Chapter 5

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, the tension in the air palpable as my TTA team and I huddled around the surveillance screens. It had been months since the civil war had torn our world apart, and our mission was to locate any survivors from the Mellis Family, who were rumored to possess vital information that could change the course of the conflict.

Our hope lay in the Lunar Initiative and Project Gene, both serving as backup as we trekked Hill-Adega controlled areas, searching for clues to the Mellis Family's whereabouts. To our surprise, smaller factions who shared their belief in the Mellis Family's cause began to join our ranks, eager to aid us in our search. And then, just when it seemed like all hope was lost, a crackling chatter emanated from a secret channel within one of these factions. They claimed to be in contact with the Mellis Family, serving as their eyes and ears within the hidden corners of our crumbling society. My heart raced with anticipation as they disclosed the family's hiding place—Sector D of the space station.

Sector D, the smallest and often overlooked section, was known as the industrial heart of the station. It buzzed with activity - relay stations and refineries encircling the station's colossal power source, the Heavy Ion Collider. It was a place where many would dismiss as insignificant, but I knew that the Mellis Family's choice to hide there held a deeper meaning. Automation built this entire space station but the heart of Raylorian Ingenuity began with the HIC. Thanks to the Evanstons, not only did their research create artificial gravity but also making the HIC more of a viable power source than the old fusion power plant down the street from it. The latter still serves as a backup but is rarely used. The HIC was far superior, making fusion as well as nuclear power obsolete.

I couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement mixed with trepidation. Every step brought us closer to our goal, but it also meant confronting the unknown dangers lurking within Sector D. Soon we arrived at the heart of the sector, where the Heavy Ion Collider stood tall and imposing. It crackled with energy, its hum resonating through the air. The relay stations and refineries, like loyal sentinels, guarded the power source with unwavering dedication.

But as we ventured deeper into the sector, something felt off. The silence was deafening, as if the machinery and activity had vanished into thin air. My heart raced, and I urged my team to proceed with caution. And then, we saw it - a flickering light in the distance. Drawing closer, we discovered a hidden entrance concealed behind a massive control panel. It led us to a secret chamber, where the Mellis Family awaited, their tired eyes filled with hope and desperation. Sigma was there first to greet us. With her were Raylorian grade robotic guardians.

Zyra was with the General. All of us then reported what went on in the past. The General knew we changed it because the bodies of Connor and Michelle Evanston didn't match the DNA samples regularly taken from them by the family's doctor. Yet his voice wasn't that of disappointment. I could hear a hint of relief. He was glad that the Evanstons were saved but he still wondered where they were taken. I mentioned someone named Val.

When he asked me to repeat her name, I figured he knew something about her. Yet my answer was uncertain. She only gave me her first name. The General then filled in the gaps. Her full name was Valencia Valentine and what she told me about her being a TTA agent was true but her being hired by him wasn't. Her story came with spoilers but only what she told him—Val operated alone because in the future, Ivon's betrayal split the organization. Those with him called themselves the United Mercenary Organization of the Terran Elite or UMOTE for short. Val explained to the General that they are responsible for many of Earth's heinous terrorist attacks and assassinations in history. GUB's rise to power was also their doing as the latter was like a United Nations but for every terrorist organization that has ever existed. Those terror cells that seem defeated in the public eye found refuge under the umbrella of their fellow GUB. Within this sanctuary, they became untouchable.

All this seemed too much for me as it was for the others on my team. Zahra though, believed it was a sense of renewed purpose. She reminded me that I've always had a bad feeling about Ivon since learning he was responsible for my father's disappearance. Francis had his own suspicions about the guy, saying that Ivon gave off a really bad vibe when he was in his presence—something otherworldly.

The General began to tell us about the mission that Ivon and his team went on that changed everything. They were to be observers throughout time but Ivon had other plans. Small things the General found out later was Ivon's doing. All of it involved giving Raylorian Tech to ancient civilizations. Some cultures in Africa like the Zulus and South Africans had melee weapons not native to their time period. The Asian cultures had gunpowder earlier than what was publicly reported. Germans had stealth technology and a previously struggling Manhattan Project suddenly was green-lit with a fully operational weapon. 

But the biggest and most egregious of them all were the knowledge and power he gave to the Maroons of Jamaica. History says they were never conquered yet the General knew someone was giving them an intellectual push. Sigma's research found that a man that looked like Ivon was with them. Under further inspection, they found it to be him. In the other instances, Ivon hid from the public eye but his ancestry was steep in Jamaican roots as well as Russian and Nigerian. What he did for Russia in the past was unknown but the General had a haunch Ivon and his UMOTE may have staged rebellions leading to a few regime changes within that country.

When Ivon and his team came back to the present from their last recorded mission, only he did. He told the General that an unexplained glitch happened and the two didn't make it. Sigma felt responsible for this happening but later she began to doubt his claim. She has yet to tell that to Ivon's face because he's been avoiding her since that day. He will report to the General or Zyra but if he knows she is gonna be present, he won't show up. 

The General continued with his story. In the history books, those who survived fighting against UMOTE in the motherland called him Mwongo. Mwongo meant "a liar" in Swahili. Yet every language spoken in Africa had their own name for him. Upon hearing this, Francis made the analogy that Ivon was a time traveling Judas Iscariot or Devil, perhaps both. With a reputation that African tribes see him as threat to their peace, the connection was well made. But there was more. 

Ivon, in addition to being greedy was power hungry. Knowing this, I knew one thing—Ivon had to be stopped. Messing with time this much would have far reaching consequences and a man like this couldn't be left to his own devices. The General mentioned he at first hired Ivon only because he helped fix a glitch in Sigma's Quantum Chain program but he came to her first. This problem in the code stopped the hardware from working. Sigma's finished code led to her proposing the idea of TTA to the General after her father, Norman, loved the idea.

Suddenly, Sigma began to feel extremely hurt by Ivon's betrayal because she opened up to him first, believing he really wanted to help her but now saw he had an ulterior motive. This now called into question his origin. As it checks out, Ivon is Naira's first cousin but canonically, his immediate family hasn't moved to the space station yet—they are still in on Lunar Prime. Furthermore, Emmanuel is his mother's maiden name but his father is a Hill.

So this Ivon is from the future? Great! So Val's been hunting a rogue TTA agent throughout time. Where does this leave us? Chasing a mad man throughout history? We already have a war on our hands in our time because of his family.

The General believes the only way to stop this war is to get her supporters to turn on her. Doing so was a long shot. It's been seen that her cult will do anything to protect their fearless leader. Yet enough of a shock from something she's done so evil might change that. Francis proposed a better idea. He was joking at first but then I saw the wisdom in his bizarre, pop culture-referencing guru of a detective reasoning. Cause them to destroy themselves and leave the Queen defenseless. But how would we do such a thing?

As for Ivon, we had to leave that fight for another day. Maybe Val would find some way to stop him. At the moment, he's not our to priority.