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rebecky_moTried writing out the history of one of my Ultimate Muscle characters awhile ago, and it warped into something resembling a fanfic prologue. How the hell did that happen? xD;
Figured I'd post it here, so it doesn't just disappear into my mass of computer files. Rough and unbeta-ed, but enjoy the the beginning of the life of Madame Rhea. (I'm hoping it doesn't reek of Mary-sueness, though a few parts made me worry a bit....)
Paths to Follow
As a young chojin girl, Ms. Rhea longed for a chance to train and become a true chojin to protect New Orleans. However, the year she became eligible to apply to the prestigious Hercules Factory, she was turned away before even trying out and told to be a good and find a nice chojin boy to start the next generation. Time after time she tried, and the same result, no woman would ever enter the ring.
Well, if they wanted a man...Rhea focused on an ability she used once briefly at Carnivale, a difficult illusionary technique that not only make her look like someone else, but fooled the other senses as well. Eventually, she created the buff male persona she dubbed 'Mr. Eee', where she looked and sounded like a man, even the body could be touched (an inevitability in the ring), and it would feel like a tall muscular chojin (which she was not). As Mr. Eee, she was not only able to tryout, she was accepted to the famous chojin school! Finally her dream was underway, even if it was under another name...
But this was only the beginning of her trials. The moment the new students arrived at Hercules Factory, they were given ROOM MATES. What a dilemma, the illusion was draining, and she'd need privacy to regain her strength, not to mention it dissipated whenever she slept/lost conciousness! But she managed. For the 2 months, Rhea held her illusion over 15 hours a day in the public of training and group moments, taking minor respites, and kept her secret by ensuring she stayed awake until her room mate slept, and waking up before he did to replace the illusion (hard as it was, the uptight bastard slept MAYBE 6 hours a night if she was lucky). But as training grew tougher, her body began to wear between the exertion of training, lack of sleep, and maintaining her male form. One fateful day, after an especially gruesome day of training, her body finally gave into the exhaustion, and she blacked out upon reaching her bed.
When she awoke hours later, she found her illusion dissipated, and face to face with her room mate, the stoic, stiff teenage German chojin, Brocken Jr. Oh, this was BAD. At first, she tried to play it off as a joke, a ploy to throw people off in the ring. He didn't say a thing; no dice. She expected Mr. Suck-up 'Ja-wohl!' Nazi-boy to blackmail her with his silence, or to take off and spill to a teacher, or the Commissioner (what fate would be worse, she couldn't tell)....
"Vhat the HELL are you doing here?" Stone-voiced, like she was being interrogated.
"I'm here to TRAIN, homme; why else would I be here?" It jumped out of her mouth before she could stop it, but she was glad. She fought off Alligators in the bayou when she was 9, this was NOTHING compared to that stress. Really...
"Vhy?" Why what?
"Because ah'm sick of monsters and murderers thinkin' they can take over the Big Easy...well , easy."
A heartbeat, not a smidgen of emotion on his face...then a slow nod from the Nazi's son. "That vill do, for now." And turned up his bed, and went to sleep.
...*WHAT?! That's it?!*
Of course not. Days later, Brocken Jr. cornered 'Mr. Eee' in their room again demanding a full explanation. Seeing as he hadn't yanked her down to the head office to pull her mask off and go 'Vhat is this?!' at them, she told explained the whole issue of being refused the chance to apply, and Mr. Eee's birth.
"Your power, is it an illusion as vell?"
"Non. The body's fake, but everything behind it is MINE." Power, heart, that was NOT an illusion, could never be faked to such an extent...It took a lot longer (and several brutal training classes) for Brocken Jr. to believe her. In that time, she was able to remove her illusion in thier shared room, and rest longer, she no longer needed to be Mr. Eee in the privacy of their room. Her full strength returned as a result, and she no longer scraped by her classes. 4 months into the 3-year training, after the first massive expulsion tournament, as they tended to bruises and bloody noses in their room... "I vill keep your secret, Eee."
"Rhea, homme. If you know the face behind the mystery, you should know the name too, non?"
And so it was. For the next 2 years, the American and the Nazi trained hard, kept Mr. Eee's identity under wraps from all others(difficult at times, that damn mask was annoying at times), dealt with some reprecussions of Brocken's family (but this is another story); the German even let Rhea show his 'path' through those black magic cards of hers. A great respect grew between them, and an unusual friendship followed. They passed tests and examinations with flying colors (with each others suggestions and advice), and graduation was less than 3 months away!
10 weeks before graduation, it all came crashing down. During a routine exercise with a fellow, 'Mr. Eee' was suddenly struck by a piercing pain in his mind (there had been others over the months, but NONE like this). Images scattered like a kaleidoscope in Rhea's eyes, words she couldn't pronounce, if they really WERE words, blazed in her ears....When she awoke, she knew no explanation would save her from Commissioner Harabote's judgement.
She tried anyway. She argued, challenged, fought that the ancient beliefs of Chojin Traditional were WRONG, no longer applied. Dared him to challenge her skills, SEE the power was hers, not fake like the muscles and masculine disguise she wore. Give her a chance!
"The ring is sacred to the greatest, the STRONGEST men of all the galaxy's. No...GIRL will ever step between it's ropes as long as I'm in charge to soil it's name! You are hereby EXPELLED and will be REMOVED from Hercules Factory immediately!" And so, with guards surounnding her, she was led down emptied halls (no doubt keeping the class busy with some made up announcement to keep them away) to retrieve any of her belongings within ten minutes. Too many guards, and where could she run here? No doubt Brocken was being interrogated by the schools heads at that very moment....
B.J. She wouldn't see him again, not here anyway. No chance to say goodbye, no way to thank him for giving her as much time as she'd had...
She grasped the string of green beads that hung around her neck, then turned a little further away from the open door. This was all she could do. *One final rebellion, cherie...*
... for hours he stood in front of the Commissioner, listening to him accuse him if harboring an undercover spy within Hercules Factory. And every time, all he said was that was total schiesse, and he wanted to speak to Mr. Eee himself. He would would not betray her, even now he would not confess to knowing her (just as she'd asked of him one night). Hours later, an emotionless Brocken entered their room. No, his room. Her belongings gone, removed from every drawer, bed empty of covers, sheets. As if she had never been there at all. He wanted to rip the room apart, make it into half the mess she always left it in!
It was always a possibility; they both knew the chance was there. But to be so CLOSE, what game was fate playing?! What were they going to do with her, anyway? Was she.... Out of habit, he pulled out his boot-shining kit; he would always shine his boots at the end of the day, prepare them for the fights ahead and keep them in impeccable shape...
K-tink!
*...K-tink?* Never had his kit made such a noise. Had the lid had come off the polish? Carefully, he opened the top of the box...
"Such trinkets are ridiculous, absolutely pointless."
"They are NOT pointless, they symbolize the chojin spirit! Well, mine anyway."
"They're NECKLACES, vhat does that have to do vith chojins?."
"They're Mardi Gras Beads, cher, and these colors each represent something." She grasped the precious, delicate strands around her neck and held it out. "The Gold stands for Power." She said, letting it drop against her chest. "The Purple, Justice." Another rattle of beads, one strand remaining twined in her fingers."And this, the Green, represents Faith. The colors of Mardi Gras, cherie."
"Power, justice, and faith....remarkable such an event of debauchery would cherish these ideals."
"See, my bead's aren't totally for looks, B.J."
"QUIT CALLING ME B.J.!"
A rough hand carefully grasped the single, shining green bead from the box, fearful of dropping it and losing it to the shadows. Placing the box to his side on the bed, he held the sphere in both hands, pressing them together and supporting his head with them in something resembling a prayer. And maybe it was.
"The Green beads represent Faith. No one, not even a chojin, can survive without faith within them, right cher?"
"Rhea..."
As Brocken Jr. followed his own path of destiny, so too did Rhea. She never returned to Earth thanks to the Chojin Committee's power. Instead, she was dropped off on a bustling planet, sent on her way to find her own way home. But the same odd images and sounds that ended her dream still continued. But they weren't quite as confusing this time, and nowhere near as painful. Somehow, she found herself being led to a city on the other side of the planet, where war was waging between 2 corrupt governments and the people being destroyed by both. Could the teachings of Hercules Factory not have been in vain? She taught the small rebellion how to fight in ways to use their abilities to it's greatest ability, giving it a chance against the 2 greater powers. Against all odds, both were toppled by the group deemed 'insignificant', all with the help of the strange alien girl.
This was only the beginning. Over years, Rhea would continue to have these odd occurrences, and would be led to a place in need, or a person destined for greatness. But there was so many people she was being led to; she needed a place to bring them all, rather than stay with just one at a time. And so the hidden grounds of Warstone Asteroid were brought to life. In this place of secrecy, with all she learned once upon a time, she would train great warriors she found via the 'path' to defend their people, help them to end wars, establish peace, destroy the dark establishments who thrived on the destruction and pain of other planets. The mysterious woman, known only as 'The Madame' to all who did not get called by her, who helped defy empires, rebuild civilizations, save lives, became a deep gash in the side of many who would cause evil deeds. Her, her students, and her supposed right hand man, only known as Mr. Eee....And in some way, the young girl who wanted to make a difference found her way. Madame Rhea was a hero and legend in many systems, many worlds. For one to be sought via her 'path' was considered an honor.
She never forgot everything that brought her to that place in her life. A young German who wasn't a very good Nazi, but was great man without doubt, and his choice to give her a chance he didn't need to give; the school that had no idea what their expelled student had become; A desire to do right for life, to fight in the ring to prevent loss of life.
Never in her visions had she seen how four young girls would give Fate a new chance to play, and that Faith would be rewarded in ways only in her dreams..
http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/8687706/ Pic of Madame Rhea and Divalution
Figured I'd post it here, so it doesn't just disappear into my mass of computer files. Rough and unbeta-ed, but enjoy the the beginning of the life of Madame Rhea. (I'm hoping it doesn't reek of Mary-sueness, though a few parts made me worry a bit....)
Paths to Follow
As a young chojin girl, Ms. Rhea longed for a chance to train and become a true chojin to protect New Orleans. However, the year she became eligible to apply to the prestigious Hercules Factory, she was turned away before even trying out and told to be a good and find a nice chojin boy to start the next generation. Time after time she tried, and the same result, no woman would ever enter the ring.
Well, if they wanted a man...Rhea focused on an ability she used once briefly at Carnivale, a difficult illusionary technique that not only make her look like someone else, but fooled the other senses as well. Eventually, she created the buff male persona she dubbed 'Mr. Eee', where she looked and sounded like a man, even the body could be touched (an inevitability in the ring), and it would feel like a tall muscular chojin (which she was not). As Mr. Eee, she was not only able to tryout, she was accepted to the famous chojin school! Finally her dream was underway, even if it was under another name...
But this was only the beginning of her trials. The moment the new students arrived at Hercules Factory, they were given ROOM MATES. What a dilemma, the illusion was draining, and she'd need privacy to regain her strength, not to mention it dissipated whenever she slept/lost conciousness! But she managed. For the 2 months, Rhea held her illusion over 15 hours a day in the public of training and group moments, taking minor respites, and kept her secret by ensuring she stayed awake until her room mate slept, and waking up before he did to replace the illusion (hard as it was, the uptight bastard slept MAYBE 6 hours a night if she was lucky). But as training grew tougher, her body began to wear between the exertion of training, lack of sleep, and maintaining her male form. One fateful day, after an especially gruesome day of training, her body finally gave into the exhaustion, and she blacked out upon reaching her bed.
When she awoke hours later, she found her illusion dissipated, and face to face with her room mate, the stoic, stiff teenage German chojin, Brocken Jr. Oh, this was BAD. At first, she tried to play it off as a joke, a ploy to throw people off in the ring. He didn't say a thing; no dice. She expected Mr. Suck-up 'Ja-wohl!' Nazi-boy to blackmail her with his silence, or to take off and spill to a teacher, or the Commissioner (what fate would be worse, she couldn't tell)....
"Vhat the HELL are you doing here?" Stone-voiced, like she was being interrogated.
"I'm here to TRAIN, homme; why else would I be here?" It jumped out of her mouth before she could stop it, but she was glad. She fought off Alligators in the bayou when she was 9, this was NOTHING compared to that stress. Really...
"Vhy?" Why what?
"Because ah'm sick of monsters and murderers thinkin' they can take over the Big Easy...well , easy."
A heartbeat, not a smidgen of emotion on his face...then a slow nod from the Nazi's son. "That vill do, for now." And turned up his bed, and went to sleep.
...*WHAT?! That's it?!*
Of course not. Days later, Brocken Jr. cornered 'Mr. Eee' in their room again demanding a full explanation. Seeing as he hadn't yanked her down to the head office to pull her mask off and go 'Vhat is this?!' at them, she told explained the whole issue of being refused the chance to apply, and Mr. Eee's birth.
"Your power, is it an illusion as vell?"
"Non. The body's fake, but everything behind it is MINE." Power, heart, that was NOT an illusion, could never be faked to such an extent...It took a lot longer (and several brutal training classes) for Brocken Jr. to believe her. In that time, she was able to remove her illusion in thier shared room, and rest longer, she no longer needed to be Mr. Eee in the privacy of their room. Her full strength returned as a result, and she no longer scraped by her classes. 4 months into the 3-year training, after the first massive expulsion tournament, as they tended to bruises and bloody noses in their room... "I vill keep your secret, Eee."
"Rhea, homme. If you know the face behind the mystery, you should know the name too, non?"
And so it was. For the next 2 years, the American and the Nazi trained hard, kept Mr. Eee's identity under wraps from all others(difficult at times, that damn mask was annoying at times), dealt with some reprecussions of Brocken's family (but this is another story); the German even let Rhea show his 'path' through those black magic cards of hers. A great respect grew between them, and an unusual friendship followed. They passed tests and examinations with flying colors (with each others suggestions and advice), and graduation was less than 3 months away!
10 weeks before graduation, it all came crashing down. During a routine exercise with a fellow, 'Mr. Eee' was suddenly struck by a piercing pain in his mind (there had been others over the months, but NONE like this). Images scattered like a kaleidoscope in Rhea's eyes, words she couldn't pronounce, if they really WERE words, blazed in her ears....When she awoke, she knew no explanation would save her from Commissioner Harabote's judgement.
She tried anyway. She argued, challenged, fought that the ancient beliefs of Chojin Traditional were WRONG, no longer applied. Dared him to challenge her skills, SEE the power was hers, not fake like the muscles and masculine disguise she wore. Give her a chance!
"The ring is sacred to the greatest, the STRONGEST men of all the galaxy's. No...GIRL will ever step between it's ropes as long as I'm in charge to soil it's name! You are hereby EXPELLED and will be REMOVED from Hercules Factory immediately!" And so, with guards surounnding her, she was led down emptied halls (no doubt keeping the class busy with some made up announcement to keep them away) to retrieve any of her belongings within ten minutes. Too many guards, and where could she run here? No doubt Brocken was being interrogated by the schools heads at that very moment....
B.J. She wouldn't see him again, not here anyway. No chance to say goodbye, no way to thank him for giving her as much time as she'd had...
She grasped the string of green beads that hung around her neck, then turned a little further away from the open door. This was all she could do. *One final rebellion, cherie...*
... for hours he stood in front of the Commissioner, listening to him accuse him if harboring an undercover spy within Hercules Factory. And every time, all he said was that was total schiesse, and he wanted to speak to Mr. Eee himself. He would would not betray her, even now he would not confess to knowing her (just as she'd asked of him one night). Hours later, an emotionless Brocken entered their room. No, his room. Her belongings gone, removed from every drawer, bed empty of covers, sheets. As if she had never been there at all. He wanted to rip the room apart, make it into half the mess she always left it in!
It was always a possibility; they both knew the chance was there. But to be so CLOSE, what game was fate playing?! What were they going to do with her, anyway? Was she.... Out of habit, he pulled out his boot-shining kit; he would always shine his boots at the end of the day, prepare them for the fights ahead and keep them in impeccable shape...
K-tink!
*...K-tink?* Never had his kit made such a noise. Had the lid had come off the polish? Carefully, he opened the top of the box...
"Such trinkets are ridiculous, absolutely pointless."
"They are NOT pointless, they symbolize the chojin spirit! Well, mine anyway."
"They're NECKLACES, vhat does that have to do vith chojins?."
"They're Mardi Gras Beads, cher, and these colors each represent something." She grasped the precious, delicate strands around her neck and held it out. "The Gold stands for Power." She said, letting it drop against her chest. "The Purple, Justice." Another rattle of beads, one strand remaining twined in her fingers."And this, the Green, represents Faith. The colors of Mardi Gras, cherie."
"Power, justice, and faith....remarkable such an event of debauchery would cherish these ideals."
"See, my bead's aren't totally for looks, B.J."
"QUIT CALLING ME B.J.!"
A rough hand carefully grasped the single, shining green bead from the box, fearful of dropping it and losing it to the shadows. Placing the box to his side on the bed, he held the sphere in both hands, pressing them together and supporting his head with them in something resembling a prayer. And maybe it was.
"The Green beads represent Faith. No one, not even a chojin, can survive without faith within them, right cher?"
"Rhea..."
As Brocken Jr. followed his own path of destiny, so too did Rhea. She never returned to Earth thanks to the Chojin Committee's power. Instead, she was dropped off on a bustling planet, sent on her way to find her own way home. But the same odd images and sounds that ended her dream still continued. But they weren't quite as confusing this time, and nowhere near as painful. Somehow, she found herself being led to a city on the other side of the planet, where war was waging between 2 corrupt governments and the people being destroyed by both. Could the teachings of Hercules Factory not have been in vain? She taught the small rebellion how to fight in ways to use their abilities to it's greatest ability, giving it a chance against the 2 greater powers. Against all odds, both were toppled by the group deemed 'insignificant', all with the help of the strange alien girl.
This was only the beginning. Over years, Rhea would continue to have these odd occurrences, and would be led to a place in need, or a person destined for greatness. But there was so many people she was being led to; she needed a place to bring them all, rather than stay with just one at a time. And so the hidden grounds of Warstone Asteroid were brought to life. In this place of secrecy, with all she learned once upon a time, she would train great warriors she found via the 'path' to defend their people, help them to end wars, establish peace, destroy the dark establishments who thrived on the destruction and pain of other planets. The mysterious woman, known only as 'The Madame' to all who did not get called by her, who helped defy empires, rebuild civilizations, save lives, became a deep gash in the side of many who would cause evil deeds. Her, her students, and her supposed right hand man, only known as Mr. Eee....And in some way, the young girl who wanted to make a difference found her way. Madame Rhea was a hero and legend in many systems, many worlds. For one to be sought via her 'path' was considered an honor.
She never forgot everything that brought her to that place in her life. A young German who wasn't a very good Nazi, but was great man without doubt, and his choice to give her a chance he didn't need to give; the school that had no idea what their expelled student had become; A desire to do right for life, to fight in the ring to prevent loss of life.
Never in her visions had she seen how four young girls would give Fate a new chance to play, and that Faith would be rewarded in ways only in her dreams..
