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Secret Origins
Booster Gold
Blue and Goldby CSyphrett
Prologue
November 1985:
An exclusive uptown New York athletic club...
Two men were jogging on an indoor track. One was short, out of shape, with brown hair, and the other tall, muscular, blonde, and good looking. The shorter man was speaking to the taller one, "So it's $2,500,000 for Booster Gold: The Motion Picture, but $5,000,000 for each sequel! Whaddaya say, Booster?"
"Don't make my sides ache," the blonde man retorted. "Conrad, you know this thing'll be bigger than Gremlins, Goonies, and Gone With the Wind!" He smiled at the shorter man. "Let's make it $5,000,000 to start."
"Lookin' sharp, Booster!" a young shapely woman said aloud as she passed them.
"Smooth as silk, Tanya," the blonde replied.
"Puff -- $5,000,000?" Conrad huffed. "Ridiculous! $3,500,000 and you can play yourself!" Conrad came back.
"I expected to play myself!" the blonde man returned. "Throw in 10% of merchandising and points!"
"Merchandising? Points??" Conrad asked in disbelief. "We don't give that much to Stallone!"
"Can Stallone pick up a car and demolish it with one hand?" the blonde man asked.
Just then a middle-aged man walked by and waved at the blonde man. "Good to see you, Buster," he said.
"That's Booster, Senator!" the blonde man said to the retreating middle-aged man.
The two men finished jogging and, after hitting the showers, they resumed their conversation. "Look, I'll go as far as $4,250,000," Conrad offered. "That's it.
"That's a shame, Conrad!" Booster replied. "I'll just have to do as my agent advised me and sign with Universal instead!"
"Gaaak!" Conrad choked. "Universal?" Conrad thought for a moment. "Okay, okay! $5,000,000, Plus 10% merchandising and points! Deal?" Conrad asked.
"Conrad..." Booster paused dramatically. "...you drive a hard bargain!"
Ohh, boy! Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the bargaining table! Conrad thought to himself.
"Now, about that sequel we mentioned," Booster continued. "I think Booster Gold II sounds so ordinary, don't you?" Booster made a dramatic pose. "How about... Booster Gold: The Legend Lives On!"
Booster Gold finished the bargaining with his trademark smile and headed for the showers. He had some public appearances to attend before his day was over.
This is the life, he thought as he changed into his familiar battle suit. It was hard to believe he was a hero again. Even now he expected to return to the poverty and disdain that had prompted this successful try at the good life.
It was hard to believe this had started with a bad bet...
The 31st Century:
"A thousand on the Red Stars," Michael Carter said to his bookie. He smiled at the man as he laid out the money.
"Sure, Mr. Carter," said the bookie, making a notation. "A thousand on your team. I wish I had your confidence. Everyone thinks the Stars are going to get creamed."
"I'm playing tonight, and we're going to walk all over the Atomics," said Carter. "There's no doubt about it."
"Good luck," said the bookie.
And that's how it all started to slide away from his grasp.
***
Carter began to gamble on his ability to win. The bets grew bigger, and so did the losses. He began to lose more than he won. Then one day he was called to the head office and summarily cut from the team. They had found out about his gambling, and they weren't willing to stand for it.
He lost his career in a space of a month, and it was a media sensation. "The end of an era," said SportsNews. "The man with the golden arm amputated," said Sports Illustrated.
For Michael Carter, it was a humiliating time as he lost everything he owned and cared about. He wound up in a bug infested one room closet in the worst part of the city. He did any job he could find to survive and keep his head above water.
Finally, Carter landed a job as a security guard at the museum of natural history. His plummet stopped as learned about the past on his nightly walks through the place. What drew him was the heroes of the 20th century. He wondered what it would be like to save the world with the likes of the original Captain Atom, the Blue Beetles, or the Nature Family. The idea never completely left him.
***
One late night Carter found a never-before-used Red Star team uniform in a storage area he had rented to keep reminders of his checkered past. He installed weaponry, field generator, and an anti-gravity unit he had found in the museum. He painted the whole ensemble blue and gold. A finishing touch was a pair of goggles with sensory capabilities to grant him a form of super-vision. Now all he had to do was take his chances with the time screen, and go back into the past and start his life over.
Carter waited until he got another late shift by himself. He had kept his bag packed and in his locker at the museum as he waited for the perfect chance to get away undisturbed by the other guards on duty. He was a simple key code away from fame and glory.
"What are you doing?" said one of the automated guards they had installed to help the normal guards due to recent crime problems. It was a small hover-unit of golden hue the shape of a football but slightly smaller, and it hovered behind Carter in the doorway. He could see that the small energy stunners were active.
"Routine check," Carter said. "Please go about your business."
"Please clear the area," the robot guard said in response. "You do not possess clearance for this room."
"Override Clearance Beta Gamma Red Star TwoThree," Carter said. The little machine resisted the programmed voice command for several seconds before it fell to the ground, lifeless. He slung it on his shoulder before he typed in the era command on the time screen. A flat sheet lit up on the air at one end of the machine.
Carter took a deep breath before he stepped into the portal, into history, to become a hero of the people.
August, 1985:
Carter appeared out of nothingness in a murky time period immediately after the end of the fabled Crisis on Infinite Earths. His first chore was to reprogram the automated guard. He knew he wasn't an expert but figured he could handle that easily enough. It took him four days before the robotic guard was operating again. He named it Skeets after a childhood pet he'd once had. He then decided to become famous now that he had a chance at the brass ring. Carter wondered how to become a famous hero quickly with the likes of the Sentinels of Justice in existence. If he could get into that team, his fortune was guaranteed.
He donned his altered uniform and took to the air, Skeets at his side. Somewhere a crime had to be happening that he could stop. He even had a name to go by as a hero: Gold Star. Now to publicize it somehow.
He recognized the landscape as he flew through the air. He was in Washington, D.C. before it became part of the Boslando corridor. He was amazed that this part of the city he had grown up in suddenly had trees.
He was flying over Pennsylvania Avenue when Skeets spoke. "There is a disturbance at the White House, sir," said the robot.
"Let's see what's going on," Carter said, placing a hand to his vision plate.
A long shot told him that a big bruiser had ripped through the protective wall around the White House and was heading for the President who seemed to be making a speech. Carter assumed it was the President, since a lot of guys in suits were shooting at the intruder to no avail.
Michael Carter hesitated for a brief moment. He wasn't a hero. Why should he risk his life for a stranger? Then he got a hold of himself and said more to himself than anyone else, "No guts, no glory."
He pushed his force field to full power as he rammed into the big guy in a flying tackle. Both of them went down in a tangle. Carter was on top. He blasted the back of the guy's helmeted head at full power, driving his face into the grassy lawn.
Carter got to his feet. He was amazed at his victory in a three second fight. Maybe being a hero wouldn't be as hard as he thought.
"Sir," said the automated guard, interrupting Carter's reverie. "I suggest evasive action."
"I don't know who you think you are, messing with me and getting in my way," said the armored attacker, "but you are a dead man." A green energy mace slammed Carter into the ground. The would-be hero's protective field almost collapsed under the sudden impact.
"Run interference, Skeets," said Carter, as he tried to pick himself up. The automaton fired its small energy guns at the armored man. The villain brought his hand back and whipped the energy mace forward. The floating aide flew into a tree and lay still.
"Skeets!" shouted Carter in dismay. Carter turned the dial of his blasters all the way up and fired away at his new enemy. He could feel the barrels start to overheat as he poured energy out of his suit like water through a hose.
Michael Carter blasted his enemy until a warning light flashed in his goggles. He stopped his output immediately.
"Are you done?" asked the armored man, the decorative hair on the top of his helmet burned away. Then the villain fell flat on his face as he passed out.
Carter breathed a sigh of relief. His blasters smoked as they cooled down. He pulled the helmet off his foe and made sure the armor was disconnected as several Secret Service agents and reporters rushed onto the scene.
"A new hero has emerged to save the President," he heard one of the reporters say as he went to pick up his aide's fallen body from the makeshift battlefield.
Carter picked up Skeets. I'll never be able to fix this, he thought, examining the huge, crumpling dent.
"Sir, can you tell us who you are?" one of the reporters said, "Who was your enemy? Are you a government agent?"
"Name? My name is Booster..." Don't give them your football nickname, stupid. "Golds--"
"And your affiliation, Mr. Gold?" a reporter said, interrupting him.
"Talk to my agent, boys," Carter said, "I have to go."
The new hero took to the sky. And as he did so, he heard the reporters talking excitedly about this new hero called "Booster Gold."
***
"'Booster Gold'?!?" Carter repeated to himself as he flew back over the wall. He placed Skeets in his carry bag, and took to the air again. Repairs were beyond his limited abilities. He needed an expert, and in this whole time zone, he only knew of one who could help him. That is, if he could find him.
"Hubcore, here I come," he said as he flew up and away.
Below, a limo pulled away quietly. Its single occupant surveyed the damage as he rode by. "Blackguard failed," he said. "Make sure this pathetic show isn't connected to us."
Booster Gold flew on until the batteries in his suit needed to be charged. He had some 20th century money that he had bought in the future. He plugged the charger into an electrical socket at a betting parlor he stopped in while he waited for the suit to power back up.
He saw that a race was about to be run while he sipped his drink. He placed the whole two hundred on a twenty-to-one shot that he had remembered suddenly as the horse's lined up. His horse took the tape, and he was happy to collect his money. It was just luck that he had stopped in at the right time. He knew that was a race that he would always remember. Carter's Dream by two lengths at twenty-to-one odds. That was something he could never forget.
He took his money and left after the suit was charged again. Now he could get a hotel while he had Skeets looked at and hopefully repaired as well.
***
Booster flew into Hub City a day or so later. The man he needed to talk to wasn't the type of person he could just call. He needed to do something to attract the guy's attention. What could he do?
Booster decided to find a hotel and do a little research in a place off the street for a while. He had enough money for at least a week before he would have to give up and move on. He found a small Econo Lodge and paid for a week. He stashed his gear and cleaned up and took the time to sleep and get fresh for the search ahead.
Booster started at the local library, checking the newspaper files. Sightings of his famous quarry were in most of the papers. Several stories speculated he had some type of base in the river since his aircraft was often spotted over the waterfront.
***
Booster Gold flew down over the Hub City River. His force field was supposed to adapt to any conditions, so he dove into the water hoping it would hold a degree of breathable air. His engaged field did hold air for him to breath. His goggles lit up the dim underworld so that he could see reasonably well.
He searched the river bottom until he ran out of air. He was forced to renew his supply several times as he quartered and searched the river.
Finally, Booster thought he had found a likely exit for his man's vehicle into the Hub River. He examined it and found that a metal shutter prevented access. What do I do now?
Booster took to the air. The only property close to the exit was the Kord Lab. He floated around the building for several minutes before deciding to go back to his hotel and recharge. Maybe an idea would come to him as he used the local info screens to catch up on the times. Booster returned to his hotel, trying to think of a plan now that he was on his way to being a real media sensation.
Chapter 3
Booster finally came up with a plan. He decided to wait until he could find an emergency that Hub City's hero would respond.
Booster floated over the city, listening to the local radio stations. A news flash gave him the chance just like he wanted. Someone was robbing a penthouse of a building two blocks away from the river. Booster flew for the site. He knew the Beetle would be there soon.
Booster wasn't wrong. Seconds after the radio report went out, a familiar craft was in the air over the city. The giant insect had risen from the river and headed for the robbery, even as Gold circled in from the other side.
The pilot's chair slid back to let Booster's quarry drop down toward the building on a hand grip and cable. The hero swung in through a window to confront his foes.
Booster paused at the window. Inside the room, the Blue Beetle was attacking in the acrobatic style that had become his trademark. Orange-clad men were tossed about as the hero flipped and kicked and punched and gave out insults.
"Take this!" one of the men said as he leveled a weird pistol at the azure avenger.
"Not the smoke cloud again," the Beetle said as he leaped forward.
The bandit chief pulled the trigger. A beam of obsidian struck the Beetle on the chest and sent him flying through another window, seemingly to his death.
Booster flew around the building and after the Blue Beetle. He could see the man was working the decoration on one arm with a hand. He poured on the speed as the ground came rushing upwards. He grasped the Beetle and pulled out of the dive, as he heard explosive roars above.
"Well that's new," the Blue Beetle said as the heroes watched the robbers fly away on jet packs.
The Bug dropped down to reach the heroes. The Beetle took the descending cable in his hand, and waited to be released before letting the cable pull him up into the Bug's cockpit. Booster followed. He was impressed by the aircraft. It was as good as the craft back in his home time. He shook that thought away. This was his time now and he had better get used to it.
"You're Booster Gold," said the Beetle. "Saw you on the news."
"I looked great, didn't I?" Gold said with a smile.
"You were okay," said Beetle. "Maybe so-so."
"'So-so'?" said Gold. "What do you mean so-so? I just saved your life."
"What brings you to Hub City, Mr. 'Got-An-Agent' Man?"
"My robot was damaged in the fight, and I was wondering if you could help me," said Gold.
The Blue Beetle looked at his new colleague with a small degree of skepticism. He decided finally a quick look at this robot wouldn't hurt things. Maybe he would even be able to gain some new ideas to use with the Bug. "I'll take a look at it," the Beetle said. "Where is it? We'll pick it up and take it back to my hangar."
"Thank you," said Gold. "I left it at my hotel. The Gibson over on Third and Ditko."
The Blue Beetle brought his Bug to a hover over the Gibson Hotel. Booster dropped down from the side door and hovered outside his room window. It was a simple matter to pop the window open. He recovered his gear and checked it before he left. He didn't want a bag without a robot in it. He flew back to the Bug. "Got it," he reported.
"Let's take it back to base and see what we have," said the Blue Beetle.
Booster suffered a blindfold as the Bug passed through the secret lock. He waited impatiently for the giant aircraft to come to a stop.
"You can take it off now," the Blue Beetle said. He took the injured robot and exited through a side door in the cockpit. A set of steps led down to the main hangar area.
Booster took the blindfold off and followed. He noticed that the Bug rested on the exit doors as he followed his ally. The Blue Beetle took the deactivated robot over to a work table. He pulled out a set of tools. He quickly and efficiently cut the aide open. Booster winced at the surgery.
The Beetle went to work with a mounted magnifying glass and a small soldering iron. "Ahhh," said the little robot.
"You got him back on line," said Booster excitedly.
"Just part of him," said the Blue Beetle. "Some of this stuff is beyond what I have or know. I may have to custom fit some things with the technology you've got here."
"How hard will that be to do?" asked Booster.
"I don't know," said the Beetle.
"I wish I knew more about it, but I didn't think to grab a tutorial before I started out," said Booster.
"It's a complicated piece of machinery," said the Beetle. "I don't know if I can save it. Maybe if I could jury-rig the CPU to get the files to reload, I might be able to get some type of diagnostic out of it."
"How long will that take?" Booster asked.
"Don't know," said the azure avenger. "I have some other things to do first. Just wait down here, and I will be back as soon as possible."
"Okay," said Booster. "Go ahead. I can wait."
"Thanks," said the Beetle. He cleaned up and left the secret lab. He made sure that Booster didn't get a look at his face before he left.
Booster Gold toured the secret lab three or four times before he placed his bag on the floor and tried to get a nap. He had an uneasy feeling he would need the rest before his robot was repaired. As he drifted off, he thought he heard the robot snoring on the table. He put it down to nerves and let Morpheus take him away.
***
Voices awakened Booster hours later. One was clear, while the other was jerky. It took him a minute to recognize both of the voices' owners.
"Hello, sleeping beauty," the Beetle said. "Your robot here said you stole it and your equipment from the future."
Booster was astounded. Despair sank into him. He was sure the Beetle would turn him in to the authorities. He had to get away.
"Hold on," said the hero. "I'm willing to give you a chance to explain. You did save the President, and you did help against the Squids. I'm willing to listen to the truth if you are ready to tell it."
"That's true," said Michael Carter. "I am a fugitive from the future."
"The robot said you wanted to be a hero," said the Beetle. "Try to get some glory and feel good about your wasted life."
"I wouldn't put it that way," Carter said, protesting.
"How would you put it?" the Beetle said.
Booster opened his mouth. Then he shut it. The Blue Beetle was right. He was a want to be hero in a world that didn't need him.
"Look, don't get me wrong," the Beetle said. "This is a dangerous profession, and not for someone who has problems and who doesn't know the lay of the land. Why don't you just go home and leave this to the professionals?"
"I'm going to prove to the both of you that I am as good a hero as anybody," said Carter, as he pulled his makeshift uniform from his bag.
Booster Gold ascended from the murky Hub City River. He flew high above the city, radio tuned to the local emergency channels. The Squids would be in action again. He could feel it. Their leader would want to keep on the offensive until someone found out where his lair was located. Then he would move. Hub City was easy pickings at the moment until the Blue Beetle could figure a way to short out their new capabilities. He expected them to attack, knew it in his bones. The only question was where.
A radio report alerted Booster Gold to the expected robbery. It was in a high rise overlooking the river. He flew over as fast as his antigravity harness would allow. He would prove he was good enough to be a hero.
Gold arrived on the scene in seconds. The Squids had posted a lookout that gave them a second's warning before Booster blasted him away from the window. Then Booster was in the room, confronting the rest of the orange-suited men. He wished he could tell which one was which so that he could take out their leader first. He realized that was the reason the armor looked the same as he surveyed the battleground.
"Take care of this do-gooder," one of the Squids shouted to the others.
That was enough to paint a bull's eye on the man as Booster launched himself across the room. Black beams tried to knock him from the air, but the hero evaded the net, smashing against the man who had spoken, sending him flying through the air.
Booster Gold turned and faced the rest of the Squid gang. Luckily, most of the would be victims had enough sense to start for the door. All he had to do was buy them time. Booster grabbed the leader of the gang from the floor and held him like a shield in front of his body.
The Squids paused in consternation. "Shoot through Van," shouted one of the more ambitious henchmen. He followed his words with a force bolt.
Booster dropped the unfortunate Todd Van III in front of the bolt and threw himself clear. He made sure to blast the guy with initiative out of general principle as he took to the air. After all, that one would keep them organized against the hero's onslaught.
A radio signal attracted Booster's attention. He smiled when he heard it. "You clowns couldn't hit the broad side of an asteroid," he taunted, randomly firing his blasters at the group as he evaded their efforts to knock him out of the air.
"I'm here," said a new voice by the window, drawing everyone's eyes but Booster's. A tremendous burst of light overwhelmed the Squids as the Blue Beetle made his presence felt. The Squids were blinded by the Blue Beetle's light pistol.
Booster Gold and Skeets began firing into the group with full strength lasers. Armored forms flew in different directions as the two struck repeatedly. A token resistance was not enough to stop the fledgling hero and his robotic aide. The Beetle stood by the window and watched, making sure no one escaped that way. The room was wrecked by the time the heroes from the future were done. So were the Squids.
"Are you sure you want to stay in the hero business?" the Beetle asked him.
Epilogue
November 1985:
In a mere three months (and a heck of a media blitz), Booster Gold had become a household name and had endorsement contracts and movie parts. The public loved him. He had made it as a hero, too, racking up a few cases during that time and making the headlines side-by-side with the heroes he had read about in the history screens. It was quite exhilarating.
As he came out of the health club, Booster smiled. Things were going his way again, and he could hardly believe his luck and popularity. Skeets floated by Booster's side as they walked to the restaurant where he had an important meeting to attend.
He walked into the place, looking around as he moved. The party he was meeting stood up as he approached, holding out his hand. Booster shook it firmly.
"Hi, Booster," said the other man.
"Hello, Ted," the hero from the future said smiling.