2. An Old Friend's Dream

During a short wait on the tarmac at Eastgate Airport, Mark relayed Misty's news of the UN's intent to Kim and William. This produced smiles from the Hodges. It also brought looks of further amazement as Mark added that while he would never wish the events of the last month on anyone, his hopes were that the threat on Kim's life and the actions and risk undertook by Kimi would both turn out to be instrumental in the world body's position and resulting decision on the CENAP Pact penned six years before.

After leaving the plane via a small stairway, the three moved to a waiting Hydroja, and Mark drove the few miles to Kim and William's home. Kim asked Mark if he was interested in engaging in a few games of backgammon. Mark explained that he never did garner interest in "games of chance." Instead, he expressed an interest in watching a few of the episodes from Kim's show, wanting to hear more about the "behind the scenes" aspect of her many stunts. While William retrieved tapes from the bedroom and set up the VCR over the TV, Kim went to the phone in the kitchen to tell Marcy of their return, and inform her what time dinner would be ready.

A bit after 5, the three moved into the kitchen area, with Mark sitting at the dining room table while Kim and William began preparations for the evening meal. During this time, as they continued to talk about various episodes from the show, Mark made a mental note about how Kim and William moved together, the synergy and smoothness in their motions almost seeming to have been choreographed and rehearsed. Mark couldn't quite decide if this was partly a product of many years of marriage, or what appeared to be a perfect match of chemistry - a perfect match between environments.

A small smile crossed Mark's face as he closed the book on this thought, marking it down as further evidence that venturing into uncharted territory with only the motions of the heart as a guide can sometimes bring positive - and often cherished - results. This led him to excuse himself for a moment, and he stepped out to the back porch to place a phone call to Melfina.

Shortly before 6, Mark's cell buzzed with a call from Misty saying that she was about 20 minutes from an arrival at Eastgate Airport. Mark made arrangements for a car to bring her to the house when she touched down. He also asked about any further developments from the UN vote. Misty was rather evasive about this, saying she would rather hold off conversation about it until she was there in person. About this time, Marcy also arrived and expressed a slight disappointment that there was little she could contribute to the process of creating dinner.

Sunday, July 14th, 2019, 6:38 PM.

Kim called from the kitchen to the living room, where Marcy had joined Mark to view a couple more episodes. "It's soup," she said. Mark pressed the "stop" button on the remote to the VCR and rose from his seat, following Marcy into the dining area.

William was already laying out silverware as Kim peeked into a pot on the stove. "Sorry about the videotapes," he said. "Kimi had copied the series onto mini-discs, but I couldn't find them."

"She took them with her to Cairo," Mark said as he pulled out a chair for Marcy. "We had used them a couple of times, to study Shego's fighting style a bit. Her stuff will all be transported here from Willow Grove by Tuesday."

"I wish I had been there for that part of her training," said Kim as she stirred the contents of the pot a bit. "I knew a bit more about Shego's abilities, from workouts off the set…but it wouldn't have done as much good as remembering the difference in mass between environments, and how it takes a while to adjust to the higher mass here."

Mark took his own chair. "I guess I owe Kimi a bit of an apology on that," he said. "I hadn't thought to research it. When it came to Shego, we mainly focused on her karate level. She was also dealing off-and-on with a pretty scary dream she had about Shego a couple days before she called me."

Kim brought two insulators to the table and was followed by William who was carrying a large platter. The aroma immediately seduced the noses of Marcy and Mark. Marcy sniffed at the air. "Unless I miss my guess, that smells like--"

"--prime rib of swordfish," finished William as he lowered the platter to one of the insulators, holding several servings of a golden-brown fish.

"I bought those yesterday," Marcy said, "just as soon as I found out you two were coming home. I put them in the freezer when I came to wait for you and Mark."

Mark leaned toward the delicious dish. "I haven't had swordfish in what seems like forever," he said. "Melfina would make a swordfish steak recipe where she'd use a--"

"--fennel spice rub?" Kim cut in, smirking.

"Yeah…and before she'd bake it, she would brown it first on the stove in--"

"--olive oil?"

Mark withdrew slightly, looking at Kim.

"It's just the same as the way she taught me," she giggled. "Melfina was the one who taught me the basics of cooking Flesher food." She then turned to the stove and brought over the pot she had been stirring. "What she never suggested," she said as she brought the pot to the second insulator and lifted the lid with a bit of a slow flourish, "was to serve it with something like potato goulash."

The alluring aroma quickly wafted across the table, competing with that of the swordfish. "You've made that before," Marcy said. "That's with onions?"

"That…and a little olive oil and paprika…and just a taste of tomato paste." Kim made a motion for Marcy to pass her plate, and Kim began to arrange one of the steaks and a couple scoops of the goulash.

Marcy's eyes widened as she received her meal. "I guess you weren't kidding when you said you were itching to get back to cooking," she said. "This looks just heavenly."

Kim smiled as she turned to Mark for his plate. She gave him a steak and a fair amount of the goulash.

Mark took the plate, taking in the aroma. "This smells great, Kim," he said. "Misty won't want to miss this." He then glanced at his watch. "She should be here almost any minute. I called to have a car waiting when she touched dow--" he was interrupted by the cell buzzing in his pocket. He opened it and brought it to his ear. "Broderson…okay, thanks." He closed his phone, turning to Kim with a grin. "Speak of the devil," he said. "That was the transport saying they were just pulling into the driveway."

William rose from his seat. "I'll get it," he said. The doorbell rang as William reached the entry hall. He opened the door and greeted Misty.

The two then walked into the kitchen. Misty gave a rather subdued wave to the table as Mark rose, pulling out a chair. "Evening, everyone," she said with a slight hint of dissatisfaction to her voice. She then looked to the dinner offerings. "Well, that smells good."

Kim reached past Misty's shoulder for her plate. "Swordfish steak and potato goulash," she said. She then moved one hand across the corner of the table. "Marcy, I'd like you to meet Misty Visione', one of the Prime Cross Agents…Misty, this is Marcy Alvarez-Delgado, one of the Board members at Meridian Insurance and our best family friend."

The two reached across the table for a handshake. "How do you do," smiled Marcy.

"Good to meet you, Marcy," Misty said. "I remember you taking care of the arrangements for the marriage of these two. Your name is actually more known than you think."

Marcy smiled a bit broader as Kim set Misty's plate in front of her. Misty took in the culinary treat before her. "Flesher food has always been an attraction for Cellers," she said, moving to pick up her fork. "The excellence in their cooking is solid proof."

Mark turned to Misty. "Was the flight in good?"

"It was…okay," said Misty, her voice slightly lowered. "Smooth…no incidents."

There was a moment of silence following this that seemed rather pregnant to Mark. He expressed this by setting down his fork and lowering his brow slightly. "You're going to make me ask, aren't you…" he said.

Misty raised her head to Mark. "The vote, you mean?"

"That was an issue heavy on my mind at the moment, yes," replied Mark, a slight exasperation creeping into his tone.

Misty now slowly set down her own fork. "Well," she started, "they took the vote shortly before I left for the airport. Before they started the process, a couple of the delegates came up to me and said that they were very moved and impressed with your presentation…" As she continued, each of the others lent more attention to her words while trying not to gauge the tone of her voice as an indication of the result. "The motion was put before the entire Assembly a bit before 4:30 for complete rescindment of the pact…it required a standard 2/3 majority for the motion to pass. That's 128 countries out of 191 voting…128…you'd think that could have easily been reached, given the weight of the presentation and the facts that were given…"

Mark's face lowered a bit to the table as Misty spoke the last. "Okay," he said rather resignedly, "how short were we and who do we have to work on to turn them around? How many nations voted to rescind?"

Misty's gaze remained on the table for a moment - then she raised one eyebrow to Mark, her mouth slipping into a small smirk. "--164."

Mark reached for his napkin, which he balled in his fist and tossed it at Misty. "She always does this to me!" he burst in a smile.

Marcy perked at the news. "So the pact is gone?"

Misty laughed, handing Mark his napkin. "All gone, bye-bye," she chimed as Mark took her into his arms. "An overwhelming majority. The only countries that didn't vote to rescind were developing nations and those without a large TV audience."

"That's wonderful!" Marcy burst, turning to Mark. "You did it!"

Kim voiced her happiness at the news by uttering a squeal of delight and wrapping her arms around her husband.

"Another step in the right direction," said Mark as he and Misty separated.

Misty took a bite of her swordfish. "Another right step would be to not let this meal go to waste," she said. "Kim, this is fantastic!"

"I definitely second that motion, too," Mark added, met with laughter from the rest of the table.

After the meal, everyone had nothing but rave compliments for Kim's culinary abilities, and again expressed their joy at seeing her safe and comfortable at home. With this came more congratulations for Mark, who had, in his words, done his part to "make things right" for the Cellers who were engaged in long-term stays in the Flesher environment.

At one point, Misty asked Kim where she could find the "facilities." Kim rose and accompanied her down the hall, showing her where the bathroom was located, and telling her that she would show Misty the case where the items from her Cross were kept.

7:17 PM.

After Misty emerged from the bathroom, Kim led her across the hall into William's office. She turned at the tall cherry wood display case containing the mirror, the candle, the case the crystal came in and the scroll of the incantation, presenting it with a slight "ta-da" flourish. "That's…beautiful," Misty drew out, "…and now, thanks to that wonderful man in your kitchen, the beautiful things can continue to become reality for Fleshers and Cellers alike, with less potential for danger."

Kim slowly turned, one eye closed. "Misty…there's…something I'd like to ask you…"

Misty's eyes slowly closed and she tipped her head slightly toward the ceiling. "I know…I know," she let out in a sigh, "Everyone on the CENAP staff had asked me…other friends have asked me…and now you've asked me--" she put up her fingers in a pair of "air quotes" "--'how come you and Mark never…?'"

Kim nodded slowly. "You've known him for a while now…and you two seem to make a good fit. Good to know I'm not the only one who's seen it. So?"

Misty sighed again. "Little thing called the Cross Agents Code of Conduct," she said. "Part of which you already know about. It strictly forbids any Cross Agent from developing a romantic relationship with a Celler--"

"Yeah…I remember that part," Kim said.

"--or with a Flesher who either believes in Cellers, or has experienced a Cross. It's actually one of the Cross Agent prime directives. A violation would mean immediate removal from the Agency…and would include no further contact with Cellers, much less interacting in their environment." Misty then closed on Kim, putting up a finger. "And not one single word about this to Mark," she said rather sternly. She then retracted a bit, her voice softening. "But trust me…if there was a way I could have…I would have. A special investigator who thinks quick on his feet…a committed compassion for Cellers, even before he met one…a second-degree black belt in Karate…and a total hunk…who wouldn't?"

Kim tried to stifle a giggle, then recovered. "Your secret is safe with me," she said.

Misty gave Kim a warm smile, content that she understood the confidence, then turned back to the display case. "You know…with all the Crosses I've been a part of and seen through…there have only been about three cases in which I've been able to view the mirror in person after a Self-Sustaining Termination. I still find it amazing that the surface of the mirror is able to regenerate and recover to this extent." She peered a bit closer. "There's only a slight distortion along the outline."

Misty then backed away from the case, turning to Kim as she leaned against the desk. "Kim…how much do you remember about Angelica?"

Kim was taken aback by the sudden off-topic question for a moment. She slid into William's high-backed leather chair, looking slightly downward as she reminisced. "I've never forgotten Angelica," she said. "She was one of my very best friends…she and I became quite close. She was actually the one who talked me past my fears about the Cross, and was there when I was scheduled to go through my first time." Misty nodded slowly as Kim continued, knowing the bond between the two. "It was…it was almost like she…adopted me, in a way. She shared everything with me…her likes and dislikes…her taste in music." Kim now lifted her head to Misty. "Angelica was…she was actually about the closest some Cellers ever came to having a…a parent. And even after all these years…I still find myself missing her…a lot, sometimes. I'll never forget Angelica…ever."

Misty noted the slight glassy look now in Kim's eyes, and reached to place a hand on her shoulder. "You asked me about Mark…" She left her hand in place on Kim's shoulder as she moved from the desk to stand before the chair. "Now it's my turn to ask a question," she said. "Do you remember Angelica's Dream? The one she was always hopeful about and was sure would come?"

"'The Fall of Cynicism'?" said Kim. "Universal belief and acceptance from Fleshers? I sure do. I remember it by heart, word for word. It's also been the dream of many Cellers." Kim canted her head slightly at the Cross Agent in front of her. "You…you know all this already. I don't mean to sound rude, but…why are you asking me about this?"

Misty slowly sank to a crouch in front of Kim, taking both of her hands. "Kim…" she asked, "how would you like to be the one to bring that dream to life?"

Kim's eyes widened and her breath caught for a second. She searched Misty's eyes as her speech came haltingly. "I…I don't know how I would-- I mean, you and all the other Agents have been working at that for so long. I don't have that kind of…power. H-How…?"

Misty's face began to broaden into a smile. "Yes," she said, "you do have that power. The power to allow a Cross to be witnessed by someone other than an intended Flesher recipient. You have a chance to bring Angelica's Dream to life, Kim--" Misty now clasped both of her hands around Kim's "--you…and Kimi."

"K-Kimi?" Kim stammered. "But…what if she doesn't want to do this…you know…in public…?"

"Already taken care of," Misty beamed. "She's all for it…since being in the Celler environment, she's been told several times about the dream Angelica held on to…and I've already told her about this. She says that as far as anything that could help Cellers get over the hurdles in the way of Angelica's Dream…she's, to put it in her words, 'all about go time'."

"…and we're certain that the first Cross had no ill effects on her? I mean…say something happened…in front of people who are skeptical to begin with…"

"Kimi has been looked over by several of our medical professionals since her Cross," Misty said. "With the protection of the Celler skin and eyes she was born with, she can make a Cross just as safely as you or any other Celler can."

Kim broke into a grin of relief. "That's good to hear," she said, "but…a Cross before several people, many of whom have never experienced or have even heard of Cellers, much less a Cross? Misty…Kimi's Cross is scheduled for Tuesday night. That only leaves a couple of days to put all this in place. That's not much time for--"

Misty put up a hand. "The logistics are already worked out," she said. "We already know how we'd prepare people to view a Cross." Misty's smile now widened. "Actually…you're the last person in the chain I asked about this."

Kim shot her Cross Agent friend a puzzled look. "Okay…if everyone else who needs to know, already knows…why ask me?"

Misty blurted a sudden small giggle, reaching to tap a finger against Kim's nose. "Parental consent," she smirked.

Kim's expression began to change, lightening. "So…you already have a place in mind for this to happen?" she asked. "I mean, I don't think many people can fit in a bedroom, like ours--"

She was stopped by Misty's finger on her lips. "Everything is set…even the place…a big place. The only thing left now…is for you to nod your head. Give the word, Kim…bring the Dream to life with Kimi's Cross."

Kim looked deep into Misty's eyes as she said the last. She was at that moment sure she could sense in them the same depth of emotion she herself was beginning to feel about what was being asked of her:

The Fall of Cynicism - the Dream - brought to fruition by none other than her own daughter, Kimi Angelina Hodge.

Kim didn't even feel herself nodding her approval, but saw it in Misty's face as the woman moved to hug her. "Attagirl," Misty breathed. "I'm sure Angelica is thanking you…from wherever she is."

Misty suddenly stood, moving in the direction of the hallway, her voice mounting with excitement. "Now, if you'll excuse me? All those logistics I mentioned? It's time to set them in motion…the clock is ticking!" She disappeared from the doorway, moving in the direction of the kitchen. "Mark!" she blurted. "Mark! It's a go! Let's light this rocket!"

At Misty's words, Mark's expression burst into a quick flip through delight to determination. "That's great! William, can you bring me a phone book? I need to get in contact with--"

"--Robert Garello?" Misty cut in.

"The mayor of Eastgate?" asked Marcy.

Mark started to answer Marcy but was cut off again by Misty. "Done and done," she smiled, placing her hand on Mark's shoulder. "I was busy on the plane. He's already on board, and will set up all the conditions we asked for. All we need to do is contact him in the morning and let him know everything else is go."

Marcy and William exchanged quizzical looks. "I'll explain everything," said Kim, who had entered the kitchen. "Well…most things, anyway."

Kim, William and Marcy started for the hallway when Misty moved to gather Kim into a warm hug. "You have no idea how many people will be thanking you and Kimi for this," she said. She then turned to Mark, who was bringing his cell out of his shirt pocket. "You get your people together," she said. "I've got everything else handled." Misty turned back to Kim. "I need a pen and paper, a phone book and your phone for a little bit."

Kim moved across the kitchen, taking the phone book from the counter near the wall phone, and a pen and small pad next to it. She brought them to Misty and told her about the phone on the end table in the living room.

Mark grinned in Misty's direction as she turned toward the living room and the other three started for William's office. He then took his cell from his pocket, punched a number into it and brought it to his ear.

"111th National Air Guard, this is Lieutenant Graves," came through the line.

"Dan…it's Captain Broderson. Let's get the measures we talked about on the road tonight. T-F-O-C One is a go. I need everyone in place here no later than Monday afternoon to start setting up a perimeter. People are going to start arriving by tomorrow evening."

"I'm on it," said Dan. "Two Guard Rapid Deployment battalions in Eastgate by…1500?"

"Works for me," Mark said.

"And you're sure you're going to need that many just for setup and crowd control? That's 2,000 men."

"If this goes off as we're planning it to," Mark said, "it should be enough."

"I'll call you before the transport starts," Dan said. "Two C-5's, five C-130's, and the rest of the equipment on your list, coming your way."

to be continued…