CHAPTER ELEVEN, back from the future

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All morning, Emilia had been the quietest she's ever been. She was more focused on the voices inside her head than what was going on around her.

Donald walked into the lab. "Okay, your mission supplies are packed, the schematics have been uploaded into Chase's chip, and your transport is on the way. Did I forget anything?"

Bree sarcastically smiled. "No. We'll just guess what the mission is and see how it all plays out."

Donald nodded. "All right. A particle collider is a three mile long underground facility where scientists—" He was interrupted by Chase. "race subatomic particles at each other at light speed for energy experiments." Chase giggled. "So cool!"

Donald followed along. "I know."

Emilia glanced at them and simply shook her head unamused before Donald explained. "There is a particle collider in Berkeley that is accelerating out of control, and your mission is to shut it down."

Adam gasped. "Oh ho! Awesome!" He leaned closer to Bree. "I hope one of us knows how to do that."

Donald nodded. "Okay. We have to act quickly. The scientists that operate the facility—"

"Leo, that is not a toy!" Emilia groaned, pulling him away by the chair, receiving a thankful look from Donald before he continued on with his explanation. "have already evacuated the control centre, and if we don't shut it down in time, it will create a massive black hole that will implode the entire planet."

"Today?!" Leo gasped turning to the others. He shook his head. "No, that's not gonna work. Today is Shelly Evans' birthday and her mom makes the best cupcakes!"

Emilia slapped him upside the head. "I don't think the cupcakes should be your biggest problem right now, bonehead."

"I'm just sayin' that woman doesn't skimp on the sprinkles." Leo threw his arms out as Emilia walked away, muttering something under her breath so she could focus more on the voices inside her head.

Donald led the bionic trio over to the cyberdesk, glancing at Emilia worriedly, noticing she was spaced out. "Adam, Bree and Chase have all the training they need to shut the collider down."

Leo stood beside Donald. "I don't know, Big D. I think these guys are gonna need some... back up!" He striked a pose causing Emilia to roll her eyes, slapping his arm down as Donald remarked. "Yeah, and that's why you're gonna be 'back up!' here in the lab with me and Emilia."

Adam chuckled. "Oh, he said 'backup' and you said 'backup'. Saying things twice makes it funny." He gasped in realisation before letting out another laugh. "Oh! Saying things twice makes it fun—"

"Stop it!" Donald exclaimed before a ball of light sparked in front of them in the shape of the Saturn planet, and suddenly there was a grown man and woman there in the lab causing them to scream with Emilia pushing Leo behind her.

Donald attempted to reassure them. "Nobody panic! Probably just the cable guys." He said before the man and woman took their glasses off as the man turned to Donald. "Come on, Big D. We just came from seven years into the future."

"Yeah, your time machine actually worked!" The brunette woman added with a smile before the man beside her introduced themselves for the both of them. "It's us! Leo and Emilia!"

"Wait a damn minute." The auburn-haired girl waved her arm around with a flabbergasted expression.

Adam gasped. "Whoa! The cable guys got the same names as you!"

As Leo moved over to the man, Emilia walked up to future her, circling the woman as if she was examining her. "Okay. I've only got one thing to ask." Emilia started to say, coming up with a question to ask the woman to prove whether it was really future her or not. "How old was I when I first discovered my banshee abilities?"

"It was on our tenth birthday and we were eating pizza with mom when we first starting hearing voices in our heads." The woman answered confidently, making Emilia gasp in shock since only her, Lily and Tasha knew the details of how it happened.

"I can confirm that it is me." Emilia informed the group in a calm tone before smiling brightly when she took another glance at her future self's hair. "And I love good with brown hair!"

"So, you guys are the future of them?" Donald asked, wanting to make sure and when he got the nod of confirmation, he smiled back at the group to brag. "Do you know what this means? I cracked time travel! Ha ha ha! I cracked time travel! I cracked time travel!"

He placed his hands on their shoulders. "Can you do me a favour? When I see you two in seven years, can you remind me to tell me how awesome I am? Lemme high-five. Like that."

Both Leo's shook their heads. "Oh, I'm sure you won't forget." They responded at the same time making them both look at each other. "Hey, he just said what I said! Technically, I just said what I said. Okay, you're gonna have to stop doing that. Stop. Stop. Stop!"

"How about both of you just stop, hmm?" Emilia questioned in unamusement before turning to her future self. "In seven years, do I still have to deal with that?"

Future Emilia frowned. "It us and him for the rest of our lives." She told her younger self who turned around and let out a fake cry.

"It's so good to see you guys!" Future Emilia and Leo smiled upon seeing the bionic trio before engulfing them into a hug.

"It's good to see you too... older, yet strangely similar Leo and the same sarcastic Emilia that we know and love." Chase said, unsure of how to respond to them before Donald approached the two adults. "So, what did time travel feel like? Did your body mass increase exponentially as you accelerated towards light speed?"

Future Emilia shook her head. "Sorry to burst your ego but no. Nothing like that happened."

Future Leo nodded. "Uh, we pushed a button, felt a lot of wind, there was a big flash— but yeah, mass and speed stuff."

"So, if you're from the future... then what colour are my eyes?" Adam questioned before he was pushed aside by Bree. "Ignore him." She said before linking her arms with Future Emilia and Leo. "Come on, Future Leo and Em, let's jump to 2025 and see what people are wearing. I want to start now and be a trendsetter."

Future Leo politely denied her request. "Sorry, but it took Big D years to just scrape together enough zanol fuel for us to come here once and go back."

Bree sighed before pointing a finger at the two adults. "But if I end up wearing mom jeans and hair scrunchies, you two are gonna get back in that thing and fix it." Emilia hopped onto cyberdesk, going all quiet again and she kept muttering under her breath, getting attention of Future Leo and Emilia knowing what was going to happen soon.

Donald gasped. "Oh, the collider mission. Head to the equipment room and gear up." He told the bionic trio as soon as he remembered.

"Nice to meet you, Future Leo and Emilia."

Adam smiled. "Congrats Leo on growing out of your awkward stage!"

"Hey, why didn't you just bring Future Adam, Bree and Chase with you?" Leo questioned his and Emilia's future selves. He smiled and pointed a finger at them. "Let me guess. You just hopped in the time machine, dragging Emmy with you and took off without them. That is so future me."

Future Emilia and Leo frowned, stepping closer as the brunette girl said. "Actually... that's why we're here. And why present me is being really quiet, right now."

"Adam, Bree and Chase... don't make it to the future." Future Leo sadly informed them just as Emilia hopped off the cyber desk, haven't heard a single word of what they said and walked out of the lab with nothing to say.

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Emilia had been silent for most of the time, while Donald managed to convince the trio to not go on the mission and go to school like normal, but that didn't stop Emilia from worrying. Her future self hung around with her all day at school, making sure she was okay but knew she experienced the same thing seven years prior. After school, Emilia and Leo had to watch what happened on the mission that the trio didn't return from.

Donald sighed. "Scratch that cookie. I gotta get this thing mission-ready." The bionic trio walk in just as they heard Donald say the last part which made Chase gasp. "Aha! So it's still not mission-ready. Why won't you just let us go?"

Donald plastered a fake smile on his face. "No, no, that won't be necessary. I just need to buy a few things... from NASA. They're having a sale. Everything's a million off. I'll be gone for a couple of hours. Leo and Emilia, you're in charge."

"You got it, Big D." Both Leo's replied.

Donald looked back at his stepson. "Future Leo and Emilia." He reminded the boy before walking out of the lab. Future Emilia rubbed her present self on the back in comfort as she could tell what was going to happen soon.

Adam threw out his hand. "He thinks the mission is too big for us." He scoffed in assumption since none of them knew the real reason why Donald wasn't letting them go, which made Leo quick to correct him. "It's not that he thinks it's too big—"

His future self interrupted him before he could say anything further. "Leo. We promised."

Bree shrugged. "I guess Davenport just lost confidence in us."

Chase gestured to his brother and sister. "Or he lost confidence in you two."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Bree glared at her brother in question before Adam interjected, adding in himself. "Yeah, I'm the one always carrying you two. You're the weak links."

"Oh, I'm the weak link?" Chase scoffed, pointing to himself. "You can't even spell weak link."

As the three siblings began to bicker more, the voices inside Emilia's head were only getting louder causing her to press her hands against her head to try and get them to stop.

Future Emilia nudged the two Leo's and gestured to Emilia causing Leo's future self to widen his eyes before pushing Leo back who stepped in to stop their bickering.

"Guys! Guys! Guys!" Leo gestured to Emilia who was still holding her head. "Look what you're doing to her."

Future Emilia shook her head. "Leo, she's not doing that because they're being too loud."

Leo furrowed his brows. "What do you mean?"

Chase looked at the girl in concern. "Lia?" Future Emilia gasped as Emilia looked straight up at the bionic trio. "Guys, cover your ears now!"

They did as she said, right before Emilia let out a loud ear piercing scream that echoed around them. But as the scream finally died down, they all looked to see Emilia in a daze.

"Emilia? Lia!"

She finally snapped out of her daze, letting out a small whimper. "Guys, I'm only telling you this once and once only. Please, I am begging you, do not go on the mission." Emilia warned them before running out of the lab with her future self running after her, knowing she needed someone there.

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Emilia was with Leo helping him get ready for his date when the they found out that the trio went on the mission. But all was going on in Emilia's head is that they had to save them.

She had to save them.

They had finally arrived at the scene of the mission and when they finally caught sight of them, Leo and Emilia called out. "Guys!"

"What is Emilia and Leo doing there?!" Donald exclaimed from the camera of the rover.

Leo looked at them in panic. "Did you shut down the collider?"

Chase nodded. "Yeah, we just finished." Future Leo and Emilia ran in behind them as Emilia called out. "Then get out of there before I kick your asses!"

Future Leo and Emilia added on. "The room is about to collapse!"

"What?" The trio couldn't hear what they said over the loud rumbling, making Emilia huff out a breath and didn't think twice before running straight towards the trio to push them out of the way, looking up just as the room collapsed on her.

Donald held onto his computer screen, pleading that he didn't just see Emilia die right in front of him. "No! No!"

"Emilia!" They all screamed, rushing towards Leo and the adults.

"Emilia just saved our lives." Bree stated as tears spilled in her eyes when she glanced at everyone in the room. "That was supposed to be us."

Chase almost wanted to cry. "She didn't need bionics to be a hero. She already is one."

Adam stared in shock. "I can't believe what I'm seeing."

"My bestfriend is gone." Leo whimpered, but it wasn't until then when Chase realised something was strange since Future Emilia was still there with them. "Wait— wait a second." He said, looking over at Future Emilia. "If Emilia's gone, shouldn't you be gone too?"

"I don't know. This is all new to us." Future Emilia shrugged, not knowing the answer to that herself.

"Emilia's still in there!" Bree was first to realise before she whacked Adam on the arm. "Adam, dig her out!"

Once Adam lifted enough of the rubble off, they all stared at Emilia laying unconscious between the leftover rubble with blood seeping down her forehead. The boy lifted her out of the rubble and carried her in his arms as they all sighed in relief when Chase checked that she still had a heartbeat and was still breathing.

Donald sighed in relief. "She's okay."

The group soon rushed out of the particle collider room and made their way home.

A couple hours after being home, Emilia woke up groaning in pain, catching the attention of Chase who was the only one in the lab at the moment as he immediately rushed over to her. "I am so glad that you are awake."

Emilia blinked her eyes. "Chase?"

"Don't ever do that again." Chase chuckled in relief. "I— We were all worried about you."

Emilia sighed, a small smile crossing over her face before pointing to Chase. "Only if you don't ignore me when I tell you to not go on the mission." Chase sighed, smiling at the girl before she leaned her head down so Chase wrapped his arms around her, just letting her know that he was there.

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