Tuesday morning in Sowei City.
The sky was clear, a pleasant breeze was in the air, and Prime Minister Leo was taking a break from his duties, relaxing on the castle steps with a warm cup of coffee. A couple other people were at the scene. Nick, guarding the doors as per usual, and Renee, also enjoying a cup of coffee of her own. The perfect recipe for a relaxing day in the capital…
Rudely interrupted by what appeared to be a flying metal man in the sky. Leo of course, with his magical eyesight, recognized it at the superweapon armor, supposed to be safely stashed away, deactivated, in the laboratory underneath Isle Monroe. Not only was it spectacularly activated, but it was also aiming a rocket launcher directly at him and the castle!
"Steer clear!" Leo screamed, and constructed a spear from his hand, which he hurled with all his might at the attacker, piercing through the incoming missile, and into the machine's engine, making it erupt into flames!
"There's someone there!" Renee exclaimed, and indeed there was, as amidst the metallic debris, the pilot of the craft was free-falling at incredible speeds towards the ground.
"I have him." Leo exclaimed, and a large, glowing magenta hand shot out, grabbing the pilot and bringing him down relatively unharmed.
It was most shocking when Leo set him down, only to discover he was Sowei revolutionary fighter Thomas Gardner! His clothes were charred from the explosion, and pieces of metal shrapnel has pierced his skin all over, but his demeanour was as emotionless as ever, as if he didn't feel the pain.
"You had better explain yourself, Gardner." Leo gruffly said, staring right at the guy.
"I spit at that name. It's not my real identity." Tomas said, calm as ever. "And I spit at you, you incorrigible pretender!"
"Pardon!?" Leo exclaimed, understandably confused.
"I have freed the people of Isle Monroe from their miserable existence, as pawns of an illegitimate state. And I would have done the same to you lot, had you not miraculously spotted me." Tomas explained. "And the best part, you cannot do anything about it!"
"What is this nutjob talking about?" Nick asked, looking around at the others for answers.
"Of course, you simpletons wouldn't understand. Let's just say there's been an incident…" Tomas stated, not breaking eye contact with the confused trio.
"Just speak normally!" Leo demanded of him.
"They're all dead, sir. I used the materials YOU provided me with to eradicate the population of Isle Monroe, and you cannot try me for it, because you don't even know who I am." Tomas announced, then began cackling maniacally.
"What are you talking about, you crazy fool? You expect us to believe that?" Nick asked, slamming his spear against the pavement.
"Unfortunately, he's speaking the truth." A voice came from behind them. It was Geowar, coming out of a golden spiral behind them. His arms were crossed as he slowly floated to where the rest of them.
"What? You mean the-" Renee tried to ask, bur Geowar interrupted them.
"Yes. In all likelihood, the participants of the Isle Monroe program are all dead." Geowar confirmed, melancholically looking down at the ground.
Everyone was shocked to learn the news. Leo immediately ordered Nick to restrain Tomas, who did so by violently slamming him against the ground and tying him up as he smirked. Renee simply covered her mouth with her hands, unable to utter a word.
"But I don't understand… How could- Why didn't- Explain yourself, Geowar!" Leo stammered in confusion.
"Don't worry mate, I'm here to explain everything!" A distinct Australian accent rang out, as AJ Melan appeared out of the still-open portal. He gave a disgusted look to Tomas as he passed by him, and delivered a folder with some documents to Leo's hands.
"Impossible! I killed you!" Tomas growled, but the detective ignored him. AJ began explaining the events on Isle Monroe from the start, talking about the sabotaged communications machine, the murders of Nikolai Nikolaoff and Jason Ross, his investigation of the killer's identity, and finally, his own attempted murder.
"But Mr. Gardner here forgot one thing. While yes, throwing me into the sea did take care of my crucial piece of evidence, that being the bloodied transponder, he forgot about the OTHER piece of evidence I had gathered, while he was trying to kill me! This magnifying glass, with his blood on it!" AJ dramatically pulled out a plastic evidence bag, containing his own cracked, bloodstained magnifying glass that he used to hit Tomas with during the fight. Tomas scowled at the reveal.
"I ditched my clothes at the beach so everyone would think I was dead, and swam back to my island, where I took my melon boat all the way to the coast of the Austrian Empire, where I worked together with local police to analyse the blood and reveal to me your true identity. So the Isle Monroe killer, Thomas Gardner is actually… the Austrian heir, Tomas Gaspar!"
"WHAT!?" Leo shouted, taking multiple glances at the blood results in his hands, pointing to the final truth of the matter. Tomas Gaspar decided to rake the opportunity now that everyone was distracted, producing a knife to cut his bindings with, only for Geowar to blast him in the chest, knocking him down, and stepping on his wrist, destroying his holographic glove. Tomas shook around violently, his wig finally coming off his head after months of pretending to be someone he's not.
"So what, you've found my true identity. All the destruction I've caused will be the ultimate proof I need to gain my father's respect, and when I find where you're keeping him, we'll come back and remove this blemish of an illegal state of the map together." Tomas exclaimed from the ground. But the reaction wasn't more banter, it was a confused glance back at him.
"We're not keeping your father anywhere… He's dead." Leo told him, with more confusion than malice.
"What did you say?" Tomas asked, with a calm voice. His eye twitched underneath his glasses.
"Your father is-" Leo was about to repeat, but he got interrupted
"WHAT!? YOU- WHAT?" Tomas, for the first time in forever, lost his cool. "YOU INSIGNIFCANT PEASANTS, YOU BARBARIC PLEBIANS KILLED MY FATHER!? I'LL SLAUGHTER YOU LIKE THE ANIMALS YOU ARE!" He shouted, and in a fit of enraged adrenaline, ripped off the ropes holding him still and attacked Leo, trying to choke him to death. Leo retaliated by blasting him away, and Geowar grabbed him with two constructed hands, holding him firmly in place, suspended in midair.
"YOU CANNOT TREAT ME LIKE THIS! I AM ROYALTY! I AM A PRINCE! YOU OBTUSE SWINE SHOULD BE BOWING TO ME, AND MASSAGING MY FEET, INSTEAD OF DELUDING YOURSELVES INTO THINKING YOU CAN GOVERN A COUNTRY! SOWEILAND IS A BACKWATER DUMP, AND IT BELONGS TO ME!" He continued screaming, and kicking away at the arms holding him. He had gone rabid, his face contorting into horrifying grimaces he'd normally never let himself make. Leo angrily stared at the freaked-out prince, not a smidge of his collected demeanour remaining.
"Take him out of my sight." He muttered. Geowar nodded, and began dragging him along to the detention centre, as he screamed various insults.
Everyone stood around in silence after he was gone for a few minutes, the direness of the situation finally reaching them.
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Around 30 minutes later, Leo had called an emergency meeting of the Elder Council of Soweiland.
He was sat at the head of the table, his face buried in his hands, as he loudly inhaled and exhaled. Opposite of him, Kind Lucious had a stern look on his face. To his right and left, sitting in two rows of three were the rest of the cabinet. Dr. Parr's arms were crossed as she glared at him, O'Lop looked at him with a saddened expression on his face, and Nick was staring at him with an expectant look. Renee and Geowar glanced at each other, unsure of what to do next. Occupying the final seat on the table was Rowan Callaghan, acting chief of police. His legs were sprawled on the table, and he was leaning his chair back. On the back wall, Jess and AJ sat, observing the proceedings.
Leo lifted his head up to face his small crowd, and before saying anything, got up, picked up his chair, and threw it at the wall, making it instantaneously break apart.
"Why must that chair pay for your mistakes?" Dr. Parr was the first to comment. "I warned you that putting the armour there was a mistake, and you didn't listen."
"You think I'm an idiot, Christine? Cause I did listen. I had the engine taken out, and left it here. And I told you before, the only reason I moved the armour to the island, was so that theAG4 Hacker wouldn't get to it!" Leo shot back, extremely annoyed by the comment.
"Ridiculous! Are you saying the Gaspar Heir recreated the engine from scratch?" Parr questioned him.
"Enough of that! We should be more concerned with the cadets that lost their lives! We need to compensate their families!" Renee interrupted.
"What of the investors? We need to compensate them too." Nick added.
"We can't possibly tell the investors about this…" Leo tried to say.
"Impossible. Tony Tuscan's son was on the island, will you just not tell him his son died?" Nick asked, but Leo had no response.
"I hate to butt in, but if what I've heard is correct, then out military high command just took an incredible hit. How will we ever replace Hubert Starman?" O'Lop asked, awkwardly smiling at the PM as he spoke.
"I hope you also understand we can't arrest the Gaspar kid." Callaghan warned.
"It's true… it could create an international incident with Austria." Geowar said.
As the questions with no answers kept piling on, Leo felt more and more pressured, as if the walls were closing around him. Was everything he did incorrect? Did he just lead 50 young men and women to their deaths for no reason?
The chatter was instantly interrupted when King Lucious brought his fist down on the table, creating a thunderous slam, that rang across the entire room.
"Enough! Have you no shame? We are talking about loss of human life here, and you're burdening him with pointless questions." Lucious stated. The room quieted down.
"No, it's fine. They're right. I know how to fix this. I'll write letters to the cadets' families and the investors myself and compensate them accordingly. Fist though, I'll go to the island myself and assess the damages." Leo announced.
"I'll join you." Geowar followed up.
"And as for Gaspar… we will try him like normal, in a Sowei Court. Call Francis, and if he has any issues, tell him to come here and talk to me himself. Got it?" Leo ordered. Callaghan nodded along. "Let's go."
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Shortly afterwards, Geowar and Leo arrived on Isle Monroe via portal. The place was a complete wreck. The staff building was almost completely demolished, and it's remains were still on fire. The remains of the console were spazzing out, exuding dangerous voltages. The dorm building was in better shape, but it's walls had been pierced by countless bullets. Dead bodies littered the grounds and water around the island.
"Good lord…" Leo uttered. He and Geowar quickly put out the fire and headed downstairs to the lab. The place was coated ashy grey due to the fire and two charred bodies lay there, in an unrecognisable state.
"This is a disaster. I don't even know how to account for everything that was lost in here." Leo said, but Geowar wasn't paying attention, "Uh, you there, man?"
"I can hear something. I think it's a heartbeat." Geowar explained. Leo immediately understood the assignment and started scanned in the area for any signs of movement. Eventually, their search led them to a seemingly inconspicuous chunk of rubble. Geowar lifted it away revealing a heavily breathing, wounded Jon Johnson.
"Johnson! You're alive!" Leo exclaimed upon seeing him, and quickly helped him stand up.
"Where's… Gardner?" Jon asked clutching his head.
"In prison. I'll make sure he rots in there forever." Leo answered. "Now come on, we need to take you back home."
"Home? There is no home. I can't just go back… and pretend I'm the same person as the one who got here 5 weeks ago." Jon said.
"What are you talking about, kid?" Leo questioned, perplexed.
"Everyone I know is DEAD! I saw my best friends get maimed and blown up in front of my eyes, while I could do nothing to stop it! No… I can't go back, I can't- I must make sure this never happens again…" Jon rambled, concerning Leo further.
"Kid, you've been severely wounded, we need to get you to a hospital." He tried to say, but Jon stopped him.
"YOU KNOW WHAT IT'SLIKE TO SEE EVERYONE DEAR TO YOU DISSAPEAR IN AN INSTANT!? ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD! WHY AM I NOT DEAD!?" He began screaming, tears welling his eyes. Geowar couldn't help but turn away from him. "I need to disappear… I need to die!"
"But what about your old man, Jon? What, am I supposed to lie to him, and tell him you died?" Leo asked.
"You won't be lying. I'll be dead on every document… I'll be someone else, and that someone else will be strong enough to make sure this never happens to anyone again. And I just can't burden my sick old father with my issues. I need to do this alone." Jon declared. Leo solemnly stared at the ground, and sighed.
"Alright, Jon. If that's what you wish to do, I won't stop you." Leo conceded. He took out his wallet from his jacket pocket and gave Jon a 1000-pound bill, putting it in his own pocket. "I wish you good luck with your mission. Geowar will portal you somewhere in the city, and from then on, you're the master of your own destiny. You know where to find me if you need anything."
Leo motioned to Geowar to open a portal, and he did. Jon gave Leo a thankful smile, and walked off into the city noise. Shortly after, Geowar and Leo took their own portal back home.
Renee was waiting for them at the castle entrance when they came back.
"Uh- did you find anything?" She asked, with a small glimmer of hope in her eyes.
"No survivors. I'm sorry." Leo answered, a frown on his face.
"Ah." Renee let out. She turned around and headed upstairs, her expression unreadable.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
ONE WEEK LATER…
Tomas Gaspar was quietly sitting in his cell in the detention centre. Titanium cuffs were covering his hands, and all he could do was think about where he went wrong. The plan was flawless after all.
Suddenly though, he got called into a room. He was told he had a visitor. Probably his brother Francis, or another Sowei interrogator. You can imagine his surprise when from beyond the bulletproof glass, he saw one Casey Kane, free as a bird.
"Hey there, man! I just got released, and thought I'd pay you a visit. Y'see, news go around quickly in the clink, so I knew just where to find you." Kane greeted the prisoner. Tomas looked him up and down, not taking him seriously whatsoever.
"Man, last time we met it was you out here, and me in there. Isn't life crazy? Anyway, I knew who you were back then. I'm not stupid, Gaspar. I know when I'm being manipulated. But I do agree we can help each other, in a way. Except now you need me, and not the other way around, so I like this deal better. So, do you think? You wanna do business with Kane?"