Aztek #3: "Ocean of Noise"

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Aztek
Issue #3: “The Ultimate Man – Part 3 of 7: Ocean of Noise”
Written by Ted Kendrick
Cover by Bill Benedict
Edited by Mark Bowers

“I told you that we could fly,
'Cause we all have wings but some of us don't know why.”
- “Never Tear Us Apart” by INXS

“Where is your leader?” the dark figure said to the rest of the Vatmen. “I wanted to talk to all of you.”

Vanity had plenty of underground basements, nooks, and crannies. Over the years, it had become one of the best places to hide out or set up a crime spree. Crimes in Vanity may still have been petty and miniscule, but all that was beginning to change. Especially with the emergence of the Pelican.

“I don't know,” Vox said. “He said that he would be here.”

“Well, we are running late,” the mysterious figure replied. “I’ll have to go on without him. I'm sure the three of you can fill him in on what he missed?”

“Yes,” Synth muttered. Synth was well known for being a genius fifty percent of the time and a useless, but powerful, degenerate the rest of it. Who even knew what state his mind was in at the moment?

“Well then,” the mysterious figure said. He fluttered over to a chalk board, picked up a piece of chalk, and drew four circles on it. “These four circles represent you, the Vatmen.” He then drew a larger circle around those four. “This circle is me.”

Whisper put his fist down on the table he was sitting at. “You expect us to follow you?”

“Yes,” the mysterious figure said, “I do.”

“But you're just some sort of Penguin rip-off,” Vox said. “The Pelican? Really? That's original.” The Pelican stormed over towards Vox. He threw down his piece of chalk and with a click of his tongue, he bit down upon Vox's face. “Arrrrgh!” Vox screamed. The mysterious figure had just bitten a chunk out of Vox's right cheek.

“Watch your words, Vatmen!” the Pelican chirped. “I am running this show now! Me! The Pelican!”

“Okay, Pelican,” Whisper said, standing up. He brushed off some dirt from his leather trench coat. “We’ll play your game. What do you want from us?”

“It's not a game,” the Pelican said. “It's serious. This is all serious. Don't treat this like a game.”

“Okay,” Whisper replied. “I’m sorry. What do you want from us?”

“He bit me! That #&$^er bit me!” Vox cried.

“Please,” Pelican said, “please just... be quiet. I want you to use your connections with the Piper,” the Pelican said. “His little girl owes you something, yes? Make her pay up.”

“Sure thing,” Synth said. “Is that all?”

“No.” The Pelican fluttered around in his blue tuxedo and golden pelican beak hat. “Bruce Wayne is in Vanity. He is opening a new branch of Wayne Enterprises tomorrow morning. We should throw him a celebratory party, don't you think?”

“I don't think Bruce Wayne is going to want to come to a party with us,” Synth said.

“No, you idiot!” the Pelican crowed. “We aren't actually going to throw him a party! We are going to rob him! Maybe even hurt him a bit!”

“Well, why didn't you say so?” Synth asked.

The Vatmen, with the help of Whisper, all disappeared into a cloud of mist. The Pelican put his hand on his forehead and sighed, “This was so much easier before Aztek arrived in Vanity. The Vatmen were heroes, incompetent then as well, but they did not put up much of a fight. Now things are just... so difficult.”

“That's why we at the Society have been looking out for you,” a feminine voice said from the shadows. A brown-haired woman walked towards the Pelican. A gray-haired man with a green turtleneck shirt followed behind her. “We've been watching you, Pelican, and we are very interested in testing the strength and cunning of Aztek.”

“Who are you?” the Pelican asked.

“That does not matter,” the woman said. “But meet my associate. He is called the Gray Man.”

“Hello,” the Gray Man said. “I'll be running this show now, Pelican.” The Gray Man's eyes turned yellow and then the Pelican's eyes turned the same shade. “You don't have any problems with that, do you, Pelican?”

“No, Gray Man,” the Pelican said in a mind-controlled trance. “I only want to help you.”

“Good,” the Gray Man said. “Now, let's talk about this grand opening party that we’re throwing for Bruce Wayne.”

*****

The next morning, Emilio and Uno woke up bright and early, ready for their long drive to California. They had packed lightly, not planning on staying for more than a few days. Emilio was not excited about facing the Q-Society, especially since he’d relinquished the mantle of Aztek, but he knew that they needed to meet Uno and so the trip was necessary. Emilio had also arranged for one of his mentors, Richard Dragon, a master of kung fu and other martial arts, to meet them at the dock so that Uno could receive some additional training.

Emilio stood dressed in his Evening Star uniform. He hugged Katrina goodbye and kissed her on the forehead. “I won't be gone long,” he told her.

“Please, don't be,” she said. “Help Uno with his training and then leave that life behind you!”

“I promise, I will do my best,” Emilio said. He waved her goodbye and he and Aztek got into Emilio's car. “Ready, Uno?”

“As much as I ever will be,” Uno replied. “Let's go.”

*****

After a few hours, Uno and Emilio had finally made it to the coast of California. Richard Dragon was there, waiting for them. He wore black ninja garb and had short red hair and a beard to match. Richard was a renowned martial artist. It was rumored that he had trained Batman, the Question, and even the new Green Arrow kid. If his reputation was anything to go by, he would provide some excellent training.

“Greetings,” Richard Dragon said to them. He was standing on the barge that would take them to South America. It was named the Frostick. Uno wondered why it was given that name, which then led him to think about the power of names, particularly his own. Uno was Spanish for the number one. He was the first clone for the Ultimen project and was now training to become the first line of defense against Tezcatlipoca, the Aztecan shadow god. His name was simple, but had many meanings already. He considered it an appropriate name.

Uno and Emilio walked up a ramp and onto the ship. “It's a pleasure to meet you two,” Dragon continued. “I read about your exciting night with Bloodtype and the mayor of Vanity in this morning's paper.”

“Exciting's a good word for it,” Emilio replied. “But the pleasure is all ours, Mr. Dragon. When will we be ready for departure?”

“Any moment,” Richard replied. “I spoke with the captain and all is ready.”

“Excellent,” Uno said. He and Emilio grabbed their luggage and walked aboard. Richard motioned them to the inside cabin where they could drop their bags off. On the deck of the ship, Richard had prepared a small training course, which included a sparring circle, weights, and various other objects.

“I take it you're ready to begin then?” Richard Dragon said. “Be warned, Uno, it is the gardener who knows which plant to rear and which to cut down.” Richard Dragon stepped in the sparring circle and motioned Uno over, “Let's begin. Show me what you've got.”

Uno leaped into the air, throwing a perfect dropkick at Richard Dragon. Dragon defended himself, grabbing Uno's leg, and threw him onto the ground. Uno jumped back up and began throwing punches at Richard Dragon. Each blow was blocked and evaded, but so were Richard's. Uno was doing an excellent job deflecting Richard's blows too.

After a few more minutes of this, Richard called for a break. He and Uno put their fists down and walked out of the sparring circle. “That was quite a fight,” Dragon said. “You fight like you've had my training before. Have you been trained by any of my students?”

“None besides Emilio,” Uno replied. “I hope this doesn't sound weird, but I am a clone. I am made up from the DNA of the seven most powerful humans on the planet. The only one I know for sure is Deathstroke the Terminator, but perhaps one of the other six was a student of yours.”

“They would have to be,” Richard replied, “for us to fight to a standstill like we did; that would be the only answer.”

“Either that, or you are one of them,” Uno hazarded a guess.

“I don't think so,” Richard replied. “I don't allow my DNA to be kept anywhere public.”

Suddenly, the entire boat began to rock. The captain ran out of his cabin and yelled down at Uno, Emilio, and Richard, “What are ya doin' down there?!”

“It's not us!” Uno cried back. Then the ship began to creak. Something was in the water and grabbing the ship! Emilio threw Uno the helmet of Aztek and Uno nodded. He put the helmet on and his suit instantly appeared on his body. His eyes glowed white and Uno pressed the red power source on his torso. Golden wings made of 4-dimensional energy appeared on his back and Uno soared into the sky. “I'm going under to see what's going on!” Aztek cried. “You two make sure everyone on the ship is okay.”

Evening Star and Richard Dragon ran around the ship, making sure the crew were all safe from whatever was causing the ship to contract and shake. Aztek dove into the ocean and looked around. His wings vanished back into his suit and an oxygen mask appeared over his mouth. Aztek looked at the ship’s hull and saw the last thing he expected to. There was a giant blue sea dragon curled around the ship, constricting like a python.

Okay, Aztek tried to calm himself, there's a giant blue serpent fish wrapped around our boat. The captain's probably called for help, but what can I, the superhero here, do? Aztek considered his options and remembered the day before. He had been communicating with Emilio's pet fish. Perhaps his powers of communicating to fish would work here too. It was worth a try.

Aztek focused and looked at the blue serpent, Stop your attack! he thought.

The serpent turned its head and released the boat. He swam over towards Aztek and raised his fist. “You dare think you can control me?!” he roared.

“You can talk?!” Aztek gasped through his oxygen tank.

“And I can kill!” the serpent roared. He brought his fist down, but right before he could hit Aztek, Uno's waist was grabbed by an unknown rescuer.

Uno looked around and saw a man in an orange-plated tunic. He wore green leggings with the ends shaped like a flipper. He had a short blond beard and the trident of Poseidon. It was Aquaman, the King of Atlantis. He, and the whale he rode upon, had come to the rescue.

Aquaman! Aztek thought to himself. He rescued me!

Of course, surface dweller, Aquaman replied. Devil Fish is a mean one. I wouldn't let him hurt you or your ship.

You can hear me too?! Aztek thought.

I can, Aquaman replied. You have the same gift as I. That is how I found you. Your aquatic telepathy is strong!

We can figure this out later! Aztek thought. My name is Aztek. I'm a superhero from Vanity. Do you know Batman? I know Batman and –

Later, Aztek, Aquaman cut him off as Devil Fish spun around and unleashed another attack. His fist swung and then crashed downward like a giant tree being cut down. Let's take this fight to the surface! Aquaman yelled.

Sure thing! Aztek replied. Aquaman and Aztek swam up to the surface. Aquaman stood on the whale, ready with his trident for another attack. Aztek flew up into the sky, unleashing his wings once again. At their battle stations, Aztek released a bolt of 4-dimensional energy from his chest onto Devil Fish. Aquaman threw his trident towards Devil Fish. Evening Star and Richard Dragon stood on the deck of the ship, right in the middle of the fight. The two of them lacked the powers to take on a giant serpent.

As Aztek and Aquaman's attacks hit, Devil Fish cried and fell onto the barge. Richard Dragon jumped towards Evening Star. “Watch out!” he yelled. The two of them flew onto the floor of the barge, away from the serpent. Richard Dragon stood up and ran over towards Devil Fish. He jumped on the back of the serpent and pressed down on one part of Devil Fish's spine.

“RARRRRGH!” Devil Fish yelled and went limp. He slid back into the ocean and floated unconsciously above the water. With the threat eliminated, Aquaman and Aztek made their way onto the barge.

“What did you do to it?” Aztek asked Richard Dragon.

“I hit a pressure point on the serpent's spine,” Richard replied. “Every living thing has a weakness, Aztek. It may be physical or it may be something else, but everything has a weakness.”

“Well, it certainly got the job done,” Aquaman replied. He held his hand out to Richard Dragon and introduced himself. “I'm Aquaman,” he said. “You all probably know me from -”

“From the Justice League, yeah,” Aztek interjected. “What brings you out this way?”

“Well, first of all,” Aquaman replied, “this way would be my territory. I guard the oceans. That's seventy percent of the world, you know.”

“Fair enough,” Aztek said, “but you told me that you found me through my telepathy. How did you do that?”

“You have telepathy?” Richard Dragon asked. “How?”

“I don't know,” Aztek replied. “I must have picked it up from one of the men I was cloned from.”

“I felt your presence in the ocean just like I do with any other fish,” Aquaman said. “Normally, fish aren't very smart. Their minds are not very dominating or large. When in trouble, I can feel their distress, but normally, they are just subtle feelings. Dolphins are much smarter than your average fish and I can have a good conversation with dolphins. I was actually raised by dolphins, you know...”

Evening Star raised an eyebrow and shot Uno a funny look. It was as if he was saying, “Can you believe this guy? This is Aquaman? What a nutcase.”

“You were raised by dolphins?” Aztek asked.

“Yes, but that's not even the point,” Aquaman said. “I felt your mind stronger than any other fish out there in the sea. I had to come and investigate because I've never felt an aquatic presence so strong.”

“Well, I'm not an aquatic presence,” Aztek replied. “I am a man. Aztek, the Ultimate Man, but a man, nevertheless.”

“So I see,” Aquaman said. “It is curious that you would have my power of telepathy with aquatic life.”

“I wonder if that is because you are one of the men I was cloned from,” Aztek thought aloud. “I was cloned from seven men and it's quite possible that you were one of them.”

“If your power set is anything to go by, it would certainly seem so,” Aquaman replied. “It's odd that you were cloned from me, though... how would anyone even go about getting DNA from me?”

“I'm not sure,” Aztek replied, “but I intend to find out. LexCorp's our prime suspect. Rest assured, Evening Star and I will be looking into it.”

“We are traveling to South America at the moment to see the Q-Society,” Evening Star said. “They are the organization behind Aztek. Our new Aztek needs to meet them.”

“Of course,” Aquaman said. “I'll also keep my ears open for any news on cloning. You know, it's strange to meet you so soon, Aztek. I just completed a case with the Justice League that involved a clone in Project Cadmus.”

“Cloning used to be rare and difficult but it seems to be a recurrence lately,” Evening Star said. “Aztek is one of many clones designed to be a part of the Ultimen army that LexCorp is making. We don't know any more but Batman and ourselves are looking into it.”

“Interesting,” Aquaman said. He turned to Aztek and placed his hand on his shoulder, “If you are cloned from a part of me, I welcome you as my brother. You handled yourself well against Devil Fish today. Anytime you need anything, the Justice League and myself are at your disposal.”

“Thank you,” Aztek said, shaking Aquaman's hand. “I'll keep that in mind.”

Aquaman bade them all farewell and leapt off of the ship. Calling for a school of octopi to grab Devil Fish, he disappeared into the ocean and left the barge to its journey.

*****

Meanwhile in Vanity, Batman sat perched atop a roof. He had his binoculars to his face as he watched a window across the street from him. His leads had led him from the Piper's home to a penthouse on the intersection of Morrison Street and Millar Avenue. He watched through the windows as a man in a blue tuxedo and a funny-looking pelican mask communicated with a man in a green turtleneck sweater. There was a woman standing in the shadows who Batman couldn't quite make out.

Batman was trained in reading lips, however, and the man in the pelican suit, whom Batman had identified as the crime boss called the Pelican, and the man in the green turtleneck, who was currently unidentified, were both in sight. “- tomorrow morning, we'll pick him up from the parking deck on his way to the opening ceremony,” the man in the green turtleneck was saying. “We'll hide him back here and then we'll see how much money we can collect.”

“What will you need from me and the Vatmen?” the Pelican asked.

“Just to stay under my mind control!” the man in the green turtleneck sweater laughed. “Your Vatmen friends have been very valuable to us in the last few weeks, especially their being in control of the Piper's daughter thanks to her little blackmail stunt. As long as you all do your job right, which is kidnapping Bruce Wayne tomorrow morning, before his new branch opens, we will have no problems.”

Batman scoffed at their plan. He would be ready for them tomorrow but continued to read the lips of the villains. He was finding out some very useful information that might even provide cause for another visit to the Piper's home. Suddenly, the woman stepped into the light and her mouth, but not her entire face, could be seen. “Cut it out, boys,” the woman said. “Gray Man, we are no longer needed here. We will reconvene with the Pelican and his friends tomorrow morning.”

The Gray Man, Batman thought to himself. He had heard of this man from his friend Doctor Fate. The Gray Man is an immortal magician who has been causing the Justice Society and the League problems all throughout the years. Why is he mixed up in this?

Then everything became a little clearer as the brunette woman stepped fully into the light. “It's time to go,” she said. She and the Gray Man disappeared into a cloud of smoke.

Batman gritted his teeth and put down his binoculars. He muttered her name under his breath, “Talia.”

*****

After a while, the captain called out to Richard Dragon, Evening Star, and Aztek, “Land ho, boys! We have reached Brazil!”

The captain guided the ship to shore and extended a bridge so that they could walk out onto the dock. Two people stood there, ready to meet the travelers. One was a young girl, probably around age fourteen or so, wearing white and gold armor similar to Aztek's but without the helmet. The other was a man, roughly fifty years old, who wore a green tunic with a long red cape.

“Not so fast, Emilio,” the man in the green tunic said. “You have thrown away the mantle of Aztek and given it away to this lab experiment. What makes you think you're welcome here?”

“We don't want to fight you,” Evening Star said. He motioned Aztek and Richard Dragon to stand back.

“Obviously you don't want to fight anyone. That's why you gave up your duties,” the man replied. “Tayanna, call out the others.”

The young woman gave a high-pitched yell and, suddenly, there were men in white robes everywhere. They had been hiding in plain sight the entire time. They were the other warriors of the Q-Society, lesser warriors, still trained to fight the battle of the end days.

Richard Dragon, Aztek, and Evening Star put up their fists too. “This isn't exactly the welcoming I was hoping for,” Aztek said.

“You and me both,” Evening Star replied. “I'm sorry to put you two into this position.”

“No worries, Evening Star,” Richard replied. “We are here because we wish to be.”

The Q-Society's warriors all lunged towards the three heroes. Fists began flying everywhere and shuriken were thrown all around. Richard Dragon used his kung fu to take down the attackers swiftly and easily. Evening Star threw many shuriken and bladed stars around, disarming their attackers. Aztek flew up into the air and activated his 4-dimensional energy. He shot out a ray of light that temporarily blinded all who looked upon it.

“My god,” the man in the green tunic muttered. “He... he can access the suit's power source! Everyone stand down!” The warriors backed away and left Richard, Evening Star, and Aztek to themselves. “My... apologies,” the man in the green tunic said. “We should not have attacked you. My name is the Lizard King. Let's talk.”

Aztek and Evening Star looked at one another. They nodded and began walking towards the Q-Society. They turned back to Richard Dragon. Emilio said, “Richard, your help has been most welcome today. Thank you.”

“Is this where we part ways, friends?” he asked. “If so, then the pleasure was all mine. If you ever need me, do not hesitate to ask.”

“Of course,” Emilio replied. He and Aztek grabbed their luggage and made their way off the dock to the military grade vehicles that were waiting to take the Q-Society back to their jungle headquarters. Emilio spoke quietly, “I wish I could contact Katrina and check in with her. She must be going out of her mind worrying about us.”

Aztek whispered to Emilio, “Do you trust them? Are we walking into a trap?”

“I don't think so,” Emilio replied. “They were all genuinely impressed by your mastery of the suit. In fact, they may even see it as a warning sign of the end days.”

“What do you mean?” Aztek asked.

“No one had been able to access the suit's 4-dimensional powers in centuries,” Emilio continued, “until you.”

Aztek nodded and turned his attention back to what was in front of him. He didn't know what the Lizard King would have to say to him but he was certain that it would be interesting, to say the least.

*****

The next morning, Katrina Rodman was all dressed up and ready to go to work at her new job as Bruce Wayne's personal secretary. She drove her car to work, thinking it would be the beginning of the rest of her life. She parked in the parking lot at her reserved spot. As she stepped out of the car, she saw Bruce Wayne, her boss.

“Mr. Wayne!” she called out to him. Trying not to trip in her heels, she scurried over to him and smiled. “Hello, sir! Remember me? I almost ran into you the other day and I -”

“Of course I remember you, Katrina,” he replied. “I'd never forget a beautiful face like yours.”

Katrina blushed, “Well, thanks, you're too kind. Anyways, I just wanted to thank you again for hiring me. I promise that I'll do my very best and -”

She was cut off again as a car came screeching around the corner. “I'll call security to take care of this crazy driver -” Bruce Wayne began to say, but the car came to an abrupt stop right by Bruce and Katrina. A large man in a striped suit and hat jumped out of the car. He had a gold mask over his face that was locked in a haunting smile.

“Oh no!” Katrina cried, “I know that man! His name is Synth! He is one of the Vatmen! Mr. Wayne, watch out!” But it was too little too late. Katrina's warning cries were useless as Synth pulled out a pistol and shot the two of them. Bruce Wayne cried out in pain. He looked at his chest to see a hole and was knocked unconscious, falling to the ground. Katrina's leg began to bleed from her wound and it was all she could do to avoid passing out.

Synth scooped Bruce up and threw him into the van. He looked at her and said, “I can't have you ruining our fun. We are throwing Bruce Wayne an opening party and you're coming too.” Synth grabbed Katrina and threw her into the car as well. He jumped into the driver's seat and sped away.

To be continued in Aztek #4!

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