Maximum Carnage Issue 16: Savior by Justin Anderson
Monday, April 22nd, 2002. 1:10 PM Cletus stood beside the couch, watching out the window as the vehicles pulled up. Two black cars, and a limousine. His boss. He watched as the doors opened and the men exited. Three NSA agents, and a lone General. He stood as the front door opened. He knew he was about to be sent on a mission. Whatever it was, he was on his own. Jack had been sent off earlier that morning on his own assignment. Crime must be having a field day today to split the team. "Cletus. I hope you're ready for your mission briefing." It was General Peterson, the secret head of the NSA. The one who had asked the two to become unofficial agents. In other words, to take care of situations the law couldn't touch, and bring a more immediate end, regardless of how many people died. "Depends. What filth to I get to crawl through today?" he asked. "Oh, nothing like that. No, Jack is handling that right now. No.... you are needed for something a little more... delicate. You see, my daughter... right now, I suspect her husband is abusing her and her daughter. Her doctor sent me some x-rays of her broken arm a few months ago. She claims she tripped, but he says otherwise. But she refuses to admit anything," he explained. "And... you want me to get the guy. Right." "Not exactly. No, I can't risk her finding out what I do. She would hate me, possibly expose me. But you can come in useful. She hasn't heard about her brother's death yet. You will drop by her home to deliver the news. Official business, more or less. You'll be going in under an assumed name, military rank. Just a simple cover." "Riiiiight. Okay, where, when, and how fast?" he demanded. "Los Angeles. Immediately. By tonight. You will arrive at LAX, military jet. You will be accompanied by a corporal, who will take you to her home. You will arrive before her husband does. Make sure you stay. Stay for dinner if you have to. I will give you extra papers to delay your stay if necessary. But make sure you watch him. As soon as he makes a move, either a slap, a smack, a rude comment, rough him up. Get her out of the room. Make sure my granddaughter stays safe. But I want him. Alive." 4:56 PM, Los Angeles Cletus exited the car outside the suburban home. A two-story home, painted yellow, nestled among similar homes. Trees and yards adorned the area. A peaceful scene. He straightened his green uniform, the rank insignias and badges catching the sun. His hat blocked the sun from his eyes. For now, he was William Meyers, Army Lieutenant. And he had an assignment. He checked over the initial papers on the matter just so he knew some minor details. He turned to the Corporal. "Find a spot to park. Come back here and stand outside that door," he ordered. The man replied, "Yes, sir!" The car drove off, leaving Cletus to walk up the stone walkway. Climbing the steps, he rang the doorbell. Seconds later, the door opened. A woman in her forties, blonde hair, answered. "Mrs. Michelle Conner?" "Yes?" she replied. "Can I come in a second?" "Yes, of course," she answered. She let him in the home. She could see by his uniform, he was here on official business. He was led into the living room. "Mrs. Conner, I am Lieutenant William Meyers, US Army. You have a brother, Jacob Roberts, correct?" "Yes... I haven't seen him in five years though. Why, he in trouble?" "He's dead," Cletus repleid. She dropped onto the couch. The news had hit her like a sack of bricks. "But... I knew he was a Federal Agent, but... how?" "Yes. He was on a mission. Small criminal operation in Arizona. Man selling kidnapped children. He was shot while investigating. You may have heard about the incident. Some vigilantes moved in and blew up the area before we could regroup. I really can't say anything more," he told her. "Right... well-" She stopped her sentence as a man entered the room. He was fairly tall, with thinning black hair. Middle-aged, not in near the physical condition Cletus was. "Where's dinner? And who's this?" "Larry, this is Lieutenant-" "Let him speak up for himself!" he shouted Cletus turned to face the man. He could see the Corporal moving up the porch. "Lieutenant William Meyers, US Army. I was asked to come by to-" The man stepped forward, his right arm out, pointing a finger forward. "I don't care who you are, you get- AAAH!" He let out a growl as Cletus grabbed his wrist and squeezed. His unusual strength made it no effort for him. he could have shattered the bone inside if he'd wished. He almost did. Fuck his orders. "Mister, I am trained in military combat. I could kill you without trying. But I wouldn't need to. There is a Corporal outside the door. The both of us could drag you out of here if necessary. Understand?" Larry simply shook his head. Cletus let go. Cletus knew he was lying, but then again, so was his costume and his current name. A deception General Peterson had set up. To save his daughter. Cletus decided he had to go with it, make this believable. Cletus turned as he heard footsteps along the staircase. It was a young girl, roughly eighteen. She had black hair, held in a ponytail. "Mom... what's going on?" she asked. "Nothing, sweetie. Dinner will be ready soon." "Okay. Oh, who's this?" Cletus had just remembered to remove his hat. "This is Lieutenant William Meyers. He's with the Army," she explained. "Oh, okay. Call me when dinner's ready." The girl went back up the stairs. Cletus could see why the General was so disturbed. This family was on a powder keg named Larry. And he had to do something, orders or not. He removed the envelope from his jacket. "I have details about his funeral arrangements, papers you need to sign." "Oh, yes... listen, would you like to stay for dinner?" she asked. "Well, I don't know," he answered. "Just a second. Larry, do you mind if the Lieutenant stays for dinner?" The man was still rubbing his wrist. "Yeah, sure, whatever. I just want him outta here in an hour, or else!" Cletus almost laughed at the threat. 'Or what, you fucking joke?' He simply sat and watched the woman enter the kitchen. She hid it well, but he knew she was afraid. It wasn't something an abused woman showed in front of a stranger, especially out of fear that stranger might take away the abuse, which, in their mind, the person abusing them is seen as a special person. Cletus had seen enough of these abusers in his days in the asylums. They thought they were doing nothing wrong, and often, the wife refused testimony. The thought of losing their 'provider' proved more painful than the beatings. If not for the integrity of this mission, Cletus would have drawn the pistol from his belt and shot this man right where he stood. And he probably would have enjoyed it. As he thumbed through the contents of the large envelope, preparing himself in case he needed to explain anything on the documents, he heard some noises in the kitchen. A loud smack, followed by a scream of pain. The arguments cut through him. It was loud. Loud enough to send their daughter rushing down the stairs. Cletus couldn't take it anymore. The more he heard, the worse it got. It was happening again. Sub-Nizzuran wasn't this bad. He wished he was still there. But no twisted otherworldly dimension could compare to the evils of man. He really wished Jack was here. "Please... help her!" Cletus looked up. "Stay here!" he shouted. He drew his revolver and pulled back on the hammer. He bolted towards the large swinging door and crashed through it. He rose his pistol. Larry had picked up a large knife and was moving towards her. Whether or not he would kill her didn't matter. To Cletus, he was fighting Carnage again. Not the physical being, but an idea. He almost emptied the chamber, but reality snapped him out of it. This would stop, but not in blood. "Drop the knife, you fucking pig!" Both of them stopped, the woman in a daze. Her husband stood still, knife in hand. He looked down the barrel of the gun. "Come on... you don't really think I was-" "I said drop it. Move so much as an inch the wrong way, I'll turn you into a new paint color!" he ordered, just waiting for an excuse to fire. He faced Michelle, not moving his gun or his focus. "Get out of here." She hesitated, but seeing she was safe, she ran from the kitchen. "Just you and me," Cletus taunted. "Play nice, and you may get out of this" "You don't have the guts-" Larry never got to finish his sentence. He fell to the floor, unconscious. Cletus saw the reason. Three small silver darts in his back. The face of one of many NSA agents visible in a nearby window. The agent waved for Cletus to get the man out of the house. 'Dammit... just great, just FUCKING great!' Holstering his pistol, he pulled the darts out and shoved them in his pocket, being careful not to stick himself on the needles. He ran out of the room. Moving to the front door, he opened it and brought his escort in. "What's going on?" she asked. "Ma'am, your husband is under arrest for assaulting a military officer. He came at he with that knife. I knocked him out. Corporal, help me carry him outside!" "Yes, sir," came the familiar reply. "Is that all you can say?" "No, but as of now, I'm on duty, assigned to aide you, so I will not speak out of turn, sir," he answered. "Stop that! Just... help me," Cletus ordered. They entered the kitchen and carried the unconscious heap outside. Cletus sat him on the porch swing. "Cet the car." The man saluted and stepped onto the walkway. Moving down the road to the dark green car, he entered, turned the key, and backed down the road, finally pulling into the driveway in front of the house. He existed, helping Cletus stuff the man in the back seat. "Where are you taking him?" she asked. "Classified. He'll be held until he regains consciousness, then questioned. We'll notify you. I left the envelope on your brother inside so you can look over it," he explained. "But... but..." Cletus walked over to the passenger's side and entered. The Corporal backed out and drove down the road. Turning a corner, they were waved down by a man in a black suit. "Corporal, stop the car!" The car came to a halt. Cletus identified the man as the same Agent who had fired the darts. The man entered the back seat, stuffing the prisoner to the other side. The Corporal removed his helmet and unbuttoned his shirt. he wore a brown suit underneath. "I'm not really a Corporal," he explained. "What the hell? Well, I'm not a real Lieutenant! I just hope she didn't suspect this was some sort of sting!" he said. "Don't worry, you did fine. We did fine. Right, Arkin?" The agent in the back seat had just removed his glasses. "Yeah. Let's get to LAX. There's a jet waiting for us. This package has someone waiting on it." 8:01 PM, Phoenix The room was dark, aside from the few dim lights from the ceiling. A small metal chair sat near the back wall, a man tied down to it. It was Larry Conner. Except someone was about to use him as his own whipping boy. A crowd stepped in. Three men in black suits, a US Army General, and one of our heroes, Clets Kasady. He was no longer in his phony uniform, but his standard shirt and jeans. They moved towards the man, still woozy from his drugging. He looked up to see his worst nightmare about to come true. General Peterson stood right next to him. "Hello, Larry. Remember me?" "...y..you... I should'a known," he spat. "Oh, really?" The General brought the back of his left fist across the man's face, hard. Cletus handed him a syringe and bottle. The General filled the device with a mild amount of the liquid, and pulling the needle from the rubber top, stuck it in the man's arm and injected. "Now... let's see how you do with some sodium penathol in your system. You see, Lawrence, I know what you've been doing. And I don't like it. Just because I live so far away doesn't mean I can't find out. I can find out everything about anyone given the resources. Agent Arkin, hit that recorder for me..." The Agent pressed the record button on a small pocket-sized tape recorder. "Now then... did you hit my daughter?" he asked. "...y... yes," came the reply. "You can't lie to me. Not with that drug in your system. Now, did you break her arm five months ago?" he asked. "...yes." General Peterson continued the questions, each becoming more graphic and severe. And the answers varied. Yes to most, no to just a few. The conversation was recorded the entire time for record keeping purposes. Finally, after fifteen minutes, he was done. "Larry, Larry... you really did yourself in. And in the worst way, too. Now, you have to be punished. But don't worry... you'll live." Cletus took a step forward."I...knew you....were phony...." He turned to the small chair. "Yeah, but it doesn't matter now. Oh, and since you won't be telling anyone....I'm really Cletus Kasady, the former killer!" Larry let out a loud, terrifying scream. Not that it would do him any good. They were several floors underground. No one but NSA Agents could hear him at this point. The few in the area. General Peterson flipped on a light switch. This was nothing more than a small room, no decorations other than ugly green tile. A secret interrogation room. By current knowledge, the US didn't know this place existed. Meaning, laws didn't apply. Pumping a suspect with truth serum was allowed here. No 'going by the book'. Cletus wondered how many people were brought here, how much history centered on people spilling their guts in this room. The two Agents uncuffed Larry's arms and untied his ankles, carrying him out of the room. "Where are they taking him?" Cletus asked. "Remember that chip put into your brain to calm you down?" "How could I forget? It's still there! Symbiote shorted it out after it was put in, but it did work on the other guy!" "Exactly. We've licensed that technology on a smaller scale. He will be getting one of those for himself. I can't kill him, otherwise Michelle will know it was me. And Melissa, my granddaughter, I can't have her hating me the rest of her life," he said. "Well... it has to be done. He's a goddamn pig!" Cletus replied. "You've had a long day, Cletus. You should get home and get some rest." Notes: Basically set in the Marvel Universe, I will be using a lot of my own continuity for this series, and generally focus on the main characters. Appearances by Marvel's universe will be special occurrences. Crossovers with characters/titles from other companies will be treated as "single universe", not as "2 universes crossing temporarily". I will also try to ignore major Marvel comic story arcs. Cletus Kasady, Carnage, and other Marvel characters are copyright Marvel Entertainment Group, Inc. Other characters are either my creation(copyright myself), or copyright their specific owners if non-Marvel licensed characters. Characters used without permission/not for profit. These are strictly fan stories. Permission to reprint extends to placing this text, unaltered, elsewhere online. It may not be altered, and especially NOT TO BE SOLD, unless Marvel wishes to license this series from me.