Strike 3: The Returning Sunrise (18 page)

“It’s not? Then who are you with?”

Ten minutes later, Jennifer slowly opened the door to her house and stepped inside. She was greeted by Chad, Orion, Keplar, and Scatterbolt, who were standing in a line in the kitchen. She stared at them, with her mouth dropped open.

“Hi,” Keplar said, stepping forward and extending his paw. “I’m Scatterbolt, the little robot. Nice to meet you.”

Jennifer said nothing. She simply stared at him.

“Just kidding,” Keplar said, stepping back and holding up his paws. “I’m the giant dog.”

Jennifer eyed the lineup in front of her. “What the hell is going on?”

“Hi, Jennifer,” Orion said, offering his hand. “I’m sorry about all of this, but we wouldn’t have come here unless it was absolutely necessary.”

Jennifer shook his hand. “Is it absolutely necessary?”

“Um, yes. Yes, I’m afraid it is.”

Jennifer peered over his shoulder. “Is it absolutely necessary to eat all of my food and make a huge mess in my kitchen?”

“Um, no,” Orion replied sheepishly. “That part was not necessary.”

Scatterbolt looked up at her with a smile. “I hope you were done with Downton Abbey, ‘cuz I kind of erased it off your DVR by accident.”

Jennifer closed her eyes and shook her head. “What—what is going on? Why are you here? Why are all of you here?”

“I’m sorry, Jen,” Chad said. “I know this is nuts, but it has to do with Tobin. He needs our help.”

Jennifer spun toward Orion. “He does? Where is he?”

***

 “So it actually
is
Tobin up in the skyscraper?” Chad asked, looking across the kitchen table at Orion. “It actually was Tobin that day in Boston?”

“Yes,” Orion replied. “But a different Tobin from a different timeline. In his timeline, this Tobin did not meet me and the others. Instead, he met Rigel—and Rigel twisted his mind, lied to him, and told him things that weren’t true. And now, for those reasons and who knows what other reasons, he’s working with them.”

“I don’t believe it,” Jennifer said, shaking her head. “I don’t believe Tobin would do those things.”

“He wouldn’t,” Orion replied. “Not the Tobin you know. But this isn’t the Tobin you know. Tobin—our Tobin—is still here. He’s exactly the Tobin you know. But this Tobin—do you remember what the Daybreaker was wearing when he first appeared in Boston? The silver armor?”

“Yeah,” Chad said. “And he was wearing some kind of weird helmet.”

“Exactly. We believe—we have reason to believe—that the armor was feeding him lies. Warping his brain. Whatever it was, it did terrible things to him. Because like you said, Jennifer, the Tobin we know would never be capable of these things. But, that armor—it’s hurt him. Incredibly badly. That much we know. And we have to help him.”

“Help him?” Chad asked.

“Yes.”

“How?” Jennifer asked.

“Judging from what we’ve been told, we think he believes I killed the two of you.”

“Wow,” Chad said, raising his eyebrows. “That’s messed up.”

“Yes, it is. And obviously not true. But it does explain why he would do all of this—why he would go to these great lengths to try and avenge you.”

“So Rigel told him you’re the bad guy,” Jennifer said. “What can we do to help with that?”

“I think we can prove to him that you’re not dead. That I didn’t hurt you, and that I would never hurt you. We can prove to him that we are your friends.”

“Oh my god,” Chad said with a grin. “We’re friends? We’re friends now?”

“Yes, of course,” Orion said.

Keplar finished his sandwich. “Any time I steal food from someone’s house, I automatically consider them my friend.”

“Wow, this is so cool!” Chad said. He turned to Jennifer with a wide smile, but then his smile faded away. “I mean, except for the whole ‘evil version of Tobin’ thing.” 

“How can we prove this to him?” Jennifer asked. “How can we show him what he’s been told is wrong?”

“Well,” Orion said, “I was thinking we could make a video.”

“A video?”

“Yes. I know it sounds simplistic, but if we could make a video with you two in it, with us, we could show him that we—meaning me, Keplar, and Scatterbolt—are not the enemy. If he sees you two with us, and hears you telling him in your own words that not everything is what it seems, I think we could get through to him. And then we could end this without anyone getting hurt.”

“Because then he’ll come to his senses and stop doing what he’s doing,” Chad said.

“Yes, exactly.”

Jennifer thought it over. She was clearly skeptical. “But how could you—how could you get this video to him?”

“That I’m not sure of yet. But we were able to breach the skyscraper once, and we can find a way to do it again.”

“And then somehow get him to watch this video,” Jennifer said.

Keplar nodded. “It’s worth a shot.”

Jennifer turned to Orion. “Is that why you’re here? Is that why you’re on Earth?”

“It’s one of the reasons. We’re also here to investigate something else. But first we are going to make this video with you two, and then we are going to move on, so you are not involved with this any further. Like I said, I know it sounds simplistic, but sometimes simple is best.”

“I think it sounds like a great idea,” Chad said. “I’m game, obviously. I’d do anything to help Tobin.”

“It won’t work,” Jennifer said bluntly.

Orion looked to her, confused.

“It won’t work,” she said again. “It’ll never work. We’ll never be able to get him to watch the video, and even if we do, he’ll just think it’s fake. You told us he was face-to-face with our Tobin already—an exact duplicate of himself—and even that didn’t get through to him. He thought it was some kind of trick.”

“I know, that’s true,” Orion said, “but I think just the shock of seeing you two with us will—”

“We’ll go with you,” Jennifer said. “To the skyscraper. We have to see him in person.”

“No. Absolutely not.”

“Why?”    

“Because it’s infinitely dangerous,” Orion replied. “I am not going to let you two become involved any further. I did not even want to come here and try this, but I felt it was our best shot. This is already way past what I am comfortable with, and it is not going any further. This is non-negotiable.”

“No,” Jennifer said. “It won’t work. He has to see us face-to-face, or he at least has to see us with his own eyes. He has to see us, and hear us, for himself, not on some video. He’ll just think it’s edited, or that you’re playing a trick on him. He has to see us for himself.”

“No,” Orion said again. “You are not leaving this house with us. We are leaving here, and then you will never see us again. End of story.”

Jennifer stood up and walked to a telephone. She lifted it off its receiver. “This is what I’m gonna do: I’m going to call 9-1-1. And then I’m going to tell them that a strange old man is here with a bow and arrow. And I’m going to tell them that a strange little metal boy is here, and a freak in a dog suit. And when I tell them that, you better believe word will get back to Rigel and the others in the dome. And when they hear that, they will come looking for you.”

“And they’ll also come looking for you,” Keplar said, “and probably kill you in the process.”

“Maybe,” Jennifer said. “But I’m not letting you leave here without taking us with you. The Daybreaker has to see us for himself.”

Orion looked at her, angry, but thinking it over. Keplar turned to Chad.

“Is she always like this?” the dog asked.

“When she gets mad, yes. Believe me, I would know. She may be five foot four, but she can totally kick my butt.”

Orion shook his head, laughing through his nose. “You understand how dangerous this is going to be? And you understand if anything happens to you, I’ll never be able to forgive myself?”

“Yes, I do,” Jennifer said, still gripping the phone. “But I also understand that a boy named Tobin Lloyd needs our help. And I understand if we don’t do anything, he’s going to end up in even more pain than he is now. And I understand we are the only ones who can help him.”

A silence passed.

“By the way,” Keplar said, “did you really call me a freak in a dog suit before? Was that really necessary?”

“I don’t know how I can justify this,” Orion said, shaking his head.

“I mean, I get the dog suit part, but why a freak?”

“You don’t have to justify it,” Jennifer said. “You just have to understand that I’m going to ruin everything if you don’t let us help you. Right, Chad?”

Chad raised his eyebrows. “Uh, I guess. But I’m also not opposed to the ‘making a video’ thing.”

Keplar turned to Orion. “What do you think, O?”

The old man smiled. “I think I know why Tobin cares about you two so much. And I think it’s time we start thinking outside the box.”

“By that, do you mean bringing them with us? That’s not thinking outside the box. That’s like inventing a whole new box.”

“They are going to stay right near me,” Orion said. “They are going to go with us to Fairfield. We are going to let ourselves be seen with them, and then they are going to go to the museum where it’s safe, and they are going to wait there until all of this is over.” He looked to Jennifer. “Do you understand?”

“Yes,” she replied.

“And you understand that after this, your lives are never going to be the same, ever again? You are sacrificing something here. I told Tobin this when I first met him, and I’m telling you the same thing now. After this, if you make this choice, there is no going back to how your life was before. You are involving yourself in this, and you cannot un-involve yourself when it is done. This will be forever. Rigel, or the Daybreaker, will see you with us, and nothing for you will ever be the same again.”

“But we’ll be helping,” Jennifer said. “We’ll be helping Tobin, and we’ll be possibly helping to save the universe.”

“Yes,” Orion said. “I believe you will be.”

“Then I’m in,” Jennifer replied. “If we don’t help, if Rigel and Nova win, then our lives will be forever changed, anyway.”

“You’re willing to give up your normal life?” Orion asked. “You’re willing to sacrifice that?”

“Yes,” Jennifer said.

“If it means helping Tobin,” Chad replied, “I’ll do whatever it takes.”

Keplar laughed and turned to Orion. “I can’t believe you’re even considering this, O.”

Orion smiled. “Pack some things. Meet us back here in ten minutes. From this point forward, you do not do anything unless I tell you to do it.”

Jennifer hung up the phone and dashed upstairs. “I’ll get my jacket and call my mom and tell her I’m going out for the night.”

Chad headed for the door. “I’ll go get a change of pants ‘cuz I think I just crapped myself.”

“This is insane, you know that,” Keplar said to Orion. “I mean, this is something I would do, but this is not something you would ever do.”

“I know,” the old man replied. “But it might be our best shot. It
is
our best shot, as much as I hate to admit it. Jennifer is right—this is the only way we can hope to prove to the Daybreaker that not everything is what it seems.” He looked to Keplar with a smile. “Plus, were you about to tell her no?”

“No way,” Scatterbolt replied. “Did you see that look in her eye? Now I know how she always got Tobin to do his homework.”

“Yeah,” Keplar said, “and we better hope that translates into her not freaking out when she’s faced with a super-villain ready to destroy her.”

Orion shook his head. “That’s not going to happen. If there’s one thing I’m going to ensure, it’s that they are going to be safe. I’ve protected people my whole life, but never anyone as important as this. These two are now my number one priority, no matter what. Whatever I say with them, goes. Understand?”

“Definitely,” Scatterbolt replied.

Keplar nodded. “You got it.”

“Now let’s just hope Tobin forgives me when he finds out I let them come with us.”

As they drove through the plains of Ruffalo Rock, Wakefield was manning the steering wheel of the jostling, open-air jeep, while Agent Everybody was sitting in the front next to him, inspecting a map. In the backseat, Tobin leaned out his window, trying to get a break from the stifling heat.

This sun-drenched, dry land was remarkably like Africa, Tobin thought. The wide open plains were covered in tan, soft dirt that whipped up in clouds behind them as they drove, and the landscape was spotted with sparse trees and leaf-less shrubs. Tall valleys were far off in the distance, and various, bizarre animal species roamed the land. Turning to his right, Tobin saw a pack of green, buffalo-like bremshaws migrating toward the valleys, with their long, skinny, hoofed legs dragging along the dusty ground. To his left, he saw a pair of black-and-purple, polka-dotted elephants, drinking from a watering hole. One of the elephants was smaller than the other, but that didn’t say much—the smaller one was still the size of two school buses, stacked on top of each other. As Tobin watched, the mother elephant sprayed the smaller one with its trunk and then turned the water on itself, washing off the pointed plates that ran down its back like a white picket fence.

“So, where are we going, Wakefield?” Tobin asked. “Orion wouldn’t tell me about what you’ve been doing out here.”

The balding, white-haired man kept his eyes on the road. “No, we’ve had to be very secretive about all this. We couldn’t risk anyone finding out what’s been going on here. The only people that really know are me and Orion.”

“Well, what is it? What’s so secretive that not even me and the others could know about it?”

Wakefield thought it over. “You know how Orion told you he found your dad a few months ago? A different version of your dad from a different timeline?”

“Yeah.”

Wakefield looked in the rear-view mirror. “I found him again, Tobin. I found your dad. He’s in Ruffalo Rock, right now. Waiting for you.”

Tobin sat in the backseat of the jeep. He stared ahead through the windshield, with his air caught in his lungs. He found he could not breathe.

“He’s been here in Ruffalo Rock for about a week now,” Wakefield continued. “I was finally able to track him down and convince him to come here and let me work with him, to get his brain straight again. His memory is better now, and getting better every day. With his help, I’ve been able to work on something that I believe is going to help us send the Daybreaker back where he belongs. And your dad has also been able to remember why he came here to our timeline.”

“He has?” Tobin asked, his voice tight and strained. “Why? Why did he come here?”

Wakefield smiled. “I’ll let him tell you that.”

An hour later, the group in the jeep reached a pair of massive, green grass-covered hills. In a valley in between the hills—where the two hillsides connected—there was a gigantic door, made out of towering, vertical tree stumps. Behind the wooden door, Tobin could see the tops of buildings—there was a protected city of thatched-roofed huts and brick buildings behind the door, reaching all the way to the valleys in the distance. On the outside of the enormous door, on either side of it, there were two stern-faced guards—but these weren’t any ordinary guards. The beings watching over the city were a leopard and an elephant, standing on their hind legs and wearing the armor of warriors. On their backs, they were brandishing round shields, and also long swords made out of shining, yellow diamond.

When Wakefield pulled the jeep up to the gate, the elephant guard recognized him.           

“Visitors have arrived in Ruffalo Rock,” the elephant bellowed through his trunk. “Open the door and allow them inside.”

The wooden gate slowly opened up, and Wakefield drove his jeep into the city. Beyond the grassy hillsides and wooden door, the city of Ruffalo Rock was quite a sight. It was made up of thatched, straw huts and tall houses constructed of brick and cement, and past the houses, in the rear of the city, there was a gigantic stone castle, which was over twenty stories tall and as wide as a football stadium. The tan-colored fortress was adorned with flowing flags and golden turrets, and the streets in front of the structure were filled with some of the strangest, and most beautiful, creatures in Capricious—panthers, gorillas, buffalos, and zebras roamed through the town, along with regular human beings. The animals and humans all greeted each other with smiles, living in unison behind the hills.

But, to be honest, Tobin wasn’t paying any attention to the attractive brick buildings or unique species of Ruffalo Rock. As he sat up in his seat and peered over Wakefield’s shoulder, he was too preoccupied with what was about to happen. He could only think about who he was about to see, and who he was about to meet.

At the end of the city’s main street, Wakefield stopped the jeep, a few feet in front of the castle’s drawbridge.

“There he is,” Wakefield said with a smile. “The king of Ruffalo Rock’s current guest.”

Tobin looked out the windshield.

He saw his father.

As Tobin stepped out of the jeep, he kept his eyes on the front entrance of Ruffalo Rock Castle. His father was there, standing in front of the wide, open door of the building, with his arms nervously behind his back. He looked exactly like all the pictures Tobin had always seen: dark, thick hair, slightly graying at the temples; deep, brown eyes; a slight five o’clock shadow on his face. And, he was smiling—a mischievous, crooked, let’s-get-in-some-trouble smile that Tobin had always heard so much about from his mother. She rarely spoke about Tobin’s father, but when she did, his smile was the thing she talked about the most.

At first, Tobin’s father only saw Wakefield step out of the vehicle and walk across the drawbridge toward him, but then, as he looked to his left, he saw Tobin—his son, standing at the side of the green jeep. His son, eighteen years old, nearly as tall as him, and only a few feet away. Tears welled up in Scott’s eyes, and as he brought his hand to his mouth, his smile widened across his face and he shook his head, stunned by the unbelievable, sudden sight of his grown, teenage son.

Unsure of what to do, Tobin stood there, in shock, until Wakefield walked toward the front of the castle. Tobin followed him.

“Hi, Scott,” Wakefield said, when they reached Tobin’s father. “This is Tobin. And Tobin, this is—”

“Hi, Tobin,” Scott said, stepping forward with a smile. “Hi, son. Hi, son.”

Tobin broke down. He collapsed, in tears, and wrapped his arms around his dad, falling against him. He held on as tight as he could, so overwhelmed that he could not speak. He only held on, and cried, with his fingers gripping the back of his dad’s shirt.

Tears streamed down Scott’s face. He held Tobin around the waist with one arm, and grabbed the back of Tobin’s head with the other, holding it against him.

“It’s okay,” Scott said through his tears. “It’s okay, son. I’m here. I’m here now. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m here now. I’m sorry.”

Tobin was too young, when his dad left. He never knew what it felt like to be hugged by his dad.

Now, he knew.

“I’m here, son,” Scott said again. “I’m here.”