Author's Note:  Written for the Villainous Past challenge.

Newspapers had become a thing of the past ever since projected interactive media had become available. Reporters had also been rendered obsolete by the new technology for there was no reason to have someone report the news when all the information relating to the event was freely available in the mediastream. Anyone at any time could do in-depth studies on a chosen subject or event with no need to have it portioned out in stories that frequently left out vital information or lacked proper follow-up.

Rick Cagle pushed his cart of discarded newspapers toward the trash bin at the end of the hall. The old newspaper building was being cleared out for a development project, and Rick's team had been called in to empty all the junk left behind.

As he was tossing the papers into the bin, a picture caught his eye. Pulling the article out of the heap for a better look, Rick was startled to see his own face staring back at him from a front page story about a murderous criminal called The Chemist.

Rick checked the date on the paper before leaving his cart where it was and running to the back storeroom where the old archives were kept. He dug through drawer after drawer of dusty reports and paper hardcopy while looking for anything else on The Chemist. What he discovered was chilling.

Several years ago, The Chemist launched an attack on the city that left thousands dead. Declared the worst villain to ever plague mankind, The Chemist was ultimately halted by the hero Mind Master. Rick had an uneasy feeling when he read the hero's name, but the reason flickered like a spark in the back of his mind, just beyond his ability to reach or see it clearly.

He didn't know what to think. He had a good job and a wife; how could he be a murderous villain with the blood of thousands on his hands? He knew where he grew up and the things he'd done all his life, and being super-villain wasn't one of them. Furthermore, if he was a killer and had been caught, why was he walking around free? Nothing about what he'd found made any sense, so he started digging deeper into the records for the answers.

Countless news stories had been written about villains of one name or another terrorizing here or there, always in some bid for power or world domination. From what he could piece together, all of them had vanished about the same time as Mind Master had defeated The Chemist.  It made him wonder where they'd all gone.

In the back of an old police file paper-clipped to a worn article, Rick discovered an address for one of The Chemist's old headquarters. Rick questioned the wisdom in digging any deeper as the place was probably abandoned or cleared out by the police. Another thought of caution was that the place might be rigged with traps to snare anyone trying to enter uninvited. Rick knew it seemed like a fool's errand, but he had to know why The Chemist had his face.

   ***   

The old warehouse was boarded up on every side. The windows were dirty and smudged, preventing him from seeing inside. Rick was wondering if there was any way of getting in when he noticed some of the brick wall looked fuzzy and out of focus. He stepped closer and tried to touch it with his hand only to have his hand go straight through the wall. Rick pulled his hand back immediately and found it to still be in working order. Trying to touch the wall again created the same result with his hand passing straight through the brick as easily as through a brick colored fog. This time, however, Rick took a deep breath and stepped forward, walking past the wall and into the building.

The warehouse was stacked with piles of crates and old cardboard boxes. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust and appeared unused and untouched for years. Suddenly, a projector concealed among the exposed rafters activated, shining down to create a semi-transparent image of Rick.

"Welcome back," the hologram of Rick said. "If you're wondering about the wall you used to get inside, the bricks have been chemically treated to spread out their atomic structure when your DNA is recognized. Only you can get in, and only you can hear this message. If you don't know what I'm talking about, Mind Master got to you and wiped away everything you were, but don't worry because I prepared for that possibility. I created a potion to restore your memory, my memory. Drink it now and everything will be made clear to you."

A disk in the floor slid aside, and a cylindrical pedestal an inch across rose out of the dust until it was as high as Rick's chest. Clipped into a holder on the top of the pedestal was a vial containing a red fluid. The liquid glowed slightly in the dim light of the warehouse. Rick didn't know what to think, but too much had happened to make him consider walking away. Good, bad, or indifferent, he had to know the truth. Taking the vial, he uncorked the stopper with the edge of his thumb and drank the contents.

The liquid had the consistency of pancake syrup but the taste of rust. Rick wanted very much to spit it out, but it stuck to his tongue and slid ever so slowly to his stomach, leaving a lasting taste in his mouth. A rush of memories awakened in his mind. People, names, dates, horrid and terrible events all crowded together as his past came fully back to him.

He wasn't Rick Cagle. His real name was Joel Caslin, The Chemist. He'd been a titan among mortals, and the world trembled in fear of him. However, everything had been torn away and replaced by fabricated memories of a life that had never existed. Killing him would have been a mercy, but the reality was a horror beyond compare. His past was a lie. His wife was a lie, just another brain wiped villain. It was all a lie!

Joel Caslin, The Chemist, clenched his hands into fists, shaking with fury. Mind Master had failed to kill him when given the chance. The Chemist would make him sorry he hadn't killed him. The whole world would be sorry.