioning these items in the first place. That first time he remembered little about his mission. Now, however, he knew more. Much more.

Now he was ready to take charge, and kill anyone who dared oppose him. He knew that now.

The vehicle was in tip-top shape, perfect for what he was about to do. He had shined his outfit, readying it for the upcoming battle. Everything was in place. All he needed do now was wait for the signal.

He would know the signal when he sensed it.

The wind blew through the area, carrying with it a whistling noise, through the trees and everywhere. The warrior walked over to his vehicle and mounted it. He was ready for anything that would come his way. Perhaps more ready than for anything in the last fifty years.

Fifty years. Had it really been so long since he had seen this decadent locale, breathed its rancid air? He was almost angry at having chosen a specimen to inhabit that could sense all of these things. Why couldn't he have found an automaton, an android which didn't have to endure such tortures?

Ah, but then, that defeated the purpose of life. And death, it defeated that purpose too.

But in the end it didn't matter. And now, as the one who had possessed the body of the now-dead Aaron Delgato mounted his Omega-vehicle, the realization came to him that maybe it didn't have to be this way. That perhaps this signal forthcoming would be a harbinger of change. Perhaps it would be the beginning of his return to grace. It certainly wouldn't be the first time the fates had shone upon him.

And the enemy whom he would meet at the origin of the signal. Now there was a worthy opponent. It had truly been too long. They had been united for so long a time -- and yet for no time at all. Paradoxes abounded, and there were no easy answers.

There would only be vengeance. And, just possibly, renewed existence.

And maybe even death.

For the Omega was coming -- the end of all things.

And Thanatos, whose name meant death, would be on the front lines to lead the charge.

"What have you found?" Tensen asked her.

"Next to nothing," Xina attested. "But I think I located part of the CPC of the device..." She ravaged on through the debris until she found a small cylindrical device with several broken lights upon it. Wires were strewn around it as well. "Aha."

"A-ha??" Tensen questioned.

"Here it is. Although I don't know what we're going to do with it. Since it's in such poor shape, I would probably need someone who specialized in these things in order to have a chance in hell of this thing actually working. I could reconstruct the outer core, but the rest, well..."

"It doesn't look good. That is what you are saying."

"Yeah, I'm afraid so."

Tensen gazed out at the horizon to see a flurry of sand kicking up.

A storm brewing?

Lately, running had not been his definition of something fun. After all, it had just been last week that he'd heard about the massive explosion at Alchmax Tower back in New York City (actually X-MEN 2099UG #40 to us --GMM). Through various unofficial channels he'd learned that an old friend of his from his Academy days had been caught in the blast. At last, Jordan Boone was dead.

Why wouldn't that cause celebration on Henri's part? True, the two had been friends, but they had also had tremendous differences which pushed them apart. And there had been one stain that lingered like no other on Henri's heart. And tonight, as a testament to his friend Jordan, he trekked from Halo City out to the broken city which he had helped Jordan destroy.

It hadn't totally been his fault. He knew that now. But Jordan had been so insistent in his plans for Las Vegas -- first in removing Desdemona Synge from power, then in taking over her casino and turning it into the place where Jordan's dreams would be realized -- the site of the Virtual Unreality projector. True, he checked over the calculations, found them to be unsafe, especially when trying to manipulate something as fragile and unknown as VU, but those were the brakes. Jordan wanted success, as soon as possible. So they pushed. And pushed. Until finally the VU projector was rendered operational. Then Doom had closed off the city, set up the EMP's, and let them do their thing, destroying Vegas within a matter of days.

Not his fault. He had to remember that. He'd be lying if he said he was guilty. Lying. Guilty.

The sand kicked up behind him as he raced closer to the desolated city. He stopped about a half-mile outside of the city limits to gaze at what looked to be reflections of light, going back and forth in a strange pattern. When it was light outside, yes, one could see light switching on and off the metal surfaces -- but not now, not when the light was fading to darkness. That meant one thing to Henri.

Looters.

Shock it, hadn't enough been done to the city without having some two-bit criminals digging up wallets and other materials? It was enough to make Henri ill. He squinted, his oriental features straining, as he looked for discernible figures with which to match the reflected light. He saw opaque green lights lying low, but other than that, there seemed to be nothing--

Yes! There amid the rubble were two people who, come to think of it, seemed to be staring directly back at him. Of course, they must be looking at the dust I kicked up! Henri thought. But who?

Suddenly he saw one of the forms shift around, then suddenly blink into a light the size and shape of a door. That was odd ... where could he have--

--gone???

Henri was thrown back as he saw first a burst of white light in front of him, followed by a firm punch that knocked him back a few feet, merely startling him, not causing damage. His red and blue suit was tarnished in the sand, and he felt the burn of the ground against his skin.

"Who are you and why have you come here?" Tensen asked, standing above the fallen Meanstreak.

"I could ask you the same question," Henri said, "but it appears I don't need to. You're stealing from this fallen city."

Tensen's eyes lit up with yellow. "Who are you to judge what my friend and I have been doing here? It is none of your concern. If anyone should judge, it would be I." His right hand began to glow with energy. "Once again I ask, who are you and what is your business here?"

"Go to Hel," Henri screamed as he regained his facilities. The speed advantage was his. He quickly leapt to his feet and punched Tensen across the face. Blood spurted from the wound he had inflicted at high velocity.

Tensen was amused. This one's combat skills were impressive. "You would make a good fighter," he said, "if we were merely gauging by speed. But I have a far different tactic. One which works." Without another word, he fired a bolt from his right hand, aiming at his adversary but missing. By an inch.

Henri ducked out of the way, using his speed to his advantage. He then attempted to charge his foe. Just before he connected, however, Tensen put up his left hand and a greenish-hued shield erected itself, effectively absorbing the blow Meanstreak would have inflicted, and aimed it right back at him. Henri sank like a stone back to the sandy earth.

Before he could get up again, Henri found a boot resting on his throat, pressing hard, making an indentation, suffocating him. He looked up to see the energy frothing from Tensen's right hand, ready to fire.

"Don't make me use this," Tensen said. "It would be most unwise of you to cause me further aggravation."

"Wouldn't ... *choke* ... dream of it," Henri said. He closed his eyes, then felt the boot released from his throat. He gasped for air, but then found the boot on his chest.

"I am John Tensen," Tensen said. "I am trying to find a way to go ... home."

"I'm Meanstreak," Henri said weakly. "I was surveying the damage to the city, and watching for predators, scavengers."

"I am no scavenger," Tensen said.

"Then what are you?" He looked at Tensen for a few moments. "Boone."

"Boone?" Tensen queried, the fire rising in his eyes. Friend or foe? Could this man be an agent of Boone come to manipulate him like a puppet on a string? Or was this man one who might ally himself for the cause which Tensen championed? He had to find out. Therefore, he had to lie. "I know not of whom you speak, Meanstreak. But you sound--"

"Boone's experiments with VU," Henri clarified. "He said once he'd had trouble. A being came through once. A few months ago."

"You bore me," Tensen said.

"He said Spider-Man had interfered with his experiments with the generator," Henri gasped, "and that this being -- outfitted in Roman Centurion armor -- had somehow caused a foul-up in the system, leading to a man ... in a trench-coat ... with glowing eyes ... escaping."

Tensen could not speak. The energy from his right hand faded. His eyes returned to their normal color.

A few moments later, the silence was interrupted by Xina. She had walked to them, her set of tools in her hands and grease and sweat on her brow.

Henri recognized her immediately. "Xina!"

"H-Henri???" she asked quizzically. "Henri Huang?"

"You two know one another?" Tensen asked, breaking his own silence.

"Excuse us, Tensen," Xina said. "We ex-Alchemax Academians tend to get a little emotional when we meet back up after several years of not seeing each other." She turned to Henri. "How the shock are you?"

"Well," Henri explained, "your friend has to learn to be a little more gentle and trusting." he rubbed his neck as he got to his feet.

"Touché," was all Tensen could say. He smiled, breaking his cool collected manner.

"What are you doing out in the ruins of Vegas, Xina?" Henri asked.

"Trying to piece together a puzzle that might send this guy back home where he says he belongs," Xina admitted. "He comes from a long way off."

"Where exactly? How did he get here? Was it through Boone's VU?"

Xina sighed. "I'm afraid so. At least, that's what I was able to coax out of John here. He says he comes from Earth, but somehow he came through into VU and the rest is history."

Thinking for a minute, Henri scratched his head, nodded a few times, then snapped his fingers as a cold expression washed over his face. "Wait one minute. The new VU generator in New York clunked out, the whole Alchemax Tower exploded. You say this guy came from VU, which means you think to go back wherever he was, he'd have to go back through VU. You aren't here to--"

"--rebuild the VU device here and send him back? Well, that's what we'd like to do. We found the CPC."

Henri began to shout and point his finger at Xina in a violent fashion. "This ... this is insanity," he said. "Jordan Boone was a friend of mine, yes, but he was also quite the lunatic near the end of his life. And you, you mean to tell me you want to re-build the Hel he created here in order to send one man who may or may not really get home through the gateway? You're even more nuts than Jordan was."

"You were a friend of his," Xina said. "Surely you were privy to some of his calculations, some of his secrets?"

"Oh, I wasn't just privy, I was right there, Jordan's number two designer. He and I built the thing together. He wouldn't listen to my theories about changes to make. That's why the device malfunctioned, and why Doom came to shut it down. Jordan was crazy at the end, like I told you."

"I will not pretend to understand anything you are saying," Tensen said, "but is it not possible then that you remember how the Virtual Unreality unit worked, and that you may be able to help us rebuild the unit correctly so that I may reach home?"

"I won't do it," Henri said. "Not for all the money in the world would I even think about doing it."

"What about for peace of mind?" Tensen asked. "Ease of conscience?"

"What about all the danger there is to plugging into VU in the first place?" Henri asked. "What about the possible loss of human life?"

"The prospect of success will outweigh the sacrifice," Tensen said. "I have faith in your and Miss Kwan's abilities. If Miss Kwan trusts your judgment, then so shall I."

"You don't understand, Mr. Tensen. We don't even really know what VU is yet. There isn't research going that far. What if I rebuild the device but something goes wrong, and the whole world -- our world here is destroyed, or inhabited by whatever kind of demons there may be on the other side? There's sacrifices, but then there are sacrifices too great for anyone to make."

"What I say goes, Meanstreak," Tensen said, the fire once more igniting in his eyes. Just as quickly it subsided. "But in this case, I shall set limits. I do want both of you to work to bring me back to where I once lived. I know now there are things I must do there, wrongs I must right. What I want is your total support and your undivided attention to rebuilding this VU the way you want it done. I want a portal, not a projector. And if such as you assume trouble will erupt, then I would order you to immediately destroy the device again. I am not afraid of dying in the portal. No one will be hurt except for me. I swear it."

Henri looked at Xina, then at Tensen. "You really want this," he said. "There's not much I can do to change your mind, then, is there?" He received no response. "Well, then, I will do this. I will redesign the generator with Xina's help. I'll build it. But I will need time."

"We have all the time in the world," Tensen said. "All the time in the world."

Xina smiled, as did Henri. "Then, let's get to work," Xina said.

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