Chapter Eleven:
The Sun Rises Again
The man formerly known as the Sun Mask stood inside the EAGLE caravan, a pile of burned EAGLE soldiers around his feet. The door behind him glowed a bright red, its edges welded shut. He held the last remaining soldier against a wall, the palm of his gloved hand held tightly to his face. Steam billowed from under the glove as the soldier struggled and clawed at his arm, desperately trying to escape, muffled screams piercing through the silence.
"Hush, now," the Sun Mask whispered.
The soldier's hand went limp. The Sun Mask held him a few more seconds, waiting to feel the skin start to peel loose. "There we go." He dropped the soldier and his body fell to the floor, his face melted clean off. The Sun Mask stepped over him and turned to face Doctor Kuchar. The Doctor was huddled in the far corner of the caravan, shaking with fear, clutching his instruments to himself protectively.
"What-What are-," he started, but was cut off as the radio at the head of the cab crackled to life. "Convoy, this is headquarters. Come in! Why have you stopped moving?"
The Sun Mask grinned at Doctor Kuchar, holding a finger up to his lips. He turned and crossed to the front of the caravan. He slipped a tiny device out of his sleeve and touched it to the radio, pressing a button to send a shock through it, and frying the whole system. The crackling stopped instantly. "That's better, don't you think?" He glanced back at Doctor Kuchar, who had started to edge toward the molten door. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. It's very hot."
He scanned the console again, looking now for the caravan's tracking device. "Here we are," he said. He tapped his device to that as well, shorting it out, and then tucking the instrument back into his sleeve. He slipped himself into the driver's seat. "Let's go on a little drive, shall we?"
He turned the ignition and the caravan roared to life. "Buckle up," he said, flooring the gas and pulling back onto the road at breakneck speed. Doctor Kuchar stumbled backwards, tripping over a body and hitting the floor hard. The Sun Mask drove at a brisk pace, turning off the main road and away from Stone Canyon, taking the winding route between the city and its sister, Angel Grove.
Doctor Kuchar struggled to his feet as the Sun Mask drove, edging toward the rear and reaching for the latch that would open the back. The Sun Mask watched him through the rearview mirror, pressing a button to lock it down completely.
"Let's have none of that, thank you," he said.
The Sun Mask drove for a few more minutes, finally stopping in the middle of a thicket of trees tucked up against a cliffside. He put the caravan in park and stood, squinting out through the window to make sure they were truly alone.
"Alone at last," he said, turning and grinning at Doctor Kuchar. "This should give us just enough time to do what we need to do."
Doctor Kuchar scrambled away from him, but the Sun Mask easily crossed the distance and grabbed him by the shoulder, yanking him up and forcing him into the nearby seat. The doctor winced, expecting burns, but he looked to see the Sun Mask had used his left, ungloved hand. "Let's have a chat, shall we?" the Sun Mask said, pulling out his own chair and sitting down. "Just you and me."
Doctor Kuchar swallowed, looking around for any possible escape route. Finding none, he asked, "Why here? Why not just bring me back to your base. I'm sure there's one around. Isn't the fuhrer just itching to have me back."
The Sun Mask didn't respond. He simply stared at him, his scarred face expressionless.
"That's why you're here, isn't it?" Kuchar continued. "The big bad fuhrer recruited you to track me down and bring me in."
The Sun Mask laughed and shook his head. "Oh, my dear man," he said. "Why would I ever do something like turning someone as valuable as you over to the fuhrer?"
Doctor Kuchar stopped in surprise.
"What good would that do me?" the Sun Mask asked, getting up and pacing around the room. "So they can all have this power too? So all of those insignificant specks of soldiers can be gods? Where would that leave me then? Just another piece in the Fuhrer's little game? Just one of his cogs?"
The Sun Mask shook his head. "No, I don't think so. That's not my speed. I was fine to do so when that was my best option. But not now, not when I have a much better option," he looked around the empty caravan, "and no one to share it with."
His eyes scanned the equipment in Doctor Kuchar's arms. "It's truly remarkable," he said. "The power you've created. I could truly put it to good use. More than that cornfed hick you gave it to ever could. All he ever did with it was punch hard. What a waste. He was like a monkey, merely pretending at real godhood. But with your power all mine and mine alone, I wouldn't exactly need the Black Cross any more, now would I?"
"You would betray them?" the doctor mouthed quietly.
"I like to think of it as outgrowing the need for them. Achieving my true destiny. They'd just be holding me back at that point."
"And what makes you think I'd ever administer my technology to someone like you," he said, clearly trying to sound brave but still visibly shaking.
The Sun Mask got up uncomfortably close to him, holding up his gloved right hand. "What exactly makes you think you have a choice in the matter?" he asked.
Doctor Kuchar swallowed, eyeing the hand hanging mere inches from his face.
"Do you have any idea what I've been through the last few weeks just to get to you? I have crossed thousands of miles, left behind my home base back in Accra, led two raids on heavily fortified EAGLE bases, lost a rather sizable number of soldiers, and trailed a simpleton cowboy as he took his jolly sweet time leading me to you." He rubbed his bare face absently. "I even sacrificed my own identity just to have some eyes inside EAGLE so I could learn where you'd be going once he gained their protection. Can you imagine the humiliation of letting my own mask be ripped off, letting the entire world see the imperfect human face I left behind long ago. If it weren't for the failure of the Golden Mask, I wouldn't have needed to do so, but, alas, dealing with the incompetence of others is commonplace for someone in my position."
He pulled away from Doctor Kuchar and sat back down. "Now," he said, "you, doctor, are going to inject me with some of that special serum of yours, and I will leave this imperfect mortal form behind forever. What do you say?"
Doctor Kuchar stared at him for a second. He shook with fear, but he clenched his jaw and glared up at the Sun Mask. "I would rather be burned alive a thousand times over than ever inject you with my enhancements."
The Sun Mask shook his head. "I thought you might say something like that." He got up and crossed to the console nearby. "I can respect that," he said. "Being willing to sacrifice anything for your cause. Let's see how far you're willing to go with that."
The screen sprang to life, displaying a small living room with eight people gathered inside. "What about sacrificing them?"
Doctor Kuchar's eyes widened. Five strangers stood around a couch where a middle-aged woman held a crying two-year-old close to her chest. A ten-year-old girl huddled on the couch beside her. Each of the five strangers held a weapon in their hands, keeping them pointed at the family at all times.
"We're in position, Commander," a tall man with a goatee said, holding a sharpened knife to the older woman's throat.
"Well done, team," the Sun Mask said. He looked back at Doctor Kuchar. "Allow me to introduce my top five. You may have once heard of them as the Sword Mask, the Rainbow Mask, the Mirror Mask, the Cyclops Mask, and the Long-Haired Mask. Sadly, much like me, they have lost their identities recently. I assume you know the others"
Doctor Kuchar scowled at the Sun Mask. "You bastard," he said. He shoved his way past him and pressed his hand to the screen. "Rosa! Emily! Maria!"
The older woman perked her head up, her eyes wide. She looked around the room frantically, finally spotting the screen. "Daniel?" she said.
The ten-year-old raised her head as well. "Papa?"
Doctor Kuchar pushed on the screen, desperate to climb through and save them. "Just stay calm," he shouted. "Daddy's coming. I'll get you out of this, whatever I do."
He felt a firm hand grip his shoulder, this time actually burning. He cried out and felt himself forced back into his seat, the Sun Mask standing over him. "You're not doing anything," he said. "Not until I get what I want. Inject me with that serum, and I will let your family go."
Doctor Kuchar glared up at the Sun Mask, wincing as his shoulder burned. "How do I know you won't just kill me and them the moment I give it to you?"
The Sun Mask chuckled. "Please, doctor," he said. "I'm not that kind of man, am I?"
Doctor Kuchar crossed his arms. "You've already betrayed your own master."
The Sun Mask smiled. "I suppose you have a point there." He scratched at his chin. "Let me prove it to you then." He crossed back to the monitor and cleared his throat. "Attention!"
As one, his top five stood up straight, facing the screen and bowing to him. They kept their weapons pointed at Doctor Kuchar's family, but their attention was firmly on him.
"Athos, step forward," the Sun Mask said.
The man with the goatee stepped out around the couch, removing his blade from Doctor Kuchar's wife's throat and holding it up to his chest. "Yes, sir?" he said.
"Athos," the Sun Mask said. "As soon as the serum enters my body I want you and your comrades to drop your weapons and walk out of the house. Immediately. You will not lay a finger on the family and you will not harm a single hair on their heads. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, sir," he said.
"That goes for all of you. Do I make myself clear?"
His eyes scanned the other four. "Yes, sir," they all said in turn.
The Sun Mask turned back to face Doctor Kuchar. "There you have it," he said, stepping back over to his seat. "You have no need to worry. The five are undyingly loyal to me. They will do as I say." He held out his hand. "So, do we have a deal?"
Doctor Kuchar glared at the Sun Mask, then at his family on the screen. The two-year old continued to cry, her mother rocking her gently. He turned to his lab where his super soldier nanites sat in a vial next to another vial of the glowing white antidote.
"Alright," he said. "I will do it. For them."
The Sun Mask smiled. "I thought so," he said. He got to his feet, grabbing Doctor Kuchar by the shoulder with his bare hand, pressing down the spot he had just burned. He spun the doctor around and thrust him toward his lab. "Now get it done. We currently have two groups hunting us at the moment. I'd rather it was finished before any of them got here."
Doctor Kuchar nodded. "I understand," he said. He set to work on getting the nanites charged up and ready to go. "You'll want to sit down for this," he said. "It's going to hurt, a lot."
A few minutes later, he stood over the Sun Mask, a syringe loaded up with the nanites. He hadn't dared to try and switch out the serums. He expected the Sun Mask was smart enough to know which was which. He stabbed the syringe into the Sun Mask's arm..
Once again, the pain was immediate. The Sun Mask's body seized up in pain as it worked its way up his arm. He let out a gut-wrenching scream as a vein popped on his forehead.
"Are you alright, sir?" the man with the goatee asked, running to the screen.
The Sun Mask clenched his teeth and looked up, his face bright red. "I gave you an order," he said. "What are you still doing there?"
The Sword Mask looked taken aback for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, sir," he said. He turned to the others and, as one, they lowered their weapons and left the room. Doctor Kuchar watched the screen for a moment, hearing the door open and slam closed a few seconds later. His wife and daughters looked around as they found themselves free and rushed to the screen.
"Daniel!" his wife said. "Is that really you? Where have you been the last three years? What's been going on? They said you'd going AWOL, that you'd joined the Black Cross-"
Doctor Kuchar held up a hand in silence, keeping his eyes fixed firmly on the Sun Mask. "Not yet," he said softly. The real pain was starting. The Sun Mask writhed and thrashed, slipping off the chair and onto the floor. His body spasmed as his back arched and the nanites worked their way to his heart, sweat pouring down his face. "I'll explain everything," Doctor Kuchar said, looking at his family. "But right now, I have to finish this."
The Sun Mask let out one final scream of pain, and his body went limp as he blacked out. Doctor Kuchar closed his eyes and took a deep breath, waiting just a couple of seconds to be sure. He crossed to his lab again and loaded up the antidote into its own syringe. He stepped back over and stood over the Sun Mask's unconscious form. "Let's see how your body likes a taste of this," he said.
Anger coursed through him. He started up the drill and stabbed it toward the Sun Mask's arm.
The Sun Mask's eyes snapped open, and he grabbed Doctor Kuchar's wrist, the syringe less than an inch from his skin. Doctor Kuchar cried out as incendiary from his glove burned into his skin. "You were saying, doctor?" he said, getting up off the ground and forcing Doctor Kuchar down. He wrenched the serum from the doctor's hand and smashed it between his fingers like it were nothing. "Oopsie," he said. "I guess I don't know my own strength. Were you planning to use that on me?"
Doctor Kuchar pulled desperately to free his arm as his family screamed in the background. "Did you think me your hick? That I would just pass out from a little pain the way he would and then you'd be free to do as you please with me?"
His face was bright red and drenched in sweat, clearly in a lot of pain, but his eyes were focused. "I am not so weak," he said, thrusting Doctor Kuchar back against the wall and letting go of his arm. The doctor cradled his arm and struggled to his feet only for the Sun Mask to backhand him and send him sprawling unconscious to the floor.
"Papa!"
"Daniel!"
The Sun Mask stepped over his body, clenching his wrist. "Oh, yes," he said. "I can feel it working already." He paced the room, testing his newfound speed. Then he crossed to the nearby table and punched it, buckling it with ease. Finally he crossed to the lab and picked up a sharp instrument, stabbing himself in the arm with it. As he had hoped, it merely bounced off. "I didn't think the results would be so quick. I can only imagine what it will be like when the process is finished.
He walked over to where he'd set his old Sun Mask staff. The fiery gem in the center still glowed brightly. "Let's see just how durable I've become." He pointed the gem at his own body and fired it up. Flames spread across his chest and down his arms, over his back, and even up around his face. They were warm, but they did not sting. "Yes," he said, dropping the staff and letting them spread further and further down his body. "I am no Sun Mask anymore. I am Mawu, the true Sun."
He turned to see the family watching in horror from the monitor. He stepped up to them and grinned evilly. "You're next," he said, pressing his hand to the screen and melting it down.