Ending The Game

Anomaly

Henry glanced around his cell, getting used to the surroundings. It was certainly frustrating, being locked up again. Still, this was the only way he could be sure he'd see Ellie again. He had to get her to remember the past timelines...or learn to trust him in this one, maybe? God, its all so needlessly confusing to him. What even was his plan back there, as well! Dance?

Panic does strange things. 

He took a deep breath, and surveyed his surroundings. He still had that gum and hairpin, there was a barred window that he could maybe slip out of, and a....oh come ON. 

He grabbed the teleporter and chucked it out the window. Not hearing it drop. Ah, that is a high up window, maybe don't try and escape through it. Guess the teleporter helped after all. In a weird way.

Regardless, he still had to get out. The lock on the door looked pretty easy to pick, maybe he could give that a shot? Or-

A toppat entered the prison area, glaring into Henry's cell. Ellie. Alongside her, someone to interpret Henry's sign.

"No one named Henry Stickmin exists. Who are you? Why were you looking for me?"

He...doesn't exist? That's a new one. A bit...weird, too. Hard to really take in. But he didn't have time to be sad, or shocked, because this is technically an interrogation and Ellie looks pissed. 

He started to sign his response, watching Ellie's reaction as the man began to translate

"He says he knows you. In a different reality...? You two escaped The Wall together. And did crime together, except when you didn't? And you had another friend, named Charles, except when you didn't?? And-"

"Stop!" She snapped, trying to think. Charles. She had heard that name before. Not all that long ago, either...

"That government helicopter pilot, right? He keeps trying to take us down. If you know him, then you could be some use to us when it comes to stopping him for good."

Wait, what? No no no no, he didn't want to fight Charles...but he wanted to get Ellie's trust. She thinks he's insane right now, after all. 

His panicked, worried expression briefly sparked guilt in Ellie. He did see, to care for the guy...no. No, that helicopter man is still trying to attack her clan. No matter how sad this stranger looks, she needs to put her home and family first. This is where she belongs, after all. 

"Either you help us, or we kill you. Understood?" She laid the choices out flat like that, staring Henry down, making him hesitate. "You don't have much of a choice."

Reluctantly, he nodded. He'd have to help them take down Charles if he wanted any chance of making things right with the two of them. At least he knows that Charles is alive and well. That's one good thing to come from all this...

"Excellent." She grinned. "Now that's out of the way..." She hesitated. Her green eyes glancing around the room. "You were talking about timelines. Do you know anything about the anomalies?" She sounded confused even as she said it, not truly understanding  the words she herself was saying.

Henry blinked. He didn't recognise what she was talking about, but he could if maybe she showed him. He expressed at much, listening to the other toppat translate.

"Fine." She hissed. "But one move to escape and you'll be put in the high security cell. Got it?" 

He nodded, as she unlocked the door. Taking him outside of the cells. Up to the main room, where Reginald and the Right Hand Man were talking. They both sounded concerned, but quickly stopped as soon as they saw Ellie had entered with the prisoner.

"Ah. Um. Ellie, right. I'll get out of your chair." Reginald muttered, getting up fast before she got angry. "I was just...uh-"

"Yeah, you can save it. We have a more important problem. Right Hand Man, you were talking about anomalies yesterday? I think I found someone who can help." She pushed Henry over, watching the man's reaction.

He was quiet at first, before nodding. "Right." He pulled up a diagram on the main computer, motioning for Henry to look. "Space is hard to navigate, so we got some fancy machines to do it. But they've been going strange ever since we set them up. There's nothing wrong with the machines themselves though. But space itself. We've been calling 'em anomalies. They focus around certain things more. Certain people. And-"

Henry touched the screen as he looked, the entire thing breaking instantly. Smoke filling the room as everyone stared at him.

Ellie was the first to speak. Her face full of confusion, but intrigue. "They say space and time are linked. Henry here was talking about being from a different time. What if he's not making that up?"

Another moment of silence in the room. "Right. Well, put him back in his cell for now. And get an engineer to fix the computer...again. it seems we're going to have a lot to discuss in out next meeting...."