Beyond the Veil - part 3
A tale of a possible future of Freedom Force by Silver Age Fogey

Chapter 7 - "Else You Will Drown In Your Own Sorrow..."

The three super beings simply sat in the meeting room of the Freedom Fortress as the re-powered base continued to hum along in activity. Neither Merry nor Nick could bear to meet Mentor's gaze as he somberly contemplated his actions... the actions he had felt forced to take for Law and Order.

The Titans of Truth had been trapped in their transformation, and were hopelessly caught morphing back and forth... for thirty years. Their pain was indescribable, their minds degraded, and they had been trapped, immobile, and helpless.

Finally, Nick Craft drew a ragged breath and said, "Mentor... I have to say..."

"I know what you are thinking, Nick. I did what had to be done. I could not allow them to continue to suffer."

"No, I understand, and I want to say... say thanks. I never had the nerve to try to find a way to free them, or even to put them out of their unbearable misery." Tears began to leak down his drawn face as he continued, "I always hoped that there might be some way to save them... but there wasn't. I know that, and I knew that all along, I guess..."

"Do not be troubled, Nick. You have done nothing wrong, and your hope and your efforts do you proud, as I am sure that yours do also, Merry."

She whispered, "Thank you... for setting them free," before she turned and returned to her water tank, again engaging in her hourly immersion to prevent her body from dehydrating too far to support her respiration.

"Mentor..." Nick started. "Mentor... did it hurt?"

"No," he said, shaking his head slowly. "They did not suffer. I merely... stopped them."

"No, Mentor, I meant you." The former Liberty Lad put a hand on Mentor's arm. "Are you all right?"

"Eh? I am well enough. What I have done is very draining. Few of my people would even dare to do it.. But surely you are not concerned for my well being?"

The man blushed. "I guess I am. Mentor, I'm sorry. It's just that, everything has been so insane, and nothing seems to have made sense... and Merry and I have been fighting for so long, against such overwhelming odds."

"Do not be ashamed, Nick Craft, and do not think that I miscomprehend what you have done. I can see that you have done what you thought right, and no one ever demanded any more from you than that."

"Yeah, but... but I've been taking it out on you. I'm really sorry."

Mentor stood and shook Nick's hand. "Let us speak no more of it, then. Tell me what else has transpired. I have seen that the Ant has undergone a transmogrification. What of the others?"

"Well... there is a bit of good news. There is a surviving colony of humans that's pretty much unaffected by the conditions outside."

"Indeed? I could not find any sign of any significant group of life signs. This is very good news!"

Nick shook his head and said, "No, it's not, Mentor. But it was all the hope we had left. And we just recently found out that that hope was crushed as well... Let's see if Merry can join us. She has a breathing suit that she can wear for extended trips, and this one will be a couple of hours."

"I can fly us in my craft..."

"No," he said with a wry smile. "Flying is definitely not the way to get where we're going."

The trio were seated adequately, if not comfortably, on the back of three giant ants with the mutated Ant in the lead. They rode quickly down a dark tunnel toward some subterranean destination. Mentor turned to the others and said, "I cannot make contact with John's mind. I believe that his rational mind has been devolved even as his body has been changed."

"That's okay, Mentor," Merry said. "Thanks. At least you tried." She shifted again, trying to find some measure of comfort in the metallic suit that surrounded her. Periodically, she would pull the helmet of the outfit on, seal it, and fill it with water. "Sometimes, I think that's all we can do anymore."

"It seems that you have attained some measure of success. Even though I do not know our destination, I can sense the air of anticipation about you both. Surely, this must be some great achievement?"

Nick answered, "It was all we could do, Mentor. The world was devastated... so many of those who were affected by the Energy X surge gained explosive or energy powers. Between them and... and the rest..."

Merry continued, "Mentor, I'm sure you've wondered where everyone else is. At least, the team that was in place when you and MinuteMan left all those years ago."

"I am puzzled to their whereabouts. Surely they are not all dead?"

"No," she answered. "Some changed. Some went missing. And some have... followed their own paths. Like Man O'War."

"Merry," Nick said, "You don't have to-"

"Yes! Yes I do!" she cried. "I've denied it for too long! He's GONE, Nick!"

"I know that. But you can't give up hope, Merry, it's all we have left. For him and for the others."

Mentor said, "Perhaps if you tell me what has happened, I may be able to help?"

"No. No one can help. But talking about it will at least make me feel a little better..." The erstwhile Sea Urchin took a deep breath and answered.

(Merry's Tale): It was horrible. This was about the same time that Law and Order were trapped. Man O'War and I were able to get out of the Fortress by an underwater route. We have an outlet to the ocean that wasn't blocked by the force fields - who would try to get in that way, anyhow?

So we swam out into Liberty Harbor, and it was a nightmare. One of the people that was energized had become a giant, and was electrified on top of it. It was as if a walking lightning storm had landed on Patriot City. Buildings were burning, the power was out, and there were hundreds dead. Lightning was striking all around, and it was terrifying.

Man O'War figured that the best way to stop him was to short circuit him. Since we're both electrical anyhow, we figured that we could lure him into the harbor and put him out. So I flew up in front of him, and got him to follow me toward the waterfront. When he was near the edge, Man O'War flew up from behind, and slammed into him, shoving him forward.

There was a blast of electrical force as they hit the water, and it stunned me. I fell onto a boatload of fish. When I came to, it could only have been a couple of minutes later. But things had changed.

Man O'War and the living storm were fighting... but Man O'War had gotten bigger. Instead of being normal size, he was half the height of that giant... and he was growing. They grappled, and he kept getting larger, until he was about twenty feet tall out of the water.

Then... then I didn't get it. Man O'War sounded different. He grabbed the storm creature, and he bellowed, "Thou shalt not sully the seas with thy presence further, for I am the lord of the waters. Thou shalt be expunged!"

He lifted the creature out of the water, and absorbed the electricity from him. It ran down his arms like water, but it was energy. And he absorbed it. It went into him like he was a battery or something. In just a minute, the electricity disappeared, and the creature was blanked out and harmless.

But then... oh, lord, then Man O'War dragged him under the water. I thought he was just trying to wear him out, but after a few minutes, I dove in to see what was happening. The water had been boiling and splashing, and under, I saw Man O'War holding him under.

He wouldn't let him up. And eventually, the creature stopped struggling, and I knew... I knew it was over. Man O'War killed him, drowned him, for no reason.

That wasn't the worst. I swam up to him, and he was almost forty feet long. He shot off before I could get to him, and as he swam away... I saw that his legs were gone. Instead, he had a huge tail, like a merman.

Merry pulled the helmet over her head, letting it fill with water... including the tears running down her cheeks. Mentor and Nick rode silently for several minutes.

Finally, Nick said, "Man O'War's control over water increased. He took up residence in Florida... where it used to be, anyhow. He's calling himself Ocean Master now. He has been trying to flood the east coast of the country, to take it over. I think that he wants to flood the world, but so far he's been fought off."

"I cannot understand what would have changed him so. He was gruff and even harsh at times, but never so insensitive and uncaring as Merry has described him."

Nick turned to Mentor and said, "Again, it was the energy wave that swept the world. You wouldn't believe some of the changes it made."

"I have seen what it has done to Law and Order, and to the Ant. I see how it affected Merry. Has it not changed you?"

Nick laughed bitterly. "No, no changes. At least, not from Energy Y. I was one of the lucky ones, I guess."

Mentor rode contemplatively for a moment, and asked, "Nick, you say that Man O'War-"

"No," Nick interrupted sharply. "Ocean Master. Man O'War is dead."

"Very well. Ocean Master. You said that he has been fought off. Who in this world has the power? From Merry's description, it sounds as if he is more powerful than he ever was, and he was formidable to start with."

"Well, some of those who had been affected by Energy X originally were further empowered. Ocean Master wasn't the only one who was beefed up. Some of our old friends, and our old foes, became even more powerful."

The shadows suddenly seemed to drain and draw into a form in front of the hero-bearing ants. Nick and Mentor turned to see a human shape coalesce out of the darkness, and as they watched, the form solidified and turned around to face them.

"You called?" asked Shadow, the Mistress of Darkness.

Chapter 8 - "We Too Into the Dust Descend..."

Mentor leapt off his formicine steed and cried, "Shadow! Your evil is unwanted here!" As he spoke, a crackling aura built up around his head as he brought his great mental powers to fore.

She replied, "Hold it ,Mentor! You don't want to do that!"

Merry and Nick both chimed in, "Mentor! Don't!" But the most extreme reaction was that of the Ant. The giant insect reared back and leapt in front of Mentor, roaring in rage and protecting his one-time captor from the Telekinetic Titan.

"What goes on here?" Mentor demanded. "Shadow is a villain!"

The dark clad woman answered, "No longer, Mentor. I realized that our only chance for survival was to work together. I'm sorry my entrance was abrupt... it seemed as if the timing was exactly right, just as Nick said it. Easy, John," she said to the Ant, still between her and Mentor, and still trembling to act. "I'm sure I'm safe." She stroked the one-time hero's back, calming him down.

"You are, as Merry and Nick vouch for you, Shadow. And the Ant as well, apparently. My apologies to you."

She shook her head and said genially, "No, I should apologize to you. I didn't know you would react that way. I guess I should've known better."

"But how did you end up working with Freedom Force?"

Merry said, "Not 'working with', Mentor. Shadow is a member. One of so few... in fact, I guess that the four of us are probably all the remaining active membership. Five, now that you're back."

"Here, Mentor. Let me show you something," Shadow said softly. Then, she reached up and pulled the mask off her face, slowly.

Mentor looked at the remains of Shadow's face. "I see that something has happened. When we first met, your features were those of a model. What has happened since?"

"Energy-X. It didn't change my powers very much, but it did serve to further mutilate me. Once I had a tiny scar on my face and hideous rents in my mind and soul. Now, I feel as if I'm working for a greater good... but the cost has been my beauty. I truly am repulsive, now," she said bitterly.

Mentor slowly walked up to the one time villainess, careful to make no threatening moves to incite the Ant. He gently took her by the shoulders and said, "Beauty comes from inside, Amber Autumn, not from outside. What you look like is meaningless; your actions and your intentions determine your true beauty."

"Thank you. I'll stick with my mask anyhow, but your words are very kind." As she pulled the cloth back up, she continued, "I see that you've come down to see what we've achieved. Have you been told what we're doing?"

Nick answered, "Not yet. We kind of wanted it to be a surprise."

Shadow said, "Oh, it'll be that. It will definitely be a surprise."

They rode on for another mile or so, and came out of the tunnel onto a large ledge. "Suns of Shakar!" Mentor cried. "It's incredible!"

The heroes looked out over a gigantic underground cavern. In it were buildings that had been part of the Patriot City skyline. The ceiling had gigantic globes that were glowing faintly, and dim streetlights also served to illuminate the subterranean city. Past the city were vast fields of mushrooms, and the calm surface of an underground lake. Mentor could see hundreds of citizens walking among the buildings, and some farming in the mushroom fields.

Nick said, "Mentor, welcome to New Patriot City."

As they rode down into the city, Shadow explained, "When I had first launched my... my crusade against Patriot City, John and I had used his control over ants to draw the buildings down into the earth, to create a slave compound. And Freedom Force stopped me then, luckily. But after the disasters, I realized that I had to try to help to save humanity.

"I contacted what remained of Freedom Force, and told them that I wanted to offer my aid. We were able to salvage some of Patriot City. We brought down as many buildings as we could... but most of the city was a loss."

Mentor looked around. "I am amazed at what you have been able to accomplish. This is a miracle."

"Absolutely," Merry answered. "This is probably the largest human habitation left on Earth. We have over ten thousand citizens in New Patriot City. They've had to adapt to quite a lot of fungus in their diets, but it keeps them alive. They're trying to cultivate animals down here too."

Nick continued, "The biggest problem was power. We couldn't find any power source, and we have no way to make use of geothermal energy, heat from the Earth. So, we had run power from the generator in Freedom Fortress-"

"Of course," Mentor answered. "The nuclear generator I had installed into the Freedom Fortress could indeed power a small city."

"And so it has," Nick went on. "But now that you've brought another, we can dedicate the power of one generator entirely to New Patriot City, and hopefully we can make things a little brighter."

"Then there is hope!" Mentor exclaimed. "This city can be the base from which the Earth can be restored!"

The three humans looked sadly at each other, and Merry said quietly, "It won't work, Mentor. I guess we should tell you about Bullet next. Then maybe you'll understand why we're all doomed."

To be continued...