Heroes Uprising: Alternate Universe (Thread 3)

Before the two girls split off to return to their room Sandra was sure to give Dave a heartfelt thank you for being at her side alongside Tanesha. Sandra did feel bad sometimes though, she'd known for a while now Dave had feelings for her, and it looked like even getting with Emmet was unable to push those emotions aside. As they walked away Sandra could feel Dave's heartbreak as she walked away with Tani. It surprised Sandra to a degree that Dave wasn't cold if not outright mean towards Tanesha, while she was sure some degree of jealousy had to exist in Dave's heart towards Tani, he's done well to keep any such emotions in check and not let them consume him. She did want to do something for Dave, but what? It's not like there was a second Sandra around that could have, and there was no way Sandra was going to cheat on Tani.

When back at the room the girls got ready for bed, before they could put on any popcorn or other such treats a bucket of ice cream appeared with two spoons and a note directed at Sandra. Taking the note in good stride Sandra gave a laugh before commenting "This has to be Riku's sense of humor." The girls climbed in bed together snuggling up close and flipped on Netflix, decided together on what movie to watch.

With her thoughts of Dave having passed, Sandra started to appreciate just what she had. She'd only been together with Tani for a relatively short time, but in that time so much has happened. Yet Tanesha endured it all and stuck with her through everything. For most people a girl like Sandra wouldn't be worth all the trouble she seems to bring with her, and most relationships would already be over by now. But Tani is always there, no matter how hard life gets or how crazy things are, Tani is always there without hesitation to support or comfort her. "What in the world did I ever do to deserve somebody like you?" Sandra asked. From Tani's perspective it may of seemed like the question came out of nowhere, but Sandra was just so grateful for everything Tani has done.

-----

The party was in full swing and an amazing musical performance would set the mood right. Tesla soaked in some cheers before heading over to get a drink, as expected a number of guys and even some gals followed her, and it seemed Tesla wouldn't have any issues getting a overnight fling. The dancing and drinking was fun, but the real party always started behind closed doors.

Katy remained dancing to the music and even ready for another performance if anybody was down for one more.

Scott turned to Juliet after she had wished them luck on their travels.
"I will return someday to help you and Tenshi with the dojo. If you should need me sooner than that, however, call out to Alan Arnan, also known as Solaris, and he will send me here as quick as he can."
He shook hands with Juliet, wishing her the best in her own endeavors, and then left the dojo with Kiya. On the way to the main building of Xavier, she asked him how they would handle this interrogation.
"Well, I doubt he'd be very cooperative if he saw you, so we should start by having me interview him alone."

Scott opened the door to the main building in Xavier and let Kiya enter first.
"The thing is that I can't force Mr. Sheets to talk to me. The interview is partly for my own curiosity, and partly so he can appreciate just what he almost caused. Whether he cooperates or listens to me is his decision, but I can scold him either way."
This interview would be as close to modern police style as he could simulate under the circumstances, which would mean no use of force to coerce information. Under the circumstances, the interview had to be voluntary.

When they reached the holding cell, Scott turned to Kiya.
"Please wait right here. If I need anything, I'll let you know."
Scott took the key card left behind and swiped it in the key reader to open the door before handing it to Kiya. As the door slid shut behind him, Scott focused his gaze on Darrel.
"Mr. Darrel Sheets, I am Scott Young, the associate of the Xavier Institute that apprehended you."

There was no table for him to sit down at, so he leaned against the wall with his hands in his pockets.
"I was curious about why you decided to do what you did, and I also wanted you to know why your actions could have had negative consequences far beyond this world."
His tone and body language were professional, yet friendly, wanting to keep things light for now as they eased into the important stuff.
"Would you like some coffee, soda, or a sandwich? You look like you could use it."
Police often used this offer to get DNA surreptitiously from a suspect, but in Scott's case, he was using it to try and build a rapport with Sheets so that he would be willing to talk to him.

Kiya leaned against the wall by the door, it looked like she was going to be on security guard duty.    She hoped Scotty would lay down the law with Darrel, but given his goody goody nature she wasn't so sure.

-----

"Pleased to meet you Mr. Young.   I've been waiting for somebody to come by so we could hopefully clear up this mishap."   Darrel certainly didn't talk like a superhero, he didn't even seem bitter at this point in the conversation.    When Scott offered refreshments Darrel replied with "coffee, thank you"

Scott was relieved that Mr. Sheets was calm and composed, having expected him to be annoyed or bitter after waking up in a stark room and sitting alone for three hours. It was unexpected, but it made him easier to work with.
"Sure thing."
Scott went over and gently tapped the door.
"Two coffees, please."
After five minutes, the door slid open and Scott hid Kiya from view as he took the coffees and the door slid closed again.

He figured that seeing Kiya walking around free might make Mr. Sheets lose his cool, so he was careful to avoid that. Scott handed him his coffee and sipped his own in silence as they had a relaxing moment.
"Tell me about yourself, Mr. Sheets, anything you like. We may have some things in common, you never know."
This was another law enforcement tactic, using casual conversation to relax and build a rapport with a suspect before getting down to the genuine interrogation. Often times this paved the way for getting a confession to a crime later, but in Scott's case, he wanted Darrel to keep talking to him even after he revealed his true identity and scolded him for what he had done.

Kiya was surprised when there was a gentle tapping on the door and Scott told her to get a couple coffee's. Kiya's eyes told Scott this request didn't go over well and when Kiya returned Scott was half wondering if Kiya was going to throw the coffee's in his face, which luckily she didn't. However Kiya certainly had that "you hired me as a PI, I'm not your damn secretary" vibe about her.

Sipping his coffee Darrel touched on a few points being a collage graduate, self made billionaire, and founding his own company with the goal of bettering humanity. However he had to ask "Mr. Young I'm grateful for the hospitality, but is there a point to this? I'm sure you realize I'm a busy man, even more so now after the mess you and Kiya made. So can we try to wrap this up?"

The music changed to a different song, keeping with the same artist, Humming urban stereo, The code:Breakers still on the dance floor immediately ready for it.

Katy:
I did love you x4

Emmet:
I did love you so I have to leave you x3

Emmet and Katy:
So I'll leave you
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know
I have a secret love
Don't know why (I need you)
Don't know how (I want you)
Don't know why (I love you)
Know nothing of some fickle guy
Don't hold me
Don't hold back
Don't forget, Don't forget
I'm sorry bye bye babe
Scully doesn't know
doesn't know doesn't know doesn't know
Scully doesn't know
doesn't know doesn't know doesn't know

Victoria:
I did love you x4

Riku:
I did love you, so I have to leave you x3
So I'll leave you

Emmet and Katy with the True Notes:
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know x4
I have a secret love
Don't know why (Emmet:I need you)
Don't know how (Katy:I want you)
Don't know why (Emmet:I love you)
Know nothing of some fickle guy
Don't hold me
Don't hold back
Don't forget, don't forget
I'm sorry, bye bye babe

Katy:
You're leaving rapidly
don't you just go away
We're parting rapidly
please go away
The pain remains in my mind
deep in my mind
I'm loving you only you are my love

Emmet and Katy with True Notes:
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know
Scully doesn't doesn't doesn't know

I have a secret love
Don't know why (I need you)
Don't know how (I want you)
Don't know why (I love you)
Know nothing of some fickle guy
Don't hold me
Don't hold back
Don't forget, Don't forget
I'm sorry bye bye babe

Have a secret love ...


Emmet and Katy taking the lead on this song with amazing vocals and dance moves.

--------------------------------

Tanesha was surprised by Sandra's question, but smiled " Girl, i've asked myself the same thing, I've caused you problems, but your still here with me like i'm here with you " She hugged her girlfriend tightly " I love you "

Sandra embraced the hug. "Love, true and unconditional. We really do have it don't we?" Sandra sounded almost a little surprised in tone. "We've been dating for a while but I won't lie, there have been times I've wondered if we was really set for the long road together. But after everything we've both been though, and your still at my side always with my best interest at heart and willing to fight with everything you've got if I'm ever in danger. Babe you have one iron class will, and I can't even put into words how much I appreciate having you with me."

Sandra bowed her head down looking at the bed sheets. "Sometimes I just feel like I don't deserve you. You've had your own troubles with Troy and your child, you don't need all this with me. All this Phoenix stuff, the kidnappings, the murder, you don't need this. Tanesha you are so beautiful, strong, and have such a great personality, you can have your pick of any man or women in this school... but you still choose me despite everything we've been though. I love you Tani, but I feel like those words simply doesn't do justice for my feelings for you."

Sandra never in her wildest dreams could of imagined her relationship with Tanesha could of stood up to all this. From Tani's past with Troy, the argument over Tani's abortion, all the kidnappings, Tani poisoning her, Karen murdering her. If somebody had told Sandra at the beginning at the beginning of the school year that she'd fall in love, but not with Dave or even a man at all but instead another woman. Then they said that her relationship with said woman would of endured all this... there is no way in hell Sandra would of believed that person, she would of called that person absolutely crazy. But it's happened, and not just did the relationship endure but Tanesha's love was as strong and unwavering as it's ever been. It simply amazed Sandra that they've made it so far, and words couldn't begin to describe Sandra's appreciation and affection for Tani.

Sandra looked over to Tani a smile coming back her. "Girl I must be the luckiest woman in the world to have ended up with somebody like you. Just, thank you. Thank you so much for being you, and always being there to support and comfort me. To be brutally honest Tanesha, I don't think I would of made it this far without you. Emmet and Dave are great friends, almost like brothers. But if I didn't have you babe... I just don't know."

Tanesha wasn't sure where all this was coming from, Sandra was a fairly emotionally driven girl however Tani hadn't seen her this flustered and unsure what to really say in a some while. Whatever train of thought had crossed Sandra's mind it had lead to the girl pouring her heart out, maybe it was just so much had happened since the school year started, maybe it was all catching up to Sandra and the girl just had to vent, just to let it all out. But through all of Sandra's talk of hyping Tani up as the greatest person on this Earth, Tanesha could detect a ever so slight underlining hint of fear. Maybe she was afraid of if she ever did lose Tani, would Sandra even be able to hold herself together?

Tanesha smiled and stroked Sandra's cheek " It's been really crazy, but all things considered I couldnt be happier being with you Sandra. This all started because of Troy, despite all the hell he put me through, he put in the direction to meet you. I'd never thank his bitch ass for anything, except this. Just being here with you right now, makes all the bullshit and nonsense worth it, cause in the end I have you and you have me "

She kissed Sandra tenderly " You really know how to make a girl feel wanted , your an amazing person Sandra, you've been through so much and your still here, getting stronger all the time and improving yourself with every step. I'm happy to be here with you, so dont worry, im not going anywhere any time soon, even in the event I was gone, I know it would be hard, but you'd move forward, dont think otherwise "

Tanesha looked Sandra straight in the eye, conveying all of her emotions and feelings in this simple action. Telling Sandra that it wasnt just her powers or the phoenix, but the strength of character that she had, it was what attracted her to the other girl, kept her there, kept her wanting.

" If we havent scared each other off at this point, I think were in the clear " she nested against Sandra, the weight of everything that had happened today making her tired, but just laying in bed with Sandra was the perfect remedy.

Tanesha always knew just what to say to ease Sandra's thoughts, while others might think of negatively when Sandra got like this, Tani was always perfectly in tune with her girlfriends emotion. Always calm, always supportive, always willing to lift Sandra up as much as Sandra did for Tani herself. Even others among the True Notes Sandra could feel was growing frustrated with everything going on, but not with Tanesha. Sandra sighed a breath of relief, Tanesha was capable of some very comforting words when she needed them, and she always meant every single one.

"Thank you Tanesha. You always know just what to say." Tanesha could feel the sense of relaxation wash though Sandra's body. "Babe I'm sorry for worry. I just sometimes still can't believe I've found somebody as amazing as you. By all accounts Tanesha, you are perfect. Well at least in my eyes, you are absolutely perfect to me. I guess I just tend to fear that something has to go wrong, that this is to good to be true. I've been looking for cracks in our relationship that simply wasn't there. For that, I'm sorry babe."

Sandra got comfortable with Tanesha, the other girl was right, it had indeed been a long day. She turned off the TV, it's not like either of them had still been watching the movie at this point. "Well, how do you feel about settling in and getting a good nights sleep?"

Scott was thankful that Kiya didn't throw the coffees in his face, making a note not to ask such things of her very often in the future. He listened as Mr. Sheets laid out some impressive accomplishments, though his polite veneer soon gave way to arrogance. Scott's eyes hardened, ready to get down to business.
"The point to all this, Mr. Sheets, is that what you attempted to do with Sandra was incredibly dangerous and reckless. I'm a hero from another world that was sent here to stop you from making a huge mistake that could have cost millions their lives. You were attempting to wield a power you had no hope of controlling."

Scott sighed, getting his irritation back under control.
"I admire your goal of the betterment of mankind, but attempting to use cosmic power to give all of humanity immortality would only lead to tragedy. Were you going to give them eternal youth, as well, or would you have condemned all of them to suffer the pains of the elderly with no hope of release? Or would you choose who to make immortal, trusting that absolute power wouldn't corrupt your morality? Resources would also never be able to hold up in the long run with trillions of humans to care for. That's not even including the sick people who would suffer in perpetuity while their illnesses remain incurable, or the horrible dictators who would have eternity to torture and mutilate in mad quests for power."

Scott gave Mr. Sheets a reproachful look.
"But the worst sin of all is that you attempted to build this short-sighted utopia upon Sandra's death. Killing a few to save a million, is that the mindset you have? That the ends justify the means? That is unacceptable and nothing truly good can come from such an ideology. The law of unintended consequences and the road to Hell being paved with good intentions are two sayings that come to mind when I think about what you tried to do."

Scott's eyes softened.
"But it isn't that I don't understand where you're coming from. A long time ago, I met the Christian God and asked him why humanity is doomed to die. He told me that humanity is intelligent and ambitious beyond all measure, and that without a natural life span, they would surely destroy themselves in pursuit of knowledge and power. It is tragic when good people die in unjust ways, but I can assure you that they rest in peace sheltered in the arms of their God, and if they were not religious, they simply rest in a next world of their own making. I find comfort in that knowledge and hope that you can, as well."

Scott took a sip of his coffee.
"Aside from that, I know all too well the cost of immortality. I am a cosmic being who swore an oath to defend my planet for as long as I can carry the mantle. I will see all of my loved ones die before me, and endure much loneliness as I stop evil for eternity. The burden of immortality, especially its capacity to erode morality, is not for everyone and I would never wish that cost on others. Do you now understand the true horrors of the suffering that you almost unleashed on mankind, Mr. Sheets?"

Darrel considered Scott's words. "Giving all of humanity immortality wasn't my goal, I just wanted people to live full life's free of pain, illness or poverty. However I admit I had not considered all the negatives, so you've given me a lot to think about."

Scott nodded as Darrel admitted that he had not thought through all of his plan.
"If you have learned something from this fiasco, then that is all I wanted. Do not go messing around with cosmic forces again. Instead, use what you do have to try and make a difference in a positive way."
Scott headed for the door and stopped.
"I'm not sure what Xavier will do with you from here on, but hopefully you will be free to go back home soon."

Scott then exited the room and the door closed behind him. He turned to Kiya and gave her a smile.
"Thanks for waiting. We can get out of here now."
Walking with Kiya, he left the main building of Xavier and headed through the front gates. Once they were far enough away from the school, a Fire Path opened and they stepped through. They were now in Earth 1's New York City, not far from Valor Investigations.

"Well, we're back in my world now. Earth 1 is a closed multiverse, so your enemies won't be able to come here seeking revenge on you. That should give you time to acclimate to your new life here."
He turned to her.
"I have a spare bedroom in my house that you can use, if you wish. If you'd rather get your own place, though, that's okay, too."

Kiya asked how things went with Darrel, she was disappointed he got off so easily. Clearly Scott and Kiya had their own methods of how to get a job done. They would soon leave the school and go though a portal into Scott's world. He explained about this being a closed multiverse where he prior enemies couldn't get to her, he then inquired about living arrangements. "I don't mind occupying a guest room, just know if I catch you perving on me there will be hell to pay."

-----

With Scott and Kiya gone Shawkun would make his way to the lockup. Entering Darrel asked "are you here to set me free?" Shawkun got a devilish grin about him. "I suppose to some extent, you could say that. Shawkun walked around the table grabbing Darrel by the throat and slamming him back against the wall. Lifting Darrel off his feet by his throat, choking him. "Darrel I will free you, I will free your soul from your body as now you become part of me instead."

Shawkun would proceed to take Darrel's soul, and his body would appear to get de-materialized or vaporized, leaving no traces behind. Far as anybody would ever know, Darrel went down with the island. Returning to Ms. Goodman "My fair lady, the deed has been done."

"Damn, there goes my plan to peek in on you in the shower," Scott said with a joking smile.
He walked with her to his house, which was a nice home in a middle-class residential area. Once they went inside, he showed her to her guest bedroom.
"You can take some time to get settled in. I need to go and inform Alan and Chiang about what happened."
Scott left the room, leaving Kiya to do what she would.

Kiya didn't bring anything with her, she'd have to buy some change of cloths at some point. For now with Scott gone Kiya figured she could check out her new surroundings and get used to what is basically her new home for the time.

One month later, Scott was sitting in his office going over his case load. Kiya had a desk in the front while his desk was in the back, and she had proven to be a very competent investigator after Scott showed her the ropes. The most important lesson was that they were not to kill, since they didn't have that kind of authority. A case came across his desk about potential real estate fraud, and so Scott got up to hand the file to Kiya.
"Can you set up surveillance on this rental property tonight? The owner thinks there might be some fraud going on and I would love to catch them in the act."

Kiya had taken to investigating pretty well after settling in, many of her old skills still held importance in this new role and while no killing seemed obvious and to go without saying, if Kiya ever needed to make somebody talk, she could go a long way into torture before death became a concern.     However so far nothing has come up that needed to resort to that, persuasion, catching people in the act and some good old fashion snooping seem to get the job done.     Scott would come by and give her a file.

"Shouldn't be a problem.    Would you like me to stake the place out?"

Kiya's mood had lightened up a bit over the past month.    She was understandable quite a bit bitter towards Scott at first but after having some time to settle in things seemed to be going well.    Kiya inquired about the stake out as she really didn't have the usual human short comings.    She could stay up all night to no ill effects, she could wait long periods without tiring and slipping up, etc.

-----

Sandra had awoken the next morning still cuddled up with Tanesha.   She felt great, after having come clean and just unloading all her fears and concerns, her worries that all this trouble was eventually going to drive Tanesha away and cost Sandra the greatest thing that'd ever happened to her.     Tani however stood firm that she would always be there, no matter what happened.      Sandra had to admit, she admired that.      Tanesha was so strong, not just physically but mentally, the pure power of will this woman had was truly iron clad.    

The two girls ha awaken in the early morning.    After getting dressed, eating, all the usual morning things, Sandra and Tanesha would find themselves with a little time to spare before classes and Sandra would suggest a walk along the beach.     A short while later the girls was seen walking barefoot along a sandy beach, opting to remove their shoes so not to get them full of sand.    It was nice, the sand was warm and soft under their feet, there was ever so gentle of a breeze, just enough to cool them from the sun above, and the sound of the ocean cresting against the shore set the mood.

Sharing a kiss as they walked, Sandra would detect something ever so slight.    A faint mental call for help, and was close.    Somebody was on the verge of death, and after a brief "here we go again" look between the two girls, Sandra and Tanesha would take off running down the beach.     No more then minutes later they'd come upon a woman laying face down in the sand.      She would of seemed to have crawled free from some strange orb that had washed ashore, going by the drag marks on the sand it seemed the woman was incredible weak and tried to crawl to find help, however she never made it more then 30 feet before passing out.      

Stranger again was there was no signs of clothing in sight, the woman was completely naked.    Sandra would kneel down and roll the woman onto her back so she could breath better, Sandra and Tanesha then got quite a shock, this woman looked identical to Sandra.      Sandra herself in disbelieve would sit back into the sand, this woman's face, it was like looking into a mirror.     "What... is this?" Sandra questioned, with a mix of shock still in her voice.

Emmet woke up to Garfield spooning him, he'd ended up bringing the boy back with him last night. He'd certainly gone a long way to impress last night and Emmet felt he deserved some one o one time with him. As he layed there with Garfield, he was taking stock of himself and the fact that he didnt feel very tired, hed been noticing this a lot lately. His vitality was always high, it was getting to the point where he didnt feel like he needed sleep.

Emmet smiled as Garfield nuzzled his neck, Garfield was an amazing young man.....would it be so bad to date him? Emmet immediately shook that thought and slipped out of Garfields arms. He quietly floated off his bathroom and into the shower. As the water cascaded over him, he selected some soap, lavender and honey suckle, allowed his thoughts to wander. A lot had happened yesterday. From the tournament to Sandra's latest kidnapping, and the fight on the island.

He'd discovered yet more new abilities, though the ones he'd felt during his fight with Lilia seemed to allude him now. Then there were the things he'd been ignoring, mainly matters of the heart and the web of emotion. He was sure everyone knew of Daves feelings for Sandra, but it was a different thing to be able to feel it and his thoughts, it was like a slap in the face. Emmet liked Dave, enjoyed your sexcapades very much so. But now....He was unsure of his own emotions.

Ever since his relationship with Patrick, Emmet had closed his heart off and sworn off love. Garfield's emotions and thoughts towards him were making his head spin. Emmet got out of the shower and dried off. As he left the bathroom, Garfield was just waking up. " Good Morning, sleep well? "

Garfield yawned " Yeah, your beds also comfy " he grineed and stretched out, his morning arousal very apparent. Thirty minutes later Emmet was heading for the choir room while Garfield went to his room, both very satisfied.

-------------

Dave woke with a start, drenched in sweat and gasping for air, the dreams were back again and somehow even more vivid then before. Ever since he was little he always had very strange dreams, most of the times he couldnt remember them, but the ones he could remember were always chilling in how real they felt. Suddenly his door opened and Garfield walked in, but something was wrong. His friend seemed older, paler....and had fangs with blood dripping down his mouth, an evil gleam in his eyes.

" Dude, you ok? "

Dave blinked and Garfield was his regular self, Dave suddenly realized that he was holding a baseball bat up and quickly put it down " Uhhh yeah, im fine " he rushed off towards the bathroom.

-------------------------------------------

Tanesha immediately grabbed Sandra and dragged her back, looking around as if expecting an attack, all the kidnappings and attempts on their lives had made her a little paranoid but also a little more cautious when getting into situations " Too much bullshit lately and now you've got a lookalike? Somethings not right in the buttermilk " she pulled out her phone and called the schools medic bay and gave an explanation.

Not even a moment later, a team of medics teleported to the scene, getting the strange girl on a stretcher they whisked her to the school med bay, bringing Sandra and Tanesha along as well. Once there, Tanesha messaged Emmet and the others to let them know what was going on.

Sandra was initially taken aback by the lookalike, it surprised her when Tani pulled her away though after the shock wore off Sandra fully understood Tani's concern. Tanesha called in the school's medic staff to see to the strange girl, a good idea. Being brought along as well Sandra thought about what this could possibly mean. Was doppelgangers the next threat, did Sandra have a long lost twin sister, was this women meant to replace her, was it a mutant playing some sick joke? No, the last one Sandra could rule out right away. This lookalike wasn't a shape shifter, she had telepathy. That was concerning however, that this woman didn't just look like Sandra but was telepathic as well.

Sandra sighed "lets be romantic I thought, take a nice walk along the beach I thought, now we got to deal with this. Between the park and now the beach, I'm not having very good luck on selecting romantic locations lately." This girl was curious though. "I do wonder though, if this girl was sent on purpose with bad intent, I wonder why we'd find her in the condition she was in? We need answers."

-----

Nina was seen outside, in the sunlight and never even had so much as a hood up. As the rays of sunlight beamed down upon the vampire to now no ill effects, Nina looked at her hands in bewilderment. What happened to her in that fight again Mary, Nina had spent many years avoiding sunlight, but no longer did it burn her. She was always a Night Walker, but now somehow she'd also become a Day Walker. Nina's memory of the fights end was spotty, but could still feel it, something sinister lurking within her. Most would see Nina as a abomination already, vampires kinda had a reputation of being called evil personified, but what she felt inside her was even darker, like it was waiting to unleash literal hell itself. Whatever it was had to most certainly be demonic in nature, but the question still remains, how or why did it become a part of her?

Emmet took a sip of the tea supplied for him and looked at his audience, he was currently sitting at the head of a table in the choir room Victoria, Tyrone, and Roberta were working on setting up. On one side of the table was a glaring Riku with Tabitha, Gat, and Shizuka, while on the other side was a smug Noah with Amelia and Jonah.

" Um, i'm not really sure what you want of me "

Tabitha answered " Well, these two need a mediator and agreed you'd be the best, as a neutral party " Riku and Noah nodded in confirmation.

Emmet took another sip then sat the cup down, picking up the gavel that had also been supplied " Very well then, lets begin then! " he brought the gavel down dramatically " Alright, were here to discuss the outcome of a wager between Noah Arkson and Riku Darkholme. The wager entailed the winner having a request met, Noah's was for Riku to retrieve an item and Riku....various disgusting sexual acts. Noah bowed out of the battle, but not before getting confirmation that Riku conceded his defeat. correct? "

Noah nodded and Riku, after a moment of growling, did as well, Emmet continued

" Very well, then I decree Riku Darkholme, it is time meet the obligation! "twirling the gavel, Emmet once again brought it down dramatically, then banged it rapidly, giggling " My my, this is rather amusing "

Riku glared at Noah, a dark aura emanating from his body, after a moment he gestured and something large and wrapped in bandages appeared, making the table buckle under the weight. Noah stood up and inspected the object for authenticity, Emmet could feel a faint power radiating from it, it almost felt like he could tell what it was, but didnt know how.

" This is indeed it, hmm I doest matter, but where did you find it? " there was a hint of a smirk in his voice. Riku started to get up, but sat back down

" Your honor? "

" Noah Arkson, details like that are not included in the bargain*gavel slam* "

Noah shrugged and hefted the item up " I'll be taking this now " he and the others left with him as the Mages were attempting to calm Riku down. Suddenly Emmet got a message from Tanesha, saying they were needed at the medic bay. Riku opened a portal and the two headed there.

-------------------------------------------------

Tanesha squeezed Sandra's hand " Third times the charm right? she winked playfully as the void opened up. Emmet and Riku appeared, having offered to open voids for others to get there quicklu.

As soon as Emmet arrived Sandra was able to take a deep breath in relieve, it always felt so much better having their friends around. Sandra gave Tanesha's hand a light squeeze to acknowledge her comment, Sandra really hoped their next date will go well, however there was other matters to attend to at the moment. Sandra took the lead and spoke up as Katy among others started arriving though other portals. "Hello guys, I'm happy to see you. So em, this is a bit of a weird situation but myself and Tani found a barely alive, naked woman passed out on the beach. It looks like some type of orb like... thing... washed up on the sand. This woman seemed like she crawled out of it and going by the marks in the sand, it looked like she tried to drag herself to find help but passed out.

However that's not even the weird part. You see, when we went to help her well..." Sandra passed for a second still trying to comprehend this herself, Tanesha gives her hand a light squeeze for comfort and Sandra spoke up once again. "Well this woman, she's me. Like literally a exact duplicate of me."

Scott nodded as Kiya asked if he wanted her to stake the place out.
"No, we just need to find out who's coming to that property aside from the owner and have video proof of them being there that we can give to the real estate company. Once the real estate company knows who else is involved with this suspected fraudulent buyer, they can start to build a case against them with financial records. Since the real estate company wants the most common people that are on that property, it could take up to a week to see everybody. As such, it's probably best to set up discreet outdoor cameras off of the property that will be wired to my computer. We'll have lots of cases coming in during the week that won't be able to wait while you do surveillance on location."

Since hiring Kiya, the two had worked out an arrangement in which she would handle the leg work cases and Scott would handle the cyber cases. The most common cases that Kiya did were infidelity cases, catching them in the act by video camera, and Scott most often did background checks and credit checks. This case required extended surveillance, but since it was a fixed location, a camera would do.
"So, go ahead and set up the camera at the address listed in that folder, but make sure it is outside the property line, since we don't have permission from the owner to set up surveillance on that property, only the one next door. After that, head on back here and I'll pass on some infidelity cases you can wrap up more quickly."

Scott was thankful that things between him and Kiya had improved over the last month. Getting her licensed and teaching her had not always been easy, but it had gone well enough. Since getting her license and becoming an employee at Valor Investigations, everything had gone well. With an extra set of hands, the turn-over rate on his cases had gone up, which was good for business and good for the clients. They were still living in Scott's house, as well, and things were going well since he respected her privacy but shared meals with her. Things had been going well, and today so far was no different.

Kiya couldn't deny she missed being the captain of her own ship, however there seemed to be a steady rate of work and the money was decent enough, it wasn't multi-millions for generally a weeks work type of money, but it was OK enough for her to put up with having a boss. "How about the back door?" Kiya inquired. They had permission to set up surveillance on a property across from the client, that covered the front. However what if the shady deals where going out the back. Did they have permission to set up surveillance on any property that would cover the clients rear?

Emmet rubbed his chin, not appearing to be suprised by the news " While we were on the island we discovered Darrens research and in it was documented information about a cloning process, though it spoke of only failures, it seems thats not the case "

Tanesha was shocked " Wait so this guy actually cloned Sandra? " the idea of cloning in itself wasnt farfetched, she knew eight people in the school with that power.

" So it seems " he pulled out his phone and started typing " Kaiser said he would look through all the data aquired, hopefully he's gleamed something that can help "

Riku, who was still in a mad mood from his meeting with Noah was changing his hand into a demonic claw and back to normal " This all seems very coincidental, should probaly not rule out a whole lot of mess, especially greater dopplegangers, as the name says, their shapeshifters with near perfect form change abilities. They have strong telepathic abilities which is how they can get their deceit through so well, I ran into an orchestra of them once and.....it got really weird "

Emmet nodded " Lets not rule that out, though I dont see it as a real possibility " he looked down at his phone again a moment later " Hmm, it seems there was indeed a clone on the island and at it's destruction the capsule the clone was in was ejected " he considered this new information and what it would mean now.

"So this is that clone." Sandra commented, there seemed to be a hint of curiosity to her voice though as if what Emmet said had made her wonder about something. "So Emmet you said all the clones or records of clones that you guys found, said they was all failures. Well this girl is clearly a dead ringer for me, she's clearly alive. So, what went wrong that they classified her as a failure? Far as I see this looks to be a successful clone of me."

Sandra was pretty surprised Darrel and his staff pulled this off, far as Sandra had heard they was all humans wasn't they? Really managing to pull off some Resident Evil shit with the bio-engineering. However what was most curious to Sandra, with a clone this good, why he did he deem her a failure?

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Nina was making her way back inside and downstairs towards the ear Factors base of operations. If there was any possible chance to get some answers on what happened to her in the tournament, Nina could only think of one person that'd be willing to help her, that might come up with something. She had to seek out Alice.