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Chapter Nine: Last Day in Carson City, Part One

The sun shined down on the city, burning people, tanning those luckily enough and with seeming precision pushing Finn and Isaac back inside to the protection of interior walls. Closing all the windows and letting in no light, the smooth skinned sharks decided to finally cash in their chips and spend some quality time with each other.

“So how is it that the corgi is smarter than everyone else on the space ship, they should let him pilot. I’d watch a whole show about that.” Finn looked up at Isaac, the shark resting on his stomach as he looked at the TV and tried to remind himself of where they were in the series.

“Well, you know no one really does pay attention to it, but you know think about it I’m sure in a few other universes Bright or Basil may have met a corgi that was smarter than everyone else knows, maybe the corgi was like the Einstein of his time.” Isaac postulated as he groaned and faced his body back towards Finn, wrapping his arms around the shark ad hugging him as the marathon continued.

“God I love you.” Finn grabbed ahold of Isaac and started to kiss him, pecking him on the nose and rubbing them together as he looked off.

“Not asking for a marriage but we should stay like this together.” Finn held on to Isaac and held on tight. Pulling him in as the two stood in the cooled building, their heat encasing them almost in a blanket. Finn pecked at Isaac’s lip and then again and then a few more. For a second they stood still and Finn pulled Isaac into a hug and then just smiled.

…

And like that after the Battle of the Nevada Theater and the signing of the Treaty of Nova Prime, the city’s nightmares could all finally come to an end. But all in all everyone still dreamed of the attacks, yet no one remembered. Every single night their brains would show them the nanobots attacking or the peace being destroyed on some off factor.

And every morning they woke up, face to face with a sun that was blasting more energy directly on them. The sun rose higher in the sky and higher, and another week or so pasted and the chilled desert of winter was reversed and switched out for the beating sun and the sound of air conditioners across the city funneling out hot air and replacing it with is counterpart. Carson City had bad dreams and only one man seemed to remember them, he saw the future and he saw the past.

This man worked alone for most of his days and most of his nights. The dreams he saw were vivid paintings of the future, so much that while his brain was worn out he allowed his hands to work without being constrained by his now numb and stupid brain. And then once one was done, he put it up to hand and awoke his brain with a jolt of caffeine from whatever source he could get.

And then he went back to work, working to stop a threat that was coming for him always. The nanobots, this man, this orca, worked constantly to stop the formations of generation one nanobots, a spray something that could be misted over a battle field and sprayed down, absorbed by the skin and then nullified the transformative effects as well.

Yet his research was intensive and gave low results, David Pavlock nearly hammered his head into the table as he looked at the results of the next test, the efficiencies were all off from predicted and the nebulization time was conflicting with other processes that had to occur. And before he could smash open his head and release his knowledge onto paper in a stranger way, another hammering occupied his head.

Turning around Pavlock directed his eyes towards the small screen next to the door’s handle, it was the Outsiders. Iren and Finn if he was right, yet as he approached it looked like someone had taken a smudge to the shark, but looking the screen was clean. It was a different person.

“Ah hello, I think you will be satisfied with my results.” Pavlock started off as he opened the door and let the bloated tiger and shark into the relief from the desert heat. The two of them looked tired, almost destroyed, it was the look of sheer heat blasting them. “Ah let me get you two a water, and turn the coolant up, who is your friend Iren?”

“Well Doctor, this is Tidus. He is a friend of me and Finn, you know him better as Livewire, with all the reorganization happening lately he’s finally switched over to the right team to play for.” Pavlock returned and placed two plastic water bottles down as Iren grabbed it and opened it, she started to suck it down, Tidus did so less enthusiastically.

“What do you mean by reorganization, is the funding for this project still safe, I finally managed to produce a workable prototype.” David spat out, as he backed up. His hands looked grabby, his eyes turned towards the pill in the case and he was ready to run for his work.

“Wow, no need to worry. This effects the military, but you must be working hard not to notice. All of a sudden with the death at the Nevada Theater, General Maverick has been accused of using kids for less than moral purposes, which isn’t so fly with in the military command as much as the FBI, so I escaped and he is being shifted to a full platoon instead.” Tidus explained as Pavlock turned and walked over towards the half-circle desk placed on the other side of the observatory, grabbing a glass container Pavlock started to walk back. “But thanks for asking.”

“Now then this, is the first scalable prototype. Throw more materials in and get out more materials, all by ratios so then I can give Isaac the recipes and then he can figure out mass production. But it is a pill, someone has to swallow this.” The orca removed the glass container and then held up the pill.

“Well at the hospitals they have been dealing with people half-transformed stuck between mutant and gen one. I saw one a while back, it looked bad, we can give them the pills and get to work. Sounds great.” Iren enthusiastically put the bottle down as soon as she realized the bottle was empty. Sitting down in a seat she groaned for a second and then looked at the pill. And then another knocking on the door, they all turned towards it.

“Strange I wasn’t expecting anyone, but let’s hope you didn’t smudge the screen Iren because I nearly through you made Tidus look like Finn.” Pavlock walked over towards the screen and bent down, Iren looked over towards the window and tried to grasp who was at the door, she hoped it not to be Maverick.

“Hey that’s sharkist. We don’t all look alike, let’s hope you’re not watching a credit card commercial on a smudged…” And then suddenly he felt something, he looked over at Iren and nodded, she stood up and backed up. Looking down at his watch he groaned a bit and walked over.

“Strange…” Pavlock commented, all he could get out. In that moment, the door was blasted off. In the moment the orca was taken with half the door and he slammed into the desk. Iren looked back and saw the conspirer. Nanobots, gen ones standing there in their green glow. Tidus looked over to Pavlock and Iren, blood was flowing out of the orca a bit too quick, he knew he had to save Iren first.

“They want the formula; I’ll hold them back you transfer it over to Isaac and then grab the hard drive, smash it if they threaten to get you.” Tidus commanded as he walked in front of the door, blocking a direct shot to the tiger. All the while Iren turned on the computer and started to type.

“Well then boys look like we’ve got a new toy to break in.” The first gen one said at Tidus. The shark grabbed his fists, and wanted to measure how much he wanted to punch the stupid idiot. On a one to ten right now he was at, say a three. Instead he wanted to show them some powers.

“I wonder if he’s like the other one, with electrical powers in all.” Another pondered and Tidus knew he had to give out a sample. Putting his hands forward and collapsing them together, he started to fire, it was a simple three hundred thousand megawatt blast from his hand.

The entire room flashed, an Tidus was sure the desert did a bit as he watched the nanobots fall to the ground. And looking satisfied, he turned around and then he heard the sound he had been dreading. A slight splash of water, he didn’t look and instead quickly turned towards his water bottle, he would have been luckily it that spilled.

“Well Tidus, I think that it’s time. My motherly instincts are calling; I probably have like three hours or so until contracts start.” Iren calmly said as she turned around, a bit of water on the front of her pants. Tidus was smart enough not to make a joke, but then like a punch to the lungs Iren gasped. “Ok less than that, and you better get me out of this place quickly.”

“Sorry Pavlock.” Tidus solemnly looked over to the man, his eyes closed and his breathing was ending. The shark turned towards Iren and she handed him the hard drive, better to deal with that later than sooner. “So then this is the day I have been waiting for.”

Grabbing her hand, the two of them walked forward, walking carefully as he passed through Pavlock’s door. Looking forward a little dust storm gathered as he ran towards his car, he unlocked it and opened the passenger door. Iren got inside of it and closed it. This was the day to be born, in the wake of defeating nanobots and the pill getting ready for production.

And then the sand storm spread. It reached up as high as the nearby mesa, and as Tidus looked around, he saw shadows in the dust. And then green lights shining through the dust. Opening the car door, he looked out and put his hands out. Iren opened the door and walked out as well.

And then the dust was passed through…

“Ah and it is the day we have been looking forward to as well.” Tidus heard a voice in the back of his head and then like that. He was starting to regret his overconfidence as he saw another Gen One. His electricity was regenerating, soon enough in an hour or so he could do that blast again, so he would have to see what he could conjure up.

And then walking towards the nanobot, keeping Iren back, he cracked his fingers in his hand and let the electricity blast out for a second and then he saw another, fair enough. And another, still fair, and then three and then a mutant. And then a few more mutants and another Gen One, and a large mutant, and another and another and another.

“And another, oh god, we’re trapped.” Tidus looked out, a massive clan of nanobots all stood there, ready to fight. An army of Gen Ones and mutants, Tidus almost felt his confidence reach a new low as he backed up. The sum of all his nightmares combined.

“Now then hand us the hard drive and we will kill you, her and the baby all in a very painless method, resist and suffer the consequences.” The gen one leader threatened, glancing over to Iren as he looked at the bump on her stomach and the little bit of water on her pants. “Oh look at that did you sneeze or did so many guys fuck you that it all just comes out now?”

Iren walked forward, with that look on her face and grabbed the hard drive from Tidus. Any chance of mercy was destroyed as she snapped the hard drive in half, the mechanical disk falling out along with the spindle and she dropped the metallic case onto the ground. She smiled at the nanobot and looked at him, she had dropped a sick beat and the challenge demanded satisfaction.

“So then painful it is.” The Gen One said as he put his hand forward and looked at Tidus. Energy started to gather and Tidus knew that one way or another everyone here was being fought on his behalf. He looked over at Iren who backed up her hand on her stomach and walked back towards the car.

She quietly slid into the car door and shut it, grabbing the lock button and pushing it down as she then grabbed her phone and started to franticly text. Tidus looked back to her.

“I have to make sure she is safe, and if she is killed well let’s say it will threaten your entire existence, so you will die here one way or another.” Tidus threatened as he walked forward and with his hands in his air, put everything he had in him towards that task, protect Iren and the baby.

...

Finn looked over and saw Isaac’s face, it was so perfect. His eyebrows shaped perfectly for his forehead and his cheeks, always with a bit of blush and hidden genius hiding behind them. Finn felt himself blush a bit and wondered how he got such a hot guy to date him.

“Are you admiring me?” Isaac broke the silence and Finn looked over, giggling a little as he turned towards his shark boyfriend.

“That depends how much am I increasing your god complex?” Finn laughed as he put his hand on Isaac’s chest, he felt the breathing of the shark and put his legs around Isaac’s. For a second Isaac groaned a bit just as his tender connections were pulled, breathing for a second he looked over at the gravity shark.

“Don’t worry, I’ve had these for a while but they’re always like this, always hurts a bit to walk and still takes a lot out of me to run. There is a reason that I don’t hide these, everyone should know why I am always talking shit. If I don’t hide my shit, then you shouldn’t.” Isaac leaned into Finn’s chest and admitted it.

“Oh, how long have you been holding on to that, you did never tell me why you had these. It’s probably something embarrassing, did you rip your own legs off with your powers?” Finn asked, as he seemingly found himself in a cunning attempt to bond with Isaac, this was the most open Isaac really ever was.

“Well I don’t hide my shit, but there is some fuck you don’t want people to have to learn. This can be a later sort of things, and I might be a hypocrite but at least I can admit that I have my faults.” Isaac’s personality once again returned din full force, quickly grabbing a shovel and burying all the “fuck” he wanted to stay hidden.

“Well good on you.” Finn leaned back and watched the scene on the TV quickly turned into an action segment. Finn looked over and watched as his phone vibrated, Isaac didn’t notice and reaching out, the shark just grabbed onto the tiny slab and pulled it over.

“Oh I love this part, this entire episode and the next one are some of the best put to paper. I might just get to relaxed and stay here forever.” Isaac yawned out, as he leaned back and groaned, pushing his shoulders back and audibly cracking his back. And then Finn read his message.

“Nope episode over, problem solved and series canceled, Iren is having her baby…” Finn read from his text.

“Strange how it always seems that Iren always has these problems right when I am getting relaxed…” Isaac looked down at the phone with just the littlest look of distaste as he realized that he wasn’t going to be sinking into the couch and as such Finn’s body. Adjusting himself as he touched the ground and started to pace.

“Yeah no a little worse, she and Tidus are surrounded and he isn’t doing too well and we are dealing with a time limit, let’s get the bike.” Finn quickly recovered, hitting the stop button and running towards the kitchen. Exiting out of it as Isaac looked at him, Isaac continued as his mechanical legs carried him over the surface.

“Listen, Isaac I know you aren’t exactly pumped with Iren having my baby, and surely this isn’t helping but know that I’m still not comfortable with it as of right now, but Iren is still in danger.” Finn yelled from the bike as he put his key in, Isaac with a look of contempt walked forward and looked down on Finn.

“Fine then, she’s having a baby expelled from her vagina, I might as well let her have this day until later then I can call her a whore until the day and night ends for all I care. It’s Iren’s day.” Isaac defeated walked forward as he threw his leg over the red motorcycle and running past the large enhanced engine, he locked it onto the second bar and put his hands around Finn’s waist.

“Good then, we still need to save her no need to delay.” Finn passed Isaac a helmet and the gravity shark simply put it on his head, Finn wasted no time driving out of the garage and scaring the shit out of the neighbor as he drove past at full speed. Putting the pedal to the metal he was going to make sure his baby was alright.

…

Ross groaned as he lied back on his bed, or at least his shared on with Billy, his back was all messed up. He tried to crack it. Putting his hands on his head, he stretched them and felt the sore muscles and pushed them around as he tried to find some sort of flow.

“Goddam it, why the hell did I have to drop the shop behind the toilet!” Ross quietly yelled as he stretched out and then he felt the heat of a lightbulb over his head. Looking up, he saw it and grabbed it out of air, the mile wild dysfunction of the world disappeared in his hand and Ross had his solution.

“Ok, change just the spine.” Ross stood up and put his hands out as he focused on his spine, he had to be careful and then he felt the bones change to metal along with some other non-important things. Controlling the metal, he purposely forced it along and stretched it out. And the holding it in place, he changed it back, his metal spine cracking as he felt his pain relieved.

“Cute idea.” Suddenly coming into the room was Barry, the Komodo Dragon was still wearing the piece of nanobot armor around his body. And then Ross cracked his back again, showing the results as he stood up and nearly gloated at the lizard as he bent down and grabbed his phone.

“Why are you wearing that, are you normal under that. Have you bullshitted us all with your powers and you’re simply wearing a suit of liquid metal?” Ross decided to get to the point. Barry glanced over, a little HUD reflecting off his red glass showing a white target over Ross as he turned towards him.

“And who are you to ask that, Iren? Are you becoming a little motherly? You do know I am a danger to this whole town. If my body goes wild, this suit can operate separate from me and won’t be changed, this will keep my powers at bay.” Barry explained, getting a little touchy as he put his hands out and shifted the suit, showing his metallic skin underneath, the interior layer of the suit glowing with blue.

“That might be a good plan but you don’t need to fear yourself, and the city does not need to fear you. Everyone sees you as you were and you aren’t a danger, your powers won’t go crazy.” Ross started as he held his phone in his hand as it vibrated once. “Isaac wiped the memory and the ram and every processor function and rewrote them from the ground up made it so that the operating code works on a switching function, and won’t be compatible or backwards compatible.”

“Yes but you have seen who we are dealing with, you know their power and you’ve known how danger they have been for a long time, if anyone would discover a way to beat that then it would be the nanobots, there is no such thing as too much safety.” Barry retorted as he looked at Ross, who noticed his phone trying to get his attention and turned it towards his face, his face shifted as the blue light reflected off his face.

“Bigger problem, you will need your powers because it looks like from this text of words, Iren is in birth. Tidus is stuck, at Pavlock, need help.” Ross read off the screen as both of them realized that an adventure was in store. “Well then if we help enough them Iren might name the baby after us.”

“Is Iren giving birth?” Entering the room, Billy entered the room, the blue and white dragon still covered in bandages. Albeit, most of it left to handing the wounds from the desert scrapes. Ross smiled at him and Billy smiled back, walking over the dragons touched and canoddled. “Well no time for that, but Barry does have his big car so we can carry all of us.”

“Fine then we can take my ride.” Barry gave up and started to run as the feeling of time running out settled on them, running out and jumping into his car. A large Jeep, next to the tiny little corvette that Billy owned. Barry started the car as Billy and Ross ran down and jumped in the back seat, pulling up the back set of seats the two of them were ready for Iren’s baby.

“No, she is not having the baby in here. She’s having it in a hospital.” Barry quipped back as he shook his head in denial as Ross rolled his eyes. Sadly, they didn’t even have close to an idea of what was happening. Driving forward through the city with awkward silence was a bit too much even for them and it only took them to driving down a desert road for Billy to break the silence.

“So then Barry how is going with you?” Billy finally asked, Barry looked back and sighed a bit. The shark knew what he was asking for, closing his eyes for a second Barry knew he had to tell them.

“Well my parents finally had enough and they kicked me out.” Barry finally admitted as he rested for a moment on the steering wheel. Everything told him it was wrong and he was the good guy. “You know they made me seem like the bad guy, they made me out as some sort of villain and locked me out, I’ve been staying with Iren.”

“Oh sorry, I didn’t know but I feel the same about it. They’re wrong…” And then as the car turned the corner around a mesa, Barry hit the brakes. Ross looked ahead and knew that shouldn’t have been there. Something was wrong, hitting the brakes, the car screeched to a stop as ahead a migration occurred.

“Those are Riftwalkers, what the hell are they doing here?” Ross stood up and putting his hand on the jeep’s rain shield bar, stood up and looked at them. And then suddenly a sword stuck near them. Basil appeared in a flash and flipped up, folding his wings and landing on the bar, Ross moved back and nearly froze in place as the shargon faced him.

“So then how will it go, you first, or me first?” Basil asked as he looked down at Ross and then at Barry. “Hi Barry, sorry about the scare, but I would have sent the sword through your engine had Finn not told me about how you don’t have forcefield contained plasma powering your cars.”

“Ah what are you doing?” Ross finally spoke up and stood back up looking at the shark balancing on the three tiny poles. That was impressive in itself, the shargon’s leather jacket blew in the wind and he sat their unimpressed at the three of them.

“Oh well, ask the boring questions, we’re migrating, the sun is blowing up sandstorms and we’re going to take shelter behind a mesa once we determine the best place for it.” Basil explained as he sat down on the bar and stood up, social at best he flipped off the jeep and stood on the ground, leaning on the jeep’s doors and looking inside, freighting Billy as it seemed. “Oh hi, Billy I haven’t met you yet, don’t worry we don’t bite, now I assume you want this out of the way?”

“We do and get everyone through he as quickly, we’ll be returning like a bat out of hell, or in this case the start of Death Valley, Iren is sort of, kind of, very much having her baby.” Ross explained as Basil with a smile on his face walked over to the crowd of walking Riftwalkers, each one wearing their dinky armor and seemingly carrying suitcases of items.

“Ok you guys stop these guys are in a rush and once they’re through all of you run through!” Basil yelled to the seemingly long trail of Riftwalkers in both directions, and then putting his hand out the Riftwalkers came to a stop and a path across the road formed. Everyone in the car smiled and waved to Basil as they passed by. And then they disappeared beyond a wall of desert dust and went into the deep of it all.

“Continue on and make it snappy!” Basil yelled as he looked through the dust cloud and only saw the red lights of their jeep. He felt the energy that way and there was something bad about it he didn’t like it, it was almost like he was feeling four Irens all at once. Did her power increase that much or was her baby that much more powerful?

“What the hell!” Barry yelled as suddenly he saw the green lights ahead of him, a blast of energy flew past him and nearly hit the car as they passed through, a body flew ahead and Ross knew what it was, nanobots, he looked over to Billy and the dragon took cover, getting down on the floor, a way enough from the door and out of grabbing distance. Another few flew over their roof, and Ross grabbed the rain shield.

Pulling it over and snapping it to the front, closing he windows as they did, they got to take a ride through nanobot park.

“Hang on guys I’m going to blast us through here!” Barry hit the gas as the dust storm around them darkened everything, nanobots hit them and the jeep went through them like a boss. And then they nearly came to a stop as they drove a line through the crowd of mutants and nanobots and then like that they poofed out of the cloud and hit a gen one nanobot. Knocking him out of the way and sending Tidus dashing onto the floor.

And then out of the dust as well, a motorcycle blasted out. Everyone looked at each other as they realized that perhaps they were surrounded. Quickly Billy stayed down as energy blasts flew over his head and the battle of the mesa erupted. Barry walked out and started to slash at nanobots as they advanced, striking his sword down into a mutant and then slashing up through a nanobot.

“Took you long enough!” Tidus pulled his hand away from the nanobot and focused on another group. Billy stood up and opened the door, as Ross went out to fight. Running back toward Tidus’s car, he ducked from a nanobot and continued on as Iren stood in the car.

“Finn come with me, she needs to go and she can’t wait for this!” Billy yelled as he opened the door and helped Iren out of the car. The two of them looked over to Finn and the shark came running over. As the other four Outsiders fought they needed to get Iren to a hospital as quickly as possible.

“Oh stay in the back seat and lay down, buckle yourself in and get comfortable because getting out of here will not be comfortable.” Billy opened the door and pulled the sunroof down halfway, covering Iren’s section but letting Finn stand up, Billy realized what Finn was doing. “Good keep all the nanobots away from us and hopefully we can just go out the same way we came.”

“Billy put his foot on the brake and then the gas as he shifted the car into reverse, spinning the wheel around as the car did a three-sixty and as they car dug up some dirt, it was nothing compared to the dirt storm that hide the nanobots. The car accelerated forward through the cloud.

“Hold on, we need to go full speed through this!” Billy yelled as cracks of thunder blasted nanobots away from them, he drove at full speed and wasn’t shy about where he was going. Looking back as he saw the dust cloud envelop them, Billy saw Ross and Barry fighting in near perfection.

“Good, don’t worry about them the battle at the theater was worse, and even I could tell that you wanted to be on the field back there, but good on you. You did something even I couldn’t think of and you got Iren to a safe place.” Finn complemented as he turned back to Iren, who looked discomforted as the car jeered around, avoiding the now sparely spread out nanobots. “So then how’s it going?”

“Whoever made us do it, I want to shove this baby into their pisshole and then pull it back out, or at least a have them have a kidney stone of the same size or bigger.” Iren groaned as she did, she put her hands on her stomach and felt as everything was happening, she was safe now.

And then she saw the rain shield depress a bit, quickly she stood up, pulling herself away from feet that could come crashing through. The feet jolted around and looking above her, the two feet moved around. Finn struggled for a second and then the feet disappeared, seemingly the nanobot was spread out, and little black dots falling off the side, Iren laid back down, relaxing.

Billy looked forward as they drove down the hill, the only sign of the Riftwalker migration was a little bit of a dust still in the air as they drove past it. And then it was a smooth and easy road back to Carson City and the memorial hospital. Finn held onto the Iren as the two of them walked in, Billy going to park the car.

“Well then time to do this.” Finn blankly said as he walked into the hospital, holding Iren’s hand as she shuffled from step to step, as he did, he grabbed one of the wheelchair and expanded it. Iren breathed a bit of fresh air and sat down in it, putting her hands in her hair as Finn pushed her to the front desk.

“Hello, having a baby.” Iren calmly stated as she looked over the desk and at the nurse, she adjusted her hair even with a layer of dust on her face and sweat running down her face. The nurse looked at her, and leaned over.

“And does having a baby involve getting covered in three layers of dirt, because then you can call my children doctors.” The nurse quipped as she started to type on her computer. Finn looked down at Iren. “Ok, you two I need your names, and he is the father I can assume.”

“I am Iren Novak but no he isn’t the father, just a really good friend.” Iren said, Finn looked down at her and smiled. She smiled back and put her hand on his and gripped it as two male nurses appeared. “Now then, I think you can fill out the rest of my info, here you go, Iren handed him her wallet and then the two nurses nodded and too her way.

“Good luck.” Finn was the last thing he could say as watched Iren get wheeled out.

…

Isaac and Tidus, both covered in dirt walked into the fifth floor, as they sat down in the family waiting room. And as night fell multiple women walked in with bellies filled with joys and exited with a child. Isaac and Tidus sat mostly in silence waiting for the good news, both of them fiddling with their hands.

“I think we’ve spent far too much time in a hospital this winter, I hope that summer will bring us some better fights.” Isaac pondered as he sat down and looked over to Tidus. The shark looked to be equally nervous, sweat running down his face in defiance of the hospital’s air conditioner.

“I know, but after this we just have to find the last of the nanobots and like that we can deal with them, hopefully after that no more pain.” Tidus leaned back in his chair, he looked up at the clock it seemed to be taking a long time. He checked his watch and struggled on something.

“All in all, there is always some pain. I just hope that this doesn’t end up splintering me and Finn, I love us too much. I hide under so much and maybe I might be too rude or too much of an ass but I at least I know when to be one and when to stop.” Isaac leaned back in his chair as well looking at Tidus as the shark smiled.

“Oh well that I always how it goes isn’t it, just look at me. I don’t have anyone yet I was thrown from family to family after just showing up in a desert. The first memory I have is waking up with formal training.” Tidus looked back up at the clock. “The thing is time is always ticking and we have a lot of it, three million or so seconds I think and even if something is like something only a fraction of time will pass until the bad thing passes.”

“I suppose, what are you trying to say?” Isaac looked over confused.

“That, even if you and Finn feel like you are separated, because of issues or because of the baby give it some time, you all are so inpatient but sometimes you just have to sit back accept what your given and live with it. That is what you have to do, or else you will never be satisfied.” Tidus looked over to Isaac and then the two of them sat on that thought. Breathing for a second, Tidus looked over as Billy and Ross walked in, the couple sitting down and looking over. Barry followed them and then sat down as well.

Tidus looked back up to the clock as it ticked along and then as the clock struck twelve, and a new day was ushered in he breathed out in relief. He gulped air and then looked back over towards the door. And then the large medical doors opened, Finn stepped out. He was covered in a layer of blue plastic.

“Well then Iren had a healthy baby boy shark.” Finn stated with a smile on his face as he walked out, smiling as he did. Isaac stood up and hugged him, Finn kissed him and then looked at Tidus. Tidus walked over and held out his hand, Finn took it and shook it feeling the shock as they did.

“Iren would like to see you, she’s in recovery, he was born about two hours ago, and went through recovery. Sorry if I held you guys.” Finn explained as he walked back through the door and held it open for Tidus, Isaac looked back at the group and then knew he was going to either sleep or wait until morning.

“Finn don’t worry we just got here, oh he’s leaving.” Ross yelled trying to tell the shark as he disappeared through the door. Billy looked over and shook his head, Isaac walked back into his seat and closed his eyes. Groaning for a second the shark looked back and knew this was going to be a long night.

And then Finn paused, at a room, looking up to the number, he grabbed the door and opened it. Iren was laying down with the baby in her arms, her hair was done up and she looked relaxed. Tidus breathed in relief as he walked into the recovery room, dressed with a blue wallpaper and a white cradle in the middle.

Tidus walked over and looked at the child, he swore for a second he saw tiny bursts of electricity pass out of the baby. Iren passed the child to Finn who held the wrapped shark in his arms, the eyes still black and beady he probably couldn’t see much, until they developed much later. Tidus walked over and smiled at the child.

“Oh Tidus is so good to see you, that was fun. All natural, but a shark is just a bit pushing it for a tiger to deliver it out the front, next time I think I’ll settle for a rat or an owl.” Iren lied back in her bed and breathed, she was covered in a white blanket and looked to be relaxing, an IV connected to her arm dropping what could only be imagined as morphine or some other drug. “So then do you want to tell him.”

“Sure close your eyes, and relax you did well.” Tidus looked over to Iren and then back to Finn who carried his child over to the cradle and laid him down, the baby held onto Finn’s finger and Finn managed as he walked to the side and pulled over a seat.

“For what you did today, protecting Iren and keeping her safe at the observatory she wants to name him after you. I think another Tidus will be fun, think of all the nicknames for him.” Finn explained as he looked over to Tidus who smiled, the shark reached into his pocket and then pulled out a tiny present, wrapped in rainbow paper.

“Well I didn’t know if you would be prepared but he already looks big and smart enough for his first toy.” Tidus unwrapped the gift and opened the box inside was a red raddle, tiny little balls inside of it. Finn smiled as he looked at it, he looked back to his kid, the baby seemed to be growing larger by the hour.

“Well why don’t you give it to him. You can hold him; I wonder what his powers will be?” Finn said, almost in delusion as he looked over. Iren grumbled at hearing that but Tidus approached, wrapping his hand around the blanketed shark and picking him up.

“Well aren’t you cute, you’re just going to get all the guys when you get older aren’t you?” Tidus grabbed the raddle and the shark’s eyes followed it just a little bit of pure red his eyes could see. Tidus handed it down and tear fell out of his eye as the shark, pulled his hand out of the blanket and grabbed it.

The shark shook it for a few seconds and looked at it. Finn smiled and then directed Tidus to place him back in the cradle. The shark looked disappointed but Tidus smiled down and touched him in the stomach. Everything went well, this was perfect.

“Well then Tidus, good luck, I think I need some sleep after today’s battle but you surely came in like a lion.” Tidus said to his namesake and then turned back towards Finn who looked happier than if he took down the nanobots himself, Finn leaned back on the chair and stretched his arms and yawned.

“Well then you go get some sleep, because in the morning we have all sorts of people coming here to make sure she can be a parent and that I can support her, but send Isaac back in.” Finn leaned back in the seat and looked at Tidus, who nodded. The shark walked out, and closed the door on the two parents.

“God I swear if he starts to sing and The Cats in the Cradle then I will kill him, no you kill him and then I’ll piss and sneeze on him, which I think will happen to me for a while.” Iren mumbled in her bed and Finn looked at her as she rolled over.

“Wow you are just trying to keep me straight aren’t you.” Finn commented as he waited for Isaac to come back, meanwhile Tidus walked out. A bit of a confused look on his face, this was his creation, he made this happen and he know knew the consequences and he knew what would happen because of it all, he knew of the future and the past. But he knew that the two parents were happy.

…

What do you think they’re doing?” Looking down from a mountain about five miles away from the Kagen Camp, Bright and General Zonate looked down as the Riftwalkers started to set up camp and then looking down through the desert valley, a large center pole was erected, and then they disappeared in a flash.

“Well if we don’t know now, we won’t know later but maybe they just wanted to get out of the sandstorms, we still have ample room from them and they haven’t done anything to suggest attack.” Bright commented as he stood up and turned around, Zonate looked back at him and grabbed his hand.

“Yes but they could be doing that now, they could be setting up missile launchers to get us or they could be preparing to move further, maybe into our camp even think of the possibilities.” Zonate said as Bright pulled his hand out of the way and started to walk.

“Listen they signed a treaty for a reason and the Outsiders will go with us if they break the treaty but if we break it then we deal with the Outsiders as well, so leave it alone and if you want to be all theory filled like this then I won’t stop you just be careful.” Bright started to walk and then he disappeared in a flash of light, he started to teleport and then the Kagen disappeared.

Zonate looked down at the Riftwalkers and knew they were doing something, they had to be doing something. And then he felt something slide up his leg and before he could act, he was frozen, he was stuck, it was on his head on his ear, it slid in before the Kagen could act.

“Let’s make the Kagens great again, let’s make sure that they understand their call to action and that they have a great warrior to promote them, they say if you cut off someone’s leg they can still feel it, cut off the Kagen’s balls and where will it tickle you?”

Zonate felt his moral code ripped to shreds as the black goo on his shoulder tried to bond but failed, sinking into the skin before being pulled back out and instead sliding up his neck. The Kagen shark felt his brain go numb and the rest of his face fall over as instead the liquid nanobots attacked the brain.

“We need someone great someone to push for the city and someone to show that the Outsiders can work and right now I can feel all the energies in the city serendipitously well, and I can feel it right now, something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.”

And then like that as his eyes flashed blue, Zonate jumped off the cliff but instead of running towards the Riftwalker camp or his own camp the Riftwalker made his own path, a path forward towards Carson City where he would prove to the Outsiders that he could be trusted.