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It seems like a long time ago since I started my story. It was meant to be updated in parts, but for some reason the last few chapters never saw the light of day.
Well, at last I can present the full story, for those that can be bothered to read it. Some of the users may have left since it was written, and others will see their old usernames in here, but I hope you enjoy it all the same (for those who can be bothered to read the whole thing!)
A NEW WORLD
PART I
AFTER THE WAR
It had been fifteen years since the first great electronic war. Special Reserve, like many other companies, had added the new Virtual technology to their web servers, allowing users to ‘live’ in the webspace as if it were a real place. The problems started when a group of hackers calling themselves the ‘real saviours’ decided that the idea of cyberspace was detrimental to religion and the future of mankind. Their numbers grew and they made small time raids on many companies virtual structures, while all the time they were planning something bigger.
The FBI and MI5 were on to them, but they hadn’t realised just how big a threat the Real Saviours had become and before they knew it, the group had infiltrated and taken over whole countries. Then came the bombs. The Saviours had found a stash of nuclear missiles and had threatened the US and other western countries to surrender and switch off the power to all web servers hosting Virtual web. The countries refused and sent in their top troops instead, but somehow the Saviours were ready for them and launched their missiles anyway.
Meanwhile, big companies all over the western world had created bunkers and safe havens for their staff and users. Many people were caught in the fall-out, but survived inside the webspace, working for the companies to pay for their stay. The Real Saviours were wiped out anyway, ironically by a faulty missile which leaked radioactive chemicals and slowly poisoned them.
--
Ant turned off the video and turned to the others. “This is how it was. Now we have to enter the real world again and turn it back into somewhere to live.”
“But how do we do that without physical bodies?” asked Mystique.
FM stood up and faced the group. “With these…” he said as he pointed to the holographic image that had suddenly appeared. It showed a lifelike body suspended in a glass tube filled with green liquid. Small air bubbles floated past, making the whole thing look like a giant lava lamp with a human body inside.
A general sound of amazement came from the group of FOG forum users as they watched their new host bodies. They were taken over to another room with no furniture.
“First.” Said Ant. “You will have to get used to using these new bodies. You will be restricted by reality once more, some of you may have forgotten what this was like. You will not be able to fly or create objects from thin air, you can be destroyed and most importantly, you will have to start going to the toilet again!” he looked at FM to continue.
“This room is a simulation of the outside world, use it to get used to your new forms before you leave.”
--
Grix looked at the mess. His house used to stand at this point, but all that was left was rubble. He searched through the bricks and mortar frantically for something, then his face lit up. He pulled out a card from under the remains of an old computer casing and dusted it down.
“ha.” He said, staring at the card. “My old SR membership card. Now all I need is a computer…” He wondered off down the road to where some buildings still stood.
Wales had been pretty lucky, it had escaped most of the physical damage from the bombs and the rubble was mainly from fighting between the villagers when the food started to run out. Giant underground generators had kept the power on when other places had run out, relying on only those companies that owned their own generators for power. Many people who had entered Virtual web died when the power ran out. In the US, someone had deliberately sabotaged all but a few of the generators and the whole country had suffered catastrophic losses. Only parts of Europe and Japan were left with power. Grix had joined a group who had found an island far away from the Nuclear fall out and had only just returned to the remains of the once Great Britain. Why, he didn’t know, but he sensed that this was his destiny.
--
Dringo and Shaneo were still trying to get used to their new bodies. They had been in the room for over 3 hours now and were still trying to stand. Sniper walked in and smiled. He, like others who had regularly trained in the room, was already used to his corporeal form and liked to watch the others try to use their limbs. It was almost as fun as going to the circus.
“What are you looking at!” said an angry Shaneo. He tried to shake a fist at Sniper but lost his balance and fell flat on his face. “Ouch! I’ll never get used to the pain!”
When Ant and the others were satisfied that the last few had got sufficiently used to their bodies, he went to speak with Tony.
“So it’s time then?” Tony said as he sat behind his large mahogany desk. “I’ve been waiting for this day for many years now.” He finished his cup of tea and walked out of the room, Ant following behind.
“Soon we can start rebuilding civilisation again, our sister sites will join us in re-populating the world and we will make it a better place.”
--
Grix walked into the dimly lit hallway of the church. He had been travelling for miles in search of other people, and this was the first place he had seen that had any signs of life.
“Hello?” he said as a figure crossed through from the sanctuary to the altar.
The figure stopped and turned to face Grix. He seemed to recognise him straight away.
“I wondered when you would return to us.” He said, smiling.
“Sheepy?” said Grix in surprise.
“The very same!” said Sheepy, walking over to greet Grix.
“So what are you doing in this old church?” The words echoed around the high roof as Grix asked the question, equally puzzled and happy to see Sheepy again.
“This is one of the main servers for Special Reserve.” Explained Sheepy. “There are five around the country, all with their own power sources. I was enlisted to look after this one, alongside Grandprix and Iceblaster. They are currently downstairs, having something to eat. Follow me…”
Sheepy led Grix through the back of the church and down some steps to a huge cave.
PART II
YOU ARE JUST A STATISTIC
The words were printed on a silver plated banner above the door that Your Honour had entered many times before. Every time it stood out that little bit more.
He ran down the corridor for the hundredth time that week and he knew exactly who would be there at the end, waiting in front of the one door he had to get through.
Billy James was a hardcase. That’s what everyone called him, and there was proof enough that this was true. Built like a firewall protected server and with enough clout to knock you into the next life, he was not someone Your Honour wanted to argue with. But he had to get through the door. He didn’t know why, he just knew.
Your Honour stopped in front of the door and in front of the behemoth known as Billy. He gulped. “Please. I need to enter…”
The only reply Your Honour got was the gradual blackout that took place as Billy’s fist closed in on his line of vision. Just as the fist was about to connect with Your Honour’s nose and send it half way through his face, the world went black.
Your Honour felt his vocal chords cut in, then he sensed that there was no danger. Next his brain came to the conclusion that, as there were no bits of him hurting, that this must have been a dream.
“Great!” he said, throwing back the covers. “So much for wanting to be out and about in the outside world, they get the luxury of not sleeping, I get the re-occurring nightmares.”
He had specifically asked to stay out in the real world when the names had been picked for the few who would watch over the servers. At first he though it was a cushy job, just him and Wookie looking after the generator, with plenty of supplies and no one to bother them, they could play around all day or sit in the sun. He hated the life inside the computers. It wasn’t natural and he had never got used to it. But recently, things had turned out to be a bit more complicated. First there were the survivors, some of them were mutants and other were violent. The strong building supports kept them out, but also prevented Your Honour from leaving the area. The food had been great at first, but now it was the same thing every day. They had rescued some supplies from a nearby supermarket, but had to throw half of it away as it was still irradiated. Now they lived off of packet soups and frozen bread that quickly went mouldy in the heat. No chocolate, no sweet stuff, just soup. This, thought Your Honour, must be what prison is like.
Wookie saw Your Honour moping in the corner and came over to him. “Been having the dreams again?” he said in a friendly voice. It didn’t help.
“Yeah. One day I’ll get some sleep. I either dream that strange dream or I end up thinking of food. I can’t win, either way.” He said, throwing a pebble at the concrete floor and watching it bounce in to the corner. “If only I knew what it meant….”
“Sometime dreams don’t mean anything.” Said Wookie, trying to help his friend. “They are just there.”
“I dunno. I have a feeling about this one.” Replied YH as he got up and went over to the door to see what weather the day had brought.
- - -
A dark room. One solitary figure in a glass case, illuminated solely by a green liquid throbbing around it. A series of small lights, illuminated for seconds. A sound, like whirring hard drives. The bubbles move faster and the figure twitches. The glass breaks. The figure steps out from the broken case and on to the wet floor. Looking up, still surrounded in shadow, the figure grins.
---
Grix and Sheepy had briefed the others on the general running of the place. They had received notification that it was time to bring everyone back and had already made plans to go to the main base. Their first task, however, was to liase with those bases which had their communication units destroyed and let them know what to do. Of course, there was no knowing whether anyone else had survived, but the readouts were showing that the energy levels were high, so at least 2 of the powerstations had to be running.
They left at sunrise, the evening was too risky with the growing number of mutants walking the streets these days, and headed East to the next station.
---
Deep beneath the earth, something stirred. Something that had been kept prisoner until a time when it was deemed right to rise again and fulfil its destiny. Lives would be lost, battles would be fought, but ultimately it knew that triumph was a certainty. All it needed was the right moment.
--
PART 3
THE CREATURES
It was Tony that first noticed the noise as they started to get used to the light and the air in their re-discovered world. The building their equipment occupied was designed underneath the Special Reserve building and was pretty far underground, so outside noises were an unexpected thing.
After a few other members commented on the sounds, a search party, made up of Ant, pb, Rasta and Turbonutter, left the safety of the compound and went to investigate. All signs from the monitoring equipment had shown that air and everything else outside were normal, so they had no fear as they rose slowly to the surface, but they soon realised that their path was taking them further along than the original opening had been designed to go.
“I don’t like this, someone has made a pathway between our base and…well, whatever’s beyond here.” Said Ant, squinting into the darkness.
“Someone or something?” questioned Rasta.
They all looked at each other, then realised that they had to go on, for the good of the group. Besides, it might not be as bad as they imagined, but they could each imagine quite a bit.
The gang finally reached a large room where the floor dropped sharply away and the walls were at least 40 feet across. Shining his torch into the darkness, Turbonutter noticed something glinting in the dim light. It was a huge piece of metal. They looked harder and slowly edged down the sloped floor until they were underneath the huge machine.
Pb looked up. “It’s got something inside, something living…” he said as he saw the light green container.
They stared up at the creature in the clear box above them. It was clear that the metal frame was some sort of locking device that prevented the creature from escaping, but was it for the benefit of the creature or everyone else?
Turbonutter shouted over to them from the far wall. “I think I’ve found a light switch.”
Before they could shout a warning, he pressed the switch and lights flickered across the walls in huge lines. The yellow glow showed the true size of the machine, and the creature inside and they all took a step backwards in shock.
Unfortunately, the same switch that seemed to turn the lights on, also made other lights flicker on a panel of the machine. Soon the structure twisted and turned, lowering the box with the creature in to the ground.
“I think we’d better make a move.” Said Rasta, running for the door.
Ant was fascinated and petrified in equal amounts. The others had run off towards the safety of the huge doorway. Turning to find out that Ant wasn’t with them, Pb ran back, but stopped in horror as the liquid from the box leaked out and one side slid open in a single solid movement. A large, mouth-like tentacle shot out and engulfed Ant before their eyes.
“Noooooooo!” shouted Pb as the others held him back.
Turbonutter reached for the door and 10 tons of steel slid shut behind them. They ran as fast as they could, knowing that any minute whatever had swallowed Ant may try and come after them.
--- ---
The black gloved hand still dripped the green liquid as it opened a large door and let light flood the large room.
Inside, many dimly lit containers lined the walls and each one contained a body.
“Soon, my comrades, soon.” Said the mysterious stranger as he pressed several control buttons.
The containers came to life and each one began to boil. As the liquid drained away, each of the bodies inside began twitching and coming to life.
Beside the door, a rack of large guns and other weapons stood lined up and ready for an army.
Well, at last I can present the full story, for those that can be bothered to read it. Some of the users may have left since it was written, and others will see their old usernames in here, but I hope you enjoy it all the same (for those who can be bothered to read the whole thing!)
A NEW WORLD
PART I
AFTER THE WAR
It had been fifteen years since the first great electronic war. Special Reserve, like many other companies, had added the new Virtual technology to their web servers, allowing users to ‘live’ in the webspace as if it were a real place. The problems started when a group of hackers calling themselves the ‘real saviours’ decided that the idea of cyberspace was detrimental to religion and the future of mankind. Their numbers grew and they made small time raids on many companies virtual structures, while all the time they were planning something bigger.
The FBI and MI5 were on to them, but they hadn’t realised just how big a threat the Real Saviours had become and before they knew it, the group had infiltrated and taken over whole countries. Then came the bombs. The Saviours had found a stash of nuclear missiles and had threatened the US and other western countries to surrender and switch off the power to all web servers hosting Virtual web. The countries refused and sent in their top troops instead, but somehow the Saviours were ready for them and launched their missiles anyway.
Meanwhile, big companies all over the western world had created bunkers and safe havens for their staff and users. Many people were caught in the fall-out, but survived inside the webspace, working for the companies to pay for their stay. The Real Saviours were wiped out anyway, ironically by a faulty missile which leaked radioactive chemicals and slowly poisoned them.
--
Ant turned off the video and turned to the others. “This is how it was. Now we have to enter the real world again and turn it back into somewhere to live.”
“But how do we do that without physical bodies?” asked Mystique.
FM stood up and faced the group. “With these…” he said as he pointed to the holographic image that had suddenly appeared. It showed a lifelike body suspended in a glass tube filled with green liquid. Small air bubbles floated past, making the whole thing look like a giant lava lamp with a human body inside.
A general sound of amazement came from the group of FOG forum users as they watched their new host bodies. They were taken over to another room with no furniture.
“First.” Said Ant. “You will have to get used to using these new bodies. You will be restricted by reality once more, some of you may have forgotten what this was like. You will not be able to fly or create objects from thin air, you can be destroyed and most importantly, you will have to start going to the toilet again!” he looked at FM to continue.
“This room is a simulation of the outside world, use it to get used to your new forms before you leave.”
--
Grix looked at the mess. His house used to stand at this point, but all that was left was rubble. He searched through the bricks and mortar frantically for something, then his face lit up. He pulled out a card from under the remains of an old computer casing and dusted it down.
“ha.” He said, staring at the card. “My old SR membership card. Now all I need is a computer…” He wondered off down the road to where some buildings still stood.
Wales had been pretty lucky, it had escaped most of the physical damage from the bombs and the rubble was mainly from fighting between the villagers when the food started to run out. Giant underground generators had kept the power on when other places had run out, relying on only those companies that owned their own generators for power. Many people who had entered Virtual web died when the power ran out. In the US, someone had deliberately sabotaged all but a few of the generators and the whole country had suffered catastrophic losses. Only parts of Europe and Japan were left with power. Grix had joined a group who had found an island far away from the Nuclear fall out and had only just returned to the remains of the once Great Britain. Why, he didn’t know, but he sensed that this was his destiny.
--
Dringo and Shaneo were still trying to get used to their new bodies. They had been in the room for over 3 hours now and were still trying to stand. Sniper walked in and smiled. He, like others who had regularly trained in the room, was already used to his corporeal form and liked to watch the others try to use their limbs. It was almost as fun as going to the circus.
“What are you looking at!” said an angry Shaneo. He tried to shake a fist at Sniper but lost his balance and fell flat on his face. “Ouch! I’ll never get used to the pain!”
When Ant and the others were satisfied that the last few had got sufficiently used to their bodies, he went to speak with Tony.
“So it’s time then?” Tony said as he sat behind his large mahogany desk. “I’ve been waiting for this day for many years now.” He finished his cup of tea and walked out of the room, Ant following behind.
“Soon we can start rebuilding civilisation again, our sister sites will join us in re-populating the world and we will make it a better place.”
--
Grix walked into the dimly lit hallway of the church. He had been travelling for miles in search of other people, and this was the first place he had seen that had any signs of life.
“Hello?” he said as a figure crossed through from the sanctuary to the altar.
The figure stopped and turned to face Grix. He seemed to recognise him straight away.
“I wondered when you would return to us.” He said, smiling.
“Sheepy?” said Grix in surprise.
“The very same!” said Sheepy, walking over to greet Grix.
“So what are you doing in this old church?” The words echoed around the high roof as Grix asked the question, equally puzzled and happy to see Sheepy again.
“This is one of the main servers for Special Reserve.” Explained Sheepy. “There are five around the country, all with their own power sources. I was enlisted to look after this one, alongside Grandprix and Iceblaster. They are currently downstairs, having something to eat. Follow me…”
Sheepy led Grix through the back of the church and down some steps to a huge cave.
PART II
YOU ARE JUST A STATISTIC
The words were printed on a silver plated banner above the door that Your Honour had entered many times before. Every time it stood out that little bit more.
He ran down the corridor for the hundredth time that week and he knew exactly who would be there at the end, waiting in front of the one door he had to get through.
Billy James was a hardcase. That’s what everyone called him, and there was proof enough that this was true. Built like a firewall protected server and with enough clout to knock you into the next life, he was not someone Your Honour wanted to argue with. But he had to get through the door. He didn’t know why, he just knew.
Your Honour stopped in front of the door and in front of the behemoth known as Billy. He gulped. “Please. I need to enter…”
The only reply Your Honour got was the gradual blackout that took place as Billy’s fist closed in on his line of vision. Just as the fist was about to connect with Your Honour’s nose and send it half way through his face, the world went black.
Your Honour felt his vocal chords cut in, then he sensed that there was no danger. Next his brain came to the conclusion that, as there were no bits of him hurting, that this must have been a dream.
“Great!” he said, throwing back the covers. “So much for wanting to be out and about in the outside world, they get the luxury of not sleeping, I get the re-occurring nightmares.”
He had specifically asked to stay out in the real world when the names had been picked for the few who would watch over the servers. At first he though it was a cushy job, just him and Wookie looking after the generator, with plenty of supplies and no one to bother them, they could play around all day or sit in the sun. He hated the life inside the computers. It wasn’t natural and he had never got used to it. But recently, things had turned out to be a bit more complicated. First there were the survivors, some of them were mutants and other were violent. The strong building supports kept them out, but also prevented Your Honour from leaving the area. The food had been great at first, but now it was the same thing every day. They had rescued some supplies from a nearby supermarket, but had to throw half of it away as it was still irradiated. Now they lived off of packet soups and frozen bread that quickly went mouldy in the heat. No chocolate, no sweet stuff, just soup. This, thought Your Honour, must be what prison is like.
Wookie saw Your Honour moping in the corner and came over to him. “Been having the dreams again?” he said in a friendly voice. It didn’t help.
“Yeah. One day I’ll get some sleep. I either dream that strange dream or I end up thinking of food. I can’t win, either way.” He said, throwing a pebble at the concrete floor and watching it bounce in to the corner. “If only I knew what it meant….”
“Sometime dreams don’t mean anything.” Said Wookie, trying to help his friend. “They are just there.”
“I dunno. I have a feeling about this one.” Replied YH as he got up and went over to the door to see what weather the day had brought.
- - -
A dark room. One solitary figure in a glass case, illuminated solely by a green liquid throbbing around it. A series of small lights, illuminated for seconds. A sound, like whirring hard drives. The bubbles move faster and the figure twitches. The glass breaks. The figure steps out from the broken case and on to the wet floor. Looking up, still surrounded in shadow, the figure grins.
---
Grix and Sheepy had briefed the others on the general running of the place. They had received notification that it was time to bring everyone back and had already made plans to go to the main base. Their first task, however, was to liase with those bases which had their communication units destroyed and let them know what to do. Of course, there was no knowing whether anyone else had survived, but the readouts were showing that the energy levels were high, so at least 2 of the powerstations had to be running.
They left at sunrise, the evening was too risky with the growing number of mutants walking the streets these days, and headed East to the next station.
---
Deep beneath the earth, something stirred. Something that had been kept prisoner until a time when it was deemed right to rise again and fulfil its destiny. Lives would be lost, battles would be fought, but ultimately it knew that triumph was a certainty. All it needed was the right moment.
--
PART 3
THE CREATURES
It was Tony that first noticed the noise as they started to get used to the light and the air in their re-discovered world. The building their equipment occupied was designed underneath the Special Reserve building and was pretty far underground, so outside noises were an unexpected thing.
After a few other members commented on the sounds, a search party, made up of Ant, pb, Rasta and Turbonutter, left the safety of the compound and went to investigate. All signs from the monitoring equipment had shown that air and everything else outside were normal, so they had no fear as they rose slowly to the surface, but they soon realised that their path was taking them further along than the original opening had been designed to go.
“I don’t like this, someone has made a pathway between our base and…well, whatever’s beyond here.” Said Ant, squinting into the darkness.
“Someone or something?” questioned Rasta.
They all looked at each other, then realised that they had to go on, for the good of the group. Besides, it might not be as bad as they imagined, but they could each imagine quite a bit.
The gang finally reached a large room where the floor dropped sharply away and the walls were at least 40 feet across. Shining his torch into the darkness, Turbonutter noticed something glinting in the dim light. It was a huge piece of metal. They looked harder and slowly edged down the sloped floor until they were underneath the huge machine.
Pb looked up. “It’s got something inside, something living…” he said as he saw the light green container.
They stared up at the creature in the clear box above them. It was clear that the metal frame was some sort of locking device that prevented the creature from escaping, but was it for the benefit of the creature or everyone else?
Turbonutter shouted over to them from the far wall. “I think I’ve found a light switch.”
Before they could shout a warning, he pressed the switch and lights flickered across the walls in huge lines. The yellow glow showed the true size of the machine, and the creature inside and they all took a step backwards in shock.
Unfortunately, the same switch that seemed to turn the lights on, also made other lights flicker on a panel of the machine. Soon the structure twisted and turned, lowering the box with the creature in to the ground.
“I think we’d better make a move.” Said Rasta, running for the door.
Ant was fascinated and petrified in equal amounts. The others had run off towards the safety of the huge doorway. Turning to find out that Ant wasn’t with them, Pb ran back, but stopped in horror as the liquid from the box leaked out and one side slid open in a single solid movement. A large, mouth-like tentacle shot out and engulfed Ant before their eyes.
“Noooooooo!” shouted Pb as the others held him back.
Turbonutter reached for the door and 10 tons of steel slid shut behind them. They ran as fast as they could, knowing that any minute whatever had swallowed Ant may try and come after them.
--- ---
The black gloved hand still dripped the green liquid as it opened a large door and let light flood the large room.
Inside, many dimly lit containers lined the walls and each one contained a body.
“Soon, my comrades, soon.” Said the mysterious stranger as he pressed several control buttons.
The containers came to life and each one began to boil. As the liquid drained away, each of the bodies inside began twitching and coming to life.
Beside the door, a rack of large guns and other weapons stood lined up and ready for an army.
FinalFantasyFanatic wrote:
> You had a non-speaking part in one of mine.
> El Blokey locked you in his dungeon because you wouldn't marry him.
Lets just forget about that little episode, shall we?
> You had a non-speaking part in one of mine.
> El Blokey locked you in his dungeon because you wouldn't marry him.
Lets just forget about that little episode, shall we?
Insane Bartender wrote:
> No-one ever writes me into their spoofs.
You had a non-speaking part in one of mine.
El Blokey locked you in his dungeon because you wouldn't marry him.
> No-one ever writes me into their spoofs.
You had a non-speaking part in one of mine.
El Blokey locked you in his dungeon because you wouldn't marry him.
*pats IB*
It'll be okay. I'm sure we can muster something up with you in it.
It'll be okay. I'm sure we can muster something up with you in it.
No-one ever writes me into their spoofs.
*cries*
*cries*
PART IV
STORM CLOUDS
As Your Honour showed Grix and Sheepy around, they explained the plan to bring everyone back to reality and look for other survivors who were doing the same. There was a date agreed by all the major web hosts for this event and if everything went to plan then the people from the virtual worlds would have already been out for 2 days.
Wookie started to pack up their rucksacks for the journey ahead. He heard the distant sound of thunder and looked through the cracks in the door to see storm clouds gathering on the horizon. It wouldn’t be an easy journey, he knew that, but at least he had a surprise in store for them before they set off.
They were all packed and ready to leave when Wookie came down with the rucksacks. Grandprix and Iceblaster had found some chocolate bars and had made sure everyone had enough for the journey.
“I’ve got one more thing to show you.” He said, leading them to the back of the warehouse and through another set of doors. Even Your Honour hadn’t seen this room.
As Wookie pushed the doors back, they looked on in amazement at a gleaming red 4 wheel drive truck.
“I managed to store this back here before the war started. I’ve kept the engine full and ticking over so that it won’t seize up when we make our way across the country.”
The others looked on, big smiles on their faces.
“Well,” said Your Honour, as he climbed into the back of the truck, “I suppose we’d better get going before the storm gets here.”
-- --
In the underground bunker, Tony was told the news about Ant by the returning party.
“What on earth was that thing?!” he said in disbelief. “It looks like we need to get out of here quicker than we thought. Do you think the door will hold the creature?”
pb looked up. “Yes, but I’m not sure how long for. We really need to get everyone out of here as fast as possible.”
The others agreed. It was time for the evacuation to begin. Tony just hoped there was a world up there that could support them all.
It took 2 hours just to get everyone ready and to mobilise the supplies so that they could be taken to the surface. Time was short and Tony knew that every second they spent down here could be a second too long. Eventually, everyone was ready and the original scout party led the way, being careful to avoid the other tunnel that led back down to the creature and certain death.
As they reached the surface, Goatboy made his way back down to check on the final few at the end of the line. Some of them hadn’t got used to their bodies yet and were finding it hard to climb the steep slope to the surface. A shaft of light from above and a shout let him know that they had successfully made their way outside, but he knew that these last few needed to be hurried as every second they spent down there could be the second that the monster escaped from its prison.
As he got nearer the twin tunnels he heard a knocking from the door that kept the monster at bay. All of a sudden the earth around them vibrated and they stood there, frozen to the spot. Coming to his senses, Goatboy shouted at them to get up to the top, but as he stood there he noticed a shadow bearing down on him.
Only Dringo was left trying to climb out as the monster attacked. They looked on in terror as it opened what must have been its mouth and a large glowing ball emerged. The ball engulfed them as they shouted for help and they both fell into unconsciousness as it returned to the mouth of the monster.
Everyone above could hear the shouts but knew there was nothing they could do to save the two of them. They closed the heavy hatch and hoped the thick concrete layer was enough to keep the creature beneath them, but at the same time they wondered whether more existed below the surface.
“What are those things?” asked Mr Nice Guy as they loaded the supplies into the cold storage of the fortified Special Reserve building.
“I don’t know.” Replied Tony. “but they must have been a reaction to the radiation, I can’t think of any other explanation.”
--
The dark stranger lifted the hatches of the few remaining soldiers as they woke from their long sleep.
“Children of the Real Saviours, welcome back.” He said in a dark and menacing voice. “I have given you new forms so you can carry on the work of your parents. We must make this world ready for the one who is to come.”
The soldiers lined up against the wall of the room, all of them were dressed in a heavy black armour and many seemed to have extra arms or other strange forms which looked as if they were designed for war rather than any human purpose.
“I have information on a lone company which survived here. We must find them and destroy them. No one can be left alive when our master comes, all human life should be destroyed.”
“Yes sir!” said the soldiers in unison as they saluted and then marched towards the door which led to the outside world.
- --
The red truck was a blur along the motorway as Wookie edged nearer to their destination. Grix held the map as he sat in the passenger seat and the other four looked on from behind.
“YH, do you have to eat all your supplies now?” said Sheepy, watching him bite through another mars bar.
“Hey, at the rate Wookie’s driving, we’ll be there in no time!” replied Your Honour in between bites.
Wookie turned on the radio and put a tape in. Counting Crows played through the four speakers and Grix gave a smile.
“Reminds me of Rasta, I wonder how those guys are doing?”
The roads were clear, bar the few burnt out cars and scrap that remained from those people that had tried to escape the nuclear fall out too late. Wookie loved this and wished he’d used the car sooner. It was so much better than driving on a clogged up road to work. It was a pity though that it had to come at such a cost.
---
Beneath the earth the monsters dug their tunnels. A whole series of labyrinths existed now and they were able to move quickly across much of the country. Their instincts told them it was only a matter of time until they were needed.
CHAPTER V
WAR!
Mystique monitored the intercom system, it had still been working all this time and reports of all the other web servers were stored in the memory from after the event. It seemed that several other forums had survived the generators being turned off or sabotaged. 4 forums and only a handful of people out of all those who had been living at the time.
Mystique grabbed a switch and read the message that appeared on screen, it was from Trampus at the Ciao site, one of the few that remained. She rushed over to Tony and told him the news.
“People!” Tony said as he addressed the quickly gathered crowd, “It seems that one of the other sites is in trouble. The people at Ciao are sending us details of a large mass heading their way. From the energy readings, it seems that they are heavily armed and they are requesting any help we can give them.”
“We can create some weapons the same way we created these new bodies, I suppose.” Said Ali, looking at Loki for confirmation. “I’ll start straight away.”
They set out that afternoon, after the weapons had been finished and piled up on the trucks. Everyone there knew that whatever the threat they would not stand too much of a chance, but they had to protect the few remaining survivors; otherwise there would be no hope for the future.
--- -
Wookie was still driving at over 100mph as they reached the turning from the motorway on to the route for Special Reserve.
“Careful!” shouted Sheepy from the back as they turned the corner sharply and nearly went up on two wheels. “We want to get there in one piece, however quickly!”
After another twenty minutes and a few more shouts from Sheepy, they reached the remains of Special Reserve headquarters and ran inside to see who was there.
To their surprise, the place was empty. Grix checked the underground bunker which held the tubes for the bodies, but all the bodies were gone and it was obvious that the team had moved up to the surface. He emerged from the trapdoor to tell the others.
“There’s no sign of them anywhere.”
“Wait.” Said Sheepy, looking at the computer system. “It looks like they had an emergency call from another site further north.”
They looked at the message and then found the reply Mystique had given.
“They’ve gone up there to fight these guys. They’ll never survive!” said Sheepy.
“Then we’d better help them. At least they’d stand more chance with extra hands.” Said Your Honour.
The small group piled what little weapons remained in the building into the back of the truck and set off to join the others.
- --
The scene that awaited Tony and the gang was far more devastating than they could have imagined. Buildings everywhere had been set ablaze and they could still here gunfire in the distance. They looked for any survivors, but there seemed to be no one around, not even bodies.
“Hey, over here!” came a voice. It was Daysleeper, a member of the Ciao team. “We’ve managed to get into another bunker. Unfortunately, they’ve already taken quite a few of us away.”
“So they didn’t kill you then?” asked Goatboy.
“No, it’s strange, I don’t even want to think of what they want us for,”
“We’d better get out of here as soon as possible. Head back South to safety so we can work out a plan.” Said Ali.
“Good idea.” Said Tony, then turned on the intercom system. “Ok, we need to get these people clear from this area, we’re going back down South. Try to get as many as you can in to the trucks. We’ll meet at that old factory we past on the way up, it might give us some good cover.”
He handed the intercom to Sniper, so that he could help organise the rest of the troops and then began hearding people into the trucks. It was a long task and they could hear the gunfire getting nearer as the last few people were helped on to the vehicles.
“Let’s get going!” said Tony, waving the other trucks past.
As they headed out, a single explosion lit up the sky behind them, Tony looked and saw the bunker explode into small fragments, sending rock and dust up in to the air. He hoped they could outrun whoever was following them. Even if they did, he wasn’t sure what they would do next.
- --
“Where’s Wookie?” asked YH as they finally got the truck loaded and ready to move out.
“I thought he was with you?” said Iceblaster. “I’ll go look in the building.”
Iceblaster entered the empty warehouse and shouted Wookie’s name. There was no reply. He tried again, but still nothing came back. He was about to give up, when he heard a feint cry from below him.
“Wookie?” he shouted, running down through the trap door. The others outside heard him shout and ran in to help. They all ran through the door and down the dark passage to find Wookie.
Iceblaster was ahead of the others as he spotted Wookie standing in front of him.
“Wooki….” He began, but trailed off as he saw the creature rear it’s head above them. “What is that thing?” he said in a small voice.
“Get out of here…” wookie said as he stood there, glued to the spot.
He watched as the giant wormlike creature rushed down, mouth open, to meet Wookie head on. To iceblaster’s surprise, Wookie didn’t scream or shout, he just waited for the creature to engulf him in a strange green hue before swallowing him whole. The others caught up, just in time to see the monster leave.
“Iceblaster!” said YH as they got nearer. “What happened?”
“Wookie….he was….swallowed….” was all that he could say in reply. They watched as the creature disappeared in to the distance.
“We’ve got no choice. We’ve got to go and save him.” Said Grix. “We’ve come all this way and I’m not letting some giant worm run off with my friend.”
The others looked at him and nodded their heads in agreement.
“YH, get that cannon we packed on the truck. We’re going in.”
CHAPTER VI
ASHES
As they headed South, the group of refugees realised that they were not being followed. It was at the forefront of all their minds after the battle that the ‘enemy’ would advance on them, they certainly seemed unafraid of the petty weaponry thrown at them so far. Far from being comforting, it made them all the more nervous.
About 2 hours into the journey the lead vehicle ground to a halt and those behind it strained to see why it had stopped. What they saw amazed and frightened them.
A dark figure stood in the middle of the road, a whole convoy of troops behind him. Grix counted at least 50 guns pointed at them and there was certainly no way around.
Tony stepped out of his truck and approached the figure cautiously.
“We are a peaceful convoy on our way south.” He said to the cowled face of the stranger, his voice full of authority. “Please let us pass.”
“You should have died with the rest of them.” The stranger hissed. ”But these things can be arranged…”
He shot out his muscular arm and grabbed Tony’s throat with his black glove. The others watched in horror as Tony was lifted from the floor, as helpless as a rabbit about to be skinned.
“I will spare you for now, but only because it serves me.” He addressed the whole row of trucks behind Tony. “I will let you follow me. It will be to your deaths, but at least you’ll have time to reflect on your lives first.”
Putting Tony down, he motioned to the troops, who were already surrounding the vehicles.
Tony got to his feet, rubbing his neck.”We have come this far, we will not go out like this without a fight.”
The group heard the troops around them laugh.
“Fight? Ha. You are in no position to fight.”
As he said this, Grandprix and a few others jumped from their truck on to the guards. They were soon pushed to the floor.
“Oh dear.” Said the mocking stranger. “That was foolish. I can see you will be nothing but trouble for me. Very well. “ He motioned to the troops. “Shoot them all!”
- -
As the gang looked down the barrels of the troops’ guns, they huddled together, knowing this was the end. Your Honour cursed the fact that he’d let life pass him by. This was it, this was their final moment. They should have stayed In the mainframe.
It was Grix that first noticed the rumbling, closely followed by the troops. Pretty soon anyone who was standing up found it hard to stay that way. The sound quickly grew louder until a huge thunder-crack tore the earth in front of them to shreds. From the ground came the creatures which had taken their friends, rising up so they blocked out even the sun.
“Shoot them, stupid!” yelled the stranger to his troops, as the group fled in their only chance of escaping their once certain death.
But the troops were now shooting at the worm creatures and only making them madder at that. The worms crashed down, one by one, but they avoided the Special Reserve convoy and headed for the enemy. Armed men ran scared, but were flattened or eaten by the huge monsters. As they drew closer, Pb and Grix got a closer look at their heads.
“Wait.” Said Grix. “There’s someone inside their heads!”
They all looked up, and sure enough Ant and Wookie could be seen inside a transparent dome in the heads of the creatures. They almost looked like they were holding reigns.
Troops piled out of their armoured trucks as they were swallowed or crushed. They launched rockets and grenades at their new enemy, but only a few managed to do any damage at all.
“Stop them!” screemed the stranger, watching all his plans come crashing down around him. How could he have prepared for this? Why wasn’t he warned?
Within half an hour the dust was settling. Tony’s group were picking themselves up off the floor, or helping others on to the vehicles. The stranger sat on the floor. He was coughing blood, but with a rush of renewed power he managed to stand.
It was a human shape that appeared out of the smoke, somewhat smaller than him and definitely weaker, but nonetheless determined. The black suited man watched as the figure drew nearer, then stood, amazed, as a fist connected with his jaw.
“That’s for all the times Billy made me look a fool.” Said an emotional Your Honour as he lashed out at the stranger. “and that’s for the time I was nearly put in hospital.” He carried on, but the stranger was too stunned to fight back. He fell backwards with Your Honour following him, punching and kicking as he went.
It was Grix’s hand that stopped him. Your Honour looked at the figure before him, blood soaked and on his last breath.
“I think it’s time we left.” Said Ant, now joining his friends at the egde of the battlefield. “Enough ashes have fallen today.”
The convoy started up and drove off, leaving the duying stranger to curse his luck and fend off the birds that had circled around him, waiting for their next meal.
EPILOGUE
It wasn’t long before other survivors had been found and slowly, but surely, the world was being re-built. This time there were to be no weapons and no wars. Maybe it would work, maybe it wouldn’t. but no-one would forget the consequences of that time and the bravery of those who had fought for the freedom of lif
STORM CLOUDS
As Your Honour showed Grix and Sheepy around, they explained the plan to bring everyone back to reality and look for other survivors who were doing the same. There was a date agreed by all the major web hosts for this event and if everything went to plan then the people from the virtual worlds would have already been out for 2 days.
Wookie started to pack up their rucksacks for the journey ahead. He heard the distant sound of thunder and looked through the cracks in the door to see storm clouds gathering on the horizon. It wouldn’t be an easy journey, he knew that, but at least he had a surprise in store for them before they set off.
They were all packed and ready to leave when Wookie came down with the rucksacks. Grandprix and Iceblaster had found some chocolate bars and had made sure everyone had enough for the journey.
“I’ve got one more thing to show you.” He said, leading them to the back of the warehouse and through another set of doors. Even Your Honour hadn’t seen this room.
As Wookie pushed the doors back, they looked on in amazement at a gleaming red 4 wheel drive truck.
“I managed to store this back here before the war started. I’ve kept the engine full and ticking over so that it won’t seize up when we make our way across the country.”
The others looked on, big smiles on their faces.
“Well,” said Your Honour, as he climbed into the back of the truck, “I suppose we’d better get going before the storm gets here.”
-- --
In the underground bunker, Tony was told the news about Ant by the returning party.
“What on earth was that thing?!” he said in disbelief. “It looks like we need to get out of here quicker than we thought. Do you think the door will hold the creature?”
pb looked up. “Yes, but I’m not sure how long for. We really need to get everyone out of here as fast as possible.”
The others agreed. It was time for the evacuation to begin. Tony just hoped there was a world up there that could support them all.
It took 2 hours just to get everyone ready and to mobilise the supplies so that they could be taken to the surface. Time was short and Tony knew that every second they spent down here could be a second too long. Eventually, everyone was ready and the original scout party led the way, being careful to avoid the other tunnel that led back down to the creature and certain death.
As they reached the surface, Goatboy made his way back down to check on the final few at the end of the line. Some of them hadn’t got used to their bodies yet and were finding it hard to climb the steep slope to the surface. A shaft of light from above and a shout let him know that they had successfully made their way outside, but he knew that these last few needed to be hurried as every second they spent down there could be the second that the monster escaped from its prison.
As he got nearer the twin tunnels he heard a knocking from the door that kept the monster at bay. All of a sudden the earth around them vibrated and they stood there, frozen to the spot. Coming to his senses, Goatboy shouted at them to get up to the top, but as he stood there he noticed a shadow bearing down on him.
Only Dringo was left trying to climb out as the monster attacked. They looked on in terror as it opened what must have been its mouth and a large glowing ball emerged. The ball engulfed them as they shouted for help and they both fell into unconsciousness as it returned to the mouth of the monster.
Everyone above could hear the shouts but knew there was nothing they could do to save the two of them. They closed the heavy hatch and hoped the thick concrete layer was enough to keep the creature beneath them, but at the same time they wondered whether more existed below the surface.
“What are those things?” asked Mr Nice Guy as they loaded the supplies into the cold storage of the fortified Special Reserve building.
“I don’t know.” Replied Tony. “but they must have been a reaction to the radiation, I can’t think of any other explanation.”
--
The dark stranger lifted the hatches of the few remaining soldiers as they woke from their long sleep.
“Children of the Real Saviours, welcome back.” He said in a dark and menacing voice. “I have given you new forms so you can carry on the work of your parents. We must make this world ready for the one who is to come.”
The soldiers lined up against the wall of the room, all of them were dressed in a heavy black armour and many seemed to have extra arms or other strange forms which looked as if they were designed for war rather than any human purpose.
“I have information on a lone company which survived here. We must find them and destroy them. No one can be left alive when our master comes, all human life should be destroyed.”
“Yes sir!” said the soldiers in unison as they saluted and then marched towards the door which led to the outside world.
- --
The red truck was a blur along the motorway as Wookie edged nearer to their destination. Grix held the map as he sat in the passenger seat and the other four looked on from behind.
“YH, do you have to eat all your supplies now?” said Sheepy, watching him bite through another mars bar.
“Hey, at the rate Wookie’s driving, we’ll be there in no time!” replied Your Honour in between bites.
Wookie turned on the radio and put a tape in. Counting Crows played through the four speakers and Grix gave a smile.
“Reminds me of Rasta, I wonder how those guys are doing?”
The roads were clear, bar the few burnt out cars and scrap that remained from those people that had tried to escape the nuclear fall out too late. Wookie loved this and wished he’d used the car sooner. It was so much better than driving on a clogged up road to work. It was a pity though that it had to come at such a cost.
---
Beneath the earth the monsters dug their tunnels. A whole series of labyrinths existed now and they were able to move quickly across much of the country. Their instincts told them it was only a matter of time until they were needed.
CHAPTER V
WAR!
Mystique monitored the intercom system, it had still been working all this time and reports of all the other web servers were stored in the memory from after the event. It seemed that several other forums had survived the generators being turned off or sabotaged. 4 forums and only a handful of people out of all those who had been living at the time.
Mystique grabbed a switch and read the message that appeared on screen, it was from Trampus at the Ciao site, one of the few that remained. She rushed over to Tony and told him the news.
“People!” Tony said as he addressed the quickly gathered crowd, “It seems that one of the other sites is in trouble. The people at Ciao are sending us details of a large mass heading their way. From the energy readings, it seems that they are heavily armed and they are requesting any help we can give them.”
“We can create some weapons the same way we created these new bodies, I suppose.” Said Ali, looking at Loki for confirmation. “I’ll start straight away.”
They set out that afternoon, after the weapons had been finished and piled up on the trucks. Everyone there knew that whatever the threat they would not stand too much of a chance, but they had to protect the few remaining survivors; otherwise there would be no hope for the future.
--- -
Wookie was still driving at over 100mph as they reached the turning from the motorway on to the route for Special Reserve.
“Careful!” shouted Sheepy from the back as they turned the corner sharply and nearly went up on two wheels. “We want to get there in one piece, however quickly!”
After another twenty minutes and a few more shouts from Sheepy, they reached the remains of Special Reserve headquarters and ran inside to see who was there.
To their surprise, the place was empty. Grix checked the underground bunker which held the tubes for the bodies, but all the bodies were gone and it was obvious that the team had moved up to the surface. He emerged from the trapdoor to tell the others.
“There’s no sign of them anywhere.”
“Wait.” Said Sheepy, looking at the computer system. “It looks like they had an emergency call from another site further north.”
They looked at the message and then found the reply Mystique had given.
“They’ve gone up there to fight these guys. They’ll never survive!” said Sheepy.
“Then we’d better help them. At least they’d stand more chance with extra hands.” Said Your Honour.
The small group piled what little weapons remained in the building into the back of the truck and set off to join the others.
- --
The scene that awaited Tony and the gang was far more devastating than they could have imagined. Buildings everywhere had been set ablaze and they could still here gunfire in the distance. They looked for any survivors, but there seemed to be no one around, not even bodies.
“Hey, over here!” came a voice. It was Daysleeper, a member of the Ciao team. “We’ve managed to get into another bunker. Unfortunately, they’ve already taken quite a few of us away.”
“So they didn’t kill you then?” asked Goatboy.
“No, it’s strange, I don’t even want to think of what they want us for,”
“We’d better get out of here as soon as possible. Head back South to safety so we can work out a plan.” Said Ali.
“Good idea.” Said Tony, then turned on the intercom system. “Ok, we need to get these people clear from this area, we’re going back down South. Try to get as many as you can in to the trucks. We’ll meet at that old factory we past on the way up, it might give us some good cover.”
He handed the intercom to Sniper, so that he could help organise the rest of the troops and then began hearding people into the trucks. It was a long task and they could hear the gunfire getting nearer as the last few people were helped on to the vehicles.
“Let’s get going!” said Tony, waving the other trucks past.
As they headed out, a single explosion lit up the sky behind them, Tony looked and saw the bunker explode into small fragments, sending rock and dust up in to the air. He hoped they could outrun whoever was following them. Even if they did, he wasn’t sure what they would do next.
- --
“Where’s Wookie?” asked YH as they finally got the truck loaded and ready to move out.
“I thought he was with you?” said Iceblaster. “I’ll go look in the building.”
Iceblaster entered the empty warehouse and shouted Wookie’s name. There was no reply. He tried again, but still nothing came back. He was about to give up, when he heard a feint cry from below him.
“Wookie?” he shouted, running down through the trap door. The others outside heard him shout and ran in to help. They all ran through the door and down the dark passage to find Wookie.
Iceblaster was ahead of the others as he spotted Wookie standing in front of him.
“Wooki….” He began, but trailed off as he saw the creature rear it’s head above them. “What is that thing?” he said in a small voice.
“Get out of here…” wookie said as he stood there, glued to the spot.
He watched as the giant wormlike creature rushed down, mouth open, to meet Wookie head on. To iceblaster’s surprise, Wookie didn’t scream or shout, he just waited for the creature to engulf him in a strange green hue before swallowing him whole. The others caught up, just in time to see the monster leave.
“Iceblaster!” said YH as they got nearer. “What happened?”
“Wookie….he was….swallowed….” was all that he could say in reply. They watched as the creature disappeared in to the distance.
“We’ve got no choice. We’ve got to go and save him.” Said Grix. “We’ve come all this way and I’m not letting some giant worm run off with my friend.”
The others looked at him and nodded their heads in agreement.
“YH, get that cannon we packed on the truck. We’re going in.”
CHAPTER VI
ASHES
As they headed South, the group of refugees realised that they were not being followed. It was at the forefront of all their minds after the battle that the ‘enemy’ would advance on them, they certainly seemed unafraid of the petty weaponry thrown at them so far. Far from being comforting, it made them all the more nervous.
About 2 hours into the journey the lead vehicle ground to a halt and those behind it strained to see why it had stopped. What they saw amazed and frightened them.
A dark figure stood in the middle of the road, a whole convoy of troops behind him. Grix counted at least 50 guns pointed at them and there was certainly no way around.
Tony stepped out of his truck and approached the figure cautiously.
“We are a peaceful convoy on our way south.” He said to the cowled face of the stranger, his voice full of authority. “Please let us pass.”
“You should have died with the rest of them.” The stranger hissed. ”But these things can be arranged…”
He shot out his muscular arm and grabbed Tony’s throat with his black glove. The others watched in horror as Tony was lifted from the floor, as helpless as a rabbit about to be skinned.
“I will spare you for now, but only because it serves me.” He addressed the whole row of trucks behind Tony. “I will let you follow me. It will be to your deaths, but at least you’ll have time to reflect on your lives first.”
Putting Tony down, he motioned to the troops, who were already surrounding the vehicles.
Tony got to his feet, rubbing his neck.”We have come this far, we will not go out like this without a fight.”
The group heard the troops around them laugh.
“Fight? Ha. You are in no position to fight.”
As he said this, Grandprix and a few others jumped from their truck on to the guards. They were soon pushed to the floor.
“Oh dear.” Said the mocking stranger. “That was foolish. I can see you will be nothing but trouble for me. Very well. “ He motioned to the troops. “Shoot them all!”
- -
As the gang looked down the barrels of the troops’ guns, they huddled together, knowing this was the end. Your Honour cursed the fact that he’d let life pass him by. This was it, this was their final moment. They should have stayed In the mainframe.
It was Grix that first noticed the rumbling, closely followed by the troops. Pretty soon anyone who was standing up found it hard to stay that way. The sound quickly grew louder until a huge thunder-crack tore the earth in front of them to shreds. From the ground came the creatures which had taken their friends, rising up so they blocked out even the sun.
“Shoot them, stupid!” yelled the stranger to his troops, as the group fled in their only chance of escaping their once certain death.
But the troops were now shooting at the worm creatures and only making them madder at that. The worms crashed down, one by one, but they avoided the Special Reserve convoy and headed for the enemy. Armed men ran scared, but were flattened or eaten by the huge monsters. As they drew closer, Pb and Grix got a closer look at their heads.
“Wait.” Said Grix. “There’s someone inside their heads!”
They all looked up, and sure enough Ant and Wookie could be seen inside a transparent dome in the heads of the creatures. They almost looked like they were holding reigns.
Troops piled out of their armoured trucks as they were swallowed or crushed. They launched rockets and grenades at their new enemy, but only a few managed to do any damage at all.
“Stop them!” screemed the stranger, watching all his plans come crashing down around him. How could he have prepared for this? Why wasn’t he warned?
Within half an hour the dust was settling. Tony’s group were picking themselves up off the floor, or helping others on to the vehicles. The stranger sat on the floor. He was coughing blood, but with a rush of renewed power he managed to stand.
It was a human shape that appeared out of the smoke, somewhat smaller than him and definitely weaker, but nonetheless determined. The black suited man watched as the figure drew nearer, then stood, amazed, as a fist connected with his jaw.
“That’s for all the times Billy made me look a fool.” Said an emotional Your Honour as he lashed out at the stranger. “and that’s for the time I was nearly put in hospital.” He carried on, but the stranger was too stunned to fight back. He fell backwards with Your Honour following him, punching and kicking as he went.
It was Grix’s hand that stopped him. Your Honour looked at the figure before him, blood soaked and on his last breath.
“I think it’s time we left.” Said Ant, now joining his friends at the egde of the battlefield. “Enough ashes have fallen today.”
The convoy started up and drove off, leaving the duying stranger to curse his luck and fend off the birds that had circled around him, waiting for their next meal.
EPILOGUE
It wasn’t long before other survivors had been found and slowly, but surely, the world was being re-built. This time there were to be no weapons and no wars. Maybe it would work, maybe it wouldn’t. but no-one would forget the consequences of that time and the bravery of those who had fought for the freedom of lif
It seems like a long time ago since I started my story. It was meant to be updated in parts, but for some reason the last few chapters never saw the light of day.
Well, at last I can present the full story, for those that can be bothered to read it. Some of the users may have left since it was written, and others will see their old usernames in here, but I hope you enjoy it all the same (for those who can be bothered to read the whole thing!)
A NEW WORLD
PART I
AFTER THE WAR
It had been fifteen years since the first great electronic war. Special Reserve, like many other companies, had added the new Virtual technology to their web servers, allowing users to ‘live’ in the webspace as if it were a real place. The problems started when a group of hackers calling themselves the ‘real saviours’ decided that the idea of cyberspace was detrimental to religion and the future of mankind. Their numbers grew and they made small time raids on many companies virtual structures, while all the time they were planning something bigger.
The FBI and MI5 were on to them, but they hadn’t realised just how big a threat the Real Saviours had become and before they knew it, the group had infiltrated and taken over whole countries. Then came the bombs. The Saviours had found a stash of nuclear missiles and had threatened the US and other western countries to surrender and switch off the power to all web servers hosting Virtual web. The countries refused and sent in their top troops instead, but somehow the Saviours were ready for them and launched their missiles anyway.
Meanwhile, big companies all over the western world had created bunkers and safe havens for their staff and users. Many people were caught in the fall-out, but survived inside the webspace, working for the companies to pay for their stay. The Real Saviours were wiped out anyway, ironically by a faulty missile which leaked radioactive chemicals and slowly poisoned them.
--
Ant turned off the video and turned to the others. “This is how it was. Now we have to enter the real world again and turn it back into somewhere to live.”
“But how do we do that without physical bodies?” asked Mystique.
FM stood up and faced the group. “With these…” he said as he pointed to the holographic image that had suddenly appeared. It showed a lifelike body suspended in a glass tube filled with green liquid. Small air bubbles floated past, making the whole thing look like a giant lava lamp with a human body inside.
A general sound of amazement came from the group of FOG forum users as they watched their new host bodies. They were taken over to another room with no furniture.
“First.” Said Ant. “You will have to get used to using these new bodies. You will be restricted by reality once more, some of you may have forgotten what this was like. You will not be able to fly or create objects from thin air, you can be destroyed and most importantly, you will have to start going to the toilet again!” he looked at FM to continue.
“This room is a simulation of the outside world, use it to get used to your new forms before you leave.”
--
Grix looked at the mess. His house used to stand at this point, but all that was left was rubble. He searched through the bricks and mortar frantically for something, then his face lit up. He pulled out a card from under the remains of an old computer casing and dusted it down.
“ha.” He said, staring at the card. “My old SR membership card. Now all I need is a computer…” He wondered off down the road to where some buildings still stood.
Wales had been pretty lucky, it had escaped most of the physical damage from the bombs and the rubble was mainly from fighting between the villagers when the food started to run out. Giant underground generators had kept the power on when other places had run out, relying on only those companies that owned their own generators for power. Many people who had entered Virtual web died when the power ran out. In the US, someone had deliberately sabotaged all but a few of the generators and the whole country had suffered catastrophic losses. Only parts of Europe and Japan were left with power. Grix had joined a group who had found an island far away from the Nuclear fall out and had only just returned to the remains of the once Great Britain. Why, he didn’t know, but he sensed that this was his destiny.
--
Dringo and Shaneo were still trying to get used to their new bodies. They had been in the room for over 3 hours now and were still trying to stand. Sniper walked in and smiled. He, like others who had regularly trained in the room, was already used to his corporeal form and liked to watch the others try to use their limbs. It was almost as fun as going to the circus.
“What are you looking at!” said an angry Shaneo. He tried to shake a fist at Sniper but lost his balance and fell flat on his face. “Ouch! I’ll never get used to the pain!”
When Ant and the others were satisfied that the last few had got sufficiently used to their bodies, he went to speak with Tony.
“So it’s time then?” Tony said as he sat behind his large mahogany desk. “I’ve been waiting for this day for many years now.” He finished his cup of tea and walked out of the room, Ant following behind.
“Soon we can start rebuilding civilisation again, our sister sites will join us in re-populating the world and we will make it a better place.”
--
Grix walked into the dimly lit hallway of the church. He had been travelling for miles in search of other people, and this was the first place he had seen that had any signs of life.
“Hello?” he said as a figure crossed through from the sanctuary to the altar.
The figure stopped and turned to face Grix. He seemed to recognise him straight away.
“I wondered when you would return to us.” He said, smiling.
“Sheepy?” said Grix in surprise.
“The very same!” said Sheepy, walking over to greet Grix.
“So what are you doing in this old church?” The words echoed around the high roof as Grix asked the question, equally puzzled and happy to see Sheepy again.
“This is one of the main servers for Special Reserve.” Explained Sheepy. “There are five around the country, all with their own power sources. I was enlisted to look after this one, alongside Grandprix and Iceblaster. They are currently downstairs, having something to eat. Follow me…”
Sheepy led Grix through the back of the church and down some steps to a huge cave.
PART II
YOU ARE JUST A STATISTIC
The words were printed on a silver plated banner above the door that Your Honour had entered many times before. Every time it stood out that little bit more.
He ran down the corridor for the hundredth time that week and he knew exactly who would be there at the end, waiting in front of the one door he had to get through.
Billy James was a hardcase. That’s what everyone called him, and there was proof enough that this was true. Built like a firewall protected server and with enough clout to knock you into the next life, he was not someone Your Honour wanted to argue with. But he had to get through the door. He didn’t know why, he just knew.
Your Honour stopped in front of the door and in front of the behemoth known as Billy. He gulped. “Please. I need to enter…”
The only reply Your Honour got was the gradual blackout that took place as Billy’s fist closed in on his line of vision. Just as the fist was about to connect with Your Honour’s nose and send it half way through his face, the world went black.
Your Honour felt his vocal chords cut in, then he sensed that there was no danger. Next his brain came to the conclusion that, as there were no bits of him hurting, that this must have been a dream.
“Great!” he said, throwing back the covers. “So much for wanting to be out and about in the outside world, they get the luxury of not sleeping, I get the re-occurring nightmares.”
He had specifically asked to stay out in the real world when the names had been picked for the few who would watch over the servers. At first he though it was a cushy job, just him and Wookie looking after the generator, with plenty of supplies and no one to bother them, they could play around all day or sit in the sun. He hated the life inside the computers. It wasn’t natural and he had never got used to it. But recently, things had turned out to be a bit more complicated. First there were the survivors, some of them were mutants and other were violent. The strong building supports kept them out, but also prevented Your Honour from leaving the area. The food had been great at first, but now it was the same thing every day. They had rescued some supplies from a nearby supermarket, but had to throw half of it away as it was still irradiated. Now they lived off of packet soups and frozen bread that quickly went mouldy in the heat. No chocolate, no sweet stuff, just soup. This, thought Your Honour, must be what prison is like.
Wookie saw Your Honour moping in the corner and came over to him. “Been having the dreams again?” he said in a friendly voice. It didn’t help.
“Yeah. One day I’ll get some sleep. I either dream that strange dream or I end up thinking of food. I can’t win, either way.” He said, throwing a pebble at the concrete floor and watching it bounce in to the corner. “If only I knew what it meant….”
“Sometime dreams don’t mean anything.” Said Wookie, trying to help his friend. “They are just there.”
“I dunno. I have a feeling about this one.” Replied YH as he got up and went over to the door to see what weather the day had brought.
- - -
A dark room. One solitary figure in a glass case, illuminated solely by a green liquid throbbing around it. A series of small lights, illuminated for seconds. A sound, like whirring hard drives. The bubbles move faster and the figure twitches. The glass breaks. The figure steps out from the broken case and on to the wet floor. Looking up, still surrounded in shadow, the figure grins.
---
Grix and Sheepy had briefed the others on the general running of the place. They had received notification that it was time to bring everyone back and had already made plans to go to the main base. Their first task, however, was to liase with those bases which had their communication units destroyed and let them know what to do. Of course, there was no knowing whether anyone else had survived, but the readouts were showing that the energy levels were high, so at least 2 of the powerstations had to be running.
They left at sunrise, the evening was too risky with the growing number of mutants walking the streets these days, and headed East to the next station.
---
Deep beneath the earth, something stirred. Something that had been kept prisoner until a time when it was deemed right to rise again and fulfil its destiny. Lives would be lost, battles would be fought, but ultimately it knew that triumph was a certainty. All it needed was the right moment.
--
PART 3
THE CREATURES
It was Tony that first noticed the noise as they started to get used to the light and the air in their re-discovered world. The building their equipment occupied was designed underneath the Special Reserve building and was pretty far underground, so outside noises were an unexpected thing.
After a few other members commented on the sounds, a search party, made up of Ant, pb, Rasta and Turbonutter, left the safety of the compound and went to investigate. All signs from the monitoring equipment had shown that air and everything else outside were normal, so they had no fear as they rose slowly to the surface, but they soon realised that their path was taking them further along than the original opening had been designed to go.
“I don’t like this, someone has made a pathway between our base and…well, whatever’s beyond here.” Said Ant, squinting into the darkness.
“Someone or something?” questioned Rasta.
They all looked at each other, then realised that they had to go on, for the good of the group. Besides, it might not be as bad as they imagined, but they could each imagine quite a bit.
The gang finally reached a large room where the floor dropped sharply away and the walls were at least 40 feet across. Shining his torch into the darkness, Turbonutter noticed something glinting in the dim light. It was a huge piece of metal. They looked harder and slowly edged down the sloped floor until they were underneath the huge machine.
Pb looked up. “It’s got something inside, something living…” he said as he saw the light green container.
They stared up at the creature in the clear box above them. It was clear that the metal frame was some sort of locking device that prevented the creature from escaping, but was it for the benefit of the creature or everyone else?
Turbonutter shouted over to them from the far wall. “I think I’ve found a light switch.”
Before they could shout a warning, he pressed the switch and lights flickered across the walls in huge lines. The yellow glow showed the true size of the machine, and the creature inside and they all took a step backwards in shock.
Unfortunately, the same switch that seemed to turn the lights on, also made other lights flicker on a panel of the machine. Soon the structure twisted and turned, lowering the box with the creature in to the ground.
“I think we’d better make a move.” Said Rasta, running for the door.
Ant was fascinated and petrified in equal amounts. The others had run off towards the safety of the huge doorway. Turning to find out that Ant wasn’t with them, Pb ran back, but stopped in horror as the liquid from the box leaked out and one side slid open in a single solid movement. A large, mouth-like tentacle shot out and engulfed Ant before their eyes.
“Noooooooo!” shouted Pb as the others held him back.
Turbonutter reached for the door and 10 tons of steel slid shut behind them. They ran as fast as they could, knowing that any minute whatever had swallowed Ant may try and come after them.
--- ---
The black gloved hand still dripped the green liquid as it opened a large door and let light flood the large room.
Inside, many dimly lit containers lined the walls and each one contained a body.
“Soon, my comrades, soon.” Said the mysterious stranger as he pressed several control buttons.
The containers came to life and each one began to boil. As the liquid drained away, each of the bodies inside began twitching and coming to life.
Beside the door, a rack of large guns and other weapons stood lined up and ready for an army.
Well, at last I can present the full story, for those that can be bothered to read it. Some of the users may have left since it was written, and others will see their old usernames in here, but I hope you enjoy it all the same (for those who can be bothered to read the whole thing!)
A NEW WORLD
PART I
AFTER THE WAR
It had been fifteen years since the first great electronic war. Special Reserve, like many other companies, had added the new Virtual technology to their web servers, allowing users to ‘live’ in the webspace as if it were a real place. The problems started when a group of hackers calling themselves the ‘real saviours’ decided that the idea of cyberspace was detrimental to religion and the future of mankind. Their numbers grew and they made small time raids on many companies virtual structures, while all the time they were planning something bigger.
The FBI and MI5 were on to them, but they hadn’t realised just how big a threat the Real Saviours had become and before they knew it, the group had infiltrated and taken over whole countries. Then came the bombs. The Saviours had found a stash of nuclear missiles and had threatened the US and other western countries to surrender and switch off the power to all web servers hosting Virtual web. The countries refused and sent in their top troops instead, but somehow the Saviours were ready for them and launched their missiles anyway.
Meanwhile, big companies all over the western world had created bunkers and safe havens for their staff and users. Many people were caught in the fall-out, but survived inside the webspace, working for the companies to pay for their stay. The Real Saviours were wiped out anyway, ironically by a faulty missile which leaked radioactive chemicals and slowly poisoned them.
--
Ant turned off the video and turned to the others. “This is how it was. Now we have to enter the real world again and turn it back into somewhere to live.”
“But how do we do that without physical bodies?” asked Mystique.
FM stood up and faced the group. “With these…” he said as he pointed to the holographic image that had suddenly appeared. It showed a lifelike body suspended in a glass tube filled with green liquid. Small air bubbles floated past, making the whole thing look like a giant lava lamp with a human body inside.
A general sound of amazement came from the group of FOG forum users as they watched their new host bodies. They were taken over to another room with no furniture.
“First.” Said Ant. “You will have to get used to using these new bodies. You will be restricted by reality once more, some of you may have forgotten what this was like. You will not be able to fly or create objects from thin air, you can be destroyed and most importantly, you will have to start going to the toilet again!” he looked at FM to continue.
“This room is a simulation of the outside world, use it to get used to your new forms before you leave.”
--
Grix looked at the mess. His house used to stand at this point, but all that was left was rubble. He searched through the bricks and mortar frantically for something, then his face lit up. He pulled out a card from under the remains of an old computer casing and dusted it down.
“ha.” He said, staring at the card. “My old SR membership card. Now all I need is a computer…” He wondered off down the road to where some buildings still stood.
Wales had been pretty lucky, it had escaped most of the physical damage from the bombs and the rubble was mainly from fighting between the villagers when the food started to run out. Giant underground generators had kept the power on when other places had run out, relying on only those companies that owned their own generators for power. Many people who had entered Virtual web died when the power ran out. In the US, someone had deliberately sabotaged all but a few of the generators and the whole country had suffered catastrophic losses. Only parts of Europe and Japan were left with power. Grix had joined a group who had found an island far away from the Nuclear fall out and had only just returned to the remains of the once Great Britain. Why, he didn’t know, but he sensed that this was his destiny.
--
Dringo and Shaneo were still trying to get used to their new bodies. They had been in the room for over 3 hours now and were still trying to stand. Sniper walked in and smiled. He, like others who had regularly trained in the room, was already used to his corporeal form and liked to watch the others try to use their limbs. It was almost as fun as going to the circus.
“What are you looking at!” said an angry Shaneo. He tried to shake a fist at Sniper but lost his balance and fell flat on his face. “Ouch! I’ll never get used to the pain!”
When Ant and the others were satisfied that the last few had got sufficiently used to their bodies, he went to speak with Tony.
“So it’s time then?” Tony said as he sat behind his large mahogany desk. “I’ve been waiting for this day for many years now.” He finished his cup of tea and walked out of the room, Ant following behind.
“Soon we can start rebuilding civilisation again, our sister sites will join us in re-populating the world and we will make it a better place.”
--
Grix walked into the dimly lit hallway of the church. He had been travelling for miles in search of other people, and this was the first place he had seen that had any signs of life.
“Hello?” he said as a figure crossed through from the sanctuary to the altar.
The figure stopped and turned to face Grix. He seemed to recognise him straight away.
“I wondered when you would return to us.” He said, smiling.
“Sheepy?” said Grix in surprise.
“The very same!” said Sheepy, walking over to greet Grix.
“So what are you doing in this old church?” The words echoed around the high roof as Grix asked the question, equally puzzled and happy to see Sheepy again.
“This is one of the main servers for Special Reserve.” Explained Sheepy. “There are five around the country, all with their own power sources. I was enlisted to look after this one, alongside Grandprix and Iceblaster. They are currently downstairs, having something to eat. Follow me…”
Sheepy led Grix through the back of the church and down some steps to a huge cave.
PART II
YOU ARE JUST A STATISTIC
The words were printed on a silver plated banner above the door that Your Honour had entered many times before. Every time it stood out that little bit more.
He ran down the corridor for the hundredth time that week and he knew exactly who would be there at the end, waiting in front of the one door he had to get through.
Billy James was a hardcase. That’s what everyone called him, and there was proof enough that this was true. Built like a firewall protected server and with enough clout to knock you into the next life, he was not someone Your Honour wanted to argue with. But he had to get through the door. He didn’t know why, he just knew.
Your Honour stopped in front of the door and in front of the behemoth known as Billy. He gulped. “Please. I need to enter…”
The only reply Your Honour got was the gradual blackout that took place as Billy’s fist closed in on his line of vision. Just as the fist was about to connect with Your Honour’s nose and send it half way through his face, the world went black.
Your Honour felt his vocal chords cut in, then he sensed that there was no danger. Next his brain came to the conclusion that, as there were no bits of him hurting, that this must have been a dream.
“Great!” he said, throwing back the covers. “So much for wanting to be out and about in the outside world, they get the luxury of not sleeping, I get the re-occurring nightmares.”
He had specifically asked to stay out in the real world when the names had been picked for the few who would watch over the servers. At first he though it was a cushy job, just him and Wookie looking after the generator, with plenty of supplies and no one to bother them, they could play around all day or sit in the sun. He hated the life inside the computers. It wasn’t natural and he had never got used to it. But recently, things had turned out to be a bit more complicated. First there were the survivors, some of them were mutants and other were violent. The strong building supports kept them out, but also prevented Your Honour from leaving the area. The food had been great at first, but now it was the same thing every day. They had rescued some supplies from a nearby supermarket, but had to throw half of it away as it was still irradiated. Now they lived off of packet soups and frozen bread that quickly went mouldy in the heat. No chocolate, no sweet stuff, just soup. This, thought Your Honour, must be what prison is like.
Wookie saw Your Honour moping in the corner and came over to him. “Been having the dreams again?” he said in a friendly voice. It didn’t help.
“Yeah. One day I’ll get some sleep. I either dream that strange dream or I end up thinking of food. I can’t win, either way.” He said, throwing a pebble at the concrete floor and watching it bounce in to the corner. “If only I knew what it meant….”
“Sometime dreams don’t mean anything.” Said Wookie, trying to help his friend. “They are just there.”
“I dunno. I have a feeling about this one.” Replied YH as he got up and went over to the door to see what weather the day had brought.
- - -
A dark room. One solitary figure in a glass case, illuminated solely by a green liquid throbbing around it. A series of small lights, illuminated for seconds. A sound, like whirring hard drives. The bubbles move faster and the figure twitches. The glass breaks. The figure steps out from the broken case and on to the wet floor. Looking up, still surrounded in shadow, the figure grins.
---
Grix and Sheepy had briefed the others on the general running of the place. They had received notification that it was time to bring everyone back and had already made plans to go to the main base. Their first task, however, was to liase with those bases which had their communication units destroyed and let them know what to do. Of course, there was no knowing whether anyone else had survived, but the readouts were showing that the energy levels were high, so at least 2 of the powerstations had to be running.
They left at sunrise, the evening was too risky with the growing number of mutants walking the streets these days, and headed East to the next station.
---
Deep beneath the earth, something stirred. Something that had been kept prisoner until a time when it was deemed right to rise again and fulfil its destiny. Lives would be lost, battles would be fought, but ultimately it knew that triumph was a certainty. All it needed was the right moment.
--
PART 3
THE CREATURES
It was Tony that first noticed the noise as they started to get used to the light and the air in their re-discovered world. The building their equipment occupied was designed underneath the Special Reserve building and was pretty far underground, so outside noises were an unexpected thing.
After a few other members commented on the sounds, a search party, made up of Ant, pb, Rasta and Turbonutter, left the safety of the compound and went to investigate. All signs from the monitoring equipment had shown that air and everything else outside were normal, so they had no fear as they rose slowly to the surface, but they soon realised that their path was taking them further along than the original opening had been designed to go.
“I don’t like this, someone has made a pathway between our base and…well, whatever’s beyond here.” Said Ant, squinting into the darkness.
“Someone or something?” questioned Rasta.
They all looked at each other, then realised that they had to go on, for the good of the group. Besides, it might not be as bad as they imagined, but they could each imagine quite a bit.
The gang finally reached a large room where the floor dropped sharply away and the walls were at least 40 feet across. Shining his torch into the darkness, Turbonutter noticed something glinting in the dim light. It was a huge piece of metal. They looked harder and slowly edged down the sloped floor until they were underneath the huge machine.
Pb looked up. “It’s got something inside, something living…” he said as he saw the light green container.
They stared up at the creature in the clear box above them. It was clear that the metal frame was some sort of locking device that prevented the creature from escaping, but was it for the benefit of the creature or everyone else?
Turbonutter shouted over to them from the far wall. “I think I’ve found a light switch.”
Before they could shout a warning, he pressed the switch and lights flickered across the walls in huge lines. The yellow glow showed the true size of the machine, and the creature inside and they all took a step backwards in shock.
Unfortunately, the same switch that seemed to turn the lights on, also made other lights flicker on a panel of the machine. Soon the structure twisted and turned, lowering the box with the creature in to the ground.
“I think we’d better make a move.” Said Rasta, running for the door.
Ant was fascinated and petrified in equal amounts. The others had run off towards the safety of the huge doorway. Turning to find out that Ant wasn’t with them, Pb ran back, but stopped in horror as the liquid from the box leaked out and one side slid open in a single solid movement. A large, mouth-like tentacle shot out and engulfed Ant before their eyes.
“Noooooooo!” shouted Pb as the others held him back.
Turbonutter reached for the door and 10 tons of steel slid shut behind them. They ran as fast as they could, knowing that any minute whatever had swallowed Ant may try and come after them.
--- ---
The black gloved hand still dripped the green liquid as it opened a large door and let light flood the large room.
Inside, many dimly lit containers lined the walls and each one contained a body.
“Soon, my comrades, soon.” Said the mysterious stranger as he pressed several control buttons.
The containers came to life and each one began to boil. As the liquid drained away, each of the bodies inside began twitching and coming to life.
Beside the door, a rack of large guns and other weapons stood lined up and ready for an army.