Lawyer blurbs, credits,
disclaimer
The following 'epic' is based on characters created
by Sega, and also
Hedgehog" (SAT AM) Gearbox and "O" are the
copyrighted property of Dan Drazen. All
rights reserved.
Any
characters not based on the previously mentioned sources are sole property
of...hmm that would be me!!
A
Promise of Power
The Industrial Revolution at the
turn of the century gave birth to many scientific breakthroughs. It was a time
where the majority of Mobius was united as one under the kingdom of Acorn under
the rule of King Max Acorn. Life was not violent. Peace was mainstream.
Prosperity was law. Threats were isolated. Life was…too perfect. Intellect was
praised far beyond appreciation for physical prowess. Bio-engineer scientists
were the "sports heroes" of the time. And no scientists came even close to the
team of Defense Minister Julian Rob, and Sir Charles Hedgehog.
Little
was known about Julian, as his profile and personal information was property of
the Acornian Government, locked away in the most secure databases in all of
Mobius. Some suggested that Julian was made, not born. A droid, built solely
for the purpose of deciphering the wonders of science. Others simply believed
Julian to be the man he appeared to be; an immigrant from a distant planet, simply
feeding his thirst for culture and knowledge. No one had heard from or even
seen him until King Max named him defense minister of Royal Army. Not many
foreigners were allowed to stay on Mobius, and even fewer became citizens.
Because of the virtually flawless past of The Acornian Dynasty, the public
simply accepted Max's judgment as fact. What reason had he given them to doubt
his word? But the sentimental favorite of the team was no secret.
Bio-geneticist Prince Charles Hedgehog. Knighted for his intelligence and known
for his ingenuity, Charles was a quiet, drawn back character who believed in
hard work, and bettering the lives of Mobian kind. Charles' younger brother,
Maurice, was his opposite in every aspect but his heart. "Chuck" as Maurice
would call him was calm and calculating, while Maurice was hyper and impulsive.
Chuck's strength's were in his brain, while Maurice's was in his athleticism.
It was said that Maurice once outran a motorcycle clocked at 89 mph. Though his
brother was a knight, Maurice was not. He was happy working as a proto-cop for
the local militia. After all, crime was the only thing he could fight legally.
"Look
Chuck, these days you're spending way too much time in that lab and not enough
in the sun!" Maurice began. "I'll bet you can't even remember the last time you
went to the beach!" Charles looked over at his younger sibling. "Too much sun
is bad for you, little brother." He answered. "Besides, once Julian and I
finish this project, it will add about fifty years to our life expectancy, so
we'll ALL have more time to go to the beach. But unlike yourself, I'll be using
my sunscreen!" Maurice frowned, picking up his brother's blueprints. "You know,
even if the 'chamber of youth' machine actually does work, and we all live longer
lives, you'll still waste your time trying to find out the meaning of life!"
"It's a never ending process, Maurice!" Charles laughed, grabbing the
blueprints. "Shouldn't you be watching the road?!" Maurice smirked, and pulled
the transporter off to the side of the road. Charles looked around, perplexed.
"What gives, Mo? Why'd you stop?" he
began to ask, but Maurice dismounted the vehicle and calmly walked to the
passenger side. Reaching in the open window, Maurice grabbed his older brother
and tossed him into a nearby lake.
"BWAHAHAHA!!! Let's see your technology save you this time!" Maurice laughed as
Charles swam to shore. "What'd you do that for?!" Charles demanded, shoving the
hysterical hedgehog into the transporter. Maurice couldn't respond, as he was
laughing too hard. Although he was four years younger than Charles, he was far
more physically developed. "Teenage
wasteland." Charles muttered, jumping into the driver's seat. "Hey, no fair!
You said I could drive it!!!" Maurice complained, getting in the passenger
side. Charles started the engine and sped off, ignoring his brother. When they
arrived at their cabin, Charles stopped the transporter and turned sharply into
the driveway. "Now don't be late for the test tonight, Maurice. I'm serious."
He warned, not taking his eyes off the driveway. Maurice rolled his eyes. "Was
that today, Chuck? Oh man, you're gonna need to find someone else..." "I don't
care what you've got planned to do, Maurice! Cancel it! This is for the good of
the world!" Charles shouted. Maurice looked at Charles, amazed, as Charles had
never raised his voice at his brother before.
2012 hours. "Probe?"
"Probe."
"Hypodermic Needle?"
"Needle. "
"Neuronautical transmission
fluid?"
"20 CCs NTF."
"Okay, charge up to 35%."
"35%? Is that necessary? It seems a bit extreme. Why don't we start at 18%?"
"Maurice's will power is far too
great to be affected by any charge under 28% just looked at his lifeline
stats!"
…
"Off the charts! Acknowledged.
Charging at 35%."
CLEAR!
*zzzip*
"Check the vital signs."
…
"Success! Lung capacity @ 135%!"
"Well done, doctor!"
"Thank you, doctor! Discharge
now."
"Discharging."
*beooop*
"Vital signs?"
"Stable. Lung capacity @ 91% and
rising… 95%…98%…99.4% 103%…105% the subject is hyperventilating! He's going
into cardiac arrest!"
"Use the tranqs!"
"Acknowledged!"
"Vital signs?!"
…
"Vital signs???"
"Normal. It seems we have a few
kinks to work out."
"Understood. Deposit 1000 credits into his account and send him home."
Maurice sat up in his bed, feeling
the damp washcloth on his forehead. His head felt as if it had been inside the
engine of an Acornian Stargazer. "Why is the room spinning?" He asked, hoping
he wasn't alone. "Ah, you're awake!"
Charles answered, getting up from his computer desk. "I'm curious as to why
you're surprised? The test WAS a success, right?" Maurice watched in horror as
Charles began to pace around the room. He only paced when he didn't know how to
break bad news to someone. "The test was ultimately a success, in the sense
that we succeeded in what we were trying to accomplish." Charles explained.
"But?" "But, it seems the process was meant to be a one way deal, and reversal
of the process is very dangerous right now. Almost impossible. If you had been
any less of a being…" "You're telling me that I'm still-" "Goodness no! You're
back to as normal as you ever were. But we've still got a long ways to go until
we can test again." Charles jumped out of his bed. "Tell me again. What are the
benefits of internal cybernetic replacements?" Charles' eyes lighted up. " Just
think of all the wear and tear the body does just living! With cybernetic
enhancements, we would no longer have any biological viruses, and everyone
would live much longer, more efficient lives, not having to worry about
health!" "Wouldn't that lead to overpopulation? Why tamper with nature?" "It's
in our nature as reasoning animals to find new ways to keep our civilization
alive for as long as we can. Survival is part of nature." "Doesn't this process
scare you, though? Suppose the technology fell into the wrong hands. We'd all
be mindless robots doing the bidding of some crazy foreigner or something!"
Charles rolled his eyes. "I know you don't like Julian, but that was a cheap
shot. Besides, there is no way the chamber can alter the thought process. It
hasn't been programmed to be that sophisticated. Why, if we could find a way to
control the mind, we'd have done it by now, and taken the gene of evil out of
our world!"
