“The Folly of the System - Part 3”
A good system shortens the road to the goal.
-Orison Swett Marden
David North was standing right in front of Agni and he had absolutely no idea why? As far as X-Force had been told, the man was supposedly AWOL after being sent on an undercover mission. Agni just assumed the man didn’t want any part of the organization any more. Despite having done the right thing, Maverick was seen as a traitor by many in XSE for his part in the previous incarnation of X-Force’s downfall. Agni had no such illusions, but he could see why the negative attitudes would start to become grating.
“Maverick, I don’t know what you’re doing here, but I get the strong feeling you’re not on my side,” Agni said, trying to size Maverick up as he talked. The man wasn’t in his usual gold and blue armor. He was wearing a black trench coat, combat boots and Agni could only assume a good bit of armor underneath the coat. Agni wasn’t without his own weapons though and from underneath the sleeve of his jacket, three throwing knives fell between his fingers. “I rather not do this Maverick so let’s say we walk out of here and everyone is happy.”
Maverick raised his gun at Agni, the barrel of it large enough to leave a nice round hole in Agni’s head. “I don’t know you so don’t go throwing around my name. Put her down. Now.”
Her was Chemistra, a former member of The Exiles and a student of Exodus. She had gone off the radar after the group was disbanded and it was assumed she was living a normal life. But at some point she was kidnapped by The System, a group of mutant criminal kingpins, and made to be their personal test subject for new black market technologies. She had just endured a particularly grueling battle and was unable to offer Agni any kind of assistance. If anything, she could very well be a serious obstacle for him.
“Ok putting her down,” Agni said as he slid Chemistra off his shoulder and on to the ground. He never kept his eyes off Maverick and Maverick’s gun never stopped being trained on him. When the unconscious Canadian was set against the steel wall, Agni turned to her for just a moment. It was a conscious decision because he knew Maverick would use that “distraction” to open fire. And true to character he did.
Agni rolled out the way of the shot and let go of his three knives as he did so. The weapons embedded themselves in Maverick’s shoulder, but didn’t look like they did any real damage. That was just fine for Agni because the whole point was just to see how tough Maverick’s armor was. Now, he didn’t feel bad about making his next move.
Quickly getting to his feet, Agni snapped his fingers and a geyser of fire came out from them, striking Maverick square in the chest. The force of the inferno lifted the man off his feet and sent him skidding down the hallway.
Agni moved to pick up Chemistra when he heard something come through the radio strapped to the unconscious Maverick’s hip. “All members of X.S.E. have been captured. X-Force is in custody. We’re coming to your location Maverick.”
“Hell,” Agni said, sliding a groaning Chemistra on to his shoulder. He needed to figure out where they were being held, but first he had to get Megan somewhere safe.
=XF=
Shard was pushed out, hands chained, into the same arena she watched Chemistra battling in only hours before. Now she found herself the battler and would-be source of entertainment for The System and their sick bunch of buyers. Looking up at them in their comfy skybox, she futilely stared daggers of hate.
Adama’s voice came through the microphone system, clear and strong. “No powers and your reinforcements captured. You’re not going to be saved and I will fully enjoy watching our little friend rip you apart.”
Shard clenched her teeth as the shackles around her wrists hissed and fell to the ground. “Just do it and shut up! I’ll be coming for you bastards next.”
“Oh I really don’t think so,” Adama said, Shard seeing his smile in her head.
A gate on the other side of the arena split open and out came a slobbering creature that Shard had only experienced through stories and video. In her time, the slime-covered green insectoid was just a story to keep kids up at night. Her grandmother had personally claimed to have fought with The Brood many times over.
Shard watched the slobbering creature approach slowly on its spindly legs, like some twisted spider deciding how to properly spin its web. If nothing else, the Brood was a predator. Shard hoped it had found humans easy prey before.
“Come on you sorry shit,” Shard said, waving a hand for the creature to come closer. “You think I’m an easy meal huh? Come and see how good I taste.”
The Brood charged at full speed, its mouth wide open and tail poised to strike.
Shard picked up her fallen wrist restraints and waited with a sensei’s patience as the alien charged. When it was close enough to send its tail crashing down, Shard sidestepped it and leaped up on the creature’s back. With a fluid downward motion, she slammed the hook of the open handcuff into the beast’s red eye. The creature hissed and howled as blood gushed out of the fresh wound.
As the creature skittered and fell in pain, Shard grabbed its tail and jabbed the claw-tipped appendage into the Brood’s head. The alien howled again and thrashed around wildly trying to remove Shard from its back. She was able to remain perfectly balanced, one of many attributes owed to her X.S.E. training.
She started to crack the handcuffs across the alien’s head again and again. Her blows started to break through the chitin, putting a number of holes into the Brood’s head. It fell to the ground twitching, almost evoking from sympathy from Shard.
Shard looked up at the skybox. “Must have been malnourished. Its chitin was paper thin. If you’re going to threaten me with death, make it interesting.”
“Very well. I’m not one to deny wishes.”
Shard groaned as a half dozen Brood replacements came through the gate.
=XF=
More than a dozen guns were pointed at the backs of Lorien and Punchout as they were moved through The System base’s underground. The hired guns practically had their weapons stabbing the two mutants in the back. The hall that they were being pushed down was dimly lit and the few lights it did have were blinking. It looked like some scene off a torture horror movie.
They were halfway through the seedy hallway when Punchout paused and bent over to throw up in loud fashion. She had been seconds from being shot before the bile spewed out, turning up the noses of many the hired gun. One, a thin, bearded man, poked his rifle into the back of Punchout’s head.
“Get up! Get up now!” He shoved the gun hard, prompting an angry look from Punchout. Lorien still had his hands clasped behind his head or he otherwise might have tried to give some physical signal for the Genoshan to calm down.
“I’m sick. Show a little compassion,” Punchout said with a snarl as she rose from her bent position. The urge to punch and break bones was infuriatingly high.
“Save the tricks for someone else. Keep moving,” the bearded gun said.
Punchout and Lorien complied, continuing to move down the hall and leaving the pile of her vomit behind. If the hired guns had better lightning or were less worried about Punchout breaking their neck, they would have noticed the miniature figure in the bile. Micromax shook the vomit off of himself like a wet dog after a bath and groaned.
“I swear Brand owes me another week of vacation after this,” Micromax said, crawling into the nearest air vent. He could only hope that the stench of Punchout’s vomit would still making him want to deliver some of his own.
=XF=
Agni set Chemistra’s body down by a door labeled TRANSPORTATION BAY. He hoped that the label actually was as obvious as it seemed. It required a code to enter and Agni immediately went to work trying to figure it out. He pulled a thin plastic film out of his pocket and laid it over the keypad to the door. The plastic lit up red as it started to hack into the system. Another invention courtesy of Forge.
The happy moment was ruined by the sound of two guns cocking. Agni sighed and turned to find two guns in the hands of Maverick staring him down. What the hell had happened to the guy to make him like this? He spoke with his natural German accent (another clue that something was wrong). “Stop what you’re doing. Now.”
“I’m getting this girl out of here. You’re not going to stop me so you might well try and shoot me.” Agni was taking a bet on some part of the old Maverick still being around. It was clear the guy had been through trauma which caused him to not remember those he once served with.
Maverick shrugged and opened fire. The bullets came out at incredible speed, but they were dust before ever touching Agni. A young voice cut through the two men’s tension.
“What the hell is going on?” Chemistra asked, wobbly legs putting her between the two men.
“He’s trying to kill me and I’m trying to rescue you. Pretty simple,” Agni said.
Chemistra narrowed her eyes at Maverick and did the same for Agni. “He’s the only reason I’m still alive. He’s looked out for me.”
Agni inwardly cheered. Good, it meant some of the old Maverick was still there. How he decided to play this next would be vitally important. “We’re not walking out of here without your help David. We need you.”
Maverick put his guns down and frowned. He had the look of a man who had just seen a ghost. “You know my name?”
“Of course I do. We use to work together. And we can again,” Agni said. Forge’s plastic cover had turned blue. All they had to do was walk through the door and get the hell out of here.
“I’m coming with you. I need my past back,” Maverick said, sliding his guns back into their holsters. “But what about the rest of X-Force?”
Chemistra, getting stronger, answered. “We’re going to get them out too.”
Shit! She’s not ready for this, Agni thought. But he also knew there wouldn’t be much point in trying to change her mind. A young woman who could survive in a hellhole like this for as long as she had must have had an iron will. He wouldn’t even try to budge her.
“Where would they take them?” Agni asked Maverick.
David spared a sympathetic glance for Chemistra. “The bastards are cruel. They would want to get some entertainment.”
Chemistra clenched her fists together. “Then we go to the arena and tear that piece of crap down!”
=XF=
The hired guns had taken Punchout and Lorien to the area of the base reserved for its prisoners. The bearded man who had poked Punchout, poked her again. This time in the back. “I’ll be nice and let you pick where you want to rot.”
Punchout growled. “I’m going to enjoy breaking your neck.”
The gun shrugged. “Not without your powers you won’t.”
Lorien smirked. “See that’s the thing.” He leaped into the air and with a single spin of his body kicked the guns out of the hands of three men. Landing to the ground, he swept the feet out under three more. “We know this guy named Forge.”
Punchout cracked her knuckles. “And he figured you might try and shut our powers down.”
Lorien picked up one of the rifles and pointed at the bearded man. “Think of it like a vaccination shot. Your tech is useless.”
The bearded man started to back away from the two mutants. Punchout pounded her fists together. “Wanna start that neck breaking now or later?”
NEXT ISSUE: Does Shard survive her encounter with The Brood? What is The System’s last gamble?
A good system shortens the road to the goal.
-Orison Swett Marden
David North was standing right in front of Agni and he had absolutely no idea why? As far as X-Force had been told, the man was supposedly AWOL after being sent on an undercover mission. Agni just assumed the man didn’t want any part of the organization any more. Despite having done the right thing, Maverick was seen as a traitor by many in XSE for his part in the previous incarnation of X-Force’s downfall. Agni had no such illusions, but he could see why the negative attitudes would start to become grating.
“Maverick, I don’t know what you’re doing here, but I get the strong feeling you’re not on my side,” Agni said, trying to size Maverick up as he talked. The man wasn’t in his usual gold and blue armor. He was wearing a black trench coat, combat boots and Agni could only assume a good bit of armor underneath the coat. Agni wasn’t without his own weapons though and from underneath the sleeve of his jacket, three throwing knives fell between his fingers. “I rather not do this Maverick so let’s say we walk out of here and everyone is happy.”
Maverick raised his gun at Agni, the barrel of it large enough to leave a nice round hole in Agni’s head. “I don’t know you so don’t go throwing around my name. Put her down. Now.”
Her was Chemistra, a former member of The Exiles and a student of Exodus. She had gone off the radar after the group was disbanded and it was assumed she was living a normal life. But at some point she was kidnapped by The System, a group of mutant criminal kingpins, and made to be their personal test subject for new black market technologies. She had just endured a particularly grueling battle and was unable to offer Agni any kind of assistance. If anything, she could very well be a serious obstacle for him.
“Ok putting her down,” Agni said as he slid Chemistra off his shoulder and on to the ground. He never kept his eyes off Maverick and Maverick’s gun never stopped being trained on him. When the unconscious Canadian was set against the steel wall, Agni turned to her for just a moment. It was a conscious decision because he knew Maverick would use that “distraction” to open fire. And true to character he did.
Agni rolled out the way of the shot and let go of his three knives as he did so. The weapons embedded themselves in Maverick’s shoulder, but didn’t look like they did any real damage. That was just fine for Agni because the whole point was just to see how tough Maverick’s armor was. Now, he didn’t feel bad about making his next move.
Quickly getting to his feet, Agni snapped his fingers and a geyser of fire came out from them, striking Maverick square in the chest. The force of the inferno lifted the man off his feet and sent him skidding down the hallway.
Agni moved to pick up Chemistra when he heard something come through the radio strapped to the unconscious Maverick’s hip. “All members of X.S.E. have been captured. X-Force is in custody. We’re coming to your location Maverick.”
“Hell,” Agni said, sliding a groaning Chemistra on to his shoulder. He needed to figure out where they were being held, but first he had to get Megan somewhere safe.
=XF=
Shard was pushed out, hands chained, into the same arena she watched Chemistra battling in only hours before. Now she found herself the battler and would-be source of entertainment for The System and their sick bunch of buyers. Looking up at them in their comfy skybox, she futilely stared daggers of hate.
Adama’s voice came through the microphone system, clear and strong. “No powers and your reinforcements captured. You’re not going to be saved and I will fully enjoy watching our little friend rip you apart.”
Shard clenched her teeth as the shackles around her wrists hissed and fell to the ground. “Just do it and shut up! I’ll be coming for you bastards next.”
“Oh I really don’t think so,” Adama said, Shard seeing his smile in her head.
A gate on the other side of the arena split open and out came a slobbering creature that Shard had only experienced through stories and video. In her time, the slime-covered green insectoid was just a story to keep kids up at night. Her grandmother had personally claimed to have fought with The Brood many times over.
Shard watched the slobbering creature approach slowly on its spindly legs, like some twisted spider deciding how to properly spin its web. If nothing else, the Brood was a predator. Shard hoped it had found humans easy prey before.
“Come on you sorry shit,” Shard said, waving a hand for the creature to come closer. “You think I’m an easy meal huh? Come and see how good I taste.”
The Brood charged at full speed, its mouth wide open and tail poised to strike.
Shard picked up her fallen wrist restraints and waited with a sensei’s patience as the alien charged. When it was close enough to send its tail crashing down, Shard sidestepped it and leaped up on the creature’s back. With a fluid downward motion, she slammed the hook of the open handcuff into the beast’s red eye. The creature hissed and howled as blood gushed out of the fresh wound.
As the creature skittered and fell in pain, Shard grabbed its tail and jabbed the claw-tipped appendage into the Brood’s head. The alien howled again and thrashed around wildly trying to remove Shard from its back. She was able to remain perfectly balanced, one of many attributes owed to her X.S.E. training.
She started to crack the handcuffs across the alien’s head again and again. Her blows started to break through the chitin, putting a number of holes into the Brood’s head. It fell to the ground twitching, almost evoking from sympathy from Shard.
Shard looked up at the skybox. “Must have been malnourished. Its chitin was paper thin. If you’re going to threaten me with death, make it interesting.”
“Very well. I’m not one to deny wishes.”
Shard groaned as a half dozen Brood replacements came through the gate.
=XF=
More than a dozen guns were pointed at the backs of Lorien and Punchout as they were moved through The System base’s underground. The hired guns practically had their weapons stabbing the two mutants in the back. The hall that they were being pushed down was dimly lit and the few lights it did have were blinking. It looked like some scene off a torture horror movie.
They were halfway through the seedy hallway when Punchout paused and bent over to throw up in loud fashion. She had been seconds from being shot before the bile spewed out, turning up the noses of many the hired gun. One, a thin, bearded man, poked his rifle into the back of Punchout’s head.
“Get up! Get up now!” He shoved the gun hard, prompting an angry look from Punchout. Lorien still had his hands clasped behind his head or he otherwise might have tried to give some physical signal for the Genoshan to calm down.
“I’m sick. Show a little compassion,” Punchout said with a snarl as she rose from her bent position. The urge to punch and break bones was infuriatingly high.
“Save the tricks for someone else. Keep moving,” the bearded gun said.
Punchout and Lorien complied, continuing to move down the hall and leaving the pile of her vomit behind. If the hired guns had better lightning or were less worried about Punchout breaking their neck, they would have noticed the miniature figure in the bile. Micromax shook the vomit off of himself like a wet dog after a bath and groaned.
“I swear Brand owes me another week of vacation after this,” Micromax said, crawling into the nearest air vent. He could only hope that the stench of Punchout’s vomit would still making him want to deliver some of his own.
=XF=
Agni set Chemistra’s body down by a door labeled TRANSPORTATION BAY. He hoped that the label actually was as obvious as it seemed. It required a code to enter and Agni immediately went to work trying to figure it out. He pulled a thin plastic film out of his pocket and laid it over the keypad to the door. The plastic lit up red as it started to hack into the system. Another invention courtesy of Forge.
The happy moment was ruined by the sound of two guns cocking. Agni sighed and turned to find two guns in the hands of Maverick staring him down. What the hell had happened to the guy to make him like this? He spoke with his natural German accent (another clue that something was wrong). “Stop what you’re doing. Now.”
“I’m getting this girl out of here. You’re not going to stop me so you might well try and shoot me.” Agni was taking a bet on some part of the old Maverick still being around. It was clear the guy had been through trauma which caused him to not remember those he once served with.
Maverick shrugged and opened fire. The bullets came out at incredible speed, but they were dust before ever touching Agni. A young voice cut through the two men’s tension.
“What the hell is going on?” Chemistra asked, wobbly legs putting her between the two men.
“He’s trying to kill me and I’m trying to rescue you. Pretty simple,” Agni said.
Chemistra narrowed her eyes at Maverick and did the same for Agni. “He’s the only reason I’m still alive. He’s looked out for me.”
Agni inwardly cheered. Good, it meant some of the old Maverick was still there. How he decided to play this next would be vitally important. “We’re not walking out of here without your help David. We need you.”
Maverick put his guns down and frowned. He had the look of a man who had just seen a ghost. “You know my name?”
“Of course I do. We use to work together. And we can again,” Agni said. Forge’s plastic cover had turned blue. All they had to do was walk through the door and get the hell out of here.
“I’m coming with you. I need my past back,” Maverick said, sliding his guns back into their holsters. “But what about the rest of X-Force?”
Chemistra, getting stronger, answered. “We’re going to get them out too.”
Shit! She’s not ready for this, Agni thought. But he also knew there wouldn’t be much point in trying to change her mind. A young woman who could survive in a hellhole like this for as long as she had must have had an iron will. He wouldn’t even try to budge her.
“Where would they take them?” Agni asked Maverick.
David spared a sympathetic glance for Chemistra. “The bastards are cruel. They would want to get some entertainment.”
Chemistra clenched her fists together. “Then we go to the arena and tear that piece of crap down!”
=XF=
The hired guns had taken Punchout and Lorien to the area of the base reserved for its prisoners. The bearded man who had poked Punchout, poked her again. This time in the back. “I’ll be nice and let you pick where you want to rot.”
Punchout growled. “I’m going to enjoy breaking your neck.”
The gun shrugged. “Not without your powers you won’t.”
Lorien smirked. “See that’s the thing.” He leaped into the air and with a single spin of his body kicked the guns out of the hands of three men. Landing to the ground, he swept the feet out under three more. “We know this guy named Forge.”
Punchout cracked her knuckles. “And he figured you might try and shut our powers down.”
Lorien picked up one of the rifles and pointed at the bearded man. “Think of it like a vaccination shot. Your tech is useless.”
The bearded man started to back away from the two mutants. Punchout pounded her fists together. “Wanna start that neck breaking now or later?”
NEXT ISSUE: Does Shard survive her encounter with The Brood? What is The System’s last gamble?