Prelude
"Gah! I give up!"
There was the sound of crashes, several miniature explosions, and a yell of pain as something heavy dropped on a foot.
"Hey…big brother, you okay?" a voice called out. The owner ran around the corner of the hall into the doorway of the room.
The annoyed person looked up into the concerned emerald eyes of his younger sister, then sighed. "Yeah, Kira, I'm alright. Just a little frustrated, that's all."
"Oh, okay." She walked over and looked at the diagrams, papers, and general mess on her big brother's desk. "What are ya doin' anyways?"
He sighed again, this time in exasperation. "Working on what we found in those archives. Gods…" Rubbing at his sapphire eyes, he gestured at the papers. "Blasted things don't make any sense at all."
"Really? Why not?"
"I can't make heads or tails of some of the stuff on here." He scooted over to the desk. "For example, this." He jabbed at a blueprint like it had insulted a family member. "This symbol doesn't have any purpose at all. It's not going to be used as a receiver, transmitter, or even a symbol of identification, since all the models will have it."
"But ya feel like it's important?"
"I've seen it before somewhere. Lt's familiar, which is what disturbs me. I feel like it's the key to the crisis on this world."
The conversation lapsed into silence, which was suddenly broken by Kira's comment.
"It looks like the symbol for fire."
"What?" The elder brother lifted his head from his hands. "Fire?"
"Yah." She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. "Like in alchemy."
He stared at her, eyes wide, before running over. After a second of scrutiny, he did a quick calculation, then turned to his sibling.
"Go get the others," he ordered.
"Wha?" Kira backed away. "But Cree…didn't Strang say…?"
"This is important, sis. L've figured it out. What the crisis is. And it's a big one this time."
She looked at him for a second before nodding. "Okay."
She ran out.
"You're absolutely sure?"
"Yes, Ronshi, I've only been over it ten times already," Cree snapped.
The white-haired boy recoiled. "Alright, bro, no need to take it out on me."
Cree sighed, rubbing his temples. "I'm sorry. It's just, this is way bigger than I expected it to be. Drug and gun smuggling I can deal with; ends of worlds are a bit unnerving. What do you think, Kronos?"
The addressed shifted a little. "I agree with you. This matter is spilling over into the other world. If the plan is carried out, both of them will be in chaos." He glanced over at Kira with a pair of shockingly indigo eyes. "What do you think, little sister?"
Kira nodded firmly. "I agree with big brother."
"Alright then," Ronshi said. "We'll call him tonight."