Ironside & Aegis- Origins

by David Bruno

  “You didn’t answer. Where’s Dad?”

  “Your dad is here. Just outside with the rest of us. He’s very proud of you. You need to know that. We saw what you did.”

  “What I did?”

  “Yes. You and your team saved the world.”

  “I survived?”

  “Well, you haven’t yet. But I have faith in you. Your friends are trying to help as we speak. You picked them wisely.”

  “What do you know of my friends?”

  “I’ve been with you every day of your life. Occasionally, we catch shadowy glimpses of yours, usually during some kind of trauma. We know your friend Joe is with you now. We know what you’ve been through as each of us passed away. We’re all here with you, Benny.”

  “That’s a bit creepy.”

  She continued. “That young lady of yours, Vanessa, she really cares for you. You need her and you know it. She needs you too, more than even she knows.”

  “Mom, are you stuck here? In my mind?”

  “We’re not in your mind—at least we don’t think so. We’re not exactly sure where we are, no longer alive but unable to move on. Your father thinks it has something to do with that nice ring he made for me.” She smiled as she remembered the joy it had brought her.

  “No, that can’t be. That’s terrible!”

  “How can it be terrible when I can talk with you now and help you?” She paused for a moment and looked upward at the ceiling. The rest of Benny’s family appeared around his bed—his father and all three grandparents. Everyone who had perished by the meteoric radiation was there with him.

  “Okay, Benny, it’s time,” she said. “This is going to hurt. I’ll try to help you forget the pain.” She placed her hand on Benny’s forehead and closed her eyes.

  *****

  “Dad! Joe!” Vanessa screamed. “Something’s happening.” On the morning of the eighth day after the assault, more than half of the total time Benny and Vanessa had known each other, she lifted the sheet to find that the fractures between the pieces were nearly gone. His flesh softened as its natural color returned. His fingers twitched for the first time.

  “He’s moving!” Benny slowly opened his eyes. Immediately, he convulsed violently, coughed and let out a bloodcurdling scream. Joe and Max rushed to his side to hold him down as Vanessa held his face and tried to speak with him.

  With tears flowing from her eyes and a combination of crying and laughter, she held his face and spoke with him for the first time in more than a week expecting a response. “Benny, it’s okay. They couldn’t beat us. We won together.” Her stomach tingled as she witnessed the scientific miracle made possible by Benny’s uniqueness. Only Benny, created as he was, could defy death in such a manner. Moments later, Benny’s agitation subsided. He quickly glanced at Vanessa and fell peacefully to sleep. Joe and Max released their grip.

  Max retrieved the ring and secured it for safekeeping. “Let him sleep, Vanessa. I think he’ll be okay now. Just give him some time. I’m going outside for some fresh air and to give you and Joe some alone time with him. Call for me if he wakes.” Max left the RV.

  Minutes later, Benny’s eyelids parted. He saw a shadowy, out-of-focus vision of his best friend standing next to the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. It didn’t matter that half her face was purple.

  Benny put on a slight smile and whispered, “Hey, Joe… who’s your girlfriend? Emily’s gonna be upset.”

  Vanessa quaked as Benny’s memories of what they had done together and what they meant to each other seemed to have evaporated. Maybe it’s temporary. He’ll be okay after a while. Yeah… Yeah.

  The muffled sound of voices penetrated into the RV. Joe glanced at the window. “Someone else is out there.” He pulled the curtain aside to look. The muted sound was followed by an ear-piercing pop-pop-pop. An engine revved and tires squealed as a car sped out of sight. “Oh, my God, no!” shouted Joe.

  “Dad? Dad! Daddy!”

  EPILOGUE

  OUT OF THE ASHES

  D r. Doe stood over the burned-out site where the laboratory had once stood. He took a final hit from his cigarette and threw it to the ground, twisting his foot to extinguish it. The bright California sun and crystal-clear skies gave no indication of the devastation that had taken place on this spot a little over a week ago. His team scoured the cordoned-off desolation, looking for anything that might have survived the blast. The target of their search was titanium-44.

  The blackened airframes of the helicopters which were to disperse the new meteoric formula lay twisted and partly melted into the landscape. The pilots’ ashes and bone fragments were scattered among the twisted aluminum. The precious cargo had been found spilled out of broken containers. Whatever remained was to be integral to future plans for the Agency.

  Dr. Doe held his phone to his ear. “Mr. Walters, status report. Did you find any evidence of meteoric alloy? Remember, we don’t have much time before the Feds arrive.”

  From the other end of the site, Mr. Walters reported. “Yes, sir. We found remnants which we think were once the reformulated alloy. But the radiation is simply gone. I’ve never seen anything like this. It makes no sense. We’ve collected what we can for analysis.”

  “Copy that. Keep looking for usable meteoric material.” He adjusted his shades and brushed the dust from his suit as he continued oversight of the team.

  No matter where they looked, they found nothing of value. Much of the steel, concrete block, and other materials had been vaporized. The Agency had become aware that the U.S. government had measured the blast with their explosion detectors. By their estimates, the explosion had been equal in force to one kiloton of TNT.

  Dr. Doe bent down and picked up a piece of ash to examine what had once been part of the laboratory. Benny, did you do this? You had no bombs with you, so the only conclusion can be that you were the bomb. But how? It takes mass and fission to do this. Did it consume part of you? All of you? I need to make more like you.

  Having been whisked away from the laboratory ahead of the final battle, Dr. Doe had gotten a view of the destruction from a safe distance—a couple miles away. Since he hadn’t seen the assault team exit the facility, he was unsure whether any of them had survived. There was evidence of biological remains throughout the site, but aside from the pilots, none could be positively identified as belonging to anyone in particular. If any of the team had survived, they needed to be acquired.

  The loss of the capital equipment, specimens, and meteoric materials pushed the Agency’s plans back indefinitely. They needed a different strategy if their ambition was to succeed.

  *****

  Dr. Doe shuffled back to his car. Along the way, his cell phone rang. Oh, no, he thought. He knew it was the director calling from his other base, its location unknown even to Dr. Doe. No doubt he would be asked to explain the failure of the initiative. His heart beat rapidly, knowing what the Agency did to those who failed: they were eliminated. He was accustomed to being the one doing the eliminating. His own life expectancy might now be limited. By now, they were supposed to have thousands of new superpowered people to train to carry out their plan of societal transformation. Instead, not only were there no new superpowered people, there were no apparent means to create them in the future. He reluctantly took the call.

  “Hello, sir.”

  “Update, please,” asked Director Fischer.

  “Sir, sorry for the slow feedback but today is the first day anyone was permitted to be on site. The entire facility is destroyed. Nothing remains. Our prototype soldiers, Rocco and Orro, were ineffective and unable to defeat Ironside and Aegis. Walters thinks that the ocular beams may have enhanced Ironside’s powers substantially, causing the whole destructive incident. But we have no proof. There were no cameras in the room where the final battle occurred. The blast neutralized any remaining meteoric material or slag we were able to find. The special powdered meteoric formula we were to disperse was neutralized as well. I survived only beca
use of a few loyal followers who pulled me away in time. We can’t verify whether Ironside and Aegis survived the blast. There were two other individuals who aided them. We have photos of them and ran facial recognition, but so far nothing has come up. We assume all four perished.”

  Director Fischer listened attentively to Dr. Doe’s explanation and replied, “Have no fear, my good man, things are going better than planned.” Dr. Doe’s face froze. “Ironside and Aegis are much stronger than we thought, and I’m confident of their survival. They will eventually be found and captured. The DOD and Congress have shuttered the Agency, giving us freedom to expand and infiltrate into other countries. We’ve always said that we are bigger than the USA.” Dr. Doe listened. “I’m an old man now and will not be around much longer. You have been a loyal friend who shares my vision of the future, as well as that of our benefactors. I’ve always thought of you as the son I never had. It’s time for me to retire and live out my few remaining years in peace. Please accept the position of director for the future of the Agency. I will retire but continue to be a resource to you as long as I live.”

  “I’m honored, sir, and don’t know what to say. I’ll make you proud.”

  “What do you want to do with Max? He served his purpose,” asked the retired director.

  “I sent men to take care of him.”

  “Good. Good. It’s too bad that we lost Ironside’s blood samples. We could have… ”

  “Sir,” interrupted Director Doe, a wicked smile twisting his face, “I have vials of his and Aegis’s blood.”

  *****

  AT AN UNKNOWN LOCATION

  A young man approached the retired director from behind as he sat on a leather recliner in his living room and hung up the phone. “Here’s your coffee, sir.”

  “Thank you.” He lifted his arm with the medical tubing still attached to take the cup and saucer. He took a sip. “Ah, very good. What do you think of all this?”

  “Me, sir?” Unaccustomed to being asked his opinion, the young man thought for a moment. “I think the transfusions are working. You look almost as young as me. Even your hair is coming back.”

  “Thank you. I mean about our objectives.” He ran his hand through his hair. It was a feeling he hadn’t had in more than forty years.

  The young man cleared his throat. “I think Doe is no longer up to the task. I am.”

  “Quite arrogant, all things considered.” The young man smiled as the retired director spoke. “But I agree. You are the übermensch I’ve been waiting for. You will soon have your chance. One day, the world will venerate you as the savior of mankind. History will remember the name, Victor Hastings.”

  The End

  SUGGESTED TRACKLIST

  Psycho Killer, Talking Heads

  Master of Puppets, Metallica

  That’s Amore, Dean Martin

  Bennie and the Jets, Elton John

  Miami Vice Theme, Jan Hammer

  Walk this Way, Run DMC featuring Aerosmith

  You’re the Inspiration, Chicago

  Runnin’ with the Devil, Van Halen

  Carry on Wayward Son, Kansas

  Don’t Close Your Eyes, Kix

  Here I go Again, Whitesnake

  Just What I Needed, The Cars

  Why Can’t This be Love, Van Halen

  Bad Reputation, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

  Something to Believe In, Poison

  Me and Bobby McGee, Janis Joplin

  Back in Black, AC/DC

  Fight the Good Fight, Triumph

  War Machine, KISS

  Seek and Destroy, Metallica

  Home Sweet Home, Mötley Crüe

  Undefeated, Def Leppard

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  T his book is dedicated to my wife, Angela, for providing encouragement and being a sounding board for this story. As I came up with what I thought was a good idea, she was honest and told me it was horrible or that I used ten words when I needed two.

  This book is also dedicated to my little girl, Katherine. I hope that as she grows up, she grows to be smart, faithful, driven, mannered, compassionate, and beautiful. When she’s an adult and thinks about the superhero book Daddy decided to write, I hope it brings a smile to her face. If this book does nothing else, it is a model for her to show that she can do anything if she works at it and gives it an honest try. Writing this book has been a life-expanding experience. Hopefully, my little angel will have many such experiences during her life’s journey. Daddy loves you.

  To write this book, there was a small army of folks who helped me. When I started to learn how to write a book, I searched the internet for help and found Joanna Penn and her website www.thecreativepenn.com. There is a lot of good information on this website that helped me create this work of fiction. On the technical side, I would like to thank the Zana family for providing insight and detail related to the martial arts. This helped me bring those training and fight scenes to life.

  Special thanks to my editors, Maia Larson and Jeff Seymour, who helped bring my story to life. Their incredible patience and story-telling abilities guided me as they helped refine my story and fill the gaps while still allowing the story to remain my own. Also, I want to thank the very talented Natasha MacKenzie for interior and exterior design work. The cover design looks like a blockbuster movie poster. Last, but not least, I want to thank Dena Hitchcock, my beta-reader and creator of my website. Without these people, this book would not have been possible.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  D avid E Bruno lives in Pennsylvania with his wife, Angela, and daughter, Katherine. In addition to writing superhero fiction, he works full-time as an engineer. He is a graduate of the Pennsylvania State University with degrees in engineering. This novel is the fulfilment of a dream.

  www.authordavidebruno.com

  @REALDEBRUNO