Adventures In Space And Time

Chapter One

               The trouble really started on the night of August 16, 2023. I was in my workshop, working on my armor. My workshop is on the top floor of my family mansion on the top of Longs Peak, Colorado. This mansion serves as the new headquarters of the White Lion's army. Oh, and if you're wondering how people don't stumble into our house daily, the summit of Longs Peak has been deemed "Treacherous" by the National Park Service, thanks to a large annual donation started by my father, David Grimare, and kept up by me. This keeps us safe from all but the most rebellious of climbers, and even those are turned away after a hot meal and a lecture on why they shouldn't tell anyone about us.

Anyway, back to the story. I am constantly upgrading my armor, adding to the processor that's built into the helmet and adding random gadgets and programs that seemed like they would aid me in my many projects and quests. About a week ago, I added a program that allowed me to open multiple tabs on my visor display. This allows me to check on a villain's GPS coordinates, find them on a map at the same time, and I can still catch up on Doctor Who.

My lieutenant, Aranoth, is the ultimate first mate and, if possible an even better tinkerers assistant. He goes on "business trips" around the country, and sometimes the world, so he can watch known Mordeux strongholds, keep tabs on our staunchest supporters and those who could turn either way but are close to a decision (which we call swing men), and looking for cool stuff. Once, he managed to foil an attack by the Mordeux on a "swing man" in Chicago and make it back alive with a module that would allow me to fire darts from the wrist of my gauntlet. The Mordeux were trying to frighten the swing man to join their side, but Aranoth got word to him in time and the man, a wealthy business type with a security detail, was able to thwart the assault.

Aranoth always finds the right piece for a job I'm working on, and even sometimes one that will help me in the future, and today was no exception. He walked into my my workshop with a grin on his face and a lump of metal, lights, and wires in his hands.

"What is it?" I asked, turning from the metal table in the far left side of the room, where I had laid my armor. As Aranoth wove through the maze of counters in my extensive workshop, he proclaimed, "It's a Space-Time Flux Capacitor!" I drew in a breath. I had been looking for one of these for years! They have the power to cleave a rift in the space-time continuum and take you anywhere and anytime instantly, but that's not the best thing about them. They can go to other dimensions!

"Where did you find it?" I asked, tearing my mind away from the possibilities and raking a hand through my somewhat greasy dirty-blonde hair.

"I found it outside an old police box," he said.

"A police box? What decade was it from?"

His face clouded for a moment as he tried to remember. "I think it was from the 50's"

I smiled as I realized the time period it must be from, or rather the time time period it was disguised to look like it was from.

"No, I think it was from the 60's

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For twenty days, I worked on the Capacitor, compressing it, switching out the large parts with smaller and smaller ones. I downloaded the program that it had come with onto my main console before I began, because I didn't want to lose it when I broke it down. I did not stop to sleep for the first ten days and ate little. Even when I stopped to sleep, ideas race through my head on how I could complete my project and how I would use it. On the fifteenth day, when I finally got the part small enough that I had to work on it with precision screwdrivers, I laughed out loud (If you couldn't tell, I was getting kind of loopy from exhaustion). On the nineteenth day, the part had gotten so small that I had to work on it while looking through a microscope.

It was at this point that I stopped to take a break and eat. This was the point of no return. If I misplaced one of the minuscule pieces that I now using, there would be no going back. I got up from the bench at my worktable, shaking with fatigue and hunger, and went down to the kitchen.

Well, at least, I tried to. When you live in a house larger than most hotels, you have to do a lot of walking to get around. Unfortunately, I was not ready to do a lot of walking due to my sleeplessness and hunger, and I collapsed after only ten steps. As I slipped into unconsciousness, I almost missed the stealthy steps that passed me in the hall...

As soon as I woke up, not remembering the intruder I had heard I completed my journey to the kitchen, ate five and a half bagels drank a pint of coffee, and, refreshed, went back to work.

At midnight on the twentieth day, I had finished it! The piece was now little bigger than an SD card adapter but could likely hold twice the memory. I plugged the capacitor into the SD card slot on my main console with little difficulty, and with a few short clicks, I had the program redownloading, and feeling satisfied, I walked away from my computer. If I had stayed near my computer during the download process, I might have noticed something off about the code...

Alas, I noticed nothing and by my thoughtlessness, sealed my fate. When the program finished downloading, I took the new capacitor and plugged into armor access port I had specially designed. Then, finished with yet another project, I sank down onto my bench with a sigh and a shake of my head. I grinned. I may have stayed awake for nearly twenty days, but I had finished it. I had finished the ultimate project! I now had the power to travel through time, space, and the fabric of universes.

In a sudden wave of joy, I stood up suddenly, almost knocking over the bench, and threw my fist skyward with enough force to nearly dislocate my elbow.

As my joy diminished, the exhaustion returned, and I sunk back onto the bench. Unable to hold my eyes open, I laid my head down on my arms, and went to sleep.

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Transmission Intercepted At 14:17, September 6, 2023

Transmitted via Sonic Repeater

from the Baltic Coast, Northern Sweden

Unknown Man: "The pieces are in position."

Unknown Man 2: "The boy has the piece?"

Unknown Man: "Yes"

Unknown Man 2: "Execute Plan Dire Wolf"

Unknown Man: "We shall have have him, Lord Mordeux"

Lord Mordeux: "Tomorrow will be a most glorious day!"

End of Chapter One

Alright, so that was the first chapter, I hope you like it. If you didn't, or had some problems with it, feel free to comment your thoughts

Marc Lash out!