Armageddon Syndrome
Author's notes: Well, here's the latest chapter, and this is where it all hits the fan. Mr Incredible and Violet are beaten; Dash is being hunted by three dangerous supervillains and Macabre has begun his own apocalyptic machinations. Plus, we'll get a look into the mind of Syndromes new lieutenant Shadowkat, and learn what's in those tubes.
Chapter 5
Gods and Monsters
Kitty and Invisigoth sat in the small black room, a smug expression on there faces. Things had gone well. They'd delivered the girl to Macabre, and now all they had to do was think of some kind of excuse for Syndrome. Invisigoth looked up as Syndrome and Shadowkat walked in.
"Well, isn't this nice? You two just, taking time off to go for a pleasant little stroll. Hey, I don't mind. It's not like we're trying to takeover the world or anything" Syndrome said.
"Hey, if I wanted to be imprisoned, I'd turn myself in!" Invisigoth spat out. Shadowkat scowled at this, and her eyes glowed briefly.
"You were meant to be on a mission. You require a lesson in obedience to the master" Shadowkat said, and suddenly, Invisigoth picked up her gun and turned it on herself.
"What are you doing?" Invisigoth asked, as she pulled the safety back.
"I should think that was obvious…I'm killing you" Shadowkat said, as Invisigoth pulled the trigger, sending a bullet into her own brain.
"See, my lieutenant is a firm believer in making examples. Do you understand, Kitty?" Syndrome asked. Kitty nodded, looking at the body of Invisigoth.
"How did Shadowkat do that?" Kitty asked.
"Telekinesis. How else would she do it, Sherlock?" Syndrome asked, walking out of the room.
"Sarcastic jack-ass" Kitty muttered, causing Shadowkat to scowl at her.
"Aw, don't you like my opinion of your little boyfriend?" Kitty asked. Shadowkat, merely gestured, causing Kitty to spasm repeatedly.
"Tap dance around the entire base…fifteen times" Shadowkat said, before exiting as Kitty broke into a frenzied tap dance.
"To easy" Shadowkat muttered, walking away.
Syndrome laughed out loud as he looked at the hundreds of tubes that filled the entire room. Soon now, he would unleash the full power of his army, and crush every last super on the planet. It was all falling into place for him…so perfectly. To think they thought he could be crushed…beaten! And now, he was once more on top of his game, with a loyal lieutenant, and a team of supers. Admittedly, they weren't perfect. Kitty's voice sounded like nails on a black board and Macabre was hiding something…but they still did there jobs. They did them very well. And it would soon be time to let his beautiful creation live…and…Hellfire…where was Hellfire? Ah yes, the boy. Dash Parr. That arrogant freak would soon be in for a nasty surprise.
Hellfire sat in the massive jet plane that Syndrome had designed for them. It was impressive, certainly, but she was growing tired of her "Old friends" arrogance. Clearly, something had to be done…after all; it would no doubt endanger her long term plans. Still, for now it was time to take care of the boy. Bomb Voyage and Baron Von Ruthless both stepped towards the airlock, and leapt out, there parachutes ballooning behind them, while Hellfire simply glided to the ground.
"Fan out, and find the brat. Take down anyone who stands in your way!" Hellfire said, blasting the high school doors in. Bomb Voyage flung a grenade into a wall, blasting it open, while Baron Von Ruthless ripped through a doorway. It happened instantly. A red blur streaked past and decked Ruthless, before speeding towards Hellfire. At the last minute however, Hellfire fired an energy blast from her hands, causing Dash to fly backwards.
"Say good night, brat" Hellfire said. However, Dash managed to zoom away, before punching Hellfire in the face, sending her hurtling into a wall.
"Sorry lady, but you have to be faster than that to beat the Dash!" Dash said a cocky grin on his face.
"Oui monsieur, or at least smarter" Bomb Voyage said, as a suction grenade latched onto Dash, before detonating, knocking him unconscious.
"Nice shot, Voyage. Load the brat into the ship, and then let's go. Syndrome will no doubt want a chance to scream and brag about his plan some more" Hellfire said.
Shadowkat watched Mister Incredible over the monitors, struggling to free himself from the force rack. Pathetic super. How dare this worthless insect turn down a genius like Syndrome. The master had offered him everything…his inventions, his skills, his help. And what did this pompous monstrosity have to say in response?
Fly Home Buddy. I work alone
Threw the vid-screen, she had witnessed this moment, felt Syndromes anguish. He had idolised this hero, and had his dreams crushed by him. She would make Incredible suffer. Oh yes, how he would suffer. She knew just what to do, to make him feel every bit of her masters' pain. She would crush him like a bug.
"Shadowkat, send the drones to retrieve Incredible. It's time to wake my creation" Syndrome says, striding into the room, his cape billowing out behind him. A glorious and dramatic figure, exuding confidence and power. Oh yes, she would make Incredible feel pain for rejecting her master. And not mere physical pain either, the force rack did that. No, she would make him feel anguish that would be fused into his very soul.
Marla smiled as she paced the mini-gun away. It had gone perfectly, and they had managed to take down that bitch Violet with ease. Macabre had been…amazing in battle…even better than back in Tokyo. But now wasn't the time for reminiscing was it? Marla had to smile as she thought of the sheer amount of destruction caused at the school. The news would be talking about it for weeks. The only thing that concerned her was the fact that Macabre had taken Violet into the catacombs, followed by Kitty and Invisigoth, who were carrying a large burlap sack. She'd seen Invisigoths body being carried away, and she'd seen Kitty doing a tap dance down one of the corridors, but Macabre still hadn't come back from the catacombs. As if in answer to her worries, Macabre appeared in the doorway.
"Syndrome wishes to speak with us again. Marla, have you got the tickets?" Macabre asked.
"Sure thing. As soon as we're done, next stop Tokyo!" Marla said.
"Good. Marla, my love…we have so much to do. And whatever else I have done, it has always been to secure a bright future for us. Remember that" Macabre said, as he and Marla left the room.
Syndrome smiled as he saw his team file into the laboratory room. He'd always considered himself an inventor, but this…was beyond all invention. This was just plain cool! He'd done what hundreds of villains had aspired to, but few had succeeded in. he couldn't wait to see Incredibles face. Speaking of the old man, he was being wheeled in, still tied to the force rack.
"Syndrome, I don't know what you're planning, but you're not going to get away with this! And if you hurt my family…" Mr Incredible began, before being sliced across the neck by Kitty, who was…tap dancing? In any case, her neuro toxic nails quickly worked to paralyse his vocal chords.
"What's the matter, old man? Cat got your tongue?" Syndrome asked, grinning at Incredible, who could only scowl back.
"Well, my super villainous associates the time has come, to reveal what I've been working on down here. No doubt some of you thought this was just vengeance…but come on! To get a head in this game, you have to think three steps ahead. So, yeah I wanted to pound Incredible into road kill…but I had a greater goal! A goal which I, Buddy Pine aka Syndrome, have achieved. I have created something more powerful than any super. And now, it is going to be unveiled. Now, Shadowkat kindly remove a blood sample from Mr Incredible" Syndrome said, as Shadowkat lowered a needle to Mr Incredibles arm, and removed a pint of blood with it.
"Now I just have to load it into the machine" Syndrome said, as he placed the vial of blood into the machinery, and one of the tubes began to glow, before hissing open.
"And now…it's aliiiiiiive!" Syndrome yelled out, bursting into laughter, as the thing stepped from the tube. The thing was made of what a casual observer would have guessed was rock, but was in fact a self healing metal of the same design as the Omni-Droid. However, it was also quasi organic, and the thing was clearly breathing. Its eyes were like polished stone, and its body was sleek and powerful. It was black in colour; it seemed to eat the light surrounding it and had a large S on its chest.
"Behold, Oblivion! A living weapon you think…no, no, no! Something far more! For in this creature, I have created an ultimate life form…a being greater than any super! And more now await activation! Behold the face of my army!" Syndrome said.
"How many more are there?" Kitty asked.
"One thousand" Syndrome said, as the gathered villains smiled.
Violet desperately tried to struggle free from the holding devices that encircled her, but clearly they were negating her powers, and so far the mysterious woman next to her had not been a help. She snapped to attention as someone entered the room. He was hidden in shadow, but a costume of some sort was visible.
"Hello, Ms Parr. I do hope you are not too uncomfortable" the voice of the man said. It was calm and cultured, but with a baseline hint of menace. Something about it suggested that this was not a person to turn your back on.
"I'm going to kick the crap out of you when I get free!" Violet yelled, causing the man to chuckle dryly.
"Oh, how can you be so cruel to an old friend? I was at your parents wedding you know" the voice continued, as the man stepped into the light a little more. At this point, Violet noticed he was wearing some kind of visor.
"Who the hell are you?" Violet yelled out, as the man continued walking forward. He simply chuckled again, drawing closer and closer to the light.
"My name is Anthony Lamont, but the world and the spandex set know me as...Gazer Beam" the man said, stepping forward, and revealing himself to be clad in the costume of the supposedly dead hero. But what was most horrific was his face…for his face was nothing but a white skull, with eyeless sockets and a lipless bony grin on his face, as he moved a, literally, skeletal hand to a device on a table.
"And you, my dear young girl, are going to help me immeasurably" Gazer Beam said.
"Guess again you bony freak!" Violet said.
"My dear sweet Violet, you misunderstand. I'm not offering you a choice here. You're going to help me, whether you want to or not" Gazer Beam said, activating the device which began whirring and clicking, revealing itself to be a vicious blade.
To be continued…
Authors Notes: OH-OH! Looks like Violet is in trouble now. But mysteries remain (You're surprised?) like just what the hell is Gazer Beam doing still alive? After all, when we last saw him, he was a corpse in one of the caves of Nomanisan Island. And Syndrome is going to unleash his army, as he and his team tear the city apart, and Shadowkat has a very nasty fate in mind for Mr Incredible. One which, if carried out, will leave him forever changed! Read and Review!