Zeros 2 Heroes - The People's Publisher

Codename: Deutschmaschine
TV series
Season 3

Season 3's working title would be 'War in Heaven', in which a schism in the United World Economic Council threatens the very fabric of society. For the first time in the series, Connell is seen as vulnerable since he is forced into the spotlight.

Main premise #1

The Mik-Centennial Group fights for its right to remain a member of the Council despite vast amounts of evidence against it. Zahra Haarland wants this badly since losing the seat would render her prey to all other lesser corporations. She also needs the connection to the Council to advance her secret cause.

Main premise #2

At the same time, Deutschmaschine must combat a shadowy outfit that uses hackers and programmers as living repositories and conduits for special endeavors, threatening world security. Their brains and an induced vegetative state increase their neural responses, allowing them to commonly become the world's most lethal hacking supercomputer.

Season Premiere: The Quick and the Dread
Deutschmaschine (as Mariana Steinberg), Karalee Haarland and her mother Zahra attend a preliminary hearing. After a brief argument, Itsuki Saito, head of the committee, admits the case in special court. Connell, threatened by Winters, strikes a shady deal involving the protection of Toson Zaibatsu interests. Wiretrip, in special care due to his comatose state, is kidnapped by assailants unknown. Codename Copper, separated from Colonel Winters, begins suffering from chemical dependencies related to his cybernetic augmentation, and ponders revealing Deutschmaschine's identity to the highest bidder. Lorie is notified of Wiretrip's kidnapping; she embarks on a mission to track down Mail Veillans and enlist his help.

Story Arc 1: Bluefire
Evidence is steadily being piled up against Mik-Centennial. Connell is revealed to be working with the Toson Zaibatsu in providing and archiving evidence for the trial. Copper goes to the one man he's told has need of everything but never reveals his hand: casino mogul Edgar Lemaitre, who, uninterested by the secrets Copper keeps, will offer him employment instead.

Sub-Plot: Intelligence 3.0
Deutschmaschine, infiltrating the technological high-rise of Tokyo, tracks down and finally corners Connell. He reveals that he works for the CIA, and that his government has no obligations towards Mik-Centennial, whose headquarters are established in a foreign country. He hints at another, more dangerous plot, but is unable to reveal more.

Sub-Plot: Love by any other name
Against all hope, Lorie will find Mail Veillans with Karalee?s help. She informs him of Wiretrip's kidnapping and asks for his help. He will initially decline until she bribes him into complying with considerable and surprising assets.

Sub-Plot: Snake Handling
Eager for more allies, Alex Galliano strikes a deal with Teresa Clarke, springing her from prison legally in exchange for her cooperation in bringing down Mik-Centennial. They will slowly amass data and attempt to submit it to the inquiry against Mik-Centennial through its head security officer, Connell.

Story Arc 2: The Sins of the Father
Karalee is in attendance on behalf of Mik-Centennial dexterously rebuking all sorts of allegations, i.e. prostitution, drug trade, lobbying, discrimination against men and slavery, when a revelation is made by Connell: her deceased father Nikolai Haarland's connection to an illegal German military project called Panzertraum. When the three representatives finally discuss the issue in private, Zahra chooses to fire Deutschmaschine for everyone's protection.

Sub-Plot: Karma
Mail Veillans tracks Wiretrip's implant serial to Edgar Lemaitre's secret compound and urges Lorie to spring him out of there fast. In doing so, he sends her out of harm's way: he secretly summons Lemaitre's security his way. Unfortunately, Codename Copper is dispatched and despite a worthy fight, Mail Veillans is assassinated in cold blood.

Sub-Plot: League of Character Assassins
Alex Galliano, ever the shrewd businessman, manages to track down Colonel Winters. Mentioning Winters' failure to deliver Deutschmaschine, he strong-arms him into joining his special delegation meant to take down Mik-Centennial once and for all by allying with the Toson Zaibatsu. Winters, seeing the potential to renew his corporate funding, reluctantly accepts.

Story Arc 3: Higher Ground
Lorie fails to deliver her lover: Wiretrip is found in one of the most unattainable reaches of Earth: Mik-Centennial's Sky Space Resort, the world's only entertainment satellite, guarded by Copper in a permanent luxury suite owned by Edgar Lemaitre. He and several kidnapped hackers are bound to the first human-powered computer ever, intend on hijacking satellite signals to hack into every database imaginable.

Sub-Plot: Lift-off
Deutschmaschine catches up to Lorie in time to learn about Wiretrip's location and condition. Hijacking a shuttle Lorie has always studied and dreamt to fly, they lift off, intent on reached the Sky Space Resort and exposing Edgar Lemaitre's threachery.

Sub-Plot: The Rise and Fall of a Foul Alliance
Karalee and Zahra Haarland, along with their lawyers, are left to fend off the accusations brought by Connell and Itsuki Saito when Alex Galliano, Colonel Winters and Teresa Clarke are brought in to testify against Mik-Centennial. With these odds stacked against them, it seems the battle is lost.

Sub-Plot: MetaConductivity
As Wiretrip is freed from cyberslavery, he uplinks with Connell by hijacking powerful satellite signals. The strength and danger of the high-resolution connection threatens to destroy Connell's cerebrum, and he agrees to relay the evidence Wiretrip amassed while connected to the Rampage program against his best wishes, upsetting Galliano's and unwillingly betraying the pact with Winters.

Sub-Plot: First Law of Business
When made aware of the loss of the Rampage Unit, Edgar Lemaitre, safe in his beach manor, deactivates the Sky Space Resort's thruster systems as well as detonating a bomb on board. Almost instantly, the station begins spiraling back towards Earth, to destroy all evidence left on board - as well as its unfortunate occupants.

Season Finale: Wotan Falls

Wiretrip's timely intervention reveals Alex Galliano's alliance with the Toson Zaibatsu, invalidating the trial process with proof of cartel involvement. As the Sky Space Resort fails, Deutschmaschine, Lorie and the exhausted Wiretrip assist the emergency evacuation efforts before leaving themselves. A pitched battle with Copper stalls everyone until they strike a truce in order to make it out alive. Following Connell's betrayal, the exiled President of the Unites States is assassinated by a cybernetic warrior on live television. The shuttle Deutschmaschine, Lorie, Wiretrip and Copper are in just barely manages to disengage and attempt the return home when the space resort suffers a dramatic collapse, plunging after them in a mass of fiery debris. TO BE CONTINUED...