It seemed that Howard was still the only one phased by the twisted set up of the building, but Miranda did give a couple of design critiques as they passed through. The rest of the team were all together and looked at Miranda, then Sanders with expectant eyes.

“Hello everyone! Meet, Miranda,” Sanders announced, annoying their expressions completely, “How about some fried rice and cupcakes while we wait for Agent Manning?”

Fried rice and cupcakes? That was an odd combination but Howard didn’t say anything. Jonathan on the other hand jumped up. “A double serving!” he demanded.

Agent Sanders smiled and left as if Jonathan’s order counted for everyone and headed out to retrieve it. That left Howard with a madman, a thief, and a group of other extremely dangerous criminals.

“Hey there, beautiful,” Leon said with his wide grin, “Let’s fill you in on the information we managed to glean so far.”

“Which isn’t much,” Natalie muttered sourly.

“Better than diving further into this blindfolded,” James pointed out.

“Finally, another woman!” Selina exclaimed, “I was starting to think that all I would get was cold-faced Natalie, Howie, and a bunch of untrustworthy men.”

Howard flinched slightly. He wasn’t sure if he had been dragged into a strange group or dismissed as a man, but neither was flattering.

Miranda looked her up and down. “It can’t be,” she said with wonder, “Are you the Selina Garcia, famous illusionist and model of showbiz fashion?”

“She’s what now?” Howard asked. She had always been weird but this was all news to him.

“How cruel, Howie,” Selina said, but didn’t bother to pout of frown this time, “I have been keeping tabs on you all this time but you didn’t even know about me making it big in Vegas?”

“Isn’t your last name-”

“Hush! I can’t disappoint the fans! I legally changed my name so it has a better ring to it. What do you think?” Selina asked.

“Why?” Howard asked.

“The fans. Weren’t you listening?” Selina sighed, “It was Miranda, right? I don’t do private shows, but I can get you a nice selfie with me and an autograph.”

“I’ll take it,” Miranda agreed instantly.

Howard unconsciously leaned away from the strange atmosphere. “They are all a bunch of criminals and crazies,” he groaned to himself.

Leon stood up and put an arm around him. “I thought we were friends.”

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“I don’t do friends, especially not with you,” Howard snapped and shoved his arm off, “I tried my best not to do people either.”

“Until someone broke into your house and got caught by the government,” James commented with a smirk, “I haven’t heard a capture story that good in a long time.”

Miranda looked back at Howard as if she was reevaluating him. “Are you trying to tell me he is just some citizen that got dragged into this?” she asked.

“Yes,” Howard replied immediately.

“No,” Selina answered, “Don’t listen to him. Normal people aren’t like that.”

“True,” James agreed, “His people skills aren’t the best but his body has toning in all the right places.”

Selina nodded. “Let’s see, if I had to describe him I would say he is like an awkward but fluffy teddy bear that if you get mad turns into a fifty foot tall flaming monster that destroys everything.’

“I can’t wait to see that!” Jonathan sang.

“You won’t!” Howard refuted with a glare at Selina, “I guarantee I am one hundred percent human with no bear or crazy monster in me.”

“You didn’t refute the awkward, though,” Miranda noted, “I like a guy who is willing to admit his faults. So other than him, what kind of mission could possibly warrant a group like us. I recognize Leon, Natalie, and James, none of which are little pushover criminals.”

“I am Jonathan. I am a mad scientist and genius,” he introduced helpfully.

“Our biggest clue is what Agent Sanders told me while convincing me to join,” Natalie broke in, “They need my NASA training.”

“What on Earth?” Miranda questioned.

“Or not on Earth,” Leon pointed out.

Miranda shot him an annoyed glance before returning her attention to Natalie. “Even with that tidbit, isn’t this number a bit too much? A team of two or three could handle things with recent technological advancements.”

“You aren’t wrong there,” Agent Manning broke in as he stepped into the room with a black briefcase, “but we weren’t sure all of you would accept and we like to cover our bases. Jonathan and Natalie are the dream team we were looking for with either James or Miranda to deal with situations that might come up that require quick thinking and quicker reactions. Leon was the possible replacement for Natalie because he picks things up fast. Selina was the closest we could get to what we need Jonathan for. I will admit, we weren’t expecting Howard to show up.”

“So, after you got your dream team, why did you keep collecting?” Leon asked, that dangerously bright smile on his face.

“You may have all signed the contract, but I can’t guarantee all of you will make it through the training,” Manning replied, “As stated in the contract, backing out will result in anything between secluded life in a safe house where we can keep a constant eye on you, or going right back where you came from.”

“So jail is still an option,” James asked.

“Jail is always an option, unless you want to go to a mental institution like Jonathan here,” Agent Manning affirmed with a cold look.

It was at this moment Howard realized Manning had never treated him like a criminal from the beginning. Now that the real criminals were here he was harsh and cold.

“You will all be under constant supervision by Agent Sanders. If anything happens to him you will be considered instantly guilty,” he continued, “Howard may be a free citizen but he is your survival leader in case of an emergency such as a crash landing. He has the brains and guts to back him up.

“Your mission is to track down and gather data on a strange anomaly that appeared near one of the U.S. government’s satellite space stations. This anomaly could be perfectly safe, but it could also be extremely dangerous. That is why we are sending you to investigate it.”

“Because we are disposable,” Natalie asserted.

Manning ignored her and continued. “From the information, we have been able to gather from a safe distance it appears to be a wormhole but there are some other strange readings that aren’t quite clear. You are the task force the government has set up to prod this anomaly with a stick and send us as much information as possible. The space station will be recording the information as you gather it.”

“Looks like Howard was right about the suicide mission,” Leon commented, “If he is an innocent as you claim, why is he getting dragged into this?”

“It was his choice,” Agent Manning replied.

“I would rather risk my life for a possible chance of privacy than spend that life under constant surveillance,” Howard explained.

“If you have any other questions ask Agent Sanders,” Manning grunted, “I am being removed from the case. He is your handler, but don’t be fooled. He won’t be the only one watching you.”

With that he got up and left the room leaving the group of seven to think of their fate as they waited for Sanders to return with his cupcakes and fried rice. Howard wasn’t sure about the others, but he didn’t think he could stomach eating either at the moment. This whole situation still seemed so unreal to him.

Sanders walked in right then with arms loaded with boxes and dropped them on the table before he looked around at everyone. “Guess I missed it, huh?”

“Yep,” Selina said, “I didn’t get to explain a thing either, but that is how things go.”

So she knew the whole time. Howard wasn’t really surprised.