Quinn Fenton and the Time and Space Protection Agency

by Ethan Bibile

  “Of course they are,” Laura said, eyes widening just to express her point. “Cost a fortune. Luckily, I don’t have to buy them a lot as Nultagna supplies weapons, which don’t even use bullets in the first place. Do you have to buy anything for your gun?” Laura asked, turning to Quinn. “Laser supplies or something?”

  “No, actually, it’s really cool,” Quinn replied, grinning. “Basically, the gun takes atoms in the air and blast out particles of light and form a concentrated light beam. It’s awesome because it means I never ever have to buy special parts, bullets, chargers, anything!” Quinn said excitedly.

  “That’s pretty cool,” Laura said, smiling. “Is it just me, or are you famished?” Laura asked Quinn, turning the subject back to what they were planning on doing before their detour.

  “Yeah, I’m actually starving. Catching criminals certainly depletes your energy levels,” Quinn replied. “Should we go to that restaurant you were talking about?”

  “Sure,” Laura said, smiling before leading the way down the busy street.

  Quinn and Laura made their way to a restaurant, the entrance yet another archway which led to a courtyard where people of all kinds of species ate their lunches. Beyond that was a building where a window-lined the front of it, leading to a view of the kitchen, where many chefs hurried around, busy with cooking food for their customers. Quinn noticed that upon the walls of the courtyard were strange, long thin contraptions, Quinn guessed that they sprouted a roof whenever it rained here. Not that Quinn had ever seen it rain upon Krezar, so then again, it could be something completely different.

  “What does that say?” Quinn asked, pointing up to the sign upon the archway, knowing that Laura spoke the local language of Nigellia as well as English.

  “It’s the name of the restaurant, ‘The Hole in the Wall’,” Laura informed Quinn before the two entered the courtyard. They were stopped immediately by a tall slender alien with an egg-shaped grey head and a snout. He wore fancy attire, which consisted of a navy-blue jacket with rather large cuffs on the sleeves and a puffy white shirt. Quinn noticed that all the waiters wore the same attire, and he wondered how they didn’t get their clothes in the food.

  “Hello, welcome sir and madam to ‘The Hole in the Wall’,” Greeted the waiter politely. “Will it just be the table for the two of you?” The alien waiter asked, and Laura nodded in response to this. “All right, follow me please.”

  The waiter led the two to a table with two seats situated around it for Quinn and Laura to sit at. The waiter left them with two menus. Once he left, Quinn pulled out Laura’s chair for her before pushing it in then going to take a seat in his own chair.

  “Quite the gentleman,” Laura said, raising an eyebrow, and Quinn lightly brushed the comment off.

  “So… what are the good things to eat here?” Quinn asked Laura who was obviously the expert, as this was her planet.

  “Well, I haven’t actually been here in ages either, so I’m probably not the best person to be asking these things,” Laura said as she picked up a menu and began to read it. “Crasbanoinise?” Laura said, raising an eyebrow.

  “Bless you.”

  “No,” Laura laughed. “How does that sound like a sneeze?” She laughed, whilst Quinn shrugged.

  “It didn’t sound like a word,” Quinn said, chuckling lightly, searching the menu for the strange word that Laura had just uttered. “Crasbanoinise?” Quinn asked, before repeating it a few times to himself just to make sure he could say it right, even though he doubted that he would ever have to use the word again. “Chopped Daisi alongside fresh roasted Crasbon, this dish is served with an additional garnish of Eq,” Quinn recited, reading out the description for the meal. “Sounds strange,” Quinn said looking at Laura, who raised her eyebrows in approval.

  “Sound delicious. I’ll get that,” She said, putting down her menu with a smile on her face.

  “Well, I’m trusting your judgment here Laura, because I’ll get that too,” Quinn said, mimicking Laura and putting down his menu too.

  “Well I’m sure you will love it, Daisi, Crasbon and Eq are all delicious,” Laura said, almost savouring the taste of the food she wasn’t even eating yet.

  “Like I said before, I’m trusting your taste in food here, Laura,” Quinn said, to which Laura laughed in response, which was certainly not the last laugh that the two heard that afternoon.

  HOME

  The three suns were beginning to set upon Krezar. The light of dusk slowly fell upon the city, bathing the buildings in an orange glow. The day crowd had retreated and the night one had emerged, all sorts of people appearing from everywhere.

  “How long does night time last?” Asked Quinn, looking at the pleasant colours that littered the sky, admiring its beauty. “Is this the darkest it gets?”

  “It never really gets much darker than this,” Laura replied, shrugging her shoulders. “The three suns are spread apart so we get two or three hours of this, but after that, it’s just more daytime. We all sleep for longer though,” Laura added, seeing Quinn’s slightly concerned look at the idea that she only got three hours of sleep at night.

  The two-continued walking down the path until they reached a Y split, the two of them both knowing perfectly well that they would be going their own ways.

  “Well, great seeing you Quinn!” Laura exclaimed, before bestowing a hug on Quinn, who was slightly shocked at this display of affection. He froze for a moment, before somewhat awkwardly hugging her back. They remained in the hug for a few moments, Quinn relishing it, having almost forgotten what affection was like in his isolation from society.

  “What,” Laura said, smiling. “You hug like you’ve never hugged a person before,” Laura teased, not knowing the real reason behind Quinn’s awkwardness. Instead of addressing the tease, Quinn simply laughed lightly at her comment.

  “Why don’t I walk you home tonight?” Quinn suggested, smiling at Laura, whose smile seemed to waver slightly.

  “No, no, that’s fine,” Laura rebuked, waving off Quinn’s offer lightly.

  “Really, it’s fine,” Quinn replied, smiling. “I’ve got absolutely nowhere else to be tonight.”

  “Quinn, really, you don’t have to…” Laura said, now avoiding Quinn’s gaze.

  “Laura, I can, it’s no bother-”

  “I said you don’t need to bother, Quinn!”

  Laura’s tone was harsh and unexpected. Quinn’s smile vanished off his face, as did Laura’s. She stared at the ground, her thick red hair covering her face from Quinn’s view. He froze for a moment, slightly confused at Laura’s sudden change of tone. However, he reached out and grabbed her hand softly.

  “Laura?” Quinn said softly, holding her hand. Laura slowly looked up at Quinn. Her expression was a million miles away from the cheerful grin it had been only moments earlier. Her mouth had turned into a sorrowful line, and she was continuing to avoid his gaze. “Laura, what’s wrong?”

  Laura sighed, still avoiding his gaze. She looked down the street towards the large city.

  “I don’t have a home,” Laura said, and at last she turned to look at Quinn, her blue eyes piercing his brown ones.

  Quinn wasn’t sure how much shock was shown upon his face, but inside he certainly felt it. Laura was homeless? In all the time he had known her, how had this never come up? Even if she hadn’t mentioned it, how hadn’t he figured it out? And then there was her brilliant track record in Nultagna. How was she poor when she won match after match, winning the prize money time after time?

  “What?” Quinn asked in surprise, his eyebrows furrowing together. “Laura, I’m so sorry,” Quinn said, now searching desperately for words or phrases to use to console her. “How though?” Quinn said softly, still holding her hand in his to comfort her. “You’ve won Nultagna time after time, isn’t the prize money enough to buy a place?”

  “It’s not enough, not nearly. And after some time, they stopped giving me the full amount of money. Now I barely get anything,”
Laura said, her gaze returning to the ground. “Besides, on this planet, everything, everything is expensive,” Laura said, and Quinn raised an eyebrow in surprise. Looking around at all the buildings on the planet, none really looked like they would cost a fortune.

  “I know,” Laura remarked, a small smile popping up upon her face, but vanishing almost as soon as it appeared. “But this is the ‘Endless City’. It’s a famous location in the Galaxy, so everything is super expensive. It’s just the way this place works. Money from Nultagna, well, that gets me just enough to buy decent clothes and food and as well as to pay a weekly fee in a homeless shelter, but nothing else.”

  Quinn wasn’t sure if he had felt sorry for anyone more in his entire life. Laura Somers, the beautiful, joyful friendly young woman who had become one of his only friends in the entire universe. A person who was so caring whom he knew would do anything for a friend. Yet she had her own demons, things that she had never shared with Quinn. Morgan’s voice floated into his head, telling him he hadn’t told anyone his demons, but he pushed the voice out of his head. Laura needed him now.

  “There’s no one who will let you stay with them?” Quinn asked. “No family?”

  “I’ve got no family,” Laura said, shrugging. “My parents were killed when I was ten. They were out in the market, going about their lives when someone held Mum at gunpoint and demanded her purse. Dad stood up for her and got shot. Mum began crying and got shot too,” Laura said, and Quinn could clearly see the tears welling up in the corners of her blue eyes. “They were the only family I had.”

  Quinn wrapped his arms around Laura’s body and pulled her close to him and hugged her tightly. She didn’t object, hugging him back, softly crying as she did so. Quinn felt a surge of sympathy and compassion flowing inside of him for Laura. He couldn’t even imagine the pain she’d felt. He might have lost his family, but he had only been on his own for five months, not nine years.

  The two stayed like that on the quiet street for some time. Most people who walked past not even bothering to look at the two of them standing in the middle of the path, just hugging each other. Quinn consoled Laura, and although she didn’t know it, she was consoling him too.

  Laura pulled out of the hug, wiping her eyes free of the tears and forcing a smile on her face.

  “I’m sorry,” She said as she wiped her eyes free, her blurred vision slowly returning to her. “I’m sure you didn’t want to hear that, I’m sorry…” Laura said, apologizing to Quinn.

  “No, you don’t need to be sorry,” Quinn said, taking her hand yet again and staring at her in the eyes. Laura stared back, almost enchanted as her blue eyes met Quinn’s brown ones.

  “I’d better be going,” Laura said almost hurriedly, brushing her hair behind her ear. “You’ve probably got things you need to be doing right now and instead you're stuck here with me.” She said.

  Quinn’s mind was spinning. There was no way he could just leave her here. A woman who had shown so much compassion to him. Someone who was one of his closest friends. He knew exactly what he needed to do here for Laura.

  “Come with me,” Quinn blurted out, almost too quickly and he was surprised Laura could understand him at all. Laura whipped her head up to stare at Quinn. He saw in her eyes that she hadn’t been shown compassion like this in a long time and he could clearly see just from the look she was giving him how much she wanted to accept.

  “W-what?” Laura said as if she didn’t dare to believe what she was hearing.

  “Come live with me,” Quinn repeated the offer, smiling at Laura’s reaction, which was being burned into his mind at that very second. “I mean, I’ve got a spaceship and the only other person in there is my A.I. I’ve got plenty of room. Only thing is though…” Quinn said slowing his voice slightly as he came to the catch of his offer. He saw Laura’s face that was so full of hope drop ever so slightly.

  “It’s not that bad,” Quinn said hurriedly. “Well, it kind of is, sort of, kinda…” Quinn stopped and looked at Laura, who was now raising an eyebrow at him. “Well, I’m looking for T.A.S.P.A. The Time and Space Protection Agency. As well as looking for any scrap of information I can find on Agross,” Quinn explained, shrugging. He was trying not to let it sound as life-threatening and terrifying as it was.

  “Quinn,” Laura said, with a look on her face that was gratitude beyond any Quinn had ever seen before in his life. “You're offering me a home. This is more than anyone has ever offered me in my entire life, Quinn. Surely I’d have to pay you though?” Laura said, almost desperately, as if trying to accommodate for his generosity.

  “Oh, no,” Quinn said, shaking his hands and his head, smiling. “I’ve got a decent amount of money, some from my parents, some of my own too. It’s enough for two people to live well enough, and I’ve got stuff on my ship too. There is no need in the slightest for you to pay me,” Quinn reassured her. “And you’d be fine with looking for a group of people fighting an evil psychopath?” Quinn asked.

  “I have no objection,” Laura said. “If I could have a home and be working towards a better universe at the same time, then that is more than I could have ever asked for Quinn,” Laura said. “But I’d have to pay you, I can still do Nultagna. I know it’s not terribly ideal…” Laura rambled on, only to be stopped by Quinn.

  “Laura, really. You don’t need to pay me. You’re my friend, I’m not just going to let you be homeless when I’ve got plenty of room in my ship. And it’s no inconvenience coming here for Nultagna, but if you don’t want to then you don’t have to,” Quinn said. Laura looked up at him, so much thankfulness in her eyes.

  “I think working towards a better universe would be better than Nultagna,” Laura said. A huge smile appeared on her face. Then suddenly it began decreasing. “But I can’t accept,” Laura said. Quinn felt the excitement that had been bubbling up inside his chest die down.

  “Why not?” Quinn inquired, his face surely showing hurt and dismay.

  “Quinn, I can’t just accept your offer to live with you for free!” Laura exclaimed, shaking her head, dismissing the idea of a home, crushing the hope that she had built up for herself.

  “It’s fine,” Quinn said. “Honestly, Laura,” He looked her straight in the eyes, begging for her to understand him. “I can’t just leave one of my closest friends here with no home when I have one to offer,” Quinn said, his voice dying down to a more consoling tone, rather than the excited, joyful tone he usually adopted when around Laura.

  Laura’s face showed that her mind was ticking away, debating if she should accept or decline. She looked up at Quinn’s hopeful face and smiled.

  “If it’s no problem, then I’ll accept,” Laura said, grinning.

  Quinn smiled back at Laura, excitement filling his insides at the prospect of a proper human joining him. Morgan might be an excellent friend, but it wasn’t the same as real, human interaction.

  “That’s great!” Quinn exclaimed, smiling at Laura, running a hand through his hair, almost stuck for words now. He looked at Laura, and the two of them laughed slightly, before regaining some sort of composure. “So, um… do you have anything here that you wanted to collect?” Quinn asked, trying to be gentle in this situation as it clearly was a touchy subject and he didn’t want to offend Laura in case the only things she owned were the ones with her right now.

  “Yeah, I’ve got a few things back at the shelter,” Laura said with excitement. “You don’t have to come, I’ll just quickly go and get them.”

  “Are you sure? I’ll go with you if you want,” Quinn offered.

  “No, I should be fine on my own,” Laura said calmly, and Quinn knew this time not to pursue the topic any further.

  “I’ll be back in twenty minutes,” Laura said, before taking off. She sprinted down the road, her hair jumping up and down behind her as she ran along.

  Quinn smiled to himself, watching Laura vanish into the distance, her frame getting smaller and smaller until he could see her no more. With exci
tement bubbling away inside of him, Quinn took a seat on a bench nearby, waiting for Laura’s return.

  Laura was true to her word, managing to return to Quinn in twenty minutes. She returned with only a small backpack slung over her shoulders. She still had a huge smile on her face, showcasing how excited she was that after nearly a decade of homelessness and fending for herself, she finally was going to get a home.

  “Ready?” Quinn said, standing up as Laura approached him, his grin matching hers.

  “Yep,” Laura replied.

  “Well then let’s go,” Quinn said, clapping his hands together and the two set off down the busy street.

  They passed people and stalls, ignoring the calls of stall holders, begging the pair to buy something. Quinn looked around at the objects being sold, wondering just how many of them were actually legal.

  Quinn’s mind wasn’t entirely occupied with this though, it was more focused on Laura coming to live with him in the Audion. It would certainly be a different lifestyle. And what would Morgan say? Quinn didn’t need Morgan’s opinion on this, but it would help if the two of them were on the same page.

  The two friends walked through the archway to where Sagra’s landing pads were, only to find that the Audion was the only ship left in the place.

  “That’s your ship?” Laura asked, staring in wonder at the Audion, turning to look at Quinn who nodded in surprise, before turning her gaze back to the ship.

  Quinn and Laura began walking towards the ship only to be stopped by Sagra, whose voice rang through the dead of the night like a horn.

  “Oi! Fenton!” Sagra’s growled out, storming out from his office towards Quinn and Laura, who both turned to face him. “I’ve been looking for you, I closed up ‘ours ago! This’ll cost you extra!” Sagra growled, with a hint of greed in his voice.

  “Sorry about that,” Quinn said as he dug around in his pocket and extracted his payment card. He tapped it onto Sagra’s paying machine, nodding to the overweight alien who grunted in response. “Well, Sagra, it was a pleasure knowing you,” Quinn said. The only response he got from Sagra was a grunt, as he turned his back on Quinn and Laura, waddling off back into his office.