Axel soon parked the vehicle in his parking spot, and Cordelia ran inside to return with a cart, which they loaded Greile and Hevna's things onto before taking them into the building. They crossed a lobby where they were politely greeted by a receptionist, and then took an elevator up to the board room level. They came out into a second reception area.

"They're with us," Axel told the receptionist, and then brought them into the board room.

"How'd it go?"

"It seems Magnus and Sam are both safe," another board member observed in relief.

"Barely, they torched the rental we got for Magnus to take Greile around in," Axel said, shaking his head. "We officially changed his name and had a new I.D. issued with a new number, more for the delay it will cause than anything else."

"So, what are we to do with him?"

"He's been given an island, so we're gonna get him there," Axel said. "Hopefully the delay is enough to do that. The question is, how? Cordelia brought up a good point, we've been trying to have him lay low, and it hasn't worked for us, but has made their side bold."

"A decoy," one of the people said.

"What do you mean?"

"We just need to buy some time, right? All we need to do are employ some decoys while the real Greile leaves the city, and keep them busy as long as possible, then it's just a matter of transporting him while the mob are running all over trying to find him. We might even get him wherever his new property is before they can track him down"

"Seven hours away," Magnus stated, switching from his usual manner of speech to something more like Cordelia's more direct style and tone.. This action alone told everyone there just how serious he was about what was happening. "That's the shortest route I can find by traditional transport. A private charter jet would give him away too easily, even if it is faster."

"They'd be watching the airports and quicker traveling land routes, it's safer to choose a less traveled land route with these kinds of people," the same person spoke up. "Let me see the details."

Magnus walked over and handed the man a paper with the address.

"Hmmm, let me see anything else with details on things he received," he said, and Magnus hesitated only a moment before doing as told. The man went over the papers for a short while before saying, "We can work with this, and showing a new vehicle deed. "It's produced by Gravoid Industries, and will not be able to be tracked by the usual GPS and tracking chip methods, as Gravoid Industries uses a completely different kind of system altogether. If it can fit everything, we can use it. Anyway, Magnus can pick it up, but he's the only one other than Greile who can do so. Their unique nervous system signature is the key to the car, although Magnus won't be able to drive it for too long because it only has eight hours left that he can operate it for. Well, Hevna's also listed, but she's far too recognizable, even more so than Magnus. I've been researching, and found that they mostly found her, and used her to find him."

"Then how in the world are we supposed to hide him," Cordelia asked.

"We have a number of customizable A.I. tickets, and we can use them to make similar beings to her. I say similar, because they will be dressed like her, and given similar looks, but they won't be identical as their personalities are not something we can decide. For now, Magnus, you go pick up the vehicle with your wife, and we'll continue planning."

"Alright," Magnus responded, and took the paper he was offered back, then left with Cordelia.

Once Magnus had left, Greile saw the man shiver. "That was not pleasant, to reduce Magnus to this, it's unnatural. We'll have to have the A.I.s setup with similar looks, but can have them be a bit different, it would be a travesty to make them all the same after we found that Hevna is so much like us. We'll make them a family."

"May I ask why," Greile asked.

"Who looks most like you," he asked in return.

"Family," Hevna stated.

"Exactly, and people often confuse family members who look and act nothing like one another for each other as well. Who better to act as decoys in this case," The man suggested.

"What about afterward," Hevna asked.

"We'll have them sent to the island," Axel said, "We owe Greile a bit for Magnus having dragged him into this. Without him mentioning the name, they probably wouldn't have learned so much so fast. He probably would also have only been a small target they didn't spend much time on, rather than being their primary target. They'd have used him to advance their goals, but forgotten about him quickly."

"Instead, Magnus was such a resilient target they couldn't go after him, so they focused on Greile. Not Magnus's fault, but still the result of his actions," another man stated, Greile couldn't remember his name for the life of him.

"Anyway, we'll have them all registered to you, as a sort of compensation, and have them assist in your flight before we deliver them to the island. Might setting up a contract with you for us to establish a base on the island be possible," the man asked.

"It would really help to be able to place family members of our members in a safe place," Axel said. "There have been... troubles with this lately."

"I don't mind, but the terms would need to be favorable to both sides," Greile responded.

"We'll draw up such terms at a later time, so long as it is possible, that is enough for now," the man said.

"Speaking of contracts, Master Greile will need to setup a tournament venue at the island in due time, and it plays into the reason Sir Magnus was requested to attend the meeting," Hevna said.

"Let me guess, Gravoid Industries wants him to setup a series of tournaments," the man stated, having seen through what had been requested. "I'll help you out with these things if you will help us out with our troubles, and we'll coordinate it with Magnus. We'll draw up the terms while he's in that meeting, as you can trust he won't let you come to harm."

"That's true, Magnus is very above board, and keeps us grounded," Axel said. "Anyway, let's put in the order for the girls, and a decoy for Greile as well, how many do you think we'll need?"

"Hmmm, three girls, the Greile decoy, and two guys I know can play the part of additional Greile decoys, although Mags might be troublesome to do a decoy for," the man replied. "We only have so many A.I. tickets, or I'd want more decoys if possible. This situation hasn't only been frustrating you guys, and I'd love to make these guys look like chumps. As it is, we'll have to settle for delaying them a bit longer."

"We could always lead them around by the nose for a bit before revealing the truth, to make them look like chumps," Axel suggested.

"It's more important to ensure they leave our friend alone," one of the others in the room spoke up. "Despite Magnus's intentions, Greile has been taking the brunt of the troubles for us."

"Yes, we should do what we can to alleviate the problem."

"Unfortunately, I don't think we can accomplish that at this point."

"True, but getting him to the island should suffice for now."

"What about security there? What if they chase him even there?"

"Looking at the contracts, it seems there will be security there provided by Gravoid Industries," Axel noted.

"We can also ensure the A.I.s have training in hand to hand, and gunmanship, in order to act as personal guards," the man once more spoke up, "It'll cost a bit extra, especially with the options to make them more human-like, and human-sized, but I think it would be a worthwhile trade to keep him safe. It would also help to have them trained in such things if we can come to an mutually beneficial agreement in regards to housing families of our members on the island."

"We should find out what facilities are available on the island before we commit to anything."

"If none are sufficient, perhaps we can come to an agreement to purchase a portion of land on the island, and install a facility," one of the board members who had not previously spoken did so now.

"We'll have Magnus and Cordelia take a look," Axel told them.

Magnus and Cordelia soon returned, as Greile heard the ding from the elevator.

"That car is so cool~," Magnus called out as he came in skipping.

"It was quite comfortable," Cordelia commented, "the startup is rather unique as well."

"Well then, the A.I.s should be arriving soon, I took the liberty of using the recognition software, and adding some randomization in. I thought it best to rush the delivery."

"Thanks, Adele," Axel told the woman who had just spoken up. "Did you use the pod scanning features?"

"Yes, I used the external scanners to get the body template," she responded, "and randomized from there. The randomization options allowed for siblings or cousins, and I chose siblings on one, while two were set at cousin."

"I take it Greile's double is an exact copy?"

"A couple of minor changes few who do not know him will see," she admitted, "I wanted our new friend to be his own person, even if he's meant to be Greile's decoy. I also splurged a bit for heavy training in martial arts, and decent gun skills."

"Good idea," Axel agreed with her decision, "That will also allow us to tell them apart when necessary. The training is probably a good idea too, but I hope you didn't spend too much."

"I used my personal funds for that. I do hope it will provide some incentive to house our families on the island, but the fact that he is facing these activists and taking the pressure off of us was a large consideration in my decision."

"I'll cover the costs," Axel said.

"We all will," another person said, "That will lessen the blow. We're all in this together, and wouldn't want you to bear this expense alone."

"We also shouldn't put so much pressure on Greile. I know you're worried about your sister, and nieces, but Greile is under enough pressure as it is."

"Wait, what's happening with your sister," Greile asked.

"She recently came under fire from a group of women's rights activists for disagreeing with the way they do things on social media. They haven't gone as extreme as the group hounding you, but she fears for her sister's safety, and that of her young daughters," someone else explained.

"Send her over," Greile responded in a sure tone. "The owner of Gravoid Industries requested I help such people, and even if I didn't sign a contract for that request, I intend to follow through with it. If there are others in such situations, who have not resulted to violence, and have simply spoke out, I will consider their cases."

"Don't go rushing at him all at once," Cordelia stepped in and preempted any further requests, acting in Greile's best interests. "We'll talk to him about a place where you can send your families to protect them once we've seen the island. Magnus and I intend to go with Greile, and look over the island ourselves, and will make the necessary arrangements after verifying the current facilities on the island. If you'll have us, we would be happy to make our home on the island as well, and act as representatives for The Guide Company."

"Um, you're more than welcome, but what about Magnus's contract?"

"I wouldn't be relegated to staying there the entire time," Magnus told him, "but it would be nice to have a place I can return to, and relax when not seeing to the tournaments."

"We'll talk more about that later," Cordelia said, "For now we need to concentrate on getting you to your new home. It would also be good to log into the game, and play a bit so you can relax."

"How are we going to get him there?"

"That's a good question, the car might be cool, but it just doesn't have enough room to fit everything."

"We can't fly him in a private jet, that would be too obvious."

"What about the T-7000," someone asked, "she needs a test run anyway. Since it just looks like a big rig on the outside, and we haven't brought it to shows yet, no one would really know what's inside."

"What's that," Greile asked.

"Ah, it's a sort of mobile base of operations," Axel explained, "the side folds down, and can act as a stage, or simply as an entrance to the inside rooms. It has the equivalent of a full home inside, complete with kitchen, bathroom, a rest area with a large couch/Murphy bed, a number of small offices, and a few pod rooms where we can secure the pods of the staff attending the events."

"We commissioned it when we were considering forming a professional team. The name came about because the designer had an unhealthy obsession with a certain movie franchise."

"We ended up not following through with the team, just didn't have enough time on our hands, and the leagues were just barely conceived at the time, but it's likely Mags will get some use from it."

"That's a good idea, let's have Magnus use it," someone said, sounding happy. "At least that way that thing isn't taking up so much space in my vehicle bay."

"It does sound like a good excuse to take the thing out and use it, and we can use the vehicle bay trailer to move Greile's vehicle," Axel said, "Let's go with that plan." A beeping was heard, and Axel pressed a button on his phone in the board room. "Yes, what do you need?"

"A number of people have arrived with a Miss Celia from Gravoid Industries," the receptionist told him.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"Hmm, have her come in," Axel said.

"Right away, Sir."

The door shortly opened, and a middle-aged woman entered the room with an entourage following her in hooded cloaks.

"It's good to see you, Celia," Axel greeted her, "How are you, and how may we help you?"

"I am doing well, Axel," she responded, "but the question is how I may help you. Take them off," she said, turning to the group behind her.

The people behind her took off their cloaks completely, to reveal several young women who looked very much like Hevna, a young man that Greile almost thought he was looking into a mirror upon seeing, and several others. He couldn't tell, but he suspected the others were also from gravoid.

"The boss requested I bring the girls, and Greile's decoy personally, and also authorized these others. It seems the situation is getting more dangerous than he can rightly leave alone. Someone is pulling strings behind the scenes to do away with our young headliner, and he's none too happy with it. As such, we upgraded the training of Hevna's sisters, and Greine in order to ensure his safety. I also brought some others with special forces training to act as a personal force for him. The upgrades are on the house this time. The boss was truly livid over this occurrence."

While she was talking, Greile stood there trying to figure out why he thought he recognized these people. When he finally realized, it hit him like a Mack Truck.

"Artor Zendive?! Zane Gref, Trombol Teresen, Sena Trovem, and Hart Seman?! You guys are..." These were all characters from the original gravoid novel, and all as he had imagined them.

"While I appreciate the enthusiasm, there's no reason to react so strongly, nor loudly, Young Master," Trombol spoke up. "We are, indeed, from the original story, but while we are designed, and named, after those people, we are also our own selves."

"Sorry," Greile spoke in embarrassment, scratching the back of his head. "I never thought I'd get to meet all of you," he said.

"The Guardian took those thoughts into mind when deciding who to send you," Artor Zendive spoke up, "She seems to very much like you, Young Greile. She actually had us go through hell to ensure you have the best trained guards possible." The man grimaced, likely at the memories it prompted. "We've even been outfitted with special equipment, and abilities. Speaking of which Aleina..."

One of the young women, who looked like the spitting image of Hevna but was a bit shorter, stepped forward, and approached Greile. Before he knew what was happening the girl kissed him, and he felt a tingle flow through his body as he stood there in surprise, bordering on panic.

"Was that necessary? You could have transferred that in another way, right," Artor asked upon seeing Hevna's shocked look.

"Ask sister, these thoughts came from her, after all," the girl said, grinning cheekily while Greile stood there blushing. "Anyway, the gift has been transferred. Your turn, you two," she added, glancing at the others.

Greile worried a repeat of what had just happened would occur again, but the two simply handed him packages, blushing as they did so, then did the same for Hevna.

"Sorry about her, she's a bit more forward than her twin," one of the girls explained. "You might want to establish the connection, and stop playing around, Cousin."

Aleina pouted a bit, but took her sister's hand, and then displayed a mischievous smile before kissing her sister. When she came away she gave her apparent twin a wink, and stood beside her while Hevna blushed heavily.

"Hey, do you guys have a dressing room," the girl asked.

"Uh, we have a restroom over there that should have enough room to freshen up in," someone answered, pointing toward a door Greile had assumed was a closet.

"Great, sister, go put those on, we'll have Master Greile change once you're done."

"Have him go first," Greile's spitting image said.

"Just shut up and touch his hand already, Greine," Aleina told him off, much to the horror of the other girls. "She can change first, he'll be safe with all of us here anyway."

Greine sighed, and walked over to Greile, then extended his hand and waited for Greile for some reason.

"Jerk," Aleina responded, then sighed herself, "Take his hand, Young Master."

Greile did as instructed, despite noticing the displeased looks the others gave the girl. Once he took that hand in his own, he felt something go pop, and almost immediately it was like he could feel the presence of Greine, and there was a confusing sensation of knowing his general health, and... Emotions?

"Don't worry, Young Greile, " Celia told him, "The connection is meant to allow Greine to gauge your current direction, health, and emotional state. It goes both ways, however, and will allow you to do the same. This will allow your guards to judge your safety in the event that you are lost, or captured. It's not a sure thing, due to how the connection between the two of you works, but should allow you to gauge the general state of the other. It's similar to the ability Hevna and Aleina share, but since it is not such a strong connection, you two cannot share any thoughts when in close proximity."

"Uh, so, um..." Greile stumbled for words to say.

"It's troublesome, but we'll have to bear with it," Greine told him. "On the plus side, we can ensure the other is safe, and even tell if they're happy, sad, or other general statements about our partner's emotional state. It's vague though, I just hope we don't get confused."

"I'm done, Master," Hevna told him, returning from the restroom, and looking none-the-worse for the connection she and her "twin" shared. "I think you'd better change. And you, stop making such suggestions," she said, directing her final words at Aleina.

Greile wasn't sure what to make of that final comment, but headed into the restroom to change as he felt a bit of amusement coming from Greine. It was certainly weird feeling the emotions of another. Thankfully, the emotions were truly, as Greine had said, vague, and this helped him to feel better about sharing these emotions with his near double. He could feel that things got vaguer as he got further away, but the direction he was in and his current state of physical health remained easy to tell as he went into the room, closed and locked the door, and began to change.

Inside the packages were a change of clothes, a sort of undersuit, and what appeared to be some kind of bracer. Once he had them on, he looked in the mirror to find himself looking rather debonair in the black dress shirt, and pants. He shook his head, and bagged up the clothes he had just taken off, then stepped out of the room once more after putting on the clip-on tie he found in the bag as he was putting his things into it.

"Looking good," Axel stated, giving him a thumbs up as he exited the restroom. "Now you match with Greine too."

"Actually, the second item you received will help you with your disguise, and will assist in using that gift you were given in this world."

"What is this gift," Magnus asked.

"Ah, it's something the boss thought would help him," she said. "With it, he can form a protective field around himself, and others. It's not so powerful, but should deflect a bullet or two before draining him too much to continue use. The bracer also functions off his body's electromagnetic field to produce a sort of illusion to disguise Greile for a limited amount of time. Your new power isn't anything you can easily use in this world, but in Gravoid it should prove more malleable. It'll take time to become fully usable, but for now it should suffice to disguise you when moving to whatever transport you intend to use."

"We intend to use a method that won't require him to be seen at all," Axel said.

"Hmmm, Ah, I forgot about the T-7000 mister Fineas designed for your professional team, it's a shame that didn't work out," the woman said. "Master is working on the professional circuit framework in-game, and it should be completed in a few months, so maybe it will have a use in due time."

"That's probably why he asked Mags to setup tournaments involving the game," the tactician-like member of the guides made his presence known once more. "How much longer will it be?"

"Between six and ten months, that's until everything is developed, fully tested, and ready for full-scale use. Until then, tournaments will have to be controlled through external advent systems."

"Ugh, those things are so damn clunky."

"Let's just keep our eyes on the matters at hand," Cordelia recommended. "Have you contacted the others who will be playing the part?"

"Yeah, they're on the way, and should be arriving shortly."

"Alright, let's move Greile, and Hevna to the transport before his detractors show up. We'll have Greine stay here with her twin, so they think he's here still," Axel said, pressing a button, and causing the glass in the room to instantly become tinted. "Alright, that should stop them from spying until we can hide him."

"You purposefully allowed them to see Greine?"

"It tips our hand, yes, but it also will make them wonder if it's still the real one here. I had sound dampeners on already, so they couldn't hear a thing. When our actors arrive, and leave looking like him, it'll make them think we were hashing out the plan before sending him off using doubles to conceal who the real one is. It'll be true, but they won't know who the real one is, or where he is," Greile heard explained.

"Hmmm, I'll take part, and escort one of the doubles with these guys, it'll lend more credence to his being the real Sam, although finding a way to have them all meet up without giving away the ruse will be troublesome," Celia spoke up.

"They likely won't think it's him, but if there is an assassination attempt, it's likely they'll target the group with more people. Does Greine have the same ability?"

"It's different, but he can produce a similar effect to the shield," she responded.

"We'll have Greine go with you then."

"Alright, Artor, can you stay with Greile? You're the better person for that assignment. After all, you have the most extensive driving training of everyone on the team."

"Yes, I'll keep him safe," Artor responded in a tone filled with duty, conviction, and confidence, followed by a firm nod.

"Thank you," Celia replied.

"It is my duty to my new charge," the man answered simply enough.

"Alright, Cordelia, take Greile and Hevna down to the vehicle bay, and get them aboard the T-7000 with their belongings. Magnus, get his vehicle, and take it over to the vehicle bay to load it into the trailer."

"It's already there," Cordelia said.

"That's good, then get it loaded onto the vehicle transport trailer. We'll get this show on the road once the others arrive. How's the stock onboard?"

"I've already got my boys to work stocking the fridges and filling the fresh water tanks. Any request Greile?"

"Just some fresh fruits and vegetables," he responded, he didn't really have much he could decide on with such short notice. "Maybe a few random candy bars?"

"Ah, we'll have that already, Magnus is a junk food addict, and Cordelia is somewhat of an accomplished chef, so there's a bit of those, any drinks in mind?"

"I usually drink water, but some tea might be good, and I'm not picky on sodas, but I do prefer the stuff from small companies or farmer's markets."

"Ah, so craft sodas, but not the stuff that big companies produce saying it's craft sodas, I got ya covered. I'll have my boys load in some of my personal tea packets, Hate the instant stuff, so you're S.O.L. if that's what you wanted."

"No, I'm not a fan of instant, though i'm not picky about it either," Greile said.

"Ah, good man, I probably shouldn't be so picky, but I just can't stand the taste of instant myself," the man replied. "Anyway, it'll be done soon. You guys should head on down, use the rear elevator though, it doesn't link to the lobby."

"Okay~," Magnus called out, dragging out the word happily.

Greile and the others headed down to the vehicle bay using an elevator that was around behind the board room, and then boarded the vehicle while Magnus quickly loaded up the car into a smaller trailer that would attach to the back of the one they would be riding in, and then joined them.

Inside the big-rig trailer was a somewhat utilitarian setup, a central room with several places to sit, a kitchen , and a number of offices. There was a large couch in the sitting area, which Greile assumed must be the one with the Murphy bed, as it had a large cabinet behind it's cushions, which looked to be large enough for a queen sized bed.

There were only a few offices on the right, alongside the pod room. On the left was the kitchen which people were entering, and exiting rapidly, dropping off goods with a man who was filling the fridge while organizing the items put into it carefully. Another worker was organizing things into the cupboards for the trip, mostly dry goods, and cans. The cans went into a special rack within the cupboards, but Greile wasn't sure of it's purpose just from the little glance he got of the process.

Once everything was ready, Artor headed to the cab of the vehicle, while the others sat and waited for the time of their departure. Magnus suggested they use their pods to distract themselves, as they had been brought on-board and secured. Greile hadn't had time to go into the game world in all this time, what with the activists coming after him so fervently. He had a chance at first, right after leaving his apartment, but had been rather busy and troubled since then, and hadn't wanted to log in. Right now he was on pins and needles, and he certainly didn't feel like going into Gravoid's world at this moment.

Soon enough, the time came, and Artor warned them before the vehicle began to move.

-----

"What are those fools up to now?"

"Our operatives are still chasing the boy, and making his life a general nightmare,, but some of the pawns have been rather fervent in their desire to remove him from the equation."

"What did they do?"

"They've terrorized neighbors where he was staying, and defaced property."

"Spin it as mostly peaceful protests," he responded.

"Will they buy that line?"

"If we repeat it enough times," one of them replied with a shrug. "After all, no one wants to admit that terrorism can come from their own government, academics, or so-called non-profit organizations. They also don't like to admit they're caving in to fear, so we can use that to corral them. We couldn't do this if the believers had stood by their constitutionally protected rights, but they bought that separation of church and state, line, hook, and sinker. Helps that it came from one of their "founding fathers", but they really don't understand where that quote came from, and that it was meant to reassure the believers that the government couldn't push them out, or suppress them like what we've been doing."

"Oh, they just torched a van."

"Maybe they'll do us all a favor, and get rid of the kid while they're at it. He pushed back so many of our plans without meaning to."

"If the arrangements I've made pan out, maybe he'll be dealt with soon. Anyway, make sure they keep up on the mostly peaceful protesters line."

"Just don't let anyone make the connection to a mob..."

-----

Greile watched the scenery pass by on a camera feed. It wasn't as good as actually watching personally would be, but that would risk those who were after him finding his location,. He had to admit, the world he lived in was beautiful, he couldn't see it from in a big city, but now that he was out here traveling, he couldn't miss it if he tried. He hoped that some day, when this all blew over, he could travel, and see the beauty of his native country. As it was, this trip had ignited a passion to see his native land, and view the sights which would see him through the rest of his days.

Over the coming days, the group travelled toward the port where Greile's ferry was waiting, stopping only for fuel, or breaks in out of the way places with good overhead cover. They took a winding, twisting route, which caused the trip to take a great deal longer than expected. Greile and Hevna stayed inside for the most part, as the vehicle had enough room to move about, and a restroom, and they thought it best to avoid endangering the others by going out. They did do so once, however, and went out for some fresh air under some trees in a very out of the way spot near a little town.

-----

"Sir, the young man has disappeared, and an assassination attempt was thwarted by an unknown force."

"What happened?"

"They used decoys to distract our contracted assets. We're still not sure if he's present in the city at this time, or has fled, but he has completely disappeared from any means of surveillance we have available. Even our partners in the Investigations Bureau, or Central Intelligence have been unable to find any leads."

"Damn.... Wait, this might not be bad, this means he's gone into hiding. Let's spin it to make him look bad. Have our the activist groups make it look like they defeated an enemy of the cause of equality."

"Yes, Sir, I'll write the script myself," the woman replied.

"Good, I know I can trust you, you haven't failed me yet."

-----

"They really laid it on thick, didn't they," Cordelia commented as she turned off the T.V.

""This is a great day for democracy"," Magnus said in an over-the-top impersonation of the gay rights activist who had been railing on Greile, "Ironically, it's anything but. How are you holding up, sweetie?"

"I'm fine, " Greile responded, sighing before he continued to say, "it's not like I care about their opinion of me, although I'm not happy about the character assassination, I can't do much about it."

"That's true, they structured defamation laws such that you can't really retaliate against someone lying about you anymore. Only the big names with the tricky lawyers stand a chance of it," Cordelia commented.

"Did we hurt him by keeping him from being well-known, and getting in the spotlight?"

"I don't think so, but it is possible. Still, I think going with what he wanted was a better idea. When he wants to take the fight to them, I'll support him, but there's something to be said for living a quiet life, rather than making a big stink about everything," Cordelia answered.

"I don't really want to rock the boat," Greile told her.

"Ha! Good luck with that," Artor's voice came over the intercom. "Wherever you go, you'll rock the boat, it's just a decision of whether you want to rock the boat willingly, or do it unintentionally," the man said, making an ironically prophetic prediction. "I say you should just rock it willingly, and let the creator have your back, but I'll stand on your side no matter what you decide, as will the others, especially young Hevna there, and her sisters."

"Yes, I shall stay by Master Greile's side through thick and thin."

"Oh my," Magnus said, and put his hand to his mouth, his eyes expressing joy at the declaration.

Cordelia gave her husband an annoyed look, and told him to, "Knock if off," then turned to Hevna, and said, "Don't take him too seriously, dear."

"It's okay, I know your husband meant to to bring levity to the situation," Hevna smiled as she responded. "How long until we arrive, Artor?"

"Should be around thirty minutes. We'd be there already if we hadn't made that pit stop at that diner."

"Sorry, he's always dreamed of visiting that place," Cordelia told the man, "I didn't have the heart to refuse him."

"I'm not complaining, Cordelia," Artor responded, "I quite enjoyed the food there. It's just a simple observation."

The activists really had been too overbearing, trying to portray Sam, the person being unreasonably attacked, as a villain. It seemed they hadn't become aware of his name change yet.

Thankfully, Greile had his friends to rely on, as new as they were, and was able to make a getaway, although it shouldn't have come to that at all. No one should have had the power and clout to drive someone out for having been traumatized and developing an aversion to others of a certain persuasion as a result. At this point, Sam was still a victim, and didn't understand the situation, but in due time he would either grow from the experiences and become a victor, or be mired in them and remain a victim of his uncle, and this new group. His friendship with Magnus and the others, however, had begun to show him the path to being a victor, but he wouldn't see this fact for a long time to come, and at that time it would be in hindsight.

The group soon arrived at their destination, a marina in the town of Exodus, an ironically named town on the coast of his country, and the closest to the island. There they were met by a ferry, and her captain. The boat, Greile had received, but according to the information he had received the captain was an old friend of the owner of Gravoid Industries. Greile would have to see what he intended to do.

"Yo, nice ta meet ya, little boss," a man at the upper end up middle-age greeted him when they finally met. "Big boss told me ta take care a ya. I'll continue ta pilot the ferry, if it's alright with ya."

"What about pay?"

"Big Boss and me had an agreement where I'd charge a small toll from those headin' ta the island. Most ah the time I charge a small amount a food from those livin' on the island, and a small monetary fee from strangers headin' ta visit the island. I accept barter for travel because I know some can't afford it otherwise. I don't charge those the big boss asks me not ta, and I'll do the same for ya," the man said. "Ah course, Miss Hevna here and her family won't be charged, or Magnus and his wife, I saw what he did fer our country."

Greile was relieved to here the man's words, but Magnus would have none of it. "Nonsense, Cordelia and I will pay a toll fee when we pass through."

"Now, now, I won't be chargin' ya. Ya can help me out if the season's a bit tight, but I gave my word, and that's the last I'll hear of it. Let's get ya vehicle on the ferry, and get a move on, things've been suspiciously tense round abouts lately."

"Go ahead and board, Master Greile, I'll close the rig up, and get it onboard, it should fit fine," Artor told him.

Greile did as he said, and headed onto the ferry with Hevna, Cordelia, and Magnus. The captain gave Artor some instructions, then boarded the vessel himself. It didn't take Artor long to drive on, and then the vessel got underway. Greile almost thought he heard some chanting as the vessel was leaving the port the marina was located in, leaving the pier it had left from inexorably behind. Thankfully, despite the Captain's foreboding, nothing occurred once they were on the water, and they soon had left the town of Exodus far behind.

-----

"Eagle Eye Seven, this is Big Bear. What's the situation?"

"Big bear, this is Eagle Eye Seven, Little Fish has left the tank. I repeat, Little Fish has left the tank."

"Return to base Eagle Eye Seven, Big Fish sends his regards,"

"Roger that, Big Bear, how's Hadron Collider," Sgt. Guinness McLynch responded.

"Two down, Seraph has retrieved. Get back to base."

"Understood, Eagle Eyes out."

"What's happ'nin' boss."

"We're to return to base, round up the others and rendezvous at Foxtrot," Sergeant McLynch responded.

"Roger."

McLynch started on his way himself, and the two split up. Along the way, he signaled the other members of his unit, and then headed out of the town of Exodus. He wasn't sure why the boy was designated as Little Fish, nor did he much care, Big Fish had given the order, and they followed through. The orders were never anything questionable, and they always had as much info as was possible in regards to the mission. Eagle Eye Squad's job had been to coordinate with Big Bear, and observe the movements of a large number of hostiles to allow Big Bear to direct Hadron Collider to intercept, and delay them. These hostiles had employed some nasty tricks, using lasers to attack the members of Hadron Collider, lasers they shouldn't have been in possession of due to the fact they were illegal. The fact that this group had them was concerning, and was why the enemy had succeeded in taking down two members of Hadron Collider. Thankfully, Seraph seemed to have gotten the injured out of there safely. He wondered if anyone was able to pinpoint where the laser users had been, and neutralize them.

He didn't understand what the importance of Little Fish was, but these people wanted him dead. A smile couldn't help making it onto his face, as he couldn't help thinking this was going to be a difficult task. A challenge was what he and his brothers in arms lived for, and they were up to the task.

As for those they were going up against, they were far too organized to be simple protesters, and their tactics were far too similar to many of the cartels he had faced in the narcotics task force prior to his being scouted for Eagle Eyes. This was definitely going to be an interesting year, and he might even get to toy with the cartels a bit, like they had done to him and his buddies when he was on the taskforce. Well, assuming Big Fish let him at least.

When he got back to base, it was announced that two of their members had lost their lives to snipers while the lasers had blinded them, and a counter-offensive had been authorized. Seraph had arrived just in time to save a number of their brothers from similar fates, or it would have been a bloodbath. McLynch gritted his teeth, cold fury burning deep within, they hadn't picked the fight, they had simply stepped in to stop innocents from being harmed. They hadn't attacked the hostiles, only delaying them. Now, everything had changed. Now, it was personal. McLynch looked around to see the hardened looks on the faces of these veterans of many different battlefields, and he could see that they were not willing to let this rest either. These were their brothers and they wouldn't let this situation stand, this premeditated murder could not be allowed.

It was obvious someone had hired professionals to deal with the one they were tasked to protect. These people were hired killers, and McLynch and the others here would not spare anything to deal with them. They had crossed a line they should not cross, and they would pay dearly.

First came the intelligence gathering, and protecting their client. Only after they could provide for his safety would they ensure these murderers died a death any dog would be fearful of. The base went into a frenzy of activity as men began to prepare for the tasks ahead, and the men and women who would protect Little Fish were chosen. Once the choosing was done, and intel gathered, they'd make their move.