Microstory 174: Anton Vann

This is an experimental Bellevue Profile microstory. The introduction can be found in Microstory 101. More to follow.

Anton Coriolis Vann (real name) was a good little Amadesin, and all for the violent nature of his religion that his family and friends instilled in him as a child. But unlike his twin brother, he was sympathetic to his sister, Wilma’s distaste for the “family business”. He kept the secret of her vigilantism from the rest of the community for years. He was also smarter than his brother, Otto. He modified the traditional soul-squeezing techniques so that they were less physically painful, and slower. He chose to torture his victims much more deliberately than his fellow Amadesins, and primarily psychologically. As a result, the number of converts he managed to create was much higher than the average. Fortunately for the rest of the world, Amadesins were stubborn and foolhardy, and refused to adopt his new techniques. If they had, their numbers would have increased beyond control. Anton was actually pretty fascinated by his own ability, and tried to practice it on his own time. He could manipulate the nitrogen and oxygen in the surrounding air to create small explosions. Had he been stronger, he may have been able to cause more massive explosions, but Bellevue researchers believed his damaged soul prevented him to excelling. Upon channeling his ability, Helen Larkin discovered that his ability had several other applications that Anton never knew about. He could have progressed the field of food preservation, agricultural fertilization, and steel manufacturing. He even could have generated nitrous oxide laughing gas, and manipulated his victims more precisely. The world never really got to see the good side of Anton Vann. His upbringing prevented him from making the right decisions, and having a desire to help others. His death at a young age also prevented scientists from being able to study his biology and replicate his ability in creative ways.