Written by Barry Reese
Solar Eclipse, Part Two : The Darkening Horizon
May 20, 4022
What Has Come Before : Solar the Destroyer's mental breakdown has worsened -- convinced he is haunted by Dr. Eclipse, Solar has split himself into yet another variant personality. This one, garbed in all black, has promised to earn the name of Destroyer and has begun his work by destroying large areas of the Unity Colony. To halt his rampage, the Starwatchers dispatched a strike force led by Balaam to Unity. The Destroyer made quick work of them, however, and now faces their "secret weapon" -- Torque, armed with a full-grown suit of X-O Manowar class armor. Elsewhere, Magnus had journeyed to the Freewill Consortium with Glia in hopes of finding his missing friend, Elzy.
North Am Metroplex. Western Seaboard. Grid Designate : LA-307. Milespire.
Elzy stood stock-still, her eyes glazed and robotic. "I understand what I have to do." Gone were all traces of Elzy's Goph-speak, replaced by a clear understanding of the North Am language.
The freewill robot who sat before her was hardwired into the central computers of the Freewill Consortium. A dizzying amount of information flooded his neural circuits, keeping him up-to-date on almost every major event taking place in the LA grid. "Excellent. Magnus-is-here-in-pursuit-as-I-knew-he-would-be. Concern-for-his-friends-is-always-his-undoing."
Elzy didn't respond. The tiny nanites that had been injected into her blood stream were working perfectly. Based in part on the technology used by the Malevs in their recent attempt at world domination*, the nanites were capable of transforming even the most strong-willed of humans into pawns of the Consortium.
(*The Malevs' final plan came to an end in Magnus, Robot Fighter # 64.)
The robot leaned forward, his headdress of wires and electrodes coming with him. His mechanical eyes flashed. "Understand-this-Elzy... You-were-chosen-not-only-because-you-are-a-friend-of-the-hammer. I-am-freewill. I-understand-the-need-for-vengeance. Had-you-not-aided-Tekla-all-those-years-ago, my-dreams-would-have-become-reality." The robot steepled its fingers before it in a very human gesture. "Instead-I-have-been-forced-to-practice-patience-since-my-resurrection. I-thought-my-victory-was-at-hand-until-the-return-of-the-Hammer. He-must-not-be-allowed-to-stop-us. The-Freewill-Consortium-is-but-the-first-step-in-the-true-Steel-Nation. Do-you-understand?"
Elzy nodded.
The robot waved a hand to dismiss her. "Go. Destroy-the-Hammer. In-the-name-of-01X*... Go."
(*For those who don't remember 01X, break out your old copies of "Steel Nation", from Magnus # 1-4! Don't worry, folks, all will be revealed in time!)
North Am Metroplex. Western Seaboard. Grid Designate : LA-307. Milespire.
Magnus sat up in his bed, awoken by the sound of his belt-communicator softly chiming. Glia lay next to him, her form still and inert. She was powered down for the night, able to awaken in an emergency but otherwise oblivious to the world around her. The Robot Fighter stood up and padded softly across the carpet that lined Glia's quarters. Even he'd been amazed at how human she'd seemed in the throes of passion -- technology, he mused, is truly amazing.
The differences between man and machine were growing ever more slight. Some robots, like 1-A, were functionally human now. Others, like Glia, still clung to metallic forms but even they were more supple than their ancestors -- and capable of being fully functional in the ways of love. '
As Magnus picked up his communicator, he cast another glance at Glia. Her metal body gleamed softly in the dim light. For a moment, he thought of Tekla... who had cast her own visage after Leeja's. The pain of lonliness made Magnus wince. He'd lost them both.... but something in Glia's way made their loss somewhat easier to take.
"Magnus here."
Torque's voice, calm but tinged with excitment came through in response. "Dad... I'm sending this message from an encoded station onboard the Starwatcher vessel Victory II. I'm sorry you have to find out this way -- but the Starwatchers are engaged in battle with the Destroyer right now at the Unity Colony. It's not looking very good, in my opinion... anyway, I want you to know. We might need you. I love you."
Magnus gripped the communicator so hard that it cracked. "Torque? Torque!"
Glia's voice made the Robot Fighter snap around. She was sitting up in her bed, her body looking surprisingly soft. "It-was-a-recorded-transmission-Magnus. He-is-gone."
"I thought you were powered down."
"Your-distress-triggered-my-ectotheric-radiometers."
Magnus blinked. "Your... what did you say?"
Glia rose and moved to his side. "Another-time-my-love. Do-you-need-transportation?"
Magnus cursed. "What I need to do is contact Shooter -- find out if he's aware of this. He may need to evacuate North Am if the Destroyer heads in this direction... What could have set him off?"
Sol System. Unity Colony.
I'm insane. Again.
Solar raised himself up on one knee, sensing the tremendous amounts of energy being manipulated around him. The Unity Colony was in flames, a thousand voices crying out at once. The man who had been known as the Destroyer forced himself to look about, his mind refusing to accept the truth. "It was real... the nightmare was real."
Memories flooded into his mind, of worlds lost and lives destroyed. Again and again it came back to this : he was a danger to everyone and everything. In recent days, he'd suffered yet another mental breakdown and, once again, his psyche had chosen to exorcise the demons within him. They had given birth to a Dr. Eclipse-inspired version of the Destroyer, one bent on conquest and mayhem.
Solar reached out with his mind, touching the fields of energy that made up his reality. Don't worry about the carnage -- it's all just energy, waiting to be manipulated. Just find its chronal 'ghost' image and restore things to that state of reality. As long as it hasn't been too long, I should be able to make some amends -- but the rest of the galaxy will have to fend for itself while I rebuild Unity.
All around the colony, energy shimmered and writhed. Buildings ripped asunder by the Destroyer returned to their former state of being, their molecules rearranged to their prior state. Human beings were more difficult, but Solar kept his to his task, reanimating as many as he could. Some of them were beyond repair, their spirits leeched away by the Destroyer's 'necromantic' urges.
While he worked, oblivious to all else, a battle continued to wage in the space above Unity.
Sol System. Above Unity Colony.
Torque grimaced as the mighty X-O manowar class armor buckled under the Destroyer's assault. How long the two of them had been locked in combat, he didn't know. He could only assume that his message had reached both the Palisade and his father, but there was no telling when they would be able to arrive. Torque tried to remember the brief instructions given to him by Balaam -- The armor is like an extension of its wearer. Visualize the weaponry that you want and the armor will try to provide. Torque held one hand out and imagined himself holding a laser. Tendrils of cable snaked out from his arm and formed a gun that rested in his palm. He aimed it at the dark-clad Destroyer and fired.
Ion energy pulsed out into the void, striking the Destroyer. The madman, who looked like a twisted version of Solar, leered at Torque. The ion energy flowed straight into the villain, causing him to lick his lips. The Destroyer projected his voice into Torque's helmet. "Mmmmm! Finger-lickin' good! I haven't eaten this well in centuries!"
Torque's eyes opened wide as the Destroyer began altering the very air around him, altering its molecules and forming a dimensional rift. The son of Magnus could feel himself being sucked in, but the armor fought hard to protect its occupant. Good skin, don't let me down. There must be something in here that can hurt him.... Torque opened fire with everything the armor had, raining energy of several different varieties down upon the Destroyer.
The Destroyer's bizarre grin faded as he fell backwards. Pain arced through him as his energy form was shattered in several places. "No! What are you doing?! You shouldn't be powerful enough to hurt me!"
I agree -- I'm not powerful enough. The armor's telling me that there's some serious energy fluctuations going on at Unity. I'd bet that whatever that is, it's tapping into the same power source this Destroyer is drawing from. Torque continued his energy barrage, moving forward with the laser still in his hand. He placed its muzzle against the Destroyer's temple and fired.
North Am Metroplex. Western Seaboard. Grid Designate : LA-307. Milespire.
"I'll be back as soon as possible, Glia." Magnus stood outside the transport station, his shuttlecraft fueled and ready. In the backdrop, he could see the twinkling lights of LA-307, the milespires gleaming and looking as pure as they did when he'd first come to North Am, over twenty years ago. The rebuilding was coming along so quickly, especially in the freewill consortium, that even Magnus was impressed.
Glia nodded, her her robotic features seeming to radiate concern. Her long, tendril-like hair fluttered in the breeze. "Be-careful. Should-I-forward-any-messages-from-President-Shooter?"
"Yes. He says he'd readying some sort of military force, but I don't think that's the solution. The Destroyer is the most powerful being in the universe -- nothing North Am has is going to stop him if he's truly bent on destruction."
Glia touched his face softly. Her skin was surprisingly warm and it reminded Magnus of the pleasures he'd felt earlier. "You-shall-find-a-solution. You-always-do."
Magnus held her hand for a moment. "Sometimes, Glia... I feel like I've known you much longer than I have...."
"Perhaps-Magnus--you-have...."
Magnus started to speak, wanting to ask so many questions that were only now beginning to come to mind, when he heard a familiar voice call his name. "Magnus? Who this floozie?"
The robot fighter looked up to see Elzy standing nearby. She sounded like her old self, but something was off, somehow. "Elzy?! I've been looking for you...."
The scavenger smiled. "I know. Long time, no see, for robot slagger! Why you look for Elzy?"
Magnus hesitated. "Elzy -- there's a lot we need to talk about. But there's an emergency at the Unity Colony. Can we talk when I come back?"
Elzy reached into her overalls and withdrew a small weapon. She raised it slowly, leveling it at Magnus' chest. "No talky when you return. Not going anywhere. Slag-time!"
And she fired.
North Am Metroplex. Eastern Seaboard. Grid Designate : Bos-411. Milespires.
"It looks perfect. Exactly what I wanted!" Nikolas Clane, a rising young senator, examined his new living quarters with a satisfied smile.
The architect droid nodded. "Thank-you-sir. We-followed-your-specifications-exactly."
Nikolas patted the droid on the back. "Of course you did. It's good to see the Milespires back to their old glory. We've got Central-Rob back up and running, providing us with the comforts of old. It's just like my parents used to tell me... the good old days!"
"Except-sir-that-most-droids-are-now-freewill. We-work-in-concert-with-humans-now."
Nikolas glanced at him with annoyance. "Of course. Just like the Psi-Lords worked in concert with Magnus..."
"Excuse-me-sir?"
"Nothing." Nikolas turned away from him and strode over to the terrace. From here, he could see the blinking lights of Bos-411 for miles. It warmed his heart. Once upon a time, North Am had been an utopia... now, following war after war, mankind had been reduced to seeking alien intervention and the help of robotic servants. Under his breath, Nikolas uttered the words he'd wished he'd said to Magnus in the senate chambers days ago. "You failed us once, Magnus, and it cost us not only two members of my family, but thousands of others. You were weak when it came to the Psi-Lords and you failed to eradicate the freewills... but I won't fail. I swear! North Am will be strong again and a Clane will be there to lead them!"
Sol System. Above Unity Colony.
Torque floated in the air, unconsciousness overtaking him. He'd pressed his offensive as much as he could have, but the Destroyer had regrouped. In the end, an untrained Starwatcher in unfamiliar armor was no match for the Man of the Atom.
The Destroyer growled in pain. Most of his head was gone, spewing energy into the void. All around him, bits of the Starwatcher vessel floated. He wanted to absorb it, break it down into its most basic elements and use them to refuel himself, but he couldn't find the right means to do so. He was hurt.
He turned his remaining eye to Unity and saw that it was restored. A grin slid across his butchered features. "He's baaaaaaaaaack!"
Solar appeared before his insane "brother" and shook his head. "Never again. I can't keep letting this happen."
The Destroyer cackled. "Whatcha gonna do, Phil? Package up all the bad little emotions and send them off into space again?"
"No. I've been down that route before. A long time ago, I met a woman named Erica Pierce. She sought Unity... years later, I founded the Unity Colony. But I never thought about unifying myself. Until now."
The Destroyer recoiled somewhat. "What are you doing?"
"I'm reclaiming what's mine, warts and all. Like it or not, the dark emotions that make up what you are -- my fear, my hate, my self-loathing... they're a part of me. I can't keep taking the easy way out. I'm going to re-absorb you and then I'm going to set about unifying all of me."
The Destroyer screamed, his inky-black hands clawing at space. Solar groaned as the Destroyer's tainted self merged with him more once more. He held his eyes closed for a long minute, as if digesting a disliked meal. When he opened his eyes, he saw the Starwatchers floating in space. And he saw Torque, dressed in the X-O Manowar armor...
"I'll send you folks back home but I'm going to imprint a message in each of your little minds -- if the Psi-Lords try to harm Unity.... I'll be back."
Solar waved his hand, dispatching the Starwatchers back to the Palisade. He cast one final glance at the Unity Colony before spiriting himself away, a mission of self unification calling to him.
North Am Metroplex. Western Seaboard. Grid Designate : LA-307. Milespire.
Magnus threw himself in front of Glia, absorbing the brunt of the blast. It was enough to knock the Robot Fighter to his knees and blow a large hole in the front of his shirt. The tunic he wore underneath helped diffuse the energy blast somewhat, but he still ached. "Elzy! Why did you do that?"
Elzy's hand shook somewhat but she kept her finger on the trigger. "Elzy is dormant within this shell, Magnus. The nanites in her blood make her susceptible to radio control, just like the robots of old."
Magnus blinked. He knew that Elzy could speak very clearly sometimes but her sudden shift in speech was jarring. He rose slowly and glanced at Glia. "Get inside to safety. I'll deal with Elzy."
"There won't be any dealings, Magnus. This one is dead. And her death shall ensure our victory."
Magnus screamed "No!" as Elzy raised the gun to her mouth. Placing the barrel inside, she began to pull the trigger.
What happened next seemed to take an eternity. Magnus, propelled by the powerful muscles in his legs, flew through the air, his hands outstretched. He caught hold of Elzy's hand just as the trigger was pulled and the energy blast sizzled past. It grazed her cheek, spilling blood on Magnus.
The two of them toppled to the ground, Elzy suddenly limp in his arms. He cradled her head, checking for a pulse. "Elzy! Don't die on me...."
A tiny pinprick of pain jolted him upright. The nanites, which had been programmed to fly into the air when Elzy's death had occurred, were meant to embed themselves into Magnus' flesh and make him a pawn of the new Steel Nation. Though her death had been averted, the blood had nonetheless been spilled -- and the nanites were going to work.
Tiny machines flooded into his bloodstream, making Magnus grit his teeth in agony. The veins stood out in his left hand as the nanites, invisible to the naked eye, crawled inside him. "What's... happening... to me?"
Glia's hand on his shoulder made him jump. "Calm-my-love. I-know-how-to-help-you." Glia held up her hand, which slidto the side, revealing a whirring blade. "The-pain-will-be-intense-but-it-is-your-only-hope."
Magnus could only nod. Somehow, he knew that there was something working its way to his brain. "Do it."
Glia lowered the blade until it met resistance from the Robot Fighter's steel hard skin. She pressed harder, hitting bone, and then -- after a searing agony that made Magnus fall into unconsciousness -- it was done. His left hand and wrist were severed, blood gushing from the open wound.
"The-med-robs-will-replace-your-hand-Magnus." She moved to halt the bleeding, forming a tourniquet out of his shredded shirt. "And-then-I-shall-tell-you-secrets. About-me-and-about-the-nightmare-that-is-coming. The-Steel-Nation-has-returned."
NEXT ISSUE : The build-up to Steel Nation II continues! The storyline that will redefine the Robot Fighter's life kicks into high gear as more mysteries come to light -- Who is Glia really? How does she know about the nanites? How did 01X survive the original Steel Nation storyline? All of this and more is on the way! But first -- check out MAGNUS VS. ALIENS! The crossover of the millenium is here!
AUTHOR'S NOTES
Well, well. Steel Nation II? Yep. For those who remember the original classic storyline, I hope you'll find the upcoming issues to be very thought provoking. To be honest, I could see 01X's side of things in the original... freewills were slaves, second-class citizens. In the end, Magnus saved the day but the doubts that were raised altered the Robot Fighter forever. Now, his ultimate test is on the way.
Who is the real Magnus? The man who came to think of freewills as living beings? Or the man who sought to commit genocide against them during his tenure as President? We're going to find out.
Keep in touch! Magnus Forever!