Superhero Adventures, UK Style

The Irish ‘hero’ Illustrious has been in the public eye since 1919 but it has been rebuilt numerous times. The Illustrious is a mecha, versions of which have been piloted by various people since the Aontacht Éire (Irish Unity) was first formed.

It was initially named after the battleship HMS Illustrious, which was decommissioned and scrapped in 1916 at Haulbowline Island, Cork. Some of her armour plating was subsequently used in the construction of the first Illustrious Mecha, which initially was little more than a walking bulldozer.

The Illustrious Mecha first saw service with the Aontacht Éire in the Easter Riot in 1919 when Irish republicans tried to end British rule in Ireland and establish an independent Irish Republic after the end of the First World War. The riot was stopped peacefully by the team, there were no subsequent executions of rioters and a meaningful devolved government was enacted which brought a unified Éire into the Second World War alongside the rest of Britain.

There were a number of public conflicts between the Catholic South and Protestant North, which threatened to erupt into a Civil War however the public disorder was put down by Aontacht Éire, a combined team recruited from both communities.  They subsequently became an Irish government-sponsored national superhero team that has continued to serve Ireland to the present day.

Sectarianism in politics and education was banned in 1937 further reuniting the two communities though occasional outbreaks of religious intolerance and terrorism have continued through to the present day.

The attempted invasion of Southern Eire in 1941 lead by the Third Reich’s Eugenics Brigade was subsequently defeated by unexpected storms in the North Sea which resulted in two thirds of the invading force drowning before they reached landfall (as a result of the Treaty of Lyonesse) and then having to face the combined efforts of the Aontacht Éire, the Crown Guard and British Commandos on the beaches.

After the war, although some still wanted total independence, the Irish Republican Brigade lacked the popular support of a then war-weary people. Terrorist attacks were still carried out on the mainland with the most successful being the assassination of Queen Elizabeth II in 2014 during a total blackout caused by Irish Metas, Emerald and NegaWatt which also resulted in the deaths of multiple citizens across London.

Pilots ~ The initial pilot and suit designer was Christian Brennan who built a diesel-powered hydraulic brute exo-suit. He improved the suit several times before retiring in the 1930’s and passing the latest version of the suit / mecha onto his son. The suit is numbered after its pilots and not its rebuilds and upgrade versions.

Illustrious II – Samuel (Sammy) Brennan piloted the suit from 1939 until the early 50’s. The suit was subsequently mothballed until 1975.

Illustrious III – piloted by Shane MacCarty, son of Colm MacCarty (a support worker for the team and friend) from the 1975 until 1989 when he was killed by the terrorist Emerald.

Illustrious IV – his son Rory MacCarty piloted the suit for a few months in the early 90’s having taken the Illustrious suit out of retirement until he joined the Army. He was disabled out after being injured in the Bosnian War 1995. He subsequently joined the Covert Surveillance Bureau, a secret arm of G.R.E.E.T., The Galactic Reception Embassy for Extra-Terrestrials. The suit was subsequently mothballed for over 25 years in a lock up in Wessex.

Illustrious V – currently piloted by Rory’s daughter Mary MacCarty (after the suit was rebuilt by Max Challenger-Wildeman and Rory MacCarty) over the last year.

The latest version of the Illustrious has jets on its feet and forearms (the latter double as air cannons) which allows it to fly, the hydraulics of its powerful legs allow it to leap and run at speed and is extremely strong.

The rest of its weaponry are all non-lethal and are primary designed for riot dispersal or prisoner restraint – blinding lights, sonic attacks, riot dye sprays, tasers, restraint riot foam, bolos and a full sensory suite built into the head unit.

Other current members of the Aontacht Éire are Ulster, Crimson & Clover, Druidess, Nereid (from Lyonesse), Ruadàn and Timeslip.