The Next Morning...
Phil Smith's arrival was miraculous, at best. At least as far as Ozzy was concerned.
For the past twelve hours...ever since finding themselves in this strange new world...Baxter had convinced himself that they were alone. That Icarus, Adem, Victor, Lykopis, and Edmund were the only ones left. That this was all that remained of the only family he had ever known. That this was the only remaining vestige of Vanguard.
Then, Gaunt had disappeared. Or, had he ever been here in the first place? A question better left for another day, he surmised. Either way, another brick had been taken. Another piece of the foundation of what he was holding onto.
The past.
Adem was becoming more and more distant. Was there something wrong? More than his new speech impediment? Was there something more? It was like he was...fading. Like he simply was becoming less and less interested in everyone around him. He was turning inwards. And, for all the affection he had for his best friend....there wasn't a thing he could do one way or another.
Icarus was dealing with a newfound curse....or was it a blessing? He seemed to be handling it better than Ozzy thought he would. Baxter had made a mental note to get to know Icarus a bit better. He may have previously misjudged this young man. There might be more substance to him than his original impression.
And, blind or not, Victor was as he had ever been. Quiet. Aloof. Seemingly content as the observer. And, as ever, Victor made Ozzy nervous. There had never been anything Baxter could grasp about the man that made him feel comfortable in his presence. But, like it or not, Reilley was one of the family. And you don't toss out your crazy uncle just because he drinks alot...
...or stares at you with blind eyes...
Then there was Lyly. There seemed to be a melancholy to her. As if the burdens of the moment were becoming too much for her to bear. At least, that's how she was at first. It had taken a few hours, but, she seemed to be coming back to her old self. Strong. Regal. Hard.
A bit too hard, sometimes, Baxter believed. There was a vibrant, powerfully emotional woman behind those sad, ancient eyes. Hidden beneath that vest of iron she kept locked around her heart, Lykopis cared far more than she wanted others to believe....more than she seemingly wanted to, herself. Guess that's what happens when you watch a few centuries worth of friends and family fade to dust. Was Vanguard any different? Was she prepared to love them as much as she had before? Was she prepared to watch this family, too, fade to so much dust as the years went on? Again, questions for another time.
So, the night had progressed, and their situation was beginning to set in. Alone in a world they knew nothing about...no friends...no contacts...no allies......hell, even their old enemies probably no longer existed. Or, worse yet, didn't even remember them.
That was the worst part, Baxter believed. No one remembered them. It was bad enough that Vanguard had probably saved the planet, and everyone on it, countless times with absolutely no thanks. No appreciation. And, in turn, had compounded more animosity from various factions throughout the planet. Yeah, that was bad enough. But, it was the name of their game. Metas had never been trusted. probably never would be. And, they could live with that. Ozzy could live with that. No one had ever trusted him, either. No one except these people.
But to not be remembered at all? Or, worse yet, how were they known? Was his ex-wife still out there? Did she remember an Ozzy Baxter? Was there ever one in the first place?
Who was he in this new life?
Questions, questions, questions.... the bald stranger had complained. And he was right. There were alot of questions left to be answered.
But, a few of them had already been revealed.
Grimm....not the one he remembered...but Grimm nonetheless. He had been lead to them. He was back. And, with his appearance, a certain weight seemed to lift. It was then that the first real smiles began to appear. Says something about a new world, doesn't it? When someone as...creepy...as Grimm used to be...when someone like him could be the catalyst for happiness where none had previously existed. It certainly was a new world.
Grimm's entrance had provoked more action among them. More levity. And, more planning. They seemed to be getting their hold on the situation, now. Getting their bearings. And now, with Phil Smith popping up like this, seemingly remembering as they did...things seemed to be getting even better.
There were more of them, now. More family. More Vanguard. And, this of course proved that...if Grimm and Phil were still here, and remembered them....couldn't there be more?
Eleven people remember the world... Prometheus' words echoed in his memory...
Montag Manor
The Kitchen
"...so, with Philsy here, that's eight of us we know remember the old world..." Baxter continued. "...so that leaves....three?"
"Three plus eight does equal eleven, Baxter, yes..." Lykopis drolled.
Yep. She was back to her old self alright.
"Yes. Thank you, your highness. I may be slow, but, I remember some basic math..." Ozzy replied sarcastically.
Grimm chuckled, leaning back at the huge oak table, arms folded. Phil sat next to him, holding a glass of specially brewed ale that Grimm had located.
They had all gathered together at the dinner table. Introductions had been made. And planning had begun.
"My point is...maybe some of the other Vanguardians are out there....maybe they remember too. And, if so, we should find them."
"Mr. Baxter--"
"Ozzy."
"...Ozzy..." Phil continued, with a smile. "...while I think everyone here certainly wants to believe that there are others out there....you can't expect it to be other Vanguardians. I mean, do you know what the odds are of the last three being specifically Vanguardians?"
"{**}))+__)_00..." Adem spoke.
Everyone paused, looking at the alien. He, in turn, simply rolled his eyes, and made the 'move on' gesture with his hands.
"I agree with Smith." Victor suddenly spoke up. "It's highly implausible that it is specifically members of our organization that remember like we do."
"Why?" Ozzy frowned, looking around at everyone. "I mean, so far...here we are!"
He looked back and forth at everyone.
"I think I'm going to have to go with Ozzy on this one..." Grimm commented.
"Why?" Phil asked, turning to look at him.
"Well....for one thing, the one constant among us all is meeting this 'Prometheus' guy..." he shrugged. "....so, I'm thinking he must have something to do with our memories."
Adem...who had been scribbling furiously on a piece of paper, finally slid it forcibly towards Ozzy. Baxter picked up the page...
"The question isn't whether it's plausible...the fact that we are all here should certify that it's a confirmed fact." Baxter read off. "For some unknown reason, Prometheus is freeing the minds of, specifically, Vanguardians."
"Okay, yes...you have made your point." Lykopis agreed. "But, this raises the question....can we believe what he told us? That there are only eleven like us?"
"We have no reason not to, Lyly..." Baxter shook his head. "...and as far as I'm concerned, if that's all we have to go on, then, we go with it."
"Just choose to believe the word of a complete stranger?" Phil asked.
"Until I'm shown something that proves different, yes." Ozzy nodded.
"Got it."
Everyone looked at Icarus, who...until this moment...had his eyes closed. He was now looking up at Lykopis.
She leaned in, folding her hands on the table.
"I...asked Icarus to find out more about us...about our missing friends." she explained to the group. "With his ability to read this...information, as he calls it...I thought this should be the first step in determining where we go from here."
"Good thinking." Grimm agreed.
She looked at Icarus.
"What have you found?"
"Not as much as you would want." The young man looked a bit worn out now, as if the strain had been considerable. "Fragments here, pieces there. I've tried scouring every corner of the internet...at least the parts I could access in short order..."
He took a drink of water, leaning back in his chair to look at everyone.
"I can find no mention of Vanguard." he stated evenly. "Not in reference to any of us, or any group we could have belonged to."
Everyone stared at him, not sure they could believe their ears.
"No...Vanguard......at all?" Phil asked again with worried eyes.
"Nope. Nowhere. No La Perdita. No European branch. Nothing." Icarus continued. "And, it gets worse...."
Ozzy cocked an eyebrow. "Worse?"
"There's no EPS. No Mandelovia. No MBL. No Strikeforce. Absolutely no grouping of metas......anywhere...."
"There are still metas, right?" Ozzy asked.
"Yes, there are definitely metas out there. Plenty of reports of them." he said, pausing and looking down at the table. "...and one report in particular you should all hear..."
He paused again, taking a deep breath...
"Drake Marshall, the Nightwatch vigilante....the greatest meta hero America had ever known......was killed protecting his city...three years ago." Icarus explained.
"Who." Ozzy demanded with cold eyes. "We know he's dead. Who killed him?"
"I...there was no picture...but, it's a 'supervillian', if you'll forgive the term....goes by the name of 'The Fist'." Icarus explained. "Big time weapons dealer and con man. That's all I can get on him."
"Where is he?" Lykopis asked. "Did they get him?"
"Still at large." Icarus said. "Wanted by every nation on the planet for some crime or another."
Ozzy sighed with a heavy heart, falling back into his chair. Drake had been his idol for years. A true hero in his eyes.
And if it was the last thing he did....Ozzy would find this bastard. Find the man that took his hero.
"What about Tommy?" Lykopis asked.
"Thomas Foxe...." Icarus began, 'reading' aloud. "....died of a heroin overdose seven years ago."
"Oh god." Baxter mumbled, resting his mouth in his palm.
"Yeah....." Icky nodded, a mortified expression crossing his features. "....poor old Tommy..."
Everyone remained quiet for a moment. It wasn't so much that they were paying their respects for the dead. But, more that they were trying to let it all sink in.
Two of their own. Gone.
"What about my team?" Phil finally asked. "Bri? Danny? What about those guys?"
"I can't find much on them yet..." Icarus shook his head. "...understand guys, it's not like I can reference a keyword for Vanguard. I'm having to search individual instances for individual people. Do you know how many people are named Daniel Hearn in the world?"
"Maybe they're still on La Perdita?" Grimm offered to Phil. "Maybe they just live on the island, or something..."
"No, I doubt that..." Icarus interrupted. "...I mean...I doubt anyone lives on that island."
"What?" Phil frowned.
"The volcano there erupted nine years ago, reducing the entire island to a barren rock...." he said. "....at least that's all I've been able to find on it..."
".......oh......." Phil muttered, looking downtrodden.
"What is it they say?" Grimm said, holding his ale up a bit. "You can never go home again?"
No one said anything for quite a while....
