Save State Hero -CH21- (Patreon)

Edmund made it to Legion HQ much faster than he’d done so previously.

To the point that he’d been putting deodorant on, brushing his teeth, and shaving, all while driving. He needed to get there as soon as possible if he wanted any chance of gathering everyone up.

Except when he walked in the front lobby it was obvious something was wrong.

That something was incredibly different with how everyone was acting.

Far more so than he could remember the last time he went through this save-state.

With a frown, Edmund moved from the lobby and to the elevator. He hit the button and waited. Tribune would check him against her security logs and then let him in.

She’d become active security as well as passive security for most access points.

He didn’t want to consider how close that felt to far too many science-fiction movies and tv-shows. That one day she’d likely just randomly tell him that “she can’t do that, Edmund.”

“I can’t let you in, Edmund,” Tribune reported, leaving him feeling like someone was peeking into his thoughts. “There’s a security breech. There’s been casualties. Please open your phone and check your inbox.”

I… casualties? What the fuck?

Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his phone and then opened it up as Tribune had instructed him. Flipping straight to the inbox for the Legion app.

The top line email was listed as “extreme importance” and had a red symbol next to it. Edmund flicked it open.

Inside he found various reports of Andrea being found dead.

Report after report that she was found dead at her post, in Felix’s bed, in the bathroom.

Everywhere.

No.

No, this… no.

Edmund shook his head.

He knew what Oz had told him about Andrea had included this exact possibility. That she was dead in every save-state.

He’d just conveniently blocked that truth out of his thoughts and mind. That he didn’t want to consider it and had pointedly acted as if it’d never been said.

Now he no longer could turn a blind-eye to it.

That it wasn’t just a paranoid warning from some strange being that he didn’t understand.

“Oz. Andrea’s dead. Is her soul missing?” Edmund demanded suddenly. “You said her soul was missing in a different save-state. This isn’t the active main timeline.

“This is a side timeline that I’m using to get a better result in the main one. I could use your help. You told me to mention that or something when I needed your attention.”

“Acknowledged,” Oz reported. “I have confirmed that Andrea’s soul is missing. It isn’t present anywhere. It is missing.

“It isn’t part of any missing information, either. This isn’t a loss caused by loading a save-state. Though there are two missing people who should be active in this save-state.”

Edmund mentally recoiled at all of that information.

Andrea really was dead in every save-state. That there was no possibility of bringing her back.

It also meant that without using the save he’d made after she’d died, than there would never bee a save-state that’d run along that timeframe again.

There was no way to repeat the events to get back there as Andrea was gone.

On top of that, Edmund had no idea if the two people who were lost to the loading of a save-state would be back in the main save-state.

He hoped so, but he truly had no way of knowing.

“Okay… damn. Her soul is missing in the other save-states as well. Whatever happened to her, it happened in a way that removed her completely. Universally,” Edmund explained. “Tribune, can you put together a meeting for me? I need to speak with Faith, Goldie, Miu, Romina, Gaia, yourself, and Felix. I know why Andrea died.”

“Yes, there is a fracture in reality,” Oz said. It sounded almost as if it was talking to itself, rather than Edmund.

Or so Edmund figured since it was talking over him.

“I will do so, Legionnaire Edmund,” Tribune reported, followed by the elevator door opening. “Please enter into the elevator. I will set up a meeting room and bring all participants to it.”

“This fracture is quite large. It was clearly repaired by myself and… another. How was it caused, Edmund?” Oz asked.

“I don’t know. You wouldn’t tell me. Everything turned smurf in a blender colored and the sky literally split in half. Go look at my save-states if you want more information.”

“I cannot. The save-state in question is fragile. Very fragile. It could only be accessed perhaps once,” Oz reported. “It will fracture immediately afterward. I cannot inspect it in any fashion other than superficially.

“I suppose that your response, along with the state of the save-state is enough information for me to understand roughly what happened.

“Then again, it doesn’t really matter since I am not the main timeline Oz. I am a defunct timeline that will not proceed. Most especially so given Andrea’s death.”

Edmund entered the elevator and stood in the center of it.

“Anything you could tell me about how to get Andrea back would be appreciated, Oz. You keep saying she’s irrecoverable but I just can’t accept that. There has to be way. I have to find a way.”

“Andrea’s soul is irrecoverable. That means it is irrecoverable. The state it was in at the time of Andrea’s death is no longer available to us,” Oz reaffirmed. “Theoretically Edmund could be present at the time of Andrea’s birth to determine if Andrea’s soul was pre-existing, or made at that moment.

“That is unfortunately impossible at Edmund does not have access to Andrea’s save-states. Not to mention, birth save-states are often very delicate given the trauma of birth.”

Couldn’t I theoretically go meet Andrea’s mom then? I imagine a save-state would be made for a mother birthing her child.

But… that’s no guarantee it’d work.

If all the souls were pre-existing, than it’d be unavailable even then. She’d be born… still-souled?

Ugh.

That’s a terrible thought.

The elevator chimed and the doors opened.

Edmund exited and then stood there.

“Tribune?” he asked.

“Proceed to Aurelian. Third door on the left,” Tribune stated.

Aurelian.

Alright.

Moving off Edmund found the door, opened it, and entered.

“Goldie is not going to be able to attend as she’s with the Dragons,” Tribune stated. “Miu is equally busy as is her counterpart. Everyone else will be here momentarilly.”

“Thank you, Tribune,” Edmund muttered. Then he went and took a seat in one of the chairs.

“Is Oz a Virtual Intelligence like myself?” asked Tribune.

“I… beg your pardon?” Edmund responded quickly.

“You spoke to another. The way you spoke, and the inferred responses that I could not detect, sounded as if you were speaking to an entity such as myself.”

Edmund considered that possibility and felt a strange weight start pushing down on his mind. Pushing down on his thoughts in a way that made him feel somewhat sick.

“I’m not a Virtual Intelligence, though I’m not a mortal such as you are. I’m neither a god, or demon, either,” Oz interjected. “The best descriptor for me would be… assistant. I’m nothing grand in the tapestry of life.”

Before Edmund could respond further, Ellie surprisingly entered the room. She had a tray balanced in her hands.

It was filled with coffee cups, several coffee pots, and two boxes of donuts.

“Edmund! Hi, hello!” breathed Ellie as she came through the door. The beautiful Dryad was hard for him to look at. Even with the Dryad seed inside him aiding him, it was obvious she had a heavy effect on him.

He briefly wondered if the Dryad seed would react to Ellie, but nothing changed.

Nothing happened.

“Morning, Ellie,” Edmund replied with a smile. He wouldn’t say no to coffee and snacks and he was glad that Tribune had thought ahead that far.

She was in street clothes that did nothing at all for her natural beauty. If anything it diminished her unfortunately.

“Ah, here you are,” Ellie murmured and set the tray down right in the middle of the table. She quickly tossed in a sugar cube, added some creamer, grabbed a donut, and then took it all over to Edmund. “There! Everyone else can take care of what they need when they come in.”

Ellie smiled at him, pulled some type of snack from a pocket that looked a lot like an oat or granola bar. Peeling it open she took a seat at Edmund’s left and began nibbling at it, saying nothing more.

He was secretly glad she wasn’t directly in front of him anymore. The longer she’d stood there, the more his mind dredged up memories and thoughts of her in their previous non-existant lives.

Endless days spent with his Aenor as they wandered the world together.

Wincing, Edmund lifted a hand and pressed it to his temple. At the same time he picked up the coffee cup and took a sip.

It was lacking just a bit of sugar and right on the edge of how he liked it, but pretty close. Almost perfect, but not quite.

“How’ve you been?” Ellie asked from his side. “Did this morning go alright?”

“I mean… as well as it could be. Hungrier than I want to admit,” replied Edmund eying the donut. He put it back in the box and took out the larger cinnamon roll instead.

Then took a rather large bite out of it. The sugar felt perfect at this moment and something that he needed.

Realizing she was waiting for him to continue speaking, he swallowed roughly.

“Slept okay. Just… feeling a bit odd. Going to confess a big thing to everyone shortly. Then ask them for help,” Edmund finish.

“Ah… I see. That’ll be interesting,” Ellie said, clearly looking at him given the way her voice sounded. He could hear the smile in it, too.

Thankfully, the door opened and Edmund was saved from anything further from the Dryad or more interactions. Everything was still too fresh for him to handle very well.

“Tribune said you knew what’s going on with Andrea,” Felix demanded as he entered. He looked frustrated, angry, and panicked all at the same time. Moving over to Edmund the man stood over him.

“Yeah. It’s a long story but I’ll try to keep it short. You know my super-power’s name but not what it does,” Edmund murmured, looking up at his boss. At the same time, everyone else was filing into the room and taking seats.

The polycom phone in the center of the table clicked and then went live with two chirps. That meant two phones were dialed into the meeting.

“But uh… everyone’s here? Tribune?” Edmund asked, not wanting to repeat himself.

“All are present,” confirmed Tribune.

“Alright. The short version. I can rewind, fastforward, and pause the world, in a way. It lets me try to change reality to fit what I want. Some things work out, some things don’t,” Edmund said. “I want to use you all as a think tank. A group of people to help me figure things out and solve main timeline concerns.

“All while… this… timeline never goes forward. You’d all exist only when things went wrong and I need help to fix it. Does that make sense?”

“Not really,” Gaia said with a laugh. She held her hands above her beautiful head and shrugged. “I’m sorry, Edmund. It just sounds too complicated for me.”

“I get it,” Faith said from where she sat at the table. “It explains a lot, too. Heck of a lot. How you always knew what to do and how to do it to get the best results. When things would happen that I didn’t expect, except for the fact that you’d clued me into it before it happened.”

“Yeah. Stuff like that,” Edmund agreed.

“Then why’s Andrea dead?” demanded Felix in a low volume. He was looking at Edmund oddly. As if he were checking everything Edmund said at the same time some how.

“I don’t know. She tied in the main timeline in the mission we’re about to go on. She died in such a way that… she… she died everywhere. In every timeline,” Edmund explained with a small shake of his head. “I don’t really understand it. That’s one of the reasons you’re all here with me.

“As I learn more, I want to review it with you and go through it. Get your thoughts and opinions. But also more than just Andrea’s situation. On anything that might come up.”

“That sounds incredibly intelligent,” Goldie stated with clear approval. “I don’t quite believe it, but I like it. It sounds like a perfectly Felix thing to do, too. I’m sure if he wasn’t awash with grief he’d agree.”

“From what I can sense, it’s the truth,” Faith offered. “Well, mostly the truth. There’s some things he’s hiding but that’s not unexpected. We all have things we hide.”

Felix spun away from Edmund and slammed himself down into a seat.

Folding his arms in front of himself, he leaned back in his chair.

“I want a demonstration,” Miu demanded over the intercom. “I’ve written down a number in front of myself. I’m also holding an item in my hand. I want you to tell me what they are.”

“Errr… I can’t. This is the first time I’ve gone through this,” Edmund admitted.

“I know. I’m going to tell you what they are. You can rewind time and tell me what they are,” Miu stated.

Groaning mentally, Edmund didn’t want to deal with that. It’d force him to load the save-state from the morning again. To go through everything all over again.

“The number is forty-two and I’m holding a severed head,” Miu stated.

I… that… ugh.

Miu is always so very Miu.

While Edmund had met the crazed asian assassin known as Miu often, he was never quite comfortable around the woman. She always felt like she could hide her presence away and vanish.

To melt into the background whenever she liked and not be part of the active world. Friendly enough, but far too much like a blade in a sheath that was ready to be drawn.

“Really, Miu? A head?” Edmund asked.

“I’m on a mission. I’m busy. I’m attending because Andie’s dead,” growled Miu. “I’m not happy.”

Right… err… there were rumors that Miu had ended up sleeping with Andrea and Felix at the same time. I guess they weren’t rumors.

“Okay. I’ll… reload and run this back. Anything else to prove it’s real?” Edmund asked.

“Just tell me that I’ve had enough cookies for today,” Goldie said. “That’ll be enough for me.”

Edmund grunted, then reloaded the save-state.

He followed everything he’d done previously right back up to the same point. Doing his best to walk it all back to the exact situation.

And failed. Losing his attention in the middle of a drive he’d already made and getting into a car accident.

Having to reload again, Edmund tried a second time and got mostly to the same point. Cursing himself for having to load another time when he didn’t have to if he’d just paid better attention.

Ellie once more came into the room as he sat down. Tray in hand.

“Ah, hello! Good morning, Edmund,” Ellie murmured, coming over to him. “It’s good to see you.”

She smiled at him set the tray down in the middle of the table. Her eyes didn’t linger on him this time and he didn’t feel as awkward about it, thankfully.

She was dressed in a form fitting dress this time that emphasized her blessed physique and natural looks, however. Rather than the street clothes she’d been in last time.

He couldn’t deny that he had a hard time not admiring her.

“Ah, here you are,” Ellie murmured putting down the cup and plate in front of him once again as she’d done last time. “There we are. The others will handle themselves, of course.”

Ellie smiled at him, sat down next to him, and smoothed out her dress. Then she turned toward him fully and watched him quietly. Saying nothing but he could feel her eyes on him.

Unsure of how to proceed, or how much she’d changed since the last load, Edmund instead took a drink from his coffee. The only thing he could figure was that he’d sent his meeting request, along with some notes, to Tribune before he got in his car.

He figured if they had more time to prepare this would go better. To make sure he got similar information though, he’d asked Tribune to not reveal the reason for the meeting until he was in the lobby.

Tribune must’ve contacted Ellie earlier for such a change to occur.

Now that he was looking, he saw that the coffee had a uniform look this time. Previously two of them looked as if they’d been done with a full coffee filter and one with less. The donuts had come from a different store altogether as well.

Glancing down at his plate, he saw it was a rather large cinnamon roll as well.

Not to mention now that he thought about it, the coffee tasted perfect this time.

“Thank you, Ellie,” Edmund murmured as he let the coffee move down to the table.

“Of course,” she stated then turned toward the door a moment before it opened.

“Hello,” Edmund said, trying to get to the chase quickly. Then the polycom turned on and beeped twice. “I can rewind, fastforward, and pause time as needed.

“I’d like to use you all as a think tank so that I can abuse my power relentlessly. Felix, Andrea died in a different timeline. Somehow it’s killed her in all timelines. I’m working to fix that.

“You were helping me to that end in another think-tank scenario but I lost access to that timeline.

“Miu, you’re going to ask me for proof. You wrote down the number forty-two in that situation, and you’re holding a severed head.

“Goldie, you told me to tell you that that’s enough cookies.

“Otherwise… I hope we can get moving on this because I’d love to use you all to get the best results out of my power.”

Felix had paused at the seat that he would normally have sat in in a meeting. His hand on the back of it.

There was a surprised cough from Miu on the other end of the line.

“Alright,” she said after a pause. “I… yeah. I am, yeah.”

“But they’re so delicious,” muttered Goldie, as if she were holding a cookie.

Felix took his seat and then looked to Edmund. He spread his hands out in front of himself.

“Consider us the think tank. Could you elaborate further though?” Felix asked.

“I can. Yeah. I can,” Edmund agreed.

He’d put down a save-state as soon as they had all their questions answered and then use this place as he intended.

Then he’d have to go back to the real timeline and see what would happen next.

Not to mention notify Oz that Andrea really is dead in every save-state. I’m sure he’ll want to know that.

Picking up his coffee cup, Edmund took another sip.

It really was perfect in every way. Exactly how he wanted it.