Note from Shadow: The events in this story have no relation to any version of Conquest of Evil
Whispers in the Wind
By the QTeam
October 24, 1995
Arcadia Academy.
A hellhole if there ever was on Earth. Cloaked under the guise of a respectable school it was here that cruel and twisted experiments were carried out on human beings. The sick part of it all was that generally the test subjects were children. Once brought into Arcadia, those children's families and relatives were dealt with. Sometimes it meant payoffs, sometimes it meant faking their deaths.
And then sometimes it meant murder.
Of course that meant nothing to the head of Arcadia, the Rani. The Rani was a Time Lord and a very unethical and immoral person. All she thought of was the success of her experiments to further scientific knowledge.
And what the Rani wants, the Rani usually gets.
"So what's her status?" the Rani asked one of her men.
"She's still keeping silent as ever. Her body is still rejecting the 'treatment' you planned out. " he said. "You're probably wasting your time on this one. She's got no scientific potential. "
"Such a shame since her cousins had made good test subjects in my beta testing wing. " the Rani sighed. "Open the door. "
The man did that and the Rani stepped into a room. There chained to a wall was a young 15 year old girl with long snow white hair that went down past her waist and covered her eyes. However she was a mess. She had purplish bruises over her body which could be seen through her ruined clothes. It was only because of the Rani's order that the guards never totally violated her for disobedience. . . just beat the hell out of her.
"You make this way too difficult for yourself. " Rani said. "Out of all of my test subjects you show the least promise yet the highest amount of resistance. Why be so hostile when the pain you endure could be so much less. "
The girl then lifted her head and spoke. "You. . . will never. . . own me. . . "
Rani then slapped the girl across her face a few times and then punched her in the gut. She then lifted the girls chin and brushed way her hair to expose the swollen right eye and the bruises on her face. "You foolish girl. I already own you. . . for however longer you have left to live. Tomorrow if you don't cooperate, you will die. "
With that the Rani then left the girl to think about her terrible fate. The door slamming shut sounded like death to here. ~ . . . if I die. . . at least all will be safe. . . ~ she thought. ~ But . . . I don't want to die. . . Zephyr, God of Wind. . . I pray to you. . . help me!~
"Set up the demonstration wing for an execution ceremony for tomorrow. " the Rani said. "Some of my test subjects have been acting more rebellious as of late. This should serve as a reminder to them. "
"Yes Rani. . . By the way Laocorn Gaudeamus is in your office waiting for you. "
Rani stopped when she heard that. It had been nearly a year since Laocorn Gaudeamus had made any contact with her. Sure the Ranitime Corporation and the Gaudeamus Corporation had been going through joint ventures but as of last week all of their joint projects had been completed. All the legal ones anyway.
The more secretive contract was working with form of mind control using a mask which when put onto someone would make them completely obedient to who ever was its commander. It had been one of the Rani's earlier projects. Of course due to the fact that if the mask broke the subject would be freed and those under its control were nothing more than machines, the Rani then shelved the project since it had no bearing on her research. However she knew there would be underworld financial gains from this. Gaudeamus had paid well for it.
However it had been less than she had been expecting but it was understandable considering at the time Laocorn Gaudeamus was wearing two pieces of the legendary Armor of Mars. She had heard of the destructive force of the armor's power and how when all six pieces were gathered the wearer would be come a God. He need an army of foot soldiers to act as scouts and spies for him and the masks worked like a charm for him.
I wonder what he'll ask of me this time. Rani thought as she entered her office. Laocorn was there in her office, however this time he was in a white Armani suit. His hair was light blue, possibly because of the lighting as she had known Laocorn's hair seemed to change between light blue and lavender depending on the lighting. Also next to him was a briefcase.
"Well Laocorn this is completely. . . " Rani started but then Laocorn cut her off. "Quiet Rani. I'm not here on a social visit. I'm here to sever our ties. Completely and forever. "
Rani was taken aback by this. She couldn't remember anyone ever saying they wanted to end all ties to her ever. "What is this all about?"
"Its about new beginnings and you are not a part of it. " Laocorn said.
Rani still was shocked but then noticed Laocorn then removed his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. The Mars gauntlets were gone.
"In case you are wondering, the Armor of Mars was destroyed over year ago, all six pieces as well as the God of War himself. " Laocorn said.
What?! Mars himself killed! By who! Who has the power to kill a GOD?! Rani's eyes widened. The wheels in her head were spinning on this. She was wondering what kinds of scientific research she could do if she ever figured out who killed the Legendary God of War. But that was something else. Now she had to concern herself about Laocorn. . . then again why should she. Without the Armor of Mars, he wasn't as powerful as he had been.
"And in case you are thinking I am not as powerful as I was before Time Lord. . . " Laocorn said turning around and putting his hand in the direction of her monitor system. "SHIROHA KEN!!!"
To Rani's shock, a white wave of energy came from Laocorn's hand blew apart her monitor system. Her shock was fading to anger as she then said. "How dare you think you can do something like this to me and get away with it!" She then pressed her switch to call for security. . . only no one arrived immediately as she had planned. "What is going on?"
"Your mercenaries had to take a time out. "
Rani turned around and saw Panni and Lyla, both in battle gear. Panni tossed in a waterlogged Ogron soldier while Lyla dropped a burnt corpse on the ground.
"Now then I suggest you listen to what Lord Laocorn has to offer to you. " Panni said.
"Because if you don't, we have our orders Rani. . . and I don't think you want to have to experience them. " Lyla smirked.
Laocorn was about to speak when he then felt his inner sense. Panni noticed Laocorn. "My lord?"
"The Black Wind is howling. . . someone is set to die. . . " Laocorn then went over to Rani. "Show me the person you planned to kill and show me now. "
Rani may have been a Time Lord and a genius, but she knew when she was not in control and when her own life was threatened. Plus she wanted to know exactly what Laocorn's plan was. "Alright. Follow me. "
Rani took them to her specialty wing. Panni and Lyla had to restrain themselves from attacking Rani after taking a look at some of the rooms and seeing what she had done. Laocorn was the only one that didn't look visually disturbed. . . that didn't mean he wasn't.
"I can't believe Laocorn was associated with someone like this. " Lyla whispered to Panni.
"Lord Laocorn was a different person when he wore the Armor of Mars. " Panni replied. "The death of Sulia and how she died changed all of that for him. "
Rani then opened the door to the room where the girl that had been chained to the wall had been. Panni and Lyla were in shock when they saw the girl. Panni ran to her while Lyla had grabbed Rani by the throat, all of her self-restraint gone.
"You bitch! How could you do this to a child!" Lyla growled.
Panni checked on the girl and looked her over. the girl smiled. "You've come. . . I knew. . . I wouldn't die. . . "
"Lyla. . . let her go. " Laocorn said.
Lyla blinked. "What!? But. . . "
"NOW!" Laocorn demanded and then Lyla let go of Rani. Rani was about to the girl but Laocorn put his hand on Rani's shoulder. "Just because I had Lyla let go of you doesn't mean we are done Rani. It's time to talk. "
"So talk. " Rani said as Laocorn brought the briefcase and opened it.
Her eyes widened when she saw what was in it. One half was filled with gems and rare jewels. The other was with US dollars. Large denominations.
"The contents of this case equal 50 million dollars. Agree to sever all of our ties in the legal and illegal manners, never tell anyone about me or my people or anything I have ever done with you, and give me this girl and the case is yours and I will deposit 20 million more into your off shore account. " Laocorn said. "Do we have a deal?"
The Rani had been getting surprises all day ever since Laocorn came to her today. However this was the most pleasant surprise of all. 70 million dollars just for one useless girl. She knew what was the best deal. "We have a deal. Take her and what ever you want with her. "
Lyla wasted no time breaking the chains the held the girl to the wall. She then took her into her arms and carried her out of the Arcadia with Panni going over to Laocorn who gave the case to Rani. "Thank you and good bye Rani. . . forever. " With that Laocorn and Panni left Rani alone with her 50 million.
The gears were going on her Rani's head as she wondered how to spend her newly acquired cash.
Laocorn went back into the limo had parked outside of Arcadia with the girl in the limo. She looked a bit more cleaner and wasn't in the clothing she was in when they saw her but rather she was in Panni's dress clothes. She had her get into them after using her water power to clean the girl off and then Lyla had used her fire power to dry her. The girl had her face covered but wasn't shy around the three humans. Laocorn snapped his fingers and the limo started to drive.
"You're the ones Lord Zephyr showed me in my vision. . . " the girl said.
"Zephyr. . . you are of the Wind Family then aren't you?" Laocorn said. The girl nodded.
"Does that bitch know what you. . . " Lyla started.
"No. . . I kept my power hidden. I would never let her find out about the power of the wind. The wind is pure. . . it must never be corrupted to her experiments. " the girl said.
"Will you be taking care of me?"
"We'll do more than that. . . " Laocorn said lifting her chin. "We'll be your family. "
The girl smiled and lifted her head showing her crystal blue eyes. "Thank you. "
"What is your name?" Panni asked.
"My name. . . my name is Sylphina. " she said.
"Welcome to our family Sylphina. " Laocorn said to her. "A family where you will never ever have to fear the Rani ever again. "
The Rani sat in her office thinking about the visit Laocorn Gaudeamas had paid her. And while the visit had been profitable despite Laocorn severing his ties to her, she did not like being intimidated the way that she had.
Rani knew Laocorn possessed enough power of his own to make things difficult for her. All humans possessed this power, this she knew. Laocorn destroying my monitor was proof of that. she thought as she looked at where her old monitor stood now replaced with a new one.
It was just that most humans had trouble accessing the human strengths that lay out of their reach. But there are some who have. Rani thought. She saw some of this firsthand when she visited a King of Fighters tournament one year ago. The things she saw the fighters do had amazed even her. She who had traveled to many planets, in many times, and had seen many things.
Humanity was capable of great things, and all the major players in the galaxy knew it. The people of Earth had always had tremendous potential inside of them, which was why so many powers looked to add Earth to their respective empires. The Daleks, the Cybermen, the UAE, even the Master had tried to conquer Earth several times. The list of conquerors who sought Earth seemed endless and only went on and on.
Many had given different reasons for wanting Earth in their empires. Some have said the resources the planet provided. The UAE was looking into acquiring a 'natural magic' that they said the planet provided. Davros and the Cybercontroller were looking to add humanity into their own forces. The Cybercontroller to convert them into Cybermen. For Davros, as a new source for Dalek mutation. Others saw humans as a source of slave labor for their empires, more times than not in many human civilizations across space and time this was the case.
But the bottom line of it all was that there were forces in the galaxy who sought to oppress humanity, or at least add it to their own empires. Most of these forces were at evolutionary dead ends with their respective species and couldn't evolve further. Others would prefer to see to it that humanity either couldn't evolve or could only evolve on their time table.
Well if Laocorn Gaudeamas and his associates are signs that humanity is evolving then I'd say it's evolving quite nicely. Rani thought. Which was all the more reason she had to either work it to her advantage, or do something that might be considered 'drastic'.
As for Laocorn, well I can always confront him another time. Maybe not in terms of power, but there are other ways. From her desk she took out a file disk which held records on it of all of Gaudeamas Corporation's secret deals with Ranitime Corporation. Information that could become very deadly to Laocorn if it was ever leaked out to the press. And as an added precaution she had made copies of the disk and scattered the information all across space and time to destinations that only she knew of.
The Rani looked at the file disk before her. She may not be able to tell of her secret deals with Laocorn, but that didn't mean that there wasn't ways to retaliate should the need arise. Or desire she mentally added.
Let Laocorn think he's won this battle. Rani thought. No matter what power he might obtain knowledge is always a power of the highest order. And the more you possess of that, the stronger you TRULY become.
The Rani sat back in her chair contemplating new strategies and ways to retaliate against Laocorn should she chose to do so. We shall see who wins the war, human. Despite all your vaunted power there is still power and knowledge that you cannot even begin to comprehend.
Laocorn looked outside his private home near the Pacific Ocean. He watched the moonlight shine over the water as he thought of the events of the day.
~ Water. . . Fire. . . and now Wind has been restored to the balance of what there had once been. ~ Laocorn thought to himself. He didn't know if Sylphina would want to fight and quite frankly he didn't care. What he did care about was making sure Sylphina would be protected and would receive treatment to heal her injuries during her time in Arcadia. He heard the phone ring on his bed and then picked it up. "Yes?"
"I thought you would want to know our newest addition to the family is doing alright. " Panni said.
"How is she and the truth Panni. " Laocorn said.
Panni paused over the phone before answering. ". . . she has been malnourished for some time. She has several broken bones and some wounds that have not healed yet have existed for some time. "
"Rani tried to break her. " Laocorn replied.
"For a long time it seems. She didn't want to be her guinea pig. I had to calm Lyla down when she got the reports. She was ready to march back to Arcadia and blow it up. " Panni said.
"For the moment, attacking Ranitime is out of the question. " Laocorn said. "We've already played our hand. If attack her now or any time soon I have a feeling she will retaliate against us a very damaging way. "
"But she can't expose you without exposing herself. " Panni said.
"The Rani is a Time Lord. I will not make the mistake of underestimating her at all. Its best to do what I wanted when we got there. Keep away from her. " Laocorn said. "Is there anything else?"
"No my Lord. "
"Inform me of any changes in Sylphina or any emergencies. " Laocorn said and then he hanged up the phone. He then went outside on the balcony and looked at the moonlight while thinking of his sister.
"You still blame yourself for my death. . . don't you brother?"
"Of course I do Sulia. Because of my arrogance. . . " Laocorn sighed but then turned around wide alert as he saw a translucent figure there. She wore a white dress and wore a golden pendant around her neck. Her dark blue hair was cropped short but she also had a thin ponytail that went down her back. Her hazel eyes looked at Laocorn. "Sulia!" This was not the first time this had happened to him. Twice before had seen the image of his own departed twin.
"Laocorn. You can't continue to place the guilt of the world and the blame for my death on your soul forever. " Sulia said.
Laocorn looked away and down at the ground. "Why not? I don't even know if my soul will ever been cleansed of what I did. . . nor can I ever forgive myself for killing you Sulia. "
Sulia went to her brother and put her arms around him. Laocorn felt his sisters touch. "Laocorn you didn't kill me. Mars did. You lost your way for a while but now you are back to the brother I remembered. "
"But I'm not. . . " Laocorn sighed. "How can I ever go back to what I was?"
"To go back to being an innocent is impossible true. " Sulia said. "But you returned to the light Laocorn. Very few people that have or would go through what you did would be able to crawl out of the darkness and back into the light. You did that Laocorn. "
"Sulia. . . " Laocorn looked at her.
"Live brother. Live for me. . . and for yourself. " Sulia whispered to him as she then started to fade way. Laocorn put his hand out to touch her but by then there was nothing. "Sulia. . . "
Laocorn looked up at the heavens and heard her voice one more time.
Live.
Laocorn smiled at the heavens. "Sulia. . . thank you. " With that he went into his home and went to sleep.
Tomorrow was another day and who knows what tomorrow will bring.
END