In Memoriam - An Unus Annus Fanfiction

22.04 - 04/22 - Mark and Ethan take a personality test

Unus was just as surprised as Annus. He had to stop himself from making an audible noise of surprise. The six faces in front of them where eerily familiar, yet none of the pictures he had seen of them did them any justice. The man on the far ride was dressed in colorful robes and eloquent patterns. His hand were old, but his face was still youthful. It took Unus a second to recognize him, maybe because he looked similar to his not just his self portraits, but his greatest work as well. In fact, the face of Leonardo Da Vinci had striking similarities with the Mona Lisa.

He knew the woman to Da Vinci's left from the science books, the same applied to the man in the middle. Marie Curie did indeed look as stern as she looked on the photographs, yet she also carried a certain warmth, like that one teacher that seems strict at first but is really nice in reality. Nikola Tesla, who sat next to her, seemed busy talking with a man he did not recognize. They seemed to know each other well, and quickly stopped whispering when Da Vinci shot them a glare.

He didn't knew the woman next to him, but sitting on the far right was no other than Martin Luther King. He had his hands folded on the desk in front of him, but looked down at them with a hint of a friendly smile.
Da Vinci cleared his throat. »I believe introductions will not be necessary,« he asked, formulating it like both a question and a statement. »Unus and Annus, am I right?« The man next to Tesla asked. »I am impressed. I spent months developing and encrypting the seals. How did you manage to pass through?«
     »We were able to do it with the help of a map, your highness.« Rouge answered for them.
Marie Curie raised an eyebrow. »A map? I believe they must be talking about one of your decoders, Mister Turing. How might they have left the city?« She leaned forward, glancing over the table. »Perhaps Miss Earhart could tell us how this happened.«

The woman to the right seemed to shrink in her seat. »I may have... misplaced a decoder while I was out exploring the digital plane.«
   »Miss Earhart. I believe our group has certain rules about members leaving the city to explore any sort of reality.«
»But Leonardo did it as well!« The young woman gestured.

Da Vinci seemed flustered. »It is true that my curiosity may sometimes get the best of me. But, Miss Earhart, I would kindly ask you to refrain from using my first name in an official meeting. Also, the next time you leave to explore, make sure to leave nothing behind.«

Miss Earhart nodded. »Well, the damage is done,« Mister King added. »The question is, how do we deal with the situation.«
   »You know the protocols,« Miss Curie responded.
»I don't believe this would be adequate. These young men came here to in search for help.«

A ray of light fell into the room as a door to the left was opened. A man in a suit hurried towards the table, and handed a folded piece of paper to Da Vinci. His face told the trio that whatever message the paper held, it was of great urgency.
Da Vinci handed the paper to the next member, and while it passed through their ranks, so did a hushed mumbling. They began to gesture at each other, and while their voices were to quiet to understand, the argument seemed heated.

The trio looked at each other. A bad feeling spread through Unus's chest. Da Vinci spoke up. »El Dorados city walls are currently under attack by a being named Anti. Do you know him?«
   »We do. He used to be a friend of us, but he-«
Da Vinci's booming voice cut Unus off mid sentence. »Not only have you breached our security, but you have also led a dangerous individual right to our gates.«
  »Your highness, we-«
»Under this circumstances, we are afraid we cannot let you leave Atlantis.«

The room fell silent. The trio had stopped breathing in unison. »The protection of this city is our highest priority,« Da Vinci continued. »You have shown to not only find, but also compromise our location. You can consider yourself lucky we have sworn off the barbaric practice of executions millenia ago.« He briefly looked over to the other members, before turning his head back to the three men. »You will be confined in hospital, but secure area, and the individual attacking us will be dealt with.«

»You can't do this!« Annus yelled up at them. »We came here in search for help. Our lives are on a timer and,« he stumbled over his own words. »And Marvin is our friend. If you're that wise, there's gotta be a way to snap him out of this!«

Mister King nodded and gave him a sad smile. He didn't seem happy about the decision. »We are truly sorry. But Atlantis stands and falls with our decisions. You will stay here, and your friend will be neutralized.«