Mirror, mirror
It had been a long day for Kevin. In the end, most of his days were long,
given his penchant for staying awake until the early morning when
engrossed in some technical detail he was working on - that is when he
was not out doing his other job. He smiled slightly as that thought
crossed his mind. His 'other job' was that of super hero. Specifically,
he donned the armour and cape of Star Strike to defend the weak and
downtrodden very often these days. In the beginning, it'd been mostly
gang warfare, Hellions and Skulls fighting turf wars... Of course, turf
wars get interesting when both sides use magic and have powerful
backers. Nowadays, the gangs knew not to arouse his attention, nor that
of his compatriots.
His compatriots, his fellow members of the Infinity Force,
were... interesting. For one, there was Blockade, a seven-foot giant
entirely clad in metal, capable of withstanding tremendous punishment,
and of dishing it out as well. His power came from a suit of armour
which, it had turned out, he wore nothing under - including
skin. Apparently, his Crey constructors had cyborged him to within an
inch of his life, for which Blockade really wanted to thank them
thoroughly (at least until none of them had whole bones). Star Strike had
nearly killed him finding that out. The pain of your skin rolling back
and opening up is one thing. The follow-on infections had taken all of
Liv's skills to get rid of.
Liv, herself, was a bit of an enigma. The beautiful but withdrawn mutant
had some strange powers, capable of making both tissue and technology
repair itself. She also had an uncle who'd turned into a demon, and a
father who was missing. Most of the rest of her family was either on the
wrong side of some magical struggle Kevin didn't understand, or dead. And
if Liv had one burning desire in her life, it would be revenge. He
pondered for a moment how her anger seemed to burn her from within,
making her, in a way, hollow, but then shook it off. He had no business
psychoanalysing his friends, at least not unless they asked him to. For
her part, Liv seemed content enough to be the one who kept both him and
Blocks ticking when the going got tough.
Right now, it was late - or early, as the definition might apply. It was
dark out, and for once it had been a quiet night. Blockade was sleeping
deeply in his room, and Liv had turned in as well. Star Strike alone had
stayed awake, fiddling with a gadget Portal Corp had asked him to look
at. He wondered about that, too. His contact with PC had been limited to
rescuing a few of their scientists from whatever villainy was attempting
to perpetrate evil. And all of a sudden, one of their researchers had
approached him with this enigmatic device and asked him to analyse
it. The paranoid part of him insisted it had to be some elaborate
plot. But then, he was hardly Statesman, so why should someone in Portal
be trying to do him harm?
After all, Star Strike himself was but a part of a team. By himself, he
was too vulnerable to really crack heads, but with Blockade or Liv, or
better yet, the both of them, his body armour's air-cannons became
frightening weapons. The pneumatic rams he'd added as an afterthought
also seemed to be quite effective at keeping foes at bay. But in the end,
either of them could handle themselves in a fight alone. Star Strike
would probably have to fly off if the going got tough while he was on his
own. His only hope was that he wouldn't end up in that situation without
his suit, or he'd be well and truly up a creek.
Of course, given the people he'd made enemies of these last few months,
he should really expect anything. The Council had been his constant
targets since early on in his career. He had no love for their
totalitarian approaches, and they were well on their way to hating his
guts for the many plots of theirs he'd helped foil. Freakshow punks had
also been among the people he'd crossed a lot of late - between drug
trafficking, attempts at stealing technology and weapons, and many other
such escapades, he was slightly surprised there wasn't a hit contract on
the entirety of Infinity Force by now. And those two were only at the top
of the list - Liv had brought them into conflict with the Circle of
Thorns, who apparently held a grudge against her. Given her uncle's
connections to them, no wonder. Blockade had constant unceasing trouble
with Crey attempts to 'repossess' him, as well as with Nemesis troops who
apparently wanted him 'for study'.
The device itself was not big, about the size of a briefcase. In fact, it
seemed designed to be carried like one as well, including a small handle
on one side. The rest of it looked nothing like a container for
documents, though. What it was, he'd no idea, even now after trying to
get it to work for several hours. The object was quadratic, about two
foot to a side, and eight inches thick. Its weight suggested a metal
construction with a lot of open space inside. A circular aperture graced
one side, with rubber pads on the opposite side suggesting it needed to
be placed on a flat surface. Apparently, that wan't enough to activate
it, though, and Kevin had found no other clues as to its operation on the
exterior. His best guess was that it was remote operated. It also seemed
oddly familiar in many ways, using some tricks and ideas he knew of noone
but himself using. But in other ways it was completely alien to him.
That was as far as he'd come for three hours now, as the clock ticked
towards 5:09 AM. He sighed. Maybe he should just call it a night, catch
some Z's, and look at it in the morning instead. He packed up his kit,
stowing each tool neatly in the box, and closed it. Then, he rubbed his
eyes, and ran a hand down his ponytail, before scratching his beard. He
got up and turned around to go brush his teeth - and just then, as his
back turned to it, something activated behind him. A soft humming noise
came from the device. He froze and spun in place. Over the object, a glow
had begun forming. It grew slowly, becoming more visible as it did, until
Star Strike was staring in wonder at a two-foot diameter glowing sphere,
well defined, in the air over his workbench.
The sphere glowed a faint white-yellow colour, and then suddenly began
turning translucent. Inside, he could make out a shape, something looking
like a human... A man. The shape gained definition, until Kevin was
looking at a face that appeared oddly familiar. It was short haired,
immaculately shaven, and had a rakish grin on its face, looking perfectly
like a normal human male of about his own age. It looked like it said
something, and then a speaker on the device, one he was sure hadn't been
there earlier, scratched to life.
"Hello Kevin. I suppose you're wondering who I am. Indeed, I'm a bit
amazed to see you of all people."
Kevin looked befuddled for a moment. Then it hit him. Shave the beard,
cut the hair, and that face was his. What was this device?
"Uh, hello. Kevin?"
"Correct, you're not stupid... Then, you wouldn't be, would you? After
all, you're a version of me."
"A version?" Portal Corp. Alternate realities. "You mean from another
reality than yours. Another dimension."
"Coooo-rect." The other-Kevin clapped his hands. "Well this bears out
nicely that my portal works. Though where it ends I'm a little in
doubt... Where was this device found?"
"Uh. At a secret research facility, I'm told. I'm not privy to that level
of information. Not unless I have a need to know, and apparently that
wasn't necessary for me to analyse your little transdimensional
transmitter there."
"Aha..." The face in the sphere looked intently at him. "Is that so."
The pause was just long enough to get uncomfortable. Then the other-Kevin
broke it.
"Well, I suspect I shall find out for myself. I'm coming for a visit, you
see."
"To this dimension? I'm going to have to warn Portal Corporation, the..."
The words died on his lips as another device Star Strike hadn't
recognized went active. His thin teeshirt did not stop the tiny dart the
transmitter spat at him. Almost immediately, he felt his muscles turn
weaker, and he barely managed to stumble to his chair.
"I'm afraid I can't quite let you do that. You see, they already know
this dimension, and they'd probably be quite leery of anyone popping in
for a visit from what they term 'Praetorian Earth'..."
His vision was going blurry now. If only he could reach the panic
button... But it was so far away!
"Well, I'm quite sorry to do this to you, it's a little like hurting
myself, really. I never did like that. But I can't allow you to warn
Portal Corp about my arrival. It'll be difficult enough without their
interference."
The globe began fading. Kevin had become woozy, and his breathing was
labored. He heard something, a knock on the door, but was too weak to
reply with anything but a moan. The last thing he heard before everything
went black was the door opening, and a woman's startled cry for help.
**********
"He's coming around." The voice was light and gentle, but worried.
"Was worried there for a moment... But he's tougher than he looks." The
other voice was deep and resonant, sounding a little like it came from
inside a tunnel.
"He might have died if I hadn't found him, you know. The dart had some
nasty black stuff on it, I'm thinking it's lethal."
"Who did this?"
"No idea... Let's ask him. Hey Star, can you hear me?"
Kevin pried his eyes open, and looked into Liv's face. Over and behind it
was the helmeted visage of Blockade.
"I... hear you... Portal Corp..."
"They did this?" The puzzlement was obvious, in spite of Blockade's
faceless helmet.
"No! ... Alternate... version." He tried to sit back up. Liv gently
pushed him back down, before his nausea overcame him.
"Hang on, let me fix you up a bit." She looked at her palm, and then held
it out toward him. A soft glow emanated from it to settle around the
crown of his head. Immediately, Kevin's thoughts became clearer, and he
regained control of his body. He slowly sat up.
"We've got to get in touch with Portal Corp. Wherever they found that,"
he indicated the device, now inert on the worktop, "is where my evil
alter ego will come through!"
"Evil... Huhwha?!" Blockade stuttered, "You have an evil twin or what?
And what's this about coming through?"
"He's from another dimension, another reality, separate from but related
to ours," Star Strike explained while getting up. It was slower going
than usual. "His world is called 'Praetorian Earth' or somesuch."
"I think I heard of that," Liv noted. "It's a really nasty place, turns
everything on its head. Statesman, Positron, Sister Psyche, the lot of
them, have alternate versions, and they're as evil as they come."
"Ah. Well, it would make sense that my counterpart from that place is in
no way, shape or form a nice person, either. Exactly the type who might
try and poison someone for knowing too much!"
**********
A phone call and a hurried suiting up later, the trio was on the
road. Portal Corporation had received the news with some surprise, and
had marvelled a bit at the coincidence that had lead to Star Strike
discovering his alter ego. They had quickly given him the address of the
compound where the device had been found, however, and he and his friends
were now speeding between Steel Canyon's skyscrapers, hoping to reach it
in time.
Blockade was first through the door, ready for anything that might be on
the other side. Liv and Star Strike came right behind him, ready to back
him up... And nothing but the silent hum of well-working machinery
greeted them. They looked questioningly at each other. Had they arrived
in time? And then, suddenly, there was a hideous tearing sound, an
explosion, and several alarms going off at once.
Then, the sound of weapons firing. The trio charged ahead into the
facility, choosing the way by where the sounds of people dying were
loudest. They came to a room that had been a lab when they
entered. Wreckage of machinery mingled with the blood of those who had
operated it in a grisly scene. As they slowly advanced through the
rubble, Blockade gave a silent whistle.
"Look at this."
Star Strike looked. The machine looked like it had been an experimental
rig for a portal field generator coil. It usually took a few of these
coils to get a portal open, but this rig would hold only a single one for
powered testing. Or it would have, if it hadn't been twisted apart by
what looked like its own internal forces.
"Of course... Praetorian Kevin knew some things about our plane, and
would have avoided the main Portal Corp facility, but this place, where
they test the coils, would be perfect for him to come through." The
blue-and-white-armoured hero grabbed a girder and shook - it didn't
budge. "The coil tests made the 'fabric' of reality just that much
thinner here, so he could pierce it easier."
"That makes a lot of sense... Wah!" Liv's comment was cut short as a
bullet spanged off Blockade's left arm. She ducked and rolled into cover,
while Blockade turned toward the threat. They where looking at a
robot. Not a very large one, either, but it looked dangerous enough. Its
red sensor eyes glinted menacingly as it leveled its two arm weapons at
them, and let fly.
Blockade simply stood in the way of the bullets, bracing himself for the
impacts. Star Strike leapt into the air and activated his anti-gravity
system, leaving him floating in the air, before he brought his weapons to
bear on the battledrone. Liv, in turn, used her own powers on the robot,
and let gleaming white energy fly from her fingertips. The drone was
thrown back by the sudden massed assault,but still foolishly concentrated
fire on its initial target. Blockade could take it. Star Strike's next
blast took a leg off the thing, and it toppled over on the ground. Within
the second, Blockade was on it, pounding it into scrap metal. Moments
later, the dented and broken form of the robot was inert on the floor.
"Where did that thing come from?" Liv demanded.
"I think... No, I'm pretty sure it's one of my alter ego's creations. It
could easily be, at least," Star Strike said, looking over the remains.
"Whoever built it, he should have built it stronger if he wanted to take
us out."
"True enough, Blocks... But I don't think he expected this sort of
opposition this soon. We should move quickly, we won't have much time to
stop him."
The lab had gotten quieter. The sounds of fighting had died down while
they dealt with the robot, and now, only the alarms could be heard. As
they moved from one workroom to another, the same scene repeated itself:
Mindless and swift carnage. Equipment had been destroyed, and here and
there they found the bodies of unlucky defenders of the lab. The robots
seemed to have gone, though, after thoroughly trashing the place. And the
mysterious other-Kevin was gone as well.
**********
They had gone through the lab room by room, and found nothing. Star
Strike had the feeling that this would pose some serious problems. If the
other Kevin was like him, he'd be a resourceful and difficult enemy. One
advantage remained with them, though - it looked like the Praetorian
Kevin was convinced he had managed to kill 'himself'. They found the exit
the robots and their master had taken, but that yielded no further clues
to the whereabouts of the escapee. The Paragon Police Dept. had arrived
shortly after, and their forensics had gone to work trying to make sense
of the destruction.
"Um... Sir?" A hesitant voice asked, and Star Strike turned. A young
police officer was standing there, looking quite troubled.
"How can I be of assistance, Officer?"
"Well... It's complicated, sir. Would you come down to the station
house?"
"Of course. What seems to be the issue?" Star Strike had a suspicion, but
he was hoping it wasn't true. If it was, he was in trouble.
"We can discuss that down at the station, please, sir." The policeman
looked unhappy and uncomfortable, all while trying to keep an assertive
look about him. It failed utterly.
"You go, we'll hold down the fort and keep and ear to the ground," Liv
reassured him.
**********
Kevin Richards, aka. Star Duke, was overjoyed. His plan had worked
marvellously, and now he was free of the chains that had bound him in his
home dimension. His talent for building robots and other technoloical
marvels had gotten him a desk job, designing military droids for Tyrant's
armies. He'd hated it, since his real element was at the forefront of
things, out where the action was. But his orders had been clear, and
defying Tyrant was as good as suicide.
But he'd done it, and lived. He'd constructed robot warriors that obeyed
him first and foremost, and then a suit of armor for himself, all in
secret. And then, when the time was right, under cover of a raid on the
portal compound that he had orchestrated, he had enacted his plan. The
device, a ruse to see where he was going and prepare for it, had been the
first to go through the gate he'd built. He knew what dimension it was
set for, but appearing at 3 kilometer depth in the atlantic ocean would
be hazardous to his health, and he had had no idea where the gate would
come through at its destination.
Looking at a bearded version of himself through the transmitter sphere
had been a bit of a surprise for him - what were the odds? But then, he
reasoned, of course his otherworld counterpart would be a renowned
technologist as well. After all, he could imagine nothing less of a
person who was, basically, him. He'd almost been sorry for activating the
trap he'd hidden in the device, since it would undoubtedly kill his poor
counterpart. He'd have enjoyed speaking to this other Kevin, since they
could probably both have learnt a great deal. But the research he'd done
about his target dimension, his new home, had indicated that probability
greatly favored the other Kevin being a servant of the authorities in
some way just as he had himself been. And Star Duke wanted nothing to do
with authorities.
So he had enacted his plan. It was a bit of a gambit, but his
surveillance systems had picked up Praetorian troopers approaching his
hideout, so time was growing short. His battledrones and combat droids
had been first through the portal, to clear a swath for himself. He'd set
his hideout's self-destruct sequence to go off 30 seconds after the
portal closed, and then gone through himself. The gate, a one-way device,
had closed behind him, and that was the last he'd seen of his home
dimension. His robots had cleared the way for him, though, killing the
people and destroying the equipment of the lab as thoroughly as they
could manage. Then they had covered his swift exit, just as
reinforcements had arrived and destroyed a drone. Never mind, the small
battledrone was hardly irreplacable.
Paragon City looked mostly the way he was used to, at least on a map. The
statues were different, the architecture less gloomy, but it felt
familiar enough in layout. He'd found a hideout easily enough,
dispossessing a small group of gangers from a warehouse on the docks. It
would serve, for a time. For now, he was beginning to forge a few
alliances. The Freakshow, colourful individuals, had potential either as
pawns or allies - after all, he was adept at constructing the cybernetic
gadgets they so desired. With luck, he might also be able to gain some
friends with the lower-tier gangs of the city.
For now, he was hunkering down and keeping a low profile. Gain a position
from which to work, then begin carving his own niche here. That was a
sound plan.
**********
A few days had gone by relatively uneventfully, save for a few scuffles
with the usual suspects. The police had, with the timely assistance of
Portal Corp's scientists, accepted Star Strike's explanation of why his
DNA was all over the crime scene, in places not matching his report. The
alert was put out that there was another villain on the scene, one using
robot minions. It was however not expected to yield results quickly.
Star Strike had kept a low profile. If his counterpart thought he was
dead, let him. It gave him a few extra cards to play. Meanwhile, his
contacts were on the lookout for robots matching the design they'd met. A
few leads had come up, but turned out to be goose chases. Many villains
in Paragon City used robots for their crimes, and asking people to
recognise a specific design when trying not to die was a bit much.
Kevin was studying the few pieces of evidence that had come up. A short
video sequence from the closed-circuit cameras had given him a good look
at his adversary. He looked exactly like himself, save for the
hairstyle. He wore a very similar suit of armor, although he seemed to
use a strange rifle-like weapon rather than having weapons integrated in
the suit like himself. Also, his color scheme for it, although similar to
his own, was predominantly red on black, rather than his own blue on
white. And he seemed positively overjoyed with the destruction wreaked by
his creations. There was also a short, not very informative glimpse of a
larger robot of similar design to the small one they'd fought. Then the
camera was destroyed.
Apart from this, the forensics had come up blank. Most of the DNA found
there that did not belong to the employees of the facility (which
accounted for most by far) was identical to Star Strike's own to a very
high degree - the forensic had said that it matched to odds around one in
5 trillion people. Which meant either it was himself, or he had a carbon
copy with the exact same genes as himself.
Blockade poked his head into the command centre, where Star Strike was
reviewing the data just as a red lamp lit up. Star Strike quickly tapped
a few controls, and called up the emergency that had set off the alarm.
"Aha!"
"Got something?" Blockade asked.
"Yes. This time I do believe it may be our guy - and he's robbing a
bank." Star Strike smiled to himself. The Bank's silent alarm had been
routed to them, and they'd likely be first to respond. "And if we play
this right, we can catch him unaware!"
"Great! Then let's move out, I'll get Liv!"
**********
Star Duke backhanded the woman to sobbing silence. Some people just had
to play brave. This one sounded like she was done though. His robot
henchmen held the customers and clerks down, while he marched to the
vault door with a set of explosives. Placing them on the hinges, he hen
sauntered back, around the corner, and with a cruel smile pressed the
button on the remote in his hand. A cataclysmic boom shook the building,
fragments whistled out of the doorway to lodge in the opposite wall, and
smoke and dust spread throughout the bank. Star Duke then stepped around
the corner, and over the defunct vault door to gather his loot.
Then, however, another thunderous explosion sounded, and the sound of
fighting. He could hear his robots firing frantically, which made him
quickly stow the ill-gotten gains and run out to the bank lobby to see
what was going on. The sight that met him was fearsome indeed. Some huge
robotic-looking behemoth was tering into his metallic minions with a
vengeance, drawing all their fire and apparently shrugging off their
tremendous damage easily. A woman in a blue and very revealing outfit was
laying into the drones with fierce bolts of energy. Seeing the last hero
stunned him for a moment. He wore a full suit of blue and white body
armor, covering his whole body except for his head which was bare. A face
he had seen before - his own! Enraged, he lined up his weapon on his
counterpart, and let fly.
**********
The beam struck him unexpectedly, though it really shouldn't have. He had
known the robots' mastermind was nearby, so he should have kept his eyes
about him. As it was, the energy pulse shut down half his suit functions,
and the follow up blast sent him dropping like a stone from his hover
when his countergrav units gave out. Hitting the ground winded him
completely.
Then, another robot stepped into view - the behemoth he'd glimpsed on the
surveillance video. It really was huge, and bristling with weapons. And
it didn't fire at Blockade, as the black-clad figure that had shot him
directed it to engage Liv. The barrage it laid down was frightening both
in noise level and effect. Liv, who had been on her way to aiding him the
moment she saw him get hit, was thrown back against the wall, hard, and
completely surprised. Then, while she was trying to gather herself back
up, the assault bot just kept firing at her, keeping her pinned against
the wall and harming her severely.
Blockade reacted, then, leaving the lesser robots to themselves, and
simply jumping stright into the face of the huge construct. It quickly
switched to this new and intimidating target, but here was a foe who
could take what it dished out. He wrestled with it, pounding on its
plating with his huge fists, bending and breaking them with each
strike. The smaller robots fired a fearsome barrage at him, while the big
assault robot gave some back of what it received, though, and it became a
time trial - who would break first?
Liv got back to her feet and shook her head. Then she turned to Star
Strike, and healing energies flowed from her into him. He immediately got
to his feet again, and turned toward the master of the droids.
"We found you, at last," he said, leveling the barrel of his arm cannon
at the interloper.
Blockade was wearing thin under the withering fire of the robots, in
spite of Liv hastening to his aid. They were simply too many and their
fire too strong, and some of them had time to fire at Liv and keep her
busy as well.
"How you managed to survive is a mystery to me, Star Strike," his
opponent answered. "That poison would have killed ten men your size. But
no matter. I will finish the job now. How quaint, though, that you call
yourself Star Strike. Prepare to face the might of Star Duke!"
The two looked each other in the eyes for another split second, and then
the game was on. The two combatants jumped, ducked and doged around each
other while air cannon blasts and pulse rifle salvoes crisscrossed the
room. Innocent bystanders fled from this clash, as the two alter egos
battled for dominance, while Liv and Blockade finally turned the curve
and began getting the upper hand against the robot horde.
Star Strike flew quickly forward, letting a fierce blast of energy loose
at close range. He hit home, throwing his opponent back but in seconds he
was on his feet again, and returned a vicious group of pulse bolts. He
took cover behind a group of civilians, dodging into the vault
corridor. Star Strike quickly checked that his companions were okay, and
then rushed off after his foe.
When he got to the vault room, he saw why Star Duke had chosen this route
- the explosion had opened a hole down to a tunnel, and footprints in the
dust lead that way. He dived in. The tunnel was tight, and looked like it
had destabilized and sunk out when the vault was blown, but it was short
as well. From it wafted a smell only too well known - the sewers. Sure
enough, after a short flight, Star Strike emerged into the sewer network,
and needed to track his enemy down.
He heard laughter from the right hallway, and chased off in that
direction. After a while, he could hear splashing footsteps, and then,
suddenly, silence. He landed, and used his sliding system to quietly move
around a corner.
"You're a bigger pain in the back side than I'd expected," a voice, his
own, said. It was impossible to tell the direction with the echoes in the
sewers. "But I've dealt with worse pains, just like I will deal with
you. You are not going to bring me away from my chosen course."
"Why do you do this?" Kevin asked his evil twin. "Why do you choose this
dark path?"
"Was I given a choice? It was either strike out on my own like this, or
stay a slave to those stronger than me!"
"This is a different world. I'm sure there is room..."
"Nonsense!" Star Duke cut him off. "The only room you have for me here is
in your Zigursky Prison. I've recognized that!"
"Can't we..."
"No, 'we' cannot, you weak-minded little fool!" The voice was angry
now. "There is no 'we'! I am not you, and thank heaven for that! I'd kill
myself if I was such a snivelling little goodie-two-shoes! Don't you ever
get tired of living only for others?"
Star Strike did not know what to say for a moment, but the voice
continued.
"There are two kinds of people in the world - any world. Tyrant taught me
that much at least! There are the strong, and the weak. The strong
exploit the weak, and the weak exist for the benefit of the strong. I
refuse to be weak any more!"
"Then don't!" Star Strike was getting very riled with his alternate-Earth
twin. "But you don't have to kill, rob, destroy to be strong! Strength is
its own quality, you don't have to prove it by breaking those who are
weaker than you!"
"Oh, but I do. The weak outnumber the strong, you see, and they hate
them. They envy us, my brother, they envy us, the superpowered few. And
secretly, they all want us dead. Sure, they might let you have some
privileges as long as you serve them, weeding away those who will not do
the bidding of the 'normals," the voice monologued, "but mark my words,
show the least bit of self-determination, and you'll be on their hit list
before you can say 'habeas corpus'!
"You either oppress or are oppressed, Kevin. No other way exists. You
have chosen your shackles, I have chosen freedom. There can be no
agreement between the two." The last sentence came from right behind
him. Star Strike turned and looked at his own face, not ten feet
away. The black and red armored figure held his rifle levelled at him.
"So you see, either way, only one of us can walk away from this. You want
to bring me to 'justice'. I want to defend my hard-won freedom. Shall we
see who comes out on top?"
"We can still avoid bloodshed."
"No. The time for talk is past. Defend yourself, or die. I don't care."
With that, he fired.
**********
The two heroes began running when the sounds of pitched battle reached
them. They had finished off the robots, finally, and hed come after Star
Strike, and now they were rapidly rushing toward where they could hear
pulser fire and energy cannon blasts.
They came around the corner to see the two mirror images mutually blow
each other to the ground. Both suits of armour were pitted and cracked,
both were bleeding from several wounds. Both collapsed to the floor and
lay immobile.
Liv rushed to Star Strike, and immediately began healing his
wounds. Blockade marched over to Star Duke, and grabbed him ungently by
the neck. He then slapped a prison teleport beacon on him and activated
it. The black form flickered and faded.
**********
Star Strike was almost completely healed by now. The fight had been hard
on him, and had cost him several weeks of recuperation. And now, he was
on his way to do what he had to do. He had to face his mirror image once
more, this time at the Zig. And so he was passing through the security
check, and getting cleared for the visit.
The visitation room was bleak, with the jumpsuited prisoners on one side
of a plexiglass screen and visitors on the other. Each pair sat in a
booth and spoke via the shortest phone connections on the planet. Kevin
sat down at one, and the other Kevin sat opposite from him.
"So, we meet again," the free Kevin began.
"Indeed we do. And in a strange turn of fate it would seem I am now
captive and you have your freedom."
"So it would, yes. I've been thinking about what you said, back in the
sewer."
"Oh? Did it spark a rebellious thought in you?"
"It made me realize that you're right. I am NOT you. You are not me. But
you are what I could have been, and I what you could have been. Different
ends of a spectrum of potential. And that in a way makes me glad we met,
because I've realised something about myself now."
The other Kevin looked at him with a bemused expression.
"I could have gone along any path in the world. I chose to use my talents
to help others. That is a choice I am happy with. You, no doubt are happy
with your choice, if not its consequences," Star Strike told him. "But I
know I did not choose as you did, though I could have. And that is what
the difference between good and evil is, in the end. Putting others ahead
of your own desires."
Star Duke looked coldly at him. "Your sermon has a spot of truth to
it. It is by choice we are in these situations. But you are cutting a
corner in your philosophy. Good is not just putting your own desires last
and others first. You cannot be good if you are not good to yourself. And
if nobody else treats you the way you would like to be treated, is it
then evil to punish them for treating you ill?" He smiled cruelly. "I
don't expect that we will agree on this. We wouldn't, being opposite
sides of the same coin. But know that I do respect you, if for nothing
else, then for being my equal."
Star Strike looked at his Praetorian counterpart for a long while. Then
he replied, "Likewise. You are a worthy opponent. I hope we can somehow
come to be something else than enemies."
"You would, wouldn't you? But the trees don't grow into heaven. Some
things are just not going to happen." He smiled slightly. "It would have
been nice, perhaps. But I just don't see it."
"All right. Then I guess I should go. I suppose I will see you around."
"Undoubtedly. Farewell, Kevin."
"Good bye, Kevin."
**********
As Star Strike left the prison, Star Duke was lead back to his cell. He
passed by Angel Lopez, who smiled, and winked. "Don't you worry, esse."
he called, before the guard walking him told him to shut up.
Five minutes after the cell door had closed behind him, he thought he
heard jet engines overhead. Then there was an enormous explosion, which
shook the fundament of the prison building.
The cell door slid open.
