Syxxblade is born...

My mouth is dry. Feels like I ate a cotton ball. I try to open my eyes, but the light hurts them. I’m dimly aware that I’m hooked up to a heart monitor. I can hear the melodic beeping, which means I’m still alive. I try to open my eyes again, and I succeed in doing so a crack, and the light flood’s in. Jesus Christ that hurts! I reflexively try and put my hand up to block them out, but I can’t. Then I remember….they are still locked down.

This is a safety precaution only, as if I moved them the wrong way, I may pop my claws.

My claws.

Sounds funny doesn’t it? Believe me, I still have a hard time believing it.

The light is still filtering in, but its getting better. I’m now aware of a red blur in front of me. Funny though, this red blur seems to have arms, and they are crossed.

“Feeling better?” It asks. The blur also has a bit of a Scottish accent. I try and lick my lips again, and get the dryness out of my mouth. The blur begins to take shape, and picks something up from beside my bed. I get my focus on to see Living Hellfire putting a glass of water up to my mouth. I try and take a big gulp of it, but he’s not giving me much.

“Easy Laddie. Go slow. Two operations in as many weeks…that’s hard on anybody.”

“Relax Liv, I can handle it.” I say back as I swallow the water. It feels good.

“Really?” he starts. Here we go. “You can handle it? Well, that’s just great! I’m glad you can handle it. It looks like your gonna handle it just fine.” He’s getting upset. The temperature in the room just jumped a few degrees. He puts down the glass of water, half full, and starting to steam. “What the hell do you think your doing?” Now he’s looking at me full bore.

“Easy Liv. Calm down. My drip bag is starting to melt” I try and joke, but he’s not kidding.

“Not funny, Lad. You know what you just did? These techs at Crey don’t do this for fun. You just took your second chance at a normal life and flushed it down the toilet. Airazor took you out of that hell hole of a Vahzilok nest and brought you here, told these guys to give you your hands back that they stole. That kind of endorsement from one of my boys goes a long way here. They did it without question.” I have been nodding the whole time.

“I know that. But he’s missing now. Don’t shake your head, you know it’s true.”

“We don’t know anything! He was on a mission, and he hasn’t returned yet. Three weeks is nothing to us! I’ve been on month long excursions myself by God!” The temperature was raising again.

“Calm down man. I’m not supposed to sweat after this procedure. The heat may make my muscles contract.”

”Good!” He shouts, and the glass that held the water bursts. “Then we can see what you drained your life savings for!” That’s it. Now I’m pissed off.

I pop them.

The rumor is that childbirth is the most painful experience in the world, next to passing a kidney stone. Well, I can safely say that I’ve never given birth , but I passed a stone when I was a kid, and the pain I feel right now is more than anything I’ve ever felt, even losing my hands to begin with. Hellfire jumps back at the scream I let out. The monitors hooked up to me start to go nuts, and right away I have three labcoats in the room, checking to see why their outside monitors just lit up like christmas trees. The amount of buzzing and scolding I get from these damn Crey doctors is really pissing me off now. Through gritted teeth, I try and let them know I’m fine. But Hellfire can see what I did.

“You see? This isn’t a game John! Your asking for a world of hurt doin’ this. This isn’t gonna work!”

“Yes it will!” I growl back at him as the techs try and tell me to calm down. “I know its not a game! Airazor knew as well! He pulled me out of a nightmare you couldn’t possibly imagine! Look at me Fergus! You think I could have gone through the rest of my life with two mechanical hands and lived normally? I’d have been a freak! I’m not doing that!” I lie back down as the technicians massage my upper arms, slowly retracting my claws. I know I’ll eventually be able to do this myself, but it doesn’t lessen the pain right now. Hellfire still hasn’t said anything. “Look, “ I say after a few minutes of awkward silence, “You and Airazor started The Hands of Justice to help people. And you have. I’m saved. But I’d be an idiot if I thought I could walk away from this thing when the man that risked everything to bring me back is now missing. Besides…you need me.” Hellfire’s eyebrows raise at this.

“Really?” he asks. “How do you know that?” The pain is lessening. But my resolve isn’t.

“My military background makes me a perfect choice to help you. Now I can regulate my pain with some of the Crey Technology, even dull it away. Christ, they tell me I can even fly with the right anti-grav devices installed in these things.” He’s backing down now. He knows I’m just going to do this on my own if I want. He stares at me for a few moments. Then, slowly nods.

“Alright John. I can see I don’t have a choice. But if you do this, you do this my way. You’ll be under my leadership, which means you take my orders. The rest of the group has gelled pretty well, so you’ll have a tough time at first. You’ll need at least a month’s worth or rehabbing those muscles back to what they were. I don’t want any accidents taking any of the team out of commission.” He chuckles under his breath. “We’re short staffed as it is.” I nod.

“Alright. Deal.” Hellfire nods again.

“Deal. Now, get some rest John. We got a lot of work ahead of us.” He turns to leave.

“Thanks Liv.” I say. I look down at my hands. This is going to be different, but as Staff Seargent Hockley used to say in basic – Get it done. “Oh, and Hellfire?” I ask as he’s almost out the door. He stops and turns.

“Yeah?”

“The names not John Tasker anymore.” I say as I look back down at my new hands again. “Its Syxxblade.”

Three days in the sewer.

I have been wading around in this [censored] for three days. Haven’t had much of a choice though. This is where Tacoma said to meet him. Damn Crey informants! It doesn’t help that the Crey are looking for me anyways, and it’s a pain in the [censored] every time I meet this guy. I’m always worried he’s going to turn me into them. They’ve been sending Quad’s after me ever since I stopped reporting into them.

Actually, maybe I should start at the beginning…

* * *

See, I’m ex-Canadian Military, which doesn’t sound like much, as we don’t really have a great reputation up there in “The Great White North” for having the best Armed Forces in the world. The training is good though, and it allowed me to travel, which I liked. So when I was done my six weeks, I immediately got posted overseas, and left my wife and kid so I could do my duty. And the paycheques helped too.
Anyways, while I was over there I got involved in something bad. I thought it was a routine US Special Op, but later found out the hard way that the raid I stumbled onto was a Crey Protector unit torching a Vahzilok nest. It’s kind of a long story, but I got caught in the middle of the slaughter, and had a run in with an Eidolon. Needless to say, I was captured, and beaten down.
I found myself in a dark room, the smell of rotting flesh waking me from the chemical induced sleep I was put in for transport. When I opened my eyes, I found myself in a warehouse FULL of Zombies. My first thought was that I was dreaming, as zombies were out of those George Romero films I used to watch as a kid. I’d seen them all back then. Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, Night of the….
Well, you get the picture.
Anyways, I shook my head at the sight of these things, and only the smell of them was enough to keep me in the mindset that this was actually happening. There was one man there that was alive though, and he immediately looked up from working on a cadaver when I stirred.
“Your awake. Excellent. I had hoped they didn’t give you too much Eidopine.”
The word didn’t make any sense too me. It sounded like a drug of some kind though, and I was a bit woozy. I was dimly aware that my hands were laced behind my back, but I was suspended from the ceiling vertically. The guy at the cadaver stopped what he was doing, throwing down a half-bloodied scalpel on the table the body was on. It clanged down, causing the mass of zombies around him to jump a bit. I jerked a bit too, hoping the noise wouldn’t spook a stampede or something.
“Wha…what am I d-doing here…?” I managed. Still in a haze, I tried to move a bit, but was held fast.
“Allow me to introduce myself. The name is Vahzilok. Dr. Vahzilok, in fact. And you are John Tasker.” He said as he approached. He had my I.D tags around his neck, and was reading them. “Hello John, Nice to meet you.” I looked up a bit to see the zombie stirring towards the corpse on the table. They were starting to get agitated. The Doctor looked back. “Oh don’t worry about them, they are harmless. Well, for now anyways…” He chuckled. “They won’t attack unless I tell them too. So you’d better be a nice guy John, or things may turn out not so nice for you.”
“What do you want?” I managed. My head started to hurt like a *******. I tried to move again, but there was no way I could. My hair was in my face, and the stench of the dead bodies was making me nauseous. I thought I was going to puke. The doctor approached closer, and started to walk around me like a lion examining a sick animal it was about to kill.
“Very good question John. And you know what? I’m going to tell you. Most evil men don’t do that enough do they? These days, people are just grabbed off the street and disappear without a trace. Endless police searches and money wasted, no list of demands. It’s all very tragic. And no one knows why. So here it is. I make zombies John. Very real, very true. They are cheap to find, and easy to replace. So many corpses in any given city make it pretty easy for me to do this. They do what I want, when I want, and they never question their instructions.”
“Sounds like you’ve got a great job. I’m very happy for you Doc, now, you wanna skip the crap and tell me why I’m here?” The good doctor lost his smile at that.
“No need to be rude John. Your not in the position for it.” He stated flatly. I couldn’t really argue, but if this was going where I thought it was going, I had nothing to lose. “The trouble with these things is, they move too slow. It has everything to do with the atrophy of the muscle, I really don’t expect you to understand John, as you’re just a grunt from Canada, who happened to stumble into the wrong place at the wrong time.” I looked up to him.
“Oh, I understand Doc. I get it. Your either lonely and REALLY need a date, or your psycho. Since I don’t see flowers around, that means this place hasn’t got a woman’s touch, so I’ll actually say it’s a little bit of column A and a little bit of column B.” His right fist flew, and squared me across the face. MAN he was strong. Wasn’t a big guy, but there was more wallop there than I was counting on. A trail of blood seeped out from my lip and dripped to the floor. I groaned at the impact, then spit blood on the floor.
“See…THAT wasn’t nice John.” He said as he shook his hand. “Fortunately for you, I need you alive for now, or you’d be a feast for them” he motioned to the slavering mass behind him. They were clawing and biting at each other, and making disgusting noises, but I was focused on my jaw right now. That punch REALLY hurt.
“Nice shot.” I mumbled through bloody teeth. He smirked again.
“And THAT’S the thing. See. I’ve developed a way to in effect “supercharge” the muscles in my forearms using nano-technology and cold fusion, making them a lot denser and giving me a burst of strength now and again. I wish I could use it on the zombies, but it only affects living or near living tissue. The charge is enough to keep the muscle working, so all I’d need really is a fresh set of hands to attach to them, and voila! A perfect soldier with, as you say a “wicked right hook”.
“I was right. You are crazy. I think you played with one too many chemistry sets when you were a kid Doc. Just one grunt’s opinion though.” Another right cross.
“I…AM…NOT…CRAZY!” he shouted at me, and his zombie hoard really started to stir.
“Whatever Doc. When I get outta here, I’m gonna tear you a new [censored].” The Doc stared at me, a blank look coming over his eyes. Just then, the Eidolon appeared from the shadows beside him. He glanced over to it.
“Get him ready for surgery.”

* * *

“Syxxblade? Where are you?” A voice came from the shadows. Immediately, both sets of claws come out and I’m ready for whatever it is. “JESUS CHRIST! HOLD UP!” the guy that I just pulled by the scruff of the neck to me says. My right claw is pulled back, ready to tear flesh, and the guy almost pisses his pants. The targeting system in my glasses has his jugular vein locked, and I can feel the combat A.I. in my hands and arms about to release, all I have to do is swing.
“You keep doing that, and you’re gonna lose something pretty important one of these days, Tacoma.” I say in a hushed tone. A small glint of light plays off my glasses, and the ringing of my claws is still in the air, although very slightly.
“Sorry! Jeez man, ease up! What’s with you?” he straightens his shirt as I let go of him. I look around him and down the corridor, switching through the different spectrums of light while I survey the area.
“You alone?” I ask.
“Of course I am. Why do you ask me that every time we see each other? Christ Syxx, you don’t trust me or something?” Tacoma asks. He’s not lying. My ocular implants can’t read a single fluctuation in heart rate or body temperature.
“Last time we met, you were trailed by a Quad unit. I had to slip away after our meeting. They are onto you I think Tacoma.” He shifted nervously.
“Yah, well, uh…that was what I wanted to talk to you about. I don’t think I’ll be able to help you out anymore. My superiors are getting a little nervous that so many Vahzilok nests are being purged, and NOT by their Quad teams either, they think someone has been letting some Intel slip here and there.” I look back at him, retracting my claws.
“Someone has.” I say to him. He nods.
“Yeah, uh…right. Well, I can’t help you any more man. If they find out I’m feeding info, I’d get canned. If they found out it was YOU I’m feeding it too, I’d disappear. They are still after you, Syxx. They’re not gonna stop until your brought in. More and more resources are being poured into getting you back into one of their labs. And the legal fees are piling up. Phoenix Prime’s legal protections won’t be able to help you forever, regardless of any super-hero privacy laws that are passed. You’re technically still the property of Crey Industries. They are going to get you back, one way, or another.”
“Just my hands Tacoma, and the blades I PAID for.” Tacoma nodded.
“Yeah, and the new shoulder implants you stole, not to mention the Anti-Grav units you ‘acquired’ from Diemos Labs.”
“Which aren’t working right by the way. The storage bin I raided was of old units, not new ones like I asked you.”
“That was all I could get you the codes for without anymore attention than necessary. Do you have any idea what happens when a break in occurs like that? They strip search the janitors in those places. I can’t help you there. Plus, every time you pass through Terra-Volta, it goes right through the shielding on those things. The only ones that have the shielding you need are the Jump chips. And for that, you need to add a layer of impact plating on your lower leg implants. John, sooner or later, your not going to have anything left of you. And plus, Crey will not stop until your back there. They want to know how you’ve been able to combine the neural technology with all the implants. No one’s been able to do that yet.”
“I’m just a grunt remember? How would I know?” I pose to him. Really, though, it’s rhetorical. He makes a face at me for that one too.
“Don’t feed me that, Tasker. I know you’ve got more than me helping you. And so do they. I won’t turn you in, but this is the last time I give you any more info. This ‘Windrazor’ guy can’t be THAT important to you that you’d risk getting caught anymore.” I wait a second before I respond.
“Airazor. His name is Airazor. And you know what Tacoma? He saved me from something that you cannot possibly imagine. And you KNOW Living Hellfire has been looking for him too. Christ, the two of them are like brothers. Portal has been bending over backwards for Hellfire.”
“WAS bending over backwards John. They stopped. Portal’s legal ran out of money. That’s what happens when you do it LEGALLY.”
“Whatever. I owe BOTH of them for what they did for me. Crey wants their technology back? They can take it from me when I finish what I’ve started.” Tacoma shook his head.
“You don’t get it man. They don’t want their technology back. They want YOU to help them repeat it again. And again. And again.” I shake my head.
“Friggin’ corporate [censored].” I say out loud. “What makes them think I would ever help them do that?” Tacoma stares at me for a few silent seconds. He’s hiding something. “What?” I ask. “What is going on Tacoma? What do you know?” He shakes his head.
“Nothing man. This is it. Take care and just be safe ok? No unnecessary ri-“. My right set of claws flies loose, minus the middle claw. I bury the blades 6 inches into the wall right around Tacoma’s throat, pinning him back. Immediately his hands come up and try and grab them to pry them from the wall, but the amount of force I’ve put behind that strike has it locked in just too deep. His hands immediately start to bleed as he grasps at the blades, and he starts to panic.
“Jesus Christ! What? What the hell did I do?” I calmly step forward, and place my left fist underneath his jaw. I bring my face closer to his, still calm.
“What…do you know Tacoma? You forget. I can see over 200 variations of light and body temperature. I could pick you out of a group of people all holding smoking guns just now. The way my claws are right now, either a puncture of the jugular or a punch through your lower jaw through your brain cavity would allow me to watch the color of a human body as it loses the life from it. I’ve seen it a few times before, and I must say it’s kind of pretty. So…I repeat….What…do you know?”
He’s really panicked now.
“Alright! Alright! For Christ sakes man…its your wife and kid!” My eyes widen, and even he can see that behind my glasses. “They have your wife and kid man! Not hostage or anything, but under surveillance. They’re gonna use them as leverage when they get you in the lab again.” I take a step back, pulling the claws out of the wall. “Jesus Christ this hurts! You got a rag? Dammit!” I stare off into the sewer corridor. ****ing Crey Bastards! I look back to Tacoma, who has ripped a few strips off his lab coat and wrapped his hands a bit.
“But, as far as Trish and Joshua know, I’m dead. She’s moved on.…” I trail off.
“Yeah, but your not John. They know this, and they’ll use anything, ANYTHING, including your own emotions to get what they want.” He says while finishing his makeshift bandages. “Dammit! Why do your claws have to be so damn sharp?” I chuckle as a look down at them.
“Best blades that money can buy…” I say.
Silence.
I turn back to Tacoma.
“You go back there, and you tell those bastards that I won’t be pushed into this. You tell them once I find Airazor, I’m coming after them. You tell them I’m not saving their labs anymore from Freak or Devouring earth or anything else that goes after them.” Tacoma shakes his head.
“I’m not saying a word, man. If they find out I’ve been leaking to you, I’m just as dead as the Vahz you’ve been cleaning.”
“Fine then. We’re done. I’ll do this without your help Tacoma. Now, get out of my sight.” Tacoma takes a few steps forward.
“John, your gonna self destruct on this path. You’re losing a little bit of yourself every day over this thing. You can feel sorry for yourself all you want, but your can’t expect everyone to drop what they are doing just to help you. I’m sorry that Crey is using you like a puppet, and I’m sorry that the Vahzilok took your hands. Trish and Josh are just now starting to accept that you’re dead. But this is something your doing to yourself. You can have a place in this world John, and it doesn’t have to be living like this.” He says as he motions to the sewers around him. I think about for a second, then take a deep breath.
“Get out of here Tacoma. You can’t help me anymore.” A few more seconds of silence hang in the air.
“I…I’m sorry John.” He says, and leaves. I know he’s not lying as I watch him go.
Best eyes that money can buy…