Chapter 16 - The details of Olympus This is Thor. I guess I did not talk enough the first time so they have given me a list of things to tell you all about.
Before I get to that stuff there is one other thing. I get asked all the time one particular question. Maybe if I answer it here fewer people will bug me about it.
Do I miss baseball?
I was a pro for six years. Never an All-Star but my contract was pretty good. I was a solid player that covered second base with the best of them. From a very young age I have always worked hard at being fit.
Do I miss it? Oh hell yes!
It was a game. We could win or lose but everybody went home at the end. How could I not miss that? Now I work hard each day to find ways to keep the innocent alive while putting down my own kind. I will never falter and I will never quit. But it is never easy and my life is no longer a game.
Now on to my new list...
We have never invited a close inspection of our masks or costumes for that matter. Not that pictures of us are not everywhere anyway. Along with endless speculation about what we really look like.
Our masks started as a simple piece of cloth. They wrap completely around our heads and tie in the back. Our eyes are protected by plastic shields, our mouths by a fine mesh. From the start we added a few extra strips of cloth to change the contours of our faces.
So far it has proven impossible for any sort of identification to be made of anyone wearing an Olympus mask. We do not eat or drink in public that requires the masks come off.
We never told anyone but just after our one year anniversary, Day 356 as we called it, we undertook a special covert project. Basically we went looking for photos and other identification items for every Olympus MetaHuman. We collected or destroyed them. After a few months of work it became almost impossible to find a picture of any of us -- anywhere.
License branches all across the country were invaded, photos were swapped. It did mean that most of us lost most of our 'secret' identities but that did not matter much at that point.
One unexpected hitch was the impact of this on the families. The desire to bring immediate family to Olympus was not limited to MetaHumans all of our regular Staff were involved. So a fair percentage of our dependents did end up living at Olympus. Everyone feared for the safety of anyone they cared for. It is a good thing we got fast at construction or we could never have kept up with the demand.
Olympus was secure so people living there could keep their photos and such.
But for those related to residents of Olympus who choose not to live here there was no alternative but to give up, or allow to be altered, many cherished photos and recordings. It was for their safety, for our safety, but it was hard.
We have improved the masks a bit, they breathe better, the eye shields react to light and darken when needed and the communications gear is built right in.
Costumes, uniforms, we call them both. The standard outfit is a reinforced one piece bodysuit in non-reflecting black. The basic model is very lightly padded but it can be layered with very sturdy body armor. I refuse to wear anything but the basics as I value movement over protection. Most people opt for a fair amount of protection even when their power offers even more. We try to stress to everyone that in combat you just never know what is going to happen.
Colors. Quite a lot of people have a color, or perhaps two, that they use to trim their outfit. All non-reflecting muted colors but they do add some variety. The use of different amounts of trim allows even two people with the same color to be distinctive.
Every Meta is encouraged to develop a symbol or logo for themselves. We have a small department of people who actually produce the clothes, costumes and uniforms we all wear. They are quite good at what they do and they help even the least artistic to express themselves. If nothing else a stylized version of their name often goes above the left breast.
Pulsar does not have a color or a logo. But he is pretty much the only one. Even Psyche, who also sticks with the basic black too, wears the PsiInt logo.
Most of the time we try to work behind the scenes. We do not want to disrupt lives we want to protect them. So black and stealth are the standard.
But of course there are those times when things are wide open and there are no shadows to be found. So for these moments some MetaHumans have a formal costume. These are the costumes that have few limits and the ones that make Pulsar wince.
More color, reflecting colors are allowed, means that some are pretty spectacular.
Formal outfits are the ones mostly likely to have a cape. Normally we avoid such things because they tend to get in the way more often than not. But when we are going flashy they do look nice. Capes are generally attached via break-way snaps. So if you saw The Incredibles and are worrying, don't. Batman figured that one out in the 1940s.
Pulsar's cape is a story all on it's own. I sat down with a very understanding tech girl and she explained how it works. Took a few tries but I think I have it now. I did ask him if he minded me talking about it and he did say it was ok.
It is not really a cape at all but rather a whole bunch of one-quarter inch strips. Each strip is almost a full thirty feet long! Some sort of wire runs through each to carry a tiny current. The current forms an energy matrix that he can control. No idea what an energy matrix really is but that is how it works.
When he first got it he could only do some simple shapes with it but now, wowzy wow wow. He can animate it. Form great wings All sorts of stuff. He says there is a long standing comic tradition of capes that do amazing things and he is honoring that now.
This might also be a good place to talk about names. Meta names to be exact. Considering the number of people who eventually came to live at Olympus it is not surprising that the ways in which people gained their new names would be varied.
In the very beginning Pulsar and Speed choose their own names. Pulsar gave me my name and when Psyche could not decide he suggested hers as well. So we had those two traditions to go with. Having people show up even before Day One forced us to set some sort of rule about names very quickly.
We really did not want a bunch of comic book superheros running around. Not because of the copyright or other legal problems but for more basic reasons. Pulsar did not want people thinking too much about comic books cause like he has said, over and over, “Real life ain't a damn comic book.”
Psyche says that taking a famous name can lead to unfair comparisons or unrealistic expectations. I do not know about that I was named after the God of Thunder and I do ok.
Secretly Pulsar had a great deal of fondness for much of the comic book world and he wanted people to be worthy of names like Spider-Man, Batman, or Captain America. Never found the first, the second is something different and the third well some things are never meant to be.
What we suggested was that new Metas not declare a codename at first. This worked about a third of the time. If someone came in and was dead-set on a particular name that is how it generally ended up. But for most their names came from the people around them. During training you get to know people and who you are does come out. This is the tradition among groups like military fighter pilots and it has worked pretty well for us too.
MetaHumans who have been around for a while sometimes help out. Pulsar has given names to quite a few of our comrades. For those of the physical bent I sometimes make a suggestion that turns into a name. As far as all the Norse-based supermen and superwomen that is not my fault. I objected. I told them to kiss my butt and find another kind of name. They ignored me. Sif? Yes I objected. She did not ignore me but she did not listen either.
Few other rules exist. The name must be something we can say easily or at least have a short form. We are the good guys so that has to be considered. 'Blood Drinker' was rejected for example. Pulsar has the final approval because as he said once, “I have to use these names along with everyone else. I have to call out to them when lives are on the line and people are dying. I will NOT ask a 'Blood Drinker' to do anything except die. Drinker would be stupid and if he wants to use Blood I know a group of people who would want to have a word with him first.”
But somehow it all works out.
This is the transcript of something that was never intended to be heard outside of Tartarus. While Shadow has always been given credit for obtaining the original digital recording all we can say for certain is that PsiInt provided the tape to us. We believe it was recorded near the end of the first year and are placing it there. This was before Tartarus was built. I have taken the name Loki.
It is fitting as I am a modern day god. That should tell them instantly what they need to know. I will rain chaos down upon the Earth until the day when I am recognized as the one true ruler. The only ruler. Emperor sounds about right for the title.
Why am I going to do this? Because I can. If you study your history you will see that when one Tribe, or Clan, or Nation has the power to conquer they almost always do. Just how things work.
Funny when you think about it. The creation and double use of the nuclear bomb started War on it's path to being a bit obsolete. Oh you all still squabble over squares of dirt but it is almost like play now. Nobody would think of wheeling out those really big weapons.
With the sudden ascendancy of my brother and sister Metas things have changed. The balance of power has shifted. Those few of us with the wisdom to see the future have been gathering MetaHumans like ripe grapes off the vine. Yes I know you know all about Olympus. Everybody knows about Pulsar and his little band of fools.
We will deal with them in due course.
My plan is simplicity itself. Yes we will conquer. Raw MetaHuman force will carve out our initial territory. China looks nice. We can level some mountain and use some land they won't miss.
But after that... ah the genius of it all.
If you do not know much about Telepaths you need to learn now. They can learn to do more than just read minds. Memories can be erased and more importantly commands can be implanted. I have so many wonderful things I will be doing with that capability but one stands alone.
They call it a trigger but it is a mental command that can be easily placed into any human's brain. This is not some robotic programing it works best with a simple clear concept. We will use one for everyone who is a part of our new government -- aside from Metas of course.
Thou shall not be corrupt.
Those are my words not anything directly related to how it works. But if such a trigger is accepted by someone doing any sort of government job they become as honest as any person has ever been. They cannot intentionally do their job badly, they cannot accept bribes or do anything of that sort. We will give our people the most honest and efficient government the world has ever seen.
Let's see Pulsar do something better than that. Ha!
Sure some people are going to lose their minds over such a notion. It is mind control! How can you even think... blah blah blah. But it will work and what will come out of it will be so powerful that I think the humans will go for it like a cat to catnip. What will help to make it work is that even with the trigger installed a person is not a robot. If they wanted to take a box of pens home from work they could still do that. Yes it is against the rules but it is not an important thing unless it gets out of hand.
The trigger prevents something like this from getting out of control. Mind control is wrong because it assumes non-consent. This will not. But if you do not take the trigger you do not get the job. If a person should leave the government's employ then the trigger can be removed. At least that is what I am told not sure if it has been done. Would not matter anyway since it only applies to the job.
People are going to scream mind control but it will work. Nothing convinces people more than a record of success. Once we have proven how magnificently it does the job the humans will embrace what we have to offer.
Those that don't? The ever expanding MetaHuman forces of Tartarus will roll over anybody. I just have to point a finger and a Country will die. I doubt it will take many of those before the rest submit.
Once the wars are over we can remake this planet. The place is in dire need of a housecleaning. We will balance resources across the globe. No longer will some live in luxury while others huddle in huts.
MetaHumans are the next stage of human evolution. We will correct the mistakes of the past. Our powers allow us to replace uncertainty with swift sure action.
I am preparing these lectures so that all the forces of Tartarus will understand what is going to happen. There will be resistance and saber rattling aplenty when we first stake out our claim. Olympus may even try to attack before we can get settled. We will be ready for them if they do.
The humans will of course try to evict us as well. They have no chance at all.
We will conquer the surrounding Countries by a mix of force and subversion. This entire planet will be united as one.
The time for New Earth has come.
Thor & Loki
MetaWar Chapter Seventeen MetaWar Chapter Fifteen