"Hey Circe... How did I save you?"
There's a knowing look in her eyes as if she's finally figured something out. "You're a terrible person," she says softly, almost fondly. She stands up from the couch and walks over to him. She places her hand over Rex's heart and looks at him carefully. "So you really remember nothing of me...?"
Circe's getting too close. But Rex doesn't know what any of this means. Are they together? Is that what she means? Is that why she keeps getting closer and closer, their faces barely inches apart? If they aren't together, then why is she coming so close? Just what are they to each other? Just what the hell did the other Rex do to make her like this because he's never been able to save Circe, at least, not like this.
"Stop," he mumbles. He takes her hand off of his chest. "Circe, you're-"
"... is going to kill us!"
Both Rex and Circe turns toward the sound of the voice, and spots Cricket and Walter, frozen by the red curtain. They both look like they've been in a fight, tattered and bruised. But what's more worrisome is the fact that they're carrying an unconscious and bloody Tuck in-between them. They're both frozen by the curtain, alternating from staring at Circe and Rex to the mess of the room.
"What happened?" Rex demands. He gently pushes Circe out of the way to help out. He takes over for Cricket to help support up Tuck. "Are you guys okay?"
"We've faced worse," Walter grumbles. "We're fine, Rex."
Cricket runs over to the couch and clears it. Circe, meanwhile, goes through the mess to find the first-aid kit. Walter and Rex puts Tuck down on the couch and then turn to face one another.
"Is there any food or something?" Walter asks, rubbing the back of his neck. "We'll brief you."
They clear the ground by the couch the best they can and sit with the leftover Chinese. They assure Rex multiple times that the blood on Tuck is not his and that Tuck will be just fine. They also refuse any first-aid treatment when Circe offers, stating that they're just a little banged up but otherwise not injured. And once they've all finally settled in with their food, Cricket speaks up.
"Rex," she says, looking at him straight in the eye. "We know. So you can stop pretending now."
... Know? Know what, exactly? For the smallest of all seconds, Rex's heart race because what if they know about the nanites and the EVOs and Hong Kong. But then he forces himself to stop that train of thought right now, because there's no way. He erased all traces of that universe (except for the nanites in his system and his memories). There's absolutely no way for these guys to know about that.
Then what is it that they know?
At his confusion, Cricket expands. "We know that you want an out. Tuck told us."
"And just saying, for once, I wish you would trust us enough to tell us that to our face," Walter says. He doesn't look happy, but it's not complete distate. Like he understands. "You know, instead of pretending that you lost your memory again."
"I..." Rex closes his mouth, not knowing what to say. While it is true that he's lied about losing his memory, it's not like he can exactly tell them all the truth of what's happened. So isn't it better to just learn about this place by saying he lost his memory?
"There were times when you even had me fooled," Circe admits. "Asking me to tell you about my past? Very well played, sir. But you have an obvious tell."
"I... do?"
Circe chuckles and shakes her head. "You're a terrible person," is all that she'll tell him on the subject.
"Okay fine," Rex says finally. "You're right. I want out. But there really are spots in my memory, alright?"
"Oh, just drop it with your memory! You think we don't know that you've been faking it this entire time?" Cricket exclaims. She throws a piece of shrimp at him as if that'll be enough to shut him up. "It's because of you that we're in this mess in the first place."
"What mess?"
"Because you decided that you wanted out, Tuck here decided to humor you," Walter says, biting viciously into his orange chicken. "And yeah, I know that has more to do with the fact that Tuck's an idiot, but couldn't you have at least thought about what would happen to us if you left? Or at least thought about what Tuck would do if you even jokingly mention something to him? Don't you remember how on your birthday last year, he drove us crazy, trying to sneak into the museum to steal a meteor for you just because you passingly mentioned that you wanted a star?"
No, Rex does not have any recollection of that. How can he? But at the same time, he can't help but to wish that he did, because then at least he'd be able to reveal in the same memories. Why is it that he never seems to be able to share the same memories as these three?
"Okay, so what did Tuck try to do this time?" Rex asks again. Apprehensive this time. He gets the feeling that he's not going to like the answer (that's if he understands it).
Cricket and Walter exchange a look. Then she takes a deep breath and says, "Tuck tried to shut down Providence."
Rex drops his chopsticks. "Huh?!" Say what now?
"Yeah, I know. He's crazy. Trying to shut down Providence by himself. What was he thinking? He was lucky that me and Cricket were even in the area to help him out," Walter continues with a heavy sigh.
... Providence? You mean the same government organization that used to hunt EVOs in Rex's original universe? You mean the same organization that made Gatlocke flip out and Six chase him? Why was Tuck trying to shut it down? Does that mean Tuck has that power? And if Tuck was moving on Rex's wishes, then doesn't that mean that Rex also have that power...? Just what is Providence's connection to them?
"Is that why he's...?" Rex motions to Tuck on the couch, unable to finish the question.
Cricket nods. "Lucky for us, he's a pretty sturdy fighter. So he's probably going to be fine. It's just..."
"How are things with Providence then?" Rex asks instead. "Will they shut down or...?"
Walter snorts. "Are you kidding me? After everything we've done and everything we plan on doing? You really think they're going to stop just because you want out?"
Rex forces himself to calm down. Because everything that Walter is saying... Doesn't it all point to Rex being the leader of Providence or at least some kind of a high-level figure? But that makes no sense. How can he be a leader of a government agency? He's in high school, for Pete's sake! And how the hell did something like Providence even fall into Rex's hands in the first place? Just what happened in this universe to become this crazy?
"So now what, then?" Circe asks finally. "Those at Providence are going to suspect something's wrong. They might even come after us either for revenge or questions." She looks at Rex. "I'm sure you came up with a backup plan to fall back to, right?"
And the horrible part is, Rex has nothing. And even if the other him did have something, it's not quite like he's left a giant sign that said…
Oh wait.
The papers.
"In this room, I've hidden everything that I know… I'm leaving the rest up to you."
Rex frowns before pulling out the pieces of papers that he's gathered from the room. He can feel the curious gazes of the others on him, but they wait for him to answer. And now that he's looking at the papers a little closer with their nonsensical numbers and letters, it dawns on him that maybe, just maybe, this is a key. Or a password.
"Have you guys seen my diary?"
They all shake their heads, still waiting for him to fill them in. Well that sucks. The note said that everything is explained in the diary. But there is just one thing that the other Rex probably didn't account for. The fact that Rex has the ability to control technology. Then perhaps using a computer, he might be able to figure out what these pieces of paper lead to.
"We're going to need a computer."
How this turned into a trip to break into the school, Rex will never quite know. They left Tuck back in the abandoned factory, figuring that he'd be nothing but deadweight anyways. And now they're sneaking around the dark halls of the school and Rex is feeling a little alarmed because his friends seem a little too good at sneaking around here.
"Oh lucky," Walter says as he opens the door to one of the computer labs. "Looks like Bobo forgot to lock up again."
Rex wisely decides against asking questions that's bubbling in his mind. Instead, he walks over to a computer and turns it on. Before the login prompt can come up, he places his hands on the keyboard and taps a few keys as if he's impatiently waiting. In actuality, though, he's concentrating his nanites to help him out. What did he do before that required the long string of numbers and letters?
There's a small beep and instead of a login screen, the screen turns black with a white cursor at the top left corner. Another DOS screen. But instead of White Knight, the words that appear on the screen is:
"Input Code:"
Cricket stifles a small gasp and Walter mutters, "Of course." Circe places a hand on his shoulder, gives it a squeeze, before pulling back. Figuring that's their way of supporting him, Rex takes out the papers and begins to type.
At the end of it all, the computer goes black before another white cursor appears at the top of the screen with the words "Welcome back."
That's all fine and dandy, but what the hell is this? What the hell did the other Rex do here? What's this for?
"So this is how you contact everyone," Walter mumbles, sounding completely awed. "I always wondered…"
Rex fingers hover over the keyboard, uncertain as to what to do from here. He gulps slowly, wrecking his brain for an idea, any idea. Then slowly, slowly, he types: "Gather."
There's no automatic response at first. But after about a minute, there's a small ping and the words "Calan reporting" appears on the screen.
His breathing gets caught in his throat and Rex doesn't even know how to respond to this. Calan? As in Captain Calan from Providence? So this is it then? Rex does rule over Providence? But how? Why? And what the hell does any of this mean and what the hell happened with White Knight and…
In couple of minutes, a handful of people come online, reporting in as if this is a formal meeting. Few add a small greeting such as "How is everyone?" and "Did you hear what happened?" And then the words "White Knight reporting" flicker on.
"I believe everyone is here," White Knight types.
Rex gulps. Then he places his fingers on the keyboard. "Has everyone been briefed on the events of tonight?"
"Some kid claimed to be the de facto leader of Providence," Calan writes. "And mentioned something about shutting it down. Is this true?"
And that's the question isn't it? Should Rex shut down to the only link he has back to his past? And if he does, would it be the same as losing these people forever? He hesitates for a second before typing: "Yes. I am shutting down Providence. I will be purging all the information. Providence will never have existed."
There's an outrage of furious typing and words pop on the screen at rapid speed. But then White Knight writes, "Makes sense to me."
"This channel was breached by an unknown source," he continues. "It will be far better to purge everything that connects back to Providence in case it leads to us."
Rex bites his lips. How would White Knight react if he knew that it was the leader of Providence who unknowingly caused that breach? But if it's going to help Rex right now, then it's better this way. He'll completely wipe off Providence and… And then what? Hell, why is he wiping off Providence in the first place? Shouldn't he keep them around and gather information about himself? What's he thinking?! He should be stopping this!
"Ah, so we're just moving then!" Calan writes. "You need to be clearer with your words, Quarry."
…
What?
Rex blinks slow, staring at the screen. Then he turns to look at the others. Cricket's sitting on the table, entertaining both Circe and Walter with a story. Apparently they don't need to be worried about any security guards or something.
"Hey guys, who's the leader of Providence?" he asks them.
"You are," Cricket says automatically. Then she pauses, a worried look on her face. "Why? What happened?"
And suddenly, everyone's over by the computer, staring at the screen. Circe frowns. "Rex, what's gotten you spooked? Everyone's saying that they're okay with shutting Providence down. Isn't that what you wanted?"
Well yes. But… But why did Calan call him Quarry? Oh gods, what if this is one of those identity mishaps where Quarry actually doesn't exist and he's actually just a figment of Rex's imagination? No, no. He needs to stop being ridiculous. Quarry messaged him on the cellphone, right? That means he actually does exist. He takes a deep breath and returns to the computer. Focus, he tells himself. Focus on the task in front of you…
Shut down Providence. But should he? On one hand, it's the best way to get information. But on the other hand… this can't be safe. A high schooler with the ability to control an agency like Providence? No matter how he looks at it, it's sketchy.
"Then I suppose this is goodbye," Rex types.
"Don't be a stranger!" Calan writes. Then he's gone.
And in the next few seconds, everyone leaves one by one, with some form of a goodbye message. Until finally, it's just Rex and White Knight left.
"Consortium cut the funding, didn't they?" White Knight writes. "I heard the rumors. They've gotten themselves a new toy. They don't need us anymore. You're not going to be restarting us any time soon."
Rex doesn't know the answer to this. But he figures it'll be better safe than sorry. So he just types, "Yes."
"I knew it," White Knight writes. "It was only a matter of time… But they're treading dangerous waters. I'd love to see them suffer."
"…Knight?"
"Ah, I'm not about to do anything crazy. Watch your back, Quarry. If they suspect anything, you'll be the scapegoat, after all."
Then White Knight's gone, leaving Rex with nothing but the black computer screen again. Taking a deep breath, Rex focuses all of his nanites as he types the next word: "Purge."
There's a small pause before the computer goes blank and restarts. Figuring that this will take care of the rest, Rex stands up.
"Okay. I'm good here."
"Great! Let's get out of here!" Cricket says, jumping off of the table with ease.
"How does ice cream sound?" Walter asks. "You know, as sort of a small celebration that we're all no longer part of Providence?"
"Ice cream, huh? You're just dead-set on becoming fat," Circe teases.
Rex sighs softly. Maybe things will be okay. Maybe he's really going to be able to change everything and-
"Hey you kids! What are you doing here?"
"Oh crap! It's Bobo! Run!"
Five minutes later, the four of them are sitting on the steps of the school, one angry Bobo Haha glaring down at them.
"You thought you guys are so clever!" Bobo snaps. "Thought no one will notice if you guys snuck in on Friday night, eh? Well, tough!"
"Please don't call our parents!" Cricket begs, looking at Bobo with wide eyes. "Look, you can call the cops or discipline us yourself or whatever. Just don't call our parents!"
Even though Cricket is the one saying these things, it's Circe who looks to be panicking the most. She's clutching her arms close to herself, hunching in as if that can make her smaller. So the story that she did tell Rex was the truth…
"Oh? So that's your biggest concern? Then I guess your parents are going to be getting a late-night call-"
Whack!
The group stares dumbfounded as a figure stands over Bobo's collapsed body with what appear to be a piece of rock.
"You guys okay?" the person asks.
"Tuck!" they exclaim in relief.
"This is why I keep telling you to be more vigilant when sneaking around," he complains, shaking his head slightly. "And also to include me when you're going to do stupid things."
Cricket hugs him right away, quickly followed by Walter. Rex and Circe hang back a little. Circe's still hugging herself tightly, almost as if she's too coiled up to be allowed to be released. Rex offers her an encouraging smile, and it's only when she smiles shakily back that Rex decides that she's going to be okay. With that, he turns to face Tuck.
"Rex, I…" Tuck begins.
"No, let me start. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shove everything on to you."
"No! Don't think like that. I... I know I didn't go about it the right way but-"
"Tuck, relax. It's fine. Things all worked out."
Tuck frowns. "What do you mean?"
"Providence. It's shut down."
"Oh…" Tuck says. There's a look in his eyes that says that he's not fine. He tries to grin brightly, but the look in his eyes doesn't go away. "Well, great! No more Providence! Are we celebrating?"
"Yeah! With ice cream!"
Tuck laughs but it sounds fake and wrong, like sandpaper rubbing together. Like a toy that's slowly running out of battery. "Then let's get to it!"
And Rex knows that it's not over yet.