Drakena the Destroyer: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you're enjoying it so far. Here's another chapter for you.
Disclaimer: The League is not mine. It probably never will ever be. Don't sue me; I have nothing.
It was a sunny day. The Nautilus landed on a rocky beach. As the League walked inland, the landscape became a forest. The trees were covered with so much ivy that some had curtains hanging off their branches.
"Hey, Nemo," Skinner called out, "I hate to be the first one to complain, but when are we going to get to some actual civilization?"
"Soon," replied Nemo in a neutral tone.
"Should hope so," Skinner said. "We've been walking for hours."
"It's only been thirty minutes," Jekyll said, checking his pocket-watch.
"Thanks, doc. I really wanted to know that," Skinner retorted.
Nemo stopped in his tracks. "We're here."
"Great, but where exactly is here?" Tom asked.
"Here," Nemo replied as he pulled back one of the ivy curtains, revealing a large building that was overgrown with ivy. Any metal that could be seen looked brand new. Everyone looked at the building with awe. Skinner gave a low whistle.
As the League approached the building, they were greeted by a young woman who looked like she was in her late twenties. She was wearing a dark red dress, which lay slightly above the ankle, with heels. Her black hair hung down past her shoulders and had a little bit more than a decent amount of make-up covering her pale face.
"Ah, you must be the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen…and women," she said with the same kind of flair that a party hostess would. "I hope you had a pleasant trip. If you will just follow me, I'll show you where you will be starting."
"Well, they certainly know how to make a first impression," Skinner muttered as he watched her walk inside.
The inside of the building was extravagant. The walls were pure white as was the ceiling, from which hung chandeliers. Marble columns had been placed about the room in a way that was both functional and fashionable. Around the room, people either were busy typing at desks or trying to get to their next destination as quickly as possible. Nemo was the first to speak.
"Umm… excuse me, Ms…"
"Crawford," the woman replied."But you can call be Roselinda if it makes you feel more comfortable."
"A beautiful name," Skinner commented.
Roselinda looked over at him and gave her eyes a bat.
"Why, thank you."
While the other members of the League exchanged looks, Nemo cleared his throat.
"Yes, Ms. Crawford, what is it that this establishment does?" Nemo inquired.
"The Wave is a science research and development facility that works on finding the technology of the future." Roselinda explained as the group walked down a hallway. "There are many specialists here, from engineers to scientists. Ahh, here we are."
They had stopped in front of a large pair of double doors made of solid oak.
"This is where your investigation starts. Behind these doors is where we keep track of everything," The doors screeched as she pushed them open. "Or at least used to."
From what was left, the room had used to be a large library. The ceiling had been blown off. Everything else was either burnt or covered in soot. The League looked around in disbelief. Mina reached toward a book to pick it up. It disintegrated as soon as she touched it.
"What happened?" Tom asked.
"About six months ago, we were infiltrated by a small group. All we know is that they knew enough to blow up three of our facilities and," Roselinda said as she gestured around, "the file room."
"This is where we kept all the information of our experiments," she continued, looking around with a sad expression. "Since everything was destroyed, there is no way of knowing if they took anything with them when they left."
"Was anyone hurt?" Jekyll asked. He had a look of shock on his face as he looked over what was left of the shelves.
"Unfortunately, many of the employees that were working that night died."
"I do not wish to sound insincere," Nemo interjected, "but what does this have to do with us?"
"Yes, don't you have guards that could be doing this?" added in Mina.
"Our guards are top of the line, with armor and weapons that haven't even been shown to the rest of the world yet," Roselinda barked back, her eyes wettening as she spoke, "and yet they were torn through like tissue paper. If that isn't bad enough, two men said they were beaten up by nothing." The League looked at each other with looks of knowing and shock. Skinner walked over to Roselinda and took her hand.
"Don't worry, luv. We'll find out what's goin' on," he consoled.
"Thank you," she responded, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Thank you so much." She gave his hand a quick squeeze before walking toward the door. Before leaving, she turned toward the League.
"If you need anything, just call and someone will be with you momentarily," was all she added before leaving the room.