G ADVENTURES: EPISODE ONE
WRITTEN BY MICHAEL EDWARDS
This story is a work of fiction, all characters, places, and products are fictional or used in a fictional manner. Scarlet Tie, Key-Master and Tyke The Teen of Tomorrow are copyrighted by Michael Edwards. Any duplications of this story not authorized by the author is a violation of state and federal copyright laws.
To my brother, Charles. Always believing in my skills when I didn’t. Being the best younger brother a guy could have.
To my teacher George Gunder, giving me wisdom that stuck with me.
“RIGHT FACE, WRONG TIME”
Terrell had been invited to Detroit to treat the mayor. His health took a turn for the worse, he kept it secret from his city and his family. The wife noticed something wrong when the mayor never made it to bed the night before. She found him in the kitchen unconscious, sprawled on the floor. She took him to Herbert-Mitchell Hospital immediately. The ER was the best in Michigan. The hospital built in honor of the two doctors that saved many lives during the dark page of history. The Gods leveling nearly every form of infrastructure.
The doctors ran numerous tests to find out what could be wrong with him. Despite the battery of tastes, they could not narrow down a single diagnosis. So they called one of the best diagnostic technicians in the world.
Terrell walked with the armed escort to the secluded part of the critical care unit. He wore a white turtleneck sweater, black leather jacket, and black jeans. With his black and white sneakers. In his right hand he had his carry bag, in his left hand he held his diagnostic scanner. The device conceptualized by Robert Mitchell and built by Joseph Herbert. Only private practice doctors had the resources to precure them. The technology too dangerous to leave in the hands of many. It could be used to make advanced bio weapons due to its ability to easily catalogue and map dna, viral infections, and process medical information to assist in troubleshooting difficult health problems.
“I hear you are having a hard time,” said Terrell entering the mayor’s private room.
The mayor could only nod. Slowly due to fatigue. Terrell moved to the right side of the bed and let the diagnostic scanner run a deep cellular scan of the mayor. Since MRI’s, blood tests showed nothing. Terrell had suspicions that they had to go deeper to find the cause.
The soft green light swept over the mayor’s body, the data displayed on the flat screen. The diagnostic scanner bore the appearance of an IPHONE. Could do so much more. Terrell tapped the screen a couple of times. His silence made the mayor and his wife prepare for the possible worse.
“You have advanced blood leukemia.” Terrell looked at the mayor. “Which is curable with the leaps in medical silence. You’ll require a bone marrow transplant since your current bone marrow is creating the cancerous blood cells. If everything goes well, you should be back to full health before spring.”
“The one problem is you have a rare blood type as you know. O -negative. It could takes months to find the right donor. The other side of this problem is there is a chance, though small of rejection.”
“What...what would happen if he rejects the bone marrow?” asked the mayor’s wife.
“He would die,” said Terrell. “His body is very weak. So we have to proceed cautiously.”
“We don’t have a lot of time, how do we find a donor?” asked the mayor’s wife.
“We will have to check all catalogued O-negatives in the neighboring states, possibly the whole country. See which one is the closest match.”
“It will take time, the doctors here can keep him comfortable. I’ll assist in finding the donor by checking local channels.”
Terrell left the room. Sticking his diagnostic scanner in his bag. The fingerprint reader shut the device down since it no longer registered the activation key.
-
Kirk was neck deep in his research. Studying cloned cells cultivated from extinct animals and plants. The current slide had the cells of a black horned rhino. They had collected all the ivory from the black horned rhinos, horns to make a viable base to start cloning. The process they used to cause cell division worked wonders with the plants. The animals they were having more difficulty with.
Seeing the cells do nothing for hours nicked at Kirk’s confidence that he would crack the very method that would help expand humanity’s food supply. They could only eat beans,lettuce, and roast pork for so long. Pigs were one creature that bred quicker during the Gods Age.
“Dammit!” said Kirk, turning his eyes away from the slide. “Why doesn't it work?”
Kirk rubbed his eyes. He removed the slide and put it back in the sterile container. He created four separate batches for the tests, all had failed to bring any results. He hoped that by studying the failed batches that he could make on last successful try.
The late hour spurred a yawn out of Kirk. He shut the power off on the equipment and headed home to the Keyhole where he would get some sleep. Try again tomorrow.
The cell sample he put away began to divide, replicate at a rapid rate due to some unseen force. Cellular mutation became rampant, changing key genomes, the fridge could no longer hold the hulking creature that grew out of it. The door and small fridge exploded outward. The creature looked around. angry, confused. The last memory a gunshot to its head. The creature crashed through the wall setting off the alarms in the Herbert-Mitchell bio lab. The alarms reached the main hospital security staff.
The read out displayed on the computer, level 4 breach of the bio-lab.
Security activated lock down procedures to contain what biohazards maybe in the bio lab. Calling the New Detroit Police Department and Fire Department. The new organism smashed through several walls until a steel door started sliding down. The creature snorted, getting under the door and pressed up with its great strength. The smoking gears buckled under the strain. The creature ripped the door out of its housing and sent it flying down the hall.
-
Kirk woke up at the sound of the security alarm. He had a special program in the core computer of the Herbert-Mitchell Bio Lab to warn him of potential break ins, or sabotage. He hurried out of bed and changed into costume, the read out on his massive computer screen showed him a cellular scan of something leaving Kirk’s private workspace. He recognized the black rhino dna, horrified that it mutated beyond the original intent.
“Tyke, are you awake?”asked Key-Master sliding the mask over his face.
“I don’t sleep, remember.” said Tyke coming from behind the spiral staircase that led up into Kirk’s private area. “Well, at least much.”
“Get dressed,” Key-Master said activating one of the tumblers to lower one of his programmable matter equipment. “NOW!”
“All right, you didn’t have to shout…”
-
Terrell was in the main building, he saw something crash through the south eastern wall from the cafeteria. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out the oni mask and scarlet tie. The mask’s yellow kanji on the right cheek glowed. So did the tie. Scarlet Tie walked through the space between dimensional planes, two or three steps got him close enough to see the monstrosity. It stood at a frightening 15 feet tall, its muscles grew one more size to match its final height. The yellow magic tinted eyes of the Scarlet Tie widened as the creature looked down at him.
It roared, bad breath and spittle splashed against the oni mask.
“You need a breath mint,” said the Scarlet Tie with the inhuman voice the mask gave him. “Let me guess, an uncontrolled mutation.”
The black rhino’s gray eyes narrowed on Scarlet Tie with malice. It brought its left hand quickly around, the large palm striking Scarlet Tie in the side. Sending him toward an angle of th
e building where Scarlet Tie’s head would surely be split open.
Scarlet Tie shifted between dimensions and space. Where science did not rule. Lowering himself to the ground through the magics of the mask and tie. Scarlet Tie reappeared behind and to the right of his opponent.
“That wasn’t nice, pal.”
Rugged breathing, hate filled eyes. The creature moved with a disregard for anything in its path. Scarlet Tie dodged its next charge. appearing behind the creature, on the roof of a parked sedan. His breath like mist. Eyes pulsing with the yellow tint.
The creature charged, its horn punctured through the passenger door. Lifting the car up with inhuman strength. Scarlet Tie moved again. This time directly behind the creature. He punched the small of its back. The dull thud, the thick hide. Scarlet Tie didn’t have the strength to harm the creature.
Scarlet Tie avoided the creature’s back fist. Kept it moving. To chase him. The nearby hospital would be safer that way. The creature followed like a bloodlusted bull. Scarlet Tie keeping enough distance to lure the creature some place where no else could be harmed beside himself. The creature followed, showing no signs of fatigue.