Prologue
A/N: Ok, guys, so it's been a while since I've submitted anything on here. A very long time. I'm not going to bore you guys the specifics, as that would make these A/Ns even lengthier than they already are. But first, a few updates: Omega and No Change Is A Good Change (NCIAGC) have been halted for now while I work on production of this story. Hopefully, once this is done, I'll finish up NCIAGC, which shouldn't take too much longer. (I hope) Or it might. I'm either adding one more chapter or adding several. I'm not completely sure yet.
Secondly, I wanted to state that I do NOT own Phineas and Ferb, who are owned by Disney. THIS INCLUDES THE ENTIRE STORY. But maybe, just maybe, after the series ends…
Anywho, I wanted to give a few shoutouts to some of my good friends on Fanfic. (yes, I'm gonna drag these out for quite a bit, so if you want to get to the story, just skip the bold.) To Comment person, 200trackrunner, ktag, Lancelot Varianter, Shadowstar556, and anyone who reviewed any and all of my stories, a large thank you to you guys. And let's not forget our fellow authors overseas. My thanks to anyone else who read my stories. And a bit of a side note, I find it really funny that my oneshot got more hits and reviews than either of my multi-chapter stories. Real nice, you guys. Reeeeaaaal nice. Heh, I'm kidding. You guys are great.
And now, for a special guest: my Beta Reader! Give her a big hand, everyone, it's… time for the story!
Note: the "~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~" is a separator, nothing more. And for those of you who can't really see it, I'll also be using other symbols. (They are kinda hard to read).
-The 12th dimension-
15 years ago
Everything has been building up to this point, the hooded figure thought. All that is left to do is set the timer.
His finger dangled less than an inch away from the countdown button, which was set at a little more than two hours. It would be so easy, just to press the button and sit back on the couch with a cold one, watching the destruction play out as the world ended around him. Oh, he would savor this moment until his beautiful contraption ripped apart this entire dimension. But there was one thing he had to do first.
He walked through his penthouse apartment, which he'd bought for a fairly small amount of money. Later he had realized why it had cost so little: every day and night, the light house outside the harbor attracted ships, which blew their foghorns like nobody's business. This hadn't been too difficult to change, since his younger brother was Mayor of Jeffville, his town of residence. Unlike when they were younger, the figure had gotten his brother to agree with and passed a law that prohibited the use of foghorns when there was no fog. This had suited the city quite well, and only strengthened the bond between the two brothers when that simple law had gotten the Mayor re-elected after a very close poll last year. The only reason the Mayor had won was because of the support of all the citizens who lived in the city that had been also troubled by the constant blaring of foghorns, since there was almost always no fog on Jeffville Harbor. The Mayor had then called his brother up to the stand and congratulated him on thinking about the good of the people. The man who had been given checks and praise for what seemed to be common sense was the exact same one who now walked down the hallway to his room to get the final things he needed to complete his doomsday device. As he entered his room, he strolled by a rack of miniaturized brown fedoras, each one bearing a letter on it along with a picture of its former owner.
"Hmmm. I think I'm feeling a bit platypus today," the evil scientist surveyed the rack and picked up the hat that lay beside the letter "P", along with a picture of a rather innocent looking platypus. The evil scientist smiled with genuine respect towards that picture. This had been his longest-lasting nemesis, both the most recent and the most successful. But, as they both knew, it only took one slip-up to cause defeat, and that, sadly, had happened. Had it not been the case, this machine would have been destroyed a long time ago, and the OWCA would still be up and running. But now, the Major and his intern had fled far away from Jeffville, probably hoping against logic to recruit some other agents to stall him until they could find a way to save this dimension. But by now it was too late. And they knew it. They knew they'd been too weak to stop him, and so they had run and hid like mice trying to hide from any sort of impending doom. That event unto itself had snapped something within the figure. It had caused his epiphany, the fact that all people were cowards. That they would run from the slightest danger; run from anything they didn't know. The scientist had an immense hatred for people like that, cowards who would flee as soon as they realized they were defeated. Had their places been switched, the man would have held on and kept on fighting until the end, no matter what. But had this so-called major? No! He had pledged his service and life for his country, but when danger threatened it, he had picked up and ran as fast as his old legs could carry him. By this standard alone, the man felt he was doing the multiverse a favor. And not only that, but he was also doing the people on this planet a favor. His fellow evil accomplices had already seized control over most of the world, and were planning on finally shaping their own territories in their own twisted images. By doing what he planned to do, the figure would actually be saving many people from heinous tortures thought up by half-mad or downright insane scientists. In the end, he knew it was the right thing to do. Plus, it would certainly satisfy this grudge he had against this entire world. Then he slid back into reality, and looked down at the fedora stand before deciding to place the hat back on its stand.
The scientist, who had done some army service, snapped a crisp salute to his fallen frenemy, then left the room, laden with equipment that would be necessary to watch the beginning of the end. Let's see, he thought to himself, Camera, check. Universal high-range pre-empting antenna, check. Microphone, check. Tripod and wiring, check. Binoculars for watching the mayhem unfold, check. Youth...inator, check. And finally, inter-dimensional transporter, check.
And now for the fun to begin, the scientist thought, and switched on his television. It was still on some dry soap opera channel that he had always been fond of broadcasting over. One of his more petty grudges, he had to admit, but this would be almost as fun as watching what happened next unfold around him. With everything finally set up, the evil scientist was about to pre-empt the soap until it hit him: what was he going to say? What would he call himself? He really didn't want to use his mother's maiden name, but it had been thrust upon him and his brother so often that he couldn't even remember what his father's surname was anymore. Oh well, he thought to himself. It's not like too many people will live to mock my name. Scratch that, it isn't like any will live to mock my name. Looked like he'd just have to wing it. And so, with a morbid happiness in his heart, the scientist watched the soap cut from wherever in the storyline it was at to the camera he had set in front of him.
He cleared his throat. This was the moment of truth. He began, his deep, smooth, German accented voice speaking into the microphone mounted below the camera, "We pre-empt your current programming to bring to your attention a matter much more important than your puny sports games, soap operas, and sitcoms. We, here in beautiful Jeffville, are here to bring a message to the entire earth. My name is Metalleas Doofenshmirtz..." he paused, holding the suspense for just a bit longer. He smiled malevolently at the camera, hoping that many of the viewers shuddered. He was really going to enjoy this.
~~~~
ΩΩΩ
"My name is Metalleas Doofenshmirtz..." A new father, Marius, pulled his wife over to the TV, their infant son resting in her arms, asleep. His wife of two years, Diana, gave Marius an inquisitive look at the TV, which had just been showing the final seconds of the 31st Super bowl. Though one team had already won this one, but it was Marius' tradition to see the game all the way to the end, no matter what. Diana was about to ask her husband what had happened to his game when the man on the TV, who called himself Metalleas, the brother to their Mayor, Robert, finished what he was saying, "...and you all only have two hours and counting before this entire dimension explodes." And with that, Metalleas pressed a series of buttons, causing a whirring noise to emit from behind him. "As you will soon see," the evil man continued, "the first sign that our universe is ending is in the night sky. All of you, step outside and watch as stars begin to die..."
Diana, frightened out of her wits, rushed to the sliding glass door that led to their backyard and threw it open, staring up into the heavens. And then it happened. The North Star, Polaris, glowed brightly, and then began to dim until it could be seen no more. As if this had started a chain reaction, the entire constellation of Ursa Major, Big Dipper and all, flared for an entire second, and then went out. Ursa Minor followed suit. Then Scorpio. Then Aquarius. Cancer. Draco. Gemini. Cassiopeia. Leo. Libra. Aries. Capricorn. Many others followed, with both Canis Major and Minor disappearing from view. Then, with a monstrous flash of light, the only stars left were the ones that composed of the constellation of Orion. The final constellation. The only one that didn't go out, Marius thought. Maybe if it doesn't go out, then that evil man's plan will have failed, and we won't be annihilated within the next two hours. But then Orion flashed, and the stars that made him up dimming into nonexistence. When Marius looked up now, it was only those three stars that made Orion's belt that were left in the entire night sky. And one by one, these too were gone, throwing a shroud of nothingness over the night sky.
And then the two realized: where there should have been a full moon, there was nothing. No reflection of any kind. Not even a glimmer of light. Marius could hear Metalleas finishing up whatever he was saying, "There are no demands, no kill switches, no way this can be reversed. You have all lost. There is no mercy, no remorse, and no respite here. There will only be your deaths, and there will be no survivors in this dimension. This, brothers and sisters, is the final end of the world." And with that, the TV was cut.
Diana broke down right then and there, nearly dropping the baby before regaining her composure and placing the baby back inside the house. It was even more disturbing since the baby merely stared at his mother. She stroked a few locks of his black hair away, the only pieces of hair he had, since he was almost six months old. And then she began to cry. Marius knew enough that he had to let her let it out, and not bother her at all. So he left her to her tears, resolving to do something, anything, which would cheer her up. Of course, he realized that this was truly the end, but he refused to just roll over for it. He was an inventor, damn it, and he knew enough that he could do something about this if he really tried.
He reached his workshop, an offshoot from the garage, and stepped inside, clearing off the blueprints from that table, and tossed them all on the floor. Then he took up one of them, his plan for a space-time flux capacitor, and flipped it over, beginning to map out schematics for this new invention. After around fifteen minutes of intense thought and drawing, Marius held the blueprint up, examining it one last time. Judging it satisfactory, he picked up the land line that he kept in his workshop and called over his two closest friends, along with their families.
~~~~
ΘΘΘ
"Marius?" One man asked, "What are these things?" he gestured to the three egg-shaped pods that were by no means large enough to carry an adult.
Marius, who was still holding a sobbing Diana, their baby in her own arms, replied, "Inter-dimensional travelers."
The other man, who held his daughter, scoffed, "You can't be serious...how are we supposed to fit in those?"
Marius looked at him, his navy blue eyes flashing with annoyance. The first man, who stood beside his wife, who held their son, gave him a meaningful look. His British accent flowed through the workshop as he had to finally answer the question. "We don't," he simply spoke, his wife nodding, her chocolate brown hair bobbing with her as she finally composed herself, straightening out her black shirt. The man, who, oddly enough, had green hair, turned to his red-headed brother, Marius, "Do we?"
Marius sighed, "No, Xavier, we don't."
Diana looked up at him, her raven black hair disheveled from the constant crying, "Marius?" He looked into those midnight blue eyes he'd fallen in love with. "Then who?"
The skeptic finally grasped the meaning of this, "Oh, God... I'm still stuck here..." Then his epiphany was completed, "This is for our kids..."
Marius nodded, "Yes, yes it is, Ortega."
Xavier's wife, Ariel, who was actually older than her husband, along with everyone else in the room, finally regained her composure, and whispered something him. "Are you sure?" he whispered to her, and was given a nod.
She strolled over to one of the pods and opened the door up. "I'm ready to do this," she looked Marius in the eye. "I trust you enough to do this, so I hope it works."
Marius turned to Xavier, who gave him a short nod of his approval. Then he turned to Ortega, "You ready to do this?"
Ortega got a huge gulp of air before answering, "I'm ready." He stepped beside Ariel, ready to place his daughter into the life pod.
Marius finally turned to Diana, again being met with those deep blue eyes. "And you?"
Diana didn't hesitate for a second. "Of course," she answered, taking their son over to the final pod. She looked down the line, staring at every single face that she'd come to know and love. These people, who may not be related to her by blood, were her brothers and sister, the people she'd die with, the people who she'd spend her last minutes on earth with. "Where will we send them?"
Marius stood by a computer screen, his fingers flying over the keyboard as he scrolled through the different places he could send his son and the others. "11th dimension? No, they've got their hands full in a civil war. 5th? Dictator ship. 6th? Tempting, but they're still rebuilding after some revolution. 2nd? Possibly, but they're still getting through some civil rights problems and discrimination. 1st? We've got different names, and we've all just been born, but that seems like it'll work..." Marius listed off the dimensions. Xavier walked up beside him and pointed at some fine print at the bottom. "Oh, well would you look at that!" Marius exclaimed.
"What?" Diana asked, ready to draw her child away from something that might send him into territory almost as bad as the one they were in.
"It says here," Marius answered, "that there's some element in our air that isn't in the 1st dimension. In there, there's a gene unique to people outside their dimension that can cause those outsiders to have certain... abilities."
"Such as?" Ortega asked, his massive frame swiveling to look at Marius.
"Well, to put it simply, we can all just say that Superman wasn't from that dimension."
Diana gaped at him, "So in that dimension they'll be able to fly and have super-strength?"
Marius accessed the dimension's details. "Hmmmmm... not exactly." He motioned to the baby Ariel held, "Jarv here is invincible when protecting others, but not when attacks are targeted towards him. He's also a minor telepath, along with slightly enhanced strength. Mind you, not lift-a-skyscraper-with-one-hand strong, more like tossing-a-car-with-extreme-effort strong." Ariel smiled at his way of describing the traits.
Next was Ortega's child, who was being held not too tightly against her father's chest. Marius looked at her, "It seems as if Annabell has both control over weather and is a healer." Her father smiled proudly. "Oh, and it seems as though she has super-speed. She can run at the speed of light in that dimension." Ortega grinned even wider. Marius turned to his son, who Diana held tightly. "And last, but certainly not least, my son Luther has control of lightning, can create force fields, and seems to be able to draw upon the raw energy from this dimension and use it as his own. Very interesting."
Ortega looked at him, "How does that work out?" he asked. "Shouldn't this dimension be nothingness, and then there wouldn't be anything to draw power from?"
Marius smiled, "Close, Ortega," he answered, "But you're forgetting that every universe, no matter which dimension, is ever-expanding, and so if this is designed to destroy this entire universe, then the explosion will also be ever-expanding."
"So who will we send them to?" Diana asked, her eyes darting back and forth between her husband and the pods.
Marius scratched his beard, thinking for a second. Then he decided on the spot. "I'm pretty sure that any child in my younger self's world will just make separation between him and the step-brother he'll eventually get. So we can't send anyone to my mother. Luther will go to you and your mom, Diana," he told her, and then turned to the others. "Annabell can go with your wife, Ortega, this way she has a female influence" Ortega nodded in understanding, "She'll go to the Sweetwaters," again Ortega nodded, this time in approval. "And finally, Jarv ought to be around some tougher guys. Xavier, as long as you guys don't object, I'm going to send Jarv to the Van Stomm household."
Xavier smiled wanly, "It'll be fine, Marius."
Ortega chimed in, "Cool! I always wanted a brother!"
Marius shook his head, "We can't let them interfere with the timeline. I'm going to write a few letters with instructions on each pod, giving instructions as to what exactly to do with them once they reach a certain age." He began to scribble some things down on a piece of paper lying around, which turned out to be his plan for a powerful exoskeleton he'd never actually built. He tore the blueprint into three sections and addressed them each to a different household. Within ten minutes, he had finished the letters and entered the coordinates into the machine. "They're ready."
Diana, Ortega, and Ariel all stepped forward, their children held in their arms. The convex doors of the pods hissed open, yawning maws ready to take the child that was placed inside away from the doomed dimension into a new world. Their parents complied with the pods' wishes, placing their first and only children into the pods and closing the doors shut. It only made it worse that none of the children made a sound. Marius handed the letters to each of the adults, who made sure the letters were on the pod in any way possible.
Marius glanced up at the coordinates, double checking and triple checking them to make sure they were right. They were. With the final push of a button, Marius sent the children into a new dimension and a new life. There was a blinding flash of light as the pods ripped through the entire time-space continuum, traveling through the inter-dimensional rift that had been created by their entry into the first dimension. Marius finally cut the power when the sensors indicated that the pods had made it.
They all were silent for the longest time, until Marius beckoned for the others to come over to look at the screen. He pulled up two lines of text, one of them slowly descending. This was labeled 'Countdown', and could only be the amount of time they all had left on this earth. The second displayed the information of the area the pods had been sent. Despite everything, Marius began to laugh uncontrollably.
"What's so funny?" Ortega asked, cutting Marius off in mid-laugh.
"Some of the names on here... priceless!" Marius began to laugh again as the others looked over to see what he was reading.
Diana burst out laughing first, "Phineas?" She finally said, looking at her husband. "You're named Phineas? That's rich!"
Ariel scrolled through the names. Then she began to laugh, "I have a father named Heinz? Like the brand of ketchup? That's almost as good as Phineas!"
Next was Xavier, "Ferb? I'm Ferb? Where do they find these names?" For once in front of his other friends, he roared with laughter. It felt quite good.
Ortega glanced down the names. "Hmmmmm. Buford? Not bad. Sounds pretty tough. Whoa! Guys, look at this!" He beckoned to his friends to come and they did, with some wiping tears away from their eyes.
"BALJEET?" they all shouted in unison, and then burst out laughing so hard it began to hurt. By now, they all knew they were so delirious that even the slightest thing would make them laugh.
Finally, Ortega regained his composure before finally reading the town's name, "This is comedy gold! Who names their town DANville?" He began to roll on the floor laughing harder than he ever had before.
When the laughing had finally finished, they all looked up to see the timer was giving them less than ten minutes before the end. Marius was the first one to break the silence, "If you guys want, you can stay here for our final time alive."
This sobered everyone up. "Of course we will," Xavier answered, gripping Ariel around her waist. C'mon, let's head inside." They all began to head inside so that they could just talk and enjoy each other's company.
But Ortega stayed behind. "I can't," he spoke gruffly, turning away to hide the tears in his eyes.
"Why?" was the only response he got.
He looked back at Marius, deep pain in his eyes. "I need to find her," he finally answered, "I need to find Adys- I mean 'Becca. I'm sorry. It's just that-" he nearly broke down, cursing those other dimensional names for almost making him say his wife's name wrong.
Marius nodded, understanding what he had done. "Take my car," he answered, tossing the keys to his flying car across the garage into Ortega's large hands. "Good luck, Sarge," he finished, referring to the man who had served a few years in the military before settling down back in Jeffville, his hometown. Ortega, Marius, and Xavier all saluted each other, and with a curt nod, Ortega walked over to what Marius enthusiastically called: 'The Flying Car of the Future- Today', and climbed into the driver's seat.
"Thank you," he whispered, mostly to himself, but not thinking anyone else could here it. He couldn't have been more wrong.
"Ortega, I knew you had that softer side," Diana answered him from the window frame. She reached through the window and hugged him tightly, something she wouldn't have done when they were children. Beside Diana stood Marius, Ariel and Xavier, his only friends that stayed with him throughout his life. He started the car, and began to lift off, waving to them as he pulled away.
"Goodbye!" he shouted through the window. and with that, he flew off into the night, ready to find his wife.
Marius led the others back inside, allowing Ariel and Xavier to head into the living room and spend their final minutes together. He wrapped an arm around Diana's waist. "Come on," he led her outside into the workshop. "I want to get as much 'us time' in as I can before we're gone."
Diana replied, "Of course, 'Phineas'."
Marius snickered, "Well then," he answered, playfully tickling her, "let's get going, 'Isabella'."
Diana squealed with laughter and ran back into the workshop, allowing her husband to catch her around the waist. She pulled him onto the couch that he'd put in for relaxation, and their faces pressed together, lips perfectly fitting with their partner's. They held this for some time before each had to come up for air. Marius looked Diana in the eye and she could see the message he was saying: 'I knew from the start we'd always be together'. She understood and kissed him again, feeling like she was floating in the air as he kissed her back in a deep, passionate kiss that seemed to last a lifetime. The only thing that caused them to stop again was an obnoxious beeping that was coming from the screen behind them. Marius quickly pulled his wife up from the couch, holding her tightly.
"The final minute for us," he spoke sadly. "Let's go get Xavier and Ariel."
They stepped out of the workshop into the garage, meeting Xavier and Ariel as they entered through the opposite side. Marius could tell from Ariel's disheveled appearance that Xavier had had the same idea as he before they were also alerted by the beeping. As soon as Xavier saw what was causing the noise, he pulled Ariel into a tight hug and they both move closer to the other couple. Diana squeezed her own husband tightly, and he put a protective arm around her, hoping to ease her fear. With his other arm, he place a hand on Xavier's shoulder, looking him in the eye. "It's been fun, Brother," he finally spoke as the clock ticked down the final ten seconds.
"I wouldn't have traded those times for the world," Xavier answered as the clock went down to five.
Marius looked down at Diana, who looked back up. With a whispered 'I love you' to his wife, Marius kissed her for the last time as the world exploded around him.
~~~
ΓΓΓ
-The 1st dimension-
15 years ago
"You know what?" Mr. Garcia-Shapiro shouted, his eyes alight with fury. "I don't care how badly you want me to stay, I'm leaving!"
"No!" his wife cried, trying to keep him from leaving while still trying to retain a hold on the wailing infant in her arms. "You can't do this!"
Mr. Garcia-Shapiro shrugged her off, "And just what's going to stop me from doing so, Vivian?" He said her name like it was the most hated word in the English language.
"She is," Vivian Garcia-Shapiro held his new daughter out to him, "Even if you refuse to accept it, she is your daughter."
"Do you even realize what has happened?" Mr. Garcia-Shapiro asked her. "Yes, it was a one-night stand, but I'm married. I can't stay here, even if I wanted to."
Vivian's eyes filled with tears as the one man she thought would have been her husband began to head towards the exit of her suburban Danville home. "You... never wanted to spend any time with me?" She couldn't believe what she was hearing. This had been the same man who had been the closest thing she'd had to a soul mate, the same who had kissed her like he'd meant it.
Mr. Garcia-Shapiro laughed in her face, "Don't you get it, Vivian? Beer goggles. You've heard of 'em, right?" She nodded. "Well there's your answer. I was drunk. I admit that. But I do not- and never will- accept this girl," he pointed to the six-month-old Isabella Vivian held in her arms. "She is not my daughter and you are not my wife. Things will never change. Ever."
Vivian's face turned bright red, "You little..."
Mr. Garcia-Shapiro laughed, "I don't care what you say, you both mean nothing to me." With that, he strolled out the front door, the keys to his car in hand. Just before he went out the door, he stooped and picked up a package from the porch that was addressed to Vivian. "Oh, and you got some package for ya on the porch. Good-bye." He walked over to his car, and drove away, never to come to Danville again.
~~~
ΞΞΞ
For one straight hour, Vivian held her new daughter, Isabella, close to her and sobbed before she realized that there was a quiet whimpering coming from the room. She looked at Isabella, but her infant had fallen asleep in her mother's arms. She checked around the room, finally noticing the package he'd been talking about. Carefully placing her daughter down, Vivian Garcia-Shapiro opened the large box, her skin coming into contact with cold metal. She drew back for a second before again opening the box a bit more, catching a glimpse of a dull silver and the off-white of paper.
Finally gathering her courage, Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro opened the box all the way, her gaze greeted with an egg-shaped pod that seemed all too familiar, along with a letter. She took the letter in both hands, and read it.
Dear Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro, I do realize you'll have your hands full dealing with Isabella, but Luther is family to both you and I, as your daughter is his mother. Or at least in our dimension. And please don't try to send Luther back. Even if you could, he'd be going back to nothing. Our dimension is to be destroyed and by the time you read this, I will most certainly be dead. My only and final request from you is that you raise Luther as Isabella's brother. But be careful, for since Luther is not from this dimension, he has a certain set of genes that will give him certain "gifts", such as drawing upon the energy of his lost dimension, controlling lightning or electricity, and creating force fields. Just be careful to keep him from being exposed. I have no wish for my son to be the subject of intensive medical studies. If you are anywhere as nice as you are in our dimension, I have faith that you'll raise my son right. Thank you for doing something nice for us, who are technically complete strangers. Good Luck.
I hope this package's arrival did not interrupt you while you were doing something important. If it did, I'm sorry. However, time was of the essence, and so it needed to get to you as quickly as possible. In case you're wondering, this package is not from this universe. It is from the 12th dimension. Within the pod that is in the box is my son, Luther. As my mother-in-law, I plead for you to take care of him.
Sincerely,
Marius "Phineas" Flynn and Diana "Isabella" Flynn
Vivian read the letter over three different times, each time reading the exact same thing. The 12th dimension was gone now too? She sighed. At least she had retained her abilities as a limiter. She could keep her new son's powers in check... for the moment. She herself was not truly from this world either, but from the twelfth-and-a-half dimension, which had been destroyed almost a lifetime ago. When she'd gotten here, she'd learned of her powers, and how they could be put to use in this dimension. Not only did she have powers of limiting others' powers, she also had the power to somehow (she still didn't know how) charm men with a simple glance. That's what had happened with this last man, though she'd never let it go this far. She had to admit, it wasn't completely his fault. It was more hers than his, since she too hadn't been thinking straight.
She was brought out of her memories by a quiet wailing that came from within the pod that now lay on her floor. She carefully pulled the door open, revealing a young male with a slight tan tinge to his skin and deep brown eyes, along with deep brown hair. The young boy stared at his new mother, and lifted his tiny arms out, wanting to be held. Vivian picked him up and carried him over to Isabella before placing him beside the sleeping toddler. Fortunately, the two children were both just old enough that Vivian didn't need to worry about them as much as a one-month-old. Should they have fallen over, either of them had enough strength to push themselves back up so that they wouldn't suffocate. Luther curled up beside his new sister, his nose rubbing against her hair, which only came down to her shoulders. As it turned out, Isabella actually had quite long hair for an infant her age, and Vivian's doctor had nothing to explain why it was happening. He had hypothesized, however, that eventually the growth would slow to that which was considered normal for a child. Vivian lifted up the recliner and eased herself into it. She resolved to keep her ex's last name, since, whether he liked it or not, he was part of her family, as he had fathered Isabella. Besides, she felt that Luther's entrance was the beginning for a new life. Luther had filled the gap she'd had when he'd left. Now she was complete.
~~~
ΠΠΠ
Jorge Van Stomm was just getting home from his construction site when he noticed the package lying in the grass out on his front lawn. He hadn't ordered anything recently, so he assumed it was his wife's purchase, though he had no idea what it could be. Just last night she'd told him that she didn't need anything else at the moment besides food and water. He shook his head, sighing. Sometimes, I just don't understand women, he thought as he lifted the package up under one arm and lugged it into his home.
"Honey, I'm home!" he shouted, making sure he made himself heard over whatever his wife was preparing for dinner. "Ay, little buddy," he placed the package on one of the side tables in the small, cramped living room and lifted his son up in his arms. "How's mommy been takin' care of you, Buford?" he asked, not expecting to get a response. He didn't.
"Jorge, what do you have here?" his wife, Biff's, voice called from behind him. He set Buford back in his little playpen, turning to face his wife.
"Didn't you order something?" Jorge asked, looking at her, puzzled.
"Of course not, honey," she answered, also looking confused. "Didn't I tell you last night that I didn't need anything else except the bare necessities?"
"Well, yeah, but I didn't order anything," Jorge answered. He picked up the box again, which seemed to be addressed for both of them. "No return address," he said. "You wanna take a look?"
Biff nodded, "Sure, why not?"
She produced some scissors from a drawer in the kitchen and proceeded to cut open the box. The first thing Jorge saw was a letter written in a familiar, choppy writing that he could recognize anywhere. But could it have been Him? As far as Jorge knew, he had been the only escapee from the twelfth-and-a-half dimension. Could He have made it through, too? He had already told his wife his secret, and so she'd known that their son would eventually begin to exhibit a power of his own, though Jorge would be able to limit it somewhat whenever he was around. The letter read:
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Van Stomm, Within the package you most certainly have in front of you is a metallic pod that contains my son, Jarv. I don't need to go into specifics right now, but all you need to know is that the 12th dimension is doomed to be utterly destroyed, and I chose you all to raise him as your own. He is what I have decided to call a Protector, one who has the powers of invincibility when protecting others, but is as vulnerable as the next person when attacks are focused on him. He also is a minor telepath, along with having enhanced strength, so he is not completely defenseless. My only request to you all is that you can allow him to go to one of the local boarding schools near Danville. This is not anything against you all, but I do not trust the public school system completely. At least keep him in private school until his first year of high school. Also, I'd ask that he be able to interact with some of the local children so that he at least has some friends when he finally does go into public high school. Protect him as best you can, and allow him to have something his parents could never have: a good, long life. Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Van Stomm.
I am a man of few words, and more of actions. However, since I cannot display any kind of actions on paper without feeling very odd about it, I will try to make this short, sweet, and to the point.
Sincerely,
Xavier "Ferb" Fletcher and Ariel "Vanessa" Fletcher
Jorge handed the letter to Biff as he pulled the pod out of the box, running his hand along its sides, merely admiring the craftsmanship of the creation. After locating the handle to the front, Jorge placed the pod on the ground and turned the handle, which opened the door with an ominous hiss. Jorge found himself staring into the emerald eyes of this Xavier Fletcher's son, Jarv. The young child did nothing in response to this sudden attention and light, but merely looked back at the man who would soon be his new father.
Jorge walked over to Buford, picking him back up out of the playpen. "Congratulations," he told his son, "You have a new brother."
~~~
βββ
Tyler Sweetwater pulled into his driveway, his white lab coat swung over his shoulder and a brief case in his hand. He was glad he had finally been able to get out of the office and spend some time with his wife and new daughter. It had been a few months since he'd seen them here, at his new house in Danville. He had even gotten to get out early so he could surprise his wife. And he knew exactly where they were going for dinner tonight. He'd already made reservations for one of the fanciest restaurants in town, and he knew that the neighbors wouldn't mind taking care of his daughter, Adyson, for one night. This would be his first night back with his family since the birth of his daughter, and he wanted to make it memorable.
He stepped onto the porch to knock on the door until he saw the package that lay beside the door. He stooped and picked it up, examining it. It was addressed to his wife and himself, with no return address, and was quite heavy. He examined the handwriting on a piece of scrap paper, which seemed to look a bit familiar. He lifted the box under one of his burly arms and knocked on the front door.
His wife opened the door, Tyler's daughter, Adyson, cradled in one of her arms. When her eyes finally landed upon him, she let out a squeal of joy and rushed to embrace her husband, nearly crushing him. "Easy, there, Casey," he tried to keep on breathing.
His wife, Casey Sweetwater, finally pulled away and held him at arms-length, smiling, "You're home early."
Tyler let out a bark of laughter, "That I am. That I am," he procured the package he'd found at the door. "I'm guessing you ordered this?"
Casey eyed the package, "I didn't order anything. Maybe it's yours?"
Tyler shook his head, "I know this is definitely not mine." He ran his hands along the sides of the package. "It's addressed to the both of us. You think we should open it?"
Casey nodded, "Why not?"
Tyler nodded, sliding the letter opener he kept on a side table along the sides of the box, cutting through the packaging tape and exposing a slip of paper. Tyler pulled the paper out to see it was an envelope, again addressed to Casey and him. With the same letter opener, he opened the envelope and began to read the letter inside out loud:
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Sweetwater, I'll get straight to the point. This letter and anything else in this package is not from this dimension. It is from the 12th dimension, which is more than likely destroyed by the time you are reading this. Hopefully one of you two is another escapee from the twelfth-and-a-half dimension, and so they understand what these children can do. If not, then here's what happens: my daughter, who is inside the pod also inside this box, has a certain set of genes that seem to give her powers inside this dimension. She is a healer, can control weather, and can move the speed of light here. Try and keep her from using these powers too early, 'cause I don't want anyone experimenting on my Annabell. Oh, and that's her name, Annabell. The only thing I ask of you two is that you can place her in one of Danville's local private schools until her freshman year of high school. I'd rather not be the person blamed for messing up any future time lines in this dimension. Hopefully, you'll be able to take care of her. Thank you for doing this. You are the greatest in-laws any man could have. Good luck.
Yours truly,
Ortega "Buford" Van Stomm and Rebecca "Adyson" Van Stomm
Tyler read the last few sentences over and over again. So that's where he'd recognized the handwriting from! His neighbor down the street a few houses or so, Jorge Van Stomm, had the exact same handwriting. And, now that he thought of it, he did have a son named Buford. Was it possible that the two families would eventually be linked together through fate? He discarded the thought and rummaged through the box his fingers brushing up against smooth, polished metal. Plunging both hands into the box, he grasped the sides of the metallic object and pulled, lifting it out with little effort.
The smooth, egg-shaped pod was just large enough to hold a few loaves of bread, and its reflective surface showed off the room it was already in, even reflecting Tyler's face back at himself. He turned to his wife, "What do you think?" he asked.
Casey looked at him, "What do you mean?"
"Do you think we're ready to have this second daughter? I mean, I know we can afford to support her, but are you going to be able to deal with both of them?" Tyler asked.
"Don't you worry about me," she answered. "This does mean I'll have to devote more time to raising children, but I have absolutely no problem with raising two daughters instead of one."
Tyler nodded, and then turned the handle to open the pod, changing his life forever.
~~~
ƏƏƏ
13 years ago
Vivian could hear the playful screams of her children as they ran around their home. From what she could gather, Luther and Isabella were having another "tickle fight", as she called it. They had both finally begun to speak, and when they talked to each other, they sounded very cute. So cute, that Vivian had to restrain herself from picking them both up and squeezing them tightly. Like now.
Luther had Isabella on the couch, tickling her as she tried to get away from him. She cried out with laughter as he tickled her stomach, and then pushed Luther back and began to tickle him even harder. Luther laughed his head off, tears forming in his eyes before he pushed his sister away, trying to catch his breath. Isabella, not getting the meaning, tried to tickle him again, but her two-year-old brother suddenly wasn't playing anymore. He shoved Isabella back, accidentally causing her to fall of the couch and scrape her knee. Isabella began to cry almost immediately after hitting the floor, more for attention than out of pain.
Vivian sighed as she walked into the living room to comfort her two children. That was the problem with these kids: they both, Luther especially, would go through violent mood swings when stressed even a little bit. Although Vivian did have to admit that Luther's responses were much worse. There had been a few times when Luther had almost used his powers out of his juvenile anger, and the only reason nothing had happened was that Vivian had been there and limited him right before he'd progressed into something much worse, though she knew she eventually wouldn't be able to do so, especially when he drew upon the power of his own dimension. If he'd channeled that kind of energy within these confined spaces, Vivian was sure that the house would explode due to such a high amount of energy that merely accessing the dimension emitted.
Luther walked up to her, an angry look on his face. "Go apologize to your sister," Vivian told him.
The boy shook his head. "No," he said in his young voice. "Isabewa was hutting me!"
Vivian looked at her son, "You will apologize to her. Now," she said sternly.
Luther, though young, already could see he was fighting a losing battle. "Ok," he answered, and walked over to Isabella, who was still crying. He put a hand on her shoulder, and she spun around and hugged him, not even knowing who it was, and began to cry again. "Isabewa," he got her to look at him.
"Yes, Lu-ter?" she asked, her eyes drilling into his own.
"I sowy," Luther told her, looking at his mother.
"Go on," Vivian told him, before adding, "and apologize to her, not me."
Luther sighed. "I didit mean to hut you," he continued, "You a-sept my apowogee?"
Isabella looked up at him and nodded, "Ov corse, Lu-ter." Then they went back to playing, this time a different game than before.
Vivian smiled. After Luther's first outburst, she had made sure that they had both learned to forgive each other. She did not want them to grow up not liking each other, even if Luther wasn't connected by blood. He was still her son, and that would never change. She smiled and went back into the kitchen, getting ready to prepare her children lunch, making a note to save the image of Luther and Isabella hugging each other in the back of her mind. That moment had just been too perfect.
It had been two years since He'd left her. Two years since she'd finally revealed her secret to anyone else. Two, long, hard years that had left Linda Flynn in a state of diminished depression. A freak. A traitor. A backstabber. A liar. She'd been called worse, but not from her former husband, the only person she'd ever trusted enough to tell that she wasn't from this dimension, but from a destroyed twelfth-and-a-half dimension, where the gene sequences some of them held granted them special abilities in this dimension. That she knew her children still had potential to have some kind of powers. And that she herself had powers of her own, namely being able to limit another's power, along with the ability to look across the timeline and see a hazy future.
But all that changed when she met him. When she met a certain Lawrence Fletcher. She had been sent out of her dimension when she was thirteen, and she'd remembered many of her friends there, especially her old boyfriend, Lawrence Fletcher. She had assumed he'd perished in the explosion that had ripped the twelfth-and-a-half dimension apart, and had mourned him before forcing herself to get over him and move on. That's when she'd met Him, her ex, who had taken her heart and ripped it in half when she had trusted Him enough to tell him her secret. It seemed that Lawrence had had the same thing done to him when he'd entered the dimension in England, marrying and also having a child before his secret also caused his spouse to leave him. They had both at first just stared at each other before realizing that it was actually their other half, and then Lawrence, who had always been perceptive, saw the pain in her eyes, and brought her into a hug that she'd realized she'd been longing for ever since she'd come to this dimension. That had been the start of another beginning, one much better than before.
She shook her head as she looked back at her new husband, who she had to admit looked quite adorable in his suit. He was sitting at a table that had a total of three seats and two high-chairs around it, four of the seats at said table being occupied. Linda glided over the ballroom floor in her dress, acknowledging the guests she passed as she passed by, nodding and saying her 'thank you's and the like to their comments of congratulations. After perhaps half a minute of scooting around the packed ballroom, her gliding replaced with a bit of an awkward step, Linda finally reached and then sat down at the table her new family sat at.
To her immediate left was the high-chair that held her baby boy, Phineas. His mop of red hair was trimmed neatly so that it spiked just a little bit, but more so in the front. Linda still had absolutely no idea where Phineas had gotten his abnormally large nose from, since she knew it had been neither side of the family that had any kind of relative, living or dead, who had had that large a nose. She just hoped it wouldn't give any future bullies too much to make fun of her son for. Next to Phineas, in a normal chair, sat her six-year-old daughter, Candace, who wore a red dress with little white dress shoes, only amplifying her "cuteness factor", as the adults playfully called it. Candace, who was four years Phineas' senior, had grown up quite a bit since her father left. It had been unfortunate, but four years of her life had been spent watching her mother slide into a deeper and deeper state of depression, not so much from the divorce, but from the words he had said. Though Candace hardly knew her biological father, she hated him, and had said as much to her mother about him. When she'd been admonished by her mother about how it was bad to hate someone without a reason, Candace had merely stated this reason, surprising her mother more than anything else. Linda could tell that Candace would make a great leader, though she hadn't really exhibited any of her powers yet. Perhaps the fact that she'd been beside her mother all the time had kept her from displaying them at all. Linda had no idea, but wasn't all that interested to find out just yet. She liked being normal. It was that one thing that felt very good to her, not having to worry about what would happen if anyone found out her secret. However, she didn't have to hide it here. Everyone knew of the twelfth-and-a-half dimension and the powers it granted those who came to the first dimension from it.
To her immediate right, Lawrence Fletcher sat, eyeing his food like it was a tiny bit undercooked. With a shrug of his shoulders, he discarded the fact and dug into the steak in front of him, getting just a little bit of it on his clothing. He didn't even notice it until he saw Linda looking at him.
"Sorry," he said sheepishly as he took the napkin and wiped the bit off his shirt. It may have left a stain, but the black cloth showed nothing, no matter if it did or didn't leave any discoloration. Linda merely laughed.
"Honey," she told him, "You forgot to light the candles." She pointed to the stand that sat in the center of the table, and he too laughed
"If that's what you want, love, I shall do it right now," he answered, snapping his fingers. As soon as the sound had been heard, the wicks of the candles lit up, and a steady flame began to burn on each of the waxen rods.
Linda smiled and then turned her attention to the final member of the table, Lawrence's son, Ferb. His name had been something else before, but no one had bothered to call him that, since when he first tried to say the word "fern" it had come out "ferb". Both Lawrence and his ex had found this so cute that they hadn't bothered to call him by his name anymore, just "Ferb". The boy, oddly enough, had green hair, which made him stand out in a crowd. Another interesting quality was that he was very quiet, saying nothing unless he wanted to add something to the conversation. It seemed as though Ferb had been gifted with knowledge well beyond his years, after all, she didn't expect some adults, much less a two year old, to be able to hold their tongue as well as Ferb. More than likely it had something to do with the fact that Lawrence was not from this universe.
Her attention was drawn back to the present as the younger of the two boys, Phineas, began to try and build a tower with his mashed potatoes rather than eat it. After multiple attempts of trying to get the tower to stand by itself, Phineas watched it fall over again and must have gotten quite unhappy with it, since he decided to use his powers. Before anyone understood what he was doing, the mashed potatoes began to float up into the air and then, with Phineas in a two-year-old tantrum, the mashed potatoes flew in all different directions, half of it splattering right behind Linda as she cocked her head to the side, allowing the blob to hit a guest in the back of his head, who happened to be her father. Her father, Clyde, whipped around, wiping the potato from the back of his head, and examining it before eying his daughter. She tried to restrain a giggle that threatened to bubble up from her as she saw her father flash a mischievous smile and scraped some of his mashed potatoes off his own plate.
"Oh, please no..." she half-whispered as she watched as an enraged Phineas sent the other half of his potatoes the opposite way, hitting Lawrence's father almost right in the forehead, nearly knocking him out of the chair. The old Brit wiped the creamy substance off his face, glancing over to the table to see Linda's father holding some of his own mashed potatoes.
"Is that 'ow you want to play, Flynn?" the man who had used to be the Flying Fishmonger asked Linda's father, Clyde. The entire ballroom had gone quiet, waiting to see what would happen between the two patriarchs of each family.
"What?" Clyde started. Then he saw that he was still holding the potatoes. "Oh, this? No, it's not what it looks li-" he was cut off as he was hit in the chest with another glob of potatoes.
"Just let it go," Linda whispered, knowing that she was asking the impossible of her father, who watched as her father-in-law sat down, smiling smugly.
She knew what was about to happen thanks to her gift just as her father shouted, "Flynns! To arms!" Half the room stood up out of their chairs, comic smiles on every single face. Mr. Fletcher paled as he saw the resistance that had formed against him in reaction to his actions. He had almost gotten up to protest when Clyde roared, "FIRST RANK, FIRE!" And a wave of mashed potatoes flew across the room, hitting many members of the Fletcher family as they dove to avoid the projectiles. Mr. Fletcher in particular was hit with the wave, as Clyde and five others focused on him.
Even as Clyde began to laugh heartily, Mr. Fletcher got back up and silently motioned for his side to prepare for their return volley. Clyde, too late, was alerted to this as his son-in-law's father shouted to his own family, "RIGHT THEN BOYS! RETURN FIRE!"
There were squeals of laughter and deep fits of that same thing as the two families exchanged fire with what should have been their dinner, finally able to enjoy the wedding since it was technically over. Linda was just about to get up and stop this fight once and for all before she felt something about to happen. She turned around just as a glob of potatoes hit her smack in the face. She wiped it out of her eyes just in time to see Lawrence grinning like an idiot. Linda smirked at him before deciding to return the favor, which resulted in a large, wet slapping sound.
Lawrence merely smiled at this before he lost it and burst into a fit of laughter, eventually laughing so hard that he was crying. Between gasps, he told Linda, "Best.. Wedding... Ever."
Linda smiled, allowing herself to remove the formal mask that many brides had to wear during their weddings. Though she'd never heard of a wedding reception spontaneously turning into a food fight. She got the children to her mother, who ushered them out of the ballroom and got ready to take them home while they waited for their parents. When she did get back, she could see that the scale of the food fight had only intensified, since many of the guests had run out of potatoes to throw at each other. It should have ended a while ago, but Linda could see that almost all the employees were either in shock or were pointing and laughing very, very hard. When she finally reached the table she and her husband had been sitting, it was a complete mess, with the hotel's manager covered in food and sauces while talking angrily with her husband.
After a few clipped sentences, Lawrence stood up, motioning for the improper flow of food to stop. "We've got someone here who'd like to say something," he stated, letting the manager stand up. Everyone gasped, since they knew they had done wrong and were now caught.
But before the manager had a chance to say anything, Linda scooped up a handful of potatoes in one hand and then shouted, "Flynns! Fletchers! OPEN FIRE!" Causing the entire room to hurl whatever they could find at the hotel manager.
They had been banned from the hotel. Not that it had surprised them. After what had just happened, Linda would have thought the manager crazy not to ban them. But it had been too much fun to pass up. As of now, Linda and Lawrence were just getting home, pulling in to the driveway of their new suburban home, laughing and talking.
They walked into the house, still laughing and talking, until they closed the door and could be seen no more. From there, they headed up the stairs into their bedroom, and drifted to sleep, both feeling that this had officially been the best day ever.
The navigator pulled his eyes away from the X-ray night vision camera, looking up at the other occupants in the cramped space. With a curt nod to the commander, he placed a headset over his head, communicating with the others. It seemed that the others had been just as successful in locating their targets, which would help later on when those new recruits joined up.
He gave a thumbs-up to his commander, signaling that everything checked out alright. His commander looked up from one of the files he had received from their chief Intel agent, the edge reading: "P. Flynn", and nodded. A picture of a young, triangular-headed child with red hair hung from a paper clip on the file, taken quite recently, more than likely within the last week. The commander placed it down beside a few other folders which the navigator could read quite clearly. Each target's name was written in neon green ink, so that the occupants could see it inside the midnight-black interior of their workspace. Another two folders read: "I. G-Shapiro" and "L. G-Shapiro (Fake)". The navigator remembered someone talking of people who had come from another world and had adopted the surnames of some of the families they lived with. Apparently, this "L." was one of them.
The navigator cleared his thoughts. That was not his job to look at the conspiracies. His job was to locate the targets, confirm them, either make sure they were tracked or killed, then return to base. He radioed the pilot that they were clear, and with that, the whisper-engines of their helicopter took off, its black exterior allowing it to melt into the night. It was joined by two other helicopters of the same make and on the same mission, merely different targets. Their comms technician told the crew that the other two teams had accomplished their missions. Half of Maple Drive was under surveillance, and they were ready to deal with anything that came up from the select few families: The Flynn-Fletchers, the Garcia-Shapiros, the Van Stomms, the Sweetwaters, and the Rais. They would fall. The navigator was sure of it.
A/N: And there's the first chapter! I hoped you guys liked it, cause this story has been in the works since late December, and now it's finally out! It took a while, but now everything's there, and I'll leave it to you guys to rip into it as you see fit. (But I don't think it's that bad.) Now, if that's all, I'll just be going- oh, that's right. My beta-reader.
You guys should be happy we teamed up when we did. If it wasn't for her, this story wouldn't be as amazing as I'm planning it to be. So, give it up for… LANCELOT VARIANTER!
(Crowd cheers) Whoa! I never let you guys in!
Lancelot: Oh, heh. That was me.
Ham.
Lancelot: I prefer the term, "awesome person."
If you think so. But whatever. I can argue with you anytime. I believe you had something to say to the readers?
Lancelot: Yes. And now for my own section of the A/N: Lancelot's after-chapter comments! (Crowd cheers again)
Lancelot's after-chapter comments: I hope you enjoy the story! Any mistakes fall squarely on my shoulders at this point in time.
But between you guys and me, she pretty much cleaned up the chapter. I ran it through spell check once it was on Word, and there were very few errors we both missed. Plus, there were some parts that were pretty much inspired by her questions of my plotline and stuff like that. So she deserves all the cheering she's getting.
Ah, and one more thing I didn't mention before: until further notice, the 6th dimension and all associated characters belong to DasSchnabeltier, who also deserves his own shoutout. So another thank you, this time to DasSchnabeltier.
Finally, R&R if you guys want to and/or can, and stay tuned for updates on the story.
Also, a seriously belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of the authors on the archive. I know that I got onto Cp's A/N with it, but I just feel the need to say it here, too. And while I'm at it, since I won't be able to say it again, an early Happy Valentine's Day to you guys!
Seeing as their new season has probably aired now, long live Phineas and Ferb!
Later, guys.
-the high lord of terra (although now it's mostly Terra, so I'll probably just do that next chapter.)
PS- Before I forget, a shoutout to Maya Serena for guessing who 'She' is in my other story, "Omega Squad". Good job, my friend! Which brings me to another point: Omega's going to be on hiatus for a while. Sorry to whoever likes it.
PPS- Also, NCIAGC is suffering to a terminal illness. Marysueitis. It has been discontinued, but I'm keeping it up for historical purposes. Very sorry guys, but that story's pretty much damaged beyond repair. It will not be progressing for a very long time, if I even think about touching it again.
Later guys!