This is a oneshot off my main story, Lost Time. If you haven't read that yet, then you might be a little confused about some details, but you probably don't need to read it first to enjoy this story, nor will the rest of it be spoiled for you.
Now, if you've decided to read this anyway or are already following the story, then I hope you enjoy!
Kaden was walking down the halls of the Center for Advanced Lombax Research, a stern look of determination in his eye that made any Lombaxes walking in front of him be sure to give him a wide berth as he strides right along past them and towards the direction of Mags' lab in the nigh-obsolete interdimensional division.
He eventually reaches the door to his lab, and before he opens it, he takes a moment to take a deep breath to relax the hard look on his face. Feeling assured that Mags won't suspect something's off the moment he looks at him, he opens the door.
He was greeted with the usual sight of his lab, which was strewn about with all sorts of papers, notes, and models concerning anything interdimensional, and sure enough, he saw Mags sitting right at a desk, scribbling down something to add to that untidy collection of knowledge.
"Ah, there you are." Kaden speaks up in a friendly tone.
"Oh, hey, Kaden." Mags greets as he looks up from his notes. "What is it?"
"There's this new pizza place that's opened up a few days ago, and I thought that you'd wanna come and check it out with me." Kaden says nonchalantly, thumbing outside the door behind him.
"Huh? But it's not lunch—" He stops as he glances to a clock on the wall, which showed that it was a little past noon. "Oh, never mind, seems like I got a little sucked into my work here."
"Is that a yes, then?"
He puts his pencil down as he stretches back in his chair. "Sure, I could use the break, anyways. You paying?"
Kaden gives him nod. "Yep, my treat. I hear the place is cheap, too."
"Nice, thanks." Mags says as he stands up from his desk. "Is Julie coming along, too?"
Kaden shakes his head. "Nah, she said she's a little caught up with testing some prototypes."
"Aw, that sucks. I know she loves a good pizza." Mags says as he and Kaden exit the lab. "I guess we'll have to see if it's worth going for another trip sometime."
"Hopefully it is, I've heard good things about it."
"What's this place called, anyway?" Mags asks as they walk through the halls.
"It's… Sparky's Pizza." Kaden answers after a brief pause.
Mags raises a brow. "Why'd you hesitate?"
"It just slipped my mind for a moment." Kaden answers coolly as he gives him a small smile. "Brain fart, you know?"
"Oh, yeah, totally. Just this morning I was coming up for a blank for if the matter of the Surinox Comet had a negative or positive charge. Felt like a dumbass when I had to sit there for like, two minutes." Mags replies.
"Yep, happens to all of us." Kaden says with a small chuckle.
"So, what new method is Julie trying to kill herself with this time?" Mags asks casually.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you said she skipped out on a pizza trip to work on a prototype, and she'd really only do that if whatever it was is super fun in her books, which equates to being ridiculously dangerous in everyone else's." He explains. "So, what is it? A bomb? Missile launcher? Ship cannon?"
"I'm not really sure." Kaden answers. "I didn't catch it."
Mags shoots him a puzzled look. "Huh? What do you mean you didn't catch it?"
"I mean that she didn't really mention what it was, exactly." Kaden says with a shrug as they exit the Center and out onto the parking area.
"…Kaden, did you really ask Julie to come with us?" Mags accuses him.
"Of course I did!" He defends. "What makes you think I didn't?"
"Because there is no way in hell that Julie just let you go without ranting about how awesome her new Killinator 5000 or whatever is, especially not without her explaining exactly why it's awesome." He says sternly. "And you don't even know what it is? Are you hiding something?"
"Mags, don't be ridiculous. You're probably just hangry or something." Kaden answers back as they walk up to his ship. "Come on, you'll think more clearly once we get a few slices of pepperoni. We can even save some for Julie if you're so concerned about her not being here."
Mags watches in suspicion as Kaden takes the pilot's seat before nodding his head towards the passenger seat next to him, beckoning him to follow. And as he does, Mags feels his stomach start to rumble, and he gives a sigh.
"Yeah, you're probably right." Mags concedes. "I had a pretty light breakfast this morning, anyways. Let's go." He walks around the front of the ship and sitting next to Kaden before they take off into the steady stream of traffic snaking through the city.
"So, do you know how big Sparky's pizzas are?" Mags asks.
"You were right, I was lying. There is no pizza place." Kaden answers him, flying with a cool focus.
Mags shoots him a look of surprise. "Wha—Where are we going, then?!"
"My house."
"Why didn't you just say that instead of lying about a pizza place, then?!"
"Because we're going to make a Dimensionator, Mags." Kaden replies firmly, glancing over to him with that determination returning to his eyes. "And with all the surveillance systems in the Center, I couldn't just say that out loud to you with the prohibition in effect. So, I had to make up a story to make them think that you and me are just out on a friendly little lunch break, and not conspiring to commit a gigantic felony right now."
Mags just looks at him, shocked. "I… What?! Then why didn't you ask Julie, too?!" He manages to say.
"Mags, you and I both know that 'subtle' isn't in her vocabulary. I'm not saying that I don't trust her to keep a secret, but it'll be better for us to not have her involved at all in a worst-case scenario if we're caught. We're protecting her from all of this."
"Kaden, you do realize that the worst-case scenario you're talking about is that we're executed, right?" Mags says gravely.
He scoffs. "There's no way in hell that they're going to go that far. If they didn't outright execute Alister for helping Tachyon commit genocide, then they're not going to execute us for building a Dimensionator."
"But there's still banishment, and life in prison, too!"
"We're on the Council, Mags." Kaden retorts. "Not only that, but we're both heads of interdimensional research. We know what we're doing, and we're not using it to try to end the multiverse or anything, I guarantee that we're just going to get a slap on the wrist."
"But—"
"And the other reason I made up that story to get you here is so that you'll have an alibi." Kaden cuts him off. "If anyone's going to be on the hook, it'll be me. They won't have a reason to suspect you, and I won't say a word about your help with this."
"What help do you even need with this?" Mags asks, more than a little concerned about the way Kaden clearly thought all of this out. "Can't you build a Dimensionator on your own?"
"I thought I could, I'm about a third of the way done with making one in my workshop." Kaden replies. "But you were always better at the theories and nuances than me, and if I want to make something that'll last for more than one trip like the one you and Julie made to save me, then I need it to be up to snuff with the real thing."
Mags takes a moment to simply gawk at Kaden, and the fierce look of determination resting on his face as he flies towards his home. But, beyond that resolute exterior, he could start to see something else resting behind it. He realized that he could see desperation in his eyes, and upon recognizing that, Mags begins to understand where this sudden talk of breaking the law was coming from.
"This is about Kieran, isn't it?" Mags asks softly.
"Why else would I be doing this?" Kaden asks. "I know the exact coordinates for the Kyzil Plateau on Veldin, too. It won't take more than five minutes, maybe ten if we need to fill out papers or something at the orphanage I left him in."
Mags sighs. "Kaden… I know your last couple of appeals to save him haven't been ideal, but there's always next month. We just have to try harder, and I'm sure they'll come to their senses once we've all had a chance to recover from the Exodus."
"And how long is that going to take, huh?" Kaden asks angrily. "Because it's been an entire goddamn year already. And while they all sit around on their asses telling me that it's 'too risky' to go back for him, he's still growing up all alone without me, all the while a genocidal Cragmite is out there trying to kill him. I'm not going to wait for the Council to give me permission to see my only child again, I'm going to take matters into my own hands." He says intensely.
"Kaden, even if you do manage to save him, the Council's going to know that you disobeyed them and built a Dimensionator when they see he's back here." Mags gently tells him. "And you say that they'll only give you a slap on the wrist, but what if they don't? What if they're just going to make you rot in prison for the rest of your life?"
"Then so be it." Kaden replies without a second thought. "I may have to watch him grow up behind bars, but he'll be in the same dimension as me, at least. Because the alternative is that I just sit by and wait and hope that he isn't dead, and I'll be damned if I'm going to live a life like that."
"But you literally cannot build a Dimensionator, legal consequences aside." Mags tells him. "Like me and Julie said, they've cracked down hard on the components ever since we were caught, especially Phase Quartz. Hell, I can't even get Phase Quartz, and I'm a head of interdimensional research!"
"But so am I. And unlike you, I don't have a history of making counterfeit Dimensionators, so they're not watching me. I don't care how hard it is to get whatever I need, because I will get it. I don't care what I have to do or what I have to spend to get there, but I will hold Kieran in my arms again if it's the last goddamn thing I do."
Mags could see how hard he was gripping the steering wheel as he said that, and the steely resolve in his face especially punctuating his point. But despite the ferocity in his determination to commit to doing this, he still thought breaking the law was more than a little unwise.
"Kaden, it still seems like a bad idea to—"
"Mags, if you're about to tell me some other reason I should give up, then kindly shut the hell up." Kaden says sternly. "Tachyon ripped away everything I held dear in my life. I lost my home and all the memories within it. I lost Alister after having him be right by my side for nearly my entire life. I lost Marie as we were starting to begin our new lives as proud parents. And I damn near lost my own life fighting Tachyon to protect everyone in this dimension!"
He can feel tears start to well up in his eyes, but he hardly registers it as he continues his outburst.
"I don't have a wife who'll kiss me and ask me how my day was after a long day at work anymore. I don't have a best friend who'll argue with me about who's the best General after a few rounds at the bar anymore. I can't sleep at night without having that fucking Cragmite's face haunting my dreams anymore. He destroyed my life, Mags, he destroyed everything I have ever loved, and I hate living like this! In fact, there are some days that I wish you and Julie just left me to die, just so I don't have to suffer any of this anymore!" He yells in a shaky voice.
Mags watches in a stunned silence, unsure of what to say as Kaden starts to take deep breaths to try and calm himself down, taking a moment to wipe the tears that were starting to blur his vision as he flies. Before Mags can speak up in an effort to soothe him, Kaden speaks up once more, but in a calmer, more rational tone.
"But then I realize that I do still have something, despite everything. I have a child. A son, my own flesh and blood, still alive, and just waiting for his father to come back for him so that we can spend the rest of our lives together. I made a promise to Marie that I'll protect him, no matter what, and I will uphold that promise, even if it kills me. If I break that promise, then she will have died for nothing. But most importantly, I will have lost the most important thing in my life, and I don't want to imagine what happens when I do."
He finally turns his head to look at Mags, who looks at him with wide, sympathetic eyes.
"I don't give a single fuck what the Council says. I am going to build this Dimensionator and rescue Kieran. I don't care if I go to prison or get banished or even executed, because in the end, he'll be safe, and that's all I care about. So, are you going to help me, or should I just turn around and drop you back off at the Center so I don't have to deal with all of your second-guessing?"
Mags doesn't respond for a moment. Kaden was about to just turn around like he just said based on the apprehensive look he was giving him, but Mags gives a stern nod.
"Let's do it."
"Good." Kaden says returns the nod before returning his attention back to his flying. "And… thank you. Like I said earlier, I tried doing this myself so I wouldn't have to get you involved, but…"
"Well, it'd wouldn't exactly be my first time going toe to toe with the Council." Mags reassures him. "I mean, yeah, I'd rather not do that again, but like you said, getting Kieran back safe and sound is the important thing. And if you are thrown in jail for this, then don't worry, I'll be sure to take care of him if it comes to it."
Kaden gives him a smile. "Thanks. I'm glad I can count on you."
"Don't mention it."
There is a silence that falls on the ship as they eventually fly towards the neighborhood where Kaden lives. And as they pass by all the houses below, Mags speaks up once again.
"You do know that you're not alone, right?" He asks gently.
"What do you mean?"
"I know you said you don't have Marie or Alister anymore, and not Kieran right now, but you still have me and Julie." He suggests. "I mean, I know you probably don't care for us as much as you did them, but we're still here if you ever need a shoulder to lean on."
"Woah, I didn't say that I don't care about you guys when I was saying all that!" Kaden quickly reassures him. "I do care about you guys, but it's just… they were the closest people I had in my life, and I'm still trying to get used to the idea that they're gone." He sighs sadly. "But I am beyond grateful that I still have you and Julie, don't get me wrong. Honestly, if it wasn't for you two, I don't think I'd be able to make it this far."
Mags tilts his head. "Make it this far in what?"
"To make it this far in… general." Kaden replies. "And I probably don't say it enough, but… thank you. To you and Julie. I owe you guys everything."
Mags reaches over and rests his hand on his shoulder. "You don't owe us anything, Kaden." Mags says with a small smile. "We're your friends, being there is just what we do. And don't worry, you've always been there for us when we need help dealing with the fallout from Tachyon's genocide, too. So, if anything, you've paid off this nonexistent debt that you say you have."
Kaden returns the smile. "Thanks, Mags."
"Don't mention it." He says, removing his hand to sit back down more comfortably in his seat. "Although, now that I think about it, I guess I was lying about you not owing us anything."
Kaden gives him a concerned glance. "Huh? What is it?"
"I wasn't lying when I said I was hungry, and I can't help but be a little disappointed that we're conspiring against the Council instead of chowing down on some pizza instead." He says with a smirk.
Kaden breathes a sigh of relief. "Don't worry, I'm sure I've got something I can whip up for some lunch. And to show my thanks for you guys, I promise I'll take all of us out for some pizza. My treat."
"I think that'll be sufficient payment for your debt. Well, as long as you don't tell us about another imaginary pizza place so that you can coerce us to rob a bank or something, instead."
Kaden chuckles. "Don't worry, I think we're done breaking the law for now." He says as the ship slows down to a hover, before gently landing next to his house.
He opens the cockpit and turns back to Mags. "Now, with that out of the way, I'd say it's about time we start to get to work on saving my son."
Mags gives him a smile and a nod. "Let's get working."
I was just rereading my fic and thought that this would be a fun little vignette to include in the overall story. I also wanted a tiny break from my main fic and thought this would be a fun distraction.
And also, if it weren't for FanFic's stupid title limit, this chapter would've been called "Friends Help Friends by Getting Pizza (And Breaking the Law)". I'm still mad about it.
Part 2 coming soon!