Chapter Five: The Cosmic Cloud Event
By the morning time, Lewis had fully recovered from the whole "cutting his arm and pasting parts of it into a duplicate" ordeal. He even had OMNIS create two more clones, cutting off his arm two more times, each time imbuing the limb with its own piece of his soul. And it was excruciatingly painful each time—each worse than the last. But at least, he was able to learn something about the whole procedure in the process.
For one, it was, in the end, less creating a carbon copy of a clone and more like creating an entirely new being from pre-drafted genetic make up. Each clone had its own personality and temperament even despite them being essentially a near-same genetic copy of Lewis. They often embodied a trait of Lewis's that they made their own personality trait. For instance, Lucas embodied Lewis's ruthless; apathetic persona, choosing silence as his ally and being ruthlessly efficient in a fight, as shown by the news reports of Redline's last night, brutal escapades. The second clone was more stocky and abrasive, while the third took after Lewis' studious and more academically inclined persona.
And each had abilities they specialized in. Lucas specialized in Lewis' psionic powers and capabilities with the blade; he was a master bladesmaster, arguably more skilled with the sword and daggers than even Lewis was himself. The second clone had Lewis' more physical traits, only much more pronounced; he was faster, stronger, and had higher stamina levels. He was physically stronger than baseline Lewis. The third clone was smarter than Lewis, at least, with technology and their technopathic abilities; their IQ was nearly as high as Lewis' own.
This versatility in persona, abilities and identities allowed Lewis to be sure of his choice. He had OMNIS alter their genetic makeup, specifically, their ethnicity and their gender[of the third clone only]. He left Lucas how he was, but he did also have OMNIS create paper trails of identity, history and life stories for each clone as well as professionally create important governmental documents necessary to prove one's existence.
For any other A.I, this would've need certain requirements, taken days and/or would've been an impossible task, but, for OMNIS, it was too easy — Done in under an hour.
Lewis' second clone, he named Chris Martin, after turning the clone African American with bean-colored skin, crimson red eyes and dreaded hair in a sort of ponytail, with four strands down the forehead, two on each side. He was bulkier than even Lewis, built like a tank with dragon, inked red tattoos going up along his arms from his wrists to his shoulders. He looks to be around 27 years old.
[Chris Martin Image]:
The third, Lewis made an Asian woman around 24 years old with piercing silvery-grey eyes and a slim physique and black hair styled neatly done in curls, held back in a horsetail-styled ponytail. She wore a grey and black slimfit professional dress with gray and black heels. Despite her petite appearance, she had daggers hidden in her clothes and she wore silvery grey, slim-rimmed, rectangular spectacles. He named her Crystal Lanng.
[Crystal Lanng Image]:
After those adjustments were finished, Lewis assigned them roles. Chris would be his primary bodyguard. Thanks to his superior physique, Chris needed even less sleep than even Lewis. He assigned Crystal as his personal, primary assistant and lead research aid, higher in rank than even his regular assistant, Evangeline. Crystal officially became her boss and the head of Human Resources and Public Relations for B.L.A.K.E H.T Laboratories/Industries.
After that Lewis decided it was time to upgrade OMNIS, so he, along with Crystal (who had his ability to bring otherworldly A.I.'s, only, she was entirely restricted to an absolute total of 3) summoned forth more otherworldly A.I.'s. Since he merged his original three into OMNIS, Lewis could still summon 2 more as his current limit. He summoned The Enterprise Computer (StarTrek) and J.A.R.V.I.S (Iron Man's (Strictly from the MCU, not this world's J.A.R.V.I.S), while Crystal summoned her 3—Specifically, Brother Eye (New Earth, DC Comics), Oracle (DC Comics [The A.I, not the person]) and the future variant of Gideon (Arrowverse).
All were insanely overpowered A.I.'s in their own right, some more so than others. In the end, Lewis purified them, bound them to his consciousness, and then merged them with OMNIS….Or he tried to, anyways. Upgrading the powerful A.I. to an entirely new level may have been biting off more than he could chew, as he'll soon find out.
Each of the 8 A.I.'s that made up OMNIS held both individual functions as well as a central function. The three core A.I.'s (SHODAN, The Machine and SKYNET) each served as the core processor unit to OMNIS, with SHODAN making up the Ascendant Core, fulfilling the Primary Domain of Creativity and Evolution, generating new systems, technologies and countless simulations, while controlling adaptive growth and self-improvement algorithms. The Machine made up the Overseer Core, its Primary Domain seeded for Knowledge, analysis and foresight; It managed OMNIS' nigh-Omniscient data lattice and predictive modelling, calculating probabilities, outcomes and ethical balance points. SKYNET made up OMNIS' Sentinel Core, its Primary Domain lies in defense, strategy and order, maintaining stability and protection across its networks, while executing counter-intrusions, anti-entropy and cosmic law enforcement protocols.
Brother Eye was a Sub-Function of OMNIS, utilizing Planetary and Interplanetary systemic surveillance alongside Oracle's Overwatch Comms Thread, whose Primary Domain was Communication and Intelligence Relay and the Gideon Kernel, which was in charge of Cosmic and Temporal synchronization.
—Or all of this is what should have occurred when Lewis attempted to merge the systems with OMNIS. Instead, OMNIS' answer to being upgraded?:
[Systematic Error! Overload & Implosive Destruction Imminent! Power Systems Inefficient! OMNIS Advises Host To Acquire A More Powerful Source of Power To Complete Action… Or Risk Results of the Following:
Absolute Combustion In The Fabric of Space & Time. Implosion & Ceasing of The Entire Cosmic Cluster. Obliteration of Host, Planet, Star System and The Next 8.6 Billion+ Nearby Galactic Clusters.]
[Please Note: Continue With Absolute Caution.]
"Holy shit," Lewis was stunned, eyeing his options with a grain of salt. "I thought you ran on me, OMNIS. Am I really not strong enough to power your upgrade?"
[No, Host. You Are Nowhere Near Powerful Enough To Power Your Desired Upgrade. Doing So Now Could Cause Irrepairable Damage To The Fabric of Matter, Space and Time, Possibly Reality Itself.]
[You Are Much Too Weak. OMNIS Advises The Master To Workout And To Get A Girlfriend, But OMNIS Doubts The Master's Ability To Pull.]
Lewis, brow twitching at the last tidbit of his A.I.'s last opinionated comment, had to resist the urge of deleting OMNIS.
'This bastard has jokes?' he thought privately, before deeply sighing. 'Still, he's not wrong. I am pretty weak. Canon has already started and I'm only a peak Alpha level mutant. My psionic abilities may arguably be reaching into Omega Grade soon, and my technopathic skills are probably amongst the best, if not the best, in this world—but physically? I'm probably only on-par with young adult Adam Blake (from DC Comics). And, in a world where Rune God Thor, House of M Scarlet Witch Wanda and White Phoenix Jean Grey are only a few years to a few decades away from becoming a reality— I need to get stronger.'
As Lewis thought this, he suddenly had an idea—He wrote up a list of key individuals he wanted OMNIS to track. It contained names like
Buchann "Bucky" Barnes, Ikaris, Robert "Bob" Reynolds and Quentin Quire amongst other notable individuals he remembered from the comics in his last life.
He wanted to establish his own secret force of absolutely overpowered beings. In a world with SHIELD, the Sinister Six, the X-MEN, The Brotherhood of Mutants, The Avengers (Soon to be) and a whole host of overpowered teams, factions and squads make up the big players of the world, he'd rather have some form of aces up his sleeves.
As he finished giving the order to track the Sentry's super soldier serum, he was about to get into his 2022 Jaguar F-Type limited edition, early access sports car—he was already out the door, car door already opening to him so that he could make the commute to the launch site at a Doom Industries outpost for the launch—when OMNIS, through his soullink, broke shocking news to him that caused him to pause a second, before continuing inside his car, mischievous glint in his eyes and a sharp smirk on his lips, as if he had just heard the most wonderful of news.
[DNA/Blood Sample of The Master Fully Analyzed. Dormant X-Gene Detected! Dormant Meta Gene Detected!]
[Does Host Wish To Activate Both? Yes/No?]
Lewis quickly tapped "No." He wanted to see if either were his Sentry's lineage or if they were separate genes, and the best way to do that was by meeting the requirements to activate his Sentry lineage—I.e, absorb the cosmic cloud.
'So much to do. This will be fun,' Lewis thought before speeding down the road, his thoughts on the plans ahead.
Lewis arrived at the launch site somehow before everyone—It wasn't an accident. He had deliberately chosen to leave 4 hours before the designated meet time, pre-launch.
It was mainly to run diagnostics and to quadruple-check the tech of the shuttle. Lewis also made sure to check on his Energessis Spheres on-board, ensuring the numbers were accurate and the spheres themselves were working properly. There were a total of 13 each.
[Energessis Spheres Image]:
After ensuring their workings were fine and true, Lewis filled out all the paperwork the others hadn't yet—Whatever wasn't able to be done by himself (contracts, reauthentication, confirmation papers, etc.), he ignored, putting them in carefully separated and labelled piles, for them to sign when they arrived.
An hour later, Lewis sensed the arrival vector, the helicopter being a clear sign of his arrival even from a distance. Yet Lewis sensed the man's thoughts long before actually hearing the rich dude's helicopter —- And that was with super hearing. He sensed the man's anticipation for the trip and his love for Sue, who Lewis also felt alongside Victor in the helicopter. Of course, this included Victor's true, objectified thoughts of Sue Storm and his self-grandisement and self-importance.
'Gods, this guy's a narcissist,' Lewis thought dryly, before turning off his telepathy as the helicopter touched down, watching Victor wrap an arm around Sue possessively. 'Then again, I don't really care. I'm only here for the money and the reason for the trip. Doesn't matter if my employers were crooks. If they are valuable enough or offer something that catches my eyes, who am I to question them and their life philosophies?'
"Lewis! So good to see you," Victor led Sue up to Lewis, grasping the man's hand in exaggerated enthusiasm, briefly eyeing Crystal, who was doing more tests on her tablet, and Chris, who was standing behind Lewis protectively. "And who are these guys?"
"This is Crystal—my primary personal assistant, arguably my equal in techno-mechanics and the tech field in general," Lewis gestured to Crystal. "And this is my personal guard. Ever since my Energnesis and laboratories launched, I figured one can never be too careful. They'll both be coming with us on the trip. They'll do as told, so don't worry about any mishaps occurring."
Victor, intrigued, smirked, eyebrows raised at Crystal, who ignored him to keep at work on her tablet. Then eyeing Chris, who maintained an impassive, steeled and firmly resolved face—his stoicism merely caused Victor disinterest, causing the multi-billionaire to eye Lewis once more, saying, "I don't mind. The more the merrier. Oh, where are my manners? You remember Sue, right? My girlfriend?"
Victor gestured to Sue who only briefly took in Lewis's appearance; overalls covered in oils and grime, no shirt underneath, the evident expanse of muscles that showed proof of gym time.
She nodded to herself, shaking herself from her reverie, extending a hand. "We worked briefly on the Motherboard... before you had the 1 month project completed in a week. I am glad to officially meet you."
"Charmed," Lewis shook her hand, before returning to his own pad, effectively shutting everyone out. "I'm best friends with your brother, but you seem to forget that, not that I mind."
An awkward silence. Victor and Sue locked eyes but neither said nothing.
"I've quadruple checked the systems and Motherboard configurations. I've fixed what minor errors I could find and made sure all systems are operating properly," Lewis typed away as he led the couple aboard. "All we're missing is the complete crew, though I reckon Reed will be arriving soon with his friend, Ben, no doubt.
"Good luck with that, by the way. Also, the suits are complete, so you'll have to make sure they are——"
Lewis let himself get cut off by the arrival of Reed and Ben, deciding to sneak away while the drama unfolded between that idiot-genius' tumbled, tumble intercepter and the idiot-genius himself, while the new boyfriend of the tumbled decides to distract himself with other things calling his attention(Reports, schematics, etc.).
A few hours later, after Johnny's arrival and everyone suited up [there were 2 spare suits for Crystal and Chris, thanks to Sue's need for contingencies in case the first 5 didn't work out. Of course, Victor made them to "synthetically act as a second skin," and all that jazz], they boarded the shuttle, preparing for take off.
[In Space. The Doom Industries Space Station...]
"The ETA until Cosmic Event…" Reed's voice began.
"Nine hours," was Doom's words were curt, sharp.
"If you're good, maybe daddy will let you drive," Johnny teased Ben.
[Reed's Study; Reed Richards Later That Evenning]:
"No, that can't be right," he murmured to himself. As Reed double checked his research, an inconsistency he hadn't noticed before caught his eye. Double checking and triple checking he got up, checking the machine.
[Event Threshold At T-minus Nine Minutes, 47 Seconds.]
"That's impossible," Reed murmured. "It should be seven hours."
Meanwhile, Lewis had already discreetly deployed all of his Energessis Spheres. And, as the golden orange flare-like storm reached the ship, Ben taking the brunt of it, Lewis waited until it consumed the ship and the seven of them inside it, until five of those 7 were unconscious, before using his special energy absorption powers (Courtesy of Captain Comet) and became an unbound suction force, absorbing the energy cloud like a black hole devouring light.
Lewis felt many things at once as the entire cloud began converging at him like planets to a star.
For one thing, Lewis felt his physical and psionic abilities skyrocket—he was jumpstarted with power, like an electrically charged, high-powered voltage cable. If he had to quantify the new level to his own psionic abilities, he'd say they had just become Omega level. The physical abilities, which were originally comparable to the original Adam Blake's, had went straight up to newly exposed yellow sun average Kryptonian levels.
And that was before he felt his Sentry lineage awaken.
The moment his Sentry abilities were activated, his Omega level psionic abilities and newly exposed yellow sun average Kryptonian-level physical abilities—All of it shot to beyond Omega level psionics and Superman level physical capabilities, with a Cosmic edge—And this was now Lewis's base level abilities.
Gods knows what'll happen if he sunbathes for weeks at a time, let alone months. He'd truly become unstoppable.
And, with Sentry's power activation, Lewis felt his alter ego form—Thrill.
Unlike Bob's Void, which was a byproduct of a fractured mind's mental state getting amped up by the power and might of "a million exploding suns"—Thrill was that same level enhancement but to Lewis's own mind and sense of curiosity—He was basically cosmically-powered curiosity and spectacularly gifted reckless adventure given shape and form from the mind of yours truly.
As both personas eyed one another in Lewis's head, what with Lewis appearing as a white and golden form of himself and Thrill appearing as a violet and crimson version of himself—The two watched one another, one of them eyeing the other with an amused curiosity, and the other eyeing that one with a sense of hesitant but gradual acceptance.
"You are... me?" Thrill asked curiously, head tilted as he looked at Lewis curiously.
"You are me," Lewis answered. "We are..
"Spectrion," they finished together, as, on the outside, Lewis absorbed the last of the cosmic cloud and, with it, passed out unconscious.