Cielo's heart was practically jumping out of her chest walking in the hall leading to AJ's former office. Lila was an October 1st child. She had powers. She was most likely in love with Diego. And Five killed her parents so that the Handler would be able to adopt her. What in the actual fuck was happening around here? And what the hell was Cielo supposed to do to save everything?
She couldn't. That's the right answer to everything. The only answer that she could come up with was the give up. This was a plan that was created over 20 years ago. She was still new to time travel in the first place.
She couldn't separate her personal feelings from her work that AJ was taken so easily. She couldn't get Hazel to return nor deliver the Frankel Footage with the right message. She didn't save Diego from this place. Since meeting the Résistance, they've been the ones deciding how and where she should act.
To contrast that, the last thing they wanted was to save AJ. She thought that if there should be one thing that brought them together it would have been in the chairfish. Instead they wanted her to prepare for when, not if, she has to take his spot. They were blind if they didn't realize that she was the worst option to be their next chairperson.
Creeping closer to the office's door, she heard two voices talking inside. Barely coming close enough to hear more of the Handler's manipulation tactics on her adopted daughter. Framing Diego for being a pawn of Five's wasn't too out of the question for the image that Lila had of the old man. A few theories accompanied by a soft tone towards a broken girl was all it took. This was all in the Handler's palm to play with.
Lila stormed out of the office, not noticing Cielo panic hiding behind a potted plant. For a second, Cielo felt bad for the girl. She had no idea that she was being used as a super powered puppet. The moment the Handler loses interest in her, she was a goner. And if she assisted in the erasure of the Umbrella Academy, that time was going to come sooner than she even knew was coming.
There wasn't time to go after the girl though as Cielo heard a 'bang' come from the office. "Did you enjoy the show you little floatsam? I don't know how you did it but I know your handy work. I'm sure you think you're very clever. But this wasn't the work of you alone. Oh no no no, this was your little protégé's work. I'm going to enjoy gutting her."
The moment the Handler stuck her finger into the fish bowl, Cielo slammed the door open. Screw being covert. She walked in, keeping her eyes on both the fish and his self-claimed owner. "Take your dirty ass finger away from the Commission chairfish."
The Handler removed her hand from the bowl. Flicking the water onto the floor. "Finally making your grand appearance?"
"I am. Now that I'm here, I'm going to demand that you release your hostage and turn yourself in."
She laughed. "And who's gonna make me? You? Please, I'm already in a good mood with my swearing in around the corner. I don't need your jokes today. I appreciate the care though. Is this, perhaps, a start to an amazing friendship?"
"Dream on Handlebar. I don't plan on ever being friendly with the likes of you." The Handler's heels tapping on the marble floors as she walked towards Cielo. The sound being nothing like her calming watch's ticks. This was echoing loudly to demand attention. Much like the one walking.
"Why not? We're on the same side here. We're the ones protecting the timeline. Five? He has no regard for it. His family is the same. Us, here, in the Temps Commission need to stick together to get rid of these threats."
"Stick together? Were you thinking about Time when you told him to kill the board? Giving him false beliefs that a random briefcase would bring him back to 2019 without the apocalypse?"
"You think too much like the old heads. Who says that the apocalypse has to happen? Even AJ never found out the reason for that."
"I'm offended that you think I'm stupid. You and I both studied those possibilities. The apocalypse follows them. I don't need to see the analytics of that briefcase to know that it would have brought them to one where they would have been killed on the spot. That is their fate. Even without them, there will always be an end. No briefcase alone will fix that. If you were truly on my side, you would dedicate the same amount of time that I have to find that solution. Not further solidify their place."
"Ah yes, I remember hearing that you were particularly fond of studying about the 2019 apocalypse. But is that really what you want? To spend the rest of your life here? I'm only trying to give you advice, Cielo. This isn't good for you. Five isn't good for you. Remember back in 2019? He left you to die in the apocalypse to go to his family. Same with this. Sacrificing AJ to save his family. You have the ability to be greater than he ever was. To that man, you are always going to be second to the Umbrella Academy."
None of what the Handler said affected Cielo. She knew that the apocalypse solution would probably take close to a lifetime to discover. Five and his desire to keep his family safe was no surprise. He told her all that he did for them back in 2019. Repeating back everything that made her pissed off wasn't going to change her position here.
The Umbrella Academy were not the only people that lived in 2019. Five was not Commission. She was here for those at the La Résistance and those in the world that were ignorant to all their work.
"Then where does that leave you?" The Handler glared at her boldness. "You want Five to be your loyal pawn but he disobeyed orders. He betrayed you too. Refused to rejoin after you offered in 2019. Then the Commission abandoned you; giving you a basic desk job. Meanwhile the Commission is still on my side. Five chose his family but he trusts me more than you. We both know that. All you have left is your daughter. The moment I remove kill order 743, you'll be all alone."
"You really underestimate Lila's loyalty. I raised her perfectly. She saw the kill order. It never crossed her mind that I could have been behind it. She is completely devoted to me."
"Yeah? So when she fell in love and recruited a member of the Umbrella Academy here, that was your command? You wanted a child that was born on October 1 to be here? Hard to believe that knowing her birth conditions." The Handler was good at remaining neutral. Cielo could see her eye slightly twitch though.
"That order didn't have anything about her birth on it." It was Cielo's turn to laugh.
"Now do you understand why Mister fish head recruited me? I know all about what makes your daughter so important that you had to fake a kill order. When she learns what you did, well, you should be smart enough to figure it out. It was so close to happening moments ago. Already she has fallen for Kraken. All she needs is a little nudge in the correct direction. One that I would happily give her. Unless you give me Mister fish head. If you don't hand him over I will tell your daughter the truth about everything with ISB video evidence to back it up. You'll be worthless and alone once more. Who do you value more?"
The Handler's greatest asset was also her greatest weakness. It played in her favour this time but there was doubt in Lila. Diego wasn't a mastermind to trick her like this. Love was messing with her head that if Cielo showed her hard evidence, it only made Lila a liability. A threat.
The Handler willingly stepped to the side with her hands up. Never letting that smug face drop. "Take him. Lila is my precious daughter that I could never abandon. Five and I, we're much alike that way. Family is very important. Just as Time is the same for us."
Cielo grabbed the fish bowl off the table. Holding it tightly in her arms as she backed away a safe distance.
She didn't deny it though. The Handler was the best example of logic, time management and selfish desire that both Cielo and Five represented respectively. In a perfect world she could conjure up a timeline that let everyone get what they wanted just as the Handler promised. One where the world wasn't exploding every week and everyone lived peacefully. She could picture it so easily that she hated herself for even thinking for a second to praise the Handler for her mind.
"Don't compare yourself to Five and I. It leaves a bad taste."
"You're nothing special Cielo. You can't save the world."
She closed her eyes, opening up her briefcase. "I know that. I'm a completely normal person."
Her eyes opened to see Herb. She was back in the safety of the basement. His eyes went straight to the bowl in her arms. "Mister Carmichael! You did it!"
"I did." He took the bowl out of her hands before collapsing to her knees.
"Miss Cavallone!" She shook her head as a sign to show that she was okay.
Putting up the act in front of the Handler draining her more than she would have liked. The Handler truly was a force to be reckoned with. They hardly ever interacted but she knew all the points to poke at to tick Cielo off. To match that kind of attitude was different from other confrontations she ever took part in.
It was all worth it. AJ was back and safe with them. Looking over at her mentor she didn't feel the comfort that she thought she would have. The koi fish did nothing but release a few bubbles and turn away. The smile on her face dropped. Her instinct was never wrong.
"We need to tell the rest of them immediately. All we need is a new translator for him and we can defeat the Handler." No. That wasn't going to work. All of this, the Résistance, the Umbrella Academy, Cielo herself, they were all played directly into the Handler's hands.
"No... I miscalculated. This... this isn't Mister fish head..."
"What?"
"Mister fish head- he- he never swam in circles so close to the edge." She shakily took the bowl from Herb to set on the table. The fish did nothing but swim around. It showed no sign of intelligence. This wasn't their chairfish. Their plans were dying off fast.
The Handler was too crazy. She let Herb see AJ knowing that the two would eventually join forces. That he would find Cielo and tell her the supposedly good news. She then swapped AJ for a random koi fish. Threatening it to get Cielo to come out of hiding. It worked too. The reveal of the kill order may have been a slip on her part but she was right. Lila's loyalty to her did not waver for a second. The Handler won before she even stepped foot back into Commission.
A knock on the door broke the silence between the two of them. A worker peeked their head through. "Um everyone is starting to get a bit antsy. We heard a briefcase returning. Did you manage to get Mister Carmichael back?"
"We um Miss Cavallone is back but um-"
She stood up. "I'll announce the news."
"We can do it together." Herb offered.
"No. This was my plan. I was the one that instilled this form of hope into them. Not you. I'll take responsibility for it." She tighten her grip on her briefcase as she moved to greet the Résistance in the other room.
There was a moment where Cielo wanted to collapse down crying. Mourn for her fallen mentor. To admit defeat and give up. But she couldn't. Outside this room were over a hundred workers that had their entire lives at stake. They depended on her because she asked them to. Showing them weakness will do nothing but shatter them. She had to remain strong for them. To maintain Time, Cielo had to be the one to suck up her own feelings.
She showed no emotion as she stood before them. The words got caught in her throat staring out at them all. But she had to tell them. It was only right that they heard from her. She'll play her role. Standing straight they all gave her the attention she dreaded.
"Before I start, I want to preface that I will bear all responsibility for what I have to say. Mister fish head, our chairfish, passed away earlier today. No longer is he an option to save us from this predicament."
Not a single person moved. The memory of the Handler telling them about the board's assassination came to mind. This was the same to them. A woman that could rule over Time telling them that there were no options. Their chairfish was announced dead for the second time by someone they didn't trust.
It wasn't over yet. She had to continue. "There will be time to mourn later. Right now we need to-"
"What?! What can we possibly do now?!" Someone shouted from the crowd. She couldn't see them but could hear the way their voices cracked. They were scared. They felt the same way as she did. As everyone in the room did.
"We regroup and collect ourselves. We would have had to elect a new board regardless in the future to come. He is merely another member we will have to replace as well."
"Are you kidding us?! Carmichael was the head!"
"That's right! What 'later' do we have without him?!"
"We're all dead meat without him!"
"He was going to save us all!"
She slammed her hand down on the podium. Silencing everyone in the room to hold their breath. "And how do you suggest he do that from his grave?"
No one spoke. In this moment, she was the only help they could get. They'd be damned if they choose to continue a useless argument that only further enraged her. "I understand your concerns. I share them myself. I will not lie to you and say that this will be easy. However, La Résistance's work is to take back the Commission. That is our goal. For the sake of protecting Mister fish head's legacy, all of yours lives and Time, I am willing to fight until I win. If that is not what you signed up for then I won't force you to continue. I just ask that you do not stop me."
It was one thing to ask them to support her. It was another thing to ask them to fight. They looked to AJ to regain his position and fix everything in one swish of his tail. Cielo had already failed them and it cost a valuable life. The last person they could trust was technically the last person that AJ was with. For all they knew she was the cause of this all strife.
Herb walked up next to her. Giving her a small smile. "I am willing to fight beside you."
"Really?"
"This is our home. And like you said, La Résistance's goal was to take it back from the Handler. Once we accomplish that, doesn't that just mean we're stronger than we think?"
"But what are we supposed to do against that crazy dictator?" Someone shouted.
"What is a dictator without followers? Commission is made up of those standing in this very room. I know that I haven't worked with many of you individually but I know that each one of have your skills that allowed our organization to run for so long. The Commission itself is already seen as impossible to the normal population. Overthrowing an evil tyrant isn't that hard."
"Miss Cavallone is right. We are the Temps Commission. Not the Handler. She couldn't even stay in the analyst position for a day before running to Mister Carmichael for her old position." There were a few giggles in the crowd.
This sparked hope into people. Another Commission member speaking up gave them the will to advance forward. One by one they raised their hands to step forward. The two standing in front of the room nodded at each other. Where Cielo made them see reality, Herb let them see possibility. She kept order. He kept the members that will perform in order. With the two of them together, all the members could see a chance to return.
"Keep yourselves keen. We are in no rush when Time is on our side. On this day of the apocalypse, we will reclaim our place. I promise you this."
"Hear hear!" They followed Herb's call.
Cielo nodded along to their cheers. Trying to maintain the confident appearance they held her too. She turned to Herb. "I'm going to do some maintenance on my briefcase. Watch over these guys?"
"You got it." She patted him on the shoulder. The room's light caught onto her watch to get her attention. Her mind went back to Five. The apocalypse hour should be approaching him fast now. For the second time. For her too. Doesn't make it easier for either one of them to manage.
Once in the backroom, she gently closed the door before falling to the floor. Pounding her chest as she tried to steady her breathing. Biting down in her lip to suppress any cries. She couldn't cry. Not yet. Not when she had to return to the Résistance in a few minutes and they would question her puffy eyes.
Hold it back. Hold it all back.
"Mister fish head... I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry."
"Recall all personnel from the field. We're going to war." The Résistance's members erupted into chaos hearing the Handler's instruction boom through the announcement system. There was no way that she didn't know about the Résistance's existence and their assistance in keeping Cielo safe.
"Everyone calm down!" Her shout did stop them talking but did not calm them down. She sighed heavily. "None of you are on field agents. If she wanted to go to war with you all, she wouldn't go through the effort of getting an army. You're all safe here."
"Then what do you think she's doing?" Herb whispered under everyone's settling.
"I fear she is going after Five and his family. Just to be sure, I'm going to need to check the ISB. I don't want these guys to worry about the potential of an actual war happening here so cover for me. I'll update you when I figure out what she's planning."
She checked the time. It had been a few hours since they had gotten Diego out so that the apocalypse was prevented. She wouldn't be surprised if they managed to create another earth ending disaster in these few hours. Until she could get the Handler out of office, they were stuck in a time era not of their own. That never ends well for anyone.
"Herb, you go with Miss Cavallone. I'll keep everyone together here." Dot offered.
"Are you sure? They might think something's off if both of us go missing after that notice."
"I'll manage. If anything, they would be more worried if you left without one of us going with you. You're not fully clear of the charges yet Miss Cavallone." She bit the inside of her lip. If Herb goes with her at least he can vouch if anything else goes wrong.
"Alright. Thank you Circle. Come on Grass." She didn't give him a chance to respond as she started running towards the nearest ISB room.
As they jogged through the empty halls, none of them said anything about what had to be done in order to make this place full of life as it used to be. If the Umbrella Academy didn't defeat the Handler once and for all, then what could a group of analysts and management nerds be able to do? They both spoke so confidently about how they could succeed but only they knew the real threat awaiting them. They had to place all their bets on the Umbrella Academy.
Being greeted by the system's red, flashing lights was not the first they wanted to see in the ISB room. Herb quickly shut those off while Cielo started to pinpoint why it the emergency system were reacting this way. Of course it led to a small barn just outside Dallas in 1963.
Thousands of Commission members had fallen. Dead or unconscious indeterminable. Changing the camera angles, they were speechless against the blue storm taking over the barn. The same blue light that Vanya emitted when she blew up the FBI building. Adjusting the angles again they were able to get a view inside.
Lila stood alone; surrounded by the Umbrella Academy. No one was making any movements to attack. Diego was the only one willing to do anything. He had figured out that she was one of them and what the Handler had planned for her. He was trying to reason with her.
That touching scene quickly changed to a mass massacre. Lila was left to confront her mother on her own. The confrontation not ending well for either side. As the final Swede stood before Five as the last one to take down, the image stopped.
The two watching Commission members' jaws dropped from everything that they just witnessed. "W-w- what happened? Why did it stop?"
Cielo ignored him. Staring at the frozen image. The ISB never malfunctioned like this. Unless something completely wiped out the entire world in that second, time was still flowing. It was almost as if the ISB was trying to process what was happening in that barn. Time was not flowing forward as it should be.
Her eyes drew to Five's body. His fists balled up with a small light radiating off of them. She knew that electrical static. "He couldn't have..."
She couldn't deny it though. The boy was still alive. He managed to jump himself and his family through multiple time periods through his own power. The more he practices, the more he becomes familiar with his jumps. A few seconds was all he needed to stop the Handler shooting everyone. It wasn't impossible for him.
All the wires started to get rearranged. Herb could only watch her as she skillfully invented a new set of wires pathways. It dawned on him what she was doing. Being an analyst, Herb only reacted to changes in the timeline and pushes it in the right direction. People like Cielo created new timelines to find a better suit. This time being a timeline where the Handler loses.
He jumped when the ISB started playing the barn scene again. The main difference was in Five's position. Instead of staying on his family's side behind Diego, he was behind the Handler with a rifle in hand. He actually managed to save them all and defeat the Handler. With the surrender from the remaining Swede, the escape of Lila and the barn kid calming down, it was over. The 1963 apocalypse was prevented.
"They did it." He turned to her. All their feelings of fear, anxiety and confusion finally turned to relief. They hugged each other, jumping while squealing loudly. "They did it!"
"We have to tell the others!" He nodded and moved to the announcement set that was similar to the one the Handler used to announce the war.
"Attention all Commission and La Résistance members, the Handler has been killed on the field. Her reign is over!" It was then that Cielo realized that they were now board-less. The Handler's region was over but then whose was starting?
Herb and the others already put it on her to take the position. It was happening so fast that that expectation was on her now. She didn't have AJ anymore. She didn't have the resources to find a new board under such short notice. The last thing she needed was to recruit people that turned out like the Handler. Quite frankly, there was only one person she fully trusted here to step up to the role.
She slightly pushed him aside to talk on the announcement set. "Everyone gather in the main lobby for further news."
Compared to Herb's celebratory message, Cielo's brought fear. All of them knew what was to come. Whether they liked it or not, they had to welcome a new era. There was too much to be done. Mourning one's death and celebrating other's was to come later. Everything kept getting pushed back.
In a lobby filled with over a hundred people, Cielo, Dot and Herb stood at the top. The tension filled everyone as they crammed into the space. All the nervous talk reached Cielo's ears. While the two on her sides showed their concern on their faces, she remained neutral. No one would trust her if she wore her emotions like them.
"Can I have everyone's attention?" Her projected voice caused them all to silence themselves. "As you all know with the recent assassinations we are now without a board and chairperson. In order to correct the timeline of all the changes that have occurred recently and maintain our usual routine, we must elect at least a chairperson first. Even if it's only a temporary position."
Eyes stayed on her. Instead she stepped to the side and brought Herb to the center. Handing her briefcase into his arms. "That's why I would like to nominate analyst and La Résistance's own leader to be the Temps Commission's new chairperson."
Everyone was taken by surprise. It was an honour to be the chairperson. Anyone would have loved the power and authority that came with the role. Not to mention that she was fitted for it. To pass it up to a regular Commission member like Herb was unexpected but not a hated decision.
"M-miss Cavallone I can't- you're more suited than I."
"Am I? Look at them." She gestured to all the Commission workers. "These people gathered here because of the trust they placed in you. You were the one to find me and keep me safe. You believed in my innocence despite us barely knowing each other. The Commission needs someone with your skill and dedication to lead them into a new era that neither Mister fish head nor Handlebar could ever think of doing."
"That's not me though." He turned to the crowd. "I nominate AJ Carmichael's protégé and time anomaly to be the Temps Commission's new chairperson."
"Grass don't. You are-"
He placed her briefcase in her arms to cut her off. "You, Miss Cavallone, are the one that Mister Carmichael scouted to be the best Commission could ever produce. Even better than I am. With how little you spent here, it's only a matter of when you can surpass my limits in analytics. The Commission needs your instincts and compassion to lead us to create something unimaginable that only an anomaly can do."
Dot grabbed her briefcase out of their hands, placing it on the floor. "I nominate both Herb and Cielo to be our co-chairpeople. These two are very capable individuals but as a pair they make up for each other's loss for the better. Having them of equal status in charge allows for everyone, both Time and Commission workers, to have a saying. What do the candidates have to say?"
The two looked at Dot in shock. Being co-chairpeople? That would be a first in Commission history. But then again, all of this has been a first. Neither of them were particularly ready to take on the position by themselves but together they could be a force to be reckoned with. Herb's leadership and Cielo's knowledge. No one chairperson could be both understanding and strict as they were together.
"I'm... I'm not against that at all. The decision is still yours, Miss Cavallone. I'll be fine with what you choose." No. Absolutely not. How was she supposed to be the new chairperson? Was this what AJ had planned all along when he took her under his fin? She was an anomaly that let others die for her safety. She didn't deserve the honour nor could she be responsible for everyone here.
She didn't have to turn her head to know that the majority of the people were waiting for her to say yes. They had no other option. They didn't know she screwed up or that AJ died in her place. They saw her as the one who helped lead them to this victory. They had so much belief in her to take on the position. Even if she denied it, she couldn't go back home. Her life as a normal prosthetist was shattered the day she accepted the briefcase. The day she chose to give Five the umbrella.
The only thing Cielo had left was the Commission. The status of her being the leader will always be in their heads. She had no other option but to accept.
"If you'll have me, I would be honoured to be co-chairperson with you."
"Oooo how fantastical this is!" Dot raised their hands above their heads. "Everyone, will you please join me in welcoming our new, temporary, co-chairpeople. Former chairfish, AJ Carmichael's protege Miss Cavallone and La Résistance's own leader Herb themselves! I have no doubt that these two will raise the Temps Commission to the best it will ever be."
The lobby erupted in applause and cheer while the two new leaders shyly thanked them. This place, these workers, and Time itself were all under their very inexperienced co-chairpeople. The look on Herb's face, though nervous, showed that he was ready to meet the cheers of those around them. Cielo on the other hand? She wanted to time travel forward to when the new board was elected.
Review
The true Hero of Skill: Thank you for being the first review here! Honestly the nicknames were originally meant to be show that she was a fan of the brellies but I just decided to go with it so thank you for loving them. I thought that if I used them too much some people would get confused so I'm glad you like it (and the story) :)
