Heroes: Shadows over Millenium

[Pcm979]

A.J. Gallagher turned off the television, Gravitas's words ringing in his ears. He looked around his medium-sized apartment, still littered with boxes and packing material from his recent move. His eyes fixed on the wall clock, nearly obscured behind a half unpacked bookshelf. It was time.

Well. He thought, a small grin springing to his lips. I better do what the man says, get myself a job.

Twenty minutes until his interview with the man at Ultima. He was a little nervous, to be sure. Ultima was a huge, government funded organisation, positively dwarfing the tiny outfit he'd been with until recently. Still, making extremely poor decisions had gotten him where he was today.

As he stepped out the door into the hustle and bustle of the only semi-familiar Millenium City he cursed, not for the first time, the fact that he hadn't developed the ability to fly...

"Taxi!"

[Rukia]

Camie stretched and yawned. They had moved her to a different part of the headquaters. She was feeling much better but they couldn't let her go home just yet. She had a quint little room off the main building, free meals and t.v. It was almost like a home. She had to check in everyday at the medbay for more tests. Today, was going to be easy, just a few simple blood tests. She put her clothes on, thankfully they had been cleaned, and headed out to the cafeteria.

[Comrade Tortoise]

"ANy rebuttals? Senator Rand?"

"Well, first off I question the motives of these two metahumans. Both of them have benefited fantastically from their gifts. Dr. Clarson I wager even uses his abilities at animal control to alter the results of his experiments to his liking, and Gravitas, well we have all seen him on TV and who only knows how much money he makes. So of course they would respond in this way" She said with a grin, trying to bait them into responding

"The simple fact is, someone else didnt get into university because of Dr. Clarson taking their spot, lots of people are out of jobs because Gravitas sidestepped the research and development of a jupiter probe. The simple fact is, metahumans hurt people, either because they become criminals or because they unfairly use their advantages economically. If need to look at this in terms of social policy, not individual rights. If we want a stable society we need to do something about these metahumans taking all the jobs from normal humans"

"Senator Clinton? Anything?"

"No, everything that needed to be said was said very eloquently by senator Rand"

"Alright, I am going to extend the question. I want to see Gravitas' and Dr. Clarson's responses to that. Gravitas?"

[SirNitram]

"My motive is simple, Senator. My driving goal is to see the current conflict between Metahuman and human vanish, so that the future can be bright, not dark." Gravitas said smoothly, taking a sip of water. None of them knew what he knew, the dreams that haunted him every night of the all-out war between Novas and Humanity.

"Have I benefitted? Certainly. I enjoy minor celebrity, a steady income, and an honorary doctorate. Of course, you have benefitted from you skills, Senator, and as has Senator Hillary. Indeed, so has our generous moderator!" He made an expressive gesture to indicate the audience, at home and before them. "Everyone has talents, and ideally, everyone benefits."

"As for the entire idea of the unfairness of our abilities.. It is ironic, Senator Rand, that you bring this up. Your economical philosophy is a matter of public record, and is little more than a veiled justification for 'whatever you grab, you deserve'. By this, I deserve whatever I can obtain. However, I don't subscribe to your ideas. Did my recent trip to Jupiter eliminate jobs otherwise spent on a rocket and a small probe? Yes.. But the larger samples I brought back generated more positions to research them. By increasing our understanding of the nature of space and time, many astrophysicists are making new, bold strides into the unknown. As for Doctor Clarson, if you have any questions on his professional ethics, I suggest you bring them to the appropriate bodies. Baseless accusations against a professor are legally slander." A mild rebuke from the metahuman.

"Metahumans don't need to take human jobs. No human can lift thousands of pounds, or stir molten steel barehanded. By exploiting their talents, they create new jobs that use their abilities, and open up new prosperity for everyone."

[Agent Fisher]

The doctors had finally given up. After three days, Niner's body just still wouldnt work. So, they pulled the plug. He lasted for another hour.

Just as Niner passed away, his eyes snapped open and he released a massive tk pulse, destroying everything in his room, including his body, which became paste on the wall.

************

Dan Ryan, wearing a normal suit, stepped into the lobby of the Ultima Bureau. He walked to the front desk.

"Excuse me, I'm here to meet with Agent Rowe."

[Pcm979]

A.J. raised an eyebrow as he entered the lobby behind the other man. He may have been dressed normally, but Gallagher's crime-fighting experiences had let him see military men enough to recognise them just by their posture- They never seemed to be able to relax quite as fully as people who'd never been through military training. Taken with the man's reference to an Agent somebody-or-other, A.J. wasn't quite sure what he'd gotten himself into.

Nevertheless, it was too late to turn back now. He stepped up to another receptionist, gave them his name and appointment time, and headed for the elevators.

[Cynical Cat]

"So," said Blackheart, "do you want to watch the debate or is the inevitability of the results too damn depressing?"

[frigidmagi]

"Don't see how it matters. No matter who wins I still gotta regster with someone in the end." Tobin said with a shrug.

[Cynical Cat]

"Yeah. Might be spending too much time in the shadows, but its the will of the vested interests that matter. This is just a stage play so the masses will accept it." He took another pull of his beer.

[frigidmagi]

"So who's the vested interests?" Tobin asked.

[Cynical Cat]

"The G, which is to say the Congress, the President, the military, and the alpha bet soup agencies, and the guys who do business with them. So they want the flashy public metahumans to solve problems in the public eye, but with a leash on them. They also want their black ops custom build superhumans to squash their enemies like bugs when they can't do it in public. And every wants their share of the pie whether its their own team, metahuman creation projects, or whatever."

[frigidmagi]

You think the business suits would want some of their own. Some powers could save alot of overhead I think." Tobin muttered taking another drink.

[Cynical Cat]

"That would be the guys who do business with the G. Already included. They want the profits from making metas, and fuck is it an expensive business, as well as their own. And they don't want the competition to have it and they'll lobby whoever the fuck they need to so that its as hard as hell for anyone else to use them. Nobody likes a level playing field, especially if you're used to getting free money from the G."

[Comrade Tortoise]

"Indeed. It is legally slander" Alex hissed before continuing.

"I am going to be honest and forthright. I DO use my powers in my work. I Use my alternative form to get close to animals, I use my mental abilities to control variables like temperature, air pressure, and humity without the need for expensive equipment and massive government grants, and also allowing me to do controlled experiments in natural settings. That is how I get my edge in animal behavior, not through controlling the individuals. All of my work has gone through the peer review process, and I disclose every use of my abilities in publication"

He took a sip of water

"I am reminded of the story of one Harrison Burgeron. Are you familiar with it? It is one in which society forces equality by handicapping talented individuals. Pretty people have masks forced on them, smart people have implants in their ears which screech periodically preventing them from thinking, and strong people have lead weights attached. This is not a world any of us want. It is not a world which can sustain itself. Individual liberty and equal rights is the crux of our society, it allows commerce and societal stability to flourish asf American History has shown us. Senator Rand forgets that. Or does not care, prefering to play to your fears for her own political gain, which is fitting with her so-called philosophy"

[Comrade Tortoise]

The debate raged back and forth for the entire timeslot, with the four combatants leveling intellectual broadsides at eachother on topics ranging from the rights of the individual, to criminology and historical instances of "registration" programs and the role of government in a constitutional democracy.

This continued until the end of the timeslop when all four individuals practically collapsed at their podiums, followed by a standing ovation from the assembled students and other spectators

[Dark Silver]

"This church, was built by the original french settlers of the City," Garth began as they walked around the wrought iron fence which seperated the once carefully manicured land and the pristine white marble church, but now was left only with a pile of rubble and scorched grounds.


"It lasted through two fires, several battles, and floods. But a agent of the Black Aeon took it out when they attacked New Orleans.."

He went on to tell her some of the backstory, of the legends of the church, even the suppossed hauntings which occured due to clergy killing themselves within the church's confines.

After thast, he pointed them southeast, and headed down the cobblestoned road, towards the Open Air Market, he wanted to grab some fruit before he took her to visit his family...

[LadyTevar]

His emotions whenever he mentioned the Black Aeons gave Lei a clue to why Garth took her to see the ruined church. After listening avidly to the history of the church, she asked the loaded question.

"The Black Aeons... they're why you took up the ring and the sword, aren't they," she guessed.

[Agent Fisher]

Dan Ryan stepped into Agent Jack Rowe's office.

Rowe looked up.

"Ah, Sergeant, glad to have you with us."

"Thank you sir."

Rowe turned around and pulled a file out of a draw. He opened it and read it.

"I see here that you served for eight years as infantry."

"Yes, sir. Four years with the 82nd, four years with the Rangers."

"And then you got pegged for CIA intel gathering. Makes sense, given your power. After 12 years, you got sent over to Ultima. Worked on the west coast." He looked up. "I'm assigning you to Agent Blackheart's team. He lost a member not long ago." He wrote on a piece of paper.

"Here you go, thats your directions to your cubicle."

"Thank you sir."

Ryan stood and left the office. He followed the directions and ended up in a plain white cubicle, with just a desk, a chair, a computer and a file cabinet. On the desk were his instructions on how to log into the computer.

[Pcm979]

It seemed to take forever. After nearly four months of interviews, testing, background checks, oaths taken and transfer forms filled out in triplicate, they weren't finished. A.J. was beginning to think that part of the test was simply having the patience to wait so long, and non-Metas with no previous government employment had to go through at least another two months of this shit. Or so he'd been told. It seemed that being immune to gunfire made you considerably more qualified for government work.

Afterwards, he sat down with the interviewer for what he hoped was the last time, trying hard not to tap his foot while the man peered at the mountains of paperwork.

"Well, Mr. Gallagher. It seems you've passed our physical examinations." He flipped through the bulging folder currently in front of him expertly. "Urinalysis, physical and metaphysicals, P/PDD tests, the whole lot."

A.J. nodded, used to this by now. "I wouldn't be here otherwise." He commented.

"Indeed." Another folder, more painstaking analysis. "You'll be happy to know that your PSI and background checks have come through as well..." He scanned a neatly typed page, densely packed paragraphs next to a series of binder holes. "Yes. I'm sorry for your loss."

"That's fine." A.J. said quickly. He'd rather gloss over that part of his history; It had nearly cost him a few Psych evaluations in his time.

"Good. Well, I'm extremely pleased to be able to present you with your Provisional License as an Metahuman Agent of the Ultima Bureau." He pushed another paper across the desk. "Please sign here, here and here."

A.J. obediently scribbled his name in the appropriate spaces. "Um. 'Provisional' License?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes." The man said somewhat apologetically. "You've still got to pass your Field Exam; Put more simply, your first mission." He explained.
"Given the difficulty of developing a standardised test for such a... Diverse group as the Metas, we find it's simplest to assess your capabilites in the field."

A.J. sighed. "So, when's that coming up?"

The man shrugged expansively. "Whenever a Meta-level threat situation presents itself. If we were lucky, it'd never happen. But given the state of the world..." He trailed off.

-----

Some time later A.J. trotted back into the lobby and quickly asked for directions to the cafeteria. It'd been ages since breakfast, and his demanding meta metabolism (There's a bad joke or three in there, he noted to himself) was crying out for something to eat. Preferably a lot of somethings.

[Rukia]

Camie had just settled in at a table in the cafeteria with her food. She had selected a bagle with butter and jelly, a fruit bowl, a piece od french toast and a cup of coffee. She was nibbling on her bagle and reading a book that Suzan had let her borrow when someone come into the caf. She looked up and watched the gentleman go to order food. He seemed so familar. She realized she was staring and went back to her book. She finished a sentance and went back to watching the man, why did she feel like she knew him?

[Pcm979]

A.J. piled the food onto his plate, not really caring what it was, as long as there was a great deal of it. Judging from the fact that the cafeteria staff didn't have to be prompted to continue ladling it on, he could tell that they were used to serving Metas. Of course, he already knew that since he was standing in the headquarters of the fucking Ultima Bureau, but still.

He finally got to the end of the line and started looking for a place to sit down, passing his gaze over the crowd. Taken, taken, no salt, too close to the windows...

His head snapped around so suddenly he thought he'd develop whiplash. No, no, it couldn't be... Camie'd easily catch the sudden widening of his eyes, the momentary lock of their eyes; Then he quickly stumbled off and lodged himself into a chair wedged into the corner of the room, and aggressively attacked his meal. A coincidence. He'd had a decade's worth of them, you just turned around and moved on.

[Rukia]

The man was standing in line when his eyes caught Camie's. He looked very shocked to see her. She quickly looked down at her book, blushing furiously. She buried in her book for a moment or two before pulling down just a bit to see him diving into his food. She bit her lower lip as she thought.... -I wonder if I can sneak into his mind for a sec from this distance...- She was careful not to bring her book down too much but enough to fully focus and A.J. She centered her thoughts and slowly eased into his mind.

[Pcm979]

Red hair, violet eyes, about the right height if you factor in a decade...

A.J.'s thoughts were hurried, conflicting, almost slamming into each other before he'd finished them.

Shut up. Shut. Up. Finish your food, go home, have a stiff drink and watch some trashy T.V., but stop. Deluding. Yourself. Another part of his mind chipped in snarkily. You don't want a repeat of 6/14/03, do y-

Then he felt it hovering around the back of his mind. Some people might look alike, but you never, ever mistook a psychic signature. His head whipped around again, his eyes narrowing this time.

"Em?" He whispered subconciously.

[Rukia]

Cam barely caught his frantic thoughts. He thought she looked like someone he knew...

Then he stopped "Em?" He whispered subconciously. Cam backed out of his mind so fast that she dropped her book in her food spilling coffee everywhere. She was turning several shades of red as she cleaned up her mess, glancing at A.J she she did so. She threw her trash away and made a hasty retreat for the exit.

[Pcm979]

That... Was fucking strange. A.J. concluded as the girl ran out. It looked like he was going to have that stiff drink after all...