Missingno ch1

“America. Why there, and why – Michigan?”

Mr. Blunt surveyed his youngest and most successful spy over the tops of his spectacles. Fair-haired, brown-eyed, and only fourteen, Alex Rider was certainly not typical or disposable. But for this mission it was of the utmost importance that he go.

“That’s only for MI6 to know.”

“Why can’t I know?” he demanded.

Beneath the blank, grey appearance, Mr. Blunt chuckled invisibly, but still without humor. “You’re not an agent of MI6. We just use you. And we’re going to lend you out to the CIA. But we’ll still call the shots. If you really want to know, just agree.”

Alex’s eyes flashed. Blunt knew he would always be faithful to his homeland, England, which also ensured obedience to MI6. It was a ruthless, mysterious organization that even Parliament didn’t quite know why existed, but Blunt, as the head of MI6, never hesitated to use force or blackmail. It had saved the world many times over.

“I’m not your agent,” he muttered.

“Children all over the world could be in danger. You are our only hope.”

Alex’s head subtly snapped up to attention. Blunt knew he had him. Couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t try. Checkmate.

Alex looked angry and forced, but Blunt knew it wasn’t completely his words; Alex forced himself. “You can always back out. We respect your decisions – you want to be a ‘normal kid’, a schoolboy, if you will.”

His head was down again and a strange growl issued from his throat.

“I can’t hear you,” Blunt said. He waited.

“I’ll...do it.”

-= * =-

Blunt knew he wouldn’t be happy to receive his instructions; he never was. Seven or eight missions he had been on, and he had survived every single one without nearly a scratch. But this briefing had not gone well, Blunt noted, as he watched and listened from behind a one-way-mirror; a habit of his.

“You’re telling me some kids’ gameboys are going to blow up?”

“Alex, listen, it’s more than that—“

“That is so pointless. Are you in league with Nintendo?”

“Alex! That’s the least of our worries – the games blowing up, that is. That is, their games getting corrupted.”

Mrs. Jones, Blunt’s partner “in crime”, was getting flustered. She was the official head of MI6, but Blunt still didn’t like her slowly developing soft spot for Alex. She’d had kids, once. Once, sending Alex into mortal danger had been okay. For Blunt, it was still okay. Now, she was thinking twice.

She continued explaining, while Alex sat stubbornly before her. “This isn’t an ordinary computer virus. It doesn’t spread because stupid people forward it to each other. It spreads through radio waves, internet connections, connections of any other kind, satellite – any form of communication that needs electricity you can think of. It can spread simply by close proximity to another piece of technology, like the way airplanes tell you to turn off your Walkmans. Destroying all the satellites orbiting the earth would only delay the inevitable. This is worse than the Black Plague – we know how to prevent it, but there’s no way we can. The instant it is released, within hours all the data in the world would be corrupted beyond repair. The consequences for hospitals, businesses, and governments would be unthinkable. Here’s where the children come in – hospital systems that support sick children and people would be useless machinery if infected. ”

“The solution?” Alex asked, his face blank.

“There may be a way. We know the nature of the virus because someone who claims to be his reincarnation has sent warning and a description of it. We have to take him seriously. Genuine or not, you have to find him, disable the countdown, and stop him from doing any more.”

“Why don’t you just send a killer? You’re good at that,” Alex said.

Mrs. Jones paused. “We need to learn his code so it can’t be used again.”

“So you can use it on someone else,” Alex said darkly. “I love intelligence wars.”

“No, Alex,” Mrs. Jones sighed, unwrapping a peppermint. “Back to the Gameboys. Ross Kent’s first job was a programmer at Nintendo. He was developing the Pokemon Red and Blue versions at the time. He was a programming prodigy, but his talent was too great for his job, so with his free time he masterminded a major glitch in the games that corrupted data and spread when players tried to trade Pokemon.”

“All the games? I thought it was only Red and Blue—“

Mr. Blunt inclined his head nearly imperceptibly. He had made the right choice; Alex did know quite a bit about games and perhaps even programming.

“Yes, the famous “Missingno” glitches and its cousins were found early,” she said, referring to her notes and frowning, “but others less blatant lurk in the other, newer games and are yet to be found. We believe Missingno and its cousins have something to do with the virus. However slight, it has to be found and understood.”

Alex discovered he was leaning forward and promptly sat back against the chair. “I suppose your informer told you that too. This is crazy.”

“True. Perhaps the man is crazy. But he must be stopped. You will be staying in Michigan, in the United States, with a family that can help.”

“What family?”

“You will find out very soon. Alex, the virus will be released in a month. Remember everything I’ve told you. Find the mastermind behind it and you’ll have found the virus.”

Alex’s face was a mixture of bafflement and the hardness that came with every new mission. Mrs. Jones looked guilty, though, and maybe a little sad.

Alex rose to leave, but Mrs. Jones stopped him to remind him of the travel plans. “Alex, your flight will leave at seven in the morning two days from now. Someone from the family will be there to meet you in Grand Rapids.”

Mr. Blunt turned away from the mirror. Business as usual. He felt no emotion at the thought of his teenage spy leaving for another possibly dangerous mission. He forgot about Alex and returned to his office.

Alex shrugged at her. Mrs. Jones looked like she wanted to say more, but kept quiet until his hand was on the door handle. “Alex – think of it as a vacation. This part of the US will be different, and the Fentons are nice people. Okay?”

“Don’t baby me. You keep telling me it’ll be like a vacation, but it never is.”

Alex closed the door behind him, let himself out through the familiar passages of the pseudo-bank building, and took the train home, already curious about the strange programmer and the glitchy games. At least this one didn’t sound life-threatening. What could a geek do to him? He certainly wouldn’t have gun-toting henchmen. Even so, he made a mental note to revisit his old copy of Pokemon Red and catch Missingno, just because.

He discovered he had forgotten his keys. He rang the doorbell and a young woman opened the door carefully, then swung it wide when she saw him. “Alex!” she cried, and pulled him into her arms.

“Hey, Jack,” he said into her, and she released him just before the point of clinginess.

“Every time I go out, I swear I worry you’ve been hit by a bullet or run over by a car!” she fretted, smoothing his hair. “Anyway, dinner’s ready. Where’d you go out to this time?”

He’d been on the way to the bathroom to wash his hands and he barely stopped in his tracks. Jack would not be happy to hear he’d been to MI6 headquarters again. “Um, I’ll tell you after dinner.” He wanted to keep Jack cheerful and the mood light as long as possible.

Jack bought it, but during the meal she would furtively glance at his face, looking for clues to where he’d been. She’d been his housekeeper for a long time, and he was like a son to her. Worry was a full-time job. Once he’d put his dishes in the sink, she began questioning him. “So what were you going to tell me after dinner?”

Alex’s heart plummeted. “I’m...going to Michigan.”

“What? Why? Is this about MI6?”

He sighed and was silent for a moment. “Yes.” Jack started; he could see it on her face: she was ready to unleash a barrage of protest. “Listen, before you say no, this time it shouldn’t be dangerous. I mean, what could a computer virus do to me?”

Jack visibly calmed down, and by the time he was done telling her about the virus, she was nodding and making plans to come with him but visit her relatives in Illinois again, “so I can be there in a jiffy if anything happens.”

Alex fell asleep with his heart a little more at peace, deciding to pack in the morning, play tennis at the local club in the afternoon, and go to sleep early for his seven o’clock plane. He felt better about saying yes to MI6 now. Jack was OK with it, he would get to go, and it sounded like his least life-threatening mission he’d been on yet. He hoped.

-= * =-

It was another snowy December in Amity Park, Michigan. A blizzard warning was in effect, and at three in the afternoon it was already dark. At three-thirty the local high school, Casper High, let out, looking for all the world like a night school. Some kids went to the buses, some kids got into their cars, and some started to walk home. No one wanted to be outside in the cold, grey darkness. Only three stayed behind. Their names were Danny, Samantha, and Tucker.

“Where’s Jazz? Shouldn’t she be here to meet the exchange student?” Tucker asked, scanning the emptying parking lot. He frowned at his dark hands, which were turning pale from the cold, and pulled on some mittens.

Danny shrugged, his hands in his warm coat pockets. “My dear sister is probably inside warming up all by herself.” He had on jeans, sneakers, and a windbreaker over his usual white t-shirt. Normal people would be cold. He rarely was.

Sam shivered suddenly. “Nice of her not to invite us.” Skinny and pale, she dressed like a Goth and had the attitude of a punk.

Tucker smirked. “Sam’s cold. Danny, go warm her up.”

Sam narrowed her eyes at her friend. “No thanks, Tuck, my hot, blushing face is quite warm enough, really.” In fact, there wasn’t much pink in her cheeks at all. Sam had become immune to Tucker’s taunts after going to most of elementary school with both him and Danny.

“I don’t mind,” he smiled, pulling her into a hug.

Sam made a sharp sound. “Danny, your hands are freezing!”

Immediately, he withdrew his hands. “Uh, sorry...”

“Nah, it’s okay. Just give me your jacket,” she demanded, but she was grinning.

He did, and she put it on while he stuck his hands in his jeans pockets and tried to warm up his hands, even though he didn’t feel like they were cold. Sometimes, this was impossible for him. Being half-ghost and all.

“I think I hear Jazz,” Tucker said. Quickening footsteps sounded behind them and Jazz appeared, throwing her arms over Danny and Tucker’s shoulders, causing them to stumble forward. She smiled widely. “Hi! Mom called and said they’re on the way.”

“I wonder what he thinks about our Fenton Ghost Assault Vehicle,” Danny muttered, first hearing then seeing it round the corner way too fast. It pulled up with a screech, and a Mrs. Fenton poked her head out the window. “Get in, kids! Blizzard’s coming!”

Danny let the others go first while he protested. “What’s the hurry? The blizzard won’t happen till tonight!”

His mom motioned him in and he obeyed. “Better safe than sorry! Back to Fentonworks! ...I mean home!” she announced, and put the vehicle in gear.

Danny hurried to sit down in his usual seat, but found an unfamiliar boy there – the exchange student, he guessed. He had on navy blue jeans, trainers, and a black jacket over a tan shirt. With one look, he knew the ride from the airport must have been rough – the boy was looking more apprehensive by the second. He buckled himself in next to him.

“You do this often?” the boy asked with a British accent. His eyes were brown and serious. Danny had never seen a kid this young with the eyes of a person who had seen too much.

Danny knew the feeling, though; he had the same eyes in blue. “Yeah, I’m used to it. She’s my mom, after all. You must be Alex Rider...?”

“Yeah,” he said. “And you’re Danny?”

Danny nodded with a smile, then had to hold on to his seat as Mrs. Fenton braked forcefully.

Alex had never seen a car like this. It was one of those crazy American ideas, he supposed. It was huge; green and silver and big enough to live in. When Mrs. Fenton had come to meet him at the airport, he thought he was looking at a short, curvy bug-eyed alien. Then all of a sudden she’d pulled off her hood and an energetic, delicate-featured woman had led him to this automotive freak of nature. He had not enjoyed the ride to the school. It was like riding a horse again, except his horse was rearing and bucking every time they stopped at a red light or turned a corner.

“If you think this is bad,” Danny said suddenly, “wait till you ride when my dad’s driving.”

Danny saw Alex’s face and immediately added, “My mom only drives like this when she’s excited. Don’t worry...”

Alex sighed and was about to let his head fall back onto the headrest, but the car’s acceleration did it for him. He shut his eyes. “Are we there yet?”

With a final screech and hard braking, the Fenton RV stopped at the curb of Fentonworks. The kids filed out while Mrs. Fenton hunted for her keys in a side pocket attached to her blue jumpsuit.

Danny was fidgeting. He’d already taken a liking to Alex, because his eyes had that familiar look in them, and he didn’t want his stay to be distressful, to say the least. With these parents, it would be tricky. “Look...when she opens the door, the thing in orange is my dad...”

Tucker snickered. “Yeah, don’t let him get you, he’ll crush you.”

“I’ve been through worse,” Alex said, then berated himself for saying something so cryptic. It had been a while since he’d been with people his age.

Sam looked at him strangely. Danny caught her eye and shrugged at her just as the door opened with a BAM and the “thing in orange” exploded out of the door.

By instinct, Alex almost delivered a hard punch to the stomach, but remembered just in time that a) he must not punch his temporary parents and b) it wouldn’t make a difference in that huge belly anyway and c) he had thought too much and it was too late to jump out of the way and d) if he jumped out of the way the thing in orange would smash into the vehicle behind him. So he let himself be squeezed in a bear hug.

“Pleased to meet you, new-son-that-I’ll-only-have-for-a-month!” Jack bellowed. “What’s your name?”

“Alex Rider,” he managed.

“Well, Alex, we hope you’ll enjoy your stay here!”

“Thanks.”

There was a silence. “Jack, dear, let’s go in, hmm?” Mrs. Fenton prodded, and he let himself be herded into the sitting room.

By all estimates, the Fentons were gearing up for an hour-long question and answer session about himself, which Alex would prefer to avoid.

Danny caught the vibe, and so did the others. Jazz spoke first. “Dad, Mom, um, we’re going to show Alex his room and stuff. Okay? We’re going, see you at dinner!”

Jazz, Tucker, Sam, Danny, and Alex raced up the stairs with his luggage and were soon out of sight, leaving the parents baffled and alone.

The house was quiet, but for the whine of the refrigerator and muffled talk from Danny’s room.

“He doesn’t want to talk to us?” Maddie said, sounding forlorn.

“Oh...well, more time for needlepoint!” exclaimed Jack, pulling out a potholder half-decorated with neon green ghosts from under a sofa cushion. Maddie brought her hand to her forehead with a resounding smack.

-= * =-

The five of them were in Danny’s room, in a circle on the floor. Alex’s luggage lay in a corner, forgotten. Alex had immediately noticed Danny’s eyes. They were just like his, but blue, and it had been a while since he’d seen someone with the same serious, weary look. But he was also curious about the other kids. Were they siblings? Close friends? MI6 hadn’t told him much. It was time to learn.

“So, you’re British?” Jazz asked. She’d noticed his accent. She’d also noticed his attractive features and well-built frame.

“I’d say English,” he said, smiling slightly. “But yes. I hail from Great Britain.”

“How old are you?” asked Tucker.

“Fourteen – you?”

“Fourteen,” said the Danny, Sam, and Tucker together, while Jazz announced a little belatedly, “Sixteen!”

She looked sheepish. “I’m Danny’s big sister. These are his friends Sam and Tucker. We forgot to introduce ourselves, guys!”

“I’m Sam,” she said. “Just Sam.”

“I’m Tucker,” said he, “and I’m a proud geek!”

Danny only smiled lopsidedly and said, “You know me. And Jazz.”

He looked at them in turn, matching name to face, letting it sink into him that the majority of his time would be spent here with these people. Sam and Tucker seemed to practically go everywhere with him. He’d never seen friends so close. He wondered what the reason was.

“You’ll be sleeping in this extra bed across from me, in my room,” Danny offered, motioning to a new bed next to him. Alex didn’t know it, but it had been all been provided and paid for by MI6. The Fentons had just dutifully followed mailed orders and redeemed coupons.

“Exciting,” said Alex. “So, tell me, why do your parents wear those weird uniforms everywhere?”

There was a pregnant moment of silence, and then Danny and Jazz both started talking at once. “They’re crazy, don’t worry about them,“ said Jazz, while Danny said, “My dad has an allergy to normal clothing—“

Alex looked baffled, and Danny looked uncomfortable. “Uh, both those explanations are bad. Um, what I mean is...why don’t you ask them?”

Alex chuckled. “No thanks. I can tell that’ll get me nowhere.”

Sam smirked. “Just accept Danny’s parents for who they are...strange.”

“What’s in the basement?” Alex said suddenly. Ever observant, Alex had seen the steel-plated doorway with metallic steps leading downward. The way had been dimly lit with a green glow and he was highly curious as to what was down there.

They all looked at him blankly while Jazz whispered audibly into Danny’s ear: “Can we for once keep their ghost weirdness away from the guests?”

There was a silence as Jazz realized she had been overheard. Sam rolled her eyes.

“So I take it your parents are interested in...ghosts? Did I hear right?” Alex said finally.

“No, no, no, we’re not strange at all! We’re a perfectly normal family!” Jazz exclaimed. Her right eyelid twitched intermittently.

Sam sighed loudly. She opened her mouth to spill the family secrets, but Jazz gave her such a fierce glare she stayed quiet. Alex received no response and the room was stony quiet once again.

Suddenly, Danny was up on his feet. “Augh! Um, why don’t I get us some snacks. Or something. Be right back.”

His ghost sense had gone off, and he was sure Alex had seen the blue vapor. This was not a good start. He closed the door behind him and sprinted to Jazz’s room. “Going ghost,” he muttered, and a bright light flashed from his waist. Within seconds he was a ghost. Danny Phantom flew through the wall and into the air, following his ghostly adversary.

Tucker, Sam, and Jazz had seen the mist too and now scrambled for conversation.

“So...” Tucker broke the silence. “Um...what games do you like?”

“I don’t have time to play games,” Alex shrugged. Tucker’s jaw dropped. “What? No way!”

“Yes way,” Alex said. Then he remembered the Pokemon Red and the ancient Gameboy Color in his luggage. “Wait. I did bring one.”

He sprang up gracefully and moved over to his luggage. Unlocking it, he opened the cover and found the Gameboy. “I have this.”

“Ha!” Tucker laughed shortly. “That? That was so, like, ten years ago!”

His words triggered a recent memory. The programmer. The Pokemon games. Ten years ago. “Yeah, I know. But I want to show you something weird...”

Alex had stayed up till near midnight the day before his flight, continuing from where he’d left off about four years ago and progressing enough in it so he would be able to trigger the glitch. It had taken a while, even though he won every battle. But it would be worth it, and crucial to his mission. Which he wasn’t planning on telling any of these kids about. Maybe Danny. But not anytime soon.

Tucker crowded closer, and Sam did too. Only Jazz stayed where she sat on Danny’s bed, turning her nose up at it. She didn’t believe in video games.

“What is it?” Tucker said. “Dude, you started with Charmander? I did too!”

“Doesn’t everyone?” Alex smiled slightly. “Watch this...”

He performed the steps need to trigger the glitch, but as soon as he walked up to the small man that taught you how to catch a Pokemon, Tucker scoffed. “Ha! The Missingno glitch? I know every trick in the book.”

“Really,” Alex said disbelievingly. Maybe MI6 should have sent him to stay with Tucker’s family. Danny’s family may be eccentric, but they didn’t seem like the undercover-CIA type. Or maybe that was the point.

“Yeah,” Tucker said. His eyes lit up, eager to share the knowledge. “There’s so many wacko things you can do to the Pokemon Red/Blue games...have you heard of Glitch City? The other glitch Pokemon? It’s crazy, man...”

“Other glitch Pokemon,” Alex repeated.

Tucker shrugged. “Yeah. See, the programmers used an array of 256, with numbers from 0 to 255...there are only 151 Pokemon, so the other slots must all be glitch Pokemon or something...Missingno is number zero. You can even sort of tell from its name – Missing No., where No. means ‘number’.”

Tucker continued to lecture like a seasoned professor with a diploma in tech as Alex listened intently, soaking it in, but he still couldn’t see how these glitches would help make a worldwide pandemonium. The others listened too: with their eyes half-glazed over and their attention elsewhere.

Tucker was content to have found a match for his vast and geeky knowledge. Even in the short time they’d spent together, Tucker could already tell Alex was different. Other fourteen-year old boys would have been the immature type, looking for fun and entertainment, or cracking jokes that weren’t funny, or...he just hadn’t met anyone quite like Alex before. He was always calm and serious, and he was funny, truly funny, in a subtle, droll way. Were all British kids like this?

Alex frowned at the small screen. He’d caught Missingno, but it didn’t seem to be anything special. Other than the fact that it had a Nidoran’s cry, messed up people’s games, and looked like the Gameboy equivalent of a snowy TV screen. Tucker had just described all he knew about the glitch in the Pokemon Red/Blue versions, but Alex wanted more.

“What about Gold/Silver? Are there Missingno in there too?”

Tucker’s face was like one who had forgotten to pick up the holy grail on his quest. “You know, I never tried...Red/Blue was just too much fun to hack. I doubt it, though, you might think the programmers would have gotten rid of it...”

Sam stirred in the corner. Her back was against the side of one of the boys’ beds and it was very comfortable sitting there, listening to what she already knew. She’d once proved she knew more than Tucker about secret cheats in games. She’d do it again. Watching him squirm was one of the highlights of being friends with him.

“There are glitches in Gold/Silver and even Ruby/Sapphire. Come on, no one’s perfect, if you look hard enough and hack enough there’s gotta be one somewhere.” She shrugged, playing it cool. “Gold/Silver contains a Missingno, but it’s not dangerous.”

Alex raised an eyebrow. “That’s not what my sources told me.”

“Uh, sources?” she raised an eyebrow too, holding his gaze.

Realizing he’d said too much, he hazarded, “Uh, internet?”

The faces that had turned to him curiously now looked away, apparently satisfied, but Sam still gazed at him as if she didn’t believe him. That lie fooled a lot of people a lot of the time. Just not Sam. She was all around different, and it wasn’t just her clothing style; she was one smart girl. Danny and her would make a great team...

Tucker finished sulking at being outmoded by Sam (a girl!) at technology, his usual forte, and said, “I have all the other ones if you want to play with them.”

Alex looked up. “Every single version? Red blue yellow gold silver crystal ruby sapphire...?“

“Yes,” Tucker finally smiled widely. “All of them. I used to be obsessed.”

“You still are, Tucker. Don’t you have both Diamond and Pearl now?” Sam cut in.

“Yeah...” Tucker said, looking down.

“Hey,” said Alex, “That’s good! Because I’ve just made it my goal to find Missingno in all the games in two weeks.”

Even Jazz looked at him, disbelief all over her face.

Tucker shrugged. “All right, whatever you want, man. I’ll bring them over tomorrow.”

Alex stopped pressing buttons on his Gameboy and let the tinny music play on. He’d caught Missingno without glitching up his game. Was this what he was supposed to do with this? He hardly knew anything about the virus. Mrs. Jones had showed him a transcript of the warning they had received at the start of the briefing, but it had been sparse and not very informative into the nature of the virus itself. How could anything spread by “close proximity” anyway?

“Stupid, stupid, stupid,” Alex muttered, saving his game and turning the game off. He tossed it on his new bed. He leaned against it and let his shoulders slump.

“You okay?” Jazz asked. At the sound of her voice he looked up. She looked a little like Jack. He wondered if Jack really was visiting her relatives and not hiding out in a local motel. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just...nothing.”

“What? You can tell me. I—oh, look, we just met, but really, I’m studying to be a psychologist!” Jazz stuttered, blushing.

Danny saved the day yet again by opening the door, interrupting her doomed monologue – but suspiciously empty-handed. “Hi guys! Hi Alex!” he said brightly. “So what were you talking about?”

“Umm...nothing, but Danny, you, uh, forgot the snacks.”

“Oh! So I did! Sorry, be right back!” He flashed them a grin, gave them a thumbs up, and slammed the door harder than needed.

Sam didn’t look very happy at the moment. Danny had very ineptly tried to disguise his long absence but failed terribly – again. By the looks of Alex, he seemed very observant and had seen the discrepancy too. Not like Danny’s parents and all the kids at school. It had been the second time today something weird about Danny had shown up on Alex’s face. She gritted her teeth and looked toward the door, wishing he could be less klutzy sometimes. Especially with a stranger in their midst. Alex’s emotions were so hard to read, she wasn’t sure he had any. And that could be dangerous if he turned out to be.

Danny came back, again empty-handed. “Mom says it’s too close to dinner – what did I miss?”

Everyone looked at Alex for the answer. He was a natural leader, and they knew it. “Nothing much. I caught Missingno on my Pokemon Red,” he said, and chuckled.

“Yeah? Cool...cool.” He sounded distracted. “Hey, let’s get out of here and let him unpack, okay?”

They filed out of the room and Tucker closed the door behind him.

Alex took a deep breath. Finally, a time alone with his own thoughts. But back home he’d had enough of that anyway. Not many friends where he and Jack and lived, and Tom, Jerry, and Sabina had faded away like distant memories. That was exactly what they were, now. But in his heart, there was nothing, as if it were in truth a cold, heavy stone.

At the foot of his bed was a chest, apparently for his clothing, and on it lay a jade-green towel. Automatically, he unpacked, placing his clothing in the chest and leaving everything else in the suitcase. His backpack he lay beside his bedside table. Finally, he fell onto the covers of his bed. Feeling something hard beneath his leg, he pulled out his Gameboy and set it on the table.

Finally. He lay spread-eagled on the bed, just thinking, pondering the next month and what it had in store for him. Also, the people he would be sharing it with, and the two eccentric parents, strange substitutes for the parents he’d never known. And Danny, Jazz, Sam, and Tucker...what of them? He shook his head slightly, not an easy thing to do lying down. And what about school tomorrow?

He relaxed a little at that thought. MI6 would have everything arranged...again. It was so predictable, he took it for granted, in a strange way, even though he hated how they did everything ahead of time, correctly anticipating his every decision. His messenger bag he’d taken for his carryon would be his new school bag, and – he supposed the books would have to be provided by his new mom and dad, who were downstairs waiting for him so they could lay down the rules of the house and get him used to this place.

He got up reluctantly and slowly, and stretched. It was time to meet the Fentons. In truth he was more excited now. As he turned the corner to the kitchen area where he could hear the father’s voice, he saw the basement steps again and was sorely tempted to explore.

It was like he was a spy again, on a real mission, sneaking around criminals and looking for armed guards. But this was a much more forgiving place. A family couldn’t have dangers like that. He stepped quietly down the stairs, but stopped and kept still, not believing his eyes. Across the cool, dark room was a huge octagonal shape in the wall, and in it was something like a green mirror, but its surface swirled and glowed. It was utterly silent in the room but for a few words from Danny as he pushed a silver cylinder into a slot in the wall and pushed a button. A second later, the green mirror shivered violently. A blob with some form of a man circled for another few seconds but was sucked into the center like a flushing toilet. Danny laughed, then he removed the silver cylinder and capped it. It looked like a thermos. Sam and Tucker laughed too, but they stopped abruptly when they turned and saw Alex in the doorway. He had been too mesmerized to hide.

They tried to put on brave faces, but Alex had seen their initial reaction. Fear. Discovery. A secret. Had MI6 set him up for this, but using fellow teenagers?!

“Oh hey Alex...” Sam said, but trailed off, for lack of something to say. Danny pushed the same button and doors like blunt jaws slid over the green, swirling mirror. The soft green glow disappeared. The room was dark but for a few lava lamps and green liquids scattered on counters and benches.

The three glanced at each other, and immediately they had resolved the situation, quick as telepaths. Danny stepped forward. “Alex,” he said as he swept a hand around the steel-plated room, introducing Alex to the cupboards and tables filled with strange objects and beakers, “Welcome to the best collection of ghost-hunting gadgets in the world.”