Swing Shift

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Thorn Hawk
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Swing Shift

Post by Thorn Hawk »

The worst thing about being in a fire is not the heat of the flames. It’s the fact that you can’t breathe. The smoke itself is stifling, but the flames themselves suck the very oxygen out of the air. That’s the worst thing by far. Trapped in a cage of heated flames and you cannot even get breath to scream. Thorn lurched to the side in his bed, nearly falling off the side as his sweat drenched sheets clung to his skin, tangling in his arms and legs.

What the hell was that? Thorn thought to himself, tearing the sheets off and wearily standing in the darkness of his room. The luminous red numbers on his bedroom clock read 5:12 AM, sternly reminding him that he should not be awake. Well…good luck getting back to sleep now… The nightmare had been even more realistic tonight than the previous nights. Ever since he had awoken from his coma, he had been getting nightmares. Not every night, but every now and then it’d be the same thing; intense heat, no air, soundless screaming, and the face of Fa’Amu laughing on the outside of the flames. It scared Thorn to death every time. Wearing only a light pair of shorts, the youth staggered his way into the small kitchenette of his mom’s apartment and raided the refrigerator, looking for something to get that lump out from the middle of his throat. A small glass of orange juice later, Thorn felt much better.

“Michael?” The sleepy voice of his mother asked. She was in her nightgown, covered with her bathrobe and looked very sleep deprived.

“I’m sorry, did I wake you mom?” He asked, wincing as his eyes adjusted quickly to the kitchen light she had just flipped on. She smiled weakly, sitting down across from him.

“I heard you scream. Nightmares?” Thorn sucked in his breath for a second and then nodded. “It was about him wasn’t it?” After another nod, Doctor Pechna sighed, closing her eyes.

“He’s still out there…isn’t he?” Thorn asked softly, looking at the cheap wooden table in front of him. He didn’t even need to look at his mother to see her nod. He could feel it. For a long moment, there were no words said between the two of them, however Doctor Pechna seemed to be wrestling with something in her head. Twice, she opened her mouth to speak, but then fell quiet.

“M..Michael. It’s time you learned the truth about your father.” She said suddenly. Thorn’s head shot up, staring at her with a shocked expression. She never talked about his father other than that he was a no-good bastard who had left them before Thorn was even born.

“The…truth? What do you mean the truth?” He asked, sitting upright in the fold-up chair. Mei Pechna nodded slowly, emotions running wild and conflicted behind her eyes. “What haven’t you told me?” Mei took in a shuddering breath, closing her eyes,

“It all began…right as I finished college.”
Every man dies. Not every man really lives. -William Wallace

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Thorn Hawk
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Re: Swing Shift

Post by Thorn Hawk »

"Throughout my time at the University of Illinois, I was regarded as one of the most talented biochemistry students of my year. As such, I was able to begin research with Dr. Ryan Mikowski, a talented geneticist and my favorite professor. It was through him that I was able to meet your father. Sebastian Pechna. He had transferred over here from Cambridge after graduating summa cum laude at the age of 18. Your father was a genius Michael...he knew things in science that I couldn't even begin to comprehend and talked of theoretical formulas and true doctorate level theories while only a graduate student.

We met, as luck would have it, during a formal held by the Chemistry department. Originally, I wasn't going to go, but my girlfriends urged me to go so I did. It was there that Sebastian introduced himself to me. He was charming and handsome...you have his face Michael..." Mei stopped a moment, regaining her composure. "I remember exactly how he approached me too..."

================================================================

"So you're Dr. Mikowski's new researcher? Mei Hwang?" One of the younger students asked, sliding up next to Mei, who was busy nursing a rum and coke at the bar.

"Hmm? Oh, yes. Are you considering doing research with him when you graduate?" Mei asked, a little shocked that an undergraduate would come up to talk to her. Her intelligence and demeanor normally frightened guys and made her seem imposing. The youth only laughed.

"Not at all. I'm actually here as a guest of his. I do research for Genentech here at the Illinois branch and since I'll be speaking at your school's next professional development seminar, the doc thought it would be nice for me to come to the formal in case anyone wanted to ask me something." The young man's voice was a deep alto, not quite baritone, which fit his runner's physique quite well. His skin was a dark shade of tan and his facial structure hinted strongly at his Pacific Islander heritage and his jet black hair was kept cropped close to his head. "I'm Sebastian Pechna." He said, extending his hand.

"Nice to meet you Sebastian. I'm Mei Hwang." Off in the distance, Stacy Johnson giggled, giving Mei a thumbs up over her martini. Stifling an irritated blush, Mei looked back to the youth. "So hold on, you're a grad student?"

"Yeah. Graduated from Cambridge last year. I've already had four genetics based publications." He paused a moment, smiling. "You're the author of The Effects of Electrical Charges on Radiose Synthetase aren't you?"

Mei froze, looking at the youth unbelievably. She had gotten published for her first research work in the past few months and he had already read such an obscure article? And he had already written four of his own? "Um...yeah...I am...do...are you interested in it?"

Sebastian grinned widely, leaning against the bar and folding his fingers into each other. "Yeah! You have quite the intriguing mind to attempt such a delicate experiment. And with the results you recieved, you're talented in the lab too." For the next few minutes they discussed their respective research in such excruciating detail that the other chemistry students and even professors looked at them in a mix of awe and disbelief.

"Hey, dis ish a parteh....you sshoul' be drinkin'...*hic* not talkin' sshciencess...." A drunk just-turned-21 student mumbled in his stupor as he passed the two of them. Sebastian laughed and shrugged him off with a chuckle, which brought a giggle from Mei.

Sebastian then leaned over with a serious look on his face. "Look, I'm doing some research on meta-human genes and I need a lab partner to help me out with it. You have some serious credentials...how about you swing by my lab sometime in the future and we can see if you're interested eh?"

Things were moving just too fast for Mei to grasp them. Who was this kid who came up to her, easily three or four years his senior, and ask her if she wants a job with him? Then again, he was incredibly intelligent, already working for a big name research company, and was cute. What was the harm in it?

"Sure. I'd love to."
Every man dies. Not every man really lives. -William Wallace

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Re: Swing Shift

Post by Thorn Hawk »

What was it about this young man that caused Mei’s thoughts to become so erratic…Yeah, he was very good looking, that was definitely a point there…and his intelligence was nothing short of genius. He knew more about the realm of biochemistry and genetics than anyone she knew including professors and graduate students despite his youth. But if there was one thing that impressed Mei more than anything else, it was the state of his laboratory. When she first walked in, she suspected a normal, messy lab with stains on the counters and dirty glassware littering the sinks. What she saw was something out of a science-fiction movie. Everything looked beyond every lab she had ever seen. Complicated instruments littered the lab, taking up space along the workbenches, giving off soft blue luminescence from LCD screens on them. Glassware and other essential parts of a chemistry lab were neatly arranged in glass cabinets, more blue light shining above them, casting glows through the glass and highlighting the phosphorescent ink he used to mark his glassware. That and the sheer size of the lab could have taken up an entire wing in her old building.

Bubbling sounds and the hissing of gas met Mei as she sneaked into the lab, spotting Sebastian, hunched over a boxy looking machine, looking rather large in his labcoat, which seemed to emphasize his shoulders. He hadn’t noticed her arrival, and spoke in a hushed tone, grunting softly while absently writing information from the instrument down in his notebook.

“Well, it’s got a silicone base alright…but that shouldn’t be possible. You said this came from a dog?” He asked, not looking up. From behind him, a gruff voice, hidden from Mei’s view growled out. It was deep and raspy, as if permanently changed from a lifetime of yelling.

“Yeah. Big one. Larger than a Dane, no fur, and two heads.” A little concerned and curious, Mei poked her head around the corner of the tall shelving on the lab desk. Three figures stood behind Sebastian; two of them were in military fatigues, one an African male who looked like a bulldog and a tall, athletic, and harsh looking blonde woman. They wore camouflage fatigues, arctic colored, but with no insignia on them. The third was an older Asian man in a well worn orange Shaolin monk uniform.

“Hmm…whatever it was, it’s nothing natural. There’s also no decay to an ectoplasmic residue which would denote a magical being. You did well to bring it to me Guns.” The large black man folded his arms and grunted, his bald head shining in the blue light.

“You expectin’ company Seb?” The woman of the group asked in a short, curt tone, causing Sebastian to glance over his shoulder and smile at Mei. While the two military types seemed on their guard as Mei walked in, the older Shaolin monk seemed to be pretty content with smiling and looking disinterested.

“Ah, that’s my new lab assistant. Mei, you’re just in time. Meet the super-team known as the Heavy Arms.” Mei looked at them with wide eyes while Sebastian only grinned slyly. “They’ll be helping us with our research.”
Every man dies. Not every man really lives. -William Wallace

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Re: Swing Shift

Post by Thorn Hawk »

((Blows the dust off))

"Wait...super team? I don't understand..." Mei stammered, hand to her chest as the attention of the four individuals in front of her swiveled on her. "You mean...like superheroes?"

Sebastian nodded, eyes shining with a mischievous light. "Yes, that's quite right. The Heavy Arms here work closely with me for my research. You see Mei, there's an organization of scientists out there in the world who have undergone the task of identifying what exactly causes superpowers to manifest in humans. These three here are helping me with that research by donating samples of their meta-altered genetic material in return for my help in chasing down some of the undesirables in the world." The gruff looking man nodded, stepping forward and extending a hand, looking everything like a rabid bear.

"Master Gunnery Sergeant Ronald Jackson." He said, taking Mei's hand with a measure of delicacy one wouldn't expect out of the large man. His hair was thick black and cropped extremely close to his skull, with only a little bit of gray peppering it. A neatly trimmed mustache within normal military regulations covered his upper lip in a similarly short manner. His eyes were deep-set and dark like obsidian. "United States Marine Corps. Retired. I'm known as Master Guns in the Heavy Arms group. Pleasure to meet you ma'am. Behind me is Staff Sergeant Andrea Lambert, operative from the JTF2, Candian special forces. Also retired. She goes by Nickel." The blonde woman gave Mei a quick nod after a short, appraising glance. Her eyes were icy blue, the color of a glacier and seemed to not only see every little detail they rested on, but looked as if she could see through whatever she looked at as well. Her hair was pulled back severely in a bun which helped to stretch her face over high cheekbones which gave her an angular, hawk like appearance. "The old man over there is Jun Shan, but we call him Sifu."

Smiling still, the old man moved forward with a liquid grace, bowing to Mei and taking her hand. "Xing hui, young one." The monk said in a thick accent. He was bald, had intense smiling wrinkles in his face, and eyes that seemed to barely open, even at all. Sometimes it seemed like he might have been keeping them closed on purpose. Mei bowed back to him, falling into an ingrained custom from her father's influence. "I am Jun Shan, monk of the Chang Hu Xin Yi Men style of Shaolin." Mei shook his hand, looking more than a little overwhelmed at it all.

"You...you're all superheores? But you're not wearing tights....or capes...or..." Mei started, stammering a bit. Sebastian barked out a laugh and put a warm hand on her shoulder. Immediately Mei started to relax a bit.

"Come on Mei, not all superheroes use tights. Fight in what you're comfortable in, right?"

"Let me get her a stool." The Sifu said calmly, walking towards Seb's desk while Master Guns went back towards the boxy instrument Sebastian had been reading, frowning at the mass of numbers and graphs that made no sense to him. Armed now with a stool, Mei took a seat and recomposed herself.

"So...you're all superheroes..."

"Guns, she's like a broken record. Can we just get on with this? Longer we wait, longer the Splicer has to pump out Were-Scooby 2.0" Nickel said with an exasperated sigh.

"If she's Seb's research assistant, then we should get to know her too. Many hands make light work Nickel." Guns responded with a small smile.

"Yes, they're all heroes, each have their own special power which I do research on. Guns, for example, has supernatural strength and endurance. Didn't know about it until he tried pushing a flipped Humvee back over. The car flew nearly thirty feet in the air." Guns gave a smile at Seb's words, reliving the memory. "Nickel there has the best eyesight I've ever encountered. If you had to characterize it...she'd be similar to a 20/-15 if you could conceive of that. She was a marksman in the JTF2 and would shoot without a scope. Got her nickname for being able to shoot out the center of a nickel at almost a mile and a half with her rifle. The Sifu's reflexes are beyond compare. I'm half convinced that he percieves time slower than most because of how quickly he can react. Most humans have a 0.2 second reaction time. The most reactive humans can have up to a 0.1 second reaction time. The Sifu's is a tenth of that."

Mei blinked, nodding in wonder at the three around her. "So...so you do research on them, and you help them with...what?"

"Well, my expertise is in genetic anomalies. For the better part of a year, these three have been on the heels of a terrorist that goes by the name "Splicer". This person is a mad scientist, if you'll believe it. He forcibly mutates animals or people into monsters. The Heavy Arms bring me back genetic samples and hopefully, I can identify the components the Splicer used and track any shipments of materials related to what would be needed to create such monsters."

"So, you're like a contact for them? Tell them where to go?"

Sebastian nodded. "Yes, something like that." Smiling, Seb turned back to the instrument he was using when Mei walked in. "Do you still want to help me Mei?"

Mei didn't trust herself to stand just yet, but swallowed and nodded firmly. "Yes. I do."

Smiling, Sebastian looked over his shoulder and nodded. "Good. Come back tomorrow. I'll have a sample for you to analyze. Guns. Give me an hour to make a few phone-calls, then I'll send ya off to the next hotspot."
Every man dies. Not every man really lives. -William Wallace

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