《Through the Vortex》6: All In A Day's Chaos

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Howard hadn’t realized how far they had travelled from the base until the seemingly endless journey back. The helicopter had to stop for fuel, and night had fallen. When Howard looked at the moon, he realized that all of this madness had happened in a single day. In one day his life had been flipped upside down, and he was sitting in a helicopter with criminals. Howard didn’t have a watch, but he figured it must have been late at night when they finally arrived back at base.

James took in the sight before a grin formed on his face. “So subtle it’s obvious. I like it,” he commented.

Natalie snorted in disapproval. “Idiotic if you ask me.”

“Really? I rather like it,” Jonathan said as he stepped out of the pilot seat of the helicopter, “I joined this mission because they said they would let me live here once it is over.”

Leon looked incredulous. “You wanted to live here?”

“Wait until you see the inside,” Howard told him, “It is a messed up combination of everything. Perfect for a madman.”

Jonathan beamed, as if this was a compliment.

“In we go, then,” Sanders said, “We stay here tonight. Howard and I will pick up Miranda tomorrow morning, and then we arrange things with NASA.”

Howard grimaced. “I thought we would be doing some training first,” he brought up.

“We are,” Sanders told him, “At NASA. They are the ones with the appropriate tools.”

No one argued. It was clear they didn’t have much say since they had all signed the contract.

“What do you get out of this?” James dared to ask.

“Me?” Sanders questioned, “Well, no one else volunteered so I offered to go. Call it duty, or maybe I was just searching for something interesting.”

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“That was just about as clear as dirt,” Natalie muttered.

Sanders ignored her and led them inside. Howard had seen the theatrics before, but was still a little unnerved when the dark and creepy passageways suddenly gave way to a bright and cheery workplace. That morphed into a hotel hallway where Sanders stopped. “Here are some rooms for you to sleep in tonight. I will be standing guard so don’t worry.”

“Don’t worry,” Howard repeated dully. That was a cause for worry if anything, but he let it rest and went into one of the bedrooms. It was a bit cozier than he was used to, but sleep still overtook him quickly.

The next morning he awoke to a loud rapping sound on his door. “Sanders wants you to eat breakfast and get ready,” Selina’s voice called, “Oh, and he found outfits for all of us. I wanted to help choose but he wouldn’t let me.”

Howard let out a groan. He didn’t have any clothes with him, but the idea of the agent picking out his clothes again made him feel more like a puppet than he already did. Then again, anything was better than letting Selina choose his clothes. The kinds of clothing she preferred were all on the flashier side.

He got up reluctantly and staggered out of his room. One of his legs was asleep and his hair was a mess, but he didn’t mind. Food was more important.

When he found the dining room where everyone else was, he saw that they were already dressed, and had probably been up for a while. Howard made a point of ignoring them as he grabbed some food and stuffed it in his mouth. He didn’t take long to eat, and left without saying a word to anyone.

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“I’m guessing Howard isn’t a morning person,” he heard James comment.

“Apparently not,” Natalie noted.

“That’s right,” Selina confirmed, “Actually, I would say this morning he is actually better than usual. Back when we were kids he would throw things at anyone who woke him up.”

Another reason why Howard didn’t like people. They waited to say anything about you until you left. He went back to the room he had slept in to look for clothes. Just as he realized that they probably weren’t in there because he had locked the door at night, he found them.

It was a camouflage shirt with a brown jacket and jeans. Howard was relieved that it was normal enough, and got dressed. When he opened the door to his room, Sanders was standing right outside.

“What the-” Howard shouted out in alarm before calming down, “A little warning next time would be nice.”

“Time to go,” Sanders told him with a smile.

“Fine,” Howard grumbled, “Who is this Miranda person you mentioned last night?”

“Well, she is a famous thief,” Sanders explained, “She specialized in unique art, but would go for jewels and artifacts as well.”

“I don’t see why I should come,” he complained.

“Don’t worry. All you have to do is sit there and look nice,” Sanders assured him with a smirk, “I picked that outfit to match your personal style, and someone as fashionable as her is bound to notice.”

“So I am a fashion model today?” Howard clarified.

“Yep,” Sanders said, “Anything else you want to know.”

“What is our mission, exactly?” Howard tried.

Sanders smiled knowingly. “All in good time, my friend.”

Howard was left with that non-answer as Sanders walked to the helicopter. Feeling even more reluctant than before, Howard followed. Hopefully, when they got Miranda back to base there would finally be some answers.

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