I was about to ask who his brother was, and then the truth hit me: Mouse’s given name was Dale. His full name, in fact, was Dale Theodore Goodson. Dave was Mouse’s brother! Looking at him with this new information in hand, I could definitely see the family resemblance – another reason he had probably looked familiar. (I also had a feeling that this was Mouse’s corporate connection that Vir had mentioned.)
“Speaking of your brother,” Alpha Prime chimed in, “have you heard from him lately?”
Dave shook his head as he sat back down. “No.”
“Well, it’s imperative that we find him,” my father stressed. “From all indications, he’s been exposed to something exotic and seems to be taking actions that not only threaten the Alpha League but possibly the world. He’s not himself…practically half-crazed. We really need to find him before he seriously hurts somebody – or worse.”
Dave seemed to contemplate for a moment. “That’s a tough row to hoe,” he finally said. “Even half-crazed, my brother’s always going to be the smartest guy in the room. I mean, he built this company. I get all the credit, but I’m nothing more than a figurehead. Everything DTG has accomplished is a product of his ingenuity.”
“But you’re his brother,” Alpha Prime stressed. “Surely you’ve got some notion of where he might be or is likely to go.”
Dave sighed. “Here’s what I know: my brother is always thinking ten moves ahead. Bearing that in mind, he’s not going to tell me anything you want to know, because he already knows you’ll come see me. Likewise, you aren’t going to find him unless he wants to be found, so if you actually do pick up his trail, that means he’s ready for you.”
“So what are you saying?” my father asked.
“That you can’t take my brother on and win,” Dave stated. “With his abilities, no one can. Not you, not the Alpha League, nobody.”
Alpha Prime frowned. “So your advice is what – to just stand down and get out of his way?”
Dave shrugged. “That’s what the smart money says.”
Alpha Prime nodded as he seemed to mentally digest this.
“If I’m being honest,” he finally said, “that’s not going to fly with the rest of the League. Also, some of them may think you know more than you’re saying.”
Dave’s brow crinkled. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Well, with the resources of DTG at your disposal,” my father explained, “you could do all kinds of things to help your brother.”
“In truth, it’s his company,” Dave admitted. “So the resources of DTG are always at his disposal.”
“True,” Alpha Prime intoned. “All right, we should get out of here.”
He came to his feet as he spoke, and I followed suit.
“Thanks for your time, Dave,” my father said, extending a hand.
“Not a problem,” Dave assured him as they shook hands. “But on a side note, I’m not going to have to worry about any of your colleagues paying me a visit, am I? Maybe trying to see, as you suggest, if I know more than I said?”
“Pshaw,” Alpha Prime muttered disdainfully. “Come on, man. We’re the Alpha League – we don’t do stuff like that.”
“Good,” Dave said, “because after this is all over, I’d hate having to explain to my brother how one of his teammates took a shellacking because of me.”
Alpha Prime laughed. “I didn’t realize you had that kind of muscle.”
“Maybe I don’t,” Dave admitted. “But he does.”
As he finished speaking, Dave pointed with his chin towards a corner of the room – the area where the weird metal sculpture was. A second later, I was shocked when the sculpture took a step in our direction.
Alpha Prime stared at the object, which was seemingly some type of robot, then turned back to Dave.
“You have Failsafe,” he stated flatly. “Mouse was supposed to decommission that thing.”
“Well,” Dave droned, “at one point, Mouse picked up some chatter about some people maybe wanting to kidnap me, so he gave it to me for protection. Sort of like a guardian angel.”
“More like a guardian killer robot,” my father shot back.
“Anyway,” Dave said, “I’ve enjoyed the visit. Come back any time.”
“One more thing,” Alpha Prime said. “Why’d you revoke my access?”
“I didn’t,” Dave replied. “I assume that was my brother’s doing.”
Chapter 42
We left Dave’s office the way we’d come in – through a phased window (which I then made solid again).
“Hold up,” I said to my father as he prepared to drop to the ground. “I’ve got a couple of questions.”
“And you want to ask them here?” he asked, making an all-encompassing gesture. “We’re a bit on display.”
He was right, of course. Two people floating in the air as we were did make for something of a spectacle.
“Up here, then,” I suggested, flying to the roof of the floating cube. My father followed and landed in front of me a second later.
“Okay, son,” Alpha Prime said. “What’s on your mind?”
“A couple of things,” I admitted. “First and foremost, what’s Mouse’s power?”
“His power?” my father echoed.
I nodded. “Yeah. I’ve never asked Mouse about it and he’s never told me, but I’ve heard people reference his power on several occasions, and his brother mentioned it just a few moments ago. It occurs to me that if I’m going to help run him down, I need to know what he can do.”
My father rubbed his chin for a second before responding. “Mouse has something he calls autogenetic cognizance.”
My brow wrinkled in confusion. “What’s that?”
“The way Mouse explains it, you can put any piece of technology in front of him – terrestrial or alien – and he can not only understand it, but improve on it. Basically, he can build a better mousetrap.”
I blinked, trying to take in what I was hearing and its implications. Now I had a better understanding of why others considered Mouse to
