Chapter 37
Names to forget and names to remember
Ahimsa needed a set of fingertips. Any random student would do.
WELCOME TO THE LEIDEN UNIVERSITY INTRANET
Username: evvliet
Password: mightymorphinkimbillyotp
Eric's files were… worrying to look at.
Buffy the Vampire Trainer: a Pokemon Story
Ahimsa wanted to move on, but she couldn't stop looking.
Wonder Woman vs. Bionic Woman in the Lost Galaxy
Snow White and the Seven Against Thebes
Ben 10 Meets Ben-Hur
Fifty Shades of Jean Grey's Anatomy
Kramer vs. Kramer vs. Jason vs. Predator vs. Mechagodzilla
Skaro's Next Top Model
The Melancholy of Turanga Leeloo
The Ghostbusters Watch The Ring on Friday the 13th so Only Two and a Half Men Are Left by Friday the 20th
CSI: Kandor—Fun with Microscopes, feat. Robocop Squarepants and the Magnificent Seven Samurai Pizza Thundercats: the Musical
Lady Sylvanas and the Half-Blood Prince of Bel-Air: Reloaded
Powerpuff Pretty Guardian Teenage Mutant Ninja Cylons
I.M. Weasel, You're the Worst, but He-Man Says It's Always Sunny so We Bought a Zoo because They Came from Outer Space
My Little Nazgûl: Friendship Means War
The X Files meets the X Men meets the X Factor: Xena's Xultation with the Xenomorphs of Xandar
She forced herself to stop. She needed to focus. When did Eric get any studying done, anyway?
Her reasoning went like this: Linka had given the boys a flash drive with a copy of MAL's virus, but thus far they hadn't had the opportunity to examine it in detail, what with being constantly running for their lives. Linka must have already reached some conclusions on her own. Ahimsa was betting on Eric being the only user whom Linka would authorize to access her files. At the same time, Ahimsa had set up a cloud folder where she had uploaded a modified portion of the same virus in case she needed more aggressive infiltration tactics.
Luckily, her first assumption had been right: Linka had granted Eric's account privileged access to a subfolder with extensive notes on the virus. Ahimsa still had very little practice using the power of Heart for self-hypnosis, and doing it through the eyes of a possessed body was bound to be even harder, but after almost an hour she managed to memorize the entire contents of Linka's research.
Facts to keep in mind: there's a lot of emphasis on the chemistry of cryopreservation as opposed to putrefaction. Rats were frequent test subjects, but some of those sequences are hybridized with human DNA. Mental note: Skumm may be revivable.
She closed all program windows and left the student where she had found him.
Zarm didn't have a proper home, his spaceship being more of a moving workshop. Eons ago, when life had not yet awoken and he was the only Spirit of the Earth, he used to have a favorite spot between two fuming mountains that no longer existed. The lifeless days were intensely hot and bright, and the lifeless nights could be spent peacefully looking at the young stars. That was the way he liked it. But in the scale of planetary spirits, it had lasted too little.
He'd have his Earth back. Undisturbed, untouched, uninhabited.
And humans were proving to be an exceedingly suitable tool for bringing his dream true.
He landed on a deserted patch of land where his guests had stood for hours. He usually didn't travel openly in Earth's airspace, but he had sources telling him that Gaia was away at a diplomatic summit (word had it that the Spirit of Mars was starting to get worried about all the junk humans were sending there, and Gaia wanted to reassure her it was all in good faith).
Zarm jumped out to greet them. "How's it going, Duke? Happy to see the Sun again?"
"I have all the Sun I need," he said, pointing at his glove.
Zarm was not pleased to hear that. "I didn't give you an iron fist to become a contemplative. There's a whole world to ruin."
"Don't play your games with me. I was promised the Captain."
The robot that had escorted him flinched at the mention. "Yes, Duke. Soon. It is desirable, nonetheless, to prevent his apparition altogether."
Zarm helped them climb aboard the spaceship. "We need to recover the other Pollution gloves. I designed them specifically to be more durable than Blight's useless rings."
That choice of words surprised the Duke. "Let's speak openly. Do you intend to combine their powers?"
"Why else would I have created them? Captain Pollution was a joke. No one will laugh at the Pollution Conqueror."
Gaia's face was naturally impervious to the void, but the absence of the elements of life still gave her huge discomfort.
"It's very unusual for you to grace this chunk of rock." The shadow moved over the gray sand until it solidified as a tall, formless figure of pure blackness in front of Gaia.
"You know why I've come. You are in as much danger as I am."
"I don't need reminding. But your power is much greater than mine, Gaia. It is usually you who are in the business of protecting me. What can be so terrible that I have to assist you?"
"I'm in a difficult situation. I'm still reassembling my army. For the moment, I'm going to have to use your assistance."
The shadow squirmed. "I see you're not asking."
Gaia closed her eyes and considered carefully her next words. "Cynthia, you have power of your own, but for all purposes, you are under my jurisdiction. As much as I hate to assert it, the circumstances are leaving me with no choice. Zarm is plotting to return Earth to Azoic conditions. To stop his plan, I need you to help me save a very old acquaintance of us. I had thought he was beyond redeeming, but I have discovered a way."
The shadow was silent for a moment, perhaps pondering how to resist Gaia's authority, but finally asked, "Who is it you need to save?"
"In his current life, he goes by the name Duke Nukem."
Author Note: I'm introducing a new character, completely alien to the premise and standards of Captain Planet canon, in Chapter 39, "The Hadean stratagem." This arc will represent an enormous expansion to the mythology of the show, but it will be short and quick, and then we'll return to our regular programming.
The Fire Planeteer is only a few chapters away, I promise.