My son was born in a secure underground fortress deep in the Swiss Alps. By ancient laws, no member of Gilbert's family was able to set foot in the place, and no one sent by him could come either. The gatekeepers were steadfastly vigilant; they could see right through subterfuge, and anyone caught out in a lie suffered horribly. Those who survived the experience were never the same.
Here was a place where I could raise my son in peace, and where I could start rebuilding the shattered remains of my empire.
I wasn't convinced at all about Gilbert's turnaround, and I was determined to find out the reasons behind it, one way or another.
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When my son turned three, I had him tested to see whether he leaned more towards being a hero or a villain. I didn't intend to force him down the path to villainy if he turned out to be a hero, but I was relieved when the pendulum swayed in favour of his following in my footsteps. It meant I could now create the perfect weapon to use against Gilbert. He wouldn't be expecting me to use his own tactics against him, so it would catch him roundly off-guard when his own son turned on him and brought him to his knees.
It would be the perfect revenge.
At fifteen, my son completed his first initiation, and he chose his name; Copy Cat. He started learning the skills he needed to impersonate people perfectly, right down to the smallest details, and when I saw his aptitude for mimicry, I revised my plan. Copy Cat would instead become another Mister Impossible Sentinel, and commit crimes for which the original would have to answer. And since Copy Cat was so good, no one would be able to tell the difference.
Mister Impossible Sentinel was going to be in a lot of trouble. And since he didn't even know what his son looked like, he'd have no clue there was a young man out there ready to sow discord and put Gilbert and his cohorts back under the microscope. I was still convinced he and his allies weren't the shining examples of humanity the general public were cozened to believe, and Copy Cat would be an excellent means of getting to the truth, one way or another.
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On Copy Cat's eighteenth birthday, I sent him out. He was more than ready to take on his father and bring him down, and I knew there was nothing more I could teach him. I told him to choose his own path, and to do what he felt would be best to get to the heart of the matter concerning Mister Impossible Sentinel and his true motives.
Two months after Copy Cat's departure, I got word of his first mission.
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"Mother, I've done it," he said, beaming at the small screen he used for his comms.
I took a deep breath. "How did you do it?"
He shrugged. "I decided to impersonate The Switcher, instead," he said. "Her and Father seem to be getting on famously; they've got a daughter, who's calling herself Star Sentinel. She's got a boyfriend called Wildfire; I'm going to see if I can't impersonate him and draw her away from the superhero life."
I admitted to having my heart in my throat, but I'd promised him I'd never try and make him do something he didn't want to do, or wrap him in cotton wool. His destiny was his own; I had no right to change or alter it in ways he didn't want. "I'm sure you'll do well," I told him. "But please, darling, be careful."
"I will be," he promised, before cutting the link.
I sat back and took a deep breath. My empire was slowly coming back to life, and if Copy Cat succeeded in bringing Star Sentinel over to our side, it would be one more nail in the coffin for Mister Impossible Sentinel. Hopefully he had no clue of the trouble brewing under his roof, or there'd be hell to pay. It wouldn't take a genius to work out the brains behind this operation, and if Gilbert grew angry enough, he wouldn't let his love for me get in the way of finally putting an end to me once and for all.
That is, if he didn't kill my son instead and make me suffer the loss of yet another family member.
But what he didn't know was that I had another child, a daughter who I was now training to replace me. I was getting on, and a new, younger generation would need to take up the role of bringing Mister Impossible Sentinel and his cohorts to his knees, exposing them for the frauds they truly were. Miss Direction was already proving she had as agile a mind as I, perhaps even more agile, and I knew she'd be a worthy successor. With sharp minds such as hers, my mission, started at the behest of my mother, would come to final fruition.
I had to be careful, though. This time, the invasion would need to be more subtle. Copy Cat was already doing a fine job, but I needed strong hands and sharp minds in case he failed. Miss Direction and her friends Rewind, Miss Calculated, and Anne-Amy were the best of the new generation. Mister Impossible Sentinel was going to be in for a headache when they crossed the channel to start my mother's work anew.
He was, after all, getting on, and all his hopes were pinned on Star Sentinel to take up his mantle. But there was his mistake. He hadn't spread his resources, but had concentrated all his efforts on one child. If Copy Cat got her away from under his thumb, he'd be out on a limb, a prime target for the final destruction I planned to visit on him for all the pain he'd caused me and my family.
I still loved him, and likely always would.
But even the strongest and most steadfast love had its limits.
And Gilbert had stretched my love to the breaking point.
It was time to bring him to his knees and end this game once and for all.
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