It had been two weeks since the island had flipped. Midas, Jones, Jules and the rest of their friends had settled on Artemis nicely, while the otherworldly duo Astra and Orelia returned to their home.

Things were a little gloomy for Midas as his father Ares, whom he reanimated and freed from his golden state a few months prior, had met a watery grave when the island of Apollo was flipped over.

Thankfully for him, his sister, boyfriend and all his other friends were all going to be there for him to help him through the grief.

Although the three of them had plenty of money thanks to Midas' power showering them with gold, they all decided to finally find jobs on the island.

Because lets be honest. While it's nice stay at home all day everyday, they couldn't just laze about and watch the world go by with a whole new island to explore.

Jules decided to be a mechanic for hire, driving to garage to garage in each town when people couldn't sus out how to fix something and were in need of a master mechanic.

Jones, despite the terrible memories he had of I.O, somewhat missed working at a desk and doing paperwork. Plus the free coffee he got every morning.

So he found a job in a neighboring town and it was pretty much the exact same thing he did in I.O all those years ago except minus the life threatening reality jumping missions.

Having missed working behind a desk too, Midas decided to join him and they eventually ended up getting an office to themselves.

When it comes to Marigold, she occasionally visited the island to see how Midas and the others were doing. Though she knew she couldn't stay forever as she had her own jobs to deal with in her reality.

As for the rest of Midas' friends, they all went off doing their own thing, but remained in contact with him in case they were needed again.

Life couldn't be better for the three of them.

And with Orelia and Astra reunited up in the place they resided in, the two watched over them and the island. Always keeping watchful eyes out for trouble and watching over Oro's 'son'...

However, this time, we're not starting this story there with the titular mastermind.

Instead, we'll be seeing what's going on below them, under the surface.

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In the depths of the Imagined Order things were the messiest it had ever been with equipment and machines tossed around and destroyed, some beyond repair.

After the island flipped, nearly every guard was tasked with cleaning up and repairing all the damages per Doctor Slone's orders, who miraculously survived despite being locked in a room after The Foundation rescued John Jones.

For the past few weeks she had concealed herself in the engineers area of the Bridge, with no one having any knowledge of what she was up to. Though it keeps the guards guessing about it.

Two guards fixing things up in Island Control briefly talk amongst themselves about it.

"I'm telling ya man. Slone's probably got something BIG planned after the island flipped." #1 says, mopping small pieces of debris away with a broom.

"She always has a plan dude." #2 responds, sorting through files and putting them in the correct draws. "She's probably real pissed off after Jonesy escaped with the Foundation and that other guy."

"Whatcha think she's working on?" #1 asks, leaning against the broom.

"Beats me man. Maybe it's related to the big drills that are under construction right now?"

"Nah. I betcha it's something she's gonna send in Midas and Jones' direction. She really wants them dead after the amount of trouble both have caused her."

The guards continue to guess until they're silenced by someone walking by. One of Slone's personal bodyguards, Gunnar.

"Hey! You two. Quit standing around doing nothing and make yourselves useful." He orders.

"Yes Gunnar, sir!" Both respond, standing straight and resuming their work.

Despite having his head bashed in by the Foundation's incredible strength Gunnar didn't take too long to recover from the injuries he sustained. He was one of the toughest brutes in I.O's organization and an apparent chainsaw collector, plus Doctor Slone's personal bodyguard.

"Hey! Mr Gunnar sir!" #1 calls out while continuing to sweep the floor. "I have a question!"

Gunnar raises an eyebrow in annoyance.

"Make it quick solider."

"Do you have any idea what Doctor Slone's been up to the past few weeks?"

He shrugs with a grumble.

"I don't know. It's nothing to do with me or you solider. Now, get back to work." He orders, picking up a folder and shoving it under his arm.

"Yes sir!!"

As they resume working Gunnar begins making his way through the walls of the Imagined Order to a specific room he was called to. He approaches a door locked with a code input panel on the wall. He taps on the buttons, punching in a password.

The door opens with a beep and he enters.

"You wished to see me, Doctor Slone ma'am." He says, the door closing behind him.

The I.O's despicable leader smiles, turning around from the workbench in front of her and facing Gunnar.

"Indeed I did. Did you aquire that file of intel on that nuisance Midas? It's important for my little... experiment here."

Gunnar takes note of the workbench in front of his boss. Whatever was there was covered underneath a sheet.

"Yeah. Got it right here."

He passes it to her, Slone thanking him.

"What is it you're working on anyway boss?"

"Something that I know will be of use to us when we launch our assault on the island at some point." She explains. "Take a look for yourself my friend."

Slone removes the sheet, allowing Gunnar to take a look at her experiment. He raised an eyebrow in interest.

"Huh. This is certainly something boss. The upgrades you gave it look good."

"Thank you. I knew you would take an interest in it. They'll be a great help in taking out the Seven plus Midas and his little friends."

The two of them sit down as Slone recovers the experiment with the sheet.

"Where'd you find them anyway?" He asks out of curiosity.

Slone folds her arms with a smile.

"That's for me to know and you to... well, find out."

Gunnar nods in understanding, knowing to not argue with his boss.

"Now, what's our progress on drilling to the island?" She questions.

"Ah. We're nearly halfway there. Should be another month or so until we break the surface."

"Good, good. I suppose it'll give that golden freak a few more weeks of peace before I finally end him along with his friends."

Slone opens up the file, but not before turning back to Gunnar.

"You're free to go now by the way."

He jumps slightly, clearing his throat and nodding.

"Oh, of course. Thank you ma'am. Have a good day."

He gives her a quick salute before walking out the engineering bay. She returns to the file and begins reading over all the information it has on the titular mastermind she loathes so much.

"This whole experiment wasn't originally going to be done with them...but now it'll be something Midas will never forget." She smirks, fetching a pen from her pocket and scribbling down a few notes.

"I'll train it to be the I.O's ultimate soldier. No...an assassin sounds like a more appropriate title..."

Slone uncovers her experiment a little to reveal their arm. It was completely made out of metal materials, almost like a cybernetic arm.

"You'll be one of my most incredible henchmen. Nothing like the others." She mutters.

Picking up a cloth she begins polishing the arm, cleaning it until it has a few sparkles from the light shine off it. Then, she fishes out a page of blueprints from under the bench and opens it up.

"But first, I have a few more minor additions and adjustments to do before awakening them from their unconscious state." She continues talking to herself. "Then, I can put this plan into action."

Before she can get started, a knock comes through the door. She groans in annoyance and recovers her experiment with the sheet.

"What now I wonder?" She says, opening the door.

Slone finds a guard holding a mop in front of her.

"What's the problem guard? It better be important as I'm busy right now." She questions, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Sorry to disturb you ma'am but uh... the big guy wants to see you.."

Slone hums to herself, knowing exactly who the guard was talking about.

"Ah, him... What does he want?" She wonders, going back in to recover her file on the experiment.

"Not sure. All I know is he wants to see you, Doctor Slone ma'am."

With a sigh she closes entry to the engineering bay and makes her way to 'the big guy's' office. Slone couldn't help but let what little curiosity she had within get the better of her.

The last time he of all people called her to his office was when Jones had gone rogue and abandoned the I.O to fix the Zero Point. He was furious about the blond's betrayal and ordered Slone to bring Jonesy to him alive so he could deal with him personally.

And thus far Slone hadn't been successful in that task, having let Jones slip out of her grasp a month ago when she had him right where she wanted him.

"I think I know where this is going..."

As Slone begins approaching a door locked by a keypad two guards notice her and, knowing why she's here, step aside. She puts in a code and enters the room.

"You wished to see me, sir."

She glances over at the man opposite her. The light reflection off his glasses, hands put together and a stare that would shake the most fearful. Despite the light, she couldn't see him at all except for his hands and glasses.

Made him look all the more menacing.

"Ah, Slone. No need to be formal with me. The two of us share a position in this industry. You know you can refer to me as my name, not just sir."

"Very well... Genō..."

The man in question chuckles, kicking his feet up as Slone takes a seat.

"Glad we sorted that out. Now, to the matter at hand."

His cheerful-ish smile disappears as he glares at her.

"I'm already aware of your failure to capture Jones and erase his memory." He says. "This is such a simple task, yet you're struggling to locate that blond idiot and brainwash him. How could you let him escape that easily?!"

Other agents would have started quivering in fear as Genō started yelling and staring daggers at them.

But not Slone.

She wasn't going to be phased by his death stare.

"I understand that I failed you in that regard. But rest assured, it won't happen again. I'll-"

"Slone."

She stops mid sentence as he interrupts her, raising his hand and shushing her.

"We're going to be at war with the Seven soon. In that time, I demand you drag that braindead blond back here so I can deal with him myself."

"Yes, Genō."

"Ah, and while you're at it, find that golden freak. He's been left alive for far too long."

She nods, knowing who he was talking about.

"I understand."

While hard to see, a smile forms on Genō's lips, relieved to know that Slone would be sure to not fail him a second time.

"By the way sir, I have a new project on the works." She remembers.

"Oh? Is that so?"

"Mhm. I have a file and blueprints on it if you'd like to take a look."

Slone begins laying all the information down on Genō's desk, letting him take a look at it. A hum of approval is enough to tell her he's quite impressed.

"Hm. This is certainly quite the experiment you're working on Slone. How long will you need to complete it?" He asks, pushing the paperwork back to her.

"I'm sure it'll be finished by the time we wage war against the Seven, sir."

"Hmph. Good, good." He says. "I'm assuming you've given it a name?"

"Indeed...

.

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