CHAPTER 5 - DOPPLEGANGER QUEST ADMINISTRATION
Let's just say, the ride wasn't pleasant.
Zane never told me that it would take five hours to get there, and that's how long it takes to get from my home town in New York to Washington DC. On top of that, he wasn't very nice, to say the least. He must have been trying real hard when he came to Halloway High, because it had to take some willpower not to be a smart alek.
When we finally got to DC it was about three am. Still, the city was buzzing, at least compared to my home town it was. There were several cars - most of them cost more than my house - that rolled down the streets in the early hours, but Zane said that this was nothing compared to a Faiday night.
DQA was located on the opposite end of DC, and was, apparently, inside O'Bryan's house. Zane said it was in the basement, and all I could think of was how big his basement must be to fit a whole branch of the military.
"Listen," Zane said once we were parked in O'Bryan's driveway, "O'Bryan's expecting us, so we probably won't get much sleep tonight. Chances are, he'll want to send us out straight away, after filling us in."
I nodded and followed Zane up the stone walkway. After ringing the doorbell, we waited only a few moments before O'Bryan answered the door. He was wearing a robe, slippers, and was rubbing his eyes. His grey hair was a tangled mess and stuck out in just about every direction imaginable.
"Mason? Carter? Is that you? Oh my -"
"No, sir," Zane cut him off. "My name is Zane Taylor. This is Payson Pardil. We're the origionals. You called me sir, about their quest."
O'Bryan rubbed his head. "Yes. Yes, I did, didn't I? Oh well, hope lost. Come on in then. Straight through, door on the right."
"Thank you, sir," Zane said as we made our way inside. I followed him to the end of the hallway and through the door on the right, which led down to the basement. We must have gone down five stories before the stairs ended, but that made sense. They had to put it low enough that it wouldn't interfere with city pipes and stuff.
I was shocked. The place was huge. It was probably bigger than my whole town. Thousands of people could be seen, walking or running around, doing what looked to be important things.
"Why are they all up? It's three in the morning."
Zane glanced down at me. And when I say down, I mean it. He was about half a foot taller than me. And that was saying a lot. I was five-foot-seven. "I keep forgetting you don't know anything. Dopplegangers never sleep. They don't need to. So, they work around the clock."
"Aahh," I said, following him and O'Bryan through the mass of people - Dopplegangers.
"So," O'Bryan said once he was seated at his desk in his office. Zane and I had taken seats oposite him. "You're Mason and Carter's origionals then?"
"Yeah," I answered, thinking that was painfully obvious.
He glanced at Zane. "And how very much you look like him too, Mr. Taylor. Or rather, he looks like you. Yes, even the same black jacket, and - well his hair is a bit shorter, but not much." Then he glanced at me. "Aahh, and I do see the - resembalence. And what did you say your name was?"
I cleared my voice. "Payson Pardil, sir."
He smiled. "Yes, well about the quest. I assume you know nothing?"
Zane leaned forward. "We were told it was top-secret. That very few people knew about it."
"Aahh. Well, it was."
