Still alive, still slightly obsessed with med school applications in their various stages, still expecting MCAT results on July 21.
The reasons for my characterization of Trigon will be explained later in the story. Garfield's anecdotes about zoos (specifically about Gus) are true. The country Garfield mentions does not exist, but is comics-based canon for where his parents worked in Africa. The research topic was chosen to suit the timeframe, estimated geography, and focus of the Logans' research. Happy reading!
Chapter Four
Saturday June 13, 12:31 P.M.
Trigon glared at his car's dashboard after the vehicle had ground to a halt. It was the exact look he gave to a promising employee that had disappointed him, but the limousine neither cowered nor apologized. Its engine continued to emit dark smoke. "You're alright, Raven? Kore?"
"We're fine," Raven said. "I'll just have a couple bruises from Kore protecting me." She smiled at her friend reassuringly. Kore had picked her up in the moment before the car stopped, and had flown towards the back of the car. Unlike previous occasions, however, Raven had been left without any fractured bones after Kore's help. "She left the ribs out of it this time. The bruises will be gone in two hours."
"I was nervous," Kore said, still agitated after the threat of danger. "You are completely right as well, Mr. Wilson?"
"Yes, thank you ever so much for asking," Slade Wilson said dryly, as he returned to his e-mails. He had a mechanic on speed dial, but the man was based in Boston. It would take time to fly the mechanic out to look at the car, and repairs certainly wouldn't happen at the side of the road.
"I could see that you were alright, Wilson," Trigon explained impatiently. "I don't suppose you could find me a mechanic that works with prototype cars? A couple of the 'check engine' lights were on, but no lights that said 'check engine immediately.' What about the people behind us? There were three, I thought, and the woman was not wearing a seatbelt."
"I have already begun to address the problem of the mechanic, Trigon."
Raven and Kore looked out the back window of the stopped limousine. "I do not see a woman in the car, but the two gentlemen appear to be fine and happy. Perhaps she has lain down across the backseat to recover from the surprise. The windshield is intact," Kore answered.
"They feel okay," Raven said, eyes closed. "They're both a little nervous, but neither is worrying about someone. I thought I felt her emotions for a minute, but they were gone before I could get a trace."
"Perhaps she fainted?" Kore suggested. "I believe humans do that sometimes, when very shocked." She looked to Wilson for confirmation, as he was the only full human within the car, but he was busily typing.
"Her friends aren't at all worried, or guilty. I believe the driver is coming to speak with you, father," Raven said. "He's getting something from the trunk, but he isn't angry."
Trigon glanced in his side mirror. "Looks like a tool kit. Kore, how does his fender look?"
"Dented, but the man's car is intact," Kore said. "I believe our vehicle's bumper will be in similar condition. The engine of his car should be fine."
"Good. If all else fails, you can airlift us out of here without drawing a fifth of the attention I would." Trigon wouldn't airlift the car, precisely. If he resumed his natural form, he would be large enough to pick up the limousine and move it to a more suitable location. He also would drive the entire city into a state of panic, which was why Kore handled most situations. Tamaraneans were much less frightening than demons, if the reactions they had received were a fair indication. "Jump City would practically adopt you. Their local hero is famous for being green and the son of famous researchers."
"The passenger of the car behind us is green," Raven said. "Green, male, and the right age to be the Logan kid."
"He's probably the one, then. In any case, it's showtime," Trigon said. "Nothing unusual if you can help it." Kore and Raven both gave him a thumbs-up before sitting in the center of the limousine's main area for passengers. Kore, always wary of threats, took the seat between Raven and the front window. Wilson had returned to answering e-mails, as no one seemed interested in his mechanic or the several towing services in the Jump City area.
Trigon rolled down his window. The approaching man carried a tool kit under one arm, and had already looked over the damage to the limousine's bumper. Trigon could see the telltale flickering of a hologram, but chose to not acknowledge that piece of information just yet. No human could process images quickly enough to make out the electronic nature of the image, and Trigon liked to maintain cover as long as possible.
"My apologies," Trigon said, stepping out of his car. "My car's engine quit and the brakes jammed, and it was all I could do to get to the side of the road."
"Completely understandable, sir," the man said easily. "Mind if I take a look? I'm not a certified mechanic, but I'm more than qualified. I built my car from the ground up. All that you need in back is a new bumper. We were lucky. I saw your car smoking, so I slowed up as best as I could. Our bumper and fender were even on the same level."
"It's not a combustion engine," Trigon warned. "It's a new prototype. Hydrogen electric something. I don't understand half of how it works."
"Perfect, actually. My car's a one-of-a-kind hybrid, so I've done more with experimental engines than conventional parts. May I?"
"Certainly," Trigon said. He gestured to Wilson, who pressed the button to open the limousine's hood.
Victor looked over the car's hardware. It wasn't nearly as bad as he was expecting. The connections between the added power source and the engine itself had worked themselves loose. The smoke had resulted when the resulting friction caught some insulation material on fire, from what he could see. "I can fix this in fifteen or twenty minutes, but I'd rather not leave my friend. My car isn't completely reinforced yet, and California drivers…"
"If he doesn't mind, he may join my daughter and her friend in the back," Trigon said. "I assure you, this limousine is fully reinforced." He held out his hand. "Trigon."
Victor willed himself to not react as he shook the industrial giant's hand. "Victor Stone. The hand's prosthetic, Mark 2. I designed it from my father's original." The hand and most of his body was a replacement, but the replaced hand people felt during a handshake was intriguing. Knowing that replacements extended to his entire body made most wary.
Trigon didn't stare at it, to his credit. He only smiled. "Best dexterity I've seen in prosthetics, and I just shook your hand. Mind if I watch you at work?"
"That's no problem at all. I'll just tell my friend what's going on. My friend's—"
"Garfield Logan?" Trigon guessed.
Victor grinned. "He's famous."
Trigon watched the man go. Victor quickly told his friend what was happening. Garfield Logan didn't seem very surprised, but he did seem relieved to climb out through the driver's side door. Neither Victor nor Garfield looked back at the car, or mentioned a third passenger that might need a safe haven or some kind of assistance. He glanced at the back of the limo. Raven would have picked up his curiosity by now, and she could read Garfield's emotions for any traces of guilt or malice.
Victor certainly didn't mention a female passenger, unconscious or otherwise. He simply walked back to the engine and began to work. Victor didn't narrate what he was doing, which Trigon appreciated. The work was too complex to explain to a layperson.
Victor's attention was fully taken with the engine, and the limousine's hood blocked any view from the passengers. As such, Trigon focused until he could see through the hologram. From Victor's casual comment, he was capable of redesigning his own hand. Trigon could see that most of the man's body had been recrafted using metal and clever electronics. Victor's metal fingers were more than capable of delicate work, and Trigon spent fifteen minutes observing the cybernetic repairman and forming an idea.
Saturday June 13, 12:35 P.M.
Garfield Logan was nervous. He had met foreign dignitaries, scientific geniuses, and (once) the president. Victor, however, had made him completely anxious in one brief exchange.
"We just crashed into Trigon's car," Victor had explained quickly. "You do get to hang out in the back of the limo like Jinx said, but you'll be with Trigon's daughter and her friend. There's a passenger in the front seat of the limo that looked like bad business. One eye, mean disposition."
Gar had gulped, Victor had promised that it'd be fine, and then Garfield had clambered out of the car through the driver's side door. The walk to the limo had been entirely too short, and he again had the chance to climb through a car. There was a way to the back compartment of the limousine between the driver and passenger's seats, and no way to get into the limo normally. The traffic zooming past would take the limo's door straight off the hinges, so he made his way past the guy in the passenger's seat. He was thankful for Victor's warning. He didn't stare when one angry eye glared at him, he just kept moving into the back.
"Hi," Garfield said, when he found two girls his age staring right at him. "I'm Garfield Logan, from the silver car? Your… Um, Trigon said I could stay in here while my friend works his magic on the limo's engine. Victor's a mechanic."
"Is there any other person in your car?" the orange-skinned girl asked directly, before her friend elbowed her.
Hesitating a moment was odd, but it allowed him to answer "No" honestly. Jinx wasn't in the car any more, and had ducked out of sight as soon as she looked at the limousine. Wait. What had Jinx seen in these passengers?
He looked at the two girls. The one who hadn't spoken had purple hair and purple eyes, and some kind of red gem-thing in the center of her forehead. The other girl was orange with solid green eyes, and Garfield's memory clicked. There couldn't be that many orange girls in Jump City.
"You were at the airport last night!" Garfield said before thinking. "The VIP lounge. Victor didn't believe that I'd seen someone else who liked to think outside the box for skin tones." He decided not to mention that the girl had been floating.
The orange girl grinned, which made her look sixteen times friendlier. "Yes, we were. My name is Koriand'r, but I am usually called Kore."
"Corey," Garfield repeated. "I'm Garfield Logan."
The purple-haired girl seemed to be watching something to his right, instead of following the conversation. "Raven," she said. She didn't make eye contact when she offered her name.
Kore didn't seem surprised by her friend's reaction. "Does your friend work as a mechanic?"
"Nope. He works at STAR Labs, in my parents' lab. Cars are more of a hobby for him, but he's good. He built the car he drives, and the engine is entirely his design. If he'd actually let someone file patents for half the stuff he makes, he'd be set for life. As it is, he promises he'll send off a patent application when he's ready to make any part of the invention public." Garfield knew that he chattered when he was nervous, but he couldn't help it. The one girl wouldn't even look at him, and Kore was a very good listener.
"Does he know that patent law protects his inventions? Even if someone used his ideas to form a new technology, he would have to be credited," Kore said.
"If he could prove that the invention in question used or relied on his technology," Gar agreed. "Vic's too much of a perfectionist, I think. He doesn't want to put an invention out there until it's done."
"Does he work alone?"
"Usually, yeah. The only exceptions are when I'm really bored or he has a really tricky project. Then, I don't help so much as hand him the tools he need and hold things still." Gar glanced to his left. Raven still didn't seem interested in the conversation, but was concentrating on something else entirely.
Kore smiled at him, as if she knew what Garfield had been thinking. "Do you both live in Jump City?"
"Yes. Victor's lived here all his life, my parents and I moved here when I was nine. I met Victor at one of the STAR Labs' Family Day picnics."
"You know many of the entertaining diversions of the city, yes? What would you recommend, should friend Raven and myself have free time this afternoon?"
Garfield thought for a moment. "This afternoon… it's nice outside, so a lot of people will probably head to the Jump City Zoo. It's technically in the next town over, but it's funded by the Jump City mayor's office. Not my favorite place, but it's popular. The park in the middle of Jump City's great for taking walks or relaxing, really bad if you're at all concerned with security. The mall's one of the best in this part of California, the art museum is tiny but good, and the downtown area has a lot of stores on a main drag."
Kore had discreetly nudged Raven as she asked the question. The two exchanged a significant look, which seemed to be part of a silent conversation. Raven nodded minimally, Kore smiled, and Raven turned to face their visitor.
"You would not recommend the zoo?" Raven asked.
Garfield hadn't thought she was listening. "That's more a personal preference than anything else," he explained. "I don't like seeing all those animals in cages. They're called 'enclosures' now, and they have grass and look kind of like a real habitat, but it's still a cage."
Kore murmured that she would check on Victor's progress and exited through the driver's door. Raven was much better with people than she believed, and would be fine. Kore and Trigon had not yet found reason to doubt Raven's empathy, and Raven detected no suspicious emotions in Garfield or his friend. Kore moved to stand beside Trigon at the front of the car, and took an at-ready stance in case anything did go wrong.
Saturday June 13, 12:40 P.M.
"The animals are treated well, aren't they?" Raven's expression was purely curious. "I do not think I've been to a zoo before. If I have visited one, I was too young to form memories of it."
"Well, yeah, but they can't really move like they should. The zoos come up with special diets, but for a lot of the big animals especially they need to do more. Some zoos have figured out that animals do better if they have something to do. There was a famous case with a depressed polar bear—Gus. He just swam circles around the enclosure's pool, every day, until they started hiding his food all over the place. Animals need to think, too. Half of a zookeeper's job with elephants is finding a new way to keep them busy."
Raven watched, surprised. Garfield had seemed very hesitant, but when he was speaking about animals he was certain. "I've never heard that," Raven said. "Does the Jump City zoo do any of that?"
"I'm not sure, but I know they have a lot of my favorite big animals. Lions, tigers, bears…"
"Oh my?"
Garfield grinned. "Elephants, too. I'm not sure if they've added any new exhibits."
"The zoo's out, then," Raven said. "We were on our way to the mall, and probably will still go there for the day. Kore was making a peace offering by asking about other things to do in town. She'd like to stay at the mall all day, but then she'd decide that it's more fun if she finds things for me to try on."
"This would be bad?"
"Kore has an inordinate fondness for pink. It is not my color. Should I mention this fact, she finds things that are even worse. Last time, it was a pale yellow dress with ruffles. I tried it only to prove a point."
"What point was that?" Garfield asked.
"Yellow also isn't my color. After she saw me in that, she agreed to have it stricken from future clothing purchases." Raven still cringed at the memory of the dress, but that dress alone had saved her from dressing up as Belle for Halloween. "Not a lot goes with grey-toned skin and purple. How bad is it to find clothing that doesn't clash with the green?"
"Pretty bad," Gar admitted. "Purple's surprisingly okay, but other than that I wear a lot of blue jeans, brown, black, grey, and white. Dark blue's alright, dark red works. If I wear straight red, I look like a Christmas tree."
"No dark green?"
Garfield grinned. "I feel like it'd be overkill, you know? Three quarters of Jump City already knows who I am because of the green skin. If I started wearing green on top of that, the only upside would be that I could hide in the trees and no one would ever find me."
"Some days, that sounds like it'd be a great idea," Raven said. "My father and Kore are a bit protective. He gets a lot of attention from the press, and some people get ideas. My father couldn't hide his emotions if he tried. He cares about me, and some have tried to use that to their advantage."
"My parents don't get the same following. Nobel winners are really exciting for a bit, but then they'll go two years without a new major breakthrough and people get bored. Everyone knows who I am, anyway. I'm Jump City's unofficial mascot."
"Your parents are very well known for giving most of their wealth to charity," Raven said. "You wouldn't be a promising target for kidnapping or threatened assassination. The rest of the money's probably in very secure investments that take time to access."
"Compared to Trigon's money?"
"He's in charge of the company, and has a lot more access to liquid assets. The way Trigon Industries is set up, he technically could withdraw a lump sum out of the coffers. Even if he changed it, I still would be at risk. He minimizes that by keeping me with him and right next to Kore."
Garfield still didn't mention that Kore could float. If she was trusted to protect Trigon's only daughter, with no security backup in sight, she could do more than just float. "I've never really thought about that. My parents were much more careful when I was a kid, but that was mostly to keep me from becoming a scientific curiosity. They saved me from an incurable disease, and the side effect of the cure was green. They refused to come back into the States until they had documentation that I would not be subjected to quarantine or mandatory monitoring."
"Where were you, outside of the States?" Raven asked.
"Upper Lamumba, Africa. My parents were there to research the origins of the HIV virus by studying the primate version, Simian immunodeficiency virus." Garfield changed the topic toward something lighter. "The most recent trip I took out of the country was to London, for work. Victor and I didn't do anything touristy, though. We were hearing about all the latest research the whole time. Not my favorite trip, but I learned a lot."
"I've been to London, but I've only been to Cairo in Africa," Raven said, leaning forward. "Where else have you been?"
Saturday June 13, 12:39 P.M.
It only took one member of the restaurant's waitstaff who felt entitled to a little extra income. It wouldn't do to pass up the chance to earn $5,000 for one incident of snooping and one phone call, and that was precisely what happened during Scheherazade's lunch hours. One employee who had accepted a bribe made a point to look at the reservations list, presumably on the phone with a customer who had forgotten the time.
"Yes, I have it." If the member of the staff didn't sound thrilled to be making that call, it was a minimal redemption. Nothing good could come from people who threw around thousands of dollars for the answer to a simple question. "Mr. Trigon, party of five, dining at six o'clock at the pride-of-place table. Yes, that is the table near the back corner, the booth with the red-patterned upholstery."
The second half of your payment will be in your account by two o'clock, a computer-synthesized voice replied. We are certain, of course, that your information will be accurate.
"It's tentatively a party of five," the waitstaff employee added hesitantly. "One of Mr. Trigon's group may not attend, his personal assistant."
Was this information not important before? Any detail may be significant, the voice said. Sharpness carried even through the computer translation.
"It's a business dinner, the first meeting between important representatives for Trigon Industries and some east coast company."
Hm. Should you remember any other details, or should the reservations change, you know this phone number. It will be valid until six o'clock tonight.
The shaking member of the waitstaff looked at the sleek phone that had been part of the initial deal. Find out one piece of information, be paid handsomely, make all calls from an untraceable phone… it had seemed like a good idea.
"I'm supposed to get off of work in twenty minutes."
I suggest you make an alternate arrangement. You agreed to our little deal, and we expect you to fulfill your end of the bargain. You will contact us should any detail change.
The voice on the other line finished talking exactly as the phone call was ended, and the shivering employee was left with only regret for the "easy, lucrative deal." Something was going to happen, and it was not going to go well for Trigon's party of five.
