Gone Digital

The night was perfect. The sky was positively clear, the weather warm, and the city still. This was the night that he had been waiting on for months, and now was definitely the time. He was Phineas Mason, or the super villain known as The Tinkerer, and he had a plan that would ensure that he was the supreme villain on all of earth. A few decades ago, software giant Encom had produced a laser that could take the molecular structure of an object and recreate it inside a computer. They had decided to halt the production of this laser, even though the prototype was successful because they feared what could happen should the technology become known. Phineas was hardly the person they had thought would have to guard the secrets from, but he was the one that was going to take the project farther than any could dream.

During some experimentation of his own, he had found out that when the frequency is adjusted accurately enough, a specific chemical or DNA sequence can be targeted. This allowed the user to target specific items within a host of others, giving much more freedom and in turn creating the perfect weapon. Phineas was now going to use this magnificent device to target the world's super heroes and villains and send them all to the virtual world known as the Grid. Here they would be on their own in completely new territory, leaving the Tinkerer to have free reign over the city and the world. Over the past year or so, he had amassed DNA samples from heroes and villains all over the world, secretly of course, and had been putting the sequences into a computer to transfer them into the program. This was the night when the laser would be aimed at the satellites surrounding Earth and then be reflected and directed around the world, picking up the genetic codes of the targets and transferring all of their genetic information onto the Grid so that they would be recreated in a virtual world.

After a few minutes, bright flashes of light around the city signaled that his machine was working as heroes had begun to disappear during common activities and general panic was already setting in. This was what he had been hoping for and so much more! This was it! After a few seconds, the bright flashes of light were over, and the people were still not calming down.

"Well, I guess I had better go explain myself. Those people down there are quite shocked to see all of their heroes disappear like that! They must be ever so worried and wondering what's happening!" Phineas chuckled to himself as he spoke to the night and readied a machine that would allow him to broadcast on every radio and TV station in the world what he had done. He wasn't very imposing as a person, but very few didn't know his face or his capabilities. This meant that there was very little chance that his broadcast would be dismissed by anybody. This also made him happy, which was very rare. Power was a great thing, and he now held it all.

"Citizens of the world, you are undoubtedly wondering where your beloved heroes and your detested villains have gone. I, the Tinkerer, have disposed of them both physically and mentally, and am now the only remaining villain in the entire world. I have no heroes to oppose me and no villains that would compete against me, thus making me Villain Supreme! First, there will be demonstrations of my power worldwide. After that, it depends on the attitude of the people as to whether or not more get hurt. I do not wish to hurt people. I detest violence, but I am not above using force. Heed my words, and things will go fine from here. Thank you, and good night. Sleep well Earth, if you can, because tomorrow begins the era of Phineas Mason!" Phineas clicked a button on the machine and all interferences were disbanded so that ordinary programming would return. He was quite satisfied with himself and was thoroughly convinced that his point was received. Just as he was about to lay down to sleep, his former comrades and enemies were finding themselves in new territory without explanation and without recognition.

…...

Their surroundings were completely alien, with not a single person recognizing anything. The group was looking around desperately, trying to take stock of their new area. They looked up, to where the sky was supposed to be. The new "sky" had a sort of honeycomb structure to it, reminiscent of circuitry. The entire world was black with trails of light in blue, white, red, orange, and purple traversing the landscaping. The ground definitely resembled circuit boards, with the light trails reminding the group of information traveling through a computer system. There appeared to be mountains in the distance in a couple of directions, with lit up cities bordering the other two. They have no idea where they are, or where to go, but they know one thing for absolutely certain that they are not on Earth any more.

…

Well, good riddance to them! Wolverine thought as he watched most of the villains run off into the distance in all directions when they realized they weren't anywhere any of them recognized.

"Well, what do we do now, Cap? Do we have any idea where we are?" Wolverine asked in his gruff voice. "This don't look like any place I've ever been before, and I've been around."

"Yes, Logan, you are correct. This isn't any place I recognize either. I've got three suspects, but two of them I've already seen fleeing. My first thought was Mysterio, having put us all into a trance or something, but he just headed toward what I think is a city. My second thought was Arcade, having somehow spirited us all to another fun house of his, but I already saw him running toward those mountains in the distance. That only leaves my third suspect, who I haven't seen: Phineas Mason, or the Tinkerer. I'm not sure how he might have done it, but he's now my prime suspect." Captain America, or Steven Rogers, stated in his usual leader tone.

"I think I might have an idea, Cap. There's something very few people know about that software giant Encom made a couple of decades ago." Spider-man said tentatively, "back in the eighties, Encom began a project that would allow the transfer of something ordinary into a computer program, using quantum mechanics and other advanced physics techniques. Their prototype was successful, but after a former employee was caught in the laser and transported to a place he said was called the Grid, the project was shut down."

"Well, get on with it already, Web-Head!" Logan retorted, rolling his eyes, "we don't want to hear all the techno babble, Bub, so get on with where we are and how we got here!"

"Well jeez; don't get your panties in a bunch, you Ol' Canucklehead! As I was saying, there are only a few people who even know about this project, and I'm willing to bet that our dear friend, the Tinkerer, is one of them. He's also got the resources and know-how to reproduce the laser faithful to the original. My best guess would be that he found a way to adjust the laser and target our DNA sequences to get rid of us, giving him free reign of the world, with no competition or opposition." Spider-man said, as he dropped his head, almost out of despair.

"Spider-man, that's probably the best theory we've got, so we'll have to go with that. Do you have any idea what that employee may have said about getting out?" Captain America asked quizzically, hoping to get lucky.

"As a matter of fact, I do remember something because I was riding shotgun with the reporter who interviewed him right after the incident. He said something about a portal that looked like a massive streak of light going from the ground to the sky. He said it'd be coming from a city looking structure we'd see in the distance." Spider-man stated, as he began looking around and into the distance. The rest of the people in the party did the same, as Ghost Rider, under his human guise of Johnny Blaze, spotted some lights, which he had hoped was what they were all looking for.

Unfortunately, the lights were more or less headlights on some flying crafts that were approaching quickly. The lights were continuously been getting closer, and a large number of the heroes that were part of the group had already left. The craft was standing over the group now, as a platform was lowered to the ground. A few armed, masked individuals jumped down from a platform. They looked at the group of heroes and scanned them with some kind of helmet mounted scanner. Only Spider-man, Ghost Rider, Wolverine, and Captain America were left in this group, as the rest had either fled, or hid.

"Administrative programs detected, super user powers, no disks," the person relays up to the craft in a robotic voice that appears male.

"Where are we? What are we doing here?" Captain America began.

"Most importantly, where can a guy get something to eat?" Spider-man cut in with his usual sarcastic tone.

"All questions will be answered in due time. Please, come with us, or face reclamation." The robot looked at the crew and gestured to a platform that had been lowered to the ground.

"We are going to the Control Center, where you will be paired with Identity Disks and entered into the games. If you succeed at the games into which you are entered and win enough matches, then you are released as a running program and be allowed a place within the Grid. If you do not survive, then you will become part of the system's resources." The pilot stated robotically to the heroes, as they approached the city.

The craft arrived and set down on what appeared to be a landing zone. The crew was lowered to the ground on the same platform they had used to get to the top of the craft. Almost instantly, the group was surrounded by over two dozen guards, all armed and all masked. They began herding the group towards the building just behind the craft, gesturing to all of them that they should go. Still unfamiliar with their surroundings, the group obediently followed instructions. They were led to a large room housing a large number of laser-looking devices. As the last of the group entered, the doors were shut and a lock could be heard being set.

"Well, let's see what happens from here, gang. We might as well follow them. We don't know what's going to happen." Captain America returned to the group.

"Do we really have a choice, Cap? My claws are sharp, but I don't know for sure that I got my healing factor, and I ain't about to test it by gettin' into a battle." Wolverine said, popping his knuckles to emphasize his point.

Just as Spider-man was about to chime in to the argument, the machines around them began to whir to life, rotating around the group from top to bottom. As the lasers progressed, the changes could already be seen. Their costumes were being replaced with costumes resembling the new environment they were in. As the machines got to almost waist level, Spider-man broke the eery silence first.

"What's going to happen to my web shooters? I need those!" He was shouting now, as he noticed the machine had made them disappear. He was just about to start screaming again, when a little robot of sorts came over to Spider-man, bearing two items that closely resembled his web shooters, except for something on the outside resembling battery packs.

As Spider-man fastened them onto his wrists, he noted that they were considerably lighter than his, and didn't appear to contain any web fluid. To test his theory, he aimed at a wall and shot a web. In its stead he got more of a laser, or a neon rope.

"Well that's new! Wonder if when we get back, I get to keep these?" he asked nobody in particular, chuckling at his own joke.

The machines had finished replacing the costumes of the heroes and machines came out bearing several round objects. A voice overhead told the group what these were in the robotic voice they were all becoming accustomed to hearing. "These are your Identity Disks. They contain everything you know and will contain everything you learn as you participate in events on the Grid. As super users, your disks have been modified to fit your person better, with each of them being tailored to support your unique fighting style. Captain America, your shield now serves as your Identity Disk. You may continue through the open door with your new Identity Disk and begin playing. Your only goal is to survive. Good luck users."

"So it's kill or be killed, huh? Works for me, I've been doin' that all my life, so it's nothin' new to me." Wolverine stated as they headed into the arena, each with their Identity Disks firmly secured onto their back, with the exception of Captain America, who had his in his hand on the inside of his shield. His shield now resembled a neon edged skeletal version of his original shield.

The heroes were then herded into the various areas of the arena where each of them would be able to fight. Spider-man would be in the Disk Battles, along with Captain America, which entailed throwing their Identity Disks across a small platform towards an opponent, trying to hit them and knock them off their their platform, if no hit is made then the Disk will simply bounce back to the person who used it, unless they have been hit and derezzed by their opponents Disk. When a player is derezzed, he or she is destroyed and their Identity Disk is destroyed unless it is being used as a weapon by another player. The derezzed player is recycled by the system to become part of the system's resources. Essentially, they become part of the Grid, to be used by the system for information and as a resource.

Captain America and Spider-man headed onto a couple of the platforms so that they could be raised into the air and the fights could begin. Meanwhile, Ghost Rider had become his hero persona with his flames being replaced by sparks and trails of light to fit into the new world he was in. He was being led to a large open area where he was told he would be taking part in Light Cycle races. Essentially, each one of the Cycles is fitted with a light trail that will be behind them as they drive. Any rider, including the driver who left the trail, that comes into contact with the trail will be derezzed. Their fate will be the same as those derezzed during the Disk Battles.

Ghost Rider walked over to a Light Cycle that was sitting near the edge of the track and touched his hand to it. Just as when he is the Ghost Rider in real life and needs to use a vehicle, the vehicle shaped itself to his whim. Satisfied by his modifications, he got on his bike. Purely out of curiousity, he grabbed his Identity Disk from his back and held it in his hand. The same sensation that fills him when he modifies a bike went through him, and before he fully realized it, his chain that he used in the real world was attached to his Identity Disk, making it a very interesting weapon that would be very useful in the races.

Wolverine on the other hand, was being taken to a maze where he would be expected to find the way out. He would make his way through the corridors at the same time as several other players, often having to do battle. This would be hand-to-hand combat, with most of the players using their Identity Disks as a weapon. Wolverine had something else up his sleeve entirely, because he planned to use his claws as he had always done in the real world.

After everybody had been placed into the right event, a voice came on that was louder than everything in the arena, "Attention programs! Here today are several of the rumored Super Users from the User world. The games have been upgraded to provide a challenge for our skilled newcomers! Let the games begin! Programs, Users, and Super Users, the best of luck to all of you!"

With those final words, all of the Disk Battle platforms were put together, with Captain America and Spider-man being on one side and a large number of others being on the other side to fight them.

"Well, isn't this going to be fun? Forty against two?" Spider-man retorted, as Captain America got ready to fight.

"This may not be fun Spider-man, but this is what we have to do in order to get out of here and work our way to that portal and get back to the real world." Captain America reassured Spider-man as best he could, while they both took a fighting stance to begin.

A short distance away, Wolverine got ready to fight himself. As he was about to enter the maze, a voice told him that the enemy count had doubled, making this much more difficult. To make things worse, all of the enemies were only trying to find and kill Wolverine, rather than working their way to the center.

"Works for me. I've never had any problems with a challenge. Let's just get this over with, I don't wanna be here all day, Bub." Wolverine spat out as he walked down a path to his left, releasing his claws as he went.

Some distance away, Ghost Rider began circling around the area waiting for his trail to become lit. After a few laps of the area, the trail began to appear and he realized that the enemies had also been released. This is it! Time to go, he thought as the enemies were coming at him both from the front and back of him. He pulled out his chain, and got ready to do what he did best: ride.

A Disk was coming at Spider-man and he instinctively jumped to the ceiling and stuck to it to dodge. The Disk bounced off the back wall and was about to return to it's owner when he grabbed it with his new webs. Jumping down from the ceiling, he swung it around and took out around three of the other enemies before letting the Disk go to grab his others. Beside him, Captain America had already begun fighting. He threw his shield and it hit one of the side walls and bounced off sideways, tearing through five enemies before being deflected by a sixth and returning to him. Disregarding the implied rules, he jumped across the gap in between the platforms to take the enemies head on. Taking this as a cue, Spider-man did the same and web swung across the divide to fight hand-to-hand with his opponents. The first he came to tried to attack him with a Disk, but Spider-man dodged it as he grabbed his own and hit the other in his gut to derezz him and move on to some more opponents. Meanwhile, Captain America was taking on three at once, hitting one with his shield, then throwing it to hit another while he kicks one in the chest and for the final take down smashes the man in the chest with the shield's edge. Spider-man yells something somewhat inaudible to Captain America, leading him to throw his shield to Spider-man. Spider-man grabbed it with his web and swung it around in a wide arc, derezzing all remaining opponents.

"Only one can be the victor, one of you must derezz the other. That is the way the game is played. You must play the game completely to be able to leave. Finish it." A voice mechanically reports to the two heroes.

"What? We have to fight each other? No, I refuse! Captain America is my friend, I will not fight him!" Spider-man shouted vehemently to the air.

"You don't have a choice. If neither of you fight, then you both shall be derezzed."

"Cap, I'm sorry. I have a wife. I have a life. I have to get out of here." Spider-man reports to Captain America in grave tones. If he weren't wearing a mask, everyone would see a tear roll down his face.

"Spider-man, you don't have to do this. Why are we still fighting? Why can't we just escape?" Captain America asks, desperately trying to appeal to Spider-man's rational side because it's evident that the only thought going through his mind right now is getting out to get back to his family.

"Cap. They just said they'll derezz both of us if we don't obey and fight. I'm sorry, but I can't possibly die in here. I can't!" The last words are outright yells as he reignites his Identity Disk and throws it before Captain America can even realize what's happening. Momentarily caught off guard by the sheer determination Spider-man is displaying, the Disk catches Cap in his abdomen and derezzes him. Spider-man is the victor.

A couple dozen feet away, Wolverine is making his way through his challenge–a maze. He rounds a bend and comes face-to-face with about seven men. They are armed with staffs that appear to have electricity on the ends of them. Vmmp. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to get used to that sound, Wolverine thought as his claws came out.

"Time to get to work!" He says, as he charges the group. Taking the first of them squarely in the chest, he threw him at the others just as he derezzed. Not pausing to gloat in the surprise attack, he then kicked one in the chest, stabbing him in the face as he fell to the ground. He then noticed the others getting up and swiped all of them in the legs, knocking them all to the ground and relieving them of their legs below the knees. He then decapitated each of them and got up to continue his journey through the maze. As he was working his way through, he noticed a light at the end of a passage. Getting hopeful that this was the path he was looking for, he began going down the hall. All of a sudden, the path behind him shut itself, causing him to release his claws out of caution. All of a sudden, a rather large looking individual stepped around the corner ahead of him. He was about the size of the Thing, and he was carrying what appeared to be an electrically charged medieval battle mace. Wolverine began to charge the man, as he raised his weapon. Wolverine noticed this just in time and rolled out of the way, getting clipped in the side by the end of the weapon. He stood up and looked down at his wound, watching it heal just as it always does.

"Well that's a pleasant surprise! Come on, Bub! What are you waitin' fer?" He says to the silent stalker who is now charging him slowly. Wolverine steps forward, bends down, rolls forward, and comes up under the stomach of the larger man, stabbing him in the gut. As the man falls on him, his body is already disappearing as it derezzes. Wolverine stands up and notices his exit just ahead. Finally, I can get out of this freak show! Wolverine thinks to himself as he leaves the maze and enters the room Spider-man is in.

On the other side of the main arena, Ghost Rider is riding his bike to take on numerous riders and win his way out of the Light Cycle races, and eventually the Grid. He turns right first, taking note that they are both in front and behind him at the same time. As they all happen to be behind him, he decides to confuse them. Noticing an off-ramp of sorts, he goes down, loops around on the lower level and then comes up again on the other side of the chasing group. As he jumps over them because he's coming off the ramp at incredible speeds, he pulls his chain and Identity Disk from his body and swings it below himself. This maneuver derezzes a decent amount of the pursuing riders, giving him a decent advantage as only a few remain. He is back on the road now, and decides to distance himself from his opponents. After he has amassed a sizable lead, he pulls a sharp turning technique that enables him to slide sideways and be nearly flat against the ground. Realizing what he has done, the riders all jump over his body, just as he swings his chain in the air and derezzes them all. Recovering from the sliding, he gets up and resets his bike to ride into the victor's hall.

Once inside, he notices Wolverine and Spider-man talking.

"Cap and I were fighting. We fought really well and had knocked all of the players out of the game. Then the voice told us only one could leave. We had to fight one another. I have a family, and I told Cap that. The voice told us that if we didn't fight, then we'd both be derezzed. I can't leave my family. I just can't!" Spider-man was almost to tears; it was evident in his voice. He had done something very hard tonight, of that everyone was certain. He had chosen to protect his family, even though it meant destroying a good friend. All of those in the room understand that killing Captain America was not an easy choice to make, but it was necessary.

After they had finished talking about that incredibly hard choice, the troupe of men that had led them to the games was back to lead them away. The leader stepped forward and addressed the group directly.

"You have all performed admirably in the games. As a reward, you have been given three choices. Your first choice is to stay here in the arena and perform in the games indefinitely. Your second choice is to stay as a citizen of the Grid. Your status will be that of every other program in the system. Your third and final choice is to be taken to the portal to be returned to your world. You may have some time to deliberate, if you choose." The leader stated curtly, before turning to leave the room.

"Wait!" All three of the heroes said simultaneously. "We want to go to the portal. We wish to return to our world." Spider-man had stepped forward to say what the trio had been thinking.

"Very well, step through that door and to your left will be a craft to take you to your destination. From there, you need only step into the light beam stretching from the ground to the sky and hold your Disks into the air. This will allow your person to be transported back to your world."

They did as they were told, taking the craft and going to the portal. As they all stepped in, they were all thinking the same thing: How do we explain Cap not being here? The answer was right in front of them, and required no lying whatsoever. The Tinkerer had sent them to the Grid, so indirectly, he was responsible for the murder of Captain America. The three would go onto TV and would explain to the world exactly what happened. They would explain how the Tinkerer sent them to that world and the only thing they could do was survive by any means necessary. Spider-man was driven by love of his family to kill Captain America and it was at the fault of the Tinkerer that Captain America had to die, though the media would only hear that the Tinkerer was responsible for his death.

…...

Epilogue (Ten Years Later)

Over time, many of the heroes and villains that had disappeared on what was being called the Night of Loss would return. They had all earned their freedom in a similar way to the first three to return and many of them would have dreams and nightmares of the Grid. They would think about the games they participated in. They would always think about the things they had done. Few, however, would lose so much sleep as Spider-man. The Wall-Crawler would spend many sleepless nights thinking about the determination he had when he derezzed Captain America, the memory never letting him forget. He carried the secret of who killed Captain America with him to his grave, and four sleepless nights out of a week would ensure that he would never be allowed to escape it. The news would report that the Tinkerer's scheme was largely unsuccessful, as many of the heroes and villains did return in time. They would say that his ploy was successful in one manner though. They would report that for all the heroes and villains that never returned, Captain America would be missed the most.