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With blessings from the past; conquer the future; Stark Expo/Network, Black Cat, Open
Topic Started: Jun 20 2014, 01:09 AM (229 Views)
Doctor Nemesis
Unregistered

Stark Expo
5/16/14
5pm



The Stark Expo. There was always something about this thing that made him giddy. The science, the discovery, the evolution of man through technological advancements. James actually predated the Expo by several years, and had been one of the first people invited to present there.

He still remembered all the good times he shared with Howard Stark. A revolutionary and a great man. At least his legacy lived on in the Expo and through his son. Peeking out from behind the curtains at the people trickling in, he grinned in glee.

Sometimes he forgot he was one of the worlds most brilliant minds and people actually listened to what he had to say. Who was he kidding, he never forgot that fact; at all. But seeing so many people turning out for his demonstration made his ego swell nonetheless.

He along with a half dozen Zeta Drones were darting around backstage behind the curtains, making sure all the machines were up and running correctly. Wouldn't be good for business if someones head exploded or something like that. "Is everything ready, Zeta 5?"

The droid turned to him, typed out a few final algorithms on the keyboard in front of him and gave him a thumbs up. "As ready as they're going to get, Doctor." "Good, good. Well, let's make history." He Cued Z9 and music began to play, starting soft before building.

And when it hit a certain moment, he stepped out on stage; three piece white suit as crisp and clean as ever. "Hello. Greetings and salutations, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome...to the Stark Expo." He grinned to the crowd and clapped along with them; just going through the motions.

When the noise of the crowd died down, he began pacing back and forth on the stage. "For those of you not familiar with my work or my name. I am James Nicola Bradley. I'm the head...everything really at Horizon Labs," he said with a small chuckle that the crowd echoed back. "And for those who do know me, chances are you know the title of my presentation.

"Today you're here to see a great many new innovations of technology, mathematics, science, and so on. My demonstration is based around biology, physiology, and genetics." He walked back and forth as he spoke, eyeing the crowd for a potential volunteer. "Evolution..through Heredity.

We all know that as time goes on, traits are inherited from parent to child, ancestor to descendant. But as genes and traits are either dominant or recessive, we have no way to choose which ones we get. John Williams might be descended from a noble warrior and get his natural aptitude for fighting. While Jill Barnes might get freckles. To put it simply, it's a grab bag and you get what you get.

Well I've found a way past that pesky little problem. And since pretty much the entirety of ones heritage is stored in their DNA..." Still pacing back and forth, he saw a few people who looked right for this. "The philosopher George Santayana was once quoted as saying, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

Well what I'm proposing is that we learn from the past and grow better for it." He snapped his fingers, and several Zeta Droids pulled back the curtains and stepped onto the stage. Behind them were a few machines all with wires connected to a chair with a small laptop attached; wires ran then ran from the chair to a large pod off to the side.

Attached to the laptop was a retinal scanner, and attached to the chair was a small needle which would take a small sample of blood. "Ladies and gentlemen, I'll need a volunteer." Peoples hands began to shoot up into the air, while more than a few stayed down. But soon they'd regret not taking a leap of faith.

A frail looking man with too thick glasses and poor posture held his hand up, and was practically jumping out of his seat. James had a moment of pity. "You sir! Would you accompany me up here on stage?" The man looked around sheepishly, then stood up and walked onto the stage, nearly tripping in his haste.

"Sir, what's your name and age?" "Tobias Finkman. I'm 31 years old." His name was Finkman; James had to push everything down not to laugh right there. "And what do you do?" "I work at an accounting firm." "Well Tobias, I'm Doctor Bradley. Pleasure to meet you. And I'm just telling you now that after this you may find yourself looking for a new job."

Holding out his hand, the man shook it and boy was he sweaty. "Tobias, before we get started, can you sign this form waiving all legal action and yadda yadda? I assure you nothing will go wrong, but the law is the law." Tobias took a deep gulp before nodding and placing his palm on the pad. It beeped in recognition and the Zeta walked away with it.

"Alright Tobias, take a seat in the chair. And prepare to have your life changed." The man sat down, got strapped in, and gave James a thumbs up. "Before we get started Tobias, do you have any neat stories? Great grandpa was a war hero? Ancestor invented the wheel? Something like that?"

Tobias told them all how he was supposedly descended from Vikings, and his ancestor was a great archer. "Well here's hoping that's true! Let's begin." Walking over to the laptop, he swung it out so it was facing him and placed in a few commands. "This is going to pinch a little, but it'll be worth it, I assure you."

The needled pricked his finger, leaving just a small dot of blood behind on the surface, and then the optic scanner stopped over one eye. A bright blue grid criss crossed his eye, recording it's features before beeping green when it confirmed everything.

The data began to stream across the screen, and he nodded as different bits caught his eye. "Interesting." When enough had been compiled, he looked down to Tobias. "Well, that story seems to be true, and I have very good news for you. This is only a demonstration, but to prove to any doubters in the crowd. I'm going to give you a twofer."

The man was still confused, but it sounded good to him. "Right now you have what appears to be 20/40, maybe even 20/50 vision. Which as we all know is not good in the slightest. You are also in poor physical health. Now, this is not to call out physical flaws, but to inform people what they are, so they will have a comparison when you're finished with the demonstration."

To prove he wasn't lying, all the data popped up on the big screen for a bit so people could read it. Unstrapping him from the machine, he directed him over to the pod. "Once you step inside this chamber, your life will change. I guarantee you that. Do you trust me, Tobias?" "Well, I'm scared. I won't lie...but you say you can help me, and I've read about all the times you helped other people.

All the crazy, impossible things you've created. Can you really help me?" James laughed because the question was stupid. If Tobias had known him personally, he never even would have thought to ask. "Yes, Tobias. I really can help you." He waited for an answer from the man, then grinned as he got a nod.

"Okay, I trust you. Don't make things worse though, my life isn't great as it is." The crowd might have seen that as a joke, but up here James could see this man was telling the God's honest truth. "Don't worry, Tobias. You'll thank me when this is over. Now if you please, step into the chamber and lay flat on the pad."

Tobias waited for the doors to hiss open, then stepped inside. He got on the pad, and straps latched across him to keep him still. "Tobias. When I activate the machine, it's going to unlock the potential within you, passed down from your ancestors. So hold on...this is gonna be a bumpy ride. But dammit you're gonna love this."

Stepping back, the door closed and pressurized against the outside world, then Nemesis stepped over to a control panel. "I would have set up a live camera feed into the chamber, but the energy bouncing around inside would probably fry it. Even if it didn't, you wouldn't be able to make out anything but flashes of light."

Opening a comm channel into the chamber that only he could hear, he spoke to his volunteer. "Tobias, you okay in there?" "I'm fine doctor. Is this gonna hurt? Be honest." "It's going to be slightly uncomfortable as your body will rapidly change, but it won't hurt so much as be really really unpleasant.

Now just relax, and in a few minutes you will be a changed man...quite literally." His fingers started dancing over the keyboard, and the chamber powered up. "Ladies and gentlemen, if you just bear with us for a few minutes, you'll see how the fruits of my labor can directly improve your life for the better."

5 Minutes Later

He'd kept talking during the transformative process. Explaining all that he could without revealing his secrets and keeping the people entertained. When the process was completed, a light at the top turned red and a loud buzz filled the atrium. "Well, just like that. Five minutes on high and he's done, folks," he said with a laugh as he walked over to the chamber.

He pressed a button and the door opened, with steam flooding out and obscuring the stage. He of course could see through it and one look told him it had been a success. "Come on Tobias, take my arm. You're still a bit disoriented, but follow me."

He gave the man his arm and walked him out to the middle of the stage. A snap of his fingers and the steam was cleared away, leaving James standing next to a man who besides the face looked nothing like Tobias Finkman. Tobias had been maybe 5'7 on a good day, and this man was 6'3.

He was 130lbs soaking wet, and now he was 240lbs of nearly solid muscle. "Tell me, Tobias. How do you feel?" Tobias blinked rapidly several times, then turned to the doctor. "I can't see! Everything's all blurry! What happened?!" James put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Tobias, relax. Do me a favor and take your glasses off."

He removed them and suddenly the world was so clear. Even better than when the glasses still worked. "I...I can see? I can see!!" The crowd erupted into applause. "It's not that simple, Tobias. Before you had 20/50 vision, which means at a distance of 20 feet, you had the same visual acuity of a person standing at 50 feet and trying to see the same thing. But now, using the vision your ancestor made such good use of as an archer...you have 20/9 vision.

Wow...I hadn't even expected you to improve that much," he said as he looked at the readings. "So at a distance of 20 feet, you can now see what a person standing at 9 feet would. That is simply incredible." Tobias still couldn't believe it, and was so happy that he hadn't noticed his clothes were now pretty snug.

"Oh, and as we know, Vikings were well renown for physical strength and toughness. Well Tobias here has put on about 100 plus pounds of muscle and nearly a foot in height!" The crowd continued to applaud, and Tobias was still just overwhelmed by it all.

"And there's one more thing. Your ancestor was an archer, so I've gotten my Zeta Droids to bring out a bow, an arrow, and a target. Show us what you've got, Tobias. But don't embarrass me, then we'd both look bad," he said and nudged the man in the ribs.

Tobias was more nervous than he'd ever been in his life, but when he picked up the bow, it was like he'd done it a thousand times before. He looked perfect as he nocked the arrow and took aim. He let it go and it sailed into the center of the bullseye, thunking and sticking out of the other side.

"BULLSEYE, RIGHT ON THE MONEY!!" The crowd roared and Tobias dropped the bow, then fell to his knees. This was...it was unbelievable. How was this possible right now? "Doctor? You...you?" "I said I'd help you, Tobias. And what do you think? Have I helped you?" WIth tears streaming down his face, he wrapped James in a bear hug and lifted him off the ground.

"Tobias, I'm an old man! Don't squeeze so hard!" "Oh, oh right. That's gonna take getting used to." He put James down and turned to the crowd, pumping his fists into the air. "This is amazing!!" And in doing so, he ripped his shirt. "Zeta 12, could you bring me a pair of coveralls in this mans size?

I don't think his current clothes will make it the rest of the day; and while the ladies in the crowd might hate me, we still do have public decency laws." After going behind the curtain and changing, Tobias came back out and stood next to Nemesis. "Ladies and gentlemen...Evolution, through Heredity."
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Sarah Vale
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Technopathy
Sarah felt like she’d been all over this expo. Thank goodness she’d been staying in the city, because there was no way she would’ve been willing to make the drive from the school every day. And she was enjoying herself too much to stop coming. There was simply so much to see, so much to learn, and of course the presentations were fantastic. And even when she found herself taking a break, it was nice to just sit in the park, surrounded by the tinny voices of technology murmuring in her mind. Of course, there were certain presentations that she simply couldn’t resist going to. Doctor Bradley’s presentation was, of course, one that she had pre-planned on going to. She’d met Nemesis a while ago, and she’d stayed in contact with him, not just because the man was brilliant.

The tour he’d given her of Horizon Labs had been thrilling, and she’d been glad to have met him, and even more excited to see his presentation at the expo. She knew the basic premise behind his presentation, but of course, his actual presentation of it was what she was looking forward to. Her powers stretched out, feeling the drones and the tech behind the curtain, and Sarah made sure to get there early in order to get a good seat. Right up front, watching curiously as he stepped out and began the presentation.

The notebook in her lap was pushed back into the bag at her feet, and she leaned forward as the show started, listening in fascination as he went over things, and finally picked someone from the crowd to demonstrate on. How interesting. The brunette technopath was doing her best not to reach into the systems and peek into the workings. But it would ruin the surprise, and she didn’t want to do that. Instead, she controlled herself and simply listened to the speech, watching in fascinating as he went through the spiel, picking out a guinea pig and beginning the test.

The premise behind what he was obviously planning was interesting, and she had to admit – it would be spectacular, if it worked. Not that she doubted Bradley. The man was a genius, to be sure. The power alone caused Sarah to lean back in her seat, fighting the urge to whistle under her breath at the sheer magnitude. The man that stepped out of the machine was a different creature completely, and Sarah’s eyebrows shot up her forehead in shock, amazed by the complete transformation. A brilliant display, to be sure.

Dr. Bradley’s display was incredible, and Sarah stood with the rest of the crowd, clapping her hands with gusto. After the presentation, Sarah stayed in her seat, finally standing and making her way towards Nemesis, smiling brightly.

“Dr. Bradley! Congratulations – that was absolutely amazing! I’m glad I made it here to see that.” With an excited tone, she only blushed a little bit at approaching the brilliant scientist. Even though she’d met him before, she had to wonder if he remembered her that well; he probably met a lot of people. That thought made her shift awkwardly in place for a moment, before mentally shrugging and tugging her long hair over a shoulder thoughtfully. “I’m, uhm, Sarah. Sarah Vale, I met you at the Labs for a tour a while ago.”
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Aaron
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It had been an interesting trip, if nothing else. Aaron didn't understand half of what was being shown, but everything was...interesting. Interesting was a good word, and it was applicable to almost any situation. Especially situations like this.

Okay the truth was he was so out of place here it wasn't even funny.

Sighing, Aaron lifted himself up onto the tips of his toes, looking through the crowd of people who had come to the Expo for any familiar face. He'd come up with some people from the school, but somewhere along the line they'd broken away from him and he hadn't been able to catch back up, so he'd been wandering through the converted Central Park for about ten minutes, looking for anyone he knew. So far, no luck.

Dropping back down, he adjusted his ball cap and kept walking, figuring that before long, someone would turn up. In the meantime...well, this was a big place, and there was a lot of interesting stuff to see.

That word again. He was starting to think it was code for 'I really don't understand what you're showing me but I don't want to offend you so I'll say the vaguest thing possible in hopes that you won't get offended and turn me into a frog with your super science stuff.' What he wouldn't give to be back in his dorm, reading a book or drawing something. Hell, even working out with Noriko would be preferable to this. There wasn't much here for him, aside from the theme park attractions. He wasn't really in a roller coaster mood, though.

The flow of people seemed to be focused in one direction. Deciding that it might be best to follow along and see if anyone he'd come up with was attending whatever demonstration was going down, he joined the stream, standing near the back of the presentation as it went down.

What he saw was astonishing. Jaw dropping. Literally, his mouth was agape as the volunteer that had been pulled from the audience went in looking like a stick and came out looking like he'd been sculpted. He didn't pretend to understand the science behind what he'd just seen - all he knew was that whatever that machine was, it worked.

Almost immediately after witnessing this small miracle, he began considering what it would be like to go in himself. Would he come out looking like that man, Tobias or whatever? It would certainly beat the hell out of exercising like he had been for the past six months. Not that he wasn't showing results from all his effort. Actually, he was in much better shape than he had been this time last year. Still, skipping ahead a little bit couldn't hurt, right?

It was all idle fantasy, though. It wasn't like he could just waltz on up there and say "Hey make me look like a Viking god." First of all, he didn't have it in him to say something like that to a total stranger, and second...well he wasn't descended from Vikings. Actually, he didn't know a lot about his lineage. For all he knew, he could go into that machine and come out looking like a leprechaun. Best not to risk it. It was cool to see that demonstration, though. At least this had been something he could sort of understand.

He was about to turn and walk away from the scene when he spotted someone out of the corner of his eye. Familiar face, what he'd come here looking for. Without giving it a lot of thought, he walked up, giving Sarah Vale a wave. "Hey," he said nonchalantly, wondering for an instant why she was here. Then, he remembered what it was she could do. She probably felt like a kid in a candy store. A candy store made of computer parts. Funny mental image, that.

It was only then that he noticed that she had been talking to someone when he'd arrived, and a few seconds later he realized who it was. The man who'd been running the experiment, Doctor...Bradley, he thought. And a few seconds after that, he realized that he was probably interrupting something.

"Ah...sorry, I didn't know you were busy...was just lookin' for someone from school, you're the first person I saw..." Fighting off the urge to turn around and walk away from this awkward little situation he'd created for himself, he instead cleared his throat and looked up at the doctor, extending a hand to him. "Ah, I'm Aaron...Aaron Anderson. I'm a..." Friend wasn't the right word for his and Sarah's relationship. Acquaintance? No. Classmate? Close enough. "...I go to school with Sarah. That was amazing, by the way...that machine, I mean. Just...wow."

Cringing internally at that, he found himself hoping for some divine intervention to get out of this situation while he still had some dignity. Well, it wasn't like the doctor would remember him after today anyway, right? That was what he told himself, anyway.
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