Suggested changes: {before : after}
On 05/28/2004 08:56 AM, Steve T. said:
Black steepled his fingers and tried very hard to appear calm as he
stared at Max and Jade. Also gathered in his office {was : were}
Norman, Virgil, Annabelle, Tohru, Jackie and Mrs. Chan, who was the
only one who appeared to be enjoying the events.
"This is a {goverement : government} agency, Agent," Black replied,
his tone icy as he said Jade's title. "We monitor all points of
access. Including the air shafts. Not to mention the vents carried
the...noise the two of you were making." Max blushed slightly. Jade
simply frowned.
"What were the two of you thinking?" Virgil burst out. "Max is the
Mighty One! The {fullfillment : fulfillment} of {procephy :
prophesy}! He has no time for...lollygagging!" The {dimmunitive :
diminutive} Lemurian paced about the office, clearly agitated.
Max froze, his face twisted in extreme pain and {apocolyptic :
apocalyptic} rage. "You piece of..." He stormed out of the office.
****
In his days with the Umbra Via, Black had learned well the power of
having {independant : independent} financing. {Goverment :
Government} money was not something that was one hundred percent
reliable. Therefore, one of his first acts as head of Section
Thirteen was to use part of the budget to buy up some of the
buildings around the warehouse that housed Section Thirteen's
entrance. That done, he'd then set up a shipping company that
actually did a fairly brisk {bisnuess : business} and by proxy,
funded Section Thirteen's activities.
As time had marched on, he'd purchased a few other companies and
buildings, invested money and then buried it all in a web of stocks
and shared partnerships. Section Thirteen was almost completely
{independantly : independently} funded now and within a few more
years, they'd be completely on their own. That didn't mean he
wouldn't take {goverment : government} money, but at least they
wouldn't have to rely on bureaucratic funding.
Among the buildings he'd purchased was a seven story office building
{adjecent : adjacent} to the entrance warehouse. It's rooftop
offered a great view of San Francisco and the bay at night. It was
there that Black found Virgil who was staring at the moon as it rose
over the Gate.
"Yes and no." Virgil sighed and turned away from the view. "The
Mighty One was called upon to halt the...excesses of a being named
Dionus, one of the...results of {Zues : Zeus}' fascination with
mortal women. Felix and Bea were caught in one of his rampages. Felix
remains in a coma to this day at Stanford Medical."
Virgil sighed. "What you must understand is that Skullmaster is
beyond anything you have faced. Shendu craved power yes, but he had
pleasures, appetites. You could {outhink : outthink} him, use those
against him. Skullmaster...is beyond such things. He does not know
pain or fear. Empathy of any kind is an alien concept to him."
"He came from me...so to speak. When I first knew him, he was the
sixth son of an Atalantean Nobleman, who was in line for the throne.
At the time, Lemuria passed on its knowledge freely to whoever sought
it. We instructed students from all over the world. China, Japan,
Persia, Atlantis. But there were things we did not pass on. Lemuria
had been entrusted with many artifacts and secrets. Each and every
Lemurian was sworn to to {gaurd : guard} those secrets.
When he who would become Skullmaster came to me, seeking knowledge, I
was struck by his mind. It was agile, quick, powerful. The most
complicated {mathamatical : mathematical} concepts were nothing to
him, nothing. I forgot myself and led him into other
territories...theories and concepts we ourselves had sworn never to
explore. I showed him some of the secrets we had kept safe for
{millenia : millennia}." Virgil shivered. "In the end, I believe that
whatever was left of him held me responsible, or perhaps he simply
wished to eliminate opposition. He sunk Atlantis and destroyed
Lemuria. Norman was born soon after to the Viking Clans of the far
north. The surviving Lemurians and Atalanteans journeyed north to see
if the signs were true. We knew that the Mighty One was coming, had
known for some time, but we did not wish to dwell on it."
Virgil nodded. "We questioned Norman's father closely and determined
that yes, Norman was in fact, the {Gaurdian : Guardian}. However, his
father demanded that we leave. He cared very little for our
{procephies : prophesies} and our woes. The Atalanteans were offered
sanctuary, but the Lemurians were...requested to leave. We returned
to Lemuria and the one treasure we had managed to keep safe. Max's
Cosmic Cap."
"Not entirely. You must understand, Augustus, humans are unique.
Every race on this planet {posesses : possesses} certain traits that
align it with one side or the other of the Cosmic Balance. Humans do
not {posess : possess} these traits. You are totally and completely
{nuetral : neutral}, as is the cap. In human hands, especially the
hands of a Chosen One, or even the Mighty One, a certain...resonance
is created, enabling the cap to do more then just open portals to
different places on earth. In the hands of a human, the cap can take
the wearer to places, to realms..." Virgil made a strange noise.
"Destinations meant not for mortals, shall we say. There, Time and
Space become theoretical concepts. Once there, the wearer can tap
into the cosmic energies that power the cosmos itself."
"Wrong. The cap will do this in the hands of any {Chosesn : Chosen}
One. For all that he's twisted himself, changed, {sacrficed :
sacrificed} his humanity...Skullmaster is still human...and a Chosen
One."