The Future Intrepid, as he will henceforth be identified, must like sitting in the dark. Intrepid's shadow, projecting forth from the doorway, stretched to the one other source of light in the unlit office: a terminal screen that lit up Future Intrepid's face. He stared down at the terminal, but acknowledged Intrepid's entrance with the words, "Light switch to your left."
As the door shut behind him, Intrepid ran a hand over the sensor and the room lights came on, illuminating one of the better furnished abodes in any incarnation of Leek Works. Alternating wood floor and green carpets separated opposing mahogany wood and black obsidian shelves, filled with trophies or items and boxes of files respectively. File cabinets and more shelves lined the back wall behind Future Intrepid, who looked up from the terminal on his desk in the small office's center. He had a blue file in his hand.
"Take a seat please," Future Intrepid said, and he put the file on the desk between them. Intrepid pulled up a chair but didn't sit in it. He stared down at its labelled cover, which read Notes & Observations ~ Dimension NS3-B.
"You wanted to talk, about what?" Intrepid asked. "I don't want to be here for long." Looking around at all the files, he wondered what info he could get from this goldmine that would be helpful to him.
"I don't want to keep you long either," Future Intrepid agreed, "I'm sure, as leader of your Leek Works, you're very busy as well." They both raised their eyebrows, and Future Intrepid's eyes panned up and down Intrepid's face, no doubt trying to read his reaction. "You do have a Leek Works, don't you?"
"Yeah." Intrepid confirmed. At least, we did...
"As I suspected. I've read Agent Red's report on her interactions in your dimension." Future Intrepid informed Intrepid. "You helped her fight an invasion force from D-NS1-M, and stop an instance of Subject 19-NS-H from destroying the Nimbus Polyverse. You're friends with Luke and Mara, Gallant Strong Cyclone, and Kate."
Intrepid nodded. "It was all Red." he said, and stopped from adding, I'm very proud of her. It wasn't his place to say.
Future Intrepid smiled slightly, but the look in his eyes stayed grim. "I'm proud of my daughter, she's Leek Work's best agent, she's loyal, smart, and dependable." He dipped his head and sighed wistfully. "I only wish I were as good a father to her. Nevermind that."
He stood up and pivoted on his booted heels, gesturing to the walls and beyond. "All this: my entire operation, Leek Work's Transdimensional Division, exists for one thing now. Not exploration. Not for evacuation." He turned to Intrepid. "We're here to fight, to stop the Maelstrom Dimension.
"I'm letting you in on our battle plans, because we can no longer do it alone." Future Intrepid continued. "Our Nexus Force isn't interested in fighting another war."
"But the Maelstrom Dimension - D-NS1-M - threatens everyone," Intrepid stated, "and everything in every dimension, including this one."
"The Nexus Force here would rather solve the issue of protecting ourselves, by blocking all interdimensional travel to and from here," Future Intrepid related, "than defeating the extradimensional Maelstrom threat. The lives we'd give up - it's not worth it to them."
"Not even to defend countless innocents?" Intrepid asked. "My entire Nimbus System would be speaking Stromling by now if it weren't for yours and Red's help. Are they that careless? What changed?"
The Future Intrepid sat down and drummed his fingers on the desk. "It's more like, they no longer think we can win. The Maelstrom Dimension is powerful. The Darkitect is considered unbeatable." He leaned forwards. "But now, we have your help. My Leek Works, and yours. Believe it or not, you're all the help I need."
Intrepid glanced at him sideways. "Red and I were thinking the Nexus Forces of various dimensions would join with us." Intrepid said.
"An intrepid idea. Unfortunately my Leek Works doesn't have the infrastructure to support the movements of such a large scale operation," Future Intrepid said, "not to mention, none of the relatively-primitive Nexus Forces stand a chance against an army of the Maelstrom Dimension."
"Can you at least send messages to the other dimensions, warning them?"
"Possibly. It's not part of my plan." Future Intrepid put another file on the desk, and Intrepid picked it up. "I've planned something more... covert."
Future Intrepid returned to his feet and began to pace the room. "Tell me, younger me," he began, "would you like to see the Darkitect die?"
Intrepid blinked. "I suppose...?" He would like to see the Maelstrom defeated, although he hadn't thought of it in... personal terms. His eyes followed Future Intrepid's alternating strides, which suddenly stopped at a picture frame on the wall. The older Intrepid stood tall, looking otherwise composed, but by the tone of the conversation, the arch in his shoulders, and the way he wiped imaginary dust from the glass - or was he just touching it? - Intrepid knew without seeing the expression on Future Intrepid's turned-away face was downcast. Sullen. Resentful.
And considering the picture was a photograph of Kate, it easily dawned on Intrepid what Future Intrepid had meant by his words, "see the Darkitect die."
"You want revenge." Intrepid pronounced. It wasn't an accusation - it was a statement of fact. It surprised him. Intrepid understood loss. He'd gone reclusive after the Battle of Elistra. It took a month after meeting Luke and Mara to get him out of his self-imposed, self-encapsulating shell of sadness. It took another two for him to break out a smile. But fourteen years had passed since the Future Dimension's Kate had died, and Future Intrepid was still haunted by her loss.
"There is an aspect of that." Future Intrepid said, turning away from Kate to face Intrepid. His visage almost entirely matched the mental image Intrepid had, with one detail missed: his eyes now burned with fiery determination. "The Darkitect killed my wife."
Intrepid nodded. "I understand the feeling. They killed my family too." he stated.
Future Intrepid hung his head. "I know. That, my extradimensional counterpart, is one of the consistencies between our dimensions, so I know everything you saw. And we were able to heal after Elistra. But Kate's death turned my life around, and not in a good way. It turned everything backwards. Which is why you need to help me end this."
Intrepid nodded again. "I will."
"It's not just for me," Future Intrepid clarified, "it's for you, and Kate, and Cyclone, and every instance of us in every dimension, and everyone else." He paused to chuckle. "Luke, Mara and I always joked that we served the betterment of minifigurekind. We cared just as much about ourselves. But now, I just want to be a father, if it's not too late."
Future Intrepid returned to his terminal, and removed a USB stick which he showed to Intrepid. "The file folders I've given you," he instructed, "are to be read first. It's our plan of action to which you've agreed to play your part. But this," he placed the flash drive in Intrepid's hand, "is a copy of our entire records."
"What's it for?" Intrepid asked.
"For whatever you need my or Tiberius's help for." Future Intrepid answered. "There's not enough time to discuss everything I'm sure you want to ask about. Everything I know, you have access to now."
"Like about reviving my family." Intrepid confirmed. "I take it..."
Future Intrepid shook his head. "That's a tragedy I won't speak about, but it's in my past - you never know what your future holds."
"There's no time for one question?" Intrepid asked, as Future Intrepid pushed him to the door.
"There will be," Future Intrepid said, "after you get back to your dimension, and do what I've instructed."
Intrepid held up the Unverse Manipulator Red gave him. "I don't need to leave this room to leave this dimension."
"Then who are you waiting for?" Future Intrepid chided.
Intrepid gave him a confused glance, before opening the door and exiting. It took his eyes a second to adjust to the bright lights in the spiral hallway, where he found himself facing six people.
"We're coming with you." Jay said, patiently tugging at the straps of his backpack. He stood with Katie and an annoyed looking Red, and Ben, and spray-painting graffiti on the self-cleaning walls were Luke Mercury's wayward children, Cailan and Crimson.<ac_metadata title="Chapter 32 part 2"> </ac_metadata>