Now; The
Scabbard; Poseidonis, Republic of Atlantis;
The sound of breaking glass and shattering stone echoed through the
streets of Poseidonis. Bits of shrapnel rained down from the ramparts
of the Scabbard.
The sally port wavelight above the main floor of the Scabbard's control room was
torn from its moorings. Shrapnel and larger debris fell into the room
shattering computer terminals, tables, and one of the large viewscreens.
**A wavelight
is a skylight under the sea.
A man floated there dressed in a blue tunic with chain mail woven into
the fabric. Three quarter sleeves encircled with gold piping. The
piping was formed into a forgotten ancient Atlantean script. A heavy
blue cape hung from his shoulders, a red lining peeking from
underneath. A large red gemstone hung centered over his heart. Golden
quilted armor pads covered his shoulders. The belt around his waist
made of golden circlets. Tall brown riding boots rose to his knees.
Long auburn hair floated in ringlets to his shoulders.
"I am Arion, the last true Lord of Atlantis. You carry the ancient
crystals of Atlantis," he introduced himself with pride. "You fancy
yourself a Lord of Atlantis. The best that Atlantis has to offer. Her
king. Her hero. Her Sword. Heir to Atlan..." he paused, "and Kordax."
The last added with a sour lemon expression on his face.
"Other people may call me all those things. But, I'm no longer King.
I'm just a soldier and a servant of Atlantis," Arthur responded,
glaring at the wizard.
"Prove yourself worthy of the accolades of Atlantis and I'll allow you
to continue to hold the crystals," he continued, "fail and I will tear
the gems from that faux hand of yours." Arion stared down his aquiline
nose. "Aquaman...Arthur Curry...Orin of Atlantis...fail these tests and
be forever cast out from the bosom of Atlantis...the culture...the
people...the power."
**Last issue,
Arion sensed Aquaman's use of the ancient mystical Atlantean gems
embedded in his prosthetic. Atlan morphed Ocean Master's mystical staff
into Arthur's new hand in JLU: Aquaman #10.
The Lord of ancient Atlantis floated in the ragged hole torn in the
side of the Scabbard. A globe
of blue mystical energy hovered over the palm of his raised right hand.
He floated there in full view of the wide eyes of the Atlantean
soldiers manning the control room. He was a near mythic creature to
those of Atlantis...though in recent years they had seen many of their
myths come to life and attempt to conquer or destroy them. He was an
ancient though here he seemed young and vibrant.
Arion gestured with his left hand, making a circular motion around the
blue globe. White and black bolts shot from the globe striking the
equipment around the room, killing all the security systems and
monitoring equipment. In moments, the
Scabbard, the central hub of the Atlantean military/industrial
complex, was shut down and powerless before Arion's ancient mystic
might.
20 minutes ago; The
Scabbard; Poseidonis, Republic of Atlantis;
Arthur returned from Canada mere moments ago. He stood in the control
room, running through the distribution of Sword Operatives worldwide
with Moloq. The Sword agents' last recorded locations were indicated by
a white pip on a relief map of the world.
**Aquaman's
Canadian showdown with Akisaqtuq and Corona was last issue.
Shaking his head, Arthur pointed at a chain of surface islands near
Poseidonis, "I'm not happy with having Sword Ops in Cerdia and Oumland.
Those countries are powder kegs at the best of times. And never
friendly to Atlantean interests."
"We have Drylantean Commando Teams on both islands gathering intel.
With Cerdia and Oumland being our closest neighbors," Moloq shrugged,
"we have to know what they are up to at all times."
"How are the Drylantean units working out?"
"It was incredible discovering a nomadic tribe of surface dwelling
Atlanteans in the first place and, fortuitously, living amongst our
enemies in Oumland and Cerdia. Even with the Drylanteans not being
aware that Atlantis survived all this time, they still feel an
attachment to it...to us. All our dealings with them have gone very
well. And Vulko and the Council have granted them expatriate status in
the Republic so that wherever they make their homes they will always be
Atlantean citizens," Moloq said with a shrug. "And for our purposes in
the Sword Program, they make excellent surface agents, able to pass for
surfacers. I can't imagine what they must have gone through to maintain
their culture in the face of Oumlandian and Cerdian racism all this
time."
Arthur tapped his fingers on the table's edge. "We need to keep a close
eye on them. Oumland has been unstable since the disappearance of
Premier Grolnik," He shrugged. "more unstable than usual."
Moloq nodded. "They blamed us for the energy bolt that disrupted their
christening ceremony. Didn't they?"
"Yes. If similar bolts hadn't struck all over the world, we'd already
be at war with them," Arthur traced his fingertips along a map of
Poseidonis. His finger lingered on the downhill side of Poseidonis
where the huge refugee tent city stood. "Who knows what all out war
would have wrought on the innocents out there." He shook his head
sadly. "I'm not saying that war is inevitable, but it seems like either
Oumland or Cerdia are always preparing themselves for the next
conflict."
**Oumland's
Prime Minister disappeared in JLU's Aquaman #12 when an anti-matter
bolt struck the launching ceremony of the OLS Revenger, the first of a
new class of Submarine Dreadnoughts that the Oumland Navy were putting
into service. The anti-matter bolt was part of the JLA-Avengers
festivities running through JLU's JLA and M2K's Avengers awhile back.
(http://www.carnaj.com/JLU2001/JLAVindex.html)
"We need to..." Arthur trailed off as he saw a shadow move across the
sally port high up the wall of the main hall.
Now; The
Scabbard; Poseidonis, Republic of Atlantis;
Arthur gathered himself preparing to launch at the intruder.
"You would do well to heed me, Orin of Atlantis," the blue and gold
clad interloper admonished. "Or would you prefer the barbarian
appellation that you were given...Arthur," Arion sniffed when he said
Arthur as if something foul were being held under his nose.
"I am both Orin and Arthur in honor of both my fathers and my mother,"
Aquaman answered.
He tilted his head back. "I don't believe that you're who you say you
are. There hasn't been a Lord of Atlantis in millennia. And if the
history books are to be believed, the last few were no prizes to have."
"Have a care, boy," the Lord of Atlantis responded. "You wouldn't be
the first king that I've humbled."
Arthur, arms akimbo, stared grimly at this fancy Lord of ancient
Atlantis. "Humble me then...if you can," Arthur added mockingly.
"I would like to very much," Arion said through clenched teeth. He
seemed to shrink back from Arthur's challenge. "Much as I would like
to," Arion said flourishing his cape, "I have a duty to perform. The
forms must be kept."
A flash of blue light shot from the orb of energy floating over his
palm. The bolt hit the street in front of the Scabbard.
"Your first test begins now!" Arion cried.
The First Test - Strength
Where the mystical energy impacted the road, a swirling torrent arose,
blotting out all view of the surrounding area. A towering undersea
whirlpool rose higher than the highest buildings of Poseidonis. A sound
like thunder followed in its wake, roaring louder and coming closer.
As quick as it had come, the torrent faded from view. In its place, a
stampede of blue, slightly fluorescent bulls charged down the main
thoroughfare of Poseidonis. Each stood as tall as a man and three times
as broad. Their hooves ripped the seashell pavement with each step.
They tore chunks out of resident's yards and from the seaweed verges of
the street. Every two blocks or so, one of them would drop one of
Mother Nature's deposits on the desecrated streets.
Arion raised his left hand gesturing Aquaman toward the blue bulls.
"Stop the Stampede of the Serapean Bulls. Halt the Children of
Serapis...if you can. Prove yourself, Man of Atlantis." Arion's form
wavered and, then, drifted apart, disappearing on the waves as if he
had never been there.
As he faded away, emergency power came back up in the Scabbard.
A voice from the watch deck, "We've got reports from downtown
Poseidonis. These bulls are tearing through the city. We've got damage
to vehicles and property abutting the street."
The main video screen came online. One of the bulls was shown charging
a delivery lorrie. The bull's horns impacted the side of the truck,
slamming it back and denting in its side. The truck teetered a moment,
then, flipped over. The bull pushed the vehicle out of its way and
continued down the street.
The man on the watch deck continued, "They seem to be becoming more and
more aggressive as they move through town toward..."
Aquaman cut the monitor's voice off. "Toward the old Temple of
Poseidon," he said, launching himself up and out the broken sally port.
Keying the A symbol on his belt buckle, Aquaman activated his
communicator. "Moloq, get the police to clear the streets. Tell them to
steer clear of..." he trailed off as he spied a police scudder swoop
past below.
The officer skidded his one-man patrol scudder to a halt in the middle
of the street, directly in the stampede's path. Dismounting, the
officer drew his sidearm. Raising his arm, he centered his sights on
the lead Bull.
Before Arthur could get to him, the officer squeezed the trigger firing
on the approaching stampede. An electrical taser arc shot from his
peacekeeper lashing out toward the Bull.
TA-ZAPIT!
The electrical arc looked like a whiplash flashing across the
intervening space to caress the target.
The Bull's deep blue flesh burned at the touch of the arc. A purple and
red bruise line traced across its skin before fading back to its normal
azure shade. The Bull reared on its hind legs. Its shiny silver hooves
slashed the air.
MOOOAAWWWWWWW! A bellowed snarl rent the sea. Dropping its hooves back
to the ground and lowering its head, the Bull pawed the street, glaring
at the patrolman. The beast's eyes became spiraling, flashing pools of
energy.
BAAAUUUUMMMM! Twin, yellow,
optic blasts lanced out of the Bull's eyes slamming into the officer's
scudder.
CRUMP! Aquaman grabbed the
patrolman as an explosion tore the scudder to bits. Shrapnel and
wreckage showered the street. The force of the blast slammed Aquaman
and his charge forward knocking them prone in the street.
Pulling the man after him, Aquaman kicked his feet swimming them to a
nearby storefront. Finding the door locked, he pushed the officer up
against the door and held him there, protecting him as best he could
from the onrushing sub sea bovine horde. The Bull that destroyed the
scudder continued on down the street following the rest of the herd.
His glowing eyes quiesced back to their usual blue.
Leaving the patrolman with arriving paramedics, Aquaman swam after the
Bulls at top speed. Overtaking them, he placed himself in the lead
Bull's path, bracing himself for the charge.
VOOOOMMM!
They struck one another, shoulder to shoulder.
"Urgghhh!" Aquaman strained against the lead Bull, sumo-like. And for a
moment, Aquaman managed to arrest the forward progress of the lead
Bull. The deep blue Bull stood equal in height to Aquaman and thrice as
broad. Arthur's muscles corded. The veins in his face and his neck
stood out.
After a long moment, he noticed that none of the Bulls were passing
him. As the followers came in contact with their leader, they coalesced
merging into one Bull. The longer Aquaman held them, the fewer Bulls
there were. The herd continued to unify. The problem was that every
time two Bulls unified with the lead Bull, its strength doubled.
Aquaman could only redouble his efforts so many times before he would
be pulled under and run down.
At last, only one Bull remained. It strained to push the orange and
green clad King of the Seas down. The beast's blue eyes sparked and
glowed shading out to an unholy shade of red as it bore down upon him.
Steaming breath from its nostrils clouded the water in a reeking stink.
KA-THOOM! Arthur flashed a fist
forward with all his seaborne might. He struck the Bull with a
roundhouse to the side of the head.
Shaking its head, the Serapean Bull swayed briefly, before surging
forward again.
The Bull crashed against Aquaman again like a tsunami smashing a
shoreline. Straining, Arthur set his shoulder against the Bull's chest,
pushing back. Arthur's feet slipped as he fought for purchase against
the Bull's momentum. Slowly, Arthur stopped his sliding. With a deep
grunt, he found traction and stopped the Bull, holding it fast.
Slowly...very slowly, he began to push it back.
"Scion of Poseidon...Today, you have made an enemy of the God of the
Waters and all his children," the Bull said in its gravelly voice as it
blew a stream of rancid bubbles around Aquaman's head. "Poseidon must
have hidden you here in the deeps, far from my master's watchful eye,
far from his ire," the Bull spat the sea god's name.
The Bull shook its massive head. "How you stayed hidden in the deeps
when Serapis is Master of Waters is beyond my ken. But we have marked
you now. We shall meet again, Man of Atlantis. Mark my words and mark
them well. My master is not done with you or your city." A bright blue
flash of light swept the area and the Serapean Bull was gone.
The main concourse from the old Atlantean city gates toward the Temple
of Poseidon was torn up. Statuary was overturned and shattered. Street
signs knocked down. Vehicles shattered, exploded, and trampled. Yards
torn up in the residential section of the city. Not to mention, the
other contribution to the local ecology left by the stampeding Bulls...
Poseidonis would be weeks recovering from this afternoon of invasion.
After helping emergency services, Arthur returned to the Scabbard.
The
Scabbard; Poseidonis, Republic of Atlantis;
Vulko was on the main communication screen. He sat in a moderately
sized room in front of a coral desk. A window to his left showed a view
of a city spread across a small valley with huge coral formations along
its edges. The visible structures all seemed to be made of coral as
well. Directly behind Vulko, Arthur saw a well-dressed dandy in a pith
style helmet made of giant conch shells leaving the room.
"How's Reef's End?" Arthur asked.
"It has changed very little since we visited all those years ago with
Mera," Vulko said, glancing off screen, out the window and across the
city that lay at the bottom of the Coral Sea. "Jesset Clession is the
Republic's Ambassador to Reef's End." Vulko wore a squeamish look as he
gestured toward the closed door behind him. "He's an adequate
representative."
**Clession and
Reef's End, both appeared in a flashback story in mainstream DC's
Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis #46 (2006).
Vulko drummed his fingers lightly on the coral desk. "I understand I
missed the rodeo coming to Poseidonis?" Vulko asked.
"Yes," Aquaman said, "my report should be on your computer already."
"I've reviewed it," Vulko said. "Had you heard of this Serapis before?"
Arthur shook his head. "No. One of the Keepers of the Chronicles found
a reference in an old pre-Cataclysm text." Arthur picked up a note and
read, ""The script of the God of the Waters states, Sacred of Serapis
art the Bull, And woe unto Any who stop them from their Wanders." He
finished with a half frown.
**The
Chronicles of Atlantis is the history of Atlantis and the Atlantean
people recorded in the mainstream DCU's Atlantis Chronicles #1 - 7
(1990).
"So," Vulko shook his head, "Atlantis may have made a new enemy...or
been rediscovered by an old one."
Aquaman shrugged. "Apparently so. I suggest we touch base with the
priests at Poseidon's Temple and go from there."
"I concur," Vulko responded. "See that Moloq forwards me a copy of
their report."
"I will, First Citizen," Arthur assured Vulko.
**Vulko was
elected First Citizen of the Republic of Atlantis in JLU: Aquaman #20.
Vulko smiled. "Get some sleep, Orin. You look like hell."
"Thank you, First Citizen. I will," Arthur answered with a slow smile.
"Vulko out," the viewscreen went dark.
After speaking with Moloq, Arthur returned to his quarters in the
Scabbard.
"Lights dim," he said. The voice activated circuitry fading the lights
to a gentle tone. Turning back his sheets, he slipped into his bed. The
water currents shifted the second he closed his eyes. Feeling rather
than seeing the presence that appeared, Arthur leapt from his bed.
A ghostly Arion stood in the darkness of the room, glowing faintly.
"Your Second Test begins now."
Aquaman felt himself being teleported away, becoming insubstantial, a
moment before disappearing.
