Play Testers Wanted Pt. 11

"It has got to be the PKD blaster," I said feeling the weight and balance of it in my hand. The other two fords vanished, and Rick turned to face me.

"Great choice kid," he said addressing me. "Oh hey, I almost forgot... here." He reached into his jacket pocket and handed me a hand sewn leather square. "Open it up." He directed so I held the bottom and gave my wrist a flip. The badge holder unfolded and inside was a polished metal shield and engraved on it were the following words. 'Negamage First Class.' "Great job kid, maybe I'll see you out there. Good luck."

He placed his hand on my shoulder before turning to leave. I felt a whoosh of power as Lara opened a hush tube. Unlike the boom tubes I had seen in the cartoons this one was silent, shadowy, and difficult to see if you weren't looking at it straight on. Oh yeah, I was going to dig having this at my disposal.

Golden Goblin Press:

The other end of the tube resolved itself in Talia's living room. Another difference I noted when Lara and I stepped out of the hush tube was that loose papers, light objects nearby, or even the curtains over the windows were not disturbed by the manifestation of the portal. This was some serious stealthy technology. Talia was asleep on the couch and her current form resembled that of a Hindu goddess with her four arms wrapped around her curvy torso. Her eyes flickered opened and she smiled up at me.

"I was worried when you left." She stated groggily and proceeded to yawn. "Sorry. You made a new friend I see."

"Thanks for everything," I said, and she blushed. "I am heading off to the Golden Goblin Press. My gut tells me that it is a lynch pin to events." It might lead me to why Talia's brother killed himself. He knew he was going to die, but I don't know why, and I feel that was critical. Something bad was on the horizon and we were woefully ill prepared. Was it my ability to fold time that was giving me these feelings of foreboding?

"I can't leave with you." Lara declared. "But I can give you this." She said handing me a small cube. "Thank you, Booker you... you saved my life and I repay my debts."

"Thank you." I said as she vanished. I examined the cube and found it was the schematics of a simplified Father Box. Its main abilities were reduced to creating hush tubes while the one Lara possessed had many other abilities not included here. "It is a start."

I looked at the front door and hesitated. I had learned much and a lot of it I didn't like. What did he mean when he said my body was in eastern Europe?

"Sur... oh right... Traci are you still there?" I called out as Talia watched sleepily.

"I am here. What can I do to serve?" She asked as she manifested.

"Can you access my BMI?" I asked.

"Well, of course. I monitor its function on a regular basis." She stated confidently. "It is functioning quite normally."

"That is good to know. Can you back trace my body's location via satellite network?" I asked wanting to know if he had lied or in fact revealing a terrible truth.

"It will take time. The system is not designed for that function." She replied. "I will focus my full attention upon finding your body."

"What happened to Surfer I wonder?" I muttered aloud not really expecting an answer.

"I do not have the security clearance to answer that question." Traci stated and I felt a chill run through me. Surfer gone and Traci's security level diminished that didn't sound good. Had the men from the Order have anything to do with that? I would have to stay online so that Traci could track my body. I didn't want to logoff now. I couldn't lie to myself. I was terrified of finding myself on an examination table or worse. Better to move on and wait for things to resolve themselves in their own time.

Speaking of time, it was time to leave the House of Tohl. I stepped out into the real world and after being in the clutches of a timeless realm I would swear I could now feel the inexorable forward momentum of the normal flow of time. It was like standing in the middle of a fast-flowing stream and feeling its tug all about me instead of just feet and ankles.

'Steph,' I sent my thoughts her way. I did a search for the location of the Golden Goblin Press and teleported there. Once more a flash of red-gold flames announced my arrival. I was going to have to get a handle on that. A portal opened above me, and Steph drifted down.

"Hello, what's going on?" Steph asked planting a kiss on my cheek.

"Suicide at Avenger Tower. I am following up on a lead." I informed her. "The Tohl collection came out of here." I stated pointing to the front door of the building and didn't miss the fact she was wearing the famed Eye of Agamotto.

"I see. So, you wanted back up?" She asked.

"No, I wanted your opinion on a bad feeling that has been building." I said trying to impart the intangible to her.

"I've felt it too," she said with a thoughtful expression. "Shall we?"

There was a sign on the store that said, 'be back in 1 second'. That was strange I'd never seen a sign like that before. I tried the door, but it was locked. I peeked in and saw what looked like a robbery going on. I slammed my shoulder into the door, and it didn't budge. With my enormous strength and yet it resisted my best shot. I looked for magic and it was there at an epic level.

"It is sealed, and it looks like the place is being robbed." I told Steph. She immediately attempted to dispel the magic. It failed.

"What the hell?!" She cursed.

"The sign," I said. "I got this!" I placed my hand on her shoulder and folded time and pushed one second into the future. I opened the door and we rushed in. Steph seemed stunned by my little ability while I went on the offensive. There were six of them in deep hoods, heavy leather gloves, and trench coats. The Darksaber was in my grasp and activated before I was even conscious of the effort. I cut down one of them and it let out an inhuman cry as it fell.

"You two take the trunk," one of them said in a wet slobbering voice as the rest created a living wall between us and the fleeing thieves. I caught a blast of mystical energy on the black blade. There was little room for fanciful combat in the tight confines of the store. They were all bunched up making them easy targets and forcing them to stumble over one another until one of them leapt straight and clung to the ceiling. I watched helpless as the two thieves left with the damn trunk.

"By the Crimson Bands of Cytorrak!" I shouted and ensnared the two hulking creatures bunched up together hoping Steph would take out the one on the ceiling since I might be blocking her line of sight. She didn't. He sprung at me and went at my throat. My spell broken the others went on the offensive. "Steph!! Some help here."

"Sorry!" She called out as a whirlwind picked up the things on top of me and flung them all over. I called my weapon back to my hand and proceeded to murder them to death. I halted in killing the last one when it spoke to me.

"It is you... again!" It snarled. I telekinetically ripped the hood off the thing and staggered back.

"Oh no," I cried out in shock.

"Oh yes," the thing shrieked as it leapt at me. Instinct took over and it was dead before I had a chance to question it.

"Damn!" I snapped.

"What is wrong?" Steph asked. "Besides hesitating."

"Remember the iceberg incident? Remember those evil fuckers I buried? They've evolved." I snarled staring at the dissolving corpses.

"How did you do that?" Steph asked ignoring the bad guys evaporating.

"Do what?" I asked.

"Do it again," she ordered. "How you unlocked the door. Do it again."

"Fine," I replied not used to her be so testy. I shifted one second ahead and then back again. "There."

"I don't understand how you are doing it." She said as a middle-aged man popped up from behind the counter.

"Thank you," the man said but Steph ignored him.

"When you do that it affects the Eye. But how?" She asked as the man produced freshly brewed tea out of nowhere. "Do it again. Watch the Eye and tell me what you see." Her tone brooked no argument. I did as she asked as the man poured the tea. I watched the relic around her neck as I folded time. The stone hidden within flickered and glowed. I slowed time more and the harder I pushed time the brighter the stone became. There must be a relationship between my ability and the time stone. I let go and everything snapped back to normal.

"I see what you mean." I told her. "The Eye is reacting to my ability to fold time and space."

"When did you start doing that exactly?" She asked as she sipped her tea.

"Picked it up from a goddess actually," I replied, and she smiled. "Istus. Ever heard of her?"

"No and that is surprising." She said clearly frustrated at not understanding the smallest details of the famed Eye of Agamotto. It had been in her possession for so long and to suddenly discover a new aspect to it must be unsettling. That would be like me finding out something new about my mask or armor. They are two of my oldest possessions and I knew them better than any other pieces of equipment. The shop keep popped up and spoke breaking my thought process.

"Istus, nice lady, a bit stiff around the collar," the shop owner added without prompting. I turned to face him and looked closer at him. At first glance he'd pass for human he wasn't though. Perhaps it was my shifting skills, but his coloring was a bit off and then other smaller details came to light. His blue eyes had oval shaped pupils and then I noticed when the light hit his eyes the irises narrowed to cat like slits. Demon? He began explaining the time stone.

"I'm surprised you don't know how it works." Now it was Steph almost glaring at him. "Time and the other fundamental forces of the multiverse are contained and controlled through ingots that manifest those forces. The universe is the way it is because of these stones. When you use a spell, mutant ability or the like, you tap into one or more stones to manifest that effect. Your ability to fold time is granted by a divine, and so it draws more on the stone than many."

"I feel so stupid," I said while Steph remained wise and silent.

"Yes, but don't beat yourself up over it," he said, and we all laughed.

"What was in the trunk they stole?" I asked and he shrugged.

"While most of the things folks drop off, sell, or purchase I know what they are. There are always exceptions of course. That crate was one of them. It has been here since the dark ages. Safely contained until today, again, don't fret humanity may survive what follows." He said.

"May?" Steph finally spoke.

"You of all people know that there are no guarantees." He said. She just nodded wearily. "I can let you off in the year the crate has reentered the mortal realm."

"Let's get this over with," Steph growled. "I hate time travel."

"Winter 1929, off you go, better change your costumes." He suggested. Steph just gestured and her robes of office changed to an elegant dress, hat, fur coat, and boots. My armor shifted to a double-breasted pin stripe suit, fedora, and walking stick to hide my Darksaber.

We exited the shop just as a boy flew by on a strange looking bicycle. Two sets of wings were attached to the wheels along with a propeller on the back, as he pedaled the underside of the wings glowed and spun the propeller.

"Howard!! Slow down boy," a middle-aged man shouted as he ran after the boy. He stopped as he gasped for breath clearly winded from trying to keep up with the boy. The boy turned the floating bike around and joined his father near the front of the building where we were standing.

"Sorry dad," the boy Howard apologized. "The repulse field is weak but enough to lift me and the bike a bit."

"We have bigger fish to fry," the older man declared to his son. When I heard repulse field my first thought was Toni Stark of course. That must mean that the boy is Howard Stark, Toni's grandfather or perhaps even great-grandfather.

"Did he build that fine machine?" I asked addressing the father.

"Not on his own, but he did much of the work." The man said.

"Clever lad, must take after you." I stated and the man stood taller, ramrod straight, and threw back his shoulders in obvious pride.

"I believe so," the man said and then continued. "Anthony Stark," he said offering me his hand which I accepted and shook. "Excellent grip you've got there Mr.?" He said searching for my name.

"Dark, Derrick Dark," I said off the top of my head and using the Stan Lee naming convention.

"Stephanie Strange," Steph offered her hand to him.

"No relation to Dr. Strange I suppose?" He asked. "Brilliant surgeon."

"Distantly," Steph replied surprised that Stark knew her ancestor.

"Say goodbye Howard, I have a meeting this evening." Anthony Stark urged his son.

"A pleasure to meet you both," Howard said as he and his father walk off the boy pushing his bike alongside him.

I glanced at Steph and couldn't help but smile. She suggested we visit the Tohl home and work our way from there. We took a cab and I was half expecting a certain cabbie to show up, but he didn't. A short squat fellow was behind the wheel and spoke with a heavy Irish accent. I opened the door for Steph and let her climb in the back. The rear of the cab was spotless and for a New York cab that was impressive. He must have just vacuumed it out. I gave the cabbie, Mitch by name and ginger by nature from the wisps of red hair poking out from under his cap, the address. He slid into traffic with ease and I found myself enjoying the view of 1920's New York. The number of skyscrapers was greatly diminished well they hadn't been built yet, and an entirely different cityscape existed. I was loving it.

"Never been to the Big Apple before?" Mitch asked seeing me looking out the window intently.

"I've never seen this side of it." I said being honest.

"Well, if you want, I'll play tour guide for you fine looking people." He began and then began to narrate our drive. I liked it. Steph saw that and smiled. She reached out and clasped my hand our fingers intertwining. "Oh, the Old Tohl place," Mitch commented when he realized our destination. "That family has been around since the beginning." What a strange thing to say I thought since we were nearly a century in the past, he described it as old. It was also the way he said it. It was almost with a kind of dereference, no, that isn't right, it was unadulterated reverence. The breathless way he said the name Tohl. Why was that I wondered. I paid the fare and tipped nicely. I got out, walked to the other side of the cab, and helped Steph out.

"Steph?" I stated as I offered her a helping hand.

"Thank you." She said with a blush.

Once out of the cab we approached the front door of the stone structure when the next-door neighbor, a short brutish woman called out as she shoveled snow from her steps.

"No use, no one is home." She greeted us with a disapproving face. "You two at least look normal or appear to be acting normal."

"Something happened?" Steph asked watching the woman intently.

"Happen? I can't expect everyone to know about that strange girl and her dire effect upon poor Mr. Tohl." She licked her lips as she wove her tale. "This poor wretch, or so we believed, appears out of nowhere, naked, in the middle of the street. One moment the street is empty and then poof like magic that naked hussy emerges out of thin air. Poor Mr. Tohl took her in, and her madness became his. Both were taken away in strait jackets and bless their souls they are being treated for their illness." She regaled us with an almost fevered gaze, madness indeed. "She reminds me of my father and oh what a wicked devil he was!" She exclaimed with an almost erotic tone in her voice.

"Where can we find them?" I asked while Steph seemed distracted again.

"They are up near Boston, a little town called Arkham." The neighbor said in a tone that could only be described as glee. She seemed to get off on her neighbor's misfortune.

"Thanks, we'll... Steph? I'll be on my way." I gasped as I looked around and the Sorceress Supreme was gone. She vanished while I stood talking to that strange woman. I did the only thing I could think of. I bent time once more to my will and received a vision of what transpired while I was busy. Steph seemed interested in the conversation when suddenly her face went pale, she placed a hand over her heart, or more likely the Eye of Agamotto, and while no one was watching she quietly teleported away. Clearly, she had something on her mind. I would continue without her for now. I let go and time snapped back to the present.

I turned and left. I walked down the street seeking the solace of shadows. They were there in plenty. The winter sun made them in a generous number. I walked into a large tenebrous shape cast by an ancient tree and merged with it. I delved deeper and found an appropriate corresponding shadow at the edge of the town of Arkham. When I was sure no one was watching I transitioned smoothly and with Darksaber in hand as a walking stick, I strode down the lane towards Arkham Asylum. It was a bleak landscape without it being the beginning of winter. The snow and slush gave the land a desperately stark monochromatic quality and made me wonder at the poor souls within that had only this dreariness to look upon.

"Poor bastards," I commented to myself as clouds slid between sun and earth. I shivered and not just from the small drop in temperature. I reached the front gates and with three carefully modulated words I was allowed within. "I am expected." I said using Kaia-Jutsu.

"Of course," replied the guard with a smile. "Let me be the first to welcome you to Arkham Asylum."

"Thanks." I said and made my way to the main building. It was an ancient structure, formerly a monastery, a school, and known to few it was designed and built by a necromancer for far more sinister purposes. Apparently, the guard called ahead, and someone was at the front door to greet me. "I am here to see a patient, Mr. Tohl." I slid past the intern's defenses with ease and he enthusiastically gave me a brief tour before taking me to Tohl's cell. This was the 1920's and there was little difference it appeared between a prison and a sanitarium. The elderly Tohl, Lawrence by name, rocked in the corner of his cell.

"Mr. Tohl, you have a visitor." The young man stated as the drugged patient turned to face me.

"Is it you again Yog-Sothoth?" He replied with his hollow eyes, gaunt appearance, and haunted aura. "Wait, I know you." Lawrence Tohl said. "You are Toni's friend. I saw the footage of you and her with the other Avengers."

"He talks about Toni and these Avengers quite a bit in his more lucid moments. Normally he just shrieks until we can sedate him." The intern explained.

"What is your name?" I asked.

"Me," the drooling man asked. "My name is Jason Tohl. I am a senior research manager for Stark Industries." I stared into the man's eyes and found a single spark of sanity. I touched his thoughts and blew on that speck until it blazed into a cleansing flame. He blinked and looked around.

'Calm yourself, I am your friend. Relax and be at peace.' I sent silently and Jason Tohl nodded and smiled.

"Amazing," the intern exclaimed. "Will you look at that! I've heard of people that could speak with animals and sooth them, but this, well this is just amazing."

"Leave us for a bit to chat." I ordered and the intern went off to find his mentor and tell him the good news.

"Jason. How? How did you end up here?" I asked and he explained.

Fade In: Flash back to the future.

For the last few months, I had been having strange dreams. My research for Ms. Stark as well as some side work affiliated with the main target must have inspired them. Ms. Stark was peering into the primal forces that formed our universe. My family had long known things most didn't, and many disregarded the stories. But there it was the briefest glimpse at a possible origin of everything we knew. Two universes colliding and instigating the Big Bang. One universe of Euclidean geometry and normalcy. The other one of Non-Euclidean madness and purest insanity. Was it any wonder that the macro or visual universe abides by knowable laws while the micro or subatomic universe defies conventional logic and means of understanding? In truth ours is a blend of the two formative universes made manifest.