DC Infinity - Animal Man

#16

‘Who IS James Highwater?'

By Ed Ainsworth

James Highwater was trying to take a break from the tiny enforced team he and Vixen had inadvertently created. In the madness that was the last year, Vixen and he had created what was known as the Artificial Red. More importantly, James had stepped outside of his existence and looked back in on it.

And there were some serious implications from it. As he took a deep breath and sighed loudly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Over the last month or so, on the run and avoiding any contact with previous liaisons, or Superheroes, even the Justice League and more importantly Checkmate, James had formed an important relationship with another female member of the group. She was an oceanographer known as The Orca.

“Grace,” James said with a smile. Grace had been stuck in her Orca form for a long time. She had hardened to the world, but her time connected to the artificial Red with the Data-drives from Platinum downloaded into the PDA James carried with them, had strengthened her ties to nature and softened her features as well as her heart.

They shared a brief kiss, and looked into each other's eyes.

“James,” she said gently, wrinkling what would be her nose were she a human. James noticed the tiny difference in her demeanour immediately.

“What's the matter?” he asked.

She looked to her feet. “It's the others James, they're talking about you.”

“What are they saying?”

“I don't know, James. They're...they've all heard things about you...where you're from, who you are. I wanted to ask you...Which is true?”

“Well, Grace.... That's a difficult one.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Parasite....he was aware of the fact that he had no name other than Parasite, but he was in no way related to the Parasites who had plagued Superman, and the other heroes. He was something else entirely. As he looked across the group, there were a number of different unknowns before him. The Ameboid man, who apparently had the name of James, looked across from his drink to the Parasite and across to the others. There were only a few.

“I heard something about Highwater,” The Parasite began, with the others looking up at him. The Coral formation, the Amoeboid man, and the Amphibian Woman.

“What?”

“Okay, here goes.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I heard that James Highwater was more than just a man, and that he was born at the beginning of nature.

With a clap of thunder and the noxious gases that made up the atmosphere swaying with the undulation of the winds, a gelatinous form slowly bubbled into life, the right arrangement of amino-acids and proteases coming together to form, not a consciousness, but the beginnings of the most important thing on the planet Earth.

As the world began to bloom and become more and more diverse, I heard that Highwater became more and more complicated, representing more than just one grouping of animal or even nature.

The ground was covered in thick, primitive monocotyledon grass blades, as tiny creatures moved through them, lizards that grew into Mammals that grew in size and diversity. As the creatures grew and bloomed, so did James. From the first single cellular life, he had evolved and transformed, always there, always present. Watching and learning more and more about the creatures which had developed, and would one day rejoin him within the Red.

There's a rumour that he isn't just a man, that he's the Red given the form of a man, and every time he moves and discovers something, it's stored inside the Red itself. Like some kind of Existential discovery.

As man took over the world, James mutated and became more and more like them. As he moved across the world, he was hailed as a God by the childlike innocence and creativity of the Caveman. Honouring him by painting his form leaping across the plains of the world to hunt animals to eat.

As he moved around the world, with the developing humanity, he gave the understanding and balance of nature to the Aztec, who based their gods on his advice of Nature. His knowledge and abilities led him to Egypt where he took on the forms of many animals, giving the Egyptians their pantheon. He travelled across England where he was believed to be a Lion in a man's body, giving his knowledge to Richard the king with a lions heart, and before that through Scotland, with the grace and power of an elegant Stag.

I heard that he wasn't just part of the Red, that he's the basis for every god in existences. Some kind of Fundamental template that worked its way around the world, and gradually got turned into something else.

“Well that's bullcrap,” Vixen said suddenly, interrupting the Parasite's story.

“How is it?” The Parasite asked, leaning forwards to meet Vixen's gaze.

“Well, I've seen Gods. I've met gods, they exist, so that means that James can't be their “template” right? They don't look anything like him.”

“Don't be stupid, Vixen,” The Amphibian woman began, keeping her hands away from the fire lest they dry out.

“Dolphins are more closely related to Cows than anything else and they look nothing alike.”

“Listen to me,” she began shortly after the silence of Vixen's embarrassment. Mari was normally smarter than that. She could only imagine it was living her life on the run, without feeling anchored or alive properly since she was bound to this...artificial existence.

I heard that after his first adventure, and apparently there was one, he got trapped inside of something more powerful than the Red. I heard he got sucked into this thing called the Continuity and met God there.

James Highwater stood in Space-B. The inter-connective dimension between time and space, where the Yellow skinned aliens that had given birth to Animal Man as well as a number of animal related power items on the planet. In his hands he held the Medusa Mask. His last thoughts were of his time in Arkham Asylum, and of Overman trying to destroy the universe by stepping outside of existence. Luckily, for the inhabitants of planet Earth, as well as Arkham Asylum and Limbo, James had put on the Medusa Mask, and ended the threat of the ethereal Psycho Pirate.

“What...What do you want?” James asked, looking at the two very tall yellow skinned aliens. One of them smiled and stepped forwards.

“James.”

The alien's voice was like a song, each syllable was a different pitch.

“We have a job for you, James Highwater,” the second alien said, putting it's hand on his shoulder and beckoning him to go with them. As they walked down the metallic corridors of their ship, he glanced around, at the hundreds of objects hanging from the walls, like an armoury.

“What are those?” he asked.

The Alien's reply was something to do with items of power. You know the Green Lantern's use those rings, and they can make stuff with them? Well, this was kind of like that. James was going to be a great boon for the planet. The Aliens ended up explaining how he fit into their plan – He was going to be given lots of these items, and sent back out into the world, to bring the powers of nature back to the forefront. He was going to give the world exactly what it needed again – More heroes to do with nature and less protection from Aliens.

The amphibian woman finished her story, and looked to the others. It was met with a look of disbelief from the Amoeboid man, and confusion from the Parasite.

“I heard something completely different, and to be honest, slightly more believable than “Oh, he is the secret spy of some Aliens”. Come on!” The Amoeboid man, rocked forwards, the ciliated sides of his body rippling with every movement, and his transparent features filled only with greenish cytoplasm and tiny cell organelles moving around.

James Highwater is unique in this Universe. There are loads of parallel worlds out there, who knows how many with millions of me's and you's and everyone else on it. Except James Highwater. Whatsmore, James didn't come from a human Mother or Father. He was born in a place so unique, only a few beings have ever travelled there.

Instinct was one thing James had never been able to get out of. While he had learned the human ways, and almost all the knowledge in human existence since he began in this realm, instinct was one thing he couldn't escape from.

As he ran naked through the forest and under the damp leaves, he leapt onto the side of a tree, and ascended it quickly and deftly. As he ascended to the top of the tree, he looked out across his tiny jungle. He saw Monkeys leaping from branch to branch, and a curious man talking to...what looked like the exact same man. It was not his reflection, it was an actual physical copy of himself.

James is from this place called the Jungle of Possibilities, y'see. I heard Buddy Baker went there once himself, and got trapped on a parallel earth*, but James was born there. One day he wasn't there and now he is, he's made from this Jungle's stuff, and turned into a person. He left the Jungle of possibilities to enter our world, and that's how we got him here.

(*See Peter Milligan's run on Animal Man.)

When Buddy left his world, James set about trying to investigate a way for him to follow. Though he eventually managed to get out of the Jungle, he did so through a method so complicated, he cannot completely remember it, thus damning him to walk on our world until our science or magic catches up with him.

James stared off into the distance. He was vaguely aware that he knew so much more than he now does, and also aware of the fact he had travelled backwards in time. His main concern at this point was to establish himself in this world, he needed a place to live, things to eat and understanding, and that wasn't going to come easily.

Walking naked across the Nevada desert, unbeknownst to him, he was walking over what would one day become the Life Power Church of Maxine.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Vixen stared off into space. She'd been told little bits from James before, like how he existed in his plane of existence before, and how, after he'd had an adventure with Buddy, he'd been taken out, and every record of him erased. In fact, the only person who remembered him was Buddy.

James had even told Vixen that they'd met before as well, though she couldn't remember for the life of her. She couldn't remember it, and that scared her a lot. What was powerful enough to make her completely forget someone, to make the whole world forget someone?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What are you doing, James?” Grace asked, as she sat up on the blanket he'd laid down for them. She was relaxed, and happy. James had made love to her for the first time, the first time she'd been tender with anyone since her accident, and run in with Batman. Now she felt more complete than she had in a long time. James had given her something that nobody else could, and it was just the screaming O.

“Oh, go back to sleep honey.” He smiled over his shoulder to her, as he looked down at his laptop, and the box to the side of him. He'd not yet told her what he was working on, but she knew he had a keen interest in physics.

She lay back down, and thought of how happy she was at that moment. She was part of something again, and she had someone to care for her. James really was a nice man, even if he wasn't ready to share where he came from with her. She smiled and closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again. As she sat up slowly, it was clear a lot more time had passed. Had she fallen asleep?

Jame's box was glowing brightly, and on his laptop screen was the same word written in bold type over and over again.

“REMEMBER.”

As Grace sat up, she did so silently. She didn't want to disturb or anger her boyfriend. Was he her boyfriend, or was it something less than that? She wanted him to be her boyfriend, so badly. She moved towards him silently. Within the box, there seemed to be a much larger space then the dimensions would allow. It's contents were intriguing to her;

What looked like a very specialised and elongated version of Hawkman's mask, though tailored for a woman, and more...Owl like? Amongst many others there was a bird of prey, carved from wood and painted with coloured soil laying next to it, a crimson dog shaped amulet, and the fang of an ancient snake.

Grace stepped forwards, her mind racing. What was he trying to remember? What were those objects in his box? As she stepped forwards, her large foot bore down on a brittle, dry twig, snapping it loudly.

James turned around quickly, slamming his laptop shut.

Grace screamed.

His face was featureless and completely Red.

Next Issue: Let's Visit Gorilla City!

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