With thanks to the whole Fringe roster especially Juli 'Fever' Laine, Chris 'Stout' McGrane, Kirsty 'Sci Fi' Parton and Daniel 'Decibel' Stephens whose contributions to this little tale were invaluable.
"This is strange," thought Jo Geneva-Goldfish as she examined the computers in the newly built orbital home Dave had created with a little help from his friends. The computer system was almost as powerful as the system that had been in C&C, but it had one or two major limitations, the worst being whilst it displayed how many X-Warriors had current active status, it did not register who or where they were exactly. It gave general information. However one thing it did do as well as the C&C systems - it gave predictions of what was the most likely course of the future based on current details and it was this that bothered her. Dave's files had been retrieved though he believed there were anomalies in the data - as if the files had been copied without the correct security procedures - and the predictions of what was to happen based on the information received was being updated. Except for one problem - everything was changing. It had started gradually at first but there were now hundreds of updates occurring per second. Dave was still down on Earth, meeting with the Fringe Initiation Team, thought Jo wondering what was taking so long. It was fairly important but if things kept altering as they were she'd have to call him back. However she had to give it a try and she started to type as fast as she could, trying to pinpoint the source of the problem, but so far it was too generalised. Whatever was going on, or about to, had become untraceable by the computers. Someone or something was somehow altering things. Could everything Dave had done for the past six years have been for nothing? Would the truth finally be revealed? This was not good and the problems were getting worse, thought Jo as she examined the whole of the history tapes to try and work out where the problem lay. As far as she could tell, the root of the problem stemmed back a while ago. Back to when Dave had first physically followed the X-Warriors to the Phalanx planet. This was definitely bad. If the problems had started to occur there, then the real reason for the two of them being at the Hellfire Club that Christmas Eve would be revealed. She knew as well as Dave did that that must never happen.
Then another alarm went off. "Now what?" she asked herself, knowing there was only so much crisis she could handle herself. There was nothing else for it - she needed Dave back up here and now.
Dave sat watching as the others fought off Blaze, a being who was searching for someone in the Bar and Grille but had come in to conflict with the team. There was little he could do, and to be honest he was getting very bored with just being here doing nothing. Then Jo called him, via their mindlink and Dave was teleported back home to the orbital base.
"What's up?"
"Everything," she replied. "Dave, at every possible juncture the time lines that have been safe for years are all altering. We're getting thousands and thousands of new predictions all the time. Something, somewhere, somewhen, has gone wrong."
"Do we have a fix on anything?"
"One point were all the changes began to start. The Phalanx homeworld."
"Whoa." Dave sat down. "Is it my fault?"
"I don't know. But everything indicates that the main problems stem from your association with the X-Warriors."
"Damn. We knew this could happen, but there have been no indications..."
"Can we limit the damage?"
"By now the damage has been done - even if I quit the Fringe, it's too late." He knew that time was really an endlessly repeating loop, where the beginning and the end of time merged to create a void - which he'd called the Zero effect in his thesis on chronal theory and temporal physics. Being the avatarr he was present at the beginning and the end of the universe so he knew what went on before, just as he was one day destined to regain his former powers. He didn't always remember what had gone before, and he could never really tell what was about to happen but little things brought back some memories. In previous time flows, Dave Goldfish had never followed the X-Wars as physically as he was doing, and he decided to see if he could alter events as no matter what he had done before, he'd always failed. Not again, he thought. This time he'd made too many friends to fail again. He also saw the look in Jo's eyes. There was something else. She told him why the alarm had gone off.
"Oh no," was all that he could reply.
It was dark in the Bar when Dave and Jo teleported down. As far as Dave knew Nomad was in a training session and everyone else was occupied - sleeping or otherwise. This left the place quite empty, and it would be difficult for a skilled intruder to be detected. Dave waved his hand, gesturing Jo to scout about the Bar. Using his powers he activated the lights to reveal a man sitting down in a chair.
"Hey!" called Dave. "Can I help you?" The man turned to face him.
"Hello, Goldfish. I've been waiting for you."
"Ricardo Aughoti?" exclaimed Dave. Aughoti was the US senator who had placed the price on his head after the C&C explosion that destroyed the UK. Dave was stunned. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"It's where we are destined to meet. Can you not see me for who I am?" Jo, who had been standing out of sight, could.
"I can."
"Well, well. The wife." He motioned in her direction and she collapsed. Dave raced over to her. "I just increased the bloodflow to her brain."
"That trick won't work on me," said Dave.
"Oh, I know that. That's why it always comes down to this!" He motioned at Dave, who flew across the room and hit the jukebox. It started to play 'Princes of the Universe.' Dave got up and wiped his lip. It was bleeding.
"That's gonna cost you, bud. I don't know you from Adam but you crossed the line." He leapt at the man.
"I've not even started" came the reply and the two of them grappled, knocking chairs across the room. The song continued playing '.... fighting for survival, we've come to be the rulers of you all...'
The music blasted through Fever's brain, her ears easily hearing the song Queen sang. She grumbled irritatedly and hurled her pillows across the loft. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. An unfamiliar voice tickled her ears. It was enough. She yanked on the leggings and pulled the Old Saints football shirt over her head, a hand grabbing her staff after emerging through the sleeve hole. She left the loft, the shadow cloak clinging to her as she stepped within the shadows. She watched the two men fight in the bar and stealthily stepped out of the shadows, the blade silently slipping out. She swung the staff up, letting the point halt at the unknown man's kidney.
"I don' believe we've met," she calmly stated. "And I don' take kindly to strangers tearin' up MY bar."
Stout lumbered in from the back, covered in grease and oil; he had been tinkering with the GTO that evening and the commotion brought him running. During the fracas Goldfish had been thrown away from his opponent and reeled into Stout where he stopped like he had hit a brick wall. Stout grabbed Goldfish before he fell to the ground.
" What's goin' on here, Finnegan's wake? " he asked jokingly. When he saw Fever with a blade levelled at the other man Stout's good humour left him. " Dave lad, d' ye know this man? " The Irishman scowled and stalked towards Ricardo, his footsteps could be heard above the music and the beer mugs above the bar shook with each step. Placing himself directly in front of Ricardo, Stout locked eyes with him and crossed his massive arms over his barrel chest. " Because if'n ye dinnae Dave, sure and this Irishman would say he's in a wee bit o' a bad way. " Stout finished in a low threatening tone.
Sci-Fi blinked her eyes a few times. Just a moment before she had been happily asleep, visions of sugarplums (whatever the heck they were) and cream soda dancing through her head. A few crashes later and she was wide-awake, or so she thought. The Queen song coming up from below really made her question. Another crash and she pinched herself. She was awake. She jumped up and grabbed her bathrobe. Sliding her feet into her overly huge dog slippers, she made her way downstairs. Goldfish, Fever, Stout, and some man she didn't recognise were all in the middle of something. Well, if she was going to be up this early for something other than dungeon training, at least she was in good company. Quickly she slid down to take a defensive position near Stout.
"Mornin' folks!" she smiled madly at them.
" It's still evenin' yet lass. " Stout corrected her automatically. He had been devoting some of his time to running her through some solo training sessions and had fallen into the habit of policing whatever Sci Fi did. Sci Fi, of course, hated being corrected and would voice her opinion quite eloquently. This time however she did absolutely nothing except to yawn, attesting to how tired she was. The feeling in the air was tense, only Ricardo seemed unconcerned at the stand-off that had evolved. No one spoke as Queen played their final riff and then silence reigned over the Bar & Grille. Finally Stout broke the silence. " Bah! `Tis enough! Sci Fi get the door for this Irishman, I'm takin' out the trash! " he growled and reached one huge hand toward Ricardo.
Ricardo smiled as he saw the Irishman move towards him and in one swift move, he moved out of Stout's way and knocked the blade from Fever's hand. "This is almost too easy," he said as he pointed at Stout who promptly doubled over. "Just so you know, that was me reversing the flow of your blood. I imagine it's quite painful." Dave was beginning to get angry and he undid the damage being done to his friend. Aughoti nodded. "I'd have expected nothing less from a loyal warrior of the Fringe." Dave stopped.
"Pardon?"
"You heard, Chevalier." The term was used a weapon Oh, you know me alright. Use your brain," he snarled as he waved his hand throwing the other three across the room.
To Ricardo's amazement, Stout did not move an inch when he sent Fever and Sci Fi reeling backwards. Stout used that split second to connect a right cross to Ricardo's chin, driving the man to his hands and knees.
" Just so ye know boyo, that was this Irishman realignin' yiur jaw! " he spat back at Ricardo. " Now let's start over again, who are ye and what d' ye want with Dave? " he demanded kicking the man down on his belly with one grease stained boot. Stout had changed a bit since his prison stay; he was no longer willing to let life roll over him. If he were unable to hide from his past sins he would defend his new life with Fever and the Fringe through sheer brute force. Standing over Ricardo as the man started to rise from the floor, Stout encircled his throat tightly with one massive hand and held him down. " Ye'll stay right where ye are until ye've answered me questions and if'n ye so much as flinch I'll break yiur neck like a twig! " The threat in his voice completely unveiled. Fever and Sci Fi exchanged confused looks; this was a side of Stout they had never seen.
Dave was now worried, but he refused to let it show. Could Aughoti know the truth? And if so how? He could see Jo recovering slowly. She knew who this man was. And there was something familiar about him. His moves, his abilities, his knowledge. Realisation began to dawn and with realisation came fear.
Ricardo looked at the Irishman, weighed up the consequences of his actions and began to laugh.
"I never did take the time to know you properly, little man. I spend ages preparing for this and without knowing everything, it all falls apart. Just like always." The smile faded and a darkness appeared across his face. "I'll answer your questions, Irishman. I'll answer them honestly. What you have to ask is can you handle the answers?" Before Stout could answer Aughoti's challenge, Dave spoke.
"They can handle the truth. They're the Fringe. I thought you'd know that." He quickly cast a glance to Fever. The house of cards had now collapsed totally and the foundations were breaking up, too. Aughoti chuckled.
"So you know?"
"Yes."
"Slowing down, Commander. To those of you who don't know me my name is Ricardo Aughoti. Perhaps you'd know me better by my true name – Dave Goldfish."
Links to other sites on the Web
Home
The Adventures of Goldfish and Geneva: To All Things An Ending
The Adventures of Goldfish and Geneva: Final Truth (Part 2)
Get your own Free Home Page