Adventures in Parodyverse - Saving the Future Part 24.1


    Sir Mumphrey Wilton exited the Safe through the front gate.  While he was essentially only a human of advanced age, he carried the Chronometer of Infinity, a cosmic artifact that gave him the power to manipulate time.  He also carried with him the kind of fiercely independent nature that forbade any kind of protective escort.

    So he walked out of the world’s most dangerous prison, alone.  He checked his pocket watch, not because he needed to know the time...more out of habit.  He had gotten used to occasionally looking at it, as a normal person would, only to monitor it for cosmic oddities.

    He raised an eyebrow as he noticed his antique looking pocket watch was glowing blue out of previously invisible pinpoints all around the dial.

    When he looked up again, what appeared to be two females were walking toward him quietly.  Both had jet black hair, and were wearing what appeared to be crisp blue uniforms, with a long, stiff top, slacks, and short boots, with silver accents, and some silver winged creature embossed on the chest.  Each one of them had a single small blue translucent round object attached to their thin silver belts.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“The Captain wishes to speak with you.”  one of the two said.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Hmph.”  Mumph put away his glowing pocket watch and offered his arm to one of the two.  He wasn’t one to turn down an offer from two pretty women.  Even if they meant him harm, he could defend himself, after all.

    They both smiled, and each took one arm.  They walked him to a clearing near the Safe, beneath a bridge so it wasn’t visible from the prison’s watchtowers.  One of them removed the device from her belt and thumbed it gingerly.

    Before Sir Mumphrey’s eyes, a silver object about the size and shape of a mobile home, only a lot sleeker, appeared out of thin air.  It had no windows, and made no sound.  A door popped inward from a non-existent seam and slid upward.

    He was escorted aboard the small craft and offered a side-facing seat in the back.  He could see then that the ship did indeed have windows, they were simply shielded somehow from the outside.  Even by this point he wasn’t terribly shocked or frightened - he had met highly advanced alien races before.  He was, however, impressed at just how advanced they seemed to be.  And even more impressed at how polite its first emissaries were.

    With hardly a jolt or a sound, the small craft took flight, and rapidly left the city of Paradopolis shrinking into nothingness.  Mumph checked his pocket watch discreetly.  It still had the glowing pinpoints.  Peculiar, he thought to himself.  He had never seen that before.

    He started watching again through the windows as they slowed suddenly, without leaving the atmosphere.  They were at a very high altitude above the city.

    A door opened in the sky.  At least that’s how it appeared, until Mumph deduced that it must be the entrance to a larger spacecraft, the mother ship for the small cruiser which brought him up.

    The small craft glided through the door, and through a tunnel and through a series of what seemed to be blue glowing translucent walls - some kind energy based of airlock, Mumph guessed.  Then they settled into what looked like a painted rectangular parking space on a bright white floor.  A crowd of male and female maintenance workers in simpler and more rumpled versions of the same silver and blue uniform raced over and started working on the small spacecraft as soon as it stopped, practically before the door slid open.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Follow me, please.”  one of the two girls who originally captured him said.  The other bowed politely and then followed, so one was leading the way, and the other tagging along behind.

    They brought Mumph into a hallway that had shiny white walls and a ceiling that may have also been white, but was giving off uniform light the length of the hall.  Every once in a while were recesses in the wall on either side...he guessed those were doors.

    Eventually they reached one such door, which slid open.  What was inside caught Sir Mumphrey by surprise so that he was left with his mouth rudely agape.

    There was a clear glass table, which gave off its own light, and chairs that appeared to be made of a canvas material.  Most surprising of all, sitting at that table in casual clothing were Lara Night - he recognized her - and a brown-haired woman in similar clothing.  Standing was a woman with jet-black hair in another blue and silver uniform, only hers had a larger winged creature on the chest.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“This is Captain Shen Rae.”  Lara Night quickly introduced.  “Next to me is my friend Sharon from home.  You might remember her.”

    Sir Mumphrey nodded, and took the seat offered to him by the Captain.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I apologize for the abduction.”  Captain Shen Rae began.  “I sent female crew members because Lara Night indicated you were less likely to resist.”

    Mumph eyed Lara, who looked away shyly but didn’t say a word.

    Shen Rae continued.  “I’ll try to be brief and to the point.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I appreciate that.”  Mumph commented patiently.

    Then the Captain held out a hand.  “May I see your pocket watch?”

    Mumph hesitated.  He looked across the table at Lara, who nodded.  He then reluctantly...didn’t hand it to Shen Rae, but deposited the watch on the table.  He knew it could protect itself...the Captain would be sorry if she attempted to steal or destroy it.

    Instead, to Mumph’s surprise, Shen Rae picked up the watch and examined it.  The two attendants who delivered Mumph seemed worried, and backed up closer to the door.  That didn’t faze the Captain.

    That gave Sir Mumphrey the incentive to ask the question foremost on his mind.  “Would you happen to know why it’s doing that?”  he asked, referring to the obvious pinpoints of light.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“It’s us.”  Shen Rae answered, holding up her hands.  “It’s this ship.  It gives off energy similar in frequency to the Chronometer’s storage.”  She smirked and added.  “As long as we’re here you will enjoy unlimited energy reserves.”

    Then she placed the watch back on the table, and removed a device just like the one Mumph had seen the two attendants carrying from her belt.  She waved it over the Chronometer...

    ...and it changed color to a silvery metal that seemed to have a blue tinge.  The dial was no more, its glass giving off a faint blue glow.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“The gem looks good.”  Shen Rae commented, looking down through the glass.  “You’ve been taking excellent care of the Chronometer.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Thank you.”  Sir Mumphrey replied instinctively to the compliment.  He leaned over, partially out of his seat, so he could see what she was talking about.  Beneath the glass was a multi-faceted gem that spun very slowly.  Then, as quickly as the Chronometer changed, it transformed back.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That’s the heart of the Chronometer.”  Shen Rae explained.  “It’s alive, you know.  The rest of the pocket watch is just its home...it’s means of communicating with you.  It’s quite capable of operating all on its own.”

    Mumph leaned back, crossed his arms, and furrowed his brow.  “How do you know so much about it?”

    Shen Rae looked at Sharon.  She knew that someone more human might be able to explain better...and that Sharon loved explaining things.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Shen Rae’s family designed the pocket watch.  It was a commission job.”  Sharon explained quickly in her British accent.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Commissioned by whom?”  Mumph asked.

    Shen Rae smiled, and picked up the pocket watch.  She leaned over the table, and held the watch up to Mumph’s eye level.  “Why that would be a secret, Sir Mumphrey.  One of the terms of the contract, I’m afraid.”

    It was then the meeting was interrupted by a voice coming from what looked like a watch on Shen Rae’s wrist.  She had been called to the bridge.


---


    Sir Mumphrey was a bit surprised that this strange alien race had tea and biscuits.  The two attendants brought some to him and to Lara and Sharon while they waited.  Shen Rae had left the meeting room to attend to some business on the bridge, something that Sir Mumphrey understood completely, at least.

    He sat looking at the Chronometer of Infinity.  Mumph always knew it saved his life a few times, and he was never sure why or how.  Whether it was a dead-man’s switch type of arrangement.  If it had its own will, however, that opened up some new possibilities.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yeah, freaky isn’t it?”  Lara Night said from right next to him, as if she were reading this thoughts.

    Mumph nodded in agreement, and replied with a simple grunt.  “I believe when you first saw it, you sensed something to that effect, what?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I did.”  Lara replied with a nod.

    Shen Rae then returned suddenly, rushing through the room as if she had a dozen things to do and was trying to make up for time.  “I apologize for the interruption.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“No need for apologizes.”  Mumph quickly responded.  “I understand.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“The cause of it pertains to you, however.”  Shen Rae continued.  “I wanted to speak with you as leader of Earth forces.  To warn you that Earth is in imminent danger of attack.  I wanted to try and prevent it.  It appears, however...that the signs are already falling into place.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Nothing we haven’t handled before, what?”  Sir Mumphrey bravely and casually replied.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Oh, but it is.”  Sean Rae replied ominously.  She finally sat down at the head of the table.  “You see, there’s a concerted effort to take the Cosmic Artifacts away from Earth.  Then Earth can be destroyed, and its Nexus status goes into flux.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What signs are you talking about?”  Lara asked.

    Shen Rae frowned and looked down with a sigh.  “I’m unable to say.  You see, there is such a thing as dangerous information.  If I give you too much, there is quite a large chance those who can stop it will be killed as a precaution.  It’s all in the timing.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“She means to say there’s someone really dangerous on Earth right now.”  Sharon tried her best to explain without giving away too much.  “If he knows you know...you’re toast, the Lair Legion is toast, and nobody will be around to stop him.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Except me.”  Lara added sadly.  “And I can’t handle it on my own.”

    Sir Mumphrey was tired of hearing all of it.  He stood, and looked down at the three women.  “I won’t be dragged here to listen to you prattle on about how we’re defeated and hopeless.”

    Shen Rae stood, and as she did, her dark eyes became a fiery red, and her hair changed to silver with red streaks.  

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Oh, that’s not it at all,”  she said.



TO BE CONTINUED?


-- Story written and copyrighted (C) 2008 by Jason Froikin, and may not be 
--    reprinted without permission.  
-- Yuki Shiro designed by Jason Froikin, based on designs by Masamune Shirow
--  Liu Xi Xian and the Psychic Samurai are original design by Jason Froikin
--  Lara Night is an original creation by Jason Froikin

I'm not sure veiled warnings to people that just beat the Parody Master are going to be all that useful. Mumphrey doesn't strike me as the kind who takes to being treated as a child all that well, and this Alliance's views of Earth are very much like an elder trying to school a toddler for his own good. The strategy employed here seems to be all about impressing Mumphrey with their superior knowledge by dropping 'casual' comments about the Chronometer and making sure he's aware that they aren't going to tell him everything they know about it, or this threat. Really, I think Mumphrey isn't any more likely to fully buy into the idea that they know best than Liu Xi is going to fully trust the Void Scholar.

They can't really go into much detail - next part will tell why. It has to do with legal limitations, and Shen Rae is trying to work around them carefully.

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