Song of the Swans Part 3

Chapter 9

Cyclone spent the remainder of his flight rehearsing how he would tell his travel mates about his new condition.  The infection would surprise them; it was so sudden, it surprised him too, and he still didn't know how it happened.  But he knew his Imagination spark was strong enough that even though his body had transformed, his free mind was still intact, and would stay intact for some time.  Since he hadn't been smashed, just infected, he didn't think a double had been created, unlike his first and last infection.

Kate would understand his plight, Cyclone thought.  Maybe she'd been infected too, by whatever it was that got him.  Maybe some part of him had stayed infected all this time, and being near these Maelstrom starships commenced a resurge? That didn't make sense.  He'd fought dragons and the Darkitect himself since his first restoration and never seen any signs of Maelstrom on his person.

Cyclone had some faith in Intrepid Fusion Eclipse, too.  They knew each other from before, and despite being different from how he remembered, Cyclone didn't think Intrepid's first reaction to seeing him infected would be to smash him.

But then there were Luke and Mara Mercury.  Cyclone knew nothing of them except from watching their behaviors and mannerisms from their Nimbus City flat...  and based on that, he had no doubts that their first reactions to seeing him as a Stromling would be to smash him.

As his rocket began its final approach to Elistra - a blue and green, average sized planet that reminded him of another planet called Earth - Cyclone figured he just had to time his reveal just right.  He could ask for a private moment with Kate, then have her mediate.  And he elected to stay wearing his Space Marauder gear.  The Paradox gear gave off an air of Maelstrom energy which he could hide in.

The coordinates Intrepid gave them lead him to touch down before a checkpoint, just outside what seemed to be a large city from the air.  The time was locally 7:30 PM, the season was summer, and the sun was on its way to dipping out of sight for the night.

Once on the ground, Cyclone noted that only two rockets were on the ground next to him: Luke's and Mara's, he recognized.  His cockpit opened and he stepped out to look around.  The two were not in the area, but a lone Sentinel guard stood by the checkpoint, which was little more than a blown out bus strategically placed between two retaining walls.  He didn't see why he couldn't walk around, but he went to the bus instead.

The Sentinel guard was sleeping, so it was easy enough for Cyclone to walk by, into the bus, and right into a Maelstrom scanner.

Immediately loud blaring filled the bus's metal interior, echoing around and waking the guard, who gave a cry and ran to Cyclone.  But the guard dropped his bayonet.  "At last!" the Sentinel cried.  "Nexus Force reinforcements!" He moved to give Cyclone a big hug, and the Space Marauder had little room to avoid it in the cramped bus.

"Uh," Cyclone tried to say something, but the guard was overwhelmed in crying now.  Cyclone wondered if he would faint.  Suddenly he pushed himself off Cyclone, glared at his helmet, and began shaking him by the shoulders.

"I've been standing here for years," the guard sputtered agrily, "one year, two years, how many years now? Three years! Thee bricking years, waiting for those blasted reinforcements! What took you so long?!" he shouted.  "The last guy said you wouldn't turn up, but I won't believe it!"

"...last g- guy?" Cyclone stammered.

"I won't believe that Duke Exeter will leave me standing here for the rest of my miserable existence!"

"You'd best write him a letter, then," Cyclone told him.  The Sentinel looked at him, surprised.

"Write...  Duke Exeter...  a letter?" the guard repeated, calming down.  "Why didn't I think of that...  that's exactly what I will do."

The guard stepped back, thoughtful, and Cyclone made sure to step around the Maelstrom scanner this time, only to step over another one right behind it.  He stiffened as the alarm blared again.

The guard sighed and reset it.  "Move along.  I know you Paradox are always bringing some Maelstrom experiment wherever you go."

"Thanks." Cyclone said, genuinely relieved.  He could smash the guard if it came to it, but he didn't want to.

Cyclone stopped dead in his tracks.  He could NOT smash the guard, or any minifigure, ever! Not unless he knew they would rebuild, but such a thought could only come from his Stromling mind, which meant it was taking over faster than he'd thought.

"Hey Bicycle." someone said to him as soon as he exited the bus.

"What?" Cyclone asked, turning to face the source of the voice.  He hid his blade hand behind his back.  Supposedly he expected who it was.  Luke Mercury and Mara Mercury were sitting against the inside side of the retaining wall.  Mara was munching on a corn dog while Luke had a Brickpad tablet, and it was Luke Mercury who addressed him.

Cyclone wasn't sure whether to be offended.  Had he just called him 'Bicycle'?

Mara elbowed Luke.  "I don't think that's his name." she said.

Luke frowned.  "Your name is Gallant Strong Bicycle, right?"

"I'm pretty sure it's Groovy Stumped Captain."

"It's Cyclone." Cyclone muttered.

"Yeah that's it, Groovy Stumped Cyclone." Mara said with a grin.

"It's Gallant Strong Cyclone!" he almost shouted.

Luke grinned and elbowed Mara back.  "See, I was more correct than you." The blond boy turned back to Cyclone.  "So where's Intrepid?"

Cyclone looked back through the windows of the bus, but a Pod Rocket had not materialzed there in the last minute.  "I was hoping he was already here." Cyclone admitted.  "And Kate."

"Who's Kate?" Mara asked.

"Never heard of a guy called Kate." Luke said.

These guys had to be kidding.  Cyclone sighed and looked towards the city.  There was one wide street directly ahead of them, with houses and other streets branching off its sides.  This was main street, and according to the directions Intrepid had given them, his brother's house would be a ways down it.  He'd also given them two other points of interest: firstly a dojo run by someone named Edgar, who Intrepid said was a witness, whatever that meant, and secondly was the town's library.

"Say we get a move on, and catch up with them later?" Cyclone asked, and the two got up.

As soon as Mara and Luke were skipping down the road ahead, Cyclone ducked into an alley and pulled off his helmet to breathe.  It didn't really get hot in the gear, since Stromlings were cold blooded, rather his physiology conflicted with the imagination tech it had.  Paradox gear was known to harness the power of the Maelstrom, but it was still mostly imagination powered, and Stromlings were, by nature, allergic to imagination.  If he drank a notion potion now, he'd probably smash.

Cyclone took a moment to inspect his left 'hand'.  He pulled off his glove and stared at the shiny blade.  It'd been three years since he'd seen the horrible weapon.  He'd never wanted to see it on him again.

He supposed it was better to have a sword for an arm than a loud chainsaw or a heavy hammer.  He recalled a trick from an earlier time.  If he focused hard enough, the blade disappeared and morphed into a hand.  Cyclone could use that better.

After putting his helmet back on, Cyclone returned to the main street and headed off after Luke and Mara.  He hadn't noticed someone else watching him from a higher up terrace, joined with the shadows.

****

To get disinfected the first time, Cyclone had undergone an experimental procedure which most Nexus Force encampments could provide.  Such procedures were becoming widespread before he and Kate were lost in another universe.  When he asked Luke Mercury about him carrying such a kit, the blond boy had replied,

"I don't have one.  Mara doesn't have one."

"What if one of us gets infected?"

"Then don't get infected."

Cyclone had laughed, which accidentally came out sounding especially growly, to which he feigned a cough.  He doubted anyone else on Elistra had a disinfection kit either, so he just stayed in his suit, walked behind Luke and Mara, and kept his eyes out for any particularly questioning gazes.  There were minifigures in the streets, in cars, and walking on the sidewalks, but no one seemed to mind them much.  They passed a park and a strip mall before reaching their destination.

Alex Talmid's house was a tall, narrow building in a row of many tall, narrow buildings.  Each one was separated by a strip of astroturf.  Alex's house itself had baby blue colored brick siding, and a little fenced walkway at the front.  Luke Mercury rang the doorbell, and they waited.

Ten seconds later, Mara Mercury rang the bell again.  "I don't think anyone's home." she said.

"Or he's in the bathroom."

"Or he's sleeping."

"Like Intrepid.  He always sleeps late."

"Intrepid probably fell asleep in his rocket."

"He probably crash landed on some planet.  Did you hear about the guy who left his rocket on autopilot and crashed-"

"Focus!" Cyclone screamed at them, and the two turned at him.  "Sorry," he said, not wanting to sound that harsh.  "Maybe there's a key somewhere?" He knelt down and began lifting up decorative rocks.

"While you're digging for worms," Luke Mercury said, "I think we should open this door."

"What do you think I'm trying to do?" Cyclone groaned.  He lifted up one rock and found, indeed, a bunch of worms.  Ew.

"Didn't you hear what he said?" Mara said.  "He said you're digging for worms!"

"I'm looking for a key!" Cyclone yelled, to which Masterly Shadow sighed and unholstered his Pneumatic Drill of Blasting.  "You're going to shoot the lock?!"

"Yep!" The blond boy aimed the drill right at the door handle and squeezed the trigger.  The drill spun and blasted mega sized ball bearings into the door.  Of course his shots went wild and punched holes everywhere else but the lock in the door.  A window shattered somewhere.  Cyclone cringed.

When he stopped firing, there was a hole next to the doorknob, which Mara reached her arm into to unlock and open the door from inside.

"Hellooooo?" she called, stepping in.  Her cousin followed while Cyclone stayed behind to assess the damage.  "Anyone home?" he heard her call.  Cyclone sighed.  If anyone was there, they'd have come running at the sound of the drill.  Or ran.  Cyclone shook his head, and stepped in, bumping into Luke Mercury.

They were both standing in the front room which opened to stairs on the left and a small kitchen on the right.  They were staring at the mess on the floor.  Pots, groceries, utensils, and stray items littered the ground.  Chairs were tipped.  Ransacked.

All their eyes were wide, taking in the mess.  On the kitchen's table, a note lay, which Mara grabbed.  Cyclone watched as her eyes widened even further.

She read dramatically, "If you want to see your brother, await my instructions!" She turned to Luke.  "I don't have a brother."

"Me neither." Luke said.

"It's for Intrepid." Cyclone grumbled.

"Duh, of course, Tricycle." Luke rolled his eyes.

"My name's Cyclone! How can you guys joke around with this?!"

"About your name?" Luke asked.

"About THIS!" Cyclone gestured around the house, in its sorry state.  "Alex is kidnapped, his house is WRECKED, and you two are still messing around with everything! Can't you be serious?"

Mara Mercury sniffed, and began crying, while Luke Mercury stiffened.  "Maybe you haven't considered there's a reason you see us, 'messing around with everything'." he fumed, disapproval prominent in his voice.  "You don't know what we've been through, you don't know what Mara and I have seen."

"And I've been through a lot too, but you don't see me losing my sanity!" Cyclone retorted.

"Then go get a sense of humor, before you do like the rest of us!" Shadow pushed him away, then turned to comfort Mara.  Peeved, Cyclone stepped back and turned away.  He supposed they had points.  He hadn't been very patient with them, but who would be? Intrepid? Cyclone sighed, and decided he should apologize.

He turned to do so.  Mara had stopped crying, and Cyclone was about to open his mouth and say, "I'm sorry," but he stopped.  Because he still heard whimpering.  And it wasn't from any of them.

Shadow looked up at the stairs.  "Upstairs." he whispered.

They climbed, silent and uncertain, at what to expect.  Shadow took the lead and extending his Elite Cleaver, Cyclone in the middle, and Mara behind.

At the landing the crying was louder.  There were two doors right here, then another set of stairs looped around for another floor.  The sound came from somewhere up there.

Quietly, they ascended and made it to a screen door, already ajar, that lead to a rooftop porch, and it was past this doorway that the mystery sound was coming from.  Luke Mercury took a moment to breathe, then pushed through.  Cyclone ran out behind him.

Lying on the dirty ground, tears and sweat streaming down her dirt stained, otherwise pale face, lay a girl cast in shadow by the dusk's dying light.  Her clothes could be described as rags, and her dark hair was matted.

Shadow and Cyclone were at her side quickly, and Shadow was trying to lift her up.  "Bring her inside! Mara, get water." Mara ran off and Cyclone lifted.  By the girl's light weight and small figure, she didn't look older than thirteen.  But looks could be deceiving.  In her state, she could be older.

They brought her inside and downstairs, where Mara had pulled bottled water in from the backroom.  Poured into a cup, the girl accepted it.

"Can you speak?" Luke said softly.  She nodded.  "What happened to you?"

Her voice was cracked, and she said with difficulty, "I don't...  know."

"Do you have a name?" Cyclone asked.

She looked at him, obviously surprised by his attire.  Cyclone knew if he could take off his helmet to reassure her, he would.  But he couldn't.  He extended his right hand instead.  "We're from the Nexus Force.  We will help you."

"Help." she repeated.  "We need help."

"You and who?" Mara asked.

The girl swallowed a lump in her throat.  "Alex.  He's been captured.  You need to save him."

"We know," Shadow said, "but tell us, who are you?"

The girl concentrated and her eyebrows scrunched up, as if this was a difficult question to answer...  or a difficult question to remember the answer to.  Cyclone shared a concerned glance with Mara, while Shadow still stared at the girl.  There was something familiar about her.

"My name is..." she began, "...Evelyne.  And Alex is my brother."

The three Nexus Forcers looked at each other in shock.  This was one of Intrepid's sisters, who he said had been smashed.

But if she was here, alive...  then were the rest of his family alive as well?

Chapter 10

A phone suddenly rang, to which Evelyne flinched.  "It's him." she whispered.

It wasn't one of Cyclone's, Luke's, or Mara's phones, but the house phone on the wall which Cyclone was closest too.  After glancing at the others, he picked it up to answer it.  "Hello?"

The voice on the other end sounded bitter sweet, like a poisonous plant, and the words were malevolent.  "To show my willingness to bargain," Tiberius said, "I have released your friend's sister to your care."

"We can 'bargain' when you release his brother, as well." Cyclone declared.

"Ah, but where's the fun without the stakes?" Tiberius chided.

"What do you want?"

"Why, I was just getting to that! We're going to barter.  I have something, or someone, you want.  For him, you have to get something for me."

Cyclone glanced at the others.  Evelyne had her head in her hands, while Shadow and Mara were beckoning at him.  He put the phone on speaker for them.  "We won't give Evelyne back." he stated.

"I don't want her, I want a thing! An object! An article, an item! Meet me at Phoenix Park tonight to discuss things further.  Midnight at the Memorial Corner.  No weapons."

"Wait-!" There was an audible thunk, like that of an old fashioned handset being put down, and the line went dead.

"You didn't ask him about Intrepid." Shadow complained.

Cyclone looked at the ceiling.  "I didn't have the chance." he sighed.

"Call him back?" Mara suggested.

"You can try!" Cyclone groaned.

"I wasn't serious," Mara said.  "If he's coming to meet us, we can ambush him there."

"He did say, no weapons." Cyclone restated.

"How do you expect to smash him then?"

Cyclone sighed again.  "I haven't a better idea."

Shadow snapped his fingers.  "We smash him, rescue Alex, and call it a day."

"There's no guarantee he'll bring him," Cyclone said, "he thinks giving us Evelyne is goodwill enough." He regarded the girl.  "She needs someplace safe to stay, I'm not sure if we can give her that here." "Right." Shadow agreed.  "Tiberius got in before, so he can get in again."

"So where is a safe place to stay?" Mara asked.

Cyclone shrugged.  "I don't know yet.  Off-world, perhaps.  But we've got a mission to do, and we have still have time before Phoenix Park to continue it." He checked his watch.  It was roughly a quarter after 8 PM, so they had just enough four hours.

"So continue with the plan?" Mara clarified.  "Intrepid wanted us to meet with a guy called Edgar.  He's at 16th Q street."

"We could also wait for Intrepid." Shadow said.  “If you two are set on going, I'll wait at the checkpoint." He frowned, remembering somebody.  "But what about Evelyne?"

At her name being mentioned, the dark haired girl looked up.  "I can take care of myself." she said.

"You should still come with us." Cyclone decided.

"It's best if we stick together." Mara agreed.  "There's a direct correlation between a team's strength and its size."

Debatable, Cyclone thought, but he agreed with strength in numbers.  And they could keep Evelyne safe better with her in sight, or so he hoped.  "Time to go meet this Edgar, then."

****

The dojo at 16th Q Street advertised the training of Spinjitzu, so it was obvious where this particular Sensei Edgar was coming from.  He was a young man probably in his early twenties with sand-colored hair, a bearded chin, and reading glasses perched on his angular face.  At 8:30 PM, night class had just finished, so Edgar was chilling in the antechamber with a brick catalog when Cyclone and company, Mara Mercury and Evelyne, walked in.

It was a decently sized entrance room, with plenty of seating, some exotic house plants, and in between the varied tapestries hanging on the wall was a set of Paradox Shinobi gear, Cyclone recognized.

"Greetings.  How can I help you?" Edgar asked.

"I'm Gallant Strong Cyclone.  We're from the Nexus Force." Cyclone said.

Edgar lowered his spectacles and the magazine.  "Oh? Have I been re-enlisted?"

Mara Mercury coughed.  "We're not here as Nexus Force agents." she clarified.  "We're friends of Intrepid Fusion Eclipse."

"Oh yeah, I knew him.  Heard from his brother that he came back to stay, but I haven't seen him in over a year.  How is he?"

"Hard to say." Cyclone said.  "We lost him coming here."

"He's dead?!" Edgar stood up.

"No, he just hasn't showed up yet." Cyclone said hurriedly.  "We flew here in our personal rockets and had a dogfight with the Maelstrom."

Edgar had ambled over to the reception desk, and his head was aimed at the Shinobi gear.  "Maybe someone should look for him." he said to no one in particular.

"Luke Mercury is watching for him." Cyclone told him.

"Intrepid can take care of himself." Mara assured them.

Edgar turned around and chuckled.  "Perhaps so.  So, you're his friends? Who are you all, anyway?"

"You can call me Mara," Mara said.  She waved at the other girl.  "And this Evelyne."

"Nice to meet you." Edgar said courteously, and proceeded to explain, "Intrepid and I were teammates once.  We're both originally from Elistra, so I agreed to come back and do some liberation action.  How do you know him?" he asked.

Cyclone shrugged.  "He and I were combat buddies."

"We met on Avant Gardens one day in 3025," Mara said, "then we discovered our shared love for all things mischevious, and we've been teamed up ever since."

Cyclone frowned, and so did Evelyne.  "Intrepid's mischievous?" he asked.

"Must be a different guy." Edgar agreed.

Mara shrugged now.  "People change."

"Who's Intrepid?" Evelyne asked.  "I feel like I should know him."

"He's your other brother." Mara said.

Evelyne's eyes widened.  "You mean Aiden?"

"So that's his name!" Mara said triumphantly.

"I'd love to stay and talk," Edgar cut in, "but I am actually supposed to do some accounting."

"Why were you reading a brick catalog then?" Mara asked.

Edgar picked up the magazine in question.  "It's a Club magazine."

"They all look the same."

"So you're welcome to stay while I pay my taxes," Edgar announced, taking the Club magazine and sitting at the desk, "but unless you're here for an emergency or something of a severe nature, I'm afraid I can't talk much.  We can also discuss a dojo membership."

"This is an emergency." Cyclone stated.  "Intrepid's brother has been kidnapped by some evil guy and he's meeting us in Phoenix Park at midnight."

Edgar shot up.  "Alex is kidnapped? What's this about an evil guy? What does he want?"

"Something we don't know yet," Cyclone confessed.  "I imagine he'll tell us when we meet him."

"If we don't smash him first," Mara proclaimed.

Edgar looked perturbed.  "I know Alex," he said solemnly.  "I'll come with you."

"Oh." Cyclone realized.  "Originally we wanted to see you to discuss your being...  a witness? That's how Intrepid described you.  We came here to find answers about his family, but everything has spiraled out of control since."

Edgar spread his arms and looked doubtful.  "I helped liberate the planet.  I knew Alex, since he was in the team too.  I think rescuing him, or at least trying to, is the priority here."

Cyclone nodded.

"You say you want to smash his captor?" Edgar asked Mara.

The maroon haired girl smiled and pointed at her Elite Cleaver.

"If it comes to that," Edgar said, "I know some skills that can help in combat." He looked from Cyclone, to Mara, and to Evelyne, who suddenly looked most interested.  "Do any of you know Spinjitzu?"

****

Chapter 11

Phoenix Park was located in the city's center.  At five hundred square studs/feet large, the park was decently sized.  Its grassy fields and circular pattern benches reminded Cyclone of Nimbus Plaza, except instead of a plaza in the center, there was a small lake.  The park featured a lot of multi-level designs, accessible by marble stairs.  Flower boxes were built at the highest levels, then grass, then benches, then more benches, then a small walkway, and finally the lake.  One corner of the park was unlike the others.  It had a building, and was labelled the Memorial Corner.

Inside that structure, Cyclone inspected the portraits of various men and women.  He recognized that some wore Nexus Force gear.  A Sentinel Space Ranger called Quinn was described as a great pilot.  To his left was another Nexus Forcer, an Assembly Inventor named Haze.  She had a tally drawn under her portrait, an impressive number of five-hundred sixty Maelstrom Invaders smashed.  Cyclone figured Edgar knew who they were, but there was something else he needed to ask the Paradox Shinobi first.

Cyclone turned away from the wall.  Behind him, Edgar was reviewing the Spinjitzu he'd taught Mara and Evelyne.  Elemental Spinjitzu, he'd said, does not require Imagination.  So this was perfect for Evelyne, who's Imagination potential was not unlocked, although as a senior Nexus Force officer Edgar could do it for her.

He'd taught them the basics back at the dojo in its special Spinjitzu training room.  After bouncing off the padded walls for half an hour, they'd figured it out.  Now that they had changed places, Mara Mercury announced she was happy enough with her Avant Gardens gear, so she just watched as Evelyne spun around in different colored tornadoes, red, white, blue, and brown, while Edgar gave her pointers.

Cyclone glanced at his watch.  It was 11:35 PM, so they still had a bit of time.  He went to Edgar and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Can I ask you something in private?" Cyclone asked.

Edgar faced him.  "Sure.  There's a backroom...  why?"

"I'll tell you there." Cyclone said.  Once away from the others, he began by prefacing, "So, I was wondering, do you have any Disinfection Kits on you?"

Edgar looked surprised, and started poking around in his backpack, which he'd brought along with his Shinobi Gear.  "It would seem I do...  I happened to carry a few as a Nexus Force medic, but haven't used them in a long time.  Do you know someone who's infected?"

"Actually, yes."

"Are they here?"

Cyclone sighed.  "Yes."

"So where is he, or she?"

With another sigh, Cyclone took off his helmet.  "Yours truly."

Edgar looked up.  "Oh, I see.  I was wondering why you kept that on." He stood up, holding the kit, and stroked his stubble.  "How long have you been like this?"

"Just today, but really I don't know how it happened," Cyclone confessed.  "I got infected once four years ago, then disinfected, and I've been the same since, then today I looked at my hand and suddenly, there's a sword there."

Edgar looked there.  "I don't see a sword."

"Stromlings can hide it."

"Interesting.  Anyway, you obviously know how disinfection works, and doesn't work, since you haven't tried drinking a Notion Potion yet." Edgar noted.

"How do you know?"

"For one thing, you'd be a bit smashed."

Cyclone shivered.  "Right.  I've never used a disinfection kit before."

"It the simplest thing." Edgar said.  "Take it and use it." Then he went back to the main room.

Cyclone inspected the disinfection kit.  It was white and blue, and plain, like a generic Healing Kit.  With nothing else to do, and unsure what to expect, Cyclone activated it.

He'd expected some horrible burning reaction that Stromlings otherwise had to Imagination, but instead he felt calmed, cooled, and relaxed.  He watched a blue glow began at his hands and feet, shining through his gear, and spread to his torso and his head.  Then there was a small burst of energy, mostly light, but he hadn't expected it so he was knocked him to the ground.

The light faded, and when Cyclone got up, the first thing he felt was the power of Imagination rushing through him again.  The floor was shiny enough to be a mirror, and he saw his minifigure face.  He was restored.

For now.

****

At 11:59 PM, Cyclone, Mara Mercury, Edgar, and Evelyne stood in the park.  Together they made a reasonable force.  Both with Rank 3 gear, Cyclone and Edgar could both take and deal the most damage.  Mara Mercury had her best gear; Shirt of Armor, Dungarees, Breastplate of Armored Inspiration, Wizard's Hat of Whirlwind, Shield of Shielding, and Elite Cleaver.  She was also loaded with consumables.  Evelyne had the gear of Quakes equipped, since logically Earth Spinjitzu would be most effective in an outdoor park.  Mara also had a Worthy Force Blade to give her, since swords are always handy.

With ten seconds to go, the air was still calm, the trees barely rustled, and there was nothing to suggest that anything was about to happen.

"Maybe he's not coming." Cyclone said.

"You scared?" Mara teased.

Cyclone shook his head.  "Just anxious."

There was a thump outside the park, and they turned towards it direction, seeing nothing.  It sounded like a car door closing?

"Didn't hear a car coming." Cyclone said.

Footsteps echoed up the marble walkway.  Then a man appeared.  He wore dark clothes, a long black trenchcoat buttoned up over dark suit pants, but he did not wear a hat.  The wind picked up then, coincidence? It added drama to his entrance, and his black hair blew with the crinkling of leaves.

"I said bring no weapons!" the man, Tiberius, called angrily, stopping his approach at the highest level.  "But no matter, I've come only to speak, and you need only to listen."

Cyclone glanced at his companions, who looked at him expectantly.  So he was the leader.  "We'd like proof that Alex is safe!" he called back.

"Do I seem untrustworthy? I give you my word, he and the others will stay safe for as long as you cooperate."

"Others!" Mara shouted.

Tiberius's face was already unusually pale, like that of someone who did not see enough sunlight, but now he smiled.  "Not quite a slip of the tongue.  Now, if I may state what I need: Maelstrom Ore."

"The Skulkin were mining that on Crux Prime." Edgar stated.  "They stopped mining it, of course, after their defeat, so it can't be got anymore."

"Actually, you can get it!" Tiberius exclaimed.  "Quite easily."

"Why don't you get it then?" Mara shouted back.

"I'm a very busy man," he said, tugging at his coat.  "I have work to be done here.  Very important work.  But my work needs me so I can't leave.  You can fly across the entire universe, however, you only need to go to Crux Prime and mine some ore."

"We can't." Edgar stated tersely.  "The quarry was stopped up long ago, and all the entrances were sealed to purify it.  I read it in a Club magazine."

Tiberius laughed.  "Don't think that's the only Maelstrom mine! There's another the Nexus Force doesn't know about."

"Then how do you know about it?" Mara demanded.

Tiberius glanced at her.  "You're feisty." he said, and Mara glared at him.  "Anyhow, it's consistent with your interests to stop that mine up, as well.  My contacts have told me that, given twenty years, that mine will expel powerful new Stromlings.  Horrifying creatures, Scorpions, Camel Spiders...  so thank me now."

"Why?" Cyclone asked.

"Because if I hadn't told you about this mine, there would be another Maelstrom resurgence! Now you can preempt it." Tiberius said.  "But before you stop it up, be sure to get me my ore.  You agree I deserve it now, don't you?"

He had a point.  "Perhaps." Cyclone conceded.

"You do understand," Mara began, "that we can use this information, walk away, and not help you?"

Tiberius shrugged.  "I understand that risk, and that's why I have backup plans.  Many plans.  I won't tell you them."

"You might if we make you." she threatened, and Cyclone tapped her on the shoulder.

"What are you doing?" he hissed.

"Keeping him talking." Mara whispered back, and shouted to Tiberius, "We're not done! Tell us where Intrepid is!"

"Oh, him!" Tiberius recalled.  "Hmm.  He's one of my backup plans, so I can't tell you."

Mara levelled a Drill of Blasting at him.  "What if I shoot you?"

Tiberius noted the weapon.  "He serves me now," he stated, "and he doesn't even know it."

"What do you mean?"

"I will divulge no more details!"

An imagination glow formed around her hand.  "I will shoot this." she promised.

"It'd be a mistake to make an enemy of me!"

"As if you're a friend!"

The man sighed.  "If we've reached a mutual understanding, I'll be leaving now." He turned to go, and began to descend down his side of the park, out of view, leaving the four to deliberate.

Mara stared wildly at her teammates.  "Are we stopping him or what?!" she demanded.

"We outnumber him," Edgar reminded.  "We can take him."

"He seems like the type of person to carry surprises." Cyclone warned.  He turned to their fourth member.  "Evelyne, does he?"

The dark haired girl looked uncertain.  "He's dangerous." she said.  "But here he's alone, so I think this is our best chance to get him."

"That makes two of us." Mara agreed.  She turned to go.

Outside the park, a car alarm chirped and a V8 rumbled to life.

"It's now or never." Edgar said.

Cyclone set his jaw.  He shared a short glance with each teammate, then stared ahead.  "Fine." he said through gritted teeth.

He barely had time to shout, "Wait!" before Mara consumed a quicksickle and was bolting out of the park.  Evelyne spun into a tornado and the ground rippled underneath her, increasing her speed.  Cyclone and Edgar took off running as fast as they could.

Outside the park, they sighed Tiberius' car.  It was on, but Tiberius was not yet in it.  He stood outside, watching their approach and shaking his head.  Then he got in.  Cyclone armed his Maelstrom Rockets while Edgar prepared a Lightning Strike.

But then they noticed that Mara was not in sight.

And they realized Tiberius was not alone.

Suddenly Cyclone was knocked off his feet by a rush from the side.  He shouted and fell to the ground, his gear absorbing the impact.  He pushed himself up quickly, only to receive a blow to the face.  The helmet's HUD brought his assailant into view: a dark figure, wearing clothes like Tiberius, but tighter and more accommodating of quick motions.

Then the figure disappeared from his sensors, and Cyclone could have sworn he didn't blink.

He heard another shout, from Edgar, as he came under attack as well.  Cyclone stood up successfully this time and auto-fired his blaster at the assailant, who swung around and promptly disappeared from thin air.  The laser blasts arced past where it had stood, towards Edgar instead, but the Shinobi dodged them.

"How in the universe is she doing that!" Edgar shouted to the air.

"She?!" Cyclone shouted.

Edgar turned to him.  "Behind you!"

Cyclone braced as someone kicked him in the back, but he had steadied himself and swung around to face his attacker.  She wore a hood and a mask that obscured her face.  He didn't bother firing back, because as he'd expected, she vanished a second later.

Then Evelyne screamed.

The Paradox turned to her quickly, and Cyclone took his fingers on and off the blasters.  He couldn't risk shooting her.  Edgar was in a similar predicament with his shurikens.  The dark figure had grabbed her, but Evelyne quickly spun them both into a tornado.  The entire thing disappeared only to reappear next to Tiberius' car, where he stood ready with a stun blaster.  Before they could do anything, he shot Evelyne and she fell to the ground, paralyzed, and the dark figure looked on.

Cyclone wanted to run and help, but the way the dark figure stared at him basically told him, don't move or else.  He and Edgar could only watch as Tiberius crouched down and said to Evelyne, but loud enough for them to hear, "This is the second time you owe your life to me."

He looked up, and to the two Paradox he proclaimed, "You see what happens if you try and trick me! I may not let you off so easy next time." He got in the car, the dark figure as well, and with a peeling of tires the sedan disappeared into the night.

Then Cyclone ran down the incline to Evelyne, Edgar behind him, and for the second time that day he helped her up.  Her face was white and her eyes could only twitch under the paralysis, but she was breathing and it would wear off soon.

Cyclone attended to her, when he remembered they weren't a trio.  He was going to say something, but Edgar spoke first.

"Where's Mara?" Edgar asked.

****

With the help of her tracking device, they found Mara stranded on an island in the middle of the lake.  Mara sounded peeved when Edgar went to rescue her on a speedboat.

"Did you capture him?" she asked.

"We did not." Edgar lamented.  "I don't know if we ever will."

Meanwhile, Cyclone sat with Evelyne.  Able to move at last, they had relocated to a park bench.  And she began crying.

"You did fine back there," Cyclone told her.  "We'll get Alex and Intrepid back, even if it's Tiberius' way."

Evelyne looked up at him.  "I'm scared, about what Tiberius said."

"How you owe your life to him? You don't."

"I know it means something," she sniffed, "but I don't know what.  I don't know...  I can barely remember anything.  I know Alex and Aiden are my brothers, and we lived here, and I know my name, but everything else is a blur.  The last thing I remember clearly is...  getting smashed.  That's not right, is it?"

Cyclone shook his head.  Considering her Imagination wasn't unlocked, she couldn't even rebuild if she was ever smashed, yet she was here anyway so that didn't make any sense.  "I don't think so.  Edgar said he was a medic in the Nexus Force, he can help you.  But you're doing fine."

"No, I'm not!" Evelyne shot back, and she stared at Cyclone.  Her eyes glistened.  "I know this sounds strange, but I feel like, for the last two years, I've been dead!"

Chapter 12

Cyclone, Mara, and Luke agreed that coordination was needed.  After meeting back at Alex's house with Edgar and Evelyne, they determined the best course of action was to leave.  The farther from Tiberius, the better they would be, at least in terms of comfort.  Tiberius had a teleporting minion, who knew how far he could reach to get them?

None of them wanted to think about that.

Luke Mercury also had somber news.  At the launchpad that would take them back to the Nimbus Station, he told them gravely, "I logged into our Leek Works server, and Intrepid's tracker doesn't show up as reporting."

"When did it stop?" Mara asked.

"It stopped transmitting during the five minutes we were jammed by the Maelstrom, and it continued after that, but we only got one upload.  Then, nothing..." his voice trailed off.

Mara looked stonefaced.  "We can try increasing the range."

"Yeah..." Luke said robotically, unfocused, as if he was lost in worrisome thoughts.

"You guys think about that on the way back," Cyclone encouraged.  "We'll go to Nimbus Station and work there."

"Mmhm..." Luke mumbled.  Mara got into the cargo rocket silently.  Cyclone felt bad for them, and he didn't feel much better himself.  He realized that if they lost their friend, then Evelyne was losing a brother, too.  He turned to her and Edgar, not too sure what to say, but wanting to do something.

"How are you holding up?" he asked Evelyne.

"Could use some good news." she said curtly.  Cyclone could relate.  In between Alex's capture, Intrepid and Kate's disappearance, the existence of another Maelstrom mine, and their inability to combat Tiberius's hit man, or hit woman...  it wasn't selfish to want to hear something better for once.

Edgar piped up, "It'll be nice to see Nimbus Station again."

"I've never been there." Evelyne said.

"It's an amazing place..."

Perhaps that was something to look forwards to.

They boarded the NSS Point Hope.

****

There was a twelve hour difference between Elistra's and the Nimbus System's local times.  With the faster speed of their Botany Bay type transport, they landed in Nimbus Station just after its sixth hour past noon, after a fifteen minute flight.

"So we're going to this Leek Works?" Cyclone asked as they headed for the newly created Nimbus Train Station.  Cyclone had been down these walks many times before, but Evelyne was tilting her head and looking around, taking it all in like a grandious palace.  The city had transformed a bit since two years ago, Cyclone did note.  There were more rockets in the sky, civilian and official.  More roads and bridges had been built.  High speed train lines above and below ground traversed the entire world.  The train that would take them to Nimbus City wasn't there yet, but the one to Brick Annex was waiting.

Mara answered his question.  "No point." she pouted.  "Intrepid's dead."

"Don't say that.  We don't know until we've looked." Cyclone told her.  "You suggested boosting the range?"

Luke cut in, "Intrepid was working on upgrading the hardware last week for that exact purpose, but as far as we know, he didn't finish it."

"We can finish it, then." Cyclone said.

The blond shook his head.  "No idea.  He is, as you know, very secretive, this thing included.  I suspect his 'upgrade' had to do with transdimensional technology, the same stuff our phone system now sort of uses.  We were playing with that before he had the bright idea to travel to Elistra." Luke sighed.  "Look where that got him."

The Brick Annex train blew its retro electronic whistle, signifying it was ready to go.

"I bet all the stuff is there, waiting to be plugged in." Cyclone said hurriedly, even though he didn't know where 'there' was.  "It's worth a shot, come on guys."

"I'm with you." Edgar said.  Evelyne nodded.

"Fine." Luke conceded, and they joined the commuters heading back to Brick Annex.

"So what's Leek Works anyway?" Cyclone asked.

Mara began to explain.  "It's kind of a secret base..."

Indeed, to the outside world, Leek Works was nothing more than an alleyway entrance advertising dry cleaning, as that was the profession of the previous resident and no one had changed the sign.  It was a mile from the Train Station's Brick Annex stop, a distance which they walked.  Once the five entered through the boring gray door, it became apparent that Leek Works was something else entirely.

While a gray cement structure as well, the inside housed many tables, atop of which were multiple laptop computers, like what their Nimbus City bedroom had been transformed to.

"It's a server room." Edgar stated.

"Not just," Luke corrected.  "In the back is a lab, for experiments, and there's another room where we keep all the junk.  Intrepid's meticulous about keeping this room and the lab clean.  If you like how this looks, don't go to the basement."

"This already looks like a basement." Evelyne said.  "So my brother worked here?"

"Ha, he didn't do anything.  Mara and I are the real programmers, he just feeds us.  And replaces the computers when they break." Luke shrugged.  "A lot of what we do are his ideas, though."

"We serve the betterment of minifigurekind." Mara said.

"Really?" Evelyne asked.

"No.  I have no idea what we're doing.  But it's fun."

Cyclone looked around.  In his head, he'd pictured some exotic piece of technology sitting next to a computer, ready to be used, just not plugged in.  They could plug it in and fix everything, he'd thought.  He admitted he'd gotten ahead of himself.

"So where's the magic?" he asked.

Luke pressed a button on one laptop, and it prompted for a password, which he put in.  "Here's the magic," he said, and brought up a program's graphical user interface and a terminal.  "It's all code, telling one hardware how to use another hardware, through software and firmware."

Cyclone, Evelyne, and Edgar shared confused glances.

"I'm sure you're lost." Mara said.  "Translation: Intrepid brought something in, it's in the Junk Room, it's already wired up to the system, but we need to tell the system how to use it."

"Oh." Cyclone said.  So he'd guessed something correctly, just it was already done.  And now there was nothing he could do.

"So take a seat, go get lunch, go home, just do something interesting." Luke said, while he and Mara sat down in front of their computers.  "We may be here for a few minutes.  That's computer talk, by the way.  Whenever a computer tells you, 'This may take a few minutes', they mean forever."

Cyclone nodded, and he and the others headed for the door.  On the way out, Cyclone heard Mara say, "You got 'em good."

"They didn't understand a word I said." Luke agreed.

Cyclone shut the door and shook his head.  They began walking, basically aimlessly, down the sidewalk.  "Those two." he sighed.

"How well do you know them?" Edgar asked.

"They're Intrepid's friends," Cyclone said.  "Not mine."

"Did you see how their entire demeanors changed once they got to the computers? They like programming.  You've given them something to do.  It's good if they're happy."

"Yeah."

"How old are they?" Evelyne asked.

Cyclone shook his head.  "I don't know.  I'd guess Mara's fourteen, and that Shadow's older? Apparently they're cousins."

Evelyne asked modestly, "Not to sound rude, but what's with the names around here? My brother was called Intrepid?"

"They're assigned names," Edgar explained.  "Do they help to keep track of us? For anonymity? Who knows.  So what's the plan, Cyclone?"

"Glad someone can get my name right." Cyclone muttered to himself, then spoke up.  "We should do what they said, order some food for here, and Nimbus City." he decided.  "We should check up on Calm Thoughtful Tornado, too.  See if he's incarcerated himself."

"I'm starving," Evelyne agreed on the food, as they passed a restaurant.  "We should go to a buffet."

"You guys can go," Cyclone said, pausing in his walk.  "I'll go to Nimbus City first, I want to call some friends and investigate that mine on Crux Prime."

"I'd come with you," Edgar volunteered, "but..."

Evelyne rolled her eyes.  "I can take care of myself.  If I was thirteen two years ago, I'm fifteen now."

Edgar shrugged.  "It helps to have a guide.  I'll go with whoever."

"We can meet up later," Cyclone said.  "I won't go off-world for awhile."

"We'll meet at Nimbus City?"

"Yep."

"See you there, then."

"Good luck." Evelyne said with a wave, and she and Edgar entered the straunt.

Cyclone kept walking, and dialed on his I-Brick another diner that did takeouts.  He ordered a delivery for Leek Works, "The old dry cleaning place," he'd described, and the guy on the phone knew what he was talking about.  So much for a 'secret' base.  Then he ordered pizza for the Nimbus City apartment, hoping Tornado was there to receive it.  On the same page, he wondered if Luke or Mara would answer the door for their food.

On the way back to the Train Station, he passed by the gardens outside an apartment complex.  He'd lived here once, Cyclone recalled.  He'd been shot at here once, he also recalled with a shiver.  It seemed like so long ago.  He could probably hire Krill Matthias to come to Crux Prime with him, but he was thinking of Cheerful Power Rover.  The Buccaneer knew plenty of Venture friends who would gladly run into danger, and be capable of running out of it, if Cyclone couldn't go himself.

Cyclone was relieved when Tornado answered the door to let him in.  He'd received the food delivery as well, since he was holding a slice of pizza.

"Is Intrepid here?" Cycone asked hopefully.

"Havntseenim." Tornado said with his mouth full.

Cyclone took the couch and collapsed.

The apartment was a little messier, he noted, with the mail strewn on the floor, but otherwise looked alright.  "So how'd your day with the Nexus Force social services go?"

"Justfine!" Tornado said.  "Icantelyoumor-"

"Later." Cyclone said quickly.  He waited for him to finish the pizza, before saying, "Now is fine."

"Right, so," Tornado related, "they wanted to see you and your girlfriend."

Cyclone frowned.  "Kate's not-"

"It was a man and a woman, and they said so I repeat," Tornado continued, and proceeded to speak in a falsetto, "'This isn't too confidential, so you can tell Cyclone and Kate there's a special mission we'd like their help with.' And now I'm telling you, don't do it."

"Why?" Cyclone asked.

Tornado turned grave.  "I was in the Epsilon Experiment," he whispered.  "And they left me to die."

"When you leave the universe, the universe forgets about you." Cyclone said.

"What?"

"It's something Intrepid told me and Kate," Cyclone explained.  "Maybe it was an accident."

"You're too trusting!"

"I came to the idea myself."

Tornado sighed, as Cyclone got up and helped himself to some pizza as well.  With his clean hand, he began dialing Rover.  As if to spite him, Tornado turned on the TV.

"I'll be in the bedroom, then." Cyclone grumbled, and went into the next room, closing the door behind him.

He got Rover's voicemail, and Cyclone was about to try someone else, when there was a flash of light behind him.  He swung around, finding himself facing a portal.  It had to be a portal, for through a ring of glowing white light, that pulsed and contorted as if unstable, he saw another scene, that looked to be a bright daytime skyline?

Cyclone heard voices, and then a boy and a girl stepped into the frame.  They were both the same height and had brown hair, looking to be brother and sister? Twins? "Whoa." the girl said.

Then, out of nowhere, Intrepid appeared in the scene.  The portal had to be two way, because he shouted in recognition, "Cyclone!"

Before Cyclone could respond, another voice from the other side answered, "What?"

"What?" Cyclone repeated.

Intrepid looked about to step through, before someone else shouted, "Wait!" and the portal imploded.  Cyclone flinched.  Questioning thoughts began to run through his brain.

First and foremost, what in the universe had just happened?

Then, where was Intrepid?

Next: Part Four: Sons and Daughters