#10 -"Malevolence in Seattle"

At the altar, Spectrum let out a very loud scream...

Jim Sculley found himself sitting upright in bed, sweat dripping off of him. It took a moment for him to catch his breath. "A dream," he finally said. "It's was just a bad dream..."

Glancing at the clock on the nightstand, Jim determined that it was almost 4 AM. "Man, that was intense," Jim thought to himself. He hadn't considered the potential complications that his fling with the sensual Shadow Queen could produce. "A little too late to think about that."

Jim rose and moved through the darkened room, his eyes adjusting to the lack of light in seconds. To him, the room was as bright as a cloudy day. Reaching the bathroom, Jim washed his face and regarded himself in the mirror.

"Well, that is good news," he thought eyeing himself in the mirror. The swelling in his face had gone down considerably in the hours since he turned in. The dinner with Whitney at the Flying Beagle Cafe had unwittingly placed Spectrum in the middle of a large conflict between VIPER forces, the villains Pulsar, Armadillo, and Mechanon, and members of the Guardians. Spectrum had taken quite a beating, but had rapidly healed his injuries.

More than a bit relieved, Jim returned to his bed and plopped down. The night's activities had taken a lot out of him and sleep came easily once more...

"James? James! You better get moving if you're going to make your plane."

Jim stirred in his bed once more. "Just five more minutes, mom..."

"Wake up, Jim!"

Forcing his eyes open, he focused on the clock and found it to now be just after 10 AM. Whitney moved past his bed and pulled the shades on his window allowing the sunlight to flood into the room.

"Okay, okay, I'm awake," Jim said as he adjusted to the brightness.

Whitney sat on the side of the bed and regarded him with a surprised look. "I'll be-- the swelling went down over night."

"Told you it was nothing to worry about. It just looked worse than it really was."

"You're lucky," Whitney stated with a grin. "I had visions of your sister thinking I had beat you up."

"Lady, you are more than welcomed to try." Jim reached out and grabbed Whitney, pulling her fully onto the bed. The two playfully struggled for a moment and then finally kissed.

"I guess you are feeling better, James. But, you really do need to get moving if you're going to catch your flight."

Jim sighed, but knew that Whitney was right. "Too bad, this was just starting to get interesting." Reluctantly, he released Whitney and she made her way out of the room.

"Why James, save something for the welcome home." Whitney closed the door behind her as she left the room.

"Now that is something to look forward to."

Two hours later, the couple were inside LAX waiting for Jim's flight to begin boarding. "Are you sure you have everything?" Whitney had repeatedly gone over everything several times by now.

"I'm sure," Jim said. "I'm beginning to think that you're more nervous than I am."

"I watched the news after you went to bed last night. You won't believe what went on at the airfield last night."

Jim shifted uncomfortably and thought, "You wouldn't believe my involvement in what went on last night." Instead, he innocently asked, "Really? What did I miss?"

"Oh, nothing much," Whitney responded. "Mechanon and the Guardians were there. There was also talk of VIPER and Pulsar. Oh, yes, and some new hero calling himself Spectrum."

"Sounds like I lost out on a whopper of a story thanks to my clumsiness."

"I think that it was better that you did-- You could have been hurt."

"Thanks for the concern, mom."

Before Whitney could reply, the announcement that Jim's flight was now boarding came over the public address system.

"I guess it's time to go," Jim stated. "Take care, Whitney. I'll call when I get the chance."

"Have a good trip, James." The two embraced and kissed, and then Jim gathered his luggage and made his way towards the plane. Whitney watched him board, then turned away and departed. She knew something was going on and was determined to get to the bottom of it...

Jim tried to work during the flight on his 'Caves of the Unknown' short story, but didn't make much progress. He couldn't concentrate on the task and quickly closed up his laptop. "It's going to be good to see Steph," he concluded mentally.

Without being able to work, the plane ride seemed to take forever. A stop-off in Portland made the trip seem even longer. Finally, the pilot announced that the plane was making its final descent into the Seattle area.

Butterflies filled Jim's stomach with anticipation as he got closer to the destination. Finally, the plane touched down and taxied to its unloading gate. Seemingly hours later, Jim disembarked with the other passengers at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

Up ahead, Jim could see a face straining to see through all the disembarking passengers. A face that he vaguely remembered. The look was familiar, a definite family resemblance.

Then it felt as if Jim was hit by a sledgehammer right between the eyes. Waves of images that had been blocked up came flooding through his mind. Things that were incoherent, out of focus became clearer. Slowly order comes from this chaos and Jim remembered his sister.

The siblings rush forward, tears in their eyes, and embrace tightly for a long time. "I never thought I'd see you again," Stephanie whispered in his ear.

Jim couldn't find the words to express how he felt. He just held on to his sister with all his might. Memories of his family came rushing back. He remembered his father Jordan as he was, not the drunk at the Van Nuys house. Jim remembered his father as the big, strong police captain who raised his children to be good and kind individuals.

Thoughts of his mother come back, a kind, loving, and warm-hearted individual who supported her children in the pursuit their dreams. He felt the loss from her senseless death more than ever now. Helen Sculley was the glue that held the family together. Without her, things began to fall apart.

Jim remembered his little brother, Bryan who had just entered USC with the dream of playing professional football. He must be close to graduating by now.

Then there was his sister, Stephanie, his junior by nearly two years. She went to law school, wanting so much to be a lawyer but the thing that he remembered most, was just how close the two of them used to be in a family that usually tended for each member to go their own way. Speechless, Jim just held on tight.

Finally, they let go and Jim looked his sister over. "You're quite the young woman now, sis." Stephanie Sculley stood about 5'4", a tad higher in the heels she currently wore. Her attire-- blouse, with matching jacket and skirt-- spoke of professionalism and success. Her brown hair was shoulder length and fashionably styled. Her eyes were the same bright blue as Jim's.

"Thanks, big brother," Steph said with a smile. "Let's get out of here; we've got a lot of catching up to do."

"No argument there," Jim commented as the two made their way to the baggage claim area. "The sight of you brought some of my memories back. I remember details about you, Bryan, mom, and dad."

"Jim, that's wonderful!"

"Yeah. I don't remember everything, but it is coming back to me."

Half an hour later, Stephanie was driving towards her flat.

"Nice car," Jim commented. His sister drove a Park Avenue that looked like it had just been driven off the show room floor.

"Thanks. I'm doing pretty well for myself."

"So I can tell. You're already a junior partner in this law firm?"

"That's right," Stephanie said. "It's like dad always said: 'hard work and dedication pay off'. Maybe some day a full partner. Or maybe I'll start my own firm. The future is wide open right now."

"That's great. I wouldn’t put anything past you. I'm very proud of you."

"Thanks, Jim. That really means a lot to me."

The two conversed the entire drive to Stephanie's flat and continued after they had entered her home. Steph had a small dinner that she had prepared earlier. The two sat at the kitchen table and continued their conversation.

"So how’s Bryan doing?" Jim hadn't contacted his younger brother as of yet.

"Not too bad. We’ve stayed in touch as much as possible, but I haven't seen him in over a year. Still the same old obnoxious Bryan. He started last year at USC."

"Good for him. Linebacker I assume?"

"Of course," Stephanie said with a smile. "Bryan always did like to hit things."

"Hmm... Steph, can I ask you a strange question?" There were some things that Jim wanted to find out about himself and his father. But he wasn't sure just how to approach the issue of super powers in his family. Since he had such a good rapport with his sister, she seemed like the ideal person to ask.

"That depends on just how strange it is."

"Have you, uhm-- have you ever had any strange experiences, or anything?"

Stephanie was obviously unsure of what exactly Jim was asking her. "You mean like ESP or UFOs, or something of that nature?"

"That's not quite what I meant. It's hard to explain." Jim struggled to find the words. Writing was easy, saying important things came more difficult to him. "Things that you could do, that other people can't?"

"I'm not really sure what you mean."

Jim sighed, and stood up. "Maybe the best way is to just show you what I mean." He took a step away from the table and concentrated. A moment later, his attire changed to the colorful costume of Spectrum.

Stephanie sat there, her jaw nearly hitting the table. Her fork did. "Oh my God..."

"I'm sorry to have startled you-- Are you alright? Is something wrong?"

Now it was Stephanie's turn to struggle to find the words. "No... It's just that I never knew. Never even guessed..."

"Yeah, it's been a big surprise to me as well." Seeing his sister's discomfort, Jim changed back to his regular clothes.

"Is this why you disappeared?"

"I think its part of it," Jim finally said. "I can't be sure. My memory really is hazy. Seeing you brought some of it back, but not this part."

"You think that you were not like this before you disappeared?"

"As near as I can tell, no."

"Good," Stephanie said, a smile finally coming to her face. "I would hate to think that you kept something like this a secret from me."

"From you? Never." Jim was relieved that she was taking this so well. Of course he hadn't revealed everything to her. But he had come this far, so Jim decided to lay all his cards on the table. He explained everything that had happened that he could recall and the conclusions that he had reached.

Steph just listened, sometimes looking more concerned than others. When it was all done, she gave her brother a hug and looked into his eyes. Steph remained silent, but her look told it all. It was a look of understanding and acceptance.

Finally, she said, "So, my big brother is a superhero?"

"I hope to be. It's a sort of family tradition. I know in my heart that I'm not a criminal. But I can't explain the things that Spectrum is reported to have done either."

"I never knew that dad had any super powers-- Of course neither did you. It makes sense for him not to have told us when we were kids, but why not later on?"

"I don't know, sis. When I brought it up he side-stepped the whole issue."

"It does explain why he was gone so much... My father and brother both superheroes. It's quite a shock."

"I can imagine. But out of everyone, you're the one I trust the most."

Stephanie smiled and looked at Jim. "If you weren't my brother, I'd ask you for your autograph."

"I'll still give you one, if you want. It'll cost you a dollar though."

"Too bad you didn't forget that awful sense of humor you had!"

Interlude:

The man known as Inertia shifted uncomfortably, wondering just what he had done to deserve this assignment. Inertia was a member of select group of paranormals known as Destiny. The group considered themselves to be patriots, seeking to liberate their native Canada from its government oppressors. Public opinion was varied. Some considered them to be heroes of the common man. To others they were criminals and nothing more.

Destiny was led by the guiding force of Borealis, an extremely powerful man with a mastery of light. Other members included the armored Ladybug, the Amazing Darkon, Jackknife, and, of course, Inertia.

Borealis had dispatched Inertia to Seattle to watch a man known as Professor Malevolence and his group of paranormals, the Dominion Deviants. On the surface, Malevolence seemed an ideal fit for Destiny. He was a skilled scientist, something that Destiny currently lacked. His knowledge of robotics could be invaluable.

As most of the members of Destiny, Professor Malevolence had a beef with the Canadian government. Within minutes of meeting the Professor, Inertia heard the whole story.

"It's a conspiracy, I tell you!" The man calling himself Professor Malevolence was plain looking enough. He was in his mid-fifties, his brown hair spotted with gray and in a pageboy style cut. "They're all against me! The government and their pawns, the Sentinels, are what drove me from our beloved homeland to this god-forsaken wasteland: the United States!"

Inertia stood silently regarding the shorter Professor. His costume consisted of a dark blue-gray bodysuit, with black accessories, topped off by a gold facemask with matching cape. Borealis had instructed Inertia to not make any snap judgements in this assignment. He was to merely observe Professor Malevolence and report his findings. In spite of those instructions, Inertia knew that Professor Malevolence was a nut case.

"But I'll show them!" The professor continued to rant. He punched several buttons on the keyboard before him. Overhead, blueprints and graphics began to appear on the screen. "Oh, yes, I will show them! Those self-serving politicians will get what's coming to them, my friend. Oh, yes, my Vengeance series of robots will permanently remove those opposed to me! They'll rue the day that they crossed paths with Professor Malevolence!"

Inertia already did. "Are you ready to begin your operation, Professor? Borealis expects me back by Monday."

"Do not worry, my friend," the Professor said. "By this time Monday, a new era will begin! First Vancouver will be cleansed, then Victoria will be next. British Columbia will be freed and then all the provinces will follow in kind! It will be a glorious day for all true Canadians!"

"Of course, Professor. You mentioned something of a test?"

"Yes, watch and you will be amazed. As fate would have it, Jean-Paul Jordane of the House of Commons is in Seattle today for a fishing Conference. I can assure you that he will not make his appointment! I have already dispatched two of my Vengeance Series robots to see to that. Additionally, my Deviant, Lightspeed, will observe to make sure that nothing goes wrong!"

Malevolence pushed another button and a busy thruway appeared on the monitor. The on board cameras of the robots would allow Malevolence to further impress his guest. Once a full member of Destiny, the Professor's plans for the radical governmental reorganization of Canada would be ensured!

End of Interlude:

Later that evening, Stephanie was giving Jim a driving tour of Seattle. They had already seen the Space Needle, and were heading out of town to visit Mount Rainier.

"You're going to love this," Stephanie said as she eased onto the thruway. "It's really beautiful out here. Puts the mountains back home to shame. If only the traffic would pick up. It's never this bad."

The flow of cars had slowed down to a trickle as sirens could be heard in the distance.

"Maybe there's an accident up ahead," Jim offered, looking out the window. "There are police cars coming up behind us."

The two watched as a pair of police cars streaked past, followed by a limousine and then several more police cruisers.

"Must be a VIP," Steph said with a shrug.

A second later, a blur rushed past the car catching Jim's attention. "What was that?"

"What was what?"

"I thought I saw a man run past us at super speed... You didn't see it?"

Stephanie wasn't sure just what had happened. "I thought that there was something there, but it passed so quickly I couldn't make it out. I thought it was just my imagination."

"No, I'm positive that it was a man in a costume. White and red from what I could see."

"How could you make out so much detail when I couldn't?", Stephanie asked.

"Maybe it has something to do with my powers. I seem to be much faster than normal people. Perhaps it extends to my senses as well? Stay put, I'm going to go check this out."

Stephanie gave Jim a bewildered look. He slumped over in his seat and faded from sight!

"Don't worry, sis, I'll just slip out the window. Be back in a moment."

Once free of the vehicle, Jim changed into his Spectrum costume, but decided to remain invisible. No sense in setting off any false alarms. Stephanie did mention earlier that Seattle didn't have any hometown super heroes, so it could be someone with malevolent intentions.

Spectrum rocketed down the freeway and had the mysterious speedster quickly in sight. The man was continuing to race about in the traffic, maneuvering around cars as if they were in slow motion. An unexpected explosion drew Spectrum's attention. One of the police escorts had erupted in flames! Taking stock of the situation, Spectrum could see what appeared to be two flying robots buzzing the limousine firing lasers!

"Whoever is in that car, he sure has got someone mad at him!" Spectrum dove towards the melee and blasted one of the robots as he passed. The size and shape of the robots precluded the possibility of there being men inside them-- they were only three feet tall and thin, had long, hinged arms, and thrusters in place of legs.

The blast caught the robot unawares and knocked it off course. It turned and opened fire on its assailant. Spectrum avoided the attacks with ease.

"These tin cans really mean business! My blast doesn't seem to harm them at all.... Let's see how smart these guys are."

The motorcade had ground to a halt by now. The police had their weapons drawn, shielded behind their cruiser doors. A few opened fire at the attacking automations, but most waited for a clearer shot.

Spectrum made another pass at the flying terrors. He blasted one in the back of the head, again only pushing it across the sky. This time instead of pausing, he continued to fly on and advanced on the second robot. As he had hoped, the first robot returned retaliatory fire in Spectrum's direction. Looking back at the incoming attack, Spectrum veered off at the last moment and the discharge connected with the second robot, blasting it from the sky!

"Not too smart, I see!" Jim smiled under his mask. At least this was going much easier than the battle with Pulsar and company.

The first robot continued to fly after Spectrum, firing as it bore down on him. "Looks like Robby is a bit teed off here! You wanna play? Let's play!"

Spectrum accelerated and rose up into the sky, the robot dogging him, but falling behind. Once far enough ahead, Spectrum started to make a sweeping turn. The robot continued firing but wasn't fast enough to keep up with the speedy hero. Its blasts sailed harmlessly through the sky that Spectrum had been in seconds earlier.

All during the turn, Spectrum had been closing in on the robot until he finally reached his target. Jim concentrated and a powerful blast of light slammed into the machine. The robot exploded from the force of the attack, causing it to plummet from the sky like a rock.

"I guess he doesn't want to play any more." Spectrum flew back towards the motorcade, finding it more or less as he had left it. Spotting the fleet footed mystery man, Spectrum flew after him.

"Hey! I want to have words with you!"

The stranger turned and accelerated down the thruway in a blur. Jim flew after him, pushing his flight to its limits and beyond. It wasn't enough and the speedster, literally, ran away. Spectrum slowed and hovered in the sky, panting. "And I thought I was fast!"

Spectrum took a more leisurely pace back to the scene of the attack on the limo. Seeing that the Seattle Police Department had things well in hand, Spectrum streaked off into the sky. Once out of sight, he turned invisible again and made his way back to Stephanie's car.

He startled Stephanie as he invisibly slid back into her vehicle. Changing back to his regular clothes, Jim appeared and sat up once more. "Well that was fun."

"What happened? I saw explosions...," Stephanie seemed a bit shaken by the events that had transpired.

"Hey there-- Come on, relax. I'm fine. Not even a scratch. As for what was going on, I'm not sure. These two flying robots were attacking that limo that passed us. I don't know what the running man was all about. Maybe he was just watching or something. He just ran off after I took care of the robots."

Interlude:

"NOOOO!!!" Professor Malevolence screamed and slammed his fist into his control panel. "It's inconceivable!" Two of his prized Vengeance Robots destroyed by some superpowered man putting his nose in where it didn't belong.

Inertia seemed relieved that the test was a failure. He wouldn't have to put up with this looney much longer. "A pity, Professor. Borealis did have high hopes for you, but now..."

"Wait! You must give me another chance! I'll still prove myself!"

"I will spend the weekend watching, Professor. If you are to prove yourself, that is all the time you have. Good day." Covering himself with a trench coat, Inertia departed Professor Malevolence's lair, leaving the scientist behind mumbling to himself.

"I can do this! I can make this work!" The Professor's mind was awhirl in thought. "The Americans might be on to me... I best clean out the house and move everything to the base. Once the robot factory is in full operation, my plans will not be stopped!"

End of Interlude:

It was nearly 11 o'clock when Spectrum landed before City Hall. As he and Stephanie drove to Mount Rainier, they listened to the radio in an effort to learn more about what went down out on the thruway. Before long, reports of an unknown hero rescuing a Canadian Official from assassins surfaced. The radio was abuzz over this mystery hero. A short time after that, the Mayor of Seattle came on and requested that the hero come to speak with him at City Hall.

Stephanie drove Jim a few blocks away from City Hall. The two parted company there; Jim would return to her flat when he wrapped up whatever business the Mayor had with him.

A small crowd of reporters and police officers were waiting for Spectrum and he was quickly mobbed. The press shouted out questions, all seemingly at the same time. "Who are you?! What's your name?! What kind of powers do you have?! What political statement were you trying to make earlier this afternoon?! Are you an exhibitionist?!"

The police tried to usher Spectrum through the crowd, but the mutant master of light stopped to make a statement.

"Please, people, the Mayor is waiting for me. The name is Spectrum and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Thank you."

Spectrum and the police finally made it through the reporters and into City Hall. "Now I understand why they're called 'the press'."

Moments later, Spectrum is ushered into the Mayor's Office. The mayor of Seattle, a middle aged man with thinning white hair and a pot belly greets him with a hardy handshake.

"I hear that you go by the name of Spectrum. I'm very pleased to meet you."

"Nice to be here, Mayor."

"Speaking for the city of Seattle, I want to thank you for preventing that assassination attempt. The Canadian Government thanks you as well."

"Aw, twern't nothin'", Spectrum said, trying to sound humble. He was going to like being a hero. Maybe they'd give him a medal or something.

"It was far more than nothing, I can assure you, my friend. You have no idea how pleased I am to have a superhero here in Seattle. We don't see much in the way of super-powered menaces, but knowing that we have our own hero will make a lot of people sleep better at night."

"I really appreciate the sentiment, Mister Mayor, but I'm really just on vacation in Seattle." Spectrum could see that the Mayor was visibly disappointed at that announcement. With a shrug he added, "Sorry."

"It was a thin hope," the Mayor said. "However, I do have another reason to ask you here. The boys working for the Chief of Police inform me that there have been threats on the life of Jean-Paul Jordane over the past week. Mr. Jordane was in the limousine that you saved from those robots."

"I see, so you suspect that these threats and the attack on the thruway are connected. How do I fit in?"

"The threats came via a series of phone calls," the Mayor explained. The caller identified himself as a 'Professor Malevolence'. The threats were ignored as the usual empty threats of a frustrated citizen. However, that now appears to not be the case. Fortunately, they were able to stall this terrorist long enough to make a trace."

"Great, so you can arrest this guy. What do you need me for? This seems more the province of one of the police agencies."

"Our concern is whether this Professor Malevolence has more of those robots on hand. They would pose a great danger to my officers. That's why I asked you here-- to assist us in capturing this madman."

Spectrum considered for a moment. He could certainly understand the Mayor's line of reasoning. The robots didn't prove to be much of a threat to him, but a regular police officer would not be so lucky. "I'd be happy to help you out, Mr. Mayor."

"Great, my boy! I just knew that you wouldn't turn me down!"

Less than an hour later, Spectrum finds himself outside of an ill kept, antique old house in a residential district. After leaving the Mayor, he was introduced to a Detective Rodgers, who was in charge of this investigation. Backed up by nearly half-a-dozen police cruisers and a SWAT team, Spectrum and the police quietly advanced on the home of one Charles Smythe, the man believed to be Professor Malevolence.

With the police watching from cover, Spectrum advanced on the house, and climbed up the stairs to the front porch. He tried the front door and found it unlocked. Spectrum paused and looked back at the watching police force. "I don't know about this," he thought to himself. "What am I getting myself into now?"

Spectrum entered the house as quietly as he could. The inside of the house was as poorly kept as the outside. The living room had a musty smell to it and had not appeared to be used very much. Spectrum moved on into the den and noted a pile of clippings on a desk. Examining the clippings, he noted that they were all in reference to Canadian Government Officials, primarily in British Columbia.

"Looks like I might be onto something...," Spectrum thought to himself. A distant noise made him look up and scan the room. "What was that? Sounded like it came from the basement...."

Locating the stairs to the basement in the unkempt kitchen, Spectrum found a stairwell off the kitchen. The steps take Spectrum down into a surprisingly small cellar. A few boxes and crates are stacked here and there. A worn curtain covers an opening on one wall.

"Let's see what's behind curtain number one!"

The curtain is pushed aside only to reveal the furnace.

"Drat. I could've sworn I heard something down here. But from where...?"

At that moment, a section of the wall pivots, near the far corner, and three figures come through it. Spectrum spins to see two robots similar in style to the ones he fought earlier, but full sized and with legs. Behind them is a older man brandishing a pistol.

"Mark I Robots, attack this intruder!"