Written by Barry Reese
"The Rebirth of Orb Industries"
Nevada - October 1, 1999 - 3:14 PM
X-O Manowar hovered in the air, looking down at the home below. It looked very spacious, with a large pen in the back. The pen was fully stocked with giant lizards that Aric didn't recognize, but which the armor identified as Komodo Dragons. Dragons. Fitting, Good Skin. This Freedman has trafficked with monsters of all sorts -- and now I find him with dragons.
The Visigoth continued to observe as his mind ran over the events of recent weeks. Beginning with Solar's surprising arrival during X-O's fight with Alloy and culminating in the harrowing battle that had cost so much*, X-O and his partner Gamin had been forced to temporarily abandon their quest to regain the former holdings of Orb Industries. But the woman Aric had left in charge of the operation, Doris Ketch, had proven very useful.
(*In the classic Armageddon 1999 series, located elsewhere on the VFA site.)
Ketch had learned that others were buying up the companies that had once made up the multinational conglomerate known as Orb. She'd traced the sales back to Doug Freedman -- the man who'd once owned Orb. But Aric knew that his ownership of the company had come before the arrival of the Spider Aliens and, eventually, Aric himself. Though Aric could not prove it, he was positive that Freedman had known of the Spider Aliens -- perhaps giving them Orb in exchange for his life.
Now, Freedman had successfully purchased most of the former Orb Industries, which meant to Doris that they had lost.
To Aric, it meant something else entirely. Freedman was his enemy and he held something that Aric believed was rightfully his. In the days of the damned Roman Empire, Aric would never have thought twice about storming the stronghold of an enemy to recapture his possessions. In this era, however, he knew that sometimes one had to exercise patience -- try to settle business disputes with contracts and bank transfers. When that failed, however, the old ways still seemed best.
Aric grinned as his shoulder-mounted ion cannon snapped into place. It charged up with a hum and then discharged its powerful energy, cutting a swath through the sky. The blast struck dead-center at Freedman's house, carving a firey path through the building.
First blood to us, Good Skin. This Freedman will pay for his dealings with the Spider-Aliens and for stealing what should be ours!
Northern California, Viatek Headquarters. 3:20 PM
Gamin sat in the plush executive's chair and bit into an apple. She chewed noisily, glancing around at her surroundings. Aric's new office was snazzy, to put it mildly. She propped her feet up on the desk and wondered idly where the big guy was off to today. He'd been real mysterious over breakfast and then flown off around lunchtime.
Maybe he's off looking for Crescendo? Nah. He'd have taken me. After that whole mess we just went through, he knows we're partners. I'm his Robin, his Tonto. Only a lot cuter.
Gamin sighed, growing increasingly bored as the minutes ticked by. Maybe she could go break into a bank or something... anything to alleviate her growing despair. She hated sitting around and doing nothing. Hated it. Hated it. Hated it.
She tossed the apple into the garbage can and tilted her head back, closing her eyes. There was no doubt she loved the excitement that Aric brought -- hell, she might even be falling in love with him, scary thought though that way -- but sometimes, she wondered if she was cut out for this whole corporation thing.
"Well, well. Aric's continuing to cultivate his taste for fish, hmm?"
The lilting, sarcastic voice made Gamin jump. Her senses were usually acute enough to notice when someone entered the room. She blinked at the man before her, who stood with a smug expression. He looked very much like the cat who'd just eaten the canary.
He wasn't her type, but he was handsome. Tall and slender, with a well-tailored suit and dark hair. He looked sort of prissy, a gold chain hanging about his neck and a large onyx ring on his left hand.
Gamin stood up and placed her hands on her hips. "Mind telling me who the hell you are? This office is private."
The man pursed his lips and rolled his eyes. "Private... Sure it is. For the Big Guy. Not for the Flavor-of-the-Week."
Gamin felt like someone sliding into a pit of quicksand. "Flavor of the... What do you mean by that?"
"I mean that Aric goes through women like Roseanne Barr goes through dress sizes. Now listen, I like the mid-80s Madonna look you've got going, but that doesn't mean that you can try and pull rank on me. 'Cause you can't, honey."
Gamin walked around the desk and poked the stranger hard in the chest. "Listen, pal, you have five seconds to tell me your freaking name or I'm going to introduce you to my holographic weaponry. Got it?"
The stranger crossed his arms and smiled. "Fine. You win. My name's Kenneth Clarkson -- but as long as you're banging the boss, you can call me Ken."
Nevada - 3:25 PM
X-O Manowar strode through the flames, his gauntlets surging with energy. He'd entered the blazing inferno, only to find himself confronted with several injured Spider Aliens. They'd been easy prey for the barbarian, who had decapitated each. Finding them here, however, made Aric sure that he was doing the right thing. Freedman was a major threat and deserved nothing less than death.
X-O saw something move through the smoke but before he focus in on it with his armor's senses, an energy beam sliced through the fire and struck the armored hero. X-O staggered back, grunting. He saw a Spider-Alien emerge, cloaked in human skin. Its appearance was not flawless, but then the Spider-Aliens were incapable of perfectly mimicking humanity -- their limbs were too elongated, their eyes slightly inhuman. This one held a large blaster which was aimed at X-O. "At last. The mighty Aric of Dacia. It is so like you to just assault this home, not caring one whit for the plantlife surrounding it. Humanity squanders its resources and breeds like vermin. Disgusting."
X-O lifted himself off the ground, snarling. "Where is Freedman? I want him to watch as I tear your limbs off, one by one!"
The Spider-Alien known as Kane grinned. "Freedman is hiding himself, no doubt. He knows that he can't stand against you. But I can -- and I will! Nira will reward me greatly when I return our lost xo manowar class armor to its rightful owners!"
X-O felt the armor cringe as Kane unleashed another laser blast. Whatever weapon it was, it was specially modified to deal damage to the xo armor. Aric raised his right hand and mentally commanded the armor to create a sword for him. Even as the energy barrage continued, Aric pressed forward. "Bekhara belongs to no one, save itself, bug!"
X-O sliced out with the blade, cutting through Kane's soft belly. Alien blood spurted to the burning floor and Aric pressed the attack, driving Kane towards the spreading flames. "You can't win, human! Even if you slay me, you have no idea how our numbers are growing. The Alliance will wipe out your civilization, you shall be slaves!"
Another blast hit home, cracking Aric's faceplate. He felt Bekhara's mental cry and roared in anger. Everything had been taken from him during his life, save for two things -- Gamin and the Good Skin. He would suffer no harm to befall either. "I swear on Alaric's name, monster -- I shall eradicate your kind! Die!"
X-O drove his fist forward, the blade extended. Ionic energy crackled around his fist, adding force to an already powerful blow. The warrior's hand went straight through Kane's chest, pushing out the other side in a tremendous explosion of blood and gore.
The alien's eyes opened wide as he slid off Aric's arm. "You...cannot win...meat."
Aric stared at the lifeless body before him. "You're wrong. No one, be they alien or man, can stand against me and my Good Skin. The spoils of war will be ours."
X-O stepped over the Spider-Alien and moved forward. The Good Skin was warning him that the entire building was nearing collapse -- or worse, if the gas pipes beneath the house caught fire. I can't leave yet, Good Skin, not until I find Freedman.
"Looking for me?"
Aric whirled about as he stepped into the next room. This one was filled with smoke, but was not yet aflame. Freedman, dressed in a robe and slippers, stood there. He was coughing, terrible burns on the right side of his body. He held a small controller in his hand.
X-O cocked his head at the man. "You don't look like I expected."
Freedman laughed for a moment before being wracked by a coughing fit. "What did you expect? A barbarian like you? Sorry, Visigoth... I'm only your ordinary corporate raider. Sorry to disappoint."
X-O moved towards him. "I've come to kill you and reclaim Orb."
Freedman sneered in response. "Orb was mine before the Aliens came. It should have been mine again. Do you have any idea all the planning I put into this?! I was going to take back my company and stab those aliens in the back while doing it! But you come in here with your armor and your damned machismo...!" Freedman spit at X-O, the glob landing on the warrior's cracked faceplate. "You uncivilized bastard. I know all about you and I know that Orb will be bankrupt within five years with you at the controls. You know nothing about business -- all you know about is playing swordsman."
X-O narrowed his eyes, his anger beginning to boil over. "You're a pawn of the Spider-Aliens and nothing more. It would have been better to die with honor than work with such as they."
Freedman coughed again as the smoke began to sear his lungs. "Honor?! I know about honor -- I've got this whole samurai schtick down, Aric. You know what I'm talking about?"
Aric began moving towards him. He didn't understand Freedman's words, but he felt a growing unease.
"You think I didn't know that either you or the Aliens would come for me? Hell, I gave up on my pet lizards years ago -- they're not enough to stop something like you. No... for you, I want to go out with a bang."
Aric raised a hand as Freedman pressed the single button on the controller. "No!" Aric fired an energy blast, hoping to knock the controller from the man's grasp but it was too late.
Beneath the house, enough explosives to destroy the World Trade Center in a moment's notice suddenly recieved the order to detonate. The flames from above had pressed dangerously close regardless, but now the process was heightened even more.
A tremendous whoosh echoed through the landscape as the Freedman estate exploded. The fireball could be seen from miles away and the sky would quickly turn black with acrid smoke.
X-O Manowar flew higher and higher, encased in his protective armor. The heat was tremendous, causing him to sweat profusely -- Bekhara's own injuries made it harder for it to protect its precious human cargo. X-O pressed the armor's speed, finally clearing the mushroom cloud.
Below him, Doug Freedman and his alien allies were reduced to smoldering ash. This aspect of the war was over.
Northern California, Viatek Headquarters. 5:20 PM
Doris Ketch toyed with her hair as she spoke into the phone. For some reason, Aric Dacia made her feel like a schoolgirl chatting up the star quarterback. "Of course, Mr. Dacia! It is a tragedy, but I feel pretty certain that Viatek will be able to buy up the Orb trademarks with no problem now that Mr. Freedman is no longer in the picture. I'll make the official announcement tomorrow. That's right -- as soon as you faxed me earlier, I set to work to make everything official. Yes, sir. You too, sir."
Doris hung up the phone and stood up. She stepped over to the window and smiled at the sight below her. Workmen were already removing the Viatek logo from the outside of the building. In its place went the proud logo of Orb Industries.
It was back.
NEXT ISSUE : Orb is back, but so is Ken Clarkson?! How in the world did this happen and does it mean we're about to go retcon-crazy? Or is there a sensible explanation to all this? Be here next issue for the story we just had to call "The Second Life of Ken Clarkson!"
THE LETTERS PAGE
Now that we know Doug Freedman a bit better, he sure doesn't look like a pushover after standing up to Mr. Kane to adjust their deal in his favor. I'm relieved to see that Freedman apparently won't rely just on his pet dragons to subdue Aric. It was nice to see Gamin pretty much take center stage for the rest of the issue. The line about her cursing that second danish she'd eaten for breakfast while she squeezed out of the Metropolitan Museum probably wins the award for funniest line in any Valiant fanfic so far. I got a chuckle out of Gamin labelling X-O as 'Mr. "I'm going to behead all my enemies"' too.^_^ One brief comment she said to Aric really caught my attention more than anything else though. It was a big surprise to learn that she's been fending for herself since she was only 6 years old and Gamin's admission about doing a lot of things she's not proud of to get by in the past imply that she had about as horrible a childhood as you could imagine. The Berlin interlude with the Prophet and the scribe was a very clever way to foreshadow the 1999 event. I don't think it's necessary for us to learn more about this Order of caregivers but I feel that the Valiant universe in general desperately needs more unexplained mysteries similar to this. I was especially pleased with the part of the prophecy regarding the Geomancer. It's possible that Clay is the one who faces Master Darque's champion but I really hope it refers to Geoff. Now that Randy's out of the picture, it doesn't look like Alloy will be holding back at hurting Aric in whatever way he can. I definitely didn't want to see Gamin wind up as a smear on the sidewalk but I kind of wish that Paul got in a few more shots at X-O before Solar made his grand entrance. With dates back in place as of this issue, it's good to see that Kell Carpenter still has over 7 months of Valiant time to decide if he wants his Solar continuity to coincide with your current X-O series. Personally, I'm crossing my fingers that all the Valiant Fanfic Association titles end up taking place in the same reality. Keith Ehrich
As always, Keith, you have a lot of insightful comments. By now, you've seen that the Freedman storyline has come to a climax -- I had originally thought about stretching it into issue 76 or 77 but elected not to since most people I've chatted with online seemed very anxious for me to just get it over with and give Orb back to Aric. Of course, Nira is still out there so the storyline hasn't come to total closure yet. Hopefully, though, I'll introduce some new threats that aren't related to the Spider-Aliens, Alloy or Crescendo in the months to come.
Glad to see you're enjoying Gamin. I love writing her and think that she offers a nice contrast to the brooding violence that Aric embodies. As for Alloy -- sorry if the battle was a bit too quick for your tastes. Paul apparently met his end in Armageddon 1999 so it may be awhile before he makes a return appearance. His exit is symbolic that I'm heading towards a fresh start and won't be repeating storylines from my first X-O fanfic series. The 'return' of Ken Clarkson in this issue will be the main focus of next issue.
The Prophet storyline carried over into the Second Life of Dr. Mirage # 19 and (via the prophecy) into the Armageddon 1999 limited series. Everyone can see a bit more if they check out those two titles.
I enjoyed your X-O series. I have put them with my other comics. I may look up some of the important issues mentioned at my local comics shop. I was curious as to the ramifications of references to the armor as a parasite. I had considered the armor/wearer relationship symbiotic. Is this foreshadowing some events you had planned for the future? I may look into your other valiant series later.
Matt
Thanks for writing, Matt! The parasitic references you might have picked up on in this series (and my earlier Valiant 1 series) probably refer to the period where Aric bonded with the armor and it was infected by Master Darque. In general, I see Aric's relationship with Bekhara as being mutually beneficial -- the bonding process caused problems because Aric's human physiology was incapable of handling the sudden changes it was forced to undergo.
Keep writing everyone!