A cabin in the woods of Oregon;
Thirty-three year old John Swiftman sits and ponders his past, as he’s been prone to do.
Earlier in the year, under the guidance of Amazing Guy, John seeked guidance on forgetting his past from the Tibetan wise man Yug Gni Zama. Zama basically told him to use his past to learn and grow in the future, but the hasty John didn’t understand and sped off.
He reflected on his battle with Kuu Kuu Ka Chu when he was thirteen, of how Trickshot and Pigeonman didn’t have faith in him, of how Ka Chu had claimed to have killed the heroes and then how he was trapped in a strange dimension of terrible wind storms, crimson sand dunes and large jagged green rocks. He met Rachael, a girl of thirteen who was not only his same age, but seemed to share his attraction. He meets Arnold Baker, the boy who saved him from perishing out in the hostile environment. They become friends.
Young Jonny learned from the elderly Visionary that in the world where these outcasts came from Ka Chu took over, killed most of the heroes and exiled the remaining survivors to this strange dimension. That was fifty years ago and the original settlers have adapted and continued to live. With the exception of Visionary and Dancer, the rest of the heroes have been lost in the sand storms long ago in an attempt to locate a mysterious beast. A splinter of the outcasts broke off to strike it on their own. They’ve become a deadly adversary.
Jonny tries for years to escape. Now at age fifteen, he’s just as determined to use his super speed to break free from this place as ever. Each time he tries to escape, he fails.
Swift: Escape Velocity, part 2.
“Jonny! You coming this time?” Arnold, Jonny’s nineteen year old best friend asks him. Every time the hunting party that Arnold is a part of goes out into the harsh environment to kill more lizard creatures he asks his friend to come along with. This has gone on for the two years Jonny’s been trapped here. Arnold never gives up asking because he knows, deep down, despite his younger friends attempts, that Jonny is starting to realize he’s not going anywhere.
“Thanks but once again no. Come on Arnold, you know I don’t go for that hunting stuff. Besides, today might be the day!”
“Sigh. Ok. But I’ll keep asking.”
The hunting party leaves.
Rachael continues to hold Jonny’s hand, “You know John, it’ll be alright if you go this time. I’ll be right here.”
He kisses her on the forehead, “I know honey, but I think today’s the day. It’s been two years since I arrived here and I bet I can do it now. I’ve been practicing!”
“Well maybe. You realize though that no one from your Earth has arrived. They would’ve been exiled by now just like my grandparents were. I’m sure on your Earth they’ve defeated Kuu Kuu Ka Chu.”
“Or they all could be dead.”
Silence blankets them.
“John, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean..”
“I know. It’s just so hard. I can only assume what happened on your world happened on mine. Ka Chu had already taunted me that he killed Trickshot and Pigeonman. Frogman and Jack Rabbit must’ve died too, and all the others. Man Rach! He could’ve set up shop two years ago! That must make it 2002 back home. He’s been ruling my home for two years! I just have to get back!”
She hugs him. It’s a tender moment, two young lovers in a tender embrace. Finally she speaks up, “If anyone understands it’s my family. My grandmother Shep was known as the hero Dancer. When she got here with the other survivors she danced and danced, hoping to use her probability altering powers to get them right back home. They didn’t work. She tried and tried for many years but eventually gave up. She’s dead now. Died of old age. Before she did she passed her powers down to my mom and my mom gave them to me.”
“WHAT? Why didn’t you tell me sooner? If you have those powers you could help me escape! We could ALL escape!”
Rachael looks down to the ground and quietly says, “I can’t.”
“What do you mean you can’t? Of course you can! I need you to do it! Please Rach! You’ve got to!”
“John, I’d do anything for you, but I’m telling you I can’t.”
“Can't or won't? You know what this means to me Rach! I’ve got to stop Ka Chu!”
“John, my grand mum tried for years. Probability Dancing doesn’t work here.”
“Then how do you know you even have it?”
“I can feel it inside me, but it’s weird. It’s like it’s dormant, waiting for something.”
“That’s it then! It’s waiting for this! Come on!”
“No John. I won’t.”
Anger flushes through Jonny Swiftman. He gives her a crusty look before speeding off. She just sobs.
Jonny tries again. And after that again. The days continue to pass and before long he and Rachael are happy again and on their way with Arnold to a Birth Ceremony.
“So tell me again, these guys weren’t part of your original group?” Jonny asks.
“No.” Arnold explains, “Johnny and Shayra Storm came from another Earth. They are the only surviving members of their group.”
“That’s right.” Rachael continues, “You haven’t met them yet. They like to keep to themselves.”
They travel to the other side of the deep caves that the outcasts call their home. Soon they’re greeted by other people from the camp. Jonny has gotten to know many of them in the short years he’s been here.
There are those though, whom he has yet to meet. The couple he comes up to are two of them.
The strangest thing is, while he doesn’t recognize them, they seem to know him.
Needless to say, his appearance is quite a shock to them both.
Arnold makes the introductions, “Jonny Swiftman, may I introduce Johnny and Shayra Storm and their little baby Benjamin.”
“Hi.” Jonny says uncomfortably.
“Can it be you?” Shayra asks.
“Don’t stare honey. Look, he’s younger. When we fought along side him he was older. His experiences here must be in his past.” Johnny or John Storm observes.
“Can someone please explain to me what you’re talking about?”
“I’ll explain it to you Swift. Come over here away from everyone and I’ll tell you all about it.” John Storm replied.
Soon they have distanced themselves from everyone.
“Mr. Storm, why did you call me Swift? How come you recognize me? What’s this all about? I’ve never seen you or your wife before.”
“Well, from our perspective we HAVE met before. Let me start at the beginning. My wife and I, like everyone else stuck in this hellhole, are from an alternate Earth. We were heroes belonging to a group called the Fantastic League of Society Avengers. We were captured from our world by a cosmic being called She-Captor. We were freed from our status tubes while aboard her dimension hopping ship. Turned out we weren’t the only ones. There were many other heroes and villains trapped there too. In an effort to escape some of our friends, including my best friend and the leader of our team, Ben Grimm, the Thing, was killed. You, Jonny, were there. You were older and you were put in charge of the portal that sent everyone to their homes. Some villain working for the She-Captor knocked you away and sent us through the portal prematurely. *
We materialized here. We were unfortunate to have appeared in front of a strange winged creature. It killed Hawkeye and the Scarlet Witch before we even knew where we were.
Another hero who was trapped here with us called the Juggernaut began to fight the creature. He told us to escape while we could. My wife, at the time just a team mate known as Hawkgirl, was pretty beaten up and another team mate, the Flash, was blinded. Flash tore off into the sand storm never to be seen again while I tried for shelter with Shayra. We found this place. Never saw the Juggernaut again. This was all ten years ago.”
Silence fills in between them. Jonny doesn’t know what to say.
Soon the birthing ceremony commences.
All goes well and as Jonny is able to talk about life back home with his new friends, time passes quickly.
Soon the ceremony is over, as is the day, and the week, and then the month. All the while Jonny takes what he’s learned as hope.
“Don’t you see Arnie?” he once told his best friend Arnold, “If they knew an older version of me, then I must’ve escaped!”
“Or it was an alternate you.” Arnold would reply, trying to keep his friend on the ground.
For the next year Jonny tried the hardest he’d ever tried to escape but nothing worked. After about a year he started to finally loose hope.
When consulting the wise old Visionary he was told, “You’ll get used to this place.”
His thoughts of settling down here with Rachael make that statement not so bad.
Now, one and a half years after the birthing ceremony, Arnold asked him the same question he always did just before the hunting trip, “Jonny! You coming this time?”
This time the answer about knocks Arnold and Rachael over, “Yeah. I think I will.”
For Jonny’s first hunting trip it didn’t seem too difficult. He was strapped up in tough lizard skin. His face was covered in a lizard skin hood, some strips of cloth for his nose and mouth and some kind of home made shades. All of this was to block out the fierce sand.
He clumsily followed Arnold (whom was also dressed like that, but much more efficient in traveling).
“I’ve got to admit Jonny, I didn’t expect you to come with us.”
“I guess I surprised myself too. I just figure maybe instead of always trying to escape, I should enjoy what I have here.”
“That’s the spirit! You know Jonny, I always knew you’d WATCH OUT!”
A rather large sand lizard leaped out from a cropping of emerald jagged rocks and almost gorged Jonny. Arnold, acting with fervor previously unseen by his friend, swished his spear and ran the sand lizard through. The beast died before them.
“What is that?” Jonny’s muffled voice asked.
“A sand lizard. Heads up! More are attacking!”
As the creatures lunge, Jonny saw the rest of the hunting party return the attack.
It took his breath away.
“To Jonny! Our new hunter!” Arnold raised a stone cup to his friend’s honor. The meeting hall was currently filled with the tribe as they were about to feast on the cooked lizard flesh. “May he provide many a bountiful harvest!”
Jonny mildly protested among the back slaps and cheers.
As Rachael put her arm through his and rested her shoulder on his shoulder, he realizes that maybe; just maybe he’s been home all along.
Next time we have love, death and a surprise ending!
a.g.
Amazing Guy
This story is written and copyrighted (C) 2006 by Scott Bryan (also known as AG), and may not be reprinted without permission. Annabelle, Roland, Anthony Foresight, vampirates, Sunset Sal, Amazing Guy, Justin Time, Jack Rabbit, Jackie Rabbit, Desert Rose, Eli the Elemental, Kid Produce, Scott Brunsen, Tom Irving, the JBH, Amazing Bunch, Champion Battalion, Alpha Prime, Blackbird, Mongoose, Fabric, Tyranus, Solarflare, Elastic Woman, Golden Giant, Madam Liberty, Squirrel,
Starglow, Archer, Vindicators, TK, Animaila, Power Urge, Harmony, Ally Cat, Captain Crimson, Blue Jewel, Equindox, Amazing Boy and Moonlord all are properties of Scott Bryan and AG.
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