RKMBs Forums .::Important::. Writer's Block Hero Revolution # 9 (Greetings From Sunny La Perdita!)

<Now THAT was cool.>

"Quiet, you."

Danny was in Michelle's bathroom, making liberal use of her toilet facilities. He flushed, and went to wash his hands.

<You old dog. Lady killer, you are.>

"Don't be stupid..."

<Oh yeah! Beating the women off with a stick, is our boy Danny!>

"Shut up!"

<Almost forgot that I see everything you see and feel everything you feel, didn't you?>

Danny paused. He looked up, into the mirror. And burst out laughing.

"Most people thing having voices in their heads makes them crazy. Never the other way around..."

Danny left the bathroom, and went back to Michelle's bedroom. She was sitting up on her bed, her nightgown draped across herself.

"Hey, you..." She said.

<Ask her if she wants to go again!>

Danny had to stifle a laugh, then said "Hey."

"You know, Danny... just so we're clear here..." She said, a serious look momentarily crossing her face.

"Yeah...?"

"This really didn't mean anything much. No offense, but... you know..."

"Yeah. I know."

"I was scared. Stressed. You saved me. I guess I just needed... company."

"I get it, really. Me, I'm REALLY not ready for a relationship or anything like that myself... I think I was just... glad to be of service."

They both laughed. Danny sat down on the bed next to her.

"You know... a friend of mine has an ex named Michelle," Danny said.

"Really? Well, I guess it's a pretty common name."

"Yeah..." Danny nodded, then fell silent. After a moment, he said, "Well... I should probably get going."

"Right. I should get some sleep, I've got to be up early tomorrow," Michelle replied.

"Okay, well, I'll see you later..." Danny said. He leaned over the bed, and hugged her goodbye. "I might call you sometime. Or something," He quickly added, standing up to leave.

"Sure. Cool. Whatever," Michelle said, as Danny left the room to let himself out.

Well,, Dirk thought to himself, let's recap the night. Hallucinations, mutated octopus hitting on me, fish-man bartender with girls hanging all over him, a dude who claims to be a vampire has his heart ripped out on stage (the same stage that a demon summoned from another plane was doing an Elvis impersonation), and (most importantly) the beer tastes like shit. He stood up and began walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Grimm asked as the gunslinger moved by him.

"Out and about. Things are pretty boring here." Several of the bar's employees ran past to the stage with a broom and dust pan. The band began to pick up again in an attempt to settle down some of the weaker-hearted audience members.

"Some weird shit out tonight. Be careful," Grimm said as caringly as an avatar of death could.

"Don't worry," Dirk quipped as he headed out the door, "I'm wearing clean undies in case I'm in an accident."

The rain beat a hard, quick rythm onto the brim of his fedora. He fastened his trench coat around him, more to protect his guns than himself from the rain. As he boots splashed through the water running down the streets, the gunslinger began to walk like a many with a purpose.

His quest took him to yet another alley. He knew that the establishment would be open at this hour (most people don't like to visit this type of place in the broad daylight). The door looked like any other in the alley. There was nothing special about it. It was just a door. Dirk tapped on it quickly three times, a pause, two more quick taps, another pause, and finished with three slow ones. An electronic buzz sounded, and he pushed the door open.

Inside, the lights were bright; and a sight that would be shocking and frightening was set out almost as if they were in a prestegious art gallery. Guns of any imaginable (and some even unimaginable) type and size surrounded Dirk. This was his temple. His church.

As he rounded the corner that took him to the main counter, his joy was almost totally destroyed. Behind the counter sat the son of one of the most knowledgeable gun dealers in the world. Unfortuantely, the son had the intelligence and know-how of a retarded chicken. Julius McArthur was one of the brightest men Dirk knew, with a lineage of scholars that ran back hundreds of years. Too bad his wife's gene pool was shallow.

"How's it goin', Mike?" Dirk managed to say without gritting his teeth.

"Um...," came the response, "...um....okay." Just as Dirk thought the boy was finished speaking, Mike quickly mumbled, "I'm not gay."

Oh, Christ , the gunslinger thought to himself. "Has my order come in?"

"Um....um...I....um....I'll check," the thick boy staggered to the back, bumping into crates, walls, etc. as he went. "UM....!" came the call from the back. "UM......I.....I DON'T SEE......." A large crashing sound erupted from the back. Dirk jumped the counter and hobbled as quickly as he could to the store room.

Mike lay underneath an overturned filing cabinet. The chaos that the boy had caused revealed that the cabinets were blocking something else. Dirk inspected a bookshelf that had been hidden in the wall behind the cabinets. On those shelves, he saw the largest collection of porn that any one man could possibly have. The titles stood out as most porn titles do: Dr. Lust, Debbies Does Dallas, etc. The gunslinger saw one tape without a case. He picked it up. "Is this a beta max?" Dirk asked. He hadn't seen one in over a decade. His eyebrow raised in an emote that registered that he was both disgusted and outright perplexed as he read the title. "ASSMASTERS?!"

Mike's gaze would not meet Dirk's as he replied, "Um....I'm...um... not gay."

"What's an ASSMASTER then? The sheep at my dad's place would be really freaked."

Dirk heard the female voice with the slight Scottish brogue and turned around very slowly. When he was all the way around, he looked straight into the face of the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.

"So, do you work here? I'm here to pick up an order for my dad. I'm passing through on a job."

She held out her hand.

Dirk wasn't sure what to do. He began to stammer.

"Er, uh, no, I'm just here to pick up an order myself. Stupid owner's kid fell down in the back looking for it. Name's Bell, Dirk Bell."

"Hello, then, Bell Dirk Bell. I'm Aine Kilbirnie. Pleased to meet you." She smiled. "Are you gonna take my hand, then?"

"Oh, uh, yeah, sorry about that." Dirk began to take the girl's hand in his when,

"I have a straw. . ." came a dazed voice from the back room.

"Shut up, Mike!" Dirk yelled, half turning his head.

"I'm not gay. . ."

Mike let out a scream of agony. One, for having his nose busted by the tape that Dirk threw into his face. Two, for fear of losing his one and only beta copy of Assmasters .

Dirk took the young woman's hand. "Nice to meet you, Aine. Maybe I can help you out." Dirk moved towards the shelves and searched.

"You...um...you can't do...." Mike mumbled before he caught the heel of Dirk's cast in his ribs.

"Kilbirnie, eh? I think this is it." He handed her a fairly nice size box. "Must be a new sight for his rifle. Your dad, I mean."

"And why would you say that?" she asked, already knowing the answer. And Dirk gave her the right one. The company whose name was on the package was know for two things: shitty guns and excellent scopes for hunting and sniper rifles. Since it came through an underground arms dealer, the client must have some beforehand knowledge of guns and sights and been smart enough to stay away from the firearms the company manufactured. "Very impresive. Almost as impresive as that Smith & Wesson .38 you have hanging out of your coat." The gunslinger noticed that the butt of his gun stuck out from under his coat. She had to now her firearms as well to be able to tell that it was a indeed a Snub-nose .38.

"You're pretty impresive yourself," he even smiled a bit when he said it. "Why don't we get together and impress each other?"

"I do believe that you are trying to make me blush," she retorted. "But, I don't see why not. I've still got a day or so before I have to leave."

"Sounds like a plan," Dirk grabbed his small package that he had found looking for Kilbirnie's and stuffed it in his coat pocket. He opened the door for her and followed her out into the rainy night.

Mike still lay on the floor, under the cabinets. As the door came to a close, he let out yet another statement of, "I'm not gay."

"Who's that, Mickey?" asks Mick's mom, as she sits next to him and takes a look at what he's drawing.

"That's Mxy," Mick answers, feeling a bit stupid for a second, like if he shouldn't have said that word. The strange feeling fades away soon, and he continues, "He's from the fifth dimension and he can do whatever he wants"

"Whatever he wants?" Mick's mom asks.

"Yep," Mick replies. He grabs his crayons and starts adding color to the drawing.

"What kind of super-hero is that?" Mick's mom asks, laughing, "Isn't it too easy for him to stop the bad guys if he can do whatever he wants?"

"Nope"

"Why not?"

"Cause he's stoopid"

"MICK!"

"What? It's not a bad word..."

"MICK!"

"What?"

"WAKE UP!"

"Huh...?" Mick says, as he lifts his head from the plate and wipes the food off his face.

He sees Shirley and a bear (her uncle Otto) staring at him.

"I'm sorry if the conversation is too boring for you, Mick, but I haven't seen my uncle in a while and need to catch up," Shirley says.

"Uh..." Mick replies, "It was the aliens or something, babe... They used their cosmic rays to attack me... I bet that pesky Ktl is at it again..."

"Why don't you go join the guys, Mick?" Shirley says, annoyed, "You clearly don't wanna be here..."

"'Kay!" Mick exclaims, jumping out of his chair to walk away as fast as possible.

[ 09-17-2002, 11:23 PM: Message edited by: I'm Not Mister Mxypltk ]

Back at the Apartment

A three-fingered hand glided nimbly and deftly across the ceiling of the third floor of the apartment building that made up MBL Consulting. The owner of the hand, Grissom Montag, stood upside down, his feet tightly clenched around a small light fixture, which sustained the whole of his weight.

As the Englishman's fingers skillfully felt for any fissures, cracks, or irregularities in the ceiling, he reached into his vest pocket and produced a small tape recorder. His middle finger depressed the record button as the Consulting company's new security advisor began to speak:

"Structural analysis completed. Weight distribution sensors can and will be installed at earliest possible convenience. Also, a quick look will also need to be made into DNA elevator scanners, like the kind that the Tri-Vex Corporation used when they were still in business. Anything that might more easily aid in these security precautions."

Pushing his feet out from the ceiling, Grissom fell straight downward, lowering his free hand and using it to somersault onto his feet. Pressing the stop button on his recorder and pocketing it, Grissom opened up the elevator and indicated his destination - the main level.

As the elevator began to lower itself to the desired level, Grissom began to consider the irony of what he was doing. Sandcrawler Security... Grissom thought, glancing at the top of the pad he carried to jot down notes. The irony of a former mercenary installing security systems was not lost on one such as Grissom, however, after he ended his tenure as a soldier-of-fortune, no other job description really seemed to make sense.

He'd spent about three years of his life finding loopholes around security systems... he was one of the best there was at what he did. If he knew how to get through security systems, then he would be an obvious choice to stop others from getting past them. He had glided through lasers and dogs while avoiding being seen by security cameras. No one could pull off a heist as well as he did in his prime. Still, these days, he was content to make sure that his good name remained high on the list of best mercenaries ever. He'd earned it after all...

As the elevator doors opened, Grissom walked out and looked out the main floor windows at the rainy sky outside. "Bloody tropics!" he muttered, running his hand through his messy hair. "I thought the weather was always s'posed to be warm and sunny!"

"Bugger this!" Griss said, raising his hands in the air. "I guess that perimeter search is gonna have to wait 'til this bloody storm clears up!"

The ringing of the apartment's main doorbell chimed, just as Grissom was readying himself to storm out of the room. Burying his head in his hand, Griss shuffled over to the door and opened it slowly.

"Grissom, right?" came the voice on the other side of the open door. A bit shocked to hear his name, Montag looked up... only to find the beautiful bartender from the airport smiling up at him, a small vinyl umbrella over her head.

"Right," Montag said, his patented lady-killing smile spreading across his lips. "And, I never did catch your name...?"

"Jessica," the girl said, extending her hand, which Grissom caressed and kissed slightly.

"Pleased to meet you, dear..." he said, raising his eyebrow. "Would you care to come in out of the rain? Perhaps I could show you my... bedroom?"

Jessica smiled slightly as Grissom led her into the apartment building, closing the door on the rainy weather outside...

Danny slowly made his way back to Jake's Place, about two hours or so after he'd left to chase Sam. He wasn't even sure that his friends would still be there.

“Hal… what just happened?”

<You had a shag. Congratulations. About time.>

“Right…”

<You know, it’s weird. That last girl who liked you, you couldn’t get out of her place fast enough. But this girl wants to jump your bones, and you’re all for it…>

“That was different.”

<How so?>

“It just was.”

<I get it. That last girl, you actually liked… you thought there might be relationship potential there. So you freaked. This girl, she was just in it for the quick fuck… there’s no attachment there.>

“Can we drop it, Hal?”

<Fine. Just learn how to dress yourself before anyone sees you.>

“Huh?”

Danny looked down, and noticed that the buttons on the shirt he had borrowed from Mick were buttoned unevenly.

"Oops..."

He quickly buttoned them up, and headed for the entrance. The walrus-toothed bouncer was still there, guarding the door.

"Chewy."

"Danny."

"My friends still in there?"

"Yeah, a couple of 'em. Come on in."

Danny came on in.

After briefly scanning the room, he noticed Grimm sitting at the bar. He walked over, and sat down next to him.

"Danny... welcome back."

"Hey."

"You're wet."

"It's raining out."

"That'd do it. You want a beer?"

"Yeah, sure."

Grimm raised his arm to signal the barman. Some kind of stalk shot down from the ceiling, a flower bud hanging from the side. The bud opened, revealing a two-foot wide flower with a human face in the middle.

<In any other bar, that'd seem strange.> Hal said, heard by no-one but Danny.

"Bring us a couple've Boag's," Grimm said to the barman.

"No problem, mate," Came the reply. The stalk retracted, only to reappear a moment later holding two bottles of James Boag's premium. Sprouting another stalk, seemingly from nowhere, the barman poured them into two glasses. The barman then disappeared from whence he came.

"He seems nice," Danny said.

"Yup. Drink your beer," Grimm said, sliding one of the glasses across to Danny.

Danny, hesitantly, took a sip.

"What do you think?" Grimm asked.

"Not bad... for a turn of the century beer. They're a bit different at home. But... not bad. What is it?"

"Boag's. It's Australian. I thought you'd like it."

Danny smiled at this. He had to admit, he was beginning to like Grimm.

"So what was that between you and Sam back there? I thought you two were pretty close," Grimm said, taking a sip of his beer.

"We are. We were... um... I'm not quite sure. I think he had some kind of hallucination back at that messed up Castle... thought he saw me attacking Michelle or something. Then he stabbed me. He's been acting weird around me ever since..."

"That's fucked up."

"Yup."

"You should talk to him."

"I'll try. Whenever I see him again."

Danny paused. Grimm paused. Together, they were pausing.

"He's really gone, isn't he?" Danny said quietly, breaking the silence.

"You mean Sam? I'm sure he'll be-"

"No. Not Sam."

"Pete?"

"No. I know Pete's gone. I mean..."

"Turkish."

They paused again, apparently settling into some kind of routine.

"Yeah. Turkish is gone..." Grimm said softly.

"Weird. Just as I was getting used to him..."

"Yeah. It's kinda sad."

"Well yeah, it is..." Danny began, "But then, not really. I mean, I liked the guy, I'll miss him, but... he seems like the kind of guy where he could show up in six months time, acting as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, and no one would bat an eyelid..."

Grimm laughed at this, following the laugh with "Yeah. Something like that."

"If you know what I mean," Danny added.

"Yeah. I do. You're sure you haven't seen the last of him. And with him... disappearing without a trace really doesn't seem like that strange a thing to happen."

"Exactly," Danny said. After a brief moment, he added, "You know, it was bizarre having him around, at first."

"I can imagine..." Grimm replied.

"Like... here we were, with our team. We were kind of establishing ourselves... we were happy... we were all friends. Then... this new guy comes along. He's dangerous, he's mysterious. We don't know where he comes from, or what he can do."

Grimm looked sideways at Danny. He gave a smug grin (as much as it's possible for a skull to grin. Smugly, even.)

"Drink your beer," Grimm said.

"I just mean... it took him a little while to win the team's trust. He's new, he's mysterious, he's powerful... we had to know we could trust him..."

"So... this is the talk then, is it Danny?"

"...the 'talk'"?

"The 'let the new guy know he's gotta win our trust' talk."

"I suppose it is. No offense, I mean, it's not that I don't like you..."

"I get it Danny. Really. You've got your close-knit team thing happening, then all of a sudden some skull faced freak shows up on your doorstep. You're bound to be a little wary. In fact, I'd think less of you if you weren't."

Grimm took a mouthful of his beer, and continued.

"Just so you know... you can trust me, Danny."

"I think we can," Danny said, then added, "Cheers, mate."

"Cheers."

They clinked their glasses, and downed their beers.

"Did you try giving this talk to Dirk?" Grimm asked.

"Yeah..."

Grimm laughed out loud, and said, "So how'd he take it?"

"Not... as well as you."

"Not surprised. So did the rest of the team appoint you the official initiation-speech-giver, or did you just take it upon yourself?"

"Just kinda... took it upon myself."

"Right. I figured."

Danny looked slightly perplxed at this remark, and said, "How so?"

"You're very protective of this team."

"I am?"

"You are. You're not about to let a couple of dangerous new guys waltz on in and ruin it for you."

"I'm not?"

"Nope. The team means too much to you."

"It does?"

"Indeed it does. And I think I know why..."

"Enlighten me."

"Well, Danny... you're from the future, right? So... you have nowhere else to be. Everyone else... they have lives that they've lived. Places they've been. Somewhere on this planet... they have somewhere else to be."

"They have a past..."

"Right. Whereas you... this team is the only thing in this world that you know. The only place you can really be. Out of all of us... you may very well need this team the most. But then, because of that... you may be the one the team needs the most."

Danny was silent, taking all this in.

"So how do you know all this?" Danny finally said.

"I look. I listen. Another beer?"

Danny smiled. "Sure."

Mick, beer in hand, watched Danny and Grimm talk for three minutes, without taking a seat or walking away. He wanted to go sit with Danny, but he didn't want to go sit with Grimm. The logic answer to this dilemma, in his mind, was to just stand there looking at them, doing nothing.

He turned, lookig for someone else, and spotted Ed, Doctor Quantos, and the new guy Chance on a table next to the stage. They were watching someone Mick recognized as 'the turtle dude' perform some Bob Dylan song.

Mick aproached the table, and was about to join the guys, when Bhaghhh-rupth, Lord of the flies and of the rotten lands finished the song and said, "AND NOW, SOMETHING A BIT MORE ROCKIER..."

The guitar started playing a tone Mick recognized inmediatly. Before Bhaghhh-rupth, Lord of the flies and of the rotten lands could start singing, Mick closed his eyes and did it:

Love me two times, baby
Love me twice today
Love me two times, babe
I'm goin' away

Suddenly, another voice continued the song:

Love me two times, baby
One for tomorrow
One just for today...

And then, Mick joined the other voice:

Love me two times
I'm goin' away!

Love me one time
Could not speak

Love me one time
Yeh my knees got weak

love me two times, baby
Last me all though the week
Love me two times
I'm goin' away
Love me two times
I'm goin' away
Oh, yeah!

Mick laughed, as he opened his eyes and turned to the mysterious voice. His laughter stopped and was replaced by a look of horror when he realized his partner was...

...GRIMM.

...interlude...

ELSEWHERE

Zachary...

The large behemoth of a scientist grunted as he heard his name resounding in his head. Opening an eye, he pulled himself up, looking around, trying to get his bearings down...

"Where am I?" Dr. Zachary Knell asked pulling himself to his massive haunches. He looked around at his surroundings, which closely resembled a Gothic cathedral. "The Casssstle..." he finally rasped. Then, finally noticing his leathery voice, Knell slowly looked down at his hands.

And, just as he suspected, they were covered in scales.

"Sssssmith..." Knell said, closing his hands into fists. "He double-crosssssed me... and Cicciotto'sss dirty little 'Mod Sssssquad' ssomehow besssted even me..."

Zachary...

Knell paused, then, as if he felt led to do so, turned around.

As he did, he took in the sight of a mirror sitting in the corner. As the lumbering lizard cautiously stepped toward the looking glass, he noticed that the reflection therein was not that of his leviathan form, but, rather that of his human self.

...and it was talking to him.

"Hello, Zachary..." his reflection said, smiling from ear to ear. "Welcome to the Castle of Crossed Destinies..."

"I know where I am," Knell hissed violently at his reflection, "however, I am unaware why I am witnessssing a talking mirror..."

"Quite simple, Zachary," the mirror Knell answered. "The Castle exists on many planes of existence. You and I were both defeated by our respective foes here... each of us has reasons for vengeance... and I believe I've found the solution."

"That being?" the reptile bellowed, not really having the patience for games and puzzles, especially with some hallucination brought on by a "mystic" castle...

"Once again, Zachary," the reflection stated, "simple. We must double our efforts... become 'mutually exclusive,' as the saying goes."

At that, the Knell in the mirror extended his hand so that it grazed the Looking Glass. Ripples like those of water cascaded across the glass as his fingers touched. The Leviathan dropped his jaw in fascination.

"Join me, Zachary," the reflection Knell said, smiling knowingly. "You're very vengeance may depend on it..."

Dr. Zachary Knell stood in thought for what seemed like an eternity. Then, without warning, he thrust his scaly hand into the glass...

And as his world began spinning, a new voice echoed through the walls of the Castle of Crossed Destinies...

THE BEGINNING IS NOW!!

...end interlude...

The rain came down in thin sheets. Most of the storm had passed over the island by this time. Clouds began to break an allow the twinkling stars to shine down to the mortals below. "What a beautiful night," Aine commented. "The stars are so gorgeous."

I'd rather be looking at them from down here than up there, Dirk thought to himself. "So. What brings you to La Perdita?"

"Business," she replied. "Just a quick stop off before I head out to New York. What about you?"

"Pretty much the same. Except this isn't a stop over for me. I'll be here for a while. But when I get done, I'm off to God knows where from here."

"Really?" she giggled. Her hair was matted to her face in little strands that ran up and down her cheek bones. Occasionally she would brush them back and out of her way. It had been her idea to walk in the rain. She didn't seem to mind and neither did he. "And how'd you wind up with a busted leg?"

"Occupational hazard," was his ownly reply.

"And what occupation would that be?"

"I sell encyclopedias door to door." Yet another giggle as she pulled Dirk's coat aside to reveal his collection of weapons. "Hey, it's a dog eat dog world out there. A man's gotta be careful."

"You're quite the charmer, aren't you?"

"Everyone else says so, yes." Once again, Dirk smiled. This was not an expression his face was used to, but it came across quite well. At least, Aine thought so. "How about you and I getting out of the rain and have a drink or two?"

"Sounds like a good idea. Let's go to your place."

"Naw. My roommates are assholes. Why not go back to your pad?"

"No," she said very deliberately. "That's not a good idea, either. My dad and all." An electronic buzz went off. Aine pulled her beeper from her pocket and looked at the number on the screen. Her face became very serious. "Damn! I've got to go. Unexpected business. Maybe I'll see you around before I leave." She walked off down the alley, waving good bye to Dirk along the way.

"I sure as hell hope so." Dirk made his way back to the complex. It didn't seem as though anyone had made it back yet. The elevator opened on the ninth floor and he stepped out. Good thing he had the whole floor to himself. Especially since Turner ripped out the wall in one of the rooms. Dirk made a mental note to kill him for that. He took another room and went to sleep.

"Well, that was... interesting," said Dr. Quantos as the former Lord of the Flies and the Barren Lands exited stage left after a second encore.

"To say the least," Chance said. He looked over to Edulcore. "Ed, are you sure you're all right. You still seem a bit dazed."

"Just lost in thought," said the former 'Eurostar.' "Actually, I still have that appointment in Paris tonight that I mentioned earlier. I'll be leaving soon. Anyone care to join me?"

"I'll go with you," said Chance after a short pause. "I need something to take my mind off of... recent events."

"We could take the Stormloader, I suppose," Dr. Quantos said. "I delivered it just this afternoon, and she's running fine."

"I've flown the Stormloader from my timeline several times, so that shouldn't be a problem," Chance said.

"Actually..." began Edulcore, "...I've recently found my own method of transportation. Ehy, prepare for your mind to be blown once more, Doc." He started laughing as he explained about his "pet" UFO and the circumstances that led to his attaining it.

"Sheesh," said Dr. Quantos after the explanation was done, "all this supernatural and pseudo-scientific phenomena is a bit hard to take all in one day: ghosts, alternate time-lines, tesseract technology, instantaneous transportation, that Metatithenai-whatzit, and now flying saucers? I think I'll order another drink for the road, if you gentlemen don't mind..."

"Listen, I've got to pick something up from the apartment," Chance said to Edulcore as he stood up in preparation to leave. "Why don't I meet you two at the location of this craft of yours in, say, 20-30 minutes?"

"Sure. I'll write down the instructions on how to get there," said Edulcore.

A few minutes later Chance was stepping back into the apartment building.

Can't stand all this sitting around. I've got to get my mind off of Pete's death. I didn't want to burden the others with this, but I think there might be a chance to get Pete back. No way I'm going to tell the others, though. No sense in burdening them with any false hopes. And I couldn't stand sitting there watching her... with him. I know that's not my Shirley, but still... I need to get away from the rest of the group for a while. This Paris trip should be a good diversion.............

[ 09-18-2002, 09:04 PM: Message edited by: TheTimeTrust ]

"C'mon, Mick, sit down with me and Danny. Have a beer."

"O-Okay. . ." Mick mumbled, still reeling from the fact that he had been singing with. . .Grimm.

"You know Love Me Two Times?"

"Sure, I know all The Doors' stuff. Used to listen to that stuff all the time as a kid. Morrison's lyrics combined with the music took me out of my shitty life and into another place. But that was before I got into punk and all. . ."

The two sat down next to Danny. "Couple more, right here."

The stalk shot down with a couple more beers.

"So," Danny started, "How do you see without eyes?"

"I don't know. I just do."

"Why do they call you The Biker From Hell?"

Grimm was perplexed

"What? Who calls me that?"

"Uhh, Larry, T. C., Mick. . ."

Mick got a real sheepish look on his face as Grimm glanced over at him.

"Mickeee. . . ." Surprisingly, Grimm didn't seem mad at all.

"Are you really from Hell?" Danny asked.

"Heh, no but sometimes I feel like my life is Hell. Being this. . ." He gestured at himself. "ain't all it's cracked up to be, ya know."

Danny and Mick noted the sarcasm.

"Just because I'm so pretty, it's not like I can have a normal life."

The three men began to laugh.

Suddenly, Blackwulf plopped down next to the group.

"My friends! We are not being drinking enough! More beers for everybody!"

Blackwulf grabed the chair next to Grimm and sat down.

"Comrade who are beingyour friends ? And why be thay not drinking?" Blackwulf pointed to Mick and motioned for him to drink up.

"Please drinks for Friends of Comrade Grimm are on me ."

"Wulf what did that Lunatic Mean by Harbringer?"Grimm asked.

"Is Vampiric Phraze meaning 'Horror Bringer,"blackwulf said as he looked at Grimm.

"Could be meaning you, you are after all haveing Skullface would bring Horror to many peoples."

Mick Went pale at the mintion of Grimms face.

"You are whom?"Blackwulf askesd Mick.

"Just Mick nice to meet ya I think."

"And you?"Mick asked.

"I'm Blackwulf the Ever changeing. I have be gotten the title for the fact that I keep Mutateing."

"Let me guess Mutateing like in the Pleather Mohak or as in the Purplish skin color?"

"I am haveing a Mohak?"

"As I was saying Gremm the Horror Bringer is that is scareing the shit out of them, and Makeing them go much poopy. there are many legonds in the Vampire comunity that revalve around this Harbringer. As many Legonds as there are types of Vampires."

Grimm Mick and Danny all looked intently at Balckwulf.

"How the Hell do you know so much about them Wulf?"

"Has been long time sence we are haveing Drinks together, and i am haveing much need for a drink. Streskavitanka!"

the Barman uncoiled and set a Steel Flaggen infront of Blackwulf.

"Da! as I was saying I am being HUNTER and thay are being Pray. There has been many nights wich we have not talked and i have been learingin Much about them."

Blackwulf grabbed the La Perdita times

"Some of these are being of FLESH."

In a small Pennsylviana town.

"Some are being Soul."

Blackwulf took a sip of his drink.

"Some are Drinking Blood."

What would appear to be a mass graverobbing.

"Some are steeling Heat"

Has a more horrid reality.

"But all are steeling your Life"

It would Apper that the dead have Risen from there graves.

Quantos and I are leaving the bar, when Mick approaches us, his face white as chalk.

“Are you leaving, Ed?” he asks.

“Well, yes. We are going to Paris with my UFO” I say, deadly serious.

Mick widens his eyes, but then whispers something about vampires, changelings, harbingers of death and finally, louder, asks: “ Can I come with you?”

“Obviously you can, Mick. And bring Shirlery, too!”

“Cool! She always talks about how Paris is romantic!”

I see Danny enjoying his time with the skull faced one, and with an even stranger man. Well, if he is having fun, no need to ask him if he want to come. Plus, I think in the UFO there is sufficient room for only five persons.

Mick goes to Shirley’s table, they talk, then they both hug a huge bear (why I am not surprised?) and join us, smiling.

In a few minutes we are on the beach, where Chance is waiting for us.

“Ed, I don’t see any trace of your supposed UFO” says suspiciously the Swedish.

“Oh, the UFO is inside the volcano. I though that was the safer place to hide it. But now I call him”.

UFO! Come here.

An instant has passed, and the saucer lands without any noise in front of us, while all my friends wonders at the incredible machine.

Chance and Quantos stroke tenderly the surface, observing the glowing spots that runs over the curved metallic shape.

I touch it, and the flank opens.

“Welcome in my humble UFO” I say, jokingly.

“But there are no seats” notices Shirley.

“Yeah, but you don’t feel acceleration here, so you can simply stand” I explain. “Either, sit on the floor, Shirley.”

“But how do you fly this?” asks Quantos.

“Ah, it’s apparently easy. I only need to think it. The bad part is that you have to keep thinking that. You get distracted, and the UFO fall!”

“Gulp” says Mick, looking worried.

“Don’t be afraid, it’s not so difficult, in truth. Look!”

UFO, take flight! OK. UP. UP. UP. UP. UP. UP. OK. Route North-East. Very fast. Go GO GO GO.

“Ehi, we are moving!” exclaims Chance, looking outside the 360 degree window.

“Cool! It seems we are still, here!” says Mick.

GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO GO

“But why you have this sort of bond with this saucer, Euro?” asks Chance, still looking everywhere trying to understand as much as possible of the UFO.

GO GO GO “Well,” GO GO GO “somehow my father” GO GO GO GO “pointed me to this” GO GO GO GO GO “ just before dying in area 51” GO GO GO GO UP UP UP UP UP UP UP “but I am not” GO GO GO GO GO “sure that this bond is” GO GO GO GO GO “ exclusive!”

“You mean that maybe others can fly this thing?” asks Quantos.

GO GO GO GO GO “Actually, yes.” GO GO GO GO GO “I was asking to all of you if” GO GO GO GO GO “want to try to fly this” GO GO GO GO GO.

Everybody GO GO GO look at me GO GO GO GO GO surprised.

“Just keep concentrated” GO GO GO GO “Who wants to be the first?”

Phil's thoughts watching the UFO:
Well that's something you don't see every day... Although I've seen some pretty odd stuff lately. Oh well, even if this sort of stuff goes on regularly, this seems like a nice place to hang out for a while. I'm sick of traveling. Besides, maybe someone in here might be able to help me. If they can work UFOs around here, then somebody's gotta be able to figure out who I am. I sure can't.

Phil senses people approaching and "disappears" by mentally blocking them from seeing him.

How am I doing all this? What am I??? I have to know. And this is where I am gonna try and find out...

It's the middle of the night, and Phil is quietly walking down the main drag. He surveys the buildings around him, trying to find a hotel or anywhere he might be able to spend the night. Heavy clouds are gathering in the night sky above his head, and every now and then Phil can feel a drop falling.

He can't pick up very many impressions of people - probably because they're all asleep, he muses - but every so often he perceives a fleeting image, a thinking human mind somewhere nearby. Phil doesn't know what to make of this new-found ability, and like all the others that have been manifesting lately, it frightens him. At least it's not as bad as accidentally moving things, or starting fires, or finding myself levitating in midair, he reminds himself. Maybe there's someone around here who can help me figure all this out.

Phil comes across a building - a bar of some sort. Maybe he can at least get directions there. He quietly makes his way up to the door, noticing an instant too late that all the ruckus inside has suddenly gone deathly silent.

They know I'm here.

The door bursts open suddenly, knocking Phil to the ground. He starts to scramble to his feet when several formidable-looking men appear in the doorway. The biggest one - the one in front - bares what to Phil's horror appears to be a pair of walrus tusks and glares at him.

Now this just might be a problem...

The UFO

"Y'know, Shir..." Mick says as he and his fiancee look at the enjoy the view while Ed tries to convince Chance or Doc Quantos to give the UFO a try, "Grimm might not be so bad after all..."

"Really?"

"Yeah, we talked for a bit and he's more normal than he looks... And most importantly, he likes The Doors"

"Well, that's a relief... You never know with all these new guys," Shirley says, "How about that Kristofer guy? What do you make of him?"

"Doesn't seem like a Doors fan to me..."

"He seems nice to me. I mean, nicer than the other new guys"

"Why don't we go talk to him and find out?" Mick suggests, taking Shirley by the hand to Chance, Quantos and Edulcore's direction (that is, a few meters away, since the UFO is not that big).

"I think it would be better if you remained in control of the UFO, Edulcore," Chance says to Ed for the fifth time.

"Come on, it's not that hard... You just have to concentrate and let your mind control it," Ed replies.

"Well, actually, I wouldn't mind..." Doctor Quantos begins to say.

"Give it a try, Chance..." Euro insists.

"I'm sorry, I just don't feel like flying any UFOs tonight," Chance answers.

"I said I wouldn't mind giving it..." Quantos tries to say.

"Just for a second, Kristofer!"

"Sorry, Ed!"

"Well, if you guys don't mind I'll help myself to it..." Quantos says, as he closes his eyes and begins to concentrate.

At that moment, Chance notices Mick and Shirley are approaching him.

"You know what, Edulcore? I think I'll give it a try after all," Chance says, making the craft move inmediatly.

"I guess we'll have to wait until he's done..." Mick says.

"I guess I'll have to do the same thing," Quantos mutters.

"That's too bad, I was kind of looking forward to chatting with him," Shirley innocently states.

"Ehy, slow down, Kris!" Ed says, as the UFO starts suddenly going faster...

A lonely country road between a cow-grazing field on one side and a corn-field on the other, somewhere in Kansas...

A middle-aged couple drives down the road in an old restored 1960s model Scout truck:

"Paw, I never thought we'd get to our age without havin' any children. I tell you, I dreamed as a girl of bouncin' my grandkids on my lap by the time I was 50. But that was ten years ago."

"Maw, darlin', I'm sorry, but the doc told us a long time ago that I was only shootin' blanks. Heck, the only way we'd ever get ourselves a child or two is if it dropped outta the sky!"

wwwwweeeeeeEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeee

"WHUT IN TARNATION?!?!?!?" the old couple says at the same moment as Jonathan slams on the brakes.

Their eyes go wide as saucers as they step out of the truck and stumble slowly onto the field, watching what looked like a flying saucer hovering about five feet over the corn-field.

"Wh-what is it, Paw?" says Maw.

"Why, it appears to be an airplane... without wings! It's no airplane, though, Maw! That's a flyin' saucer!"

"Mebbe... mebbe they heard us and are here to give us a baby!" said Maw.

"Whut the Sam Hill are you goin' on about now, Maw?"

"HELLOOOOO!!! Hello in there!" Maw starts screaming as she walks up to the flying saucer and starts banging on it with her fists. "I want my baby!!!"

"MAW! Have you gone crazy? There's radiation on that there UFO!!!"

"Oh, puh-shaw! They's just here to impregnate me with their alien seed. I read all about it in the Enquirer."

"Wait a second, Maw -- see them lights on it? Looks like it's alightin' ta leave agin. You'd best get away from it!"

"What? But my--my baby's in there! Ain't they gonna give me a baby or impregnate me or somethin'?!? MISTER ALIEN!!! TAKE ME AWAY IN YER FLYIN' SAUCER! PLEASE!!!"

"Yer makin' a fool of yourself, Maw!"

At that, the flying saucer begins spinning, and flashes brightly as it rises directly up into the sky, faster than any rocket.

Maw steps back, her face covered in a soot-like substance. She starts crying. "Paw! Paw -- I can feel it! I can feel it inside o' me! I think they's impregnated me with a baby!"

"Crazy old woman," Paw mutters to himself, mentally substituting the word "woman" with a different word.

He looks down and is surprised to find himself standing at the edge of a crop circle there in his corn field. Martha is still weeping, on her knees and shouting, "Thank you! Thank you!"

"Well, I'll be..." says Paw.

The sun is rising above the horizon, and we are flying toward it.

I am back at the command, after Chance has piloted the flying vessel across the Atlantic.

Now him and Quantos are exchanging ideas about the UFO.

“The technology seems really alien, Henry. In the sense that is absolutely different from what has ever been created by men” says Kristofer.

“True. But look at the materials. They are advanced, but clearly of terrestrial origins. Even more, they seems standard industrial products. High standards, sure, but nothing even experimental.”

“Like someone took a blueprint of an UFO and rebuilt it with the materials at hand?”

“Yeah, more or less, that’s what I was intending”.

“Sirs, Paris!” I say, interrupting the conversation of my two friends.

Mick and Shirley press their faces on the window, to catch everything of the beautiful sight.

Quantos and Kristofer, like myself, know the city from before, so there is not the same sense of excitement that is in the young couple.

Yet, Paris is a s beautiful as ever, especially now that the first rays of the sun stroke her roofs, while the street are not yet busy.

“One hour of travel, although I am sure this beauty can be much more fast” I say. “I have to improve my pilot skills”.

“We left at half past eleven. There are seven hours of difference from La Perdita to Paris… it’s half past seven, here” point out Quantos.

“Right. And my appointment is for eleven in the morning, so we some time for breakfast. I know a little place where they serve the best croissant of France” I say.

“Yum!” says Mick, and everybody laughs.

I make the UFO stopping near the uppermost terrace of the Eiffel tower. After we have gotten off the ship, I send it to hide under the river.

Mick and Shirley seems two just married people in their honeymoon. And strangely, Chance seems not really at ease.

I wonder why.

At the bar...
"Who are you?" the walrus-toothed man demands.
"I... don't... don't know," is the best Phil can manage.
"Nice try," the walrus man growls, pulling Phil to his feet. "You're a meta. We felt you probing all of us, trying to read our minds."
"I wasn't..."
"Hold up a second, Chewy," one of the men with the bouncer says. "He might be emergent."
Phil is confused. "Emergent?"
"He doesn't know he's a meta and his powers are just starting to manifest. He might be legit."
Chewy - if that's really his name - lowers Phil to the ground. "Sorry about that."
"No harm done," Phil stammers.
"I'm Chewy," the walrus-toothed man says, "and this is Grimm and Danny."
"I'm Phil... and that's all I'm really sure of."
"What do you mean?" Grimm asks.
"Well," Phil explains, "I woke up one morning in a truck stop and I didn't have any idea who I was. I had some cash in my wallet, and the driver's license said my name was Phil, but that's about all I know."
"That's pretty odd," Danny says. "Well, what brings you here?"
"I'd rather not say."
"Whatever," Chewy says. The others shrug. "Well, it's getting pretty close to closing time, so whatever you're doing, you don't gotta go home, but... well, ya know."
"You got a place to go?" Grimm asks.
"Not right now," Phil replies.
"Well," Danny suggests, "You could probably stay in our building until you find something a bit more regular."
"You sure?"
"Yup. Come with us."

[ 09-22-2002, 03:16 PM: Message edited by: Captain Sammitch ]

The sound on rain pounding hard against the window woke Dirk. He'd only been asleep for a few minutes. It was still pitch black outside. The wind howled ferociously across the island. The storm was coming back.

His mind was struck with a reminder. His late evening walk had caused him to forget what he was doing in McArthur's shop in the first place. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the small box. A special delivery from some old acquaintances of his. Dirk had saved their asses on more than one occasion. As repayment, they often sent him "care packages" with things that most people didn't know existed. They were never sent direclty to him. He made sure they were bounced around the globe, many times arriving at the same locations over and over again, until whoever might be tracking them either lost it or just flat gave up.

The box fell, empty, onto the floor. In his hand, Dirk held a syringe. He sat on the edge of his bed and rested his broken leg on a chair across from him. The syringe cut through the skin under the cast. The gunslinger's thumb depressed the plunger and cast the fluid incased in the syringe into his leg. "That should do the trick," he said as he removed the needle.

"Now to take care of you." In a bowl in his now workshop, Dirk lit a fire and tossed the syringe into it. He made sure that it was consumed completly before exstinguishing the flame.

Rain was blowing through the hole in the wall. He placed a tarp over it to hold off the weather. He returned to his bed. His rest was peaceful and dreamless.

Danny and Grimm led Phil back to their building, through the streets of La Perdita. Streetlight shone the way, and Phil looked around curiously as he went. He seemed to be memorising the way, in case he ever got lost and had to find his way back.

"Don't worry, this place is a lot nicer in the daytime..." Grimm said to Phil.

"Um... right," Phil replied, a little nervously. Like most people unfamiliar with the world of metas, it was taking him a little while to adjust to being around a skull-faced biker.

"The hotel's just up here. See that tall building just there, on the corner?" Danny said, pointing. Phil nodded, and the three headed for the building. Danny slid his key into the front door, and pushed it open.

"Home sweet home..." Grimm said, leading the way inside.

"You want something to eat? Kitchen's through here," Danny said to Phil. Phil nodded, and managed to stammer "Yes, please, thanks." The three of them headed to the kitchen, where Phil sat down at the table. Danny started rifling through the cupboards looking for food, while Grimm leaned silently agains the bench, watching them.

"Sandwich?" Danny said, reaching into the fridge for a loaf of bread.

"Yeah, cool," Phil replied.

"What do you want on it?"

"Anything..."

"Peanut butter and jam?"

"...huh?"

"Fine. Peanut butter and jelly?"

"Yeah, okay..." Phil said, looking a little confused.

"He's Australian," Grimm said to him, clearing things up. Phil nodded.

"Grimm, little help?" Danny asked. Grimm reached into the cupboards behind him, pulling out a jar of peanut butter and a jar of jam. He threw them across the kitchen to Danny.

"Thanks. So, Phil... you're a meta?" Danny asked, starting work on the sandwich by spreading jam over one slice of bread.

"Um... yeah..."

"No need to be nervous. You're among friends here," Danny reassured him. He spread the peanut butter over the other slice of bread.

"Yeah. I got powers," Phil said.

"Right. And these are...?" Danny asked.

"Well, I'm not a hundred percent clear, but... sometimes... I can sorta move stuff with my mind, you know?" Phil explained.

"Telekinesis," Grimm said, nodding.

"Right. And sometimes I can ever hear what's going on in people's heads... sometimes..."

"Telepathy," Grimm added.

Danny nodded at this, and put the two slices of bread together.

"That's... interesting," Danny said, considering the possibilities. He put the sandwich down on the bench next to him, but didn't take it over to table where Phil sat. Danny just stood there.

"Is... is that done?" Phil asked.

"Yup," Danny answered.

There was a pause.

"You... gonna take it to him?" Grimm asked.

"Nope."

Phil looked perplexed, then said, "...please?"

"You really want it?"

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"Yeah!"

Grimm just watched this silently.

"It's all yours," Danny said, gesturing to where the sandwich sat next to him. It began to tremble slightly, then suddenly flew across the room. The flying sandwich landed with a slight 'thwack' on the table in front of Phil.

"Wow," Grimm said.

Danny just smiled, then said, "Cool."

Phil began to eat, but looked a little confused himself as to what had just happened. Danny got the impression that Phil didn't really have a whole lot of control over his powers.

"So, Phil, you've got nowhere else to stay at the moment?" Danny asked.

"Nope..."

"Well, we've got plenty of rooms here," Grimm said, "You seem trustworthy enough." Grimm shot a sideways look and a grin towards Danny at this last part.

"There's plenty on the seventh floor. I'm the only one using a room up there," Danny added.

If Grimm had possessed eyebrows, he would have raised them at this point. Danny had made a point of living in relative solitude since he had known him. As far as Grimm knew, Danny was uncomfortable sharing the floor with somone. 'Was', apparently, being the operative word. Past tense.

"Thanks a lot, guys. I really appreciate it," Phil said.

Phil's thoughts sitting in his room:
This is almost too much to take in. Metahumans? And I am one? Oh, well. THese "metas" sure seem to be a nicer bunch than any "normal" people I've run into. Except maybe that walrus guy, but I'm sure he's cool once you get to know him. That Aussie guy Danny, he's cool. I think I hear him walking down the hall. That Grimm is gonna take some getting used to aesthetically, but he's a nice guy too.
I gotta find some way to pay these guys back. They don't even know who I am - which puts us pretty much on the same page - and they're fixing me up with a place to stay. They might even help me find some answers. I better not screw this up!

A bloodcurdling scream shatters the silence. As if on cue, all the windows in the room explode into shards of flying glass as Phil's tenuous hold on his own powers is broken. The scream fades to silence, and Phil slowly sits down on the bed, unsure of what to think. Hearing footsteps in the hall, Phil frantically tries to think of some way to explain the windows.

Suddenly, a miniature whirlwind of glass shards forms around Phil as the pieces fly toward their respective windows and settle back into place. By the time Danny has his foot in the door, there is no sign of anything out of the ordinary.

"What happened, mate?" Danny asks excitedly.
"Did you hear that screaming?" Phil asks.
Danny glances at Phil, unsure of what to say. "Screaming?"
"There was all this screaming outside!" Phil insists.
"I only heard glass breaking."
Phil looks down. "That was... that was me. But I, uh, fixed it."
Danny looks at the windows, puzzled. Then it hits him. "That you did, mate. That you did."

Grimm walks in. "What happened?"
"Apparently nothing," Phil replies. "I heard screaming."
"But there wasn't any..." Grimm realizes something. "There wasn't any audible screaming."

"Then," Phil asks worriedly, "what was it?"

Interlude: A few Hours before Back at the Bar.
“Well comrade I am haveing had a good time but, Am haveing to catch upwith an old fiend... sorry Freind that is.”Blackwulf said as he started to rise.

“Gremm I will be seeing you about the thing that we talked about. If you are intrested in in. I will be in touch.”

“We’ll See Wulf. We’ll see.”

Blackwulf headed for the doors and noticed the Gorilla Brothers heading for Grimm’s table. And Interuped there impending approch.

“Comrade’s let us be off. Your bounty is in Another Quarry. Belive me if that was the bounty you would have no chance of takeing it .”Blackwulf said as he Pushed past the Walrus tusked Bouncer.

Blackwulf headed down the street, he was heading for the docks near the water front. He knew where he was going and he knew in a few Hours it would be dawn.

[ 09-26-2002, 12:25 PM: Message edited by: Blackwulf ]

Paris, a few hours later…

“Guys, it’s time to go!” I say to my friend. We are sitting “al fresco” outside a cafeteria in the “rive gauche”, drinking coffee and “jue de pomplemusse” and eating various kind of croissant.

For me, it’s like being reborn, after all the months captive in the EPS headquarter. Still, we are all aware that this country, like most on every continent, it’s not safe for metahumans. And the joy of this warm day of late summer is spoiled by the constant attention paid every time a “flick”, a guard, appears across the street.

“Where’ s your meeting place, Ed?” asks Chance.

“Ile de la Cite” I respond, looking at the little piece of paper Jackie gave me days ago. “Rue de dauphin, etc etc, at eleven a.m.”.

“It’s not very far” says Quantos.

“Yes, I know” I say, getting up.

I go inside to pay, and for a moment the face of one of the customers, that I see reflected in a mirror hanging near the ceiling, seems known. Then the man turn away, and I can’t say if he’s really someone I know.

Bah.

The walk is short, down toward the Seine, across the bridge, and then into a short little street.
“It’s this”, I say looking at the number.

“OK. Phone me when you are finished, we’ll stroll not far from here, in the meantime” suggest Chance.

“No, Kristofer, come in. The invitation was also for Turner, I believe it wouldn’t be a problem if you all come. Come on!”

Quantos seems perplexed, and Chance too. Shirley and Mick, on the other hand, seems very curious.

I press the bell. The door open, and behind me, all of my four friends enter.

A metallic sound comes from the dark of the corridor.

It’s… a robot! A short humanoid robot, not taller than a meter, dressed up like a butler. With a “clang,”, his mandible opens: “MadMOIsellE, MeSSIeurS, Please FolloW mE”.

Obviously English is not his language.

I follow the robot. Behind me, I heard Quantos and Chance exchanging ideas.

“Have you noticed the technology?”

“I noticed especially the decorations. Seems a sixteen century robot, if such a thing would have ever existed”.

“My though exactly” confirms Chance.

The little robot opens a massive oak wood door, get in and stop right near it.

We enter. There is a man, not very tall, standing near a window. He’s very robust, muscular under his black suit. Totally bald, his head his large, and his neck is massive, like the neck of a bull.

He turns. His face is very strange. He has large bony eyebrows, that shadows his eyes, and has no chin at all. It’s not possible to see his eyes. Only a flashing reflection come out of that darkness, very seldom.

Quantos and Chance keeps talking scientific.

“My God, Kris. Do you think what I am thinking?”

“A living Neandertal, Henry! If it is possible such a thing”.

“Welcome to Paris, lady and gentlemen. I hope you enjoyed the city so far”. He point us a large chair.

Before any of us can object that we are five and the chair is only one, the robot brings four more, one after the other. And we take seat.

The strange man sits behind his desk.

“Well?” I ask.

“I asked you to come because I have a proposal for you, Edulcore Cicciotto”.

“And that is?”

“I would ask you to join my organization”

I distinctly hear Mick gulping.

“What kind of organization is your, sir?” I politely ask.

The man smile. “You want the short or the long story?” he ask.

Mhhh. Where I have gotten into? “The short one, sir, thank you.”

He looks at me, and then to each one of my friends.

“First of all, I want to point out that you, Edulcore, and the MBL have crossed path with it more than one time.” He presses a button, and from the door arrive three tall women, one in a leather complete, one in red boots and one in a complex armour, reminiscent of an ancient Greek one.

When they turn, standing behind the old man, our jaws drop. One is Crusher, one is Jackie, and from the exclamations of Mick and Shirley, the third is Sonja, the “dead” member of the MBL.

She smiles to the couple, and winks.

“You have met, at one time or the other, my precious employee. Crasher, Ameristar and Nadia.
They work for my organization, along many other agents.”

“Yeah, OK, but what do they do? And, pardon me, what do you want from me?”

“I am sorry, but I can’t reveal the purpose of this organization right now. Only member of the organization can know it. You know these three woman, they have worked alongside you, you know their goal are the same of you. Join us, and your wishes will be fulfilled.”

“My wishes? What do you offer me? Don’t say it’s a mountain of euros, because I have recently become rich. VERY rich. ”

The man smile. “I know. Jackie, or I should say Ameristar, was with you. No, it’s not money that I offer. I offer you help to fulfil your dreams. I can help you to set up the Revolution you failed to start in Chicago. I offer you to regain your true powers. I offer you to have finally your son”.

A whirlwind of contrasting emotions explodes in my brain. Is this an offer that only a fool would reject. Crasher and Nadia succeeded into getting inside the EPS unnoticed. Jackie proved to be an unstoppable force. Crasher, in Chicago, had many helicopters at his disposal, and all of them have Gaia Units, and who knows what kind of advanced tech. Yet…

“Sir, your offer his undeniably impossible to decline. But I have been through a lot, in the last few months. I have been through Hell. I have learned that a Revolution is not the answer for the situation affecting metahumans on most of the world. I have found that too much power is a burden much more than a blessing, and lot of power means lot of pain. And finally, I have discovered that only the help of friends will get me to my son. Only the strong will that comes with friendship can be stronger that Walker’s diabolical mind. So, I am sorry, sir, but I have to reject your offer. I have just found my friend, I don’t want to turn my back to them a second time.”

I stand up, and turn. My friends are all smiling, they stand up too.

But when we are all outside the room, the old man speaks.

“Cicciotto, I have another offer to make”:

I come back. “Sir, don’t you understand? There is nothing you could…”

He interrupt me with a movement of the hand. “Cicciotto, join us, and I will reveal you your past”.

My past. The mystery surrounding the double death of my father. His green blood. His being captive at area 51. The demon claiming of being my uncle.

“What do you know? Talk!”

“Join us, and I will reveal it to you” says the old man, going near the door and closing it. I am alone, with him and the girls. My friends are now in the other room.
I shake my head, thorn between them and the revelation of so many mystery. “Tell me at last what this is about…”

The old man looks at me deeply in the eyes, although I can’t see his. “Ok. The short story. There are two secret societies that struggles to conquer the world. They have control over elections, run multinationals, own entire countries. One has an advance technology at his disposition, things like the Gaia Unit or the Giorgio you fought three times during your run. The other is a circle of sorcerers, your friends have fought one of them, Auguste Bull, also known as Aurochs.
The two societies across the centuries have many time nearly fulfilled their goals. When the Earth is more science oriented, like in Ancient Greek, Reinassance, Enlightment age, or today, is the first society to prevail, the Hoods. When, on the contrary, are the other, the Capes, to have the winning run, the Earth slides toward magic, like at time of ancient Egypt, like Medieval time, or Baroque.
My part, in this, is to make sure neither society have an all out victory. I work for the humankind, to preserve his freedom”.

I am speechless.

Well , better to say something. “Uhmmm… and you fight this battle from the time of Ancient Egypt?”

“Well, from some time before… circa 35.000 BC. I am immortal, Cicciotto.”

“I don’t envy you. “

“I fight this battle enlisting the great champions of each era. I employ some aid, like the girls you have met, and use them to find the greatest and powerful heroes that walks the Earth. Gilgamesh, Odysseus, Scipione, Arthur, Charles Magne, they have all worked for me. You could be the next.”

I smile, and then the smile became laughs. “Sir, I think you have mistook me for someone other. I am not such a great hero. Not at all.”

This man is clearly mad. Leaving my friend for this loon would be the stupidest thing to do.

I leave, but his words about the greatest heroes of each age makes me think.

I go near Chance, and talk to him. He give me a little thing.

I come back to the old man.

“Sir, you said you enlist the greatest heroes the Earth has to offer, right? I believe you don’t hire them on a permanent basis.”

“Obviously not. Only when need arise, when there are important mission to perform.”

“Perfect. I have what you need”. I lend him a piece of paper.

It’s the MBL Consulting business card.

The greatest heroes of world.

Prelude:Dawn at the Docks.

“Wake up you miserable little... Ahh your awake! Good.”
“You are knowing where we are. and you are knowing who I am yes?”
A young man in his late twenties steped from the shadows.

“Your Master Stien, Claus said you would come.... he said if he failed you would be the next to......”Shan said as stien begain to remove the skin on his back.
” Ahhh Shit that hurts. why are you doing this to me?”
Stien sat at the Table across fron Shan and begain to play with his wound.

“We shale answer one question at a time you little wretch! Now where is Mac. You know him your cohort?
“I dont know I swear we split up to come back here and he hasen’t made it yet.Master Claus said to meet back here.” “Ahhhhhhh ”Shan cryed as Stien plunged a finger deep into his laid open back. and begain to rummage for some thing.

“Ah Yes Claus Von Feznek.”
“He died tonight in a way that if he was smart he would have avoided.”
“You see he wanted to face the Harrbringer and make himself a god.”
” What a Fool he played right into the Harrbringer’s hand..”
“Now tell me, your smarter than to have gone along with his plan just the four of you aginst the Horror Bringer.”
“You must be a Mad man to have thought you stood a chance. I have ten of the best trained warriors in waiting for me to give the signal.”
stien Motioined with his left hand at an entorage of men that where comeing up behind him.

“What dose this have to do with me?”

“My dear boy you have no idea how vital it is that you know this.”
“You will be free of this Mortal coil after dawn and he will know he, will know . that you have sent word that he is here.”
“You see you’re going to be the bait for me .”
“For I have no idea what he looks like and I dont want to have a run in with him unpreapered. “
“Jarvis get on with it he need’s to be ready before dawn.”

“Yes Lord! It will be done!”the pale servant of Master Stien said as he begain his work.
My back. My Back is burning like I had been cought in the rays of the sun .

“Don’t you be worring laddy this device will be gone in just a few houres.”
Jarvis grabbed a rusty knife, and sliced open a tendon.

“You see, your luck you hav the power to regenerate if not this whole prosses would be leathal to you.”

Jarvis now grabbing for some device off the table that I couldn’t see.

“There we go now your all done I just gotta pack the Wound with rock salt and closer up.”
Jarvis grabed the seture and begain to sew.

Raido:”it looks like Tropical storm Jason is gonna become a hurricain”

End Perlude.

Chicago


Dr. Charles Elias Walker waited patiently at a local café. His attire was that of casual, something he had not been used to in recent times. His drink was water, pure and simple. From his pocket, he pulled a watch; silver and aged with time. Glancing across the table, his eyes met that of the former agent now simply known as Turner. Turner sipped from a mug of coffee. He was clean-shaven and well dressed.

“The chip was deactivated only a few hours after you made contact”

“Henry Quantos is on their payroll. I bet he knew about the chip even before I was gone.” Turner sipped from his mug.

“And your chip?”

“Charles, no need to beat around the bush. You know exactly what has transpired over the last few weeks.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.”

“Really Turner, well, enlighten me.”

“Where should I start? Our plan to track Cicciotto to the secret headquarters of the so-called Revolutionaries? Tweed tracking my progress?” Turner paused as he looked over the small café, “Or your personal agenda of hoping for a bond to form between Cicciotto and I?”

“Interesting. But Mr. Turner, why would I want you and Cicciotto to become friends? It seems like that would only be a disadvantage for my plans.”

“Or maybe it would cause Cicciotto to look at the EPS in a different light. Wonder if the world really needs us.”

“Which it does.”

“I am not arguing that point. Which is why I haven’t disappeared and started anew.”

“I see. You know I could have easily found you no matter where you would have went.”

“I would expect no less. Just as you know that you would be wasting agents. Money. And most importantly time.”

“So why have you returned? You had your freedom. Why return to the evil mad scientist?”

“You’re not evil. We both know that. We both want what’s best for this world. At our own expense and the expense of a chosen few. But in the end it will be all that stops what is coming.”

“I agree.”

Walker took a deep breath enjoying the fresh air.

“I almost forgot the feeling of just being.” Walker said taking a sip of his drink. “With out outside contact, we loose motivation for helping them. We must never forget that.”

“If they only knew how lucky they were.” Turner paused thinking back, “How many times their life has been in danger. What’s out there. Do you resent them?”

Walker thought for a second, “I envy and pity them. For everything they doesn’t have knowledge of and for everything they long for, which would drive them beyond mental limits.”

Turner smiled, “We all go a little mad sometimes.”

“We have Cicciotto’s location. You do know that.”

“I do.”

“That’s all you have to say?”

“Cicciotto was not the one you were after. We both know this. He was not the one. Much energy wasted for nothing.” Turner looked Walker into the eyes; “You are after the key.”

Walker remained silent as Turner continued, “As a man of science I would believe that you would know a meta as such would not exist.”

Walker shook his head for a moment, not agreeing with or answering to Turner’s comments.

“Welcome back.”

“Thank you.

The two men sat there and enjoyed the afternoon.

The far end of the docks.

Stein stood at the edge of the docks, speaking at first glance it seemed, to himself. A large metal bucket sat next to him. He paused to reach into the bucket and pull something out.

A splash in the water.

"We are much alike, you know. Predators, both of us. Only our environments separate us from each other."

A bald head bobbed halfway up out of the water. Black tribal tattoos surrounded the small beady eyes that looked up hungrily at Stein.

"The one you seek is close by. My men have seen him, and will bring him to you. All you have to do is keep him out of the way while I attend to some. . .business."

Another splash. The water in the immediate area began to turn red.

"And you do not even need to tell your associates of our little deal. If you wish, you could work for me full time. . ."

The head bobbed up slightly.

"I like what I'm doing. This is just "overtime". A gutteral voice sounded from just above the water.

"Very well, then. Do we have a deal?" Stein looked inquisitively at the bucket at his feet.

The eyes glanced at the bucket, then back at Stein.

"Deal."

"Excellent." Stein reached into the bucket again and pulled out a small arm, about the size of a small child's. He casually tossed it out towards the head.

The head shot up out of the water revealing a smooth, muscular form, covered in black tribal tattoos. The mouth opened, revealing rows of jagged, sharp teeth. The man caught the arm in his mouth and fell back into the water, disappearing under the waves, leaving only a growing red stain as proof of his ever being there.

Danny ran a hand over the glass of Phil's bedroom window, looking for any crack or imperfection. Anything that would betray the glass' recently broken state.

"Interesting..." He said softly.

"Sorry I broke the window," Phil said softly, sitting upright on his bed.

"Never mind. Looks like you fixed it. How'd you do that?"

"I don't... I'm not quite sure."

"Like the sandwich," Danny said, nodding.

"Huh?"

"The sandwich. You didn't make a conscious decision to make the sandwich float to you, did you? You just really wanted it, and it happened. Instinctually."

"Something like that..."

"Wow."

"You know much about this sort of thing, then?" Phil asked Danny.

"Me? Hell no. This is as new to me as it is to you. I'm just kind of... picking it up as I go along. Anyway, you should get some rest. I'll see you in the morning. Give you the big tour."

"'night."

Danny left Phil's room, closing the door softly behind him. He travelled back through the house, to speak to Grimm. Danny arrived at the kitchen, and was mildly surprised to find that Grimm wasn't actually there.

"Hm... I thought he was here a moment ago."

<Maybe he's taking a piss.>

Danny then found a note on the table. It read, "Danny. Had to quickly run back to the bar- Blackwulf needed me for a plot device. Back soon. Grimm. PS- Hope this fixes continuity."

"Right. Well. Off to bed, then..."

INTERLUDE

The long, slender 'rope-bridge' stretched forth over the chasm, its' form swaying to and fro with the perfumed breeze. The smell of honeysuckle and vanilla permeated the air around the two men, as they casually strolled over the bridge. The shorter man, hunched over from too many years to count, supported his weight against the small wooden cane, his pace quick, if not effortless. Bronze skin, still tight along his bald head, folded few wrinkles along his face, matching the folds in his flowing white robe-mix-tunic. And his eyes, piercing and bold, gave birth to stars. A stare that can break down a soul exuded wisdom beyond the sum of mankind. The extraordinarily tall man accompanying him bore shades of the same wisdom, tempered by youth and weakened by comparitive inexperience.

The sun rested east in the sky, bathing a comfortable warmth across the lush paradise surrounding the horizon. West of their position, gleaming against the coming stars of night, towering castles of myth clung to the heavens with pride and dignity. South, the waves of a pure, fresh water ocean crashed against white sandy beaches. The bridge stretched North, over the seven-mile 'Trench of The Fallen'. And, directly in front of the two men, hugging the immediate skyline, rose a majestic Biblical tower.

It was a nice, pleasant stroll for the two men, built on casual conversation, and warm feelings. It was any normal moment, from any normal point in time. Except, of course, for three small facts:

The bridge they walked along was made entirely from water and smoke.

The river below them was made of a volcanic lava producing no heat.

And the land they walked freely in, does, and does not, exist.

"It sounds quite the adventure, my boy...." the elderly man spoke, his voice hushed, but precise.

"Indeed." Turkish nodded, his hands forever folded.

"Do you miss them?"

Turkish thought for a moment.

"I do not know, sir." he replied, their stride in perfect timing with each other. "I do not feel that I really ever got to know them."

The man nodded, grunting with understanding. "The absence of your memories seemed to have been futile in more ways than one."

Turkish cocked his eye, glancing over at the man.

"I do not understand."

"It seems removing the understanding of your mission's purpose wasn't enough. Even though your thoughts could not betray you, Agents of Chaos have still detected your presence in the World of Time. That is why we extracted you before the proper date."

"Have they reacted to it, yet? Do they detect the Earth-Child?"

"No, the Earth-Child they can not find...." the elderly man sighed. "....not yet. However, Chaos comes to La Perdita, even as we speak."

Turkish paused, then, came to a stop.

"Send me back." he said flatly, his elder stopping in unison.

"Why?"

"So that I might stand with them. With my gifts, and my full memories, I would be valuable in assisting them against---"

"No."

"But....Lord Scion....I---"

"No, Turkish." The Scion shook his head. "I am sorry. But, this is not your fight yet."

"Is it not because of me that Chaos targets my former comrades?"

"Yes, but, your skills are needed elsewhere. The Coming will happen sooner than you think."

"But, doesn't someone need to greet the birth of the Earth-Child? I could fulfill that mission, as well as help the others....."

The Scion just sighed, shaking his head. He resumed his stroll along the water bridge.

"Turkish, Turkish, Turkish...." he spoke, ".....you must purge this impatience of yours....enlightenment is your only path......a Scion must never allow his feelings to get in the way of The Order. That is how it has been. That is---"

"---'how it shall be'....yes, yes, I know...." he sighed, clearly miffed as he began walking again.

********************

"......nice......"

The ancient stone that defined the interior structure of the room sparkled with swirling specks of diamond and cinammon. A web of mercury trickled along the walls, blue and white flames burning in ever-changing patterns. Light peeked through a belfry in the ceiling, the pure sunlight glinting off an enormous silver bell hanging close to a quarter-of-a-mile up. Titanic support columns of dark burgandy, crafted from the clay fields of Mars, dotted in a circle around the outer perimeter of the room, stretching up into the seeming infinity. The shades and shimmers of gold danced over the black marble-mix-glass floors, the light filtering through the thin, misty clouds that floated carelessly along the mile-high ceiling.

Near the base of each column hung large mirrors, each as different in size and shape as the previous. The gold frames of each cystal clear pane were mixed randomly with liquid amethyst and sapphire. And, if one were to listen closely, a maddening song about tea could be heard humming from the reflections.

".....okay.... this one's boring me....find somebody else....."

The man's blue eyes stared intently into one of the mirrors, watching as his own reflection faded once again into a ghostly mirage, the view within the glass being replaced with another picture entirely.

Across the room, a pair of bare feet rolled casually along the cool floor, silent as the sunrise....

"Stop!" the man said suddenly. "There. Right there. That's perfect....."

His mouth cut into a naughty smile, froths of soap running down the body of the showering woman.

"....nice....." he said again, admiring the erotic beauty within the mirror.

if you say so

Tallmoore's smile, still a nigh-transparent image overlaying the bathing scene, grew a bit more devious.

"Oh, I do, sweety....I do...." he mumbled, the tip of his cigarette bursting swiftly into flames.

He slowly slumped comfortably back into a floating satin recliner. It took him a moment to realize that another ghostly face had suddenly appeared in the mirror next to his.

"I agree. Very nice, indeed."

Tallmoore half-fumbled, half-jumped out of his chair in an explosion of excitement.

"Jaysis!!" he yelled. "Turkish! Hey!"

Turkish Stringfellow smiled, shaking Tallmoore's hand.

"Hello Friday..."

"When the hell did you get back?!" he asked, slapping the man on his shoulder.

"About ten minutes ago, yesterday, and two weeks from now..."

Tallmoore sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Christ, I hate this place...." he mumbled.

"Oh GAWD, Tallmoore!"

Friday spun around to see a lovely blonde Brit, hands on her tight hips, staring with disgust into the mirror.

"Fuck, Z....is it any of your business?" he retorted.

"Au'd expect something like this' from you, topper'..........but, Alice? How cud' ya'?"

it is not for me to decide
he asked nicely
i had to comply

The voice was that of a teenage girl, emanating from all of the mirrors at once. The bathing image faded, only to be replaced with the ghostly face of a pleaant-looking young blonde girl.

"Don't worry about it Alice, old girl!" Tallmoore half-yelled in irritation. "The 'Moral Majority' here probably frowns on people showering without bathing suits...."

"AH' AM NOT THA' MORAL MAJORITY!"

"....or, GASP!....husbands and wives sleeping in the same bed...."

"....how was my trip? Fine. Thank you for asking. What? Why, thank you. I missed you as well....." Turkish spoke quietly to himself, watching Z and Friday inch closer and closer with every remark.

"Dinna try an' divert tha' subject! Tha' most exquisite Wonderland artifact ever found, and yor' usin' it ta' play Peepin' Bastard!"

"Prude!"

"Jerk!"

"Slut!"

"Prick!"

"Whore!"

"Arseface!"

".......'arseface'?" Turkish mumbled incredulously.

"Christ Z!! You act like you've never seen a naked woman before!"

"Ah' see one everatime' I take a bath, you twit!"

Tallmoore snickered.

"That's funny....I see one everytime you take a bath, too!" he said with a smirk.

Z's eyes flared with fury.

".....you really shouldn't have a mirror in your shower like that, Z...." he laughed, suddenly cutting into sprint to get away from her raking hands. "....by the way I loooove that tatoo on your left ass-cheek........very retro...."

Z finally threw her hand up, a spatial rift suddenly 'booming' open in front of Tallmoore, swallowing him. There was a triple clap of thunder, as the rift closed, and then deposited Friday about two stories up on one of the stone support girders in the ceiling.

"BITCH!! GET ME DOWN NOW!!" the voice trailed with little impact below.

"Ha!" Z dusted her hands together with a satisfied smile.

Suddenly, her bra burst into flames. She yelled in shock, immediately booming out of her clothes.

"MOTHERFUCKER!! AH'M SENDIN' YA' TO THA' SUN!!" a very naked, very angry Z yelled up towards the ceiling.

Clinging to one of the girders, Tallmoore's eyes slowly faded from red to blue again.

"Ha!" he snorted to himself.

By this time, Turkish had already, sighed, rolled his eyes, given up, and approached one of the mirrors far across the room from the ever-escalating chaos.

"I see some things never change...." he spoke quietly to the mirror.

Alice's face appeared within the glass.

nothing is eternal
as the scion would say
tomorrow will be as different
as today is from yesterday

Turkish smiled.

"It's good to see you again, Alice. Your rhyming is really improving, I must say...."

thank you
i have been practicing
what would you care to see today
young prophet

Turkish stared deeply into the mirror, another thunderclap emanated behind him, as a pyre of flame shot past.

"Show me what is happening in La Perdita....."

END INTERLUDE

[ 10-02-2002, 09:13 PM: Message edited by: Turkish Stringfellow ]

Exits – The Conclusion

Danny walked down the hallway, heading for his room and finally some sleep. It is pretty funny how one day can feel like weeks. And never seems to end. Yet weeks could pass in the blink of an eye and nothing can happen.

Danny reached his door, which was strangely enough, open.

“Hal, did I leave the door open again?”

No, I distinctly remember reminding you to close it before.

“Hello?” Danny asked as he entered his apartment.

In the shadows only a few feet from the door was Sam, sitting on the old worn out cough. Sam stood, looking straight into Danny’s eyes. There was silence.

“Hey Dan,”

“Hey Sam.”

Both men were uneasy. Neither wanting to say what was on their minds.

“Dan,”

“Yeah?”

“About before.” Sam paused before speaking and looked down towards the ground, “I was out of line.”

“Sam…”

“I’m sorry.”

Danny nodded his head. Sam didn’t say another word and walked out of Danny’s apartment, shutting the door behind him.





The Morning After 7:30 AM

Sam stood at the doors of the fourteenth floor. His eyes locked on the number fourteen, which hung on the locked doors.

He has been in the same position for the last twenty minutes, not sure of what his next move would be. His hand moved forward, taking hold of the doorknob. He began to turn it open when he abruptly stopped.

“I can’t.”

His words echoed in the empty stairwell, the sadness of his voice, the low hush of whispers matching it. Sam turned back toward the stairs and descended down.

The complex was silent, everyone sleeping peacefully after the long night before. Sam walked through the main room with a folder under one arm and a small suitcase in his right hand. He smiled remembering a few good times, but never looked back as he made his way towards Shirley, who was up early getting things ready for a possible new high profile client.

“Hey Shirley.” Sam’s voice was soft, unlike his angry tone he had taken since the teams return from the castle.

“Oh, hey Sam, I didn’t expect anyone to be up so early.” Shirley said as she lifted stacks of paper from boxes, filing them.

“Yeah, well, I have an early flight I have to catch.”

“Flight?” Shirley asked, surprised.

“Yeah.”

“Where are you going? Vacation, or…”

“Not exactly.” Sam paused looking for the right words, “I’m gonna resume my studies, a small University in Italy.”

“Why so abrupt? Aren’t you gonna tell anyone, say goodb-“

“I’m not big on good-byes.” Sam cracked a smile, “And this whole superhero for hire thing just wasn’t for me.”

“Yeah, some times I wonder myself.”

“Anyhow, I wanted to give these to you, well, the team.”

Sam handed Shirley the file, she opened it and looked back up to him.

“The deed to the building?”

“Yeah, the place now officially belongs to the team. Tell them to try not to blow it up.”

“Out of curiosity, why are you giving the building to the team?”

“Too many bad memories. Now I don’t have any excuses to come back.”

“No?”

For a second, Sam thought of Michelle.

“Nope. None. I hope you and Mick are able to visit me sometime. Italy would be a great place for a Honeymoon,”

“We’ll keep it in mind.”

“Well, I should be going,”

“Bye Sam.”

Shirley pulled Sam in for a hug. After a few moments, they parted and Sam headed for the door.

“I’ll see ya around.”

As Sam exited, Shirley stepped into the doorway and yelled out to him.

“What should I tell the others?”

Sam paused for a second and shrugged his shoulders; “I don’t know, make up something cool and tell ‘em I said it.”

With a wink, Sam was gone. Into a taxi heading for the airport. Shirley covered her arms as the wind picked up. She hastily returned inside.

“I hope a storm isn’t coming…”

A few hours passed. Everyone was awake, just about all of the guys were in the kitchen except for Chance, Henry and Dirk Bell. Chance was working out, Henry was relaxing with a book in his guest apartment and Dirk was still sleeping.

Mick and Danny were at the kitchen table. Ed and Grimm were arguing over the stove, both disagreed on how to cook the eggs.

“I was a cook for years,” Ed argued.

“Sorry mate, first come first serve.”

“I still can’t believe you guys went to Paris last night.” Danny shook his head.

Mick tilted his head to the side as a glass flue by and was met in midair by the carton of orange juice, which filled the glass. The glass landed on the table, next to a newly filled bowl of cereal. Mick just shrugged his shoulders.

Danny laughed as Phil walked into the kitchen; “I’m starving guys, I could really use some OJ and cereal.” He said.

Danny pointed to the OJ and cereal with no one sitting by it.

“I must say, I’m impressed.”

Ed turned toward Phil, “Cool I’ve never had that power.”

Mick extended his hand to Phil, “Hey, I’m Mick, and M-X-Y, but you can just call me Mick.”

“Ah, it’s nice ta meetca.”

“You can call me Ed,” The Italian born hero approached the young man, also extending his hand, “How did you do that?”

“I really have no idea Sir,”

“I think you’ll fit in good here.”

They all laughed, sat and continued talking, relaxing on this peaceful morning.

“Anyone seen Sam,” Mick asked, “I gotta ask him something.”

“I saw him late yesterday” Danny replied, “He seems to be doing better, even apologized for last night.”

“That’s good,” Grimm added, sitting down at the table with the finished eggs, “He seemed really broken up about that Michelle chick.”

“You guys will never believe last night!” Danny jumped back in.

“Yeah?”

“What happened” Ed asked.

“I had-“

Before Danny could finish, a loud rumbling filled the air and a huge figure slammed through the brick wall. The figure stood, a build dark skinned man who matched Grimm’s size. His head was shaved and he had a well-defined beard, graying on its sides. He pulled out a large home made weapon, almost futuristic in nature and pointed it directly towards Danny’s head.

His voice was stern and sure, “Daniel Hearn, you must die!”

Danny stood, “Hal!”

As the unknown man pulled the trigger, Ed’s quick reflexes slammed the gun’s side. An energy pulse blasted through the air, ripping apart a solid wall. The man turned toward Ed and was met with a barrage of blows, each ripping through the air at an uncanny speed.

“My fight is not with you” The man added while he matched Ed’s speed and slammed Ed's leaner body into the wall, before throwing him over the counter top as if it were nothing.

“Try that to me,” Grimm said as he charged toward the unknown attacker. The man matched Grimm’s power as the two titans slammed each other’s bodies into the walls. After each time Grimm hit the man, his punches would than be more powerful.

“You’re absorbing my force...” Grimm was met with a thunderous blow to the face. The stranger held Grimm by his shirt collar.

“My fight is only with Hearn, but I will take out who ever gets in my way.”

“You fight with him, than you fight with all of us!”

Chance’s voice attracted the attention of the stranger.

Ed regrouped with Danny and Mick, who were ready for a fight. Phil was under the table, not sure if he was ready for this type of situation yet. Quantos had also just arrived; he held a shotgun tightly in his hands. Kit Piper and Shirley were next to enter the room.

The fight could be heard for blocks around the complex.

“The stranger let go of Grimm and put his weapon to his side.” He paused thinking for a moment, “Maybe there is another way.”

The team waited outside of Kit’s office. Grimm rubbed his bone jaw, which was saw from the blow. The team was anxious.

“I can’t believe that Kit is meeting with a psycho that just tried to kill me.” Danny was frustrated to say the least.

“I’m sure there is a good reason he attacked you.”

“The fucker was strong.”

“He wrecked the kitchen…”

“You see that weapon?”

“Future like…”

“You were under the table?”

“Ahhh, I don’t remember.”

“He’ll get his.”

Silence erupted as the door to Kit’s office opened. Kit exited as the large man followed.

“Gents, I’ll like you to meet the newest member of MBL Consulting, he goes by the name… Priest.”






THE END

[ 10-03-2002, 12:01 AM: Message edited by: GoozX ]

EPILOGUE
<<<Later that morning>>>

Rain was falling outside, and the various members of the MBL had either returned to their rooms or left the building, still too shaken to stay where they had been when everything had transpired.

Phil sat in a chair in the middle of the kitchen, which looked like a trailer park after a tornado. Phil pushed broken glass around with one foot absently while staring at nothing in particular. He had never felt this lost or this - disconnected - before, although there of course wasn't much of a past in his memory to compare it to.

Danny walked in. "A bit early in the morning to be soul-searching, isn't it?"

Phil shrugged. "I... I don't know, Danny. I can do all this weird stuff without even thinking about it. The sandwich, the window, the cereal, you know. And then something like"- he gestured around him - "Something like this happens and I have no idea what to do. I hid under a table, Danny. The guy wasn't even interested in me and I hid under a table. But you... he was trying to kill you - or at least that's what it looked like - and you were totally ready to throw down to save your friends. I'll never be anything if this is how I handle things. I... I don't know what to do."

Danny pulled up a chair. "You don't know what to do because you don't know who you are."

Phil thought a moment. "Sounds about right."

"We can fix that."

Phil looked at him. "Do you know something I don't?"

Danny chuckled. "Nothin' that can't be chalked up to experience, mate." He looked at Phil. "But even if you can't remember where you're from or what your real name is, you can know who your friends are, and you can make it your purpose to look out for them, and look out for everyone else that matters to you. I don't expect you to come out guns blazing whenever anything bad happens around here. Not yet. Because I don't know you. But any living human being can know for themselves just what they're made of at any given time. You can't just be a hero outright. You can't just instantly have the right plan, move, or catch phrase for every single moment. That sort of thing only happens in the comics. All you can do in that moment when it's all up to you is decide what you're made of and what you have to do in that moment. Everything else? Well, there's not much you can do about everything else anyway."

Phil smiled. "Thanks, Danny." His smile faded. "I dunno. I just feel like-" Phil looked out an imaginary window - "I just feel like something is coming. Something big."

"You may be right. I feel it too. Then again, the both of us just might be wrong. Either way, it isn't here yet, so no worries. And, if it does get here, I'm very confident you'll know what to do."

Danny looked around the wrecked kitchen. "What a mess," he said, letting out a low whistle. "It'll take all day to fix."

"Maybe."

Danny watched curiously as Phil closed his eyes. Nothing happened for a long moment. Suddenly, some of the shards of broken glass and splintered wood began stirring. Without warning, broken bits and pieces of everything imaginable began flying around the room in a maelstrom of debris. Danny ducked for fear of being hit with something that might hurt. Yet, glass, wood, ceramic and Formica still whirled above his head in a perfectly organized flurry of activity. Bits and pieces flew off and stuck to walls and furniture. The whirlwind shrank in size and finally dissipated entirely.

Danny looked around him in amazement. From broken chairs to shattered dishes to gouged walls, absolutely everything looked like new. Danny's jaw dropped. Phil opened his eyes and smiled. He hadn't even broken a sweat. "It worked."

Danny simply gaped in silence for a long moment before whistling again, a bit more fervently. He turned to Phil to find that he was already walking off down the hall. Danny just shook his head slowly before turning to leave, shutting the door on his way out.

[ 10-03-2002, 12:56 AM: Message edited by: Captain Sammitch ]

EPILOGUE 2

Grimm pulled off his now ruined shirt as he walked out towards the lobby.

"Uh, Grimm? Where you goin'?" Mick asked.

"To make a phone call. Gotta talk to my insurance agent."

Grimm picked up the phone and dialed a number.

"Yeah, Wulf? Listen, you remember that offer you made last night? Yeah, well, I may have a counteroffer for you. . ."

Epilogue 3 (final)

"Yes Comrad I am listening"
"Yes I am being intrested. "
"Yes I know the address, I will be Being there after lunch."
"Is your building haveing a Basment?"
"Good, I will bring 'Equipment' and be hired as your teams Trainer. I am likeing that very much. I will be seeing you then."
Blackwulf hung up the phone.
Only to pick it back up and dial an old friend.

"Lister I need a favor."Blackwulf said with a strong Amarican accent.

"I need you to send me the light training package."
"Yea! the one marked for Moscow."
"send it to this address. and Lister have it there by 11:00 La Perdita standerd time."
"Good good than you Comrade"Blackwulfs accent became a thick Russian one again.

EPILOGUE 4 (the... uh... other final)

Danny stood outside Kit Piper's office, leaning against the wall. He was looking mighty pissed off, and by an incredibly coincidence, he was feeling mighty pissed off. The synchronicity was almost perfect.

He counted to three silently, and knocked on the door.

"Kit!" He yelled. There was a brief pause, and Piper answered the door.

"Danny! Just the guy I wanted to see!"

"Liar."

"Well, maybe, but it's always polite to make your guests feel welcome. Come in, take a seat."

Danny did so.

"What can I do for you?" Kit began, sitting down behind his desk.

"What the fuck is the deal with this Priest guy?"

"He seems tough. Could be useful..."

"You know what I mean, Kit. He barges in and wrecks our kitchen... while trying to KILL me. Then you're offering him a job?"

"I understand your concerns..."

"Of course you bloody well do. If you didn't, I'd think you were insane. Or an arsehole. Or both."

"Maybe I am, Danny, maybe I am..."

Danny leaned back in his seat, and glared across the desk at Kit.

"So where is he now?" Danny asked, quietly.

"Priest? Went out. Said he had to pick up some things. Clothes and weapons and the like, I'd imagine..."

"Damn it Piper, stop it!" Danny said, slamming his hand down on the polished wood.

"...stop what?"

"Pretending there's nothing wrong here! Pretending you haven't just done something stupid!"

"Hey, I know what I'm doing!"

"And since is it your decision, Kit, and your decision alone as to who gets hired? We're a team!"

"You may have a point there Danny... but listen to me. Just give it a chance. Trust me. One chance.

"I'm not going to put my team at risk," Danny said, standing up.

"You're not their leader."

"You're not our boss."

Kit, for the briefest of moments, glared at Danny. Then he regained his friendly exterior and said, "Trust me!"

Danny walked out.

EPILOGUE 5 (Bite me)

Somewhere on the 8th dimension, a 5th dimensional being is imprisoned. He has been there since he walked through the portal to leave the Castle of Crossed Destinies, where he took part in an epic battle between two powerfull teams, and, most importantly, between he and his nemesis.

If his form was concievable by 3D brains, we'd see him badly injured, bit his arms tied, his head lowered and his mouth sealed.

He's confused. He can only guess why he's been taken here. He knows for sure that, whatever the reason is, he won't like it.

He also knows that he will be here for a long while...


La Perdita


"Hey... Mick, is it?" Phil said, putting his hand on Mick's shoulder. He removes it immediately as he feels electricity striking it.

"Did I do that...?" Phil asks, looking at his hand as smoke emanates from it.

"No, it was him..." Shirley says.

As Mick turns, Phil notices his eyes are illuminated.

"M-I-C-K is not here right now," Mxy says "You can leave a message for him if you want!"

"Uh..." Phil says, confused, and then turns to Shirley, "This guy takes his double identity really seriously, doesn't he?"

"Nah, he really isn't Mick. He's Mxy right now," Shirley answers.

"Then who is Mxy?" Phil asks, as Mxy, distracted, starts desintegrating in the form of bubbles.

"A 5th dimensional being that uses Mick's body whenever Mick says his name"

"Ah" Phil says. "Hey, that explains why I got a slight headache when I aproached him... His mind must be too complex for my powers"

"Mick called him when Priest attacked and we haven't been able to get rid of him yet..."

"Get rid of him?"

"Get him to say Mick's name. You can give it a try if you want..."

"Ok... Hey, MXY!" Phil yells.

All the bubbles pop at the same moment and Mxy appears in front of Phil.

"PHIL!" Mxy yells to Phil's face.

"Uh... Say, you like cartoons, don't you?"

"Yes! How did you know?"

"I took a wild guess... Do you happen to remember the name of that Disney cartoon...? A black mouse with a red tie and shorts..."

"Of course I know his name!"

"Really? What is it?"

"It's M-I-C-K ey Mouse!"

"Oh... Uh, thanks.."

"Hehehehe, he's learning..." Shirley says, "It won't be so easy to fool you this time, will it, Mxy?"

"Nope!" Mxy says "I'm no fool"


On the 8th dimension, if we could concieve the face of the imprisoned 5th dimensional being, we'd notice his eyes are filled with light...

THE END (or is it)

Yes. Yes it is.

Not quite...

*****

FINAL EPILOGUE

Pete "the Chimp" Glover's Wake and Memorial service the next morning was a small and unassuming affair, just like the man had been in his life.

A few of his partners in MBL Consulting were present, such as Kristofer, Danny, Mick, and Shirley but most of the newcomers neglected to pay their respects. Pete was a stranger to them and hadn't worked with them enough to really get to know them. Edulcore was the sole exception to this, and he came out of respect for this little man who was (ironically) labeled the "world's luckiest man." And the others who knew him somewhat, if not all that well, such as Tobias, Larry, and Kristogar, had been on leave when Pete "died" and still didn't know the news. And Sam was nowhere to be found. Of course, Pete was just such a weirdo to most that few saw him as little more than comic relief.

Dr. Henry Quantos said the Eulogy for poor Pete, followed by a few brief words from Kit Piper. Then the seven broke open a couple of bottles of Guinness and drank to Pete's memory. There was no body, but a gravestone for Pete was bought with the money Pete left behind for the team, as stipulated in his will.

The day was a rainy, windy one as the six left the Puerta Mibela cemetary and headed back home to their apartment home. And as Chance turned back to look at Pete's little grave marker one last time, he could've sworn he caught a shadowy glimpse of a little figure walking the other way. He wondered if he would ever see Pete again.

Chance had told the others that Pete was dead and that there was no way to bring him back. Yet, Dr. Quantos had believed the same thing about him, and here Kristofer Schanz was. Not the same Kristofer Schanz, but in a way he had returned from the dead. He wondered idly whether his own ghostly counterpart was now living in the timeline he had come from. And he wondered whether the ghostly Pete of his timeline now possessed a body... If so, that meant that there was still a chance, however remote, that the Pete of this world could still return to life, even if it meant denying his own Pete the chance of being alive again. This was too big a decision to make in one day, but he knew he had to decide it himself. Pete was his responsibility, and his alone; and it would be his own private, secret mission. There was no way he would burden his teammates with the knowledge that Pete might somehow come back to life. But as long as he lived he would never stop looking for a way to bring him back... it was only fair...

THE END.

[ 10-10-2002, 03:50 AM: Message edited by: TheTimeTrust ]

Really this time!