Triumph - Protectors of Central Illinois University, the city of Stevenson, and beyond!
Dragonfly, aka Aaron Majesky - winged martial arts master; The Adept, aka Rick Pennington - master of mystical movement; Cazmonster, aka Caz Greenbaum, super-strong cyber-werewolf; The Gray Robe, aka Sydney Koenig - Druidic mistress of the Earth; The American Attitude, aka Barry Stills - Hyper-sensory, skateboarding streetfighter; Bill Brown (no alias), super-strong urban defender; Magma, aka Jan Graylin, lava blasting demolisher; and Transcender, aka “Dorado” Estevez, controller of time and space.
Winter of Aaron Majesky's 3rd year at CIU came on with an unexpected suddenness that made him ponder more serious questions. As he sat in his room at Langley Hall, he looked out the window at the falling snow. Aaron thought back to his first year here. That was the same year he became Dragonfly for the first time, the year he met a girl named Emily Fine. The year the Infinite seven was founded.
Now it was his junior year,. Aaron was forced to start considering things like what age would do when he graduated, and how he would prepare for that time over the next year. Aaron pondered, very briefly, what would happen to Triumph when he, Caz, and Rick were gone. Would the others carry on? He stopped that train of thought, though, realizing the it was too far in the future, and too far out of his control.
Aaron's thoughts were interrupted by the ringtone on his phone.
"This is Aaron," he answered, gazing out the window at the blowing snow.
"Hey," said the female voice on the other end. It was a voice he knew in an instant. Emily.
"Hi! Em! Wow, it's been forever."
"Yeah, since that time with the kidnapping.". Emily hesitated on the last word. Aaron could tell she still was not over that. maybe she never would be.
"I'm on my way home for winter break. I'd like to talk to you.". There was a definite sadness in Emily's voice.
"Yeah, sure. When are you getting in? I was heading up to Chicago to help my uncle with the deli for a few days, but if you let me know, I'll make sure to be in town."
"I'll be in town on the eighteenth."
"Great, I'll be here. The dorms are closed then; I'll text you the address of the new HQ downtown and buzz you in when you get there."
"Okay, see you then, Aaron."
"Yeah, bye.". As Aaron hung up the phone, he realized he felt a certain ambivalence about seeing Emily. They'd never really ended things properly. Plus, the last time he'd seen her, they'd hooked up a couple of times. Since then, he'd seen Nirmala, the doctor he'd met in Tibet, several times, and she was sort of an unofficial girlfriend. Aaron found his emotions quite confused at the thought of spending time with Emily again.
Caz walked into the room. "What up, Aaron?" the curly haired, powerfully built young man asked.
"Hey, how'd the final go?" Aaron asked, ignoring Caz' question entirely.
"Good, man. Think I aced it."
"I guess showing g up actually helps, huh?". Aaron joked, referring to the time Caz had stayed up all night studying only to sleep through the test
I got you, smart guy," Caz nodded, then, turning, grabbed a pillow from his bunk and threw it at Aaron. Aaron instinctively blocked the fluffy attack.
"So, when are you heading out for Chi-town?"
"Change of plan. I'm hanging out at the HQ until the 18th."
"Why, what's going down?"
"Emily's coming home," Aaron said hesitantly.
"Whoa, whoa big man. Thought that was over."
"Well, it is, but she really sound like she wants to talk..."
At that moment, Rick burst in the door and flung his messenger bag across the room. Stalking across the floor, he dropped dejectedly into a desk chair. Caz and Aaron stared at him.
Winter of Aaron Majesky's 3rd year at CIU came on with an unexpected suddenness that made him ponder more serious questions. As he sat in his room at Langley Hall, he looked out the window at the falling snow. Aaron thought back to his first year here. That was the same year he became Dragonfly for the first time, the year he met a girl named Emily Fine. The year the Infinite seven was founded.
Now it was his junior year,. Aaron was forced to start considering things like what age would do when he graduated, and how he would prepare for that time over the next year. Aaron pondered, very briefly, what would happen to Triumph when he, Caz, and Rick were gone. Would the others carry on? He stopped that train of thought, though, realizing the it was too far in the future, and too far out of his control.
Aaron's thoughts were interrupted by the ringtone on his phone.
"This is Aaron," he answered, gazing out the window at the blowing snow.
"Hey," said the female voice on the other end. It was a voice he knew in an instant. Emily.
"Hi! Em! Wow, it's been forever."
"Yeah, since that time with the kidnapping.". Emily hesitated on the last word. Aaron could tell she still was not over that. maybe she never would be.
"I'm on my way home for winter break. I'd like to talk to you.". There was a definite sadness in Emily's voice.
"Yeah, sure. When are you getting in? I was heading up to Chicago to help my uncle with the deli for a few days, but if you let me know, I'll make sure to be in town."
"I'll be in town on the eighteenth."
"Great, I'll be here. The dorms are closed then; I'll text you the address of the new HQ downtown and buzz you in when you get there."
"Okay, see you then, Aaron."
"Yeah, bye.". As Aaron hung up the phone, he realized he felt a certain ambivalence about seeing Emily. They'd never really ended things properly. Plus, the last time he'd seen her, they'd hooked up a couple of times. Since then, he'd seen Nirmala, the doctor he'd met in Tibet, several times, and she was sort of an unofficial girlfriend. Aaron found his emotions quite confused at the thought of spending time with Emily again.
Caz walked into the room. "What up, Aaron?" the curly haired, powerfully built young man asked.
"Hey, how'd the final go?" Aaron asked, ignoring Caz' question entirely.
"Good, man. Think I aced it."
"I guess showing g up actually helps, huh?". Aaron joked, referring to the time Caz had stayed up all night studying only to sleep through the test
I got you, smart guy," Caz nodded, then, turning, grabbed a pillow from his bunk and threw it at Aaron. Aaron instinctively blocked the fluffy attack.
"So, when are you heading out for Chi-town?"
"Change of plan. I'm hanging out at the HQ until the 18th."
"Why, what's going down?"
"Emily's coming home," Aaron said hesitantly.
"Whoa, whoa big man. Thought that was over."
"Well, it is, but she really sound like she wants to talk..."
At that moment, Rick burst in the door and flung his messenger bag across the room. Stalking across the floor, he dropped dejectedly into a desk chair. Caz and Aaron stared at him.
Aaron looked at Rick and opened his eyes wider, indicating he wanted the scoop on the storm Rick just brought into the room.
“Stupid professor just rejected my thesis!” Rick with a combination of sullenness and rage.
“Sorry, dude,” Caz said.
“What’s he grinning about?” Rick asked Caz.
Caz looked over at his friend. “Aaron?”
“It’s nothing, okay?” Aaron said defensively.
Rick looked at the two for about five seconds and said “Emily’s coming, isn’t she?”
“What! Come on, guys!” Aaron said, flopping down on his bunk. “Get out of my love life!”
“Hey, you started it by grinning your butt off!” Caz said.
“I wasn’t GRINNING!” Aaron almost shouted.
“What’s going on?” Syd asked, opening the door and walking in. “I can hear Aaron shouting all the way down the hall.”
“Emily’s coming; Aaron’s excited,” Rick said.
“I’M...NOT...SHOUTING!” Aaron shouted.
“Hoookay,” Syd said. “Rick, Caz, care to join me for dinner?”
“Sure, why not. Beats sitting here watching my academic career flow down the toilet,” Rick said standing.
Caz merely shrugged, and the trio left Aaron alone to contemplate his situation with Emily. In a few seconds, he’d had enough, and opened the door. “Guys! Wait up!”
******
It was a few days later when Emily’s plane came in over Chicago. The snow and wind were blowing strong outside the plane, and several of the passengers were uneasy.
Emily turned off her reading light and prepared for a landing. Suddenly, the plane lurched to the side as if struck. Everyone around her screaming, Emily instead found herself looking out the window, trying to see the cause, and instinctively reaching into her carry-on for the mystical white mask that would transform her into White Diamond.
As the plane plunged downward, the pilot trying desperately to regain enough control for anything that had the word “landing” in it, she saw a dark form floating outside the window. A chill ran through her as she recognized it. The Anti-Man was back!
******
Inside the observation area, Tim O’Malley watched in horror as Megan’s plane dropped toward the ground. Unzipping the ubiquitous “bowling ball” bag he carried, the titanium sphere which served as his primary weapon flew out and shattered the plate-glass window. Tim was only half-way in the costume of The Wrecker as he flew out the shattered remains of the window toward the plane.
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