4.1 - Answers at the Repository

I was surprised to find Elaina sitting outside the Repository campus. I figured she wanted to sleep in and regain her strength after our encounter with The Rumbler.

"Oh, hey," she perked up from reading her Spellbook. "Good morning!"

A cyan crescent moon hairpin parted her hair above her left eye. She now had a ponytail, kept in place by a dark brown leather strap—with other straps around her right wrist, left bicep, and around her shins. She wore a gray t-shirt that stopped above her midriff, with a blue crescent moon graphic at the chest. On her waist and running down just above her knees was a black kilt with a dark orange interior. She had on black slip-on sneakers with low-cut gray socks. And around her neck was a long, orange scarf that flowed down to rest beside her on the bench.

I raised my eyebrows. "Hey, what's with the...new getup?"

"Huh? Don't you remember?" she laughed, "Because of that bomb incident, and how you carried me off from the hospital, I'm probably a wanted fugitive now, right? Wouldn't make sense for me to show myself walking out in the daylight with what I had on before. Call me a bit paranoid, but...it feels good to wear something new. Also, you can't see it right now, but my face is actually different from a hex I cast on myself. Should be enough to throw off any cameras and their facial recognition software."

"No, I get it. To be honest, I thought you'd still be at home sleeping."

"Well, I did happen to sleep well enough," she grinned. "But I spent much of this morning reading."

"Reading?" I repeated as we walked together into the campus. "Learning a new Spell?"

"Just a few. It's nice to read up on some new incantations while eating breakfast."

"Huh. Normally, I'd read journals on astrophysics or electromagnetism, but...I wonder how the Magic in your Spellbook could work with my powers...Ah, that is, if the Lord and Lady of the universe would even let me learn a Spell or two."

Elaina chuckled. "Maybe one day we can sit down for a lesson or two, Mr. Vector. I don’t think the Lord and Lady would mind."

"Yeah," I smiled, and I thought about the gods my friend believed in. "That...would be cool, Ms. Anomaly."

The Data Repository looked almost like a museum, but any would-be ancient-looking columns and archways were replaced with glass doors, steel supports and wall panels, and large windows that reflected the warm sunlight.

We walked inside the sleek, air-conditioned lobby without a hitch.

I glanced at the mean-looking staff and walked past shelves of records kept in rectangular casings.

Elaina skipped ahead of me, passing several people down a curving hallway, and approached a wall console off to the right.

A female AI voice greeted her. “Welcome! Please confirm your identity by providing your name and occupation.”

“Elaina Yoshinaga," my friend mumbled, glancing around. "Courier with Tributary Inc.”

“Analyzing…Confirmed. Welcome, Elaina. How may I help you?”

We both let out a sigh of relief. Guess Elaina wasn't as ‘Wanted’ by the cops, after all? Or maybe the data clerks at the City Council Building didn't file her name as a person-of-interest yet?

Call it a stroke of luck.

Elaina exhaled. “I’m looking for information on a man named...Doctor Molecruel. Please show all available files.”

A circular loading symbol appeared on the wall console as the AI voice spoke. “Searching Repository…Identifying Files With Spoken Keywords...Confirmed. Four files found containing your spoken subject name.”

Elaina turned to me, confused. “Only four files…? This can’t be right.”

“It’ll do for now.” I assured her. “Ask what those files are.”

She faced the console again. “Show available files on subject.”

“Confirmed," the AI voice replied, "Listing all available files on subject query. Please check the monitor for details.”

The four files available were an Ave Strata census book from before we were born, a post-doctorate research paper on molecular engineering, and two charity initiative proposals.

None of them mentioned the name “Molecruel” at all, which only deepened our curiosity.

Elaina opened each file and tried entering "Molecruel" in the “Find” search bar, but no results appeared in any of them.

She and I leaned forward and stood with our mouths agape, staring at the fourth "Sorry, we found 0 results that matched your Search keywords. Please try again!" return prompt.

“What the heck…?!” Elaina stepped away from the monitor. “How’s this possible?”

She leaned on the wall to the left of the monitor and slid down to sit on the marble floor. The monitor reset back to its default "Standing By..." screen after a minute of inactivity.

“Why can’t we find this guy?” Elaina rested her forehead on her folded arms.

I approached the monitor. It flashed to its “Welcome!” screen.

The female AI voice came back on. “Welcome! Please confirm your identity by providing yo—”

“Jacen Jacinto. Abnormal ID: Vector.”

"Analyzing—Confirmed! Welcome, Vector. How may I help you?”

“Search query: Doctor...Molecruel. Show all available files.”

“Searching Repository…Confirmed. Two hundred and seventy-three files found containing your spoken subject name.”

From the corner of my eye, Elaina jolted her head up to me.

I kept my eyes on the monitor. “Display.”

The AI voice answered. “Confirmed. Listing all available files on subject query. Please check the monitor for details.”

Elaina stood up quickly and nearly brushed up against my left arm. I noticed in time to move aside and prevent her from touching me.

“Easy there,” I said to her.

“S-Sorry…Just excited, is all.”

“Let’s take a look together.”

Our eyes jumped to every file we scrolled through and—

We felt our guts sink as Elaina read their very descriptive names.

“…Human Molecule Collection and…Dispersion…?

Molecular Atomization of Living…Tissue…

Ethics of Atomization within Energy Redistribution Research…

Atomization of Organ Samples…

Strata Sunday Times reports…Shevren Ambrigado…’A Lunatic and Monster’…

Charity Funds declared fraudulent by Board of Science…Ambrigado accused of human…experimentation?!

What…Who…Who the hell is this guy?!”

I swallowed. "So, his name's...Ambrigado? Dr. Shevren Ambrigado?"

I took over reading.

“Ambrigado to Seek Funding for Molecular Research…

Shevren Ambrigado—the…Demon of Modern Science…what the hell...?

The ‘Disgraced Doctor’ Ambrigado REMOVED from Board of Science…

Ambrigado Vows…R-Revenge…

The…Science Division…?

Criminal Organization…Crimes Against Normals…Known Members…

Aster Malvor…Energy Harnessing and Expenditure…

Samuel Olivier…Former Track Athlete…Can launch any object at…incredible speeds…

Lawrence Zodilo…Born with the ability to…cause mini seismic waves—wait a minute…”

Elaina met my eyes. “Isn’t that The Rumbler?!”

Suddenly, the Repository building shook violently around us. Elaina and I fell to the floor and I struggled to keep my face registered to the monitor so as not to lose the current search query.

“Ela!” I raised my voice. “We’ve gotta—”

“ALERT! SECURITY BREACH!" a male AI voice resounded overhead. "HOSTILE FORCE DETECTED ON CAMPUS GROUNDS! ALERT!...”

Elaina met my eyes. “T-That’s not us, is it?”

“No, it isn’t. It’s someone on the outside.” I turned to her. “Ela, I don’t what’s up, but this is the most we’ve been able to go find and—and we need this stuff!”

“Ok, w-what’re you suggesting...?!”

Down the curving hall, Repository personnel were scrambling in all directions as security officers rushed outside.

Who knew how long it'd take before someone noticed us?

I felt my heart beat faster. I exhaled. “I-I’m saying…” The spur of the moment had gotten to me and I tried to keep my cool. “We salvage as much of this data as possible.”

“O-Ok. Do you have a storage unit?”

“I do. Something better actually. You.”

“What?! Now’s not the time for jokes, Jace!”

“I’m not joking! Look, if I go through files, I can scroll through them like this…” I demonstrated by standing in front of the monitor, accessing a file, and scrolling through its contents quickly. “Your Tracing Magic lets you see what someone or something else has seen, right? Just like the bomb fragment?”

"Eh?! I-I never...really thought about using Tracing Magic like that—"

"But is it possible?"

"I...Well, theoretically, y-yes, but I—"

"Can you try that now?"

Elaina blinked twice and nodded slowly twice, not saying a word.

I continued. “If you can read my mind while I’m scrolling through files, you can get the information I see into your mind, too. Like a mind scan! That way, we’ll have the information we need.”

Elaina smiled at me and raised her hands to my head. “Jacen Jacinto, you crazy idiot. I dunno how you thought about this, but you sure have a way with thinking on the fly. L-Let’s do this.”

“Can you manage without direct contact to my head?”

“I’ll...try my best.”

“All right, here we go.”

I opened the first random file—a news article on Dr. Ambrigado’s failed charity initiatives. As soon as I began to scroll down, I felt a slight pulling sensation on the left side of my head, but I fought back the urge to glance at Elaina.

She had to concentrate, and so did I.

“H-How’s this?” I said.

“Good enough,” Elaina replied. “Next one! I’ll...I'll tell you when to stop for each!”

“Okay.”

I opened the second file—a paper written by Ambrigado on the capabilities of molecular atomization on both inanimate objects and several animal species.

I scrolled through the file at the same speed as the first.

“Next!” Elaina spoke up.

“What? But—”

“We’re good with this one. Next, hurry!”

I complied. I opened the third file—a public statement by the Board of Science formally expelling Ambrigado from their ranks. This time, I scrolled faster than the last file.

“Next!” Elaina instructed.

I opened the fourth file—a news article raising questions on the ethics of experimenting with human atomization. Again, I scrolled even faster than the last one.

“Next!”

I ended up opening seventeen more files and scrolled through them quickly.

I had just opened the eighteenth file—which happened to contain the first mention of the so-called “Science Division” and its members before—

“HEY! YOU TWO!” the bellowing voice of a security guard broke our shared concentration. “What the hell are you two kids doing? Get to the side exits! The Repository is under attack! Get out NOW!”

Two other officers showed up to our left and we reluctantly complied.

We jogged out of the curved data hall and into the masses of people moving around the lobby and other halls of the Repository.

When I saw we were a good distance away from the officers behind us, I whispered to Elaina. “Hey, did you catch anything on the Science Division with that last one? Maybe its members?”

She whispered back. “No, I don’t think so. Just stuff on Ambrigado and what he was researching. You didn’t open any on the Science Division? I thought you did!”

“I just did. That was the last thing I opened. I should’ve read through that file first. If only I knew...”

“Crap. We need that info, man.”

“I know, I’m thinking…”

I glanced back one more time to check on the officers. Only one of them was clearly tailing us now.

The hallway we came from looked empty.

I leaned in to whisper to Elaina again as we slowed down. “I’m gonna go back to the console, Ela.”

“What?! A-Are you sure?”

“We need that file on the Science Division, and one of us needs to make it out of here with what we already know! I’ll go back to the console. Head to your place and get as much as you saw on a data pad or paper or something. We'll need everything we know.”

She blinked. “Wait, but how are you gonna save the stuff you read?!”

“Old fashioned way,” I pointed to my right temple. “By remembering all of it, of course!”

She smiled and nodded. “You just love taking risks like this, huh?"

"I wouldn't call it a habit.

"Be safe, Vector."

"You too, Anomaly."

There was no way, or room, for Elaina to properly form a portal without drawing literally everyone else's attention inside the lobby. But she weaved her arms, casting an unspoken Spell, and disappeared from thin air. I saw people get pushed or ran into by an invisible force, and I breathed a sigh of relief knowing she made it out.

From the corner of my eye, I saw the pursuing officer look around aimlessly as more people broke his line of sight.

I did a wide turn back to the curved hallway we came from, dodging bodies of Repository personnel and visitors alike.

Suddenly, an explosion outside caught everyone’s attention. People panicked and made for the lobby's five sets of double-doors. I used the crowds to lose the officer chasing me and made it back to the empty hallway.

I ran for it.

Reaching the same monitor, I gave the same search query and browsed quickly for the last file I opened.

“You! Stop right there!” another security guard yelled from the doorway. He had his sidearm drawn and pointed at me. “Are you with the City or the Division? Hands where I can see them!”

I glanced at him but continued tapping away at the screen, until I found the exact file mentioning the Science Division. I skimmed through the text as I heard the officer walk in.

“I said STOP! Stop what you’re doing and face me NOW!”

I didn’t listen.

I allowed my eyes to find the words “Science Division,” along with Ambrigado’s name tied to its formation, along with the names of its three other members—Aster Malvor, Vincent Olivier, and Lawrence “Larry” Zodilo.

Ener-G, Mass Driver, and The Rumbler, respectively.

I got what we needed.

Two gunshots rang out from my right and the monitor screen flashed white as the bullets blasted through. Sparks and metal bits burst from the console.

I fell to the ground and saw the guard, who glared at me and fired three more rounds at the console, destroying it.

“Damn you Abnormals,” he said through gritted teeth. “Damn you ALL!”

He pointed his gun at me and, knowing I couldn’t possibly predict where the bullet trajectories would strike, I readied myself to dive out of the way—perhaps to grab a piece of the console, anything, to hurl at the guard.

But just as he was about to fire, three tiny projectiles imbued with green plasma pierced through his chest. As the guard slowly turned back to the doorway, a young man stood there smirking at him.

He tossed a tiny orb—a marble—up and down in his right hand.

As the guard tried to raise his gun again in desperation, the young man frowned and pointed with his right index finger. Immediately, the marble shot through the guard’s head, and he collapsed to the white marble floor, dead. A pool of crimson appeared beneath the body soon after.

I couldn’t believe what I had witnessed—a cold-blooded kill right then and there.

My eyes somehow moved from the body of the dead guard to the young man now standing over him.

I froze with terror as he stared at me.

“Well, if it isn’t the famous Vector himself,” he grinned. "Or, should I say...the 'Most Infamous Abnormal, Vector.' Is that right?" He bent down to pick up the bloody marble that pierced through the guard’s skull. “You’ve finally come here to learn more, haven’t you?”

“Who...Who are you?” I demanded. “Are you with…Doctor Molecruel...?”

The young man blinked and raised his eyebrows. His face was filled with a sudden enthusiasm, and he chuckled.

“Oh, so you already know about Doc? Well, this makes things a whole lot easier, then!” He walked over to me and bent down on one knee, holding the bloody marble up to his eye. “I’m Vince. Vincent Olivier. But you might already know my Abnormal name as…Mass Driver.”