Tags: Psychological Thriller, Urban Noir, Vigilante, Mature Themes, Serial Killer, Crime Drama
⚠️Authors Note - Mature Content
"This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, nations, corporations and events are products of the author's imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real events or persons is coincidental."
Date - 08th December
Character Name - Near
Location - Promise City, Ct
District - Old Promise City, Eastern Docks
Time - 0200 (0200 AM)
The warehouse sat seemingly abandoned. All roads leading to it were vacant. Armoured APCs lined the outside. It was old from the 1920s. BlueJet Soldiers patrolled the empty alleyways, walked along the balconies and guarded the doorways.
'Boys, make sure you search every corner. Mr Asanta wants this site secure.'
Detective Brady knelt behind a barrel.
Near stood, his UI analysing the warehouse.
'How fast can you move?' Near asked.
'How fast do you need?'
Near snapped his calm gaze to Brady.
'Fast.'
Using the shadow Brady darted forwards, crouching lower as he approached the warehouse entrance. His magnum pistol drawn. He reached a wooden crate.
'Near.. I agreed to help you…'
He peered over the top of the wooden crate he hid behind.
Two troopers appeared, one kicked the snow mound in front of the door.
Moisture billowed from their masked faces.
'It's friggin freezing.'
'Apparently, the tower was hit by Kodoma… they say the Vigilante was there too.'
Behind the troopers one of BlueJets wonders emerged, a Krieger Hund.
Metal pressed into snow as the robotic dog advanced, its optics flickering once before locking onto the yard.
Brady's brown eyes widened.
'Crap..' he muttered, being faced with the robotic canine death machine.
'Did fido see something?..hey KH-022 did you see something?'
The metal hound did not move. Its position locked in like an arrow. A garbled metallic growl, sounding more like words rumbling from its jaws.
'Hey! KH-022 has something.' Another trooper announced-
The BlueJet operatives moved closer. Brady's heart raced. He slowly raised his pistol. He watched as the troopers walked forward-
Their rifles muzzle scanning in front of them. Their boots crunched as they landed upon the snow.
Both of the soldiers were within touching distance. Brady practically hugged the barrel… and then-
A silhouette. A shadow. Appeared behind them.
WWWWWZZZzzzzzzziiiippppppp
A titanium line tripped them and then-
SMASH SMACK
- Nears fist landed on the back of the head and elbow to the other -
Near stood powerfully, arms apart, his cape swaying, as snow slowly landed around him.
The hound lurched at Near. Its jaws gnaw uncontrollably.
CHOMP CHOMP
He scanned for a weakness, and then he found one. His cowls UI scanned. It searched, eventually it found it-
One of the gears in its neck.
KRACK
He ripped the gear out, and with a final flicker of its beady red eyes it collapsed.
'BlueJet never did fix its creations' flaws.' Near said calmly-
Brady emerged from the barrel-
'I could've taken them-'
'Sure you could.'
Near typed on his wrist gauntlet.
'..You.. can NOT afford to be seen by BlueJet Security. Your life would be over.'
Brady stood up straight-
'Over-? Hardly.'
He scoffed, adjusting his long brown rainhat.
Near approached.
'A detective firing at Corporate operatives -?.. The whole city would try to kill you.'
'Then how can I help you? I can't do much.'
'Wait here. Guard my exit.'
The entrance to the Lab was hidden, albeit not well enough. Near's UI found the entrance, hidden behind a false wall, the steel corridor led to the wider lab.
Near pressed a button on his gauntlet-
While Near prepared his entrance into the Lab. Sunohara patiently and methodically hacked BlueJets systems, using what he learned from his previous failure. Near does not usually tolerate failure, but Sunohara is his friend, but that doesn't make him immune to laughing at his expense.
BlueJet was now blind, not they knew it. Sunohara was now able to broadcast the illusion of an ordinary night patrol to the security detail somewhere else in the city.
He swiftly passed through doorway after doorway, each one labeled by a placard with the test subject's code name.
Penndragon
Talon
Luna
Next to the names were the abilities of the test subjects-
Invulnerable Skin
Superhuman Intelligence
Unlimited Energy
Near walked slowly through the steel hall, slowly he approached the main hall. His UI was full of data he downloaded from the many terminals he found along his way.
He was using a drive given to him by Sunohara. Ultra fast, multilayered-
Beep Beep Beep Tap Tap
'Sunohara. This lab is being used to create Meta humans.'
His UI scanned the chemicals being pumped into the vats of where the children rested, alive, but unconscious.
[Status - Alive
Name - Penndragon
Gift - Invulnerable Skin]
There was a pause.
['Sorry Near, I thought you said this lab was being used to create Meta humans.']
'You heard me right.'
Thud thud thud
His boots pounded the metallic ground. Near marched with purpose, his hands clenched at his sides.
['So… the Owls kid?... was being used to create Meta human super soldiers...']
'Yes.'
He pressed a button on his gauntlet's side.
And with a final- BEEP
The UI vanished.
['So what now?']
'I free the kids in the lab.'
Near entered a circular room at the end of the corridor. The hazard containment door opened automatically.
The Main Lab…
The huge lab was wide, full of different terminals. Experiments within glass cages and giant vats of green liquid. There was company propaganda that lined the white walls. Phrases such as;
"Don't leave your workstation unattended, you're on the company dime". The entrance was at the top of the lap, metallic stairs descended to the main workstation. At the bottom of the stairs, there was a lone terminal, a box monitor and an old fashioned 1950s keyboard.
Approaching the terminal he slid a data-drive into its side. He clicked the keyboard, and one by one he downloaded each subject. Totalling thousands of gigabytes.
Click click click tap tap tap
….
[Subject Name: Talon
Age: 5
Alias: Sewer Boy
The asset was found in the sewers underneath Promise City.
After being originally lost by BlueJet operatives in 2017.
It was recovered from the DreamLand District Hospital after substantial bribes to local officials, and hospital staff. Leaving the DreamLand District more commonly known as the Wound was more difficult than initially determined. The Owl Criminal Organization proved difficult, giving hard resistance to BlueJet Security forces. On a side note, it is also rumored by elements of the underworld, who swear this is true, the Don, real name; unknown, the Owl herself has been raising the subject as her own. Her maternal 'bond' will prove an annoying variable to overcome.
The subject is currently in permanent cryostasis. Routine checkups and tests are required.
Electronically Signed: Dr Malcolm Stout
….
Near typed quickly, he read the screen in front of him as text appeared, line after line.
['My god-']
Sunohara's voice echoed in Near's ear.
['We found him.']
'Yes we have Yohei.'
Tap Tap Tap Tap
'I am downloading the files, you will see a copy on your side.'
['Getting it now.']
Then there was a pause, it was brief but it was there.
BEEP BEEP BEEP-
["WARNING! ALL POD DOORS OPENING! PLEASE FIND THE NEAREST EVACUATION ROUTE!]
Near looked around his eyes narrowing-
'Sunohara-'
['Not me, Near.']
'Fix it.'
['I've been looked out.']
I was wondering when you'd appear here, vigilante.
An intercom blared, the transmission static popping.
Julian must've squawked. But… my other toy has dealt with Julian I didn't order him to-
The speaker paused-
But he does what he wants anyway.
A large lock clicked, followed by a screaming siren-
A red light flashed, reinforced bars rose from the grated ground, glass windows became reinforced and doors triple and quadruple locked in place.
["WARNING! Final Security Door Unlocking."]
Good luck. You'll need it.
The transmission ended and with it, the beginning of a new nightmare.
Near looked at one of the monitors to his side-
On the feed there were a row of six pods. All opened. But one. A malfunction. Talons. The Owl's son.
One by one the monstrosities rose from their frozen slumber.