Veldron 21: Re Count

Veldron's Saga 21: Re Count

I was secure under the ocean and I had more than one mystery on my hands.

I decided to lay low for awhile unless Shadow contacted me, and tried to make sense of the pattern.

The Captain went missing somewhere in Australia. Let's call that Day One. Day three, Polaron was last sighted in Mexico. I'd caught StarFyre on day five, and attracted hero attention. FrostWing had disappeared somewhere between day eight and day thirty. On day... what, forty? Forty-two?... I was captured by the Squad, and Neria went missing. The defence system records put StarFyre's escape on day forty-nine. It was day fifty-nine, and I wasn't aware of any other disappearances.

How many of them were cause for concern? Were some of the others like StarFyre, just randomly captured and assumed to be related due to all the paranoia? Were there others that I didn't know about?

After nearly two months, why hadn't there been a ransom demand? Did somebody just want to keep the Captain out of the way until their doomsday plan was complete? Had he... been killed?

My forearm had scarred where Longtooth had cut me. Contrary to what one might think, I do scar, although most of the smaller ones disappear from new flesh when I regenerate. I don't like scars, they make it harder to blend into crowds.

Unfamiliar implants. That wasn't good. Longtooth's blurry scan hadn't shown me much except that there appeared to be something in my arm. Fortunately, I had equipment for that.

My methods were rather less invasive. I dosed myself with a mild painkiller before the medical bot inserted some thick needles into my arm, around the implant. The needles acted as scanners and signal recievers, giving me a clear image. I guess I should worry about the carcinogenic effects but my skin blocks natural radiation, so it probably all evens out.

The mass appeared to be a 0.5cm thick oval-shaped plate lodged between the bones in my arm. It sat in such a way that it didn't interfere with movement and lay right above the artery. Further scanning throughout my body revealed some sort of mysterious mass at the top of my spine that was mostly concealed by my titanium skull. I didn't remember either of them. My skeleton also contained significantly more titanium than I'd thought; there appeared to be hardly any bone left.

When? Why?

There wasn't really anybody to ask about this. It was information that I couldn't trust with Shadow and there was nobody else who was likely to be able to help me. I checked my medical records and, after a lot of digging around, found a programmed operation to have a high capacity battery installed in my left arm from 18 months previous. It charged itself from my blood flow and was connected to two very fine wires that ended, unconnected, in my palm. They were concealed under calloused skin; I'd never even known that they were there.

Instant emergency power source, one slash across the palm away. Great idea, although it carried the risk of cooking my hand. One of the many ideas that I'd completely forgotten implementing over the years.

What separates a supervillain from a crazy guy? Is it just the powers and death machines? Were memory blanks and writing on walls in one's own blood when devoid of stimulation or materials really good signs in the future ruler of Earth? Would I ever be ready for such a thing? I mean, I was a genius roboticist with an ocean lair that could get me anywhere in the world on short notice. I had regenerative abilities and was immune to a surprising amount of hero abilities due to my skin. I could build armies of plastic and metal, and manic laughter came naturally to me. I had "serious recurring villain" written all over me!

Keep a low profile and build power. That was my strategy, right? But shouldn't I be powerful enough by now? I could design things in mere days that took lesser men years! A forge, some metals, plastic and acid and I could build anything, anything! Why hadn't I tried to take over the world more often? Was I... scared? Afraid that I truly was incompetent?

I took a deep breath. One thing at a time. Save the heroes, then worry about defeating them.