Assignment 13.2: Split Resources
Monday, September 1st, 2087
Gadget Household, Metro City Suburbs
"Well, this stinks," Eli commented as he leaned back against the couch. It was now the evening, having received no reprieve from the onslaught of people who absolutely had to get a look at the newly revealed heroes, he and the others were absolutely exhausted. They had pulled back to the Gadget Household, as this was on of the few places where they would receive any relief.
"You're telling us," Bridgette replied. "You know, when I was little, I used to think it'd be cool to be famous. I never imagined it would involve people seeking you out at all hours and never getting a moment of rest."
"Come on, guys," Penny stated, "it'll get better. Sure, we're in the eye of a certain group of people, but it can't be everyone. Here, maybe some TV will help."
She picked up the remote and flicked the television on. However, to their dismay, station after station seemed to be focused on one thing: them. It appeared that some people had spread the article on social media, and what had once been a sensational article for one city had spread across the nation. The only channels that did not have a primary focus on the suddenly arisen teen sensation were the cartoon channels and the oldies channel. "Okay, maybe it is pretty much everyone," Penny sighed as she settled on one of the cartoon channels.
"I don't understand how this could have happened," Rheeci stated sadly. "People should respect privacy better than this."
"Oh, sweetie," Kayla said, patting Rheeci's back. "You're not very familiar with social media, are you?"
"Well, what are we going to do?" Linc asked. He raised his arms as he asked the question. "I mean, we can't just stay in here forever and wait until they leave. We have lives of our own, for Pete's sake!"
"And we will get back to them," Penny stated. "We'll just wait until things blow over. They'll go back to normal, you'll see."
"I hope you're right," Will said with a sigh.
"I am," Penny replied, giving his shoulder a comforting pat. "You'll see."
There then came a knock at the door. "That's must be the pizza," Penny said, and she hurried over to answer the door.
Standing outside was a young man who appeared to be in his 20's. "One extra large-hey! You're Penny Gadget!"
Inwardly, she gave a groan, but Penny smothered the urge to show it outwardly. "Yes, I am. How much do I owe?"
"Oh, I'll cover you," the delivery man said. "My mom and little brother were in the park when you guys saved it; it's the least I can do."
Penny tried to argue against it, but the delivery man wouldn't hear of it. In the end, she just gave up and retreated into the house with the food.
"Well, at least there are some benefits," Linc stated as he took a slice.
"Presuming no one accuses us of taking bribes," Kayla responded.
As if sensing that food had come into the house, Brain trotted into the room at that moment. "Remember, Brain: no pizza," Penny called out in a scolding tone when she heard the dog come. "You're on a strict diet now that you're a K9."
The dog glanced back, gave a snort, and grabbed a piece before running off. It was clear that he, and only he, would decide what was going to be in his diet.
"Was that the pizza man?" Gadget asked, coming down the stairs just as the dog rushed back up.
"Yep, we've got it right here," Penny answered.
Gadget grinned. "Great. I'm starving." He then stretched out his arm to grab a slice.
Before he could finish, there came a knock at the door. "Oh, I'll get it," Gadget said, though he kept the one arm busy at its food gathering task.
Outside, much to their surprise, stood General Sir, along with two other agents. "General!" Gadget exclaimed, and an arm popped out of his hat to give a salute. "To what do we owe the honor?"
"I'm afraid this isn't good news, Gadget," the general replied. "Is Penelope home?"
"I'm right here," Penny said, and she wheeled up alongside her uncle.
"We all are," Kayla added.
The general looked grave, but gave a nod. "Good. This involves you all."
"What do you mean?" Will asked.
Sir gave a nod before continuing. "Kayla Connors, William Cortes, Penelope Dollar, Bridgette Gellanchan, Therese Tran, Elijah Washington, Lincoln Washington, you are all being placed into protective W.O.M.P. custody."
"What!" came the unanimous cry.
Gadget then stepped in front of the children. "With all due respect, sir, what do you mean, 'protective W.O.M.P. custody?'" he asked, and his tone was uncharacteristically low. "They haven't done anything wrong."
"No, perhaps not," the general replied. "But after the debacle that happened with the Teen Scene article, it was decided by the council that they would be brought in for their own safety."
"Why was I not brought in on this decision?" Gadget asked, and he still refused to move from where he was.
"Gadget, I'm sorry." General Sir did seem genuine on the apology. "This was a highest of the high level decision; even I wasn't asked on my opinion. I was just sent in because they supposed I would be the best to hear it from."
"I'm not going to let you take her," Gadget said, and Brain moved alongside him, bearing his teeth in a sign that he was in agreement.
Penny, however, intervened. "It's alright, Uncle Gadget," she said, placing a hand on his arm.
She then turned to General Sir. "Where are we going to?"
"There's a facility about an hour out of here," Sir replied. "It's under heavy lock down, but other than the restriction of mobility, there won't be any other ties to incarceration."
"Alright, then," she said, and her voice was level. "I'll go."
There seemed to be a level of shock in the room once she had said these words. "Penny, what are you thinking?!" Kayla asked.
"You can't go!" Gadget argued.
Penny raised her hand. "This is somewhat my fault. I shouldn't have started this all those years ago. I am willing to pay the consequences for my actions, and I don't want there to be a fuss or trouble because of me. As such, I will go."
There was a brief pause before someone else spoke. "I'll go, too," Will said. He gave a small smile. "Maybe if I cooperate as much as possible, it will finally convince people I have no ties to M.A.D."
"I suppose, if it will lessen the trouble," Rheeci stated.
"If it will make things easier to resolve," Eli said after a moment.
"I guess there's really no other option," Bridgette said with a sigh.
"If that's where everyone else is headed," Linc chimed in with a small laugh.
Kayla crossed her arms. "I suppose, but I'm not happy about it."
Hearing their response, the General got a rather relieved look on his face. "I appreciate your maturity about this, kids," he said.
He then turned to Gadget. "I really am sorry about this, Gadget. I assure you, we'll have this worked out as fast as we can, and they will be released as soon as possible."
Gadget looked for a moment like he was still going to fight, but his resolve crumbled, especially when he turned and looked Penny in the face. "Alright," he said eventually, "but I want to stay in contact for everything. Nothing related to this will be hidden from me."
"Agreed," the general replied with a nod.
"And one more thing," Gadget added. "Take Brain with you. It would give me peace of mind to know someone's there protecting her." Brain gave a wuff of agreement and stood alongside Penny, as if to emphasize the statement.
"There will be no problem with that," Sir said. He then motioned for the teens to go along with him.
They did so, without saying a word. It was clear no one liked what was happening, but right now, they had no idea how to fix it. They just had to cooperate and hope everything would be fixed in time.
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Teen Scene HQ, Downtown Metro City
There was no question that the day had been an unmitigated success for Jessie Harbain. The magazine had sold like hotcakes from the moment it hit the shelves. There had even been some national attention, and more than one agency had offered to interview the writer who had made such a substantial story.
Images of future Pulitzers were playing out in the writer's mind when there came a ping on her computer. She looked up at the message, expecting it to be more accolades for her highly successful story. Instead, it was a chat request from zillafan875.
Recognizing the handle in an instant, she answered immediately. It was only a chat, not a video chat, so an image of a bird of prey swooping down from the sky with its talons outstretched filled the screen. "Well, look who it is," Harbain said when she was certain the speakers were on. "My favorite anonymous tip!"
"I got to see the results of that tip today," zillafan875 responded. The voice was the husky and clearly computerized, as if the speaker were hiding his identity. "Well done. I knew telling you was the right thing."
"You can bet your life on it!" Harbain exclaimed. "This story's so big, it's bound to take me place."
"So," she then said, "to what do I owe the honor of this call? You don't have another tip for me, do you?"
The speaker on the other end laughed. "A woman who likes to get straight to the point I see. Well, good, I was hoping to do so myself."
"To answer your question," he continued, "yes and no. I don't have anymore current information for a new article, but I do have a tip, and one that relates to Penny and her friends."
"What's you're price?" Jessie asked as she hurried to set up her tablet to take the information.
"Nothing this time," zillafan875 replied. "I'll give you this tip for free: keep a watch on the schools that Miss Dollar and her friend attend. In fact, keep a close watch on all the areas you wrote about. Something big is going to happen there, and very soon."
Jessie was quick to write the words down. "Alright, I'll be sure to follow your advice," she said. "Are you sure you don't want any reward for this? It seems rather odd that you'd want payment last time and nothing this time."
"Jessie, please," the voice on the other end said. "You wound me. Can't a guy just want to help out now and again?"
It still seemed off to Harbain, but she decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth. "Alright then. Is there anything else?"
"No, just that tip," zillafan875 replied. "And don't you worry. I promise you, what is coming will be even more explosive than the last one."
After that statement, the anonymous informant hung up without another word. Harbain couldn't help but wonder what he had meant by "explosive," but she had decided not to dwell on it. After all, there was no doubt it would make for another great story.
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Tuesday, September 2nd, 2087
Jen & Michael's Place, Crystal Waters Mall, Metro City
"How are you holding up, Gadget Boy?" Heather asked. She was currently sitting across from Gadget in the small coffee shop he liked to frequent, waiting for their orders to come up. It was plain to see that he wasn't in a good mood, but she supposed she might be able to work things through with him.
He leaned against the table with his head nested in his arms. "I'm just worried about the kids, I guess," he said. He took a breath and gave a sigh. "This should never have happened."
"We're in agreement there," she replied, reaching over to pat him on the shoulder, "but there's not a lot we can do now, especially if we try to go against the council."
"How could they make a unilateral decision like that?" Gadget asked, giving a huff. "These are kids! Good kids, too. The whole reason they are in trouble now is because they saved lives! How is it fair that they're locked up because they helped to save lives when adults weren't in the position to do so?"
"It's not," Heather stated. She gave a small frown. "I've just come to grips with the fact that the world is not fair and never will be."
There was a moment of silence, and he looked away from her, leaning his head further into his arms. After an uncomfortable moment, she cleared her throat as she thought about something else to say.
"So," she asked after a moment of thought, "how did the other families take it?"
"Same way I did," Gadget replied. He got up off the table and tried to straighten out, but his shoulders remained somewhat slumped. "There were calls. Questioning, reasoning, shouting. Even a bit of swearing, but it didn't do any good. Turns out, it's in the W.O.M.P. guides that should anyone who is not supposed to be know get revealed like that, holding them for up to six months is perfectly legal."
"Six months?!" Heather exclaimed. She hadn't been expecting anything like that. "But these are kids!"
"They don't care," Gadget replied, and he seemed to slump a little slower.
It was at this time that Fidget and Digit approached the table, carrying over the orders. "Alright, we've got one caramel mocha frappe for the lady," Fidget said, handing over the coffee drink to Heather, "and a coffee roll and milk for you, Inspector."
"Thank you for your help, Officers," Gadget said as he took the bag from Digit, and he still had a rather depressed tone to his voice.
"Still no word on Miss Penny, huh?" Digit asked as he pulled up a seat.
Gadget tried to force a smile before responding. "It's only been a night. I'm just being impatient; don't mind me."
"Oh, I'm with you, Inspector," Digit replied, pulling out one of the chairs so he could join in. "If it weren't for all the red tape surrounding this case, we'd be in there in a volt-wave."
"I'm sorry we weren't there last night to help," Fidget added.
Gadget gave a sad smile. "Oh, it wasn't your fault. It's just out of our hands right now. I feel so useless." He tugged his hat down over his eyes. "I suppose that's my default setting, though. Useless."
When she heard that comment, Heather straightened out. "Fidget, Digit, would you mind picking something up an order for me at Books and Beyond?" She then made a gesture with her hand that made it clear she wanted a few minutes alone with Gadget.
"Books and Beyond?" Digit asked, completely missing out on the subtext. "That's on the other side of the mall. It'll take us forever to get through there."
Fidget, thankfully, caught on to what his brother had missed. "Oh, of course, Agent Connelly. We'll go right now." He then leapt up and took his twin by the arm as he left. "Call us when your ready."
"But we don't even know what her order is!" Digit protested.
Fidget gave a sigh but continued to drag his brother out. "I'll explain on the way."
Once they were alone, Heather cleared her throat. "Gadget, you pretty much said that same comment once before, and I didn't know how to handle it then. Well, I'm ready now, and I will say my piece."
Gadget peered at her, as he was a little confused as to what she meant. "What do you mean?"
"That whole diatribe about you being stupid and useless!" she exclaimed. "You told me about that when we were in Seattle, and it caught me off guard back then. Gadget, I will tell you this: don't take what most people say to heart."
Realization came to Gadget's face and he gave a weak laugh. "Oh, that. Heather, like I said before, you don't need to mince words. I know it's true."
"And I like I said before, I will say my piece," Heather replied, and the firmness of her tone startled him a bit. "Gadget, I know there's a kernel of truth to what is said. You're not as bright as Penny is. And maybe you are clumsy and sometimes break things, but that doesn't change anything about you. You are still one of the best officers W.O.M.P. has, with a higher record of success against M.A.D. than anyone else. If that's due to unrecognized skill, then great! If it's due to dumb luck, then who cares, it's still success. Either way, lives are saved, and crime is stopped, which is what is important, anyway."
"As for your work with Penny," she continued, "I'll admit, I've only known the both of you for a few months, but from what I've seen, no one else could have done it better. Penny's developed into the type of teen a lot of parents would die to have. She's not only bright, but polite, mature, and respectful; these are all traits she picked up from you. No one can say what she would have been like had you given her up for adoption, but I doubt it could have been better than how she turned out now."
"So, in the long and short of it," Heather finished up, "cut yourself some slack. Sure, people are going to talk, but they've always done that, and it's often nothing but nonsense. You've done a great job, both as a detective and as an uncle. Don't pay the naysayers any more attention than they deserve."
Gadget stayed silent for a moment, then gave a short chuckle. "Thanks, Heather," he said, relaxing a bit and opening up his milk. "I guess I needed to hear that."
"Any time, Gadget Boy," Heather replied. She leaned back to take a drink from her coffee, but when she saw the TV screen, her expression changed. "Gadget, you have to see this."
"What?" Gadget asked. He glanced over his shoulder, but what he saw startled him so much that his head shot off his shoulders, and his neck elongated to allow him a clearer picture of the screen. The television had been tuned to a news station where a reporter was standing outside Riverside Prep alongside the police. Others had taken notice of the report as well, and when Gadget had responded, one of the baristas started to turn up the volume.
"…was the scene today when numerous teen agents belonging to the terrorist organization M.A.D. invaded the school. They insisted the handing over of local teen heroine Penny "Gadget" Dollar, but found that she was not in attendance. The band has currently taken the school and its inhabitants hostage in exchange for Miss Dollar and her companions. I am Mia Farrel reporting live from Riverside Preparatory High School. Back to you Steve."
"I'm afraid the bad news doesn't stop there," the main anchor stated. "It appears we have another M.A.D. related hostage crisis at the P.S. 246 Metro City High School, and there was some sort of M.A.D related disturbance at the local Mexican restaurant, El Sueño Imposible, that ended with seven hospitalized. All these locations are connected by their ties to the small group of friends Penelope Dollar had assisting her the day of the Adventure Kingdom hostage crisis."
"Well," Heather said, slinging her purse over her shoulder, "looks like we're on duty."
Gadget grinned and gave a nod. "Always."
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Riverside Preparatory High School, Metro City
An hour ago
As Talon wandered through the halls of Riverside Prep, he had to resist the urge to gag. Everything was just so pure and clean and orderly, as if it were some sort of upstanding place of learning. Not that he was against learning, quite the contrary; he just preferred to be in control of his own education. To Talon, however, school had been one the greatest sources of creativity stifling he'd ever experienced.
Still, it was convenient for him that Penny went to a place like this. It made it easier for him to track her down, and easier for him to take control. After all, where better to get a whole building schools worth of hostages in a place where almost everyone was already held hostage.
He had come in this morning, along with Syreen and about twenty hand-chosen teen agents. They had smuggled in their weapons disguised as innocuous devices such as phones, tablets, and toys, and all were wearing the uniform of the school. Each and every agent was on the line, waiting for a direct order from Talon to take the place over.
As for him, Talon was waiting until he had Penny Gadget in his sights. He didn't want to start up the chaos until he was certain she was in his grasps. There was no need for her to sneak off and arrange some sort of rebellion. No, this would be between his group and hers, one on one, and he didn't want it turning into some covert operation like the Adventure Kingdom debacle. If this was to work, everyone was going to need to see it.
Which is why he was growing more and more annoyed when he didn't see her around anywhere. "Come on, Pretty Penny," he whispered in an angry tone. "Where are you?"
He was seated in the classroom where Penny should have been, keeping an eye out for when she'd come and take her seat. Talon had somewhat expected her to be there by the time he arrived, which is why he was surprised that the handicapped section at the front of the class was completely empty.
His mood didn't improve as time went on, either. One by one, the other teens entered the classroom, but Penny was not one of them. When class time came, the teacher, a balding man in his late fifties, entered in and sounded off the roll call. Talon waited with interest as the teacher came to the D's, certain that he'd find Penny when it came to her turn.
Dollar, however, was skipped over entirely. In frustration, Talon raised his hand to get the teacher's attention. "Sir, I think you missed Penny Dollar."
The man looked up, a little surprised by the interruption, but not enough to be concerned. "No, we have just received word that Miss Dollar will not be attending class for the time being," he replied. "Now, D'Quenso?"
That was just enough for Talon. It was time to change the plan. "Alright," he whispered into the communicator on his lapel, "change of plans. We're starting now. Follow my lead."
He then stood up. "Alright, everyone, listen here," he called out.
"Young man, you are being disruptive," the teacher replied. "Please sit down this instant, or I'll be forced to send you to the principal's office."
When he heard the threat, Talon laughed. "That's cute. Now, as I was saying-"
"I mean it, young man," the teacher said again, "you need to sit and pay attention. You don't want me to call your parents, do you?"
In response to the question, Talon laughed. "You don't know who I am, do you?" He motioned out to the class. "I'm pretty sure they do."
By this point, the class had gone silent. Despite their teacher's lack of recognition, a few of the students recognized who it was that had invaded their classroom. They had fallen silent, hoping their teacher would catch on before things got ugly.
The teacher, however, didn't catch the threat. "Look, mister, I don't care how much 'street cred' you have, when you're in my classroom, you-"
"Hijo de una hiena, you talk too much," Talon said with a sigh. Pulling out what looked like a cellphone, he touched a hidden panel. Two electrical darts came out of it, striking in the teacher in the chest and delivering a hard enough volt to knock him unconscious.
In an instant, there was chaos. The students farther away from Talon got up and attempted to make it out of the room. They were stopped in their tracks when they made it to the door and found it blocked off by two armed M.A.D. agents.
"Alright, everyone, back to your seats," Talon called out. There was a muddled murmuring among the crowd over if they should listen. He let out a sharp whistle in response. "I said get back now!" This time, no one questioned what should be done.
"There, now was that so hard?" Talon asked. As he spoke, eight M.A.D. agents came in and began to wander around the isles. "Now, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted…" He here paused to give the teacher's unconscious form a kick, "this is what you might call a takeover. I want everyone to turn in all computers and cellphones to me, right now. If I or one of my companions finds out you hid something from us, well…let's just say you wouldn't have long to regret it."
There was a moment of pause, and one by one, each of the students handed in their tech to the circulating agents. No one wanted to be the one to find out what happened if you refused.
Seeing the success he had achieved, Talon gave a grin. "Good," he stated, "now everyone stay here and stay very quiet. Listen to the babysitters here, and everyone will get to go home like normal." He made a motion to the agents, who raised their weapons in warning. There was no question of how dissension would be handled.
Having said his piece, Talon stepped out into the hallway, where he met Syreen. "Well?" he asked as he started to undo the uniform tie.
"Everything is under our control," she replied. "We've got classrooms, with both the faculty and students, under lockdown."
"And security?" he asked.
"One or two of them were shot to make a point," she answered. She then gave a smirk before tossing her hair over one shoulder. "After that, no one felt like being a hero."
"Excellent," he said with a grin. "Howe are things at the other school?"
"The do-gooders were absent there, too," Syreen stated with a shrug. "Looked like W.O.M.P. has them stashed away."
"That is a setback, but not a permanent one," Talon said with a shrug. "We'll just send out the plan B message and everything will be up to W.O.M.P. They'll send us Penny and her band, and everything will go according to plan."
"And if they refuse?" Syreen asked.
Talon gave a cruel grin. "Then we find out who here will want to join us, who can work for us with some 'persuasion,' and blow the rest to kingdom come." Talon let out a dark laugh. "It will be all up to Pretty Penny."
To be continued…
