by The Eurostar
Edulcore Cicciotto:
The five beings who appeared when Naecken vanished still lie unconscious, and I am wondering what we can do to discover who they are, when M'xy turns to me and says, "Hey, Euro, there is a problem... without the help of Naecken, soon I will not be able to keep the headquarters up."
"Headquarters? You mean this hole on the bottom of the Lake Michigan?" I say, laughing.
"It's not a laughing matter... in an hour, the water will break into these rooms!" says M'xy.
"Merda!" I exclaim in Italian, and you can all imagine what it means. "If we return to the surface, the MCCA will find us, while if we stay here, we all do the mice's end?"
"Huh?"
"We all die drowned!"
"Ah... so, what do you suggest?" asks M'xy, and both Danny and Tobias watch me, waiting for an answer.
"Hey, who has made me leader?" I shout. "I haven't a clue to how resolve this situation!"
"Well, you are the oldest of us, the one with the most experience," says Tobias.
"Experience? Just yesterday I discovered that there is a conspiracy to enslave all the metahumans of the Earth and maybe to sell the planet to invading aliens, and today I should lead a metahero team? This is just plain crazy!"
"Well, it's not crazy, I can assure you," says Danny. "It's in the history ebooks!"
"What? Oh, right, you are from the future!" I exclaim. If this guy speaks the truth, like Naecken said he does, he must know what will happen. "Danny, if you know what's going to happen, now's the moment to speak."
"I don't know if I should. That could cause some sort of time paradox, don't you think?"
"Danny, this is reality. If you speak, I assure you that no robot from the future will come to shut your mouth. Come on, tell us what you know!" I say, with an imperative look that somehow seems to reassure the boy.
"Well, it's not much. I didn't have a formal education, I never really read a history ebook. But everyone in my time knows about the Revolution of 2002. It was started by six men, known as the Ghost, the Gentleman, the Speedster, the Angel, the Animal Man and the Madman, who was their leader. What happened after, I don't know. I know of them from a fairy tale for kids, but my mom said that they were real."
"Good. Obviously they are us -- those names describes us perfectly. So we have to start a revolution! Good, it was just what I needed to hear."
"But who is the Madman?" asks Tobias.
"Are you joking?" I ask, a bit harsh. "Any one of us could be rightly labeled as madman."
"But he should be a sixth person, the leader you don't want to be. Maybe the experienced person we need."
"Experienced? At what? The metahero game? Need I remind you that metaheroes have never existed before us? If we can call ourselves metaheroes, and that has yet to be proven."
M'xy intervenes, "Okay, okay. First things first. What do we do now?"
I watch them all. "Please, everyone go into the other room. I need to be alone to think."
When they have all left, I turn toward the center of the room. And there, the five beings now stand on their feet, looking at me right in my eyes.
"Eurostar, sit and pay attention to us. We will not repeat our warnings," says the human one, a man in his mid-twenties.
"I are Naecken," the blue little man says. "After the battle, I were so tired, that split in my former selves to regain energies. Soon the process will be completed, and Naecken will be one. But for now, I are tired, and must sleep."
"Don't fear for this hideout. It will last, and it will grow. The forces of Hell, Heaven, and of realms you have never heard of, are at work here. Don't fear, it will last," says the demon.
"You are good, Eurostar, but you can't lead these men. A man of experience is needed, a warrior from many battles, one whose sight taps into other realities. Find him in Chicago. Just follow this sphere," says the old man, producing a ball of energy that floats from his right hand toward me, positioning itself just above my head.
"Last, Eurostar. Call yourselves the MBL. These letters mean nothing for you, but bear a great meaning for the gods that watch over you and your kind. One day you'll find a sense for those letters. Until then, just accept this name. Now going back to sleep. I are still too tired..." And, with those words, the five beings sit and then lie on the ground of the cavern, each one back to sleep.
I leave and rejoin my comrades. "Guys, I am going to find the Madman. The five sleeping beauties in the other rooms are Naecken. This sphere of energy will bring me to our leader. Also, soon Naecken will be back in his former appearance. Until then, don't fear for the cavern, it will resist. Actually, Naecken said it is growing into something new."
"So, are we ready to go?" asks Tobias.
"No, I'm going alone. I am basically invisible, so the MCCA will not suspect anything. You stay here, watch over the five Naecken beings, and you, Danny, try to remember that fairy tale. Maybe we can find something useful about our immediate future. Now I go."
The sphere of energy leaves, and I follow it. It's strange how many weird counselors I have met in the last few days. First those strange gods, then the backward-talking dwarf, and last, the old bearded man with the leather coat. And now, these five freaks. I bet I am going crazy. The sphere is heading right to the outskirts of the city. Parking lots, old buildings, a dismissed railway... the energy ball points toward an unused apartment building... and phases into the ground.
I follow it... and find myself inside an underground garage. There is an old Ford Fiesta, surrounded by tons of garbage... stuffed animals, toy guns, old Halloween costumes, an inflatable dinosaur, a big poster with the picture of a penny. And a long line of portraits, hanging from one of the wall.
I go toward them. It's the same photo, each one altered slightly in a different manner with a felt tip pen. One of the men has a pair of moustaches, one a seventeenth century wig, another a domino mask, and so on.
"Eurostar! I was just looking for one of you!" I turn back. There is a man in his late twenties or early thirties, his accent clearly British. How can he see me? "You know, I don't like to work with a team anymore, but the MBL needs me now. I know certain things."
The sphere has disappeared. This is the man I was looking for. Oh mamma! "Where is the headquarters now, Euro? Still in Thunder, or in one of the old places, like the Moon or Limbo?" he asks. What the heck is he talking about?
"Oh, and how is the kid? Still eating all those rats every day?" I don't know what to say. This is clearly a disturbed man, but his condition applies perfectly to a man known as "the Madman." I would just like to know what could he be useful for...
"I heard you died, Euro. But it's the same story, no metahero stay dead forever. Do you remember that time in Russia in the year 1900, with you, me and Agent F7? There was also the Time Trustee Tempus." The names are familiar. Agent F7 was an agent of the Mandelovian Security Corps who died in a suicide mission, whose lover was Lorena, the Lioness. And Tempus... that name sounds vaguely familiar, like something from a dream.
"You were trapped in the Phantom World, and I, Nowhereman, rescued you from your evil clone," the man continues.
Nowhereman. A metahero name. Two days ago I would have turned my back to this man without a second thought, but an angel has told me to find him. And what did he say? His sight can tap into other dimensions?
"Yeah, Nowhereman, I'm Eurostar. And sadly, my son is in danger. The whole MBL is in danger, and we can use your help." Have I really just said these words?
"Okay! My Nowheremobile will bring us to the headquarters in a matter of minutes," he says, jumping inside the Fiesta.
"No!" I shout. "I mean, the new headquarters is below water. It's better if I bring you there."
I touch him, and, both turned into ghosts, we rise to the star-filled night sky, and, on the breath of the wind, we fly toward the lake. I turn slightly denser, and our descent into the lake begins. Deep down, the darkness embraces us.
Then I spot a long tunnel, with walls made of fire. We enter it. This is Naecken's doing.
At the end of the tunnel, we exit in a vast expanse over a lake blue as the sky. Hovering above the lake, in mid-air is an island of white clouds, like something out of a dream or a fantasy painting. Upon this cloud island is a classical temple made of golden marble. Naecken had said that our new hideout would last, and grow. He wasn't kidding. We fly there.
On the front stairs that lead into the temple, five beings await us: Naecken, the blue angel with little horns, white glowing eyes and silver wings, wearing a cybersuit adorned with arcane symbols, M'xy, in a magician's tailcoat suit with a top hat, Tobias, wearing blue armor with a silver lighting bolt across his chest, and finally Danny, with a cool-looking black leather suit.
On the pediment of the temple, where the pillars meet the arch pointing into the sky, only three letters are engraved in the marble: MBL.