by Bret Schulte
“Hmm, you make a good point,” Mr. Beaumont said slowly rubbing his chin. “It may be for the best.”
She hadn’t expected that answer. “How?”
“Well, for one, we don’t need a powerful weapon floating around that could fall into the hands of someone like Alex Nero Jr. Besides it seems like each Heroic Age has been shorter than the one before it. Ours didn’t amount to much. It could be that we no longer need them as much anymore. Or maybe we just need a new kind of hero. Look at how much more has been accomplished in the last few centuries without the gauntlet’s influence. Louis Pasteur; Mother Teresa; Mahatma Gandhi; Martin Luther King Jr.; and so many others have improved the world in ways far greater than most of those old sword-swinging warriors ever did. Maybe it is time that we look to ourselves to be the heroes we need, not some magical device.”
Mr. Beaumont got up from his seat.
“But just in case,” he said, patting her on the shoulder. “Maybe you should keep that thing in a safe place.”
“I’ll try,” she answered. She really had no idea what she was going to do with the stupid thing.
“I know that Samuel and Joanne would be very proud,” he said warmly.
“Thank you. But I have so many more-“
Mr. Beaumont shook his head ever so slightly and glanced quickly at Agent Rosenberg. It was a clear sign that any other questions Sam had would have to wait until they were away from the prying ears of the BEA. Sam had the feeling that a lot of their adventures were not exactly the kind that the BEA would have approved of.
She nodded in agreement.
“You have inherited a very heavy burden. It is completely unfair but completely inescapable,” he said with the air of someone who knows. “But then again, nothing beats the feeling of saving the day, right?”
“It certainly feels… different.”
Mr. Beaumont burst out laughing, a real gut-busting laugh. It was bordering on insulting. When he finally got himself under control, he looked her right in the eye.
“That is exactly what your mom said.”
Chapter 26
The Last Age
Even the rush from Mr. Beaumont comparing Sam to her mother, easily the best compliment she had ever received in her life, couldn’t stop Sam from thinking about the things Nero had said. Was Miller’s Grove just a training ground for some super-teen army? Were they here to become the best they could be or to fight a war? Was her grandfather Professor Xavier or Magneto?
At that exact moment, the one person who could answer her questions entered the room. Doc Frost had changed back into his usual lab coat. He looked extremely tired, but also quite relieved.
“Ah, Lucas must be awake, finally,” he said as he took the seat across from Sam.
“Yes,” she answered flatly, trying to hide her own overwhelming relief, but judging by the way Zoey smiled at her she had failed.
Sam shot her a quick “knock it off” look.
Doc Frost didn’t notice any of this; he was more interested in the piece of gauntlet in her hands.
“It seems like you have been given a rather large responsibility there,” he said.
“Yeah,” she said unenthusiastically. She didn’t know if her piece of the gauntlet could still do, well, anything, or if the two pieces could be put back together somehow. But she was pretty sure someone would come looking for it.
“You made clever use of it tonight,” Doc Frost said. “Draining the gauntlet’s power.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Didn’t you? I saw the whole thing,” he said. “The first time it practically leapt into his arms, but the second time it resisted.”
“Maybe it was because he was distracted from getting his hand cut off.”
Doc Frost nodded. “Maybe. But what were you thinking at the time?”
“Nothing. I just didn’t want him to get it.”
Doc Frost smiled and tilted his head.
Sam didn’t believe it. But there was that one tiny spark…
“Anyway, I found this after you left.” Doc Frost pulled Mr. Hopscotch out of his coat pocket.
Instantly her eyes welled up. It was embarrassing, but she couldn’t help it. She didn’t want to help it.
“Mr. Hopscotch!” She took the bear with both hands and gave him the biggest hug ever.
“I think you’ll find that he’s as good as new,” Doc Frost said softly. His left pointer finger wiggled ever so slightly--so slightly, in fact, she wasn’t sure if she had seen it correctly, but next to his finger was a loose thread on the bear’s belly.
Sam inspected the bear. Aside from the loose thread Mr. Hopscotch was looking better than he had in years. He had been dried and restuffed, and now a small, smooth black stone hung from a silver chain around his neck. It looked strangely familiar. And then she realized it was a piece of the anvil that had broken off when Cervantes pulled out the sword.
“A funny thing about tesseracts,” Doc Frost said quietly. “When they’re closed it is next to impossible to find the darn things again. So you have to bind them, by just one single tiny atom perhaps, to an object so you know where it is at all times.”
He sat back and looked around the room briefly as if to say that he would not speak about it any further with all of these people around. But that was okay, because Sam was pretty sure she understood. She had other pressing questions that she just had to ask at the moment.
“Doctor Frost, you knew my grandfather really well, right?” Sam asked.
He smiled at her in a kind, resigned sort of way that made Sam think he knew what she was about to ask.
“I had the honor of working with him for many, many years. A brilliant man.”
“Why did he help establish this school?” She was too tired to beat around the bush.
“You’re concerned about the things young Mr. Nero said,” Doc Frost said in a soft tone. “You think your grandfather conspired to build a school to train some sort of private army?”
“But what about the hovertanks? And copying Lucas’s brain? And Dean Futuro-“
Doc Frost waved his hand to cut her off. “All valid points. I admit Alistair Futuro has always been a little more eccentric than the rest of us. In fact, Dr. Hathaway was the only one who could get him to tone it down a bit. During the early planning stages of the university, Alistair wanted the school to focus solely on science and technology. It was Samuel who talked him into opening up the school to the full range of academics, athletics, and the arts. He understood that not all of the universe’s mysteries could be unlocked with circuits and electrodes alone, and that inspiration can come from the most unlikely of sources.
“It was your grandfather’s idea to open an academy where a wide range of the best, brightest, and most dedicated young people of all fields, especially those commonly overlooked by traditional schools, could come together and hone their skills, pursue their passions, and share their ideas for the betterment of all mankind. In his absence we have all done our best to uphold his ideals--even Dean Futuro, in his own way,” Doc Frost said.
That sounded like a nice snippet to put in a brochure, but considering she wasn’t the best, brightest, or the most dedicated at anything, it just made her remember that if it weren’t for her last name she wouldn’t even be here. Plus, it didn’t really answer her question.
“But, what about-?” she started to ask.
“The point of all of this,” Doc Frost answered, “Is to make the world a better place. It was his way of making amends for his one terrible mistake. That is why he spent so much of his fortune and time campaigning to have this place built and outfitted with the most state-of-the-art technologies. And part of making of the world a better place is defense. It is a cruel fact of life, but there are other threats out there besides Alex Nero. Some are far worse.”
His face grew dark as if he had just thought of some terrible thing he tried very hard not to think about. And then, just as instantly, he perked back up again.
“Good to see you, Mr. Fry.”
Sam turned to see Lucas walk into the waiting room flanked on either side by Agent Sampson and Deputy Colver.
“About time you woke up, Sleeping Beauty,” Tasha said jokingly.
“Thanks a lot,” he said as he sat down next to Natch.
He sheepishly cast his eyes at Sam and quickly looked away before she could smile or speak or anything.
“So,” he said, turning toward Natch and away from her. “What was Esteban’s room like?”
“Like I’m going to tell you a juicy bit of information like that for free,” Natch said, holding his hand out. “Fifty bucks.”
“Ahem,” Agent Sampson said loudly.
The boys stopped talking.
Agent Sampson stood in the middle of the room like a very annoyed statue while Amy passed out thick documents and pens.
“Well, congratulations,” Agent Sampson announced. “Your stories match up. And apparently, for about the hundredth time the world owes its safety yet again to the Beaumonts, Hathaways, and McQueens. And their friends, of course.”
That wasn’t a very accurate dispersal of credit. Sam and her friends pulled off some pretty amazing stuff, but according to his own story, all Zack did was set off a secret alarm that alerted the BEA and ISG to rush to the casino. As if they wouldn’t have figured that out on their own when they heard about the big flaming bat chasing Santa’s sleigh around Las Vegas, but whatever.
Deputy Colver stepped forward. “The ISG thanks you all for your assistance as well.” He looked directly at Sam, his hands crossed in front of him. “I have also been charged with extending a sincere apology to you, Samantha Hathaway, on behalf of Constable Albion. He would have preferred to apologize in person, of course, but he is still recovering from the recent ordeal. He sacrificed several years’ worth of his own life force to destroy Nero’s Abyss Shield.”
Sam got the feeling he added that last part to make sure she felt guilty enough to accept the apology. It worked.
“Tell him I accept,” she said. “And that I hope he gets better soon.”
“I will,” he said with a happy nod.
“Yes, well, we were all played for suckers on this one,” Agent Sampson said. “He knew exactly how to play on our old mistrusts and fears.”
The not-too-subtle dig was not lost on Deputy Colver, who shifted awkwardly on his feet.
“You don’t honestly expect us to sign this, do you?” Natch asked, holding up the papers Amy had given them. “You want a group of minors to sign a confidentiality agreement without legal counsel or our parents’ knowledge?”
Agent Sampson took a deep breath and smiled.
“I expected that reaction from you, Mr.-“
“I’m sure you did,” Natch blurted out quickly, cutting Agent Sampson off. Lucas looked particularly disappointed.
“The BEA would like to count on your support in the future. But for everyone’s safety we must preserve certain secrets from the general public, for the time being, of course.” He gestured to Deputy Colver. “However, if any of you should choose not to sign the agreement, then I believe Deputy Colver has been authorized by his superiors to perform memory-erasing spells on all of you.”
“It is quite painless,” Deputy Colver said reassuringly. “Not that you would remember anyway.”
Natch did not look happy, but he signed the papers anyway, as did everyone else. Lucas leaned over to try to see Natch’s real name, but Natch twisted away from him and covered the paper with his left arm.
“Thank you for your support,” Agent Sampson said as Amy went around the room collecting the signed documents. “Now for your cover story. The rest of the school is under the impression that last night’s fire and commotion was all part of an elaborate Halloween show to create a properly spooky atmosphere. Tragically, the show was cut short when one of Doctor Frost’s experiments, left unattended in the excitement of the holiday festivities, accidentally exploded, releasing an electromagnetic wave that fried everyone’s cell phones, computers, and other electronic equipment.”
It didn’t seem fair for Doc Frost to take the blame, but he nodded in agreement.
Agent Sampson continued. “You all were supposed to be part of the show, but since it was abruptly ended due to technical difficulties, you all just simply returned to your rooms and watched scary movies when the power came back on. That is where you found Mr. Fry home from a night of trick-or-treating. If anyone asks about your scars, tell them it was a hilarious but embarrassing apple-bobbing accident. As for your little escapade in Las Vegas, fortunately, the McQueens have graciously agreed to go along with the cover story that the casino suffered minor fire damage due to a gas leak.”
“The Camelot was due for a remodel anyway,” Zack’s mom said.
Agent Sampson continued. “And our friends at the ISG have altered the memories of key personnel in Las Vegas to believe that the flaming bat and Santa Claus bit was actually some pop star’s stage show gone wrong.”
“And you expect everyone to believe all this?” Natch asked, reluctantly handing his signed form to Amy.
“It doesn’t matter if they believe it. That is what happened,” he answered sternly.
Personally, Sam thought it sounded like a pretty believable story. She would have been really happy with a night like that. In fact, part of her would rather think that was what happened.
“What about ‘Jerry’?” Zack asked.
“Ah, yes. The official story is that ‘Jerry’ simply cracked under the pressure and returned home,” Agent Sampson said with a shrug.
“What about his roommate?” Lucas asked with his hand raised as if this was just another class.
“Turns out he didn’t exist,” Agent Sampson said.
Lucas lowered his hand. “Oh.”
“All we found in his room was the fat suit and hair dye he used to disguise himself,” Amy added.
Sam was the last person to hand her signed confidentially agreement to Amy. Amy handed the forms to Agent Sampson, who shuffled through them quickly, undoubtedly making sure they had all been properly signed. Satisfied, he slipped the papers into a shiny black folder.
“Okay,” he said in a deep, serious tone as he placed the folder into a metal box. “Remember, what happened tonight never happened. Now I think it is best that everyone gets some rest.”
That sounded wonderful to Sam, but Zack apparently still had more to say.
“What about Nero?” he asked. “Have you found him yet? Or is it up to us to finish that job for you too?”
From the way he motioned to his mother, Sam was pretty sure the ‘us’ he was referring to was the McQueens.
Agent Sampson slapped a clearly fake smile on his face. “As much as the BEA has enjoyed the assistance of certain independent parties in the past, I must assure you that we have the situation under control.”
“So you found him?” Zack pressed.
The fake smile disappeared from Agent Sampson’s face.
“Actually,” he said slowly. “He found us.”
Sam couldn’t believe it. She looked from Agent Sampson to Amy to see if this was true. For a second they locked eyes, and Sam could tell that it was true; but then Amy looked away, almost ashamed.
“A couple months ago-,” Agent Sampson said, breaking the stunned silence. “Victoria Nero contacted our agency to report that her son had been kidnapped from his English boarding school by his bodyguard. She was afraid that he had been brainwashed. We’ve been looking for him ever since.”
“No way-,” Zack and Tasha yelled at the same time. They gave each other nasty looks as if they couldn’t believe the other had dared to have the same exact reaction.
Agent Sampson ignored them. “We were all quite surprised to see him in the casino tonight. According to the reports I’ve recently received, Alexander woke up from his brainwashed state when his hand was cut off. Scared and confused, he used the gauntlet to teleport to the only place he thought was safe, hi
s mother’s estate in New York, where she found him bleeding and unconscious a mere three hours ago. After calling her private physicians to stabilize his condition she alerted the BEA.”
“Do not tell me you’re falling for this?” Tasha yelled. Mr. Beaumont held her shoulders to keep her calm.
Sam felt Doc Frost’s reassuring hand on her shoulder as well.
“Right now, the BEA is looking into all possible explanations,” Agent Sampson said in his official government-agent voice. “The bodyguard we arrested backed up the story. He claimed he found out about the gauntlet from Alexander Nero Sr. and used a combination of medication and psychological manipulation to brainwash Alex into stealing the item for him.”
“Wow, that’s a pretty brilliant lie,” Zack said as if he was actually impressed.
“Agreed,” Deputy Colver said coldly.
Sam was certainly glad to see that at least someone in authority knew a lie when they heard one.
Then Zack brought up another important question. “What about all the technology he stole?”
“We don’t know. The official story is that, due to the severity of the brainwashing technique used on Alexander Nero Jr., he has no memories of what happened. And unfortunately, shortly after confessing the bodyguard ingested a memory-wiping pill he had hidden in one of his teeth,” Agent Sampson said.
“Oh, what a load-,” Tasha started but Mrs. Beaumont gave her a warning look.
Agent Sampson cleared his throat loudly.
“Possibly,” he said. “However, fortunately for us, most of the technology that was stolen would have been damaged by the very same EMP that was used to take down the school’s security systems. It would take months for someone to recover all the damaged data and a considerable fortune for them to begin production on anything they discovered.”
“A fortune? Well it is a good thing that Nero is dirt poor then isn’t it? Oh wait, his family owns a giant billion-dollar international corporation,” Zack said with a cocky bob of his head.
