.
-`.'-
Divergence
-`.'-
The beginning of the meeting with Reza played out as expected. The two exchanged some small talk with the occasional jive about Reza's demeanor being comparable to Maverick's overall hostile attitude. It turned a little sour as it usually did when Maverick inferred about the humans' status, but Marcus of course saw it coming as he stuttered along
Which is why it came to such a surprise when Reza changed the script suddenly. "Yeah, I suppose you're right," he began with a shrug. "If one of you were in our world, we would no doubt treat you with similar reverence."
Maverick leered at him suspiciously with those words. Marcus did as well, he was positively confused at this sudden tone shift from Reza. Apparently Sebastian clued in something was amiss for he had stepped between Reza and Maverick before anything else happened.
"Alright, alright, don't get your wings tangled Mavers," he said shaking a head at him. "Let's all head inside peacefully, yeah?"
Maverick huffed, clearly miffed at Sebastian's quick defense. He nodded to him with a fierce frown before letting out a heavy sigh.
The group collectively went to a pair of double doors with Sebastian in the lead. With a claw, he pulled open one of them and motioned the other three. They all entered into a relatively empty entryway that quickly turned into a long hallway with a high ceiling. The morning sun shone through the windows on the left making the long stretch of empty space especially lonely.
One turn later to a similar hall, they were greeted with someone waiting. Standing by one of the many doors stood a red dragoness that appeared very much like Sebastian with a pair of goggles dangled over her long neck. Unlike him though, besides the double dark stripes on his wrist, neck, and tail, she sprouted multiple blue ones on her back, arms, and legs.
She was already staring at the group with a small smile on her maw. Her grey eyes darted to each person with apparent interest. The frills on the sides of her head rose slightly at their approach.
"There you are," she said warmly, "I was waiting for you."
Sebastian appeared dumbfounded. "Wait a minute," he pointed a claw at her. "I thought we were going to meet the guys from production. What are you doing here?"
The dragoness' smile turned into a smirk. Marcus felt like he knew exactly what this dragoness' intentions were already.
"They're only coming in later today, so you'll just have to make do with me." The way she said that with a slight tease confirmed to Marcus that she had an ulterior motive. He was trying to remember why he knew this.
"I see," Sebastian said with his arms crossed. "Well, Marcus," he turned his head to him, "this is Anna."
And just like that, his mind exploded with waves of events and scenarios with this specific dragoness. He recalled the blood, the trivia game, the wild date, multiple instances of her covered in a bloody sheet, the cancer, her deathbed. He tried his best not to grunt as he forced himself to keep a straight face.
Sebastian continued. "She kinda manages this building, though actually she's more involved with the research wing rather than... uh... Marcus?"
Apparently he failed to do so. "Yeah?" he asked, putting a hand on his temple to play along.
"Your... snout is uh..." he hesitantly said with a murmur.
He then realized Anna had her brow raised with an amused smirk. He quickly took his arms and wiped whatever was on his nose. He saw a small streak of blood... what in the...?
"My, seems like someone is excited," she said, her voice teeming with sardonic inflexion.
Marcus shook his head and looked at the others. Reza gave him a disappointed frown while Maverick gave him a nasty glare. "No, not at all," he flustered back to her. "Apologies, my head's been giving me problems this morning and-"
She raised a claw up, palm outward. "Whatever the case is, what's important right now is I have something for you."
She turned around and opened the door. She motioned them to stay before she disappeared for only a moment. She came back out holding a small cardboard box.
"It'll take them a while to make all the generators we promised, but we've got one for you here." She placed the box on the floor with a heavy thud. "Feel free to send it home and give it a test."
Marcus had half expected Reza to rush in and take the box like an eager child. He didn't; instead he casually walked over to Anna giving her a nod.
"Thanks, we really need all the help these things can give us," he said.
Marcus knew he was supposed to say something here, but he was once again floored by the change. What was going on? He began to wonder if he really did know what was going on. He recalled the conversation at least a dozen times, if not more. Reza had always eagerly taken the box without so much as a thank you.
Was Reza experiencing the same thing he was? That didn't bode well for this cycle.
Anna was quick to get back on track regardless, not without her giving him a weary eye. "Don't underestimate its power," she said sternly. "Oh, and do be careful not to drop it."
Reza carefully lifted the box with a grunt. "Yeah, I'll make sure, thanks again, Anna was it?"
If her brow could go any higher, Marcus couldn't tell. "Yes, now if that is all..."
Reza nodded, turned about and walked off from where they came from with Maverick glancing back at Anna briefly before following suit. Marcus pondered silently the situation before Sebastian raised his voice to the two.
"I'll be waiting outside for when you're finished, sir," he said as he followed after the two.
Marcus didn't take his eyes off the trio, especially Reza. Not until they were out of sight anyways. He hummed to himself, questioning exactly what Reza was planning differently if he was also aware.
His thoughts were interrupted when Anna had disappeared once more through the door before coming out with a medical instrument; a needle and a tube. She offered one end of the device to him with an expectant stare. He complied, knowing he was supposed to give her a sample, if only to play along. When he felt the familiar stinging pain as a little bit of his blood was sucked, his eyes widened realizing the mistake he just made. He gave her a curious look, but she remained silent with an unreadable expression.
"I didn't give my consent," he said breathlessly.
She lowered the instrument down with a small, curious frown. "And I didn't ask, yet I knew you would comply like an idiot." She stood silently for a few seconds, glancing out the window with a thoughtful look. "But you confirmed my suspicion."
He pondered this new revelation. The dragons he met were starting to remember too. He wasn't sure he understood fully what was happening. Either way, it seems this phenomena hasn't just affected him. The implied statements Anna said made that loud and clear. He wondered if Sebastian and Maverick were aware.
He looked out to the morning world.
"So, the PDA's?" he heard Anna ask irritably.
He sighed, undoing his pouch and slipping out the cellular-like device from the pocket. It wasn't like the ones around his or Reza's wrist. These were models he knew that could store the vast amount of data needed to archive all of humanity. There was no beating around the bush with Anna. She knew something was wrong and he knew she wouldn't let him leave unless he said something about the bizarre encounter.
He turned back to her, PDA's in hand. "Listen, you're the smartest person around that I can put my trust in," he said resolutely. While he knew this to be true, he hoped his calculated action wouldn't backfire later. He was confident in Anna to keep this quiet. "This is going to be hard to believe, but you and I have gone through this exact moment multiple times before."
She contemplated momentarily before taking a claw and putting it gently under her chin. "If I were to believe such a ridiculous notion, what's in it for me?" She smirked once more.
"A cure for your cancer," he said as plainly as he could.
This did the trick, her eyes widened considerably before they narrowed down to mere slits "How dare you..." she growled, her frills lowering in the process.
He had her, he knew that she knew. He didn't relish in the fact, he wasn't here to forge hate or love, he was here to change the future. "These PDA's contain all of humanity's accomplishments, including the cure for cancer for humans." His expression grimmed. "If you can't find a way to work the cure in a month's time, then consider this your final chance. I doubt the doctors back in my world would risk our limited resources."
She regarded him slightly. Her face softened as she let out a defeated sigh, looking away from him. "I can't say that brings me any comfort, but this may be the breakthrough I so desperately searched for." She glanced back, extending her arms with a hard stare. "Alright I'm in, what do you want me to do?"
He recalled he had been carrying around a copy of her already completed test results. He fished them out of his pockets, surprised to feel a number of other things stowed away there in the interim. It was slightly crumbled, it would have to do unfortunately. He extended both arms to her. She gave the crumbled piece of paper a slight disgusted look.
"I suppose I could've just shown you the proof," he said with a smile. "That blood sample you have? This is the result from a previous iteration."
With nowhere to put her instrument, she motioned Marcus to wait as she put the device away. She returned and gladly took the PDA's and the test results. Her eyes widened when she examined the contents. "Ninety percent, really?"
He nodded, putting his hands in his pockets to find out what else was stuffed down there. "As for what I need you to do. That other person with me, Reza?" When he mentioned him, her eyes immediately furrowed. "He's planning to steal the generator at the underground facility underneath the portal. Tonight's going to be the night he tries to, but circumstances play out to prevent that from happening. He'll be on the run killing innocent people after that."
Anna didn't move or say a word. He took that as a sign to continue. "Maverick will be on patrol tonight at the portal. Reza and I will also be there, he will invite me via a coded letter. I want you, as soon as Reza shoots Maverick with his gun, to tackle him from one of the bushes surrounding the clearing."
He paused for a moment, hoping desperately he wasn't making a huge mistake. "Do you understand?"
She looked right in his eyes and frowned for a solid minute before she spoke. "That 'gun' is that weapon he carries around, right?" She sighed heavily, closing her eyes with irritation forming on her maw. "I can't make any promises, I have deadlines to keep."
He knew that she would keep her word, it was within her nature to repay.
-`.'-
Marcus arrived back outside to see the trio had indeed waited patiently for him. Maverick was once again giving him a foreboding stare while Sebastian eyed him carefully. Reza looked to be in deep thought holding on to the box.
When he approached, Sebastian opened first. "Anyone hungry?" He motioned down the street Marcus and himself went down. "There's a café not far from here. What do you say, Mavers?"
"I wouldn't mind grabbing a bite," Maverick answered.
Marcus did feel hungry, as he usually did at this point. "Yeah, sounds great," he said.
Reza silently nodded. He turned his head to the street in question still with that thoughtful expression.
Sebastian led the group through the empty streets until eventually they had reached the café in question without any trouble. Marcus took notice as they made their way through the same streets that a few dragons were now out and about. All of them glanced at their general direction with various degrees of wander and amusement. None had dared try to get close though. All were content to watch the group enter the café through the double glass door.
The interior sported a nice comfy atmosphere. The morning light complimented the reds and whites the storefront adorned with its arrangements of booths and tables. Marcus gandered at the spot he took many times before. He didn't even think about it, his legs instantly went to the same chair. He pulled back and relaxed himself on the cool smooth surface of the table.
Reza joined him silently, taking a seat opposite of him and placing the box next to him. Their escorts found a spot for themselves closeby, Maverick being too bulky to make use of the small chairs simply sat on his haunches at an empty side.
"You know what's happening, don't you?" Reza whispered with a harsh glare. "You and that bitch have something to do with this."
Marcus was taken back at the sudden accusation. He quickly recovered with a retort. "What are you talking about?" he said calmly in a low voice.
Reza darted his gaze to the escorts next to them before he leaned in. "Your hesitation proves you know damn well what I'm talking about," he jeered. "Who's that other girl and where is she?"
At this Maverick perked his head up silencing Sebastian with their small talk.
Marcus knew he's listening in on everything, this wasn't good. "I honestly have no idea what you're going on about," he said half honestly. What's he up to?
"Don't play bullshit with me, I'm not in the mood." His eyes were terrifyingly hard.
Marcus blinked, his brain trying to process what was just spoken. "Excuse me?" he slowly asked.
The sudden heated conversation ended when a dragoness approached them. Her yellow scales shone brightly from the lights. Marcus felt a sense of déjà vu, this must be another dragon he had gotten to know. She wasn't like the other dragon's he's seen. She had only two legs with her oversized bat wings acting like arms. Wyverns was the term he immediately came to conclusion with.
"Oh, it's the humans!" she exclaimed excitedly with a twinkle of her ruby eyes. Her frills raised exceptionally, but still remained as professional as one could be.
His mind was still reeling from Reza's outburst to make a quip back that he suddenly wanted to sprout. He went with giving the excited dragoness a forced smile. He noted the aviation goggles mounted on her head as well as the pouch around her neck that dangled to her side.
"My name is Adine and I'll be your waitress for today," she introduced herself.
Of course, with the name, Marcus remembered quite fondly the moments with this dragoness. Her hard working passion, her golden heart with the orphans, her lying on the side of the familiar long hallway with a gunshot wound... His eyes flashed before darting them back to Reza and to where he believed his gun was holstered.
Adine gave him a curious gaze. "What can I get for you two?"
Marcus was starting to feel a little overwhelmed by the memories and the differences that kept happening. Still, he managed to order, with a stutter, scrambled eggs and bacon. Reza, who was much more composed, said he'd like the same dish.
"Alright, two scramble eggs and bacon coming right up," she said with a wide smile.
She then turned her attention to the two escorts. Sebastian was prompt with his simple order of coffee, but it was clear Maverick was no longer in the mood. His narrow blood red eyes were locked on to Marcus and Reza with disgust.
"Look," Reza began softly, dragging back Marcus' attention, "You must realize this isn't the first time we're talking, right?"
This was definitely not how Marcus intended this cycle to play out. Already huge divergences were happening and Reza was definitely aware of something going on. His eyes were quivering maniacally, like he could go off at any point. Marcus once again looked toward where he thought could be Reza's shaky hands around his holster.
"Answer me, how many times have these bastards killed me? Hundreds? Thousands? And you watched it happen each time..." His one hand on the table clenched tightly. "You know what's at stake here, and yet you would betray humanity for your putrid friends? Don't you realize they're just bioweapons created for the sole purpose of war?"
Marcus didn't know what to say. The fact that Reza himself also knew the truth was something he definitely didn't expect. He had to say something though, Maverick was practically hovering over them at this point with Reza not caring in the slightest.
"You're wrong," Marcus said. "These are intelligent creatures like you and I. Even you should be able to see that."
"And again you give me this garbage. I'm done playing games, Marcus." He expected Reza to pull out his revolver. Instead, he got up with a harsh screech from his chair and glared at Maverick with his own set of detestable eyes. "Take me back to my apartment this instant," he demanded, taking the box swiftly.
He stormed past the escorts without much of a fuss. Maverick eyed him strangely before nodding to Sebastian and following along after. Sebastian appeared to be at a loss of words if his open maw was any indication. He glanced over to Marcus perplexed.
Marcus shook his head with a frown. He sighed and leaned with an elbow to the table. That was certainly a bomb he didn't want to handle right away. So much for subtle approaches.
Sebastian made his way over, taking the seat that had been Reza's. He gave Marcus a hard stare, opening his maw up again to speak, but appeared to have trouble forming words. Marcus suspected he must've been also aware. What's happening, why is this timeline being so weird? My past attempts weren't like this. He didn't know what to think, he thought he had a solid grasp on the situation.
A minute or so had passed with no one speaking. Adine came back balancing two plates on her wing claws. She looked around in confusion before approaching the two, placing one plate down carefully. "Here you go, scramble eggs and bacon!" she merrily said despite her confused expression. "What happened to the other human?"
"He wanted to go back to his apartment," Sebastian answered sternly. "Adine, was it?" he asked with a serious stare.
Adine nodded, her confusion being more apparent on her features. She took her other wing claw and clasped at the abandoned dish with slight apprehension.
"Do you know of a green flyer?" he asked with a slight edge.
She pondered for a moment. "Not too many flyers around this town," she answered. "I've delivered to a green one before, yes." She pondered a bit more. "I'm sorry, I don't think I can really answer your question," She frowned when she finished.
Sebastian closed his eyes with a low sigh. "It's alright ma'am, you're sure you've served the green flyer before?" He reopened one of his eyes.
She nodded astutely. "Definitely, like I said, not too many flyers around this town." She tilted her head. "Is this person in trouble?"
Sebastian shook his head. "Nah, just someone that recommended I try this place out." He smiled. "With my schedule, I hardly have any free time during the morning hours to even order out."
"I see. Would you care to have this dish, sir?" She offered the plate to him with extended wings. "We already had it comped anyway for the humans." She smiled.
"No thank you. I already ate before my shift."
She nodded to him. Before leaving the table, she gave Marcus a curious stare and a slight frown. He could only assume she was beginning to remember bits and pieces as well.
When she was out of earshot, Marcus made his move figuring things were already in motion beyond his control. "How much do you know?" he asked.
Sebastian stared at him. He lowered his head, taking a claw to his snout and scritched at the end of it. "I thought I was going crazy, but now that you ask that specifically..." He frowned. "Do you know Bastion Breach?"
"It's the card game your people came up with. We both played a session when we went camping during my first week here."
His frown deepened. "How is this possible?"
Marcus glanced away with a frown. He faintly remembered someone asking him how he would feel if they were some time traveling guru. The name Izumi flashed in his mind, the same name that appeared multiple times in his message to himself. Seeing as all the dragons he's met are slowly coming around to remembering as well, it couldn't hurt to open pandora's box further for Sebastian.
He explained his entire situation to him as best he could. The dragon simply sat there, claws clasped together, listening in to everything he had to say. He paused briefly when Adine came by with her coffee for Sebastian, but otherwise continued to go for as long as he deemed reasonable.
It was long winded, but he didn't skip any details. First he went over as much as he could remember what happened between now and the last day of the feastival. It was scattered, him not having the full picture yet, but it had to be enough for Sebastian. As he continued, the more Sebastian's features grimmed. It got worse when he started mentioning Izumi, revealing to him that there were actually three humans here at this very moment.
By the time his explanation was over, the café was starting to pick up business as the town's residence finally began to wake up giving the pair curious looks. He had not touched his meal nor had Sebastian drank any of his coffee. Sebastian was in deep thought, his head pointed to a seated pair to where he was with Maverick earlier. Marcus took this silent moment to dig into his moderately cold dish. Thankfully, the taste was still just as good.
"I don't know why you're putting this much trust in me," Sebastian said. "What you disclosed to me I could report to my superiors and have your entire kind banned from ever coming back." He blinked, finally grabbing his cup and taking a sip. "But I can't get it out of my head that you're not some crazy conspiracist coming up with a ridiculous concept." His eyes traveled back to Marcus'. "Not to mention I feel as if I've spent time with you besides these past few hours."
Marcus hummed in agreement knowing that exact risk. With Anna he could get away with, but with anyone else? Thankfully Sebastian had a good head on his shoulder.
"Alright, can't say I believe you one hundred percent, but what I can say is from the rumors I've heard down at the station...Parts of your story make sense in a way, namely your partner." He took another sip. "And this third human, that's going to be a major problem if word gets out."
It's a start at least. Marcus gulped down his portions before answering back. "I don't know if you have any authority to do so, but if we could simply tell my world of the asteroid that's coming here, maybe there won't be a need to repeat what you and I are both reliving."
Sebastian took another sip. "And we need the generator that's powering the portal to divert it, right?"
"Yeah, I'm not quite sure what your people do, but it's always been successful when I showed the council undeniable proof that the asteroid will collide."
Sebastian paused, looking at Adine as she made her way to another set of tables. "Undeniable proof, huh?"
Marcus followed his gaze. "Yeah, the PDA's I delivered to Anna? Point that at the night sky. The asteroid will be the brightest object up there and the sensors should tell you what your people should know."
Sebastian tapped a claw. "I don't know, I'm just a cop, not a counselor." He placed his empty cup down. "And honestly, I'm surprised at myself for believing this story. It's hard to swallow, you know?"
Marcus nodded in understanding. He finished his last bite and placed the silverware down. "Yeah, I was afraid spilling everything to you would cause a problem. But I believe Reza is also aware of what's happening. There's a high chance Maverick will know what's happening too, along a few others."
Sebastian took his claws to his temples and began to rub them furiously with a sigh. "This is too much..."
Marcus had a bit of a scare when he heard Adine's voice next to them. "How was your meal?"
He faced her with a smile. "It was delicious, thank you." He realized he never did stay inside the café after his first breakfast usually. "You can put the bill in for me for this gentleman across from me."
"Oh don't worry, the coffee's on the house," she chuckled. "It's my pleasure, really."
"Here," Sebastian withdrew his hat, to Marcus' surprise, revealing a mounted flashlight. He then flipped the cap and dug into a hidden pouch along the rim. He grabbed a handful of metallic round objects and placed them on the table with a tiny clatter. They looked remarkably like the coins back home. "Thank you for serving and cooperating with me, Adine."
The coins must've meant something to her because she visibly brightened with a small, gleeful noise along with a beaming smile. "Oh! Thank you so much!" She gladly took the coins with her wing claws and put it in one of the pockets of her pouch. "Is there anything else I can get you two?"
Sebastian shook his head. "No, we're good. Thank you."
Adine gave a slight nod. She eyed Marcus once more, her maw twitched as a slight frown once again appeared on her features. She quickly diverted her attention to another seated table and walked over to restart her role as a waitress once more.
-`.'-
Once the two were back outside, Marcus followed Sebastian into a more rural part of town, though that was always the thought he had whenever he found himself on the dirt paths. Houses were lined up just like any other neighborhood, but the lack of the suburban flair really drove home just how different dragons set up their infrastructure.
Usually when he got here the area was mostly quiet with maybe one or two dragons sprinting to destinations unknown. Now though since the both of them stayed at the café longer than normal, more were outside. They all of course gave the pair a genuine stare. He was thankful Sebastian was with him.
Sebastian stopped, checking his surroundings before turning to Marcus. "That waitress, you know her, don't you?"
"Yeah, me and her spent a lot of time together. She gives me her work's number when..." Reza or Izumi kills the first dragon.
Wait, Izumi? Why do I remember her killing dragons?
He quickly dismissed the knowledge for now. With how this cycle was working at the moment, he wasn't so sure any of that would play out as it did in the past. Would he still meet Bryce?
...Bryce? Who's that? Must be, yet, another dragon I know.
"I know," Sebastian interrupted. "Tomorrow there will be a report from her of an attack in the third sector. We name Reza as a main suspect and I believe the chief has you come to the scene."
Marcus wondered just how much Sebastian knew. "That stuff may not even happen anymore this time, y'know."
"Maybe... I'm still coming to terms with agreeing with your story." He took a claw to the back of his neck. "Hard to ignore when I'm seeing things that I know haven't happened."
Marcus hummed, not sure what the next course of action would be. At this point, he would already be back in his apartment and spend the better part of the day exploring his living space. He felt like had to act quickly, who knows what Reza was plotting next with him being aware.
And just like that, he answered his own dilemma. "Do you know where Reza lives?"
Sebastian nodded, "Of course, he's not that far where we have you living for the time being. I wanted to check in with Mavers anyways."
Sebastian led him down the dirt pathways that eventually turned to a colorful red bricked plaza. He saw the apartment complex he was staying at from a distance. It made sense Reza would probably be somewhere closeby. The area on second inspection did feel more fitting for high class individuals in comparison to the houses he just saw.
He never even thought about the location. Made sense that an ambassador from an unknown world would be treated as a highly valuable asset. He began to go over the social similarities between the two civilizations when Sebastian spotted the grey dragon standing like a statue by one of the many doors. They approached his blank expression.
"Hey Mavers," Sebastian started with a wave. "Is everything alright?"
Maverick blinked. He twisted his head towards a closed window before diverting his eyes to Marcus. He let out a soft growl as his maw twitched into a small frown. "Can I talk to you?" he asked in his deep gravelly voice. "In private?"
Marcus pointed to himself. Maverick twisted his body to face him completely with a leer. Sebastian sighed and crossed his arms. "I'll stand by here and let you two talk it out."
Marcus assumed he knew what this was going to be about. He and Reza weren't exactly quiet back in the café. He followed the thorny dragon away from the door and around the corner that overlooked the portal in the distance. His assumption proved to be correct when the large dragon began with a spit.
"If what I'm seeing is actually true, then you humans are here on false pretenses," he growled, baring his teeth. "I knew the moment he started sending those letters through the portal he was up to no good. You better start talking unless you prefer your head ripped off."
Marcus knew that was an empty threat, however it did him no justice of keeping his cool. He calmed himself as best he could before once again reopening pandora's box. "Then you know that I have nothing to do with whatever Reza's a part of."
"You expect me to accept that? I don't know what's going on or why I know things that will happen in the future, but only a fool would accept honesty from someone that's been manipulating time." He edged closer to Marcus with a snarl. "And that 'girl' he mentioned back at the café? I've seen her with my own two eyes a couple of weeks from now!"
"Hold on!" Marcus backed away from him. "If you'll let me explain the whole stor-"
"I'm not interested nor are the bloods of you, your partner, and that girl have spilled. I'd strike you down right now if I could, believe me."
"I'm trying to save you all," Marcus almost shouted. "Look, I'd be suspicious too if the roles were reversed here, but you must know all I've ever tried to do was stop Reza from having his way. That generator beneath the portal is going to be the only way to save this world."
Maverick spat on the ground in disgust. "Yeah? Then why do I recall moments where that didn't happen, you disappear, and then we all die? Why am I remembering being forced out of my home to live amongst you humans?"
Marcus noted Maverick knew about the only successful timeline recorded on his PDA. "It's been a lot of trial and error. That last statement you made was actually the first time I forged a future where both civilizations are saved."
"Or so you say." He paced around Marcus closely in a slow circle. "Or maybe that's what your leaders wanted?"
While he was sure that wasn't the case for his own motives, he didn't think the people that sent him through had any malicious intent. He didn't know why Reza did what he did despite the lame explanations in that long hallway in the underground facility. The fact he knew about the true purpose of these dragons perhaps was a reason for his antics? Not to mention the letters that were sent back home when he was still preparing to go through himself.
The memory of Maverick's condescending remark regarding his role here played vividly in his mind. 'Maybe you're just clueless,' he had said. That certainly wasn't out of the question given his past trials through these loops. His mission was simply to oversee the exchange of the PDA's, nothing more nothing less.
What Maverick was implying though seemed impossible. If the people in charge had planned something like the timeline he just escaped from, then that would mean not only did they know about the dragons and the portal's real purpose. They would have to predict something like that was bound to happen eventually.
He rather stick with what he knows now instead of guessing strange time travel theories. "Maybe, but that's not what I'm trying to do. I'm trying to save both worlds without yours being destroyed."
"Why should I trust your words? Give me one damn good reason."
He didn't have a clue. He wasn't getting anywhere with this conversation. Suddenly, a loud crack of a gunshot was sounded. Marcus and Maverick stopped on the spot, both gaping their respected jaws in stupor.
He wouldn't...
Maverick was already sprinting back around the corner before Marcus ran after. His heart went into a lump when he saw Sebastian on the ground with Reza hovering over him with his gun pointed while holding a box.
He quickly glanced at the two before taking aim at the sprinting dragon. Three shots rang, and Maverick tumbled over before rolling to a stop. Reza aimed at Marcus for only a moment before he grunted and twisted around making a beeline to the portal in the distance.
Marcus was too flabbergasted to understand what just happened. He ran up to Maverick first to see a gunshot wound on his shoulder as well as a large graze on his flank. His breathing was harsh and labored, no doubt in shock. Otherwise he was relatively okay. He then ran to Sebastion who was also thankfully still breathing. Unfortunately, the wound appeared to be on his chest. The blood was oozing out from his clenched claw.
Marcus couldn't let him escape. Hoping both of them would be okay for the moment, he sprinted as fast as he could after Reza. He zipped past the apartments, businesses, and startled dragons. When the ground beneath turned back to dirt, he continued to sprint past the outskirts of the town. He didn't stop, not once, not even when he heard a loud roar behind him. Shortly he was running up the hill where he saw Reza in the afternoon sun fiddling with the control panel.
"Stop!" Marcus shouted. "What are you doing!?"
Reza didn't answer, with a series of button presses the machine began to hum. Another cracking snap of a gunshot was made and suddenly Reza grunted in pain as he collapsed on the ground.
Marcus twisted to see a masked figure pointing an identical revolver at Reza. They ran to him and kicked him out of the way before their gloved hands began to furiously input something. The portal hummed again in what Marcus could assume was it's power down cycle.
As quick as the figure's fingers were, they pointed back at Reza. "Starting your plan now, huh? Can't let you do that."
"Izumi?" Marcus asked with an extended arm. He looked down at Reza to see his white collar shirt stained with his own blood on his side. His hand was still clenched at the handle of his weapon.
Izumi stepped forward and stomped on his wrist eliciting a small cry from Reza. His hand convulsed slightly, pushing his gun out of reach. "So you know my name. What else?"
He surprised himself when he answered back instantly. "I know I've been traveling and repeating these last two weeks for who knows how long."
She hummed, kneeling down to Reza with a tilt of her head. "And what about you?"
Reza let out a cough before opening his eyes into a glare. He spat at her mask.
"Curious..." She raised her gun and used the blunt end and smacked him hard in the head. It only took the one to knock him out cold with a large gash on his head. "You, I understand, but-"
"On your stomachs! Get down on the ground!" A feminine voice shouted.
Marcus didn't have time to turn around before he heard a whipping noise and his entire body felt like it was on fire. He collapsed immediately, unable to move his muscles at all or even scream in surprise. Another whipping sound and he heard Izumi fall as well.
He felt someone behind him force his arms behind his back. With an audible clank, he felt a pair of steel around both his wrists. He had just got cuffed, which meant...
"Don't you dare move!" the same feminine voice shouted. "Stay where you are!"
He complied, using this time to look at Izumi who still struggled with the taser shot. He was sure it was something like that to some extent. He saw a dragoness hover over her do the same motion.
This was a brand new dragon, he's never seen this cop before. Unlike most here, she was absolutely geared and dressed like a typical police officer back home. She also stood like a biped, it was clear she wasn't a runner or a flyer with her lack of wings.
Her bright yellow eyes surveyed the scene. Her frilled tail twitched as she panted. She reached into her harness attached to her waist and pulled what looked to be a radio. "This is officer Noami, ten-seventy-eight, restricted zone. Three bodies down, one may be critical."
The radio clicked to life, but Marcus couldn't make anything out of the noise that sprouted from the speaker from where he layed.
"Ten-four." She clicked the device and placed it back. She looked at the two before she turned to Marcus with a raised brow. "You know how much trouble you're in, sir?"
He could only guess, this certainly wasn't how he envisioned the very first day to play out.
-`.'-
Author's Note
So as I said in my notes in the first chapter, I'm not quite sure how I'm going to go about this. However, I did have a general idea about a 'what if' scenario where characters retain their memories. At the moment, I'm figuring it out as I go, but I'll be keeping notes what I've done and hopefully don't screw it up the further I decide to go. Hoping this doesn't turn into a train wreck, but we'll see, right? Hey, at least with this major difference in events gives an excuse for Naomi to show herself, right?