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Dev Em and Timberwolf left the Office of Security and headed towards the Sharktank.
Dev slowed his chair and turned to Timber Wolf, "Lon, let me ask you something before we get Sharklad and leave."
Timberwolf looked at him, pretty much knowing what to expect from his brother. "Go ahead..."
"Who is she Lon? I heard a name mentioned and Cobie made some sort of accusations when we found you guys at the Bunker, but I can't really remember it or what everything was all about...my memory is spotty with some of the stuff over the last couple weeks, and some of it seems like a dream."
"If you don't know, then just leave it at that. You have enough on your plate right now without getting into...all of that."
Dev just closed his eyes and sighed, "You sure about this woman brother?"
"Yeah. Not so sure about Cobie pushing us the way he is, but I'm in love with her. I finally found someone that I can just be myself with and not worry about trying to hide who I am and what I do."
"How is Cobie pushing you?"
"Not important right now, let's just say that he's just being him."
"Ah, always looking for how he can use something to his advantage, and playing things close to the vest...as it were. Speaking of which, how long have you two been working together?"
"Longer than you want to know about, please don't ask anything more...I really can't talk about too much anyway. Let's just say that it is all on the up and up and there are things that you wouldn't really approve of, but need to be done...and we get them done."
Dev shook his head, "Too much going on to really worry about that at this point. Both he and Lardy have things they need to answer for...hell, so do I. It's all tied together though. My actions were in response to two sides both going about things the wrong way. One inside the law and one outside."
Lon thought about telling Dev that things were not always what they seemed, but decided that things would be better if they worked themselves out naturally. Truths would be laid bare, and true allegiances would come into the open over time.
"Let's get your stuff and go get Sharklad."
The headed off to the Bunker.
[ March 18, 2011, 09:00 PM: Message edited by: Dev Em ]
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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They arrived at the Bunker and Lon got out. "Give me a few minutes..."
Dev Smiled, "I want to come in, at least without breaking in this time. You're my brother, I want to actually see what your place is like."
"Okay then. Not much to really see though."
As they enter, Dev is hit by the starkness of everything. It is set up for business, and there are very few personal amenities. There is a room that Lon uses for sleeping that is also rather bare. The most care and attention seems to be paid towards the weapons room.
"Interesting decorating style," Dev says almost laughing.
"Don't really do much here except sleep. So, I never thought to really do anything with it."
"That's all..."
"You're my brother, don't push."
"Okay."
Lon looked at him, and thought about how much they really had not talked over the years. "Sorry man. Just not used to having anyone other than Cobie in here for meetings and planning sessions."
"It's okay Lon...really."
Lon was packing up several bags with supplies. "How long you going to need to be in that chair?"
"Really, I could probably get out of it tomorrow, as long as I do not do anything too strenuous."
"Good. How are your shoulders doing?"
"Hurt like hell. Even with everything you and the Doctors did for me, they're not sure if they'll ever be 100% again. He really did a number on me. My insides are pretty much back to normal at this point, and according to the monitor on my arm here, my vitals are doing good. The fractures and breaks in my legs are doing good, and are almost healed, and thankfully, being able to fly will keep a bit of pressure off them for a while. You doing alright after everything?"
"Yeah, had to re-break and reset my arm...healed a little off, but it seems alright at this point. Other than that, I didn't take too much damage. I just have a little bit more training at avoiding getting hurt than you."
"Yeah, we need to talk to dad about that."
"You're not thinking about..."
"I need his help. I am not going to be much good in a knock down fight if it comes to that. He has already agreed to meet up with us."
"Does he know I'm with you on this one."
"Yeah, and he's alright with it."
Timberwolf rolled his eyes, "he is not going to be pleasant for me to work with again."
"He's never gotten over whatever it was that made him send you here?"
"Nope, he didn't like it when the Daxam Government started using me for their purposes without his knowledge, and did what he could to get me out of there as fast as possible."
"I'll deal with him, when the time comes...he'll be fine."
Lon finished packing his stuff and they headed to the Sharktank.
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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Dev went into the building and called out to Sharklad, to let him know that they were there.
"C'mon," Dev said to Timberwolf.
"I'm just gonna wait out here."
"Look Lon, you two need to..."
"I know, I know. We've been doing better lately...I just think it'll be better if I don't just go barging into his residence...don't want to push things to fast here. I understand why you want him to come along, but...we have a history to get past."
Dev laughed, "You two are like little kids. Alright, wait here then." he turned and shut the door behind him.
"Sharky, we're here..."
[ March 19, 2011, 08:06 AM: Message edited by: Dev Em ]
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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The walls of the vault containing SharkLad’s tank were dripping wet. Though asleep, SharkLad had been thrashing around in his tank. His dreams, tainted by the toxins he had absorbed from biting the Red Bee, nearly drove him mad. He watched helplessly again and again as his sister PsychoticBeaver beat his mother to death as she cried for help. In the dream, his mother morphed into one LMB member after another, until finally it was Lolita that lay before him begging for mercy.
“No!” SharkLad screamed, “Not her! Not another one!”
SharkLad thrashed violently in his tank, scrapping the glass walls with his talons uncontrollably, obscuring the sound of his teammate Dev Em’s voice, who had just entered the vault.
“Sharky, we’re here. Hey, Sharky, what are you—“
Dev Em didn’t have a chance to finish asking his question as SharkLad leapt out of his tank and lifted Dev Em by the throat out of his hoverchair.
“You dare enter my vault!” SharkLad bellowed, blinded by toxin-fueled rage.
Dev Em attempted to speak, but as SharkLad tightened his grip, no words would come. He struggled to pull himself free but was still too weak from the battle with the Red Bee.
“It’s been too long since I’ve eaten,” SharkLad growled, licking his lips. Slowly, he opened his mouth, exposing rows and rows of razor sharp teeth. “You’ll do nicely.”
Before SharkLad could act any further, Timber Wolf burst into the vault, charging and knocking SharkLad to the ground, face down. Dev Em was sent sprawling into the corner.
“I knew you couldn’t be trusted,” Timber Wolf growled. He leapt onto SharkLad’s back and grabbing him by the back of his head, smashed him repeatedly into the ground.
“LET! GO! OF! ME!” SharkLad cried out. Flipping himself over, he tore at Timber Wolf with his talons, knocking him into the side of the tank.
“You’ve had this coming for a long time, fish,” Timber Wolf barked as he got to his feet.
“Bring it, dog!”
In the corner of the vault, Dev Em groaned. He managed to lift his head just as Timber Wolf and SharkLad charged each other.
“Lon, stop! Look in his eyes. He’s been poisoned!”
Timber Wolf and SharkLad continued to battle, a flurry of fists and teeth. Their cries echoed through the vault. Dev Em crawled over to his hoverchair, grabbing a blaster from behind the seat. He fired it between the two combatants, shattering the glass wall of SharkLad’s tank. As water flooded the vault, SharkLad had a brief moment of clarity.
“What the sprock?”
Dev Em reached into his hoverchair again, this time pulling out a hypodermic dart gun. He fired a dart at SharkLad, striking him in his fin. SharkLad fell to the ground as he let out a deafening roar.
“What the hell, bro?” Timber Wolf asked.
“I was worried this might happen. SharkLad still has the Red Bee’s toxins in his system from when he bit him, or at least he did. The serum in the dart should take care of it.”
Timber Wolf gave a low growl. “You mean, he wasn’t…”
“No, Lon. You know SharkLad would never intentionally hurt me or another LMBer.”
“Really? How do you explain all of our fights over the years?”
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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As the water spewing from his tank flowed past him and seeped through drains in the floor, SharkLad slowly roused himself.
“What the sprock did you hit me with?”
“Red Bee Anti-Toxin. Ever though you were acting okay after the last battle, I thought you might still have some of it in your system. Guess I was right.” Dev Em said as he pulled himself into his hoverchair.
“Sprock, Dev, I’m… I’m sorry. I could have—“
“But, you didn’t. Don’t worry about it.”
SharkLad turned and faced Timber Wolf. “And you, you son of a—“
“Easy there, fish. I was just defending my brother.”
“Yeah. Yeah, alright… this time,” SharkLad acquiesced.
“Sharky, we need you to come with us.”
“To where?”
Dev Em gave Timber Wolf a wary look.
“This may not be easy for you to hear, but we don’t think we can go ahead without your help.”
“Jeez, Dev. What’s the big deal? Is there a mission you think I can’t handle?” SharkLad asked doubtfully.
“We need to go to your home.”
“LegionWorld is my home, Dev.”
“No, we need you to go back to where you were born. We’re going to Isla Larga.”
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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“That anti-toxin must be causing me to hear things, ‘cause I thought you said you wanted to go to Isla Larga.”
“That’s what he said, fish.”
“Stuff it, dog,” SharkLad spit. Turning to Dev Em, he continued. “That’s real funny, Dev, but the Isla Larga planetoid has been missing for years. It just vanished. I could never prove it, but I think PsychoticBeaver was responsible. It happened right after she got the jump on me on Argus 7.”
“I know where it is,” Timber Wolf said quietly.
“What?!? Are you sprocking kidding me? I’ve been searching for it for years and you know where it is?”
“I came across it on a black ops mission a couple of months ago. I would have told you, but it would have meant compromising security.”
“Security?!? I was a security officer when you were still spending your days licking your—“
“Easy there, fish.”
“Both of you knock it off. We’ve got a mission to tackle and it’s going to go a lot easier if you can get your hormones under control,” Dev Em ordered. “That means you too, Lon.”
“So, where is it?” SharkLad asked.
“We’ve got a ship ready to go.”
“I can’t believe you knew where it was all this time. You realize I had my father locked up there. For all I know, he could have escaped,” SharkLad said to Timber Wolf, struggling to contain himself.
“Isn’t your father a rat? How far could he have gotten?”
“If he got free, he could have cured himself of the rat DNA I pumped into him after I locked him up. He could be out there, plotting with PsychoticBeaver to…” SharkLad’s voice trailed off.
“To what?” Timber Wolf asked impatiently.
“To do what my sister has always done best. Wreak chaos.”
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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Dev Em, Timber Wolf, and SharkLad headed for the docking bay.
“Who else knows about this?” SharkLad asked.
“No one. It’s just the three of us for now,” Timber Wolf answered.
“You’re telling me Cobie doesn’t know?”
“Don’t ask questions you don’t want the answers to.”
“Sprockin’ secret agent man,” SharkLad mumbled, shaking his head.
They continued in silence for a few minutes.
“Dev, what do you care about Isla Larga anyway?” SharkLad asked. “Besides my dead mother’s abandoned lab, there’s not much there,”
“Do you remember that security camera footage I showed you?” Dev Em asked.
“Yeah.”
“Do you still think it was faked?”
“Of course it’s a fake, Dev. My mother is dead,” SharkLad growled.
“Your sister was dead too, Sharky, thanks to Lard Lad’s aim with a shotgun. She came back to life,” Timber Wolf said as they boarded the ship.
“That’s different,” SharkLad said, “She’s practically immortal thanks to those microscopic parasites she’s infected with. The ‘madden-ites’ keep her from staying dead too long. They also make her insane, but then again she never was exactly stable.”
“Well, I have a theory about your mother, and if I’m right, well, let’s just say, things are about to get real complicated.”
“Are we ready to go?” asked Timber Wolf, punching coordinates into the ship’s navigation system.
“I don’t know. Are we?” Dev Em asked SharkLad.
“Yeah, we’re ready. Punch it.”
The ship eased out of the docking bay and blasted into space.
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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It took several hours to get to the Isla Larga planetoid, but good to his word, Timberwolfs intel had proved correct.
They did a pass by it and Sharklad confirmed that it was what they were looking for. "It looks like it's changed a little since I was last here though," Sharklad said moving back to his seat. "Still not sure what you intend to find."
Dev looked back and smiled, "hopefully, what I need to find out."
Dev piloted the ship to the landing pad and set it down. "Well, it wasn't the easiest thing in the world to find, but here we are.
Timberwolf was already set to go, and he was ready for action. If what Sharky had told them about what happened here last was any indication of what they should expect, he wanted to get this thing started.
They exited the ship. Dev had left the Hovorchair on the ship. His legs were feeling good enough, and he felt that he was up for at least some ranged attacks if necessary.
Timberwolf was in the lead, and Sharky was right there with him. Dev floated out and then up a bit to get a better view.
What confronted them was not at all what they were prepared to handle.
From the main building came a young woman, about late teens at best. She looked at them and smiled, "Dr. Aurelius is expecting you. Please follow me this way," she said and turned to head back to the building.
They all looked at each other and slowly started moving to follow her.
"What the..." Sharky said under his breath, "there were no other people here before."
Dev put his hand on Sharky's shoulder, "Just be ready for anything..."
They entered the building and Sharklad was surprised by the way it looked. It was decorated, and had a comfortable homey feel to it...at least the portions that they could see through open doors. There were some open labs visable through large plexiglass windows.
The young lady led them to a reception type area, and motioned for them to sit around the large table in the middle of the room. "She'll be right with you."
Sharklad was obviously a little on edge. "She was dead the last I knew..." he said to them again in a low tone.
"Dev smiled, "you know as well as I do that that does not mean much."
Dr. Aurelius, Sharklads mother entered the room through a large set of doors and shut them behind her. She turned and looked at each of them in turn. First Timberwolf, then Dev, and finally her eyes rested on Sharklad.
"This isn't possible..." Sharklad said absently.
They could see tears welling up in her eyes. "I'm so sorry Bruce. I'm sorry for everything that has happened to you because I wasn't there for you. You are my pride and joy Bruce Brody...you were the best thing that I ever contributed to the universe. I haven't been able to even come close again."
She walked over to Sharklad and put her hands on his shoulders. She looked at Timberwolf, "You were her greatest creation, she was proud of you, and so hurt when her ex-husband took you from her...it pushed her over the edge and she lashed out at the universe..."
They were all feeling like they were missing something. Dev finally broke the silence, "...are you talking about my mother?"
Helena Aurelius turned her attention to him, "Yes Dev Em. Your mother. His mother," she said as she moved her head in Lons direction, "and my sister."
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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They all got involuntarily wide eyed. "What?" was the only thing that all of them could say at the same time.
"But my mother was Durlan..." Dev said.
"No my dear, she wasn't."
"Wait a second," Lon said as he stood up, "what does this have to do with the kids?" he asked, and looking from her to Sharklad, "...and what the hell do you mean we're related?"
Sharklad let out a sound that they had never heard before, but it caused Timberwolf to sit back down.
"Do you want to know?" she asked.
They looked back and forth at each other, clearly confused by what they were encountering.
"I'll take that as a yes then, and don't worry...I'll explain everything." She then looked at Dev and simply said, "don't worry, they're safe."
She moved back around and sat down at the head of the table and started talking.
"Some years ago," she said with a little grin, clearly remembering a mich happier time, "there were twin girls named Helena and Suzanne born to Dr.'s Francis and Gretta Aurelius. Unortunately, our mother died in childbirth."
She obviously did not like talking about her mother, but she continued, "we grew up very close, but we were always competitive for our fathers affections. He was a a geneticist and spent most of his time in a lab, away from us. He created a nursemaid by a genetically engineering the nurturing parts if animals and humans."
Lon poured himself some water from a pitcher in the middle of the table. He casually, but it's pretty obvious what he is doing, inspects it before taking a sip. He offer the pitcher to Sharklad and he pored himself a drink as well. In turn, Dev took some...but never actually drank it. Not out of concern, but out of interest in what wa being told to them.
"Our nanny was a wonderful creature with one flaw I suppose. She let us watch way too much television, especially old movies and shows from centuries earlier, mostly because our father loved old television and movies. That's why I name you Bruce, and why Suzanne named him Lon. You were both named after some aspect from our favorite movies."
Lon and Bruce just looked at each other. "I don't sprockin believe this..." Sharklad said, and Timberwolf nodded in agreement.
"In turn, we both studied science, specifically genetics, the same as our father. We grew more competitive as we got older, we began creating animal/human hybrids to compete against each other, sometimes, to the death. Each time, whichever of us lost, worked that much harder to create the perfect specimin."
Dev broke in, "is that why these two have wanted to rip each other to shreds since pretty much the day they met?"
"Yes. I am so sorry about that."
Timberwolf and Sharklad looked at each other with a mix of astonishment and relief on their faces. They now understood why they had always acted the way they did towards each other.
"Suzanne eventually experimented on herself and mixed Durlan DNA with her own, giving her all the power of a Durlan. She eventually met and had a child with Kar Em of Daxam." She stood and ,oved to Dev Em with a look of sorrow on her face. "I'm so sorry dear, but by the time your mother had you, she had been driven slightly insane by what she had done to herself." She stood and moved closer to Dev. "When he found out that he had had a child, he took you from her and raised you on Daxam. I know that you searched her out when you were old enough, and that she used that time to take the samples of your DNA to create your brother Lon."
She touched Dev's hand. "Have you noticed any signs of irrational behaviour in yourself lately...maybe over the last year or so?"
ofDev looked at his brother and Sharklad. Sharklad just kinda looked away, not wanting to mention anything, but Lon just nodded, "yeah, he has...it's been getting worse, especially lately."
They all thought to Dev's apparent suicide run at the Red Bee. Even though he had had a plan, it was a long shot.
She glanced back at Lon for a second, and then back to Dev. "It's just going to get worse over time, if I don't help you. There's a price to be paid though," she said with a sadness in her eyes. "You will loose what shape shifting abilities that you do have."
Dev looked at her with some disbelief on his face, and then put his head in his hands and closed his eyes.
"Think about it, and let me know."
She looked between Bruce and Lon, "as far as you two go...I can curb the thing inside you that makes you want to fight constantly."
Sharklad and Timberwolf just looked at each other.
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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They looked at each other. Bruce was the one to speak this time, "you mean all this time we really had no control over that?"
She shook her head, "No, not really. Mixed into the samples used for all of our creations were markers to bring out the worst in the sujects when confronted with a creation of the other. You two represent our crowning achievments, and we never would have suspected that you would end up being so close to each other once you were taken from us...however that happened. Oh, and don't worry, it won't change anything else about you, just remove that thing in you that makes you want to tear each other limb from limb."
She smiled, "the fact that you two are siting here and not fighting is a testament to how much control you both have. You both have times of total abandon when you fight don't you, where you're operating at a different level than anyone else can understand? That's by design. In your own ways, you're both the perfect fighting machine, it's just that you have different talents to draw from."
Dev had somewhere between relieved and an annoyed look on his face. "Why tell us this now? Why offer to help us now? Why expect us to believe you?"
"I know that these two have instincts that they have relied on to keep them alive all these years. You have other powers that you can use to tell if I'm lying. As to why now...to try to redeem myself a little for what I have done to all of you in some way. Let me finish telling this story, and I will explain to you where your children are...just know that they are safe."
Dev's brow furrowed and he got a very serious look on his face. "Then please...continue."
She cleared her throat, "when you and your father had discovered what she had done, you came and stole young Lon away from her. Lon was a confused and troubled child. He had been created to fight against his cousins. You tamed him and taught him everything you could. But he preferred his native furry state as a youngster, and was nicknamed Furball. You, Dev, never had any idea that he was partially your clone...or that he could morph into a human state. Which really is your true form Lon."
She returned to her seat, "you all eventually grew up, and while we still competed against each other, we were both extremely proud of you all. We were surprised that you all ended up so close to each othr in this LMBP that you belong to, but maybe fate has different ideas for us than we know."
She looks at Sharklad and shuts her eyes, a tear rolls down her cheek. "Then I died."
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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Sharklad is obviously upset with the memories that this portion of the tale brings up.
"I was truly dead dear," she says looking right at him.
My sister revived me. Then did a few little adjustments to my DNA as well. She was quite insane at this point, and dying herself. She gave me a dose of the Durlan DNA she had before she died.
I have since learned that it will eventually drive me mad as well, but I plan to take care of that soon. I have had need of it lately," she says as she hangs her head, and closes her eyes.
"I am so sorry about what I did, but please understand the needs of this operation, and the costs involved. Years ago, Your mother," she says looking to Dev quickly before closing her eyes again, "she had struck up a deal with a ruling family on the Main moon of Xyler 7 to provide heirs to the throne that had certain powers different than the prevailing illusionary ones that are passed through the royal lines. In return, she...now I, have received enough funding to keep this facility going for my lifetime."
"She had found out that you had fallen in love and were planning on marrying, she tried to replace her before that happened, but fate kept that from being the case. The accident that happened was truly that. The investigations proved that. Your wife was near death and easily replaced by one of the daughters of the King that had been granted the illusionary power at a young age. It helped that she actually looks enough like your wife that the illusion was not very deep and could be maintained with minimal effort."
Dev put his head in his hands. "By the gods."
"When I heard that the Red Bee was coming back to Legion World, I decided, by the Kings prompting, that the time was right to bring them home to Xyler 7's moon. Your wife had been kept alive in stasis, believe me when I say that she was brain dead and in no pain, she was an innocent in all this. Upon being taken out of stasis, she passed almost immediately. She was placed at a mass slaughter of the Red Bee, and given enough stings to smake her death look like any of the others. I didn't count on Lon finding her in the morgue, or the camera he had set up mile away to watch the house. I had had her take out everything that we knew about, but there were other things happening there that rushed us, and apparently you caught enough of us on tape to track us."
Lon looked at her, "you're not exactly dealing with amatures here..."
"I know that. I just didn't ecxpect the levels at which you all would go to protect each other."
Dev stood, and there was an ever so slight look of emotional and physical pain on his face when he did, "Where are they now?"
"They're on the Xyler 7 Moon called Daroon. They are safe, and they are actually happy. They miss you, and their friends, but they are with their mother, and are Royalty. Please let me help all of you before you leave...it's the very least I can do for you. I want to help in whatever way I can, and I think that your mother...if she had retained her mind, would have wanted that as well." She looks at Lon, "your portion of the Durlan DNA is not enough to be detrimental to you over time. She muted that with you and it's more the Lupine DNA that pushes your transformations."
Dev thought about so many things as fast as he could. He shut his eyes and nodded, "fine. Do it."
Lon stopped her for a second, "can I analyze those first?"
She looked at him, "by all means, I didn't know that could understand the..."
"There's a lot of things that a lot of people don't know about me."
She gave him the vials, and had the assistant lead him to a lab.
Dev stood up to stretch his legs and winced. "I'm going to go outside for a few minutes, if that's alright."
She motioned to the doors, "please feel free."
He left the room leaving Sharklad and his mother alone.
[ March 22, 2011, 09:16 PM: Message edited by: Dev Em ]
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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SharkLad stood unspeaking for a few minutes. The tension in the room was palpable. He had so many questions to ask of his mother. In the end, however, it was she that spoke first.
“Can I offer you some tea, dear?”
“Tea? Do I really look like I’m the kind of guy that drinks tea?”
“Well, dear, I really don’t know you very well so—“
“You don’t know me well?” SharkLad interrupted, “You sprockin’ created me, for sprock’s sake!”
“Language, dear, please,” his mother said blushing.
SharkLad sighed. He took several deep breaths trying to calm himself.
“And just how long have you been ‘alive’ again?” he asked.
“Does it matter?”
“Of course it sprockin’— of course it matters. Do you have any idea what I’ve been through since you died? Since I found your body and… and had to bury you?”
SharkLad gave a low growl.
“I buried you right out there,” SharkLad said, pointing to the window. “Under your favorite tree. What a sap I was.”
“I’m so sorry, Bruce,” his mother said, tears welling in her eyes. “I didn’t know if you’d accept me after what you’d been put through. After I was revived, I started to hear about your adventures with the LMB, and I was so proud. You were a hero! I didn’t know if telling you the truth would be helpful or hurtful.”
“Speaking of hurtful, what the sprock were you thinking when you created PsychoticBeaver? Do you realize how much destruction she’s been responsible for? How many lives she’s taken? You created something purely evil. How do you explain that?”
“Now, that was never my intention. Why, her original name was CuddlyBeaver. But, your sister became infected with something, a parasite. I couldn’t stop it. Fortunately, it didn’t spread to you.”
“It might as well have because her madness has been plaguing me for years. She made it her mission to destroy me. Her madness even spread to some of my teammates before my father… oh yeah, my father. What the sprock?!?”
“Language, dear, please. I don’t know what kind of crowd you’re used to spending time with but—“
“Fine, whatever, but I have a father. He was conveniently left out of all of your records. I had to find out the hard way when he abducted me and subjected me to all kinds of experiments.”
“Josiah Marner is not truly your father. He was my lab assistant. I used some of his DNA to stabilize yours and Beaver’s and a few other of my children’s DNA, but I would hardly call him your father. Besides, from what I’ve been told, you… took care of him.”
“I pumped him full of rat DNA. He should be in a cage somewhere in your lab,” SharkLad said, glancing towards the door.
“Well, my sister made some changes to my lab before she died. I can’t say I know where Josiah is anymore.”
“And Beaver?” SharkLad asked.
“What about her?”
“Have you seen her? Does she know you’re alive?”
“I can’t say,” SharkLad’s mother answered as she turned away.
“More secrets, huh?” SharkLad growled.
Mother and son stood in silence for several minutes. SharkLad looked around the room. There were holographs of him as a child, some with his siblings, but mostly just him and his mother. She looked so deliriously happy in holographs. SharkLad exhaled deeply.
“Things could have gone so differently if--”
“If your sister hadn’t killed me,” his mother interrupted.
“I was going to say if your intentions were really as noble as you had made them out to be in your research and reports. You weren’t trying to create a master race or even a hero. You were trying to settle a grudge with your sister by creating the ultimate combatant. You might as well have made me a pitbull.”
“No, Bruce, don’t say that.”
“Why not?”
“Because I did truly set out to create a hero. One who could rise above my reasons for starting the whole competition with my sister to begin with.”
“I don’t buy it.” SharkLad stated flatly.
“You have no reason to believe me, but I promise you – you were special,” his mother pleaded.
“Not special enough to tell when you came back to life.”
“It’s complicated,” she offered.
“What in life isn’t?”
SharkLad’s mother opened her mouth to speak, but, before she could say anything, the door opened and Dev Em walked in.
“Okay, I’m ready.”
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
Sharklad looked around at him, "Nice timing Dev..."
Dr. Aurelius composed herself and said, "All right then, let's go right through here," as she motioned to the doors that Timberwolf had gone through.
Sharklad got up from the table and joined Dev as they walked towards the doors.
Dev had a concerned look on his face, "are you going to be alright?"
Sharklad just looked at him.
"Right. Well, if you need to talk after this, just let me know."
"Sure."
They walked into a lab, and Timberwolf was talking to one of the techs. He saw that they had entered and turned to them.
"Well, her science is definately sound for us," he said as he tossed a hypo to Sharklad. "I took mine a few minutes ago, and I feel nothing different, except I don't have that hyper acute anxiety feeling that used to happen every time I saw you. I don't wanna give you a big hug and a sloppy kiss either, but there you go."
Dev looked at him and raised his eyebrow.
"Yeah her serum would work on you Dev, and what it will do surpress the Durlan gene in your body, but there is no clear way to remove it totally. Essentially it would keep the side effects in remission as long as you do not use what will be left of your shapechanging ability. Each time you use it, the effects will comtinue as long as that Gene is actively in use...and at an accelerated rate. It's also going to take an incredible amount of concentration to maintain any changes, which is why the side effects are so drastic."
Dev looked at him, contemplating the implications.
"Look, she's agreed to give me another sample to keep testing...we'll figure something out."
"But for now?"
"It's not going to hurt you to stop the effects as they are in the infancy stages at this point. Barely noticable, but they are there. That's where that insane stunt you pulled against the Red Bee came from...that's not like you to take that kind of chance with your own life. I know you'd give your life for all of us, but that was motivated by something else entirely."
"Yeah, it was personal."
"Yeah, and when was the last time that you really did something for you? Outside of the kids, you're all about business now. The marriage that you were supposedly in had fallen apart years ago. There's nothing wrong with living for your job, but several of us are worried about you. Your stress levels can magnify the effects of this sickness, and you've been under severe stress lately...and acting strange. This will help you, and to be honest, repair a little of the damage that has happened already...nothing totally noticeable, but you'll feel a hell of a lot better.
Dev looked at his brother and smiled, "You never are going to stop amazing me are you?"
"Probably not...just be quiet Bruce," he said as Sharklad looked like he was about to say something.
Dev walked over to Lon, "if you say it's for the best, then let's do it."
Lon got the inoculation ready as Dev took his shoulder guards and uniform shirt off.
Both Timberwolf and Sharklad noticed the scars and bruising still on his upper arms and shoulders.
"Looks good huh?" Dev said with a little chuckle, "they said it's going to take a while to heal properly, and even then there are going to be things that will limit their full range of use...thankfully since I'm mostly Daxamite now, it's not going to be noticeable unless I go up against someone the same level as Space Ranger. Lot's of scar tissue and joint pain though...and not the best thing in the world to lok at."
Lon just sighed and gave him the shot.
Dev winced a moment as the serum went in, and thought for a second, "how are you even doing this with my invulnerablity..."
Lon laughed. "My secret," he said as he finished up. "...and my little contribution to this procedure."
He showed him the syringe he used. It had a tiny little machine on it. "It gives off just enough red sun radiation to penetrate your skin and allow me to do things like this and what I did on the battlefield. Not enough for it to affect anything else...just enough to give a shot the od fashioned way."
"Think of everything don't you?"
"I do my best," Lon said as he packed up the samples that he was taking.
They decided to not stick around to much longer as they had to go rendevous with Dev and Lons' father at Daxam.
So they said their goodbyes, and headed to the ship. After loading up their stuff, they set the ship for their next destination and took off.
From: Turn around... | Registered: Jul 2003
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Dr. Helena Aurelius watched the LMB cruiser take off from Isla Larga.
“Goodbye, Bruce,” she whispered. Dr. Aurelius fought not to cry.
‘Good riddance.’
“Quiet! How can you say that about our sons?”
‘A bigger group of failures, I’ve never seen.’
“That’s enough, Suzanne! Get out of my head!”
‘Too late, sis. You let your guard done. I’m calling the shots now.’
“No! Stop! I don’t want to go to slee—“
For a moment, Dr. Helena Aurelius’ head dropped as if she were about to pass out. But, just as suddenly as she appeared to nod off, she picked up her head, a deliciously evil grin on her face.
“Ah, that’s better,” said Dr. Suzanne Aurelius, now in charge of her sister’s body.
She walks over to a cage holding a naked mole rat-human hybrid.
“It’s such a bore when she’s in charge,” she continued to the hideous looking creature. “To think just how boring the universe would be if I hadn’t transferred my consciousness into her body just before I died. Of course, it didn’t all go exactly according to plan. We have to share – something we were never good at as kids – and she’s the dominant mind, but I still get to play when her stress level is too high and she’s not being mindful of keeping me in the ‘basement.’ Such a shame, really. I would have loved to have greeted the boys.”
Dr. Suzanne Aurelius gave off a loud cackle.
“Oh yes, that would have been quite the little reunion.”
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
From a remote, hidden lab on the other side of Isla Larga, a small, decidedly insane, semi-aquatic rodent watches the LMB cruiser take off.
“Good riddance,” said PsychoticBeaver.
“Now, now,” squeaked a small, rat-like creature. “Don’t you get a warm, fuzzy feeling seeing your brother and cousins?”
“Not exactly warm and fuzzy. More like murderous and bloodthirsty.”
“Ah, my psychotic offspring. Will you never change?”
“Easy with the ‘offspring’ comment, ‘pops.’ You overheard Helena as well as I did. She spilled the beans on your claim of being mine and SharkLad’s father. You were nothing but a drop in an otherwise pretty big DNA milkshake,” sneered PsychoticBeaver.
“Helena lied. If not for me, you wouldn’t exist,” said Josiah Marner, aka RatDad.
“Where’s the proof?”
“I won’t be spoken to this way, Beaver! Regardless of Helena’s claims to the contrary, I am your father, and you will treat me with respect!”
“Even though I could crush you with one flick of my tail?” taunted PsychoticBeaver.
“You wouldn’t dare,” answered RatDad. “Not when we’ve come so close to finishing our plans. Once we’re done, Legion World will never be the same!”
“Hmmm… maybe you are my father. I mean, you did kill StudlyWoodchuck without so much as batting an eye. I could have gotten my bloodlust from you. Sprock knows I didn’t get it from Dr. Goody-Two-Shoes.”
“Yes, Beaver. We have much in common, you and I, and not just our diminutive stature. Together we will rule the universe as father and daughter.”
“You mean, daughter and father, don’t you?”
“Don’t start with me again, Beaver!”
“Just pulling your tail, pops. Sprock, you gotta lighten up. Otherwise, our plan is never going to work.”
“It will work, Beaver. Before they even know what’s happening, the LMB will be no more. And that which is purest of them shall be the first to go.”
-------------------- Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...
From: The waters off eastern Long Island | Registered: Jul 2003
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