A-I'm glad for all the reviews B-I'm on the verge of finals, so the pace will slow down a bit.
C-No Bitchin' about the grammer and english, if you don't mind Beta-ing, I'd be thrilled.
D-All reviews are welcomed
British Airspace 0350 Hours
'Mina! Please, No!!!'
But the englishman's cries were ignored by the ravenous vampire, as she sank her fangs into the throbbing vein at the side of his neck and sucked....
Mina shot her eys open as she woke in a cold sweat and sprang off the back of her seat with a gasp.
After quickly recolected her self she looked around the cabin she was in, the lights were dimmed, most of the passengers were asleap, including Jack who was next to her, she knew that the others were at the back of the cabin.
Mina peacked outside the window, she could judge it was the final minutes of the Night, as the glow of the aproaching sun was visible.
"Did anyone ever tell you that your growl in your sleep?" mumbled Jack, with his eyes still0 closed.
"I was having a nightmare." she said as she closed her eyes.
"It was sort of a giddy growl"
"Skinner, be kind enough to shut up."
The Tower of London, London 1600 Hours
The League marched threw the Interior of the Historical English Landmark, Big Ben had just struck Four, to the discomfort of some.
"Now what?" asked Marcie as they reached a brick wall.
On it's own, a portion of the wall withdrew, forming a tiny passage that leaked out some light, Mina walked threw without saying anything, a moment later after the League exchanged looks of hesitation, Otto enterd, followed by John, Jack and finally Marcie.
The room they entered was an oval study, lit from the ceiling by a lominus glass dome, the ground was covered by a thick persian carpet.
The furnishing was that of victorian fashion, in the center was a round mahogany tabel with ten leather chairs around it, and eight bookcases, stacked to the brim with volumes, lined the aching walls, some paintings of groups and individuals and some framed photgraphs were hung as well.
Opposite the entrance was a massive muril in the wall that filled the space between two bookcases, it was of a group of knights, in battel poses, bellow it, imbeded in the wall, were,
LXG
The Misfits of Society,
who formed a Consagnuity,
that championed Mankind
"If it's the 'The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen', wouldn't the appropriate abbreviation be LEG?" asked Jack.
"Would you work for a covert military outfit known by the name of a Limb?" answered Mina.
"Point taken."
Each then took to his own, awaiting the arrival of Dame Kate Archer, examinig the aspects of the room.
"Some people would hang just about anything anything on their walls." scoffed Jack as he looked at a well drawn portrait of a gray suit clad, horribly disfigured man with a face that spoke of sin, it was signed at the bottom right by a Basil Hallward1.
Jack turned around to see Mina, sitting on a lather chair eyeing the Portrait with disgust equall to his, added with an emount of hate he never seen before, Hate that made Jack look away with a shudder.
Marcie however was looking at something less contreversial, yet it remained Intriguing to her.
A Black and White Photo, slightly yellowed by age, yet well preserved, It showed a group of five in front of what seemeed like an early version of a car, the Idividuals were a young man in a hat and long coat holding a rifel to the right, a pale man in a dinner suit holding the had of a beautiful prowd looking woman, whom she recognized as Mina. Then an extramly pale man wearing glovees, a buttoneed up trench coat, a hat and pince-nez sunglasses, and finally to the far left was a tall, heavily bearded Indian Man dressed in extravagant attire that included a turban, and tightly held a sword.
Marcie looked back at Mina who was eyeing Jack with hatred in her eyes.
'Must be a lot older than she had led us to think' she thauhgt as she looked back at the photo and read the insciption beneath it: 'T. Sawyer, H. Jekyll, W. Murray, R. Skinner, Cpt. Nemo. 1907'
Marcie's went back to the fourth name, 'R. Skinner'
She rememberd Jack speak of his father, grandfather and great grandfather in Sydney, all named Rodney Skinner, and how he described them as Loyal to the queen.
'Rodney Skinner, a patriot? I think not'
She also remembred Mina's comment, the fact is that Rodney Skinner the 1st would probebly be alive and kicking in 1907, she looked back to Jack and saw him inspecting an ugly paiting, shortly later, one of the bookcases shifted position to make a door which a short mid-aged man came in through, Marcie looked back to the picture and took off her sunglasses to inspect it more carefuly.
All of a suden Jack felt a tap on his shoulder, stateldly he turned to see a short mid-aged man in glasess, bearing a sort of official frown on his face.
"Mr. Skinner?" he asked in a thick, emotionless oxford accent.
"T- That's me." replied Jack with his cockney accet.
"I'm Colin Forrester-Merrick of MI5. I have been assigned to locate a certin individual in exchange of your services to the League, I have a few questions for you"
"Ofcourse."
The two moved away from the others to comence the questionare with some privacy.
"Name?" asked Merrick.
"Lilian C. Skinner, could be just Lilian Crane"
"Last seen when and where"
"Edinburh, three years back."
As the two went on with the Interview, Dr. Octavious felt uneasy, he was not really comfortabel with this crowd, the two Bizare Women, the Frantic Brit and the Pistol Weilding Chinaman, he didn't like hiding his tentacles inside his trench-coat, so he took it off, and the elongabel sinthetic limbs hovered around slightly, then tossed his hat, glasses and trench coat to a leather chair, thinking that evryone knew about it anyway.
'Cept for Merrick.
Merrick and Jack exchanged an emotionless, slightly stiff, and very official Handshake.
"I'll do my best." said Merrick.
"I hope you best is quit efficient." answered Jack coldly.
As Merrick turned to leave, he was extreamly startled to see the four tentacles that stuck out of hole's in Otto's Black shirt facing him, and even seem as if they were seing him, he stagereed back and triped on the rug, but was caught by Marcie.
"Easy there, Old fella." she said with a chuckle.
Merrick tured to see who was catching him,, and saw a woman's face that had two hollow holes where the eys should be.
"THE DEVIL!!" he cried as he pushed himself out of her arms.
"Have a Nice Day Mr. Henry Forrseter Merrick, go do the best you can." said Jack cheerfully.
Merrick hurried to the exit behind the bookshelf and left as he gave the group one last fearful look.
Marcie giggled as she enjoyed scaring people, Jack chuckled as well, John smiled lightly at the Incident while Mina rolled her eyes.
Even Otto, who constantly sported a serious attitude, smiled, he had saw the situation threw his tentacles with out even taking his eyes off the Books.
A few minutes passed, that tension among the group piled up regardless of the gag.
"Good heavens! What the hell did you do to Mr. Forrester-Merrick? He looks like he's seen a ghost!" asked Kate as she came in threw the same entrance as the MI5 official.
"It's not my falt if some stuck-up, queen-halling MI5 terier has no stamina." said Jack.
"I think he means: I felt like it." commeted Mina.
"Good to see you, old friend." said Dame Kate warmly.
"Likewise." replied Muina with a smile.
"Well, I'm Dame Kate Archer, like you might have guessed, I am commander and chief of the League, hence I am the one who handpicked each of you to join this oufit, I know who you all are and where you come from, so lets skip the Introductions"
"Fine with me." said Marcie as all five took their seats.
"For a few months now, Scotlandyard has been conducting an Investigation about a multi-national medical research and pharmacoticals company known as Biocyte2, regarding wether or not it has been conducting Internationaly forbiden Experamints on Gene-Manipulation." said Dame Kate as she sat as well.
"They had an Inside Agent, Simon Blair. Agent Blair used to go to the center or operations twise a week and report his findings, however, one day Agent Blair made an Unschedualed visit, he was struck with a terrible desieas, his comrads had hurried him to a nearby hospital where he was able to infect 9 of the hospital staff, as well as ten of his fellow agents, later on they were contained and sent to the CDC in atlanta,"
"till now scientest have no idea what is this desieas, the simptoms are nothig like they ever seen before what's worse, the twent died less than 36 hours ago, and upon their Autopsy, not much was discovered."
"What were the symtoms?" asked Mina.
"Fatigue & presperation in the first hours, in the second phase there was a steep drop in weight, Mental and Motor Capabilitys, Finally the patients experiended skin deformity and hair loss."
"So why don't you just wipe out Bio-whatsit?" asked Jack.
"We don't think it was them, for one, it seams like they were atempting to incremenate temselves, and then there is the threat"
"What threat?" asked Otto.
"Shortly after all twenty were infected, a message was delivered to my superior in the UN, stating that unless the nations of the world come up with an amount of 450 Billion dollars in five weeks, those responsible for the dessies would release it upon the world. So you see, it's not likely Biocyte is resposible, not direeclty anyway"
"Did they Identify themselves?" asked Jack.
"No, no ames, no front, no cause, no Illaborate code name, no identity whatsoever"
"In the old days the baddies would be decent enough to come with Intriguing Names such as the Devil Doctor3, or the Phantom." scoffed Mina, "I'm guessing we start at Biocyte"
"As I said, it all tracks back to Biocyte, Agent Blair was Infected near it's headquarters in London, there is where you shall begin your inevstigation."
Dame Kate paused before resuming, "Should you succed on this mission; you shall we rewarded for your efforts, but there shall be no decoration nor credit, your accomplishments will only be recorded in my memory and yours. Should you fail; you will be damned to live knowing that the fate of mankind was in your hands and you were not worthy of the task. Either way, I and the UN shall disabow all knowledge of your actioins."
"That's Incouriging." mumbled John.
"Time is running out, Godspead."
MI5 Headquarters, Branch of Special Equiptment
"This way Ladies and Gentlemen." the sixty year old, gray haired, well dressed man said elegently and almost femeninly.
The League followed him as they walked through the crowded Warehouse, crowded with people who varied in age, gender and apperance and crowded with various contraptions, some made to resembel day to day items which one tends to regard as Mundane. The league tried to look not too stand-outish, as Marcie wore her sunglasses and Otto hid his tentacles beneath his trench-coat.
"Sweet Mary! When does that hit the market?" asked Jack, who was Impresed by the sight of a very stylish Motorcycle.
"By 2009, and don't touch anything!" replied the man.
"Jesus! lighten up Mr. Q4"
"I'll have you know, I take very high pride in my work and I have enough people carelesly sabotaging it"
"Noted," said Jack ashe burried his hands into his pockets, "I can tell someone isn't getting any." he mumbled.
Q and the League arrived at a table that had many items on it, the weapon designer then proceaded to demonstrate.
"Now you must forgive me if the equipment don't suit you perfectly, for my superior have not provided me with a thorough comperhension of he nature of you mission, I only leared it involved a sort of Investigation concerning an Illness." he said apoligeticly.
"Something like that." commented Mina.
"First I have these," said Q as he raised a 6 inch long cigar, "It contains a tube of elumanetive material, to activate it, revolve the label-baring tip clockwise and it emits a bright blinding light, turnit counter clockwise and it emmits UV rays,"
"Splended." commented Otto, with no real intrest.
Q then went on to the next item, a slightly oversized revolver.
"I give you the Mycroft5 Corrector, the gun itself is of plastic fiber, rendering it undetectable by metal detectors," he said, "the bullets are filled with a new explosive material, capable of producig a 4 foot-in-diameter hole in a 30 inch thick concreat wall," he continued as he handed the weapon to John.
"Your bluffing!" commented John.
"I don't bluff, Sir. That's what got me this Job."
Q then moved on as John inspected the balance of the weapon, producing a small plastic container.
"This was a bit of an odd request, I never thaught we could come up with a use for this, but I was instructed to issue you this," he said as he unscrewed it, "It's is of a synthetic bio-chemical material, designed to work as Eyecontacts but they cover the conjunctiva as well." he said as raised two tiny slices of geowy nature, both white with a blow circle in the middle.
"I'm begining to really like Dear Katty!" exclaimed Marcie, figuring it was for her, which ment no more parading in sunglasses all day long.
Q then left the table, John set the Mycroft Corrector on the table as he followed Q with the rest.
"Now for our main attraction, I give this," said Q as he pulled the tarp off a blue Audi A6.
"It's a car, what's so briliant about it?" asked Jack.
"Granted It's a nice car though, I'm a BMW man myself but this isn't bad." commented Otto.
"That's the desired reaction, just a car on the surface, but is actually a highly capable means of transportation, assault and camoflage." elaborated Q.
"Were listening," noted Mina.
"It is capable to be running within seconds, and it reaches up to 340 KMpH, that's the transportation part," said Q who then got ito the car, "For the camoflage part," he followed and hit a few buttons inside.
All of a sudden, the blue coating of the vehicle turned into black, and the liscense plates changed as well.
"I'm impressed." said Mina.
"The London Department of Motor Vehicles have both forms of the car registered." said Q, "And for the grand finaly,"
At the hitting of a few buttons inside the car, the barells of a gatling gun emerged from the front bumper, which then tilted side ways a bit, earning approval of the group.
"A 9mm Gatling Gun, the body is entirely bullit proof, the tires are Self-Inflating when required, also equipt with smoke grenades and nail-droppers." elaborated Q, proud of his work.
"I'm VERY Impressed." announced Mina.
"You applied British Machinery to a German Car?" asked Jack almost appauld, "What are you? A Bloody Genius"
"Thank you, I'm quit proud about the Idea myself!" said Q with a wide smile temporarily stepping out of his elegant staidness, before regaining it shortly as he continued without the smile, "Now the car is a prototype, so I'll have to incist it is returned safely"
"Don't worry, well get it back with a full tank of gas." said Jack as peacked in to view the interior.
"Besides all these equiptment, you have been provided with an extra array of fire arms and infiltration equiptment." said Q as he got out.
"More toys for me and John it is then." said Jack.
Author's Notes
1 Basil Hallward is the artists who paint's Dorian Grey's portrait inOsdcar Wilde's the picture of Dorian Grey.
2 Biocyte is the corporation that Invents the 'Chimera' virus in 'Mission: Impossible 2', directed by John Woo.
3 The Devil Doctor is Fu Manuchu, who apeared in the League of Extraordiary Gentlemen Vol 1.
4 Q is the MI5 scietest in Ian Flemyng's 'Jame Bond' book series, made into an ever so succesful Movie Franchise. Was first played by 'Desmond Llewelyn ' in 1963 in 'From Russia with Love', and continued to play the rold for the next 18 or so films, but after his passing, the character was portraied by John Clese. Q supplies the series' star, Agent James Bond 007 with all his state-of-the-art equipment, which he naver is able to see again.
5 The weapon is name after Mycroft Holmes, who is Sherlock's brother and takes over after M in the comic books.