PROJECT:Excalibur -1 Grasp of the Devil Written by Kingbob Edited by JFive ************************************************************* As fear and hate enraptures the others, I look out over the castle walls. Sleep is rare among my brethren as The moon is high and the great maker has drawn out our sword for war. Our Maker says to slay the cursed infidels and everyone Prays for their souls as I prepare for the killing fields, For my god. For my soul. For their souls. Our grand master stands two towers down from me. Our Master is ready to give his life And ours as well for the cause, as The blood of satan's army is the only importance this night. The End time is here. Death Comes for us tomorrow For we are the protectors of the chalice. Soon we prepare for The final battle. Living or dead, it does not matter. Eventually we all Die --Kingbob (Lines in the sand) (c)1995, 1997 ************************************* Confusions, Illusions and Satanic Unions ************************************* ******** 09.16.97 Scotland, Great Britain. The Stone. Level 3 The sound of G.W Bridge's dress shoes make on the granite floor of the level 3 access hall is visibly unsettling for the 17 people gathered in this SHIELD base for their briefing on the UN's new mutant team, PROJECT:Excalibur. A highly top secret project brought forth by the UN to protect their membership nations from mutant terrorist actions, PROJECT:Excalibur was already causing undue attention between the high ranking officials in some of the smaller nations, as well as two of the larger ones. Brazil, Egypt, Japan, France and the United States were major opponents of it since before it was voted in by the UN/SHIELD Propositions Committee in 1992. Since this time, their fears have grown with no undue cause. Each nation with complaints has troubles with their own mutants and sees this as nothing but a call to arms for the dormant mutants in their territories. The United States has even started their own mutant control agency, although it is covered by a "No Light" classification, SHIELD has been aware of the Punishers for sometime. Today though, they are dealing with George Washington Bridge. The most respected officer in SHIELD besides General Fury, with no undue reason. His imposing manner brings respect along with fear wherever he goes. As the heavy door opened, the loud banter between the delegates ceased and a quiet awe overcame the group. For many in the room, this was the first time they had seen the face of one of the most famous military figure since his injuries and subsequent promotion in the Mongolia Conflict. Everyone in the room stood as General Bridge walked across to the head of the table and sat down with a heavy thud, showing the room his injuries have yet to heal completely. "Please be seated..." The General quietly said in a commanding voice. "I believe you know the nature of this meeting?" Not waiting for an answer he continued "For the last six years, since I was promoted to the second highest ranking officer in SHIELD, I have been working very hard to make PROJECT:Excalibur a reality. In the Mongolia Conflict, I was witness to the power a mutant strike force can do. Like the Atom Bomb before them, mutants are the next evolution in military strength. The deployment of a mutant telepath into an enemy territory can extract the most information with the least danger. A mutant with physical or energy powers can destroy large scale military targets, with 0% civilian casualties." General Bridge paused to look around the room where everyone was fixated on his face. One in particular looked frightened more so than others. Of course being the General that commanded the Russian Front in the Mongolian Conflict, he had every reason to be. "Any questions? He said with an uninterested voice. "I'll take your silence as no. Ms. Cooper, will you please give our guests their promised tour of the facility. I have some pressing matters to take care of." General Bridge stood and walked out of the room which was still loudly silent with awe. He turned out the door and walked down the hall. Upon reaching the end of the hall, he pressed his palm into the outline of a hand on his right. The wall seemed to hum for a second and two doors appeared. He stepped inside the small room. "Beta level. Access 081697GMT323." The room shook for a moment and then felt as if it was descending. The doors reopened and General Bridge found himself in the center of the SHIELD war room. The alarm sounded. It was a quick jump from one action to another as every officer in the room shifted their attention from general operations to a alert functions. "Status report!" The Duty Officer exclaimed. "We have geothermal tap at 56% efficacy and gaining sir." The Energy Officer said not taking her attention off the screen in front of her. "Transport I, IV, VII and XII are operational. The Short Distance Tram is up and running and reserve oxygen is at 98%." "Excalibur is moving from the training center to the Transport bay." The third voice said in a rushed tone. The last voice directed at the Duty Officer was the Bunker Status Commander. "Sealing all access points." General Bridge sat in the now vacated Operations Chair, a most impressive piece of equipment. Designed to look like a E-Z Boy, it housed a technical readout on all of the base's functions, and communications display with direct access to the Greenwich HQ as well as several of the division bases. Over the communications speaker Bridge heard the last part of the drill, coming from Excalibur group leader Shiro Yashida. "Excalibur ready to deploy. Downloading coordinates. All systems checkout. Beginning final check. All clear. Give command stone." The control officer looked at his screen and typed in his key code. He paused for a minute as the room was cut by silence. Excalibur read their readout on the transports computer and the nature of the alert was answered over the comm... "Son of a BITCH!!!" was the only word coming from Excalibur. Once again Bridge had pissed of their leader, affectionately known as Sunfire, for several reasons. G.W. Bridge did something he rarely does. He smiled. ************ 04.09.90 Mongolia **Control. This is group 4882 on the west side of the (Mongolian Capital City). We need air cover STAT at 413 grid. Over.** **4882. This is Control. We got three heavy inferno's enroute. Approximate arrival is t-minus two minutes. Over.** **Control. That’s a copy. Out.** "Sir, three infernos are enroute." The comm officer said while trying to get back into the trench.. "All right. Pull everyone back... I'm going to take a look..." "Commander Bridge!?" The communications officer asked. "I said I'm going to take a look at those freekin' commies in their last moments before they go to hell... Any problems soldier?" "No sir." The comm officer said quietly. Bridge stood and walked over to the side of the trench. With one step he was out of the hole. Three shots hit the ground next to him. "They still fire at us, unaware that they will be dead within three minutes..." Bridge thought as he stood his ground unmoving. The sound of the low level bombers that had been called in grew louder as Bridge looked to the east, towards the enemy, towards the Russians, waiting for the inferno to deliver his enemies to hell. The lead bomber quickly came into view and dropped his load on the Russians and the large explosion caused by the white phosphorus and plastique explosive mixture making contact with oxygen was followed by a fireball reaching for heaven only to turn back for it's native hell. The second bomber followed the lead and dropped it's cargo. Another fireball leapt up from the impact spot, Russian soldiers ran screaming from their trenches engulfed in flames, their skin burning off as the explosive ate it away. Behind the second bomber the third was making its way in the distance, but at the moment he was supposed to turn towards the Russians it turned slightly and turned back. Within seconds it moved over the 4882 and dropped it's bombs. Bridge tried to warn the rest of the group, still hidden in the trench not knowing of what was coming, but his screams were drowned out by the bombers jet engines. The explosion hit in the middle of the trench, killing his group instantly. Bridge felt the burning, the hellfire claiming his skin as it's own, eating away at his body, feeding the flames that leapt off of him. ************ 09.18.97 The Stone Level 32 "General Bridge, I assume that everything is working well with PROJECT:Excalibur?" "Yes sir. Everything is on schedule. Stone is functioning within 90% efficiency and we are setting up the team structure of Excalibur while we speak. I estimate three weeks and Excalibur Alpha should be operational." Bridge said in a tone showing that he "Good. Tensions in Asia are at a high since the end of the Mongolian conflict. We have reason to believe that the former Russian Terrorism group known as the Red Crusade is operational once again." "Yes sir. That particular threat has been incorporated into the Training Program. General Fury stood from his seat and walked to the far side of the room. He took a look at one of the pictures on the wall of the private conference room. It was the only know picture of General Fury's World War Two team, the Avengers. The names of the operatives were unknown even to the members of the group, using codenames instead. Under the picture was the codenames of the members: "America, Fury, Panther, Grimm, and Torch. Killed In Action -- 1944" "I hope this team works better together than the Avengers did." Fury said than whispered. "dear god do I hope...." ************ 09.26.97 The Stone Level 7 Control and War Room The War Room buzzed with a quiet hum as everyone took to their respective tasks like drone bees. Four Star General G.W. Bridge commanded. Controlling every aspect of the Stone from the high level training in the "PIT" or Physical Interaction Training, to the replacement of a faulty lightbulb in the storage closet. Today was no different. Being privy to all information coming in and going out of the Stone, General Bridge is not used to being surprised. He doesn't like it, and he doesn't allow it. Ever. ************ 09.26.97 The Stone Level 9 Living Quarters Beneath the ground in northern Scotland, a secret SHIELD base, known only as the Stone, General GW Bridge, second command of SHIELD, director of Project: Excalibur and only responsible to General Nick Fury, sat contemplating his options. He had just got reports from Fury that a group of mutants calling themselves Tenet had brought a Black Air base, as well as the Sentinel compound in the US to the ground. While he didn't totally agree with the ethics of the Sentinel project, he had a duty to the funders within the UN to deal with this group of mutants. He made his decision. Pressing a button on his desk to open a comm-link, he said, "Dagger, prep Sword. We've got a mission for them." "Which team?" "Alpha team, and..." Bridge paused. His face giving way to nothing. After a few seconds he continued. "Never mind that order Ms. Cooper." "Computer. Voice command. Fury alpha-nine-three-seven-two- Bridge." "Working." Came from the computer followed by the sounds of it processing the command. General Nick Fury's face appeared on the screen built into the wall in the rear of the room. "Yes Bridge?" "I don't think that Excalibur is ready for this mission, sir. They haven't been tested enough, we don't know the limitations of their powers and..." Fury cut in "I agree fully. My superiors wanted to know how well you could run this team." "Excuse me sir? I passed all the SHIELD and UN tests with..." "This wasn't a UN test... I will let you know when the time is right, but for now, just let it be. Fury out." The screen went back to SHIELD's insignia and Bridge was left in the silent room with only his thoughts and many questions. ************ 09.30.97 Switzerland Location Unknown It is a cold and wet night as several unmarked trucks make their way up the side of a mountain in a country known for their Banking and Chocolates. Painted in a white and grey pattern camouflage, the trucks come to a stop before a large access tunnel in the side of the mountain with a striking resemblance to NORAD in Colorado, United States. "Please have your identity cards ready for check before you stop" The large sign said when they entered the barb-wire gate about a mile before the mountain. Checking the ID Cards, the entrance guard lowered the concrete blockade to let the trucks through... ...while under the mountain, in a restricted area of the secret caverns, several very powerful men walked down an empty tunnel lined with thick concrete moving toward a room only thirteen others had ever seen. The room was a featureless box with silver metallic walls. The entire room was bare of any artifacts and a low hum filled the room, yet barely audible. A door opened in the north wall and several well dressed men and women walked into the room. The lead man pushed a button on a remote control he pulled out of his pocket. Out of the floor, a large table formed as well as several chairs. An amazing site to one who had never seen anything like it, the men and women took no visible notice of it as they sat down. At the head of the table, the man with the remote control set it down on the table where it was absorbed, forming a control pad. Pushing another button a screen formed in the south wall behind the lead man at the same time a small screen formed on the table in front of him. What was obvious was that the man with the remote control was most definitely in charge, but of what... ************ 09.30.97 The Stone Level 7 Back in the stone, GW Bridge was looking over his daily reports when his communication unit activated itself. "General! Sir, one of the Alphas has left the building!" "Why are you bothering me with this? Put the Alpha manner on standard watch." Bridge said with his normal, yet mockingly superior, tone. "Sir, Rictor didn't just leave, he disappeared... We tracked his movement from the moment he disappeared in his personal quarters to Peru, where it disappeared..." The female soldier said in an astonished tone. "After he was spotted in Peru, it looks like the tracking unit was destroyed, sir." "Ahhh, hell. Get me the CO of External Operations on the comm." "Yes sir." A moment passed and the face of Captain Niche appeared on the comm unit attached to the most high-tech lazy boy in existence. "General Bridge?" Niche asked "What can I attribute this great pleasure to..." The tone Niche used was condescending and expected from the man who held the record for being passed over for promotion. His bitter and sarcastic nature only happen to be one factor keeping him in his current position. Another happened to be that he had a gift for getting in and out of hot situations, a skill that happens to work very well in Division Eleven; External Operations:Covert. ************ 09.30.97 Switzerland Location Unknown In the lead seat, a man dressed in a black suit and white tie sat. Only going by the name Nautonnier, he was obviously in control of the room. Starting the meeting he asked for progress reports from the heads of the centers. A large man wearing a dark gray trench coat and smoking a cigar stood and began his report. "Research and Development has made considerable progress with the alien technology that was procured in India. A strong indication from the initial tests suggest that the technology produces a sonic blocking of mental control of superhuman powers, but we do not know the full effect of the device due to the weakness of the test subjects we hold at this ti..." "We are working on your "request" for more powerful subjects as we speak Mr. Curtis. Continue." The lead man interrupted. "Yes sir. The development team has reported that they have found a way to duplicate the powers of the mutant teleporter we "obtained" in Columbia last year. We have run across some, obstacles, with the testing. While we can transport organic material, non organic’s including clothing and electronic equipment seem to disappear mid transport." "Interesting... Mrs. Garvey?" "Sir. Internal Operations has come to agreement with the United States Government in the development of a new operations center in their North East. Our teams are on the process on designing the center and it should be completed within the next year." 'Mr. Leigh?" "Lunar Center has gotten access to another level of the Blue Area of the Moon. We have also deciphered several more pages of the book we found in lever three, including what seems to suggest that the former residence of the Lunar City were not alien as we first thought, but a group of humans that mutated themselves about 5000 years ago. We still have no indication of where this race has gone, if they are dead or if they came back to earth or if they left our solar system." "Thank you Mr. Leigh. Now for our last report, and the newest member of the Thirteen Rose-Croix, Mr. Fury?" ************ 10.12.97 The Stone Level 15 "Lt. Yashida? Come in please." General Bridge said from the observation booth of the "PIT". "Yes sir. You asked to see me?" Shiro said as he stood at attention. "I have been watching the progress of Excalibur Alpha over the last couple weeks, and I want to get your views on them." "Well, I think that although that some of the members are more skilled than othe..." "I don't mean their skills. I mean do you think that they are ready for active status?" Bridge asked in a concerned tone. "Sir. Yes sir. I think that Excalibur Alpha is as ready for active status." "Ok. What about the individual members of the team?" "Um, What do you want to know sir?" "You and Lt. Braddock don't seem to be getting along well. Are their any problems I should know about?" "No sir. She feels I am not suited to lead the team, as do most of the civilian members." "Thank you Shiro. You are dismissed." ************ 10.14.97 The Stone Level 9 Living Quarters The silence of noise lulls me to sleep and I dream. I dream of the esoteric, unconventional attitudes of my subconscience. It calls for me. It tells me what I am to do. I am scared, but I fight for no other reason than I enjoy it. To fight the evils, devils and of the world brings me joy. The truth of my existence is found in these dreams. But I cannot understand. The voices. The sounds. The feelings over come me, and I do everything wrong. I fight the masses, and I lose. I fight the evils, and I lose. The eval of the world has me in it's grasp, but my fight means nothing to them. They laugh at me. They poke me and laugh. But I poke back, and I fight back, until I am free of the evals. I am me. I can fight again. I wake Again the dream fades with the image of himself controlled by the strings of a puppeteer, and the sweet sweat has covered him after his dreamed confrontation with eval, and he closes his eyes once again, wishing the dream would go away, and hoping for the next time it comes back... The ****************************************************** Next Issue Who are the Rose-Croix? What do they want from Fury? When will Excalibur be shown? What did Bridge's dream mean? That's a good question. Maybe the next issue will answer these questions. Then again, maybe not. ****************************************************** (C) 1997 Kingbob ltd