MAJOR DEEJ UNIVERSE

Jerome Santos, an independent Engineering designer and founder of his own engineering company, Santos Systems Inc., was building a revolutionary suit he called "Builder Armor", using modern technology and designs gleaned from G.U.A.R.D., licensed designs from the now-defunct Dynamtronics Industries and US government patents. This "Builder Armor" was designed to be used in dangerous conditions and environments to effect repairs on bridges, dams and relatively shallow undersea engineering projects, all for a competitive proposal for the US Army Corp of Engineers. It was a marvel of modern technology...until the energy field business made the suit nearly obsolete overnight.

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Jerome had spent over a decade of his life, infusing over $350 million in loans, grants and government money into the project and sacrificing his time from his young family, all in order to attempt to achieve his dream of making the perfect suit for what the Army Corps of Engineers said they wanted so badly. Sadly, the year that Santos Systems Inc. delivered their armor to the US Government for the contract, Walker Technologies also submitted their design.  The Walker "Safety Bubble" Belt used overlayered energy fields that enveloped and covered an engineer or worker instead of a clunky suit.  Walker's cost was 1/10th that of Santos' armor. The translucent field of the 'Safety Bubble' allowed engineers/workers to see everything all around him/her clearly, unlike the bulky, helmet and limited vision of face shield view you could only get with Santos' design. Also the Safety Bubble was made to fit onto a belt; Santos' armor would take time to get into and prepare, thus Walker's design was much quicker and more in line price-wise to what the government now wanted. As such, the contract was awarded to Walker Technologies, leaving Santos Systems bankrupt and Jerome a broken man.

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As a result, Jerome became a bitter and angry man. His wife and children tried to help alleviate his anger and frustration, but instead, he distanced himself away from them, for fear he might do something to them he'd regret. As such, he attempted to sell his design to other contractors, but found no buyers. Jerome and his family lost their palatial Sacramento home and had to move to a rental home in a small, bankrupt town called 'Oroville' in northern California. The town there was mostly made up of out-of-work residence and welfare check recipients. It had a rural town charm to it, but with the changes in social media and interaction, the town was barren and the business were all drying up, leaving the Santos' family again in a position that they most likely would have to move again to someplace where there was work.  That's of course when things got even worse for Jerome and his family.

 

After days of unending rain, the nearby Lake Oroville was filled beyond capacity. With a heavy winter season's snow melt-off, coupled with the inundating rainfall, the lake was starting to overflow its massive earthen dam (2nd largest earth dam in the world) walls. The spillway was not able to drain off the water fast enough from the lake.  As such, the dam came under an enormous strain, all compounded by the rapidly eroding exposed earth and rock at the base of the spillway (the spillway cement ramp was never extended to cover the exposed rock and earth, all of which made up the base of the dam). This weakened the dam's base, causing the dam's wall to shift; a shift that meant an inevitable rupture. The town of Oroville, with a population of over 20,000, had less than 1/2 hour to evacuate.

 

Jerome and his family, all now living in Oroville, heard the sirens and saw the news. They had to evacuate immediately.

 

Jerome began helping his family pack up to leave when he got an idea.  He thought he might be able to help brace up the base of the dam using his Builder Armor and either lengthen the time before for the dam wall's rupture or maybe even stop it.  Without a second thought, and without any word to his wife or children, Jerome ran out of the house, took the family's ONLY car, and made off to the Oroville Storage Facility and Warehouse which Jerome had contracted to store his failed company's equipment until it could be sold at auction. Jerome believed he could heroically don his Builder Armor, fly off to the dam and save the day, making himself a hero, and of course, have his company's 'famous' Builder Armor, the 'armor that saved Oroville', built and sold by the thousands for companies and governments all across the world. At least...that's what was going on it Jerome's head as he continued driving to the warehouse's location.

 

Jerome's family, however, was dumbstruck by his sudden departure. He didn't even say where he was going or why...he just...left. It seemed as if he'd simply abandoned his family in the face of danger.  Jerome's wife, Carla, realizing she and the children needed to leave now, attempted to get her neighbors to help take them and/or her children to safely in their cars, however, a majority of these neighbors didn't even own cars thanks to the town's terrible economy.  Instead, people grabbed up bags of their things (including gaming consoles, laptop computers and kitchen 'air fryers') and tried running or walking out of town...some of them, unwittingly, in the same direction as the dam.  Carla, awestruck at the 'Twilight Zone' images she was seeing, instead, ran several blocks up to Main Street, all the while looking for ANY car. Finally, after several minutes of running around, she saw a car repair garage owner leave in his car and zoom away. Seeing cars in the back of the shop, she broke the shop's front window, went behind the counter, got a key ring and paired it to a car in the garage. She then drove the car through the (closed) garage door and sped back home. Once there, she grabbed up the now frightened children, leaving behind their possessions, and drove off to exit the town via the only one road available. As she sped down the road, it seemed everyone else in town who had a car was just now getting on the road as well...all at the same time. The expletives Carla uttered under her breath would've made even a sailor blush, as she zig-zagged out of the lethargic drivers all now trying to leave town...with mere minutes to spare before the dam was said to give way...and all without her absentee husband as well.

 

Meanwhile, at the warehouse, Jerome donned his Builder Armor but quickly realized that the suit wasn't loaded with jet or rocket fuel (against OSHA safety regulations), thus there was no way he could fly to the dam. Instead, he'd have to drive...but try as he might, Jerome, in the Builder Suit, couldn't even fit through the car door, nonetheless drive the car while wearing the suit. Jerome had to get out of the armor, throw it in the back of the car, and finally drove at breakneck speeds to the dam...with only minutes until the dam was said to break.

 

Enroute to the dam, Jerome encountered numerous abandoned cars left in the middle of the road, as it seems their driver decided to climb up and scale the mountainous cliffs of the valley instead to seek safety. As such, Jerome had to ram and push several cars off the road to get them out of the way to continue driving up to the dam.  Once there, Jerome donned his Builder Suit (once again), all while strategizing how he was going to help stop or slow down the breach. Coming to a relatively thought-out conclusion, Jerome believed he needed to shore-up the non-water side of the dam to save it.  As he was donning his helmet, Jerome heard a noise above him.

 

When Jerome looked up to see what the incoming noise was, he saw the famous Protectors super-group's leader, Protechtor, fly overhead and dive down into the water on the water-side of the Oroville Dam, obviously trying to attempt to save the dam...but as far as Jerome was concerned, on the wrong side of the dam.

 

Jerome jumped down into the water-side of the dam right behind Protechtor. After falling a bit into the murky waters,  Jerome saw the glowing lights from Protechtor's armor and swan to Protechtor's location.  Once there, he saw Protechtor using the Walker Technology 'Safety Bubble' Belts, wrapped around rocks located at the base of the dam's breach, that, when activated, acted as large force field-like 'sandbags'. It looked like a neat idea, but as far as Jerome was concerned, it was being done on the wrong side of the dam. Jerome tried to get Protechtor's attention. In doing so, Jerome grabbed Protechtor by the arm to get his attention. Protechtor was startled and instead attacked Jerome, thinking Jerome was some sort of armored supervillain (Writer's Note: To be fair, Protechtor, in his early career, was routinely attacked every time he tried to help out someone; as such, this was almost a reflex action for him! -Additional Informational Deej). A fight quickly broke out between the two, wasting precious minutes of their time.  Finally, Jerome made a hand signal of a 'T' (for 'Time Out') to Protechtor and signaled Protechtor to listen on a frequency number Jerome identified using his fingers as numbers.  By the time Protechtor set his receptors to the frequency, it was too late.

 

Carla, after having spent the last 20 minutes to find and steal a car to help save herself and her children, was finally on her way out of town, zig-zagging through the broken traffic, but making progress...until the traffic came to a dead halt. Blocked off for nearly a mile, Carla saw an accident on the bridge down river; an accident and traffic jam that was now holding up the entire evacuation of those left on the only road out of town. To finalize Carla's worst day ever, the car's engine sputtered and died while it was idling at standstill in the traffic. No matter how hard Carla turned the key on the car to try and restart it, the engine wouldn't turn over.

 

That's when the Oroville Dam finally gave way.

 

Protechtor and Jerome were violently swept into the vortex of wall's breach, and were shot like a bullet with the massive watery burst through the dam's disintegrated wall face. Both of them tumbled head-over-heels uncontrollably in the towering 60 foot tall wall of water that was now cascading down the Feather River and into the valley below...and straight for Oroville.

 

Hours later...

 

Jerome awoke splayed across the top of a massive uprooted tree sticking out of the side of a mangled and destroyed bridge, dangling over 70 feet above the rock and debris that was once Oroville and the Feather River. Jerome recognized the damaged bridge; it was the same one he saw 30 miles downriver from (what was once) the town of Oroville. Jerome's armor's systems had all failed and any movement seemed to place him more precariously over the edge of the tree's broken branches. When Jerome tried to move himself to a better position, he quickly realized...he could not feel or use his legs.

 

Jerome's legs had been broken and pulverized during his unfortunate ride downriver with the rest of Lake Oroville.

 

Jerome finally opened and dropped his helmet onto the rocks below (where it shattered) and surveyed his plight and situation a bit further. Looking down at the base of the same bridge-impaled tree, Jerome saw Protechtor crushed under the same tree he was on.  Jerome tried to call out to awaken Protechtor, but Protechtor didn't respond. Knowing a fall from this height could be fatal, Jerome had no other option than to wait for help...or for Protechtor to eventually wake up...unless of course Protechtor was already dead. Nonetheless, wait, Jerome did.

 

An hour later, Protechtor finally came to. He ripped his helmet off, gasping for air, caused by his internal oxygen system finally running out of air.  That's when Jerome saw who was actually wearing the armor; it was the CEO of Walker Technologies himself, Aaron Walker. Jerome yelled down to Protechtor/Aaron for help. Aaron seeing Jerome, quickly redonned his helmet, opened some air vents, and pulled himself out from under the tree, almost jarring Jerome out of the tree in the process. Protechtor then tried to fly to Jerome with his jet boots, but the boot jets simply fizzled out, leaving Protechtor looking very vulnerable and Jerome still stuck atop the tree. Protechtor, realizing he wasn't able to help Jerome, instead, said he was going to climb the river banks and get up onto the road above and follow it and try to find some help. Protechtor did so...and was never seen that day again by Jerome.

 

It wasn't until later that night that a military helicopter crew found Jerome in the tree and rescued him, cutting off Jerome's armor to get him to safety (the armor was too heavy for the helo, according to the pilot).  Once at the triage center, Jerome was immediately taken in and put under anesthesia while they operated on him.

 

When Jerome awoke in a hospital in Sacramento days later, he had two less legs.

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An hour after that, Jerome's doctors told his of the massive body trauma he'd received including spine and brain injuries that would most likely keep him bedridden, requiring reconditioning and retraining for the rest of his life.

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Hours after that, Jerome was told his family was found and confirmed dead. Jerome's wife and children were discovered all dead inside a submerged car found 40 miles downriver...past where even Jerome was found. Only dental records aided in identifying their bodies.

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An hour after that, Jerome's hospital room TV showed the news about the dam bursting. They stated that over 530 people were either confirmed or presumed dead as a result of the dam's rupture and that thanks to the efforts of the famous superhero Protechtor, minutes of valuable, vital time in stopping the dam from collapsing aided dozens of fortunate townsfolks to escape to safety in time. Protechtor was to be awarded the state's highest honors in a ceremony at the state capitol later next week. The TV made no mention about Jerome or of any other 'armored person' trying to help. Only Protechtor, the 'Hero of Oroville', was identified and lauded a hero by the news media and the state government.

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Jerome lost EVERYTHING...and lost EVERYONE he'd ever cared for. Instead, a loser superhero who didn't save him or anyone else was receiving a hero's accolade. His family dead, his body broken beyond repair, his career and job gone, and now, even what little Jerome believed he tried to do was taken from him. Jerome fell into a very dark place in his mind; a dark place that to this day, he has never emerged from.

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That night, Jerome attempted to commit suicide...and failed at that too when a nurse was lucky enough to be able to stop him.

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After weeks in the psyche ward, Jerome, heavily medicated and still on a suicide watch, began to believe that Protechtor, Aaron Walker, was to blame for all of his misery. If Protechtor hadn't distracted and fought Jerome, Jerome believed he could have done something...anything...other than fail. Once again, Jerome became bitter and angry, seething about his string of misfortune and loss.

 

He now deduced that all of this was Protechtor's fault.

 

PROTECHTOR stole the contract from him. PROTECHTOR didn't know how to stop the dam's collapse. PROTECHTOR prevented Jerome from trying to save his family and the town. PROTECHTOR left Jerome up in a tree, helpless...and never came back for him.  PROTECHTOR was to blame. PROTECHTOR had to die for what he'd done to Jerome and his family. It was the only way, in Jerome's now demented mind, to make his losses meaningful.

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With that, Jerome planned out his revenge...and how to become 'a new man'.

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Over the next year, Jerome convinced the medical staff he didn't need to be on suicide watch anymore, and instead, convinced the staff to get the media to help air his side of his story. He needed people to help him 'get a fresh start' and 'help pay the hospital bills'. The caring California community (and the rest of the world) was more than happy to toss money at Jerome's new 'Help Jerome Get a 'Leg' Back in Life' foundation and charity drive.  Thanks to generous donations, Jerome was able to afford getting artificial legs and a new experimental back support brace. With those, he learned how to walk again, using the media to show them every step of his recovery...and to ensure the public kept sending more money to aid him in overcoming his unfortunate plight.

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As with all things, litigation occurred against the lake's spillway managers and other state and local officials, resulting in each 'victim' of the Oroville Dam burst receiving an average of $1.1 million in compensation. Jerome's foundation raked in an additional $10 million, making him an instant millionaire; a millionaire who had NO intention of paying his existing hospital bills with his new wealth. Instead, Jerome packed up his things and snuck out of the United States to set Phase II of his plan into motion.

 

Jerome took his millions of dollars and ran off to the rogue island nation of Oceania.

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There, Jerome contacted Oceania's Zenith Labs Director. After several meetings and several phone calls (and a down payment of nearly $11 million, Jerome was taken to the site's secret labs where, for the next few months, Jerome underwent multiple surgeries, grafting and cyborg integrations to what was once his base 'Builder Armor' design, but now, designed to be more powerful and stronger than ever before. In the end, Jerome had fused his body into his armor's suped-up frame and endo-skeleton and became a powerful cyborg, all courtesy of Zenith Labs. Of course, Zenith Labs ensured that their patients would have an incentive to 'pay' for their surgical miracles by implanting a mini-bomb in the patient/client's brain so that if payment isn't received on time, the bomb would go off and the patient/victim would no long get the use of their new body - ever.

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After learning how to operate his new cyborg body, Jerome travelled back to California and attacked Walker Technologies, demanding to fight Protechtor. Jerome told nobody that Aaron Walker was Protechtor simply because Jerome wanted to defeat and unmask Protechtor in front of  the world all by himself.  When Protechtor showed up, the two fought an epic battle, devastating nearly 1/3 of Walker Technologies facilities. In the end, Protechtor not only won, but put Jerome into a coma as a result of the battle's injuries. It was when Protechtor took off his assailant's helmet that Protechtor/Aaron recognized who it was; the same guy he'd fought at the dam; the same guy he saw stuck in a tree after the dam burst; the same guy he'd told the police to go help save while Protechtor was trying to save dozens of other people in greater peril than Jerome was at the time, all while sporting severely damaged armor, most of which didn't work.  All Protechtor could say was, "This is devastating".  Of course the media took it as calling the cyborg man/monster as 'Devastator', and thus Jerome got his new code name by proxy.

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Months later, Jerome awoke from his coma...in Zenith Labs, deep underground in their San Francisco facility. There, Jerome was fixed and repaired and 'educated' about his bill, all with a proper hint to go join a group called "Demolition Party", who would be waiting for him to join them and to start earning money to pay back for his new (and repaired) cyborg body...and start plotting for his next attack of revenge on Protechtor (who was considered a serious thorn in the side of Zenith Labs).  As such, they offered Jerome a 20% discount on Jerome's total bill AND provide free upgrades and repairs should Jerome actually defeat and kill Protechtor. With too few of choices, Jerome took the deal.

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Today, Jerome AKA "Devastator" is a member of the Demolition Party. Armed with his latest 'Explodo-Staff', Devastator aids his 'allies' in robberies, demolitions and fighting with other superheroes. He's had a few more run-ins with Protechtor, however, Protechtor has ALSO upgraded his armor, making Protechtor harder to kill.

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Jerome misses his family deeply. He finds himself in fits of despair and sadness on many occasions when he's alone and by himself, but comes out of it only long enough to ensure he places their deaths squarely on Protechtor's/Aaron Walker's shoulders.  Jerome intends to destroy Aaron Walker, his business and the Protechtor armor...eventually. Until then, he has to earn enough money and get better armoring, weapons and equipment upgrades to be able to actually kill Protechtor. Jerome knows he'll continue to be stuck working for Zenith Labs and the Demolition Party until he finally gets what he wants - utter revenge, and then, he intends to 'go visit his wife and children' forever...and permanantly.

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