Last time we watched as Violet's new invention, the GKX-101, was tested by Klaus, A test that was successful. Yet the celebrations were cut short when Max came in, saying that something terrible has happened up in Maine. On with the show!

Chapter 2: New Mission

Upon entering the briefing room, Violet saw that most of the team was already assembled. Along with Shawn, Steve, Virgil, Fay, Julie, Michael, Jill and Max, there was also Leon Smyth-Falcon a.k.a. 'Cajun Man,' a voodoo expert from New Orleans; Simon 'D.P.' Brotonoononowluski, with his metal arm; Laura Hurst, quite possibly the most powerful telekinetic individual on the planet; Tyler Spartan a.k.a 'Alloy,' a genius with metal and electronics who built his own suit of armor in the tradition of 'Iron Man.'

"Are we waiting for anyone else?" asked Laura as she brushed her blond and blue hair from her eyes. "My brother Aaron is at a medical conference in Albany," said Tyler, "So he should be back sometime tomorrow." Aaron Spartan was a brilliant doctor in all fields of medicine.

"And Maria is missing as usual," said Max, "And I've just about had enough of it." Maria Van Helsing was an exorcist from Germany who had a bad habit of showing up several days overdue.

"I've had enough of Maria being late as well," said Leon, "When Director Walker get here I'm gonna ask her to have Maria kicked out of The Bureau. This has gone on long enough."

"It still seems hard to believe," said Fay, "That 'Diamond Dave' was a drug addict, the guy was always in top form." "And of all the people to replace him as head of The Bureau," said Jill, "Who would of thought that it'd be Patty Walker."

Four weeks earlier David Callahan, head of operations for The Bureau, was pulled over for a broken taillight. The officer then smelled Marijuana smoke. Not only did Callahan have several joints in his possession, he also had at least a kilo of the stuff in the trunk of his car. Callahan was charged with possession of an illegal substance, with intent to sell. In order to save face with his superiors on Capital Hill, Callahan resigned from The Bureau.

Callahan was replaced by Patricia 'Patty' Walker. Patricia, age 29 from Atlanta, was a Meta-Human like Max and Jill. Only, she wasn't part of a team, Patricia preferred to work alone. Her ability allowed her to amplify her voice to stone-shattering levels.

It was at that time that Patricia entered the briefing room. At first glance, Patricia didn't look remotely like anyone who dealt in saving the world from things that go bump in the night. She stood at 5'6", had shoulder length brown hair and dark orange eyes. Yet when she smiled, like just now as she sat down at the head of the table, you couldn't help but like her.

"Okay," said Patricia in a medium southern accent that reminded everyone of her Georgian background, "Let's get this party started. Eleven hours ago all communications with a research laboratory up in Maine were lost. Almost immediately after that, reports from weather services spoke of this huge fog bank that seemed to materiel out of nowhere, a fog bank that seems to keep growing."

"We assume that the communications blackout with the lab and the sudden appearance of the fog bank are related," said Leon, "But that's only the tip of the iceberg. Several people have gone into the fog bank to reach the lab. Only a handful has come out alive and only a fistful of them are still sane. Those still able to make sense of what they say speak of terrifying monsters in the mist. It's logical to assume that whatever happened at that lab is the source of both the mist and the monsters."

"When you say that only a fistful are still sane," said Michael, "What happened to those who aren't sane?" "We're not entirely sure," said Leon, "Something must have really messed up their minds. They kept jabbering and spouting nonsense until they died. The cause of death is as of yet unknown."

"Just what was going on in that laboratory anyway?" asked Julie. "They are," sad Max, "Or were, working on government funded project called 'Arrowhead.' It was started back in the late 80's as a theoretical means of viewing parallel realities."

"Like what I was doing with my prototype for a dimensional gateway a few months back," said Violet, "The one I destroyed when we learned that dimensional travel through such gateways were weakening the fabric of reality, causing time/space distortions."

"More or less," said Patricia, "The project was put on hold after 9/11 when funds were being directed towards national security." "So why did they start again if the money was going elsewhere?" asked Tyler.

"It was me," said Violet, "After we got back from helping The Guardians and The Black Swordsman, I destroyed my dimensional gateway, as well as all data on the device. Yet I published my finds on how the gateway affected reality. The scientists responsible for Arrowhead read my report; they must have figured out something I missed."

"That's what we believe," said Patricia, "Exactly two weeks ago Arrowhead was started up again with full financial support from the government. There was very little to report from then up until twelve hours ago. A message from the lab stated that they had succeeded in creating a stable opening into a parallel Earth, one that had little if no affect on the fabric of reality. Then all went silent and the mist appeared."

"Our mission," said Max, "Is to head up to Maine, go into the mist, head to the lab and find out what happened there." "And if we run into any monsters along the way," said Fay. "We kill the bastards!" finished Steve. "More or less," said Jill, "We leave for Maine in one hour."

The end of chapter 2. Next chapter our heroes prepare themselves for the unknown horrors that wait for them in the mist. Reviews will be rewarded with cake and pie. See you next time!