Here I am, sitting on Thomas's couch, staring at my phone, promptly ignoring the 'hmm'-ing doctor staring at a lump of metal and fat.

I feel explanation is needed.

After my…respectful, and well-deserved, outburst, Thomas has taken it upon himself to run what he calls a manual diagnostics on his brain. That, in turn, lead to him sitting on the floor, brain pulled out of the top of his head, and sitting on the coffee table.

The wires are still connected, too. Yet he pokes and prods with his slim, reinforced, precise fingers. Every so often, he touches a circuit and piece of tissue, creates a spark, then hums in satisfaction. Or annoyance. Or inquiry. Or something.

I've been pulled into this, so now I sit here waiting for an answer. While he does that though, I've looked him up on the internet. Some of the articles are…questionable at best.

———

Dr. Thomas Archimedes's first major breakthrough occurred five years after the sixth Great Awakening when he unveiled the first piece of magically-enhanced technology to the world: a teleporter, immune to the effects of magic.

It was showcased during a rally of the Simulologists—a group that believed people were living in a simulation due to the existence of the System—when he walked up to the leader, Lloyd Garner, said, "Connection terminated," and teleported away.

This event caused a major uproar that historians believe extended the sixth Great Awakening for another twenty years.

Upon further review, this event also showcases a new side to science and the future, as these events happened several centuries in the past; it is believed that Archimedes's first invention was, in fact, a time machine.

———

"I found it!" Thomas choruses, grabbing my attention. Thinking back though, Sophia said that they had a ritual to keep people from making connections. Was the time machine included, because I feel like there should be a greater uproar for a man to be able to rewrite time.

I'll ask in a second.

"Right, so…" Thomas says, smile wide. I don't think anything good has ever followed those two words. "An…old problem, slightly recurring, that I've been dealing with, took a small toll on me. Frying some critical components, it essentially gave me a minor split personality, so I would say one thing, then do another."

"Now what?" I drawl.

"Now," he pauses, "I've reconnected the wires, replaced some resistors, reset the voltage module, and fixed everything."

"Okay, great. Two questions."

"Shoot."

"First, can you teach me how to actually teleport now? Second, how exactly do you keep people from connecting the dots on your family?"

His face of glee shrinks more into someone that just heard someone fart really loudly in a quiet room, and they're nearby. "Ah. Yeah. Yeah, I can do that. I do have to ask. Why?"

"Well, Sophia mentioned it a little, but I think I would understand it more now. Plus, if something is messing with my mind—my soul—I would want to know."

He sighs. "Yeah. You're right."

Snapping his fingers, we teleport away.

————————————————————————————————————

Sometimes I find it ridiculous how much mana Thomas wastes on teleporting around.

Furthermore, I now know why Thomas built a base so far underwater. It isn't for his protection. It isn't for his privacy. It isn't from his paranoia.

It's for the world's safety.

He teleported us into the power plant in the Mariana Trench. What was once blocked off is now accessible to me. "I think I can trust you with this," Thomas remarks. "Probably."

Several large polyhedrons are built around…something glowing. "Thomas, what exactly are these?"

"Hmm? Oh, Dysonic Reactors. It's a manufactured star, kept in stasis, and energy is pulled from it."

"Isn't that just a fusion reactor?"

"Technically, this is one step further. Plus, if any of them…break, then the surrounding water pressure will take care of most of my problems." Earth's safety is reliant on a titanium shell and several thousand tons of water pressure.

Wonderful.

As we walk back, I notice that some of the reactors have cables splitting off from the main group heading towards the back wall. He places a hand on the wall; a scanner activates, and the door slides open dramatically.

A wall with a light-blue runic circle, fifty feet in radius, adorns the titanium wall. Several small circles—of varying colors, sizes, and symbols—link themselves to the main one, creating a flowing circuit of magical synergy. It's an amazing thing to feel, especially with Mana Sense.

Everything working together to do…something.

"This…is an accumulation of several years of work. A sigil that, while powered with several stars, can rewrite the way people think. It's keyed right now to have people avoid making certain connections between my accomplishments and me, or my family and me."

"Looks big for Mind Magic," I comment, in awe at the power coursing through this thing.

"That's because there's more. That one," he points at a lime-green circle, "allows the effects to work throughout time. And that one," a navy one, "works through the Multiverse."

I pause. Wait, I thought he didn't have a Dimensional affinity. "Thomas? How?"

He picks up on my insinuation and chuckles. "It isn't the first time we've knocked ourselves out with magic. Won't be the last either. I mean, there IS a reason this took years."

So…Thomas spent years, possible decades, working on a way to invade the privacy of people's minds in order to keep himself and those he loves safe. Huh. "Wouldn't like demons be aware of this?"

"Soul magic covers that. Luckily, Sophia is slightly proficient in that." Yeah, Soul Resistance can attest to that.

Wait.

This thing has to be immensely subtle. Or capable of rewriting the System itself! 'Cause, wouldn't people realize that they got Soul or Mental Resistance. Those are kind of questionable skills to have!

Ignorance is bliss. Let's go with that.

"So," I say, changing the topic, "you can change anything?"

"Anything perceptible or memorable. A universal editing tool, essentially. I doesn't change how things are, but how things are perceived. I could make people forget what those plastic tips on shoelaces are called if I wanted…"

"Aglets?"

"Yeah, those…" He trails, faltering smile on his face. "The government actually asked me to find a way to keep heroes' identities a secret. Thus, I obliged, then made them forget about the request. Proceeded to do the same for villains, and added a bypass that people could tell their secret, breaking the bond of the sigil."

"I feel like that would lead to betrayals."

"It did, but that isn't my problem. If you can't judge a person's character, then you shouldn't tell people secrets." I feel like he's making a slight dig at someone, but I don't know who.

"Does it have a name?"

"Yep," he replies with a wide smile. Dreamer, please don't tell me he… "It's the Memory Sigil." Oh, that isn't that bad.

————————————————————————————————————

I quite like Sophia's office. It has a comforting aura to it.

Rose needs a paint job, and maybe a trip to an Ikea. Her office looks like a prison cell with cracked, gray, concrete walls; flickering lights barely illuminate the small closet. Two plastic chairs sit opposite her foldable desk, and she has her own rolling chair.

The only thing that looks even slightly expensive in here is the filing cabinet.

I feel like I need to rewind events a little.

I was lost, wandering through the halls of the Hero's Guild, looking for the cafeteria. Late at night, should've been practically nobody here except the non-hero workers. Most people, including me, should have been on patrol for the crime-ridden nights.

However, a lot of people were here, milling about in a slight panic. A red blur sped past me, dragging me with her. Flying through the halls, I'm eventually thrown into the uncomfortable chair, tail between the back and bottom and swinging back and forth in anticipation.

The small booklet Thomas gave me earlier, 'Beginner's Guide to Quantum Physics' by Thomas Archimedes, weighs heavily in my pocket.

He gave me a book he wrote and published. At least it was for free; unlike some of my college professors.

"So, minor issue," Rose begins with a cramped smile. "I'm bringing you on a mission with me, nothing too bad, but you'll be put into an awkward situation."

Why do people always leave me in the dark about…everything? "I just sat down! Explain the context, please."

She huffs. "So…CyberKnight, you know, Thomas, was seen in his power armor entering a substation with two others about fifteen minutes ago off of the highway. Now, Emperor Micro, Hyper Thunder, Tenacity, and I have been sent to deal with them. As per my friendship with Sophia, I'm bringing you, too."

"Couldn't we just ask Thomas to stand down? He'd probably do it."

She sighs, taps on her desk, then continues, "It's not that simple. It's—" She pauses. "It's theater. Thomas understands the issue better than I do; but essentially, he needs to destroy a substation to obliteration every so often. Neither he nor we can do anything about it. Legally, we can't, so he destroys it, then repairs it as a donation from his company."

I need more information. A slight mental probe reveals that she's telling the truth. The whole, complete truth that she knows. I can't get anything more from her; I need Thomas. "Why all this roundabout…stuff?"

"Legal issues. Destruction of property mainly, but if we put up a skirmish, then things will be fine. The crux of the issue is that the others coming with us don't know this, and they will give it their all."

"Fine. I'll come. Not sure how much help I'll be, though."

Time to join theater.