Thanks for sharing this story Jack. I liked it a lot. 
Let us stifle under mud at the pond's edge
and affirm that it is fitting
and delicious to lose everything. ~ Donald Hall
Good for Jack!
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The English language is an intricate high-speed precision tool.Stop using it to bang open coconuts. ~Tokamak
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((Umm classic repeat? Really have a hard time getting up the energy to write anymore <having a Wonderful Holiday aren't I> Its sappy, it’s always been sappy. I’ve always been a sappy writer, hell I’m amazed I even have this in me. Much less I’d be willing to share it. Jack’s take on the holidays, it began as Christmas dinner thread a couple <few?> years ago where Jack invited the Legends to dinner and asked they share their favorite Christmas moments with him. Please forgive typos I have terrible habit of writing stream of consciousness and not being able to see when complete ideas in my head didn't make it to paper. Even when I use Word to write with. Jack's always had the soul vision from an RP way back, way before the dude gave it to Superman in Origins. Anyway happy happy all. )
Jack watched as the world turned beneath his feet, or rather didn’t. Matching the Earth’s rotation he appeared to hang motionless, at the edge of space, below him Paragon City blazed in the night, its War Walls shimmering in the endless void. It was the Holidays, not a favorite time for Jack.
A year ago he might have said different, but it had been a hard year. A year ago, he’d have said his friends; his family would be together, now he knew better. It seemed the government took a dislike to Legend’s activities, the activities of this team of heroes, and shut them down. Most of the team was forced underground, encouraged to join other sanctioned teams or made to retire. Some folks simply disappeared; disappearing happened to people, he’d made it happen to people.
The message from the Agency was clear, we like Wolfe, we can use Wolfetech, what we don’t need is the good doctor thinking he can make a real difference. Change the world. They tried to kill him and discovered they couldn’t, but with the team dispersed, his fortune locked up by the courts and his reputation destroyed the point was made. He stepped back and the “problems” with Wolfetech disappeared. Security Clearances returned, contracts were paid on time, and new business just suddenly appeared. Even his reputation had been sanitized, he once again led the premiere “exotic ideas” think tank on the planet, all it cost him was a team…a family.
“At least” he mused, “They are alive.”
It was getting close, midnight on Christmas Eve. He’d never watched the show from orbit before and was anxious to see it. A moment’s concentration, then the world below him changed. His vision widened, the entire EM spectrum visible, then nothing but darkness. Slowly the balls appeared, popped into his vision like quantum foam. Each bundle of color represented the soul of someone in Paragon. He’d discovered this trick soon after his wife and sons had died in the war; if he focused hard enough he could see…..something of a person. Hexess had called it soul vision. Jack wasn’t sure about that, but it was a fascinating gift. A twirl of colors, bound together, each representing that person’s personality, the sum of their actions in life. Red was anger and passion, black was serenity, but also isolation, angry purples and greens clashed in the evilest beings he’d ever seen. Gold, was sacrifice and heroism and white was a perfect balance of all the colors. A person at peace with all their life contained radiated a blinding white. As far as Jack knew there were no completely white souls. Some had more then others; those content with what they did those whose actions, good or bad cost them nothing.
“Babies radiate white” he thought “Jim and Trip after the kids were born, and somehow Red has quite a bit white. Gibraltar too, wonder if the golem knows it has a soul?” he thought
Looking down at Paragon he saw a lot of gold, and even more of the stormier purple.
“Soon” he thought
He’d discovered the meaning of this time year the first Christmas after his wife was executed. Alone and despondent he sat on the roof of his loft, watching the souls pass by when he first heard the bells .
<jingle jingle jingle>
“The sleigh bells? Impossible" Jack thought, "I’m in orbit. He can’t be above me.”
“Ho Ho Ho” echoed through his mind, and he saw it. The evil purple haze to the east, the Rouge Islands burned blindingly white. Then below him the whirlwinds of light began to change and glow white, and above, a blindingly white light shone from space.
“He’s never been this high…I have to…” reaching out with his will Jack warped gravity, and accelerated towards the blinding white ball. He’d never seen its owner before but this year he had to know.
Jack was engulfed in a blinding light. When Jack woke up, he found himself sitting on the beach in front of his Talos surf shop, every soul in the city radiated the blinding white light of peace. Each one in perfect harmony and balance. That was the old man’s gift; a night peace for everyone, a feeling of balance and rightness, a chance to look at a life, no matter what that life may be, and be content. Jack knew it would fade, it always did, but for one night everyone was at peace, and everyone had hope.
In a world of heroes and villains, demons and gods, sentient AI and aliens, Santa Claus seemed tame; even silly. Jack knew better, so did the Legends. Yes Virginia there is a Santa Claus, and he makes no judgments about life style or religion or even naughty and nice, he only gives one precious gift. Peace.
Jack Wolfe Prototype Super Tank, over 25 million in damage taken in the service of others
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I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness for it shows me the stars. ---Og Mandino---