As the stone touched my gauntlet, I connected with it and through it the Galaxy Core Device (GCD) itself. How did it feel to use a device that could destroy galaxies and create new ones?
You’d think it would be a moment of enlightenment or maybe ascension, since you assumed powers that you’d normally think were reserved for gods.
What surprised me is how normal it felt. I’d been absorbing knowledge from my implant on demand for years now. I’d been training with Kee to understand what Artificers could do for years and while I’d only been interfacing with Abominator and Artificer technology with those skills for a few days, it felt natural. Continue reading Engine: Part 1→
“That’s the best one so far,” Ray said. “When you say how much it can modify you is your choice, how much of a choice do you have?”
“Well,” I deliberated how much I wanted to tell him, but decided to be honest. “I’ve got one. When I got hurt one time, it offered me options, and I went with my choice. It didn’t try to force me to turn myself into a cyborg.”
Ray nodded. “That’s good so far. Where does it force you to do things? You probably can’t turn against the Xiniti, right?” Continue reading Magnus: Part 10→
I’d never spent enough time talking to Ray to notice how irritating he could be. I wouldn’t go so far as to say I preferred it when he was trying to kill me, but still.
“Okay.” I paused for a few seconds and then continued, “It’s not as if I have a big pile of options here. I don’t think you’re going to like my next one either, but if you want garuanteed results, it’s the best one…”
Ray shrugged and then smirked, “It’s like I always say to my team. There aren’t any bad ideas, but there are ideas I won’t bet my life on. Go for it.” Continue reading Magnus: Part 9→
Plus, of course, even if I could somehow trust him, there were practicalities to consider.
Ray had died by some combination of accidentally grabbing a power line so hard that he broke through the protective covering, and Sean ramming a “Deer Crossing” sign through his chest.
Since Ray had lost the “copied Cabal powers” version of himself and lapsed into unconsciousness before the sign hit, I’d suspected that the electricity had killed him.
It was hard to know, though. Though regeneration would have gone away when he turned back to normal, he might have healed just enough to survive—maybe. Continue reading Magnus: Part 8→
I turned off the rockets and let my anti-gravity take me to the ground near Ray. Colette, I noticed, was nowhere to be seen and my implant showed me footage of her running off into the room’s general melee around the point where Magnus transformed into the next stage of an Artificer’s life.
Ray turned toward me, the flat stone in his right hand.
“Hey,” he said, “we’re not done. You got what you want. Magnus is dead. Now, I need to get what I want.”
I didn’t know how much Magnus knew about electricity, but he had to know about rivers. Flooding caused massive problems in the ancient world. It wasn’t great for dams in the modern world either.
Overloading electrical components wasn’t the same, but loose parallels existed. Anyway, if he pulled in too much power at once, he’d be the component that burned out or the newly shattered dam.
With a wide smile, Magnus continued, “You might think you can avoid submitting to me, but are you willing to allow your friends and family to die for your freedom? If I were to strike the first Rocket with my power, you’d cease to exist.”
Then he began to laugh. “So what is it hero? Give me the ability to trust you or risk your very existence? Not to mention making me kill your grandfather.”
He smiled again. “Or you grandmother. It truly doesn’t matter which. What’s important is the end result.”
Magnus kept on talking. Ray hadn’t been wrong in calling him a blowhard.
I couldn’t complain. It gave me time to figure out the next step, whatever that turned out to be. It was supposed to be distracting Magnus so Ray could backstab him. That might still be the plan, but Ray didn’t seem to be in any hurry. Continue reading Magnus: Part 1→
On a completely theoretical level, you could imagine that with me pulling power from the device to cut and Magnus pulling power from the device to protect himself we’d be equal.
Anyone who’s ever designed anything knows that’s utter garbage, though.
The amount of power you can get out of something depends on where in the system you’re pulling it from, how you’re using that power, what you’re using it on, and too many details to list. With more complicated devices, your access level to the control systems and your level of skill matter, too. Continue reading Singularity: Part 20→
Energy built and then spread outward in an explosion of power, but fortunately not a physical one. Well, sort of fortunately, in the sense that it was a lot of energy that I’d rather not be hit with. It was less fortunate in the sense that Power Burst, Jody, Amnesia Angel, Artemis, Scream Eagle, and maybe again Ray had absorbed a lot of energy and I had little doubt they intended to transfer it in my direction.
If I hadn’t been flying and aiming lasers at the Cabal, I might have tried to reach in and cut off Magnus’ power. That might end the fight, depending on how giving out powers worked. If empowering minions were more like lighting a candle than plugging in a radio, it would be harder. Continue reading Singularity: Part 16→
The Legion of Nothing: A Series of Online Superhero Novels (Updates Monday and Thursday)
