Chapter 4: Blaze

That evening, we were seated much as we were the previous evening, in sofas, and with Niel leading the discussion.

"I decided to break this into two parts." he began. "You folks needed rest, and I had preparations to make."

"Like fixing the lock on my door." I said, really more asking than stating.

"According to our diagnostics, it's not broken." he said.

"God's balls it isn't..." I said annoyedly.

"I know it's broken. I'm just saying that it'll take more time than we thought to fix it." he responded, trying to mollify.

"Bleck." I said. "So, Part Two, then?"

There is a round of nods, and Niel begins.

"I told you yesterday about planar metaphysics, the Avatars, Atlantis, and our role in the history of things. Today, I'm going to tell you of your role in this. First and foremost, the Avatars help balance out the universe simply by existing. As the planar elements incarnate, your presence in relative proximity to each other in spatial and temporal terms helps keep the elements in check. Don't worry about that, though. "Relative proximity" in terms of the multiverse refers to distances we don't have names for yet. Secondly, the Avatars help defend against extradimensional, extraplanar, and otherwise unusual threats. For instance, if a sorcerer from a parallel Earth ruled by Nazis were to come storming through New York City, the Avatars would be sent to deal with him. Thirdly and finally, there is also a proph-... on second thought, never mind that. Any questions?"

"Yes, what about a prophecy?" asked Deirdre.

"Forget I mentioned that." Niel said, with a bit of an edge to his voice.

"Mentioned what?" I interjected pointedly, as it seemed Deirdre was intent on pursuing the issue. "Anyway, bring on the evil Nazi sorcerers! We can take 'em!"

"That only happened once." Niel said, vaguely amused. "I'll have someone by to check on your door."

With that, he left. Almost before the door shut, Deirdre turned to me and asked "Why did you interrupt? You know that last part was the most important!"

"Yes." I said evenly. "I also know that he's not going to tell us. And I, for one, would like to stay on good terms with our hosts."

"But we should know about the prophecy!" she insisted.

"Oh, I agree." I said. "Which is why we should find out on our own."

"What about that orichalcum thing?" David chimed in. "Niel said that it let them access the Akashic Records."

"Which no doubt means it's under heavy guard and all manner of security systems." I said. "We'll have to take our time and be patient. But it'll be on our to do list."

"Good." said David. "Now, food? I'm fricking starving."

Rolling my eyes, I said "Sure. Let's poke around, this building has to have food somewhere."

We collectively got up, and got into the elevator. I looked at the directory, and mused out loud "Now where would the Key of Solomon Agency have their cafeteria?"

The elevator responded: "Floor S4, Cafeteria. Kitchens, and Dining Area."

Missing only a beat, I said "Is that Majel Barret's voice?"

"Affirmative." responded the elevator.

I rolled my eyes, and said "So, Floor S4, then?"

"Working." said the elevator, and it whirred to life. A flash of light illuminated the elevator, and the doors opened with a classic swoosh.

"Floor S4. Cafeteria, Kitchens, and Dining Area." announced the elevator efficiently.

"What was that flash?" asked Aislin.

"The flash of visible light was the result of a Magitech site to site teleport system, Mark IV." the elevator answered.

"Magitech? Holy Kefka..." I said. "So Floor S4 isn't in Chicago?"

"Negative." said the elevator. "Floor S4 is in a Key of Solomon Agency compound in Paris, France."

"Well, at least they have good taste." remarked David. "Now come on. I smell food."

"You really need a new hobby." I began. "This is- * Are those meatballs?"

Aislin rolled her eyes, and wondered aloud "So how do we pay? I forgot my checkbook back in Chicago."

"Meals are provided free of charge to all Key of Solomon personnel above Grade E." said the elevator.

"Would you just go away?" I snapped irritably. I must have been hungrier than I had thought.

"She will stay here as long as she is needed." a voice said from somewhere behind us. "And we'd almost pay you people to eat here. The Metaphysical Avatars, if I'm not mistaken."

We turned to see who had spoken, and we saw an elderly man with a long beard, clad in a sharp business suit.

"Gandalf?" I asked.

"Merlin." he responded.

"Figures." I said. "Don't you age backwards or something?"

"No, and I was never ascended, and never fought the Ori either." he said with a touch of amusement. "As for the elevator, it's run by our resident AI, Morgan."

"Figures again." I said.

"Quite." he said. "I'm in charge of the Key of Solomon Agency. I also formed it."

"So are you actually immortal?" Aislin asked.

"Yes, thanks to the Philosopher's Stone." he said.

"Are you keeping that hidden for the good of mankind?" David asked.

"No, we destroyed it for the good of mankind." he said. "It grants immortality, but at a terrible price."

"Soul fragmentation?" I guessed.

"Loss of the sense of taste?" ventured Deirdre.

"Perpetual ennui?" asked David.

"I'd... rather not say." he said, seeming embarrassed. "But after we destroyed the stone, we began funding a certain blue pill."

"Ohhhh...." David said, comprehending.

"You poor, poor man." I said sympathetically.

"Anyway, Morgan always does the "Starship Computer" routine to new people. She finds it amusing." said Merlin, changing the subject.

"Negative. The humor of tis impression is self-evident." her voice came from the elevator.

"She's nowhere near as funny as she thinks she is." Merlin said. "Morgan! Shove off!"

"Unable to comply. Humor in progress."

"I'll show you humor....." said Merlin, who stalked off, rolling up his sleeves. He entered the elevator, and the doors closed, obscuring him from view.

"When eight hundred years I reach, be that sane I will not." I quipped.

"Let's claim a table." suggested Aislin.

We sat around a smallish table with a nice view of the Eiffel Tower. Soon, an employee came by and asked us what we'd like to eat.

"But there's no menus." Deirdre pointed out confusedly.

"True. Here at the Cafe Diem, we make what you order." the waiter responded.

"Isn't the Cafe Diem in Eureka?" I asked, grinning at my geeky reference.

"Yes, that was the first branch. Run by a fellow by the name of Vincent, I believe."\

I managed only a blank look, and he left after saying he's give us a few minutes to think. After our food came, I had a thought.

"David." I said. "You mentioned something about a building earlier. Sounds like one heck of a story. Tell?"

"Ok, sure." he said. "It was about six weeks ago. As you know, I was vacationing in Portland in order to nail-"

Deirdre kicked him somewhat violently.

"to enjoy the local cuisine!" he finished, wincing. "Anyway, I had gone out to get some cold soda after the hot coffee. The guy working the soda fountain was a real jackass. There were three people in line ahead of me, and I was already dehydrated. I must have lost control-"

"David smash!" I interjected.

"Yes, Wil. The building started coming apart in chunks, and the chunks were falling everywhere. I seemed to be unhurt, and so did the others. Later, I found out that Deirdre had been shielding them. But anyway, I was busy pulling a psychic slice-n-dice when some weird Cylon-looking things came and attacked us."

"In the city?" I asked, puzzled and alarmed.

"No, this was a housing development boom town thing a ways outside the city. Anyway, I destroyed the robots with Deirdre's help, and-"

"Deirdre's help?" asked Aislin.

"They had shields." Deirdre explained. "I shorted them out."

"Ah." Aislin said.

"So anywho." said David irritably. "We slagged the droids, and soon that Niel fellow showed up. He staged the scene to make it look like the soda fountain guy had gone postal and blew up his own store. He even planted a detonator."

"He killed the soda guy?" I asked.

"No, the Cylons killed Soda Guy." David said.

"Damn shame." I said, deliberately unconvincingly.

"Good end to bad rubbish." opined Deirdre.

"True dat." said David.

We finished our meal, and went back to the elevator.

"Morgan?" I asked tentatively. "Are you there?"

"No one here but us chickens." came the voice of Morgan.

"Right. Well can you 'chickens' fly us back to our rooms? We're a bit tired."

"Sure." said Morgan.

The flash of light pulsed, and the doors opened.

"I just flew in from Paris, and boy are my arms tired." said Morgan.

"Goodnight, Morgan." I said amusedly.

I left the elevator, and tried my lock again. Again, it completely failed to grant me entry.

"Freakin' A..." I said wearily.

"Come on, Wil." said a voice from behind me. "You should at least have some relative privacy. Take my couch, please."

"Ok, ok." I said, going along with it. I made a quick mental note to erect a sign reading "Door temporarily wall, sorry for the inconvenience."
------------------------------------------------

The following morning saw me heading down the hall towards the elevator. The doors opened, and David was waiting there.

"How long have you been waiting here?" I asked. "And don't give me that look."

"Not long." he said.

"Negative. You have been in this elevator for two hours, forty two minutes, and eleven seconds." said Morgan.

"Thank you, Morgan!" I said, grinning.

"Thanks, Morgan...." David said sarcastically. "So should I ring the gong?"

"Considering the look on your face when I came in, I'm surprised you didn't already." I said. "Floor S4 please, Morgan. And no, don't bother."

The teleport flash occurred, and David gave me a skeptical look.

"Thanks again, Morgan." I said. "And would you quit it with the looks? If you have doubts, use words."

"I have doubts." he said.

"Good, so you can English." I said mockingly. I continued in a more normal tone of voice. "There may have been some affectionate... snuggling... but nothing more."

"I believe it." he said. "But only because it's you."

"That attuned to my tone of voice, are you?" I asked skeptically.

"No."he said. "That convinced you'll never get laid."

I kicked him in the knee, grabbed some bacon, and kicked his knee again on my way back to the elevator.

"Morgan?" I said. "Take me home."

"Affirmative."

The doors shut, and I'm whisked off on a beam of light.

"Ow." said David. "Nigel? Can I get some of that bacon?"

"I'm sorry, Seraph. The Paladin took what we had left. You really should get here sooner next time." said Nigel, our usual waiter.

"Damn it." David said.

"Unable to comply." said Morgan.

David made a face and sat munching a cruller sullenly.

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Some time passes, and the Avatars grow into a fairly cohesive group. David practices with his telekinetic blades, Deirdre experiments with different shield forms, and Wil and Aislin practice their synergistic offense strategies. We also decided that we ought to schedule some group activities. I suggested a small-scale LAN party, which was quickly implemented. Aislin suggested a NERF duel/ Capture the Flag fusion, which was atypically epic due to the Agency's global teleport network. If I recall correctly, the Law Axis team beat the Structural Axis team with a headshot over the Irish flag. God, that girl is awesome. Anyway, Deirdre's idea was weekly activities, like Anime Mondays and Sci-Fi Wednesdays. David suggested weekly orgies, and was promptly beaten. But it was a group beating, so it still counts as a group activity. There was more tickling than actual beating anyway. Oh, and my lock still rather stubbornly refused to work. Things started to fall into a routine, and we were just beginning to relax. It was at this point, of course, that trouble was made.

David and I were dressed in black, well-fitting robes, as well as black head wrappings. We were also carrying plastic katanas. Deirdre and Aislin were following hot on our heels, wearing bandanas and eye patches. We were running to the elevator.

"Quickly, David-san!" I said. "If we take a false step, Bloody Mary and Queen Anne will have their revenge!"

"We must reach the dimensional portal if we are to survive!" he responds urgently.

A foam dart whizzes past my ear, followed by a shout of "YARR! Ye've led us on a merry chase. But nobody escapes Queen Anne's revenge!"

Another polymeric projectile comes whizzing our way, and I block it with my katana. Finally, we reach the elevator.

"We are as the wind, and harder to kill!" I shout, and the teleport activates. I step out of the elevator, expecting to see the coast of Morocco out of the window. I was therefore surprised to see the couches of the atrium of Chicago Branch.

"Morgan?" I said. "This is not Morocco."

"No, it's Chicago." she confirmed.

"I worked that bit out myself." I said testily. "What I perhaps should have asked was 'Why am I not in Morocco?'"

"Orders." she explained tersely.

""From who?" I asked.

"From me." said a voice from the corridor.

"Merlin-sensei!" David said, kowtowing shamelessly.

"Stop that." I said, administering a dope slap.

"Morgan, if you would....?" asks Merlin, and Deirdre and Aislin appear with a flash of light.

"Hey, having Morgan help is cheating!" starts Aislin, but is silenced by Deirdre, who has noticed Merlin. Soon, our attention is focused on the elderly man before us, who begins to speak.

"Ah, how I've missed being able to quiet unruly mobs by my mere presence..." he said wistfully. "This is close, but close enough."

"We'll get loud again if you don't tell us why you interrupted Pirates v.s. Ninjas Part IV, the Revenge of Queen Anne." I said bluntly.

"Quite so." he said with a sparkle of amusement in his eyes. "I had Morgan bring you here because an extradimensional threat has been detected."

"Nazi sorcerer?" asked David, perhaps a bit too eagerly.

"No. And evil overlord and accomplished sorcerer and scientist. He has developed many Magitech devices, and rules from a fortress in an isolated pocket dimension." explained Merlin. "Our sources say that he's been watching this dimension for some time, and sent a number of battle constructs into this dimension to attack citizens."

"These constructs." I asked. "Big, mean, glowing red eye?"

"Why, yes." said Merlin, somewhat surprised. "How did you know?"

"Personal experience." I explained. "But what makes you think we can storm an extradimensional fortress? This isn't Final Fantasy! We're not warriors!"

"No, but you are a group of four good friends who rather suddenly recieved mystical powers." Merlin pointed out. "Sound like anything you know?"

"Only Final Fantasies One, Two, and Three...." I admitted.

"Besides, what would you have me send in, the Air Force? Machine guns are useless in these circumstances. Besides, you're the Metaphysical Avatars! You'll be fine."

"That's very reassuring." Aislin said, vaguely sarcastically. "How would we get there, anyway?"

"We've set up an interdimensional teleporter." said Merlin. "Morgan will get you to the fortress.When you do, you have one objective. Capture the Overlord. Bring him back."

"Why do you need a team?" David asked. "Why not just 'port him out?"

"His fortress's defenses prevent outbound teleportation." said Merlin.

"But not inbound?" I asked.

"No, he likes Chinese food, and has to get it in somehow. Besides, the same defenses can dispatch most threats just fine."

"There's something you're not telling us, isn't there?" Aislin asked.

"Yes." said Merlin.

"And you're not going to."

"Nope." said Merlin. "Any further questions?"

"Just one." said David. "Can we change first?"

A hasty costume removal and normal garb donning later, we were ready to go.

"Morgan?" I said. "Energize!"

The room pulses between normal and shining white light, then between light and darkness, between darkness and our destination, and finally we arrive. The room we 'landed' in was dimly lit, with a door on one wall, and a sink, a pail, a mop, and a broom piled in one corner.

"I think we landed in a janitor's closet." I said observantly.

"Well reasoned, Sherlock." responded David.

We peeked out of the door, Scooby Doo totem pole style, and saw that the hall was empty. We also noticed that the walls were bare.

"No cameras?" asked Aislin.

"Seems not." I said. "Let's go."

"They can make cameras pretty damned small, you know." David said.

"David, by this point, I'm convinced that the walls are eyes." I said. "But what are we supposed to do? Stay in this closet? There's always cameras in janitor's closets! People steal sponges! Now allons-y!"

I shoved him out the door, and followed close after. Aislin looked at Deirdre, shrugged, and they followed suit. The hall streched off into both directions, well-lit by unseen light sources. We pause, and look both ways. Each direction seems equally empty.

"Ok, now what?" Deirdre asked.

"We go that way." said David, pointing. When we gave him a puzzled look, he shrugged and said "Or we could just stay here, and stare dumbly."

We went in the direction he had indicated, each giving him a Gibbs-style head slap on the way past. Wincing with each, he headed up the rear. Before too long, we reach the end of the corridor. There are no doors, no windows, only a wall and a torch.

"Well, that's just spiffy." I say. "Superbly done, Seraph."

David looked annoyed, but as he was about to respond, part of the wall turned into a display screen. A robotic voice "Sarcasm Detected. Phase I testing initiated."

"Yes, rather superb indeed." he said, smirking smugly.

"Let's just do this 'testing'. Which worries me, by the way." I said, ignoring the throbbing behind my eyeballs.

The screen showed four groups of symbols, separated into four quadrants. One quadrant appeared to be symbols in both cuneiform and Roman numerals, one showed symbols that I didn't recognize, one showed images of fruit, and the fourth showed four geometric shapes, a square, a circle, a triangle, and a trapezoid.

"Ok, so... Roman numerals, Akkadian numerals, bizarre squiggles, geometric shapes, and... fruit? We're screwed." Deirdre said.

I, however, was grinning widely. David gave me a puzzled glance, but soon caught on.

"It's Pi." I said. "Pi!"

Aislin thought for a moment, but then slowly began to nod.

"But if that was the answer, wouldn't it have done something when you said it?" she asked.

"Nope." I said. "I have to do this first."

I used my finger to trace a line from the middle of the circle to the edge. The wall before us shimmered out of existence, revealing a staircase. While we ascend the stairs, Aislin asked "Ok, I get the numerals, and the squiggles are probably some kind of extinct or unknown foreign language. But what about the fruit?"

"Those did confuse me at first." I admitted. "But then I noticed the one in the lower left."

"The banana and the milk carton?"

"Not milk, Aislin. Cream."

"A banana...and cream." she said, suddenly getting it. "God damn it, that's not funny."

"Not a bit." I agreed, chuckling. "But it was useful."

The staircase ended at another hallway, with another screen. It has a similar quadrant design, but instead of pictographs, there were solid planes of color. One red, one yellow, one green, one blue. As we approached, the yellow panel flashed. We shrugged collectively, and Deirdre touched the yellow panel. It flashed again, and was followed by the blue one."

"Simon?" I said, groaning. "You've got to be kidding me."

"No trouble." said Deirdre. "I am the master of Simon."

I was somewhat skeptical, but said nothing. I suck out loud at Simon. Devin proved herself true to her word, as even I lost track of her movements, and finally the wall vanished. Corridor 3 stretched out before us, and I had a thought.

"Just what in hell is going on here?" I asked rhetorically. "I was expecting more 'pew pew pew' with an evil overlord flanked by hordes robotic minions, and just about no playing of Quizmania with the hallways."

"Maybe he didn't build the place." theorized Aislin. "Maybe he came across it much as we did, and passed the tests."

"The 'Castle Heterodyne' method, huh?" I asked.

"At this point, I'm willing to consider just about anything." she said. "So. Puzzle Three, what could it be?"

"Please stop that, it's starting to hurt." I said.

"Sure thing! You're the expert!" David piped up from behind us.

With effort, we let that go.

The wall at the end of the corridor has a display panel much as the others did, however this one only had the words "P1 and P2, stand on the platforms."

"What platforms?" I wondered aloud, just as to square nine by nine checkerboard patterns to appear beneath Aislin and I. Four of the sub-squares had arrows, and the center one had a dot. I recognized the design, and my reaction was both immediate and pronounced. "Aw, hell naw!"

"Come on, Wil." insisted Aislin. "I know you've got moves!"

"When did you come by that bit of info?" I asked.

"As we met." she declared firmly.

"Right." I said, adjusting to a more prepared pose. "Let's do this, then."

"Co-operative mode engaged." said the robotic voice. "First round: Axel F."

The theme from Beverly Hills Cop began playing, and arrows began to scroll down the wall. I had never played DDR before, but seemed to be doing reasonably well. We finished Round 1 with zero errors.

"Perfect round. Rank: AAA. Second round: Secret Agent Man."

Round 2 was shorter, but with a faster tempo. It was, of course, no match for us.

"Perfect round. Rank: AAA. Third round: Battle Theme from Final Fantasy VIII."

"Odd." I noted aloud. Aislin gave me a questioning look, but the round began before I could explain. The energetic beat was both normal length and quick tempoed, but soon fell along with the others. "Hey Bulldog", "Force Your Way", Weird Al's "Yoda", and "The Red Wings" soon followed suit.

"Seems a bit Final Fantasy weighted." Aislin said. "Did you notice?"

"That's not all I noticed." I began, but before I could explain, the robotic voice said "Beginner Level Complete." I smiled, and looked relieved. "Expert Level beginning."

"Wait, what about 'Advanced'?" I protested.

"Skill level exceeds Advanced Level." said the voice.

"Oh, that's nice to hear." I said, vaguely complimented. "What are the differences between Beginner and Expert mode?"

"Play involves four people." listed the computer. "Songs are more difficult. Pad motion mode is active."

"Pad motion mode?" I asked, once again simultaneous with the answer.

The wall shimmered out, but instead of a staircase, another room was on the other side, doubling the size of the space. Two more pads appeared, and a cylindrical display screen descended into the middle, and the four pads merged into a circle. Deirdre and David approached with a kind of nervous confidence, and the computer said "Players 3 and 4, start."

"Pad Motion Mode. Right." I said. "Guys? Don't be afraid to use your hands."

"Round One: J-E-N-O-V-A"

"Oh good. That's only about three minutes." said I said.

"Cover version: The Black Mages."

"...make that six."

The music and arrows begin, and the pads rotate along with the electric guitar. Deirdre and David do delightfully, and soon the demonstration was decided.

"Player One: Rank AAA. Player Two: Rank AAA. Player Three: Rank AAA. Player Four: Rank AAA."

"Wow, you two are limber." Aislin said, impressed.

"Say nothing." I told David warningly.

He remained silent, save for a lecherous smirk. I shuddered, but also sighed inwardly with relief.

"Round Two: Gerudo Valley. Cover version: the Red Wings."

"..." I thought inwardly.

The fast-paced desert beat passed quickly, and another perfect score heralded its end.

"Expert Level mastered. Legendary mode unlocked. Prize for completion is immediate teleportation to the end of the Puzzle Zone. Do you wish to continue through the door, or attempt Legendary Mode?"

"What do you think, guys?" I asked.

"I think I speak for all of us when I say that if this is the third puzzle, then judging by parts one and two, the difficulty curve is a very, very steep one, and that we don't want to continue to climb it." said David.

"I think David's arrogance is astonishing." said Aislin. "But if we can bypass the Riddles, Trivia, and Modern Dance section of this, I'm in."

"As am I." said Deirdre.

"Very well, then." I said. "Computer? Continue."

"Final round begins. Song list is as follows. Dancing Mad, as covered by the Black Mages. The Decisive Battle, FFVI version, covered by the Black Mages. Axel F, from the film "Beverly Hills Cop. "J-E-N-O-V-A", by the Black Mages. "Ambush Attack" from Final Fantasy IX. "The Winner", from Final Fantasy VIII. Arrows will scroll on the walls, and the floor will be used in its entirety. The playlist will be random. There will be no pauses between songs. You have five minutes to prepare, and one final chance to withdraw."

"Damn." I said. "That's almost 45 solid minutes of dancing."

"That's something I've been wondering about." Aislin said. "You know a lot about these songs."

"Yes." I said. "They're all songs that I own. I've literally heard them hundreds of times."

Aislin looks about to interject, but I interrupt. "It doesn't make much sense to me either. But I can roll with it."

Five minutes of idle chatter later, the lighting changed to a bright pink, with other colors flahing here and there. It's evocative of a rave, I suspect deliberately. As the opening bars of "Axel F" begin, we exchange nods, and begin to DDR as no one had ever DDRed before. We continue gymnastically through "The Decisive Battle" and "Ambush Attack", waltz, tango, and foxtrot through "Dancing Mad", hop, skip and jump through "J-E-N-O-V-A", and soft-shoe triumphantly through the triumphant trumpets of "The Winner".

"Flawless Victory. You four are the true Lords of the Dance, never let anyone tell you differently."

After a group high-five, the computer made an announcement.

"Prepare for immediate teleportation to the Combat Zone."

"The what now?" I said. "You didn't mention a Combat Zone."

"You did not request this information." the computer said, initiating the teleport.

"Right." I said. "I suppose I didn't."

"Did the computer just 'you didn't ask' us?" said Deirdre annoyedly.

"It's what they do." I responded, shrugging.

The teleport had dropped us in yet another brightly lit corridor, which we followed to its terminus.

"Hey, a door." I said. "How novel."

David kind of grunted at this, and we continued through to the other side. There was a large circular room, with the walls, ceiling, and floor fashioned of the same fluorescent material that the hallways were. It was empty, save for us. We entered, and approached the center.

"I have a bad feeling about this." I said, and at the same moment, we reached the center of the room. The door we came through shut, and subsequently vanished. Then the lights went out, and an odd fog permeated the room.

"You just HAD to say it, didn't you." scolded David.

We hear doors open with a classic swoosh, and then hear the sound of many metal feet approaching. A creepy metallic voice speaks, seemingly from a speaker or similar device.

"They must be dead by now. Finish what's left of them!"

From the perspective of an outside observer, the next scene would be somewhat impressive. The fog was sucked out through vents, and in the center were four very pissed off-looking humans, one holding a ball of destructive force in her hand, one whose fingers were glowing, one who was simply grinning maniacally, and a fourth who was standing dramatically and generating a blue spherical forcefield.

"Uh-oh." said a robotic voice from nearby.

"Roger roger." said another.

I'd have facepalmed if it wouldn't have taken my eyebrows off. Instead, I channeled my feeling of 'ugh' into droid-slagging. I noticed with some admiration that our blasts passed easily through Deirdre's shield, while the droid's shots were being deflected. That kind of control takes skill. Once the droids had all been reduced to their constituent elements, the lights came back on. A door opened on the far side of the room, but the door we had come through stayed gone. There was also no sign of the doors the droids had come through.

"Well, it seems our path is obvious." I said. "Allons-y!"

We go through the door into the next room, which appears identical to the one we just left. I looked behind me to make sure we weren't coming through a door in the room behind us. The door vanished as soon as we stepped through, and soon the lights went off. The sound of metallic footsteps was once again evident, and we prepared to kick more shiny metal ass. Deirdre was the first to report troubles.

"I can't form a shield!" she said, alarmed.

"I'm having trouble with my blades." David reported.

"My pulses feel weak." Aislin said.

"Yeah, my beams are shot, too." I said. "Well, we could fight. Or I could 'port us back to the Puzzle Section."

"Backtrack?" Aislin asked. "Won't that piss off the computer?"

"Well, we can't stay here." David pointed out. "With no weapons or shield, we'd be killed faster than you can say 'like, Zoinks!'"

"Ok." I said. "One Tactical Scooby Maneuver coming right up!"

I 'ported us back to the Puzzle Section, and another teleport activates immediately afterwards.

"That last one wasn't me." I said.

"No, it was me." a robotic voice said. The walls of the new room lit up, and the room was suddenly illuminated, but in a golden light rather than the previous white. A figure appeared in the center of the room, in the form of a woman. She has blonde hair and blue eyes, and was clad in what appeared to be some kind of armor. She continued to speak.

"You have proven your ingenuty by demonstrating pi, and demonstrated your quickness through the game known as 'Simon'. You showed strength and courage in defeating the battle contructs, and you showed wisdom as well as valor in realizing the difference between a battle lost and a battle you cannot win. You have proven yourselves worthy of your destinies, Avatars. So let me, Freyja, be the first to welcome you." She made a sweeping gesture with her arm, and the walls go transparent, revealing a vast network of machinery, portals, and stars. "This is Asgard, the hub of the Multiverse, and Base of the Roads."

"Wow." I said, gawking like a tourist.

"Wil." Aislin said, grabbing back my attention. "We're here for an evil overlord, remember? Accomplished sorcerer and scientist? Ring a bell?"

"I know of the one of whom you speak." Freyja mentioned. "He passed the tests by some manner of Magitech trickery, and managed to use our portals to send several of his battle constructs through to your world before we realized his true intentions. We imprisoned him in a force cage shortly afterwards."

"Well, he's why we're here." Aislin continued. "Could you send him back to our universe, preferably into a cell at the Key of Solomon Agency?"

"Consider it done." Freyja responded warmly. "His father will be pleased to have him back. And I do enjoy helping Merlin."

"His father?" I said, puzzled. "That makes no sense for a number of reasons..."

"Yes, young Mordred always has been a bit of a mystery. And always meddling where he shouldn't, too." said Freyja.

"Mordered. Why am I not surprised..." I said, finally deciding to ignore the absurdity of our situation.

"Could you send us home?" Aislin asked. "Wil can teleport, but not interdimensionally."

"Yet." I added, somewhat indignantly.

"Certainly. But I must insist that you wait until tomorrow." said Freyja. "Interdimensional travel puts stress on the human body if done too often in close temporal proximity. We have rooms that you can use, but first I'd imagine you have many questions."

"Thank you, Freyja." I said. "I suppose my first question would be 'just what is this place?'."

"This is Asgard." Freyja began. "It was built many eons ago by a powerful race, in order to monitor the many passages between universes, dimensions, and timelines, and to facilitate travel between them. They built in a high degree of automation, in order to avoid needing to have a permanent crew."

"Why would they do that?" asked Deirdre. "I mean, if I were to build a fancy Dimensional Monitoring Station, I'd want to keep an eye on it."

"Their race was possessed of an incurable wanderlust." Freyja explained. "To remain in any one place for a significant stretch of time was anathema to them."

"So who are you, then?" asked Aislin.

"I am an artificial intelligence programmed to watch over Asgard for all eternity, modeled in their image, but able to be content in one place."

"They must have looked human." I observed.

"They still do." Freyja clarified. "Or rather, humans look like them. They seeded many worlds in many universes with the beginnings of life. Some were meant to appear similar to themselves. Others were meant to look quite different. But all were meant to achieve sentience, and seek out their forebears."

"Then did they leave a forwarding address?" I asked drily.

"Of course." Freyja said. "How else would I inform them of a malfunction?"

"Then will you tell us?" I asked, more eager this time.

"Of course not. Each must find their own way."

"If you immediately know the candlelight is fire, then the meal was cooked a long time ago." recited Aislin.

David, Deirdre, and Freyja give her a puzzled look, and I chuckle. She continued. "Never mind. One other question. Why did you have a DDR game with Wil's music collection?"

"Well, it'd hardly be fair to use Nimbula music, you don't have enough feet." Freyja explained. "And among you four, he had the largest collection of high-tempo, instrumental music."

Seeing my puzzled look, she said "You carry this collection with you. On a primitive data storage device in your left pocket. I scanned it when you arrived."

I checked my pocket, and pulled out my SD card, the one I use with my MP3 player. "Huh." I said. "Must have fallen out."

"But why a DDR tournament at all?" Aislin pressed. "The other tests proved 'courage' and 'wisdom' and stuff. What did the DDR test prove? Flexibility?"

Freyja smiled puckishly, and said "It proves just how boring it can be running a teleport hub solo, and how far one might go for amusement."

If looks could kill, Freyja would have been a sizzling heap of junk at that point. We decided to turn in, and Freyja directed us to a chamber with soft, metallic pillows and gemstone colored sheets.

"Ostentatious much?" David observed wryly.

"I like it." I said. "It's colorful."

We soon drifted off to sleep, but were awoken in only a few hour's time. We were not awoken by Freyja, however, but by flashing mauve lights and blaring klaxons. We hurried to the audience room where we had spoken to Freyja previously.

"Freyja!" I called out. "What's going on?"

"We're under attack!" her voice came over a P.A. system. "It's the Entropists!"

"The who?" I asked, but am staggered by a violent rocking of the station.

"Damn! Entropy charges!" said Freyja. "Listen carefully, we haven't much time. The Entropists are a fanatical cult determined to destroy the fabric of reality itself. You alone can stop them. You and the other Avatars. Go to the elevator, quickly! I'll explain on the way."

A door opens on the far side of the room, and we hurry in. Freyja's voice continues as we descend amid the shockwaves.

"There is a prophecy in the Akashic Records of a time when entropy will threaten all of existence. It's known as the Prophecy of the Eight, and goes on to say that only through the Avatars working as one could disater be averted. The combined powers of the Eight Elements are said to be able to prevent Ragnarok."

The elevator stops, and the doors open. There is a platform resembling a transporter pad from Star Trek, and a pedestal appears before it. On the pedestal, what looks like a watch shimmers into existence.

"This is a database of the Multiverse. Take it, it will guide you. Now, quickly! Onto the dimensional focus!"

We step onto the pad, and Freyja speaks some odd sounding calculations, and then continues in English.

"Now sending!" she said, almost shouting to be heard over the blasts. "For the sake of the Multiverse, you must not fail! Believe in yourselves! Trust each other! Help those in need! And remember, no one is beyond redemption! Calculations complete! Chronodimensional teleportation engage- AAHHHHH!"

Her pronouncement was cut off by an oddly human scream, one that conveyed more pain than I would have thought a scream could.

"Freyja!" David called, but by then the teleport was active, and I once again redefined my notions of 'pain'. There was a blinding flash of light, followed by the sweet darkness of unconsciousness.

Chapter 3: Brushfire

I spent the next bit of time shifting through various states of consciousness. Later, I learned that it had been only two days, but time passes oddly in dream states. I finally woke up with full possession of my mental and physical faculties, and checked my watch. Or to be more accurate, I checked my tan line. I wasn't wearing my watch. My left arm was in a sling, and the rest of me was clad in a standard issue hospital gown. There was an IV in my right arm, and I bemusedly wondered mif my bum was hanging out. I shifted position slightly, and felt bandages on my left shoulder area. I also winced slightly. The room was sparsely furnished, and the view outside of the window told me that I was in Froedtert, one of the hospitals of the medical complex. Seated in one of the chairs was my mother, who had evidently dozed off some time previously. I debated briefly on whether to wake her or not, until the decision was rendered moot by a doctor entering the room rather noisily. Mom awoke with something akin to a start, and the doctor took my pulse.

"Welcome back to the land of the conscious, Mr. Zurn." he said amicably. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel like an airplane that's been shot down." I said.

"That's an interesting way to put it." the doctor said, laughing slightly. "I'm Dr. Dillamond. And you have been through quite an ordeal. Minuscule lacerations all over, large lacerations here and there, and a large burn on your upper torso."

"Yeah, foresting accidents can be truly harrowing." I said, in a half-truth. "Where's Aislin? Is she okay?"

"She's fine." Doctor Dillamond said reassuringly. "She came in with similar injuries, and should recover soon. She's resting on the other side of the room."

I noticed a curtain dividing the room, and wondered briefly how I could have missed it. My question was answered by my shoulder, which complained rather loudly at my turning to look in that direction.

"Given that you're both stable and conscious now, we'll keep you overnight for observation. After that, you should be fine to go home."

"Wait a moment, Doctor." I said as he was turning to leave. "Aren't you going to ask what happened?"

"I am curious." he admitted. "But it's not my job to ask. My job is to heal you. If you want, I'll listen..."

"No, I'm good." I responded.

"I'll check back in later, then." he said, and left.

"Listen, Mumsy.." I began, but she held up a hand to stop me.

"I already know what happened." she said. "Your friend told me."

"And?" I asked.

"I'm very glad that you're okay." she said, hugging me carefully. "Aislin told me that you saved her life."

"She said that?" I asked.

"Well, not exactly like that." Mom admitted. "But it's true nonetheless."

"I just took her with me." I insisted.

"She said that it requires more energy to teleport two than it does one." Mom said.

"What does that matter?" I said.

"It means that you risked your life to save another's." she said. "And you're actually modest about it. I'm very proud of you. You're a good man, Wil."

"A good man." I said sleepily. The morphine was kicking in. I yawned widely, muttered something about barbiturates and opiates, and drifted off to a fitful sleep filled with disturbing visions of giant bugs and dancing pineapples. I finally awoke at around 10 the next morning. Mom wasn't there, and Aislin was in her place.z She had changed back into her normal clothing, and was asleep. I decided not to disturb her, and stared out the window. Before too long, Mom came back with Doctor Dillamond in tow. Dr. D. checked my vitals, and made notations on a clipboard.

"You're all set to check out." he said. "Just take it easy for a few days."

"Ok." I said. "Where's my shirt?"

"Ruined." Mom said. "I brought another one from home."

"Damn." I said. "I liked that shirt. What about my watch?"

"I've got it right here, along with your pants and some clean socks." mom said.

"Hand me those socks..." I said, a mischievous gleam in my eye.

Mom either didn't notice or decided to play along, and gave me the roll of socks. I threw it at Aislin, who woke with a start.

"No ponies!" she said.

"None whatsoever." I said, amusedly. "Come on, we're buggin' out."

We head out, and go our separate ways. Once in my room, however, I dialed up Aislin's cell phone. After exchanging the usual pleasantries, I said "We should leave."

Her reply was a confused-sounding "Za?"

"We should leave Tosa." I explained. "Whoever sent those Cylon things wants us dead. The longer we stay around here, the more our loved ones are in danger."

"What about the ones who come with?" she asked, but immediately retracted the question, and replaced it with "So do we move to a log cabin in Montana, or what?"

"No." I said, somewhat puzzled but not pressing the issue. "We move to another city. Whoever sent those droids waited until we were in the middle of nowhere to do it. I think he's either unable or unwilling to send things into densely populated areas."

"But why would that be?" she asked.

"Psychic static, fear of collateral damage, appreciation for fine architecture, I don't know." I admitted. "But if whoever it is finds a way through it, I don't want my mother in danger. I have some savings, we can find an apartment somewhere."

"My uncle has some pull at an apartment building in Chicago. I'll bet he'd give us a discount." Aislin said.

"We'll take the train tonight. No sense prolonging this. We'll meet at the old Gammex compound at 3 PM." I say.

"Ok." she said. "You do realize we just made plans to move in together, right?"

There was an odd tone in her voice, which I decided to ignore, simply saying "Our relationship is an odd one."

"That it is." she said. "3 PM, Gammex. See you there." Then she hung up.

I looked up, and saw my mother standing in the doorway.

"Mom!" I said, surprised. "I was going to tell you-"

"No, you weren't." she said, cutting me off. "But it's okay. You're trying to do the right thing, and I'm proud of you for it. I wish it didn't have to be this way, but it does."

"Aw, mumsy..." I said, giving her a sad hug.

"Now, now. Chin up. All boys leave home someday. It said so on TV." she said.

"Did you just make a Pokemon reference?" I asked.

"I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about." she said, winking. "Now let's get you packed."

We spent the next hour or so packing many of my more mobile possessions into bags. 3:00 cam around swiftly, and I gathered my parcels.

"Bye, Mumsy. Take care of Naomi for me." I said.

"You know how I hate long goodbyes." she said.

I nodded, hugged her, and gave a last look at the house I grew up in before 'porting off to the Gammex compound, and ultimately my destiny. Campy, cliche, but accurate. Aislin was sitting on a large Hogwarts style trunk, and waved as I arrived.

"Ready?" I asked.

"As I'll ever be." she responded.

I 'ported us to the train station, and soon we were ahead on our way to the Windy City. In the vicinity of Sturtevant, Aislin turned to me, and asked "How did you manage to 'port us out of Colorado? There was that psychic static, remember?"

"Yeah, I'm not sure how it happened." I said. "Or more accurately, I'm not sure how it happened how it happened."

"Za?" she said, evidently confused by my odd turn of phrase.

"I destroyed the leader droid, the one emitting the static, before I fell." I said.

"But it had shields." Aislin said.

"Yeah." I agreed. "Plus, I did it with one shot."

"How?" she asked.

"I'm not really sure." I said, with a tone of confusion. "Maybe my heightened emotional state overcharged the beam."

"Heightened emotional state?" she asked probatively.

"Well, someone I care about had just been shot." I said, without thinking. My brain kicked my vocal chords, and I changed the subject. "So, um. when we get to Chicago, how do we meet up with your uncle? Is he picking us up at the station?"

"No." she said, rolling with the topic shift. "We're supposed to meet him at the Shedd Aquarium at about 8."

"A taxi ride." I said sarcastically. "I hope you're prepared to break the sound barrier today."

"It could be worse." she said. I responded with a quizzical look, and she explained. "He could live in Eastern Europe."

I chuckle at this, and we spend most of the rest of the trip in silence. We arrive at Union Station at around 6 PM, and hail a cab. Due to rush hour traffic, it takes almost an hour to get to the aquarium. We go inside, pay the admission, and go to the dolphin tanks.

"This is where he said he'd meet us." Aislin said.

"Cool." I said. "Let's get something to eat, I'm fricking starving."

"You too?" she said, and we head off to the food court. After a light meal, we head back to the dolphin exhibit at around 7:55. Before too long, a tall man with stubble and brown hair walks up to us. Aislin runs up and hugs him, exclaiming "Uncle Niel!".

"Aislin! How've you been?" Niel greets her warmly. "And you must be Wil. A pleasure to meet you." He extends a hand, which I shake.

"It's an honor to meet you, sir." I said.

"Oho! A gentleman!" he responds, mildly surprised.

"Chivalry isn't dead unless we kill it." I said.

"So true, so very true." Niel said. "So I hear you're looking for some housing."

"Yes." I said. "I have some savings, and-"

He cuts me off. "I could never charge to put a roof over Aislin's head. Or her boyfriend's."

I start to object to several bits of that statement, but Aislin kicks me in the leg discreetly and says "Thank you so much, Uncle Niel! We promise to keep everything clean. Right, Wil?"

Confused and wondering how she could kick so hard without being seen doing so, I smile and nod vigorously.

"Good! Now, come with me. I have a car waiting." said Niel Avari.

We followed him outside to the parking lot, where a black limousine was idling. I hesitate, but Aislin winked at me, and pulled me into the backseat. We filled the transit time with various meaningless small talk, and soon pulled up in front of on of the largest buildings I've ever seen.

"Holy crimeny, Aislin!" I said, my surprise evident in my tone. "You said he had pull on apartments, not Shinra Headquarters!"

"And I suppose you're always exactly specific." she said impishly.

We get out of the car, and follow Niel into the building. During the entire walk through the lobby and up the elevator, I had difficulty not staring, and it was all I could do not to babble incoherently. The lobby was beyond opulent, with statues here and fountains there and gold trim everywhere. Once inside the elevator, Niel pressed his thumb onto a pad that was discreetly set into the button panel. He then pressed the key for the top floor. As the elevator ascended, I was regaining control over my brain. This was lost when the doors opened into a room filled with gold trim and red velvet seating. To call it opulent would be akin to calling the Atlantic Ocean damp. Niel turned on his heel and spoke.

"We can speak freely now. This entire floor is shielded against surveillance, magical and otherwise. I never thought one of my own family members would inherit the mantle of the Sorceress of the Dark Night."

Aislin appeared stunned, and her uncle continued.

"And you, young man. You would be the Paladin of the White Dawn, then. Did you have fun on Midway?"

I, too, was stunned. I couldn't think of anything to say. Niel smiled and continued. "Now that you two are here, we can begin."

He goes to a panel on the wall, and holds down a button. "Seraph, would you and the Priestess come to the lobby? We have visitors."

Before long, my oldest friend David and his girlfriend Deirdre step into the room.

"Oh, hey, Wil!" he says cheerily.

I hold up a finger, say 'check, please', and faint from shock for the only time in my life.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Oy vey iz mir..." I mutter as I regain consciousness a bit later. I had been put onto a plush sofa, and the others sat around in a group of similar seats. Aislin was chatting idly with Deirdre, and David looked as if he was trying not to laugh. Niel was simply waiting. Aislin noticed my newly regained consciousness, and helped me sit up before returning to her seat. David seems unable to contain himself any longer, and says "Nice nap, Sleeping Beauty?"

"Bite me." I respond irritably. "Aren't you supposed to be in Oregon?"

"He was in Oregon." Niel said. "We had him moved here due to some... difficulties."

"I destroyed a building!" David said cheerfully.

"What, was it in your way?" I shot back, now in proper form.

"No, I just hated the decor." he responded easily.

Aislin interjected here, asking "You said 'we' brought David here. Who's 'we'?"

"Always straight to the heart of the matter." Niel said, chuckling. "I have brought you all here to tell you a story. This story will answer Aislin's question, tell you the source of your powers, and reveal to you your place in the multiverse."

"How very dramatic." I said dryly. "This isn't going to be one of those 'red string' things, is it?"

"Red string?" asked Niel, confused.

"It's a saying in certain cultures. People whose destinies are intertwined are said to be 'tied together by red string'." I explain briefly.

"Oh, well yes." Niel said. "It's a lot like that."

I groan.

"Anyway." Niel segues. "Planar Metaphysics 101. There are eight elemental planes that help shape the Multiverse. Each universe is 'distilled' from the eight essences of Creation, Destruction, Order, Chaos, Fire, Water, Earth, and Air by an incomprehensibly ancient mechanism usually known as either the 'Nexus' or the 'Planar Forge'. The planes are usually divided into two categories, Physical and Metaphysical. The Physical Places are those of Fire, Water, Earth, and Air, whereas the Metaphysical Planes are Creation, Destruction, Order, and Chaos. Each plane has an Avatar who is the embodiment of the element, and wields its power. The Metaphysical Avatars live in this universe, and the Physical Avatars live in another similar, but separate universe. The Avatars are known individually by titles, each to an element. The Avatar of Chaos is known as the Sorceress of the Consecrated Chalice, the Avatar of Order is called the Paladin of the White Dawn, the Avatar of Creation is known as the Priestess of the Holy Sanctitude, and the Avatar of Destruction is known as the Seraph of the Heavenly Sword. As you may have figured out by this point, you four are the Avatars. You must also by this point be wondering just who 'we' are, and how we know all this."

"It had crossed my mind." Aislin said dryly.

"For that answer, follow me." Niel said, and headed to the elevator. He entered his thumbprint as before, but this time, he also punched in a sequence with the elevator buttons. The rear wall of the elevator slid aside, revealing another door.

"Oh, very nice." David said appreciatively.

"Very cliche is more like it." I replied.

We exited via the recently revealed door, and see a vast cylindrical pit, running the entire height of the building. It housed a very large pillar of what looked like metal, which sparkled occasionally. We stood on a catwalk which ran the circumference of the pit, and Niel continued his lecture.

"In ancient times, scientists and magicians collaborated on a project to discover true wisdom. They constructed a city of magic and machinery they named Atlantis. Using this as a base, they spent years researching ways to achieve knowledge. The city had sections for alchemy, chemistry, physics, metaphysics, you name it, they studied it. After almost a century of work, they succeeded in accessing a vast amount of knowledge, seemingly encoded in the very fabric of reality itself. It was at his point that factionalism began to emerge. Each major department felt that their way of running things was better than that of the others, and what were once merely disagreements became all-out war. After a section of the city was vaporized, killing hundreds, they realized that they had to stop fighting. They divided up their remaining devices and knowledge, and went their separate ways. The city fell apart soon after, and its remnants sank into the ocean. The factions dispersed to every corner of the Earth, and became organizations still known today. The Knights Templar, for example, are descended from the Military Applications department. Our faction is currently the largest, as the ranks of the Illuminati were decimated in 1912 due to an unfortunate boating mishap. We are known as the Key of Solomon agency, descended from the Administration department of Atlantis. This pillar is the source of much of our knowledge. It is a pillar of pure orichalcum, from the original Administration department. It essentially works as a vast memory storage device, and holds the records of Atlantis. We know that Orichalcum works as a conduit to the vast knowledge bank discovered by the Atlanteans, but we also know that they put safeguards and restrictions onto it, and it no longer functions that way. There was also a great deal of research done as regards that knowledge bank. Some call it the 'Mind of God'. Others refer to it as the 'universe computer'. We usually use the more common term 'Akashic Records'. So, any questions thus far?"

There was a period of silence, and I could almost hear my cohort's brains whirring. I decided to break the silence by saying "No, you were remarkably thorough."

Niel smiled, and inclined his head deferentially. "Thank you, I aim to please. Anyway it's been a long day. We should probably get some sleep."

He leads us back through the elevator, and pauses in the sitting room. "I have some work to do." he says to David. "If it's not too much to ask, could you show Aislin and Wil to their quarters?"

"Sure, no problem." David says agreeably. "Follow me, guys."

David leads us through the door he came through earlier. There is a hallway behind it, with two doors on either side, and potted plants here and there. There is also a door on the far side, which is closed. A gong has been mounted between the doors marked "Seraph of the Heavenly Sword" and "Priestess of the Holy Sanctitude", recently by all appearances. Also recently, the names "David Dion" and "Deirdre Van Derven" had been engraved onto plates and affixed to their corresponding doors. Deirdre's door had a picture of cuttlefish attached to it, and David's door was adorned with what appeared to be someone's attempt to merge the artistic styles of Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, and Hieronymus Bosch. The effect was surreal, if nothing else. David demonstrated how to work the door lock, with a combination of retinal scanning and a numeric keypad. He then had us try ours. Aislin's worked on the first go, but mine remained stubborn.

"We should call maintenance." Deirdre said.

"I don't want to be a bother." I said.

"It's no bother, Wil." David insisted. "This group built this building and these very room just to house the Paladin of the White Dawn. That means you."

"Which really only makes this whole thing that much weirder." I said.

"You could stay with me." Aislin offered, and I thought I heard a tone of hope in her voice. I may have imagined it, though. "At least, until your door is fixed."

"Thanks, but I'd rather not sleep in the same room as you." I said before brain realized what it had done. Aislin turned on her feel with a huff, and shut her door quite firmly.

"Tasty foot, Wil?" David asked sarcastically. "Well done."

I shot him a look, trying to vaporize his head with my stare. This fails, to my complete and utter lack of shock, and he entered his room, followed closely by Deirdre. Alone in the hallway, I said "I just hate imposing. On anyone." to myself, as no one else could hear me. A sound from David's room made me realize the purpose of the gong, and decide to honor tradition. I rang the 'sex gong', and headed to the sitting room. I pulled two couches together to form a makeshift bed, made a pillow out of my hoodie, and tried to fall asleep. I was only partially successful, and fell into a kind of fitful half-sleep.

Chapter 2: Ignition

I went back to the Gammex compound the next day on a hunch, which was soon confirmed. Sitting cross-legged on a patch of grass was Aislin.

"Meditating?" I asked as I walked up to her.

"Napping." she answered. "or trying to, anyway."

"I could come back later..." I said, indicating the direction I had just come from.

"No no." she said, getting up. "The ground is too hard anyway."

"I've got some questions." I said. "And I'd wager you do, too."

"A safe bet." she said. "But this is still a bit public, no?"

"I'd hate to be overheard." I said, nodding my assent. "How about Midway Island?"

"That'd be far enough from... well, anywhere, but how-"

She was interrupted mid-sentence by one of my 'ports and continued lamely "do...we... get there. Never mind."

"You were saying?" I say, a tad smugly.

"Is there anywhere you can't teleport to?" she asked with a tinge of jealous annoyance.

"Yes, actually. If I don't have a general idea of my destination, I can't 'port there. After I got home yesterday, I read up on a bunch of desert islands, remote rain forest shacks, and other such areas. I figured they might come in handy. I'm glad it worked!" I explained cheerily.

"Yeah, me too..." she said, a bit warily.

"Getting home'll be easy. I'm well-versed in Tosa geography. I live there, too, you see." I say.

"Huh. Ok, prove it. 76th and North?"

"Library, Civic Center, City Hall, Lutheran Home, M&I, and Longfellow." I answered easily.

"68th and North?" she continued.

"Gas station, Aqua Terra, Subway, and a martial arts studio." I rattled off.

"Best pizza in the world?" she asked puckishly.

"Cranky Al's." I said without hesitation.

"Ok, you're from Tosa." she said with a laugh.

"Since first grade." I answered, also chuckling.

"Huh, me too. Madison?"

"Nah, Roosevelt."

"Ah well, win some, lose some." she said resignedly. "So, tell me about your dreams. I'll tell you about mine, and we'll compare."

"Sure thing, Sigmund." I quipped geekily.

I then proceeded to outline the dreams I had been having over the last week. Aislin listened attentively, and when I had finised my tale, she responded.

"Several key elements do seem more or less identical. The mountaintop temple, the oddly odd sensei, the shape that activates our powers. There were differences, though. My sensei was female, she was making sandwiches the first time, and she specifically stated that I use magic. I got the "Metaphysics 101" lecture, too. But I most definately use magic."

"Wacky." I said. "I'd suspect that we would need to have an apocolyptic showdown, but that doesn't make sense. My sensei told me that chaos isn't bad, and yours said the same of order. They made a particular point of this, so it stands to reason that they 'foresaw' (for lack of a better term) us meeting and didn't want us to fight. After all, if we were to fight, we could throw off the universal constants, and end the multiverse as we know it."

"That'd be bad." she said, nodding.

"Very." I say. "So, speaking of magic. I already know that you can run very, very fast. What else?"

"Well, I can levitate stuff. Like so."

She picked up some nearby rocks with her mind, and put them into a slow orbit around a nearby point in midair.

"I can also make these things." she continued eagerly.

Energy balls formed in her palms, and she vaporized the orbiting stones.

"How about them moves?" she said, grinning widely.

"Very nice! Pick up a big one for me, would you? It's time for me to bust out my moves. I said eagerly.

She levitated a large boulder, and I said "Ok, watch this!", cringing inwardly at the use of such a 'famous last words' phrase. I took off into the air, and mimed my finger-gun while plugging the boulder from 20 feet. It was completely vaporized, and I glided gently down to the ground.

"Very nice, indeed!" she said appreciatively.

"Thankyouverymuch." I said in a crappy Elvis imitation.

"Seems we'd work well together." she said.

"I'd say that's no coincidence." I responded.

"Yeah. This does seem to be leading up to us teaming up, whatever 'this' is. Funny thing about forming teams, though." she observed.

"There's usually at least two groups doing so." I finished.

"So if we've been imbued with powers based in fundamental metaphysical elements, it seems reasonable that we're supposed to use them in conjunction with each other's. What worries me is that which we're supposed to ally against." she observed.

"But we don't know what that is." I said.

"Which is worrisome." she said.

"Point." I agreed.

We swapped cell phone numbers, as it seemed reasonable that we'd need to contact one another quickly. I asked if she was ready to head back, she said yes, and I 'ported us to the library, and immediately notice how much warmer it is in the middle of the Pacific. A familiar voice comes from behind me, incredulously saying "Wil?!"

"Oh, noodles..." I say as I turn around and say sheepishly "Hi, Mom."

Some short time later, Aislin had gone off somehwere, and I was sitting in one of the study rooms, across the table from my mother.

"Her name's Aislin." I say. "She's nice. I met her a while back."

"Never once did I imagine that the day I found out that you had met a girl, the girl would be the second most pressing question." she said wearily.

"Well, I do enjoy defying convention." I said.

She breaks into fits of snorty laughter at this. "Defying convention? That's a fact! Snarky t-shirts, check! Cynical humor? Check! Appearing literally out of the middle of nowhere? Check! Why couldn't you just get a tattoo?"

"I could if you wanted." I offer gamely.

"Where did you come from, anyway?" she asked.

"Oh, nowhere far. No need to worry." I say.

She gives me the 'mom stare', and I surrender.

"Midway Island." I admit sheepishly.

"Nowhere far, huh. How was it?" she responds conversationally.

"Oh, very nice. Very warm and sunny. Great view, interesting ruins, too." I say.

I hesitate for a moment, and I ask "Want to see?"

"Sure!" she says, throwing her hands up in mock surrender. "What could possibly g-"

I interrupt her here, and say "Don't taunt Murphy, mumsy. Now grab my hand."

She does, and I 'port us to Midway Island.

"See? Nice view, huh?" I say.

"My god, it's beautiful!" she says in a tone of wonderment. "You can see for miles! And the water is so blue!"

She turrns to me, places her hands on my shoulders, and simply says "Tell me everything."

I do, beginning with Monday's mishap, and ending with a sixth reminder to keep it quiet.

"We really should get you back to work." I say. "If only to avoid suspicion."

"Good point." she agrees.

I 'port us back to the study room.

"See you after work, Mumsy!" I say, after we get back to the lobby.

With a quick hug, she says "Don't do anything I couldn't."

I begin to protest, but she winks and goes back to her desk.

I have the best mom in the world.

Deciding that it'd be lazy to 'port back home (I live, like, five blocks from the library), I begin to walk. Aislin was waiting by the outer door, to my mild surprise. Noticing me, she calls out to come over. I do, and ask "What's up?"

"Nothing, just wondering what happened." she said.

I filled her in, and pointed out that it'd be awkward to hide my dealings from my mother anyway.

"That's true." she said, "But why did you 'port us into her office? That's just begging for trouble. We're lucky her boss wasn't in!"

"That's the thing." I responded. "I was aiming for the theater at Longfellow."

"Something threw off your teleport?" she asked, sounding somewhat alarmed.

"It's possible." I admitted. "It's more likely to have been a stray thought at the wrong time, though. I did get us to Midway and back again, didn't I?"

"So it's probably something you can work on and eliminate?" she postulated.

"Yep." I said confidently. "Hey, wanna grab some food? I know a place that makes the same sandwiches God does."

"Venturi's?" she guessed.

"Local girls are no fun." I said with an exxagerated pout.

"Hey, I'm all kinds of fun." she says playfully.

After a quick yet tasty lunch, we parted ways, and the remainder of the day passed uneventfully.

That night, I had an unusually horrific nightmare, apparently based upon the concept of 'splinching'. If you don't know what that is, go read a Harry Potter book. I awoke at about 9:00 AM on Friday to someone sitting in one of my chairs, reading my KOTOR comic books.

"Whozere?" I mumbled sleepily.

"Ah, you're awake." said a familiar voice. It continued as the speaker, Aislin, came around to the foot of my futon. "I thought I'd have to pelt you with socks."

"Well, that explains how you got in." I said. (My mother wakes me up like that sometimes.) "How long were you waiting?"

"Not long." she answered, closing the book with a fwap. "Your mum let me in as she was leaving for work."

"Hmph." I said, throwing back my covers. I noticed that she was trying to suppress a grin. I also noticed that she was failing miserably. With a sigh, I asked "Okay, what's so funny?"

Completely abandoning her grin-suppressing efforts, she says amusedly "You're so cute when you're asleep! All curled up, mumbling, drooling..."

Getting up, I said "I'm so glad you enjoyed it." with more than the usual dose of sarcasm.

"Not a morning person, eh?" she said with a twinge of amusement.

"Morning and I have this arrangement. We meet only when I damn well want to meet." I explained. "I may rise, but shining is often unlikely until after ten. Or breakfast. Depending on which comes first."

"Let's get breakfast, then. Cranky Al's, my treat." she said.

Seeing my look of vague confusion, she explained. "You got lunch yesterday. It's only fair I return the favor."

"Very well. Just let me grab my socks." I said.

"No need!" she said cheerily as a bundle of socks hit me in the face.

"...right then. Won't be a minute!" I said, now at full wakefulness. Grogginess is for caffeine addicts and sissies.

It was 9:30 by the time Aislin and I arrived at the coffee shop/pizza place known as Cranky Al's, and they were just finishing cleaning up from the breakfast rush. As we approached the counter, Mrs. Java (Cranky Al's spouse and business partner) greeted us warmly.

"Aislin!" she said happily. "You're late! The usual, I suppose?"

"Please." answers Aislin courteously.

"And Wil! You're too early! We don't start making pizza until 4."

"Yes, that's why I'm here for a doughnut." I say, indicating one on the rack.

"No coffee?" asks Aislin.

"I don't do coffee." I answer.

"Your loss, hun." Mrs. Java says, placing a covered paper cup and two doughnuts on the counter. "You two know each other?"

"Yes." I answer at the same time Aislin answers "Nope."

I grimace, and say "It's complicated."

"Well, I can see that." she says amusedly. "Anywho, best of luck to ya!"

We pay, leave, and duck around a corner. I 'port us to an old cabin in the Rocky Mountains. Looking out the window and sipping her coffee, Aislin says "Okay, now you're just showing off."

"Guilty as charged." I say, chuckling. "My uncle lived in this cabin for a while. It was part of a Buddhist retreat center, but they moved to a location further north. Some feng shui thing, no doubt."

"I wonder if anyone still looks for them here." Aislin says.

"Well, they probably put up a sign." I said.

"Yeah!" she says, laughing. "We're sorry, our Buddha is on a different mountain!"

I laughed at this, but was suddenly struck by a thought.

"Aislin." I said. "Do you trust me?"

"Yeah, of course." she said.

"And I trust you. But why?" I ask.

"How do you mean?" she inquired.

"Well, trust is earned, not given. It certainly doesn't just magically appear. Just think for a second. We've known each other a grand total of two days. In that time, you've basically stalked me from the Internet, I've basically kidnapped you, and we've seen each other vaporize solid rock.By all rights, we should be running screaming from each other, not having a friendly chat over coffee." I explain.

"That's true." she says. "Maybe it's related to our powers."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, we both feel compelled to keep them secret. We've both rationalizzed reasons for it by now, but the impulse for secrecy definitely came first."

"Oh, I see." I said, catching on. "Whoever or whatever gave us these powers also put in some sort of 'post-hypnotic suggestion' sort of thing. Trust your counterpart, keep the secret."

"Then we provide our own reasons, and it seems like our own idea! Oh, that's clever!" she said, impressed.

"So are we, it seems." I said with a grin.

"You got one thing wrong, though." she said.

"What's that?" I asked.

"The girls you should really run screaming from are the best ones." she said impishly.

"True that." I said.

"Anyway, I suppose we'll have to go about this backwards." I said. "Usually, people meet, get to know each other, trust each other, and then go on wacky adventures, in that order. We'll have to simply invert the process."

"Works for me." Aislin said.

"No I don't." I said, stabbing at humor.

"Shut up." she said.

"No need to be mean about it." I said defensively. "I know it was a bad-"

"No, seriously, shush! I heard something!" she said sharply, cutting me off.

I shush up and listen, and hear an odd clanking sound. I motion for Aislin to get down and follow me, and we go outside to look. Several vaguely humanoid robots were looking around the area. They each had one rectangular eye, aligned in the center and glowing red.

"Holy Cylons, Batman." I said quietly to Aislin. "What do you suppose they're doing?"

"It looks like they're searching for something." she said. "Maybe deer?"

One of the robots spotted us, sent out a metallic-sounding noise, signaled the others, and shot some kind of projectile at us. I grabbed Aislin, and dodged straight upwards barely in time, and got pelted by rock chips from the explosion.

"Okay, new theory." said Aislin. "They were looking for us, in order to kill us."

"Brilliant, Holmes." I said sarcastically. "What say we kill them first?"

"Wouldn't it be better to 'port out?" she asked. "I'm as fond of making things go boom as the next person, but I also have this aversion towards dying."

"I already tried." I said. "That metallic sound seems to be some kind of psychic static, it's blocking my focus."

"Ok, then. Let's slag some battle droids!" she said, perhaps a bit too eagerly.

I set her down a ways off, knowing she could run back easily. She does, and I fly along right above. I aim a beam at one of the droids, and she aims a pulse at another. The impact spots flash green, and remain unharmed.

"They're shielded!" I shouted.

"Focus on one at a time!" she shouted back. "My two o'clock!"

We combine our powerson one droid, whose shields were no match for that kind of firepower. The shields failed, and it fell over with a new, glowing hole in its torso.

"Good!" I shouted. "Aw, egg noodles! They're grouping up!"

"Take the front one!" she shouted back.

We do, and another droid falls. The other two continue to return fire, however. We destroy another, but the battle was taking its toll. I, at least, was mentally exhausted, running primarily on adrenalin. We were both covered in small and not so small cuts from flying debris and near misses. Aislin looked up at me, and I nodded. It was time to end this. She charged an atypically powerful energy pulse, and I prepare an unusually powerful beam. This was the leader, after all. She released the pulse, but was simultaneously hit by droid fire, which throws its aim off. Later on, I'd hope it missed the Buddhists on the other mountain, but at the time, I was distracted my Aislin's injury. I lost focus, and my beam shorted out. I don't think I shouted "No!", but it's distinctly possible. In any case, the droid leader was still standing, and only had one target. It ups its fire rate, and it becomes more difficult to dodge. I charged a beam, knowing it wouldn't be enough, and fired at the robot, just as it fired at me. The impacts were simultaneous, and the droid's circuits overloaded and it exploded. I, however, didn't think much of this, as I was falling from the sky. By some quirk of fate, I landed very near to Aislin, and used the last bit of willpower and focus I had to teleport us to the medical complex near Gammex. Then everything went black.