Sometime during all the battles in La Perdita:
The former member of La Perdita's PSI-Unit named Axel entered the communications room in which Grissom Montag was directing the battlefield in Antarctica. Vanguard International's Security Advisor was speaking into his headset almost non-stop, pausing to listen every once in a while before directing someone else as to their enemy's movements.
Axel stood back, not wishing to interrupt him but needing to talk to someone in charge. Grissom spoke several urgent directives into his headset while watching several monitors showing details of what appeared to be satellite imagery, some photographic and some based on infrared heat differences. Still another group of monitor screens flashed between several scenes which seemed to be coming from some kind of strange laboratory populated by a few scientists with glazed eyes.
After several moments Grissom Montag finally took his headset off, swiveled around in his seat, and stared with an impatient expression on his face directly at the (almost) 12-year-old brown-haired boy behind him. "Did you get a good look, boy?"
"What?" Axel replied, taken aback. He could sense irritation from Vanguard's security expert without even tuning in with his empathic ability.
"It's an impressive setup, innit?" Grissom said in a somewhat challenging tone. "Pretty graphics and realistic action, hm? Probably as good or better than most of th' video games on the market, eh wot?"
"I guess."
"Well, if you don't mind, boy," Grissom said, "some of us have got some fairly urgent work t'do here. Do you want t'help us out?"
Axel frowned, sensing a trap in his words, and simply nodded.
"Then for God's sake, boy, get out of the way! This is no time to be underfoot while the grown-ups have work to do. Understand?"
"Whatever," Axel replied, leaving the room.
"Kids," Grissom Montag spat as he put his headset back into place, swiveled back to the monitor screens, and got back to directing the battlefield.
Axel felt hurt by the exchange despite himself. Here he was trying to warn someone about a possible intruder in the building, and Grissom Montag wasn't going to even let him say a thing about it. He felt like he wanted to go to the room that Dr. Quantos had set up for him a few hours earlier and play some video games or get on the internet or something, and just forget about the whole thing.
However, he'd sensed a strange presence in the building and knew he had to tell someone about it since he was probably the only one aware of a possible intruder despite his lessened abilities. The telepathy and telekinesis of the individual members of the PSI-Unit always seemed more powerful when they were with other members, which was why they were almost always paired up with each other. Something about their being around each other boosted their psychic abilities greatly. When they were at their full membership of seven, or nine if their adult trainers Marc and Tanya were with them, their power was at its peak and they were nigh unstoppable. Axel, being the youngest and the seventh member, was always the odd boy out, though Devlin and Guida almost always took him under their wings whenever the group had to split into three teams, the other two teams being the young couple Stefano and Daniela, and the twins Kevin and Brianna. Even though Axel's psychic powers were at its lowest ebb without the presence of the others, he still retained those diluted abilities and was occasionally able to cause himself to hover in place as well as sense emotions and sometimes even surface thoughts if they were strong enough. And he knew that there were one too many presences in the building than there should have been.
To confirm this, Axel had even gone earlier to one of the security monitors and counted off the names as they appeared on the screen next to tiny yellow dots. Some of them were moving, such as Charley Montoya and the Perditian workers she had brought in to repair the wall (each of which had been assigned a number for the security sweep in order to prevent them from being seen as intruders), while some were stationary, such as Grissom Montag and Miss X. When he had checked the monitors, Dr. Quantos was nowhere to be found, and Axel correctly guessed that he had taken Mandy for a walk around the block or something. Still, there was one extra presence in the building that he could sense with his psychic abilities which was not accounted for in the security system. He'd had no luck with Grissom Montag, and Dr. Quantos was still outside somewhere, so Axel went upstairs towards Miss X's office.
*************
Dr. Henry Quantos was silent and completely lost in thought over the events of the last few days even as he tried not to think of those events as he approached the rear courtyard doors. The security sensors recognized him and allowed him to enter. He followed Mandelovia inside and made sure the door closed properly even as the dog began shaking all the moisture from her fur. He began walking towards the laboratory zone which he oversaw for the company.
*************
Axel approached Miss X's door and was about to knock when he sensed that Dr. Quantos had returned. He hovered in place and wondered whether he should bother Miss X now or not.
"It's all right, Axel -- please do come in," Victoria Xiang spoke in an impeccably perfect uppercrust English accent through a speaker next to the door, an old-fashioned dark brown mahogany affair, which now clicked open.
Axel went inside and saw Miss X standing before the large, sliding window doors which opened onto the balcony outside. She turned towards him with a kind smile and motioned him forward with the merest flick of the wrist. Miss X seemed to be lost in thought as she watched a flock of birds flying swiftly around through the sky and perfectly in formation as if they were of one mind. Dividing his attention between those birds and the Vanguard International President, Axel found that he could not read her. Victoria Xiang's mind was like a calm, cool, round stone giving off no emotions whatsoever. He wondered if she was really as calm inside as she seemed to be.
"They're quite beautiful, aren't they?" she said to him, granting him another rare smile.
"Yeah," the boy replied, glancing at the birds for a moment before turning back to her.
"So," Miss X said as she sat down into her leatherback chair before her desk and looked up at him, "what brings you to see me, Axel?"
The boy blushed under her gaze and found himself unable to look her in the eyes or remember exactly what he'd planned to say. "I'm not... uh... well, there was some... I could feel a..."
"Go on," Miss X prompted. "Did you sense something, then?"
"Yes," Axel said, matching her gaze for a moment. "The monitors -- I checked them a little bit earlier and, like, they didn't show everyone in the building. I mean, y'know, they showed everyone who's supposed to be here and all, but..."
"Mmm-hm?"
"The security system says there are only six people in the building, but I could feel seven minds here," Axel finally blurted out.
"I see," Victoria Xiang said, frowning as she turned to her desk's screen and punched up the security system. She looked at the security screen Axel had viewed earlier and said, "Well, there you have it, Axel -- there are seven people in the building. Good show."
"No, I didn't mean that." Axel said in a frustrated voice as Miss X's right eyebrow shot up and she looked at him with an amused expression she reserved only for small children and mentally-disturbed adults. "I mean, Doc Quantos wasn't here before. He was, like, outside taking Mandy for a walk before, or something like that I think. He just got back inside -- I could feel him when he did. But before I felt seven people in the building when the security system only showed just six."
"Hmm. Perhaps you mistook the dog for a person?"
"But she was outside, too, with the Doc!"
"Right, right. Well, perhaps it was the cat you sensed, then. I believe Tobias Christopher calls it 'Little Jo'?"
"It wasn't a cat!" Axel cried. "I mean, I think I can tell the difference between a human being and a stupid cat. It was something else I felt -- a person! I think someone's in the building."
Victoria Xiang rose from her chair and began walking Axel to the door. "I understand how confusing this must all be, young Master Axel," she said in a soothing tone. "And I can also understand why you may feel unsafe even here after the experiences I've been told that you have been through. The loss of all your friends in the PSI-Unit must have been horrible. However, you have absolutely no reason to feel unsafe here, Axel. This is the most secure facility on this island -- it is likely the most secure building in the entire Lesser Antilles chain of islands. Mr. Montag has installed a security system of his own design which cannot be 'fooled' by even the most brilliant of intruders. I can assure you that if there was an intruder in this building, either he or I would be the first to know of it."
She opened the door and brought him outside. "Don't worry, Axel," she said to him, "you're in one of the safest places on Earth right now. No harm can come to you here. Now go on, I'm sure Dr. Quantos will be looking for you." She added in a matronly tone, "Now there's a good lad."
"But--"
"Good-bye." The door clicked shut behind her.
Axel growled. During his time with the PSI-Unit, he'd had more experience in protecting La Perdita than anyone in Vanguard had, but so far everyone here treated him as if he was just some stupid kid who was scared of the Boogeyman or something. Nobody was willing to listen to him.
Well... maybe not. Maybe Dr. Quantos would hear him out.
*************
Dr. Henry Quantos fumbled with the locks on his laboratory door and finally got them open. He flicked his hand over the switches to turn the lights on, but as he turned back to let his dog in, he realized that none of the lights had turned on at all. He flipped the switches up and down and sighed. "It's those damned workers again, I'll bet. Probably shorted out the fusebox. Wait here, Mandy."
Vanguard International's Medical and Scientific Advisor made his way to a desk drawer and pulled out a slim flashlight after a moment of fumbling through it. Clicking it on, he walked through to a far panel in the laboratory and opened up the fusebox. "Hmm... strange," he mumbled to himself as he noticed that none of the circuit breakers had flipped. There appeared to be nothing wrong with the electricity from this end. Could all of the lights have burnt out at the same time? That wasn't very likely at all. Too much of a coincidence to be sure.
He closed the fusebox panel door and turned around, at the same time as he heard a sound somewhere in his laboratory. He became utterly quiet and squinted, trying to see in the room which had no light except that which came from outside. After a moment of silence, he said in a louder-than-usual voice, "Who's there?"
Dr. Quantos passed his flashlight across the room a few times, very slowly, as he walked carefully around, his keen eyes scanning everything in his vision. The beam of his flashlight passed across a filing cabinet and kept going, but after a second his mind told him that he'd seen something strange. The light had seemed to ripple ever so slightly as it passed the filing cabinet. He swung the flashlight back towards it but found nothing strange.
That was when he felt an arm grip his neck, a moment before he blacked out.
*************
The old Canadian doctor woke up with a splitting headache as he felt a hand slapping his face a few times. A harsh voice whispered from somewhere above him in a familiar accent, "Where are they, Dr. Quantos? Where are the files?"
"Wha-what...?" he replied, his mind still groggy.
"Your daughter sent you a package full of scientific files, Dr. Quantos. Tell me where they are."
Dr. Henry Quantos finally recognized the accent. "You're--you're from Mandelovia."
"The files, Dr. Quantos. Where are the files?"
"Why...? Why can't I see you?"
The Mandelovian laughed once. "Now that question surprises me, Dr. Quantos. Are you seriously telling me that you don't recall developing the personal cloaking device?"
"The... the what?"
"You took the concept from an American television program. Star-something-or-other. The basic idea behind the personal cloaking device is to use fabric made of optic fibers which act as both a camera and a viewer. For instance, a glove made from this fabric placed on a desk would blend in with the desk by filming the appearance of the desk below it and transmit that appearance to the top of the glove, while also adjusting the light levels to remove all shadows. If one could look from beneath the glove, all that could be seen is the ceiling. I'm told primitive versions of the personal cloaking device are being developed in America, though they are as nothing compared with the Mandelovian technology you created. Your security system, though impressive by non-Mandelovian standards, stood no chance against an Elite Agent with a personal cloaking device. It not only makes one invisible to human eyes, but it also causes invisibility to any electronic sensors."
Dr. Quantos made a show of listening to this, though his mind was set on the question the Mandelovian had asked him earlier. He wanted the files. The files detailing a workable time travel machine. He had to be working for the General. "I... I don't recall any of this," he said in a somewhat confused voice.
The man laughed again cruelly. "No, I don't suppose you would, Dr. Quantos. We made sure to block all classified information from your mind before you were allowed to leave Mandelovia. I'm sure your Miss X would inform you of much of your missing memories. That is, she would if she had not been placed under a hypnotic command never to reveal any Mandelovian secrets under fear of instant death. You did well not to become a citizen of Mandelovia, Dr. Quantos. Your memories were merely blocked. Miss Xiang, on the other hand, as a naturalized citizen must pay a costlier price if she betrays my nation. I imagine there are a great many things she would love to tell you and your team... if only she could." He laughed once more. "Now, enough of this 'chit-chat,' Dr. Quantos. Tell me where you put the files."
"No," Dr. Quantos replied evenly.
"You will tell me where they are. I have many methods to make you talk. However, I do not wish to see you come to harm. Merely tell me where they are and I will leave you unharmed."
"I won't," the Canadian doctor replied, "and you can tell Colton D'goon to go to hell."
The Mandelovian sighed. "Please, Dr. Quantos. Though I'm under orders not to kill you, I can make your life very unpleasant in order to get what I want. Your precious Vanguardians are all absent. There is no one around to help you any longer. I do not wish to cause pain to the father of Helen McKenzie, but I will do so if it proves necessary."
Dr. Quantos sat up and looked at a spot next to him which was slightly distorted during movement, the light refracted as if curving around space, a moment before the figure of a man all in black became visible. "What do you know of my daughter?" Henry Quantos breathed. "Who are you?"
"Call me Agent X. I met your daughter during her time in Mandelovia. She and I... shared a few moments together."
The Canadian frowned. "Where is she?" he said in a low, commanding voice not unlike a growl. "Where is my daughter?"
Agent X sighed and shook his head. "She's gone, Dr. Quantos. I'm sure you can guess where... or perhaps that should be when."
So it was true, Dr. Quantos realized. Time travel had been discovered in Mandelovia, and his daughter had been part of some kind of time travel project as he supposed, finally using herself as a "guinea pig" in an experimental time travel voyage. Something about this didn't make sense to him, though.
"Why do you need those time travel files?" he said aloud, as much to himself as to the other. "Unless... yes, that must be it. My daughter cut the General out, didn't she? She destroyed all the time travel research before traveling in time herself, and... and the files she sent me are the only ones still in existence, aren't they?"
"Very astute, Doctor. You are as clever as your daughter."
"So she is safe from that bastard after all," Dr. Quantos said, smiling a genuine smile for the first time in days. "D'goon can't touch her."
"The files, Dr. Quantos. Now. I will give you no further warning."
"The files? Oh... oh, right. The files. The General needs those files, does he? Well, I'll tell you where the files are, then..."
*************
Axel found Mandy in the lobby on the first floor on the other side of the building. He sat slumped on a chair in disappointment and regret even as the dog tried to cheer him up by licking his face and getting him to pet her.
"I think you're the only friend I have here, Mandy," he said as he scratched the dog gently behind her ears. "To them I'm just some dumb kid that Doc Quantos picked up, aren't I? Well, I don't care. I don't care at all." His voice was choked up somewhat as he felt sorry for himself.
"Maybe there is some burglar or something in the building," he said. "What can I do about it? Nobody's willing to listen to me when I tell them, so why should I care?"
A memory flashed through his mind suddenly as he said this: The oldest member of the PSI-Unit, Devlin, explaining to him when he was 8 years old why it was so important to do what they did. To protect La Perdita as the island's very own "super-heroes" was not something they did to become famous or make money. It wasn't about the fans. It was about the people. They counted on the PSI-Unit to protect them from any and all unusual threats, and they had to trust that their heroes wouldn't let them down. They had to trust that the PSI-Unit always cared about their safety. As La Perdita's first line of defense, if they knew about a danger that no one else could sense through conventional means, it was their duty to do something about it.
Axel felt a pang of guilt for his selfishness and decided he couldn't just do nothing. If no one was willing to listen to him and do something about a possible intruder, he would have to do something himself.
*************
Dr. Henry Quantos felt somewhat light-headed as the blood rushed back to his head after rising to his feet with the help of Agent X. After he regained his balance he motioned the Mandelovian Elite Agent forward, saying, "They're over here. Follow me."
"No tricks, Dr. Quantos."
"I know, I know. I'm well aware of the reputation of the Mandelovian Elite Agents. All 26 of you. Or is that 27?"
"The number of Mandelovia's Elite Agents has been 26 for just over a century now, though I am the last one."
"What?"
"I am the very last of the Elite Agents. All but two of us were killed by this U.N. Strikeforce. General D'goon sent me here, while the other, Agent Z, is... now dead."
"Zed's dead?"
"Yes."
Dr. Quantos chuckled under his breath and unlocked one of two small, lead-lined rooms used for experiments involving radiation.
"The files are in here?" Agent X asked suspiciously.
"They're in here somewhere."
"Find them."
"Well, it would be easier if the lights were working. The batteries in this flashlight are almost dead."
"Damn it -- you try my patience, old man."
Dr. Henry Quantos' glanced at the laboratory door for a moment and turned back to Agent X, an ingratiating smile on his face. "I'm sorry about that, but I have to rely on ordinary technology to get by, here. It's not like I have anything much to use from... Mandelovia!" The last word was a shout.
"Wha--?!" was all Agent X had time to say before he heard a loud bark and was struck by a big reddish dog which caused him to fall backwards into the room. Dr. Quantos slammed the door shut, which locked automatically.
Agent X began slamming on the door. Dr. Quantos laughed and said, "Good job, Mandy. You're a good dog, yes you are. Yes you are." The pounding on the thick door could barely be heard. The doctor pressed a button on the intercom next to the door, pleased to note that the power was still working for everything but the ceiling lights, and said through a speaker inside the room, "You won't get out of the room that way, I'm afraid. It doesn't do much good to pound against that door with human fists. Or do you have some kind of Mandelovian gizmo up your sleeve you haven't told me about?"
Agent X stopped pounding on the door and folded his arms, waiting for the next move.
"Oh, and those files you were looking for?" Dr. Quantos continued with amusement in his voice. "I just remembered... I left them in the other room. Silly me."
"Doc?" Axel said as he entered the room, having followed Mandy to the laboratory. "What's going--?"
"Go to your room, Axel."
"But--"
"Just go, son. You don't want any part of this, believe me."
Axel bit his lip and stepped back, though he stopped at the lab entrance.
Dr. Quantos had already turned back to the intercom. "Now, if you'll look to your left, you will see through the window the room in which I put the files in question. The files can be seen scattered on the table, and if you'll take a closer look, the Mandelovian seal can be seen on the letterhead. If I'd known you were coming, I might have tried switching them with clever fakes. However, regrettably enough those are the real deals, and I've been keeping them in that locked radiation room due to its being the most secure room in my lab. Next to the window you will see a locked door which leads into the room in which those files were left. If you can pick the lock, open the door, retrieve the files, return to this room, and close the door once again in the next 15 seconds, I'll let you go with those files. If, however, you can't make it within that timeframe, you'll be subjected to a lethal dose of radiation that no one -- not even the last Mandelovian Elite Agent -- could withstand. Got it?"
Agent X said nothing, simply standing still.
"I'll take that as a yes. Now, on your mark... get set... GO!" He then pressed a firing button for the other room, which counted down for 15 seconds. Agent X didn't move, knowing he'd been put in an impossible situation. Dr. Quantos was holding all the cards.
After 15 seconds, the room flashed, and the files left in that room were burnt to a crisp. Agent X stood in the same position as before.
"Now, I'm not sure what to do with you, Agent X," Dr. Quantos said. "If I let you go, you may go free and tell General D'goon the bad news. On the other hand, you might be a bad sport about the whole thing and cause someone here harm. I'm not sure what to do about you, frankly. I could leave you in there until the team gets back, but you might find a way out of the room by yourself before someone can properly secure you. The only way I can trust that you won't escape is to do to you what I did to those files. This is really a quandary -- we have an unknown result on our hands, here. Appropriate to your name, I should think, Agent X. So, what do you think? Should I press this button or shouldn't I?"
Agent X finally replied through the intercom. "I will not harm you or anyone in your organization, Dr. Quantos. You have my word."
"Your word, eh? Hmm... well, from my experience the word of a Mandelovian -- especially an Elite Agent -- is unbreakable, though you clever fellows always seem to find a way through the precise wording of your word to have your way, after all."
"You've destroyed the files, Dr. Quantos. That meant the end of my mission. I can do nothing but leave or die, now."
"And you promise to leave this place and leave me and my friends alone when you do so?"
"I give you my word."
Dr. Quantos sighed. "Fine, then. But first..." He pressed another button which unlocked and opened the door adjoining the other radiation room which had gone back to normal after the brief flash of radiation.
Smoke filled the room as Agent X stepped into the second room and stamped out the flames. All that was left were a few remaining pieces of burnt sheets. He inspected them closely and found that they were, indeed, the files he had been sent to La Perdita for.
"You're free to take those with you when you leave, Agent X," came the voice of Dr. Quantos over the intercom. "I'm sure the General will be pleased to know that, if he doesn't possess the secret of time travel any longer, no one outside Mandelovia or its time travel project possesses it either. I'm going to open the door now, Agent X. I expect that you will keep your word."
"There is nothing left to do here but leave," Agent X replied. "I have given my word."
"All right," Dr. Quantos replied, opening the door.
Agent X stepped out with the burnt fragments of the files. Dr. Quantos took a step back. "I said I would not harm you, Dr. Quantos..."
"Then leave."
"However," Agent X continued, "the General specified that he would like to... 'interview' you should the actual files be destroyed. You are the only one alive in this time who has seen them."
"You gave your word you would leave me alone," Dr. Quantos said, taking another step back.
"I gave you my word that you would not be harmed. As for leaving you alone, well, contrary to what you may have heard, it would not be the first time a Mandelovian broke a vow." Agent X lunged towards the old doctor.
"No!" said Axel, who had jumped between Agent X and Dr. Quantos. "Leave him alone!"
"Who the hell are you?!" Agent X exclaimed. "Well, it is no matter. Out of my way, child." He grabbed Axel by the shoulders and...
...the boy found himself in the future. He was seeing a memory from the future once again, though this one was not pleasant. He watched as a man -- he was sure it was Agent X -- was tied up to a pole, while before him stood several men in the uniforms of the National People's Army of Mandelovia, each of whom carried rifles. The stoic face of General Colton D'goon faced Agent X and gave the order to fire. It was a traitor's death...
The connection was suddenly broken.
Agent X jumped back as if he'd been electrically shocked. He looked at the boy more carefully now, not sure what had happened.
"He's going to kill you, you know," Axel said in a trembling voice. "General D'goon. He'll kill you for your failure."
Agent X himself took a step back, remaining silent.
After a moment, Dr. Quantos pulled Axel back, holding him defensively. "Leave," he said forcefully. "I don't care whether you go back to Mandelovia or go anywhere else in the world, but just leave. And leave us alone. If... if my daughter meant anything to you, you will leave us alone."
The last of the Mandelovian Elite Agents stood there for another moment, and then finally turned a moment before he became invisible again.
Dr. Quantos hugged Axel for several moments as they waited, until Axel said, "He's gone. Agent X has left the building."
"I thought he would," Dr. Quantos replied, his throat feeling somewhat sore. "Now what say we head over to the kitchen for some ice cream? I could use a snack right about now. How about you?"
"Sure," Axel said, smiling.
Dr. Henry Quantos led Axel out of the laboratory and down the corridor towards the kitchen. "Say, have I told you about my daughter?" Axel shook his head. "She's a beautiful girl with red hair -- looks just like her mother. When she was about your age........."
